The Unexpected Teacher

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I profit from this writing. Comments are appreciated.

Harry Potter was fuming. Snape had just unceremoniously thrown his out of his office and put an end to his occlumency lessons. As Harry trudged his way through the halls leading back to Gryffindor Tower, he couldn't quite decide who he was more frustrated with – himself for his insatiable curiosity and seeming inability to figure out occlumency; Snape for his, well, everything; his father for letting him down through his appalling behavior in Snape's memory; or Voldemort for making all of this necessary.

Harry sighed. What had Dumbledore been thinking? Despite Dumbledore's odd behavior this year, he should have known how well this arrangement would work out. It was common knowledge that Harry and Snape mixed almost as well as oil and water. Why couldn't Dumbledore find someone else or find the time to teach Harry himself?

Harry would have relished the chance to learn from Dumbledore, the person he admired and respected above all others. The man he had slowly been coming to love as a mentor and proxy grandfather. There was a clawing feeling in his heart that the odd sensation he had felt the night Mr. Weasley was injured might hold the answers he was looking for. Harry couldn't think about that now. Dumbledore must have his reasons and he, Harry, would only hurt himself more by speculating.

Harry dodged into a bathroom just before he made it back to the common room and realized there was little chance he would be able to hide that something had happened. He was pale and on edge despite his best efforts to settle himself to avoid awkward questions. Not to mention that his scar was standing out more plainly than usual as had happened after each of his lessons with Snape. All the more reason, in Harry's mind, to end these lessons that clearly were having no benefit.

Resolved that he would not be able to avoid the coming questions from Ron and Hermione, Harry resumed his trek to the common room.

The Fat Lady gave him a curious and concerned look as he entered but seemed to decide it was best to hold her tongue. As he entered, he found that Ron and Hermione had managed to snag their favorite spots by the fire. They seemed to be having one of their arguments and hadn't noticed Harry yet. Harry wondered ruefully when his two best friends would figure out, they fought so often because they fancied each other and were neck-deep in denial.

Ron and Hermione broke off their argument abruptly as Harry dropped into the couch across from them. Hermione broke the silence almost immediately, "Harry? Why are you back so soon?"

Harry thought of lying but in the deeps of his shame and frustration begotten from his father's behavior, he couldn't bring himself to do so. "Snape ended our lessons," he said simply.

"I'm sure that's a relief, mate. The less time with Snape the better if you ask me," Ron mused.

Hermione gave Harry an anxious look. "I'm sure Professor Snape must have his reasons... But can you honestly say that you've made any progress on learning Occlumency?"

Harry shifted uncomfortably, "I think I at least have the basics. But you know as well as I do how well this was going to go."

Hermione sighed, "It was strange for Professor Dumbledore to choose Professor Snape. But not many people know Occlumency let alone how to teach it."

"Harry, you're trying to learn Occlumency?" Ginny's bright voice startled Harry, Ron, and Hermione as she came and settled next to Harry on the couch, eyeing him curiously.

Harry shrugged, "Dumbledore suggested it but Snape hasn't taught me a thing."

Hermione added critically but not unkindly, "It doesn't seem like you've been trying very hard to learn either."

Harry ignored that comment and was glad when Ginny continued, "How is Snape trying to teach you? There is more than one way to pick up occlumency."

Harry thought Ginny knew more than she was letting on from how pointed this question was. He replied cautiously, "Basically Snape would tell me to clear my mind and do whatever is necessary to keep him out. Then he would use legillimency on me."

Hermione and Ron look baffled at how little instruction Snape had provided. Ginny, however, gave a resigned sigh and said, "I was afraid of that. And you're sure Dumbledore won't teach you himself?"

Harry found this an almost throwaway question but found himself unable to resist answering. Which was odd considering he considered himself a master at dodging questions he didn't want to answer.

"I won't bother Dumbledore with this. He's done enough already. I won't rely on him to arrange everything in my life," Harry seethed, shocked at the agitation and anger that laced his own voice.

If Ginny was taken aback by the heat in Harry's response, she did not show it. "Naturally. You should be able to choose your own teacher."

Harry felt his frustration loosen in his chest. Harry wasn't certain what Ginny was doing but it seemed to be helping more than anything else had. "Thanks, Ginny. But the problem is that Snape and Dumbledore are the only ones that could teach me as far as I'm aware. So, there's no use."

Ginny laughed which set Harry off-balance even further. He was about to surly ask her what was so funny but she beat him to it. "Well then, today's your lucky day. I can teach you if you'd like."

Harry Potter was rarely caught flat-footed, but he had not expected this. By the shocked and intrigued looks on Ron and Hermione's respective faces, they were equally unprepared for Ginny's declaration. Ginny was certainly full of surprises lately.

After the incident over the Christmas holidays, Harry had apologized to Ginny over some late-night hot chocolate. As part of the apology, they talked late into the night about the Chamber and Tom Riddle. Harry was hesitant to acknowledge to anyone other than Ginny that the night and conversation had taken place. It felt too intimate. Too personal. He had been vulnerable with Ginny in ways that he had never been with anyone before. He suspected it had been the same for her.

When Harry did not reply right away and appeared to be thinking over the offer, Ron and Hermione seemed to burst with questions. They seemed to want to know everything from when Ginny had learned occlumency to who taught her and why reveal her knowledge now. Harry could see how uncomfortable Ginny was becoming from the torrent of questions and knew he should intervene.

Harry cleared his throat which caused Hermione and Ron's next questions to die in their throats. He threw a disapproving look at the pair of them, "You don't have to answer any of those questions if you don't want to. If you'll teach me, that's enough for me. I trust you, Ginny."

Hermione gave Harry a sheepish look realizing that her curiosity had gotten the better of her and that she'd overstepped. Ron was clearly feeling guilty but determined to hear more. Regardless he deferred to Harry's judgment.

Ginny nodded, "I wouldn't have offered if I wasn't willing. When would you like to start? We'll need to find somewhere private and quiet."

Harry sighed, "The Room of Requirement is probably out since we don't want to give Umbridge any more reason to be suspicious about the 7th floor... There's a small hidden office near the entrance to the Astronomy Tower. What do you think Ginny?"

Ginny smirked, "We can use your cloak to get there without notice. No need to tip anyone off to what we're up to or where we are going. We could go now?"

Despite Harry's earlier agitation, his curiosity about learning from Ginny and getting to spend more time with her beat out his internal struggles. Harry nodded and stood offering Ginny his hand to help her up.

Ginny gave him an odd evaluating look before taking his hand and letting him help her to her feet. Once she was on her feet, she made her way to the portrait hole with Harry in tow. It was only after they exited that they realized they were still holding hands. They both flushed and dropped each other's hand.

They quickly dipped around a corner and slipped under Harry's invisibility cloak. Neither Harry nor Ginny broke the silence as they moved through the castle. The close proximity nor the silence was necessarily uncomfortable, but Harry couldn't help but feel a little overwhelmed by the subtle smell of Ginny's perfume.

It was a sweet flowery scent that Harry could not deny that he found incredibly attractive. He also couldn't deny that Ginny's scent was starting to make him feel lightheaded. This was not the first time he had found Ginny attractive, but he was keeping that to himself for the moment.

Due to his distraction, Ginny had to elbow him to provide the password to the portrait of the Roman goddess Diana that served as the doorway to the abandoned office. Drawn back to his surroundings, Harry took in the quaint office with its large stained glasses window and its small sitting area. It was intimate and cozy with a strong professional edge. Harry and Ginny settled onto the two couches facing each other. The pair smiled shyly at each other.

Ginny began regaining her confidence, "Great thinking, Harry. This should be perfect. We might need to come up with a cover story for our disappearances, but we can worry about that later. Ready to begin?"

Harry nodded and Ginny pressed forward, "I'm going to lead you through a guided meditation that should help you lay the foundation to start constructing mental barriers and organize your mind against prying legillimens. Will you be comfortable closing your eyes and be able to relax with me here?"

Harry shifted into a more comfortable position on his couch and nodded, "I trust you, Ginny. What do I need to do?"

Ginny beamed at him, "Good. All you'll need to do is listen to my voice and follow my instructions best you can."

For the next hour, Ginny spoke softly, guiding Harry through a meditation to begin building up his mental defenses and discipline. The hour left the two spent but optimistic about the progress Harry had made.

Over the course of the next several weeks, Harry and Ginny continued their lessons. They had progressed to the point where the first half of the lesson would focus on a constructive meditation while the latter half would involve Ginny trying to break through Harry's defenses with her growing legillimency skills. Harry was feeling more in control of his emotions a vision by the day despite Voldemort's typical whirlwind of emotions.

The two had put out the story that they were working on advanced defense magic, but the Hogwarts rumor mill had its own ideas. Primarily DA members bought their cover story. Others insisted they were plotting some sort of stunt to get back at Umbridge. Further, others thought they were having some sort of illicit affair – snogging or possibly even going much further according to a small number.

Harry and Ginny weren't particularly concerned about the rumors and had shared laughs over some of the more ridiculous ideas. That's not to say the impact of the rumors was all laughs.

The pair had been summoned to see Professor McGonagall for an explanation. After they explained, Professor McGonagall warned them to avoid typing off Umbridge but otherwise gave them her full support.

Michael Corner was not so understanding. Ginny and her now ex-boyfriend had gotten into a heated row over the rumors. When Ginny had refused to explain the nature of the lessons and Michael had tried to put an end to them, Ginny had put her foot down and had ended the relationship in no uncertain terms. That alone had spurred their own series of rumors. The fact that Ginny didn't appear to be all that cut up about the breakup did nothing to quell the rumors.

Harry had not been present for the fight, but he couldn't help feel guilty. He had even gone as far as to apologize to Ginny, but she had brushed it off casually. Ginny had confided in Harry thereafter that she had been getting tired of his tendency to treat her like she was made of glass, so it wasn't a huge loss.

His guilty conscience was not given much rest however when he started having dreams about Ginny. Dreams that made him glad that Ron could not perform legillimency but very worried because Ginny herself could and was regularly testing his defenses. For whatever reason, the better protected he kept these thoughts and dreams the more they seemed to grow and multiple.

Harry wasn't fully oblivious. He had known for some time that he found Ginny quite attractive and that his feelings towards her were a little more than friendly since they had begun opening up around each other over the last two years. Harry felt that he could be more himself around her than he could with anyone. Except for maybe Dumbledore. Well before this year anyway.

This all came to a head a week later. Harry and Ginny had just finished their meditation and were getting into position to begin their practical training. Harry was feeling more distracted than usual. Especially with how the setting sun and its refraction through the stain-glassed window were enhancing Ginny's bright hair.

Ginny said something and Harry had to shake himself, "Sorry, Ginny. What was that?"

Ginny smirked, "I asked if you were ready."

Harry felt his face begin to burn and ducked his head. He took a few deep breaths to settle himself while pretending to fiddle with his shirtsleeves. Finally feeling the color recede, Harry looked up and said awkwardly, "Sorry about that. I'm ready now."

Ginny raised her wand and cast the spell. For the first few moments, Harry was able to keep her out but then an intrusive memory slipped through the crack formed by his earlier distraction. Harry – and by extension, Ginny – were pulled into his latest dream of Ginny.

Harry watched as Ginny soared through the air in the early morning sun. He felt the warm fresh air of the dawn surround him as he admired Ginny as he approached the orchard. The dawn sun was making her hair sparkle and shine as if her hair was part of the morning sky.

Harry waved up a Ginny and she sent him a radiant smile. Harry returned her smile as she dived down to meet him. Now on the ground, the couple pulled each other into a fierce hug. Went they parted, Ginny gave him a blazing look. Harry leaned forward and pulled Ginny into a passionate kiss.

The kiss may have lasted minutes, hours, or a fortnight for all Harry could tell. When they finally broke off the kiss, they gave each other loving grins. Harry whispered into the morning air, "Good morning, Gin. Have I told you how brilliant you look windswept in the morning light?"

When Harry's real-life surroundings rematerialized, he couldn't tell if Ginny had released her spell or if Harry had ejected her from the memory. Ginny's expression was curious and appraising.

Harry decided that a confession was in order, "I promise this wasn't some ruse to spend time with you. I only realized I fancy you a couple of weeks ago when dreams like that one started. I won't deny what I feel but I can never mention it again if that would keep you as a friend. I don't want to lose you over my feelings, Ginny."

A flash of panic graced Ginny's features for a moment. She appeared to be steeling herself for a confession of her own. Her voice was low and – dare Harry think it – seductive when she spoke, "I believe you, Harry. Besides you're not the only one with a confession to make. I think it's only fair having seen your dream to show you one of mine. Ready?"

Harry could only nod. He doubted he could get enough air in his lungs to respond anyways. The room felt as if all the oxygen had been sucked out.

Ginny raised her wand. Harry was stunned by her blazing look and the mischievous smirk gracing her pale lips. Harry felt the usual probe of Ginny's legillimency reach his barriers. Instead of attacking, however, he felt her push a memory outside of her own barriers and hold it between them. Harry tentatively reached out for it and felt himself pulled into Ginny's dream.

Ginny felt as if she were on cloud nine. She had just won Gryffindor the quidditch cup by snagging the snitch right from under Cho Chang's noise. She entered the common room to renewed cheers. As she made her way through the congratulations of her housemates, she finally found herself in front of a beaming Harry.

Harry pulled her into a hug and with his breath tickling her cheek said, "That was a great catch, Gin. You're amazing!"

Ginny beamed. Feeling at the height of her confidence, she took Harry's hand. "Can I have a quick word outside, Harry?"

Harry nodded. If the look on his face was any indication, he seemed happy to have the excuse to be alone with her.

With some difficulty, they extracted themselves from the common room and made their way to an out-of-the-way room. For a moment they smiled at each other. The next moment Ginny had Harry against the wall; lips sealed in a heated kiss with one hand in his hair and the other roaming his lithe form. Harry's own hands were lost in Ginny's long silky hair and roaming her back.

Harry let himself be removed from the memory as he saw the dream Ginny move towards kissing the dream Harry's neck. The whole experience had left him awed and interested. As Harry's eyes adjusted back to the real world, he saw Ginny still smirking at him now looking very flushed. It was likely that that dream had not ended there.

Recognizing that Harry was back in the present, Ginny asked, "Did that clear things up, Harry?"

For the first time since his confession, Harry grinned broadly. His tone flirty, he asked, "That depends. Did you have that dream recently?"

"I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours."

"Two nights ago."

"Me too. It was probably because of our late lesson." Ginny postulated.

"Probably. So where does this leave us now?" Harry asked shyly.

If anything, Ginny's smile grew, "Well, we clearly fancy each other. And I don't share my dreams about shagging with just anyone. I doubt you do either."

Harry grew more flushed, "No. Would you be my girlfriend, Gin?"

Ginny closed the gap between them and hugged Harry tightly. "Of course I will."

Ginny pulled Harry into a passionate kiss as she settled into his lap. Despite what was to come, for the time being, all was well.