Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter

Harry sat in the great hall on a bright Saturday afternoon, finishing his lunch. Nerves danced around in his stomach and a small adrenaline boost had set his blood pumping at a slightly higher speed than normal; he was meeting Ginny in the grounds after lunch. Today was their first official, 'date,' and Harry had suggested an afternoon spent by the lake. Luckily, the weather was perfect.

They'd been going out for a week at this point and Harry tried to spend every spare moment with her, which hadn't been easy due to Ginny's OWLs and his Saturday detentions with Snape, from which he had just escaped.

He grimaced down at his plain grey T-shirt and slightly overlarge jeans, wishing he had something better to wear; very unlikely considering most of his clothes were hand-me-downs from Dudley. It would have to do, but maybe he could run to Gryffindor tower very quickly and do something with his hair-

Relax, it'll be fine, it'll be fine… hard to relax when you're going out with the best looking girl in the school though.

This much was true. According to Hermione, Ginny had been asked out by several boys only a few days after she broke up with Dean, too popular for her own good.

Although they weren't due to meet for another ten minutes, Harry felt restless sitting at the table, and his leg was fidgeting as though there were insects crawling around in his jeans. It was time to leave. Walking around might calm him down a bit and it didn't matter if he was a bit early.

He waited in the entrance hall for a few minutes, pacing a few steps back and forth while idly tapping his wand against his leg. It was such a good day, he really hoped this would go well-

"Harry!"

He jumped and turned to see Ginny walking over toward him.

"Hi!" he said, his voice a little higher pitched than normal. He returned the hug she gave him, trying not to inhale her flowery scent too deeply. She might think that would be a bit weird.

"How long have you been waiting here?" she asked.

"A couple minutes."

"Ah, were you that eager to see me?"

"Er, yeah." Is this what, flirting, is? he thought to himself. He wasn't very good at this... no wonder that date he went on with Cho had been such a fiasco.

She laughed and took his hand, her skin feeling wonderful against his. "I'm just teasing you, O' great Chosen One. Come on, let's go to the lake!"

And so they set off over the sprawling green lawns of the Hogwarts grounds, Harry feeling more relaxed with each passing second as they talked about their classes and other light-hearted topics.

They came to stop by the beech tree at the lake, the same spot where Harry's father had once dangled Snape by his ankle.

Ginny sat down on the grass, her back leaning against the tree. She patted the space next her, indicating for Harry to sit down. He sat down next to her at a somewhat awkward distance that was too far away for Ginny's liking. She rolled her eyes and shifted herself around so that her knees were touching his, taking both of his hands in hers once again.

Harry didn't feel the need to talk for a minute, enjoying the comfortable sensation of a light breeze tickling his face along with the warm glow of the sun, and most of all, the sight of the beautiful girl in front of him.

If he was being honest with himself, he was surprised Ginny wanted to go out with him. He knew all about her crush on him a few years ago of course, and she was extremely shy around him back then. But now, that was ancient history. She was one of the most popular girls in the school, exceptionally pretty, smart, and funny; the list could go on and on really. Although he was the Chosen One, and received plenty of attention from girls just because of that, he still felt like the little boy living under the stairs at times, unwanted and unloved. How could Ginny be interested in him?

He closed his eyes and tried to push these thoughts out of his mind. Ironically, occlumency would be useful in this situation, but he had never been very good at it.

"What are you thinking about?"

"What?" Harry's reverie was interrupted by Ginny, who was giving him an amused smile.

"I said, what are you thinking about? Your head was in the clouds."

"Nothing, really. Just... stuff."

Ginny frowned a bit at this, but decided not to mention it. Instead, she said something rather unexpected. "So I've been meaning to ask... when did you start to fancy me?"

"Oh! Well, er, probably since the end of last year or over the summer, but I was absolutely sure of it when I saw you with Dean."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It was driving me mad, seeing you with him."

"My, my, how the tables have turned."

"What do you mean?"

Ginny seemed to wish she hadn't said this and began to nervously play with her hair. "Well, I was a bit jealous when I saw you with Cho last year. Hermione had told me to relax and act more like myself around you and date some other boys, which I did, but I never really got over you to be honest. I was hoping you'd notice me at some point."

He certainly had. "There's not much to be jealous of when it comes Cho, there was never much there really." Harry didn't think discussing his 'ex' - if you could even call her that - was a particularly good idea, as talking about Cedric with Cho didn't go very well.

"There's still a lot I don't about you, so what do you want to do when you leave school?" Harry asked.

Ginny perked up at this and said, "Promise not to laugh, but I'd like to be a professional Quidditch player."

"Why would I laugh? I could picture that happening quite easily."

Ginny blushed at this, very reminiscent of her eleven year old self. Not bad, Potter. Maybe he wasn't so terrible at this.

"Thanks. What about you then?"

She said that with such optimism, Harry forced himself not to laugh; he didn't know if he'd even be alive after within the next year, let alone after school. "Well, I've only ever thought about becoming an Auror. Beyond that, I don't really know."

"I could see you as a Quidditch player."

"Yeah, maybe." Truthfully, Harry had been losing interest in Quidditch this year with everything else that had been going on, and the terrible secret he had learned recently. Nothing else seemed to matter very much… but the girl in front of him was an exception. "I'm not as good as you though."

"Oh, rubbish" she said, playfully hitting him on the arm. "You're a much better seeker than me."

"Well, not much better and I can't play chaser like you. I don't look as good when I'm doing it either." Where is this coming from? He thought to himself incredulously. Maybe I'm like my dad in other ways than just looks.

At this, she decided to sit on his lap, and he was acutely aware of her breasts pressing against his chest and her cool breath brushing his face. "You're not so bad." She was so close now.

Her warm and soft lips met his and it was a bliss Harry had never known. Sure, he had kissed her before, but now she was right on top of him! It was though an electric current was running through his brain, setting every nerve within his body alight. He was aware of everything; her hair brushing the side of his face, her flowery perfume lingering on her clothes, and his heart beating at a rapid pace. Let this never end.

But it couldn't go on forever and they broke apart, Harry with a huge smile on his face. He just couldn't help it. Giving himself over to the purely physical was something he needed to do more often. It was even better than riding a broom.

They spent most of the day in the shade of the tree, getting to know each other better and Harry savoured every moment. Who knew how long this glimpse of light that had found its way into his life would last. There was only darkness on the horizon.

After a while, the cool air of early evening rolled in and the sun began to drop in the sky, leaving large shadows in its wake. Harry thought it would be a good time to call it a day. And he was also getting a bit hungry.

"Right, let's go and get some dinner then," he said, as his stomach rumbled right on que.

"Agreed," said Ginny with a laugh.

They took each other's hand and began to walk back to the castle, shoulders lightly pressing together.

"I've loved every minute of this, Ginny. Really."

"Me too. We'll have to do this again soon."

Despite his detention, it had been an amazing day, one of the best he'd ever had and would remember for a long time… if he lived long enough.

Hope you enjoyed :)