A/N: I think this is the fastest I've ever written a chapter; I hope it doesn't seem too rushed. As some of you know, I love writing Weasley banter, although this was a little more challenging for me. I tried not to make the scene feel too "trope-y"; let me know what you think. Special thanks to deadwoodpecker for her cheerleading as I wrote this.
Harry was unaccountably nervous on the way to the Burrow that night. He had no reason to be, he kept telling himself, despite the huge secret he and Ginny were keeping. It wasn't like the Weasleys would kick him out if they found out that he and Ginny were together – Ron had pressed that point home enough. Even if the family learned that the relationship was already physical, Harry knew he'd be in for more teasing than animus. There'd probably be a heart to heart talk with Ginny's dad too. He'd already endured the sex talk Arthur gave all his sons – and Harry – before their third year at Hogwarts, and sat through a much more thorough – and illuminating – discussion with Sirius and Remus right around the time he'd first started having feelings for Ginny. He still used some of the cleaning charms they'd taught him, actually. He could survive another talk about sex with Ginny's dad – and even her mum – if necessary. That wasn't it. Harry frowned, trying to think.
Dam, chattering next to him as they walked to the building's private Apparation point, was not helping his concentration. Not surprisingly, he was talking about exactly what Fred and George might do to get Harry to reveal the identity of his secret witch. It seemed that Dam and the twins had actually been in communication with each other in advance of this evening. Dam had even told them that the poster was now at a number 4 instead of 2, a fact that impressed the twins to no end, he assured Harry.
"I'll bet you give up her name before pudding," he said confidently, waiting for Harry to hold out his arm so they could Apparate. "Ginny's really going to be working on you too; I could tell she's pleased for you, finally having sex." He snorted. "Maybe my next job is to find her someone to shag too. I know Ramsey thinks she's cute."
Harry took a deep breath, reminding himself that it would be particularly bad form to let Dam get splinched on the way to dinner. He turned on the spot, and by the time they arrived in on the road outside the Burrow, his nerves had calmed somewhat. With any luck, Dam's attempts at getting Harry to admit something would be obvious enough that they'd interfere with whatever the twins had planned. Harry didn't really want to think about Bill, who'd be harder to get anything past. He could only hope Fleur would be in a particularly distracting mood.
Despite warning himself to greet everyone else in the family first, Harry couldn't help but catch Ginny's eye the moment he and Dam entered the Burrow's kitchen. It was as crowded and loud and raucous as always and yet for a long moment, Harry had the odd, disconnected feeling that he and Ginny were the only two people in the room. The last time he'd seen the gold jumper she was wearing, it had been bunched up on her floor, right after he'd pulled it over her head. And he'd slipped his hands under the lace of her bra and rubbed his thumb across her . . .
"Firewhiskey?" Ron was suddenly beside him, shoving a glass into his hand and giving a second one to Dam. "Watch yourself," he warned under his breath. "You and Ginny are looking at each other like you want to start shagging right at the table or something."
Nerves returning as the image of him fondling Ginny evaporated, Harry took a big gulp of Firewhiskey. "Thanks," he muttered back, watching as Dam made the rounds of the room, greeting the various Weasleys as if he'd known them all for years. "How long have you been here?"
"Long enough for Ginny to need a shot too," answered Ron. "Mum accosted her immediately, wanting to know if she knew who your new witch was and if she was a 'nice girl'. Ginny almost lost it right there."
Harry groaned. "So they've all read the article then?"
Ron snorted. "Read it, quoted it, picked apart any hidden meanings they could discover. You're in for it, mate."
Harry sighed. "Thanks for warning me, at least. I can handle the questions. You and Hermione need to make sure I don't accidentally put my arm around Ginny or something."
"Already on it," said Ron. "I've got 'Harry duty' and Hermione's watching out for Ginny. She's as likely to give it away as you are, you know."
Across the room, Ginny looked up from where she was standing with Angelina and Hermione and caught Harry's eye again. She looked ready to mouth something at him when Hermione suddenly elbowed her in the side. Ginny dropped her eyes back to the conversation she'd been having and Harry stifled a groan. "Tonight may very well kill me," he said.
He didn't realize how loudly he'd spoken. Suddenly George and Fred were there on either side of him, familiar looks of glee and curiosity on both of their faces.
"What might kill you, Harry?" Fred asked. He was twirling something in his hand – the newspaper article, artfully folded to look like a . . .
"What the bloody hell is that?" asked Harry weakly, even though he was pretty sure he knew.
"It's a Potter-Prophet-Paper-Penis," announced George in a loud voice. All other conversations stopped.
"Prototype Potter-Prophet-Paper-Penis," corrected Fred. It's the first one we've made, and I'm not sure we got it exactly right. He held up the object, which looked disconcertingly like a real male sexual organ, complete with balls hanging below. They'd worked it so Harry's own, drunk face spread across the tip, while two sets of roving hands (his and Katerina's, he realized) moved up and down the shaft. They must have run out of paper then, because the dangling testicles seemed to be covered with the weather report. It had been wet and steamy that night, apparently. Harry shook his head, not sure whether to laugh or groan.
"Angelina, Katie, you played Quidditch with Harry. Ever catch sight of him in the changing room? What do you think?" Fred waved the penis in the air and everyone laughed. Harry grinned despite himself.
"Hey, no fair asking Angelina or Katie. It was a lot smaller back then," he joked. Bill leaned down to whisper in Fleur's ear and Harry had the feeling that he'd be meeting with the twins about a special order of his own before the night was over.
"But hey, Ginny can't see it," George said suddenly. "It's not appropriate. Ginny, close your eyes," he ordered. "You're not old enough to see Harry's bits."
"Excuse me? I'm nineteen years old!" said Ginny indignantly. "I'm certainly old enough to see . . . whatever everyone else can," she finished lamely. "Including a paper penis." She flicked her eyes at it and then, ever so briefly, at Harry. I know what it looks like better than anyone her expression said. Harry felt a swoop in his belly.
"A paper what?" asked Molly. She'd just come in from the garden and her arms were full of carrots. Fred dropped his hands behind his back. Molly looked back and forth at her children and shook her head. "Actually, I don't want to know. Sit down, everyone," she said briskly. She flicked her wand and a knife by the sink floated up to start peeling and cutting the carrots.
There was a rather mad rush as everyone tried to find seats. Harry held back, fully expecting that Fred and George planned to sit on either side of him and hoping to thwart their plans by sidling closer to end of the table where their mum always sat. But the twins seemed remarkably unconcerned about their own seating arrangements, sitting at random, nowhere near each other. Harry cautiously sat down next to Molly, figuring she'd be his best line of defense against whatever the twins had planned. His fork clattered to the floor and he bent down to pick it up, only to emerge from under the table to discover that nearly every seat had been magically repositioned. Molly was still at one short end of the table near the kitchen and Arthur at the other, but Harry was now seated right in the center of one of the long sides, with Fred, George, Angelina, Katie, Bill and Fleur lined up across from him like they were his own personal Inquisatorial Squad. Dam was to his left and Ginny to his right, with Ron and Hermione beyond them and Percy and Audrey further still.
Fred and George had made sure Harry was surrounded. For a moment, he wondered if they'd already twigged to him and Ginny and put her directly next to him for easy access to whatever they'd planned. She was laughing along with everyone else at the spell that had rearranged all their seats, flicking her napkin at Fred and very carefully not looking at Harry. He took a deep breath and tried to ignore the tingling he felt on the side of his body closest to her. George was speaking, and Harry tried to focus on him instead. Constant Vigilance.
"Nah Ron, we know he's probably already recruited you and Hermione to help him get out of this," George was saying. "Ginny and Dam are going to be much better at applying pressure. You stay where you are." George looked across the table. "Right, Dam?"
Dam grinned. "That's why I'm here," he said. "I feel it's my duty as Harry's captain to get to the bottom of this, and no one better to help me do it."
"And you too Ginny, right?" asked Fred. "I'll bet you know all sorts of tricks to torture Harry into confessing, don't you?"
"Umm," said Ginny. "I think . . ."
"Of course Ginny will help," interrupted Dam. "She's already used her Auror skills to uncover the secret identities of those witches who broke into our building. Figuring out who Harry's new girlfriend is should be a breeze." He leaned back in his chair. "Where does she live anyway?" he asked. "Over the pub?"
"Umm, no," said Harry shortly. "But, umm, not far." The side of him next to Ginny felt very hot all of a sudden.
"So she's officially your girlfriend then?" asked Molly. She'd stood up and was levitating platters and bowls of food onto the table. "I'm sure she's lovely, dear," she said in a voice that stated very clearly that she wouldn't tolerate Harry being without anyone who wasn't lovely. "Why don't you invite her here for dinner?" So we can confirm her loveliness for ourselves.
"Mum, don't pester him," said Ginny quickly. She shifted in her seat and Harry felt a hint of pressure against his foot. Then it disappeared. "We can be quite a lot to take, as a group, you know. Maybe Harry's . . . girlfriend is shy." Harry heard Ginny's voice trip over the word and he bit back a smile at her vocalization of their relationship. He moved his own foot to tap Ginny's and heard her blow out a soft breath.
"Is that why you've kept her hidden, because she's shy?" asked Audrey, giving him a sympathetic gaze. Audrey was quiet and proper and perfectly matched to Percy, which meant that she often didn't quite understand the rest of his family. Harry met her gaze easily.
"She's umm, she's private," he said. "Not shy. She's actually umm, pretty outgoing, once you get to know her. And smart and . . . "
"She sounds lovely," interrupted Hermione loudly from down the table. Harry stopped, feeling his cheeks flame. Thank Merlin for Hermione. He'd been about to completely ruin his story that the witch wasn't that important to him. Another moment and he might have begun lauding the soft and smooth state of Ginny's skin.
"and she loves Quidditch," he finished weakly. He tried to think of something to say that would deflect his babbling away from the fact that he'd nearly described Ginny to her entire family. "She umm, she's come to almost all our games," he said a little more firmly. Maybe it would make her sound like a crazed fan that he'd happened to start spending time with or something. He sighed, hoping that maybe the questioning would wind down now that the table was full of food. He reached for the nearest platter of potatoes. Ginny reached out at the same time and their hands touched, the simple contact sending a jolt of heat right to Harry's groin. He chanced a look at her.
"Sorry," he said thickly. "You can go first. I'll hold the bowl for you."
"Thanks Harry," said Ginny formally. "That's very nice of you." She reached across his body for one of the serving spoons strewn across the table, the side of her breast brushing against his arm. He jumped in his seat, nearly knocking over his water glass.
"You okay there, Harry?" asked Ron quickly from where he'd been watching further down the table. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to uhh, to send a Stinging Hex your way. I was trying to . . . uhh . . . scratch my foot."
Harry waved Ron off. "Fine, I'm fine," he muttered. He made a show of rubbing his head, hoping it masked the fact that he was trying to adjust himself inside his trousers. Ginny sat back in her seat but reached over to brush her hand across his cheek as if checking for injury. He heard something that sounded like it might have been Ron groaning.
"It didn't leave a mark," she said after a minute. Harry thought Ginny may have shivered then, but she hid it by turning roughly away from him to berate Ron. "Watch out with your hexes," she said. "It got me too, on my shoulder."
While Ron gave a rather insincere apology, his eyes warning Harry and Ginny to behave themselves, Dam sat forward in his chair, his plate already half empty.
"I bet our security cameras at the arena can figure out who she is," he said to Fred and George. He looked down the table. "This is delicious, Molly."
"How could the cameras help?" asked Fred. "Don't you get thousands of people at your games?"
Dam nodded around a mouthful of chicken. "But they can isolate those fans who've also been inside our apartment building, there's a spell or something that'll do it," he said, waving his fork for emphasis. "It's how they keep track of anyone who might be trying to scout our players away to another team, matching the magical signatures or something. He elbowed Harry again. "You brought her to your flat, right?"
It figured that this was the time Dam chose to understand something about magical security wards. Harry shuffled in his seat again and wondered if he could make an excuse to run to the loo. "I'm not sure . . ." he began.
"Wait." Bill spoke authoritatively from across the table. "Did you say you'd gotten her into the building? How the hell did you do that?"
"Fuck," Ginny said under her breath. Harry silently agreed. He might have been able to confuse a hungover Ron about getting a witch into the building, but there was no way Bill would buy it. And Harry had no idea exactly what was required to get a non-resident past the wards these days.
"I uhh, I wanted to," he said, trying to remember if Dam knew for certain that Harry had had sex in his flat. "The wards kept her out though. We uhh, we ended up going somewhere else."
Bill was shaking his head. "Even an attempt should have triggered . . ." he looked sharply at Harry. "Did you do something like try to impersonate Hermione's password?" he asked. "Miriam thought maybe that the charm that allows in regular visitors might weaken over time."
Harry swallowed hard and forced himself not to look at Ginny. "Umm," he said again.
"Ohhh, so that's why I had trouble getting to Ron's this morning," said Hermione suddenly. "Harry, why didn't you tell me you tried to get your witch inside with my name?"
Harry appreciated how hard Ron and Hermione were trying to help him, but he couldn't help but feel that every word any of them spoke brought the secret closer to unraveling completely. He had half a mind to blurt it out right there – maybe announcing that his secret witch was actually Ginny would shock everyone into silence long enough for him to grab her and Apparate away. Like to Antarctica.
A savior arrived in the form of Fleur, who until now had been sitting quietly, rubbing her growing belly with a rather dreamy look on her face. "I'm sure it's fine," she said calmly, leaning over to feed Bill a bite of food off her own fork. Harry saw one of her hands disappear in the direction of Bill's lap and the man's eyes go a bit unfocused. "So Harry wants to keep things with his witch private, so what?" she asked. "I think it's quite romantic." She smiled at him, and Harry had the odd sensation that maybe Fleur knew more than she was letting on."
"But the wards," said Bill weakly.
"'Ze wards are stronger than any other building in London," said Fleur. "And I know you will check them again tomorrow, to make sure. Right now, let's finish enjoying 'zis lovely meal and let poor Harry have some peace to daydream about 'is witch." She picked up her fork again.
Harry wasn't sure if Fleur had called on some of her Veela magic, but her speech seemed to calm everyone at the table. "This isn't over, Potter," said George, leaning in to talk quietly with Fred. "We have many more tools at our disposal to get you to confess."
Harry had no illusions that the twins were ready to give up, but at least he could finish his dinner in peace. Next to him, Ginny began a long conversation with her father about the work she and Ron and Angelina were doing with the Aurors, and Harry did his best to join in. She didn't mention Kane or Robards, instead making everyone laugh with imitations of some of their classmates and discussions about their favorite hexes to use on each other. Fred and George were still whispering urgently with each other, and Bill seemed to have found something more engrossing to think about than the state of the wards on Harry's flat. Dam was still eating, making quiet humming noises of appreciation. Harry filed away the fact that the Keeper could be distracted with good food for another day.
"Which reminds me," Ginny said suddenly, speaking more loudly than she had been. "I have a few books from Hogwarts somewhere in my room that I wanted to bring to my flat." She looked at her mother. "Or did you put the rest of my things in the attic?"
"I'm not sure," said Molly. She stood up and began clearing away the dishes. "I haven't finished emptying out your room yet. You may have to check both places."
Ginny sighed rather dramatically. "Okay, I'll go take a look; do I have time to check before pudding?" She lost her balance as she stood up, falling heavily against Harry.
He grabbed at her waist. "Watch it there, Ginny," he said, hoping no one heard the arousal in his voice. "No more Firewhiskey for you."
"Prat," said Ginny, swatting him away. "Just for that, you can go all the way up to the attic while I search my room. The ghoul always stares at my bum when I'm up there."
"He stares at everyone's bum," said Molly mildly, turning towards the kitchen. "The pies will be ready in fifteen minutes, so you'd better hurry if you don't want to miss out."
George grabbed the bottle of Firewhiskey off the table. "Just enough time," he said, jumping up. "Dam, how good are you at drinking games? Think maybe you and Harry could take on me and Fred?" He looked over at Harry and raised his eyebrows in challenge.
"Dam laughed. "I could probably outdrink almost all of you myself."
"Heh, he probably could," said Harry quickly. "Since Charlie's not here." He swallowed hard, entire body tingling for reasons entirely unrelated to what the twins might have in mind.
Dam clapped him on the back. "You'll be on my team anyway Potter," he said. "I know you're a lightweight, but maybe we can toughen you up."
"I uhh, I promised Ginny I'd search the attic for her," he said, hoping it sounded like he was jumping at the chance to escape more interrogation about his witch. "Like you said, you can probably outdrink Fred and George by yourself." He looked around. "But take Ron if you need a partner," he said. "He can hold his liquor about as well as I can."
"Oi," said Hermione. "Doubtful."
"Eh, we'll figure out even teams then," said Fred. He grabbed Katie's hand. "Want to help me against George and Angelina? I think Bill's a lost cause." He patted his pockets. "But where did I put the . . . has anyone seen the Potter Penis?" he asked. "It's an important part of the game."
"The what?" asked Molly. "Is this the thing I don't want to know about?"
"Never mind," said Fred quickly. "To the sitting room, everyone!"
Harry climbed the stairs towards the attic, the sounds from the sitting room slowly fading away. Ginny had left him at the second floor, disappearing into her room with no words, but a heated look that nearly caused him to follow her to her bed right there, family be damned. Instead, he continued upwards, unzipping his trousers on the way to give some attention to the growing erection he'd been trying to control ever since he arrived at the Burrow. He'd much rather have Ginny touching him from the start, but if they missed pudding there'd be questions to answer and hell to pay. Foreplay was going to have to be abandoned this time.
Ginny caught up with him on the landing outside of Ron's room, panting slightly from the exertion of her quick climb. Or maybe something else; her own trousers were already undone and barely hanging about her hips. She didn't say a word, just crushed herself against Harry, her tongue finding his.
"This is torture," he said a moment later when they pulled apart. "Do you think anyone suspects?"
"Not at all," said Ginny swiftly. "Except maybe Fleur, and she's not going to tell." She looked critically at the steep ladder that led up to the attic. "I really don't want to have sex with the ghoul watching," she said.
Harry shivered. "You want to try to have sex?" he asked. "I wasn't sure if you meant to just do other things." He was already pushing down his own trousers.
"I touched myself all the way up here," said Ginny. She reached out and ran her hand across his penis. "And it looks like you're ready too," she said.
"I've been ready all evening," said Harry thickly. A faint shout from down the stairs made him pause. "Can you be quiet enough?" he asked. He turned Ginny gently around so that her back was to him and she was facing the ladder.
She looked over her shoulder and smirked. "I don't know, can you?" she asked. She leaned forward and grabbed the rungs, wrapping her hands around them in a way that made Harry throb in recognition.
He swallowed hard and pushed Ginny's trousers down to her ankles and her knickers after them. She stepped out of one side and spread her legs, pushing her bum towards him. Harry stepped forward and nestled his erection against her, grabbing at her hips. He snaked one hand around Ginny's front and found her clit, fondling it for a moment and then slipping two fingers inside to assure himself that she was as ready as he was. The wetness there was all the answer he needed. With a grunt, he replaced his fingers with his penis, pushing all the way into Ginny in a single, fluid motion.
Ginny made a small sound of relief and pushed herself more firmly against Harry, wiggling her hips and bending forward a little further. She moved her hands to lower set of rungs, and the new position helped Harry slide another inch inside.
Harry kept one hand on Ginny's clit and moved the other to wrap around her waist, keeping her from falling over as he thrust. He didn't even need to move in and out much; the new position, the urgency of time, and the very real possibility of getting discovered was arousing enough that he needed to focus on not climaxing right then. He leaned forward, pressing his chest against Ginny's back, the soft wool of her jumper tickling his nose. There was something unbelievable about all of it; how many times over the years had he trooped tiredly up here, ducking around this same ladder to get inside Ron's room for bed? He used to lie on the camp bed, waiting until Ron was snoring away, before daring to let his thoughts drift to Ginny and his hand drift down inside his pajamas. How many times had he wanked up here?
And now he was in the middle of a reality that was a million times better than any of his fantasies could have created. Ginny wasn't yelling, but her soft mumbles of right there, fuck Harry, move like that again seemed to fill up the quiet space, interrupted only by the creaking of the ladder as she shuddered against it and Harry's own words in response.
Their climaxes occurred almost simultaneously, surprising him. He'd known he was close, but hadn't quite realized Ginny was there too; normally he looked at her face to recognize when she was close to orgasm. Making love from behind was going to require a new set of observations.
He removed his hand from Ginny's clit and pulled her back to him, his shaky legs guiding them both down to the floor. He kissed her neck and tickled gently up and down her sides while their breathing slowed before casting a number of cleaning charms around them. Ginny added a few too, before turning around in his lap and wrapping her legs around his waist. Harry's penis gave a twitch of interest.
"Again?" he asked, amused.
Ginny leaned forward and kissed him. "A promise for later," she said. She stood up slowly. "Stay up here a minute. I'll tell everyone I found the book in my room and sent it back to my flat." She reached down and pulled Harry to his feet.
He pulled up his pants and trousers. "At least now maybe I can make it through pudding without having to run to the loo to wank," he said.
HPHPHP
Back downstairs, Ginny was deep in conversation with Ron and Hermione at the doorway to the sitting room when Harry arrived. She barely spared him a glance, but he saw a faint blush climb up her cheeks, and Hermione gave him a rather knowing look. The drinking game seemed to have ended in a draw without anyone getting too pissed, and Harry said a silent word of thanks. He ducked when a line of steaming pies floated out of the kitchen and into the sitting room. Molly followed behind them with a stack of plates.
"I thought we'd finish up in here," she said. "So we can listen to the wireless while we eat."
Harry knew his face probably reflected that of most of the Weasley children, who knew they were now in for an hour or more listening to the bleating noise of Celestina Warbeck. But for the fact that Molly's pies were the best he'd ever tasted, Harry suspected that he wasn't the only one who would have made excuses to go back to flats and cottages as soon as possible.
But Dam was bouncing excitedly on the balls of his feet. "My mum loves Celestina," he said happily. "It'll feel like home to listen to her again."
Molly gave him a fond look. Harry glanced at Ron, Hermione and Ginny. They couldn't leave without Dam, and now it looked like he'd be settling in for a while. Harry began to sincerely wonder if he wouldn't need to pull Ginny away again before the evening was through; one orgasm might not be enough.
Dam settled into a chair next to Molly and everyone else took up their places on the sofas and other seats around the room. Ginny flopped into the large, overstuffed chair that matched the one in her flat and Harry had the sudden, perverse urge to squeeze in next to her, pulling her legs over his lap. The thought was enough to send him quickly to sit on the the other side of the room, where he found himself on the loveseat, uncomfortably sandwiched between Fred and George. They were both still steaming faintly from the Firewhiskey, which made Harry feel rather as though he was sitting between two lolling dragons.
The music began and everyone, sans Molly and Dam, gave small sighs of resignation. Harry tried not to look across to where Ginny was. Unfortunately, that meant that he had to look at Bill and Fleur instead, and even though Bill was gently rubbing across the swell of his wife's belly, Harry could tell he was still also thinking about the wards and what he might have done wrong to allow Harry to get his witch inside.
"So how far were you able to get her in?" he asked, leaning forward. "Did she breach the lobby?"
"Harry breached her in the lobby," broke in George with a grin. He turned sideways to look at Harry. "Dam told us the poster's now up to four times." He smirked. "Although that was yesterday, right? Maybe it's higher now?"
Harry was more than a little relieved that there was no way for the twins to know that the poster had just recently changed to the number five. He ran his hands through his hair as Dam laughed.
"So she's a Quidditch fan, huh? Plenty to choose from among those witches camped out in front of our building." He looked over at Ron. "Has Harry seemed more interested in leaving from the front entrance lately?"
Ron shrugged. "Umm, not that I've noticed," he said carefully. He looked at Hermione. "We uhh, we haven't been home much lately."
"Which means that the flat is plenty empty for Harry to bring his witch home," said George promptly. "Bill, what is it you need to approve a non-resident to get into the building? Their name at least, right?"
Bill nodded. "Name, home address, wand information to start," he said. "I was able to take Hermione's voice so Ron doesn't have to come downstairs to let her in every time, but she's a special case."
"Is your witch a special case Harry?" asked Fred in a sing-song voice. "Don't you want her to be able to come visit you in your flat?"
"Umm," said Harry. His mind was a total blank.
"She might start to think you don't care about her, if you won't bring her to your place," added George. "Witches want to make sure you're not a slob, you know."
"Or that you're not hiding another girlfriend there," said Fred.
"Or that you're not embarrassed of her," said George.
"Boys, boys," said Arthur mildly. "Give the poor boy a break. The two of you are lucky to be dating witches you've known for a long time. They knew exactly what they were getting into." He smiled at Angelina and Katie. "Didn't you now?"
"And yet, we still decided to date them," said Angelina dryly. Everyone laughed.
"Right then," said Arthur. "But not everyone jumps into a relationship the same way. Harry doesn't have to bring his witch to his flat – or here to dinner – if he doesn't want to." He directed his next words straight to Harry, who had the feeling Arthur was giving him a piece of advice he might have dispensed to some of his sons over the years. "And if you aren't serious about her, there's no harm in insisting on keeping your own space. Especially if you don't expect her to be around for long."
Fred gave a dramatic sigh. "Is that it then, Harry? Is this witch just a fleeting moment in your consciousness? Are we all wasting our time?"
Harry froze. Arthur had given him an out, and it made sense to take it. If no one thought he was going to be with the witch for long, maybe they'd stop trying to figure out who she was. He'd probably be able to carve out another month or two with Ginny before anyone pressured him again about his girlfriend. It was the smart thing to do, to agree with Arthur.
"She's . . ." Harry paused, the denial on his lips fading away. Even knowing why he should lie, he couldn't say it, couldn't tell everyone the witch was nothing to him, someone they needn't concern themselves with getting to know. Across the room, Ginny was watching him, and it was to her, and her alone, he directed his words. "She's not random, and she is someone I plan to see again. Every single day if I can help it." He took a deep breath, looking for Ginny's expression. She wasn't laughing anymore, and her eyes were expectant. "I'm in love with her, actually."
A moment of silence, and then the room exploded into a cacophony of noise – laughter, incredulity, shouted questions, joking barbs. Harry ignored them all as he saw Ginny's expression morph into the blazing look he'd come to understand showed her deepest emotions.
"In love?" Someone – maybe one of the twins - spoke in disbelief. "We thought you were just shagging!"
Harry numbly shook his head. "Not just shagging," he said, not caring who he was talking to.
"Well then, when do we get to meet 'er, if she's that important to you?" Fleur's voice.
"Maybe we should let Harry . . ." that was likely Ron, trying to help. Harry wanted to walk over to Ginny; he wanted her to walk over to him, and yet, they both stayed frozen in their seats.
Bill interrupted Ron.
"What I want to know is why Harry's staring at Ginny," he said. "Ginny?" Bill's voice turned towards his sister. "Have you been giving Harry advice about his witch? Did you know he was in love with her?"
Bill assumed Ginny had taken it upon herself to help Harry with his relationship issues, just like she did with her brothers. His words pulled Harry out of most of his stupor. He looked at Bill and then gave Ginny a tiny nod, granting silent permission to agree with her brother, to let her keep their secret. Instead, Ginny shook her head.
"I . . . I didn't know," she said shakily. Even from across the room, Harry could see her trembling. "But I hoped." She swallowed, and then directed her words back to Harry alone. "Because I'm in love with you too."
Harry assumed the Weasleys got even louder at that point, or maybe they were shocked into silence; he didn't really notice. No one stopped him as he crossed the room and pulled Ginny out of her chair so he could wrap her in his arms. She lay her head on his chest and he kissed her hair. Her trembling slowed and she melted against him. "Can we just leave now?" she whispered.
"Okay," Harry responded immediately. Ginny chuckled against him in a way that would have probably started something if they hadn't already taken care of their most pressing need up by the attic. Now Harry just wanted to hold Ginny for as long as possible, her head tucked under his chin and their heartbeats slowing to match each other.
But they were standing in the middle of the Weasley's sitting room, in the middle of all the Weasleys themselves, and Harry's happiness couldn't block them out forever. He turned around, gently maneuvering himself so as not to lose contact with Ginny. She turned with him and snaked one arm across his front as they confronted her family together.
Ron and Hermione were the easiest to look at. Hermione was smiling happily at them and Ron was laughing outright. "I knew you two weren't going to make it all evening," he sputtered, wiping his eyes.
For a moment, all attention moved away from Harry and Ginny.
"You knew?"
"And you didn't tell us?" Fred and George turned to their younger brother.
"Only since yesterday morning," Ron protested.
"That's thirty-six hours!" the twins intoned as one.
Harry couldn't let Ron take the blame. "I asked him . . . I mean, we asked him not to tell," he said. "Ginny and I did." He realized how much he liked saying that. He tightened his arm around her and nodded his head at Ron and Hermione. "Thanks," he said quietly.
"So you'd really put your best mate over your brothers?" asked Fred in an aggrieved voice. The rest of the family seemed content to let the twins do the talking. Even Dam was oddly silent, Harry noted.
"My best mate and my sister," corrected Ron. "And yeah, I would." Hermione leaned over and gave him a kiss and he smiled back at her.
"But . . . Harry and Ginny hate each other," said George.
"She hexed him," added Fred.
"Old news," said Harry. "We were both being prats"
"We just needed to get to know each other," said Ginny. She snuggled closer to him.
Harry was relieved that no one seemed inclined to hex him or kick him out of the house so far, or even to make a comment about just how well Harry and Ginny had gotten to know each other, but then again, the silence from the rest of the family might have been because they were still in shock. Bill had a concerning frown on his face and Fleur was whispering rapidly in his ear. Percy looked like he was about to announce the formation of some new Ministry committee designed for the specific purpose of keeping Harry and Ginny apart, and Harry was remarkably glad Charlie wasn't there. Katie and Angelina were, not surprisingly, grinning widely. He chanced a look at Ginny's parents.
Over the years, Harry had seen Molly and Arthur endure some of the toughest circumstances imaginable with respect to their children. He'd seen them sob and worry, heard them argue and yell, seen Arthur nearly killed and Molly kill another, always in pursuit of what was good and what was right, and always with the unconditional love and support Harry himself had come to expect.
He didn't think he'd ever seen them look so pleased though. They were surprised too, he could tell, and he was sure there were going to be many discussions between them in the future. But as he looked at Molly and Arthur standing with their arms around each other much the way Harry and Ginny were, Harry knew without question how happy they were at the night's development. He smiled at them both, feeling calmer than he had all evening. No matter what anyone else thought, he doubted anyone would cross Mrs. Weasley. Ginny's parents smiled back, and Molly even dabbed at her eyes with a towel.
Harry's eyes found Ron.
"You were right," he said simply.
Ron smirked. "I told you, mate." He shook his head with mock worry. "Now you're really in for it."
"Ron's right about something else?" Fred and George weren't ready to let anything go. George looked suddenly at Dam. "Did you know?"
Harry felt a swoop in his stomach that had nothing to do with Ginny. "Uh oh," he mumbled. Ginny squeezed his waist.
Dam lifted his hands in supplication. "No idea," he said. He shook his head. "None. I thought Harry and Ginny were just friends, and that Harry was shagging some fan-witch he met in a pub."
"I'd really hoped he'd not mention that," whispered Ginny.
"Shagging? Ginny, are you and Harry . . .?" Bill finally found his voice, although he didn't quite seem to want to use it. He rubbed at his eyes. "Aren't you too young?"
"For the last time, I'm nineteen," said Ginny. "I'm old enough to do a lot of things none of you realize."
"Like take down multiple witches who've tried to sneak into her building," said Angelina. "She's an amazing Auror already – everyone's talking about it."
"And prevent me from falling on my arse when I'm pissed," added Dam. He grinned. "Guess I'd better stop harassing Harry about all the action he's getting now, shouldn't I?" He shook his head. "That poster," he said, half to himself.
"And I really hoped he'd not mention that," muttered Harry to Ginny. He braced himself.
"The . . . oh shit," said Fred.
"You told us . . . four?" George asked Dam in a weak voice.
"That's . . . two more since Friday," said Fred.
"And you didn't breach the wards to get her inside," said Bill. His voice held andodd mix of relief that his security spells hadn't failed and shock at the reason why. He shook his head and looked at his sister. "But you're . . ."
"Nineteen," said Fleur. "She's nineteen, which iz one year older than when I started dating you." She tugged on Bill's arm. "The bebe needs to go to bed," she said. "And I need . . ." she rose up on her toes to whisper in his ear."
Bill swallowed. "Yeah, okay," he said thickly. He started following his wife out of the sitting room. At the door, he stopped and turned around. "Harry, I . . . we need to have a talk about this. Ginny's . . . she's . . ." he stopped and looked at his sister. "Don't I need to have a talk with him?"
Ginny grinned. "Sure Bill, you can talk to both of us together. We'd like that." Harry snorted in her ear as Bill called out a quick goodbye and left. "That's one way to keep Bill from asking too many questions," he whispered. "Tell him his baby sister's having sex."
"Fleur will calm him down," said Ginny under her breath. "But next time Charlie's in town I bet they pull you aside to make sure your intentions are proper." She giggled. "Should I tell him that I got a good look at that paper penis, and that it's entirely too small?"
"Only if you want the real thing to be hexed into next year," he retorted. "I hope I never see that that particular prototype again."
"You never know," said Ginny with a smirk. "But don't worry, it won't be in public." She patted the pocket of her trousers.
Harry kissed her. "What did you do?" Ginny shrugged. "Let's just say that the faces at the tip aren't the same as before," she said with a grin.
A loud Ahem interrupted.
Across the room, Fred and George had been conferring with each other. They stood up and announced they'd be leaving immediately with Angelina and Katie.
Harry, Ron? Which one of you wants to let us into your flat?" asked Fred.
Ron looked confused. "Our flat? Why?"
George grimaced. "It seems as if you have a poster that needs removing. Now."