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They keep bad at bay, bad at bay

7

31. July 1996

It was 7:35 in the morning of the 31st of July, and the door went shut behind Lily and James, who left after Lily looked her son over almost four times.
It took a while because Harry didn't really want to admit his pain, but he couldn't fool his mother. She didn't change his bandages because he needed to take a shower first.

So now this found the two teenagers sitting next to each other with their backs leaned against the headboard smiling at each other and holding hands.
They didn't talk. Both were lost in their own minds for a while until...

"Do you mind if I take a shower?" Harry and Ginny asked at the same time.
Both bursted out laughing.

"Do you need any help?" Ginny asked as she helped him up from the bed.

"You could scrub my back," Harry answered cheekily and waggled his brows as he stood right in front of her.
She just responded with a slight shake of her head in disbelief and a smile on her face.
As she walked out of the room, Harry couldn't stop grinning like a Cheshire cat because he saw her blushing furiously as he made that offer.
They would talk later but he knew it would be alright as long as they were together.

"Auror Black? Madam Bones wants to see you in her office." His secretary told him as he exited his office to fetch himself a coffee from the cafeteria – the fifth one today.
He stayed up pretty late due to the uproar his godson caused. Sirius stayed a few minutes in Harry's room and watched him and Ginny sleeping peacefully next to each other.

As he watched the two teenagers, he couldn't quit the feeling that he wanted what his godson had, too.
Sure, he had his family (well, the Potters, Remus and the Tonks) but he reached the point that he couldn't fool himself any longer that he wanted to be with Amelia properly. He wanted to wake up beside her and spent the rest of his life with her.
Godric, he became a sappy idiot.

"Thanks, Martha," he responded and made his way down the hall towards the office of the Head of the Magical Law Enforcement.
Sirius greeted the two security guards that stood at both sides of the door, knocked, and opened the door without waiting for the response. She waited for him so he knew there wouldn't be anything he would interrupt.

From over the desk the woman he – as Rose so bluntly put it the other night – nailed for the last five years was so immersed in her work that she didn't even acknowledge his presence.
Sirius could only smile because this was so typically Amelia.

He walked silently around the huge desk she sat at and worked. She still didn't react.
He bent over from the side and started to kiss her right beneath her ear.

"Merlin, Sirius! Don't scare me like that!" Amelia exclaimed, shocked.

"The last time you responded more to my liking," he mumbled and spun her chair around so that she faced him completely.
Thanks to the huge window, which occupied the whole wall behind her desk, she could overlook the whole atrium and down to the elevators without anyone seeing into her office.

"How's Harry?" she asked concerned, stood up, and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"James sent a message and said he was up and already joking around again," he answered and soothingly rubbed her back.

"That's good," was everything she could say before he claimed her lips.
Merlin, how he loved this woman.

Yes, he knew that he really loved her but not admitting it made it less complicated – well at the beginning, but they knew it wasn't like that anymore.
Amelia went to Hogwarts in 1974 for her first year while Sirius was already in his fourth.
Due to having her birthday at the 7th of September, at the age of twelve she was the oldest in her first year.
While at Hogwarts, she was very ambitious and studious and became good friends with Lily very quickly.
At the end of his sixth year, Sirius asked her out for their last Hogsmeade weekend and were an item until the Christmas after he left Hogwarts.

Due to the fact that Amelia was still at Hogwarts and Sirius was constantly on some missions for the Aurors or the Order of the Phoenix, being together just didn't work out for them.
Even though it hurt Amelia so much after losing her parents and all her siblings, except for her older brother Edgar.

They had some relapses, for example at James and Lily's wedding on the 14th of September 1979. Or the night Harry was born and they both were named his godparents.
But, Amelia wanted her niece to grow up safe and without the fear of losing more family – they were the only ones left, but nevertheless.
Susan was Amelia's everything. Since Susan's parents died in 1983 at the hand of some Death Eaters that wanted to continue Voldemort's plan, Amelia dedicated her whole life to Susan and her career. It was the safest way to not get hurt anymore.
But somehow, after she brought Susan to King's Cross and watched her ride off for her first year at Hogwarts, she spent that night with Sirius for the first time after 11-years.

And now, five years later, there was rarely a week that passed by without them getting together at least once.
Both of them agreed to just enjoy themselves and not to make things more complicated than necessary.
They both were afraid to get hurt. Amelia due to the huge loss of her family and Sirius due to his abusive family past, and because he never could promise Amelia to be secure.

All of them knew that it was just a matter of time of when Voldemort would return, not if, which he did last year. There was also the fact that she was technically his boss.

"Sirius, the door..."

"Already locked," he mumbled against her neck where he sucked at her pulse point which drove her totally crazy.
She grabbed his shoulder long black hair and tilted his head so that she could kiss him. After Sirius sat her on the desk, he worked his way down her throat and began to open the buttons on her blouse.

"Sirius, I need to talk to you!" Amelia gasped out as his hand found his way underneath her skirt.

"Later!" was the only response before she surrendered herself completely to Sirius' touch.

Ginny levitated a huge tray of breakfast for herself and Harry towards his door – thanks to Bill's wards around the property, the restriction of underage magic didn't apply here.
It was like Harry sensed her because. just as she wanted to open the door, he opened it from the inside.

"Oh thank Godric, I think I'm starving," he exclaimed happily as he saw the tray.
He went to grab some strawberries but Ginny slapped his hand away.

"You need to redo the bandage on your chest and take your potions first, THEN breakfast," she said resolutely as she put the tray on the sideboard.
Harry sighed in mock frustration but laid down on the bed with his bare chest, only in some grey sweatpants.

"What are you waiting for?" Ginny asked him as she turned around and found him staring at her.

"I thought you'd help me," he answered, his voice with a slight hint of embarrassment.
THAT was the Harry Ginny knew.

Just he would be embarrassed to ask someone for help with something like this. With a smile she grabbed the bandage and ointment and sat on her knees next to him on the bed.

"Were you hurt?" Harry asked gently while he watched the beautiful redhead cover the wounds on his chest with ointment.
Her hair fell over her face like a curtain of fire that sparkled in the sun that shone through the window.

"No," she answered and gave him a quick smile that just didn't reach her eyes.
The feeling of her soft fingers touching his chest sent almost non-stop shivers down his spine. He still couldn't really understand his own decision to keep her away from him.

"Your mum said that one of those plasters would be more comfortable during the day," Ginny told him as she held up a big plaster that would cover all of his wounds at once.

After she attached it to his chest, she cleaned her hands on the towel next to her and stared down at her hands.

Harry just watched her.
He knew that something was on her mind and he was pretty sure that this would be about the last few days.

"It hurt," she began and fiddled with the towel. "I need to tell you this before you explain anything," She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes.
As she opened them again and looked at Harry - her best friend, her childhood love, the love of her life - straight in the eyes he knew that he hurt her more than he ever wanted.

He saw just from the look in her eyes that he would regret his decisions for the rest of his life.

"When you wouldn't talk to me or even look at me, I felt so horrible. It felt like I would be a burden to you. I thought you would just consider helping me with the life debt because you felt an obligation towards our families to help me."
He wanted to interrupt her but before he even could open his mouth Ginny continued.

"Please, let me finish this. You made me feel so..." it was like Ginny would choke on the word "...worthless."
She finished the last word like it was forbidden. Like it would eat her alive. Like it would bring all her memories back. Again.
Ginny took a shaking breath and squared her shoulders.

"I promised myself to never feel like this again three years ago." She looked him in the eyes again.

"It was Tom's favourite. Worthless. He told me that I was a worthless and pathetic little girl that no one could love. A worthless little girl that was barely good enough to give him a body he could use to be himself again, to help him to regain his body. He told me I was a worthless ugly girl." Ginny stood up next to the bed.

"He made me feel my worthlessness every time he possessed me." She said and lifted her top to show him her left side.
From right under her breast down to her hipbone was the word 'worthless' carved into her skin. The pinkish scars stuck out of her pale skin even more.
With trembling hands, she pulled her top down again.

"But this was nothing compared to how you made me feel," Ginny said and sat down on the bed again, not facing him but staring out the open double-glass door.
From the side, Harry saw tears streaming down her face and he ached to hold her in his arms and wipe those tears away but knew that he couldn't do it. She needed to continue.

"You made his words come true. You made me feel like the ugly worthless kid he told me I was. You made me feel more worthless than anyone ever could. You made me feel undesirable and unattractive and...," she caught her breath, "...then I saw you with Fleur. She is so breathtakingly beautiful and more beautiful than I could ever be and I thought she was your girlfriend. She was my explanation for everything and I couldn't stand to be worthless. I couldn't live with being worthless to you…you of all people."

Ginny turned her head towards him and was momentarily shocked to see tears streaming down his face, too.

"Don't make me feel worthless again. Please!" her voice pleading and just above a whisper.

"I can't just forgive you." She leaned towards him and wiped the tears away that streamed down his face. "That doesn't mean that I don't love you but we can't just be together like that. I need some time." She leaned her forehead against his.

"We need some time to find ourselves." Ginny finished and closed her eyes.
Harry was a total mess. He hated himself beyond compare for doing this to her. He felt so ashamed. He put her head between his hands and started to kiss her tears away.

"I don't deserve you," he whispered between soft kisses.

"No, you don't," Ginny answered and both chuckled through their tears.

"But we'll keep bad things like this at bay for now, okay?" She added and kissed his forehead.

"You have to eat something." Ginny cleared her throat and walked over to the sideboard to get the tray.
For a few minutes they ate in silence.

"Do you know what a 'Horcrux' is?" Harry broke the silence.
Ginny shook her head 'no' as she chewed on some buttered toast.
With a small motion of his right hand, Harry summoned a large volume, bound in faded black leather, from one of the bookshelves.

"This is the only book that really describes what a horcrux is. Don't worry you don't need to read it now, but you can read it if you want to know more about it. Either way, a horcrux is a part of a soul that lives in an item or even a living being. You can split your soul. By doing this, your soul is still bound to this earth if you die. The fun part is that you can't die when your horcrux is intact. It's the perfect ticket towards immortality," Harry explained without looking at Ginny.

"That's what Tom did, isn't it?" she asked and Harry just nodded.

"That's not the huge problem. There're ways to destroy a horcrux and we already got rid of some of them. For example, Tom's diary," He paused and waited for her reaction.

"So, I was possessed by a true piece of his soul. Not just a memory. I really had a part of him inside me?"

"Yeah, but not permanently. I was able to destroy it out of sheer luck because one of the two things to destroy a horcrux is Basilisk venom. I stabbed the diary with one of its fangs. We destroyed four out of seven already."

"Seven? You can split your soul that often and still be alive?"

"Barely. Tom isn't human anymore. His appearance is because of his many horcruxes. He isn't able to feel anything."

"What did he use as horcruxes?" Ginny asked, her breakfast long forgotten.

"The diary, a locket from Slytherin, a cup from Hufflepuff and the ring that holds the resurrection stone. Those are all already destroyed. Then there is something from Ravenclaw, we assume but we have no idea where it is or what it might be. With himself ,there're seven pieces." Harry listed the six external horcruxes.

"What is the seventh?" Harry gulped, inhaled deeply, and looked into her beautiful chocolate-brown eyes.

"Me," he said and out of habit scratched his left arm where his scar was located.
Ginny was beyond shocked.

"How... When... I mean...," she tried to form a question but her mind stopped working properly.

"He never intended me to become a horcrux, we assume. The Halloween he came to kill me, thanks to mum's protection, the killing curse rebounded. He just lost his body and his soul split into another two pieces. One fled into exile for the next ten years and the other half attached itself to the next living thing – me. Due to that, mum and dad were thrown back as the curse rebounded." He stopped and sighed.

"There's no way around destroying all these horcruxes if we want to get rid of Tom."
Harry looked up and into her eyes. What he saw was a mixture of pain and fierce determination.
Ginny put both her hands on his neck and pulled him towards her to lean their foreheads together again.

"We'll find a way. I promise you, that I'll try everything within my powers that you survive this. Do you understand?" she told him.
Harry has heard those words a thousand times since he knew of his ultimate fate, but never did they give him real hope. This was different.
He looked into her beautiful chocolate-brown eyes full of determination, pain, and unconditional love for him that he knew: if anyone finds a way for him to survive, it would be his Ginny.

"I thought that, if I stayed away from you and stop you from falling in love with me, it wouldn't be as painful for you losing me as when we would be together. I wanted to prevent getting to close to you to save you from the pain," Harry explained to her.

"For stopping me from falling in love with you, you're a little too late. How could you think that your death wouldn't hurt me?" Ginny asked him, confused.

"I think I didn't think at all." Ginny had to chuckle at that and patted his cheek.
The next two hours they laid in bed facing each other and just talked. They talked about what their lives were like the last three years.
Harry talked mainly about how his training increased and what it included.

Harry's training included more than magical education. He have been learning wandless magic since he was ten and became an advanced occlumens last year. Right now, he was trained by Severus to improve his legilimency skills. He was also beyond NEWT level in most of his school subjects.
His physical training contained the traditional work out and training program for his reflexes and balance.
The biggest part of his physical training was a very advanced form of Krav Maga – most wizards never expected a physical assault and this gave him a huge advantage.

Harry started to feel tired again after some time and without any resistance he listened to Ginny and took a nap.
While she watched him sleep peacefully silent tears started to roll down her cheek.

She cried, not just for the future she might never have with him, but also for the situation he found himself in.
How could life be so unfair? He didn't deserve to die. He deserved to live a long and happy life – preferably with her – and whatever would happen, even if she wasn't able to save him, she would make the rest of his life worth living.

Suddenly Ginny remembered her dream.

The mysterious woman told her that she would be able to save his soul. It had to be a very big coincidence if she didn't mean the horcrux.
She could save him with her powers but...what powers? If there was one thing Ginny was sure of, it was that she didn't have any special powers.
Ginny watched him a while longer but then stood up gently and silently so not to wake him up.
At the door, she turned around and looked at him one last time with a small smile on her face. He frowned in his sleep as his right hand searched for something next to him.

At least they had each other again.

"Muuuum!? I can't find the candles!" Rose had her hand buried in a box kneeling in front of one of the shelves in the living room.

"What kind of witch are you?" Sirius asked as he leaned on the door frame and munched on some crisps.

"Very funny." Rose drew her wand and with a short 'accio birthday candles' and the birthday candles flew into her outstretched hand.

"Are Aunty Amy and Susan coming over?" Rose asked Sirius and stole a crisp out of his hand.

"I kinda forget to ask her this morning." Sirius turned around and walked down the hall.

"I take it that you occupied her otherwise," Rose said, bumped her side into his and winked at him.

"You're the worst of your mother and father in one person." Sirius groaned but nevertheless smiled at her and draped his arms over her shoulders.
As they walked into the kitchen, they saw Lily, James, Remus, and Ginny finishing the birthday cake and the dinner.
Fleur and Bill sat at the table with Daisy and Daniel and helped them to draw a birthday card for their brother.
Despite what happened yesterday, they were all determined to celebrate Harry's birthday today – he probably totally forgot about it – with a surprise party.
Ginny grabbed Rose's elbow and pulled her into the hallway.

"I don't have a gift." Rose looked at her questioningly but then it dawned on her what her best friend meant.

"That doesn't matter. Everything he wants he already has," Rose said and winked at her.

Ginny had to fight a deep blush at what Rose said. Just because she was hurt, didn't mean she couldn't heal with Harry's help.

It was around 5:30 in the evening when Ginny found Harry still fast asleep. She had already changed and came to wake him up.
Ginny wore a light white summer-dress and had some of her hair pulled back.

She walked over to his bed saying his name and telling him that he had to wake up. As she leaned over him and shook him gently he finally opened his eyes.

"Hey." Harry smiled sleepily at her and she couldn't stop a smile spreading across her own face.
Seeing Harry so adorably drowsy made her even forget what a prick he was.

"Come on, sleeping beauty. Dinner is ready and you have to change," Ginny said and pulled his covers back.
Reluctantly he stood up and together they found him something to wear.

"Why do I have to change into proper clothes?" He asked for the hundredth time as Ginny pushed him gently into the bathroom to get ready.
She waited, sitting on his bed as he came into the room again, just wearing a pair of boxers.

"I can't bend over to put my trousers on," he explained "It hurts too much."
Ginny had to shake her head to clear her mind. He looked so sexy that she nearly began to drool all over the floor. Her eyes roamed over his entire body.
She had to tear her eyes almost violently away from the trace of dark hairs that led down from his toned chest, over his torso, and continued beneath his navel towards the waistband of his boxers.

As she heard Harry clearing his throat, she focused on his beautiful emerald-green eyes.
She cleared her throat embarrassed and stood up.

"Sit down so I can help you." Harry did just that and sat down where she was just sitting.

"I feel like a three-year-old," Harry confessed silently as Ginny started to put his trousers on.
She snorted. "You definitely don't look like a three-year old." Ginny looked up from kneeling in front of him while biting down on her lower lip.
She just wanted to hit her head on the next bedpost for saying something like that.

They managed to put his trousers and some flip-flops on and finished the buttons on his shirt.
While Ginny corrected his collar, she realized how close their faces were.
She looked at him and saw him staring at her with something she couldn't quite get. Without a second thought they both leaned into each other and kissed.
One of Harry's hands found its way onto her lower back and pulled her closer against his toned chest. His other hand rested on her hip. Ginny brought him closer to her with her hands on his neck.

Her lips elicited a soft moan as they continued to kiss and Harry pulled her closer against his chest.
He pulled back as he felt her tensing.
"I'm sorry I shouldn't have just kissed you. It was just that you look so damn beautiful in that dress and I wanted to do that ever since I saw you again," Ginny stopped Harry's rambling with a soft kiss.

"It's alright," Ginny said with her arms atill wrapped around his neck.
She just didn't trust her legs to stand on their own after that intense kiss.
Harry had to chuckle as she tried to catch her breath again.

"This doesn't mean that you're off the hook, Potter!" but she had to admit that being kissed like that made it unbelievably hard to keep even a tiny bit of distance between them.
They untangled their limbs again and Ginny just rose an eyebrow at Harry from where she stood in the door as he uncomfortably rearranged his trousers.

"What?" Harry asked embarrassed as he walked past her through the door.

"Nothing!" Ginny looked innocently at him and interlaced her fingers with his while they walked towards the stairs.

"What are we?" Harry asked as he stopped and turned around on the first step. Ginny stood one step above and had to look down on him.

"How about we are just 'we' for now?" Ginny suggested and smiled lovingly at him.
And just with one look he knew that being them was everything he needed. Being them meant loving each other and gave him the opportunity to regain her trust in him and his feelings for her.

"Where are the others?" Harry asked and looked at Ginny confusedly as he didn't find anyone in the dining room or in the kitchen.
Ginny smiled at him and pulled him wordlessly into the living room and onto the back porch.

"SURPRISE!" shouted the gathered people as Harry walked onto the back porch.
His eyes were as big as saucers. How could he forget his birthday the whole day? Sure, he had different things, or better a beautiful red head, and some pain on his mind but nevertheless.

One after another wished him a happy birthday.
His parents, Rose with Daniel and Daisy on either hand, who gave him directly their self-made birthday cards and got big wet kisses back.
Sirius, Remus, Dora, Amelia, Susan, Bill, and Fleur followed. Even Andromeda and Ted were there to celebrate his birthday with him.
Ginny stood on the side and just watched.
Suddenly it became really quiet and she saw them all looking at her. As she saw Harry smiling a dazzling smile at her she remembered that she hadn't wished him a happy birthday yet.

She took two steps towards him and stood now directly in front of him.
Without saying a word, she just threw her arms around his neck and nuzzled her nose into his neck.

"Happy Birthday, Harry," she whispered into his ear and they held onto each other for a moment.
Ginny gave him a tender kiss on his cheek as she untangled herself from him.

"Let's have dinner," Harry said as they all looked at the two teenagers with a mixture of smug and happy faces.
Dinner was a very loud and funny affair. Everyone felt obligated to tell some embarrassing story about Harry who tried at some point to hide his face in Ginny's hair while she clutched her stomach from all the laughing.
After the huge, and for Harry embarrassing, dinner, which contained all of Harry's favourite food, Lily and Amelia went into the kitchen.

"What do you think about your birthday so far?" Ginny asked as she and Harry entertained Daisy and Daniel on their laps.

"It's the best one in three years. With the rest of your family here it would be perfect, but having you back again comes pretty close to perfection." He answered.

"Hawwy, me and Gin will mawwy," Daniel told his big brother proudly as he laid his small head onto her chest.
Ginny raked through his black locks smiling down on him.

"How about we make a deal?" Harry asked and Daniel nodded his head enthusiasticly.

"You can have a date with Ginny every week for the next seven years and you let me marry her."
Daniel looked at his brother with a calculating look and put his finger against his temple.

"Hmmm...when Gin oki wid dat...," the little man said and shrugged.
Ginny had to smile at the little toddler.

"I think going out with you once a week it totally okay with me."

"But you have to mawwy Hawwy!" Daisy commented.
At Daisy's comment, Ginny looked into Harry's eyes and saw a wishful and hopeful sparkle in his eyes. She had to smile at his look.

"I think even that is bearable." The look Harry gave her would always be imprinted in her mind. He looked like a kid in a candy store with unlimited amount of money and without his parents.

In that moment the others around them started to sing 'Happy Birthday' as Lily and Amelia carried Harry's birthday cake towards the table.
With Daniel and Daisy's help, Harry managed to blow out all sixteen candles on the huge chocolate cake.
While eating the cake Harry opened his birthday presents. From his parents and Rose he got some new vinyl's. Sirius, Amelia, and Susan gave him a new deluxe broom service kit and his yearly subscription of 'Quidditch Today'. Remus and Dora gave him some books on physique and mental training together with his favourite chocolate from Honeydukes.

"You might want to share the third book with Ginny," Dora whispered and winked at him.
Andy and Ted gave him a new schoolbag with some very useful enchantments. Fleur and Bill gave him some warding stones with introductions on their use.

"Charlie sent this to me the other day to give to you." Bill gave him another package.
As he opened the package, he found a cage with a little dragon in it.

"Oh Godric!" Lily exclaimed annoyed.
Charlie always joked about bringing a dragon into the house.

"Don't worry mum, it won't grow anymore. This is one of the first Parvusdragons they have at the reservoir." Harry gave her Charlie's note that was especially addressed to her to reassure her that it wasn't dangerous at all.

"'P.S.: Maybe you should keep some cooling ointment around, it's nevertheless a dragon'," Lily read out loud lowering her arms.

"Just wait till he comes over for a visit again," she hissed and stared at the little dragon in the cage.
Daniel and Daisy were already as keen as mustard. Before her babies could get too close to the dragon, Lily and Dora picked them up and tucked them in.

"Harry!" his father called him over from where he sat and was talking to Susan.
His father and his uncles sat around in a semicircle.

"What are you three up to?" he asked, suspicious.

"Son, I'm sure you remember us having 'the talk' two years ago." Harry just nodded, embarrassed, as he remembered clearly 'the talk'.
He and his father had a pretty good connection and, in the end, he was very grateful how his dad handled the situation, but nevertheless, in the beginning, it was totally embarrassing for him.

"But THIS..." Sirius pulled a book from behind his back and held it out to him. "...is the ultimate book for every wizard turning sixteen." Harry took the book carefully and read the title 'How to bewitch your witch – 111 tips for the ultimate pleasure'.
Harry groaned "You are serious, aren't you?"

"Yes, that's his name but believe me son: Ginny will be very VERY grateful!" His father winked at him and he wasn't sure if this conversation was real.

"Thanks guys," Harry just said and vanished the book quickly into his room.

"Will you come with me?" Harry wrapped his arms around Ginny's waist from behind and whispered into her ear.
It was some time later and they all stood around a large bonfire (that was located at the edge of the property towards the ocean) or sat with their drinks on some trunks.
Ginny stood with Bill and Fleur and talked. She looked slightly unsure between Bill and Fleur who were smiling at her.

Harry led Ginny by the hand towards the forest.
"Where are we going?" Ginny asked as they walked down the path towards the Quidditch pitch.

"Just wait," Harry responded and crossed the pitch.

Ginny followed him with her drink in her hand through the now dark forest, only Harry's wand glowing in the dark.
After a two-minute walk, Ginny suddenly heard the rushing of water and towards the end of the small path it became brighter again.

"I found this place last summer. I have no idea when the tree house was built but it's pretty awesome," Harry told her as they stepped into a clearing.
It was rather large and the view towards the sky was completely free. On the left side was a pond with a small waterfall rushing down the stones. In front of them was a big tree house around 4 meters above the ground with a wood ladder to reach it.

"It's amazing!" Ginny breathed in awe.

"It reminded me of our place at the Burrow." Harry turned around again and looked at her.

"I'm sorry that I didn't give you something for your birthday but I...," Harry stopped her with a kiss.

"As long as you stay with me I don't need anything else," Harry whispered and played with her long red hair.

"I need to tell you something else Ginny." Without another word, he transformed into his animagus form.
Ginny looked shocked at the black wolf at her feet and took a sip of her drink.
Harry transformed back after she didn't say a word. He looked expectantly at her. She just gulped down another sip from her drink.

"You saw me naked!" Was everything Ginny said.
Shock crossed Harry's face, his mouth dropped open slightly as he realized what she was on about.

"No,no,no! I covered my eyes and…I didn't…I wouldn't...," he rambled on.

"It's okay. The important thing is that you were there when I needed you," Ginny said emotionally, sat her drink down on the ground next to his and threw her arms around his neck again.
Luckily the pain in his chest wasn't that bad anymore. Ginny found his lips and kissed him passionately.

"You were still a prick, but you're my prick."

"Forever?" Harry asked her.
They looked deep into each other's eyes.

"Always." And she kissed him again.
There was just this one feeling inside of her that filled her whole being telling her to love him. Telling her that he never wanted to hurt her like that. Telling her that he always loved her and always will.
As they broke apart Ginny picked up their drinks and made her way towards the small pond. Harry followed her.

"Let's take a swim," Harry suggested, and started to take of his shirt.

"But we don't have anything to wear," Ginny complained „and your wound..."

"Is healed," Harry said and showed her his chest without the plaster.
Everything left there were small pinkish marks.

"Mum took it off and used a new ointment she worked on. She just wanted me to suffer a few hours for my behaviour."
Ginny had to laugh at his comment and watched as he took off his shoes and trousers.

"Come on!" Ginny looked slightly unsure.

"I just wear knickers underneath my dress, Harry." She still couldn't feel completely comfortable to show so much of her body.

„How about this?" He stepped closer to her and took their drinks out of her hand and sat them down again after taking a sip of his butterbeer. Harry bent down and tried to transform his shirt into a bathing suit. Due to that he had to do it wandless, being not on the property anymore, he needed a few attempts but finally succeeded.
Ginny gave him the brightest smile he ever received, which he returned, and turned politely away. She told him to turn around again after she was done.

"Let me show you that you're everything but what Tom said you were." Harry caressed her cheek and lost his fingers in her silky long red hair.

"Let me show you that you're the most beautiful woman to me, body, mind, and soul."
He started to pepper her whole face with small kisses that caused her to giggle.
Ginny placed both her small hands on his toned chest and pushed him away slightly.

Before he would lose himself and just stare at her perfect body, Harry grabbed her around the waist, threw her over his shoulder and jumped into the pond. Ginny shrieked like mad.

"Oh youuuuu..." Ginny threatened.

"Catch me if you can!" Harry dared and quickly swam away from her.
They chased each other for a few minutes.

As it was Harry's turn to catch Ginny, he dived and pulled her underwater. Before she could escape again, he sealed his lips over hers, wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him.

When they had to breathe again, he pushed himself up from the ground and with Ginny clinging to him they broke through the surface, still kissing.
They broke apart and smiled like mad at each other while catching their breaths.

"You're so beautiful," Harry said full of emotion and wrapped her legs around his waist. "If there's one person that can make me survive this, then it's you."
Ginny looked at him with a look full of love and kissed him again. This time her tongue glided over his lips and he welcomed her tongue happily.

They snogged gently like this with their bodies pressed tightly against each other. For how long, they couldn't care less.
Harry's hand found its way to her left side where her scar was.

"You're everything to me Ginevra." He looked deep into her eyes and caressed the skin that was taunted by her scars.

"There's nothing worthless about you. Not one single bit. Not one single thought." His lips wandered down her throat.

"Everything about you is perfect. I love every single freckle that covers your body. Your beautiful long silky red hair that shines like fire and feels like water running through my fingers." He covered her collarbone with open mouth kisses to emphasize his words.
Ginny's whole being was filled with emotions she never felt before.

Her whole skin seemed to be on fire and the only cure was Harry's touch. All of his words penetrated her mind like a knife. Every part of her skin that touched a part of his felt like a million fireworks exploding at once.

"Harry!" Ginny moaned as she slightly unwillingly moved down his hip and her core was now pressed directly against his very prominent erection.
Harry stopped and his eyes flew open just as Ginny's did.

"Ginny…I'm sorry…it's…" he stammered and detached himself from her. But it was in vain. Ginny wrapped her arms around his neck but kept the distance between their lower regions.

"Ginny," he moaned as she now planted soft kisses along his neck and began to nibble on his earlobe.

"Say it … when you want to … stop?" Harry said out of breath and with gasps. The feeling of having her in his arms was just driving him crazy.

"Mhmmm… but I need to feel you. I need to feel that … you … really … mean … what … you … said." The last part she said between soft kisses.

"That's fine...with...me," Harry answered between her kisses and so they stayed like this for a moment or two...or maybe more.