Ginny woke with a smile on her face the next morning and noted that Hermoine had already gone downstairs, her bed made on the other side of the room. Ginny tucked lower into the blankets and let out a small, girlish squeal into the comforter. The night before had passed uneventfully between Harry and Ginny once everyone else had come in but the electricity had been so strong Ginny was surprised no one had noticed. But how could they, all of them preoccupied with going back to Hogwarts.
After she had composed herself, Ginny stepped out of bed and dressed in a simple white t-shirt and faded jeans before walking into the chaos of the Burrow's kitchen. Ron was resting with his head down on the table, Hermoine was permanently buried in her book, and Harry leaned against the counter while drinking a glass of orange juice. Ginny took advantage of the fact no one had noticed her to let her eyes linger on Harry. His black hair was still a mess from sleeping but he was dressed well in a black t-shirt and a pair of his jeans. Ginny pondered walking over to him and kissing his lips, smiling as she thought of how the oranges would taste on his lips, but decided it against it when Hermoine noticed her.
"Hey, Ginny. Ready to get back to Hogwarts?" Hermoine asked excitedly as Mrs. Weasley bustled into the kitchen while balancing a bowl of scrambled eggs, a plate of bacon, and a plate of toast. "Let me help you." Hermoine insisted as Fred and George wandered in, effectively filling the small room.
The gang of students ate breakfast in a hurry, all of them excited to go back to their school. The morning was crazy and Ginny held onto the moment she'd taken to examine Harry when she did because the two didn't have a moment of peace for the rest of the morning. After breakfast, Ginny and Hermoine went upstairs to get her trunks and Ginny wondered about confiding about the kiss to her best friend but thought better of it. For once she wanted something to have to herself and she was content with keeping their relationship a secret.
When the crowd of students had made their way to the train station and ran through the wall to the train 9¾, everyone said a teary goodbye to Mrs. Weasley before loading onto the train.
Hermoine, Ron, and Harry found a compartment together and invited Ginny to join them but Ginny declined. She was unsure she could endure a train ride to Hogwarts with Harry and not spill their secret.
Instead, Ginny found Luna and Neville talking quietly in a different compartment a car away from the golden trio. "Hey guys." Ginny said to the two as she hoisted her duffel bag onto her shoulder and then to the shelf above the seats. "How was your summer, Neville?"
"Good." Neville answered nervously as he beamed up at his red haired friend, making Ginny cringe inwardly as she sat beside Luna. "Grandma helped me with some herbology. I think she's coming around." He said happily as the train picked up steam and left the station.
"That's good. You're a natural, Neville." Ginny complimented him before a knock came on the compartment door and a red-faced Seamus stuck his head in the door.
"I was just looking for you." Seamus said happily to Ginny who sucked in an awkward breath. "Can we talk?" He asked and nodded to the hallway, leaving Ginny no chance to decline without raising questions considering the two had a fling the year before.
"How was your summer?" Ginny asked politely as Seamus closed the compartment door, leaving them cut off from the rest of the car's riders.
"Decent. I would have liked to have seen you." Seamus said with a goofy smile, reaching out to take Ginny's hand though she pulled away and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, making Seamus' smile falter.
"Yeah, I was pretty busy. Living with a big family means not a lot of visit time." She smiled effortlessly, making up an excuse though they both heard the added 'plus I didn't want to' at the end of her sentence.
"Maybe at Hogwarts we can get some time in together." Seamus said, a bit defeated though he continued to grasp for a reaction from her.
"Maybe." Ginny said with a shrug. There was an awkward silence between the two before Seamus let out a sigh and mumbled an excuse to get back to his compartment. Ginny leaned up against the frosted glass of the compartment where Neville and Luna were before deciding to get some fresh air around the train.
Walking through the cars, Ginny found herself lingering outside her brother's compartment as if mentally willing Harry to come out and see her. Realizing how ridiculous she seemed, Ginny continued to walk slowly away until she heard the slide of the glass compartment door. Whipping around, Ginny saw Harry leave the compartment and let out a small yawn. Trying to play it cool though her nerves tingled with excitement, Ginny turned away and pretended that she hadn't noticed him.
"Ginny." Harry said and Ginny could hear the smile in his voice before she turned to see his toothy grin. "I was about to steal you away but I guess you made it easy for me." He teased as he walked up to his secret love and put his arms around her waist, bending down to give her lips a kiss.
Ginny responded eagerly as she stood on her toes, the familiar tingle sent into the bottom of her stomach. The two kissed for what seemed like only a few seconds before Harry pulled away, all too soon in Ginny's opinion, and put a kiss on her forehead. "Take a walk with me." He urged, turning Ginny around and wandering through the rest of the train's cars.
"Where are we going?" Ginny asked as the two walked side by side, silently agreeing not to hold hands in case someone saw them.
"I don't know. I just want to be with you." Harry said with a smile that fired a blush onto Ginny's cheeks, causing her to turn away in embarrassment. She hated the Weasley curse of blushes. "You're adorable when you do that." Harry smiled as he lightly poked her side.
"Right, of course I am." Ginny said with an eye roll. "You're just looking for an excuse for another kiss." She teased playfully.
"I need one?" Harry asked, a bit confused though his lips were locked in a smile.
"Maybe." Ginny laughed before turning away though Harry's arms caught her waist and pulled her back to him.
"I don't think so." Harry laughed in her ear before turning the red haired girl around and planting a solid kiss on her lips.
"Someone's going to catch us." Ginny protested though her hands clutched the front of his shirt.
"I'll risk it." Harry smiled against her lips before attaching for another kiss and Ginny didn't protest, her body responding with an adrenaline rush as she kissed her secret boyfriend.
"We should go back to our compartments." Ginny frowned when their lips parted, their arms still embracing each other and their breathing labored. "I'll see you at school." She smiled sadly as Harry nodded in agreement and insisted on walking her back to her compartment.
"Till school." Harry smiled and gave her forehead a light kiss before disappearing again. Sighing contently, Ginny walked back into her shared compartment with Neville and Luna.
"You were gone for a long time." Luna noted. "It must've been an interesting chat with Seamus. I personally didn't realize there was anything to interesting about him." She smiled loftily before gazing out the window. Neville said nothing, his face set in a frown as he to looked out over the passing fields.
It seemed like the rest of the train took hours as the trio sat in silence until the train stopped at Hogwarts. "Finally." Ginny breathed, glad that the silence was breaking as the other students all started scrambling for their bags at once. The three grabbed their bags before meeting Hermoine and Harry outside.
"Where's Ron?" Ginny asked as she walked over to Hermoine.
"Lavender found him." Hermoine said, her face emotionless as the five friends got into a carriage and began their ride to Hogwarts.
"Ew." Ginny said, crinkling her nose and earning a small grin from Hermoine. Ginny wondered why Hermoine bothered liking her brother. They were best friends but still, Ron was a mess to say the least and the exact opposite of Hermoine.
"My feelings exactly." Harry added as he sat between Neville, who still looked like he'd swallowed a sour grape, and Luna who seemed to be looking at nothing in the trees they passed.
The five talked idly about the upcoming feast and their classes the next day until the carriages approached the stony castle. Ginny had to keep herself in check as Harry helped her out of the carriage, a knowing smile exchanged between the two.
"Let's eat." Harry grinned as the friends made their way inside and met up with Lavender and Ron.
"Did I hear something about eating?" Ron asked with a large grin and Ginny noticed that his lips were kiss swollen. Gross. "I love this feast." Ron grinned as the gang loped inside and found the Gryffindor table, their bags already magically sent to their dormitories.
"That's makes two of us." Harry said, high-fiving his best friend before the students settled down, Dumbledore making his same long speech about the rules of the castle. Ginny couldn't help but smile as Dumbledore said the magic words the food laid out before them.
With all of their friends catching up with each other and stuffing their faces with mashed potatoes, sliced turkey breasts, and creamed spinach, Ginny snuck a few googly eyed glances at Harry. "I was thinking of taking a walk around the greenhouse later." Harry murmured to Ginny who took the hint immediately.
"About when were you thinking of taking a walk? You wouldn't want to get caught in the dark all alone." Ginny smiled before taking a bite of her mashed potatoes and gravy.
"Of course not." Harry laughed. "About nine outside the greenhouse doors." Harry said before being pulled into a conversation with Ron about this year's Quidditch team and leaving Ginny's stomach in twisted, love knots.