Ginny sat at the dining table at the Burrow, trying very hard to hold her tongue.
"I just wish you would find a nice boy and settle down Ginny, is it so wrong that I want to see my only daughter happy?" Molly said as she cast several charms over the box of clothes to be mended. A shirt rose from the pile and sailed over to the table to their left, where it was attacked by an awaiting needle and thread.
"No, Mum, it's not wrong," Ginny said, having counted to ten already and feeling more in control. "But it's just not what I want right now." She bit her lip, knowing that not to be completely true, but as close to the truth as she wanted to tell her mother at this point.
"Look at your brothers, Ginny, and how happy they are with their partners – except for Charlie. I wish I could find out why he won't settle down with a nice Witch."
Ginny smirked, knowing the answer was a nice Wizard in Romania named Peter, but if Charlie wasn't ready to tell their parents about him it wasn't her place to do so.
"I don't need a man to make me happy," she said, which was the absolute truth. She didn't. She'd been extremely content since she and Harry broke up two years ago. There were things she missed of course – sex being one of them (but she wasn't about to tell her mother that). But happy she was. She had her group of friends, a job she loved, and great flat that had a lock on the Floo and a soaking tub.
Molly fixed a pained expression on her face. "I can't help it if I want to know you're safe. The world we live in – "
"Is extremely safe due to the efforts of my last boyfriend. And I can take care of myself, quite well in fact," Ginny said hotly. She didn't want the discussion to go in this direction again. As much as her mother was a badass – and she was a pretty wicked Witch if she wanted to be – she could be so dreadfully old fashioned that it made Ginny's fingers clinch.
Molly huffed and walked to the stove to check on a stew that was bubbling fragrantly on the burner. Trying not to roll her eyes, Ginny sighed as she walked up behind her and put her arms around her mother.
"Mum, I know you worry about me, and I know you want what's best for me. Whatever will happen will happen. If I find a nice man, that would be great. If not, then you'll have to accept that I'm happy just as I am – husband or no husband, children or no children."
"Okay," she said reluctantly. "Am I still allowed to dream of my only baby girl giving me some beautiful redheaded granddaughters?" she sniffed dramatically.
Ginny giggled into her mother's back.
"Would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow?" Severus asked her one very snowy Thursday in February.
Ginny froze in her chair, unable to speak.
Despite her misgivings and the warnings in her head not to get too attached to him over the last couple of months, she'd developed a silly, school-girl crush somewhere over the many cups of tea they'd shared in her office. Even though she told herself it was ridiculous, even though Healer Faith for some reason approved, and even though she constantly reminded herself of the twenty one year difference in their age, she couldn't help but feel as tittery as she once did when she had feelings for Harry.
The first time they'd had tea after realized her feelings she could barely speak to him, which made her feel like she was eleven years old again. Of course, the rather naughty dream she'd had about him the night before didn't help matters in the slightest. He'd harassed her so much for her unusual silence that she cast a Bat-Bogey Hex on him just to make him shut up. The expression on his face when he realized what she did made her laugh hysterically, which broke her silence, though it didn't end the burgeoning feelings in her heart.
"Dinner?" she asked hesitantly as she pretended to look at the calendar on her wall. She knew she had nothing planned there – every day she had the same basic routine: up, work, home, Floo Mum and Dad, study, bed. Repeat liberally daily, except for weekends when Apparating home to the Burrow for visits and the rare times she got to go out with the girls, now that they were all so heavily into their studies.
"Dinner," he repeated. "Have you ever been to a Muggle movie?"
"Movie?" she asked. She felt like slapping herself for sounding so stupid, but she was honestly shocked.
"I'm not asking you for a date, Ginny," he said quickly. "There's a movie playing that I haven't seen since I was a child, and I thought you might like it as well."
"Oh," she said, trying to feel relieved even though she felt a little disappointed as well. "That would be nice, Severus. And no, I've never been to the movies, though I heard about them when Dean and I dated, and from Harry and Hermione. I've always wondered about them."
"It should be fun," he said. "But you'll need to dress like a Muggle, of course."
"That won't be too hard, for me at least. What about you?" she asked lightly. "I've never seen you outside of a pair of robes."
"I'll manage," he said, smiling at her as he gathered the plates and cups as he always did.
She shivered as she wrote down her address for him.
"I'll come for you at six," he said as he left.
As always, the smell of spices and man made her weak in the knees when he left the small space, and she had to sit for a minute to collect herself before she could go back to work.
When she returned home to her small flat, she did the only thing she could think of. She Floo'd Hermione for advice.
The bushy haired witch appeared moments after her frantic call, announced by the flickering green fire light.
"Come on in, woman!" Ginny yelled at the fireplace just before Hermione walked out.
"It's still polite to knock, even if you're expected," she said, hugging Ginny tightly.
"How are my brother and Harry?" she asked.
Hermione frowned. "Total and utter pigs. When they marry I'll have to personally explain to their wives the steps I've taken just to ensure a marginally clean bathroom and kitchen."
Ginny giggled. "Do you think Harry will ever ask Luna?"
"He bought a ring last week," Hermione said conspiratorially. "But neither of us know about that. I only know because your brother has the biggest mouth in all of London."
"It's a wonder Lavender loves that big fucking mouth so much," Ginny said, wanting to gag the second she heard the words come out of her mouth. She pulled a face as Hermione started to laugh.
"You've got to watch your own mouth, Gin, or it will really get you into trouble one day," she said. "So what did you need from me?"
"Well, I needed some advice ... about a man," Ginny said, her voice getting quieter with each word.
"Ginevra Molly Weasley, are you dating again? Who is it?" Hermione asked, looking thrilled.
"No! Don't go there – it's not like that," Ginny said. "But I have a stupid crush, and he likes spending time with me I think, but it'll never go anywhere. He's a lot older than I am, and he's just … " Ginny tried to think of more reasons why she and Severus could never work, but could find none, except for, "He's just not interested in me, that way at least."
"Are you sure?" Hermione asked. "In my experience when a man wants to spend time with a woman, it means he's at least a little interested. Oliver came round Grimmauld Place every day for a month before he got the nerve to ask me out."
"I'm sure. He made it quite clear when he asked me for dinner that it wasn't a date," Ginny said, trying not to sulk.
"That's a shame," Hermione murmured. "Have you thought about going out and trying to find someone else who is interested? We could go out together sometime, like a group thing with the guys and Lav and Luna."
"I think that would be great," Ginny said weakly. The going out sounded like fun … but she really couldn't imagine finding someone that made her shiver the way Severus did.
"Let's make it a date sometime," Hermione said happily. She hugged Ginny again before she turned to leave. "I've got to get back to studying. I've got the final exams for my Transfiguration Master's coming in a few months, and I want to be ready."
"Bye," Ginny said as Hermione disappeared into the green fire.
She stood up and walked into her bedroom, going straight to her closet and examining the contents. Maybe if he wasn't interested she could still show him what he was missing, she decided, as she pulled a short skirt out of the back with a smile.
Ginny looked in the mirror the next night, checking her appearance one last time before she walked back into her living space to wait.
She wore the mini-skirt she'd been dared to buy several years ago on a girl's day out with Hermione, who'd wanted to show her around Muggle London. Hermione said it had been a steal, and Ginny was just thankful for being so petite that the skirt actually looked (mostly) respectable on her. It was leather of all things, black, and hit legs just at mid-thigh. With a lacy white blouse and black heels, she looked like a regular Muggle, though for a Witch the attire was rather shocking.
She grabbed a long heavy jacket which fell past her knees to cover with, especially since it was still freezing outside. Her long, red hair was secured in a heavy knot very low on her neck.
At six sharp she heard a heavy knock on her door. She opened it, as her wards had alerted her already that it was Severus. When she saw the man in front of her, she had to keep from sinking to the floor beneath her.
"Holy shit," she said, before she covered her mouth with her hand in embarrassment.
"See something you like?" he asked jokingly.
Severus looked as handsome as she'd ever seen anyone look. He'd cut his hair again, and though it was still long for what was considered fashionable, it was shorter than she'd ever seen it. It suited him, and brought a face that was actually rather handsome out from the mass of hair that previously hid it. He wore a pair of black trousers that fit so well it was almost indecent, as well as a black shirt that showed off how broad his shoulders really were. A green scarf was secured snuggly around his neck, hiding his scars away from sight, and he had a heavy dark coat slung over his arm.
When he cleared his throat, Ginny looked up at his eyes, which glowed in the soft light of the hallway. She wondered how long she'd been staring and flushed lightly.
"Are you ready?" he asked, sounding amused.
"Yes," she answered, grabbing her purse from the chair.
They went to a pub close to the theater for dinner. Severus's hand was very warm on her back when he led her to the table in the back corner. When she took off her jacket, revealing her own Muggle attire, she watched with amusement as he took in her appearance. His mouth went a little slack when he eyed the length (albeit short length) of her exposed legs.
"Merlin's wand," he groaned, so low she could just hear it over the sound of the chatter around them.
She smirked as she sat down across from him as the waitress came to the table.
"What can I get you, sir?" the older woman asked brightly, smiling lasciviously as she took in his appearance.
"A steak and kidney pie, and whatever lager in on tap," he said, dismissing her with a curt glance.
"Anything else, love."
"No," he snapped, not taking his eyes off Ginny.
"And for your daughter?" the woman asked, apparently not amused with his cut.
Ginny met Severus's eyes across the table, and she wanted to scream bloody murder when she saw the disappointment there.
"Excuse me," Ginny said sweetly as she looked up at the woman. "What the bloody hell made you presume this is my father? Perhaps it was the fact that we look nothing alike, or maybe that there is obviously no familial affection between the two of us? This is my … boyfriend," she said, eyeing Severus and daring him to argue with her. "And you'd do well not to make any presumptions about your patrons. I would like a shepherd's pie, a glass of whatever red wine is closest to the bartender's hand at the moment you put in the order, and a new waitress, thank you very much," she said, effectively dismissing the woman who now looked like she didn't know what had hit her.
Severus smirked as the poor woman walked away, looking very confused and a little contrite.
"You boyfriend, huh?" he asked, still smirking as he played with the napkin in front of him.
"Oh, shut up Severus," she said. "I was having to think on the spot. What would you have told her?"
"The same thing," he said, taking his pint from the new, and rather timid looking, waitress gave him.
"The nerve of some people," Ginny said, eyeing the other woman across the pub and mentally giving her the finger.
"Don't let it ruin the night," he said, grabbing her hand and entwining her fingers with his. She looked down at their hands and flushed before she let her eyes drift up to his waiting and expectant ones.
He smiled tentatively as he took a drink from his glass, and she did the same as she took a drink from hers.
The movie was "The Wizard of Oz".
Watching it made Ginny feel like an excited little girl, especially with the number of children enjoying the movie around them. Whenever she excitedly looked at Severus as the scenes changed, his eyes were always already on her. When she eventually started watching him out of the corner of her eye instead of keeping her eyes on the screen, she realized he wasn't even watching the movie at all.
When he put his arm around her, she didn't pull away, and shivered with excitement as she let herself be drawn into his warmth.
They mostly spoke about work when he walked her back to her flat, though they did so with a nervousness that didn't suit either of them. When they came to her door, she looked up at him shyly.
"Do you want to come in?" she asked, feeling the desire within her swell with each word.
He looked like he was about to say yes, but then frowned and shook his head instead.
She felt crushed, and it must have shown on her face because he quickly added, "It's not that I don't want to, Ginny. I want to more than anything. I just think we should take things … slow," he said, his voice deep and sensual in the quiet of the hall.
He cupped her face with his hands and rubbed a slightly calloused thumb over her lips, which tingled wildly with the gentle caress.
"Slow," she repeated breathily, turning her lips up and waiting.
"Slow," he confirmed, before kissing her forehead gently. The skin burned where his lips had been. "Goodnight, for now," he whispered in her ear, before he turned and walked to the stairs.
She watched him until she heard the sound of his boots on the steps before she shut the door and ran to her bedroom. When she looked in the mirror, she noted the high the color in her cheeks and the deep red of her lips, though she'd not reapplied any makeup since before the movie started.
Not for the first time in the past few months, she flung off her clothes as she went to the bed, slipping her hands in her knickers and imagining another large pair of hands joining them when she laid down. She came quickly, crying out his name with each shudder that wracked her small body.
They started having dinner out every Friday night.
Soon they progressed to a nightly shared meal at her flat, in addition to their standing Friday date. He would read while she studied, or they would just talk and make each other laugh. It was nice and easy, and indeed so much fun.
And for Ginny at least, so painfully slow …
A/N: You get two chapters in a day, just because I am a generous giver. Enjoy!