I do not own any of it.

How Long What?

She started kissing his neck as soon as he apperated in front of the door to his flat. He was trying to keep her from taking off his shirt while he fumbled for his wand to unlock his door. He unlocked it and pushed open the door as she attacked his lips. He picked her up as she wrapped her legs around him and carried her into the flat, kicking the door shut behind them.

She untucked his shirt and rubbed her hands over his chest. He unzipped her dress as he kissed her neck, making her moan.

Crash "Oi!'

He dropped her in shock. Ginny's butt hit the ground hard. "Harry!"

"Ron!"

"Uhh…uhh…uhh…you…and…you…uhh" Ron was standing in Harry's living room with his beer bottle shattered at his feet and his mouth open wide, pointing from Harry to Ginny, who was still down on the floor. Harry stared back at Ron with his mouth open while Ginny was staring at Ron from the ground.

After a few minutes of staring at one another, Ginny came to her senses. "Hello Ron." She said feebly from the ground. "Did Hermione kick you out?"

This brought Harry out of his trance and he stopped staring at Ron to look down at his fiancé. "Oh, Sorry there, Love, didn't mean to drop you." He held out a hand and pulled her to her feet and then proceeded to zip up her dress; taking his time in hopes of postponing the inevitable conversation.

Ron was still staring at them unable to form any words besides "uhh" and "you." Harry, having finally finished zipping up Ginny's dress, turned to Ron, but couldn't think of anything to say to him.

"So, what did you do to Hermione?" Ginny asked, obviously trying to change the topic that was about to start.

This appeared to bring Ron out of his trance and he shook his head, as if shaking the image of Harry and Ginny out of it. "I don't know, something about not listening to her, but that is beside the point Ginevera. What were you doing with your legs around Harry?"

"Well, Ronald," Ginny started, using a tone similar to the one Ron just used. "I can wrap my legs around any guy I choose, and you don't get to say anything about it."

"I do get a say about it, I'm your brother. I'm not going to let you throw yourself at guys, and that is exactly what you were doing."

"Let me? Let me? You think you have the right to control me and tell me what to do? Well let's get this strait. I am old enough to make my own choices when it comes to men, and I choose Harry and you don't need to know anything more, actually you don't even need to know I chose Harry."

Ron stared at her, trying to figure out what she just said. Not being able to find an argument, he turned on Harry. "Why did you pick her up while you were out? There are tons of witches who would go home with you! Why her? You guys messed each other up enough the first time, why have a fling now?

Harry took a deep breath trying to keep his calm. He had a sudden urge to go the muggle way and punch Ron in the face. How could he think his feelings for Ginny where flighty?

"And what about Andrea? I thought you were exclusive with her." Ron continued.

"Oh, well, about that." Harry started, but was interrupted by Ginny

"No, Ron, you don't get to yell at Harry, either. What we do is none of your business."

Harry shot Ron a look that said give me a moment. Ron glared at him, then gave him a little nod and turned around.

Harry took a deep breath and turned to Ginny. "Gin, love, could you give me some time to talk to Ron." He said softly, trying, but failing to keep the pleading out of his voice.

"Harry, he doesn't need to know about what I do, just because I'm his sister, we don't have to explain it to him." She replied in the same whisper.

"I know, and I agree, as your brother, he doesn't need to know, but he is my best mate and I need to let him know."

She stared at him as she had a battle in her head. She hated sharing her life with her family, which is why she avoided it. But she loved Harry, and that meant understanding Ron was his mate. "Fine. Tell him," She raised her voice. "I'll wait for you in the bedroom, Harry, Don't be to long." She kissed him as Ron whirled around.

"You can stay in the guest room, Ginny." Ron called after her as she started down the Hall toward Harry's room.

She looked over her shoulder at Ron, and then smiled wickedly, "Oh, no Ron, you stay there; I'll stay with Harry in his room." And she walked off. Harry heard his door close behind her and he turned to Ron. He wasn't surprised to find that Ron was glaring at him again.

They stared at each other for a moment before Ron started again. "What in the name of Merlin's soggy pants are you doing with her? You messed her up enough the last time. Isn't that enough for you? Why are you intent on messing with her head? You know she loves you, and yet you disregard her feelings, using them only when you have an itch."

Harry listened to Ron's rant as calmly as he could, his hands forming fists at his sides. He kept telling himself to remain calm. He was quickly loosing his resolve not to hit him.

"Alright, stop Ron," he cut him off. "First off, I thought you wanted me and Ginny to be together."

"Well, I do want you together. Merlin, you're the only one I could handle as a brother-in-law. But I don't want you two shagging when it's convenient for you, that's not together, Harry, that's a fuck buddy."

Harry took a deep breath. "I need a drink." And he walked into the Kitchen, with Ron following. He pulled out a bottle with two glasses and poured them both a generous amount of firewiskey. They usually drank it while discussing a particularly difficult mission. He handed a glass to Ron and took a drink from his. This isn't exactly how he had imagined his night.

"Well let me start by saying that I am not messing with her head, or am I just sleeping with her cause it's convenient tonight." He took another swallow of firewiskey. "I'm in love with her Ron." When Ron didn't say anything, he continued. "I have been for years, and being back in the country, I just couldn't stay away from her."

"Hold on," Ron cut him off. "'Back in the country?' we have been here since October. It's May." He paused contemplating Harry. "How long?"

"How long what?" Harry asked stupidly, trying to delay having to answer.

"Don't act stupid Harry, I've known you to long. How long have you and Ginny been together?"

"Oh, umm, well, technically theendofdecember. More firewiskey?"

"No. Harry, did you say the end of December? That's five months. And what do you mean 'Technically'?" Ron said, his voice getting a little hysterical at the end.

Harry took another drink before answering. "We started sleeping together in October, after that ministry ball Kingsly made us go to."

"You mean you where the one she went home with? You are the one she has been shagging this whole time? You are the one with the…oh I didn't need to know about how your tongue is…eww."

"Yeah, that was me."

"You were sitting there, at the table, when she said…" he trailed off. They sat in silence for a while, Harry swirling his drink in his glass, Ron staring at the table top. Ron finally broke the silence "Why didn't you tell me?"

"We didn't know how you would react." Harry told him truthfully. "We thought you wouldn't like how it started out."

Ron kept staring at the table. Harry was watching him, and could tell he was processing this.

"Why didn't you tell me when you started to 'technically' date? You knew how much I wanted you two together, why not tell me?"

Harry looked down into his glass. After a moment he said "We didn't know if it would work." When Ron didn't say anything, he continued. "We didn't want you to get your hopes up and then be disappointed if it didn't work out. And, we didn't want to deal with the pressure that telling you would have put on us."

A long silence followed the end of this. They sat, Harry staring back into his glass, while Ron continued to stare at the table. Finally, after several minutes, Ron spoke. "You should have told me."

"I know." Harry couldn't think of anything else to say.

"You should have told me." Ron repeated, and they lapsed back into silence once more. Eventually Ron continued. "Is there anything else you are keeping from me?"

Harry thought of the ring he had gotten for Ginny. Guiltily he said "No." Ron moved his gaze from the table to Harry's eyes. Harry sighed, knowing he had been caught. "Well, there is something, but I think we should wait until the morning. Ginny will want to be here when I tell you."

"Fine." Ron said, "But you should have told me." But this time he smiled at Harry, who gratefully smiled back.

"So, you going to tell me why Hermione really kicked you out, or am I going to have to guess?"

"How do you know it's not whatever I told Ginny?"

"It's never what you tell Ginny. Come on, what did you do?"

"Well, she got a letter from Vicky." Ron said coldly. Harry thought he knew where this was going. Ron stopped liking Victor Krum when Krum took Hermione to the Yule Ball back at Hogwarts. Harry really didn't have a problem with the international Quidditch star but always supported Ron in not cheering for him. "He is going to be playing a game in England next week and wanted to meet Hermione while he was in the country."

"And let me guess," Harry cut him off. "You told her she couldn't go."

"Well yeah. Then we got into this argument and I told her that I wasn't meeting up with Lavender ever. She said 'go ahead and have lunch with that slut, it wouldn't bother me.'" Ron said in a high intimidation of Hermione's voice. "And then she called me immature pushed me out of the door and put a locking spell on the place so I couldn't get in."

Harry didn't say anything as Ron laid his head on the table and closed his eyes. He had learned long ago to stay out of the fights of his best friends. After a while Ron sat up and looked at him as though he was surprised to find him in the room. "Mind if I kip here tonight? Maybe I can talk to her in the morning."

"Sure, you know where the guest room is."

"Thanks, I'm going to go to bed. Just do me a favor and cast some silencing spells or something on your room tonight."

Harry tried to suppress his grin, but didn't quite manage it as he said "You could just cast some on your room."

"Oh, I will, I don't want to hear anything." With that he left the kitchen.

With a wave of his wand that sent the glasses into the sink, Harry left the kitchen for his bedroom, and his fiancé.