Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling

A/N-Going to be wrapping this up in the next chapter since interest seems to be dropping.

Minor Mature Content

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SnowAngels

Chapter Thirteen

Closer

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George shivered as he watched Luna put away the last of the dishes. The storm continued to rage outside and the later it grew, the colder it had become. Even with the fire, the flat maintained it's chill. Fred and George had known it needed to be reinsulated two winters before, but it was one of those things that they had never quite gotten around to…there had always been so many other interesting things on their minds.

Now however, the temperature of the flat was taking center stage in George's thoughts. It was getting late and soon, they would both need to sleep. Ordinarily, it would be obvious…George would give Luna his bedroom, and he would sleep in Fred's…but this wasn't ordinary. There was no way he could bring himself to sleep in Fred's room, and even if he could, Fred's bedroom faced the wind and the windows were cracked…with the wind it would be nasty drafty. His bedroom wasn't much better, the best option would be to pull his mattress into the front room and sleep in front of the fire…he, as unattractive as the idea was, would sleep on the dusty sofa.

Luna closed a cupboard door, then turned to him with a stifled yawn. It had been a long day, they had been up since six and it was going on eleven now.

"So," Luna smiled "Where do we sleep?"

George looked at her with raised eyebrows; typical Luna, reading his mind again.

"I'll bring my mattress out for you to sleep on." He rose from the table and moved towards the bedroom. "I'll sleep on the sofa."

"The sofa?" Luna stepped over and slapped the end with the palm of her hand. A thick cloud of dust rose up into the air. "Really?"

"You have a better idea?"

Luna shrugged and sat down in the chair. She had an idea, but she wasn't sure how she felt about it. George poked his head out of the bedroom and tossed a pile of flannel into her lap.

"Here, you can sleep in this. Sorry, it's the only pair I have."

She picked up the first piece of the soft yellow fabric, it was a button down pajama top, several sizes to big for her. She lay it over the arm of the chair and then picked up the bottom…and started laughing.

"What's so funny?" George tossed a pile of pillows onto the sofa, kicking up another nasty cloud of dust.

"This." Luna stood and pulled the pajama pants on. As soon as she let them go, they fell down around her ankles. "Thanks for the offer, but…"

George grinned "You can still wear the top."

Luna smiled and went into the bathroom to change. She had a quick wash up, then pulled on the pajama shirt and braided her hair in one long braid. When she came back, George had moved the mattress and had put fresh sheets on it.

"Get in where it's warm." He nodded towards the bed, trying not to let his eyes linger on her bare legs.

"Thank you George." Luna smiled up at him adoringly. "I hate to put you to so much work."

He knelt down in front of her, his hand reached out to play with the end of braid…she was just so cute when she wore the braid. "I'd do anything for you, you know that."

"I know." She smiled and sighed in pure bliss. "That why I love you so much."

George's heart thrilled at the sound of the words, so new, yet so familiar at the same time. He smiled and leaned down to kiss her. "I love you too. Sweet dreams."

Luna lay her head down on the pillow and watched as he walked over to the closet. He opened it, then pulled out an old beaters bat and started pounding furiously on the sofa…choking and spluttering as he got lost deeper in the fog of dust. She shook her head, not sure if she was amused, or exasperated.

"George…" She sat up and sat cross legged "…you're never going to make that thing clean enough to sleep on."

"Well I'm not sleeping on the floor. So, as I said…" He looked at her over his shoulder while he prepared to take another swing. "…if you have a better idea, I'm all ears."

Luna bit her lip … it wasn't as if she was offering anything tawdry, just a place to sleep.

"Well…there's plenty of room here." She slid over closer to the fire "Sleep with me."

The bat slid from George's hand and landed with a loud thud on the floor. He stared at her for a moment, then laughed and bent to pick it up.

"Luna, be serious."

"Really George, it's not as if I'm not offering you hot, wild, steamy sex." Luna rolled her eyes. "I'm offering you a warm, clean place to sleep."

George felt an obscene twitch in a rather improper place at Luna's mention of sex…he quickly shook it off and went on to the rest of her comment. Luna was innocent, and despite a few instances of intense snogging, so was he. They were hardly going to fall into a pit of carnal pleasures by sharing a bed for one night.

"Right." George tossed the bat on the sofa…where it kicked up another nasty cloud of dust…and picked up the pajama bottoms, then vanished into the bathroom.

Luna rolled her eyes and plopped back down into the large pile of pillows…yet another way it seemed she and George were compatible. Luna loved pillows.

George crept out of the bathroom in the pajama bottoms and his t-shirt. He tiptoed on the cold floor, then slid into the bed and pulled the blankets up to his chin, turned away from her and slid to the edge as far away as possible…so far, that his legs were curled up on the floor. Luna grinned and leaned over him so she could see his face.

"George?"

"Yes?" He peeked an eye open and looked up at her.

"What are you doing?"

"Respecting your space." He closed his eye and turned back away from her.

"George?" Luna didn't go away.

"Yes?"

"I don't need quite this much space." She giggled "If fact, you could even put your arms around me if you wanted to…unless you don't want to…"

"Who say's I don't want to?" George sat up and turned towards her, the motion pulling him out of the bed so he was sitting on the floor.

"So… you're afraid? Afraid of me?" Luna challenged, her eyes sparkling. Teasing him was so much fun sometimes.

"I'm not afraid." George said vehemently and slid back into the bed. "I'm definitely not afraid of you."

"You act like you're afraid."

"I'm not," George moved closer, his face inches from hers. "For your information Miss Smarty Pants, I am trying to be a gentleman."

"Oh, I see." Luna nodded "There is such a thing as being too much a gentleman you know."

George narrowed his eyes at her "Too much eh?"

"Yes." An unfathomable grin spread across her face. Luna felt an unfamiliar thrill at her daring. A week before she had never been kissed…now, she was on the verge of seducing. She was discovering a whole new side of herself, like this was a season of self-exploration…and she liked it.

"You know…" She sat up on her knees and put her hands on his shoulders. "You could even kiss me if you like."

Like the beaters bat hitting the floor…George's heart gave a deep thud against his ribs as he reached for her to pull her closer. He had never needed to kiss anyone before, he had wanted to plenty of times, but never before had he felt as if he would lose his mind if he didn't. He knew that he shouldn't do it, there were too many feelings between them, the emotions so strong, the attraction so intense…they could be leading themselves into something that was much deeper than they were ready for.

But the need…the need was inescapable.

His hands slid up the sides of her legs to her hips, from her hips to her the small of her back, and he pulled her to him. Their lips met in an explosion of fire and flesh, the last of their innocence obliterated as their tongues met and he pulled her closer. He pulled the tie from her hair, brushing his fingers through it to free it from the restraining plaits.

Luna's mind marveled in a sort of detached wonder. How had she gotten here? Her words had been meant to tease; how had they lead to this intensity…this all consuming need to touch him? She moved closer, her hands moving on his back, up to his neck, into his hair…repeating the circuit over and over again…she sighed against his lips in pleasure when he lowered her to her back.

George moaned when her hands slid under his shirt to touch his skin, his own hands making their first tentative touches on her stomach and breasts. She felt entirely too good under him and he knew that he needed to stop this…it was far, far too soon …if for no other reason than they weren't prepared. He doubted Luna was taking any kind of precautions…until the week before, she had never even been kissed.

Yet he couldn't stop himself…and he couldn't stop her. He arched his back when she pulled his shirt up over his head, then yanked it off when it caught on his chin. He took her lips again, hungry and greedy for more, his hands moving down for the buttons on her pajama top. His lips moved in time with his hand, kissing each inch of skin as it was exposed. Her hands tightened in his hair and he rolled on top of her, pressing his need into her own, his blood boiled when she met his thrusts with equal desire.

"George." She panted, her head tossing side to side on the pillow. "I'm on fire. I want you so much."

The fabric parted and pulled away, completely exposing her breasts, he moved his mouth lower, down her neck, then to her nipples, flicking his tongue over her before pulling her completely in. Luna gasped and pressed her hips into his again.

"I want you." She moaned and tugged at his pajama bottoms "Please George…I want you…I want you to be my first."

Her words slammed into him and he froze.

He didn't want to be her first…he wanted to be her only.

If they did this, if they rushed into something neither of them was ready for, they would both regret it and regret could destroy them. George knew…even as their bodies screamed for one another…neither of them were ready for this.

George pulled away from her, sliding onto his side, then rested his forehead against hers.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, his fingers brushing gently over her cheek.

"George," Luna pulled away, her eyes wide and hurt. "What's wrong?"

"We can't do this." He reached down, pulling her pajama top back in place and closing the buttons once again.

"I don't understand." Luna looked at him in confusion. "I thought you wanted me."

George swallowed deeply, still fighting his body's will to override his good intentions. Every inch of his body was screaming out for her, demanding that he make love to her now and the hell with the consequences. His reply was to himself, as much as it was to her. "I do…but we can't."

She looked up at him, the first vestiges of shame coming into her eyes. Did he think she was a slut for letting him go so far; for the fact that she had wanted him…that she still wanted him? She turned her face away, her eyes becoming moist.

"Don't." George turned her back to face him. "Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to stop? I don't think I have ever done anything more difficult."

"Then why…"

He grinned down at her. "Are you taking an anti pregnancy potion Luna? If you thought it was too soon for a diamond, it's definitely too soon for George Jr. But…if you are taking a potion…" He moved towards her and Luna jerked away from him, a dawning of clarity in her eyes.

"Point taken." Luna grinned at him shyly and rolled up on her elbow. "I'm sorry…"

"For?" George wrapped a ringlet of blonde hair around his finger from the pillow between them, wondering if he might be able to stop her from re-braiding it. He had always been curious to see what she looked like with her hair in a tangled mass of curls in the morning.

"I sort of attacked you."

"No sort of about it." He grinned "You molested my mannish body. And me an innocent virgin too."

Luna looked at him oddly, as if she were trying to decide whether he was pulling her leg or not.

"You don't believe me." George looked a little hurt.

"You were so popular." Luna shrugged "You and Fred both…there were always so many girls around you, pretty girls."

"That doesn't mean I was sleeping with them."

"Well of course it doesn't." Luna lay her head on her pillow and reached up to touch his face. "When you only know someone at a distance, it's easy to draw misconceptions about them. Can you honestly say that you didn't have any about me?"

George looked away and Luna laughed. "Tell the truth George, you expected that all I ever did was stare at the sky for interesting cloud formations and talk on about Nargles."

"Actually, it was Crumple Horned Snorkacks." He turned back and smiled sheepishly, then brushed the backs of his fingers down her cheek. "I guess we both had a few misconceptions."

"So much about you isn't what I thought it was," Luna pulled his hand to her lips and kissed his fingers. "I'm glad that I get to know the real George Weasley. He's pretty amazing."

"No more than the real Luna Lovegood." He bent his head and kissed her, then lay down, pulled her close in his arms and pulled the blankets up around them. He kissed her cheek, then whispered in her ear.

"She's pretty spectacular."

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George blinked his eyes open, thankful for the absence of the sound of wind; it seemed as if the storm had blown over in the night. A wonderful smell drifted over his nose and he rolled over onto his side and pushed himself up into a sitting position.

Luna stood by the stove, still clad in only the pajama top and a pair of far too big socks she must have found in his drawer. The sound of sizzling sausage had taken the place of the wind; made even more pleasant by the amazing scent that accompanied it.

"Good morning." Luna turned and smiled at him brightly. She hadn't put her hair back in the braid the night before and the tangled mess was even better than George had envisioned…of course, it didn't hurt matters that he remembered so vividly how it had gotten so tangled…at least partially.

"Morning." He returned her smile and pushed up from the floor, going to stand behind her. Along with the sausages was another pan filled with scrambled eggs. He tugged on her hand until she turned to face him, then he pulled her into a kiss that was anything but chaste.

"You shouldn't kiss me like that." Luna sighed as she pulled away. "We'll be in trouble again."

"The apothecary might be open by now." George teased, a devilish grin on his face. "Want me to go check?"

"Er…No." Luna dimpled at him and pushed past to pull a pair of plates from the cupboard. "I need to face your parents sometime today. It's going to be hard enough as it is."

George grinned, enjoying the blush on her cheeks. It was much easier to deal with what had almost happened the night before in the light of day. "Good for you then that you will be able to put it off for most of the day."

"I will?"

"Hogsmeade, remember?"

"Oh…right." Luna sighed thankfully and slid most of the sausages out of the pan and onto a plate, then sat it on the table in front of him. She had forgotten that they were going to Hogsmeade to start working on his little cottage behind the new shop that day. "Small favors."

George watched her walk back to the stove with a glow in his eyes, flashes of the night before adding a little heat to his cheeks as well. Even as everything had been screaming at him that it was too soon…his heart had been assuring him that being with her was so right.

Luna returned with her own plate and the pan of eggs, she slid half the eggs onto his plate, then onto her own, tipped the pan into the sink, and sat down kitty-corner from him. They ate in companionable silence for a moment, Luna taking occasional glances at him out of the corner of her eye that were almost nervous.

"What?" He asked after the third time.

"It's nothing." She shook her head.

"What?" George lowered his head and gave her an out-with-it look.

"I don't know, I just feel a little…odd now."

"Odd how? Because we were…almost…"

"Well, that." Luna nodded "But, not only that, but …what we said too."

"Oh." George dropped his fork. Was she regretting having said she loved him? "You're sorry you said it?"

"No! Of course I'm not sorry!" She looked at him like he had just said the stupidest thing she had ever heard, which for Luna…was saying a lot. "Are you sorry?"

"Of course not." He shrugged, a sliver of hurt stabbing him in the chest. "You're the one with regrets."

"I didn't say I regretting anything." Now Luna did look hurt. How could he think that she would regret it? "I just said that I feel odd. Things are different now…it's like…so much has changed in such a short time. We said what we did… and then we…and we almost…" She shook her head and looked at her hands where she had them clenched tightly in her lap. "Everything is going to be different now."

"I'm sorry." George reached down and pulled her hand out of her lap, then held it between his. "I wasn't thinking."

"Obviously not." The hurt tone was in her voice, the tone that George hated most of all.

"Luna, this is like my being jealous of that idiot waiter…this is all new to me, I'm going to make mistakes."

"It's new to me too." Luna's voice was miserable. "Even more to me than it is to you."

"I know, I'm sorry. Even more reason why we need to be careful and take things slow." He reached over and turned her face towards him. He leaned over and kissed her softly, then pulled her out of the chair and into his lap. "It's only been a little more then a week since we met in Diagon Alley…"

Luna sighed and looked up at him, twining their fingers together. "It feels like much longer doesn't it?"

"It does." He agreed. "And it's not as if we 'met' met, we've known one another our whole lives. But this…this is different, and it's all happened so fast, yet at the same time, it feels so right…like its fate propelling us along rather than conscious thought."

"Like last night." Luna sighed "It felt so right, like we were supposed to be together…like we had been waiting for that moment our whole lives."

"Maybe we have been." George smiled a little, his cheeks pinking again.

"I've never believed in soul mates." Luna lay her head on his shoulder.

George laughed and repeated his mother's words. "Where do you stand on destiny?"

Luna giggled. "I'm pretty sure than I stand the same place you do…just like usual."

"I don't want to make any mistakes. We have our whole lives ahead of us, there's no need to rush into anything."

"You're right." Luna sighed and lay her head on his chest, then wrapped her arms around him tightly. "But I can't take back the words…not now that I already said them."

"I don't want you to." George tightened his arms around her "Slowing down doesn't mean slowing down how much I love you…I couldn't do that even if I wanted to. Which…by the way…I don't."

Luna sighed against his neck. Slowing things down…it seemed an impossible task to her. Everything between them had moved so fast, so fast it had nearly left her breathless…but in the most wonderful way imaginable. But the truth was…what had almost happened the night before…she wasn't ready for it. Not just in terms of being safe, but emotionally. Opening herself up to someone in that way was a huge thing…it was a commitment, the kind of commitment that she would only make with someone who was willing to make it a lifetime commitment. She needed to be sure…and as much as she was sure George loved her, she was still insecure. They were only days away from a time when they would be apart and yes, absence makes the heart grow fonder…but absence also made people forget…particularly a whirlwind romance.

The quiet was interrupted by a loud banging. George looked over to see a shadow at the door.

"That will be Harry and Ron, wanting in to open the shop."

"I better get dressed then." Luna slid off his lap and scooped up her pile of clothes from the chair. She stood on tiptoes to kiss him, then disappeared into the bathroom.

"Hang on a minute!" George yelled at the door, then used his wand to levitate the mattress back to his bed…his family didn't need to know any details. He pulled on a shirt, then twisted the doorknob.

"Hello George!" He was enveloped in a crushing hug, then lips crashed down on his.

"Angelina." George pushed her away, his glance not on her, but on the bathroom door.

"Nice to see you too." Angelina laughed.

"What are you doing here?"

"Well, I came back to spend New Years with you." She pulled off her cloak and draped it against the back of a chair. "I heard there is going to be a huge ball, I thought we could go together."

"I'm afraid that's not possible." George looked over to see Luna, standing in the bathroom door, her eyes stormy.

"Luna Lovegood?" Angelina looked her up and down, wondering what she was doing there. "What in the world are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

"Er…Angelina." George brushed past Angelina and took Luna's hand. "Luna and I are together."

"Together?" Angelina looked like she wanted to laugh…obviously this was another of George's jokes.

"Promised." Luna lifted her left hand to show Angelina the garnet ring.

"Promised to what exactly?"

George leveled Angelina with a look.

"To be engaged."

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Chapter Fourteen Preview

Yikes!

Luna and Angelina

face to face…

Who will be left standing when the smoke clears?

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