Harry thundered up the stairs to the astronomy tower and without pausing to catch his breath, launched himself at Ginny. He caught her up in a tight embrace and pressed his lips to her own. After several long minutes in which the world shrank to include just the two of them and the delightful things their mouths were doing, Ginny pulled away and while gasping for air asked, "What was that for? Not that I'm complaining."
Winded himself, Harry panted, "I resisted kissing you all day as not to be seen by anyone. Now that we are finally alone I couldn't help it."
"Well then, by all means, less talking and more kissing," Ginny whispered as her lips trailed kisses down his neck.
"As bloody brilliant as that sounds we have A LOT to talk about," Harry countered. At that moment Ginny's mouth found a particularly sensitive spot below his right ear and he amended, "But we have all night long to talk."
Harry's hands tangled into her long fiery hair and directed her mouth back toward his own. He willingly plunged into the total obliteration that came when Ginny kissed him with this kind of passion. He remembered her kisses to be fiery on the surface but sweet underneath during her sixth year. Now kissing her was heady and scorching, all traces of sweetness vanished. He attributed the difference to the current times and everyone's desire to have some kind of escape from it all. He felt it too, the longing to completely loose himself in her. He imagined that as the pain and memories faded the sweetness would slowly seep back in.
After what was probably an hour and during which time Ginny had removed both his glasses and his shirt their fervor began to recede. Harry released the hold with which he had Ginny pinned against the cool tower wall. They rested their foreheads against one another as their heartbeats slowed and their breathing returned to normal.
"So," Ginny finally uttered through swollen lips, "We had things to talk about?"
"Yes," Harry said briefly as he willed his body to be calm.
"Does it have anything to do with whether or not you are returning to school in the fall?" Ginny asked.
"It has everything to do with that," Harry said, "You see, McGonagall saved me until last because school is not my only option for next year. She had a letter for me from Kingsley. Here you can read it."
Ginny took the letter and slid down to sit on the floor with her back resting against the wall. As she read Harry snagged his shirt off the floor and pulled it back over his head. Squinting around in the dark tower Harry had no idea what had become of his glasses, pulling his wand from his pocket he said, "Accio glasses," and they zoomed into his hand from where Ginny had set them on a ledge. As Ginny finished reading Harry slid down the wall to settle on the floor beside her.
"This is amazing Harry," Ginny said as she handed him back the letter. He could hear something in her voice and wondered what she was really thinking. "So you're going to be in London next year?"
"I don't know yet," Harry said, "I want your opinion, well more than that really, I want you and I to make this decision together."
"What?" Ginny asked, "It is your life and your decision. I can't help you to decide."
"But Gin, you are part of my life. I hope you are a big part of my life for the rest of my life. You need to be considered in this decision," Harry confessed, "It affects you too."
"I appreciate that and am astounded at the implications of what you are asking, but what if I help you make this decision and in the end you are unhappy with what we decided," Ginny said.
"Even if that happens I'm not going to be upset with you," Harry said. "Please, let me talk this through with you and tell me what you think."
Not convinced but unwilling to say 'no,' Ginny nodded before asking, "What did Ron and Hermione say about all of this. I know they waited outside the Great Hall for you."
"I didn't breathe a word of this to them. I wanted this to be our decision and I knew that if I even mentioned it they would offer their views and I didn't want to hear their views this time, only yours," Harry explained.
"Fine," Ginny conceded, "I will listen and I will even offer my opinions but I'm not sure I'm comfortable being part of the decision making process."
"That's all I can ask for, I guess," Harry said, "I have two options next year. On one hand I can become the youngest Auror in the history of the Ministry. On the other hand I can return for one final year of school at Hogwarts. There are pros and cons to both options."
"Start with the pros then," Ginny suggested, "I'll make a list." Rising off the floor she conjured herself some parchment and a quill and settled herself at the lone desk in the tower.
"Let's see," Harry began, "Pros for being an Auror….I would be done with school, I would be moving on with my professional life, I would be earning money for something I have a personal drive to do anyway, I would love having a hand in tracking down the rest of the death eater scum out there, it would be exciting and challenging and new, it is a tremendous honor to be awarded the position…"
"How about pros for Hogwarts," Ginny asked when she could tell Harry was winding down.
"Hogwarts….well, finishing my education and filling in any gaps in my magical knowledge, having a peaceful, comfortable, safe, normal year before moving down the path toward becoming an Auror, Quidditch, being here with my friends, you, taking the time to figure out if being an Auror is really what I want…."
Now let's move to cons, starting with being an Auror," Ginny interrupted again when she could tell he was running out of ideas.
"I would be in London while you, Ron and Hermione would be here, what if the other Aurors resented the fact that I was given the job without NEWTs or training, it might be really hard without having finished school or training, I will probably be lonely, it will be dangerous, if I do this I'm not giving myself any time to just have a normal life even for a little while…" Harry trailed off.
"Okay, cons of Hogwarts," Ginny prompted.
"After the year I just lived it might be hard to just go back to school and classes, rules, curfews, exams, I wouldn't be out there helping catch death eaters…" Harry said.
"You have six in each category except for cons to return to Hogwarts you only have five," Ginny told him, "Why don't you just tell me your feeling about each option."
Harry stood and paced around the circular room before saying, "I have been on the path to where I am right now since the day Voldemort killed my parents. He heard part of the prophecy that Trelawny made and choose to believe that it meant me. I have to believe that if Voldemort had targeted Neville instead of me, my life would completely different. I wonder if I had gotten to lead that other life what my interests would be. Would they still include being an Auror and fighting for justice? I'm not so sure that they would. When Professor McGonagall told me what she thought I should do she mentioned the same thing. Maybe now that Voldemort is gone I need to find out if I would have chosen a different path, a path that wasn't simply forced upon me. I intended for Voldemort to kill me when I went into the forest. Maybe I shouldn't waste my second chance, but make sure I make the absolute most of it I can."
He stopped pacing and perched on the edge of the desk where Ginny still sat and said, "On the other hand, I have been following that path for a long time. It is so engrained in me that I'm not sure I can give up my draw toward that future, even if I wanted to. While I am so tempted to take the Auror option I keep thinking of what it would be like to have one last year here. What would it be like to be responsible for no more than going to class, learning and playing Quidditch? What would it be like to have a perfectly ordinary year where there is not some plot to end my life? It sounds very peaceful and wonderful but at the same time a little dull. If the decision rested solely with you Ginny, what would you have me do?"
"The trouble with you asking for my opinion is that my opinion is entirely selfish," Ginny confessed, "If it was up to me you would come back to Hogwarts for one more year. Not because you could stand to learn more but simply because I want you here with me. Last year was the hardest year of my life and not just because of the death eater influence here at the castle. I missed you so much and it was terrifying not knowing where you were or what you were doing."
"That is a compelling argument," Harry replied with a grin, "Even if it is not very constructive it is very flattering." Harry thought for a moment before saying, "if only there was a way I could do both."
"Maybe there is," Ginny said, "You should ask McGonagall and Kingsley to work something out. Maybe you could start Auror training while here, it could be like another of your classes. They could use you as a trainee on holidays and weekend or something."
"Ginny, you're brilliant," Harry said happily, "I will ask her tomorrow."
"So, does that mean you're returning next year?" Ginny asked.
"I think so. Even if the idea of starting Auror training here next year doesn't pan out I think I'm leaning toward coming back," Harry said.
"Are you sure you will be happy with that decision?" Ginny asked nervously.
"Yes, besides, it's just one year. Kingsley said I could take up my position whenever I was ready for it," Harry said.
"You'll be Quidditch captain for sure," Ginny told him.
"Co-captain," Harry corrected her.
"What?" Ginny asked.
"McGonagall told me that you and I both had a right to it since you were captain last year. I told her that you and I should co-captain the team and she seemed fine with the idea," Harry explained, "Why didn't you ever tell me you were captain last year?"
"Quidditch was a joke last year," Ginny said with a scowl, "between all the detention and torture sessions no one was fit to play or in the mood to watch. Besides, so many people were missing last year that it was no wonder all the teams were pretty lousy."
"How would you feel about co-captaining?" Harry asked.
"I think it would give us a good reason to go off together alone," Ginny said, "You know, planning different plays and tactics."
"I like the way your mind works," Harry said with a smirk, "But really, would you want to share it?"
"Yeah," Ginny said, "I think it would be a lot of fun to do it together. Any other bits of info you should share from your meeting with McGonagall?"
"She told me that she and the other professors would like to see me be head boy or a prefect at least. I told her I'd prefer to have neither but if it was unavoidable I would prefer prefect," Harry explained.
"Why would you prefer prefect?" Ginny asked.
"Less responsibilities," Harry said jokingly, "But seriously, I would prefer neither, but if I'm pushed to choose I'd take prefect because Ron and Hermione deserve to be head boy and girl together, don't you think?"
"Ah, I see, giving them a reason to go off alone together, what with all the rule making and organizational planning," Ginny said with a twinkle in her eyes.
"I'm glad to see you followed my reasoning," Harry said.
Having finally mastered the spell Dumbledore always used to conjure large comfortable armchairs with, Harry flicked his wand and a large squashy armchair with room for two appeared in the middle of the room. "Story time?" Harry asked.
"Yes," Ginny agreed. Together they climbed into the chair and positioned themselves so they could both comfortably look up toward the stars from their seat. "Who goes first, me or you?"
"I can go first," Harry offered. "So, when we disapparated from the wedding, Hermione took us to Tottenham Court Road, I guess it was the first place that came to mind. Ron and I were all panicked because we didn't know what had happened to any of you and we thought we'd left the Burrow without any of the things we'd planned to take with us but Hermione was one step ahead of us, as usual. She had magically expanded that tiny beaded handbag she had at the wedding and it was packed with everything we needed. We ducked into an alleyway and she pulled out a change of clothes for Ron and my invisibility cloak for myself. After Ron changed, we went to a café farther down the street. We started to talk about what happened and mentioned Voldemort's name; we didn't find out until later about the Taboo. A couple of death eaters came in, disguised as muggles, and after sitting down behind us, attacked Ron and Hermione. They weren't expecting to be attacked right back by me as I was still underneath my invisibility cloak. After we overtook them, we fixed the restaurant and Hermione Obliviated their memories as well as the memory of the waitress that was there as well. We then apparated to my house, Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. It was terrifying to apparate there not knowing if the death eaters had managed to infiltrate it after Dumbledore's death or not. Some jinxes had been set on the house against Snape, but other than getting past those, it was alright."
"Harry," Ginny interrupted, "You don't have to tell me every detail. The main plot points would be fine."
"Bored already?" Harry asked.
"No, but if you wanted to skip over the unimportant bits we'll get through it all faster," Ginny explained.
"Don't worry, it isn't really that long of a story, there was a lot of time where we were simply trying to figure out where to go next," Harry said.
"Okay, keep going," Ginny said.
As he twisted a tendril of her hair between his fingers he continued, "While at Sirius' house we figured out who R.A.B. was that left the note and the fake horcrux that Dumbledore and I got out of the cave. R.A.B. is Regulus A. Black, Sirius' brother. He became a death eater at sixteen and quickly regretted his decision. Before the death eaters tracked him down to kill him he and Kreacher went to the cave and took the locket horcrux. Remember the summer before my fifth year when we were all at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place cleaning and stuff? We found the locket in that cabinet in the drawing room and didn't even realize it. Luckily Kreacher stole back most of the things we tried to throw out that summer. Kreacher was able to tell us that Mundungus Fletcher had stolen it along with lots of other stuff after Sirius died. We sent Kreacher to fetch Mundungus. When we interrogated Mundungus he told us that Umbridge had taken it from him in return for not turning him in for selling in Diagon Alley without a permit. So, we were going to have to go to the Ministry to get the locket. We spent an entire month at Sirius' house taking turns running surveillance at the Ministry and planning how to get in and get the locket back."
"Is that when Kreacher changed his mind about you?" Ginny asked.
"Yeah, I gave him the fake horcrux that he and Regulus had left in the cave and from then on he was great. He cooked and cleaned for us, he was really wonderful," Harry explained. "Do you want more or shall we wait until tomorrow night for me to tell you about our adventures in the Ministry?"
"No that is fine, I'll go now," Ginny said with a resigned sigh. Harry could tell that she was steeling herself to dredge up painful memories that she preferred not to remember. He was about to tell her that she didn't need to talk about it tonight when she started, "I knew that things would be different when I went back to school last year. I just didn't realize that the differences would be apparent so early on. I have never been afraid to go away to school, but I cried when I got onto the train last year. I had never felt so alone. I was the only Weasley going back to school for the first time since Bill started his first year. The only house that didn't seem to be missing students was Slytherin. I sat with Neville and Luna on the Hogwarts Express and we discussed everyone that wasn't coming back. We hoped that the feast would make things seem better but they didn't. The tables seemed so empty. The sorting hat's song was horribly dire and depressing. We just felt bad for the first years, what a horrible year to start at Hogwarts. It was hard to look up to the head table and see Snape sitting in Dumbledore's chair. Then the Carrows were announced as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts and Muggle Studies professors. The Slytherins caused a lot of havoc in the corridors…and everyone just looked the other way. Neville, Seamus and Ernie all got detention before they even made it back to their common rooms that first night. They didn't even do anything. I think Neville was caught saying your name so they gave him detention to question him about your whereabouts. Seamus badmouthed Snape and Ernie was trying to defend Seamus. If anyone had any doubts about how different the year was going to be they got over them after they saw those three after detention."
"Neveille got detention for saying my name?" Harry asked, appalled.
"Yeah and he was beaten with a whip for not telling them what he knew about where you were. I taught myself my first healing spell that first night," Ginny said.
"You were healing people?" Harry asked.
"Well if you went to Madame Pomfrey and they caught you they'd just make it worse for you the next time," Ginny explained, "Someone needed to step up and figure out how we were going to survive the year. I taught myself as many healing spells as I could and then taught them to at least a few people from both Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. In the end I think that was part of why I was targeted for detention and torture. They knew that I was the person who was healing people as well as teaching others how to do it too and they didn't like that."
"How did anyone learn anything last year if you were all busy avoiding detention, getting tortured and healing fellow students?" Harry asked.
"I'm not sure anyone really did," Ginny said, "I'm really nervous about going back to school in the fall. I know it is going to be different, but it is going to take a little time to get past all of that."
"It will be different in the fall and even if it isn't I'll be there to protect you," Harry said.
"You're really coming back then?" Ginny asked, "I'm not sure I'll really believe it until I see you on the Hogwarts Express sitting next to me."
"I will talk to McGonagall first thing in the morning about trying to arrange a way for me to pursue both options next year," Harry promised.
"I'm sure you'll convince them, after all you are the person who vanquished Voldemort, they owe you big," Ginny said, "Do you want to hear more about last year?"
"I do, but not right now," Harry said, "Right now I want to kiss you."
"I think that can be arranged," Ginny said as she shifted in the chair so she was sitting in Harry lap.
This time their kisses held a hint of that former sweetness and less of the fiery urgency. Sharing with one another their experiences of the year before would bring them closer together and create a better understanding between them. As Harry gently kissed Ginny he couldn't help but think again how happy he was that they were back together.
Author's Note: It's funny, the first half of the people who reviewed and told me which option Harry should take said he should go back to school which is what I had been leaning toward myself. Then the second half of people who reviewed all said that Harry needed to become an Auror because that was canon to the books. For me the big draw of fan fiction is that you don't have to be canon – you can go and explore a different path. Part of my decision to send Harry back to school is because it is what I would do if I were him. But, based on all the reviews I got saying that he shouldn't go back to school I thought I would try to make both options work…I hope my little twist pleases people.
Several people have also commented that some of the things different characters say sound out of character. This is the piece I struggle with the most when writing fan fiction. I hope that people choose to read the story anyway and see this flaw as the character changing or growing – maybe.
Anyway – thanks for the reviews. I hope to get more feedback – I love to hear how I am doing and any ideas people have to improve the story. Thanks!