Harry Potter and the Year After

Chapter Thirty-eight: After Office Hours

Chapter 38: After Office Hours

No one came to his office hours... unless they came in the first twenty minutes and he missed them while he was leaving the hospital wing and changing his close and cleaning the blood from his face, but Harry doubted it. It was only the end of the first week of school, after all. Harry supposed that no one needed help yet.

Though, he reminded himself, he couldn't recall ever going to any professor's office hours even once. Detention, yes, but never office hours.

The three hours were almost up and he'd almost finished his first chapter's parchment for his own Defense homework when he heard a soft knock at the door.

"Enter," Harry called while he scribbled down the last sentence of the thirty-six inch homework. So someone did need help after all. Bad timing, he thought, but maybe they had a class before this?

When he looked up though, he didn't see one of his students. He saw only Ginny.

"Harry..." she said as she walked slowly forward. "I wanted to know how you were doing. Are you alright? I went to the hospital wing but she said she let you out hours ago."

"She said I had the magical form of PTSD."

"What's PTSD?" she'd reached his desk and stood opposite him. He felt odd sitting at the teacher's desk and stood up.

"Sorry," he said shaking his head, "It's a mental problem--"

"You're hearing voices or something?" she said, smirking. Harry walked around his desk so he was facing her.

"No. Not yet anyway."

"Oh, well that's good."

"No, apparently I got sick because I'm not dealing with the trauma of my past or some rubbish."

"I see." She reached forward and traced the seam along the collar of his robe.

"I don't mean to pry," he said evenly, "but what the bloody hell were you doing with Draco Malfoy earlier? I saw him lead you into the Slytherin Common Room."

"Were you spying on me?" she asked, letting her hand drop. Her eyebrows furrowed. Was she angry?

"I just happened to walk by and I saw you. Answer the question."

"We were practicing Occlumency. Nothing more. What do you care anyway?"

"Of course--"

"You think I'd throw myself at you and then do whatever you're thinking with Malfoy the next day?" She shrugged and pressed her lips together. "No, sorry, the same day."

Harry watched her face as she grew angrier. And he realized that maybe instead of therapy, he just needed to let go. Let himself get messed about by Ginny Weasley. Drink the Firewhiskey that was locked up, tucked away into the bottom of his trunk. Don't take the coming N.E.W.T. exams so seriously and the fact that he already failed to become an Auror so seriously. Don't take anything so seriously.

He wasn't making life and death decisions anymore. Not for him, not for Hermione or Ron. Not for anyone. Who would care if he lived a little? No one at all, right?

And then Harry took two steps forward, grabbed Ginny and kissed her.

He didn't think. He could only act. She responded immediately, wrapping her arms around him and pressing herself against him. Soon, she jumped up and wrapped her legs around his waist and he stumbled forward, belatedly grabbing her under her thighs. Luckily the door was shut. He turned and propped her up on the edge of his desk.