Harry Potter and the Summer After the War

Chapter 29 - Bad Timing

Harry waited for Ginny in the entrance hall wearing his best muggle clothes. Girls always seemed to take longer than they should to get ready, but when she finally did come down, Harry decided it had been worth the wait. She looked lovely in a nice summer dress, her hair curled but loose around her shoulders, heels and Harry’s necklace around her neck. She smiled shyly at him when she saw him looking at her so admiringly.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

“For dinner, yes, I am. I’m starved actually,” she said.

Harry took her by the hand and they walked together to the little restaurant they’d seen on the edges of their neighborhood. It was a small Italian place, and though it was crowded they decided it was quite good. They talked and laughed throughout the meal, but afterwards Harry noticed that Ginny grew nervously silent.

On this evening, when they returned to the square at Grimmauld place, several wrapped roles of carpet and padding, large cartons with electrical symbols on them, boxes of linens, and the mattress Harry had ordered two days before, lay waiting for them. Ginny regarded the pile thoughtfully as Harry levitated it up into the air and guided it through the front door of number twelve Grimmauld Place. Ginny followed behind, watching for overly observant muggles, closing the front door behind Harry as they went. Harry left the roles of carpet and boxes of appliances in the drawing room, but together he and Ginny brought the mattress and linens upstairs. They settled the mattress on the bed frame in the master bedroom and Ginny began unpacking the linens to make up the bed. Harry watched as Ginny took extra time smoothing the sheets, smiling as she made sure the pillows were all just so.

“You okay Gin?” he asked; sitting down on the edge of the bed near her.

“Yeah, I suppose,” she said. “Just a bit nervous.”

“You know,” he said rubbing her shoulder. “We don’t have to use this.”

“I know.” She returned his smile, sitting down beside him. “But it would be silly not to use the bed, I mean it’s better than the floor,” she teased.

Harry looked at her with a start. Laughing just a little, he kissed her. Ever so gently she kissed him back, with the lightest touch possible with her lips. A trill of excitement ran up and down Harry’s spine.

“Oh Gin,” he murmured in a deep soft voice as he kissed her again, stroking her hair.

Ginny kicked off her heels, slowly stood from the bed, and turned to face him; standing directly in front of him. Leaning over, she kissed him so that her necklace swung forward away from her body, one hand on his shoulder, the other on the bed. Harry put his hands at her waist trying to pull her closer to him but she pulled back. Her long auburn hair fell across the legs of his trousers as she knelt and removed his shoes.  Harry watched in fascination as she stood up again. Ginny pushed on his shoulders until he lay back on the bed, crawled over him and started to unbutton his shirt, stopping about half way down while Harry found himself slipping the spaghetti straps from her summer dress from her shoulders without having made a conscious effort to do so. She let him until her arms were free, then she pulled back placing a hand across the front of her dress keeping the top of it firmly in place.

Harry regarded her thoughtfully, keeping his hands near her shoulders, back, and face. He kissed her again, but again Ginny pulled away, turning to sit beside him again. Harry sat up too, not wanting to rush her.

“You know what?” she said.

“What?”

“This…” She waved a hand at the room. “…all this is weird,”

“Why? I thought you liked the room Gin.”

“I do, but this room….Harry, it’s like we’re married or something, you know? Isn’t this a married person’s room?”