A/N: Written as part of Hogwarts' Meet Cute Marathon. Other prompts & challenges are listed below.

Word Count: 917

An Unexpected Treasure in the Jungle

Ron reluctantly stepped into the 'Jungle'. In his opinion, the tangle of weeds, the overgrown lawn and smatterings of wildflowers were in such a state it couldn't justifiably be called a garden. He couldn't even see where the garden gnomes had gone - for all he knew they had grown sentient and were running wild.

Either way, today Ron was prepared to wage war. His parents were coming for dinner and he didn't want to give them an excuse to think he couldn't handle living on his own. Unfortunately for him, it was one of those perfect summer days - the sun was shining, a gentle breeze was blowing, the birds were singing and the lawnmower was broken. He would have to do at least the start by hand. He was tempted to light the whole thing on fire or use industrial strength weed killer to wreak havoc and destruction, but then his Dad had a green thumb and would give Ron his best-disappointed look.

As he trekked out across the lawn towards his shed, Ron smiled hearing screams of laughter from some of the local kids. It was the Easter holidays and the whole cul-de-sac had been abuzz with activity. He'd chosen quite a nice neighbourhood to buy his first house. It meant his commute to work was God awful but there were some gorgeous local parks, an artisan bakery less than five minutes walk away and very little crime. Perhaps it was an unusual choice for a single bachelor but as soon as Ron had viewed the property, it had felt like somewhere a future would be possible.

The shed door was ajar.

Ron frowned to himself, wondering if it had blown open or something. Perhaps it had been stormy recently and he'd slept through it, that felt likely. Or maybe it was the fox Anne three doors down had posted a picture of on the local online newsletter.

"YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE."

A jet of freezing cold water hit Ron in the chest as he pulled the shed door open. He froze in shock, so stunned by the loud shout and icy water that he was momentarily speechless. Then he pointed a finger at the stranger holding a fearsome looking water gun, staring at Ron with wide green eyes.

"What the bloody fucking hell are you doing in my shed?"

"Y - your shed? Is this not Anne's house?"

Ron tugged at his t-shirt mournfully and shook his head.

"She lives down the road."

He glanced up, just in time to catch the man bite his lip as he stared at Ron's exposed hips and abdomen. Ron let his top drop, feeling a little cocky as the man's eyes snapped up to his with a guilty look.

"Oh… well, in that case, this is about to be a really awkward first impression. My name's Harry and I've just moved in directly across the street. Anne suggested I come by at some point for a tea and chat. Not to be a stereotypical gay guy but I was hoping to get a bit of gossip and info about the area." Harry ran his hand through his messy black hair with a sheepish grin that made Ron's stomach flip.

"When I went outside I got waylaid by a group of kids playing hide and seek and well…"

"You were hiding in my shed, playing with the local kids?" Ron repeated slowly, trying to work out if he'd ever been so lucky. There was a gorgeous guy in front of him who was confident, good with kids and most importantly, gay. He was almost too perfect to be real. "Subtlety's not your strong point, is it?"

Harry laughed and hefted the water gun in his hand with a shrug.

"Yeah well, I'm a veteran, still a sucker for a battle. One of them gave me this water gun but I was going to throw this rubber duck at them, as a plan B." Harry grinned, gesturing to one of several rubber ducks Ron had collected over the years.

"My name's Ron and consider this an open invitation to hide in my shed any time. I can show you where Anne's house is but also feel free to come over here. I think we might be the only gay guys in a five-mile radius. And as to the rubber ducks… Don't even ask. It's a family inside joke."

This time Ron definitely didn't miss the look Harry gave him as he stepped out of the shed into the sunlight.

"You're going to need to change your wet t-shirt," Harry said, green eyes bright.

"I don't think it's that wet," Ron began, then yelped as Harry fired the water gun, drenching him at such short range.

"Now it is!"

Ron would be lying if he told himself he didn't put on a show as he slowly pulled the shirt off over his head.

"Happy, Harry?"

"It'll do for now, yeah."

"You cheeky sod," Ron snorted. "Go terrorise those kids and let me start on this garden."

Harry grinned, then as he reached the path that went along the side of the house, he stopped and laughed when he saw Ron was still watching him.

"If you get a sunburn, I'll happily rub you with aloe vera."

"Don't tempt me."

"I just might have too. I've fallen under your spell."

Harry blew him a kiss and Ron chuckled as he went into the shed, ready to tackle the 'Jungle'.

A/N:

- Meet Cute Marathon: Day 13 - "I came to get tools to do some landscaping and you're hiding in my shed after you got inadvertently sucked into a game of Hide and Seek with the local kids"

- Character Appreciation: (object) rubber duck

- Showtime: (dialogue) "I've fallen under your spell."

- Book Club: Trashcan Man - (colour) black, (word) fire, (word) destruction

- Lyric Alley: 'When no one's out'

- Jenny's Jovial Quotations: "It was one of those perfect summer days - the sun was shining, a gentle breeze was blowing, the birds were singing and the lawnmower was broken." - James Dent

- Liza's Loves: Write about Spring Break.

- The 365 Prompts Challenge: 207. Plot Point - A character finds something

- The Insane House Challenge: 516. Action: Hiding

- Serpent Day: Hook nosed sea snake- (dialogue) "Subtlety is not your strong point, is it?"

- The Forty Day Challenge: 1. Only Gryffindors