Month Three

"I don't think I've ever seen you in as good a mood as you have been these past few weeks." Sirius commented over breakfast.

"Well, I've been feeling pretty happy." Harry smiled. "My room looks great. I'm super happy about that." The evening before the Weasley's had put the finishing touches on his room and stayed late to do so, which meant that Ginny had been there when he'd gotten home and he'd been thrilled to see her, regardless of the fact that he didn't have the opportunity to kiss her again.

They'd stripped back the drywall on his far wall and whitewashed it to be an accent wall with the stonework with his headboard against it. They'd also expanded the size of his room by knocking down a wall and added a doorway. His room now had two doors, one to the hall and one to his walk in closet that had another door leading to a remodeled bathroom. It was fantastic, so modern and roguish. It really felt like a creative mans area. The whole room seemed to inspire him to start doing something that involved working with his hands and yet he'd fallen into such a content sleep last night.

Ginny hadn't stopped pranking him either, so that was also making him happy. There was a teddy bear hidden beneath his pillows. When he held it out in front of him he chuckled, the belly of the bear read 'hug me', he did and it bit him.

He'd been trying to think up something to send her that she would appreciate. Not more flowers, or trick candies and teddy bears, but something to spoil her a bit.

He'd tricked her into going to the Quidditch game with him two weekends ago, and he knew she wasn't mad about that. Or that he kept getting himself invited over to her family home when he knew she'd be there.

She had seemed a bit stiff when he gave her a hug over his room last night, and he was sure it wasn't out of discomfort with their proximity. Maybe some sort of bath products and a bottle of wine could be in order.

"This isn't just about your room." Sirius circled a finger indicating his whole face. "It's Ginny, isn't it?" There was an uptick to the side of his mouth.

Finally it seemed like he'd managed to convince his godfather that his actions with her were based on genuine feelings.

"It's her whole family really." He admitted. "I mean, yes, I really like Ginny and I hope she feels the same way about me. Be quite devastated if she doesn't to tell you the truth. But between her, Ron, the twins, and even her mum and dad they're just all so... great."

"Her brother Percy was the one that helped her get into your office." Sirius admitted with a grin. It was clear that he thought as much of the Weasleys as Harry did. "He works at the Ministry."

"Right. Yes. Met him at St. Mungo's and again at the Burrow." Harry chuckled at the memory of that prank and the accompanying stink.

()()()

Running her hands under the tap she tried to scrub off the plaster that had caked to her skin. Part of the wall in the back of the sitting room had been in worse shape than they'd thought and from the look of it, it was from something disturbing. Not just usual mold and rot more like blood had seeped into the wall, or a potion had gone horribly wrong.

She wanted to get it dealt with before leaving for the evening and had just finished sanding down the new plaster so it could dry overnight and set for them to paint the next day.

The door to the kitchen opened behind her and with-out turning around to see who it was she felt a thrilling tingle go up her spine.

Fred and George had taken off and Sirius had a dinner date, which meant that it could only be one person.

She shut off the tap and felt him come right up behind her, his head lowered and he placed a gentle kiss below her ear that made her shiver with lustful tingles.

"You are covered head to toe in something." He whispered with a chuckle.

She cringed. She was covered in a thin layer of white dust. Her tan coveralls were white now as was the small amount of hair that wasn't tucked up into her cap, and it was surely stuck in larger clumps to her sweaty neck. She was uncomfortable from the sweat and dirt and was hoping to get out of the house and back to hers for a shower before Harry came home and saw her like that.

"It's a dirty job, but someone's got to do it." She tried to play it off.

"You know, there is this lovely new shower and bath installed in my room. The jets are amazing. And very relaxing." He traced circles on her hip with his thumbs, then started moving them inwards towards her spine and giving her a light back rub.

Bracing both hands on the sink she pushed back slightly into his hands and he worked his way up her back. It felt so good. None of her past boyfriends had just volunteered a back rub, not that Harry was her boyfriend. The telling her to take a shower or a bath part though, that had happened before.

"I'd offer to scrub you down if you like." Harry told her in a low voice that made her head roll back slightly.

"I. Can- Oh that feels so good." He worked his way up to her shoulders. "You do have a nicer shower than I do." She admitted.

"And it would be much easier for me to wash your back." She could hear the smile.

She bit her lip and shrugged his hands off of her gently, turning around to look up at him. He was so handsome and her resolve was fading further and further away.

"Or I could stay down here and make you dinner." He offered.

She swallowed and nodded her acceptance. That sounded amazing.

"Good." He traced a finger over the apple of her cheek and gave her a smile before leaning his head down to give her a kiss. They both sighed into the kiss but pulled back after only a moment.

She managed to pull away from him and head towards the door. Heading up the stairs to his room, to use his shower, Ginny wondered if this was a good idea. She was going to be getting naked in the bathroom that he used. One that he had probably been naked in just that morning.

She entered his room and saw that once again his bed was unmade. Passing through the walk-in and into the bathroom she pulled her cap off and unzipped her coveralls quickly before she could change her mind, then she caught her reflection in the mirror.

He'd drawn a heart in the dust on her cheek.

Smiling like a school girl she turned on the shower and shed the rest of her clothes before stepping in.

The water pressure and temperature were perfect, and much nicer than what she had at home. She could see his tub through the glass of the shower door. It was a very nice soaker tub, long enough that she wouldn't have to bend her knees to try and sink in far enough to get the water over her breasts. Harry had invited her to use the shower and the bath, but her stomach wasn't keen on her taking too long.

Grabbing his shampoo, she washed her hair and gave a scrub to her skin with his soap. She let out a groan and the feel of the grime leaving her skin and the smell of his products. Just his scent on her was turning her on.

Shutting off the water she stepped out and wrapped a towel around herself before grabbing her wand and freshening up her clothes.

By the time she made it back down to the kitchen Harry had whipped up some lemon pepper chicken with veggies and biscuits. It smelled great. And he had pulled out some wine glasses.

"I hope you didn't have pizza and beer in mind." He grinned, looking quite proud of himself.

"Maybe next time." She replied automatically with a sultry look and took a seat at the table across from him.

"Good to hear." He took her glass and poured her some white wine. "Are you getting much use out of what I sent you last week?"

She couldn't fight the smirk on her face. "Are you asking how often I've gotten naked in a bubble bath recently?"

"Of course not. I'm asking how many nights this past week you've gotten naked in a bubble bath with a glass of wine. And thought of me." He clarified.

She felt heat rise to her cheeks and didn't answer but turned her attention to the food. He didn't need to know exactly what she'd been doing in that tub while she thought of him. "This looks and smells lovely." She picked up her fork and knife and dug into it. It was a simple meal but would fill her belly to just the right amount.

Particularly if he was going to be providing dessert too.

He started asking about her day, and from there there was never a lull in conversation as the topic turned to Quidditch, then to her niece and siblings, then on to Sirius and how much Harry was enjoying his room. Harry put their dirty dishes in the sink and set them to clean and dished out some ice cream for dessert.

"So then, with all the kids moved out mum started baking goods for Ron's deli and now it's looking like a success." Ginny smiled and accepted the rest of the bottle of wine that Harry poured her.

"I just love how big your family is. Was it weird being the only girl?" Harry banished the dessert dishes to the sink and set them all to clean themselves as well.

"It caused a little bit of animosity with Ron. He got a lot of hand-me-downs when I would get these new-ish dresses."

"Bet you would have preferred the hand-me-downs." Harry guessed.

Ginny laughed. "Yeah. Not much of a dresses kind of girl."

"Was that the problem with your last boyfriend?" He was getting around to the serious questions now.

Ginny bit her lip and thought about how to answer. "I guess he had been hoping that I was a little more feminine. Really didn't like that I would show up for our dates smelling like chemicals sometimes."

His brow furrowed over that. "That can't possibly be why it ended."

"That and other things. He wanted someone a little more polished. When the excitement of the new relationship wore off and I realized I didn't really like him." She shrugged. She wasn't about to tell him how Michael's selfishness in bed had been a major factor to the excitement wearing off.

"This was the guy from last month? The one at the pub?"

"Yeah."

"He was a real prick."

"Turned out to be, yeah."

"You deserve better."

Ginny smiled and let out a single laugh. "You mean you?" She asked.

"Yes." He told her seriously.

He was looking at her so intensely. She could feel a warmth settling right between her legs from the desire that was radiating off him. Just as powerful as when they were in the broom shed at the Burrow.

He stood up and came over to pull her out of her seat, pressing their bodies together and claiming her mouth.

Stars went off behind her eyelids with the passion he was putting into their kiss. She sunk her fingers into his hair to hold him against her, never wanting it to end, but wanting so much more.

Harry reached down and grabbed her behind her legs to place her back on the table. She broke their kiss long enough to scoot back farther onto the table and drag him down on top of her. The pressure of his body on top of hers was making her inner goddess purr with satisfaction. His weight pressing down at all the right places, his hand wandering, and his lips on hers was exactly what she wanted.

They both groaned with pleasure when he rocked against her. Her brain was fuzzy from wine and a need for sex and his mouth was moving down her throat and making her moan in ways she'd only ever dreamed of. She pulled up on his shirt, wanting to touch his bare skin. He came back up to take her mouth again and groaned against her lips when her hand wandered to his front and down towards his belly button.

The distant sound of the front door opening and closing caused them to jerk apart. They stared at each other as they heard footsteps, at least two people, and the sound of a muffled giggle.

Sirius' date seemed to have gone well, but they didn't sound like they were going upstairs. The footsteps grew closer to the kitchen.

Harry slid his arm under her back and tugged her closer to him side-apparating them to his bedroom without so much as a pop sound.

Ginny let out a surprised 'eep' sound as she sank back into his mattress. "How did you do that silently?" She asked. She'd been apparating for years, but there was always a cracking noise. He did it completely silently. It wasn't an Auror trick either.

He just raised an eyebrow at her in response.

Of course. He was Harry Potter. He would have a few tricks he was capable of that she didn't know were possible. Like how to survive the killing curse.

But now they were in his bedroom, in his bed, and he was still on top of her and settled even more comfortably between her legs. This time she captured his lips and pulled him to lay even more on top of her. The softness of the mattress made so much difference. He slid his hand down to her bum to grab her there firmly, she wrapped her legs around him in response and he growled and bucked against her again.

"Mmm, Ginny." He moaned and moved to kiss his way down her body again. "You know how. I said I was trying to be. A better person." He said between kisses.

She managed a whimper in response and tried to pull his shirt off.

He pulled back to get his shirt over his head. Ginny pulled off her own and they each took a moment to admire the others newly exposed flesh. "I don't want to rush into this." Harry told her.

"You mean you don't want me topless and in your bed?" She asked trailing a finger down his torso. She could feel his erection, he'd been making his affections known for weeks now. He wanted her, and that made her feel powerful.

"Oh, I want you there." He rubbed his hardness against her middle and her head rolled back. "Over and over and over again." He traced along the line of her bra under her breasts with his fingers then moved to follow that same line with his mouth. "But I'm not going to go all the way with you tonight."

That caused her to pout in disappointment. She'd been putting him off sure, but he clearly wanted to have sex with her as much as she wanted him to, and was his hand not reaching behind her to undo her bra right now? "You aren't?" He was smiling against her stomach.

Yes. He'd gotten her to admit she wanted it. Point Potter, but he was confusing her with his words.

And making her feel wonderful.

He pulled off her bra and buried his face in her bosom. She wasn't particularly busty, but he seemed to be getting along fine with her small c-cups. "You deserve better than just some quick sex. And with how badly I want you right now, well" He didn't finish his sentence, instead he took her nipple into his mouth and she arched her back at the sensation.

She was still confused. He was working her up into a frenzy. Then he undid the drawstring on her trousers and delved his hand inside her knickers.

"YES!" She hissed as he rubbed at her nub. Her toes were curling as he worked at her.

He dipped one finger inside her, then another and used his palm to keep pressure against her clit. "Gods you're so wet."

Ginny's eyes were closed tight and she was gripping at his arms to keep her grounded. She'd never managed to get off with penetrative sex before with a partner and had been left disappointed so often. This was nothing like that. She rocked uncontrollably against his fingers completely wanton.

He was working at her sex as she rocked against his hand and kept grabbing at him blindly with lust Finally after what couldn't be more than five minutes she slammed her hands down to grab a fistfull of the bed sheets as her orgasm ripped through her and a satisfied cry erupted from her lips.

Her eyes stayed closed while waves of pleasure rolled through her body. Harry's fingers stayed exactly where they were, but she felt him fall to the bed to lay beside her and he seemed to be fumbling a bit before.

There was a steady movement of the mattress for a minute that she didn't have the ability to investigate and then, "Oh God." He gave a long moan.

Her eyes flew open and she looked over to see that he'd taken himself in hand. Literally, his hand was in his trousers and she could see a small amount of moisture by his belly button.

"You weren't kidding." She said in amazement.

At her voice he seemed to have caused him to regain his senses and he blinked at her a few times before looking thoroughly embarrassed with himself. "Oh shit. I." He slowly extricated his hands from beneath both of their trousers. "I can't believe I did that. I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She said, still in a bit of awe, but also proud of how much she'd managed to work him up. Getting a man like him so turned on that he couldn't think straight and feel like he had to touch himself right away was something she didn't think happened in real life. He'd barely managed to wrap his hand around himself before he was shooting off too.

He still looked embarrassed with himself, like he wanted to hide under the blankets and somehow turn back time to three minutes ago. Ginny felt down her leg for where her wand was still tucked into its special pocket and cleaned them up before straddling him.

She took his hands and placed them over her breasts. "I quite enjoyed that." She simpered. "In case you couldn't tell."

"Are you kidding?" He asked incredulously and massaged her soft mounds. "When I felt you. And then I just had to." He sat up and pulled her close so they had the most skin on skin as the position could allow. He cupped the back of her head and brought her mouth down to his.

She lost herself in their kiss again and slowly pulled back after a minute. "I should probably go."

He tightened his arms around her slightly. "I don't want you to leave." He pulled her down to lay beside him. "Stay." He rolled them onto their sides and twirled a strand of her hair in his fingers.

She was already fighting off sleep as it was and his skin against hers felt so good. She was worried though. Right now it felt good to be here beside him, but she couldn't help but imagine waking tomorrow and leaving his room only to be caught sneaking out by Sirius. That would make her feel so cheap. Just another girl in his string of conquests.

"What is that expression?" Harry asked and traced a line down her face.

Her face must have given away her struggle with her insecurity. "I don't want to get caught by Sirius sneaking out." She bit her lip and avoided Harry's eye.

"You still don't trust that I've changed my ways, don't you." He asked sadly.

She let out a sigh. "I've been messed around with before Harry."

"I'm not messing around with you. I've been trying to show you every way I can think of that I want something real with you." He said slightly frustrated. "What will it take to prove to you that I'm serious? What more can I do?" He pleaded.

"Nothing." She shook her head sadly. "It's me. I liked the flowers, and the notes, and the bath stuff and wine." She told him honestly. "I just can't help picturing the worst scenario." She didn't want to let him know that he had the ability to completely destroy her heart.

Harry leaned down and kissed her gently. "I've never bought flowers for anyone before. I've never written love notes. I've never met another girls parents. I've never stalked little league Quidditch before." He added with a smile and she snickered. "Even Sirius has come around to realize just how much I like you."

His words were making her feel warm all over. She wanted to squash her vulnerability down. She was a Weasley damn it. They didn't question, they just did.

"Okay." She smiled.

"Okay? You'll stay the night?" He confirmed happily.

"You'll actually let me sleep?" She asked trailing a hand over his torso and biting her lip while she looked deep into his eyes.

"No promises." He grinned and rolled her onto her back. He tugged at her trousers and she lifted her hips to help him slide them down over her bum. He shimmied his own trousers off and tossed them both to the floor.

His hand slid up her leg as he came back to lay back beside her. "My client might not be too happy about my work if I'm too tired tomorrow to do a proper job." She murmured playfully.

"Don't worry about your client. I think he'll be in too good a mood tomorrow to notice much of anything." He kissed down her side to her hip bone.

She sucked in a breath as his kisses moved down along her panty line. He grabbed her behind her knee and hooked her leg over his shoulder before nuzzling his nose against her sex. "Harry!" She cried out.

She was still sensitive from her last orgasm.

"Mmm. Lets see how many times I can get you to say my name." He teased and pulled her panties to the side, rather than taking them off, which somehow made it hotter. His tongue went straight to her clit and she cried out again. "You taste good."

Ginny swallowed deeply as he licked, sucked and swirled his tongue into her and over her clit. Every time he brought her close to the edge he'd change up his tactic and build her up all over again. It was blissful torture. He'd stimulate her clit until she was ready, then start thrusting inside her with his tongue, then move back to her clit as she was getting into his thrusting movements. When he did some kind of hissing tongue vibration movement over her clit as she was near her breaking point she actually screamed his name as she came.

She felt paralyzed after, unsure if she actually blacked out for a moment. Harry still had his head between her legs as she was coming down from her high, his mouth lapping up at her entrance. It was almost too much. "Okay. Okay. You need to stop." She panted.

He chuckled and came up to lay beside her, fixing her panties so they lay properly. "I've always wondered what reaction I would get from that." He grinned down at her.

"You've never done that before?" She asked astounded. That was the most fantastic experience of her life.

"No." He kissed her shoulder. "The, uh, hissing bit. I've wondered about what reaction that might get."

She didn't have the brain power to question it. She just closed her eyes as he tugged her close.

()()()

Ginny couldn't recall a time that she had woken up quite this comfortable.

This mattress was a dream cloud, the blanket was so completely soft and perfectly snug. It felt wonderful against her bare skin.

The heat coming off the sexy man beside her that had made her cry out in ecstasy several times the night before might have had something to do with it too.

Harry had been amazing.

She supposed that it was nice to know at least something good came from his experiences with ALL those other women. Something that, again, she couldn't really fault him for. He had a huge weight placed on his shoulders from a young age, his parents ripped away from him, and was the bringer of peace to the British wizarding world. He deserved to let loose and be a little careless now that he could. This was the list of understandable reasons she'd told herself over and over again.

She just couldn't help worrying that she had just been his next target, and now that they'd spent the night together, even though they didn't have actual intercourse, he'd just move on to the next. He had told her that that wasn't the case. He was actually invested in her.

Why though, she didn't get. There were certainly prettier and more busty girls that had fallen all over themselves to get into his trousers. Maybe he just had decided he needed a 'capable' girl instead of a 'fan' girl.

But all of his actions and words had been perfect and lovely. If he was like that with every other girl then the female population was doomed.

And she certainly didn't want to miss out on her dream guy because her past boyfriends had been so convincing playing that game with her as well.

Instead, she was going to bask in the morning light and snuggle more into Harry.

"Shit!" She sat straight up and checked the tempus on her wand. '8:03a.m.' "Shit! Harry, you need to wake-up." She shook his shoulder gently.

As she moved to get out of the bed his hands shot out around her waist and pulled her back up against him. "What's the rush? You're already at work." He rolled on top of her and started kissing lazily down her neck.

"The rush is... it's..." It was getting hard to concentrate with how good he could use his mouth on her body. "Brothers. Food. Shower. Mmm. Sirius." She managed with less and less determination. It had been months since he'd been touched intimately and it felt amazing. Particularly how he seemed to be thoroughly enjoying it too.

"I've never showered with anyone before." He murmured before he nuzzled his nose against her belly button.

Her eye's popped open at that. It helped that he stilled his movements. She looked down at him and saw his shit-eating grin.

Her morning shower took quite a bit longer than usual. And it had been a hell of a lot more enjoyable having Harry run the soap all over her body, and she did the same for him. She'd been unable to stop herself from using her hand on him, and he returned the favor.

After casting a quick freshening charm on her clothes from yesterday she pulled them back on, and Harry dressed in his Auror robes.

Getting out of the room without getting caught had been a question for her. This was all new, and she didn't want to possibly disappoint or worry Sirius about it. Ideally nothing like this would have happened until after she'd finished working on the house, but life wasn't always like that.

There were anti-Apparation wards around the house to stop people from Apparating in and out, once inside the wards one could Apparate room to room no problem, but they had no idea which rooms were currently in use. It was pushing 8:45 and the twins could have been there by now. There was also no telling where Sirius was, or the woman he brought home the night before.

"You aren't ashamed or anything, right?" Harry asked her, with a slightly nervous and vulnerable air that made him all the more endearing.

She smiled up at him and gave him a soft kiss. "No, I'm not. It's more about having to hear about it all day. You at least get to get out of the house and away from the three of them."

"Good." He relaxed. "Maybe we should just head downstairs. I'll have to go straight out the door to get to work on time."

"Then I'll go straight to the kitchen and claim I was out of food at home and make myself some breakfast." She grinned. "Can't manage all day without. You took quite a lot of energy out of me last night."

He grinned. "I can do that again tonight if you like." He hugged her to him.

She couldn't tear her gaze away from his amazing emerald eyes. Last night had been incredibly amazing, and they hadn't talked at all about what this meant or how/if they were going to tell anyone what they were doing or even who they were to each other now. "I should be home by six. Can you come to mine tonight?"

His grin got bigger and he seemed quite happy with that plan.

()()()

The second she got home she started tidying up. There was a man coming over and her place was choc-a-block full of... stuff.

She'd been in the throws of a big work project that wore her out, and on the weekends she was running errands and coaching children's Quidditch and going out with her friends. Housekeeping wasn't top of her priorities.

Her mum hadn't stopped by in a while either. That usually kicked her butt into gear. The Burrow may have had knick knacks all over the place, but it was actually quite clean. Her mum would take one look at the state of her kitchen counters and tisk so hard that the strange man three floors below her would hear it and hop to cleaning up his flat as well.

Thankfully, nothing had seemed out of sorts when she helped herself to Sirius' kitchen that morning. He and his lady friend, Elena, had a lay in and came down for food after she and the twins had already gotten started on the common room. The twins hadn't mentioned anything about her clothes either, perhaps they hadn't noticed that she was wearing the same shirt. That or she was actually slovenly like that on a regular basis and hadn't noticed.

She'd left her address for Harry on his bed, and it was pushing 5:50 now.

Food!

There was nothing edible in her cupboards that she could make something of, and this wasn't the classiest neighborhood that she lived in with several take-away options to choose from.

As she piled her discarded clothes in the living room into her arms and threw them in the washing bin she tried to think of what she could possibly whip up. It was dinner time after all, he might be hungry.

There was cheese! And crackers. Possibly some olives somewhere in the back?

Quickly she went to the bathroom and tossed any various bottles of whatever into the cabinet under the sink and scorgified the floor and other surfaces.

Her bedroom was a mess too!

Company was stressful.

Her need to straighten out bed sheets was one thing, but it didn't stop the clutter from forming on all other surfaces. It was like she needed that one spot to be her safe haven, everything else could just fall apart around it.

There was a knock at the door as she was about to head towards the kitchen to check for food stuffs.

She opened it to see Harry standing there with something that smelled like take-away. "Oh, you're perfect." She sighed.

"Thought you might appreciate it." He grinned and stepped into her flat, properly greeting her with a kiss that got her stomach fluttering a bit. "Must say, not a fan of your neighborhood."

Ginny rolled her eyes. She'd heard it before. No one liked her neighborhood much. She lived in Derby, where the local dialect sounded like they had marbles in their mouth while they spoke, and the local industry was developing ways to get out of Derby. But it was getting cleaner, and her building was all magical and the right price.

"I'm hardly home often enough for it to truly matter where I live. Everything I need is a quick Apparation or Floo away and I wanted to live on my own, so this is in my price range." She stated as she guided him down the hall to her sitting room.

"Argued that a few times before have you?" He teased as they sat on the couch and he opened up the bag he'd brought with him.

Accepting one of the containers he gave her she inhaled deeply. "Pad Thai?"

"It is. Do you like it?"

"Love it." She beamed. "Thank you." She took the pair of chopsticks offered. "So my mum was very against me moving out on my own. I was her last child at home once Ron got the deli and moved into the flat above it so I think she hoped I'd stay at home until I found someone to become a house wife for, like her."

"I don't really see you as the housewife type." He commented, digging into his own container of delicious noodles.

"I'm really not. And if that was what she wanted for me, she should have shipped me off to Hogwarts to try and land a husband then." Harry's eyebrows went up at that. "It's how she met my dad." Ginny explained. "I on the other hand was educated with my brothers at home. Costs for school items would have pretty well depleted our vault. Seven cauldrons, uniforms, various other supplies and books and what-not, plus replacing them regularly. Not so easy without family money and only having one income."

"The Burrow looks great though." His brow furrowed.

"Oh, it was! Is." She assured him. "I loved growing up there, wanted for nothing. But if she wanted me to follow in her footsteps then she went about it all wrong. Ron actually spent more time with her in the kitchen than I did. Personally, I think it was because of the easy access to food, but he made a career out of it so." She shrugged.

"Not many dating prospects around there then?"

"No." She chuckled. "The only other wizarding family close by that had a son was about twenty kilometers away, but he was a few years older than me and rather... pretty."

"Pretty?" Harry chuckled, clearly not quite understanding her use of that descriptive word.

Ginny chuckled too. "Yeah. He was a pretty boy. Meanwhile I was always covered in dust or dirt and slightly smelling of staining agents. I didn't have my first kiss until I was seventeen, and it was a muggle boy from down the village. His mum owned the consignment shop my brothers and I took our refurbished goods to."

"Still have me beat." Harry told her. "I was eighteen for mine, and I don't have any idea who she was. It was after the war and it took me a while to come to terms with my newfound freedom."

"And then you ran with it?" She asked, meaning he went buck wild and started his playboy ways with the boost from his 'Most Eligible Bachelor #1' status in their world. A resentful look came to his face. "Hey, I'm not calling you out or anything. I get that you were deprived of certain life experiences the rest of us had. It would be only natural to, well, take what was thrown at you." She offered.

Harry cringed at that. "Yeah. I tried hiding out for a while too. Was kind of lost for a while. A long while actually." He put down his take-away container. "Until you came along really." He took the container from her hands and put it down too, taking her hands in his and moving closer to her. "Ginny, I'm absolutely serious about this. I want to be with you more than I've wanted anything."

Swoon.

He was saying and doing everything a girl dreams about a handsome, brave, funny and crazy rich guy saying and doing to and for her.

"You look happy about that." Harry said quietly. Hopefully.

She could only imagine the star-struck look on her face right then. "I am." She whispered.

"Then you'll be my girlfriend?" He asked, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

Ginny sucked in a deep breath. "You mean you'll take me on dates and to ministry events and be exclusive. All of that?" She asked with a little tease.

Harry smiled. "All of that." He leaned forward and sealed it with a kiss. "I may need some coaching on what's expected of me in a boyfriend capacity."

Ginny cocked an eyebrow. "I think you proved last night that you have a full understanding of that part."

He waggled his eyebrows at her. "Liked that did you? But what I mean is in terms of how to deal with your family. You've met all mine now, but six is a lot of brothers. I've also never been on a real date, so please be gentle with me if I do it wrong."

Ginny laughed out loud at that. "I don't know how one goes about 'doing a date wrong', maybe don't order for me or ogle the waitress." She offered. "And as for my brothers, well, Ron likes you. The twins have come around, and the rest of them will eventually too."

"The twins came around eventually? Did they not like me?" He asked her confused.

"Ah." She hesitated. "They didn't not like you. It was more to do with your reputation, followed by your slightly over enthusiastic efforts to get in my pants. Their words. Not mine."

He looked put out by that. "But they like me now?" He wanted assurance.

"Yes. They've gotten to know you better from the dinners at the Burrow. They figured if you were able to make it through those then you had to be, um... properly interested?" She reached over and picked up her Pad Thai again and handed Harry his.

"Okay." He nodded lost in thought. "I do still want in your knickers though."

"Good."

()()()

Harry didn't stay the night at Ginny's place. They had slowly eaten their dinners and talked all evening. He'd stolen many kisses but wanted to organize something special for their first real date. They both had work the next morning, and he wanted to take her out somewhere special as the next day was a Friday and they would have the option to have a lay in the following morning. Ideally they'd be in the same bed for that.

Friday morning he'd bumped into Sirius in the kitchen and mentioned he'd be out that evening. Then had to assure him that he was not giving up his quest for Ginny's affection, nor was he seeing anyone else. He would in fact be out with Ginny.

Sirius hesitated as though he was still not 100% sure that Harry and Ginny together was a good idea so soon after he'd screwed his head on straight. Recovery programs often suggested a year before attempting a serious relationship. Harry understood where Sirius was coming from but couldn't help how it hurt a little that Sirius didn't believe his commitment. Sure, he and Ginny had really only just met, but he felt something real there. It was the first time he'd ever felt like this, and it was hard to envision anyone else having the same effect on him.

Now it was Friday evening, and Harry was back in front of Ginny's door. It was almost 6 and he was slightly nervous. The plans he'd made for their date were entirely appealing to him, and he hoped that they would be appealing to her too. But he also didn't know if he should act as eager about this as he felt or try to tone it down a bit so she didn't think he was crazy. Though, that ship may have sailed with how he'd attempted to win her affections. And by the end of the night she was sure to have realized how much he wanted to impress her and prove that he would treat her right.

He looked down at his watch. 5:57.

Close enough. He knocked on the door and it opened a moment later.

She looked so refreshed, like she'd come home and had a quick shower and still had plenty of energy left over for their evening together. But the smile on her face when she first saw him slipped into one of slight confusion and curiosity as she looked down at his clothes.

He looked down to see what it was that made her look at him like that. He'd put on a pair of cleanly pressed dark jeans with a jumper that had an understated color, and a light leather jacket over it. He'd even opted for his suede walking boots instead of dress shoes or sneakers. He'd put thought into the outfit. "What's wrong?"

"Uh. You look great." She raked his eyes over him. "Kind of a casual classy, and ready for anything. Kind of like you could be ready for a pub night, but also for inclement weather."

"Oh." 'Shit' He added to himself. She didn't have any idea where they were going, nor was she dressed appropriately for their destination. Her shorts wouldn't be warm enough, and her off the shoulder sweater would not do her any favors either. "Any chance you could attempt to match my 'prepared look' in about ten minutes?"

She looked taken aback. "Why ten minutes? Did you make a reservation somewhere?"

"Port-key." Harry said slowly. He'd forgotten that some places needed reservations and didn't actually know if the place he planned on taking her required them either.

Her eyes went wide, and her jaw dropped. After one loud inhale she turned around and rushed into her bedroom.

He sighed and entered the flat, closing the door behind him. He really should have sent her an owl or something during the day. Or not hesitated outside her flat for so long.

The previous evening, he hadn't gotten a chance to really look around her place. He'd been to focused on her, but it was a cute little flat. One bedroom, a small kitchen just large enough for a two-seater table, one that had miscellaneous items piled on it indicating she rarely used it, and a small sitting room. The pictures on the wall were what brought a grin to his face.

It was all of her friends and family. One in particular drew his attention of her and all her brothers, in order of age it looked. They were making faces at the camera. The eldest two looked slightly intimidating, especially the second eldest who was the dragon handler. Charlie looked to be all muscle.

There was a small photo frame on her bookshelf of her and an impossibly blonde girl. The two of them looked to be around seven and they were sitting on the ground beaming up at the camera.

"That's Luna." Ginny said behind him.

He spun around and saw she'd changed into walking shoes, tight jeans and a comfortable dark cowl neck sweater that hugged her hips. She'd pulled her hair up into a messy bun as well. It was perfect for what he had planned. "You look great." He put his hands around her waist and pulled her close so he could give her a kiss.

"Now can I know where we're going?"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pen cap, clasping it between their palms. "We have a minute or so left. If you don't recognize it, then I'll tell you."

"Oh Merlin, you aren't being incredibly cheesy and taking me to Paris, are you? Because these outfits do not say Paris." She joked.

"No." He grinned, then he leaned forward and went about passing the rest of the time left in a very enjoyable manner that he'd been thinking about all day.

By the time the Portkey transported them off he had already grown lightheaded from desire and literally had to hold on to Ginny in order to not fall down. She seemed to be in very much the same state. Once they'd sorted themselves out Ginny looked around. "Well. I can't say that this lorry loading area looks much different than a few other's I've seen." She joked.

Harry laughed and took her hand to lead her to a more recognizable area. Currently, yes, they were in a lorry loading area. It was the safest, generally Muggle free, area close to where they were going. He led her around the Centro Cultural de Belem and towards the main road, across from which was Padrao do Descobrimentos, something he didn't know whether she would recognize or not.

From the expression on her face, she didn't.

"We aren't in England anymore, that much I can tell." She offered with raised eyebrows, checking out the giant monument.

Harry chuckled. "Lisbon." He told her.

"Portugal?!" She was astounded, looking around as he led her across the busy street.

"I came here when I was doing my travelling. I liked it. The people seem just a little more laid back, and the architecture is quirky and fun. Plus the food." He pointed to the restaurant he'd planned to take her to, which was mercifully not too busy. It wasn't quite tourist season here, and this restaurant was more for tourists than locals. It was completely glass sides. Even the kitchen and bathrooms were underground, so every seat had a view of the monument and the seaway and island across from it.

Ginny giggled in surprise and eagerly followed beside him. "You know, you're not supposed to pull out all the stops on the first date. Might set my expectations really high."

"Oh, don't worry. We have a bit of a hike after dinner. You'll be begging for pub fare for the next one." He teased.

Ginny scoffed. "Show's what you know. I like hiking."

He pulled her to him then to give her a deep kiss before they reached the doors of the establishment. "And that makes me like you even more."

Dinner was a simple pizza and gelato. Harry wasn't surprised that Ginny could manage a whole small pizza to herself. The woman had a labor intensive job, it was good to know she could eat. The whole dinner they shared their travel experiences. It turned out she'd only been to three places other than the United Kingdom; Romania, Egypt and France. Where as he'd been to over thirty countries in his whirlwind trip. It probably would have been more enjoyable if he'd managed to stay and relax in some of the places he'd visited, but he'd always felt like he was out to find something and it hadn't been where he was.

Ginny was just such enjoyable company, he was already picturing properly travelling with her to new and exotic places. Ideally somewhere where she'd have to wear a bikini.

After he paid up they headed along the Main street along the harbor area. It was slowly getting darker, and it would be properly dark by the time they reached where he was taking her next. Walking the streets arm in arm with her was a nice feeling, and the fact that she wasn't complaining, but actually enjoying the long walk they had before them made it even more enjoyable.

He liked being able to be out in the fresh air. He'd been in hiding for so long, then he was by himself for a while after the war. These last few years he hadn't really known what to do with himself and more often than not just wound up moping in his bedroom or at a pub. Neither of those things were something he liked.

"How far away is this second location exactly?" Ginny asked after they'd been walking for about an hour.

He grinned sheepishly. "Uh, it was about and hour and a half from the restaurant."

That didn't phase her. "And am I allowed to know what this location is called?"

"Well, we." He glanced down at his watch and laughed internally, he'd forgotten that the gates were closed to the public at six. "We will be breaking into Castelo de Sao Jorge for a tour."

"What?!" She laughed outright.

"Yeah." He felt his cheeks blush slightly. "I enjoyed watching the sun go down and the city light up from the battlements. I wanted to show it to you."

()()

Harry had another portkey set up to bring them back to Ginny's flat for 10pm. By the time they landed in her sitting room she was quite glad to be back. The date had been the most amazing date of her life, but as they sat on a buttress of the Castle overlooking Lisbon and the harbor in the darkness it had gotten a little bit uncomfortable with the cold stone beneath her bum.

"Did I do alright?" Harry asked, his emerald eyes looking very hopefully into hers.

Ginny grinned up at him. "It was great. And I think there's just one thing that I need right now." She said slowly going up on her tip toes, then dodging slightly to the side when Harry leant down for a kiss. "Hot Chocolate." She purred in his ear. She laughed a little at his startled expression when she pulled back, then headed into her kitchen to set the kettle to boil. "Do you want one?"

He followed her into the kitchen. "I would like one, thanks." He situated himself against the door frame while she grabbed two mugs and some hot chocolate mix from her cupboards.

Ginny chewed her lip while Harry watched her moving around. He'd been at her place all of yesterday evening, but it was still a little odd for her to have a man over. Her last boyfriend had only stopped in once or twice and hadn't spent the night there. Michael didn't like her flat. It really was a cozy little space she had here. Just large enough to fulfill her basic needs, including a drafting table in the corner of her sitting room, but Michael's place had more room so if they were going to spend the night together it was there. And even those were few and far between.

She helped the kettle along with a wave of her wand and poured out the water into the cups, adding a few marshmallows before handing one to Harry. "Thanks." He smiled.

He looked quite comfortable in her flat. He had yesterday as well. She watched as he took a tentative sip and the steam fogged up his glasses. "Now will I be expecting all of our dates to include that much physical activity?" She asked leading him around the sofa so they could get comfortable.

Harry chuckled. "I did warn you that I might be a little off when it came to dates. That, er. This was my first one. Uh, properly."

Ginny felt frozen staring at him in slight shock, and feeling a warmth spreading through her face and belly. She was the first girl he'd ever dated? Her breath hitched and a silly grin came across her face.

"Are you laughing at me?" Harry asked with a confused smile on his own face.

"No!" She assured him with a hand on his arm. "I'm sorry. I don't know why that's made me so happy." She giggled. "It just has."

"I told you I hadn't found anyone I wanted more with until I found you." He told her straightforward.

Ginny stopped her laughter then and put her mug down on her coffee table, followed by his mug and straddled him. Harry was clearly surprised by her move, but it took him less than a second to respond to her kisses.

Ginny simply melted into him. His words, his attitude, his strong hands and his lovely mouth. Everything about him made her want to pant with need. He'd been nothing shy of amazing with her since the second time they'd met and she desperately wanted him. She clawed at his jumper as that desperation radiated out from her chest and into her hands. He pushed off from the sofa back so she could pull the jumper over his head, his undershirt came with it and she was quite pleased with that.

As soon as he'd yanked his hands out from the cuffs he pulled at her own jumper and twist them so she lay down underneath him. As he resumed kissing all legible thoughts flew from her brain while his hand wandered to her waist and slowly slid up her side, tantalizingly tracing along just under the strap of her bra, the sensation making her moan and rock against him.

"Ginny." Harry groaned and pulled back slightly. He swallowed hard before saying "I know there's supposedly this 'third date rule'."

Ginny groaned in frustration from the loss of his lips. "Shut up Harry." She grabbed him by the back of his neck and pulled him back down on top of her locking her lips on his again.

He made no move to pull back again, nor any other sign that he had an objection to what was going on. Rather his fingers found their way under her bra and were luxuriously massaging her breast. That coupled with the hardness she felt against the inside of her thigh was making her quite mad with want.

Over the past few months she'd had a growing desire for him. Her little toy she had tucked away in her bedside table had been getting the work out of its life over the past few weeks in particular. Their night at his two days ago had seemed to just spur her on more. Particularly given the fact that he'd spent the evening with her yesterday and his intoxicating scent lingered on her couch. She'd needed that toy twice before her hormones were calmed enough to let her fall asleep.

Every time she kissed him these hormones would just become more amplified. Regular dating rules were hardly a concern for her at this point. The boy had just taken her on a date in a foreign country and they'd broken the law. What was a few more supposed rules? Plus, they'd spent the last three dinner meals together.

She was too eager and desperate at this point.

Her hands trailed down his back to grasp at his bum and rock harder against him, to which they both groaned in appreciation.

Ginny reached between them to undo the buttons on their jeans. Her hint was immediately taken by Harry who frantically worked to undo his button and lower his zip without removing his mouth from her neck.

With the two of them trying to work their own jeans down in such a small surface area they wound up toppling over off the sofa, Ginny landing on top of Harry. But this didn't slow them down. Harry had managed to free his erection from its confines and was sat up, kissing her frantically while she had gotten her jeans and knickers past her knees and was awkwardly straddling him while fighting to free at least on of her legs.

Finally! One leg was free and without any more thought she lowered herself onto him.

His groan at the sensation of him filling her matched her own. She was just. So. Full. Her head lolled back and mouth hung open at the feel of him.

It took no time for her to push him back so he was laying down and she was grinding herself up and down on him in a desperate pace. She'd been halfway close to cumming while he had her on the couch.

Now that he was inside her and the grinding stimulation was stimulating her clit the way it was, all it took was about ten seconds and she was crying out her orgasm. Then Harry joined her over that edge a moment later.

Ginny lay there on top of him slowly coming down from her high, and slightly dumbfounded. That was the quickest sex she'd ever had. And she'd actually cum.

Inexplicably she started giggling, and she couldn't stop herself. Harry started chuckling too and wrapped his arms around her waist.

They hadn't even managed to take their tops off.

She looked up at him, resting her chin on his chest. He was looking down at her with his eyes shimmering with the humor of it all and grinning. "I can honestly say I don't believe that has ever happened to me before."

"What, never had a girl roll you off a couch and last under a minute after hopping on?" Ginny laughed, then groaned as she unsheathed him. The sensation was like getting a gentle rub of a tight muscle. It felt lovely and disappointing in that it only lasted a moment.

Harry breathed out a loud breath at the sensation as well. "I had rather hoped to show you that I could be gentle and thorough in bed. Not last all of five seconds on the floor." He sounded a bit disappointed with himself.

Ginny sat up, still straddling him. "Well." She started, feeling rather more like a vixen at the moment. "If you want to stay the night and prove yourself to me. I could be open to that idea."

"Really?" His sexy grin came onto his face, and his hands grasped her bare thighs. He sat up and captured her lips. "And what about tomorrow night?" He kissed her jaw. "And the night after that?" His hands moved up her sides to remove her top. After it came off over her head he kissed the crest of her breasts. "And the one after that."

"Hmm." Ginny let her head fall back as he nuzzled her. "Let's see how you do tonight, and I'll tell you in the morning."

()()()

After one more month Grimmauld Place was complete. It was no longer a house, but a home. There was a workout space and small scale potions lab in the basement with a climate controlled storage area in the basement. The kitchen had been completely moved around so that it now had a large window looking out over the previously never used backyard, through which the indoor herb garden was flourishing. The whole kitchen felt like a healthy and happy place to create culinary masterpieces and bake treats. The breakfast nook had been changed up to an 'L' shaped bench seat area with three chairs on the outside. The long counter and work space had easy storage above and below it, and a stove top in the island across from it.

The main floor sitting room had French doors installed on one side that led to the never used ballroom area, which now doubled as gymnasium as Fred and George had installed a Muggle basketball hoop that could easily be folded to the wall and hidden behind a curtain. The sitting room itself had remained a formal greeting area, but it now had an understated posh-ness about it.

The Weasleys had outsourced to a gardening company to help landscape the backyard. It was a small postage stamp sized area, but there was enough room to have a patio area with a barbeque built in the center with a wraparound garden hosting a variety of foliage that would come into their seasonal maturity at different intervals so that spring through fall there was always something in bloom. Neville Longbottom had been who they'd called in. He and Harry had hit it off as friends, particularly once they learned how close their parents had been.

The carpeting under the first-floor stairs and along the halls of the main floor had been hiding perfectly wonderful hardwood that needed only minor touches to bring to life.

Sirius had been so overjoyed with the transformation, as had Harry. And really, as had the Weasley siblings. It was a huge undertaking and all their plans and themes had really come together to create a wonderful space.

Sirius invited everyone he could think of over to show the place off once it was done and praised the Weasley's so much that they now had more work than they could deal with. They could have done with hiring on some extra workers for their team, but couldn't bear the thought. It was the quality of the work that they wanted to insure. Their name was their brand. It was their heart and passion that made these jobs so successful. So they decided to keep it just the three of them. Either the customers clamoring for them to do jobs would wait their turn or find someone else because Fred, George and Ginny were a trio and that was that.

Harry finally managed to join a Quidditch League after several weekend sessions getting whipped around the pitch at the Burrow and having enough experience. He ended up being a Chaser on a Saturday afternoon team in Hogsmeade, which meant he could join Ginny for lunch after she was done coaching the kids.

Harry and Ginny wound up being nearly inseparable.

The two of them had been together officially for nine months when the subject of her flat lease expiring came up and Harry asked her to move into Grimmauld. Sirius was keen on the idea. Harry and she would have all the privacy on the second floor, and really they'd been spending nearly all their nights together anyways. So she gave up her flat and moved in with the two of them.

It was a year after their first date in Lisbon that Harry took her back there to break into the castle once more and put a ring on her finger.

It may have seemed a bit odd to some people how she, Harry and Sirius all lived together even after Ginny's surname switched to Potter, but it worked for them. Particularly when little James came along not long after their third wedding anniversary and 'grandpa Sirius' was eager to help out with the baby.

Sirius himself had a few steady girlfriends over the years, but never one that stuck around longer than a few months. But he could honestly say that he'd never been happier than when he had a toddler climbing all over him at their family dinners and wasn't looking to change a thing about his life anymore, nor of his godson's.