Dealing With the Consequences

Passion

Ginny increased her speed until she got to her bedroom and safely could lock the door behind her. She had absolutely no idea why she had kissed Sirius, but it had just seemed right at that time. She shook her head and smiled. Moving to her bed she slowly took her clothes off and jumped into her nightgown made out of a white, almost transparent fabric, barely covering the curves of her body.

She took place in front of the mirror, becoming aware of the changes her body had gone through since her graduation from Hogwarts almost two years ago. Her red hair was softly falling down over her shoulders, shimmering in different nuances when touched by light, and her eyes glimmered in an intense brown, turning darker, almost black, every time she got upset or felt desire. She was an attractive young woman, sometimes seemingly innocent, almost childish, but despite that she had more experience than anyone would assume. Of course, no one knew. Not even Hermione, who after all had become her best friend after Ginny's graduation.

She started gently combing her hair while trying to suppress the vision of the man laying in bed just a couple of doors away. She knew that she'd never be able to fall asleep after the events of the evening, and the Firewhiskey had sharpened her senses in a strange way. She could still feel his scent and see his dark eyes glaring at her, and her skin burnt on the places where he had touched her.

She arose from the chair she'd been sitting in and made her way down to the kitchen to get herself a glass of warm milk or something else that would calm down her nerves. She entered the room in complete darkness, knowing that if she turned on the light she might wake Mrs Black up, and that she didn't want to risk.

She opened the cabinet, grabbed her favourite blue cup and filled it with milk. Deciding that she didn't want it warm, she started walking back towards the stairs, lost in thought. When she bumped into something she gave out a little scream. Because of the darkness she couldn't see what, or who it was.

"Sirius, is that you?" she whispered, her hand clenching the cup.

"Whoa, don't sneak up on me like that, Gin!" she heard a familiar voice slur.

She breathed out and punched him playfully in the stomach. She heard him let out a small moan in surprise and the corners of her mouth twitched upwards.

No one could see where the other one was standing since it was pitch-black, so Ginny stretched out her arm to feel where he was. As her fingers gently stroke his chest she trembled but didn't pull her hand back.

"There you are," said Ginny, her voice a bit unsteady.

She felt him taking a step towards her and she instinctively pulled backwards, her eyes starting to adjust to the darkness. She heard him stop right in front of her, his eyes glaring at her like a fox about to snatch its prey. She shivered and looked the other way, deliberately avoiding his stare.

"What are you doing down here, Sirius? I thought I told you to go to bed," she mumbled.

"I know, but I can't fall asleep in this empty house. I haven't been able to do that since... well, since everybody left." She noticed that he didn't sound completely honest.

"But I didn't want to tell you. You were so keen on getting me into bed that I didn't want to disappoint you," he said sounding quite amused, his breath making her wrinkle her nose. He still smelled like alcohol.

Ginny blushed and was, for the first time, happy that they were standing there in almost complete darkness, although she would have preferred to have him in an unreachable distance instead of just a couple of inches away.

"Well, it's your choice," said Ginny, "I just thought that a good night's sleep would do you good."

"Oh, why is that?" Sirius asked.

"You said you had troubles sleeping, didn't you?"
"Yes?"

"So, I just thought that maybe consuming a fair amount of alcohol would make it easier for you to go to bed and sleep."

"Sleep?" Sirius asked, giving her a meaningful look which she of course couldn't see.

"Yes, to sleep." Ginny felt herself blush, grateful yet again for the cover of the darkness.

"That was very thoughtful of you, Ginevra, but I must say that it was a bit naïve too. I've already tried the famous drowning-myself-in-alcohol technique before, several times in fact, but without any further success. But it was a good idea though, getting me drunk so I would voluntarily go to bed," said Sirius in a teasing tone, his voice challenging her into an argument which she gladly accepted.

"My dear Sirius, I would never try to get you drunk just to get you into bed," she said, purposely sounding equivocal, "but you've been so tense and moody these days that I wanted to help you," she said in and innocent tone.

"Stop playing my guardian angel. I prefer you as the fiery red-head you use to be," he said with a grin.

"As a result of everyone's complaints about my rising temper, I try to keep the beast inside under control," said Ginny, her eyes fixing his in a silent battle of minds.

"I would really enjoy you letting that beast out for a change. This place is rather dull, especially when everybody's hiding their feelings, don't you think?"

He provoked her, and she couldn't help but blush again when she heard him speak his mind. She had promised herself that he would never find out what she truly felt for him, but it was hard to keep her mouth shut when he so openly challenged her.

"Sirius, I'm quite an open person and I used to share my thoughts and feelings with others, but since you have been so grumpy and never talk to me I really didn't feel like telling you about my thoughts and concerns. And I don't intend to do it now either 'cause it's actually quite late and I would like to get some sleep," Ginny said and pushed him away in an attempt to go upstairs.

He had grabbed her wrist and spun her around before she had taken two steps. Still holding her arm he took out his wand from a pocket and lit its tip with a quietly murmured 'Lumos'.

"First of all, I prefer to look the person I'm talking to in the eyes and I also wish to give them an opportunity to respond when I've made my statement. Second of all..." he abruptly stopped talking as his eyes wandered down Ginny's body, noticing her nightgown and her long legs, barely covered by the transparent piece of clothing.

Ginny's stomach made a jolt as she saw how he eyed her and she shivered slightly as she remembered that he still hadn't let go of her wrist.

"What, Sirius? Is there something wrong?" she asked, trying to ignore his persistent stare.

She caught his eyes and read in them what he so desperately tried to hide. Desire. Anxiety. She knew he wanted her. She just hadn't realised how much. She raised her hand to his face and let one finger follow the contours of his left cheekbone, feeling a light tingle in her fingertip every time she touched one of his scars, down to his lower lip, and then up again to wipe a particularly persistent lock of hair away from his eyes. She knew that she was tempting fate, but she just couldn't get herself to stop.

Ginny felt his heart pounding hard as she once again put her hand on his chest. She could feel him take a deep breath and she unintentionally did the same.

Then he did something she hadn't expected. He grabbed the hand that she had been caressing his face with and started kissing the palm, sending shivers through her body, continuing out to the tip of her index finger, which he placed between his lips and gently sucked on. She moaned as he started placing light kisses on the sensitive skin of her wrist, and she could feel her skin burn where he had touched her just seconds ago. All of a sudden he stretched out to full-length, staring down at her glowing face.

His mouth was alarmingly close to hers and she willingly separated her lips. As he bent down she closed her eyes, thirsting for him to touch her. She felt how his lips stroked hers as light as a feather and she quivered, leaning closer against him to deepen the kiss. She folded her arms around his neck, letting her fingers play with his silky, thick hair and caress the delicate skin of his shoulders. His tongue fondled her lower lip and then slid into her mouth exploring its every angle, playing with her tongue in a dangerous game that made her feel giddy.

Her hands were rubbing his back gently, and she could feel how his tense muscles relaxed under her touch. Every now and then he let out a sigh of pleasure and she became bolder, letting her hands slip in under his shirt. He felt warm and full of life. But suddenly he stiffened and took a step backwards. He ran a hand through his hair and looked at her breathlessly.

"Ginny, we have to stop. If we go on I..." Sirius started saying, but Ginny raised a hand in objection and he stopped talking.

"Sirius, I know what I'm doing."

"But..."

She got to her toes and kissed him with all the passion she had to give, and to her delight he kissed her back, first a bit hesitantly, but then more and more aggressive, holding her tight in his arms. He broke the kiss and put one hand around her knee bends, the other hand around her back, and lifted her up like if she weighed nothing. She rested her head in the hollow between his collar bone and chin, and closed her eyes while he carried her up the stairs, down the corridor, and into his bedroom where he gently put her down onto his bed.

Sirius stood there for a couple of seconds and the sight made him shiver. Ginny's lips were red and swollen, her eyes almost black, and her hair fell down over her shoulders in a jumble.

She reached out for him and pulled him down so that he came to rest on top of her, then started to kiss his neck and wandered up to nibble at his earlobe. He moaned and began to roll off of her but Ginny quickly moved her body so she ended up sitting on top of him. He looked at her, clearly suppressing his emotions.

"Ginevra, are you completely sure you want to do this?" he asked in a serious tone.

"Never been more certain about anything before," said Ginny, leaning over and once again kissing him softly on the mouth.

They explored each other on every level that night, yearning for the others touch, whispering gentle words, quenching the thirst for intimacy, and finally fell asleep in each others arms.