Moonlight

Harry stood alone outside, watching the twilight stars twinkle far above the darkened Quidditch pitch. He'd come out here frequently, ever since his sixth year had started. Ron and Hermione were increasingly infatuated with one another--which, Harry smiled to himself, was perfectly clear to everyone except for the two of them. He sighed. He was happy for them, he really was. Only--well, things hadn't worked out quite as nicely with Cho.

Bloody Cho--he hadn't even been shocked when the owl arrived, informing him that she'd been identified as a Death Eater's apprentice. She always was a bit obnoxious...Thinking about Cho made him think about his fifth year; which, in turn, reminded him painfully of Sirius.

Sirius.

I miss him so much...Harry felt an ache in his throat, but no tears fell. He couldn't cry anymore: the hurt ran too deep.

"Why?" Harry demanded of the heavens above. "Why can't we just be rid of bloody Voldemort? Why does he hate us? And why do I keep having these ruddy, stupid dreams?"

Harry heard a small sound behind him. He started, spinning around--to find himself face-to-face with Ginny Weasley. She was standing silently, dressed in her nightgown, bare toes poking playfully at the dewy grass.

"G-Ginny?! What are you doing out here? If Filch catches you..."

"Don't worry, Harry." She grinned. "I'm a Weasley, remember?"

"Yeah..." My gosh, she's really pretty, Harry noted for the first time, as he watched the cold moonbeams work wonders with her impossibly red hair.

"I--I couldn't help but overhear you, Harry," she spoke softly, gently, cathartically. "I just want you to know that, um, I understand."

"Understand--what?"

"About He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. V-Voldemort. H-he haunts my dreams too." Harry froze.

"You dream about Voldemort?"

"All the time."

Harry allowed the shock to course through his body, as he slowly collected his thoughts. "Why?"

"Why do I dream about him? Not by choice, certainly. I-I have, um, bad memories from first year."

"My gosh, Ginny, I completely forgot about that...the chamber, huh?"

"The diary, mostly."

They were quiet for a long moment, as they gazed up at the stars overhead. A comet shot across the celestial scene, casting a brilliant glow on the two teenagers. Ginny's eyes sparkled in the light. She looks so incredible, Harry thought wistfully. How could I have missed it before?

"Harry?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you miss Cho?" He snorted viciously.

"Is that a no?" She quirked an eyebrow.

"Um--yeah. I mean, no--I mean, yeah, well, I never really liked her."

"You kissed her."

Point.

"You were always talking about her."

Point again.

"You tried to take her to the ball."

Bloody ball.

"And you don't miss her?"

"No, see--it was all pressure I put myself under. I told myself I had to have a girlfriend. Everyone was dating--Dean, Seamus, even ruddy Neville and, well, I needed some self-affirmation. I guess."

"Cho was cute."

"Yeah, but all she ever did was talk about Cedric and cry. A bloke can only take so much of that!" Ginny giggled, and Harry felt his insides flip.

"How 'bout you, Ginny? What about Michael Corner--or, um, Dean Thomas?" Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Puppy-love. Flirting. No depth. I've decided not to date anyone, from now on, unless we're really good friends first. Unless it's someone I really know, inside and out, I'm not giving my heart away...."

Harry's memory flashed back to the fun times the four of them had shared over the summer--Ron, Hermione, Ginny and himself--as they relaxed by the river and in the gardens of the Burrow. Games, swimming, evenings with chess and steaming cups of hot chocolate....

"It's getting chilly, Harry."

"Oh. Um, yeah. Maybe we should go back inside."

"What if Filch sees us? He's been simply horrible lately, determined to catch students; that horrible Umbridge woman rubbed off on him terribly."

Harry snorted. "Yeah, well, I don't think it's a problem. I've got my invisibility cloak."

Ginny's heart stared to beat just a bit faster.

"Shall we?"

"Um, yeah, ok." They climbed under the magical cloak, their bodies centimeters apart. Ginny felt a shiver run down her spine.

"Cold?" She nodded, mutely, and Harry put his arm delicately around her. "That better?" Another small nod. They walked a few paces; and Harry stopped, suddenly. They were standing in a patch of soft moonlight; Ginny's heart was in her throat.

"Harry, I-"

"Ginny," he gulped. This is it, Potter. Don't blow it. "Ginny, I said earlier that, um, I don't really care about Cho Chang anymore. That's...that's true, 'cuz, um...well, there's someone else..." He felt himself falling, sinking into her eyes--and his words broke off, as Ginny grabbed his neck, and their lips somehow came together in a burst of exhilaration neither had imagined possible.

Harry closed his eyes as the kiss deepened--and then he stopped. "Ginny--is this ok? I mean, you said you didn't want a relationship unless...."

"Harry!" she shook him, slightly. "You saved my life! You are my life! How could I ask for more?"

And they kissed once again, holding one another on the solitary Quidditch pitch, and the stars above them looked on and applauded.