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SIYE Time:12:13 on 29th March 2024
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Snow
By Peskipiksi

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Category: Post-OotP
Characters:Harry/Ginny
Genres: Fluff
Warnings: None
Story is Complete
Rating: PG
Reviews: 23
Summary: Harry and Ginny share a walk in the snow. Pure Fluff. (Originally posted as a chapter in my fic "Understanding.")
Hitcount: Story Total: 5133







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A/N: This story started out as chapter in my (now on permanent hiatus) multi-chapter fic “Understanding.” I’ve given up on that story, but I didn’t want this chapter lost in the process because honestly, it’s one of my favorite things I’ve ever written. I'm re-submitting it (along with another chapter that I felt could stand alone) so that people who are interested in reading my stories won't miss them if they're not up to reading a permanently unfinished story. (I know I personally almost never read a story unless it is already finished.)

I'm really not re-submitting in a desperate plea for more reviews. :-> (Although if you'd like to leave one, feel free! I'll never turn away a review!) I just wanted this in my library as a separate item.

Okay, enough rambling from me. Here's the story:


***************


The freezing cold wind whipped past Ginny’s face as she chased after her fellow Chaser, Olivia Osburn. Olivia was holding the ball improperly again, leaving it vulnerable to being stolen. This was an old habit of Olivia’s that she had mostly trained herself out of since the beginning of the year, but for the moment she had lapsed back into her old bad habit, and Ginny was going to take advantage. She flew up beside the younger girl and bopped the Quaffle out from under her arm.

“Hey!” yelled Olivia, but Ginny was already pulling out ahead of her, the Quaffle gripped tightly in her hand. She headed for the end of the pitch, Olivia and the other Chaser Katie Bell hot on her heels, where Ron was waiting to protect the goal-hoop. She feinted left, then right. She felt more than saw a Bludger coming up behind her, so she did a mid-air roll and aimed for the left-hand hoop. Ron dived, but he was too late–the Quaffle soared through the hoop. Ginny had scored again.

“Yes!” she shouted, and pumped her fist in the air. She caught the Quaffle on the other side and circled around again to hover in front of Ron, and Olivia and Katie came up beside her.

“Good one, Ginny!” shouted Ron, grinning at her. Ginny grinned back. She and Ron had a fierce rivalry going–her trying to score, him trying to keep her from scoring. So far they were about even, since he was usually able to block about half of her attempts. But they never begrudged one another when the other succeeded.

“Olivia...” Ron started, but she interrupted him.

“I know, I know,” she said shamefacedly. “I might as well have just handed the Quaffle to Ginny. I’ll keep working on it, Captain, I promise. Can we go again?”

“All right then,” Ron started to say, but at that moment it started to snow rather heavily.

“Blimey,” Ron said as the four of them turned their faces up. Ginny stuck out her tongue and caught a large snowflake. It burned a little with the cold. She closed her eyes.

“Well, we can’t continue in this,” she heard Ron say, and a moment later the shrill voice of his whistle pierced the air. Ginny opened her eyes to see Ron motioning with his arms.

“Harry! Colin! Dennis! Come down here!” he shouted.

Ginny followed her brother and the two girls down to the ground. The team huddled closely together, Harry joining them last as he had been far and away above the pitch, seeking the snitch as always. Ginny watched him surreptitiously. His cheeks were red with cold, his black hair even messier than usual, and his green eyes alight. Ginny knew how much Harry loved to fly–it was one of his few escapes. She smiled. It was nice to see him feeling so good.

“Okay, team. Good practice,” Ron said to them all. “I think we’ll cut this one a little short due to the weather. Let’s get the gear together and get inside, all right?”

The Gryffindor team cheerfully made their way to leave the pitch, Ginny and the Creevey brothers depositing the Quaffle and two Bludgers in the Quidditch box on the way. But Harry didn’t move.

“Hey, Ron?” he called. “Just leave the box out, okay? I’ll put it away when I’m done. I want to catch the Snitch before I come in.”

Ron turned around and looked at the sky doubtfully. The snow was still coming down thickly, and the sky was starting to darken with the coming sunset.

“Are you sure, mate?” he said. “We could always just charm it back down, you know.”

“I know,” Harry said. “I’m just not ready to come in yet.”

“All right, then,” said Ron. “But don’t stay out too late. Hermione would have my hide if you get a cold, or get kidnapped, or something.”

Harry grinned but didn’t answer. He just mounted his Firebolt and took off into the falling snow. Ron turned and followed after the rest of the team, but Ginny lingered behind.

She wasn’t ready to come in, either. She was still warm from the work-out of the practice, and the first snow of the season was captivating in its beauty. She didn’t want to go back into the warmth and routine of the castle just yet...she wanted to stay out here with Harry.

After the night Harry had told them about the Prophecy, Ginny had asked herself how life was supposed to go on, with that horrible knowledge tainting every aspect of their lives. The answer came quickly in the weeks that followed–no matter how awful things might seem, life just went on, and Ginny had had to go on with it. She was surprised to find that she wasn’t even all that unhappy. Studies, Quidditch, and most recently new sessions with the D.A. had been plenty to occupy all her time and most of her thoughts.

It helped, too, that Harry was doing so well. The combination of confessing to his friends, his new lessons with Dumbledore, and the reinstatement of the D.A. had served to cheer him considerably. He seemed to feel he now had a purpose in life, and it did him a world of good. Ginny knew he was happier now, if not exactly carefree.

She watched him fly. He was now just a dim shape in the falling snow and darkness, swooping and gliding through the air. She wanted to be up there, flying with him.

And why shouldn’t she? After all, he hadn’t said he wanted to be alone.

Ginny pulled her gloves out of her pocket and slipped them on. She didn’t like wearing them when playing with the Quaffle since they ruined her grip, but that wouldn’t matter if she was just trying to catch the Snitch. She slung her leg over her broom and soared back up into the air.

“Harry!” she called, as she glided up to him. He looked around at her in surprise. She was relieved to see him smile when he saw who it was.

“Hey, Ginny,” he said, coming to a stop mid-air.

“Want some competition, Potter? I’ll bet I can beat you to the Snitch!”

Now Harry was not just smiling, but grinning.

“Oh, please, Weasley,” he drawled. “You have to know I’ll win. After all, I was the youngest Seeker in a century, plus I’m undefeated except for when...”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Ginny said and rolled her eyes. “You’re the Boy-Who-Lived, best Quidditch player the world has ever seen, blah, blah, blah. But the fact remains, Harry. If it had been you playing Seeker in that final game last season against Ravenclaw, we would have lost in a major way.”

Harry raised his eyebrow.

“Oh, yeah? And why’s that, Ms. Smarty-Pants?”

“Because, when it came time to catch the Snitch,” Ginny said. “All Cho Chang would have had to do was flutter her eyelashes and flip her hair and you would have fallen right off your broom!”

Harry clutched his chest and fell forward, acting as though he had just been shot through the chest with an arrow.

“Oh, Weasley!” he gasped. “That hurts! I never knew you’d sink so low.”

Ginny giggled at his antics.

Harry straightened back up, still grinning, and said, “Well, you can flip your hair and bat your eyelashes all you want. But I don’t care how pretty you are, Ginny...you’re not going to beat me to the Snitch tonight!”

And with that, Harry shot off again, searching for the flash of golden light that would signal the location of the Snitch. Ginny followed right after, her heart beating in her chest. Had Harry just called her pretty? She quickly shoved that thought away, however, as she tried to concentrate on keeping up with Harry and finding the Snitch at the same time.

She had always known him to be a fine flyer, but it took flying with him, up close like this, to truly appreciate Harry’s skills. Ginny knew she was good, but she was nowhere near as good as he was–he was flying circles around her. It didn’t help that his broom was far superior to hers. Still, she was determined to make him work for it if he wanted to beat her to the Snitch.

She peered through the falling darkness, searching. At least the snow, while heavy, was falling gently and straight to the ground. There was no wind to speak of except that which she created for herself as she flew through the air. Her ears and nose were numb with cold, but Ginny didn’t care. She loved to fly.

She impatiently brushed a stray lock of hair out of her eyes–her hair always slipped out of it’s French braid by the end of practice, and tonight it was a total mess. Boys had such an advantage.

The heavy snow was making it almost impossible to see, and the darkness was starting to grow ever thicker as the minutes ticked on. She and Harry circled around and around again, trading barbs and teasing each other, but neither of them were having any luck spotting the Snitch. It started to seem like they would be out there for hours unless they decided to give up first.

Not that Ginny minded. She was alive with the thrill of the hunt.

Just ahead of her, Harry took a sudden dive towards the ground. Ginny started to tear after him, when something told her to stop. She looked up just in time to see a glint of gold over by the far goal-post. Harry was feinting!

Ginny quickly redirected her broom and chased off across the field. She glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Harry notice she wasn’t following him. She saw the look of surprise on his face when he saw her, and she laughed. He pulled out of his dive just in time and came chasing after her.

Ginny had quite a head start, but Harry wasn’t on a Firebolt for nothing. She could feel him edging up on her as she reached her hand out for the Snitch. It was only a few inches away...just a bit further...Harry’s hand was right next to hers...his arm was longer, he was going to reach it first. Ginny leaned forward, giving it everything she had, and made a wild snatch. She felt her fist close around the small yellow ball at the same time Harry’s hand closed over hers.

“Yes!” she yelled triumphantly, even as she fought for balance. She could feel the wings of the Snitch beat helplessly against her palm as she set off for a victory lap around the pitch while Harry made his way down to the ground.

A minute later, she joined him. Smiling wickedly, she picked up his hand and pressed the Snitch into his palm.

“That’s what you get for trying to trick me, Potter,” she teased.

Harry had a kind of dazed look as he gazed at the Snitch. Then he looked up at her and smiled, a newfound look of respect in his eyes.

“Do you realize that’s the first time anybody’s ever beaten me to the Snitch?” he said. “Or at least, the first time when there weren’t any Dementors around. I must be slipping.”

“Oh, you’re not slipping, Harry. I just happen to be fabulous, that’s all,” Ginny laughed.

“And so humble, too!” Harry teased. He turned to return the Snitch to its place in the trunk.

“Oh, I’m just kidding, Harry,” Ginny said as he snapped the trunk shut. “That was just a fluke and you know it. You would have beaten me easily if I hadn’t spotted the Snitch the moment you decided to try a feint.”

She bent over and picked up one end of the trunk. Harry picked up the other end and together they carried it to the nearby shed and locked it away.

“No,” said Harry as they started their walk back to the castle. “You’re really good, Ginny. Really good. I reckon we know who’ll be playing Seeker once I’m gone.”

Ginny frowned and had to remind herself that he meant after he was gone from Hogwarts, not…anything else.

“I don’t know,” she said. “I like playing Seeker, but I think I’m a better Chaser. I like working with other people to make the goals. Anyway, I don’t like to think of my Seventh Year.”

“Why not?”

“Well, mainly because all of my closest friends will be gone, all except for Luna. And she’s not in Gryffindor, so it’s not much consolation. Plus, she can just be…weird…sometimes.”

Harry laughed, then said, “What about the girls in your dorm?”

Ginny sighed.

“Oh, they’re all right, I suppose. We’re friends. Or at least, we’re friendish. But I just can’t seem to get very close to any of them. They all bonded and became best friends during our first year, and I was, well…otherwise occupied.”

There was an awkward silence between them while they both remembered what had happened that year. The two of them had never really spoken about it.

“Also,” Ginny continued finally, “They really get on my nerves sometimes. They can be so silly! It’s all hair and makeup and boys and I don’t know what all. It drives me batty.”

She saw Harry smile beside her.

“That’s what Hermione always says about Lavendar and Parvati,” he said, and Ginny laughed.

“She’s right,” she said. “They’re like that, too. Thank Merlin for Hermione. It’s just--those other girls just don’t seem to get it that there’s more to life. I just don’t understand how they can all be obsessed with such petty things when there’s so much going on. Do you know what I mean?”

“Yeah,” said Harry. “I know.”

They lapsed into a comfortable silence. The snow continued to fall around them, coating the world in white. Their footsteps were muffled, their breath crystallized in the air before them. The darkness outside was total now, but the lights of the distant castle beckoned them onwards. Ginny gathered her cloak tighter around her and wished that the walk never had to end.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she breathed.

Harry turned his face to her.

“Yeah, it is,” he said, and something in his eyes made Ginny catch her breath.

Then her feet slipped out from under her.

“Whoops!” said Harry, catching her under the arm, just barely saving her from landing straight on her backside. She clung to his cloak at the waist, fighting to regain her footing, but her feet couldn’t make purchase on the layer of ice beneath the snow. It was a totally ridiculous situation, and even in her embarrassment Ginny couldn’t help giggling. Harry soon joined in.

“Slippery spot, here, isn’t…Ahhh!”

With a soft “thwump!” Harry landed on his back in the snow, bringing Ginny down with him. They lay there in a heap, and there was a moment of silence before they both broke into a long bout of hysterical laughter.

“Are you okay?” Ginny finally managed. She was practically lying on Harry’s chest, and she could feel it heaving as he gasped for air.

Harry lifted his chin and looked down at her.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he gasped. “Are you?”

Ginny nodded and reluctantly pulled away from him, sitting back on her knees. Harry sat up, then struggled to his feet. He brushed the snow off his cloak and then held his hand out to her.

“Let’s try this again, shall we?” he said with a smile.

Ginny took his hand and he lifted her to her feet. “Careful,” he said as he guided her away from the icy patch. She had expected him to release her hand as soon as it was safe, but he didn’t. Instead, he just kept walking back towards the castle, acting as if it was the most natural thing in the world for her small hand to be enveloped in his.

Ginny tried not to read too much into it. She really did. He probably just wants to make sure I don’t slip again, she told herself. But she couldn’t help it--what had before been just a tiny spark deep within her had now, with such a simple gesture, blossomed into a full-fledged flame of hope that threatened to consume her entirely.

She was careful not to look at him as they made their way, silence falling between them once again. If Ginny thought the evening had been lovely before, it was now almost magical in its hushed beauty. The snow swirled around them, now thicker than ever, wrapping them in almost total isolation. Ginny didn’t care that her nose was about to freeze off. She didn’t care that she could no longer feel her toes. All she wanted was to stay out here with Harry, her hand wrapped in his, forever. The rest of the world could go hang.

Was she just imagining it, or was Harry slowing his footsteps as they drew nearer to the castle? Was it possible he wanted to stay with her, too? Did he also feel the magic–the spell that had fallen over the night and the two of them within it?

Her heart cried out in protest as they finally reached the front doors to the castle. She didn’t want this to end. She knew that the instant they stepped into the light and warmth, this precious moment between them would be broken, possibly to never return again.

They climbed the stone steps slowly and carefully, their feet crunching in the snow. At the top, Harry started to reach for one of the doorknobs of the giant Oak double doors, but before she knew what she was doing, Ginny tugged on his hand to stop him. He quickly turned back to her, a question in his eyes.

“Harry…” Ginny whispered. She didn’t know what to say. How to explain that she just wanted one more minute alone with him.

But Harry seemed, miraculously, to understand. He stepped back towards her, away from the door. He opened his mouth to speak, but Ginny never found out what he was going to say, because at that moment Ron and Hermione came bursting through the door.

Harry quickly dropped her hand, or she dropped his–she wasn’t sure which it was–and they both took a step away from each other.

“Where have you been?” exclaimed Hermione, grabbing Ginny by the arm and pulling her indoors. Ron and Harry followed closely behind. The entrance hall was filled with candlelight and the sounds of students eating dinner in the Great Hall. The door fell shut quietly behind the boys, and the magic of the evening was lost.
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