Disclaimer: I'm not affiliated with J K Rowling. Harry Potter does not belong to me. Any similarity with a real life person, event and/ or place is completely coincidental.

Warning: This story has not been Beta Read.

AN: English is not my first language, so I apologize for all mistake in spelling and grammar. I'm currently in the market for a Beta Reader, if anyone is interested, just contact me.

This story takes place after Harry and Ginny got together, before she started to take her O.W.L.s.

Read, Enjoy and Review!

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Respite

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The first thing Harry noticed when he came into the Common Room was Hermione's robes catching fire. He stopped cold for a moment, before running towards his friend. Of course, Hermione being Hermione, by the time Harry reached her, she had already dealt with it.

"Was that really necessary?" She said to the culprit, waving away the smoke coming from her robes. By her tone, it might have been a disappointing teacher speaking to a promising but misbehaving student.

"Yes, it was." Ginny stood from the table, her brown eyes alive with a fierceness that Harry simply adore. "Take it as a warning." She said, turning her gaze to the table and begun to gather her books and notes into her bag. "Next time you put another study schedule under my nose, I will set your hair on fire." With one last furious glare at Hermione, she strutted around the prefect, ignoring the crowd of fellow Gryffindors that had gathered around them, and head out of the Common Room.

"What," Harry asked, stepping away from the crown and towards Hermione, who was watching Ginny walk away with a pout. "Was that?"

"My sister gone balmy, that's what." Said Ron, sending a concerned look at Hermione.

"She has not." Said Hermione in a scandalized tone, shaking her head at Ron. "Ginny is under a lot of pressure Harry. Her O.W.L.s are coming closer and she had an insane amount of classes."

"In scale between a Ravenclaw and you in Third Year, how insane?"

Somehow, that question made Hermione smiled at Ron. "I'd say Percy actually. She was one class short of a time turner. Which, I know for a fact, can be very stressful. I was just trying to help." Feeling deflated like a balloon that had just been popped, Hermione slumped against the table Ginny had been working on for a moment. "I think I just made things worse."

"Don't worry, Hermione. I'll handle Ginny." Ignoring the sharp glance he got from Ron as his words, Harry slipped away from the Common Room. As the Portrait of the Fat Lady closed after him, Harry stopped and considered heading back for the map, but decided against it. He liked to think he knew his girlfriend enough by now to find her without the aid of the Marauders' Map.

If asked, he would claimed it was skill, though privately he accepted it was more blind luck that anything else that made him caught Ginny. She was almost to the Great Hall when Harry finally came across her. Harry could tell that she was still annoyed, but thankfully, she stopped for him after he called her.

"Are you going to yell at me?" She asked him wearily, brushing red locks away from her eyes. There was a bit of regret and a bit of pride on her brown eyes.

"For what?" When instead of replying she only raised a brow, Harry chuckled. "I'm not. What's between you and Hermione, is between you two. Plus, you didn't actually harm her."

"Of course I wouldn't! She is my friend. I just wanted her to leave me be for awhile."

Though there had been fire behind her words, Harry could tell that Hermione had hit the mark when it came to Ginny. Paler than usual, with dark marks under her eyes, the younger Gryffindor looked like she could use a ten hour nap. Making a quick decision, Harry grabbed Ginny's hand, entwining their finger together before leading her away from the Great Hall.

"Where are we going?" She asked, but didn't protest nor struggled against him.

"Room of Requirement." He said simply, smiling gently at her when she fall in step besides him rather than behind.

Incident with Hermione still on the front of her mind, Ginny suddenly stopped, narrowing her eyes at her boyfriend. "If you said we are going there to take advantage of peace and quite for me to study, I will set your pants on fire, Harry. Just try me."

Knowing first hand she was not joking, Harry was quick to reassure her. "That's not quite what I had in mind."

Taking him at his word, Ginny started walking once more. She stepped back and let Harry asked the room for whatever he had in mind. Ginny wasn't sure what he was planning, but she was getting some ideas on her own. When a door finally appeared, Ginny walked back to Harry, wrapping an arm around his waist, resting her head on the nook of his shoulder and sent him a wicked smile. Then, Harry opened the door and they walked into the living room of The Burrow.

Ginny let out a shuddering breath as she stepped away from Harry, her eyes whirling around the room in wonder and fascination. Everything was exactly as she remembered it. Pictures of her brothers and extended family crowding the the stone walls, the fireplace roaring alive with fire. Her mother's knitting basket at the foot of her favorite loveseat. Ginny thought she could even smell the faint trace of baking from the kitchen, treacle tart. Remembering that was Harry's favorite dessert, she turned towards him. "Of all the places in the world, why this?" Leaving her bag fall to the floor besides her, she extended a hand towards him, entwining their fingers once more when he reached her.

"Thought you could use a nap. And I know for a fact that even though that couch looks lumpy, is actually quite comfortable."

"It is!" She agreed, smiling widely at Harry. "Thank you." She leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, before walking to the couch. She took of her shoes, then pick up the room's copy of her mother's knit blanket. Patting the space besides her on the couch, she sent Harry what she hoped was an alluring look. "Take a nap with me?"

Not needing to be asked twice, Harry practically flew towards her, making Ginny laughed at his eagerness. Like her, he took of his shoes, then threw the blanket over both of their bodies. The couch seemed to expand beneath them, giving them enough room to lie down. All the same, he brought Ginny as close as he could to him.

"Just napping." Ginny said, raising herself slightly to look down at his face. "No funny business, Potter." When he flushed red, she laughed again. Taking off his glasses, she set them gently on the floor, before leaving a short kiss at the corner of Harry's mouth. "At least until I get some rest. After.. we'll see how your luck holds."

Harry groaned, knowing that Ginny's closeness and the implied promise would make it very hard for him to actually nap now. "Thank you so much for that, Gin." He murmured, then rolled his eyes when he felt her shake with laughter against him.

"Anytime."

Despite the teasing, it didn't take Ginny long to settle down for an actual nap. Harry stayed awake for a while longer. Simply enjoying the moment. Between the faint smell of treacle tart coming from the made believe kitchen, and the flowery scent that was uniquely Ginny, he was for the first time in his life, truly content. Amortentia, he thought minutes later, right before sleep finally claimed him, had nothing on the real deal.

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Fin

AN(2): If you made it this far, thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoy the story. Questions, comments, suggestions and opinions are more than welcome.

Once more, thanks for all the support.

LadyGuilt