A/N: Wow, all of you seem to hate Ginny even more ;) hahaha
Well… you Ron/Luna fans will certainly enjoy this chapter. No stolen wallet actions just yet! Thanks for reading/reviewing!
Let's Get it On - Marvin Gaye
I've been really tryin , baby
Tryin to hold back these feelings for so long
And if you feel, like I feel baby
Come on, oh come on,
There's nothin wrong with me
Lovin you---
And givin yourself to me can never be wrong
If the love is true
Let's get it on
Let's get it on
Hermione practically floated back to her cabin. She kept thinking back on Harry's words- on how he wanted them to live together after the summer was over. An excited flutter rose in her stomach as she thought about the two of them living in a flat or possibly even a small cottage or townhouse. She quietly let herself inside and dressed in her pyjamas, sliding under the cool sheets, falling back asleep immediately with a happy smile on her face.
Sometime later, there was a knock on the door. Elinore peeked her head inside and brightly told the girls that it was time to wake up. Lavender groaned and turned over, not yet ready to get out of bed. She suddenly remembered that Hermione had snuck out again last night and she shot up in bed and looked to see if Hermione had made it back in time. To her great relief, Hermione was present and accounted for. When Elinore left the room, Lavender raised an eyebrow at her cousin.
"So?" she asked.
Hermione mumbled something and buried her face in the pillow.
"Hermione!" Lavender exclaimed impatiently. "Tell me what happened!"
"What time is it?" Hermione asked sleepily.
"It's time for you to tell me what happened last night." Lavender said, pulling back her own sheets and sitting on the edge of Hermione's bed.
Hermione peeked at her cousin with one eye. "Everything's fine." she couldn't help grinning.
Lavender grinned back. "Really? Was it terribly romantic?"
Hermione finally sat up. "Well at first, I thought he was horribly angry with me," she said in a low voice. "We talked a bit and got everything out in the open..." she relayed the events of the previous evening, skipping out on the more intimate details. "Then this morning..." she paused and her cheeks turned pink.
"What?" Lavender said, rather loudly. Then, remembering that her aunt and uncle were in the other room, she said sheepishly and much more quietly, "What?"
"He told me that after holiday is over..." Hermione leaned in even more. "He wants us to move in together." she whispered.
"Move in together?" Lavender repeated. Although she was happy for her cousin, she hoped Hermione realized it wouldn't be that easy. "Hermione? That's really great and all, but Uncle Robert's never going to let you do that, you do realize that, right?"
Hermione looked down. "He may not like it... but I'm an adult now... I can't stay living at home forever."
"But what about university?" Lavender suggested. When she saw the stricken look on Hermione's face, she softened her tone. "I'm not trying to rain on your parade, Hermione. I'm really happy for you. I'm just saying what you know your parents are going to say."
"I can go to university and live outside my parents' home," Hermione got up to change her clothes. "I'm going to sit my dad down sometime in the next few days and talk some sense into him. Harry and I are hoping that once Vernon isn't spilling lies down his throat that he'll open up a bit more and see who Harry really is."
"I am happy for you," Lavender said sincerely. "I hope you know that. I want everything to work out for you."
"Thanks," Hermione smiled. "I'm sorry... I haven't even asked about how you... I mean... I really don't want to bring up a sore point..."
Lavender scowled. "Draco-sodding-Malfoy, you mean? Well, I must say that I spent the better part of the evening last night reading up on powerful hexes and charms."
Hermione laughed despite herself. "I am sorry you found out the way you did... but it could have been worse, right?"
"Yeah," Lavender agreed. "I could have found out after I slept with him. I can't believe I was actually considering it!"
"You'll find a good guy Lav," Hermione said quietly. "I certainly wasn't looking or expecting to find Harry but I'm glad it happened. Even if things end bad..." she shuddered to think of that. "I'll never regret what he and I have shared."
Lavender smiled. She got to her feet and walked over to the closet to pick out her outfit for the day. She turned suddenly and looked at Hermione. "What about that girl...that Ginny." As she said the redhead's name, Lavender scrunched up her nose in disgust. "What are you going to do about her?"
"I'm not sure yet," Hermione replied pensively. "Neville made Harry promise not to do or say anything to her. He thinks it's out of jealousy that he and I are together." she shrugged. "She probably just used the thefts as an excuse."
"Well, if she tries anything else with you, she'll have to answer to me," Lavender said. "No one hurts my cousin and gets away with it."
Hermione smiled. "Thanks Lav. We're just keeping everything as quiet as possible- if we can ride out the next month without her knowing anything we're home free."
"Anything I can do to help, just let me know," Lavender said, walking into the bathroom and closing the door behind her.
*** *** ***
Cho sat in the employee cafeteria waiting for Neville to come back with her tray of food. He'd insisted on her sitting down while he brought breakfast. She was more than willing to comply. This was her first meal in the cafeteria in weeks. Usually, she hated eating in here when it was so crowded, but today she didn't mind. She hadn't known how much she'd craved human contact until she'd been stuck in her cabin for days during her recovery.
"Here you go," Neville grimaced. "Pancakes with jelly slugs..."
Cho ignored the look on his face and took the tray from him. "This looks so good," she said. By the time Neville had sat down, she'd already eaten two bites. When she felt his eyes on her, she looked up sheepishly. "Sorry, a bit hungry."
"It's all right," he smiled. "Want a bite?" he grinned evilly as he held out his marmalade and cheese sandwich. "I made two in case you got hooked and tried to steal mine."
This time it was Cho who grimaced. "No, that's quite alright. You don't ever have to worry about me wanting to eat one of those."
"One of these days," Neville said, taking a huge bite. "You'll try it and love it."
"Yeah," Cho said, shaking her head. "I wouldn't hold your breath on that one." She took another bite of her breakfast and looked around the cafeteria. "Okay," she said, a tinge of worry in her voice. "Tell me that Harry's late for breakfast because he's with Hermione and not plotting some sadistic revenge on Ginny Weasley. Though to tell you the truth, I've thought about it myself."
"According to Ron, Harry's always running late for breakfast," Neville replied. "I wouldn't worry about it- he promised he wouldn't do anything to her."
Cho relaxed a bit. "You know I knew she was horrid, but I didn't know she could stoop so low."
"Neither did I." Neville agreed. "And to think- I took her to the bloody Yule Ball in 4th year. Wish I'd known how she'd turn out back then."
"I'd forgotten about that," Cho said with a sympathetic smile. "I guarantee that if she'd stuck with you, that she'd not be the lying, manipulative bitch that she is."
"Yeah..." Neville turned a bit red. "Well... it wouldn't have lasted anyway."
"Really?" Cho asked. "Redheads not your type, huh?"
"I like girls with black hair best," Neville said boldly.
She blushed. "You have good taste," she said with a wink. She was about to say something else when she saw Harry breezing through the cafeteria toward them. Cho smiled warmly at him as he sat down. "I take it from your smile that things went well last night?" she asked pointedly.
"They did," Harry grinned. "Everything's back to normal, thank you very much."
"Good," Cho said happily. "Things are as they should be."
Harry nodded. "That's right," he said. "Except for what's on your plate. Pancakes and jelly slugs?" he turned slightly green.
"Don't you start!" Cho retorted. "It's my breakfast and I can eat whatever I want."
Harry smiled at her. "Right, right. I wanted to ask you two something though."
"What's that?" Neville asked.
"Do you guys think that I should tell Ron about Ginny?" Harry asked quietly. "I mean... it's his sister... I don't want to get him in strop with her but I think he should know."
"I think you should," Cho said thoughtfully. "What do you think Nev?"
"Just..." Neville sighed. "I don't like what she did any better than you Harry. But don't trash her when you tell Ron. He knows you don't like her already."
"I won't." Harry replied.
"It's hard to believe they're brother and sister," Cho said. "Ron's so nice and funny and Ginny's...well, she's..."
"Not," Harry finished. "Well I'm off to find Ron then. Here's to hoping I'm not interrupting him with Luna again." he waved at his two friends and left the cafeteria.
Ron had just walked out of his cabin when he caught sight of Harry coming down the path toward him.
"Hey Ron," Harry said. "Got a minute?"
"Yeah," Ron said. "What's going on?"
"It's... it's about Ginny." Harry said.
Ron froze. "Please tell me that she didn't decide to throw herself at you again. I know she can be a pain, Harry. I'll try and talk to her for you, but I don't know what good it'll do. Anything I tell her pretty much goes in one ear and out the other."
"No... Ron it's not that." Harry pulled on Ron's arm.
Ron stared back at him. Something occurred to him suddenly and his eyes grew big as he looked at the pained expression on Harry's face. "She hasn't been hurt has she? Mum will kill me if I let anything happen to her."
"No!" Harry sighed. "This really isn't easy for me to tell you Ron..."
"You didn't shag Ginny, did you?" Ron asked. He visibly flinched just thinking about it.
Harry stopped in his tracks. "NO!" he shouted. "It's about the fight me and Hermione had..." he looked around to make sure no one could overhear them, then told his best friend what Ginny had said to Hermione.
Ron didn't say anything. He honestly didn't know what to say. He didn't think Harry would lie about something like this, but this was his sister they were talking about.
"I know... I know Ron." Harry knew what he was thinking. "I had a hard time deciding if I should even tell you or not."
"Are you sure?" Ron asked unsteadily. "I mean, maybe Hermione heard her wrong or something."
"I..." Harry bit his lower lip. "I don't think she knows Ginny well enough to... lie about what she said you know?"
"I-I know," Ron said quickly. "I wasn't accusing her of lying, Harry. It's just...this is my sister we're talking about. Granted Ginny's...well, she's Ginny, but she's never...I mean..."
"I know... I didn't think she was capable either." Harry said. "Hermione thinks she's used the thefts as an excuse to get to me..." he ran his hands through his hair. "I mean, they've got no leads on who's doing it so it could sound credible except for the fact that I don't need anyone else's money, I've got plenty of my own."
"How could Ginny do something like this?" Ron asked, his shock quickly turning to anger. "She knows how Mum and Dad practically consider you a part of the family."
Harry shrugged, feeling bad. "I don't want to drive a wedge between the two of you but I thought you needed to know."
"Yeah," Ron said, nodding. "Well, I'm going to go and talk to her right now." He began to stalk off toward the lake, but Harry had jogged to catch up to him and placed a hand on Ron's arm.
"What?" Ron asked, turning around.
"Don't say anything yet." Harry shook his head. "Hermione and I decided to just try and go through the next month without adding to any drama... after that she and I can be in public as much as we like."
"Bloody hell, Harry!" Ron retorted. "You tell me something like this about my sister and I'm supposed to be quiet about it. Act as if nothing has happened?"
"Just for now Ron please?" Harry pleaded.
"Alright," Ron said reluctantly.
"Thanks mate," Harry replied. "I'll see you later all right?"
"Yeah," Ron said absently. He wondered how in the world he was going to spend the next month suppressing the urge to wring his little sister's neck.
*** *** ***
It was late that evening, almost midnight. Harry sat with Hermione between his legs, snuggled together to keep warm while Cho and Neville chatted idly next to them. He sighed and kissed the back of her neck.
"What a difference a day makes, huh?" Hermione asked, enjoying the closeness she'd longed for all day.
"You can say that again," Harry replied absently.
"We missed you in the ballroom tonight," Neville said to Hermione. "The little boss man did too."
Hermione grimaced. "Which is one of the main reasons why I didn't go. My poor toes can't take anymore abuse from him."
Cho laughed. "You should have seen him- I'm tempted to say 'lost little lamb' except we know he's nothing like that."
Hermione giggled. She looked back at Harry who had been somewhat subdued since she'd arrived. "You're being a little quiet tonight?" she asked, turning to face him. "Is everything okay?"
"I just sort of feel bad about telling Ron about Ginny." Harry replied. "He was pretty upset."
"It's understandable," Hermione said. "She is his sister. No one wants to hear bad things about someone close to them. It couldn't have been easy for him to hear those things."
"I know... but I can't help feeling I was too up front about it." Harry squeezed Hermione's hands in his.
"What did you say?" Cho asked.
Harry shrugged. "The facts really... I didn't even really get into it like we normally do over her."
"Harry," Hermione began, but she was cut off by Cho.
"No..." Cho said. "Harry... you were right in telling him- now he knows to keep a better eye on her so she won't be so sneaky..." she shook her head. "I hate to think of what he'd do if he found out about her and Draco."
"I shudder to think what Ron would do if he knew about that," Neville chimed in.
"It'd be bad," Harry said with a sigh.
"I feel as if this is all my fault," Hermione said suddenly. "If I hadn't gotten involved with all of you, none of this would have happened."
"That's silly," Harry said firmly. "Ginny would still be a sneak even if you weren't here."
Neville nodded in agreement. "And I, for one, am glad that you're here. It certainly made for an interesting summer." Hermione smiled back at him gratefully.
"I agree," Harry wound his arms around her waist, pulling her back against his stomach. Cho smiled at the two of them.
"It certainly has been a nice holiday," she shared a secret look with Neville.
"It sure has," Neville agreed.
Cho leaned back and he kissed her cheek while toying with her long hair. The two couples stared out over the moonlit lake when Harry suddenly laughed. "I've got a great idea!"
The other three stared back at him with expectant looks.
"You know how he's been trying to get together with Luna right?" Harry asked. "What about if we set him up here by the lake... like on a picnic or something?"
"That's quite romantic," Hermione said, impressed. "I think that's a great idea!"
Neville nodded. "Just don't let Cho cook anything, Harry."
"Hey!" Cho said angrily.
"I've got two words for you," he said teasingly. "Kitchen fire."
Hermione looked as Harry and Neville started laughing and Cho glared at them. "What's this about a kitchen fire?" she asked.
"Cho decided," Harry began with a snort of laughter. "That she was going to bake a cake for me and Neville since our birthdays are the same day. So she goes in the kitchens at Hogwarts, manages to piss off all the house elves enough where they won't come near her and then..." Harry and Neville both began laughing. "She managed to start a grease fire!" the two guys fell back and howled.
Cho narrowed her eyes. "May I remind the two of you that it's the thought that counts?" she snapped.
"You should have seen it, Hermione!" Neville managed to choke out between chortles of laughter.
Harry grinned at Cho as she slapped Neville on the shoulder. "And Hermione, you know what the best part of that whole situation was?"
"I'm almost afraid to ask," Hermione said, trying not to giggle.
"The fact that I did manage to bake a cake and I made Harry and Neville eat every bite," Cho grinned sadistically.
Harry's laughter died. "Yeah... that was definitely the worst bit."
"I didn't know birthday cake could be so..." Neville said, looking at Harry. "What's the word I'm looking for?"
"Disgusting?" Harry supplied. "Nev and I had to go get pissed on FireWhisky after that, just to get rid of the taste."
"Yeah," Hermione said looking at Cho. "As if these two would need an excuse to get pissed."
"Too right you are," Cho rolled her eyes. "If it weren't for us they'd be in the next town over making a pub crawl already."
"Anyways," Harry said hastily. "Back on topic. Are you guys going to help me with this picnic thing?"
"Yes," Hermione replied. "What do you want us to do?"
"Hermione do you know any masking spells?" Harry asked. "Good- I'll give you some of their handwriting samples and you make notes to them from each other inviting them here tomorrow night around this time. Neville... you can be in charge of food, but no cheese and marmalade."
"Hey!" Neville retorted. "I bet Ron would like them."
"True, but we want them to get together, not have Luna run off screaming," Cho replied. "I'll get a blanket and Harry- you can take care of the 'atmosphere'..." Cho grinned slyly. "Ron said you're good at making things romantic."
Harry turned red as Hermione slid her arms around his waist.
"He sure swept me off of my feet," Hermione said dreamily.
"You should take lessons from Harry Neville." Cho teased.
"Very funny," Neville said. "Very funny. If someone had told me this was 'Pick on Neville Longbottom' night at Hillsdale, I think I would have passed on the evening."
"No you wouldn't have..." Cho smiled at him.
Harry saw Neville lean in and pulled Hermione to her feet. "Let's leave them alone," he whispered.
She nodded. "So what did you want to do for the rest of the night?"
"Do you really need to ask me that?" Harry turned so that he was facing her as they walked away.
"Is that all you think about?" she asked playfully.
"It's your fault," Harry bantered with her. "If you didn't have to look so bloody sexy all the damn time..."
She looked down at the denim shorts and simple white cotton t-shirt she was wearing and stared back at him. "This is turning you on?" she asked in disbelief.
"Hermione... you're wearing it." Harry replied as if she should have realised it all along.
"Oh, you are good, Mr. Potter," she said with a laugh. "Cho's right. You should give lessons on this."
"Maybe later," Harry said, bending his head to kiss her lightly. "But for now..." he growled playfully and Hermione shrieked with laughter.
She pulled away and looked back at him with a suggestive, seductive look. "Hey, Harry?" she asked.
"What?" he asked, his forehead touching hers.
"Race you back to your cabin?"
*** *** ***
"You didn't have to walk me back," Cho said as she and Neville stood by her door.
"I don't mind," Neville replied. "It's the least I can do."
"Why do you say that all the time?" Cho asked, reaching for his hand.
"I can't help it- I still feel responsible for what happened to you." Neville shook his head.
"Don't," Cho looked him straight in the eyes. "Neville… how many times do I have to repeat myself? You saved me that night. It was my own choice to go there, my own choice to make him stop. He probably wouldn't have if you hadn't burst into the room!"
Neville let out a sigh. "I just wish I could convince myself of that."
Cho looked down at the ground. "If it weren't for you Neville… I wouldn't be pregnant. At first, yes, I didn't want to be having a baby. But now… I can't think of my life without this child inside of me." she squeezed his hand. "And I really hope you'll come along with me… it'll be a bit of a bumpy ride all by myself."
He perked up at her words. "You really mean that?"
"Yes, silly." Cho said, moving closer.
Neville smiled. "You know… I'm really glad Harry and Hermione ran off earlier."
"Why's that?" Cho asked, moving closer still.
"I got to do this…" Neville leaned down and brushed his lips over hers. "Again…"
"And again," Cho laughed. "I like kissing you."
"I like kissing you too," Neville said.
"Well then stop talking about it Longbottom and just do it," Cho raised herself up and pressed her lips to his again.
*** *** ***
"Late yet again," Ginny sighed. "Bloody hell… I'm beginning to think we should just hold these meetings in the kitchens."
"We'd be forced to watch him eat then," Draco grimaced.
"Right," Ginny said, pushing him down on the bench. "I think you and I can figure out something to do in the meantime…" she straddled his lap, rubbing her body against his clothed manhood.
"Fucking bloody hell Red…" Draco hissed, his teeth clenched. "Not right now if we can't finish it up the right way."
Ginny loosened her red hair from its ponytail. "We can finish… after this is all over." She leaned down, her lips skimming over his. "I have some rather big news."
"What's that?" Draco asked, his breath hitching as Ginny pressed her breasts against his chest.
"You'll find out once dear old Dudley gets his arse here," Ginny kissed him fully this time, her hands sneaking into his silky, fine white blond hair.
"If you keep doing this I don't care if he bloody ever shows up," Draco ran his hands up her back underneath her shirt.
Ginny smiled as Draco moved his lips over her neck, still relishing in the fact that he was finally hers. He'd blown off that Lavender girl all week long and had been with her instead.
"What are you grinning at?" Draco asked, his hands still roaming freely over her body.
"Nothing," Ginny replied airily before kissing him again, thrusting her tongue between his lips while she dragged her fingernails lightly over his neck.
"Why are you guys always snogging when I get here?" Dudley's whining voice made them break apart.
"Is it our fault you're always late?" Ginny shot back, regretfully climbing off of Draco.
"I had to get my afternoon tea," Dudley replied.
"Right, your afternoon tea," Draco smirked as Dudley shoved about six biscuits in his mouth at once.
"All right," Ginny interrupted. "As it happens, I have some news." Both Draco and Dudley turned to her. "It's time to let the cat out of the bag."
Draco grinned while Dudley looked confused. "Cat? Bag?"
Ginny rolled her eyes and sighed. "You have the wallets placed in his cabin and in the studio right?" she asked snappishly.
"Yes," Dudley replied.
"Good." Ginny smirked. "Then letting the cat out of the bag means it's time to let your dad know just who's been taking the wallets." She flicked a red curl of hair over her shoulder. "I tried to make a deal with his little girlfriend but she obviously didn't take me seriously."
"You spoke to Hermione?" Dudley asked, dropping the biscuit he was about to put in his mouth. "You didn't tell me you were going to do that!"
"Well I did mention it, but as usual, you were LATE!" Ginny said angrily.
"W-what did you say to her?" he countered.
Draco rolled his eyes. "Does it really matter?" he asked.
"No one asked you!" Dudley retorted to Draco. He turned his fury toward Ginny, who didn't back down at all. "I want to know what you said to her and I want to know now!"
Ginny folded her arms across her chest. "I told her to stay away from Harry. I told her that your father suspected him in all the thefts and all he needed was a little push in Harry's direction." She smiled coldly. "Looks to me like he's about to get a nice big shove."
"She couldn't stay away, huh?" Draco asked, laughing. He ignored the hurt look on Dudley's face at this news. "I'm very impressed, Red. Very, very impressed."
Ginny smiled coyly at him. "Yes well... I've certainly learned from the best, haven't I?"
Dudley rolled his eyes. "Please don't start snogging again. I may just throw up."
"Sod off boss man," Draco sneered. "Although it'd probably do you a world of good to throw up a couple times a day."
"It'd do you a world of good to remember that my father owns this place," Dudley said, staring coldly at Draco. "You act as if you are in charge here. I could just as easily tell my dad to fire the two of you."
"But you wouldn't do that, would you Dudley?" Ginny returned coolly.
Dudley thought for a moment. He didn't notice the impatient look that Draco and Ginny exchanged as he considered what she'd just said. After a few moments he finally spoke. "As long as Harry gets what's coming to him and I end up with Hermione, I don't care what the two of you do."
"That's what I thought." Ginny's smile grew. "All right... now what needs to happen is this. I need to be visible when your father confronts Harry about what went on. That means one of you needs to give that little push. I don't care how you do it, just make sure I know ahead of time so I can be there."
"Why do you have to be there?" Dudley asked.
"Because Dudley..." Ginny rolled her eyes in exasperation. "If Harry and Hermione have gotten back together then surely she's told Harry that I tried to break them up. So that means I'm the biggest suspect in this. I can't be the one who spills the beans otherwise Harry will realise it's a trap."
Dudley nodded as if he understood, but he stared back blankly at Ginny, who just rolled her eyes.
"If you tell your father," Ginny said slowly. "Then when Harry asks your dad who told, if your father chooses to disclose it, he'll know it wasn't me." she shook her head at Draco, who was still smirking.
"Why don't I do it?" Draco suggested. "Dursley loves me, he'd never think I'd actually lie..." he and Ginny laughed while Dudley shoved another biscuit in his mouth.
"You just want to be the one who puts the final nail in Potter's coffin, don't you?" Ginny asked, teasingly.
"It's been a lifelong dream," Draco said sarcastically.
Ginny grinned. "Well, it's settled then. But let's give it another day or so- let them think they've outsmarted me."
Draco slid his arm around her waist. "Guess we won't be needing your services anymore Dudley," he grinned wickedly.
Dudley watched as Draco and Ginny sauntered off. He didn't like their attitude toward him and he didn't like the way that the two of them acted like they had all the power in this plan. But, he thought as he watched them, as long as I get what I deserve in the end, I'll let them think whatever they want.
*** *** ***
Luna tried not to run towards the lake. When she'd gotten the note from Ron earlier asking her to meet him at midnight, it had taken all of her strength not to jump all over him when she saw him that afternoon in the dance studio. To lighten her workload, he'd offered to take a few of her guests and her schedule was much more bearable now.
Ron could barely contain his excitement himself. He and Luna had shared a few kisses in the past couple of days, but nothing major. He'd begun to think that it wasn't meant to happen with her, especially since the topic of a date hadn't come back up. Something or someone always seemed to screw things up for the two of them. He hoped that tonight would be a turning point for them in more ways than one.
She arrived about the same time he did, both surprised to see a blanket spread out on the sand, along with a silver bucket lined with ice and a bottle of chilled champagne in the middle. There was also a portable CD player from the dance studio and a small basket sitting off to the side. "Hi Ronald," Luna said, looking at the setup dreamily. "Did you do this?"
He suddenly realized that he was looking at the setup before him with his mouth agape. He most certainly hadn't set this up, but he had an idea as to who might have. He made a mental note to thank his friends when he saw them next. He saw Luna looking expectantly at him. "Um, yeah," he said quickly. "I-I thought it would be...what's the word I'm looking for?"
"It's very romantic," she was staring at him with a soft look in her eyes. "It's very romantic Ronald."
"Yeah," he said, snapping his fingers. "Romantic!"
Luna sat down on one edge of the blanket while Ron perched himself on the other. "Why didn't you say anything about this during the lessons earlier?"
"That would have spoiled the surprise," he said, winking at her. "Would you like a glass of champagne?"
"Sure," Luna replied. "I like things with bubbles in them."
Ron laughed nervously and pulled the bottle of champagne out of the bucket. "You know I've only drunk this once at my aunt's wedding," he said. "How about you?"
"A few times my father would let me have some at dinner," Luna replied. "It's very good."
He smiled at her as he tried to hide the fact that he was having trouble opening the bottle. He wished that he'd thought ahead to bring his wand, but he'd been so anxious to see Luna he'd barely remembered to put on shoes.
"They obviously wanted to make sure this stuff didn't leak out," he said jokingly.
"It's to keep the bubbles inside," she explained, watching with a smile as he struggled with the cork.
Ron nodded and got to his feet. He put the bottle between his legs and tried to pull the cork out with his hand. He wished that Harry would have thought to at least leave a corkscrew for him. He saw Luna's concerned expression and he tried to give her a reassuring smile. "I've almost got it."
Luna kept a giggle to herself as he tugged at the cork. She heard a loud pop and then suddenly found the cork flying directly into her left eye. "Ouch!" she cried out.
"Oh!" Ron exclaimed helplessly, dropping the bottle and watching as the champagne drenched the blanket. "Luna, I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"
"I think so," he dropped to his knees next to her and pulled her hand away from her eye. "It stings a bit..."
Ron winced. "Can I do anything to help?" At the moment he thought that the best way to help her was to drown himself in the lake. At least that way, they'd both be out of their misery.
"It'll be all right," Luna blinked a few times before forcing her eye open. "Is it red?"
"A little," Ron lied. It was actually quite red, but he didn't want to tell her that. "Are you sure you're okay?"
Luna nodded. "I'll be all right. When I get back to my cabin I'll cast a spell on it and be just fine." she smiled at him and Ron felt a little better.
"Would you like some fruit?" he asked. "It looks as if they've...I mean I've put some strawberries and grapes and melon in here."
"That sounds lovely," Luna replied. "Thank you Ronald."
From just a few yards away, four sets of eyes watched as Ron and Luna began to eat their fruit.
"Neville," Cho whispered. "I can still hear you giggling. Keep quiet or they're going to hear you!"
"I am not giggling, that's Hermione." Neville said crossly.
"It wasn't me," Hermione retorted. "It was Harry. He's cackling like a hyena. I told you that you should have brought a corkscrew! He nearly blinded her!"
"The one flaw in my otherwise perfect plan," Harry said proudly.
Cho rolled her eyes. She was about to say something else when she noticed that Ron's face had gone ghostly white. "He doesn't look good," Cho whispered. "Is he choking?"
"I hope not," Harry replied. "Should we go out there you think?"
Hermione held him back. "I think Luna's got it covered." She watched as Luna got behind Ron and hit him soundly on the back. Whatever she did worked as Ron coughed up what was lodged in his throat and his face returned to its normal colour.
"Are you all right?" Luna was alarmed as she sat back down on the blanket. Ron let out another loud, hacking cough.
"Yeah," he said weakly. "Thank you."
"I've never seen anyone turn so white," she commented, taking a large bite out of a strawberry. "You had me worried for a moment."
"You and me both," he said hoarsely. "Um, this isn't going very well, is it?"
Luna looked at him with a bemused expression on her face. "What do you mean?"
He stared back at her in disbelief. "We've not been in here more than 20 minutes and in that time, I've managed to nearly blind you and nearly choke to death."
"Well what's the worst that could happen?" Luna asked.
"Don't say that, you might jinx us," he warned.
Luna laughed. "You can only be jinxed if you were born when Mercury is in Venus." she informed him, moving closer to him on the blanket.
"My birthday is in March," he said. "Does that bode well for me?"
"Maybe," Luna replied, moving closer still. "I'd have to check your chart to be certain."
"You know I never put too much thought into the stars and planets and all that," he said, oblivious to Luna's attempts to get closer to him.
From behind the bushes, the couple's four friends continued to watch the scene unfolding before them.
"For the love of Merlin," Cho said in disbelief. "Why is he still talking? She's practically on top of him!"
"He's nervous..." Harry shook his head. "I made the mistake of interrupting them the other night. I think it's given his confidence a bit of a shake."
"Maybe we should leave them be," Hermione peered concernedly through the bushes. "Granted, I don't know Ron all too well but I'm sure he wouldn't like the fact that we're spying on them."
"If this keeps going like this, we may need to be here to identify their bodies in the aftermath," Neville said, only half-joking.
"Stop..." Cho frowned at him. "Hermione's right. We should go."
"Alright," Neville said, turning around to follow Harry, Cho, and Hermione. If he'd stayed, he would have seen Luna finally lean in for a kiss, but at that moment Ron had turned his head and Luna had nearly fallen over.
Oblivious, Ron turned around and saw that she looked quite flustered. "Everything alright?" he asked.
"Fine..." Luna was confused. Did he or didn't he want to kiss her again?
Ron smiled back at her. He figured things must be looking up. They'd gone nearly 10 minutes without any other incidents.
"So," he said, looking up at the sky. "It's quite a nice night. Couldn't ask for a better night for a midnight picnic."
"Too right you are," Luna moved over yet again so that her body was now pressed against him. "It's a bit chilly though."
"Are you cold?" he asked. "I'm actually quite comfortable."
Luna rolled her eyes. "Ronald?"
"Yeah?" he asked, still looking up at the sky.
"Will you kiss me already?" she asked impatiently.
"What did you say?" he asked, turning to look at her properly. Before he could say another word, she'd wrapped her arms around him and pressed her lips firmly against his, pushing him onto his back. Unlike the last time they'd kissed this passionately, Luna took charge, pushing her tongue into his mouth. His hands travelled up her back before he rolled her over.... directly into the champagne wet part of the blanket.
Ron was surprised to see Luna pushing him away. "What is it?" he asked breathlessly. "Did I do something wrong?"
"Yuck," she pulled her hair over her shoulder, most of her strands sticking together in wet, sticky clumps. Her entire backside was wet as well, granules of sand clinging to her clothes.
Ron frowned. "This night started out bad and gets progressively worse. Maybe we should just pack in and call it a night before something catastrophic happens."
At that particular moment, a loud rumbling was heard overhead as the skies suddenly opened on top of them, sending sheets of rain pouring towards the earth.
Luna shrieked as Ron hurriedly gathered up the CD player and blanket and she grabbed his hand as they both ran as fast as they could for the safety of her cabin.
"I'm really sorry," he said when they finally reached her cabin, both soaking wet from the downpour.
"What for?" Luna asked, wringing her long hair out. "You didn't make it rain."
"No," he said morosely. "But I might as well have."
Luna stared at him for a moment, taking in his downcast expression. "Ronald... I had a nice time with you tonight."
He looked at her in disbelief. "Your idea of a good time is getting hit in the eye by a cork, watching me nearly choke to death, rolling around in sticky champagne and getting caught in a thunderstorm. Luna, you definitely need to get out more."
"You left out something very important." Luna said, stepping closer and putting her hand on his shoulder.
"I did?" he asked, mentally recalculating everything that had gone wrong tonight. "I don't think I missed anything. But, you never know, the night's still young."
"No that's not what I mean." Luna giggled despite herself. "I meant that even though bad things happened, I still enjoyed being with you." she took a deep breath. "I like you a lot. A whole lot."
"Y-you do?" he asked, a smile playing at his lips. "Because I like you a whole lot, too. More than I've ever liked anyone else."
"Really?" Luna asked.
He grinned. "Yeah, of course. I may not always know the best ways to show it, but I really do like you, Luna."
"Well then there's only one last thing for you to do," Luna moved into his arms.
"What might that be?" he asked, pulling her close.
"Take a wild guess," Luna replied as their faces moved towards one another.
"Run for cover?" he joked.
Luna raised her eyebrows at him. "Guess again,"
She closed her eyes and parted her lips and Ron finally took the hint and the initiative and leaned in and slowly kissed her.
Luna wrapped her arms around his neck as his hands slid over her waist. Her heart beat faster as their kiss grew more and more passionate. "Ronald..." she breathed as they finally pulled apart.
"Hmmm," he murmured, feeling quite dazed by what had just happened.
"Do you..." Luna bit her swollen lower lip. "Do you want to stay here tonight?"
He focused his attention on her and wondered if he'd heard her correctly. "You mean with you?" he asked.
"I know it's a bit forward since we just sort of had our first date and all..." Luna looked up at him.
"If you want me to stay," he said, looking at her seriously. "There's nothing I'd like more."
Luna grinned widely. "That goes for me too," she kissed him again.
He abruptly pulled away from her. "I do have one question, though."
"What's that?" she asked.
"How secure are the locks on your door?" he asked cheekily.