Forbidden and Wrong

Ginny's eyes welled up with tears again, but this time they were tears of joy and relief, of love. Laughing and crying simultaneously, she rose from her bed and crossed the few feet between us. "I love you," she whispered, and then pressed her lips against mine. I marveled at their softness, and the tenderness I'd been longing to feel for so long without even knowing it. I reveled in the taste of her tears, still falling unchecked from her eyes.

Finally I forced myself to push her away before I suffocated. Breathing hard, I stared into Ginny's deep mahogany eyes. In them I saw a hundred thousand times more joy and love than the amount of grief that had been there only moments before. I could have fallen into those beautiful eyes, swum in them and drowned without complaint, anything to be near her forever.

Before I knew what was happening, Ginny's soft, dexterous hands were roaming my body. We sat down on her four-poster, still rumpled from when she'd been crying. She drew the hangings closed around us, and I remember thinking that there was no way that this could be happening, but that it seemed to fit. I pulled out my wand and muttered "Impervio," charming them so as not to let any sounds venture out from Ginny's dark and cozy bed. I turned back to Ginny, feeling some concern. "Gin, are you sure about this? We don't have to do anything you aren't ready for."

"I trust you, 'Mione," was her only response. Her lips found mine again. This time was less urgent than before, but just as passionate. I felt her tongue tentatively probe my lips. I parted them, allowing her tongue to enter my mouth and explore it. Her explorations led her to my palate, and I giggled, accidentally biting her tongue.

"Ouch!" she exclaimed. "What was that for?" I regretted breaking the mood, but I didn't mind too much.

"I'm sorry," I said, still giggling. "That tickled, that's all." She laughed as well, then reclined, lying with her head on a pillow, looking up at me.

"Hermione?"

"Hmm?" I was half-lost in my overwhelming emotions. Ginny smiled at me, but her expression then turned serious.

"Hermione, what are we going to do? I'm in love with you, and if you feel the same way, I couldn't be happier; but we can't exactly go ringing the bells about it, can we? Ron would kill us both. My brothers are good people, but they're so protective. And it's not just them. Anyone we told would feed us to the wolves." She was right. Always so practical, Ginny.

I lay down beside her, thinking hard. In wizard society, purebloods held the power, and all those generations of clinging to the old ways had made them extremists. They were easily swayed to hate, but never to acceptance. Just look at the power Voldemort had had to influence the Death Eaters. To them, men carried on the family legacy, and women gave them the sons to do so. If anything was more threatening to them than Muggles, it was homosexuality.

"I think you're right," I said, reluctantly coming to reason and reality. "But now that I know how I really feel about you, I could never give you up."

"Neither could I," she smiled, then sighed. "I can't live without you knowing you want me, too. But we'll have to stay a secret if we're to be together."

"I don't mind keeping secrets. I'll do anything to stay with you. Besides," I said, a mischievous smile crossing my face. "Secrets are something you can have to yourself. I don't think I'd mind having you to myself at all." I said, kissing her again. Her response was immediate; I could almost feel the relief in her kiss.

"Ginny?" I mumbled against her lips, not wanting to break the kiss.

"What is it?"

"Can we just sleep now?" As happy as I was, the emotional strain of the day was too much. I was exhausted.

"That's fine. I'm tired, too." She snuggled up beside me, her backside against my stomach and chest. I put my arms around her and buried my face in her hair. The last thing I remember doing was thinking to myself that this was too good to be true. But she was there nonetheless, in my arms. I snuggled closer to her and, listening to her rhythmic breathing, I fell asleep.