Harry's POV

My head was pounding when I woke up. The sheets on my bed were soft and crisp, sheets that I knew very well. Oh no...

I slowly opened my eyes and looked around, beside my bed was Ginny. That wasn't strange, as she was usually there when I went to the Hospital Wing. What was strange was the way she was holding her head and squeezing her head in pain.

My emotion! I quickly imagined a dam stopping my feelings from flowing to Ginny and, thankfully, she relaxed. Her eyes turned to me, their brown color was startling, it burned with a fire I knew it only possessed when she was upset.

What did I do now?

I prepared for her outburst, squeezing my eyes shut. I don't even know what I did to make her so mad!

What surprised me even more, was when Ginny turned away from me and slammed her fist on the table. "I'm going to kill Ron!" She whisper/shouted. I was in so much shock, I didn't even move.

"Wha" I managed to choke out behind my intense headache and dry mouth. She paced past my bed and picked up a bottle, opening it and pouring it into a mixture of pumpkin juice and some other potion. While she was doing this, she explained.

"When you came back... We were just sitting there! And all the sudden, you...." She choked for a second. "Ron came downstairs and didn't like how close we were sitting, he punch you and gave you a minor concussion..." She swallowed.

I blinked a few times while she was mixing the concoction, then finally turned to her and said "What were we... Er... Were we..." I stuttered, trying to think of a way to say this without sounding creepy. "Did we...?" I asked, not able to say the word because of being nervous.

"Kiss? Heavens no, Harry. You're my best friend!"

"Oh, cool... Er, okay" I spit out, slightly disturbed at how quickly she dismissed the idea of us kissing. She gave me the glass of potion, which looked slightly like orange juice.

"It'll taste awful" She warned "Best to down it quickly" I could feel some of my nervousness seep towards her, so I blocked my emotions and chugged the glass.

It tasted worse than awful, it reminded me of that pink muggle medicine mixed with chocolate. I know, that doesn't sound half bad. But trust me, bitter and sweet does not mix this time.

Ginny scrunched up her nose, feeling  disgust that I felt. I almost spit it out, but she pinched my nose together and forced my head back, making me swallow. I gasped, thankful that I didn't have to taste it anymore. The smell of her hair washed over me and I felt calmer.

"What was in that?" I asked. She looked over at me and smiled, answering my question.

"Advanced Calming Draught and pain reliever" She said sweetly, propping her elbows on her knees and perching her chin on her hands. My headache was going away, but why the calming draught? I had a feeling that I wasn't going to like this one bit.

"Harry" She started, a serious look in her eyes "It's about Ron" Ginny said slowly. My heart stopped.

"What about him?" I asked cautiously. If he hurt her, I swear I will pummel him.

"He..." She huffed, her face contorted with anger. "Ron is a git again, Harry" She said. I groaned.

"What now?" I asked. She laughed lightly, her anger forgotten, which made me feel a bit better. I tried to give her some of my calm emotions, but she was completely blocked off from me.

"He thinks you kissed me, and that now we are dating. In fact, the entire school thinks we're together now" She explained. I stayed silent, thinking about why the way she said it, almost like she thought the idea was as ridiculous as Snape singing "Cauldron Full of Hot Love" on top of the Gryffindor table in one of Luna's headdresses, made me feel so... I don't know, rejected?

She must have felt my emotions because she wouldn't meet my eye. I grabbed her hand and she slowly looked at me. The calming draught was doing wonders at calming my nerves, but my heart still raced when I touched her hand. The soft golden glow was wrapped around our interlocked fingers.

"It'll all be fine" She insisted. I ignored her and thought back to all those days I wondered what it would be like to kiss her, or to just casually put my arm around her shoulders. To be able to hang around with her without people gossiping about us.

Ginny swept a strand of red hair out of her face quickly, her exposed ear was about as red as my cheeks probably were. The glow around our hands grew brighter, almost like it was telling me to go ahead. Kiss the girl already.

But did I want this to seem like 'heat of the moment'? She would think that I just did it because I'm a selfish person, or that I wanted to escape the rumors. Would she though?

And what about Ron? He already basically hates me for supposedly taking his baby sisters first kiss, what if I actually did? It would be my first kiss too, and I think that would make it special, but maybe... Maybe I should wait for the right moment.

Why am I even hesitating? I really like her.

She's Ron's little sister

So?

So! He'll hit you! Again!

What if I don't care?

He's your best mate!

It's not like it should ruin our relationship

He's your best mate!

You said that already!

Fine!

Fine!

"Harry" Ginny said softly. I nodded briskly, still lost in her eyes. She seemed to be looking for the right thing to say. She started leaning forward too.

We were inches away when the slamming of a door told us that someone was here. Ginny pushed me back onto my bed and collapsed on her chair, closing her eyes. I realized her intentions through the Bond and quickly closed mine too, though I still limply held her hand.

I sensed someone come and pull open my curtains. "Ah! Good, she already gave him the potion. They must have fallen back asleep, they'll wake up soon. Calming draught is known for making people at ease with their emotions. He probably transferred some of the ease to Miss Weasley and they fell asleep." Madam Pomfrey explained to someone. The person, who I realized was my mum, agreed and sat on the chair beside my bed, opposite Ginny.

I heard hurried footsteps and another door slammed shut again. My mum was running her hand through my hair. I could feel the tension in her movements, like she was afraid I would shatter if she was too rough.

"Your dad's at work" She said quietly "there has been a lot more paperwork to do, as the Christmas break is almost here" I realized with a jolt, that I hadn't been shopping yet. She sighed, staying quiet for some time.

"Under normal circumstances, I would bring you home with me after all these accidents. But I understand that you can't go to any other wizarding school because of your Bond with Ginny." I felt relieved with this, knowing that I still had time to sort things out with said Bond Mate.

"I have to go, Dumbledore wants to talk" She said. I heard her stand and walk away, her footsteps fading.

I opened my eyes and so did Ginny. It was excruciatingly awkward as we both sat there in complete silence. She stood up, dusting herself off.

"Well, Harry. They moved the Hogsmead trip to today, because of a reported murder in Muggle London. Want to come with me? I know you forgot to do Christmas shopping" She said, reading my mind. I smiled and nodded, hopping out of bed. She stepped out of the way as I changed into my clean robes and we made our way outside.

/-/-/-/-/

There was a light featuring of snow over the green grass that lead to Hogsmead. The air had a bite, but it wasn't that bad. The warm feeling that I get when I'm around Ginny kept me nice and toasty.

As we walked, we joked around about how we should act like a couple just to confuse people. But it was nothing more than an innocent joke.

We first bought our parents essentially the same things. Except Ginny bought her dad a book on Muggles, I bought my mum a book on Herbology and my dad a chain necklace with a stag on it. Though, it wasn't girly at all. Ginny bought her mother a pretty necklace that I was sure she'd love. We shared money, and soon, we just had to get the presents for each other.

I tried giving Ginny some money, but she declined, handing it straight back and saying that she had saved up all year to buy me something.

I knew what I was getting her right away. She had crashed her old broom, so she couldn't play Quidditch anymore. But I was going to change that. I went straight to Slinkin Stitch's Super Snitches. A really popular new Quidditch supply store.

The man behind the counter had greying hair, streaked with a light red color, his face was taut, like he had had enough of every Witch or Wizard that had came through today. But he still wore a small smile as he tossed a Quaffle in the air, where it floated.

All along the tall ceiling were floating quaffles, bludgers, and one snitch that zoomed around. The bottom half of the floor was almost empty, the floor clean. But along the side lines were different types of brooms.

There were no windows or glass, just one big room. The snitch was zooming at an impossible speed, so fast that you could barely see it. The walls were adorned with different types of merchandise, each clinging to the wall like they were stuck there by glue.

I walked up to the man as he was about to release another Snitch into the air.

"Ah, hello Potter. How may I help you?" He asked, his face looking slightly familiar.

"I'm looking for Firebolt" I said, glancing around the room. He frowned slightly at me while he thought I wasn't looking. He walked off into a back room, which surprised me, because I saw a Firebolt sitting right in the opposite wall. He came back with the broom and quickly wrapped it.

"Here you go, Potter" He said coldly. His words surprised me, but I couldn't think of why they did.

I grabbed the broom, and was about to give him the money when he waved me off.

"No charge for the young man that defied Lord Voldemort" My heart stopped, the fear rising in my throat as I heard these words. The mans face was recognizable now. He said You Know Who's name with such respect.

I gripped the broom in my hands and smiled at him, nodding before racing off through the door. The cold air invited me as I rushed over to where I was supposed to meet Ginny in the Three Broomsticks.

She was sitting alone at one of the tables, though I saw someone else with her. She was quietly talking with Micheal Cornor, smiling at something he had said. I felt a new emotion, jealously, begin to take me over. He talked with her with such ease and so smoothly, it made me envious.

I backed out of the door, not wanting to interrupt their little 'moment'. I raced to the castle, throwing the broom in front of Filch's face. He prodded it and proceeded to take it, running inside and telling me to stay outside and wish for Dumbledore.

I obeyed, waiting for the man to come and find out what's going on. The person at that store had to be chimpface from Ginny and I's nightmares. There was a shout.

"DEATH EATER!" A woman screamed. I felt fear rise in me, but not my own fear.

Ginny is in trouble