Fic: Presents Unexpected (Harry/Ginny)
Title: Presents Unexpected
Author: tosca1390
Recipient's Name: harryswheezy
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: Harry/Ginny




Snow fell sliding down to the frozen ground, sticking and collecting with its counterparts to create a gentle white layer over the browning grass. It was a brisk night, overcast with winter clouds and keeping mittens on bare hands. Trees shadowed the oddly-shaped and little home, casting their dark silhouettes in still frame against the roof and walls, for there was no wind; there was only the tranquil air, filled with fluttering snowflakes, giving off a smoky, heady chill to those outside in it.

This was Christmas Eve at the Burrow, though it did not feel like the Burrow at all to Ginny. Her childhood home was supposed to be filled with food, laughter, joking... there were supposed to be people there on Christmas Eve, but there were none but her, and soon to be Harry, she hoped. Her parents were gone, stolen from them all in those years of the Second War, and she missed them, but this was not mourning. Her mourning was complete, her parents honored; there was only the good left from their lives. It was the absence of her brothers that bothered her now; they were scattered across the globe: Ron with Hermione in France; Charlie with his dragons; Bill in Egypt; the twins overseeing the expansion of their store into America; she was the only one still there, and it made her slightly melancholy.

She sat on the top step of the porch, looking out into the night and wondering where she was headed on this lonely Christmas. She was twenty-one, with a good job at the Ministry, a steady relationship... but she felt like she was alone, even with Harry living with her. Sometimes he drew back into himself, like he was a frightened child hiding under a bed from a storm, and it bothered her to think that he didn’t feel comfortable talking to her about how he felt. She didn’t usually expect him to talk about his feelings, but when she saw him so clearly bothered by something and he didn’t say anything, she felt inadequate to deal with him. They had been together for almost four years now, and she still didn’t understand him sometimes.

That was Harry, though; he was at once cheerful and withdrawn, sullen and yet very caring to her. He had retained the insecurity of his youth and turned it into something appealing and frustrating at the same time. She knew he was unsure about marriage, and yet he always let on hints about starting a family, or putting a ring on her finger. He wanted something, yet he didn’t feel he could have it, and so he denied himself, thus denying her. It was very frustrating to her, but she still loved him for it, because she wouldn’t change him.

Sighing, she wrapped her arms about herself and shut her eyes, knees tucked under her chin. He would come home late and melancholy, as Moody kept him and it was Christmas. He was always a little more introverted at Christmas, she didn’t exactly know why, but she reckoned it had to do with the holiday itself, and how it was supposed to be family-oriented and he had never had good Christmases until he was a teen. She wouldn’t have to guess if he just told her, but that idea was far-fetched. She was resigned to a quiet, somber night and a cold sleep. Tomorrow they would wake up, eat, exchange the small gifts they both had for each other, and then proceed to do whatever they felt like. A very nice normal day routine, but she wanted something different for Christmas. Wasn’t Christmas supposed to be special? She hated feeling discontent, but she couldn’t help it.

Footsteps crunched in the new snow, and she opened her eyes to see a familiar shadowed figure walking down the path, cloak wrapped tightly around his shoulders. Brow furrowing, she unfolded herself and got to her feet, arms wrapped around her middle. He never usually came in the front door; he usually Apparated right into the house, especially in winter.

Harry glanced up and his lips twitched upwards when he saw her, coming to a halt at the foot of the porch steps. Snowflakes sprinkled his dark hair, creating an odd salt and pepper look to the messy strands that she found abruptly appealing. It made her think of growing older with him, seeing the salt edge into his hair over time, wondering if he would find her as attractive when the gray seeped into her own body.

His eyes, sharp and green, assessed her. “You look cold,” he said finally, taking one step up.

It was only then she remembered she was cloak-less, and only in one of his jumpers and a pair of jeans. Her feet were sneaker-clad, but she had to wonder why she had come outside in the first place, if so inappropriately dressed. Was she cold? Her hands were pale, her cheeks red with the icy kiss of air, but she did not feel the cold. “I’m ok,” she replied, looking at him curiously. “Why did you come down the path?”

Smiling slightly, he reached for her hand with his gloved ones. “Let’s go for a walk; it’s a nice night,” he suggested, avoiding her query with talent only he possessed.

She raised her eyebrows and let him take her hand, sliding her fingers along the leather of his gloved palm. “All right,” she said slowly, walking down the steps as he pulled her along.

He flashed her a grin, tightening his grip on her hand as he led her out onto the lawn, towards the trees. It was a silent walk as they passed away from the house, and she thought she might have heard a distant laugh from behind, but attributed it to something else in the air. No one was at the house now; only she and Harry lived there.

“You’re home early,” she said finally as he led her down the hill towards the frozen-over pond. She was suddenly arrested by the memory of only a few months ago, in the peak of autumn, when Harry had ditched work, kidnapped her during her lunch break, and brought her home to make love to her in a leaf pile near the pond. It had been spontaneous and wonderful and completely random. When she has asked him later what had possessed him to do that, he had given no answer, just kissing her to silence her. It was just Harry, she reckoned, to be so random and impulsive; he always leapt before he looked.

“I wanted to be home early, it’s Christmas Eve,” he said, squeezing her hand and sliding his free arm around her shoulders. “Besides, who in their right mind works on Christmas?”

She glanced at him, eyebrow raised. “You did last year,” she reminded him.

“I wasn’t in my right mind, then,” he said lightly.

She suddenly wanted to feel his bare skin against hers, so she reached over and tugged his glove off, sliding her fingers into his again and amazed at how warm he was.

He inhaled sharply, stopping them to take both her hands in his after taking his other glove off. “You’re freezing,” he muttered, chafing her hands between his own. “Why were you out there without a cloak?”

Snow blinded her by falling against her eyelashes, and she blinked, stepping closer to him. “I didn’t want to be inside anymore,” she said softly. “It was so empty.”

There was a moment of silence after her words in which he let go of her hands and just pulled her to him, arms wrapping around her back. “I’m sorry,” he said after a moment, voice hollow.

She rested her face against his shoulder, letting him warm her. “It’s not your fault, there’s nothing to do about it,” she said quietly. “Everyone’s happy where they are, and I’m glad.”

“You’re not happy, though,” he said, resting his cheek against her hair.

Biting her lip, she shook her head in protest. “I am,” she protested. “You make me happy.”

He sighed, and she could feel it reverberate in his chest. “I know I’m not easy,” he said slowly. “But I’m going to try to make it up to you, I really am.”

She smiled faintly, breathing in his scent through the chill of the air. “It’s ok, Harry, don’t worry about it,” she told him, shivering slightly.

“This will be a happy Christmas, I promise,” he told her softly, rubbing her back to keep her warm.

His words soothed her, and she lifted her face up to his to kiss him gently, eyes sliding shut. “I promise too,” she whispered against his lips, tightening her hands in the cloth of his cloak.

He smiled against her lips, kissing her back briefly before pulling away. “Don’t tempt me yet,” he said softly, looking down at her as her eyes opened.

“Why not?” she teased lightly, pressing closer to him.

“Because that comes later,” he told her, smiling mysteriously as he pulled back, taking her hand again to lead her back towards the house. “There are still things to do.”

Eyebrow raised, she followed him along, feeling chilly quickly without him so close to her. “What can there be to do? You said you weren’t working,” she said, wrinkling her nose slightly.

“It’s not work, it’s one of my presents. I need to give it to you,” he told her with a grin, snow crunching under their feet as they approached the front walk.

Feeling suspicious, she allowed him to lead her down the walk and up the stairs, curious as to what he could mean. Why would there be presents on Christmas Eve? They had never done anything like that before.

The house seemed different as she walked in through the front door and took off her shoes, waiting as Harry shut the door and took off his cloak and shoes. Was there less lighting? She had distinctly remembered having the kitchen light lit when she went outside… She was probably only hallucinating and imagining things.

Harry took her hand suddenly and led her towards the living room. “Ready for your present?” he asked, a wide smile on his face. He looked so eager that she had to laugh as she nodded, though still confused. With a quick squeeze of her hand, he reached over and turned on the light, and when she looked at the suddenly lit room, she was shocked by the copious amounts of red hair she saw as people popped out from behind furniture, grinning and shouting greetings in unison.

Her family. Her family was all there.

Ron and Hermione, looking happy and glowing; Charlie still in his dragon wear, sporting new burn marks; Fred and George, looking a bit peaky, but still awake enough to call her “ickle Gin-Gin”; and Bill, looking as tan as a redhead could be from the hot sun of Egypt; all were there, and she was struck speechless for a moment, unable to believe that one of her wishes had actually come true.

“Say something Ginny, or has Harry finally cut out your tongue?” Fred teased, coming up with George in tow.

Harry chuckled quietly, squeezing her hand; she finally seemed to register her surroundings, and she gave a faint squeeze in return, a wide smile breaking out on her face. “He doesn’t seem to find me annoying; I suppose you two are just easily irritated,” she replied after a moment, going over to hug the twins tightly. Tears prickled at the corners of her eyes, but she blinked them away, too happy for words. The twins embraced her in return as everyone began to greet each other and her.

“You look like you’ve grown, Gin,” Bill said fondly as he came up to her and gave her a brief hug. “Is Harry over there treating you right, then?”

She glanced over at Harry, who was talking with Ron and Hermione, a smile on his face. “He’s been great,” she said softly, looking back at Bill. “How did you all get here?”

Fred chuckled, patting Bill on the shoulder. “We all got the same owl from Harry over there; he wanted us to come as a surprise for you; he organized everything,” he said, shaking his head slightly. “He’s persistent, that bloke.”

Her heart beat a little quicker as she looked at Harry once again, unable to stop herself from tearing up again. He had done all of this... for her. And she had thought those terrible things only moments earlier! How could she have doubted him?

He glanced her way, and their eyes met. In his eyes she could see everything he was hoping for; was she glad? Had he succeeded? She could only try to tell him through her eyes that she couldn’t be happier, but it was difficult to maintain eye contact for so long, and as she turned back to her brothers, she knew she had to show him how much she appreciated this later.

“How long are you here?” she asked her brothers as Charlie made his way over, grinning widely at her.

Fred and George glanced at each other. “We’ve got to get back to New York by tomorrow to prepare for a business meeting, so we’re probably leaving late tonight,” George said apologetically.

“I’m staying until tomorrow morning,” Bill piped up, and Charlie echoed his words, saying that Ron and Hermione were going back with him to visit the dragons.

She grinned, feeling content and a little bit antsy with anticipation. She would have her family tonight; Harry would be a present for tomorrow.

*

Ron, Hermione, Bill, and Charlie left after breakfast the next morning, during which ensued a brief gift exchange that left Ginny sitting with at least three hints of what was to come. Charlie gave her a set of new winter gloves, a scarf, and a cloak in a lovely shade of ice (something blue); Bill gave her an antique set of sapphire earrings he said he had from their grandmother (something old); and Ron and Hermione were the most obvious in their hint, with an IOU to “borrow” their Paris flat for a period of time in the future (something borrowed). She was left only with the need for something new, according to her logic, and with how Harry had seemed unusually nervous the whole morning, she had a good idea what could be on his mind.

Or in his pocket.

She herself was becoming a bit unnerved, and a few moments after everyone was gone, she took it upon herself to get rid of her nerves. Harry was sitting in the living room in his favorite armchair (which looked quite like the armchair from the Gryffindor common room), gazing pensively into the hearth, and after she finished cleaning up for breakfast, she walked out quietly to the living room, sneaking up behind him and sliding her arms around his neck. He jumped slightly as she held him, but relaxed almost immediately.

“Thank you,” she said quietly after a moment, resting her cheek against his hair, near his ear. “I needed to see them all.”

She could almost see his smile, and she felt him turn his head slightly to glance at her. “I knew you did. I wanted you to be happy,” he said quietly, looking almost abashed. “It wasn’t such a big deal—“

“You’re amazing,” she interjected, kissing his temple and smiling at the shiver that ran down the nape of his neck. “And you know me better than anyone else. It was the best Christmas present I could have wished for.”

He craned his neck to look her fully in the eye. “I’m not done yet,” he told her, something fleeing through his eye.

She pecked him lightly on the corner of his mouth, raising an eyebrow. “It’s my turn now,” she said softly, unlatching her arms from his neck and coming around to sit on his lap, knees resting on either side of his hips. “Happy Christmas,” she murmured, leaning into kiss him properly for the first time in what seemed like ages. Last night they had all been up talking, so they had both been too exhausted to even turn on the lights to change into pajamas.

A soft sound of agreement echoed against her lips from him and his arms came up, hands resting at her hips to pull her closer to him as he kissed her in return. His tongue traced the seam of her lips gently, and she parted her mouth to him as her eyes slipped shut and her fingers slid up into his hair, tangling lightly in the messy strands. Their tongues met in a gentle, warm sliding, and she was content to kiss him for a while, feeling him press against her and hungering for the feel of his bare skin against hers.

As her lungs burned for air, she broke her lips from his with a gentle sound, breathing deeply as she looked into his face. His skin was slightly flushed; she could see his eyes darken with need for her, and it made her smile. The corners of his lips quirked upward in return, and he leaned into press his lips against the slope of her neck, nuzzling his nose into her hair and sliding his hands up to right below her breasts, caressing the beginnings of her curves with light fingertips. Her head fell back to allow him more access to her skin and she moaned almost inaudibly, feeling her breath catch at the feel of his fingers against her, only a layer away from her bare skin.

“Ginny,” he murmured, voice deepening as his touch grew firmer on her breasts. “I had something to ask you.”

His voice echoed off her skin, sending shivers down her spine, and she tightened her fingers in his hair, lowering his lips to kiss the top of his head. “Ask me later,” she said softly, pressing close to him and knowing her answer already.

Looking up at her, he smiled in a way that left her breathless and kissed her firmly, one hand sliding up to palm her breast as his other hand trailed down across her stomach, searching for the zipper of her skirt. She kissed him back in return, moaning softly against his mouth and shivering as she felt his fingers tug slowly on the zipper, freeing her hips to the warm air as he pulled it down over her thighs. She could feel his sharp intake of breath and smiled slightly, knowing he had seen her little surprise; who wore knickers in December anyway?

“You’re brilliant,” he murmured, lifting his lips away from her as his hand slipped up her thigh and traced against the skin gently. “Absolutely brilliant,” he repeated, kissing the line of her jaw up to her ear.

Anticipation rose within her, and she bit on her bottom lip lightly, tilting her head back and sliding her hands down his chest to find the hem of his jumper. Pressing her hips against his, she forced him to halt his touches for a moment as she pulled his jumper over his head and set it aside carelessly. With a smile, she leaned in and began to kiss his throat, fingers tracing the lines of his bare chest.

His fingers gently slid up between her legs, and she inhaled sharply as she felt him press against her teasingly, fingers sliding against her in a slow, even stroke. She made a happy, husky sound in the back of her throat, shifting her hips towards his touch and slipping her hand down to his hip. Her other hand raked down his chest lightly as she struggled to undo his trousers with one hand.

She could feel his chuckle reverberate in his chest, and he slipped a finger inside her, arching it just so and biting back a moan. Her hands went limp and she sighed huskily, curving her spine and licking her lips as thought fled from her mind. Desire raced through her, and she looked at him with half-lidded eyes, mumbling his name incoherently.

Smiling at her crookedly, he slipped out of her and set his hands at her hips, lifting her slightly so he could wrangle his way out of his trousers, which she had managed to get undone. Her hands fled down to his boxers and pushed them down over his thighs, immediately reaching out to grasp his hard length and stroke him teasingly. A hiss left his lips, and he set her down in his lap once again, fingers sliding between her folds to slip inside her again, starting a slow, even rhythm in her as his thumb brushed against her most sensitive parts.

The ability to move nearly left her; she forced herself to continue stroking him as he teased her, pleasure building and warming her blood. A shiver unrelated to the cold fled down her spine, and she gave a gasp, shifting her hips to move with his fingers. She felt his lips at her neck and raked her nails down his length teasingly, liking the sudden intake of breath from him.

“Stop,” he whispered roughly against the pulse point at her neck. “I need you, Ginny,” he said, pressing his hips up into hers.

“I’m yours,” she murmured in reply, hands sliding over to his hips to steady herself.

He kissed her neck at her words, pulling his fingers from her to allow her to lower herself onto him. As he filled her, she gave a low moan that echoed his, and he lifted his mouth to hers, kissing her firmly as he held her hips. She shut her eyes and brushed her tongue along his, moving on him in a slow, gentle rhythm that drove her crazy. Warmth flooded her, and she murmured his name, the sound muffled against his lips.

“Gin,” he whispered, pulling his mouth from hers. She opened her eyes to look at him and smiled in drowsy pleasure as she saw the look in his eyes. In his eyes she could see her own want, and she picked up their rhythm just slightly, feeling the tightening of his fingers on her hips. Her muscles clenched with need around him and he groaned, lips trailing across her face, tasting any part of her he could find. Arching her back, she shuddered with unreleased pleasure.

One of the hands on her hips traced down the skin of her thighs to tease her most sensitive areas as he pulled her closer to him, pushing himself deeper inside of her. Mindless now, she cried out softly at the feeling, leaning into bury her face in his neck. She breathed in the scent of sweat on his skin as she inhaled, and it drove heat right to her lower abdomen, causing her to tremble with need. “I love you,” she whispered huskily, digging her fingers into his hipbones as they rocked together.

He moaned near her ear, skin shuddering beneath her touch. “I love you,” he said hoarsely in return, pressing an insistent finger to her as he filled her deeply.

She shut her eyes against the pleasure overwhelming her, and as her climax flooded through her, she cried out against his skin, biting down on his shoulder to muffle her cries. He followed her with a husky groan, spilling into her, and she could feel her muscles begin to relax with the sated pleasure flowing through her. His hands trailed up her sides and around her back, and he held her close to him, still inside her in a comforting way.

After regaining their breath and staying like that for a moment, he kissed the top of her head and pulled out of her slowly. She lifted herself away from him to look at him, a smile creasing her lips. “What did you want to ask me?” she murmured teasingly, fingers tracing their way down his chest.

He grinned. “What’s the answer if I do?” he asked playfully.

She pretended to think, leaning into kiss him lightly. “I bet it would be a yes,” she told him, meeting his eyes.

A smile slowly spread across his face, and he looked at her for a moment in silence. “Happy Christmas, love,” he finally said, nudging his nose against hers as he leaned into kiss her more thoroughly. And as she kissed him in return, sighing and shutting her eyes, she had to agree with him.