FICLET: "Summer Job" (Ginny/Cho, PG-13)
Title: Summer Job
Pairing: Ginny/Cho
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Ginny likes chocolate. Cho likes Ginny. (Written for hpfsc's Challenge #2: Chocolate. ♥)
In the summer after sixth year, Ginny gets a job at Honeydukes'. It isn't her ideal choice for a summer job--she'd much rather help Charlie look after the dragons, or organize the Harpies' Quidditch equipment for Alicia. But Mum said no to the former ("It's far too dangerous, Ginny dear, you're not old enough"), never mind that Charlie had begun apprenticing with a Romanian dragon tamer when he was sixteen; and Alicia had given her a wry smile and said they already had three broom-girls and couldn't afford to hire a fourth, maybe next summer, Ginny.
Ginny is well aware that she is not long and tall and lanky like Ron or Percy; she is short and stocky and sturdy looking. She is aware of her irresistible addiction to chocolate, and the fact that working in a candy shop is not going to help her develop the perfect figure the young witches' magazines instruct you to strive for, especially since employees are given free sweets.
At the very least, it pays well, and it will give her somewhere to be during the long summer afternoons when the sun is hot and round, and the cool dimness of a Hogsmeade store is most enticing.
She begins work in June, and it is pleasant enough: stacking the boxes of candies in the back storerooms; taking inventory; organizing the displays of Fizzing Whizbees and Ice Mice and even, ugh, Cockroach Clusters; and chatting with her schoolmates when they pop in for a quick fix of Honeydukes' finest.
On her breaks, Ginny sinks her teeth into pure creamy chocolate, melting from the heat of the day and the warmth of her mouth. It is thick and dark and bittersweet and with every bite, she becomes more certain that no other sensation on earth could be this powerful, this pleasurable. She always has to close her eyes while eating chocolate--it seems to enhance the experience and allow her to savor it, heaven in a tinfoil wrapper. Afterwards, she takes care to lick away every trace of rich sweetness from the corners of her mouth.
By August, the job has lost any novelty it ever possessed. Ginny is bored and tired and knows all the shelves by heart; she is sure that she could put them in order in her sleep. She has tasted every variety of chocolate that the store has to offer. Her waistline has increased by a few inches, as she had feared. Instead of worrying, she is nonchalant; she reassures herself that she will work it all off come autumn and Quidditch practice, and downs another candy bar.
It is a particularly dull afternoon near the end of August. The customers have all abandoned Honeydukes in favor of the shore or the swimming pool or picnics in the countryside. Ginny is leaning against the counter unwrapping a bar of enticing-looking dark chocolate and staring at her toes, which are painted blue and shown off by sandals with thin leather straps. She has just taken her first bite of candy when the small tinkle of bells at the door alerts to the fact that she does, in fact, have someone to attend to.
The last person she would ever have expected to find here walks in the door and gives her a calm, measured glance, then nods. "Hello, Ginny."
Cho Chang, sweet and sleek and somehow managing to look cool even in the heat of the summer. Ginny has looked up to her ever since her first year, when she saw Cho make an absolutely spectacular catch in the first Quidditch game of the season. It was this that inspired her to become a Seeker; not, as everyone who knew her assumed, because of Harry. Ginny practically idolized the girl in third year, and this fact comes back to her now, at the most embarrassing of times.
"Hello, Cho," she says, feeling fat, which she isn't, and mortified, which she is. She nods toward the other girl and defiantly takes another large bite, almost daring Cho to say something. She doesn't, thankfully, and instead smiles and cocks her head to one side, loose black hair rippling in dark shiny waves over her bare shoulders (she is wearing a sleeveless shirt which of course looks perfect on her, and khaki shorts that sit exactly right on her hips--Ginny is jealous).
"So...you work here, right?" she asks, and gives a little laugh as light as the chiming of the bells over the shop door. She pauses and raises her eyebrows expectantly, but she is smiling.
"Oh," says Ginny, realizing, "I suppose I am. Well, what can I help you with?"
Cho taps a finger against her teeth thoughtfully. "I was looking for something sweet, something extra-special."
Ginny nods seriously and surveys the aisles, the great towering shelves of sweets, garish in their colored-paper wrappers. "Well, there's Every Flavor Beans, they're always interesting, but maybe not special...um, Lasting Lollies are great for giving people, they take ages to finish you know..." She walks along the rows with Cho tailing along behind. "So who's it for? A friend? Boyfriend?"
"Nobody," says Cho dismissively. "Just me. I thought I'd treat myself, you know--I tried out the other day for the Tornados, as a reserve Seeker--" She smiles again, and her cheeks glow pink. "And I got it."
Ginny whirls around. "That's fantastic!" she bursts out, forgetting her earlier embarrassment. "I mean, they've always been you're favorite team, haven't they? And getting onto a league team already--that's amazing." She flashes Cho one quick delighted grin, then remembers herself and bites down on the chocolate bar again to avoid saying anything else stupid.
"Thank you," Cho replies quietly. She sounds like she means it.
Ginny attempts to change the subject. "Do you see anything you're looking for?"
Cho wrinkles her nose. "I don't know..." She considers this for a moment, dark eyes closed in reflection. "Perhaps some chocolate; where's that?"
"Over here." Ginny leads Cho to her own favorite section of the store: a corner near the back where it's dark and slightly dusty, and the floorboards creak underfoot. There are more varieties of chocolate than it is possible to count, and Ginny knows them all quite well.
"I think the bittersweet kind's quite good," she explains, gesturing, "but I don't like the sort with fillings as much--you know, the marshmallow and cherry and all." She pops the last bite of her own chocolate bar into her mouth. Crumpling the wrapper and shoving it into her jeans pocket, she wonders in desperation what she will do now, when she cannot think of anything to say. Is she going to have to grab another bar off the shelf just for something to occupy her mouth? She is so caught up in her worrying that she almost does not hear Cho's next words.
"...don't really think any of these will do," Cho murmurs from beside her. "I think I need something even better." Her voice has an odd tone to it, somewhere between a whisper and a sigh. Ginny turns around to ask what she means, when Cho leans forward and kisses her on the mouth.
Ginny steadies herself on the edge of the shelf, her mouth now very much occupied. She knocks a box of candies onto the floor where they scatter, but it doesn't matter. The kiss tastes of chocolate and Cho, and a very dizzy Ginny nearly falls into the other girl, feeling their bodies pressed together and tasting thick dark sweetness and smelling the old-wood-and-sugar of the room and the floral fragrance from Cho's hair. It is better than anything she has ever dreamed of, and she feels a not-quite-unfamiliar sensation stirring between her legs. She moans softly into Cho's mouth, senses Cho shift positions, and then a slim hand with long fingers works itself underneath her shirt and cups her breast.
* * *
All through her seventh year, a soft-looking grey owl delivers notes and little packages to Ginny at the breakfast table. Ginny wishes she could pet the bird, but feels that it is maybe too dignified and would be offended at her touch. She has no such misgivings about the sender of the letters.
They are just pieces of parchment with a few lines (always ending with "I love you") scribbled on them, or sometimes just a large loopy heart. The packages always contain chocolate.
Every Hogsmeade weekend, Ginny meets Cho in a rented flat near the shops and scolds her about the chocolate. "You have no respect for my figure," she says, and kisses Cho's neck affectionately.
"I like your figure," Cho replies, sweeter than candy, and rests her head against Ginny's round stomach. "It has curves." She only laughs when Ginny swats her away and mutters something about no chocolate, she's on a diet, and Quidditch practice.
"Besides," Cho adds, "you love chocolate. It's your favorite."
Ginny's eyes are half-closed and she runs a hand through the coal-colored cords of Cho's hair. "Well," she whispers, leaning down for a kiss, "not quite my favorite."
Pairing: Ginny/Cho
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Ginny likes chocolate. Cho likes Ginny. (Written for hpfsc's Challenge #2: Chocolate. ♥)
In the summer after sixth year, Ginny gets a job at Honeydukes'. It isn't her ideal choice for a summer job--she'd much rather help Charlie look after the dragons, or organize the Harpies' Quidditch equipment for Alicia. But Mum said no to the former ("It's far too dangerous, Ginny dear, you're not old enough"), never mind that Charlie had begun apprenticing with a Romanian dragon tamer when he was sixteen; and Alicia had given her a wry smile and said they already had three broom-girls and couldn't afford to hire a fourth, maybe next summer, Ginny.
Ginny is well aware that she is not long and tall and lanky like Ron or Percy; she is short and stocky and sturdy looking. She is aware of her irresistible addiction to chocolate, and the fact that working in a candy shop is not going to help her develop the perfect figure the young witches' magazines instruct you to strive for, especially since employees are given free sweets.
At the very least, it pays well, and it will give her somewhere to be during the long summer afternoons when the sun is hot and round, and the cool dimness of a Hogsmeade store is most enticing.
She begins work in June, and it is pleasant enough: stacking the boxes of candies in the back storerooms; taking inventory; organizing the displays of Fizzing Whizbees and Ice Mice and even, ugh, Cockroach Clusters; and chatting with her schoolmates when they pop in for a quick fix of Honeydukes' finest.
On her breaks, Ginny sinks her teeth into pure creamy chocolate, melting from the heat of the day and the warmth of her mouth. It is thick and dark and bittersweet and with every bite, she becomes more certain that no other sensation on earth could be this powerful, this pleasurable. She always has to close her eyes while eating chocolate--it seems to enhance the experience and allow her to savor it, heaven in a tinfoil wrapper. Afterwards, she takes care to lick away every trace of rich sweetness from the corners of her mouth.
By August, the job has lost any novelty it ever possessed. Ginny is bored and tired and knows all the shelves by heart; she is sure that she could put them in order in her sleep. She has tasted every variety of chocolate that the store has to offer. Her waistline has increased by a few inches, as she had feared. Instead of worrying, she is nonchalant; she reassures herself that she will work it all off come autumn and Quidditch practice, and downs another candy bar.
It is a particularly dull afternoon near the end of August. The customers have all abandoned Honeydukes in favor of the shore or the swimming pool or picnics in the countryside. Ginny is leaning against the counter unwrapping a bar of enticing-looking dark chocolate and staring at her toes, which are painted blue and shown off by sandals with thin leather straps. She has just taken her first bite of candy when the small tinkle of bells at the door alerts to the fact that she does, in fact, have someone to attend to.
The last person she would ever have expected to find here walks in the door and gives her a calm, measured glance, then nods. "Hello, Ginny."
Cho Chang, sweet and sleek and somehow managing to look cool even in the heat of the summer. Ginny has looked up to her ever since her first year, when she saw Cho make an absolutely spectacular catch in the first Quidditch game of the season. It was this that inspired her to become a Seeker; not, as everyone who knew her assumed, because of Harry. Ginny practically idolized the girl in third year, and this fact comes back to her now, at the most embarrassing of times.
"Hello, Cho," she says, feeling fat, which she isn't, and mortified, which she is. She nods toward the other girl and defiantly takes another large bite, almost daring Cho to say something. She doesn't, thankfully, and instead smiles and cocks her head to one side, loose black hair rippling in dark shiny waves over her bare shoulders (she is wearing a sleeveless shirt which of course looks perfect on her, and khaki shorts that sit exactly right on her hips--Ginny is jealous).
"So...you work here, right?" she asks, and gives a little laugh as light as the chiming of the bells over the shop door. She pauses and raises her eyebrows expectantly, but she is smiling.
"Oh," says Ginny, realizing, "I suppose I am. Well, what can I help you with?"
Cho taps a finger against her teeth thoughtfully. "I was looking for something sweet, something extra-special."
Ginny nods seriously and surveys the aisles, the great towering shelves of sweets, garish in their colored-paper wrappers. "Well, there's Every Flavor Beans, they're always interesting, but maybe not special...um, Lasting Lollies are great for giving people, they take ages to finish you know..." She walks along the rows with Cho tailing along behind. "So who's it for? A friend? Boyfriend?"
"Nobody," says Cho dismissively. "Just me. I thought I'd treat myself, you know--I tried out the other day for the Tornados, as a reserve Seeker--" She smiles again, and her cheeks glow pink. "And I got it."
Ginny whirls around. "That's fantastic!" she bursts out, forgetting her earlier embarrassment. "I mean, they've always been you're favorite team, haven't they? And getting onto a league team already--that's amazing." She flashes Cho one quick delighted grin, then remembers herself and bites down on the chocolate bar again to avoid saying anything else stupid.
"Thank you," Cho replies quietly. She sounds like she means it.
Ginny attempts to change the subject. "Do you see anything you're looking for?"
Cho wrinkles her nose. "I don't know..." She considers this for a moment, dark eyes closed in reflection. "Perhaps some chocolate; where's that?"
"Over here." Ginny leads Cho to her own favorite section of the store: a corner near the back where it's dark and slightly dusty, and the floorboards creak underfoot. There are more varieties of chocolate than it is possible to count, and Ginny knows them all quite well.
"I think the bittersweet kind's quite good," she explains, gesturing, "but I don't like the sort with fillings as much--you know, the marshmallow and cherry and all." She pops the last bite of her own chocolate bar into her mouth. Crumpling the wrapper and shoving it into her jeans pocket, she wonders in desperation what she will do now, when she cannot think of anything to say. Is she going to have to grab another bar off the shelf just for something to occupy her mouth? She is so caught up in her worrying that she almost does not hear Cho's next words.
"...don't really think any of these will do," Cho murmurs from beside her. "I think I need something even better." Her voice has an odd tone to it, somewhere between a whisper and a sigh. Ginny turns around to ask what she means, when Cho leans forward and kisses her on the mouth.
Ginny steadies herself on the edge of the shelf, her mouth now very much occupied. She knocks a box of candies onto the floor where they scatter, but it doesn't matter. The kiss tastes of chocolate and Cho, and a very dizzy Ginny nearly falls into the other girl, feeling their bodies pressed together and tasting thick dark sweetness and smelling the old-wood-and-sugar of the room and the floral fragrance from Cho's hair. It is better than anything she has ever dreamed of, and she feels a not-quite-unfamiliar sensation stirring between her legs. She moans softly into Cho's mouth, senses Cho shift positions, and then a slim hand with long fingers works itself underneath her shirt and cups her breast.
* * *
All through her seventh year, a soft-looking grey owl delivers notes and little packages to Ginny at the breakfast table. Ginny wishes she could pet the bird, but feels that it is maybe too dignified and would be offended at her touch. She has no such misgivings about the sender of the letters.
They are just pieces of parchment with a few lines (always ending with "I love you") scribbled on them, or sometimes just a large loopy heart. The packages always contain chocolate.
Every Hogsmeade weekend, Ginny meets Cho in a rented flat near the shops and scolds her about the chocolate. "You have no respect for my figure," she says, and kisses Cho's neck affectionately.
"I like your figure," Cho replies, sweeter than candy, and rests her head against Ginny's round stomach. "It has curves." She only laughs when Ginny swats her away and mutters something about no chocolate, she's on a diet, and Quidditch practice.
"Besides," Cho adds, "you love chocolate. It's your favorite."
Ginny's eyes are half-closed and she runs a hand through the coal-colored cords of Cho's hair. "Well," she whispers, leaning down for a kiss, "not quite my favorite."