Albania - 6

He listened closely, but couldn't hear any sounds coming from the main room.

"I think," Ginny whispered, giggling again.

"About that, Harry," she said, biting her lip.

"What?" Harry asked, feeling the temperature in the room drop alarmingly.

"Uhm…I had a really good time tonight. It was the best birthday I ever had," she said.

"But?" Harry asked, knowing there was more.

Ginny swallowed. "But…I think it was a good thing Ron and Hermione came back when they did. We were getting a bit…carried away," she said haltingly.

"I'm sorry," Harry said, feeling deflated. He hadn't meant to scare her, but she was right. He hadn't felt in control.

"No! It's not your fault. I was just as involved as you were. When my head is clear like this, I know I'm not ready for the next step yet. But when I'm in your arms and kissing you, all I want is more," Ginny said, her eyes pleading with him to understand.

Harry knew exactly what she meant. She made him reckless. "You take away my thinking ability," he said, nodding.

"Good," Ginny replied, smirking. "I'm glad it's not just me who feels that way. We'll just have to try to take things slow."

"But we don't have to stop kissing, do we?" Harry asked, a shiver of apprehension running down his spine.

"Absolutely not… Just try and get rid of me, Potter," Ginny said, grinning impishly. "Besides, I like the kissing."

"Good," Harry mumbled.

It was quite some time later when Ron stormed into the bedroom, fuming and determined to go out looking for Harry and his little sister in order to pound Harry to a pulp. He pulled up short when he found the two of them sound asleep in their beds, both wearing contented smiles across their faces.

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The first of September dawned hot and sunny over the Albanian forest. The search for clues as to where Voldemort had hidden his Horcruxes had thus far proved futile. While they had found what Harry suspected was Voldemort's hideout during his years in exile, it hadn't contained a trace of a Horcrux, nor a hint as to why Voldemort had felt safe there.

As they'd searched the hovel tucked deep in the forest; Hermione had stumbled upon a shallow grave containing several human bones. Harry suspected they were the remains of Bertha Jorkins. The foursome had hated the idea of leaving her there – unmarked and alone for eternity – but couldn't draw attention to themselves by alerting anyone at the moment.

So, they had carved a small headstone and placed it on Bertha's grave. They'd bowed their heads while Hermione said a few words in remembrance. Before they left, they placed a locator spell on the grave, so they could later alert the Order of the location of Bertha's remains. It was the best they could do, but Harry's conscience still nagged at him. He knew very well that his remains could be left lying on the ground in the not-so-distant future. If that was to be his fate, he at least wanted to be treated with dignity.

Harry, Ginny, Ron and Hermione had allowed themselves the luxury of a lie-in on the morning of the first. They'd planned to Apparate back to London late in the afternoon and make a few public stops in Diagon Alley before visiting the Smith Museum. Harry thought that Mr. Weasley's suggestion of being seen in public on occasion was valid, but he wasn't certain if the elder man would still want to help him accomplish this after his daughter had disappeared with Harry.