Essex Lion Bruv

So perhaps mixing drinks wasn't the smartest thing she could've ever done. Though it wasn't like she hadn't done it before. You'd think she'd learn eventually. But in that moment on the way home leaning against Zach while giggling slightly and totally not stumbling over her own feet, Ginny wasn't sure she really cared. She was in a good mood. It felt so rare to be in a good mood recently. And having a friend take her home meant she wouldn't be arriving to an empty house exactly. Though James might be home. She didn't keep track of him really.

"I feel very light. Like a feather," Ginny announced as they headed up the path to her front door, opening it as smoothly as she could. Which wasn't that smoothly. "Or a peanut-I really want more alcohol. Would you like to come in for more drinks?" she asked, turning with a grin on her face. "I have a very large variety of things in my alcohol cupboard."

She totally wasn't too drunk for more alcohol. Totally not. And it wasn't kind of weird that she was willingly about to invite someone who she used to hate into her home. He had grown on her in the past year or two after all, especially recently.

"Light like a peanut, redefining idioms, honestly," Zach replied with a grin. "Seriously. Light like a peanut. That sounds far more masculine and stuff. Might have to use that one next time I'm as smashed as you."

They were heading back to the Potter Cottage, something that would have struck him as bizarre if he was sober (though he himself was convinced he was t-total at the moment) seeing as he'd never been there before (not that he could remember at least) and he had detested her at school (bar that one fleeting crush that Ernie still loved to rub in).

"Right then, what have you got to drink, Weasley?" he asked with a grin. "I'm not nearly drunk enough." Walking into a table in the hall didn't seem to support that fact.

Ginny felt another round of giggles break forth. Though she wasn't sure if it was the idea of peanuts, Zach being masculine, or the words 'redefining idioms' that amused her so much. "Are-are you sure that you need a more masculine one?" she asked between her laughter. "Maybe you should be light like a fairy? Or flower petals?" surely she could actually think of something masculine. "Or a cement block."

"To drink!" she headed towards the alcohol cupboard, stumbling through the hall and into her kitchen, turning to grin at Zach when he walked into a table. "Careful not to break my stuff. I don't want to have to hex you while I'm drunk," was that a hiccup she could feel coming on? "Anyway, to drink, we haave..."

She finally got to the cupboard, opening the door and glancing at the bottles, pulling one out and oohing slightly. "We have Irish cream. Oh oh! Or meade. There's firewhiskey in here somewhere. Probably. Unless I drank-hiccup-it all," yes it was hiccups. "Though, the meade and Irish cream are open. So you know. I'm leaning towards either of those," Ginny pulled the two bottles out, turning to show them off. "Either? Both?"

"Oh my God, are you mocking my masculinity, you big ginge?" Zach asked with a faux gasp, widening his eyes. "Just get me a drink Weasley and make it a good one. Light as a cement block, honestly."

He laughed at the idea of her hexing him when she was inebriated. "Whatever. Would you be even more violent or would your aim be off? Or maybe that would be even more dangerous. Oh, the possibilities. Hurry up, Weasley." He grinned as she went to look through the liquor cabinet, perching on her sofa and leaning on the back of it.

"Hmm. I think all of that sounds good," he said finally after a little pretend musing. "But the trouble with alcohol, you see Weasley, is once you've tried one of them you have to try all of them. They feel left out otherwise. So my proposal is that we sample all of it."

Ginny was kind of glad she wasn't drinking at that moment considering the name Zach called her. "I'm sorry, did you just say big ginge?" she didn't even bother try to fake insult. She was too busy being amazed that anyone actually said that. "It's not even that creative. But I don't think I've ever heard anyone call me a big ginge- or a little one, before you say that. And he still expects me to get him a drink after that."

She rolled her eyes as she was rushed to getting a drink again, wondering whether or not her aim would be off. "We could always try it if you wanted," Ginny suggested, the two bottles in her hands as she made her way to the couch. She gave him a disbelieving look. "And if you think you're getting your mucky little hands on all my alcohol you've got another thing coming. Though I suppose someone needs to help me drink it all. There is a lot of it like."

Offering out the two bottles, she shook them slightly. "Which do you want first? Or are you expecting just a massive pitcher we can pour them both into, because while I'm drunk enough that anything would taste nice, something does tell me that would be a very bad idea."

"Shut up and pour us a drink, snotty Gryffindor," Zach said with a grin as he shuffled to get comfy on her settee. "Like you said, there's a lot. And I don't know about you but I intend to drink at least half of it. Free alcohol going? I'm there."

"Ah, a massive pitcher sounds really appetising right now. Although home mixes aren't supposed to be safe, but who cares? You're a Gryffindor, I'm a man. We have to take the risk of these things." He grinned and leant back, shrugging. He had never been to the Potter Cottage before and it seemed a bit weird now he thought about it. Looking around, he pressed his mouth into a line and stood up, squinting at book titles and other objects as he walked along, before snorting. "Gilderoy Lockhart. I thought he went out of print for being a colossal dickhead or something? Or is this like some sentimental keepsake? Maybe it's one of your children's. Funny Name likes blonds doesn't he?"

He turned around to look at her and crossed the room in several long strides before folding his arms. "So then, Weasley Seven, to mix or not to mix?"

Ginny rolled her eyes, giving him a disbelieving look. "Free alcohol to the point of liver failure? You sure that's a good thing?" though they'd probably drank enough between them that their livers were fortified against anything now. "And look at you being Mr. Brave, home mixes may not be safe, but at least you're already home so you can vomit and pass out safely."

"Gilderoy Lockhart may be a colossal dickhead, but we couldn't just throw out books!" she turned to look at the cover. "Besides, he's not bad to look at. And don't joke about that," Ginny could feel her face heating up, a small smile tugging at her lips despite her words. "You'll remind me of how I know Albus likes blondes. I'd rather that stayed in the back of my mind."

As she was asked about the mixing again she headed towards the kitchen, grabbing the first large glass-like-object she could find, which happened to be a measuring jug, and getting the straws out the cupboard. Rushing back to Zach, and nearly falling in the proccess, Ginny put the jug down and began pouring one of the drinks in, grin spreading across her face. "Are you happy with these, or do you want to find another drink too?"

"Free alcohol is always a good thing, Weasley. Potter. Whatever the bloody hell you are," Zach answered, accepting the drink from her with a smirk. "And blondes aren't half bad. I was a blond. Okay, before you say anything, Ernie was a blond. Is a blond. Ernie is lovely. You should all be falling over him, he was the model Hufflepuff."

He grinned as he raised his glass to touch it to hers, nodding his head slightly. "To liver failure and Gilderoy Lockhart," he said, chinking his glass to hers, before shrugging. "I am totally happy with these. Completely."

Ginny wasn't sure how she felt about being Potter at that moment in time. It was almost like every time she heard the name a discomfort settled inside her. She was becoming used to it, though that didn't make her feel better about it. She didn't think 'getting used to it' was a good thing in this context. "How about you just use my first name, and then you don't have to confuse yourself?" she teased. "Smith."

"You were a blond," she agreed. She remembered that. Zach being blond. The thought of it made her kind of giggle slightly now. "Ernie is a blond too! There are lots of blondes! It's a shame that I prefer men with darker hair then. Did all you Hufflepuffs have blond hair? Is it like, a Hufflepuff trait? Slytherins get the purebloods, Ravenclaws get the smart people, Gryffindor get the awesome people, and Hufflepuff gets blondes!" she was definitely giggling again now.

She happily clinked her glass against his, before she began drinking the concoction she'd made, happy to sit down. Sitting down was a good thing. "Delish," she was fairly certain she was too drunk for her tastebuds to actually work properly right now though. "What do you think? And I worn you, if you say anything other than wonderful I will blame you for having me waste two very nice bottles of drink."

"What even is your first name?" Zach asked, keeping his face straight and raising his eyebrows. "I've forgotten. Is it Bertha?"

He snorted at her statement and rolled his eyes. "Okay, let's rethink that. Slytherin get the bastards and bitches, Ravenclaw get the pretentious snobs, Gryffindor get the twats and Hufflepuff get the wonderfully enigmatic, cheerful, ridiculously handsome blonds. Yes. That makes more sense. Us and Susan. And Hannah. Although Hannah's blonde. But she's not handsome. I always imagine 'handsome' women looking like horses or something."

"Yeah, it's a shame I despise gingers, otherwise we'd make a wonderful couple," Zach said, trying to keep the smirk on his face level. He must have drunk too much, otherwise there would be nothing off about that statement at all. Yes. That was what it was. Maybe he'd had too much. He should probably level it out with some more alcohol.

"I think it's wonderful," he said, nodding, before grinning. "I mean, it's like a fucking explosion. You're good at this mixing lark. For a ginger I mean."

"Bertha?" Ginny asked, nearly choking on her own spit. "Bertha? Are you shitting me? Where on earth have you pulled that from? Really, I'm not sure I want you in my house anymore. Bertha. Honestly. You dispicable human being."

She scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Hufflepuffs are wonderfully enigmatic and cheerful and handsome. Mostly," Ginny needed to drink more. That came out sounding more like an insult in her head than it seemed to. "And I'm sure all the handsome girls in the world are thrilled to hear that they look like horses. I thought they'd just look more mas-culine."

Masculine was a hard word to say.

"Wonderful?" she let out a sigh, flicking her hair. "You should really stop lying to yourself, you love us gingers secretly. You're just jealous of my beautiful hair, and, well, you know what they say about redheads in the bedroom."

Ginny grinned as he said that the drink was wonderful. Like a good boy. "You're really harping on about this ginger thing, aren't you? You really are just in denial," she giggled, rolling back on the seat slightly, smirking up at him. "Come on, admit it. D-e-n...ial," she never forgot how to spell.

"No, Weasley, I am not shitting you," Zach replied, smirking. "And don't swear. It's unbecoming of a ginger. And sure, you tell yourself that. Hey, you're quite handsome, Weasley." He grinned, and then winced as his brain suggested alternative words for what she was.

"Oooh! Look at you, little miss literate. Gosh, you are just sooooo clever. Outstanding for you." He watched as she flicked her hair. She really did have nice hair. Merlin, what was wrong with him today? Obviously something. Maybe it was the level of alcohol he had consumed. "Not enough!" he concluded, putting a finger up and taking a drink. She continued speaking and he attempted not to choke when she mentioned redheads in the bedroom. It's success was mild.

"Hmm, no, I'm not sure I do," Zach answered, the corners of his lips tilting upwards. "Remind me."

"Oh, I'm sorry Professor, I'll try not to swear again," Ginny rolled her eyes as she spoke, though his next comment had her pointing an accusing finger at him. "Are you implying that I look like a horse?! I have never been so offended! Clearly the horses should be very pleased about this though, seeing as I am b-e-a-uuutiful!"

"I'm clever too, yes," though she raised a brow as he spoke before taking a drink. The relevence or sense of whatever he said was lost on her as a wicked grin broke out on her face as he almost choked on his drink. She'd definitely call that a success.

What he said next definitely sounded like a challenge to Ginny's ears. And Ginny didn't back down to challenges. She wasn't a Gryffindor for nothing. Standing, Ginny moved to stand in front of Zach, her hands holding onto his shoulders, more to keep herself from falling than anything, before leaning down and planting a kiss square on his lips, making sure to put equal amounts of force and desire in it.

It wasn't anything too special, and didn't last too long, and when she pulled away a small part of her brain was a bit confused, but she was enjoying herself far too much to really care. "Reminder enough? Or were you hoping for more?"

"Oh, you make all of the horses in all of the world so jealous what with your ginger mane," Zach sang cheerfully, screwing his face up into as cheesy a grin as he could muster. He sometimes thought it was that face that had got him initiated into Hufflepuff.

And then, all of a sudden, faster than anything he could have predicted, she was kissing him. And he wasn't fighting her off. Why wasn't he fighting her off? Everything inside of him was telling him to fight her off. Well. That he should. But no, he just seemed to be shocked. And oh my God, was he kissing back? What was going on?

And then she pulled away, and he wrinkled his nose, tilting his head to the side as he stood up, moving round the sofa so that he was in front of her. "To be honest, I still don't really see what you're getting at. Redheads," he said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "are good at what exactly?"

Ginny felt incredibly triumphant when he started kissing back. That showed him. Though her triumph didn't last long, from the look on his face. Her eyes followed him as he began moving, listening to what he was saying. He was totally bluffing. No one implied that she wasn't a fantastic kisser. No one. Because it wasn't true.

She reached up, running her fingers through his hair as he finished tidying it, still watching Zach through the drunken fog. She probably would've thought more about things that would've been relevent to the situation, but she wasn't sure she really cared. It had been too long since she kissed someone. She'd almost forgotten how much she missed it.

Pulling him back in, Ginny's fingers moved across Zach's scalp, not planning on moving away that time, her tongue flicking out against his bottom lip playfully. No one implied she wasn't a fantastic kisser.

He smirked at the expression that crossed her face, and before he knew what was going on, she was kissing him again, and this time, Zach couldn't even be bothered to fight his thoughts, instead letting his hands find her waist, opening his mouth slightly with hers.

And the weirdest thing was, he completely forgot who it was he was kissing. Not that he forgot that it was Ginny Weasley, oh no. More that he forgot that it was Ginny Weasley, whom he had fought with quite frequently in both their school and adult lives. This time, what, how long ago had it been since they'd started talking? Well. He definitely would never have thought he'd be kissing her a few months ago.

He pulled her closer to him, moving his hands from the small of her back downwards, before breaking the kiss (for breath more than anything, he hated to admit) and raised his eyebrows. "So redheads are alright at kissing then," he teased, smirking.

She didn't care who it was. In fact, if she was entirely honest with herself, Ginny wasn't sure she minded who it was, more than lack of caring. Finding the person you were kissing attractive was certainly helpful to make the experience better. And was that the first time she had ever willingly admitted to that without any internal protest? Then again, did she care? No, she'd established that.

This is why thinking was bad while you were trying to kiss someone. She should be enjoying the moment more than trying to think. She was really in no fit state to think. Ginny happily allowed herself to be pulled closer, feeling his hands move and automatically pressing herself against him as they did. She almost whined when he pulled away. Almost.

Oh look, she did need to breathe. "'Alright', huh?" Ginny repeated, matching his smirk, nipping lightly at his bottom lip. This was all beginning to make her think of other things she'd been missing. "I don't think the question was about whether or not redheads were good at 'kissing' though, was it?" she asked, her voice softer and lower. One of her hands ran down his shoulder, her lips following the shape of his jaw, nipping again at the skin under his ear. "What was it exactly that I was reminding you?"

Zach smirked as she answered, and closed his eyes as she continued to work her way around his jaw, grinning slightly as he tilted his head upwards. "You," he said, swallowing, "are such a fucking tease, you know that?" He grinned and leaned down, skating one of his hands back up her back.

"Hmm, that's a question," he said quietly, trying his best to look thoughtful, though to be honest, he didn't really care if it worked or not at the moment. He had really, really, really had too much to drink. "But of course, if I remembered, I wouldn't need reminding." He grinned. "Fucking paradox," he sighed, before leaning in to kiss her again, steering her backwards and taking his hand from her waist to jar his thumb towards a staircase, pulling away (a little resentfully) to ask her a question. "That way?" he asked, raising his eyebrows questioningly.

Ginny smirked, trying to decide if she should fake innocence or not, sucking on the skin, before pulling back and not even trying to look like she was unaware of what he meant. "Am I? I don't think I did know that, no," she was far too drunk and not-innocent to fake it, really.

She rolled her eyes at his paradox, though was quite happy to start kissing again, no resistance as he began steering her, trying her best to stay standing. When he asked her which way to go, she reluctantly pulled away, taking hold of one of his hands and guiding him towards the staircase, figuring this would probably be the best way to avoid falling over, turning to face him again as soon as they were at the top of the stairs, grasping hold of his shirt to stop herself falling.

"This way," Ginny whispered, barely able to get the words out before she was kissing him again, heading backwards through the door of her room.