Disclaimer: I own the plot, not the characters.
Enjoy.
"Harry, why aren't you eating?" said one Hermione Granger, Harry Potter's best friend since they were eleven and the most brilliant witch in their age, on a gloomy afternoon in the crowded gloomy Great Hall, according to Harry's day, of course. Ron, their other best friend, and Hermione started to eat mouthfuls of the food encased on the long tables when she noticed that Harry was only staring right through at Ron like he didn't exist, his plate untouched. However, Ron paid no heed as he ate three sausages in just a swallow, not noticing Harry's stare and just continued to devour food more and more. Hermione shook Harry out of his reverie. She arched her eyebrows questioningly which said, "Harry?"
They locked eyes and she could see Harry's eyes sparkled darkly these past few days. Screw Umbridge and her detentions with him! Poor Harry couldn't shut his mouth and he was growing weary and tired of living because of his detention with her. Umbridge was making Harry's life miserable and making him write lines, 'I must not tell lies' repeatedly until the message sinks in with a quill that doesn't need any ink, but his own blood and if he preaches that Voldemort's back again, he would go back in detention, as always. That evil toad! Hermione thought.
Ron and Hermione stayed in the common room waiting for him and suggested that he should report it to Professor McGonagall, their Transfiguration teacher and the Gryffindor's Head of House, but Harry refused to take any action. It would only complicate matters, he said.
He was the first one to look away and said grumpily, "I'm not in the mood, Hermione," and was about to leave, but Hermione grabbed his wrist and made him sit down.
"Harry, eat!" she said as she prepared his food on his plate hurriedly. Harry blushed a shade of pink and looked down. He felt like a baby, but she paid no heed to him. "You shouldn't let Umbridge get to you, Harry. You shouldn't."
Dean Thomas, a fellow Gryffindor, was staring at the lovey-dovey couple intently while chewing his food. He shook Seamus Finnigan's shoulder and pointed to the direction of the couple. "Heh. Look at them. Aren't they sweet?" asked Dean, after chewing, making Neville Longbottom turned his head at the same direction.
"I'm not letting Umbridge devour my life, Hermione! That's disgusting. I don't know why you would accuse me of such thing. It hurts, you know," feigned Harry with a pout, as she filled his goblet with pumpkin juice.
Hermione frowned and said bossily, "Well, Harry, as a matter of fact, anyone could have accused you of that. There's no any better explanation than that, but this odd and peculiar behavior of yours creeps everyone out!"
"And Ron doesn't seem to notice it a little bit," observed Seamus.
"Because he's eating too much," retorted Neville.
"Now, now, guys, what's our Ronniekins have to do with this conversation?" asked Fred and George Weasley, the twins, and turned their heads at the same direction. Their eyes were wide open and mouths formed a perfect 'o'.
"Jeez, guys. You have to shut it, you know," said Lee Jordan, also their fellow classmate, but the twins didn't notice him or mind his presence. Lee frowned and thought, the scene they're watching must be eccentric now. True enough, he was shocked and with an adamant expression shown on his face.
"What're they on about?" asked Lavender Brown, a fifth year.
"I don't know. How about you look, too?" suggested Parvati Patil.
"Oh Merlin's nose! Look, Parvati!"
And so they looked with the same shocked expression shown on their faces.
Hermione was mothering Harry, putting food on his plate. Not only that, they were too close to each other. It must be love, everyone thought.
"Ginny? I think you should see this," said Colin Creevey, as he and his brother, Dennis Creevey were staring at something interesting.
"Hermione, I really appreciate the gesture," said Harry sincerely as he and Hermione locked eyes. "I really, really do, but I'm not in the mood to eat. I will if I have, okay?" He touched her hand in his, but Hermione wasn't the slightest bit assured.
Ginny rolled his eyes. "I'm dating Michael Corner now, Colin, but thanks for the info. Ron really should notice what all of us staring at." Dennis nodded in agreement.
Romilda Vane, hearing this, turned to the same direction. She was sickened by the thought. How could Ginny not feel anything towards Harry anymore as she used to? she thought.
"You're lying, Harry. You know that," accused Hermione, their foreheads slightly touching, inches apart.
Alicia Spinnet, Katie Bell, and Angelina Johnson wondered what they were looking at. "It must be interesting," said Alicia and so they looked.
It's more than interesting, in fact.
All of the people sitting on the Gryffindor table were looking at them apprehensively with the exception of Ron. He was too busy to eat to mind them, all lovey-dovey in front of him. Too hungry to eat, rather, they concluded.
"I'm not lying, Hermione, and you know it!" he angrily said, all the while, purposefully looked away, not meeting her eyes in any minute.
"I know what you would do whenever you lie, Harry," she gently said.
Unbeknownst to them, all of the people sitting on the Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin table were looking at them intently, for in fact they have noticed that the Gryffindors stopped eating. They weren't to kill, but they were to know that they were staring. Unfortunately, the lovey-dovey couple and the idiotic Weasley king were too stupid to know that they were being gloated at.
The twins looked away for a moment. "Wow, everyone's gloating at our lovesick couple now. How about it, George? Should we place a bet right now, so that they wouldn't notice that they were being stared at?" asked Fred to his twin brother.
"Sure, Fred. Everyone, I bet that Ronnikins will be jealous and go somewhere else away from it. What's your bet?" There was a commotion, and they made business, except the Slytherins wouldn't dare communicate with the Weasley twins. Harry and Hermione noticed this, forgetting what their argument was about for a moment.
"Ron! Stop them," ordered Hermione.
Ron swallowed first before eating. "C'mon, Hermione, lay them off for a while. The teachers aren't doing a thing to stop them. See?"
Harry and Hermione looked, but she said, "But Ron, we're prefects! And if Professor McGonagall would reprimand us for not doing our jobs well, I'd feel responsible for it."
"Hermione, calm down. I think they like it, and Umbridge isn't here, which in fact, a surprise for me," guessed Ron.
"That's weird," said Harry, frowning, his grumpy mood nowhere in sight.
"What do you mean, Harry?" inquired Hermione.
Harry shook the thought. "Never mind it, Hermione. It must be me." He smiled half-heartedly.
"Could you just please eat the food I gave you, Harry? Please?" Hermione asked with those puppy dog eyes. Some giggled, but they paid no attention again. Harry sighed. I just can't …
Finally, Harry said, "Fine. I'll eat it," and he used a Vanishing Charm on his plate and sipped on his goblet that Hermione prepared for him, earning a 'wow' from Ron. Harry smiled crookedly in her direction and he knew he was in trouble, so he was about to escape, but unfortunately she stopped him again, grabbed him roughly on his wrist to stay with her.
Some wolf-whistled, some smiled, some rolled their eyes, and some giggled out of happiness.
Harry and Hermione looked at them questioningly, and the people went back to their meals. "Now, that is surely weird, Hermione."
She groaned in disgust. "You're trying to fool me out again, Harry? Can't you just stop being stubborn and eat it?"
"No, Hermione. I already told you. I won't eat anything right now. Thanks for caring, by the way," he replied, smiling.
"Why don't you want to, Harry?" asked Ron, who decided to get on their conversation.
"I'm just not in the mood." Harry rolled his eyes and began massaging his temples. He released a sigh. Hermione, noticing the grumpy Harry again, began filling his plate as fast as possible.
"No, Harry. You won't get away from me now. Never," she said, fully determined. True enough, he didn't and couldn't unless he pushed Hermione away from him, but he couldn't do that. He wouldn't harm her, so he just let her do her thing. She grabbed his left hand, intertwining it and Harry blushed a shade of red this time, looking at the opposite side, causing everyone getting back to their meals. With increasing difficulty, she used her left hand to fill up his plate and goblet.
"Harry, eat it! Or else I'll shove it down your throat!" said Hermione more loudly than ever, getting attention. Now all of the people had an excuse to stare at them and so they did, however the lovesick duo paid no heed to them, even though Ron was staring at Harry questioningly.
To everyone it's very weird that Harry and Hermione are fighting over a single thing: eating. Normally, it's Ron and Hermione. They must have lived in an alternate universe right now, Harry being stubborn, Hermione being Hermione. Harry being stubborn towards Hermione is weird, in fact. He rarely lets her down, however Ron does it shamelessly. Everyone knows this fact as well.
"No, Hermione, no!" Harry shook his head cutely like a baby who doesn't want the food. Then, Hermione did something she had never done before: she forced Harry to open his mouth by touching his jaw. "Harry, damn it! Just open your mouth."
Harry, being stubborn, didn't want to and let her force to open it. "Harry," she said, threateningly.
Sensing trouble, he said, his eyes closed because of pain, "It hurts, Hermione."
He groaned aloud in pain and at last, she found a small opening. She fed him using her left hand and he slowly opened and obediently chewed the food. He swallowed audibly and Hermione, being satisfied, smiled happily. "There you go, Harry. It isn't that hard, is it?"
Out of jealousy, Ron muttered, "Got to go. Have to do some homework," and ran away calmly as he could. When the doors of the Great Hall closed, everyone celebrated, some were thrilled, some wolf-whistled, some rolled their eyes and laughed at themselves, some applauded and Fred and George threw confetti and hearts above the lovesick couple like it was Valentines' Day today.
Harry and Hermione looked at one another, asking silently. What are they on about?
Then, the twins told them, "Great show, you two!" along the noise.
Fred ruffled Harry's messy hair while George patted Hermione on the back and they went away, looking happy with themselves.
The duo blushed profusely, realized what they have just done, and so they ate their meals, eating faster than they used to. Apologizing to Ron was the first thing that came to their minds.
A/N: I hoped they weren't too OOC. Anyway, I was planning to put Umbridge at the end of the story to deduct points because of Hermione's kind of intimacy, but then, it wouldn't fit anymore. :/
Tell me what you think.
Words : 1844