I do not own any of these fantastic JKR characters or make money from them. I do not own the little red nightie...but I know where to find one just like it online! ;)
This story was written for the Christmas Challenge on Granger Enchanted. I chose Prompt #1. The one gift she wanted was never under the tree...except this year it came by special delivery, wrapped in a big red bow
The Little Red Nightie with the Sparkling Bow
It was a typical morning at the Gryffindor table, despite the fact it was a week before Christmas. Harry and Ron were shoving down food faster than a zooming snitch and arguing about their favorite Quidditch teams. Lavendar and Parvati were busy applying extra makeup as they ate their breakfast. Neville and Dean were laughing about the latest joke Seamus had pulled on Colin Creevey on the way down to the Great Hall. Then there was Miss Hermione Granger, sitting quietly, buttering her toast while her oatmeal cooled. She was studying out of her Arithmancy textbook while ignoring all of the commotion around her.
Suddenly out of nowhere, a brown and black owl, delivering a large box with a huge bow on top stopped in front of Hermione and plopped it directly on her toast with a flop. "Bloody filthy bird!" Get that off my breakfast!" Ron and Harry gleefully laughed at Hermione's predicament.
"Do you have a little problem, Hermione?" Ron asked cheekily.
"Yes I do, and I have no idea what is in this box. I did not order anything." Hermione tried figuring out where the package had come from.
"It's Christmas time, Hermione. People do send other people presents during the Holidays." Harry laughed at her.
Glaring at Harry miserably, she dabbed off the glob of butter stuck to the underside of the box. "I am well aware, Harry, that presents are sent at Christmas time. I just don't know who would be sending out gifts to me a week before Christmas." Hermione stared at the package as it was something disgusting.
With great interest Ginny leaned across the table, "Aren't you going to open it?" Now all eyes at the Gryffindor table were turned and directed toward Hermione and her mysterious package.
"Why should I?" Hermione asked in a squeaky voice. She hated being the center of attention, especially with something that she knew nothing about.
"Well you should open it because it is here," Ron declared openly, "It would be a stupid thing to not open it and let it sit there."
"Do you know how annoying all of you are?" Hermione shot glares at all of them, pestering her, during her breakfast study time. "Oh all right; if it will stop you from bothering me I will open it now."
Hermione slid the large red bow off of the package and lifted the lid off of the large box. Curling back the red and green tissue paper she gasped when she viewed the contents of the box. "Why…I…Who would think of sending me this…this…?"
Over her shoulder she heard in his cocky drawl, "I am wondering that myself." Draco smirked as he looked in the box, "Who would be desperate enough to send you a nightie?"
Ron reached into the box and held up the mysterious gift, "Blimey, there's not much to it is there?"
Harry, sitting next to them, snickered and grabbed it from Ron's hands and held it up to his own body, "I don't think it's my size?" he said mocking the gift.
Lavendar stared at the present in mock horror, "Why would someone send that to her when I am around?" The rest of the girls in the Great Hall laughed along with her nodding their heads. It was a surprising turn, that out of all of the girls attending Hogwarts; it would be Hermione that would receive a present suggesting such sexiness. The Gryffindor bookworm was not known for her feminine side, especially not one that eluded such wantonness.
Ginny reached over to touch the nightie, "Look at this!", and she stroked the garment and the silver bow started flashing. It was shimmering brightly to the glee of all of the onlookers.
Hermione grabbed her nightie, huffing, stuffed it into the box and left the Great Hall in a whirlwind. Many delighted giggles and laughs trailed her departure.
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It was supposed to be the jolliest time of the year; it was not true for her, although many of her fellow students seemed to get their jollies from teasing her about her gift. The Slytherin girls in Potions harassed her until Hermione wanted to explode .All during Charms class, the Hufflepuff girls were snidely gossiping about the gift she had received.
Oddly enough, it was the male gender at Hogwarts that were not pestering her about the nightie; in fact they were eyeing Hermione with new interest. Even Ron and Harry had started looking at her like she was a… well a …female. Out of all of the happenings this day, that was the thing that unnerved her the most; men were looking at her like something to be desired. All of her life she had not had to contend with the catcalls, the flirting and the petty jealousies that went along with wanting and getting a boyfriend. The only thing that had come close to that for her happened in her Fourth Year when Victor Krum had asked her to the Yule Ball.
Hermione soon became quite paranoid as she noticed boys leering at her in class and in the hallways. As she looked around she wondered which one of them had sent her the red nightie and why? Maybe it was a huge joke that Ron and Harry had cooked up, but she didn't think it was them. Even though they still argued at times, she couldn't see them doing anything cruel to hurt her feelings. Could it possibly be a true admirer? That seemed to be nonsense in her mind.
Hermione, after a long day, went up to her empty room, as her roommates were still at dinner. She took the box out of her pocket and enlarged it to its original size. Hermione opened the festive box and lifted out the notorious nightie that had been a pain in her side all day long. Standing in front of her mirror, she held up the nightie to her body. Hermione was a little awestruck by how it not only made it her look, but how it made her feel. Did some man or boy here at Hogwarts actually think she was sexy enough to make this nightie work? A smile came to her face as she thought about being desired like that; actually having a man wanting to see her wear this for him.
Looking around, she quickly tore off her school clothes and matronly under garments, and slipped the nightie on. Facing herself once again in the mirror she tried hard to catch her breath…she actually looked beautiful! It was a red stretch lace baby doll nightie with sequin trim, ruffled hem with a matching g-string and a lace shrug, with white fur shoulders. It really was quite Christmas like if you looked at it in the right way. Hermione stood there giggling as she stared at herself in the mirror. Never in a million years would she have bought something like this for herself. She was so excited about how it made her feel, that she decided to wear it under her school clothes and robes the next day.
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Walking to her first class the next morning, Hermione had a big smile on her face. She felt as if she was walking lighter and a bit more confident. As the stares from others continued, especially the males, she didn't shrink from the scrutiny; she almost welcomed the added attention. It was amazing how one little nightie could change her whole disposition.
As she walked into Transfiguration class she sat down at her normal spot. There waiting for her was another box; but much smaller than the last one. The smiles and giggles were heard around the room as Hermione sat down. This box also had a big red bow on the top. As she picked it up and shook it, Ron and Harry walked into the room.
"So your secret admirer has sent another Christmas gift?" Ron sat down next to her, "I wonder what he wants in return?"
Hermione glared at him, "Can't someone just do something nice for someone else without expecting something in return?"
"But, Hermione, he sent you a sexy nightie. Who sends a gift like that if they don't want something from you?" Ron was getting red in the face as he was yelling at her.
Parvati walking by leaned down and whispered, "Maybe it wasn't a he that sent it to you," she winked as she walked off to her own seat. Hermione's eyes got big as she thought about what Parvati had said.
Harry sitting in front of her turned around, "Open up the box before Professor McGonagall gets here." he said motioning towards the box.
Hermione put the box in her lap to conceal it a little and she slid the bow off of the top. Lifting the lid, she blushed a deep red as she saw the festive red fishnet stockings. In the bottom of the box lay a card that said, "Tonight…midnight…room 211." She hid the cardquickly in her pocket before Harry or Ron could read it.
Ron grabbed the box from her though before she had the chance to protest, "What the fuck are these?" he stammered out as he held them up in front of his face." Hermione tried grabbing them out of his hands but he pushed her away.
"Those will clash with your red hair, Weasley," Draco said nastily as he sat down across the aisle from them, "I think I would go for another color if I were you."
"They are not mine," Ron answered back hotly, "Hermione's secret admirer sent her another present."
"I just think that you are jealous, Weasley. You can't handle the fact that someone else is interested in Hermione after you threw her aside," Draco said disgustedly.
Hermione sat there shocked as she listened to Draco defend her. Never in her life did she think she would hear the great Ferret of Slytherin House stick up for her. She sat there waiting for some zinger to come out of his mouth next, directed towards her, but it never came.
"Malfoy, butt out," Harry jumped in to back up Ron. "This is between Ron and Hermione."
"Maybe you should be looking after the smart and good looking friend instead of the loser," Draco sneered as he turned away from the trio. Hermione sat open mouth, shocked at Draco's comment.
"What a wanker," Ron said in a huff and crossed his arms staring ahead.
"Hermione," Harry said hurriedly, "Professor McGonagall is here!" and he nodded at her stockings that were still out on top of her desk. Hermione grabbed them and stuffed them in the same pocket as the card.
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The day didn't seem as if it would ever end. Hermione needed to find some way that she could sneak out at midnight to find out who had been sending her the presents. She had borrowed the invisibility cloak from Harry. She didn't want to be caught by Mr. Filch.
As Hermione readied herself, she applied some makeup and charmed her hair to a less puffy level. Of course, she had on the gifts that had been sent to her. As she had rolled the red fishnet stockings onto her legs, she had imagined a man's strong hands sliding them back off again. What were these gifts doing to her thoughts? Now she was daydreaming about men running their hands up and down her limbs.
At twenty minutes before midnight she quietly got up, trying hard to not wake her roommates. Donning the cloak, she snuck out of Gryffindor Tower with great anticipation.
When she came to room 211 she stood there a moment, heart beating rapidly, wondering what the bloody hell she was doing. Taking a deep breath, knowing that she would never be able to forgive herself if she ran off right now, she opened the classroom door. She walked into room 211 and was astonished at what she saw. It was like strolling into the Room of Requirement. The door closed and she heard a firm click as the door locked itself. Looking around, she noticed the roaring fire, the comfy sofa, the large festive decorated Christmas tree and the soft Christmas music playing in the background. The only thing lacking at the moment was the mystery person. She sat down on the sofa and a hovering tray flew in front of her face with a drink placed on it. On the front of the glass were the words "Drink Me."
"What? Drink me? What am I, Alice in Wonderland?" Hermione said out loud. But she took the drink anyway and swallowed. It was wassail with a nip of some kind of liquor, she couldn't tell what.
Sitting by the fire she was getting hot with her long coat on, so she stood to take it off and felt hands help her take it off. Whirling around she gasped as she saw who was in the room with her… there stood her best friend in the world, Harry.
"Did you read the card that was in the box today?" Hermione was sure that he had seen it before she had a chance to hide it.
"No, I already knew what was written on the card, because I am the one who wrote it," Harry said. "By the way, you look very beautiful in the things I sent you," he grinned broadly as he looked her up and down wearing the red nightie and red fishnet stockings.
"You sent them to me! Why Harry?" Hermione felt somewhat confused by what was happening at the moment.
"Isn't it obvious by now, Hermione, after all of these years?" Harry reached out to tuck some stray curls behind her ear. Leaning forward he whispered into her ear, "I have always been in love with you, but you weren't ready to be loved yet...by me." His hot breath tickled her ear and she shivered as his lips began to trail down her neck until they reached the hollow of her throat.
"Why did you send the presents so openly where everyone would see them? Why didn't you just give them to me privately?" Harry leaned in again, this time to press against her pouting lips. Hermione could do nothing at the moment but respond back with great fervor in a long, languid kiss.
"You, love, needed to learn a lesson; you needed to gain confidence in yourself as a beautiful, desirable woman." Hermione looked into Harry's green eyes that held such love for her. Why hadn't she noticed it before? Was it because she had always thought it was Ron she was in love with? When really it had been Harry all along?
"I thought that if you believed that someone yearned for you so much to send you gifts, that you would believe that you were deserving of that love and attention," Harry's hands ran slowly down the sides of Hermione's little red nightie, finally stopping to finger the lace at the bottom. "I have noticed the smile on your face and the added confidence in yourself the past few days. This is what I wanted to give you for Christmas this year."
Hermione's heart melted at hearing Harry's words. His intentions weren't just to get her into the nightie, but to prove to her that she deserved to wear it as an attractive woman. "I figured that you would be more accepting of me as your love, if you truly first loved yourself." Harry's hands smoothed their way down her shoulders, then her arms and then back up again. Trailing down across her collarbone, his hands soon found her breasts as he cupped them, kneading the globes gently. Hermione could only groan at the feelings his touch was producing in her. Pulling her down to the sofa, Harry started to slide the red nightie off of her shoulders.
"Before we do anything, I want you to promise me something, Harry," Hermione held his hand still as she gave him a piercing look, "You have to come clean to the world how you feel about me. No more hiding behind secret packages and cute remarks..."
Harry looked a little chagrined at Hermione's request. "I'm sorry, Hermione. I never want you to think I am ashamed of you. "He brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. They lay cradling each other on the sofa, thinking about what this announcement of their love for each other would mean to them and others. "That will be my next gift to you; I will let everyone at Hogwarts know that I am in love with you."
Even in the dim lighting, Harry could see that his words were making Hermione blush. "Say that again, Harry, please let me hear those words one more time." Hermione wrapped her arms tightly around Harry, stroking his back, as she crushed her breasts against his chest.
Harry for a moment was going to tease her and ask her what words she was talking about; but he knew what she wanted and needed to hear from him, "I am in love with you. I am in love with your sharp mind and tongue. I am in love with your schedules and study habits." Harry rolled her underneath him and pressed his great need for her into her thigh, trying to control his physical wants. "I am in love with your bushy brown hair and your bright brown eyes that sparkle when you figure out some Arthimancy problem." He paused to catch his breath and saw the tears slowly falling down her face.
"What did I say, Hermione? Please tell me if I have said something wrong." Harry hurt inside thinking he had made her unhappy about something. That was the last thing he had ever wanted to do.
"No, Harry, you said everything right. You have done everything perfectly the past few days." Hermione reached up to take Harry's glasses off and set them aside on the end table. "I am in love with you as well. Thank you for all of the wonderful gifts you have given me for Christmas this year." She pulled Harry's head towards her to taste his lips, running her tongue against them. "You taste so good to me."
"Um, peppermint balls, I ate one before you got here," he said awkwardly, "I wanted my breath smelling good before I kissed you."
Hermione burst into laughter recalling his past experiences kissing other women. He was always worried about kissing, "Well, do you like kissing me? It's not too wet is it?" It was Harry's turn to blush as he recalled his first kiss with Cho Chang in his 5th year.
"No, this time it was just right. I would give you an "O" for Outstanding kissing," Harry smiled at her, "I do think though that we must do more studying in this subject area just to perfect our skills."
"So, this is one area that I won't need to pester you about doing your homework?" Hermione asked with a grin.
"No, I think that this is something that we will be studying together, every night without fail." Harry proved his point by kissing her once again letting his hands stray once again to the little red nightie. "Maybe it's time to get rid of this gift and…"
"Not so fast," Hermione interjected, "I am growing rather fond of my little nightie."
"You can keep it… but just not keep it on at the moment," Harry tried reasoning with her. "I just have to do one thing first though." He reached in between the two of them and pressed on the bow which instantly lit up sparkling brightly. Harry laughed as he watched the bow twinkling in the darkened room.
Hermione swatted his hand away, "That's enough of that." She sat up tossing the little red nightie onto the floor. "Now it's my turn to give you my early Christmas present, Merry Christmas Harry."
Harry's eyes gleamed as he gazed down at Hermione's beautifully bare form, "Merry Christmas to you also, love."