Sorry folks, only the one chapter this time round. With College exams bogging me down, I didn't get to finish Chapter 7. I tried finishing it up this morning, but I don't have enough time to edit it tonight. Since I don't generally like 'hot off the press' chapters (too many mistakes), it's only one chapter this month. Hope you enjoy, and see you all again May 1st.
Chapter 6
So Harry did not get to turn the master bedroom pink and frilly. He did, however, turn all the lavatories and bathing rooms into winter wonderlands. Not the nicest conditions to attempt re-leaving one's self or bathing in, unless you were a penguin. Lucius had countered by making the dorm into a desert. Though Hermione and the adults knew charms to keep themselves cool that night, none of them helped Harry since it was his own fault. Thus, Harry covered their clothes in glitter charms. Tonks and Sirius loved it. Remus just laughed before undoing the charm, but it was Hermione who exacted revenge through a vanishing charm on his clothes triggered by the word 'Potter'. Much to Draco's amusement. His revenge was still in the plotting phase since most of the things he thought up would likely ruin their fragile blooming friendship.
The two of them had also begun Harry's reading lessons. At first, Harry was not sure of the idea. His ego often saw to frustrated blow outs that Hermione would eventually jinx him to calm down. Yet, as time passed, he found comfort in sitting beside Hermione wherever they found a quiet spot during their lunch break. It was memorizing listening to her tell him about the alphabet and vowels verse constants. By the end of the week- once his frustration subsided and he actually started to pay attention- Harry could already do his ABCs and spell words like 'at' and 'the'. He was fairly proud of himself and wondered how he did not just learn to read on his own it was so easy! He also liked the fact during each lesson he and Hermione also had a chance to just talk about anything. From meaningless babble, to heartfelt talks about their pasts, presents, and ideal futures. She wished to travel and learn everything she could about the many cultures first hand that she only knew from books. He wanted the chance to visit his parents graves, and then live in peace just as they would have wanted him to. Slowly, without even realizing it, they were trusting one another.
In the mean time, Harry was also wearing down on Hermione's reluctance to prank. She had stopped trying to discourage him, and was rolling her eyes or shaking her head less and less. He was persistent when he noticed the new spark in her eyes. It seemed the thrill of revenge had ignited an old fire that had nearly been extinguished. Thus, despite the extra cleaning, various counter pranks- which Lucius was always rather clever about-, and even a few times under the mark, she was right by Harry's side once again pulling one over on the Malfoys. For the first time in his life, Harry knew what it was like to have a friend. Needless to say, he liked it.
He was also liking his time with Sirius and Remus. He liked Tonks as well, but she was away a lot with work... as an Auror no less! Who would have thought with her being a first gen pure? Remus and Sirius were always happy to make a trip to the manor when not called on by the Order. They loved to talk about their school days with James and stories of their meeting Lily. They said they knew instantly she was the woman that stole James' heart. They told him about their own lives. Like how Remus taught Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts under the identity of 'Romulus Canin'. He found it ironic that only a short time ago, he was the teacher of his- now- fiancee, and she had not even known it. That realization had prompted Sirius into making up a song he called 'Hot for Professor'. It was rather good in Harry's opinion, but short lived the moment Tonks had gained wind of it. Until a couple days later, that is, when Hermione asked him if he knew what the tune she had heard Tonks humming was.
Sirius, on the other hand, worked inside the three muggle villages throughout Southern England. Granted, the term 'worked' was loosely used. His job was to keep an eye out for potential muggle-born witches and wizards, and send word to the Order in hopes of helping that child and their family before the Ministry discovered them. There was also the fair share of times he had to chase off some black market wizards looking for easy targets. It did not always work, but it was better than nothing at all. The interesting side of it was the muggles did not know Sirius was human; let alone a wizard. It was the perfect cover, and he loved being around the kids.
Harry even came to learn Tonks' story. Apparently her mother was the sister of Narcissa Malfoy. Andromeda Black had been one of the many who's blood purity ideals were changed by the Order back when they first formed. With her changed ways, she met a muggle-born wizard named Ted Tonks, and the pair fell in love. For three years they managed to hide their relationship... until Tonks was born. Luckily, Andromeda had managed to get Tonks her purity papers before her paternity was discovered. Unfortunately, when Tonks was nearly eight years old, Andromeda and Ted were arrested and sentenced life in Azkaban. That meant Tonks was to either be taken in by pure-blood relatives, or have her status confiscated. It was only because of the bond shared with her sister that Narcissa opened her home to her niece. That did not, however, mean Tonks was welcomed as one of the family; especially when she made the point she was true to her parents' ideals. She was marked, and treated no better than the other impures. It was only because of a trust fund her mother had left her that allowed Tonks to attend Hogwarts. For now, she still needed to bide her time until her status was made irreversible on her thirtieth birthday. Once that happened, she swore the first thing she was going to do was marry Remus, and shag him until she was pregnant. Having to put life on hold until she was thirty was a long enough wait for her.
Together, Remus and Sirius were also teaching Harry the tools of the Marauder trade, though Remus often included a lesson or two about duelling spells. It was invigorating. Not to mention, in just a few more weeks, they would know what his animagus form would be (even if he could not yet change into it).
In all the madness of the prank war, reading lessons, Marauder lessons, and sharing of stories, Harry did not notice he had been at the manor for two and a half weeks already. That is, until one day in the late evening...
Present day...
Exhausted, sore, and rather grumpy, Harry made his way alone towards the kitchens for a well earned meal. Narcissa had decided to have Harry move heavy lounge furniture without use of magic for a change of pace. Then she had him move it all back because she liked the old way better. He had a feeling this was for hexing the furniture to give the first person to sit on them a sudden break out of hives. Well, it was worth seeing all the posh women Narcissa had invited for tea covered in angry rashes and boils. He would like to see her social image recover from that!
Harry's mind returned to the present when his stomach growled. He had missed supper thanks to the mountain load of chores on top of his afternoon of Narcissa's weight lifting exercises. Yet, when he entered the kitchen, he found quiet the surprise. Instead of the little servants table baring a pot of some type of soup with bread, there was a platter of roast chicken, mashed potatoes, peas and carrots with a whole pitcher of pumpkin juice. A small card sat next to the plate with the words "Happy Birthday, Mister Potter". Harry's first reaction was a smile. He had completely forgotten today was his birthday.
He picked up the card and looked it over. Quickly, all sorts of warning bells began to ring in his head. The Malfoys were the only ones to call him 'Mister Potter'. Perhaps that Dobby fellow did too; Harry still had not met him. Either way, anyone that called Harry by his sir name was not someone with his interests in mind. Now Harry was officially the age of consent. The perfect time for Lucius Malfoy to force Harry and Hermione together without cause for investigation from the Ministry. Kids would be kids, after all. Not to mention, they were apart of that damned breeding program. It was still questionable if Lucius was so impatient for results he would drug them before Hermione was of age in about another six weeks, but it was better to be vigilant when the Malfoy Lord was involved.
Harry glared at the plate of food. His rage was encouraged by his growling stomach to the wonderful smell. Then his eyes turned to the pitcher. Maybe the food was not contaminated, but was a decoy to the real drug. Or maybe it was the other way around. Harry did not know, but he did know neither substance could be trusted. It looked like he was going to be sneaking out to the orchard tonight.
He took the pitcher, and dumped the drink down the drain. Just as he picked up the plate of food to toss in the trash, he heard the tell tale sign of a person falling down the stairs behind the door to the servant's stairs. Before Malfoy manor, Harry would have instantly rushed to see if the person was alright. Living with the ever clumsy Tonks, however, changed matters completely. How else did he recognize the sound of a person falling down stairs so well? Still he kept a listening ear toward the door for Tonks to curse at her clumsy nature- like she often did- to find out if she was injured or not. He was a little unnerved to not hear anything.
"Tonks? Are you alright?" he called to the closed door. He was met with silence at first. As he set down the plate and made for the door, he could hear retching on the other side. He yanked the door open forcing his eyes to adjust to the stairwell's poor lighting. He could make out the figure struggling to get to their feet with emesis on the ground in front of them. First thing he came to notice, though, was a head of long, bushy brown hair instead of short, spiky pink. "Hermione?"
Hermione's head shot up to look at Harry. Her eyes were wide in a blend of surprise and fear. Her breath was shallow and her face sweaty. Her whole body was shaking as she leaned against the wall for support. Seeing him, she tried to move from her knees to her feet, but was stumbling drunkenly about for her effort. Harry quickly caught her to lend support. Immense heat radiating off her through their mild contact. Her limbs seemed to be giving out under her to the point Harry was almost completely holding her up. He was surprised how light she seemed. It was really rather worrying, but he passed it off as his muscles being use to carrying around heavy furniture all afternoon.
Putting the thought aside, Harry lead Hermione into the kitchen trying to hold her up the best he could. She groaned with the movements, and her face seemed uncomfortable. Seconds later, she was once again emptying her stomach. This time down the front of both Harry and herself. He cringed at the mess, but said nothing. He settled her down on a chair, and was at work with a cleaning charm instantaneously. "What happened?" he did not mean to sound so demanding, but he was fighting with his own panic. It seemed through her laboured breathing, Hermione was unable to verbally answer. She looked sideways at the table where the plate and card sat. Ever shaky, she persistently tapped at the folded paper. Harry's eyebrows knitted in confusion. Hermione looked at him with eyes that were willing him to understand. When he did not seem to get it, she threw as much strength as she had into knocking the food onto the floor before resting her arm and head on the table.
Understanding broke through Harry's panicked mind. "You've been drugged with potion," he stated. Hermione nodded. The motion of her head leaned her forward a little too far and she fell towards Harry. He grabbed her shoulders and steadied her back into place. He was terrified to touch her, but he did not want to just let her fall to the tile floor. "How?" he asked. Hermione's mouth moved as though trying to to answer, but the only noise coming out were small squeaks between heavy pants. Harry jumped when he felt her other hand on his backside. He now watched her wide eyed from a few steps back. She appeared frustrated with him, and started point to his hip. He looked down to see his shrunken canteen dangling from his back belt loop.
The canteen! Of course. Harry had learned from his past homes to always keep his within reach if he did not want any nasty surprises in it. Hermione, however, kept hers in her bag with everything else. The very bag she would leave laying about while cleaning a room. Harry nodded to signal he understood. "I'll go get help," he said hastily. He raced out of the kitchen down the spiral stairs to the cellar. "Tonks!" he shouted when he neared the bottom. The familiar pink hair woman hurriedly slipped past the curtain split to greet him.
"Harry, what's wrong?"
"It's Hermione," Harry explained quickly. As soon as the words left Harry's mouth, Tonks was off up the stairs. Harry was racing after her with equal pace. He did not need to look back to know Remus and Sirius were steps behind him. "Where is she?" Tonks demanded from over her shoulder.
"In the kitchen," Harry answered just as they reached the top. They all made for the kitchen door with Sirius hanging back and Remus flipping on his invisibility cloak in case of watchful eyes. Harry watched a little ways back as Tonks scanned Hermione with her wand. The emesis on the floor indicated she had thrown up once again while he was gone. She was deathly pale yet her cheeks were rosy. Sweat poured down her body. She was still trembling and looked to be in serious pain.
"Hermione, can you understand me?" Tonks asked gently. Hermione swayed some, but there was a slight nodding in her motions. Her hands gripped the table and chair arm. "Do you recognize who I am?" Hermione half-nodded again.
"Area is secure," Remus announced showing himself near the ice box door. "The Malfoys have all gone to their rooms." Sirius finally entered the kitchen. He squeezed Harry's shoulder as support against the boy's rising panic.
"Have you been drugged with a potion?" Tonks was still asking Hermione questions. Hermione nodded as she set her head on her arm on the table. "How?" Tonks encouraged.
"Her canteen, I think," Harry answered. "She kept motioning to mine when I tried asking."
"Hermione, do you have your canteen with you?" Remus asked as he carefully set his hand on her shoulder. Hermione shot away as though his touch had been that of hot metal. The sudden motion had her stumbling to her feet into the table. Both she and the table toppled to the floor. Tonks went to catch the falling girl, but Remus stopped her. "Don't touch her, Dora," he explained. "Most of her symptoms match the Pathos potions, from what I've read. Though, from what I recall, none of them involve vomiting. I can't be sure without the canteen."
"I'm on it," Sirius was quickly replaced with a large black dog.
"Take my cloak so the portraits don't see you," Remus advised.
"I'll go with him as back up," Tonks spoke up. She looked at Hermione and added, "just hang on, I'll be right back." She snatched up Remus' cloak and hurried after Sirius up the servant stairs.
"Hermione, are you still with us?" Remus asked noting Hermione's eyes had started to glaze over. She looked at him ever terrified, and clearly did not recognize him. Remus sighed, "I fear it's taking full effect. Harry, I need you to help me make a winter scene. The cold should help bring down her fever enough not to do any long lasting damage."
"Right," Harry nodded. Without thought, Harry set about casting various cooling and ice charms. Remus mimicked his movements. One problem became clear almost instantly.
"It's not working," Harry growled.
"It could be temperature control charms," Remus concluded. "Lucius has most likely been setting up counter spells to ensure you don't do the same prank twice."
"What about the ice box?"
"Dora told me Dobby has orders to lock down all food storage when he leaves for the night. It would take us less time to try to undo the temperature control charm than a house elf's lock magic."
"Dobby's a house elf?"
"Of course. You didn't think Lucius would spend the money on a wizard chef, did you?" Harry had to admit, Remus had a point. As rich as they were, the Malfoys were fairly stingy about their spending habits. A house elf was far cheaper, with just as good quality. It was probably also the reason Harry had yet to meet Dobby. House elves were generally ordered to stay out of sight unless called on.
Hermione's pained sobs drew Harry's attention to her once more. She was curled into a ball on the floor as her body trembled between chocked sobs. She looked horribly fragile. It was as if she was barely clinging to life. There had to be some way to cool her down. "If I remember correctly, isn't there a pool?" Remus asked.
"Yeah, there is," Harry was relieved to hear some sort of idea.
"Hopefully it will help. Now the problem lays in moving Hermione."
"Won't levitation work?"
Remus shook his head, "Any spells that control or restrict movement would increase her fever to a fatal level. She will have to be moved by muggle means, but as you saw, no one should touch her."
"I can. I helped her get from the stairs to in here."
"That's because it's part of the potion's purpose. The Pathos potions create an unbearable heat within the body that increases over a duration of time. Left be, the fever would reach the same heat as scarlet fever, thus killing the drinker. The only hope of survival is to either keep the drinker cool enough until it wears off in six hours, or the counter is administered."
"The counter isn't a potion, is it?" Harry droned.
"I'm afraid not. The counter depends on which one was used. There are three types, all colourless and tasteless. Only by smell could you tell one from another. Touch alone relieves all three, but Derma is the only one cured by touch alone. Salio is through snogging. And Fylo is through... well... er..." Though Remus was uncomfortable, Harry was full blown blushing.
Trying to brush it off, Harry spoke, "Right. Er... So I could carry her to the pool then, and it would even help her fever."
"And in doing so, confirm you are the key to the cure. Once she knows that, under the potion's influence Hermione would go to great lengths to complete whichever deed is required to cure her. And it's safe to assume she was not given Derma or Salio. It's better no one touches her, and we find an environmental means to cool her fever."
Harry nodded, "Um... what if I got one of the blankets from the dorm, and we use it like a stretcher?"
"Good idea. I will stay here to keep watch while waiting for Dora and Padfoot to return. You get the blanket, and, while you are down there, see if there are temperature control charms in place."
Harry nodded. He ran out of the room once again heading down to the dorm. Reaching the bottom, he quickly went about casting the winter scene spell on the whole basement. Sure enough, the room cooled exponentially. The stone walls and small windows became slick with ice covering. Clouds appeared over head, and snow began to fall. Harry sighed with relief; his breath came out in a moist cloud. Finally, something was going right. He made for the 'closet' but paused a moment when he noticed a couple decorations and a table with a cake and presents on it inside the dorm. He could not help smiling when he realized they had remembered it was his birthday. It was a shame they could not celebrate until Hermione was better; it looked as though they had put quiet a bit of effort into preparing.
Remembering his suffering friend, Harry quickly went back to his task of fetching a blanket. Once he selected a large comforter, he dashed towards the divide. The light covering of snow crunched under his shoes. He threw aside the sheet, and stopped. The metal gate that was usually left open on the stairway was closed. Confused, Harry approached the metal bars. When he pulled at them, the metal rattled, but remained in place. He tossed the blanket aside to pull harder with both hands. All he received was cold hands for his troubles. He came to notice the padlock and chain. It was clearly locked, but he tugged at it to be sure.
A chill not related to the cold crept up Harry's spine. He tried to glace up the spiral stairs the best he could, but no one was within sight. "Hello?" he called. No answer. Harry jumped at the unexpected feeling of someone touching his thigh. Whipping around, he came face to face with a pair of glazed brown eyes. Hermione's brown eyes, to be exact. The way she was watching him made Harry suddenly gulp. He looked about for any sign of someone else, but there were only his tracks and her's vanishing as the snow fell. "Where's Moony?" he asked nervously. His breath came out in a cold cloud.
"In the kitchen," she answered as though she were telling a joke. Well, at least she had cooled enough to breath easy enough to speak.
"Er... why didn't he come down here?"
"Because I stunned him."
"Why?"
"So we won't be disturbed," she drew closer to him.
"Tonks and Padfoot..."
"It will take them until morning to get past all the wards I've placed on the stairwell."
Harry gulped again, "Hermione, listen to me, you're not acting like yourself."
"I know," she responded in her usual matter-of-fact tone. Her words threw Harry for a loop. Hermione explained, "I know it's a potion. I know it will kill me if nothing is done. I tried puking pastilles, but they weren't enough. And this snow is brilliant, but I need more. I need the one that the potion is keyed to." At this she drew uncomfortably close to Harry. Her mouth so close to his he could taste her hot breath. "I need you, Harry," she breathed softly. Goosebumps covered Harry's flesh as he looked at her wide eyed. His back was pressed fully against the gate bars. Out of instinct, his hand went for his wand. Only his pocket was empty. He chanced a glance down as he pat his pockets on both sides. Empty.
Hermione giggled and pressed her body full against Harry's. He was instantly aware of every one of her curves. "Looking for something?" She smiled mischievously as she held up Harry's wand within his view.
"Give that back!" Harry growled trying to ignore the proximity of their bodies and the heat radiating off Hermione. He made to snatch the wand from her, but she made a calculated toss that saw the wand slip through the gate bars behind Harry. He turned around to watch as the wand landed on the step just outside his reach. "Bullocks," he cursed. He knelt down and reached through for the wand anyway, hoping he might tap it closer. No use.
"You can use my wand, Harry," Hermione offered. He looked back expecting her to be holding it out of his reach. A bargain entailing a kiss for use of her wand. At least he hoped all she wanted was a kiss. What he saw when he turned, however, was the first two buttons of her blouse were undone. He was about to turn away for her privacy when he noticed her wand nestled in her bra between her breast. "You just have to take it," she added sweetly. A deep blush rushed over Harry that he swore it had to reach his toes.
"Er... no... no thanks," he stuttered.
"Why not?"
"Because...er... this... isn't right," he lamely offered. He returned to a full standing position with his muscles ready to make a run for it.
"But it is," she insisted as she once again moved close to him. Her hands playfully working his bow-tie. "You're a wizard. I'm a witch. We're completely alone until morning. What's wrong with helping me cure this potion?"
"Er... I'm not the key!"
The look she gave him seemed to say, 'who are you trying to fool?'. He might have found it funny if he was not more concerned with making sure the pair of them were still pure by morning. Hermione's hands snaked up around Harry's neck. A few of her fingers twirled his messy dark hair within them. "And people say I'm a terrible liar," she 'tsk'ed. Then to Harry's utter surprise, she pulled him forward as she came up for their lips to meet in a warm kiss. It was a sensation Harry had never experienced before. It was not bad; enjoyable even. Only then did reality returned like a stampede of centaur, and he forced her off him.
"Hermione, stop it!" he ordered. He did not seem to notice how tight his grip on her shoulders was.
"Ow...Oh... I-is that the problem? Would you prefer to... dominate me?" she enquired innocently. Somehow, Harry's face seemed to turn a deeper shade of red. His hands flew off her in a mock surrender. "No! No, that's not it at all!"
"Oh... do you want me to dominate you then?"
Harry squeezed his eyes shut trying to not think of the images playing his mind. "Hermione, stop it already," he groaned. A sharp slap caught him off guard.
"What was that for?" he yelled. He held his cold hands over the hot mark. Harry had been slapped before in his life time. This time, however, really hurt. Was it an emotional sting of being hit by Hermione or just a matter of sudden pain after numbing cold? Either way, he glared at her reminding himself she was not thinking straight. That this was still his friend, and fighting back was not an option. Then she slapped him again on the opposite side with just as much force.
"Don't glare at your..." she started sternly, but then returned to innocent, "um? I don't know... does mistress work?"
Harry's jaw dropped, "I said stop it, not 'I want to be dominated'. Which I don't, for the record."
"Then why aren't you taking charge?"
"Because we're not going to shag!"
"Why not?"
"I don't know any other way to explain it!"
"Are you homosexual?"
"What? No!"
"Do you not find me attractive?"
"No. I mean, yes, you're beautiful..."
She cut him off, "Are you scared?"
"That's not it either!"
"Are you sure? I mean, it's perfectly reasonable to be nervous the first time..."
"Hermione, I'm not scared." Actually he was, but it was more for his life and limbs. Hermione was under a potion's influence... Harry was not. He was pretty sure that would be the angle Tonks and Hermione played to justify torturing him should something happen between he and Hermione. Not even Sirius and Remus could save him then.
"What's the problem, then?" she asked irritated.
"It's not right!"
"You said that already!"
"That's because it's true!"
"But you won't tell me why you don't think it's right. It could be a simple misunderstanding."
"It's not a misunderstanding! It's a trap! Malfoy slipped potion into your canteen to make you want to shag because he gets a fat bag of galleons for every kid we make."
"He'll have to wait until I'm off the pill for that sack of gold."
Harry was confused again, "What's a pill?"
"Muggle Medicine. They work like potions, only it's scientific based, not magic."
Harry inwardly smirked with a new idea."Muggles have their own medicine?"
"Of course they do. They can't rely on magic or those that can do magic, can they?"
"Guess not. So what is this muggle medicine suppose to do?"
"Well, the pill I'm using makes it so a woman can't get pregnant so long as she's taking it. It was Tonks' idea to start me on it as a back up plan in case everything else failed. Lord Malfoy would know how to counter magical contraceptives, but not muggle."
"Brilliant," Harry smirked fully impressed.
"I thought so too," Hermione cooed. Her hands fiddled with the button of Harry's dress shirt while she leaned close ready to kiss him. Harry grabbed her wrists and pretended to cough.
"So... er... how'd muggles come up with such a thing?" Hermione glared at him. "I mean, there's not a lot of muggles in Europe, right?"
"Plenty more than you think, and those few are rather resourceful," she answered. "Now stop talking about muggles."
"It's interesting."
"You're just trying to waste time by distracting me."
Pause. "No, I'm not."
"I think we've already covered that you are a terrible liar," Hermione struggled to free her wrists. Harry held tighter. She looked up at him with sorrowful eyes. He knew what was coming, but he could not stop it. Sure enough, tears began to roll. He had to fight his first instinct to let go and comfort her. He hated it when girls cried.
"Harry, do you really hate me this much?" she whimpered.
"I don't hate you," Harry countered.
"But you'd rather let me die than sleep with me."
"I'm not letting you die! Moony said you'll be fine as long as we keep your fever down. That's why it's snowing in here!"
"It's not enough!" Hermione insisted.
"Now who's lying?" Harry shot. "I can feel it," he showed her where he held her wrists, "you're not as warm as when I was helping you to the kitchen chair. The cold is helping."
"No, you think I'm colder when it's just your frozen hands passing cold onto my body," her fake crying had stopped when it was clear he would not budge. "You're what's helping me, Harry."
"Well then that means just hugging will work, right?"
There was a calculating look to Hermione's eyes. "It would need to be without clothes," she said slowly.
"We'll wear our night clothes."
"That's worse! My night gown covers more of me than my blouse and skirt."
"We're not being naked together."
"You're impossible," she grumbled.
"You'll thank me later," he finished.
"Fine," she jerked away. This time he let her go. "I'll borrow one of Tonks' pyjama shirts." She turned her back to march for the curtain divide leaving Harry to sigh with relief. That was until Hermione about faced with her wand in hand only a few paces from him.
"Stupify," she cast. Harry dove face down in the frigged white covering while the red spell beam rammed into the gate. Before Hermione cast again, he flung snow at her. She moved away to shield her face. He jumped up and just barely managed to snatch her wand. Fortunately, he just caught himself from casting a body binding hex on her. Remus' voice seemed to echo in his mind as a reminder he could not use magical means of restraint on Hermione. So, Harry turned to the gate lock. At least he knew more than a few good unlocking charms.
"Aloho..." he was suddenly stopped when Hermione slammed her full body weight into him from behind. She was now riding piggy-back with an arm around Harry's neck and the other reaching for her wand. He violently shook his body to throw her off. The result was her holding tighter with both legs and arms. He pulled at the arm around his neck to help breathe easier while the other arm held the wand far from her reach. "Get off!" he shouted.
"Give me back my wand!" she countered.
"No! Alohomora!" The pad lock clicked open despite the ice. Harry smirked, but then remember he still had Hermione on his back. He tossed the wand through the bars much like had happened with his own wand. With both hands free, he pried Hermione's arms off him. A sudden jerk of his body saw to what grip her knees had on his hips slip. Crunch. "Ouff!" Hermione huffed as she landed in the ankle deep snow.
"Sorry," Harry tossed over his shoulder. He unlatched the lock, and tossed it to the white covered ground. After untangling the chain, he gave a good yank on the gate to free it from the wall's icy hold. He dashed up the first step, made to grab the closest wand (his own), but then came tumbling back down the stairs as he collided with an invisible force. Both wands remained perched on the stairs.
Harry landed in the snow beside Hermione. Her proud grin was easily noticed. No... not proud. She was giving him a dastardly manipulative smile. One that matched the almost dark, mischievous glint to her eyes. He leaned up onto his elbows to glare. His inner prankster was slightly impressed, but mostly vengeful. His pride had suffered a few too many shots in the last hour for his liking. "Sorry. I must have forgotten to mention the wards work both ways," though her tone was as innocent as a child's, there was the slight hint of sarcasm behind it. Harry groaned as he laid back down into the snow. He had to think of a way to outsmart this witch. If he was lucky, he might just freeze to death that very minute. Of course, freezing to death was a rather long process. Maybe a heart attack. Yeah, that would work. He lived a rather stress filled life, after all. He lay there waiting for some greater power to take him. No such luck. Harry Potter was well and truly screwed.
HP*HG
Translations for the curious:
Canin: Play on the Latin term Canis Lupus (Grey Wolf) in the same manner Rowling had turned 'Lupus' into 'Lupin'.
All the rest are in Greek...
Pathos- Passion
Derma- Skin
Salio- Saliva
Fylo- Sex
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