Caught Off Guard: The Hooligan of Hogwarts
Chapter 14: Hard Landing
He knew he was taking his life in his hands by 'Diving and Dashing' Hermione, but he couldn't resist. She was sitting there so quietly and prettily – tossing stones into the lake and splashing her feet. At first, he thought he would scare her by blowing on her neck and ears like he was some sort of bug and then reveal himself. But, the visual image of her being so 'surprised' that she ended up IN the lake was enough of a deterrent for him to rethink his approach.
Plucking her off of her rock was easy enough, his broom's momentum helped with that aspect of the manoeuvre. Putting her on the broom was a little more challenging, but he had all week to work out the logistics and was pleased that the transfer went as smoothly as it did.
Calming Hermione down enough to prevent her from inadvertently tipping them both off of his broom took a little longer than he thought. Pulling her close was something he didn't know he did until her shoulder came to rest against his chest. Her arms around his waist felt comfortable and re-assuring – once her grip slackened to something just short of rib-cracking. Seeing the goose-pimples recede after he cast the warming charm made him feel slightly less guilty for her initial terror.
"What's that for?" Harry asked, referring to the smile that crept across her face.
"Truth?" Hermione asked.
"Truth." Harry replied in a way that told her that they always spoke the truth to one another.
"You smell nice." Her answer brought a touch of pink to her skin and her eyelashes fluttering to her cheeks.
"Well, you know – hygiene is rumoured to be a good thing," Harry teased.
"Put me down, Harry. Please." Lifting her lashes, her expression was shuttered. He could not read what she was thinking.
"No. Not yet." Feeling her stiffen and change her grip to something necessary rather than desired, he looked down and recaptured her eyes with his own. "Why?"
"I am still angry with you and I am not ready to talk to you yet." Her truthful answer sacrificed her cool façade.
"Hermione," Harry knew what he wanted to say but took a moment to make sure his words would come out in a way he needed them too. "Neither one of us gets a lot of privacy, not to mention free time – if we talk here we are guaranteed both."
He watched as the truth of his words struck a chord with Hermione.
"You kissed me," Hermione began.
"You kissed me back," Harry replied. He was holding back. He needed to know where she was in her thoughts. "But, as I remember it, it was you who kissed me first."
"It was amazing, Harry," Hermione's distant look told him she was re-visiting the moments they shared in the dark.
"For me too, Hermione," Harry was emphatic. Alone, with her, he was free to be everything he was – whether they were exploring each other's thoughts, feelings or mouths.
He was completely unprepared for what came next.
"Why did you do it, Harry?" Hermione's voice became hard despite a sense of hurt that clung to the outer edges of her demand.
"Kiss you? I thought you would have figured that out by now." Harry reined in his need to counter her accusation and made himself listen to whatever was going to come next.
"No – not that," Hermione brushed off his comment. "How could you not trust me? Why didn't you believe in me, Harry?"
Her accusation, seasoned with disappointment, was enough to have him stopping the broom they were riding on and shooting her a stunned look. "That is not what happened at all, Hermione."
"Then why did you do it, Harry? Why did you toss one of the most thrilling experiences of my life to the Wolves of Hogwarts, Harry? Why did you thump your chest and announce to the WORLD that you snogged the Head Girl in a broom cupboard?" Hermione's eyes were flaring with emotion.
"You are way off base, Hermione."
"Why won't you answer the question, Harry?"
Hermione's eyes were glowing with banked cinders and his were sparking with indignation. If he – they – weren't careful – they would set each other off.
"Hermione – Pansy had you cornered. When the Hall got quiet, all I could hear was that cow's accusation hanging in the air. I reacted before I thought. I said the first thing that I thought would exonerate you."
"Rubbish, Harry." She wasn't buying what he was saying. "That might be the excuse you are telling yourself, but – "
"– that is NOT what happened, Hermione." Harry cut her off. "I wanted to protect you."
"BOLLOCKS! You didn't trust me, Harry. The only thing you were looking to protect – "
"– I trust you. It was that Slytherin witch I didn't trust. Who knew what she was going to do next! I was protecting the piece of my heart that YOU have and that the Parkinson cow threatened to chew like cud!" The vehemence in his voice rose sharply as he interrupted her again. "Do you know what it is like to see someone, who you care about, singled out and the feelings of helplessness that swarm all over you when you realize that you can't do a thing for them?"
Hermione pulled her right hand from behind his back and poked his chest several times as she countered, "I know EXACTLY how that feels! Have you ever had to stand in a spectator's arena while your best friend battled a dragon? Have you ever seen someone who you care about walk into a room sporting scrapes, bruises, blood and soon-to-be-new-scars that you have every idea where they came from but were denied the chance to help –"
"Wanna compare notes? Let's talk petrification. Let's talk about watching his 'friend' cry out in pain while in the throes of a potion induced sleep and knowing there was nothing you could do but wait until the spasm passed!" Harry heard himself bite out the words as the memories of Hermione's recuperation swam in vividly front of his eyes.
Why do you think I did not visit that much, Hermione? Why do you think I only came to the Hospital Wing a couple of times? Because I could not do anything for you!
Ruthlessly re-burying the memories of digging his nails into the palms of his hands as he sat, stood and paced at her bedside was the only way he could return to the present and the girl who was perched nearly underneath his chin. Shifting his feet until they were nestled deeper into the prongs at the base of his broom, he subtly pulled on the handle of the broom and resumed their flight.
"Let's talk about being left high and dry by someone who should believe in his friend enough to know that if she got herself into a situation then she is capable of getting herself out of it!"
"So, let me understand this properly." Harry kept his tone scathing as he locked his gaze with hers and refused to break contact. "If you were standing in front of a firing squad and you were about to be fired upon I am supposed to sit back and –"
"Yes! Let them fire!" Her vehemence echoed around every word. "More than likely I would be wearing a bullet proof vest!"
Hermione's heated declaration had him snorting derisively and looking at her incredulously.
"More than likely?" Parroting her words, he scoffed at her metaphor. "That's not good enough, Hermione – not nearly good enough. I would have to KNOW that you were wearing that blasted vest."
"Wrong answer Harry," Hermione tersely fired back. Changing tactics, she lobbed a Logic Bomb at him. "What if it was Ron - "
"- It wasn't and don't even go there." Plucking the fuse from her Logic Bomb didn't earn him any headway. If anything, he could see her thinking of an alternate means of making her point. Shaking his head as all his thoughts and feelings began to get all jumbled together, he blurted out, "Ron would never let it go that far. He would have figured out a way to get out BEFORE the firing squad was even assembled."
"But what if were necessary? What if what happened had to happen because that was the way it was supposed to play out?" The look on her face was unreadable beyond the resolve that was etched into every part of her body.
"Hermione, don't you get it?" Sighing deeply, he released all his locked muscles and looked squarely into Hermione's flashing eyes. "If there was ever a possibility that you would not be a constant, everyday presence in my life, then I would do everything in my powers to minimize any threats levelled against you. It's that plain and simple Hermione."
"Then Harry, we have a problem." Hermione's eyes danced around his face as she shared the reason why she suddenly looked so sad and her demeanour switched from enthusiastic debate to pensive resignation.
Harry saw the unhappiness on her face and blew out a breath of frustration. He was getting nowhere fast. "You are right – I should have trusted you. For that, I will apologize for. I will not make amends for wanting to protect you."
Hermione sighing in exasperation had him stamping down his temper and opting for patient explanation. "I am going to do this, Hermione. Protect you. It goes with the territory."
"Harry – friends trust one another…" Hermione was shaking her head. He could see the wheels in her head turning as she put the flat of her hand on his chest. "I don't need or want…"
"I'm not talking about friendship Hermione." Taking a deep breath, he said, "We already have that for the rest of our lives. I am talking about the privilege someone is entitled to when they care about another person deeply." Not hearing any interruptions, he seized the moment. "I will always be there to watch your back, Hermione."
"I don't know Harry. There is a world of difference between watching my back and being pushed behind you while you fend off whatever is coming." Her crestfallen face showed just how much she was affected by their conversation. "There is a lot to think about."
This is not where, or how, he wanted this conversation to take place or occur and this was definitely not the way he anticipated this conversation going. The moment was on him and – by extension – her. It was the crossroads, which he and Hermione had approached several times but had yet to cross. Now, it was their chance to do it together. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he knew his next question had the potential to go either way.
"Does this problem change the way you feel about me?" It was a fight to keep his voice as even as possible despite the heavy, deep, isolated thuds of his heart.
The world stopped as he waited for her answer.
"No." Her lips trembled with the effort it took to make her confession. "No it doesn't."
Watching her eyes flit from his eyes, to his lips, back to his eyes before focusing on a distant point beyond his shoulder, he knew that what she shared was going to all he was going to get. Freeing one hand from the broom handle, he used it to gently pull out the hair sticks that secured the chignon to the back of her head. Watching her swivel her neck to look at him again, Harry felt his breath catch.
"That's better." He felt the corners of his eyes completely relax as his whole face softened. His turn for a confession, "I've been wanting do that for a while."
She looked beautiful: her cascading curls swirling towards him, the ends rising and falling with the up-drafts as they flew across the grounds. The lighter glints burnished by the afternoon sun, matching her camisole shade for shade, eyes burning with emotion, her cheeks tinged with the fierceness she displayed just moments ago. Her lips parted to allow her tongue to replace the moisture the wind stole. Dean's assessment of Ginny paled in comparison as to what was going through Harry's mind about Hermione: brains, beauty, compassion, fire, loyalty, laughter and mystery are all in one place with this girl.
"Why did you do that?" Her confusion carried a hint of smile.
"So we can do this," Harry whispered.
Time stopped.
The world fell away.
Even the sun slipped behind a cloud out of respect for what this girl felt for this boy and how much this boy felt for that girl.
Harry wasn't kissing Hermione. Hermione wasn't kissing Harry. They were kissing each other. Lips pressed against lips, neither vying for control nor trying to make a point. Hands caressed contours found on faces, necks, shoulders and arms. Tongues caressed teeth and half formed words were swallowed by the other. Nothing was urgent and since time stopped, it was no longer a factor. With the world falling away, the moment belonging only to them, they revelled in the emotions that flowed and ebbed between them.
Feet touching soft grass restarted time. Green eyes taking in the freely offered emotions floating around in a pair of brown eyes brought shy smiles to two sets of faces and a series of quick, sweet, closed-lipped kisses. A delicate feminine finger traced a path from the outermost corner of his eyeglasses, down along his cheekbone, the pad of her finger barely grazing the sensitive divot underneath his bottom lip had him slumping forward and his forehead inclining to connect to her brow.
"Hermione?"
"Yeah, Harry?"
A quirky smile stretched from his lips to his eyes. "What was it that Luna was supposed to give me?"
A delicate blush had Hermione turning her head into the wind to cool off her suddenly over-heated face.
Deepening his smile, Harry asked again, "Not going tell me?"
Turning back to look at him, she dropped her eyes to the grip he had on the broom handle before chancing a look at his face. "I bumped into Luna in the hallway. I was upset – she asked if she could do anything for me."
"And?" Harry prompted, knowing her answer was going to be good – regardless of what she said.
Shifting almost imperceptively on her narrow perch, it was a moment before she took a deep breath and said in a rush, "She was supposed to give your ears a good boxing." A wicked smile stole over her embarrassment. "I told her that if she saw you before I did, then the best thing she could do for me is box your ears because apparently you had lost the ability to hear in the first place and that no damage would be done by one of us clapping our respective hands simultaneously over your ears."
"I am glad she opted not to give me my 'present' then," Harry said with a sense of relief.
"I bet, Mr. Potter," Hermione sniffed at his sense of self-preservation.
"Well, if she did then I would not be able to hear the answer to my next question because my ears would still be ringing," Harry insinuated.
"Oh, really – and what might that be Harry?" Hermione teasingly challenged.
"Will you go to the dance with me?" Harry asked hopefully.
All teasing and mirth left her face as she realized his question was sincere and not a continuation of their play.
"No Harry, I can't. I'm sorry, I have…" Her voice trailed off as sincere regret filled her eyes.
Snatching his hands off of her shoulders Harry jerked upright – like someone had pricked him with a hundred needles.
"What? Hermione! I don't understand. Why? Why won't you go with me?" Harry could not wrap his mind around the fact Hermione said no.
"Yes, Granger – I think we'd all like to hear the answer to that one." Striking a casual pose – arms folded just under his chest and one ankle crossed against its mate – as he leaned the small of his back against his horizontally hovering broom, pausing long enough to form an evaluating smirk. "Come on now; don't keep us waiting in suspense."
Draco's aristocratic drawl brought the world crashing back around him and Hermione with a round of applause, wolf whistles, and catcalls chasing his words.
Grouped around his broom was the entire Vectors class – complete with a narrow-eyed Madame Hooche and flabbergasted Lavender. Next to him, frozen in place, Hermione dragged a ragged breath over her teeth and spent her air on one phrase.
"Oh. Sacred. Morgana."
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Ron knew that if he felt like crawling out of his skin because everything had gone to Hades in a hand-basket, then Hermione must be mentally begging for Hades himself to open up the ground and drag her down to Persephone's side. For the second time in the span of a few hours, he saw Hermione become the centre of attention courtesy of his best mate. The irritation he felt towards Harry just before Divination began to simmer and churn in his chest.
Thinking about Hermione and what she must be feeling, a deep breath was all he needed to go from student-fly-boy to 'Nobody-Messes-With-My- Second-Sister-So-Don't-Even-Think-About-It-Unless-You-Want-To-Answer-To-Me' persona. Using his size to elbow his way through the small group, he gruffly said, "Come on now, you lot. Make a hole; prefect coming through."
Ron narrowed his eyes as he watched Harry dismount his broom as soon as Hermione's bare feet balanced on solid ground. Watching her wince as she stepped on something sharp hidden in the grass had Ron shooting a nasty 'What the hell were you thinking' look at Harry. Getting only 'this is none of your business' scowl from his dorm-mate, Ron looked at Hermione and another flash of Protective Big Brother surged through him as he took in how beautiful she looked – despite her trembling like a deer-caught-in-wand-light.
"All right, Hermione?" Ron heard himself ask her quietly enough so that she could hear him. A terse nod and a subtle, darting look in Harry's direction told him that all she wanted to do is get away from Harry and the group of ten people who were dissecting every unnecessary moment this scene lasted so that they could retell it later with all sorts of embellishments firmly attached.
Placing a steadying hand on the sleeve of his robe, Hermione had yet to answer Harry's question or rise to Draco's bait.
Shouldering his Firebolt, Harry reached for Hermione's elbow and tried to spin her around. That is, he tried. Her grip on Ron's robes kept her from being completely turned around – and the fact that she yanked her arm free of his fingers helped a bit as well. Catching the reassuring look she gave him, Ron saw her swivel her gaze back onto Harry's face.
"Harry. Don't do this." The warning in her tone reverberated across the Vectors training area.
Ignoring the second 'what-the-hell-gives-Harry?' look Ron sent to his best mate, Harry still opened his mouth.
"Why, Hermione? After everything we talked about…" Harry could care less who was around or the fact that Hermione would now settle for Zeus splitting the sky with thunderbolts if it meant she could get away all that more quickly. Ron wished he could do something more, but the longer he stood there, just to the side of Hermione, the more he disliked the one possibility guaranteed to liberate Hermione and put an end to the un-necessary drama. "How can you say that?"
"Oh, Potter! Going to kiss and tell after all?" Draco taunted from his side of the clearing, which were only feet away from where everyone else was standing and staring. Sweeping the small group with his eyes, Ron saw Draco make sure everyone was focused on the melodrama unfolding between his two best friends. "Listen up everyone, this aught to be good. Potter is going to find out for all of us why Granger turned him down."
Ron could not keep the look of shock out of his eyes when his head snapped in the direction to where the Slytherin Prince was holding court. Did I just hear what I thought I heard? Malfoy, in his own twisted, 'I am a degenerate git' way, try to warn Harry to shut up as well?
"Harry – stop." Hermione words were icy. She knew where this was going – it was etched in every fibre of her stance – and did want to go there.
The crowd, their murmuring, and their collective side-show-attraction gawking skills were making it harder and harder for Ron to hear anything that was being said between his best friends.
"No. I won't Hermione. Not until you tell me why." Harry was adamant in his demand, which Ron knew would only push more of Hermione buttons.
"Oh, this should be rich everyone. Listen carefully – would not want to miss a syllable that's for sure." Draco egged the couple. "Anyone have a spare RememberAll to preserve this precious moment?"
"Ron? Get me out of here, please." Hermione asking for help rarely happened. She was the most capable person, beyond his mother, he knew. Shrugging self-consciously back into her school shirt and pull the plackets tight against her body, Hermione's quiet pleading was the equivalent of him dropping an armoured faceplate into place and donning a pair of gauntlets. Sir Ron of the Noble Order of Big Brothers was being hailed.
Falling in step with her as escort, Ron could feel his eyes snap open in astonishment when he saw Harry make another grab for Hermione and actually succeed in spinning her around and forcing her to face him. Ron did not miss how Hermione made a slight grimace of discomfort when Harry's hand latched onto her arm, which earned Harry a patented Ron-Weasley-Look-of-Death.
"Hermione – tell me. I thought you…" Ron could see Harry ignoring everything and everyone around him – the lad only had eyes and ears for the brunette who was now fighting a case of the shakes as the level of emotion soared in his best girl-friend.
Harry mate – you are treading on thin ice, Ron silently chastised as his own anger at Harry bubbled and frothed at how Harry was carrying on.
"Fine, Harry," Hermione's control snapped as she yanked her self free from his room-mate. The air all but crackled between them as she ground out, "I cannot go with you because I ALREADY HAVE A DATE! There – are you satisfied now?"
Surprise wrapped itself around the training area and Ron used it to propel Hermione away from the crowd and transfer her within his circle of safety, giving her the opportunity to walk away. Even Draco seemed torn between feeling sorry for Hermione, being angry on Hermione's behalf now that her private affairs were dragged into public and amused at the way Harry stood there as if he had been Stupefied.
Seeing Harry start towards her one more time with a dark expression on his face, Ron bounced a determined look at Madame Hooche.
"Class is over, right Professor?"
"Yes, Mr. Weasley. Class has been over since these two landed," Hooche clarified.
He's going to make me do this. Stepping in Harry's way, Ron put up a hand to stop him from chasing after Hermione. "Harry. Don't make me do this."
"Ron. Move," Harry's green eyes were almost black behind his glasses. "I gotta sort this out."
Flashing a quick glance at Daphne, he asked, "Got your first aid spells handy, Greengrass?" Seeing her nod in puzzled affirmation, Ron used every part of the inch and a half of height he had over Harry to make his friend stop in his tracks and back down.
Harry only glowered when Ron stepped forward and blocked the path that led back to the castle.
"Ron. Get. Out. Of. – "
CRUNCH!!
Ron's fist connected with Harry's nose and Harry went flying backwards – not quite falling but everyone saw the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain as he was sent reeling backwards for several steps before recovering his balance – before Harry could finish his demand.
"Sorry, mate, but no body hurts Hermione." Ron reminded Harry of their promise to one another regarding their other best friend and why the 'Gentlemen Don't Behave That Way' Squad was formed in the first place. Giving his best friend a chance to wipe the blood from his nose, Ron added, "That is YOUR rule – remember? – that we and the rest of the boys swore to uphold."
"Don't Malfoy." Wiping off his knuckles with a corner of his robe, Ron silenced the catty comment that was about to come out of Draco's mouth with a blatant warning ground out from somewhere deep within his throat. "If you value walking upright, you won't go there."
Recalling one more detail, Ron swung his head towards thunderstruck Lavender. "That goes for you too, Lav."
Turning back to Harry, Ron said, "Harry, go get cleaned up. I'll see you at dinner."
Grabbing his Cleansweep and giving a respectful nod to Madame Hooche, he turned himself around and trotted after a small figure delicately picking her way up the slope and making her way back to the castle.
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