Disclaimer
I do not own any of the characters in this chapter, only Sniffy, though I got the idea of a genie from the book, too. I personally don't think that this chapter is very good and I think it's quite short too. But I won't put myself down too low, too. I need and want your reviews! =) I wanna hear the opinions of u guys. After all, u guys are so cool… mature… sophisticated… wonderful… talented… all right… no more boot-licking. Haha… let's get on with the show!
In the previous chapter…
"Thanks, Lavender, for-" she couldn't finish her sentence as she felt herself levitate. She looked down and saw her feet leaving the ground. Looking up again, she saw Lavender floating in mid-air as well. She quickly reached for her wand but couldn't quite find it. By the time she found it, she, together with Lavender, were floating down the corridor, along with the other Hogwarts students. Hermione quickly muttered a spell to counter-attack the levitating charm, but it was to no avail. She could see around her that people were trying to chant the same spell to put themselves down, yet no one could do it. Everyone remained floating, or rather, flying down the corridor. Lavender screamed suddenly, and then, everyone followed suit. Hermione didn't; she was too surprised to scream or make any sounds. She simply couldn't believe her rotten luck.
Indeed, it was a strange phenomenon, for every Hogwarts student was being levitated into the air and they were no longer restrained on the deck or, on a bigger scale, the ship. They were all floating… in the middle of nowhere. In the middle of the South Seas, to be specific.
Mudbloods, Zipped Mouths and Genies
Dumbledore smiled as he saw how his plan had gone on perfectly, without any flaw. Yet… there was something he knew he had forgotten…
"Albus?" came a voice behind him.
"Yes, Julie?" Dumbledore turned away and wiped his look of awe immediately.
"Shouldn't we do something about the rest of the people on the ship? The captain and the other people, to be specific?" Professor Earnwood was amazed at everything that was happening, especially how the Headmaster could forget such a "small" detail about the captain.
"Ah… yes…" Dumbledore winked, with a twinkle in his eye. "I knew I'd forgotten something…"
The next thing Hermione knew, she was sitting on a beach with nobody around. Nobody, that is, except…
"Where are we?" came a demanding and cold drawl.
Welcoming and friendly as usual… Hermione couldn't help but snigger.
"What are you sniggering about, you filthy Mudblood?" (A/N: that pretty much proves his identity, huh? =P)
"Nothing, just wishing for something impossible."
"And what, might that be?" Draco Malfoy asked, narrowing his gray eyes.
"Wishing that you would have a civil tongue." Draco Malfoy glared at her back and wished his very own wish: that he could bore a hole in her back with his searing glare.
He was about to tell her so when suddenly, she stood up and brushed the sand off her hands and buttocks. Then, Draco couldn't help but notice how firm her butt was under those shorts. He never noticed that when she was wearing her uniform; he never noticed much about girls, anyway. The last time he had… he shrugged the thought off. What am I doing? What am I thinking about? Draco thought.
Just then, Hermione went out to the sea and picked up a bottle. The bottle looked ancient and as if it was as old as time. it was intricately carved silver and the ornate stopper caught flashes of bright light the morn shone onto the beach, which to the gulls that soared overhead, made the shimmering bottle look like a plum silver herring. It was a sad fact, Draco thought, that there were no precious gemstones on a bottle so old. A diamond would be giving it another sort of sensual and stunning richness, while a blood red ruby would have added a dash of character to the bottle. A sapphire or emerald would have done fine, if not better.
Hermione unscrewed the cork carefully, afraid of breaking the corkscrew and not being able to open the bottle ever again. After much effort, it finally popped open… with an explosion of purple and yellow, if not gold, smoke. Hermione jumped back, still holding the bottle. There was no doubt that she was surprised that the bottle had exploded right in her face.
"HELLO! And a very good morning to the BOTH of you!" a voice spoke, emphasizing the both, irritating both Hermione and Draco.
"What the-" Draco started as an image started forming before their eyes. The voice, the extraordinarily squeaky and scratchy at the same time voice… came from… a genie.
"By God…" Hermione whispered, as she took in the profile and looks of the genie who was barely her height, even though she thought she was short for her age. The genie was easily half her size. He wore shoes that no one else will think of wearing. No one else… that is… except the elves working under Santa Claus. His shoes had bells that rang and chimed and made plenty of noise when he walked about, or rather strutted about, since Hermione noticed that the genie walked with an arrogant manner.
"Y-you can't possibly be a genie, can you?" Hermione stuttered.
"And why not?" there was no doubt about it; these particular genie was definitely arrogant and smug.
"Probably because they don't exist." Draco said coolly, when he noticed that the stupid Granger had nothing else to say, just standing there, gaping at the genie with her mouth wide open. Though Draco had to admit, her mouth was kind of sensual…
"I'm sorry if the stories you have been told do not include genies, but 'tis for a fact that they DO exist." The genie sniffed, as though he was hurt that people thought that genies never existed.
Draco raised his eyebrows in a most disbelieving way. The genie stared at him and carried on with his important duty.
"By order of the Headmaster of Hogwarts, I hereby declare by the five thousand six hundred and twenty third law of the Associations of the Witches Council and the Wizards-"
"Will you just get on with it?" Draco cut in.
The genie sniffed at the boy's rudeness and continued.
"I will be your genie at your service and will therefore be able to grant this girl three wishes for finding the bottle. The boy will have none, I am terribly sorry to say." He didn't sound sorry and Draco swore that the genie would be sorry later on, when he had had his fill of beating the dumb tinkle bells up.
"What do you mean I have no wishes?" Draco shouted at the top of his lungs.
"I mean that all my three wishes will be given to the girl over there, after she has registered her shock, though." The genie frowned as he looked at the girl, who seemed as disinterested in him as quickly as she had been keen in the very first place.
"I know that!" Draco snapped.
"Oh, really? Then WHY did you ask that preposterous question and demand an equally preposterous answer?" The genie retorted.
Draco was spitting mad. He was positively fuming and was about to hit the genie when Hermione yawned very loudly and broke the argument between the two of them by saying, "Will you two just shut up? And by god, genie, I simply do not care for three wishes. All I want is one wish. One wish to get back to Hogwarts and leave this place and you."
"Well, well, what ungratefulness you have shown towards me and the kind intentions of your very own Headmaster. And that was VERY, VERY unladylike of you to yawn that loudly, if you ask me," he sniffed once again.
"But I didn't ask you," Hermione interjected. "Now will you grant my wish and stop sniffing. I have a good mind to call you Sniffy."
"You shall not!"
"Yes, I shall, Sniffy. Now grant my wish."
Sniffy sniffed and turned his back on Hermione. "I can't grant your wish. It's against the rule and the six thousand eight hundred and fifty fourth law of the Witches Council and the-"
"All right, already. You can't grant it, simple as that." Draco smirked, seeing that the Mudblood didn't get her way. But he had to admit, she had spunk in her. She wasn't just good at studying and burying her head in borrowed library books.
"Stop smirking or I'll wish that your mouth would be zipped forever and I'm pretty sure that that wish will NOT be against the laws of whoever and whatever. Right, Sniffy?"
That got both of Sniffy's and Draco's attentions. "Don't you dare…" Draco warned, half afraid and sure that she would indeed do it.
"'Twas your wish? 'Twas your very first wish?" The genie asked delightfully, rubbing his tiny hands together.
Hermione stole a glance at Draco and saw that even though he was trying to play it cool, she had the upper hand. The three wishes proved to be useful, after all.
"Well… all right." Draco looked devastated.
"But you'll have to say the magic words. 'Tis 'I, whatever your name is, wish…'"
"All right." Hermione tossed a threatening smile towards Draco Malfoy. "I, Hermione Granger, wish that-"
"Stop! Stop!" Draco raced over and covered her mouth with his hand. "Don't say a word." After a moment of hesitation, he added, "Please."
Hermione inhaled sharply and smelled a funny scent. She wasn't sure that it was the scent of a male. Ron and the other guys smelled the same to her. Draco smelled… well… differently. She looked up at Draco's eyes and saw specks of midnight blue among the grayness. She couldn't help but notice how nice his eyes were all of a sudden.
Draco felt movement against his palm and thought he saw her smile turn into a frown. Her eyes narrowed and he was so afraid that she might still command that wish that he said another "Please". Just for good measure.
And just for good measure, Hermione bit his hand.