Butterflies
Harry sat twiddling his thumbs, while he stared worthlessly at his Potions homework. He could tell Ron was doing the same thing from the corner of his eye to the right of him. To the left though, was a different story all together. Hermione sat bent over obviously blocking out the chaos in the Gryffindor common room, while scribbling down sentence after sentence on her parchment.
Harry couldn't help but stare at her. She was so fun to watch when she was concentrating. The way she bit her bottom lip when something wasn't worded right. Or the way the corner of her mouth would twitch when she re-read a well-written sentence. Harry often contemplated whether everyone saw Hermione this way. At first he thought everyone saw the depth of his best friend, all the time. But after awhile, her realized her beauty and intelligence were sorely under-appreciated.
"What, do I have ink on my face?"
Harry was brought out of his stare by Hermione's embarrassed face. He cleared his throat and managed to stutter out, "Oh! Um…no!"
Hermione flushed pink as she ducked her head back down, but not before catching a glance at Harry's nearly blank essay. Her flush of embarrassment soon turned into a flush of annoyance.
"Harry! What are you doing?" she snapped, almost letting a giggle slip when she saw the look of fright that passed through his face as he jerked his head up at her words.
He could see her glance at his less than triumphant assignment, and now it was his turn to flush red. "Oh, um you see…I was brainstorming."
Hermione rolled her eyes and turned back to her parchment muttering under her breath. "You and Ron…biggest idiots I have ever met…"
Harry smirked. "What was that Mione?"
"Nothing."
He nodded his head knowingly. "Right, well I'm off to Transfiguration then."
He glanced at Hermione as she gave one last signature eye roll. "What are you planning on doing with your essay?"
"Well…that's the great thing about having a friend like you." Harry smiled as he nudged his paper toward her bag.
With a sigh, she grabbed it and stuffed it in next to her almost complete assignment. "You owe me. And I'm serious this time. I'll be thinking of what I want in return."
Harry grinned in relief. "Whatever you want Mione. I swear." He said crossing his heart and holding out is pinky ready to do their old pinky swear ritual.
She smiled and linked pinkies. "I haven't thought of it yet. But I will. I promise."
"I'm sure you will." And with that, he ducked down and brushed her cheek with his lips, swiftly turning around with a wave over his shoulder. "See you in Transfiguration."
Hermione could feel the heat rising to her face as Harry climbed out of the portrait hole, a hand rising to her cheek. Shaking her head furiously, she silently cursed herself for letting him to get to her. Again. With one last shake of her head, she gathered all her things together, and hurried out of the common room heading for Transfiguration.
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After Transfiguration, Harry walked into the library, spotting Hermione sitting at the corner table in their usual spot. He grinned as she smiled back at him across the room, waving him over.
"About time." She smirked.
"I had to talk to Angelina about Quidditch."
"Right…oookay."
"I swear…"
"Don't you think you've done enough 'swearing' today? You do remember this morning don't you?"
Harry pretended to think hard, stroking his chin and glancing up at the ceiling. "Oh yes…the Pinky Swear."
Hermione giggled. "Yes. And by the way, I've thought of what you owe me."
"What would that be?" Harry smiled.
"I'm not willing to share until you actually do your homework."
"What? I thought you were my friend…not my teacher!" Harry laughed in mock indignation.
"Suck it up Potter."
Harry only responded with sticking his tongue out and grabbing a quill beginning to write.
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Hemione admired a lot of people. All the famous wizards and witches she had read about in History of Magic. All of her professors. Her friends. But the person she admired most, was Mr. Harry Potter.
She wasn't really sure why. But as she sat there in the library, she couldn't help but stare at him. He never really concentrated, but at certain times she could tell his mind was actually on his work. The way he would wrinkle his forehead when he didn't understand what he had written. Or the way he would smirk when he found a good wording for a sentence. He had so many things going for him; his talent at beating dark wizards, his humor, his endless sincerity, and his ability to be a good friend. Hermione didn't really know why she focused so much on Harry, when Ron was right there too. For some reason she was always drawn to Harry. Sure, Ron was one of her best friends, but she didn't have feelings that went as deep as they did for Harry.
Hermione shook her head slightly. She had been catching herself thinking of Harry more and more lately. She wasn't quite sure what had been triggering Harry in her mind. Harry's face popped into her head more and more, and the butterflies in her stomach seemed to multiply.
Her mind drifted again to that stupid kiss. Just a kiss on the cheek and she was a puddle on the floor. Sad really. She rested her head in her hands and let out a deep breath.
"Are you alright Mione?"
She jerked her head up after hearing Harry's low voice echo through the library. "Shhh! We're in a library Harry!"
"So?" he grinned, "since when do I follow the rules?"
"Obviously never" Hermione grumbled and turned back to her work.
"So what were you thinking about just now?"
"Do you ever give up?"
"I asked a question first."
"Shut up."
"Tsk tsk Hermione…getting a little cranky are we?" Harry chuckled.
"I'm not cranky. Just frustrated."
"May I ask with what?"
"No." Hermione snapped back.
"Fine."
"Fine."
"I said fine first." Harry smirked, "totally just copied me."
Hermione let out a frustrated little squeak and stood up quickly gathering her books. "And you wonder why I'm frustrated!"
Harry too stood up and gathered his things together. Leaning toward Hermione's, he whispered in her ear, "I bet I know what you're thinking about."
"And how would YOU know?" Hermione glared at him.
Harry just shrugged. "I'm not sure. I just do."
"Right…well I'm going to bed." Hermione sighed, completely fed up with the conversation.
"And I intend to find out exactly what's bothering you."
"HOW Harry? Have you gone mad?"
"Not quite. Now, I owe you something. But I have a proposal for you."
"You're an idiot."
"Now listen my little Hermy…" Harry grinned ignoring the death look he received at the mention of her despised nickname. "If I guess what you were thinking about, then I don't owe you anything. If I don't, then I owe you TWO of whatever you wanted."
"You HAVE gone mad…"
Harry just replied by sticking out his hand, "Deal?"
Hermione let out an exasperated sigh. "Sure whatever. Just so we can end this ridiculous conversation." Reaching out to grasp his hand firmly.
"So you owe me two things in return if you fail." Hermione giggled an evil glint in her eyes.
"Which by the way…you never told me what I would owe you."
Hermione could feel the words form on the tip of her tongue. She wanted desperately to say them. And why not? " A massage. Or if you lose…then it will be two massages."
Harry almost choked on all the air he sucked in, "A-a-massage?"
"Yes! Girls rather enjoy some pampering once in a while. A massage would certainly do the trick I think." And with that she let go of his hand and waltzed out of the library in a considerably better mood.
But did she just FLIRT with Harry Potter?
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Harry's mind was spinning. He had no idea what she was thinking. He was just being annoying, but now he actually had to come up with something. He wracked his brain for something that he could say that could save him from a potentially embarrassing situation by having to massage Hermione. Why was he all of a sudden uncomfortable? The thought of giving his best friend a massage shouldn't be nerve wracking. But for some reason, the butterflies in his stomach that were usually in small amounts around her, had somehow evolved into giants. And were fluttering around like mad.
"Did I just FLIRT with Hermione?" Harry whispered out loud.
"More importantly," he thought to himself, "Did I enjoy it?"
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"What's wrong mate?" Ron asked as Harry walked slowly into his dormitory, looking a bit paler than usual."Are you sick?"
"No…" Harry shook his head and sat down on the edge of the bed.
"I thought you were studying with Hermione."
With the mention of her name, Harry let out a strangled groan and flopped backward onto his bed.
"What in the name of Merlin is wrong with you?" Ron laughed.
"You really want to know?" Harry asked sitting up straight again.
When Ron nodded, Harry spilled the whole story. From the kiss on the cheek that morning, that had no doubt stirred some feelings in him, to the ridiculous argument he had just had, and with his stupid need to be annoying, had got himself caught in something that was hard to get out of. Plus, the butterflies in his stomach were really starting to irritate him.
"Butterflies?" Ron asked apprehension all over his face after hearing Harry's tale.
"Yeah. I noticed them this afternoon…when I…"
"When you kissed her?" Ron asked a smirk on his face.
"Yeah…" Harry added quietly. "But it was only on the cheek! We do that all the time! Why did I suddenly feel like throwing up?"
Ron came over and patted Harry on the back. "Because you like Hermione."
"Well yeah of course I do…we've been best friends since we were eleven…"
"No mate. I mean you LIKE her like her." Ron chuckled.
Harry was silent for a few seconds. "I…WHAT now?"
"Are you really this dumb? Because I always thought you were smarter than me. You LIKE her Harry. And I have a feeling she likes you. But now, you better figure out something to tell her to make the whole argument seem like a joke. Besides, if you lose, a massage isn't all that bad…" Ron laughed as he walked out of the dormitory towards the common room.
Harry felt his head spin for the second time in less than fifteen minutes. He liked Hermione? And what had Ron said before?
"And I have a feeling she likes you too."
The butterflies made an extremely big flutter in his stomach as he flopped back onto the bed in defeat.
He couldn't help but wonder…was Ron really right?
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Hermione groaned in frustration as she slammed the door to her dormitory. What was going on? Had she just agreed to participate in a bet with Harry? And did she actually just tell him that if he lost, he owed her two massages? Since when did she show such bravery? And since when did she want a massage from Harry Potter of all people?
"Since this morning," a little voice in her head whispered. Of course! This morning with that blasted peck on the cheek and her imagination had gone into overdrive, thinking and dreaming of Harry giving her a stupid massage. What in the world had happened to her?
"This is all too messed up," she muttered to herself as she flopped down on her bed. And what were with these damn butterflies that kept fluttering around her stomach?
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The next day shone bright and sunny as both Harry and Hermione woke up and headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast, meeting at the Gryffindor table both trying to act normal, and both trying to stop the fluttering that was still going on inside their stomachs.
"So how goes the bet guys?" Ron asked with a grin as both Harry and Hermione choked on their orange juice and looked down at their laps.
So much for ignoring the issue.
Ron ignored Harry's glare and patted him on the back, grabbing a piece of toast, and standing up. "Good to know it's going so well."
And with that he was gone.
Hermione was the first to speak. "Um…I better go…"
Harry was still slightly choking, but managed a nod, also getting up. Hermione also nodded, a bit of a sad expression on her face, and turned around and walked out of the Great Hall headed back to the Common Room.
Harry sunk back down into his seat, holding his head in his hands. When had this become such a huge mess? One minute they were laughing and joking, the next they weren't even speaking to each other. He clutched his stomach with one hand, trying to halt the massive fluttering that was now taking over his entire body.
"Oy, mate, you better go back up there." Fred and George Weasley said at the same time, over his shoulder.
"What are you talking about?" Harry asked.
"Go fix what you just messed up." Fred smirked.
"What? I didn't mess anything up…"
George snorted. "Sure you didn't."
"What are you guys playing at? I'm not really in the mood…" Harry mumbled grumpily.
"Flushing whenever she's around…"said Fred.
Harry looked up.
"Flirting with her every other word…" said George.
Harry grimaced.
"And now the butterflies I assume…" Fred grinned as he saw Harry's arm pressing against his stomach.
Harry was speechless. "How do you guys KNOW all that?"
They shrugged in unison.
"But what do I say?"
"Say what you feel." Fred advised.
"And whatever you do, don't look like a fool." George added.
Harry nodded grimly, and stood up. "Thanks guys."
"If you two aren't holding hands in twenty minutes, we'll send Madam Pomfrey up to assess your wounds." They chuckled.
"Huh?" Harry asked nervously.
"Hermione is a smart witch Harry…"
Harry paled slightly at the thought of the conversation he was about to have and the possibility it had to turn ugly.
"I think he gets it." Fred and George smiled and turned around leaving a slightly nauseous Harry behind.
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Hermione tried to stop the tears she had shining in her eyes, before dropping down onto the couch in front of the fire and burying her head in the pillow. Everything had gone so wrong. She wasn't really sure how this had all started. There wasn't a real defining moment of this mess. But she did know for sure now that she liked Harry.
She liked Harry Potter. Her best friend. The only guy that actually understood her. But he was also the guy that everyone loved. The most famous wizard in the history of time. How in the world was she going to get out of this one?
She pressed her hand to her stomach. Her heart was beating fast, and the butterflies felt like they would fly out of her body at any moment.
"You better go back down there."
Hermione lifted her head and gasped as she saw Ginny Weasley standing next to the couch. "What…what are you talking about?"
"I said, go back down there and fix this mess." Ginny smirked.
"How do you know…"
Ginny scoffed. "Hermione, everyone knows. The blushing, the flirting…"
Hermione's mouth dropped open slightly. "People notice that?"
Ginny sighed exasperated. "You two really are dumb. Of course people notice that. If you really want to end those butterflies you have, you better get back down there." She laughed looking at Hermione's hand resting on her stomach.
"Are…are you sure?"
Ginny's look was enough to get Hermione up and off the couch heading to the portrait hole. "Thanks Gin…"
Ginny nodded and giggled.
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Harry rushed out of the Great Hall, nearly plowing a girl down in the process.
"Oh I'm so…" but stopped when he noticed who he had run into.
"Sorry?" Hermione filled in, looking up at Harry hopefully.
"Yes…so sorry." Harry whispered before wrapping his arms around her.
Hermione leaned into the embrace, trying to stop the smile from spreading across her face. This felt so good, so right.
Harry pulled back slightly, still keeping his hold on Hermione, and brushed a curl out of her face. "Hermione," he started.
"No, Harry, let me say something." Hermione interrupted. When he nodded, she continued. "I'm not sure how any of this happened. I don't know why I'm blushing so much. And I don't know how some of the things I've said are coming out of my mouth.
And most of all I don't know why these damn butterflies are in my stomach. But I do know one thing."
Harry smiled at this as she paused, and took a deep breath. She continued, "I like you Harry. I'm not sure why. Or how. But I do. And that's the only thing I'm sure of right now."
Harry felt the air in his lungs constrict considerably. Hermione looked almost frightened as she watched his face change from emotion to emotion.
"I'm sorry! I know this is so stupid…but if I didn't tell you, I swear I was going to explode…" Hermione started again, but was cut off with Harry's lips silencing her as he pressed them against her own.
Hermione sighed and kissed him back forgetting they were in the middle of the corridor. As Harry pulled back, Hermione was reluctant to open her eyes, afraid to see what his reaction would be. As she opened them, she was rewarded with his playful smirk.
"I've been wanting to do that for the past year, and I just realized it now. How dumb am I?" Harry whispered huskily into her ear.
Hermione giggled and hugged him tighter. "How did this all start?"
"Well…I saved you from a giant troll when we were eleven…"
Hermione playfully slapped his shoulder. "You are such an idiot Harry."
Harry laughed, "Well Hermione…I'm not sure how this all started. I guess it would have to be that dumb bet I made. To be honest, I was just trying to annoy you."
"I figured as much."
"But, do you care to share what you were thinking about? So I can see how fair of a chance I had at guessing randomly…"
"Well…" Hermione smirked, " I was thinking about you."
"I made you frustrated?" Harry asked in disbelief.
"You have no idea. I've had butterflies in my stomach for ages. It took me until about ten minutes ago, and a certain Ginny Weasley to open my eyes."
Harry chuckled. "How about that? It took two certain twins to open mine."
Hermione smiled and stared at Harry. "Since you technically lost the bet, does that mean that I get my deal?"
"Care to refresh my memory?"
Hermione giggled. "I would have thought you would remember considering the face you made when I suggested it."
"Well…I don't think I'll be able to do that."
Hermione pulled back, looking a bit upset.
Harry pulled her back to him, leaning down and whispering in her ear, "Two massages aren't enough."
Hermione laughed against his chest. "These are the best butterflies in the world." She sighed.
Harry could only nod his head in agreement, as her pulled her in for another kiss.