Disclaimer: I know how to do exponents properly now! But I still don't own Harry Potter!
Chapter 10: Domestic Science
DAY 11
Harry and Hermione left the house with Ginny to take their dirty clothes to the laundry, as they had absolutely no idea as to how to work the complicated laundry machine at home. Leaving the house with Ron and Draco alone, they realized that day, was not a good idea. Leaving them with a list of chores was also a very bad idea, but they had no way of knowing this until they had arrived home again at the end of the day.
Hermione had yelled what she wanted the boys to do, very fast, as she left the house. "Wash the dishes, clean the car, and clean the living room! That stuff shouldn't be too difficult."
Because Ron and Draco were now friends, they didn't mind staying by themselves. But they were not quite sure how to use the dishwasher, or what type of soap to use on the car. Draco found something called Dawn that they thought would be good on the car. Draco was certain that it was the right type of soap.
"It says here, 'crystal clean, shiny'. That's what we want the car to be, right? Crystal clean and shiny!" he exclaimed, his pink locks bobbing up and down.
Ron thought he'd found what to put into the dishwasher. He found a bright orange bottle, labeled Clorox. That looked nice and safe. He poured a great amount of Clorox into the dishwasher and set it on high.
They both went outside to wash the car. Uncle Vernon looked on jealously from next door at the fancy, red Mercedes. Its exterior was quite dull, however. Ron examined it critically. "Maybe we should just throw the stuff over it, then wipe it down."
"Are you sure? Maybe we should wipe it down with the soap on the cloths, as in not soaking the car."
"No. It's quicker and easier my way."
"Remember what Hermione said? No quick and easy for Muggles."
"Yeah, but this way actually works."
"Okay, okay. Let's try it."
The car became very clean and shiny. But there were several huge stains on the driveway that, for some reason, Ron and Draco could not scrub off. (A/N: If you throw dishwasher detergent onto a driveway, when it is mixed with water, your driveway will have spots on it that don't come off, no matter how much you scrub at them. Seriously. I have had personal experience with this. Mom was very mad. Believe me). Draco was actually sweating with the effort. "What- is- wrong- with- this- soap?"
"I have no idea. Do you think Muggles can use magic?"
"No, or else we'd let them know about us. Why?"
"There must be some magical element in this soap, that prevents it from leaving asphalt."
"Ugh. Okay, I'm done trying to scrub this off. It'll come off eventually. We'd better go clean the living room."
The boys walked into the house. Something funny was coming out of the kitchen; it looked like giant soap bubbles.
Ron and Draco exchanged horrified looks, and sprinted into the kitchen. A huge layer of white soap bubbles covered the kitchen floor and was rapidly rising. It actually rose past the boys' ankles. Draco waded through to try and find the source of all the soap. He quickly located it: the dishwasher.
"Ron, I thought you knew what soap to put in here!"
"I used Clorox. How could it be wrong? I mean, really. Soap is soap."
"Is it supposed to be spreading over the floor like that, though?"
"Muggles are weird Draco. They do these types of things."
"How do you know?"
"My dad's obsessed with them. But you wouldn't know, because you've always distanced yourself from them."
"Okay, maybe you're right. Let's leave it, and clean the living room. Soap is soap. We did everything right, so it should be okay."
"Yeah. Maybe the bubbles will just clear away by themselves."
Cleaning the living room went fairly well. Ron was accustomed to cleaning his living room at home, when his mother was irritated with him (as she usually was). Draco, who had been spoiled and pampered by his loving mother, Narcissa, had hardly ever done housework. Come to that, he'd never done housework before.
Luckily, Ron could actually teach him how to do this one. But, boys will be boys, and these boys engaged in a very violent, but amusing, pillow fight. The housework was left undone. They also created more work for each other. Pillows lay all over the room, sofas had been pushed aside as the two ran through the room, trying to escape the deadly pillows, and a lampshade had been knocked off its base. But the fight was all fun.
However, the fun ended… when Hermione, Ginny, and Harry came home with a huge pile of clean laundry.
Hermione stopped in shock at the doorway. Her voice barely above a whisper, she asked, slowly, "What- did- you- do?"
Both boys looked very sheepish. "Well, we, um…" stuttered Ron.
Hermione stormed outside. A few minutes later, she came stomping back in. "Why are there huge spots on the driveway?"
Draco grinned. "Well, the Dawn didn't quite work as well as we hoped…"
Ron butted in. "But we are certain that it'll rub off very soon."
Hermione was really mad now. Harry and Ginny ran upstairs to dive for cover. They could hear her shrieks from upstairs.
"YOU DO NOT USE DISHWASHER DETERGENT ON THE CAR, IDIOTS!"
Draco and Ron exchanged looks. Draco asked, "That was the dishwasher detergent?"
"YES!"
Ron seemed worried. "Then what did we put into the dishwasher?"
Hermione's eyes became very large. She ran into the kitchen. "AAAAAAAAAAHHHH! WHAT DID YOU DO!"
Draco followed Hermione into the soapy kitchen, closely tailed by Ron. "We washed the dishes. They're probably really clean."
"What did you put in there?"
Ron bit his lip. "Clorox."
"Oh. My. God. I cannot believe you two! The house is a mess! And you know what you're going to do?"
"What?"
Draco and Ron were forced to clean the entire house from top to bottom that night and the next day. Not just the mess they had created in the kitchen and living room. The whole house had to be tidied.
Hermione had her revenge.
A/N: I'm going to let this stay for a while, because I'm running out of ideas for domestic catastrophes. What happens in a home with inexperienced people running it? Hmm…