Chapter 5: First 'Date'
The Grangers took a table near the centre. Harry didn't like this position; it made him easy to spot from anywhere inside. He sat down and tried to make himself as unnoticeable as possible; unfortunately, people would be blind not to notice him. His jet-black hair now reached the top of his back, which was a bit strange, it had grown rapidly ever since... well, ever since school closed. Most of the other men here were wearing classy shirts and had short, neatly trimmed hair. Harry knew he stuck out like a sore thumb in his ill-fitting clothes and unruly hair.
An idea came to him and he grinned mischievously, looking at his friend with a twinkle in his eye. Hermione was already sixteen- that meant that she no longer was an underage witch. By coincidence, the same spell Mad Eye used to conceal them as they travelled into London would be ideal to avoid the Dursleys.
Let's test the waters shall we?He scooted over his chair closer to his right, bringing up the menuin front of his face so that her parents couldn't see. Leaning over, he whispered low into her ear.
"Hermione," he whispered. "Can you do a Chameleon charm?"
For no apparent reason, his breath near that sensitive area on her earlobe made her nerves tingle. She ducked her head lower, raising her menu as well. She turned to talk to him, but their faces were so close she had to move back a bit, lest she did something stupid…
"I think so. It's not done at school until final year but it's not that hard, really," she hissed softly, her eyes darting around to see what Harry was looking at. Who were those people?
"Great. I need you to put the spell on me, but not here. We have to go to one of the bathrooms and do it there."
"The bathroom?" Hermione asked looking at his face. "Alone?"
"Well duh- we can't just whip out our wands and do it in front of everyone…" Harry said. "Come on-"
"But Harry, that spell only works when someone has not seen you as yet. It's not an invisibility cloak," she said in her know-it-all voice. Harry just smiled knowingly. She was so cute when she tried to lecture him and Ron.
"Exactly why I need it now. I don' t mind your family and everyone else, but there are people coming who would cause a ruckus if they saw us- er me- ..well you know..." He turned and saw Vernon approaching the main entrance. "Dursleys!" he hissed, twitching his head in their direction. He quickly grabbed Hermione's hand and whisked her from the table.
"We'll be right back Dad!" she said, being pulled steadily to the washrooms. Her mother narrowed her eyes.
"Is there something going on between them? I thought they were acting strange. Doesn't the red haired boy like her?" Jane Granger asked her husband. Roger just looked up from his menu-
"I think I'll take this one. What was it you were saying? –Where's the kids?" he asked, suddenly aware that they were no longer at the table.
"Don't bother…." His wife muttered, shaking her head.
Harry opened the ladies bathroom, peeked inside, found it empty, and pulled Hermione in. He took a breath, and let it out- slightly fearing the worst. Hermione was exceptional, but mistakes sometimes do happen…
"Okay, do it now." Hermione nodded, pulled out her wand from her handbag, and swept the wand in a rainbow wave.
"Karmena meleon!"
Harry felt that his skin had tingled as if dashed with a light spray. He could still see himself in the mirror.
"Did it work? Are you sure? Can you still see me? Would my aunt and uncle spot me?"
"Of course not, Harry. I won't try a spell I wasn't sure about on you!"
"Excellent! Let's go." He took her by her arm and led her outside the door. As he rounded the corner in the corridor, a familiar bulky figure come marching towards them, his concentration on the pretty waitress who had just walked behind him. Harry froze.
Close- Let's hope Hermione knows what she's doing…
He abruptly let her go and flattened his back to the wall. Now that Harry was still, it appeared as if the paint on the wall had a slight discoloration in it. She looked sideways at him sharply, opened her mouth to say something then changed her mind when he shook his head slightly, nodding his head towards Dudley. Dudley's gaze raked right over Harry and fixated on Hermione, who hesitated before his porky bulk.
"Hullo there, beautiful," Dudley put on his most charming smile, or what he considered one. Hermione looked behind her as if he was talking to someone else.
"Excuse me?" she asked, bewildered.
"I said hello. Not everyday I see an angel as beautiful as you," he smiled again. Harry rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Oh really?" Hermione snorted in indignation. "I'm sure that line works really well. Why don't you try it on someone else?" She put on her best McGonagall expression and folded her arms. Her get-away-from-me attitude seemed to have blown completely past him.
"No, you are the first angel I have ever seen, so you're special..."
Oh , just shut up for crying out loud…
Harry sucked in his stomach- Dudley was an arms length away from him, he could smell his stale odour. Hermione rolled her eyes, and made to walk past him. He placed a beefy arm on the wall right in front of her, inches away from Harry's face. She froze. "Excuse me, I have to get back to my table."
"So soon? We've only just met. Stay a while. My name is Dudley."
"I'm really sorry," she fibbed."I have to be getting back." But now she could not skirt underneath his arm. Harry was planted against the wall trying to remain as still as possible, blocking the way. So she was basically stuck here and at her hesitation Dudley thought he had made some progress.
"So what's your name sweet thing?" he asked.
"I am NOT your 'sweet thing'!"
"Well we may just have to remedy that won't we?" he grabbed her hand in a firm grip. Harry knew he was a bully - but this was ridiculous!
Keep cool, Potter. Wait a while…Hermione could take care of herself
Hermione tried to release herself from his grip but Dudley did not even seem to notice. She struggled desperately now, and said between her teeth, "If you don't let me go, I will scream!" Ignoring his better judgement, Harry's temper shot through the roof.
"Is that so?" Dudley smirked. "We won't want that now do we?" and fast as a striking snake he clamped his other hand around her mouth and shoved her inside the ladies bathroom. Harry didn't think- he just stormed in after them. As he entered Harry saw Hermione bite down on Dudley's hand, which immediately he drew back and slapped her soundly across her cheek. Dudley laughed as Hermione fell against the sink counter, clutching her face. She spotted Harry surge through the door and felt the hairs on her forearms tingle violently.
"HARRY- NO!"
"Harry...?" he said, clueless to who she was talking to. He turned around- out of thin air his cousin Harry materialized, striding towards them, his eyes boring into his. The bathroom quickly darkened, and he noticed a very faint glow around Harry's pupils.
"GET ...AWAY...FROM .. HER!"
Without hesitation, Harry charged Dudley, catching him flush in the gut. Both boys fell over, crashing into the bathroom stall. Taking a firm grip on his expensive shirt, Harry sized up his right fist, and punched him across the face. The back of Dudley's head connected with the tile, making a dull thud. Dudley lay there close to unconsciousness and peered up. What he saw was a blurred version of Harry's face a few inches away from his, and there was something definitely alien about his eyes.
"If you touch her again, I will not be so lenient," he said dangerously, his voice a bit deeper than usual.
Dudley's eyes rolled into the back of his head as he fainted. Hermione's face was dumbstruck, her hand covering her mouth that was shaped in a perfect 'O'. She felt her hairs return to their normal state and the power surging from Harry recede. Harry closed his eyes briefly, and the bathroom light flickered back on. He looked at Dudley, knocked out cold in a bathroom stall, then looked amazingly at his right hand. He peered around, not believing it even with his own eyes. The entrance door was some twenty feet away behind him, Dudley crumpled in a heap at his feet. Hermione slowly came to his side, her face red and swelling from Dudley's slap. Harry turned to her and raised a hand in concern to examine her face. She flinched at first, but took a slow breath to calm herself.
"I'm okay Harry," she replied. She drew her wand, muttered an incantation and pointed it at her face. The swelling stopped and it returned to its normal state. Harry did not know what o do, or have any comment. He couldn't believe he just knocked out Dudley with one blow- Dudley, a 'boxing champion'- the same boy who floored him the other day. Hermione washed her face in the sink, and looked into the mirror, watching Harry sceptically. Assessing the situation, she thought a second; placing her hands on her hips.
"Now that was strange. Is this really your cousin? He's worse than I ever imagined!"
"Yeah…" Harry said, still not quite believing it.
"What a bad coincidence. Today is our first day out – well I mean our first day of holidays together- and he ruins it."
"Er- my luck hasn't been the greatest lately…things just keep going wrong…" Harry muttered as a half apology. Hermione knew what he really meant, but she absolutely did not want to bring back up the Department of Mysteries, so she tried to steer the conversation far away from that topic.
"Don't worry about it- we'll go out another day and we'll laugh about this. Help me drag him out of the stall," she ordered. The both tried to move him. After what she had just witnessed, it was confusing to Hermione why both of them struggled to drag Dudley's massive bulk out to the centre of the bathroom. She drew her wand again and pointed it to the broken door.
"Reparo!" Harry watched dumbly as Hermione went to Dudley and cast a spell. "Obliviate minimus!" Harry recognized that as the short-term memory erasing charm. Pulling Harry with her outside the door, she pointed her wand back at Dudley. "Enervate!" Dudley stirred. "Let's go," Hermione literally dragged him back to their table.
"Where did you two go- the Ladies'?" Mr Granger had a little laugh at Harry's expense. Harry just smiled shakily, while Hermione shot her father a look. There was something very wrong with that 'episode' just now. She needed an excuse to go back to her study and do some research.
"Mom, dad, I am not feeling very well," heroine put on a show of holding her forehead, checking for a temperature. Harry thought it was a horrible display of fibbing. "Can we go home now, please?"
Her parents looked at both of them, exchanged concerned looks at each other, and then got up. "Of course dear. What's wrong?" Jane asked with motherly concern.
"I think I have a severe headache." She explained. Harry played along, still a bit speechless. He wasn't thinking straight. His head hurt and his eyes were irritating him. He took off his glasses and pressed his thumb and forefinger into his eyes, rubbing them in a circular motion.
Ron Weasley was pissed. This was the third letter Errol returned to him. Why couldn't he get in touch with Harry? Errol may not be the most punctual owl but he got the job done. That note Harry sent about not needing the tickets was driving him nuts. What did he mean by that? Everyone wanted tickets, but he says he doesn't NEED them.
"He has finally lost his last marble," Ron lamented. St. Mungo's must already be on their way to collect him." It nagged him, chewed him on the inside. The worst part is that his mail never got delivered. He could not even invite him to watch England's first public practice session in Chelsea tomorrow. His dad got them passes to get in; it was more like an invitation type thing. Well he'll just have to go with his twin brothers, and maybe take Ginny along as well. Heck she's earned it; she caught the snitch for Gryffindor to win the Cup. He remembered fondly the days after, probably the best he has ever had at Hogwarts. For the first time he wasn't hidden in Harry's shadow. It wasn't his fault, but it still irked Ron a bit that Harry got all of the attention.
At that very same moment Harry was pondering why Ron's had not mailed him as yet. He had just got back from shopping with Hermione, or more realistically Hermione shopping for Harry. She did most of the work, Harry only replying 'yes' or 'no' to her choices. It suited both of them, Hermione instinctively knowing what he liked or disliked. Hermione was acting strangely, as if nothing happened out of the ordinary yesterday at the restaurant. He tried to bring it up once but she quickly sidestepped the question and changed the subject to shopping. Harry dropped it. Some of the details of what happened in the bathroom were sketchy to him. He was on edge. The snippets he did remember were elusive, and his tryouts tomorrow were giving him some serious jitters. To pass the time he played some wizard chess with Hermione or was busy reading up on some of England's past quidditch matches. Strange enough, this would be the first time they played Bulgaria, who were runners-up to the World cup winners Ireland, even if it was the Under 21 squad. He got to know Roger Granger a little better as well. He seemed to be much more laid back than his wife and daughter. He had an easy smile and was always commenting on how proud he was of Hermione.
If my parents could see me now, what would they think?
He sighed, dropped the book on the bedside table and fell asleep. He slept fitfully, and the afternoon whiled away in a troubled blur. Hermione walked passed his door and saw him sleeping, sprawled on the mattress. She slipped in, eased off his shoes and his glasses, his hair all but hiding his scar and right eye. Pulling the sheet over him, she exited his room with thoughts of yesterday's events racing through her head. She made a beeline to the study.
The Fourteenth of July crept over the horizon with the new sunrise. Harry was still sleeping fitfully. The sheet was partially on the bed and his left leg and arm was draped off the edge.
"Harry! HARRY! " Hermione burst in. She was standing in the doorway, silhouetted in the morning light, all excitement and bubbliness. Harry forced open the eye closer to her. He peered sleepily through his hair a moment, then both eyes flashed open. In this particular light, Hermione's modest nightgown was practically transparent. He shot up and quickly looked somewhere else.
"Shit..." he murmured to himself.
"Hey, look what I've just got from Ron! " She skipped across to him, the light playing tricks on Hermione that Harry didn't want to be interested in. Harry concentrated on staring directly into her face.
"What is it Hermione?" he tried to sound casual, but all that came out was a weak croak.
"He said he was trying to contact you a few days now but his mail returned each time. So he mailed it to me instead. Do you know what this is, Harry!" she watched him, confident that what she gave him would cheer him up immensely.
"These are tickets to a Quidditch match. England vs. Bulgaria. August 28th at Chelsea Blues Stadium." Harry was looking at the ticket. It had a picture of Krum sulking (did he do anything else?) in front of his Bulgarian teammates, who all looked older than 20 years of age.
What in hell do they eat in Bulgaria?
"And look at this! He also sent us passes for England's first public training session today! I know you have tryouts today for some Quidditch team but that can wait, you ABSOLUTLEY have to come-" she trailed off. Her eyes jumped down to the passes in her hand, then back to Harry, down again, and slowly narrowed in on Harry's face. He dropped his gaze to avoid her glare, which was a mistake. Hermione was wearing tiny white panties and he was now staring directly at them. His eyes shot back up and looked at a point slightly above her shoulder.
"HARRY JAMES POTTER! HOW DARE YOU NOT TELL ME WHAT THESE 'TRYOUTS' WERE ALL ABOUT? And here I am thinking that you were trying out for Puddlemoore or something! "
"Er..well..I, um..."
She continued as if he hadn't spoken. "No. I should have known. I completely forgot to ask you about who the tryouts were for when you said you wanted to go shopping. I must be getting (she gasped in shock) ...materialistic!" She looked utterly adorable. At that point her father burst through the door looking like he just jumped out of bed, which was the most probable scenario.
"Hermione! What's happening! I heard shouti- "
She spun around and faced her father. He looked directly at her, blinking noticeably. He suddenly rushed around her and closed the blinds directly above Harry's bed, blocking the light streaming through. Harry had a spectacular view of Hermione's morning wedgie before the lights went out. Trying to save face, he made a big display of picking up the sheets from the floor just in case Mr. Granger caught him looking. Hermione gave her father a puzzled look then caught on, her eyes opening twice their size, she glanced down at her nightdress and bolted, her face flaming scarlet. Harry made a big play of not being able to see his glasses lying there on his bedside table, patting his hand on the surface as if he was nearly blind.
"Nice try, Harry." Roger gave him an 'it happens" grin, and left the room. Harry laughed out loud- he couldn't help it. The whole situation was so comical it was unbelievable. He got up, got some of his gear and went to shower, the nerves no longer biting at him like yesterday.