A/N: This month's Roll-A-Drabble over at the Haven has presented you with this lovely little tale. I swear if I never have to write a creature fic again it will be too soon.
This month I was assigned Oliver Wood and Creature. I am saying this now, this is not a true blue creature fic. I've never written a creature fic because it is not something that I am interested in and I'm only writing it because that's what the dice said I was writing. Please don't hate me if this isn't what you were expecting.
This little drabble was beta read by the wonderful GaeilgeRua and alpha read by SquarePeg72. Both are wonderful, please go show them love!
Title: Good Timing
Rating: K
Pairing: Oliver/Hermione
Summary: When a potion goes awry and the Fat Lady changes the password to the corridor, an unlikely pair has to work together.
Check me out on social media if you enjoy my writing style! I hang out under my penname all over the place.
Hopefully I didn't screw things up to badly! Be sure to let me know what you think!
Love always,
~starr
Hermione stuck her head around the corner, and her eyes darted between both sides of the hall. So far, so good. She hadn't seen anyone roaming the corridors, so there was a chance that she could make it back to the Gryffindor common room before anyone saw her. She was already aware of how silly she looked, and she didn't need anyone else to tell her.
"I can't believe I did this to myself again," she mumbled under her breath as she slowly made her way down the corridor. "I know I have cleaned that damned cauldron out so many times. I just wish I knew how this kept happening."
When Hermione had been within steps the Gryffindor common room, she heard the loud thud of footsteps coming down the corridor. Inhaling sharply, she ran as quickly as she could across the hall and hid behind the pillars. She closed her eyes and hoped that she had gotten away before she had been spotted.
"What's the word again?"
The voice sounded familiar, and Hermione peaked her head around the pillar. As her eyes rounded the corner of the pillar, she noticed Oliver Wood standing in front the door carding a concerned hand through his hair. She laughed quietly to herself when she realized what was causing him trouble.
The Fat Lady had decided this morning to change the password because she was bored with the current one. Unfortunately for the students who lived inside, she didn't make a point of telling them that she had changed it. In fact, she had been having a good laugh at their expense because they weren't able to get inside.
Hermione had overheard the password when Harry and Ron had tried to get inside earlier, so she wasn't worried about getting in before this whole ordeal had happened. She wasn't sure that the Fat Lady would let her in in her current form. She was probably going to need help. Glancing up at Oliver, Hermione took a deep breath and slowly made her way out from behind the pillar.
"Oliver," she called, but it seemed like he didn't hear her, so she called to him again.
Furrowing his brow, Oliver had heard a faint noise calling out to him. He looked around the corridor but didn't see anyone coming his way. "Is anyone there?"
He was met with the faint noise calling out to him again. "Why is someone meowing at me?"
"Meowing!" Hermione shouted, only to chastise herself when she realized what good yelling in her current form would do. Hanging her head, Hermione walked over to where Oliver was standing and called to him once again.
Surprised by the sound, Oliver looked down and noticed a small calico cat standing at his feet. He leaned down and picked the small cat up. "Well, hello there little one. I think you might be a bit lost."
The cat shook her head and meowed at bit at him. She pushed her paws into his arm until he decided to put her down on the ground. The only way she was going to get out of this mess was if they went and spoke to someone immediately.
"Okay, I've put you down. Now, what do you want?" Oliver asked, crossing his arms over his chest. The cat meowed at him a bit before starting to walk down the corridor. Once she was a few steps away, she looked back at him over her shoulder and stopped until he began to follow her.
Oliver followed the cat everywhere that she led until they arrived at McGonagall's office door. He looked down at the cat puzzled, but sighed and gently rapped his fingers against the door. A few moments later, the door swung open.
"Mr. Wood, can I help you with something?" she asked, holding the door open.
Oliver leaned down and picked up the cat from the floor between them. "I'm not the one who needs help. I think this cat does though."
McGonagall reached out and took the cat from Oliver's hands. She looked at the cat for a few moments and furrowed her brow. "This cat seems to have the same coloring as Ms. Granger's cat, Crookshanks, but there seems to be a bit darker coloring here." When McGonagall mentioned Hermione's name the cat began to purr, which led McGonagall to smile. "I think I know what's happened here."
"And what's that, Professor?" Oliver asked, confused by her sudden smile.
"One moment," McGonagall replied, closing the door in Oliver's face.
He heard a few sounds coming from behind the closed door, and he heard McGonagall whisper a spell, but he wasn't sure what exactly she had said. Within a matter of moments, he heard another voice on the other side of the door. He crossed his arms over his chest and waited impatiently for it to open once again.
Slowly the door re-opened, and instead of Professor McGonagall standing on the other side, Hermione's smiling face was standing in front of Oliver. She closed the space between them and wrapped her arms around his neck squeezing him tight.
"Thank you so much for helping me!" she said as she pulled away from him. She glanced back over her shoulder and smiled at McGonagall. "Thank you too, Professor."
"Do I want to know what happened to you today?" Oliver asked.
"I don't think so. Would you like some help getting into the common room?" Hermione asked, smiling nervously.
"Yes, please. I can't believe she changed the password on us again," Oliver grumbled, carding a hand through his hair.
"Well, after my potions mishap this morning, I wasn't sure how exactly I was going to get in either," Hermione replied with a laugh.
"I guess we both just happened to have good timing this afternoon," he replied with a shrug.
"I guess we did," she mused, interlocking her arm in his and making their way down the hall and back to Gryffindor Tower.
