Fixing a small technical mistake in chapter 1:
"Well, you look like a mess."
"Thank you. Thank you very much. I accidentally flooed to Diagon Alley and you know how that place is a no-apparation zone. I've been wandering around there the entire day."
"You came to the right place. There's no better medicine than coffee."
FIXED TO:
"Well, you look like a mess."
"Thank you. Thank you very much. I accidentally flooed to KNOCKTURN ALLEY and you know how that place is a no-apparation zone. I've been wandering around there the entire day."
"You came to the right place. There's no better medicine than coffee."
Asdfasdfasdfasdfasdfasdfasdfasdfsdfsdfasdf
I'M SO HAPPY! THANKS FOR THE WELCOME BACK, GUYS! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW THRILLED I WAS TO GET ALL YOUR REVIEWS AND ALL… ANYWAYS, I'VE BEEN STALLING ENOUGH SO ON TO CHAPTER 2 AND EXPECT MORE GUSHY LOVE FROM ME AT THE BOTTOM.
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Gabrielle Weasley sighed and chugged down her ice coffee. Even though Ginny had set a cooling charm in the shop before she left, Gaby felt like she was melting under the sweltering heat. Spencer was spread out on the sofa in just shorts and a light T-shirt, his inertia helping his body cool down where on the other hand, the fidgety Gaby suffered. School was starting tomorrow but the summer heat wave had not died down.
DAMN THAT GLOBAL WARMING.
The bells chimed and Gaby looked up, her hair frazzled and skin sticky with sweat.
"Hello. I'd like a medium latte, please."
"A medium latte… sure… NOT. ARE YOU CRAZY? HOW CAN YOU DRINK A HOT DRINK IN THIS WEATHER?" Gaby cried, as the middle aged witch jumped in shock.
"I… I've always drunk a latte."
"Oh I know people like you. People who are never willing to venture into different things. You're scared, aren't you? Scared and worried. Of anything that you're not used to. You live a monotone life. And seeing that gigantic stone on your finger, you married a rich man, possibly even an arranged marriage and you've been living every day like a bloody routine. You brush your teeth at the exact same time every day. You eat lunch at the exact same time every day. You sip tea at the same time at the same day with the same people. You take your little doggie to the beauty parlor the same day of the week every month every year. You even piss at the exact same time every day, don't you? That's why you'd be crazy enough to drink a hot latte under this global warming induced sun. I pity women like you. You can't even live a decent life. Why is it? Is that what arranged marriage does to you? Did you have a secret lover before but had to leave him for that rich boring man who might even be cheating on you for a younger whore because that's what rich men in arranged marriages do. Can't you stand up a bit more for the female gender? You're bringing shame to us, you know that right? Live life to your fullest. It's not only men who can do that, you know. Hell if you live like that because you're in an unhappy marriage, and your husband is cheating on you but you can't do anything, then to hell with that. Go out and meet another young man. For a middle aged woman like you, you're actually not that bad looking and I know that plenty of twenty year olds would be looking for women like you. Go live. What can your husband do? He can't divorce you or anything because he's the one who cheats on you in the first place and he won't be able to face his parents about it because then he would have to reveal to them that he cheated on you and I'm sure there's a reason why he was hooked up with you in the first place. Take advantage of the advantages you have in life, woman. Try something different today. Why the same old latte? How do you know you wouldn't like the blended caramel macchiato freeze if you've never tried it, huh?"
By the time Gaby was finished, the woman was gaping at her, dumbstruck and Spencer tackled her to the ground.
"Gaby! Can you ever shut the bloody hell up for once?!"
"Let me go! You're making me sweatier!"
Spencer stood up, in place of Gaby and flashed the woman an overly charming smile.
"I'm very sorry. My sister has… problems. I'm very sorry; I'll whip you up a latte right away." Spencer turned toward the espresso machine when the woman stopped him.
"Wait… wait, I think I'll have the… um… what was it… blended caramel macchiato freeze."
Spencer turned again to the lady and Gaby jumped up, smiling brightly. "Coming right up, Mrs…"
"Bluegrass. My name is Melanie Bluegrass."
"Mrs. Bluegrass, if you could take a seat, I'll bring you your drink right away." Gaby chirped, jabbing Spencer in the ribs and sticking her tongue out triumphantly. The woman sat in the chair, looking slightly awkward. Gaby served her the refreshing drink which Mrs. Bluegrass took one gulp of and immediately fell into a state of uncontrollable sobbing.
Spencer ran to her table with tissues and the twins sat with her, trying to comfort the babbling woman.
Gaby patted her arm. "Mrs. Bluegrass, I'm very sorry. What I said was very out of…"
"No, no, dear, you're absolutely right. I dated my husband a little in high school but our parents liked our relationship so much because we both happened to be purebloods so they arranged for us to get married. And we weren't even thinking about that. In fact, my husband, he was just a rebound from my first love and…" She trailed off as she had another burst of tears. After a few sniffles and about a dozen tissues, she continued.
"Anyways, we got married and there was nothing neither of us could do about it. Eventually, I learned to live with it and I got used to it. But my husband… as weeks passed, he started coming home less and less to a point where I now only see him about once every two weeks. I've been having company and other women over so I won't be so lonely… but I'm almost 35 years old now and I haven't had a single child! We've been married for 15 years and… and… we haven't even made love yet!" With that, Mrs. Bluegrass threw her head into her hands.
"And my husband, I see him looking at younger, prettier women when we go to company banquets and such. But I'm positive he would never really cheat on me because Rob is really not that kind of person. And that makes me feel even worse because he's holding back so much and has to live with me for the rest of his life. And I'm getting old now and… oh… I don't know what to do. I want to make him happy but how could I now? I no longer have the same body I had in school and it just seems like my boobs are getting smaller day by day. But I just want to show him… I'm actually not bad in bed, you know. My previous boyfriends from school always told me they loved me most when we were making love."
Spencer blanched and Gaby giggled. "You know what, Mrs. Bluegrass, I have the perfect solution for you. You know, I was surprised to know that you're 35 because I thought you must be maybe late twenties, early thirties at your latest. But looking closely, your body is definitely not worth giving up. If you say your boobs got smaller, it must mean your boobs were out of this world before because well… Spencer, wouldn't you say Mrs. Bluegrass has very nice breasts?" Gaby nudged her brother who was trying his best not to mingle any longer in the women's conversation.
"Huh? Uh… yes. Very nice. Top of the line."
"See? And my brother here knows breasts best. And if you're worried that you're not a stick thin model like those pretty girls your husband might look at… let me tell you that if you put a stick model figure to a curvy model, any sane man would go for the curvy one. It just has to do with the way you present yourself. You know what, how's this. I'm going to go find you some essentials for women like you while you finish up your blend and calm down a bit, okay?" Gaby gave Mrs. Bluegrass a reassuring squeeze on her shoulders and bolted out the door into the streets of Diagon Alley. The sniffling woman watched her go and smiled slightly.
"Your sister is really a piece of work, isn't she?"
"Yes… yes she is."
Mrs. Bluegrass dabbed the tissues around her eyes and took sips from her cup.
"I can't believe I never tried this before."
"It's good isn't it? We have some more cold coffee blends on our menu."
"I've been coming to this place every week for the past decade of my life, since this place opened but I have always been served by Ginny. Do you two work here?"
"Yeah. We were practically raised here. We're Ginny's nephew and niece and since Dad is in Egypt a lot with Mom and my other uncle, Ginny took care of us and she spends most of her life in this shop."
"I wish I'd met you two sooner."
"I wish we could've helped you sooner, Mrs. Bluegrass."
"You two are simply so dear." Mrs. Bluegrass wiped more tears from her flushed cheeks. Spencer put his arm around the woman and patted her. Slowly, her use of tissues decreased as Gaby came panting in through the door holding half a dozen shopping bags.
"All right. Just know, Mrs. Bluegrass that you will be able to find these things at plenty of stores in Diagon Alley." Gaby put the bags down on a chair and took out each item one by one.
"First thing you need is a strapless push up bra." Gaby pulled out a black silky C-cup bra and Spencer's ears turned red as he began to turn around.
"Oh come on, Spence, we need your manly opinion of these. Plus, it's not like it's your first time seeing women's underwear. Anyways. Black push-up bras are especially perfect when you're wearing a dress robe. With these, there will be nothing your husband can see besides you with them when you go to banquets and such."
"Yeah… and go for a low neck, sexy yet not too revealing dress that makes your husband want to see more. Because men go crazy over that." Spencer added.
"I got you a black one, a red lacy one and a plain white one for normal wear."
"Lovely. These are lovely." The woman sized up the bras, beginning to smile.
"Next, I got you some lingerie your husband will go mad over. And let me tell you, you can't go wrong with lace. And lace underwear is usually made with high class fabric that will be comfortable for you too. So I got you some lacy boy shorts. Boy shorts fit any body figure. Honestly. You will feel so sexy in these, you'd want to drop. And a few thongs for when you wear dresses."
"Cotton underwear is a turnoff." Spencer remarked.
"Yes. As Spencer says, cotton is a turnoff. Try to stray away from those. Plus, lace or silk underwear is much more comfortable and better quality."
"Especially those neon color cotton underwear. I mean, do girls think that's cute or something?" Spencer thought out loud. (A/N: victim.) Both women stared him down.
"Anyways, I got you a silk night gown. But this is not ordinary silk night gown. It's shaped as a camisole so you can wear this without underwear and any man would die the moment they see you wear this."
"Oh and if you ever feel really adventurous, go for lace too. See through but not too see through. As I said, men go crazy over assets that they can sort of see but want to see more of."
"I think it's about time you shut up now, Spence."
"You said you wanted my masculine opinions!" Spencer exclaimed.
"Moving on. That's about all you need for lingerie. The next thing is cosmetics. Cosmetics are very specific for a certain type and color of skin so you'd have to go in yourself but I just got you a few things that can never go wrong." Gaby said, shuffling through one of the shopping bags.
"Anti-aging cream. Either you have really good anti-aging cream right now or you're not quite there yet and I'm going to guess the latter. So save this for in a couple years and once you get wrinkles or anything, apply this every night and you'll look ten years younger." Gaby then pulled out a few tubes of lipstick.
"Red and brown lipstick can never go wrong on any woman."
"Especially that reddish brown that gives you that slightly goth yet sexy come hither look. Man, that drives me up the wall." Spencer commented, opening a tube.
"I also got some fake eyelashes. I actually don't recommend using them too much but you know, if you go to a banquet or some sort of party, these will win you a few double glances."
"Just don't go freak and decide to get like really freaky colorful fake eyelashes because those are actually sort of scary. Trust me. Remember Sally Hamilton wore bright yellow eyelashes to the ball last year and her date actually ran away from her?" Spencer chuckled.
"Yes. That's true. Stick to black eyelashes."
Gaby handed Melanie Bluegrass the shopping bags and smiled. "I wish you the best of luck, Mrs. Bluegrass." She gave her a tight hug.
"Thank you so much, dear." She then turned to give Spencer an equally suffocating hug. "I don't know if I have enough words to express my thanks."
"Well, for now, take this." Mrs. Bluegrass placed a velvet pouch of galleons on the table. "This should cover the cost of the drink and all this." She held up the bags grinning brightly. "I'll come again! Take care, both of you!"
Spencer and Gaby waved her off.
"Someone's getting laid tonight." Spencer muttered under his breath.
He felt a very painful impact upside his head.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Ginny could not hear the bells from the back storage room and took a quick intake when she saw the mass of sweaty, overworked blond hair lying on her just-cleaned counter.
"Why, welcome back, Mr. Malfoy. I honestly didn't think you'd be back."
"I swear, I promised myself never to come here again. And I don't know what happened but my legs just pulled me here."
"It must be the spell Serendipity has put on you. They say once you start, you can never stop."
Draco sighed, sat on a stool at the counter and slouched. "I lasted long didn't I? How long have I been deprived of the best coffee in the world, again? Couple weeks?"
"That should be right. That must be a record, Mr. Malfoy."
"Can I have something cold and mellow today?"
"Hard day?"
"The worst. This heat makes me so sweaty; this is my seventh outfit today. And then I kept having these crazy craving for coffee and so I went to Madame Puddifoot's but it's just not the same there anymore so in the end, I decided to treat myself to something good before I go off and teach little kids some magic."
Ginny placed the coffee cup in front of him which Draco grabbed and took a large intake of, immediately blanching, dropping his cup onto the counter.
"What the hell is this trash? It's so…" Draco paused, smacked his lips, and then took another sip of his cup.
"Ravishing."
"Mellow enough for you?"
"You're a magician. You must be."
"Well, if you say it that way, I AM a witch… would you like to see my certificate of graduation from Hogwarts?"
"I forgot about that for a moment. This is really brilliant. What is it?"
"This is a lemon latte. I know you asked for cold but this makes you shiver more than any cold drink. Doesn't it?"
"That it does. What is your secret?"
"I used the plunger." Ginny replied. (A/N: She is referring to the French press, which is another method of brewing coffee and it produces stronger coffee than a drip.)
"The plunger?"
"A nice French twist. And a few exotic spices which shall not be revealed."
"Secret ingredients, eh? I see, I see. I'll get it out of you another day." Draco took another swig and chuckled.
"Oh!" Ginny looked up remembering what she had been meaning to ask. "Do you know what you're teaching yet?"
"I was told I'd be teaching transfiguration but just two nights ago, I got switched to defense against the dark arts."
"Hmm… you landed the hardest position to teach your first year of teaching. That's tough. A little advice, focus more on the books and fundamentals for the little ones and starting from maybe fourth years get into a lot of practical and the seventh years should be mostly, if not all practical magic."
Draco smiled. "Thank you. I'll do that. I don't know how I'll be able to survive a whole year. With little kids." Draco groaned.
"I love kids!"
"I hate them."
"Well then, if you ever need coffee…"
"Bloody hell! How am I going to live without this coffee?!" Draco cried, jumping out of his seat.
"Sit back down. As I was saying, Hogwarts' coffee is specially ordered from here every week. So if you sneak into the kitchen, you'd be able to make your own cup."
"Hogwarts has a kitchen?"
Ginny dropped everything and gaped at this deprived man in front of her.
"You didn't know that? I thought it was like… tacit knowledge."
"No, I did NOT know Hogwarts had a kitchen."
"Tickle the pear. That's all I can say." Ginny continued to stare at him, pitifully.
"Don't give me that look!"
"What kind of life have you known, Malfoy…?" She muttered, sighing.
"You shut up!"
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"Melanie, I'm home…" Rob Bluegrass sighed heavily, walking into the imprisonments of his home. There was nothing. Maybe she went out for tea with her friends… after midnight… or maybe…
Rob hung his coat on the coat rack and made his way to his master bedroom. The door was slightly open and the lights inside were very dim.
Very curious, eh?
The door creaked open as Rob walked in… into what he thought might be… either heaven or hell, he could not tell.
In the middle of his king size bed clad in nothing but red lacy underwear was his wife of fifteen years.
He had always known that his wife was quite voluptuous; in fact, her body was what he had been attracted to when he first saw her at school in Hogwarts. But after fifteen years of his lack of being there, he had almost forgotten. Correction, he HAD forgotten about those breasts, those long legs, her hourglass figure…
"Welcome home, husband." She whispered, smirking devilishly.
"What's with… You… what- what?"
Melanie rolled off his bed and sashayed her way to Rob Bluegrass. She grabbed his tie and ripped it off. It hurt but Rob could not feel it. His breath quickened as she tore his white dress shirt open. Her magical fingers massaged his torso.
"And how was your day?" She asked, in middle of taking off his belt.
"Well, it was ba-ahhhhhhhhh-d"
Melanie hooked her finger around one of his belt loops and dragged him to bed. Rob threw his briefcase aside before she threw him down and crawled on top of him.
"I'm just about to make it better. Can you stand it, husband?"
"I hope so." A small, delightful smile crept up on Rob's already sweaty face.
And on that burning autumn day, the stressful heat of their bodies collided. The lights flicked off, the bed covers fell, and the neighbors could not get a good night sleep at all.
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Wow I leave you guys with a sex scene. HAHAHAHA.
Anyways.
I re-watched Chocolat (JOHNNYYYY!) today and I realized that uh. This story and that movie have like. VERY SIMILAR CHARACTERISTICS. And I guess I subconsciously did that as I thought about this story. I'm sorry. If you think I'm biting off that great movie and I shall be thrown into hell, then please, feel free to bite my head off!
So WOW guys I was very very happy and I could have updated sooner because that's how overjoyed I was with all your lovely reviews and such but my internet crashed and I couldn't check to thank each of you individually because I like doing that at least after the first chapter. And note: I am only replying to my shy anonymous reviewers here because I sent replies
So here goes:
Mayura: Being caffeinated is nice, isn't it! Thanks for your review and suggestion! I'm glad you liked the start and I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!
Robin: I'm glad you enjoyed chapter 1! I would have put Draco as potions, but in the end, I thought DADA would be cleaner. Thanks for your review and I hope you liked this chapter too!
Infinitesimal-Speck mrrrg2003: I'm glad you liked the coffee blends. I just threw in some random things and hoped it sounded good. And yeah, hahahah I think I probably meant "consumption" instead of "consummation." I must have been on a coffee high. Thanks for picking that up for me! Thanks for your review!
Anna: Thanks so much! I'm usually pretty lousy with the first chapters but I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for your encouragement! Hope you liked chapter 2!
harrypotterchick4ever: Thanks for your review! After I started writing this story, I saw Draco and Ginny's separation and I was going to change his profession. BUT YOU'LL SEE HOW IT ENDS UP WORKING OUT. Haha, I actually honestly have no idea how it's going to work out but I'll think of some BS answer. Um. You see, their separation will begin to reveal their inner desires for each other. I mean, as they say, you never realize how much you love something until it's gone, right? Heh. Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!
And for the Peet's blend of the chapter:
Fair Trade Blend
…When this cooperative, which was producing to our standards more than a decade ago, became a Fair Trade affiliate, we made this clear-toned, lemony coffee the heart of a blend whose soul is assistance for small growers. Fair Trade Blend has the distinctive tang and clean character of Central American coffees- smoothed by fuller bodied coffees from chapters in Indonesia, then pointed up and finished in the Peet's roast.
AGAIN, THANKS GUYS AND REVIEW AGAIN: )