I own nothing.
Chapter 37.
The three girls finished their brunch at a leasurley pace, and then went in persiut of their other halfs. Hermione and Ginny were wondering aloud weather her brothers had manage to catch Harry, and where they all were.
The girls decided pretty quickly that the chances of them finding the men in a castle this large, with this many hidden passage ways was near non existant. So Hermione called for re inforcements.
"Accio Marrauder's Map." she said clearly, waiting for a moment, then catching the old parchment as it hurtled through the air down the corridoor towards her.
"I solemnly swear that i'm up to no good." She mumbled, before unfolding the map and setting about finding the missing men.
"The Kitchens." Ginny called triumphantly, pointing to the bottom left corner of the page. Nodding, hermione folded the parchment, and they all set of towards the Hogwarts kitches, pausing only for Hermione to tickle the pear, and pull the portrate open.
The sight that greeted the three women when they entered the cavenous room was ...unexpexted to say the least.
For one thing, Harry was still alive.
For another, the four Weasley boys, Harry and Sirius were in the middle of what seemed to be an epic food fight.
Hermione, Ginny and Fleur all watched silently, secretly amused, but not showing it. They went completley unnoticed until a large handfull of potatoes hit Fleur square in the chest.
The six men froze, looks of terror on their faces.
Hermione, Ginny and Fleur didn't move, they all just looked at Fleur's stained blouse.
"Hello love." Came Bill's nervous voice. "Please don't leave me." He begged, sounding scared.
Fleur turned to the two other girls, nodding mutley. All three women walked into the frozen battle field, aware of the men's eyes following them unncertainly.
Fleur walked to stand in front of her new husband, he seemed to cower slightly, she then hit him square in the face with a handfull of baked beans, before laughing madly and running over to take cover with the other girls behind an up turned table.
The men were all frozen in shock for a moment as beans dripped sowly down Bill's chest, and then the food fight began in ernest.
The war was mainly fought between three partys. The four weasley boy's made up one team, the three women made up another, and the remaining team was of Harry and Sirius.
The latter team thought they would win, for they had a marrauder on board. Likewise the weasley boys, with Fred and George, also thought they were sure victors. However, the three women knew that they were the soon to be victors, what with Ginny's quidditch skill, Fleur's tri wizard champion status, and Hermione's monicer of 'brightest witch of her age'. They also had the advantage of being underestamated by the other men.
Sirius and Harry were the first to fall, running out of amunition, and both were reluctant to join another team, not knowing the outcome, and so decided to continue in a spectator capacity.
Hermione managed to take out Fred, avoidding the last of his amunition, and hitting him spectacularly with a hand fill of custard to the side of the head, he screamed as if he had been shot.
Ginny then succeded in taking down George, by feighning panic, and then taking advantage when her older brother faltered, getting him in the stomach with some left over casarole.
Now it was just Charlie, Bill and the three women.
The fight lasted untill all the food was either on the floor, the walls, or covering one of the warriors. They were all covered, from head to toe. It had been decided that the remaining warriors would call a draw, much to Sirius' teasing.
Apparently a dragon tamer and a curse breaker was equall to three young women, one of whom was still under age, that had earned him some soup down the back of his shirt, curtasy of Hermione.
They all sat, filthy and exhausted in the ruined kitchens. Hermione in charlie's lap, Fleur in Bill's and Ginny in Harry's, much to her brothers dissaproval. Fred and George had then complained about feeling left out, and so had gone to sit on Sirius, one on each knee.
"Soooooo, something to tell us Harry." Hermione teased, indicating the girl he was hugging to himself.
"Shut up Mi." He grouched good naturedly, making her laugh.
"I'd say for you not to hurt her, but a) I dont think that very likley in the first place, b) Im sure her brothers have already threatened you sufficiently, and c) we all know Ginny had a mean right hook, just look at Mcglaggen." Hermione finished, grinning proudly at her young friend.
"Mcglaggen, that idiot who was in the year below us?" Fred asked curiously, Hermione nodded.
"Idiot is a bit kinder than the word i'd have used." she mused.
"He's a moronic, pig like, cheeting, lude, disgusting barstard." Ginny said matter of factly, making her brothers and sirius stare at her in shock.
"I'm surprised Mione didn't get to him first if i'm honest," Harry said, "He was a nightmare all year."
"Ohhh, I got him in the end," she grinned eavily, making Fleur and Ginny cackle, and their respective partners to shift uncomfortably.
"Mya?" George asked, sounding scared.
"Do you remeber a Marietta Edgecomb?" Hermione asked innocently, both twins grinned.
"You didn't." They said together.
"Oh yes she did." Harry and Ginny replied, grimning proudly at their friend.
"Um?" Sirius said, looking confused.
Hermione explained.
"Last year it was Edgecomb who outed the DA. She had signed her name on the contract, idiot girl, so she knew something would happen. I had hexed the paper everyone in the DA sighned, so that if anyone would give us up, they would regret it." She said darkly.
Here Ginny picked up, "Edgecomb has the word 'sneak' scarred across her face, the amount of make up she wares..." she trailed off.
"It's not my fault nobody has found the counter curse yet." Hermione said primly.
The others were now looking at Hermione, a little scared.
"And Mcglaggen?" Bill asked nervously, sounding as if he didn't want to know the answer.
"Uhhh." Hermione exclaimed in disgust.
"That idiot managed to land Harry in the hospital wing, man handle Ginny and harras me for a year, really he was just lucky I didn't snap sooner." she said angrily.
"HE WHAT." Every one exclaimed.
Ginny explained the events of the quidditch match to the avid listners, finishing with how she wished she could have finished him herself.
Fleur then turned to Hermione, "Ee was 'arrasing you?" She questioned darkly, the rooms attention shifted to her.
"It's been a common theme this year." Harry said darkly, "If i've hexed one guy i've hexed a hundred."
"And thats not to mention the amount of people the Mya and I have hexed too." Ginny cut in, grimacing darkly.
"On the plus side my wandless aim is now lethal." Hermione said, in an attempt to lighten the mood.
"I always said that boy was a pillock." Geroge intoned darkly, the others just nodded their agreement. Athough weather he was talking about Cormac or Ron, Hermione wasn't sure.
The group had all left the kitchens, and unanimously decided that they needed to shower. They had made it to the entrance hall, and were about to split teams, Hermione and Charlie to the room of requirement, and the others back to the north wing, when they heared a shout.
"WHERE ON EARTH HAVE YOU LOT BEEN? AND WHAT IN THE NAME OF MERLIN HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO?" Came the enraged voice of Molly Weasley.
The entire castle it seamed filled from Brunch, which must have just ended. Many smirking, others looking confused, most though seemed to be trying to cover their laughter.
"Blimey that looked fun." Came Dora's voice from the croud.
"Hey mum." Fred started sheepishly.
"It's nothing to worry about." Charlie cut in, Hermione nodding in agreement.
"I EXPECT THIS SORT OF THING FROM THE TWINS. BUT BILL. CHARLIE." She shook her head in dissapointment, and the group hung their head in collective shame.
"Go and get cleaned up, the lot of you." She said, before ushering the croud back into the great hall.
When the double doors had closed, everyone looked up, and grinned at eachother.
"You are all now officially weasleys." Bill said, looking and Fleur, Hermione, Harry and Sirius.
"Please leave all sanity at the door." Charlie chimed, making them all laugh.
Hermione and Charlie walked hand in hand into their room of requirement and went straight to the adjoining bathroom.
Hermione started to fill the swiming pool sized bath with warm water, and various soaps and bubbles. Charlie menawhile was pulling of his soiled clothes, bundling them into a ball and throwing them into the wash basket in the corner, where they magically disapeared to be washed.
About a week after finding the room, Hermione and Charlie had noticed a magicall wardrobe in the corner, that connected to their trunks, almost like the two way vanishing cabinet. It now ment that they alway had clothes on hand, which was useful.
Hermione's clothes quickly followed Charlie's and they both got into the steaming hot, bubbly water. Hermione sighed contentedly.
Grabbing a flannal, she went about removing all of the traces of food from Charlie's body. She then whashed him with soap, before moving to shampoo his hair. As her fingers masaged his scalp, he let lose a happy moan, his shoulders relaxing.
Once she was done they swapped, charlie using the flannal to gently rid her of any lingering food, and then washing her gently with soft smelling soap. When it came to her hair, she leaned her head back, letting the water support the most of her wight, so that her hair was submerged, and the tops of her breasts were visible peaking out from the bubbles. She washed her hair with shampoo twice, and then conditioned, before rincing thoroughly. Hermione did a quick wandless non verbal spell to rid herself of body hair.
After they were both clean they settled against eachother in one corner of the bath, relaxing in the steaming water. Hermione moved slightly behind Charlie, pulling him to rest his back against her chest. She then proceeded to gently rub his shoulders and neck. Tracing his muscules with her thin fingers, kneeding gently, she felt him sigh contentedly.
They stayed like this for a while, before pulling themselves from the sweet smelling water, to get dressed.
Charlie got out first, wrapping a towel about his hips, and using another to dry his short hair. Hermione watched a little dropplets of water ran down his toned chest, dipping between his abbs, and dissapearing into the sparce spattering of hair on his abdomen.
She grinned, also pulling herself from the bath, taking her time to fetch a towel, enjoying his eyes on her. She waved her hand over her hair, which dried into it's usual curls, she also wordlessly dried her body.
She was now dry, and therefor, she reasoned, no longer needed a towel. So she let it drop to a pile at her feet, smiling at Charlie over her shoulder before going to find some clothes.
She pulled on a deep pink silk underwear set, and then looked through the magicall wardrobe. The dress she had put on that morning was filthy, and so that was out. She opted for a pair of denim shorts. Rather short, lose fitting denim shorts. Chosen by Tonks in Diagon Alley, they reached her upper thigh, and hung losley on her curvey hipps.
With them, she pulled on a plain white t-shirt, rather like the one charlie had worn that morning. She pulled a pair of flip flops onto her feet, and was done. Not as smart as she had been earlier, but she would do.
She turned to see Charlie had pulled on a fresh pair of jeans, this time with a tight black t-shirt, her mind was fighting with itself as to weather she prefered him in black or white.
Hermione and Charlie joined the others in the north wing. They were all sitting in the common room after their showers, and having briefly visited the great hall to see some guests, deciding what they were going to do with the rest of the day, now that so many of the guests had gone.
"We could go swimming in the lake." Ginny suggested.
"I've always wanted to do that, after the whole second task thing, it would be nice to swim in the lake in the sunshine." Hermione said, Harry and Fleur both whole heartedly agreed.
"You can borrow one of my swim suits Cheri." Fleur said, smiling.
Hermione had learned that that nickname, coupled with a smile normally ment something bad for her.
"Uh oh?" She asked.
Fleur and Ginny laughed, making Hermione even more nervous.
"C'mon." Ginny said, grabbing Hermione's wrist, and pulling her towards the dormitory's.
Fleur opened the door to the room she now shared with Bill, and ushered them inside, closing it firmly behind them.
She walked over to her enormous walk in wardrobe, and proceeded to pull out swim suit after swim suit. Bakinis, tankinis, one pieces, and some that Hermione didn't know the name of.
Why on earth did she have so many, she knew she was living in Britain, right?
Fleur chose the most tiny bakini Hermione had ever seen for herself, and one very similar for Ginny.
Fleur's was baby pink, plunging on top and a halter neck, the straps were just thin ties of material.
Ginny's was essentially some triangles of material held together with string. And it was black with tiny ruffles along her bottom...
"I can't wait to see the reaction that gets." Hermione said, chuckling.
Fleur then threw her a swim suit. It was a deep plumb colour, and a bakini, but nowhere near as small as the ones the other two had chosen.
The top half had chuncky straps, and a lot of reenforcement for her amble clevage. It was sweetheart cut, and pulled on over the head, so no chance of it accidentally coming of. There wasn't much in the back, just a scrap of material running under her shoulder blades.
The bottom half was in the form of a tiny pair of what looked like knickers, but high waisted, and water proof. Skin tight, and low on her hips, they barley covered ber shapley behind, but felt more saccure than Ginny's costume looked.
She pulled her denim shorts and t-shirt on over her suit, sliding her feet back into her flip flops, and then proceeded to magic her hair into a high pony tail on her head. Curls tumbling behind her head, and a few coming to frame her face.
She did the same to Ginny's hair for her, as the younger girl fiddled with the string that was parading as a bakini strap. This could only go wrong with both Harry and her Four brothers present.
The girls each collected large towels, and in Hermione's case a book, and headed down the stome stepps to meet the men in the common room. The men had all donned swimming trunks, and their t-shirts, and were carrying their trousers and towels over their arms.
"Ready?" Harry asked, getting up from his chair when the three women arrived.
They nodded and all proceeded out of the common room, and down the three flights of stairs too the entrance hall. They noticed the great hall was empty, meaning people were once again doing their own thing about the castle.
They wandered through the sunshine, across the grounds, chatting to eachother. Arriving at the side of the lake, they all lay out their towels, setting about their various belongings, wands, books, magazines, and set about changing.
Hermione shucked her flip flops, and wiggled out of her shorts, folding them and placing them on her towel, her top following quickly. She sighed contentedly, at the feel of the hot sun on her exposed skin.
She turned to the others, taking in Ginny's suit for the first time. She cought Fleur's eye, and grinned, the french girl winked in response, coming to stand next to Hermione in order to enjoy the show.
Hermione began to giggle quietly, nudging Fleur and pointing to Harry, who was staring slack jawed at the young red headed griffyndor.
"Hey Gin." Hermione called, gaining her attention. "Remeber last summer, in Grimauld place, after you got the letter from Dean..."
"Yes." Ginny said, sounding confused.
"Remeber what I said about waiting, and realising, and growing..." She trailed off, looking pointedly at Harry. Ginny followed her gaze, and then started to giggle with the other two women.
The twins, who had both noticed the direction the chosen one's eyes had taken, went to stand on either side of Harry. Towering over him menacingly. They each grabbed an arm, and threw him bodily in the lake, making Ginny round on them, and Hermione and Fleur cling to eachother in fits of laughter.
Bill and Charlie hadn't been paying to much attention, they had been watching their partners, smiling to eachother. Both brothers were extreemly happy that their respective spouses got along so well. Seeing them laughing together, virtually holding eachother up, they both smirked to eachother evilly.
Hermione and Fleur didn't know what hit them, one minute they were laughing, and on dry ground thank you very much, and the next minute they were both flying through the air, towards the lakes surface.
Both women screamed, barley closing their mouths in time to break the face of the water. They both swam back to the top, to be confronted by extreemly innocent looking red heads. Hermione and Fleur smirked at eachother, two could play at that game.
They both walked out of the lake, slowly, sensualy, water sunning down their bare skin. They both focused souly on their partner, ignoring their growing audience as they prowled closer.
Hermione came to a stop, inches in front of charlie, she reached out a finger to trail down his chest, circling him, she stood behind him, forcing him to turn and face herm his back to the lake. She leaned in, her lips inches from his. Her eyes travelled to his lips, and she stared at them pointedly for a long moment, she saw Charlie gulp.
As if this were her indicator, she flung herself at him, being sure to take him by surprise. It worked, her wrapped his arms around her, and they both went flying into the lake.
There were two splashes, Fleur it seemed had also succeeded in getting Bill into the water. Four heads broak the surface of the water, the two men spluttering, the two women laughing. Their laughter was joined by the others, not only the twins, Ginny and Harry, but also Remus, Dora and Sirius, what had arrived at some point unnoticed by the two couples.
Charlie had grabbed Hermione about the waist again, pulling her flush against him. "Think you're clever, dunking a poor unsuspecting man like that?" He teased, purpusfully making his voice low and rumbly, knowing the affect this had on her.
She pretended to think about it for a moment, before grinning wickedly, and nodding.
Charlie growled, and proceeded to lift her bodily from the water, and throw her gently down again.
She emerged, her face spelling war, as she proceeded to start a splashing fight with him, one that was soon joined by Bill and Fleur, then the twins. They only stopped when their muscules were aching, and they decided to go an lay in the sun for a bit.
They lay on their towels for a while, switching from their fronts to their back every now and then, chatting amongst themselves.
Hermione lay back, and closed her eyes, listening to the others talk, to the birds in the forrest, she started thingking anout the birds she had created from smoak, and about Aeval. She was curious, she had used her wandless magic to creat things from the air, fire, even the earth with her flower medows, but never from water. Wordlessly she sat up, her eyes open.
She wandered over to the waters edge, the others only half paying attention to her, still wrapped in their own conversations.
She looked at the lake pensivley, deciding to try something. She waided in, until the water came to the tops of her hips. She placed her hands so her palms were flat against the water surface and closed her eyes.
Just as she had done before, she concerntrated on her surroundings, letting them wash over her, she felt something in her shift, and when she opened her eyes, she gasped.
Before her, made completley of sparkling clear water, was a swan. He spread his wings, and glided across the surface of the lake, the elegant colum of it's neck bowing towards its reflection.
The others had gone silent, now all watching her.
She concentrated again, creating numerous swans, all of whom flew in classic formation over the water.
She concentrated, creating water lilly's around her, all in delicate whites and pinks, floating on the lake's surface. She then created many different coloured smoke birds, truley wishing to test the limits of her power.
She new that sustaining this increadible level of magic, should by now have drained her considerably, but it hadn't. In fact quite the opposite, she felt the raw power and energy flowing through her, coursing in her very blood.
She didn't notice Aeval until he came to land gracefully on her shoulder, letting out a long, soothing note, that reverbarated across the water, and echoed through the trees.
The other ocupants of the castle had come to join them by the lake, and were all staring in shock at the scene before them. The vast lake transformed by Hermione's power, creating flowers and animals, song from Aeval, it was asstounding.
When she turned back to those on the bank, she bowed her head, worried she would see fear in their eyes, or worse disgust. She didn't see either however, all their faces held, all everyone's faces held, was pure, unadultarated, awe.
"Kitten, when...how..." Sirius stuttered, actually lost for words. Hermione left the water, leaving all she created there, to be examined by the eager order members, who were now all together on the lake's bank.
Hermione shrugged, sitting in front of sirius, and crossing her leggs. In her hand she created a smokey, shaggy black dog, just like pad foot. Sirius barked out laughter, and the miniture dog ran in circles, sniffing at things experimentally.
"The smoke birds, last summer, Aeval, my fire bird, then too, The flowers, you were there, playing quidditch, The snow birds, at christmas, after the snowball fights, and the water birds...just now. They dont all have to be birds though, obviously..." She indicated the dog, and created Charlie's little fire dragon, which flew over to her dragon tamer., and nuzzled his cheek clumsily, making Charlie chuckle.
The others were all watching and listening, facinated.
"Aren't you drained...shouldn't you be..?" Remus asked her.
She shook her head, "I feel fine, better than fine actually, which i shouldn't but..." She shrugged again, not knowing the answers.
Getting to her feet, she went to sit by Charlie, who spread his legs to make room for her, then pulled her back against his bare chest, his arms incircling her.
The little fire dragon landed on his shoulder, making him laugh deeply, and press a kiss to her shoulder. Aevel landed on the grass, and sat himself at her feet, a reasuring presanse.
The others had stayed quiet, all seemingly organising their thoughts, and coming up with questions to ask.
"Do you designe what you create?" asked a curious Arthur, from his seat beside his wife. Hermione pondered this, before answering.
"Not always, some times like with the dog, or the dragon, it is my designe, but other times like Aeval, it's more of a feeling..." She broke off, sure she sounded mental.
"I could try to create anything though...I guess?" she tentativley imput, waiting for a request to test her theory.
"What about a butterfly." Ginny suggested, the others nodded enthusiastically.
Hermione leaned back into Charlie, closing her eyes, concerntrating, when she opened them, a cloud of multicoloured smoke butterfly's greeted her. They flew through the group, some reached out to touch them, finding them to be more then vapour, less than solid.
"Amazing." Arthur mumbled, many agreed with him.
Hermione spent some time taking requests, a Stag for Harry, a cat for Mcgonagall, a goat for Dumbledore, who had a kankerchief knotted at the four corners, and placed on top of his head, in place of is usual wizards hat...she still wasn't sure about that one, greatest wizard of all time, but still...
For Molly, she created one of her chains, but instead of flame within each christal, she placed a miniture, indavidual flower, all in different shades and shapes. Molly loved it, and placed it around her neck after examining it thoroughly through teary eyes.
The rest of the afternoon passed in much a similar fashion, chatting, sun bathing, swimming, and the occasional mindblowing display of magic from Hermione.
They all dressed again and headed inside for dinner in the great hall, laughing and chatting happily as the escaped the sweltering sunshine into the castle's cool shade, only to be greeted in the entrance hall by a grave looking Professor Snape.