Author's Note - YAY! The next State of Origin game is gonna be good! GO MAROONS!
Oh, yeah... And I hope you like what else I've added... Hopefully another twist... and some more interest? Tell me if you like it or not! XD
Chapter thirty-seven.
"…The chosen couple are also required to share a bed and cannot live separately for more than one week a month without applying for leave, if they need to be apart for more than the allotted time for things such as work, they must first file a form for permission for the required time, which will then be checked with the appropriate employers. During the engagement period, however, the couples are allowed to not share a bed, but MUST live in the same house. Whilst one is with their chosen spouse, engagement included, cheating is not allowed. Needless to say the Ministry will know if any of these rules are broken…"
Hermione and other ladies from England, New Zealand, Australia, China, India, (wherever!) were all laying on various Muggle floating devices in the middle of a huge dam on the property. As the floaties were the property of the kids, the small pictures of fairies and dragons roamed the surface, as did many other creatures that play fought or just slept. Hermione was chatting away and getting to know the others as the boys played footy with the kids. 'Knoking' had already been played, but when the 'Wings' (snitch) had been caught they had all still felt like kicking something around. Molly and Amy, the resident cooks, were currently still cooking up a storm and grilling a sheepish Alice.
In other parts of the dam and on different parts of the property, the huge extended family that had come from all parts of the world were all catching up with each other and wrapping up presents.
"Oh, did you know? Remus and Tonks are coming today with Teddy!" Luna said, her feet and long white hair trailing in the water as the sun beat down. The 'cool snap' the Queenslanders had experienced had all but disappeared.
"Oh, that's wonderful Luna!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes closed and hair also trailing as she lay splayed across the floating device.
"Hey…do you guys know where Charlie and Charlotte are?" Varuni asked, also… Okay, they were all lying on their backs with not much out of the cool water. The day was too hot to do much else! Everyone was sweating just floating there!
"Uh…I think an Uncle Bill went to show them a nearby den of a Rainbow Serpent. But it's supposedly been abandoned because so many people live nearby."
"Lots of people? There's barely enough for it to be considered a town!" Polly exclaimed.
"Well' Hermione said lazily, 'The entire population of Australia is roughly equivalent to the outer ring of London and the inner is nearly the same as New Zealand's population…So once again, their idea of 'lots of people' isn't exactly the same as ours…"
The other girls giggled at this, but shrieked as cold droplets littered their hot skin as a whole new horde of people came splashing in.
Everyone that had just been playing footy came rushing in, the kids shrieking and throwing themselves onto the unsuspecting girls as the boys followed, laughing. Hermione gasped as she felt a ball hit her in the stomach and push her into the water. She came up spluttering and immediately zoomed in on a grinning Draco.
"Opps." He smirked.
"Opps!' Hermione shrieked, 'I'll give you 'Opps!'"
She wadded back onto shore, dodging giggling kids and others who were mucking about. Draco just laughed until he saw her mad expression.
'Merlin, she looks hot…and gorgeous and beautiful…' he thought wistfully as he watched her lean, bikini clad body moving swiftly through the throng of people. Then he remembered why she was moving swiftly.
"Oh shit." He exclaimed and took off running as a murderous Hermione followed.
One thing Draco had learned, was that when a witch was mad, leave magic out of it and you might survive. Might.
The chase was soon reduced to a hobble, as the two, who had tried to dash for the house, realised why Alice was complaining about losing the toughness of her feet. They had had to spring off huge red boulders that were emanating the heat of the sun, then tread on sharp sticks hiding in the long, dry grass and also the small sharp stones that made up the rocky surface.
"Ah! Oh! OW!" Hermione winced as she tried to catch up to Draco, who was having as much trouble as she was. He managed to make it to the steps leading up to the veranda and leaped up them in gratification, before turning around and poking his tongue out. He laughed then paled as he saw Hermione scowl before he turned around swiftly and ran to the front door. Hermione ignored the pain and quickly skittered over the pebbly surface to the house.
She made it onto the cool wood of the floor inside the house and ran down a short corridor from where she heard the soft footsteps of Draco trying to hide. She ignored the lively chatter of the portraits who were discussing a rugby series the Australians had; called 'The State of Origin' a three match season between Queensland and New South Wales. It got the competitive Aussies so riled up and excited that even the magical folk here talked about it.
There was a simple reason why Hermione hadn't been throwing hexes around and that was for the fact that she found Muggle tactics much more satisfying.
She reached the end of the small, brightly lit wooden corridor where it branched into a couple of rooms. She narrowed her eyes and turned into the room on the left, intent on doing…something… to Draco. She wasn't sure yet what, possibly a choice charm? Maybe a huge tickle fight? All she knew was that Draco was going to pay! Although the cool water had felt nice…
No! Must make Draco pay!
The room was dark, it was obviously filled with little knick-knacks and loads of books filled the walls, it must've been someone's old bedroom but was now a spare. Hermione walked over to the window and pulled open the blinds, filling the room with light. Nothing. Draco was obviously in another room.
Hermione turned to walk out but a small off-colour white book with a delicate sketching of a sleeping dragon done in black ink and animated by magic.
Curious, Hermione picked it up and peeked inside, but not before removing the impressive locking enchantment on it and light 'curse' on it to prevent anyone for reading. It was a young girl's diary; the diary of the last owner of the room, but she wasn't the Transfiguration teacher of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for nothing.
She flipped through the pages and noticed something highlighted and outlined several times on one of the pages.
TRY THIS SPELL ON DRACO NEXT CHRISTMAS…IT'LL BE HILARIOUS!
ピンクのバニースーツの変換
Hehe … Lui facia a' molto divertante!
Hermione laughed, 'This seems like something Alice would do!' she thought to herself. Suddenly Alice appeared at the door, "Hermione? What are you doing?"
Hermione looked at the petite woman with long dark hair and deep blue eyes and smiled, "Just looking for Draco, Al."
"Oh, I thought I saw him in the old Master bedroom. Have you seen Harry today?"
Hermione raised an eyebrow and sighed, it was Harry this and Harry that. She wished that she would go back to the smiling, bouncing child-like Alice, with an affinity for breaking down barriers (either cultural or emotional…or physical…Yep, that portrait door definitely knows Alice can break down physical barriers) and would write down funny spells in her diary instead of personal thoughts, instead of this lime-light, clothes and shopping…woman.
Hermione blinked and shook her head, 'Wait a minute… When has Alice been child-like or bouncy? She's always been this way… Ah well, must be the heat…' she thought.
"No, sorry Alice."
"That's okay, I've got to go out to town today, and I have to drive. Stupid Muggles! It'll take a couple of hours to get in, so I'll be back late." And with that she disappeared.
Hermione nodded absently and frowned to herself, wondering where Alice's manners were. It was usually polite to ask if someone wanted something while they were out and Alice always did… didn't she…?
On second thoughts, Hermione conceded that no, no, this was regular Alice behaviour.
She flipped to the back page where it was written in the same hand that had drawn the sleeping Dragon, "Property of Alice Fletcher. That means NO reading Draco!" Underneath it was a rough sketch of a young girl, painted with watercolours, the spaces were not filled in neatly, but off centre, giving it an authentic and naturally happy feel. The girl had the same coloured eyes and hair; a light, golden blonde and a familiar smile…
Hermione shook her head and went to put the book down when a dancing light caught her eye. Moving closer she realised a small globe, not unlike some Muggle snow globes she had somewhere, was gently turning and spinning in mid air, suspended above the shelf and reflecting the light.
Underneath was a rather odd and ancient looking symbol of a - there was a small noise from behind and Hermione swung around, her wand instantly materialising in her hand and pointed at the door. She sighed and lowered her wand as she realised nothing was there.
Briefly looking around guiltily, Hermione crept forward slowly, curiosity overwhelming. Inside this magical snow globe was a small fairy-like creature, its bright blue wings trapped within another crystal, keeping it dry as the body drifted in a sort of magical fog that supported it like water. Hermione watched, fascinated as its long golden hair drifted around its ethereal face and its cute pointed ears before flowing over the long white dressing gown it wore, which waved in the unseen and unfelt breeze.
The bright blue wings fluttered and Hermione reflexively jumped back in shock, clutching her chest, before chuckling in embarrassment and alarm as she realised it just must be another part of the enchantment on the snow globe for young magical kids.
The hair floated past the closed eyes of the floating fairy and its limbs moved softly with the current that swept through the magical crystal, almost reaching out for her.
Hermione laughed uncomfortably, before taking note of the odd symbol and committing it to memory so she could later research it and find out its meaning.
She then turned around and left the room, turning right so she could go up the stairs and to the old Master bedroom, hoping to teach Draco a lesson about getting other people wet when they were perfectly happy talking to friends.
Behind her, the ethereal fairy continued to float about, its beautiful wings slightly fluttering every now and then.