Author's Note: Summer is scorching me. This story is now being listed under humour (or I guess humor, since the website is American, I believe.) as well as romance, as I've been told it's funny. I'm not going to lie, I rather enjoy being told I'm funny. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed! If I didn't reply to your review last chapter, I'm very sorry, as it probably got lost in the depths of my inbox. I will make sure to get you this time.
Special thanks to my wonderful beta Nikki, who also named this chapter!
Disclaimer: If you're shocked that I still don't own Harry Potter, I actually feel more pity for you than for me. Oh, I also don't own music by Patrick Wolf or Bon Jovi.
The following week passed quickly for Hermione. Theodore and Blaise behaved themselves, for the most part, however they still acted badly enough to lose them the interview challenge. As a reward, the Pansy Pickers went out to a nearby town (with Luna) and were allowed to do whatever they wanted, while the Bloody Fuckers just hung around the house. She wasn't sure exactly what they'd done, but the next day she suspected there may have been some drinking involved, at least on Pansy's part.
In terms of Draco, Harry and Ron they now had a system of interaction. They would mostly ignore each other until Quidditch became a factor, in which they could become grudgingly polite. It turned out to be necessary, as they rotated the partnerships between them all to keep it interesting. Theodore was moderately easy to get along with, because when he was immensely hyper he was friendly to everyone, and when he wasn't he rarely stayed long enough to say more than a few swear words.
She found that, to her surprise, she spent an almost equal amount of time with Harry and Ron than with her own teammates. Occasionally the two would go out to play Quidditch, and soon Blaise and Draco would come out while she sat on the ground in the sun, watching, and would join the game. If Theodore was in a social mood he would come and sit beside her, though they didn't often engage in conversation for too long. Once Pansy had come out and, as they all seemed to be in jovial moods from the mixture of sunshine and exhilaration, Draco had sat out for a bit and she'd had a go.
Hermione had watched their agile figures dart around in the sky and their bubbling laughter drifted over to her. Theodore was lying back on the grass, his eyes closed, and she'd glanced at Draco, only to start when she saw that he was gazing straight at her. She stared back, transfixed with the way his skin was glowing in the sunlight and the soft strands of his silvery gold hair danced gently in the breeze.
"What are you staring at?" She'd finally mustered up the courage to ask, which was ridiculous because it wasn't as though it was a very difficult question to ask.
"You." Had been his only reply, and they'd both turned, the moment broken, when Pansy landed on the ground before them.
"You can join in, again." She'd said, holding her broom awkwardly. Hermione had wondered why she had one, if she wasn't on the Quidditch team and hadn't seem to display much interest in it, but realized that she could like flying and not play Quidditch. There seemed to be a common assumption that flying a broom meant a rabid obsession with the sport.
Pansy had taken Draco's vacated spot the moment he moved and turned to look at Hermione. "Everything I told you was true, you know."
"Sorry?" She'd wanted to sound careless, like she hadn't really noticed the girl beside her, but it had ended up sounding a bit incredulous.
"Everything I told you, that day, during the challenge…It was all true. I didn't lie." Pansy had pulled her hair over her shoulders, letting it hang in a way that almost obstructed Hermione's view of her face. "And you listened, which is more than I can say most people would do. I shouldn't have – it was wrong. To lie to you like that. And I…well, I mean I'm…"
"It's OK." She'd said, saving the other girl from the pain of uttering two words Hermione didn't think she'd heard from a Slytherin before. "I suppose I understand why you did it, even though I'm still angry about it." She turned back to her friends and teammates, high in the sky, because it was easier. "I forgive you for it."
Pansy had been silent for a long moment. "So are we…friends?"
"I don't know. Maybe. We can try again." She responded, "I might not trust you as well."
"Of course." Pansy responded, but she smiled and Hermione couldn't help herself from smiling back.
The weather had been extremely good and seemed to be a good reflection of Hermione's moods – bright and sunny. And so the week passed, a blur of peacefulness and the kind of relaxing warmth the word summer was often associated with.
That was, until Sheila and James announced their next challenge. The day itself had started out fine – she'd woken up in good spirits, despite the slight ache in her back she still had from sleeping in the car - anticipating the day's challenge and spent a bit of time mulling over what it could possibly be. Over a breakfast of French toast and orange juice –which she had cheerfully provided for her teammates – they had a semi-nice conversation, including Theodore, who seemed to be in his most normal mood to date. They walked out to the garden, which had seemed especially beautiful, and she gave Sheila and James a happy smile.
The two had what appeared to be the same white board hovering behind them that they'd had at the last challenge, completely blank. When the Pansy Pickers joined them, not long after her own team arrived, Sheila began to talk. "For today's challenge we're going to have our own triathlon!"
Hermione stared, incredulous, as James continued. "Of course, it will be smaller than your usual triathlon and, instead of having one person do the whole course we'll have one member from the team do each section. Now, look here." The board flipped over and showed a series of lines, the first one wavy, the second jagged and the third straight. "Because the triathlon is divided into only three different parts, someone on the Bloody Fuckers will have to sit this one out."
The three males looked inward to each other, but Hermione was transfixed with horror on the wavy line and didn't move. She thought that Draco gave her a strange expression, but couldn't really say, as the only thing that registered in her mind was an overwhelming panic. "The first part will be swimming for 700 meters, the second will be cycling for one kilometer and the third will be running for one kilometer."
"We'll let you go back inside for now and get yourselves organized for the next half hour. You need to meet your car out front and you'll be taken to the site for the challenge." James was beaming at them, seemingly unaware of the fact that Hermione had lost some colour. "Any questions? Alright then, we'll see you in a bit!"
She managed to wait until they were inside the house and seated comfortably on the couch before she burst out, "I can't do the swimming."
"Why not?" Blaise asked with mild curiosity.
"I can't." She tried to sound normal and conceal the fact that her voice was shaking. "I just…I-"
"Are you afraid of water?" Theodore asked with interest, leaning forward for her response. She nodded, biting her lip. "I never pegged you to be one of those. So who's going to do it? I'm rubbish at swimming quickly."
"I'll do it." Draco spoke up, watching her. "I can swim." When the anxiety on her face remained he continued in exasperation, "It's fine, Granger. We're not going to push you in there if you're afraid."
She nodded, trying to make herself calm down. Since the possibility had arisen that someone on her team would have to swim, she'd imagined herself in the water, surrounded by glowing bodies, dragging her under… It was completely irrational, she tried to tell herself, and took a deep breath, plunging back into the discussion. "Do any of you cycle? Like for a hobby?"
"I have," Blaise said slowly, looking doubtful. "But not really in the last year."
"I'm terrible at steering." Theodore said, shrugging. "I like to move the handlebars back and forth really fast and make the bike go in wavy lines. So I wouldn't be our best pick."
Blaise snorted but wisely didn't say anything. "I've never really gotten into it before." She admitted, "I didn't ever do it as a child, and never owned a bicycle. I don't know how good I could be. It looks like you're our best bet." She told the dark skinned male, "If you're willing."
"Sure. As long as I don't have to wear tight shorts." Was his reply, his white teeth flashing as he smiled.
"I thought you would like tight shorts." Theodore rolled his eyes, "You've got some pretty tight pants."
Hermione sighed, waiting for Blaise to snap something and for another argument to start, but instead he merely said, shocking Hermione with his lack of being provoked, "Who would be the better runner?"
Draco and Blaise looked between her and Theodore thoughtfully. "Theodore you run, don't you?" The blond asked, "You're fast."
"Unless he's sees a butterfly." Blaise said, laughing. "Then he might start chasing it."
"We were 11!" Theodore exclaimed, rolling his eyes. "I was easily distracted! All it takes for you are some uncommonly tight pants before you start drooling!"
"All this mention of tight pants is making me question you, Theo." Replied his amused friend, "You seem to have a rather strong fixation."
"I do not have a fixation with tight pants." He snapped with a hmph, displeased. "So am I running, then?"
"I suppose so." Draco said, "And Granger will sit it out."
Hermione couldn't say she really enjoyed that idea and something in her expression must have given that away, as Draco turned to her with his eyebrows raised. "What is it?"
"Nothing." She said nonchalantly, but he continued to look at her and so she relented. "It's silly. I just don't like being the person who has to sit it out."
"Are you still on about that stupid weak link comment?" The blond asked, rolling his eyes. "Marsha was just being her usual psychotic self, not attacking you personally. Besides, you can wait to give me a towel when I get out of the water. Then we both win."
Somewhat mollified she smiled, and then looked questioning. "I fail to see how I win."
"You get to see me shirtless, of course." He smirked cockily, making her sigh in exasperation and open her mouth to say something back, however she was interrupted.
"We should go get ready." Theodore said, looking coldly at Blaise. Apparently he tight pants comment was still with him. "Do you think we need to warm up before we get there?"
They all got up, contemplating the need of stretching as they filed out of the room. She winced slightly and rolled her shoulders as her back twinged. As she passed him, Hermione hit Draco on the shoulder. He turned to her, grimacing. "What was that for?"
"I do not want to see you shirtless." She said vehemently, slipping in front of him and out the door.
He grinned.
-
-
It didn't seem to take very long to bring them to the site of the race, however when they got out of the car she was shocked at how isolated they seemed to be from all forms of life. The setup of the course, however, was perfect. A little too perfect for her not to wonder if magic had been involved. Nevertheless, she couldn't help admiring their surroundings.
When she looked out the window and saw that they'd turned into a forest, she was very doubtful, since there wasn't a path and you couldn't really see very far ahead of you and there was no lake or stream or anything for the swimming. However when it had opened into a spacious clearing she was satisfied by what they found there. The first thing she'd noticed – not without a shiver of uneasiness – was the edge of a lightly coloured lake, which implied that it wasn't of the deep variety. There was a small dock set a bit into the water and seven orange buoys marking, what she assumed, each hundred meters. There was a dirt path that she could see, if she squinted, beginning beside an orange blob, and it circled the outside of the lake. This, she assumed, was where Blaise would begin biking. It was just on the very last turn of the curve that she could make out an orange blob that must indicate Theodore's part. The distance he would have to run looked rather daunting to her, and she was silently thankful to be sitting it out.
The Pansy Pickers were eyeing the sight impressively when they got out of the car and walked over to the small group. Sheila and James were dressed impeccably, making the odd assortment of swimming trunks, shorts and old t-shirts look even stranger. Hermione noticed that Ron was wearing swimming gear as well, so she looked between Harry and Pansy in an effort to see who would be doing which part. After taking in Harry's expression of uncertainty while he eyed up the last stretch, she figured it was safe to say that he would be running against Theodore.
"All ready for the challenge?" James asked delightfully, looking amongst the group clustered in front of him. "I understand that Hermione is the one sitting out of this challenge?"
"Yeah." She said, when no one else spoke. For some reason Theodore glanced at her and, taking in her expression, smiled briefly before turning away.
"Alright, so we're going to have you take a boat over to the other side of the lake and hand over towels when the swimmers are finished." Sheila said cheerfully, "There's nothing like a helping hand from a friend!"
The word boat made her stomach jump unpleasantly, but she didn't speak and James continued. "Now, when the swimmer reaches the other side of the lake, they must touch the biker on the hand, shoulder or back before the biker can proceed. The same rule applies for the runner. We'll come around and pick the first two up, and then bring you back to the finish line. We'll ask the two swimmers to get out onto that dock, which is where you'll start. Do you have any questions at all before we get started?"
They shook their heads, so Sheila and James began to distribute goggles and helmets where necessary. They then gave the groups a list of stretches and warm-ups to do, which Hermione dutifully went through with her team, and then they were ready. After making sure that both Draco and Ron completely understood the concept of waiting until they heard a horn to start swimming, everyone else was told to go towards a boat. Resolving not to be irrationally afraid, she tried to ignore her stuttering heartbeat.
Theodore and Blaise walked over to Draco, who appeared to be a bit nervous, and started talking quickly and encouragingly. She strode over to join them and gave him a small smile. "Good luck. You'll do fine, just don't wear yourself out at the start by swimming madly."
He nodded, though she was sure he'd already thought of that suggestion and looked seriously at her. Their other two teammates were expressing their need to go to the boat, and he said, softly, "Just sit down so you can't look over the side."
"I will." She promised and Draco watched as she hurried over to Ron, gave him a quick good luck and then followed his other teammates onto the boat. Blaise gave him a short wave and he saw Hermione disappear under the boat's wall, so he assumed she'd sat down.
He and Ron looked at each other. "I'm going to swim out to the dock." He informed the red head, wading into the water. The temperature was mildly surprising, as it wasn't icy cold or very warm. It was somewhere in the middle, so he kind of liked it.
Like Granger. A small voice said, but he barely registered the comment because of Ron's splashing entrance to the water. The dock wasn't terribly far inwards, so it took very little time to get there, even moving at a leisurely dog paddle. Actually, he decided, it was suitable for Ron to move at a dog paddle, but he had to be moving with much more elegance and grace. So it definitely wasn't a dog paddle. More of a…panther paddle. Or something.
After pulling himself out of the water he squinted slightly against the sun, trying to make out the figures he knew would be on the shore. The boat had just stopped where he knew Theodore and Harry would be dropped off, so soon they would be getting ready to go. Settling down on the rocking wood he stared thoughtfully into the water.
So many things had happened as of late. Things that made him seriously wonder about certain opinions he had. The entire pregnancy thing with Helga had terrified him beyond belief, convincing him that his entire life was about to change. Now that it was over and things were back to normal, he was left wondering what parts of his life hadn't changed yet since the end of the summer.
The most prominent thing, of course, was the tentative and awkward near-friendship that had formed between him and Hermione. There was something about her that he couldn't explain – but there was something that seemed to want to draw him to her. The way she seemed to command attention and glowed brightly amongst other people was very enticing.
The fear of water thing was extremely weird. Something about it made him want to look more in depth at her apparent terror. Maybe she could get over it, if someone helped her. He knew there were many types of cognitive therapy you could get to get over fears, and a fear of water was definitely something that would impede on her life.
"Are you ready?" Sheila's amplified voice startled him out of his musings and he jumped, slowing getting to his feet. Ron made the thumbs up and he did so as well, because he doubted they would see a sharp nod, his preferred signal. "Get on your mark…Get set…"
He leaned forward on the edge of the dock, planning to dive in and get a good start. A loud horn punctuated the silence and he launched himself off the dock in a graceful arc, dividing the water under his angled hands as he slipped seamlessly into it. He was aware of Ron's presence from the small, muted crash of water before he began to kick forward.
His head broke the surface of the water and he took a gasping breath, before submerging himself and immediately slipping into a quick front crawl, his arms driving him forwards in the lake and his legs adding speed. With his eyes open in the water he was able to see that it wasn't very deep, perhaps about 100 meters or so. What made him suspicious was that there were no fish, and the wildlife down there didn't seem to be very old. He passed over a log that had no algae, moss or was decaying even slightly.
I wonder if this lake existed before Sheila and James had a need for it. He wondered, but was struck from his ponderings when Ron pulled in front of him, alerted by the splash of water sent straight to his face. Get your head in it. He told himself, giving an almighty kick and driving his arms harder into the water, propelling his way forward.
There is no way I'm going to lose to Weasley. It's not an option. When he next looked up, he was startled by how near they both were to the shore. He could see Hermione, Blaise and Pansy waiting, though he couldn't make out any of their features. He dove back beneath the water, his hair streaming out in all directions. He didn't dare look over at Ron.
His ears vaguely caught the cheering coming from his teammates in the brief moments he was above the surface. He was grateful for the stretches they'd done, as he was sure that without them the slow burning in his limbs would be a lot more noticeable. And also painful.
The bottom of the small lake was beginning to slope steadily upwards and, even though he had the hideous goggles on, he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to scissor the water with his arms. Barely turning his head enough to take a quick breath he sped forward, driving all thoughts from his head. When his leg touched something his eyes flicked open and he was both shocked and relieved to note how close they were.
The longer strands of weed caressed his feet, though it was still too deep for him to touch the floor standing up. He cut through the water, the burning in his muscles escalating to the point where he was sorely tempted to stop.
"GO MALFOY! GO-"
The next time he breathed he heard the snatch of Hermione's voice, accompanied by an indistinguishable shout from Blaise, and he pushed on. His eyes were wide open and he could clearly see the detail on their faces, as well as the slight distance between him and Ron.
His right foot hit sand, but he kept careful note of how deep the water was and kept swimming. It would only slow him down if he tried to run through the water, so it only made sense to swim as far forward as he could. He reached that point when his right hand disturbed the floor of the water, sending an explosion of sand into his face. He hauled himself up and ran, trying to keep his legs high so he didn't fall back in, which would be embarrassing. Blaise was waiting, ready to start cycling, by the starting line and he ran straight for that direction, barely noticing Hermione in his focus. Water was pulling on his swimming trunks, but they didn't fall off, to his relief, and he made it over to his friend before Ron reached Pansy.
Blaise was hardly able to register a smug smirk when he saw Hermione's blush upon Draco's exit from the water, the liquid streaming down his hair and bare chest to the shore, before he felt a slap on his shoulder and instinctively kicked off. The steady clicking from the wheels on his bicycle set a sort of rhythm and he sighed as the speed of his travel made wind blow in his face.
I should really start doing this again. Maybe there's a local club I could join. He thought contemplatively and then smirked, No one around here wears tight enough clothing. Theodore was right on that count.
The accompanying sound of a second set of clicking reminded him of the fact that he was supposed to be racing, not thinking about the advantages of joining a cycling group, so he shook his head slightly and leaned forward on the bike, picking up the pace slightly. It would be no use to go at his full speed and be too tired at the end to keep pedaling.
Pansy didn't seem to share the same sentiment and was pedaling furiously so that they were right beside each other. Grinning devilishly he lifted his hand and waved cheerfully. She shot him a scathing look in return, which he shrugged off in favour of humming under his breath along with Bon Jovi, who he was listening to on his iPod.
Music made life better, he thought with happiness, letting his mind wander along that path for a bit. Pansy had pulled slightly in front of him, which didn't bother him in the slightest, as he could see that, while they were only halfway finished, there was a small, barely noticeable drag in her pedaling. She was already wearing herself out from pushing herself too fast, whereas while he was feeling the effects of the exercise, he still had lots of energy still left to continue on in the race.
Oh, we're halfway there. Oo-oh, living on a prayer! Take my hand, we'll make it I swear…Bon Jovi was quite good. He'd developed a particular fondness for them after seeing Harry dance around in leather trousers, singing their music. Not that anyone else needed to know that particular tidbit of information.
His mind was brought back to that day – it was such a good memory. Even thinking of it made him want to start blurting things out and revealing details about conversations that, really, weren't finalized and shouldn't be discussed. And then the music…Music was passion. You let it grasp your soul and then it took you to other places, no matter what situation you were in. It expressed feelings better than any words or actions ever could. The moment when his heartbeat blended seamlessly with the song and his entire body and soul felt the music was the best sensation he'd ever experienced in his life.
He was getting closer and began to pick up his speed, pedaling faster until he and Pansy were right beside each other, and then he was pulling up in front of her, hardly aware of their positioning. His breathing was coming faster and his legs began to burn, but he paid no attention to that, instead pushing himself harder.
With a mild spurt of happiness he recognized the opening cheer to the song The Magic Position, which he completely adored, and unconsciously began to pedal in time with the fast violin that was pounding away in his ears. He could feel his head start bobbing and knew he probably looked ridiculous, yet couldn't help himself from moving to the beat of the song.
That was the picture Theodore saw as Blaise began fast approaching and he felt a moment's exasperation before he prepared himself to start running. The tires dragged on the ground with a crunching noise and he heard Blaise jump off, before someone hit him in the middle of his back.
With a burst of speed he took off, his heart beating faster already from anticipation. Bringing an iPod – he'd discovered in his room a basket identical to what his friend's had received and inside he found everything that they'd been given, all of which he had no idea how to use and coloured the same deep red – was a good idea and he regretted not thinking of it himself. But then, he didn't have the same connection to music that Blaise did, so hearing a few notes strung together and singing that was hardly passable didn't really give him the same amount of strength it did to his friend.
Glancing swiftly backwards he guessed he'd run about 300 or 400 meters already, so he dropped the pace to a face paced jog and not a full on sprint. Harry was a couple of feet in front of him, even though Pansy had arrived several moments after Blaise, which he disliked not only because he hated being last, but because he didn't like the sound of his competition's heavy breathing.
He looked to the lake, which was probably not the best move since he should be concentrating on running and not losing to Harry, and saw that the boat had picked up the others and was just pulling up to their destination. The moment it took to take in his surroundings slowed him and he watched his companion gain more distance. Still, though, he hated not knowing what was going on around him and couldn't have resisted the temptation of a quick glance.
Gritting his teeth he forced himself to acknowledge that it would be stupid to go faster for the simple satisfaction of getting ahead, as he would likely fall behind again and not have the energy to keep going. Patience was a virtue he lacked and he was forced to consent to being in last. Perhaps to someone else it might not have mattered that there were two of them and only one could win, which immediately set the position of the other, but to Theodore's relentless desire to win it was nothing.
His breathing was much more erratic now and his lungs felt like they might be on fire, a feeling that got on particularly well with his calf and thigh muscles. From the sudden change in Harry's quick speed he guessed that this feeling was shared and, with bitter irritation hoped that Harry's impulsive dashing would cost him dearly later on.
They were now close enough that he could make out the figures of their awaiting companions, as well as the occasional jump and insane movement of flying limbs. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes he flexed his right hand, which had been quite tense in its fist, and then picked up his speed ever so slightly so that Harry might not pick up on it and go faster as well.
He was slowly gaining on his competition, however his footsteps must have served as some sort of alert because Harry began to run faster now. And damn, he was fast. Letting out a growl he took another step and then began to sprint full out, a few hundred meters before he'd planned. For a minute or so the happiness that accompanied the release of his tension filled him, and then he began to curse himself for running this way, as now he had to sustain the speed for a lengthily distance when he already wanted to stop and drop to the ground.
By now the faces and cries of his friends were quite distinguishable, which gave him the wild desire to stop in his tracks and cross his arms defiantly over his chest. He hated people who tried to encourage him. If he was going to do it, he would do it. If they thought that because they were expressing to him that they wanted him to do it, it would somehow give him the energy to keep going, they were sorely wrong. And also stupid.
Potter. Will. Not. Beat. Me. The same words beat over and over in his head, the same way the beat from Blaise's music had, the same way Draco's determination and focus overrode all other senses and the same way Hermione's emotions flowed throughout her body. The centimeters separating their bodies grew into inches and then he could no longer see the Gryffindor in his sight, and soon the hoarse cries of his housemates were unbearably close. His harsh breathing, aching body and annoyance at their cheering disappeared as he passed the pylon marking the finish line and found himself encircled by three other people.
"Good job!" Hermione called out happily, whilst Draco clapped him heartily on the back and Blaise pulled them all into a hug, the purpose of which Theodore suspected was more to connect Hermione and Draco than out of a sense of team unity.
"And the Bloody Fuckers are the winners!" Sheila called out, which he barely heard over the babbling from both teams.
"Walk it off. Just walk it off." Blaise was informing him, pushing him slightly so he would begin walking and clapping him on the shoulder. The separation from other bodies was highly relieving and he bent over for a moment, sucking in air, before starting walking in circles. The fire in his lungs was receding rapidly now that he'd stopped and he was suddenly desperate for water.
"Here." Harry came over and offered him a water bottle, an identical in his other hand. "Nice race."
"Sure." He said, but accepted the bottle and gave a nod in return. Hermione wandered over to talk to her friend, which gave him the perfect opportunity to leave and continue his small stroll, trying to calm his raging heartbeat.
Draco stood off the side, toweling his hair dry and removing any remaining droplets of water from his skin. He seemed in a charitable mood and had perhaps forgiven Pansy, as they were in a conversation. Blaise was talking to Ron, who let his own hair remain wet and had his towel slung over his shoulder. As though sensing his gaze, the Slytherin looked over and grinned, waving while he twirled one of his headphones in his right hand. Hermione was grinning at Harry and the pair was walking in slow paces to help him cool down. Both were perfectly at ease and there was a casual air about them.
The sight of such a natural, easy group of people made him wonder if there would ever be a place he could seamlessly fit into.
-
-
Hermione's team arrived back at the House with happiness. They'd won the challenge and, as a reward, were being given an excursion to a nearby beach and some time to look around shops near that area. She was quite certain she'd never seen an expression of such pure joy than on Blaise's face at that moment, at least until Harry had pulled off his shirt a few moments later to replace it with a new one.
They'd been given fifteen minutes to get back, change and meet out the front of the House to depart for their destination. She'd been mentally going through her list of bathing suits in search of the one that showed the least skin and, upon their arrival, she jumped from the car.
"Hey, Draco, could you bring your mother's ointment stuff?" Blaise asked as they hurried inside, an eager light in his dark eyes.
"Hey, Blaise, could you not wear your speedo today?" Theodore mimicked his tone, rolling his eyes and pushed open the door to his room.
"Only if you promise to wear yours!" He winked and darted into his room, ignoring the middle finger Theodore directed at him. "See you soon!"
"I'm having a…" The closing of Theodore's door prevented them from hearing the rest of the sentence, which could have been a good thing, if the dark expression on his face anything to go by.
Something in the way both Hermione and Draco stood awkwardly made her feel obligated to say something, so she said, quickly, "Good job on swimming. See you in a bit," and quickly disappeared into her room.
Even hurrying, Hermione was almost late. She'd ended up wearing her red bikini, her favourite as it didn't have string in the place of straps. It also wrapped flawlessly around her neck with a halter, and therefore could not come untied. She obviously wasn't going to go swimming, but she could lie there. On top of that she wore a pair of black shorts and a t-shirt and inside her bag she'd shoved a blanket, sunscreen, water and her camera.
Theodore's hair was dripping when she arrived, so she assumed he'd either had a shower or had sweated so much his hair was soaked through. The previous was more likely. Blaise's hair was also wet, however it was tousled and looked like it had been toweled dry. The males were all dressed in swimming trunks and Draco was already applying copious amounts of sunscreen to his arms, legs and face. Blaise grinned at her, his angular face alight with happiness.
"Not a moment too soon." He said as their car pulled up in front of them. They climbed in the back, as it appeared they would be driven to the beach, and she relaxed comfortably in the seat.
"That was actually sort of fun," Blaise said thoughtfully, after no one else spoke. "The whole cycling bit, really. I thought of joining up somewhere for it."
"It was fun to beat Potter," was Theodore's heartfelt response, complete with sarcastic edge and slight glare at his friend. Apparently he was still sore over the tight pants thing.
"I'm sure Granger enjoyed handing me a towel." Draco said, smirking devilishly at her.
She narrowed her eyes, clearing letting him know that if they weren't separated by Blaise, she would punch him again. "I did not enjoy handing you a towel."
"If you want," he offered generously, "We can relive that moment. I'll come running out of the lake and you can ogle my body whilst holding out a towel for me."
"I did not ogle your body." She protested and ignored the small noise she heard from Blaise that showed he didn't agree with that statement. "Fortunately, Malfoy, I'm not attracted to scrawny ferrets."
She looked out the window, a smile playing on her lips as she tuned out his squawks of protestation, or at least until Theodore forcibly hit him and told him to shut up, at which point a contemplative silence filled the car.
They arrived shortly after and piled from the car, her bag slung over her shoulder as she surveyed the beach. It was packed full of people on blankets, people playing with beach balls, people in the water, people tanning and a lifeguard perched atop a tall wooden chair, who seemed to be of particular interest to Blaise, if the look the dark male shot over his sunglasses was any indication.
They found an empty spot after walking over the hot sand and she laid out her blanket, before settling down on it and digging out her sunscreen. Her teammates had mirrored her movements and Draco was now busy applying another layer of sunscreen on himself, while Theodore laid back and closed his eyes, appearing to all eyes completely asleep. Blaise made a rather dramatic show of taking off his shirt and stretching, which drew the attention of a large collection of girls on the beach.
"What are the chances of that lifeguard being gay, do you think?" Blaise asked her, leaning back on his elbows. He was so intent on staring deliberately at the subject of his question that he was almost hit in the face with the container Draco threw at him. "Oh, thanks."
The sun was beating heavily down on her, sending waves of warmth through her skin and, while she had to squint behind her sunglasses, she was happy. Despite the rather large grouping of dark water in front of her, all around her there was sand and heat and also, she couldn't help taking a second look, a few attractive males.
"Hey, Hermione, do you have a problem with your back?" She snapped to look around at Blaise, who grinned rather wolfishly in understanding.
"Er, well it sort of hurts." She replied, shrugging. "It's not too bad, I think it's from the car."
"Use this!" He handed her the jar and its familiar vanilla scent made her smile.
"OK, thanks." She opened it and then paused, contemplative. She would probably need to take her shirt off, which she'd been hoping to avoid doing.
"What's wrong?" Draco asked and she realized she was staring into the jar. "Are you still thinking about me?"
"I do not think about you." She retorted quickly, frowning. "I'm pausing in…thoughtfulness." He snorted and she glared defiantly at him, before reluctantly pulling her shirt up and then stopping halfway. Quick as a flash Blaise reached over and drew it right off and she gaped at him. "Did you just – how many times have you done that?"
He grinned, throwing her shirt back to her. "I've become quite good. Practice makes perfect! Do you need some help?"
She hesitated. On the one hand, she couldn't exactly reach the middle of her back, but on the other, that didn't mean she wanted someone else's hand there.
"Trust me," he took the jar from her hands, "I get nothing off this." He'd barely made contact with her back long enough to put some of the ointment on it when he stopped, jumped to his feet and said, "I find myself otherwise occupied, unfortunately. Draco will do it!"
The two (Theodore had yet to move) watched as he strolled over in the direction of two guys playing football, and then simultaneously turned to look at each other. Her face was flushing for reasons unknown to her and she avoided looking into his eyes. "It's alright, I can get it." She made an unfortunate attempt at moving around the lotion, but it was to no avail.
"I'll help." Hermione jumped as he moved closer and moved to sit behind her, his breath now caressing his shoulder. "Where's the jar?"
Shivering she handed it to him and, when he began to smooth it over her back, fought very, very hard not to sigh and lean back into him. For awhile there was only silence and a slightly uncomfortable tension in the air, full of feather light touches and a cool feeling spreading over her lower back, tinged by the odd spark of electricity. That hadn't happened the last time she'd used it, but she figured it was probably a new jar or something.
"Hey, Granger?" Draco asked softly behind her and her skin tingled from the sensation of his breathing over her neck.
"Yeah?"
"When did you become afraid of water?" His voice was so quiet she doubted Theodore, who lay not far from them, could hear.
"Er…" She struggled hard to concentrate and ignore how relaxed he was making her. "The end of last year."
"Do you think you could get over it?" He asked softly and she resisted the urge to turn and look at him, wondering about his expression. His voice sounded quite different from what she was used to and she found her mind drifting slowly as her eyes fluttered closed.
"Maybe." Was all she replied and for a moment it seemed as if he'd come quite close, as the pressure from his breathing suddenly increased on her neck, but when he next spoke it was at the same distance it had been before.
"If we offered to help you, would you accept?"
Hermione thought about the nightmares and the therapy and the glowing bodies and the total terror at being pulled under, and shook her head. "I don't think it would work." Her voice trembled every so slightly, which she told herself was from the memories.
"We can work on it." He informed her, his hands pausing. "We'd all help you."
"We could try." She said finally, feeling disappointed as he pulled away and moved back to the spot he'd been in before. The sunglasses he wore prevented her from seeing his eyes, but his lips were twisted into a small smile and he nodded at her. "All done." Hesitantly she smiled back.
Blaise was now being taught how to kick the ball, which he seemed to be enjoying, if the fact that he was steadily moving closer to the unsuspecting male was any indication. He glanced back and saw them, grinning.
When he used that smile, sometimes Hermione wondered whether she was being incredibly oblivious.
Author's Note:
Anonymous reviewers (skip over if you aren't one.):
katphoenix: I got your review for chapter 21, however I thought it was for another story so I didn't make a note of it in the last chapter, and since it was anonymous I had no way of replying to it! Sorry it's taken so long to reply. :) Haha. If you love my music, you're good in my books. I like that song by Carolina Liar! Thanks! You say your birthday is in August – happy belated or happy early birthday! :) That quotation is my favourite thing in life right now. I am dead serious. ;) I'm glad you're enjoying!
Don't Trust The Silver Eyes: Haha, thanks! I do that too! I just be very, very quiet and they don't realize I'm still on the computer, reading.
Embir_Lily: I'm glad you're liking the story! :) To be honest, I haven't really decided who wins yet…xD.
miss mimi94: Thanks for reading, and also for saying I'm funny (which I think has quite significant effects on my comedic ego. xD). I have proposed a Draco POV to everyone else, and I shall see if I can do it!
LucytheReviewer: Thanks for reviewing! 'Theodore is a freakadore' is possibly the most delightful thing I've ever heard. xD. I would kind of like to use that word in the story. xD. It brings me happiness!
Author's Note: So I recently got a review from a certain miss mimi94, requesting a POV from Draco. I might not be a whole chapter, but it would be more significant than what was in this one. Is anyone else interested in that? As well, I am putting up a new poll in regards to this story and the relationships in it, so I would dearly appreciate it if you would go vote!
One last thing! As my birthday happens to be this Wednesday (August 19th) I would also appreciate it if you would…
Review review review!
Also, Big Brother watchers, thoughts on Ronnie? The other house guests? I personally like the Russell/Jeff/Jordan alliance. I also liked Casey!