Part Three: The Gradual Melting of the Icecaps
Hermione awoke alone, thoroughly surprised that her eyes were still shrouded in darkness. She felt as if she had slept for eons, but still she could perceive no light.
In fact, she thought with an odd sense of wariness, I can’t see anything at all.
After a moment of intense panic at the idea of being rendered suddenly and inexplicably blind, Hermione noticed that she could, indeed, see something, and she promptly groaned at her own stupidity. With a sigh, she read the small tag bearing the legend, “Madam Malkin’s “ Hogwarts Collection “ Mr. H. J. Potter”, and giggled lightly to herself. Harry had tossed his robes over her head.
Casting them aside, Hermione sat up quickly and instantly regretted doing so. “Unnnhhhh,” she groaned as she squinted against the nearly blinding light. Hermione stretched fitfully, her muscles protesting after a night of sleeping on the rough stones.
“Well,” Harry called happily from across the room, “and a great ‘Good morning’ to you, too.”
She scowled at him briefly, scratching her head and yanking her clothing back into the proper places; but she quickly lost her bad mood as she saw that he was holding something out to her. A few rather large looking eggs were sizzling quite fragrantly on top of … what appeared to be … one of her notebooks. With a raised eyebrow, she accepted a notebook-plate of eggs and pencil that Harry quickly transfigured into a fork, and seated herself on the corner of Professor Sprout’s desk.
Harry didn’t bother to wait for Hermione to word her unasked question. “An experiment of Professor Sprout’s that I discovered last night during a period of … erm … insomnia,” he explained as he used his wand to levitate and flip eggs he was cooking on another notebook over a fire he had started on the stone floor. “Something about trying to cross-breed so that plants can produce eggs with … viable … something. I don’t remember. In any case, it saved our bottoms for breakfast.”
Hermione smiled briefly but scowled again as she realized that he was using her homework planner as a frying pan.
“Don’t worry,” he said, raising his hands in a show of no harm, “I placed a Imperturbable charm around the book. It won’t be damaged; I’ve just made it so that it conducts the heat.”
To his surprise, Hermione looked quite impressed. “I didn’t know that you could do those sorts of charms,” she said around a mouthful of egg. “Some of them are quite advanced. Where did you learn it?”
Harry merely smiled benevolently and said nothing.
“Well, aren’t you mysterious this morning,” she said and continued munching. After she muttered a quick “Scourgify!” to clean her notebook, Hermione straightened up and began to wander around the greenhouse in search of some occupation to keep them busy until someone discovered them.
Harry was busily cleaning up after their breakfast, and she barely noticed him come up behind her as she scanned the greenhouse. She squeaked in fright as he reached out to touch her arm and slapped him away.
“Sorry,” she muttered quickly, you startled me.
“Apparently,” he finished.
With a flush on her cheeks, she now noticed that the greenhouse indeed was quite warm. “What time is it?”
“Twelve-thirty. Give it another half hour and its going to be unbearable in here,” Harry said with a grimace.
It didn’t take even the fifteen minutes worth of walking around the perimeter that she used to occupy her to realize he was most unfortunately correct. Hermione was fanning herself with the former-frying-pan notebook as she plunked down next to Harry, who had long since stripped off his sweater and tie, staked out a spot of shade, and started drawing random pictures in the dirt. Hermione was scowling, fanning herself, and muttering about the heat when Harry finally looked up and snapped at her.
“Oh will you stop belly-aching?” he snapped. “Take something off if you’re too hot.”
Hermione looked at Harry doubtfully but made no move to comply.
“Oh, good grief, Hermione,” he spat, “your virtue is in no danger, the charm wore off during the night.”
“I wasn’t thinking about that,” she retorted angrily, but she had been. She waited a few minutes “ lest he think she was indeed worried “ and then stripped off her school robes. She was quite surprised, however, when “ after a bout of more mumbling about her heavy locks “ Harry sat up abruptly and yanked her tie from around her neck. Too puzzled to put up a fight, Hermione watched quizzically as he through the tie around the back of her neck and used it to tie her hair up off of her shoulders.
“Honestly, you are the most witless genius, sometimes.”
Stung, Hermione found herself sniffling back tears. “I am not witless,” she mumbled, trying not to sound hurt.
For a moment, Harry didn’t respond and then he said, “I’m sorry.” After another moment, he added, with more conviction, “I’m sorry, Hermione. I’m just … it’s so damn hot!”
Hermione nodded and sighed. She tugged irritably at the neck of her sweater, refusing to take off anymore than she already had. It wasn’t so much the worry from Harry, now, as the principle of the thing. She kicked off her shoes and socks, hoping this might make her feel at least a little better, and wriggled her toes in the cool mulch on the floor. Distracted for a minute or two, Hermione looked up and gasped in shock, bringing a hand up to shield her eyes. “Harry!” she cried out, scandalized.
The Effect of Gamma Rays on Two Terrifically Trapped Gryffindors. by Fenixaze
Chapter Notes: A/N - Tee hee hee ... The third installment of this cute little ditty. Enjoy