Author's Note: The show's almost over. Just a couple more chapters and this baby will be done. And I'm wondering if I've lost my beta reader. MushyPeas, where art thou? This is an un-beta'ed version so please pardon any grammar issues and the like. Thanks to those who waited so patiently. I only hope that this chapter is satisfactory that you will continue your patronage. Enjoy! Feel free to leave your cheers and jeers in the review section.
Disclaimer: HP belongs to JKR. I'm just borrowing some ingredients to make my latest version of Bloody Mary. Cheers!
If You Believe - The Gryffindor Roar
7:30 pm
Harry and Hermione both Apparated to the reserved hotel room at the same time. Harry sat on the massive bed that lay in the middle of the room against a wall and nervously looked around.
"Wait here a moment again while I go see how things are going on the other room. I'll tell everyone that the stripper is here and I'll come back to get you when we're ready," said Hermione.
"I… how long before your call me?"
"Err… Not long, so don't you even think about disappearing on me. I'll hunt you down, Harry," she threatened.
Harry nodded as he watched her leave. When she was gone, he let himself fall back on the bed and stared at the ceiling. He took several deep breaths as moments passed. It was definitely now or never. And he had no way of backing out now.
He closed his eyes and strained his ears to hear what was going on in the other room. He heard an odd mixture of giggling, fawning, shrieking, and other gibberish that he could only associate with women talk.
More moments passed by and Hermione still wasn't back. He wondered if perhaps she had forgotten about him and decided to forego his assigned task and moved on to something else for entertainment.
But it was too much to hope for, he soon realized, as he heard the door connected to the other room, slowly open. Hermione's red face peeked from behind it and she smiled nervously.
"Um… Hey… We're ready for you."
'But I'm ready for the rest of you lot,' Harry thought to himself. He got up nervously and walked to the table where the bottle of potion lay. He popped it open quickly and gulped the liquid swiftly down his throat. He closed his eyes for some time as he anxiously waited for it to start taking effect.
After thirty seconds, he opened his eyes and looked at the mirror directly in front of him. An oddly familiar face stared back at him and his body felt like it was ready to dance and strip for the world. He saw himself and yet he felt like he was seeing someone else.
"I'm screwed. By Merlin, I'm utterly screwed," he mumbled.
*
Hermione quickly retreated back to the room where the other women were gathered. She motioned for Luna to get the music started as she took her seat next to Ginny. Ginny grabbed her hand and leaned over to her, whispering, "So who is it, Hermione?"
She blushed and kept her gaze down on her hands. Meekly she replied, "It's a surprise, Gin. It's…a good surprise."
Ginny just looked at her questioningly but soon directed her gaze toward the door that was slowly opening. The music was getting started and she felt herself unable to wait in finding out who Hermione procured as her stripper.
She gasped as the door opened fully and a tall man dressed in a sexy tuxedo strode out purposely. He looked like…like…Harry? It can't be! Ginny immediately turned to Hermione who incidentally was busy turning red and looking down at her shoes. "Hermione…Um…Harry? I mean…It can't be him. Polyjuice, right? It can't be because he has no scar either."
Hermione fidgeted and smiled nervously at Ginny. "Don't ask silly questions. Just enjoy the show, Ginny."
The music soon began as the hoots of the gathered women chorused. They definitely appreciated the piece of wizard that Hermione had gotten. He hasn't even taken off his shirt yet and most of them wanted to take him home already. If he was fashioned after the famous Boy-Who-Lived, the very same one who has graced the covers of Witches GQ several times (quite reluctantly, Hermione remembered), who were they to complain? Besides, it's not like they weren't eager to see what the prized wizard might have underneath pieces of cloth, even though he's not the real thing.
'Women and their rabid imaginations.' Hermione reddened as she realized that Harry cocked an eyebrow at her direction then started fingering the collar of his shirt. 'I hope Ginny enjoys this as much as I do. Just let them keep thinking it's someone else other than Harry.'
Harry nervously smiled and tried to move in tune to the music that was playing as best he could. It was hard to dance and think about stripping his clothes at the same time. If he had a choice, he'd just dance the night away without shedding a thing. At least, he'd still be dignified somewhat.
Then he saw how his hips were moving. They were gyrating.
Dignified flew out the window.
He dared a look and found Hermione's blushing face.
'I have no idea what the hell I'm doing.'
And yet, for some odd reason, his body did. He realized that as he strode out purposely with great confidence in front of the witches with seemingly lecherous faces. 'They're going to eat me!' his mind panicked.
Harry, or his body rather, soon found its way to Ginny and he found himself leaning over here and bracing his arms on each of her sides. 'Oh what the freaking hell am I doing now?!' He didn't have to wait long for the answer as he soon felt his body dip lower and playfully arch forward, as if submitting itself to the engaged redhead, like a cat aching to be stroked by its master. 'Oh geez, oh geez, oh geez!'
"Grooooooooooowl…," a deep male voice said demurely against Ginny's ear. Or was that him? 'Oh dear Merlin… Hermione, I'm going to make you pay for this!'
Despite the tumultuous thoughts his mind had, his body betrayed no hints of panic or reluctance. His body carried on as if it had its own will. Harry figured out that this was the modification that Hermione was talking about.
Instead of Polyjuicing him, Hermione thought it best to go as the Harry Potter, where she deduced that every witch there would believe that it was anyone but him and just assume it was Polyjuice. Although he seemed very reluctant after she explained it to him while they were at her flat, he finally relented. After all, who was he to argue with the brightest witch that Hogwarts has had in ages? It was clever of her, after all. Plus, he and Ron knew better really than to argue with Hermione. That, and she also dangled the rare card he sought.
'Damn her.'
Harry decided that he could curse her later. Right now, the only thing he could think of doing was possibly never speaking to her ever again. The downright embarrassment he felt was quite overwhelming and enough to last him a lifetime.
Suddenly, he noticed that his hips were coiling quite a bit more than before. His eyes bulged as he felt himself rub a bit closer against Ginny's body. Better yet, the middle part of his body against hers! He was surely redder than any apple now!
Hermione's eyes opened wide as she noticed how close Harry was against Ginny and Ginny did nothing to dissuade him. In fact, Ginny seemed more than welcoming at the gesture. Horrified, Hermione could only gasp as she saw Harry's tongue snake out from his mouth and lick his lips slowly as he lecherously looked over the bride to be. That same tongue darted out playfully over Ginny's nose, almost touching it before it drew back inside Harry's mouth.
"Oh my God, Ginny!" Parvati squealed.
'Oh my God, Harry!' Hermione mentally screamed.
"Ginny, share some of that hunk, will you?!" Alicia whined from across.
Ginny reached up and playfully ran her hands over her stripper's broad shoulders and then down over his chest. "Hermione, it's too bad I'm only getting married once. Loverboy here shouldn't have to perform for me only once in my lifetime."
Hermione gulped and bit her lip, fighting the sudden wave of jealousy that washed over her. Ginny liked her stripper a little too much and Hermione couldn't really do anything about it except watch. Even though she was jealous, Hermione couldn't turn her eyes away from Seductive Harry. Neither could the rest of the suddenly seemingly wanton women in the room. Her eyes felt like they were permanently glued to his fixture.
Harry slowly retreated back from his alluring position and placed his hands back by the flaps of his tuxedo coat. Gingerly, he slid the flaps of his coat open and slowly splayed the coat off his shoulders and then over his arms. With playful carelessness, he tossed the coat over to Hermione before sauntering (yes, sauntering) back to the middle of the room.
'Mum, wherever you are, I'm so sorry that you had to see your only son in this sorry state.'
The rest of the women reacted quite favorably as he settled on a wooden chair in the middle of the room. He slouched down really low on the chair and palmed his hands upwards from his tapered pants to his chest in a very deliberate motion. His hands met at the top of shirt where they started unbuttoning the crisp white top he wore. A minute later, the shirt was completely unbuttoned and parted to reveal a lean, sculpted chest.
"Merlin! If Harry's chest is anywhere near that beautiful, I'm afraid I'll be tempted to ravage him next time I see him!" Angelina managed out.
"You're married!" Alicia shot back.
"So are you and you're drooling!"
Laughter rang out in the room but soon dissipated as Harry parted his shirt completely open, revealing the breadth of his chest. Carefully the shirt slid down over his shoulders, down his arms, and finally got caught on his wrists were the cuffs remained buttoned.
"I sure hope you have a business card, 'Harry'!" growled another female spectator. "Do you take GalleonExpress?"
"Are you busy after this? I'd like to schedule a private session once Ginny's done with you!" exclaimed another.
Hermione was now slowly regretting her decision to ask Harry to do this. Greed and wanton emotions flooded her as her eyes stared shamelessly at her best friend's chest. She suddenly wanted everyone else to disappear and wanted him to herself. Forget entertaining Ginny. No one else should be seeing him in this manner.
Except her.
A hand touched Hermione's arm and she blinked back to her senses. Ginny leaned close to her with a wide grin on her face. "Hermione, if I was you and if the real Harry's anywhere as ravenous looking as this wizard you got for me, I'd forget all my 'best-friend' notions of him, drag him to the nearest private place I can find, and let him have his way with me."
Hermione couldn't have stopped the blush that overcame her again even if she tried. "Um…hot, isn't he?"
"Let's just say that Draco should be thankful that he already got me to say 'Yes' to him."
Hermione was about say something when Greek-god-Harry-with-the-sexy-chest stood up and danced his way to where she and Ginny sat. He then extended a wrist to Ginny and the other to her, silently pleading them to un-cuff the shirt off him. With excited glee, Ginny grabbed the right wrist and did as asked in a second. Hermione, on the other hand, was so nervous with her task that it took her almost ten seconds to get it unbuttoned.
Just as Hermione drew her hands back, warm strong hands captured hers and pulled them forward. Hermione's eyes widened as Harry drew her up and placed her hands over his now sweaty chest. Hoots rang around her as Harry guided her hands in exploration over his chest.
"Can I be next?!"
"You go, Hermione!"
Hermione felt her heartbeat race as her suddenly uncontrollable hands glided over the toned flesh under her palms. Unconsciously, she licked her lips and directed her eyes upward to meet his. There she saw only one emotion so brazenly evident: Lust.
Kate howled, "Hermione, you lucky wench!"
Hermione found her eyes bulging as her hands roved over a solidly muscled stomach. And then lower. "Oh, my," she breathlessly managed out.
"Hermione, you can plan my bachelorette party!" Sandra, Ginny's coworker exclaimed. "And don't forget to bring him!"
"Here, here!"
Hermione blushed furiously and tried her best to calm her rapidly beating heart. Unfortunately for her, half-naked Harry was quite overwhelming. Pitter patter heartbeats kept getting louder and beats rang faster. She was surprised that no one else heard the thumping sounds her heart made.
Harry, with his mind racing, forced his rebellious body to let Hermione go. He took several steps backwards, only to run against several grope-happy monsters… er ladies. His eyes bulged as he felt his posterior get the massages of its life. His head whipped back and his face rewarded the guilty parties with a very flirtation grin. "Careful, ladies," his posterior flexed for them. "I just might get used to this."
A wildly-grinning Katie Bell licked her pointer finger and then traced it over Harry's right butt cheek slowly. "Do you make house calls, 'Harry'?" she winked.
Hermione stopped herself short of doing wandless magic and cursing Katie Bell right there. No one ought to touch Harry that way. 'Well, no one else but me,' she thought selfishly.
Harry ambled his way away from the dangerous hands reaching for him and once again found himself in front of Ginny, the lady of the night. The potion kicked in again and soon Harry found himself grasping Ginny's hands and pulling them toward the middle of his body. Hermione's potion was working too well for his liking.
"Now, does the bride-to-be want to start unwrapping the other half of her pre-wedding present?" he heard himself offer lasciviously. His hips lurched forward in anticipation. "You won't regret it," he huskily added.
Hermione now had a new person to dislike.
Before Hermione could do anything drastic, Ginny unbuttoned Harry's slacks and slowly started lowering the zipper. Just as she was about to lower Harry's slacks as well, he backed out from her grasp, and danced himself towards the middle of the room. He summoned the chair from earlier and sat on it. With a mischievous gleam in his eyes, he thrust his hips upwards in the air and started to pull his slacks down from his legs.
'Red,' Hermione fought off the dizzying sight that was revealing itself before her. 'He's wearing something that's Gryffindor Red!'
Sooner than she realized, the rest of his slacks have been slid off. The lack of clothing revealed some sexy, lean muscled legs. Moving her eyes upwards to where they met (she tried so hard not to look, but again, her eyes are once again glued), she saw his hands were cupped over the middle of those awfully sexy Gryffindor Red briefs.
'Briefs?' Hermione's mind kicked in for a moment. 'Didn't Ron say that he'd be giving Harry a thong?'
By the time the anomaly registered completely in her mind, Hermione realized that Harry was now staring directly at her with the wickedest look in his eyes.
"Love, feast your eyes on this!"
'Oh, my God! Don't tell me he's going to ta-"
The hands that covered over Harry's groin brief area were moved away.
To Hermione's horror and every other witch's insane glee in the room, a small lion's head shot out from the groin area of Harry's briefs, proudly roaring its Gryffindor might.
In Harry's shocked state of mind, he could have sworn he heard Voldermort turn over his grave, laughing maniacally.
-To be continued…
Post Author's Note: I'm hanging my 'Looking for another Beta-Reader' sign. I need a second beta-reader (for another work). Contact me via Portkey if you're interested.