Title: Untitled, for now
Author: Sage Vale
Rating: Er….good question. PG to PG-13
Summary: Answer to Joogie's Answer Me This challenge. Another one-shot while I work up the willpower to type up more SNY.
Disclaimer: Really, if I owned Harry Potter, everyone at Portkey would be much happier. And the rest of the world, much sadder.
A/N: Yeah, I got a new beta. Now I just need to find my old one…..
It was a relatively boring Saturday. Ron was out on a date with Luna, and Ginny was off with Malfoy, so Harry and Hermione were left alone in the large flat they shared with their friends.
"What do you want to do?" Harry asked.
"I dunno," Hermione replied while flipping through this month's Witch Weekly. Then something caught her eye.
"Ooh….hey Harry?"
"*grunt*"
"There's this quiz in here called `Answer Me This: The Best Friends Knowledge Quiz'. Wanna take it?"
"*yes grunt*," Hermione smiled and scooted closer to Harry on the sofa. Harry felt his whole side tingle where Hermione's bare feet touched his leg.
"Ok then. Here's how it works. I'll answer for you, and you'll answer for me. Then we tally up how many we got right and check how well we know each other," Hermione seemed unusually excited about this quiz. "I'll ask a question, then you'll answer for me, ok? Ok."
"Question One: When was the last time I was really mad?" Harry grinned.
"Easy peasy lemon squeezy," Hermione giggled at the rhyme, "The last time you got really mad, Miss Granger, was last week at work, when Cho called you a slut," Hermione was stunned. How did he know?
"How did you know?" Hermione asked. Harry's grin got even wider.
"Because your nostrils were flaring, your eyes had this evil glint in them, and your knuckles were white as they clutched your books when we left the meeting," Harry sat back, satisfied with his answer.
"Oh…how observant of you," Hermione complimented, but inside she was shaking. 'If he noticed that, what else did he notice?' Hermione shook this thought aside and looked at the quiz. The next question made her grin. `No way he'll get this one.'
"Question Two: What is my greatest fear?" Hermione asked with a note of smugness in her tone. Harry pondered this for a moment before answering,
"Losing, failure, and thunderstorms," Harry answered at last, but then he added, "When I mean losing, I mean losing a contest, and losing someone close to you. The failure is for when you fail something in school, which has never happened anyway, and when you fail to do something you have your heart set on, like protecting me and Ron. And the thunderstorms…well, that's pretty self explanatory," Harry finished in one breath. Hermione's jaw dropped.
"Wow. I never knew that you knew so much about me, Harry," Hermione had this fuzzy feeling in the pit of her stomach, and she didn't know why.
"Ok, next question. What's my favorite kind of weather?" Harry didn't even hesitate.
"Any kind of weather that will keep you inside so you can read and watch me get my butt kicked in chess. You love rain more than snow, because snow means that you can go outside," Hermione hadn't even known that, but upon reflection, she realized it was right.
"Sheesh Harry, people will think that you watch my every move since you know so much about me," Harry blushed, not because of the joke, but because of the truth in the joke.
"Just ask the next question, Hermione."
"Otay. If I could choose between doing well in school or falling in love - which would I choose?" Harry smiled. This question was easy as cake for him.
"You already have the best grades Hogwarts has ever, and will ever see, but even if you didn't, it'd be falling in love. Because you're a romantic, and you'd think along the lines of, `If I'm really in love, good grades won't matter. Nothing will really matter when I'm in love.'"
Hermione had tears in her eyes. Harry was absolutely right. Absolutely. Right. She tackled him with a hug.
"That is the most beautiful thing I've ever heard," Hermione whispered in Harry's ear, her breath tickling his cheek, making the hairs on his neck stand up and a shiver to go from his head to his toes.
"Your welcome, Hermione. Now, let's finish this."
"You're right. Next questions. Who was my first kiss with? What's the most spontaneous thing I've ever done? What would make my perfect meal?" Hermione rapidly shot without pause for breath. Harry thought for a second before replying.
"Viktor Krum, your hugs, and ME!" Harry wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at the giggling Hermione, earning him a whack with a pillow.
"Harry! While I'm sure you are delicious, I was thinking more along the lines of food," Hermione shot between giggles. Harry smirked at her.
"Ok, Lady Gigglesmuch, more questions!!!" Harry demanded playfully.
"Sure, Sir Grouch. But you have to answer my favorite meal question first," Harry pouted, but obliged.
"Okay….salad with croutons, grilled salmon with a hint of lemon, mashed red potatoes, fresh green beans, Breyers Vanilla Fudge Twirl ice cream for dessert, and sprite. Questions now, ogle at my psychic ability later."
"Fine. But you know…my first kiss wasn't Krum," Hermione answered saucily. Harry gaped at her.
"It wasn't? Then who was? Ron? Some Muggle?" Hermione smiled sadly at him.
"Nobody. I have yet to have my first kiss. With Ron, it just didn't seem right. With Viktor, he was just….no. And, before I came to Hogwarts, no boy other than relatives looked my way once, let alone twice. But no time to reflect. What charm do I use the most? How many kids do I want, and what do I want their names to be?" Harry looked at her, amazed and disturbed at how easily she could dismiss one of the most important things to happen to a person. `I guess I should just go along with it.'
"Well, you use Occulous Reparo a lot, but you tend to use Wingardium Leviosa a bit more," now Harry had to think about the kids, but the answer came to him in no time.
"About the kids, you want two or three, depending on how you feel after childbirth. For girls, you like the names Lily, Emma, Ginevra, and Gabrielle. For boys, you like the names Daniel, Harry, Ron, James, and Luke," Hermione smiled warmly at him.
"Good answers. What is my favorite piece of clothing? If I had to choose a mode of transportation, would it be broom, Portkey, or floo powder? And what is my dream job?"
"Well, you love that Gryffindor hoodie I gave you as a graduation present. If you had to choose…..broom, since I would most likely be there with you. Portkeys give you headaches and you're mildly allergic to floo powder. And, obviously, you'd love to be a Charms, Potions, or Transfiguration Professor at Hogwarts, and you're just waiting for a spot to open up before you quit your job at the Ministry," Harry finished with a deep breath. Hermione looked up at the last answer. She had never told anyone that she wanted to teach at Hogwarts.
"How did you know that I wanted to be a Potions teacher at Hogwarts?"
"Because you want to do good for your students, all the good that Snape never did."
Hermione smiled again and hugged Harry fiercely.
"You have this uncanny knack for saying the right things, Harry," Hermione said.
"Well, that's what the women tell me," Harry answered with a devilishly attractive smile. His stomach was full of butterflies as Hermione turned around and sat in his lap. `Oh god, she better not squirm.'
"Ok then. New question. How many times have we had butterbeer together? What quidditch position am I best for? And….what is my favorite hex?"
"Hmmm…" Harry thought aloud as he did the math. "One hundred and thirty-one. Referee, and Expelliarmus."
"Yes, no, and sort of. I'd rather be a Beater; get rid of all my suppressed rage towards Ron," Harry chuckled at this, "and, I love the Antler Jinx. Remember when that complete cow Parkinson got hit with it?" Harry nodded. "Well…." Hermione trailed off with a huge grin on her face. Harry looked at her with wide eyes.
"That…was you???" Harry sputtered. Hermione just tossed her hair back and smiled at him.
"Not answering that. Moving on. If I could be any animagus form, what would I be?" Harry was expecting more questions, but they never came. Harry tapped her on the shoulder.
"Where are the other questions?" he asked.
"Oh…the last three are kind of important, so they go one at a time," Hermione replied.
"Ok then. Well…animagus….hmmm, I'm thinking otter," Harry answered uncertainly.
"Nope. I'd rather be a cheetah, or a panther. Fast, deadly, but beautiful in their own ways," Hermione spoke with a dreamy voice, as if she were picturing herself as those animals. Harry stared at her, emotion sparkling in his eyes. Soon Hermione came back to reality.
"Well, if I was hiding something in my room, what would it be?"
"Playwitch mags."
"Harry! You raided my room, didn't you?"
"Of course not….."
"Whatever. Ok Harry, we're almost done. One more question after this one. What is my favorite thing about you?" Hermione held her breath, awaiting his answer.
"My eyes, because you can always tell what's going on inside me through them," Hermione squirmed on his lap until she was facing him.
"Those, and your hair, because I always just want to run my hands through it," Hermione said as she ran a hand through Harry's messy hair. Harry's breath hitched and his heartbeat quickened. `Can she hear that I hope she can't hear that oh my god she can hear it.' Harry panicked as her smile grew into a look of concern.
"Are you okay, Harry? You look a bit pale," Hermione questioned. Inside, her heart was soaring. Harry was showing telltale signs of…well, feelings for her.
"I'm fine, Hermione," Harry's voice was a pitch (or four) higher than normal, and he squirmed when she turned around.
"Okay then, Harry. Here's the last question, and then you can quiz me. Do I have any birthmarks, and if I do, where are they?" Harry thought hard for a few minutes, his forehead scrunched up in concentration. Then the answer struck him like lightning. He leaned in closer to Hermione, and his breath puffed against her neck through her wavy locks.
"You have a mole on the back of your neck," Harry whispered seductively. He wanted to see if he could make her just as flustered as she did him. Harry wasn't disappointed.
"Umm….yeah….you're….right. Ok, bathroom break!!!" And Hermione hopped off his lap and practically sprinted into the bathroom. Harry leaned back into the sofa and crossed his feet on the coffee table. He was going to have fun when Hermione got back.
TBC?
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