Pheromone, My Lovely

A new fic by me. I know, I know… I should finish the ones I've started before posting a new one… But I have a good excuse this time. Honest! I'm on vacation right now and I'm using our laptop to type this while all my other fics are at home, on the stationary computer.

Either way, Whispers At Night will be updated as soon as possible.

Oh, and in other news: I've gotten myself a forum at fanfiction.net, so if you have any questions about my fics or feel like talking… or anything like that. Just give me a poke over there, and I'll reply as soon as I can.

And, yes to all you Lois and Clark fans, this might remind you a bit of the episode “Pheromone, My Lovely”. I haven't actually seen the episode, but I have read the transcript for it, and while I have tried to write it as differently as possible some things might have “leaked” into the fic. And, in a way to honour that, I've named the fic after that episode.

Now, enjoy. I've got chapter two typed up all ready and it'll probably be posted sometime tomorrow.

Cheers!

Pheromone, My Lovely

Chapter one: Love Is In the Air

“Time's up. Now, if you're not completely dim-witted your potion should at least resemble something like this…” Snape held up a small flask. The liquid inside it was clear, almost as water. “Leave a sample of your potions on my desk. And I want a three feet long essay on Veritaserum and its uses by next week.”

Hermione smiled as she poured her potion into a small flask. She had been a little late with putting in the newt eyes into her potion, but she was rather sure that her potion had turned out fine in the end. She glanced at the hissing potion-goo beside her. Poor Neville…

She corked her flask quickly, hoping that she'd manage to sneak some few moments into helping him before Snape threw her out.

She gripped the flask. “Neville!” she hissed, pretending to be studying her bottle closely. “Did you remember to add the batwings in the end?”

His eyes widened as he slowly shook his head. He grabbed some batwings and threw them into the potion.

“Good. Now stir three times counter-clockwise and then add one clockwise…” she muttered quickly. She knew that Neville's potion was beyond saving by now, but maybe she could save him from a T…

“Miss Granger,” Snape said, his voice smug, “I know the colours must be fascinating to you, but could you please stop staring at your bottle and please place it on my desk?”

Hermione blushed and immediately stopped pretending to be studying the bottle. She gave Neville a quick glance, just to see that he was doing as he had been told.

“I tried to warn you,” Harry whispered from behind her, “but you didn't hear me. Want me to take your bottle as well?” He gave a short nod towards Neville's potion, and Hermione quickly got the hint. If Harry took her potion, she could help Neville a bit longer while pretending to pack her books. She nodded.

Harry grinned. He carefully took the bottle away from her grasp, mouthing the words `Good luck' with a quick wink.

She smiled, thankful over Harry's thoughtfulness. She glanced back at Neville's potion; it was still looking more like goo, rather than the clear liquid they were supposed to achieve, but it did look a lot better. “Now, add the stinksap. Just three drops. Remember; three.”

Neville paled and grabbed the small bottle with stinksap. His hands were shaking as he held the small bottle up-side-down over his potion.

No drops came out.

Neville shook the bottle slightly, hoping to get at least one tiny drop of stinksap into his potion.

“No, Neville. Don't!” Hermione exclaimed, just as the stinksap decided to follow the rules of gravity. Not only three, but four drops of stinksap came out from the bottle. The potion hissed. “Oh, Neville,” she gasped, “what have you done?”

Neville stared dumbfounded at his potion. “I-I don't know.”

She scurried forward, pushing him aside. “Oh, let me see…” she muttered. She stared down at the potion, frowning lightly.

The potion kept on bubbling maliciously, giving out an occasional hiss once in a while.

Hermione sighed and scrunched up her nose at the foul-smelling fumes. “I'm sorry, Neville.” She shook her head. “I don't know how to fix that.”

He sighed sadly. “Yeah, well… Thanks anyway,” he mumbled.

“You better take your books now… Snape's staring at you,” Harry muttered as he passed.

Neville sighed and cleared out his cauldron with a flick of his wand.

Hermione nodded shortly and gave Neville a quick pat on the back before collecting her books. “Sorry,” she whispered before striding out to her waiting best friends.

---

“I guess I should start that potion's essay…” Harry stated as they arrived at their common-room.

“Say what? Come again, mate?” Ron exclaimed with a grin.

“Oh, come off it. The weather's horrible and I really don't feel like getting my arse kicked in a game of chess again…” He shot Hermione a lopsided grin.

Hermione smiled back weakly. “That's great, Harry… I think I'll just sit down by the fire… I don't feel too well.”

Harry's grin faded immediately. “Are you all right?”

“Oh, yes, yes.” She gave out a high, clearly false, laugh. “I'm fine. Just feeling a bit dizzy…” She quickly seated herself on the couch in front of the fire. “I feel better already.”

Harry frowned, looking sceptical. “Well, if you're sure…”

She nodded.

“All right… I'll just sit over here if you need me.” He pointed towards an empty table.

“I'm fine!” She snapped.

Harry quickly held up his hands in surrender as he backed towards the table he'd pointed out earlier.

Ron patted him on the shoulder, grinning slightly. “Well, if you're sure you don't want to play chess, I'll just go and ask Seamus instead.”

Harry laughed, shaking his head in the same process. “You go ahead. I'll never get this bloody essay finished if I don't start now…” He seated himself by the table, picking up his potion's book, and a fresh, blank sheet of parchment. He began scribbling, quickly engrossing himself into the essay.

---

Hermione threw off her robe, discarding it onto the seat beside her. Was it just her, or was it really hot here? She fawned herself with her potion's book, glancing around the common-room at the same time. No, no one else seemed to be bothered by the heat…

Her gazed stopped at Harry who was deeply engulfed in his potion's essay. It was amazing, she thought, that she had never noticed before how attractive he was. Well, she'd sort of noticed, but it had seemed like a good idea to ignore it. Now she couldn't understand why. Slowly, she began to unbutton the top buttons of her blouse.

She rose, suddenly feeling a lot better: Great in fact. She straightened her skirt and smiled. She walked over to where Harry was working on his essay and jumped up, seating herself on the table. She crossed her legs, letting her skirt ride up quite a bit.

She dangled her legs slightly. “Oh, Harry…” she said in a singsong voice.

“Hmm?” Harry muttered, his eyes never leaving his parchment. “Just a moment Hermione, I-” His voice died as he noticed the very visible leg. He looked up, his eyes wide.

Hermione looked at him with a dreamy expression. She leaned forward, revealing quite a bit of cleavage. “What are you working on?”

Harry gulped. “My-my essay… you know, the potion one?” he moved back in his seat.

She moved closer. “Oh, that one… is it hard?”

“He-Hermione… Are you sure that you feel okay?” He managed to stammer out.

She waved her hand, moving even closer. “I've never felt better.” She reached out, pulling a hand through his already messy hair. “Have I ever told you how handsome you are?”

Harry squeaked. “Handsome?”

She bit her lip, closing her eyelids half the way. “Very.” Her voice was low, husky, even. She slowly leaned closer.

Harry jumped up. “Merlin! Look at the time!” He stared at his watch with exaggerated interest. “It's dinnertime already! Oh, look. Ron's already left… Well, we better go before all food's gone.” He staggered backwards, Hermione following closely.

“Oh, Harry…” Her voice was teasing again. “Are you sure you don't want to skip dinner? After all, we could have so much fun…up here…alone.”

Harry backed against the wall. “Listen, Hermione… I don't know what game you're playing, but this is making me a bit uncomfortable…”

Her hands started to travel across his chest slowly.

“Hermione?” He squeaked.

She leaned forward.

---

To be continued…

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Here's chapter two, just as I promised. See, didn't take me long. And I'm typing chapter three right now as we speak, so with some luck I might be able to post it tomorrow.

I'm actually having a lot of fun with this. I'm actually starting to think that it's illegal to have this much fun. Well, even if it would be illegal, I'd continue. Oh, how I love torturing poor Harry.

My biggest thanks to all of you who reviewed! You have my eternal gratitude. Oh, and to you on fanfiction.net who wondered if I'm a Lois and Clark fan, yes I am. I actually wrote that fact in the author's note, but I accidentally deleted that part when I posted the chapter.

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this as much as the first chapter.

Cheers!

Chapter two: Hiding from Love is Not an Easy Thing

Merlin, this was turning out to be a bad day. First there was Snape's stupid essay and now this.

Harry had no idea what just happened. In one moment he'd been peacefully writing his essay, and then the next Hermione had started to throw herself at him. Was the world going mad?

“Hermione?” He managed to squeak as she started to trace her hands on his chest.

It was torture, pure torture. He'd loved her for so long, but he'd kept his silence. Suffering quietly, knowing that too much was at risk. She'd never showed any interest in him and telling her that he loved her would be risking a friendship he valued so much. And then of course there was Voldemort.

So he kept his silence, knowing it was for the best.

He studied her intently. Something was wrong. He'd never seen Hermione behave this way, and he was pretty sure she never would in her right mind. He had to keep his distance. He would not give in to the temptation…

Watching her like this was killing him. He wanted to squeeze his eyes shut, but he couldn't.

She began to lean forward.

His eyes widened and he swiftly slipped out from her grasp. “Listen, Hermione… it's obvious that you aren't feeling too well… Why don't you just, ah, lie down and rest?” He scrambled out from the common-room.

---

“Harry… what on earth are you doing under the dinner table?”

“Err… hiding.”

Ginny frowned. “Hiding from what?”

He mumbled something.

“What? I can't hear you if you mumble,” she said, her voice light and teasing.

“From Hermione.”

Ginny stared at him for a couple of second before laughing out loud. “Hermione? You're hiding under a table because of Hermione?”

“Uh… yeah?”

She laughed even harder. “Sorry,” she gasped after a while. “Have you been fighting again?”

“I wish,” he mumbled. “No, she's behaving completely mental!”

“Oh, Harry…” She smiled. “I'm sure it's not that bad.”

A loud wail interrupted them. “Oh, Harry…”

Harry's eyes widened. “Bloody hell, not again!” He ducked back under the table.

“Ginny, have you seen Harry?”

Surely Ginny wouldn't betray him… They were mates after all.

“Yeah, he's under the table.”

Harry swore under his breath.

Hermione peaked under the table curtain. “Oh, there you are, Harry.” Her eyes shone with happiness.

“Err, hi, Hermione.” He gulped.

She began caressing his cheek. “I thought you were hungry,” she whispered.

“I just ate,” he stammered.

Hermione licked her lips. “Great. I feel like something… sweet for dessert.” She studied him hungrily.

Harry squeaked. “Oh, well. We can go to the kitchen.” He grinned nervously. “Ask Dobby for something.”

“Mmm…” She licked her lips again staring at his chest. “Strawberries and cream would fit the situation, now wouldn't it?”

“A-actually, I was thinking about something like ice-sorbet...” He moved backwards. “Or maybe some biscuits?” he backed even more, and managed to tangle himself in the table curtain. He quickly untangled himself and rose, rather panicky.

Hermione smiled and followed him up from under the table. She put her arms around him. “So…”

“Err, listen, Hermione. I have to, uh…do something. Right now.” He scrambled out from the Great Hall.

---

She looked hopeful. “Ron, have you seen Harry?”

“Err, no. Not since he started that essay…”

She looked completely crestfallen. “Oh,” she said, her voice tiny.

“Oh, yeah, and while I remember.” Ron pulled a hand through his hair. “Someone was looking for you.”

Her eyes lit up. “Harry?”

“Eh, no. Neville.”

“Oh.” She said, suddenly uninterested.

“I think he wanted to say thanks.”

“Uh-huh.” She waved her hand, studying the common-room again.

Ron frowned. “Hermione? Are you feeling okay?”

“More than okay. I've just realized that there's only one man for me.” She sighed happily as Harry walked through the portrait hole. “Harry.” She ran over, attacking him with an enormous hug. “Oh, Harry where have you been? I've missed you so much.”

Harry pulled his sweater's collar nervously. “Eh, hi, Hermione.” He patted her a bit awkwardly on the head.

“Where have you been, my darling?”

“Uh.” He pulled at his collar again. “Around.”

“Well, it doesn't matter where you've been as long as you're with me now.”

Harry untangled himself from her arms. “Yeah, well, uh…I'm feeling a bit tired and it's late-”

“Not too late, I hope. For us. For Love and happiness…”

Harry moaned. “Hermione… please. I'm going to bed, okay?”

“Well, of course, tiger.” She purred, gripping his hand tightly.

“No, Hermione. Your dormitory is over there…” He pointed tiredly to the other side of the common-room.

“My room is where my love is. With you.”

He sighed tiredly. “Listen, you aren't behaving normally. Just go to bed, your own bed, and you'll feel a lot better, okay?” He left, leaving Hermione looking completely crestfallen.

---

To be continued…

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And I managed to finish this in time! Go me! Oh, come on. Give me some credit, okay?

I'm working on chapter four now, as well… so as I said yesterday: With some luck I might post it tomorrow.

I'm guessing that I've now written the part everyone has been waiting for: Hermione managing to corner Harry. Oh, I'm so evil, I know. But, I'm having so much fun with this, it's incredible!

Oh, and a lot of your have been asking why Harry's behaving like “a dolt” or commented that Harry seems to be rejecting her… Well, I hope this chapter clears it up a bit more. If not, well… I'll explain my thoughts about it in my next author's note, okay?

I just have to tell this you, though. The amount of reviews I've gotten on this has absolutely blown my mind! I've never gotten this much reviews on a fic before. I'm forever your best friend because of this. Or at least until you ask to borrow money from me.

Anyway, I do hope you'll like this next chapter.

Cheers!

Chapter three: Caught in the Dark

Harry yawned as he jerked awake. He had no idea why he'd woken up, whatever dream he had was now long forgotten. He yawned once again and stretched; or well, rather more trying to stretch. Something was lying in the way.

He glanced down and squinted, desperately trying to make something of the blur he was seeing. He cursed his poor eyesight as he continued to squint through the darkness. Something brown and fluffy? seemed to be rather contently resting on his chest.

Harry frowned and drew a gentle hand through the brown mess. Hair. He suddenly realized. The brown and fluffy was hair. Funny, it almost felt curly. Frizzy, even…

His eyes widened. Hermione! How had she managed to sneak in? And what on earth was she wearing? He gripped his glasses from his nightstand and slipped them onto his face. It almost looked like… He groaned as realization sunk in. It looked like one of his t-shirts. One of his favourite t-shirts at that.

He nudged her lightly. “Hermione,” he whispered, his voice hoarse. He cleared his throat. “Hermione!” he whispered again with an accompanied nudge.

She began stirring. “Hmm?”

“Hermione! What are you doing here?”

She smiled at him while reaching for his chin with her hand. “Sleeping, my love.”

Harry shook his head tiredly. Why was it always him? “Listen, Hermione… you can't be here. You're in the boys' dormitory, in the middle of the night. You have a dormitory of your own.”

“But… you're here.” She stroked his cheek lightly.

Harry gazed down at her and almost gave in right then and there. “Merlin, Hermione…” She was so beautiful, her eyes big and dreamy. But he had to resist. He had to. “Listen, Hermione.” He paused, trying to gather enough energy to continue. “What you're feeling isn't real. I don't-”

She smiled at him. “It's the realest thing I've felt and that's real enough to me.” She reached up and with only a moment of hesitation, she kissed him.

Harry's eyes widened once more and he opened his mouth to protest, but all that came out was a moan. He had promised himself to keep his distance, that he'd keep away and not cross the boundaries. But somehow, now when it came to it, he just couldn't gather enough resistance to do so.

Resisting Hermione had always been trying, and this last day had been hard. With Hermione throwing himself at him his resistance had already been down to almost nothing.

The kiss was wonderful, almost magical. He felt like he could float. He could have kept on kissing her forever… But somewhere deep down he knew it wasn't real. He broke the kiss. “Hermione, I-”

She sighed happily and buried her head in his chest. “I love you, Harry.” Her voice low and husky.

Oh, how he wished it could be real… He gathered the little of what was left of his resistance. “Listen, if you don't go back to your dormitory, we'll be in deep trouble tomorrow.”

Her hands started massaging his waist. “Are you sure it wouldn't be…worth it?” She purred, irking her head upwards, towards his face again.

He moved a bit further a way from her, trying to distance himself. “Uh, well.” He started, trying a new tactic. “I'd be in trouble as well.”

Her fingers travelled from his waist upwards. “You've never had any troubles with it before…”

“Yeah, but, uh…this is different. I, err…don't want you to get in trouble.”

“Oh, Harry. I don't care as long as I'm with you.”

Harry stared upwards, his mouth forming the word `why'. “Hermione…” He sighed as he knew it would be impossible to convince her to go. But then, an idea struck him. “Okay, fine. Stay.”

She smiled widely, her eyes shining with happiness. “Really?”

“Yeah, just go back to sleep.”

She rested her head on his chest again. “You're the only man for me, Harry Potter,” she whispered.

He patted her head a bit awkwardly.

---

Luckily for Harry it didn't take Hermione too long to fall asleep. Some few minutes later, when he was sure that she wouldn't wake, he climbed out from his bed and stretched.

He gazed at her. Merlin, she was beautiful when she was sleeping. She looked so peaceful, so happy… Harry shook his head to clear it. He had to keep his mind on the matters at hand.

He bent down and covered his friend's light frame with his extra blanket. He carefully picked her up and carried her down the stairs. He had been planning to carry her up to her dormitory, but now he realized that he probably wouldn't manage to walk up the stairs to the girls' dormitory because of the enchantments placed on them.

Harry sighed and placed her gently in the couch in stead. Well, now there wasn't much more he could do… except, maybe, getting his t-shirt back. But he sure wasn't going to do anything about that.

He gazed at her for a while before kissing her forehead gently with a slight smile. Merlin, he hoped she'd be back to normal by tomorrow.

If not, well, then it would be a world's first: Harry Potter loathing the fact that it was a Saturday.

---

To be continued…

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Isn't this incredible? I've managed another chapter. In time! Ooooh! Isn't it amaaaaazing? I'm still having way too much fun with this; it's incredible how much time I've spent on this thing… Maybe I'll manage this well with my future fics… Erm. Yeah, one can only hope.

Now, it seems as some people still don't understand why Harry isn't “responding” to Hermione coming on to him, so I thought I'd share my thoughts about this with you all:

Harry has, at least to me, a lot of integrity. Hermione isn't really in her right mind and Harry knows that. He'd rather die than willingly use her. And let's say Harry did take advantage of her, and Hermione remembers that when she comes too… Well, how'd you feel? Would you really be okay with that? Do you think Hermione would be okay with that? No, she probably wouldn't, and Harry knows that as well.

Plus, he's a bit scared to cross the boundaries. If he and Hermione don't work out, where will they be then? Will they be able to go back to the friendship they had before? Harry isn't so certain, and he desperately needs Hermione. So he stays to what he knows is safe: friendship.

And, alas, I have some bad news for you all. I'm going back to Sweden tonight, which means while I do have the chapter almost finished right now, I won't be able to post the next chapter until at least Saturday. Maybe not even until Sunday. Sad isn't it? I'm going to miss typing on this… Now, I better remember to e-mail this file to myself, or else you'll have to wait for another half year for the next chapter. I think dad's planning on leaving the laptop here in our apartment in Belgium.

Oh, and as a fun fact: I'm not so good at coming up with designs for dresses, so as I thought up Hermione's red dress (you'll know which one I mean) I made a quick search for it on google. If you have time, google “red dress” (without the “”). The first image that appears is the dress I used as model for Hermione's.

As always, I hope you enjoy the chapter (and if you read it slowly, it might last until I manage to upload the next chapter…)!

Cheers!

Chapter four: Realisation

Hermione was practically bubbling with happiness.

Oh, how she loved Harry. She almost giggled at the thought. She missed him terribly, of course. After all, it had almost been three hours since the last time she'd seen him. Oh, how she longed to see him, kiss him and draw her finger through his messy, black, silky hair…

She smiled almost hungrily at the thought.

And that kiss they had shared yesterday had been sweet, wonderful, extraordinary… perfect. She smiled dreamily at the memory and threw her trunk open. Harry was so wonderful…

She wanted him to do something special for him. Something which would make him notice her more… She rummaged through her trunk, throwing out one garment after another before seating herself on her bed with a huff.

How could she make Harry notice her more if all she had was her usual knee-length skirts and an occasional pair of pants? No, she needed something better than that.

She picked up her yellow sun-dress, which she usually wore during summer, with a smile. Maybe she didn't have any impressive clothing right now, but she wasn't called `the brightest witch of her age' for nothing. She was sure she'd manage to whip up something…

---

Harry wasn't really sure if he dared to walk down the stairs to the common-room. He closed his eyes for a moment as he walked down, praying to whoever was up there that Hermione would be back to normal.

But, he'd barely managed to set is foot inside the common-room before a loud cry of happiness reached him.

“Harry!” Hermione began running towards him, and his breath got caught his in his throat.

She was wearing a dress he'd never seen her wear before, and he probably wouldn't ever again. It was red and silky… It reached almost all the way to the floor, but a good part of her legs were still visible through the slit, though. The thin straps showed off her shoulders quite nicely and probably a lot more of her chest than she would have allowed under normal circumstances.

She'd done something to her hair, too. It didn't look as bushy as usual. It wasn't completely straightened either, rather more curly than anything and it flowed freely over her shoulders.

And she wasn't wearing any makeup either, he realized as she came closer. Something he was very happy for. He preferred girls, especially her, natural.

In other words, she was looking completely and utterly breathtaking.

“Oh, Harry. What took you so long, my darling? I've missed you so much.” She flung herself at him, leaping up into his arms. Harry wasn't given much other choice than to hold her.

Harry stared upwards with a grunt. “You hate me, don't you?” he grumbled quietly, carefully letting Hermione down from his arms.

Hermione smiled widely and gripped his arm tightly. “Look everyone,” she squealed happily, “it's Harry!”

Everyone in the common-room turned and proceeded to gaze them both quizzically.

“Uh, hi.” Harry muttered, giving a short wave.

The Gryffindors continued to stare at him for a moment before returning to their own business.

“Hermione, come with me. We have to talk.”

She smiled widely. “Oh yes, we do. I have so much to say.” Her hands travelled upwards to his shoulder.

Harry cleared his throat and gripped her hands, dragging her to a deserted table. “Listen, Hermione. You're not in control.”

She sighed wistfully, staring at him with big dreamy eyes. “Oh, I know. For the first time in my life-”

He groaned. “No, no. Listen, you aren't acting normally.” He took off his glasses, wiping them on his sweater tiredly.

She crossed her legs and leaned forward, staring into his eyes. “You've so beautiful eyes. They're almost as green as emeralds… I could stare at them all day.”

Harry quickly slipped his glasses back on his face. “Hermione, please! Focus! I need you to help me figure out what's happened. Please. Concentrate.”

She stared at him, dreamily. “Okay.”

Harry frowned, not at all convinced. “Good. Now, it all started yesterday around dinnertime.” He seated himself.

“I remember.”

He massaged his temples in a desperate attempt to think. Hermione had always been better on logic than he had. “Maybe it was something you ate…” he muttered. “No, this happened before dinner… something you ate at lunch?”

Hermione seated herself in his lap and began playing with his hair. “I had some fish with potatoes and you ate eggs, bacon, fries and some salad on the side. Mostly cucumber and carrots…” she stroked his chin gently.

Harry stared at her, shocked that she remembered. Merlin, he didn't remember what he ate. He shook his head. “What else? We went to class you helped Neville with his potion…” He groaned. “Neville's potion.” He rose.

Hermione gripped his hand tightly. “Where are you going?”

“To see if I can find Neville.”

“I'll go with you.”

“Hermione, I'm going to the boys' dorm. You aren't allowed there.” At her crestfallen face he quickly added. “Besides, I'll be back soon.”

She pouted. “Cross your heart and hope to die?”

He sighed wearily. “Scouts honor.”

She hugged him tightly.

---

To be continued…

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I'm back! Have you missed me much? Well, I do hope so since I'm posting a chapter and I did remember to e-mail this fic to myself. Don't you feel lucky? I was thinking of posting this tomorrow. But, I did promise to do it today, so…

Well, what can I tell you this time? My drive back to Sweden went well, not much happened. I ate loads of candy… And I've planned another fic. But, I'll start that one when I'm finished with this. Promise!

Oh, and for those who wondered if I want to chat some time on msn. Sure. Just add me.

Well, next chapter might be up tomorrow, as usual. Hope you enjoy!

Cheers!

Chapter five: Sympathise? I think not

Harry poked his head through the door. “Ron?”

Ron looked up as he rummaged through his trunk after a sweater. “Yeah?”

“Have you seen Neville? I need to talk to him.”

“Neville? Yeah, you just missed him, mate. I think he went down to breakfast.”

“Breakfast? Right, thanks.” Harry withdrew his head.

Ron grabbed a sweater and pulled it over his head. “Oi! Oi! Hold it right there, mate! I need to talk to you.”

Harry froze and backed into the dormitory. “Yeah?”

“Listen, mate… I know something's up. Hermione has been acting all mental since yesterday, and you've been a bit twitchy. Blimey, Harry. Is there something going on between you two I should know about?”

Harry rubbed his temples tiredly. “Err… no.”

Ron frowned at him. “Mate, I may not be the brightest crayon in the box sometimes, but I'm not completely daft.”

Harry sighed. “It's complicated…” He took off his glasses, wiping them on the hem of his sweater. “Hermione has been a bit…eh…pursue-ish.” Harry tugged at his collar nervously. “She's been coming after me since yesterday, always suggesting…” He cleared his throat, too uncomfortable to continue.

Ron stared at him. “So, you mean that all this time, Hermione has been throwing herself at you?”

“Err… yeah?”

Ron stared at him, his eyes bulging slightly, his mouth agape… For a second, Harry was afraid that Ron was going yell at him.

Then Ron started to laugh.

Harry blinked. “What the bloody hell is so funny?” he demanded

Ron snickered. “Never mind, mate. Never mind.”

---

Hermione stared at the stairs worriedly. What was taking him so long? He'd been there almost four minutes now. Had he forgotten about her?

Tears welled up in her eyes at the thought.

Her head perked up as she herd steps in the stairs. Her eyes shone with hope. “Harry?” She smiled brilliantly.

Only to have her smile fade away as she realized it wasn't Harry.

“'Ello, Hermione.” Seamus smiled. “Nice dress you've got there.”

She glanced at him as if he'd said something mildly interesting. “Hmm, oh. Thanks. Did you see Harry up there?”

“Aye, he was up there, talkin' to Ron. He'll probably be down in a minute.”

She smiled dreamily. So, he hadn't forgotten about her! She scolded herself at the thought. Of course Harry hadn't forgotten about her.

“Listen, Hermione. I was wondering; are you still willing to help me with the transfiguration later on?”

“Sure. But please understand something. There's only one man for me.” She sighed happily. “Harry Potter.” She ran up the stairs to the boys' dormitory.

Seamus blinked. “Right.”

---

Harry jumped into the air as Hermione burst into their dormitory.

“Oh, Harry! What's taking you so long? You promised you'd be right back.”

Harry shot Ron a quick glance, mouthing the word “help”.

Ron snickered and leaned back against the wall.

Harry glared. “W-what about some…” He gulped. “Breakfast?”

She licked her lips. “Sound wonderful. I really crave… something.” She walked towards him.

Harry backed against the wall. “Hermione?” he squeaked, and a sudden feeling of déjà vu washed over him.

She bit her lip and began running her hands over his shirt. “Have I ever told you how much I love this shirt?” She growled into his ear.

“M-my shirt?” he stammered.

“Mmm-hmm.” Her hands started unbuttoning his shirt.

Ron cleared his throat loudly, almost snorting with laughter. “Didn't we say something about breakfast?”

Harry jumped away from her touch. “Yes! Breakfast!” He cried, almost desperately before dashing out the dormitory.

---

To be continued…

-->

Phew. I just managed to type this up. Writers block attacked me along the way. Eeek! But I managed to fight it of. I just hope it'll keep away until I've written this whole thing. I really want to finish this.

And, yes, I know this chapter is short. Very short, even. But I basically posted everything I had yesterday, so what I'm posting today was all written today. I'll try to make the next chapter a bit longer, but I can't promise anything. I can't even promise when the next chapter will be up. I'm going back to school tomorrow, and as I've been gone a whole week longer than everyone else, I'll have to study quite a lot. But I promise to update as soon as possible.

Oh, and I just found out that the Lois and Clark season one DVD will be coming out in Sweden in about a month! Problem is, it costs around 60 Dollars, or 50 Pounds… And I can tell you right now that I don't have that kind of money. So, if anyone feel like sending me 50 bucks, feel free to do so!

Now, please enjoy.

Cheers!

Chapter six: Visible Affection

Harry glanced at Hermione as she picked up another slice of pumpkin pie. He studied her closely as she poured some cream over the slice of pie, biting her lips as she concentrated on getting the amount of cream right.

Suddenly, she giggled and Harry forced his gaze away from her, knowing fully well that he'd been staring.

Merlin, it was getting harder and harder resisting her.

Hermione smiled and lifted her pie-and-cream covered spoon. She poked his lips lightly with it while staring at him like he was some kind of royalty. “Come on, Harry,” she said, her voice low and husky. “Just one? For me?”

Harry groaned and opened his mouth.

She smiled brilliantly as Harry ate the offered slice of pie. “Would you like some more, darling?” She rubbed herself against him.

Harry rose rather quickly. “Er, no thanks! Now, I just have to go and do…something.”

“But, Harry…” She pouted.

“Very important. Have to do it now, because…it's very important. Yeah. Important stuff.” He tugged at his collar. Beside him, he could hear Ron snicker.

“I'll go with you.”

“No! I mean…no. You stay and eat some breakfast. I'm just going to…find Neville.”

“Oh.” Her voice was low again, and she stared at him, almost hungrily. “I can help.”

Ron burst out laughing.

Harry glared at him. “Not. Funny.” He growled.

She stood. “Let me help,” she whispered, letting her hands travel upwards, massaging his shoulders, “you're so tense…”

“No wonder.” Ron snickered.

She pulled herself even closer. “You should just…relax.”

Harry stared around the Great Hall helplessly. Everyone had their eyes trained on them, even the teachers.

“This isn't happening.” He groaned.

Hermione leaned forward. “Just relax, darling.” She raised her chin, their lips now almost touching.

Harry staggered backwards. “Uh, I have to go now.” He stared at his watch and tapped it with his finger. “Yeah, I have to go. Now.” He scrambled out from the Great Hall.

He didn't manage to get far until Ginny and Luna stopped him, right outside the Great Hall.

Ginny smiled. “Hey, Harry.”

“Hey, Gin, Luna.” He nodded towards them both, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Hello, Harry,” Luna said, her eyes trained on the stone roof. “Nice day, isn't it?”

“Uh, yeah. I suppose…”

She continued as if she hadn't been interrupted, her eyes still trained on the roof. “I like Hermione's dress, by the way. It's very red.”

Harry stared at Ginny helplessly. “Right.”

Ginny stiffed a giggle. “Listen, Harry. We, or rather Luna, need your help.” She smiled. “You see; she's thinking of asking Ron out on a date…”

Luna turned her gaze towards Harry, humming `Weasley is our king' under her breath.

“And, well… We need the best way to tackle the problem, so to speak. You're Ron's best friend after all…”

“And Hermione's been throwing herself at you. What did you like the best?”

Harry's breath got caught in his throat and he stared coughing. He stared at the blonde girl. “What?”

“I rather like the dress.” Luna continued as if it was the most normal thing in the world. “But I also heard she corned you before breakfast. Did you like that better?”

Harry stared at her, his mouth opening like a fish. “Food,” he muttered several seconds later, avoiding the subject all together. “Ron likes food… Just give him a slice of apple pie before your ask and he won't be able to say no. Or just corner him. I don't think he'll say no anyway…”

Luna nodded. “Say hello to Hermione for me. I have a nice pair of green socks she can borrow, if she wants.”

Ginny shook her head. “Thanks for the help, Harry.”

Luna nodded, and the both girls reached up and gave him a quick hug and a quick peek on the cheek.

It was all they managed before hell broke loose.

---

To be continued…

-->

I'm terribly sorry about this. It's been what? Two, three? weeks since I posted the latest chapter. Really, I haven't had the time to write anything at all during this time. It's been very hectic in school… But here I am again…

And I have some bad news: My very dear boyfriend has gone over to the Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione ship. It's terrible, I know. He was a pumpkineer, just like me, but after he read the sixth book… Ah, well.

Oh, well. Enjoy! I have no idea when the next chapter will be up. I try to type as often as I can, but school has been throwing tests and homework at me. This reminds me…I have to study for that Physics test… and that French test. Bleh.

Cheers!

Chapter seven: Finding Neville

It had taken her a while, but she'd finally gotten the amount of cream right. Not too much and too less for her beloved Harry. She wanted him to be happy.

She'd smiled widely when Harry had eaten her offered slice of pie. He'd liked it! He'd liked something she'd done! Her heart soared with happiness.

But now he was leaving her to find Neville. She supposed it was okay…but he better not leave her alone for long. She'd miss him too much.

Hermione sighed and nibbled on a piece of what was left of Harry's pie. She missed him so much already…

She could feel her eyes home in on him. He was standing just out of the Great Hall, he was so hansom… Then she twitched.

Ginny and Luna was with him. With her Harry.

She munched angrily on another piece of his pie…and almost spit it out again as the both girls reached up and kissed him on the cheek.

She could feel her temper rising. How dare they? There was no way she was going to let those…those…harpies latch onto him now when she knew where her interests lay.

She stalked over to them, literally yanking Luna away before pulling Ginny off Harry with a hiss. She tackled the both girls with a shriek as if she wanted to claw their eyes out.

Harry stared at her wide-eyed with his mouth agape. “Hermione! Hermione! What the bloody hell are you doing?” He dragged her off the two stunned girls.

“How dare you?” Hermione shrieked, trying to untangle herself from Harry. “How dare you?”

“Hermione!” He bellowed, grabbing wrists tightly. “Calm down! What the bloody hell are you up to? You sound like they bloody killed your parents!”

“You…you…harpies!”

Both Luna and Ginny stared at her as if she was absolutely bonkers, which, Harry though grimly, probably was true.

Hermione turned back to Harry, sobbing into his shirt. “Oh, Harry. I thought-” she sniffed. “I though I'd lost you…”

“Hermione, what-”

She sobbed. “I can't…I can't…lose you...”

Harry sighed, his shoulders slumping and he hugged Hermione tightly. “Listen,” he muttered to Ginny and Luna, “I'm really sorry about this. She's…just not herself right now.”

The both girls stared at him.

“Look, it's a bit hard to explain… Just take my word for it, okay?”

The both girls nodded, too dazed after the attack to do much else.

Harry smiled at them both before returning his attention to Hermione. “Listen, Hermione… You'll never lose me. You're the first girl I ever-”

Hermione stared up at him, her eyes wide with expectation.

“The first girl I ever…” he stammered. “I ever became friends with!” He finally blurted out.

She looked down again. “Oh.”

Harry quickly untangled himself from her arms. “Listen. I really have to find Neville now.” He dashed off, leaving two mildly amused girls behind him as well as one completely miserable.

---

Harry slumped tiredly onto his bed. He'd been running around the castle for hours, looking for Neville, and he still hadn't found him. At least he'd managed to avoid Hermione through it all. “Neville… where the heck are you?” he growled. “If I was Neville, where would I be?” He gripped his head with a frustrated sigh.

He pondered for a while. Okay, he had no idea where Neville was. Harry frowned. Maybe he was approaching this from the wrong direction.

He needed to find Neville. Why? Because they needed to figure out what he'd done wrong. But for them to do that, they needed the original instructions. So, the logical thing to do would be to get his potions book.

Harry climbed out of his bed with a moan before collecting his book from his trunk. He seated himself tiredly at the top of his trunk. Now what? He still had to find Neville…

Then it hit him; the Marauders' map! Harry mentally slapped himself. Why hadn't he thought of that earlier?

He grabbed the map quickly and poked it with his wand. “I solemnly swear I'm up to no good,” he muttered. He scanned the map quickly before finally spotting Neville in the library. A place he'd checked twice before.

Harry sighed as he returned the map into the trunk before dashing off. He better get to the library quickly, before Neville got the urge to leave.

---

Neville looked up from his stack of books. “Hiya, Harry,” he said, happily. “Going to finish that essay of yours?”

“Uh, hi, Nev. Actually no. I have a problem that I think you might be able to help me with…”

Neville stared at him curiously. “Oh?”

Harry sighed wearily as he proceeded to tell him about the last day's horrors.

Neville paled visibly as he listened. “And you think it's because of my potion?”

“Uh, yeah.” Harry paused momentarily. “Look, I need you to try to remember what the heck you did…”

Neville nodded slowly. “I'll try.”

“Thanks, Nev. That's all I ask,” Harry muttered with a small, but weary, smile as he started peering through the long list of ingredients needed to make Veritaserum. “Did you add the knobble worms?”

“Mmm.”

“Newt eyes?”

“Yeah.”

“Phermones?”

“Uh, yeah…”

Harry paused. “What exactly are pheromones, anyway?”

Neville frowned. “Hold on, I think I read about it in one of my herbology books…” He quickly began flipping through the pages of the book in front of him. “Here.” He said suddenly, pointing to a small paragraph.

pheromone

n : a chemical substance secreted externally by some animals

(especially insects) that influences the physiology or

behavior of other animals of the same species

---

To be continued…

-->

I’m sorry. I’m really, really sorry. I should have updated this ages ago, I know. But a lot of things has happened since I last updated. I went through the hardest time in school (last half of my eleventh. It’s the hardest time here in Sweden) and halfway through that, me and my boyfriend for almost four years broke up. Trust me, it’s a bit hard to write a romantic comedy after something like that.

Still, I’m sorry. I should have updated this a lot sooner.

So, now you’re all wondering… When will the next update come? No idea. Probably soon. You see, it’s my birthday soon, and I have a tradition to treat my faithful readers with a fic or two around that time. My way of celebrating my birthday, so to speak. :P So, this might (well, probably) be one of the ‘birthday fics’. ‘When’s my birthday?’ you might ask now. Well, let me give you a clue… A very infamous Harry Potter book came out on that date.

And now, thanks to all of you who’ve reviewed. I can’t tell you how much this has meant to me. Also, a special thanks to a certain Portuguese girl I talk to on msn. If it wasn’t for you pushing me, I’d probably be behind in my updating.

Well, enjoy and please review while you’re at it!

-Cherry (who doesn’t mind people adding her to msn;))

---

Chapter eight: Trapped Once Again

---

Harry sighed as he gripped a book in the pile in front of him, carelessly discarding the book he‘d been reading before over his shoulder. Should either Madame Pince or -at least in a normal state- Hermione catch him in the act, he’d be dead. But he was too tired to care.

They’d been searching for hours. His fingers were aching and his stomach was growling unhappily, as both lunch and dinner had passed forgotten, but he ignored them pointedly. He wouldn’t rest until he knew how to cure her. Or at least until he had some answers.

Harry glanced up at Neville, ignoring the twinge of guilt as he noticed the worn expression his friend’s face held.

Neville’s stare flickered upwards in just that moment, meeting Harry’s gaze with his own. He rubbed his eyes tiredly. “Have you found something?”

Harry shook his head, a few strands of his dark hair settling itself in front of his eyes. “No.” He drew a hand through his hair in a agitated motion, pushing away the annoying bangs from his vision. “I need to get a haircut,” he muttered darkly.

Neville leaned over the books tiredly, moaning into his hands. “I need a break.”

Harry nodded, his eyes traveled over the large stacks of unread books tiredly. It was ridiculous how many books there were about potions gone awry, but was even more ridiculous -at least to Harry - was the complete lack of information on pheromones.

Harry leaned back in his chair, groaning tiredly. Oh, how much easier it would have been with Hermione’s help.

He rubbed his temples tiredly. He could basically hear her voice in his head.

“Oh, Harry,” she would say, both her voice and face stern, but her eyes would betray her; they would shine with the amusement she’d desperately hide. “Haven’t you listened to a word of what Snape’s said? Really, Harry. What on earth would you do without me? Pheromones are essential in a lot of potions…”

“Psst, Harry!” Neville hissed suddenly, breaking his train of thoughts.

“Huh?”

His eyes darted between him and the library entrance. “Hermione just came through the entrance…and she’s looking for a certain someone by the looks of it.”

Harry’s green eyes widened. “Oh no,” he moaned, ducking under the table quickly. “Why does this feel familiar?”

It was a brief moment of silence before soft steps sounded towards them. For a brief moment panic seized Harry’s heart. Had she seen him duck under the table?

“Hello, Neville. Do you know where Harry is?”

Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

“Yeah. He’s--”

“Oh no, you don’t,” Harry growled, gripping Neville’s leg tightly.

Neville winced. “…Not here?” he squeaked.

“Oh.” She sounded almost defeated. “Well, if you see him, could you please tell him I…have something I want to show him. Something I think he’ll enjoy…” By the sultry tone of her voice, Harry didn’t doubt that for a second.

“Um… He-Hermione? Can I ask you something?”

Harry blinked. What on earth was Neville doing?

“Could you please tell me a bit more about the magical properties in pheromones? Specifically in potions?”

In that moment, Harry felt like he could have kissed him. Neville, you’re a genius!

“Pheromones? Why?”

“Ah, you see… Harry was wondering.”

“Oh, really? Well…” For a moment she sounded almost normal, as if she wasn’t under some weird potion’s fumes. “Well, it depends on what it’s mixed with--”

“Stinksap,” he blurted. “I mean, what would happen if it was mixed with stinksap?”

“Well, stink sap strengthens the potion efficiency considerately and pheromones are naturally used by insects to help them with their mating. Basically it draws male insects to female ones. So mixed together I suppose it would force the consummator to…to follow people in opposite gender.”

Harry blinked. As far as he knew, the only male she’d been fallowing around was him…

“But, would natural attraction have anything to do with who the, err, consummator followed? Or would that depend on what else was mixed into the brew?”

“It would depend, I think. My,” her voice was higher than normal again, “what funny questions you ask. Well, tell Harry what I said about that surprise if you see him…” Her shoes clicked softly against the floor as she walked off.

---

Harry yawned as he entered his dorm, unbuttoning his shirt tiredly. The room was quiet and empty. Normally, he would have thought it was too early to sleep, but now… Now he couldn’t have cared less. The several hours of non-stop researching had taken its toll. His brain felt like mush and his body was sore after sitting still for so long.

He let his shirt fall to the floor, unbuttoning his pants slowly.

“Hello, Harry.”

Harry froze, his emerald eyes traveled over the floor. Clothes lay haphazardly over the floor. A red silky dress had been discarded by one of the chairs, and a black lacy bra had been carelessly dropped to the floor in front of his bed.

He gulped, his gaze traveling upwards, towards his bed. He choked. “He-Hermione.”

She was wearing one of his shirts again, he realized. She was lying on her side, top of his covers, one leg draped over the over. Her right hand supported the weight of her head as she stared at him, her other hand playing with the hem of his blanket. “Hello, Harry,” she repeated as she pushed herself upright.

“He-hey,” he squeaked.

“I’ve been waiting for you.” She slid her feet to the floor.

Harry closed his eyes for an instant, telling himself that the world hadn’t really begun to revolve in reverse. It just felt that way.

She walked towards him, and he had to force his gaze from her long legs and how his shirt hiked up her tights as she walked, showing hints of black lace. He blushed.

She reached him quickly, draping her arms around him. “Do…you need help?” Her eyes traveled downwards, towards his half-way unbuttoned pants.

He jerked away. “No, no. I’m fine. I, um, just realized that I--”

She placed a finger over his lips. “Shh… Just relax.” Her hands traveled over to his shoulders and she squeezed it softy. “Just relax, Harry. You’re so tense. Let me…help.” He last word came out as a husky whisper.

He staggered backwards. “I’m sorry. I just…I’ll, uh…”

“Harry?”

He paused, staring at her with wide eyes.

“You need to relax.” And with that, she reached up and pressed her lips to his.

---

To be continued…