Summer Nights

Disclaimer: I don't own HP. I wish I did, but no. JK Rowling does.

A/N: My response to the challenge “Summer Nights” by MarauderbyMoonlight. You find the requirements here, hope you will like this, and if you read please review and let me know what you think of it.

Requirements:

• takes place during the summer (after fourth or fifth year)
  - Harry is at the Dursleys'
  - Harry helps out a neighbour (you can decide how, but Harry must make a really good impression)
  - the neighbour Harry helps out turns out to be the head of a country club that Vernon and Petunia just joined
  - club is holding a dance/party/welcoming for Vernon and his family; head person insists that Harry come too
  - Harry's neighbour is a relative of Hermione's as well, her family is attending the party too
  - Hermione at first does not want to attend (she is too worried about Harry), but her mother talks her into it
  - MUST END HARRY AND HERMIONE!!!
  
  Optional:
  * During the dance, Dudley gets a crush on Hermione, but is devastated when she spends the entire time with Harry
  * Dudley can act like a total ass, embarrassing Vernon to no end, while Harry's the perfect gentleman
  * If Harry and Hermione do hook up during the dance, Dudley accuses Harry of using magic on her and tells Vernon, who screams first at Harry, then gets in a fight with Hermione's parents, not knowing she's a witch too

Summer Nights

It was an hot day in Surrey. A black haired boy swiped the sweat from his forehead, resting just a bit in the shadow of an old oak. He had been working under the sun all day.

“Come on, Harry, there's some iced orange juice for you inside. You bloody deserved it, son” a man called the young boy, who, a bit reluctantly, followed the man into a beautiful house.

“You can't imagine how glad I am that Vernon sent you over, I really needed someone this good for my garden” the man said sipping his own glass of orange juice.

“I'm glad you're pleased, Mr. Robinson” Harry said, thankful that the man. At least treated him civilly, not like his relatives who despised him. He had accepted this work because at least he could be away from them almost all day, plus it was a good distraction from the horrors he lived just few weeks ago. The return of Lord Voldemort, Cedric killed in front of his eyes…it was good that he kept himself occupied.

“Well, I guess this is all for today. I'll see you tomorrow as usual, right?” Mr. Robinson said.

Harry nodded, then after politely thanking for the juice, left to go to the Dursleys' house.

There he overheard them talking about a country club they had joined, but he wasn't interested at all, so he went directly to his room, and crashed on the bed. He was completely knackered, spending all day reorganizing Mr. Robinson's garden was really tiring. He had to move roses and other from one end of the lawn to the other. Then prepare, of course with Mr. Robinson's help, the ground for some new trees the man wanted to plant.

So he soon fell asleep, but it wasn't a restful slumber. As usual, nightmares of the night in the graveyard tormented him, and he woke up in the middle of the night. That was the moment he noticed Hedwig had returned, and had a letter with her.

“Hey, girl” he said softly, walking up to her and scratching her head, then preparing some owl treats as a reward. Unrolling the parchment, he noticed it was from Hermione.

“Dear Harry,

I hope your summer is going well.

As well as it can with them, at least…

I know you don't want to hear this, but

You need to do your homework, Harry.

Yes, I'm a bit bossy and nagging about this,

But it is for your best that I do this, I hope

You understand.

On a more pleasant note, I'm really enjoying my vacation

In Italy, it's all so wonderful!

I'll make sure I tell you everything when we see each other.

Tomorrow we'll be going back, so I hope to see you soon.

Love, Hermione”

Harry couldn't help but grin reading her letter. “Hermione” he whispered, closing his eyes and thinking of his female best friend. With a much better spirit, he went back to bed, this time being able to rest, as his dreams were much more pleasant.

The next day, he went to Mr. Robinson's.

“Good morning, Harry” he was greeted by the man.

“Good morning Mr. Robinson”

“I guess today will be your last day here helping me, we just need to prepare a bit more of the ground for the incoming trees, but I guess in half a day we should be done”

So they started working together, under the hot sun. Harry wished he could use magic, that would be much easier, but first of all he still wasn't of age, and second and second Mr. Robinson would probably end up thinking he was a freak just like the Dursleys did.

So he kept using the Muggle devices to work, paddle, rake and so on.

As lunch time arrived, as usual Mr. Robinson invited him in. He had prepared a quick meal for them, just a couple eggs and some vegetables. “Here, it isn't much but at least it will stop our rumbling stomachs” he joked, and Harry grinned, tucking in eagerly.

When they were done, the man stood up and soon returned with his wallet. “So, I guess one hundred pounds is enough for these four days help you gave me”

“Oh, no, please, Mr. Robinson. It's nothing , I didn't have anything else to do with my time, so don't worry” Harry said, not used to being paid for working during the summer. His relatives never gave him a thing for all he did in their house.

After a little discussion, the older man admitted in defeat. “At least let me invite you to the welcoming party my club is going to hold for your relatives, in a couple days time” he said, giving Harry an invitation. “And don't think of turning down this down too, because I won't let you get away with it.

Harry smiled, and took the invitation. “Thanks” he said.

“It's nothing. can I count on seeing you there?”

“Ok” Harry conceded, although he didn't know if the Dursleys would let him go.

Meanwhile, not really far away, Harry's female best friend had just come home from her vacation in Italy with her family.

She was currently in her room, unpacking her luggage, when her mother Helen came in the room.

“Hermione, sweetheart, you remember uncle John, don't you?”

“Yes, of course” the girl said without stopping what she was doing. “He owns a country club, right?”

“Yes, he does. Well, he has some new members, and is throwing a welcoming party for them in a couple of days. He's sent an invitation for us to go."

Hermione stopped in her tracks, some shirts still in her hands, and turned hastily toward her mother. “No way. I've been away from my friends with this vacation, and now I need to check on them, especially on Harry. I don't really have time to go to a party for who knows who” she said.

“Come on, baby, it's just for one night” her father said, joining the discussion. “I think you can find a few hours for one relative you don't see so often”

“But…” she started, before Daniel, her father, cut her off gently.

“Hermione, I know you care deeply for your friends, and I know Harry's not as lucky as you are to have a family that loves him. I understand your concern for him, but really, what does it change for him if you go to the party or not?”

This was one of the few times in her life that Hermione had been rendered speechless. Her father was right, if she stayed home, she still could do nothing for Harry. A few hours at a country club would do no harm.

“OK, I'll come” she conceded, sighing and resuming her work of putting away her clothes and other personal effects.

Her parents left her room smiling. While going downstairs, Helen couldn't help but grin.

“What are you grinning about?” Daniel asked her.

“Well, I'm not sure of course, but I guess our Hermione is quite smitten with this Harry” she said.

“Nah, I don't think so” Daniel said.

“Well, you shouldn't know. You're a man, you're not supposed to understand a girl's mind. But since I'm her mother, and have been a girl myself, I think I'm right” Helen said a bit smugly, entering the kitchen while Daniel looked at her.

“If you're so sure, why don't you bet on it then?” he challenged his wife, who turned and looked at him.

“Fine. I bet before the end of this year they will get up together”

“Even if she admits she likes him, how can you assume he likes her back?” Daniel asked.

“I happen to have read some of the letters he's been sending to her, and I think he may like her too” she admitted blushing a bit. Daniel shook his head smiling, and went to the living room to watch some telly.

In her room, Hermione stopped working on her luggage to sit on the bed. A sigh escaped her lips.

“Oh, Harry. I hope you're ok. I really can't wait to see you again”

Little did she know that they would be seeing each other much sooner than both of them expected.

Two days later, in the Dursleys' household the preparations for the party were frantic. Petunia kept checking Dudley's clothes, trying to smooth some wrinkles. Vernon was dressed in his best suit, and kept reminding his son about good manners and such. They were extremely proud of being members of the club, and wanted to make a good impression on everyone. Of course that requested that Harry was kept under control, as he was a notorious freak who would surely embarrass them all.

“I'm warning you boy, you're coming just because the owner of the club wants you to be there, but if you do only one small thing wrong, you better wish you had never been born in the first place” he bellowed to the boy, who simply shrugged.

“Of course Uncle Vernon that is what you wish don't you?” he replied sarcastically. Not that he cared much for this party, so being quiet would not be too difficult to do.

“I'm going to bore myself to sleep, I guess” he thought while climbing in the Dursleys' car. The whole way to the club Dudley tried his hardest to harass Harry in anyway, of course Petunia and Vernon acted as if nothing was happening at all. The two adults were probably enjoying Harry's discomfort as much as their overweight son, but Harry didn't care. He sat there, looking outside tuning them out, thinking about a certain brown-haired witch.

“I guess if Hermione were at the party I could enjoy myself, but that's impossible” he ended his musings about his best friend when Vernon alerted them they were entering the club parking.

Soon they were into the club, and were accompanied to their table. People were slowly gathering, and Vernon glared at Harry to remind him his role, and that the punishment would be terrible if he didn't behave.

Harry nodded, and then rolled his eyes once his uncle wasn't looking at him anymore. As predicted, the night was quite boring, and surely seeing the show of Petunia and Vernon dancing wasn't doing much to revive it.

Suddenly Dudley got excited and elbowed Harry in the stomach.

“Hey, freak, that girl is hot, don't you think?” he said, pointing his finger at a brown haired girl who was elegantly dressed with a deep blue dress, her hair collected in a ponytail, and a glowing tan clearly visible. It didn't hurt that the dress clutched to her curves perfectly, underlining her great body.

As soon as Harry saw her, his expression went to one of shock, then to one of surprise, and then he grinned broadly.

“I'm sure I'll hook up with her before the night ends” Dudley said, standing up and going to the buffet to fill his plate again, it was the fourth time he did.

Harry instead stood up and walked toward the girl.

“May I have the honour of this dance, miss?” he courteously said, grinning.

“Thanks, but…” she started, before turning and seeing him.

“Harry!” Hermione said. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, I could ask you the same” he said, hugging her.

“The owner of this club is my uncle, although I don't see him so often” she explained, still holding her arms around him. It felt good to be in his arms like that, even if only friendly. “What about you?”

“Well, my relatives are new members of the club, so the party is in their honour, and since I helped Mr. Robinson with his garden this summer he invited me too” he said. “So, my offer for a dance is still valid…”

“You want to dance?” she asked, a bit bewildered. “You never liked dancing, at the Yule Ball you made such a fuss for having to do that!”

“Probably because I didn't have such a beautiful date back then” he flirted with her.

She blushed a bit, and looked down. “Smooth talker”

“No, really. And the period in Italy has done wonders for you, your tan is perfect” he complimented her again.

She smiled. “You're not bad yourself, you know. I guess working in uncle John's garden has helped you stay fit”

From afar Dudley watched the scene unfolding between the two of them oblivious that Hermione and Harry knew each other so well and since such a long time, and anger started building up in him, as he believed Harry was stealing his girlfriend from him.

Deciding it wasn't acceptable anymore, the fat boy walked toward the couple, and brusquely pushed Harry apart.

“Hi, I'm Dudley Dursley. I'm going to be your man from tonight on” he said, dragging Hermione on the dance floor.

“Excuse me, you were extremely rude to him right now” Hermione said, glaring at Dudley, who simply shrugged.

“Who cares about him?” he said. “Let's dance”

Now, Dudley could be a pompous git and so on, and lazy, without an interest for sports, but he was still a guy her own age, so Hermione wasn't able to extract herself from his grip, and so she found herself forced to dance with him.

Her father, witnessing the scene, was already walking toward them to take Dudley apart, but Harry stopped him.

“No need to intervene, Mr. Granger. I can handle that git of my cousin on my own” he said, then walked toward them and gently spoke.

“May I cut in?”

“No way” Dudley said, at the same time while Hermione said, “Of course”

“I guess the lady wants to give me a chance, so you better step back, mate” Harry said, feigning not to know him.

“I'm not going to let her dance with you!” Dudley bellowed, making all the people in the room turn toward them, his face red in a perfect imitation of Vernon's tempers.

“Well, I guess I should call the security then” Harry said, moving away.

Fear took the fat boy, who left Hermione and stomped away toward his parents. All the guests were glaring at him, especially Hermione's parents, while Harry gently took the girl's hands and they started to dance to a slow song.

“Thanks for intervening, Harry. I wasn't going to be able to free myself from his grip” she said wincing, her wrists still hurting a bit.

“I should have known he would try something like that” he rolled his eyes.

“You know him?” she asked surprised.

“Of course I do, although I would be far better without. He's my cousin, the one and only Dudley Dursley”

“So the surname wasn't a coincidence, he's really one of those awful relatives of yours. I should have known by the way he pushed you away” she said, scowling.

“Don't think about it, please. Let's just enjoy this dance” Harry said, pulling her closer and his stomach fluttering like tons of butterflies had set loose in it. That was more or less the same way Hermione felt…

Feeling bold, she rested her head on his shoulder, swinging to the soft music like many other couples were doing.

He didn't expect her to do that, but then smiled. “I missed you lots this summer” he confessed.

“I missed you too. Italy was fantastic, but I kept feeling like an hole…with you it would have been perfect!” she admitted blushing a bit, something that Harry found endearing.

When the music came to an alt, they went to have something to drink, automatically taking each other's hand, without even thinking about it.

“Aww, they're so sweet” Helen said, looking at the young couple. “I guess this proves I was right, don't you think dear?”

Daniel just grunted. If there was something he hated it was losing bets with his wife. However, he had to admit Harry had been really courteous to his baby girl till that moment. “Just hope for him he doesn't do anything to hurt her” he said.

“Oh, come on, Daniel. Don't go all protective on her now, she's growing and she will have her fair share of delusions from life. You can't always prevent her from suffering. Although, I don't really think he will hurt her, just look at how he treats her…”

At the refreshments table, Harry poured a glass of champagne to Hermione, then poured one for himself.

After taking a sip, he spoke. “So, have you met some handsome Italian guy who's swept you off your feet?” he teased her.

“No way!” she giggled.

“Well, Italians are known for being seductive, I wouldn't be surprised if you found one you liked” he winked at her, and she swatted him on the arm playfully.

From afar, Dudley watched them brooding. It was a first that Harry got something he did not, and he didn't like it at all. Seeing they were at the refreshments table, he got an evil idea to ruin their night.

Walking toward there unnoticed by the two, as they were too wrapped in each other to see him, he moved in the perfect position for his plan.

They were really close to the table, so Dudley thought about making Harry trip on it and spill the bottles on Hermione's dress. Only, Harry had Seeker reflexes, so when Dudley moved to trip him, the raven haired boy managed to avoid the assault.

Result, it was Dudley who fell on the table, spilling its contents on Hermione.

You can imagine she was not pleased at him. Plus, the noise of the table falling attracted all the eyes of the guests of the party on the fat boy. Vernon immediately intervened to try and keep the embarrassment at a minimum, dragging Dudley away without even caring for Hermione's dress.

Harry instead took her by the hand. “Come on, Mione, let's go polish your dress” he said dragging her gently toward the bathroom.

“Now, how can we take away these stains?” Hermione asked a bit worried once they got there. That was her best dress, and having it ruined that way pained her.

“Well, I kind of have a solution” Harry said, blushing madly, “But for me to do it I need you to take it off…”

Hermione blushed scarlet red too, but she trusted Harry with her life, so she lifted her hair up, giving him access to her neck. “Please, can you unzip it for me?”

He hesitantly did, then helped her out of it. The sight in front of his eyes mesmerized him. He knew Hermione was beautiful, of course he knew, as he fancied her, but seeing her in front of him just in her black lacy underwear left him speechless.

Feeling embarrassed by his staring at her, Hermione blushed even more. That was the moment they heard knocking on the door.

“Hermione, dear, do you need help?” her mother asked.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, knowing very well that the situation they were in would look bad to others, so she hastily answered. “No, Mum, Harry's helping me here. Don't worry, I'll be back soon”

“Ok dear” Helen said before leaving.

Harry released the breath he didn't even know he was holding. “Merlin, that was close” he said then, chuckling nervously.

“Yes, it was” she said, smiling warmly at him.

“You're really beautiful, you know” he said, taking the dress in his hands to work on it.

“Thanks” she said, looking down. She was extremely pleased he thought she was beautiful, no one before had said that to her, not with such a sincerity she could hear in his voice.

“So, now, for this dress, I guess a Cleaning Spell will do” Harry said.

“No, Harry, you can't do magic out of school! You'll risk to be expelled!” Hermione said, worried.

“Relax, Mione. They can't trace wandless magic” he winked at her, then swished his hand over the dress, and it returned perfectly clean.

The brown haired girl looked at him in awe. “Where have you learned that?”

“I practiced this summer. Just didn't want to risk hurting you if I tried it with your dress on and it went wrong. We better go back before your parents get strange thoughts on what we are doing here” he teased her then, making her blush crimson red again. She swatted him on the arm, then proceeded, with his help, to put the dress back on.

Finally they were able to return to the ball room, still hand in hand. Dudley was fuming, his plan had backfired on him, while Harry had come out of the whole mess as the perfect gentleman.

As the party progressed, Dudley was forced to look from afar at his cousin and Hermione dancing, drinking, laughing together, while he was kept under control by his relatives. However, he knew he still had a card he could play with them if things got really bad. That would be an extreme measure, but he absolutely didn't want to lose that chick to his freak cousin.

Meanwhile, on the dance floor, Harry spun Hermione around, following the rhythm of the slow song playing at the moment. He kept being mesmerized by her angelic features, and losing himself in her hazel eyes.

On her part, Hermione was unable to look away from Harry's emerald pools, something of him she'd always thought enchanting.

When the song came to an alt, they were so engrossed in each other that neither of them noticed, and they kept swaying, much for the amusement of the other guests who looked at them smiling warmly.

It was clear to everyone they were in love, and Helen couldn't help but grin, nudging her husband with her elbow.

“Aren't they sweet?” she whispered dreamily to him.

“Yes, they are” he whispered back, smiling. Although as every father of a teenage girl he was a bit protective, observing how Harry treated his baby through the night, he had understood there was nothing to be worried about.

Now, if only the two of them would get together, he would be, for once, more than happy to lose the bet with Helen.

After some moments, however, Harry realised everyone was staring at them, and nudged Hermione.

“Mione, I think the song stopped” he whispered to her, who was still dancing, her eyes closed and her head on his chest.

She opened her eyes, and noticed everyone staring at them, and her cheeks reddened.

Taking him by the hand, she lead him away from the dance floor, to have a walk.

“Whoa, Mione, you're pulling my arm out of its socket here!” he said to her, who was forcefully dragging him away.

“Oh, sorry” she said, leaving his hand. Once they were alone, they sat on a step near the lawn.

“I can't believe we made such a scene” she said

“Do you regret dancing with me?” he asked, hoping she said not, because he didn't regret dancing with her. Not at all.

“No! No, it's not that” she hastily said. “I enjoyed that much. I mean, we were so wrapped up that we didn't notice the song ended!”

“Is that a bad thing?”

“Well…” she started, then smiled. “No, I guess it isn't”

“So, would you like to go back there or stay here for some time?”

“Here is quiet” she said, leaning into his embrace. “Look, there are lots of stars tonight!”

“Yeah…maybe Cedric is looking on us from there” Harry said, a bit sadly.

“Harry, please, don't blame yourself for what happened” she said, sensing his sorrow. “It's only Voldemort's fault, not yours”

He smiled, and caressed her hair softly. “I know, Mione. But that doesn't ease my pain. I had to see him die in front of my eyes…it was terrible”

She nodded, and shuddered thinking it could have been him the one to die. She would have been devastated.

After that, they stayed in silence for some time, star-gazing.

“It's peaceful tonight” she said then, turning slightly toward him, and Harry was fighting the urge to snog her right there, but was miserably failing. It was like her lips were something magnetic, and he couldn't fight the force attracting him there.

“Yeah, it is” he managed to say, but they were slowly but constantly moving closer, now their lips were just inches away, when they heard Daniel's voice.

“So here you are” he said, “it's quiet tonight” he added then when he reached them. “I can see why you would retreat to this spot, it's really beautiful”

Harry felt nervous as her father almost caught him kissing Hermione.

“Yes, it is” she said, trying to make him relax, but she was a bit embarrassed herself. If it had been her mother, she would have had no problems, but she didn't know how her father would react seeing her in that situation with a boy.

Smiling, Daniel turned. “I just wanted to alert you the big cake has been brought, it would be a pity to miss it” then he winked at them and walked away.

Both of them laughed when he was gone away, then Harry stood up and offered her one hand.

“My, aren't you courteous Mr. Potter” she teased him.

“For you, yes, Ms. Granger” he playfully retorted, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

In the ball room, Dudley was fuming as he couldn't follow the two of them, and find out what they were up to. When he noticed them returning in the room with Harry's arm draped over he shoulders, both of them smiling at each other, he knew the time for using that last card of his was coming.

After the cake was distributed, and everyone had got a piece of it, well, in Dudley's case it was three pieces, which made many of the guests glare at him, music started again.

Daniel and Helen joined Harry and Hermione on the dance floor, and you could guess, watching them, that after many years of marriage they were still pretty in love with each other, just like the teenagers dancing on their left.

Who, however, were completely oblivious to anything around them. As the dance progressed, Harry felt again that magnetic attraction to her rosy, pink lips, which were so alluring, so tantalizing…when Hermione wet them with her tongue it was the death of him. He felt blood rush downwards with such a sensual, yet innocent gesture, and couldn't take it anymore.

Slowly, he leaned in, and closing his eyes finally brushed his lips against hers. She was a bit surprised, but pleased, and laced her arms against his neck, kissing him back and allowing him access to her mouth. Soon their tongues were caressing each other, and exploring the other's mouth, playing games of sudden retreats and swift raids to touch the other.

Both of them felt like tons of fireworks had erupted in them, and Hermione couldn't restrain a soft moan.

When they parted, thye noticed guests all around them were clapping their hands wildly, and Helen and Daniel smiled at the two of them.

Harry felt both embarrassed for having kissed her in front of her parents, and relieved that they weren't upset. Hermione was on cloud nine and didn't even care about her parents witnessing her and Harry kissing.

The only one fuming was Dudley, who took the chance to use his secret weapon.

“I'll swipe that smile off Potter's face” he thought, then turned toward Vernon.

“Dad, I saw Harry use magic on that poor girl, you should do something for her!” he said then.

As soon as he heard that, Vernon stood up, his face quickly turning purple, and went to grab Harry by the collar.

“You freak, reverse what the hell you did on her right now!” the man shouted, drawing the attention of all the other guests.

“Leave me, I didn't do anything” Harry protested, trying to get free from his uncle's grip.

“Liar! Dudley saw you do that!” Vernon accused him, and Harry snorted.

“Dudley wouldn't be able to recognize love if it was smashed on his face, figure he would think I used something on her” Harry spat. That was the moment Hermione intervened.

Hands on her hips, she shouted at Vernon.

“You loathsome pig, you should go and hide before I tell everyone the way you treated Harry since he was just a baby, so you better leave him and go sod off with your poor excuse of a family” she said, before her father stopped her gently.

“Mister, I don't know who you are, but you better step away from the boy if you don't want to be charged of molestation” he said to Vernon, who turned even more red.

“He did…things to this girl here! I've got to stop him!” Vernon said.

Daniel merely laughed, while the owner of the club was coming toward them to see what was happening. The whole crowd in the hall was looking at the scene.

“I think I should know if he did something to her as she's my daughter and I watched them closely all night” Hermione's father said.

“You don't understand, he's different from us, he's a freak!” Vernon kept shouting while Petunia and Dudley watched form afar.

“I guess you're referring to the fact he's a wizard, well, I'll let you know my daughter is, as you put it, a “freak” too. So I guess she's more than able to defend herself if need be”

Vernon looked from the man to Hermione, and to Harry.

“What? She's one of them too?” he said stupidly. Harry nodded, smirking.

“Very well then, go with your tramp, boy” Vernon said, releasing the boy.

Harry's eyes darkened, and he bellowed.

“Vernon Dursley, don't you dare call Hermione a tramp. You and your family aren't worthy enough to even look at her, so you better go away from here before I lose my patience”

At the same time, Mr. Robinson, the owner of the club and uncle of Hermione, glared at Vernon.

“Mr. Dursley, you and your family have been an horrible show tonight. I think it's better for us all if you never step here anymore. Now go away, your membership here is to be considered cancelled this right moment”

So, the Dursleys left, leaving Harry there.

“I guess I'm in a lot of trouble now. I've got all my things at their house, and they left me here” Harry said scratching his head.

“Oh, that's not a problem, son. You'll be our guest for the rest of summer. I guess my baby girl here will be delighted about that, am I right honey?” Daniel said, winking at Hermione who was squealing with joy.

“As for your things, I guess we can go pick them up tomorrow” her father said, leading both the teens to his and Helen's table.

The rest of the night passed smoothly, Harry and Hermione laughing, drinking, dancing together, happy as no one of them had ever been.

Time to go home came, and they all entered in Dr. Granger's car, an Audi A4, and while the man drove to their house, in the back seat Harry and Hermione fell asleep knackered by a long night of partying, his arms around her, who was leaning on his chest. Both of them wore contended smiles.

“Aren't they adorable?” Helen gushed looking at them.

Daniel smiled. “Yes, they are. I couldn't ask for a better gentleman for our little girl”

“She's not so little anymore, Daniel” Helen reminded him.

“I know, but for me she will always be” he said just a bit wistfully.

Once at home, Helen woke them up softly.

“Hey, we're home” she whispered to them, who sleepily opened their eyes, and smiled at each other.

Holding hands, they followed the adults into the building.

“Hermione, care to show Harry his room?” Helen said, winking at her daughter, who grinned back and led him upstairs, to a room just next to hers.

“This is one of the two guest rooms. I chose this one as it is nearer to my own” she said, blushing just a bit, “but if you prefer the other one…”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, and pulled her close.

“It's perfect” he said, burying his face in her hair and inhaling her vanilla scent.

She sighed softly. “I'm so glad we are together now, Harry” she confessed.

He chuckled. “I'm glad too, Mione, although I never expected you to fancy me back” he said, tilting her chin up and looking sincerely in her eyes. Then he leaned in, and their lips met once more.

After some moments, they parted, fearing to get caught by her parents.

“Goodnight, Mione” he smiled sweetly at her.

“Goodnight, Harry” she said, blowing him a kiss and retreating in her own room.

Next day, Harry went with Daniel to retrieve his things at Privet Drive. The Dursleys were more than happy to get rid of him, at least for that summer, so they let them collect his things in the Hogwarts trunk, then the two of them were off to the Granger household once again.

On the way back, Daniel spoke.

“So, Harry, I feel like I know you already, Hermione's spoken lots about you in these years, and from what I have been able to see you are really a fine young man”

“Thanks” Harry said. “If I am it is thanks to Hermione too. She's stood by me constantly in these years, I could never thank her enough for that”

Daniel smiled. “Figured you would say that. As well as she says it has been being friends with you that helped her become who she is now. Although what the two of you showed last night wasn't exactly friendship, was it?” Daniel teased him.

Harry blushed just a bit.

“Relax, I'm not going to chop your head off just because you're dating my baby girl” Daniel joked. “Although I may do that if you hurt her” he said then, turning serious. “I know that's not the case, but just so you know” he added then, seeing Harry was going to protest.

Finally they arrived, and found Helen in the kitchen preparing lunch, while Hermione was in her room reading.

Harry joined her.

“Hey, beautiful” he said softly, sitting on her bed near her.

“Hey” she said, looking up from her book. “You took everything from there?”

“Yeah, they were overly happy that I wasn't coming back for this summer” he said, rolling his eyes playfully.

“Jerks” she scowled, “especially that pig of your cousin”

“He was sure you would go home with him by the end of then night, can you believe it?” Harry said, amused.

“Well, he wasn't too wrong” she said mischievously.

Harry almost gagged. “What? You would have considered dating him?”

“Of course not, but if I was to come home with you, technically I would have gone to his house too, so I would have gone home with him too”

Harry grinned, then tickled her sides. “That is for making me almost gag on the image of you and Dudders together”

“No…Harry…please…stop…” she shrieked through her laughter, but he was merciless, and stopped only many minutes later.

“You're mean” she mildly glared at him.

“Aww…mean, am I?” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. Then he swiftly covered her lips with his own, and kissed her passionately, exploring her mouth with his tongue, and caressing her own. Minutes later, they parted, and she had a glazed look in her eyes.

“Am I still mean?” he asked

“That's playing dirty” she said, leaning on him. “But I kind of like when you play dirty like that”

The next few days passed smoothly.

When her parents had to go work, they would cook together. Harry, being trained for years since he was a kid to cook, taught her some tricks, then they even tried baking a cake, with the result that in preparing the dough they started tossing flour at each other, making a mess of the kitchen and laughing hysterically on the ground, leaning on each other for support.

“So, would you like to spend some time at the pool?” Hermione asked him an afternoon while they were alone.

“Of course!” he exclaimed. “I would love to!” and so they did. After going to their rooms to change in swimsuits, they met in the backyard where the pool was.

“It's big” Harry commented.

“Yeah, it is. So, you going first?” she asked him.

“What, are you fearing the water is too cold?” he joked.

“Maybe, maybe not” she replied evasively grinning.

“Fine, I'll go first” he said, his eyes sparkling with mischief, but she didn't notice as she had turned.

Suddenly, Hermione felt being lifted up, and a moment later she was in the water, an extremely amused Harry holding her in his arms.

“Harry James Potter…” she started, huffing at him, but before she could end her tirade he kissed her, effectively silencing the brown haired witch.

All afternoon they alternated sunbathing and being in the cool water, as the day was strangely hot for England.

That was where Helen and Daniel found them when they came back home from work.

“They're really happy” he commented looking at them from the window.

“Yeah, they are. Don't you dare go disturb them, instead, why don't you help me in the kitchen while they enjoy themselves outside?”

And so he did.

Some days later, her parents had to go out of town for a couple days for work, so Harry and Hermione remained home alone.

That evening they set for going out and have pizza, then Hermione proceeded showing him around her area, something they had already done during daytime, but only once at night. She showed him some videogames stores, and he couldn't resist playing a bit, then they went for an ice cream nearby.

“So, are you enjoying the night?” she asked him while he pulled her close, one arm draped over her shoulders.

“Lots. I've never been out at night before, what with the Dursleys being like they are, and I found those videogames really fun. Now I understand a bit better why Dudley kept buying them. Plus, I got to share this night with my really beautiful girlfriend, what could I ask more?”

She grinned at him. “Beautiful?”

He nodded. “Very” he said snatching some of her sundae.

“Hey, that was mine!” she said, frowning.

He grinned, then leaned over the table and kissed her, the ice cream still in his mouth, giving a special taste to the kiss.

“I did give it back, didn't I?” he said then, winking at her.

Then they went to a pub, something Hermione used to do at times with her cousins when they visited, and of course at Hogsmeade with her friends.

While sitting at the table, Harry had to leave to go to the loo.

As soon as he left, two guys neared Hermione, and sat down.

“Hi, hottie. What's your name?” one asked, clearly checking her out.

“What the hell you want?” she replied, glaring at them.

“Oh, not friendly, are you? Well, I think we will loosen you up a fair bit” the other said, taking a small sachet from his pocket, and proceeding to pour its content in Hermione's beer.

“Drink that” the other commanded, taking a knife from his pocket and pointing it at her under the table.

“No way” she spat at him. The other slapped her.

“Drink, bitch, or we'll force you to” the first said, grinding the knife into her leg, almost slicing into her flesh.

She hoped Harry would be back soon, but reluctantly took the glass.

“And don't worry about that friend of yours, he's going to be taken care of by a couple of our friends”

“You really think so?” Harry's voice came, and they all turned to see him glaring at them, his eyes dark.

The one with the knife stood up and walked toward him, suddenly pointing the knife at him.

“You'll let us take her, or you'll die”

Harry chuckled, then with a swift movement disarmed him, and punched him right on the nose, breaking it. The guy fell on the floor, bleeding.

“I'm used to death threats, by someone far more dangerous than you” the raven haired boy spat, before taking Hermione's hand and leading her away.

Once they got home, she was somewhat relaxed after the bad encounter, although still a bit silent.

“Mione, is everything ok?” he asked her. “I'm sorry I left you alone”

“It's not your fault, Harry” she said. Then, sighing, spoke again. “Will you keep me company tonight? I don't want to be alone”

“Of course” he said, then they changed to their night clothes, and met in Hermione's room. She was already in bed, waiting for him, who entered and wrapped his arms around her body.

“I'll never let anyone hurt you, Mione, you know that right?”

“I know, Harry. I love you”

“I love you too”

And with that they fell asleep, both feeling content for having found true love at such an early age in their life.

Harry couldn't stop thanking Merlin that he had found her in his life, or he would probably end just a clone of Voldemort himself.

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