A/N: Can I say I love you guys? Even though I haven't replied to all of the reviews, I have read every single one and I absolutely love all of them! Thank you so so very much! You have no idea how much I love hearing how much you guys have laughed or aww'd or just loved the story.
I do apologize for how long it took to get this chapter out, but I hadn't been feeling well for about two weeks and it wasn't until recently when I was able to sit at a computer and write. I sincerely hope that the following chapters will come out much quicker and at fairly regular intervals, like every or every other week (but no promises!!).
This chapter's only been half beta'd (thanks once again to Pips, I love you!), so any mistakes, crap writing and Americanisms are my own.
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"Ron. Ron, put the harmonica down," Hermione ordered sternly.
"Give it up, mate," Harry called up to his best friend who was currently standing on his bed in a vain attempt to get away from Hermione. "You can't play it and hearing you just blow into it is driving us nuts!"
"But I've got the blues!" To prove this point Ron blew tunelessly into the harmonica, dancing out of Hermione's reach. "Isn't this what Muggles do when they have the blues?"
"No, Ron! They eat chocolate, talk to a psychiatrist, take medication, they do anything but play the harmonica!" Hermione ground out between gritted teeth. "Now if you don't give me that bloody -"
Ron gasped and turned looking like he was going to crawl up the wall in horror. "Harry! She swore!"
But Harry wasn't paying attention to the squabbling; instead his gaze was intently focused on the door to their ward.
"Harry?"
"Harry?"
"Shh. Do you hear that?"
There was a definite low rumble just outside the doors making the three teens inside tense and a bit nervous.
Before either of them had a chance to react (except for a short shriek Ron would later insist was a manly yelp), the double doors burst open and a tidal wave of people rolled into the room. At the forefront were all the Weasleys followed by Hermione's parents, the Gryffindors in their year and the ones they knew in the year below, members of Dumbledore's Army and members of the Order. In a matter of minutes the ward was packed to the brim with people and noise.
Overwhelmed to the point where all they could do was gape, the three could only passively accept the hugs, kisses, pats on the back and handshakes for the first minute or so. When their brains finally caught up with their eyes, they were at last able to smile and hug everyone.
They ate the lunch Mrs. Weasley had made while talking to and laughing with their friends. A part of Hermione sat back and watched in awe. She hadn't realized she'd known so many people let alone called most of them friend. It was overwhelming and warming all at once.
She glanced surreptitiously over at Harry and was even more warmed by the laughter and joy in his eyes. For the past few days they'd been stuck in the hospital, he'd worn a vaguely haunted look in his eyes even when she knew he was having fun. Now that look was wiped clean by the antics of Seamus and the twins.
"Hermione!"
She looked over and her face lit up at her best friend weaving and skirting her way through the crowd. "Ginny!"
The two girls embraced and it was like the last few days hadn't even happened. They chatted and Ginny caught Hermione up on the events unfolding outside, slipping her several Daily Prophets and Quibblers. "How long will you be able to stay?" Hermione asked.
"As long as we want, according to the Healers," Ginny replied casting furtive looks over at Harry and frowning slightly.
"And how long will that be?" Hermione asked a touch coolly, trying her hardest to mask the annoyance in her voice
"Probably tonight," Ginny replied, shifting nervously in her seat and returning her attention to Hermione. She either hadn't noticed or ignored Hermione's tone of voice. "Fred and George brought a few bottles of Firewhisky and butter beer. They feel honor-bound to get everyone who stays drunk."
Hermione frowned slightly at this. "What about your parents and mine?"
"I over heard them say that they weren't going to stay long, maybe a couple of hours. I can't imagine the rest of the Order staying much longer either," Ginny replied with a mischievous and wicked glint in her eye. "You're not going to say anything are you?"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "We're all adults, or almost anyway. I can't stop anyone from getting pissed; I just don't want to hear it from anyone if I choose not to participate."
Ginny nodded. "Point taken."
True to Ginny's prediction the parents left within a couple of hours, having given and received all the hugs and love they could on the three and shortly thereafter the older members of the Order slowly trickled out the door. Tonks and Remus were the last to leave, Tonks giving everyone who was left a wink. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do," she winked at them with a knowing smirk.
"Go plan your wedding!" Ginny laughed throwing a pillow that hit the door where Tonks' face had been moments before.
They could hear her laughter echoing down the hallway. Luna, Fred, George, Seamus, Neville, Dean, Ginny and the three occupants of the ward were the only ones left. Fred tip-toed up to the doors, checked to make sure they were in relative privacy before warding the doors and turning back to the others.
"George, if you will."
"My pleasure, Fred."
"Now this is why I love my brothers," Ron sighed as George brought out five shrunken bottles of Firewhisky, a shrunken case of butter beer, and shrunken cups. They were quickly resized and the liquor doled out.
"Oi, you three! I've been meaning to ask. What does this mean?" Seamus asked pointing to the fort with a glass of Firewhisky in hand. Ron had put up a piece of parchment that had "Fortress of Lurve" in large lettering. Harry had crossed out "Lurve" and put "Solitude" in the little space he had left next to "Lurve" before all of that had been crossed out and Harry had written "Hermione's Ritzy Strip Club" in the space he could find. "And what is this thing anyway?"
Ron, who'd been brought up to date as to what "Hermione's Ritzy Strip Club" meant sans Harry's embarrassing declaration, and Hermione and Harry looked at each other, unsure if they wanted to divulge what exactly the fort was and what it meant to them. Harry and Hermione shared a private glance, knowing that the fort meant something different to them than it did to Ron. While he knew about the joke behind the strip club, Ron still didn't know that for the past two nights his two best friends had been sleeping in the fort with each other and that their friendship was deepening beyond the level it had been earlier that week. At least that was how Hermione viewed it. She wasn't so sure about Harry, although she hoped. "It's nothing," Harry finally spoke up with a nonchalant shrug.
"A fit of boredom," Hermione spoke up.
"It's probably not all that funny if you weren't there," Ron replied with a similar shrug.
Seamus gave them odd looks but shrugged. "Okay."
Hermione glanced over and noticed Ginny giving Harry a faint look of relief. What in the world? Hopefully the Firewhisky would loosen Ginny's lips and Hermione would be able to ask her some questions she'd normally be tight lipped about.
The Firewhisky did do its job, but not in the way Hermione was hoping. While nursing her butter beer, she, Luna, and Ginny watched with mild fascination and disgust as each of the boys, all of whom were a bit deep in their cups, took turns belching the loudest until Luna, who'd remained eerily quiet most of the night, stood, cleared her throat to gain the attention of everyone and let loose a window-rattler of a belch.
She daintily cleared her throat again and sat back down. "Pardon me, but that had been building all night," she explained, crossing her legs and gazing vacantly out the nearby window.
They all stared at her in amazement. "I think I'm in love," Ron said dazedly, watching Luna with a newfound awe, respect, and a little something else Hermione hadn't seen in his eyes since before Ron had kissed her all those months ago.
Fred, George, and Seamus whistled loudly and gave Ron a good ribbing. "Oh, oh! Can I be in your wedding?" Dean asked with a smirk.
Ron's ears, which had been quite pink from the alcohol, turned beet red from the teasing. "Sure, you can be a bridesmaid," Harry piped up when Ron only sat there sputtering.
Hermione giggled and looked over at Luna who sat serenely with a knowing smirk on her face. "You would look beautiful in satin and organdy," Luna spoke up earning Ron an appreciative look.
Everyone laughed at that even Dean who shook his head. "What the hell is organdy?" he asked.
No one even bothered to explain, but spent the next hour planning out Ron and Luna's wedding and the bridesmaid dresses the boys would wear. Fred handed Hermione another butter beer which, in hindsight, she should've questioned, but she had been laughing far too hard to even notice who'd given her the refilled glass.
The night went on in a similar fashion until it was nearly three in the morning when the party began to wind down.
Hermione leaned against Harry, giggling her head off at a joke that probably wouldn't have been nearly as funny had she been sober. Fred was passed out on one of the beds, cradling an empty bottle of Firewhisky, his bum in the air and George was passed out under the same bed muttering something about Nosebleed Nougats. Dean, Neville and Seamus were passed out on separate beds further down the ward. Ginny was still awake, staring pensively out the window while Ron and Luna were snogging furiously on his bed.
"Are you drunk?" Harry whispered with a grin that made Hermione melt inside.
"Um, maybe a little. I think Fred may have slipped me some Firewhisky in my beer," Hermione whispered back. "Or was it George? Are you?"
Harry chuckled again. "Yeah, I'm pretty pissed."
Feeling more emboldened than she ever would be sober, Hermione stood and took Harry's hand leading him to the fort. Harry plopped unceremoniously on the ground and scooted inside bunching up all the blankets and sheets with him. "Oh bugger," he muttered trying to smooth out the mess he'd made while Hermione giggled at him from where she sat outside on her knees.
"Help," he called out a few moments later, rolled up like a cigar in the blankets. Hermione fell back laughing hard, barely disturbing the people passed out. Luna and Ron paused in their soft moaning and rolling around to spare her a glance before resuming their snogging and Ginny looked over with a mysterious little grin on her face before resuming her city watching.
"Harry, you're hopeless," Hermione laughed crawling inside to help unravel him from the blankets and sheets.
"I can see the Daily Prophet now: The Boy Who Lived, Done In By Blankets," Harry laughed, sprawling out once Hermione had finally freed him. "Now that would be ironing."
Hermione snorted a laugh which caused them both to double over laughing on their sides facing each other. "I think - I think the twins put a lot of Firewhisky in my beer," Hermione sighed, calming down.
A long low moan drifted across the room and Harry and Hermione's eyes widened in realization that it was coming from Ron or Luna, it was hard to tell. "Oh that's just gross," Ginny muttered. Harry and Hermione burst out into another fit of giggling they tried to muffle with their blankets.
"I think I have to agree with Ginny," Hermione whispered once she could talk.
Harry nodded in agreement, watching her in the darkness with a small smile on his face. Hermione calmed, the smile on her face slowly fading into one of curious drunken contemplation. "So serious," she murmured reaching over to caress his lips with the tips of her fingers.
He cracked a grin at that and trapped her fingers in his hand. He placed soft barely there kisses that tickled but made her feel even more highly aware of him than she'd ever felt before. A tingle start somewhere at her fingers, shot down her arm and through her body at a speed that had to be faster than normal nerve conduction. "Harry," she gasped softly.
"Yes?" he murmured, his lips trailing down her fingers to the palm of her hand.
"What - what're -" she gasped softly, her breathing speeding up, "mmm, don't stop doing that." He was doing something to her wrist with his lips, tongue and teeth making her toes curl.
"Are you drunk enough to let me kiss you?" he asked, his face suddenly much closer to hers.
"I don't have to be drunk to let you kiss me," she replied.
Harry's face turned into one of confusion and concentration. "So is that a yes?"
Hermione chuckled softly. "Yes that's a yes."
"Ok, good," he murmured while she shifted onto her back and he leaned over her. "I'm a bit too drunk for anything more than yes and no answers."
Hermione grinned up at him, wrapping her arms lazily around his neck. "I'll remember that for next time we're drunk."
Harry grinned at her and slowly leaned down, caressing her lips softly with hers. It was a tentative first kiss, but the second one gained the confidence the first one lacked. His lips pressed harder and Hermione closed her eyes, a soft whimper escaping as his tongue teased her lips apart. The kiss went on for long drugging minutes that neither wanted to stop.
"Harry," she murmured as his lips trailed from her lips across her jaw and down her throat when they finally managed break apart to breathe. She ran her hands around his neck and down his chest, wanting to feel more of his warm skin.
Hermione had been too caught up in exploring the hard contours and soft skin on Harry's back to realize that he'd stopped his exploration of her neck. "Harry?" she whispered, poking his shoulder.
His response was a soft snore.
"Bloody buggering hell," Hermione muttered. Normally she wasn't one to cuss, but sometimes some situations just warranted it more than all others. This happened to be one of them.
She sighed and shifted him off her enough so she could breathe, but he was still laying half on her. "So much for my first snog," she muttered, wondering how much Harry had actually drunk. She looked over at his sleeping face on her shoulder and lovingly caressed his cheek with the back of her hand. Despite falling asleep in the midst of a passionate snog, she couldn't be mad at him. Hopefully there would be more snogs that lasted longer and more importantly when they were both sober.
At least I won't be serenaded to sleep by Ron and Luna, she thought just before her eyes drooped shut.
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