DISCLAIMER THE FIRST: It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the grace of coffee that thoughts acquire speed, the back acquires strains, the strains become a warning. The warning is that I make no money from this. It is by JKR's writing alone I set my mind in motion.

PITHY STATEMENT RELATING TO THIS CHAPTER: "Harmony makes small things grow, lack of it makes great things decay." Gaius Sallustius Crispus (Sallust) – Roman historian & politician – 86-35 BCE

Last Updated: 08-13-2014

XxXxX

CHAPTER EIGHT – A NIGHT OF HARMONY

XxXxX

48 BOSTON AVENUE, HOUNSLOW, LONDON – AUGUST 2nd 1998 – EARLY MORNING

"Looks like Lisa can't hold her liquor," Hermione said mildly as she helped Harry take off her shoes. The pretty blonde murmured something unintelligible but was clearly still out like the proverbial light.

Harry smirked but shrugged, "Hard to say. We were there a long time and dinner was a long time ago. Though maybe you're right. She was dancing pretty hard. You'd expect her to burn through a lot of that."

Harry had been very glad that Hermione, while tired, had been okay to drive them all back from the club after closing time. Driving was a skill he wanted to learn as soon as possible. While biking and taking the Tube was nice, Harry wanted to wander England on his days off and see all the things he'd been denied his whole life.

"Well at least Paul had the decency to lie down before passing out," Hermione said with a glance at the wizard who was snoring lightly at the foot of the bed. Harry had already taken his boots of and put a pillow under Paul's head along with a throw blanket over him.

Harry grinned, "Wonder what Lisa will think when she wakes up to find herself in the same bed with him?"

"Honestly Harry! They're both dressed. I doubt she'll think they did anything," Hermione huffed tiredly.

"Oh I don't know. You could leave some lipstick kisses on him. I'm sure she has some in her purse," Harry said with a chuckle.

"Just because were getting ready to go to Uni doesn't mean I'm going to start pranking, Harry," Hermione said with a roll of her eyes. "Hand me that blanket, will you?"

Harry passed the blanket and watched as she covered Lisa up. "I have to say this is a nice place your dad has here. It must put him back quite a bit."

Hermione shook her head, "Not as much as you think. He time shares it with two others who are in the same boat as he is. Mister Towler works in London but his job has him gone more than he's here. Mister Franklin's job rotates between London and Edinburgh every three months. So with everything split three ways, it's not that bad. I think my dad even gets to write-off on his taxes.

Harry nodded at this as he followed Hermione out of the room and back to the kitchen area. They had been lucky to catch the place empty of all three tenants. "I'm rather surprised how nicely decorated this place is. I expected more of a bachelor feel to it. It certainly is clean."

Hermione laughed a bit as she poured herself some water. A nod from Harry had her pour another for him. Both recognized that they needed some hydration or waking up later in the morning was not going to be pleasant.

"Well Mum is a bit anal about things and I think Dad keeps it clean out of habit. He is a medical type after all and cleanliness sort of comes as part of that package. Mr. Franklin is also very fastidious. Dad says he gets teased all the time because a lot of people think he's gay when he's just "a prissy-pants" according to my dad," Hermione explained. "Of course I keep it up since for the last seven years I've spent the school year living here since I went to the City of London Girl's School. I really haven't spent much time at home since I was 11."

The pair took their water and sat around the table. Harry noted Hermione had a bit of a pensive look on her face, "You okay Hermione?"

The witch looked up a bit startled, "What? Oh yes, well I'm a bit tired. I normally don't drive when I go out. There have been a few parties after which I thanked God this place is so close to the Tube station. It's been a long day and the drive took a lot out of me."

"I'm sure having access to the Tube was the prime reason getting it. I'm betting your school was just a quick hop on the Tube?" Harry asked.

"It was. Of course I think the main reason was less the ease for me and more how it was walking distance from the golf course and its country clubhouse," Hermione said with a pensive tone to go with the look.

Harry thought about what could be bothering her but before he could figure out a way to ask tactfully, Hermione suddenly spoke up in a flat, monotone voice, "Of course another reason the place is kept so nice is for the mistresses to be impressed. Dad and Mr. Towler have always been discrete but when you live here nine months out of the year, you notice things."

Harry went very still. For a moment all that could be heard was the ticking clock on the wall. Seeing Hermione wasn't going to elaborate but still seemed to need to talk, Harry said the first thing which came to mind, "Somehow that doesn't seem to bother you as much as one would expect."

Hermione looked up from her water glass and met Harry's eye. She stared into his intense green eyes before having to look away, "No I guess it doesn't. Maybe what bothers me is how little it doesn't bother me. On the face of it, my family is really successful. My parents have a dental successful practice, they're upstanding members of the community and I'm an academic prodigy."

Harry frowned, thinking back to his own opinions about suburbia hiding many sins, "What the public sees is often a façade, right?"

Hermione laughed bitterly, "You have no idea!"

Harry reached out and squeezed Hermione's hand, "Yes I do. My aunt and uncle are relentless status climbers. Almost everything they do is trying to get up on the social ladder. They might look like successful suburbanites but my cousin is a thug who's lucky he hasn't been busted for drugs and I think my Uncle is doing something dodgy financially. They spend way too much money for his salary given my aunt doesn't work."

Hermione smirked, "The dutiful housewife who throws smashing parties right?"

Harry laughed softly and bitterly, "She's no housewife; that's was my job for most of my life. They're own in-house domestic. I was cheap and easy to control with a belt till I got old enough for me to unconsciously manifest my magic. Oh yeah, I understand where you're coming from."

Hermione flinched, "I'm sorry. I didn't know."

Harry waved this off, "Don't be sorry. You couldn't. It's my pain; my burden to bear. You have your own problems which you struggled with. They're yours so don't think you have to compare them to mine. So; were you a latch-key kid growing up?"

Hermione shook her head, "Not exactly as I saw my nannies more than my parents. This became even more so when I started school her in London. Of course Maureen, who just moved out, was less of a nanny and simply someone who rented a room here and kept an eye out for me. As much as it was a business relationship to my family, my nannies were more of a mother to me than my mum and Maureen was like having an older sister or cousin around. I'm lucky the job she'd been hoping for opened just this last month. I had been worried she was going to leave last year and I'd have to get used to a new minder. That would have been total rubbish in my final year of school."

Harry simply nodded at this. Mr. Chu had quickly taken up a father figure status in his life. He could see how it would be the same for Hermione.

Hermione made a face, "It was just that our family was an extension of the Granger brand. I guess you do understand given how my parents are just like your aunt and uncle. I sometimes think I was conceived because my parents had a checklist of things they thought they had to do to be seen as the right kind of people. Got to have a family so you can have that family picture on your wall to show what a good family man you are right?"

Harry didn't reply. There was a lot of pent up anger in Hermione's words. Harry could empathize. While he knew his parents probably loved him, the Dursleys had worked to make him feel worthless and a burden. It had been hard dealing with that. He could imagine how bad it would be for a girl to realize she might only exist because her parents wanted to present a certain image to the world.

"Of course once Mum had me, I think she decided the sex was off. Not that I pry into my parent's sex life but I don't think Dad is a skirt-chaser. I believe Mum just stopped having sex with him. From comments she's made over the years, I think she's disgusted with the whole process," Hermione explained.

"So she turns a blind eye to your Dad's outings?" Harry asked. He knew a lot of business people could be cool but this seemed a bit much.

Hermione laughed bitterly, "Of course not; that would be the mature thing to do if you flatly denied your spouse sex. No she makes these snide comments which I never understood till I came here. It all started to make sense when I found the evidence that my Dad and Mr. Towler were using this place to meet their mistresses. My mum acts like sex is something only animals do and unless you want a child, you are somehow demeaning yourself by indulging."

"So she feels your Dad is giving in to his urges? Wow, that's messed up. How old is your dad? He's probably around 40? I'm sure when I'm that age I'll still want to be getting some on a regular basis," Harry pointed out.

Hermione nodded, "Just turned 40 actually. My Mum wanted to get her pregnancy out of the way early. My parents married young although I think it was more of a business contract than a marriage. While my Mum's side of the family is pretty well off, especially those still living in France, my Dad's side is the type of family you run away from. Mum needed a husband and Dad saw an opportunity to get out of life he grew up in."

"Sounds like there wasn't much love growing up," Harry offered.

Hermione chuckled with a little less bitterness, "As I said, my nannies were my parents and Maureen the older sister figure. It was nice going through my later teen years because she never judged. Not that I did much wild and crazy stuff. Of course my mum would have gone spare if she knew of the little I did do. I didn't get anything from my real parents except expectations. To them, I needed to pull my weight as part of the Granger brand."

"How so?" Harry asked.

"Oh if I showed any talent in anything, it suddenly was something I had to excel at. I like books and learning so of course I had to be first in my class in all things. After a school outing on horseback where I got praised by my teacher and I'm suddenly enrolled in dressage courses! All it took was my grandmére Angélique teaching me the piano for a few days and then the next thing I know I'm taking lessons and having to do recitals!" Hermione said crossly.

"I could see how that could get old really fast," Harry remarked sympathetically.

Hermione blew a stray strand of her bushy hair out of her face with a huff, "It got to the point where I stopped doing anything but studying because I didn't want to show an aptitude in something new which would make my parents think they could show me off in a new way. The only thing I didn't mind was my French lessons since I wanted to be fully fluent."

Harry frowned, "If your parents are so socially conscious, how are you going to go to Hogwarts? I would think they wouldn't pay to have their daughter go to a school they couldn't brag to their friends about."

Hermione sniffed at this before smirking, "You're right. But my grandmére Angélique surprised me about a month before my Hogwarts letter arrived. She just showed up here out of the blue. Turns out she's a squib and while she has always taken a hands-off approach toward her daughter's affairs, she told me she wanted me to be able to make my own choices regarding learning magic or not. So she's set up a trust fund to pay for Hogwarts or Beauxbatons if I decide I wish to study there instead."

"I'm sure your parents went spare over all of this," Harry observed mildly. It was odd how Hermione was like him even if their situations were different. He knew the Dursleys wouldn't want him to go to Hogwarts even if it did get rid of him.

Hermione shook her head, "They don't know yet. In fact they don't know I went to the orientation today. It's why I didn't want to say why they didn't come earlier. Luckily all of my really treasured items are here or the ones I don't want to lose are easily transported from Winchester. I figure if my parents freak out, I can be out of their house in under an hour. Since I'm an adult, there isn't anything they can do. Besides Grandmére said she'd be there when I tell them so that will help."

Harry sighed, "Well I'm pretty much in a similar boat. Now that I have access to enough money to tide me over till school starts, I'm going to bail on my relatives. I own almost nothing so it'll be easy. I've been keeping the few valuables I own at Mr. Chu's place for the last two years. I'm hoping that Paul and I can stay at his garage apartment till the first."

"Well you can and Paul are welcome to come over here if you're bored. It would be nice to have some company. Even more so because I can't really talk to any of my friends about this," Hermione said before yawning and lifted her arms above her head to stretch. The yawn turned to a yelp of pain.

"You okay?" Harry asked.

Hermione reached behind her neck and rubbed her shoulder blades. "Only I could stress my shoulder muscles by dancing."

Harry chuckled, "It's the weight of all that hair!"

The witch gave him the stink eye, "At least mine doesn't stick up in the back!"

Harry grabbed his chest, "Awww, ya got me!" Harry watched her continue to rub her back for a bit, "You know, I could give you a back massage. Mr. Chu's granddaughter Dao is studying to be a physical therapist. She's shown me some things. Given how sore I could be after Mr. Chu gets through me, I've been pretty happy to be a practice dummy for her."

Hermione looked unsure but in leaning back while thinking about it, she winced again in pain, "Okay sure. My bedroom is this way."

Harry drank the last of his water before following Hermione into a room Harry had previously thought was another guest-room. Hermione had already told him that Lisa and Paul where in her Dad's room since he wasn't expected to come up to London for another week.

The room was everything Harry expected even as it surprised him. The walls were covered in bookshelves which was no surprise but the presence of an upright piano was. From what Hermione had said, he wouldn't have expected her to continue to play. Then again she probably played for her grandmum when she visited. Harry knew how much doing something for yourself was so much nicer. He loved cooking for the Mr. Chu's family as much as he despised doing the same for the Dursleys.

Hermione kicked off her shoes and looked about to flop down on the bed before she stopped, "Is there anything you need?"

Harry chuckled, "If you mean do I need scented candles and heated oil? No, I'm good. Although you might want to change into a loose t-shirt since I doubt you want to go shirtless with some shifty wizard bloke you just met."

Hermione chuckled in response and then to Harry's utter shock, took hold of her blouse and swiftly tugged it over her head. Harry was surprised to see her bra was a sexy, lacy number. Not something he'd expect a bird like Hermione to wear. Then again, she had said she had done herself up for the night.

Harry's was shocked again when Hermione reached behind her back and undid her bra and tossed it onto the floor on top of her blouse. She then shrugged off her skirt to reveal some equally lacy knickers to match the bra now on the floor. All Harry could do was stare. Hermione's breasts weren't as big as Lilith's but they were perfectly suited to her body type.

Harry couldn't help but realize that Hermione might not look at it at first, but she was much finer than his old girlfriend Mary.

Hermione chuckled again at the look on his face, "Like what you see? Well don't worry about it because your virtue is safe. I'm a lesbian."

Harry blinked at this and just stood there and watched as Hermione laid down on the bed and got settled.

After a moment of silence, Hermione finally said softly, "I didn't break you did I? First time look at some tits?"

This slight vulgarity broke Harry from staring at Hermione's bum. She certainly was well endowed in that area and not in a bad way! "Uhm no, I'm not that much of a newbie. You just caught me by surprise. I mean it's like a bad porno, right? Gal just suddenly gets naked before some guy she just met."

Hermione huffed at this, "You don't look like a guy who's into porn, Harry."

Harry laughed quietly, "I'm probably scarred for life by it. Till I was twelve, my room was the cupboard under the stairs. From the mail-slot they put into the door for ventilation, I could see the TV. My uncle would sometimes watch pornos late at night when my aunt had a bout of insomnia. She used to take these really powerful sedatives to get to sleep. A lorry could go through their room and she wouldn't wake up."

Hermione wrinkled her nose in disgust, "Putting aside the awful revelation that you grew up in a closet, I really hope you couldn't see your Uncle wanking off."

Harry laughed again as he kicked off his own shoes and carefully got up on the bed. "I told you, I had a hard life. Oh well, that's over. As for the wanking, thankfully no. Watching my overweight uncle have one off the wrist probably would've cause an accidental magic incident that would have destroyed the house. I was pretty young at the time and the whole porn sex thing confused the hell of me. Luckily my aunt got onto a new prescription which didn't knock her out so bad so my Uncle couldn't keep doing it in the living room anymore."

Harry looked up and down the length of Herminie's body before he decided to start with her feet. Dao had often said it was easy to forget the feet even though they support all the weight of the body. In less than a minute Hermione moaned, "Oh you're hired!"

"Thanks. Dao is a good teacher. Of course she's training to work with people who are bed-ridden so she can really do a number on your muscles. I've caller her a physical terrorist because I think a physical therapist is supposed to be, well you know, therapeutic," Harry said as he started to work on Hermione's calves.

"Does your teacher beat you up that badly?" Hermione asked.

Harry laughed, "Yeah Mr. Chu is a right bastard. He's very much in the school of thought of what doesn't kill you should piss you off so you kill your enemy that much faster. He's a nice guy, though. He loves cars and he loves his family. He just happens to also be a bloke who knows a lot of ways to kill you."

Hermione moaned when Harry hit a knot in her left calf, "Oh now you're really hired. So how did he end up in England?"

Harry chuckled, "He won't say. In fact no one in the family will say. They all seem embarrassed by whatever the reason is. I don't pry. They're like my stand in family. They and the Lohan's who run the Gurkha Kitchen in Little Whinging are some of the few people who treat me like a person and not a freak."

Hermione just made a noise in her throat at this. Harry couldn't help but smile at how she was practically purring like a cat. Harry wished he had some music as when he had previously done this with Mary; it seemed to help set the mood. Of course, Harry realized, he wasn't setting himself up for sex.

So he just let himself get lost in the task. Harry often sort of tranced out when he cooked. To loose oneself in the minutia of the task. Mr. Chu had used this habit when he taught Harry meditation to help him deal with his anger. Of course he'd smacked Harry around quite a bit at first given how bad Harry had been at it at first.

"Why are you singing songs from Aladdin?"

Harry blinked. He had zoned out again. He found that he had already moved up from her calves as was already up on her lower back, "Excuse me?"

Hermione chucked, "Boy you really get into your work! I asked you why you were singing a song from Aladdin?"

"What? I wasn't singing! I certainly wouldn't be singing a show tune," Harry said in a confused tone.

"Sure you were. What else but Aladdin would have a tune with lyrics like 'Prince Ali, fabulous he!'?" Hermione asked.

"Oh," Harry said. He thought about it for a few seconds, "Sorry about that. I work at this store with the electronics department is right across from where my station is. They play movies on all the tellys. I think I've seen Aladdin as well as Grease and Independence Day so many times I can quote the entire film. I guess I sometimes just hum the songs without realizing it."

Hermione laughed, "Now there is an interesting form of torture! You'd think the government would do something about that sort of worker abuse!"

Harry laughed as well, "Oh you should have seen last year during the Christmas season. There was this singing doll which had this five minute spiel which would repeat all day. I'm amazed I didn't have an accidental magic incident regarding that bloody singing doll!"

"Makes me happy I never had to work in a shop. Beyond the allowance I got from my parents, I made good money tutoring," Hermione said before groaning again as Harry started on the part of the shoulder which was sore.

Harry worked on this for a bit before asking, "Hermione? Can I ask you a personal question?"

"Is this about me being a lesbian?" Hermione replied in a surprisingly teasing tone.

"Yeah. I was just wondering if that might have had any impact on your friend issues at school. Maybe it's different for girls but I know any guy people thought was gay got bullied pretty badly. I've been accused of being a poof because I'd stand up against the bullies," Harry said.

Hermione chuckled, "I went to an all girl school, Harry. There were plenty of LUGs so I wasn't an oddity."

"LUGs?" Harry asked.

"Lesbian Until Graduation. Straight girls dallying in lesbian waters. They grow out of it when the start getting better access to boys. I've known I was a lesbian since around eleven or so. It never was much of a problem. Did make for some interesting tutoring as a few girls thought they were really lesbians. While I'm sure they'll have some interesting wank memories for later in life, I only met one other lesbian at school and she graduated three years ago." Hermione explained.

"Don't take this the wrong way but you don't seem like a lesbian," Harry observed carefully.

"What makes you say that? I think I am pretty much fit the femme stereotype even if I can probably be as bossy and domineering as any butch girl," Hermione asked.

"It's just that you were dancing with me and Paul tonight. Hell, you danced with a lot of blokes. Sure you danced with Lisa and Lilith but… Harry's voice trailed off as he wasn't sure how to properly vocalize his question.

Hermione laughed heartily at this, "Oh Harry, you're such a card. That has nothing to do with being a lesbian. Girls dance. It's what we do. Boys, girls; it doesn't matter. Straight girls dance with their girlfriends all the time so me dancing with boys isn't that much different. If anything, straight blokes are the oddities. Gay men will dance with gals so it's really only you straight guys who stick to only opposite gender dance partners."

"Uhm…" Harry said before he realized Hermione was right.

Hermione laughed a bit more at this, "It's okay Harry. I'm actually rather used to dealing with straight men being confused when they learn I'm a lesbian. It's really not a big deal. As much as I like sex, it's not really a big part of my life right now. It's just an itch I scratch when I can. I've got my studies to worry about now. Given how I know now I'll probably be alive and healthy about 50 years more than I expected, I figure I have plenty of time to find the right girl some day."

Harry mulled this over. He could see her point. Tonks had said that while Potters often died early fighting Dark Wizards, those who didn't often lived past two centuries. This longer life span was something he hadn't really thought about in terms of his future plans.

"Straight boy or not, if your inheritance runs out, I'll hire you as my house boy. You have magic fingers!" Hermione said as Harry started on the tense muscles in her neck.

Harry smiled at this, "I can even cook!"

"Did your relatives make you do all the cooking? I can't believe social services didn't arrest them!" Hermione said in a disgusted tone.

"Cooked, cleaned, did the laundry and the gardening. As to social services, well there are some things involved with that I don't think you want to get involved in," Harry said carefully.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked.

Harry sighed, "As you heard today, I'm famous for somehow ending Voldemort. After that, things got a bit dodgy. There are a lot of unanswered questions regarding my life which I think lead back to powerful people. People who might not like having awkward questions being asked. It was one of the reasons my cousin Tonks wanted to talk to me tonight. So till I know more, I'd rather not say anything more about it."

Hermione was silent for a moment she nodded into her pillow.

"Quit moving!" Harry said in a mock stern voice.

"Sorry. Well I guess it sort of makes sense. There where a few things I felt sounded a bit sketchy during the orientation today. I mean I know it's the official line and that's always going to be a bit of bullocks, right? Even so, there were plenty of things which I felt don't add up," Hermione said.

"Yeah," Harry said. If Hermione only knew just the little he had learned from Tonks earlier. While the lure of magic was a siren's song he knew he couldn't resist, Harry was well aware that it wasn't going to be a Disney movie filled with cutesy things with a happy ending.

The next ten minutes went by in silence except for the occasional hum or moan Hermione made as Harry's fingers worked the tenseness out of her sore neck. Finally Harry sat back and said, "Okay I'm done here. Better?"

"I think you reset my warranty," Hermione joked. "Move back a bit, will you? I'm rolling over."

Harry goggled at this but complied. It was difficult not stare at Hermione's breasts. Worse was by looking down, he saw that her knickers were rather transparent.

"Come on, Harry. I've got plenty of things to massage up front. I'm sure you can avoid the naughty bits," Hermione teased as she stretched a bit and sighed at the lack of pain in her neck and shoulders.

Harry tried not to gulp but went to work. She was right although there was less to work on in the front. If anything it seemed like he was doing more of a rub down than a real massage. For the most part he worked on her legs to avoid having to deal with Hermione's breasts given how it was practically impossible not to touch them a little accidentally. While she didn't seem to mind, Harry was still quite embarrassed.

However the longer he worked on her legs, Harry started to notice something; something which surprised him. Unlike a lot of guys he knew at, Harry had no problem engaging in oral sex with Mary. From comments made at the many various bull sessions, Harry had found he was something of a rarity if the guys were being truthful. So he was well aware of what an aroused woman smelled like.

And Hermione was obviously aroused by the scent of things.

It dawned on Harry that she had already spread her legs to allow him easier access to work on her legs. A quick glance up showed her nipples were hard even though it was pleasantly warm in the room. Luckily her eyes were closed but she had a euphoric look on her face.

Harry gritted his teeth as he realized he was getting just as aroused. Earlier he had been able to divorce himself from the sexual possibilities but now with Hermione's own arousal, his libido seemed to recover from the night's earlier exploits. Was Hermione's magic affecting him or was his affecting hers?

His eyebrows went up as Hermione idly reached down and started to fondle herself through her knickers. He kept working on her legs until it became apparent that Hermione probably wasn't even aware of what she was doing.

"Uhm, Hermione, I think I should go crash on the couch so you can have some…private time," Harry said carefully.

"What? Oh!" Hermione said as her eyes flew open and it dawned on her what she was doing. To Harry's surprise, while she blushed, Hermione's face took on a predatory look. "No need for you to leave, Harry," she all but purred.

"I'm pretty sure we covered how my virtue was safe due to your orientation," Harry said even as his tight trousers seem to be saying 'to hell with virtue!' in its own way.

Hermione huffed at this as if his point was a minor annoyance before she shrugged off her knickers to show, while neatly trimmed, the bushy carpet matched the bushy drapes.

Harry blinked at this but could only stare as Hermione smiled seductively at him. It was amazing how the typical bookworm impression she gave out at first gave way to a smoldering temptress!

As if sensing Harry wasn't going to make the first move, Hermione spread her legs wider and beckoned with a finger, "Come on Harry. How often will you a chance to go down on a lesbian who can critique your work?"

Harry looked into Hermione's eyes and noticed they were the color of hot chocolate. Mindful of what he'd learned from Tonks, Harry frowned, "Don't get me wrong, Hermione. I'd love to dive in but are you sure? Tonks said people with a big magical aura are more attractive to the opposite sex and apparently I'm powerful. That and I have some big family magicks to boot. I don't want to take advantage of you…well I do want to take some advantage of you but you know what I mean."

Hermione giggled at this, "Thank you Harry. It's nice to see you think I'm sexy. As to your magic, bullocks to that. Even if it is a factor, I'm an adult, you're an adult and we're both horny. I'm a lesbian so a shag with a bloke isn't going to 'cure' me. Besides, it's sort of your birthday, right? So while I can't believe I'm saying this, let's not over-think this, shall we?"

Harry sighed and gave in. It wasn't that hard. Hermione was right and he was finding his blood was starting to thrum like it did at the club. Unless Tonks was spying on him right now and ready to break in, he'd have to take care of things. He couldn't afford an accidental magic discharge. Besides, Hermione's invite was too good to pass up.

Harry got off the bed and took off his trousers. For now he'd leave the shirt and pants on. As he took off his glass and set them on the nightstand, Hermione shifted so he could kneel down by the side of the bed which Harry promptly did.

As Harry began to explore the delta between Hermione's legs, she sighed and reached out grabbed a remote. After a little exploring, she found a station on the stereo above the piano which was playing some slow jazz which seemed appropriate.

Between the music and his magic, Harry found himself falling into another trancelike state. All his life he'd been called a freak, a burden and worthless. It was at times like this with Mary when he felt different. As Hermione moaned or gave this encouragement or that, Harry felt empowered and happy he was directly causing someone joy. It was the ultimate in direct positive reinforcement!

Indeed it wasn't long before Hermione grabbed a small throw pillow and bit into it to keep from screaming. Harry had to hang on to her hips even as he continued to tongue Hermione's most sensitive place. Hermione hips came up off the bed as she writhed in pleasure. While it seemed too much for her, Harry kept at till Hermione grabbed the back of his head and pleaded, "No more! I can't take any more!"

Harry backed off as he wipes his mouth with his arm. Hermione certainly had been aroused given how wet his face was. He felt pretty good about making a lesbian, who probably had much better oral sex partners than he, cum so hard.

Hermione licked her lips and ran a hand through her hair, "Well! Maybe blokes aren't so worthless after all. Listening to what the gals at school say, most couldn't find a women's arse with a road map let alone her clitoris. You were wonderful."

Harry beamed, "Thanks!"

Hermione returned the grin and shifted so she was fully on the bed, "Well come on then. I'm not finished with you. I have this certain empty place inside of me that you just happen to have the right tool to fill."

Harry's hands were already at his pants to divest himself as quickly as possible before his brain kicked in, "Whoa, are you sure about this?"

Hermione gave a seductive smile, "Oh quite sure. It's not like I haven't had anything inside me before. This will just be the first time it wasn't a Bob."

"Bob?" Harry asked in a tone he immediately regretted as he sounded like a thick newbie.

"Battery Operated Boyfriend. They never get soft and come in many sizes. However I think for tonight I'll go with the real thing if you don't mind," Hermione said as her seductive smile morphed into a silly grin.

Harry thought about his magic and what Tonks had said. He really didn't want Hermione to wake up the next day furious at him, "Not to be thick, but are you sure? Remember what I said about my magic. I'd rather not have you wake up and feel you were taken advantage of."

Hermione giggled, "Oh don't worry. If anyone here is being taken advantage of, it's you. Besides, I figure if all the LUGs at school can experiment with a girl, I can do the same with a boy. Anyway, I've always felt artificial insemination was an impersonal way to start a family. So if I want kids someday, I'm going to end up doing this anyway. Might as well see how well I drive a stick as Paul said. I'd rather not start off a pregnancy by hating the inception, right?"

"Right," Harry agreed. For all his worries, Hermione seemed in control of herself and it did make sense. Why shouldn't she experiment? Harry took off his shirt and then his pants.

Hermione gave a low whistle at the proof of his arousal, "Impressive; most impressive."

Harry groaned at the Darth Vader voice she used. "Nerd girl!" he teased.

"And proud of it! Now how about less talk and more fuck, alright?" Hermione said huskily.

"As you wish," Harry said as he climbed up onto the bed. One nerd quote deserved another.

OoOoO

The sunlight's heat on his eyelids finally got to Harry. With a slight groan, he opened his eyes. For a second he wasn't sure where he was. Then the events of the previous day came flooding back. A quick check and Harry found he was still in the same situation as when he finally bedded down in; intertwined with a naked, beautiful girl.

Harry sniffed. He still thought he could smell the sex which was odd given that while they did do it two times, they had taken a shower afterwards…even if that had led to them both reciprocating in some wet oral sex.

Harry looked at the clock. It was earlier than he liked but he figured that Lisa and Paul were probably both still out. Which was good; he wasn't ashamed of the night before but he'd rather keep it between Hermione and himself.

The witch in question stirred. Without opening her eyes she said, "Forget about me hiring you as a cook and masseur. I'll take you as my live in boy-toy. Last night was great."

Harry chuckled softly, "What? I thought you said I couldn't cure you of being a lesbian! Go me!"

Hermione batted at him lightly and missed which wasn't surprising as she still hadn't opened her eyes. "Prat! Sorry Harry but as fun as last night was, I'll stick to girls. Although I have to say I'll keep you in mind for stud duty when I'm thinking of starting a family."

Harry snorted, "You love me only for my seed."

"All men are good for besides killing the odd spider and taking out the trash!" Hermione said as she finally opened her eyes and grinned.

"Prat!" Harry said echoing her as he bopped her lightly on the nose.

The two giggled a bit before just enjoying the feeling of being close to another human being. Harry finally said, "I know you have your Bobs but I was surprised you didn't, I don't know, have more problems your first time. My ex-girlfriend Mary was so sure it was going to hurt like the dickens."

Hermione shrugged which causes her naked breasts to jiggle in a very distracting way, "Well I lost my hymen in the most cliché way possible. I got thrown off a horse. Of course my hymen was the least of my worries considering I ended up with a broken arm, a broken leg and a concussion to just continue with the general fuck-all. That and I wasn't kidding about tutoring. I think I ended up teaching more about how to enjoy one's own body to the girls I slept with more than anything else."

Harry snickered, "I'm sure it must have been awful to use yourself as the demonstration dummy."

Hermione shrugged and smiled, "It didn't suck, no."

Harry looked at the clock again, "I think one of us should get up. I would rather this be kept between the two of us if you don't mind."

Hermione snorted, "Honestly Harry, you must have read my mind because I feel the same way. I've no problems with last night but you're right. I'd rather not have people think we're easy before we even start school."

Harry got up and stretched. "Of course I have to say it will be hard not to tell Paul something about last night."

"Oh? What's that?" Hermione asked as she sat up and then got out of bed.

Harry drank in her naked form and then grinned, "That you drive a stick very, very well."

This got him a poke in the ribs and another, "Prat!" but Harry could tell Hermione was very pleased at the compliment.

As Harry gathered up his clothes, he realized that for all the crap which got dumped on him the day before, that perhaps the magical world might not be so bad after all. At the very least he'd get some sex out of the deal which wasn't something he'd expect to get out of the British Army.

The thought of the army made Harry think of Mr. Chu. What was he going to tell his father figure? Was this the beginning of having to live a double life? One filled with lying to the non-magical friends and family? Would it be worth it?

Hermione bending over as she went to grab a sock which had fallen under the bed distracted him. Harry smiled to himself. For now, he'd take it one day at a time. Besides, he at least had a future stud duty with Hermione to look forward to. Perhaps he could convince her to experiment a little more before then.

This thought kept that smile on his face as he followed the now fully dressed witch out to start the day.

XxXxX

Chapter Nine: Harry and Paul head over to Mr. Chu's place. Mr. Miyagi he is not!

XxXxX

A/N: I've gone back and made some updates from Chapters 2-6. Nothing hugely major but an added paragraph here and there and changes to Hermione's father's apartment. For those who don't reread the previous chapter before reading a new chapter (a habit I have), I put together a bit in my Chapter 6 author's notes to show how closely (i.e. they're not) Harry and Tonks are to deal with everyone who commented how 'sick' the Honks ship is.

A Very Sad Day: As I was finishing this chapter up, I learned of Robin Williams' death so I thought I'd throw in a little homage to a great man. He will be sorely missed. I am happy I got to see Robin Williams' show when he went through Portland a few years ago. His throat was shot but he went on anyway and rocked the house. His death reminds us that depression is a dangerous, if treatable condition. Never be afraid to intervene or offer help to those who suffer. Treat suicide threats seriously and know the signs. More soldiers have died from post-deployment suicide than were killed on the field in OEF and OIF.

Retail Woes: As so many of us have, I worked retail long ago and while selling luggage (something I was good at) I was across from the electronic department so I'd see certain movies over and over again to the point I'd bring in VHS tapes from home to break up the fact you can only see Grease so many times before you kill someone. Needless to say, I know the Aladdin film rather well. Oh, the 'singing doll' thing was something I had to live through one Xmas season when I worked at a Macy's.

Hermione's Home & Home Life: As mentioned above, I've gone back and made changes to show that Hermione has been staying in London for most of the last eight years or so. One of the dangers of serialization is often you come up with some interesting stuff in later chapters which invalidate what you've already written. While I've brought some of Hermione's home life issues up in PDrB, I wanted to expand on it a bit here and make her parents a little less likable then they are in that fic. Mostly because it helps explain why in canon we never find out Hermione's parent's names, she is perfectly happy to forego seeing her parents on Christmas or the summer break simply because Harry needs her and then obliviates them, creates entirely new personas for them and packs them off to Australia.

Many fanfic authors have noted that not only an indicator of a dysfunctional family but in 'saving' her parents, she effectively killed them if she herself would be unable to return and restore their memories. Think on that: she was willing to destroy Emma and Daniel Granger and replace them with Monica and Wendell Wilkins. In most Sci-Fi stories, this sort of personality transfer is done in lieu of the death penalty. That Hermione was willing to do this should tell us all we need to know about how Hermione really feels about her parents and I'm trying to show that in this fic.

Physical Terrorist: My SIL is a gerontological physical therapist and my brother once called her this given how awful (if therapeutic) a deep tissue massage can be. My SIL actually loves this title!