Chapter 42
Hermione was awoken by a knock on the door of her dormitory. She looked around the room to see that, all of the beds had been abandoned by her
room mates.
'That's strange...' she thought to herself, “I'm usually the first one up.”
The knocking intensifies. She pulls herself out of bed and makes her way to the door.
Upon opening it, she was surprised to see Lucifer stood on the other side.
“Lucifer? How did you even get up here?"
"Can I come in?" he asked, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet.
“I guess.”
Hermione closed the door behind him as he sat himself down on her bed.
He gestured for her to join him by patting the covers next to him. She willingly took the seat.
"Hermione... I've been thinking," Lucifer began a little nervously, "For a while now, I've had these feelings..."
Was this really happening, was Lucifer going to confess to her?!
"W-w-what are th-those f-feelings about?!" Hermione asked while stuttering, just like Professor Quirrell once did.
"Well, here's the thing... they're about you. Hermione I think that, I'm in love with you."
She didn't know what to say any more, Hermione just stared into his eyes for a second, before placing her hand on his.
“I'm in love with you too...”
She closed her eyes and leaned forward as Lucifer did the same.
Their lips crashed together.
Lucifer cupped Hermione's cheek and deepened the kiss. He pushed her down onto the bed and climbed on top of her, but then he pulled away and looked deep into her eyes.
All Hermione wanted right now was to be lost in his Dark Abyss like eyes, this is what she wanted.
“Hermione...”
“Yeah...” she dragged out the word.
“Hermione...”
“What?” Hermione giggled while holding onto his hand.
“Hermione!”
She jerked awake and was met with the face of Lavender Brown.
Who just sighed in disbelief, to see Hermione's blank look, she only had to call her name three times!
"Wake up! You're going to be late for class!" Lavender yelled at her, “It's near 6:20 already!”
“Huh....then, why are you up so early?” She asked, while rubbing her face, then titled her head to wake herself up, but thought back to the dream she was just having, Hermione really wanted to go back!
“Of course, I have to do make-up and stuff!”
But, Hermione ignored her voice, She just felt like Alice and that was her Wonderland.
Hermione pulled herself out of bed, for real this time, and went to the bathroom to get ready for the day.
“Ugh! These curls are so annoying......”
_____________
“So, Herbology?”
“Uh...I think we have C-Charms, first!”
“No, look here....it said Herbology?”
“R-really? We should move faster then!”
The four of them walked out of the Castle together, crossed the vegetable patch, and made for the Greenhouses, where the magical plants were kept.
Unfortunately, for Hermione, who was just fed by Lucifer, caused her to remember that dream, and it's really
hard to talk when it's to the boy you've been having romantic dreams about, even made her to stutter over words and say the wrong things.
"I swear, if that Tentacula tries anything this year, I'm scorching it. It has it out for me badly, and I don't know why," Hermione said as they neared the Greenhouses.
The rest of the class was already there waiting on Professor Sprout, Hermione wondered why she was late.
They had just gotten with the rest of their classmates when they saw her striding into view from across the lawn.
She looked annoyed, and that was probably because she was being accompanied by Gilderoy Lockhart.
Harry didn't take that as a good sign.
He noticed that she was carrying an arm full of bandages. He looked to the direction she was coming from and saw a tree with branches in slings, "The Whomping Willow... I can't believe you two crashed into it," Lucifer whispered to them.
Professor Sprout was a squat little Witch who wore a patched hat over her flyaway hair; there was usually a large amount of earth on her clothes and under her fingernails.
Gilderoy Lockhart, however, was immaculate in sweeping robes of turquoise, his golden hair shining under a perfectly positioned turquoise hat with gold trimming.
"Oh, hello there!" He called towards them, beaming around at the assembled students, "Just been showing Professor Sprout the right way to doctor a Whomping Willow! But I don't want you running away with the idea that I'm better at Herbology than she is! I just happen to have met several of these exotic plants on my travels."
“Then why don't you handle this tentacula. It has it out badly for me. And, after dealing with so many exotic plants, you would know what to do with it, right?" It was Hermione who dared to challenge the professor, said everything sarcastically.
Gaining many surprised looks from random people, that Hermione would talk back to a teacher like that.
But, Gilderoy did not have the slightest clue of what a Tentacula is, so he just left the class silently around the corner.
"Forgive her professor, she's just angry for those unruly hair...Ow” Lucifer cried in a mocking pain, when
Hermione pinched on his arm tightly, even glared for doing worse.
"Greenhouse three today, chaps!" Professor Sprout said, who was looking more disgruntled and not at all her usual cheerful self when she got closer.
Only, Hermione was a bit happy now because the Tentacula was in Greenhouse One, meaning she didn't have to deal with it this year.
She would swear....that thing hated her specifically for some reason.
There was a murmur of interest; they had only ever worked in a greenhouse one before - Greenhouse 3 housed far more interesting and dangerous plants.
Professor Sprout took a large key from her belt and unlocked the door.
Harry could feel his sense of smell being assaulted by the damp earth and fertilizer mingling with the heavy perfume of some giant, umbrella-sized flowers dangling from the ceiling.
He steeled his senses and followed them inside, but Lockhart spoke up just before he got out of earshot, "Harry! I've been wanting a word - you don't mind if he's a couple of minutes late, do you, Professor Sprout?"
Harry looked at Professor Sprout and saw a scowl of deep loathing.
She did mind, but Lockhart didn't seem to care as he closed the Greenhouse door in her face, "That was horribly rude of him."
Professor Sprout seemed to be patiently awaiting Harry's return to class as she stood behind a trestle
bench in the center of the greenhouse, which had about twenty pairs of different colored earmuffs lying on the bench, and she wasn't saying a word.
It was a good four minutes before he finally opened the door.
When Harry slowed to a halt in between Ron and Hermione, she began her class, "We'll be repotting Mandrakes today. Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?"
Lucifer and Hermione both raised their hands, telling them both to answer, Hermione did first, "Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative. It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state."
"And the Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is, however, an incredibly dangerous plant, because the cry of an adult Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it," Lucifer answered after her.
"Most impressive, both of you take Ten Points each for Gryffindor! Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young, so they won't be killing with their screams, you will, however, be rendered out- of-commission for a few hours," she pointed to a row of deep trays as she spoke, and everyone shuffled forward for a better look.
“Good to know you weren't just zoning out into my face, whilst we studied those, ” Lucifer grinned at Hermione, but to his surprise this caused her to go pink.
A hundred or so tufty little plants, purplish green in color, were growing there in rows.
Lucifer quickly grabbed a pair of (F/C) earmuffs, "I suggest you all follow his example and take a pair for yourselves. Make sure that when you put them on, they are completely and properly over your entire ear. I will give a thumbs up when it is safe to take them off. Right, earmuffs on!"
Professor Sprout put on the pink, fluffy pair over her own ears, rolled up her sleeves, grasped one of the tufty plants firmly, and pulled hard.
Lucifer smiled amusingly at the infant looking Mandrake as it screamed bloody murder at just having been yanked out of its earthy soil.
It had pail green, mottled skin.
Professor Sprout took a large plant pot from under the table and plunged the Mandrake into it, burying it in dark, damp compost until only the green tufts of leaves were sticking out.
She dusted off her hands and gave them all the thumbs up.
They removed their earmuffs to hear her speak, "As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won't kill you yet, but as I said earlier, you will be out for a few hours if you do hear it, and I'm sure none of vou want to miss your first day back. so I suggest
you keep your earmuffs tightly in place the rest of class. I will direct your attention when it is time to pack up. "
"Four or five to a tray, there is a large supply of pots here, so no need to worry about not having enough for every group. Compost is in the sacks over there, oh - and I had to move the Tentacula into Greenhouse three because it was becoming unruly with the other plants."
"What!?" Hermione said in a distressed voice.
"I'm sorry, Miss Granger, I know how much trouble it gave you last year," Professor Sprout apologized to her. but it was of little comfort as she put her earmuffs on.
They were joined at their table by a Hufflepuff, but Lucifer didn't bother taking his earmuffs off until he saw him shaking the hands of the other two, “And you're Lucifer Morningstar, the best magically inclined student to ever attend Hogwarts, according to Dumbledore. But, your ability with a wand is well- known among the others in our year," the Hufflepuff said, extending his hand towards him.
Lucifer accepted it, "And who are you?"
"Ah, must not have heard me, I'm Justin Finch- Fletchley," Justin said but Lucifer didn't bother to shake his hand.
"I don't pay attention to Random Npc's” Lucifer said, then even moved his face away, not worth his time.
“Npc?" he was confused.
"Ignore him!" said Hermione, while smacking Lucifer on the butt causing nearby students to look at her, Hermione's face grew even more pink at being caught, “Look, what happened!”
“It's not my fault....”
But, she just grabbed his shoulders to move away from this weird Hufflepuff.
Lucifer ignored the rest of the conversation as he started waving towards Hannah Abbott on the side.
It caused Hermione to grab his arm and put his fingers in Mandrake's mouth to stop his flirting.
He had to apply more force to first remove his fingers out than to pull the plant out, and when he did, it began kicking and screaming.
So he tried to put it into another, bigger pot, but it didn't want to go in either.
Lucifer was now yelling, "I'm trying to help you here!" But no one heard him and he was sure the Mandrake didn't care.
With more force, he got it repotted.
Draco also put his fingers in Mandrake's mouth and they both shared a knowing look.
Ron was sure they were planning to humiliate him.