Politics of Pleasure Ch 9

Daphne knocked on the door following the code that they had developed. It was rushed but it was correct and the door opened almost immediately afterward. She saw Hermione standing just inside and though the other girl looked worried she wasn’t nearly as worried as Daphne had been throughout the day.

Hermione held out her hand Harry’s cloak hanging from it lightly, “Put this on. Stay close to me.”

Daphne took the cloak and inspected it for a second before putting it on, “Where did you get an invisibility cloak?”

“It’s Harry’s.” Hermione answered

Daphne gasped as a shiver ran through her body, “Its cold.”

“Yeah its always like that. Give it a second.” Hermione waved off

“Give it…” Daphne paused as the cold turned into a warmth that she swore felt familiar, “Granger. What is this cloak?”

“Ask about it in the medical wing. C’mon.”

Daphne pulled the hood over her head and fell into step behind Hermione. The pair moved throughout the castle fairly effortlessly. They had met up close to the medical wing but the nearness of curfew meant there was a need to avoid others returning to the common room. There were two different moments where the changed direction because a larger group was taking up most of the hallway. Still, Hermione navigated the little nooks and nuances of the castle effectively. Daphne was impressed with how the other girl never looked back and never once made to double check. Daphne was being trusted to just keep up and follow immediately with whatever decision Hermione made. They made it to the infirmary where Hermione showed Madam Pomfrey a slip of parchment and was ushered inside of the ward. Daphne barely made it in before the door would’ve hit her.

“How is he?” Hermione asked.

“No worse than than any other time. I have him under but you know how well that tends to go.” Madame Pomfrey responded.

Madame Pomfrey led them to a section of the ward that was set aside from the rest. There were no other patients but it seemed that the mediwitch wasn’t taking any sort of chances that Harry could be bothered. Harry was sleeping on a bed, a sheet covering most of his body. Daphne had to resist the urge to reach out and grab at his hand.

“… seems to be no worse for wear. Just glad there won’t be any scarring.” Pomfrey was speaking.

Hermione nodded as she stared at Harry, “The Harry luck.”

Madame Pomfrey had a small smile as she nodded, “Fetch me if he does wake tonight.”

“I will.” Hermione answered.

Madame Pomfrey seemed to hesitate as she walked away. Just before getting around the sectioned off area she paused, “Miss Granger, I feel it prudent to inform you that I have sole control over the medical wards. I will extend our agreement to Miss Greengrass though I won’t expect the same approval from her head of house.” Hermione’s face had taken on a red color at being caught but Madame Pomfrey did not wait around for either girl to respond.

Daphne threw off the hood and looked at Hermione, “Agreement?”

The red had started to fade from Hermione’s face as she turned back to Daphne, “As long as I have permission from Professor McGonagall I can stay in the medical ward with Harry and miss classes the next day.”

Daphne stared at Hermione as she brought over a pair of chairs. A memory from second year stuck out in her mind, “You were with him after Lockheart vanished the bones.”

Hermione nodded though she paused before speaking up, “Quidditch, Dementors… well all of third year really.”

Daphne stared for a moment before pulling the cloak off of her shoulders. She ran her fingers through the material for a moment and the cold feeling stirred again. Although this time there was a… well she wasn’t sure what it was but there as something else behind it. She passed it back to Hermione who seemed to ignore whatever it was that Daphne was feeling. Daphne sat down and scooted closer to Harry. She looked him over but her mind dwelled on the cloak.

“His cloak is always cold?” Daphne asked.

Hermione let out some sort of hum, “Whenever its first put on before it warms up.”

Daphne tutted, “Invisibility cloaks don’t do that.”

Hermione shrugged, “Maybe its due to the longevity.” She continued at Daphne’s stare, “Apparently that cloak has been in Harry’s family for generations.”

Daphne’s mouth opened reflexively, “Granger…”

Hermione’s hand came up, “I know. Believe me I looked into them when he first told me about it. It’s magic should be deteriorating.”

“If not outright just not working.” Daphne stared at Hermione’s bag, “If people knew about…”

Hermione smiled, “Then I guess I just have to trust you.”

It was a Harry saying. Daphne recognized it as what Harry would say whenever they talked about something that was unbelievable or weird. She had determined that it was his little way of saying that everything was true regardless if she believed him or not. She was now wondering if it was Harry or Hermione that had come up with the saying. It mattered little but the curiosity remained as just another thing that she really didn’t know about the man she secretly wanted to be courting.

Hermione had been looking over Harry. Inspecting the bandages and parts of his body. She seemed to have found whatever it was that she was looking for and settled into her seat, pulling out a book. They two sat in silence for several minutes before Daphne started as she felt the magic radiating out from Hermione. Daphne glanced at Hermione and found the girl’s eyes closed and the book nearly falling from her grip. Hermione’s eyes were closed and then Daphne felt the soft pulse of magic again. It was connected to her breathing, like gentle waves radiating outward. Daphne watched Hermione closely as the pulses got more consistent. Hermione sat there, radiating her magic for several minutes before Daphne felt an answering pulse radiate from Harry. She shuddered as Harry’s magic washed over her in response to whatever Hermione had done. Hermione let out one final pulse before opening her eyes. She was visibly relieved as she put the book back into her bag.

“He’s going to be just fine.” Hermione whispered.

Daphne’s eyebrows furrowed a bit, “Did you not trust…” the rest of the question went unanswered.

Hermione’s gaze drifted down, refusing to meet Daphne’s eyes, “I trust Madame Pomfrey. Its just something I do when I’m here. Madame Pomfrey knows and warns me not to do it if he really needs the rest or magical recovery.” Daphne just watched as the other girl seemed to get lost in a memory before continuing, “It was after Lockheart had vanished Harry’s bones. I was worried with everything else that had happened in the match.”

“The bludger.” Daphne answered.

Hermione nodded, “I actually snuck out that night. I sat next to his bed and remembered reading about connecting to someone else’s magic.” Daphne hissed in an intake of breath but otherwise didn’t interrupt. “I don’t really know what I did but I must’ve done something. Harry let out a massive wave of energy that woke Madame Pomfrey.” Hermione’s face took on a small smile, “It’s what led to the agreement. Madame Pomfrey told me to check out a tome from the library and it instructed me on how to meditate and connect to another’s magic in medical diagnosis.” Hermione waved her hand towards Madame Pomfrey’s quarters, “She knows what I do and trusts me to inform her if something feels wrong.”

Daphne looked at her, “Medical diagnosis? I’ve never… Have you ever noticed anything with it?”

Hermione’s gaze had snapped to Daphne’s and there was a look that Daphne couldn’t interpret. Hermione held the gaze only for a moment before answering, “Once. The dementor exposure after the Quidditch match hid a fracture on his shoulder. The connection felt pained and Madame Pomfrey was able to find it with a different scan.”

The two fell into a silence; Daphne knew that the other girl had noticed the slip and was waiting. Daphne just wasn’t sure if she was comfortable revealing the thoughts that were bouncing around in her own head. The meditation wasn’t that unusual. Many a pureblood would do it to maintain connections and familiarity with their magic and the family magics that were passed down each generation. Her own mother had started teaching meditative techniques but the were no where near as effective as what Hermione had displayed. It was the bit about the connecting… The answering that left Daphne in this state of uncertainty.

“Meditation as a medical tool is not something I’ve heard of.” Daphne started, refusing to meet Hermione’s eyes. “My mother has started to teach me how to meditate.” Daphne paused, searching for something to give her the strength to speak. “The connection made during any meditation is usually between close confidants, parent and child, siblings…” Daphne trailed off.

“Spouses.” Hermione finished.

Daphne’s gaze finally met Hermione’s, scared of what she would see. Hermione seemed to be lost in her own thought for a few long heartbeats before shaking her head and turning her gaze towards Harry.

“Harry’s heart is large.” There was a pause and Hermione seemed to struggle in finding the words before she let out a sigh, “His story is his own but regardless of what you may fear know this. He cares for you. I don’t see a future where you two aren’t close.”

Daphne took in Hermione’s words but wasn’t really convinced by them. The fear still resided deep inside her though she tried to squish it down. Hermione had been a direct help in the last few weeks and hadn’t done anything remotely threatening even with the pushing and teasing Daphne had instigated. Daphne mulled over Harry’s comment a bit before a memory washed over her.

“He does have a large heart.” Daphne agreed. She realized that she had grabbed Harry’s hand at some point.

“And he will be okay. Probably up and moving by the end of day tomorrow.” Hermione let out with a dry chuckle.

Daphne’s eyebrows shot up but Hermione didn’t elaborate and Daphne found herself falling into the memory of the first task. Seeing the dragons had been both exhilarating and terrifying. All the champions had done as well as they probably could against the creatures and Daphne had fretted with worry as Harry stepped out to face the Horntail. Her heart had stopped as he flew against the dragon. Few had ever lived when challenging the dragon directly in the skies.

Seeing the few spells he did fire actually stagger the dragon had been even more surprising. There had been a handler near them in the stands and Tracy poked her, noticing that the handler had dropped his wand. If it had been anyone else Daphne would have been awed, but the fact that it was Harry had just driven up the worry that she was feeling.

Looking at him now she still could hardly believe how uninjured he actually was. Sure there were bandages covering his body but nowhere near what she would’ve expected from an encounter with a dragon. Her hand ran ghosted over the bandages on the arm close by, the magic radiating outward triggering another memory indeed.

“Luck or power indeed.” Daphne muttered.

Hermione cocked her head to the side and sent a questioning look towards Daphne, “Luck or power?”

Daphne didn’t look at Hermione, “My grand uncle fought with Charlus Potter on the continent against Grindelwald. He uhh didn’t have the kindest of words for the Late Lord Potter’s leadership style. Still the Charlus’ power and ferocity within the field of battle were undeniable. The journal stated that even some of Grindelwald’s stronger lieutenants refused to stand in battle against Charlus.” Daphne paused as she glanced at Hermione, “My grand-uncle wrote that he always wondered if it was a touch of luck or raw power that enabled Charlus’ more harebrained schemes.”

“Harry seems to going down the same path. Going in without a plan yet surviving anything that stands in his way.” Hermione let out a dry laugh before she whispered, “Merlin damned basilisk.”

“Do you know that story?” Daphne asked.

Hermione nodded, “I’m pretty sure I’ve pieced it together.”

Hermione launched into the tale about the basilisk that spawned the entirety of their second year. Daphne sat an listened as the story that she had heard pieces about was becoming far more clear. She filed away the information about Harry and Ron sneaking into the Slytherin dorms. It certainly explained how Harry had walked her to the dorm one night without any of her input. She hadn’t realized it at the time but now things made more sense.

Learning about the connections to the history of Hogwarts was filed away in Daphne’s mind. Hermione went into detail but Daphne wondered if there were any political implications that could be gleaned from it. The fact that the story was far beyond the incidents themselves was surprising. She couldn’t help but wonder why the trio felt the need to get involved in these things.

The part of the story of the battle against the basilisk itself was shorter than Daphne had been expecting. Hermione seemed to have all the major pieces of the interaction but she admitted that both Harry and Ginny hadn’t really spoken about the incident. Regardless Hermione did the best that she could. Potter luck indeed. Though this did explain why Fawkes would sometimes decide to hang around Harry. Daphne had never gotten that story out of Harry. He had always turned sheepish and deflected the information.

After Hermione finished the story of the Basilisk, Daphne spoke about the time Harry almost blew her up in potions. That was how much of the night progressed. Two women bonding and bemoaning the idiocies of the man that brought them together.

A/N: Thanks for reading. Hope you all have a good one.