11 August 1991, Sunday
Waking up with somebody else in bed was a new sensation, and Harry decided he liked it very much. Even before opening his eyes, he felt the pleasant weight on his chest, the scent of a flowery shampoo, and the tickling of some stray hairs. He was also becoming aware of a budding female chest pressed at his side. That feeling made him more content about being with his female friend. He felt that the title 'friend' might soon be inadequate, although he didn't yet understand what would replace it.
Hermione was also waking up. Harry looked in her direction only to be startled by the beautiful chocolate eyes that were looking into his green ones. He felt like they were talking to him, demanding that he kiss their owner a good-morning kiss. He just had to act as they were demanding. He moved his head closer to hers and kissed her cheek. He momentarily felt as if sparks were flying between them, but he couldn't see any. "Good morning, Hermione," he said softly.
"Good morning, Harry. Slept well?"
"Perfectly. And you?"
She smiled, stretching like a cat. "Perfectly, as expected. We should sleep together as often as we can, I think."
"Your father may not think that way," he noted.
Hermione turned in bed, ending up over him. He could now feel her body with almost nothing separating them, and he felt a bit weird about that. Hermione didn't seem to notice.
"My father has no say in this. He may keep me from meeting you until school starts, although I don't think he will, but he has no control over what I do, once there. Besides, I think he likes to see me happy. As being with you makes me happy, he won't really object."
Harry was starting to feel quite confused and didn't know what to do about it. Although Hermione had already hinted at intending to have sex with him, she wasn't yet ready for that. He was sure he wasn't ready either. It was only something for the future, so he felt.
Hermione had been very aware of his condition. His reaction to her was a kind of compliment, one that couldn't be faked. She liked to tease him a bit, but she didn't want to torture him. She moved back to his side, letting her hand stay on his chest only a bit longer.
"Take a shower now. I'll move to my room, to shower there. I'll come to call you for breakfast, once I'm ready."
–..–
Harry was showered and clothed before Hermione came for him. He still wondered about the feelings this girl was stirring in him. He had never had such feelings towards anybody and he didn't know what to call them. Luckily, he didn't really need to have a word for them, not yet.
It seemed to be another sunny day, and Dave suggested a visit to the Amusement Park. Seeing Hermione's delight at the suggestion, Harry was sure to agree. He had never visited such a place, but he heard other boys talking about their visits there, including Dudley. It seemed to be a lot of fun, and Hermione's enthusiasm seemed to confirm that.
Once there, Harry looked with wide eyes at all the amusement devices. Some seemed to be more of torture than real fun. "Let's take that roller-coaster first," Hermione suggested, pointing at a set of rails that seemed to go in unnatural forms. Harry gulped and followed her obediently.
Twenty minutes later, after they both had shouted themselves hoarse, he looked at Hermione's beaming face. "That was FUN!" she said. "Let's try that now!" she dragged him to the next queue – The Big Splash.
Three hours later, both children were already tired, yet both were smiling widely. Dave took them to one of the food areas, where each ate a double burger with salad and chips, along with a large serving of beverages. While most other children were getting some kind of sweetened soda, Dave gave the children natural juices – Orange, for Hermione, and Pineapple for Harry. "The other drinks are unhealthy. They contain too much sugar and acid, guaranteed to give us more patients," he explained with a wink at Harry.
Harry didn't really mind. He had never tasted pineapple, in any form, and found it very nice indeed.
They only took some of the slower, less challenging attractions after lunch, as Dave didn't want them to lose their meal. It was still nice to sit close to Hermione in one of the small carts and watch some story-book characters, or to try the shooting range, where both children did nicely, gaining themselves some prizes.
Jean, who let her husband handle the whole outing, only intervened at about four in the afternoon. "I think the children had more than enough for one day, dear, and we have work tomorrow. I think it's about time to head home."
The children didn't mind. They had already enjoyed most of the attractions and were a bit too tired for the rest. They even slept most of the way back, resting their heads on each other.
"Aren't they cute that way?" Jean asked her husband.
He only nodded non-committally.
–..–
Once back, the adults went to their bedroom for some rest, leaving the children to do as they liked.
Hermione scanned her books. "I don't think we have anything about moving magically from place to place. They only mention apparition and portkeys in 'Hogwarts – A History', as things that can't be done at Hogwarts. I wonder if there are other ways. I want us to be able to share a bed there too."
"Maybe we should check the bookstore at Diagon Alley again?" Harry suggested.
Hermione smiled enthusiastically. "Sure! And I can even use Mum's make-up to help you stay unrecognisable."
"How can you? I'm supposed to go back tonight, after dinner."
"And leave me here to sleep alone? No way! I'll talk to my parents about that, so we can go back to London together. Besides, we still need to exercise our Occlumency, don't we?"
When Hermione's parents came out of the bedroom, both were smiling. They didn't object when Hermione told them that Harry would stay for the night. Dave only asked, "Will that be alright with your hotel?"
"They say the room is mine for the rest of the month, whether I stay there or not. They even told me that a boy my age should better be with family or friends than alone in a hotel room."
"They sound like nice people," Dave agreed. "Well, if you stay, I'll drive you both to the train station in the morning. I'm sorry we can't take you in for the rest of the summer, but we barely have enough time to spend with our daughter. We won't be able to be good hosts for you during the week, but you're welcome on the weekend."
Harry was glad he was so well accepted, despite sharing a bed with Hermione. Well, it was quite innocent, for the time being.
Dave really tried to become closer to Harry. After dinner, he invited Harry to watch some episodes of "Star Trek" with him and talked about his collection of "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" films. "We may be able to watch some more at another time."
This made Harry feel really accepted. There and then he swore in his heart to try and never disappoint Hermione's parents. He felt they were quickly becoming the family he had always longed for. It almost brought tears to his eyes.
Hermione watched it all with them, cuddled into Harry. When the film ended, they both said "Goodnight," and moved to their rooms. Hermione joined Harry in bed a few minutes later but didn't lock the door. She then cuddled with Harry and fell asleep at once. Harry was still wondering about the girl who seemed to trust him so explicitly, yet he fell asleep with a smile again.