wheresmytoad @ 2003-08-09 22:01:00

Current mood:

pleased

The tea party of doom
did not go as badly as I feared it might. Actually, it went rather well. I solved the hat problem by buying Gran a new one. She was surprised when I gave it to her, but she wore it, much to my relief. 'Quite lovely of you to think of it, Neville,' she said 'although I don't think it makes quite the statement my old hat does.'

I certainly agreed.

Sara met us at Madame Lucinda's. It was a good thing she was looking the other way when we walked up, because it gave me time to pick my jaw up off the sidewalk before she turned around. I'd never seen her in a dress before, and she looked so pretty. I was so nervous, worrying about what Gran might do or say, that I must have eaten ten tea biscuits. But Sara didn't take the slightest bit of notice at all of how stiff Gran seemed, and within just five minutes, she had Gran entirely wrapped around her little finger. 'It's no wonder Neville's so good at his job,' she told Gran. 'He's told me all about your garden, Mrs. Longbottom, and so that explains it: he must have learned so much from you.' Gran threw me a surprised look and thawed out visibly as they started talking about cottage gardens, and Sara smiled sweetly at me. And I dropped my tea cup and then upset the sugar bowl, because under the table Sara had taken her foot out of her sandal and was running it up and down my ankle under my trouser leg. It made it difficult to follow the conversation.

Only one bad moment: the tea had gone cold, and Gran forgot herself so far that she had her wand half pulled out of her handbag. I knew she meant to just tap the pot to warm the tea again, but luckily I caught Gran's eye just in time as Sara was reaching for another scone, and she remembered and put it away again before Sara saw it.

'Quite a charming young lady,' Gran told me this evening. 'I don't entirely know what she sees in you, Neville, but yes, she's quite lovely. I must say, I was surprised.'

So Gran likes her!

Edited to add: By the way, I'm really glad I got Gran that new hat. I finally figured out why today, when she wore it: it's because ever since we studied boggarts in our third year, every time Gran wore the old one (with the vulture) it reminds me of Professor Snape.

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