Post by angharad on Sept 21, 2004 3:16:57 GMT -5
Pomona Sprout has done it again.
As Professor Minerva McGonagall sat back in her bathtub with a contented sigh, she silently thanked whatever deities happened to be listening for her friend and colleague’s continuing interest in botanical experimentation. Thus far, Professor Sprout’s concoctions had netted Minerva a rosemary hair rinse that not only cleaned her hair but also left it so soft that her comb glided through it like a hot knife through butter, and a lavender moisturizer that softened her skin to the point that silk felt rough. Now Minerva was luxuriating in the Herbology instructor’s latest creation, an as-yet-unnamed mint bubble bath that both cleared the head and invigorated the body. I should give some of this to Albus, she decided as she got out of the tub and dried herself off. He looked so tired at dinner this evening. Minerva deftly decanted a generous portion of the pale green liquid into a spare bottle and, wrapping herself in her tartan dressing gown, made her way to the sitting room fireplace. A short note and a dash of floo powder later, and the bottle was waiting in the corresponding sitting room of one exhausted Headmaster.
The next morning at breakfast, Minerva was gratified to see a very well-rested Albus Dumbledore sitting in his usual place at the High Table. As she sat down he leaned in to say, “Thank you very much for the bath brew. I’m still tingling.”
Come to think of it, so am I, mused Minerva, or did it start again when I sat down? Aloud she said, “You’re welcome. I really think Professor Sprout is quite talented.”
Professor Dumbledore nodded. “She made me the most marvelous sage soap. It really gets the ink stains out.” He smiled, moving quite close to Minerva as he did so. “Perhaps I should make certain she has all the supplies she might need, if she intends to pursue this sort of research.”
Minerva nodded. “I think she would appreciate that, Albus.” They both fell silent, which was a blessing, because Minerva was more than tingling now. In truth, her entire body had begun to thrum with desire, and it took every ounce of self control that she possessed to continue eating when all she really wanted to do was climb in Albus’ lap and kiss him senseless. The fact that he was sitting so close to her that the lower portions of their arms and legs were touching didn’t help matters. Nor did the fervent kiss he placed upon her hand as the meal ended.
“Tea this afternoon?” He was still holding her hand, and the look he gave her was nothing short of smoldering.
“That would be lovely,” she managed to breathe as she slowly stroked the inside of his wrist with her thumb.
His eyes were twinkling madly, and for a moment she thought he was going to kiss her. Instead, he leaned in to whisper in her ear. “I’m looking forward to it.”
By the time Minerva reached her classroom her body had calmed, but her mind was another matter altogether. What on earth is happening? she wondered. Minerva had known for some time that her feelings for Albus had changed. She hadn’t told him, though, for more than one reason. First there was the possibility of rejection, then the inevitable period of awkwardness whilst getting their friendship back on track. Besides, how do you tell your close friend of decades that you’ve fallen in love with him in the first place? “Good morning, I love you, please pass the salt” just wouldn’t do. Albus himself had been more attentive of late but natural modesty, coupled with a desire to avoid self delusion, prevented her from reading anything of a romantic nature into his recent actions. Now, however, she wasn’t so sure…
Minerva’s ruminations were interrupted by Professor Sprout calling her from the fireplace. “I’m sorry to bother you, but I discovered something last night about the mint bath that I think you need to know.”
“What is it?” Minerva prompted.
“Well,” Professor Sprout began, “it would seem that I have a stray menta amor growing amongst the menta.” Minerva motioned for her to continue. “Ordinarily, the essential oil of this herb enhances the act of love. However, the combination of ingredients I used, as well as the addition of saponin, has expanded the herb’s effects.”
“Expanded how?” Minerva queried a bit nervously.
“To put it bluntly,” Professor Sprout’s cheeks were quite flushed, “anyone attracted to you already will have a hard time keeping his or her hands off you after you’ve bathed in the stuff. The degree of attraction will determine the degree of difficulty.”
“Good heavens Pomona,” Minerva closed her eyes in disbelief, “this sounds like a particularly poor plot device from one of those novels you’re so fond of.”
Professor Sprout chuckled. “I see you’ve read the one I lent you, then.”
Minerva echoed her friend’s chuckle. “I assume this discovery explains your absence from the breakfast table this morning?”
A blushing Professor Sprout nodded. “My class is beginning to trickle in. I’ll fill you in later.”
Minerva shook her head with a smile as the Herbology instructor’s head disappeared from view. Then she began to ponder her own situation in the light of this new information. That explains my rush of hormones this morning, she mused, but what about Albus’? Her thoughts were interrupted once more by the arrival of her first class of the day.
A minor accident in her second class and a homesick Gryffindor first year kept Minerva from attending lunch in the Great Hall. Consequently, by teatime she was not only longing to see Albus, but a bit on the ravenous side as well. Catching her reflection in the mirror by the door, she noticed that her bun had slipped a bit lower than she preferred. As she removed the pins and summoned a comb, she imagined it was Albus’ long fingers threading through the tresses instead. So lost was she in this pleasant daydream that she almost didn’t hear his discreet knock. Startled out of her reverie, she quickly opened the door to admit Albus himself, levitating a tray laden with tea, strawberries, shortbread, whipped cream, and melted chocolate. “I thought you might be hungry after missing lunch…” he began, then trailed off to simply stare at her.
“Albus, what is the matter?” Minerva had never before seen him at such a loss for words.
Albus closed the distance between them. “How in the world do you expect me to behave in my usual manner when you answer the door like this?” He reached out and began to run his fingers through her hair.
Oh my, I forgot to put my hair back up, Minerva realized, how…fortunate. Albus was now trailing soft kisses down her neck, and it was only with a great deal of effort that she was able to speak. “Albus, there’s something you should know about the bath brew I gave you.”
He listened quietly, holding and caressing her as she told him what she had learned that morning. “Well,” he said when she finished, “this concoction of Professor Sprout’s may have removed our inhibitions but, at least in my case, it certainly didn’t create any feelings that weren’t already there.”
“I agree,” Minerva replied before finally succumbing to the urge to kiss him senseless.
They did eventually enjoy that splendid tea…in Minerva’s bedchamber. As for Professor Sprout, she was provided with the very best equipment available and, after several years of research, developed a rather special line of body care products. It is called “Bedroom Botanicals”, and is available at Slug & Jiggers Apothecary in Diagon Alley.
As Professor Minerva McGonagall sat back in her bathtub with a contented sigh, she silently thanked whatever deities happened to be listening for her friend and colleague’s continuing interest in botanical experimentation. Thus far, Professor Sprout’s concoctions had netted Minerva a rosemary hair rinse that not only cleaned her hair but also left it so soft that her comb glided through it like a hot knife through butter, and a lavender moisturizer that softened her skin to the point that silk felt rough. Now Minerva was luxuriating in the Herbology instructor’s latest creation, an as-yet-unnamed mint bubble bath that both cleared the head and invigorated the body. I should give some of this to Albus, she decided as she got out of the tub and dried herself off. He looked so tired at dinner this evening. Minerva deftly decanted a generous portion of the pale green liquid into a spare bottle and, wrapping herself in her tartan dressing gown, made her way to the sitting room fireplace. A short note and a dash of floo powder later, and the bottle was waiting in the corresponding sitting room of one exhausted Headmaster.
The next morning at breakfast, Minerva was gratified to see a very well-rested Albus Dumbledore sitting in his usual place at the High Table. As she sat down he leaned in to say, “Thank you very much for the bath brew. I’m still tingling.”
Come to think of it, so am I, mused Minerva, or did it start again when I sat down? Aloud she said, “You’re welcome. I really think Professor Sprout is quite talented.”
Professor Dumbledore nodded. “She made me the most marvelous sage soap. It really gets the ink stains out.” He smiled, moving quite close to Minerva as he did so. “Perhaps I should make certain she has all the supplies she might need, if she intends to pursue this sort of research.”
Minerva nodded. “I think she would appreciate that, Albus.” They both fell silent, which was a blessing, because Minerva was more than tingling now. In truth, her entire body had begun to thrum with desire, and it took every ounce of self control that she possessed to continue eating when all she really wanted to do was climb in Albus’ lap and kiss him senseless. The fact that he was sitting so close to her that the lower portions of their arms and legs were touching didn’t help matters. Nor did the fervent kiss he placed upon her hand as the meal ended.
“Tea this afternoon?” He was still holding her hand, and the look he gave her was nothing short of smoldering.
“That would be lovely,” she managed to breathe as she slowly stroked the inside of his wrist with her thumb.
His eyes were twinkling madly, and for a moment she thought he was going to kiss her. Instead, he leaned in to whisper in her ear. “I’m looking forward to it.”
By the time Minerva reached her classroom her body had calmed, but her mind was another matter altogether. What on earth is happening? she wondered. Minerva had known for some time that her feelings for Albus had changed. She hadn’t told him, though, for more than one reason. First there was the possibility of rejection, then the inevitable period of awkwardness whilst getting their friendship back on track. Besides, how do you tell your close friend of decades that you’ve fallen in love with him in the first place? “Good morning, I love you, please pass the salt” just wouldn’t do. Albus himself had been more attentive of late but natural modesty, coupled with a desire to avoid self delusion, prevented her from reading anything of a romantic nature into his recent actions. Now, however, she wasn’t so sure…
Minerva’s ruminations were interrupted by Professor Sprout calling her from the fireplace. “I’m sorry to bother you, but I discovered something last night about the mint bath that I think you need to know.”
“What is it?” Minerva prompted.
“Well,” Professor Sprout began, “it would seem that I have a stray menta amor growing amongst the menta.” Minerva motioned for her to continue. “Ordinarily, the essential oil of this herb enhances the act of love. However, the combination of ingredients I used, as well as the addition of saponin, has expanded the herb’s effects.”
“Expanded how?” Minerva queried a bit nervously.
“To put it bluntly,” Professor Sprout’s cheeks were quite flushed, “anyone attracted to you already will have a hard time keeping his or her hands off you after you’ve bathed in the stuff. The degree of attraction will determine the degree of difficulty.”
“Good heavens Pomona,” Minerva closed her eyes in disbelief, “this sounds like a particularly poor plot device from one of those novels you’re so fond of.”
Professor Sprout chuckled. “I see you’ve read the one I lent you, then.”
Minerva echoed her friend’s chuckle. “I assume this discovery explains your absence from the breakfast table this morning?”
A blushing Professor Sprout nodded. “My class is beginning to trickle in. I’ll fill you in later.”
Minerva shook her head with a smile as the Herbology instructor’s head disappeared from view. Then she began to ponder her own situation in the light of this new information. That explains my rush of hormones this morning, she mused, but what about Albus’? Her thoughts were interrupted once more by the arrival of her first class of the day.
A minor accident in her second class and a homesick Gryffindor first year kept Minerva from attending lunch in the Great Hall. Consequently, by teatime she was not only longing to see Albus, but a bit on the ravenous side as well. Catching her reflection in the mirror by the door, she noticed that her bun had slipped a bit lower than she preferred. As she removed the pins and summoned a comb, she imagined it was Albus’ long fingers threading through the tresses instead. So lost was she in this pleasant daydream that she almost didn’t hear his discreet knock. Startled out of her reverie, she quickly opened the door to admit Albus himself, levitating a tray laden with tea, strawberries, shortbread, whipped cream, and melted chocolate. “I thought you might be hungry after missing lunch…” he began, then trailed off to simply stare at her.
“Albus, what is the matter?” Minerva had never before seen him at such a loss for words.
Albus closed the distance between them. “How in the world do you expect me to behave in my usual manner when you answer the door like this?” He reached out and began to run his fingers through her hair.
Oh my, I forgot to put my hair back up, Minerva realized, how…fortunate. Albus was now trailing soft kisses down her neck, and it was only with a great deal of effort that she was able to speak. “Albus, there’s something you should know about the bath brew I gave you.”
He listened quietly, holding and caressing her as she told him what she had learned that morning. “Well,” he said when she finished, “this concoction of Professor Sprout’s may have removed our inhibitions but, at least in my case, it certainly didn’t create any feelings that weren’t already there.”
“I agree,” Minerva replied before finally succumbing to the urge to kiss him senseless.
They did eventually enjoy that splendid tea…in Minerva’s bedchamber. As for Professor Sprout, she was provided with the very best equipment available and, after several years of research, developed a rather special line of body care products. It is called “Bedroom Botanicals”, and is available at Slug & Jiggers Apothecary in Diagon Alley.
Wonderful challenge response! 
Great job on this one! Way to go, Sprout! 
