Past Present

Hermione knocked a little louder than usual, just in case Viktor was asleep, but in short order, he opened the door and let her in. "So, you're up?" she asked brightly.

"I think so. I would not count on my being awake in any fashion other than 'bodily' at the moment," Viktor replied, sinking back into the chair. "So, how bad is it?"

"Not much needs to be changed. A couple of sentences could probably be reworded, there's one misspelling, one paragraph needs a bit of work, and one of the goblin names I wasn't able to decipher, you'll probably know who you meant when you read it, but otherwise, it's surprisingly solid for something you did on almost no sleep and in five days. Is that coffee?" Hermione asked, pointing at his cup.

"Yes. I admit it is a fairly futile attempt to get enough caffeine to become capable of conducting a conversation," he answered, nodding and taking another sip. "Oh! Did you want some? There is a thermos around here somewhere, no telling where I haff put it down..."

"No, thank you. Lunch is in an hour anyway. Fifteen, twenty minutes, that should be all the rewriting time you'll need, really. I marked the bits you need to look at," she said, handing it over.

"Good. Then I can actually get some sleep," he murmured.

"When did you get up?" Hermione asked.

"Fifteen minutes ago. Did not want to then, but I figured you would be here soon, the way you read," Viktor said.

"You really didn't sleep, did you? You couldn't have and gotten this done," Hermione insisted.

"Two or three hours here and there. Mostly there," he replied, jerking his head toward the desk.

"Coming down for lunch or dinner?" Hermione asked.

"If it's all the same to you, I think I will let this suffice and go back to bed," Viktor said, gesturing with his mug. "Besides, why deprive Dobby of the joy of dragging enough food up here to feed four people?" he said, a weak smile curling up the corner of his mouth. "Ever had the coffee here?" he asked absently.

"No," Hermione answered.

"I wouldn't recommend it, then," Viktor said, screwing up his face. "Or maybe it is just me," he mused, peering into the cup.

"Stop that. You're reminding me too much of Trelawney and her tea leaf reading nonsense."

"Grounds reading maybe. No danger, I haff no... ummm... what is it called?" he asked, knitting his eyebrows together.

"Second sight? Third eye? Ability to make up blatant lies on the spot?" Hermione ventured.

"No! The thing you would need to do it..."

"Cup and saucer?" Hermione guessed.

"No, no... the other thing... what you need to make the tea in the first place, like a samovar but not so fancy looking..." Viktor said, miming a pouring motion.

"A teakettle?"

"Teakettle! That is it!" He paused for a long moment. "Notice I did not say it would be an intelligent conversation..."

"Get some sleep before you rewrite. Rest today, rewrite tomorrow. Then rest up for Monday. It would be quite passable as it is anyway, even if you don't get to it. How about I go to lunch and let you finish your horrible coffee and go back to bed? You're exhausted, aren't you?" she asked, the concern evident on her face.

"I never thought I would be almost happy to hear you say you were leaving, but I could fall over right now if I were not talking," Viktor allowed.

"Then put the horrible coffee down and go to bed. Put it down before you fall asleep in the chair and scald yourself. See you tomorrow at breakfast?"

"I think so. If I can still find my way downstairs that is."

"Don't get up. I can see the door from here," she said, giving him a quick peck on the lips. Walking down the staircase, she wondered if he would even manage to get back out of his robes before falling into bed.