Chapter 25: The High-Altitude Updraft and the Illusion of Safety part-2
Since the pants were baggy, she moved forward inside them for a moment before hitting the resistance.
"Stuck!" she gasped, trying to pull away.
She gave a sharp tug.
The lever was strong. The sweatpants were cheap cotton.
Riiiip.
The lever tore a massive hole in the seat of the sweatpants. But because of the suspenders and belt, the pants didn't fall down. Instead, the entire back panel of the pants was ripped open, creating a massive flap that the wind immediately caught.
So now, Hermione was standing there with her robe inflated over her head like an umbrella and the back of her sweatpants flapping in the wind like a flag.
Underneath, the blue competitive swimsuit was visible.
(She is safe,) I thought. (She is disappointed, but safe. The swimsuit is holding.)
(Time to test the 'Illusion' skill's true potential.)
I focused my gaze on the blue swimsuit covering her rear.
(Skill: Illusion (Basic).) (Target: The blue fabric.) (Effect: Render texture invisible.)
I wove the magic. It was a visual trick. I bent the light around the fabric of the swimsuit.
To the naked eye, the blue material simply... vanished.
"Harry!" Hermione yelled, struggling with her ballooning robe. "Something ripped! Check my back!"
Harry, who had been trying to save the star charts, turned around.
He saw Hermione.
He saw the robe blown up over her head. He saw the sweatpants ripped open.
And then, he saw... nothing.
From Harry's perspective, Hermione was standing there with her entire backside completely exposed to the cold night air. The swimsuit, which was physically there and keeping her warm, was visually absent.
(...cough...)
Harry dropped the star chart. It flew away into the night, likely heading for Scotland.
"Hermione..." Harry choked out.
"Is it bad?" she asked frantically, still fighting the wind. "Did the pants rip?"
"The pants ripped," Harry confirmed, his voice sounding like he had inhaled helium. "And... everything else."
"What do you mean everything else?!" Hermione shrieked. "I am wearing a swimsuit!"
"I... I don't see a swimsuit," Harry whispered, staring with a mixture of horror and that new, strange fascination the "Dream Weaver" potion had installed in him.
"What?!" Hermione spun around.
As she spun, the wind caught her robe again, blowing it directly into her face, blinding her. She stumbled backward.
She tripped over the leg of the telescope.
"Harry, catch me!"
Harry lunged. He caught her.
But because he was convinced she was naked (thanks to my illusion), he hesitated to grab her anywhere solid. His hands hovered, panicked.
He ended up grabbing her by the only thing he thought was safe: the suspenders.
He pulled the suspenders.
Elastic snaps back.
He pulled her toward him. She crashed into his chest.
The impact broke my concentration on the Illusion. The swimsuit flickered back into visibility for a split second, then vanished again as I reasserted the spell.
To Harry, it looked like she had just flashed into existence and then back out.
"You are naked!" Harry yelled, trying to wrap his cloak around her. "Why are you naked?!"
"I am not naked!" Hermione screamed, her voice muffled by Harry's chest. "I am wearing Speedo's finest nylon blend!"
"It is invisible!" Harry shouted back. "It must be an Invisible Swimsuit! Did Fred and George sell you this?"
"No!" Hermione wailed.
The commotion attracted Professor Sinistra.
"Mr. Potter! Miss Granger!" she swept over, her star-patterned robes flowing. "Stop dancing and look at the stars!"
She looked at Hermione.
Now, my Illusion was directional. It was targeted at Harry's line of sight. Professor Sinistra, approaching from the side, saw the blue swimsuit perfectly fine.
"Miss Granger," Sinistra frowned. "Why have you torn your trousers? And why are you showing off your swimwear in class? Five points from Gryffindor for improper dress code."
"It... it is there?" Harry asked, blinking and looking at Sinistra, then back at Hermione's (to him) bare behind. "You can see it, Professor?"
"Of course I can see it, Potter," Sinistra snapped. "It is bright blue. Are you blind?"
Harry rubbed his eyes. The Illusion flickered. He saw blue. Then skin. Then blue.
"I think I am hallucinating," Harry moaned, clutching his head. "The stress... it is finally breaking my mind."
"It is the curse!" Hermione sobbed into Harry's chest. "It made my swimsuit turn invisible to Harry! It is a specific, targeted, perverted curse!"
"System Alert," the voice purred in my mind. "Incident recorded. Type: The 'Phantom Nudity' combined with 'Updraft Exposure'. Target: Hermione Granger. Victim of Psychological Damage: Harry Potter. Rating: S-class. Reward: Skill 'Sensory Share (Basic)' and fifty attribute points."
(Sensory Share,) I noted. (Allows the user to briefly experience the physical sensations of a target. Oh, this is going to be useful.)
I stepped forward, wrestling my own telescope into place.
"Is everything alright?" I asked, shouting over the wind. "Harry, you look like you have seen a ghost."
"I have seen things, Ron," Harry whispered, his eyes wide and unfocused. "Things that are there, but not there. Schrödinger's Knickers."
"Let us get you inside," I said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Hermione, you might want to... er... walk backward."
Hermione nodded, sniffing. She kept her back firmly pressed against Harry's front as they crab-walked toward the staircase, looking like a very awkward four-legged creature.
As they descended, I stayed behind for a moment.
(Sensory Share: Target Harry Potter.)
I activated the skill.
Suddenly, I felt what Harry was feeling.
I felt the cold wind on my face. I felt the adrenaline pumping through my veins, making my heart race. And I felt the distinct, soft pressure of Hermione Granger pressed against my chest, her warmth seeping through my robes.
But more than that, I felt his emotions.
It wasn't just embarrassment anymore. It was excitement. It was a heavy, thumping desire that Harry was trying desperately to suppress. The "Dream Weaver" potion had done its work. Harry wasn't just dreading the next accident; part of him was waiting for it.
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