Round 5 Challenge #7: VOTING!
Are you ready to RUMBLE?? This week, we’re rumbling in Florence, Italy! Just one more stop on our world tour--I can't believe the rumble is almost over!
Welcome to the seventh week of voting for Round 5 of Dramione LDWS-Rumble Edition!!
A couple of things to remember when deciding which drabbles to vote for (most and least favorite):
Guidelines:
1. Which drabble best incorporates the prompt?
2. Is the drabble clever, different, fresh? Does it evoke an emotional response (good or bad)?
3. Does the drabble contain grammar, canon or spelling errors?
The “feedback” option.
As a voter, you have the option of leaving a brief statement about why you voted the way you did, for both most and least favorite. You can also leave feedback for ALL drabbles in a screened comment if you wish. Your feedback will then be given to the drabble writer (if they want the feedback) ANONYMOUSLY.
Example: Most - #40: the ending was brilliant - OR - Least - #57: the ending fell flat
Now that all of that is done… We present the drabbles for week 7!!
RULES
[1] Choose your most favorite and least favorite drabbles. Favorites will receive +1 point per vote, and least favorites -1 point per vote. Each drabble’s MF and LF scores will be added together. Drabble with most points wins!!
[2] Points will be awarded to the top THREE (3) drabbles, Mod’s Choice, and any other awards we want to throw in!
[3] You may NOT vote for yourself.
Voting ends at 11:59pm, Friday, November 20, 2009.
PROMPT:
AROUND THE WORLD with Draco and Hermione!!
This stop: Florence, Italy! Pick a fact - any fact (historical, a festival, local color - whatever) and incorporate it into your drabble.
The following people did not submit drabbles and are ineligible for rewards this week:
alexajohnson
midnight_birth
somandalicious
lisiandapple
scarletladyy
1
Title: Nomenclature
Author: bookishwench
Rating: G
Warning(s): None
Word Count: 327
“I thought you said we were going to visit Firenze,” Draco said suspiciously once the portkey had brought them, with an indecorous bump, into a small alleyway that opened onto a sunlit, bustling square.
“But we are visiting Firenze,” Hermione said, grinning with a slightly sneaky expression.
“I’m noting a dramatic absence of the scent of carrots, hay, and sweaty horse,” Draco said, sniffing the air, “and a definite increase in the aroma of olive oil and prosciutto. Are we in Italy?”
“Of course,” Hermione said, actually giggling. “Firenze is the Italian name for Florence, you know, so I really wasn’t fibbing.”
“Florence?” Draco asked. “Seriously? You’re telling me that giant, hulking centaur’s name is actually Florence?”
“Well, technically, yes,” Hermione said. “Why?”
“Like the bird from The Brady Bunch?” Draco said, laughing hysterically. “That is just too rich!”
“I knew introducing you to Muggle television was going to be a bad idea,” she said, groaning.
“Fine. We’re not visiting the Forbidden Forest’s favorite prodigal son,” Draco said. “Why Florence?”
“Why not?” Hermione answered. “It has incredible food, beautiful scenery, gorgeous architecture, and all the Renaissance era wizarding history to see, like the da Vinci laboratories. You know, he was one of the few Muggles to figure out the existence of witches and wizards after the International Secrecy was passed. He was so stupendously brilliant, and he worked as a liaison between the two cultures for decades before…”
Draco cut off her historical lecture with a particularly fervent kiss.
“And also, there’s that,” Hermione said after she got her breath back.
“What?” he asked.
“Personally, I think kisses are just somehow better in Italy,” she said, smiling coyly as she pulled him towards the colorful marketplace in the square.
“Hey, wait!” he said suddenly. “How do you know that? We’ve never been to Italy before!”
She only laughed again and led him deeper into the maze or booths filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, keeping her secrets.
2
Title: The Perfect Strategy
Author: mister_otter
Rating: PG
Warning(s): none
Word Count: 471
Florence fit the criteria for Hermione’s perfect holiday-romantic, historic, beautiful, a place that had stood the test of time.
Leaning on a stone parapet of the Ponte Vecchio, she could feel the city’s heartbeat, clocking a steady cadence of the years. Here political powers had risen and fallen; artists had created their masterworks; the Renaissance had blossomed and flourished.
Dante. Boccaccio. Botticelli. Michelangelo. The catalog of creativity was as breathtaking as the views.
It was not surprising then, in the city that had spawned the Medici and Machiavelli, to encounter Draco Malfoy.
“Florence fit my criteria for the perfect holiday,” he told her. “I’m here to study strategy, as interpreted by those who knew it best. I want to walk where Lorenzo the Magnificent walked, see the light above this city as Machiavelli saw it. Florence is a breeding ground for success and I intend to have it.”
His eyes held Hermione’s with a fiercely focused grey light that made her breath catch.
Nevertheless, she tossed her curls and challenged him. “What need do you have for learning about strategy? I would think the Malfoys have all the success they could possibly use.”
“In banking and finance, yes. In backing the winning side-not so much.” The corners of Draco’s mouth lifted in a wry smile. “But I’m here for a very different reason.” That fierce look again. “I’m planning to apply Florentine military tactics in the area of romantic conquest.”
“You make it sound as though love is a battleground.”
“Just so.” Draco nodded. “When the woman you want has considered you an enemy for years, the only recourse may be to engage her in open combat.”
There was a determined set to his jaw, which Hermione found both intriguing and endearing. She had to turn her head, pretending to gaze at the panorama, in order to hide her smile.
“Draco--why don’t you try a slightly different approach?” she asked softly. “Like inviting the woman in question to have dinner with you. Great victories are sometimes won by a series of small, successful encounters.”
Draco seemed surprised. “But what if she says ‘no’?”
“Look around you. Would that really happen, here?” Hermione slipped her arm through his. “I’ve read Machiavelli’s The Prince and found it fascinating. We could discuss it over dinner, if you would like. And after that…who knows?”
Draco stared. He was picturing Hermione rising naked from the waves like Botticello’s beautiful Venus. Hermione, with the face and curls of a Florentine angel--who could talk strategy with the cunning of a Medici….
It was perhaps the closest he had ever come to imagining perfection.
“Dinner, then?” he asked, giving only the tiniest of smirks as Hermione nodded yes. “Does Ristorante La Giostra sound good? I’ve already reserved a table for two --just in case.”
3
Title: Curse of the Medici
Author: greenschist
Rating: PG
Warning(s): None
Word Count: 499
Draco dragged Hermione through a puddle and shone the light from his wand up one tunnel and then another. "Which way do we go, Hermione?" Ignoring how his arm ached from bearing most of her weight, he gently palmed her cheek and jiggled her head from side to side until she opened her eyes and looked around blearily.
The catacomb's rough-hewn walls glistened with moisture, and the air was heavy with mold and the lingering odor of bodies long since rotted. Ahead of them, a large rat bared his crooked, yellow teeth before turning and sauntering through a fissure in the stone.
"You take me to the nicest places." Her voice was weak, and her head lolled against his shoulder.
"Don't blame me for this." He kissed her forehead and was frightened by how cold and clammy she felt. "If I had my way, we'd be sipping Chianti while watching the sunset over the Basilica of Santa Croce or shopping on the Via de'Tornabuoni. You're the one who wanted to go deep under il Duomo into wizard catacombs in search of Medici's amulet. Why can't you just stick to the guidebook like any other tourist?"
"Well, since the amulet was cursed and I'm probably dying, trust me when I say I'm very sorry we're here." Her mouth twisted and her legs buckled in reaction to a sudden pain.
He caught her close. "You're not dying," he said harshly. He concentrated on the local magical hospital and turned them both on the spot only to open his eyes and see another rat watching them from the shadows.
"I'm in no shape for dancing, dear," Hermione's voice was a frail thread.
"I'm trying to Apparate us out of here!"
"I know, but you know the catacombs are warded against Apparition." She touched his face with her chilled hand. "Don't worry. If we turn left here, we'll reach the exit within a few minutes. I still have time, I still have time." Her voice trailed away.
Draco pulled her arm over his shoulder and turned up the left tunnel, stomping his foot to frighten off the closest rat. "During our next holiday, you're not touching anything more dangerous than a book or a strong drink. Understand, Hermione?"
She said nothing but slumped in his arms instead, and Draco instinctively dropped his wand in order to keep her from falling. It fell with a clatter, his Lumos guttering out, and he stepped on it to keep it from rolling away. In the darkness, his hands searched Hermione until he found a weak pulse, and he closed his eyes in relief.
When he opened them, he saw a dim glow farther down the tunnel. The exit, right where Hermione said it would be. Carefully, he reached down and grabbed his wand before swinging Hermione up into his arms. "Just hold on a few more minutes," he whispered. Hermione's breath was soft and fast against his neck, and Draco started grimly toward the distant light.
4
Title: The Art of Eloping Magically
Author: ayane_tsurugi
Rating: PG
Warning(s): Does the author's insanity count?
Word Count: 413
For once in her life, Hermione Granger was truly and hopelessly confused. Earlier that evening, it had been the lopsided Battle of the Burrow as she and Harry took on the entire Weasley family over her relationship with Draco. Back at his flat, upset and very much in love, she had agreed to elope with him.
Since then, it seemed, she had been trapped in a whirlwind of impulsivity. Within seconds, her brand new fiancé had side-alonged her to Italy and taken her hand, pulling her toward the Uffizi. A bit of effortless bribery had them past the outside guards, and a couple of turns around the building later, they were standing in front of a statue of Leonardo DaVinci who, if Hermione didn’t know better, suddenly looked a bit annoyed.
“Oh, not you again,” the statue said in exasperation, and Hermione’s eyes widened. Draco, however, was grinning smugly.
“So you remember me, do you?”
“Of course I do, foolish boy. I’m stone, not a chalk board. You’re much older than you were the last time you pestered me, but likely no less of a nuisance.”
Hermione laughed. “You’re not wrong,” she commented to the animated statue.
Draco ignored both slights, instead responding, “Yes. Stone. That’s why we’re here. I was hoping you could officiate.”
“Excuse me?” Leonardo and Hermione said it at the same time, with similar looks of incredulity. Then, the statue turned to Hermione. “Dear girl, are you quite certain about this? I’ve met American tourists with better personalities than this boy.”
Rather than answering, she continued to stare at Draco in confusion. “This is why you brought me here? This is where we’re getting married?”
“She doesn’t know?” Leonardo asked.
“She’s muggle-born,” Draco said, and Hermione scoffed, mumbling something about how that had never stopped her from knowing more than he did before.
“Well, then,” the statue said, surprised. “Perhaps you’ve changed more than I expected.” He turned to Hermione again. “When some wizards elope, they use their Ministry to officiate. Others, like Mr. Malfoy here, stick to tradition and come to someone like me. Wizarding statues are just as legally binding as a Ministry marriage license, because we never forget.”
Hermione let out a low whistle, the idea of a midnight wedding in Italy officiated by Leonardo DaVinci suddenly a bit overwhelming. “Brilliant.”
A wide smile lit up Draco’s face, and he pulled Hermione to him, touching his lips to hers.
“Now, now. I haven’t even started yet!”
5
Title: Reprieve
Author: pokecharm
Rating: G
Warning(s): Post DH-Epilogue
Word Count: 400
Rain came thundering down from the cloud-filled sky. The normally temperate weather of Florence was marred by a winter storm that made the warm Mediterranean city ice cold. Their clothes clung to their soaking bodies as they raced through the empty streets in search of shelter.
The Cathedral loomed over the pair as they pushed the doors open, a slight over-hanging shielding them from the onslaught. She slid in under his arm as he kept the door open for her, then shuffled in quickly behind her. He pulled the door shut and sighed, leaning heavily against the door.
She placed a soft hand on his drenched coat, her voice came as an echoing whisper, ‘Did they see us?’
He turned slowly, she could see the grin on his face despite the darkness. ‘No, I don’t think so.’
She slid her hands around his shoulders. ‘Good, I don’t want them to interrupt us.’
He waved his wand over both of them, using a heating charm to dry their clothes. Nudging her forehead with his, he replied, ‘I didn’t think they’d be here…’
‘No,’ she sighed, pressing her lips to his before turning away to look around. ‘They were supposed to have a holiday in Venice.’
Her eyes strayed across the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. The walls were lined with stained glass windows, showering the main aisle with multi-coloured columns of light. She pulled away from him, taking a more thorough look at the architectural draw of the city.
Draco fell in step behind her, his hand on the small of her back, as she walked through the empty church. Hermione edged under the dome, looking up at the fresco of The Last Judgment.
The vastness of the church was more pronounced as they made their way towards the front of the church. Draco slid his hands around Hermione’s waist as she slowed near the Tomb of Antonio d'Ors. ‘Dare we check to see if they’ve followed us?’
She leaned against him comfortably. ‘The rain was coming down pretty hard, maybe they didn’t see us.’
He pressed his lips to the side of her head. ‘They’re too pre-occupied to notice their divorced parents snogging, don’t you think?’
She turned in his arms. ‘Is that all it is, snogging?’
Stealing a kiss, he muttered into her lips, ‘You bloody well know it’s more, you’re wearing a massive rock to prove it!’
ooo
REMEMBER: Vote for the NUMBER of the drabble, NOT the title. It just makes it easier on the mods!
Poll
NOW, for voters! If you’d like to participate in our side challenge this round, in a screened comment, please rank the 3 drabbles YOU think will place in the top 3. PLEASE use the NUMBER of the drabble, NOT the title.
You may also leave feedback for each drabble if you'd like. This will be helpful for the participants as they continue through this challenge. Since no one will be eliminated, writers will be able to use their feedback to improve week to week. Thank you!
Top 3 Drabbles:
[1]
[2]
[3]
Here's your boarding pass for A Trip Around the World
Click the Pass to Read & Vote!
This Week's destination: Florence, Italy
Voting Ends Friday, November 20th at Midnight EST (GMT -4)
To Get this Pretty for your Journal - Spread the Drabble Love!
http://community.livejournal.com/dramione_ldws/62873.html" target="blank">
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Here's your boarding pass for A Trip Around the World
Click the Pass to Read & Vote!
This Week's destination: Florence, Italy
Voting Ends Friday, November 20th at Midnight EST (GMT -4)
Welcome to the seventh week of voting for Round 5 of Dramione LDWS-Rumble Edition!!
A couple of things to remember when deciding which drabbles to vote for (most and least favorite):
Guidelines:
The “feedback” option.
As a voter, you have the option of leaving a brief statement about why you voted the way you did, for both most and least favorite. You can also leave feedback for ALL drabbles in a screened comment if you wish. Your feedback will then be given to the drabble writer (if they want the feedback) ANONYMOUSLY.
Example: Most - #40: the ending was brilliant - OR - Least - #57: the ending fell flat
Now that all of that is done… We present the drabbles for week 7!!
RULES
[1] Choose your most favorite and least favorite drabbles. Favorites will receive +1 point per vote, and least favorites -1 point per vote. Each drabble’s MF and LF scores will be added together. Drabble with most points wins!!
[2] Points will be awarded to the top THREE (3) drabbles, Mod’s Choice, and any other awards we want to throw in!
[3] You may NOT vote for yourself.
Voting ends at 11:59pm, Friday, November 20, 2009.
PROMPT:
AROUND THE WORLD with Draco and Hermione!!
This stop: Florence, Italy! Pick a fact - any fact (historical, a festival, local color - whatever) and incorporate it into your drabble.
The following people did not submit drabbles and are ineligible for rewards this week:
alexajohnson
midnight_birth
somandalicious
lisiandapple
scarletladyy
1
Title: Nomenclature
Author: bookishwench
Rating: G
Warning(s): None
Word Count: 327
“I thought you said we were going to visit Firenze,” Draco said suspiciously once the portkey had brought them, with an indecorous bump, into a small alleyway that opened onto a sunlit, bustling square.
“But we are visiting Firenze,” Hermione said, grinning with a slightly sneaky expression.
“I’m noting a dramatic absence of the scent of carrots, hay, and sweaty horse,” Draco said, sniffing the air, “and a definite increase in the aroma of olive oil and prosciutto. Are we in Italy?”
“Of course,” Hermione said, actually giggling. “Firenze is the Italian name for Florence, you know, so I really wasn’t fibbing.”
“Florence?” Draco asked. “Seriously? You’re telling me that giant, hulking centaur’s name is actually Florence?”
“Well, technically, yes,” Hermione said. “Why?”
“Like the bird from The Brady Bunch?” Draco said, laughing hysterically. “That is just too rich!”
“I knew introducing you to Muggle television was going to be a bad idea,” she said, groaning.
“Fine. We’re not visiting the Forbidden Forest’s favorite prodigal son,” Draco said. “Why Florence?”
“Why not?” Hermione answered. “It has incredible food, beautiful scenery, gorgeous architecture, and all the Renaissance era wizarding history to see, like the da Vinci laboratories. You know, he was one of the few Muggles to figure out the existence of witches and wizards after the International Secrecy was passed. He was so stupendously brilliant, and he worked as a liaison between the two cultures for decades before…”
Draco cut off her historical lecture with a particularly fervent kiss.
“And also, there’s that,” Hermione said after she got her breath back.
“What?” he asked.
“Personally, I think kisses are just somehow better in Italy,” she said, smiling coyly as she pulled him towards the colorful marketplace in the square.
“Hey, wait!” he said suddenly. “How do you know that? We’ve never been to Italy before!”
She only laughed again and led him deeper into the maze or booths filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, keeping her secrets.
2
Title: The Perfect Strategy
Author: mister_otter
Rating: PG
Warning(s): none
Word Count: 471
Florence fit the criteria for Hermione’s perfect holiday-romantic, historic, beautiful, a place that had stood the test of time.
Leaning on a stone parapet of the Ponte Vecchio, she could feel the city’s heartbeat, clocking a steady cadence of the years. Here political powers had risen and fallen; artists had created their masterworks; the Renaissance had blossomed and flourished.
Dante. Boccaccio. Botticelli. Michelangelo. The catalog of creativity was as breathtaking as the views.
It was not surprising then, in the city that had spawned the Medici and Machiavelli, to encounter Draco Malfoy.
“Florence fit my criteria for the perfect holiday,” he told her. “I’m here to study strategy, as interpreted by those who knew it best. I want to walk where Lorenzo the Magnificent walked, see the light above this city as Machiavelli saw it. Florence is a breeding ground for success and I intend to have it.”
His eyes held Hermione’s with a fiercely focused grey light that made her breath catch.
Nevertheless, she tossed her curls and challenged him. “What need do you have for learning about strategy? I would think the Malfoys have all the success they could possibly use.”
“In banking and finance, yes. In backing the winning side-not so much.” The corners of Draco’s mouth lifted in a wry smile. “But I’m here for a very different reason.” That fierce look again. “I’m planning to apply Florentine military tactics in the area of romantic conquest.”
“You make it sound as though love is a battleground.”
“Just so.” Draco nodded. “When the woman you want has considered you an enemy for years, the only recourse may be to engage her in open combat.”
There was a determined set to his jaw, which Hermione found both intriguing and endearing. She had to turn her head, pretending to gaze at the panorama, in order to hide her smile.
“Draco--why don’t you try a slightly different approach?” she asked softly. “Like inviting the woman in question to have dinner with you. Great victories are sometimes won by a series of small, successful encounters.”
Draco seemed surprised. “But what if she says ‘no’?”
“Look around you. Would that really happen, here?” Hermione slipped her arm through his. “I’ve read Machiavelli’s The Prince and found it fascinating. We could discuss it over dinner, if you would like. And after that…who knows?”
Draco stared. He was picturing Hermione rising naked from the waves like Botticello’s beautiful Venus. Hermione, with the face and curls of a Florentine angel--who could talk strategy with the cunning of a Medici….
It was perhaps the closest he had ever come to imagining perfection.
“Dinner, then?” he asked, giving only the tiniest of smirks as Hermione nodded yes. “Does Ristorante La Giostra sound good? I’ve already reserved a table for two --just in case.”
3
Title: Curse of the Medici
Author: greenschist
Rating: PG
Warning(s): None
Word Count: 499
Draco dragged Hermione through a puddle and shone the light from his wand up one tunnel and then another. "Which way do we go, Hermione?" Ignoring how his arm ached from bearing most of her weight, he gently palmed her cheek and jiggled her head from side to side until she opened her eyes and looked around blearily.
The catacomb's rough-hewn walls glistened with moisture, and the air was heavy with mold and the lingering odor of bodies long since rotted. Ahead of them, a large rat bared his crooked, yellow teeth before turning and sauntering through a fissure in the stone.
"You take me to the nicest places." Her voice was weak, and her head lolled against his shoulder.
"Don't blame me for this." He kissed her forehead and was frightened by how cold and clammy she felt. "If I had my way, we'd be sipping Chianti while watching the sunset over the Basilica of Santa Croce or shopping on the Via de'Tornabuoni. You're the one who wanted to go deep under il Duomo into wizard catacombs in search of Medici's amulet. Why can't you just stick to the guidebook like any other tourist?"
"Well, since the amulet was cursed and I'm probably dying, trust me when I say I'm very sorry we're here." Her mouth twisted and her legs buckled in reaction to a sudden pain.
He caught her close. "You're not dying," he said harshly. He concentrated on the local magical hospital and turned them both on the spot only to open his eyes and see another rat watching them from the shadows.
"I'm in no shape for dancing, dear," Hermione's voice was a frail thread.
"I'm trying to Apparate us out of here!"
"I know, but you know the catacombs are warded against Apparition." She touched his face with her chilled hand. "Don't worry. If we turn left here, we'll reach the exit within a few minutes. I still have time, I still have time." Her voice trailed away.
Draco pulled her arm over his shoulder and turned up the left tunnel, stomping his foot to frighten off the closest rat. "During our next holiday, you're not touching anything more dangerous than a book or a strong drink. Understand, Hermione?"
She said nothing but slumped in his arms instead, and Draco instinctively dropped his wand in order to keep her from falling. It fell with a clatter, his Lumos guttering out, and he stepped on it to keep it from rolling away. In the darkness, his hands searched Hermione until he found a weak pulse, and he closed his eyes in relief.
When he opened them, he saw a dim glow farther down the tunnel. The exit, right where Hermione said it would be. Carefully, he reached down and grabbed his wand before swinging Hermione up into his arms. "Just hold on a few more minutes," he whispered. Hermione's breath was soft and fast against his neck, and Draco started grimly toward the distant light.
4
Title: The Art of Eloping Magically
Author: ayane_tsurugi
Rating: PG
Warning(s): Does the author's insanity count?
Word Count: 413
For once in her life, Hermione Granger was truly and hopelessly confused. Earlier that evening, it had been the lopsided Battle of the Burrow as she and Harry took on the entire Weasley family over her relationship with Draco. Back at his flat, upset and very much in love, she had agreed to elope with him.
Since then, it seemed, she had been trapped in a whirlwind of impulsivity. Within seconds, her brand new fiancé had side-alonged her to Italy and taken her hand, pulling her toward the Uffizi. A bit of effortless bribery had them past the outside guards, and a couple of turns around the building later, they were standing in front of a statue of Leonardo DaVinci who, if Hermione didn’t know better, suddenly looked a bit annoyed.
“Oh, not you again,” the statue said in exasperation, and Hermione’s eyes widened. Draco, however, was grinning smugly.
“So you remember me, do you?”
“Of course I do, foolish boy. I’m stone, not a chalk board. You’re much older than you were the last time you pestered me, but likely no less of a nuisance.”
Hermione laughed. “You’re not wrong,” she commented to the animated statue.
Draco ignored both slights, instead responding, “Yes. Stone. That’s why we’re here. I was hoping you could officiate.”
“Excuse me?” Leonardo and Hermione said it at the same time, with similar looks of incredulity. Then, the statue turned to Hermione. “Dear girl, are you quite certain about this? I’ve met American tourists with better personalities than this boy.”
Rather than answering, she continued to stare at Draco in confusion. “This is why you brought me here? This is where we’re getting married?”
“She doesn’t know?” Leonardo asked.
“She’s muggle-born,” Draco said, and Hermione scoffed, mumbling something about how that had never stopped her from knowing more than he did before.
“Well, then,” the statue said, surprised. “Perhaps you’ve changed more than I expected.” He turned to Hermione again. “When some wizards elope, they use their Ministry to officiate. Others, like Mr. Malfoy here, stick to tradition and come to someone like me. Wizarding statues are just as legally binding as a Ministry marriage license, because we never forget.”
Hermione let out a low whistle, the idea of a midnight wedding in Italy officiated by Leonardo DaVinci suddenly a bit overwhelming. “Brilliant.”
A wide smile lit up Draco’s face, and he pulled Hermione to him, touching his lips to hers.
“Now, now. I haven’t even started yet!”
5
Title: Reprieve
Author: pokecharm
Rating: G
Warning(s): Post DH-Epilogue
Word Count: 400
Rain came thundering down from the cloud-filled sky. The normally temperate weather of Florence was marred by a winter storm that made the warm Mediterranean city ice cold. Their clothes clung to their soaking bodies as they raced through the empty streets in search of shelter.
The Cathedral loomed over the pair as they pushed the doors open, a slight over-hanging shielding them from the onslaught. She slid in under his arm as he kept the door open for her, then shuffled in quickly behind her. He pulled the door shut and sighed, leaning heavily against the door.
She placed a soft hand on his drenched coat, her voice came as an echoing whisper, ‘Did they see us?’
He turned slowly, she could see the grin on his face despite the darkness. ‘No, I don’t think so.’
She slid her hands around his shoulders. ‘Good, I don’t want them to interrupt us.’
He waved his wand over both of them, using a heating charm to dry their clothes. Nudging her forehead with his, he replied, ‘I didn’t think they’d be here…’
‘No,’ she sighed, pressing her lips to his before turning away to look around. ‘They were supposed to have a holiday in Venice.’
Her eyes strayed across the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. The walls were lined with stained glass windows, showering the main aisle with multi-coloured columns of light. She pulled away from him, taking a more thorough look at the architectural draw of the city.
Draco fell in step behind her, his hand on the small of her back, as she walked through the empty church. Hermione edged under the dome, looking up at the fresco of The Last Judgment.
The vastness of the church was more pronounced as they made their way towards the front of the church. Draco slid his hands around Hermione’s waist as she slowed near the Tomb of Antonio d'Ors. ‘Dare we check to see if they’ve followed us?’
She leaned against him comfortably. ‘The rain was coming down pretty hard, maybe they didn’t see us.’
He pressed his lips to the side of her head. ‘They’re too pre-occupied to notice their divorced parents snogging, don’t you think?’
She turned in his arms. ‘Is that all it is, snogging?’
Stealing a kiss, he muttered into her lips, ‘You bloody well know it’s more, you’re wearing a massive rock to prove it!’
ooo
REMEMBER: Vote for the NUMBER of the drabble, NOT the title. It just makes it easier on the mods!
Poll
NOW, for voters! If you’d like to participate in our side challenge this round, in a screened comment, please rank the 3 drabbles YOU think will place in the top 3. PLEASE use the NUMBER of the drabble, NOT the title.
You may also leave feedback for each drabble if you'd like. This will be helpful for the participants as they continue through this challenge. Since no one will be eliminated, writers will be able to use their feedback to improve week to week. Thank you!
Top 3 Drabbles:
[1]
[2]
[3]
Here's your boarding pass for A Trip Around the World
Click the Pass to Read & Vote!
This Week's destination: Florence, Italy
Voting Ends Friday, November 20th at Midnight EST (GMT -4)
To Get this Pretty for your Journal - Spread the Drabble Love!
Here's your boarding pass for A Trip Around the World
Click the Pass to Read & Vote!
This Week's destination: Florence, Italy
Voting Ends Friday, November 20th at Midnight EST (GMT -4)