Ladies' Tea

1995

  "What a beautiful day! Thanks for hosting the tea here in the greenhouses, Pomona," Minerva exclaimed, taking a seat at the round table.

"Of course! Anything to show off my plants!" Pomona replied, also taking a seat.

Irma and Poppy followed, and took seats at the table; Irma put her hands neatly in her lap.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" Minerva chanted, pointing her wand at the teapot, which was decorated with the pattern of intricate lace. The teapot rushed into the air, and Minerva proceeded to pour each lady a cup of tea.

"Which kind of tea did you pick today, Poppy?" Irma asked.

"Green, it helps the brain not to age," Poppy replied, tapping her finger to her forehead and smiling. Then, she took a sip of the tea.

"Has anybody heard about any new student relationships?" Pomona asked eagerly, as she reached for a scone.

"You and your gossip!" Minerva chuckled, "But yes, I have. Weasley and Lovegood seem to be a new development."

"What?!" Irma exclaimed, "I thought Weasley was with that delightful Granger gal!"

"No, I mean Ginevra Weasley, Ginny, the girl," Minerva corrected.

Pomona nodded and sipped her tea.

"Good for them! Luna could use a good girlfriend," she said.

Irma leaned in toward the other women, "I heard that Potter and Malfoy have been... messing around," she whispered.

Poppy nearly spit out the cookie she was eating. Minerva spilled her tea on the table and promptly wiped it up.

"Really?" Pomona gasped.

Recovering from her shock Minerva said, "The library sure seems to be the best place to pick up gossip!"

Irma nodded and laughed.

"Who'd you hear it from?" Poppy asked.

"Well, I guess I misspoke. I um.. saw them messing around... behind a bookshelf.. semi-decent..." Irma said.

Minerva's eyes bulged.

"Semi-decent?" she screamed quietly.

"With their pants on, but shirts not," Irma assured Minerva, "...on top of each other.."

By now, Pomona was nearly on the ground laughing. She was clutching her stomach and wheezing with laughter. Soon, all the ladies joined in, all giggling, their faces red.

Once they all calmed down, Irma said to Poppy and Pomona, "Speaking of relationships, your anniversary is coming up, is it not? 10 years is it?"

"I think it is!" Poppy replied, smiling.

"10 years, wow, I can't believe it has been that long!" Pomona exclaimed, also smiling.

"We'll have to do something special for you two, a whole decade of being together," Minerva said decidedly, she cheerfully popped a small Honeydukes' chocolate into her mouth.

"Pomona, those flowers are so beautiful!" Irma said, pointing to some bright yellow blossoms behind Poppy.

Pomona turned to look at them.

"Yes they are!" she agreed, "But don't look too long, those are Trance Tulips, they can hypnotize people! I'm teaching my students about them, and I've already had three kids try to kiss because of those flowers!"

Irma laughed, and quickly pulled her eyes away from the flowers.

Just as Minerva wiped some crumbs from her hands, Neville Longbottom stepped into the greenhouse.

"I-I'm sorry," he stumbled, "I didn't know you guys were in here, I came to help Professor Sprout with something."

"Don't worry! You can stay, I still need your help, you don't mind ladies, do you?" Pomona said, standing to meet Neville.

"Of course not!" Minerva exclaimed, and Irma nodded in agreement.

Pomona and Neville walked over to a table.

"Accio planters!" she chanted, pointing her wand at about eight colorful pots.

"I need you to fill these with soil, please," Pomona said gently, "Do you mind if we continue our tea?"

"No! Of course not!" Neville said, becoming less shy.

Pomona walked back to the table and sat down with the other women.

"That Longbottom kid sure does have a way with plants!" Poppy whispered to her friends.

"Yes, he does!" Pomona agreed, "He is my best Herbology student.

Behind them, Neville grinned.

"Hmm.. 15 points to Gryffindor," Minerva announced decidedly.

This made Neville smile even more.

"Neville, have you heard any good gossip lately?" Pomona asked.

"Pomona!" Minerva chastised, but she was giggling.

"Well.. um.. I heard that.. um.. Ernie and Justin are going steady.." Neville said, shrugging.

Pomona chuckled. "Well good. I've been trying to get them together for years! " she said. Then, a mischievous glint appeared in her eye.

Poppy caught on. "Pomona," she warned.

But Pomona ignored her. "What do you know about Malfoy and Potter?" she asked slyly.

Wiping the dirt from his hands, Neville said, "I caught them on Harry's bed under the Invisibility Cloak yesterday."

Minerva, Poppy, Pomona, and Irma hooted with laughter.

"I like you kid," Irma said,"why don't you join us at these teas more often?"

So, from then on, Neville Longbottom joined them monthly for a lady's tea.