Hermione was poring through websites and catalogues trying to find the perfect gift for Harry. It had to be something light and compact, something that they could take with them on their hunt for the Horcruxes. She had absolutely no idea, even though they'd been friends for six years now. The only thing Harry had ever really shown an interest in was Quidditch; and it wasn't like she could buy him a new broomstick. Firstly because Harry already owned what was known as the best broomstick the world had already seen. A Firebolt. And secondly, taking a broom on his hunt for the Horcruxes just wasn't practical. Not in the slightest. So what was she supposed to get him?
She was half tempted to ask Ron, but knew he'd come up with something stupid. Merlin, he'd suggested bringing Harry back blood flavoured lollipops from Honeydukes in their third year. They were meant for vampires, not humans, and yet it appeared Ron couldn't tell the difference. Or maybe that was just Ron's sense of humour. But she didn't think that was quite the tone she wanted to go for with Harry's 17th.
Maybe she should have a word with Fred and George. See if she could get some products from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Things were going to be looking pretty bleak in the future, so maybe having a laugh with everyone was the best idea. It might be just what they needed, and it would also be the perfect way to end Bill and Fleur's wedding too. Yes that was the perfect idea!
Harry's birthday dawned, and Hermione couldn't wait to try and pull a prank. She'd had plenty of tutelage from Fred and George over the last few days, something which was at least distracting George from cracking too many jokes about his missing ear, but she was still really nervous. She really, really hoped that she could pull this off. As Mrs Weasley carried out Harry's birthday cake Hermione had to suppress a shiver of excitement. This was some complex magic that she, Fred and George had been working, and it needed to come off without a hitch.
Harry and Ron both took huge bites into their slices of cake, closely followed by Ginny. There was a moments pause before all three were engulfed in clouds of smoke. Hermione struggled to suppress a grin as the smoke cleared and she saw three sheep sitting in front of her where her friends had previously been. The sheep that was Ginny opened her mouth and let out a baa. A minute or two later when the sheep wool fell off, the three friends reappeared laughing.
Everyone else around the table cracked up too. It was an extension on Fred and George's Canary Creams, only this was more complex because the charm had to be sustained for longer.
"Happy birthday Harry," Hermione said warmly, leaning over and kissing Harry on the cheek.
A/N: What did you think?