Chapter Three- Decisively Indecisive
They couldn't help it, they were shocked still. So they just stood there. At one point Ron summoned some popcorn, and they moved to the table as pandemonium continued all around them. George was just grinning at this point. He lived for prank wars, so this was right up his alley.
Harry was on the floor, rolling around laughing so hard he was having trouble breathing. Hermione was standing over him, fuming, with bubbles coming from her ears, attacking her. She was dripping from head to toe, covered in bubble juice, whatever it may be... although it appeared to be some strange combination of earwax and slime. Yet, she still managed to have her wand zeroed in on him. "Cancel it!" She demanded.
A fresh peal of laughter from the man on the ground. "You—ha haha hahaha—oh, you first!" Looking tough was hard from this position, but to his credit he did try quite valiantly.
She pouted, "I'm going to have to shower for a week! This will never come out of my hair, I have a hard enough time with soap! Ear bogeys! Really, Harry?" Hermione punctuated her displeasure with stomping her feet, "Couldn't have laughed after the correct pronunciation? Ginny will be thrilled you found another variation of her hex though..."
"She's not wrong, mate" Ron agreed, between mouthfuls. "Not that we aren't enjoying the show but, uh, what's going on?"
George started applauding as Harry quickly cast a finite to end Hermione's little problem. She followed suit, and he could finally breathe again. "I win, by the way." Hermione declared breathlessly, "Thank you Ronald!" Harry begrudgingly nodded her way, finding no use in starting another round of the battle, especially in front of company.
"I haven't been so amused in... well, forever! I should really come around more often." George proclaimed, casting a modified scourgify at the sticky mess that was Hermione. "Mom taught us a lot of random cleaning spells. We were just a little messy, you know." He explained.
She looked so relieved to be free of the slimy, yellow mess that it was almost comical. She ran towards the older redhead and enveloped him in one of her trademark, bruising hugs. "Oh, Bless you George! Please come save me from the mean bespectacled boy more often."
"Yes, yes. Please do remember those benevolent feelings when you think about this collaboration a little birdy told me about this morning." He laughed, truly, the corner of his eyes crinkling for the first time in recent memory.
She sighed and deadpanned, "Oh, if I must enjoy myself!", holding a hand to her head, and throwing her head back dramatically.
"Be still my beating heart!" He mimicked her actions, placing his hand above his heart, "Has our lovely Ms. Granger gone and grown a sarcastic streak?" He gasped.
The witch pulled a faux straight face and yelled, "Never!" To which resounding laughter was heard all around.
"But back to the crisis at hand. Apparently someone let me zone out in a meeting with Kingsley this morning, and I unknowingly agreed to a vacation. So it seems I've got time, now hit me with your best shot."
He gulped, running a hand through his red hair "uh... I thought maybe you'd have some ideas... I find myself fresh out lately..." a brief pause, "What have you been working on?"
"I can't... say?" She was really starting to hate this part of her job. "What about... no, the two way mirrors would be obsolete after I do the tests..." George just watched her pace, as the other two snuck out of the room to allow them some space. "I've been messing with some polyjuice to change single body parts... and pepper up...so far I've got one potion that changes your eye color and the other wakes up tired eyes. I've named them peeperjuice and peeper up."
"You really are brilliant, you know," He breathed, "we could have a whole line of Granger Danger products."
Hermione barked out a laugh. "Granger Danger?" She repeated questioningly," You may need to work on your naming abilities... regardless, I only signed on for one product, so you better make it count! I could be amenable to making you the sole distributor for my potions though. I've come up with quite a few along the way..."
"I bet you have," George conceded. "Ok so, backtracking why would the two way mirrors be obsolete?"
"Can't say, I'm afraid." She sighed again, "What about... I don't know... everyone says I have no sense of humor. Maybe the ultimate payback for doubting my abilities, in the form of a game?"
He looked surprised. This was a new side of his curly haired friend. "I'm listening. Like a prank? You know I love those!"
The curly haired witch looked thoughtful, playing with the necklace on her neck. "Yes," she paused, continuing slowly, "like... truth or dare... that the chosen players are compelled to complete...?" It was sounding a lot like that muggle movie Jumanji... not exactly why she was going for, but I'm sure they'd get it sorted out. "We could make a quick prototype and test it with ourselves... and, ugh they snuck off! Better idea, then, we should make it look like something innocent, then they get trapped into finishing the game!"
George was grinning from ear to ear, looking every bit like the cat that ate the canary. He never knew they'd rubbed off on this girl so much, but he had no plan to stop it. "Great!" He clapped her on the back, "I love it! Now, what do you have laying around that looks innocent that they'd want?"
Looking around he found a bottle of firewhisky, to which she vehemently shook her head. "Never again!" She muttered as he laughed, sensing a story there, but deciding not to pursue it. Suddenly her eyes lit up, and she darted to the kitchen, yelling "Pringle's!", he followed.
Hermione was already a full arm into her bag when he cleared his throat. "Sorry, to interrupt... whatever it is you're doing, but what is a Pringle? Also, why is your bag eating you?" He laughed.
She quickly withdrew her body from the purse and shook her head, embarrassed. "Right, sorry. Uh..." she waved her wand, and summoned the cylindrical object from the depths within. "These," she gestured to the item," are Pringle's. They're a type of American crisp that I fell in love with on my trip. And they have a truly catchy slogan. 'Once you pop, the fun don't stop' always gets stuck in my head. Oooh!" She gasped, while opening the can, and pulling back the plastic to show him the neat stack of crisps. "We could enchant that phrase on the top and whoever read it aloud would initiate the game! Then each crisp would have a compulsion on them and we could put different truths or dares on each...!"
George looked positively gleeful! He grabbed the top and got to work, waving his wand over the plastic piece, spells she had never heard of creating a lovely light show on the countertop below them. "This is going to be— epic!," He chuckled. Hermione nodded enthusiastically, splitting the stack of crisps in half, and showing him the compulsion charm she had in mind. They worked in silence, enchanting each crisp with looks of glee in their eyes. Only breaking the peace to run ideas off each other, ensuring the game didn't get too out of hand. Once done, and throughly satisfied with their work, they carefully placed the edible game pieces back into the container. "We will need to figure out what to use for our production version, but something similar to these would be great. I can already picture a whole line of WWW Granger Danger party games!"
"George! No!" Hermione exclaimed, "I will not have you mocking my name like that! I know it rhymes but... it's..." she broke off, exasperated.
He laughed, "I like it, it's very catchy." Still shaking her head, she grabbed their creation and went out to find their two missing companions. If he called it that she would never live it down! She couldn't even think about that right now.
Down the hall, the sound of an argument broke the silence. Quidditch statistics, it sounded like. At least they weren't anywhere near Walberga's portrait. Too bad they couldn't trick that into a game of truth or dare. Hermione giggled to herself as she pictured the bitter portrait being forced to don even the barest of smiles. She would probably break herself, and end up a pile of dust in the entryway.
Continuing on, the honey eyed beauty, and the scarlet haired gentleman rounded the corner and their compatriots came into sight. They sat down, completely unnoticed, and she took the opportunity to place the container of crisps on the table between herself and their unknowing victims, er, test subjects.
———
"How would that even work, Ron? They're the worst in the league this year! They'd have to win every game left in order to make it to the finals!—oh! Hermione, George!" Harry finally noticed their presence, and turned to them, "Any luck?"
Hermione chuckled, "Us? It sounds like you're the one who needs luck—to get out of this conversation! We were just in time George, weren't we?" Her older friend nodded in agreement, just as his younger brother noticed their little project.
"Once you pop, the fun don't stop.—" Ron read, "What are these?" He questioned, failing to notice the subtle green glow that flashed over the container. Opening the canister, his face lit up, "Crisps! Oh, good, I'm half starved and dinner is ages away!" Shoving one into his mouth, he passed the container to his best mate, who also took one of the proffered items.
Only after he ate his crisp, did Hermione open her mouth to speak. "They're Pringle's, I brought them back from America. Do you like them?" She asked innocently.
He tried to speak, Ron did, but he just couldn't do it, instead when he opened his mouth a wail came out. Accompanied by big, fat crocodile tears. "I love them so much!" He finally managed, between sniffles. "I just hate that there's so few of them! Oh no! We are going to run out, then we'll starve!" 'Of course, Ron would get the piece making him over dramatic.' She thought.
"Going on what's?!" Harry questioned, raising his eyebrows as he heard himself speak. "Me to—This did you, Hermione?"
The creators were beaming, and laughing so hard that nothing was even coming out of their mouths, but gasping breaths for air.
George grabbed a crisp, and popped it in his mouth, saluting Hermione. "Well done, my turn!" He began to mime, and mimic what appeared to be Draco Malfoy, puffing out his chest and mouthing "my father will hear about this!" Repeatedly.
Still laughing, Hermione shrugged and joined in. "Take another Ronald, it'll cancel this one and start a new one." She said before popping her crisp in her mouth.
"Oh Hermione! Thank you! You're just the best—" Ron started, reaching for another crisp. "You've always been so pretty, I just love what you've done with your hair lately. And that dress—!" He sighed dramatically, "Beautiful!" Then he bit into his next crisp.
Hermione, meanwhile was singing everything she was trying to say, in children's nursery rhymes. She was trying to summon some tea from the kitchen, but only accomplished singing "I'm a little teapot" into her wand, before getting up to retrieve the beverage the old fashioned way.
When she returned, Ron was professing his undying love for Lavender Brown, who he had become reacquainted with recently, in the form of Shakespearian sonnets. One of Hermione's truth pieces. She smiled at the look of humiliation on his face, as he shoved another crisp into his mouth post haste.
Harry, on the other hand was hopping around on one foot in various patterns, while yelling out the shapes he was making. He had to act out and name at least 4 before he could put another crisp in his mouth.
George was dared to kiss the person to his left, Ron, while Ron's card demanded he not let anyone within 3 feet of himself for 3 minutes, so they were running around, one trying to get closer and one trying to get further away.
Suddenly Hermione became aware that this was the most fun she had had in ages! She went to say it aloud, but only managed to get out the first line of "Ring around the Rosie", before shoving another crisp in her mouth to end her dilemma. She immediately wished she didn't when "Professor Snape was my favorite teacher!" Rushed out the next time her mouth was opened. Ugh. Her piece, her fault.
Nobody heard the sound of the floo activate, or saw the person staring at their antics before going to get backup, but suddenly their test group multiplied when Ginny, Lavender, and Luna, accompanied by Neville and Seamus, decided that they needed a piece of the action. They too got sucked into the game.
After the last crisp was distributed, Ginny was wearing Harry's clothes and vise versa, Seamus had Luna on his shoulders after they pretended to be a troll, Neville and Ron were fake sword fighting with umbrellas, Lavender was blushing after revealing that she had become a closet bibliophile. Meanwhile, George was in the hall, stroking the hairs on the troll foot umbrella stand, and repeatedly proclaiming it was the softest thing he had ever felt, and a horrified Hermione was quoting quidditch statistics, while rushing to put the top back onto the container and end the spell.
All at once, everything stopped, and the group of friends looked, wide eyed, at each other trying to figure out just what was going on. George, in a bid to break the silence, yelled out the first thing he could think of: "Granger Danger!" and once again everyone was laughing.
Harry was the first one to speak, "that was hilarious, maddening too, but—" Ron interrupted and finished his sentence, "What WAS that?! Do muggle prinkles always do that?"
"Prinkles!" George yelled, "that's what we will call them."
Ron looked astonished, and saddened beyond words, while pathetically stating the obvious, "You spelled my crisps?"
"They were my crisps Ronald," Hermione corrected, "and yes, you always say I have no sense of humor—so George and I came up with this little magical party game."
"I feel so violated!" Ron bemoaned, as everyone else gathered around to express their love of this new game.
Said game had lasted several hours though, and yawns were starting to pop up all around, so everyone decided to head back home in short order. Hermione and George were the last two by the floo. The redhead took his leave after agreeing that they needed to get together the following day to make more Prinkles, and incorporate some of the ideas suggested by their friends. It was really good, Hermione thought, to see a smile back on George's face. She would endeavor to keep it there.
