Arithmancy

by: Faithful Wheezy

Disclaimer: See Chapter One.

Ten: We'll see who cries at the end of term

McLaggen was definitely cornered in. He stood staring at the two ghosts—well, one of them was a real ghost anyway. What was Peeves?—who were definitely dangerous at some point. He also knew that Myrtle was some sort of tattletale. He took a quick look at his reflection in the mirror—he definitely did not look like his own self anymore. He was rather pretty, he thought, so nobody would recognize him.

Between getting caught by Filch for "peeky weeky pie-ing in the boys' restroom," he decided to go outside and try to figure out the counter-curse to whatever curse hit him.

He told them to shut up and raced out the door as stealthily as he could.

-x-

Ron was stalking down the halls angrily. He felt as though Hermione really did like Neville—and he didn't like the idea of that. "That's it!" he said loudly. A few students who were walking down the opposite way looked at him warily. "Sorry," he mumbled after them. He would pay Hermione back—he'd get a girl of his own!

-x-

"Ow!" McLaggen heard his girlish voice say.

"Ow! Bloody idiot females," he heard another voice say. It was that Ron character. The one that Hermione always seemed to talk about.

He was going to give him hell.

McLaggen raised his hand to punch Ron's guts out, but instead, his hand seemed to have a life of his own. He slapped him.

"What the bloody hell—" said Ron, outraged. "Oh," he said, looking at McLaggen with a weird expression.

This could be the girl that Ron would use! He would use her for some sort of payback, teach Hermione a lesson.

"Er," he said intelligently, looking at McLaggen's red and gold striped tie, "are you in Gryffindor?"

"Yes," snapped McLaggen in an irritated (not to mention girly) voice. "What's it to you?"

"Just asking," said Ron, his temper rising. This girl acts just like Hermione! He thought to himself. Which reminds me—"There's a Hogsmeade weekend this Saturday," he said, successfully hiding the annoyance in his voice, "would you like to come with me?"

McLaggen stared at him in disgust. Ron thought he was a girl! He looked around at all of the students rushing down the halls to get to their Common Rooms for the night. If he told him that he was really McLaggen, he'd really be in trouble.

"Fine," he said, glaring at Ron, who missed his expression. "Not that I would want to. Now let's just get out of here."

"But don't you want to come up to the Common Room with me?" asked Ron, slipping his arm around McLaggen's shoulders with a forced enthusiasm. Maybe Hermione'll see?

McLaggen picked Ron's arms away from his shoulders and flung them away with disgust. "Whatever," he said, hating his girlish voice. "Let's just go." He didn't notice Ron sighing in relief.

-x-

"Are you okay, Hermione?" asked Harry in a concerned voice. "I know Ron can be a great prat at times—"

"He's a prat all the time," said Hermione irritably, rubbing at her eyes. "I hate him."

"Harry!" called a voice. "Hey, over here!"

It was Seamus. Harry looked at Seamus and Hermione and shook his head. "Hermione, I'll see you in the Common Room, okay?" He ran off before Hermione could protest.

Hermione shook her head and stomped up the stairs alone. If Hermione really is acting around Neville like I think she is, then I'll get a girl of my own! Hermione shook her head again. Was this Ron's voice again? And—what was that he thought? He'd get a girl of his own?

"Hermione? Hey—Hermione?"

Hermione whirled around. Neville. The very boy she wanted to see. "Oh!" she said, her voice coming out silkier than she meant to. "Neville!"

"Yeah," said Neville, walking up the stairs clutching a stitch in his side. "Those stairs are bigger than I thought."

Hermione nodded. "Yeah. They kind of remind me of those big stairs in Madame Puddifoot's. She has stairs leading up to an extra attic."

"Madame Puddifoot's? The one in Hogsmeade?"

"Yes. By the way," she said, trying her best to sound as off hand as she could, "it's another Hogsmeade weekend this Saturday. Do you want to come?"

Neville looked surprised. "Hogsmeade—with you?"

"Sure!" said Hermione, patting him on the shoulder, "I mean, you're really nice, and I really need to know you a bit more."

"Yeah," said Neville, shrugging, "we don't really talk much, do we?"

"No." There you go, Ronald. We'll see who's cries at the end of term. "So—this Saturday?"

"Well, okay—" started Neville, looking over his shoulder. "Sorry, Seamus is calling me. Bye, Hermione."

"See you, Neville," said Hermione, watching him trip down the stairs.

-x-

"Great job, Neville," whispered Dean, thumping Neville heavily on the back.

"Yeah," said Charlie, from the corner of the room. "The third phase of—"

"—our magnificent plan," said Bill, with a flourish.

"I must say that hitting McLaggen with a Gender Confusing Charm was brilliant," said Seamus. "I didn't know that that even existed."

"Yeah," said Neville. "I didn't even know—ow!"

Dean silenced Neville with a sharp kick in the shin. "I was watching Ron upstairs. He even asked him—I mean, her, out. This will actually be kind of fun."

"We have to be careful though," said Harry reluctantly. "Some plans tend to backfire."

"Not ours," said Charlie, with a glint in his eye. "Eh, Bill?"

"Eh, Charlie!"

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