AN: I only own Swara.

Chapter 9

I grimaced as Peter's elbow jabbed me in the stomach.

"Okay, Swara. You remember the plan yes?" James' anxious voice came from above me.

I looked up at him. "I distract Bellamy long enough for Remus to get the leaves and get out. And when he's successful, you all owe me chocolate," I said.

A nervous chuckle came from Remus who was situated to my left. I was glad to see I was not the only one who looked queasy. Honestly, how the two upstanding and "moral" members of this crew ended up with this job was beyond me.

I couldn't see him, but I knew James was rolling his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. You will be appropriately compensated."

"Man, I wish I could stay to see this," Sirius said wistfully. "Remus, you have to tell me exactly what happens and how our dear Swara flirts with Bellamy."

I aimed an elbow above and heard a satisfying "Ow!". "Get your arses out of here," I said to James, Peter, and Sirius. With a salute, they left, and Remus and I were left alone.

"I don't suppose we could just Stun him and take the leaves?" I asked hopefully.

"I think that goes against the secrecy of the mission," he replied.

I groaned and slumped against his arm. "I guess I should go then. And don't waste time, Remus. I want to limit this interaction as much as possible," I warned.

He gave me a thumbs up, and I walked out from behind the stone wall. Luckily, the grounds were empty, the other students having left to eat dinner. Bellamy was the sole figure by the greenhouses, his bumblebee bright scarf prominent against his tan skin.

Hearing my footsteps, he looked up. "Swara?"

I raised a hand. "Hi, Be-Clark. Hi, Clark." Way to go, idiot! Use his first name!

"What are you doing here?"

"Um...I was wondering...are you...I actually wanted to talk about...plants," I finished lamely. I didn't blame him for looking downright confused and suspicious.

"Plants?"

I rubbed the back of my head. Merlin, my face felt like it was burning. "I really admire your skill in Herbology."

He still looked incredulous. "You do? I didn't think you were particularly fond of the subject."

This wasn't working at all. Okay, Swara. Think enchantress. Channel your inner temptress. Come on. "That's because I don't have your skill, Clark," I fawned, resisting the urge to gag. "I think it's...special."

There! There it was! A light blush on his cheeks. Drunk with victory, I beamed at him, and his blush deepened. "Well, um, thanks, Swara." I saw the flash of an ankle behind Bellamy. Remus.

I waved my hand flippantly. "Oh don't thank me. You know, a lot of boys here think Herbology is lame and stupid. They don't appreciate healing and nurturing. You understand the importance of it. I like that about you."

"Well, I could show you a few things, if you want. Some tricks of the trade," he said as he turned around to enter the greenhouse.

"Wait! You have really nice...feet!" I shouted desperately. The moment the words left my lips, I wanted the earth to open up and swallow me. Bellamy paused and looked back at me, probably thinking I was the oddest, weirdest dolt to exist.

"I'm sorry?" he asked.

There was no backing out now. "Um...I like your feet. They're nicely formed, you know. Not too wide or narrow of course if they were too wide or narrow that wouldn't be a problem because we should accept all feet types but yours are particularly appealing and your feet just happen to be perfectly proportional like your lips oh my god I'm just going to shut up now sorry."

There was nothing more to say that could rescue my dignity from the depths of hell where it had just fallen after that diatribe. I stared at Bellamy, and he stared at me. All around, there was a lot of staring going on. Merlin why did you say that about his lips! Now he's going to think you want to snog him!

He rubbed his face. "I appreciate that, Swara. But I don't like you like that."

I swear, if my jaw wasn't attached to my face, it wouldn't been at my feet. He continued, "I'm actually dating Cynthia Lorten." She was a Hufflepuff the year above us.

I saw a flash of a thumbs up from behind me before it disappeared. Remus was done. "That's nice, Clark. I actually don't like you either." Hearing how that came out, I backtracked. "I mean, I like you but not like that. I hope I didn't bother you too much."

As I turned to leave, he said, "Not at all. It was actually highly entertaining."

I looked back with a smile. "I'm glad you found amusement in my babble. You know, you're a good bloke, Bellamy. See you around."

I walked back to the entrance where Remus was waiting for me with a smirk on his lips. "Don't even think about it," I warned.

We walked up the staircase together in silence until he spoke. "You know, I think today was a great day. A productive day."

I grumbled something about shoving the productivity up his arse, and he laughed. "Not to mention, I got a front row seat to your conversation with Bellamy. Is that what you call seducing?" he teased.

"As if you could do better, Lupin! And besides, we got what we wanted," I huffed.

"Oh yes. A month of silence. I honestly can't wait," he said, a dream-like quality in his voice.

We had arrived at the Common Room. James, Sirius, and Peter were still in detention, but Lily was there. "Where were you, Swara?" she asked.

"Um. I was outside, taking a walk. Then I saw Bellamy and we got to chatting," I said. Remus, obviously reminiscing about the content of the chat, started to laugh but covered it deftly with a cough when Lily shot him a suspicious look.

"Since when were you friends with Bellamy?" she asked.

I threw my hands up. "I'm not friends with him. He was just standing there, and we struck up a conversation. Why is this a big deal?" I said, my voice getting progressively louder.

"Alright, alright. Calm down. Are you all still doing the month of silence?" Lily changed the subject.

"Yes. And please don't lecture me about how stupid I was, Lily," I pleaded.

She pursed her lips but nodded. "Okay. I brought you some food from dinner. I'm going to the library to work on the Potions essay with Sev. See you later," she waved.

Remus and I went up to the boy's dormitories. I sat down and tore into the sandwich Lily left for me while Remus munched on some chocolate. "By the way, you owe me chocolate," I said in between bites.

He rolled his eyes and was about to respond but the door slammed open. James, Sirius, and Peter tumbled inside, all questions and smiles.

"Remus, did you get the leaves?"

"Was it hilarious?"

"What did her face look like? Oh Merlin, what did Bellamy say?"

"SHUT IT!" This was from me. "Yes, we got the leaves. Can we get on with the instructions?"

I was on James' bed, and he sat down next to me, loping an arm around my shoulders. "Oh come on, Swara! Don't ruin our fun!"

I gave him my best Lily-glare, but it apparently wasn't good enough because it had no effect on him. He turned his attention to Remus. "Tell us, Remus. After cleaning out flobberworm mucus, I need something to laugh about."

Sirius nodded his head in agreement.

"Don't you dare, Remus," I threatened.

He ignored me. "I have one word for you: feet."

I lunged towards him, shouting, "I swear, if you say a word-umph!" James grabbed me and pulled me back towards him. He sat me down practically in his lap and grabbed my arms so I couldn't move.

"Now, now, now, Swara. Attacking our friends is bad," he mock-admonished.

"Shut up," I grumbled.

Sirius, always eager to aggravate me, sat next to James and rubbed my head. "Now what's this about feet?"

"Well, it seems as though Swara has a bit of a foot fetish," Remus said, that insufferable smirk still on his face.

"I'LL KILL YOU, LUPIN!" I shouted, reaching for him. "THIS IS A BETRAYAL OF THE DEEPEST KIND!" James somehow kept his hold on me even though he was howling, and I dimly registered Sirius' bark-like laughter. Even Peter was chuckling.

"A foot fetish? I expected better from you, Swara," Peter said.

"I don't have a foot fetish," I whined. "That was an accident!"

"What did you do...ask to see his feet!" Sirius gasped out, still laughing too hard to form words.

I looked away from him, staring resolutely at the wall. "Oh come on, Swara. I need details!" James pleaded. "You can't leave me hanging by my...feet!"

A new wave of laughter. I stuck my elbow back into his stomach, and he gasped in pain.

"He was about to go into the greenhouse while I was still there, so she blurted out that she liked his feet because they were perfectly formed and proportional like his lips," Remus finished the tale of my humiliation.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU SAID YOU WANTED TO SNOG HIM! OH MERLIN!" Sirius practically squealed. James' face was too purple to get words out, and Peter had disappeared behind the bed.

"I DIDN'T SAY THAT!" I shouted. "I MERELY MADE A HIGHLY IMPERSONAL OBSERVATION ABOUT HIS LIPS!"

James had finally recovered enough to get a few words out. "You told him that his lips are perfect. What else is he supposed to think?"

I turned back to look at him. "I said his feet were perfect too. Doesn't mean I wanted to snog them!"

Remus, traitorous bastard that he was, stayed silent throughout the exchange though his eyes belied his amusement.

"Well, not to worry, boys, because Bellamy was not interested in our Swara like that," he said, dropping the last morsel of information in front of these rabid mongrels.

Peter re-emerged from his hide-out, his eyes wide and lined with tears. "Oh my god, Swara, did he actually say that to you?"

I glared at him. "No, he didn't. Okay, maybe he did, but so what? It's not like I liked him either!"

"Love, the goal of the mission was to seduce him," Sirius piped up.

"Shut up, Black. The goal of the mission was the get the damned leaves, which we did, so let's put them in our mouths so you all can shut up!" My suggestion went unheeded as James turned to Sirius, a curious look on his face.

"You know, Swara, you need to get more experience," he stated.

My face burned, and I resisted the urge to hide it behind my hands. "WHY ARE WE DISCUSSING THIS RIGHT NOW?"

"Aw, the little baby has no experience with boys, does she?" Sirius mocked. I threw a pillow at his hair.

"We are not talking about my non-existent love life right now. And as if any of you have experience with girls!" I said. "And no, the one date with Isadora does not count!" I added as James opened his mouth.

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because it was one date! And Isadora thought Remus asked her, not you!" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Remus turn the color of a tomato. Good, serves him right.

"Well, at least I have snogging experience!" James retaliated.

"He has you there, Swara," Sirius remarked in a lazy drawl.

"Contrary to your belief, I have snogged before," I threw back at him.

Sirius lifted an eyebrow. "Really? With who?" he asked.

"That's none of your damn business, Black!" I snapped at him, but by now, all four boys were looking at me curiously.

"Oh, come on, Swara. You have to tell us. We're your best friends!" Peter whined.

I snorted. "I don't have to do anything, Peter. Besides, Lily already knows, and there was no way I was telling you four."

"That's not fair! How come Lily gets to know!" James added.

I shoved him. "Because Lily wouldn't make it a big deal."

"Was it Bellamy? Is that why you know about this 'perfect' lips?" Sirius asked, that infernal smirk still on his face.

"No, it wasn't Bellamy."

"Gregory?"

"No."

"Joseph?"

"No."

"Oh, I bet it was Edmund!"

"Who the hell is Edmund?"

"He's that tall Ravenclaw. 6th year. He has really blue eyes," James said.

"Nope, it wasn't him. Now, instead of you all trying to guess all night, can we please get on with the leaves?" I pleaded, trying to keep the desperation out of my voice.

Sirius was starting to look suspicious, and I needed us to move past this topic. If they knew my first kiss was a Slytherin, they would all go ballistic, but Sirius most of all.

"Right-o, but don't think that you're getting off the hook. I have an extremely good memory, Swara," James warned, putting his hand out for the leaves.

Remus tugged a small pouch out of his pocket, depositing it in James' expectant palm. "Here. Now please put them in your mouth so I can get a month of much-needed peace."

"Hey! That's low, mate, that's low," Sirius said.

"Just for that comment, Remus, I won't be sharing my chocolate with you," I huffed. "Which I'm expecting all four of you to get me by the end of the week, by the way."

They all groaned, and Remus muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "As if you share anyway" but I decided to ignore it.

"So what happens if we don't stay silent for a month?" Peter asked, scratching the back of his neck.

"You develop sores on your tongue that ooze pus, and it toxins from the leaves render you incapable of magic," James said solemnly.

"WHAT?" Peter shouted. An ashy look came over his face, and the poor boy looked ready to vomit until he saw James' expression.

"I hate you, Potter," he grumbled.

I snatched the bag from James. "Let's get this over with. Here's to not talking to you sods for a month," I said, delicately placing two leaves under my tongue. It tasted bitter, and I could already anticipate the horrid taste it would have in a month.

Peter was next. James and Sirius, of course, had to be dramatic.

"Oh, James, how will I ever live without talking to you for a month?" Sirius cried, pretending to faint.

"Sirius, darling, don't worry. In a month, we'll be together again!" James declared. I saw Sirius about to respond, but I shoved two leaves in his mouth before he had a chance to demonstrate his penchant for being a total drama queen again.

He glared at me, and I raised the middle finger. James finally put the leaves in his mouth.

I glanced at Remus who, no matter how excited he pretended to be at a month of respite, had a look of affection on his face. A shadow crossed over though, and I knew he was thinking about the risks and trouble we were taking for him.

Nimbly jumping over the piles of dirty socks (and red Snitch underwear), I sat next to Remus, giving him a quiet smile. The others seemed to catch on, and all of the sudden, three grown boys were launching themselves towards us.

Fighting the urge to scream, I scooched towards the edge, practically pushing Remus off. I was only partly successful and ended up with a pile of three people landing on my legs.

They shot me contrite glances and wrapped Remus and I in a hug. The future would bring its troubles and uncertainties, but at least we had this.