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Note: Another chapter!
Boys will be Boys
"Uh-oh?" I repeated, my tone seconds from yelling. "Please tell me you mean uh-oh as in you forgot to give her any and this is just her mental breakdown and not uh-oh as in you gave her the wrong potion" I snapped at Fred.
"It's called Elated Elixir," Fred started, his words slow as he glanced over at Melinda who was now humming Christmas carols on the couch.
"And you makes you stoned…?" Ron asked.
"No, it, it's a potion, it gives you the brief relief of being relaxed, you go into a state where your mind solely concentrates on something that makes you happy, it's like the reality of your happiest daydreaming with actual reality being the daydream—you know, sort of off in the far distance" George explained as I rubbed my temples and started pacing.
"Why would you make something like that?" Draco snapped at him.
"We wanted to counter what Burnner did, some people need their daydreams in their realties, just for a minute, it makes them happy, it makes their daily life tolerable" George snapped back but both were interrupted as Melinda's humming grew a little louder and she covered her ears.
"So," Draco said looking from her to Fred. "So, she think we're a daydream?" he asked.
"Give the dose she's taken…" Fred started looking over Melinda again. "More like a hallucination. With a normal dose the reality is bearable, not a hallucination and the daydream is just a light reminder of things that make you happy. I'm sure Melinda could handle a regular does but considering she went and poured the whole thing in her tea and she's already under stress…" Fred explained.
"Hence…" Ron said quietly as he nodded at Melinda who was now walking around in circles, still humming.
"Oh dear," Hermione said, torn between jumping up to find the nearest book and looking on.
"Is there anything anyone can do?" Harry asked.
"Well, technically it's like the nightmares, only opposite, so, we'd do the opposite. We'd crash her daydream with a harsh reality" George said.
"No, a terrifying reality" I quietly whispered remembering how happy and confident Melinda was at the end of her nightmare from fifth year. We had to do the opposite of that.
"But Burnner isn't here" Houston said as I felt Draco's resistance to slap him clear into next week.
"Matt," I started but noticed he was just humming, completely ignoring our conversation, or at least pretending to. "Damon" I said drily as he glanced over at me. "Damon, you can do what Burnner does, right?" I asked.
"Well, yeah, but, you know, I'm not supposed to. You'd lose respect for me if I did. Matt can't possible hurt his friends." He said his words sarcastic and teasing as I gritted my teeth.
"It's for the greater good" I said resisting the urge to call him names.
"I don't know, you've all just been so nasty and unwelcoming to me" he said as his eyes fell on Fred. "Especially you, you owe me an apology and maybe a hug, but not in the weird gay way" he said as I blinked away tears of stress.
"Screw you" Fred snapped at him.
"Ouch," Damon replied, pretending to sound hurt. "This is why I don't wanna help, I get no respect—"
"Fred, please" I hissed him.
"No" Fred replied as if were that simple.
"Do you not see what you did to Melinda?" I reminded him waving at her.
"Matt said no too, just a little FYI" Damon added.
"Tell Matt to shove it right now" I said as Damon laughed and clapped his hands together once as I looked over at Melinda. "What happens if she continues like this?" she asked George.
"Eventually she'd come down, plunder really, spiral into depression, I don't know how long that would last though, maybe forever..." George replied as Draco pushed himself off the wall.
"Fred, seriously, apologize to Matt—"
"Damon" the rest of us said.
"Who the fuck ever you are and have him help Melinda" he nearly shouted, his voice on edge.
"Matt says what you're proposing is basically the same thing, who know how she'll react it to" Damon said.
"Well, what's it like?" I asked ignoring Melinda who had wondered into the kitchen, happily chatting to a very confused Mrs. Weasley.
"It's different," he started, a little—a tiny bit of feeling to his voice, but not nearly enough to sound remotely like Matt. "Going into her daydream and awaking her to reality—this reality is going to be sad and difficult, she might go into denial again, she pass out, I honestly don't know, it's different for everyone" he explained.
"Yeah, but, Damon, this isn't a normal circumstance though, she's lost in her daydream and waking her up isn't the same as her daydream-turned-reality fading around her. If she wakes up, thanks to you, her daydream is still a possibility, there's still some truth to it" I explained. "It's still something she can identify with, hold on to. If you let it slip away, you're taking away everything she is, everything she wants."
"I'm a humanity-less vampire, that's exactly what I want, to crush her daydreams, to crush her hopeful reality. Hell that's what I'm attempting to do to Matt and you and all your other friends" Damon countered but I shook my head.
"If it was, you would've by now" I replied, sort of challenging him. "You won't because Matt still has control in there and he won't let himself become like his sister, not in front of us" I told him.
"How do you know that?" he hissed back.
"Because it would mean I would consider him no different from Burnner, and every good you've done or said will have been in vain." The silence that followed would have been deafening had Melinda not come back in the room, still singing Christmas carols. It was true though, Melinda was totally out of touch with reality and the only way to bring her back was to get her.
"Fine," he said after a very long minute.
"Thank you" I said kindly but he showed no signs that he was happy about it as he went to take Melinda's arm.
"Will it hurt her?" Draco asked suddenly, taking a step toward them.
"Probably more than it did Fred and Tammie because I'm pulling away her own images, not pushing obscure ones on her" he said as I gulped. I felt like I was a terrible friend, but wasn't the alternative worst?
"I'll go with you" I said as I started to follow them upstairs.
"No, stay down here; Hermione, Houston, I'm fine either of you coming but not anyone else" Damon said as I snorted.
"Why not?" Draco asked.
"Everyone else is more likely to stop me the minute she starts whimpering" he answered as I felt myself twitch a little.
"Use my room" Ginny spoke up as Damon and Melinda headed upstairs, Hermione and Houston behind them.
What felt like an eternity later Damon was coming down the stairs. I jumped off the couch, suddenly noticing he didn't look the same. "Matt?" I said as he turned to me, as if just realizing I was there.
"Never ask me to do that again" he said icily and then stormed out of the house, not bothering to close the door behind him.
"What happened?" Draco asked as Hermione came down the stairs, her face pale. "Is she okay?" Draco rushed out as he started for the stairs but Hermione stopped him.
"She's sleep, it…it was intense" she said, her face still pale.
"But we didn't hear any yelling or screaming" Ron said as I thought of punching him square in the nose.
"We sound proofed the doors" Hermione replied, her voice shaky. "I don't like this, I don't like how three of you have gone under these forced vision thing, it's not fair" she said shaking her head as Ginny went over to pat her shoulder.
"I'll go talk to Matt" I started but Fred blocked my way.
"I'll talk to him" he said quietly as I narrowed my eyes at him. He rolled his eyes but pulled his wand from his belt loop and set on the coffee table. "Talking" he assured me as I hesitantly nodded. "Stay in here" he said as he walked out, closing the door behind him.
"Screw that" I mumbled to myself as I started to the door, both George and Draco eyeing me but neither stopping me as I walked out.
I approached the shed slowly, it was a little harder to do so quietly, with all the crunching snow, but I got closer to the door that I could see and hear but not so far away that I couldn't feel the heat from the fire inside. I pulled my coat tighter around myself, not exactly sure why I was listening but knowing there but I want to make sure Matt stayed Matt while in there alone with Fred.
"Just wanted to talk" Fred said as he came into view, he must have went around back, must have been thinking of what to say as to not piss him off. "You helped Melinda, I wanted to say thank you" he said.
"That potion was a stupid idea, what happens if some kid gets a hold of it?" Matt asked, a very good question.
"Well, now we'll know to take a better look at" he replied casually. "She's right though" he said after a moment as I watched Matt raise an eyebrow. "I do carry around the engagement ring wherever I go" he said patting his pocket. "I am going to propose to her, we are going to get married. Granted, Tammie wasn't supposed to find out anytime soon. I don't plan on proposing until this is all over" he said as Matt remained looking detached.
"Why are you telling me? She's my only—"
"Leverage? That's exactly why. I'm tired of her being some pawn to you. I love her" he said firmly.
"And you think I don't?" Matt was quick to snap back.
"This is getting old, and kind of pathetic, but mostly it's just hurting her. Soon she's going to force herself to pick one of us" he said as I nodded in agreement even though neither of them could see me.
"What, are afraid it won't be you?" Matt asked sarcastically as he crossed his arms over his chest and moved away from Fred.
"I know it will be. So, when that time comes, when she's forced to pick someone by default, you can still be her friend" Fred said as Matt let out a cold laugh; not that I couldn't blame him, no one wanted to be with the person they had a crush on; hell I didn't want to be friends with Fred when we broke up.
"Her friend? Are you trying to be funny? You spoke your mind, I get it, you're not going to give up on her. But I'm not going anywhere. You don't understand how much she's doing to help, to keep Damon tame, preventing Burnner from getting back in my mind and kill you guys. I know you understand the seriousness of Damon. I know you understand that she's the wall keeping you all alive. Don't destroy that wall. Please." Matt said, his voice close to begging.
"I'm not letting her get close to you simply because Damon thinks she's pretty" Fred snorted back.
"It's so much more than that you selfish prick" Matt said as Fred raised an eyebrow at him and sort of smirked. "Besides, you don't get to make that decision for her, if she wants to help me to protect her friends, that's up to her" Matt said as Fred's smirk slowly disappeared.
"Shut up" he replied, this time Damon smirked. "If you care about her, you'll keep that idea as far away from her mind as possible" he said.
I went to place my hand on the door but noticed a shadow that hadn't been there seconds before. I spun around, Debra in front of me. Like most every other vampire I had seen in the last twenty-four hours she too looked unbelievably good.
"Long time, no see" she said, her eyes going black and she opened her mouth, bearing both teeth and fangs.
