Hey peeps! Part Dos here! Please R/R, okay? tell me what you all think. And why don't you visit my website, FlamersUNLIMITED, at http://home.sailormoon.com/jejune/ Harry Potter RULZ! Thanks to all the people who reviewed my other fics before, you're all great! -Jejune
Midnight. Peeves creeped down the hallways ever-so-carefully, careful not to drop or spill the bottle he was holding. He held back a smile. He amazed himself so much he would pat hmself on the back if he could. his plan was just so briliant, so ingenius...
He silently tiptoed towards the kitchens, hoping not to wake the house elves. House elves. bah. Meddlers of the glalaxy, they were.
He opened the door with extreme caution. It creeked a little, but not enough to make such a loud racket. Careful... careful...
He went down the kitchen basements, where the food was. He squinted in the darkness to see what was lableld on the crates and barrels. Turkey... nope.... Pudding... ew.... wine, pumpkin juice... alright! Quickly, he dumped the contents of the bottle equally down the eight barrels... whoo-boy, this was going to be sweet... so sweet...
Unfortunately, no plan ever goes without SOME kind of glitch. I his hurry to get the job done -- and since the last drop of the potion stubbornly refused to drop, he began shaking the bottle furiously, until --
The bottle slipped past his hands and fell into the wine with a sickening *PLOP*. Whoopsie-doodles.
Peeves shrugged. "*sigh* Oh well," There was no time to retrieve it, since it he thought he heard the sound of heavy fottsteps -- Fred and George weasley, no doubt -- and he was right. "Dobby! Winky! Yoo-hoo! We're starving! How ;bout a li'l midnight grub, 'eh?" Blast the accursed luck! Couldn't those twins EVER say something quieter than a holler?
He rushed out his emergency exit -- a small hole in the corner of the wall -- and out the kitchens. He prayed he wouldn't be busted. Not only would he be in a terrible amount of trouble -- it was such a marvelous prank! *And think of all the pumpkin juice and wine that would've gone to waste!*
******
December 18 - The Day of the YULE BALL
Peeves was jumping up and down with excitement -- here! It was here at last! Yesssss! Now the whole of Hogwarts will feel his wrath! Mwahahaha! It would be the prank of the millennium -- his vacation farewell. It would surely be a night to remember...
"Students and Faculty of Hogwarts," everyone fell silent to the sound of Dumbledore's booming voice. "I know all of you are quite exited, tonight is the night of this year's Yule Ball!" Everyone cheered and clapped. Dumbledore held up his hand to silence the crowd. "This is sure to be a memorable nigh" You said it, you senile old bat, thought Peeves cheekily, who was watching from a corner. "So I hope that things will go smoothly the whole night. I will not be keeping you with boring old speeches, so please enjoy yourselves. Good night." Again, cheerful applause, as Dumbledore stepped down from the platform.
The band began playing and the house elves burst out the door, their arms pilled up with delicacies of every kind. People hooted at the sight of the food, of the decor, of the glorious event. Almost at once the others began piling up their plates with food -- turkey, pudding, mashed potatoes and pumpkin juice, while the faculty dined on wine and a variety of finely-spiced steaks. Peeves leaned back on a wall and relaxed. The fun would soon begin, he thought, grinning as he watched a rather plump student finish down his glass in two gulps.
"Professor Snape, why aren't you eating?" inquired Dumbledore, seeing that Snape was in a more sulky mood than usual. "I'm not really in a mood to dine, Headmaster," he muttered grumpily. Dumbledore shoved him playfully and handed him a pitcher of wine. "Have something to drink then," he suggested cheerfully, as he glided towards Trelawney instead, who was freaking out a student by telling him he would lose a tooth while dancing.
Snape filled his glass, but paused to glance at it before drinking it's contents. He had a funny feeling about the beverage he was holding, he just couldn't place a finger on what it was. He sniffed the wine. It was peculiarly heavy for wine. Maybe it was spiced with an extra ingredient, he guessed. the kitchens were always outdoing themselves at events like these.
He shoved the thought aside and sipped the drink. he stopped. His mind was racing. Now hew knew, he recognized that same, heavy, syrupy aftertaste. This wasn't spice, this was --
"Viteraserum," he muttered as-a-matter-of-factly. "A truth drug." He wasn't sure what to do. By the taste of it -- the drink was heavily dosed with the drug -- he had to tell Dumbledore. He looked around the room. They ere enjoying themselves immensely -- and most of them had already taken several glasses of the drink. If he informed the school body of the drug, it would inevitably cause pandemonium. The Slytherins would find this either very amusing opportunity or a social disaster. That Potter brat would certainly make the most of it...
Then he suddenly remembered. HE had also drunk the concoction -- and the sip was more than enough for him to reveal his very soul to anyone who would ask. He clasped a hand over his mouth and made a quick exit toward his dungeons. To hell with the rest of these people -- they were on their own. he had to cure himself first.
******
Draco took a sip of his juice, taking notice as Hermione and her date, Ron walked by. He smirked. "Well, well..." he began, "Lookie what we have here -- Weasel and his date Hermione! You're looking --" he paused in mid-sentence. He began to choke. Choke out words against his will! Words that weren't supposed to come out... "Awfully Gorgeous tonight. In fact I was wondering all night if you would care to dance with me." Both Ron and Hermoine looked shocked. Had they heard right??
Draco looked absolutely petrified, and paler than usual. His gazed was fixed on Hermoine with utmost fear, when --
Hermoine looked hurt. She opened her mouth to say something equally insulting back, but the words "Thank you Draco, you're looking quite dashing yourself. Everyday, in fact," tumbled out her lips. She clamped a hand over her mouth, running the opposite direction. Draco was still rooted on the spot, while Ron stormed off, feeling betrayed. Was the heck was happening here?
Pansy, who was Draco's date, stiffled back a sob. She knew this day would come. She knew Draco never really cared for her, but she still continued to pursue him. She bit her lower lip, trying her very best not to cry, when she caught Crabbe's gaze. "What're you staring at?" she barked. Crabbe was about to shrug and shake his head, when "I was just wondering why you were crying over a loser like Malfoy. I always thought you were the most amazing girl I've laid my eyes on, even though your attention was always towards his direction." came out instead. Pansy then looked straight up at him in surprise, while Crabbe was looking nauseous. He suddenly got up from his seat and ran out in the gardens, with Pansy running after him, bellowing "Vincent, wait! Don't go!!" Draco, on the other hand, had fainted in all the action.
******
Snape glided hurriedly down the halls, when suddenly bumping into Sybil Trelawney. "What the --?" he half-yelled. He stopped, changing his expression. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "What are YOU doing here?" he demanded. Trelawney's instincts told her to throw him a glare and be off on her way, when: "I'm sorry, Severus. I went off in search for you -- I was worried where you had went." She then squeaked in embarrassment, and Snape was bewildered. She had actually called him Severus? He had completely forgotten all about the Viteraserum. "W-What?"
Trelawney shrunk back in protest, but she just couldn't help but answer. "I was worried for you. I always have been, despite your disgust and dislike of me. You always seem troubled, so lonely -- I thought we had those things in common, though I never told you." Sybil began to cry in humiliation. There just went her reputation, her pride, all out the window.
Snape's expression softened. He held out his hand to her, and helped her to her feet. "I never knew that," he laughed softly, completely without sarcasm. "I belive I have underestimated you, Professor Sybil Trelawney." He offered her his arm, which she reluctantly took. "How about we go back to the ball? We could talk it out during dinner..."
Harry was dumbfounded. Lavander had just confessed to Parvati that she was lesbian; Lee had just told Goyle that he was actually his idol; Pansy and Crabbe were taking a moonlight stroll out in the gardens; and Snape and Trelawney were now doing a romantic slow dance on the dance floor. Even Winky was now chasing Peeves around the dance floor, yelling out loud how much she had loved him the first time she had laid her eyes on him on her first day here at Hogwarts. He looked up at Dumbledore pleadingly, who was sitting in the platform. Dumbledore was silent, but he was smiling, and his eyes seemed to laugh.
"Some wine, Headmaster?" Dobby offered the wizard. Dumbledore grinned slyly. "No thank you, Dobby. I think I'll settle for water, if you please."
So? Whaddaya think? R|R! I'll add a new chapter if requested. -Jejune