Chapter 3 - Valentine's Day
When Valentine's Day finally came, the whole school was in a frenzy. Or at least, the entire upper form. Especially those attending Divination lessons, but the others also. The same questions were repeated in many a head. 'Will I get a card?' 'Will he remember?' 'Who will the Love Match pair me up with?' 'Are we a compatible couple?' 'Does she even like me?' And so on.
And it wasn't very different with the Marauders - only Remus seemed not at all unsettled as he calmly sipped his tea at breakfast. However, the four boys were now anxiously awaiting another event, which distracted them from the 'Love Match Terror', as it had been named.
"I thought you said you'd found someone to do it?" Sirius asked James, impatience clearly ringing in his voice as dropped the butter knife for the third time.
"I did. Had a hard job convincing him, too, but there's not a dwarf in England who's sullen face doesn't light up at the sound of silver and gold. And Grimbeard's no different." Grimbeard was the Potter's house servant. "I really hope Peeves' song's worth it!"
"Um, yeah." Sirius murmured. He hadn't actually *seen* the song, but he wouldn't admit that to the others. But then, there'd be more than one surprise today anyway, so they would have a ball even if the song weren't that good...
Just then, the large swing doors to the Great Hall opened, and a small, stocky figure hobbled in, his face set in a grim way as he stamped towards the Hufflepuff table, where he came to a halt in front of a tall, blonde seventh year who was airily gazing into his knife - probably to see his own reflection there. He only gazed up as the dwarf cleared his throat, quite loudly and impatiently. There may be little a dwarf wouldn't do for the right price, but that didn't mean that he wasn't put out at having to wear wings and a toga. Not to mention the stupid golden miniature harp.
"Mr. Lockhart?" he asked, gruffly.
"Yes?" the boy looked up, tearing his gaze from the knife only with difficulty. Finally noticing the dwarf that had silenced the entire room already, his eyes widened, then he let out a squeak, happily waving over to Remus. "Oh, Remus, you were right!" he exclaimed, happily.
Remus groaned. He'd hoped that the stupid wench wouldn't mention his name. Now Snape would know...
"I'll go on with the message now," the dwarf grimly spoke, then opened a brightly painted pink card he was holding. "I'll sing it to you now."
With a deep bass, the dwarf sourly roared his song, holding his self-playing harp more like an axe or a similar weapon than a musical instrument.
"Gilderoy, oh Gilderoy,
Just seeing you gives me such joy,
Your golden hair! Your glamorous eyes!
In which such exquisite beauty lies.
"And then your voice, so rich and full
Your words so charming, ne'er dull
Oh, Gilderoy, my Gilderoy,
Tell me, could you love a boy?
You might now wonder who I am
Who fell so fully under your charm?
I don't dare tell you, but hint you thus:
I wish that the fates ne'er Sever-Us.
"I rhyme on shape, but not on form
And pray if you would know my dorm!
Perhaps you'd think it to be a sin,
But leave your door open, and I'll Slyther right In,
"For you've Locked my Hart,
And kept the key,
Now won't you reciprocate,
And in turn love me!
His duty done, the dwarf stalked off, leaving the still-playing harp behind and tearing off the wings as he went. But Gilderoy Lockhart did not notice, nor did he notice the guffawing and mocking laughter of half the school (some of the lower forms didn't get the message, and most of the Slytherin table sat there in sulky silence. Snape wasn't exactly popular with even his own house, but he was a prefect after all.), the Marauders laughing out loudest of all. He was smiling broadly, waving the card that depicted a - actually very nicely done - picture of Gilderoy Lockhart in the arms of another boy. While the other boy had his back turned on the on-looking audience, no one doubted his identity, especially at the sight of the greasy hair.
The Great Hall was still trembling with the laughter of so many pupils when Madame Dubois entered, smiling broadly, and carrying a stack of papers. Coming to a halt in front of the teacher's table, she clapped her large hands together loudly a couple of times. Suddenly, everyone was silent, even the first and second years. Everyone knew about the compatibility test, and everyone was either nervously or gleefully awaiting the results, if only to have something new to talk about.
"Mes chers," Madame Dubois said brightly, oblivious to the anxiety in the room. "it iz ze day we 'ave waited for, le jour de la Saint-Valentin. I know you 'ave all been looking forward to this. So, I 'ave decided I will not make you wait any longer, and I will do ze charm now!"
There were gasps all around. 'Here?' 'In front of everyone?' 'But...', and the delighted squeals and roars of those who hadn't participated due to not being in the upper form or not having Divination lessons.
Ignoring the protesting voices, Madame Dubois went on. "now, now, silence, tout le monde, or I might make a mistake with ze charm, and then it will come out all wrong!"
Reluctantly, the room silenced down to subdued whispers as the French lady started to mutter the words of the spell, waving her wand swiftly in front of her stack of papers. Bare three seconds later, the papers floated up into the air, flicking around to and fro like leaves in a wind.
By and by, the papers formed pairs of two (and one group of three, which should later lead to a lot of gossip in the school), then each pair exploded with a sparkling pink explosion, and scattered all around the Hall, pink, heart-shaped cards started to appear at some seats. Mostly everyone was quick to grab their card swiftly, so that no one would see the name written on it, and excited talking (and some hysteric exclamations) roared up in the Hall like a storm after the calm.
James gave a loud shriek of enjoyment when the name on his card actually came out to be 'Lily Potter', though it could hardly be made out to come from him in all the uproar the Love Match charm had by now caused.
Peter shot a swift glance at his card, then hung his head low. He hadn't dared to hope the charm would match him up with the Slytherin girl, but why would it choose a girl that fancied his best friend, a girl who obviously had it bad for tall, gangling, handsome Quidditch players?
Remus read the name on his card with an unreadable expression, then tucked it away in his pocket carefully, his face never betraying any emotion.
Sirius didn't even bother to read his card before putting it in his pocket carelessly, but nudged the other Marauders, his eyes shining brightly.
"Don't bother with the cards, you can read them later! Watch *Snape*, now!"
Four heads turned towards Snape. Four pairs of eyes observed his face growing redder and redder, then, finally, four mouths broadened into wide grins as Snape sprang up from his chair, sputtering obscenities as he stamped out of the room, much like the 'Cupid Dwarf' before him, Gilderoy Lockhart closely at his heels. The blonde boy was chattering excitedly, and though they could not make out the words against the loud talk of the Hall, it was obvious who Severus Snape had been paired off with.
When the two boys were out of the room, the three clueless Marauders turned towards Sirius, mouths agape. It was Peter who finally spoke:
"That spell must me malfunctioning, or something. Lockhart and *Snape*? And how did *you* know about it, Sir?"
Sirius grinned benevolently, like a master regarding his apprentice. "Ah, my dear Mister Wormtail, the spell is not malfunctioning in any way. It is solely due to the genius of Mister Padfoot that we bared witness to this extraordinary display of affection on our esteemed friend's part."
James cleared his throat. "Mister Prongs would highly appreciate to know how Mister Padfoot managed to achieve such a rare moment of, er, genuine affection on aforementioned friend's facial expression?"
Chuckling, Sirius finally related to his friends his meeting with Peeves in the Divination classroom, and how he had stumbled on the questionnaires. At this, Remus suddenly shot him a sharp glance, but refrained from commenting as Madame Dubois clapped her hands once again.
"Now, me chers, it iz time for me to announce our most compatible couple. Az I 'ave promised, and with 'eadmaster Dumbledore's approval, zey will 'ave a free, romantique diner in 'ogsmead zis evening."
Chatter once more made way to tension. Everybody ws anxious to hear who the 'Most compatible couple' would be. Especially those who hadn't participated, since to their disappointment it hadn't actually been made common knowledge who was best matched to whom.
"Monsieur Potter, Mademoiselle Evans congratulations!" Madame Dubois smiled kindly as near to everyone in the school stared excitedly at a very red-faced James Potter and blushing Lily Evans, then, gradually, the Great Hall exploded into a roar of cheers and applause. Everyone in the school knew James and Lily, one being Quidditch captain and the other a Gryffindor chaser. And near to everyone thought they made a fabulous pair.
Still very crimson in colour, James finally dared to look at Lily, prodded by his friends, and met her anxious look. Finally, a tiny smile appeared on the girl's face, and James breathed a sigh of relief.
When Valentine's Day finally came, the whole school was in a frenzy. Or at least, the entire upper form. Especially those attending Divination lessons, but the others also. The same questions were repeated in many a head. 'Will I get a card?' 'Will he remember?' 'Who will the Love Match pair me up with?' 'Are we a compatible couple?' 'Does she even like me?' And so on.
And it wasn't very different with the Marauders - only Remus seemed not at all unsettled as he calmly sipped his tea at breakfast. However, the four boys were now anxiously awaiting another event, which distracted them from the 'Love Match Terror', as it had been named.
"I thought you said you'd found someone to do it?" Sirius asked James, impatience clearly ringing in his voice as dropped the butter knife for the third time.
"I did. Had a hard job convincing him, too, but there's not a dwarf in England who's sullen face doesn't light up at the sound of silver and gold. And Grimbeard's no different." Grimbeard was the Potter's house servant. "I really hope Peeves' song's worth it!"
"Um, yeah." Sirius murmured. He hadn't actually *seen* the song, but he wouldn't admit that to the others. But then, there'd be more than one surprise today anyway, so they would have a ball even if the song weren't that good...
Just then, the large swing doors to the Great Hall opened, and a small, stocky figure hobbled in, his face set in a grim way as he stamped towards the Hufflepuff table, where he came to a halt in front of a tall, blonde seventh year who was airily gazing into his knife - probably to see his own reflection there. He only gazed up as the dwarf cleared his throat, quite loudly and impatiently. There may be little a dwarf wouldn't do for the right price, but that didn't mean that he wasn't put out at having to wear wings and a toga. Not to mention the stupid golden miniature harp.
"Mr. Lockhart?" he asked, gruffly.
"Yes?" the boy looked up, tearing his gaze from the knife only with difficulty. Finally noticing the dwarf that had silenced the entire room already, his eyes widened, then he let out a squeak, happily waving over to Remus. "Oh, Remus, you were right!" he exclaimed, happily.
Remus groaned. He'd hoped that the stupid wench wouldn't mention his name. Now Snape would know...
"I'll go on with the message now," the dwarf grimly spoke, then opened a brightly painted pink card he was holding. "I'll sing it to you now."
With a deep bass, the dwarf sourly roared his song, holding his self-playing harp more like an axe or a similar weapon than a musical instrument.
"Gilderoy, oh Gilderoy,
Just seeing you gives me such joy,
Your golden hair! Your glamorous eyes!
In which such exquisite beauty lies.
"And then your voice, so rich and full
Your words so charming, ne'er dull
Oh, Gilderoy, my Gilderoy,
Tell me, could you love a boy?
You might now wonder who I am
Who fell so fully under your charm?
I don't dare tell you, but hint you thus:
I wish that the fates ne'er Sever-Us.
"I rhyme on shape, but not on form
And pray if you would know my dorm!
Perhaps you'd think it to be a sin,
But leave your door open, and I'll Slyther right In,
"For you've Locked my Hart,
And kept the key,
Now won't you reciprocate,
And in turn love me!
His duty done, the dwarf stalked off, leaving the still-playing harp behind and tearing off the wings as he went. But Gilderoy Lockhart did not notice, nor did he notice the guffawing and mocking laughter of half the school (some of the lower forms didn't get the message, and most of the Slytherin table sat there in sulky silence. Snape wasn't exactly popular with even his own house, but he was a prefect after all.), the Marauders laughing out loudest of all. He was smiling broadly, waving the card that depicted a - actually very nicely done - picture of Gilderoy Lockhart in the arms of another boy. While the other boy had his back turned on the on-looking audience, no one doubted his identity, especially at the sight of the greasy hair.
The Great Hall was still trembling with the laughter of so many pupils when Madame Dubois entered, smiling broadly, and carrying a stack of papers. Coming to a halt in front of the teacher's table, she clapped her large hands together loudly a couple of times. Suddenly, everyone was silent, even the first and second years. Everyone knew about the compatibility test, and everyone was either nervously or gleefully awaiting the results, if only to have something new to talk about.
"Mes chers," Madame Dubois said brightly, oblivious to the anxiety in the room. "it iz ze day we 'ave waited for, le jour de la Saint-Valentin. I know you 'ave all been looking forward to this. So, I 'ave decided I will not make you wait any longer, and I will do ze charm now!"
There were gasps all around. 'Here?' 'In front of everyone?' 'But...', and the delighted squeals and roars of those who hadn't participated due to not being in the upper form or not having Divination lessons.
Ignoring the protesting voices, Madame Dubois went on. "now, now, silence, tout le monde, or I might make a mistake with ze charm, and then it will come out all wrong!"
Reluctantly, the room silenced down to subdued whispers as the French lady started to mutter the words of the spell, waving her wand swiftly in front of her stack of papers. Bare three seconds later, the papers floated up into the air, flicking around to and fro like leaves in a wind.
By and by, the papers formed pairs of two (and one group of three, which should later lead to a lot of gossip in the school), then each pair exploded with a sparkling pink explosion, and scattered all around the Hall, pink, heart-shaped cards started to appear at some seats. Mostly everyone was quick to grab their card swiftly, so that no one would see the name written on it, and excited talking (and some hysteric exclamations) roared up in the Hall like a storm after the calm.
James gave a loud shriek of enjoyment when the name on his card actually came out to be 'Lily Potter', though it could hardly be made out to come from him in all the uproar the Love Match charm had by now caused.
Peter shot a swift glance at his card, then hung his head low. He hadn't dared to hope the charm would match him up with the Slytherin girl, but why would it choose a girl that fancied his best friend, a girl who obviously had it bad for tall, gangling, handsome Quidditch players?
Remus read the name on his card with an unreadable expression, then tucked it away in his pocket carefully, his face never betraying any emotion.
Sirius didn't even bother to read his card before putting it in his pocket carelessly, but nudged the other Marauders, his eyes shining brightly.
"Don't bother with the cards, you can read them later! Watch *Snape*, now!"
Four heads turned towards Snape. Four pairs of eyes observed his face growing redder and redder, then, finally, four mouths broadened into wide grins as Snape sprang up from his chair, sputtering obscenities as he stamped out of the room, much like the 'Cupid Dwarf' before him, Gilderoy Lockhart closely at his heels. The blonde boy was chattering excitedly, and though they could not make out the words against the loud talk of the Hall, it was obvious who Severus Snape had been paired off with.
When the two boys were out of the room, the three clueless Marauders turned towards Sirius, mouths agape. It was Peter who finally spoke:
"That spell must me malfunctioning, or something. Lockhart and *Snape*? And how did *you* know about it, Sir?"
Sirius grinned benevolently, like a master regarding his apprentice. "Ah, my dear Mister Wormtail, the spell is not malfunctioning in any way. It is solely due to the genius of Mister Padfoot that we bared witness to this extraordinary display of affection on our esteemed friend's part."
James cleared his throat. "Mister Prongs would highly appreciate to know how Mister Padfoot managed to achieve such a rare moment of, er, genuine affection on aforementioned friend's facial expression?"
Chuckling, Sirius finally related to his friends his meeting with Peeves in the Divination classroom, and how he had stumbled on the questionnaires. At this, Remus suddenly shot him a sharp glance, but refrained from commenting as Madame Dubois clapped her hands once again.
"Now, me chers, it iz time for me to announce our most compatible couple. Az I 'ave promised, and with 'eadmaster Dumbledore's approval, zey will 'ave a free, romantique diner in 'ogsmead zis evening."
Chatter once more made way to tension. Everybody ws anxious to hear who the 'Most compatible couple' would be. Especially those who hadn't participated, since to their disappointment it hadn't actually been made common knowledge who was best matched to whom.
"Monsieur Potter, Mademoiselle Evans congratulations!" Madame Dubois smiled kindly as near to everyone in the school stared excitedly at a very red-faced James Potter and blushing Lily Evans, then, gradually, the Great Hall exploded into a roar of cheers and applause. Everyone in the school knew James and Lily, one being Quidditch captain and the other a Gryffindor chaser. And near to everyone thought they made a fabulous pair.
Still very crimson in colour, James finally dared to look at Lily, prodded by his friends, and met her anxious look. Finally, a tiny smile appeared on the girl's face, and James breathed a sigh of relief.