CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: THE PLAN
They'd been researching for two weeks before they'd come up with the perfect plan. It had taken three weeks after that to make the perfect instrument of revenge, and all they would need was two hours to completely ruin the life of Buffy Summers. It was an added bonus to take down her friends as well, but their main target was the girl who had ruined their lives. They waited until the day of Halloween to put their plan into motion, knowing it would be the perfect date to destroy the girl who they hated.
Blaise Zabini, Millicent Bulstrode, Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe were seated in the middle of the Slytherin Common Room, a brewing cauldron in the centre of their circle.
"Got the hair?" Millicent asked.
Blaise nodded and reached into her robes, pulling out the single hair that she'd pulled from Buffy's head four weeks earlier during a DADA class. She held it out for the group to see.
"Are we ready for this?" Blaise asked.
The other three nodded and Blaise grinned widely, carefully adding the single hair to the potion that bubbled and turned a light purple colour. She looked up at Crabbe and Goyle.
"Your turn. You know the plan?" she asked.
They both nodded and stood up, very nearly tripping over the cauldron. They quickly scampered out of the Common Room, not wanting to face Blaise's anger at nearly ruining the potion. The two boys ran to the library, stopping only once to ask directions. They made their way to the corner that Blaise had directed them to, creeping as quietly as they could.
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Buffy waited until Hermione had completely left the library before jumping up to race towards the Restricted Section. She password Madame Pince silently, using the stealth that Giles had taught her. When she was beyond Pince's sight, she crept through the aisles of books until she found what she was looking for.
All the books in the Restricted Section were chained to the shelves and required a key to unlock them. Not even the "Alohamora" spell would work on the locks keeping the books to the shelves. Buffy quickly took a pin from her hair and twisted one of the prongs to bend at a ninety degree angle. She took the lock in her hand and carefully jimmied it open.
After she'd found out about Giles' juvenile delinquent phase and his ability to pick locks, she'd harassed him until he'd taught her how to do it. She'd persuaded him by a subtle form of blackmail.
//"C'mon Giles, what if I get kidnapped and I don't know how to unpick locks. Then where will I be?"
"Locked in a room I daresay," he dead-panned.
She glared at him and turned it into a pout. "Please Giles?"
He sighed and finally nodded, stepping towards her and swiftly removing a bobby pin from her hair, causing her to yelp in pain and swat at his hands. He smirked and gestured towards the door.//
The lock clicked open and the chain fell off, leaving Buffy with the book she'd been eyeing off for several days. She quickly moved back to where she and Hermione had been seated. She removed the dust jacket from one of the Transfigurations text books and placed it over the book she'd taken, not wanting Hermione to catch her with a book she wasn't supposed to be reading. She flipped the book open to the page she'd read last and bookmarked it before standing and going to look for a book she actually needed to complete her assignment.
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The two boys spotted Buffy between the stacks, perusing the bookshelf, searching for a book that had been helpful to her the other day, whilst trying to finish her essay. She and Hermione had an assignment due for Seventh Year Transfigurations, and Hermione had stepped out of the library to go to the bathroom. She heard the sounds of quiet footfalls, but paid no attention to it. Students were always coming and going in the library area.
The two boys nudged each other and pointed to the oblivious Gryffindor girl. Before Buffy even noticed either of them, Goyle grabbed Buffy's arm and spun her around as Crabbe pulled his fist back and quickly slugged Buffy across the face. She turned with the force of the punch, feeling her head spin, and stars form behind her eyes. Before she had a chance to steady herself, the same fist that had hit her came crashing to her face again. It took barely two seconds for her to black out. She hadn't even seen either of her attackers.
Crabbe turned to Goyle, a satisfied expression on his face.
"That was satisfying."
Goyle smirked and picked up Buffy's unconscious form, thankful that the library was fairly quiet. Crabbe shrugged out of his cloak and draped it over Buffy, the two of them racing back to their Common Room, not stopping for anyone or anything.
Blaise looked up as the two boys came crashing through the entrance. She smiled in satisfaction as Crabbe drew back the cloak. "Put her up in your room," Blaise instructed. "And for the love of god, make sure she's tied up tightly."
Crabbe and Goyle hurried to do as Blaise ordered. The Slytherin girl turned back to Millicent and smiled evilly. She knelt down to the cauldron, picked up a small goblet and filled it with the lilac coloured Polyjuice Potion. She pulled off her Slytherin cloak and pulled on one with a Gryffindor crest, shuddering internally at the thought of wearing the red and gold colours of her most hated house. She lifted it in a mock toast.
"Here's to making Buffy Summers life hell."
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Hermione looked up when she heard the soft footfalls of her friend. She smiled as Buffy sat herself down beside her.
"Where'd you run off to?" she asked curiously.
Buffy shrugged and picked up one of the books she'd been looking through earlier. "I was just getting a little claustrophobic I guess," she replied. "Needed some air. I ran and got my cloak as well…it's cold in here."
Hermione looked at her friend, her eyebrow raised in a question. "Buffy, you spent nearly three months straight in here last year. I'd have thought you'd be used to it by now. And I have to admit to being surprised at the cloak. I've never seen you wear it outside of class."
Again Buffy just shrugged. Hermione shook her head, not really understanding her friend.
Buffy looked down at her book, reading the title of the chapter. "Different forms of Animagi through the Ages." She peered across at Hermione's book, wondering why exactly that book was open when Hermione was studying advanced Transmogrification. She flipped the book closed, surprised to see the dust-jacket cover telling her that the book was supposed to be about transmogrifying different objects into different creatures. She subtly looked behind the dust-jacket. "Animagi and You." She shrugged and went back to randomly flipping through pages, but Hermione could tell that Buffy's heart wasn't in it.
"Are you alright?" Hermione asked.
Buffy looked up and frowned slightly. "I think I'm just a little restless."
Hermione studied her friend closely. There was something different about her, she knew that, but she couldn't pick what it was.
"Did you want to go back to the Common Room? Maybe spend some time with Harry and Ron?" Hermione asked.
The smile on Buffy's face was the only answer Hermione needed. Closing their books and gathering their assignments up, they left the library quickly. As they walked back towards the Gryffindor Tower, Hermione couldn't help but glance curiously at her friend every few seconds.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Hermione asked. "You seem…different."
"I'm fine," she assured her. "Just…needing some alone time with Harry."
Hermione smirked slightly. "I'll bet. Ron and I still have to check out that room of yours and Harry's."
Buffy just smiled and nodded, which was strange in itself. Hermione usually couldn't get her friend to stop talking, especially on the topic of Harry and their room. She shrugged it off, thinking that maybe they had spent too long in the library working on their assignments. They reached the Common Room, and Hermione didn't hesitate to utter the password, "courage". The portrait door swung open, and the two girls entered the tower. Buffy looked around, trying not to be obvious about her curiousity.
"I'm just going to get the boys. I'll be back in a minute," Hermione said.
Buffy nodded absently and watched her leave. She looked around the Common Room, a derisive smirk on her face. Blaise couldn't believe the luck she was having so far. She wondered just how easy it would be to destroy Buffy's life completely. And Hermione Granger was making her plans even easier for her.
She wiped the smirk from her face as Harry, Ron and Hermione entered the Common Room. Harry immediately walked towards her and kissed her deeply. Blaise was slightly stunned by the force and passion behind it, but rallied quickly. They pulled apart slightly breathless.
"How's the assignment going? Hermione tells me that you were going stir-crazy in the library," Harry said with a grin.
"Well, too much time with the books is never a good thing," she replied easily.
Harry tilted his head to the side, regarding her curiously. She looked back at him nervously.
"What?"
He shook his head, thinking perhaps he was going crazy. "Nothing. It's just…you sound more and more British by the day."
The smile fell from her face and she felt a momentary burst of panic. She forced herself to calm down, lest she give herself away too early in the game.
"Maybe you're just rubbing off on me," she commented.
He grinned at her mischievously. "That sounds like a good idea lover."
Blaise very nearly choked on her surprise. She hadn't thought that Buffy and Harry were sleeping together, but this made her plan even more delicious.
"Later Harry," she whispered, her tone sharp and final. He looked at her questioningly, wondering what he'd done to offend her. "It's gorgeous outside, and I'm feeling the need to be outdoors."
Harry nodded and looked to Ron and Hermione, who were lost in their own world that consisted only of each other.
"We're going outside. Are you two actually going to join us this time?" Harry asked.
Ron and Hermione flushed simultaneously, but nodded. The foursome left the Common Room, and wandered down to the Entrance Hall. Blaise smiled when she saw the group of Slytherin students milling around. She sobered immediately, and Harry saw her stiffen. He moved closer towards her and put an arm around her shoulders protectively. She shrugged him off and moved away.
He looked at her, his expression showing how hurt he was by the move.
"Buffy?"
She stopped on the bottom stair of the marble staircase within the Entrance Hall and looked at him.
"Harry…I've been meaning to talk to you," she began, smiling on the inside, even as her outer expression showed her to be serious.
Harry felt his heart sink. "Maybe we should talk about this in private," he said quietly.
She shook her head and smiled sadly. "Maybe we just shouldn't talk about it at all."
Ron and Hermione looked at their two best friends in shock. Both of them were completely dumbfounded. Neither of them had heard of any problems occurring between the couple. In fact, the last they'd heard, Buffy and Harry had been the happiest they'd ever been.
Harry tried to swallow the hurt he was feeling, not wanting to cry in front of his peers, or his friends.
"Why?" he asked quietly.
She smirked at him and touched his shoulder. "You're just not mature enough for me Harry."
His eyes narrowed immediately.
"There's someone else isn't there?"
"That's not the point," she replied.
"Is it Oliver?" he demanded.
She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "It doesn't matter. The point here, lover, is that you and I are over. I'm sorry if that hurts you, but…that's just the way it has to be."
She flipped her hair over her shoulder casually and walked across the Entrance Hall, past the Slytherins who were all grinning madly ("courage" she whispered to Crabbe), and out the double doors, leading into the sunshine, leaving Harry, Ron and Hermione completely speechless.
The Slytherin students who had been in earshot snickered as they watched Harry try and regain his composure. Whispers, laughter and taunting began to swell within the hall, and all Harry could feel was an aching emptiness inside of him. He looked helplessly at his two best friends.
"What just happened?"
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Blaise walked across the lawns of Hogwarts, heading towards the Quidditch Pitch. She could see a lone figure flying fifty feet in the air, the platinum blonde hair recognisable even from the ground. She smiled to herself and quickly pulled out the flask that was concealed within her borrowed Gryffindor robe. She took another mouthful of the potion, knowing that her hour was nearly up. She didn't want to change back into her true self before she had a chance to do even more damage to Buffy. She pulled her wand out, and pointed it towards her – Buffy's- face, quickly casting a glamour charm to make it look as though she'd been crying.
She entered the Pitch and lifted a hand to shield her eyes as she looked up at the object of her affections. She had to admit, she couldn't understand why Buffy would choose Harry over Draco. It had never made any sense to her. If she'd been in Buffy's position, she'd have chosen Draco every time. And whilst Draco may have been on the outs with Slytherin, he was still the most gorgeous male that Blaise had ever laid her eyes on.
Draco spotted his cousin and quickly pushed his broom into a dive. He pulled up close to Buffy and saw the tears running down her face. He pulled her into a tight hug and stroked her hair gently.
"What happened?" he whispered.
She sniffled pathetically and held on tighter. "It's so awful Draco," she replied quietly. "Harry just broke up with me. He…he thinks that…oh, it's awful."
Draco couldn't believe what he was hearing. He hadn't thought that Harry was a complete idiot, and as much as he may still have disliked the Gryffindor boy, he knew that Harry loved Buffy with every inch of his being. He was also slightly perplexed by Buffy calling him Draco. She hadn't called him that since their truce in the library the previous year when they had bonded over her leather pants and their Transfiguration essays.
"Tell me, Buffy. It's alright, I'm here for you," he whispered.
"He…he accused me of being in love with someone else," she replied.
He pulled back and looked into her tearful eyes. He studied her carefully, wondering why her eyes looked so different than usual. This wasn't the first time he'd seen her cry, but there was something else in her eyes that usually wasn't there. There was a hardness that he hadn't seen. Even after everything that Buffy had gone through, there was still a soft sort of innocence about her that endeared her to him. Her eyes seemed to lack that certain spark now.
"Are you?" he asked gently.
She hesitated a moment, and looked away. Blaise couldn't believe her good fortune. This was going to be too easy.
"I am," she whispered.
Draco's eyes widened in surprise. He hadn't been expecting that. "Who? Who are you in love with that would make you give up what you have with him?"
Blaise saw her opening and took it. She leant forward and gently pressed her lips to his. She was completely surprised when Draco pushed her away, not even hesitating for a millisecond.
"What?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"Buffy, I know you're upset, but…this, between us…you're my favourite person in the world, and you know I'd do anything for you, but…this is wrong," he explained gently.
He knew that being upset could often skew people's thoughts and judgement, so he couldn't yell at his cousin for being confused emotionally. He just hoped that she would snap out of whatever daze she was in. She seemed like almost a completely different person.
She looked at him through narrowed eyes and tried again, leaning forward, but again Draco pushed her away.
"I get that you're upset Buffy, I really do," he said gently, taking her by the shoulders and holding her at arms length. "But…what the hell is your problem?"
"I've finally come to my senses," she replied.
He looked at her long and hard, his eyes boring into hers. He knew that there was something definitely wrong with his cousin. There was no way, no matter how upset she was, that she would try to kiss him. They were related, and he knew she thought of him as a brother. She told him so in the letters they'd exchanged over the summer break. He also knew that there was no way that Harry would have broken up with her because he'd believed her to be in love with him. Something else was going on here, and Draco was not going to fall for it any longer.
"Buffy, do you know why we can't be together?" he asked.
Blaise rolled her eyes, wondering what had become of the Slytherin prince. If a girl had thrown herself at him the year before, he'd have wasted no time in taking advantage of that. Now, he was being the concerned and sensitive new age male. She didn't like it one bit.
"Because of Harry," she replied.
Draco held onto her with a little more force. His eyes narrowed and he glared at her.
"Who are you?" he demanded angrily.
Blaise froze, knowing that she'd been caught. She was honestly surprised by Draco's reaction to her. She had been so sure that Draco would have appreciated finally being able to be with the girl that it seemed he was in love with.
"Draco, you're hurting me," she whispered softly.
His grip tightened even further, and she whimpered in pain.
"What did you call me?"
"Draco, please!"
"You're not Buffy!" he yelled angrily. "I don't know who you are, or what you've done with my cousin, but you are not her!"
Blaise's eyes widened in shock. Cousins. Buffy and Draco were cousins. That explained the closeness. It explained why Draco had rejected her. It explained why he'd had no idea of why she'd accused him of being in love with the Gryffindor mudblood-lover. It explained so much. She couldn't believe she hadn't realised.
"Let go!" she cried.
"Tell me who you are!"
Blaise, beginning to fear that Draco could do some real damage to her (she'd never realised just how short Buffy Summers was until she'd stared out of the blonde girls eyes) pulled out her wand.
"Stupefy!"
Draco's grip fell and he was forced backwards, landing on his backside, and stilling. She looked at his still form and aimed her wand at him again.
"Impedimenta! Stupefy!" She just hoped that using three sets of stunning spells would keep Draco out a little longer.
She shook off her fear and anger and quickly ran back up towards the castle, wanting to complete the last stage of her plan. She ran off the Quidditch Pitch and practically barrelled into a tall figure, sending them both sprawling to the ground.
"Buffy," a soft Irish voice greeted her. He helped her to stand up, and she looked up at him, surprised to see the kindness in his eyes. She hadn't really paid to much attention to the new Flying Instructor. He was gorgeous!
"Professor Wood."
He grinned at her and mock-glared. "You've never called me that before. Careful Buffy, I might start thinking you actually respect me," he teased.
She couldn't help but smile, charmed by his boyish grin and his accent, not to mention his beautiful blue eyes that she could probably drown in.
"Are you alright?" he asked quietly, his mood immediately coming more sombre. "I heard about what happened with you and Harry. I had a hunch that you might have come down here. I thought…well, maybe if you needed a friend…"
Blaise smiled a mock-sad smile and nodded, trying to look pathetic. "Thank you Oliver. That'd be really good."
He smiled and stepped forward awkwardly. Blaise stepped forward and into his arms, hugging him and burying her face into his solid chest. Had Oliver been able to see her face, he'd have been worried by the evil and manipulative grin that appeared on Buffy's face.
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Who loves evil Blaise?! *grins* she's so much fun! :)
Hmmm…Lisette…can I maybe interest you in a triple update? AWF, WYD and In The Beginning? What else would it take to get you to start posting Equinox? Name it and it's yours. (Gee, I don't sound desperate or anything do I?)
Many thanks to everyone who has reviewed!
DKG