I forgot to thank Nat last chapter. So I'm doing it first thing this chapter. SHE ROCKS! THANK YOU NAT THE BETA!!!!
Lets see. The bits you recognize are JKR's. The bits you don't are mine. The bit Draco says about the bake sale is Cassandra Claire's. After you're done here, you should all head on over to schnoogle and read her Draco series. It's fabulous!
I believe that is all for now.
I like reviews!
That being said.
*****
"Thank you for bringing your son here to me," the cold voice pierced the warm summer night. Three black robed figures stood huddled together at the edge of a forest. A large field spread out before them, with a weather-beaten shack off in the distance. The two smaller figures cowered in front of the tallest. The taller figure reached out a long, pale, bony hand and placed in the head of the smallest figure. The man began to bow down to the tallest figure. The hood of the cloak the boy wore fell back revealing a
"Wake up you lazy prat!" Ron cried, flinging open the curtains on Harry's bed.
"Ronald Alroy Weasley! I'm going to kill you!" Harry shrieked, springing from his bed.
"I did it again didn't I?" Ron screeched, running towards the door to fend off advances from his irate friend.
"Yes you did!" Harry cried, running towards his friend.
"How about we postpone killing Ron and go find Ginny and Hermione and go to breakfast so we can get to Hogsmeade," Ron suggested. Harry stopped dead in his tracks.
"Hannah, Mandy, Ernie and Justin are coming with us," he said.
"Mandy?" Ron asked.
"Brocklehurst," Harry supplied.
"When were you planning on telling me?" Ron asked, "Whatever shall I wear?"
"Clothes," Harry stoically suggested. "Probably your school robes."
"Good idea," Ron said. He went over to his wardrobe and pulled out his best school robe.
"Have you ever actually talked to Mandy?" Harry asked.
"I'm not lucky enough to have her as my History of Magic partner," Ron replied, glaring at Harry.
"I should hope not," Harry said, "we don't have any classes with Ravenclaw."
"I wonder why?" Ron replied.
"Good question," Harry laughed. He pulled on his school robe and ran his fingers through his hair.
"Don't you ever brush your hair?" Ron asked as he dragged a brush through his own short red hair.
"Gave up on that over the summer. It's hopeless. I just run my fingers through it to make it stick up more," Harry explained. Ron shook his head at his friend. Harry pulled on his glasses and looked over at Ron. "Ready to go?" he asked. Ron nodded at him and started towards the door.
"It's about time," Hermione laughed as the boys started down the stairs.
"You two are worse than teenage girls," Ginny added.
"Lazy arse wouldn't get out of bed," Ron offered by way of explanation. He glared at Harry.
"You interrupted my dream again!" Harry screeched, jumping towards Ron. Loud laughter erupted from the couch.
"What kind of dream was it?" Dean asked.
"Was it a good dream?" Seamus added, raising his eyebrows twice at the word good.
"I'm going to breakfast," Harry spat, and started towards the portrait hole. He didn't dignify Dean and Seamus with responses. Ron, however, laughed. Hermione shrugged her shoulders at Ginny and the two girls started after Harry. Ron left his two dorm mates sitting on the couch and trailed after the girls.
"So what are we doing at Hogsmeade today?" he asked Ginny when he'd finally caught up with her and Hermione.
"Staying away from Zonko's," Hermione replied.
"Why?" Ron asked.
"The twins are doing a demonstration of some of their products all day. If Niamh Zonkovich likes them, Zonko's will start carrying their line in the stores," Hermione explained.
"Oh yeah, I remember them vaguely saying something about it," Ron said.
"They're trying to keep it rather quiet so no one expects anything," Ginny explained.
"And for the twins, they've done a quite good job," Hermione laughed.
"What time are we meeting Mandy and the Hufflepuffs?" Ginny asked. Harry, Hermione, Hannah and Ernie had organized the group meeting.
"Right after breakfast," Hermione replied.
"How did everyone but me know that Mandy was coming?" Ron asked.
"Mandy and Hannah are best friends, would you expect anything less?" Hermione replied. Ron rolled his eyes at her.
"Where is Astrid this morning?" Ginny asked.
"She, Sawyer, Jason and Dennis are having a competition to see who can sleep for the longest," Hermione explained. Ginny laughed and shook her head at the idea.
%%%%%
"Malfoy, Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Nott and Parkinson, I need to see you all for a moment," Casey Warrington called form a corner of the Slytherin common room. Draco, Crabbe, Goyle, Taylor and Pansy went over to join him.
"Where is Keiran?" Casey asked Draco as Draco took a seat on one of the chairs.
"He's asleep I thought," Draco said.
"I just looked in his dorm, he's not there," Casey replied.
"Maybe he's found some more puppies to play with," Draco suggested.
"That's sick, Draco Malfoy!" Taylor exclaimed.
"That's Keiran," Draco replied.
"So why are we here?" Taylor asked.
"Better yet, why am I here?" Pansy asked.
"I was told to include you in these meetings from now on," Casey told Pansy. Pansy's face brightened considerably. Draco rolled his eyes.
"Have you come up with something to get back at the Gryffindors?" Taylor asked.
"Now that rabid gopher spleen boy isn't around," Draco muttered.
"What was that?" Casey asked.
"Now that rabid gopher spleen boy isn't around," Draco said, a bit louder.
"I'm appalled at you Draco, talking about your brother that way!" Taylor laughed.
"You should hear some of the stuff he says about the traitor," Crabbe said, dumbly.
"But that's permissible because she's a traitor," Taylor replied. The blank look on Crabbe's face didn't change.
"Uh Taylor, I don't think he understands the word permissible," Draco laughed.
"Talking about her is okay because she's a traitor," Taylor corrected herself.
"So what are we doing to the Gryffindors?" Pansy asked.
"You, Parkinson will do nothing," Casey spat.
"Know your role," Taylor added, half joking. Casey glared at Taylor.
"That's my line." Taylor smiled sweetly at Casey
"Why not?" Pansy asked.
"Can we trust you?" Casey asked.
"Yes," Pansy replied.
"But we don't know that," Casey replied.
"I'm a Parkinson!" Pansy replied.
"Astrid's a Malfoy," Draco replied, glaring down at the girl.
"So are we going to plan or not?" Taylor asked.
"Plan what?" Goyle asked, finally cluing in.
"The next Jr. Death Eater bake sale to raise funds for our evil alliance," Draco muttered.
"What was that, Malfoy?" Casey asked.
"Nothing," Draco said.
"Can we exchange their brooms for non flying ones?" Pansy suggested.
"Exactly where do you think they keep their brooms?" Casey asked.
"The broom shed?" Pansy guessed.
"GRYFFINDOR TOWER!" Casey roared.
"And even if they didn't keep their brooms in Gryffindor Tower, how many protection charms do you think Potter has on that Firebolt?" Taylor added. Pansy glared at the other girl.
"Casey, what was the point of having this meeting if you don't have any ideas?" Draco asked.
"Do we have to mutiny again?" Taylor whined.
"You all mutiny?" Pansy asked. Her jaw dropped as she looked from Taylor to Draco then back to Taylor.
"Oh yes," Taylor replied.
"All of the time," Draco added, more than a bit sarcastically.
"I thought I told you all to be thinking of ideas!" Casey exclaimed.
"Keiran probably has some," Draco said.
"That don't involve random farm animals," Casey amended. Draco and Taylor both glared at him.
"I gave you my suggestion," Pansy said.
"When I didn't ask for it," Casey replied. Pansy glared at him.
"Know your role," Taylor repeated.
"Taylor, that's my line," Casey whined. Taylor smiled sweetly at him.
"I think we established that already," Draco said.
"She keeps stealing it," Casey whined again.
"If we're going to do nothing more than sit here and argue over whose lines are whose, I'm leaving," Draco announced.
"You can't do that!" Casey exclaimed. Draco stood up.
"Meeting adjourned!" Casey shouted before Draco could officially leave. Draco glared at him and headed for the exit. Pansy chased him down. She slipped her hand into the crook of his elbow.
"Hey," she whispered.
"What do you want?" Draco asked.
"What do you say we celebrate me getting invited to that meeting today in Hogsmeade," she suggested.
"I'm thinking no," Draco replied.
"Dray-kie," Pansy whined.
"I'm spending the day with Finley, I already told her I would," Draco said.
"What are you doing with Crabbe and Goyle?" Pansy asked.
"Want to baby-sit?" Draco asked. Pansy glared at him.
"You are not funny Draco Malfoy," she spat. Draco smiled sweetly at her and didn't bother mentioning that he had told Crabbe and Goyle to spend the day with Millicent, who would undoubtedly be following Pansy.
"Are you sure you don't want to go with me?" Pansy asked.
"I've already talked to Finley," Draco repeated slowly. Pansy put on her best pouting face. She looked more like a pug than ever.
"Are you sure there isn't room for one more in your little party?" she asked.
"YES!" Draco spat. He jerked his arm away from Pansy and stomped off down the hall. Pansy hurried after him.
"Stay away from me Parkinson," Draco warned.
"Do you remember what happened to Blaise when we did the scavenger hunt?" Pansy asked. Draco cringed but Pansy didn't notice.
"And my daddy," Pansy began.
"Shove it Pansy, so is my dad," Draco interrupted her. Pansy frowned at him.
"You shouldn't say that too loudly anyway," Draco instructed.
"Oh great, so first I get rejected then I get lessons on how to be a good child of a death eater," Pansy spat. Draco glared at her and started up the stairs towards the Great Hall.
%%%%%
"Hi you guys!" Hermione said happily as the four Gryffindors stepped over to the three Hufflepuffs and Mandy, the lone Ravenclaw.
"Hey Hermione," Ernie replied, quite energetically.
"Do you guys all know each other?" Hermione asked, looking around at her friends and at Ernie's. Most of the fifth years nodded, but Ginny shook her head.
"I'm Ernie, that's Justin, Mandy, and you should know Hannah by now," Ernie explained, glancing at Harry when he made his statement about Hannah.
"I'm Ginny," Ginny replied.
"And we know the rest of you," Justin said before anyone else could introduce themselves unnecessarily.
"I should hope so, we only have two classes together," Hermione laughed.
"Where is Fred?" Hannah asked.
"He decided to spend today with his seventh year friends," Hermione lied easily.
"So where are we going first?" Justin asked.
"Honeydukes!" Ron and Ernie said immediately.
"Boys, you just had breakfast," Hermione scolded.
"So?" Ron asked innocently. Ernie just laughed.
"We should probably go buy Dobby some socks to thank him for letting us borrow his tea cozy." Harry said.
"Socks?" Hannah asked.
"Dobby?" Mandy questioned.
"Dobby the house elf," Ron answered Mandy's question.
"He likes socks," Harry explained to Hannah.
"Why?" Ernie asked.
"Because a sock got him freed from the Malfoys," Ron explained.
"Scum," Justin mumbled under his breath.
"What was that?" Ron asked.
"He called the Malfoys scum," Mandy said.
"They're not all bad," Ron said defensively.
"Okay, so the little girl one seems alright," Justin admitted.
"Can we start walking towards Hogsmeade?" Ernie asked, looking in the direction of the village. The group didn't offer a verbal response but instead set off towards the village.
"Can we go to Zonko's?" Justin asked as they walked.
"How about you boys go to Zonko's and we girls will go to Gladrags for socks," Hermione suggested. She wanted to keep herself as far away from Zonko's as possible.
"I'd rather shop for socks," Harry said quickly. He wanted to avoid the twins at all costs.
"I'd quite like to go to Zonko's," Mandy said, smiling quickly at Ron.
"Okay, so you boys and Mandy will go to Zonko's and we girls and Harry will go to Gladrags," Hermione laughed.
"Sounds about right," Ron muttered. Harry glared at him.
"So what are the rest of you doing your History of magic projects on?" Ernie asked.
"The night Voldemort fell," Hannah said, smiling softly over at Harry.
"The ministry during the first reign," Hermione said.
"Really now? That's interesting," Ernie, Hermione's partner, laughed.
"Quidditch," Ron said.
"Figures," laughed Mandy.
"Fashion during the first reign," Justin said. Everyone looked at him, more than a little surprised. "What?" He asked, "That's what happens when you get Lavender Brown for a partner." Hermione laughed appreciatively.
"Advances made in protection against certain curses developed during the first reign," Mandy said.
"Who is your partner?" Hermione asked.
"Blaise Zabini. He's actually not too bad for a Slytherin," Mandy laughed.
"For a Slytherin," Hannah echoed with a slight laugh.
"Hey, I was just thinking about this Zonko's thing," Ron said. He hadn't looked happy since he was chosen to face the wrath of the twins.
"And?" Hermione asked.
"What is the point of coming in a big group if we're going to split up into our littler groups almost immediately?" He asked, shooting a playfully malicious glance at Harry, Hermione and Ginny. His three friends all glared at him.
"He has a valid point," Hannah agreed.
"So we'll go to Gladrags if you all come with us to Zonko's," Ernie offered. Harry and Ginny both looked to Hermione for an answer.
"Sounds like a plan to me," Hermione replied. Harry's and Ginny's jaws dropped and a triumphant look spread across Ron's face.
"Why Hermione?" Harry whispered.
"If he subjects me to anything, I simply won't kiss him for a while," Hermione laughed.
"Good plan," Harry said, "But what about George?"
"Forget about George, what about the rest of us!" Ginny cried.
"What are you guy's talking about?" Justin asked.
"Twin issues," Ginny replied smoothly, not fully lying.
"The Weasley twins?" Ernie asked.
"Which others are there?" Ron replied.
"Patil and Malfoy," Mandy offered.
"Sad Ron, Astrid and Parvati are both in your house and you forgot about them," Harry laughed.
"Astrid especially," Ginny added. Ron glared playfully at both of them,
"How is life with little Malfoy?" Ernie asked.
"Wouldn't know," Ron replied crisply.
"Why wouldn't you?" Justin queried.
"He lives in Slytherin. Now if you were asking about Astrid, she's a pretty cool little kid," Ron explained.
"Aren't you afraid she's passing information to her death eater brothers?" Mandy asked.
"Not really," Hermione said, "The Malfoy siblings aren't great fans of the others."
"Draco and Keiran seem to get along rather well," Mandy said.
"But neither of them seem to care much for their sisters," Ron explained.
"Sisters?" Hannah asked.
"They've got a little sister, Emma, too," Ginny replied. Ginny didn't know about Barrett.
"Oh wow!" Ernie laughed.
"Do any of you have any siblings?" Harry asked, relatively anxious to get the topic away from the Malfoys.
"I have an older sister, Lisa, and a younger sister, Dawn," Justin offered, "But neither of them are magical."
"I have a younger brother, Robert, who will be a first year next year and a sister, Zoë, who is two years younger than Robert," Ernie said. The group looked to Mandy.
"I have four older brothers. Carter was a seventh year here when we were first years. Kevin, Drew and Lennon are all older than him," Mandy said. Ginny turned to Mandy with a broad smile on her face. "Finally someone else with too many older brothers!" she laughed. Mandy laughed too.
"They're not so bad because they're so much older than me," Mandy explained.
"Lennon?" Ron asked.
"I'm muggle born. My parents are quite the fans of the Beatles," Mandy said, "they were actually in London during the Let It Be rooftop concert." Ron looked unimpressed, but Hermione turned to Mandy with an awestruck expression on her face. "Your parents were THERE!?" Hermione squealed.
"I take it someone else is a Beatles fan too," Mandy laughed. Hermione nodded enthusiastically.
"Who, may I ask, are the Beatles?" Ron asked.
"Remember when you saw my stereo this summer at my house?" Hermione asked. Ron nodded. "The first song we ever listened to was by the Beatles."
"Oh, the 'nah nah nah nanana nah, na na na nah,' bit?" Ron asked.
"Something like that," Hermione replied with a laugh.
"'Hey Jude'?" Hannah asked. Hermione nodded.
"You like them too?" Ron asked. Hannah smiled and nodded at Ron.
"Are they very famous?" Ron questioned.
"They're to music what Shakespeare is to theatre," Justin replied.
"Shakespeare?"
"Just leave it at the Beatles are famous," Hermione said, shaking her head at her friend.
"Don't worry Ron, I didn't get it until I lived with these two for a few years," Ernie said, clapping Ron on his shoulder and indicated to Hannah and Justin.
"Over Christmas we'll have to bring my CD player to your house and listen to some things," Hermione offered.
"Are you kidding? My father would confiscate a CD player to add to his collection in half a second," Ron laughed.
"He's right, dad would," Ginny agreed. Hermione and Harry laughed appreciatively.
"Our father is a bit nuts over anything muggle," Ron explained to the confused Hufflepuffs and Mandy.
"He has a collection of plugs and batteries," Harry added.
"Really?" Hannah asked. Ginny and Ron nodded solemnly.
"Are you sure we can't go to Honeydukes first?" Ernie asked. The group passed the first few houses marking the entrance to Hogsmeade.
"Zonko's, then Gladrags, then Honeydukes," Hermione insisted.
"Okay Miss Organized," Ernie laughed. Hermione glared at him.
"Do we really have to go to Zonko's?' Ginny asked.
"Yes, I'm out of dungbombs," Ernie replied. He turned towards the joke shop and everyone followed him, the Gryffindors more reluctant than the others. Ernie pulled open the door to the shop and was almost immediately bowled over by a tall sales woman holding a tray of delicious looking tarts.
"Have a tart dear," said the woman, "Today is Zonko's 25th anniversary so we're celebrating." Ernie picked up a tart off of the tray and examined it carefully. Accepting a treat in a joke shop wasn't necessarily the wisest idea, but the store was decorated with floating balloons and streamers that twisted themselves in intricate patters near the ceiling. Every so often, a balloon would burst and shower the shop in glitter. Ernie figured the tart was okay so he popped it into his mouth and chewed vigorously.
"Man these are good," Ernie said, turning to his friends. Justin immediately reached for a tart and swallowed it quickly. Hannah and Mandy reached for the tray, but Harry leaned over to Hannah.
"Don't go there," he whispered, "this is a joke shop after all." Hannah quickly pulled her hand away. Harry noticed Ron telling Mandy about the same thing.
"SQUAWK!" came the only sound Ernie could manage from his mouth-turned beak. Justin's eyes grew wide and he clamped a feathery wing to his still human mouth. Quickly enough, he, too, was a bird.
"Thanks, Ron," Mandy laughed. Justin squawked angrily at them all.
"Don't worry, it only lasts a few minutes," Ginny said.
"Are the twins behind this?" Mandy asked.
"Didn't Ernie say he needed dungbombs?" Ron asked, hurrying off towards the dungbomb display. Harry followed him closely. Hermione and Ginny immediately immersed themselves in perusing a case full of fake wands.
"Take that as a yes," Hannah laughed. Justin and Ernie squawked off after Ron and Harry. None of the girls noticed the full to bursting balloon hovering over their heads. A loud popping noise startled Hermione and Ginny away from the fake wands. Hannah and Mandy turned to look at the two Gryffindor girls. A fine glittery powder began to settle over all of them.
"Oh neat, we got hit by one of the exploding balloons," Mandy squealed. Hannah tried to brush the glitter out of her hair.
"Oh my!" Hermione exclaimed. She looked from Ginny to Mandy to Hannah.
"What is it, Hermione?" Mandy asked.
"I believe we got hit by a joke," Hermione replied.
"HERMIONE YOUR HAIR IS PURPLE!" Hannah cried.
"Yours is lime green," Hermione said. Mandy pulled a strand of her formerly brown now bright blue hair around to examine it.
"Oh no!" She complained, "how will he ever notice me now with blue hair?"
"He who?" Hermione asked.
"I figure blue hair will make you more noticeable," Ginny laughed.
"I can't say," Mandy replied, "And blue hair doesn't exactly make me attractive."
"Mine is blaze orange, don't complain," Ginny instructed.
"He who?" Hermione asked again, raising her eyebrows at Mandy.
"Can't say," Mandy repeated.
"Can't or don't want to?" Ginny asked.
"Don't really want to," Mandy clarified.
"If we guess will you tell us?" Hermione asked, her bright purple hair quickly forgotten. Mandy looked nervously at Hannah.
"If she doesn't I will," Hannah said with a smile.
"HANNAH!" Mandy cried, "YOU WOULDN'T!"
"Mandy," Hannah replied, "I would."
"Alright, guess," Mandy said grumpily.
"Um," Ginny began, "Harry."
"Nope," Mandy replied, flashing an evil grin at Hannah. Hannah turned a bright shade of red that directly contrasted with her green hair.
"Ernie," Hermione suggested.
"Nope," Mandy said.
"Justin," Ginny guessed.
"No," Mandy said. Hannah laughed sort of nervously.
"Well, just so we've guessed everyone in today's group," Ginny began.
"Ron," Hermione finished.
"Yes," Mandy mumbled. She instantly looked at her shoes and turned redder than Hannah had been a few moments earlier.
"Now its only fair that you two tell us who you like," she said.
"Fred," Hermione replied.
"As if that's not obvious," Mandy said, playfully rolling her eyes at Hermione.
"I'm actually sort of, what would you call it Hermione?" Ginny asked.
"You like him and he likes you but circumstances won't allow the two of you to be together," Hermione replied.
"Right, what she said," Ginny said.
"How romantic," Mandy squealed.
"Who is it?" Hannah asked.
"He goes to Beauxbatons," Ginny replied.
"How even more romantic! He speaks French!" Hannah cried.
"Don't get her started on some of the stuff he's said to her," Hermione replied. Ginny glared at her friend.
"So who is it?" Hannah asked again.
"Braeden Granger," Ginny replied.
"Wait, Granger?" Mandy asked, immediately looking at Hermione.
"He's my 16 year old cousin. He's a sixth year at Beauxbatons," Hermione explained.
"We met at Hermione's house this summer," Ginny added.
"So what does he look like?" Hannah asked.
"He's about Ron's height, but skinnier. He's got blonde hair and bright blue eyes and he plays keeper for their school Quidditch team," Ginny explained.
"Sounds cute," Mandy said.
"I thought you liked my brother," Ginny said, smirking at Mandy. Mandy immediately turned bright red.
"There is nothing wrong with that," Hermione replied, patting Mandy on her shoulder.
"You only say that because you like one of my other brothers," Ginny laughed.
"Yes," Hermione replied, "And you like my cousin, so you just lost your privilege to talk about us liking your brothers."
"So Hannah, who do you like?" Ginny asked, turning on the Hufflepuff.
"Oh please, as if that's not blatantly obvious," Mandy sighed. Hannah glared at her.
"Come on Hannah, tell us," Hermione urged. Hannah blushed the brightest blush Hermione had ever seen on someone who wasn't a Weasley.
"Lemme repeat myself," Mandy said, "It's blatantly obvious." Hannah glared at Mandy again.
"Harry," Ginny and Hermione chorused. Hannah smiled sheepishly and nodded at the two girls.
"Are we discussing Hannah's celebrity crush?" Ernie asked. He had molted and walked back towards the girls.
"Yes," Mandy laughed.
"Harry's not a celebrity," Hermione insisted.
"No, he's only the most famous wizard in the world but he's not a celebrity," Ernie countered sarcastically.
"He doesn't act like it," Ginny defended her friend.
"I'll give him that," Ernie agreed.
"Are you guys ready to go?" Hannah asked.
"No wait, I need dungbombs," Mandy insisted.
"Be careful. We can't leave yet because whoever has gotten in here today charmed the floor in front of the dungbombs to turn gooey and then re harden when your shoes are sunk a few centimeters in if you stand there too long," Ernie explained. Mandy started over to where Harry, Ron and Justin still stood.
"I'll keep that in mind," Mandy said.
"Nice hair, by the way," Ernie laughed. Mandy glared at him.
"So Harry and Ron remain the only two who haven't been hit by a prank," Hermione said.
"Not exactly. They're stuck there in front of the dungbombs for a while longer," Ernie said.
"Why?" Ginny asked.
"They got stuck in the floor and the sales lady said it would take a few minutes to wear off," Ernie explained.
"Great," Hermione laughed.
"What exactly happened to your hair?" Ernie asked.
"I'd watch out for the exploding balloons," Hermione advised.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Ernie asked.
"They pop and dump glitter on your head that makes your hair do this," Hannah said, indicating to the lime green hair on her head.
"You know, Hannah, that's not a bad color on you," Ernie laughed. Hannah glared at him.
"Harry will simply love it," Ernie continued.
"You are not funny Ernest McMillan," Hannah spat.
"Oohhh, full name," Ginny chided.
"Actually that's Ernest Andrew McMillan," Ernie corrected. Ginny and Hermione both laughed. Mandy started back towards the group with a bag of dungbombs in her hand.
"You didn't get caught by the floor," Ernie said.
"Ron didn't let me step on it. I pointed to what I wanted and he handed it to me," Mandy explained.
"How SSSWWWWWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTTTTTT!!!" Ernie gushed in what, even if he didn't mean it to be, was a dead-on Lavender/Parvati imitation.
"Why would you ever need dungbombs?" Hermione asked.
"Those Ravenclaws need to loosen up a bit," Mandy replied with a smile.
"So you help them out on occasion?" Ginny guessed.
"Yep," Mandy laughed. She and Ernie started over towards the counter to pay for their selections.
"I wonder how much long this hair color will last," Hannah said.
"Oh, it should be gone in at least 24 hours," the saleslady with the tray of tarts said from behind the girls.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Hannah cried.
"No. It could wear off quicker. The designers said it's differed from person to person on all of the people they've tested it on," the lady explained.
"Who exactly are the designers?" Hannah asked.
"I don't necessarily think they want anyone to know until this test of their products is over," the lady replied.
"Are they twins?" Hannah asked.
"Yes," the lady replied. Hannah turned to Ginny and glared at her.
"Did you know about this?" she asked.
"We all did," Hermione replied.
"Thus the reason you wanted to go to Gladrags," Hannah supplied. Hermione and Ginny both nodded.
"Why didn't you talk Ron out of his stupid idea of everyone staying together?" Hannah asked.
"Hermione didn't think her precious Fred would pull any pranks on her," Ginny replied.
"That and it would have looked rather suspicious," Hermione said, glaring at Ginny.
"You don't know Fred very well," Ginny laughed. Hannah shook her head at the two of them.
"Now that Fred and George have successfully pranked all of us," Ron said as he walked over to the group.
"Some of us twice," Justin muttered. The floor caught him, too.
"Are you ready to go to Gladrags?" Ron continued.
"I don't know if I can show my face in Gladrags with hair like this," Hermione replied.
"It's a nice color on you," Ron laughed. Hermione glared at him.
"Could we at least step outside to decide what to do next before we get caught by anything else?" Justin asked, looking warily around. The group began walking towards the door but was stopped by a different sales person.
"Have some candies," the man offered.
"NO THANK YOU!" Justin cried just before tearing through the door. The rest of the group politely declined and hurried after Justin.
"And there aren't anything wrong with these," laughed the man.
"So Gladrags then?" Justin asked.
"No thank you," Ginny and Mandy both said.
"I don't particularly fancy going anywhere with this hair," Hannah agreed. Hermione pulled her wand out of her pocket and muttered a quick spell. Soon enough, she had a Gryffindor-red bandana in her hand. She pulled a clip out of her backpack and clipped her hair up. Then she covered the expanse of purple with the red bandana and tied it at the back of her neck.
"Cute, Hermione," Hannah said.
"Thanks," Hermione replied.
"I
want one," whined Mandy.
"Your hair
doesn't look so bad," Ron said.
"Are you kidding? I look like Finley Alexander!"
"What?" Ron asked.
"Haven't you seen her?" Mandy replied, "she's put blue streaks in her hair."
"She has?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Hannah replied, "but her hair is dark enough that it doesn't look bad."
"So are we going to Gladrags?" Justin asked.
"As soon as Hermione makes me a bandana," Hannah replied sweetly.
"I think I'll leave my hair like this," Mandy said. Ron's compliment had changed her opinion of her electric blue hair.
"What color?" Hermione asked.
"Purple," Hannah replied. Hermione muttered a spell and then handed Hannah a purple bandana. Hannah tied it over her lime green hair.
"Ginny?" Hermione asked. Ginny waved one of her bright orange tresses at Hermione.
"How much of a difference do you really think this is?" She asked. Everyone laughed appreciatively.
"So we can go now?" Ron asked when they had all calmed down. Hermione and Mandy started walking towards Gladrags in lieu of a response.
"So you really like Ron?" Hermione asked Mandy. She had quickly looked back to make sure her tall red-headed friend was well out of earshot. Sure enough, He, Harry, Justin, Hannah and Ernie were consumed in a conversation, probably about Quidditch.
"Yes," Mandy admitted.
"He's a sweet guy," Hermione said, "but not much of a kisser."
"You've kissed him?" Mandy asked.
"Once," Hermione replied, "but it was like kissing my brother. He agreed that it was like kissing a sibling."
"That's pretty funny," Mandy laughed.
"It was," Hermione agreed.
"So does this mean I have your permission to pursue him?' Mandy asked.
"Of course. Why wouldn't you? I mean, I'm dating his brother, not him," Hermione said.
"Good point. Its just that the three of you are so close that I wasn't sure how it would go over."
"I don't think you're going to get any sort of problems or interference from me or Harry," Hermione said, "but Ron can be a stubborn arse sometimes. And a bit oblivious."
"Oblivious?" Mandy asked.
"Oblivious. It took him three and a half years to realize I was a girl," Hermione laughed.
"Oh my," Mandy said.
"But don't worry. I think he's become a bit better at identifying our gender," Hermione replied.
"Oh. You won't say anything to him will you?" Mandy asked.
"Nope," Hermione said, "And Ginny won't either. Unless of course you want us too!"
"NO!" Mandy exclaimed.
"Alright," Hermione replied.
"What are you girls talking about?" Ginny asked, walking over to Hermione and Mandy.
"Your brother," Hermione replied.
"Which one?" Ginny asked.
"Alroy," Hermione replied. Ginny laughed.
"His middle name is Alroy?" Mandy asked.
"Yep," Ginny replied, "mum reckoned it would be cute."
"It's not," Mandy said.
"Well. It is when you factor in that all of my brothers middle names mean red or red haired," Ginny explained.
"Okay, that is a bit cuter. What is your middle name?"
"Eirene," Ginny said, "yours?"
"LeighAnne," Mandy replied.
"Amanda LeighAnne?" Ginny asked.
"Yep," Mandy said, "And yours Hermione?"
"Hermione Lenore."
"That's pretty."
"Thanks."
"We're HERE!" Justin cried. He pulled open the door to Gladrags and led the way inside.
"Does Justin like clothes shopping or something?" Ginny asked.
"I think he just likes to be goofy," Mandy replied quickly. Justin headed straight for a rack of feather boas and picked out a pink one. He wrapped it around his neck and turned to the group.
"How do I look?" He asked.
"Like a gigantic moron!" Ernie cried.
"That hurt," Justin said, taking a few steps backwards. He stepped into a rack of hats and turned to look at them. He chose a fuzzy green cowboy hat from the very top of the rack. He turned back around to look at Hannah.
"Hannah, dahling, this would go fabulously with that wonderful new hairstyle of yours!" he cried, dropping the hat onto Hannah's head. It clashed horribly with the purple bandana.
"Justin, Halloween isn't for another month," Hannah laughed.
"Oh, right," Justin said, allowing the boa to drop from his shoulders.
"Socks!" Harry exclaimed, running over towards the sock display. Ron and Hermione hurried after him.
"So what kind should we get?" Hermione asked, surveying the wall of socks in front of her.
"What were you and Mandy talking about?" Ron asked rather conspiratorially.
"Nothing," Hermione replied, a little too quickly.
"You two sure did have an awfully long conversation about nothing," Ron joked. Hermione smiled at her friend.
"You're not going to tell me are you?" Ron asked.
"Nope," Hermione replied.
"If I guess will you tell me?" Ron asked.
"Probably not," Hermione said, honestly.
"Who does she like?" Ron questioned.
"Not telling," Hermione said.
"So you know?" Ron asked.
"Yes," Hermione replied.
"Tell me," Ron insisted.
"Nope," Hermione said, "I promised her I wouldn't tell anyone."
"If I guess will you tell me?" Ron asked.
"Nope," Hermione replied.
"Do I have a chance?" Ron asked.
"Have you realized she's a girl?" Hermione asked.
"You're never going to let me live that down are you?" Hermione thought about Ron's question for a moment.
"Probably not," she replied honestly.
"So do I have a chance?" Ron asked again.
"You'll never know until you try," Hermione replied.
"Okay, I think I've found some!" Harry exclaimed, holding up two pairs of socks. One pair was striped in the colors of the girl's hair. The other was a multitude of colors, swirling wildly about.
"They're mood changing," Harry explained when he noticed Ron and Hermione eyeing the socks, "And these are a different pattern every day of the week."
"Those colors are horrid together," Hermione said.
"They're what we'd have if we lined you, Hannah, Ginny and Mandy up next to each other and you and Hannah took the bandana's off," Ron laughed.
"Not funny, Alroy," Hermione cried.
"I thought it was," Ron laughed. Hermione glared at him.
"Children, that's enough," Harry scolded in a highly fatherly way. Hermione and Ron both turned to him with pouts on their faces. He laughed at both of them. "Really mature mates, really mature." He started off to pay for the socks so Ron and Hermione returned to Ernie, Justin, Ginny, Hannah and Mandy. Justin had draped the pink boa around Mandy's shoulders and was spinning her about the store. Hannah and Ginny had each chosen a hat and pair of sunglasses from the costume section of the store. They were both talking to Ernie, who was trying his hardest to pretend as if he didn't know them. Ginny had pulled on a red, yellow, and green stocking cap with fake black dread locks that hung down over her blaze orange hair. She wore pink, star shaped sunglasses. Hannah had chosen a big floppy straw hat and large aviator sunglasses. Ron and Hermione had to laugh at the sight of the girls, but since they were so busy terrorizing Ernie, they didn't seem to notice. The bells above the door tinkled and a group of students walked in.
"Hiya Ron, Hermione!" Colin Creevey called from the back of the group.
"Hey Colin, come here for a second, will you?" Ron asked. Ginny and Hannah hadn't abandoned their ridiculous outfits when more people arrived and Mandy and Justin were still dancing wildly about.
"Yes?" Colin asked.
"Do you have your camera?" Ron asked.
"Of course," Colin replied. He pulled the camera from a pocket of his robe.
"Can you get a picture of Hannah, Ginny and Ernie and them maybe Justin and Mandy?" Hermione asked.
"Sure thing," Colin agreed cheerily. He turned and aimed the camera at Ernie, Hannah and Ginny. He snapped the picture. As soon as the flash went off, Hannah and Ginny turned on Colin.
"Colin Padraig Creevey!" Ginny screeched. Colin pointed over to still dancing Mandy and Justin.
"Let me get a quick picture of them and hand my camera off to someone, then you can rip my head off!" He insisted. He clicked a quick picture of Mandy and Justin before Ginny and Hannah could agree, disagree, or even really begin to process his statement. He stuffed the camera back in its pocket the turned back to Ginny and Hannah.
"Alright, let the attack of Bob Marley and Grandma the police man commence," he announced.
"Where was I?" Ginny asked.
"Colin Padraig Creevey?" Hannah guessed.
"Oh, right," Ginny replied. "COLIN PADRAIG CREEVEY!!"
"Yes?" Colin asked sweetly, as if dealing with a raving Ginny Weasley was nothing new to him.
"Why?" Ginny cried.
"You know Gin, you'd be much easier to take seriously if you'd loose the dreads and the movie star sunglasses," Colin suggested. Ginny ripped the hat off of her head and pulled the sunglasses from her face. Only then did Colin catch sight of her day-glo orange hair. He erupted with laugher.
"I take that back," Colin gasped, "With that hair, you're no less easy to take seriously!"
"Not funny, Colin," Hannah warned. She, too, had removed her hat and glasses but the purple bandana covered her lime-green hair.
"What happened?" Colin asked.
"Accident at Zonko's," Hannah replied, pulling the bandana from her hair and letting her lime green hair fall about her shoulders.
"How long is that supposed to last?" Colin laughed.
"The inventors of the product aren't quite sure," Ginny replied, quite acerbically.
"Would the inventors be your twin brothers?" Colin asked.
"Hey you guys, I'm ready to go!" Harry cried, walking towards the small group.
"Alright," Ron and Ginny said, a little too enthusiastically. Harry's interruption had gotten them out of answering Colin's question.
"To Honeydukes?" Harry asked.
"TO HONEYDUKES!" Ernie cried. He held his fist out from in front of him like a muggle superhero and ran out of Gladrags. The group trailed after him a bit less enthusiastically.
*****
"Did Pansy give you much trouble?" Finley asked as she and Draco walked towards Hogsmeade.
"Not really," Draco replied with a slight laugh.
"Surprising," Finley said.
"She wanted to 'celebrate' her dad being inducted," Draco explained.
"He is now?" Finley asked.
"Yes," Draco replied.
"Daddy is expecting to get his invitation letter any time now," Finley said.
"Really?" Draco asked.
"Yes," Finley replied. She tucked a strand of blue hair behind her ear.
"What exactly possessed you to do that?" Draco asked, as if noticing Finley's week-old blue-streaked black hair for the first time.
"I think it looks cute," Finley replied.
"Oh," Draco said.
"And if you don't think so, I don't particularly care," Finley continued. Draco smirked down at her. Finley, at 5'2", had more attitude packed in her diminutive body than any one person probably should.
"I didn't say anything," Draco cried.
"But you were thinking it," Finley accused.
"Right. Since when did you become Trelawney?" Draco asked.
"Since the fates informed me that you can be an arrogant prick when you want to be," Finley replied.
"Ouch!" Draco said, playfully.
"Notice I said can be and want to be," Finley pointed out.
"Yes, I noticed. Very good, you've gained control of the English language," Draco laughed.
"You've gained the ability to walk upright and opposable thumbs," Finley snapped, "Better than I can say for most of your gender."
"Oh, so is that why you decided to come with me today?" Draco asked, "I'm the best option you have because the rest are gorillas?"
"Ah, something like that," Finley joked. Draco glared at her.
"I think I shall go find Crabbe and Goyle and inform them you would like to spend the rest of the day with them," Draco said. He began walking with a faster pace and a more purposeful stride. Finley caught the arm of his robe.
"Draco, NO!" she cried.
"Crabbe! Goyle!" Draco called in response. Finley tugged on his sleeve a little harder.
"DRACO MALFOY!" She cried.
"Yes?" Draco asked. He stopped dead in his tracks, causing Finley to crash into him. He looked down on her with an innocent smile on his face. Innocent for Draco Malfoy, that is.
"You are such a prat!" Finley exclaimed and stomped off towards Hogsmeade.
"If I'm such a prat, why are you spending time with me?" Draco asked.
"It's keeping us both away from undesirable people isn't it?" Finley queried.
"Wait, who is undesirable to you?"
"Debra Bulstrode is quite annoying," Finley replied, "And Frank Smith."
"Who is Frank Smith?" Draco asked.
"Ariadne's little brother," Finley said.
"Oh," Draco replied.
"Yeah, Debra and Frank aren't my favorite people on the planet, but they insist on following me around."
"Much like Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle," Draco said.
"I thought you liked Crabbe and Goyle." The pair had resumed their walk towards Hogsmeade at a more leisurely pace.
"Not exactly. Lucius made an agreement of some sorts with their fathers that they would act as bodyguards for me while I'm here," Draco replied.
"Why the hell do you need bodyguards?" Finley asked.
"Lucius is a sick fuck," Draco replied, "And that's the best reason I can think of. Of course, they weren't much help this summer."
"What happened this summer?" Finley asked.
"I got into a bit of a fight with Weasel, Potter and a mudblood," Draco replied. "I waited for Crabbe and Goyle to step in, but the mudblood broke my jaw."
"Granger broke your jaw?" Finley asked.
"Yes, but not the one you're thinking of. She's got a cousin who goes to Beauxbatons and it was him," Draco replied.
"Oh," Finley said.
"Stupid bodyguards aren't even useful when you need them to be," Draco muttered. Finley laughed easily at him.
"So where are we going first?" Finley asked.
"How about the Three Broomsticks, I'm in quite the mood for lunch," Draco replied. Because of the meeting in the common room, he and Finley had gotten a quite late start to Hogsmeade.
"Sounds good to me," Finley replied, "then we need to go to Zonko's. I need some dungbombs and fireworks."
"Alright," Draco agreed.
*****
"Finally! Food!" Ernie cried, sinking into a large circular booth in the Three Broomsticks.
"Like you didn't eat enough from Honeydukes," Hannah chided. She slid onto the bench after him. Justin slid in on the other side followed closely by Ginny. Ron took a seat next to his sister. Harry and Hermione practically dived after Hannah before Mandy could sit next to her friend. Hermione smiled guiltily up at Mandy while Harry smirked across the table at Ron. Mandy huffily sat down next to Ron.
"Shall I go order?" Harry asked the group.
"Certainly," Hermione replied.
"Fish and chips and butterbeer for everyone?" Harry questioned. He received a round of affirmative nods. Hermione moved to allow Harry out of the booth.
"What are we going to do after this?" Justin asked.
"Shall we walk up to the Shrieking Shack?" Ginny suggested.
"Good idea baby Weasley," Justin laughed.
"Don't call me that," Ginny warned.
"What are you going to do about it?" Justin jokingly replied.
"Baby Weasley implies I have older siblings," Ginny began, "Six of them to be exact. And all of them are brothers." Ron glared appropriately menacingly over at Justin. Justin cowered back in feigned fear.
"Down boy," Hermione and Ginny joked at the same time. Ron instantly smiled at Justin.
"When is our food going to be here? I'm starving!" Ernie whined.
"Ron," Hermione laughed, "I believe we may have found someone who is more continually hungry than you are."
"Not possible," Ron replied.
"I don't know," Hannah replied, "Ernie found the kitchens within three weeks of being at Hogwarts."
"It took Ron until last year and even then I had to show him," Hermione laughed.
"You mean you found the kitchens before Ron did?" Hannah asked.
"Yes. But Fred and George told me. It's not like I actually went looking for them," Hermione explained.
"Is something wrong with Harry?" Hannah asked suddenly. Every head at the table snapped over to where the famous boy stood in line, furiously and repetitively raking his fingers across his forehead.
"What makes you say that?" Hermione asked.
"He hasn't taken his hands off of his forehead for a while now," Hannah explained.
"He's probably okay," Ron said.
"Dandruff?" Hermione suggested.
"He has dark hair, Hannah would notice if he had dandruff," Mandy replied quickly. She looked quite happy in her seat next to Ron. Hannah glared testily at her.
"Does his scar really hurt?" Ernie asked.
"Sometimes," Ron said.
"Oh wow. I figured most of that was rumor," Ernie said. Hermione noticed Hannah looking down at her hands.
"I think we should quit talking about Harry until he gets back over here," Hermione said, a tone of finality in her voice.
"When is the first school Quidditch match?" Justin asked.
"December against Durmstrang," Ron replied.
"When do you all travel to France?" Ernie asked.
"Not soon enough," Ginny replied.
"February," Hermione came up with a more reasonable reply.
"Why are you so excited about the France match?" Justin asked.
"Her BOYFRIEND is on the Beauxbatons team," Mandy replied.
"He's not my boyfriend," Ginny said, looking sadly at the table.
"The guy she likes is on the Beauxbatons team," Hermione corrected.
"Hey, guys look at that!" Ron quietly exclaimed, pointing to the door. Instantly six heads snapped in the direction of his finger.
"Way to be discrete," Ron laughed. Draco Malfoy had just strolled through the door with his arm draped lazily around one Finley Alexander.
"What's so surprising about that?" Mandy asked.
"A girl, voluntarily being seen with that git?" Ron questioned.
"A girl who isn't Pansy Parkinson," Hermione amended.
"Does Parkinson count anyway?" Ernie asked.
"She's an insult to our gender," Hannah insisted.
"I'm going to go see if Harry needs help with the butter beer," Ron said suddenly. Mandy stood up and let him out of the booth and then slid back in next to Ginny. He started over towards his friend.
"Hermione Lenore Granger, you and Harry are going to get it for that little trick!" Mandy exclaimed as soon as Ron was out of earshot.
"Don't worry about them Mandy, my brother is completely oblivious," Ginny said.
"He probably wrote it off as Harry wanting to sit next to Hannah, and where I'm left handed, I need to sit here," Hermione said, indicating the place she sat.
"You're left handed?" Ernie asked.
"Well no, but it took Ron 4 years to notice I'm a girl, do you think he's going to notice which hand I feed myself with?"
"Oh come on, he's not that completely oblivious!" Mandy exclaimed.
"Want to bet?" Hermione replied with a sweet smile.
"He really is," Ginny agreed.
"Oh wow, it's the mudblood without her precious Potty and Weasel," Draco sneered from the open section of the table.
"Oh wow, it's the pureblood prick without his bollocks," Ginny spat, glaring at Draco.
"You know, Brocklehurst, that look is better on me," Finley said, looking at Mandy's electric blue locks.
"We didn't have a choice in our hair color," Ginny said, glaring at Finley.
"I don't see a difference in yours," Draco replied coolly. Luckily, Ginny couldn't do wandless magic, so Draco didn't freeze under her deathly stare.
"Problems?" Ron asked as he and Harry approached the table, each carrying four butter beers. At the reappearance of Ron and Harry, Draco tightened his grip on Finley and pulled her towards a far corner.
"He is such an arse," Ron said, as more of a statement than the exclamation the situation would usually call for.
"That, he is," Ernie said. Harry dragged his knuckles across his scar again as he sank into his seat next to Hannah.
"Harry dear, does your head itch?" Hannah asked. Harry nodded dumbly, still rubbing his forehead.
"Leave it to Abbott to be really blunt about it," Mandy laughed.
"Oh, it's alright," Harry said, taking a sip of his butter beer and leaning back in his seat, trying to ignore the persistent and noticeably worse itching in his forehead.
*****
"What did you want?" Astrid asked the lone figure at the end of the hall. She clutched a crumpled piece of parchment in her right hand and kept her left on her wand still in her pocket.
"So you decided to abandon your hero worship of Potter and Weasley to meet me here?" Keiran asked. He turned away from the portrait in the hallway to look at his sister.
"You know as well as I do, Keiran Malfoy, that Harry and Ron are in Hogsmeade with everyone else above third year," Astrid spat, hand still steady on her wand.
"So what do you know about Harry and Ron?" Keiran asked.
"Well, Harry has green eyes, Ron has red hair, they both play Quidditch," Astrid began.
"Useful information, Astrid, useful!" Keiran insisted, crossing his arms defensively across his chest. Astrid glared at him.
"Harry sleeps in his boxers and Ron likes to sleep with the bed curtains open," Astrid said, glare morphing to a Malfoy smirk.
"How do you know?" Keiran asked. His eyes narrowed and Astrid could almost see the thoughts processing in his head.
"Sarcasm, Keiran, sarcasm," Astrid replied.
"You're a disgrace to the Malfoy name," Keiran spat. Astrid took a few steps back from his twin.
"No, Keiran, I'm not," Astrid said evenly, "I just might be able to redeem it."
"I personally don't see the point of having a twin in Gryffindor if you're not even going to make yourself useful," Keiran spat.
"Oh, so we're twins now?" Astrid asked, "What's different now than the previous eleven years."
"Oh I give up, your traitorous Gryffindor tendencies are too much to deal with," Keiran said, "you're a disgrace to the Malfoy name."
"I believe we've established that," Astrid replied.
"You're nothing without your family Astrid, NOTHING!" Keiran exclaimed.
"No Keiran, you're wrong," Astrid replied, turning swiftly on her heel.
"Oh am I?" Keiran asked.
"Yes," Astrid replied as she walked away, "YOU'RE nothing without ME!"
*****
"Mother you are too kind!" Carter Brocklehurst said as he sank his teeth into a warm chocolate chip cookie. He leaned over and planted a sloppy, chocolaty kiss on his mother's cheek.
"Thanks Carter," Clare replied, wiping the chocolate from her face.
"Are you gonna send some to Mandy?" Carter asked.
"I think I will do just that," Clare replied. She turned her back to her youngest son and started towards a cabinet to get a container for the cookies.
"Want me to owl them to her?" Carter asked.
"Yes please, I hate dealing with that horrid animal!" Clare exclaimed as she placed cookies into a tin.
"Oh mum, Hercules isn't that bad," Carter laughed.
"I suppose you don't think so, you've been dealing with the things since you were 11," Clare replied.
"So only 10 years," Carter laughed. He ran his fingers through his sandy blonde hair and smiled at his mother.
"I really don't know how you and Amanda handle it," Clare said, shaking her head.
"I really don't know how you, dad, Lennon, Kevin and Drew handle it," Carter countered. Clare shook her head at her son.
"Speaking of Drew, he's going to be here shortly," Clare said.
"Well then can I have the cookies so I can leave?" Carter asked, "I'm not particularly in the mood to deal with him."
"Carter, just because your brother isn't magic doesn't mean you have to dislike him so much," Clare said.
"I don't dislike him because he isn't magic. He doesn't like me because I am," Carter replied.
"Carter Samuel Brocklehurst," Clare scolded. "If you would just try."
"If Drew would just try," Carter said.
"Christmas?" Clare asked.
"Is Mandy coming home?"
"I've discussed the possibility with Amanda and she may try to come in for the holidays," Clare replied.
"If Mandy is here, I'll be here," Carter said, making a mental note to himself to ask Mandy to stay at school. He didn't particularly want to deal with any of his magic-hating older brothers, and he knew Mandy wouldn't either.
"Well, here are your cookies. And you are not to eat any of Amanda's before you send them to her," Clare said, handing two tins to Carter.
"Okay mum," Carter replied, dropping another kiss on his mother's cheek.
"Bye Carter," Clare said.
"Love you mum," Carter said.
"Love you too," Clare replied. She watched as her youngest son turned and left the kitchen of the house. He let himself out the front door and hopped into his blue Volkswagen Beetle. She sighed and thought of the imminent visit of her middle child, Drew. Drew was 22, only a year older than Carter, and the two had been best friends right up to the point Carter got his letter to go away to Hogwarts. Drew had become insanely jealous of his brother and from then on, the boys rarely spoke. Her two oldest sons didn't take much interest in their youngest brother or little sister either, but at 28 and 34, Kevin and Lennon could afford to be distant from Carter and Mandy. Clare poured herself a cup of tea and sat down at the kitchen table to wait for Drew.
%%%%%
Petrograd Parkinson "popped" into the woods at the back of the Brocklehurst house on the outskirts of London. He adjusted the black mask over his face and strode purposefully to the back door of the house. Without knocking, he flung the back door open and walked right into the warm kitchen.
"Hey Drew," Clare said, turning to look at her middle son, the one child named after her late husband. Rather than Drew, she found a tall man in a long black cloak and a black mask. She chuckled lightly to herself.
"You know Carter, that's not exactly the best way to get back on your brother's good side," Clare laughed.
"Avada Kedavra," Petrograd replied, pointing his wand directly at Clare. A burst of green light filled the kitchen, and Clare fell back in her chair, eyes open grotesquely, mouth open limply. Petrograd took one last look at the woman and headed back out to the woods. He paused for a moment in the back yard and fired the dark mark into the air before apparating away from the house.
%%%%%
"So then," Ron continued.
"RON!" Hermione cried, "We really do not have to tell this story right now! My mother should be kicked for telling you in the first place, but she was drunk! You're NOT! You have no excuse!" Ron looked over at Hermione with a surprised look on his face.
"Hey Drew," The tingling in Harry's scar increased a bit. He dragged his fingers across his scar and tried to shake the mental image of the woman sitting at the kitchen table he'd never seen before.
"Finish telling the story," Ernie urged.
"Ron," Hermione warned. The tingling in Harry's scar turned into a dull ache.
"You know Carter, that's not exactly the best way to get back on your brother's good side," The mystery woman laughed. Harry noticed a man in a black cloak and mask standing a few feet away from her. He assumed what was getting ready to happen.
"Hermione, I need up," Harry said. Hermione slipped out of the booth and Harry bolted towards the door.
"What's up with him?" Hannah asked.
"Doesn't like crowded spaces too much," Ron lied. Harry paused for a minute, unsure of whether to go outside or head towards the bathroom. He chose outside and stepped quickly into the street. The friends peered out of the window at him.
"Is he okay?" Mandy asked. Harry had both hands clasped to his scar. The pain was becoming a bit more apparent. Ron sprang to his feet.
"I'm not sure, but you guys need to stay here," he said. He looked pointedly at Hermione before heading towards the door.
"Avada Kedavra!" came the death eater's curse before the familiar flash of green light filled Harry's head. Pain ripped through his scar. Harry clasped his hands to his forehead and tried not to collapse right there in the street. He saw the woman go limp and only then noticed a picture in the corner behind her. A man, a woman, and five smiling children sat in the photograph. The smallest of the children and the only girl was none other than Mandy Brocklehurst. Harry felt a strong arm around his shoulders.
"Harry, man, are you okay?" Ron asked. He grasped his friend's shoulders tightly to keep him upright. Harry nodded dumbly. Ron began walking him away from the Three Broomsticks window.
"Ron, Mandy's mum is dead," Harry gasped, "Death eater attack." Ron's face went white and he almost lost his grip on Harry.
"Are you sure?" Ron whispered. Harry nodded, willing the pain in the scar to go away. "She said something about Drew and Carter. Those are two of Mandy's brothers I think. And I saw a family portrait in the background. Mandy was definitely in it."
"What do we do?" Ron asked.
"Dumbledore," Harry said, "I'm surely not breaking that news to Mandy."
"Act normal, here they come," Ron said. He noticed the booth inside vacating, and Justin and Ernie pitching money onto the table to pay for the meals. Harry stood upright and tried to pull his hands away from his scar.
"Harry!" Hannah cried, rushing over to him.
"I'm okay," Harry said weakly, "My head just hurts a bit." Hannah brushed her fingers over the scar, pushing Harry's hair back from his forehead. He smiled at her.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Mandy asked.
"He's fine," Ron replied rather quickly. Hermione looked imploringly from one boy to the other. Ron smiled nervously at her.
"Everything is fine," He said aloud. Hermione caught his "we'll talk later" message and just nodded.
"HERMIONE! THEY LIKE US!" Fred screeched, running down the street towards the group. Hermione turned to face her boyfriend.
"What?" she asked.
"Niamh Zonkovich has agreed to start marketing Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!" Fred cried.
"That's fabulous!" Hermione said, jumping into Fred's outstretched arms. She covered his lips with a deep kiss.
"AAWWW!" chorused Mandy, Ginny and Hannah.
"Let's go celebrate," Fred suggested. Hermione looked back at Ron, who, in turn, looked to Harry.
"Go," Harry said simply.
"Alright!" Hermione said, "Let's go celebrate!" She laced her fingers through Fred's and they headed back up the street in the direction Fred had just come.
"So where to now?" Ginny asked.
"The castle?" Harry weakly suggested.
"I needed to go mail this to Braeden," Ginny said, showing a small package.
"So you're going to the post office then," Ron said.
"I really want to go back to the castle though," Harry said.
"I'll go with you," Hannah offered.
"As will I," Ron replied.
"Me too," Mandy agreed.
"We've got nothing better to really do," Justin said, looking at Ernie.
"That's fine, you guys go. I'll find Jae and Colin," Ginny said.
"Alright, see you at dinner then," Ron said. He turned and started towards the castle with Harry right on his heels.
"Boys you're walking sort of fast!" Hannah said from her spot a couple of steps behind Harry. Ron and Harry barely slowed down to accommodate the shorter girls.
"What's the big rush to get back to the castle?" Mandy asked.
"I really don't feel well," Harry said. He attempted to look a little green for everyone's benefit.
"Is it your scar?" Hannah asked.
"That and my stomach hurts. Something in the fish and chips, I think," Harry lied. He was simply sick to his stomach at the though of Mandy's mother being dead and Mandy not knowing. Hannah patted Harry easily on his back. The group wasn't much in the mood for talking, so the rest of the rather quick trip back to the castle passed in relative silence.
"Well, I had a lot of fun today," Ron said, stopping abruptly just before the doors of the castle.
"Me too," Mandy agreed, "We'll have to do it again next time."
"Yes," Harry said, "I'm sorry I messed everything up for everyone." Hannah pulled him into a quick hug. "You didn't mess things up."
"AAWW!!" chorused Mandy, Justin, Ernie and Ron. Hannah and Harry broke apart and glared at their friends.
"Alright, see you guys at dinner," Ron said. He opened the doors of the castle and hurried through. Harry smiled at his new friends and hurried after Ron.
"Way to act normal, Ron," Harry spat as he followed his friend.
"Sorry Harry, I'm a little bit," Ron began.
"It's okay," Harry said, "I understand."
"Are you sure of what you saw?" Ron asked.
"Yes," Harry replied.
"What if it hasn't happened yet?" Ron asked.
"I'm not Trelawney," Harry said, "I'm fairly certain my scar only hurts as actual events are going on."
"So it's more than likely done," Ron said.
"Yes," Harry replied. Ron's face fell visibly.
"What are we going to do?'
"We're going to tell Dumbledore," Harry said logically, "He'll take care of things from there." The two boys stopped in front of the gargoyle.
"Listen you, I don't feel like guessing the damned password," Harry said to the gargoyle, "We've got important business with Dumbledore so you should just let us in!"
"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley," Professor Flitwick squeaked as he exited the staircase. Ron and Harry jumped on before the Gargoyle could close again.
"Listen you?" Ron asked, "Like it's really going to listen to you."
"Professor Dumbledore?" Harry asked as the two boys stepped into the headmaster's office.
"Yes boys?" Dumbledore asked from behind his desk.
"My scar hurt while we were in Hogsmeade," Harry said.
"Did you see anything or did it just hurt?" Dumbledore asked.
"Mandy Brocklehurst's mother is dead at the hand of a death eater," Harry replied, quite frankly.
"As we know, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore replied, "I assume you met Professor Flitwick on the way out. He's going to find Mandy now to bring her back here to break the news." Harry looked down at his hands.
"So exactly how did this happen, Mr. Potter?" Dumbledore asked.
"My scar has been tingling all day," Harry began, "Then when we were in the Three Broomsticks, it got worse, then it started to ache. I saw visions of a woman sitting in a chair and she said something about Carter and Drew, which are Mandy's brothers. I sort of felt like it was going to get worse, so I headed out into the street. The pain in my scar got really bad, and then the death eater killed the woman."
"Are you sure it was a death eater?" Dumbledore asked.
"Fairly certain," Harry replied.
"Has your scar tingled before this?"
"Yes. It seems to be paired with this one dream about Voldemort's jr. league," Harry explained.
"Jr. League?" Dumbledore asked.
"A boy who could be anywhere between 8 and 12 or Colin Creevey, and his father are with Voldemort. I'm not sure who the boy is," Harry replied, "but my scar is always tingly after that dream."
"Interesting," Dumbledore said.
"But nothing bad has happened before when my scar tingled," Harry said.
"Did you have the dream last night?" Dumbledore asked.
"Yes," Harry replied.
"Then we shall blame it on mere coincidence," Dumbledore said.
"That I had the dream then this happened?" Harry asked.
"Yes," Dumbledore replied.
"You wanted to see me?" Mandy asked, stepping into the office. Professor Flitwick followed closely behind her.
"Yes," Dumbledore replied. Harry and Ron rose to leave the office, but Dumbledore waved them back into their seats. He quickly conjured up another chair and motioned for Mandy to sit. She sat next to Ron, and Professor Flitwick stood behind her. He could barely see over the top of her head, but placed a hand on her shoulder anyway.
"Mandy, I'm afraid I have some bad news," Dumbledore said.
"Yes?" Mandy asked.
"A death eater attack took place at approximately 12:30 today at your house," Dumbledore began.
"Are my mum and Carter okay?" Mandy asked.
"Carter is fine," Dumbledore replied, "But your mother was killed." Mandy clenched her teeth, swallowed hard twice, and attempted to blink back tears forming in her eyes. Ron reached over and patted the back of her hand where she gripped the arm of the chair. Tears began to pour down her face
"Please don't make me go with Lennon on holidays," Mandy begged.
"Don't worry, even though he's only 21, we feel you would be much safer with Carter."
"Does Carter know?" Mandy asked.
"Yes. Drew found your mother just after the attack and alerted all of your other brothers. Aurors in the area alerted me to tell you," Dumbledore explained. Mandy reached up with the hand not covered by Ron's and scrubbed at the tears that had begun to flow more freely. "As soon as funeral arrangements have been made, we will notify you. Carter will probably come and get you at some point this week so you can go with him for the funeral." Mandy's shoulders shook visibly and she gave up on trying to brush away the tears.
"For now, when you're ready, you may either go back to your house or I will summon Hannah and Ernie so you can see them. Mandy nodded mutely and stood up. Ron jumped up and held out his arms. Mandy fell into them and buried her face into his shoulder. He pulled her into a tight hug and whispered something into her hair. Flitwick stepped towards the door. Dumbledore followed him and motioned for Harry to do the same.
"Harry, go find Hermione, Ernie, Justin and Hannah. You all can go back in when you've found them all. The password is ice mice." Dumbledore said when the three were outside, "I think it's best if we leave them for now."