A/N: Thanks very much to Lizai for pointing out that I'd downloaded the same chapter twice! I guess all this technology is just too much for me... anyway, this is the REAL Chapter Twelve. By the way, I've been informed by my beta that Professor Sinistra is female - I never figured out the Professor's gender one way or another. Can anyone confirm? But it doesn't really matter; just that if she's female you can expect some femmeslash in the next chapter. Enjoy!
Halloween it was. The night of the dance, Harry stood in front of the mirror in the Gryffindor boy's bathroom, carefully attempting another shave. Earlier efforts had not been too successful, but he had high hopes for this one.
"I'm not going," Ron loudly announced from the doorway, causing Harry to jump and lacerate himself in a fairly serious manner.
He grabbed a handful of tissue to staunch the bleeding and hissed at Ron, "What the hell do you think you're doing, sneaking up on people like that?" Snarling with rage, he splashed essence of Murtlap on his face.
"Why the hell don't you do that by magic?" Ron asked, and went on without waiting for an answer, "I said I'm not going. I can't go. It'd be too painful." He crossed his arms over his chest and hunched over, leaning on the sink next to Harry.
Thoughtfully Harry removed the last of the shaving foam from his face, and considered Ron's predicament. It was true that the preceding weeks must have been truly awful for Ron; even Harry had found them a bit trying. After the ruinous Quidditch match, Naedine had become extremely unpopular with the members of her former house. This unpopularity didn't extend to the rest of the school, however. It seemed like not a day went by without a large bouquet of flowers being delivered anonymously to the Ravenclaw girl's dormitory, or a troupe of Rent-A-Cherubs serenading the Ravenclaw team as they practiced, or Naedine being given an award for excellence at Potions.
Hermione was working feverishly to keep her place at the top of the year, and only just succeeding. The strain was starting to show, as she demonstrated by hurling a large box of chocolates that had been misdirected to the Gryffindor Common Room out through the portrait hole. The Fat Lady wasn't pleased.
Besides Naedine's general odious perfection and broom skills, the Gryffindors had another reason to dislike her. Her treatment of Ron had gone from cold to outright unkind. He hadn't immediately given up hope, but after she began to go round arm-in-arm with a smirking Draco Malfoy on a regular basis, it really didn't seem likely he could ever win her back.
"Besides," he confided to Hermione, "I'm not that keen on Naedine at all. It's Doris I miss. It's just that sometimes, like that time she cried over the baby hedgehogs... sometimes, I can still see a bit of Doris in her."
Hermione was sympathetic, but didn't know how to comfort him. She felt quite unreasonably guilty at having helped break the curse, and was even tempted to see if it was one she could perform herself. However, after an unauthorised late-night session in the Restricted Section of the library, she was forced to admit defeat. The spell not only called for a high level of emotion, it required lots of practice. She didn't have any Mary-Sue test subjects, and frankly she couldn't seem to get herself worked up enough about slugs or chickens. Anyway, she didn't really know how she'd explain that she had re-cursed Naedine to Dumbledore, or the Sue's extremely wealthy and powerful parents.
So the Gryffindors restricted themselves to snide comments and practical jokes (none of which were notably successful). Now Harry, looking at Ron's sullen reflection in the mirror, said, "I know it's tough, mate, but do you want that little Ravenclaw b... er, wench, to know she's got the better of you? And for your information, I happen to get a closer shave this way."
"I don't care," said Ron hollowly. "Bad enough I have to see her every day in classes. I'm not putting myself through that voluntarily."
"It'll be good for you," said Harry encouragingly. "Getting out, enjoying yourself... I hear Dumbledore's got some famous band to play. Besides," he said coaxingly, "I noticed Padma Patil giving you the eye in History of Magic yesterday... you could be in luck, there."
"That's because she got hit in the face with an Engorgement Charm the class beforehand," said Ron, heavily. "They didn't quite sort out the facial swelling before they sent her off to Professor Binns. Her eyes were pointing in all different directions, all afternoon. Nah, it's no good. I'm not going." He turned and trudged out of the bathroom. Harry sighed, and combed some more Turtle Wax into his hair.
So in the end, it was just him and Hermione that left the Gryffindor Tower at eight that evening for the Halloween Hop. Waving goodbye to Ron, who was slumped in an armchair reading a Quidditch magazine, they climbed out through the portrait hole and headed for the Great Hall, passing a group of excited Hufflepuff first-years on the way.
As they got closer, they could hear the sound of a band warming up, and lots of people laughing and talking. Upon entering the Great Hall they saw that about half the school was already present, including Neville, Lavender and Ginny, who were standing by the long refreshment tables, drinking punch and eating crisps from bowls.
Neville greeted them as they came over. "Interesting décor, isn't it?" he said enthusiastically. "Don't know what it's meant to look like... what are those hoopy things? And it smells... I don't know... like rubber, or something?"
"It looks like the gym at the primary school I went to," said Harry. "Those are basketball hoops. Erm... it's like Quidditch, for Muggles. Actually, it's a lot like a Muggle school gymnasium. I wonder what Dumbledore's up to?"
Hermione glanced around. There were balloons and crepe paper hanging on the walls, and the magical ceiling had been disguised, in favour of a more conventional flat one with hanging ventilation pipes. And disco balls. "Interesting," she agreed, taking a sip of punch. Students were still pouring in through the doors, but there was no sign of any raven-haired Ravenclaw beauty as yet.
A loud shriek came from the amplifiers in the corner, where the band were setting up. The men with guitars held their ears in pain. Beaming, Dumbledore hopped up onto the stage and grabbed the microphone.
"Ladies and gentlemen," he announced. "Welcome to Hogwarts' first ever 'High School Dance', the Halloween Hop!" He applauded loudly for himself, and was joined a little less enthusiastically by the students and teachers present.
"Not one of his better ideas," Harry noticed McGonagall say privately to Hagrid.
"In the interest of good relations and understanding between the magical and non-magical communities," began Dumbledore, "this party is intended to let all you people know how Muggle students of your own age enjoy themselves! And so, I give you one of the world's most famous Muggle bands – REM!"
"Who?" asked Neville. Ginny shrugged.
"Name sounds vaguely familiar," said Harry. Hermione decided not to bother enlightening them.
"Hello, Massachusetts!" shouted Michael Stipe into the microphone. He looked a little confunded to Harry's eye. "Who do you love!" Not at all perturbed by the questioning stares and lack of any response from the crowd, the band launched straight into Man On The Moon. After a few moments the crowd decided that although they might look strange, the band were pretty okay, and within minutes there were hundreds of people dancing.
Hermione was teaching Neville and Ginny the Mashed Potatoes ("it's a kind of Muggle Dance") when Harry spotted movement outside in the corridor. Turning, he caught sight of Naedine, as she swept into the Great Hall with Draco on her arm.
There was something of a collective gasp. Most people stopped dancing and turned to stare. The band, however, noticed nothing, and continued to play, a fact that seemed to annoy Naedine a little. She swept her gaze across the ballroom, eyelashes seeming even longer than usual.
Naedine was dressed in a close-fitting wine-red gown that flared out just below her knees, to show layers of black net underneath. Her long hair was done up in an elaborate coronet and seemed to be draped with large diamonds. A stunning pink diamond pendant hung on a silver chain around her neck, and a red chiffon scarf was draped elegantly round her shoulders. Draco Malfoy, arm linked in hers, seemed unable to take his eyes off her, and the strain on his neck was beginning to show.
"Well, continue," she said silkily. "Don't stop just for little me!" She floated across the floor to a group of Slytherins, who immediately fetched her a chair and a cup of punch.
"That slut," hissed Lavender. "A pink diamond with a red dress? Don't get me started."
"Yeah," agreed Parvati, who had just joined them. "And that headdress? Who does she think she's fooling? I know cubic zirconia when I see 'em."
Naedine's head turned, and she gave the two girls a cold stare, before she stood, handing her wrap to Pansy Parkinson, and sauntered over to the Gryffindors by the refreshments. Neville left at what was almost a run, muttering something about having promised Luna Lovegood a dance.
"So good to see you, Harry, Hermione, Ginny," she purred, turning her back on Lavender and Parvati. "Are you enjoying yourselves? Hermione, what a charming little ensemble – that shade of blue really complements your eyes... my my, are they the same robes you wore to the Yule Ball two years ago?"
"You weren't even there!" squeaked Parvati indignantly.
Hermione looked flustered. "Well... what's the point of having a nice set of robes, if you're only going to wear them once?"
Naedine broke out into a tinkling laugh that sounded like crystal-clear water hitting the attractively-placed stones at the bottom of a well-designed waterfall. "Oh, my dear girl," she said, "that's so funny. You really are a very amusing person, Hermione! Oh, I must tell Pansy..."
Naedine glided back to the Slytherins, leaving the four Gryffindor girls speechless with rage. Harry felt he should commiserate, but didn't know quite what the problem was.
"So, what's wrong with wearing the same outfit twice?" he asked ingenuously.
"NOTHING," roared Ginny, startling them all, including herself. The others were too incensed to make much of it, however – Parvati and Lavender were still unable to articulate more than, "Hmph!" and "That... ooh, that girl..."
"It's more the principle of the thing," said Ginny, more calmly. "She insulted Hermione and disguised it as a compliment. It's your fault though," she said, turning on Parvati and Lavender, "you shouldn't have insulted her from this close, you know she's got super-efficient hearing."
Hermione, seeing that there was going to be words, left them to it, and wandered over to the other side of the hall. Harry followed her. As they approached the stage, they saw Neville, with a very confused Luna in his arms, emerge from behind a large group of tall seventh-year Hufflepuffs, where he had been hiding. He waltzed Luna over to them, using her as a sort of human shield.
"Is it safe?" he whispered, looking around.
Despite the cheerful atmosphere and the excellent music, neither Harry nor Hermione enjoyed the Hop much after that. Half an hour's time found them back propping up the punch table, sighing and checking their watches, and keeping one eye on the corner where Naedine and her new friends were. Hermione was just considering inventing a five-foot arithmancy essay as an excuse, when a girl in a Laura Ashley dress, with her hair in two plaits, wandered over to them.
"Excuse me," she said, looking a little tearful, "I think I'm at the wrong Halloween Hop. Have you seen Kristy? Or Claud?"
"Who?" said Harry.
The girl, who looked like a third-year, said, "Never mind. Only I told Logan I'd meet him out the front, but I can't seem to find the way out of this gym. And," she leaned forward nervously, "there's some kinda weird-looking people here."
Hermione pointed to Professor McGonagall, and said, "If you're in the wrong place, she'll probably be able to help you out." The strange girl wandered off and was blocked from Hermione's view as a conga line came by.
"If you ask me," said Harry, "I think Dumbledore's high-school thing's gone a bit too far."
"You're probably right," agreed Hermione. "My God, what the hell are they doing?"
Harry looked over to where she was pointing. Naedine and Draco had claimed the centre of the floor and were dancing in a revoltingly intimate sort of way.
"That's a new dance," said Harry, eating a crisp. "They call it Pepperjacking. I agree with you, it's a little excessive."
The rest of the school didn't seem to think so, however, and before long there were numerous couples on the dance floor, following Draco and Naedine's lead. When Professors Sinistra and McGonagall Pepperjacked by the refreshments table, Hermione decided she'd had enough.
Climbing up the stairs towards Gryffindor Tower, she fell over a warm fuzzy thing. Illuminating her wand, she realised it was Ron in his dressing gown, sitting hunched over on the steps.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, sitting down beside him.
"Sometimes I like to sit in the dark," Ron mumbled. "Turn that light out."
Hermione did as he asked. "You're not still moping over that Sue, are you?" she asked. "Trust me, she's not worth your while." She thought of the slight she had received earlier, and burned with rage again. "I much preferred her alter ego, unhygienic though she might have been."
"I know that," said Ron, and sighed heavily. "Hermione, isn't there anything you can do? You're so good at this stuff, and... I know it wouldn't be strictly legal... but..."
"When were any of our adventures strictly legal?" Hermione finished for him, and put an arm round his shoulders. "I'll see what I can do."
She stood up and brushed herself off, thinking hard. It wasn't going to be easy, and she had already ruled out doing the curse herself, but Hermione had a couple of shots left in her locker. Turning around, she headed up the stairs to her dormitory and donned her Bitchiwitch baseball shirt.