"A right oddball."
"I wonder whether he or Gary will be caught first..."
"Terry will. He's too bloody loud not to be. I bet he walks around, talking at the top of his voice with each new discovery."
"Bets should be placed!"
"I'm glad that at least three of my dorm mates are sane."
Harry, Tonks, and Solieyu were heading down from Ravenclaw Tower the following day, various book containers being toted along over shoulders. The boys had filled Tonks in on their impromtu meeting the night before. Tonks, though admitting that she wanted to know what Dumbledore was hiding, certainly didn't want to go searching for it. She didn't want to find just HOW dangerous the potentially dangerous unknown was, just she was curious, nonetheless.
"Well, at least the majority of us can think before we act." Harry said, voice toneless. "I wonder what condition they'll wind up in."
"It won't be good." Solieyu said, shaking his head.
The trio walked along in silence, heading towards their head of house's class - Charms. As they climbed the main staircase, Solieyu let out a long yawn. The other two looked at him, eyebrows raised.
"Didn't sleep well?" Tonks asked.
Solieyu chuckled softly. "I'm afraid not. I...ah... spent a good deal of time wondering whether or not I should mention something to Professor Flitwick... as annoying as he seems to be, I don't want to lose one of my dorm mates. It kept me up a bit later than I should have been..."
"It's his own fault if he loses a limb." Harry said. "We tried to warn him. No one can say we didn't."
"True." Solieyu said, sighing. "But it would be a shame, nonetheless, if we lost either of them."
"Mm." Harry grunted. "Oi, one of you two counting? This should be the third floor, yeah?"
Tonks chanced a peek over the railing of the stairs, shuddering a bit and nodding. "Seems like it."
"Why the shudder?" Solieyu asked.
"You kiddin'? Ever tried starin' down the center of the staircase?
S'got this weird effect on me, at least." Tonks said, frowning.
The trio headed off of the main staircase and began hunting around for the Charms corridor. Tonks was the one to point out the right way to go to the boys, who had been arguing about going down two different hallways altogether. Grabbing each of her male friends by the ears, Tonks proceeded to all but drag them down and to the Charms classroom.
"There! Now don'tcha forget!" Tonks said, taking the nearest empty seat.
Harry and Solieyu scowled and rubbed their sore ears. Harry took a seat in front of Tonks' and Solieyu took the seat beside Harry's. Harry looked over his shoulder and eyed Tonks warily. "Don't you go and do anything funny back there..." He said.
"Who, me? Naw, I'm a sweet, innocent angel, I am!" Tonks said, batting her eyelashes at Harry in a nauseatingly-cute way.
Harry exchanged a glance at Solieyu and the two rubbed at their ears once more.
"Ah! Are we all here? Let me see here..." Came a voice from the front
of the room. Half of the class jumped. Professor Flitwick, it seemed,
had entered at some point and had crossed the room, hopping up onto
the stack of books behind his desk. "Now... let's begin by taking the
roll. When I call your name, please respond..."
Professor Flitwick went down the list of names, looking up after each one to give the student answering a jovial smile and nod. When he reached Harry's name, he gave an excited squeak and nearly fell off his pile of books. "Potter, Harry!"
"Present." Replied Harry, raising an eyebrow.
"Ah, so good to have you! Very proud that you made it into Ravenclaw! Now, let's see..." Professor Flitwick said, looking back down to the list and regaining his place on it. When he came to Tonks' name,however, a handful of students let out quiet giggles. Tonks grimaced and, as usual, asked if Professor Flitwick wouldn't use her first name. Being the person he was, Flitwick agreed and, in turn, apologized for giving it out in front of everyone.
Harry looked first to Solieyu, then back at Tonks, mouthing 'I like him' to each.
After he finished making sure that all of the students were present and accounted for, Flitwick opened up a very large (in comparison to Flitwick himself, anyway) book and surveyed his class.
"Today," he began, "We will be doing a general overview of this year's class...and, if we get through everything in time, we might just start on a Tickling Charm!"
Professor Flitwick went on to say what the year would bring about - nothing too difficult, yet enough to give them all an adequate challenge. When class was nearly over, the professor checked the time and smiled. "Well! We have six minutes, it seems. Plenty for me to teach you the spell I mentioned earlier! Kindly take your wands out!"
The class did as instructed. Professor Flitwick hopped down from behind his desk, making his way around front. Taking his own wand out, Professor Flitwick looked around and asked for a volunteer. Hands shot up around the class. The professor looked around for a moment before picking a small girl with wire-frame glasses. "Alright, Ellie. Come and stand next to me. Now... this charm will cause whoever you cast it on to laugh uncontrollably. The incantation is 'Rictusempra' - repeat it with me once, class..."
And, as one, the class recited the incanation with the professor.
"Good, good! Now...this is how it looks in action! Don't worry, Ellie, I'll take it off after just a few seconds. Ready?" Professor Flitwick flicked his wrist quickly and cried, "Rictusempra!" in his squeaky voice. A light shot out of the tip of his wand, hitting the girl named Ellie in the stomach. After a moment, she snorted, then began giggling outright.
After a few seconds of watching the girl laugh herself silly, Flitwick removed the charm with a simple flick of his wand. "You may sit down now, Ellie - thank you for volunteering!" He said, smiling up at the girl.
As
Ellie sat back down, Flitwick turned back to address the class. "We'll
begin practice on the Tickling Charm tomorrow! If you'd like,
you can look up more information about it in your school books!"
And with that, the bell rang, signalling the end of their first Charms class. As everyone got up and began filing out, Harry looked to Solieyu and asked, "Professor Flitwick said he'd call Tonks by her last name... how come you didn't ask him to call you 'Leon'?"
Solieyu ducked his head slightly, a slight smirk on his face. "Well," he said, "it sounds more proper when adults say it... you'd be surprised at how improperly some people say it... Professor Flitwick got it in one..."
"Ahh... you know, I like him." Harry said aloud this time, grinning.
"Me too. Very happy, isn't he?" Tonks piped in, leading the trio back out into the hall.
"He is." Agreed Solieyu with a smile. "I don't think we'll have to worry about this class. It should prove to be very fun..."
The three made their way back up the Charms corridor, Tonks' stomach letting out a low grumble as they did. She blushed and looked away when the boys eyed her.
"Hungry already?" Harry asked. "C'mon, it's only been a few hours since breakfast..."
"My body burns food fast, that's all!" Tonks said, crossing her arms and letting out a 'hmph!' at Harry.
"Well, let's go head to the Great Hall and see if they're serving lunch yet." Harry said, shrugging.
As they reached the main staircase again, they heard rather loud laughter coming from somewhere above them. Looking at one another briefly, the trio decided to go up and take a look at what was so funny.
Climbing up a floor, they were met with a rather unusual sight, to say the least. Two Gryffindor boys - Ron Weasley's brothers, if Harry remembered correctly - were dancing around in red and gold tutus with what appeared to be toilet seats fitted onto their heads. A small crowd of various houses had gathered around the twins,laughing at their antics.
"Fred and George?" Tonks asked Harry, who shrugged and replied, "Must be. Dunno any other redheaded twins in Gryffindor..."
"You don't know much of anyone." Solieyu chimed in.
"Quiet, you." Harry grumbled.
But he grumbled just a bit too loudly and caught the attention of the two boys in question. The twins' eyes lit up and they immediately stopped their dancing routine. Grinning, they sauntered over to Harry's group - something that looked quite bizarre, given what they were wearing at the moment - and grabbed his right hand, shaking it hard in turn.
"Harry Potter!" Said one.
"Wondered when we'd get to meet you!" Said the other.
"Ron's been telling everyone he comes across that you're friends now!" Said the first.
"Load o' rubbish, we think. Couldn't have met more than a day or two ago, at best!" Said the second.
Harry, Tonks, and Solieyu blinked in unison.
"Uh... and... you must be Fred and George..." Harry said, slowly.
"That we are!" Said the second. "I'm Fred. He's George!"
"No, you daft sod, you've got it backwards. I'm George, you're Fred!"
"Am not."
"Are so."
"Am not, and I can prove it!" Fred - or...perhaps George - reached down the front of his trousers (the tutus were worn over all of their other school clothing) and, with a quick yank, pulled out a pair of red and white boxers shorts with a giant "G" printed on the back. "See! I'M George. You're Fred."
"Ohh. So I am!" Said Fred.
"How did you take those off without taking off your pants?" Tonks asked, looking outright confused.
"I don't know!" Said George, pondering his own boxers briefly. "Ah well, those'll go back on in a bit.
"Now, down to ickle Ronniekins..." Fred began, smirking at Harry once more. "Are you his friend, or aren't you?"
Harry shrugged briefly, but Tonks was the one who answered. "He was trailing after us for a good day before we called him on it. He pointed you two out to us in the Great Hall..."
"Did he now?" Asked George.
"He said you two were pranksters. And...judging by what we've just seen, can we safely assume he was right?" Harry asked.
"Pranksters, indeed!" Fred said with a grin, bowing deeply.
"Of the highest caliber!" George added, bowing deeper than his twin.
For a moment, Harry's eyes caught Tonks'. All it took was this one
moment for them to make their decision. With a nod of Harry's head,
Tonks whipped a slip of parchment out from her robes, holding it
out to Fred.
"What's this?" Asked Fred, taking it and unfolding it and glancing over it once. "'101 Ways to Pester a Ponce'?"
"Who's the target?" George asked, peering over his brother's shoulder.
"Draco Malfoy." Tonks and Harry replied together.
"Malfoy? Not Lucius Malfoy's son?" Asked George.
"Blonde, bit on the short side, pompous ass?" Asked Fred.
"That's the one." Harry said, making a face.
"Now, aside from it being perfectly justified to begin with, what made you two decide to go after him, eh?" Fred asked, tilting his head.
"He insulted my family and called me ugly when we were getting fitted for our robes... Harry decked him!" Tonks said, grinning proudly at Harry, who blushed.
"Ooh, wish we could've seen that." Said George, grinning at Fred, who grinned back and nodded solemnly.
"We thought..." Tonks began, biting her lip for a moment. "...Well, we thought that, as pranksters, you two might be able to help us think of some ways to get him."
"You came to the right people, m'lady!" Fred said, giving Tonks a perfectly silly bow, gesturing wildly with his arm as he went.
"If we could borrow this for a night or three, I'm sure we could provide a few suggestions worthy of such a list!" George added.
"Have at it, then." Harry said, smiling at the twins.
Just then, Tonks' stomach let out another growl.
"I believe..." Solieyu, who had remained quiet for the whole of the conversation, began, "that your stomach was expecting to be filled when we were distracted."
Tonks made a face, looking down at herself. "Oi, you!" She said, addressing her stomach. "Stop that! I'm goin', I'm goin'!"
"Before you do..." George said. "Mind if we get the rest of your names? I mean, we know about Harry, of course..."
"Ah, right. Name's Tonks." Tonks said.
"Just 'Tonks'?" Asked Fred.
Tonks scowled. "My first name is... Nymphadora." She said, making a face as she said it. "But call me that and I'll turn your pink bits blue!"
Fred and George winced. "Right you are." Said the former, turning to look at Solieyu. "Annnnd you might be?"
"Solieyu Reinhardt. Call me Leon." Replied the boy in question, nodding his head as he looked to each of the twins.
"Impressive name." Said Fred. "Well, we'll let you three head off to lunch, then! We'll bring your list back in a few days."
"Alright." Harry said. "Seeya around, then!"
"Bye!" Replied the twins.
Turning around, the three headed back down the staircase. A few floors down, Harry grinned. "Ron might be a bit dodgy, but those two..."
"Are certifiable." Finished Solieyu, rolling his eyes. "I wonder where they grabbed those toilet seats from..."
"I don't think we want to know." Said Tonks. "But anyone who'd wanna do something to Malfoy's alright in MY book."
"I take it this Draco Malfoy is a bit of a rival for you both?" Solieyu asked, slipping a hand into his pocket.
"'A bit'? We met the terrific ponce in Madam Malkin's. He was goin' on an' on about how he thought this or he thought that, makin' himself seem like he was a big shot. I called him on bein' a pampered git that liked hearin' himself talk an' he started flinging insults at me!" Tonks said, darkly. "Insulted my hair an' everything." She added huffily.
"And then Harry hit him?"
"Harry knocked him on his butt, right there!" Tonks said. "The look on the prat's face was absolutely brilliant!"
"One of my finer memories." Harry admitted, smiling faintly at the memory. "He deserved it."
"So...you two made a list?" Solieyu went on.
"Yup! Stuff to do to him. It's already really long... what'd we leave off at, Harry?"
"Uh...somewhere around 90, after editing it down a bit." Harry said, taking a moment to think.
"90... and what, might I ask, are some of these ideas?"
Harry and Tonks grinned at Solieyu, each suddenly throwing an arm around his shoulders. "Leon, m'friend," Tonks began, "don't say that you didn't ask!"
And with that, the great explanation of The List's ideas began.
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
"Stomach feeling better?" Asked Harry as the three left the Great Hall a good half hour later.
"Mmm, MUCH!" Replied the girl, patting her stomach.
"A full Tonks is a happy Tonks?" Solieyu pondered aloud.
"Yeah...but don't say it like that, sounds all wonky." Tonks said. "So...whatcha think of our ideas?"
"I think you're both loony." Solieyu said, grinning a bit. "But I have to admit being intrigued by some of them. I mean...it isn't every day you hear of a plan to turn someone's -- what did you call them?"
"Pink bits."
"Yes, thank you -- someone's pink bits black with the words 'Daddy's Boy' on them. Not a nice mental image, either, I must say."
"Yeah, you didn't eat very much." Harry said, looking over at Solieyu as the three headed out the large front doors in the Entrance Hall. "Sorry about that."
"It's okay." Solieyu said, waving a hand dismissively. "I never eat very much, anyway. My body... well, I suppose it's a bit the opposite of Tonks'... processes food very slowly, so a little goes a long way."
"Ahh, I see. So the talk of lodging large, cumbersome object's up the ponce's--"
"No, no... I wasn't put off by that. A bit confused as to how the
physics of it would work, perhaps, but not nauseated." Solieyu said,
cutting Tonks off.
"Right...Sprout's next, right?" Harry asked, looking over the school grounds quickly.
"Yup! Greenhouse Five." Tonks said.
Solieyu sighed at this. When asked, he explained that he had never been very good with plants, having killed a flower garden when he was asked to tend to it by a neighbor when he was seven. He then went on to mention that he was almost a bad luck charm around plants of any sort. Of course, Harry refused to believe this until he saw it for himself, but he kept this to himself.
Professor Sprout, as it turned out, was a squat little witch with frizzy gray hat and a patched hat. The first thought that the trio had had upon entering Greenhouse Five, however, had been just how awful it smelled.
As it turned out, the smell came from Professor Sprout's favored brand of fertilizer, which consisted partly of dragon dung. Trying to ignore the smell and concentrate on what was being taught, however, none of them said anything.
"Everybody here? Yes? Alright... I'm Professor Sprout - welcome to Herbology. As you can see, we'll be dealing with various magical plants...none too dangerous for you lot, though. Those are kept over in Greenhouse One and you won't be going there until fifth year, at least." Said the professor.
"Let's get right down to business, shall we? I've got some Snarling Snidegrass that's overdue for some pruning. You all should have some pruning shears in front of you, yes? Come up and get a pot of Snidegrass and begin working. What you're to do is to snip off any excess limbs and leaves. The main vine is not to be cut. And for heaven's sake, don't cut off the heads!" Professor Sprout said, motioning for her students to come up and get what seemed to be an overgrown weed.
Harry's seemed almost entranced with him. It purred instead of growling, it twisted and turned so he could easily see any spots that needed trimming, and it curled up and seemingly fell asleep once he was done.
Tonks', on the other hand, hated her with a passion. It had lashed out with an overly-long branch of sorts, smacking her in the cheek and leaving a pinkish mark. Harry and Solieyu had to physically restrain her after that to keep her from decapitating the plant.
Solieyu, as it turned out, didn't seem to be lying. Not only did his chunk of Snidegrass loathe him as much as Tonks' did her, it seemed to move at just the wrong moment, causing the boy to make inaccurate cuts. By the time he was done, the plant looked as if it had survived a war, there were so many cuts and nicks all over its main vine.
"At least it's still alive." Tonks said, patting Solieyu on the back.
"Just barely. I suppose it could have been worse... it could have withered up and died when I touched it." Solieyu said with a sigh.
Tonks offered the pale boy a pat on the back while Harry tried to get his plant to stop nuzzling against one of his wrists.
After the class had let out, the group headed back for the school, discussing what they would spend the rest of the day doing. Harry was hoping to go through more of his school books - after all, this was still new in his mind. Tonks wanted to kick back and nap away the remainder of the afternoon. And Solieyu...
"Do either of you know what the time is right now?" He asked as they pushed through the front doors of the school.
"Should be around 4:30, why?" Tonks asked.
"Ahh, that would explain it. I'll catch up to you two later, alright? I just remembered that I promised a friend that I'd meet up with him outside of the library to help with a Potions essay..." Solieyu said.
"Ah, alright. Have...uh... fun, then." Harry offered, feebly.
Solieyu chuckled and headed for the main staircase, waving a hand back over his shoulder as he did. "I'm sure I will."
"Friend of yours?" Came a voice from behind the duo, making them jump.
Turning, they saw one Ron Weasley standing a few feet behind them, watching as Solieyu casually made his way upstairs.
"Yeah. Met him after our first Defense class... though Harry shoulda known him a bit sooner, given that they share a dorm an' all." Tonks said, shooting Harry an amused look. Harry stuck out his tongue.
"Ahh... So, you two done with classes for today, too?" Ron asked.
"Yup." Said Harry.
"Great! Wanna go down by the lake and watch my brothers? Got told by Katie Bell that they're gonna make a pair of toilet seats dive bomb the giant squid... ...where they'd get the toilet seats is beyond me, though..." Ron said, frowning in thought.
"Actually," Tonks said, "We need t'go study. Professor Flitwick gave us a bit o' homework tonight - guess he wanted to see how brainy Harry is or somethin'..."
"Oh..." Ron said, sounding slightly dejected. Recovering quickly, however, he smiled and turned back around. "Well, if you get finished early or something, come on out, alright?"
"Sure!" Tonks said, sounding a bit too pleasant for Harry's tastes.
After Ron was out of earshot, he turned to her and asked, "Now what was that all about?"
"What?"
"We don't have any homework, Tonks!"
"I know that! But c'mon, did you really want to spend the rest of the day hanging out with him? Fred and George seem okay, but Ron... well, Ron gives me bad vibes."
"'Bad vibes'?" Harry repeated, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah... probably left over from when he was, y'know, stalking you."
"He wasn't stalking me, he was... just nervous or something." Harry argued, scowling.
"Sure," Tonks said, rolling her eyes. "He's one of them."
"One of what?"
"Your fans! The really weird ones. He's probably got a poster of you already...wouldn't surprise me if someone had snapped your photo without any of us knowing the day we went to Diagon Alley." Tonks explained as she tugged Harry in the direction Ravenclaw Tower was in.
"You're mental - he seems alright enough!" Harry said, crossing his
arms. "Besides, Dean would've said something if he was a nutter,
wouldn't he?"
"Maybe... but I still don't like him." Tonks said with a shrug.
"Uh-oh... and speaking of unlikable people..." Harry said, nudging
Tonks with his shoulder and pointing down the corridor they were in.
"Look at who's coming."
"Oh, lovely." Said Tonks, blandly.
Draco Malfoy, being flanked by his goon brigade, was making his way up the hallway from the other end. Crabbe and Goyle were shoving smaller kids (and some bigger ones) out of their path as they went. With a groan, Harry looked back over his shoulder, then at Tonks and said, "Too far back for us to get away. Looks like we're gonna have to go through."
"Mm." Tonks grunted.
Walking in a strangely wooden fashion, Harry and Tonks continued up one side of the corridor as the Slytherins pushed and shoved their way down the other. For a moment after the two groups had passed one another, Harry thought that Malfoy hadn't noticed them. But then, not a moment later came a sneering, drawling voice from behind.
"Well, imagine seeing you here, Potter. You and your ugly little girlfriend prancing around on a date?" Draco said, smirking.
Not bothering to turn around, Tonks growled, "Remember what happened to you the last time you insulted me, Malfoy. I believe y'winded up flat on your arse, gaping like a fish."
Draco twitched, then snarled, "Keep your mouth shut or--!"
"Or what?" Harry finally said, turning slightly. "You'll send your ...what are those, bodyguards... after us? In a crowded hallway? Near a class that's just getting out? Yes, that would be amusing, Malfoy. In fact, feel free to do it. I'd love seeing you getting a detention with Filch."
Opening his mouth, then snapping it shut a moment later, Draco sneered at Harry, then hit Crabbe and Goyle in their arms. "Come on! We'll wait until later. You'd better keep your eyes open, Potter, because you never know when I'll show up behind you."
"And I would be afraid of you why, Malfoy?" Harry asked. "You couldn't take a punch even when I was half-malnourished. What makes you think you could take one now? And besides, if you ever bothered dirtying your fingernails trying to hit me, I'd be amazed. Shouldn't you have said something about never knowing when Crabbe and Goyle would show up behind me?"
A group of Gryffindors started snickering from somewhere behind Harry and Tonks. The twitch in Draco's eye deepened. "You just watch your back, Potter. And your girlfriend's."
"She'd do worse than I would." Said Harry, smirking faintly as he glanced over at Tonks.
Draco narrowed his eyes, then turned and stormed off down the corridor, Crabbe and Goyle rushing to catch up with him as fast as their pudgy legs could carry them.
"Now that was impressive!" Said a familiar voice.
"Put him in his place!" Came another.
Blinking, Harry and Tonks looked over their shoulders to see that, amongst others, Fred and George Weasley had been watching the verbal argument unfold.
"Hi again." Said Tonks. "...Shouldn't you be out by the lake right now?"
"Dive bombing the squid?" Harry added.
"Ran into Ron, did you?" Fred asked, grinning. "Yeah, he's gonna be waiting down there for awhile, I'm afraid."
"He kept pestering us about you, so we figured we'd try getting him out of our hair for a bit." Said George. "Seems right taken with you, Harry, lad."
"Won't shut up." Added Fred with a nod.
"Toldja he was weird." Tonks said.
"Ahh, right... anyway, have you two had time to look over The List yet?" Harry asked the twins.
"Ah, yes... about that! We were wanting to ask you something very important." Said Fred. "George and I... well, we were hoping you'd pass it on to us for good."
"Eh? Why?" Tonks asked, tilting her head.
"Well, no offense to you two - you've got some brilliant ideas written down. The trouble is, you're both first years. Us, we've been here longer and know more spells. Plus, we've got a few inventions that we're working on that could help pull off some of the more intricate stuff." Fred explained, gesturing with one hand.
"We thought we'd take it off of your hands and, say, cross off one listed thing per week. We've done things to people and we've never gotten caught before." George said. "In fact, we once turned Filch's hair into a rainbow-colored afro for an entire week. Took Flitwick a good while to figure out how to counter it."
"Sooo... what do you say? This way, you won't have to worry about being caught, you get to see the big prat get pranked, and we get to have a little fun of our own." Fred said, steepling his fingers together in front of himself.
Harry and Tonks looked at one another. For awhile, neither said a word. Slowly, however, both began to smile. Shortly after, full-on grins replaced the smiles.
With a melodramatic bow, Tonks said, "We'd be honored for the two utmost experts on pranks and jokes to take control of The List."
"Brilliant!" Said George. "We've already got our first picked out. Be sure to show up to breakfast on Sunday a bit early."
"Which one?" Harry asked. But Fred held up a finger and smiled.
"We aren't telling." He said.
"It'd ruin the surprise." Said George.
"Aww, that's no fun. Oh well, we'll show up when we should. Hope you two have fun with it." Harry said. "Though... if you would, jot down whatever you come up with. I wouldn't mind getting the original back at the end of the year... to work on over summer and stuff..."
"Not a problem! We'll use a copying spell and give the extended List back as good as new." George said. "Now, if you'll excuse us... we need to get on the move before ickle Ronniekins comes hunting for us."
The twins headed off in the same direction that Malfoy had made his exit in after that and, slowly, the crowd that had gathered began to disperse. Harry and Tonks continued on their way back towards Ravenclaw Tower.
"The List is in good hands." Harry said, laughing.
"I wonder which one they're going to do..." Tonks thought aloud. "I wouldn't say no to seeing them start with one of the more difficult tricks..."
"This weekend's going to be busy." Harry said. "Any homework we might have, the Metamorphmagus training, trying to keep that git Terry from leaving on his odyssey of death, and then getting up early on Sunday to see what the twins have planned."
"Yeah... maybe we should ask ol' Walt to keep them from leaving." Tonks suggested.
"Think he would?"
"It's possible. I dunno, maybe we should just let the two idiots go off and get themselves detention. I'm glad that at least three of you guys had the brains to decline." Tonks said, playfully rapping Harry on the side of the head.
Swatting at her hand, Harry shrugged. "I wouldn't mind exploring late at night, but... if Dumbledore says there's something dangerous on the third floor, we should trust him, right?"
"Right. He may be a bit insane, but he's still the most powerful wizard in the whole of Europe..."
"We tried warning Terry that it was a dumb idea." Harry said. "But he's got it in his head to be a great adventurer or something. Wonder why he got sorted into Ravenclaw...aren't we supposed to be more brains than heart or something?"
"Something like that." Tonks said. "Hey, Walt, how's your day been?" She added as the two approached the portrait of Walter the Wise.
"Ahh, Miss Tonks, Mister Potter! My day has been quite relaxing, thank you." Said the old wizard with a smile. "I found the copy of Dark Creatures and How to Outsmart Them earlier! It's been missing for at least half a decade now..."
"Gonna spend the day goin' through it?" Tonks asked.
"I certainly am. Password?"
"Lucidus Susceptor." Said Harry.
"Indeed. Have a good evening." Said Walter.
Harry and Tonks headed in through the arched pathway into the common room. As they did, Tonks turned to Harry and grinned. "I noticee that you didn't say anything when Malfoy was calling me your girlfriend, Harry. Care to explain?"
"Uhh... well, I mean..."
Walter's portrait closed behind them, the old wizard in it chuckling merrily as he listened to the two talking. "Ahh, to be young again."
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
Author's Notes: Eep! Someone got Solieyu's name. o.o Technically, all three of his names (First, last, and nickname) are Castlevania chara names. As for where 'Leon' came from... well, with me working his pronunciation as 'soh-LAY-you' and all...and with a Castlevania chara having a name pronounced 'LAY-on'...well... it all kinda fit together.
And I'm pleased to see people are starting to wonder if there's something more to Leon... I won't say whether anyone's correct or not...and I'm sure all of you will be able to work out what he is, if anything, by the time I'm ready to state in-story. And, since I felt kinda weird switching so often last chapter, Leon's gonna be referred to by his proper name in all instances when he's not being spoken to by someone. So no more "Leon yawned, leaning back"stuff...
As for Andromeda mentioning Narcissa - it simply slipped my mind. But I can't feel that those two are on good terms, anyway, all things considered...