DON'T PRETEND YOU LOVE ME
CHAPTER XIII A VISIT TO DIAGON ALLEY
Harry was awakened by Neville's screams coming from outside next morning; he grabbed his glasses on the side table and took a peek outside the window, he saw Neville running away from a bunch a knives flying right at him, he quickly changed and dashed off to where Neville's at, as he was running at the corridor he saw Bill who looks like he just woke up as well.
"Bill" said Harry
"Harry, who's that screaming?" asked Bill
"Neville's being chased by kitchen knives" said Harry
The two quickly ran downstairs; they went outside only to find Fred and George with their wands out, controlling the knives that were chasing Neville.
"What on earth are you two doing!" shouted Bill
Fred and George jumped in surprise; they quickly turned around towards Harry and Bill.
"We were just having fun," said George
"Having fun! What do you mean having fun? You're trying to make Neville into human pin cushion!" yelled Bill
"I thought you're with us on this" said Fred
"First of all I'm not worried about Neville, I'm more worried when Mum finds out you've been playing with her favorite kitchen knife set, she's going to kill you when she finds out. Second, haven't you still learned that waking me in my sleep is hell to pay" said Bill
"Sorry" said Fred and George in unison
Suddenly, they heard Neville scream but they just ignored him. Bill quickly grabbed his brother's ears.
"Ouch, Bill you're hurting my ear" said Fred
"That's the idea," said Bill
"C'mon, we said were sorry," said George
"Oh where did I hear that line before" said Bill sarcastically
"You mess with my sleep, you mess with me" said Bill while dragging his brothers inside, Harry quickly run to Neville's aid who was stucked on a tree with Mrs.Weasley's Kitchen knives through his robes almost hitting him by a few inches
A few minutes later, everyone was eating breakfast at the table that Mrs. Weasley had made big once more.
"Who touched my favorite knife set?" asked Mrs. Weasley as she go through the kitchen
Fred and George exchanged horrified looks then looked at Bill, Bill just ignored them and gave them a look of I-Told-You-So.
"Oh, I must have moved last night while I was cleaning," said Mrs. Weasley
The twins gave a sigh of relief and continued on to their breakfast.
"So Harry, what are you going to do today?" asked Mr. Weasley
"Oh, Um. We were suppose to go to Diagon Alley today, to look for some clothes we can wear for the Ball," said Harry
"Ah, I miss the old days when we were buying our robes for the school Ball" said Mr. Weasley
"Dad, it's early in the morning, don't you think we can talk about something else rather than that" said Ron
"Oh, alright then, how about you Draco, did you get a good nights sleep?" asked Mr. Weasley, Draco looked like he was run over by a ten wheeler truck... if he knew what that was... twice, his hair was all messed up while he was staring at nowhere
"Draco" said Harry who elbowed Draco
"What? Hah? I'm awake, I'm awake," said a startled Draco
"Looks like someone woke up in the wrong side of the bed this morning" said Charlie
"He kept complaining how hard the bed was," said Harry
"I'm sure you'll get use to it, wont you Draco?" said Luna
"Yes my princess, I'll endure anything for you, anything" said Draco
"Try eating your carrots first why don't you," said Fred
"Don't you have work today Bill?" asked Mr. Weasley
"Nah, I'm going to meet Tonks later" said Bill before taking a bite out of his bacon
"Really now" said Mrs. Weasley who found the subject quite interesting
"Mum, it's not what it looks like," said Bill quickly
"What is it not suppose to look like" asked Hermione
"Mum Tonks and I are just working together, that's it, there's nothing more than that" said Bill
"Go Bill" cheered Charlie
Bill glared at Charlie and waved his wand at him which quickly made Charlie eat his bacon "Mum don't you give me that look" said Bill
"What look?" said Mrs. Weasley smiling at him
"That one on your face right now" said Bill
"Oh Bill, you don't know what you're talking about" said Mrs. Weasley "By the way, if you're not doing anything until later, why don't you let me give your hair a trim"
"Mum, I told you a million times, no!" said Bill
"But you would look so elegant with your hair short" said Mrs. Weasley
"Could we please change the subject!" said Bill
"How about you Parvati, Luna, did you girls sleep well?" asked Mr. Weasley
"Yes we did," said Parvati at once "Your house is very comfortable"
"The four of us told stories to one another, that's why we had a great sleep last night said Luna
"Stories? What stories?" asked Draco automatically
Ron looked suspiciously at the girls "Why are you all giggling?" asked Ron
"Oh nothing" said Ginny
"What do you mean nothing?" asked Neville
"The things we talked about last night are strictly our business" said Hermione who was also giggling
"Those things you talked about don't by any chance had to do with anything with us wouldn't it?" asked Harry suspiciously
"Spill Granger!" said Draco
"You guys would really love it if we would tell you wont you?" said Ginny
"Yes! Yes just tell us already" said Ron
"Well" Ginny started, all four boys leaned closer to hear her
"It's a secret," said Ginny, Harry, Ron, Draco and Neville gave disappointing grunts
"That's not fair!" said Neville
"What isn't fair?" asked Luna
"This whole secrecy thing!" shouted Neville
"Hey Longbottom, you yell at her again and I'm going to rip your tongue out and then show it to you!" said Draco
"Can we please keep our voices down!" yelled Percy
"Percy, you alright?" asked Bill
"I didn't get too much sleep last night" said Percy glaring at Charlie
"Hey, what did I do?" asked Charlie
"You snore as if it was you were a dying cow with his voice amplified five times" said Percy grumpily
"Me, you're lying, I don't snore like that, don't I Bill?" asked Charlie
"No Charlie, you snore like an angry darn Banshee who just found out that it had two reproductive organs," said Bill
"What! Well if I snored as loud as you say I did, which I take as a personal insult to me, then why the heck didn't it bother you then?" asked Charlie
"First of all, it did bother me, second, I used a spell on my ears so I couldn't hear your snores." said Bill
"Why didn't I think of that?" said Percy
"Cause you're too smart for logic" came Charlie's voice
"Up yours" said Percy
"What! What did I say?" said Charlie
"You said I was too smart for logic, you big stupid frill lizard" said Percy
"Ooooh, their at it again" said Draco
"You really have a knack for the opposite of peace and order huh?" said Harry
"Shh" said Draco
"Bill, as much as I wanted to be held accountable for that, did you hear me say that?" said Charlie
"He's right Perce, we were still talking so I would know if he'd said that or not" said Bill
"That's preposterous, I heard him loud and clear!" said Percy
"Give it a rest you guys," said Bill
Percy decided not to go on with the issue, even if he decided to mutter out loud so it would annoy Charlie, Harry gave up on stopping Draco on encouraging Charlie and Percy to start bickering at each other, Parvati kept giving Mr. and Mrs. Weasley compliments "Oh your tea cups are very drinkable- I've never tasted bacon and eggs cooked this way, they're delicious- I love what you've done to the bread". Neville was busy eyeing Fred and George, well, maybe that's because they were sniggering for no apparent reason, a fact that he takes seriously because of that little encounter earlier, Luna was in a conversation with Ginny and Hermione, Charlie was talking to Bill when suddenly...
"You're a big brainless brute who knows nothing but give Dragons their proper meals" came Percy's voice
"Okay! That's it, I've been ignoring you're mutters but this one I can't let pass me by!" yelled Charlie
"What are you talking about?" said Percy
"Oh yeah, sure, deny it you smelly little armpit!" said Charlie
"You're delusional!" said Percy
"Great, here comes round three," said Draco excitedly
"How long are you two going to be on each others necks?" said Bill
"I think it's as long as were related," Percy
"Nothing will make me happier," said Charlie
"I think I'll leave you boys to resolve your problems," said Mr. Weasley, before dissaparating to work
"Bill would you mind cleaning up after you've all finished breakfast," said Mrs. Weasley before going upstairs
"Sure Mum," said Bill
"Hey, you guys want to go outside and leave these guys alone?" asked Ginny to the three girls
"Sure," said Parvati
"I've got nothing else to do," said Luna
"How about you Hermione?" said Ginny
"I think I'll stay behind," said Hermione so Ginny, Parvati and Luna went outside
"Bill he called me a brainless brute," said Charlie
"And you give Dragons their food, yes I heard" said Bill "This is giving me a headache, Percy stop calling Charlie names, Charlie stop insulting Percy," said Bill
Charlie and Percy ignored Bill and continued waging verbal wars at each other. Bill suddenly noticed Fred and George sniggering; he narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the two then stood up and approached them.
"Fred, George, do you have anything to do with this?' asked Bill
"What? Us? No!" said George at once
"Seriously Bill, would you really think that we have something to do with them?' asked Fred
"Yes," replied Bill, he quickly grabbed his wand and said "Accio!" two funny looking objects flew to Bill's hand
"Spill it you two," said Bill
"It's our new invention, we call it, the Voice Grabber's" said Fred
"It can copy anybody's voice in an instant, all you have to do is..." started George
"I don't care how it works, you two are in big trouble," said Bill
"What are you going to make us do this time?" asked Fred
"You're going to clean up the whole house starting with the table," said Bill
"Fine by us," said George
"With out your wands, Accio! Accio!" Fred and George's wands suddenly flew to Bill's hand
"Move it!" Bill
The two stood up while muttering things at him.
"You're a real slave driver you know that," said Fred
"Spare me the compliments," said Bill
"C'mon Harry, let's go to Diagon alley!" said Ron
"Okay, Hermione you should come with us," said Harry
"I'm sorry Harry, Ron, but I promised Ginny and the others that we would shop together," said Hermione
"Oh so what? So you and your posse could talk secretly about us behind our backs? I don't think so," said Draco
"What would it matter to you Malfoy?" said Ron
"Matter?! Matter!? I can barely have time with Luna because of them," said Draco bitterly
"Oh," was the only thing Ron could say
"Well this has been a great visit!" said Draco sarcastically
"Why don't you just take a hike Malfoy?" said Ron
"I'd love to Weasley, but there's one problem," said Draco, he went to the door and opened it to show Ron the plain landscape outside "You see a mountain I can I hike on? No I guess not," said Draco
"Oh, I kind of forgot about that," said Ron
"Forget this, I'm going to find a pond and drown myself in it" said Draco before leaving
"He's still a git Harry," said Ron
"Don't you think I've noticed?" said Harry.
"What's wrong with Malfoy?' asked Fred who was carrying dirty plates
"We don't know, all we know is he started to act like that when he fell head over heels over Luna Lovegood," said Hermione
"You mean he fell in love with Luna?" asked George who was busy wiping the table
"Yeah, and when we say that he fell, I meant he fell off his broom and hit the ground head first, that's how hard he fell in love," said Ron
"He must have used that Love potion that he bought a while back," said George
"Keep wiping George," said Bill who was watching them with his arms crossed, George nervously followed
"Wait, Love Potion? What Love Potion?" asked Harry
"Oh there's a thing that we sell at the Jokeshop, you see there's two vials, one you let the apple of you're eyes drink, and the other you drink," said Fred
"He might have drank the wrong Potion, poor guy, oh well," said George
"So that's why he's been acting so strangely," said Hermione to herself "So the effect of this Potion, how long does it last?" asked Hermione
"Two or three days, tops" said Fred
"Two or three days!" repeated Harry and Ron
"So why does Malfoy still act strange?" asked Hermione
"I don't know, one thing's for sure, he's not going to get a refund," said George
"So Draco thinks that he's still at the effect of the Love Potion?" said Harry
"Hermione, do you think we should tell him?' asked Ron
"Well he has been a prat the past six years, let him find out for himself," said Hermione
"Hermione, you're so bad, I want you," said Harry to himself again "Cut it out!" scolded Harry "Let's change our clothes shall we," said Harry, He and Ron went upstairs to change their clothes while Hermione went outside to get the others
A few moments later, Harry was in the living room waiting for Ron and Neville, he was sitting by the couch when the two got down.
"What took you two?' asked Harry
"Neville's too insecure about his clothes!" said Ron glaring at Neville
"It's not my fault I'm allergic to wool," said Neville "Harry, where's the girls?"
"They went off ten minutes before you two got down," said Harry sounding a bit impatient
"Oh," said Neville
"Where's Malfoy?" said Ron
"I don't think he's coming," said Harry
"Oh well, c'mon let's go!" said Ron
One by one, they went in the fireplace and yelled Diagon alley before dropping a handful of Floo Powder. A few minutes later they found their selves at Diagon alley.
"C'mon Harry! I know some antique Muggle costumes store ahead!" said Neville
"I have to make a stop at Gringgots, I'm not carrying any money right now," said Harry
"Well c'mon then, Gringgots is this way!" said Ron
After Harry had withdrawn some money from his vault at Gringgots, the three went off ahead through the streets of Diagon alley; they passed Fred and George's old shop, closed of course, Dean and Seamus who were already done buying their costumes, they also saw Hermione and the others at the Leaky Cauldron while having a drink, then finally, they found the antique shop Neville was talking about, the place was old and rickety, though Harry thought was weird, they went inside and saw all different kind of Muggle clothes.
"Can I help you?" asked a very old looking Witch whom Harry thought immediately as the store clerk
"Were here to look for some Muggle clothes for the upcoming Ball at Hogwarts," said Harry
"Oh then come in, I've already had other costumers coming in here to buy their own costumes for the Ball too, please, pick what you like," said the clerk
"Okay," said Harry, he then walked around the store to look for something that he might like, Ron and Neville did the same
It took the three minutes for them to find the right costumes that they wanted.
"Harry I got it-"said Ron
"Ron before you say anything," said Harry, stopping Ron from showing his costume "Why don't we show our costumes to one another at the Ball?" said Harry
"I'm all for that," came Neville, Ron just narrowed his eyes at him and just turned back to Harry
"You just don't want to show your costume don't you?" teased Ron
"C'mon, it would be great," said Harry
"Well, okay, I do think it's an exciting idea come to think of it," said Ron
"Great! So, have you two got your costumes yet?" asked Harry
"I already got mine, I'm having it packed at the counter," said Ron
"I already got mine right here," said Harry, showing them the store bag "How about you Neville?"
"I'm still looking for something that I'd think would look good on me," said Neville
"How about a knife at your back," muttered Ron, Neville didn't hear him
"I'm going to wait for you guys outside, okay?" said Harry
"Yeah, sure, I'll just go look around until Neville finds something," said Ron
"All right then," said Harry, he went outside the door and enjoyed the sight of the alley, he turned to his left and saw an old looking bench that was leaning against the store, he thought it would be prudent if he sat down the bench while waiting for Ron and Neville to finish
After six invitations from some good looking Witches, nine encounters of schoolmates, seven autographs signing to fans- which really took him aback, five witnesses of couples making out and eight minutes of waiting, Harry realized someone had sat down beside him, he looked at the person and saw Draco smoking a cigarette, Draco noticed Harry had spotted him so he nodded his head at him.
"What's up," said Draco before throwing his cigarette and lighting another one
"What are you-"he started "Never mind, I thought you were going to drown yourself somewhere," said Harry
"I tried, but the only pond I found was not even deep enough to drown in," said Draco sarcastically "Isn't there anything that's connected to the Weasley's that's worth while?" said Draco
"Look Malfoy, it's true that we've resolved our differences, but that doesn't mean that you're free to insult my friends!" snapped Harry
"Touchy, touchy Potter, I forgot that you were such the Hero that's going to defend his friends every time the evil Draco Malfoy insults them and feed all the starving children of Africa at the same time," said Draco while pretending to shiver with fright
"You'll never change Malfoy, you'll always be an evil-"
"Of course I'm evil! I'm all the anger, hatred, revulsion, loathing, darkness, antipathy, animosity, bitterness and hostility in one deluxe package; I'm evil Potter, evil is me, evil is Draco Malfoy, and nothing-I repeat nothing! Can ever change that, you understand?" said Malfoy
"You really are a sucker for flattering yourself, you're so vain," said Harry
"Up yours Potter!" said Draco
Suddenly, the door of the store opened then Ron and Neville came out with their costumes on their own store bags.
"What took you two?" asked Harry
"He tried to make me buy that pink dress," said Neville
"I just wanted to see if it would've look good on you," said Ron
"It's pink!" yelled Neville, Ron rolled his eyes then saw Draco sitting next to Harry
"What's he doing here?" asked Ron glaring at Draco
"Protecting this bench from evil bloodsucking vampires, what did you think I was doing?" said Draco sarcastically at Ron
Ron looked like he ran out of insults to say...oh wait! He did run out of insults to say. Harry stood up and stepped between them.
"That's enough you two," said Harry "Ron, let's go to the Leaky Cauldron, if we're lucky, we might catch on Hermione and the others,"
"Fine," said Ron still glaring at Draco, Draco on the other hand was smirking at him, which Ron tried hard to ignore
"Let's go then," said Neville
Neville and Ron went on ahead not realizing that Harry stayed behind.
"Aren't you going to get a costume for the Ball?" asked Harry
Draco stood up and noticed a Wizard just as the same age as him wearing what he guessed was Muggle clothing that he was going to wear to the Ball walk by, the Wizard was wearing a biker's jacket with black leather pants to match his jacket.
"I was just about to get mine," said Draco still fixated at the Wizard, then he followed the Wizard in an alley, Harry didn't want to know what he was going to do so he ran after Ron and Neville
The three got to the Leaky Cauldron and saw Hermione and the others at the exact same table that they had sat on earlier. After fixing their selves, they walked towards them.
"Hey Hermione!" said Harry with a stupid silly grin on his face
"Harry, Ron, Neville, are you all done with your costumes?" she asked
"Yeah, we got it right here," said Harry showing them their bags that contained their costumes
"Don't you just stand there you three, sit down and have a drink with us," said Ginny, the boys sat down at the table
"Ron! Why don't you sit here with me," said Parvati
In an instant, Ron's cheeks quickly blushed red "ah... um... sure," said Ron who sat down next to Parvati
"What costumes did you get?" asked Hermione
Harry and Ron exchanged looks.
"We kind of made this agreement that we won't tell each other what costumes we're wearing, we're going to show each other instead at the Ball," said Harry
"Hey, that's kind of interesting," said Ginny
"You don't mind if we join in don't you Ron," said Parvati while clearly smothering Ron
"Let go of him Parv," said Ginny sounding a little upset
"Where's Draco?" asked Luna
"Right here my Princess" came Draco behind her
Neville almost jumped out of his seat out of surprise. "What! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" yelled Neville
"If there's anything I'd like to give you, it's a brain tumor, too bad you already have one," said Draco who sat down between Neville and Luna
"Where did you go?" asked Ginny
Draco placed a bag on top of the table "Costume hunting," said Draco lazily
"Git," said Ginny, which Draco ignored (A/N He was busy ogling over Luna... I think)
"So how about you girls, how did your shopping go?" asked Harry
"Oh it was great! We went to this shop, and there was a lot of costumes there," said Luna
"Hermione said it was okay to buy because it was relevant to those story book Muggles call bed time stories," said Parvati
"So you're already done shopping?" asked Ron
"Yeah, said Parvati," said Ginny
"I don't see your bags anywhere," said Neville
"That's because we had them sent straight to the Burrow," said Hermione
"Yeah, by F. P. D.," said Luna
"What does F. P. D. stand for?" asked Harry
"Fast Package Delivery," said Hermione
"Why don't you just carry them yourselves home instead of paying for that Fast Delivery thing," said Ron
"The packaging is free Ron! Duh," said Ginny
"Oh," said Ron "Really,"
Harry and Hermione chuckled, a few moments later, Ginny said that she was tired so everyone finished their drinks and went back to the Burrow.
One by one they appeared out of the fireplace by Floo Network, they saw Mrs. Weasley had already prepared the kitchens so they hurried to change their clothes and went down to have dinner.
Dinner was just like it was the last time, Charlie and Percy ended up having a fight on who threw a scoop of mashed potatoes at Percy, Draco watched them as they insulted each other, Bill discovered that Fred and George were the ones who were responsible so he told Mrs. Weasley not to wash the dishes because he had volunteers, Ron was busy keeping an eye on Neville because Neville sat down next to his sister, Ginny was having a conversation with Neville about her brother's pranks, Luna was having a debate with Hermione about creatures from outer space, Mrs. Weasley was telling Mr. Weasley not to eat too much meat because of his cholesterol level, Harry was fixated on Hermione all through dinner.
When dinner was over, Mrs. Weasley told them to go to the living room for their Christmas gifts. Once Mrs. Weasley broke the word, all hell broke loose, everyone immediately rummaged for his or her presents except Hermione, she stood by and pointed her wand at the gifts.
"ACCIO! ACCIO!" presents with her name suddenly started to float and drifted across the room towards her
"Oh wow, Neville thanks," said Harry to Neville showing him a new pair of Glasses, Neville smiled at him
"Whoa! A Chuddly Cannons life size poster! Thanks Harry," said Ron to Harry
"Harry, these are the best gift anyone ever gave me," said Mr. Weasley who's on the verge of crying because of the old television Harry had given him.
Present by present, the gifts were opened by the party; each present was better than the other. Neville got a blue sweater from Mrs. Weasley, Ron was given a picture of Parvati by herself, Hermione got a new quill from Ron that made her kiss him on the cheek causing Parvati to glare at her, Neville got Ginny a scarlet hat to match with her hair, Luna got a book entitled Weirds Are Us 2nd edition from Hermione, Draco who was not expecting to get any gifts was surprised when Mrs. Weasley gave him a black sweater, then after that, Luna gave him a necklace which almost made him cry (Good thing he put himself back together), Hermione got another present, this time from Harry, he gave her a magical book that says TEST YOURSELF, A BOOK OF COMMON KNOWLEDGE, Hermione shrieked and gave Harry a suffocating hug, Harry got a present from Bill, it was a book that said THE HISTORY OF AN AUROR which gave a grin that lasted the whole night, Ron gave him a new set of Broom Polishing kit, the same as Hermione had given him before Harry started on their third year, but the best present that Harry got was from Hermione, it was a handmade, small figurine of him riding on his Firebolt, without thinking, Harry had given Hermione a quick kiss on her forehead, Hermione was left stunned but blushing at the same time, in her mind...
"Holy cricket! Did he just kiss me? No Hermione! It's just a friendly kiss, and he's just very happy, but still...I said stop it Granger! Stop thinking about it and just focus on that book that he gave you," Hermione smiled when she remembered Harry's gift to her, she never thought Harry would even care to bring her a present, she looked at him and chuckled slightly when he kind of played with his own figurine which she thought was cute "The book Granger, focus on the book," said Hermione to herself
Hours had passed by, Mr. and Mrs.; Weasley told all of them to sleep. All of them went upstairs and went off to bed feeling great because of their gifts.
Days had passed by, it was the thirtieth day of December outside the Burrow, Harry and the others were going back to Hogwarts a little early to continue some practice for the most anticipated match of the whole year, Gryffindor v.s.Slytherin, they had left behind. Mr. Weasley had flagged down the Knight Bus so that Harry didn't have to, before going up to the Bus, Mrs. Weasley gave them all bone crushing hugs, even Draco was embraced. After that, they boarded the Knight Bus one by one, and in an instant, the Knight Bus disappeared in a blink of an eye.
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Whew! Another chapter finished. I'm sorry it took me so long to update my fic, I have a writers block you see, so it's kind of hard for me to think of new ideas.
Anyway, this chapter is long, so I hope that you'd like as mush as I did of writhing it.
Thanks to...
Rhinemjr: I'm afraid not, it only happened in Harry's dream.
Orlando's Gurl: Thanks Amelia, I personally loved that chapter myself.
Kristine: Uy! Kabayan! Kamusta, saan ka nakatira, thanks for your review, it means so much coming from another pilipino like you.
Kate mooly anders: yeah, I tend to forget my spelling every once in a while, but thanks for the review, read the other chapters OK.
,: thanks anyway, whoever you are.
elphaba, thanks for the review, I knew that chapter was a killer.
fanjimmy: and I personally want to thank you for reviewing each of seven chapters, let me know what you think of the others pls. Pretty please!!!!!!!!!!
CHAPTER XIII A VISIT TO DIAGON ALLEY
Harry was awakened by Neville's screams coming from outside next morning; he grabbed his glasses on the side table and took a peek outside the window, he saw Neville running away from a bunch a knives flying right at him, he quickly changed and dashed off to where Neville's at, as he was running at the corridor he saw Bill who looks like he just woke up as well.
"Bill" said Harry
"Harry, who's that screaming?" asked Bill
"Neville's being chased by kitchen knives" said Harry
The two quickly ran downstairs; they went outside only to find Fred and George with their wands out, controlling the knives that were chasing Neville.
"What on earth are you two doing!" shouted Bill
Fred and George jumped in surprise; they quickly turned around towards Harry and Bill.
"We were just having fun," said George
"Having fun! What do you mean having fun? You're trying to make Neville into human pin cushion!" yelled Bill
"I thought you're with us on this" said Fred
"First of all I'm not worried about Neville, I'm more worried when Mum finds out you've been playing with her favorite kitchen knife set, she's going to kill you when she finds out. Second, haven't you still learned that waking me in my sleep is hell to pay" said Bill
"Sorry" said Fred and George in unison
Suddenly, they heard Neville scream but they just ignored him. Bill quickly grabbed his brother's ears.
"Ouch, Bill you're hurting my ear" said Fred
"That's the idea," said Bill
"C'mon, we said were sorry," said George
"Oh where did I hear that line before" said Bill sarcastically
"You mess with my sleep, you mess with me" said Bill while dragging his brothers inside, Harry quickly run to Neville's aid who was stucked on a tree with Mrs.Weasley's Kitchen knives through his robes almost hitting him by a few inches
A few minutes later, everyone was eating breakfast at the table that Mrs. Weasley had made big once more.
"Who touched my favorite knife set?" asked Mrs. Weasley as she go through the kitchen
Fred and George exchanged horrified looks then looked at Bill, Bill just ignored them and gave them a look of I-Told-You-So.
"Oh, I must have moved last night while I was cleaning," said Mrs. Weasley
The twins gave a sigh of relief and continued on to their breakfast.
"So Harry, what are you going to do today?" asked Mr. Weasley
"Oh, Um. We were suppose to go to Diagon Alley today, to look for some clothes we can wear for the Ball," said Harry
"Ah, I miss the old days when we were buying our robes for the school Ball" said Mr. Weasley
"Dad, it's early in the morning, don't you think we can talk about something else rather than that" said Ron
"Oh, alright then, how about you Draco, did you get a good nights sleep?" asked Mr. Weasley, Draco looked like he was run over by a ten wheeler truck... if he knew what that was... twice, his hair was all messed up while he was staring at nowhere
"Draco" said Harry who elbowed Draco
"What? Hah? I'm awake, I'm awake," said a startled Draco
"Looks like someone woke up in the wrong side of the bed this morning" said Charlie
"He kept complaining how hard the bed was," said Harry
"I'm sure you'll get use to it, wont you Draco?" said Luna
"Yes my princess, I'll endure anything for you, anything" said Draco
"Try eating your carrots first why don't you," said Fred
"Don't you have work today Bill?" asked Mr. Weasley
"Nah, I'm going to meet Tonks later" said Bill before taking a bite out of his bacon
"Really now" said Mrs. Weasley who found the subject quite interesting
"Mum, it's not what it looks like," said Bill quickly
"What is it not suppose to look like" asked Hermione
"Mum Tonks and I are just working together, that's it, there's nothing more than that" said Bill
"Go Bill" cheered Charlie
Bill glared at Charlie and waved his wand at him which quickly made Charlie eat his bacon "Mum don't you give me that look" said Bill
"What look?" said Mrs. Weasley smiling at him
"That one on your face right now" said Bill
"Oh Bill, you don't know what you're talking about" said Mrs. Weasley "By the way, if you're not doing anything until later, why don't you let me give your hair a trim"
"Mum, I told you a million times, no!" said Bill
"But you would look so elegant with your hair short" said Mrs. Weasley
"Could we please change the subject!" said Bill
"How about you Parvati, Luna, did you girls sleep well?" asked Mr. Weasley
"Yes we did," said Parvati at once "Your house is very comfortable"
"The four of us told stories to one another, that's why we had a great sleep last night said Luna
"Stories? What stories?" asked Draco automatically
Ron looked suspiciously at the girls "Why are you all giggling?" asked Ron
"Oh nothing" said Ginny
"What do you mean nothing?" asked Neville
"The things we talked about last night are strictly our business" said Hermione who was also giggling
"Those things you talked about don't by any chance had to do with anything with us wouldn't it?" asked Harry suspiciously
"Spill Granger!" said Draco
"You guys would really love it if we would tell you wont you?" said Ginny
"Yes! Yes just tell us already" said Ron
"Well" Ginny started, all four boys leaned closer to hear her
"It's a secret," said Ginny, Harry, Ron, Draco and Neville gave disappointing grunts
"That's not fair!" said Neville
"What isn't fair?" asked Luna
"This whole secrecy thing!" shouted Neville
"Hey Longbottom, you yell at her again and I'm going to rip your tongue out and then show it to you!" said Draco
"Can we please keep our voices down!" yelled Percy
"Percy, you alright?" asked Bill
"I didn't get too much sleep last night" said Percy glaring at Charlie
"Hey, what did I do?" asked Charlie
"You snore as if it was you were a dying cow with his voice amplified five times" said Percy grumpily
"Me, you're lying, I don't snore like that, don't I Bill?" asked Charlie
"No Charlie, you snore like an angry darn Banshee who just found out that it had two reproductive organs," said Bill
"What! Well if I snored as loud as you say I did, which I take as a personal insult to me, then why the heck didn't it bother you then?" asked Charlie
"First of all, it did bother me, second, I used a spell on my ears so I couldn't hear your snores." said Bill
"Why didn't I think of that?" said Percy
"Cause you're too smart for logic" came Charlie's voice
"Up yours" said Percy
"What! What did I say?" said Charlie
"You said I was too smart for logic, you big stupid frill lizard" said Percy
"Ooooh, their at it again" said Draco
"You really have a knack for the opposite of peace and order huh?" said Harry
"Shh" said Draco
"Bill, as much as I wanted to be held accountable for that, did you hear me say that?" said Charlie
"He's right Perce, we were still talking so I would know if he'd said that or not" said Bill
"That's preposterous, I heard him loud and clear!" said Percy
"Give it a rest you guys," said Bill
Percy decided not to go on with the issue, even if he decided to mutter out loud so it would annoy Charlie, Harry gave up on stopping Draco on encouraging Charlie and Percy to start bickering at each other, Parvati kept giving Mr. and Mrs. Weasley compliments "Oh your tea cups are very drinkable- I've never tasted bacon and eggs cooked this way, they're delicious- I love what you've done to the bread". Neville was busy eyeing Fred and George, well, maybe that's because they were sniggering for no apparent reason, a fact that he takes seriously because of that little encounter earlier, Luna was in a conversation with Ginny and Hermione, Charlie was talking to Bill when suddenly...
"You're a big brainless brute who knows nothing but give Dragons their proper meals" came Percy's voice
"Okay! That's it, I've been ignoring you're mutters but this one I can't let pass me by!" yelled Charlie
"What are you talking about?" said Percy
"Oh yeah, sure, deny it you smelly little armpit!" said Charlie
"You're delusional!" said Percy
"Great, here comes round three," said Draco excitedly
"How long are you two going to be on each others necks?" said Bill
"I think it's as long as were related," Percy
"Nothing will make me happier," said Charlie
"I think I'll leave you boys to resolve your problems," said Mr. Weasley, before dissaparating to work
"Bill would you mind cleaning up after you've all finished breakfast," said Mrs. Weasley before going upstairs
"Sure Mum," said Bill
"Hey, you guys want to go outside and leave these guys alone?" asked Ginny to the three girls
"Sure," said Parvati
"I've got nothing else to do," said Luna
"How about you Hermione?" said Ginny
"I think I'll stay behind," said Hermione so Ginny, Parvati and Luna went outside
"Bill he called me a brainless brute," said Charlie
"And you give Dragons their food, yes I heard" said Bill "This is giving me a headache, Percy stop calling Charlie names, Charlie stop insulting Percy," said Bill
Charlie and Percy ignored Bill and continued waging verbal wars at each other. Bill suddenly noticed Fred and George sniggering; he narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the two then stood up and approached them.
"Fred, George, do you have anything to do with this?' asked Bill
"What? Us? No!" said George at once
"Seriously Bill, would you really think that we have something to do with them?' asked Fred
"Yes," replied Bill, he quickly grabbed his wand and said "Accio!" two funny looking objects flew to Bill's hand
"Spill it you two," said Bill
"It's our new invention, we call it, the Voice Grabber's" said Fred
"It can copy anybody's voice in an instant, all you have to do is..." started George
"I don't care how it works, you two are in big trouble," said Bill
"What are you going to make us do this time?" asked Fred
"You're going to clean up the whole house starting with the table," said Bill
"Fine by us," said George
"With out your wands, Accio! Accio!" Fred and George's wands suddenly flew to Bill's hand
"Move it!" Bill
The two stood up while muttering things at him.
"You're a real slave driver you know that," said Fred
"Spare me the compliments," said Bill
"C'mon Harry, let's go to Diagon alley!" said Ron
"Okay, Hermione you should come with us," said Harry
"I'm sorry Harry, Ron, but I promised Ginny and the others that we would shop together," said Hermione
"Oh so what? So you and your posse could talk secretly about us behind our backs? I don't think so," said Draco
"What would it matter to you Malfoy?" said Ron
"Matter?! Matter!? I can barely have time with Luna because of them," said Draco bitterly
"Oh," was the only thing Ron could say
"Well this has been a great visit!" said Draco sarcastically
"Why don't you just take a hike Malfoy?" said Ron
"I'd love to Weasley, but there's one problem," said Draco, he went to the door and opened it to show Ron the plain landscape outside "You see a mountain I can I hike on? No I guess not," said Draco
"Oh, I kind of forgot about that," said Ron
"Forget this, I'm going to find a pond and drown myself in it" said Draco before leaving
"He's still a git Harry," said Ron
"Don't you think I've noticed?" said Harry.
"What's wrong with Malfoy?' asked Fred who was carrying dirty plates
"We don't know, all we know is he started to act like that when he fell head over heels over Luna Lovegood," said Hermione
"You mean he fell in love with Luna?" asked George who was busy wiping the table
"Yeah, and when we say that he fell, I meant he fell off his broom and hit the ground head first, that's how hard he fell in love," said Ron
"He must have used that Love potion that he bought a while back," said George
"Keep wiping George," said Bill who was watching them with his arms crossed, George nervously followed
"Wait, Love Potion? What Love Potion?" asked Harry
"Oh there's a thing that we sell at the Jokeshop, you see there's two vials, one you let the apple of you're eyes drink, and the other you drink," said Fred
"He might have drank the wrong Potion, poor guy, oh well," said George
"So that's why he's been acting so strangely," said Hermione to herself "So the effect of this Potion, how long does it last?" asked Hermione
"Two or three days, tops" said Fred
"Two or three days!" repeated Harry and Ron
"So why does Malfoy still act strange?" asked Hermione
"I don't know, one thing's for sure, he's not going to get a refund," said George
"So Draco thinks that he's still at the effect of the Love Potion?" said Harry
"Hermione, do you think we should tell him?' asked Ron
"Well he has been a prat the past six years, let him find out for himself," said Hermione
"Hermione, you're so bad, I want you," said Harry to himself again "Cut it out!" scolded Harry "Let's change our clothes shall we," said Harry, He and Ron went upstairs to change their clothes while Hermione went outside to get the others
A few moments later, Harry was in the living room waiting for Ron and Neville, he was sitting by the couch when the two got down.
"What took you two?' asked Harry
"Neville's too insecure about his clothes!" said Ron glaring at Neville
"It's not my fault I'm allergic to wool," said Neville "Harry, where's the girls?"
"They went off ten minutes before you two got down," said Harry sounding a bit impatient
"Oh," said Neville
"Where's Malfoy?" said Ron
"I don't think he's coming," said Harry
"Oh well, c'mon let's go!" said Ron
One by one, they went in the fireplace and yelled Diagon alley before dropping a handful of Floo Powder. A few minutes later they found their selves at Diagon alley.
"C'mon Harry! I know some antique Muggle costumes store ahead!" said Neville
"I have to make a stop at Gringgots, I'm not carrying any money right now," said Harry
"Well c'mon then, Gringgots is this way!" said Ron
After Harry had withdrawn some money from his vault at Gringgots, the three went off ahead through the streets of Diagon alley; they passed Fred and George's old shop, closed of course, Dean and Seamus who were already done buying their costumes, they also saw Hermione and the others at the Leaky Cauldron while having a drink, then finally, they found the antique shop Neville was talking about, the place was old and rickety, though Harry thought was weird, they went inside and saw all different kind of Muggle clothes.
"Can I help you?" asked a very old looking Witch whom Harry thought immediately as the store clerk
"Were here to look for some Muggle clothes for the upcoming Ball at Hogwarts," said Harry
"Oh then come in, I've already had other costumers coming in here to buy their own costumes for the Ball too, please, pick what you like," said the clerk
"Okay," said Harry, he then walked around the store to look for something that he might like, Ron and Neville did the same
It took the three minutes for them to find the right costumes that they wanted.
"Harry I got it-"said Ron
"Ron before you say anything," said Harry, stopping Ron from showing his costume "Why don't we show our costumes to one another at the Ball?" said Harry
"I'm all for that," came Neville, Ron just narrowed his eyes at him and just turned back to Harry
"You just don't want to show your costume don't you?" teased Ron
"C'mon, it would be great," said Harry
"Well, okay, I do think it's an exciting idea come to think of it," said Ron
"Great! So, have you two got your costumes yet?" asked Harry
"I already got mine, I'm having it packed at the counter," said Ron
"I already got mine right here," said Harry, showing them the store bag "How about you Neville?"
"I'm still looking for something that I'd think would look good on me," said Neville
"How about a knife at your back," muttered Ron, Neville didn't hear him
"I'm going to wait for you guys outside, okay?" said Harry
"Yeah, sure, I'll just go look around until Neville finds something," said Ron
"All right then," said Harry, he went outside the door and enjoyed the sight of the alley, he turned to his left and saw an old looking bench that was leaning against the store, he thought it would be prudent if he sat down the bench while waiting for Ron and Neville to finish
After six invitations from some good looking Witches, nine encounters of schoolmates, seven autographs signing to fans- which really took him aback, five witnesses of couples making out and eight minutes of waiting, Harry realized someone had sat down beside him, he looked at the person and saw Draco smoking a cigarette, Draco noticed Harry had spotted him so he nodded his head at him.
"What's up," said Draco before throwing his cigarette and lighting another one
"What are you-"he started "Never mind, I thought you were going to drown yourself somewhere," said Harry
"I tried, but the only pond I found was not even deep enough to drown in," said Draco sarcastically "Isn't there anything that's connected to the Weasley's that's worth while?" said Draco
"Look Malfoy, it's true that we've resolved our differences, but that doesn't mean that you're free to insult my friends!" snapped Harry
"Touchy, touchy Potter, I forgot that you were such the Hero that's going to defend his friends every time the evil Draco Malfoy insults them and feed all the starving children of Africa at the same time," said Draco while pretending to shiver with fright
"You'll never change Malfoy, you'll always be an evil-"
"Of course I'm evil! I'm all the anger, hatred, revulsion, loathing, darkness, antipathy, animosity, bitterness and hostility in one deluxe package; I'm evil Potter, evil is me, evil is Draco Malfoy, and nothing-I repeat nothing! Can ever change that, you understand?" said Malfoy
"You really are a sucker for flattering yourself, you're so vain," said Harry
"Up yours Potter!" said Draco
Suddenly, the door of the store opened then Ron and Neville came out with their costumes on their own store bags.
"What took you two?" asked Harry
"He tried to make me buy that pink dress," said Neville
"I just wanted to see if it would've look good on you," said Ron
"It's pink!" yelled Neville, Ron rolled his eyes then saw Draco sitting next to Harry
"What's he doing here?" asked Ron glaring at Draco
"Protecting this bench from evil bloodsucking vampires, what did you think I was doing?" said Draco sarcastically at Ron
Ron looked like he ran out of insults to say...oh wait! He did run out of insults to say. Harry stood up and stepped between them.
"That's enough you two," said Harry "Ron, let's go to the Leaky Cauldron, if we're lucky, we might catch on Hermione and the others,"
"Fine," said Ron still glaring at Draco, Draco on the other hand was smirking at him, which Ron tried hard to ignore
"Let's go then," said Neville
Neville and Ron went on ahead not realizing that Harry stayed behind.
"Aren't you going to get a costume for the Ball?" asked Harry
Draco stood up and noticed a Wizard just as the same age as him wearing what he guessed was Muggle clothing that he was going to wear to the Ball walk by, the Wizard was wearing a biker's jacket with black leather pants to match his jacket.
"I was just about to get mine," said Draco still fixated at the Wizard, then he followed the Wizard in an alley, Harry didn't want to know what he was going to do so he ran after Ron and Neville
The three got to the Leaky Cauldron and saw Hermione and the others at the exact same table that they had sat on earlier. After fixing their selves, they walked towards them.
"Hey Hermione!" said Harry with a stupid silly grin on his face
"Harry, Ron, Neville, are you all done with your costumes?" she asked
"Yeah, we got it right here," said Harry showing them their bags that contained their costumes
"Don't you just stand there you three, sit down and have a drink with us," said Ginny, the boys sat down at the table
"Ron! Why don't you sit here with me," said Parvati
In an instant, Ron's cheeks quickly blushed red "ah... um... sure," said Ron who sat down next to Parvati
"What costumes did you get?" asked Hermione
Harry and Ron exchanged looks.
"We kind of made this agreement that we won't tell each other what costumes we're wearing, we're going to show each other instead at the Ball," said Harry
"Hey, that's kind of interesting," said Ginny
"You don't mind if we join in don't you Ron," said Parvati while clearly smothering Ron
"Let go of him Parv," said Ginny sounding a little upset
"Where's Draco?" asked Luna
"Right here my Princess" came Draco behind her
Neville almost jumped out of his seat out of surprise. "What! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" yelled Neville
"If there's anything I'd like to give you, it's a brain tumor, too bad you already have one," said Draco who sat down between Neville and Luna
"Where did you go?" asked Ginny
Draco placed a bag on top of the table "Costume hunting," said Draco lazily
"Git," said Ginny, which Draco ignored (A/N He was busy ogling over Luna... I think)
"So how about you girls, how did your shopping go?" asked Harry
"Oh it was great! We went to this shop, and there was a lot of costumes there," said Luna
"Hermione said it was okay to buy because it was relevant to those story book Muggles call bed time stories," said Parvati
"So you're already done shopping?" asked Ron
"Yeah, said Parvati," said Ginny
"I don't see your bags anywhere," said Neville
"That's because we had them sent straight to the Burrow," said Hermione
"Yeah, by F. P. D.," said Luna
"What does F. P. D. stand for?" asked Harry
"Fast Package Delivery," said Hermione
"Why don't you just carry them yourselves home instead of paying for that Fast Delivery thing," said Ron
"The packaging is free Ron! Duh," said Ginny
"Oh," said Ron "Really,"
Harry and Hermione chuckled, a few moments later, Ginny said that she was tired so everyone finished their drinks and went back to the Burrow.
One by one they appeared out of the fireplace by Floo Network, they saw Mrs. Weasley had already prepared the kitchens so they hurried to change their clothes and went down to have dinner.
Dinner was just like it was the last time, Charlie and Percy ended up having a fight on who threw a scoop of mashed potatoes at Percy, Draco watched them as they insulted each other, Bill discovered that Fred and George were the ones who were responsible so he told Mrs. Weasley not to wash the dishes because he had volunteers, Ron was busy keeping an eye on Neville because Neville sat down next to his sister, Ginny was having a conversation with Neville about her brother's pranks, Luna was having a debate with Hermione about creatures from outer space, Mrs. Weasley was telling Mr. Weasley not to eat too much meat because of his cholesterol level, Harry was fixated on Hermione all through dinner.
When dinner was over, Mrs. Weasley told them to go to the living room for their Christmas gifts. Once Mrs. Weasley broke the word, all hell broke loose, everyone immediately rummaged for his or her presents except Hermione, she stood by and pointed her wand at the gifts.
"ACCIO! ACCIO!" presents with her name suddenly started to float and drifted across the room towards her
"Oh wow, Neville thanks," said Harry to Neville showing him a new pair of Glasses, Neville smiled at him
"Whoa! A Chuddly Cannons life size poster! Thanks Harry," said Ron to Harry
"Harry, these are the best gift anyone ever gave me," said Mr. Weasley who's on the verge of crying because of the old television Harry had given him.
Present by present, the gifts were opened by the party; each present was better than the other. Neville got a blue sweater from Mrs. Weasley, Ron was given a picture of Parvati by herself, Hermione got a new quill from Ron that made her kiss him on the cheek causing Parvati to glare at her, Neville got Ginny a scarlet hat to match with her hair, Luna got a book entitled Weirds Are Us 2nd edition from Hermione, Draco who was not expecting to get any gifts was surprised when Mrs. Weasley gave him a black sweater, then after that, Luna gave him a necklace which almost made him cry (Good thing he put himself back together), Hermione got another present, this time from Harry, he gave her a magical book that says TEST YOURSELF, A BOOK OF COMMON KNOWLEDGE, Hermione shrieked and gave Harry a suffocating hug, Harry got a present from Bill, it was a book that said THE HISTORY OF AN AUROR which gave a grin that lasted the whole night, Ron gave him a new set of Broom Polishing kit, the same as Hermione had given him before Harry started on their third year, but the best present that Harry got was from Hermione, it was a handmade, small figurine of him riding on his Firebolt, without thinking, Harry had given Hermione a quick kiss on her forehead, Hermione was left stunned but blushing at the same time, in her mind...
"Holy cricket! Did he just kiss me? No Hermione! It's just a friendly kiss, and he's just very happy, but still...I said stop it Granger! Stop thinking about it and just focus on that book that he gave you," Hermione smiled when she remembered Harry's gift to her, she never thought Harry would even care to bring her a present, she looked at him and chuckled slightly when he kind of played with his own figurine which she thought was cute "The book Granger, focus on the book," said Hermione to herself
Hours had passed by, Mr. and Mrs.; Weasley told all of them to sleep. All of them went upstairs and went off to bed feeling great because of their gifts.
Days had passed by, it was the thirtieth day of December outside the Burrow, Harry and the others were going back to Hogwarts a little early to continue some practice for the most anticipated match of the whole year, Gryffindor v.s.Slytherin, they had left behind. Mr. Weasley had flagged down the Knight Bus so that Harry didn't have to, before going up to the Bus, Mrs. Weasley gave them all bone crushing hugs, even Draco was embraced. After that, they boarded the Knight Bus one by one, and in an instant, the Knight Bus disappeared in a blink of an eye.
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Whew! Another chapter finished. I'm sorry it took me so long to update my fic, I have a writers block you see, so it's kind of hard for me to think of new ideas.
Anyway, this chapter is long, so I hope that you'd like as mush as I did of writhing it.
Thanks to...
Rhinemjr: I'm afraid not, it only happened in Harry's dream.
Orlando's Gurl: Thanks Amelia, I personally loved that chapter myself.
Kristine: Uy! Kabayan! Kamusta, saan ka nakatira, thanks for your review, it means so much coming from another pilipino like you.
Kate mooly anders: yeah, I tend to forget my spelling every once in a while, but thanks for the review, read the other chapters OK.
,: thanks anyway, whoever you are.
elphaba, thanks for the review, I knew that chapter was a killer.
fanjimmy: and I personally want to thank you for reviewing each of seven chapters, let me know what you think of the others pls. Pretty please!!!!!!!!!!