Some notes about this chapter:
-No real cliffie this time, I got writers' block but decided to post what I
had. :P
-Ugh, sorry for Pansy's sudden change of behavior. She's supposed to have realized
she was going "soft" (from her late night conversation with Crabbe)
and toughened up again, but I never really explained it that well. I wanted
her to be more in-character.
-Sorry for the slow updates! I've got a lot going on lately (ahh! Tomorrow's
my orchestra's POPS concert! *panic panic*), so I have had no time to update
consistently, or write anything, for that matter. :'(
-Oh yeah, if there are any Diarylanders here - I made a Harry/Snape pairing
Diaryring! Whoo hoo! If you look in the H section of the Diaryrings directory,
its ring name is harry-snape. That way everyone can know we're obsessed. :D
-Wow! I'm on the Auther Alert list of 16 people? Sweet! :)
The characters we know of are (body - person IN body):
Blaise Zabini - Harry Potter
Crabbe - Padma Patil
Goyle - Dumbledore
Neville - McGonagall
Ron Weasley - Blaise Zabini
Draco - Lavender
Padma - Ron
Harry - Draco
I think that's everyone. And most of you already have figured out whose body
Snape is occupying - go you. Lol.
I was thinking about this, and once I finish this, I'm going to make a few other (shorter) stories around some of the characters who aren't being followed in this story - for example, Neville, who I've had a good idea for since before my plotline idea for this story, as well as some possible foreshadowing of Blaise's book and stuff. Who knows? :)
Thank you to my wonderful reviewers!....
golden paw (thanks! :D ), risi (wow, thanks for the long, detailed review. It's really helpful to hear what parts people like and dislike about one's writing. ^^ Yes, I am going to work some of that in - poor Ron-gone-Padma, he's in the dark. I think changing sex would be less of a shock to Hogwarts students than us - they've been through an awful lot, like Hermione turning into a cat in book two. Thanks again!), XxDarkGoddessxX (well, that's not good! This story seems to be confusing a lot of people, lol, I dunno if it's my writing or just my plot in general... O.o), xSnapeLoverx (correct guess for who Snape's occupying, but you'll see about Hermione!), antigonesev (you'll find that out soon... will probably be mentioned in here and then deepened in a side story), chickens (ok! :) ), Maxwell Demon (hmm... well, Harry hasn't figured out who Pansy is yet, and since the readers are supposed to know while reading (at least, that was my original plan... whoo), but Harry will find out near the end. ^^" Poor Harry.), insanechildfanfic (thanks!), Lee Lee Potter (thanks! Hmm, hadn't really thought about bringing Draco into this story too much (but he will be in it some!), but maybe that could be a sidestory too. Whee. He will realize how much crap Harry has to go through though, after he finishes abusing the position.), Cally (that should be explained in coming chapters, and somewhat in this one), Katie Lupin Black (yep, thanks!), Alvit-Valkyrie (he got his map back, but Blaise (the real Blaise... lol) kept his cloak for Draco), BURN THE R.U.M (thanks!), mistik-elf13 (:D Snape's acting more Snapeish in this chapter so you should figure out who he is this chapter. :) ).
Whooooo, lots of replies, hehe. Anyway, onto the story!
.~*~.
There weren't that many students left in the common room. The fires were
burning low and most of the Slytherins with any sense had turned in. In fact,
after Malfoy passed him on the stairs, Harry was alone in the commons with Pansy,
once again. He found himself rather trapped. On one hand, there was certainly
a danger in beginning to feel... anything... for someone who you would literally
lose eventually, and on the other, he didn't feel like staying in the
dorm.
So, feeling very stupid afterwards, he did the next best thing.
He sat on the stairs.
Stone. They were cold. Everything about Slytherin was cold, from their
commons to their attitude. At least of the Slytherins he knew. None of which
he recognized as more than enemies. The usual–Malfoy, Malfoy senior, Snape,
Crabbe, Goyle, the death eaters. Maybe there really was something underneath
that cold exterior. He couldn't figure out for the life of him what that
could be, though.
"What are you doing?"
The irritated question surprised him. He'd really been getting into his
thoughts there, for a moment. Harry looked up at Pansy and squinted, wondering
who she could be. She'd said she was a Slytherin already. Was she Millicent?
He shuddered inwardly at the thought. No, she couldn't be. Possibly a
younger Slytherin. Or a 7th year. He had to admit, he didn't really know
anyone of different years nowadays, besides a few other Gryffindors. That left...
too many people to narrow down right now. He shook his thoughts away.
"I... don't know."
She rolled her eyes before returning them to her never-ending supply of books.
"Come to keep me company again, I see?"
Silence. She coughed. Her hair was a matted mess.
"Don't you know how to comb your hair?"
"I'm ready to cut the stuff off," she mumbled, then, louder,
"I know how to use a comb, idiot. I'm just not really concerned
with that right now."
"Then what are you concerned with?"
"Changing back. I don't particularly want to stay in Parkinson's
body until who knows when. Going through all these classes again. Especially
when the teachers don't know how to teach."
"I think the Care of Magical Creatures teacher is doing a good job,"
Harry said unconvincingly. He missed Hagrid's classes.
Pansy didn't comment. "I feel it's my duty to find something
to help change us all back," she told him, her words fading into silence
as she read. This silence stretched into several minutes before Harry replied.
"Why?"
She looked up and stared at him. After a moment she blinked and looked away.
"I–don't know." Pansy didn't continue.
"You're a seventh year then?"
"What makes you think that?" she said sharply, going back to staring
at him. It was getting him nervous.
"You said you were going through the classes again."
"Damnit." She stretched, and Harry had the feeling she was stalling.
"I'm going to bed."
"Are you?"
She mumbled incoherently and trudged up the staircase, not replying.
Harry looked at the book she'd left, a bookmark sticking out near the
back. He flipped open the cover to see the title.
In large, embossed letters it read, 'Property of:'. The two words
below it, presumably a name, had been scratched out numerous times with a thick
quill, and Harry could not read it.
He sighed. The clock above the hearth told him that it was now almost ten. Deciding
there was not much else worth doing, he too made his way to his dormitory, hoping
that Crabbe had fallen asleep.
Thursday dawned in darkness, rain pouring outside. Lightning struck somewhere
above the Forbidden Forest. At breakfast, Harry looked up, expecting to see
rain, but only saw dull stone. The ceiling had been disenchanted.
Crabbe hadn't appeared so far this morning. When Harry had awakened, he
still had the curtains of his four-poster drawn shut. He had tried to talk him,
but Crabbe didn't really seem too talkative.
Harry wondered what had caused his new housemate to be so upset. Ravenclaws
had never struck him to be the sort to cry.
Then again, it wasn't as though he knew any Ravenclaws that well.
He sighed. First class was Herbology with Ravenclaw. At least he'd get
to see Ron... Padma. He paused in the middle of chewing on his bacon to think
about how mind-boggling Hogwarts' situation really was. His best friend
was now Padma, but Padma was actually Ron. Ron was the owner of the body he
had taken residence in. Harry was Blaise Zabini. It was all really confusing.
Hermione. He missed her. Where had she landed? No one, besides perhaps Pansy,
had struck him as becoming suddenly studious. And Pansy had said she was a Slytherin.
Maybe it really was Hermione and she was lying? Pansy had called him a Gryffindork.
Hermione had never used that term, but then again, no Gryffindor ever had.
He shook his head, resuming his chewing. Too early to think.
The greenhouses were chaotic. Plants which had not been watered in days terrorized
students as they tried to do so. Flytraps lashed out at anyone within a three-foot
radius, including neighboring plants, and large tentacled things crawled around
the floor and tables, tangling around students' legs and tapping them
on the shoulder.
"Padma, you have a plant on your foot." Harry told his partner,
who looked downwards and yelped, then kicked it off and looked at Harry sheepishly.
"I think being a girl's worn off on me."
"Uh huh," Harry muttered distractedly, trying to water a small flutterby
bush while reaching over a cactus that pulsated, like it was breathing.
"I wonder if every class will be like this," Padma said drearily,
and seemed to be contemplating whether or not she should water the cactus.
"Hopefully not."
Somewhere behind them, a Ravenclaw prefect tripped and knocked over a table,
the plants which had previously been sitting on it sliding off and bouncing
away. They ignored it.
"Hey, I wonder where Hermione is," Padma said brightly, changing
topics. Harry shrugged.
"No idea."
"I've been looking around for her a lot, but I don't know
where she could be. I never realized there were so many students at Hogwarts,"
she groaned.
"She could be anywhere," Harry agreed, not really paying that much
attention. It occurred to him that while Padma was talking and following him
around, she wasn't doing much else. He sighed inwardly and watered various
plants.
"But you know, it's really cool bring a girl," Padma told
him, sounding a bit too pleased. Harry rolled his eyes.
"You probably won't be so happy later," Crabbe informed him,
having just entered the greenhouse, looking miserable. It wasn't an emotion
often depicted on his wide face.
"What do you mean?" Padma spluttered. Both ignored him.
"What was up last night?"
"A combination of depression, stress, and the fact that Pansy seems to
enjoy arguing. It was stupid. Sorry if I bothered you."
"You didn't," he reassured Crabbe, nodding. "What were
you and Pansy arguing about?"
"It was so stupid that I forget now," Crabbe said unconvincingly
with a shrug. Harry shrugged too. Padma looked confused.
"So... what's up?"
"We're all just peachy, R–Padma," Harry snapped. The
comment would've been considerably more effective had he not stumbled
over calling Padma the right name.
"Whoa, where'd that come from?" she asked, then shrugged when
Harry watered what was most easily described as purple tomatoes. Some had green
spots.
The class ended, and Padma and Harry parted at the doors of the school, Harry
and Crabbe heading to Potions.
Harry knew Crabbe didn't really want to talk about it. When he glanced
over at the other Slytherin, he saw that he was having trouble walking, books
slung over his shoulder.
"Something wrong?"
"Bugger this," Crabbe said, stopping to lean against the wall. "I
don't think Crabbe's body is too used to walking all the way across
the castle to the dungeons." He took a large gulp of air. "He needs
a hobby. Like, other than following Malfoy around and looking stupid. Ugh, I
hate being a boy, it's so gross!"
"Hey," Harry couldn't help but interject while he was panting
again. He now trailed behind Harry, dragging his bag along the floor, until
it caught on a bumpy stone in the floor and ripped open, enchanted textbooks
flying in all directions.
"Ugh!"
Harry summoned them all back and slid to the floor next to Crabbe, handing them
back. Crabbe groaned, face in his hands.
"Thanks. I guess we hafta get to Potions though, huh?"
"I dunno... Snape kinda seems a little off," Harry said.
"Huh?"
Pansy turned the corner and stopped in front of them, looking at them down her
nose, an awkward sneer on her face. "Disgusting."
"Who peed in your cereal?" Crabbe retaliated. Pansy looked slightly
confused.
"What happened to you? You look like you fell off the Astronomy tower,"
Harry asked her, getting ignored by the other two as they bickered.
Insults were sent back and forth, and Harry sighed, picked up Zabini's
book sack, and slung it over his shoulder. Then they stopped, looking at him.
"Where are you going?"
"Potions. What is up with you two? Who bloody cares about whatever
happened yesterday? And you, Pansy, what's up? You're acting like
a child."
Crabbe stood and dusted himself off, muttering apologies. Pansy looked as though
Harry had just slapped her. She turned on her heel and strutted off to the Potions
classroom, the other two following at a distance.
Potions was a disaster zone. All of the students seemed to be talking to their
recently lost and found buddies, and Snape stood in front of everything, looking
bewildered and exasperated. His hands were shaking. Pansy was staring at him.
Crabbe had just apologized to Pansy, but they still were wary of one another,
using Harry as a wall. So, he was constantly being distracted by one or the
other as he tried to follow the instructions on the board. Beside him, two one-sided
conversations were happening.
"I can't wait until we're back in our normal bodies–"
Pansy said from his left side.
"They should put some windows in here, it's too dark–"
Crabbe said from his right.
"Then I can forget this ever happened–"
"Enchanted windows really are cool, Ravenclaw has some–"
"The sooner we get out of this preposterous situation the better–"
"Like, you can see what's outside but no one can see you looking
through–"
"What's the worst about it, though, is that you don't know
who to trust because anyone could bloody be anyone–"
"Pity they reflect our true selves, so we can't have them yet–"
"And this reliving 6th year shit is wearing my patience thin–"
"I wonder if they'll still be there when we're changed back–"
"Idiot students can't teach–"
Harry clutched each side of his head, slightly jumping when he felt manageable
locks, almost feeling steam spouting from his ears. "Do shut up!"
To his slight amazement, both of their next statements died on their lips. "Either
talk with me, both of you included, or keep quiet! You're driving
me up the bloody wall!"
He later regretted this comment when both his housemates' pride kept them
from talking the rest of the class.
.~*~.
No cliffhanger, but I promise more interesting parts soon, sorry! *Gives out cookies to reviewers*
