A/N- Alright, here's more! Coming up is more Ron and Hermione reaction
stuff, combined with some Harry and Ginny and Draco and Pansy. Also more of
what's in this chapter! R/R!
"That was so much fun," Cho said after she and Lucius had finished their water fight. Lucius nodded. He was actually proud of himself. He did *not* like to get his hair wet at all (unless he was in his own shower), but he thought that he had tolerated this very well.
"Do you mind if we just sit on the bubbles now, though?" Lucius asked, sitting up on one himself and magicking his hair dry. Cho agreed readily. She was perfectly happy to just relax now that she had gotten to have a water fight.
"Do you want to have some champagne?" Lucius asked, seeing that someone who had obviously been enjoying themselves away from the dance also had left a bottle of champagne and some unused glasses over by the portrait of the mermaid on the wall.
Cho nodded eagerly. It wasn't often that she got to drink champagne, since strictly speaking, she wasn't legally allowed to. She certainly couldn't do it at home. But at school she always took the opportunity, and this was definitely too good an opportunity to resist.
"I'll get it," she said, and she climbed out of the pool/bath. After pouring two glasses of champagne, she brought them over to herself and Lucius, and slipped back into it and onto a bubble. "Thank you," Lucius said smoothly, taking one of the glasses from her and sipping it.
"So, what do you want to do now?" Cho asked, not very subtly moving closer to Lucius. He shrugged, not really catching the hint as he sipped his champagne. "Because you know we could-um-kiss," she said, giggling as she tasted the bubbles in the champagne.
Lucius looked at her in awe. No other girl he had ever met, except occasionally Cissa, had ever been that up front with him. "Not very subtle," he commented, laughing slightly. Cho blushed, but ignored her embarrassment, which wasn't very much. "Well, no. I don't like just sitting back. Is that a problem?" she asked, twirling her hair around her finger.
Lucius shook his head. He loved when people took matters into their own hands. It took all the pressure off him. Cissa did that sometimes, and he loved it. This reminded him a little of her, although he didn't quite realize it.
"Not at all," he said honestly, "I think it's sort of sexy." Cho grinned, and moving even closer, she leaned in to kiss him. He didn't resist, and they started to snog fervently, both really enjoying themselves.
* * * *
"Are we there yet?" Sirius asked as he, Remmie, Cissa, and Parvati got closer to Snape's office. Cissa glared back at him. "Sirius, don't you dare start that again," she said, flipping her straight blonde hair out of her eyes, "I cannot wait until we get there either, because then not only can we get what I need, we can also get a Sobering Potion."
Remmie sniggered at this. "Cissa, you know you're going to be just as annoyed with Sirius whether he's drunk or not, so you might as well give up complaining about him," he said. He was probably completely right, too, because Cissa had complained about Sirius the entire evening, no more when he was drunk than when he wasn't.
Only a few minutes later, they reached the door to Snape's office. "Okay, let's be really quiet," Parvati said before they entered. Cissa looked at her in surprise. "Why? We know Snape's not in there! Why bother being quiet?" she asked, confused.
Parvati shrugged, but stuck her ground. "This is Snape we're talking about. He probably has his office rigged or something. Besides, I could get a detention if anyone heard me in there. Let's just be really quiet, okay?" she said a little nervously.
Cissa, Remus, and Sirius agreed. Cissa opened the door as quietly as she could, and they all tiptoed inside, shutting it almost all the way behind them, the same way as they had found it.
"Alright, you help me look for the Veritaserum," Cissa whispered to Parvati, "Lupin, you look and see if Snape has a Sobering Potion around here somewhere. Sirius, you lean against the wall and keep your mouth shut."
They all immediately did as she said, even Sirius, which was surprising. Not one of them wanted to get caught in Snape's office by anyone. "I found some Sobering Potion," Remmie whispered after a minute, walking over to Sirius, "Here, why don't you drink it now."
Sirius reluctantly took a sip from the goblet that Lupin held out. "Don't be a baby, Sirius, just drink it all!" Remmie said quietly, handing him the glass. Sirius halfheartedly drank it all. He made a face as soon as he had finished. It didn't taste very good.
But a few seconds later, it worked. A little of the bloodshot-ness was removed from Sirius's eyes, and they seemed to focus more. He also stood up much more easily without leaning against the wall. "That's better," he said, handing the empty goblet back to Remmie, who put it down where he had found it.
"Good," Remmie said, smiling with relief, "Too bad you'll still have the hangover from hell tomorrow morning." Sirius rolled his eyes. "Who cares about tomorrow morning, Remmie?" he asked incredulously, "This is tonight! I'll worry about tomorrow morning when it comes! Besides, maybe I'll be lucky and not get one."
Remus nodded along with Sirius's optimistic attitude. He himself was sure that Sirius would not feel the same way about it in the morning, but he decided to let Sirius realize this himself. "Alright, let's help Cissa and Parvati look for some Veritaserum," he said, starting to look around himself.
Sirius consented, and was about to start looking when he heard a noise. "Did you hear that?" he whispered to Cissa, Remmie, and Parvati. Cissa looked at Sirius skeptically. "Hear what?" she asked in an undertone, turning away from the shelf she had been looking in.
Sirius listened and heard it again. "That," he said, standing still, "That noise. Did you hear it? It sounded like a sigh or something. Listen, maybe you'll hear it again." The four of them froze like Sirius, trying to hear.
Pretty soon they heard it again, quietly. "That sounded like the pathetic noise you made when I was giving you the massage during Truth or Dare," Cissa laughed softly, "I wonder what it is."
"I don't," Parvati said anxiously, "I don't like being in Snape's office at all, and I'd rather not stay and investigate. Let's just find the Veritaserum and get out of here." Sirius shook his head. "No way, I really want to know what it is," he said, looking around as if expecting whatever it was to jump out at them.
Remmie agreed with him, of course. Parvati turned to Cissa, hoping for her support. As much as she liked Sirius, she did not want to stay in Snape's office. But Cissa shook her head. She was just as curious as Sirius and Remmie about what it was. "Let's check his room," she said, sneaking through the doorframe into Snape's quarters, "But be really, really quiet."
They walked over to the living room area first. "Coffee ice cream!" Sirius exclaimed almost silently, eyeing two bowls with a little bit of coffee ice cream remaining in them. "Yuck," Cissa said, making a face. She had tried Snape's coffee ice cream before. It was way too intense for her.
They continued looking around the living room area. "Champagne!" Sirius silently exclaimed again, looking at two empty champagne glasses next to a bottle of champagne which had about a fourth of the bubbly liquid left in it. "Interesting," Remmie said, laughing inaudibly.
"Shoes!" Sirius said, pointing out a pair of black strappy sandals next to a pair of black Oxfords. All four people in the group were very confused now. They had found a lot of evidence, but none of them really seemed to know what all the clues pointed to.
"Wait, I just heard the noise again," Parvati whispered as quietly as she could, looking over to where she had heard the noise, "Oh no, what if it's Mrs. Norris, and she's stuck in Professor Snape's bed or something?"
The other three raised their eyebrows. That wasn't the first thing that would have occurred to them, but since their minds were blank, it seemed as likely as anything else. "Well, there's only one way to find out," said Sirius bravely (or stupidly), "Let's go investigate."
* * * *
As soon as Penny was sure that Fred, George, and their little group were out of earshot, she went on talking to Percy. "Did you get what Fred and George were saying, Percy?" she asked nervously, not knowing exactly what to say to him.
Percy nodded, looking down at the floor. "Unfortunately," he said sincerely, "and I realized that I deserved an F. No, worse. I deserved a G." Penny laughed. Percy hardly ever made jokes about grades, so when he did, it was really appreciated. "Well I deserved maybe a C at best," she admitted, smiling ruefully.
"No," Percy sighed, shaking his head, "You did everything right. You deserved an A. But I can't believe I was such a jerk. I'm really, really sorry." He meant it, too. He had gotten so carried away in his own nervousness about the date that he had done everything he could to avoid facing his fears. This included driving Ginny, Ron, Fred, George, and Oliver crazy.
"Well, I guess you understood what Fred and George said too then, right?" Percy asked. Penny nodded, eyes twinkling, and Percy continued, "Good, because I don't think I'd be able to explain it. Anyway, er-do you want to go down to the Great Hall and enjoy the rest of the dance?"
Penny beamed. "Percy, I thought you'd never ask," she said, rolling her eyes, "I'd love to. Let's go." She took his hand, and he followed her, slightly dazed, out of his room and towards the common room.
Mentally, Percy was kicking himself. If he had just been honest with both himself and Penny from the start, they could have done a whole lot more hand holding and things like that before now.
"That was so much fun," Cho said after she and Lucius had finished their water fight. Lucius nodded. He was actually proud of himself. He did *not* like to get his hair wet at all (unless he was in his own shower), but he thought that he had tolerated this very well.
"Do you mind if we just sit on the bubbles now, though?" Lucius asked, sitting up on one himself and magicking his hair dry. Cho agreed readily. She was perfectly happy to just relax now that she had gotten to have a water fight.
"Do you want to have some champagne?" Lucius asked, seeing that someone who had obviously been enjoying themselves away from the dance also had left a bottle of champagne and some unused glasses over by the portrait of the mermaid on the wall.
Cho nodded eagerly. It wasn't often that she got to drink champagne, since strictly speaking, she wasn't legally allowed to. She certainly couldn't do it at home. But at school she always took the opportunity, and this was definitely too good an opportunity to resist.
"I'll get it," she said, and she climbed out of the pool/bath. After pouring two glasses of champagne, she brought them over to herself and Lucius, and slipped back into it and onto a bubble. "Thank you," Lucius said smoothly, taking one of the glasses from her and sipping it.
"So, what do you want to do now?" Cho asked, not very subtly moving closer to Lucius. He shrugged, not really catching the hint as he sipped his champagne. "Because you know we could-um-kiss," she said, giggling as she tasted the bubbles in the champagne.
Lucius looked at her in awe. No other girl he had ever met, except occasionally Cissa, had ever been that up front with him. "Not very subtle," he commented, laughing slightly. Cho blushed, but ignored her embarrassment, which wasn't very much. "Well, no. I don't like just sitting back. Is that a problem?" she asked, twirling her hair around her finger.
Lucius shook his head. He loved when people took matters into their own hands. It took all the pressure off him. Cissa did that sometimes, and he loved it. This reminded him a little of her, although he didn't quite realize it.
"Not at all," he said honestly, "I think it's sort of sexy." Cho grinned, and moving even closer, she leaned in to kiss him. He didn't resist, and they started to snog fervently, both really enjoying themselves.
* * * *
"Are we there yet?" Sirius asked as he, Remmie, Cissa, and Parvati got closer to Snape's office. Cissa glared back at him. "Sirius, don't you dare start that again," she said, flipping her straight blonde hair out of her eyes, "I cannot wait until we get there either, because then not only can we get what I need, we can also get a Sobering Potion."
Remmie sniggered at this. "Cissa, you know you're going to be just as annoyed with Sirius whether he's drunk or not, so you might as well give up complaining about him," he said. He was probably completely right, too, because Cissa had complained about Sirius the entire evening, no more when he was drunk than when he wasn't.
Only a few minutes later, they reached the door to Snape's office. "Okay, let's be really quiet," Parvati said before they entered. Cissa looked at her in surprise. "Why? We know Snape's not in there! Why bother being quiet?" she asked, confused.
Parvati shrugged, but stuck her ground. "This is Snape we're talking about. He probably has his office rigged or something. Besides, I could get a detention if anyone heard me in there. Let's just be really quiet, okay?" she said a little nervously.
Cissa, Remus, and Sirius agreed. Cissa opened the door as quietly as she could, and they all tiptoed inside, shutting it almost all the way behind them, the same way as they had found it.
"Alright, you help me look for the Veritaserum," Cissa whispered to Parvati, "Lupin, you look and see if Snape has a Sobering Potion around here somewhere. Sirius, you lean against the wall and keep your mouth shut."
They all immediately did as she said, even Sirius, which was surprising. Not one of them wanted to get caught in Snape's office by anyone. "I found some Sobering Potion," Remmie whispered after a minute, walking over to Sirius, "Here, why don't you drink it now."
Sirius reluctantly took a sip from the goblet that Lupin held out. "Don't be a baby, Sirius, just drink it all!" Remmie said quietly, handing him the glass. Sirius halfheartedly drank it all. He made a face as soon as he had finished. It didn't taste very good.
But a few seconds later, it worked. A little of the bloodshot-ness was removed from Sirius's eyes, and they seemed to focus more. He also stood up much more easily without leaning against the wall. "That's better," he said, handing the empty goblet back to Remmie, who put it down where he had found it.
"Good," Remmie said, smiling with relief, "Too bad you'll still have the hangover from hell tomorrow morning." Sirius rolled his eyes. "Who cares about tomorrow morning, Remmie?" he asked incredulously, "This is tonight! I'll worry about tomorrow morning when it comes! Besides, maybe I'll be lucky and not get one."
Remus nodded along with Sirius's optimistic attitude. He himself was sure that Sirius would not feel the same way about it in the morning, but he decided to let Sirius realize this himself. "Alright, let's help Cissa and Parvati look for some Veritaserum," he said, starting to look around himself.
Sirius consented, and was about to start looking when he heard a noise. "Did you hear that?" he whispered to Cissa, Remmie, and Parvati. Cissa looked at Sirius skeptically. "Hear what?" she asked in an undertone, turning away from the shelf she had been looking in.
Sirius listened and heard it again. "That," he said, standing still, "That noise. Did you hear it? It sounded like a sigh or something. Listen, maybe you'll hear it again." The four of them froze like Sirius, trying to hear.
Pretty soon they heard it again, quietly. "That sounded like the pathetic noise you made when I was giving you the massage during Truth or Dare," Cissa laughed softly, "I wonder what it is."
"I don't," Parvati said anxiously, "I don't like being in Snape's office at all, and I'd rather not stay and investigate. Let's just find the Veritaserum and get out of here." Sirius shook his head. "No way, I really want to know what it is," he said, looking around as if expecting whatever it was to jump out at them.
Remmie agreed with him, of course. Parvati turned to Cissa, hoping for her support. As much as she liked Sirius, she did not want to stay in Snape's office. But Cissa shook her head. She was just as curious as Sirius and Remmie about what it was. "Let's check his room," she said, sneaking through the doorframe into Snape's quarters, "But be really, really quiet."
They walked over to the living room area first. "Coffee ice cream!" Sirius exclaimed almost silently, eyeing two bowls with a little bit of coffee ice cream remaining in them. "Yuck," Cissa said, making a face. She had tried Snape's coffee ice cream before. It was way too intense for her.
They continued looking around the living room area. "Champagne!" Sirius silently exclaimed again, looking at two empty champagne glasses next to a bottle of champagne which had about a fourth of the bubbly liquid left in it. "Interesting," Remmie said, laughing inaudibly.
"Shoes!" Sirius said, pointing out a pair of black strappy sandals next to a pair of black Oxfords. All four people in the group were very confused now. They had found a lot of evidence, but none of them really seemed to know what all the clues pointed to.
"Wait, I just heard the noise again," Parvati whispered as quietly as she could, looking over to where she had heard the noise, "Oh no, what if it's Mrs. Norris, and she's stuck in Professor Snape's bed or something?"
The other three raised their eyebrows. That wasn't the first thing that would have occurred to them, but since their minds were blank, it seemed as likely as anything else. "Well, there's only one way to find out," said Sirius bravely (or stupidly), "Let's go investigate."
* * * *
As soon as Penny was sure that Fred, George, and their little group were out of earshot, she went on talking to Percy. "Did you get what Fred and George were saying, Percy?" she asked nervously, not knowing exactly what to say to him.
Percy nodded, looking down at the floor. "Unfortunately," he said sincerely, "and I realized that I deserved an F. No, worse. I deserved a G." Penny laughed. Percy hardly ever made jokes about grades, so when he did, it was really appreciated. "Well I deserved maybe a C at best," she admitted, smiling ruefully.
"No," Percy sighed, shaking his head, "You did everything right. You deserved an A. But I can't believe I was such a jerk. I'm really, really sorry." He meant it, too. He had gotten so carried away in his own nervousness about the date that he had done everything he could to avoid facing his fears. This included driving Ginny, Ron, Fred, George, and Oliver crazy.
"Well, I guess you understood what Fred and George said too then, right?" Percy asked. Penny nodded, eyes twinkling, and Percy continued, "Good, because I don't think I'd be able to explain it. Anyway, er-do you want to go down to the Great Hall and enjoy the rest of the dance?"
Penny beamed. "Percy, I thought you'd never ask," she said, rolling her eyes, "I'd love to. Let's go." She took his hand, and he followed her, slightly dazed, out of his room and towards the common room.
Mentally, Percy was kicking himself. If he had just been honest with both himself and Penny from the start, they could have done a whole lot more hand holding and things like that before now.
