A/N- triumphant music I have returned. Boogie down, yo. Yes, sorry doesn't begin to cut it, but what's done is done, and what's done happens to be CHAPTER 52, brought to you by me, BeachBum754. And yes, I've been totally inspired by HBP, but as far as I know there will be no spoilers, seeing as this has to take place before then. So, read on and PLEASE REVIEW! I love seeing those review alert emails, so don't hold back (unless you're flaming, in which case, keep it to yourself.) More to come as soon as I get feedback!
Fred, George, Angelina, and Alicia carefully made their way back to the Great Hall, with Fred and George each hiding a bottle of rum in case a professor should have happened to walk by.
"You know," Angelina said, unable to help herself noticing how appealing Fred looked with a feigned serious look on his face, trying to hide the rum but not really caring if they were caught, "are you sure you don't want to just take the rum back to the Common Room and keep it for ourselves? I'm sure we could put it to good use…"
She trailed off, leaving Fred to look back at her and catch the end of her licking her lips. George took notice as well, leaving Alicia to laugh at her friend's transparency. She only wished she had had the idea before her, as the boys were clearly trying their hardest not to let themselves imagine what could happen if they did just that.
The two girls watched anxiously as the twins exchanged looks. It was clear from the pained looks they were giving each other that their two loves, their girlfriends and their pranks were battling it out for which got first priority that night. "That sounds fabulous," Fred began as he gave Angelina a winning smile.
"But," George continued for him, looking at Alicia equally fondly, "If we don't pull a prank to remember, then our astounding legacy of kick-ass pranks, outdone only by the Marauders, will be seriously lacking in the blind-date dance aspect, if you know what I mean."
"So you see," Fred jumped in, before George said something else stupid, "we've got a job to do, an example to set. Plus, do you really want to let Snape and Lucius one-up us? That incident with the Too Sexy boxers couldn't have gone better if we had planned it. We ought to give Dumbledore a gift for that one, I'm serious. Let's play this one prank, get Professor Lupin hammered like a nail, and then, assuming we have enough rum left, we'll take it up to the Astronomy Tower and make this even more of a night to remember. Deal?"
Alicia and Angelina nodded, both unable to hold their laughter for more than a minute or two. "You two are so cute," Alicia commented, not at all upset by their choice, and certainly not surprised by it, "Let's go do it."
George's ears perked up when he heard 'do it,' but he was sadly disappointed when Alicia explained amid giggles, "I was talking about the prank, Weasley." Shaking his head in mock regret, he soon grinned and allowed himself to be pushed down the hall by Fred and Alicia, while Angelina waited further down, impatient to get the prank underway. There was just something about those Weasley boys, and it was just the red hair and freckles, that made them so irresistible.
"Can I help you?" Professor Dumbledore asked, halting them at the door to the Great Hall. Angelina, taking her job as 'brains of the operation' seriously, said, "No, we were just coming back after a quick trip to the Common Room," while the other three looked around, trying to appear inconspicuous.
"Of course," Dumbledore said, eyes twinkling once more, "And am I to presume that those rum-bottle sized lumps under the shirts of Mr. Weasley and Mr. Weasley are the remnants of a turkey dinner, or were you just bringing me a nightcap, Ms. Johnson?"
Fred saw quickly that she was not going to be able to lie her way out of Dumbledore's all-seeing eyes. With barely a moment to think, he jumped in. "Bloody hell! Professor McGonagall's doing a strip tease!" he yelled, causing several heads nearby to turn to where he was pointing, including immediately Professor Dumbledore, who he distinctly heard muttering something about thongs and sherbet lemons.
Without waiting another moment, he, George, Angelina, and Alicia made a run for it into the chaos of the Great Hall while Professor Dumbledore's head was turned. "That was brilliant, Fred, if I do say so myself," George congratulated his brother, patting the lump under his shirt all the while. Fred smirked, looking very pleased with himself, as Dumbledore now seemed too distracted by the idea of McGonagall doing a strip tease to remember what he had just seen.
"Why thank you, dear brother," Fred said graciously, removing the rum from under his shirt and taking a deep bow. Angelina gave him a playful slap upside the head, though, and he was back into action, saying, "The lady speaks the truth. We have a job to do. So where oh where has good old Remmie gone to?"
While they were scanning the Great Hall for Lupin and Sirius, Sirius was scanning the same place for Lucius and Snape. "So, Remmie, how about a glass of champagne?" he asked, pretending not to be serious in hopes that Lupin would know to take him seriously anyway. Lupin shook his head. He had lost count of how many glasses Sirius had had thus far, but he was sure that it was plenty.
"No way," Lupin protested, steering Sirius away from the table, "Why don't we find something less, um, alcoholic to do, hmm?" Pouting, Sirius slipping out of Remus' grasp, and grabbed a champagne glass from the nearby table. "Well if I can't have any, you should at least have some, right?" he asked, pushing the glass into his Lupin's hand and flashing him a winning smile.
Lupin was torn between pouring the glass over his best friend's head and actually letting him drink it. It was impossible to argue with Sirius. He just knew how to work people, and Lupin was always especially workable in his presence. "Alright. I'll have one more glass, and so can you, okay? But this is your last one," he said warningly, giving Sirius a look that showed he meant business.
No sooner had each of them picked up a glass of champagne than Fred, George, Angelina, and Alicia appeared right behind them. It had been a struggle getting through the room, thick with people having a good time, and unwilling to move far apart from each other. And it had been even harder to do it inconspicuously, so that in the unlikely event that Dumbledore managed to get past the image they had conjured up for him of McGonagall, he wouldn't notice them in the midst of the Great Hall.
"Sirius and Professor Lupin," George greeted them enthusiastically, "How goes the night?" Lupin smiled at the intrusion, happy for a chance for both he and Sirius to put down their glasses of champagne momentarily and talk.
"Not bad, not bad," Lupin answered, looking around for Fred. It was very rare to find one Weasley twin without the other, so the fact that George seemed to be there all by himself was quite surprising. George was used to that look of surprise, though, and ended it before Professor Lupin had a chance to turn around and find Fred behind him with Angelina and Alicia.
"He's dancing with his giiirlfriend. Fred can't seem to keep his hands off her lately. You'd swear they were…" George stopped short of saying what he had intended to say, not sure how Professor Lupin would take it. Sirius, though, gave him a wink that showed he knew exactly what he was thinking, and fully supported it. "Dammit Remmie, the things I've missed. You try going around as a great bloody dog. See how you like it when the only offers you're getting are from poodles," Sirius said, provoked by George's implications.
Lupin rolled his eyes. He was used to this kind of complaint from Sirius, but he knew better than to take him seriously. Lupin had been Sirius's right hand man for long enough to know that Sirius could have just about any girl he wanted, if only he put a little effort into it. When he accidentally voiced that opinion, though, Sirius denied it vehemently, and George managed to get the two of them into a heated discussion, buying Fred and the girls a bit more time.
"I'd better pour it," Angelina suggested, taking one of the two bottles that Fred was holding and opening it, "I'm not sure I trust you not to spill." Fred pretended to look put out, but he knew that she was right. His prankster reputation had not come from being coordinated, and the rum they had stolen was strong stuff. It was better if Angelina poured it.
"I hope this is the right glass," she said, taking the one she saw closest to Lupin and pouring a liberal amount into his drink. "Should we pour it into a few others nearby, just in case?" Alicia asked, figuring they might as well use up some of the rum. Though there were four of them, she doubted whether they would be able to drink almost two whole bottles later that night, and so she figured it would be better used if they made it foolproof.
Fred nodded eagerly, and with a look of slight hesitation, Angelina poured it into the smattering of champagne glasses on the table around them. "Oops," she exclaimed in a whisper as she made one glass overflow accidentally.
When they had finished, Alicia gave George a wave from behind Professor Lupin and Sirius. "Well, it's been a lovely chat," George said, smiling mischievously as he waved goodbye to the recipient of their prank and went to rejoin his friends, who had moved a slight distance away so as not to arise suspicion. Lupin and Sirius waved back, bewildered at his quick departure.
Picking up his glass of champagne again, more out of polite habit than a particular desire for the drink, Lupin gave Sirius a disbelieving smile before taking a sip. "Don't give me that poodle business, Sirius Black," he said knowingly, "You know perfectly well you could have any girl in the place. Hell, you could probably have any guy in the place too, if you played your cards right. I'm the only lost dog here, mate. Until you get rejected and I get hit on, if you tell that poodle story again I'll…"
He trailed off, realizing that there was nothing he could say that would faze Sirius, and even if he thought of something, he would never follow through on it. "You'll what, Remmie? Sic Snape on me?" Sirius prompted him gleefully. Lupin was again torn, this time between slapping him and breaking down in laughter.
"No," he said, searching for something better, "I'll take away your champagne!" Sirius looked at him wide eyed and took another swig of the bubbly liquid. "You wouldn't dare," he said, feigning fear, "Besides, you're too scared to drink yours; I don't think you could handle mine too."
"You think so, huh Padfoot? I may not be quite the ladies' man you are, but I can take a drink or two as well as the next wizard," Lupin defended himself. Sirius looked at him defiantly. "Then prove it," he said, picking up another glass of champagne and handing it to him. Lupin took it willingly, and to prove his capability, gulped down almost half the glass at once. He immediately began coughing and spluttering.
"Taste this, Sirius, does that taste like champagne to you?" he asked tentatively. Maybe it was just that he hadn't had much to drink for awhile, but he felt as it was hard liquor, and not champagne, that he was drinking. Sirius, on the other hand, was a connoisseur in the matter, so if anyone would know the difference, he would.
Taking the glass, Sirius took a small sip for probably the first time in his life to taste. Lupin was right, there was definitely something other than champagne in there, and he had a suspicion that that something was some strong rum. Though he hadn't been the brightest wizard in his class, he had not set the school detention record for nothing. Sirius knew how to play a prank or two, and he could put two and two together to realize where exactly Fred Weasley had been when they were talking to George.
The champagne had definitely been spiked, but Sirius wasn't about to tell Lupin that. First of all, then he'd never be able to have any more, and secondly, it was high time Lupin had some drunken fun. It would be like old times. Besides, then Lupin would be more willing to help him with whatever crazy prank he decided to play on Lucius Malfoy.
It was a brilliant plan, actually. Lupin was going to be so much fun drunk. He almost wished he had thought of it. But he did have to give credit where credit was due, and he would have to remember to congratulate Fred, George, Angelina, and Alicia later. For now, he was just going to have to talk Remmie into drinking more champagne. It was too bad that he seemed to have misplaced his wand, because it would have been a lot easier to do with magic.
Meanwhile, there was plenty of magic going on on the dance floor without wands. "I still can't believe this is really happening," Hermione said, holding tightly to Ron as if she was sure he was going to disappear right out from under her eyes any second, "I don't know whether I should kick you for not asking me out sooner or kiss you for finally taking a hint."
"I would go for the second thing," Ron squeaked, still incredulous that he had somehow ended up with the smartest, most perfect girl at Hogwarts. Under ordinary circumstances, he never would have dared to suggest the kiss over the kick, but the whole thing felt like a dream, and he was inclined to take advantage of it.
Smiling sweetly, Hermione leaned it and did just that. "You're incredible," Ron said, turning crimson as they both came up for air, "It's like one minute you're this brilliant, careful, model student, and then all of a sudden you're like this, erm, goddess or something!"
Hermione giggled and moved closer to Ron. "Dumbledore was right about the babe beneath the books thing. I feel so much freer, like I can finally do all the things I always wanted to do but never could do without magic or daydreaming," she whispered in Ron's ear, making him turn an even deeper shade of red. He was sure that if she didn't stop being so unbelievably sexy, he was going to explode with happiness. He was going to have to remember to ask one of his brothers if love was always this perfect, or if he and Hermione really had something special.
He took a quick look around to see if any of them were nearby to ask, but the only one he saw was Percy, who was sitting with Penny looking very disgruntled. Something told him that Percy was not the one to ask about a romance-related question, so he continued dancing and resolved to wait until later. Percy, however, had not missed Ron's face as he was scanning the room.
"Penny, is that my brother dancing with Hermione Granger?" he asked, looking from where Ron and Hermione were standing on the dance floor to Penny and back, perplexed. Penny did a double take as well. "When did that happen?" she asked, almost jealous of how closely they were dancing.
"Oh, not too long ago," Professor Dumbledore jumped in, having happened to be right behind them at just the right moment. "Professor, sir, I didn't know you were there," Percy said in shock, giving the headmaster the best smile he could muster under the circumstances of being forced to stay in the Great Hall as a chaperone.
"Yes, yes, I tend to get that reaction a lot," Dumbledore smiled, tipping his hat to the two of them, "Incidentally, have either of you seen Professor McGonagall? I've been meaning to have a few words with her."
Penny giggled, sure she knew what he meant by 'a few words.' Percy, unable to shake off his usual concern about his reputation fully, shook his head in as dignified a manner as he could manage. "No, but if we see her, we'll certainly tell her you were looking for her," he assured him. "Good, good, thank you kindly," the professor responded pleasantly, "And if you do see her, tell her I've found some more sherbet lemons, and to meet me at the door."
Percy and Penny promised that they would. "And do you think we might be able to leave the Great Hall soon?" Percy asked, making Penny smile more than she had when she was made Head Girl. Dumbledore nodded noncommittally, "In good time, Mr. Weasley, not to worry. There'll be plenty of time for all sorts of mischief. The night is young yet."
