November

The cooling weather did little to cool the temper of either Weasley. Both were convinced the other had something to do with the scheme.

Nor did it help the frantic searching by the Professors. (Of course, that could have been because at least four Deflagration Deluxe sets had gone off in Professor Snape's classroom, and another two in Professor Flitwick's.)

But the highpoint of November came on a care-free Saturday morning – a Hogsmeade weekend, in which the entire school seemed to be in a good mood. The teachers were sitting at the Head Table, done investigating the owls. The four houses were managing to mind their own business, even Slytherin kept to themselves.

The pumpkin juice and breakfast foods appeared. Like all starving teenage boys, as soon as the fare hit the table the half of the Hogwarts population that was male began stuffing their faces. Some of the females followed their example (especially the Quidditch playing ones – must keep one's strength up). The more "petite" girls (ie: the ones that watched what they ate) just poured glasses of juice and light muffins.

Then they began sipping their juice.

Within moments almost the entire school had been turned into huge canaries.

Huge – yellow – not molting – canaries.

Except for one very loud squawky blackish canary at the Head Table.

"Oh shite…" murmured Ginny, who had poured herself a glass of water. (Hydration was the key when one might have a few too many illegal alcoholic drinks on a Hogsmeade weekend!) "Why are they canaries?"

Hermione looked around, and leaned back as the blackish canary began flapping his wings in what looked suspiciously like he was pointing at the Gryffindor table.

"The better question is why aren't they molting? Your brothers Canary Creams are suppose to last for just a few seconds."

"OH SHITE!" the youngest red-head cried, as she tucked her head into her hands. "They've been working on a longer-lasting version of the Canary Charm. Somehow they succeeded, and someone put creams in all the school's pumpkin juice!"

"Get your wand out and start casting the counter charm," said Hermione, as she stood and headed to the Head Table. "NOW GINNY!"

Shaken out of her panic, Ginny took a moment to look around at the mass of screeching birds that were fluttering around the Great Hall. The few students left as humans were quickly called to action by their illustrious Head Girl, and began casting the counter charm.

Hermione, being a bright girl, began with the Headmistress – easily identifiable by the square shaped markings around her beady canary eyes. She moved on to the blackish canary – simply because the longer she kept Snape waiting the more painful this day would end.

As expected, he immediately launched into a Gryffindor point deduction, along with detentions for anyone named Weasley. Hermione escaped down the steps back to the house tables, a smirk playing on her face as McGonagall shrilly forbade Snape from giving detentions to the children of Ginny and Ron (and Fred and George).

Ginny had gotten enough of her head about her to "free" the oldest Gryffindors first. They, having shared a common room with Fred and George, were all well versed in certain counter charms and could help the rest of the school.

The morning was a spectacular disaster.

The Hogsmeade weekend was cancelled. Ginny got detention (simply because she was the Weasley who didn't turn into a canary – although she was insistent that Ron wasn't smart enough to remember he did spiked the punch, and would have drunk the pumpkin juice anyway). Gryffindor lost house points for the stunt, and Hermione managed to save them from total ruin by receiving points for her quick thinking and level head in the face of crisis.

Harry was insistent that a gaggle of canaries wasn't a crisis – now Voldemort was a crisis – Ginny felt Harry was having problems not being the center of attention – Hermione felt their relationship was best when they were snogging and not talking – Ron agreed, but asked that they not snog so much in front of him.

Ginny had snuck up into Hermione's private room, trying to avoid being yelled at by the Gryffindors who were insistent that this was all her fault. Muttering to herself, she was standing in front of Hermione's large bookshelf and running her fingers over the spines.

"Are you looking for something in particular?" asked Hermione, looking up from her homework that she had spread out on her bed.

"Hogwarts: A History."

"Top shelf, third book over. May I ask why?"

"I'm going to figure this out if it's the last thing I do. I will NOT have my good name slandered."

"Ginny, this will all fade away soon, honey, don't worry." She leaned over the edge of the bed and ran her fingers through her best friend's hair. For once, the Head Girl wasn't as intent on reading as someone else. Ginny batted her hand away and began flipping through the book.

Hermione sighed and rolled back towards her Transfiguration essay.

"AH HA! I found it!"

"Found what, Gin?"

"How the packages are getting into Hogwarts."

A moment of silence followed.

"Well, are you going to tell me, Gin?"

"Oh, right, blimey…let me see…according to this the only letters that aren't able to be searched are packages between spouses and anything brought in by a house elf for themselves. So this is either the work of a professor or an elf…DOBBY!"

Hermione energetically nodded her head.

"If Dobby is bringing the items into Hogwarts – then he MUST be working with Ron and Harry," Ginny growled. "I am going to kick that bloody git of a boyfriend'sass, not to mention the arse of every one of my brothers!"

"Even Charlie and Bill?"

"Yes, they deserve it for not telling me it was Ron, and not telling Fred and George to let me in on the secret and a share of the cash."

"Gin, calm down, I'm sure he's got a wonderful explanation. Give him a chance to enlighten you of whatever it is he was thinking."

"Not bloody thinking, why on earth would Fred and George trustRon with this…bloody git…stupid prat…to think we are dating…siblings…whatever happened to sharing everything."

Hermione listened to Ginny's mutterings as she left her private room and headed back to the Gryffindor common room.

The Hogsmeade weekend may have been a lost cause…but the new Canary Creams shot to #1 on the Weasley Wizard Wheezes Top Selling Items List.

Canaries at Breakfast: Bad for Hogwarts…Good for Weasleys.