Here it is! Have fun, read (enjoy the song selection) and review!
Blackbird Fly
Thirteen
Having pulled the still-bellowing Severus into the Entrance Hall—much to the amusement of the Hall, mind—Hermione and Isolde were lost as to how to release him from the rather embarrassing spell. Several firm Finite Incantatems later, they were still dealing with a love-sick Severus Snape whose his songs were getting catchier and his symptoms more severe.
Sirius twirled his wand in his hand, chuckling as Isolde began singing with him to see what effect that would have on him.
"Gonna grab my baby, gonna hold her tight. Gonna get me some afternoon delight. My motto's always been when it's right, it's right. Why wait until the middle of the cold dark night when everything's a little clearer in the light of day and you know the night is always gonna be there anyway? Sky rockets in flight—afternoon delight!" Isolde grimaced as she sang; the harmonies she had tried didn't work, thanks to Severus's inability to stay on key.
Hermione, meanwhile, grabbed Sirius and led him to the hourglasses while Isolde was swept into Severus's arms for a rather violent tango and loud rendition of "You Light up My Life."
Isolde was struggling and putting up a rather valiant fight as Hermione and Sirius spoke quickly in urgent, quiet tones. Strangled cries floated across the Entrance Hall while Hermione and Sirius figured out a plan, Sirius flourishing his cape and re-entering the Great Hall. He had some Marauders to deal with, having finally recognized a charm which James and Lily had developed over the summer.
Hermione, however, had to deal with an overly affectionate and embarrassing boyfriend. In a manner reminiscent of the schoolyard days of jump roping, Hermione stayed close to the couple, waiting until Severus twirled Isolde far enough away from him so that she could escape while Hermione threw herself into his arms, landing with a soft "Oof!" as Severus caught her and swept her into a deep dip.
Isolde made for the Great Hall to escape, calling over her shoulder, "I'll be back! I swear on Merlin's unknown grave, I'll be back!"
Hermione whimpered a little in response, but that may have been because Severus had just placed his full body weight on her left foot.
Isolde saw James before Sirius did, drawing her wand as she walked toward them. He was sitting at the Marauders' table and speaking with Lily, Remus and Peter, the four of them laughing at Severus's spell-induced antics. Sneaking up behind James, she poked her wand in his back, speaking sweetly to the four of them.
"I know what you four have done to Severus, even if you weren't necessarily involved in the prank, and I honestly don't mind lying about it to whoever will listen." Seeing that Lily and Peter were about to protest, she continued, saying, "I have my wand in James's back at the moment and a very extensive list of hexes and curses in my repertoire, many of them having painful side effects. I would advise staying quiet until I've had my say." Isolde waited as each of them placed their wand on the table.
"Thank you. Now, you have all managed to ruin what should have been the best night of his depressing life whether by direct action, sycophantic behavior or inability to stand up to your friends. I do intend to make you not only give up the counter-charm, but make you suffer for what he has been put through this evening. How, I don't know, but I can assure you that in time, it will come. Now, all of you will get up and follow me to the Entrance Hall, please, and don't do anything stupid."
The three Marauders and Lily rose at once, marching in a proper single file line behind her; Isolde, feeling the mood, began to whistle in time with their steps, laughing when Sirius reached her, his brow raised and confusion written plainly on his face.
"I told them that they had better come with me if they wanted me to play more nicely with them and then I threatened revenge against them. Stop fussing, Puppy."
Sirius rolled his eyes, grinning a little as she continued to walk, chin out and shoulders high. "Just don't rough 'em up too much, Philomel. I would like my mates in one piece, if you don't mind."
Affronted, Isolde asked, "What must you think of me, Sirius?"
He took her hand, much to the shock of the Gryffindors following them.
"Muskrat Susie, Muskrat Sam . . . do the jitterbug out in Muskrat Land. And they shimmy, and Sammy's so skinny. And they whirled and they twirled and they tangoed; singin' and jinglin' the jango, floatin' like the heavens above—it looks like muskrat love."
Hermione was, of course, pleased that the song and dance routine had calmed, but the choice of songs was questionable at best. Groaning as he moved into the next verse, she met his eyes, hers pleading that he just stop singing. The normally inscrutable black eyes were filled with terror, humiliation and sincere passion for her—them.
Without her realizing it, Isolde pulled her away from Severus, allowing Sirius and Remus to hold him back as James performed the counter-charm. He stepped back as Severus came to, eyes wild and feet still moving in dance. With a wild cry, he broke free of Sirius and Remus, his fist connecting with James's jaw.
"You bastard!" he cried, Sirius and Remus holding him back from James again. Isolde grudgingly healed the bruise on James's cheek as Hermione went to calm Severus, cradling his face in her hands and kissing his face. Lily went to him next, laying a cool hand on his shoulder and whispering her apologies in his ear, tears in her eyes.
Remus just left, as did Peter. They each clapped Sirius on the shoulder and went into the Hall, Severus still fuming behind them. Sirius approached him next.
"I'm sorry. I didn't think they would pull anything tonight."
Severus's eyes widened as he recognized his foe: the Devil. But that means . . .
"You-you and Zelda are together? I-Helene, did you know about this?"
She nodded guiltily as Sirius strode to Isolde, wrapping her in his cloak and holding her close to him. "Sni-Snape, I like Isolde and that's enough. I'm so incredibly sorry for everything that happened and neither of us is innocent here. I'm not going to ask your blessing or your permission. I'm sorry, but you can't push me away from her."
"Severus, he helped you tonight," Hermione chastised gently. "I'm not asking you to be his best friend, but I want you to be civil."
"Should I have been civil when he tried to kill me?" Severus cried hysterically. "Should I keep my peace when I watch Isolde with this-this near-murderer?"
"That wasn't my idea!" Sirius said dumbly. "It was Peter's. I was just supposed to get you out to the Tree. Then you would get scared and run. Peter thought of it, I swear. He said you'd never think it was him; no one would."
Severus just looked at him long and hard before saying, "Legilimens." Electric energy passed between the two of them until Severus broke the connection, nodding slowly. "I see that now. Either way, you've got one chance."
"That's all I'll need Snape. That's all I'll need." He kissed Isolde's cheek before ushering her into the Masquerade, ten minutes before the unmasking.
The dancing ended for a moment at midnight for the unmasking, everyone in trepidation to see the identity of their dance partner or friends who could keep secrets.
Professor Dumbledore signaled the unmasking, taking his place in the spotlight on stage before reverently lifting his mask off its perch on his nose. The professors followed suit, getting on stage and lifting their own masks. They were then followed by the fourth-years, fifth-years and so on, ending with the seventh-years. A slight uproar was caused by none other than Sirius Black, who casually tossed his and his date's masks aside before drawing her in for a deep kiss, much to the chagrin of half the Hall, most of them teenage girls and the odd boy.
Professor Dumbledore merely looked amused by his antics, but he approached the podium, his lemon-drop yellow bell bottoms swinging around his ankles. "If you are finished, Miss Chase, would you please take the stage with your music box?"
Panic-stricken, Isolde turned to face Sirius, babbling as he hugged and kissed her, murmuring little compliments and well-wishes as he did so. Hermione pressed the box into Isolde's hands, having pulled it from the clutch she had brought along, resizing it as she did so.
"Go get 'em!" she whispered fiercely as Isolde took the stage, using an Amplifying Charm to make herself louder.
"Erm . . . I'm Isolde Chase, and I'm a singer. I write my own stuff and I hope you like it. This one is called 'Girl Anachronism.'" She opened the box, whispering, "Sonorus," and the song into it and requesting a five second delay. She took her place in center stage, hanging her head as the Hall filled with the sound of piano music, the same eerie lullaby-like tune wafting over the crowd. Suddenly, Isolde lifted her head, shouting, "One! Two! Three! Four!" She groaned, her head turning on her neck before snapping upright as she began to sing.
"You can tell from the scars on my arms
and cracks in my hips
and the dents in my car
and the blisters on my lips
that I'm not the carefullest of girls.
You can tell
from the glass on the floor
and the strings that're breaking
and I keep on breaking more
and it looks like I am shaking
but it's just the temperature
and then again
if it were any colder I could disengage
if I were any older I would act my age
but I don't think that you'd believe me!
It's. Not. The. Way. I'm. Meant. To. Be.
It's just the way the operation made me."
And you can tell
from the state of my room
that they let me out too soon
and the pills that I ate
came a couple years too late!
And I've got some issues to work through
there I go again!
Pretending to be you—
make-believing
that I have a soul beneath the surface,
trying to convince you:
it was accidentally on purpose.
I am not so serious.
This passion is a plagiarism.
I might join your century,
but only on a rare occasion.
I was taken out
before the labor pains set in and now
behold the world's worst accident:
I am the girl anachronism!
And you can tell
by the red in my eyes
and the bruises on my thighs
and the knots in my hair
and the bathtub full of flies:
that I'm not right now at all.
There I go again!
Pretending that I'll fall—
don't call the doctors!
'Cause they've seen it all before.
They'll say just let. Her. Crash. And. Burn. She'll learn.
The attention just encourages her.
And you can tell
from the full-body cast
that you're sorry that you asked,
though you did everything you could
(like any decent person would)
but I might be catching so don't touch:
You'll start believing you're immune to gravity and stuff.
Don't get me wet
because the bandages will all come off!
And you can tell
from the smoke at the stake
that the current state is critical!
Well it is the little things, for instance:
in the time it takes to break it she can make up ten excuses:
Please excuse her for the day, it's just the way the medication makes her.
I don't necessarily believe there is a cure for this
so I might join your century, but only as a doubtful guest
I was too precarious removed as a caesarian!
Behold the world's worst accident
I AM THE GIRL ANACHRONISM!"
She moved with the music, her limbs wild and her voice steady and strong, fluctuating with the music. She shrieked and she leapt across stage, coming close to the edge of the stage for most of the song. A devilish glint took hold in Isolde's red eyes, making the smiles on her face and the sounds she made almost demonic in their
The song over, Isolde took a deep breath as a silence fell over the Hall, broken by the sound of Hermione, Severus and Sirius applauding, dumb-struck, as the rest of the students and professors followed suit. The applause broke over her like a wave, making her bow in pure relief.
The crowd applauded again, louder this time, a few wolf whistles echoing over their enthusiastic clapping. "Thanks! I think I'm only going to do one more song, but I will need some volunteers, so—anyone interested?"
An overwhelming number of cheers erupted in the Hall, many of them from the younger-year boys. She ignored most of them, having pre-selecting her victims: James Potter, Lily Evans, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Bellatrix and Narcissa Black, Rabastan Lestrange and Regulus Black. Groans echoed through the Hall as they took their places onstage, Narcissa and Bella primping while the Slytherin boys flexed; the Marauders looked downright scared.
Isolde pulled them into a circle, murmuring words indecipherable to the crowd to her less-than-willing volunteers. They stood in a single file line across the stage, Isolde before them, nearest to the curious crowd of people. "Anyway, let's give 'em a hand, eh?" She led the clapping for a grimacing line of volunteers, laughing when the Slytherins appeared to do a synchronized group glare.
"My next song is called 'Night Reconnaissance,' and I do hope you like it. Box, play 'Night Reconnaissance.' Ten second delay, please."
The line behind her snapped to attention, phony smiles plastered on their faces as they waited for the song to begin. Isolde stayed before the line, but moved to the left of it, presenting it as she sang.
"Nothing is crueler than children who come from good homes
God'll forgive them, I guess, but whose side are you on?
Driving around my hometown, I remember it all—
Dropping my lunchbox and Tampax all over the hall and they said . . ."
She continued singing, twirling down the line as each one pointed at her in time with the music and the insults she threw at herself.
"'You are a Socialist cokehead, we know from your clothes.
You are a Satanist worshipper— oh, that's evil!
You think you're a poet, a folksinger, posing, oh no!
A volleyball player?! You've got to be kidding us all!'"
She was in the center of the line now, her arms over James Potter and Rabastan Lestrange's shoulders, bringing them closer to the edge of the stage in a twisted parody of the classic walk on the Yellow Brick Road in "The Wizard of Oz." Hermione snorted when she saw their embarrassed faces, though the Marauders seemed to be well on their way to enjoying themselves.
"So we hide from the guns on a night reconnaissance—
steal flamingos and gnomes from the dark side of the lawn.
The line moved back once again as Isolde stepped out to play to the crowd. The line (of Slytherins) behind her looked mutinous, but there was obviously some sort of enchantment preventing them from rebelling against the performance. They had to be content with the scowls on most of the (Slytherin) faces and the fact that the classic back-up singer moves they were doing were spell-forced. James, Remus and Lily appeared to be enjoying themselves, getting melodramatic and hamming it up for the crowd as Peter just looked awkward.
"No one can stop us; the script is a work of genius!
No one has bought the rights yet but we're not giving up.
Every unwanted lawn jockey fits in the script," she noted, pointing to herself, pouting her lips.
"Directed by Spielberg and starring the masochist club!"
Isolde presented the line again as she sang, which was apparently their cue to arc around her as she tap danced, the hands of her coerced back-up fanning out around her as she did so. She made certain to point out the two Black sisters, laying her hands on their shoulders and sticking her head between theirs as she danced lightly around them.
"Marion looked like hell
Stuck in that ridiculous shell!"
Reforming the line again, she put her arms around them, stepping forward with the line as they began working into an easy pose around her, finally lifting their voices in rising harmony.
"Give us some light and God's pure love;
We know what you've been dreaming of.
Give us some light and God's pure love;
We know what you've been dreaming of.
Give us some light and God's pure love;
We're taking you to Hollywood!"
Their hands lifted around her, doing what Hermione knew as "spirit fingers," leaving Severus and Sirius in stitches when she mentioned it. Isolde pushed through the waving fingers, rubbing her eyes and swooning into Remus's arms.
"Hollywood!"
He set her back up once he took his place at the edge of the line, giving her a chance to wave her wand across the line to give them a matching sequined jazz costume as they danced. Isolde continued to play to the crowd, building her energy off the laughter.
"And we hide from the guns on a night reconnaissance—
steal flamingos and gnomes from the dark side of the lawn."
She began dancing her way to the end of the line tapping Remus with her wand and dressing him as an archetypal punk. Isolde took his hand as he spun her into Peter. She tapped him too, dressing him as a cult member. Rabastan was dressed as a grungy looking poet and Lily was put into an athletic uniform with two casts, one on each wrist.
"One is a socialist cokehead they dressed in my clothes.
One is a Satanist worshipper, who is evil.
One is a poet who starts up a band of his own.
One is a volleyball player with both her wrists broke!"
Isolde flourished her wand, replacing the jazz costumes she had magicked them into, and placing her arms over Lily and Bellatrix's shoulders, she tapped the line back up to the edge of the stage, using a basic tap move to bring them forward.
"And we hide from the guns on a night reconnaissance—
steal flamingos and gnomes from the dark side of the lawn!"
Then, to add insult to injury, the entire group of "volunteers" joined her in a growing harmony and a perfectly synchronized kick-line.
"And we give them good homes; give them love they've never known—in the loft, in the lawn, in the town where I was born;
in the loft, in the barn, in the town where I was born."
The line took a group bow before Isolde took hers, all of them receiving ecstatic cheers for their efforts. Isolde flicked her wand at each of them to restore them to their costumes, ushering them offstage with applause, saying, "Give them a big hand, kids! That was a great performance!"
Professor Dumbledore caught her eye, the twinkle in it encouraging her. The students rallied as she made to leave the stage, calling her name and whistling for her to play again. Isolde silently asked the question as Professor Dumbledore nodded, approaching the stage to save her from an encore in this surprise performance.
"Let's welcome Professor Dumbledore back to the stage," she cried enthusiastically, clapping the old man back up before abdicating her place in the spotlight to tackle-hug Helene for the best night of her life before giving Sirius the biggest kiss she could imagine, smiling as he picked her up and twirled her around; Helene and Severus were watching with fond smiles, their hands held between them.
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"How did you do that, Zelda? What kind of charm did you use?" Hermione asked as her friend was gently placed back on her feet.
"Nothing much, really. It was a mild Compulsion Charm combined with a little bit of a Talent Charm. Anything I thought, they did. Gods, do I miss the power."
Sirius barked out a laugh, true to his Animagus form and new pet name, before pressing a kiss on her temple and asking her to dance.
The students poured into the Entrance Hall once the Ball ended at two in the morning, giddy smiles and sleepy eyes on each face. Young lovers parted with soft kisses as clasping hands separated as each gender and House went their separate ways.
Sirius and Isolde parted at the top of the stairs. He kissed her forehead once, breathing a soft, "Good night," as he did so before moving to her lips, kissing them too. She turned to leave, squeezing his hand as she did so, but he took her hand in his, smiling lightly as he kissed it, lingering just a moment too long for it to be innocent.
The two nearly floated back to their respective dormitories, neither truly undressing before falling asleep, reliving the night as they dreamed together, searing each kiss into their memories and each soft word into their ears and each touch burning into their flesh.
Hermione and Severus refused to part that night, Severus leading her into his room. It was dominated by a double four-poster bed with black hangings and white bedclothes though the wall had a few sparse bookshelves and a desk and chair. Severus excused himself into the closet to change as Hermione scanned the few titles there, finding mainly Dark Arts books and Potions books for her trouble.
She pulled a dog-eared copy of a children's book out, her fingers trailing over the pages and illustrations, surprised that none of them moved. It was an Arthurian legend, she realized, her eyes scanning over the words on the yellowed pages. A throat cleared behind her as Severus sheepishly handed her a long button-down shirt. He wore a dingy undershirt and black shorts himself, looking the slightest bit embarrassed at her seeing him like this.
Hermione pressed a quick kiss to his lips before turning to let him unzip the back of her dress. She went into the closet, letting the dress slump to the floor as she pulled on the shirt, lengthening it a bit and transfiguring her mask into a tight pair of sleep shorts. She quickly fumbled in the dark to remove the charm on her hair before letting the curls fall wild down her back, barely tamed by a bit of determined gel Isolde had used on her that afternoon. Once she had returned her hair to its original color, she re-emerged from the closet, cooing softly at the sight of Severus in bed and reading the book she had picked out.
Severus looked up at her and blinked a moment before turning down the bed for her, his arms open. She took a running start before leaping in with him, cuddling into his chest when she landed. He smoothed her hair as she rested her head over his heart, closing her eyes and humming contentedly when she heard it beat against his chest.
"Would you like me to read to you?" he asked quietly, snuffling his nose into her hair, the book held precariously in one hand. Once he felt her nod, he opened it to his favorite tale, reading about the valiant knight and his lady fair until he heard her breath fall against him in steady puffs before kissing the top of her head and snuggling into the blankets, the room falling into darkness as sleep overtook him.
Hah! The songs mentioned are: "Afternoon Delight" by Starland Vocal Band, "You Light Up My Life" by Debbie Boone, "Muskrat Love" by Captain and Tennile, "Girl Anachronism" by Dresden Dolls and "Night Reconaissance" by Dresden Dolls.