A/N: Quickly now...
Harry had long since learned that people held different views on the matter of revenge. For some, like Ron and many other Gryffindors, payback was instant, that urge to immediately react to any slight without thought for the consequences. It often led to fighting, detentions, and most frequently, the loss of house points, but nothing too bad
Then there were those like Fred and George, who preferred quick and often amusing retaliation, in keeping with their generally cheerful personalities. They had no desire to be outdone and, if released to their full potential, could cause damage of all sorts, like the psychological scar that was Ron's arachnophobia. And of course, everything they did would eventually be for sale to the students of Hogwarts.
Of course, there were those who didn't care much for revenge, choosing instead to laugh off or ignore an insult. "Love thy enemy". It was a Hufflepuff thing, but looking at Draco Malfoy from across the Great Hall each meal made him wonder if it couldn't become a Harry Potter thing. When that thought crossed his mind, Harry blushed, ducked his head and kept his eyes trained on his plate. Looking up wasn't very safe anymore.
Hermione Granger, though, was in a class of her own. Ron could be called a small bomb with a short fuse, one that exploded often but never too badly. By contrast, Hermione was a large bomb with a long fuse. It took a while for the explosion to come, but when it did, somebody was going to pay dearly for striking that match.
She refused to tell either Harry or Ron her plan and the days passed slowly. As Malfoy had promised, the Slytherin colors started fading and by Saturday morning, the silver had become red again. Unfortunately, the green seemed to stick a little longer but Harry would take a festive uniform over a Slytherin one any day, an opinion shared by most of his housemates.
Sunday afternoon found Harry sitting across from Lisa in the library. "What's wrong, Harry?" the girl asked him, breaking the comfortable silence, and he looked up. Lisa had her chin propped on her hand and was staring at him intensely.
He shook his head. "Nothing," he insisted. "I'm fine." Then he ducked his head to focus on the potions essay Lisa helped him with each week, as if the properties of unicorn horn and bat's blood were actually of any interest to him.
She gave an inelegant snort and he looked up, surprised. "I've been watching you Harry. You're different this week. Something's happened."
Harry tried to laugh off her question. "Is it because you're a girl or a Ravenclaw that you have to know everything?" he teased.
Lisa grinned at him. "Both," she admitted proudly. "Now explain!"
Looking into her earnest face, Harry again considered telling her about his and Malfoy's arrangement, and about the crush he fought so hard to hide. But no matter how long and hard he considered it, he knew he wouldn't say anything to her. It wasn't something he was willing to admit aloud just yet. "It's Hermione," he finally answered, and the girl's brows lifted in surprise.
"Granger?" Lisa asked, as if it needed clarification. There was only one Hermione at Hogwarts that would cause Harry any worry. "What about her?"
Harry rolled his eyes and dropped his quill. "She's... plotting," he explained and shook his head.
Lisa smiled. "Against the Slytherins?" she asked and waited for Harry to nod before saying, "Good! Whatever it is, they deserve it." Harry tried not to show any expression but Lisa was watching him too carefully, gauging his reaction to her words. "You feel guilty?" she realized and Harry could hear the surprise in her voice.
"Keep it down, will you," he whispered, leaning closer so their conversation wouldn't be overheard by any of the other students. "I just don't think it very fair that allthe Slytherins are being targeted. Some of them weren't even involved to begin with, is all," he finished, trying not to let his mind wander to Malfoy again. A difficult task.
"How noble! Harry, you really are a Gryffindor," Lisa gushed, reaching out to pluck at the sleeve nearest to her, where Slytherin green ran parallel to the scarlet, "no matter what your uniform says." Harry rolled his eyes and went back to his essay, thankful she'd accepted such a simple answer.
"We're ready to set it up," Fred informed Hermione quietly the next morning. At his words, Ron, Seamus, and Harry instantly sat forward. If the twins were discussing anything with the girl, it had to be their next attack.
"What are you guys planning?" Harry asked for what seemed the hundredth time that week.
George and Fred both looked at him then down at Hermione. She gave a brief nod that they took as permission. The two knelt on the bench, leaning forward over the table and keeping their voices low. After so much planning, it wouldn't do for the plot to be leaked out now. "We found this old spell in one of the books in the library. It lets the caster stretch a thin layer of any potion over any entrance, sort of like that muggle plastic wrap Dad is so fond of."
Fred nodded. "Then we found a way to modify a vial of diluted truth serum so that we can trigger it's effects whenever we want with just a word. Everything is ready, except we need to actually put it over the Slytherin entrance."
"Won't someone notice it?" Harry interrupted. He knew what plastic wrap looked like, and it wasn't exactly the most invisible in the gleam of candlelight.
Hermione shook her head. "If we've done it correctly, and you know," she pointed to herself with a confident smile, "we have, it should be completely invisible. It'll feel sort of like walking into a spider web when someone passes through." Harry nodded and Ron shivered.
"Other than that, totally undetected," George continued. "Anyway, it's got to be done when no one is down there, like during a meal, but we need to be sure that no one will suddenly show up. We don't want to be caught, you know." George grinned. "That would ruin our record!"
"So you need a diversion, huh?" Seamus asked, face lighting up excitedly. The twins nodded in unison. "Is now a good time?"
"Now's perfect," Hermione confirmed. "Breakfast has only just started so no one's had the chance to leave yet."
Seamus took a swig of his pumpkin juice before standing up and saluting. "Leave it to me, captain! No one can make a scene like I can." Seamus grinned at the boys and waved them off. "Go on, move it. You'll be wanting to head for the door as soon as possible," he advised with a wink.
Fred and George looked at one another, shrugged and stood, walking casually to the entrance of the Great Hall. Harry shifted closer to Ron as Seamus shoved him aside and clambered to stand on top of the table, heedless of the food and goblets he knocked aside. "Excuse me!" he called, his voice barely rising above the noise of so many conversations. "Hey!" he yelled, cupping his hands around his mouth as he called for the attention of the room at large. The noise level fell a bit but he still wasn't satisfied. "I said hey! I've got something to say!"
Gradually the room got quiet and Harry glanced over his shoulder in time to see the twins leaving the room. At the teachers' table, both McGonagall and Snape had stood but Dumbledore sent the two a look that kept them silent. McGonagall frowned, obviously confused, but sank slowly back to her chair. Snape glared at Seamus, looking as if he very much wanted to say something, then he too sat.
"Thank you for your attention," Seamus called out, his voice ringing through the finally silent room. "I wanted to say that this boy, Dean Thomas," Seamus pointed down at him, "is a coward!" Dean stood, his dark skin growing darker with an embarrassed flush. Murmurs flew around the large room and Hermione hid a smile behind her hand. "I have been trying for weeks to catch this guy alone," Seamus continued, sounding annoyed and Dean reached out, grabbing the Irish boy's hand and trying to pull him from the table.
Seamus resisted though. "Don't try to stop me, Dean!" he yelled, and Harry got the distinct impression that the boy was enjoying himself, however irritated he sounded. "It's your own fault! I tried to get you alone. I was only thinking about your feelings but its too late for that now!"
Dean flushed darker and pulled harder on Seamus hand. "Get down, Seamus!" he hissed.
The Irish boy shook his head and pulled his hand away. "You always went to other people! You knew I wanted to talk to you but you ran away. So since I can't say it to you alone, I'll do it in front of everyone!" Seamus stood straighter, turning away from Dean, still hissing to him. "I love Dean Thomas!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.
Harry's jaw dropped. He hadn't expected Seamus to go quite so far for a diversion. But then, he really should have. He knew better than anyone how long Seamus had been waiting, and the Irish boy was a Gryffindor after all. It was the sort of thing a desperate Gryffindor might do. Dean had fallen into a shocked silence, his arm still outstretched and reaching for his friend.
"He's the only fool who still thinks he can beat Ron at wizard's chess and he's always getting Quidditch confused with that football thing of his, and he's no better than a Hufflepuff, but I love Dean Thomas!" Seamus continued, his voice rising over the protests of the Hufflepuff table.
Dean shook himself to his senses, reaching again for Seamus' hand. "Seamus," he called, but the other boy was too caught up in his confession.
"I'll say as many times as I need to, Dean. Until you get it, okay! I love Dean Thomas!" Seamus jerked as Dean pulled harder on his hand, but kept yelling. "I love Dean Thomas! I love-"
Dean had finally managed to pull Seamus down enough to grab the front of the boy's shirt and was currently kissing the boy into silence. Shouts and cries rang out through the room, and it was clear that many students just couldn't process what was happening. "Holy..." Harry heard Ron mutter beside him and nodded slightly, the only agreement he was capable of giving when struck so suddenly speechless.
Even Seamus looked surprised, but he quickly recovered and fell to his knees on the table, uncaring that he landed in a bowl of warm oatmeal as he clasped Dean's hand tighter in his and threw his free arm around the boy's neck. Only Hermione wasn't staring in surprise and Harry turned around to follow her gaze to the doors. Fred and George stood there. They gave her a thumbs-up and then sent up a cheer for Seamus' success that caught on, until most of the room was clapping.
Harry smiled and shook his head. It was so typical for something so totally insane to work perfectly for Seamus. Across the room, Malfoy was clapping, half-smiling at the spectacle Gryffindor offered him, and his eyes locked with Harry's. Harry's grin widened and he looked back over at the couple. Dean pulled away a little, just enough to whisper, "I love Seamus Finnegan," the soft confession nearly drowned out by the resumed chatter of the students.
But Harry heard it and the sweet words, ones Seamus had no doubt been waiting to hear, gave him another unwanted realization.
He'd come to terms with his own crush. He still wouldn't say it aloud but the mere thought of it no longer brought forth shock or panic. There was a sort of happiness that invaded him each time he saw Malfoy, even if from across the room, and each day felt a little brighter.
But, while he might be cautiously comfortable with the fact that he'd developed a crush on his Slytherin rival, somehow it had never occurred to Harry that the same crush that gave him a little happiness each day might lead him to want to do something so utterly terrifying, so completely embarrassing that it was unspeakable, even in the privacy his own thoughts.
Except for the small voice that resided in the darkest corner of his mind, where unwanted thoughts and forgotten memories were swept away to, that sounded vaguely like a Brazilian boa he'd once met. That voice sounded entirely too smug when it sang out from the shadows of his mind, You'll want to kiss-s-s-s him!
And then the panic was back.
Hours felt like years that morning, each class lasting for an eternity. Seamus' incessantly tapping fingers nearly drove Harry insane, until Dean put one hand over the other boy's, a definite tinge of blush on his dark cheeks. Though calmed slightly, it was clear that Seamus, like Ron and Harry, was very impatiently waiting for lunch.
Most Slytherins only carried the bare minimum of supplies to class each morning. This meant that at various points in the day, the students would return to their dorm to restock on parchment or ink. Hermione had always thought it was a ridiculous waste of time and had trained Harry and Ron as early as second year to carry with them everything they would need for the day. They did, if for no other reason than to give her one less thing to nag about. Now, Hermione was glad for that bit of laziness on the part of her enemies. It meant that by lunch almost every Slytherin would have passed through that rigged portrait hole.
Finally, finally, it was time for lunch. The twins met Harry and the others outside the wide doors of the Great Hall, almost trembling with anticipation. Harry enthusiastically threw himself into his own excitement. It was much safer than allowing thoughts to form. Much safer.
They didn't start immediately though, much to his and Ron's annoyance. "We've got to let them get comfortable," George explained, skipping the bulk of his meal and heading straight for the dessert plates. Pie was awesome after all.
"They've had all week to get comfortable!" Ron pointed out, growing irritated. He had never been one for waiting.
"This is true," Fred agreed and looked over at Hermione. "Well, General?"
Hermione shrugged. "I don't see why not," she allowed and the twins broke into too similar grins.
Fred stood, gathering the attention of his dorm mates. They'd too been waiting for payback, and had been looking for a signal just like this to tell them the plan was in motion. "Examine if you will, my fellows," he called and motioned to the Slytherin table with a broad wave of his arm. "The Slytherin."
"A creature of deceit, ill-tempered and usually not much to look at," George joined his brother's theatrical presentation and gained the attention of a few Ravenclaws, who nudged and whispered until that table was observing quietly. Lisa grinned at Harry and leaned over to pull on the back of a Hufflepuff's robes. She pointed to the twins and the boy turned back, leaning forward and over until every Hufflepuff had turned to watch as well.
"As you all well know," Fred continued, raising his voice so that it carried over the students to the Slytherin table, the members of that house glaring at them or turning confused glances to one another, "our green-clothed nemeses saw fit to share with us noble Gryffindors the colors of their most hated house. In return, we now grant you all nothing more than our revenge," he ended with a smile and looked at his brother.
Harry glanced at the teachers' table. While Snape observed in red-faced anger, occasionally glaring at Dumbledore, the rest of the faculty seemed unconcerned with what was happening just in front of them. Harry could swear he saw a small smile curve the edge of McGonagall's mouth.
"A question, students. Where do you hit one of these foul creatures so that it causes the most damage?" George asked, pausing for a moment as whispers rippled through his audience.
"An excellent question, sir!" Fred proclaimed. "The answer? Pansy Parkinson!" he called loudly and the girl leaned back on her bench, crossing her arms over her chest and narrowing her eyes dangerously at the two Gryffindors who had dared to call her out. "Toffee!"
A change swept over her then, and even from across the room, Harry could see the shock on the girl's face as she unwillingly stood and shouted, so the entire population of Hogwarts could very clearly hear, "I only pretend I love Draco so no one finds out that I think gingers are hot!" Parkinson's face turned a brilliant shade of red, her eyes comically wide, and clapped her hands over her mouth as she looked around the room. Chuckles, giggles and outright laughter filled the air and she sank slowly in her seat.
"Oh, Terry Boot," George sang and paused to watch the laughter fade from his targets face before calling, "Toffee!"
Like Parkinson, Boot stood and, unable to fight the potion, loudly admitted, "I always hope the Hufflepuffs will win the house cup because I think it'd be funny and I get points taken from us to help them out."
As a mortified Boot ducked back to his seat, Fred stopped laughing long enough to say, "You hit them where it hurts. Make the Slytherins tell the truth."
"A secret truth," George clarified. "Pick a Slytherin, say their name, and then say 'Toffee'." He gave Fred a high-five over Hermione's head, before they both reclaimed their seats and resumed lunch, acting for all the world as if they hadn't just turned Hogwarts into a hell for every student that walked through Slytherin's portrait hole.
"Toffee?" Harry leaned forward to ask. He needed to think about something other than the fact that Malfoy was included in that group, and was a prime target.
Fred shrugged. "We skipped breakfast to do that , you know," he reminded Harry. "I was hungry!"
It didn't take long before overjoyed Gryffindors, curious Ravenclaws and nervous Hufflepuffs started calling out names and the 'magic' word, and Slytherins of all years stood and shouted their secrets. Even Snape trying to intervene couldn't stop the demands. Too many students had a bone to pick with too many Slytherins for lost points or the threat of detention to silence them. And every time 'toffee' was heard over the yells and laughter, Hermione's smile grew wider.
A/N: That's good for now. And even if it wasn't I have to be up for work in six hours and I need sleep! Thanks for the awesome, amazing, and other words to that effect, response on the last chapter. Namely: Pledodge, SexySpeedDemon, RebeccaMarieCullen, AlineDaryen, Draco and Hermione is like PBJ, Sagitta20, purplerawr, LyricallyInspired, boredom is a crime, Lamp, ForeverRose123 (x2!), doulike14, Lilith91, paintupurple, Lady-Umbreon, XxScarletPhantomxX, Ibbet, xHinata Uzumakix, brionyjae, SunshineAndDaisies, globalfaerie, and HiM'e'TSu for the reviews on the last chapter. Also thanks to Awesomesauce123 for the review on chapter 1. That's 22 reviews last chapter, plus two for other chapters. I've been bragging about it and will continue to do so until reviews come in for the next chap! Then I'll have something new to talk about! Don't let my co-workers get bored. Give me something new! *wink*