Bona fides: Good faith; the state of being exactly as claims or appearances indicate.

April 19, 1996

"Come on, mate. Cheer up."

"Really, it's not so bad."

"Trust us."

"We've had loads of detentions before."

"But it's with her," the small boy practically wailed, burying his face in his hands. "I've seen what happens to people that get detention with her! And I didn't even do anything!"

"Easy, Nigel," George said in an uncharacteristically calming voice, putting a hand on the second year's shoulder. "You'll be fine. Buck up a little, eh? It's only one night."

"Here," Fred added, digging around in his pocket and pulling out a colorfully wrapped biscuit. "We'll even give you a little mood boost."

Nigel tentatively took the cookie and squinted at it skeptically. "Is this one of your products?"

"Well, yeah, but it's one of the cooler ones," George assured him. "Don't worry. You'll be perfectly fine."

"Just give it one little lick," Fred encouraged. "You'll see what we mean."

"A tiny tap of the tongue," George agreed.

For a moment, Nigel hovered on the edge of unwrapping the wafer, but then he shook his head and held it back out to the twins. "Er, I think I'll pass."

"What, you don't trust us?" Fred asked in a wounded voice.

"I turned into a giant canary five times last year thanks to you two," Nigel told them firmly.

George grinned. "Smart kid. I like you even more, now, Nige."

"But it really will make you feel better," Fred went on.

"Just make sure you're not the one to eat it," George added, winking.

"Might I suggest a few tactics for slipping it into the bag of the Inquisitorial Squad bastard who landed you in detention?" Fred offered, putting a conspiratorial arm around Nigel's shoulders with a wicked grin.

A/N: You know Nigel from the movies? I know he's not exactly cannon and kind of a replacement for Colin Creevey, but I find him so irresistibly cute that I've decided he could very well exist. I'm very bad at recognizing people correctly, so I might be totally wrong, but I think there's a scene in Order of the Phoenix (the movie obviously) with Fred and George comforting Nigel or some other younger student over Umbridge's detentions. I've always been touched by the idea, so this is a small prelude to that happening.

Also, this is something of a birthday gift for Poppy P who has left me a mass quantity of excellent reviews for chapters long past as she's been catching up. I know you were looking for funny, but funny isn't really my strong suit. It comes to me spontaneously and never when I need it. I hope Fred and George's presence was enough. :)