I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good: Private message to Pansy and Ron

[alt_sally_anne]

Merlin and Morganna, I just realised something.

You know Colin, the boy from the sanctuary who's come to learn apparation with us? (And Defence and ... I think they all get to pick a tutoring group in the afternoon, same as we do.)

He looked SO FAMILIAR and I finally worked out why. Remember Dennis? I think Colin is his brother. I think he must be older but I'm not sure. I mean it's been so long, and I just remember Dennis as being really little. Do you think he KNOWS about his brother? He must, I mean they must have told him, right?

I wonder why the Order rescued Colin, and not Dennis? For that matter why they didn't rescue Hermione, although maybe they didn't start until Dennis's year? Lisa's our year -- I mean, she would be. But they didn't get her as a baby, I guess she's one of the ones they grabbed right after the QWC bombing.

Comments

[alt_pansy]

You're right.

It has to be his brother.

I mean, now that you've said, I can't unsee it.

I'm sort of afraid to ask. I mean, they might take offence.

[alt_sally_anne]

He and Justin seem to be hitting it off. Maybe we should have Justin ask.

Or, you know, we could ask Terry.

I'm not sure I want to remind him or Hermione that we weren't very nice to Dennis, though.

[alt_pansy]

Oh.

Yeah.

[alt_sally_anne]

I can't get over how odd it all is.

I mean we floo to the Burrow and have a lesson in how the Fidelius Charm works from Mr Lupin and then we get notes and relocate to Sirius Black's secret hideout where we are met by the celebrity-outlaw himself along with fellow fugitives Severus Snape (do you get the feeling they don't like each other very much?), Frank Longbottom, Ron's mum the Woman of Mystery, and our former School Matron.

And then we sit down for lunch with muggleborns who got taken away from their parents to go to a secret magic school that's like ... I don't think it's much like Hogwarts.

Add in a screaming portrait and a Fidelius Charm and ...

Well I guess it's not that surprising that I utterly ruined my potion. I hope Mr Snape doesn't stay cross.

[alt_pansy]

I think crossness is his natural state of being.

It looks different than what I remember. I mean, parts of it are the same, but it's full of people and there's random toys on the stairs and Sirius is there and Regulus isn't. The portrait of Mrs Black really is just too weird.

And Frank and Alice Longbottom. Being normal. I mean. You know. Not like the Carrows.

[alt_sally_anne]

From what I remember you describing I think they must have cleaned it out. I mean got rid of lots of the dark stuff the Blacks liked. Do you think they'll all think the worst of me if I go look at the books in the library and see if the dark magic books are still there?

[alt_pansy]

I mean, we are studying them for our classes. I think as long as you're careful.

And they have cleaned it out. A great deal. I wonder if that's why I got the books? Because they cleaned out his room?

[alt_sally_anne]

We could go look, if you want. I doubt they'd mind. I mean, if they don't want us in there they'll have locked it, surely.

[alt_pansy]

Let's start with the library. I don't want to get thrown out on my arse after the first day.

[alt_sally_anne]

Library it is!

[alt_ron]

What did you find in there? Anything good?

[alt_pansy]

Loads of good stuff. I'm pretty sure one of the books tried to leach poison, but we were wearing gloves just in case, so it just smelled bad.

[alt_ron]

Well, it stands to reason that she would own murderous books, doesn't it?

Was she really like that portrait? I think I'd have wet myself if I'd had to meet her for real.


That... couldn't've been good. I mean, when you had to.

[alt_pansy]

It wasn't.

Good.

She wasn't quite so shouty all the time. But she really was that mean.

And those things she was shouting at me? Yeah. She's said them before.

[alt_ron]

Ugh.

That must have-


I think you should hex her. Tomorrow. I mean, I know it wouldn't do anything to her, really.

But wouldn't it feel good?

[alt_pansy]

It would.

I think just knowing how hacked off I'm making her by being there is almost good enough, though.

[alt_sally_anne]

If she's cross about you, imagine how she feels about me. Or Hermione or Turpin or Creevey or Terry!

[alt_pansy]

Maybe we'll make her have an apoplexy and she'll go hoarse with yelling.

Can paintings get apoplexies?

[alt_sally_anne]

Unfortunately, I'm fairly sure they can't.

[alt_ron]

If she did, I guess she'd cough up paint, right? Maybe she'd cough up all the paint on the whole portrait and just sort of disappear!

[alt_sally_anne]

There is SURELY a way to get rid of her.

If the Order hasn't found it, though, I think it's unlikely any of us will come up with it.

[alt_ron]

Or is that what apoplexy is?

It's a kind of fit, isn't it?

Or, yeah. I don't know.

[alt_sally_anne]

Technically speaking: no.

[alt_sally_anne]

You know that book Professor Dolohov had us get, 'Grimoires of the Worthy Families'?

The Blacks had a first-edition copy AND Sirius Black's evil 18th century ancestor wrote notes in all the margins with personal comments about the people he thought had provided the spells. It's, like, two-hundred-year-old vindictive gossip. PLUS he has all sorts of comments on how this person's version of the spell isn't as effective as his own version and so on. I am pretty sure that in at least a few cases, it's the Ancestral Black version that made it into the edition we use.

Of course we cannot possibly show this to Professor Dolohov.

I sort of wish we could, though.

[alt_ron]

Wait.

We totally could. We could just tell him we bought it off someone in some dodgy shop somewhere.

I mean, he doesn't have to know we found it here.

[alt_sally_anne]

Ron, are you mad? He'd work out in two minutes it came from the Black house. No one was able to get in here after old Mrs Black died, except for Sirius, and then once he DID get in he called up his friends and they cast the Fidelius (this was all part of the lesson this morning on the Fidelius Charm, weren't you paying attention?)

You don't think it would be slightly suspicious if we turned up in his office with a book that came from THIS PARTICULAR HOUSE?

[alt_sally_anne]

And 'some dodgy shop somewhere,' he'd want to know exactly which shop. EXACTLY. If we said we couldn't remember he'd say 'what was the neighborhood, here, I'll take you there RIGHT NOW and we can walk around and see if you remember what it looked like?'

Not because he was trying to trap us but because he'd want to BUY OUT THE REST OF THEIR INVENTORY. I mean if they had THIS...

[alt_ron]

Uh.

No, wait. We still could.

We'd just say that Regulus Black gave it to Pans. That's it!

[alt_sally_anne]

There's also the minor detail that this book belongs to Sirius Black and we can't shouldn't just nick it, it would be a betrayal of trust. (Besides, there might be a ward or something to keep it from being taken out of the house and how would THAT look?)

[alt_ron]

Um.

Well, yeah.

They'd maybe loan it to you, though. Maybe?

And you could still show it to Professor Dolohov and

Okay. Maybe that's really not a good idea, is it?

Right.

[alt_ron]

Only, I was just thinking it's a waste, because it's not like Sirius Black is going to read it. Did you hear him talking to that portrait? I mean, he doesn't seem like he cares about anything that was his parents', does he?

But, yeah. I wasn't thinking what it would look like if anyone found us taking stuff.

I don't know what I was thinking, really.

At all.

Mum would skin me.

[alt_sally_anne]

Well, it's not a complete waste, because I'm reading it, right?

But I keep running into bits that make me think, 'Professor Dolohov would LOVE this' or 'Professor Dolohov would find this SO FASCINATING' or 'I wonder if Professor Dolohov could tell me who that Alberic was who made Black the Ancient cross so often.'

[alt_ron]

They're really nice, actually. The Longbottoms, I mean.

I almost said something completely daft to Nev, though, earlier.

I almost told him his mum's really nice looking. Which, uh. She totally is. Only, yeah. He wouldn't have wanted to hear that!

But she is!

[alt_sally_anne]

Mrs Longbottom is really pretty.

But yeah I think you're right about saying that to Neville!

[alt_pansy]

Ev really does take after her, doesn't she.

[alt_ron]

Um.

I guess. Yeah. Now you say it.

[alt_pansy]

I wasn't expecting the niceness. Especially not

It's just very weird.

And Mr Longbottom sort of reminds me of Professor Raz.

Mr Lupin looks so much happier than he was last time we saw him, too.

[alt_sally_anne]

Maybe a little? Less bookish, though.

[alt_pansy]

It's really weird to think that Mrs Longbottom fought Professor Raz like that. And hurt him like she did.

Both of them had to have fought Professor Dolohov too.

[alt_sally_anne]

That is really weird to think about.

Did they ever fight

[alt_sally_anne]

The funny thing is that if they weren't on opposite sides I really think Mr and Mrs Longbottom might actually rather LIKE Professor Lestrange.

And Mr Lupin would get along famously with Professor Dolohov. If, you know. They could.

[alt_pansy]

You're right. I bet they would.

[alt_ron]

Sorry. Didn't open my book all day.

Too busy cocking up my potion. And trying to figure out how to think myself into a hoop two feet away. Without leaving half my bits behind.

But isn't it completely wizard? The house? and Sirius Black? I mean, having tea with him! And all of them together. I mean, Mum, too. Like she's just always known all of them and been a part of whatever all they've done.


And the headmistress is different. Totally.

[alt_pansy]

She is, isn't she? She was actually smiling.