cloudy with a Chance of freedom

chapter 8

Blaise POV

Blaise groaned when the sun hit his eyes.

He wondered why there were so many bottles of actual alcohol around him...until he remembered what Harry had revealed the night before and then he knew why.

Black had the strangest luck in existence...and was entirely too happy to use it to give his friends and closest confidant's headaches from exasperation.

Harry had cheerfully shoved Blaise into his newly acquired vanishing cabinet, only for the half-Italian to come out and attempt to strangle him for not giving him any warning. Finding out the bloody thing was a direct way into Hogwarts without tripping any of the wards by hearing Filch yelling at the twins was not what he was expecting.

Though once Camellia heard where it lead, she had agreed immediately that the idiot clerk had let it go far too easily. All the better for them, because thanks to the cabinet they could easily maintain the ruse that they were still in the castle without the headmaster being aware that they were visiting other countries over break.

Harry, damn him, was still looking as fresh as a daisy despite having drunk more than any of them save his own mother had.

"I loathe you," said Blaise with heat.

Black, being a complete bastard, was holding a vial of a potion Blaise wasn't inclined to identify at the moment. It could be a deadly poison for all he cared with how his head was pounding.

Wonder of wonders, it was a hang over remedy.

"And suddenly I'm not inclined to brutally murder you in your sleep, it's a miracle."

Harry snickered at him.

"Well this is a rather interesting scenario you've found yourself in, Skull," said an unfamiliar voice dryly. "One would be hard pressed to believe you were once considered the Lackey."

"Like they would have believed I could kick their ass considering I wasn't previously involved like they were. If you recall, I got a crash course on Flames once that person picked me," he said rolling his eyes.

"Black... who or what is that?" demanded Blaise, the potion finally kicking in properly that he could think again.

"Blaise, meet Verde. Verde, this is my Left Hand Blaise Zabini. Yes, those Zabinis. Of course you partially know my cousin and Right hand Camellia."

"Camellia?" said Verde with a strange sort of delight.

"You didn't really think her name was a snake, did you?" he asked amused.

Verde looked far too amused by this revelation... because there was little doubt Camellia was a girl. And if she wasn't, then it meant he had quite a bit of blackmail on "him" for having such a feminine name.

They never did figure out Viper's gender the last time.

"How did you end up shunted here anyway?" asked Harry to Verde.

Verde had the decency to look somewhat embarrassed.

"I got my hands on the Bovino's special ammo and was experimenting with it and a faulty time turner... the damn thing went off and set off a chain reaction with the time turner and the next thing I knew I was six again," he said irritably. "If I could replicate that one in a thousand resonance between the two..."

"You'd have to wait for the Bovino to make the thing first," Harry reminded them. Verde grumbled at that. "Look at the bright side... you can recreate the box weapons earlier than before."

Verde scoffed, before tossing Harry a box, which was purple in color.

Harry's face went absolutely delighted when he opened it.