(Eng) Weasleys, Pranks and other Curses

06

But it would be a few weeks before I would find a reason to start a fight with the twins. During this time I found a good rhythm with Dumbledore and my necklace. Only that the letters from my parents became less frequent worried me a little. Was it because they relied on the necklace?

I was sitting over a letter to them when Madeline came into the dormitory squealing like a little girl. "You won't believe what I just -" but she broke off in mid-sentence and immediately hid her hands behind her back.

Uneasy, I lowered the feather and eyed her. "What's wrong?"
Her face was as red as the Gryffindor banner on our wall. "You can't laugh, okay?" She sheepishly pulled out what she was hiding behind her back. It was a small glass bottle - small enough to be hidden in her closed fist.

I leaned over to read the handwritten label. "Love Potion," I read aloud, looking up over the rim of my glasses at Madeline.

"I know it's ridiculous, okay? But the Weasleys 100% guarantee it!"

The Weasleys. Of course they do. Sighing, I pushed the chair back and squeezed Madeline's arm.

"What are you going to do?" she called after me in near panic.

"Making sure you didn't get ripped off."

*

The Weasleys had set up shop in an empty classroom and had several tables in front of them. My eyes slid over the display, and to my shame, I was momentarily impressed. Suddenly, I wasn't surprised to see so many students crowded into the small room.

I kept to the background for a bit until I found what I was looking for. On a small stand, which was actually meant for test tubes, were the bottles. There were already a few missing. A worn sign in front of it read.
"Love Potion. Win his heart in a month. 5 Galleons."

I let out a whistle at the hefty price.

"A love potion for the lady?", George addressed me with his typical business grin.

I picked up one of the pink bottles I had been looking at in disbelief the whole time. "You really want to tell me that you, of all people, could pull off such a complicated potion?" My gaze wandered to the innocently smiling twins. "You, who barely managed to get average grades," I added to punctuate my doubt. From what I had heard, the twins were anything but outstanding students. Even though there were rumors that this was mainly because they weren't really interested in class.

"Of course," Fred crooned from his end of the table.
"Don't you believe us? We stand with our reputation for that," George added, now standing directly in front of me.

Again I glanced at the bottle. Apart from the fact that such potions were absolutely immoral, a good love potion was a real challenge. One always had to keep an eye on it, so that the effect was not too strong or too weak.

George must have seen that I was on the verge of ruining their business, because he leaned over to me. "What do you say, Renard, I give you this potion as a free sample and you swear to give honest feedback on its effects?" He held out his hand so I could shake it. His eyes sparkled from the challenge.

I snorted in amusement. I'd rather walk on burning coals than admit that my heart was actually racing at the thought that this potion might work. The temptation was great, but it was absolutely impossible - and then the scales fell from my eyes. This had to be the moment I had seen in the crystal ball! Whatever bad thing I would prevent, I preferred not to find out. So I looked back into the brown eyes in front of me and pursed my lips. Courage. Be brave!

I grabbed George's water glass that was in his place and poured half of the potion into it. Stirred once with my wand and pushed the glass into the flabbergasted twin's still outstretched hand. "I don't think you're capable of pulling off something like that," I insisted. "So prove me wrong."

George looked from me to the glass and back again. Even though he tried to cover it up with a laugh, I had seen the second of insecurity. His eyes darted to Fred, who nodded appreciatively. Apparently he liked that I was standing up to them? I couldn't explain the mischievous grin any other way.

A cluster of curious people had formed around us. If George didn't want to lose face, he had no choice but to take me up on my offer. With this realization, the twin finally nodded.

"Fine. But I have one condition." He took out a second glass and filled it with water as well. "You will drink from it, too." He took the small bottle from my hand and poured the rest of the pink liquid into the second glass. Even as he stirred, I felt my heart skip a beat. This had been a fucking mistake! This is exactly why you don't predict the future for yourself! It always backfired.

"If I'm the only one drinking this, I could be accused of just acting to market my product." He held the glass out to me and I knew I had lost. I grabbed the glass with both hands to hide the shaking.

Finally, we looked into each other's eyes, toasted with our potions, and both finished our glass in one go.

As I slammed the glass down on the table, I could already feel a strange, tingly warmth spreading through me. Reluctantly, I looked up at George. "Let me know when I should be feeling the effects," I blurted unkindly, trying to hide my embarrassment, and immediately made my way through the whispering crowd.