Fate of Fangs, Claws, and Hearts | Marauders Fanfic / Part 1

39 - Revenge as a Temporary Bandage

Phil's POV:

The chill of the afternoon had driven me indoors, settling me into one of the study rooms on the fourth floor. Outside, the air had become far too cold, and Friday had stretched on longer than it should. Tomorrow would bring the full moon, a fact that only worsened my concentration. I stared blankly at the parchment before me, the essay on magical creatures due by Monday gnawing at my thoughts.

I really need sleep...

But there was no time for rest. With the full moon so near, I knew I would be in no state to finish anything later. The essay had to be done now. Still, every attempt to focus was met with failure. My head hit the table, a frustrated thud that matched my mood, and for a moment, I contemplated closing my eyes, if only for a second.
Before I could surrender to exhaustion, something small and solid landed beside me. I jerked upright, startled, and there it was - a chocolate bar.
»You look like death warmed up, eat something,« a familiar voice remarked, laced with unexpected kindness.
Elizabeth Lestrange stood before me, her expression a mixture of concern and casual indifference. She nodded towards the chocolate. Reluctantly, I reached for it, unwrapping it slowly as she sat down across from me, her gaze sharp as ever.
»You really do look terrible,« she continued, leaning forward to scrutinise me more closely. »Have you slept at all?«
My muscles tensed under her scrutiny, anxiety twisting within me. The last thing I needed was someone connecting the dots between my appearance and the impending full moon.
»Just... a lot on my mind,« I mumbled, taking a bite of the chocolate.

Only a half-lie.

»Ah,« she mused, her eyes narrowing slightly. »So you had a run-in with the Brainless, didn't you?«
She was spot on, of course. Elizabeth had a talent for always knowing what was going on. The entire school knew that.
»More of a confrontation, really,« I admitted, trying to downplay the tension of the encounter.
»Same difference. Did they manage to get under your skin again?«
I nodded, the second bite of chocolate offering a brief moment of relief. »They meddle in things that aren't their business,« I muttered.
Elizabeth shifted in her seat, pulling one leg up onto the chair and resting her chin on her knee. »They're good at that, those idiots. Severus and I have had more than our fair share of their pranks. But you know, we could always return the favour. I've been thinking about revenge for a while now, and with your help, it could be perfect.«
I raised an eyebrow, intrigued despite myself. »What do you have in mind? Something subtle? Poison their tea?«
She laughed, a loud, unapologetic sound that earned a few irritated glares from nearby students. »Merlin, Gryffindors always think in extremes! No, no, nothing so drastic. Just a simple prank, but your suggestion does have a certain appeal.«
Her plan, as she explained it, was far from simple, and yet there was a certain elegance to it. She had obviously been planning this for some time, and her enthusiasm was infectious.

We quickly left the study room, storing our bags. I went to my dormitory, and Elizabeth disappeared to retrieve the necessary items from her dormitory. The plan hinged on the Gryffindors' late Quidditch practice, the perfect opportunity to execute our scheme. The key to it all? Magical itching powder, a mischievous little substance that acted like fleas, triggered by body heat. Once it latched onto clothing, it spread rapidly and even jumped to others.

A perfect, albeit cruel, revenge, but Elizabeth seems willing to slip it to Black and Potter, I thought.

Pettigrew and Lupin were at almost every Gryffindor practice. When the other two came out of the locker room, the magic would begin. The plan, however, was to get into the boys' locker room unnoticed and then back out. Elizabeth assured me it would be no trouble, and I trusted her.
We would later hide in a Quidditch tower afterward, giving us the best seats to observe our prank. It was clear that Elizabeth just wanted to see Black suffer.
Although I was not a big fan of the action, the Slytherin wanted to cheer me up, even if this revenge was only a temporary bandage.
That the boys would not be harmed by a prank was obvious. They would probably only connect it to Lestrange since they could not imagine that I would play a prank on them.