Obliterated | Golden Trio Era

Chapter 6 : The First Prank of the Year

REIGN CREPT SILENTLY through the empty corridor. It was just after midnight and there was no way she could afford to be seen. She was dressed in all black to lessen the chances of being spotted by a member of staff or a stupid prefect.

After all the elaborate planning she'd done over the holidays, on the train to Hogwarts, and in her dorm, after the girls were asleep, she was finally ready to set up the first prank of her fifth year. It would also be the first prank of the entire year because, surprisingly, the Weasley twins hadn't struck yet.

She made her way to the Gryffindor Tower. Normally they'd be the last house she'd prank but this year she was going to have some fun by switching it up.

It had taken some time to think everything through; earlier that day, Reign had to hide behind a pillar outside the Fat Lady's portrait as she waited for a Gryffindor student to enter the room giving the password she so desperately needed.

Before she stepped forward into the little patch of moonlight that entered through a window, illuminating the place before where Reign knew the Gryffindor Common Room was, she took a deep breath. The first prank of the year was always the hardest because everyone was always expecting it, every year she'd been at Hogwarts, Reign had made sure it was a big thing, and that meant that all prefects had been warned to look out for it up until Christmas.

She stepped out of the shadows and cleared her throat loudly, waking the Fat Lady. The portrait stared down at her with the most annoyed expression Reign had ever encountered.

"What could you possibly be doing out of bed so late?" The Fat Lady asked.

Reign forced herself to blush in embarrassment and smile sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I went to see my brother in the Hospital Wing earlier this evening, he's awfully sick, you see, and I fell asleep by his side. When I woke up I realised that it was after curfew."

The Fat Lady frowned but nevertheless looked down at Reign sympathetically. "Oh, okay, well, I hope he gets better soon. Password?"

"Mimbulus mimbletonia," Reign said meekly, keeping up her innocent, fifth year act.

The portrait swung open and Reign stepped inside. Reign was welcomed by the roaring fire in the heart of the room that cast a warm glow across the whole tower. Candelabras hung against the walls, also providing a source of light, the glow wasn't powerful enough to light up the whole room, so the place was dimly lit. Red and gold tapestries and banners decorated the stone walls of the circular room, going well with the red armchairs in front of the fire. It was the vilest thing Reign had ever seen in her life.

She carefully pulled her wand out of her back pocket and pointed it at one of the banners. "Colovaria," she whispered, and slowly the banner's red and gold colours were replaced by a sharp emerald green and a bright silver. She repeated the spell until the entire room was in the sacred colours of Slytherin, she even went as far as changing the colour of the fire.

The prank was simple and was no doubt reversible, not nearly as complex and outstanding as what Reign usually did, and despite promising herself that this was going to be a good prank she wasn't satisfied at all. But with all that had been going on the past few weeks, she'd had no time to create something so extravagantly 'Reign'.

Just before she moved to leave, she decided that she may as well leave her mark, to let everyone know it was her who did it and not the bastard twins. With a quick flick of her wrist, on every banner and every wall was her signature mark, or logo as some could call it; a five-spiked crown the colour of summer leaves and her initials in elegant black writing beneath.

Footsteps thudded as someone began to descend the stairs, Reign had no time to run out of the portrait so instead, she dove behind a large desk and lessened her breathing rate.