[Team Three] A Good Plan
Sooo this is...something. Something cracky that is based on one of my current HP/KHR crossover fics, though it probably won't be an actual scene of the fic since the tone doesn't really fit. Eh, anyway.
(750 words - Rated T just in case)
“Everyone’s a critic.” Skull crosses tiny arms over his chest and pouts, looking to the side, pierced eyebrows almost touching.
“Well, yeah,” Colonnello says, scrunching up his nose. “Only you’d think this,” he makes a broad encompassing gesture over a piece of paper full of black and red circles, arrows and crosses, “is a good idea.”
“But it is!” he presses, unwilling to accept that his clear-cut, practical plan isn’t the best they’ve come up with during the meeting. “It goes straight to the source. You’re the ones always telling me that I should cut off the fluff and unnecessary parts of every operation!”
Honestly. They have done so. Skull can admit that he had often been thinking more about how cool this or that move would make him look whenever he proposed plans of action before, so being berated then made sense. But now that he’s purposely not doing so, instead of praising him he’s still being berated!
What a bunch of-
“Yeah, the fluff, Lackey,” Reborn sneers, then sighs and his mouth slackens in a long-suffering expression. “The fluff does not include all the steps between ‘appear in the castle’ and ‘bash his ugly snake-like face against the wall until he dies.’”
“I did mention you’d be taking care of the minions,” Skull points out, rather reasonably, he thinks. “With wizardly support, obviously,” he adds, inclining his head towards Moody and Tonks and the others. Why do those two in particular look so amused?
“Why did we think you’d be reasonable?” Lal wonders. The question is rhetorical, though, as she keeps going without waiting for an answer. “He’s clearly-and understandably-compromised.”
“I mean, it’s his Sky.” Colonnello shrugs. “I’d also want my pound of flesh if a snakelike bastard wanted to kill mine.”
“Are we even sure this evil wizard will show up?” Verde asks.
“Definitely,” Harry says, and he’s backed up by the rest of the wizards. “He’s trying to get into Hogwarts, we know that because of Malfoy-” and some insider information. Spies are such a godsend, when you can actually trust them- “so if we prepare a defense protocol for when he finally does and then we stop him from leaving then we can finish this once and for all. And believe me, we’d know when he comes.”
“Admittedly, You-Know-Who is something of a diva,” Ron says, receiving a mixed response of choked sputtering, surprised snorts and incredulous stares. He reddens, but doesn’t take it back. “What? He is. He always has to make an entrance.”
“Or give an evil speech,” Harry mutters. Snape, of all people, grimaces and nods along.
Verde looks disgusted. “Amateur villains,” he spits, then shakes his head. “I’m feeling more and more confident with every word I hear.”
“I have to agree with Verde, there,” Colonnello says. “How come you guys have had so much trouble taking this clown out?”
All the wizards, Harry included, grimace. Some look outraged, but most seem ashamed.
“To be fair,” Hermione says, “we’re kids.” Harry and his other teenage guardians all nod.
“Truth.”
“And the adults?” Reborn asks, an eyebrow raised, judging.
Dumbledore clears his throat. “Well, as much as it pains me to admit it, the man is powerful. And was immortal until recently.”
“And he has the Death Eaters. Some of them are actually competent, like Greyback.”
“And Bellatrix.” Tonks frowns. “Even if my no-so-dear aunt is completely insane.”
“That only makes her more dangerous,” Moody grunts.
“Okay. So, he’s powerful and has minions. We knew that. What else?”
For a moment, nobody says anything. Then:
“Fear, probably,” Lupin admits with half a shrug. “Fear and the belief that no matter how much you fight, the other side will take what’s most important to you. In the last war, most people hid away instead of fighting, because the ones fighting kept losing. Dying. But even then, they also lost loved ones and suffered while the other side kept on getting more and more powerful. They were scared. And now that he’s back, the fear he commanded back then is clouding their judgment.”
Nobody truly disagrees.
“That…actually makes sense, depressingly.” Lal sighs. “Okay. Acceptable. But now you know it’s not impossible, so we have to come up with a good plan so that we can all go back to our lives after dealing with the pest.”
“Yes. You’ve been wasting time,” Viper claims. “And time is money. Take any longer and it’ll cost you double.”
“Okay, okay,” Reborn takes back the floor and looks around the massive table and its occupants. “So, any good ideas?”
It's your turn, shinysylver! :D