Fic: A Kaleidoscopic Unity by asentia
Title: A Kaleidoscopic Unity
Username: asentia
Pairing: Neville/Pansy
Type: Het
Prompt: #76 - Pansy, as a professor and the new head of Slytherin, is determined to wrest her house out of its ignominy and restore its former greatness. Part of that involves making nice with Neville Longbottom, the new (handsome?!) head of Gryffindor and Herbology professor. Sadly, even the best laid plans can go awry.
Rating: K+
Word Count: 9,473
Warnings/content: Mild swearing
Summary: After the Second Wizarding War, the House of Slytherin lost its prideful status as the most cunning House and instead became a symbol of cowardice. The students keep their heads down and their Quidditch team is a joke, but Pansy Parkinson, the Head of House, is determined to turn the tables and bring back the old Slytherin glory in a tumult of sweaty Quidditch practices and fumbled attempts at inter-house unity.
Notes: I had to add in the Lovely Complex reference I'm sorry.
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters/references are property of JK Rowling and associates. No copyright infringement is intended.
A Kaleidoscopic Unity
The Gryffindors were bullying the Slytherins again.
With a heavy sigh, Pansy Parkinson followed the sixth-year Hufflepuff to the third floor corridor. It was probably Draco's little sister, Phina. The Gryffindor had inherited her mother's bravery but she had also inherited her father's lust for revenge, and Merlin knew the dust hadn't settled yet between her and Slytherin Chaser Jessamine Brithwell. Stupid Quidditch problems.
The Gryffindor Head of House, Neville Longbottom, was already there and he was scolding Phina and her friend Deborah in his calm and collected manner, but with an amused smile on his face that made all witches' hearts melt. As Pansy made her way to Jessamine, Neville looked up at her briefly and nodded then returned his attention to his pupil.
"Are you okay, Ms. Brithwell?" Pansy asked. Jessamine nodded, avoiding eye contact, and hastily swiped away the tears that were continuously falling onto her cheeks. "What happened?"
"We were just talking, it's fine," Jessamine said, glancing at the two Gryffindors. Pansy pursed her lips and glanced at Neville who looked equally dissatisfied.
Pansy remembered a time when Slytherins were not only respected; they were feared. The serpent had been a symbol worn proudly by the clever and ruthless but sometime after Mr. Dumbledore's death, Slytherins became known for their cowardice and the snake became a sign of a worthless, disreputable backstabber who killed targets in their sleep instead of facing them directly.
Not that that was a bad thing.
"Fine. But, Ms. Brithwell, if you have any problems, come to me, okay?" Pansy said. Jessamine nodded and scampered down the corridor.
"Student social politics are so complicated these days," Neville sighed, catching up with Pansy as she walked back to her office. "I miss the times when my House was known for their bravery and not their ruthlessness."
"And I miss when people respected Slytherin," Pansy grumbled. "Our Quidditch team is a joke and so is our pride. We're like Hufflepuffs!"
"There's nothing wrong with Hufflepuffs," Neville protested.
"They're total wussies but they at least they're good at Potions. Better than Gryffindor anyway."
"Excuse me?" Neville snapped. "Slytherin is at the bottom of the barrel- you're a laughingstock! You think Phina Malfoy was just in Gryffindor by chance? She hates your House!" Neville turned around and stormed away but Pansy was too shocked to notice. Did Phina really hate her House? The Malfoys had always been proud Slytherins!
The bell rang, snapping Pansy out of her thoughts and back into professor mode. She rolled her eyes at the oncoming Hufflepuffs who paraded- quietly- out of the Charms classroom, followed by meek little Slytherins who kept their heads down as they shuffled to their next class.
Merlin, her House was a joke. Pansy wanted to scream at them to lift their chins and sneer at the other Houses. What had happened to the days when Slytherins roamed the school proudly, casting fear wherever their feet touched ground? Pansy narrowed her eyes at the receding backs of the meek members of her House and made a plan.
It was high time that her House was respected and nothing would stop Pansy Parkinson from reclaiming the greatness that Slytherin deserved!
***
Pansy held her chin high as she walked through the Great Hall and she even smiled at the Slytherin students.
Yes, she thought, this is how a Slytherin should walk.
The Slytherin Head of House studied her fellow teachers at the front of the Hall. Headmaster McGonagall was regarding her with raised eyebrows, Flitwick was watching her warily, Filch smirked, Neville glanced at her and pursed his lips, and Hagrid and Sprout didn't even notice her sit down as they had a violent argument over the boundaries of Screechsnap crops. The other teachers were probably running late.
Pansy sat down in between Neville and Flitwick and ate her food daintily. She had put on globs of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion and a Muggle thing called eyeliner that Daphne gave her after a trip to Paris, so she wasn't surprised when Neville did a double-take of her.
"You look different..." he said. Pansy smiled coyly. "Did you put on lipstick?"
Pansy wanted to bang her head against the table. "No, I put on a Muggle potion called eyeliner that Daphne gave me."
"Is that safe? It sounds painful."
Pansy suppressed a shudder as she thought of the first time she had put it on for last year's Christmas Party at the Malfoy Manor. Her left eye had never felt the same.
"You just have to be careful. Do you like it?"
"Um, sure. I can't really tell the difference. Can you, Filius?"
"Not really," Flitwick replied.
Pansy mentally sighed. Males.
***
Pansy collapsed in the squishy chair at her desk and groaned. The only one who noticed a difference with the makeup was Trelawney, and that was never a good thing!
"You have dirt around your eyes," sneered Severus Snape's portrait from above the fireplace.
"It's makeup!" Pansy cried exasperatedly.
"It looks like you tripped near Hagrid's hut."
"Then I'll just add to the joke- Pansy Parkinson, Head of Slytherin covered in the dirt from the House pride's grave!"
Snape's upper lip curled in disdain. "My House's pride is dead?"
"We're the new bloody Hufflepuff," Pansy muttered. "I think it's been that way since after the War."
"You have to change that!"
"I've tried House unity already but Flitwick and Neville weren't impressed and Sprout is too engrossed in her bloody plants."
"You call putting on dirt and changing your hair house unity?" Snape asked dryly.
"It's the art of seduction, not that you'd understand."
"And what do you mean by that?"
Pansy didn't bother with a reply, choosing to mull over other House unity choices. A, Pansy shuddered, friendship with the most adored Head of the most respected House would definitely boost Slytherin's reputation and if they maybe won a few Quidditch matches and even the House Cup per say, the House morale would definitely be lifted.
"Quidditch!" Pansy cried triumphantly. "Bloody Quidditch!"
"You're a professor, you shouldn't swear," Snape chided.
"You're an acrylic portrait, which is a water-based paint, and yet your hair is still extremely greasy."
"It is not grease; I had an unfortunate incident with Sleekeazy's Hair Potion when I was five!"
***
Quidditch, Quidditch, Quidditch.
Pansy muttered grumpily as she went outside to the Quidditch pitch and plopped down on one of the stands. With her luck, of course, Gryffindor was practicing. Phina Malfoy scowled at the professor but said nothing, choosing instead to fly over to the seventh-year captain Alphie Sommers.
"Hi, Professor Parkinson," Sommers said, flying over with a broad smile. "Are you looking for someone?"
"No, just watching."
"Well, um, the Gryffindor-Slytherin match is coming up soon, which makes you the rival, so you can't exactly watch us practice our secret strategies, you see," Sommers stammered.
"Slytherin's been on a horrid losing streak and I was hoping to pick up some tips. I'll give you all 5% extra credit for the rest of your Potions assignments," Pansy added sweetly.
"No thank you," Sommers said immediately. "We would all appreciate it, but we'd appreciate the House Cup more." Pansy nodded.
"I'll be going then."
"See ya later, Professor!"
Reluctantly, the Slytherin stood up and was almost off the field when she heard from above, "You're so brave, Alphie. I could never stand up to that wicked chimera!" Pansy looked up and saw Phina smirking right at her.
Phina bloody Malfoy was smirking at her, a teacher!
Pansy chose to smile sweetly at the evil Chaser instead of her trademark glare. At least she was mature. Phina's brows furrowed and her eyes were dazed with confusion before she flew away.
I swear on my life, Slytherin will crush you, Seraphina Malfoy, Pansy thought darkly before heading to the library.
***
"What are you doing now?" Snape asked exasperatedly. His acrylic portrait self-consciously stroked his hair.
"I'm bringing back Slytherin respect," Pansy replied happily as she sorted through a pile of magazines and books. The newest copies of Spella Weekly, The Daily News, and Witch Weekly went untouched in favour of a battered library copy of Quiddith Through the Ages, a still-wrapped edition of Beating the Bludgers- A Study of Defensive Strategies in Quidditch- Exclusive 3rd Edition, and the current editions of Which Broomstick? and Seeker Weekly.
"Have you turned into Granger? Books won't help you win a sport," Snape remarked snidely.
"Shut- the strategies in here are brilliant!" Pansy cried, cackling evilly and flipping through the pages of Beating the Bludgers. "There's even one called 'The Kappa' where you sneak up behind them. Phina Malfoy, you better watch out!"
Snape groaned. "You know if you do anything terrible to her, the Malfoys will descend on you like Fiendfyre."
"Thanks for the concern, but I have the power to get their precious treasure expelled and ruin her Wizarding Education Summary."
"You shouldn't anger a family of the Sacred Twenty-Eight," Snape warned.
"Well they should discipline their daughter. Besides, the Parkinsons are also part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight and I work at Hogwarts." Pansy smirked and circled a chapter title in Beating the Bludgers. "What do you think of the Crash the Keeper Strategy, Severus?"
"I think those are well-written instructions for the destruction of the rest of the Houses."
Pansy grinned. "Then I have the right book!"
***
Beating the Bludgers had become Pansy's holy grail and the hardworking Slytherin Quidditch team members had easily become her favourite students.
"What's that?" Neville asked at lunch one day. Pansy looked up from her book and quickly Transfigured it into eyeliner.
"Nothing, nothing," Pansy muttered. She smiled at Neville. Winning the Quidditch Cup would bring respect but also resentment. If Slytherin became chummy with Gryffindor, then all of Hogwarts would have no choice but to love them! Paving the road to greatness would of course require much effort on Pansy's part. Not that she was complaining- Neville was easily the handsomest member of the Hogwarts staff.
Her latest edition of Witch Weekly had advised to converse about manly things like Quidditch and broomsticks with the object of affection. Acting a bit dumber than they were would also boost their ego, their confidence, their mood, and therefore their overall opinion of the speaker.
There was also the cocky, flirty route, which was based on the above method. Pansy could definitely do cocky.
"So, the Gryffindor-Slytherin match is coming up," Pansy said, smirking at Neville, "your team should train extra hard this season so your loss to Slytherin doesn't look too embarrassing."
Words like 'train' and 'season' were not part of the usual Pansy Parkinson vocabulary but Witch Weekly had specifically advised using them in the occasion of a Quidditch-based discussion.
"I know. I saw you with your team at the Pitch yesterday- you're a great coach, surprisingly. Your team has improved a lot, but you're still no match for my House." Neville winked at her then swallowed a spoonful of onion soup. Pansy knew staring was impolite and creepy so instead she focused her attention on his bobbing Adam's apple.
What did Pansy know?
1. Neville Longbottom had just winked at her.
2. Neville Longbottom had never winked at anyone else, to Pansy's knowledge.
3. Neville Longbottom had gone from an annoying biffing snot to a fine, well-toned young man.
4. NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM HAD JUST WINKED AT HER AND HER OVARIES WERE ON THE EDGE OF EXPLODING.
5. She should really stop listening to Daphne and her daughter rave about that Muggle Tom Hardy.
"What you saw yesterday was just a taste of the havoc we'll cause on the pitch this year," Pansy said, batting her eyelashes. Sweet Merlin, why was she being flirty? Had Neville affected her brain somehow? Had she lost control of her body?
"Good luck with that," Neville said, giving her a look that could only be described in one word: smoldering.
Moldy Voldy, this was not going well. The Gryffindor-Slytherin union had to be established by friendship; a romantic relationship would make the union stronger but it would also make it more fragile and susceptible to turning into a vicious rivalry. Luckily, the arrival of a bleeding Hagrid saved Pansy from having to come up with a response to Neville's bloody smoldering sentence.
Never in my life have I been so happy to see you, Pansy thought. Her sigh went unheard midst the chaos of professors helping Hagrid and students swarming around to see what happened. Pansy watched with much satisfaction as Neville told Phina and her nosy little friends to leave. The smolder was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he had meant to do it, just for her.
Males were so complicated.
***
Hermione Granger had always been a terribly moody person during a specific time of the month and the day Neville flooed her was no exception.
"What do you want?" Hermione snapped while eating massive spoonfuls of haggis ice cream. "I'm in the middle of Coronation Street."
"Women are so confusing," Neville moaned, collapsing on the cushy couch. "I was talking to Pansy about Quidditch and suddenly her eyelashes started fluttering. I thought she was having a seizure but she was speaking normally."
Hermione dropped her spoon into the ice cream tub and turned off the television. "You were talking to Pansy Parkinson about Quidditch?"
"Yeah, she started teasing me about how Gryffindor's going to lose to Slytherin and-"
"What did you say before her eyelashes had a spasm?"
"That Gryffindor would still win then I winked." Hermione groaned.
"You winked?" she cried. "Winking is one of the top ten signs that a man is flirting with you!"
"It was a joke"
"Well obviously she didn't know that, that's why she started batting her eyelashes- to flirt!"
"Why would she like me? I'm the enemy!"
Hermione thought back to what she knew of Pansy from Hogwarts. Back then, Slytherin had easily been the most feared House but the members had been shunned after the War during Hermione's eighth year. Pansy was sadly a smart girl- she had been a Prefect- and she was probably doing her best to revive the Slytherin respect by uniting with the Gryffindor Head of House.
Or she thought that Neville was attractive. Same thing.
Hermione relayed all this to Neville whose mouth was hanging open like Bellatrix's stomach after Molly had hexed her.
"She thinks I'm attractive?" Neville managed. Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Is that all you care about?" she snapped. "You've gained a lot of muscle, Neville, and you have the good old British boy looks; of course she thinks you're hot! Quite a few people do, to be honest, but that isn't important!" A quick glance at her friend told Hermione that it was very important to him, but she charged on. "You need to decide whether you're going to help Pansy bring back Slytherin or crush it into a fine powdery dust."
"How do I do that?"
"If you become friends with her, or more, your relationship will affect both Houses, causing them to become sisters which means Slytherin will once again be respected." Hermione gave Neville a wary look. "Pansy's goals are clear, so it's your choice now. Will you choose the red pill or the blue pill?"
"What?"
"Muggle TV reference, sorry, I'm in a delicate situation right now so excuse me if I'm not thinking straight. What I meant was do you want Slytherin to rise up out of the ashes or do you want it to stay dead?"
"Rise up out of the ashes?"
"FOR THE LOVE OF MERLIN DO YOU WANT SLYTHERIN TO GO BACK TO THE FEARED HOUSE IT ONCE WAS OR NOT?" Hermione took a deep breath. "You should go back to your office now and think because I am terribly biased of this situation and being around me won't help." Hermione picked up her spoon and turned the television back on, dismissing Neville.
"Red pill or the blue pill?" he muttered as he shuffled back into the fireplace. "Definitely red. I am a Gryffindor."
***
In the somber Hogwarts dungeons was a very bright office with floating candles and photos covering nearly every wall. A tea kettle whistled loudly and the morning breeze that trailed in from an enchanted window smelled like freshly-cut grass and Quaffle polish.
The smell of victory, Pansy thought, smiling as she sat up in her four-poster, but the grin was immediately replaced by a yawn and a grimace. No matter how victorious the morning smelled, she still hated waking up early- which meant any time before noon- and it was only 5 'o' clock.
Pansy tumbled out of bed and shuffled into the bathroom then changed into her work robes. On her way out, she grabbed Beating the Bludgers and the Muggle workout paper that Theo had sent her. It still smelled like his cologne-
Stop, Pansy, she thought urgently. That relationship is over. You know why Theo has all those Muggle resources.
She sighed then realized something. Was she flirting with Neville so she could use him as a rebound?
"Doesn't matter, doesn't matter," Pansy muttered, but she knew it did.
***
The Slytherin Quidditch team groaned in unison as they dragged their feet into the change room where swimsuits and tubs full of Friday night ice water were calling.
"I love and absolutely hate Parkinson at the same time," Imad Shafiq groaned as he rubbed his shoulder.
"On the bright side, taper's soon," Francis Urquhart said through clenched teeth as he lowered himself into the water.
"Does Parkinson even know what taper is?" Alister Carrow asked worriedly. "She didn't know what hell week meant."
"She's a good coach; we'll be fine," Peter Gosforth, a Chaser and Team Captain, muttered. At first he'd been insulted that Parkinson chose to take over but after one grueling practice he appreciated the intervention. The Beaters were hitting Bludgers harder, the Chasers were throwing Quaffles faster, and Parkinson had put Urquhart and Vaisey- the Keeper and Seeker- on strict Muggle "yoga" regimens that made them scarily flexible and nimble. Everyone had faster reflexes and the insane strategies that Parkinson drilled them on a daily basis could be done with a single call of the Captain.
"The first match of the season is next Saturday!" Blair Montague, a Chaser, announced, marching into the change room. Her friends Elle Vaisey, Seeker extraordinaire, and Jessamine Brithwell, a hardy Chaser, shuffled in meekly behind her. "Maybe we can use Crash the Keeper without having to pull up at the last second which we have to do in practice." Blair looked pointedly at Peter.
"Get out, we're not wearing shirts!" he cried. Blair rolled her eyes.
"Oh shut up, you prude. All the guys on the team are shirtless halfway through practice except for you," Blair pointed out. "I don't see why; your chest isn't anything to be ashamed of."
"Blair!" Elle chided.
"Just pointing out the obvious," Blair muttered. "Gosforth's abs are glorious."
"What the hell, Montague?" Peter cried, his hands placed protectively over his stomach.
"Anyway, the match is at 15:00," Blair said breezily. "It's in four days so don't work yourselves too hard at practice this week. See ya!" The Chaser grabbed Elle and Jess's hands and skipped merrily out of the change room.
"Careful, Gosforth, or she'll be all over your 'glorious' abs," Francis cackled.
"He wouldn't mind," Imad said with a wink at Peter. "Blair's pretty fit and she's good at chasing balls, eh, Petey?"
Peter glared at his teammates and sunk deep down into his tub.
***
Crowds roared wildly as the Slytherin Quidditch team looked toward their Head of House who was pale-faced and shaking.
"This is a very important match," Pansy said with a strained voice. "Gryffindor will be our strongest opponent so this will set the tone for the rest of the season. Gosforth?"
The team looked at their captain who smiled grimly at the team. "Gryffindors are ruthless and determined. Urquhart, watch out for Malcolm, the short Beater; he likes to aim at Keepers. The Chaser Malfoy feints to the left but she always scores in the centre hoop whenever possible. Mallory, the tall Beater, will aim at the Seeker or anyone who's a threat to Prewett, their Seeker. Crockett and Sommers play fair but they're aggressive and the Keeper, Jo Darke, tends to float over to the right hoop."
"Mallory fancies both Malfoy and Prewett and he has anger issues," Blair added, snickering.
"Oh, Montague, Brithwell, keep your passes short, and remember not to scream," Peter ordered.
"But it distracts them!" Blair protested.
"It also wastes energy," Peter argued. "Focus on your throwing and catching. Vaisey, catch the Snitch as fast as possible unless they're 160 points ahead, which would be really good, even for Gryffindor. Carrow and Shafiq, don't aim at Malfoy or Prewett unless they're too close to the hoops for comfort. If you do, be prepared to dodge Mallory's wrath. Urquhart, you're the best Keeper in the school but don't let it get to your head."
"When have I done that?" Francis said, pouting.
"Remember to have fun." Peter glanced at their pale Head of House. "And let's wipe Gryffindor to the ground." The team cheered then grabbed their brooms and marched onto the pitch. Pansy strode over to the professors' section in the stands, pride and nervousness fighting to burst out of her chest.
"You look really nervous for someone who was so sure her team would win," Neville remarked with a grin, sitting down next to her.
"I'm just worried that the damage we do to your team will be so traumatic that I'll have to take them to St. Mungo's," Pansy shot back, but her hands didn't stop shaking.
Madame Hooch threw the Quaffle into the air and released the Bludgers and the Snitch. The two teams shot up into the sky and Peter grabbed the Quaffle and threw it to Blair. Malcolm, the Gryffindor Beater, hit a Bludger in her direction but she dodged it and dropped the Quaffle below her to an awaiting Jessamine who whipped it into the open left hoop. The ball sailed through and the Slytherin team cheered.
"10-0 Slytherin!" Adrian Wolpert commentated. "Ten seconds into the game and last year's underdogs are already showing much improvement. Phina Malfoy takes the Quaffle for Gryffindor but Jessamine Brithwell and Peter Gosforth are on her tail! Mallory aims a Bludger at the Slytherin team captain- ow! That'll leave a mark! And a well-aimed Bludger from Alister Carrow knocks the Quaffle out of Malfoy's hands and into Brithwell's. She passes it to Blair- now to a recovered Gosforth- Brithwell- Montague- Brithwell- Gosforth scores! 20-0 to Slytherin!"
"Nervous, Neville?" Pansy asked her frowning colleague. Her hands had stopped shaking and she had a grin on her face. The team hadn't even used their best plays yet!
"Beginner's luck," Neville muttered, but his crossed arms and grimace told Pansy otherwise.
"Don't let this get to your heads!" Peter roared to his team. They all nodded solemnly and their smiles turned to pursed lips and even frowns as they concentrated.
"Sommers takes the Quaffle and dodges Shafiq's Bludger. He passes to Crockett who passes to- Brithwell intercepts and throws the Quaffle to Montague- score! 30-0 Slytherin! Malfoy takes the Quaffle- Gosforth- score! What the hell- heck, sorry- has happened to the Slytherin team? Their Chasers are just blurs! 40- now 50-0 Slytherin!"
Neville groaned. "What did you do to your team Pansy?"
"Well Blair didn't eat much before but the team forced her to," Pansy replied innocently. "And Francis was focusing more on girls instead of school, so Alister started nagging him and his homework was done faster leaving more time to focus on Quidditch."
"Merlin's beard, Parkinson, you coached them?" Pansy turned and saw a bewildered Ginny and Harry Potter. She smiled shyly and nodded. "If Slytherin keeps on going at this rate, the international teams will climbing over each other to draft them."
"Gosforth's the only one graduating this year," Pansy said with a small smirk.
"Did you really coach the team?" Harry asked skeptically. "I didn't take you for a Quidditdch fan, Pansy."
"I just want to bring back Slytherin's former glory." Pansy glanced at the scoreboard and grinned at the numbers 90-20. "What're you two doing here?"
"Harry's giving a talk for Defense and I'm scouting the Quidditch teams," Ginny replied. "Holyhead needs a new Chaser since I'm going on maternity leave."
"Congratulations. And both Blair Montague and Jessamine Brithwell are excellent Chasers." Ginny nodded.
"Vaisey- 100-20 Slytherin!- dives and Prewett sees the Snitch also. They're neck and neck- Bludger from Mallory- Vaisey dodges- Snitch! Vaisey has the Snitch! Slytherin wins 250-20!"
All of Hogwarts broke into ecstatic cheering, except for Gryffindor, and the Slytherin team screamed. They all rushed over to Elle and piled on each other's brooms in an effort to hug each other. It was a miracle that no one fell off as they did a victory lap.
Pansy stared at her House's section in the stands. Students were jumping and cheering rowdily and any trace of shyness was obsolete. The other Houses were more subdued but there was respect, awe, and maybe even a trace of fear in their eyes.
I've done it, Pansy thought. Her heart threatening to burst, the Head of Slytherin House ran down to the pitch where her team had calmed down and was shaking the hands of the shell-shocked Gryffindor team.
"Everyone loves us!" Blair cried happily, waving at the crowd. She was the first of the team to notice Pansy but soon all of them were rushing toward their coach and hugging her with their sweaty little bodies.
When they parted, Alphie Sommers walked up to Pansy and held out his hand. Pansy shook it. "It was an honour to be defeated by such a talented team." The Gryffindor patted Peter on the back in a male hug and nodded at the rest of the team before walking over to a small crowd which included his parents, the team, and, much to Pansy's delight, an irate Phina Malfoy.
"Parkinson! Parkinson! Parkinson!" the Slytherin team chanted. "Parkinson! Parkinson! Parkinson!" Their voices were soon joined by their fellow House members who had rushed down in a flurry of green scarves and mitts. "Parkinson! Parkinson! Parkinson!"
Pansy blushed. "We wouldn't have won if it weren't for the most hardworking and tough-as-nails team I've ever met," she said proudly. "Slytherin! Slytherin!" The whole House soon joined her, and even most of the Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws, and to everyone's surprise, several members of the Gryffindor team. "Slytherin! Slytherin! Slytherin!"
***
At supper the Slytherins walked in proudly, their chins held high and their voices loud, bordering on snobby. Pansy observed all this with relish. The Quidditch Team was particularly pompous but after decades of Slytherin timidity, the other Houses excused their behaviour, and some even cheered for the players as they walked past.
"I'm surprised I'm saying this but congratulations on your win, Pansy," Headmaster McGonagall said kindly. "It's good to see Slytherin acting normal for once."
"Thanks, professor."
"I'll take you up on that St. Mungo's offer," Neville muttered, plopping down in his seat. "I think I'm permanently traumatized from just watching that."
"It was the first game of the season. There's still a high chance that Gryffindor will come in second." Pansy grinned and returned her focus to a soup with an interesting meat that tasted like chicken and fish at the same time. Dessert was a small green cake that tasted like fruits and nuts. On top of it was a long snake dotted with emerald kiwis that slithered across the white icing and even hissed.
"I feel odd eating this," Pansy remarked.
"It tastes really good though." Neville devoured his cake in seconds. Pansy nibbled a piece and was surprised by the explosion of taste and texture. She could pick out pecans, kiwis, and the fluffy lime-vanilla icing.
"Neville," Pansy said proudly. She gestured at the spongy green inside of the cake. "This is what victory tastes like- a delicious green explosion."
"You're hilarious, Pansy," Neville said dryly.
"I know!"
***
"We're playing Ravenclaw two Saturdays from now on the 21!" Blair Montague announced, barging into the locker room who were, once again, taking Wednesday night ice baths.
"Gosforth, cover up your glorious abs!" Francis jeered. The Slytherin captain glared at his friend but jumped out of the bath and threw on a jumper.
"How is it only February?" he moaned. "I still have four months before I leave you annoying little brats."
"We're not that annoying," Jessamine protested. "Don't deny that you'll miss us."
"It's not every day that you find a team who'll do a Blind Babayaga on a single call," Alister pointed out.
"Or a Wild Wendelin," Elle added.
"Or Crash the Keeper!" Blair said with much enthusiasm. "Will we get to do that this match? Please?"
Everyone's minds were immediately filled with an image of Blair rushing the Ravenclaw Keeper and accidentally stabbing her stomach with her broomstick handle. It was no secret that Blair Montague and Risa Otani were rivals and that they both fancied one Peter Gosforth.
Well, it was no secret to anyone except for Peter.
"I think the fatality rate of that is extremely high considering you're one of our Chasers," Alister said to Blair's chagrin.
"I don't have to be the main Chaser," Blair pleaded. "I can even stay off to the sides."
"The Ravenclaw Keeper is Risa Otani so I don't think there's any chance of you staying 'off to the sides,'" Imad remarked.
"We only have two games left," Blair sobbed. "Please? Imagine all the goals we could score!"
"I'll think about it," Peter muttered. Blair grinned happily and skipped out the door.
"She'll kill Risa," Jessamine said darkly. "Hooch could even suspend her."
"She'll probably get a few fouls either way," Elle pointed out. "And Crash the Keeper would get us a lot of points."
"We already have 250 points!" Imad protested.
"Ravenclaw's not far behind- they crushed Hufflepuff and Gryffindor will probably decimate Hufflepuff in their match next week."
"Peter just doesn't want to Crash the Keeper because he fancies Risa," Elle said with a smirk at a reddening Peter.
"She is really cute, but Blair's body is killer," Francis said. "And she'd go out with you at the drop of a hat. So would Phina Malfoy. And the rest of the female Hogwarts population. Girls love Quidditch champions."
"Nah, Phina's in love with you, Francis," Imad said. He scowled.
"How did we go from Quidditch plays to girls?" Peter cried.
"Aw, your face is all red," Jessamine said dead-pan. "Speaking of red, it's Valentine's Day on Saturday. Blair and Risa will be climbing on top of each other to flirt with you."
"Are you going to ask one of them to be your Valentine?" Imad said with a high-pitched voice while curling a strand of his short black hair around his finger.
"I don't really fancy any of them," Peter muttered. "Imad, Fran, Alister, haven't you lot been in those baths for a long time?"
"Right-o," Francis said, jumping out and stretching. Imad gave him a long look before following his lead and Alister already had a new set of robes on and was snacking on a banana. "So who're you going to ask to be your Valentine, if anyone, Petey-boy?"
"That's none of your business," Peter snapped.
"So you're asking someone?" Alister clarified between bites.
"Yes, I'm going to ask them out and take them to Madam Puddifoot's," Peter replied quickly. "No, I will not tell you who. End. Of. Discussion." Peter looked pointedly at Francis and Imad whose mouths were open and read to bombard him with questions. "Goodnight."
Their captain's retreat was followed by silence then an uproar of laughter.
"Madam Puddifoot's?" Jessamine repeated. "I wouldn't ever go there, not even if Myron Wagtail from the Weird Sisters asked me! Maybe Pete's mysterious fancy is a Hufflepuff."
"Would you go to the Three Broomsticks with me on Valentine's Day instead?" Francis said with a cocky grin.
"Yeah sure," Jessamine replied airily with only the faintest sign of a blush.
"Aw, wittle Fwannie's gwoing up," Imad said, pinching Francis's cheeks.
"Bugger off, Imad," Francis said, pushing him away.
"At least Francis has a date," Elle said, elbowing Jessamine.
"Hey, Alister, will you be my Valentine?" Imad called sarcastically, getting down on one knee.
"No way," he replied. "Anyway, I just remembered that Flint said she got a few cauldron cakes from a first-year in exchange for some tutoring. Bye!"
"I'll bet anyone three Sickles that Carrow will ask out Holly," said Jessamine.
"Five Sickles that he asks Elle," said Francis with an innocent smile at her.
"Seven that he doesn't ask anyone," said Imad. He glanced out the ajar door. "It's getting pretty dark, we should head back. And Peter'll have our heads if we don't sleep well."
What was remaining of the Slytherin Quidditch team filtered out of the change room and headed to the dungeons. Francis grabbed Jessamine's hand as they walked and Elle wrote down bets on a scrap piece of paper from Imad's robes. The four of them chatted loudly and cheerily on their way to their common room and when Pansy saw them pass her office, she smiled.
"...Valentine's Day..." Francis said. Pansy widened her eyes and noticed that him and Jessamine were holding hands. She stifled a groan. Of course! It was February and love was in the air.
The Slytherin glanced at the framed photo of her and Theo at her 20th birthday party and sighed wistfully then picked up a quill and grabbed some parchment. Maybe she could... no. Pansy stood up from her desk and walked over to the picture of a particularly joyous Valentine's Day. She stood in front of the lavish Malfoy Manor, hand in hand with Theodore Nott, much like Jessamine and Francis.
Here's to spending Valentine's Day alone.
Pansy noticed her bottle of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion sitting neatly on a shelf and grinned.
Well, maybe I don't have to be alone this year.
***
As Valentine's Day approached, Pansy found herself unlocking more charmed doors and releasing frantic couples than grading papers. One vindictive seventh-year had even hexed a nosy third-year, causing him to painfully sprout cherub wings out of his back.
"Are you doing anything for that silly Valentine's Day?" Snape's portrait asked snobbishly.
Pansy rolled her eyes. "I'm going to create House unity. What about you, Mr. Important?"
"Dumbledore and Armando Dippet are throwing a party with the drunk monks," Snape said dryly, "and it's mandatory for all the portraits to stop by." Pansy guffawed.
"Sorry, I just can't imagine you at a party with Dumbledore and Dippet," she said through laughs. Snape looked at his former student in disdain.
"I can't imagine it myself. And what's all this about Valentine's Day House unity?"
"Neville Longbottom is the key to Slytherin's survival," Pansy said solemnly. "I-"
"Professor!" someone cried, banging on her office door. Pansy ran over and opened it. "Blair Montague and Phina Malfoy-"
Pansy went outside without another word. "Where?"
"Clock tower courtyard," Jessamine Brithwell wheezed, breaking out into a sprint. "Hurry!"
***
The clock tower was one of the taller towers at Hogwarts and its giant, hedge-walled courtyard was infamous for being the go-to place to duel or snog. Or both.
Pansy expected to see a giant crater instead of the stone courtyard, or maybe a still-smoking hole where the clock used to be. There was also a high chance that either Blair or Phina had been Transfigured into something gruesome, but Pansy had never expected to find them sobbing on each other's shoulders while Neville yelled and Flitwick tried spell after spell on a squeaking Pygmy Puff.
"-reckless and downright stupid!" Neville screamed. Pansy was shocked by the fire in his eyes and the pure venom in his voice. "You could have killed him!"
Pansy skirted around the volatile professor and went over to Flitwick. "What happened?"
"This is Peter Gosforth." Flitwick pointed at the Pygmy Puff in his hand. "Ms. Montague and Ms. Malfoy saw him tutouring Ms. Otani of Ravenclaw and proceeded to hex him at the same time. Somehow, their spells combined and turned him into a Pygmy Puff."
"Will you be able to reverse the spell?"
"I've tried almost everything. If I can't fix this by the end of the day, Minerva's going to Owl Mr. Weasley from the Wizard Wheezes store."
"I'm going to Owl their parents." Neville sighed. "Pansy, come with me since you're Blair and Peter's Head. I already have some self-inking quills and parchment. Filius, do you want me to draft up a letter for you to sign later about Risa?"
"No, no, don't worry about me." Flitwick waved him off and continued to aim his wand at Peter.
Pansy fought off shudders that were running down her spine as they walked to the Owlery. He had said her name so sweetly- Merlin's trousers what was happening to her?
"Sorry if you saw me yelling at them," Neville said quietly. Pansy looked at him and saw that his eyes were softer and his shoulders were hunched. "I was really angry, and I kept on imagining them doing something more permanent." Draco had told Pansy about Neville's parents so she squeezed his hand reassuringly.
"The important thing is that they don't do it again and I'm sure neither of them will step a toe out of line for a while," Pansy said earnestly. "I won't lie- it was a bit scary seeing you like that, but I'm glad you were strict instead of letting them get away with it, which would be ten times worse."
"Thanks," Neville muttered. He stared at Pansy with such an intense gaze that she looked away. "I hope Filius and George will be able to help him." As the two climbed the steps up the Owlery Pansy started to giggle. "What's so funny?"
"Sorry, sorry." Pansy tried to stamp down her laugh but in seconds she was laughing again. "I'm terrible. Sorry. I was just thinking how two malevolent hexes can turn a person into a Pygmy Puff of all things. They're just so cute!" She finally stopped her giggles but to her surprise, Neville had started chuckling beside her. Pansy glanced at him- it sounded like an old man wheezing- and soon both of them were crawling up the Owlery steps, shrieking like wild hyenas.
"I- I- I can't write a letter like this," Neville said, tears running down his cheeks.
"Then don't!" Pansy gasped. Her laughter slowed down but one glance at Neville set her off again. The two collapsed, their backs against the wall, and waited for their breathing to slow down. Pansy took a deep breath of air once she had calmed down and Neville exhaled loudly.
"My stomach hurts so much," he groaned.
"Mine too."
"I'll never see a Pygmy Puff the same way again."
"Don't say the P-word or I'll start laughing!"
"We should write the letters," Neville said suddenly, producing some parchment and quills from inside his robe. Pansy took a blue quill and two sheets that were faintly scented and began to write.
They sat like that for a long time in silence with only the disconnected melody of scratching quills, but it was a comfortable silence. Around them, owls hooted indignantly, upset about being awakened from their naps, and somewhere in the castle, Moaning Myrtle screamed and several students yelled in reply.
Pansy finished both of her letters quickly and she glanced at Neville. He was bent over his parchment, lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed in combination. His jawline was rigid but not all sharp angles, like Theo, his nose was long and the arch went in like a valley instead of a hill, and his eyes were a light leafy green with splashes of dark grey, baby blue, and golden rings around his pupils. His shoulders were broad and so was his chest, his eyebrows were uneven (the right one was thicker), his eyelashes were long and straight, and his thick brown hair had become unruly and clumps were sticking up like spikes.
Suddenly his eyes looked up and his uneven brows lifted. "Are you okay, Pansy?"
His voice was a tenor, when he said, 'Pansy' the 's' was soft, and her heart was pounding so hard it hurt.
"Pansy?" Large hands waved in front of her face and she smiled tenderly.
"I'm excellent, thanks."
***
Draco Malfoy was a very busy man and only his most important clients and colleagues were allowed to Floo him, so he was not a happy camper when Neville Longbottom's head appeared during his lunch break.
"Longbottom?" he cried.
"Oh, sorry, Malfoy," Neville said sheepishly. "Is Hermione there?"
"No, she's out. Can I take a message?"
Neville surveyed his school nemesis. If Hermione could trust him, maybe he could too. And Malfoy was friends with Pansy.
"I was wondering if I should take Pansy out for Valentine's Day," Neville said quietly. Draco dropped his wand.
"Pansy Parkinson?"
"Well, yeah."
"Take her out on Valentine's Day? Did she poison you? Are you under the Imperius?"
"No! I flooed Hermione a while ago and she said Pansy had been flirting with me to create House unity. I thought about it for a while and I realized that my heart sped up whenever I thought of her and-"
"Pansy can be sweet when she wants to," Draco said with a shake of his head, "but she's been really messed up after Theo cheated on her with a Muggle."
Neville shrugged. "She can't be as messed up as my parents. And she's funny and easy to talk to. And pretty, I guess."
"Are you doing it for the sake of Slytherin or the sake of your heart?" Draco asked. "If it's for Slytherin then Pansy really likes Muggle trinkets like teddy bears and chocolate mints and she loves walks around Hogsmeade and pink and white peonies. If it's for your heart, then you're better off with someone else."
"What-"
"You should also know that Pansy's a terrible conversationalist and if she says you're 'nice' that means she's probably head over heels in love with you. Now as much as I would like to help you on the road to your heart's demise, I have a schedule to keep." Draco turned away from the fireplace and began to look over some paperwork.
"Oh. Well, bye then."
"And, Neville?" Draco twirled his wand around casually. "If you break Pansy's heart I'll break your face. Just ask Theo."
***
Hogsmeade was at a quiet standstill and the only building that showed any sign of life was the Three Broomsticks, where reflections of golden flames glittered in the windows and snippets of conversation leaked out from behind frost-covered door. The curvy silhouette of Madam Rosmerta occasionally lurked behind the glass as she watched a cloaked figure walk alone through the snow-laden village. If she had observed the stranger for a little longer, she might have seen them walk in the direction of Madam Puddifoot's and if she had looked a little closer, she would have seen that the stranger was shaking.
But Madam Rosmerta had a business to run and it was the night before Valentine's Day. Lonely souls had a habit of wandering into her bar, hoping to drown away their broken hearts in Firewhiskey. The common practice was hard to watch but it turned a good profit, and the Three Broomsticks needed new tables.
The cloaked figure walked and walked until they stopped underneath the cover of a clump of treebranches. A tall, gangly man with a crooked nose was waiting there and he reached out to the hug the arrival.
"What do you want Theo?" the figure sighed. Their hood retracted just a bit, revealing neatly-trimmed bangs and wary eyes lined with kohl.
"Tomorrow's Valentine's. Do you think you could sneak away from work?" Theodore Nott asked. The figure snorted.
"Did Marlene get sick of you?"
Theo winced. "I got kicked out of the house. So you, me, Hog's Head? Aberforth is kicking out all the underage kids."
"Sorry, I'm planning on meeting someone."
Theo raised his eyebrows. "Wh- why?" The figure's dark red lips grinned.
"House Unity."
***
Down in the Slytherin dungeons, Blair Montague and Sofie Lorde giggled hysterically as they tried different vanity spells from Witch Weekly. The effects ranged from subtle to downright gaudy. One in particular made Sofie look like a deer caught in the headlights while another made Blair's lips tomato red and almost twice as big as they had been originally.
"I think- I'm going to- stick to- my WonderWitch- products," Sofie gasped, tears of laughter streaming down her face. Blair nodded in agreement and in seconds they were somberly patting down stray hairs and dabbing on Everlasting Eyelashes and Luminous Lipstick.
In another dorm, Peter Gosforth paced across the room nervously, twirling the red rose in his hand absentmindedly. Half of his friends watched with amusement while the other half were walking around, quite agitated themselves.
Francis Urquhart and Jessamine Brithwell were already eating a generous breakfast in the Great Hall, their hands intertwined underneath the table.
Imad Shafiq and Alister Carrow were sleeping soundly.
"Aren't you going to dress up?" Holly Flint asked Elle Vaisey before she could skip out the door. Elle shook her head.
"There's no one I want to impress." Holly smirked.
"You sure about that?" Elle narrowed her eyes at her friend who watched her slyly. "Come here. At least let me do your hair and put on some lip gloss."
In the office across the Slytherin common room, Pansy Parkinson was a blur as she took hot rollers out of her hair, sprayed on perfume, and painted her face with Muggle cosmetics that Astoria had sent her from France. Snape's portrait barely contained his laugh as she poked herself in the eye for the fourth time with her eyeliner.
"There's no point in going to all this trouble," Snape jeered. "Longbottom won't even notice a difference, unless you're hoping to impress someone more superficial like a certain student whom you were caught in an empty classroom with in your seventh year?" Pansy blushed.
"Theo's married," she muttered. "And- ow!- that was six years ago." Snape raised his eyebrows but didn't comment, even when Pansy burned her thumb on one of the curlers.
On the first floor of the Hogwarts castle, Neville Longbottom tied a ribbon around a bouquet of pink and white peonies and picked up a box of chocolate mints from his desk before heading down to the Great Hall with a nervous smile.
***
"Oh my." Couples were littered all over the Great Hall, some merely holding hands but others were snogging passionately. Pansy groaned and went to separate Phina Malfoy from Alphie Sommers.
"Five points from Gryffindor," Neville clucked, coming up behind Pansy. Alphie looked down sheepishly but Phina glared openly. "At least hold it together until you get to Hogsmeade."
"Professor, who're you giving that bouquet to?" Phina asked with a cold smile. Neville flushed.
"No one, no one," he muttered. Pansy stared at the bouquet of pink and white peonies that he hastily concealed in his robes. Neville met her eyes and smiled shyly. "Well, er, breakfast looks great. Come on."
Pansy followed the Gryffindor up to the staff table, at a loss for words. Were those for her? She had confessed to Draco that they were her favourite at the end of fifth year but had he told Neville?
"Pansy, do you want to, um, patrol Hogsmeade with me later?" Neville asked feebly. She nodded without looking at him and hoped that the heat spreading across her body wasn't a blush. And why were her heart fluttering and her mouth parched? It was just patrolling- Pansy widened her eyes. No, no, no! She was supposed to create House unity with friendship and her heart didn't flutter for just friends.
For breakfast there were eggs nested in heart-shaped hashbrowns laced with bacon, heart-shaped pancakes, and even cinnamon bun hearts. Pansy shuddered and chose two nested eggs that were too round to look like hearts. Eating was good, she decided. Eating gave her an excuse to not talk to Neville and potentially embarrass herself.
Headmaster McGonagall suddenly stood up and the Great Hall quieted. "All third-years and above who have approved permission slips may proceed in an orderly fashion to the front entrance for the Hogsmeade trip."
Pansy stood up and walked with Neville to the entrance as Filch double-checked everyone's forms. She busied herself by separating more eager couples, avoiding Neville's burning gaze which was fixed upon the back of her head. Her stomach was doing somersaults and her mouth had gone dry.
House Unity, House Unity, House Unity, Pansy chanted over and over in her head. Friendship, friendship, friendship.
"Stupid kids," Filch muttered. "So shameless, right Mrs. Norris?" The cat purred and winked at Pansy. She hurried out the door.
"So where do you want to go?" Neville said, catching up to Pansy. She glanced at him and his eyes immediately held hers.
"Mrs. Norris winked at me," Pansy blurted. Neville chuckled. "Sorry, um, I don't know, anywhere's fine."
"We can just walk around if you want." Neville looked knowingly at Pansy and the two left the bustle of High Street and began to travel along the town's outskirts, underneath the cover of towering yew trees. Suddenly Neville stopped. "I, um, I grew these for you." He took out the bouquet of pink and white peonies from earlier and handed them along with a box of chocolate mints to a flustered Pansy. "Malfoy said you like peonies."
"Of course," Pansy muttered, that nosy snot. "Thanks. I, um, don't have anything for you. Sorry."
"That's fine. I didn't expect anything." Pansy raised her eyebrows. Did he say that because they weren't in a relationship or because he thought she was rude? "So, House unity."
"What about it?"
"Is that the only reason you talk to me?"
Pansy was silent. No, she wanted to say, I think you are braver than Harry Potter and you're easy to talk to. You're one of the only people who won't judge me by my past and just being around you is relaxing, until a few days ago when just thinking of your name made me feel strange. I love the way your hair sticks up when you're too worried about your students to care and the steadiness of your hands on my shoulders when you don't know how else to comfort me. I love teasing you and you teasing me. I think I love you Neville. Maybe I'm just really messed up after Theo broke me but I'm trying to piece myself back together and I think you're the glue that holds my sanity together.
But the only word Pansy managed to spit out was a flat, "No." She quickly added, "You're funny, and really nice too." She avoided Neville's gaze which she was sure was disappointed. If she gave him that long spiel of what she really thought of him, he would definitely be freaked out and run away.
"Pansy." She looked up, her heart filled with dread, when she suddenly felt something warm and soft against her lips. Pansy hesitantly closed her eyes and returned the kiss. She felt Neville's sturdy arms circle around her waist and his mouth smile against hers.
The two stood under the cover of yew trees in the February morning. Bitter winds raged against their bodies and the tips of their ears became red and numb but they didn't part for a long, long time.
***
"Will you be my Valentine?" Peter held out a rose and Holly shrieked and started dancing wildly, which drew even more attention to them.
"Holly, stop!" Elle cried, her face becoming redder by the minute as other students began to stare at them.
Peter cleared his throat. "I can do this later-"
"Sorry, I'd- I'd love to be your Valentine." Elle took the rose and put it in her painstakingly curled hair but it fell out. Elle flushed and tried to thread it through her curls but it wouldn't stay put. She groaned and heard Peter laugh causing her to giggle softly and soon the two were on the ground, crowing madly.
"Are you okay, Blair?" Sofie asked slowly as the two of them watched Peter and Elle guffaw and toddle away together, a red rose tangled in Elle's curls.
"I'm fine," she answered with a surprised tone. She laughed. "I'm absolutely, perfectly fine!"
"Good, because Alphie Sommers has been looking for you," Sofie said with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "And I heard that he broke up with Phina yesterday."
"How classy," Blair said perkily. "By the way, that cute Ravenclaw with the glasses is staring at you so I'll just go look for Alphie and leave you alone."
Imad ran up behind Jessamine and Francis, coming in between them. He grinned like a Chesire cat. "Alister asked out Holly Flint and she said yes. Here're your three Sickles, Jess."
"You're pretty happy for someone who just lost a bet," Jessamine remarked, taking the coins cautiously. "What happened?"
"Phina Malfoy's single and in need of a comforting shoulder. I'm on my way to the Three Broomsticks right now. Cheerio!" The couple watched Imad with amusement as he pranced away.
"He's skipping," Francis said incredulously. "Imad Shafiq is skipping to see the devil herself. Someone get me a camera."
"No! Let's go spy on them." The couple stifled their laughs as they snuck off to the Three Broomsticks.
***
The Three Broomsticks was usually a very busy establishment, which Pansy was counting on, but when she and Neville walked in with a respectable distance between them, the whole house burst into cheers. Pansy glanced at Neville who had paled but was grinning and the couple sat down at the bar.
"They've been cheering for any couple that walks through the doors," Madam Rosmerta said with an amused smile. "It seems like almost all of Hogwarts is here." Pansy looked around and saw students clustered in twos or small House-exclusive groups. There weren't any vacant chairs and a third of the guests were either standing or sitting on tables.
"So business is good?" Neville asked politely.
"It's never been better!" Madam Rosmerta plunked down two Butterbeers in front of them. "On the house. It's nice to see an inter-house relationship and I think you two're setting a trend." With a wink, the bartender flounced away to help the next customer.
"Pansy," Neville said slowly, "Alphie Sommers and Blair Montague are snogging. And Sofie Lorde and Mark Escher from Ravenclaw are sharing a Butterbeer."
"Phina Malfoy and Imad Shafiq are hugging," Pansy said astoundingly, scoping the room. She saw a fourth-year Slytherin glance at them then walk up to a blushing Gryffindor. Another Gryffindor- Archie Crockett she guessed- stared at them for a short while before striding over to a Slytherin named Beatrice.
House unity. There was House unity between Gryffindor and Slytherin and maybe even the other Houses. Slytherin was no longer a laughingstock!
Pansy leaped up and embraced Neville. "We did it! We created house unity!" Before she knew what she was doing, Pansy placed an ecstatic kiss on Neville's lips but she quickly pulled away, eyes wide.
The Three Broomsticks was silent for a second, then they erupted into a deafening medley of cheers, hoots, and cat-calls. Pansy was mortified but Neville laughed.
"Happy Valentine's Day to you too," he said. "I'd kiss you back but we're teachers here so that's probably not the best idea."
Pansy groaned. "Sorry. I wasn't thinking."
"It's fine." Neville placed a firm, assuring hand on Pansy's arm. "If I had to be kissed by anyone in front of my students, it would be you." He raised his Butterbeer glass. "To House Unity!"
"To House Unity!" Pansy agreed.
"To House Unity!" The couple turned to look at a radiant Blair Montague who was sitting nearby and had raised her glass as well.
"To House Unity!" "To House Unity!" Soon everyone in the vicinity was toasting to House Unity and the little groups that were exclusively one House quickly melded together to create colourful blobs. Slytherins chatted with Ravenclaws who argued with Gryffindors who complimented Hufflepuffs.
Neville looked at Pansy proudly and she grinned at him. A year ago she would have never thought it possible but there they were, a Slytherin and a Gryffindor surrounded by kaleidoscopic inter-house clumps, holding hands and drinking Butterbeer and maybe even falling in love.
To House Unity!
-----
For the Love of Pansy (Round 1) Masterlist
Username: asentia
Pairing: Neville/Pansy
Type: Het
Prompt: #76 - Pansy, as a professor and the new head of Slytherin, is determined to wrest her house out of its ignominy and restore its former greatness. Part of that involves making nice with Neville Longbottom, the new (handsome?!) head of Gryffindor and Herbology professor. Sadly, even the best laid plans can go awry.
Rating: K+
Word Count: 9,473
Warnings/content: Mild swearing
Summary: After the Second Wizarding War, the House of Slytherin lost its prideful status as the most cunning House and instead became a symbol of cowardice. The students keep their heads down and their Quidditch team is a joke, but Pansy Parkinson, the Head of House, is determined to turn the tables and bring back the old Slytherin glory in a tumult of sweaty Quidditch practices and fumbled attempts at inter-house unity.
Notes: I had to add in the Lovely Complex reference I'm sorry.
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters/references are property of JK Rowling and associates. No copyright infringement is intended.
A Kaleidoscopic Unity
The Gryffindors were bullying the Slytherins again.
With a heavy sigh, Pansy Parkinson followed the sixth-year Hufflepuff to the third floor corridor. It was probably Draco's little sister, Phina. The Gryffindor had inherited her mother's bravery but she had also inherited her father's lust for revenge, and Merlin knew the dust hadn't settled yet between her and Slytherin Chaser Jessamine Brithwell. Stupid Quidditch problems.
The Gryffindor Head of House, Neville Longbottom, was already there and he was scolding Phina and her friend Deborah in his calm and collected manner, but with an amused smile on his face that made all witches' hearts melt. As Pansy made her way to Jessamine, Neville looked up at her briefly and nodded then returned his attention to his pupil.
"Are you okay, Ms. Brithwell?" Pansy asked. Jessamine nodded, avoiding eye contact, and hastily swiped away the tears that were continuously falling onto her cheeks. "What happened?"
"We were just talking, it's fine," Jessamine said, glancing at the two Gryffindors. Pansy pursed her lips and glanced at Neville who looked equally dissatisfied.
Pansy remembered a time when Slytherins were not only respected; they were feared. The serpent had been a symbol worn proudly by the clever and ruthless but sometime after Mr. Dumbledore's death, Slytherins became known for their cowardice and the snake became a sign of a worthless, disreputable backstabber who killed targets in their sleep instead of facing them directly.
Not that that was a bad thing.
"Fine. But, Ms. Brithwell, if you have any problems, come to me, okay?" Pansy said. Jessamine nodded and scampered down the corridor.
"Student social politics are so complicated these days," Neville sighed, catching up with Pansy as she walked back to her office. "I miss the times when my House was known for their bravery and not their ruthlessness."
"And I miss when people respected Slytherin," Pansy grumbled. "Our Quidditch team is a joke and so is our pride. We're like Hufflepuffs!"
"There's nothing wrong with Hufflepuffs," Neville protested.
"They're total wussies but they at least they're good at Potions. Better than Gryffindor anyway."
"Excuse me?" Neville snapped. "Slytherin is at the bottom of the barrel- you're a laughingstock! You think Phina Malfoy was just in Gryffindor by chance? She hates your House!" Neville turned around and stormed away but Pansy was too shocked to notice. Did Phina really hate her House? The Malfoys had always been proud Slytherins!
The bell rang, snapping Pansy out of her thoughts and back into professor mode. She rolled her eyes at the oncoming Hufflepuffs who paraded- quietly- out of the Charms classroom, followed by meek little Slytherins who kept their heads down as they shuffled to their next class.
Merlin, her House was a joke. Pansy wanted to scream at them to lift their chins and sneer at the other Houses. What had happened to the days when Slytherins roamed the school proudly, casting fear wherever their feet touched ground? Pansy narrowed her eyes at the receding backs of the meek members of her House and made a plan.
It was high time that her House was respected and nothing would stop Pansy Parkinson from reclaiming the greatness that Slytherin deserved!
***
Pansy held her chin high as she walked through the Great Hall and she even smiled at the Slytherin students.
Yes, she thought, this is how a Slytherin should walk.
The Slytherin Head of House studied her fellow teachers at the front of the Hall. Headmaster McGonagall was regarding her with raised eyebrows, Flitwick was watching her warily, Filch smirked, Neville glanced at her and pursed his lips, and Hagrid and Sprout didn't even notice her sit down as they had a violent argument over the boundaries of Screechsnap crops. The other teachers were probably running late.
Pansy sat down in between Neville and Flitwick and ate her food daintily. She had put on globs of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion and a Muggle thing called eyeliner that Daphne gave her after a trip to Paris, so she wasn't surprised when Neville did a double-take of her.
"You look different..." he said. Pansy smiled coyly. "Did you put on lipstick?"
Pansy wanted to bang her head against the table. "No, I put on a Muggle potion called eyeliner that Daphne gave me."
"Is that safe? It sounds painful."
Pansy suppressed a shudder as she thought of the first time she had put it on for last year's Christmas Party at the Malfoy Manor. Her left eye had never felt the same.
"You just have to be careful. Do you like it?"
"Um, sure. I can't really tell the difference. Can you, Filius?"
"Not really," Flitwick replied.
Pansy mentally sighed. Males.
***
Pansy collapsed in the squishy chair at her desk and groaned. The only one who noticed a difference with the makeup was Trelawney, and that was never a good thing!
"You have dirt around your eyes," sneered Severus Snape's portrait from above the fireplace.
"It's makeup!" Pansy cried exasperatedly.
"It looks like you tripped near Hagrid's hut."
"Then I'll just add to the joke- Pansy Parkinson, Head of Slytherin covered in the dirt from the House pride's grave!"
Snape's upper lip curled in disdain. "My House's pride is dead?"
"We're the new bloody Hufflepuff," Pansy muttered. "I think it's been that way since after the War."
"You have to change that!"
"I've tried House unity already but Flitwick and Neville weren't impressed and Sprout is too engrossed in her bloody plants."
"You call putting on dirt and changing your hair house unity?" Snape asked dryly.
"It's the art of seduction, not that you'd understand."
"And what do you mean by that?"
Pansy didn't bother with a reply, choosing to mull over other House unity choices. A, Pansy shuddered, friendship with the most adored Head of the most respected House would definitely boost Slytherin's reputation and if they maybe won a few Quidditch matches and even the House Cup per say, the House morale would definitely be lifted.
"Quidditch!" Pansy cried triumphantly. "Bloody Quidditch!"
"You're a professor, you shouldn't swear," Snape chided.
"You're an acrylic portrait, which is a water-based paint, and yet your hair is still extremely greasy."
"It is not grease; I had an unfortunate incident with Sleekeazy's Hair Potion when I was five!"
***
Quidditch, Quidditch, Quidditch.
Pansy muttered grumpily as she went outside to the Quidditch pitch and plopped down on one of the stands. With her luck, of course, Gryffindor was practicing. Phina Malfoy scowled at the professor but said nothing, choosing instead to fly over to the seventh-year captain Alphie Sommers.
"Hi, Professor Parkinson," Sommers said, flying over with a broad smile. "Are you looking for someone?"
"No, just watching."
"Well, um, the Gryffindor-Slytherin match is coming up soon, which makes you the rival, so you can't exactly watch us practice our secret strategies, you see," Sommers stammered.
"Slytherin's been on a horrid losing streak and I was hoping to pick up some tips. I'll give you all 5% extra credit for the rest of your Potions assignments," Pansy added sweetly.
"No thank you," Sommers said immediately. "We would all appreciate it, but we'd appreciate the House Cup more." Pansy nodded.
"I'll be going then."
"See ya later, Professor!"
Reluctantly, the Slytherin stood up and was almost off the field when she heard from above, "You're so brave, Alphie. I could never stand up to that wicked chimera!" Pansy looked up and saw Phina smirking right at her.
Phina bloody Malfoy was smirking at her, a teacher!
Pansy chose to smile sweetly at the evil Chaser instead of her trademark glare. At least she was mature. Phina's brows furrowed and her eyes were dazed with confusion before she flew away.
I swear on my life, Slytherin will crush you, Seraphina Malfoy, Pansy thought darkly before heading to the library.
***
"What are you doing now?" Snape asked exasperatedly. His acrylic portrait self-consciously stroked his hair.
"I'm bringing back Slytherin respect," Pansy replied happily as she sorted through a pile of magazines and books. The newest copies of Spella Weekly, The Daily News, and Witch Weekly went untouched in favour of a battered library copy of Quiddith Through the Ages, a still-wrapped edition of Beating the Bludgers- A Study of Defensive Strategies in Quidditch- Exclusive 3rd Edition, and the current editions of Which Broomstick? and Seeker Weekly.
"Have you turned into Granger? Books won't help you win a sport," Snape remarked snidely.
"Shut- the strategies in here are brilliant!" Pansy cried, cackling evilly and flipping through the pages of Beating the Bludgers. "There's even one called 'The Kappa' where you sneak up behind them. Phina Malfoy, you better watch out!"
Snape groaned. "You know if you do anything terrible to her, the Malfoys will descend on you like Fiendfyre."
"Thanks for the concern, but I have the power to get their precious treasure expelled and ruin her Wizarding Education Summary."
"You shouldn't anger a family of the Sacred Twenty-Eight," Snape warned.
"Well they should discipline their daughter. Besides, the Parkinsons are also part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight and I work at Hogwarts." Pansy smirked and circled a chapter title in Beating the Bludgers. "What do you think of the Crash the Keeper Strategy, Severus?"
"I think those are well-written instructions for the destruction of the rest of the Houses."
Pansy grinned. "Then I have the right book!"
***
Beating the Bludgers had become Pansy's holy grail and the hardworking Slytherin Quidditch team members had easily become her favourite students.
"What's that?" Neville asked at lunch one day. Pansy looked up from her book and quickly Transfigured it into eyeliner.
"Nothing, nothing," Pansy muttered. She smiled at Neville. Winning the Quidditch Cup would bring respect but also resentment. If Slytherin became chummy with Gryffindor, then all of Hogwarts would have no choice but to love them! Paving the road to greatness would of course require much effort on Pansy's part. Not that she was complaining- Neville was easily the handsomest member of the Hogwarts staff.
Her latest edition of Witch Weekly had advised to converse about manly things like Quidditch and broomsticks with the object of affection. Acting a bit dumber than they were would also boost their ego, their confidence, their mood, and therefore their overall opinion of the speaker.
There was also the cocky, flirty route, which was based on the above method. Pansy could definitely do cocky.
"So, the Gryffindor-Slytherin match is coming up," Pansy said, smirking at Neville, "your team should train extra hard this season so your loss to Slytherin doesn't look too embarrassing."
Words like 'train' and 'season' were not part of the usual Pansy Parkinson vocabulary but Witch Weekly had specifically advised using them in the occasion of a Quidditch-based discussion.
"I know. I saw you with your team at the Pitch yesterday- you're a great coach, surprisingly. Your team has improved a lot, but you're still no match for my House." Neville winked at her then swallowed a spoonful of onion soup. Pansy knew staring was impolite and creepy so instead she focused her attention on his bobbing Adam's apple.
What did Pansy know?
1. Neville Longbottom had just winked at her.
2. Neville Longbottom had never winked at anyone else, to Pansy's knowledge.
3. Neville Longbottom had gone from an annoying biffing snot to a fine, well-toned young man.
4. NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM HAD JUST WINKED AT HER AND HER OVARIES WERE ON THE EDGE OF EXPLODING.
5. She should really stop listening to Daphne and her daughter rave about that Muggle Tom Hardy.
"What you saw yesterday was just a taste of the havoc we'll cause on the pitch this year," Pansy said, batting her eyelashes. Sweet Merlin, why was she being flirty? Had Neville affected her brain somehow? Had she lost control of her body?
"Good luck with that," Neville said, giving her a look that could only be described in one word: smoldering.
Moldy Voldy, this was not going well. The Gryffindor-Slytherin union had to be established by friendship; a romantic relationship would make the union stronger but it would also make it more fragile and susceptible to turning into a vicious rivalry. Luckily, the arrival of a bleeding Hagrid saved Pansy from having to come up with a response to Neville's bloody smoldering sentence.
Never in my life have I been so happy to see you, Pansy thought. Her sigh went unheard midst the chaos of professors helping Hagrid and students swarming around to see what happened. Pansy watched with much satisfaction as Neville told Phina and her nosy little friends to leave. The smolder was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he had meant to do it, just for her.
Males were so complicated.
***
Hermione Granger had always been a terribly moody person during a specific time of the month and the day Neville flooed her was no exception.
"What do you want?" Hermione snapped while eating massive spoonfuls of haggis ice cream. "I'm in the middle of Coronation Street."
"Women are so confusing," Neville moaned, collapsing on the cushy couch. "I was talking to Pansy about Quidditch and suddenly her eyelashes started fluttering. I thought she was having a seizure but she was speaking normally."
Hermione dropped her spoon into the ice cream tub and turned off the television. "You were talking to Pansy Parkinson about Quidditch?"
"Yeah, she started teasing me about how Gryffindor's going to lose to Slytherin and-"
"What did you say before her eyelashes had a spasm?"
"That Gryffindor would still win then I winked." Hermione groaned.
"You winked?" she cried. "Winking is one of the top ten signs that a man is flirting with you!"
"It was a joke"
"Well obviously she didn't know that, that's why she started batting her eyelashes- to flirt!"
"Why would she like me? I'm the enemy!"
Hermione thought back to what she knew of Pansy from Hogwarts. Back then, Slytherin had easily been the most feared House but the members had been shunned after the War during Hermione's eighth year. Pansy was sadly a smart girl- she had been a Prefect- and she was probably doing her best to revive the Slytherin respect by uniting with the Gryffindor Head of House.
Or she thought that Neville was attractive. Same thing.
Hermione relayed all this to Neville whose mouth was hanging open like Bellatrix's stomach after Molly had hexed her.
"She thinks I'm attractive?" Neville managed. Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Is that all you care about?" she snapped. "You've gained a lot of muscle, Neville, and you have the good old British boy looks; of course she thinks you're hot! Quite a few people do, to be honest, but that isn't important!" A quick glance at her friend told Hermione that it was very important to him, but she charged on. "You need to decide whether you're going to help Pansy bring back Slytherin or crush it into a fine powdery dust."
"How do I do that?"
"If you become friends with her, or more, your relationship will affect both Houses, causing them to become sisters which means Slytherin will once again be respected." Hermione gave Neville a wary look. "Pansy's goals are clear, so it's your choice now. Will you choose the red pill or the blue pill?"
"What?"
"Muggle TV reference, sorry, I'm in a delicate situation right now so excuse me if I'm not thinking straight. What I meant was do you want Slytherin to rise up out of the ashes or do you want it to stay dead?"
"Rise up out of the ashes?"
"FOR THE LOVE OF MERLIN DO YOU WANT SLYTHERIN TO GO BACK TO THE FEARED HOUSE IT ONCE WAS OR NOT?" Hermione took a deep breath. "You should go back to your office now and think because I am terribly biased of this situation and being around me won't help." Hermione picked up her spoon and turned the television back on, dismissing Neville.
"Red pill or the blue pill?" he muttered as he shuffled back into the fireplace. "Definitely red. I am a Gryffindor."
***
In the somber Hogwarts dungeons was a very bright office with floating candles and photos covering nearly every wall. A tea kettle whistled loudly and the morning breeze that trailed in from an enchanted window smelled like freshly-cut grass and Quaffle polish.
The smell of victory, Pansy thought, smiling as she sat up in her four-poster, but the grin was immediately replaced by a yawn and a grimace. No matter how victorious the morning smelled, she still hated waking up early- which meant any time before noon- and it was only 5 'o' clock.
Pansy tumbled out of bed and shuffled into the bathroom then changed into her work robes. On her way out, she grabbed Beating the Bludgers and the Muggle workout paper that Theo had sent her. It still smelled like his cologne-
Stop, Pansy, she thought urgently. That relationship is over. You know why Theo has all those Muggle resources.
She sighed then realized something. Was she flirting with Neville so she could use him as a rebound?
"Doesn't matter, doesn't matter," Pansy muttered, but she knew it did.
***
The Slytherin Quidditch team groaned in unison as they dragged their feet into the change room where swimsuits and tubs full of Friday night ice water were calling.
"I love and absolutely hate Parkinson at the same time," Imad Shafiq groaned as he rubbed his shoulder.
"On the bright side, taper's soon," Francis Urquhart said through clenched teeth as he lowered himself into the water.
"Does Parkinson even know what taper is?" Alister Carrow asked worriedly. "She didn't know what hell week meant."
"She's a good coach; we'll be fine," Peter Gosforth, a Chaser and Team Captain, muttered. At first he'd been insulted that Parkinson chose to take over but after one grueling practice he appreciated the intervention. The Beaters were hitting Bludgers harder, the Chasers were throwing Quaffles faster, and Parkinson had put Urquhart and Vaisey- the Keeper and Seeker- on strict Muggle "yoga" regimens that made them scarily flexible and nimble. Everyone had faster reflexes and the insane strategies that Parkinson drilled them on a daily basis could be done with a single call of the Captain.
"The first match of the season is next Saturday!" Blair Montague, a Chaser, announced, marching into the change room. Her friends Elle Vaisey, Seeker extraordinaire, and Jessamine Brithwell, a hardy Chaser, shuffled in meekly behind her. "Maybe we can use Crash the Keeper without having to pull up at the last second which we have to do in practice." Blair looked pointedly at Peter.
"Get out, we're not wearing shirts!" he cried. Blair rolled her eyes.
"Oh shut up, you prude. All the guys on the team are shirtless halfway through practice except for you," Blair pointed out. "I don't see why; your chest isn't anything to be ashamed of."
"Blair!" Elle chided.
"Just pointing out the obvious," Blair muttered. "Gosforth's abs are glorious."
"What the hell, Montague?" Peter cried, his hands placed protectively over his stomach.
"Anyway, the match is at 15:00," Blair said breezily. "It's in four days so don't work yourselves too hard at practice this week. See ya!" The Chaser grabbed Elle and Jess's hands and skipped merrily out of the change room.
"Careful, Gosforth, or she'll be all over your 'glorious' abs," Francis cackled.
"He wouldn't mind," Imad said with a wink at Peter. "Blair's pretty fit and she's good at chasing balls, eh, Petey?"
Peter glared at his teammates and sunk deep down into his tub.
***
Crowds roared wildly as the Slytherin Quidditch team looked toward their Head of House who was pale-faced and shaking.
"This is a very important match," Pansy said with a strained voice. "Gryffindor will be our strongest opponent so this will set the tone for the rest of the season. Gosforth?"
The team looked at their captain who smiled grimly at the team. "Gryffindors are ruthless and determined. Urquhart, watch out for Malcolm, the short Beater; he likes to aim at Keepers. The Chaser Malfoy feints to the left but she always scores in the centre hoop whenever possible. Mallory, the tall Beater, will aim at the Seeker or anyone who's a threat to Prewett, their Seeker. Crockett and Sommers play fair but they're aggressive and the Keeper, Jo Darke, tends to float over to the right hoop."
"Mallory fancies both Malfoy and Prewett and he has anger issues," Blair added, snickering.
"Oh, Montague, Brithwell, keep your passes short, and remember not to scream," Peter ordered.
"But it distracts them!" Blair protested.
"It also wastes energy," Peter argued. "Focus on your throwing and catching. Vaisey, catch the Snitch as fast as possible unless they're 160 points ahead, which would be really good, even for Gryffindor. Carrow and Shafiq, don't aim at Malfoy or Prewett unless they're too close to the hoops for comfort. If you do, be prepared to dodge Mallory's wrath. Urquhart, you're the best Keeper in the school but don't let it get to your head."
"When have I done that?" Francis said, pouting.
"Remember to have fun." Peter glanced at their pale Head of House. "And let's wipe Gryffindor to the ground." The team cheered then grabbed their brooms and marched onto the pitch. Pansy strode over to the professors' section in the stands, pride and nervousness fighting to burst out of her chest.
"You look really nervous for someone who was so sure her team would win," Neville remarked with a grin, sitting down next to her.
"I'm just worried that the damage we do to your team will be so traumatic that I'll have to take them to St. Mungo's," Pansy shot back, but her hands didn't stop shaking.
Madame Hooch threw the Quaffle into the air and released the Bludgers and the Snitch. The two teams shot up into the sky and Peter grabbed the Quaffle and threw it to Blair. Malcolm, the Gryffindor Beater, hit a Bludger in her direction but she dodged it and dropped the Quaffle below her to an awaiting Jessamine who whipped it into the open left hoop. The ball sailed through and the Slytherin team cheered.
"10-0 Slytherin!" Adrian Wolpert commentated. "Ten seconds into the game and last year's underdogs are already showing much improvement. Phina Malfoy takes the Quaffle for Gryffindor but Jessamine Brithwell and Peter Gosforth are on her tail! Mallory aims a Bludger at the Slytherin team captain- ow! That'll leave a mark! And a well-aimed Bludger from Alister Carrow knocks the Quaffle out of Malfoy's hands and into Brithwell's. She passes it to Blair- now to a recovered Gosforth- Brithwell- Montague- Brithwell- Gosforth scores! 20-0 to Slytherin!"
"Nervous, Neville?" Pansy asked her frowning colleague. Her hands had stopped shaking and she had a grin on her face. The team hadn't even used their best plays yet!
"Beginner's luck," Neville muttered, but his crossed arms and grimace told Pansy otherwise.
"Don't let this get to your heads!" Peter roared to his team. They all nodded solemnly and their smiles turned to pursed lips and even frowns as they concentrated.
"Sommers takes the Quaffle and dodges Shafiq's Bludger. He passes to Crockett who passes to- Brithwell intercepts and throws the Quaffle to Montague- score! 30-0 Slytherin! Malfoy takes the Quaffle- Gosforth- score! What the hell- heck, sorry- has happened to the Slytherin team? Their Chasers are just blurs! 40- now 50-0 Slytherin!"
Neville groaned. "What did you do to your team Pansy?"
"Well Blair didn't eat much before but the team forced her to," Pansy replied innocently. "And Francis was focusing more on girls instead of school, so Alister started nagging him and his homework was done faster leaving more time to focus on Quidditch."
"Merlin's beard, Parkinson, you coached them?" Pansy turned and saw a bewildered Ginny and Harry Potter. She smiled shyly and nodded. "If Slytherin keeps on going at this rate, the international teams will climbing over each other to draft them."
"Gosforth's the only one graduating this year," Pansy said with a small smirk.
"Did you really coach the team?" Harry asked skeptically. "I didn't take you for a Quidditdch fan, Pansy."
"I just want to bring back Slytherin's former glory." Pansy glanced at the scoreboard and grinned at the numbers 90-20. "What're you two doing here?"
"Harry's giving a talk for Defense and I'm scouting the Quidditch teams," Ginny replied. "Holyhead needs a new Chaser since I'm going on maternity leave."
"Congratulations. And both Blair Montague and Jessamine Brithwell are excellent Chasers." Ginny nodded.
"Vaisey- 100-20 Slytherin!- dives and Prewett sees the Snitch also. They're neck and neck- Bludger from Mallory- Vaisey dodges- Snitch! Vaisey has the Snitch! Slytherin wins 250-20!"
All of Hogwarts broke into ecstatic cheering, except for Gryffindor, and the Slytherin team screamed. They all rushed over to Elle and piled on each other's brooms in an effort to hug each other. It was a miracle that no one fell off as they did a victory lap.
Pansy stared at her House's section in the stands. Students were jumping and cheering rowdily and any trace of shyness was obsolete. The other Houses were more subdued but there was respect, awe, and maybe even a trace of fear in their eyes.
I've done it, Pansy thought. Her heart threatening to burst, the Head of Slytherin House ran down to the pitch where her team had calmed down and was shaking the hands of the shell-shocked Gryffindor team.
"Everyone loves us!" Blair cried happily, waving at the crowd. She was the first of the team to notice Pansy but soon all of them were rushing toward their coach and hugging her with their sweaty little bodies.
When they parted, Alphie Sommers walked up to Pansy and held out his hand. Pansy shook it. "It was an honour to be defeated by such a talented team." The Gryffindor patted Peter on the back in a male hug and nodded at the rest of the team before walking over to a small crowd which included his parents, the team, and, much to Pansy's delight, an irate Phina Malfoy.
"Parkinson! Parkinson! Parkinson!" the Slytherin team chanted. "Parkinson! Parkinson! Parkinson!" Their voices were soon joined by their fellow House members who had rushed down in a flurry of green scarves and mitts. "Parkinson! Parkinson! Parkinson!"
Pansy blushed. "We wouldn't have won if it weren't for the most hardworking and tough-as-nails team I've ever met," she said proudly. "Slytherin! Slytherin!" The whole House soon joined her, and even most of the Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws, and to everyone's surprise, several members of the Gryffindor team. "Slytherin! Slytherin! Slytherin!"
***
At supper the Slytherins walked in proudly, their chins held high and their voices loud, bordering on snobby. Pansy observed all this with relish. The Quidditch Team was particularly pompous but after decades of Slytherin timidity, the other Houses excused their behaviour, and some even cheered for the players as they walked past.
"I'm surprised I'm saying this but congratulations on your win, Pansy," Headmaster McGonagall said kindly. "It's good to see Slytherin acting normal for once."
"Thanks, professor."
"I'll take you up on that St. Mungo's offer," Neville muttered, plopping down in his seat. "I think I'm permanently traumatized from just watching that."
"It was the first game of the season. There's still a high chance that Gryffindor will come in second." Pansy grinned and returned her focus to a soup with an interesting meat that tasted like chicken and fish at the same time. Dessert was a small green cake that tasted like fruits and nuts. On top of it was a long snake dotted with emerald kiwis that slithered across the white icing and even hissed.
"I feel odd eating this," Pansy remarked.
"It tastes really good though." Neville devoured his cake in seconds. Pansy nibbled a piece and was surprised by the explosion of taste and texture. She could pick out pecans, kiwis, and the fluffy lime-vanilla icing.
"Neville," Pansy said proudly. She gestured at the spongy green inside of the cake. "This is what victory tastes like- a delicious green explosion."
"You're hilarious, Pansy," Neville said dryly.
"I know!"
***
"We're playing Ravenclaw two Saturdays from now on the 21!" Blair Montague announced, barging into the locker room who were, once again, taking Wednesday night ice baths.
"Gosforth, cover up your glorious abs!" Francis jeered. The Slytherin captain glared at his friend but jumped out of the bath and threw on a jumper.
"How is it only February?" he moaned. "I still have four months before I leave you annoying little brats."
"We're not that annoying," Jessamine protested. "Don't deny that you'll miss us."
"It's not every day that you find a team who'll do a Blind Babayaga on a single call," Alister pointed out.
"Or a Wild Wendelin," Elle added.
"Or Crash the Keeper!" Blair said with much enthusiasm. "Will we get to do that this match? Please?"
Everyone's minds were immediately filled with an image of Blair rushing the Ravenclaw Keeper and accidentally stabbing her stomach with her broomstick handle. It was no secret that Blair Montague and Risa Otani were rivals and that they both fancied one Peter Gosforth.
Well, it was no secret to anyone except for Peter.
"I think the fatality rate of that is extremely high considering you're one of our Chasers," Alister said to Blair's chagrin.
"I don't have to be the main Chaser," Blair pleaded. "I can even stay off to the sides."
"The Ravenclaw Keeper is Risa Otani so I don't think there's any chance of you staying 'off to the sides,'" Imad remarked.
"We only have two games left," Blair sobbed. "Please? Imagine all the goals we could score!"
"I'll think about it," Peter muttered. Blair grinned happily and skipped out the door.
"She'll kill Risa," Jessamine said darkly. "Hooch could even suspend her."
"She'll probably get a few fouls either way," Elle pointed out. "And Crash the Keeper would get us a lot of points."
"We already have 250 points!" Imad protested.
"Ravenclaw's not far behind- they crushed Hufflepuff and Gryffindor will probably decimate Hufflepuff in their match next week."
"Peter just doesn't want to Crash the Keeper because he fancies Risa," Elle said with a smirk at a reddening Peter.
"She is really cute, but Blair's body is killer," Francis said. "And she'd go out with you at the drop of a hat. So would Phina Malfoy. And the rest of the female Hogwarts population. Girls love Quidditch champions."
"Nah, Phina's in love with you, Francis," Imad said. He scowled.
"How did we go from Quidditch plays to girls?" Peter cried.
"Aw, your face is all red," Jessamine said dead-pan. "Speaking of red, it's Valentine's Day on Saturday. Blair and Risa will be climbing on top of each other to flirt with you."
"Are you going to ask one of them to be your Valentine?" Imad said with a high-pitched voice while curling a strand of his short black hair around his finger.
"I don't really fancy any of them," Peter muttered. "Imad, Fran, Alister, haven't you lot been in those baths for a long time?"
"Right-o," Francis said, jumping out and stretching. Imad gave him a long look before following his lead and Alister already had a new set of robes on and was snacking on a banana. "So who're you going to ask to be your Valentine, if anyone, Petey-boy?"
"That's none of your business," Peter snapped.
"So you're asking someone?" Alister clarified between bites.
"Yes, I'm going to ask them out and take them to Madam Puddifoot's," Peter replied quickly. "No, I will not tell you who. End. Of. Discussion." Peter looked pointedly at Francis and Imad whose mouths were open and read to bombard him with questions. "Goodnight."
Their captain's retreat was followed by silence then an uproar of laughter.
"Madam Puddifoot's?" Jessamine repeated. "I wouldn't ever go there, not even if Myron Wagtail from the Weird Sisters asked me! Maybe Pete's mysterious fancy is a Hufflepuff."
"Would you go to the Three Broomsticks with me on Valentine's Day instead?" Francis said with a cocky grin.
"Yeah sure," Jessamine replied airily with only the faintest sign of a blush.
"Aw, wittle Fwannie's gwoing up," Imad said, pinching Francis's cheeks.
"Bugger off, Imad," Francis said, pushing him away.
"At least Francis has a date," Elle said, elbowing Jessamine.
"Hey, Alister, will you be my Valentine?" Imad called sarcastically, getting down on one knee.
"No way," he replied. "Anyway, I just remembered that Flint said she got a few cauldron cakes from a first-year in exchange for some tutoring. Bye!"
"I'll bet anyone three Sickles that Carrow will ask out Holly," said Jessamine.
"Five Sickles that he asks Elle," said Francis with an innocent smile at her.
"Seven that he doesn't ask anyone," said Imad. He glanced out the ajar door. "It's getting pretty dark, we should head back. And Peter'll have our heads if we don't sleep well."
What was remaining of the Slytherin Quidditch team filtered out of the change room and headed to the dungeons. Francis grabbed Jessamine's hand as they walked and Elle wrote down bets on a scrap piece of paper from Imad's robes. The four of them chatted loudly and cheerily on their way to their common room and when Pansy saw them pass her office, she smiled.
"...Valentine's Day..." Francis said. Pansy widened her eyes and noticed that him and Jessamine were holding hands. She stifled a groan. Of course! It was February and love was in the air.
The Slytherin glanced at the framed photo of her and Theo at her 20th birthday party and sighed wistfully then picked up a quill and grabbed some parchment. Maybe she could... no. Pansy stood up from her desk and walked over to the picture of a particularly joyous Valentine's Day. She stood in front of the lavish Malfoy Manor, hand in hand with Theodore Nott, much like Jessamine and Francis.
Here's to spending Valentine's Day alone.
Pansy noticed her bottle of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion sitting neatly on a shelf and grinned.
Well, maybe I don't have to be alone this year.
***
As Valentine's Day approached, Pansy found herself unlocking more charmed doors and releasing frantic couples than grading papers. One vindictive seventh-year had even hexed a nosy third-year, causing him to painfully sprout cherub wings out of his back.
"Are you doing anything for that silly Valentine's Day?" Snape's portrait asked snobbishly.
Pansy rolled her eyes. "I'm going to create House unity. What about you, Mr. Important?"
"Dumbledore and Armando Dippet are throwing a party with the drunk monks," Snape said dryly, "and it's mandatory for all the portraits to stop by." Pansy guffawed.
"Sorry, I just can't imagine you at a party with Dumbledore and Dippet," she said through laughs. Snape looked at his former student in disdain.
"I can't imagine it myself. And what's all this about Valentine's Day House unity?"
"Neville Longbottom is the key to Slytherin's survival," Pansy said solemnly. "I-"
"Professor!" someone cried, banging on her office door. Pansy ran over and opened it. "Blair Montague and Phina Malfoy-"
Pansy went outside without another word. "Where?"
"Clock tower courtyard," Jessamine Brithwell wheezed, breaking out into a sprint. "Hurry!"
***
The clock tower was one of the taller towers at Hogwarts and its giant, hedge-walled courtyard was infamous for being the go-to place to duel or snog. Or both.
Pansy expected to see a giant crater instead of the stone courtyard, or maybe a still-smoking hole where the clock used to be. There was also a high chance that either Blair or Phina had been Transfigured into something gruesome, but Pansy had never expected to find them sobbing on each other's shoulders while Neville yelled and Flitwick tried spell after spell on a squeaking Pygmy Puff.
"-reckless and downright stupid!" Neville screamed. Pansy was shocked by the fire in his eyes and the pure venom in his voice. "You could have killed him!"
Pansy skirted around the volatile professor and went over to Flitwick. "What happened?"
"This is Peter Gosforth." Flitwick pointed at the Pygmy Puff in his hand. "Ms. Montague and Ms. Malfoy saw him tutouring Ms. Otani of Ravenclaw and proceeded to hex him at the same time. Somehow, their spells combined and turned him into a Pygmy Puff."
"Will you be able to reverse the spell?"
"I've tried almost everything. If I can't fix this by the end of the day, Minerva's going to Owl Mr. Weasley from the Wizard Wheezes store."
"I'm going to Owl their parents." Neville sighed. "Pansy, come with me since you're Blair and Peter's Head. I already have some self-inking quills and parchment. Filius, do you want me to draft up a letter for you to sign later about Risa?"
"No, no, don't worry about me." Flitwick waved him off and continued to aim his wand at Peter.
Pansy fought off shudders that were running down her spine as they walked to the Owlery. He had said her name so sweetly- Merlin's trousers what was happening to her?
"Sorry if you saw me yelling at them," Neville said quietly. Pansy looked at him and saw that his eyes were softer and his shoulders were hunched. "I was really angry, and I kept on imagining them doing something more permanent." Draco had told Pansy about Neville's parents so she squeezed his hand reassuringly.
"The important thing is that they don't do it again and I'm sure neither of them will step a toe out of line for a while," Pansy said earnestly. "I won't lie- it was a bit scary seeing you like that, but I'm glad you were strict instead of letting them get away with it, which would be ten times worse."
"Thanks," Neville muttered. He stared at Pansy with such an intense gaze that she looked away. "I hope Filius and George will be able to help him." As the two climbed the steps up the Owlery Pansy started to giggle. "What's so funny?"
"Sorry, sorry." Pansy tried to stamp down her laugh but in seconds she was laughing again. "I'm terrible. Sorry. I was just thinking how two malevolent hexes can turn a person into a Pygmy Puff of all things. They're just so cute!" She finally stopped her giggles but to her surprise, Neville had started chuckling beside her. Pansy glanced at him- it sounded like an old man wheezing- and soon both of them were crawling up the Owlery steps, shrieking like wild hyenas.
"I- I- I can't write a letter like this," Neville said, tears running down his cheeks.
"Then don't!" Pansy gasped. Her laughter slowed down but one glance at Neville set her off again. The two collapsed, their backs against the wall, and waited for their breathing to slow down. Pansy took a deep breath of air once she had calmed down and Neville exhaled loudly.
"My stomach hurts so much," he groaned.
"Mine too."
"I'll never see a Pygmy Puff the same way again."
"Don't say the P-word or I'll start laughing!"
"We should write the letters," Neville said suddenly, producing some parchment and quills from inside his robe. Pansy took a blue quill and two sheets that were faintly scented and began to write.
They sat like that for a long time in silence with only the disconnected melody of scratching quills, but it was a comfortable silence. Around them, owls hooted indignantly, upset about being awakened from their naps, and somewhere in the castle, Moaning Myrtle screamed and several students yelled in reply.
Pansy finished both of her letters quickly and she glanced at Neville. He was bent over his parchment, lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed in combination. His jawline was rigid but not all sharp angles, like Theo, his nose was long and the arch went in like a valley instead of a hill, and his eyes were a light leafy green with splashes of dark grey, baby blue, and golden rings around his pupils. His shoulders were broad and so was his chest, his eyebrows were uneven (the right one was thicker), his eyelashes were long and straight, and his thick brown hair had become unruly and clumps were sticking up like spikes.
Suddenly his eyes looked up and his uneven brows lifted. "Are you okay, Pansy?"
His voice was a tenor, when he said, 'Pansy' the 's' was soft, and her heart was pounding so hard it hurt.
"Pansy?" Large hands waved in front of her face and she smiled tenderly.
"I'm excellent, thanks."
***
Draco Malfoy was a very busy man and only his most important clients and colleagues were allowed to Floo him, so he was not a happy camper when Neville Longbottom's head appeared during his lunch break.
"Longbottom?" he cried.
"Oh, sorry, Malfoy," Neville said sheepishly. "Is Hermione there?"
"No, she's out. Can I take a message?"
Neville surveyed his school nemesis. If Hermione could trust him, maybe he could too. And Malfoy was friends with Pansy.
"I was wondering if I should take Pansy out for Valentine's Day," Neville said quietly. Draco dropped his wand.
"Pansy Parkinson?"
"Well, yeah."
"Take her out on Valentine's Day? Did she poison you? Are you under the Imperius?"
"No! I flooed Hermione a while ago and she said Pansy had been flirting with me to create House unity. I thought about it for a while and I realized that my heart sped up whenever I thought of her and-"
"Pansy can be sweet when she wants to," Draco said with a shake of his head, "but she's been really messed up after Theo cheated on her with a Muggle."
Neville shrugged. "She can't be as messed up as my parents. And she's funny and easy to talk to. And pretty, I guess."
"Are you doing it for the sake of Slytherin or the sake of your heart?" Draco asked. "If it's for Slytherin then Pansy really likes Muggle trinkets like teddy bears and chocolate mints and she loves walks around Hogsmeade and pink and white peonies. If it's for your heart, then you're better off with someone else."
"What-"
"You should also know that Pansy's a terrible conversationalist and if she says you're 'nice' that means she's probably head over heels in love with you. Now as much as I would like to help you on the road to your heart's demise, I have a schedule to keep." Draco turned away from the fireplace and began to look over some paperwork.
"Oh. Well, bye then."
"And, Neville?" Draco twirled his wand around casually. "If you break Pansy's heart I'll break your face. Just ask Theo."
***
Hogsmeade was at a quiet standstill and the only building that showed any sign of life was the Three Broomsticks, where reflections of golden flames glittered in the windows and snippets of conversation leaked out from behind frost-covered door. The curvy silhouette of Madam Rosmerta occasionally lurked behind the glass as she watched a cloaked figure walk alone through the snow-laden village. If she had observed the stranger for a little longer, she might have seen them walk in the direction of Madam Puddifoot's and if she had looked a little closer, she would have seen that the stranger was shaking.
But Madam Rosmerta had a business to run and it was the night before Valentine's Day. Lonely souls had a habit of wandering into her bar, hoping to drown away their broken hearts in Firewhiskey. The common practice was hard to watch but it turned a good profit, and the Three Broomsticks needed new tables.
The cloaked figure walked and walked until they stopped underneath the cover of a clump of treebranches. A tall, gangly man with a crooked nose was waiting there and he reached out to the hug the arrival.
"What do you want Theo?" the figure sighed. Their hood retracted just a bit, revealing neatly-trimmed bangs and wary eyes lined with kohl.
"Tomorrow's Valentine's. Do you think you could sneak away from work?" Theodore Nott asked. The figure snorted.
"Did Marlene get sick of you?"
Theo winced. "I got kicked out of the house. So you, me, Hog's Head? Aberforth is kicking out all the underage kids."
"Sorry, I'm planning on meeting someone."
Theo raised his eyebrows. "Wh- why?" The figure's dark red lips grinned.
"House Unity."
***
Down in the Slytherin dungeons, Blair Montague and Sofie Lorde giggled hysterically as they tried different vanity spells from Witch Weekly. The effects ranged from subtle to downright gaudy. One in particular made Sofie look like a deer caught in the headlights while another made Blair's lips tomato red and almost twice as big as they had been originally.
"I think- I'm going to- stick to- my WonderWitch- products," Sofie gasped, tears of laughter streaming down her face. Blair nodded in agreement and in seconds they were somberly patting down stray hairs and dabbing on Everlasting Eyelashes and Luminous Lipstick.
In another dorm, Peter Gosforth paced across the room nervously, twirling the red rose in his hand absentmindedly. Half of his friends watched with amusement while the other half were walking around, quite agitated themselves.
Francis Urquhart and Jessamine Brithwell were already eating a generous breakfast in the Great Hall, their hands intertwined underneath the table.
Imad Shafiq and Alister Carrow were sleeping soundly.
"Aren't you going to dress up?" Holly Flint asked Elle Vaisey before she could skip out the door. Elle shook her head.
"There's no one I want to impress." Holly smirked.
"You sure about that?" Elle narrowed her eyes at her friend who watched her slyly. "Come here. At least let me do your hair and put on some lip gloss."
In the office across the Slytherin common room, Pansy Parkinson was a blur as she took hot rollers out of her hair, sprayed on perfume, and painted her face with Muggle cosmetics that Astoria had sent her from France. Snape's portrait barely contained his laugh as she poked herself in the eye for the fourth time with her eyeliner.
"There's no point in going to all this trouble," Snape jeered. "Longbottom won't even notice a difference, unless you're hoping to impress someone more superficial like a certain student whom you were caught in an empty classroom with in your seventh year?" Pansy blushed.
"Theo's married," she muttered. "And- ow!- that was six years ago." Snape raised his eyebrows but didn't comment, even when Pansy burned her thumb on one of the curlers.
On the first floor of the Hogwarts castle, Neville Longbottom tied a ribbon around a bouquet of pink and white peonies and picked up a box of chocolate mints from his desk before heading down to the Great Hall with a nervous smile.
***
"Oh my." Couples were littered all over the Great Hall, some merely holding hands but others were snogging passionately. Pansy groaned and went to separate Phina Malfoy from Alphie Sommers.
"Five points from Gryffindor," Neville clucked, coming up behind Pansy. Alphie looked down sheepishly but Phina glared openly. "At least hold it together until you get to Hogsmeade."
"Professor, who're you giving that bouquet to?" Phina asked with a cold smile. Neville flushed.
"No one, no one," he muttered. Pansy stared at the bouquet of pink and white peonies that he hastily concealed in his robes. Neville met her eyes and smiled shyly. "Well, er, breakfast looks great. Come on."
Pansy followed the Gryffindor up to the staff table, at a loss for words. Were those for her? She had confessed to Draco that they were her favourite at the end of fifth year but had he told Neville?
"Pansy, do you want to, um, patrol Hogsmeade with me later?" Neville asked feebly. She nodded without looking at him and hoped that the heat spreading across her body wasn't a blush. And why were her heart fluttering and her mouth parched? It was just patrolling- Pansy widened her eyes. No, no, no! She was supposed to create House unity with friendship and her heart didn't flutter for just friends.
For breakfast there were eggs nested in heart-shaped hashbrowns laced with bacon, heart-shaped pancakes, and even cinnamon bun hearts. Pansy shuddered and chose two nested eggs that were too round to look like hearts. Eating was good, she decided. Eating gave her an excuse to not talk to Neville and potentially embarrass herself.
Headmaster McGonagall suddenly stood up and the Great Hall quieted. "All third-years and above who have approved permission slips may proceed in an orderly fashion to the front entrance for the Hogsmeade trip."
Pansy stood up and walked with Neville to the entrance as Filch double-checked everyone's forms. She busied herself by separating more eager couples, avoiding Neville's burning gaze which was fixed upon the back of her head. Her stomach was doing somersaults and her mouth had gone dry.
House Unity, House Unity, House Unity, Pansy chanted over and over in her head. Friendship, friendship, friendship.
"Stupid kids," Filch muttered. "So shameless, right Mrs. Norris?" The cat purred and winked at Pansy. She hurried out the door.
"So where do you want to go?" Neville said, catching up to Pansy. She glanced at him and his eyes immediately held hers.
"Mrs. Norris winked at me," Pansy blurted. Neville chuckled. "Sorry, um, I don't know, anywhere's fine."
"We can just walk around if you want." Neville looked knowingly at Pansy and the two left the bustle of High Street and began to travel along the town's outskirts, underneath the cover of towering yew trees. Suddenly Neville stopped. "I, um, I grew these for you." He took out the bouquet of pink and white peonies from earlier and handed them along with a box of chocolate mints to a flustered Pansy. "Malfoy said you like peonies."
"Of course," Pansy muttered, that nosy snot. "Thanks. I, um, don't have anything for you. Sorry."
"That's fine. I didn't expect anything." Pansy raised her eyebrows. Did he say that because they weren't in a relationship or because he thought she was rude? "So, House unity."
"What about it?"
"Is that the only reason you talk to me?"
Pansy was silent. No, she wanted to say, I think you are braver than Harry Potter and you're easy to talk to. You're one of the only people who won't judge me by my past and just being around you is relaxing, until a few days ago when just thinking of your name made me feel strange. I love the way your hair sticks up when you're too worried about your students to care and the steadiness of your hands on my shoulders when you don't know how else to comfort me. I love teasing you and you teasing me. I think I love you Neville. Maybe I'm just really messed up after Theo broke me but I'm trying to piece myself back together and I think you're the glue that holds my sanity together.
But the only word Pansy managed to spit out was a flat, "No." She quickly added, "You're funny, and really nice too." She avoided Neville's gaze which she was sure was disappointed. If she gave him that long spiel of what she really thought of him, he would definitely be freaked out and run away.
"Pansy." She looked up, her heart filled with dread, when she suddenly felt something warm and soft against her lips. Pansy hesitantly closed her eyes and returned the kiss. She felt Neville's sturdy arms circle around her waist and his mouth smile against hers.
The two stood under the cover of yew trees in the February morning. Bitter winds raged against their bodies and the tips of their ears became red and numb but they didn't part for a long, long time.
***
"Will you be my Valentine?" Peter held out a rose and Holly shrieked and started dancing wildly, which drew even more attention to them.
"Holly, stop!" Elle cried, her face becoming redder by the minute as other students began to stare at them.
Peter cleared his throat. "I can do this later-"
"Sorry, I'd- I'd love to be your Valentine." Elle took the rose and put it in her painstakingly curled hair but it fell out. Elle flushed and tried to thread it through her curls but it wouldn't stay put. She groaned and heard Peter laugh causing her to giggle softly and soon the two were on the ground, crowing madly.
"Are you okay, Blair?" Sofie asked slowly as the two of them watched Peter and Elle guffaw and toddle away together, a red rose tangled in Elle's curls.
"I'm fine," she answered with a surprised tone. She laughed. "I'm absolutely, perfectly fine!"
"Good, because Alphie Sommers has been looking for you," Sofie said with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "And I heard that he broke up with Phina yesterday."
"How classy," Blair said perkily. "By the way, that cute Ravenclaw with the glasses is staring at you so I'll just go look for Alphie and leave you alone."
Imad ran up behind Jessamine and Francis, coming in between them. He grinned like a Chesire cat. "Alister asked out Holly Flint and she said yes. Here're your three Sickles, Jess."
"You're pretty happy for someone who just lost a bet," Jessamine remarked, taking the coins cautiously. "What happened?"
"Phina Malfoy's single and in need of a comforting shoulder. I'm on my way to the Three Broomsticks right now. Cheerio!" The couple watched Imad with amusement as he pranced away.
"He's skipping," Francis said incredulously. "Imad Shafiq is skipping to see the devil herself. Someone get me a camera."
"No! Let's go spy on them." The couple stifled their laughs as they snuck off to the Three Broomsticks.
***
The Three Broomsticks was usually a very busy establishment, which Pansy was counting on, but when she and Neville walked in with a respectable distance between them, the whole house burst into cheers. Pansy glanced at Neville who had paled but was grinning and the couple sat down at the bar.
"They've been cheering for any couple that walks through the doors," Madam Rosmerta said with an amused smile. "It seems like almost all of Hogwarts is here." Pansy looked around and saw students clustered in twos or small House-exclusive groups. There weren't any vacant chairs and a third of the guests were either standing or sitting on tables.
"So business is good?" Neville asked politely.
"It's never been better!" Madam Rosmerta plunked down two Butterbeers in front of them. "On the house. It's nice to see an inter-house relationship and I think you two're setting a trend." With a wink, the bartender flounced away to help the next customer.
"Pansy," Neville said slowly, "Alphie Sommers and Blair Montague are snogging. And Sofie Lorde and Mark Escher from Ravenclaw are sharing a Butterbeer."
"Phina Malfoy and Imad Shafiq are hugging," Pansy said astoundingly, scoping the room. She saw a fourth-year Slytherin glance at them then walk up to a blushing Gryffindor. Another Gryffindor- Archie Crockett she guessed- stared at them for a short while before striding over to a Slytherin named Beatrice.
House unity. There was House unity between Gryffindor and Slytherin and maybe even the other Houses. Slytherin was no longer a laughingstock!
Pansy leaped up and embraced Neville. "We did it! We created house unity!" Before she knew what she was doing, Pansy placed an ecstatic kiss on Neville's lips but she quickly pulled away, eyes wide.
The Three Broomsticks was silent for a second, then they erupted into a deafening medley of cheers, hoots, and cat-calls. Pansy was mortified but Neville laughed.
"Happy Valentine's Day to you too," he said. "I'd kiss you back but we're teachers here so that's probably not the best idea."
Pansy groaned. "Sorry. I wasn't thinking."
"It's fine." Neville placed a firm, assuring hand on Pansy's arm. "If I had to be kissed by anyone in front of my students, it would be you." He raised his Butterbeer glass. "To House Unity!"
"To House Unity!" Pansy agreed.
"To House Unity!" The couple turned to look at a radiant Blair Montague who was sitting nearby and had raised her glass as well.
"To House Unity!" "To House Unity!" Soon everyone in the vicinity was toasting to House Unity and the little groups that were exclusively one House quickly melded together to create colourful blobs. Slytherins chatted with Ravenclaws who argued with Gryffindors who complimented Hufflepuffs.
Neville looked at Pansy proudly and she grinned at him. A year ago she would have never thought it possible but there they were, a Slytherin and a Gryffindor surrounded by kaleidoscopic inter-house clumps, holding hands and drinking Butterbeer and maybe even falling in love.
To House Unity!
-----
For the Love of Pansy (Round 1) Masterlist