The Scars to Prove It

“Farren. Farren.”

“Oi! Farren!”

Farren started, looking up from the letter she was reading, and then folding it quickly.

“What?” she asked, shoving the folded parchment into her pocket.

“We,” began Carina, gesturing between Lee and herself, “just asked you what you though the twins were doing. We’re you listening?”

“I am now. What’d they say when they left?”

Lee chuckled, his dreadlocks swaying around him. “We were talking about the Chamber and what happened in the dueling club. Carina was getting all worked up about it. The twins told her to relax, muttered something about tickling a fruit, and dashed out.”

She shrugged. “No idea. They’ve been acting really weird lately, haven’t they?”

Lee looked distinctly uncomfortable and Carina grinned wickedly.

“What? What am I missing?”

“You really have no idea, do you?” asked Carina.

“No idea about what?” she whined, twisting to focus on Lee, her pink locks flying around her.

Lee shrugged. “I haven’t the slightest.”

Farren sighed, giving up her interrogation for now. The three sat quietly for a few moments until Lee spoke again.

“So who do you two think opened the Chamber?”

“I still don’t believe the damn thing exists. It seems rather farfetched.”

“Really, Farren? How do explain what happened to Collin?”

“I don’t know. An accidental magic blowback? Possible. A giant mudblood killing monster? Unlikely.”

Carina finally spoke up. “I think it might be Malfoy.”

Lee looked incredulous. “Malfoy? Draco Malfoy? Isn’t he a second year?”

“Yeah, he’s the little tosser who bought his way onto the Slytherin team. Lost them the match, as well,” confirmed a grinning Farren.

“Why do you think its Malfoy?”

“Before I left for the Weasley’s, Lucius Malfoy was at the house nearly every evening. He and Father spent hours on end in his study. I only heard bits and pieces, but they were planning something.”

“That doesn’t necessarily mean anything. I am by no means an expert, but I think unleashing some sort of monster that has lain dormant for years would require a little bit of skill.”

“Something Malfoy is lacking.” Lee finished Farren’s sentence, grinning. “He was too dense to notice the snitch hovering right next to him. I doubt he can find a hidden chamber.”

“Maybe you’re right. . .” Carina replied, but she didn’t sound convinced.

The three friends lapsed into a comfortable silence as the other students began to filter out of the common room in stages. By the time Fred and George bustled back through the portrait hole, they were the only ones left by the still smoldering fire.

With identical grins plastered on their faces, Fred held up a bottle of Ogden’s Best Firewhiskey in each hand, while George cradled some paper cups. Farren clucked her tongue at the paper cups and reached for them.

“Those won’t do. Let me see them.”

George rolled his eyes, but obliged. He watched as Farren quickly transfigured the weak paper cups into stronger shot glasses.

Carina sank to the ground next to the coffee table and the rest of the group followed suit. When everyone was settled, Fred poured five glasses of the smoking amber liquid. They sat untouched in the center of the table for a moment.

“Well then, let’s get this party started, shall we?” asked Farren with a smile, reaching for a glass. After a glance around the table, she knocked it back.

Fred and George quickly followed, chased by Lee. Carina warily eyed the last glass on the table.

Farren nudged her, the encouraging gesture punctuated by a hiccup. With a pained smile, Carina seized the glass and emptied it in one fluid motion.

“That’s not so bad,” assured Carina, a flush creeping up her neck as Fred poured and distributed a second round.

“So, how’d you two get this anyway?” inquired Lee.

“Yeah, what was that about tickling a fruit?” queried Carina

George laughed. “That’s how you open the portrait to the kitchens.”

“You tickle the pear,” finished Fred.

“The trick is getting in.”

“Once you’re in, the house elves are tripping over each other to give you stuff.”

“All you have to do is ask.”

Farren quirked a brow. “And they just gave you a bottle of whiskey?”

“Well, that took a bit of skullduggery.”

“You see, they keep it for professors, and it’s in a locked cabinet.”

“That can’t be unlocked with magic.”

“So while I distracted the elves by sampling the tart choices for the Christmas feast, George worked the lock.”

“Wait,” interrupted Lee, “if it can’t be unlocked by magic, how did you get it open?”

George smiled and pulled a twisted strand of metal out of his pocket. “With this.”

Carina swore, startling the group. “I knew someone had been nicking my hairpins.”

Farren laughed aloud while the boys just stared. They had never heard Carina swear like that.

After finishing their third round, Lee made a suggestion. “How about a game of truth of dare?”

There was a collective murmur of agreement, and Lee began the game. He looked at Carina. “Truth or dare, Carina?”

“Truth,” she retorted.

Lee thought for a moment before deciding. “Have you ever seen a muggle?”

“No.”

“Really?” asked Fred.

“You’ve never even met Farren’s mum?” inquired George.

“No. I don’t really get out much. And it’s my turn.” Carina turned toward George.

“Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“I dare you to give McGonagall a leash and collar for Christmas.”

Farren laughed so violently that she began to choke while George turned an unsightly shade of green.

“Do you want me to die?”

Carina shook her head. “She won’t kill you.”

“Oh yes she will,” assured Farren between gasps. “He won’t even have time to duck and cover.”

“Thank you for the faith, Farren. Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“I dare you to give Snape a bottle of shampoo for Christmas.”

“Alright.”

George quirked an eyebrow. “That’s it? You aren’t fearing for your life right now?”

“You didn’t say I had to put my name on it.”

His mouth fell open while Farren smiled deviously. Fred just shook his head and poured a fourth round, emptying the first bottle.

“So, I do believe it’s my turn. Lee, truth or dare?”

Lee answered quickly. “I’m a little frightened of something worse than giving shampoo to Snape, so I believe I’ll take a truth.”

Farren’s face fell slightly, and Lee heaved a sigh of relief. She bit her lip as she thought, oblivious to the twins observing her. Carina rolled her eyes.

“Would you ever go out for the house team, instead of just commentating?”

The boy in question just shook his head. “Never. I’m a bit afraid of heights,” he admitted.

Everyone around the table made a small noise of surprise in the moment that followed. Carina was the first to respond.

“But you’re in the highest box during the matches.”

“And you’ve been up with us in the orchard,” added Fred.

“Well yeah, but that wasn’t exceptionally high. And I’m fine in the stands. There aren’t hundreds of meters of nothing beneath me.”

The others nodded in understanding.

“So, Fred,” began Lee.

“Dare,” interrupted Fred, who refilled and redistributed the glasses while Lee thought of a challenge.

“Stick your bum out of that window over there.”

Fred shrugged, and pulled up from the table while the others dissolved into fits of laughter. He forced the window open with a creak and hopped up on the sill. He pulled the back of his pants down, gave a little wiggle, and then redressed himself. He dragged the window shut and returned to the group.

“It was a bit nippy out there,” said Fred with a straight face, before topping off everyone.

Each member of the group was thoroughly inebriated by then; the dares began to get wilder, the truths more personal.

“Fred, truth or dare?” slurred Farren while Carina was passionately arguing the benefits of strip chess to a thoroughly shocked Lee.

“Truth! I am not sticking my ass out in the freezing cold again.”

“Have you ever gone too far?”

Fred waggled his eyebrows. “Why do you want to know, love?”

“Ewww. Fred, not like that. I meant with your pranks, you bloody idiot.”

Fred was struck dumb. “Uh, I don’t know.” he nudged his twin out of staring match with Lee.
“What do you think, Georgie?”

“About what?”

“My truth question. Do you think we’ve ever gone too far on a prank?”

George was thoughtful for a moment. “There was that one time with Ron.”

Fred smiled. “Ah yes, the proudest moment of our young lives.”

Carina and Lee were now paying attention. “Are you going to elaborate?” asked Carina.

“Well, we were seven and Ronnickins was four,” started Fred.

“And he had this giant teddy bear.”

“He loved the damn thing. Never went anywhere without it.”

“And we might have turned it into a spider.”

“While it was still in his arms.”

“He’s still terrified of spiders to this very day,” finished George somberly.

“You two are awful,” intoned Farren through riotous laughter coming from Lee.

“We prefer the term ‘devious,’” said the twins in stereo.

Farren just shook her head.

“My turn!” called George.

“Wait, wait, wait,” interrupted Fred. “It was my dare.”

“Yeah, but you passed it off to me. Ergo, my turn.” George stuck out his tongue to prove his point.

Fred conceded, and George stared at Farren.

“Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

Carina rolled her eyes. “Shocking.”

Farren shrugged. “I feel like mixing it up,” she replied sarcastically.

“Fine. I dare you to morph back into yourself.”

There was a moment of silence before Farren stood up violently, but she stumbled, ruining the effect.

“There’s no more alcohol left, I’m done playing.”

Before she made it to the stairs, Fred and George were blocking her way.

“Oh no you don’t,” George called as the twins lifted her and carried her back toward Carina and Lee. “You can’t back out on a dare.”

Farren writhed between them. “I. Don’t. Want. To.”

“Come on Farren, you can’t be that ugly. And we won’t disown you or anything,”

Farren slammed her heels down. “What makes you think I’m ugly?” she yelled indignantly.

Fred didn’t flinch at the fire in her eyes. “If you’re not ugly, then what’s the problem?”

Carina, however, recognized the warning signs. “Guys, just back off.”

The twins were undeterred. “Farren, what’s the problem?” queried George.

Farren’s hair had now darkened to an almost burnt color. She was furious.

“Fine, George, you want to know what the problem is? The problem is that I don’t bloody well know what the hell I look like. Fred could very well be right. I could be absolutely hideous, but I’ll never know because I’ve been morphing my entire life! I don’t know what my life would have been like. And honestly, I can’t stand it, but there really isn’t anything else I can do.”

She turned on her heel then and stormed up the stairs. Silence fell over their group.

Carina sighed and made her way toward her best friend. “I told you to drop it.”