The Potion Princess

First Task

A complete list of the people she's yelled at, according to Emmeline: fifteen Slytherins of various ages, Cedric Diggory's friends, two Ravenclaw fourth years wearing "potter stinks" badges, Malfoy, Emmeline, Ron (twice), and Filch.

She knows that maybe she's been a bit snappish lately, but she can't help it.  Every time she calms down, someone else brings up the approaching first task and all she can think about is Harry facing down that dragon, scared and alone and no where near as experienced as the other three champions.  Audra's considered hexing him, just to give him a reason to sit it out, but Fred pointed out that they would probably just delay the task long enough for Pomfrey to fix him.  Emmeline thinks it's a blessing that the task had finally arrived, saying that maybe Audra would finally remember what it means to take a joke (this after she drew a comic of Harry coming in dead last in scores), but all Audra thought it means that her anxiety has hit a new level.

This anxiety is now directed at Fred and George, who seemed to be alternating between amused and exasperated, not justifying any of her comments with a response.  "You cannot have people place bets on this!"  She was running behind them, having to job because of their long strides. 

"And why not?"  Fred grinned down at her, infuriating, not even stopping as he reached out to take a galleon from a first year.  George took down his bet in the moleskin notebook that he had borrowed from Audra. 

"It's bad form!"

"You know what else is bad form?"  There was a small crowd around them now, and she couldn't help but notice that very few people were betting on Harry.  "Smoking those nasty cigarettes, but that didn't stop you from knicking Charlie's pack."

"They're not muggle cigarettes, you daft cretin, they've got none of those carcinogens and the smoke is harmless, it's healer approved!"  She stamped her foot, well aware that Fred was laughing at her but too riled up to care.  "That's not the point!  The point is, Harry's going to be in danger, and you're making money off of it!"

She glared down at the next person that came up to place bets, but sighed in defeat when she caught sight of Ginny standing like a deer in the headlights, holding a single sickle in her hands to bet on Harry.  (George didn't write that one down, they all know that Ginny's going to be told she won no matter how atrocious Harry's performance is.)  "Fine."  She rummages in her pockets.  "Five galleons on Harry."

Fred grins.   "That's our girl."

Harry doesn't die, thankfully, so there's no need for the funeral she'd been dreading.

What there is, though, is a party in the Gryffindor common room, one that Fred and George had dragged her to.  She didn't want to go, too afraid about what people might think about a Slytherin crashing their party, but they promised no one would mind.  They were right, for the most part, and other than a few odd looks, no one looked at her twice.  It might have helped that Fred had grabbed her hand so they didn't lose each other as they fought to get to Harry, pulling her down to sit beside him on the sofa.

"You were so great."  She tells Harry, hugging him tightly.  She's never had a younger sibling, but she thinks that this is what it would feel like if she did.  "Absolutely brilliant.  Everyone's talking about your flying."

She hugs Hermione after him, who seemed to still be fighting off tears, despite the fact that Harry was safe and sound and accepting about a thousand congratulatory back slaps from his friends.  She also hugs Ron, who had magically found himself part of the trio again.  Audra feels like slapping him for being so silly, but let's it go, confident that he had suffered enough these past months.  Then she hugs Harry again, just to celebrate the fact he wasn't lying in the hospital wing covered in burns.

Fred pops up at her elbow, forces a butterbeer into her hand and a pastry in her mouth.  "Told you he'd be fine, didn't I?"

One thing about the Gryffindors: They knew how to throw a party.

It probably shouldn't have surprised her.  This is a room filled with the bravest students in school, the ones that don't seem to have any problem with making a fool of themselves and didn't hesitate to take a dare.  They're students with an affinity for loud noises, dangerous situations, and people, people everywhere, a tidal wave of them, all of them equally loud and excited and with great big smiles on their faces.

Fred and George supplied the food, great heaping trays full of pastries and sandwiches, flagons full of pumpkin juice and butterbeer, and several flasks of firewhiskey being passed around the older students.  Angelina and Katie had dragged an old record player down from the dorm, and now the Weird Sister's greatest hits were blasting through the room.  Lee had set up a temporary tattoo station, where he painted glittering dragons on any arm, leg, or face that came within his reach, welcomed or not. There was also a large exploding snap tournament going on in the middle of the room, a scene reminiscent of the one game of muggle beer pong that she had taken part on. 

"Come on!"  Fred said, dragging her off the couch to dance.  "Admit that you're having fun!"

And she was, really.  For a while, she had taken up a partnership with Lee, him painting the dragon and her charming the tattoo to move.   She had taken a sip from every flask and bottle that came her way, only stopping when it became hard to unscrew the lid.  She'd danced with Angeline and Katie and Ginny, who were the official Weird Sisters fan club, and were no less enthusiastic when hearing the record for the seventh time that night than they were at the beginning.  "It's a little fun." 

"A little?"  He's spinning her, something that he really shouldn't do when she's more than a little drunk, and has to catch her when she stumbles.  "You're having a blast."

"I am."  She giggles, something she really hates, and now the songs changed to the one slow song.  They pull apart, because he's too afraid and she's too drunk.  There's an awkward pause where they both stare at each other, and he makes a motion in the air that she might have been able to make sense of earlier in the evening.  It's saved by Ginny, who shows up in between them and announces that maybe it's time for someone to shut tonight down, seeing as the whole room was starting to fall asleep.

"I guess I should go."  It's the only logical thing, but Audra's not sure how she's going to make it to her dorm without falling on her face, let alone without being caught.  "Late and everything."

"Don't be ridiculous."  It's Hermione that says it, calling out from behind her book.  "You're not going anywhere, you'll get caught and be in detention for a week."

"Fred and I aren't going to bed anytime soon, no class tomorrow."  George says.  "You can sleep down here, no one will bother you."

She sinks down onto the couch beside Fred, rubbing at her eyes and blinking at them.  She's incredibly relieved.  There was no way she'd make it back without getting caught by a teacher, and Snape would put her in detention for a week when he hears where she'd been.  McGonagall would have her in for two.  "Alright."  She yawns, the room blurs, and somehow her head finds its way to Fred's shoulder.  "Just this once."

As tired as she is, she stays up until it was only Fred and George.  The twins are talking, murmuring to one another about Bagman, having decided to give it up since they doubled their savings with the betting today.  "Speaking of, Audra, we got your money."

"Keep it.  I'll own the first share of your joke shop."  She mumbles, pressing her head deeper into his shoulder.  She knew that she would probably want those ten galleons in the morning, but right now she was tired, and her head was on Fred's shoulder, and his arm was around her, and she couldn't find it in her to care about anything at all.

A/N:  Okay, so excuse that absolutely horrid description of the party.  Hope someone reads this.