Pansy and Cormac had paused in front of the fountain at the end of High Street when she heard him inhale sharply. Turning to look at him, she followed his gaze to a group of people that she vaguely recognized from school. Gryffindors, all, she thought. She leaned into Cormac slightly. "Why do I feel as if I'm about to be hexed in front of the Great Hall?"

"Love, if anyone's about to be hexed, it's me. Unless you'll stand in front of me in a display of heroics?" He grinned. "And Gryffindors don't hex without a reason. Although, come to think of it, I'm probably reason enough."

Pansy pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow at her date for the evening. "Hello, I'm Pansy Parkinson," she said, extending a hand for him to take. "Perhaps we've met?" She tossed her hair behind her shoulder as he shook the proferred hand. "No, darling, you can expect absolutely no heroics from me."

Laughing, Cormac began walking again with Pansy on his arm. "Well, all right then. Have what's left of me sent to my Mum then, deal?"

Pansy sighed. "Sending remains to a mother is really more of a third date kind of situation, don't you feel, Cormac?" She looked at him from the corner of her eye. "I may make an exception, though."

----------------

Dean had been having a great night. He was strolling along and thoroughly enjoying the company of two beautiful women. Every once in a while, it's good to be me. No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than they came in view of the fountain... and a much less enjoyable sight.

"Bugger," he murmured as he registered exactly who was standing there. Darting between Alicia and Angelina, he quickly said, "So... I'm getting a bit dry. How about we get a drink over at the 'Sticks before we finish making the rounds?"

Alicia looked at Dean, and then followed his nervous glance towards the fountain. "Why, Dean Thomas, are you trying to protect Angie and I from wee little Cormac over there?" Alicia smiled wickedly. "I think it would be much more fun to say hello. After all, we were all housemates. It's the honorable and polite thing to do." Her eyes danced with mirth at the idea of possibly making Cormac a tad uncomfortable on his date. Smiling, she turned to face Cormac and his female companion and waved.

Dean snorted. "More like trying to stay out of the clink for hexing him in the goolies, really." Dean grinned mischievously. "I have an idea, if you're willing," he said, wrapping his arms around both of their waists. He turned to look at Ali a bit nervously. "Unless you don't want to go there again, of course."

Alicia looked at Dean for a second, and then burst out laughing. "You're serious, aren't you?" She grinned, and patted his cheek. You have no idea that I shagged him. And possibly will do so again, Dean. And I have no intention of letting you know that. I'll play along with you... But if you snog me again... She sighed a bit, suddenly interested in seeing where this game would go. "I'm game, but this time, I am not responsible for the outcome, even if that means tomorrow morning is very awkward and culminates in the two of us arguing about who has to avert their eyes first as we get dressed. Oh. And you'll have to cook the eggs." She kissed him lightly on the cheek. "You're too funny, Dean Thomas. Really."

Angelina looked back and forth between her friends, very confused. Why in the world would Ali need protection from Cormac? As far as she knew, she was the only one that had a run in with that rat. Her face formed a scowl as memories of that night and her quick dip into mental instability rose to the surface of her mind. Bloody abandoner, promising a girl a good time and then just fading away into the night. If only she had never seen him at Ali's Quidditch game.

Then the light finally switched on in her mind. Oh, bugger! I did not kiss a man my friend was interested in. I did not kiss a man my friend was interested in. Angelina fought to keep from hyperventilating. Slow deep breaths were key but she couldn't seem to control it. She was a whore! She was a traitorous whore that was so horny she didn't realize that the man that Alicia had invited to the top box was somehow involved with Alicia!

She might as well go crawl under a rock and die now.

"Um, guys, I think I'll...just be going this way," Angelina stuttered out and turned to move away from the disaster they were walking towards.

Alicia noticed the panic in her friend's eyes, and moved to grab her. "Angie. Look at me." When her friend reluctantly did so, Ali glanced to see they were going to be meeting up with Cormac and his date very quickly. "I am going to make this quick. C and I had a misunderstanding of sorts. The kiss was no one's fault, but if it was, it was his fault, as he should have told you. I just misunderstood where he and I were going, however, and it's fine now. Okay? We worked it all out. But I still like to see him sweat a bit, it's good for him. Now, the Angie I know won't just sit back and let him be a toe-rag, but would be rather upset that he neglected to tell her that he'd been somewhat close to shagging one of her friends only a couple nights previous. We'll just make his date a bit uncomfortable, yeah? Play along with Dean and I? We're rather good at this game. We have had a bit of practice." She grinned a bit, and looked at her friends. "I'll tell you all about it later, promise. For now... Game face."

Angelina snorted at the idea that the kiss could have been anyone's fault but her own; she'd basically tried to eat his face off! She should have been smart enough to put two and two together. Really, a handsome man in the top box invited by a beautiful Quidditch player? Yeah, they're just mates.

But that wasn't really the point anymore. Angelina had been lax in the friend department lately if this hadn't come up yet. Alicia had misunderstood Cormac's intentions? That was something Angelina could relate to. And Dean had sounded ready to do Cormac bodily harm.

"Alright, Ali. Just tell me if you want me to hex the berk," Angelina agreed. Taking Dean's other arm, Angelina weakly grinned at him, "Ready for a show, Mister Thomas?"

Dean grinned and draped his free arm across Alicia's shoulders. Pulling both women almost indecently close, he said, "I rather believe I am, Ms. Johnson. Shall we, ladies?"

Pansy couldn't help but feel as if she were being cornered, even though they were all in the middle of a very crowded street. The three other Gryffindors approached them with what appeared to be mixed bravado; she picked up a little reticence from one of the women, and an intense dislike for Cormac from the man, Who is quite the dish, she thought absently.

Alicia smiled graciously as they reached the couple. "Hello, Cormac. Enjoying your day thus far?" Her eyes twinkled with mirth, hoping he wouldn't be too upset at the interruption. She didn't care that he was there with another woman, as she'd told him Friday, but that didn't mean she couldn't tease him and his date a bit. She wasn't completely unfeeling, however, and would hate to cause too much trouble for him.

He returned her smile with one of his own. "I am. Thank you, Alicia."

Pansy twisted her face into a wicked smile. "Oh, this is the girl in the painting?" she asked Cormac, putting her hand on his arm. "Spinnet, is it? I didn't recognize you with your clothing on. I don't think we ever spoke in school. Pansy Parkinson," she said by way of introduction.

Turning to Dean, she flashed him a dazzling smile. "And you're the artist, correct?" she asked, remembering her conversation with Cormac on the matter. "Your style is absolutely lovely, subject matter aside, " she complimented, glancing at Alicia. "I'd love to see more of your work."

Alicia smiled at the witch before her, inwardly torn between amusement and annoyance at the girl's cheek. She had only intended to tease Cormac a bit, but this... girl could stand to be taken down a peg or two.

"Parkinson? ...Really? I would never have recognized you without that god-awful conk you used to call a nose. Whoever your Medi-Wizard was did a miraculous job. Or perhaps you went to a Muggle? I know if I needed so much work, I'd try to be inconspicuous. But you look lovely now, dear. And if Dean here paints you, I'm sure he can gloss over the other... flaws." She smirked, quirking an eyebrow at the younger witch.

Pansy turned to Cormac, threading her arm through his. "Cormac, you didn't tell me how absolutely charming she is." She got a nostalgic look on her face and said, "She reminds me of one of those wind up crup dolls I had as a girl. You remember the ones, with the shrill bark; they absolutely never shut up? Oh, I bet father bought me a dozen of those." She giggled. "I kept pulling their heads off, and throwing them in the pond." She shook her head. "Childhood," she finished, shrugging at the group.

She smiled at Dean. "I'd love to sit for you. I need a new portrait in the gallery, several for the different wings, actually, and perhaps you can advise me what to use for my parents' portraits. They keep complaining that their frames are smudged and nothing the elves have done satisfies them. I'd love them permanently silenced, as well, but you know you can't have everything." She giggled again. "Oops!" she said, looking at Cormac, "I guess you can!"

Alicia grinned, getting into the groove. It had been far too long since her last verbal spar. "Miss Parkinson, I believe I quite like you. You remind me of myself, when I was young and stupid. Cute costume by the way. Who's house elf are you supposed to be? You can't be Cormac's, because for all that his flat is well decorated and immaculate, I know that he doesn't have one."

Dean nuzzled Angelina's neck. Once his face was hidden he murmured into her ear, "Ouch! Someone's channeling their inner bitch tonight. Go Ali!" As she giggled, Dean dropped a kiss on her collarbone and returned his attention to the others.

Pansy looked up at Cormac and smiled mirthlessly. "Oh, she is amusing. Which of the plagues of Egypt do you think she's dressed as? I was going to say locusts, what with the antennae," she said, pointing vaguely in Alicia's direction, "but now I'm thinking, perhaps... boils and sores?"

I think I'm enjoying this way more than I should be, thought Cormac.

Seeing the sudden flash of annoyance in Alicia's eyes, Dean pulled her closer. "Take it easy, love," he whispered as he nibbled on her earlobe. "Pull in those claws just a bit - I'd like to avoid the rain of fire and river of blood, if at all possible." He placed a wet, sucking little kiss just behind her ear before pulling away, causing her to shiver.

Deciding to throw in her own two knuts, Angelina focused her attention on Cormac. "Hey, Big Spender, you know how to leave a girl high and dry. Although, I would probably run too if I was caught kissing a girl's best mate. What happened? Couldn't find the time to mention your previous acquaintance?"

Let the lynching begin. Looking sideways at Pansy, Cormac had to bite his tongue so he wouldn't break something laughing when he saw the look of pure glee on her face. Dear Merlin, I've never seen her smile so much before.

Nodding at Angelina, Cormac said, "Good evening to you, too." He grinned wryly. "If you were that upset about it, you could've tracked me down," he said with a wink.

"I could have," Angelina agreed, "but then sanity returned and I couldn't quite remember what was so appealing about you."

"So you 'popped your cork' prematurely, as it were?" he retorted with a smile. "It happens. Nothing to be embarrassed about," he said, pulling Pansy a little closer. Noticing her fingers were starting to twitch like she was about to reach for her wand at any moment, Cormac said, "It's been lovely seeing you all again, but we need to be on our way. Goodnight."

Alicia smiled at Cormac again. "Indeed C. It's always a pleasure when you and I... interact. Apologies for interrupting your evening, Miss Parkinson," she said glibly to his companion, before turning back to Cormac.
"Remember what I said, C. And when you get bored of the chit, look me up, yeah?"

Dean gave Pansy an appreciative look. "And I do hope you'll consider doing the same when the boredom sets in, love." He paused, and with an slightly evil grin said, "After all, it's almost a tradition by now, isn't it Cormac?"

Alicia laughed at Dean's jab, and strolled away, her friends right alongside her. She smiled at them as they walked away from the couple. "Well, that was entertaining."

----------------

Pansy and Cormac walked away for several yards in silence. Pansy turned very slowly to Cormac, tilting her face up to look at him. "I don't care for her. At all."

"Really, Pansy? I honestly hadn't noticed," he said dryly.

She narrowed her eyes in thought. "But what was the artist's name again? Thomas, right? He seems a decent fellow." And by decent, I mean delicious, she thought. "You have to agree, his work is good."

"Dean Thomas-and I hear he is decent bloke-as much as it pains me to admit that," he said with a smirk.

"You know," Pansy began engagingly, changing the subject, "the most handsome man invited me to go on a date tonight. That usually involves food and or drink, darling." She squeezed his upper arm as they walked, with a flirty smile on her lips.

"Let's be off then, love, I owe you a good time."

{Summary: The Gryffindors converge on one of their own, and a Slytherin gets caught in the fray. The snark reaches epic proportions.}