A/N – Ok. So this. This. This should probably not exist. And yet it does.

First of all… I know the title makes next to no sense, but I was stumped so I just altered an episode name, lol.

Secondly, this is AU. The Leverage "kids" are like 17-18. Sophie and Nate are professors. And it's more a set of related snippets from high school kids points of view instead of some big sprawling adventure. Because that's how it came out. Go with it, lol.

Thirdly, I entirely blame Mary for enabling me with this. Not that I mind, :D

Fourthly, I am verrrry tired right now, lol.

Fifthly, I really hope you enjoy this craziness.

"This is fucking dumb!" Eliot Spencer slams his open suitcase roughly to the ground from his bed, turning to face his best friend, Alec Hardison.

Hardison shrugs from his perch on the windowsill, "It's not so bad man. I mean, we get to go to England for free and meet a bunch of kids like us."

Eliot just scowls and pulls out his wand, swishing it in a practiced movement, and with a muttered incantation, the rest of his clothing folds itself neatly into the battered suitcase.

"It's still f-"

"That better not be a cuss I'm about to hear from you, mister!" his mother's voice cuts him off and Eliot immediately falls silent.

Hardison chokes off a laugh as Eliot glares at him even as he calls back down to his mother.

"Course not, mama. Was just telling Hardison here how excited I was for our trip!"

"I thought so," she calls back up sweetly, "But I've got my ears on ya, boy."

"Yes, mama," Eliot sighs, rolling his eyes at Hardison.

They wait a long moment before speaking again.

"Your mom is awesome," Hardison giggles, pulling out his own wand and calling out "expelliarmus" right before Eliot can inflict him some unknown horror.

Eliot growls as his wand flies from his hand and rolls under the bed. Hardison just grins and the next instant he's gone.

"I hope you splinch, you apparating bastard!"Eliot calls out to the empty air, cringing instinctively as he dimly hears his mother's footsteps down the hall. He swears she has bat ears.

Looking around, Eliot resigns himself to the fact that he's going to spend an entire month at Hogwarts, with a bunch of snot nosed British wizards. Sighing, he throws himself on the now nearly bare bed, almost falling into sleep when he hears the soft click of his door opening. The door he knows he locked.

He should be surprised when Parker lays beside him, as if she hadn't just broken into his room without a word. But he isn't.

"How'd you get in this time?" he asks instead, grudgingly relinquishing one of the two remaining pillows to her.

Parker snorts softly, "Alohamora, duh."

"Right," Eliot says, "Guess there's no point in locking the door. Why didn't you just apparate in?"

"Where's the fun in that?" Parker asks, staring up at nothing in particular.

Eliot shakes his head and closes his eyes again. "Something wrong with you," he mutters as he settles into his nap. He knows half his stuff will be missing or rearranged by the time he wakes up, but it's Parker. She'll give it all back, eventually.

Parker just yawns and stretches, grabbing Eliot's wand from under the bed with one foot and swooshing the thrown comforter back up to the bed, settling it over them cozily.

"It will be fun," she whispers, but it falls on deaf ears as Eliot is already sound asleep. Grinning, she turns to face the window, watching the sun set as she falls asleep.

"Professor Ford?" a sweet voice calls out over the crowd of seniors milling in the airport terminal.

"Yes, miss Martin?" Nathan Ford peers out into the crowd, trying to focus on the slight girl.

Aimee smiles, "Why are we taking an airplane? Wouldn't it just be easier to all use a portkey or apparate there?"

"Now, Aimee," Professor Deveraux answers for Nathan, "We've discussed this. There is no apparating allowed inside Hogwart's walls. And England isn't quite as… lax with their magic standards as America is. An airplane is the most logical and safe way."

"What are you, scared of flying?" a girl's mocking voice sounds from the back of the crowd.

Aimee cringes and flushes red, ducking away from the mean comment, unknowingly walking right into Eliot, who's appeared out of nowhere in that way of his that magic can't explain.

"Shut your mouth, Callie, I'm warning you!" he calls out to the laughing redhead.

She just grins sweetly back, "You gonna hit a girl, Spencer?"

Aimee moves faster than Eliot can stop her and is in the girl's face just as fast. "He might not," she replies, "But I sure as hell will."

Callie looks shocked and takes a step back as Aimee moves towards her. She never gets the chance to go through on her threat, as Eliot scoops her away with an arm around her waist, pulling her back to the front of the group.

"She ain't worth it," he mutters to her, rolling his eyes as she struggles, "You know you can't get out of this, just relax."

"You don't have to fight my battles, cowboy," Aimee damn near sneers at him as he finally releases her, "You lost that right last summer. You broke up with me, remember?"

"Aimee…" Eliot starts but is cut off by Parker appearing at Aimee's side, looking concerned.

"You ok?" she asks the other girl, glaring slightly at Eliot.

"I didn't do anything!" Eliot raises his hands in defense.

Aimee shrugs grudgingly as she answers Parker, "He was just trying to help… this time."

Parker just narrows her eyes and loops her arm through Aimee's.

"Ok, kid's, we're boarding!" Professor Ford calls out loudly, "Let's go!"

Hardison pops up next to Eliot just as they begin to move, nodding sleepily to his three classmates.

"You're really abusing that apparating thing, you know," Eliot laughs as Hardison makes sure none of his appendages or possessions has splinched off.

"You're just jealous of my awesome awesomeness," Hardison grins back, clapping Eliot on the shoulder as they make their way.

"I bet they're all wankers," Ron mutters as he, Hermione and Harry watch the boats full of foreigners pull up to the castle.

Hermione sighs, "That's no way to talk about visitors, Ronald. I'm sure they're perfectly nice people. What do you think, Harry?"

Harry thinks for a moment, before answering, "Can't be worse than Malfoy."

"Good point," Ron concedes, "But I still bet they're wankers."

The others just roll their eyes.

"Wow, this place is amazing," Hardison stares in awe as they're ushered into the great hall. Parker nods in agreement, taking in the enchanted ceiling.

Eliot scoffs, "Y'all act like you've never seen magic before."

"Leverage Academy doesn't have any halls like this, man, you gotta admit that," Hardison counters.

"Maybe," Eliot allows with a scowl, "But at least we don't have to wear stupid uniforms… or robes. Are they really wearing robes?" He pauses to glare at a group of kids who can't be older than eleven who are looking at them in fascination.

"Don't scare the children," Parker admonishes, but she can't help giggling at the terrified looks the kids send them as they scurry away. "I wonder how tall the ceiling is," she murmurs to herself a moment later, silent assessing the logistics of scaling the walls.

A strange sensation sweeps over the crowd as a tall blonde girl approaches the group. Eliot is immediately as enthralled. He catches his breath as the girl stops to stand in front of him, offering a small smile. She's devastatingly beautiful.

"Hello," she says in an accent Eliot assumes is French.

"Hi," he manages to say back, unused to stumbling over his own words. With a nudge from Parker, he continues, "I'm Eliot, this here's Hardison and Parker. We're uh, we're from America."

The girl laughs slightly at his flustered introduction before responding, "I am Fleur Delacour. We are from Beauxbatons Academy." She pauses with a smirk, "That is in France."

Eliot flushes a deep red at her teasing, sighing with relief as Parker moves to stand in front of him, smiling up at the taller girl with an expression that would look innocent on anybody else.

"Why are you guys here?" she asks, "We're just visiting."

Fleur looks perplexed, "Surely you know about the Triwizard Tournament? We've come to compete. In fact, the last event is coming up. "

"America doesn't participate in this particular competition," Professor Ford inserts himself smoothly into the conversation, ever so gently pulling Parker away from the confused French girl.

"Just as well," Fleur smiles her own sickeningly sweet grin at Parker, "I doubt any of you have what it takes to win." With that she glides back to her table, fully aware that at least half the crowd is watching her sway.

Before Parker can retaliate there is a loud single clap in the air and they all turn to the sound. A tall silver haired wizard with kind eyes is regarding the room, clearly ready to speak.

"Albus Dumbledore," Eliot whispers to Parker as she pulls them back to stand with Hardison. She chuckles at the awe in Eliot's voice. Casting one last narrowed eyed glance at Fleur, Parker takes her seat at the table designated for them, securely between Eliot and Hardison.

"Greetings," Dumbledore's great voice carries easily over the whispers of the crowd. "Today we welcome visitors from an American school. All last years, it appears. I'll keep this brief. These students will sit in on some of your classes, and watch the exciting last event of the Triwizard Tournament. And of course, they will be welcomed at the upcoming Yule Ball. I trust that Hogwarts, Beaubaxton and Durmstrang students alike will make their stay a pleasant one."

He pauses to take in the room's reaction, noting the sudden silence. "And now," he gestures grandly, smiling, "We eat."

The room is suddenly filled with delicious aromas as food appears on the tables, and the noise levels return to normal as everyone settles in and eats.

"Dude!" Hardison suddenly whispers harshly to Eliot, "Look! It's Harry Potter!"

Eliot rolls his eyes for what feels like the millionth time, "So what? Man, he's just a kid with a scar. I got scars too."

"Why you gotta hate?" Hardison asks, "That's not just any scar. Don't tell me you don't know the story of Harry Potter just like the rest of us."

"I know the story, Hardison," Eliot growls around a mouth full of potatoes, "I. just. don't. care."

"Cold, man, cold," Hardison shakes his head.

"Eliot's just grumpy cause he has lots of pent up sexual energy," Parker informs them both, matter of factly. "He needs to get laid." She scrunches her nose, "I bet that French whore puts out quickly."

"Parker!" Hardison exclaims. "Honestly, what am I gonna do with you people? Can't take you nowhere."

"Whatever," Parker replies, sticking out her tongue. "I'm not wrong about Eliot at least. Plus, that Harry Potter kid is kind of adorable. Look at him in his little glasses." She pauses for a moment then squeals in delight as her gaze lands on a particular dish. "Look, fortune cookies!"

Hardison looks up, surprised to find stars twinkling above him. He sends a quick whisper of "Nana, help me not to kill these two," before focusing intently back on his dinner.

They're dismissed to bed when dinner is over and Parker stops her walk suddenly, startling Hardison and Eliot beside her.

"What is it?" Hardison asks, looking concerned.

"It's just…" she hedges, looking down. Luckily, they've had years of Parker speak and can pick up what she's not saying.

"How long has it been since you've slept in your own bed?" Hardison asks quietly. "I mean, I know you sleep at my house at least three times a week."

"And she's at mine the other nights," Eliot supplies.

Parker laughs bitterly, "You guys make me sound like some kind of slut."

"Hey," Hardison says, suddenly serious, "We'd never say that. We're just worried about you. We're your best friends, girl, we can do that."

Parker sighs, "I know. It's been…months. Ever since…"

"He's in jail now, Parker. He can't hurt you again. And if he ever gets out and tries, I'll fucking kill him myself. You know that." Eliot is madder than Parker's seen him in a long time, she can practically feel the heat from his skin.

"It's just, " she drops her voice again to avoid the curious glances of the surrounding students, "She won't even look at me. I swear she thinks it was my fault! Like I wanted him to…" She bites her lip again, harder this time, to stave off the tears.

"No offense, Parker," Hardison says, "But your mother is a damn fool. Her daughter, her only daughter, was attacked, almost raped by her goddamn boyfriend, and she has the audacity to think it was your fault? That is just plain fucked up."

Parker smiles up at him with watery eyes, "I know. But it's still good to know that you guys believe me."

"Course we believe you girl," Hardison says, hugging her close, "Like I said, best friends."

Eliot nods in silent agreement.

"I don't think I can sleep alone," Parker admits, "But I know they won't let me go anywhere. The dorms are completely gender segregated. I mean, I think Aimee would let me sleep with her, but she doesn't know about any of that, and she doesn't need to know I'm a freak."

Hardison grins suddenly as his eyes light up with an idea. A fan-fuckin-tastic idea, if he does say so himself. Eliot and Parker give him identical wary looks. This cannot end well.

"No," he replies to their silent protest, "Listen. You're gonna love this. Trust me."

The others exchange equally worried looks. Nope, no way it can end well.

"You cannot be serious," Eliot says to Hardison as the three of them make their way to the visitors common room.

Parker grins widely, "It's an awesome idea."

"You're going to get caught," Eliot says, matter of factly.

"I never get caught," Parker shoots back.

Eliot just sighs, "Goddamn juvenile delinquent." But they can clearly see the amusement in his eyes.

"I'm seventeen!" Parker protests, "I'm a goddamn adult delinquent!"

Hardison can't help but giggle at that. Only Parker would choose the term juvenile as the part of that sentence to be offended by.

"The key here is speed," he tells her as they reach the stairs to the dorms. "Get in and get out. And if they see you… flash them. They're fourteen year old boys; they'll be too distracted to ask questions."

Eliot snorts even as he's nodding in agreement.

"I'll be back in no time," Parker says, and then she's gone.

Eliot hears the soft click of his and Hardison's dorm room door opening nearly an hour later. Hardison has long since passed out on his own bed, long limbs spread out every which way. Eliot peers out into the darkness of the room, laughing when he realized he can't see Parker at all.

"You actually did it." He laughs again in slight disbelief.

Parker's voice is slightly muffled but her satisfied tone comes through clearly, "Easy peasy. Had it in under five minutes. They never saw me."

Eliot feels her come to sit on the bed by his feet, hears the steady thump of her own feet kicking against the bed frame. "What took so long then?" he asks.

His eyes have finally adjusted and he sees a ripple of movement and then a pool of silvery fabric falling around Parker before she's visible at last. She's grinning fiercely as she answers.

"This thing is awesome! I had to explore! But then the staircases kept switching and it took me forever to get back here."

Eliot just shakes his head before moving to make space for the little thief. She crawls up beside them, pulling the silvery cloth with her and draping it across Eliot's chest before resting her head on his shoulder.

Eliot cringes when he looks down at his seemingly invisible chest.

"Fucking creepy," he tells her, but she pays him no mind.

A moment later he can't help the laugh that bursts from him as the situation fully processes in his head.

"I can't believe you actually stole Harry Potter's invisibility cloak," he says, choking on silent laughter.

Parker doesn't say anything, but he can feel the twitch of a smile on her lips against shoulder, and it's enough to put his mind at rest for the night.

"Ron, have you seen my invisibility cloak?" Harry asks, scrimmaging through his trunk in vain.

"Huh?" Ron asks sleepily. He's not a morning person.

Harry sighs, "Never mind, I'm sure it'll turn up."

A soft pop sounds from Seamus's bed, followed by the smell of smoke and the sound of muffled cursing from somewhere under the blanket.

"Seamus trying to turn water into wine again?" Neville asks from his bed, eyes still firmly closed against the morning light.

"Apparently," Harry responds, rubbing his scar out of habit against the oncoming headache. "Guess it caught on fire again."

It's silent for a long moment as the boys try and wake up.

"Is someone making toast?" Ron asks, sniffing as he finally sits up.

"Where'd Eliot go?" Parker asks Hardison the next day as they walk down the streets of Hogsmead village.

"Hell if I know," Hardison shrugs, too enthralled with taking in the sights.

"Ooh, look! A candy shop!" Parker calls out, already running.

Hardison laughs and runs to catch up with his easily distracted friend. A second later he hears an 'oof' and the collision of solid bodies. He skids to a stop a second before joining the pile up. To his amusement, Parker is on the ground, tangled up in a mess of limbs with Harry Potter and his redheaded friend.

"Sorry!" Parker exclaims as she gets back up, pulling the boys with her. She busies herself dusting off their jackets and patting down their mussed up hair. The boys stand stock still with embarrassment.

Hardison finally takes pity on them and pulls Parker back, stopping her fretting hands.

"They're fine. Stop petting them!" he tells her.

Parker stops, dropping her arms to her sides. Instead she smiles at them.

"I'm Parker," she says by way of introduction, "And this is Hardison."

The redheaded one only looks up at her with a slightly awed expression but Harry manages to speak.

"I'm Harry. This is Ron. He's…shy." Harry wanted to say 'functionally retarded sometimes' instead of 'shy' but he figured that wasn't very nice.

"Hi, Ron," Parker says to the blushing boy, holding back a giggle as he only blushes further.

Ron mutters something that only Harry can hear and Harry casts Hardison and Parker an apologetic glance before following his quickly retreating friend down the road.

Hardison watches them go before laughing outright. "Awww," he says, "Someone's got a little crush on Parker."

Parker laughs as she smacks his arm, "I'll have you know I'm very crush-worthy."

"True," Hardison agrees before he can stop himself. He backpeddles quickly as he notes the shocked expression on Parker's face, "Not that I want your crazy ass, or anything. I'm just saying you got some nice qualities and shit and whatever, let's go buy some magic British candy already."

Parker just stares for a long moment before rolling her eyes and turning to walk to the store, this time at a much more reasonable speed.

Hardison watches her walk covertly before following a step behind. That was entirely too close.

"Eliot." Her voice sounds tired. They've done this before.

"We need to talk."

"You should've gone to Hogsmeade."

"I could say the same for you."

"Why didn't you?" She's impatient now and it shows, volume rising as she moves closer.

"Why didn't you?" He's no louder but suddenly a lot closer.

"You snuck into my bedroom and you wanna ask me why I didn't go on some fieldtrip?" She's only inches away now, chest heaving with anger.

"Aimee…" he warns and begs her all at once with the word, fingers twitching with the urge to touch.

She closes the distance between them, "Just shut up and kiss me, ok?"

And he does.

Parker knows she shouldn't have wandered away from Hardison and the others. She knows she shouldn't have found her way into a creepy looking magic antique store of sorts. She really knows that she should have turned right back around when her gut twitched with that uncomfortable feeling of being watched. She knows all of this. In theory. But it's the in practice part of life that she's always had trouble with. Her morbid curiosity of such a gloomy shop in the lively Hogsmeade wins out and she plants her feet firmly on the ground and waits for her watcher to show himself.

Parker's slightly surprised to see the person who moves into view is a woman. A strangely beautiful woman with wild eyes and jet black hair. The strange woman moves with grace not unlike a snake, perfectly controlled poison. Parker takes an involuntary step back, suddenly wishing she hadn't wandered off after all.

"Don't be afraid," The woman speaks at last, her tongue coming out to snake between her teeth as she eyes Parker, very much like a vulture eyes its prey. "I'm not going to hurt you."

This doesn't reassure Parker one bit, but she holds her ground, refusing to run. The woman looks vaguely familiar, but she can't place her.

And then the woman smiles, something sinister and falsely sweet, and it all clicks into place.

"You're Bellatrix Lestrange!" Parker squeaks out, willing her feet to move. They don't listen.

Bellatrix moves closer, "So they tell me." She pauses to size Parker up, grinning appreciatively. "You've got great potential for mayhem, I can tell. All that magic, it hums under your skin. I can hear it."

"Thank you?" Parker replies, finally realizing that the woman must have charmed her still. She literally can't move. Her wand burns against her thigh but she can't even reach for it.

"You should thank me!" Bellatrix moves even closer, "I could have killed you by now."

"Thank you," Parker says again, desperately trying to think of a way out of this.

"It wouldn't be quick, either," Bellatrix continues, moving impossibly closer to circle Parker slowly. Parker has the maddening thought that the woman clearly has no sense of personal space, but figures that's not her biggest problem at the moment.

Bellatrix stops to stand in front of Parker, bringing her wand up to trace the skin right below her collar bone. "I'd take my time… make you twitch and writhe and bleed. You would be begging me to kill you by the end, I assure you."

"I believe you," Parker says quickly, wincing as Bellatrix pulls the wand hard across her skin, leaving an angry red mark in its wake.

"I…" Bellatrix begins but a rush of oncoming voices cuts her off. She peers outside quickly before turning to grin again at Parker.

"Maybe another time, then," she says, as if apologizing.

The next second Parker is free to move again and Bellatrix is gone. A moment later Hardison is in the store beside her.

"There you are!" he says, "Been looking everywhere for you, girl. Damn."

Parker can't even talk. She just throws herself at him, wrapping him in the tightest hug she's ever given.

He strokes her hair, "Ok then. Missed you too I guess."

Parker laughs in relief as she replies, "You don't even know."

Hardison and Parker find Eliot sprawled out across a chair in the common room with a lazy smile across his face. They're instantly concerned.

"Hey, El." Hardison greets, going to sit on the couch across from him. Parker follows suit and sits beside him.

Eliot grins over at them, "Hey, guys. How was the fieldtrip?"

Parker just tilts her head, somewhat like a small dog, and stares at him. Finally, her eyes go wide and she bounces in place as she figures it out.

"You had SEX!" she yells out the last word loud enough that Hardison groans and drops his face into his hands. He hears the giggles from the fifth year girls he knows are sitting on the stairwell, and groans again.

"Parker, we talked about indoor voices and outdoor voices. That was most definitely an outdoor voice."

Parker just ignores him and continues to stare at Eliot, who hasn't said a thing yet.

He laughs, "She ain't wrong. And that's all I'm saying."

Parker bounces again in glee, whispering to Hardison, "I TOLD you so!"

Hardison just shakes his head, "Now that you could've used a regular voice for."

"Hey Parker," Eliot interrupts any reply she might give Hardison, "You think I can borrow that cloak tonight? Got someplace to be."

"I guess so," Parker shrugs, "Not really mine anyway. But won't whoever this mystery girl's roommate is have a problem with you just…holy crap it's Aimee."

"Huh?" That snaps Hardison back to attention, "How do you know it's Aimee?"

"Because," Parker rolls her eyes, "I'm her roommate. And since Eliot knows that I always spend the night in your room anyway, I wouldn't care if he and Aimee were sexing it up."

"Sexing it up? Seriously?" Hardison laughs, "I need new friends."

"Pfft, Whatever," Eliot drawls, stretching out some more."

"You know you love us," Parker adds, petting Hardison's head like he was a small child.

"Yeah, yeah," he replies, before sitting up straighter suddenly. "Hey, Parker, wanna come to this Yule Ball with me? Please? I don't want to go alone."

"I thought I was going with you," Parker replies, looking perplexed, "We always go together."

"Right," Hardison fidgets, "I was just… making sure."

Eliot snorts in amusement from his chair, but Hardison continues to ignore him.

"We'll be the best ones there," Parker grins, knocking her shoulder against Hardison's.

"I'm sure," he replies, but he still sounds dazed.

Parker walks down the long hallway to the entrance of the Ball, fidgeting with her dress. She knows the others are already there, waiting for her, but she can't make her feet move any faster. She's so deep in her thoughts that she nearly walks into a young girl in a periwinkle dress.

"Sorry," she says quickly, wondering how she became such a klutz since coming to England.

"My fault," the girls replies, smiling up at her, "Nervous?"

"A little," Parker admits, "I'm Parker by the way."

"Hermione," the girl introduces herself, reaching out to shake Parker's hand.

Parker accepts it after a second, shaking quickly. "You look really nice," she compliments Hermione truthfully.

Hermione blushes, "Thanks. You do too. But you should go on inside, I'm sure your friends are waiting."

"Come in with me," Parker offers, titling her head toward the stairs.

Hermione hedges back, "I need a few more minutes. There's this guy and well, this other guy, and it's all a little complicated."

Parker nods in sympathy before taking a deep breath. "I'll see you in there," she calls out to Hermione as she walks away. Hermione give her a half hearted wave before resuming her restless pacing across the hall.

Hardison doesn't see her until she's right beside him, but he's not surprised. The girl can move like a cat when she wants to. He expects it. What he doesn't expect is the version of Parker that he finds himself faced with.

"Parker," he blurts out in surprise, "You look… damn girl, you look beautiful."

She fidgets a little in response, tugging at the neckline of the soft pink dress, "Thanks. Professor Deveraux caught me coming out of my room in my black dress and wouldn't let me leave until she made it… this."

"I love magic," Hardison says, taking in the way the flowy material somehow hugs her every curve but still manages to look innocent. He laughs loudly in surprise as his gaze falls to her feet.

"Are you really wearing sneakers?" he asks, seeing the laces peeking out from under the long dress.

"The fancy shoes hurt my feet. They were very impractical," Parker defends, "This way I can dance with you a lot longer."

Hardison can't help the happy grin that spreads across his face, "Sneakers are good. I like sneakers."

"Then let's dance," Parker responds, grabbing his hand to pull him to the dance floor.

The room is beyond magnificently decorated; the entire place seems to sparkle and shine. Parker feels slightly like she's trapped in a disco ball for a moment, but then Hardison spins her around like some old fashioned movie and she laughs so hard her tension dissolves.

They finally see Eliot and Aimee after an hour or so; the pair is pressed tight together, slow dancing even though the music is upbeat and loud. Aimee's dress is soft and flowy too, but in a pretty shade of blue that falls just to her knees.

"They're sweet," Parker says to Hardison as they stop jumping around to breathe.

Hardison laughs, "You know Eliot's just waiting for the first chance to back her into some dark corner."

Parker watches as Aimee's hand dips down to skim behind Eliot's jacket, "I think she might cave first, actually."

Hardison laughs again, "You might be right."

They watch as Aimee leans in to whisper something in Eliot's ear before grabbing his hand as they make their way to the exit.

The music transforms smoothly into a soft slow song that quiets the room considerably.

"We could go get a drink," Hardison offers, gesturing to the refreshment table.

"I wanna dance," Parker insists, wrapping her arms around Hardison's neck.

He brings his hands to her waist automatically, willing himself to breathe normally, even as Parker actually rests her head on his shoulder as they sway.

"You're killing me, girl," he whispers to himself.

Parker murmurs, "Hmm?"

"Nothing," Hardison replies, and if he hold her a little too tightly, it's just to keep his hands from shaking.

Harry is tired. Very very tired. And stressed. He has the final tournament event looming over his shoulder, two very angry best friends sticking him in the middle of his problems, an ever present fear of a certain Lord Voldemort making a bloody comeback, and to top it all off, his feet hurt. Which is why he's walking across the campus, back to his waiting bed.

The night is dark and silent, carriages lined up in rows as he walks by them. A soft giggle catches his attention as he makes his way, and Harry finds himself stopping to see where it came from. He pauses beside a carriage he swears he just saw move. But it's impossible, the carriages are empty. The he hears a girl's voice and it sounds like she's calling out a name. He cocks his head, trying to distinguish the name.

'Eliot.' The girl is clearly saying Eliot, whoever that is. Then the same voice gasps loudly and Harry moves out of instinct, the girl could be in trouble.

Harry pulls out his wand, keeping it at the ready as he moves closer. He jumps back suddenly when the giggle repeats itself, followed by a much deeper chuckle. And then the carriage starts rocking, and the laughter he hears turns into gasps of an entirely different kind.

Harry backs up quickly, casting one last amused and slightly horrified look at the shaking carriage, before rushing back to his room.

There are so many students milling around between the Ball and the dorm rooms, that nobody even stops Parker from inconspicuously following Hardison into his and Eliot's room.

They walk in and Hardison immediately falls to his bed, exhausted. But he's awake and watching Parker curiously. She's just standing there.

"I guess Eliot won't care that I take his bed again," she shrugs, but her tone is off. Hardison knows he should know something, but he's damned if it's getting through. He's saved from replying though, by the sudden ripple of Parker's dress as it begins wriggling against her.

"What's going on with your dress?" he asks, causing Parker to look down in confusion.

"Oh." Before their eyes, the flowy pink material transforms into a plain black dress with white trim, leaving Parker looking more like her normal self.

She shrugs again, "Professor Deveraux said the charm would wear off after a few hours. I guess time's up."

"Cinderella," Hardison smiles, "At least you didn't lose your glass slipper."

Parker laughs at his silliness, feeling better. He can always make her feel better. She stares at Hardison with a calculating expression. And then everything makes sense. Hardison loves her. Holy hell, Hardison loves her. Like, loves her loves her. Like, more than best friends loves her. Like, is in LOVE with her loves her.

Unsurprisingly, she freaks out. Luckily, she does so imperceptibly, all in her head.

"Do you have anything I can sleep in?" she asks, pushing her thoughts down deep, "I don't want to go all the way back to my room."

Hardison waves in the general vicinity of his wardrobe, already falling asleep, "Pick whatever. Got some sweats at least."

Parker takes her time choosing before making sure Hardison is soundly asleep. She shuts off the lights and changes in the dark before slipping into Eliot's bed, trying to get comfortable.

She lays for a long time, staring up at the ceiling. Hardison's steady breathing is soothing, and she finds she wants nothing more than to burrow herself in the sound, but she can't. Not yet.

Hardison is in love with her. And she has no idea what to do about it.

Professor Severus Snape is the potions master at Hogwarts, and Eliot, Hardison and Parker immediately dislike him. Professor Ford is a much better potions teacher, as far as they're concerned, even if he does show up to class hung over sometimes. But Professor Ford assures his students that Severus Snape is the best, and they know they can't get out of sitting in during his class.

They're sitting in on the fourth year's class, as Parker's spotting of Ron and Harry at one of the tables indicates. She also notices Hermione sitting beside a blonde girl with a dazed look on her face. Hermione gives her a small wave before focusing intently back on the lecture.

Twenty minutes in and Parker is falling asleep on Hardison's shoulder, jerking awake ever time he nudges her, hissing about respect and failing. She mumbles that they can't fail a class they aren't actually enrolled in, but sits up anyway. She casts a glance to Eliot and Aimee, who are sitting at the desk beside them. Aimee's face is flushed red and she's biting her lip as she takes notes. Eliot is scrawling across paper with one hand. The other hand is hidden under the table, and his smirk tells Parker all she needs to know. She nudges Hardison to look and he mouths 'seriously?' at them before focusing back on pretending to listen.

"Yes, Miss Granger. What is it this time?" Snape asks dryly, with clear disdain for the girl.

"Well it's just that on page 483 of Hogwarts: A History…" Parker loses track of the rest of Hermione's speech as she notices an evil looking blonde boy mimicking Hermione from behind her back. She narrows her eyes in anger as she pulls out her wand discreetly.

Muttering a soft curse below her breath, she point the wand at the blonde boy, grinning in satisfaction as the immediately jumps up and starts scratching furiously at his shirt and chest. The class erupts into laughter at the sight but is quickly silenced by Snape calling for order.

"What is it Draco?" he asks, looking slightly less annoyed than he looked with Hermione. Parker figures this is his "caring" face.

"Sooo itchy!" Draco shouts before running from the room, still scratching.

Snape watches him go with an expressionless face before picking up his book and continuing his lecture.

Parker grins. Serves him right.

They don't find out the details of what happens until they're on the plane home. All they know is that something went wrong at the final tournament event and they are promptly sent home. The hushed whispers of professors and students alike is enough to tell them that whatever happened was bad. Really bad.

"It was Vol… he who must not be named," a tiny blonde boy with a camera around his neck tells them in a rushed whisper as they're walking back to the boats. And then he's gone and they're left with unanswered questions.

They have the plane to themselves, which is more than enough to tell them how serious the situation really is. Professor Ford calls their attention and they listen intently.

His speech is brief, but it resonates. "Voldemort is back. England is no longer safe. We needed to leave."

Shocked gasps fill the crowd. Some from the news and some from hearing Voldemort's name said out loud. But then, Nathan Ford was a powerful wizard in his own right. He feared very little.

"We'll be safe at home, for the time being," Professor Deveraux adds, coming to stand beside Professor Ford. "We just thought you all deserved to know what was going on."

She ends her speech and goes back to her seat, Professor Ford following a moment later. Gradually the noise level rises again as the students talk about the situation at hand.

"Those poor kids," Parker whispers, mostly to herself.

Hardison squeezes her hand reassuringly, "They're tough, they'll be ok."

She believes him.

Parker's mother is waiting for them at the airport, looking worried. Parker honestly doesn't know how to react to this, she wasn't expecting it, that's for sure.

Squaring her shoulders, she makes her way to the shorter woman, Eliot and Hardison a reassuring few steps behind her.

She doesn't get a word out before she's pulled into a tight hug by her mother. She goes rigid for a moment before forcing herself to relax and hug the woman back.

"I was so worried!" her mother exclaims, "All the rumors about what happened, and I couldn't even get an owl to you, never mind a phone call!"

Parker fidgets slightly, "I'm fine. We're all fine."

Her mother steps back, "I can see that, baby, and I'm so grateful."

Parker doesn't know what to say, so she stays silent.

"And I'm sorry," her mother continues quietly, staring at the ground.

"Huh?" Parker says, incapable of higher communication at the moment. Her mother just apologized, it's never happened before.

"I should have believed you, about everything," she says, looking up at Parker with wet eyes. "You're the most important thing to me, I love you. And I know I should be a better mother, and I… I just should've believed you."

Parker is silent still, but this time because her throat closes as she holds back a sob. Instead she pulls her mother into another hug, squeezing her tightly.

She knows that not everything is resolved, and that they have some major issues to deal with, but right now all she hears is that her mother loves her, and it's enough.

The first day back at school is jarring. Everything looks so… ordinary. They find that they don't mind so much. Maybe the rustic charm of the Leverage Academy isn't as majestic as the huge castle of Hogwarts, but it's theirs, and it's where they belong.

"It's good to be home," Eliot comments as they make their way to their first class. His arm is slung around Aimee's waist, and Parker can't help but smile at the two of them. She's happy for her friends.

"It really is," Parker agrees, "Oooh, we get cake today at lunch!"

The others laugh kindly at their eccentric friend, but she knows they all want cake too. Cake is awesome. Parker knows this for a fact.

"You love me." Hardison looks up from his textbook in surprise as Parker appears in his bedroom. Damn apparition. He's gotten used to not being able to use it.

"What?" he asks. He couldn't have heard her right.

"You love me," she repeats. It's not a question.

"I do," he admits, standing to meet her in the middle of the room, inches away.

"Good," she says, smiling, "I didn't want to love you back if you changed your mind."

He laughs, he can't help it. "I couldn't, even if I wanted to."

"Good," she says again. And then she's kissing him and it's awkward as hell at first because he's kissing his best friend goddammit, and there's no way it can't be awkward. But then she does something with her tongue he's never even seen before and Hardison forces his rambling brain to shut up.

"Shouldn't we talk about this a little?" he asks when they stop to breathe.

Parker considers, "I was thinking we should just get naked instead."

"That works too." Hardison fights the urge to pinch himself.

Parker smiles as her hands move to the button of her jeans, "Yeah, I thought so."

The End.