Watching the Future

The Chamber of Secrets: Part 14

[The Christmas Feast. The Hall glimmers grandly as snowflakes tumble from the ceiling. Hazel and Ron sit with Hermione.]
Hermione: Everything's set. We just need a bit of who you're changing into.
Hazel: Crabbe and Goyle.

"That is going to be so gross, I can already guess that," Draco says shivering at the thought of drinking something that has something of Crabbe or Goyle in it.

Hermione: And we also need to make sure that the real Crabbe and Goyle can't burst in on us while we're interrogating Malfoy.
Ron: How?
[Hermione holds up a pair of small cakes.]

"Smart move, those two eat everything," Draco says with a nod.

Hermione: I've got it all worked out. I've filled these with a simple Sleeping Draught. Simple, but powerful.
[Ron glances at Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, who presently are eating everything in front of them.]

"That is so gross," Alice says looking away from the screen.

Hermione: You know how greedy Crabbe and Goyle are. They won't leave the Christmas Feast until every last drop of trifle is gone. Now, once they're asleep, hide them in a broom cupboard and pull out a few of their hairs.
Ron: And whose hair are you ripping out?

"Why do you need to know that?" James questions.

Hermione: I've already got mine. [She removes a small vial. Inside is a tiny hair.] Millicent Bulstrode. She's in Slytherin. I got this off her robes. (rising) All right then... I'm going to check on the Polyjuice Potion.

"Five galleons that something goes wrong and Hermione doesn't go with them," Regulus says and Barty nods his head to that.
"Deal."

[Hermione points to the cakes in front of her.]
Hermione: Remember. Just make sure Crabbe and Goyle find these.
[Hermione exits. Ron looks at Hazel.]
Ron: Have you ever heard of a plan where so many things could go wrong?

"Every single one of your plans," Remus says rolling his eyes.
"Hazel seemed really quiet during all that," Hermione mutters, "Why didn't we see it before?"

[Hazel and Ron, lurking behind a suit of armor, watch Crabbe and Goyle exit the Great Hall. Goyle spies the cakes instantly, perched on the end of one of the banisters. Grabbing them, he reluctantly surrenders one to Crabbe and, in unison, they stuff them into their mouths. They pause. Look at each other. And keel flat onto their backs.]

"I honestly can't believe they fell for that," Draco says putting his head in his hands.

[Hazel and Ron dash out, drag Crabbe and Goyle across the floor and into a cupboard.]

"How are you going to explain when they wake up in a cupboard?" Regulus asks the trio and all three of them shrug.
"We honestly didn't think of that," Ron says back.

[Hermione, wearing a Slytherin robe, hovers over a smoking cauldron. Hazel and Ron enter.]
Hermione: Did you get it?

"Straight to the point I guess," Peter says.

[Hazel and Ron hold up their hands. In each: a tuft of hair. Hermione points to a pair of Slytherin robes.]
Hermione: I sneaked those out of the laundry.

"Never thought I would see Hermione breaking more rules then we were already breaking to do this to be honest," Hazel says quietly but enough people heard her that they were nodding agreeing with her.

[Hazel and Ron nod, glance at the cauldron. The potion resembles a thick, dark, bubbling mud.]
Hermione: I'm sure I've done everything right. It looks like the book said it should. Once we've drunk it, we'll have exactly one hour before we change back into ourselves.