Family Planning

Chapter Seven: Put Your Hearts Up

Here's another chapter! I'm really happy now, because someone on FF.net just offered to translate this into french, which, I obviously accepted! I'm not sure when the translated version will be up, but I'll let you guys know when it is!

“Shhhhh....” James whispered to his friends as they tip-toed down the back staircase that led to the kitchen.

“Are you sure that this is going to work?” Natalya asked, whispering from the middle of the line that they had formed.

The line that they formed consisted of James in the front, Natalya in the middle, and Jacob in the back. The back staircase was painted in dark shades of blue and black, and scared the trio, since it was quite different from the inviting interior of the rest of the house.

“I’m positive.” James whispered again to his friends.

A few moments later they heard the laugh’s coming from the kitchen, apparently the seventh years were laughing over a memory from a previous school year, where Fred and George had interrupted the O.W.L’s with a massive display of fireworks and sent a giant dragon themed firework after Umbridge.

“Lea, go distract our mommy’s and daddy’s.” Jacob asked his sister quietly.

“My name not Lea,” Natalya whispered, confused.

“It a nickname! Just like how mine’s is Jake yours is Lea.” Jacob explained.

“Okay!” Natalya exclaimed then slipped out of the staircase and into the kitchen.

“Daddy!” Natalya shouted at her father as she ran into the room and jumped into her father’s lap.

“Yes, Lea?” Draco answered patiently, ruffling his daughter’s hair affectionately.

“I found something in the front room and it looked scary!” Natalya whimpered, forcing tears to her eyes to make her fear look real.

“Well, let’s go check this out then.” Draco said, worried that something might actually be there; apparently Natalya’s acting skills were superior.

“I want Mommy and Aunty Pansy and Uncle Harry to come too!” Natalya exclaimed, hoping to get all the adults out of the kitchen.

“Okay.” Draco said slowly, confused with his daughter’s need for every adult to be there.

“Now let’s go!” Natalya said, letting her father pick her up and take her to the front room were the supposed creature was.

As the adults crept silently towards the front room, all wands drawn, all while two thirds of the mini marauders tip-toed into the kitchen, and slipped a single Puking Pastille into each of the teenager’s drinks, then slipped out of the kitchen and up the back staircase.

The group returned only a few moments later with Natalya explaining that she was sure that something was there and that it had probably just disappeared.

When Draco put her down Lea ran up the stairs and walked down the hall to the entrance of the back staircase, where she met the boys at the bottom of the staircase. The group sat there silently looking at their parents and waiting for results.

“I guess she was just seeing things.” Draco said to Hermione, who was slightly agitated from the scene a few moments ago.

“I guess she was.” Hermione sighed.

Then coincidently, each parent drank from their cup of tea at the same time. A few moments later the ‘results’ of the trio’s prank showed.

“I don’t feel too good...” Pansy muttered, before running to the bathroom and promptly began to puke her guts out.

Less than ten seconds later, each teen in the room were out of the room and doing the same in different bathrooms.

The trio had retreated to James room and were laughing at their parents’ reaction to their prank.

“Are you sure they won’t be mad at us?” Natalya asked, wringing her hands nervously.

“No! We all too cute and lovable for that! Our parents won’t even think of grounding us if we start crying, we all know that!” James exclaimed; he sounded hurt that someone would even think of punishing any one of them.

“Okay...” Natalya replied, though she was still nervous.

For half an hour, the teens sat wherever they were in the house and continued to retch up anything that was in their stomachs, until Hermione found the purple pieces of candy that would cure the vomiting caused by the puking pastilles.

“Thank god that’s over!” Pansy said, a few minutes after Hermione had given her the antidote.

The group was sitting in the kitchen and were trying to figure out who had put the puking pastilles in their drinks.

“I know!” Hermione suddenly exclaimed.

“Who did it?” Harry asked warily.

“No, but I think I know how to find out.” Hermione started, “I know a spell that can tell you who have been in a specific room within a certain time period.”

“Do it then!” The other parents shouted at her.

“Okay then!” Hermione said, “Geez, need to be so rude.” She mumbled under her breath, then muttered a spell under breath.

A few moments after, different coloured footprints sprouted up all over the room with a legend in front of Hermione that told which colour belonged to whom.

“Okay. All our footprints are here along with Lea’s and... James and Jacob?” Hermione said, starting off normally then ending quizzically.

“James and Jacob did this?” Pansy said, confused.

“I told you that they were the next generation of the Marauders”. Harry said, before he leaned back in his chair with his arms behind his head.

Each person shot a look at Harry, before deciding to call the kids down.

“James! Jacob! Natalya!” Draco called loudly, and then waited for the kids to arrive.

Each child came downstairs and stood in front of Draco with identical looks of guilt on their faces, along with one of mischievousness on James and Jacob.

“Did you guys put Puking Pastilles in our drinks?” Draco asked, getting straight to the point.

 James and Jacob both opened their mouth to say something but Natalya interrupted, putting on an ‘I’m going to cry in three seconds’ façade.

“We didn’t mean to daddy, we just wanted to see what would happen...” Natalya said, with tears falling down her pale face, and her lower lip trembling.

Natalya was once again calling on her acting skills to convince her father that it was an accident.

Draco fell for the act within seconds, crouching down to her level he said, “Its okay Lea, you don’t have to cry, it was just an accident.” He hugged his daughter.

When he released her Natalya, Draco announced that it was time to leave; the family grabbed their cloaks and promptly left. Although, not before Natalya could send a wink in both her twin’s and friend’s way.

Oh, how good life was when you were adorable, cute and a Mini-Marauder. The trio thought, already planning their next prank.