Harry sucked in a sharp breath.
Thinking back to that line he thought was just a hallucination—"Mum's finally stopped watching me"—and then realizing both of those girls had been brought here by Cohen… well, it all made sense now.
No wonder Hermione had said she hadn't heard anything…
No wonder Ron had complained that neither of them had said a word to him all day…
The only reason Harry had been able to hear them talk was because… he was a Parselmouth!
…
Ten minutes later, Cohen and Harry were sitting on the steps, side by side, watching the little Basilisk and Xisoko. The Basilisk was feasting at a newly conjured snack table, while Xisoko hovered nearby, making sure she didn't gobble up the packaging along with the food.
Ron, meanwhile, was sitting farther down the steps, still staring at Krum and Hermione.
As for the unicorn, it had wandered off in search of butterbeer—the only alcoholic drink the ball allowed for students.
"She's still full of energy," Cohen said with satisfaction.
"I talked to her all day!" Harry groaned, rubbing the red marks on his waist where Xisoko had pinched him. "You really should've told me earlier—"
"Well, I saw you were a bit down after Cho Chang turned you down, so I figured I'd set you up with a distraction for Christmas," Cohen patted him on the shoulder. "Oh, and if Xisoko tells you she's going back to her real body tonight and sneaking into your bed—don't worry, she's just messing with you. She's jealous you've managed to get along so well with the little Basilisk."
"Great. Thanks for the comforting thought. Please don't do it again," Harry said dryly. "Why does it have to be a snake…"
"Ah, species differences…" Cohen shook his head solemnly.
"But…" Harry glanced over at Ron, concern creeping into his voice, "Should we maybe not tell him? About his dance partner being a male Basilisk?"
"I thought he'd think it was cool," Cohen said, raising his eyebrows. "Didn't he say it was awesome that you had a Basilisk dad?"
"You're totally holding a grudge…" Harry sighed.
"But honestly, I doubt he even cares anymore—and I'm starting to suspect he actually wants Xisoko to go bite Krum," Cohen nodded toward Ron and the center of the dance floor. "He looks ready to duel him."
"Well, even if Hermione does end up with Krum, I don't think it's that big of a deal…" Harry said, still uneasy. "Should we go check on him?"
When they sat down beside Ron, he didn't even seem to notice.
"How are you holding up?" Harry asked gently, settling down to Ron's left.
Ron didn't respond—just glared at Hermione and Krum, who had stopped dancing and were now walking toward them, laughing softly.
"Hi, guys." Hermione walked up to them, cheeks flushed and footsteps light. Krum headed in the opposite direction—toward the drinks table, where the unicorn was now raiding the supply.
"Viktor's getting butterbeer," Hermione explained. "We'll need it if we go for a walk later—it's getting a bit breezy out."
"Viktor?" Ron said acidly. "He didn't ask you to call him Vikky, did he?"
"What's with you?" Hermione asked, feigning surprise.
"If you don't know, I'm not telling you," Ron snapped.
"I honestly don't think it's a big deal," Harry tried to reason quietly with Ron. "Hermione and Krum—"
"He's from Durmstrang, Harry!" Ron hissed. "He's your competition! He's obviously trying to get close to Hermione because… because…"
"He's got ulterior motives," Cohen nodded sagely. "Just like me hanging out with you lot—it's all for the glorious revival of Azkaban."
"That's different, Cohen!" Ron exploded. "Hermione's doing this—it's—it's…"
He searched furiously for a phrase dramatic enough to capture the betrayal.
"Consorting with the enemy! How could you, Hermione?!"
"What?! You've got some nerve!" Hermione shouted, furious now. "Who was it that got all giddy the moment he walked in? Who was dying for his autograph? Who chose Krum without hesitation when asked if he wanted a girlfriend or Viktor Krum?!"
"Uh oh, boomerang moment," Cohen muttered.
"Well, now everyone knows," Ron said, sulking.
"Herm-ee-own-ninny, the little girl with white hair drank all the butterbeer," Krum said as he returned, arms full of red glass bottles. "But I got spicy Fire Fizz instead—do you like spicy?"
"She never eats spicy," Ron muttered darkly.
"I do now," Hermione snapped. "Let's go, Viktor. Let's take a walk in the garden!"
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Krum, utterly baffled, had no idea what just happened—he'd half expected Harry to be the jealous one, but apparently it was this red-haired Hogwarts boy he didn't even know who seemed most upset.
Before leaving, Krum offered Harry and Cohen a smile, like he was thanking them for helping him score a date with Hermione—even though, in reality, neither of them had done a thing.
"Let's go for a walk too," Harry said, trying to figure out how to lift Ron's spirits.
"You think that's going to help?" Cohen whispered under his breath.
"I'm tired. Going to bed," Ron mumbled stiffly, ears red.
He left without looking back—luckily, Cohen had set him up with a fake date, so Xisoko wouldn't be upset at being ditched. In fact, she might be relieved to be free from the role of "dance partner."
"So what now…?" Harry asked.
"Let's go outside for a bit," Cohen said. "It's stuffy in here—though I should go check in with the two snakes before they start running around looking for me."
Right now, the castle was crawling with couples, secrets, and potential scandals—Rita Skeeter definitely wouldn't want to miss out on that. And Cohen, as it happened, was looking for her anyway—for a chat.
Before leaving the hall, Cohen tracked down the three big troublemakers, currently raiding every food source they could find.
[GET LOST!] Xisoko stood with her hands on her hips, scowling furiously at a Beauxbatons boy who'd tried to invite the little Basilisk to dance.
"…What is going on?" the Beauxbatons boy muttered, confused. One of the girls was devouring steak like she hadn't eaten in weeks, while the other was hissing like a venomous viper.
"They're saying they're not interested," Cohen translated helpfully.
The boy rolled his eyes and wandered off, muttering something in French about "sortir avec deux filles…" (asking out two girls at once…)
"You're starting to sound like one of those overprotective old dads," Cohen said to Xisoko.
[I won't let any human lay a finger on my daughter.] she snapped. [They're all up to no good—hey, slow down, don't choke again…]
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