Headmaster Dumbledore slowly rose from his seat in the middle of the head table and looked down with concern at the prone form of his potions master. "Remus, will you please take Professor Snape to Poppy? Tell her that I will be along shortly."
"Yes sir" Remus said as he carefully floated Snape out of the Great Hall, leaving behind a few bright pink feathers dancing slowly to the floor.
Dumbledore's wise eyes, for once not twinkling with humor, surveyed the still silent hall. He looked intently at Harry Potter, still frozen in shock next to Ron, and then on down the table toward Fred and George Weasley. "Fred and George Weasley, I would like to see you in my office immediately!" The twins paled noticeably under his regard.
"Harry, are you ok?" Hermione whispered. Harry, still frozen in shock, didn't appear to hear her.
"Harry!" Ron shouted, shaking his arm.
Harry's eyes slowly swam back into focus, and he blinked a bit uncomprehendingly at his friends. "Sorry, did you say something?"
"Harry, are you alright?" Hermione looked at him with concern.
"Sure, Hermione. I'm just fine with being told in front of the whole school that the most hated professor in the history of the school is my father! Just bloody GREAT!!!!!!" He ended on a shout.
"You can't possibly believe it's true! Harry, I've been listening to Fred and George all summer, and they make so many mistakes when they're inventing something that no one in the family will test anything for them anymore. I bet they screwed up somewhere." Ron said, trying to be consoling.
By this time, everyone in the hall seemed to be staring at Harry Potter, (Harry Snape?). "Uhm, why don't we just go back to the common room." Hermione suggested, gazing around the room at the attention they were attracting. Both boys, seeing what she was looking at, silently rose and headed for Gryffindor tower.
"Look, Harry, even if by some weird chance it was true, at least you wouldn't have to go back to the Dursleys." Ron said trying to cheer Harry up.
"Yeah, but look who I'd have to stay with instead. It'd be like detention every night for the whole summer!" Harry moaned as they reached the Fat Lady. She smiled at him in commiseration saying "You know how those Weasley twins are, Harry dear, don't believe it until one of the teachers tells you it's true."
"Thanks" he muttered, and then gave the password "floating fairy dust".
"Look, Harry" Hermione started to say as they headed for their normal seats by the fire.
"Hermione, I don't want to talk about it. I think I'll just go up to bed." With that he wandered slowly up the stairs to the boys dorm and threw himself on his bed.
Ron and Hermione sat in silence before the fire considering the events of the evening. "It just can't be true Hermione. Harry's too nice to be that mean old git's son."
"I dunno Ron, it would be one explanation for why he changed so much over the summer."
"You can't be serious! Why would he have looked like his dad, I mean James Potter, so much for so long if he weren't a Potter?"
"I don't know, but I'm going to start looking in the library tomorrow, and it wouldn't hurt you any to spend some time there." Hermione said with a significant glare at him.
"Why is your answer always the library? Oh alright, we'll check the library." Ron said in disgust. "Wonder what's happening to Fred and George?"
Hermione winced. "I wouldn't want to be in their shoes right about now."
Fred and George waited miserably outside the door to Headmaster Dumbledore's office. He had disappeared inside several minutes earlier followed by Professor McGonagall, their head of house. The waiting room was beautifully appointed and obviously designed to put those waiting at their ease. Unfortunately, in this case, the only occupants were two young gentlemen who were too consumed in their own wretched thoughts to appreciate it. Both boys looked up as the massive door slowly and silently opened.
"Gentlemen, you may come in now." Professor McGonagall held the door as they shuffled through. They came to a stop before the headmaster's desk, and only then realized that Professor Lupin, looking unprecedently stern, was also present. The silence became overwhelming as the three adults stared sternly at the twins. Even Fawkes the Phoenix seemed to be looking at them in disdain. This was going to be even worse than they originally thought.
"Please tell me what you did, and why in the world you did it." The headmaster commanded in his sternest voice. There was not even the suggestion of a glimmer in his blue eyes.
"Well, we spent the summer designing new products for our company."
"Weasley's Wizard Wheezes" Fred interrupted.
"and one of them was a truth syrup we called 'Terrific Truth Tonic'." George continued.
"It makes the drinker tell his deepest secret in the most embarrassing and public way possible."
"We brought some to school with us, and when we heard that Snape had given Harry detention on the first day of school, we decided this would be the perfect opportunity to use it." George wound down.
"Gentlemen, I am very disappointed in you." Neither boy had ever seen Professor Dumbledore look so stern during their previous visits to his office. In his own way, Albus Dumbledore was even more intimidating that Severus Snape at his worst. "Some secrets are not to be passed on to others because they are dangerous. Either to the secret holder or to an innocent, unknowing person. By using this syrup in an unworthy manner, you have exposed one of your teachers to danger beyond which you can imagine, devastated an innocent bystander to your 'prank' and possibly compromised the fight against Voldemort. I want your assurance that all of this substance will be destroyed immediately. Professor McGonagall will accompany you to your dorm and make sure that this is accomplished. I suggest that you think very carefully before you pull any more 'harmless' pranks." Dumbledore paused.
"Yes sir." The twins said quietly, looking at their feet.
"In addition, I expect that you will apologize in public to both Professor Snape and to Harry for this incident. You are to tell them that the truth tonic was corrupted, and instead of telling a person's greatest secret, it told a person's greatest nightmare."
"But Sir." Both twins pleaded.
"No! This is the only way to keep this from becoming a total disaster. I understand your pride in your accomplishment, However, remember what I said about the ramifications of this. In addition, you will be serving 4 nights detention with Mr. Filch, starting tomorrow night, and 50 points are being deducted from Gryffindor."
"You mean Harry really is.."George stuttered to a stop in amazement.
"Oh yes, your tonic was quite effective." Professor Lupin said quietly. "However, Professor Snape has been trying to find a way to tell Harry. I would bet anything that's why he gave Harry detention tonight, to have time to tell him. By the way boys, he didn't know about it until recently. None of us did."
"I must warn you that if I hear any of this conversation being repeated to anyone, student or faculty, you will find yourselves expelled. That should give you an idea of just how seriously we take this matter. Now, if you gentlemen have nothing to add, Professor McGonagall, if you will see to the truth tonic."
"Certainly Sir." Professor McGonagall moved toward the door, shepherding the twins before her.
"Oh, boys." Dumbledore's voice made them pause on the threshold.
"Yes sir?"
"Please do consider the results before you pull anymore pranks." The twinkle was finally back in the Headmaster's eyes. "I think we'll need things to laugh at this year even more than previously."
With that the door closed leaving Remus and the Headmaster alone.
"Headmaster, do you really think they'll keep a secret like this?" Remus asked in some apprehension.
"Yes I do. While they are undoubtedly the biggest pranksters we've had in many a year, they are also extremely loyal and honest. Once their word is given, it won't be broken." He said with confidence. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to contact Arthur and Molly, I've really put that off long enough. I should check in on Severus too."
"He was still out when I left the hospital wing, and Poppy was in her glory tutting over him." Remus got up to leave.
"Yes, well, you know how frequently Severus actually allows her to attend to him."
"Goodnight Sir."
"Goodnight." The door quietly closed behind Lupin, leaving the Headmaster to his thoughts. Fawkes, sitting on his perch in the corner, quietly eyed his master. With a sudden flurry of fiery feathers he flew to Albus, settling comfortably on his shoulder and nuzzling his cheek. "Ah Fawkes, I only hope this works."
Harry Potter lay in his curtained bed, sleepless as he considered all that had happened earlier. He replayed the scene where Snape had said "I'm Harry Potter's father" over and over again in his mind. Even the sight of Severus Snape covered in bright pink plumage didn't distract him. There was only one thing to do. He had heard Ron come in earlier, and could hear the various timber's of snoring that indicated all the other boys were present and asleep. Quietly, he snuck out of his bed, eased open his trunk, and grabbed his invisibility cape. He noiselessly glided across the floor to the door and slowly opened it just enough to creep through.
It took only a few minutes to wind through the corridor and arrive at the hospital wing. Slowly easing the door open just enough to peer through, he made sure that Madame Pomphrey wasn't lurking in the vicinity. There was only one curtained bed in the whole room. Closing the door behind him, Harry moved with trepidation toward the curtains. Gradually and silently moving them back, he slid in to the chair set next to the bed. Staring intently at the man fast asleep under the blinding white hospital blankets, he looked for any resemblance to himself. They both had black hair, but to him that seemed the end of any similarities. What struck him most though, was how different Snape looked in repose. He looked relaxed and even human without a glare or a sneer fixed to his face.
With a quiet sigh, nothing in his mind really resolved, he started back for the dorm and bed. It wasn't until he reached the portrait and gave the password that he realized that there hadn't been a pink feather in sight. It had been pretty funny to see Snape covered in feathers, Harry mused as he sank into the comfort of his bed.
The next morning Harry woke later than normal. He hurried into his clothes and grabbed his school bag, then thundered down the stairs to the common room. Hermione and Ron awaited him there, looking at him anxiously.
"Ron, do you suppose that your brothers made a mistake making their truth tonic. So instead of making someone tell the truth it did something else?"
"Yeah, Harry, that's what I was telling 'Mione last night." Ron agreed.
They allowed the topic to drop as they went toward the great hall for breakfast, arriving just as the mail did. As the streams of owls swooped toward the tables to deliver their burdens, one letter in particular attracted a lot of attention. It was bright red, and vibrating so much that the owl holding on to it was having difficulty flying straight. It managed to make it to the Gryffindor table and dropping it in between Fred and George immediately taking off again. Fred and George looked aghast at the red envelope, which was vibrating more vigorously.
"You'd better open it" Ron advised quietly, sticking his fingers in his ears.
Fred unsteadily reached forth a hand and prodded the envelope, which immediately burst open. Mrs. Weasley's voice reverberated through the hall.
".OF ALL THE IDIOTIC THINGS YOU'VE EVER DONE, NEVER EVER BEEN SO EMBARASSED! YOU COULD HAVE SERIOUSLY HURT A PROFESSOR! AND POOR HARRY..YOU JUST BETTER WATCH YOUR STEP OR YOU'LL BE EXPELLED AND YOU BETTER NOT EXPECT ANY SYMPATHY FROM HERE!!!! NO MORE PRANKS!!"
As the eardrum splitting noise gradually died down and the envelope burst into flame, Fred and George slowly eased themselves up in their seats. The rest of the students were staring with various expressions of humor, spite, and horror on their faces.
"Fred, George, I believe you have something you wish to say." Dumbledore's quiet voice carried an unusual tone of steely command in it.
The twins stood, turned to face the head table, and quietly gathered themselves for the task in front of them. Fixing their eyes on the forbidding and rather peaked form of Severus Snape, who was glaring down at the malevolently, they each took a deep breath and said "Professor Snape we are very sorry for trying one of our potions on you last night. It didn't have the effect we were expecting, and we are truly sorry for embarrassing you, and Harry." Sitting down quietly, they avoided looking at both Harry and Professor Snape.
"See Harry, I told you it couldn't possibly be true" Ron's cheerful voice rang throughout the chamber!