So, I'm plotting and this little scene pops into my head. It's for that Voldy's daughter fic I spammed about earlier. Set some time during year seven, after Draco's redemption arc is set in motion. Don't mind the non specific issue and lack of details like where they're trying to get into. Also no clue where they're hiding out at. I haven't thought out all the details yet.  So uh...enjoy it out of context I guess 😅😂

----

"--absolutely insane! This idea is going to get both you and Harry killed!" Those are the first words Harry and Draco hear upon entering the house after their return. It's Barbara's voice, raised so that it drifts from all the way at the top of the stairs; it's an octave too high. Draco and Harry exchange looks before climbing the steps and rounding the corner to see what all the commotion is about.

Barbara has her back to them, head in her hands. Her yellow and black hair is pinned up, the colors swirling together in one, thick plait/braid. Stephanie is in front of her. For some reason she's dressed in witch robes, and she's waving a wand about in dangerous flails, hair lose and wild. Harry can't tell if she's flustered or if this is just part of her usual behavior. Ron and Hermione are off to the side, the former ducking every now and again to avoid being whacked in the face by Stephanie's flying arms. On more than one occasion, the pointy end of the wand comes all too close to Ron's face, and he wisely jumps up and moves to the other side of the room next to Harry and Draco. "No, no, but listen. Barbara, it works all the time on TV!"

Draco furrows his brows. He wants to ask what the hell a TV is supposed to be, but he seems to be the only one in the room who doesn't have an inkling of an idea as to what the muggle contraption is (because it must be some sort of muggle contraption). Even Weasley seems to have at least a vague idea as to what it is (his father had worked in the muggle department before You-Know-Who had taken over the Ministry and gotten rid of that particular department so Draco supposes that works in his favor.) He doesn't want to seem stupid, so he doesn't ask. There's not much time to get a word in edge wise anyway; Barbara cuts in, loudly.

"On TV, Stephanie! With fake people!" Barbara shouts. "And it never, ever works! They always, always blow their cover!" She smacks one hand into the other for extra emphasis. 

"Barb, I understand you're worried," Stephanie says, sounding anything but understanding. "But I'm a great actress! I could totally pull it off!" She throws her arms out, the wand flying right out of the palm of her hands.

Ron yelps, ducking down just in time, the wand soaring through the doorway and out into the hall behind him. "Oi! Watch it! You'll poke someone's eye out with that thing!"

Stephanie winces. "Sorry..."

Barbara points at Ron, as if he'd just settled whatever argument they'd been having. "That is exactly why your plan won't work! You don't know what you're doing, Steph!"

"So? You could teach me!"

"Huh?" Harry can't help jumping in now. It's all getting much too confusing. "I thought you were a muggle?"

"She is," Barbara says, putting a little too much emphasis on her words. She whirls around to face Harry and Draco at last, her face pulled into a glare that looks as mean as a bunny. Her arms are folded over herself. "Stephanie has this suicidal idea for sneaking in."

"It could work!" Stephanie insists.

"They've been fighting about it for three hours," Ron complains with an eye roll.

"We don't know that!" Barbara shoots back, ignoring Ron.

"We're desperate," Stephanie says.

"That doesn't mean we throw our brain cells and common sense out the window!" Barbara thrusts her hands at the window to illustrate her point, eyes going wide.

Hermione clears her throat. Up until now she's been silent, perhaps already having tried and failed to put her two sense in before. "Maybe we should let Harry and Draco weigh in?" Draco. It's still weird to hear his given name, even weirder trying not to say his surname. Too new. They've not been on a first name basis for very long. It's weird for him too, Harry can see it in his eyes.

"What's the idea?" Draco's almost afraid to ask. It must be something incredibly barbaric if it sparked a debate that lasted three hours.

Stephanie gives a soft grin, that looks more wicked than anything; Barbara rolls her eyes. "Well, they already know all y'all, and ya don't have any more of that shape shifting juice --"

"Poly Juice Poison," Barbara informs.

Stephanie shushes her and continues, "-- so sneaking in for you isn't really an option. The only one in this room they don't know..." She does a little twirl in her borrowed robes. "Moi!"

It clicks then. "You want to disguise yourself as a witch and infiltrate it."

"Yee. And you can be my fake prisoner, so it's not like I'm going in alone or anything." Stephanie shrugs.

"They'll peg you as a muggle in seconds," Draco dead pans. He doesn't mean to sound prejudice -- not any more. (He's trying his best to unlearn mannerisms like that, but he's only just started, so he's still weary of his words, lest he accidently say something wrong.) She's been a huge help up until now, but it's blatantly obvious what she is. Stephanie looks like she might protest, and Barbara is already on the verge of boasting, mouthing a little thank you! at him; so he hurries to continue before another argument breaks out. "It won't matter how much you look like a witch, if they ask you to perform magic nothing will happen. The wands won't work for you."

She frowns. "I hadn't thought of that." She thinks on it for about five seconds. "Well, what if someone follows behind and, like, makes it look like I'm doing the magic?"

"That would never work," Barbara argues at once. "The whole point of your stupid, suicide plan is that none of us can go in there! So, unless we can somehow turn invisible --"

"Actually there is," Hermione says, eyes lighting up.

Harry and Ron perk up. "That's right!" Ron says. "Harry's Invisibility Cloak!"

"We haven't used it in so long I almost forgot about it," Harry muses. He moves to the trunk at the other side of the room, digging through it for a bit before coming out with the cloak in question.

"You've got to be kidding me," Barbara mutters.

"That's how you always got around Hogwarts without getting caught?" Draco gaps.

Harry shrugs sheepishly. He's shared the cloak with so few people -- really only Hermione and Ron know about it. And Dumbeldore seeing as how he'd been the one to give to Harry -- at least he had known about it when he was alive.

"Well, it could actually work..." Draco says, starting to come around to the idea now. It's still risky and probably ill-advised, but it is the only plan they've got.

"Seriously?!" Barbara shouts. Her eye twitches. She looks like she might explode.

"We'll just take precautions," Hermione says in effort to ease her nerves. "Plan for every eventuality so nothing goes wrong, and Ron and I can even wait outside for a quick getaway if need be."  It doesn't work. Barbara is clutching the arm rests of her chair with a death grip.

"Alright, but someone has got to teach her how to properly hold a wand," Ron scoffs, turning his head up at the one Stephanie had accidentally thrown at him earlier. "And it wouldn't hurt to learn how to pronounce a spell or two."

"We are all experts in different areas," Harry points out. "We can take turns teaching her different things. She'll need as much information as she can get to make it more convincing."

"You're all actually considering this?" Barbara hisses. She stares back them, utterly flabbergasted when she receives shrugs and nods in response. "Unbelievable!"

"It's not without risks," Harry agrees, "but it sounds like our only option at the moment." 

Stephanie grins at Barbara, maybe just to rub it in her friend's face. Barbara huffs. "Fine." She jumps up and storms over to the door, pushing her way out into the hall. "I guess I'm out numbered, so I'll help, but don't think I'm not gonna complain about it the whole time!" With that she leaves the others, grumbling to herself as she goes.

"Love ya, babe!" Stephanie calls after her with a big grin on her face.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Barbara calls back.