"Where's Neville?" Ron groaned, turning on the couch to look around. Harry smoothed his unruly hair down and turned to look at the boy's staircase, as if he'd come down any moment. The Gryffindor common-room was all abuzz. It was still early in the year, and the anxiety of new and more challenging classes had almost everyone suffering sleepless nights. Nobody remembered whose idea it was to have a game of Truth or Dare, but almost everyone was down for it. Everyone except Harry and Neville. Harry was only in it because Ron called him chicken. Neville was quite obviously stalling upstairs.
"Oh, I'll get him," Ginny sighed as she trudged up the stairs to the boy's dormitory.
"That's just not right!" Ron said indignantly. "Girls can come into our dorm anytime they like, but if we even set foot on their staircase, we get thrown down on our arses!"
Hermione, who was sitting on a pouf by the fireplace, cracked up laughing. Ron gave her an angry look, which just made her laugh harder.
"What would you want to come to the girl's dormitory for anyway?" Hermione quipped. Suddenly, a few of the younger Gryffindor girls behind her began snickering to themselves, causing Hermione to blush indignantly. A moment later, Ginny returned down the staircase with a very anxious-looking Neville shuffling behind her.
Luna Lovegood was still standing by the portrait entrance, leaning her head to one side as though she might fall over. She seemed to be in deep thought, twirling a lock of her pale blonde hair in her fingers. Luna was a Ravenclaw of course, but Harry knew she was teased by the other Ravenclaws, and had invited her to join them. When he'd found her earlier, she was on the second floor casually trying to toss a wizard's hat onto the head of a statue of a particularly haggard witch.
"Luna," called Hermione, "Why don't you, er… come sit and join us?"
She smiled absently as she sat cross-legged on the floor next to Hermione.
"Here, I made you something." Luna reached out a closed fist to Hermione, who stuck out her open hand warily. Into it, Luna dropped what looked like a mish-mash of rubber bands. Hermione picked it up to inspect it, seeing that it was indeed a braided rope of rubber bands, about the length of a bracelet. Luna smiled warmly, waiting for Hermione to put it on.
"Thank you, Luna," Hermione said, a surprised look on her face. "It's… lovely."
As she tied the band around her wrist, Neville took a seat on the couch next to Harry and Ron. He gave Harry a pained sideways glance, and Harry reached over and gave him a pat on the back.
"Alright, who's first?" Parvati said, rubbing her hands together gleefully.
"Oh, may I?" Luna asked politely, raising her hand in the air.
Ginny shot Hermione a look, and then pulled Luna's hand down. "You do know how to play, right?"
"I'm familiar," Luna breezed happily. "Ginny, truth or dare?"
"Er…truth!"
Everyone groaned, but Ginny just gave a shrug. Suddenly, Ron balled up a piece of parchment and threw it at her head.
"That wasn't your History essay, was it?" Harry asked.
"No, yours.”
Ginny threw the paper ball back at Ron, hitting him smartly in the eye and turned her back to him. "Go ahead, Luna, ask me something."
Luna looked upwards, as though a clever question would hit her in the center of the forehead like a raindrop. Suddenly, she leaned toward Ginny with an eyebrow raised.
"Are you, at all, hungry?"
The group groaned once again. Ginny laughed. "Sure, I could eat something. There goes my turn, thanks Luna!"
"Your turn, Ginny!" Parvati said impatiently, braiding a lock of her hair. Ginny had managed to find a half-empty box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans in one of her pockets and was trying to pull it open.
"Alright, I pick…Ron. Truth or Dare!"
Harry put his face down so his best friend wouldn't see him grinning. Ron's freckled face was nearly as red as his hair. They both knew what kind of question he'd be asked if he picked "truth".
"Dare!" Ron squeaked, a little too loudly. Ginny seemed slightly disappointed, but her grin widened once again.
"I dare you to wear your underwear on your head for the rest of the night!"
Ron gasped with shock and looked down at his lap.
"No," Ginny said with a scowl. "Leave those where they are."
Ron grumbled to himself as he walked up the stairs to the boy's dormitory, a chorus of laughter behind him. Harry kept his face down, not only because he was laughing, but because he didn't dare draw attention to himself. I can't decide which is worse, he thought to himself. With Truth, I have to say something totally embarrassing. With Dare, I have to do something utterly humiliating. He slowly tried to sink deeper into the couch.
As Ron came back down the stairs, the laughter rose up once again. He wore a light blue pair of boxers on his head, the legs sticking up like short, square bunny ears. Ginny looked over at Hermione and gave her a quick wink.
"Ronald," called Luna, oblivious to the laughter surrounding her. "Your hat doesn't match." This just made everyone laugh harder.
As Ron took his seat on the couch once again, he looked around the common room venomously. He was obviously going to take it out on whoever he picked next…