FicWad

Don't own HP, Buffy or Broadway. Wish I did.

*

"NEVILLE LONGBOTTTOM, DO NOT ADD THAT -- " Snape's next words were cut off as Neville's already smoking cauldron exploded in a blue mist. The mist grew, seeping its way out of the Potions classroom and down the hall. It would eventually permeate all of Hogwarts, being inhaled unknowingly into lungs young and old.

In the meantime, Neville was cowering in the face of Snape's wrath, attempting to pick up the pieces of his shattered cauldron, Hermione trying to help.

All of a sudden, Neville clamped his hand over his mouth looking horror-struck. Then, as if he couldn't fight it, the words tumbled out of his mouth in a mumbling sort of tune:

"Don't if feel like the wind is always howlin?
Don't it seem like there's never any light!
Once a day, don't you wanna throw the towel in?
It's easier than puttin' up a fight."

"It's the hard-knock life for us - "

Giggles turned into outright guffaws as Snape, clearly at a loss for words at Neville's singing, scowled dramatically and pointed to the door. "OUT!" The class tumbled through the doors, slapping Neville on the back and congratulating him on getting Potions released early.

Throughout the day, show tunes rang out through the halls of Hogwarts, and along with them, it seemed, many secrets thoughts and feelings kept well-hidden until now.

Ron ran off crying after serenading Harry in the halls with a moving rendition of "I Don't Know How to Love Him," leaving a startled Wizard blinking out of thick glasses in his wake. Rumors flew after Harry quickly came to and ran after Ron, and neither one of them was seen for the rest of the day.

Ginny could only hope that no one figured out that she was singing about Tom Riddle when she launched into "On My Own":

"And now I'm all alone again
Nowhere to turn, no one to go to.
Without a home, without a friend
without a face to say hello to
But now the night is near
And I can make-believe he's here ..."

McGonagall could be seen walking dreamily down the hall, singing "Memories" to herself. Lavender and her gang tittered at Hermione's "Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee", while Fred and George took great delight in trading lines back and forth:

"Only thing to do is jump over the moon"
Leap of faith, leap of faith
Leap of faith, leap of faith

I gotta get outta here
It's like I'm being tied to the hood of a yellow rental truck,
being packed in with fertilizer and fuel oil, pushed over a
cliff by a suicidal Mickey Mouse."

By the time everyone (except Harry and Ron) settled down for dinner, there were angry, hurt looks flying about the room, new couples together and old ones sitting far apart, and general mayhem as everyone's secrets spilled out in show tune form.

The food was served, but very little was being eaten as voices eagerly traded who had seen what and where. Filch was rumored to have given a very passionate rendition of "Stars" from Les Miserables, and the Fat Lady had been singing, "Cellophane Mrs. Cellophane Should have been my name!!!! Mrs. Cellophane 'cause you can look right through me Walk right by me,"/ to anyone who would listen. (No one really did.)

Finally, Professor Dumbledore stood up, a twinkle in his eye and a small smile quirking his lips, and raised his arms, gesturing for attention. The noise in the room gradually dulled to a small roar, but before Dumbledore could get a word out, Snape stood up dramatically. As he swept to the center of the room, his robes billowing dramatically behind him, the room became completely silent.

As he began to sing, there were a few titters of laughter, but they soon were hushed as Snape, clearly distressed, sang with an oddly compelling voice.

"Unlimited
The damage is unlimited
To everyone I've tried to help
Or tried to love
And, oh, Fiyero, you're the latest
Victim of my greatest achievement
In a long career of distress
Every time I could, I tried making good
And what I made was a mess!"

As he continued singing, a few looks of understanding crossed the faces of students and professors alike, and a few sniffles even could be heard.

"No good deed goes unpunished
All helpful urges should be circumvented
No good deed goes unpunished
Sure, I meant well -
Well, look at what well-meant did:
All right, enough - so be it...
So be it, then:
Let all Oz be agreed
I'm wicked through and through ..."

He broke off before completely ending the song. Keeping his head high, without meeting anyone's eyes, he swept from the room. He was angry, and he would be even angrier in the following days as students and professors came up to him to express pity or understanding.

Within moments of his departure, the room was buzzing again.

McGonagall turned to Dumbledore to once again express her feelings that he should administer the antidote to the potion but stopped as she saw his smile. It was like talking to a brick wall, and he refused to tell anyone else what he had figured out.

"Don't worry, Professor McGonagall. I can assure you that this particular effect will wear off by tomorrow. In the meantime, I plan to enjoy myself. Music is a magic beyond all we do here."

With that, he turned to listen to the students, who had started singing in unison, their arms clasped about one another.

"It doesn't matter
What can't we face if we're together?
What's in this place that we can't weather?"