The potions supply room smelled absolutely foul. Ron wrinkled his nose in disgust. Hermione was covering her mouth with her hand, looking like she was going to be sick any moment.

"Those things stink!" Ron whispered indignantly. "Even sealed in jars, and under the stasis charm, they still stink! I don't bloody believe it!"

"They are rare and expensive apparently," Harry said with a wicked grin, lifting up one of the jars in his hand. "Can you imagine, Snape imported them all the way from New Zeland? And he paid a fortune for them, too! Plus, it cost another fortune to transport them..."

"I don't doubt that, they smell horrible," Hermione mumbled, appearing to be ready lose the contents of her stomach.

"Harry, why did you bring us here?" Ron demanded. "Just to smell these... whatever they are..."

"Livers of blood-squirting ritts," Hermione supplied in a choked voice.

"No, we aren't going to smell them," Harry said with a wicked grin. "We're going to steal them."

"Why?" Hermione demanded. "Please tell me, Harry, what do we want with them?"

"Nothing," Harry admitted. "But Snape is going to freak when he finds out that these things are gone. So let's steal them, and give them a proper burial."

"Why can't we just Evanesco them?" Ron demanded.

"The stasis charm prevents that," Hermione explained. "Do you really want to remove the stasis charm?"

"No," Ron conceded. "Harry, are you sure this is worth the hassle?"

"Absolutely," Harry said maliciously. "Imagine the look on Snape's face when he discovers his prized Potions ingredients are gone."

Hermione smiled weakly as amusement overruled her disgust. "He'll be livid!"

"Furious..." Ron was grinning now. "He'll go mental."

"Exactly," Harry confirmed. "Serves him right. Let's get it done."

* * *

"Severus, I must apologize for improperly storing the livers of blood-squirting ritts in your potions supply room," Pomona Sprout said contritely.

"No apologies are necessary," Snape said graciously. "Fortunately, those are cheap, abundant, and can be easily enough replaced."

Sprout smiled slightly. "Still, the smell must have been horrifying. How did you dispose of them so quickly?"

A small, nasty glint appeared in Snape's eyes.

"There are three ways to get something done," he softly said. "One, do it yourself. Two, hire someone to do it. The third, and most certain way, is to forbid Harry Potter to do it."

~ fin