Disclaimer: You're sure you're not fed up of seeing these yet? No? Oh, well here we go again. This little bit is wholly reserved for stating that I do not own HP. Now, doesn't that bit of computer screen feel privileged…
Grrr the movie is irritating me, so I will make a point of the fact that Beauxbatons is not an all girls school and I have the book on my lap as I'm typing this open at page 215 proving me right.
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This chapter has been reworked slightly as I realised I had a few paragraphs of the next chapter and this chapter confused.
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Through A Tinted Veil
Chapter II- Blue
Previously:
As she had first done to her family many years before, Fleur turned around in her seat after drawing the window shut, finished with waving to some of her friends that were not coming. Like before, Fleur looked around the carriage and was struck by the beauty of the blue-caped Beauxbatons girls. She smiled proudly as they returned her smiles a little nervously when she observed them.
It was a good thing Fleur was fond of blue; she was going to be seeing a lot of it as she moved forward into the next phase of her life.
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Her tiny heart was racing, undetectable from the composed expression on her face. She was going to Hogwarts to represent her school and her country. Oh, she wished so hard that it would be her that was picked! It would mean so much to her and all of those who really knew her. She could prove that she really was the best. Fleur had never been called the best in anything tilting towards academically achieving and she longed for that title with a passion that surprised her as much as it would surprise anyone else.
She had tried so hard to get here and was proud of how far she had gone, but it would mean so much just to get that little bit further. It would prove to all those sneering snobs behind her back, left home in France without her glory, that although she was part veela, she was as clever, if not more, than they were.
She heard a thud as the wheels touched the crowd and an excited chatter. It was just as she had imagined – their arrival was part of the ceremony. The following few hours, however, did not go as smoothly with Fleur's plan.
The carriage doors were opened immediately and Madame Maxime descended the golden steps as applause broke out. As the Headmaster greeted her, the Beauxbatons boys waited patiently for the girls to exit the carriage before they stepped out themselves.
Fleur shivered in the cold air – it was freezing! She pulled her scarf closer to her as she gazed upon the huge oak door apprehensively. Madame Maxime chose for her and her students to warm up rather than wait for their third competitors, for which Fleur and those surrounding her were very grateful. As they walked towards the school, the crowds parted to let them through. Fleur looked around subtly as she walked and noticed that the French expressions were quite unenthusiastic and decidedly blue. Whether it was from the cold or the implications of the school and Tournament life, she did not know.
Led into a hall a bit smaller than in Beauxbatons, they were greeted by four long tables. There was a slight hesitation as they gazed dispiritedly about the room. The ceiling itself was the focal point, imitating the sky outside. It was a pity that the sky outside at the moment was a dark blue, speckled with only a few stars. Fleur looked at the banners displaying their house's colour above the table and then back down at her uniform. She just loved everything to match.
"Peut-tre devrions-nous nous asseoir ici?" She asked gesturing to table underneath the shields of blue and silver. Glad that someone had made a decision, the Beauxbatons pretended to consider it for a moment before taking their places at the Ravenclaw table.
They watched as the hall filled around them and looked disinterestedly at the goings on. Their eyes seems fixed on the door ready for something to happen. This moment became apparent when their Headmistress entered. Fleur rose to her feet with the others from Beauxbatons. When a few laughs could be heard, they still stood unabashed and waited for Madame Maxime to sit down before copying her.
The Headmaster of their hosting school remained standing to welcome them all, "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, ghosts and – most particularly guests," he smiled at us and Fleur's suspicion of him lessened a tad – at least his manners were acceptable, "I have great pleasure in welcoming you all to Hogwarts." Oh, vraiment? Fleur thought to herself, somehow, she doubted if he had been to France, if he was proud of his drab "Great" Hall. He carried on, unaware that his Beauxbatons audience were not enamoured, "I hope and trust that you stay here will be both comfortable and enjoyable." At this, as much as she held onto her muffler, Fleur could not contain her laughter.
A bushy brunette hissed across at her, "No one's making you stay!" Fleur pretended that she hadn't heard her and inwardly promised herself that she would show that girl how guests behave. She had not had the high social training for nothing. Fleur removed her muffler and shook her hair back so it draped down her back. It was not quite as effective as a cloak, but it would do.
She waited for her moment patiently and silently crept to it as the redhead next to the brunette seemed to be muttering about the man who was looking after their horses. "Excuse me, are you wanting ze bouillabaisse?" She had put on her best English and she knew it was mostly correct. The redhead seemed to have succumbed to her veela heritage, but the boy with a messy mop of jet black hair answered her,
"Yeah, have it." As he looked up from pushing the dish towards her, she noticed a scar on his forehead. Harry Potter. Her mind told her. Fleur was perfecting her manners now as she made sure not to stare at him,
"You 'ave finished wiz it?" She checked again as she polished her politeness.
"Yeah," Oh, alors maintenant, le garon a retrouv ses sens, "Yeah, it was excellent." Fleur looked at the untouched dish and smiled, now assured that he had not dipped a fork in to taste it. She refused to let herself imagine if he had tasted it without a fork. She picked it up and carried it carefully off, back to her waiting friends, paying no attention to the stares she received on her way.
Fleur sat through the second course and the introduction of the tournament gloating to herself and feeling slightly miffed that Gabrielle was not there to witness her success. The students in the hall were silent as Fleur listened to the rest of the Professor's speech.
"As you know, three champions compete in the Tournament, one from each of the participating schools. They will be marked on how well they perform each of the Tournament tasks and the champion with the highest total after task three will win the Triwizard cup. The champions will be chosen by an impartial selector … the Goblet of Fire." Fleur mentally translated his speech into her own tongue and realised that now was the time. She watched as the man brought a cup out of the casket and heard a general intake of breath as everyone noted the blue-white flames that filled it.
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Fleur huddled with her peers as they struggled to keep themselves warm in the chilly air. She shivered as someone held the door open for her to ascend the steps up to the carriage. Her pale fingers clutched at the icy side as she took one look at the inky sky before she was enveloped in the warmth of the carriage. It had been transformed to represent their beds at Beauxbatons, and Fleur's eyes scanned the semi-darkness for her own mahogany trunk.
Her bed was nearest to the window on the farthest side of the carriage, the silk curtain pulled back with a shadowy tassel. Fleur glided over to her bed, weaving her way around what appeared to be a screen down the centre of the carriage, separating boys from girls. Kneeling up on the soft duvet, she peered out of the window. That huge man was grooming the horses with surprising gentleness for his size. Not as well as their Beauxbatons' stable boys, of course, but he would do, for now.
Reluctantly, at the request of her peers, she tugged at the ties until the curtains slithered together, blocking out the few white lights far out into the galaxy. Slipping out of her warm clothes was a chore that she had been putting off, though when the smooth azure of her satin nightdress shimmied down her body and she snuggled into the engulfing warmth of her bed, Fleur's coldness melted away.
She missed her friends and Gabrielle. Her poor sister had no-one to shoo away the bed-bugs from the pristine dormitory. Her friends would be discussing celebrities and gossiping without her. Looking around, the glimmering candles flickered, illuminating translucent sides of many paged tomes, captivating their riveted studious audience. She did not fit in here, amongst all these people who lay awake reading textbooks, hoping it would be them that would bring eternal glory to their school. Fleur did not begrudge them this wish – indeed, it was a universal desire shared by all around her. They caught her gaze, and smiled at her warmly. Perhaps her group of friends at home were a little too unsympathetic towards these naturally clever girls. Indeed, they did not tease her for being naturally beautiful.
Fleur smiled back; a real smile sharing anxieties and hopes. Although there was a certain element of competitiveness, overwhelming it was a sense of unity, each student wishing each other the chance to succeed. As her eyes slid shut so that her view of her fellows was traded for a black screen, Fleur spiralled into sleep, waiting for the time to come.
Un grand merci à Unutma!
I'd really like it if you reviewed; I'm quite proud of that chapter!
Love,
x Imperial Princess x