I'm back! Here's the third part with the promised Quidditch match and some other stuff.
Sorry about not much romance, I am really trying to write this in J.K.'s style, and really
overt romance doesn't really seem like her style. But there is some H/G in this and some R/H
tension. There. Happy? j/k Coming up: Harry sneaks up to Dumbledore's office and
finds out something and then gets caught by Dumbledore himself. Also, a very
interesting part with Cho in the next part. But ya gotta review if ya want
to read it!
The next morning, Harry woke up very late. Ron had left a note for him.
Harry-
I tried to wake you up. I think you were having some sort of bad dream or something. You told
me to just go on down to breakfast without you, so I did. That's where Hermione and I are.
Harry put a hand on his scar. It felt very warm, and was aching. In his head, he kept seeing images.
He had had a dream. But what had happened? He kept seeing images of someone, something… Squeezing
his eyes shut, he remembered-
"There is much to be done, many more deaths, before Harry Potter is mine."
"…I have sent the Death Eaters everywhere!"
The dream was slowly coming back to him. His scar was now burning. Harry needed to tell Ron and
Hermione, needed to be around people and noise. The silence was causing horrible thoughts to fill his mind.
Leaping up and getting dressed, he dashed down to the Great Hall. It was practically empty.
Ron and Hermione were still there, discussing something worriedly. Hermione saw him, and raced over.
"Harry, are you all right? Ron said he'd tried to wake you up, but you kept saying all these strange things under your breath and about how strangely you acted last night, and-"
"Hermione, we need to talk. All of us." Harry led her over to the Gryffindor table.
He proceeded to tell both of them everything about his dream but nothing about Christine. For some reason, he felt that was something he needed to figure out on his own.
"Muggle-borns, Hermione. He might very well be coming after you next." Ron looked extremely concerned.
Hermione's face lost all color. She put her hands over her mouth and took in a deep breath, apparently taking all this in.
"I don't think any of us should go to Hogsmeade next weekend." Ron said firmly.
"I'm meeting Krum, I've got to go." Hermione replied, still thinking.
"Hermione, your life might be at stake here! I think that's a little more important than meeting up with your…your…"
"Honestly, Ron, he's come all the way here from Bulgaria. I can't just not show up. I can take care of myself. You and Harry stay here, and I'll go."
Harry looked up at Ron.
"Ron, you go, I'll see you when you come back. I'm used to it, I'll be fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. You don't have to stay here to protect me. Lupin's here, remember? And Dumbledore. Nothing's going to happen to me."
"All right. It's next weekend, right, Hermione?"
"Right. We'd better hurry if we plan on making it to Transfiguration." She leaped up from her seat and slung her book bag over one shoulder, walking up ahead of them.
"Harry, what was up with you after the Quidditch meeting? Did something happen?"
"Ron, I'm fine." Harry said quickly.
Hermione suddenly spun around.
"Have you written to Snuffles, Harry? You need to tell him all this."
"No, I haven't. But I will as soon as we get back up to the common room. If anyone will know what to do, it'd be Snuffles."
Professor McGongall had given them an extraordinary amount of homework.
"On our first day of Transfiguration, she gives us enough to last the whole year!" Ron groaned, looking at the assignment again.
"She's just trying to prepare us for the O.W.L.'s." Hermione said sensibly.
"Already? They can't be that hard." Harry chimed in.
"Actually, they're extremely difficult. According to Hogwarts, a History-"
"Fred and George didn't study a lick for them Harry, and got six apiece. They can't be that difficult." Ron assured him as they headed for Charms class.
They entered the classroom to find tiny Professor Flitwick shuffling through his notes. As students started to come in, he smiled at them from atop the three books he was poised on to see over his desk.
"Good morning class!" He squeaked as the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors seated themselves.
"Today we will be a learning a charm that can actually slow down something before it hits the ground. For example-"
Flitwick pointed his wand at a paperweight on his desk. He lifted it into the air, where it hovered, shaking slightly. And then it began to fall. But an instant before it hit the ground, he bellowed-
"Slodonus!"
And it began to fall as if slow motion, hitting the ground with only a quiet thump.
"Cool!" Dean said, obviously impressed.
Flitwick grinned at him, handing out poufs to everyone.
"Now I want everyone to repeat after me- Slodonus!!"
"Slodonus!" The class repeated.
"Very good! Now everyone- throw your pouf into the air and try to perform the charm before it hits the ground. Don't become frustrated if you can't complete it at first. This is a complicated charm that everyone seems to have trouble with. I'll be coming around to help anyone who needs it. And class," he glanced quickly at Neville, "make sure you aim your wand only at your pouf."
Harry pulled out his wand, and held the pouf in one hand. Squinting his eyes with concentration, he threw the pouf very high into the air. Aiming carefully, he said-
"Slodonus!"
And to his astonishment, the pouf slowed down and hit the ground slowly.
"Very good, Harry! Very good indeed!" Flitwick looked astonished.
Everyone else, even Hermione, was failing miserably. But Harry consistently slowed down his poufs on each try. Ron, frustrated, misaimed his wand and sent Professor Flitwick soaring into the air(which seemed to happen a lot) and plummeting towards the ground. Harry reacted quickly.
"Slodonus!" Professor Flitwick landed, cross-legged and unharmed on the ground.
"Well done, Mr. Potter! Even very advanced wizards have trouble using this charm on living beings! Twenty points to Gryffindor!"
Harry grinned. It was fun being the best at something without even trying that hard. Hermione was scowling. She still couldn't get it down. Ron still was slightly pale from nearly killing a teacher, and was holding his wand shakily. Sitting down, he abandoned pouf throwing for the rest of the class.
Suddenly, Angelina Johnson poked her head in.
"Professor Flitwick, I need to see Harry Potter." She asked him, looking a little flustered.
"Oh, of course, Angelina. Mr. Weasley, could you get the assignment at the end of class for Harry?"
"Sure." Ron replied, looking slightly put out.
Harry grabbed his book bag, whispered good-bye to his friends, and hurried after Angelina.
She led him down to a classroom where Fred, George, Katie, Alicia and Christine were already seated. Christine instantly averted her eyes.
Angelina looked at her team with a deep sigh.
"All right everyone, the game against Ravenclaw has been scheduled to Thursday of next week. I know we've never had them this early, but apparently they wanted to get the season going early this year. And we've hardly practiced at all. I know we have a very talented team, but so does Ravenclaw. There's practice tonight and I'll inform you of others. Be prepared to work hard tonight everyone-no slacking off. Ravenclaw has never defeated us-well except when we were without a Seeker-but let's not let them start now."
Fred clapped loudly and the rest of the team joined in.
"All right everyone, see you at 5:00 sharp."
Everyone grabbed their bags and set off for the Gryffindor common room. Their classes would be practically over now, so they thought they would just head up.
"I've got to write Sirius." Harry said to himself, his mind returning to his dream and a cold chill covering his body.
"Sirius Black?" Christine had heard him, and was looking at him with disbelief as they entered the common room.
Harry's heart missed a beat. How could he have been so stupid? Only he, Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore and Lupin knew Sirius was innocent. To the rest of the wizarding world, Sirius was still a convicted murder.
"Er…that's not what I meant." Harry said stupidly.
"No, it's all right." Her voice grew very quiet. "I know he's innocent too."
"What? How-" Harry sputtered, stunned.
"I know more than you think, Harry." She looked at him, meaningfully and then headed towards the girl's dormitory.
Harry was left more confused than ever. How could she possibly know? Searching for a quill and some parchment, he decided to write Sirius right now. It was time to get some answers.
Sirius-
I'm having dreams again. This time, Peter Pettigrew was telling Voldemort that he had Death Eaters everywhere and Voldemort said there would be many more deaths before I was his, but that he wouldn't be satisfied until I was dead. And my scar's hurting again. What should I do?
Also, the new first-year Keeper for our Quidditch team, Christine Hartsook, is acting really strange. She told me that both her mother died when she was very young and that she never knew her father. She acts like she knows me from somewhere. And also, the strangest part-she knows that you're innocent! Who is she? How does she know? Please write me back as soon as possible.
Thanks,
Harry
Also, Angelina Johnson is our new Quidditch captain. And we're going to Hogsmeade next weekend, but I'm staying here. It seems safer with everything that's happening. And, Professor Snape's gone! We've got a new Potions teacher, Professor Capstone.
Harry went down to the Owlery for a school owl. Hedwig was much too conspicuous wherever Sirius was hiding. Tying the letter to the leg of a plain brown owl, he sent it off to find Sirius. That was all he could do for now.
It was time for lunch in the Great Hall. Harry hurried down, anxious to tell Ron and Hermione what had happened. He saw them sitting on the far corner of the Gryffindor table.
"Christine knows about Snuffles being innocent!!" Harry whispered as he seated himself.
Ron's eyes grew very wide and Hermione clapped a hand over her mouth.
"How could she possibly?" She muttered to Harry.
Harry proceeded to tell them everything that had happened. After "How could you not have told us" from Ron and a "You've got to be more careful about saying Sirius' name, Harry" from Hermione, they all grew silent with thought.
"Harry, there's only one thing to do. Talk to Lupin about all this, he always seem to know what's going on with everything." Ron suggested.
Deciding this would be a good idea, Harry decided to ask him over the weekend everyone else was at Hogsmeade.
That night, Harry left Ron and Hermione for Advanced Astronomy. It was quite fun. Professor Avery was very funny and gave them very little homework, just a mildly complicated constellation chart. Neville and Harry sat together and had a good time looking for the different shapes formed by the stars with the extremely large telescopes.
As class was ending, Professor Avery called Harry over. Waving good-bye to Neville, Harry walked up to Professor Avery's desk.
"Harry Potter, right? The Harry Potter?" Professor Avery had a very excited glint in his eyes.
"Yes, that's me." Harry looked at him, wondering what this was all about.
"All right, then. Hope you enjoy Advanced Astronomy." Professor Avery grabbed his bag and left the room.
Harry thought this was very curious. He shrugged, and went down to dinner. Hermione was explaining using telephones to Ron in further detail than the teacher of Muggle Studies had. He was listening with rapt attention, fascinated.
"And then, when you'd like to hang up, you put the phone back on the receiver." She said slowly.
"Wow!" Ron's eyes were very wide.
"Did you two like Muggle Studies?" Harry asked, sitting down.
"Oh, hello Harry. Yes, of course," Hermione said as Ron nodded energetically, "How did you like Advanced Astronomy?"
"Oh, it was really fun. Professor Avery's great, he let us work the whole class period to finish our constellation chart."
Harry scarfed down his dinner, and raced off to Quidditch practice. They were going to need a lot of practice if they didn't want to be beaten by Ravenclaw. The word was that their new Chaser, Mandy Brocklehurst, was very good.
The following week's Thursday had finally come, and it was nearly time for their Quidditch match. The whole History of Magic class was very antsy. The Ravenclaws and the Gryffindors were both very excited, and didn't really feel up to sitting through one of Professor Binn's notoriously long lectures.
Harry looked longingly out the window to the long grassy fields. It was a rather cloudy day, it looked like it was about to rain. This was alright with Harry, he'd played in what was close to a monsoon in a game
previously.
Hermione was tapping her foot in extreme boredom. Even she didn't feel like taking notes when the excitement for the coming game was so high. Ron was reading a dog-eared Chudley Cannons book under his desk but kept looking up at Mandy Brocklehurst dreamily. Mandy was playing with her long blond hair, looking as if she wanted to suddenly burst through the window and run out onto the field. Harry knew the feeling.
About thirty minutes into the lecture, a light rain had begun to fall. The sound of the pounding rain was causing Harry to drift farther and farther away from what Professor Binns was saying. Finally, after what seemed like years, the bell let out a resounding toll. With a squeal of excitement, Mandy leaped up from her seat and bounded towards the door. Although Harry did not squeal with excitement, he felt dangerously close to doing so. With a quick "See you later" to Ron and Hermione, he hurried off to the dorm to grab his broom and throw on his scarlet Quidditch robes. Dashing down to the field and into the locker rooms, he found the rest of his team looking rather anxious. Christine was sitting on the bench, looking sick to her stomach.
"You all right?" Harry sat down beside to her.
"No…I'm so nervous, I feel like I'm going to throw up."
"Don't worry, Christine. You'll do fine." Harry remembered exactly what he felt like before his first Quidditch match, and wanting to throw up was a pretty good description.
The only sound in the Gryffindor locker room was the steady rain. No one really had much to say, even Fred and George. Everyone was apparently lost in their thoughts.
Madam Hooch suddenly stepped in, soaking wet from head to foot.
"It's time." She said curtly, stepping back into the sheets of rain.
Harry suddenly remembered something. Whipping out his wand, he pointed it at his glasses.
"Impervius!" He said quickly, performing a spell that would make his glasses repel water.
Joining Christine at the back of the group, Harry noticed her legs were shaking as she clutched her Firebolt like she was holding on for dear life.
"It's all right, you're going to be great." He practically had to yell over the rain.
She smiled weakly at him.
The Ravenclaws were also coming out onto the field. Cho had apparently been made captain. She led her team out onto the soaked field. Harry caught her eye, but she didn't smile or wish him luck like usual. She had a very determined look in her eyes, and stood very straight as she and Angelina faced each other.
"All right then, captains shake hands." Madam Hooch instructed.
Cho and Angelina grasped each others hands much more firmly than was necessary, tight smiles on both of their faces.
"Players mount your brooms."
Harry smiled back at Christine, who looked like she was about to cry.
"And…GO!!!"
All fourteen players pushed off at almost the same instant, soaring high up into the air. Lee Jordan, a friend of Fred and George's, was back in his now familiar position as announcer.
"And they're off!! With the Ravenclaw's in early possession by the very talented new player, Miss Mandy Brocklehurst. Brocklehurst swerving quickly towards the goal and-Oh! The new Gryffindor Keeper just barely let that one by her."
Harry looked down at Christine despairingly from his very high vantage point above the field. Cho was flying very close to him, and flashed him a triumphant smile. But Harry couldn't be distracted now. He had to find the Snitch quickly before the Ravenclaws got ahead.
"Angelina Johnson, the newly announced Gryffindor captain, in possession, and what a Chaser! She narrowly avoids a Bludger that would've broken her nose, and she makes a behind-the-back pass to Katie (impressive!) and…it's a goal for Gryffindor!!"
Harry looked at Cho briefly. She was glaring at him. Both Seekers focused on nothing else but seeing through the pounding rain and finding the Snitch.
The game became very violent as the score escalated to 80-100 in Ravenclaw's favor. Cho and Harry were both now quickly soaring all around the field, Harry always just a little bit ahead. Christine was actually doing much better, from what he could tell from the small snippets of the commentary he heard. She had made two very impressive saves. (or at least that's all he knew about)
"And Brocklehurst with the Quaffle once again. The Ravenclaw Beaters are trailing her, waiting for the always well-aimed Bludgers from Fred and George Weasley. And speaking of, Fred sends one right at Brocklehurst!! And…saved by Emilio Winters, quite a good Ravenclaw Beater. Wait!! He sends it right towards the Gryffindor Keeper!! I don't think she can see it!! OH NO!!!"
The Bludger had hit Christine hard in the stomach. This had happened to Oliver Wood many times, but Christine was much smaller. To Harry's horror, it knocked her right off her broom. Christine was sent hurtling towards the ground at a breath-taking speed. Harry reacted before he even really knew what he was doing. Ripping out his wand, he aimed as well as he could:
"Slodonus!!"
Harry's Firebolt was now very close to Christine. She fell the last five feet in what seemed like slow motion. But even so, Christine hit the ground with a sickening crunch. Harry landed and leaped off his broom. She was sprawled out on the ground, motionless.
"Christine!! Christine, can you hear me?" Her leg was sticking out at a very strange angle and Harry was afraid to touch her.
Madam Pomfrey and Dumbledore had just arrived next to Harry. Fred Weasley had landed a few feet away, holding Christine's Firebolt.
"It's all right, Harry. She's going to be all right." Dumbledore carefully picked her up, Madam Pomfrey gingerly touching her leg.
Harry started to follow them. Fred grabbed him by the shoulders.
"We've still got a game to play, Harry! The rules state that a game can carry on without a Keeper!"
Harry reluctantly leaped onto his broom, and to his surprise, saw the Snitch flying a few feet the end of Cho's broom. To throw her off track, Harry suddenly swerved and headed for the Gryffindor goal, his arms stretched out.
She saw this and was right behind him in an instant. Harry quickly turned, and headed right for the Snitch. He was very close when suddenly Cho was just a little behind him. Harry reached out his arms for real this time, determined to grab it first. The whole team was now watching the two Seekers and the crowd had gone silent. Harry was reaching until it felt like his fingers were going to break….and he closed his hand around the golden Snitch with one swift spurt of the Firebolt.
Smiling widely, he didn't even really hear the cheers of the crowd. All he wanted to do was to go make sure Christine was okay. Landing and slipping slightly, he stumbled off his broom. Handing the Snitch to Madam Hooch, he started off towards the castle.
The rest of the Gryffindor team was following him. Angelina squeezed his shoulder proudly.
"Good job, Harry." She smiled.
Fred and George clapped him on the back.
"Spanking good show, Potter, as always." Fred grinned.
They all seemed a little forlorn as they trudged towards the castle. Harry just really, really wanted Christine to be all right. Everyone else seemed to have the same thing on their minds.
Suddenly, Lupin was at Harry's side, wiping the rain off his face.
"That was great, Harry. You may have very well saved her life." Lupin looked very worried, and joined the team as they walked up to the castle. Ron and Hermione apparently couldn't find him in the now very violent thunderstorm, and had joined the many students huddled under umbrellas who were also making their way up to the main entrance.
The team entered the castle, dripping steadily on the ground. Harry was dashing up to the hospital wing, Lupin not far behind. When they finally reached it, Harry saw Christine on the farthest bed. She was half-heartedly drinking a cup full of a strange steaming potion. She looked ghostly white and her leg was being tended to by Madam Hooch.
But when she saw Harry, her face lit up.
"You saved my life!" She shrieked, rather hoarsely.
Struggling to get up, but collapsing out of pain and a forceful push back from Madam Pomfrey, she resigned to stay on her bed.
The rest of the team was filtering in.
"Are you sure you're all right?" Harry asked.
"Yes, thanks to you. I would've died Harry. Thank you so much." She reached up to grab his hand.
Suddenly, her eyes fell on Professor Lupin. Harry felt her hand tense on his.
"Christine…it's been a long time." He said very quietly.
She looked down, and when she met his eyes again they were full of tears. And to Harry and the rest of the team's shock, Lupin reached down and hugged Christine very tightly.
"I've missed you." She sobbed.
"You two know each other?" Angelina looked from one to the other."No, Lupin really misses complete strangers." George muttered sarcastically.
Harry looked at Christine quizzically.
"Please, Harry, there are some things you just wouldn't…wouldn't understand." She said weakly.
Harry turned towards Lupin.
"She's right, Harry. Please, just trust us when we say that there are some things that are better forgotten." Lupin looked as though he felt terrible for keeping something from Harry.
Harry felt his body burn with anger.
"What wouldn't I understand?" His voice was rising slightly.
"Harry…please-" Christine started to say.
"No! No, I'm not leaving until you tell what you're hiding from me, Christine! I'm sick of this!" He realized that he was being immature, but he didn't care.
The rest of the Gryffindor team was watching in silence.
"Harry, go." Lupin's eyes were darkened.
"Fine!" Harry yelled, stalking out of the hospital wing, furious.
He barely heard Madam Pomfrey shooing the rest of the team out. But he didn't want to talk to them. He just wanted to be alone. He hated Lupin and Christine. Why would they want to keep anything from him? He thought he could trust Professor Lupin, but he had obviously been wrong. He turned the corner sharply and ran straight into Ron.
"Harry, I was just about to go check the hospital wing for you. You did so great!" Ron had a wide smile on his face that made Harry even angrier.
"Leave me alone!" Harry snapped, shoving past a stunned Ron and headed for the commons room now in a flat-out run.
Storming past the Fat Lady after spitting the password viciously, he hoped against hope no one was in the common room. But there was someone. A tall, red-haired someone. Ginny Weasley was sitting in the common room, studying. She looked up with a start as Harry slammed the portrait hole shut.
"Oh, hello, Harry. What's wrong?"
"I-I just…I need to be alone." Harry said quickly, heading for the staircase.
"Are you sure you don't want to talk about anything?"
Harry tried to keep the anger in his voice to a minimum.
"Yes, Ginny. I'm sure. I'm just…rather upset about something and need to be by myself."
"All right. Good job today, by the way. That charm was incredible. You saved that girl's life." She looked amazed at his talent.
"Well, fine way for her to repay me." Harry muttered.
"What do you mean?"
And for some reason most unknown to Harry, he suddenly spilled out everything that was in his mind to a wide-eyed Ginny. He told her about the dream, how strangely Christine had acted and everything else he was thinking about.
She looked a little stunned that he had just suddenly given her so much information.
"Ginny!" A shrill voice suddenly called from the girl's dormitory.
Her friend, a short, blond haired fourth year, was headed down the staircase. When she saw who Ginny was talking to, she stopped.
"Er…it can wait." The girl said quietly, looking a little embarrassed.
"No, Ginny, go ahead. I'll see you later." Harry turned around and walked up to his room, feeling much better and a lot calmer.
He heard her walking off and heard them talking as he lay down on his four poster bed, his hands folded behind his head. He was very wet and very tired. It was nice to be alone. He suddenly remembered what he had said to Ron, and a guilty feeling made his stomach flip. He had just been so angry with Christine and mostly with Lupin that he wasn't really thinking. But he still had no right to take it out on Ron like that. But suddenly, as if though under a spell, a wave of sleepiness washed over him.
He took off his glasses and closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Harry woke up much later from a refreshingly dreamless sleep. It was very dark outside. He reasoned that he had slept right through dinner. Feeling an hungry rumble in his stomach, he reckoned he would either have to face Ron in the Great Hall or go hungry. Suddenly, he heard very soft footsteps coming up the stairs. Watching the doorway apprehensively, he really hoped it wasn't Ron. But to his utter surprise, there stood a very raggedly-dressed house-elf named Dobby. And in one long bony hand, Dobby carried a small plate of wonderful smelling steak from the kitchens.
"Dobby!" Harry sat up, excited to see him.
" 'Tis me, sir! Dobby saw that Harry Potter was not down in dinner, so Dobby brings dinner to him!" Dobby's big round eyes looked happily up at Harry.
Harry thanked him, hungrily picking up the knife and fork and scarfing down the steak. It tasted wonderful.
"Want some, Dobby?" Harry said thickly, (his mouth was stuffed with a large bite of steak)
"No, sir. Dobby has already eaten." The little house-elf was grinning broadly as though nothing pleased him more than making Harry happy.
As he was eating while sitting cross-legged on the floor, Harry heard familiar voices from the common room. Hermione and Ron were arguing very loudly. They seemed to do this an awful lot, so no one in the common room even gave them a second look.
"Well, Ron, I'm sure he was a little upset! That Quidditch match was very emotionally taxing. You're his best friend, you should understand!"
"Hermione, why do you always-"
But Ron was cut off by Harry walking down the stairs.
"Look, Ron, sorry about that. But I can explain."
Ron looked at him suspiciously.
Harry explained everything that had happened. Hermione and Ron looked absolutely stunned.
"Lupin and Christine know each other? How is that possible? Where could they have met before?" Ron was sputtering. He had obviously forgiven Harry with the announcement of this stunning news.
Hermione was thinking, her eyebrows furrowed.
"Harry, you don't think…well, has Lupin ever had any children?" She said this very quietly.
"I don't have the slightest idea. I don't think he's ever been married."
"Yes, the whole turning into a murderous beast once a month might put a damper in the relationship." Hermione was thinking even harder now.
"That doesn't mean he's never had children." Ron said, speaking even more quietly.
"Wait! I've just thought-there's bound to be teacher's records in Dumbledore's office that would have this sort of information! I'll go look while you two are in Hogsmeade!" Harry whispered.
"I don't know…" Hermione looked a little wary of the idea, as she always did when rule-breaking was suggested.
"C'mon, Hermione, what's the worst thing that could happen?" Ron looked exasperated.
"Would you like me make a list for you? I think I could fill up about two rolls of parchment." Hermione shot back.
"Look, Hermione, I'll be careful. I always am." Harry was getting tired of people thinking he couldn't take care of himself. He had successfully overcome the most evil wizard in history-four times.
"I can tell I'm not going to say anything that'll stop you. Even though I wish you wouldn't. So, just promise me-don't go out onto Hogwarts grounds by yourself." Hermione looked very sternly at him.
"I know not to do that." Harry hated not being able to, but it was much better than being killed.
Ron suddenly yawned very loudly.
"It's nearly midnight." Harry commented, looking at his watch.
"I'm going to bed. 'Night, Hermione."
"Good-night, Ron. 'Night, Harry." Hermione looked rather sleepy herself, walking off to the girl's rooms.
"Ron, you go ahead." Harry saw Ginny sitting on the couch with her friend.
Ron shrugged, heading for their room.
"Ginny, could I have a word?" Harry asked, causing her to look up, her cheeks burning.
"Of course."
They walked over to a window, away from the very small amount of people still in the common room.
"I just wanted to make sure that you didn't tell anyone all the things I've told you."
"Harry, I didn't tell anybody. And I won't. I'm honored that you trusted me enough to tell me all that."
Not really knowing how to reply to that, there was an awkward silence.
"Okay then, thanks. Good-night, Ginny." Harry smiled, and walked away.
She just stood there, flushed with happiness, for a long time afterwards.
Awwww...isn't that sweet? I love H/G, don't you? I forgot to mention up at the top
that there is also a big part with Hagrid in the next installment. So if ya like
Hagrid (are there any big Hagrid fans out there?) ya gotta review and let me
know! Anybody think they've got Christine figured out now? Just a hint: it's
not as obvious as you think. That's all the mysterious ~FleurHartz~ will reveal
for now--until next time...
Sorry about not much romance, I am really trying to write this in J.K.'s style, and really
overt romance doesn't really seem like her style. But there is some H/G in this and some R/H
tension. There. Happy? j/k Coming up: Harry sneaks up to Dumbledore's office and
finds out something and then gets caught by Dumbledore himself. Also, a very
interesting part with Cho in the next part. But ya gotta review if ya want
to read it!
The next morning, Harry woke up very late. Ron had left a note for him.
Harry-
I tried to wake you up. I think you were having some sort of bad dream or something. You told
me to just go on down to breakfast without you, so I did. That's where Hermione and I are.
Harry put a hand on his scar. It felt very warm, and was aching. In his head, he kept seeing images.
He had had a dream. But what had happened? He kept seeing images of someone, something… Squeezing
his eyes shut, he remembered-
"There is much to be done, many more deaths, before Harry Potter is mine."
"…I have sent the Death Eaters everywhere!"
The dream was slowly coming back to him. His scar was now burning. Harry needed to tell Ron and
Hermione, needed to be around people and noise. The silence was causing horrible thoughts to fill his mind.
Leaping up and getting dressed, he dashed down to the Great Hall. It was practically empty.
Ron and Hermione were still there, discussing something worriedly. Hermione saw him, and raced over.
"Harry, are you all right? Ron said he'd tried to wake you up, but you kept saying all these strange things under your breath and about how strangely you acted last night, and-"
"Hermione, we need to talk. All of us." Harry led her over to the Gryffindor table.
He proceeded to tell both of them everything about his dream but nothing about Christine. For some reason, he felt that was something he needed to figure out on his own.
"Muggle-borns, Hermione. He might very well be coming after you next." Ron looked extremely concerned.
Hermione's face lost all color. She put her hands over her mouth and took in a deep breath, apparently taking all this in.
"I don't think any of us should go to Hogsmeade next weekend." Ron said firmly.
"I'm meeting Krum, I've got to go." Hermione replied, still thinking.
"Hermione, your life might be at stake here! I think that's a little more important than meeting up with your…your…"
"Honestly, Ron, he's come all the way here from Bulgaria. I can't just not show up. I can take care of myself. You and Harry stay here, and I'll go."
Harry looked up at Ron.
"Ron, you go, I'll see you when you come back. I'm used to it, I'll be fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. You don't have to stay here to protect me. Lupin's here, remember? And Dumbledore. Nothing's going to happen to me."
"All right. It's next weekend, right, Hermione?"
"Right. We'd better hurry if we plan on making it to Transfiguration." She leaped up from her seat and slung her book bag over one shoulder, walking up ahead of them.
"Harry, what was up with you after the Quidditch meeting? Did something happen?"
"Ron, I'm fine." Harry said quickly.
Hermione suddenly spun around.
"Have you written to Snuffles, Harry? You need to tell him all this."
"No, I haven't. But I will as soon as we get back up to the common room. If anyone will know what to do, it'd be Snuffles."
Professor McGongall had given them an extraordinary amount of homework.
"On our first day of Transfiguration, she gives us enough to last the whole year!" Ron groaned, looking at the assignment again.
"She's just trying to prepare us for the O.W.L.'s." Hermione said sensibly.
"Already? They can't be that hard." Harry chimed in.
"Actually, they're extremely difficult. According to Hogwarts, a History-"
"Fred and George didn't study a lick for them Harry, and got six apiece. They can't be that difficult." Ron assured him as they headed for Charms class.
They entered the classroom to find tiny Professor Flitwick shuffling through his notes. As students started to come in, he smiled at them from atop the three books he was poised on to see over his desk.
"Good morning class!" He squeaked as the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors seated themselves.
"Today we will be a learning a charm that can actually slow down something before it hits the ground. For example-"
Flitwick pointed his wand at a paperweight on his desk. He lifted it into the air, where it hovered, shaking slightly. And then it began to fall. But an instant before it hit the ground, he bellowed-
"Slodonus!"
And it began to fall as if slow motion, hitting the ground with only a quiet thump.
"Cool!" Dean said, obviously impressed.
Flitwick grinned at him, handing out poufs to everyone.
"Now I want everyone to repeat after me- Slodonus!!"
"Slodonus!" The class repeated.
"Very good! Now everyone- throw your pouf into the air and try to perform the charm before it hits the ground. Don't become frustrated if you can't complete it at first. This is a complicated charm that everyone seems to have trouble with. I'll be coming around to help anyone who needs it. And class," he glanced quickly at Neville, "make sure you aim your wand only at your pouf."
Harry pulled out his wand, and held the pouf in one hand. Squinting his eyes with concentration, he threw the pouf very high into the air. Aiming carefully, he said-
"Slodonus!"
And to his astonishment, the pouf slowed down and hit the ground slowly.
"Very good, Harry! Very good indeed!" Flitwick looked astonished.
Everyone else, even Hermione, was failing miserably. But Harry consistently slowed down his poufs on each try. Ron, frustrated, misaimed his wand and sent Professor Flitwick soaring into the air(which seemed to happen a lot) and plummeting towards the ground. Harry reacted quickly.
"Slodonus!" Professor Flitwick landed, cross-legged and unharmed on the ground.
"Well done, Mr. Potter! Even very advanced wizards have trouble using this charm on living beings! Twenty points to Gryffindor!"
Harry grinned. It was fun being the best at something without even trying that hard. Hermione was scowling. She still couldn't get it down. Ron still was slightly pale from nearly killing a teacher, and was holding his wand shakily. Sitting down, he abandoned pouf throwing for the rest of the class.
Suddenly, Angelina Johnson poked her head in.
"Professor Flitwick, I need to see Harry Potter." She asked him, looking a little flustered.
"Oh, of course, Angelina. Mr. Weasley, could you get the assignment at the end of class for Harry?"
"Sure." Ron replied, looking slightly put out.
Harry grabbed his book bag, whispered good-bye to his friends, and hurried after Angelina.
She led him down to a classroom where Fred, George, Katie, Alicia and Christine were already seated. Christine instantly averted her eyes.
Angelina looked at her team with a deep sigh.
"All right everyone, the game against Ravenclaw has been scheduled to Thursday of next week. I know we've never had them this early, but apparently they wanted to get the season going early this year. And we've hardly practiced at all. I know we have a very talented team, but so does Ravenclaw. There's practice tonight and I'll inform you of others. Be prepared to work hard tonight everyone-no slacking off. Ravenclaw has never defeated us-well except when we were without a Seeker-but let's not let them start now."
Fred clapped loudly and the rest of the team joined in.
"All right everyone, see you at 5:00 sharp."
Everyone grabbed their bags and set off for the Gryffindor common room. Their classes would be practically over now, so they thought they would just head up.
"I've got to write Sirius." Harry said to himself, his mind returning to his dream and a cold chill covering his body.
"Sirius Black?" Christine had heard him, and was looking at him with disbelief as they entered the common room.
Harry's heart missed a beat. How could he have been so stupid? Only he, Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore and Lupin knew Sirius was innocent. To the rest of the wizarding world, Sirius was still a convicted murder.
"Er…that's not what I meant." Harry said stupidly.
"No, it's all right." Her voice grew very quiet. "I know he's innocent too."
"What? How-" Harry sputtered, stunned.
"I know more than you think, Harry." She looked at him, meaningfully and then headed towards the girl's dormitory.
Harry was left more confused than ever. How could she possibly know? Searching for a quill and some parchment, he decided to write Sirius right now. It was time to get some answers.
Sirius-
I'm having dreams again. This time, Peter Pettigrew was telling Voldemort that he had Death Eaters everywhere and Voldemort said there would be many more deaths before I was his, but that he wouldn't be satisfied until I was dead. And my scar's hurting again. What should I do?
Also, the new first-year Keeper for our Quidditch team, Christine Hartsook, is acting really strange. She told me that both her mother died when she was very young and that she never knew her father. She acts like she knows me from somewhere. And also, the strangest part-she knows that you're innocent! Who is she? How does she know? Please write me back as soon as possible.
Thanks,
Harry
Also, Angelina Johnson is our new Quidditch captain. And we're going to Hogsmeade next weekend, but I'm staying here. It seems safer with everything that's happening. And, Professor Snape's gone! We've got a new Potions teacher, Professor Capstone.
Harry went down to the Owlery for a school owl. Hedwig was much too conspicuous wherever Sirius was hiding. Tying the letter to the leg of a plain brown owl, he sent it off to find Sirius. That was all he could do for now.
It was time for lunch in the Great Hall. Harry hurried down, anxious to tell Ron and Hermione what had happened. He saw them sitting on the far corner of the Gryffindor table.
"Christine knows about Snuffles being innocent!!" Harry whispered as he seated himself.
Ron's eyes grew very wide and Hermione clapped a hand over her mouth.
"How could she possibly?" She muttered to Harry.
Harry proceeded to tell them everything that had happened. After "How could you not have told us" from Ron and a "You've got to be more careful about saying Sirius' name, Harry" from Hermione, they all grew silent with thought.
"Harry, there's only one thing to do. Talk to Lupin about all this, he always seem to know what's going on with everything." Ron suggested.
Deciding this would be a good idea, Harry decided to ask him over the weekend everyone else was at Hogsmeade.
That night, Harry left Ron and Hermione for Advanced Astronomy. It was quite fun. Professor Avery was very funny and gave them very little homework, just a mildly complicated constellation chart. Neville and Harry sat together and had a good time looking for the different shapes formed by the stars with the extremely large telescopes.
As class was ending, Professor Avery called Harry over. Waving good-bye to Neville, Harry walked up to Professor Avery's desk.
"Harry Potter, right? The Harry Potter?" Professor Avery had a very excited glint in his eyes.
"Yes, that's me." Harry looked at him, wondering what this was all about.
"All right, then. Hope you enjoy Advanced Astronomy." Professor Avery grabbed his bag and left the room.
Harry thought this was very curious. He shrugged, and went down to dinner. Hermione was explaining using telephones to Ron in further detail than the teacher of Muggle Studies had. He was listening with rapt attention, fascinated.
"And then, when you'd like to hang up, you put the phone back on the receiver." She said slowly.
"Wow!" Ron's eyes were very wide.
"Did you two like Muggle Studies?" Harry asked, sitting down.
"Oh, hello Harry. Yes, of course," Hermione said as Ron nodded energetically, "How did you like Advanced Astronomy?"
"Oh, it was really fun. Professor Avery's great, he let us work the whole class period to finish our constellation chart."
Harry scarfed down his dinner, and raced off to Quidditch practice. They were going to need a lot of practice if they didn't want to be beaten by Ravenclaw. The word was that their new Chaser, Mandy Brocklehurst, was very good.
The following week's Thursday had finally come, and it was nearly time for their Quidditch match. The whole History of Magic class was very antsy. The Ravenclaws and the Gryffindors were both very excited, and didn't really feel up to sitting through one of Professor Binn's notoriously long lectures.
Harry looked longingly out the window to the long grassy fields. It was a rather cloudy day, it looked like it was about to rain. This was alright with Harry, he'd played in what was close to a monsoon in a game
previously.
Hermione was tapping her foot in extreme boredom. Even she didn't feel like taking notes when the excitement for the coming game was so high. Ron was reading a dog-eared Chudley Cannons book under his desk but kept looking up at Mandy Brocklehurst dreamily. Mandy was playing with her long blond hair, looking as if she wanted to suddenly burst through the window and run out onto the field. Harry knew the feeling.
About thirty minutes into the lecture, a light rain had begun to fall. The sound of the pounding rain was causing Harry to drift farther and farther away from what Professor Binns was saying. Finally, after what seemed like years, the bell let out a resounding toll. With a squeal of excitement, Mandy leaped up from her seat and bounded towards the door. Although Harry did not squeal with excitement, he felt dangerously close to doing so. With a quick "See you later" to Ron and Hermione, he hurried off to the dorm to grab his broom and throw on his scarlet Quidditch robes. Dashing down to the field and into the locker rooms, he found the rest of his team looking rather anxious. Christine was sitting on the bench, looking sick to her stomach.
"You all right?" Harry sat down beside to her.
"No…I'm so nervous, I feel like I'm going to throw up."
"Don't worry, Christine. You'll do fine." Harry remembered exactly what he felt like before his first Quidditch match, and wanting to throw up was a pretty good description.
The only sound in the Gryffindor locker room was the steady rain. No one really had much to say, even Fred and George. Everyone was apparently lost in their thoughts.
Madam Hooch suddenly stepped in, soaking wet from head to foot.
"It's time." She said curtly, stepping back into the sheets of rain.
Harry suddenly remembered something. Whipping out his wand, he pointed it at his glasses.
"Impervius!" He said quickly, performing a spell that would make his glasses repel water.
Joining Christine at the back of the group, Harry noticed her legs were shaking as she clutched her Firebolt like she was holding on for dear life.
"It's all right, you're going to be great." He practically had to yell over the rain.
She smiled weakly at him.
The Ravenclaws were also coming out onto the field. Cho had apparently been made captain. She led her team out onto the soaked field. Harry caught her eye, but she didn't smile or wish him luck like usual. She had a very determined look in her eyes, and stood very straight as she and Angelina faced each other.
"All right then, captains shake hands." Madam Hooch instructed.
Cho and Angelina grasped each others hands much more firmly than was necessary, tight smiles on both of their faces.
"Players mount your brooms."
Harry smiled back at Christine, who looked like she was about to cry.
"And…GO!!!"
All fourteen players pushed off at almost the same instant, soaring high up into the air. Lee Jordan, a friend of Fred and George's, was back in his now familiar position as announcer.
"And they're off!! With the Ravenclaw's in early possession by the very talented new player, Miss Mandy Brocklehurst. Brocklehurst swerving quickly towards the goal and-Oh! The new Gryffindor Keeper just barely let that one by her."
Harry looked down at Christine despairingly from his very high vantage point above the field. Cho was flying very close to him, and flashed him a triumphant smile. But Harry couldn't be distracted now. He had to find the Snitch quickly before the Ravenclaws got ahead.
"Angelina Johnson, the newly announced Gryffindor captain, in possession, and what a Chaser! She narrowly avoids a Bludger that would've broken her nose, and she makes a behind-the-back pass to Katie (impressive!) and…it's a goal for Gryffindor!!"
Harry looked at Cho briefly. She was glaring at him. Both Seekers focused on nothing else but seeing through the pounding rain and finding the Snitch.
The game became very violent as the score escalated to 80-100 in Ravenclaw's favor. Cho and Harry were both now quickly soaring all around the field, Harry always just a little bit ahead. Christine was actually doing much better, from what he could tell from the small snippets of the commentary he heard. She had made two very impressive saves. (or at least that's all he knew about)
"And Brocklehurst with the Quaffle once again. The Ravenclaw Beaters are trailing her, waiting for the always well-aimed Bludgers from Fred and George Weasley. And speaking of, Fred sends one right at Brocklehurst!! And…saved by Emilio Winters, quite a good Ravenclaw Beater. Wait!! He sends it right towards the Gryffindor Keeper!! I don't think she can see it!! OH NO!!!"
The Bludger had hit Christine hard in the stomach. This had happened to Oliver Wood many times, but Christine was much smaller. To Harry's horror, it knocked her right off her broom. Christine was sent hurtling towards the ground at a breath-taking speed. Harry reacted before he even really knew what he was doing. Ripping out his wand, he aimed as well as he could:
"Slodonus!!"
Harry's Firebolt was now very close to Christine. She fell the last five feet in what seemed like slow motion. But even so, Christine hit the ground with a sickening crunch. Harry landed and leaped off his broom. She was sprawled out on the ground, motionless.
"Christine!! Christine, can you hear me?" Her leg was sticking out at a very strange angle and Harry was afraid to touch her.
Madam Pomfrey and Dumbledore had just arrived next to Harry. Fred Weasley had landed a few feet away, holding Christine's Firebolt.
"It's all right, Harry. She's going to be all right." Dumbledore carefully picked her up, Madam Pomfrey gingerly touching her leg.
Harry started to follow them. Fred grabbed him by the shoulders.
"We've still got a game to play, Harry! The rules state that a game can carry on without a Keeper!"
Harry reluctantly leaped onto his broom, and to his surprise, saw the Snitch flying a few feet the end of Cho's broom. To throw her off track, Harry suddenly swerved and headed for the Gryffindor goal, his arms stretched out.
She saw this and was right behind him in an instant. Harry quickly turned, and headed right for the Snitch. He was very close when suddenly Cho was just a little behind him. Harry reached out his arms for real this time, determined to grab it first. The whole team was now watching the two Seekers and the crowd had gone silent. Harry was reaching until it felt like his fingers were going to break….and he closed his hand around the golden Snitch with one swift spurt of the Firebolt.
Smiling widely, he didn't even really hear the cheers of the crowd. All he wanted to do was to go make sure Christine was okay. Landing and slipping slightly, he stumbled off his broom. Handing the Snitch to Madam Hooch, he started off towards the castle.
The rest of the Gryffindor team was following him. Angelina squeezed his shoulder proudly.
"Good job, Harry." She smiled.
Fred and George clapped him on the back.
"Spanking good show, Potter, as always." Fred grinned.
They all seemed a little forlorn as they trudged towards the castle. Harry just really, really wanted Christine to be all right. Everyone else seemed to have the same thing on their minds.
Suddenly, Lupin was at Harry's side, wiping the rain off his face.
"That was great, Harry. You may have very well saved her life." Lupin looked very worried, and joined the team as they walked up to the castle. Ron and Hermione apparently couldn't find him in the now very violent thunderstorm, and had joined the many students huddled under umbrellas who were also making their way up to the main entrance.
The team entered the castle, dripping steadily on the ground. Harry was dashing up to the hospital wing, Lupin not far behind. When they finally reached it, Harry saw Christine on the farthest bed. She was half-heartedly drinking a cup full of a strange steaming potion. She looked ghostly white and her leg was being tended to by Madam Hooch.
But when she saw Harry, her face lit up.
"You saved my life!" She shrieked, rather hoarsely.
Struggling to get up, but collapsing out of pain and a forceful push back from Madam Pomfrey, she resigned to stay on her bed.
The rest of the team was filtering in.
"Are you sure you're all right?" Harry asked.
"Yes, thanks to you. I would've died Harry. Thank you so much." She reached up to grab his hand.
Suddenly, her eyes fell on Professor Lupin. Harry felt her hand tense on his.
"Christine…it's been a long time." He said very quietly.
She looked down, and when she met his eyes again they were full of tears. And to Harry and the rest of the team's shock, Lupin reached down and hugged Christine very tightly.
"I've missed you." She sobbed.
"You two know each other?" Angelina looked from one to the other."No, Lupin really misses complete strangers." George muttered sarcastically.
Harry looked at Christine quizzically.
"Please, Harry, there are some things you just wouldn't…wouldn't understand." She said weakly.
Harry turned towards Lupin.
"She's right, Harry. Please, just trust us when we say that there are some things that are better forgotten." Lupin looked as though he felt terrible for keeping something from Harry.
Harry felt his body burn with anger.
"What wouldn't I understand?" His voice was rising slightly.
"Harry…please-" Christine started to say.
"No! No, I'm not leaving until you tell what you're hiding from me, Christine! I'm sick of this!" He realized that he was being immature, but he didn't care.
The rest of the Gryffindor team was watching in silence.
"Harry, go." Lupin's eyes were darkened.
"Fine!" Harry yelled, stalking out of the hospital wing, furious.
He barely heard Madam Pomfrey shooing the rest of the team out. But he didn't want to talk to them. He just wanted to be alone. He hated Lupin and Christine. Why would they want to keep anything from him? He thought he could trust Professor Lupin, but he had obviously been wrong. He turned the corner sharply and ran straight into Ron.
"Harry, I was just about to go check the hospital wing for you. You did so great!" Ron had a wide smile on his face that made Harry even angrier.
"Leave me alone!" Harry snapped, shoving past a stunned Ron and headed for the commons room now in a flat-out run.
Storming past the Fat Lady after spitting the password viciously, he hoped against hope no one was in the common room. But there was someone. A tall, red-haired someone. Ginny Weasley was sitting in the common room, studying. She looked up with a start as Harry slammed the portrait hole shut.
"Oh, hello, Harry. What's wrong?"
"I-I just…I need to be alone." Harry said quickly, heading for the staircase.
"Are you sure you don't want to talk about anything?"
Harry tried to keep the anger in his voice to a minimum.
"Yes, Ginny. I'm sure. I'm just…rather upset about something and need to be by myself."
"All right. Good job today, by the way. That charm was incredible. You saved that girl's life." She looked amazed at his talent.
"Well, fine way for her to repay me." Harry muttered.
"What do you mean?"
And for some reason most unknown to Harry, he suddenly spilled out everything that was in his mind to a wide-eyed Ginny. He told her about the dream, how strangely Christine had acted and everything else he was thinking about.
She looked a little stunned that he had just suddenly given her so much information.
"Ginny!" A shrill voice suddenly called from the girl's dormitory.
Her friend, a short, blond haired fourth year, was headed down the staircase. When she saw who Ginny was talking to, she stopped.
"Er…it can wait." The girl said quietly, looking a little embarrassed.
"No, Ginny, go ahead. I'll see you later." Harry turned around and walked up to his room, feeling much better and a lot calmer.
He heard her walking off and heard them talking as he lay down on his four poster bed, his hands folded behind his head. He was very wet and very tired. It was nice to be alone. He suddenly remembered what he had said to Ron, and a guilty feeling made his stomach flip. He had just been so angry with Christine and mostly with Lupin that he wasn't really thinking. But he still had no right to take it out on Ron like that. But suddenly, as if though under a spell, a wave of sleepiness washed over him.
He took off his glasses and closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Harry woke up much later from a refreshingly dreamless sleep. It was very dark outside. He reasoned that he had slept right through dinner. Feeling an hungry rumble in his stomach, he reckoned he would either have to face Ron in the Great Hall or go hungry. Suddenly, he heard very soft footsteps coming up the stairs. Watching the doorway apprehensively, he really hoped it wasn't Ron. But to his utter surprise, there stood a very raggedly-dressed house-elf named Dobby. And in one long bony hand, Dobby carried a small plate of wonderful smelling steak from the kitchens.
"Dobby!" Harry sat up, excited to see him.
" 'Tis me, sir! Dobby saw that Harry Potter was not down in dinner, so Dobby brings dinner to him!" Dobby's big round eyes looked happily up at Harry.
Harry thanked him, hungrily picking up the knife and fork and scarfing down the steak. It tasted wonderful.
"Want some, Dobby?" Harry said thickly, (his mouth was stuffed with a large bite of steak)
"No, sir. Dobby has already eaten." The little house-elf was grinning broadly as though nothing pleased him more than making Harry happy.
As he was eating while sitting cross-legged on the floor, Harry heard familiar voices from the common room. Hermione and Ron were arguing very loudly. They seemed to do this an awful lot, so no one in the common room even gave them a second look.
"Well, Ron, I'm sure he was a little upset! That Quidditch match was very emotionally taxing. You're his best friend, you should understand!"
"Hermione, why do you always-"
But Ron was cut off by Harry walking down the stairs.
"Look, Ron, sorry about that. But I can explain."
Ron looked at him suspiciously.
Harry explained everything that had happened. Hermione and Ron looked absolutely stunned.
"Lupin and Christine know each other? How is that possible? Where could they have met before?" Ron was sputtering. He had obviously forgiven Harry with the announcement of this stunning news.
Hermione was thinking, her eyebrows furrowed.
"Harry, you don't think…well, has Lupin ever had any children?" She said this very quietly.
"I don't have the slightest idea. I don't think he's ever been married."
"Yes, the whole turning into a murderous beast once a month might put a damper in the relationship." Hermione was thinking even harder now.
"That doesn't mean he's never had children." Ron said, speaking even more quietly.
"Wait! I've just thought-there's bound to be teacher's records in Dumbledore's office that would have this sort of information! I'll go look while you two are in Hogsmeade!" Harry whispered.
"I don't know…" Hermione looked a little wary of the idea, as she always did when rule-breaking was suggested.
"C'mon, Hermione, what's the worst thing that could happen?" Ron looked exasperated.
"Would you like me make a list for you? I think I could fill up about two rolls of parchment." Hermione shot back.
"Look, Hermione, I'll be careful. I always am." Harry was getting tired of people thinking he couldn't take care of himself. He had successfully overcome the most evil wizard in history-four times.
"I can tell I'm not going to say anything that'll stop you. Even though I wish you wouldn't. So, just promise me-don't go out onto Hogwarts grounds by yourself." Hermione looked very sternly at him.
"I know not to do that." Harry hated not being able to, but it was much better than being killed.
Ron suddenly yawned very loudly.
"It's nearly midnight." Harry commented, looking at his watch.
"I'm going to bed. 'Night, Hermione."
"Good-night, Ron. 'Night, Harry." Hermione looked rather sleepy herself, walking off to the girl's rooms.
"Ron, you go ahead." Harry saw Ginny sitting on the couch with her friend.
Ron shrugged, heading for their room.
"Ginny, could I have a word?" Harry asked, causing her to look up, her cheeks burning.
"Of course."
They walked over to a window, away from the very small amount of people still in the common room.
"I just wanted to make sure that you didn't tell anyone all the things I've told you."
"Harry, I didn't tell anybody. And I won't. I'm honored that you trusted me enough to tell me all that."
Not really knowing how to reply to that, there was an awkward silence.
"Okay then, thanks. Good-night, Ginny." Harry smiled, and walked away.
She just stood there, flushed with happiness, for a long time afterwards.
Awwww...isn't that sweet? I love H/G, don't you? I forgot to mention up at the top
that there is also a big part with Hagrid in the next installment. So if ya like
Hagrid (are there any big Hagrid fans out there?) ya gotta review and let me
know! Anybody think they've got Christine figured out now? Just a hint: it's
not as obvious as you think. That's all the mysterious ~FleurHartz~ will reveal
for now--until next time...