That evening, at dinner, when the golden plates had finally been cleared and sparkled again, Dumbledore called for everyone's attention. Surprised, Hermione turned to look up at the now-frail older man, his blue eyes sparkling with delight. A look everyone knew all too well - it meant he had something up his sleeve.
"I have just one thing I need to talk to you all about," he began, his eyes scanning over the room, as though looking for someone in particular. Hermione and Hary both looked very startled when his eyes fell on them and he stopped for a moment, before moving to the Slytherin table. He continued.
"As you know, the slight...rivalry...between the houses has prevented us from doing very many inter-house activities. So instead of forcing all the houses to work together toward a common goal, I have decided to do something involving only a few of you, those of you that volunteer." He paused, smiling slightly, as everyone stared at him. 'Oh, just hurry up!' Hermione though, anxious to know what special thing he had in store for them all. Maybe it was like the Tri-Wizard cup.
Dumbledore cleared his throat and went on. "It is a muggle activity for schools to send certain students that wish for it, to other countries to live in another culture for a year, during which they go to school and live with foster parents. I have debated on this for the summer, and I have decided that this is something we should participate in. I have called many of my old friends, now far from here and without children in their houses, to ask if they were willing. And I now have five key spaces for students to do this, should they be chosen."
Excited chatter filled the Great Hall as all the students began talking, wondering where the chosen few would be sent, and who they would be living with. Hermione very distinctly heard two girls giggling about the possibility of boyfriends from France or some other such place. She snorted in disgust and turned back to Dumbledore as he began to speak again.
"Now, I know it will be a difficult choice if many of you volunteer. However, each house you will be going to, is willing to take two of you. So you will not be alone in your adventures. To make this difficult choice, I have brought my old friend along to take his pick of you. You will all see him tomorrow evening after dinner. Until then, the ballot box will be sitting in the entry hall. Please write your names, and houses, clearly on a parchment, and drop it in." His lips twitched as he looked at them all. "And one more thing - anyone under 6th year will not be allowed to participate, and I have charmed the ballot box to make certain you cannot join unless you are of age. Goodnight to all, I will see you tomorrow."
Outraged chatter filled the hall as the students rose, angrily snapping about how it wasnt fair, and the younger students complained loudly that they would try anyway. Hermione smiled and rose, moving alongside Ginny to the doors. Ginny was excitedly telling Hermione that she was going to put her name in the box in the morning, in the hopes that she would be chosen. Hermione also was interested, and was thinking of all the wonderful places she could go to if she was picked. It was going to be a wonderful year.
***
Hermione had a hard time sleeping that night, knowing that in just 24 hours, she might be chosen as a transfer student. When she finally did fall asleep, her dreams were full of unknown places, strange faces, and excitement. Even in her sleep she couldnt restrain her anxiety about being chosen.
She woke up the next morning at an hour that was oddly early, even for her. Quickly she ran out of bed and washed up, then ran a brush through her hair and ran out the portrait hole, still trying to fix her robes.
"I did it, Hermione! I put my name in and it let me! Come on!" And before Hermione could utter a word, Ginny was dragging her by one arm through the crowd, pushing people aside with little squeaks of, "Excuse me!" And finally Hermione , looking rumpled, was before the box. She lifted her arm, trembling slightly, to drop the paper into the box, but before she even let go of it, a familiar drawl behind her made her hesitate.
"Come now, little ones, move over so I can get through." Hermione turned and found herself looking up at those stormy grey eyes, and she couldnt help but smile. He raised his eyebrows and gave her a nod, smiling back, before looking down at her hand.
"Ready, Hermione?" he asked, voice low and soft next to her ear. She nodded jerkily, her knees weak at the feel of his breath against her neck, and raised her hand again. Draco reached out with her, and their hands touched as they let the papers fall into the box. It glowed briefly, emitting green and red sparks before calming. Hermione smiled and stepped back, pleased that it had taken her paper. She turned to look at Ginny, who was eyeing the box critically, but said nothing.
Draco reached to Hermione and gently took her arm, leading past the crowd towards the Great Hall. They had just reached the doors, the girls in the crowd staring at how Draco and herself, when a shout from behind them made them stop.
"Even after everything he's done to you, you still hang out with him, Hermione?" She turned to meet the angry red face of Ron, and the slightly startled one of Harry's. Ron stomped towards them, hands curled into fists. He stepped up before Draco and glared at him from his considerable height, several inches taller than Draco. Hermione sighed impatiently and pulled Draco back a bit, moving in between them. She opened her mouth to speak, and Draco suddenly yanked her off to the side.
"I'm not going to let him hit you with another spell meant for me," he mumbled, his eyes never leaving Ron's. Hermione blinked, and Ron just snorted.
"If you hadn't been messing with her to begin with, Malfoy, none of that would have happened," he hissed, taking a step closer. Draco held his ground, but Hermione had had enough.
"No, Ron, if you weren't such an incredible jerk to realize he wasn't hurting me, then you wouldnt have hurt anyone at all!" His eyes flickered to her for a moment, then went back to Draco as he shifted. Hermione wasn't finished yet. "The only reason you felt the need to try to curse Draco was because you couldn't fathom the idea of me actually getting along with him. Well, newsflash Ron - he is my friend. I get along with him just fine. And if you can't be man enough to understand that and leave him alone, then you are much of a man to begin with. And you are also not MY friend."
Ignoring the look of complete shock on Harry's face, and anger on Ron's, Hermione spun on her heel and dragged Draco away through the doors, Ginny trailing along behind with her mouth hanging open. What had gotten into Ron lately, anyway? He had never been this overprotective before.
*** The classes that day just seemed to drag by like years for Hermione, as well as all the other students. Professor Binns seemed ten times more annoying and slow than usual, and Professor Snape took advantage of the students lack of attention as a chance to take off as many points from Gryfinndor as he could. And the longer the day seemed, the more nervous and fidgety Hermione got. If she was chosen, where would she be going? What if she didnt like it there? What if her grades slacked because the school she went to was far advanced? Would the other students like her?
When the last bell rang for dinner, Hermione fairly shot out of her chair and out of the room, not even bothering to go to Gryfinndor tower to leave her bag and books. She wasn't the only one to sidestep this, either - half the student body above grade 5 had dragged along huge piles of books just so they wouldnt miss a minute of dinner. Dragging Ginny along at top speed, Hermione got a seat as close as she could to the staff table, and waited impatiently. Ginny couldnt help but laugh at her nervousness - when the food finally came, Hermione could barely eat a bite.
So distracted she was, by her own thoughts, that she dropped her fork hard onto her plate with a clatter when Dumbledore stood and cleared his throat. She pushed her plate away eagerly and turned to face him, eyes wide, her hands twisting in her lap. Ginyn struggled to hide her laughter, she had never seen Hermione this agitated.
Dumbledore smiled down at all the students, fully aware of their anxiety. "I am certain you are all very excited to hear who was chosen tonight for the wizard exchange program. But first, I would like for you to meet the one who will be choosing your names out of the box." He turned to the door nearly concealed beside the staff table, and held out his arm. He gave a long, low whistle, and out of the room came flying the most beautiful bird Hermione had ever seen. It was Fawkes.
The room was completely hushed as the phoenix flew towards Dumbledore, its eerie, singing cry eoching in the silence. In a flurry of scarlet and gold, the bird landed on Dumbledore's shoulder, leaning to rub against his face affectionately. Dumbledore turned to face the room again, his blue eyes twinkling. "This is Fawkes. He will be choosing your names, completely unbiased. We are ready to begin."
Hagrid, sitting off to Dumbledore's right, leaned under the table and lugged out the large wooden box, setting it down gently on the table before Fawkes. The phoenix whistled quietly as Dumbledore opened it, peering inside calmly.
"First, we will choose the students chosen to go to Switzerland, to study in a very well-hidden school in the mountains." Fawkes flapped down to the table, and rooted around noisely in the box, pushing papers aside as though intent on one at the very bottom. With a very pleased look, Fawkes lifted out two papers, clutched in his beak, and gave them to Dumbledore. He unfolded them and smiled, looking astonished.
"Neville Longbottom, and Padma Patil."
The Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables burst into happy applause, the ones nearest to Neville pounding him on the back as he sat there with his mouth hanging open. Padma was nearly in tears, hugging her sister tightly across the space between the tables. Dumbledore applauded with everyone, then motioned the two students to go through the side door.
"Now onto the smaller, private school in France." Fawkes immediantly plowed back into the box, and Hermione was certain his beak was shredding the ones he pushed aside in an effort to get to the ones he wanted. He finally lifted out too more papers, looking very proud of himself. Dumbledore opened them.
"Hannah Abbott and Terry Boot."
Ravenclaw burst into applause against with Hufflepuff, the cheering from the former becoming almost unbearable as they realized that two of their house had been chosen. Hermione smiled at Hannah, giving her a wave as the students calmed down for the final pairing.
"Once more, Fawkes, for the pair sent to study in the house of a very old friend of mine."
Fawkes didn't dig or root in the box this time. Instead he reached in and simply plucked two parchment pieces out, and handed them to Dumbledore, climbing back onto the man's shoulder when he was finished. Dumbledore opened them, and his eyebrows raised, surprised beside himself.
I suppose we will have to do without our Head Boy and Girl for two months until Christmas, then. Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger."
*** Aren't I just mean? Sorry about the long wait before this chapter, I had a writers block. But now I had a dream about this, a very detailed one, and I could hardly wait to work on it a bit. The next chapters, unless I get too busy, should be moving along quickly now that I have a wonderful storyline. Keep reading and reviewing!
Veeshan
"I have just one thing I need to talk to you all about," he began, his eyes scanning over the room, as though looking for someone in particular. Hermione and Hary both looked very startled when his eyes fell on them and he stopped for a moment, before moving to the Slytherin table. He continued.
"As you know, the slight...rivalry...between the houses has prevented us from doing very many inter-house activities. So instead of forcing all the houses to work together toward a common goal, I have decided to do something involving only a few of you, those of you that volunteer." He paused, smiling slightly, as everyone stared at him. 'Oh, just hurry up!' Hermione though, anxious to know what special thing he had in store for them all. Maybe it was like the Tri-Wizard cup.
Dumbledore cleared his throat and went on. "It is a muggle activity for schools to send certain students that wish for it, to other countries to live in another culture for a year, during which they go to school and live with foster parents. I have debated on this for the summer, and I have decided that this is something we should participate in. I have called many of my old friends, now far from here and without children in their houses, to ask if they were willing. And I now have five key spaces for students to do this, should they be chosen."
Excited chatter filled the Great Hall as all the students began talking, wondering where the chosen few would be sent, and who they would be living with. Hermione very distinctly heard two girls giggling about the possibility of boyfriends from France or some other such place. She snorted in disgust and turned back to Dumbledore as he began to speak again.
"Now, I know it will be a difficult choice if many of you volunteer. However, each house you will be going to, is willing to take two of you. So you will not be alone in your adventures. To make this difficult choice, I have brought my old friend along to take his pick of you. You will all see him tomorrow evening after dinner. Until then, the ballot box will be sitting in the entry hall. Please write your names, and houses, clearly on a parchment, and drop it in." His lips twitched as he looked at them all. "And one more thing - anyone under 6th year will not be allowed to participate, and I have charmed the ballot box to make certain you cannot join unless you are of age. Goodnight to all, I will see you tomorrow."
Outraged chatter filled the hall as the students rose, angrily snapping about how it wasnt fair, and the younger students complained loudly that they would try anyway. Hermione smiled and rose, moving alongside Ginny to the doors. Ginny was excitedly telling Hermione that she was going to put her name in the box in the morning, in the hopes that she would be chosen. Hermione also was interested, and was thinking of all the wonderful places she could go to if she was picked. It was going to be a wonderful year.
***
Hermione had a hard time sleeping that night, knowing that in just 24 hours, she might be chosen as a transfer student. When she finally did fall asleep, her dreams were full of unknown places, strange faces, and excitement. Even in her sleep she couldnt restrain her anxiety about being chosen.
She woke up the next morning at an hour that was oddly early, even for her. Quickly she ran out of bed and washed up, then ran a brush through her hair and ran out the portrait hole, still trying to fix her robes.
"I did it, Hermione! I put my name in and it let me! Come on!" And before Hermione could utter a word, Ginny was dragging her by one arm through the crowd, pushing people aside with little squeaks of, "Excuse me!" And finally Hermione , looking rumpled, was before the box. She lifted her arm, trembling slightly, to drop the paper into the box, but before she even let go of it, a familiar drawl behind her made her hesitate.
"Come now, little ones, move over so I can get through." Hermione turned and found herself looking up at those stormy grey eyes, and she couldnt help but smile. He raised his eyebrows and gave her a nod, smiling back, before looking down at her hand.
"Ready, Hermione?" he asked, voice low and soft next to her ear. She nodded jerkily, her knees weak at the feel of his breath against her neck, and raised her hand again. Draco reached out with her, and their hands touched as they let the papers fall into the box. It glowed briefly, emitting green and red sparks before calming. Hermione smiled and stepped back, pleased that it had taken her paper. She turned to look at Ginny, who was eyeing the box critically, but said nothing.
Draco reached to Hermione and gently took her arm, leading past the crowd towards the Great Hall. They had just reached the doors, the girls in the crowd staring at how Draco and herself, when a shout from behind them made them stop.
"Even after everything he's done to you, you still hang out with him, Hermione?" She turned to meet the angry red face of Ron, and the slightly startled one of Harry's. Ron stomped towards them, hands curled into fists. He stepped up before Draco and glared at him from his considerable height, several inches taller than Draco. Hermione sighed impatiently and pulled Draco back a bit, moving in between them. She opened her mouth to speak, and Draco suddenly yanked her off to the side.
"I'm not going to let him hit you with another spell meant for me," he mumbled, his eyes never leaving Ron's. Hermione blinked, and Ron just snorted.
"If you hadn't been messing with her to begin with, Malfoy, none of that would have happened," he hissed, taking a step closer. Draco held his ground, but Hermione had had enough.
"No, Ron, if you weren't such an incredible jerk to realize he wasn't hurting me, then you wouldnt have hurt anyone at all!" His eyes flickered to her for a moment, then went back to Draco as he shifted. Hermione wasn't finished yet. "The only reason you felt the need to try to curse Draco was because you couldn't fathom the idea of me actually getting along with him. Well, newsflash Ron - he is my friend. I get along with him just fine. And if you can't be man enough to understand that and leave him alone, then you are much of a man to begin with. And you are also not MY friend."
Ignoring the look of complete shock on Harry's face, and anger on Ron's, Hermione spun on her heel and dragged Draco away through the doors, Ginny trailing along behind with her mouth hanging open. What had gotten into Ron lately, anyway? He had never been this overprotective before.
*** The classes that day just seemed to drag by like years for Hermione, as well as all the other students. Professor Binns seemed ten times more annoying and slow than usual, and Professor Snape took advantage of the students lack of attention as a chance to take off as many points from Gryfinndor as he could. And the longer the day seemed, the more nervous and fidgety Hermione got. If she was chosen, where would she be going? What if she didnt like it there? What if her grades slacked because the school she went to was far advanced? Would the other students like her?
When the last bell rang for dinner, Hermione fairly shot out of her chair and out of the room, not even bothering to go to Gryfinndor tower to leave her bag and books. She wasn't the only one to sidestep this, either - half the student body above grade 5 had dragged along huge piles of books just so they wouldnt miss a minute of dinner. Dragging Ginny along at top speed, Hermione got a seat as close as she could to the staff table, and waited impatiently. Ginny couldnt help but laugh at her nervousness - when the food finally came, Hermione could barely eat a bite.
So distracted she was, by her own thoughts, that she dropped her fork hard onto her plate with a clatter when Dumbledore stood and cleared his throat. She pushed her plate away eagerly and turned to face him, eyes wide, her hands twisting in her lap. Ginyn struggled to hide her laughter, she had never seen Hermione this agitated.
Dumbledore smiled down at all the students, fully aware of their anxiety. "I am certain you are all very excited to hear who was chosen tonight for the wizard exchange program. But first, I would like for you to meet the one who will be choosing your names out of the box." He turned to the door nearly concealed beside the staff table, and held out his arm. He gave a long, low whistle, and out of the room came flying the most beautiful bird Hermione had ever seen. It was Fawkes.
The room was completely hushed as the phoenix flew towards Dumbledore, its eerie, singing cry eoching in the silence. In a flurry of scarlet and gold, the bird landed on Dumbledore's shoulder, leaning to rub against his face affectionately. Dumbledore turned to face the room again, his blue eyes twinkling. "This is Fawkes. He will be choosing your names, completely unbiased. We are ready to begin."
Hagrid, sitting off to Dumbledore's right, leaned under the table and lugged out the large wooden box, setting it down gently on the table before Fawkes. The phoenix whistled quietly as Dumbledore opened it, peering inside calmly.
"First, we will choose the students chosen to go to Switzerland, to study in a very well-hidden school in the mountains." Fawkes flapped down to the table, and rooted around noisely in the box, pushing papers aside as though intent on one at the very bottom. With a very pleased look, Fawkes lifted out two papers, clutched in his beak, and gave them to Dumbledore. He unfolded them and smiled, looking astonished.
"Neville Longbottom, and Padma Patil."
The Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables burst into happy applause, the ones nearest to Neville pounding him on the back as he sat there with his mouth hanging open. Padma was nearly in tears, hugging her sister tightly across the space between the tables. Dumbledore applauded with everyone, then motioned the two students to go through the side door.
"Now onto the smaller, private school in France." Fawkes immediantly plowed back into the box, and Hermione was certain his beak was shredding the ones he pushed aside in an effort to get to the ones he wanted. He finally lifted out too more papers, looking very proud of himself. Dumbledore opened them.
"Hannah Abbott and Terry Boot."
Ravenclaw burst into applause against with Hufflepuff, the cheering from the former becoming almost unbearable as they realized that two of their house had been chosen. Hermione smiled at Hannah, giving her a wave as the students calmed down for the final pairing.
"Once more, Fawkes, for the pair sent to study in the house of a very old friend of mine."
Fawkes didn't dig or root in the box this time. Instead he reached in and simply plucked two parchment pieces out, and handed them to Dumbledore, climbing back onto the man's shoulder when he was finished. Dumbledore opened them, and his eyebrows raised, surprised beside himself.
I suppose we will have to do without our Head Boy and Girl for two months until Christmas, then. Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger."
*** Aren't I just mean? Sorry about the long wait before this chapter, I had a writers block. But now I had a dream about this, a very detailed one, and I could hardly wait to work on it a bit. The next chapters, unless I get too busy, should be moving along quickly now that I have a wonderful storyline. Keep reading and reviewing!
Veeshan