Chapter Eight
The Poll
Harry, Hermione, and Ron all walked to dinner together. They arrived and saw that everyone had gotten there earlier than them.
The three of them made their way over to Gryffindor table, and sat down somewhere in the middle. Hermione immediately started raving about Professor Luke, and Ron was saying something about him looking familiar. But Harry wasn't listening. His attention was focused on a certain redhead.
Ginny Weasley was sitting with her friends, eating a small helping of potatoes. She just wasn't that hungry. Her stomach had been doing back- flips all day.
"Ginny," one of her friends prodded, "Don't look now, but Harry Potter's had his eyes fixed on you since he got in here."
Ginny's heart gave a little flutter, and she slowly turned her head towards him.
When Harry realized that she had seen him, he didn't know whether to look away or not. Luckily, she gave him a small wave, which he returned happily, and then turned back to the conversation between his two best friends.
"So, Harry, now that you've chosen to finally join us," Hermione said sarcastically.
Ron gave him a small smile, and then said suddenly, "Oh, er, what time did you want to meet tonight?"
Harry was confused.
"Meet? What are you talking about?"
Ron looked at him with suspiciously. "Quidditch Captain," he mercifully reminded his friend. "Good lord you've been distracted today, what's going on with you?"
Not caring to share with Ron just why he had been acting so differently, he replied with, "Er, oh, nothing, just a little preoccupied, lots of potions homework.."
Ron seemed to think that this was a perfectly acceptable excuse, and went back to eating his supper. Hermione, however, wasn't easily fooled. She looked at him reprimandingly, as if saying that Harry should tell Ron about him and Ginny. But why would he? They didn't even have anything yet, well, not officially at least, and there was no point in worrying him right away.
Harry glanced one more time at Ginny, who was about a quarter way down the table. She was laughing with her friends, looking gorgeous, as always.
Ron, Hermione, and Harry all finished their food and trooped up to the Gryffindor Tower. "So, Harry," said Ron, "Have you given any thought to, well, You-Know-Who, I mean, OUCH!!" Ron's sentence was cut short by Hermione's elbow, which found its mark right in the middle of Ronald Weasley's chest. "Hermione, what the--"
Harry felt good that Hermione worried enough about his feelings to wait for Harry to raise the subject, but now seemed as good a time as ever to start talking. Of course, he had given the thought of Lord Voldemort being back in public a lot of thought, but he hadn't really seen a difference.
"Its okay Hermione."
Harry looked at the pair of them, and said solemnly, "Yeah, Ron, I have thought about it. A lot."
Ron was apparently semi-glad that Harry hadn't gone ballistic, but he also seemed a bit putout by his mood. "Well," he began, "It said in the paper that some old bat claimed she saw him wandering the streets up near Winchester."
Ron smiled at Harry, encouraging him. Harry shot him a look and said, "Is that so?"
Ron knew when to end a conversation.
They arrived at the portrait of the fat lady in silence. Hermione mumbled the password and climbed through quickly, and then rushed off to her dorm.
The two boys stood in the entryway, and Harry soon felt someone run into him from behind. He whipped around to see a very embarrassed Ginny standing there, stammering. "Oh, Harry, er, I'm so sorry, just came through the portrait hole, didn't see you.."
"S'alright," said Harry brightly. If Ron noticed how quickly Harry's mood turned around when he saw Ginny, he didn't mention it.
"So," Ginny said, "Let's get down to it."
She motioned to the small, circular table in the corner. Harry had spent a lot of his time at this table; it was his favorite for doing homework and talking with friends. The three of them sat down, and looked at each other awkwardly.
"So," said Harry.
"So," said Ron.
"So," said Ginny.
They looked around at each other, every one waiting for the next to start.
Ginny looked at Harry and Ron exasperatedly, and then said, "Well, I suppose we should vote, then?"
"Alright," Ron said, "Between who?"
"Well, you two, naturally."
Harry looked at her confusedly.
"You don't want to be captain?" he asked.
Ginny laughed.
"Harry, I'm not really captain material. And even if I did want to be captain, I'm not nearly as good as you or Ron."
Harry smiled at her. "Don't say that. You're a wonderful flier."
She giggled at him, and Ron looked at them both. He cleared his throat, trying to catch their attention. "Well, I guess it's between Harry and me."
Harry could tell that he was just trying to be a good sport, but he still didn't want to give up the position that easily.
"Yeah," he said quietly.
"Well," Ron began politely, "What do you think?"
"I dunno," said Harry.
Ginny's face lit up. "I've got an idea."
They looked at her curiously, and she said, "Let's have a poll, but with the entire house!"
Harry and Ron looked at each other, and then Ron exclaimed, "Ginny, you're brilliant!" He got up immediately to grab a quill and parchment to take down names. Harry looked at his best friend, hoping that they would be able to stay that way after this whole ordeal.
Because while a part of him wanted Ron to get the spot, another part of him knew that he, himself, was better qualified. He didn't know what to do, until Ginny leaned down next to him. "How're you holding up?"
Harry looked from her to Ron, who was now running across the room, positively ecstatic.
"Alright," he said, "I've got the stuff. We can all split up, and.."
"Look, Ron," Harry cut him off, "I know you're gonna win, why don't we save ourselves the trip and just name you captain?"
The idea intrigued Ron, that was for sure, but he was an honest kid. "No, Harry, you're not getting out of this that easy. I'm sure some people here want to vote for you, its just a question of how many." he trailed off. Ron slammed the supplies in front of Harry and Ginny. "Well? What the hell are you waiting for?"
He sped off, leaving Harry and Ginny sitting at the table. He shot her a look, and saw that she knew as well as he did that Ron didn't stand a chance. But they both acted like he did.
"Well," Ginny said, "Let's go."
They both got up and started polling the surrounding people.
After nearly forty-five minutes, they three of them reconvened, having asked every single Gryffindor. Harry was glad that he had gotten somewhat mixed results, and as he handed them to Ginny, he prayed that Ron would win.
Ginny looked at the paper, counting the names. She stared intently at the messy writing, and after a few more minutes, she looked up.
"Well?" Ron inquired. "Who won?"
A smile was creeping up his face, and Harry squinted his eyes, preparing. His fingers were crossed inside his pockets. 'Please let it be Ron, Please let it be Ron,' he prayed. He bit his lower lip, and felt in hurting dimly.
Ginny stood up. Her expression was unreadable. She took a deep breath. Her palms started to get a little sweaty. The two boys she cared most about, her brother and her, well, whatever Harry was, she had to break the bad news to one of them.
"It's a tie."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"WHAT?"
Harry and Ron had both been at the edge of their seats, and now they hear that they had gotten the same amount of votes?
"That can't be," said Harry. "There's an even number of people here. And since two of us are running.."
"Who didn't we ask?" Ron questioned. "Who else is there?"
Ginny looked at the two boys and said quietly, "Me."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"What?" The old man looked very irritated. "Just listen!" he commanded. Sirius fell silent. He didn't want to damage his chance out of here. "Now, concentrate. Imagine going back, defying gravity, lifting up,.." Sirius thought very hard, but it didn't seem to be working. Just then, the old man started saying something in a strange language. It sounded like some kid of chant. Sirius looked at him, and was quickly scolded by the first man he had talked to. "Concentrate. Settle your mind on one goal." Sirius' thoughts enveloped around one thing, and suddenly, he felt himself floating upwards..
The Poll
Harry, Hermione, and Ron all walked to dinner together. They arrived and saw that everyone had gotten there earlier than them.
The three of them made their way over to Gryffindor table, and sat down somewhere in the middle. Hermione immediately started raving about Professor Luke, and Ron was saying something about him looking familiar. But Harry wasn't listening. His attention was focused on a certain redhead.
Ginny Weasley was sitting with her friends, eating a small helping of potatoes. She just wasn't that hungry. Her stomach had been doing back- flips all day.
"Ginny," one of her friends prodded, "Don't look now, but Harry Potter's had his eyes fixed on you since he got in here."
Ginny's heart gave a little flutter, and she slowly turned her head towards him.
When Harry realized that she had seen him, he didn't know whether to look away or not. Luckily, she gave him a small wave, which he returned happily, and then turned back to the conversation between his two best friends.
"So, Harry, now that you've chosen to finally join us," Hermione said sarcastically.
Ron gave him a small smile, and then said suddenly, "Oh, er, what time did you want to meet tonight?"
Harry was confused.
"Meet? What are you talking about?"
Ron looked at him with suspiciously. "Quidditch Captain," he mercifully reminded his friend. "Good lord you've been distracted today, what's going on with you?"
Not caring to share with Ron just why he had been acting so differently, he replied with, "Er, oh, nothing, just a little preoccupied, lots of potions homework.."
Ron seemed to think that this was a perfectly acceptable excuse, and went back to eating his supper. Hermione, however, wasn't easily fooled. She looked at him reprimandingly, as if saying that Harry should tell Ron about him and Ginny. But why would he? They didn't even have anything yet, well, not officially at least, and there was no point in worrying him right away.
Harry glanced one more time at Ginny, who was about a quarter way down the table. She was laughing with her friends, looking gorgeous, as always.
Ron, Hermione, and Harry all finished their food and trooped up to the Gryffindor Tower. "So, Harry," said Ron, "Have you given any thought to, well, You-Know-Who, I mean, OUCH!!" Ron's sentence was cut short by Hermione's elbow, which found its mark right in the middle of Ronald Weasley's chest. "Hermione, what the--"
Harry felt good that Hermione worried enough about his feelings to wait for Harry to raise the subject, but now seemed as good a time as ever to start talking. Of course, he had given the thought of Lord Voldemort being back in public a lot of thought, but he hadn't really seen a difference.
"Its okay Hermione."
Harry looked at the pair of them, and said solemnly, "Yeah, Ron, I have thought about it. A lot."
Ron was apparently semi-glad that Harry hadn't gone ballistic, but he also seemed a bit putout by his mood. "Well," he began, "It said in the paper that some old bat claimed she saw him wandering the streets up near Winchester."
Ron smiled at Harry, encouraging him. Harry shot him a look and said, "Is that so?"
Ron knew when to end a conversation.
They arrived at the portrait of the fat lady in silence. Hermione mumbled the password and climbed through quickly, and then rushed off to her dorm.
The two boys stood in the entryway, and Harry soon felt someone run into him from behind. He whipped around to see a very embarrassed Ginny standing there, stammering. "Oh, Harry, er, I'm so sorry, just came through the portrait hole, didn't see you.."
"S'alright," said Harry brightly. If Ron noticed how quickly Harry's mood turned around when he saw Ginny, he didn't mention it.
"So," Ginny said, "Let's get down to it."
She motioned to the small, circular table in the corner. Harry had spent a lot of his time at this table; it was his favorite for doing homework and talking with friends. The three of them sat down, and looked at each other awkwardly.
"So," said Harry.
"So," said Ron.
"So," said Ginny.
They looked around at each other, every one waiting for the next to start.
Ginny looked at Harry and Ron exasperatedly, and then said, "Well, I suppose we should vote, then?"
"Alright," Ron said, "Between who?"
"Well, you two, naturally."
Harry looked at her confusedly.
"You don't want to be captain?" he asked.
Ginny laughed.
"Harry, I'm not really captain material. And even if I did want to be captain, I'm not nearly as good as you or Ron."
Harry smiled at her. "Don't say that. You're a wonderful flier."
She giggled at him, and Ron looked at them both. He cleared his throat, trying to catch their attention. "Well, I guess it's between Harry and me."
Harry could tell that he was just trying to be a good sport, but he still didn't want to give up the position that easily.
"Yeah," he said quietly.
"Well," Ron began politely, "What do you think?"
"I dunno," said Harry.
Ginny's face lit up. "I've got an idea."
They looked at her curiously, and she said, "Let's have a poll, but with the entire house!"
Harry and Ron looked at each other, and then Ron exclaimed, "Ginny, you're brilliant!" He got up immediately to grab a quill and parchment to take down names. Harry looked at his best friend, hoping that they would be able to stay that way after this whole ordeal.
Because while a part of him wanted Ron to get the spot, another part of him knew that he, himself, was better qualified. He didn't know what to do, until Ginny leaned down next to him. "How're you holding up?"
Harry looked from her to Ron, who was now running across the room, positively ecstatic.
"Alright," he said, "I've got the stuff. We can all split up, and.."
"Look, Ron," Harry cut him off, "I know you're gonna win, why don't we save ourselves the trip and just name you captain?"
The idea intrigued Ron, that was for sure, but he was an honest kid. "No, Harry, you're not getting out of this that easy. I'm sure some people here want to vote for you, its just a question of how many." he trailed off. Ron slammed the supplies in front of Harry and Ginny. "Well? What the hell are you waiting for?"
He sped off, leaving Harry and Ginny sitting at the table. He shot her a look, and saw that she knew as well as he did that Ron didn't stand a chance. But they both acted like he did.
"Well," Ginny said, "Let's go."
They both got up and started polling the surrounding people.
After nearly forty-five minutes, they three of them reconvened, having asked every single Gryffindor. Harry was glad that he had gotten somewhat mixed results, and as he handed them to Ginny, he prayed that Ron would win.
Ginny looked at the paper, counting the names. She stared intently at the messy writing, and after a few more minutes, she looked up.
"Well?" Ron inquired. "Who won?"
A smile was creeping up his face, and Harry squinted his eyes, preparing. His fingers were crossed inside his pockets. 'Please let it be Ron, Please let it be Ron,' he prayed. He bit his lower lip, and felt in hurting dimly.
Ginny stood up. Her expression was unreadable. She took a deep breath. Her palms started to get a little sweaty. The two boys she cared most about, her brother and her, well, whatever Harry was, she had to break the bad news to one of them.
"It's a tie."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"WHAT?"
Harry and Ron had both been at the edge of their seats, and now they hear that they had gotten the same amount of votes?
"That can't be," said Harry. "There's an even number of people here. And since two of us are running.."
"Who didn't we ask?" Ron questioned. "Who else is there?"
Ginny looked at the two boys and said quietly, "Me."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"What?" The old man looked very irritated. "Just listen!" he commanded. Sirius fell silent. He didn't want to damage his chance out of here. "Now, concentrate. Imagine going back, defying gravity, lifting up,.." Sirius thought very hard, but it didn't seem to be working. Just then, the old man started saying something in a strange language. It sounded like some kid of chant. Sirius looked at him, and was quickly scolded by the first man he had talked to. "Concentrate. Settle your mind on one goal." Sirius' thoughts enveloped around one thing, and suddenly, he felt himself floating upwards..