The LionsÕ Cheering Section
When Lavender Brown, a Muggle-born, tries to organize a group of Gryffindor cheerleaders, hilarity ensues.
Harry and Ron clambered through the portrait hole, soggy and disheveled. However, their appearance was nothing compared to their moods.
ÒThat could NOT have been worse,Ó said Ron. ÒAnd donÕt tell me it couldÕve been,Ó he added, as Hermione came up to them and opened her mouth. Hermione closed her mouth, apparently trying to think of something that might raise the spirits of her two best friends, both of whom were on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Though Harry had been kicked off for a while the year before, UmbridgeÕs ban had been lifted earlier that month when they returned to Hogwarts.
Hermione suddenly brightened. ÒHey, youÕll never guess the cockamamy idea LavenderÕs come up with.Ó
ÒEr....cockamamy?Ó said Harry, looking confused.
ÒYes, cockamamy. It means, like, crazy.Ó
ÒIf you say so,Ó muttered Ron. ÒSo, what is it?Ó
Hermione stifled a giggle. ÒA Gryffindor cheerleading team.Ó
Harry and Ron both snapped straight up in the armchairs they had just slumped into.
ÒA...cheerleading team?Ó repeated Ron incredulously.
ÒA cheerleading team,Ó Hermione replied. ÒYou know, LavenderÕs Muggle-born like me, and her sisters were both cheerleaders in school --- oh, they werenÕt witches --- so she grew up around them and their friends. Tonight she realized none of the houses had a team, so she and Parvati went around asking people to sign up. Ginny and I decided weÕd give it a try, as well as a couple others.Ó
ÒYou, a cheerleader?Ó Ron raised his eyebrows, which by now had recovered from the Exploding Snap incident in 4th year.
ÒI always knew those two were mental,Ó said Harry, shaking his head, Òbut cheerleading.....thatÕs just plain absurd.Ó
ÒWell, they seemed pretty set on it,Ó said Hermione. ÒFirst practice is tomorrow.Ó
***
The next night at 6:30, half the girls in Gryffindor were congregated on the Quidditch pitch.
ÒNot a bad turnout,Ó muttered Lavender to no one in particular, scanning the crowd.
Then she raised her voice. ÒOkay, everybody! Thanks for signing up to be on the Gryffindor cheerleading team! Does anybody here have any experience?Ó
Only Daphne Greengrass raised her hand.
ÒRight, Daphne, could you come up here a moment?Ó
The fellow sixth year obliged, and when she arrived at the front of the small crowd, Lavender asked her how much experience she had.
ÒJust one year,Ó she replied timidly. Daphne was the type of girl who liked to go unnoticed, and let the people like Hermione answer the questions in class.
ÒWell, one yearÕll do,Ó said Lavender. ÒYouÕll be my demonstrator tonight.Ó
Daphne nodded.
ÒOkay,Ó called Lavender, ÒI think weÕll start with a fairly easy cheer. YouÕll only have to move your arms, and itÕs basically only two words.Ó
Ginny and Hermione exchanged raised eyebrows.
ÒSo, weÕre going to say: GO, GO, GRYFFINDOR! Everyone just say the words.Ó
ÒGO, GO, GRYFFINDOR!Ó rang through the stadium.
ÒNow, letÕs add the actions. On the first go, punch the air with your right hand. Daphne?Ó After Daphne had demonstrated what the first go should look like, Lavender continued, ÒGood. Now, on the second go, weÕre going to punch the air with our left hands. IÕd like everybody to just try the go, go, with the actions. Ready?Ó
ÒGO, GO...Ó screamed the girls.
The words were flawless, but the motions were far from it. Natalie McDonald was knocked over as her best friend Betsy Statser attempted the air-punching. Hermione raised her hands left, right instead of right, left. Kiara Gretu accidentally kicked the girl behind her when her leg lifted naturally up as she raised her arms. Parvati Patil was shouting the words from an extremely odd position, as she had apparently tried to do a handstand instead of LavenderÕs actions and failed. And Sally-Anne Perks stood, befuddled, in the midst of it all, not even trying the motions. Perhaps her reasoning was that she was safer this way, and she might have had a point. Only Ginny, Daphne, and Lavender got it right.
Lavender grimaced but recovered quickly. ÒAll right, girls, I think weÕll try that one again tomorrow night. WeÕll call it a day for now.Ó
Harry and Ron clambered through the portrait hole, soggy and disheveled. However, their appearance was nothing compared to their moods.
ÒThat could NOT have been worse,Ó said Ron. ÒAnd donÕt tell me it couldÕve been,Ó he added, as Hermione came up to them and opened her mouth. Hermione closed her mouth, apparently trying to think of something that might raise the spirits of her two best friends, both of whom were on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Though Harry had been kicked off for a while the year before, UmbridgeÕs ban had been lifted earlier that month when they returned to Hogwarts.
Hermione suddenly brightened. ÒHey, youÕll never guess the cockamamy idea LavenderÕs come up with.Ó
ÒEr....cockamamy?Ó said Harry, looking confused.
ÒYes, cockamamy. It means, like, crazy.Ó
ÒIf you say so,Ó muttered Ron. ÒSo, what is it?Ó
Hermione stifled a giggle. ÒA Gryffindor cheerleading team.Ó
Harry and Ron both snapped straight up in the armchairs they had just slumped into.
ÒA...cheerleading team?Ó repeated Ron incredulously.
ÒA cheerleading team,Ó Hermione replied. ÒYou know, LavenderÕs Muggle-born like me, and her sisters were both cheerleaders in school --- oh, they werenÕt witches --- so she grew up around them and their friends. Tonight she realized none of the houses had a team, so she and Parvati went around asking people to sign up. Ginny and I decided weÕd give it a try, as well as a couple others.Ó
ÒYou, a cheerleader?Ó Ron raised his eyebrows, which by now had recovered from the Exploding Snap incident in 4th year.
ÒI always knew those two were mental,Ó said Harry, shaking his head, Òbut cheerleading.....thatÕs just plain absurd.Ó
ÒWell, they seemed pretty set on it,Ó said Hermione. ÒFirst practice is tomorrow.Ó
***
The next night at 6:30, half the girls in Gryffindor were congregated on the Quidditch pitch.
ÒNot a bad turnout,Ó muttered Lavender to no one in particular, scanning the crowd.
Then she raised her voice. ÒOkay, everybody! Thanks for signing up to be on the Gryffindor cheerleading team! Does anybody here have any experience?Ó
Only Daphne Greengrass raised her hand.
ÒRight, Daphne, could you come up here a moment?Ó
The fellow sixth year obliged, and when she arrived at the front of the small crowd, Lavender asked her how much experience she had.
ÒJust one year,Ó she replied timidly. Daphne was the type of girl who liked to go unnoticed, and let the people like Hermione answer the questions in class.
ÒWell, one yearÕll do,Ó said Lavender. ÒYouÕll be my demonstrator tonight.Ó
Daphne nodded.
ÒOkay,Ó called Lavender, ÒI think weÕll start with a fairly easy cheer. YouÕll only have to move your arms, and itÕs basically only two words.Ó
Ginny and Hermione exchanged raised eyebrows.
ÒSo, weÕre going to say: GO, GO, GRYFFINDOR! Everyone just say the words.Ó
ÒGO, GO, GRYFFINDOR!Ó rang through the stadium.
ÒNow, letÕs add the actions. On the first go, punch the air with your right hand. Daphne?Ó After Daphne had demonstrated what the first go should look like, Lavender continued, ÒGood. Now, on the second go, weÕre going to punch the air with our left hands. IÕd like everybody to just try the go, go, with the actions. Ready?Ó
ÒGO, GO...Ó screamed the girls.
The words were flawless, but the motions were far from it. Natalie McDonald was knocked over as her best friend Betsy Statser attempted the air-punching. Hermione raised her hands left, right instead of right, left. Kiara Gretu accidentally kicked the girl behind her when her leg lifted naturally up as she raised her arms. Parvati Patil was shouting the words from an extremely odd position, as she had apparently tried to do a handstand instead of LavenderÕs actions and failed. And Sally-Anne Perks stood, befuddled, in the midst of it all, not even trying the motions. Perhaps her reasoning was that she was safer this way, and she might have had a point. Only Ginny, Daphne, and Lavender got it right.
Lavender grimaced but recovered quickly. ÒAll right, girls, I think weÕll try that one again tomorrow night. WeÕll call it a day for now.Ó