Title: Dance Fever and Some Bad Dreams
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are Not Mine. Not even Draco. (goes off to a corner and cries)
~~~~~~~~~~~Chapter 6: Food Fights and the First Day of Dance
All through potions I was fuming at the idiot sitting at the front of the class with his stupid hair and his
stupid silver blue eyes.
I had saved him once again from his freaky dreams and all he had to say was 'Get out of my face
granger!'……prick.
The rest of my classes I still felt as hostile as I had in Potions. And I blamed Ferret Boy for this. He had
ruined my first day back in Hogwarts!
One thing that did make me feel a little better was the fact that my new look was defiantly having an
effect on many of the guys that had never gave me a second glance, which were now staring at me
through all my classes.
Even in Potions I could feel people's eyes on my back. But I knew that along with those who were just
looking at me because of my surprising behavior, were those trying to figure out why I looked different.
I even got asked to go to Hogsmead by Malcolm Bissell, a Ravenclaw guy, on Friday night. But he
obviously doesn't really know me. Because if he did, he would know that I have a routine of going to the
library every Friday night so I can get my work over and done with so I can have the weekend to rest and
catch up on some light reading.
But that Malcolm guy was kind of cute. Without noticing I smiled to myself,
"Oy! Hermione!" My head snapped up to meet Ron staring at me from across the Gryffindor table, "Will
you pass the butter?"
"Huh?" I asked feeling a little dazed,
"The butter by your elbow, there!" My eyes followed his pointed figure to a plate of butter,
"Oh! Sorry, Ron." I said while passing the butter over.
"Where were you just then, huh?" I grinned as I poured myself some pumpkin juice,
"I hate Malfoy Land." Ron chuckled,
"I've been there plenty a time." Parvati, who was sitting on Ron's right, elbowed him in the ribs - hard.
"Ouch! What did you do that for?" Cried Ron,
"Don't make fun of Draco." Answered Parvati.
"I wasn't makin' fun of him. I was saying how much I hate him!" muttered Ron massaging his ribs
tenderly.
Ginny, who was on my left let out a giggle. Looking glum, Ron ripped off a piece of bread with his teeth
and started to chew with his mouth open.
Padma looked up in disgusted at Ron, picked up one of her rolls and pegged it at his head.
"HEY! What is wrong with you?!" Padma went back to picking at her chicken bone and answered,
"We tell you all the time to chew with your mouth closed. But you never listen."
"So you just think that if you start throwing things at me then I won't?" scoffed Ron.
"Yup." Responded Padma with a smile spreading across her lips, "And be glad it wasn't my chicken bone
this time Ronny-poo."
Ron's face flushed red and sensing danger the clever Ginny quickly turned the conversation over with,
"So Hermione, everybody has been talking about this new look of yours!"
"It's just a little hair change is all." I answered trying hard not to draw attention to the matter. I would not
allow myself to turn into a girl like Pansy Parkinson. Just the thought makes me feel so cold.
"Well it looks adorable." Ginny commented. All I could do was beam at her. Trust Ginny to make you feel
good about yourself. Looking around the table I noticed that Harry was not here.
"Hey, Ron, where's Harry?" Ron looked up from his plate with a mouth full of buttered bread and was
about to answer when I gave him a warning glare, "Ron, what did we say about talking with your mouth
full?"
I could tell Ron was about to go on and talk with the chewed bread lolling around on his tongue, but that's
when I saw Padma getting ready to throw her chicken bone right at his head.
Only then did Ron do his rolling of the eyes and down the rest of his bread with some pumpkin juice. How
did he do that? I swear, that guy is like a boa constrictor swallowing everything whole like that.
"I thought I heard him talking to Cho in Transfiguration about spending lunch down at the lake
to……er……you know……"
"Ugh. Stop right there. I don't need to know the details." Ron shrugged and let out a huge belch. Parvati
instantly started coughing like crazy waving a hand in front of her face,
"Fowl!" she gagged. Dean who was sitting a ways down the table could be heard laughing his head off
and congratulating Ron.
Ron grinned down at Dean. After Parvati's coughing fit had ended she started a conversation as though
they had already been talking,
"So anyway I can't wait for dance class. Only one more class to go and it will be dance time!" Parvati
squealed with delight.
Parvati had seemed to have forgotten all about this mournings happenings and carried on talking to me
as though she had never been mad.
Ron rolled his eyes and took a large gulp of his pumpkin juice. Wiping the juice off his upper lip he
muttered, "Women." Parvati lightly punched his shoulder,
"Shut up, Ron." Ron glared at Parvati and stuffed a piece of bread in his mouth and began to take his
anger out on the food rolling around his open mouth.
"Don't tell me to shut up, women." Muttered Ron with a bit of chewed bread falling into his lap. Ginny
giggled at the sight of Parvati and Ron bickering.
But Ginny decided to move the conversation along, "I already had Dance class."
"How was it, then?" I asked trying not to be to be overly excited about the new class -which I was.
"Oh it was wonderful!" replied Ginny with just about as much enthusiasm as I had spoke of it on the train.
Parvati smiled and said, " I take it then, that you got a cute dance partner? I know so many cute guys in
your grade……there's George, Jack, Sam-"
Ron drinking out of his goblet when he heard, "That's him! Sam is so sexy!" Squeaked Ginny. Ron
choked on his pumpkin juice and instead of coughing spewed the juice all across the table.
Padma who got the full blast of the pumpkin juice screamed and nearly fell backwards off the bench.
"But then there's also Frankie, Daniel, James, Timmy……" Parvati carried on listing the people as
though Ron spewing his pumpkin juice was a daily routine.
Ron seemed to hardly notice that he was the one to make Padma fall on her butt. Instead he was furious
at Ginny and sputtered,
"Ginny! I will not allow you to talk about boys in that manner!" I couldn't help but breaking out in laughter.
"And Billy's really not as well……Oh and Joshua, Joshua jr., Chris K, Chris L, Patrick……" Parvati was
still naming guys.
"Ron she's only one year younger than you!" I reminded him with bits of laughter escaping my mouth.
Ron frowned at me and went back to scolding his sister.
"Hank, Frances, Jamie, Eliot, Mike, Eddie, Eli……"
Padma's screaming, Ron's scolding, Ginny whining, and Parvati's list of guys was starting to draw eyes
from all the tables to us. For some odd reason I decided to scoop up a handful of mashed potatoes and
looked up at Ron who was still yelling at Ginny about being top young to use the word 'sexy'.
Mashed potatoes and Ron. Ron and mashed potatoes...
In my mind these two things would go nicely together. Maybe he would stop yelling. So without further
adieu I swung my mountain of mashed potatoes right in the center of Ron's face.
The entire Hall of students fell silent,
"Thomas H., Thomas W., Damon, Wesley, Ralph……" that is except for Parvati.
The potatoes slid down Ron's face leaving a trail of white mush on his cheeks and nose,
"Oops." I whispered meekly. Then from somewhere in the Hall, someone yelled,
"FOOD FIGHT!" my first guess would most defiantly be Dean. But it didn't matter. For after it was yelled
everyone in the Hall broke out into war cries of the battle of foods.
Everything that took place after that came as a daze to me.
One of the Professors cast a spell, which made all the food freeze in midair…….
It was announced that the next class would be canceled due to that everyone was commanded to take
showers…….
I was held behind to be given a detention……
And as I was walking up to the Gryffindor Girls Dormitories I swear that I could still hear,
"Justin, Mick, Rick, Simon, William, Will……."
I had been looking forward to this moment since last year when Dumbledor had announced that there
would be a Dance class.
And finally here I was clean, hair smoothed out, and ready to try my dancing feet out. After Padma,
Parvati, and I had all taken showers as fast as we could, we hurried down to the Great Hall so we could
be the first ones there.
I was going to wait for Harry and Ron but they were taking too long. So Padma and Parvati convinced
me to leave without them.
Apparently most people, girls actually, had had the same idea. For when we reached the Great Hall,
there in a corner were a group of girls chatting a giggling no doubt about who they wanted as their dance
partner. Cho was among them.
All the tables and benches in the Great Hall had been moved to the side to make a room for the Dance
Class.
My heart was racing. Part of the reason was because I had ran all the way down from Gryffindor tower to
The Great hall at full speed. But the other reason was just because of pure excitement.
About ten minutes went by when the first batch of boys started to arrive. And there he was.
His hair was dark brown, light brown eyes, and a built body surely because he served as the Ravenclaw's
Keeper. His own gang of guys surrounded him. He was one of those man's man type of guys. He looked
so confident from the way he stood. Malcolm Riley was the 'IT' guy in Ravenclaw.
Once he saw me he smiled showing his pearly whites. He is just perfect! At that moment Ron and Harry
came jogging into the Great Hall.
"Harry, Ron! Where have you been?" I asked once they had both come over to me. At the sound of
Harry's name being called more than half the girls in the Hall all looked to Harry and started to giggle.
"Sorry Herm. It's just Ron here got some mashed potatoes stuck up his nose and couldn't get it out. So
we had to go to the hospital wing."
Ron's eyes were watering and his nose looked redder than his hair, "I gotta' tell you, Herm. You have
certainly got an arm to get those mashed potatoes lodged way up there." Tapping his nose gingerly
almost made me feel sorry for him.
" Will a hug make it better, Ronny-poo?" I teased him. Ron put on a baby pout and nodded like a child
with a scratched knee.
I laughed and gave him a hug. But over his shoulder I saw something that made all my excitement for
this class fade away.
Malfoy.
He caught sight of me still hugging Ron and glared with more hatred then he had this mourning.
"Hey Herm, I know you love me. But expressing it right here is just embarrassing." Ron teased right
back. I let go of Ron and looked around him to see if Draco was still there but he and his Slytherins had
walked off to sit on the benches.
Harry noticed my movements to look around Ron and asked, "Who are you look-"
"He's in this dance class!!" Squealed Parvati and Padma. Harry spun around to see Malfoy making
himself comfortable on a bench.
"No way." Muttered Harry. All the girls in the Hall had now looked from Malcolm to Harry and then to
Draco and started their annoying gossip giggles.
"Good afternoon, class!" Mrs. Shnopsie's voice rang through the Great Hall as she made her way to the
center. I would all of you to make yourselves comfortable on the benches on the this side of the Hall, like
Mr. Malfoy has so kindly demonstrated."
A tidal wave of girls raced to sit next to either Malfoy or Malcolm. All the girls knew that Harry was taken
and were cautious about coming on too strong when Cho was around.
"Ugh. Disgusting." I mumble to Ron who nodded with a look on his face with he had just witnessed
someone passing gas.
"Revolting that's what." I walked over to the benches making sure not to look at Malfoy. But not glaring at
Malfoy made it impossible not to smile at Malcolm who caught me staring and grinned.
I practically melted into the bench next to a pouting Parvati. Most likely pouting because she didn't get to
sit next to Malfoy.
It wasn't until my head finally cleared when I noticed Mrs. Shnopsie was examining everything everybody
did. She seemed to be taking in every twitch of a smile, frown, sneer, or smirk. Every glance a person
made towards another. Every glare, smile, smirk, or look of boredom she took into that head of hers.
Her eyes rested on me and I looked straight back into her green ones. It was like she was challenging me
just with her only her eyes.
So she thought she could be intimidating? Well I'll show her. And with that thought nailed into my head I
stared right back at her with my eyes hard and emotionless. A few seconds of this made it feel like hours.
This woman didn't need a wand to do magic. I could practically feel her trying to prod into my mind with
her eyes. I was terrifying yet incredibly interested in how she did this.
Her eyes became soft and the green in her eyes dimmed. I no longer felt her trying to invade my mind.
She simply cocked her head to the side just a tiny bit and grinned.
But before I could guess what she was thinking, her eyes swooped down on Ron who was sitting right
next to me chatting with Harry.
After I let my guard down I felt lightheaded, tired, and dizzy all at once. Parvati took one look at me and
replaced her disappointed face with a expression of concern, "Hermsie, you ok? You look pale-"
"I'm fine." I said a bit too quickly, "I mean…… I'm just tired. But I'm fine." Parvati was not convinced but
shrugged.
"Class! I will ask you know to cease your chatting, please." She didn't have to say it twice. The class
looked up at her just like they did Dumbledor, "Thank you ever so much. Now as you all know, I am Mrs.
Shnopsie. This year you will have two dance partners, all together. One for this semester and one for the
next starting after Christmas break. I have assigned you all partners, "
She raised one of her hands and snapped her figures. With a small popping sound a scroll appeared in
her hand.
Now magic is very normal for an everyday wizard but to know a witch who didn't need a wand was a
rarity. The class murmured to each other and some clapped. Mrs. Shnopsie beamed and went on with
her words,
"You will not be allowed to switch partners once they are assigned. I can assure you that I have put much
thought into each partnering and they are not to be disturbed." She looked directly at me as though
saying this just for me.
Something about the way she said this made my stomach twist into a tight knot that would not be
loosened.
"Some of you will be most pleased with your partners and for the others……. you will learn to be pleased
with what you get."
The students shifted around and eyed one another, talking with no words. Mrs. Shnopsie smiled,
"But please I do not mean to lay any harsh words on your shoulders. I can assure you that I will make this
class one that is looked forward to. We will have a splendid time learning the steps to some of the best
and hardest dances there are in the wizarding world. And some that I picked up from my travels to the
Muggle World. We shall learn the dance by Fester Josly the drunken wizard who invented the
Larglefrastor, the Tomposhionazie Waltz, the Skeleton Tango one of my personal favorites."
By this time the heaviness was gone from my stomach and I was looking forward to learning all about
dance.
"Now I'm sure you all have been eagerly awaiting the partnering."
I tried my very best not to lose any hope and to keep my happy thoughts in tune.
"When I name you and your partner. I would like the male to escort the female to the opposite side of the
room, please."
She unraveled the scroll and started to read the names out loud beginning with,
"Harry Potter and Cho Chang!" Harry leapt to his feet with a broad grin playing his lips and held his arm
out to Cho, who took it with the same grin.
"Parvati Patil, Ronald Weasley!" Parvati looked like she might cry as Ron pulled her to her feet and
dragged her to the opposite side of the Hall.
The list went on through a about three more couples until I heard his name,
"Malcolm Riley……"
I held my breath hoping, dreaming……
"Padma Patil!"
……And cursing.
Malcolm stood up and guided Padma across the Hall. While Mrs. Shnopsie announced two more
couples. And then I finally heard my name,
"Hermione Granger……"
Think good thoughts think good thoughts and go to a happy place……
To be continued…….
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I'm so evil Mwhahaha! Well not really. But you can guess who it is……or can you. Thanks for reading
and please review! Much luv!
