Chapter 12 – Unfair


HG


Double potions seemed to take longer than usual, as Hermione's eyes flickered from her potion to the Professor. While everyone was busy perfecting their fire protection potion, she had just finished her girding potion with time to spare. She received some glares from the other students as the professor told her she could make the one that was supposed to be at the end of the year, since she did the fire protection potion this summer. But she didn't care as long as she had Katie by her side and supported her, she could ignore the looks they shot her.

Hermione bottled her potion and labelled it before she cleaned up her station, she glanced over at Katie's cauldron to see if she needed any help. But that wasn't the case, she was only one step away from finishing her own. So, she took her vial and headed up the front to put it on Professor Snape's desk. When she turned, she almost bumped into him, she didn't expect that because a moment earlier he was watching the students at the back of the class. The professor stepped next to her and picked up her potion, holding it up on eye-level to inspect it.

"Well done, miss Granger." He gave her a short nod. "Please take a seat until the others are finished."

"Yes, sir." She walked back to her seat and took out her third-year potions book and flipped through it until she found the page where she had stopped the day before.

Snape looked at her in surprise as she took out a third-year potions book. Why he was still surprised he didn't know, the girl was smarter than anyone he knew. He looked away from the bushy haired girl and to the clock on the wall.

"Five minutes." He called to the class.

Next to Hermione, Katie had just bottled up her potion and placed the vial on Snape's desk. Hermione placed her book aside and helped her clean up. As good as Katie was at potions, her station always looked like a bomb exploded there.

"You're worse than when my dad tries to cook." Hermione chuckled; her voice low as the others tried to finish their potion quickly.

Katie smiled back at her as she vanished the leftover ingredients. "I don't know how I do it. I start off really organized and then... BOOM." She did her hands in a way to show of an explosion.

"Potions on my desk, now!" Snape grumbled. "And clean up before you head out."

"I'll see you at Herbology in an hour." Katie said as she picked up her bag. Hermione gave her a smile before she headed out. She leaned back in her chair and picked up her book again, as the others were still cleaning their stations. She didn't know how long she was reading, per usual, when the Professor called her.

"Miss Granger."

She lifted her head from the book and looked around the classroom, that was now completely empty. She stuffed her book back in her bag and hopped off her stool. Snape waved his wand, and four cauldrons came flying over, all with a different liquid in it. Hermione leaned forward as she looked at the potions.

"Do you know what these are?" He asked her.

Without looking up she went over the potions one by one. "They are all unfinished." She stated. "This one is fire protection potion, this a strengthening solution, swelling and a hair-raising potion."

"Correct." Hermione looked up to the professor, who looked at her with a blank expression. "What does these potions still require?"

"The incantations."

"Right, because without it, it's just a product with bad taste." The professor said, almost a smile on his lips. "Can you perform the right incantations? I read your essays and you asked Mrs. Diggory to do it for you since you couldn't. I would like to see if you can do them yourself."

"Of course." She said as she pulled her wand from her back pocket. "I hope the essays were clear enough?" She asked as she started with the first potion.

"More than I expected, you were very thorough."

Hermione nodded with a smile as she moved on the next one. After she finished the last one, the Professor did his usual tests to see if they were indeed perfect. He didn't say anything as he went on to the next potion, after every check he wrote something down on the parchment in front of him. After his last note, he looked up at her again.

"Great work, miss Granger." He bottled the potions and let them fly off to a shelf near the back of the classroom. "There are only two more potions this year for you to learn, I thought about letting you join the third years with their classes and stay ahead with them. But I'm going to do things differently, because next year you'll be adding extra classes and Professor McGonagall doesn't want you to get overwhelmed. So, my proposition is... you officially stay in this year's class, and you'll make the next two second-year potions and after Christmas we can see if we can switch it up and let you join the third years for some of their classes. But only if these two are perfect, they take a while for it to finish so you'll have a few months to perfect them."

"Thank you, professor." She beamed at him. The professor sat down at his desk and pulled out a piece of rolled up parchment and held it out for her.

"Your grades for your summer work." He grumbled but not in a mean way. Hermione accepted the roll.

"Thank you." She said again and walked out the classroom. Once she was out of the room, she unrolled the parchment, and her eyes skimmed the paper quickly. She nearly squealed as she saw she got an O on all of her essays and Exceeds expectations on the potions itself, with a little side note behind it. It will depend on your incantations you did yourself. Just when she finished reading the note behind the grade, the grade changed to an outstanding. She looked over her shoulder to the potion's classroom, but the door was firmly shut. She turned back and smiled at the paper, before she put it in her bag and made her way to Herbology.


.


The week went by fast. Hermione split her time with studying in the library, classes, her friends and working on the charms and spells that she learned over the summer with Cedric. They found an empty classroom on the second floor where they practiced Charms and Transfiguration. She had sat with Zabini one time that week in the library, again without speaking one word to each other.

It was now the night before the try-outs when Oliver Wood, the team quidditch captain, ran inside the common room, completely out of breath.

"What's up with you, Wood?" Angelina laughed at the state of the man.

"Seeker!" He wheezed between breathes. "We- Harry- century."

"What?" The group asked in unison. Oliver straightened himself and took in a few deep breathes.

"We got ourselves a new seeker, Harry Potter."

"But he's a first year!?" Katie nearly yelled in disbelief.

"I know, but McGonagall gave him special permission after she saw him flying. He's the youngest seeker in a century."

"Is he that good?" Alicia asked with a raised eyebrow as Oliver dropped down in a chair next to her.

"I've just been with him to practice, he's amazing. I think even better than Charlie." He whispered the last part as he looked over his shoulder. Afraid that the dragon tamer would suddenly stand behind him.

"So, he doesn't even need to try-out?" Katie grumbled as she stood up and stomped up the stairs to her room. Hermione watched her best friend disappear from the common room. She understood her frustration. She had been practicing for more than two years and still she had to wait to be a second year and she had to try-out.

"What's her problem?" Oliver asked confused, looking at the others.

Hermione looked to the twins, who nodded at her.

"I'm going to check on her." Hermione rose from her seat and followed her best friend up, just as she heard the twins explain it to Oliver. "Katie?" She asked as she pushed the door open. Katie was sitting on her bed cross-legged, her arms too crossed over her chest.

"I just can't believe it!" She said, throwing her arms in the air.

Hermione walked over and sat down next to her on the bed. "I was as surprised as you were." Hermione admitted.

"How is that even fair? I know it's not the position I want, but still... Others doesn't even get a chance to try-out. Others who may have been practicing for years. And he's only a first year! It's just not fair." Katie ended her rant with a sigh.

"I know." She put her arm around her shoulders giving it a squeeze. "The rules should apply to everyone. I guess Professor McGonagall really wants Gryffindor to win."

That earned Hermione a huff from her best friend, but she didn't pull away and they sat together in silence as Katie's angry heavy breathing slowed down.

"Want to head back down?" Hermione asked as she retreated her arm.

"No, you go. I'm just going to keep my head low until tomorrow."

"Are you sure?" She asked as she climbed out of bed.

"Yeah." She nodded and picked up her quidditch playbook. Hermione looked at her best friends for a moment but when she didn't look back up, she headed back downstairs to the common room. Angelina was the first one to jump up, as her eyes were strained on the staircase.

"How is she?" She asked worried. Hermione glanced around the room and saw that Oliver had left.

"She was really upset, she doesn't think it's fair, neither do I for that matter." Hermione said, sitting down between the twins on the couch. "She's been working so hard for this, and no offence to Harry but he flies once in front of McGonagall, and he gets to play as a first year?" Hermione huffed just like Katie did earlier.

"I agree, it's not fair." Angelina said and Alicia agreed with her. "But I've seen Katie fly, she bound to get in."

"I have no doubt." The twins said next to her.

"Me neither, but-"

"It's not fair." The all chimed in, nodding their heads.

"Right after try-outs, we have practice, we'll see how good Harry really is." Alicia said. "Are you coming to watch?"

"Are you kidding? If I don't come, Katie will have my head." Hermione chuckled. "Quidditch try-out's two days in a row."

"How so?" Lee asked, popping a chocolate in his mouth.

"Yeah, Ced- Lee? What's happening to you?" Hermione's eyes went wide as Lee's face turned green, alongside his dreadlocks. She felt the shoulders of the twins shake before their laughter escaped and filled the common room. "What did you two do?" Hermione chastised them, slapping their arms, which made them laugh in harder.

Lee jumped up and looked at himself in the window. He touched his hair and his face carefully before he turned with a large grin. "How long?"

"Just an hour." Fred said between laughs. Lee walked closer and high-fived the twins before he sat down on his seat again.

"Well, I'm not touching anything anymore." Alicia pointed at the candies on the table.

"Oh, come on." George whined. "We actually hoped one of you would try the sour balls."

"Ask your brother." Angelina nudged her head to the two boys who walked in. The twins looked over their shoulder to see the two sat down at the window.

"Won't work, Ron knows us well enough not to take anything from us." Fred said deflated, then he turned to Hermione with a mischievous grin. "Oh, little Granger."

"Oh no, Rusty. I'm not getting in the middle of it." Hermione fiercely shook her head.

"Oh, come one." George chimed in with a pout. "If you do, we promise -"

"To owe you a favour, no questions asked." Fred crossed his heart.

Hermione contemplated this; you never know when you need it. She looked from the twins to the two boys at the window and to the others of the group. What's the worst that can happen? She thought to herself. "You all are a witness alright, no questions asked."

Lee, Angelina and Katie nodded their heads before she looked to the twins again. "Alright, give me."


.


The twins handed her a small bag of sweets and she stood up walking to the boys. Harry looked up to her with a smile.

"Hey, Hermione."

"Hey, Harry." She looked over her shoulders and saw the twins giving her a thumbs up. "My mum has sent over a bag of sweets, but I don't really like them. Would you two want some? Ron?" She turned to Ron.

Ron's head had snapped up from the moment the word sweets escaped her lips. Without thinking twice about it, he snatched a candy, a sour one, out of the bag and popped it in his mouth. She turned the bag to Harry, but before Harry could take one, his hand stopped mid-air. His eyes wide and mouth slightly open as he looked at Ron. Ron's face was becoming rounder and rounder by the minute. Ron, himself didn't even notice the change as he enjoyed the candy. His head went so big and round that his neck had disappeared, making him look like a redheaded balloon. That's when the laughter started to echo from around the common room. Harry had to bite his lip from laughing himself as he watched it unfold. Ron frowned when the laughter hit his swollen ears, he turned to look at what was going on. Hermione discreetly put the bag in her pocket and stepped back but was blocked by two large hands on her shoulders. She looked next to her and saw that the twins had come up next to her, still laughing.

"Oh, Ronniekens." Fred placed his hand over his hart in mock shock. "What happened to you?"

"Wha-" He started to ask, but his tongue had swollen up too. Harry pointed at the window next to him and when Ron saw his reflection, he nearly toppled out of his chair. The laughter in the common room getting louder. "Wha-di-u-o?" He asked.

"Excuse me? Didn't quite catch that." George said innocently, pointing at his own ear.

"What. Di. U. Do!?" He grumbled, his head turning red.

"It works quite well; don't you think Georgie?" Fred ignored his younger brother and looked to his twin.

"I agree, Freddie. Exactly what we wanted." George nodded as he wrote down on a small notepad.

"Boys." Hermione looked pointedly at the twins. The twins looked from Hermione to the swollen Ron.

"Oh, right." Fred nodded seriously.

"Should subside in an hour." George added with the same seriousness as his twin.

"Give or take." Fred grinned and the twins ducked as Ron threw his quill at them. Their laughter filling the common room once again.