Taking Chances and Making Changes
Authors Note - This story is an AU. It follows canon events up until the end of Prisoner and beginning of Goblet.
Disclaimer - I own nothing except my OC's. Everything else belongs to JK Rowling. Basically, if you recognise it from the books/films then it is not mine.
Hayley POV
Walking into Dumbledore's office I frowned as I counted the other chairs that sat in front of his desk. There were 7 chairs and three were currently being filled by Andy and Ted. I assumed that three would be for Ron and Mr and Mrs Weasley and one was for me. Professor McGonagall went to stand by Dumbeldore's right and had a look of disappointment on her face. I knew that I should have cared but I was still too annoyed and upset by what Ron had said to really be bothered by her disappointment.
"Miss Potter please take a seat, "Dumbledore says gesturing to the empty seat next to Andy. As I sat down I noticed the same disappointed expression on Ted and Andy's faces but I still didn't care. A few moments of silence went by before Dumbledore spoke up once again.
"We shouldn't be waiting for too much longer. The Weasleys will be joining us as soon as Madame Pomfrey has finished attending to Master Weasley's broken nose and is satisfied that the bleeding has stopped"He says directing the last part to me with a piercing stare. 'So I managed to break the prat's nose. Maybe I punched him hard enough to knock enough sense into him to get him to stop acting like a jealous git.' I thought to myself as my mouth twisted into a smirk resembling Draco's.
It was only a few minutes later when the Weasley's entered the office but due to the complete silence, it felt as though it had been hours. As they sat down on the chairs on the opposite side I clenched my fists slightly as all the hurt, upset and angry feelings that I felt only a few hours earlier immediately came back at the sight of Ron. I took a breath unclenching my fists and cooled my expression from a furious one to a stoic one. I decided to stay quiet when everyone was talking about what happened and appropriate punishments. When it appeared that no one was going to ask me for my side of the story I decided to speak up.
"Excuse me but can I at least tell my side of the story?"I directed towards the two professors
"What do mean Miss Potter.? Master Weasley has already explained what happened"Professor Dumbledore questioned
"I really doubt that considering if he had told you the whole truth then I wouldn't be the only one getting into trouble" I shot back
"Miss Potter, are you claiming that there is more to the story than what we already know?"Professor McGonagall asked me
"Did Ron tell you that before this happened he was picking yet another fight with the Slytherins?"I said with a smile.
I noticed the Weasleys glance at Ron with a frown and I heard Mr Weasley mutter."No, he didn't"
"I didn't think so. I also don't think that he told you that the reason I punched him was that he said and I quote "I can't believe you would disgrace the Potter name like that. Your mum and dad would be ashamed of you. I bet there rolling in their graves"
There was complete silence in the room and no-one dared to speak. The first person to speak was Mrs Weasley as she looked at Ron her expression a combination of anger, disappointment and embarrassment.
"Ronald is this true?"She asks quietly
Deciding staying silent was a better option he stayed silent and looked at the floor.
"Ron answer your mother. Did you really say that?"Arthur asks
I notice Ron's shoulders tense up in anger before he looked up at his parents. "All I did was tell her the truth. She's always after attention and then pretends that she hates it. Then she goes and lies about entering the tournament. As if anyone would be stupid to believe that someone entered her name. Then she starts associating with the Malfoys and defending the Slytherins" He argues
As I felt my anger rising again I knew that I wouldn't be able to stay calm for much longer I stood up and headed towards the door.
"Miss Potter where do you think you are going?"Professor McGonagall demands
"If I stay here much longer I'm going to punch him again and a broken nose will be the last of his worries. I don't really care as to what punishment you give me."I said as I opened the door and headed down the stairs again this time heading for the unused classroom that Blaise and I use to meet up when we wanted to spend some time alone without having to worry about people interrupting.
When I got up the next day there was a letter from Ted and Andy as we hadn't managed to speak to each other yesterday as I had stormed out of the office before we could talk. Andy scolded me for punching Ron and then walking out of the meeting but then proceeded to write at the end of it that my parents would be proud of me for sticking up for myself and that my mum had done similar things when people made remarks about her heritage. There was also a note from Professor McGonagall saying that even though I was provoked and that Ron had said things that were completely out of order I would still be given a detention. The good thing was that Ron had also been given a detention. His detention was with Filch and mine was with Professor Snape. At this point last year I would have absolutely hated having to serve detention with Professor Snape but after everything that has happened, I didn't mind it. It also meant that I might get the chance to talk to Snape about whether he knows anything about why Voldemort went after my parents and why he seems to be fixated on killing me.
The detention was that night after dinner so I had the day to relax as all my homework was up to date and I felt confident about the second task so I would be able to go on the Hogsmeade visit without having to worry about things. Blaise and I had wanted to go together but we hadn't yet decided if we were going to reveal that we were dating to people just yet. Ted and Andy had written back and were supportive of the relationship and so was Mrs Zabini. The main thing that was stopping us from revealing our relationship was the amount of backlash and negative attention it would undoubtedly get mainly from the Slytherins and Gryffindors and we didn't want to go through loads of drama.
I got dressed and went for some breakfast and as it was Valentines day in three days a lot more people were going quite early whether with their girlfriend/boyfriend or to get a last minute gift and the number of stares and whispers that greeted me as I walked in and sat down at the Gryffindor table was so annoying it took all of my self-control not to snap.
I was considering asking Nevile or perhaps even going on my own when Viktor approached me asking if we could talk in private. Nodding we headed outside towards the lake so we could talk alone.
"So what is it that you wanted to talk about?"I asked him once we were outside.
"What sort of things does Hermione like?"He asks.
I scrunched my brow frowning at the unexpected question."What do you mean?"
"What sort of things does she like. Gift-wise I mean?"He clarifies
"It depends. Why?"I asked having an idea
"Valentine's day is in three days and I don't know what to get her"He explains
Unable to stop a smile forming on my face I nodded."So are you two actually dating then?"
"Not yet but I want to ask her on Valentines Day so I want to make sure I get her something she really likes, "He says nervously
"Viktor don't worry I am sure that Hermione will love whatever you get her. It's the thought that counts but if you really want some help we can go to Hogsmeade and find something for her?"I suggest
"Hermione won't be there?"He frowns
"No, she said this morning that she's going to stay at the castle to do some more studying."I shake my head
About an hour and a half later we met up in one of the shops in Hogsmeade to look for a gift for Hermione. I also decided to look for a gift for Blaise while I was out shopping and was able to get Viktor's opinion as I had never needed to buy a gift for a boyfriend before. We made sure to stay away from people as much as possible not wanting people to start rumours about the two of us.
During shopping, the two of us got talking mostly about Quidditch and we decided to get a group of our friends together to have a mini Quidditch game. If we hadn't been so engrossed in our conversation we might have noticed a small black beetle with green eyes situated on one of the wooden shelves in a number of the stores that we visited.
Authors Note - Hey Guys hope you enjoyed it and sorry about the short chapter. I have some fun ideas and plots happening in upcoming chapters and with the exception of Chapter 18 which will include the second task the next few will be on the shorter side so that I'm not putting too much into one chapter. Over the next month or so I will be randomly selecting 5 or so people from my follower's list every two weeks and PMing them to have an OC included in an upcoming chapter so keep an eye out on your inbox and of course, make sure to follow to be in with a chance. Thanks for reading.