"Did you — did you get — ?"

She spotted the badge in Harry's hand and let out a shriek.

"I knew it!" she said excitedly, brandishing her letter. "Me too,

Harry, me too!"

"No," said Harry quickly, pushing the badge back into Ron's hand.

"It's Ron, not me."

"It — what?"

"Ron's prefect, not me," Harry said.

"Ron?" said Hermione, her jaw dropping. "But . . . are you sure? I

mean —"

She turned red as Ron looked around at her with a defiant expres-

sion on his face.

"It's my name on the letter," he said.

"I . . ." said Hermione, looking thoroughly bewildered. "I . . . well

. . . wow! Well done, Ron! That's really —"

"Unexpected," said George, nodding.

"No," said Hermione, blushing harder than ever, "no, it's not . . .

Ron's done loads of . . . he's really . . ."

everything was a blur after then.

he wondered if it was rigged, the whole system. He simple couldn't believe it and he knew why he couldn't. Everyone around him thought he was incapable and they were probably right. It had to be a mistake and at this point, he was more or less convinced about that.

The whole interaction seemed like a blur, it did. Asking mum for a cleansweep. All of it.

Until of course Harry said "well done mate" and he snapped out of it. Not believing he could be prefect.

Packing up trunks wasn't fun when introspection came knocking.

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