Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling. Star Wars is owned by Disney. I am neither a British woman nor an animated mouse. Thus I do not own nor do I claim ownership of either Harry Potter or Star Wars, and I am not profiting in any way through the writing and publication of this story.
Holocron
X
Monday, October 31, 1994
Harry was a bit nervous as he walked into the Great Hall for the feast.
Ever since his Divination class where he'd seen the vision of a shadowy figure with a glowing, red sword, the Force had been in a constant state of disruption. The disturbance never settled down, but instead grew stronger over the summer and into the new school year. Now, as the student populations of three schools gathered together to see who the champions of the Tri-Wizard Tournament would be, the Force was roiling at a fever-pitch.
Something was coming, and whatever it was, it wasn't going to be good.
Harry took his seat at the Gryffindor table next to Hermione and across from Ron.
"Something's not right," he said instead of greeting his friends.
"I know," Hermione replied, "I feel it too."
"Force feels like a bloody niffler, jumpin' all over the place," Ron added.
"Language, Ron…" Hermione half-heartedly admonished him.
As the food appeared and everyone dug in, Harry tried to release his nervousness into the Force, but he couldn't concentrate. Between his own anxiety and the Force's disturbance, he was unable to cleanse his emotions. And that certainly wasn't good.
So he tried the old-fashioned way. He took a deep breath and tried to think calming thoughts. The Holocron had told him over and over again that he shouldn't dwell on either the disturbance in the Force or upon the vision of the future he had experienced. Neither one was a sure thing. And the little image of Master Isu had insisted that Harry should keep his mind on the Force in the present, in the here and now. Whatever would come would come. A Jedi's task was to meet his destiny when it arrived, not to overly worry about it before it was time.
But Harry wasn't a Jedi, not yet at least - he couldn't help but worry a little bit.
Soon enough dinner was over and the Headmaster stood to gather everyone's attention.
"It seems the moment we have all been waiting for has arrived," Dumbledore announced. "The Goblet of Fire is ready to let us know exactly who our champions shall be."
With a roar, the flames of the enchanted cup leapt higher than normal and spit out a tiny slip of paper. Dumbledore nimbly snatched it out of the air.
"The champion for the Durmstrang Institute for the Mastery of Magic shall be… Viktor Krum!"
The hall erupted into applause and cheers as the Bulgarian Quidditch star rose from his place and left the room. A few moments later, the goblet discharged another scrap of paper.
"The champion for the Beauxbatons Academy of Magic shall be… Fleur Delacour!"
All eyes turned to the stunningly beautiful witch that gracefully rose from the Ravenclaw table. The cheers that greeted her were notably louder than those that had acknowledged Krum. It was rather obvious, Harry noted, that it was mainly the boys in the room that were clamoring so strongly. He shared a quick smirk with Ron – some of their schoolmates were so easily taken in by a pretty face…
"Oh honestly!" Hermione exclaimed. "She's not that good-looking."
"Jealous, Hermione?" Ron teased.
The young witch narrowed her eyes at her friend.
"Don't you even start, Ronald Weasley," she shot back, "if it weren't for the Force, you'd be drooling just like the rest of your boorish sex!"
"Ha!" Harry laughed.
"Oi!" Ron stated, placing his hand across his chest as if wounded, "don't you just lump us all in together like that! That's down right discrimination, that is!"
"He's got you there, Hermione," Harry added.
Hermione glared at her two friends, but eventually had to give in and smile.
"Fine. I retract my statement. Ron, you're just barely better than the majority of the crude little boys in this school!"
"I can live with that," Ron laughed.
Finally, the goblet shot out a third slip of paper which Dumbledore dutifully read.
"And the champion for the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry shall be… Cedric Diggory!"
A tall, rather handsome seventh-year stood up from the Hufflepuff table and walked out of the hall. This time, it obvious that it was the girls that were cheering the loudest.
Ron sent a meaningful look at Hermione.
"Oh, be quiet you," she replied.
Harry and Ron both burst into laughter.
A few moments later, Harry watched as the flames in the Goblet of Fire died down to nothing and went out. He sat in pensive silence for a moment before rising to head back to Gryffindor Tower.
The Tri-Wizard Tournament was underway.
And the disturbance in the Force kept on roiling in the back of his mind.
OoOoO
OoOoO
Thursday, December 8, 1994
"Alright, that's enough," McGonagall announced with a few minutes left in the Gryffindor-Ravenclaw Transfiguration class. "I expect ten inches on cross-species switches by next week. But before you depart, I have an announcement."
Harry looked up from packing away his things and shared a curious glance with Hermione before bringing his attention back to his Head of House.
"A long-standing part of the Tri-Wizard Tournament is the tradition of hosting a Yule Ball."
Harry felt a sudden spike of excitement in the Force from his fellow classmates. He had no idea what a Yule Ball was, but a lot of people were certainly very happy to hear about it.
"Hogwarts will, of course, be abiding by this tradition," McGonagall continued, "and the Yule Ball shall be held in the Great Hall at eight o'clock in the evening on Christmas day. Attendance is open to all students in fourth-year and above. First, second, and third-years may only attend if they are escorted by an older student."
The class broke out into enthusiastic chatter. The girls in particular seemed to think that the Deputy Headmistress' announcement needed to be thoroughly discussed.
"Just one more moment, if you please," McGonagall said making the students settle down just enough to let her be heard. "I know you'll all very excited, and you should be, occasions such as this are opportunities for us all to – let our hair down a bit. But this occasion, however, is even more than that. It is an opportunity for you to meet and get to know the students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons as well as to further stimulate international goodwill, which is the entire point of the tournament. As such, while attendance is not mandatory, it is most strongly encouraged that every student in fourth year and above attend the ball."
When she had finally finished, the class once again erupted into excited chatter. Harry could feel the eager anticipation in the Force. He noticed the eyes of several of the girls glancing not only at him, but at the other boys that were gathering their things. Once they were out in the hallway, Harry broached the topic with Hermione.
"Why is everyone so excited about this?" he asked.
Hermione shot him a sideways glance before answering.
"I suppose they're all looking forward to some fun with their friends," she said.
"Most of the excitement in the Force feels like it's coming from the girls, though…"
Hermione blushed ever so slightly before she responded.
"Yes, well, I suppose that some girls are rather hoping that the boys they like will ask them to the ball."
"Ask them to the ball?" Harry repeated in confusion.
Hermione stopped in her tracks. It took Harry a moment to realize that she was no longer walking beside him.
"Harry," she explained, "that's how balls and dances work. Remember McGonagall saying that the younger-years couldn't come if they didn't have an escort? Traditionally, a boy is supposed to ask a girl if he can escort her to the ball. You know, it adds a bit of romance to the whole thing. Even if it is a tad sexist…"
"Bloody mental, the lot of them," Ron added. Harry almost jumped in surprise – he'd pretty much forgotten that their other friend was with them.
"And what, exactly, is so mental, Ronald?" Hermione said as she focused a glare upon him.
"Girls. The whole lot of you. Getting all worked up over a silly dance."
Hermione shook her head at him but turned to continue to the Great Hall for lunch.
"You're such a romantic, Ronald," she said with a roll of her eyes.
Harry tried to think as they walked along in silence. Everyone was feeling such excitement about the ball. Well, everyone but Ron. But then again, he only ever got excited about Quidditch, so he was hardly a good example. Everyone else was obviously looking forward to the idea of a dance. He could even feel a trickle of excitement in the Force coming from Hermione.
Harry considered his female friend. She was certainly an exceptional girl – extremely intelligent, focused in her work and studies, always willing to lend a helping hand, wholly dedicated to the teachings of the Jedi and her training in the ways of the Force, and one hell of a chaser on the Quidditch Pitch as well. But for all her extraordinary qualities, she wasn't that dissimilar from her fellow witches. Harry could tell that she was looking forward to the prospect of being asked to the Yule Ball.
He knew it wouldn't take long. Someone would ask her soon. Harry was well aware that several of his housemates had tried to convince his bushy-haired friend to accompany them on a date to Hogsmeade. She'd always turned them down before, but this was different. She was looking forward to the ball, so she'd have to say yes to somebody.
Harry nodded his head as he made up his mind. It was the obvious thing to do – he didn't really know any other girls after all, at least not very well. Besides, it just felt right, and Harry had learned to trust his feelings.
"Err… Hermione?" He asked while coming to a halt.
"Hmm?" she answered, turning toward him.
"Well, err… Right. I'm not really sure of the right way to do this, but, umm, would you like to go to the ball with me?"
Hermione's eyes widened in surprise before a happy grin spread across her face.
"Well, you certainly work fast, Mr. Potter. I would be happy to attend with you. Sounds like fun, actually."
Harry smiled. She was right, it probably would be fun.
Hermione, still grinning ear to ear, looked down to the floor as a hint of pink appeared on her cheeks.
"Mental," Ron interjected after a moment, shaking his head at his two friends. "You two are as mental as the rest of them."
OoOoO
OoOoO
Sunday, December 25, 1994
Hermione stared at her reflection in the mirror. She could barely believe what she saw. She knew she wasn't a pretty girl, and she was honestly okay with that. There were more important things than looks after all. She had better things to concern herself with, like her Force training, her studies, her friends, and even Quidditch, so she rarely spared a thought for the way she looked beyond ensuring that she met the standards of the Hogwarts uniform regulations. But this…
Wow.
She was rather impressed.
She looked good.
Hermione knew that she still wouldn't be the prettiest girl at the ball, there was never any doubt about that, but she was certain that she would be turning a few heads that evening.
Lavender and Parvati had done most of the work, taking pity on her when they saw her staring at her bottle of Sleekeazy's in bewilderment. So they went after her with combs and brushes and make up and tweezers and all manner of instruments that Hermione had never really thought about before. It had been kind of fun, actually. It felt like being one of the girls. Not that she would be making such efforts part of her regular routine, of course. But for special occasions…
She took one last glance at her silky, fashionably styled hair as well as at the lovely, periwinkle blue dress that her parents had bought her, before heading for the stairs and her date.
She found Harry waiting for her in the common room. He was seated on one of the couches, but stood up when she approached. She quite liked the smile that spread across his face, as well as the nervous way he opened and closed his hands. It was cute.
"Hi, Hermione."
"Good evening, Harry. You look rather handsome."
And he did too. His dress robes fit him rather well, and the green bowtie he wore brought out the color of his eyes. He'd even made an effort with his hair. Maybe she should have offered him some of her Sleekeazy's…
"Err… you do too," Harry responded. "Not handsome, but, you know, you, err… look nice, err… pretty."
"Thanks."
Suddenly she felt a bit nervous. Were they supposed to be doing something more? Were further complements expected? Should she have curtsied or something? What were they waiting for? What was she supposed to do next? She'd never read anything about how to go about your first date… She should have studied more…
"Shall we?" Harry finally asked.
She smiled.
"Let's."
They walked through the corridors in silence and were soon ushered into the Great Hall. Hermione smiled at the scene she found there. The hall was normally rather festive at Christmas, but this was beyond anything she'd seen before. There was a pristine blanket of snow covering almost every surface, and everywhere she looked there were beautifully decorated Christmas trees. Snowflakes fluttered down from the enchanted ceiling, but melted away into nothingness before reaching the crowd. The long tables and benches had been replaced with smaller, round tabletops and chairs, each looking like they would seat eight people. Lights sparkled here and there, and Hermione realized that they were live fairies darting about in the snow. There were moving ice sculptures in the corners of the room depicting fauns and centaurs and other magical creatures.
It was wonderful.
Hermione smiled and turned to Harry, slipping her hand into the crook of his arm.
"Let's go find a table," she said.
They quickly found Ron who was already seated with Lavender Brown. The self-proclaimed apathy of the third member of their trio had not stopped him from finding a date. Or rather, it hadn't stopped a date from finding him. As a member of the Invincible Gryffindor Chaser Line, Ron had actually found himself to be quite desirable in the eyes of a large number of his female classmates. And showing the courage that her house was known for, Lavender had broken decorum and asked Ron to be her escort only a few hours after Harry had asked Hermione. The pretty, blonde girl had later confessed that she wasn't going to wait around and let another witch steal her chance at grabbing one of the most sought-after wizards in the school, especially since Harry was already taken.
"Hermione!" Lavender virtually squealed as she hugged her dormmate. "You're so beautiful! I love your hair!"
"Oh, stop, Lavender. You know very well that you did my hair."
"I know, but still! Isn't everything so amazing?!"
"Yep!" Ron answered. "When you think the feast's gonna start?"
They were soon joined by Neville and Ginny and then by Seamus Finnegan and Parvati Patil. Parvati and Lavender quickly put their heads together for some excited gossip as they waited for the champions to arrive. A few moments later the doors opened wide and the guests of honor paraded in.
Fleur Delacour glided into the room while towing an almost insensate Roger Davies behind her. The French witch somehow managed to make the act look graceful, even though Davies seemed barely able to do more than drool.
Viktor Krum marched into the room next escorting a short, blonde girl that had a rather dreamy look on her face. Ginny waved rather energetically at her, and called out in excitement.
"Luna!" she shouted. "Luna! You look great!"
Luna smiled and waved at their table before she went back to fiddling with her odd necklace while Krum led her to the Head Table.
Cedric Diggory came in last with Cho Chang on his arm. Hermione thought that they made a rather attractive couple.
Soon the feast began and their plates were filled.
"Slow down, Ronald," Hermione admonished her friend as he started to shove food into his mouth at his normal pace. "We're at a ball, at least try to use some manners. You'll embarrass your date."
"Don't worry about me, Hermione," Lavender said, "I don't mind. Ronny's a growing boy and needs to keep up his strength."
Hermione decided that she would have to reevaluate her opinion of her dormmate as she watched the other girl happily spoon some more potatoes onto Ron's plate.
She shook her head and then smiled at her own date. At least Harry knew how to use a fork and knife correctly.
Dinner was delicious, and the conversation was fun and filled with laughter. Hermione even availed herself of a glass of the excellent red wine that was served. But she stopped herself at one, the Yule Ball was neither the time nor the place for testing her limits.
The meal was over all too soon, and with a wave of his wand, Dumbledore cleared a large section of the floor for dancing. The champions started things off, but were quickly joined by the three Headmasters and their partners, and then by everyone else.
"Well?" Hermione asked as she looked at Harry.
"Well what?" he replied.
"Aren't you going to ask me to dance?"
"You want to dance?"
"Of course! This is a ball, after all. Don't you?"
"Err… I hadn't really thought about it."
"Well you better think fast," she said as she stood up and took him by the hand, "because we're dancing."
"Err…" Harry mumbled as she pulled him out of his seat.
Hermione smiled as she saw Lavender and Parvati likewise cajoling their dates onto the dancefloor. Surprisingly, Neville was the one leading Ginny by the hand.
Once they were on the edge of the dancing area, she stopped and turned to Harry, taking his left hand in her right, and placing her right on his shoulder.
"Err… this might not be the best time to tell you," Harry began, "but I don't really know how to dance…"
"Oh, honestly, Harry," she rolled her eyes at him, "you're able to gracefully move through exceedingly complicated Jedi katas without making a single mistake, but you're afraid of a little dancing?"
"I never said I was afraid!"
"No, you didn't. But I can feel it."
"Oh. Right."
"Just relax. Reach out into the Force. Let it guide the dance."
Hermione felt him release his tension before he slid his right hand onto her waist. Hermione followed her own advice, letting go of the tiny butterflies that were dancing around in her stomach before following Harry's lead.
And then they were dancing.
And they were good at it too.
Although that wasn't much of a surprise. Like she'd said, they'd spent countless hours together going through synchronized Jedi katas. They already knew how to move with each other. Dancing was nearly the same thing, just a bit… closer.
Sometime later, Hermione had become a little pensive as Harry continued to twirl her about the dancefloor. The other couples had all stopped for breaks to either gather their breath or to quench their thirst, but Harry and Hermione had the Force, and it energized them as they flowed with it to the beat of the music. Hermione was pondering on what she was experiencing, what she was feeling.
Bliss, she finally decided. This must be what bliss feels like.
Harry lifted his arm and she spun out into a graceful circle before he quickly reeled her back in.
She looked up into Harry's eyes and felt heat rush to her face. He smiled at her. It looked like he was having fun dancing with her. He was rather handsome, she realized for the hundredth time that evening, and she really liked dancing with him.
The music slowed, and so did their movements. Hermione inched herself closer to her date, and soon both of her arms were clasped around his neck while her head nestled against his shoulder.
Bliss.
Nothing could bother her. Not even the constant disturbance in the Force that had been nagging them all year. No, right now there was nothing but Hermione and Harry and the music.
Her mind wandered back to her first year as it often did, to the very first lesson about the Force that Harry had given them. It had been so long ago, but the memory was still as fresh as ever in her mind. An involuntary shiver went through her just thinking about it. His presence had enveloped her and enfolded her. They way he'd reached into her, and then she was in him, and they were in each other. It had been so intimate and warm and intoxicating and to be so very close, to be so much a part of another person's presence, and then they had moved and were engulfed in the energy of Life itself, subsumed into the Force, together, as one, inseparable...
It had seemingly gone on forever but had ended much too soon.
Hermione had never felt anything like it before or since. They had never reached into each other's presences again, had never even talked about it, no matter how much Hermione secretly wished that they would.
But dancing at the Yule Ball, Hermione decided, wrapped in Harry's arms, was the next best thing.
She would be perfectly content with spending the rest of the evening with him on the dancefloor.
OoOoO
OoOoO
Saturday, June 24, 1995
Harry was anxious as he watched the champions on the floating screens above the maze. The third and final task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament was very exciting, he thought. Diggory had cut his way through some nasty strangling vines, Krum had almost been burnt to a crisp by Hagrid's Blast-Ended Screwts, barely managing to escape alive, and Delacour had been swarmed by four Acromantulas, each bigger than a car, but was able to charm her way past them.
Now all three champions were racing toward the center of the maze. It was going to be a very close finish.
Harry turned to the side to look at his friends. Hermione was chewing on her bottom lip as her eyes were glued to the screens. Next to her, both Ron and Lavender were likewise watching with fascination. Ever since the Yule Ball, Lavender had seemingly wormed her way into the trio's little group. Harry was fine with it most of the time, he wasn't really sure what they saw in each other but he liked having another target around for Ron's good-natured ribbing, and Lavender really seemed to enjoy the red-head's sense of humor. So far Ron had managed to restrain himself from asking if Lavender could join their Force training sessions, and Harry was grateful. He didn't want to have to say 'no' to his friend. He liked the girl and everything, but he wasn't about to take on another student.
Harry turned back to the screens.
All three champions emerged into the center of the maze at the same time. They paused for the briefest of moments before bursting into motion. Krum and Diggory began hurling spellfire at each other, blasting great holes in the hedges and tossing up huge clouds of dirt. Delacour, on the other hand, was carefully dodging and shielding, all while slowly making her way toward the center platform and the cup.
Smart girl.
"She's got them," Hermione whispered to no one in particular.
Indeed it looked like she did. While the wizards were caught up in fighting each other, the lone witch had made it to the very center on the maze. She reached out and clasped a hand around one of the handles of the cup… and promptly disappeared.
Only to reappear an instant later in front of the judges' box.
The crowd went wild with cheering. Harry jumped to his feet in excitement just like everyone else.
"Score one for girl power!" Hermione shouted before launching herself at Harry, throwing her arms around his neck.
"Hey! What about your Hogwarts pride?" He jokingly asked.
"Oh, I've got plenty of that," she responded, "I'll just save it for the Quidditch pitch. After all, the tournament was about international relations. We should be happy for whomever wins."
A few minutes later, all three champions were arrayed before the crowd as the Headmasters and the two officials from the Ministry were happily extolling their virtues for all to hear. Apparently the tournament was a great success for everyone involved and they hoped to do it again soon.
Good to know.
Soon the champions had received their rewards and the crowd was shuffling out of the stands and heading back to the castle. The Hogwarts champion might not have won, but Harry was certain that there was still likely to be a party in the Gryffindor common room celebrating the end of the tournament and the immanent return of Quidditch if nothing else.
Harry was following behind Hermione when he heard someone call out to him.
"Mr. Potter! Mr. Potter!"
He turned to see a wizard with short, almost unnaturally straight, grey hair and a narrow toothbrush moustache. Harry recognized him as one of the officials from the Ministry of Magic that was in charge of the Tournament.
"Yes?" Harry answered.
"Mr. Potter, my name is Bartemius Crouch," the man said as he came to stand next to him. "I'm Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation. Might I have a quick word with you?"
"What about?" Harry asked while sharing a quick glance with Hermione.
"The Ministry would like to get your point of view on the tournament. It will only take a moment."
"My take on the tournament?" Harry asked in confusion. "Who would care about that?"
"I assure you many people do. Please, it will only take a moment."
Harry shrugged his shoulders. What the heck? What did he have to lose?
"Okay, fine."
Crouch smiled and dropped his hand on Harry's shoulder.
And then the Force screamed out in warning.
"Harry! No!" Hermione shouted as she started to leap forward.
Harry tried to pull away, but he was too late.
He felt a hook yank him backwards from behind his navel.
And then he was gone.
AN: Cliffhanger! Ha ha ha!
Bet you didn't see that coming! No one ever suspects the end of the Third Task!
I somehow managed to find time to post a chapter once again while traveling. So there you go. No promises about next week.
Side note about Evil Plans: Wasn't this chapter a much better plan than what Old Voldie worked out in Goblet of Fire? You've already got Crouch under the Imperious, why not just have him waltz up to Harry with a Portkey during a moment of confusion? Why go through all the trouble with the Tournament? I guess the answer is that in that case, GoF would have only been 4947 words long (like this chapter) instead of 190,637, and you can't market a 4947 word book…
A note on dates in this chapter in case you're interested. If you take a look at the very well-done resources available on the Harry Potter Lexicon, you'll note that JKR was a bit sloppy with her dates for Goblet of Fire. That is to say, the dates and days of the week that she mentions in the book do not match up with the actual calendar from 1994-1995. For example, in reality, October 31, 1994 fell on a Monday, while JKR has it fall on a Saturday. Which isn't that big of a deal… unless you happen to be writing a fan-fic where each scene starts with a date stamp. After much humming and hawing, and changing things a few times, I've decided to go with the actual calendar dates for the story. This has required some extensive editing on my part. If you've noticed an error with a date/day of the week, please let me know about it in a review. I'd like to keep things as consistent as possible.
What did you think about the chapter? Let me know.
Happy New Year!
Thanks for your reviews, and thanks for reading!