The other miss Granger
Chapter 6:
As the next day was Saturday, most students would normally have breakfasted late. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, however, were not alone in rising much earlier than they usually did on weekends. When they went down into the entrance hall, they saw about twenty people milling around it, some of them eating toast, all examining the Goblet of Fire. It had been placed in the center of the hall on the stool that normally bore the Sorting Hat. A thin golden line had been traced on the floor, forming a circle ten feet around it in every direction.
"Anyone put their name in yet?" Ron asked the closest girl near him, who was a third year.
"All the Durmstrang lot," she replied. "But I haven't seen anyone from Hogwarts yet."
"Bet some of them put it in last night after we'd all gone to bed," said Harry. "I would've if it had been me. . . wouldn't have wanted everyone watching. What if the goblet just gobbed you right back out again?" Hermione agreed with Harry there.
Someone laughed behind Harry. Turning, he saw Fred, George, and Lee Jordan hurrying down the staircase, all three of them looking extremely excited.
"Done it," Fred said in a triumphant whisper to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Just taken it."
"What?" said Ron.
"The Aging Potion, dung brains," said Fred.
"One drop each," said George, rubbing his hands together with glee. "We only need to be a few months older." Hermione shook her head, she knew this wasn't going to work.
"We're going to split the thousand Galleons between the three of us if one of us wins," said Lee, grinning broadly.
"I'm not sure this is going to work, you know," said Hermione warningly. "I'm sure Dumbledore will have thought of this." But Fred, George, and Lee ignored her.
"Ready?" Fred said to the other two, quivering with excitement. "C'mon, then I'll go first"
The golden trio watched, as Fred pulled a slip of parchment out of his pocket bearing the words Fred Weasley - Hogwarts. Fred walked right up to the edge of the line and stood there, rocking on his toes like a diver preparing for a fifty-foot drop. Then, with the eyes of every person in the entrance hall upon him, he took a great breath and stepped over the line.
For a split second Hermione had thought it worked George must have thought so to, for he let out a yell of triumph and leapt after Fred. But next moment, there was a loud sizzling sound, and both twins were hurled out of the golden circle as though they had been thrown by an invisible shot-putter. They landed painfully, ten feet away on the cold stone floor, and to add insult to injury, there was a loud popping noise, and both of them sprouted identical long white beards. The entrance hall rang with laughter. Even Fred and George joined in, once they had gotten to their feet and taken a good look at each other's beards.
"I did warn you," said a deep, amused voice, and everyone turned to see Professor Dumbledore coming out of the Great Hall. He surveyed Fred and George, his eyes twinkling. "I suggest you both go up to Madam Pomfrey. She is already tending to Miss Fawcett, of Ravenclaw, and Mr. Summers, of Hufflepuff, both of whom decided to age themselves up a little too. Though I must say, neither of their beards is anything like as fine as yours." Hermione smiled slightly at that. Their beards were identical to Dumbledore's one. Fred and George set off for the hospital wing, accompanied by Lee, who was howling with laughter, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione, also chortling, went in to breakfast.
The decorations in the Great Hall had changed this morning. As it was Halloween, a cloud of live bats was fluttering around the enchanted ceiling, while hundreds of carved pumpkins leered from every corner. Harry led the way over to Dean and Seamus, who were discussing those Hogwarts students of seventeen or over who might be entering.
"There's a rumor going around that Warrington got up early and put his name in," Dean told Harry.
"That big bloke from Slytherin who looks like a sloth."
Harry, who had played Quidditch against Warrington, shook his head in disgust.
"We can't have a Slytherin champion!"
"And all the Hufflepuffs are talking about Diggory," said Seamus contemptuously.
"But I wouldn't have thought he'd have wanted to risk his good looks."
"Listen!" said Hermione suddenly, Hearing cheering.
People were cheering out in the entrance hall. They all swiveled around in their seats and saw Angelina Johnson coming into the Hall, grinning in an embarrassed sort of way. A tall black girl who played Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Angelina came over to them, sat down, and said, "Well, I've done it! Just put my name in!"
"You're kidding!" said Ron, looking impressed.
"Are you seventeen, then?" asked Harry.
"Course she is, can't see a beard, can you?" said Ron. Hermione shook her head in amusement.
"It was my birthday last week," said Angelina.
"Well, I'm glad someone from Gryffindor's entering," said Hermione. "I really hope you get it, Angelina!"
"Thanks, Hermione," said Angelina, smiling at her.
"By the way Hermione some girls from Beauxbatons are asking around for you." Angelina told her, taking a piece of toast. Hermione eyes widened.
"Really! Who? What did they look like?" She asked her so quickly that Angelina probably hadn't caught half of it.
"There was a group of them, saying that their friend was looking for you. Do you know anyone from Beauxbatons?" Angelina asked her curiously.
"Yes well I don't know her personally but my half sister goes there." Hermione told her honestly. This got Dean and Seamus attention.
"You have a half sister that goes to Beauxbaton? How come you never told us before?" Seamus asked, looking slightly hurt.
"I just found out this summer." Hermione told them. They both nodded.
"What're we going to do today, then?" Ron asked Harry and Hermione when they had finished breakfast and were leaving the Great Hall.
"We haven't been down to visit Hagrid yet," said Harry.
"Okay," said Ron, "just as long as he doesn't ask us to donate a few fingers to the skrewts."
"Excuse me" Said a voice. The three friends turned around to see the Beauxbaton girl from the night before. Ron went purple upon seeing her.
"Yes?" Hermione asked, not sure wither she liked this girl that Ron claimed was a veela.
"You are in ze Gryffindor yes?" She asked looking at the crest on their robes. The three nodded.
"Are you in ze the fouth year?" the three just nodded, not sure why she was asking these questions. She smiled brightly at this.
"Then you must know a girl called Hermione Granger?" Harry and Ron immediately looked at Hermione.
"I'm Hermione Granger." she replied. The blonde haired girl smiled.
"I'm Fleur Delacour. I'm Jolie's best friend! We have been looking for you since last night!" she told her. Hermione's eyes widened. Her sister was here.
"Come, Come I bring you to zee Jolie!" She said and took Hermione's hand. Hermione looked back at Harry and Ron indicating for them to follow.
Fleur pulled her out into the grounds.
"Jolie!" she shouted. Hermione looked up and saw the back of the girl with the long black, lose curls from the night before her hair was past her waist now that she was standing up. But she still had her back to them and was talking to Draco Malfoy and his friends.
"Jolie!" Fleur said again as we were not even a foot away. She turned around. She heard her two best friends gasp. The girl was beautiful like the woman, Marie Defontaine who her dad used to date. She looked like a veela. She was quite pale and was tall around 5 foot 8 or 9, long legs, a tiny waist and a toned stomach and she had a perfect sized chest. Her body was just pure perfection. Hermione thought until she looked at her face. It was a beautiful heart shaped face, naturally dark pink lips, long thick black eyelashes framing the strange purple eyes with swirls of blue in them. They were so bright and so beautiful, just like her mothers.
She smiled brightly at Hermione, showing perfect even, pearly white teeth.
"Hermione?" She asked her. Hermione nodded, still looking at the beautiful young woman with wide eyes.
"I'm Jolie Defontaine." She said. Hermione broke out of her trance and smiled. Tears were forming in her eyes. Seeing her right in front of her made it all real. She wasn't alone in this magical world any more. She couldn't help but throw her arms around the older girl and hug her. Tears falling down her cheeks. Jolie bent down and hugged her to, Hermione could fell her hair getting slightly damp indicating that her older sister was crying to. Hermione pulled back and smiled at her, wiping her eyes embarrassed that she had cried. The other girl did the same.
"What is going on?" Blurted out Draco Malfoy. Hermione had forgotten they were there.
"Hermione is my sister." Jolie said, putting her arm around Hermione's shoulders protectively. It felt brilliant Hermione thought. Malfoy and his friends looked absolutely speechless and were looking between Hermione and Jolie. Jolie took her hand and pulled her back in to the great hall. Hermione looked at her two best friends. They were just looking at Jolie with wide eyes and their mouths hanging wide open.
"Jolie, These are my best friends Ron Weasley and Harry Potter." She told her. Jolie smiled at them both witch just made Ron go bright purple.
"It's nice to meet you both." she said and kissed them both on the cheeks. Both looked like they were going to faint.
"Veela?" Ron squeaked out.
"Ron!" Hermione scolded. Jolie laughed.
"Half Veela actually. My mother was a veela." Jolie told them honestly. The three best friends just looked up at her in awe.
"And you?" Ron squeaked looking at Fleur. Hermione noticed now that even though Fleur was stunningly beautiful, next to Jolie she looked slightly plain and less beautiful. Fleur giggled.
"Only a quarter." she told him. Ron nodded and gave Hermione a look saying that he was right before.
"Come meet some of my other friends." Hermione said to Jolie and led her over to the Gryffindor table. Were Seamus, Dean, Angelina and Lee were sitting.
"Hey guys. This is Jolie Defontaine and Fleur Delacour." she said getting her friends attention. All of them looking at wide eyes at the two girls from Beauxbatons, the boys especially at Jolie. Lee dropped the toast that was in his mouth.
"Hermione- i-is she yo-your sis-sister?" Seamus stuttered looking at Jolie. Hermione nodded.
"It's lovely to meet you all. And thank you all for being so nice to Hermione." she told them smiling. She then kissed all their cheeks even Angelina so did Fleur. All the boys were touching their cheeks. Jolie and Fleur sat down with the golden trio and their friends.
"Viktor Krum is looking our way." Ron whispered loudly. They all looked up at him. He indeed was staring.
"I met Viktor this summer actually." Jolie said in thought. Ron looked at her with wide eyes.
"Really?" he gushed. Jolie nodded, clearly amused.
"Yes I has with Francois. He is one of my closest friends he has now left Beauxbaton he was in seventh year last year. His father is minister of magic in France so he brought me to one of the Quidditch matches, it was Bulgaria against France. I met him then." she told him.
"Do you think you could get me an autograph?" Ron asked her. She smiled and giggled.
"I'll try." she told him.
The rest of the students from Beauxbatons were coming through the front doors from the grounds. Those gathered around the Goblet of Fire stood back to let them pass, watching eagerly.
"I better go." Fleur said, getting up. Jolie got up to.
"Good luck Fleur." she said, kissing her cheeks.
"Come with me please?" Fleur said quietly. Jolie smiled and nodded.
"Your not entering Angelina asked her. She shook her head.
"No I am only 16." she told her. Angelina gave her a confused look.
"Then what you doing here? I thought only the 17 year old were coming."
"It's because I am head girl. And you see the way Headmaster from Drumstrang treat Krum? That is what me and Fleur are like to Madame Maxime, we are her prized students." she told her and left with Fleur. Madame Maxime entered the hall behind her students and organized them into a line. One by one, the Beauxbatons students stepped across the Age Line and
dropped their slips of parchment into the blue-white flames. As each name entered
the fire, it turned briefly red and emitted sparks. Jolie stood beside Madame Maxime. Hermione saw that every male in the room had their eyes on Jolie. It was like the world cup all over again.
"What d'you reckon'll happen to the ones who aren't chosen?" Ron muttered to Harry as Fleur dropped her parchment into the Goblet of Fire. "Reckon they'll go back to school, or hang around to watch the tournament?"
"Dunno," said Harry. "Hang around, I suppose... . Madame Maxime's staying to judge, isn't she?"
When all the Beauxbatons students had submitted their names except Jolie, Madame Maxime led them back out of the hall and out onto the grounds again.
"Where are they sleeping, then?" said Ron, moving toward the front doors and staring after them.
"I'm going to get my SPEW things be right back." Hermione said and ran out the entrance.
All the friends at the table turned and looked at each other.
"Are you sure she's Hermione sister?" Ron whispered loudly to Harry.
"Ron! That's a terrible thing to say!" Angelina scolded and glared at the younger boy. Ron gave her a look of confusion. Angelina muttered something under her breath about boys being stupid then got up to look for Katie Bell.
"She is stunning." Lee said, grinning.
"You've got no chance mate." Seamus said, grinning.
"Yeah, cause she'll be all over me." Dean said and winked at his friends. Harry and Ron shook their heads, grinning. They talked about Quidditch until a loud rattling noise behind them announced Hermione's reappearance with the box of S. P. E.W. badges.
"Oh good, hurry up," said Ron, and he jumped down the stone steps. As they neared Hagrid's cabin on the edge of the Forbidden Forest, the mystery of the Beauxbatons sleeping quarters was solved. The gigantic powder-blue carriage in which they had arrived had been parked two hundred yards from Hagrid's front door, and the students were climbing back inside it. The elephantine flying horses that had pulled the carriage were now grazing in a makeshift paddock alongside it.
Harry knocked on Hagrid's door, and Fang's booming barks answered instantly.
"Bout time!" said Hagrid, when he'd flung open the door. "Thought you lot'd forgotten where I live!"
"We've been really busy, Hag -" Hermione started to say, but then she stopped dead, looking up at Hagrid, apparently lost for words. Hagrid was wearing his best (and very horrible) hairy brown suit, plus a checked yellow-and-orange tie. This wasn't the worst of it, though; he had evidently tried to tame his hair, using large quantities of what appeared to be axle grease. It was now slicked down into two bunches - perhaps he had tried a ponytail like Bill's, but found he had too much hair. The look didn't really suit Hagrid at all. For a moment, Hermione goggled at him, then, obviously deciding not to comment, she said, "Erm - where are the skrewts."
"Out by the pumpkin patch," said Hagrid happily. "They're get-tin' massive, mus' be nearly three foot long now. On'y trouble is, they've started killin' each other."
"Oh no, really?" said Hermione, shooting a repressive look at Ron, who, staring at Hagrid's odd hairstyle, had just opened his mouth to say something about it.
"Yeah," said Hagrid sadly. "S' okay, though, I've got 'em in separate boxes now. Still got abou' twenty."
"Well, that's lucky," said Ron. Hermione glared at him when she heard the sarcasm, but Hagrid must have missed it.
They sat down at the table while Hagrid started to make tea, and were soon immersed in yet more discussion of the Triwizard Tournament. Hagrid seemed quite as excited about it as they were.
"You wait," he said, grinning. "You jus' wait. Yer going ter see some stuff yeh've never seen before. Firs' task. . . ah, but I'm not supposed ter say."
"Go on, Hagrid!" Harry, Ron, and Hermione urged him, but he just shook his head, grinning.
"I don' want ter spoil it fer yeh," said Hagrid. "But it's gonna be spectacular, I'll tell yeh that. Them champions're going ter have their work cut out. Never thought I'd live ter see the Triwizard Tournament played again!"
They ended up having lunch with Hagrid, though they didn't eat much. After finding strange things in the food.
"Did Hermione tell you about her sister?" Harry suddenly asked Hagrid. Hagrid who had been drinking some tea spat it right out.
"You have a sister Hermione?" He asked looking at her. She nodded.
"Yes a half sister, I only found out this summer. She actually goes to Beauxbatons." Hermione told him. He stared at her with wide eyes.
"Is she 17? cause if she is she must be here!" He said smiling at her. She grinned.
"She not 17, but she's here. She's head girl. She started school at 10 instead of 11 for some personal reasons." She told her giant friend.
"I'd love to meet her." Hagrid told her. She nodded and smiled.
"I'm sure she'll love to meet you to Hagrid."
"She beautiful." Ron blurted out. Hagrid looked at him curiously.
"She's half veela." Harry informed him. Hagrid nodded.
"She must be good with animals. They always are." Hagrid told them.
"Really?" Hermione asked curiously. Hagrid nodded.
After that, Hagrid and Hermione started arguing about house-elves and he flatly refused to join S.P.E.W. when she showed him her badges.
By half past five it was growing dark, and Ron, Harry, and Hermione decided it was time to get back up to the castle for the Halloween feast - and, more important, the announcement of the school champions.
"I'll come with yeh," said Hagrid, putting away his darning. "Jus' give us a sec." Hagrid got up, went across to the chest of drawers beside his bed, and began searching for something inside it. They didn't pay too much attention until a truly horrible smell reached their nostrils. Coughing, Ron said, "Hagrid, what's that?"
"Eh?" said Hagrid, turning around with a large bottle in his hand. "Don' yeh like it?"
"Is that aftershave?" said Hermione in a slightly choked voice.
"Er - eau de cologne," Hagrid muttered. He was blushing.
"Maybe it's a bit much," he said gruffly. "I'll go take it off, hang on..."
He stumped out of the cabin, and they saw him washing himself vigorously in the water barrel outside the window.
"Eau de cologne?" said Hermione in amazement. "Hagrid?"
"And what's with the hair and the suit?" said Harry in an undertone.
"Look!" said Ron suddenly, pointing out of the window. Hagrid had just straightened up and turned 'round. If he had been blushing before, it was nothing to what he was doing now. Getting to their feet very cautiously, so that Hagrid wouldn't spot them, Harry, Ron, and Hermione peered through the window and saw that Madame Maxime and the Beauxbatons students had just emerged from their carriage, clearly about to set off for the feast too. They couldn't hear what Hagrid was saying, but he was talking to Madame Maxime with a rapt, misty-eyed expression the golden trio had only ever seen him wear once before - when he had been looking at the baby dragon, Norbert.
"He's going up to the castle with her!" said Hermione indignantly. "I thought he was waiting for us!"
Without so much as a backward glance at his cabin, Hagrid was trudging off upthe grounds with Madame Maxime, the Beaux-batons students following in their wake, jogging to keep up with their enormous strides.
"He fancies her!" said Ron incredulously. "Well, if they end up having children, they'll be setting a world record - bet any baby of theirs would weigh about a ton."
They let themselves out of the cabin and shut the door behind them. It was
surprisingly dark outside. Drawing their cloaks more closely around themselves,
they set off up the sloping lawns.
The Durmstrang party was walking up toward the castle from the lake. Viktor Krum was walking side by side with Karkaroff, and the other Durmstrang students were straggling along behind them. Ron watched Krum excitedly, but Krum did not look around as he reached the front doors a little ahead of Hermione, Ron, and Harry and proceeded through them.
When they entered the candlelit Great Hall it was almost full. The Goblet of Fire
had been moved; it was now standing in front of Dumbledore's empty chair at the
teachers' table. Fred and George - clean-shaven again - seemed to have taken their
disappointment fairly well.
"Hope it's Angelina," said Fred as Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat down.
"So do I!" said Hermione breathlessly. "Well, we'll soon know!"
"We heard about your sister. Its been spreading around the castle all afternoon." George said.
"Is it really the gorgeous black haired one?" Fred asked. Hermione nodded. Both the twins grinned.
"You'll have to introduce us to her later." they said and winked. Hermione shook her head and grinned.
"I'll think about it." She told them.
The Halloween feast seemed to take much longer than usual. Perhaps because it was their second feast in two days, nobody didn't seem to fancy the extravagantly prepared food as much as he would have normally. Like everyone else in the Hall, judging by the constantly craning necks, the impatient expressions on every face, the fidgeting, and the standing up to see whether Dumbledore had finished eating yet, everyone simply wanted the plates to clear, and to hear who had been selected as champions.
At long last, the golden plates returned to their original spotless state; there was a sharp upswing in the level of noise within the Hall, which died away almost instantly as Dumbledore got to his feet. On either side of him, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime looked as tense and expectant as anyone. Ludo Bagman was beaming and winking at various students. Mr. Crouch, however, looked quite uninterested, almost bored.
"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," said Dumbledore. "I
estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber" - he indicated the door behind the staff table - "where they will be receiving their first instructions."
He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave with it; at once, all the candles except those inside the carved pumpkins were extinguished, plunging them into a state of semidarkness. The Goblet of Fire now shone more brightly than anything in the whole Hall, the sparkling bright, bluey-whiteness of the flames almost painful on the eyes. Everyone watched, waiting. . . . A few people kept checking their watches. . .
The flames inside the goblet turned suddenly red again. Sparks began to fly from it. Next moment, a tongue of flame shot into the air, a charred piece of parchment fluttered out of it - the whole room gasped.
Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment and held it at arm's length, so that he could read it by the light of the flames, which had turned back to blue-white.
"The champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice, "will be Viktor Krum."
"No surprises there!" yelled Ron as a storm of applause and cheering swept the Hall. They saw Viktor Krum rise from the Slytherin table and slouch up toward Dumbledore; he turned right, walked along the staff table, and disappeared through the door into the next chamber.
The clapping and chatting died down. Now everyone's attention was focused again on the goblet, which, seconds later, turned red once more. A second piece of parchment shot out of it, propelled by the flames.
"The champion for Beauxbatons," said Dumbledore, "is Fleur Delacour!" They say Fleur stand gracefully as did Jolie. They both hugged tightly and Jolie sat back down.
When Fleur too had vanished into the side chamber, silence fell again, but this time it was a silence so stiff with excitement you could almost taste it. The Hogwarts champion next...
And the Goblet of Fire turned red once more; sparks showered out of it; the tongue of flame shot high into the air, and from its tip Dumbledore pulled the third piece of parchment.
"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"
"No! " said Ron loudly, but nobody heard him except Harry; the uproar from the next table was too great. Every single Hufflepuff had jumped to his or her feet, screaming and stamping, as Cedric made his way past them, grinning broadly, and headed off toward the chamber behind the teachers' table. Indeed, the applause for Cedric went on so long that it was some time before Dumbledore could make himself heard again.
"Excellent!" Dumbledore called happily as at last the tumult died down. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real -"
But Dumbledore suddenly stopped speaking, and it was apparent to everybody what had distracted him. The fire in the goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment.
Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at Dumbledore. And then Dumbledore cleared his throat and read out - "Harry Potter."
Thanks for the reviews!
Lets see how the votes are going!
Charlie Weasley: 11 Votes!
Oliver Wood: 7 Votes!
Sirius Black: 8 Votes!
George Weasley: 2 Votes!
Harry Potter: 2 votes!
I'll update as soon as I can!