Chapter 8: The sweetest chapter of them all
A/N: To those people that think that using Harry's cloak was stupid you're probably almost right. The point is I needed and element of complicity in Harry's thing and just using Wingardrium Leviosa was a bit too easy. Besides who said it was , even Harry's cloak? Clever… I also forgot to mention that Harry came first, Cedric second, then Krum, then Fleur. Oh and apologies, apparently I spelt 'Harry' as 'Garry' lol.
A screech came from the egg, which was glowing red inside. The screech was painful to their ears as scraping fingernails down a blackboard. Harry immediately closed it.
"What was that?" Neville asked.
"I don't know but I'm not looking forward to doing that again."
"Harry do you know what we're here for?" Harry asked.
"I don't know but I don't thing we're going to like it." Fred said.
"Ah there's McGonagall." All the Gryffindor boys and girls from fourth year and up were seated on different sides of a large room.
"Good morning students."
"Good morning Professor McGonagall."
"You are probably wondering why you are all gathered here today. The Yule Ball has taken place since the beginning of the Tri Wizard tournament. It is first and foremost a formal dance." The girls squealed and chatted excitedly, while the boys groaned and complained.
"You will need to learn to dance properly as you will be representing your school. Mr Longbottom please come up here." Neville walked up and stood in front of Professor McGonagall.
"Now take my waist." Neville did as he was told.
"Mr Filch please start the music." Some Muggle classical music started playing and Neville and McGonagall started dancing.
"1,2,3, 1,2,3 Neville you are an exceptionally good dancer. Boys, Girls on your feet. Lets see what you can do."
After two hours of dancing Harry had extremely sore feet. Of course he expected that the girls he had danced with had even sorer feet from all the times he had stepped on them. Still, Harry was relieved it was over and was sitting back in the common room with his friends.
"Oh my feet." Dean moaned rubbing his feet.
"I thought that was fun didn't you?" Neville asked.
"Neville you were probably the only one who could dance. Can you give us some tips?" Harry said.
"Well sure firstly you've got to- Hey is that an owl?" Harry looked to the window to see a tawny owl tapping the window trying to get in.
"I'll get it." Harry opened the window and let the owl fly in.
"Hey it's for me." Harry walked over to the corner of the room (in case it was from Sirius) and opened the letter.
Harry,
Thanks for tipping me off about the dragons, so you scratch my back I'll scratch yours. (That means I'll tip you off too I'm not really going to scratch your back). Anyway to help you with your egg try listening to it in different ways.
Good luck
Cedric
Harry finished his letter confused. What's that supposed to mean? I'll ask Hermione.
"Hey Hermione can you come over here for a second?"
"Sure." They walked over to the corner. "What's up?"
"Take a look at this." He said showing her the letter. Hermione finished the letter quickly.
"Well what does it mean?"
"It's obvious isn't it? We have to listen to it in different ways like upside down or something."
"Oh right. Lets try it."
"Ok but we should go somewhere and do a sound proofing charm."
"Alright."
They tried it upside down, in the air, while listening to Beethoven, even holding a chicken and every time had the same result.
"Is there anything we haven't tried?" asked Harry after their twenty-sixth try.
"Hmm. Let me think for a moment." Hermione concentrated then slapped her hand against her head.
"Oh how could I have been so stupid it's the most obvious thing!"
"What?"
"Try it underwater." She said.
Ten minutes they were running to the black lake.
"Couldn't we have done it somewhere else?" Harry panted.
"No. The only bath in Hogwarts is the Prefects bathroom." Hermione said simply.
"I read about it in Hogwarts-"
"-a History I know." They reached the edge of the lake. He took off his cloak and shoes and rolled up his pants and shirt sleeves. He took the egg and waded into the water.
"Oh my God it's freezing!"
"Come on don't be such a wuss Harry." (A/N: I have no idea how to spell wuss.)
Harry took a deep breath, plunged his head under water and opened his breath. He heard a chorus of ghostly voices sing:
'Come seek us where our voices sound,
We cannot sing above the ground,
And while you're searching ponder this:
We've taken what you'll sorely miss,
An hour long you'll have to look,
To recover what we took,
But past an hour – the prospect's black
Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.
"Hey Hermione come hear this!"
"No way I'm not going in there!"
"Well who's a wuss now?" He said raising his eyebrows.
"Fine." She took off her cloak and shoes and waded up to where Harry was standing.
"Ok take a deep breath." Hermione did so, listened to the eerie song and came up coughing and spluttering for air.
"You alright Hermione?"
"Yes. I'm fine. Whoa that song was weird. I think we're facing sort of what we did in first year. You remember Snape's challenge?" (A/N: Only in the book)
"Yeah. If it weren't for you I'd be stuck there forever." Hermione shivered.
"It's freezing here lets go back inside."
They went back up to the castle discussing what the song could've meant.
" 'We cannot be heard above the ground' well that obviously means they can only be heard underwater." Hermione said.
"Fish?"
"No. Merpeople Harry."
"Oh right. 'An hour long you'll have to look' that's obvious too."
"Der Harry. Wait I think I've got it!"
"Lets hear it then genius."
"Ok ok. You ready. I think the challenge is that the Merpeople will take something that is very precious to you and hide it in the Black lake. Then you have an hour to go get it."
"Well that fits but how do I do it?"
"Er. I don't know."
"Well we've got plenty of time to discuss it- Horntail." The portrait swung open.
"I need to go get changed."
"Ditto." Hermione hurried up the stairs but Harry stayed in the common room.
"Hey Lavender."
"Yeah?"
"Can I talk to you?"
"Alright." Harry led Lavender up the staircase and invited her to sit on the bed.
"What's up Harry?"
"Well you know the Yule ball is coming up…"
"Harry! You can't ask me to go to the ball with you! You're with Hermione!"
"What! No I don't mean that. I want you to help me."
"Help you with what?"
"Well Hermione knows that I'm going to ask her but I want to ask her in a special way. Really blow her away you know?"
"Wow Harry. That's really sweet. What do you want me for?"
"Well I don't know how I'm going to ask her."
"I know just what to do."
Hermione's POV
Harry's been spending a lot of time with Lavender lately. I'm going to find out why.
"Harry James P-" Hermione shouted as she entered the common room.
"What's this?" There in front of her was a floating note. She plucked it from the air.
Hermione,
Please meet me in the Charms class room
From Professor Flitwick
Without saying a word Hermione left the common room. Maybe it's about my homework. What if I got it all wrong? Eeep. She thought.
"Is she gone?" asked Neville?
"I think so." said Seamus. They stepped out from behind the curtains.
"Ooh she's gong to love this."
Hermione ran all the way to the Charms classroom. She finally reached it panting. She tidied her hair up a bit as it had fallen out of place. Hermione knocked on the door.
"Professor Flitwick?"
"Oh come in." said a voice that sounded very unlike Flitwick's. She pushed the door open to see a crowd of students in the room beaming like idiots. Lavender, Ginny, Dean, Pavarti and lots of other Gryffindors were there.
"What are you all doing here? Where's Flitwick?" The crowd didn't say anything but, still smiling, parted down the middle to reveal a huge banner in the shape of a horseshoe.
Will you go the ball with me Hermione? It read in giant flashing letters. About ten arrows branched off the giant banner pointing to Harry who grinning madly. '
Hermione ran through to Harry and jumped into his arms.
"So will you?"
"Yes. Of course."
Aaaw. So sweet. Please Review !
Laura D