Disclaimer--If you like it, assume I don't own it. The Potterverse belongs to JKR, Steve Klowes, Scholastic and WB. Fanon belongs to the multitude...I'm simply paying homage. Most of this scene is from GoF by JK Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended, and no money is being made.
Author's Notes-- Progress has been a lot slower in this work, but I hope you'll all stick with me anyway. As you all know, I may not own it, but I work hard, and I love it, so if you read it and enjoy it, please review it! Please don't print or post this elsewhere without my knowledge.
Saint Paul--Thanks so much! Ginny is--obviously--my favorite character as well, so I'm always pleased to meet fellow Ginny-lovers. *winks* I'm glad you've enjoyed my stories so far, and I hope you continue to review. :-)
I'm-not-the-Weakest-Link--Wow!! Thanks! I'm blushing and beaming ear-to-ear; I'm thrilled you've read my stories and enjoyed them so much. I hope you keep reading and reviewing in the future. I do intend to write Ginny's story at least through HP Book 7 (though that does to some extent depend on time and inspiration as well). Whether or not I write Ginny's 7th year will depend on how the series ends and whether or not I think I have a good idea... ;-)
JamieBell--I wasn't really thinking about it consciously, but I guess I was re-living how I used to feel at Pep Rallys and other school-related events when I wrote that scene. It sounds like your experience is pretty similar--I can almost picture you sitting next to me. *grins wryly* I think you're right...this section of the book does seem to last a long time...and I'm really looking forward to more exciting things coming up, too. *winks*
Raiining--Hope to see more reviews from you soon.
J.Rhaye--Awww...I love that you leave reviews for both chapters! *hugs* I'm glad you think I do a good job of keeping Ginny real and well-rounded. I try, but I'm not always sure how well I succeed. *grins wryly* I liked the mental image of Ginny playing tricks with the head in front of her too. *winks* Yay...you liked my descriptions! *does little dance in chair and beams* It's great you noticed that Ginny was trying to recover some of the FUN of being a kid...I think that was a small but important little point. Ginny is a pretty good judge of character...I think it has to do with the fact that she hasn't lost the somewhat underrated ability to pay attention to her own feelings. Unfortunately, being that sensitive does seem to be giving her a lot of headaches recently. Hopefully that will ease up a bit soon...and then we can get to the really interesting stuff. *winks* *hugs*
EEDOE--Looking forward to your input and enthusiasm whenever you catch up with your reading list! *winks* Enjoy now and later!! *hugs*
Bill-- It's been too long since we've had a two-fer hasn't it? *grins* I did consider British Colonial attitudes when I wrote that, for much the reason you give;Hogwarts still seems to be the major school of magic for most former British Colonies, including India, Scotland, Ireland, and possibly Hong Kong. So it seemed reasonable Ginny wouldn't find those cultures too out of the ordinary. *grins and shrugs* Anyway, no one is ENTIRELY without prejudice or patriotism. That is indeed what it is like being short. Of course, in many crowds they can't see over, many small people are quite adept at finding very small gaps and weaving through them to the front where they can catch at least a partial view...in this instance, Ginny didn't have that option. Interesting (I think I like that word...*rolls eyes affectionately*) point about flying animals. Perhaps they often show up because they represent a certain freedom of thought, feeling, or behavior from certain traditional conventions? That might actually be the good thesis for a literary paper...*grins* Whoops. Poor Harry. I didn't mean to make him come off like an insensitive brute...although now that you point it out, he is...a bit...*grins* But...in his defense, I should say I don't think he even realized Ginny was standing in front of him craning about...he was looking completely at the ship, and his statement about the mast was actually in response to several things that people around him had been saying, and not specifically becuase he realized Ginny couldn't see it. A very excellent point about Ginny. I rather like that theory. *grins* I also like the reverse...that Ginny turned out to be a good canidate for the diary because she is so highly sensitive to the people around her. *grins* Ah...ambigious meanings...a writer's delight. *sighs happily* Anyway...I'm looking forward to what you think of this. *hugs*
*****************************************************************************************************************************
The dishes filled as they always did, but the House-Elves had taken their duties as seriously as Ginny knew they always had and always would. There was an even greater variety of mouth-watering dishes than usual, including some Ginny didn't recognize.
"What's that?" Ron asked, pointing at one.
"Bouillabaisse," said Hermione.
"Bless you," said Ron, who was always rather thick when eating.
"It's French," Hermione said. "I had it on holiday summer before last. It's very nice."
That recommendation seemed sufficient to Ginny, who thought she might as well make use of the opportunity to expand her horizons. She ladled some of the thick shellfish stew onto her plate, along with a nice helping of some sort of tomato-drenched cabbage, some odd but delicious potato dumplings, and quite a lot of beautiful—and completely unseasonal—asparagus in lovely yellow sauce.
"I'll take your word for it," said Ron.
Hermione looked at Ginny. Ginny shrugged slightly and turned her attention back to the food, which was quite good.
Hagrid sidled into the feast a bit late, hands bandaged rather thickly. Ginny found herself rather grateful the skrewts were the fourth years' problem and not hers. Hagrid, however, appeared far more interested in contemplating Madam Maxim than whatever had occurred to his fingers. Ginny was trying to decide whether or not she thought that was an encouraging development when she was distracted by an unexpected burst of laughter from Harry.
Startled, she turned to see Ron goggling as if he'd forgotten how to breathe, practically tumbling out of his chair in pursuit of slender, blue-robed girl with a shaft of hair like white moonlight. His face was closer to hot pink than Weasley red, but the knuckles of his fingers as they dug into the table were white. "She's a veela," he rasped, and in spite of his lack of breath, there was a note in his voice Ginny had never heard before, though the appearance of Krum might have come close.
"Of course she isn't," Hermione said with a note in her voice Ginny hadn't heard before either. "I don't see anyone else gaping at her like an idiot."
But, as much as she hated to disappoint Hermione, Ginny could. As the girl crossed the Hall, heads turned like sunflowers tracing the path of the sun. And the looks on a lot of those faces….as her eyes met Harry's, Ginny could see he saw the same thing. To her consternation, her sorrow for Hermione was overshadowed by her rush of relief that Harry was in fact, looking at her, and not the girl-who-might-be-veela. Ginny could feel herself deflate as the breath escaped her in a low, weak hiss.
"I'm telling you, that's not a normal girl," Ron insisted, still leaning after the blonde. "They don't make them like that at Hogwarts!"
Ginny's pang of embarrassed vanity and mingled pity for Hermione sputtered out quickly as Harry almost immediately responded, "They make them okay at Hogwarts."
And then she realized he wasn't looking at her.
Not anymore.
He was looking at the Ravenclaw table. And…a group of giggling, gorgeous, and completely un-Weasley-like girls. She had a feeling she knew exactly which one of them had attracted his attention. Forgetting herself, let alone her surroundings, Ginny swore.
No one seemed to notice.
"When you've both put your eyes back in," Hermione snorted, sounding like Professor McGonagall, "you'll be able to see who's just arrived." Ginny looked to where she was pointing at the staff table. Ludo Bagman and Percy's boss, Mr. Crouch—how she wished she could forget that name—had taken the two empty seats. "Now...that's interesting…"
Two people who just might have been involved in Quidditch World Cup…at Hogwarts…just in time for the start of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. It was very interesting indeed. Pushing bitter shock aside, Ginny looked at Hermione, who nodded slightly.
"What are they doing here?" Harry demanded. For a moment, Ginny thought he, too, was thinking the same thing.
"They organized the Tournament, didn't they?" Hermione reminded him impatiently. Maybe not. Hermione obviously didn't think he had. "I suppose they wanted to see it start."
Dessert seemed oddly unappetizing with so much on her mind. Ginny was just as glad to push her half-eaten sweets aside when Dumbledore stood up again. Even Fred and George had given up on eating. For once. They were staring at Dumbledore as if he were about to tell them some great secret.
"The moment has come," Dumbledore smiled at them. "The Tri-Wizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words before we bring in the casket—just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Sports and Magical Games."
"Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch," Dumbledore continued as the applause eventually died away. "have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madam Maxim on the panel that will judge the champions' efforts."
Ginny had to hand it to him…Professor Dumbledore always knew just what to say to get someone's attention. Or an entire school full of someones. And he knew it. "The casket, if you please, Mr. Filch," he smiled.
Filch crept forward, even more slowly than usual, due to the weight of the heavy jewel-encrusted wooden chest cradled in his arms. Dennis Creevy actually stood on the bench to watch their progress. Ginny was impressed with his foresight. Even though she was taller—if not by much—she rather wished she had thought of it.
Author's Notes-- Progress has been a lot slower in this work, but I hope you'll all stick with me anyway. As you all know, I may not own it, but I work hard, and I love it, so if you read it and enjoy it, please review it! Please don't print or post this elsewhere without my knowledge.
Saint Paul--Thanks so much! Ginny is--obviously--my favorite character as well, so I'm always pleased to meet fellow Ginny-lovers. *winks* I'm glad you've enjoyed my stories so far, and I hope you continue to review. :-)
I'm-not-the-Weakest-Link--Wow!! Thanks! I'm blushing and beaming ear-to-ear; I'm thrilled you've read my stories and enjoyed them so much. I hope you keep reading and reviewing in the future. I do intend to write Ginny's story at least through HP Book 7 (though that does to some extent depend on time and inspiration as well). Whether or not I write Ginny's 7th year will depend on how the series ends and whether or not I think I have a good idea... ;-)
JamieBell--I wasn't really thinking about it consciously, but I guess I was re-living how I used to feel at Pep Rallys and other school-related events when I wrote that scene. It sounds like your experience is pretty similar--I can almost picture you sitting next to me. *grins wryly* I think you're right...this section of the book does seem to last a long time...and I'm really looking forward to more exciting things coming up, too. *winks*
Raiining--Hope to see more reviews from you soon.
J.Rhaye--Awww...I love that you leave reviews for both chapters! *hugs* I'm glad you think I do a good job of keeping Ginny real and well-rounded. I try, but I'm not always sure how well I succeed. *grins wryly* I liked the mental image of Ginny playing tricks with the head in front of her too. *winks* Yay...you liked my descriptions! *does little dance in chair and beams* It's great you noticed that Ginny was trying to recover some of the FUN of being a kid...I think that was a small but important little point. Ginny is a pretty good judge of character...I think it has to do with the fact that she hasn't lost the somewhat underrated ability to pay attention to her own feelings. Unfortunately, being that sensitive does seem to be giving her a lot of headaches recently. Hopefully that will ease up a bit soon...and then we can get to the really interesting stuff. *winks* *hugs*
EEDOE--Looking forward to your input and enthusiasm whenever you catch up with your reading list! *winks* Enjoy now and later!! *hugs*
Bill-- It's been too long since we've had a two-fer hasn't it? *grins* I did consider British Colonial attitudes when I wrote that, for much the reason you give;Hogwarts still seems to be the major school of magic for most former British Colonies, including India, Scotland, Ireland, and possibly Hong Kong. So it seemed reasonable Ginny wouldn't find those cultures too out of the ordinary. *grins and shrugs* Anyway, no one is ENTIRELY without prejudice or patriotism. That is indeed what it is like being short. Of course, in many crowds they can't see over, many small people are quite adept at finding very small gaps and weaving through them to the front where they can catch at least a partial view...in this instance, Ginny didn't have that option. Interesting (I think I like that word...*rolls eyes affectionately*) point about flying animals. Perhaps they often show up because they represent a certain freedom of thought, feeling, or behavior from certain traditional conventions? That might actually be the good thesis for a literary paper...*grins* Whoops. Poor Harry. I didn't mean to make him come off like an insensitive brute...although now that you point it out, he is...a bit...*grins* But...in his defense, I should say I don't think he even realized Ginny was standing in front of him craning about...he was looking completely at the ship, and his statement about the mast was actually in response to several things that people around him had been saying, and not specifically becuase he realized Ginny couldn't see it. A very excellent point about Ginny. I rather like that theory. *grins* I also like the reverse...that Ginny turned out to be a good canidate for the diary because she is so highly sensitive to the people around her. *grins* Ah...ambigious meanings...a writer's delight. *sighs happily* Anyway...I'm looking forward to what you think of this. *hugs*
*****************************************************************************************************************************
The dishes filled as they always did, but the House-Elves had taken their duties as seriously as Ginny knew they always had and always would. There was an even greater variety of mouth-watering dishes than usual, including some Ginny didn't recognize.
"What's that?" Ron asked, pointing at one.
"Bouillabaisse," said Hermione.
"Bless you," said Ron, who was always rather thick when eating.
"It's French," Hermione said. "I had it on holiday summer before last. It's very nice."
That recommendation seemed sufficient to Ginny, who thought she might as well make use of the opportunity to expand her horizons. She ladled some of the thick shellfish stew onto her plate, along with a nice helping of some sort of tomato-drenched cabbage, some odd but delicious potato dumplings, and quite a lot of beautiful—and completely unseasonal—asparagus in lovely yellow sauce.
"I'll take your word for it," said Ron.
Hermione looked at Ginny. Ginny shrugged slightly and turned her attention back to the food, which was quite good.
Hagrid sidled into the feast a bit late, hands bandaged rather thickly. Ginny found herself rather grateful the skrewts were the fourth years' problem and not hers. Hagrid, however, appeared far more interested in contemplating Madam Maxim than whatever had occurred to his fingers. Ginny was trying to decide whether or not she thought that was an encouraging development when she was distracted by an unexpected burst of laughter from Harry.
Startled, she turned to see Ron goggling as if he'd forgotten how to breathe, practically tumbling out of his chair in pursuit of slender, blue-robed girl with a shaft of hair like white moonlight. His face was closer to hot pink than Weasley red, but the knuckles of his fingers as they dug into the table were white. "She's a veela," he rasped, and in spite of his lack of breath, there was a note in his voice Ginny had never heard before, though the appearance of Krum might have come close.
"Of course she isn't," Hermione said with a note in her voice Ginny hadn't heard before either. "I don't see anyone else gaping at her like an idiot."
But, as much as she hated to disappoint Hermione, Ginny could. As the girl crossed the Hall, heads turned like sunflowers tracing the path of the sun. And the looks on a lot of those faces….as her eyes met Harry's, Ginny could see he saw the same thing. To her consternation, her sorrow for Hermione was overshadowed by her rush of relief that Harry was in fact, looking at her, and not the girl-who-might-be-veela. Ginny could feel herself deflate as the breath escaped her in a low, weak hiss.
"I'm telling you, that's not a normal girl," Ron insisted, still leaning after the blonde. "They don't make them like that at Hogwarts!"
Ginny's pang of embarrassed vanity and mingled pity for Hermione sputtered out quickly as Harry almost immediately responded, "They make them okay at Hogwarts."
And then she realized he wasn't looking at her.
Not anymore.
He was looking at the Ravenclaw table. And…a group of giggling, gorgeous, and completely un-Weasley-like girls. She had a feeling she knew exactly which one of them had attracted his attention. Forgetting herself, let alone her surroundings, Ginny swore.
No one seemed to notice.
"When you've both put your eyes back in," Hermione snorted, sounding like Professor McGonagall, "you'll be able to see who's just arrived." Ginny looked to where she was pointing at the staff table. Ludo Bagman and Percy's boss, Mr. Crouch—how she wished she could forget that name—had taken the two empty seats. "Now...that's interesting…"
Two people who just might have been involved in Quidditch World Cup…at Hogwarts…just in time for the start of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. It was very interesting indeed. Pushing bitter shock aside, Ginny looked at Hermione, who nodded slightly.
"What are they doing here?" Harry demanded. For a moment, Ginny thought he, too, was thinking the same thing.
"They organized the Tournament, didn't they?" Hermione reminded him impatiently. Maybe not. Hermione obviously didn't think he had. "I suppose they wanted to see it start."
Dessert seemed oddly unappetizing with so much on her mind. Ginny was just as glad to push her half-eaten sweets aside when Dumbledore stood up again. Even Fred and George had given up on eating. For once. They were staring at Dumbledore as if he were about to tell them some great secret.
"The moment has come," Dumbledore smiled at them. "The Tri-Wizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words before we bring in the casket—just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Sports and Magical Games."
"Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch," Dumbledore continued as the applause eventually died away. "have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madam Maxim on the panel that will judge the champions' efforts."
Ginny had to hand it to him…Professor Dumbledore always knew just what to say to get someone's attention. Or an entire school full of someones. And he knew it. "The casket, if you please, Mr. Filch," he smiled.
Filch crept forward, even more slowly than usual, due to the weight of the heavy jewel-encrusted wooden chest cradled in his arms. Dennis Creevy actually stood on the bench to watch their progress. Ginny was impressed with his foresight. Even though she was taller—if not by much—she rather wished she had thought of it.