Houses Competition. HoH, Ravenclaw, Round 10. Standard, Prompt: Performance, WC: 763

This story is with two OCs.

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Ravenclaw. Supposed to be filled with wonderful, intelligent people. The kinds of people who can do huge math sums in their head at the click of someone's finger. The kinds of people who can do wild, clever things. I've always been a dumb Ravenclaw. I've never enjoyed mathematics or science, and being in a history class is my worst nightmare. Instead, I have a flair for creativity. Music, art, drama - I love to perform. People don't think of Ravenclaws as that kind of smart. So, that all means that I'm the odd one out in every situation.

A lot of people have their best friends within the same house, but I differ there too. My best friend is Stephanie the Hufflepuff. She's great at finding things, extremely kind, and not at all like the people that hang out in my common room. Sometimes we sit in the library, other times we don't and that's great too. Mostly, we hang out by the lake, watching the giant squid beneath the water. We go to choir together, which is always so much fun. Professor Flitwick is a talented singer, but he doesn't like my suggestions of pentatonix style Fall Out Boy - who doesn't know who Fall Out Boy are, really? - so that harshes my mellow a little.

You win some you lose some.

Stephanie is also a half-blood, so thankfully she knows who they are, and Paramore, and so many other of those classic old-school bands from the alt-pop era. We don't have access to iPods here, but we both bring new favourite records on vinyl for the gramophone she keeps under her bed. Her dormmates are nicer than mine, and they let us alone which is good.

We like to sing together a lot. Mostly, we sing to the pop songs on the vinyl, occasionally we make up songs in the music rooms buried deep in the castle of Hogwarts. It was in one of these rooms - myself on the piano, Stephanie strumming a guitar - that Professor Flitwick entered the room without knocking, his face telling the story of surprise. At first, I thought it might have been that we weren't allowed in there, but he quickly amended my thoughts.

"I want you girls to perform in the Christmas concert," he said, unblinkingly. "Play this song. You must, you must. I will hear nothing else!"

With those words, he scarpered from the room, leaving us with little more than blank minds.

We were excited, to say the least. Professor Flitwick obviously thought that we were good enough, and no one had complained about our singing before. Plus, we didn't care what other people thought of us for the most part. So, we spent every free moment in the music rooms, going over the lyrics, the chords, perfecting out the act and our performance.

Finally, far too quickly, the night of the concert arrived. Tonight.

I'm nervous, but I'm also extremely excited. I love to sing; I love to create and to perform, and this is just another of those steps. Maybe I won't go into the Ministry and I'll be a famous singer, like the lady my father loves to listen to on the radio every Christmas, or the band my mother enjoys - the Weird Sisters.

"I don't think I can do this," Steph says beside me, shaking, dressed in her blue sequin robes we bought to match. "I feel really sick, and I'm so worried. I'll have a panic attack, I know it. I'm worried I will be totally awful."

I shake my head at her. "You are brilliant. You don't need to panic. Everyone will love you." She frowns at me. "Plus, there is no point worrying."

"What makes you say that?"

"Worrying means that you suffer more than you need to."

"That's very wise," she notes, smiling a little, shaking a little less.

I shrug. "Maybe I am a good Ravenclaw after all."

"You're the best."

We hug each other quickly and grin. This is going to be bad, I refuse to believe that it will be. With Steph by my side, nothing will ever be bad, never. Together, we step out onto the stage, and start to sing.

It doesn't go badly as we feared. It goes well, really well. So wonderfully, in fact, that we receive the loudest applause I suspect anyone has ever had in the Great Hall, having performed Fall Out Boy's legendary Centuries to the masses of Hogwarts.

Now when we walk through the corridors, we are handed smiles and sent well-wishes for our next song.

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Thanks for reading!