Chapter 9. She wrote a sensation
On Sunday morning, Harry woke up with the feeling that he needed to make up with Ron. But he couldn't find Ron in the bedroom, nor in the Gryffindor common room or at breakfast. He was also surprised by the absence of Jeanne. Over time, he had become accustomed to seeing her smug smile every morning during breakfast, and not meeting her or hearing her mischievous jokes about random topics - from Hagrid's beard to Malfoy's new hairstyle or Trelawney's talents - now seemed strange to him. Sometimes, Harry even found her observant nature intimidating, as she seemed to notice almost everything about him.
She learned everything with remarkable speed, so Harry and Ron always copied her homework, but even here Jeanne showed her exceptionally mischievous nature, almost making them beg on their knees for her help. She remained adamant in the face of their persistence, and sometimes Harry caught himself thinking that she enjoyed it. However, over time, it seemed that she grew tired of these games with people and became more willing to help Harry and Ron with their homework. Her mannerisms towards others also changed a bit, as if she had chosen favorites among the students of Hogwarts. She had a strange combination of contradictory qualities and manners - she often mixed noble and refined behavior with base rudeness; deep knowledge and impulsive playfulness. She could engage in intellectual conversations on any topic, but at the right moment, she could sneak up on Malfoy, grab the elastic band of his underwear, and pull it up to his chin in one swift motion; she could write a brilliant essay on any subject, earning points for Gryffindor, and then immediately lose them by sneaking into the Restricted Section of the library at night. Only she could evoke a mixture of admiration for her talents and dislike for everything that escaped her excessively sharp tongue.
Shortly before the arrival of foreign guests, some students even wanted to beat her up by setting up an ambush in one of the corridors. There were about five hidden students from different years and houses. When Jeanne was walking from class to the Great Hall before dinner, they were already waiting for her, hiding behind tapestries, statues, windowsills, and doors. Ready to attack and set traps, they jumped out of their hiding places when she approached and surrounded her. Colorful beams shot out from their wands, and someone even threw a punch. A second later, Jeanne clenched that fist in her hand until it cracked, and the next moment she joyfully dunked each offender into a toilet one by one, as if there was no greater joy in the world for her.
However, this joy came at a cost to all of Gryffindor, but now they had no chance to influence her in any way, because after such fights and their outcome, only the bravest dared to approach her. Harry didn't consider himself to be the bravest, but he continued to interact with her, sometimes receiving only verbal scolding in return. It seemed that she actually valued the company of Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and therefore, she didn't practice violence among them.
Remembering all this, Harry now pondered - perhaps it was largely thanks to her that their names were drawn from the Goblet of Fire? Even Professor McGonagall, after that fight, noted that Jeanne fully justified her name, but in a negative way. And who among the two of them, if not this overly quarrelsome French girl, should have ended up in the Tournament? From these thoughts, Harry couldn't help but feel like a random passenger on a train heading into the unknown. A passenger on a train meant for her.
He was sometimes even embarrassed that this girl with slender proportions and no advantage in height fearlessly enters fights and even if she comes out battered, she always emerges victorious, sporting a self-satisfied smirk on her face. Only yesterday's announcement by Zhanna, crowning her as another champion of the Tournament, erased this expression from her face, but it didn't last long. Perhaps at least one of the upcoming trials of the Tournament will deserve the same honor and make her face serious, even if only for a second?
Today Harry wrote a new letter to Sirius and took one of the school owls to send it. Sirius complained that Buckbeak stands out too much and could easily be intercepted, so he followed his advice and left Buckbeak in the owlery.
Dear Sirius,
As you requested, I'm sharing the latest news from Hogwarts with you. You probably already know that this year the Triwizard Tournament will take place. Well, on Saturday evening, I was chosen as the fourth champion from Hogwarts. I have no idea who put my name in the Goblet, it definitely wasn't me. The other champion from Hogwarts is Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff. But there's one strange thing: along with my name, there was a note with the name of a new girl from Gryffindor, Jeanne d'Arc.
I hope you and Buckbeak are doing well?
Harry
Harry hoped that everyone would get used to his championship, but Monday revealed the harsh truth: no one even thought of doing so. As if he didn't already have enough jeers from Malfoy, now even the Hufflepuffs were making fun of him, and their relationship with the Gryffindors noticeably soured. Even the Hufflepuff head, Professor Sprout, seemed to be avoiding him. It was unknown whether Gryffindor's reputation was tarnished by the fact that Jeanne, who had quickly been openly despised by many, was also listed as a champion with Harry. Harry wouldn't even be surprised to hear news of Jeanne's sudden death under mysterious circumstances after her selection as a champion in the Tournament.
Until the end of the school day, only Hagrid expressed sympathy for the two young champions of the Tournament and explained how Hogwarts teachers, led by Dumbledore, refused to believe the rumors about Harry and Jeanne crossing the forbidden line.
"Oh, I don't know..." Hagrid suddenly sighed heavily and looked at Harry anxiously. "You're a Tournament participant... Something is always happening with you... And she," he looked at Jeanne, "always manages to find trouble too..."
The days passed, turning into an endless torment. Everyone around was talking and discussing, while others remained silent about their contempt for the unexpected champions of Hogwarts. Jeanne, perhaps, was used to the universal hatred, but for him, enduring this pressure seemed extremely difficult. Ron was still angry at Harry, there was no response from Sirius, even Fred and George seemed to have calmed down and stopped joking, dedicating all their time to homework. Harry could now only talk to Hermione and Jeanne, but from the latter, he heard only sarcastic jokes, and both of them offered weak consolation.
Finally, on another day before the double Potions class with the Slytherins, Harry saw badges on the chests of the Slytherin students. Initially surprised by the unexpected popularity of the S.P.E.W., Harry only realized why Jeanne was grabbed and couldn't be held back by the Gryffindors. She bit and kicked, wanting to break free, even took a few steps towards the Slytherins and was close to her goal, but her classmates held her back as much as they could, even hanging onto her, just to prevent this walking torture machine from moving. The Slytherins even flinched in anticipation of the inevitable cruel revenge, after which Gryffindor would undoubtedly lose the remaining handful of points, but it inspired them much less than the prospect of being suspended by their underwear in the bathroom.
Support Cedric, he's the real champion!
Potter and his girlfriend d'Arc - they're just a total dark!
In the end, Gryffindors managed to wrestle Jeanne away and protect the Slytherins from her unknown form of Egyptian execution that she wanted to unleash on them. A real fight broke out because of Hermione, when Malfoy once again excelled by calling Hermione a mudblood. At that moment, Harry's anger boiled over and he cast a spell at Malfoy, who retaliated with a spell of his own. None of them hit their intended target, but they hit the students standing nearby instead, causing Goyle to turn into a walking illustration from a poisonous mushroom guidebook, and Hermione's teeth started growing uncontrollably. That's when Snape entered the office. The professor carefully examined the injured students and sent Goyle to the school infirmary. Snape sarcastically commented on Hermione's growing teeth, saying he only saw minor changes, and she ran out of the room in tears, hoping to get to Madam Pomfrey in the infirmary as quickly as possible. Ron and Harry cursed Snape together for his attitude towards Hermione. To their surprise, Jeanne's voice was also heard among their voices. However, luckily for all three of them, the resulting echo prevented Snape from determining what they had said. It didn't prevent him, though, from deducting fifty points from Gryffindor and assigning punishment to all three of them after classes.
"Do you have your ingredients ready? Now carefully brew them. Then we'll choose someone and test their effect on them," Snape said. Snape's gaze lingered on Harry. Catching it, Harry swallowed nervously, realizing his fate. He was saved from it by the young Colin Creevey, who came running to take Harry and Jeanne away. According to him, they were supposed to be photographed for an article in the Daily Prophet about the Tournament. Exchanging glances with Jeanne, Harry headed towards the exit of the classroom. Jeanne followed him. The Slytherins once again showed their badges as they walked by. In response, Jeanne gave them a menacing glare and ran her finger across her throat, causing the Slytherins to gulp nervously.
On this day, Harry learned something new. The first secret was that Rita Skeeter had come to Hogwarts herself and was preparing to create a sensation. The second secret was absurdly simple - she twists and embellishes everything she can. Learning all of this, Jeanne sneered contemptuously. Fortunately for both of them, their meeting was interrupted by Dumbledore, who had come to observe the weighing of the magical wands belonging to the Tournament champions.
"If she makes up something about you and me, I'll kill both of you," Jeanne unexpectedly whispered to Harry in a gentle tone, as they returned to the Gryffindor common room in the evening. She chuckled softly in his ear, her eyes gleaming with malevolence.
When Harry returned to the dormitory, he found only Ron there. He informed Harry about the owl waiting for him and told him about the punishment Snape had assigned them - to work in his class tomorrow evening. Without a single glance at Harry, Ron left the room. Harry briefly considered following Ron, but curiosity ultimately overcame him and he approached the window to retrieve the letter from the owl. It was a letter from Sirius. In the letter, he asked Harry to come to the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room at midnight on the twenty-first to the twenty-second of November for a private conversation, as he didn't dare reveal everything in the letter for fear of it being intercepted.
For two weeks, Harry lived in anticipation of the meeting with his godfather. These days became unbearable torture for him, dragging on slower than a turtle. Soon, Rita Skeeter's article was published in the Prophet, and Harry was ready to sink into the ground because of it. For the first two days, Jeanne occasionally teased him about his alleged cries at night over his parents and loved quoting the part about how they watch over Harry from heaven, so nothing would happen to him in the Tournament. But then she grew tired of it and stopped, for which he silently thanked her, as he wouldn't be able to tolerate her or the Slytherins. However, Jeanne thanked Skeeter for not speculating about her name in the article, as it stated that she was in a romance with Harry and Hermione.
The long-awaited meeting between Harry and Sirius was approaching, and on the twenty-first of November, Harry, along with Hermione, headed to Hogsmeade. He hoped to relax a bit there and for greater comfort, he wore his invisibility cloak. After resting at the Three Broomsticks and enjoying a butterbeer, Harry unexpectedly made a discovery - Moody's magical eye could see through the cloak. As soon as the professor showed up at the Three Broomsticks with Hagrid, this fact became clear. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Hagrid invited Harry to see something extraordinary that evening. And he kept his promise. Experienced wizards, led by Charlie Weasley, were taming four massive dragons at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. There were fifteen minutes left until Harry's meeting with Sirius.
Dashing into the castle like lightning, Harry burst into the Gryffindor common room. Sirius' head was sticking out of the fireplace among the flames. Their conversation was productive but too short, and Sirius didn't even have time to tell Harry how to defeat the dragon. But even from the little they discussed, Harry learned that the Death Eaters had become excessively active lately, as if preparing for something. These events reminded Sirius of the past, of how the first war began. Harry shuddered at the thought. The only thing Sirius couldn't understand was why the Goblet had chosen two names instead of one. To Harry's great disappointment, their conversation was interrupted by someone's footsteps. Someone was coming down from the Gryffindor dormitory into the common room. Sirius barely managed to disappear before a sleepy Ron came into view.