Chapter 10
In the morning, Ron stormed around the boy's bathroom and locked him in there.
"Did you fall in?" Dean asked through the door.
"No." Ron said.
"I think you did." Dean returned. Seamus ran out of the room and fled to use another restroom. Harry entered the common room, using his brains fast and quick when he discovered Ron did NOT want to come out of the loo. He had a towel slung over his shoulder and acted as if he had no care in the world.
"Potter! Get your stupid friend out of the bathroom!" yelled Dean, seeing Harry coming up towards their dormitory.
"He's still in there?" Harry asked. Slipping the towel off his shoulder he went up to the door and began to pound it.
"Ron! Other people need to use the bathroom! Can you please come out?" There was silence.
"All right." Ron said. The door opened and he shoved past Harry and Dean, head hanging down. He stormed out of the room. Harry ran after him.
"What's wrong?" Harry asked.
"Nothing that concerns YOU."
"Aw man. You're mad at me again, aren't you?" Harry asked.
"What makes you think that?" Ron asked.
"You're avoiding eye contact. You do that when you're mad at me. I remember in 4th year you suddenly became interested in the ceilings. You were always looking up at them."
"I am not." Ron told the ceiling.
"See? You're doing it again!" Harry said. They were in the common room now. Nellie and Neville were holding hands and just entering. Seamus had used the girl's bathroom and now he and Lavender were kissing on a couch. Ron ran away out of the common room. Harry's hands dropped to his side. What was with Ron? He was acting very strange, and Harry couldn't put his finger on why.
"What's up?" Hermione asked, coming from behind Harry and putting her arms around his waist.
"Ron. He locked himself in the bathroom for like, ever, and when he entered the common room, he just ran away!"
"Hmm. Maybe we should ask Ginny." Hermione suggested. She went up to the dorms. As Harry organized his books in his back, Hermione came back.
"Ginny doesn't know what's wrong with Ron. She tried to talk to him at breakfast but she said that he was too interested in staring around the great hall." Harry zipped up his bag and pulled it on his shoulder.
"Maybe we can get something out of him in Care of Magical Creatures."
"You're right. We should head out now." So they left. There was a chill in the air, but it was nothing to the chill that washed over Harry halfway through class. They were scattered around Hagrid's hut, writing down notes as Hagrid's booming voice told them about werewolves.
"Yeh see here?" he asked, pointing to a clay cast propped up by his hut. "These are imprints from a werewolf. I've been to Professor Dumbledore about higher security on the forest. There seems to be a lot of 'em in the forest now." He said. Harry stared at the imprints and doodled a little picture of them in his notebook. Then he felt it. A cold rush of ice in his veins all through his body, very unexplainable. Behind him, Crabbe, Malfoy, and Goyle looked at each other. Then they looked at Nellie, who had a normal look on her face.
"Um. Hagrid? I think I might throw up. I don't feel good." Malfoy lied, clutching his stomach. Crabbe and Goyle groaned and keeled over moaning in fake agony.
"Must have been something yeh ate. Go see Madam Pomfrey." He said, waving a big hand. They rushed off.
Malfoy prodded the knot on the trunk of the whomping willow. They ran down the dark corridor until they reached the basement of Voldemort's house.
"Master?" Malfoy called out. He and his friends searched the first floor. No Voldemort. Running up the stairs, they searched the second floor.
"Where is he?" Crabbe asked.
"IN THE TOWER!!!! NOW GET YOUR FANNIES UP HERE!" yelled Voldemort from the tower. Running up two more flights of stairs, they were in the tower. Voldemort was standing in front of a high window, staring out over Hogsmeade.
"You wanted us for something?" Malfoy asked.
"Yes.." hissed Voldemort. "Yes... I do.." Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle shifted uncomfortably as Voldemort fingered his wand.
"Are you aware," Voldemort started. "What happens when you are evil? And you do something good?"
"No, Master." Malfoy said.
"I see... Well, it is something that makes me very unhappy. Very unhappy indeed."
"I can't help it! I mean, it was just a simple 'Thank You!'" Goyle moaned.
"What are you talking about, boy?" Voldemort spat, turning away from the window. "I am merely talking about Nellie!" It was Malfoy's turn.
"I tried to stop her from leaving Slytherin, but she hit me!" he said.
"I am not accusing you, young Malfoy. This is bad. If Dumbledore tells Nellie too much, she will leave me, as fast as she came." Voldemort's green eyes flashed and he turned back to the window.
"Now. I want you three to keep an eye on her for me. If she does anything that is too good for my liking, you will tell me. Then I myself will keep an eye on her."
"Yes Master." The three Slytherin's said.
"And never do any thing very good." He told them, tapping the window with his wand. "You'll never know what could become of you then. You are dismissed." The students fled back to class, feeling worse than they had when they left.
Voldemort still stood at the window minutes later after his young Death Eaters returned to class. The witches and wizards of Hogsmeade bustled around. He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against the glass.
"Tom."
"What?" said Voldemort to the voice that often interrupted his thoughts.
"Turn around Tom."
"I am not listening to you." He said.
"Turn around. Now, Tom. I don't bite." Voldemort lifted his head off the window pane and spun around.
"But.. How?" Voldemort gasped, leaning back against the window.
"I know every secret way how to get in here." Ophielus Midrigge whispered, walking into the tower.
"You're not. real." He told himself. "You are a figment of my imagination. But how come.."
"How come I look so real?" Professor Midrigge walked up to Voldemort. "Because Tom," He reached up a hand and stroked his cheek. "I AM real."
"Ack!" Voldemort said and brandished his wand. With a wave of her hand, the wand flew out of his hand.
"How..." he said as Professor Midrigge stepped back and twirled it in her hands. "You.."
"You know Tom, stuttering and unfinished sentences tend to make men like you very unstable and weak." She pocketed his wand (for now) and leaned back in close.
"I am NOT weak!" Voldemort said, beads of sweat running down his face.
"I know everything that you are up to. I have predicted the future, and there is no changing it." Midrigge said. "There is no hiding it."
"I..." Voldemort said. No woman had ever been this close up to him. Well, on purpose. He trembled. Ophielus laughed.
"I have plenty of advice for you, Tom." She purred, reaching up and straightening the collar of his robe. "But you don't want to listen."
"What kind of advice?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Run away, Tom. Run away if you ever want to survive."
"No. I'll never run away." He said, eyes narrowing. He watched her hands brush away lint off the robes.
"All right, Tom. But you know that I truly am real, and on to you." Voldemort gulped.
"It's a shame." Ophielus said with a sigh. "A man like yourself shouldn't be hidden away in a tower, in a grand palace like this. Commanding your troops to do your dirty work." She ran her hands down his chest and he tensed up at her touch.
"It's a shame." She said again. She pressed his wand into his hand and swept out of the tower. Voldemort shuddered.
Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team were gathered on the field. A bunch of other young Gryffindor's were standing around nervously, clutching brooms.
"Creevy. I thought after you cracked open your head last year during try outs you would stay off a broom." Harry told Dennis Creevy.
"Well, I can't help it. You get chicks!" Dennis said. People around them laughed.
"That's not entirely true." Harry said, looking sideways at Ron who was tapping his foot and had an angry scowl on his face.
"Whatever, Potter." Dennis said.
"All right. Here's the deal for this years Quidditch try outs. There are two open spaces on the team. We need one Beater and one Chaser. If you don't get on the team this year, next year there will be a space for a Seeker and a Keeper." The Gryffindors waiting to try out clutched their brooms.
"This is how the try outs are going to go. We'll split you up and we'll play a few games of Quidditch. I'll be supervising how well all of you play. Then, I will announce the two new team players." Harry divided the boys and girls wanting to be Chasers, and Ron divided up the kids wanting to be Beaters. Then, up in the air, the Gryffindor Quidditch Team: Harry, Ron, Colin Creevy, Natalie McDonald, and Isaac Garret along with Dennis Creevy as the try out Beater and Jacques Kinsley as the try out Chaser. 14 brooms were up in the air. Harry had talked Pavarti's twin sister Padma (also the Ravenclaw Keeper) to challenge the Gryffindor Team along with the try out people in position. Padma was following Ron's lead around the Quidditch field. Seeker Terry Boot was keeping a watchful eye on Harry. A Bludger flew towards Natalie and Colin zoomed over and whapped it away. Jacques put a burst of speed on his broom in an attempt to score a goal when Mandy Brocklehurst, Lisa Turpin, and Emma Dobbs cornered him. He threw the Quaffle, aiming to get it through the goalposts, but Emma flew back and caught it. That turned the chances down on Jacques. Suddenly, a flash of Gold whizzed past Dennis Creevy.
"Harry! It's the Snitch! It went that way!" he said REALLY loud. Terry looked towards the way Dennis was pointing. Harry muttered angrily as he sped towards Terry. They were neck and neck, both trying to get to the Snitch first. Harry slowed down and flew over Terry, turning in an arch. Terry was after the Snitch, heading towards a curve in the stadium wall. The snitch turned and Terry crashed into the wall. Harry dived down, reached out and caught the snitch!
"Yay, Harry!" Dennis Creevy yelled, waving his Bludger stick in the air. BAM! A Bludger hit Dennis in the head.
"Not again!" Colin moaned as his brother fell off his broom. Harry pulled out his wand out of his robes, but before he could slow Dennis down, another wand was doing the task. Hermione, in the stands, was waving her own wand. Harry flew over to one of the Gryffindor stands.
"Hermione! What are you doing here? Didn't you have cheerleading try outs?" He asked. Hermione didn't answer until Dennis was safe in the stands. Ron flew over with Dennis' broom.
"They're over. We don't know who made it yet." She said. "We need to get Dennis to the Hospital Wing."
"Don't forget Boot." Ron said. Padma was seen on the field, making sure Terry was okay.
"I'll take Dennis in." She turned to the unconscious Dennis lying on the stand floor.
"Mobilious Corpus!" she said. Dennis floated along side Hermione as she headed down the stairs towards the castle.
"We have to get back to the try outs." Ron reminded Harry.
"Right."
With Terry and Dennis back on the field, Harry thanked Padma and gave her the box of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans he promised her to let him use the Ravenclaw team for the try outs.
"We have the results. After consulting much, the Gryffindor House Quidditch Team has decided to add Dennis Creevy and Jeanne Harper to the team."
"Yay!" Dennis said. He had a bandage wrapped around his head like a turban. Jeanne was a quiet but skillful girl. She flushed pink and clutched her broom, smiling.
"Quidditch Practices will be three times a week. They will be either in the mornings or in the afternoon. The first Quidditch game of the season will be in 3 weeks against Hufflepuff." Harry told the new team.
"Yes Ma'am!" Dennis said, saluting Harry. The rest of the try out persons sulked slightly and left the field while Harry wrote down Quidditch robe and gear sizes for Jeanne and Dennis.
Harry entered the common room, still in his Quidditch gear. He had his Firebolt swung over his shoulder. Harry collapsed on a couch near the fireplace.
"You played good out there." Said a voice. The painting swung shut. Harry turned slightly. It was Hermione.
"Hermione! Did you---"
"Yep! I made cheerleading!" She tossed her new red and gold pom-poms on the chair next to Harry's couch.
"Professor Sinistra is the cheerleading coach. Since she's Muggle born, she thought she would be best for the job. We're getting our uniforms next week." Hermione sidled over to Harry's couch and began to take off his sweaty elbow and writs guards.
"Who else made it?"
"Lavender and Pavarti both did. So did Ginny. They're still showing everyone the try out cheer, to prove how good they are." Harry leaned down and took off his shin guards. He laid them neatly beside his other guards by Hermione's pom-poms.
" Is Ron still mad at you?" Hermione cautiously asked.
"I'm not sure. He kind of got annoyed when Dennis got on the subject about getting girls if you're on a Quidditch Team."
"Did he?"
"Hey! I don't know if it's true!" Harry threw up his hands at the look on Hermione's face.
"What if.." Hermione stared hard at Harry. "He--- suspects something?"
"What do you mean by---- Oh.." Harry looked at the floor. He shut his eyes tight. He remembered last year, when they were getting off of the Hogwarts express, going to go home. The year before (5th) and the year before that (4th) Hermione had started giving him kisses on his cheek. Ron never got one. In 5th year, Ron got some 5 second horrified look on his face because he saw the kiss. And last year, Harry turned his head and the kiss actually landed on the side of his mouth. Ron then was speechless, and looked kind of mad. Could he be jealous of Harry. Again? Why was it always HIM that was making him jealous? But Ron had stormed away that one morning when he saw Lavender and Seamus kissing and Nellie and Neville holding hands. Could it be he was feeling left out because he had no one that loved him?
"Harry." Hermione interrupted his thoughts.
"Hmm?"
"Uh. Um.. Harry?" squeaked a voice. It was Neville, awkwardly standing behind the couch, wringing his hands.
"What is it Neville? You look like you're going to be sick. Sit down."
"No.. Harry.. I was.. It wasn't me. I just.."
"Spit it out Neville!" Harry yelled.
"Okay. Nellie went to the hospital wing to find Madam Pomfrey and.."
"What about the hospital wing?"
"Nothing about that.."
"WHAT?" Roared Harry.
"You better come with. me.." Neville said. Hermione and Harry raced out of the common room. Neville led them up to a tower. Harry, in his wild impatient ways to know what was wrong, didn't realize they were headed up to the Owlrey. Neville pushed open the door. Madam Pomfrey had her head stuck out one of the windows, her eyes filled with tears, her hand over her mouth. Nellie was sitting in the straw, crying. Neville rushed over to her.
"Wha---" Harry raced over to another window and leaned out, hands gripping the sill. And there, was the worst sight Harry had ever seen, next to Lord Voldemort being reborn. Blood was dripping down the Owlrey tower wall. A couple of snowy white feathers drifted down. There, pinned dead against the wall with an acid green arrow, was Hedwig.
"No! NO! NO!!!!!!!!!!!!" Harry yelled. There was a note also on the arrow. Written in acid green writing.
This won't be my first murder.
It was signed with the Dark Mark.
"Oh Harry!" Hermione said. She hid her face in his shoulder.
"I'll get Professor Dumbledore." Madam Pomfrey said, dabbing at her eyes. More feather drifted down. Harry caught one with a shaking hand. He clutched the feather in his hand, tears dripping down onto it.
"Voldemort." Harry whispered. "You will pay."
Ah hah! How's THAT for the rest of Chapter 10, eh? Guess I shouldn't have seen Gladiator on Christmas. That REALLY threw more things into this story...
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