Chapter 302: Two Rejected Souls
Chapter 302: Two Rejected Souls
As evening approached, the students gathered at the great hall's oak door, waiting for the clock to strike eight.
Almost every student attending the evening event had a dance partner, and the men and women clustered in the entrance hall, eagerly awaiting Professor Mcgonagall to open the great hall's doors.
Harry finally found his own dance partner.
To be more precise, his dance partner came to him.
Two days ago, Fleur and Harry, both rejected, found themselves in each other's company.
After being turned down by Sherlock, Fleur didn't want to attend the ball with anyone else.
But as a Beauxbatons champion, she had to lead the opening dance, a responsibility she couldn't avoid.
So she approached Harry, the only person she knew at Hogwarts besides Sherlock, and asked if he had found a dance partner.
Harry, who was struggling with the idea of randomly inviting a girl just to get through the evening, naturally didn't refuse.
He also felt awkward about inviting other girls.
Tonight, Fleur and Harry naturally arrived together at the great hall's door.
Their partnership didn't cause much of a stir.
After all, everyone in the great hall had seen Fleur's invitation to Sherlock being rejected, and Harry's invitation to Chang being declined as well.
Each student knew that they had reluctantly chosen to pair up after being rejected, just to get through the evening.
Fleur wasn't even dressed in her most elaborate attire, and her perpetually cold expression showed no anticipation for the night.
Harry and Fleur stood together in a corner outside the great hall, away from the crowd. After a moment of hesitation, Harry spoke up.
"Actually, you shouldn't have invited Professor Forrest. From what I know about him, he would never accept an invitation from a student."
Fleur, already in a bad mood, replied coldly.
"Do you think I'm not as good as your Professor Silke?"
Harry didn't expect her to be so direct, openly expressing her desire to compete with Silke for Sherlock's attention.
"That's not what I meant", Harry explained, though he secretly thought to himself that if she felt that way, he would indeed agree.
"I meant that Professor Forrest values the relationship between students and teachers. Even if we met during the summer, you were still a student. A student inviting a professor to a ball is something he would never agree to."
Fleur listened to Harry's explanation without a word, then peered into the crowd, but she didn't see the person she was looking for.
Just then, the time finally arrived, and Professor Mcgonagall opened the great hall's oak door.
Karkaroff arrived with Krum, and Harry noticed a pretty girl in a blue robe among the crowd. At first glance, she seemed familiar, but he couldn't place who she was.
Shortly after, Chang appeared, arm in arm with Cedric, approaching Harry.
Harry instinctively wanted to step back, his face contorting as he tried to avoid any direct interaction with Chang.
But the castle wall was right behind him, leaving him with no place to retreat.
"Hello, Harry", Cedric greeted him.
His voice was still gentle, but due to psychological effect, Harry couldn't help but find the greeting a bit grating.
"Oh, hello."
He tried his best not to look at Chang, and Cedric seemed not to notice his discomfort.
Cedric seemed to want to chat more, but at that moment, Professor Mcgonagall came to Harry's rescue.
"Champions, please come this way."
Cedric and Chang, Harry and Fleur, the four of them walked over, and Krum and the girl in the blue robe were already standing beside Professor Mcgonagall.
The other students entered the Great Hall first, while the champions and their partners queued up to enter last.
It was then that Harry finally realized who the girl beside Krum was.
"Hermione!" He shouted her name, eyes wide.
Her hair was no longer a mess, and her entire demeanor had changed so much that she seemed like a different person. Hermione greeted them with a smile.
"Hello, Harry, and Fleur."
Fleur also sized her up and down. She hadn't recognized the girl at first glance, but it was the same stubborn girl who had debated with her on the way to Sherlock's office.
Not just them, but the other Hogwarts students passing by the Great Hall's oak door, who had just recognized Hermione, all looked surprised.
Only Ron, with a blank expression, led his partner Parvati into the Great Hall as if he hadn't seen Hermione at all.
Once everyone was seated in the Great Hall, Professor Mcgonagall called the champions and their partners to form pairs and follow her in. They walked in one by one toward the large round table at the front of the Great Hall where the judges were seated, and the people in the Great Hall applauded enthusiastically.
The walls of the Great Hall were covered in sparkling silver frost, and the ceiling depicted a starry night sky, adorned with hundreds of mistletoe sprigs and ivy wreaths, all the result of Flitwick's hard work throughout the day.
The four House tables had been replaced by a hundred small tables, each lit by lanterns and seating about ten people.
The champions were led to the round table where the judges were seated.
Dumbledore's face was smiling, as if he was in a good mood, but anyone who watched his eyes closely would notice that his focus wasn't on the Great Hall.
Karkaroff's face mirrored Ron's expression when he saw Krum and Hermione walking together.
Ludo Bagman was wearing a bright purple robe with large yellow stars, and he clapped as enthusiastically as the students.
Madame Maxime had taken off her usual black satin uniform and was wearing a light purple, flowing robe.
The only judge missing was Crouch. Harry noticed that sitting in the fifth seat at the table was the Weasley family's third son, Percy Weasley, who now worked at the Ministry of Magic.
Before the ball officially began, it was time to fill their stomachs.
The champions and their partners sat at the round table with the judges, and Percy specifically indicated for Harry to sit beside him.
When Fleur sat down, she finally spotted Sherlock.
He was sitting at a table close to the champions, where the Hogwarts professors were gathered.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
