It Was Probably Green

Chapter Four

Weeks turned into months during Jude's third year at Hogwarts. Two international wizarding schools sent students to Hogwarts to compete in a tournament. All Quidditch matches had been cancelled, as the school focused its attention on the tournament. And even for Jude - who had never cared for Quidditch -- the school year held several surprises.

Perhaps the biggest change in Jude's life was her marks at school. Just last week, Professor McGonagall pulled her aside to remark upon the new Transfiguration skills.

"Really, Ms. Madley," she had said in her strange, prim voice, "yours is one of the best improvements I have seen in years. I plan to speak to Professor Snape. As the Head of Slytherin House, he should write to your parents and inform them of your diligence."

Now, sitting in Potions class, Jude wondered why Professor Snape had not said anything about writing to her Mum. It can't be that he has forgotten about me, Jude thought. I see him staring at me almost every bleeding class. As if on cue, Snape finished berating a student and looked up to see Jude glance away.

He doesn't look at any other students that often. I wish I knew what he was thinking. Maybe I can ask Laura to . . .

But Jude didn't even finish the thought. Although a few months ago she might have enlisted her younger sister's help with this strange mystery, their relationship had become undeniably strained since Laura learned that Jude had kept her non-magical parentage secret from her schoolmates. Now, with the winter holidays fast approaching, Jude wondered how she was going to spend the better portion of two weeks in a flat practically alone with her sister.

When Potions finally ended and Jude was able to get out from under the watchful eyes of Professor Snape, she slowly walked up the several flights of stairs to the Great Hall. Even though she was hungry, Jude wasn't really looking forward to lunch.

When she entered the Great Hall, the Slytherin table was already packed with Slytherin and Durmstrang students. All of the Slytherins had been very proud when Victor Krum first sat at their table that day in October. But as the term progressed and it became clear that he and his classmates didn't speak English very well, the novelty wore off.

Why don't they teach us any useful classes here like languages or maths? Jude wondered. By the time we graduate, we'll all be able to transfigure each other into hedgehogs, but no one will be able to balance a ruddy checkbook.

Jude sat down at the table and scanned the faces for Fama. She finally saw her several places down, making mushy-eyes at a Durmstrang student. Of course my best friend has to find large, hairy men attractive.

Fama, who had spent her first two years at Hogwarts complaining that none of the male students were at all attractive, nearly fell off her seat when the Durmstrang students sat at their table. Jude had also been very excited at the time, and had spent several days trying to speak to the foreign students in their own language. She had even taken a book out of the Hogwarts library to teach herself German, but all of the new arrivals were much more interested in speaking to the eye-lid fluttering Fama than her bespeckeled friend.

Looking over at Fama, Jude didn't blame any of the foreign students for finding her friend attractive. Although several inches shorter than Jude, Fama's well-developed figure made her look at least two years older. Also, while Jude's mousy hair was usually tied behind her in a messy band, Fama spent twenty minutes every morning brushing her waist-length black hair. Jude briefly what happened to the once-so-admired Fabio, but then shrugged her shoulders and pulled a book out of her bag to read with lunch. Professor Moody had asked her to do some research on aquatic plants, and Jude was hoping to finish the assignment before leaving for holiday. When Professor Moody had asked her to find the book in the Hogwarts library that best described the properties of Gillyweed, Jude was relieved. She had been so worried that her rather incomplete parchment explaining how to make a portkey had disappointed her favorite professor. This new assignment helped put her fears to rest.

During the course of the meal, Jude was disturbed several times by frenzied whispers punctuated by high-pitched giggles. Three fifth year girls were sitting across from her, discussing -- as were most of the female students at the school -- the up-coming Yule Ball. The Ball was open to all students fourth year and above and their guests. Since she was only a third year and did not expect an older student to ask her, Jude had already owled her mother telling her that she would be home for the winter break.

Immersed in her book, Jude didn't notice the person who sat down next to her until he cleared his throat loudly. She looked up onto the large fleshy face of Vincent Crabbe, a Slytherin fourth year.

"Ah, um, Julia. Are you going to the Yule Ball?" he asked, looking for all the world like he wanted to slide beneath the table.

The fifth year girls across the table stopped their incessant whispering, and began nudging each other in the ribs, clearly enjoying the spectacle.

"I'm sorry," Jude said, her face turning a color remarkably similar to the Gryffindor banner, "you must have me confused with someone else."

"What?" Crabbe said looking even more confused than usual.

"I said you must have mistaken me for someone else. My name is Jude, not Julia."

"Oh, right," Crabbe said. "Well are you going to the Yule Ball?"

"Erm, no." There was a very long pause in which it became clear to Jude that Crabbe didn't have much first hand experience as a conversationalist. Finally, unable to stand the silence and the stares from the girls across the table, Jude cast about for something to say and finally came up with: "Are you?"

"What?" Crabbe asked again.

"The Ball. Are you going to the Ball?" Jude was practically shouting at this point.

"Uh, yeah. I'm going."

"Well that's nice," Jude replied.

Jude sat staring at Crabbe, waiting for him to say something. Finally she picked up her school bag and said, "Well, I hope you have a nice time at the Ball."

"Uh, yeah," Crabbe said to Jude's receding figure.

* * *

Later that afternoon in Transfiguration, Jude recounted her bizarre lopsided conversation with Crabbe to Fama.

"So I've decided that he's mad," Jude said in conclusion to her story.

"Yes, probably," Fama agreed. "But you're still going to say yes, right."

"What do you mean, say yes?"

"Jude! He was clearly asking you to the Yule Ball."

"Fama, I was there for the conversation - there was nothing at all clear about it."

Fama just shook her head disappointedly, and seeing Professor McGonagall shooting a reproving look their direction, turned quickly back to her work.

Jude resumed waving her wand over her pencil, only half-heartedly trying to turn it into an earthworm. Oh no, she though to herself, did I just ruin my only chance to go to the Ball?

"I can't believe that I have to go home. I'd really like to see the Champions at the Yule Ball. I'll bet Harry shows the rest of them up there, too." The voice of Colin Creevy intruded upon Jude's wallowing.

Great, she thought, I'll be stuck on the train with all the babies and that wanker.

Jude shot a nasty look at Creevy, wishing he would shut his awful trap. He had been blabbering about how wonderful Harry Potter is ever since arriving at Hogwarts two and a half years ago. Not that Jude disliked Potter, she just couldn't understand everyone's obsession with him.

If you're going to be a hero worshipper, the least you could do is pick a hero who isn't so decidedly mediocre.

Colin's hero-worship had not earned him any friends among the Slytherins. Quite the opposite, in fact. Once Pansy Parkinson had overheard Creevy telling Harry Potter that his father was a milkman, unimaginative milk jokes had haunted him ever since. One student even went so far as to leave empty milk bottles on Colin's desk for more than a month.

When Harry Potter was selected as an unprecedented fourth champion for the Triwizard Tournament, Creevy became absolutely unbearable, spouting all sorts of rubbish about how the Goblet of Fire knew a real champion and that's why it had to pick Harry. All of Creevy's talk really infuriated most of the Slytherin third years, many of whom started wearing "Support Cedric Diggory/Potter Stinks" buttons during the Transfiguration lessons that they shared with Gryffindors.

Unlike most of the other Slytherins, who were angry that Professor Dumbledore was allowing Potter to compete, Jude didn't really care about the matter either way. She was, however, just as upset as the rest of her classmates when Professor McGonagall took ten points from Slytherin when Tom Schrecklich flashed "Potter Stinks" at Colin Creevy and forbade the students from wearing the buttons in her class. McGonagall was the Head of Gryffindor House, and Jude felt that she let her own feelings about Potter cloud her judgment. Besides, Jude reasoned to herself, she never shuts Creevy up when he prattles on about how great Potter is.

The prattling had gotten significantly worse since Potter had done well in the first challenge. At least I won't have to listen to that nonsense during break, Jude thought, still chafing at the possibility that she had just ruined her only chance of going to the Ball.

"I bet Harry makes the rest of 'em look like fools at the Ball, just like he did with the dragons," Colin continued in a voice so loud that McGonagall must surely have been able to hear.

Jude smiled to herself hearing Colin going on and on. Clumsy as Potter was, she couldn't imagine him cutting a very impressive figure on the dance floor. But others didn't seem quite as amused by Creevy's gushing.

"Why don't you shut your bloody hole," Jude heard Tom Schrecklich whisper to Colin.

"Funny how two Hogwarts students are in the Tournament and neither of them are from Slytherin, isn't it?" Creevy shot back.

Jude looked around the room. A student in the back corner had transfigured her pencil into a small snake and McGonagall was busy trying to catch it.

"Yeah well that's cos' no one in our House kisses Dumbledore's arse."

"Get stuffed, Schrecklich."

"Why don't you go fetch me some milk, you sodding Mudblood?"

The two wands came out so fast, it was clear that the two boys had been practicing. Schrecklich hit Creevy with a curse that causes festering boils, but not before Creevy had hit him with an engorgement charm.

Tom Schrecklich's nose had more than tripled in size before Professor McGonagall made it to the front of the room. After only one look at the two students, she deducted twenty points from each house and sent the duelers to the infirmary.

Clearly furious at both Houses, McGonagall assigned double homework when the class ended. Gryfinndors and Slytherins glared at one another when filing out of the class for dinner.

Not wanting to listen to more Triwizard talk, Jude decided to eat quickly and retreat to the Library.

The pass to the restricted section that Professor Moody had given her, gave Jude the ability to read all sorts of books. She had even read a book on Dark Magic and felt more than a little guilty. She tried to rationalize this, saying that Moody wanted her to prepare herself against future attacks. But the truth was, reading the book, Jude kept thinking of herself actually performing the spells, rather than trying to counter them.

Pushing this thought to the back of her mind, Jude selected another book, "Lucerne in Derne," to bring home with her for the Christmas break. I'll just look through this book and then find the countercurses when I come back.

Jude caught a glimpse of Ginny Weasley entering the library. Hiding the new book in her satchel, Jude hurried over to see whether Ginny wanted to sit together on the train. Since Fama had her choice of Durmstrang admirers, she was obviously not traveling back on the Hogwarts Express for the winter holidays.

"Oh, er, I'm actually going to the Ball with one of my brother's friends," Ginny told Jude, blushing horribly.

"Really?" Jude was surprised. "I thought that Harry Potter was going to the Ball with one of the Patil twins."

"Ah, of course he is," Ginny stammered. "I'm going with Neville Longbottom. He is another friend of Ron's."

"Of course. I know who that is. He's very nice. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time."

"Yes, well, have a nice break." Ginny spoke a little too brightly and disappeared into the stacks of books.

"You too," Jude muttered, feeling terrible. Not only had she embarrassed her new friend by referencing her crush on Harry Potter - a topic that neither girl had mentioned all term - but Jude had yet another lonely train ride to look forward to.