Harry Potter and the Dark Mark

Chapter Three

"I trust, Mr Potter, that you have not been aiding Mr Longbottom in any way?" Snape tapped his tapered fingers against his arm and observed Harry with distaste. If aiding Neville involved shredding his Plimpy scales and measuring his Runespoor venom, then yes, Harry had indeed been aiding Neville.

"No, Professor Snape," Harry answered clearly, keeping his eyes fixed on the Knarl Quills he was adding to his potion.

"Excellent," Snape remarked, before moving on to criticise Ron. "No, Mr Weasley, you surely must understand that the potion is meant to be yellow, not purple!"

Ron, almost the same shade as his potion, turned to glower at Snape. Snape smiled maliciously, before turning to face the class. "Could anyone advise Mr Weasley on the correct method to restore his potion?" He ignored Hermione's hand, which she thrust in the air immediately, and smirked as his gaze fell on Malfoy. "Yes, Mr Malfoy?"

"Follow your instructions correctly in the first place, Professor," Malfoy said. He raised more than a few sniggers from the Slytherins. Tentatively, Neville raised his hand.

"Yes, Longbottom? What is it now? I hope you haven't destroyed another cauldron. That would make it three this term," Snape snapped impatiently.

"C... could he perhaps add a little grated Ramora s... s... skin, Proff...fessor?" Neville stuttered. Snape looked at Neville as though he were a Flobberworm.

"Yes, Longbottom, he could." Snape looked as if he were in pain. "Well done." With a swish of his robes, Snape stalked over to his store cupboard, disappeared inside it, and returned presently with a miniscule square of slivery scaly material. He removed a single scale and handed it to Ron, who dropped it in his cauldron wordlessly. His potion shimmered and turned a milky yellow colour. The whole dungeon was still reeling from Neville receiving praise from Snape. Afterwards, Ron was jubilant.

"He must be losing his touch Harry! Did you see his face? It could have curdled milk!" he crowed. Harry laughed along with him. Hermione also looked rather pleased.

"I told Neville that! I was sure he'd get it wrong so that he'd need to know! It just shows studying does come in useful," she claimed. Ron rolled his eyes at her, but only in a teasing manner. Their argument of last night seemed to be completely forgotten.

"Tell you what, after dinner, shall we go have a snowball fight?" Harry suggested. Hermione smiled sadly and shook her head.

"Sorry, Harry, but Professor Vector has set us an Arithmancy test tomorrow. I don't want to fail!" She looked at Ron.

"Oh, Hermione! One teensy-weensy little snowball fight won't affect your mark. It will still be a pass with flying colours!" he groaned. Harry nodded emphatically.

"No!" she half shouted, half laughed. "You two go without me."

"It wouldn't be the same without you," Ron whined.

"Oh, piffle!" Hermione dismissed his comment. Harry couldn't help noticing she looked pleased though.

"You could always go with... Ginny," she proposed with a sideways glance at Harry. He shrugged noncommittally.

"I don't know that she'll be having a fight tonight, she might have homework. Besides, she has her own friends," he argued. Hermione looked at him in a knowing manner.

"And since when weren't you one of her friends?" she enquired.

"Erm..." Harry stopped. He shrugged again.

"Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster," Ron suddenly muttered. Hermione and Harry looked at him in surprise before realising they had arrived at the portrait, and that he had told the Fat Lady the password. They clambered in and were instantaneously engulfed by shouts and laughs. It seemed that Seamus and Dean had been eating Fizzing Whizbees, because they were hovering in the air, and both of them seemed very giddy. Everyone was watching them and laughing, and Lee Jordan was throwing things at them, laughing as they tried to dodge.

"Want one Harry?" Seamus offered. He jiggled the packet over Harry's head, sprinkling sherbet on his shoulders and head.

"No thanks," Harry grinned up at him. Quickly, so as to get to dinner quickly, all three of them slung their schoolbags in a corner and left the Common Room. As they left, the Fat Lady asked a question.

"What are they up to in there? Sounds noisy and dangerous to me!" She smoothed down her dress huffily.

"Fizzing Whizzbees!" they chorused, before dashing off down the corridor.

Dinner was, as usual, excellent. Ron gorged himself on bangers and mash, while Harry finished off the dish of Yorkshire Puddings. Hermione was keenest on the chocolate fudge cake that she had for dessert. Harry teased her about her parent's reactions to such a food, but it didn't stop her eating it. Sure enough, as soon as she had finished her meal, Hermione disappeared off to the Library. Harry looked up at the ceiling of the Great Hall and smiled in satisfaction. It was snowing once more.

"Are we off outside then?" he demanded of Ron.

"S'pose so," came the reply. He nodded his head in the direction of Ginny. "You going to ask her then?"

"She's your sister!"

"She's your friend too!"

"It wasn't my idea to invite her!"

"Well it wasn't mine either!"

"Fine, fine. I'll do it!" Sighing, Harry was about to get up when he noticed Cho sitting with her friends at the Ravenclaw table. She looked slightly happier than she had been doing so far this year. Perhaps their little chat had been as good for her as it had for him. "Can I ask Cho too?" he asked Ron, sitting down again.

"Why not? The more the merrier!" Ron encouraged him. "But I thought, I mean, I noticed you'd been trying to avoid her since You Know Who killed off Cedric," he added after a pause.

Harry's stomach turned inside him. He felt as if the Yorkshire Puddings were trying to return to the kitchens. Ron had described Cedric's death in a very blunt manner. He knew he hadn't meant to, but it still got to him. He swallowed, and ignored the comment.

"Yeah, but we had a little chat, and..."

"Oh, we had a little chat, did we?" Ron asked archly.

"No, not like that, I mean... we discussed the way Cedric died, and she told me she didn't blame me, and that I ought to stop blaming myself for Voldemort's actions," he explained. As always, Ron flinched at the name.

"Yeah, go ahead," Ron agreed. "She looks like a week of wet Mondays all the time!"

"Ron! Voldemort killed her boyfriend! How would you feel if he killed Hermione just before she was about to receive the Head Girl badge?" Harry cried out incredulously.

"What are you trying to say?"

"What? That Hermione might be Head Girl? Well come on, there's a pretty good chance th--"

"No, I mean, are you implying that Hermione and I are..." Ron halted to lower his voice, "romantically involved?" Harry looked at Ron as if he were incredibly stupid. "But that's a preposterous idea, me and Herm--, for goodness sake!" Ron blustered. The tips of his ears had turned pink.

"I'm going to ask her," Harry decided. He walked purposefully over towards her, leaving Ron opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish. "Cho?"

"Yes? Oh, Harry! Hi! How are you?" Cho turned her sorrowful gaze on him.

"I'm... getting there," he answered. "You?"

"Me too." She smiled, and all the sadness evaporated for that instant. Harry felt as though he were looking at a Veela. Then it clouded her face once more, like a shroud. Harry shivered. Bad choice of word. Veil. That was better.

"I was wondering if you wanted to come have a snowball fight with me and Ron. Hermione has a test tomorrow, so she's not coming," he garbled. He thought at first she was going to refuse.

"I'd like that Harry. Can I bring my friends?"

"Yeah! The more the merrier!" he rejoined, emanating Ron. He smiled at her, and she at him, and they arranged to meet in the Entrance hall in fifteen minutes. He returned to the Gryffindor table, but this time walked up behind Ginny and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned round, still half smiling at something one of her friends was telling her, and looked up at him.

"Hey!" she greeted him.

"Hi, erm, we're having a snowball fight! Want to come join in?" Harry asked brightly.

"We?"

"Ron, me, Cho and her friends... anyone else who turns up."

At the mention of Cho's name, Ginny's face took on a peculiar expression. "Oh... no, I," she stammered.

"Oh, go on, Ginny! You know we all have divination homework but you anyway! I'd go for a bit of rough and tumble with Harry Potter any day!" one of Ginny's friends advised her in a stage whisper. Harry's face matched the brilliant pink colour of Ginny's.

"Yes please!" she gasped weakly. All her friends tittered amongst themselves. Harry nodded.

"Fifteen minutes, in the Entrance Hall?"

"Great!" She smiled a big false smile at Harry. He could see that her friends were in for a mouthful as soon as he departed.

Ron launched into him as soon as he returned. "Honestly, who told you that I liked Hermione in that way, because I need to have a few words with them!"

Harry sighed. "Never mind, Ron. No one said anything. It was just an example! Anyway, both Ginny and Cho are coming, and Cho said she'd bring her friends too."

"Oh, ok. So no one said anything then?"

Harry just carried on walking, laughing to himself.