So the boys finally sprang into action. One afternoon after lunch, as they headed toward History of Magic, they encountered Cho Chang walking with several Ravenclaw girls.
"Go on, Harry," Ron whispered, giving him a firm shove from behind. Harry stumbled forward, clutching his bag, hair sticking up at impossible angles, and found himself standing awkwardly in the corridor's center. Cho and her friends stopped, regarding him with puzzled expressions.
"Er—Cho Chang? Could I have a word with you privately?" Harry's voice echoed down the hallway. Orli cringed and squeezed her eyes shut, though she could still hear the girls dissolving into giggles.
Fortunately, Cho didn't laugh. She and Harry stepped around the staircase corner.
Unfortunately, Harry's tragic first romance was doomed from the start. They returned in under a minute—twenty seconds, really. Cho and her friends departed while Harry stood there looking utterly shell-shocked.
"Well?" Ron asked eagerly.
"She's already been asked," Harry replied numbly. "She's going with Cedric."
"Oh, bloody hell. And I was just starting to like Cedric too," Ron muttered darkly.
"Ron, you haven't asked yet?" Orli raised an eyebrow.
"Asked what?" Hermione had just caught up, arms laden with library books, catching only Orli's final words.
"Don't even mention it. We still haven't found dates," Ron shrugged. "Honestly, our options are pretty limited now, so..."
"Ron! Mind your words!" Orli glared at him warningly.
"All the pretty girls have been snapped up already, is that it, Ron?" Hermione said with icy hauteur. "What exactly are you trying to say?"
"Well, maybe you could come with me—I mean, nobody else has asked you... Orli's right, you're a brilliant girl..." Ron blundered on tactlessly.
"Oh, really?" Hermione's eyes flashed with dangerous fire. "It's taken you nearly four years to notice I'm a brilliant girl, Ron—but that doesn't mean nobody else has!"
"Right, right, we know you're brilliant," Ron said impatiently. "So you'll say yes then?"
"I'm not some last resort for you to settle for!" Hermione snapped furiously. "I've already accepted someone else's invitation!"
With that, she stormed toward the History of Magic classroom.
"She's lying. Who else would possibly ask her besides me?" Ron said flatly, staring after her retreating figure.
"Ron Weasley!" Orli felt ready to combust with rage. "You've completely ruined everything!"
She shot them both a withering glare before hurrying after Hermione.
"What's gotten into them?" Ron asked Harry, eyes wide with bewilderment.
"Haven't a clue," Harry shook his head. "But I suspect, mate, you've made a colossal mistake."
By dinner time in the Great Hall, the boys remained dateless. Hermione and Orli sat pointedly at the table's far end, several feet from Ron, whispering about how Krum had invited Hermione.
"At first I thought he simply enjoyed reading," Hermione murmured, cheeks tinged pink. "But then I realized he was always lurking near my usual bookshelf, sometimes deliberately sitting directly across from me. Then suddenly he asked me... asked if I'd dance with him... His accent's so peculiar—he never pronounces my name correctly. Listen to this: he keeps calling me Her-my-own-ee..."
Hermione giggled softly.
"So I had to teach him the proper pronunciation. I initially told him I'd consider it..." Her gaze drifted toward Ron, and her smile vanished instantly. "But now I think I should've accepted immediately. Though there's nothing wrong with a girl maintaining some dignity."
――――――――
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
The story isn't over...
🤔 Want to know what happens next to the characters?
🤫 Eager to explore the untold secrets of this world?
✍️ Ready to read more of my wildest stories?
✨patreon.com/DarkGolds