Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 74: The Ball
December 25, Hogwarts.
Excitement was at its peak during the evening. Elegantly dressed students were making their way into the Great Hall of the castle.
Just for today, it had been transformed into a beautiful ballroom, exquisitely decorated with crystal chandeliers, ice sculptures, and magical lights that bathed the entire room in different colors.
Long tables had been set up on the sides of the venue. For the moment, they only contained some drinks for the students, like juice and butterbeer, but soon enough, they would be filled with a delicious feast.
On the far side of the room, standing near a corner, were the school professors and organizers of the tournament. They stood there so as to avoid interfering too much. Tonight was all for the enjoyment of the students, and they were only here to make sure everything went smoothly.
"Where is he? You reminded him he had to come, right?" Barty Crouch Sr. was pacing around in front of the professors.
"Don't worry. He knows about the ball. We made sure to inform him," Professor McGonagall tried to soothe the nervous man.
"Although technically, this was not part of the contract, I believe," Professor Flitwick commented.
"He must come!" Crouch snapped. "The press is already waiting to take pictures of all the champions. We can't have one champion missing." He had been given the position of Chief Organizer for the Tournament. Any mistake would be blamed on him.
"Calm down, Barty. Mr. Potter will arrive soon enough. There is still time before we start." Dumbledore approached the group, with the other two Headmasters at his side.
A man holding a cane paced forward and adjusted his prosthetic leg. "I do hope he does. I have much to thank him for." Moody's magical eye was constantly scanning the surroundings. This time, it was the real one.
"Do not forget to thank Madam Yafel as well. She was the one who did most of the work, after all." Dumbledore tried not to raise his voice too much. He knew the reaction that name could cause.
"To think there would come the day when Madam Yafel would be on our side…" Moody muttered. "That witch had been terrorizing the Ministry since its inception."
"I believe we may have had many misunderstandings with her in the past… we owe it to Mister Potter for clearing this up," Dumbledore said.
"Was she the one who saved the boy? Did you speak with her about it?" McGonagall asked, feeling very curious about the kind of childhood that Harry Potter could have had under the roof of such an infamous witch.
"We are yet to have a proper conversation, sadly… but I hope to remedy that tonight," Dumbledore responded. He still had too many questions, but Harry was always like a sealed box, and he didn't believe he was going to have more luck with the witch either. But he would have to try, for the sake of everyone's future.
As it all may come to rest on Harry Potter's shoulders.
Suddenly, they began to hear loud gasps spreading across the hall.
All the adults stopped their conversation and turned their heads to look at the entrance.
Walking down the stairs was an elegantly dressed couple.
It became immediately obvious who they were. Harry's silver hair would stand out everywhere, and even more so when wearing dark robes.
And the woman hanging from his arm was also hard to miss. A tall beauty with long black hair and a pair of unnatural amber eyes that seemed to shine more than the magical lights around them.
They both carried themselves with an elegance and class that went far beyond what their physical appearance could indicate.
It made everyone present in the hall feel like they were mere peasants, watching the arrival of their King and Queen.
"Well… they have definitely made an impact," Dumbledore said.
"Is that allowed? She is not a student," Madam Maxime asked.
"To be fair, neither is he," Flitwick told her, looking up at the giant woman.
"Wonderful! This will make for a great picture." The one most excited was Barty Crouch. "Quick, Wasly boy! Gather the champions and bring me that reporter," he said while tapping hard on the shoulder of his assistant.
"It's Weasley, Sir…" Percy Weasley became more deflated every time his boss called him by the wrong name.
"Go already, boy. Go!" Crouch didn't listen to his assistant's complaints and pushed him away.
Harry and Morgan stopped for a moment to look at the hall.
"They have done a great job with the decorations, don't you think? It doesn't look like the same room where everyone was having their meals," Harry commented.
"Everyone is staring at us." Morgan didn't look too pleased with all the sudden attention. "Perhaps I should have chosen something more discreet."
"Nonsense, you look perfect." Harry leaned closer, giving her a sweet kiss on the cheek before whispering into her ear. "And I thought you would enjoy people looking at you with desire."
"Not that many people… have you forgotten that I spent most of my life as an introvert? Besides, I like to be the one doing the teasing," Morgan responded.
"E-excuse me."
They both turned their heads to look at the young man in front of them.
"Are you a Weasley?" Harry asked, as his magic felt very similar to that girl called Ginny he had met previously.
"Yes…" Percy ran his fingers through his hair, thinking that Harry's guess had been based on him being a redhead. "Percy Weasley. I am the assistant of Mr. Crouch." He pointed to another part of the hall. "He wishes for all the champions to group up for a picture, if you don't mind. It will only be a moment."
Harry glanced at Morgan, and she shrugged. "Let's get this over with. Then we can enjoy the evening."
A.N: - Remember to comment, vote, and/or leave a review if you have the time. Those things help me a lot and I would really appreciate it.
You can support me on P@treon if you like and get 20 advanced chapters. You can also find character images to view for free in Collections/Merlin Images
-patreon.com/Kriogenix
For donations and commissions, go to ko-fi.com/kriogenix