Percy Jackson and Harry Potter Halfblood Heroes (Book 6)

Chapter 14

The fact that Percy Jackson going out with Hermione Granger was interesting but Harry Potter going out with Ginny Weasley seemed to interest a great number of people than Percy and Hermione, most of them were girls

'You'd think people had better things to gossip about,' said Ginny, as she sat on the common-room floor, leaning against Harry's legs and reading the Daily Prophet. 'Three Dementor attacks in a week and all Romilda Vane does is ask me if it's true you've got a Hippogriff tattooed across your chest.' 

Percy, Ron and Hermione both roared with laughter

'What did you tell her?'

'I told her it's a Hungarian Horntail,' said Ginny, turning a page of the newspaper idly. 'Much more macho.'

'Thanks,' said Harry, grinning. 'And what did you tell her Ron and Percy's got?'

'Percy has a Ukrainian Ironbelly (Nice! Percy said clapping her hand) and Ron's got a Pygmy Puff, but I didn't say where.'

Ron scowled as Hermione and Percy rolled around laughing.

'Watch it,' he said, pointing warningly at Harry and Ginny. 'Just because I've given my permission doesn't mean I can't withdraw it –'

'"Your permission",' scoffed Ginny. 'Since when did you permit me to do anything? Anyway, you said yourself you'd rather it was Harry than Michael or Dean.'

'Yeah, I would,' said Ron grudgingly. 'And just as long as you don't start snogging each other in public–'

'You filthy hypocrite! What about you and Lavender, thrashing around like a pair of eels all over the place?' demanded Ginny.

But Ron's tolerance was not to be tested much as they moved into June, for Harry and Ginny's timetogether was becoming increasingly restricted. Ginny's O.W.L.s were approaching and she was thereforeforced to revise for hours into the night. On one such evening, when Ginny had retired to the library andHarry was sitting beside the window in the common room, supposedly finishing his Herbology homeworkbut in reality reliving a particularly happy hour he had spent down by the lake with Ginny at lunch-time,Hermione dropped into the seat between him and Percy with an unpleasantly purposeful look on her face.

'Hey.' said Percy pecking Hermione on the cheek. 'What's up?'

'I want to talk to Harry.'

'What about?' said Harry suspiciously. Only the previous day, Hermione had told him off for distracting Ginny when she ought to be working hard for her examinations.

'The so-called Half-Blood Prince.'

'Oh, not again,' he groaned. 'Will you please drop it?'

'I'm not dropping it,' said Hermione firmly, 'until you've heard me out. Now, I've been trying to find out a bit about who might make a hobby of inventing Dark spells –'

'He didn't make a hobby of it –'

'He, he – who says it's a he?'

'We've been through this,' said Harry crossly. 'Prince, Hermione, Prince!'

Right!' said Hermione, red patches blazing in her cheeks as she pulled a very old piece of news printout of her pocket and slammed it down on the table in front of Harry. 'Look at that! Look at the picture!'

Harry picked up the crumbling piece of paper and stared at the moving photograph, yellowed with age; Ron and Percy leaned over for a look, too. The picture showed a skinny girl of around fifteen. She was not pretty; she looked simultaneously cross and sullen, with heavy brows and a long, pallid face. Underneath the photograph was the caption: Eileen Prince, Captain of the Hogwarts Gobstones Team.