A Hogwarts Legend: Chaos Begins [4] (SLOW UPDATES)

Chapter Twenty Six

Chapter Twenty Six - "I call this arsehole one of my best friends."

When I wake up on Sunday morning, it takes me a moment to remember why I feel so miserable. Then the memory of the previous night rolls over me. I sit up and rip back the curtain of my own four-poster, the sight of an empty room meeting my eyes.

Sighing, I get dressed and go down the spiral staircase into the common room. The moment I appear, the people who've already finished breakfast break into applause again. The prospect of going into the Great Hall and facing the rest of the Gryffindors, all treating me like some sort of hero, is not inviting; it's that, however, or stay here and allow myself to be cornered by the Creevey brothers, who are both beckoning frantically for me to join them. I walk resolutely over to the portrait hole, push it open, climb out of it and find myself face to face with Hermione and Harry.

"Hello," Hermione says, holding up a stack of toast, which she's carrying in a napkin. "I brought you and Harry this ... want to join us for a walk?"

"Good idea," I say, gratefully.

We go downstairs, cross the Entrance Hall quickly without looking in at the Great Hall, and are soon striding across the lawn towards the lake, where the Durmstrang ship is moored, reflected blackly in the water. It's a chilly morning, and we keep moving, munching our toast, as Harry tells Hermione exactly what happened after we left the Gryffindor table the night before. To my immense relief, Hermione accepts our story without question.

"Well, of course, I knew you hadn't entered yourselves," she says, when Harry finished telling her about the scene in the chamber off the Hall. "The looks on your faces when Dumbledore's read out your name! But the question is, who did put them in? Because Moody's right ... I don't think any student could have done it ... they'd never be able to fool the Goblet, or get over Dumbledore's -"

"Have you seen Ron?" Harry interrupts.

Hermione hesitates.

"Wait, what happened with Ron?" I ask, confused.

"Similar to what happened with Maya and Elinor," Harry scowls, "but slightly less brutal."

Ouch.

"I saw Ron at breakfast," Hermione says.

"Does he still think we entered ourselves?"

"Well ... no, I don't think so ... not really," says Hermione awkwardly.

"What's that supposed to mean, not really?"

"Oh, Harry, isn't it obvious?" Hermione says despairingly. "He's jealous!"

"Jealous?" Harry says incredulously. "Jealous of what? He wants to make a prat of himself in front of the whole school, does he?"

"It does make sense," I sigh. "Look, it's always you who gets all the attention, you know it is. I know it's not your fault," I add quickly, seeing Harry open his mouth furiously, "I know you don't ask for it ... but - well - you know, Ron's got all his brothers to compete against at home, and you're his best friend, and you're really famous - he's always shunted to one side whenever people see you, and he puts up with it, he never mentions it, but I suppose this is just one time too many ..."

"Great," says Harry bitterly. "Really great. Tell him from me I'll swap any time he wants, tell him from me he's welcome to it ... people gawping at my forehead everywhere I go ..."

"Don't ask me," I scowl, "he probably won't want to talk to me anytime soon, either."

"I'm not telling him anything," Hermione says shortly. "Tell him yourself, it's the only way to sort this out."