Harry Potter and the Games of Hunger

Chapter 4: Modern Magical Government

Ginny was nursing a mug of tea in her dormitory, sitting on the edge of her canopy bed. It still looked the same, draped in red and gold, but still held the same faux sheen that covered the entire castle.

She had thought about inviting Shora up, but when she saw that her three roommates - Riley, Sage and Trinity - were absent, Ginny jumped on the opportunity to be alone and collect herself.

The beginning feast had been a nightmare. After Umbridge silenced the Hall following the initial shock, she continued to explain more rules and regulation, heavily emphasizing the way selecting Tributes would work. For the first month of classes, school would continue as normal. Students would attend classes, do homework, take tests. House Points would still be earned -- but not for the House Cup, of course. How trivial it seemed, until Umbridge continued. House Points would be earned as an equivalence to Galleons -- each House could accumulate currency to support their favorite Tribute in the game, provide them with various things they may need. It was a nightmare. They were competing for one anothers survival.

How many times you were entered into the Reaping -- the choosing of the tributes, a random selection from the Goblet of Fire-- was also dependant on behavior. Demerits were earned for extremely negative behavior, and for every qualifying student, your number of demerits would be combined wiht your year at Hogwarts and result in your total number for the drawing.

So without causing problems, Ginny's name was already in the drawing seven times.

It was also a personal deal. If you were singled out, your name could be entered on its own without adding to your Houses favor. Umbridge pleasantly announced that would be reserved for only the worst offenders.

Ginny set her tea down on the nightstand and laid back in bed, her mind whirling with even more questions than she started with. She turned her head on the pillow a few times, trying to find a comfortable position, but failed. She sighed, siting back up, propping her elbows on her knees and reding her chin in her hands.

How could this have happened?

She answered herself bitterly, a tiny voice edging up from the back of her brain to whisper subtly, 'Harry let it happen.'

She almost gasped, so surprised at the gruesome thought, standing up from her bed in frustration, pacing the surprisingly well sized dorm. Her thoughts were mixed and blended, all eventually circling back to each other in a vicious circle she couldn't stop.

She was interrupted, though, when Riley and Trinity, who grew to be close friends in their fifth year, walked in. "Evening, Ginny." Trinity grumbled in her low, gravelly voice.

"Evening," Ginny responded without much enthusiasm, not wanting to encourage conversation. Luckily, it seemed to work, as the girls didn't push Ginny to speak.

"We're just going to go to sleep," Sage said in her high pitched, honey-smooth voice, walking over to her and Trinity's side of the room, sitting down in the leftward bed.

"It's been a long day," Trinity agreed, sitting in the rightward. She turned their light out, but silently went to sit near Sage on her bed, placing a comforting arm around her. "It'll be okay," she tried to reassure Sage, who was trying to stifle her tears. She whirred quietly into Trinity's ear, placing all her worries into her confidant. Ginny couldn't help but ache with longing for the same type of comfort, the luxury of someone who you could tell anything without judgement so near and close. But Harry was dead.

Trinity hushed Sage with nice, kid words. Ginny couldn't see, but was sure she had laid Sage down and was scratching Sage's fragile back, playing with her thin hair to calm her. Ginny remembered this practice well from last year, when Sage was almost always in a constant wreck.