Harry Potter and the Games of Hunger

Chapter 6: Hunger

Ginny was hungry.

It was as simple as that. Ginny knew, as well as everyone else, that she don't fall from the wealthiest family. They wore secondhand robes, always bought books used, didn't have spare change for many things - yet they always had food on the table, however bland it was.

After the battle, it became even more obvious. The cost of food rose, rations shrank. The food lacked flavor and consistency. Hogwarts was no different - although, the first night was fantastic, the juicy meats and thick puddings filling her stomach satisfactorily, their meals slowly dwindled back to mush.

Not only did the quality dwindle, but the proportions did as well. Ginny had woken up ravenous this morning, the breakfast only filling her enough to stop her growling stomach. Now, though, at the last "feast" before the reaping, the counted seven spoonfuls did nothing to quiet her belly.

The absent chatter of the Great Hall was especially eerie tonight. Gaunt faces pushed the food back and forth on the plates, swirling meager amounts of water in chipped cups. It was clear the House Elves were any being used in the Kitchens. Ginny warily wondered if they would be used to help construct the arena. She imagined what challenges and obstacles Umbridge had spoke of. Would it really be like the Triwizard Tournament?

No, she brushed the thought off. It wouldn't. The competitors weren't trying to kill each other in the Tournaments.

Ginny's original table group - Dennis, Euan, Natalie and Shora - had expanded, slowly gathering stragglers of Gryffindor, including all grades. She didn't know most of them, recognized a few faces. Typically, they ate in silence, all contented by the low, ghostly talk among the students. Few topics were safe to be heard talking about. Schoolwork was safest, bad mouthing the new curriculum, government and education wise, the most unsafe.

A Peace Keeper didn't have to be near to just so happen falling into te conversation. Portkeys had been upgraded this year by the Ministry. Portkeys didn't just take one from one place to another. Now, they opened portals for all the senses to be seen or heard at any given place.

Such Portkeys were dubbed "Portears," or "Porteyes," pending on the type. The Portears were simple. The spell was like a two-way mirror for conversation and other sounds. The speakers were completely unaware of the spell cast and what they were subjecting themselves to. The Porteyes, on the other hand, were exactly a one way mirror - but similarly, the person or people being watched were completely unknowing.

Ginny figured these new spells were created for two specific purposes. The first being, of course, observing the students. The other serving a very important purpose, the majority of the reasoning, Ginny figured - these new spells were how the Wizarding World would be force to watch the Hunger Games.

Regardless, these spells were a hassle. Ginny wasn't sure, though, of they were the cause of the students silence, or if the sheer shock of the situation was enough to keep the school under.

However, some students were relatively unaffected by this. Ginny tried to avoid these people. These people were the ones that whispered a little too loudly, stared a little too long. They also had a tendency to disappear. And not come back.

One of these people was Gemma, West's younger sister. She hasn't disappeared, though - Ginny tried to make sure of that, passing along subtle messages to the girl. She was relatively harmless - she did speak too loudly, but it was about meaningless teenage chatter, petty gossip. Ginny knew Gemma wasn't as innocent as her gossip implied - there was an underlying knowledge in the gleam of her eyes. Ginny couldn't understand what it was, and she was unsure as to if she wanted to know.

As if on cue, Gemma slithered next to Ginny, in between her and Shora, announcing herself with a guttural throat noise and setting her messenger bag down on the table with a small slam. Ginny was surprised - she had never had a conversation with the girl, besides the awkward exchange at the train station. Gemma had never initiated any contact between herself and Ginny, making this even more strange.