harry potter, rise from dust

chapter 4

Chapter 4.

9 November 1991.

A week passed by, with nothing fascinating happening. The usual routine returned, identical to before. The troll was the only thing that had amused Harry, but that amusement had reverted back to boredom the very next day. The week was rather annoying for Harry, as the rumors about the troll being dead had spread around Hogwarts, everyone knew about it. Harry was sick of hearing about the troll everywhere he went, most noticeably in the Great Hall.

Harry was so used to rumors that they hardly annoyed him anymore, but what irritated him was the Weasley boy's never-ending boasting about the troll. He never shut his mouth about it, telling anyone who would listen that he was the one who had coached Daniel to defeat the troll. What a nuisance. When Harry was in a very bad mood, he had been forced to hang the Weasley upside down in the Great Hall in the middle of his bragging speech. As soon as Harry had done so, all of his frustrations had poured out of his system. He had smirked at Weasley's look that day, and his act had brought a round of laughter to the Great Hall.

It had surprised Harry that his brother hadn't been the one to brag about his victory. As far as Harry could tell, Daniel had piped down about the whole fiasco. The incident had probably dealt him a healthy dose of reality. He noticed the Granger girl was now hanging around him more often. That might be a good thing, the girl would unquestionably keep him in line and prevent him from doing anything foolish, not to mention save his arse in a life or death situation.

"Have you noticed how different Sheila has been today, Harry?" Callista formulated an idle conversation.

Harry smiled slightly, recalling the perky girl. "Yeah, she was pretty confident and excited. You know how much she loves playing Quidditch. Do you think Gryffindor will beat Slytherin today?"

Early in the morning, he had wished the perky girl well in her game to which she hugged him enthusiastically, creating some excuse about how the hug was good luck and all that. Harry had shrug it off, thinking it was a girl thing.

"Nobody knows, Harry. We can predict the future, but we can never guarantee it will happen." Callista sliced chocolate pie and handed the pie to Harry, who took it gratefully, before cutting another slice for herself.

"I'm just asking, okay? You know, for making a bet or something..." Callista looked disapprovingly. "Not that I'll be doing that anytime soon," he added hastily, grumbling that he wouldn't be able to wager his galleons.

"You'd better not stake your galleons on something like that, Harry Potter, or else you'll have to answer to us," Callista threatened, pointing her spoon menacingly at his face "We won't be happy if you pull some silly stunt like that again, especially Daphne. Her parents gave you those galleons to spend wisely, not on something as ineffectual as a Quidditch bet."

Harry grunted, shoving a spoonful of pie in his mouth. They were joined by Regine, who sat on Harry's other side as she stretched her hand out for bacon. Nobody minded this, frightened if they produced a comment, they would be forced to confront Harry Potter's wrath. It still made them shudder to think of the events of Harry's first year. Fortunately, each year, every first year was warned to never, ever cross Harry Potter, nor make any scathing statements to his companions.

"What's with the glum face, Harry?" Harry harrumphed, thrusting another spoonful of pie into his mouth. "Callista?"

"Don't mind him, Regine." Callista rolled her eyes. "He wants to gamble, but I won't allow him."

"Harry, how many times do we have to tell you? Gambling isn't good for anyone. I still can't believe the staff allows the Weasley twins to arrange it." Regine straightened her attractive, cascading scarlet hair with her fingers. "Besides, Daphne will never forgive you if you spend your money that way."