𝐅𝐚𝐭𝐞'𝐬 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞┃𝙁𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙒𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙮

Chapter 46: The Love of his Life

"No." Rubi breathed out in horror, her head slowly inching into Harry's direction, just as every head in the Great Hall snapped towards him. There was no applause. A buzzing, as though of angry bees, was starting to fill the Hall; some students were standing up to get a better look at Harry as he sat, frozen, in his seat.

Up at the top table, Professor McGonagall had got to her feet and swept past Ludo Bagman and Professor Karkaroff to whisper urgently to Professor Dumbledore, who bent his ear toward her, frowning slightly. Harry turned to Ron and Hermione.

"I didn't put my name in," Harry said blankly. "You know I didn't." Both of them stared just as blankly back.

At the top table, Professor Dumbledore had straightened up, nodding to Professor McGonagall.

"Harry Potter!" he called again. "Harry! Up here, if you please!"

"Go on," Hermione whispered, giving Harry a slight push. Harry got to his feet, trod on the hem of his robes, and stumbled slightly. He set off up the gap between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables.

He finally reached the Headmaster. "Well... through the door, Harry," said Dumbledore. He wasn't smiling.

Harry moved off along the teachers' table. Hagrid was seated right at the end. He did not wink at Harry, or wave, or give any of his usual signs of greeting. He looked completely astonished and stared at Harry as he passed like everyone else. Harry went through the door out of the Great Hall.

Fred watched as the door shut behind Harry and his eyes turned to the girl beside him, who was now staring at the same place he had been seconds before. Although her eyes weren't really seeing as her mind had wandered off, falling into a pothole of thoughts.

Fred gently placed a hand on Rubi's thigh making her jump and finally look away from the door and at Fred. She shook her head.

"This isn't right. Harry can't have. I..." She placed her elbows onto the table, gripping her head.

Fred rubbed a soothing hand up and down her thigh.

"It'll be alright." He whispered. "It'll be alright."

***

When Harry entered the common room later that night, he was wrenched inside the common room by about a dozen pairs of hands, and was facing the whole of Gryffindor House, all of whom were screaming, applauding, and whistling.

"You should've told us you'd entered!" bellowed George; he looked half annoyed, half deeply impressed.

"How did you do it without getting a beard? Brilliant!" roared Lee.

"I didn't," Harry said. "I don't know how-"

But Angelina had now swooped down upon the young Potter; "Oh if it couldn't be me, at least it's a Gryffindor-"

"You'll be able to pay back Diggory for that last Quidditch match, Harry!" shrieked Katie Bell. "We've got food, Harry, come and have some-"

"I'm not hungry, I had enough at the feast-" But nobody wanted to hear that he wasn't hungry; nobody wanted to hear that he hadn't put his name in the goblet; not one single person seemed to have noticed that he wasn't at all in the mood to celebrate...

Lee had unearthed a Gryffindor banner from somewhere, and he insisted on draping it around Harry like a cloak. Harry couldn't get away; whenever he tried to sidle over to the staircase up to the dormitories, the crowd around him closed ranks, forcing another butterbeer on him, stuffing crisps and peanuts into his hands... Everyone wanted to know how he had done it, how he had tricked Dumbledore's Age Line and managed to get his name into the goblet.