Chapter Three

The train whistle blew as the Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione stepped through the barrier to platform nine and three-quarters in pairs. Ron and Ginny walked off towards a group of other students as Harry and Hermione dragged their trunks towards the train. The four of them still weren't speaking and had spent half of the rest of their summer in silence. It had been deathly quiet since Harry and Ron's falling out, and the four of them had seemed to be on short fuses for the rest of the summer. It wasn't hard to pick a fight with the two youngest Weasley siblings. Harry pushed his trunk onto the train with Hermione's help then helped with hers as well. They travelled down the cars, looking for an open compartment that would be close to the Prefect car.

Finally passing an empty compartment, Harry motioned for Hermione to follow him inside. She stood by the door as Harry pushed his trunk into the luggage storage space. Just as he placed Hedwig's cage next to his trunk, he heard someone behind them clear their throat.

"Um... Hi Harry, Hermione." Harry turned to see Neville smiling a little nervously, a slight pink tinge shading his cheeks. "Do you mind if Luna and I join you?"

"All right. I'm just going to go to the Prefect car to help Hermione with her trunk." Harry smiled a bit as Neville sat down. Luna quickly followed him in and took out the latest copy of The Quibbler.

Harry turned from them and walked with Hermione to the Prefect car. They found a compartment that included Padma and a sixth year Hufflepuff Prefect. After Hermione stored her trunk, they headed back towards Harry's compartment. He couldn't help wondering how Hermione would get along in the Prefect car now that she and Ron weren't speaking. He couldn't imagine that it would make their rounds very easy once they were back at school. Harry wished there was something he could do, but not knowing what he and Hermione had done made that task very difficult.

"I'd love to go with you to Hogsmeade. I'm rather flattered that you asked me." Harry glanced around at the sound of Ginny's voice until he spotted her speaking with Zacharias Smith again.

"Well, I had to do it while the dream team was off somewhere else. They're really rather annoying, especially that big oaf with the red hair." The words were out of his mouth before he realised who he was saying them to, and the next thing Smith knew, he had been hit with a hex that had caused bogies to sprout wings and attack him.

"That 'oaf' just happens to be my brother, you git. You can forget Hogsmeade." Ginny stood over him with a fierce look in her eye. It was the kind of look that made Harry hope he would never end up on the receiving end of it.

There was a chuckle that resounded throughout the car. "Excellent, young lady. Quite the powerful curse."

Harry noticed a short, enormously fat man standing behind Ginny. He had a shiny, bald head with prominent eyes and an enormous silvery walrus-like moustache. He was dressed in an old-fashioned waistcoat with gold buttons and a pair of striped trousers. Harry couldn't help but wonder who this new person was and why they were riding on the train.

"Horace Slughorn's the name, but of course, you can address me as Professor." Ginny's face suddenly blanched at the statement, turning her almost as white as a sheet.

"Ah, no need to worry about this," Slughorn said with a little chuckle at Ginny's expression. "I'm sure he had it coming. Why don't you join me in my compartment later on? I am meeting with some of your fellow students for a late lunch."

Harry watched as Ginny just nodded in disbelief and shock. He could hear Hermione's disapproving tut as Slughorn walked away from the scene.

"Honestly, professors should not be encouraging that sort of behaviour, and Ginny should know better than to attack another student." Harry glanced back at Hermione's disapproving expression before he walked into his compartment. He knew better than to argue a point with Hermione. He agreed somewhat, but sometimes it didn't hurt to bend and break rules every now and then. He, Ron, and Hermione had done so on many occasions, but he felt that it might be a bad idea to point this out to her at the moment. He took a seat next to the window. "Harry, I'll see you later. I need to start my rounds."

Harry stared after Hermione before he turned to look out of the window as the train started to move. He was thankful to be getting back to Hogwarts. He wasn't sure he could take another minute of uncomfortable silence, nor did he want to deal with his nasty relatives. Harry soon heard the compartment door slide open and shut, but he didn't look away from the window.

"Hello, Neville. Hello, Luna." Ginny's voice seemed to echo in Harry's ears. "I hope you don't mind me joining you. I'd rather not sit with Seamus and Dean at the moment. They're only talking about Quidditch and the female population of Hogwarts. Not exactly topics of conversation I feel like discussing at the moment, especially with them."

The rest of the train ride was, for the most part, rather uneventful, albeit rather frosty from Ginny's quarter. Hermione had stopped by a few times and Ginny continued to ignore them both. Eventually, Ginny left for the lunch with Professor Slughorn. Only a moment after she left, a young student stopped by the compartment and dropped off a letter for Harry and Neville, which turned out to be an invitation to the very same lunch as Ginny's. Even the lunch seemed to pass without anything unusual happening. Ginny, had of course been there, as had Romilda Vane, a Ravenclaw named Marcus Belby, and Malfoy's friend Blaise Zabini. Professor Slughorn talked to them all about some of his favourite past students and asked them questions about themselves and the relatives he knew. Harry hadn't really been interested in what was happening and had almost dozed off twice. Harry secretly hoped that the year would go by much in the same way. All he really wanted was to have one peaceful year at Hogwarts.

"Welcome, everyone, to another year at Hogwarts. This year, the Ministry has decided to open a new wizarding tournament. A word of caution, however, though this year may be filled with fun and games, I hope that none of you forget the state of the world. It is important that we do not forget what is happening beyond the borders of Hogwarts. This tournament may provide a temporary distraction, but we must remember that there is a war starting and even the Ministry cannot cover that up with games. Now, on with our announcement. Hogwarts has been chosen to be the host of the very first Junior Quidditch World Cup." Dumbledore paused in his speech as the Great Hall started to fill with murmurs and cheers of delight.

"Over the course of the summer, the other professors and I have had lengthy conversations and furious debates over who should be the one to help represent our school as the team captain. After much deliberation, we came to a decision. The Hogwarts team captain is..." Dumbledore smiled as he paused his speech for dramatic effect, a twinkle in his eye. "Miss Ginevra Weasley."

Harry looked down the table at a very shocked looking Ginny. Another Gryffindor he didn't recognize was patting her on the back, congratulating her while almost everyone else in the hall (excluding the Slytherins) was applauding. Ginny looked around at everyone, still in shock. It wasn't until Ron gave her a soft punch on the arm that she cracked a small smile.

"If Miss Weasley is prepared," said Dumbledore once it had quietened down, "tryouts will begin next week. The exact dates will be posted on the notice boards in your common rooms." Dumbledore carried on with the annual announcements and rule reminders before everyone was sent off to their dorms.

"Way to go, Ginny. I know a lass like you will do a great job." Seamus's Irish brogue carried over the crowd. Ginny was still sitting in her seat as the rest of the students started to filter out of the Great Hall to head to their dorms for a good night's sleep.

"Thank you, Seamus. I'll see you in the common room." Ginny waved him off with a small smile as Seamus joined the leaving group.

Harry hung back as the students left, hoping for a chance to speak with Ginny about her and Ron. As Harry was waiting, he noticed Malfoy heading towards Ginny, but his two cronies were absent from his side. Harry crept a little closer in hopes of hearing their conversation. However, Harry was unable to get close enough without being spotted. He watched as they spoke for a moment, seemingly without any harsh words being exchanged, then Malfoy joined the rest of the Slytherins that were leaving.

"Uh, Ginny?" Harry stepped towards her as he spoke once everyone was gone. He could have sworn he saw a flicker of annoyance in her eyes before her expression turned to indifference.

"Is there something I can help you with, Harry?" Ginny asked in a business-like tone.

"Actually, I was hoping I could have a word with you about Ron – "

"Sorry, but I don't really have time for that conversation. I have work to do," Ginny immediately cut him off before he could say another word. She stood up from her seat at the table and strode towards the door without a backwards glance. It became clear to Harry that this would not be an easy task. If he wanted to know what was wrong, he'd have to figure it out on his own. He joined the rest of the students leaving the Great Hall and headed up to Gryffindor Tower.

When Harry arrived in the common room, he took a seat at the table where Hermione was already getting a head start on the year's studies. It never amazed Harry how dedicated Hermione was to school. He stared at the fire for a moment, mulling over the events since his birthday party. He thought over everything that had happened between himself, Ron, and Hermione. He just couldn't comprehend why Ron and Ginny were so angry with them. After a while, Harry looked up at the wall clock and saw that it was nearing midnight. He hadn't realised he had been sitting there so long. He glanced over at Hermione and saw that she was halfway through her book. He was about to get up from his spot when he heard the portrait open. Curious as to who would be coming in at that time on the first night, Harry kept his eyes fixed towards the entrance.

A flushed Ginny Weasley appeared from the entrance way and made her way quickly through the common room, avoiding everyone's gaze. He glanced over to Hermione again and met her curious expression. Harry shrugged, just as confused as Hermione. He couldn't help wondering where Ginny had been. She had left the Great Hall before he had so she should have beaten him to Gryffindor Tower. It was just another question to add to the growing list, none of which he seemed to be getting any answers to.

"Did you get a chance to talk to her?" Hermione reluctantly set down her book as she looked at Harry expectantly.

"Er, no. She said she was busy and left before I had a chance to say anything. Neither one of them is going to talk to us."

"We'll just have to keep trying. There's no sense in giving up. Eventually, one of them will let us know. Of course, it will probably be Ginny. You know how stubborn Ron can be."

"I'm not so sure about that. Ginny's pretty stubborn when she wants to be. I can't figure out any possible reason. The only thing that's changed is that you and I are together. I don't think they'd be angry about that. They would be happy for us, right? It must be something else. Maybe we just need to sleep on it. We might come up with something tomorrow. I'm going to bed. I feel exhausted. Have a good night, Hermione." Harry smiled and kissed Hermione on the cheek before he started up to his dorm room. When he arrived, all the candles had been put out and everyone else's curtains were drawn. Harry hoped with all his might that the rift in their friendships would be over as soon as possible. He hated not speaking to Ron. He was starting to have a horrible flashback to their fourth year, when Ron had been angry with him after his name had been drawn from the Goblet of Fire as a fourth contestant. Harry sighed quietly as he pulled on his pyjamas and crawled into bed. He sincerely hoped that the problem would be resolved as soon as possible. He didn't want another year like his fourth. If it wasn't him and Ron fighting, it was Ron and Hermione. Except for the occasional moment, that year hadn't been anything close to fun.