Hogwarts' Golden Glory

With Sirius's encouragement, Ron and Harry reconciled once again.

Ron realized he had wronged Harry, and Harry forgave his friend once again.

"Hermione." Ron looked up. "Where have you been? Your face—"

"I went to the kitchen," Hermione said. Her voice was calm, strangely calm.

"What did they say?" Harry looked up as well.

"...They don't need my help. They say they're happy. Tell me to stop talking."

"So what do you think?" Harry asked. "How's your proposal coming along?"

Hermione remained silent for a long time. "I put it away."

"You won't give up," Ron said. "Right? You're not the kind of person who says one thing and means another."

"I haven't given up," Hermione said, "but I'm going to try a different approach."

She sat down, picked up a new parchment, and said, "I won't talk to them directly. I'll collect cases first, see if any elves are willing to leave and accept wages, and then use them as examples to show that this path is feasible."

Ron glanced at her: "You really are... stubborn as a mule."

"I'll break through," Hermione said. "Whatever wall it is, I'll tear it down."

Harry and Ron exchanged a glance and did not argue further.

It was very quiet outside, as if the entire castle was silent in her stead.

Hermione gripped the quill and continued writing the new plan. She didn't know when it would succeed, but she knew one thing: she wouldn't stop.

A few days later, when Hermione went to the kitchen again, there was a note on the door written by a house-elf. The handwriting was crooked and messy: "Miss Granger, please don't come again. Millie is very scared."

Hermione stared at the note as she stood in the empty hallway.

She folded the note, put it in her pocket, and turned to leave.

She will come back someday. But not now, because they are not ready yet.

In the next long lecture, as soon as the bell rang to signal the end of the Transfiguration class, Professor McGonagall did not immediately tell everyone to pack up and leave, as she usually did.

She placed the pointer on the podium, adjusted her glasses, and glanced at the entire class. "Before you leave, there's one more thing to announce." The classroom was silent for a few seconds; those packing their bags stopped.

"The Christmas ball will be held on Christmas Eve this year."

Professor McGonagall's voice remained as crisp and unquestionable as ever. "This is a tradition of the Triwizard Tournament. Normally, only fourth-year students and above can participate, but this year there are some exceptions. Third-year students are also allowed to invite older students as dance partners. The Great Hall will be open, and the house-elves will prepare a dinner that ends at midnight."

There was a moment of silence in the classroom. Then it erupted.

Fred and George had already stood up in the back row of the classroom and started patting each other on the shoulder, as if celebrating some kind of premeditated victory.

"Great! I've been wanting an excuse to wear that new robe for ages—"

"Your dress is green. Are you planning to wear it with your Slytherin dance partner?"

"Why can't I invite a Slytherin girl?"

"Then you'd better be ready to be kicked out of the entire academy."

Ron let out a wail and collapsed onto his desk.

"The Christmas ball...who should I ask as my dance partner?"

"Lots of girls can do that," Harry said.

"I definitely need to make a good choice."

"So, who are you planning to invite?"

Ron's face flushed slightly, but he didn't say anything.

Professor McGonagall tapped the podium: "Quiet."

The voice faded, and the classroom fell silent again. "Please finalize your dance partners as soon as possible. The ball is an important occasion to showcase the spirit of Hogwarts, and we hope everyone will take it seriously."

As she said this, her gaze swept across the entire class, pausing for an extra moment on Harry's seat.

Harry felt that look was saying, "You're a warrior too, so you should do your best."

He lowered his head, pretending to organize his notes from the Transformation class, but his mind was already churning.

The bell finally rang, signaling the end of get out of class.

Everyone rushed out of the classroom.

The hallway was filled with talk of the Christmas ball.

As Harry walked through the crowd, snippets of conversation drifted into his ears: "...Did you hear? McCragan asked a Ravenclaw girl out, and she rejected him."

"Really? He's quite courageous."

"I heard that he stood there for a full five seconds, and even after everyone had left, he was still standing there."

That would be so awkward.

"Then what should I do? The person I want to hire is ten times more popular than the one McClargan hired—"

"Then you'd better hurry, or it will really be too late."

Harry slowed his pace.

He recalled Sirius Black's words: "If you like someone and no one invites you, and someone else gets to invite you first, you'll regret it for a long time afterward."

He recalled the stories he'd heard as a child about his parents—how James pursued Lily. While the stories weren't all sweet, one thing was true: James never hesitated out of fear of rejection.

He did a lot of stupid things, but he never stopped doing them for fear of bad outcomes.

Harry took a deep breath and started walking forward.

He almost bumped into someone at the corner.

"I'm sorry—" He took a step back and saw the other person's face clearly.

It was Qiu Zhang. She was holding a stack of books, one of which, "Major Events in the History of Magic," almost slipped from her hands.

"Harry?" Cho Chang steadied the book in her hands, then smiled. "It's nothing. You look like you're in a hurry."

"...I guess so," Harry said. "Are you... free now?"

Qiu Zhang tilted his head: "I'm free. What's up?"

Harry glanced at the people coming and going on both sides of the corridor, then said, "I have something to ask you, but it's a bit noisy in here."

Qiu Zhang followed his gaze and glanced around, then nodded: "Shall we go over there?"

She gestured with her chin toward an alcove at the end of the corridor. The alcove wasn't large, but it was much quieter than the center of the corridor.

The two walked over, Qiu Zhang placed the book on the windowsill, turned to look at him, and asked, "What is it?"

Harry stood before her, feeling his heart pound faster than ever before. "The Christmas Ball."

He said, "Would you...would you like to come with me?"

After he finished speaking, he seemed to have put down something very heavy, and his shoulders relaxed.

Qiu Zhang looked at him, her eyes widening slightly. She didn't answer immediately. Then she smiled: "...You finally asked."

Harry was stunned: "'Finally'?"

"I've been waiting," Qiu Zhang said, "but you haven't come."

How did you know I would come looking for you?

"Because a lot of people are saying," Cho Chang laughed, "that the champions of Hogwarts are all looking for dance partners. I'm wondering, who would you like to invite? Maybe me?"

"So, will you say yes?"

Qiu Zhang looked at him for two seconds, then said, "I agree."

Harry felt his heart finally settle back down. "Okay. Well—it's settled then."

"It's a deal."