Honey Bee

Chapter 21

Why don't they believe Harry when they believe me?

The Hufflepuffs, who I heard were usually on excellent terms with the Gryffindors, had turned remarkably cold towards the whole of Gryffindor.

One Herbology lesson was enough to demonstrate this.

It was plain that the Hufflepuffs felt that we had stolen Cedric's glory; also downhearted by the fact that Hufflepuff House very rarely got any glory.

Hey I'm only being told all of this.

Ernie Macmillan and Justin FinchFletchley, with whom Harry normally got on very well, did not talk to him even though they were repotting Bouncing Bulbs at the same tray. I'm lucky Neville believed me because if he didn't. I'd be doomed!

The boys did laugh rather unpleasantly when one of the Bouncing Bulbs wriggled free from Harry's grip and smacked him hard in the face.

Weasley wasn't talking to Harry either. Or me for that matter, that's why I'm back to calling him Weasley.

Granger and JJ sat between them, making very conversations, but though both answered her normally, they avoided making eye contact with each other.

We even thought Professor Sprout seemed angry with me and Harry. But, she was Head of Hufflepuff House after all. She couldn't hate me that much after Cedric kindly explained how I feel to the floor in tears.

Let's say the feeling is worse then mutual.

Harry said he had been looking forward to seeing Hagrid under normal circumstances, but Care of Magical Creatures meant seeing the Slytherins too. I told him they weren't that bad, but he said they've always hated each other.

"Ah, look, boys, it's the champion," Draco said to Crabbe and Goyle the moment he got within earshot of Harry not knowing I was there. "Got your autograph books? Better get a signature now, because I doubt he's going to be around much longer. . . . Half the Triwizard champions have died... how long d'you reckon you're going to last, Potter? Ten minutes into the first task's my bet."

"Does that mean I have less of a chance then?" I snapped upset that Draco would say that sort of thing.

But Draco had no time to speak, because Hagrid emerged from the back of his cabin balancing a teetering tower of crates, each containing a very large Blast-Ended Skrewt.

To our horror, Hagrid proceeded to explain that the reason the skrewts had been killing one another was an excess of pent-up energy, and that the solution would be for each student to fix a leash on a skrewt and take it for a short walk.

"Take this thing for a walk?" Draco repeated in disgust. "And where exactly are we supposed to fix the leash? Around the sting, the blasting end, or the sucker?"

"Roun' the middle," said Hagrid, demonstrating. "Er - yeh might want ter put on yer dragon-hide gloves, jus' as an extra precaution, like. Harry - you come here an' help me with this big one.... Melissa - we may need yer fire powers."

Hagrid's real intention, however, was to talk to us away from the rest of the class. He waited until everyone else had set off with their skrewts.

"So - yer competin'. In the tournament. School champions."

"Two of the champions," Harry corrected.

"No idea who put yeh in fer it, Harry?"

"You believe I didn't do it, then?" said Harry.

"Course I do," Hagrid grunted. "Yeh say it wasn' you, an' I believe yeh - an' Dumbledore believes yer, an' all. If Melissa put 'er name in... yer mus' be mad ter think that."