An American at Hogwarts: Book Two

Chapter Forty-Five

"Cedric." Cedric and I both turned at the sound of his name to see Percy looking at us, his attention away from boasting at least for a minute. "I didn't get the chance to say this last night during the movie, but I really must say it now. Alexa is... well, you should just know... if you ever hurt her, I will use my incredible pull at the Ministry to make sure you truly regret it."

I had to duck my head into a menu to keep from snorting in Percy's face. 'Incredible pull at the Ministry' my ass. As far as I knew, Crouch still called him Weatherby.

Thankfully, Cedric was a little more graceful than I was. He nodded, looking Percy in the eye to let him know he took this threat seriously. I had to keep my head buried in the menu to stop myself from laughing at that too.

"Don't worry. I would never dream of hurting Alexa. And I'll keep your warning firmly in mind, too."

Percy nodded curtly, looking satisfied, then turned to me.

"Alexa, are you alright? Have you decided what you want for dinner yet?"

"Yeah, uh..." I coughed, forcing myself to get a grip. "I'm just looking at that now. It's just gonna be so hard to decide..."

I appreciated the sentiment, but Percy needed an intervention sooner than I'd originally thought.

After a few minutes, Percy turned back to Harry, and I got a chance to look at Cedric again. I knew if we'd made eye contact while Percy was still posturing all over the conversation I wouldn't have been able to control my laughter anymore.

"You know, for someone who boasts a bunch of training as a spy, you did a pretty horrible job of playing that off," Cedric teased, leaning in to whisper to me.

"And for someone with absolutely no training as a spy you played that off like a pro! Seriously, how did you keep from losing your mind laughing when he said 'incredible pull at the Ministry'?"

Cedric and I laughed and talked for the rest of dinner, eventually turning to speak to our table mates too. Dinner was amazing, just like it always was at Hogwarts, and once everyone finished Dumbeldore stood and asked us all to do the same. Once we did, he waved his wand and sent the tables and chairs flying to the walls to leave a perfect space in the middle of the Hall for a dance floor. He conjured up a stage and instruments along the right wall, and a group of people that looked kind of like a punk rock band started heading up to deafening cheers.

"That's the Weird Sisters!" Cedric yelled to me over the noise in the Hall. I had no idea what that meant, but the excitement was still infectious as the lights around the Hall went out.

"I guess that's our cue!" I said. The applause died down a bit as I took Cedric's arm and we headed to the middle of the room. The other couples joined us on the brightly lit dance floor, and we got into position to dance as the Weird Sisters struck up a slow waltz.

Cedric and I glided across the floor like we were meant for it. I glanced around at the other couples occasionally, and although Viktor and Hermione were adorable and Fleur glided across the room, I thought Cedric and I probably looked the most natural. We were just comfortable with each other, in a way the other couples weren't.

Poor Harry looked like he was going to be sick.

I smiled at Cedric and he spun me around, which wasn't technically part of the dance, but it was fun. Our friends smiled and waved at us, and all the guys in our group plus Angelina did a really exaggerated synchronized double wink, still teasing me about this morning's Howler. I just rolled my eyes and focused on Cedric, smiling at me as we whirled around the Hall together. I got butterflies in my stomach just looking at him, and whatever else was going on this year, this moment just felt right.

It wasn't long before other people started joining in on the waltz, teachers and students alike. Couples twirled around us everywhere we looked, smiling and tripping over their own feet and just being adorable. Some of the other champions now looked much more comfortable too, since we weren't the center of attention anymore.

Finally, the last note of the waltz rang out and everyone slowed to a stop. We all applauded, Cedric and I staying on the floor and smiling instead of rushing off like some of the others. Then, the Weird sisters started playing again, this time choosing a much faster song.

Cedric and I worked our way back to our group of friends, and we all started jumping and dancing around like maniacs. George and Angelina were arguably the most enthusiastic, and several people literally had to dive out of the way of all their flailing.

Whatever this popular wizard song was, I had never heard it before. That didn't stop me from enjoying it as Cedric swung me around the Hall and we jumped up and down with the rest of our friends, most of them screaming along with the lyrics. The song ended, and we all took a minute to catch our breath before the next one started up.

"So, Alexa, what do you think of the Weird Sisters?" asked Cedric. He was flushed, and panting a little, but he was smiling like a maniac too.

"I've only heard a couple songs, but so far they're great! I can see what all the hype was about!"

Before Cedric could respond, Hermione rushed past us, her earlier glowing smile gone. She looked insanely frustrated as she stormed across the dance floor, and a quick glance over my shoulder told me she'd probably come from a conversation with Ron and Harry, who were sulking at a table on the far side of the Hall.

"Hey, Ced, give me a minute? I need to go talk to Hermione."

"Sure thing. I'll go let Krum know she'll be right back, and I'll keep him with us until you've talked to Hermione."

"You're the best." I gave Cedric a quick kiss on the cheek, then hustled across the dance floor after Hermione. I found her pacing along the wall as far from Ron and Harry as she could get, red in the face and looking ready to burst with anger or frustration, whichever overwhelmed her first. "Hermione! Hey, what happened?"

"It's Ron! I can't believe him, the horrible little git! Of course he can't be happy for me, can't be happy that I'm here with Viktor having a good time!"

She was pacing aggressively for this whole rant, and on her next lap I got in front of her and took her by the shoulders.

"Hermione, listen to me. I'm about to give you some advice that might be kind of hard to follow, but is also an excellent mantra to take through life with you. You ready?" She took a deep breath and nodded, looking determined. "Fuck. Him. Honestly, you don't need him. He's being stupid and bitter, so fuck him and whatever comments he made. You can work through it and start the process to go back to being friends later. Tonight, ignore him and everything he says to you. If he's not gonna build you up and make you happy, you don't need him. You deserve to have the time of your life tonight."

"I don't know, Alexa... it's really not that simple..."

"It never is! But the more you can embrace that mindset, the easier it'll be keep his negativity from impacting your night."

"I suppose that makes sense..."

"Hermione. I'm gonna need you to say it with me. Ron wants to be an idiot and not appreciate you? Fuck him."

"Well..."

"On three, alright? No looking back. One, two, three. Fuck him."

"Fuck him."

Hermione spoke in unison with me, and I couldn't help grinning at her use of the phrase. After a second, she got back to smiling too, shaking off the bad energy from Ron and getting a little bit of her glow back.

"Thank you, Alexa. I really needed that."

"No problem. I'm glad I could help. Now come on, my date's been corralling yours, but if we don't get back soon Cedric may get too starstruck over the Quidditch legend Viktor Kurm and let him get away."

Hermione giggled as we made our way back across the dance floor, meeting up with my friend group and, thankfully, Viktor Krum. He and Hermione started chatting happily again, but the atmosphere seemed a little subdued. I looked around to see the twins going after Bagman again, and Harry and Ron still moping with Percy. The dance as a whole was going strong, but my friends needed something to re-energize them.

I knew just the thing.