Disclaimer: Anything you recognize belongs to J. K. Rowling.
Author's note: Thanks to everyone who still reads and reviews after I've been taking so long. It means a lot to me. This chapter is a bit longer and I think it's more insightful than the last one. I like how it turned out and I hope you like it too.
Replies:
Schwaz—I hope I didn't take to long updating this time. Thanks for reviewing.
Greyhawk—This chapter is longer. Maybe they will play it. I don't know yet.
Right-claw—Thanks. I'm not sure about Dumbledore. Maybe the fact that cooperating in pretending to cooperate will count.
Chapter 74: Muffled Voices
Harry woke up groggily, hearing voices. No, it was just one voice. And it was saying his name.
"Harry! Harry! Harry Potter! Answer the mirror! Harry!"
Groggily, Harry pulled the mirror out from under his pillow, realizing the source of the noise and looked at it to see not his own face, but Neville Longbottom's.
No one else was awake yet,
"Neville, I'm here. Quiet down or you'll wake everyone. Nobody else is up yet."
"Harry, I've been trying to contact you for days."
"I've been trying the same," he whispered, not wanting to wake anyone.
"We must have just kept missing each other then. We've got a crazy class and meal schedule. The other day we had a 6:15 in the morning Defense Against the Dark Arts class."
"I got your message from McGonagall, but I couldn't bring the mirror to class with me. It wouldn't fit in my pocket and I didn't want it to start going off in the middle of a lesson."
"Good thinking."
"How are things wherever you are? All Dumbledore told us was that he sent all of you on a retreat of sorts to help you bond."
"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. We never even left the castle. He transformed the third floor corridor into a couple of dormitories and a common room and a classroom. It's miserable, but we finally figured out how to get out of here. Dumbledore won't let us out until we get along and the rest of the school starts to get along. We don't want to be stuck here, so we've finally managed to convince the Slytherins to pretend to get along with us."
"Sounds good."
"But that's where you come in."
"What do you need me to do?" he asked, ready to help without hesitation.
"I need you to be an ambassador to the other houses. Talk to the Gryffindors in the common room, all of them together. Explain that they've got to get along with the Slytherins, or at least act like they're getting along with them. It's the only way."
"And if the Slytherins don't want to cooperate back?"
"That's the second part. I need you to talk to the Slytherins and get them to cooperate."
"Me?"
"That's right, Neville. You've got to do it. Otherwise we'll never get out of here. I'm counting on you."
Neville took a deep breath and said, "I'll do it."
Harry was fairly certain that Neville had a right to be scared after all that had been happening lately. "Good. The most reasonable ones to talk to are Blaise Zabini and what's-her-name GreenGrass. It'd Dianne or Debbie or something like that."
"Daphne?"
"Yeah, Daphne, that's it. Talk to her. And Malfoy gave me another name too. Blaire Venaver. She's a fourth year. He said she can get a lot of people on her side. I know you can do this, Neville."
"Thanks, Harry. Any particular Ravenclaws or Hufflepuffs I should talk to?"
"No, I can't think of anyone in particular, just use your best judgment. We need them to cooperate as well. Thanks, Neville. I really need this help."
"You can count on me, Harry. The whole atmosphere of the school has been different since Dumbledore took all of you away."
"How so?"
"Everyone's quieter. No one's quite as mean out right but the tension is just as bad, or worse. Everyone seems mad at Dumbledore for canceling the match. If it weren't for the fact that he locked up all the brooms, I don't doubt that they'd have the game anyway in the dead of night, even missing their captains and Seekers."
"What else?"
"Classes are gloomier. The teachers are piling on the work. Dumbledore hasn't canceled any clubs though. He said that unlike Quidditch, the clubs promote inter-House unity. Things are bad, Harry. Things are really bad. He said, if he doesn't see an improvement by the end of the week, he's going to do away with house tables and start making us all eat together by year. If that doesn't help, I've even heard some people saying his going to mix the Houses up. Uh-oh, Dean and Seamus are waking up. I've got to go. I'll talk to you again later, Harry."
"Bye, Neville."
Neville's face disappeared from the mirror, replaced by Harry's own reflection.
"So, Longbottom's your contact?" drawled Malfoy quietly, next to Harry.
Harry looked up sharply and almost collided with Malfoy. How had he gotten there so quickly from the other side of the room?
"We're all doomed. There's no way Longbottom'll talk to Zabini and Greengrass. Venaver neither. He doesn't have the guts," Malfoy said, matter-of-factly.
"As if Slytherins are intimidating, you mean? I don't know if you've noticed or not, Malfoy, but Neville's a Gryffindor," Harry retorted quietly. "Gryffindors don't scare easily. They don't back away."
"Neither do Slytherins," countered Malfoy. "That's something you petty little Gryffies haven't gotten through your thick skulls yet."
"What are you talking about, Malferret? Slytherins are conniving little backstabbers and weasels."
"Slytherins survive. Do you think it's easy walking around everyday in a school where everyone else hates you? Do you? You have no idea what kind gut that takes, Potter. And you never will."
Harry started to say something, but Malfoy just shook his head.
"And loyalty? I know Slytherins that would give Hufflepuffs a run for their gold. Slytherins stick together because we don't have anybody else. No one else is going to reach out and lend a hand to Slytherins. Not unless they're being charitable do-goodies who want to earn brownie points with the old man at the top of the school. We don't need that type of charity. We do fine on our own."
Harry tried to protest. Hermione always did anything she did out of the goodness of her heart.
"Just don't," Malfoy said, looking disgusted. "As far as brains, most Slytherins have brains that'll fly circles around Ravenclaws. Some are the silent type, like Zabini. But why share ideas when no one wants to hear them? When no one wants to hear them because you're a Slytherin and must be wrong or have some ulterior motive up your sleeve? Face it, Potter. You and your lot have got it easy. Being Slytherin isn't easy. Being Slytherin means being dependent when you have to and being dependent on the only ones you can count on. Longbottom doesn't have the guts to talk to my type. Pureblood or not, he just doesn't have it. You'll see. What do you think'll happen? Longbottom will gather up some Ravenclaws, and a couple of Hufflepuffs for good measure, and then they'll confront the Slytherins as a little mob and try to talk reason with them. If reason fails, they'll prepare to use force. Nothing'll really change, even if all of us manage to get out of here. None of you can possibly understand what it means to be a Slytherin." With a last withering glance, the kind that makes the person being looked at feel as though they're about three inches tall, Malfoy turned heel and left, heading toward the bathroom to shower and try to wrestle his hair flat.
Harry stared after him, thinking about what Malfoy said, wondering just how much Malfoy was right or wrong.
Ron sat up in the bed next to his, rubbing his eyes. "I heard voices. Who was talkin'? Somebody fightin'?"
"No. No fighting. Just go back to sleep, Ron."
Ron promptly fell back to the bed with a loud snore.
Harry sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep as easily as Ron. He grabbed his robes and headed off into the bathroom to shower. After he was dressed, he brushed his teeth and went out to the common room. The other boys were just getting up and getting ready to start their day.
Harry picked up the deck of cards from one of the tables and set up to play solitaire. No sooner did he have all the cards set up than the immediately went flying in the air. As they came back down, the words NO ONE PLAYS ALONE flashed on the back. Frustrated, Harry started picking the cards up. Hearing someone singing softly, he looked up.
The girl was startled. She'd just come out of the girls' dormitory, not expecting anyone to be in the common room yet.
"Good morning," he said, wondering who she was.
"Good morning. I'm sorry; I didn't mean to disturb you. I'll be going." She turned to go back into her dormitory.
"You don't have to go. I was just picking these cards up." He showed the ones in his hand.
"That's alright. I was just coming out here to clear my head a little." She bent down to help him pick up the rest of the cards and put them back in the box.
"What's your name?" He wasn't sure why, but he wanted to talk to her.
"Helen. Helen Horowitz, of Hufflepuff actually," she said shyly.
"Harry Potter, Gryffindor. Would you like to sit down?"
With a nod she seated herself in the chair opposite of him. She was a shy girl, but friendly enough. She had blonde hair as straight as hay and open, friendly eyes.
A few moments passed in silence as they observed one another.
On impulse, he asked, "Helen, what does being a Hufflepuff mean to you? What makes Hufflepuffs different from the other Houses?"
"I think that Hufflepuffs see the farthest. Well, I mean, the other Houses are about achieving an end, typically not something long term. They don't exactly consider what might result from what they do. Hufflepuffs try to take in everything, and see what's best for everyone involved. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Gryffindors don't have good intentions, but you're a rash bunch. Everyone knows that. Everyone knows about you and your hero complex." Her eyes widened and she put a hand over her mouth realizing what she just said. It didn't exactly seem wise to just up and tell the Harry Potter that he had a hero complex.
"It's alright, Helen. Keep going. It's not as though I haven't heard that one before."
"I mean, when you rush off to go help someone, you don't think about how you could get hurt or someone involved could get hurt. Helping people is a good thing. We Hufflepuffs pride ourselves on compassion, but we do it in smaller ways. We don't really like to make waves. Well, most of us don't. Some people are rather pompous. But if the world can spin along peacefully, we should just let things be. Did you know that the Hufflepuff house has more tutors and study groups than any other house? More than the chivalrous Gryffindors, more than the brainy Ravenclaws, and more than the lonely Slytherins. Being a Hufflepuff isn't just about loyalty and common sense and doing the safe thing. It's about doing what's right for everybody. It's a belief in the greater good and doing what you can to aid it. Being a Hufflepuff means being a rock when Gryffindors are rushing around you, trying to be brave and openly confront whatever is coming at them and being there to pick up the pieces for them afterwards or support them beforehand. Being a rock when Ravenclaws are buzzing with new ideas and knowledge and sticking to what you know while trying to find a way to introduce the new information to others who don't respond well to change. Being a rock when Slytherins are around, trying to be tough when they're lonely inside. That's what being a Hufflepuff means. It takes courage, good sense, and a willingness to sacrifice what's necessary to help those who really need it." She looked away embarrassed. "That's how I feel anyway." She was silent for a while, uncomfortable after her speech.
"Would you sing? You sounded pretty brilliant before you noticed me sitting here," Harry asked, trying to put her at ease.
"I don't like to sing in front of people."
"Nobody's here but me, Helen. I won't laugh. I can't carry a note in a basket."
She started to sing after a moment, her voice was excellent, but she wasn't more than a few words into the song when she stopped suddenly as Ginny and Luna came out into the common room.
"Morning, Helen," Ginny said cheerfully. "See, Luna, I told you I heard voices out here."
"Good morning," she replied, shy again.
"What are you two doing out so early?" asked Harry.
"Flitwick's fifth year class starts in ten minutes," Ginny explained. "I hate having class before breakfast. I can't concentrate." She sat down on the couch next to Helen.
Luna sat on the arm of the couch next to Harry.
"How did things go last night?" asked Harry.
"Could have been worse. But I think Hermione is going to bear the brunt of the burden," Ginny said, trying not to laugh.
"What do you mean?"
"One of the bonding activities for our dorm is going to be that someone from each house is going to get together and give Hermione a makeover."
"They want to cut her hair," Luna added.
"Poor Hermione," Harry said, sympathetically. His having to play Monopoly with Malfoy was nothing compared to her having to submit herself to a makeover.
"How are you going to promote inter-house unity?" Luna asked him.
"Board games mostly, and then a massive game of Twister. If that doesn't work I don't know what it'll take. I talked to Neville and he's going to start getting to work on everybody in the rest of the castle right away."
More people were entering the room as it started to draw nearer to the fifth years' class time. Harry look around him on the couch; Gryffindor, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw. He needed a Slytherin. Flitwick would be there at any moment. He spotted the boy who volunteered to play Chess with Ron and asked Luna what his name was.
"Jeremy Simmawitz."
"Hey, Jeremy, come here a minute," Harry called.
Jeremy look skeptical, but approached. "What do you want?"
"Sit next to Ginny. The sooner the teachers see us acting like a team, the sooner they can decide to let us out of here. What Charm are you guys studying today?"
Jeremy didn't sit. "Color change Charms. They're going to be on our OWLs."
"Perfect. Sit and I can be telling you four about them. Flitwick'll be thrilled. Just sit. Ginny's not going to bite you, you know."
Ginny grinned, revealing her big white teeth.
"Well, she doesn't have rabies at least," offered Harry.
Jeremy sat down slowly. "What's rabies?"
"Er, never mind. Flitwick's coming." Harry started telling them everything he could think of about color change charms.
"Come on, class, we've got to get started," Flitwick called as he entered the room and picked up the wands. He saw Harry and the fifth years sitting with him on the couch, talking about color change charms. "Mr. Potter! How excellent of you to pass your wisdom to the younger generation. Come, class! Fifth years, into the classroom now, follow me." He herded the students into the room, beaming happily.
Harry grinned as soon as the door was shut. Had he called that one or what? Now he just had to deal with all this new information. He knew how he thought of himself. He knew how he thought of the other houses. How much thought had he given to how the other houses think of themselves and each other? He'd have to talk to Helen again. She was certainly someone worth speaking to.
As he settled himself down to do some thinking, Hermione and Ron came and sat next to him on the couch.
"You look tired," Ron told him.
"You'd be surprised. I've had a very busy morning…" He proceeded to tell them what had gone on since Neville woke him up with the mirror.
Later on at breakfast he watched how everyone was acting. Things seemed a little better than the previous breakfasts. No one was exactly buddy-buddy with the Slytherins, but they didn't ignore them, and in return the Slytherins were somewhat civil. Things were improving already.
Things were improving until Jeremy and Ginny started bickering over the last piece of toast and Jeremy threatened to pour his orange juice over her head. Unfortunately, she was quicker and turned her oatmeal upside-down on his head instead. Now that he could justly say that Ginny started it, Jeremy dumped his orange juice on Ginny's head. After that, things went from bad to worse.
Unnoticed by the students, Sir Cadogan did his duty and left the room to track down a teacher. It wasn't long before Hagrid and McGonagall showed up.
Some students were egging Jeremy and Ginny on and joining the fight, others were trying to restrain them and keep things from going from bad to worse before any teachers showed up.
Hagrid and McGonagall came in, Hagrid heading straight for Ginny and Jeremy, "Break it up! Break it up, you two!" He forcibly grabbed Ginny and Jeremy each in one hand by the back of their collars and pulled them apart. They glared viciously at each other, each covered in the other's food.
"Scum!" Jeremy shouted.
"Slytherin!" Ginny shouted, making it an insult.
"Weasley! Simmawitz! Cease and desist this instant!" McGonagall barked, nostrils flaring.
They calmed down a little bit, still glaring daggers at one another.
Harry shook his head. Things had been going so well. They'd never get out of here. They'd be locked up all summer and into next year at this rate.
After strong admonishments from McGonagall and warnings that if they could not get along peaceably at meals, their meals would have to be chaperoned, McGonagall and Hagrid departed.
"What's bloody wrong with you, Ginny?" asked her brother. "It was just a piece of toast. It's not like it was a Chocolate Frog or something.
"It was a matter of principle," she said, wringing out her hair into an empty glasses. "I had it first and he tried to take it."
Hermione gave her an expressionless look. "Ginny, for all that 'principle' where's the toast now?"
Ginny looked around. "Over there, drowned in oatmeal, orange juice, butter, and eggs." Hermione didn't need to say anything else; Ginny got the point.
"I think if we want to do any damage control here, we should work together to clean this mess up," Pansy said, unexpectedly, looking for something to start to wipe up the rather widespread mess.
Following her unexpected lead, most of the group started cleaning up the mess, and that's how they were when Snape came in for the seventh years' potion lesson.
When someone asked Pansy why she offered to help, she replied, "I can't take much more of that snoring every night. The sooner we get out of this place, the better for everyone."
When Ginny had been speaking with her brother and Hermione about the mess, Harry and gone over to the door of the dining room and listen under the bottom. He heard muffled voices.
"I should have known it was too good to be true when Filius said that he saw a Slytherin join a mixed house study group. The students are just as petty as ever. Thank you for breaking up that fight."
"No problem, Professor. I only wish it hadn't started. Tha' Weasley temper and Slytherin stubbornness an' all."
"Will they never learn?"
"I'm 'fraid old habits 're hard ter break, Professor."
"That's true. Things are seemed to be getting worse I'm afraid. If only they would attempt to get along, then perhaps things might be improving around here. A food fight is not an attempt to get along."
"It could be. If it was all in good fun. Met my best friend growin' up when I was flingin' mashed potatoes at the kid next store durin' a block party picnic. Before m' dad an' I moved away from everybody."
Their voices faded out and Harry left his spot to go join in the cleaning up. This sort of information might be useful. There could be a healthy way to channel everyone's anger after all. Maybe not a food fight but there could be something they could do.
Harry resolved to pitch this idea to his friends later on.