the one | h. potter

36. photographs

The Daily Prophet: Sunday, November 1st, 1998

"Is Potter a Player?"

By Rita Skeeter

As soon as he sees the title Harry sighs. "Knew it," he sings. I shush him.

Yesterday, Hogwarts hosted its first annual Hallow's Eve Ball. Students and alumni were invited, and along with them, so was our favorite hero.

Harry Potter was spotted at the ball, dressed as a pirate, with his close friends and colleagues. One would think he would try to keep it low-key after split with girlfriend (now ex) Ginny Weasley last week, but Potter had no comment and continued to dance the night away. He was spotted dancing with no less than twenty girls...

"Wow," I snort, "you are a player."

"Shut up! It was only..." Harry counts silently on his fingers. "I don't know. Not that many!"

"Oh yeah? Name them."

"Uhhh. Okay. You, Hermione, Luna, Ginny, Hannah... Parvati and Padma, they asked me, that blonde Hufflepuff girl... ugh I always forget her name. Hey! Don't give me that face!"

I'm smirking at him. "You could have said no if they asked you."

"I wanted to be polite."

I roll my eyes. "Of course you did," I reply, and keep reading out loud.

... including some high-profile women. Notably, he danced with his now ex-girlfriend Ginny Weasley (we still confirm that although the couple has split, our sources say they are still good friends), longtime friend Hermione Granger...

"Took her long enough," Harry mutters.

"What?" I ask. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, in the fourth year she printed that Hermione and I were together. And that was the year she went to the Yule Ball with Victor Krum... so Skeeter said that Hermione cheated on me with Krum."

"Oh, shit. I remember that," I reply. "I felt bad for her."

"Mmm," Harry says. "Keep reading."

"Sorry."

Luna Lovegood, who Potter's been spotted with on numerous occasions, and several other Hogwarts students. The most notable and intriguing of Potter's partners, however, was Elizabeth Smith. Smith is the last known living descendant of Merlin, and now works with Potter; our sources tell us they're in the same training group.

Harry and I exchange a worried glave before I go back to reading.

Smith and Potter even wore similar costumes to the Ball, Potter as a pirate and Smith as a mermaid. Although their costumes could very well be a coincidence, they might not have been. So, does our Savoir already have a new girlfriend? Many fans ask themselves this question as they view the photographs taken at the Ball last night, and you, reader, should take a look too.

Harry and I shift our gaze to the next page, where five moving photographs are printed in black and white ink.

One was a photo of Harry dancing with Ginny. In the picture, it was clear that they were talking, and Ginny was smirking while Harry blushed red and laughed.

"That's when I asked Ginny about your dress," Harry points, sliding his arms around my waist. I lean into his touch.

The next was a picture of Harry and Hermione. Hermione was talking, and Harry was listening to her, a faint smile on his lips.

The third photograph was with Luna. Her bright yellow dress wasn't captured in the black and white film, so her dress just looked painstakingly bright. Her eyes looked a bit spaced out, and while she was talking (probably about some sort of plant/creature she thought existed), Harry did his best to look interested.

"Your face in this one," I point. "Priceless."

Harry wrinkles his nose. "I don't remember what she was talking about, it might have been Nargles or something..."

"But you were being a gentleman and listening."

Harry smiled. "Glad you can tell." I giggle.

The fourth and fifth photographs are my favorite. One is a picture of Harry and I dancing, or, specifically, me dancing and Harry standing on my toes. From the angle the photo is taken at, it's easy to tell that he's standing on my toes and that I'm leading him in the dance. My lips are pursed in a faint smile and my eyes deep in concentration. Harry's looking down at his feet, but his smile is unmistakable as he watched me move mine. The fifth and final picture is one of Harry and I dancing to the slow song. My hands on his neck and his hands on my waist seem terribly innocent, and we're both smiling at one another. Contrary to the other pictures, where the partner is talking and Harry is listening, Harry's lips are the ones moving and I'm looking at him like... like he's the only thing in the world. I stare at my face for a couple of moments, until the photo rewinds and the movements start again. Was I really looking at him like that?

"Well," Harry says. "We've got to keep these."

"They're gorgeous," I marvel. I turn towards him. "Let's make a book."

Harry gives me a confused look. "A book?"

"A scrapbook, I mean."

"Hmm," Harry thinks. "That's a good idea."

"I've always wanted to make one. I've just never had a reason to."

I point my finger at the books and mutter a Diffindo under my breath. The two photographs cut themselves out of the newspaper and float upwards. I grab them in midair.

"I say, let's put them in a box."

"What? Why in a box?"

"We don't have enough photo's for a scrapbook, do we?" I point out.

He thinks for a moment. "I know!" Harry stands up and goes to retrieve something. I hear him stomp up the stairs and run down the hall. He returns a minute later with an empty glass frame, one that I remember sits on the bedside table on his side of the bed...

"No," I say. "You don't have to..."

"I want to." Harry smiles big at me. He removes the glass frame and enlarges both photographs so they can sit side by side in the frame. He closes it and I look at it with wonder.

"Really?"

Harry tilts my face up towards his. "Really."

Kissing him is as easy, as necessary as breathing.