"Thank you…" Astoria Greengrass lowered her head, looking a little uneasy. "You actually looked quite handsome today…"
Jon glanced around. Thankfully, Professor McGonagall had left the office after dealing with the magpie.
Now it was just the two of them.
"Professor Dumbledore asked Professor Snape to see if I'd be willing to be a Champion's partner… I guessed it must be you, so I agreed…" Astoria stammered. "Professor Snape said Professor Dumbledore told me not to tell you in advance… He said…"
"A surprise, huh?" Jon said lightly, smiling as he took Astoria's hand. "I never imagined the ball would hold such a surprise."
Jon felt he could now happily help Snape process another hundred Ashwinder eggs, listen to ten of Grindelwald's speeches with Dumbledore, or face ten Ukrainian Ironbellies in a row without hesitation.
Astoria's arm was a little stiff with nervousness, but she still held Jon's hand tightly.
"It's almost time. Shall we head to the Great Hall?" Jon suggested softly.
"Sure!" Astoria answered with a sweet smile.
...
The doors of the Great Hall swung open.
Professor McGonagall led the way, followed by the champions and their partners, who entered in pairs. The chattering crowd parted to form a path for them.
"Jon, I'm a little nervous," Astoria whispered.
They were the last of the four champion pairs, and Jon could hear the crowd whispering and pointing at them.
"It's fine!" Jon smiled. "Just think of it as Potions class."
Astoria smiled too, though she gripped Jon's hand even tighter.
The walls of the Great Hall shimmered with silver frost, while the ceiling reflected a star-studded night sky, decorated with hundreds of sprigs of mistletoe and garlands of ivy.
The four long house tables had vanished, replaced by dozens of smaller lantern-lit tables, each seating about a dozen people.
Jon heard many people greeting him and responded with polite smiles. Astoria, however, shyly lowered her head, avoiding her classmates' eyes. Even when her sister called out to her, she didn't dare say a word.
Daphne Greengrass was partnered with Draco Malfoy, who looked unusually displeased for some reason. Ernie Macmillan was with Susan Bones, both of them waving excitedly at Jon. Jon also spotted Ron Weasley, his face dark and brooding, not sparing his partner Parvati Patil a single glance.
The champions reached the head table. Dumbledore smiled warmly. Madame Maxime gave Cedric a look of approval, while Karkaroff's expression grew strained as Hermione drew closer.
Ludo Bagman had arrived, wearing a bright purple robe covered in large yellow stars. As Jon had expected, Barty Crouch was absent.
His assistant Percy Weasley sat in his place, looking smug and self-important as he greeted Harry Potter.
The five judges, along with the four champions and their partners, took their seats at the head table
Each had a golden plate before them—empty for now, but accompanied by a small menu.
Jon picked up his menu and read softly, "Beef Bourguignon!"
A plate of French beef appeared instantly on his tray, earning him a surprised glance from Astoria.
Jon leaned closer and explained, "I think the beef bourguignon tastes the best. The Provençal stew and the bacon quiche are good too... But skip the sweet and sour pork chops—they're far too sweet, completely unpalatable..."
Astoria blinked at him, while several others at the table stared at Jon in surprise.
"Ahem!" Dumbledore looked at his menu without expression, then said clearly, "Pork chops!"
A glazed pork chop appeared instantly on his golden plate. Dumbledore cheerfully speared a piece, licked the caramelized glaze, and glanced around.
"Everyone, dig in!"
The others quickly followed, ordering their own favorite dishes.
Jon and Astoria had Percy Weasley and Ludo Bagman seated to their left, while Hermione Granger and Viktor Krum sat to their right.
"I'm afraid Mr. Crouch is not doing well—not at all well. Ever since the World Cup, he hasn't been himself, which isn't surprising—" Percy Weasley was briefing Dumbledore on his superior's condition.
"The World Cup was a terrible failure for the entire Ministry, especially for Mr. Crouch... because of that damn house-elf, Winnie or whatever his name is, misbehaving…"
Jon glanced at Hermione, expecting her to leap to the house-elf's defense. But she seemed completely absorbed in her conversation with Viktor Krum, not paying the slightest attention to Percy's remarks.
"Ah, we have a castle too. I don't think it's as big as this one, nor as comfortable—it's very oppressive." Krum was describing Durmstrang in his broken English. "In summer, we fly around outside every day, over lakes, over mountains—"
Fleur Delacour and Harry Potter were by far the most subdued pairings. Harry, like a boy in his first romance, was flustered in everything he did and fussing over Cho Chang.
Fleur, on the other hand, was irritably complaining about Hogwarts. "These decorations are nothing special. At Beauxbatons, our Great Hall is adorned with ice sculptures at Christmas—that is true beauty..."
Their partners, Cedric Diggory and Cho Chang, only responded with polite nods and murmurs. Jon couldn't help but feel there was some juicy scandal brewing there.
He was chewing his beef while observing the scene when a crisp voice suddenly whispered by his ear.
"Open wide!" A cool breath tickled against his ear.
Jon parted his lips just as something plump and smooth slipped into his mouth—Astoria had fed it to him.
"Is it good?" Astoria asked shyly in a low voice. "I just shucked the oyster... I hope you don't mind..."
"Absolutely amazing!" Jon blinked. "I've never tasted anything so delicious!"