Through the Pages of Time: Joey’s Hogwarts Tale

Valentine's Day had never been a big deal for Joey, but this year was different. She'd received countless love letters—well, technically, they were for Ryan—and a mountain of chocolates. For the first time, she appreciated the holiday. Free chocolate and the admiration of so many lovely girls? It was fantastic.

Fred watched as Joey nodded to a Hufflepuff girl, promising to deliver her love letter to Ryan. "Didn't you tell them you and Ryan aren't talking with each other anymore?" he asked, curious.

Joey stuffed the twenty-fourth love letter and a beautifully wrapped gift into her bag, popping a piece of chocolate into her mouth. "Ryan started talking to me again yesterday, so I guess the cold war's over. Oh, this is cranberry flavor—you'll love it!" She broke off a piece and shoved it into Fred's mouth.

Fred choked, his face turning red as he coughed, but he refused to spit out the chocolate.

"Good, right?" Joey said, assuming his reaction was due to the deliciousness of the chocolate.

George patted his brother's back sympathetically. He'd figured out Fred's feelings for Joey after a long talk over Christmas. Poor Fred was head over heels for Joey, and George couldn't understand why. Joey wasn't exactly the picture of grace and charm. But as a brother, George had to support Fred, even if it meant leaving them alone more often.

---

Joey headed to the Ravenclaw tower to deliver the love letters, but the bronze eagle knocker stopped her. "Why have you come here?" it asked.

Joey frowned. "What? I'm here to see Ryan Forest. Do you know him?"

"Why have you come here?" the eagle repeated.

Joey tried again, louder this time. "I'm looking for Ryan Forrest!"

"Why have you come here?" the eagle persisted.

Joey leaned in close, enunciating each word. "I. Am. Here. To. See. Ryan."

The eagle remained unmoved. "Why have you come here?"

Joey groaned, ready to give up, when she heard laughter behind her. She turned to see Cho, tears streaming down her face as she tried to stifle his laughter.

"What's so funny?" Joey demanded, hands on her hips.

Cho wiped her eyes. "You're supposed to answer the riddle, not just repeat yourself."

Joey's jaw dropped. "Riddle? What riddle? It just kept asking the same question!"

Cho chuckled. "That "was" the riddle. You're supposed to think about it."

Joey glared at the eagle. "Your Ravenclaw door knocker needs to retire. It's useless!"

Cho laughed harder. "You're right, it's terrible. But seriously, why are you here?"

Joey sighed. "I'm delivering love letters to Ryan. Do you know where he is?"

Cho nodded. "He's in the library. I can take them to him if you want."

Joey hesitated. She didn't want to trek all the way to the library, but she also felt guilty about delegating her "love messenger" duties. Finally, the lure of poker won out. "Fine, you can take them."

As she started pulling out the letters and gifts, Ryan appeared, his face stormy. "What are you doing?!" he demanded.

Joey froze. "I—"

Ryan snatched the letters from Cho's hands and shoved them into his pocket. "Did you learn to write love letters in second year?" He glared at Cho.

Cho raised her hands in surrender. "I was just helping."

Ryan turned back to Joey. "Go back to Gryffindor. Play with Fred. Play with George. Stop messing around with this things!"

Joey tried to explain, but Ryan cut her off. "No excuses! Go!"

Cho gave Joey a helpless look, clearly unwilling to intervene.

Finally, Joey snapped. "These are love letters for you! I was just asking Cho to deliver them!"

Ryan froze, his face turning red. "What?"

Joey dumped the rest of the letters and gifts into Ryan's bag, pulling out a dungbomb chocolate by mistake. "Oops, that's mine."

Ryan stared at his bag, horrified. "What's all this?"

"Love letters and Valentine's gifts from your admirers," Joey said, grinning. "You're quite popular, you know. Even Senior Betty from Gryffindor sent you one!"

Ryan's face turned crimson. "I don't know any Senior Betty! Take these back!"

Joey stepped back, clutching her bag. "Nope! You're a man, aren't you? These girls poured their hearts into these letters. The least you can do is read them!"

Ryan glared at her, grabbed his bag, and stormed off. He'd never read Betty's letter—or any of them.

Before leaving, Ryan turned to Cho. "Sorry for the misunderstanding. I overreacted."

Cho nodded. "No problem. Just a misunderstanding."

Ryan cleared his throat. "Let's go in."

Joey watched as Ryan and Cho approached the eagle knocker. "Why have you come here?" it asked.

Ryan replied, "To cross the ocean of knowledge and seek the truth."

Cedric added, "Knowledge changes destiny."

The door opened, and Joey stared in disbelief. "What kind of nonsense is that?!"

Cho glanced back at Joey, barely containing his laughter, before following Ryan inside.

Joey shook her head. Ravenclaws were weird.