Harry Potter: The Ring Maker

Chapter 526: Chat at dinner

After that everyone filed into the castle with the Hogwarts students taking their seats in the great hall in their normal house tables. Beauxbatons split their population between the Gryffindor , Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables while most of Durmstrag students sat at the Slytherin table. The reason it was most and not all like in canon was because Krum had chosen to sit near Nick at the Gryffindor table. Ron was more than happy to see this as Krum was a a very good seeker who even played for the Bulgarian team professionally.-

While Rons fandom for quidditch had fallen by a good deal after Nick introduced blitzball that didn't mean he didn't still enjoy it. "Is it true that you are almost as powerful as the great white wizard?" Krum asked Nick curiously. If it wasn't absolutely clear at this point Nick was the reason Krum had chosen to sit at the Gryffindor table rather than the Slytherin like the rest of his school mates. Judging from the approving look Karkaroff had when he entered the great hall it was obvious that he was perfectly content with this arrangement.-

"It is , no need to worry about the tournament though I will not be participating." Nick said honestly. Krum nodded in understanding "This is good , would not be a fair competition if you did." he said seriously. "My thoughts exactly , not to say you or the other participants aren't skilled but I am a bit of a freak of nature." Nick said with a shrug since it didn't bother him at all. "Why do you assume that I will be chosen?" Krum asked curiously. "Consider it intuition if you'd like. I just have a feeling you'll be the one to represent your school." Nick said with a smirk.-

"I thank you for your confidence in me then." Krum said with a smile like it was some sort of achievement. "I am aware of your exploits in the quidditch field but have you by chance tried blitzball yet and if so what are your thoughts on the matter? Feel free to speak candidly as I truly want to know how a professional athlete sees my sport." Nick asked while casually changing the subject. Before Krum could answer however Dumbledore made his whole welcoming speech from canon before the food arrived. Nick wasn't shy about trying the various foreign dishes that appeared with gusto.-

He was a big fan of the borscht beetroot soup that was a fine mix of sweet , sour and savory flavors. A few other people saw him trying each of the foreign dishes and listening to his commentary on them chose to give them a try as well. It was to be expected however as Nick was a pretty well known gourmet in the castle so things he recommended were usually quite good. Quite a lot of attention was focused on him because of how much food he was consuming however as it seemed to be an incredible amount.-

The funny parts was that Krum tried to compete with Nick in his ravenous consumption but fell short ever so slightly. "Are you also an athlete?" the boy asked in amazement during the meal. "In a manner of speaking." Nick said with a shrug as he fed Nazgul a blood sausage. She was of course in her shrunk down dog sized state but her true size was slightly bigger than an adult Hungarian horntail dragon. "What an unusual creature , your familiar right?" Krum asked as he observed Nazgul that was begging like a puppy for scraps.-

An odd thing considering how insanely dangerous she was but she was pretty much the most mild mannered creature he had ever seen. "Don't let the cute face fool you this one here is more dangerous than any dragon alive and is actually shrunk down from her true size at the moment." Nick warned casually. He meant it too as Nazgul could more likely than not slaughter even the tier five dragon in the molten lake without any issue at all. Krum's expression was conflicted as he looked to be torn between petting her and avoiding her. -

"Behind her horns." Nick suggested and Krum looked confused "What?" he asked not understanding what he meant. "She likes to be scratched behind her horns , give it a go she won't hurt you." Nick encouraged and Krum nervously did so before smiling contentedly as Nazgul eagerly accepted the attention. "I swear that ones got more fans than you at this point." Hermione joked and Nick shrugged. "She's adorable and I am definitely not the friendliest of people." he said honestly.