Bellamy stood nervously at the edge of the dock, looking into the black water of the lake below him. His body was covered in goose-bumps and he shivered at the thought of diving into the darkness that slapped the underside to the dock beneath. He looked up impatiently, wondering what was taking so long for them to make their announcements and explain the rules of the second trial. He decided to search the crowds for comforting faces, but could not spot either the bright eyes of his sister, Octavia, or the reassuring smile of his secret crush, Murphy. He turned to Lincoln, who stood next to him, who didn't seem nervous at all – more eager than anything else.
"Lincoln, have you seen O?" Bellamy asked.
"No…I haven't," he replied, a catch in his throat gave away his fears, and confirmed Bellamy's.
"Last night, something of value was stolen from each of the three contestants and brought down into the depths of the Black Lake. You have one hour to retrieve it and return to the surface," Headmaster Abby announced with a booming voice that rang out across the water's surface.
The canon went off and the group dived into the water. Bellamy's vision was blurred momentarily as he held his breath. Once he regained his vision, he pulled his wand from the halter strapped to his leg and pointed it toward his own face and cast the bubble-head charm. He took in a deep breath once the air had formed around the lower portion of his face and began to look about his environment. Both of the other contestants of the tournament were already gone and out of sight. Bellamy caught a slight movement out of the corner of his eye and quickly turned. He watched as a fish tail glided into the tall seaweed forest and decided to take a chance, swimming after it.
The seaweed clung to him, as if purposefully trying to pull him back. The more Bellamy pulled the more he got caught, though. He began to panic until he used his wand to blast it away, causing a disturbance in the water. He swam away quickly, not wanting to wait for what he might have grabbed the attention of. The seaweed began to thin out and he watched as mermaids zipped past, going up a hill. At the top he could only just see three figures tied to the end of ropes, floating like underwater balloons. They each wore Hogwarts robes and then he recognized each of them – Clarke, Octavia and Murphy.
He made his way to them as quickly as possible – he was the first to reach them. Bellamy swiped his wand at them and all three ropes cut free, releasing his friends and sister. A blast came from behind him, pushing him aside and a speedy Lexa swooped in and gathered up Clarke. She was gone as fast as she had swooped in.
Bellamy was torn, though. Octavia was obviously meant for Lincoln to save, but Bellamy did not trust him to save her. She was his sister, after all. But then there was also Murphy. He could take both, right? Wrong. Mermaids swam in and watched over Bellamy suspiciously. He didn't have a choice, and he knew he'd regret whichever choice he decided upon. He grabbed Octavia's arm and began to swim upwards, but he could feel something grab around his ankles and pull him back down to the depths at an alarming rate. He pushed Octavia up to the surface and she glided lightly upward. The mermaids continued to drag him down, though and he quickly turned to face them, pointing his wand at them. They let go immediately and retreated back to the seaweed forests to hide. Bellamy took the opportunity to dive back down for Murphy and looked into his stoic face. Bellamy frowned and took him up under his arms and swam to the surface. They broke the water's surface and as they did so, Murphy snapped out of his trance and gasped for air.
"You alright? Bellamy asked him.
Murphy nodded nervously as he treaded the water. He looked rather panicked and Bellamy took him back up in his arms and helped him to the dock. Octavia was there with Lincoln, who was draping a blanket on her. Lexa and Clarke were also already on the dock, their hair both stringy and dripping wet as they shivered in each other's arms. Last. Bellamy had claimed last place. Damn.
He helped Murphy up the ladder and began to climb out himself. Murphy turned and grabbed his hand, but as he did so, Bellamy was pulled back down into the water. Something had caught around his ankles again. Murphy was pulled off his feet and landed, chest flat on the dock, but he did not let go of Bellamy.
"Bellamy! Hang on! I won't let you go!" Murphy shouted. Lincoln pulled out his wand and pointed it at the water by Bellamy's feet, blasting a bright light down at the creature that Bellamy had angered. Bellamy was released and Murphy pulled him up the rest of the way. Bellamy curled up into a ball under a blanket the Murphy pulled over his shoulders and the two huddled close together.
"You're okay, Bellamy. You're okay," Murphy kept repeating, still worried that Bellamy would be taken away from him again. Bellamy looked into his scared eyes and smiled at him.
"Let's get the hell out of here," Bellamy stated bluntly.
A smile grew across Murphy's face and he followed Bellamy back to a boat toward the castle, staying close to keep warm – or at least, that's what they wanted everyone else to think as they held each other close under the blankets.