The fourth and final task was upon everyone at Hogwarts. Noise came from what seemed like every corner of the world. Kaitlin came out, walking confidently, her red and black uniform with the Hogwarts logo tattered and torn from previous tasks. Sami ran out after her and smiled at her friend, her uniform looking just about the same as Kaitlin's. Carson strode out, a smug grin plastered across his face, wearing his green and black uniform with the Hogwarts logo that looked to have barely a scratch on it. Lastly came little Tyler, just as timid as ever in his yellow and black uniform with the Hogwarts logo, shaking. He didn't seem ready. It seemed almost like he was about to keel over and die right there from fright. Everyone else felt the same way on the inside. They knew that they were in horrible danger. The walls made of shrubbery that they were about to enter could, and if it got the chance, would, devour them alive. The four students lined up, facing the crowd that was going wild in the stadium, yelling out the names of each of the competitors loud and proud, filling the space with joy. Sami glanced down the line at her friend, shooting her a half nervous half excited look. Kaitlin returned it with a huge smile that told her to relax. 'How is that possible? How can I relax?' Sami thought.
Professor Ambrosiues walked out after all the competitors and called silence to the stadium, and talking stopped in mere seconds. "The fourth task is upon us. Mrs. Folsom-" Cheers rang out in the crowd. "-in the lead, then Mrs. Copeland-" Cheers continued to fill the stadium. "-followed by Mr. Layson-" It seemed as thought the cheers would never stop. "-and lastly Mr. Clay.-" As the cheers continued on for what seemed like an eternity, Professor Ambrosiues stood and waited calmly for everyone in the stands to calm down. "The four competitors will be racing to find the Tri Wizard Champion Cup, which our gatekeeper Hagrid has placed at a location in the maze that even I do not know." Loud cheers erupted again from the crowd. "Now, seeing as Mrs. Folsom has the lead, she will enter first, followed by Mrs. Copeland, and so on." He turned from the crowd and motioned the four towards him so he could tell them something. "You three must understand that there are things in that maze that you probably have never seen or experienced. People very much change in that maze. They have in the past. I must warn you to be carful. If at any point you wish to withdraw from the task, simply send up red sparks with your wand." The four nodded in unison. A look of concern flashed across his face for a split second, soon vanishing as he turned towards the crowd again. "Now, Kaitlin, you must go in first. Best of luck to you."
"Alright. I think I'm ready…" She said, her voice slightly shaky. She brushed her hands on her pant legs and looked back at all her friends sitting in the crowd cheering for her. Sami shot a look of confidence at her friend quickly and squeezed her hand.
"You'll do fine," Sami let go of her hand as she walked into the maze.
The ginormous hedge closed behind her, turning the cheers from the crowd and the playing of the band into silence. It was an eerie silence, a silence that almost didn't seem silent it was so quiet. She was on her own, and she knew that in that moment as she looked ahead of her into only darkness and fog. Keeping her footsteps quiet, she started in the direction that she figured to be the center. She was on her way, but she didn't seem to be in a rush about it. Her footsteps landed softly and quietly on the ground. Her body was tense and she turned at any noise. Suddenly, rustling of the hedge came from around the corner, making Kaitlin jump. Hastily, she pressed herself against the hedge and remained as quiet as she possibly could. She evened out her breathing to almost nothing, hoping that whoever, or whatever, it was that was lurking around the corner couldn't hear her. Only half to her surprise, the hedge began to throw vines across her body, encasing her in a vine cocoon. She squirmed around, trying to reach her wand that resided in her pocket, but it was hopeless. She couldn't move. Kaitlin let out a scream of sheer pain as the vines began to tighten around her body. She was praying that someone heard the scream and would help her, if they could get there in time. Suddenly, footsteps came pounding hard on the ground around the corner. Sami's face appeared, somehow already covered in dirt, making her skin darker than it already was.. Her hair was messy as though she had tried to retie her ponytail several time already. To Kaitlin, it looked as though her eyes betrayed her body language. He body seemed ready for anything, and prepared. Her body seemed confident with it's posture set, ready to turn around at the slightest noise. But her eyes seemed to be filled with fear. They darted everywhere, almost never landing on Kaitlin. Her eyes stopped long enough to meet Kaitlin's eyes, which portrayed temporary fear.
Sami pulled out her wand, pointing it directly at the root of the vines incasing her friend. The tension that filled the air made her nervous, causing her hand to shake. "Reducto!" Sami yelled with sudden ferocity. The vines shriveled back, almost making a squealing sound as they did so. Kaitlin dropped to the ground on her hands and knees, gasping for air. Sami stared momentarily at the hedge, bewildered at what had just happened, before dropping down to her friend's side.
"Are you alright?" Sami asked hastily.
Kaitlin gulped. "Yeah…" She muttered. She looked at Sami, her eyes wide in fear. "Thanks… I guess we do have reason to be afraid…" Kaitlin stood up, with Sami right there to help, but before she could let Sami say a word to her, she sprinted around the corner, leaving Sami alone in the dark and fog filled maze.
Sami stared in awe in the direction Kaitlin had gone. Kaitlin had just left her there. She hadn't even given her a chance to say "you're welcome". She had hoped her friend would stay for a minute and talk to her to help calm her nerves and fear. Her hand shook, clutching her wand. She shut her eyes tight, fighting back tears. She had already fallen once and nearly been consumed but those wretched vines. She didn't want anything to happen to her friend, but as she stood there, she had the feeling that she shouldn't have helped Kaitlin. Despite the fact she was her friend, it was a competition. Every man for themselves. Sami kept thinking that she should've just left Kaitlin there to be swallowed up by those ungodly vines. But then again, Kaitlin was her friend. And friends stuck together, right? Sami shook the feeling she had in her stomach and continued around the bend.. She made a mental note to herself not to lean against the hedges unless she wanted to be encompassed in shrubbery for the remainder of her godforsaken life. As she jogged up and down paths, making sharp turns every now and then so she wouldn't run into the hedges, she noticed a faint glow of blueish green far way down one of the paths. Then it hit her; it was the cup.
She walked carefully closer, becoming even more petrified the closer that she got to it, hoping that the cursed vines wouldn't attack her. When she was within sprinting distance, a light breeze came through the air. Sami thought nothing of it and trucked on, determined to get the cup. Suddenly, the wind picked up, blowing stray leaves from the hedges everywhere. She stopped where she was, contemplating whether or not to keep going, when the walls started to rapidly close in, forcing her away from the cup. The branches and vines closed around her, making her escape slower. Once she wriggled her way out of the plant's grasp, she ran as fast as she could, the hedge not too far behind her. She was frantically looking for a turn that she actually passed few. She finally spotted one and quickly whipped around the corner, escaping the vines for what she hoped to be the last time. Her knees weak and her body shaking from the adrenaline, she knelt to the ground out of fear. She put her head to her knees, placing her hands on her neck. She shook, gasping for breath. She was crying, making catching her breath even harder. Once Sami regained her composure, she stood up slowly, still shaking a little bit. She shook out her body and leaned over to pick up her wand from off the ground. She let out a sigh of relief and looked at the hedge that had closed behind her. She shook her head and proceeded to wander frantically up and down pathways that hopefully led her back to the cup.
Sami was walking cautiously along a path drenched in fog, when suddenly it cleared for no apparent reason. Baffled, she just continued along the path, thinking nothing of the sudden disappearance of the moments earlier thick fog. As she continued to walk, she saw a wand. Just a wand. Laying there on the ground. It's owner was nowhere to be found. When she looked closer and concentrated on taking in her surroundings, she saw the vines that had earlier been attacking Kaitlin dragging something under the hedge with it. She looked harder. Looking among the mass of drab olive green, she spotted a mustard yellow color smeared in brown from the dirt. It had been Tyler. Tyler was the poor unfortunate soul that was being dragged mercilessly underneath the hedge. He must've tripped and fell, just like Sami had earlier, giving the vines that chance to get at him. She sighed. Tyler had been a nice person. Very likable. She knew that he would be missed by multiple people. Despite his tentative nature, he had been very outgoing around people he knew. It was a shame that she could only kneel beside the hedge, watching it slowly inch his body under the massive plant.
She picked up the wand carefully, almost as though it were an artifact in a museum. She pointed it up into the air, hanging her head down and staring at the ground. She muttered a spell, sending red sparks flying into the sky, exploding and lighting the dark night up into day.
Kaitlin wandered confusedly down paths that lead her to nothing but dead ends. As she would come upon them, she would inwardly groan and turn back around, heading in the same direction she came from, only to happen upon a dead end. When she rounded the corner, she saw a thick fog. She shrugged her shoulders and decided to go through the fog, even is it was just another dead end. As she got to a clearing in the fog, wind picked up, blowing it all away. Kaitlin gasped in horror as she realized that the walls of the maze were closing. She whipped around and ran down the path, hoping that the hedge wouldn't devour her alive. When she stumbled upon a turn, she dove out of the the hedge's path and skidded to a stop on the ground. She stood up and brushed herself off.
"Why me? Of all people, why me?" Kaitlin stared at the newly formed wall in amazement. She had never expected the maze to be able to do that. 'But if it's closing off pathways, then I must be close to the cup, right?' Kaitlin thought. She smiled to herself at the thought of being close to the cup and started jogging down the only path available to her.
Sami stopped walking and looked up. Dark and mucky. It seemed like there would never be daytime again. She tightened the grip she had on her wand and continued on the path she was on. It began to rain a little bit, but nothings was going to stop her. The ground became slick, so she slowed her run to a jog so she wouldn't trip. Rain came down harder and lighting lit up the sky, thunder crashing like cymbals. She slowed her jog to a walk. Her curly hair was now in thick waves and her fly-aways were plastered to her forehead and neck. Puddles were everywhere, and mud splashed up onto her uniform. As Sami walked down a pathway, she stopped, having heard a splash from a footstep that wasn't hers, all her senses were on full alert. When the footsteps came again, she jumped. Hoping it was Kaitlin, she ran as fast as she could towards the sound. She was stopped by a wand pointed at her face. Past the wand, she could see the blonde hair plastered to the face, piercing blue eyes, and smile turned up in a smirk of Carson.
"Oh my god, Carson. You scared me there." Sami sighed in relief. His wand was still pointed at her face. He didn't put it down. Her stomach did flips at the thought of one of her own classmate hurting her. She put her hands up as though to surrender, her hand still clenched around her own wand. "You can put your wand down... I'm not going to hurt you,"
"Oh, but am I ever going to hurt you." He sneered. Carson advanced towards her, making her stumble backwards through puddles and mud.
"What do you mean?" She inquired, her voice slightly shaky. She stopped walking backwards. Carson kept creeping menacingly towards her until his chest touched hers and he looked her straight in the eye.
"You don't get it, do you?" He said, ruffling her soaking wet hair. "Slytherin has never won much stuff. House Cup, Quidditch matches, you name it. If a Slytherin won the Tri Wizard Tournament, man would that feel good to be the one who won it. And do you know what? I will win it," he sneered. He shoved her away from him.
"How are you going to do that? There are others competing too. And you're wasting your time lecturing me about all of this that you could be using to find the cup." Sami said matter-of-factly. She stomped in a puddle, splashing muddy water all over Carson's still untouched uniform. But he didn't seem to care. He had a look of pure hatred and desire in his eyes. A look that said he would do anything to win.
"Oh, but you're so wrong."
"Wha-"
"I only have two more to go until my victory."
"You're wasting your time," Sami sighed, crossing her arms. "Wait… Two more? What?"
He grabbed the cuff of her shirt and pointed the wand under her jawline. "Don't you dare tell me I'm wasting my time!" He pressed his wand under her jawline harder, making her close her eyes shut in pain.
"And what are you going to do about it?" she strained to say.
"Kill you." He threw her to the ground. Vines shot up from the ground and wrapped around her wrists and ankles, not letting her move. She squirmed around and struggled, trying to get free, but it was useless. "Kill you and leave you for the hedges. Kill you and leave you for the hedges just like I did poor Tyler."
"What?!"
"You see, I'm not wasting time. One has 'died' and I only have two more to kill. And then I can wander around here aimlessly all I want until I happen upon the cup."
"You're crazy!" Sami shrieked. He kicked her, making her scream. Rain poured down, drenching her back and sides in mud as she thrashed, trying to escape.
"Am I?" He smirked. He continued to teasingly kick her stomach. When he finally stopped, he snickered. "I've manipulated this maze. It's on my side now. You're going to be in so much pain, you will be begging for death,"
Kaitlin, who had been happening upon dead ends for the longest time, finally came upon the turn that lead down another path. She brushed a strand of wet hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. Her uniform was soaked, making her freezing cold. The turn she took led her down the path that Carson and Sami were on. The turn she took led her to see her friend being tortured. She rounded the corner, only to stop dead in her tracks. She saw Sami struggling against the vines that Sami herself had helped her get out of. Carson was kicking her friend. He was just laughing uncontrollably at her shrieks and cries. Carson pointed his wand at her and muttered something and Sami just started thrashing around, screaming bloody murder. She yelled for help, but all Kaitlin could do was stand there in bewilderment.
Carson raised his wand. "After I kill you, all I have to do is kill that Folsom girl, and then victory is mine! Slytherin will finally win!" He yelled. Sami's eyes widened in fear.
"KAITLIN!" She yelled, for what was probably going to be the last time. She closed her eyes tight, bracing herself for death. She hoped he was only going to stun her, but she knew better. She knew he was going to kill her. She knew he would show no mercy.
"No!" Kaitlin screamed.
"Avada Kedavra!" Carson yelled the curse. The unforgivable curse. The killing curse. A flash of bright green came from his wand, hitting Sami in the chest. Her body went limp. "NO! HOW COULD YOU?!" Kaitlin screamed. "You're insane!"
"Oh prefect! Now I can kill you too!"
"On her grave you will!" Kaitlin yelled. "Petrificus Totalus!" Before Carson could think, the spell hit him, immobilizing him completely. Kaitlin ran over to her friend.
"Reducto!" She cried, freeing her from the vines. Tears streamed down Kaitlin's face as she looked at her friend. Sami's body was covered in mud and rain. Her body was frozen, a look of fear now eternally plastered on her face. It hit Kaitlin so hard that she was dead. It hit her right in the heart like an elephant dart. "My god Carson… What did you do?" Kaitlin mumbled. She stood up, gingerly laying her friend's body back down. "I swear, I will win that cup… I'll win it for you!" Kaitlin yelled. She took Sami's wand and shot red sparks into the sky, illuminating it a brilliant red. She continued to watch the sparks go. It looked like the sky was bleeding when the dark red sparks started to rain down and fade. Instead of leaving her friend's wand with her, she took it. She clutched it in her hand along with her own. Kaitlin ran for her life in search of the cup that had corrupted someone so much that they killed her best friend.