Note: All previous warnings and disclaimers still apply.


Viktor was standing next to Karkaroff when the ship broke surface in the Black Lake of Scotland, just outside of the Hogwarts castle. Once the doors before them were opened, they stepped out to the deck to look up to the towers above them on the cliff. "This will be your moment, you know," Igor began as the other students busied themselves with preparing the ship for anchor. His accent was not nearly as thick as Viktor's while speaking English, having much more experience in the matter than the young man standing to his left. "The others may apply to be nominated, but in the end, you know you will be chosen."

"Da, HighMaster," Viktor replied as he watched the goings-on about them. When Karkaroff fell silent for several moments, he looked up to the HighMaster's face, who seemed to be deep in thought about something. Viktor decided against asking him what was his mind, knowing he had his own thoughts to deal with. With a great splash, the ship's anchor was set in the lake.

One of the other students strode up to the trio, Yan standing on Karkaroff's right side, as usual. Informing them that the longboats were ready, Karkaroff nodded and looked to Viktor. "Ready," he said as more of a statement than a question. Viktor nodded again and Karkaroff looked to Yan, ensuring he was ready to go as well. As always, Yan was mindful of the HighMaster's actions and expectations, and nodded before the man had to repeat the question to him. At a brisk pace, Karkaroff lead them to the longboat with snarling, panting sea-dragon heads on each end.

Once they were all ashore and inside the castle, the Durmstrang students waited in the hallway outside of the Great Hall, opposite the door of the Beauxbaton ladies. The wait to be announced wasn't very long, but it was long enough for several of the Durmstrang boys to undress the ladies with their eyes, many of the girls doing the same to the Northerners. One of the brunette Beauxbatons ran her emerald gaze up and down Viktor's muscular form as she allowed the tip of her tongue to slip from her mouth just enough to moisten her lips. Viktor saw the move from the corner of his eye, his Quidditch experience keeping him alert to any movement around him that may be a snitch. He didn't acknowledge the brunette, nor any of the Beauxbatons for that matter. He could almost hear the giggling already. It happened whenever he was away from the all-male surroundings of Durmstrang. One girl would recognize him. She would ask her friend to confirm it. They'd giggle together. And it would simply grow from there until he had the usual group of giggling, autograph seeking, starry-eyed girls following him around. He didn't need to make the brunette another addition to the group by giving her the satisfaction of acknowledgment. Instead, he pretended to be fascinated by the painting that hung next to the door, although it was simply a portrait of the two hounds kept by a former Hogwarts Headmaster. The two broad-chested canines looked back to Viktor and thumped their tails happily, Viktor having to fight the urge to reach up and scratch their ears. His attention was drawn from the moving painting when the ladies were announced and proceeded into the Great Hall.

A handful of the Durmstrangs looked to each other with knowing smirks, though kept their comments to themselves with Karkaroff within earshot. The HighMaster was no fool though, and knew he'd need to have a talk to the boys about keeping it in their pants while they were here. Merlin knows how many had fallen to the siren calls of those girls. His boys were better than that, at least in his mind. When they were announced, Viktor waited in the hallway with Karkaroff and Yan while the other students performed the short display of talents, only making his entrance once the path had been cleared for the trio. With Karkaroff right behind him, Viktor kept his gaze straight ahead and strode down the aisle to the head of the room, stepping aside for Karkaroff while he tuned out the whispers of excitement from the sighting of the international Quidditch star. Once they were seated however, it was impossible to tune out the parchment practically being shoved in his face from the one he would later refer to as "the blonde buffoon."

"I was in the Minister's box for the final match. Did you see me, Krum? I was cheering for you the whole time, though I couldn't be too loud due to my father wanting to be formal as he always does," Draco spewed out in his usual pompous fashion as Krum wondered if anyone would notice him doing an anti-headache charm.

"Krum, can I get your autograph?" Crabbe asked on a wide-eyed grin.

Draco quickly turned a glare to his fellow Slytherin. "You idiot! We're at the table. Do you bring parchment with you to dinner?"

"I could make some. I know the charm," the round-faced boy replied as he started to reach for his wand.

Draco simply rolled his eyes. "Like the last time you tried? In case you forgot, you turned your bloody robes to parchment. And then it rained before we could get back to the dorms!"

"Oh yeah..." Crabbe said as his gaze lowered to the table, the memory coming back and causing him to go meekly quiet.

Viktor tried his damnedest to focus on the meat and vegetables on his plate, but he was focusing so hard on tuning out the Slytherin trio that were as bad as the giggling girls that followed him, he didn't even take a moment to register what exactly he was eating. Stabbing a cut of meat and stuffing it in his mouth, he was a bit surprised when he had to gnaw on what he realized to be a toughened hog flank. Gulping some pumpkin juice to wash it down, Yan looked to him with one dark brow arched. "Somet'ing wrong?" he asked in a hushed tone. Viktor was rarely so frustrated.

"I v'ill be fine. It v'ill take a moment to settle in here," Viktor supplied once he'd swallowed the only half-chewed food. When he saw the main course plates starting to raise and float themselves from the Great Hall, he had to consciously stop himself from giving a sigh of relief. One more course and the dinner would be done. Soon thereafter, he could seek the refuge of his bunk back on the ship. Crabbe quickly forgot his moment of embarrassment as the dessert trays started to arrange themselves on the tables, grabbing for a fudge-filled eclair before the plate actually landed.

After the announcement of the Goblet of Fire, the rules of the Tournament being booed at in excess, and the arrival of Moody, the students of all three schools were excused to their own devices. Viktor nearly leaped from the bench he was sitting on, taking a split second to mutter to Yan, "I v'ill be in my bunk." Yan nodded and arched a brow again. He'd never seen Viktor react that way to someone wanting his autograph. True, Viktor had never been forced to sit next to such badgering for over an hour as he'd just endured, but something was up. As Viktor cut through the slowly rising crowd to get back to the longboats, he put on a face of impassiveness, trying not to draw attention to himself. Something about that Malfoy boy just rubbed him the wrong way. He'd never been so uncomfortable in someone's presence before.

Out in the hallways of the castle, Viktor swore the air was several degrees cooler and didn't hang with an almost oppressive stuffiness. He made a mental note to avoid Malfoy as much as possible during his time at Hogwarts. After he'd turned down a few corners, he could tell that the majority of the populace was remaining in the Great Hall, likely chatting and getting to know one another for a while before scattering to their own agendas. Stopping at an open window, Viktor looked out to one of the courtyards of the castle, simply letting the slight breeze cool his head a bit more while he tried to figure out what had him feeling so uncomfortable. As he turned to lean his back against the wall, a hint of movement caught his eye. It was one of the students passing by, on their way to their dorm, most likely. He recognized the girl as a Gryffindor by the gold and scarlet crest on her uniform. When he'd come to the hallway junction, he'd turned left and stopped about fifteen meters from the corner. The girl was about to continue going straight, but stopped momentarily to kneel down and tie her shoe. In the few moments it took for her to reveal her shoe from beneath her robes, retie it, and rise as she tucked a stray lock of wavy brown hair behind her right ear, Viktor's attention had been caught in more than a casual manner. Standing perfectly still, he watched the young lady smooth her outer robe as she walked away, not noticing him as she walked out of sight. The sound of Malfoy's voice approaching from the same direction the young lady had brought Viktor back to the task at hand. Turning on his heel, the quickly strode down the corridor to where the longboats waited.