"Sit down, please." Dumbledore said, as the buzzing voices of the students quietened in the hall. Cassie gulped down the lump in her throat, her stomach twisting with her anxiety. She had spent her time avoiding Fred and George after the outburst, she couldn't bring herself to so much as look their way. She was angry but she also felt guilty. She pushed the thoughts back. Now wasn't the time. "Now, the moment you've all been waiting for - the champion selection!"
With a wave of his hand, the room darkened as he quelled the fires lighting the dull room. Walking over to the goblet, the flame turned from blue to red in front of Dumbledore. It turned back to blue once a piece of paper had been released into his hand. He opened it, before looking around the room.
"The Durmstrang champion is," He announced. "Viktor Krum."
Everyone cheered as said boy stood up and shook hands with Dumbledore, before being ushered into another room. The flame sparked red again and this time, Dumbledore read from the paper that was slightly singed.
"The champion from Beauxbatons is," He said. "Fleur Delacour."
The pretty blonde girl shook hands with him before leaving in the direction Krum had.
Cassie struggled to control her focus as her eyes blurred, her stomach churned and her chest tightened. Her hands clenched tightly into fists on her lap under the table. She tried to ignore Draco who had been sending her nervous glances.
"The Hogwarts champion is," He called. Her hands were clenched so tight that her nails broke the skin on her palms, the force hurting her already injured arm. "Cassiopeia Malfoy!"
That was it. For her, everything stopped. The fear she felt was like nothing she had ever experienced before and that was saying a lot considering what she had experienced. She felt like crying. The tears glossed her eyes, but no one noticed. They assumed she hadn't moved out of shock. If only they knew it was shock horror.
"Cassie." Draco whispered, urgently.
She looked up at him across from her and was met with a worry filled expression. She looked around at all of the staring faces and stood up, making her way to an expectant Dumbledore. She caught the fearful gazes of her friends - Fred, George, Angelina, Lee, Hermione and Cedric. Even Harry looked concerned. She shakily shook the old mans hand ignoring the pain, as he whispered,
"Well done, Cassiopeia."
She barely nodded expressionless before she turned to go to the other room. She met Severus eyes from across the room as she went and saw the raw distressed emotions flash across his face just before she entered into the room.
"Excellent!" Was the last thing she heard Dumbledore say, before everything else became muffled.
Fleur and Viktor stood by the fire as Cassie lingered at a distance. She was shaking with fear and only just noticed that she had drew blood from her palms. Her head whipped up as she saw Harry nervously descending the stairs, with arguing adults following behind.
"Harry?" She questioned softly.
She was confused and concerned. Why was he here?
She never got an answer, as Dumbledore bounded towards him.
"Harry!" He said, stopping in front of him and shaking him by the shoulders. "Harry, did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?"
"No." He replied, shakily.
"Did you ask one of the other students to do it for you?" Dumbledore questioned.
"No, sir." Harry said, desperately.
"Are you absolutely sure?" He asked, seriously.
"Yes, sir." Harry replied.
"Well, of course he is lying." Maxine said, aggressively.
"Like hell he did." Moody growled. "The Goblet of Fire is an exceptionally powerful magical object. Only an exceptionally powerful confundus charm could've hoodwinked it. Talents way beyond that of a fourth years."
"You seem to have given this a fair bit of thought, Mad-Eye." Karkaroff said, in his face.
"It was once my job to think as dark wizards do, Karkaroff." Moody said, calmly. "Perhaps you remember?"
"That doesn't help, Alastor." Crouch said, interrupting their quarrel.
"Leave this to you, Barty." Dumbledore said, standing beside the man. Everyone waited, expectantly.
"The rules are absolute." He said. "The Goblet of Fire constitutes a binding contract. Mr Potter has no choice. He is, as of tonight, a Triwizard Champion."
"You may all leave." Dumbledore announced, dismissing them.
Cassie walked over to Harry and sent him a small smile as she touched his shoulder on the way past. He smiled gratefully at her and was about to follow when, McGonagall stopped him.
"I shall walk you back to your dorm, Mr Potter." She said, a soft tone to her usually stern voice.
Cassie was lost in her thoughts, as she walked through the now empty great hall. She raised her quivering arm to push open the door, the other drooped by her side. She jumped in fright as she saw Fred leaning against the wall in front of her. He looked up upon hearing her exit and his eyes flashed with a mixture of emotions too varied to decipher. He never said a word, as he approached her silently. When he reached her, he hesitated before wrapping his arms around her and hugging her to him. She winced at her arm being trapped between their bodies but snaked her other hand around him, as she shook, tears threatening to fall. One arm was around her waist, as the other held her head.
"I'm so sorry." He whispered. "I truly am. I was upset, I didn't mean what I said, honestly."
Truth was, she had already forgiven him.