"Hello gorgeous." Ludovic Bagman happily greeted Vicki as he waltzed into the medical tent and unexpectedly saw Vicki sitting on a chair looking quite bored.
"Aren't you due in the Champion's Tent?" Vicki asked Bagman as she quickly jumped off her chair in shock. She wasn't planning on Bagman walking in to annoy her today.
All of her interactions with Bagman had always been planned carefully. She had always been in control after scheming with Fred and George. As her presence in the Medical Tent had been sprung on her last night, and as Bagman's entrance was not announced she had no idea how to proceed.
It also didn't help that the last time she had seen either of the twins, Fred was quite cross with her. But she didn't like thinking about that.
"Very soon. I just thought as an organiser of this fine task today that it was my duty to make sure the Medical Tent was up to standard." Bagman responded.
"T-take a seat," Vicki stuttered nervously as she felt uncomfortable being alone with Bagman "I just quickly need to check on something."
A plan quickly arose in her mind and she bounded off to put it into place. She knew Madam Pomfrey was in the Champion's Tent chewing off the ear of anybody who would listen to her.
Vicki silently slid into the Champion's Tent. Although she had more responsibilities for this task than the other prefects (and even the Head Boy and Head Girl) she knew she was not meant to be in this tent. Her plan was to fetch Madam Pomfrey first and maybe wish Cedric luck if she wasn't kicked out before she had the chance.
"It's absolutely ridiculous to not allocate funding to adequate healing staff! Millions of galleons have been thrown at this tournament and they seem to be able to have dozens of staff available for these dragons." Madam Pomfrey ranted loudly to the person who was closest to her – Madam Maxine.
The dragons were meant to be a secret, but it was perhaps the worst kept secret ever to grace Hogwarts. When Madam Pomfrey approached Vicki for her assistance in the tournament Vicki had cockily responded she knew how to heal burns but refused to name her source. Therefore as Madam Pomfrey knew the secret was out she was safe to rant in anger.
"'eet 'iz your job to heal 'ze champions as your job as Matron, no?" Madam Maxine responded as she wasn't very sympathetic to Madam Pomfrey's predicament.
"I am very capable of my job thank you very much," Madam Pomfrey briskly stated before continuing on "However I hardly think it's safe to only have the school matron and no other healers on hand to deal with four school aged children getting injured by dragons!"
Madam Pomfrey's outburst had caught the attention of the champions who turned even paler at the thought that should anything happen in the arena that they would not be given proper medical care.
"What 'iz wrong with 'zis school?" Fleur piped up angrily.
"Blame the tournament organisers, not Hogwarts. However luckily I have a very bright student that has put her hand up and agreed to assist me today. Victoria Hartwell has previously worked with me in the hospital wing so at least I'll have another set of hands with me," Madam Pomfrey explained before quickly adding on one last rant "I have to take what I can get. A proper healing team would have been more suitable."
Vicki beamed at the compliment. She was almost tempted to eavesdrop to hear more favourable words about herself but knew it probably wasn't a good idea. She also wanted to get Bagman out of the Medical Tent and also to quickly wish Cedric luck before the task would begin. She didn't have a lot of time.
"Oh Madam Pomfrey. Mr Bagman is sitting in the Medical Tent. If you wanted to give him a piece of your mind about not having a proper healing team now is the chance." Vicki grinned towards the school matron.
"Right. I'll be off then." Madam Pomfrey said as she stepped away from Madam Maxine and Fleur as she marched out of the Champions Tent and made her way back over to the Medical Tent to confront Bagman.
Madam Maxine said nothing but departed also to go speak to Professor Karkaroff. This left Vicki alone with Fleur.
"I'll be going for you second, after Cedric of course. I think it's unfair Potter was allowed to compete even though I don't think he put himself in the cup. Got to go for the sisterhood." Vicki gushed to Fleur.
The two were loosely friends. Fleur sat with her during most meals and Vicki was one of the only girls who would listen to Fleur's criticisms of the school. Vicki understood that if she were to set foot in Beauxbatons she too would negatively compare everything to Hogwarts. It was only fair to let Fleur have her say.
Due to their friendly status Vicki wasn't expecting Fleur to turn on her and be rude.
"'Zips is the Champions Tent. You are no champion. You need to leave." Fleur snapped at her.
Vicki was taken aback by how blunt Fleur was. However she felt no need to be rude back. Vicki knew Fleur was right, she was not a champion, she was not supposed to be there and she probably should leave. Fleur was probably incredibly nervous about the upcoming task and didn't appreciate the distraction.
"Of course. I'll leave you to it." Vicki bowed nervously before taking a few steps away, leaving Fleur to take a seat by herself on a stool in the corner.
Vicki's eyes wandered across the tent and she saw Cedric pacing around nervously. She approached him with a gentle wave, which made him stop and send her a small smile.
"I won't keep you too long. I'm in the Medical Tent with Madam Pomfrey but I thought I'd come over to wish you a bit of luck and friendly reassurance." Vicki said to Cedric, giving him a pat on the shoulder.
"I just keep trying to think that in an hour's time, this will all be over." Cedric admitted to her suddenly.
"You remember the plan we came up with, right? Execute that, and you'll be right." Vicki reassured him, catching him off guard by engulfing him into a friendly hug. He hugged back, but his arms were so wobbly with nerves he was only able to lightly hold on.
"Anyway I'll be off, I don't want to annoy the other champions too much. Hopefully I don't see you in the Medical Tent later on." Vicki stated as she let go, giving his shoulder one last squeeze before leaving the tent, just as she saw Bagman run back in.
Vicki managed to slip back through to the Medical Tent without Bagman seeing her and she grinned as she saw Madam Pomfrey fuming.
"I can't stand that man!" Madam Pomfrey complained loudly, with Vicki agreeing with him.
As all of the students outside the tents began to take their seats Madam Pomfrey went over the basic procedure with Vicki. She was given strict rules – to not make any diagnoses herself, to not undertake any major healing without prior permission and most importantly to listen to Madam Pomfrey at all times.
"Is everything prepared ready for the first champion when he or she finishes the task?" Madam Pomfrey asked Vicki after she had finished explaining the rules to her.
"All four stations are ready to go. The remedy shelf is fully stocked with all of the ailments. I've made sure there's a few different tool stations to each champion cubicle and absolutely everything needed is within reaching distance, but also there's backups high enough to be grabbed with a summoning charm if required." Vicki explained to Madam Pomfrey.
"I must say I'm very glad I picked you to help me today. If everything is prepared you may watch the first champion out of the tent flaps. But I'll need you back in here the second the champion passes the task." Madam Pomfrey stated to Vicki with a large smile.
Vicki thanked her and stood at the entrance of the tent. She watched Cedric emerge from the Champion's Tent. He didn't look his usual confident but caring self as nerves ran through his body but he did make sure to send a glance and a wave towards the Medical Tent to Vicki.
During Cedric's task Vicki didn't take her eyes off him once, not even to glance at the dragon. She watched as he followed the plan they had come up with together, that he would transfigure a close object (in this instance he had chosen a rock) into a very life-like looking dog to distract the dragon.
She cheered loudly as the dragon ran after the dog.
Vicki was always terrible at Care of the Magical Creatures class and aside from skimming 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' in her first few years at school her knowledge about magical beasts was very minimal. Cedric on the other hand was a very keen student in that area and had gotten an outstanding in O.W.L. year and was continuing the class at N.E.W.T. level. Therefore the idea of distracting the dragon by turning a nearby object into a dog was completely his idea as he knew a little about the anatomy of a dragon and how thick their skin was.
Vicki on the other hand was required by Cedric to help him successfully transfigure an ordinary object into a life-like animal. Vicki was rather skilled in Transfiguration but it took her a few hours to complete the spell to an acceptable level. It took even longer for her to teach Cedric how to do it properly – but they eventually got there in the end.
"Great effort by Diggory – he's successfully tricked the dragon into chasing after a rock instead. He's moments away from grabbing the egg, in amazing time!" Bagman's voice boomed through the arena, as he was commentating.
Cedric had to wait a while to make sure the coast was clear, but after about ten minutes he was satisfied enough to make a break for the egg as the dragon was still chasing the dog but had tired herself out in her quest.
Cedric's hands clenched around the egg and he quickly raised it in triumph. Huge roars echoed around the arena at Cedric's win and he smiled at the crowd. However unfortunately for Cedric he did not see that the dragon had lost interest in the dog and moments later Cedric found himself with very painful burning blisters on his face.
"He's got burns to his face from the dragon, but they're forcing him to wait until he gets his scores from the judges before he can come in here." Vicki yelled out behind her to Madam Pomfrey in order to warn her.
"You, here." Madam Pomfrey ordered Vicki, clicking her fingers next to her within one of the divided cubicles in the tent.
Vicki obliged and moments later she found a jar of thick orange substance thrust upon her.
Madam Pomfrey was normally a kind woman but when she had a patient she would vigorously become strict to get them the best care possible. Therefore to most students she seemed strict – as most students only saw her when she was caring for the ill.
"You apply this to his face when he comes in. I'll do the rest." Madam Pomfrey ordered her.
Moments later Cedric stumbled into the tent wincing in pain. Vicki ran over to him to help him over to the makeshift bed that had been set up and as soon as he was seated Vicki began to apply the thick paste to his face.
"Okay Miss Hartwell if you could step back please. Mr Diggory, I'm just going to use a quick spell that will help the paste settle in nicely. It will speed up the healing and work as pain relief quite soon." Madam Pomfrey explained and Cedric was only capable of a quick nod due to his high level of discomfort.
As it was all hands on deck to help clear up Cedric's burns, Vicki was not given the opportunity to watch the other champions in action. She was able to make out some of Bagman's commentary – both Fleur and Krum managed to get to the egg unscathed.
"I don't know whether to be embarrassed that I'm the only one who needed medical attention, or be glad that everyone else is safe." Cedric joked to Vicki once the pain became to subside and he had the ability to talk once more.
They both watched as Harry Potter bounded into the tent. Vicki thought Madam Pomfrey could handle him as he barely looked injured but as Madam Pomfrey passed Cedric's cubicle she nodded her head for Vicki to follow her.
"There you go, there's a second person to get injured. Must be a Hogwarts thing." Vicki joked as she ran after Madam Pomfrey.
"Miss Hartwell if you could please fetch the cleaning solution and dab it onto Mr Potter's wound. I'll then be able to heal it." Madam Pomfrey asked Vicki.
"Accio cleaning solution!" Vicki stated with a flick of her wand and directed it to her hand. Although she had not been able to watch Harry's round of the first task she had heard the commentary and how he had very impressively used the summoning charm to get his broom. Therefore as a joke Vicki had used the charm to get the jar of cleaning solution and sent a large wink to Harry as she did so.
After Madam Pomfrey quickly healed the wound with her wand Harry was free to leave the tent. Not too long after Cedric was also free to go but was advised by Madam Pomfrey to keep the orange paste on his burn and to go see her later back in the castle for a check-up.
"I'll see you tomorrow, I'm guessing there will be a big celebration in the Hufflepuff common room tonight. But congratulations again." Vicki said to Cedric as she gave him a big hug as he was once again required in the Champions' Tent.
"Thanks for everything Vicki. You have no idea how much it means to me." Cedric smiled, before he disappeared into the tent.
Vicki helped Madam Pomfrey clean up the tent. She helped pack away the various medicines and tools into a box where they would be taken back up to the castle. After it was deemed everything was in order Vicki got a very sincere display from Madam Pomfrey who expressed her gratitude for Vicki's help.
By the time Vicki made her way back up to the castle all of the students had already made their way back to the school. When she got to the Entrance Hall she peered into the Great Hall and noticed most students were already seated for dinner.
She figured she would eat dinner now and shower later. Whilst it would be a fun filled night for the houses of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff it was looking like a fairly ordinary and boring night in the Ravenclaw and Slytherin common rooms, she had all the time in the world.
She made her way over to the Ravenclaw table and noticed a lot of sympathetic looks were shot her way. It took her a few moments to think of why the people around would be feeling sorry for her, but then it dawned on her.
"Roger told a few people that you guys broke up. Are you okay? This must be really hard for you." Steph gushed as she got up from the table to give her best friend a big hug.
Vicki only shook her head lightly. She knew she had no right to be angry with Roger for telling people they had broken up. After all, that was their agreement – after the first task they were free to spread the news that they were no more. She wasn't surprised Roger hadn't waited at all to inform the school of his break-up, but she was disappointed in him that he didn't surprise her.
Her eyes wandered over to Roger where he was happily babbling with his friends. She saw the group of boys gaze lustfully towards some of the attractive female students around.
Vicki held a small smile on her face. Although she had already accepted the breakup it now felt final to her. It was a very bittersweet feeling. In that very moment she felt she had finally received the closure she didn't know she was seeking. Maybe, just maybe she would now be able to easily move on.
Whilst Victoria Hartwell was having a quiet night in studying for her Charms test that was being held in the next few days, it was a very different night ahead for Fred Weasley.
He and George had organised quite the party that was being held in the Gryffindor common room. There was enough food and drink to feed an army, and many other Gryffindors had pitched in to make the party a fun one.
He had been fluttering around speaking with many people over the course of the night. He once again found himself speaking to Harry, with both George and Lee on his side.
"Diggory was looking a little worse for wear than you this afternoon." George stated to Harry.
"Yes Harry. Tell us your secret of how you look so fresh." Fred added on with a grin.
Harry blinked in confusion as he was caught off guard by the random topic, but he managed to answer moments later.
"The dragon didn't seem to get me too bad. Madam Pomfrey was able to heal me pretty easily. Vicki Hartwell was there too, she was helping Madam Pomfrey. She applied cleaning solution first." Harry stated.
Fred, George and Lee's eyes all widened at this revelation. However it was Fred who spoke up first.
"Vicki Hartwell spent the tournament in the Medical Tent?" Fred asked quickly.
"Er, yeah. She was." Harry responded, as he quite confused why the three older boys thought this was a big deal. Moments later George would answer his question.
"She was meant to sit with us during the task, but apparently couldn't make it. We thought she was being a stuck up bitch and chose to sit elsewhere, but that now makes sense." George stated.
Fred shot an uneasy sidewards glance at George for his choice of words. What George said was completely true, but now that Fred knew Vicki hadn't avoided him on purpose he felt bad and thus didn't want to hear those thoughts spoken out loud.
Harry was not given a chance to reply as some of his fellow fourth years had dragged him off to speak with him. This suited Fred fine as he wanted to be silent for a few moments whilst he could collect his thoughts with a smile on his face.
Vicki clearly wasn't as angry at him as he first thought. Therefore he had the chance to set things right between them. He just had to figure out how.
I can't believe I missed the year anniversary for this story! It was a few weeks ago. I aim to hopefully move things along a bit faster or at least update a bit more which should be easy as now I've got Roger and Vicki officially over things are finally starting to get interesting. I have a pretty big event planned for next chapter.
In response to the reviews:
Raven Woods 2003: Arghh I'm dreading the end of the year too! But I'm also excited to write OoTP so I'm trying to soldier on haha! Thanks so much for your reviews! :)
ForeverTeamEdward13: BINGO! You guessed correctly! I am definitely very keen to make them kiss again - but also very keen for proper feelings to develop between the two which is now SO close *hint hint*