Chapter 36
It was the day the champions would be chosen. Everyone was buzzing in excitement. Alex grumbled in boredom. He looked at Harry, who was humming cheerfully.
"You know, you never did tell me what happened with Moody," Alex said, making sure to keep his voice low.
Harry looked at him.
"Oh that...you'll see very soon," he replied, eyes sparkling mischievously.
"Just what are you planning now?" Alex scowled slightly.
Harry chuckled as he glanced at the goblet.
"It's starting," he said.
As if on cue, the goblet began hissing, the blue fire turning red. Everyone hushed as Dumbledore approached the goblet. It abruptly flared up and a piece of paper was spit out of the fire. Dumbledore caught it and unfolded it, careful to avoid the burnt edges of the paper.
"From Beauxbatons, Fleur Delacour," he called.
There was applause as the champion for Beauxbatons came forward. Dumbledore smiled at her and motioned for her to go into the other room. Fleur disappeared in the room just as the goblet flared up again. Dumbledore caught the next piece of paper and everyone quieted down again.
"From Durmstrang, Viktor Krum," Dumbledore called.
There were cheers as the champion for Durmstrang pumped his fist into the air as he walked forward. He disappeared into the other room as well.
"And finally, the Hogwarts champion is..." Dumbledore paused.
He caught the third slip of paper.
"Cedric Diggory!" Dumbledore announced.
There were more cheers as Cedric waved with a sheepish smile on his face before he disappeared into the other room.
"Well then, I will be off to explain the tasks to the champions. That's it for now," Dumbledore said.
"Waste of time," Alex muttered, turning to leave.
"The show's not over yet, Alex," Harry said.
Alex paused and looked at his twin.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
Harry gave him a secretive smile.
"Wait and see," he said.
A split second later, the goblet hissed. Everyone looked at it in surprise. Dumbledore's eyes were wide as a fourth slip of paper was spit out of the goblet. Dumbledore caught it and opened it. He was silent for several long tense seconds. The entire hall was silent, waiting for Dumbledore to announce the name. Dumbledore looked at them, his eyes not twinkling.
"Eric Potter," he called.
Everyone turned to look at Eric. Eric looked shocked and confused.
"Eric Potter, please come forward," Dumbledore said.
Eric stood up and came forward hesitantly.
"Please go into the other room with the other champions," Dumbledore said.
"Headmaster, I didn't enter my name into the tournament," Eric protested.
"Just do it," Dumbledore said. "We'll sort it out."
Eric frowned but consented. Dumbledore looked at the goblet suspiciously before following Eric into the other room.
"How unexpected~" Harry said, smirking. "I wasn't expecting that~"
"Quit it, you knew all along what was going to happen," Alex said.
"Whatever do you mean?" Harry asked, tilting his head in an innocent fashion.
He smiled a cat-like grin. Alex grabbed his twin by the collar and roughly dragged him out of the hall. Alex pulled Harry behind a pillar and casted a Notice-Me-Not charm and a silencing spell over them. He slammed Harry against the wall, making the younger grunt.
"So violent," Harry muttered.
Alex pressed the tip of his wand against Harry's pale throat.
"What did you do?" he asked coldly.
"What makes you think I had anything to do with this?" Harry replied.
"You knew Potter was going to be chosen. There's no way you could've entered his name into the goblet because of the age line. It's time you told me what's going," Alex said.
"Smart observation, brother," Harry purred, cackling slightly.
Alex's wand dug into his throat, making Harry choke slightly.
"I don't have the patience to deal with you any longer." Alex said in a low deadly tone. "You can't keep it from me forever. You never could with anything."
"No, I can't," Harry agreed, serious now. "We are not the only spies father sent to Hogwarts this year."
"Spy?"
"Well...not exactly a spy, more like a stand-in...no, that doesn't sound quite right," Harry frowned thoughtfully.
"Harry..." Alex growled. "Don't test me right now."
"All right, calm down," Harry said. "At least pull your wand back a little; I'm choking a little."
Alex raised an eyebrow but did so.
"The Moody we see at Hogwarts is actually one of father's most loyal followers in disguise, Barty Crouch Jr. The real Moody is being kept somewhere secure but accessible since Barty needs his hair for the Polyjuice potion," Harry said. "Barty was the one who put Potter's name in the goblet."
"I see," Alex said.
Alex pulled his wand away and released his twin.
"Why didn't father tell us he was sending that moron here?" he muttered.
"Perhaps he knew I would figure it out quickly," Harry said, adjusting his scarf. "Father knows about the tournament, most likely through Snape."
"Speaking of Snape, what are we going to do about him?" Alex asked. "He's served his purpose."
"We can't kill him yet. If he dies just after vouching for us to the Order, we'll be suspected to at least having a part in his death," Harry said.
"Not if he was killed during a raid," Alex growled.
Harry studied his twin for a few seconds.
"You seem very on edge today, dear brother. No wonder you almost cursed me a few seconds earlier," he said. "Your self-restraint is quite admirable."
Alex's eye twitched.
"Don't push it," he gritted his teeth.
"Leave it to me, Alex; I'll get you something to vent your anger out on," Harry said. "After all, we wouldn't want you to do something you'll regret later."
Harry chuckled as he walked out from behind the pillar. Alex took a few seconds to compose himself before joining his twin, dispelling the spells hiding them.
Eric groaned in frustration.
"What am I going to do?! I can't get out of the tournament! But I never wanted to be in the tournament in the first place!" he exclaimed, burying his face into his hands.
"You have no choice but to participate," Hermione said, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder. "You heard what Professor Dumbledore said about the goblet and the tournament. You have to do all three tasks and if you try to back out, there'll be dire consequences."
"Look on the bright side, mate. If you win the tournament, you get eternal glory...and 1000 Galleons." Ron said.
"Ron, not helping," Hermione exclaimed, glaring at the redhead. "Do you even know what this tournament is?"
"Er...all I know is that it's dangerous," Ron said, wincing as Hermione's glare intensified.
"It is extremely dangerous. The last time it was held, a student died," Harry spoke up. "Each task is more dangerous than the last. It is a huge event and the 'eternal glory' lasts for a long time, that is if you don't get yourself killed first."
"You seem to know a lot about the tournament," Eric said, looking up at the green eyed twin.
They were sitting in the Great Hall. It was early morning, so barely anyone was there since it was so early; not to mention it was Sunday.
"I researched it. After all, knowledge is power," Harry said, holding up a finger.
Hermione nodded in agreement.
"But the tasks are dangerous, so wouldn't you need more strength and power than knowledge?" Ron asked.
"My, a simple creature you are, Weasley," Harry said.
Ron bristled in rage.
"Knowledge is going into each task, knowing exactly what you will be facing. If you know what you're facing, you can find the weak spot and use it to your advantage to achieve the objective of the task. Your way, Weasley, is going into each task without any clue of the dangers. You will inevitably end up dead...or just severely injured if you're lucky," Harry said. "Having strength and power is a bonus to help you achieve your objective."
"What Harry's trying to say is you should find out what the first task is so you'll be prepared for it," Hermione said.
"Precisely," Harry said.
"I don't even know where to start," Eric said.
"You have an invisibility cloak, don't you?" Harry asked. "Use it."
"I can't just use it. Do you know how rare invisibility cloaks are? Plus, I'll get in trouble!" Eric exclaimed.
Harry sighed. Alex huffed in amusement.
"Such simple minded beings," Harry said. "Hermione, how do you deal with these two?"
Hermione chuckled.
"You get used to it," she said.
"Oh yeah, I should mention that while you need to prepare for the three tasks, you also need to prepare for the Yule Ball," Harry said.
"Yule Ball? What's that?" Ron asked.
"It's exactly what it sounds like. A ball in the winter, at Yule," Harry said, taking a sip of his tea. "All the champions are expected to have a date with them and dance at the ball...so good luck with that."
Harry grabbed his bookbag and stood up.
"Where are you going?" Eric asked.
"Off to have a chat with a professor," Harry said. "Alex, I'll meet up with you later."
Alex grunted in acknowledgement.
The first task was drawing closer and closer now.
"Eric, you haven't done anything to figure out what the first task is! You're going into this blindly!" Hermione exclaimed. "You're going to get yourself killed!"
"You're more worried about this than I am! And that's saying something because I'm panicking!" Eric retorted.
"Keep your voices down," Alex said. "We're in the library."
Hermione sighed and sank into her chair.
"Sorry, this is stressing me out," she said, rubbing her head. "I'm just worried for you, Eric."
"I'll just deal with whatever the first task is. I'm sure it won't be too bad," Eric said, trying to sound convincing.
Hermione made a noise that sounded like a mixture of anger and disbelief.
"Hey, Eric," a soft voice sounded from behind them.
The group of five turned to see Cedric.
"Cedric? What are you doing here?" Eric asked, blinking in surprise.
"Can I speak to you for a moment? In private?" Cedric asked instead.
Eric blinked before nodding. He stood up and walked away with Cedric. Cedric glanced around for eavesdroppers before leaning in.
"I know what the first task is," Cedric whispered.
Eric's eyes widened.
"Are you sure you want to tell me? I mean, we're technically rivals," Eric whispered back, uncertain.
"We're both the Hogwarts champions. Plus, I heard about it from Fleur, so I think it's okay. I think Viktor knows about it too, so it's only fair you know as well," Cedric said.
"All right," Eric said, nodding. "What's the first task?"
Cedric looked around warily once more before leaning in closer to whisper into Eric's ear.
"The first task is...dragons."
