Queen of the Night: Years 4-5

by awalkerlifeforme

Tara Nox has had an interesting childhood. Lately things have taken a darker turn. From eerie presents and notes from a mystery sender to dreams of Voldemort's return, Tara knows something big is coming. When a competition between the three elite wizarding schools takes a strange turn, Tara finds herself, her best friends, and her boyfriend getting sucked into a dangerous scheme.

21. The First Task

When I woke up on Sunday morning, there was only one thing on my mind. I had to tell Cedric about the dragons. He couldn't be the only champion that didn't know what was coming. I dressed so inattentively that it was a while before I realized I was putting on a clean pair of pajamas rather than a pair of day clothes. I rolled my eyes but didn't worry about it. I could change later. It was early and everyone else in the dorm was still asleep. I could come back and tell Hermione about the dragons later. I had to get to Cedric before his fans did.

It was early enough that most people were still asleep but there would still be a decent crowd in the Great Hall, which meant that a lot of people would see us talking. I knew that I would hear it from the students in Hogwarts over the next few days but I needed to talk to Cedric and I needed no one to be around when I did. It meant I needed to ask him for a private moment, which I was sure would spurn more rumors. I walked into the Great Hall at just past seven in the morning and spotted Cedric at the Hufflepuff table.

It was a good thing he was an early riser. "Cedric," I called, walking up to him.

Cedric turned back with a smile but he wasn't the first person to speak. It was Hannah Abbott. "What do you think you're -?"

"Go to hell," I interrupted, barely turning to look at her. Hannah looked shocked that I had said something like that to her - as she had once been my friend - but Cedric was grinning slightly. I turned back to him. "Can I talk to you?"

Cedric nodded. "Always."

There was a vague grin on his face as we walked out of the Great Hall together, every eye following us. My blush burned from my cheeks down my chest, but I forced myself to hold my head high. I could hear the students whispering that we were going off for a quick bonding session, laughter and chatter following us. Cedric looked like he barely noticed but my face was burning with embarrassment as I dragged him into the entrance hall. I was glad that it was early enough that no teachers were around to question what we were doing.

As I tried to figure out how to approach the subject, Cedric smiled, looking me up and down. "Did you forget to get dressed this morning?"

"What?" I asked dumbly.

"You're in your pajamas," Cedric pointed out. I looked down at my plaid shorts and black tank top blankly. Idiot... I was trying to string my words together when Cedric seemed to have finally noticed that I was paler than normal. "Are you okay?"

"I know what the First Task is," I blurted out. Cedric's face fell as he stared at me. When he opened his mouth I spoke over him quickly. "I didn't cheat!"

"I wasn't accusing you," Cedric replied. "How did you find out?"

Even though I knew Cedric would keep Hagrid's secret safe, I didn't want to put that on his mind. It was the same reason I hadn't told him about Sirius. "Someone showed me. I wasn't looking to find out and I didn't want to find out," I explained.

"Who showed you?" Cedric asked curiously.

"It doesn't matter. It wasn't my dad, though," I said, realizing he would probably think it was my dad.

"I didn't think it would be," Cedric said.

As much as my father probably wanted me to win, I knew he wasn't going to flat-out tell me what I should expect. "Listen, everyone else already knows. We - Harry and I - saw Karkaroff and Maxime out there. I know they're going to tell Fleur and Krum. I couldn't stand the thought of you being the only person who didn't know," I told him.

Cedric nodded. "Thank you. What is it?"

"Dragons," I answered.

I'd meant for it to come out a little better than that, but it was all I could manage. "What?" Cedric asked, his voice strained.

"Dragons," I repeated, running my hands over my arms as a chill settled over me. "There are five of them. One for each of us. I don't know what we're doing; someone said we would be trying to get past them. I would guess they're guarding something we're supposed to take or standing in front of the finish platform. Maybe it's timed. I have no idea."

"Dragons…" Cedric whispered disbelievingly.

"Regretting becoming a champion yet?" I joked, feeling like I would cry otherwise.

Cedric chuckled. "Not because of the dragons," he said, gently nudging me. I smiled. "Thank you for telling me."

"You're welcome." We smiled at each other as Cedric turned to walk back to the Great Hall. I wasn't sure if it was because I didn't want to end our conversation or if I genuinely wanted to help him, but I grabbed his arm to keep him from walking away. "Wait!" I gasped. Cedric turned back to me. "I can do better than just tell you about the task. I know the breeds."

Cedric nodded and motioned for me to come with him. "Come on. I know where we can go."

We had to go somewhere no one else would find us. I knew if someone saw that we were going over a book on dragons, we would get ourselves in a ton of trouble. They would believe that we had cheated. Cedric grabbed my hand and pulled me with him. We darted up the stairs and headed toward the center of the castle. For a moment I believed that we were going up to the Astronomy Tower but Cedric pulled us off on the fifth floor. We were going to the Prefect bathroom. Cedric gave the password and we quickly slipped inside.

The door shut gently behind us and I walked toward the bathtub as Cedric pulled out some towels for us to sit on. "What if someone comes in?" I asked nervously.

The last thing I needed was more rumors. "The door's locked," Cedric said, clunking the lock behind us. "No one will bother us."

"They're going to think you're taking the longest bath of your life," I joked.

"Or having another rendezvous with you," Cedric teased. My eyes narrowed into slits as I glared at him. Cedric's chuckles faded as he realized I wasn't amused. He held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, not ready to joke about it yet."

"You'd be so lucky," I huffed.

"Ah, so you're allowed to joke about it?" Cedric asked.

"Who said I was joking?" I shot back. Cedric barked out a laugh as I threw down a towel and flopped onto it. We could circle back to that conversation. I was still giggling as I pulled out my copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. "Okay, five different breeds for the five different champions. The Common Welsh Green, Swedish Short-Snout, Chinese Fireball, Hungarian Horntail, and Norwegian Ridgeback."

"Split them?" Cedric offered.

"You take the first three and I'll take the last two," I said.

We both nodded as we went over the book and read up on our dragons. Cedric read his book as it was propped up on my knees. His hands laid across my thighs. I kept my feet up in his lap as I flipped through the short pages on the dragons. We spent almost an hour reading up on the dragons and each thing I read about each respective dragon made me more and more nervous. It got so bad that I felt like I was going to throw up once I had gone over what seemed to be the two most dangerous dragons.

As the clock chimed the new hour I glanced up at Cedric with my notes in my lap. "What do you have?" I asked.

"Well, whoever gets the Common Welsh Green is lucky," Cedric said. I sent a quick prayer to whoever was listening that I drew the Welsh Green. "It says that they're a relatively subdued breed. They prefer to prey mainly on sheep and other small mammals and to avoid human contact altogether. Their roar is somewhat melodious and it issues its fire in narrow jets."

"What about the Swedish Short-Snout?" I asked.

"It's best known for its powerful flame that is a brilliant blue color and hot enough to reduce timber and bone to ashes in seconds. It prefers to live in wild, uninhabited areas. Since it rarely comes into contact with humans, it has fewer deaths to its name than most dragons. However, it is a dangerous species due to its agile flying and extremely hot fire," Cedric said.

His voice was toneless. I imagined it was all he could do to keep from panicking. "Lovely," I said, swallowing at the thought of how painful being burned alive would be. "The Chinese Fireball?"

"It shoots mushroom-shaped flames that come from its nostrils when angered, along with the large mushroom-shaped flame it shoots from its mouth. It's aggressive but more tolerant of its own kind. They're also mentioned to be very fast and clever," Cedric said.

That was the only dragon that I'd come up with an immediate plan for. "Well, if you got that one you could try conjuring an illusion of another dragon," I commented.

Cedric hummed. "That's a good idea."

"Thanks," I said. "I kind of wish we hadn't done this now."

Hearing about the dragons and seeing the drawings of them had made my stomach churn. I was threatening to show last night's dinner now. Cedric chuckled as he glanced at my paper. "What about the other two?" he asked.

"For the Norwegian Ridgeback, it resembles the Hungarian Horntail, except for the black ridges on its back, the browner texture in its scales, and its less hostile attitude. It has venomous fangs, and its food of choice is large mammals, including water mammals. Young Ridgebacks develop the ability to shoot flame earlier than any other breeds and the females are generally more ferocious than the males. All the dragons are females, by the way," I explained.

"Lucky for whoever gets that one," Cedric said, laughing weakly.

"Me, probably," I muttered.

"Don't think that way. What about the Hungarian Horntail?" Cedric asked.

"I don't want to be the person who gets it," I said honestly. "It has spikes that protrude from its tail and its flame can reach about fifty feet. While having a very far-reaching flame the Horntail's breath can reach extremely high temperatures. Its foods of choice include cattle, sheep, goats, and whenever possible, humans."

"That's nice," Cedric said, swallowing thickly.

"I'm not done. Horntails are also known for being one of the most vicious and aggressive breeds of dragon. They're especially aggressive when protecting their young and are extremely fast in flight," I finished.

"Well, none of them sound appealing," Cedric said.

There was no better way to describe it. That was probably the nicest way we could put it. "We're agreed there. Charlie Weasley was there when we saw the dragons. I heard him say that he felt bad for the champions who got the Norwegian Ridgeback and the Hungarian Horntail," I commented. The idea of battling a dragon that was venomous or had a taste for humans was horrifying. "Bet you Harry and I will get those."

Cedric shook his head, taking my hand comfortingly. "Don't say that. It's probably going to be a random draw."

"When has luck ever been on my side?" I asked, chuckling slightly.

I'd encountered Voldemort when I was in my First Year, been bitten by a Basilisk in my second, and nearly been killed by a werewolf in my third. Luck wasn't something I'd ever had. "Your father won't let you die," Cedric pointed out.

Death wasn't what I was afraid of. I had very little doubt that I would survive. I was concerned about how I would be walking out of the task or if I would be able to. "No, but I don't want my hair to get singed off either," I said, taking my long hair over my shoulder. Cedric laughed at my brief moment of vanity. "Do you have any ideas about what you're going to do?"

"A few," Cedric said. My heart sank. He knew what he was going to do already? "Do you?"

"Yeah, move to Mexico," I huffed.

I'd been to Mexico a few times in my childhood. It was nice enough; it would make a good home. Cedric laughed, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "I would miss you," he said.

I smiled as I looked up at him. "You could come with me."

"If we left would we ever come back?" Cedric asked.

"Probably not," I answered honestly.

We sat in silence for a few minutes as I watched the mermaids braid their hair in the stained glass windows. "I'm sorry for Ted and Michael," Cedric said, shattering the peaceful silence.

They were his best friends. As angry as I was with what they had said and what they were still saying, I didn't want Cedric to abandon them. It was only fair that he still had them in his life. After all, my friends had said some nasty things about Cedric over the years. I knew that what Ted and Michael had said was made as a joke; I had a feeling they hadn't known just how much it would affect me. Cedric was angry with them right now and that was okay, but I didn't want him to disown them.

"They're trying to win you back," I pointed out. "They look guilty."

"They are," Cedric said.

"Of?" I asked.

"Hurting my girlfriend's feelings." Cedric frowned as I pressed a kiss against his shoulder. That much was fair. "Even if they meant it as a joke, it wasn't funny. It hurt you and hurt my relationship with you." I smiled. It had hurt us, but I had to believe that we would come out of this on the other side as a stronger couple. "I can't believe Rita Skeeter would write something like that or that the Daily Prophet would publish it; the personal lives of teenagers. It's disgusting," Cedric sneered.

"In the Muggle world, it's illegal," I said. "It would be considered something like child pornography."

"The one time I wish we lived in the Muggle world," Cedric commented.

We both laughed. "It was disgusting, yes, but it sold copies, didn't it?" I asked.

"You know, you've surprised me with some of the things you've said over the years. One of the things that used to surprise me was when you said you could kill someone. I know how it feels to be angry but I've never felt that angry. Until I saw that article, at least. That was when I finally understood what it took to make someone that angry," Cedric said.

"Why would it make you that angry?" I asked. "It made you sound awesome. It made me look like an idiot."

"Because something like that isn't her business. It's none of theirs. If it ever comes down to that, or even if it doesn't, it's no one's business but ours," Cedric said.

"If it ever comes down to that. You make it sound like a bad thing," I said, giggling slightly.

"Not at all," Cedric countered. My blush returned, starting at my cheeks and shifting down my chest. "I'm sorry the article and everything that's happened afterward hurt you." I shrugged. It wasn't his fault. "If it means anything, I've told them to stop wearing the badges and lay off."

"I appreciate that, but you're a bystander at this point. It's taken on a life of its own," I pointed out.

"I'm so -"

"What good will saying sorry do at this point?" I interrupted, knowing that was where he was going with the conversation. Cedric fell silent. "Nothing. We're both sorry. I'm sorry that my name got put in the goblet in the first place. You're sorry that you didn't immediately believe me. I'm sorry I overreacted. You're sorry you didn't stop people from teasing me quickly enough." Cedric swallowed at that comment. "We're both sorry that we didn't fight hard enough for our relationship."

Cedric shook his head and said, "I'm not done fighting."

That was what I wanted to hear. I just wanted to know that Cedric wasn't done fighting for us. I smiled at Cedric and he smiled back at me as I leaned forward and pressed a kiss against his cheek. I wanted to stay, but if I didn't leave now, I would be here all day. "I should go find Hermione and Harry," I said, pulling away from him. "You have some studying to do and... I have a lot of studying to do."

Cedric chuckled. "I'll say," he teased. I rolled my eyes as I shoved him away from me. "Hey, if you can't figure out what you're going to do come to me. I'll help."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "Please, I can do much better than you."

Cedric raised an eyebrow curiously. "In the task?" he asked.

I smirked. It was the perfect opportunity to mess with him. "Among other things," I added quietly.

Cedric laughed as I hopped to my feet and shot him a wink. "Tara!" Cedric barked. I giggled again as I turned and darted out of the Prefect bathroom. He was at my heels from the get-go and caught up to me in seconds. I laughed madly as he wrapped an arm around my waist and leaned down, putting his mouth to my ear and lowering his voice. "I can do no better than Tara Nox. I know that."

A monstrous blush flooded my face as his mouth brushed over my neck and under my ear. As he pulled away, he noticed the goosebumps running over my arms. He chuckled and winked at me as we exchanged goodbyes and I turned to leave before I did something stupid. As much as I wanted to hang around and talk to him, I knew that I needed to go and figure out what I was going to do with my dragon. First thing was first, I had to find my friends. I found Harry and Hermione where I expected, near the back of the library, pouring over spellbooks.

"Hey," I greeted them, taking the empty spot on the other side of their bench. "I figured you two would be here."

"Where were you all morning?" Hermione asked, by way of greeting. "I woke up and you were gone."

"Sorry, I had a few things to do," I said, not wanting to admit that I had been telling Cedric what we would be facing in two days. "I thought I'd be back before you woke up. You told her?"

"Yeah," Harry said.

"About everything?" I asked.

"Karkaroff and the dragons," Harry clarified.

"We can deal with Karkaroff once we've survived the dragons," I said.

"That was my idea," Hermione said.

"Any brilliant ideas?" I asked.

If there was someone I could count on to give me an idea for the First Task, it was Hermione. "None that wouldn't be guaranteed to not make the dragons angrier," Hermione said.

There went that idea. "Awesome," I groaned.

Hermione looked me up and down. "You're in your pajamas, you know?" she asked.

"Yeah, I wanted to be comfortable before I get burned to a crisp. Leave it alone," I snapped. Hermione blushed slightly as she looked the other way. "Two days. I can't believe we only have two days to figure out how to battle a dragon."

"Remember, you weren't supposed to have any time," Hermione pointed out.

"Mione?" I said, turning to look at her. "Yeah, not helpful."

She gave me a slightly bashful look as she went back to reading. "Well, there are Switching Spells. But what's the point of Switching it? Unless you swapped its fangs for wine-gums or something that would make it less dangerous. The trouble is, like that book said, not much is going to get through a dragon's hide. I'd say Transfigure it, but something that big, you haven't got a hope, I doubt even Professor McGonagall... unless you're supposed to put the spell on yourself? Maybe to give yourself extra powers? But they're not simple spells, I mean, we haven't done any of those in class, I only know about them because I've been doing O.W.L. practice papers."

"Hermione, will you shut up for a bit, please?" Harry asked through gritted teeth. "I'm trying to concentrate."

"Or I'll figure out a spell to shut you up," I warned.

Her yammering wasn't doing anything but making me nervous. Each time she came up with an idea, she shot it down as she thought we couldn't do it. I poured through almost twenty spell books throughout the afternoon and walked away with just a few ideas. I considered using the Water-Making Spell. It wouldn't do much but I figured that I could use it as somewhat of a shield if the dragon shot flames at me and I couldn't think fast enough to do anything else. But what if the water boiled and burned me when it splashed back?

It didn't seem to matter what I was thinking. Each time I came up with a plan something else got in the way. There was a concern I couldn't cast the spell or that it would be ineffective against a dragon. I considered using the Confundus Charm too. It would disorient the dragon long enough for me to do what needed to be done. The problem was that I wasn't sure whether or not the Confundus Charm would work on a dragon or if it was meant for human victims only. I didn't want to piss off the dragon. I wanted to keep its attention away from me.

The Confundus Charm may have been an interesting idea but I was afraid that it may not have worked. There was a chance that I would make the dragon bound and determined to kill me. After a while, I considered the Disillusionment Charm. It could hide people, after all. Again, there was the problem that I had never attempted it before. I wasn't sure if I could learn it in time. I also considered the Impediment Jinx. If I could get it to work I would keep knocking back or tripping the dragon. But what if it worked the other way and the dragon fell on top of me?

The thought was a little comical. Maybe I could at least get the judges to laugh. The other students definitely would. One of my last thoughts was using the Shield Charm. It normally just rebounded minor to moderate hexes, jinxes, and spells upon their caster. Could it work on an object as large as a dragon or extreme as dragon fire? Like the other spells, I had never attempted it and I knew that it was one of the most complicated spells students would learn. Many adults couldn't even produce the spell. What if it didn't work? I didn't want to rely on it.

There was no way I could rely on any one of the spells. It was Hermione's voice that broke my train of thought. "Oh no, he's back again, why can't he read on his stupid ship?" Hermione asked irritably as Viktor Krum slouched in, cast a surly look over at us, and settled himself in a distant corner with a pile of books.

What the hell was she so upset with Krum about? "Chill. He's just coming to read," I told her, trying to go back to my books. "He's probably trying to prepare for the First Task too."

"He should do it on his ship!" Hermione hissed. "Come on, we'll go back to the Common Room. His fan club will be here in a moment, twittering away."

"You've got issues with him," I told her. Krum had been mostly silent since coming to Hogwarts. I didn't understand what she was so uptight toward him for. "And, as we've all seen, it can be hard to get people to not talk about or follow you."

"Sorry," Hermione muttered.

"Yeah, whatever," I huffed.

It wasn't her fault that I had people whispering about me wherever I went. Hermione blushed slightly and I took her arm as we walked off, slinging mine over her shoulder. She chuckled slightly as we walked off. I turned back just long enough as we walked and saw Krum watching us. Or, more appropriately, her. I smirked at my feet. Perhaps Hermione had a bit of a romance on the horizon. Sure enough, as we left the library, a gang of girls tiptoed past us, one of them wearing a Bulgaria scarf tied around her waist. Hermione rolled her eyes.

It was well past midnight when I finally stopped studying and laid down to try and sleep. I barely slept that night. I only managed about two hours of sleep. When I awoke on Monday morning, I seriously considered for the first time just running away from Hogwarts. But as I looked around the Great Hall at breakfast time, and thought about what leaving the castle would mean, I knew I couldn't do it. This place was my home and these people - as annoyed as I may have gotten with them - were my best friends. They were the family I had made beyond my blood relatives.

Somehow, the knowledge that I would rather be here and facing a dragon than back on Privet Drive was good to know. I loved my family but I couldn't imagine walking away from Hogwarts. This place was going to set me up for my future. Leaving now would change my life for the worse. It made me feel slightly calmer. I was going to be okay. In two days, I would know I had been overreacting. I finished my bacon with difficulty (my throat wasn't working too well), and as Harry, Hermione, and I got up, I saw Cedric leaving the Hufflepuff table.

I wasn't the only one who was watching him, though. "Hermione, Tara, I'll see you in the greenhouses," Harry said; I noticed that he was watching Cedric leaving the Hall. "Go on, I'll catch up to you."

"Harry, you'll be late, the bell's about to ring -"

"I'll catch up, okay?" Harry interrupted Hermione.

"Go on," I told Hermione, looking back to Harry. "What are you doing?"

Harry stared at me for a moment before nodding. "Maybe best if you come with me."

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going to tell Cedric about the dragons."

"Oh," I said dumbly. For some reason, I didn't want Harry to know that I had already told Cedric about the dragons. I didn't want him to think I was trying to make sure Cedric won. We all had every right to fight for the win, including Harry. "Okay."

By the time Harry and I reached the bottom of the marble staircase, Cedric was at the top. He was with a load of Sixth-Year friends, including Ted and Michael. I stopped walking. I didn't want to talk to Cedric in front of them; they were among those who had been quoting Rita Skeeter's article at us every time we went near them. Harry pulled me to followed Cedric at a distance. He would be heading to Charms right now. Harry pulled me to a stop a short distance from them, pulled out his wand, and took careful aim.

"Diffindo!" Harry called.

Cedric's bag split. Parchment, quills, and books spilled out of it onto the floor. Several bottles of ink smashed. "Harry!" I sneered.

"I had to get him to stop," Harry said.

That didn't mean he needed to destroy Cedric's things. "Don't bother," Cedric said in an exasperated voice as his friends bent down to help him. "Tell Flitwick I'm coming, go on."

A pathetic warming sensation went through my chest. Cedric was such a sweetheart. He was always determined to handle things himself and didn't want to burden others. Judging by the look on Harry's face, Cedric's reaction was exactly what Harry had been hoping for. Harry slipped his wand back into his robes, waited until Cedric's friends had disappeared into their classroom, and hurried up the corridor, which was now empty of everyone but the three of us. I raced to catch up with Harry.

Cedric glanced up as we walked toward him. He smiled at me before turning to Harry. "Hi," Cedric greeted, picking up a copy of A Guide to Advanced Transfiguration that was now splattered with ink.

"Hey," I replied nervously.

"My bag just split. Brand-new and all," Cedric complained.

"Cedric, the first task is dragons," Harry said quickly.

"What?" Cedric asked, looking up.

"Dragons," Harry said, speaking quickly. I glanced up to make sure Professor Flitwick wasn't coming out to see where Cedric was. "They've got five, one for each of us, and we've got to get past them."

Cedric sent a quick look in my direction. "Oh, but -" He was about to give away our conversation. I slid my hand over my neck back and forth a few times over Harry's head to keep Cedric from continuing his comment. I mouthed for Cedric to not say that he knew what was coming in the task. He nodded understandingly. "Are you sure?" Cedric asked in a hushed voice.

"Dead sure. We've seen them," Harry said, motioning to me.

"But how did you find out? We're not supposed to know," Cedric said.

Thank Merlin he didn't want to be an actor. He didn't sound sincere at all. Thankfully, Harry was too panicked to notice. "Never mind," Harry said quickly. I was glad to see that Harry wasn't going to give Hagrid away either. "But we're not the only ones who know. Fleur and Krum will know by now - Maxime and Karkaroff both saw the dragons too."

Cedric straightened up, his arms full of inky quills, parchment, and books, his ripped bag dangling off one shoulder. He stared at Harry, and there was a puzzled, almost suspicious look in his eyes. I stood back with a confused look on my face as I realized what Cedric was thinking. I had the perfect reason to tell Cedric. He had been one of my best friends for years and we had been - and still sort of were - dating. I hadn't wanted to be in the tournament. It only made sense that I would tell him as this was what he had wanted.

"Why are you telling me?" Cedric asked Harry.

While there were no romantic feelings between Harry and Cedric, I figured that it was for the same reason I had told him. It was fair. Harry looked at Cedric in disbelief. Whether or not it was because we were dating, I had to believe that Cedric would have told us if he had found out the truth. I would have told the Hogwarts champion the truth no matter who it was. Save Cho Chang, perhaps. I wouldn't have let my worst enemy face those monsters unprepared. A near-fatal mistake could be made during the task otherwise.

"It's just... fair, isn't it?" Harry asked Cedric. "We all know now. We're on an even footing, aren't we?"

It was interesting that Harry was willing to tell Cedric the truth even without me badgering him for it. Harry was a good person, just as Cedric was. They were just two very different people. I didn't know if I should say something to the boys or let them figure it out themselves. Cedric was still looking at Harry in a slightly suspicious way when I heard a familiar clunking noise behind us. My stomach churned as I turned around and saw Mad-Eye Moody emerging from a nearby classroom.

"Come with me, Potter," Moody growled. "Diggory, Nox, off you go."

All three of us stared apprehensively at Moody. Had he overheard us? Were we all about to get into a ton of trouble? "Um - Professor, I'm supposed to be in Herbology -"

"Never mind that, Potter. In my office, please."

"Save you a spot in the greenhouse," I muttered to Harry.

"See you," Harry replied.

Cedric and I stood together as we watched Harry and Moody walk off toward his office. The warning bells in my head went off considering they were alone together, but I knew Moody wouldn't do anything with two students knowing exactly where Harry was. I turned back to Cedric with a smile, running my hands through my hair nervously.

"Thanks for not mentioning I had already told you," I said.

"Of course," Cedric said, looking after Harry and Moody. "He looks nervous."

"Aren't you?" I asked.

"Well, yes, I am," Cedric said.

"I barely slept last night," I admitted.

Until I faced the dragons, I didn't think I would have another normal night's sleep. Cedric chuckled. "Do you know what you're going to do?" he asked.

"I've got an idea, but it's tough. What about you?" I asked.

"I'm thinking about trying to Transfigure something for the dragon to take after rather than me," Cedric explained. I hummed; that was a good idea. I would have considered it too if I were slightly better at Transfiguration. "I've gotten much better in Transfiguration lately."

"Good idea," I said.

"What's your idea?" Cedric asked.

"Shield Charm."

Cedric's eyebrows shot up to his forehead as a blush filled my cheeks. It was nice to know that he thought it was a stupid idea, too. "A Shield Charm? Do you know how to do one?" Cedric asked.

"No," I said.

"Have you ever tried?" Cedric asked.

"No."

"Does that not seem a bit reckless?" Cedric asked.

"It's like you don't know me at all," I said. We both laughed as Cedric laid a hand on my shoulder. I was perfectly reckless. It was one of my best qualities. "I've got to practice it, but I don't have time. I've got to be in Herbology now and I've got Potions and Divination after."

"Can you miss Herbology?" Cedric asked playfully.

That surprised me. Cedric had very rarely been one for missing classes, but I wasn't going to fight him on it. "Why not?" I asked, shrugging carelessly. I would love to miss a class with a professor who hadn't cared for me very much since the goblet spat out my name. "I don't think Professor Sprout could like me less right now."

"Don't bet on that," Cedric said, making me laugh. "Come on, I've got an idea."

He took my hand and led me down the hallway toward an empty classroom. No one would be wandering the castle for at least an hour when the current lessons ended. Cedric closed the door of the classroom behind us and flipped the bolt. "What are we doing here?" I asked, pacing around the middle of the room.

There were no desks in the classroom. I wondered if this was used as a dueling room. "We're going to practice the Shield Charm," Cedric said.

"You're going to help me?" I asked, surprised.

Cedric nodded. "Of course. You've got a pretty face, I don't want to see it damaged."

I laughed and pulled out of his grasp as he took my chin in his hands. "Prat," I snapped.

Cedric chuckled again, taking me by the hands and leading me to the center of the room. "Come on," he said, standing us about five feet apart. "You know the spell?"

"Yes," I said, my mouth seemingly having gone dry.

All I could wonder was if this how I would feel facing a fully grown dragon? Completely unprepared and a little foolish. Probably. "We have an hour until you need to get to Charms. We can get something done," Cedric promised.

"Let's give it a shot," I sighed.

Cedric and I practiced the Shield Charm for the two hours that we were supposed to be in Herbology and Ancient Runes followed by the lunch break. Neither one of us knew how to do the spell, but we both tried our hardest. There were lots of near-misses where I produced nothing more than some tiny wisps of smoke. I couldn't stop anything that was getting thrown at me. I ended up falling prey to a few Dancing Feet and Jelly-Leg Jinxes. By the end of the two hours, I still hadn't managed the spell. Even though I wanted to keep practicing, I knew that I had to go to Potions.

Dragons would be the least of my worries if I missed Potions; I couldn't risk not going. So, Cedric and I left as he briefly walked me toward the dungeons. "Well, that was pointless," I huffed, annoyed that I'd made no progress.

"It wasn't pointless, Tara," Cedric countered. That was hard to believe. "You've got some chances to practice. Give it another day, you never know what you might be able to accomplish."

"Okay," I mumbled.

"It's going to be okay, you know that, right?" Cedric asked, laying his hand on my arm.

"Tell me that after I've survived an encounter with a full-grown dragon," I moaned, throwing my head back. Cedric chuckled. "I should get to Potions before Snape feeds me to the dragons himself."

Cedric laughed. "See you later."

We exchanged a quick smile as I turned and walked off. I wandered into the dungeon and took my spot in between Harry and Hermione. They looked up at me curiously. "Where were you during Herbology?" Hermione hissed accusatorily.

"I had a meeting," I answered.

"You don't need to give Professor Sprout any more reason to be upset with you," Hermione told me.

"Surprisingly enough, Hermione, I do have slightly more pressing matters to deal with than Professor Sprout's irritation with my tardiness," I snapped.

"She glared at me the whole class. You made the right move not coming," Harry said.

Hermione glared at us as Harry and I exchanged a chuckle. We ended up spending much of the class passing notes back and forth between us. Snape ran his mouth for the hour that we sat in the dungeons but I didn't listen. Harry and I brainstormed ideas for what we could do to battle a dragon; nothing was safe enough that wouldn't result in us getting burned to death. When the class ended, all three of us turned to leave. I only stopped when an idea dawned on me. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea, but it was all I had.

"You guys go ahead," I told Harry and Hermione, looking to the front of the dungeon where Snape was wandering back and forth as he prepared for his next class. "I need to talk to Snape for a minute."

"What?" Harry asked, stunned.

Snape was a mean professor but he was brilliant with a wand. I would tell Hermione and Harry the truth of what I was doing later. For now, I wanted to treat this as it was; a friendly competition. "I want to apologize to him for what happened the other day with Skeeter," I said awkwardly.

Hermione looked pleasantly surprised. "That's mature."

"I try," I mumbled, which was a complete lie.

I enjoyed being immature. "See you later," Harry said, staring at me like I'd lost my mind.

Maybe I had. "See you," I told them. I slowly pushed my way to the front of the classroom as the rest of the room emptied. "Professor?"

Snape turned around and looked shocked to see that I was still there. "Yes, Nox?"

"I wondered if I could speak with you for a moment."

"Make it quick. I have another lesson to prepare for."

My stomach churned with nerves. I had never done well speaking politely to Snape. "Well, as I'm sure you're aware, the First Task is coming up and I've been trying to prepare for it as best I can," I said. It looked like Snape was getting annoyed so I began speaking faster. "There's a charm I wanted to learn, the Shield Charm, but I've never attempted it and I know that it's difficult -"

"Would this not be better suited for the Charms professor?" Snape interrupted, scowling at me.

It had occurred to me to go see Professor Flitwick but I didn't have him today and as good of a teacher as he was, he preferred the slow and steady pace. Snape wanted everything done immediately, which was what I needed right now. "Please, professor. I considered going to Professor Flitwick, but I've seen you cast spells before. You're fast and… and I think I need speed tomorrow," I said. A dragon could mow me down in seconds. "You initially wanted to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, right? That's a Defense charm."

"The Shield Charm won't be learned overnight," Snape said.

"Better to try and fail than to have never tried at all, right?" I offered.

My comment didn't seem to sit well with him. Snape gave me a long look as if he were trying to read a book in a foreign language. I figured he would tell me to buzz off, but instead, he said, "It won't be an easy task."

"Understood."

Snape nodded as he circled the desk. "The Shield Charm protects the caster with an invisible shield that reflects spells and blocks physical entities. Conjurations may sometimes rebound directly off it back towards the caster, or in other cases, may ricochet off in other directions or dissipate as soon as they hit the shield."

"But it can block say, a stone being thrown at you?" I asked dumbly.

"Yes."

"How difficult is it?"

"That would depend on the level of skill of the performer. Most consider it to be moderate."

"Can you do it?"

Snape didn't look thrilled with my question as he whipped out his wand and said, "Protego."

A silver mist floated in front of Snape and formed a barrier for a few moments before evaporating. I figured that theoretically, it would have protected him. "How long did it take you to learn?" I asked nervously.

"More than a night," Snape said pointedly.

The tone of his voice told me that I wasn't getting anything else out of him. "Right. Thank you, Professor Snape," I muttered dumbly. It was time for me to leave before he got any angrier with me. Even though I left with my tail tucked between my legs, I was still annoyed with him. Well, that was useless. Snape gave me a short nod as I turned to leave, but I stopped at the last moment and turned back to him. "Oh, and I'm sorry about the other day with Rita Skeeter."

Snape looked surprised that I had apologized as he gave me a short nod. I turned to leave again when he called, "Nox." I turned back. "The wand movement must be precise. The vertical line must be directly in the center of the circle and you must enclose the circle."

That would help. "Okay, thank you," I said earnestly.

Snape nodded again as I turned to leave quickly, smiling at my quasi-success. Snape's hint would help me get started. I walked into the hallway and saw Harry and Hermione, who had been waiting for me. "Did you go to lunch?" Hermione asked curiously as my stomach growled.

"No, I was practicing for the First Task," I admitted.

"Doing what?" Harry asked.

"Probably not the same thing you were trying," I said slowly.

"You're not going to tell me?" Harry asked, sounding very annoyed.

"I will," I said.

Harry stared at me disbelievingly. I loved him to death but he had to learn to do things on his own sometimes. "Tara, you're seriously not going to help me?" Harry snapped.

"I've got my idea to practice," I shot back. My gaze softened upon seeing Harry's defeated face. We can't do the same thing, it would look too suspicious. They would know that we were cheating by helping each other. Hermione can help Harry and I'll seek help elsewhere. Harry, you're my best friend and I'll help you if worse comes to worst, but it's a competition, right?" Hermione smiled at our exchange. "Come on, we can't get out of it so we may as well give it a real go."

While Hermione looked impressed that I was going to try and handle things myself (and attempt to not cheat), Harry scowled at me. "This is the wrong time for you to be noble," he groaned.

"I think it's a good idea," Hermione put in.

Harry turned and scowled at her. "I'll be around tonight," I said, turning to leave. I had about twenty-four hours to keep myself from getting burned alive. "If you'll excuse me -"

"You have Divination!" Hermione gasped.

"So?" I asked.

"Go to class first, practice after," Hermione said.

Harry and I exchanged an annoyed look but ultimately decided that we may as well have gone. It was only an hour and a half, after all, and I had no one else to practice with yet. Harry was about to skip Divination to keep practicing, but Hermione refused to skive off Arithmancy, and for him, there was no point in staying without her. I tried to spend Divination writing down possible plans for the First Task, but it ended up being a very difficult task. Harry was having no more luck than I was.

As we had stupidly decided to attend Divination, we, therefore, had to endure over an hour of Professor Trelawney, who spent half the lesson telling everyone that the position of Mars with relation to Saturn at that moment meant that people born in July were in great danger of sudden, violent deaths. She spent another fourth of the lesson adding that, because of Jupiter lining up with Mercury, people born in October were far more susceptible to severely painful losses - perhaps of their own lives, she added.

"Well, that's good, just as long as it's not drawn-out. I don't want to suffer," Harry said loudly, about midway through the lesson.

Like mine, his temper must have gotten the better of him. Professor Trelawney opened her mouth and barely got through another rant about our impending deaths when I sprang up from the table, almost knocking it to the ground. "Okay, you know what? I've got better things to do than sit here. Like trying to not get myself filleted tomorrow!" I hissed.

Ron looked for a moment as though he was going to laugh at our displays; he had briefly caught my eye for the first time in days, but I was still feeling too resentful toward Ron to care. It was time for me to practice. Sitting here was only making me more paranoid. So, I grabbed my bag and left the classroom, jumping down the stairs. There was some chatter behind me, but I didn't care. I needed all the time I had to get herself prepared for the task. I wandered down the hall and headed toward the Common Room when I saw someone who might have been willing to help me.

"Freddie!" I barked.

Fred turned back and grinned at me. "Loser," he said, folding his arms over his chest confidently. I groaned in aggravation. His eyebrows raised as he glanced up at the clock. "Shouldn't you be in Divination?"

"Shouldn't you be in Charms?" I shot back.

It seemed that I wasn't the only one skiving off class. "That's fair. What's up?" he asked.

"Want to help me get the best score for the First Task?" I asked.

"What?" Fred said, shocked.

"Don't ask questions, but I've got a good idea of a spell to use during it. The Shield Charm."

"That's kind of a tough spell, Tara, and you're planning on learning it in a night?"

"Yeah."

Fred stared at me for a moment before shrugging. "Let's do it."

"You want to help?"

"Of course," Fred said. I smiled at him. "This way I'll know who to bet on."

Naturally... "Ah, you couldn't help me to be selfless, could you?"

"It's like you don't know me at all," Fred teased. I giggled at him as Fred reached out and took my hand, leading him with me. "Come on, I know where we can go."

Fred and I took off down the hallway - which was thankfully empty as classes were still going on - and headed down a few flights of stairs to one of the less-traveled hallways. There were no classrooms that were being used down here. I wondered if this was one of the places Fred and George went to practice their pranks. The thought made me smile. The two of us headed into an empty classroom with the desks having been pushed out of the way. I smiled as Fred motioned me into the middle of the room, locking the door behind us.

"Do you trust me enough to let you practice a new spell on you?" I asked.

"Please, you'll never manage it," Fred huffed.

"Freddie!" I snapped.

"You know you can't," Fred teased.

"What the hell? You're supposed to be here to help me!"

It seemed that Fred was the wrong choice to bring with me. Fred grinned. "You know something I've noticed about you?" he asked. I was too stunned by what he had said earlier to compute his question. "You're always a good witch but you're also never better than when you're angry."

"That's cruel," I moaned.

"It's effective," Fred shot back. "Come on, loser. Prove me wrong."

"You're an ass," I hissed.

"Yes, I am," Fred agreed. "Get casting!"

So, Fred and I worked on the Shield Charm to the best of our abilities. Fred shot multiple spells at me and the first two hours were spent with me getting myself into stupid situations. I got a Biting Jinx aimed my way that caused my wand to draw blood, it bit me so hard. A Dancing Spell Jinx winded me. It took us twenty minutes to reverse a Finger-Removing Jinx. I couldn't even remember what had happened after Fred hit me with a Jelly-Brain Jinx. I threatened to burn Fred's eyebrows off when he hit me with a Pimple Jinx.

It took five minutes to reverse that jinx as I came up with some of my most creative insults ever. Fred looked the most afraid I'd ever seen him. He settled with a Tripping Jinx for most of our time together as he found it very funny to see me fall over. I knew that I would be bruised to hell tomorrow from all the times I had banged into tables or hit my hip on counters. It was almost an hour before I finally managed a weak Shield Charm. I still got knocked over from the pressure but the jinx didn't hit me. I was so excited that I launched myself into Fred's arms in a tight hug.

After a few seconds together, Fred reminded me that I couldn't stop there. We practiced through Divination and dinner. I figured that Fred might have wanted to leave and grab dinner, but he promised that he would stay with me until I could produce the spell correctly. We only stopped for a few minutes to eat some of the candy Fred had in his bag. I had a lot of fun practicing, more than I had thought I would. I figured it was because Fred didn't bring up the task. He just teased me, the way he always had.

It was nice to interact with someone who treated me the way they had before I became a champion. It had been hours since the sun had set and I knew it meant that it was at least close to the middle of the night. We had spent hours together practicing. I had mostly perfected the Shield Charm, though sometimes it was a little weaker than I would have liked it to be. I wanted to keep practicing throughout the night, but I knew that I had to get at least a few hours of sleep before the task.

"That was good, Tara," Fred said. "You might have a real shot."

"Might?"

"We can't let your head get too big."

"You're an ass."

We smiled at each other as we wandered into the hallway and quickly headed back toward Gryffindor Tower. We couldn't get caught out here this late. Fred's smile faded as he looked down at me. "Are you going to be okay tomorrow?" he asked.

How could anyone be okay facing a fully-grown dragon? "Well, not really. I don't know, Freddie. It's intimidating," I admitted.

"You'll be okay, you know that," Fred said.

"Yeah, tell me that when this is over."

"I've never heard you sound so -"

"Concerned?" I asked.

"Something like that. Hey, I'll be cheering for you."

I giggled under my breath as I reached out and wrapped my arms over his shoulders and pulled him into a hug. "Thanks," I said.

"Tara, you know people don't believe those rumors, right?" Fred asked as we continued.

"It sure as hell seems like they do," I groaned.

Fred shook his head. "They don't. Everyone knows that Skeeter was just trying to get your goat. It helps that Diggory keeps telling everyone it's not true and to lay off you."

"He does?" I asked, somewhat surprised by the news.

I'd known that Cedric wasn't happy with the way that people were speaking to me and I knew that he had told his friends to lay off, but I was surprised that he had told everyone to leave me alone. "When he hears people saying something nasty about you, it's probably the only time I've seen him angry," Fred explained. The thought warmed my heart slightly. I liked knowing that he was trying to stop people from making fun of me. "He cares about you."

"I know. It's strange to see you defending him," I said.

"I'm not defending him," Fred countered. I arched an eyebrow. "I just want you to be happy."

"You've always taken care of me," I said.

"Always will," Fred replied.

He was one of the few people I would have believed when they said that. I smiled as I took Fred's hand and reached up on my tiptoes to press a kiss against his cheek. Fred rested a hand gently on my waist as we walked back through the central part of the castle. I grinned up at Fred and rested my head in the crook of his shoulder. He always took care of me, no matter what was going on. He took care of me more than most people had ever done and I believed that he always would. We walked back to Gryffindor Tower hand-in-hand.

We half-sprinted back to Gryffindor Tower after spotting Peeves and wound up darting into the Common Room a little after two o'clock in the morning. I figured that the Common Room would be empty this early in the morning but I was surprised to see that Harry and Hermione had been practicing. I released Fred's hand as Harry and Hermione looked up at us. Harry was standing near the fireplace, surrounded by heaps of objects: books, quills, several upturned chairs, an old set of Gobstones, and Neville's toad, Trevor.

"Hey," I greeted them.

"Night, Tara," Fred said, looking at Harry and Hermione as they passed. "Kids."

"Hi, Fred," Hermione greeted.

"Hey, Fred," Harry greeted.

We waited for Fred to head upstairs before speaking again. "Looks like it's been a very productive evening," I said, looking around at the mess. "Any luck?"

"A little bit," Harry said.

"Summoning Charm?" I asked curiously.

That would explain why everything was all over the place. "Yeah," Harry said.

"How's it going?" I asked.

"Not good enough," Harry admitted, which was the same way I felt. "Want to tell me what you tried?"

"Shield Charm," I said.

"That's a good idea," Hermione said.

"Thanks."

"How did it work?" she asked.

"Good enough, but not good enough to make me comfortable tomorrow," I said.

"I don't think you would ever feel good enough to be comfortable tomorrow," Hermione pointed out.

"That's very comforting, Hermione," I said. Harry chuckled as he collapsed onto the couch and reached up for me. I smiled weakly as I dropped into his lap and rested my legs over his. "So, what's your plan tomorrow?"

Harry quickly explained his idea to summon the Firebolt to me. "What do you think?" he asked.

"It's smart and I wish I would have thought of it," I admitted.

My idea was a little more ballsy and far less thought out. "I didn't. Moody recommended it," Harry said. So, that was what Moody had brought Harry into his office for. "What are you planning?"

"At the moment? I'm going to wing it," I admitted.

"Tara!" Hermione gasped.

What other choice did I have? There was no way for me to truly prepare for a battle with a full-grown dragon. "What? I've got a few spells in mind but, Hermione, without knowing what dragon we're facing, how are we supposed to properly prepare? They're all different. I've got outlines of a plan for each possibility," I explained.

"Tara -"

"Drop it," I interrupted her. "I'm nervous enough, I don't need you adding to it."

"Okay, I'm sorry," Hermione said sheepishly. "We'd better get some sleep. You two are going to need it."

"Night, guys," I said, hugging them both and walking off.

When I woke up the next morning, I hadn't succeeded in sleeping for more than twenty minutes. I'd been focusing so hard on learning the Shield Charm the prior evening that some of my blind panic had left me. It returned in full measure, however, on Tuesday morning. The atmosphere in the school was one of great tension and excitement. Lessons were to stop at midday, giving all the students time to get down to the dragons' enclosure - though of course, they didn't yet know what they would find there.

I felt oddly separate from everyone around me, whether they were wishing me good luck (the few that were) or hissing, "We'll be sure to give Cedric our condolences, Nox," as I passed.

It was a state of nervousness so advanced that I wondered whether I would lose my head when they tried to lead me out to my dragon and start trying to curse everyone in sight. Time was behaving more peculiarly than ever, rushing past in great dollops, so that one moment I seemed to be sitting down in my first lesson, History of Magic, and the next, walking into lunch, and then Professor McGonagall was hurrying over to me in the Great Hall. Lots of people were watching. Where had the morning gone? The last of the dragon-free hours?

"Professor," I greeted, the word sticking in my throat.

"Nox, Potter, the champions have to come down onto the grounds now," Professor McGonagall said. "You have to get ready for your First Task."

"Right," I said, my coffee cup splattering to the table and spilling everywhere.

"Okay," Harry said, standing up, his fork falling onto his plate with a clatter.

"Good luck!" Hermione whispered. "You'll be fine!"

"Sure," I mumbled.

"Yeah," Harry said, in a very high-pitched voice.

We left the Great Hall with Professor McGonagall. She didn't seem herself either; in fact, she looked nearly as anxious as Hermione. Harry and I walked side-by-side, our hands linked together. That seemed to make Professor McGonagall even more nervous. She knew that we were terrified. My body was trembling from head-to-toe. We had officially run out of time. The dragons were mere minutes away. As Professor McGonagall walked us down the stone steps and out into the cold November afternoon, she put her hands on our shoulders.

"Now, don't panic, just keep a cool head," Professor McGonagall said. "We've got wizards standing by to control the situation if it gets out of hand. The main thing is just to do your best, and nobody will think any the worse of you. Are you all right?"

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine," Harry said.

"Great. Why wouldn't we be?" I said.

It was becoming very hard to speak. My throat was beginning to tighten to the point that I didn't think I would be able to breathe. Professor McGonagall was leading us toward the place where the dragons were, around the edge of the forest, but when we approached the clump of trees behind which the enclosure would be visible, I saw that a tent had been erected, its entrance facing us, screening the dragons from view. My heart was pounding with anticipation.

"You're to go in here with the other champions and wait for your turns. Mr. Bagman is in there. He'll be telling you the - the procedure," Professor McGonagall said, in a rather shaky sort of voice. "Good luck. Nox, your father would like to speak to you before the task."

"Okay. Thanks, Professor," I said. She motioned me down the path that followed the edge of the tent. I walked down it and attempted a smile as I saw my father. It likely came across as a grimace. "Hey, Dad."

"Hey, kid. You alright? I haven't seen you look this pale since the summer after we moved to England," Dad teased. I didn't respond to the joke, instead, I stared blankly at him. My father's nervous grin faded. "Tara. You're going to be alright."

"Sure," I replied. Suddenly, a thought came to mind. "Whose fucking idea was it to include the venomous dragon and the one with a taste for human flesh?"

"Watch your mouth," he snapped. "How did you -?"

"Doesn't matter. Please tell me it wasn't your idea," I hissed.

"It wasn't. I wanted to use the Antipodean Opaleye and Hebridean Black but the Ridgeback and Horntail were the only other two nesting mothers," Dad explained. It somehow didn't seem like a good enough reason to pit two of us against some of the most violent dragons in the world. "Tara, you've got a team of people out there ready to step in if things go wrong."

"And I'll look like an idiot," I said.

"You could never."

"I think I'm going to be sick."

He smiled, running a hand down my arm. "You're my brave girl. You can do this. Do you have a plan?"

"I've got about… twenty percent of a plan."

"We'll take it."

"How's Mom?" I asked, unwilling to talk about my pathetic plan any longer.

"Probably drawing up divorce papers as we speak since I admitted to her that the First Task was dragons," Dad said. I laughed. "I'll tell her all about how you managed."

"In case I die?"

"Because too many people will want to celebrate your win and you won't have time to give an interview."

"Okay."

"You're going to be okay," Dad said, taking my arm and pulling me along. "Come on, we've got to get you inside. Good luck. I'll be watching."

"See you," I breathed.

Dad left me at the entrance of the tent. I went inside. Fleur Delacour was sitting in a corner on a low wooden stool. She didn't look nearly as composed as usual, but rather pale and clammy. Viktor Krum looked even surlier than usual, which I supposed was his way of showing nerves. Cedric was pacing up and down. When I entered, Cedric gave me a small smile, which I returned, feeling the muscles in my face working rather hard, as though they had forgotten how to do it.

"Tara!" Bagman said happily, looking around at me. "Come in, come in, make yourself at home!"

Bagman looked somehow like a slightly overblown cartoon figure, standing amid all the pale-faced champions. He was wearing his old Wasp robes again. He handed me a set of robes that were similar to the ones Cedric was wearing, though they were red and black. Once I had changed, I began pacing. Most of the others were too. I wasn't speaking but I was walking near Cedric. He gave me a reassuring nod. After a few minutes, Hermione entered the tent and lunged into a hug with Harry. I turned to them and smiled as I walked up.

At that moment, a bright camera flashed and Rita Skeeter approached. My nerves left me for a moment, replaced by boiling rage. "Young love! Oh, how stirring," Skeeter said, smiling at Harry and Hermione. "If everything goes unfortunately today you might make the front page."

"Yeah, you'd love that, wouldn't you?" I sneered.

Surprisingly, it was Krum who stepped up to the plate. "You have no business here," he told Skeeter. "This tent is for champions and friends."

Unless I was going insane, which was a good possibility, Krum briefly shot a look at Hermione. "No matter. We've got what we wanted," Skeeter said, turning to Cedric and me, motioning between us with her quill. "Unless you two would like to -"

I was about to lunge after her, intent on knocking her teeth out, when Dumbledore and my father entered. "I'd suggest you not finish that thought, Rita," my father warned, a gravelly tone to his voice.

"Good to see you again, Marcus," Skeeter said, smiling at him.

"It's not good to see you, Rita, and you know that." The tent fell silent as my father walked up to Skeeter. "I read what you wrote about my daughter." Skeeter opened her mouth but my father spoke over her. He took her arm in what appeared to be a crushing grip. Skeeter whispered as she tried to step back, but he wouldn't allow her. "If you write anything about my daughter ever again, it'll be the last thing you ever write," my father warned her lowly.

"Dad, she's not worth it," I said.

As much as I would have enjoyed seeing him kill her, I knew that she wasn't worth whatever trouble he would get into for it. So, my father released her, but not without a shove backward. "Keep my daughter's name out of your column," my father snarled.

"Rita, I believe it's time for you to leave," Dumbledore said, motioning her pointedly out of the tent. She left as I sent my father an appreciative smile. "Good day, champions. Gather around please." We all walked up and formed a tight circle. "Now you've waited, you've wondered and at last the moment has arrived. The moment only five of you can fully appreciate." Dumbledore glanced around at us but his face dropped in confusion when he saw Hermione. "What are you doing here, Miss Granger?"

"Oh, um..." Hermione said, jumping as she realized that she wasn't supposed to be here. "Sorry, I'll just go."

"Barty," Dumbledore prompted.

"Well, now we're all here - time to fill you in!" Bagman said brightly. "When the audience has assembled, I'm going to be offering each of you this bag," he held up a small sack of purple silk and shook it at us, "from which you will each select a small model of the thing you are about to face! There are different - er - varieties, you see. And I have to tell you something else too... ah, yes... your task is to collect the golden egg!"

Collect a golden egg. It seemed easy enough, until you included the fire-breathing dragon, at least. I glanced around. Cedric had nodded once, to show that he understood Bagman's words, and then started pacing around the tent again. He looked slightly green. Maybe he wasn't as prepared as I'd thought he would be. Fleur Delacour and Krum hadn't reacted at all. Perhaps they thought they might be sick if they opened their mouths; that was certainly how I felt. But they, at least, had volunteered for this.

Harry looked about as nauseous as I was feeling. I wandered around the tent as the minutes ticked by, my legs feeling less and less stable. In no time at all, hundreds upon hundreds of pairs of feet could be heard passing the tent, their owners talking excitedly, laughing, and joking. It must have been nice to be up there, safe and worry-free. I felt extremely separate from the crowd, as though they were a different species. And then - it seemed like about a second later to me - Bagman was opening the neck of the purple silk sack.

"Miss Delacour," Bagman said, offering it to Fleur Delacour.

Fleur put a shaking hand inside the bag and drew out a tiny, perfect model of a dragon - a Welsh Green. It had the number two around its neck. My heart dropped as she examined the dragon. I had been hoping that by some stroke of luck I would end up with the easiest dragon. I should have known that it would be Fleur's. I knew, by the fact that Fleur showed no sign of surprise, but rather a determined resignation, that I had been right: Madame Maxime had told her what was coming.

The same held true for Krum. He pulled out the scarlet Chinese Fireball. It had a number three around its neck. He didn't even blink, he just sat back down and stared at the ground. Some part of me had been hoping that the two of them would have pulled the Ridgeback and Horntail. Now it was between Cedric, Harry, and myself, and two of us would have the two dragons I had been least looking forward to. Cedric put his hand into the bag next and out came the blueish-gray Swedish Short Snout, with the number one tied around its neck.

My heart skipped a beat as I realized that there were only two dragons left. The Hungarian Horntail and the Norwegian Ridgeback. I wasn't too keen to face either one of them. I felt Harry's hand wrap around my waist as Bagman held out the purple silk to me. On shaky legs, I reached in. The bag was warmer than I was expecting. I took the first thing I could feel and pulled it out, holding my hand closed as I turned it over. I forced myself to count to three before revealing the Norwegian Ridgeback with the number five around its neck.

It meant that I would be going last. I wasn't sure if it made me feel better or worse. My head snapped around to my father, who nodded slowly. My heart was pounding in my chest as Bagman turned to Harry, who would be facing the Hungarian Horntail. I'd known that I was correct about the two of us facing the most dangerous dragons. Just as expected, Harry reached into the bag and pulled out the Horntail. It stretched its wings and bared its minuscule fangs. I gripped the back of his robes tightly.

"Well, there you are!" Bagman said happily. "You have each pulled out the dragon you will face, and the numbers refer to the order in which you are to take on the dragons, do you see? Now, I'm going to have to leave you in a moment, because I'm commentating. Mr. Diggory, you're first, just go out into the enclosure when you hear a whistle, all right? Now, Harry, could I have a quick word? Outside?"

"Um... yes," Harry said blankly, and he got up and went out of the tent with Bagman.

"You alright?" Dad asked, walking up to Harry.

"Uh-huh," Harry said hoarsely, turning and looking at my father like he'd never seen him before. "Thank you, Mr. Nox."

"You're going to be just fine," Dad said, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder. "We've got plenty of trained wizards ready to step in at a moment's notice."

"Okay," Harry said.

They nodded at each other as Harry walked off with Bagman and Dad came up to me. "How are you doing?" he asked.

"Well, I can't say I'm surprised that I got the venomous dragon," I admitted. I took a few deep breaths, feeling myself tremble. "I've got nothing to worry about. I'm going to be fine. I'm ready."

Dad smiled, running his hands through my hair and bringing me in for a hug. "You are. Don't forget it. You're a smart witch and you know how to handle yourself in a crisis," Dad said. I nodded along, trying to convince myself that he was right. "I have to go, but I'll be right here waiting to congratulate you when you've finished."

"Okay," I said. He was about to walk off when I called him back. "Hey, thanks for Skeeter."

"I'll kill her if she writes anything else about you," Dad said. I chuckled under my breath. Dad walked up to my side and hugged me tighter than he ever had before. "You'll be okay." I nodded, unable to speak as Cedric walked up to us. He nodded at my father, who nodded back at him. "Good luck, son."

"Thank you," Cedric said.

Dad smiled at him and walked out of the tent. Cedric walked in front of me, placing a hand on my arm comfortingly. "I told you," I moaned.

"At least you don't have the Horntail," Cedric teased.

"That doesn't make me feel better considering that Harry has it," I replied.

As usual, Harry and I were the two people whose lives were going to be in the most danger. We stared at each other for a moment before the gong sounded for Cedric's turn. My heart sped up at the sound. I would have been terrified for him sitting in the stands, but this was somehow worse. Seeing the fear on his face and being unable to help. As Cedric passed me, we stood against each other for a moment. He gave me what I imagined was an attempt at a smile as I gripped the front of his robes.

"Are you ready?" Cedric asked. I let out a pathetic hoarse squeak. "Me too."

"Please be careful," I begged.

"You'll be all right," Cedric said. "We both will."

"Yeah."

All I wanted to do was give him a good-luck kiss, but I was positive that I would throw up all over him. As Cedric grabbed my hip and walked out, Harry walked back to the tent. Cedric was about to leave, greener than ever. Harry opened his mouth, probably trying to wish him luck as he walked past, but all that came out of his mouth was a sort of hoarse grunt. I understood how he was feeling. It was how I felt. Seconds later, I heard the roar of the crowd, which meant Cedric had entered the enclosure and was now face-to-face with the living counterpart of his model.

It was worse than I could ever have imagined, sitting there and listening. The crowd screamed, yelled, and gasped like a single many-headed entity, as Cedric did whatever he was doing to get past the Swedish Short-Snout. My heart was pounding in my chest as I listened to the crowd. I heard most of them calling Cedric's name and screaming for him to make all kinds of different moves. Even worse was hearing the roaring from the dragon and the loud blasts of flames.

Maybe I hadn't been thrilled with Cedric over the last few weeks, but I didn't want to see him get himself burned to a crisp. Harry must have known how awful I felt, as he sat with me, keeping his hands on my leg. Krum was still staring at the ground. Fleur had now taken to retracing Cedric's steps, around and around the tent. Even as I tried to imagine that Cedric was doing well, Bagman's commentary was making everything much, much worse. A deafening bang and roar sounded as there were gasps from the audience. I tightened my grip on Harry's hand.

"He'll be okay, Tara," Harry promised.

I let out a hoarse whisper. Cedric had to be okay. Horrible pictures formed in my mind as he heard, "Oh, narrow miss there, very narrow. He's taking risks, this one! Clever move - pity it didn't work!"

The entire time Cedric was with the dragon, I knew I should have been thinking about when my turn would come in an hour or so. It wasn't on my mind, though. I was only thinking about what was happening to Cedric. I wasn't sure if it was easier sitting here and listening to his turn or if it would have been easier to be able to see. Then, after about fifteen minutes of near heart attacks from the noises and commentary, I heard the deafening roar that could mean only one thing: Cedric had gotten past his dragon and captured the golden egg.

"Very good indeed!" Bagman was shouting. I jumped to my feet for a moment. "And now the marks from the judges!"

But he didn't shout out the marks; I supposed the judges were holding them up and showing them to the crowd. Harry looked up at me and smiled, exchanging a quick hug. I was thrilled to hear that Cedric was okay and he had gotten past his dragon. My relief didn't last long. Within a minute, I realized that my turn was now one person closer. I allowed myself another moment to be relieved that Cedric was okay before I placed my elbows on my knees and looked down at the floor.

"One down, three to go!" Bagman yelled as the whistle blew again. "Miss Delacour, if you please!"

Fleur was trembling from head to foot; I felt more warmly toward her than I had done so far as she left the tent with her head held high and her hand clutching her wand. We exchanged a glance as she walked past. It was still obvious that neither one of us liked the other, but we had a mutual moment of quasi-respect. She had the easiest dragon, but I supposed that it was still a dragon nonetheless. Harry, Krum, and I were left alone, Harry and I at opposite sides of the tent from Krum, avoiding each other's gaze.

The same process started again. "Oh, I'm not sure that was wise!" I heard Bagman shouting gleefully. "Oh... nearly! Careful now... good lord, I thought she'd had it then!"

Ten minutes later, I heard the crowd erupt into applause once more. Fleur must have been successful too. There was some bitterness on my part from Fleur getting her egg faster than Cedric had. Though, his attempt seemed a bit more interesting; I had heard more applause and cheering during his turn. There was a brief pause while Fleur's marks were being shown. There was more clapping for her marks. Judging by the noise level, her marks hadn't been as high as Cedric's. Then, for the third time, the whistle.

"And here comes Mr. Krum!" Bagman cried, and Krum slouched out, leaving Harry and me alone.

At this point, it seemed that I had less than twenty minutes until I was going to face my dragon. I felt much more aware of my body than usual; very aware of the way my heart was pumping fast and that my fingers were tingling with fear. Yet, at the same time, I seemed to be outside myself, seeing the walls of the tent and hearing the crowd, as though from far away. Harry and I glanced up and exchanged a quick look with each other. I laid my head in his shoulder, closing my eyes and trying to block out the noises.

"Very daring!" Bagman yelled, and I heard the Chinese Fireball emit a horrible, roaring shriek, while the crowd drew its collective breath. "That's some nerve he's showing - and - yes, he's got the egg!"

Applause shattered the wintery air like breaking glass; Krum had finished. A chill settled over my bones. It would be Harry's turn at any moment. He was now the only person setting me apart from my turn with the dragon. My head finally came up from Harry's shoulder. We looked at each other in the eye for a moment before he stood up. I stood up with him. Harry reached out for me on trembling legs. I took his hand and stood in front of him, saying nothing as we waited. A minute passed, and then I heard the whistle blow.

"Good luck, Harry," I whispered.

We would see each other in a few minutes. That was what I had to keep telling myself. Harry nodded as he pulled me into a hug. I could feel that we were both trembling. "I'll see you on the other side when we both have our eggs," Harry promised.

"Of course," I said, as confidently as I could.

Within half an hour, we would both have encountered our dragons and survived the First Task. Yes, that was the truth. Harry walked out through the entrance of the tent. The panic that had been at a dull roar was now rising into a crescendo inside me. There was only one more person to go before my wait ended. I felt my heart pounding in my chest, especially as the noises and roars came from the compound. There were a few deafening bangs and roars and what sounded like blasts of flames from the dragon.

Just like when Cedric had been with his dragon, I was terrified for Harry. I hated having two of the people I cared about the most in the world at the mercy of one of the most dangerous magical creatures in existence. My heart skipped a few beats as I heard screams and shouts from the audience toward Harry's encounter with the Horntail. The ground seemed to be shaking during Harry's encounter. I wondered how long it would be before I had to go. As it turned out, it wasn't long.

"Look at that!" Bagman was yelling. "Will you look at that! Our youngest champion is quickest to get his egg! Well, this is going to shorten the odds on Mr. Potter!"

Good on Harry. A few minutes passed after Harry's encounter with the dragon without the sound of the whistle. He had done well, but clearly, something had happened. Otherwise, he would have already gotten his scores. Another five minutes passed before Bagman called for Harry's scores. There was a loud round of cheering. Harry must have done extremely well. Maybe he had gotten the highest score for getting past his dragon the quickest. A moment later, the whistle sounded.

My time was officially up. I rose from the bench, my legs threatening to give way. I exited the tent and was now walking past the trees, through a gap in the enclosure fence. I walked out into the stadium and the crowd. They were hushed now, though that might have been because I couldn't hear anything over the thundering of my heartbeat. At first, I didn't see the Ridgeback, though I did see the eggs. After a moment, the dragon appeared, slinking low to the ground and growling at me. The audience erupted with noise as I approached slowly.

I slipped my wand out of my pocket as I walked up to the Ridgeback. My stomach was churning nervously. This could either go very well or very badly. "Hey, Norbert. Uh, Norberta," I corrected myself. "Remember me? I helped get you out of here to your new home. I helped you out, so do me a favor and help me out here. Please don't light me on fire."

At that exact moment, Norberta shot a blast of flames toward me. It seemed that she wasn't that happy that I had helped get her to her new life. The flames whipped toward me faster than I had expected. I couldn't think fast enough to pull out my wand and do anything; instead, I tumbled down into a crater between the rocks. Shouts and jeers were echoing from the audience. I hid in between the opening in the rocks for a few moments as the flames shot over my head, so hot that sweat began running down my neck.

The moment that the flames from Norberta subsided, I jumped up from my hiding spot in between the rocks and ran away from the eggs, hoping that Norberta would follow me. For a moment, she did. I planned on making a quick turn and running back toward the eggs to see if I could double back faster than Norberta could. The Ridgeback blasted another set of flames toward me as I whipped out my wand, casting the Water-Making Spell behind me. The flames hit the wall of water behind me, which was strong enough to stop them.

The unfortunate part was that the flames were boiling the water. The boiled water shot all over the enclosure, soaking me to the bone and causing my skin to turn red from the heat. I hissed in discomfort as I sprinted off. I only let the spell drop when Norberta stopped shooting flames. My luck didn't last long. The Ridgeback instead decided to settle with running after me. I knew that she would run me down within seconds. I had to try for the eggs before she could. I gasped as I turned back to the eggs - she had beaten me there.

Norberta slammed in front of me, the eggs resting between her legs, as she growled deeply at me. The ground had shaken so hard from her quick movement that I nearly fell as I ground to a halt a few meters away. Norberta lunged after me as I reached up and cast the Impediment Charm. It didn't do much more than trip Norberta up for a moment. It was enough to keep me safe for a moment. Norberta stumbled over her legs as I sprinted for the eggs again, trying to go around the dragon.

For her size, Norberta was a lot faster than I'd expected. She recovered from the Impediment Charm faster than I had expected. The Ridgeback straightened up and circled, cutting me off for the eggs again which forced me to turn back to the stands. There was no way she was going to let me too close to the eggs. As I sprinted off, trying to think of a new plan quickly, the Ridgeback came far too close for comfort. I could feel her hot breath on my neck. I whipped out my wand again but didn't think fast enough to use the spell I had practiced so hard with.

So, my fear taking over my practicality, I shouted the only spell that came to mind. The Knockback Jinx. The venom that had been dripping from Norberta's teeth spilled onto my shoes, indicating just how close she had been to eating me. The jinx shot from my wand so hard that it blew Norberta back into the stands where Rita Skeeter was sitting, crushing them under the dragon's weight. I was sure I would hear about that later. Thankfully, the stand Norberta had crushed was being used for the press and not for my fellow students.

Skeeter was knocked from her seat, falling almost a story to the ground below. She was screeching in fury even louder than the dragon was. Laughter erupted in the crowd from both the students and the adults. I could have sworn my father was crying. Even I stopped long enough to laugh at Skeeter's unfortunate luck. It took a shout from Hermione in the stands to get me to move again. I had a limited amount of time before Norberta regained her senses.

It wouldn't take her long to realize that I was the cause of her fall. As Norberta was still dazed, I turned and ran back toward the eggs. I was mere feet away when Norberta blew a blast of flames toward me. I slipped in between the rocks just as I had the first time Norberta had tried to burn me alive and threw my hands over my head. I was trying to think my way out of the situation when suddenly, much to my surprise, I heard the same voice I had heard a few times before. The voice that only seemed to appear whenever I was stuck in an impossible situation.

"The dragon won't stop guarding the egg," the man's voice echoed in my head.

"I know!" I shouted back in my mind.

"You must get to the egg."

"I heard the damn rules! I know I have to get to the egg! But to get to the egg I have to get near the dragon! Every time I try to get under her she tries to light me on fire!"

"Don't go under," the man suggested.

"What else am I supposed to -?" I stopped when I realized what he meant, which wasn't what I had been planning on doing. "Oh, you've got to be shitting me."

"Do it!"

"Fine!"

If there was ever a stupid plan, it was this plan. I realized that I had to get closer to Norberta than I had been betting on. Way too close. But the disembodied voice had never led me down the wrong path before. I had to believe that he was trying to help me. It was either that or I was going to be burned. I may as well have given it a shot. I leaned up from in between the rocks and hooted for Norberta to come toward me. I could hear Hermione shrieking at me for my stupidity as Fred and George both shouted for me to stop being a moron.

My father seemed too stunned at my actions to say anything. I focused on Norberta as she approached, casting the Impediment Charm again as she came within a few feet of me. The dragon tripped up again and shrieked in fury. I could see her throat turning red as she geared up to blast another set of flames at me. I allowed Norberta to shoot off her flames before I cast the Shield Charm as perfectly as I could. If there was ever a time for luck to be on my side, it was now. There were no rocks for me to hide under and nowhere for me to go.

The silvery-blue shield emerged from the tip of my wand and flew out in front of my body to counteract Norberta's flames. I let out a breath of relief as the flames were stopped in their tracks. Now came the truly difficult part. The crowd screamed as I ran forward, the Shield Charm bowing under the pressure of the flames. I was inches away from Norberta's snout when I forced the Shield Charm downward, using it as a step up to jump into the air. The crowd's screams followed me as I launched myself over the flames.

Norberta stopped blowing flames and my Shield Charm gave out. I was lucky enough that I was already over Norberta's back and I hit the dragon's back in a slight tumble. I slipped down the dragon's back as Norberta lashed out, turning back and trying to take a chunk out of me. The dragon wasn't flexible enough to turn back to me, which was just what I was betting on. I grinned as I ran down Norberta's back but hesitated when I saw the long jump down to the eggs directly below me. I would be landing right in between Norberta's legs.

It was only when I saw the gleaming white teeth from the Ridgeback come within inches of my face that I decided I couldn't wait. She was either going to bite me or throw me from her back. So, I launched myself off the edge of Norberta's back and hit the ground almost twenty feet below me in a tuck-and-roll. Even though I'd tried to roll forward, the impact vibrated through my knees. Norberta roared and stepped back, likely trying to get back far enough to set me on fire, as I reached out and snatched up the golden egg, stopping the timer.

The crowd roared as Norberta reared up almost fifty feet above me. My moment of relief from taking the egg didn't last long. I gasped and cast the Shield Charm again as Norberta's jaws came down over me. The dragon was stopped with sword-like fangs only inches from my head. I breathed out shakily as I cradled the egg in one hand and kept up the shield with my other hand. My heart was racing as, a moment later, Norberta stumbled back from the Stunning Spells that were now hitting her.

When Norberta collapsed I was finally able to drop the spell and let out a breath of relief. I saw the dragon keepers rushing forward to subdue Norberta, and, over at the entrance to the enclosure, Professor McGonagall, my father, and Hagrid hurrying to meet me, all of them waving me toward them, their smiles evident even from the distance. The world seemed to have finally unmuted itself, the noise of the crowd pounding in my eardrums, and my heart lighter than it had been in weeks. I had gotten through the First Task. I had survived.

As I moved toward my friends, I felt a sharp pinch at my ankle. "Ow!" I shouted. I looked down to see that my ankle was bloody. The half-asleep dragon had bitten me, probably out of anger. I scowled at the dragon. "Come on, Norbert. After all that I've done for you."

"You did it!" Dad shouted, wrapping me in a tight hug and swinging me around. I laughed breathlessly. "Oh, mom's going to be so proud."

"That was excellent, Nox!" Professor McGonagall cried, which was extravagant praise coming from her. I noticed that her hand shook as she pointed at my ankle. "You'll need to see Madam Pomfrey before the judges give out your score. Over there, she's had to mop up Diggory already."

"What?" I gasped.

"Nothing serious. He got slightly burned on his cheek," Professor McGonagall consoled me.

"Yeh did it, Tara!" Hagrid yelled hoarsely. "Yeh did it! An' agains' the Ridgeback an' all, an' yeh know Charlie said that was one of the wors' - "

"Thanks, Hagrid," I said loudly so that Hagrid wouldn't blunder on and reveal that he had shown me the dragons beforehand.

"Right then, Nox, the first aid tent, please," Professor McGonagall said.

Dad and I exchanged another loving hug. He promised that, even though he had to leave immediately after the task, we would see each other again before the Second Task. I smiled at him as he left, promising that I would write home so that Mom didn't lose her mind with worry. I mouthed a quick 'thank you' to Hagrid before walking out of the enclosure. He was the reason I had gotten any chance to prepare, after all. I was still panting as I walked off, spotting Madam Pomfrey standing at the mouth of a second tent, looking worried.

"Dragons!" she said in a disgusted tone, pulling me inside.

The tent was divided into cubicles; I could make out Cedric's shadow through the canvas, but Cedric didn't seem to be badly injured. He was sitting up, at least. I desperately wanted to go and hug him - and something a little more, probably - but Madam Pomfrey knew where my thoughts were at. She scowled at me and took my arm, pulling me past Cedric's cubicle. She was going to make me get my treatment before letting me see or speak to anyone else. Madam Pomfrey examined my ankle, talking furiously all the while.

"Last year Dementors, this year dragons, what are they going to bring into this school next? You had the Ridgeback, didn't you?"

"Yes," I said.

"You may feel a bit woozy. This is the antidote for the venom," Madam Pomfrey explained.

In the excitement of grabbing the egg, I had almost forgotten that the bite would be venomous. "Great," I mumbled.

Madam Pomfrey cleaned the bite mark with a dab of some purple liquid that smoked and stung. She was right about one thing. It had only been a few minutes since I'd been bitten and I was already starting to feel a bit woozy. "Now, just sit quietly for a minute - sit!" I groaned as she shoved me back into my chair. "And then you can go and get your score." She bustled out of the tent and I heard her go next door and say, "How does it feel now, Diggory?"

It was very difficult to make out anything Cedric was saying; his voice was much quieter than it normally would have been. I gave up trying to overhear him after a few seconds. I knew that it would be pointless. I could talk to him later. I didn't want to sit still. I was too full of adrenaline. I had to do something. So, I got to my feet, wanting to see what was going on outside, but before I had reached the mouth of the tent, two people had come darting inside - Hermione and Harry, followed closely by Ron.

I wasn't surprised to see Harry or Hermione, but I was surprised to see Ron. "Well, this is interesting," I commented.

"You did it!" Harry shouted, grabbing me around the waist and spinning me.

"So did you!" I gasped, hugging him tightly. That was when I noticed he had a thick paste on his shoulder. "What happened to your shoulder?"

"A little burn from the Horntail. Nothing to worry about," Harry said.

"Tara, you were brilliant!" Hermione said squeakily. I smiled at her. There were fingernail marks on her face where she had been clutching it in fear. "You were amazing! You really were!"

I patted her on the shoulder and stopped in front of Ron, folding my arms over my chest. "So, do you believe us now?" I asked.

"Tara, I'm sorry," Ron said quietly. I stared at him, nodding my approval. I had wanted an apology from Ron for weeks. It was one of the things that had been bothering me the most. "Whoever put your name in the goblet, I reckon they're trying to do you in!"

"Ah, so you've finally caught on," I snapped. I scowled at Ron for a moment as my head began to spin. I didn't have it in me to fight with him any longer. I was fighting with everyone else. I couldn't handle not having one of my best friends any longer. So, I sighed and opened my arms to him. "Just hug me before I slap the shit out of you."

Ron grinned nervously at me and I grinned back. He was one of the most annoying people I had ever met, but he was also one of the most important people in my life. It meant the world to have him back in it. Ron walked up to me and hugged me tighter than he ever had before. We stayed together for a few moments before he seemed to notice that my body was beginning to swoop back and forth. Ron pulled back, giving me a concerned look. Hermione burst into tears.

"There's nothing to cry about!" Harry told her, bewildered.

"You three are so stupid!" Hermione shouted, stamping her foot on the ground, tears splashing down her front.

Then, before any of us could stop her, she had given all three of us a hug and dashed away, now positively howling. "Barking mad," Ron said, shaking his head.

"What's that about?" I asked, my head doing a strange loop on my neck.

"Tara, are you alright?" Ron asked worriedly.

"It's the venom. Mixed with the adrenaline, it's going straight to her head," Madam Pomfrey explained. Well, that made sense. "I gave her the antidote but it will take some time to work. She'll feel better in an hour or so."

"Would you stop spinning?" I snapped as I looked at Ron.

"Yeah, Tara, you're the one who's spinning," Ron replied.

"Am I?" I asked, trying to steady myself. I seemed to be spinning even faster. "How do I stop?"

I couldn't figure out why Harry and Ron were laughing. "Tara, c'mon, they'll be putting up your scores," Ron said.

"Wonderful!" I chirped. "Scores for what?"

"Tara," Cedric said.

"Hello," I greeted.

His face fell. "Are you alright?"

"Come on!" Ron barked, pulling me along.

Ron and Harry took my arm to pull me along. Cedric tried to follow us when Madam Pomfrey shouted, "Stay here, Diggory! I'm not done with you yet."

I turned back to smile at him. "Goodbye," I said.

My feet seemed to be tangling with themselves as I tried to walk with the boys. Walking seemed to have gotten much more difficult over the last few minutes. Ron and Harry both had arms around my waist, probably trying to keep me from falling. It was a good idea, as my legs seemed to have turned to jelly. Picking up the golden egg, feeling more elated (and quite a bit dizzier) than I would have believed possible an hour ago, I ducked out of the tent, Ron and Harry by my side, talking fast.

"You two were the best, you know, no competition," Ron explained. "Cedric did this weird thing where he Transfigured a rock on the ground. He turned it into a dog. He was trying to make the dragon go for the dog instead of him. Well, it was a pretty cool bit of Transfiguration, and it sort of worked, because he did get the egg, but he got burned as well - the dragon changed its mind halfway through and decided it would rather have him than the Labrador; he only just got away. And that Fleur girl tried this sort of charm, I think she was trying to put it into a trance - well, that kind of worked too, it went all sleepy, but then it snored, and this great jet of flame shot out, and her skirt caught fire - she put it out with a bit of water out of her wand. And Krum - you won't believe this, but he didn't even think of flying! He was probably the best after you, though. Hit it with some sort of spell right in the eye. Only thing is, it went trampling around in agony and squashed half the real eggs - they took marks off for that, he wasn't supposed to do any damage to them. Harry got his Firebolt and flew around his dragon."

I'd already known what Harry's plan was with his dragon. I wished that Ron would speak a bit slower, though. It seemed that my brain was processing information at about half the rate that it normally did. Ron drew breath as the three of us reached the edge of the enclosure. Now that the Ridgeback had been taken away, and I wasn't fearfully keeping my eyes away from the stands, I could see where the five judges were sitting right at the other end, in raised seats draped in gold.

"It marks out of ten from each one," Ron said, and squinting up the field, I saw the first judge - Madame Maxime - raise her wand in the air. What looked like a long silver ribbon shot out of it, which twisted itself into a large figure nine.

"Tara, that's great!" Ron said as the crowd applauded.

"She only gave me an eight," Harry said.

"I suppose she took marks off because you got bitten," Ron added.

It was much higher than I would have expected as Madame Maxime didn't like me much. "I guess she's not as much of a bitch as I thought," I commented.

The crowd laughed at my loud comment. I'd meant for it to be much quieter. Madam Maxime scowled down at me and I figured that she regretted giving as high of a score as she had. Mr. Crouch came next. He shot a number nine into the air. "Good job!" Harry called.

"Looking good!" Ron yelled, thumping me on the back.

Harry had to grab me to keep me from falling flat on my face. Next was Dumbledore. He too put up a nine. The crowd was cheering harder than ever. Then came Ludo Bagman - eight. "He gave Harry a ten," Ron said.

"Because he's got a man-crush on him," I said. The crowd laughed again as Harry jabbed me in the ribs. "Ouch! What was that for?"

"Stop talking!" Harry yelled.

Now Karkaroff raised his wand. He paused for a moment, and then a number shot out of his wand too - six. "What?" Ron bellowed furiously. "Six? You lousy, biased scum-bag, you gave Krum ten!"

"What a fucking prick," I said.

The crowd roared with laughter. "Tara!" Harry said loudly, laughing along with everyone else.

I turned to him and smiled. "Hello."

"We've already said that," Harry pointed out.

I turned to Ron, briefly catching Karkaroff's eyes. "Well, he's a grumpy man," I commented.

"Tara, you know what this means!" Harry gasped.

I smiled at him. "No."

"You're in first place!" Ron said.

"Cool! Do I get a trophy?"

"Win the rest of the tournament," Harry said, chuckling.

"What tournament?" I asked.

"We should probably sit her down," Ron suggested to Harry.

Even though I couldn't walk straight, I wanted to go for a run. My heart felt lighter than air as the boys turned and dragged me to leave the enclosure. I smiled dumbly as my two boys held me up between them, people cheering after me. It wasn't just Ron. Those weren't only Gryffindor's cheering in the crowd. When it had come to it, when they had seen what I was facing, most of the school had been on my side as well as Cedric's. They didn't hate me anymore. I didn't care about the Slytherin's, I could stand whatever they threw at me now.

"You're in first place, Tara!" a red-headed man told me happily as we set off back for the school. "Harry and Krum are tied for second! Listen, I've got to run, I've got to go and send Mum an owl, I swore I'd tell her what happened - but that was unbelievable! Oh yeah - and they told me to tell you you've got to hang around for a few more minutes. Bagman wants a word, back in the champions' tent."

"Goodbye," I chirped, turning to the boys. "Who was that?"

Harry and Ron both laughed. "Come on," Harry said.

Ron said that he would wait for us, so Harry and I reentered the champions' tent, which somehow looked quite different now: friendly and welcoming. The champions were now all smiling, rather than looking like they were about to puke. I still kind of felt like I was going to puke. I thought back to how I had felt while dodging the Ridgeback and compared it to the long wait before I had walked out to face it. There was no comparison; the wait had been immeasurably worse and the reward had been worth it.

Cedric's P.O.V.

Cedric's face was still slightly warm but it had cooled down a lot over the last few minutes. He had heard the crowd roaring and knew that it meant Tara was okay. He'd seen her briefly but hadn't gotten much of a chance to speak to her. She had looked almost drunk when he had seen her a few minutes ago. Cedric asked Madam Pomfrey if he could go see her. He cared about her and wanted to make sure she was okay. Madam Pomfrey didn't look happy about his request but did eventually allow him to go check on his girlfriend.

Cedric walked into the tent and saw Tara sitting on one of the benches with Harry at her side. Cedric smiled at her. "Congratulations. I hear you're in first place now," he told her, prouder than he had expected to be.

Naturally, Cedric wanted to win, but he was proud of his girlfriend for being in first place for the time being. "That's what I heard, too," Cedric said, sending him a dumb smile. Her eyes were slightly glazed over. "Hello."

"Are you okay?" Cedric asked her.

"She got bitten by the Ridgeback right after she got the egg," Harry explained.

He was a little worried about Tara, but no one seemed that concerned. He glanced down at her leg and noticed that it was bandaged. "I see," Cedric said, watching her sway on the bench. "Good one, Harry."

Harry grinned. "Back at you."

"You look just like my boyfriend," Tara said, smiling up at him.

"Do I?" Cedric asked her teasingly.

"Yeah, but he's cuter. He doesn't have... that..." Tara trailed off as she motioned broadly at his new burn, making a funny face.

Cedric chuckled. "Is he?"

"Definitely. He's kind of a pain in the ass but he is hot," Tara said. Cedric laughed as Harry rolled his eyes, looking away from them. It made him feel a little bit better to know that she still cared about him, even after he had messed up so much the last few weeks. "His name is Cedric. He's great, but his friends suck."

"I'm sure he doesn't deserve you," Cedric said.

"Not at all!" Tara giggled as she rose from the bench and walked into Cedric's arms. He reached out and caught her before she fell to the ground. Tara smiled, looking up and poking him on the nose. "Betcha you don't either."

Cedric smiled. Delirious from the venom or not, she was correct. "Not in the slightest," he agreed.

"Uh, will she remember this?" Harry asked Madam Pomfrey, who had come into the tent.

"She likely won't remember anything after being bitten," Madam Pomfrey explained.

That was good, as Cedric knew that Tara didn't like being embarrassed. Fleur and Krum all came into the tent together. Cedric nodded at them both as he grabbed Tara tightly in his arms and dragged her along with him. He had to keep taking her hands in his to make sure she didn't try to run her fingers through the thick orange paste that was on one side of his face. It was almost like taking care of a small child, but he enjoyed that she wasn't yelling at him. They joined the circle as Harry came up to Tara's other side, keeping an arm around her back just in case she fell.

"Well done, all of you!" Ludo Bagman said, bouncing into the tent and looking as pleased as though he personally had just got past a dragon. "Now, just a quick few words. You've got a nice long break before the second task, which will take place at half-past nine on the morning of February the twenty-fourth - but we're giving you something to think about in the meantime! If you look down at those golden eggs you're all holding, you will see that they open... see the hinges there? You need to solve the clue inside the egg - because it will tell you what the second task is, and enable you to prepare for it! All clear? Sure? Well, off you go, then!"

"Make sure she gets upstairs and goes to bed!" Madam Pomfrey instructed Harry and Cedric.

"Yes, ma'am," Harry said.

"I'll help you get her upstairs," Cedric offered.

Cedric, Harry, and Tara left the tent, joined Ron Weasley, and they started to walk back around the edge of the forest. Harry and Ron were talking hard; Harry wanted to hear what the other champions had done in more detail. Cedric was chuckling at Tara's mindless chattering. She seemed to be enjoying herself talking about how much she enjoyed swimming. She mentioned that she would have invited him to go swimming, but that her boyfriend probably wouldn't like it. Cedric had to fight to keep from bursting out laughing.

Her words didn't make much sense. She would get started on one subject and then immediately switch to another topic in the middle of her sentence. It was the chattiest he had seen her in weeks. He hoped that she stayed that way; it was nice to see her cheering up a bit. As their small group rounded a clump of trees not far from the tent, a witch leaped out from behind them. It was Rita Skeeter again. Tara fell silent at the sight of her. The writer was wearing acid-green robes today, the Quick-Quotes Quill in her hand blended perfectly against them.

"Congratulations, all three of you!" Rita Skeeter said, beaming at them. She looked at Harry. "I wonder if you could give me a quick word? How did you feel facing that dragon? How you feel now, about the fairness of the scoring?"

"Yeah, you can have a word," Harry said savagely. "Goodbye."

The rest of the people who had still been in the tent had now come out. Rita walked forward and said, "Oh, but Tara -"

"Print this," Tara interrupted, grabbing Cedric and pulling him down to her by the collar, planting a large kiss right on his mouth. "Bitch."

And as Tara released Cedric's collar and took his hand, holding her head high as she set back to the castle, Cedric could have sworn that Professor McGonagall was smirking even harder than he was.

A/N: Next time... Tara revels in the school finally recognizing her part in the Triwizard Tournament. I had fun writing this one! I'd been looking forward to writing the dragons! So everyone knows, I'm going to update some of my other stories before coming back to this one. I hope you've enjoyed the last few quick updates! Thank you for the follows and favorites! Please review! Until next time -A

Guest: Yes, I promise some Draco scenes are coming in the next few chapters!

Dove Salvatore 21051: That's true! We are getting a lot more time to update lol. I'm still actually going in to work every day but I get the evenings and weekends to write now because I can't do much of anything else. Look for the silver lining in the situation!

slyqueen: Yes, I'm updating quickly with nothing else to do on the weekends! I hate Skeeter, I had half a mind to make Norberta just crush her in this chapter and be done with it but she's unfortunately a relatively major player in the upcoming books. I hope you enjoyed the First Task! I had a good time writing it.

Ghostie1701: Lol I hope your sisters weren't too angry with you waking them up! I love Tara's parents so I always have fun bringing them back into the story. Don't worry, I'm not done with Cedric and Tara yet! They're way too fun. I had to bring Remus back (he will be back later too) and I couldn't resist bringing Norberta back! Well, all I can say on that is that some of the deaths will be changed. Maybe not always the ones you're thinking! Take care!

Marnie Quiera: It was a tough chapter for Tara and that was what I wanted to show. She is having a tough time and she's only a teenager. It's not fair for her. It does show that she does have real friends, like Fred being there for her no matter what's going on. Rita Skeeter is a repulsive character and it goes to show what kind of person she is and what the Daily Prophet would be willing to do to sell papers.

Yes, you will be getting a jealous Cedric! Not quite yet, but that part of him is coming soon. As you saw in this chapter, Cedric felt bad for not standing up for Tara soon enough. There was just a brief Cedric P.O.V. in this one but we're going to get a longer and more in-depth one soon. Oh, I hope you don't stop reading no matter what I decide to write!

Fred's going to stand up for Tara! Don't worry. He's going to do whatever it takes to make his friend smile. Trust me, Tara has no intentions to forgive his friends, but at the same time, she knows that they mean a lot to Cedric. She tries to be mature even if it doesn't always work out.

That's so true! I think Tara would have a lot of fun if she went to the Yule Ball with Fred. They would have a good laugh. Tara's going to start having a little bit more fun as the story goes on, so that's something to look forward to. She deserves some fun!

It was so to see her crying! It's not too often Tara cries or shows real emotion so that was a little strange to write. Of course, no one knows just how much they've hurt her as she only let Cedric and Fred see her pain. I do plan to explore the relationship between Fleur and Tara a bit in the future. I think it could be interesting. Don't worry! Tara's going to let Cho have it at some point!

Hopefully you saw more nonchalant Tara in this chapter - once she beat her dragon, at least. She was a little too terrified before that. She's not letting people see her cry anymore!

Fred adores Tara so it was only natural that he came to her side when he knew she was hurting. Tara will be a lot happier in the next chapter, I promise! She's getting her mojo back!

I'm a big fan of profane language (obviously) so I've always enjoyed writing Tara's insults. They're not expecting a fifteen-year-old girl to speak like that!

Can't promise what I'm going to do with Cedric but I hope you understand either way!

I'm going to continue the story! I will be updating some of my other ones, but I'll be coming back to this one soon. That's so sweet of you! I hope you continue to enjoy the story as much as you have been enjoying it! Thank you for reading! And don't feel bad about the long review, I love them!

Guest1942: That's an interesting idea, having Cedric pull Ted or Michael out of the lake. Tara may have a better idea of leaving them down there, though... Considering who Tara will be pulling out of the lake, I won't say exactly who it is but I think you can figure it out! I promise it's not a big secret and it won't be that surprising.

Vincent FGS91: Thank you! I always love hearing when people enjoy my writing. I couldn't resist bringing Norberta back into the story. Take care out there!

Guest: I believe you were the same person that left a few review, so here it goes. As for what's going to happen between Fred and Tara in the future, it's definitely about Cedric and Tara right now! In our world, there's definitely a law regarding writing about minors. In the Wizarding World, we're going to pretend that there isn't! Yes, Cedric's friends can be real pieces of work. Don't worry, Tara's not going to keep letting people walk all over her!

Toffeeloveryes: I'm so glad you love the story! Yes, it's been a long story with a long road to get here! I'm so glad you like the original sections! We're going to see a more jealous Cedric in the future. He does feel the same way when he sees boys flirting with Tara, but he isn't as obvious about she is.