Chapter 16: The Second Task

May, 1997

Sixth Year

The unfamiliar solemn silence haunted the halls of Hogwarts, replacing what had been jolly laughter once upon a time. The sky had turned a cloudy grey, the rain unfaltering and violent against the windows, almost as if it were mourning with the school. Not even Peeves could be found, seemingly vanishing along with the joy that had once run through the very walls of Hogwarts.

Two very different boys were sat underneath an alcove, their backs to the cold glass of the windows. Both boys held worn expressions on their faces, although one would forever hold more guilt than the other. Condolences didn't need to be exchanged, not yet, for both were too lost in their own grief.

"Did you love her?" the first boy asked, breaking through the silence with gentle ease.

The second boy scoffed, as if the other had just told a joke. He looked up to the darkened stone ceiling, smiling fondly.

"How could anyone not love her?"

Both would hold her smile in their hearts until the end of time.

February, 1995

Fourth Year

February fluttered into the Hogwarts grounds with the promise of the second Triwizard task approaching. The excitement grew day by day, the students seemingly falling back into that same flurry of tension they had been in months before. Madeline could hardly believe she'd been in Hogwarts for nearly six months, and what an exciting six months it had been.

The commotion of the oncoming task had done little to prevent the never-ending flurry of homework. Sat at one of the larger study tables in the Slytherin common room, Madeline looked around at her friends. Theo was on her left, finishing his Potions assignment, while Daphne and Terence sat to right, flirting and trying (failing) to complete their own assignments.

Over the short time Madeline had known him, Theo had been a strong and loyal, yet reserved friend. He spoke with reason and diplomacy, and Madeline was sure that no one could pose him a problem he couldn't solve. Meanwhile, Daphne was bold, brash, impulsive, and knew exactly how to win anyone over with her charisma and good looks. Sat together, the trio looked positively untouchable, with the green of their ties keeping any and all unwanted attention away. They looked intimidating, and the few that knew them well would confirm this.

Terence wasn't Madeline's favourite person by any account. He was cocky and arrogant, and embodied all the selfish qualities of a Slytherin. Yet, she had no doubt that he too would help her if she ever needed it. He was a jock with a golden heart, as some may say, with a horrible tendency to go above and beyond the socially acceptable levels of PDA.

Tracy Davis was exactly the kind of presence the trio needed in Slytherin. She was refreshingly down-to-earth, with a working class family and a healthy relationship. She cared about the younger students, and made sure that everyone in the house felt warm and welcome.

And of course, she couldn't forget her other friends. Cedric had been rather preoccupied with the oncoming task recently, as had Harry. Hermione had been busy bugging the latter to figure out his egg, but Madeline had often joined Hermione to study in the library with Ginny and Neville (much to the boys surprise).

Fleur and Madeline had spent numerous January mornings eating breakfast together, the two catching up with anything and everything, from the Yule Ball to Fleur's progress in the tournament. Theo and Fleur had sizzled out quickly, both equating the date to the ball as friendship more than anything.

And of course, Fred.

There hadn't been an almost-kiss since the Hogsmeade date, which was rather unfortunate in Madeline's opinion. They'd shared few lunches and study dates together, and had occasionally brushed hands on the way out of the Great Hall, but had yet to make good on their promises on chess and flying.

But… She really liked the boy. Like, really liked him. She liked the person she was around him; carefree and fun, something that a lot of Slytherins didn't particularly partake in.

"You're brooding out loud again," Daphne pointed out, shaking Madeline out of her thoughts, "Come on, stop daydreaming about the ginger."

"I am not daydreaming," Madeline protested, pulling her wand out of her robes and flourishing it over the parchments, "See? I'm studying."

"Bloody hell Bisset, you have a weird wand," Terence whistled with wide eyes.

"I do not!" Madeline protested.

"You really do," Daphne agreed, staring at it curiously, "What is it anyway?"

"Hickory," Madeline answered instantly, "And a bloodwood handle."

"How elegant," Daphne drawled mockingly.

Madeline looked down at her wand. To be fair, it wasn't exactly the classical design most of her peers had. While their wands were sleek and polished, Madeline's twisted around itself slightly, the knots in the hickory having created small holes in the main body of the wand (which didn't affect her spells at all, thank you very much). The handle of the wand was made of deep bloodwood, a simple cylindrical design.

It had been made by the same wand maker that had made all the Bisset wands for generations. The core of her wand, however, had been the same as her fathers; dragon heartstring, a curiosity her mother had found rather fascinating.

"You are just like your father," she had mused fondly when Madeline had gotten her wand.

"So, the second task is tomorrow," Daphne began, closing her textbook with a definitive thud and interrupting Madeline's thoughts once more, "Do you know anything about it?"

"And why would I?" Madeline asked in confusion.

"Because you're friends with three out of four champions," Daphne pointed out, "So; any intel?"

"Nope," Madeline sighed, leaning back into her chair, "Nothing."

"Seriously?"

"Last I heard, they're all too busy still trying to figure out the egg," Madeline shrugged, "I'm pretty sure Fleur figured it out, but they're not allowed to tell me any details."

"Well, that's boring," Daphne scoffed, crossing her arms, "And here we are, the commoners, left to wait until tomorrow-"

"Woe is you," Theo teased, rolling his eyes.

"They're bound to make this one harder than the dragons," Daphne mused, ignoring Theo's remark. She turned to Terence, "What's scarier than a dragon?"

"Snape smiling," Terence nodded decisively.

Madeline scoffed playfully, "So the second task is to make Snape laugh?"

"Impossible," Theo nodded along, the small group chuckling.

Madeline sighed, looking out of the window and into the depths of the lake, "I do hope they don't make us sit outside. It's freezing."

"Fred, it's freezing!" Madeline laughed as he grabbed her hand, pulling her towards the Quidditch field.

"An even better reason to warm up," Fred threw a wink at her over his shoulder, slowing his pace, "And what better way to get warm than to fly a few laps around the Quidditch field?"

"I can think of at least seven," Madeline huffed, "All of which involve sitting inside, around a fireplace, which is actually warm."

"Live a little!" Fred simply replied, the two finally arriving at the pitch.

He immediately pulled her towards the Gryffindor changing rooms, their hands still firmly clasped together. Madeline blushed, knowing what people would think had anyone spotted them, but her head was far too filled with worries to even consider anything like that.

Fred had shown up in the dungeons just half an hour ago, Blaise Zabini begrudgingly informing Madeline of his presence with a rather disgusted look on his face. Fred had barely given her any time to wrap up, instead throwing her a green knitted jumper his mother had made him a few christmases ago, with a large white 'F' at the front and the sleeves far too long for Madeline. It had kept her warm all the same, but it was all so new; wearing a boys jumper and rushing off with him to go god knows where.

"I'm not missing my dinner for Quidditch," Madeline informed him courtly as Fred rummaged through some storage cupboards.

"Relax; dinner isn't for hours," Fred replied, half of his body still inside the cupboard, "Aha!"

Fred pulled out two worn-looking brooms from the cupboard, noticing Madeline's skeptical look as he handed her one, "Don't worry; these two are the best practice brooms we've got."

"Because that makes it so much safer," Madeline muttered to herself, "Seriously, we could always go back inside and have a hot chocolate or something-"

"Nope," Fred replied, popping the 'p' as he rocked back on his heels, one hand in his pocket, "A deal is a deal. Now come on before Wood catches us."

"I'm going to regret this," Madeline sighed, but Fred ignored her, grabbing her hand once more and leading her onto the pitch.

Although Madeline had never watched a Quidditch game in Hogwarts, she knew enough about the sport to know that the pitch was huge for a simple school sport. Decorated with stands in each house colour, the pitch was large and daunting, especially for an inexperienced flyer such as Madeline.

"Just a few laps," Fred promised, handing Madeline a broom.

Madeline took it hesitantly, looking up to the sky, "It looks like it's going to rain soon."

"No excuses," Fred hushed her. He mounted his broom easily, looking at her expectantly, "Or… Are you a wimp?

Madeline hesitated for a few moments before huffing, climbing onto her broom carefully. Both her feet were still on the floor, but it didn't make her any less of a bad flyer.

"I don't think you understand how bad I am at this," Madeline pointed out.

"I don't think you trust yourself enough," Fred winked, lifting off, "See you on the other side."

And with that, the Weasley boy zoomed through the air to the other side of the pitch, climbing higher and higher into the sky. Madeline watched in awe as he soared through the air with confidence, undeniably one of the best flyers Madeline had ever seen.

And there it was again; that feeling of freedom, of carelessness, and of leaving all her worries behind her.

"Why did I agree to this?" Madeline muttered to herself, but proceeded to liftoff, kicking her feet and pushing up into the sky.

She was only a few meters above the ground, but she gripped the body of the broom tightly, navigating slowly through the air to the other side of the pitch. Fred zoomed back down to her height once she'd reached halfway up the looped goal posts.

"See? It's not so bad," Fred teased, Madeline's expression clearly giving away her nervousness.

"I hate you," Madeline glared, trying to gain her balance as she tilted side to side.

"Lean forwards," Fred supplied, "Come on; let's do some laps."

For the next hour, Fred directed Madeline around the pitch, first flying a couple of laps until she gained more confidence, then trying to dart through the circular goal posts. The clouds above them seemed to be growing thicker and darker, and so the duo decided to call it for the day (much to Madeline's delight).

"How do I land this thing properly?" Madeline asked, floating a few meters above the ground.

"Just be careful," Fred called, already on the floor. He felt the first few drops of rain hit his face, "Hey, you were right-"

He was interrupted, however, by Madeline's shriek as she lost her balance on the broom, tumbling off and onto the ground.

And grabbing Fred on the way down.

Madeline opened her eyes with a groan as her back hit the ground. Thankfully, it wasn't a painful fall, but the moment her eyes met the brown ones above her, she felt herself blushing.

Because obviously, obviously Fred Weasley would land on top of her.

"Are you alright?" Fred asked, pulling himself up from above her.

"Yeah, fine," Madeline breathed, nodding far too enthusiastically. He had both arms braced on either side of her, searching her face innocently for any injury, "Sorry; I caught you on the way down."

"Don't worry about it," Fred replied, although his eyes weren't watching hers. Instead, they drifted down to her lips, only a few inches away.

The rain had increased, hitting the ground around them with a violent speed, but neither of them noticed. Instead, all they had eyes for was the other.

Madeline could feel her heart beating against her chest, and wondered if Fred could hear it too. And she was sure he could.

And then, Fred kissed her.

And Merlin was he a good kisser.

It was slow and sweet, not a hint of urgency in the air. It was nothing more than a simple kiss, yet Madeline could feel her stomach flip and her head spin, much more than it had on the broom. It was electric. And in that moment, it felt absolutely right, despite the rain and the wet clothes, and Madeline's disheveled hair.

It felt like freedom, like a breath of fresh air.

They broke apart with a breath after a few moments, eyes meeting each others sheepishly. Fred was the first to grin, pulling himself further away from the girl.

"So, did you have fun?"

Madeline grinned, pulling herself up on her elbows, "Shut up and kiss me again, Weasley."

And, as far as Madeline could care, she could've stayed under the rainy skies forever.

Madeline returned to the common room with drenched hair and the green 'F' jumper still wrapped around her. Despite the running makeup and her shivering frame, she still held the brightest smile anyone had seen in weeks.

"Did you take a dip in the Great Lake?" Pansy snorted as Madeline passed her, Draco to her right. Madeline ignored them both, much to Pansy's annoyance, and made her way to the fireplace.

She sat herself between Theo and Daphne, who shared a sofa. The beaming smile on her face was enough to confuse both her friends.

"Who are you and what have you done with Madeline?" Theo immediately asked, scanning her unruly appearance.

"And why do you look like a drowned rat?" Daphne asked bluntly.

Madeline shrugged, straightening out Fred's jumper, "I went flying."

"You went… Flying?" Theo asked in confusion. However, all the pieces quickly clicked together for Daphne.

"You need to tell me everything!" she gasped loudly, drawing the attention of the entire common room, "Is that his jumper?!"

"A lady doesn't kiss and tell," Madeline shrugged, which sent Daphne in a frenzy of excitement.

"Nice one, Bisset," Tracy complimented as she sat herself across from the trio.

"Seriously," Daphne nodded along excitedly.

Draco stared at Madeline with an unreadable expression, calling from his table with Pansy, "Bloody hell, he must be desperate!"

Crabbe and Goyle, who were also sharing the table with him and Pansy, cackled loudly. Madeline simply held her middle finger up to the group, ignoring Draco Malfoy's poor attempt at comedy.

"Okay, but you need to tell me everything," Daphne repeated as Blaise walked into the common room, "How was it? Did you-"

"Bisset, I'd appreciate if you made it clear to everybody that I'm not your personal owl," Blaise announced dramatically as he sat himself next to Tracy, leaning back onto the sofa with the same arrogance he always wore.

Madeline raised her eyebrow, "I beg your pardon?"

"Moody is outside. Wants to see you," Blaise replied gruffly, eyeing her jumper, "That's an awful jumper, by the way."

"How charming," Madeline rolled her eyes, standing up, "I'm sure it's just something to do with an essay, or something."

"Shout if you need anything," Daphne joked, and Madeline swiftly made her way out of the common room, ignoring Draco Malfoy's persistent gaze, "And don't think you're getting out of telling me everything."

"You're intense," Blaise observed, looking at Daphne.

"And you look like you have a stick shoved up your-"

Madeline closed the door behind her, deciding she definitely didn't need to hear the rest of Daphne's conversation.

"Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them. On the count of three, then. One… Two… Three!"

"Where the hell is Madeline?" Daphne huffed, looking over the lake with a frown. Her hands were covered with thick mittens, earmuffs over her head. She stood with Terence and Theo, leaning over the railing of the stands and looking over the lake.

"Probably with the Weasley boy," Terence shrugged, wrapping an arm around Daphne. He rubbed her shoulder warmly, "She wouldn't miss this, would she?"

"That's whats worrying me," Daphne mumbled to herself, Theo nodding in agreement quietly. He looked over at the other Slytherins, eyeing Draco, who too seemed entranced with watching the still waters.

All she could do was run.

It felt as if she couldn't breathe, running through thickly covered forests. She didn't know what she was running from, but she knew she had to leave. To get away, as quickly as possible

Fat wet tears ran down her face, her feet painfully crashing against the forest floor. A bag was slung over one of her shoulders, barely containing anything but few essentials, and her wand was tightly wedged between her hip and her trousers. Her hair kept flying into her face, but she made no move to fix it. Instead, she kept running.

Flashes of memories seemed to dart across her eyes; green lights, warm jumpers, mirrors… She didn't know what it was, and she didn't know how to make it stop.

It was a dream. It had to be a dream, but something told her that perhaps, dreams weren't necessarily a fantasy.

Madeline emerged from the lake with a great big gulp of air, her hands moving the stray wet pieces of hair from her face. She coughed and sputtered a little, but overall, she was okay. Freezing, but okay. The dream was long forgotten.

When Moody had brought her to Dumbledore the night before, she'd agreed to be used for the task when she realised her refusal would mean Fleur's younger sister, Gabrielle, would be used instead. Gabrielle, a sweet young witch who'd joined her sister in Hogwarts because she couldn't bare the thought of being away from her, and how could Madeline put her in that position?

However, she hadn't accounted for exactly how cold it was.

"Bloody hell Weasley, do you know how to swim?" Madeline asked Ron gruffly, he too having emerged from the water with her.

"Obviously, I do," he snapped.

"Then stop clinging to me like a baby," Madeline snapped back, shrugging his grip off of her shoulders. She pointedly ignored the cheering of the students as she began swimming towards one of the raised platforms on the lake, "Hurry along, now. Wouldn't want the merpeople to mistake you for a pufferfish."

"What does my brother see in you…" Ron muttered, but began swimming towards the platforms, too.

Madeline allowed herself to gaze over the large crowds of students above and around them. Everyone was cheering and clapping loudly, including some of the Slytherins. Madeline even spotted Daphne and Theo clapping, the former jumping obnoxiously.

Fleur was the first to rush over and help Madeline out of the water, a towel wrapped around her tightly.

"You scared me half to death!" Fleur exclaimed in French, pulling Madeline out of the water, "Why would you ever agree to this?!"

"Gabrielle," Madeline stated simply, pulling herself onto the platform. She begrudgingly helped Ron, too, "Wait… But if you didn't get me out, who did?"

"Harry," Fleur confirmed, looking out into the water worriedly, "But he has yet to come out."

And suddenly, as if on cue, Harry burst through the water and into midair, landing directly on the platform between her and Ron. Madam Pomfrey instantly rushed over, the students going crazy with cheering as he landed with a thud.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, rushing over, "You did it!"

"You prat!" Madeline exclaimed, kneeling down next to him and patting his back forcefully, "You didn't have to save both of us! Did you really think Dumbledore was going to let one of us drown?!"

"Well I'm sorry for not wanting you to drown," Harry coughed, catching his breath.

Madam Pomfrey forcefully handed each one of them a warm towel and a red potion. Madeline drank hers instantly, feeling the heat return to her body almost immediately. It was then that she realised, with a blush colouring her cheeks, that she was still wearing Fred's knitted green jumper from the day before. A jumper that the whole school had now seen.

"You're going red, are you alright?" Fleur asked, eyeing the jumper, "Is that new? It looks very… Handmade."

"It's not mine," Madeline confessed quietly.

The judges went into a huddle. Fleur continued to fuss over Madeline as Ron and Hermione did the same to Harry. Madeline sent Harry a grateful smile, allowing Fleur to comb through her hair and plait it to 'save her dignity'.

Eventually, after a few minutes, Ludo Bagman's magically magnified voice boomed out from the judges stands, making them all jump, and causing the crowd in the stands to go very quiet.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Merchieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows…"

"Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated excellent use of the Bubble-Head Charm, was attacked by grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award her twenty-five points."

"I didn't do anything," Fleur huffed, "I don't deserve it."

"You've never been modest in your life and you sure as hell aren't starting now," Madeline squeezed her friends arm.

"I didn't save you-"

"I don't care; my life wasn't in danger," Madeline insisted.

"Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble-Head Charm, was first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour," Bagman continued. Enormous cheers erupted from the Hufflepuffs in the crowd, and Madeline spotted Cedric and Cho looking at each other fondly from the other platform. "We therefore award him forty-seven points."

The Hufflepuffs cheered once more, silenced almost instantly by Bagman.

"Viktor Krum used an incomplete form of Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was second to return with his hostage. We award him forty points. "

Karkaroff clapped particularly hard, looking very superior.

"Harry Potter used gillyweed to great effect," Bagman continued. "He returned last, and well outside the time limit of an hour. However, the Merchieftainess informs us that Mr. Potter was first to reach the hostages, and that the delay in his return was due to his determination to return all hostages to safety, not merely his own."

Madeline looked at Harry incredulously. He would have won first place if he hadn't been too busy playing hero. Stupid Gryffindors and their hero-complexes.

"Most of the judges…" Bagman gave Karkaroff a very nasty look, "Feel that this shows moral fibre and merits full marks. However… Mr. Potter's score is forty-five points!"

The stands erupted into especially loud applause.

"There you go, Harry!" Ron shouted over the noise. "You weren't being thick after all - you were showing moral fibre!"

Madeline moved to the Golden Trio and slung her arm around Harry's shoulder, a grin on her face, "Moral fibre and stupidity suit you, Potter."

"I should've left you at the bottom of the lake," Harry teased.

"Which is what I've been saying," Madeline nodded.

Fleur was clapping very hard too, joining the four friends, but Krum didn't look happy at all. He attempted to engage Hermione in conversation again, but she was too busy cheering Harry to listen.

"Hold on… You're joint first with Cedric!" Madeline exclaimed excitedly to Harry.

"You could win," Hermione nodded in agreement, "It's just the third task-"

"Oh, sod the third task," Madeline huffed, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm freezing and in desperate need of a shower."

The Golden Trio laughed, and Madeline took a moment to look up to the stands. She spotted Fred and George, the latter trying to stop the former from marching down to the platforms. Daphne and Terence had started a chant with the Slytherins, much to her surprise, while Theo looked characteristically embarrassed.

Six months may not be a very long time, but in that moment, Madeline was sure that she'd found her family.

"The third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June," continued Bagman once the audience had calmed down. "The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand."

A/N: There are a lot of important details in this chapter; you might want to take notes if you plan on sticking around for the full story ;)