"Hey, want to walk down to the Prefect meeting together? It's starting soon." Roger asked Vicki in the common room a short while later.

After Vicki finished with Cedric she still had a couple of hours to burn until dinner. With nothing better to do, as she had finished her exams, she picked up a book from one of the many bookshelves in the common room and was sitting in a window sill.

"Sure." Vicki responded.

She quickly put the book back onto it's shelf (having decided it was a bit of a rubbish read) and she got up and made her way down the spiral staircase to leave Ravenclaw Tower with Roger.

"So uh, how'd things go with Kelly?" Vicki teased Roger as they began their descent through the school to make their way to the Great Hall.

"Urgh. I contemplated calling things off there and then, but there's still a week of school and I don't want things to be awkward. Phillip thought it was a good idea, he thinks I can get a few more shags from her in that time." Roger admitted, sounding a little embarrassed.

"Of course he did." Vicki said through gritted teeth. Now she was no longer with Roger, his best friend Phillip had become a little less vicious towards her. But she still didn't like him

On their way down a few other prefects from Gryffindor joined them, so Roger ceased all conversation about Kelly. Outside the Great Hall they joined up with the prefects from Hufflepuff and Slytherin and they all made their way inside the Great Hall, standing around the entrance. From here one of the school's governors beckoned them all into the same chamber to the side of the hall that Vicki was in earlier in the day to see Cedric and his family.

The prefects were silent as they made their way into the chamber. There were no seats set up, so they all stood around awkwardly. Whilst they waited for the last of the prefects to join them they all made small talk with each other.

"Is it just me, or does this feel like, I dunno. The last supper or something? Something feels really eerie." Roger said to Vicki quietly.

At first she was shocked that he, a pureblood, knew what 'the last supper' was. But then she realised that perhaps some wizarding families practiced religion, even if hers didn't. That, and Leonardo Da Vinci had a famous painting of the last supper. Wizards knew his works, there were even non-original copies hung up in the castle.

But Vicki didn't have time to dwell on religion and art culture in the wizarding world. She looked around the room and noticed a few key people missing from the meeting - and it wasn't any other fellow prefects.

"Is Professor Dumbledore coming to join us?" Vicki asked the school governors, trying to sound polite and not rude.

"No, he is not." One of the school governors responded.

"Will we be waiting for our heads of houses to arrive before we start?" Roger piped up, immediately rolling off Vicki's question.

"No, they won't be present during this meeting." The same governor responded to Roger's question.

Roger and Vicki exchanged looks but didn't speak up. It wasn't strange for Dumbledore to miss a prefect meeting as he very rarely attended them, but the heads of houses attended every single one. Roger was correct- something not quite right was going on.

Not too long after Cedric joined the chamber, with Mildred Tate hot on his heels. Vicki rolled her eyes at Mildred's actions, it was clear she had been following Cedric. Everything about Mildred annoyed her. From her pathetic ways of flirting with Cedric even though he was now with Cho, to the way she annoyingly sucked up to every teacher possible. Even upon entering the chamber she made sure to make an over the top gesture to the school governors and shook their hands thoroughly.

Vicki had never been a big fan of Mildred, but ever since she had become Fred's girlfriend she found herself disliking the girl more. Fred's carefree and fun nature had rubbed off on her, and everything Mildred Tate stood for went against this new found nature of hers.

"Good evening all. We won't take up too much of your time as I'm sure you're all keen to get to dinner so we can feed ourselves before we watch the third task." The head governor greeted the students.

There was a murmur from the students - it appeared most of the prefects wanted the meeting over as quickly as possible, considering no one else questioned the governors.

"We're actually not here to lecture you on how to handle things tonight. We have plenty of staff on standby. After the first two tasks extra ministry staff have been stationed across the Quidditch pitch to handle anything that may arise. We want you all, as tournament spectators, to enjoy the show," The governor spoke up before turning to Cedric "and of course Diggory, we want you to perform to your best as Hogwarts champion."

"Oi! We have two champions competing thank-you-very-much" the seventh year male Gryffindor prefect spoke up.

The governor ignored him as he continued on.

"Instead, in light of the conclusion of the Triwizard Tournament tonight, we thought now would be an appropriate time to announce who the governors have picked as the 1995-1996 school year Head Boy and Head Girl."

This caused many whispers to break out amongst the prefects. The picks for Head Boy and Head Girl were never announced prior to the next school year. It was normally revealed privately to the respective Head Boy and Head Girl through owl post over the holidays, and then those two students would then reveal themselves on the train ride to school at the commencement of the school year. Except for when Percy Weasley was Head Boy. During the summer Vicki got a letter he sent to all of the prefects for that year announcing himself as their Head Boy and giving them strict guidelines and expectations.

But this made things even more unusual. Vicki was trying to stop her stomach from lurching. Dumbledore had already explicitly told her that she was his pick for Head Girl.

It was now time for the only female school governor to speak up.

"As you all know, it's always an extremely difficult task to pick Hogwarts Head Boy and Head Girl each year. Whilst this normally goes to an existing prefect - in some rare situations a non-prefect can prove themselves the best candidate for the position," The governor announced and a few nervous sharp breaths were inhaled from the prefects "However, this isn't one of those years. Our pick for Head Boy and Head Girl is from our pool of prefects."

"Doesn't Dumbledore pick Head Boy and Head Girl?" The female fifth year Slytherin prefect spoke up - the only one brave enough to ask what many others were thinking.

"Yes, normally. Dumbledore will normally put forth his two picks for the school governors to sign off on, after clearing it with the heads of house. But we took it upon ourselves this year to pick the Head Boy and Head Girl ourselves and announce it prior to the third task." The female governor answered.

Vicki sent a sideways glance to Cedric across the chamber. He was the only one who she had told that Dumbledore told her explicitly that she was his choice for Head Girl. The governor's words definitely put a spanner in the works. Cedric tried to send her a reassuring smile.

"Without further ado, I'll now name our choices. It goes without saying, our choice for Head Boy is none other than Cedric Diggory."

Applause rang out in the room and Vicki made sure to applaud Cedric to show her support. But she realised what this meant for her other friend that was standing next to her.

"Are you alright?" She asked Roger, having to lean in and shout into his ear in order for him to be able to hear over the loud clapping for Cedric.

"Yeah. It was really bloody obvious it was going to be Cedric. I accepted that fate the second his name came out of the Goblet of Fire." Roger shrugged.

The room eventually went silent and the head governor was able to speak up again.

"Now, the last thing to do is to announce our choice for Head Girl. The Head Girl for next year will be…"


Almost immediately upon exiting the chamber, Vicki bumped into Fleur who was standing by the exit.

"Oh, sorry Fleur." Vicki lightly smiled to Fleur, purposely ignoring Roger who awkwardly jumped around them avoiding eye contact with Fleur, the girl he briefly dated.

"'Eet iz okay. 'Ave you seen my parents? I am trying to find 'zem." Fleur asked Vicki.

Vicki went to point out that Fleur's parents were in plain view at the front of the Great Hall, but then she noticed something. Fleur was nervously playing with her hair and casting looks towards Bill who was close by chatting with Professor McGonagall. The same looks she had been shooting him straight after breakfast which weren't missed by Vicki in the morning either.

Fleur clearly had a crush on Bill. Fleur, the quarter Veela who could have any man she wanted, had developed a crush on a Weasley. Vicki thought it was sweet.

Whilst Vicki felt uncomfortable at the time, she held no resentment towards Fleur for taking Roger to the Yule Ball. The two were only loose friends, so Fleur didn't have loyalty towards Vicki and thus one could debate that she hadn't betrayed Vicki. The two still sometimes sat together at meal times and made small talk, showing there was no ill feelings between the two girls.

Therefore a plan hatched in Vicki's head.

"Come on." Vicki said with a smile as she linked arms with Fleur.

"What 're you doing?" Fleur asked in a puzzled manner but held no protest as she found herself being dragged in front of Bill.

"Miss Hartwell, Miss Delacour." Professor McGonagall politely greeted Vicki and Fleur.

"Good evening professor. Sorry to interrupt, but er, I thought I'd introduce Fleur to Bill." Vicki spoke up.

She watched Bill take a good look at Fleur for the first time and noticed that the normal calm, collected and cool Bill Weasley became a bit of a nervous wreck as he basked in Fleur's beauty.

"Is there any particular reason why you're introducing Miss Delacour to Mr Weasley?" Professor McGonagall asked Vicki curiously.

"Yes, there is…" Vicki trailed off, as she tried to think of a good reason to link Fleur to Bill. Normally Vicki was a quick thinker, but this time she came up blank.

"Bill is working in Egypt, right? Fleur is from France. They can both speak French!" Vicki quickly spoke up.

"...really? Vicki, you're in Ravenclaw. You should know that Egyptians don't speak French." Bill snorted.

"Yes, they do. Just because you never chose to learn the native language of the country you're living in, doesn't mean you should take it out on me." Vicki snapped as she crossed her arms in annoyance.

"No, they do not." Fleur spoke up, backing up Bill.

"Alright. Well, I'm hungry. So I'll be leaving you crazy kids to it." Vicki stated as she inched away from Bill and Fleur. She noticed that Professor McGonagall also excused herself from Bill as she quickly paced after Vicki.

"I know that Geography isn't a subject taught at Hogwarts and thus I don't know how proficient you are in Geography. But I know for a fact you don't actually believe that French is the official language of Egypt." Professor McGonagall stated to Vicki in an amused fashion.

"Of course it isn't. Egyptians speak Arabic...I think?" Vicki asked Professor McGonagall who gave a nod to confirm her answer "What I didn't know was how to introduce those two, without being too obvious and hurting their pride."

"Well, good work Miss Hartwell. I know you're quite keen to spend some time with the Weasleys this evening so I'm granting you explicit permission to sit at the Gryffindor table for dinner tonight." Professor McGonagall said to Vicki with an almost-smile.

Vicki accepted Professor McGonagall's offer and thanked her, before immediately making her way towards the Gryffindor table. She saw a group of red haired children congregated (as well as Harry Potter and Hermione Granger) and made a bee-line for that area.

"Hey, where's your Mum?" Vicki asked the Weasley family as she took a seat at the Gryffindor table.

"She got caught up in a conversation with the Fat Lady." Fred smirked as he gave Vicki a quick peck on the side of her head.

Immediately he noticed her change in her demeanour. Her face always seemed to bright up when she was with him, as if his carefree and cheeky nature was contagious. But tonight she seemed… off. It seemed he wasn't the only one to see this.

'You alright?' he mouthed towards her with a frown, but another member of the Weasley clan spoke outwardly.

"What's up with you, Hartwell?" Ron asked Vicki with a grimace.

Vicki stared at the younger long-nosed and freckled boy as she decided where to take this conversation. Should she be honest and answer his question, or pull him up on his use of her surname. She decided to go with both.

"Firstly Ronald, when I met your mum earlier she said I was part of the family, so feel free to call me by my first name," Vicki smoothly responded before she felt a lump form in her throat "And uh, it's nothing."

"You really think we're going to let you get away with a pathetic response like that, Victoria? Come on, spill." George piped up with a cheeky smile on his face, but his face fell as soon as he saw the loathing look his twin shot at him.

"If Vicki doesn't want to talk about it, she doesn't have to." Fred snapped down the table.

Vicki sent a small appreciative to Fred and began to help herself to some of the food on the Gryffindor table.

"What's it like eating a different house table? I've never done it." Harry quickly asked Vicki.

She blinked in surprise at his question. She hadn't interacted with Harry at all during the school year. Whilst he had been present in her company, the two hadn't spoken once. In fact, the only time she had ever spoken to him was at the Quidditch World Cup nearly a year ago. Like many others she had grown up learning about Harry Potter 'The Boy Who Lived'. Thus even with her popularity, she still felt shy in the company of a celebrity.

"Well, I've eaten at three house tables today and uh, I suppose it's not the worst one?" Vicki responded with an embarrassed smile.

Normally Vicki basked in attention thrown her way, but tonight she felt herself shy away and therefore gave coy, closed answers. It was partially because of what she had been told a few moments prior, but she almost felt like she was encroaching onto Harry's space. Cedric was 'her champion' but here she sat with a boy she barely knew, a mere hour or so before he competed in the third task. She felt this was inappropriate and thus wanted to minimise her interactions to ensure she wasn't intruding.

Luckily for her Molly had graced the table with her presence and for most of dinner the attention was turned back onto Harry and the fact he was about to compete in the tournament.

"You alright?" Fred asked Vicki curiously as he poked her in the side when no one was looking.

"No," Vicki said quietly as she shook her head with her voice wavering "If I speak up though, I'll cry. Tell ya later."

Fred didn't try and pry the information out of her throughout the rest of dinner. He genuinely had no idea what she was upset about. He thought that perhaps it was because Bagman was once again present at the school - he was seated at the staff table alongside Cornelius Fudge.

Vicki followed Fred's line of sight and noticed the two guests seated at the table. She detested Bagman, but her focus was on the Minister of Magic seated next to him.

"Where's Percy? Wasn't he a makeshift judge in Crouch's absence?" Vicki asked Fred curiously.

At the mention of his pompous older brother George's ears pricked and he barged into the conversation.

"Bill mentioned at lunch that apparently he's in hot water at the ministry for not handling the lead up to Crouch's disappearance very well. So he's been demoted." George grinned wickedly.

"Bet he's not having fun with that. Do you reckon he prattled on 'But I was Head Boy! Head Boy! Head Boyyyyyyyy!' as he always does, when they demoted him?" Fred added on.

Vicki's stomach lurched at the words 'Head Boy' - and it wasn't because Percy was a tough Head Boy to be a prefect under. But she couldn't dwell or Fred would get suspicious. The time for moping was after the third task and when the tournament was over. She had to join in the laughs.

"I dunno. Whenever he gets some kind of promotion he ignores all his past conquests and focuses only on his new thing. First prefect, then Head Boy, and now whatever crappy miniscule bureautic crap job he has at the ministry." Vicki forced out with a roll of her eyes.

Fred and George both howled at Vicki's words and only quietened once Dumbledore got to his feet at the staff table to announce that in five minutes time the school would depart to the Quidditch pitch to take their seats for the third task - but the champions were to leave now.

All of the Gryffindors around her began to roar and applaud as Harry got to his feet. Vicki quickly wished him luck (but she wasn't sure he heard it over those around her) but then snapped her attention onto Cedric and the Hufflepuff table - who was also receiving the same praise. She saw him kiss his mother's cheek, hug his father and then give Cho a kiss before striding out.

Vicki was a little upset he hadn't looked around for her before he left, but realised she had spent considerable time with him today. She was being selfish.


"I'm bored." A young girl of seventeen whined to her boyfriend, hopelessly lazing around in her seat to emphasise her boredom.

It seemed a lot of people shared Vicki's sentiment - all around her people were showing signs of restlessness. A few people had gotten up from their seats to go speak with their friends seated in other sections, and the ones that still remained in their seats were sitting with their arms crossed, or resting their heads by putting their elbows on their lap and putting their chin on their hands.

According to Fred this is what the second task was like - Vicki had completely missed the task as she was unconscious for most of it. Unlike the first task, the spectators weren't able to witness anything and thus it was a nervous wait to see who would emerge as victor of the task (and the entire tournament).

Right now it was down to either Cedric or Harry. It was a guaranteed Hogwarts win as both Fleur and Krum had sent red sparks into the air and were both rescued from the maze and disqualified from the competition. Both were receiving medical care from Madam Pomfrey. Vicki was only one row behind the front and yelled to offer her assistance to Madam Pomfrey both when Fleur had emerged as well as Krum, but Madam Pomfrey shook her head both times.

Even though Hogwarts had won the championship, the Hogwarts students looked just as bored as the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students. Now they knew their school was the winner; the entire thrill had been lost. A lot of students Vicki had spoken to were on the same page as her - they wanted the tournament to conclude so they could move on with their lives, enjoy their summer holidays and come back to a normal school year where they wouldn't have to fight for a spot at dinner with two other schools, where they wouldn't hear other schools scoffing about Hogwarts and most importantly when Quidditch would resume.

"Hey, Hartwell. Come down to the front. I want all the prefects to come have a chat with the Minister of Magic." Mildred Tate called from the ground as she beckoned Vicki down.

"Vicki doesn't have to listen to you. You're not Head Girl." Fred scoffed towards Mildred. He had never liked Mildred Tate - even before Vicki was his girlfriend and he learned of their minor rivalry. Tate always dobbed him and George in for their pranks and scoffed at their presence.

"I suppose Victoria hasn't told you the good news then." Mildred smirked as she crossed her arms in triumph.

Fred looked between Tate and Vicki confused, not catching onto what Mildred was attempting to say.

"It's not supposed to be announced publicly until next year. But you're Victoria's boyfriend and I understand the dynamics of relationships and that no secrets should be kept from each other." Mildred grinned wickedly.

"You can tell him if you want. You seem to be dying to tell people." Vicki shrugged sadly. She was still highly upset about the turn of events and knew she'd most likely cry if she was to voice to Fred what Mildred was hinting at.

"Why thank you Victoria! I get the feeling that you're going to be a great prefect to work with," Mildred smiled brightly before turning to Fred "The school governors this evening announced that I'd be Hogwarts Head Girl next year, whilst Cedric would be Head Boy."

Fred immediately flashed his eyes onto his girlfriend's upset face. This is why she had been mightily upset all night. Despite being told by Dumbledore a few weeks prior that she was his pick as Head Girl, the governors had decided to go another direction to Dumbledore and pick Mildred Tate instead. This was rough.

"I'll come down and speak to the minister." Vicki sighed as she sent Fred a small smile before excusing herself as she awkwardly maneuvered through the row of seats until she reached the ground.

The two girls didn't bother to converse as they briskly walked over to where the officials were seated. Vicki felt a cold sweat run down her back when she noticed she would be approaching Bagman, but luckily he was too busy 'commentating' (at this point there was nothing to commentate on so he was talking about random topics in an attempt to amuse the restless crowd) to notice her.

As the Minister of Magic was busy speaking to Paul Greene the Head Boy and Kelly Winters the Head Girl, Vicki decided to hang back and speak to the only person she could handle right now - funnily enough, her ex boyfriend Roger. It seemed he was dying to speak to her too.

"Vicki, help me!" He whined, trying to keep his voice low.

"...does this have something to do with Kelly's obsession with you?" Vicki asked Roger in an amused fashion.

"Yes. Am I that predictable?" Roger asked Vicki with a large smile on his face.

"No. Well, kind of. It's more that you whining about Kelly Winters is the only thing we ever talk about these days, so I had a hunch that's what it was about." Vicki responded with a giggle.

Roger was about to give a rational response to Vicki. He began to ponder that maybe he was stringing along Kelly and like a band-aid he needed to just rip it off, he perhaps should be honest with Kelly and tell her that he didn't see a future with her.

But instead his thought process was interrupted by a sudden gust of wind hitting both himself and Vicki, and Bagman's booming voice announcing that Cedric and Harry had emerged from the maze.

The issue was that Cedric was sprawled on the lush green grass - and he wasn't moving.