To say things calmed down over the next few days would have been a blatant lie. Sirius and Remus were on a rampage, constantly in and out of the castle trying to find a loophole to get Mary out of the Tournament. Not even Dumbledore could calm the two men long enough to stop them from going straight to the Ministry with their complaints, leaving Mary feeling torn on what to do.
"We'll get you out of this, Mary Jane." Remus hugged her tightly. "And we'll be staying in Hogsmeade, so we're close by if you need us."
She wanted to tell them that it was unnecessary, but the words died on her lips. "Thanks, Moony. I need all the support I can get."
That wasn't a lie. Although all of Hogwarts seemed to back her as a Champion, it was mainly for show. School loyalty was more important than letting Durmstrang or Beauxbatons believe they had the upper hand. Which left Mary constantly dodging and fielding questions in the corridors as she made her way to class or simply tried to get to dinner. Everyone suddenly wanted to teach her new spells or have her wear some form of their house colors. All Mary wanted to do was fade into the background so she could prepare for the First Task in peace.
Gryffindor house banded around her, vowing that they would do anything to help her not only survive, but win the Tournament, and took offense each time she'd make time to go sit with Viktor at the Durmstrang table.
"I've looked into Ilvermorny," said Sirius as they walked next to the lake. "They'll take you in and you can start fifth year with the rest of them. I still haven't found a suitable house in the states, but I'll make it work. We can rent a flat if need be."
"I'm not leaving Hogwarts." Mary argued once again. "I appreciate your efforts, Sirius, but really, I'm not moving halfway around the world just because of this. I have a life here."
"You're young." Sirius ignored her. "You don't understand the dangers in front of you."
"I don't?" Mary's hackles raised. "I think I know more than anyone what kind of shitstorm I've fallen into. That doesn't mean I'm going to run away with my tail between my legs at each sign of trouble."
"Why couldn't you've been a Hufflepuff?" Sirius rubbed a hand over his tired face. "Things would be much easier if you weren't so damn Gryffindor."
Mary personally felt she was more Slytherin these days, but didn't dare voice the thought to her worn out godfather. "You'll see, Snuggly. It'll all work out. So why aren't you and Moony travelling right now? I thought you had a holiday planned."
"I'm not going anywhere with this blasted Tournament going on." Sirius growled. "Not when you're a part of it. And Dumbledore can kiss my furry arse if he thinks I'm going to run around doing his bidding while you're stuck here in a contest that could get you hurt."
Mary held back a sigh of relief. She didn't need them traipsing about the country looking for things they'd never find. Nor did she want them to end up on Voldemort's radar when he realized that someone had taken out the majority of his Horcruxes.
"I'm glad you'll be here." Mary grabbed his hand and turned toward him. "Really though, I'll be okay, Siri. I'm a lot tougher than you think. I may not get through the Tasks as well as the others, but I'll get through them. You need to believe in me."
"I have faith in you, kiddo." Sirius pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. "It's just, well, your parents would never forgive me if I let something happen to you on my watch. Hell, I'd never forgive myself."
"You can't think like that." Mary pulled away from him slightly. "They'd know you're doing the best you can to combat all of the situations I end up in."
"That's why you're going to train everyday." Sirius ordered her. "You're going to practice every spell and every tactic I've ever taught you. You're going to be just fine."
"You know it." Mary's lips pulled into a smile. "Now come on, you've got to help me convince McGonagall to give my broom back."
"You're on your own with that one." Sirius shook his head. "Minnie will give it back when she deems you deserve it and I fully back any decision she makes."
That put a damper on Mary's plans, but she knew it would all work out in the end. It had to. She didn't have any other choice.
"I think it was Warrington." Ron grumbled lowly at dinner that next night. "I bet he put your name in for a laugh and it backfired."
"He wanted to be the Hogwarts Champion." Millicent shook her head. "There's not a single upper year that I could say would rather have Potter compete than gain the fame of being a Triwizard Champion for themselves.
"Milli's right. Warrington was dead set on winning." Daphne picked at her food. "All of the upper years are pretty miffed about this. Sorry, Potter."
"I don't blame them." Mary sighed. "Not much I can do about it though."
"The Beauxbatons students seem pretty thrilled," Susan said, her glare pointed toward the group of merry blue clad students at one of the front tables. "They're acting like Hogwarts doesn't stand a chance."
"They don't know our Mary." Lavender piped up. "She's always full of surprises."
"That's not always a good thing, Lav." Mary sighed as she cut up her steak and kidney pie.
"What are we on tonight, Potter?" Katie stepped over to the table and leaned toward her. "Same room, same time?"
"Sure." Mary smiled, turning to address her year mates. "I appreciate you lot helping me out with this."
"You've got yourself out of some nasty scrapes before," Katie said confidently. "We have no doubts you'll do Hogwarts proud once more."
Which is how Mary spent almost every night for a week in an unused classroom dodging hexes, curses, charms, and random Muggle objects. Her friends, and a few rivals, held nothing back as they pelted everything they could cast or throw at her. Even Peeves showed up to lend a helping hand, and could be found floating between Fred and George, tossing fireworks and water balloons at her or anyone who looked like a good target.
"I'm never going to get this." Mary winced as she limped out of the room.
"You did brilliant, sis." George put his arm around her to let her lean on him.
Fred was on her other side, talking quietly to Lee, but turned to smirk at her. "Sorry about Peeves back there, didn't think he'd actually chuck those heavy Muggle Bludgers at you."
"Bowling balls," Mary corrected him in a dark tone. "And you'll be the one explaining why there are craters in the floor to Filch and McGonagall."
"Nah!" Fred laughed, slapping her hard on the back. "It's worth it. You did great!"
"Madam Pomfrey before dinner?" George asked as they reached the main corridor.
"Can't." Mary pulled away. "McGonagall's already postponed my detention with Snape twice now. If I don't get it over with, he's likely to hex me into a million pieces."
Mary waved at the large group and grumbled and complained all the way down to the dungeons where Snape's office was located. Taking a deep breath, Mary cleared her mind and readied herself for whatever vitriol the man would present her with, before knocking on the door.
"Enter," Snape said dully from the other side of the room.
Mary opened the door and quietly stepped into the dark room, a feeling of foreboding taking over, and made her way to where the professor was bent over his desk and furiously scribbling on some poor student's essay.
Mary squared her shoulders. "Sir, I-"
"Do not dare to waste my time, Potter." Snape didn't bother looking up from his task. "In the classroom adjacent to this one there is a chalkboard with three potion recipes. I want all three completed by the dinner hour."
"Yes, sir." Mary went to the nearby door then stopped, looking over her shoulder, but thought better of saying anything else and entered the classroom.
An hour later she was starting to feel frantic and defeated as the Bruise Salve bubbled over once again while she tried to keep up with stirring her Sleeping Draught. Her antidote was on its last stages and she had less than a minute to finish stirring before she had to bottle it.
The heavy door swung open with a bang, making her jump and lose count on her stirs. "Bloody hell!"
"Ten points from Gryffindor," Snape said simply as he strode into the room. "Ah, I see that not even first and second year potions are in your capabilities, Potter. One slapshod potion out of three? Not what I expected out of a Hogwarts Champion."
"I'd like to see you tackle all three within an hour with one arm tied behind your back." Mary snapped. "Sir."
Snape cocked a brow at her cheek. "Another ten points, Potter. Let's say they're for the dimwitted inability to make use of what faculties you have."
Mary ground her teeth together in an effort not to say something irreversible as Snape vanished all of her work, leaving the table as bare as the moment she walked in.
"Detention next Saturday." Snape sneered. "There is a sink full of dirty cauldrons in the back. Have them clean before you leave for dinner."
Mary heaved in a breath as Snape's robes billowed out the door behind him. She wasn't going to let the anger get the best of her, she thought as she walked back to the pile of cauldrons. Not today.
She'd barely begun to scrub the first one when it disappeared from her hand, landing on the shelf above her sparkling clean and dry. Mary stepped back, looking around as the other cauldrons began copying the first.
"Annie," Mary whispered in confusion. "Micky?"
Annie the house elf popped into existence a few feet away, her green cheeks reddening at Mary's curious look. "Annie wants to help."
"I appreciate the thought, Annie," Mary said kindly, "but this was my punishment. I should finish it."
Annie grinned in a crafty way. "This is to be repaying you for your help in the kitchens."
All at once the remaining cauldrons floated into the air and stacked themselves neatly on the shelves. Annie snapped her fingers and disappeared from the room, leaving Mary torn on what to do. If she left now, Snape would surely know that she hadn't completed the task herself and Annie would likely get into trouble. I can't have that.
Not wanting to just sit idly by as the clock ticked away, Mary pulled out the necessary ingredients for the three potions and began prepping them. She cut, shredded, or crushed everything that was needed. And then worked out a timing schedule so that they didn't overlap.
When Mary walked out of the classroom, just as dinner ended, she had three perfect potions. Taking extra care in bottling and labeling each one, Mary walked out, leaving proof of her victory on Snape's desk and feeling better about herself. She could do it. If she really put her mind to it, having one non-magical arm wasn't much of a hindrance, it was all about timing. She only wished she could see Snape's face when he saw her completed work.
It didn't hurt that she kept a few vials of each to keep in her trunk either. Any more training sessions like the last and she'd need to become a Potions Master just to keep up with her injuries.
Only Snape was in a fierce mood in class the following day as Mary worked on her antidote. He could only bite out a short string of insults at her before Colin insisted that Mary follow him to where the other Champions and Ollivander were waiting in a small room off the Entrance Hall.
"Our Hogwarts Champion!" Ludo Bagman clapped his hands and approached her with a beaming smile. "Come along, Mary. Let's get your wand checked out and maybe you can give old Rita over there a moment to interview you."
Mary cut her eyes to the window where Rita was sitting next to Sirius and blushing profusely as her magical quill scribbled away.
Mary looked over at Bagman. "I think she's busy."
"Hit it off, those two have." Ludo winked at her.
"Isn't that lovely?" Mary almost growled, watching as the blonde laid a hand on her godfather's knee.
"Mary," Viktor's voice broke her out of her scheming. "You must meet Fleur. She has been asking questions."
"About me?" Mary looked over at Fleur, who appeared to be quite pleased with the attention Ollivander was showing her.
"Yes," Viktor intoned. "She is curious."
Mary stood back and waited, barely sparing Sirius a glance as he moved to her side as Mr. Ollivander examined Viktor's wand and waved her forward. Mary had her wand in hand, holding it out carefully towards him.
"Blackthorne and Thestral hair." Ollivander gazed at the wand lovingly. "One of my grandfather's creations. I honestly never thought it'd find a wielder. It's rather fickle isn't it?"
"It's um- a little picky?" Mary handed over the dark wand. "I think the anti-theft charm might be active."
"Quite so." Ollivander's lips quirked but he made no move to touch the wand. "Cast something, Miss Potter."
"Papilio adducere," Mary whispered, causing five bright blue butterflies to escape the wand.
"Very nice." Ollivander took a last look at her wand. "I say it's in excellent condition. And you still have the Holly wand?"
Mary reached down to her calf where her beloved wand was in it's holster. "Never go anywhere without it, sir."
"A wise choice." Ollivander stared into the distance.
"Photos!" Ludo cried as Ollivander stood to leave. "We must get photos! Rita, are you ready?"
Rita was starry eyed and half dazed as she beckoned her photographer over. "Four sets, Bozo. Let's get the Champions first."
Sirius grabbed Mary's arm and pulled her aside, waving his wand over her. "There now, you look quite smart."
"Since when did that matter?" Mary asked, tugging at the sleeve of her robe. "And what the bloody hell are you doing with Skeeter?"
"Running interference." Sirius barked out a laugh. "You can thank me later, kiddo. Now get up there. I have to head back home."
Bozo, the photographer, instructed Mary to stand on the left, with Viktor between her and Fleur. Mary hated having her picture taken, and she hated posing for them like some kind of show dog even more. And looking to her left, she realized that Viktor and Fleur were likewise displeased with Rita's handling of the situation.
Half an hour later, the three Champions stood to the side as Bozo finished up photographing the judges.
"Fleur, Mary." Viktor introduced them. "Mary, Fleur."
Fleur smiled brightly and extended her hand. "Enchanté."
"Nice to meet you too." Mary grinned. "How are you liking Hogwarts?"
Fleur looked around as though failing to find something nice to say. "It is a lot to get used to. Very different from Beauxbatons. We do not 'ave ghost and Poltergeist, you see. And this one keeps following me around."
"Peeves?" Mary confirmed. "I'll have a talk with him. He's probably just curious about you."
"Good." Fleur nodded stiffly. "I have hexed him twice, but it does not seem to stop him."
"Oh my." Mary winced, thinking it likely that Peeves was infatuated with Fleur. "In that case I'll have Sirius talk to him. They know each other quite well."
"Are you prepared for the First Task?" Fleur asked her and Viktor. "I mean, do you have any idea what we will be facing?"
"Daring and courage." Mary shrugged her shoulders, trying not to give away the unease she felt at misleading them. "That could mean facing any number of things, or just one very frightening target."
"We will do fine," said Viktor.
"'Ave you prepared, Mary?" Fleur asked with worry thick in her voice. "Do you need help? We will help you. You are far too young to be competing."
"I appreciate the offer," Mary replied. "I might even take you up on it."
"The dinner hour is upon us." Dumbledore stood from his seat next to Madame Maxime, calling everyone's attention. "Thank you all for your participation. You are free to leave."
Mary walked out with the others, thinking about Harry's version of events. He didn't have anyone to keep him out of Rita's claws and was made out to be a laughing stock because of her. Fleur disregarded him completely and saw him as nothing more than inept. Was Fleur's change of attitude due to Mary being the only Hogwarts Champion? Or was it because she was a girl? Either way, Mary was glad she had one less thing to worry about.
November 21st, 1994
Another week passed by in much the same vein as before. Rita's article in the Daily Prophet skimmed over the details of the Tournament and the Champions, with Mary's name only being mentioned twice. Once as her being the Hogwarts Champion and a question to the readers as to how her name managed to come out of the Goblet of Fire when she was only a Fourth Year.
The main article though, was an in-depth and highly fictitious piece on Sirius Black and the trials and tribulations he'd been through over the past thirteen years. Mary grimaced at the thought of her godfather's reaction to the over dramatized interview and set the paper down so that the image of Sirius in Azkaban was no longer staring at her.
"Skeeter is a real piece of work." Hermione nibbled on a bit of toast, bumping the paper with her elbow so that it wasn't too close to her plate. "Sirius will be furious."
"I think he can handle it." Ron shovelled more mash onto his plate. "What shops are we visiting first?"
"I need to stop by Scrivenshaft's and Dervish and Banges." Hermione pushed her plate away. "How about you, Mary?"
"If you two don't mind, I've offered to show Viktor around Hogsmeade," Mary said quietly, hoping the others at the table wouldn't hear.
"Well that's alright then." Ron put his napkin down, thrilled at the prospect of Viktor joining them. "Reckon we'll have to go by Zonko's too. Think Fred and George have him half converted into a prankster."
"They really shouldn't-" Hermione looked torn between being appalled and amused by the turn of events. "But I guess you won't mind, will you Mary?"
"What's her opinion got to do with it?" Ron asked as they made their way out of the Great Hall. "Krum's his own person."
"I was just saying that Mary's used to it!" Hermione added defensively. "I doubt she'd mind another prankster around."
"I think it's funny that they get on so well." Mary pulled her winter cloak on. "It's a good thing though. He doesn't have many friends at Durmstrang."
As though the weather was mirroring his mood, Viktor was dour and subdued when the four of them walked into the small wizarding town. Hermione kept a string of conversation going, always trying to include him, but barely received more than short answers and nods.
"Chocolate!" Mary blurted out when they were passing by Honeydukes. "That's what we need."
"Yeah, I could restock." Ron dug his hands into the pockets of his cloak.
Hermione grabbed his arm, stopping him. "You two go on ahead. We'll meet you at the Three Broomsticks in an hour."
"But I-" Ron started.
"Let's go, Ron!" Hermione dragged him away.
Mary was confused as to why her friends were leaving her but let it go when the door to Honeydukes opened and the smell of sweets wafted toward them. "You've never tried the chocolate from here, have you?"
"No." Viktor kept his head down.
Determined to break him out of his mood, Mary sprinted around the busy shop, keeping Viktor close by as she raided their supply of sweets. She laid all of her purchases on the counter and paid, waiting for the clerk to box everything up before she pulled Viktor away from a group of Fifth Year girls that looked ready to tackle him.
"I've got somewhere I want to show you," Mary said as they pushed their way down the street.
Viktor grunted a reply, but seemed to be keeping quiet as long as others were around.
"Here we are!" Mary announced, sitting on a large rock that faced the Shrieking Shack. "Quietest place in all of Hogsmeade."
Viktor glanced around and visibly relaxed upon seeing that they were well and truly alone. "Vhy are ve here?"
Mary sighed, dug through the box and pulled out a bar of Honeydukes' finest. "Eat this and then we'll talk."
Blimey, I'm starting to sound like Remus! She thought in amusement.
It didn't matter though, because he began to speak after finishing his chocolate.
"You have good friends." Viktor played with the empty wrapper. "You are lucky."
"Surely you have a few friends at school," Mary said in a soft voice.
"I had friends before I started playing professionally," Viktor admitted. "They changed after I returned to school. They vanted money or fame for being near me. It is not true friends. Not like yours."
"What about back home?" Mary asked.
"Elena." Viktor reached into his pocket and pulled out a letter. "She was good friend until my acceptance to Durmstrang. She owled to congratulate me on the Tournament."
"Is she a witch?" Mary asked, hoping that she wasn't overstepping her bounds.
"Yes." Viktor smiled slightly. "She is very smart, like your Hermoninny. They are much the same."
Mary bit her lip to keep from laughing at his pronunciation, but luckily her curiosity was stronger than her amusement. "Did she not go to Durmstrang?"
"She is Muggle-born," Viktor said lowly. "Durmstrang vould not accept her."
"That's bullshit!" Mary exclaimed.
"It is." Viktor waved his wand at the gold wrapper airplane until it floated into the air and began flying around them.
"Well, she's writing to you, so obviously she's not holding a grudge." Mary tried to be optimistic. "How's she doing?"
"Good." Viktor finally smiled. "Her mother owns a dress shop in Sofia - vhere I used to live - and they run it together."
"Well, write her back." Mary suggested. "You'll be out of school by the end of the year. No need to let some stupid rules dictate your life."
"You are right." Viktor sighed. "I vill reply after I return to the ship."
"There now." Mary punched his shoulder in a playful manner. "How about we get back to the Three Broomsticks before they call out a search party?"
Viktor was lost in thought the entire walk back, but Mary wasn't bothered by his contemplative silence. If anything, it gave her hope that her newest friend would repair a longstanding friendship. Personally, she didn't think she'd have got as far as she did without Ron and Hermione at her side. She needed them to keep her grounded and sane. The scary part was, they didn't truly need her for anything. In fact, they'd be a sight better off without her there to constantly put them in danger.
"There ya are, Mary!" Hagrid waved her over to where he was sitting at the bar with Moody and Bagman.
Out of the corner of her eye, Mary spotted Moody pulling his wand out. Hers was in her hand in an instant, but she had no need to use it as Madam Rosmerta had her own wand pointed at Mad-Eye's back.
"You cast so much as a tickling jinx in my pub and you'll be out on your ear, Moody." Madam Rosmerta ground out.
"Aye." Moody laughed, putting his wand away. "Nice work, Potter, glad to see you aren't letting your guard down."
"Never, sir." Mary smiled and turned to her companion, trying to alleviate the tension that was radiating off of Viktor. "You mind finding Ron and Hermione and letting them know we're here?"
"Yes," Viktor said gruffly, giving Moody one last dark look before he stalked toward the back of the pub.
"You've got to come by me cabin and help me feed the Abraxans this evenin'." Hagrid leaned toward her. "Bring Ron, Hermione, and that Cloak of yer dad's."
"I'll be there." Mary smiled and patted his arm. "See you later, Hagrid. Mr. Bagman. Professor."
Which is how Mary ended up covered in mud and smelling like a brewery later that night. The Abraxans were tetchy and didn't take kindly to Hagrid's attempt at getting them to drink Firewhisky. Hermione and Ron had to talk their large tipsy friend into letting go of his bottle of Ogden's finest before they could even contemplate getting him back into his cabin.
"Can' go just yet, yeh need to go into the fores'," Hagrid slurred. "Olympe was supposed to 'ave met me."
"She'll be here, Hagrid." Mary patted his arm. "You just need to sober up first. Maybe take a bath or something that will wake you up."
"Damn that Bagman." Hagrid grumbled as he stumbled over to the water trough, upsetting another Abraxan. "Oh budge off!"
"Maybe we should just go?" Ron backed away, looking toward the gate of the paddock. "I don't feel like being trampled tonight."
"I agree." Hermione clenched her jaw as she watched the huge winged horses become more agitated. "But we can't just leave Hagrid in this state."
"They won't hurt us," Mary said with far more confidence than she felt. "Let's just empty out those bottles of whisky and hope they like it better than Ogden's."
The three of them filled four separate barrels with the foul smelling liquid and set them out in various areas of the paddock before going back to check on Hagrid. He seemed to be in better shape, but was still ambling around aimlessly.
"We need to get back to the castle before curfew!" Hermione told Hagrid in a loud voice that made Mary grimace.
"No," said Hagrid. "Yeh three need to go east into the Forest. I can' tell yeh. It's against the rules. Just go."
Mary knew what was lurking in the forest. She knew why Hagrid wanted them to go, and in truth, she wanted to see it for herself. This was one of those memories that she wanted her own version of. Harry's memories were still vivid in her mind, but they weren't hers.
"Okay." Mary pulled her father's cloak from her pocket. "I'll go."
"Curfew is less than an hour away!" Hermione argued. "I can't afford another detention."
"I'll be along shortly," Hagrid said as he toweled off his beard. "McGonagall will understand. Don' ask me teh say more. I can't. It's important though. Just yeh be sure to stay under the cloak."
The three friends exchanged a look of mutual understanding. One that made Mary feel a whole lot better about the situation. None of them fancied going back into the Forbidden Forest. While they loved Hagrid, his judgement wasn't always the best, and they were usually the ones that came out worse for wear.
"If it's more spiders I'm going to kill him," Ron muttered as they carefully trudged along the tiny path headed east. "Of all the ruddy stupid things we've done, walking into the Forest of our own free will has to take the cake."
"We'll be okay." Mary tried to reassure him as she kept her wand up to light the path. "Hagrid wouldn't lead us into danger intentionally."
"He wouldn't." Hermione agreed. "But he thinks differently than we do. He's also not threatened by the many creatures in here. We can't think of him as being an unbiased party. We're all likely to get detention for this."
"I'd be happy to have detention if it means we're not dead," Ron said, his voice getting higher with every few steps. "Why are we even out here anyway? Hagrid was too plastered to be speaking sense!"
"He was drinking with Bagman at the Three Broomsticks." Hermione surmised. "Bagman must have let something slip about the First Task."
Mary wanted to hug her friend for her foresight, but held back, knowing that there wasn't any reason as to why she'd believe that on a whim.
"Could be," said Ron, holding another branch back so the other two could walk by without getting smacked. "We all know Hagrid can't keep a secret."
They'd barely walked another few meters when the sound of voices grew in the distance and the orange glow of the encampment came into view.
Ron clenched his eyes shut and began muttering; "Please don't let it be spiders. Please don't let it be spiders."
"The cloak!" Mary hissed at her friends. "Hagrid said we needed it!"
Luckily the underbrush was thick enough that they didn't have to worry about their feet showing as they trudged along towards the small area where the dragon keepers were stationed.
"Merlin!" Ron exclaimed in a fierce whisper. "Dragons? Are they bloody mental? What the bleeding hell are you supposed to do with dragons?"
"No!" Hermione almost pulled the cloak off of them as she started backing away from the large ferocious creature. "Oh no! This isn't right! This can't be right!"
"Calm down," Mary said gently. "It's okay. We're safe."
"I'm not worried about us!" Hermione gripped Mary's hand so tight that it hurt. "You can't go up against a dragon!"
"Look!" Ron pointed at the group of wizards near a small tent. "That's Charlie!"
Mary's heart stuttered as the three of them crept as close as they could without being spotted by the dragons or their handlers. They sat down behind a hedge, watching intently as the large group of witches and wizards tried and failed to subdue the large beasts.
Ron pointed to his brother, jumping to his feet and pulling the cloak off of them. "Charlie!"
"Oh bugger it." Mary slapped a hand to her face when Charlie lifted his head in confusion, looking towards their hideaway in the dense forest.
"Charlie!" Ron waved his arms and jumped up and down. "Over here!"
"Hide." Hermione pulled the cloak around Mary and moved to stand next to Ron. "We'll keep you covered."
"Thanks." Mary sighed.
Charlie walked toward them with a furrowed brow, but had to duck when the spray of fire the Hungarian Horntail let out burned through everything overhead. The blast shot at least thirty feet, narrowly missing three other dragon keepers and setting two tents on fire. Mary watched, transfixed, as the group worked in perfect sync to douse the flames and calm the angry dragon. Three. There were only three dragons. Mary noticed. The Swedish Short-Snout was nowhere to be found. It made sense, considering Cedric wasn't a Champion. Still though, she'd have rather faced it than the Horntail.
"What are you doing here?" Charlie asked as he made his way over to Ron and ruffled his brother's hair. "You lot could get me sacked for this. It's supposed to be a secret."
"But Ha-" Ron started to say.
Hermione pinched his arm, making Ron gasp. "We were out for a walk and heard the noise."
"Sure you were." Charlie let out a chuckle. "And I'm Merlin's great-Aunt Bessie."
"Why didn't you tell us you were coming?" Ron asked. "It's not like you were on short notice. This whole thing must've been planned for ages."
"It is supposed to be a secret." Hermione bit out. "No one is supposed to know what the First Task is. Other than the judges of course."
"Can you imagine if Mum found out I was here?" Charlie grimaced. "Especially now? She'd have kittens!"
"A little warning would have been nice," Ron said heatedly. "I mean really, with Mary being in the Tournament and all. You could have at least owled."
"It was a secret!" Hermione slapped Ron's arm. "Just because you have no ability to keep them doesn't mean Charlie can't."
"Cat's out of the bag now though." Charlie shrugged. "Where's Mary? I thought you three were inseparable."
Mary pulled the Cloak down so it revealed her face. "Hiya, Charlie!"
His eyes widened slightly when she pulled off the Invisibility Cloak. "Alright there, Mary?"
"Yeah," Mary looked from Charlie to the Horntail. "I guess. Don't think I have much of a choice at this point."
"All of us from the Reserve will be there at all times." Charlie assured her. "We won't let anything happen to you."
"Yeah," Mary whispered, not feeling very confident. "It'll all work out."
In truth, everything she'd tried to change over the last year and a half didn't go to plan. Each time she faced a test that Harry'd gone through, she'd ended up mucking things up. And no matter what she did, things still ended up the same way.
The things she did change made it all worth it though. Sirius was free. Peter was in Azkaban where he belonged. Remus was no longer alone. Not to mention she'd successfully destroyed four Horcruxes.
Now all she had to do was survive the Triwizard Tournament and prevent Voldemort's return to the living. What could go wrong? She thought miserably.
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