Chapter 7- The Way It Is


Hermione quite enjoyed life with Harry and Ron back in it.

She had explained to Ron that her fallout with Harry hadn't directly affected him, but more by association. It had included him as well, but not directly. Ron had understood and also had felt that he was deserving of some of the accusations Hermione had dished out to Harry. Ron was quite amused that she had shouted at him in front of the entire common room, something that Hermione didn't tend to do a lot of. Confrontation wasn't really her thing unless one of her friends needed defending, as her punching Malfoy had proven. And that was for Buckbeak, who wasn't even human. That was Hermione's defence of animals coming into play, which Ron had missed about her.

With the Second Task fast approaching, Hermione had been waiting until Cedric or Viktor solved the puzzle to progress with tactics. From what she had gleaned from the Great Hall, Fleur was still trying to work her puzzle out, too.

Hermione had an issue that she brought up with Cedric while Viktor sat with his Durmstrang friends.

"You know the puzzle in the Egg? What do we do about it?"

Cedric smiled. "Figure it out. I thought that was simple to comprehend, especially for a witch of your intellect."

Hermione groaned at the sarcasm. "No, I mean, now that I'm friends with Harry again. You and Viktor are going to figure it out together, but do I tell Harry what it all means? It would be giving him an unfair advantage due to my association with the two of you."

Cedric sighed, having thought about that the previous night. "I don't know. Initially, before he made amends, or at least took a step towards doing so, I would have blanked him about it. He didn't tell me about the dragons, leaving me unaware. Viktor and Fleur both knew. So I was going to keep him in the dark if I'm honest. I know, Hufflepuffs are supposed to be loyal, but I couldn't look past what he had done and what I was expected to do in return.

"Decorum would've led to me helping him anyway, but if you hadn't have stepped in and helped with the dragons, I wouldn't have been prepared. The First Task was supposed to have been a test of spontaneous thinking, but the staff quickly realised we all knew about the dragons before the Task started so they changed it. I would have had an unfair disadvantage over them."

"I understand," Hermione nodded, "and I'm just glad you weren't in that situation. I guess things were supposed to play out like that all along. Harry and I are patching things up, but it's ultimately yours and Viktor's decision. I'm not a competitor, I'm an informal advisor. But you should do what feels right in your gut. You're the type of person that would help someone because you know how awful it felt to be the only one left out of it. You're not a bad person, Ced, and I think you know what you need to do, even now."

Cedric conceded that. "The Tournament was supposed to be about forging new connections and discovering the person you truly are and things like that, so maybe this is also a test of my character. I…I'll have a think about it. I think I know what I should do, but I'll talk with Viktor about it and see what he thinks I should do. You're the best at giving advice, you know that?"

Hermione shrugged. "When you spend enough time observing, you understand things about people and gain the skill to see who they are. I know who you are and what you know you're going to do. I merely led you to see that."

Cedric held her tightly against him. "Oh, what would I be without you?"

"Dragon fodder," Hermione retorted with a smile, nudging him. Viktor caught their eye from across the room and grinned at them both. It was true what Hermione thought; she really did have a good thing going on.


Hermione smiled at her boyfriends as they approached her, both holding their eggs looking wary.

"We have a problem," Cedric motioned with his spare arm to Viktor.

"What's Viktor done?"

Cedric shook his head. "No, not him. I was going to use the Prefect's Bathroom you know, for privacy and focus reasons, but it turns out that they've increased the difficulty of anyone entering who isn't a Prefect. There's a sensor stationed outside the door and Viktor won't be able to pass it because it'll see him. It's like Professor Moody's other eye or something."

Viktor nodded. "We thought you might have an idea about how to get me inside."

Hermione pondered this, not able to come up with anything on the spot as she sometimes did. "Hmm, I don't know. We could try some sort of disabler for the sensor, a spell maybe? A temporary enchantment?"

Hermione heard a voice behind her.

"Sorry," Harry interjected, "I wasn't eavesdropping or anything, but I sort of heard your dilemma and I have a solution."

Hermione instantly knew. "That thought didn't even enter my mind."

"What?"

Harry smirked. "I inherited something from my father that I got three years ago that might help you." Harry presented them with the Invisibility Cloak, smiling warmly.

"Is that what I think it is? I thought that was just a rumour!" Cedric gasped, having heard the rumours about Harry Potter's Cloak of Invisibility, but not quite believing them. He had good reason, though. Cloaks like that weren't exactly your common magical item. It wasn't like you could find them next to the Sneakoscopes on the shelves in Diagon Alley. How James Potter had stumbled across that was not of great importance, but would leave Cedric pondering it for quite a while. He reckoned that even Hermione didn't knew. Maybe Harry didn't.

"You have a Cloak of Invisibility?" Viktor echoed.

Harry smiled. "Yep. You can use it tonight, if you want. I figured that a Disillusionment Charm would leave magical traces around the area the sensor is supposed to work, but the Cloak should completely conceal you from its field of activity."

Hermione chuckled. "You've never sounded more like me in your life, Harry."

Harry sighed. "Well, you were right all that time ago, Hermione. I wasn't taking things seriously concerning the Tournament. I thought that if I waited long enough, something would happen to exempt me from it and save me the trouble of competing. I know I'm not going to win the thing, I'll probably come dead last by a landslide, but I have to at least try, don't I? Thank you, Hermione. And I'm going to put lots of effort into the Second Task. I haven't quite figured out the Egg, but I'll get there."

Cedric glanced at Hermione and smiled. "Harry? Get your Egg and meet us back here. And bring some shorts."

Harry frowned. "I thought you were going to the Prefect's Bathroom now."

"We are," Viktor replied, eyes twinkling brightly.

"So, why am I tagging along? And why are you taking your Eggs?"

Cedric smirked. "The key to figuring out the Egg clue is potentially in the Bathroom. Why, what did you think was going to happen there?"

Harry turned a violent shade of red and his eyes widened comically. Hermione stifled a laugh and Viktor fought off a blush. "Oh, um…nothing in particular. But I'll be right back with my Egg. Thank you both for helping me."

Viktor smiled. "It's no problem. You're helping me in return."

Hermione realised then that things actually had changed with them. Harry was thinking more carefully about the Triwizard Tournament and taking steps to try and properly compete without dying. He was also becoming more considerate and aware of other people's feelings. A more even friendship was what she had wanted and that was what she was seeing. It was…

Refreshing.

"It's nothing, honestly. I'll be right back."

Harry jogged away, leaving the Cloak in Hermione's hands, as the three looked at each other.

"That was a welcome surprise," Cedric commented.

"Indeed," Viktor nodded, "and that Cloak must have come in handy a few times, right?"

Hermione pursed her lips. "I realise now that you have no idea about things that have happened at Hogwarts these past three years. It's been an eventful time, certainly. But my misadventures are for another time. I'll tell you both everything on a nice morning, sat in our corner of the library."

"That sounds lovely," Cedric said, kissing Hermione's head affectionately.

"Misadventures?" Viktor repeated, hesitating slightly.

Hermione exhaled. "Well it's nothing exactly bad, it's just…frowned upon. I've broken a lot of school rules since first year. You'd be surprised at just how sneaky I can be."

Viktor laughed happily. "Oh, I can imagine. Using your intelligence for evil, Hermione?"

"Most definitely," she joked.

Cedric swallowed. "I'd like to be able to discern rumour from truth. I've heard a lot about what the three of you were up to but I was never sure what to believe. The Hufflepuffs are sort of indifferent towards you lot so they didn't really care for the specifics back then."

Hermione's eyes lighted. "I'll leave nothing out, I promise. Now, go solve your clue. Tell me if I was actually right. Then we'll start strategy tomorrow."

"Harry included?" Cedric asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. I just hope that Fleur knows what she's doing, because you three are going to nail this next Task, no matter what it is."

Harry approached, holding his Egg in both hands. "I'll be so glad when this is all over and I don't have to stare at this thing all day. Or hear that awful screech as it opens. What was that about? It sounded like a Mandrake."

The other three chuckled, Hermione sending the boys on their way. It was strange for her to see Cedric and Viktor happily conversing with Harry. Competition changed some people, but not those three. Ron seemed a little affected, even indirectly, but that was before he knew the facts. None of the Champions had been fazed by the rivalries the Tournament probably should have set in motion. It wasn't enough just to make them endure perilous Tasks, the Tournament had to make them bold and fierce enough to face each other as well.

For there was only one winner, after all, and that would probably be something to look forward to for Hermione if both of her boyfriends and her best friends weren't competing. Her loyalties would be tested, but she would handle that when it happened. Hermione figured that, unless Fleur won, she would be celebrating and commiserating either way. She had to make sure to balance them or else feelings may be hurt and that was the last thing that Hermione wanted.