A/N: Whoa, now I'm really getting into the first task! I'm using a couple of lines from the fourth book but remember, I DON'T OWN ANY OF IT! IF I DID, I WOULD BE SUPER RICH but unfortunately, I'm not. It's J.K. Rowling's world – we just live in it!
* * * * *
Monday morning strolled by really fast. While at Hogsmeade, Cedric truly looked as if he was going to be sick and I knew he was thinking about the first task. I wasn't really eating breakfast that Monday. Every once in a while I would look over at the Hufflepuff table to make sure that Cedric was eating and sure enough he was. Lunch was going to be eaten as well but he still needed energy to make it through the day. Emily nudged me with her elbow.
"What?" I asked her, looking away from the Hufflepuff table.
"He's not going to starve himself, you know," she said.
"Yeah, yeah, but still."
"Ah…Cho…being little Miss Over-Protective, are we?" She smirked.
I stared at her. "Oh, be quiet, Emily! I am not!"
Emily nodded. "Yeah…" she stretched the word out.
I glared at her and continued to eat.
*
Where the day went, I really don't know but it didn't seem as if the day was long enough. The both of us were eating and then I saw Professor McGonagall hurry Cedric away from the table and then she came to the Ravenclaw table and shooed Fleur away from her fellow Beauxbatons friends.
"He's so nervous," I told Emily. "I hope he'll be okay."
"I'm sure he will, Cho, stop worrying. What did I tell you yesterday?"
"Ah, hush."
As soon as the four champions were rushed down to the grounds, Professor Dumbledore stood up and spoke. "The first task will be beginning shortly. As soon as the champions are ready, the head of house will lead their house to the grounds. I ask that you please be silent as the champions get ready but feel free to cheer them on."
Professor Flitwick soon appeared from the teachers' table and everyone stood up including the Beauxbatons students. I could see that some of the Beauxbatons students standing on their tiptoes, surely they were looking for their headmistress, Madame Maxime. "All right, everyone," squeaked Professor Flitwick. "Let's hurry along here and follow the Gryffindors down to the grounds."
*
Emily nudged me in the ribs and pointed, almost poking my eye out. "Look!" she exclaimed. "Dragons!"
Cedric was right; the first task was about dragons – real ones. I hope he'll be okay.
"Look," she continued, "Swedish Short-Snout, a Chinese Fireball, a Welsh Green and oh heavens – a Hungarian Horntail!"
"How do you know about all these dragons?"
"Ah, my brother's practically an expert on dragons. He's crazy about them. That's all I ever hear him talk about when he's at home. Heavens, he's only eight-years old and he knows everything. I bet he would marry one if he had the chance." She giggled.
Then a whistle was blown and seconds later Cedric came walking out onto the field from a tent. He was nervous, it was easy to see. His face looked rather green.
"I wonder what they have to get," Emily asked, above the screams of the crowd as Cedric distracted the dragon by Transfiguring a rock on the ground to a dog. He was trying to make the dragon go for the dog.
I shrugged my shoulders. I wasn't listening really. I was watching Cedric more. The dragon blew a fireball and singed the bottom of Cedric's robe.
Ludo Bagman was doing the commentary – rather badly I thought. "Clever move – pity it didn't work!"
Cedric seemed to be having a hard time getting past his dragon and retrieving whatever needed to be retrieved. After fifteen minutes of quick anticipation, the audience let out a deafening scream. Sure enough, Cedric made it. He was holding a dragon's egg: a golden dragon's egg.
"Very good indeed!" Bagman shouted. "And now the marks from the judges!" He gestured to his left. Madame Maxime, Professor Dumbledore, Ludo Bagman himself, Barty Crouch and Professor Karkaroff were the judges. Madame Maxime shot out a number seven from her wand as did Mr. Crouch. Professor Dumbledore shot out a nine, Bagmen a six and Karkaroff a five.
"Oh, dang, they stink. They could have given him better scores," I mumbled to myself over the cheering of the crowd.
Next, Fleur Delacour came from the tent when the whistle was blown and she was trembling but she held her wand in her hand. She faced the Welsh Green. It seemed as if she tried to put the dragon into a trance but she was singed too on her skirt but she quickly put it out with water from her wand and within ten minutes she retrieved her egg. Viktor Krum was next and he faced the Chinese Fireball. He hit the dragon with a spell right in the eye but the dragon went around in agony and squashed half the real eggs. Then it was finally Harry Potter's turn and he faced the deadliest dragon of the four: the Hungarian Horntail.
Harry concentrated on the dragon for a few seconds before raising his wand and shouting, "Accio Firebolt!" Seconds went by and his broomsticks flew behind him.
"Look at that!" Bagman shouted. "Potter's got his broom to help him!"
Harry mounted his broom and soared up high into the air until he looked like a speck of sand. He then dived but the dragon's head was following quickly behind him. The Horntail released a fireball but Harry barely missed it.
"Great Scott, he can fly!" yelled Bagman as the crowd shrieked and gasped. "Are you watching this, Mr. Krum?"
Harry soared high in a circle. The dragon was still following behind him. Harry dived again as the Horntail opened its mouth and blew out another fireball. He missed the fireball but was hit in the arm by its tail which caused his robes to rip. The crowd screamed (I screamed) and groaned. A few more moves in the air and the dragon shot out another fireball. He swerved down to reach the golden egg as Horntail spread its wings and the eggs were unprotected. He finally managed to take a hold of it and the crowd screamed and applauded loudly.
"Look at that!" Bagmen yelled. "Will you look at that! Our youngest champion is the quickest to get his egg. This is going to shorten the odds on Mr. Potter!"
Harry finally finished and the dragon keepers rushed over and strained the Horntail. Five minutes later Harry was back on the field but only to see his score. Madame Maxime shot up an eight, Mr. Crouch shot up a nine as did Dumbledore and the crowed cheered harder. ("Unbelievable!" shouted Emily.) Ludo Bagman shot up a ten.
"That's unbelievable, Emily!" I shouted above the roaring of the crowd.
It was then Karkaroff's turn. He shot up a four.
The crowd was quiet. Well, most of the crowd. The Slytherins were easy to hear.
"What is he thinking!?" I yelled at Emily. "Harry did darn right well! That dumb (A/N: Cho said a bad word in Korean! Shame on her! Haha. I'm so not going write it out. I barely even know how to spell it in English)!"
"Cho!" Emily looked stunned even though she didn't know what I said.
"Sorry, Emily," I mumbled.
The crowd was beginning to empty the field and back to Hogwarts.
"I think Krum and Harry are tied, Cho," Emily said. "I think – whoa!" She pointed behind me.
"What?" I looked to where she was pointing. She was pointing at Marietta who was with a Slytherin. He was tall with black hair and black eyes, he was Asian-looking. He had a tan complexion and he was rather cute. "The Slytherin!" I said as Emily and I began to walk with the crowd of people.
"I know. He is sort of cute, eh?"
We passed the tents where the four champions were and I saw Cedric looking at me. "I'll be back, Emily. Go on ahead without me." I walked over to Cedric. I smiled at him. "You were good, Cedric, really good. Are you all right though? I saw the dragon burned your robe."
His cheeks went pink. "Yeah I'm okay. I suppose I did well but I'm in second or third place. Viktor and Harry tied."
"I know. I think it was brilliant that Harry managed to call his broomstick. I wouldn't have even thought of that. I'm really surprised that Krum didn't do it since he does play for the Bulgaria Quidditch team." I looked up at Cedric; he had a look of disappointment on his face. The crowd diminished quickly and the teachers went along behind the crowd. I realized that I said something wrong. Of course, Cedric plays Quidditch… I bet he thinks that I thought he's stupid for not thinking of using his broom. "Oh, Cedric, I'm sorry…" I mumbled. "I didn't mean anything by what I said…"
He smiled a small smile. "It's all right, Cho." He was lying – I could tell. I had to tell him later that he's a bad liar.
I looked away. I wrapped my hand into his but he didn't seem to care.
"Let's go back down to Hogwarts," he said, pulling his hand away.
"Okay." I wished that I could have taken back what I said. I didn't mean it, Cedric… I'm sorry.