D/N: We don't own anything!
Chapter 2: The Triwizard Tournament
By: Tookdreamer
"The sorting is about to begin!"
Excited whispers rippled up and down the Gryffindor table as the first new scared first year came to the stool and sat down to be sorted. Everyone's eyes were looking upon the sorting hat as it sat there debating where to place the first new student of the year. Everyone's eyes except for three sixth year girls who were stealing glances down the table towards a group of seventh year boys who were all laughing quietly over some joke or other one of them had made.
"I wonder what was so funny?" muttered Steffanie Crowne looking over at the boys clearly trying really hard to catch the joke.
Maria stole a glance down the table once more. There were four boys huddled together. The one closer to her was a tall boy whose name was Sirius Black. He had perfect black hair that was cut so that every once in a while some stray hairs would come down across his face, giving him a very sexy air. His smile was perfect; his gleaming white teeth could probably blind someone if the light was shone on them in the right way. He had dark eyes that gave off a natural twinkle and really went well with his lively personality. Maria sighed as Sirius flashed another one of those killer smiles that made her stomach do a flip.
Sitting beside Sirius was another tall seventeen-year-old, he was as everyone in Hogwarts knew Sirius' best friend James Potter. James unlike his best friend had jet black untidy hair that went in every direction. He was bespectacled and had brown eyes that usually had a mischievous gleam in them. James was actually not bad looking he was charming enough everyone knew he was a flirt, though now he had gotten himself a girlfriend, Lily Evans. Maria was proud to say that she knew James very well being that he was the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team in which he was the Seeker and Maria a fellow Beater.
Across from Sirius and James was another boy, though unlike his friends was not finding a particular joke they had just said amusing. He had long light brown hair that came down to where his neck connected to his shoulders. A few strands fell across his pale blue eyes and he had the cutest smile that Maria had ever seen. He had a very good natured face and was in his own way cute as well. This boy's name was Remus Lupin. A flashback of a previous experience with this boy filled her mind, Maria shrugged it off.
"Maria!"
Maria looked away from the group of boys and looked at Jacqueline Pop. She had been waving a hand in front of her face and was now smiling at her. Jacqueline, a pretty girl with blue eyes and short blonde hair, was one of Steffanie's and Maria's best friends.
"What?"
"Just don't make it obvious you've been staring at him for about a minute!"
"Hush, will you?"
Maria felt her cheeks glow as she fiddled around with a fork. A smile crept up her lips as she turned her attention down towards Dumbledore at the staff table. The sorting had just finished and now Dumbledore was standing up beaming at the upturned faces.
"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! I would especially like to welcome all of our new first years!"
There was a polite applause for the first years. Maria fought hard the urge not to look at the four seventh year boys again.
"Now I have a very important announcement to make concerning the events that will take place this year. I am sure some of you are aware of the competition between wizarding schools known as the Triwizard Tournament."
There was a murmur of yes and no's from the hall. Maria and Jacqueline both looked at each other with a cocked eyebrow. Steffanie had made an excited squeaking sound; she came from an entire wizarding family. Maria was Muggle-born and Jacqueline was half and half, her dad being a Muggle and her mum a witch.
"For those of you who do not know allow me to explain. The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago as a friendly competition between the three biggest European schools of wizardry. Those other two schools were Durmstrang and Beauxbatons. This year I am happy to announce that we will be attending another Triwizard Tournament, one that we have not attended for a good 50 years."
Dumbledore paused for effect as the students whispered among each other excitedly.
"So this year the host school is Durmstrang, and we will be traveling there with 12 chosen possible champions, that of those twelve only one worthy student will become the Hogwarts champion."
"Only one?" exclaimed Sirius from the Gryffindor table. Everyone turned to face the seventh year.
"Yes, Mr. Black only one I am afraid. Though the other eleven will be allowed to remain in order to watch their fellow student compete."
There was another ripple of excited murmurs that filled the hall once more.
"Worthiest. I hope I will be chosen", said Maria's little sister Gaby a second year girl who was looking confidently at her group of friends. Maria rolled her eyes there was no way that Gaby could be chosen she was only in her second year at Hogwarts for crying out loud.
Steffanie was trying to get everyone to shush so that she could hear the rest that Dumbledore had to say. Maria caught a glance of the Ravenclaw table. Her other friends Matthew Bourne and Sarah Greywand were already talking excitedly she laughed because already Sarah was fidgeting in her seat. Sarah was the brightest witch in the school and if anyone could be chosen it would probably be her. She did have the highest marks in all of their year. Matt was also a fair choice as well he was one of the cleverer wizards in all of Hogwarts. But then again... She looked down the table once more both James and Sirius had top marks and James was captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team... hmm it would be a hard decision.
"Alright so where do we sign up?" yelled James over the buzz of the hall. At this question everyone was silenced all staring eagerly at Dumbledore.
"I am glad you asked that Mr. Potter since I was just getting to that. After the feast you will all go to your common rooms and there you will find a stack of permission forms with explanations on the tournament. You will have to send these permission forms to your parents or guardians so that they will sign them giving us their approval of your participation. No signature no admittance. After the permission forms are signed they will be given to your head of houses and they will decide who they believe is worthy to go. Though a word of caution this tournament is highly dangerous and can prove to be quite difficult to get past the tasks that the Tournament officials have in mind. So I do advise you to please think about your decision in entering this tournament. Because once you do there is no going back on your decision. The announcements will be made as to who is chosen in about one to two weeks. Now enough is enough if you have any questions please feel free to ask either your head of houses or the Head Boy and Girl who have been fully notified about this tournament. Now let us eat!"
And without another word the golden plates before them were filled with their feast. Maria pondered about what was to happen. She was so excited she could hardly wait till she got up to the Common Room and get a permission form. Of course she would probably have to write a letter of reassurance to her parents about it, being that both her parents were Muggles and that they would need to hear it from her as well as a teacher an explanation of the whole ordeal.
The rest of dinner was spent with Steffanie, Jacqueline and her talking about the Triwizard tournament.
"I don't think I will do it", said Jacqueline while she stabbed her fork into a piece of chicken.
"And why ever not?" Maria asked as she debated over what to serve herself with next.
"Because it is too much work! I mean sixth year is sort of our break from fifth to seventh everyone knows that! I don't intend to spend my break year going off and doing dangerous tasks. Besides my daddy won't let me." She said this like it was the most logical explanation in the world.
"Why won't he let you?" Steffanie asked.
"Because he won't understand what it is and he will think it would be a complete waste of the year, going off somewhere else instead of studying at Hogwarts."
"I am sure once there at the Dumbstra"
"Durmstrang", Steffanie corrected.
"Yeah there, we will be taken classes! Besides it will be a different experience, we will be visiting a foreign country getting to know the people and the culture and the food." Maria had said all this in between gulps of rice.
"Oh yes and you would show us just how we British are, with your bad table manners! Besides we don't even know where Durmstrang is!" retorted back Jacqueline.
"Hey I have an excuse I am Guatemalan remember! Dumbledore says that the Triwizard Tournament was between three EUROPEAN schools, so that narrows it down doesn't it?"
"Well I am still not going! Besides Justin will need some company and he needs my help."
Justin was Jacqueline's boyfriend. Steffanie and Maria both groaned at this and decided to cut the conversation there for all their sakes. The feast slowly came to an end. The Great Hall was filled with the sounds of chairs being pushed in and people standing up.
"First years follow me!" called all the prefects as they steered the newest members of the Hogwarts community in the right direction. Jacqueline, Steffanie, and Maria all headed off to the Gryffindor Common Room, excited from the news that Dumbledore had just made and eager to fall in their fluffy beds. It was going to be a very interesting term.
