Author's Note: I was just about to give up on my story… Thank you so much to all my reviewers! I'll try to make you proud! Sorry if this chapter's a little off… I'm a bit lost in the story right now… I have an end, but I can't figure out the middle… Stupid me slaps own head… Anyway, hope you like it! XD

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, would I be sitting here in front of the computer writing a hopeless fanfiction story? Didn't think so…

Chapter 3: Truth Be Told

"Viktor!"

Viktor Krum stirred on the hard rocky ground. It was nothing like the warm and comfortable bed he was hoping for.

He lifted his bruised arms and tried to support himself on his elbows. Every bone and muscle in his body was aching. Thankfully, he felt several hands rush to him and lift him onto a softer and much more comfortable surface.

Viktor opened his bleary eyes and saw three figures surrounding him. He blinked to try and get his vision right, and realized that these three figures all wore the identical worried expression on their faces.

"Viktor… Are you alright?" one of the figures looked over Viktor and smiled at him with a strong look on his face.

"Yes… I'm… I'm fine… What is going on?" Viktor, unsuccessfully, tried to prop himself on his elbows again, only causing his body to ache even more.

"Viktor, you must rest." The young man said as he held out a restraining hand to him. Viktor leaned back tiredly on the stretcher. He turned his head and opened his heavy eyes.

He could see many people walking away from the Quidditch pitch, and very little left sitting on the bleachers. He wondered what was going on? And why was he lying there on a stretcher with everything in his body aching? Did something happen? Then why couldn't he remember ANYTHING?

Suddenly, there was a shrill scream.

Viktor's eyes flashed open as he sat straight up on the stretcher.

"Viktor!" his surprised companions yelled.

Ignoring the throbbing pain on his whole body, he jumped off the stretcher and headed for a growing crowd surrounding the entrance of the maze.

Something bad had definitely happened. Viktor searched for a familiar face… Anyone… Anyone he could ask to tell him what was going on…

Suddenly, as if fate willed it, he found himself standing before a familiar golden head. Her back was heaving up and down, as if she was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Fleur…?"

Viktor raised a heavy hand and lightly touched her shoulder, when Fleur whirled around and stared at him with watery eyes. Her depressed face suddenly showed fear.

"You…"

"Fleur… What's going on? What's hap-"

"You!" Fleur jabbed a long delicate finger at his chest. "G-get away from m-me!" Fleur yelled tears springing to her eyes once more. Her chest heaved up and down vigorously as she stood terrified before Viktor.

"You… You lying little traitor!"

Viktor was more than taken aback. He reached up to grasp Fleur's shoulders but she slapped his arms away and let out a strained sob.

"I – I…"

Fleur could say no more. She was cowering in front of him, holding her companions' arms. Then she ran off, crying noisily across the grounds and disappeared into the darkness.

Viktor turned back to the pair of girls staring at him. They were casting nervous glances at each other… As if unsure of what to do… Even Viktor had difficulty deciphering their expressions. But there was one thing clear. They were afraid. They were very afraid.

His head ached as many different thoughts barreled his mind.

Fleur…

Viktor was still deeply engrossed in his thoughts when he suddenly felt very stupid standing there all alone, staring at the ground. People were starting to look at him curiously then whisper amongst themselves, their eyes never leaving him.

He was beginning to get annoyed. He didn't like it when people stared. But he was far too flabbergasted at Fleur's behavior to care at all.

Why was she so scared? What did I do? What happened!

Viktor's mind raced and he was really beginning to feel rather sick.

Suddenly, two of his good friends, Ivan and Dimitri, appeared at his side with puzzled looks on their faces.

"Viktor…"

Viktor looked up at them.

"Viktor… people… people have been saying… some… some things…" Ivan started and they changed uneasy looks with each other.

"Things?" Viktor said, a little harsher than he meant to. "What things?"

"Well… They say that… that you… well, in the maze… you sort of…" Ivan tried to continue but it seemed that he was at a lost for words and turned to Dimitri for help.

Dimitri looked hesitant and looked down at his shoes before looking at Viktor in the eye and saying, "Viktor… there are people who say that you tried to… to hex Delacour. Is this true?" Dimitri's voice lowered as he said the last three words.

He and Ivan seemed to shrink before Krum, as if they expected him to start yelling.

"H-Hex Delacour? Fleur Delacour?" a baffled Viktor repeated.

"Well… yes." Ivan said looking even more uncomfortable now. It wasn't so easy to confront a friend.

Suddenly, Viktor felt as though he would throw up.

The tournament… The maze… Fleur… The bribery… The order… The curse… The Imperius Curse…

The hard truth dawned on him like a prisoner sentenced to a Dementor's kiss. Viktor was ashamed of himself and of his actions. He turned away from his friends who were surprised by this feat.

"Viktor… Are you quite alright…?" Ivan started.

"I – I want to be alone…" Viktor looked up at them. They stepped backwards as they met Viktor's teary eyes. This was the first time they had ever seen a single tear fall from Viktor Krum's eyes.

"Please do not tell anyone of this…" Viktor looked at them in the eye. "I trust you."

Ivan and Dimitri didn't need to be bribed, told twice or even repeated of the instructions. They looked back at Viktor with strong faces and nodded in response.

For the first time that night, a smile crept upon Viktor's face. He was blessed to have such wonderful friends.

But his simple happiness dissolved immediately, as the crowd's voices began to get louder. He heard students whispering rapidly to each other. Others were panic-stricken but the most puzzling of all… A great number of students were crying.

They were holding each other and whispering consoling words in one another's ears.

Oh, no… It couldn't have happened… Don't tell me it really happened…

Viktor turned and faced the pair in the middle of the crowd.

On the grass, knelt Harry Potter, the fourteen-year old boy. A mixture of blood, dirt and mud was spattered across his face, his glasses were cracked and there was a large gash on his hand. He was holding something… or rather someone…

Viktor laid his eyes upon the lifeless body of Cedric Diggory. He looked worse than the Potter boy. His eyes were open and misty… There was no blood on him though… But his state was rather obvious. Everyone who laid their eyes upon him could easily say that he had been killed… He had been murdered…

This is… this is my fault… It was my pride that brought me to become so selfish and so… so cold… If only I had known better… If only I hadn't listened to that snake…

There was no turning back now. What was done, is done. There is no way to turn back and reverse all the pain that was caused.

Rain started to fall from the heavy sky and students scurried off towards the castle.

But Viktor lingered behind… He stayed under the cold rain for what seemed like hours… Silently wishing that they would somehow wash away the past and leave a blank future for him to continue on to…

His knees gave way to the staggering pain in his legs and he fell to the ground sending mud flying everywhere across his face and his chest.

Nothing really mattered at that moment. The rain, the wind, the pain and the world. It was all just a blissful memory to him as he knelt on the ground refusing to move.

"Viktor! Viktor, get in here!"

He glanced to his right. Ivan and Dimitri were standing beneath a huge maroon umbrella, their wands alit.

Behind them, the Durmstrang ship floated about fifteen meters away from the lake's shore. Standing on the ship's deck, was a very annoyed-looking Igor Karkaroff. He, too was sheltered by a maroon umbrella with his wand's tip alit.

"Viktor!" Ivan yelled.

"Karkaroff is getting impatient!" Dimitri continued.

"Viktor, please!"

Viktor could only stare back at them with a sullen expression. Their words had barely registered into his mind, when Karkaroff let out a cry of anguish and stomped off the ship and jumped onto a smaller boat. He flicked his wand and the oars magically began to weave through the water, rowing him quickly to the shore.

Karkaroff ordered the two young men back into the boat and into the ship. They look uncertain for a while, but they quickly followed the order when Karkaroff stared at them with a look that clearly said You-DO-NOT-Want-To-Mess-With-Me-Right-Now.

The two defeated young men climbed into the boat, took one last look at Viktor and started rowing themselves back to the ship.

When Karkaroff had seen them both disappear under the deck and into the cabins, he advanced on Viktor.

"Why are you out here feeling sorry for yourself? What was done, is done."

Viktor flinched at his words. He knew they were true. There was nothing but silence for a few moments. Karkaroff let out a small frustrated sigh.

"Come on, lad. Up you get." Karkaroff grabbed Viktor's arm and pulled him to his feet. He obeyed.

The pair headed for the edge of the lake. Karkaroff waved his wand and the small boat sped across the lake, towards them.

"Get in," Karkaroff said curtly and Viktor followed his headmaster into the boat. The boat rowed itself across the lake once more with a flick of Karkaroff's wand, leaving little ripples on the surface of the black lake.

By the time they got off the boat and into the cabins, the pair were soaked to the bone. Shivering slightly, Karkaroff flicked his wand in a swaying motion around him and several lamps lit to reveal a rather spacious and comfortable cabin. This was the Captain's Cabin.

Well, you could hardly call Karkaroff the Captain, but he insisted that because of his being headmaster, he should receive the biggest and most luxurious cabin there was. Viktor, being the "most prized" student, received the second biggest and most luxurious cabin, which stood a few feet away from Karkaroff's.

"Sit down, Viktor." Karkaroff said to him as he took off his cloak and muttered a spell to dry it. Viktor, having been invited to this cabin for afternoon tea several times before, settled himself on the plush maroon couch and handed his cloak to Karkaroff who hung it beside his own cloak and dried it, as well.

Karkaroff conjured up a kettle with tea and summoned two teacups from a nearby cupboard. The kettle immediately began to boil on the stove, as Karkaroff set the teacups on the table in front of Viktor.

Then he busied himself by summoning almost everything he could think of. He summoned a loaf of bread and some butter from the cupboard and an unopened pack of teacakes that stood upon a high stool. He flicked his wand again and a knife popped out of the drawer and started to cut the bread and spread butter on the slices.

All this time, Viktor kept silent and watched as his headmaster tried to make everything as comfortable for them as possible. This was quite peculiar since Karkaroff hardly ever made an effort to make anyone feel at home in his presence. But Viktor hardly cared.

"Eat." Karkaroff said, grabbing one slice of the buttered bread and taking a crispy bite. "You will feel better."

Viktor sighed silently and leaned forward to take a slice of bread. Though his stomach felt like a circus, Viktor merely nibbled at the bread before dropping it back on the plate and leaning back tiredly against the couch.

"Viktor."

Viktor raised his eyebrows but did not look at the older man.

"There is no need for you to feel bad." Karkaroff told him. "I am proud of you for reaching that far."

For a while, Viktor was confused, though he didn't show it.

"Everyone was expecting the Potter boy to win, anyway. Dumbledore's favorite." Karkaroff spat rolling his eyes.

Then Viktor understood. Karkaroff thought his mood was because he didn't win the cup. Karkaroff thought that disappointment, not guilt, was what caused Viktor's sullen behavior.

Makes perfect sense. Karkaroff wouldn't know what it feels like to betray someone who was special to him. He always remains faithful… Especially to that… that snake… Karkaroff wouldn't dare betray. He would always obey.

"I could've won that Cup." Viktor said. He decided to lie and play along with his headmaster's assumptions. At least it would cover up his guilt. "I guess I didn't try hard enough."

"No, Viktor." Karkaroff laughed. "You did damn well!"

"What?" Viktor looked up, alert for once. Karkaroff chuckled.

"Viktor, Viktor, Viktor…" Karkaroff started. He went around the table and put a hand on his star student's shoulder.

"It doesn't matter whether you got the Cup or not." Karkaroff looked at him straight in the eyes. "Eternal glory comes in many different forms." He spoke the last three words with such emphasis that it was difficult not to immediately understand him.

Viktor decided to play dumb. "Many different forms?"

"Yes, of course, Viktor!" Karkaroff said strongly. "You don't need that silly Cup to prove that you're worthy of having eternal glory! What're you going to do with it? Drink fire whisky out of it? Eh?" Karkaroff chuckled again.

Viktor knew well what he was talking about.

"You've made me proud." Karkaroff said tightening his grip on Viktor's shoulder. "And you've made him proud as well." He looked at Viktor in the eye with seriousness. "Do you remember what he said he would reward you with if you carried out your mission well?"

Viktor nodded. He remembered everything very clearly.

"But… But his plan did not go right, did it?" Viktor asked. "Potter did not die. Diggory did."

"Well," Karkaroff shrugged. "That's not our problem, now, is it?" he smiled at Viktor showing his yellow teeth. "At least you did your part! You will be rewarded accordingly!"

The kettle started to whistle.

Karkaroff laughed and stood up from the couch. He flicked his wand at the kettle and it flew over to them and poured tea in both of the teacups.

"Here, have some tea, Viktor." Karkaroff handed him one of the teacups and drank from his own.

Viktor hesitated for a while. Then drained his cup as well.

"Sir?"

"Hmm?"

"Will not the Dark Lord be disappointed in me?" Viktor asked.

Karkaroff raised his eyebrows at his student. "But you did not do anything wrong, did you, Viktor?"

Hell if I didn't. I'm a traitor. I betrayed myself… And I betrayed Fleur…

A lump rose in his throat. "No, sir. I believe I did not do anything wrong."

Karkaroff shrugged and replaced the teacup on the table. "Well, then. You cannot blame yourself for the Dark Lord's mistakes."

Karkaroff swished his wand once more and everything on the table cleared itself up and all was spotless in the next moment.

"Good night, Viktor."

"Good night, sir."