Chapter Five
Deep Dark Night
Fleur and Draco walked onto the Quidditch field, which was now completely unrecognizable. A twenty-foot-high hedge ran all the way around the edge of it. There was a gap right in front of them, the entrance to the vast maze. The passage beyond it looked dark and creepy. Draco grabbed Fleur's hand and squeezed it.
"It will be ok love, you practiced a ton of spells."
"Thanks Drago, but I'm still nervous."
"Just do your best… be careful."
Five minutes later, the stands had begun to fill; the air was full of excited voices and the rumbling of feet as the hundreds of students filed into their seats. The sky was a deep, clear blue now, and the first stars were starting to appear. Professor Mc Gonagall led several professors into the stadium, approaching Bagman and the champions.
"They are going to be patrolling the outside of the maze. If you get into difficulty, and wish to be rescued, send red sparks into the air, and one of them will come and get you, do you understand," The champions nodded, Bagman then pointed his wand at his throat.
"Sonorus," and his magically magnified voice echoed into the stands.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Tri-wizard Tournament is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand! Tied in first place, Mr. Cedric Diggory and Mr. Harry Potter. In second place Mr. Viktor Krum, and in third place Miss Fleur Delacour
So ... on my whistle, Harry and Cedric," said Bagman. "Three - two - one -"
He gave a short blast on his whistle, and Harry and Cedric hurried forward into the maze. Bagman's whistled for the second time. Krum entered the maze, leaving Fleur to wait.
He blew his whistle for the third time, and she took off after the others. All of the champions were now inside. She turned several times looking for the center. Twice she found herself facing dead ends. Taking a right turn she saw an odd golden mist floating ahead of her.
Fleur approached it cautiously, pointing the wand's beam at it. This looked like some kind of enchantment. What would happen if she walked through the mist? Was it worth chancing it, or should she double back? She took a deep breath and ran through the enchanted mist. The world turned upside down. She was hanging from the ground, threatening to fall into the bottomless sky. Think, she told herself, as all the blood rushed to her head, think. . .
But not one of the spells she had practiced had been designed to combat a sudden reversal of ground and sky, Did she dare move? Shutting her eyes, she hoped she was right and pulled her right foot as hard as she could away from the grassy ceiling. Immediately, the world righted itself. She was pitched forward onto the grass. Taking a deep breath she got up again and hurried forward. She met nothing for ten minutes, but kept running into dead ends. Twice she took the same wrong turn. Finally, she found a new route and started to jog along it. That was until she tripped and landed flat on her face. Pulling her self up she was shocked to find Krum passed out. Not really wanting to leave him here she did the only thing she could think of. Taking his wand she sent up red sparks. Someone would come and collect him. Speeding up she ran into the increasing darkness, making her feel sure she was getting near the heart of the maze. Turning yet another corner her beam of wand light hit an extraordinary creature, one which she thought she would never had seen. It was a sphinx. It had the body of an overly large lion: great clawed paws and a long yellowish tail ending in a brown tuft. Its head, however, was that of a woman. She turned her long, almond-shaped eyes upon her as she approached. She raised his wand, hesitating. She was not crouching as if to spring, but pacing from side to side of the path, blocking her progress. Then she spoke, in a deep, hoarse voice.
"You are very near your goal. The quickest way is past me."
"Will you move, please?"
"No," she said, continuing to pace. "Not unless you can answer my riddle. Answer on your first guess - I let you pass. Answer wrongly - I attack. Remain silent - I will let you walk away from me unscathed."
"Can I hear the riddle?"
The sphinx sat down upon her hind legs, in the very middle of the path, and recited:
"First think of the person who lives in disguise,
Who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.
Next, tell me what's always the last thing to mend,
The middle of middle and end of the end?
And finally give me the sound often heard
During the search for a hard-to-find word.
Now string them together, and answer me this,
Which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?"
She gaped at her. She had no clue where to begin. After staying there for several minutes she knew she had to come up with another way. She really did not want to take her chances with the beast. Turning away disappointed she headed left. She was less then ten feet away from the beast when a gigantic spider stepped into the path and began to bear down upon her.
"Stupefy! Impedimenta! Stupefy! Oh, merde! (Oh shit!)
But it was no use, the spider was either so large, or so magical, that the spells were doing no more than aggravating it. She had one horrifying glimpse of eight shining black eyes and razor-sharp pincers before it was upon her. She was lifted into the air in its front legs, struggling madly, trying to kick it. She raised her wand as the spider opened its pincers once more and shouted "Expelliarmus!"
It worked, the Disarming Spell made the spider drop her, but that meant that she fell twelve feet onto the ground. Without pausing to think, she aimed high at the spider's underbelly, and shouted "Stupefy!''
The spider keeled over sideways, flattening a nearby hedge, and strewing the path with a tangle of hairy legs. Fleur rolled to her side, trying to breath normally. It was only after her heart slowed that she realized what pain she was in. Looking down she saw her leg was at an odd angle, most of the skin below the knee was already bruising. Grimacing she knew she was through. There was no way she was going to be able to get up with her leg broken. Retrieving her wand from the ground she held it high and shot up her red sparks. Looking high into the night sky she watched them shimmer for a moment before her eyes closed and she passed out.