At six o'clock on Sunday, the day before Halloween, Rachel and her friends left their study room and went down to the Great Hall for the feast. Usually Rachel would be eating with Severus in his quarters on Sunday evening, but today was the day Professor Dumbledore was going to bring out the Goblet of Fire and everyone was supposed to be present.
"Has anyone in Gryffindor said they're entering the tournament?" Theo asked as they made their way down the steps.
"Angelina is going to," Ginny said.
"Do you think she'll still play on the Quidditch team if she's chosen? Isn't she your acting captain this year?" Rachel asked.
"She is, and I don't know what she'll do if she's chosen. I suppose Professor Dumbledore might tell her she can't do both," Ginny said. "Cedric is supposedly entering too."
"He's seventeen already? I thought he was a sixth year," Hermione asked.
"I guess his birthday is in September or October," Neville said.
"What about Ravenclaw?" Millie asked Luna.
"Not that I know of, but they wouldn't have told me," Luna said.
Rachel frowned. "Have your roommates started to speak to you?"
"No. Professor Flitwick asked me about it at the start of the year, but I told him it was alright," Luna said.
"It's not alright if they're being cruel to you. Bullying shouldn't be allowed and Professor Flitwick should put a stop to it when it's happening in his House," Hermione said firmly.
Luna didn't answer and her expression was impassive.
"Is anyone from Slytherin House entering?" Neville asked.
"Sadie is. Alice says she isn't, but she might just want to keep it a secret. Darrius won't say one way or the other. And Avery is planning on it, his birthday was last week. I think his father is basically demanding that he enter," Theo said.
"Can't he just say that he did enter and wasn't chosen?" Millie asked.
Theo shook his head. "His father will want someone to go with him, so unless he knows someone who is willing to lie to their parents for him, he basically has to do it."
"Maybe the Goblet of Fire will be able to tell that he's entering under duress," Hermione said.
"Maybe, but I don't think he's a likely pick anyway. Sadie could probably do it. I could see Cedric doing well also, he's at the top of his class," Theo said.
Rachel frowned. She hoped it wasn't Cedric. Cedric had always been very kind to her, even saving her life last year when the Dementors showed up to their Quidditch match. In reality, she hoped it wasn't anyone.
"Angelina would also be a good pick, her grades are right up there with Cedric's, she's taking seven NEWT classes," Ginny said.
"We'll see you after dinner," Hermione said once they reached the doors to the Great Hall.
Rachel, Millie, and Theo went to the Slytherin table and joined where most of the other fourth years were already sitting.
"We're taking bets," Draco said as soon as they'd sat down.
"Bets?" Theo asked. "On who is going to be chosen?"
"That's right. There's a pool for each school, as well as a pool on who is entering. We're planning pools for the tasks as well," Draco said. "I know you're good for it."
"Fine. Five Galleons on Cedric for Hogwarts champion, five Galleons on Viktor for Durmstrang champion. I haven't got a clue about Beauxbatons though," Theo said.
"Popular picks, you won't get much of a return on those. Rachel, Millie, are you in?" Draco asked as he wrote down Theo's bets. It was a long list.
"No thanks," Rachel said, jumping slightly as food appeared on the platters.
"Not for me, my mom would kill me if she heard I was gambling," Millie said.
Draco smiled. "What your parents don't know won't hurt them."
"They always have ways of knowing," Millie said as she served herself two slices of ham.
Chatter around them was mostly speculating about who would enter and who would be chosen as the champions. It sounded like a good number of the seventh years were entering, while the sixth years were complaining about how close their birthdays were.
"I'd enter if I was seventeen," Blaise said.
"Me too. I think they should have let younger students enter. What about you, Rachel?" Draco asked.
"No, not me. It sounds like my worst nightmare. Go up in front of the entire school and perform complicated magic while your life is being threatened. No thank you," Rachel said.
Millie shook her head. "Me neither. It's bad enough doing spells when I'm called on in class."
"Theo?" Draco prompted.
"Maybe. It depends. If the tasks are like the ones they used to have, probably not. If they really have changed them to make them safer, then I might do it," Theo said.
"I wouldn't," Daphne said. "What if you got maimed for life and wound up looking like Professor Moody?"
Pansy wrinkled her nose. "That's a good point."
"I'd enter," Crabbe said.
"I wouldn't," Goyle said.
Draco looked at them. "You'd have nothing to worry about. The only way they'd pick either of you is if you were the only one in the school who entered."
That was probably true, but it was really rude for Draco to say it like that.
By the time desserts appeared people were restlessly popping up to check out the staff table. Rachel leaned back to look and saw that Mr. Crouch and Mr. Bagman were both back as well. She supposed they'd be at all of the events concerning the tournament since they were judges. Severus looked particularly grim. He was sitting between Professor McGonagall and Professor Karkaroff but he wasn't speaking to either of them.
Finally the desserts disappeared and Professor Dumbledore stood up. A hush fell over the Great Hall. "Mr. Filch, the casket, if you would," he said.
Mr. Filch came forth carrying a large wooden chest that was decorated with jewels. He placed the chest on the staff table and backed away.
"The champions for the Triwizard Tournament will be selected by the Goblet of Fire," Professor Dumbledore announced. He opened the chest and withdrew a large wooden cup that was filled with blue-white flames. He placed it on top of the chest and turned to face the students. "Any student who is at least seventeen years of age may write their name and school on a slip of parchment and place it into the Goblet. The Goblet will be placed in the entrance hall so anyone can access it. I will be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet to ensure that none of our underage students are tempted to submit their names."
Professor Dumbledore paused. "I must note that the placing of your name in the Goblet constitutes a magical binding contract. If your name is selected by the Goblet, you are obligated to participate in the tournament until the end. Please be certain that you wholeheartedly wish to participate before entering your name. Good night to you all, and good luck."
Students immediately began talking again with a more fervent energy than before.
"Shall we get out of here and go get another hour of research in?" Theo asked.
"Yes, let's," Rachel said. She would be glad when this whole tournament business was done with, hopefully without any casualties.
Rachel woke up early on Monday morning. It was Halloween. She'd started a tradition in her second year of writing to her parents on the anniversary of their deaths. She supposed it was kind of morbid, but she felt it was about as direct of a way for her to talk to them as she was going to get.
After feeling around for a moment, Rachel found her wand. "Lumos." She'd left her quill and the journal that Theo had given her for her birthday out on her bedside table.
She pulled the curtains on her bed back a little ways, enough to contain the light of her wand so she wouldn't wake the other girls up, but not so much that she felt trapped.
'Dear Mom and Dad,
It feels weird to ask you how you are doing, because I don't know if that's a thing in the afterlife. Or even if there is an afterlife. I hope there is. I think I'm going to believe there is, because otherwise I wouldn't be able to talk to you.
I'm doing pretty well. I like most of my classes (not History of Magic) and I'm still third in my class, behind Hermione and Theo. Mom, I think you'd like Hermione and Theo a lot. From what people have told me about you, I think you'd get along very well. Dad, I think you'd like Millie and Ginny best out of all my friends. They're a little bit mischievous, like I hear you were. Though they're very kind.
I heard some pretty bad things about you, Dad. Remus said that you used to bully Severus. I don't know why you would do that. Severus has been very kind to me, much more than I ever could have imagined. Severus says that eventually you grew up and that no one is perfect, which I think is true. I'm glad the two of you were okay before you died.'
Rachel tapped the end of her quill against the edge of her journal as she tried to remember everything that had happened in the past year.
'One very good thing happened. It turns out Sirius Black was innocent, he didn't betray you at all. Though you probably knew that already. He was released from Azkaban and he seems to be doing better now. I usually see Remus when I see him as well. It's nice that they want to stay in contact with me. I don't know Sirius very well yet, but I do want to get to know him.
Last year was a little bit difficult. The Dementors affect me quite badly, which led to some other stuff happening. I hope that you don't see everything that goes on around me. I want you to know about my life, but some things are kind of private.
Sometimes I think about how different my life would be if you both had survived. I think that none of the stuff that happened when I was with the Dursleys would have happened. I think that you would have loved me and kept me safe. I wouldn't have stopped talking. I wouldn't have the same sort of nightmares that I have.
But at the same time, maybe things would have been bad anyway. I don't really understand how the Dark Lord's body died that night, but maybe if he'd never come to find us, he would still be around and would have won the war. I imagine a lot more people would have died if that had happened, and maybe muggleborns like Hermione would never have been able to come to Hogwarts.
I wish we could have it both ways - that the war would have ended and that you could have lived. And, then, I never would have come to live with Severus, and if I hadn't been sorted into Slytherin, maybe I wouldn't have made friends with Millie and Theo. And I would miss that if things had turned out different.'
Rachel paused and tried to reorganize her thoughts since she was rambling.
'Someone else you would have known, Professor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, is now teaching us Defense. He's pretty intense, but we're learning a lot. The Triwizard Tournament is taking place this year, which I think is a bad idea, but we managed to keep Quidditch going - they were going to cancel it! I'm playing as a Chaser this year, since Viktor is our Seeker. I saw him at the World Cup and he was amazing.
Other than that, not much has changed for me. I'm as busy as ever since we're taking ten classes. Quidditch practice is a lot of fun still, and they voted me to be acting captain this year. I'm not sure I'm actually good enough to be captain, but I'll try my best for the team. I spend a lot of time with my friends, which is really nice. I miss them over the summer.
I think things will continue to get better for me. I'm working on a lot of things and it's difficult, but I think it will be worth it if I can sort stuff out.
Oh, one last thing. Everyone says that you both were normal sized, but I'm short! If you have any influence over this sort of thing, send me a growth spurt. I'm tired of looking like a child.
I love you both and I miss you.
Your daughter, Rachel'
Rachel set her journal aside and cupped her hand around the light of her wand. She could feel herself worrying again, but she wasn't sure if what she had written to her parents had caused it. She took a slow breath and then exhaled, counting while she did so.
Torey had told her to practice breathing slowly when she felt herself worrying over something, and if the worry got too much, to go put her face in some ice cold water. Rachel hadn't tried that last part yet, and didn't think she wanted to. Maybe if things ever got bad enough she would give it a shot.
She sighed heavily and checked the time on her watch. She still had thirty minutes before she needed to get up. That was enough time to try out the second animagus meditation.
"Nox."
This was the first Halloween feast that Rachel had attended since her first year. Ordinarily she would have suggested that the study group collect food and treats from the kitchens and have a quiet evening to themselves, but she didn't want anyone to miss the drawing of the names on her account.
Hagrid's enormous pumpkins decorated the tables, each of them expertly carved and with candles inside, but there were no bats flying around the ceiling this year. Rachel decided that was a good thing and sat down at the Slytherin table with Millie and Theo.
"Looks like Bagman and Crouch are back. What's going on with Hagrid's hair?" Theo asked, looking at the staff table.
Rachel leaned back and saw that Hagrid had gathered his usually messy hair into two clumps at the back. "Maybe he's trying something new? Professor Snape knows a spell that cuts hair, if you have a pair of scissors. We could tell Hagrid about it," she suggested.
"Might not be a bad idea," Millie said as she looked. "He does seem like he needs a little help with it."
"I wish they would draw the champions' names at the start of the feast," Draco said as he sat down, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle.
"It might be easier for the people who entered their name if the names were picked sooner. I imagine they're super nervous," Rachel said.
"I would be," Millie said, reaching for the pumpkin pie as the feast appeared. "Though I'd be hoping it wouldn't pick me."
"Me too," Rachel said. She served herself a piece of turkey, a jacket potato, and a slice of pumpkin pie.
"You have no sense of adventure," Draco said.
"More like they have a healthy sense of self preservation," Theo said.
Rachel nodded since her mouth was full. She had enough problems to worry about with Death Eaters without some crazy tournament trying to kill her.
It seemed to take a long time for the feast to finish. She noticed that people were often looking to the staff table, some of them standing up to get a better look. Finally the remaining food disappeared, their plates immediately clean once again, and Professor Dumbledore stood up.
"The Goblet requires approximately one more minute to finish making its decision," he announced.
Rachel took the moment to wonder about how a Goblet made a decision at all. Maybe it was something like the Sorting Hat, but could see things about someone just by having their name. That was a little creepy now that she thought about it.
"When the champions' names are called, they should come to the front of the hall, go behind the staff table and through the door into the next chamber. At that time they will be given their first instructions," Professor Dumbledore said. He pulled out his wand and with a broad gesture extinguished nearly all of the candles in the Great Hall.
Rachel leaned to the side so she could see better. The Goblet's white-blue flames illuminated a small area of the staff table, just enough so that she could see Severus sitting next to Professor Karkaroff.
The flames in the Goblet turned a bright ruby red and a flame shot out, releasing a charred slip of parchment.
Professor Dumbledore caught the parchment and adjusted his glasses so he could read it. "The Durmstrang champion is Viktor Krum."
Everyone applauded as Viktor got up from his seat further up the Slytherin table.
"Hopefully he still wants to play Quidditch with us," Rachel said to Draco.
"He will," Draco said confidently. "I think he already knew he was going to be a champion."
Viktor exited the room through the door behind the staff table and the applause died down. The flames in the Goblet turned red once more and a burst of flame expelled another piece of parchment.
"The Beauxbatons champion is Fluer Delacour," Professor Dumbledore announced.
Rachel turned to look at the Ravenclaw table, where a girl with long silvery blonde hair got to her feet and hurried up to the staff table.
The applause died down again and everyone stared at the Goblet, eagerly waiting to hear who the Hogwarts champion would be. Finally the flames turned red and another piece of parchment fluttered out.
"The Hogwarts champion is Cedric Diggory," Professor Dumbledore announced.
The entire Hufflepuff table had leapt to their feet and were screaming and cheering as the rest of the Great Hall applauded.
Rachel felt a little bit sad as she watched Cedric go up to the staff table. Cedric had always been kind to her. She hoped he wasn't going to get hurt doing this.
"Thank you, to everyone who entered," Professor Dumbledore said, once Cedric had left the room. "I know that all of you will fully support your champions. The Triwizard Tournament brought us all here together, to learn together, and to learn about each other. By supporting your champion-"
Professor Dumbledore stopped abruptly and it was immediately clear why. The flames in the Goblet had turned red once again. A moment later a flame shot out and another slip of parchment was released. Professor Dumbledore caught it and seemed to take a very long time to read it.
"Rachel Snow," he finally read out loud.
Rachel felt like her heart had stopped. This had to be a joke. A really terrible joke.
"Rachel?" Theo asked as he turned to her.
Rachel shook her head. This was absolutely not happening.
There was whispering all around the hall as people turned to look at her.
"Rachel, come up here, please," Professor Dumbledore said.
Draco was staring at her from across the table.
"I think you have to go. I'm sure Professor Snape will fix this," Millie said quietly.
Theo nodded. "Go to Professor Snape. Let him help you."
Unsteadily Rachel stood up and began the long walk up to the staff table. She felt like she was going to be sick. Everyone was staring at her. Her chest hurt and her throat burned. It felt like at any second she was just going to collapse to the floor.
She looked up and found Severus watching her. He nodded, meeting her gaze.
Rachel nodded back. Severus would fix this, somehow.
She finally reached the front of the staff table and looked at Professor Dumbledore.
"Go through the door if you would," he said.
Rachel took as much of a breath as her chest would let her and walked behind the staff table and then through the door. She stepped into a much smaller room, with a fireplace and several armchairs, and many portraits on the wall. Viktor, Cedric, and Fleur were standing around the fireplace. Rachel was filled with a foreboding feeling, like she had just joined them in this room to be marked for death.
"Do they want us to go back into the hall?" Fleur asked.
Rachel shook her head and tried to summon the will to speak. It seemed difficult to swallow, let alone to get words out.
"Rachel, what's wrong? Cedric asked, stepping away from Viktor and Fleur.
Rachel startled as the door opened behind her and she quickly moved out of the way.
Severus came through the door first and immediately came to her side. "I will do something about this," he said quietly.
Rachel nodded and felt an immense flood of gratitude for Severus. He would fix this.
"Absolutely extraordinary," Mr. Bagman said, smiling brightly. "A fourth champion. Who'd ever heard of such a thing."
"A fourth champion, sir?" Cedric asked, his eyes darting to Rachel and then back to Mr. Bagman.
More people entered the room as Mr. Bagman began to answer. "Well, her name came out of the Goblet of Fire, she has to compete."
"She cannot compete, she is just a little girl," Fleur said, walking over to join Madame Maxime.
"I wish to know what is happening," Madame Maxime said to Professor Dumbledore.
"Yes, we'd like to know as well," Professor Karkaroff said from where he had joined Viktor. "A fourth champion? That's not in the rules."
"Hogwarts cannot be allowed two champions," Fleur insisted.
Professor Dumbledore held up his hand, Professor McGonagall standing on his left, and Professor Moody standing on his right.
"We will see if we can get to the bottom of this," Professor Dumbledore said, turning to Rachel. "Rachel, did you enter your name in the Goblet of Fire?"
Rachel tried to speak but nothing came out. She shook her head and finally managed to whisper "no".
"Did you ask an older student to enter your name for you?" Professor Dumbledore pressed.
Rachel shook her head again. "No, sir," she whispered.
"She is lying," Professor Karkaroff said.
"I have ways of telling when people are lying to me," Professor Dumbledore said, his gaze pausing on Professor Karkaroff.
"I'm sure you do, however, none of that answers the question of how that child was chosen as a second Hogwarts champion," Professor Karkaroff said.
"The real question you should be asking is how the Goblet of Fire was manipulated into selecting a fourth student and why," Professor Moody said.
"If Hogwarts is allowed a second student, I insist that Beauxbatons and Durmstrang are allowed a second student as well," Madam Maxime said. "We must light the Goblet of Fire again."
"I'm afraid that's not possible," Mr. Crouch said, stepping forward. "The Goblet of Fire cannot be lit until the next tournament in five years. As for Miss Snow, she'll have to compete. It's a magically binding contract."
Rachel looked up at Severus, willing him to do something.
"Can something be done to the Goblet to withdraw her name?" Severus asked.
"No, there is no mechanism for withdrawal apart from death of the champion," Mr. Crouch said.
"Can she participate nominally in the tournament by entering the tasks and then signalling that she wishes to not complete the task?" Severus pressed.
"No, the contract is very specific. There's a scroll preserved in the Ministry archives. She must compete to the best of her abilities," Mr. Crouch said. "There is no other alternative."
"And what is the penalty for breaking the contract?" Severus asked.
Mr. Crouch paused and glanced at Rachel. "Upon failure to compete in a task, again that is competing to the best of her abilities - she may not purposefully fail a task, the Goblet issues a debilitating curse that would prevent the subject from ever casting magic again," he explained.
Rachel felt sick again. She had to compete or she lost her magic?
"Seems like a mighty convenient way to take someone out," Professor Moody said. "Force them to participate in life threatening tasks where it's possible they'll die or their magic is incapacitated if they refuse to compete."
"You sound like someone placed her name in the Goblet specifically to disable her," Madame Maxime said.
"That's exactly what I'm implying. You know who she is, don't you?" Professor Moody asked. "You know the people who want her dead."
Rachel stared at the wall as everyone stared at her again.
"I think for the time being the why is inconsequential. I will search for another way to remove Miss Snow from the tournament. However, if I cannot find a way, then she will have to compete," Professor Dumbledore said.
Professor Karkaroff shook his head. "You invite us here, in the spirit of international cooperation, and the first thing that you do is bolster the odds in your favor. This is a farce and your Ministry will be hearing about it."
"If anyone has any alternatives, I would be glad to hear them," Professor Dumbledore said.
"And we cannot cancel the tournament entirely?" Madame Maxime asked.
"I'm afraid not. Your champions must compete," Mr. Crouch said.
"Barty would know," Mr. Bagman said. He still looked excited, as though this was all a game to him. "I think the best thing to do now would be to tell the champions about their first task.
"Mr. Crouch, if you'd do the honors," Professor Dumbledore said.
"Of course. The first task is designed to test your daring. We will not be telling you what it is. You must have courage and be able to think on your feet. These are very important qualities for a witch or a wizard. The first task will take place on November 26th. You are not permitted to ask for or accept help from your teachers and you may bring only your wand into the arena. You will receive information about the second task once the first is complete. You are all exempted from any school based end of year examinations," Mr. Crouch explained.
"Is there anything else, Albus?" Mr. Bagman asked.
"No, that's everything. Mr. Bagman, Mr. Crouch, you're both welcome to stay at Hogwarts for the night. I extend the offer to join me for drinks to you and to Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime," Professor Dumbledore said.
"I think not," Professor Karkaroff said. He left the room with Viktor.
"Barty and I will join you," Mr. Bagman said.
"I must see to my students," Madame Maxime said. She placed a hand on Fleur's shoulder and they left the room, speaking quietly in French.
"Cedric, I'm sure Hufflepuff House would like to celebrate with you if you'd return to your common room," Professor Dumbledore said.
Cedric nodded. "Goodnight, sir." He gave one last look at Rachel before he left the room.
"Severus, I'll let you see to Rachel, and I will speak with you later tonight," Professor Dumbledore said.
Severus nodded and looked down at Rachel. "Let's return to my quarters for a moment."
Rachel nodded and followed him out of the room. She still hoped he could do something about this, but it didn't sound good.
Severus and Rachel walked in silence through the empty dungeon corridor. His mind was racing with various possibilities, but he found himself continuing to think back to Rachel's terrified expression just after Albus had called her name.
Of course she was terrified. Who wouldn't be under the same circumstance?
He glanced down and found Rachel walking beside him with a blank expression and her arms wrapped around her middle. She'd been silent ever since Albus had asked her if she put her name in the Goblet, and even then, it had seemed like she'd been having difficulty speaking. Severus hoped this wasn't an indication of future problems.
Severus opened his office door and ushered Rachel inside. She went through the wall into his quarters without waiting for his instructions and immediately made for the couch.
He sat down in his armchair and tried to find the right thing to say. "I know this is scary, but I want to assure you that I will do everything that I can to help. I will work with Albus to find a solution. If we can't get you out of the tournament, then I will prepare you for the tasks," he said, aiming for reassuring.
Rachel's brow furrowed. "Mr. Crouch said that we can't accept help from teachers."
"Damn the rules," Severus said. "You are not in this tournament by choice and you're at least three years younger than the other champions. We will have to keep it a secret that I am helping you, but I will help you. Besides, I think it's very likely that Madame Maxime and Karkaroff will be helping their champions."
"What about Cedric?" Rachel asked.
"Cedric is a very capable student and he entered the tournament of his own volition. He will manage," Severus said.
"That doesn't mean he should die," Rachel said, looking even more upset.
Severus exhaled and raised his hand to press against his temple. He had felt a migraine coming ever since this whole fiasco had started. "I do not believe that Cedric, or anyone else, will die during the tournament."
"They did in the past. In the book, lots of them died," Rachel said.
"And they have worked to make the tasks safer. I don't believe that Albus would purposefully place any students in a life threatening situation," Severus said. "I promise you, I will do whatever it takes to ensure your safety. If that means I step into the task itself to help you, I will."
Rachel did not look particularly reassured.
"Right now, I'm going to focus on getting you out of the tournament. I will examine the Goblet with Albus and see if we can dissolve whatever is forcing the champions to compete. Let's not worry about the tasks themselves until we know for sure whether not you are competing," Severus said.
"Do you think Professor Moody is right? That someone entered my name into the Goblet because they want me to get killed or make me lose my magic?" Rachel asked.
"I think that's the most likely scenario, yes. We will also try to determine who placed your name in the Goblet," Severus said. That was another problem entirely.
"One of the students who has a Death Eater relative maybe? Theo said that Avery Acker's father was forcing him to enter. Maybe he did that so that he could drop my name in at the same time?" Rachel suggested.
"That's a possibility. I doubt that Albus' Age Line was breached, so that rules out most of the students," Severus agreed. Karkaroff and the Durmstrang students were another possibility. "We will look into it. Do you want to stay here in my quarters tonight?"
Rachel bit her lip as she seemed to consider it. Finally she shook her head. "No, I want to go back to my dorm."
"Alright, but you are welcome to return here if you want to. Have Millie or one of the prefects escort you. I'll come into the common room with you and ask that people not bother you. If anyone is bothering you, please let me know and I will deal with them," Severus said.
Rachel nodded, still looking worried and grim.
"Do you want to see Torey earlier than Saturday?" he offered.
"No, I'm okay," Rachel said quickly.
Severus frowned. Rachel's response was always that she was okay, even when she clearly wasn't. "You don't have to be okay. You can feel frightened or upset. Anyone would be."
"I am scared, but not so much so that I'm not okay," Rachel said.
"If you need to talk, or want to see me, or if you just want somewhere to be away from everyone for a while, you can always come here," Severus said.
"I'm okay, really," Rachel insisted.
"Well, if you're ever not okay, come see me," Severus settled on. "Do you want to stay here longer or do you want to go back to your dorm?"
"We can go now, I know you need to talk with Professor Dumbledore," Rachel said.
"My first priority is your well-being. Albus can wait," Severus said.
"Thanks. I'm just going to go to my dorm and study. I was planning on doing some reading tonight," Rachel said.
"Alright," Severus said. He could understand Rachel wanting to distract herself from all of this.
They walked down to the Slytherin common room, the door appearing automatically for Severus without need of the password. The common room was very busy, it seemed like most of the House was in attendance, which was good for his purposes. A ripple of quiet moved through the room as people realized they had arrived.
"I would like to ask you at this time to be considerate and not inundate Miss Snow with questions or concerns regarding the Triwizard Tournament. If you have concerns, you are welcome to speak with me," Severus said as he looked out at his students.
"Sir, will she be allowed to compete?" sixth year David Zeek called out.
"Professor Dumbledore and I are in the process of determining whether or not we can remove Miss Snow from the tournament. Miss Snow did not enter the tournament of her own volition," Severus explained.
Fergus Cowley shoved his hand in the air. "You mean she didn't put her own name in, sir?"
"That's correct, Mr. Cowley," Severus said. "As I said, if you have more questions or concerns, please see me."
Severus hesitated. He hated to leave Rachel right now. "Come to me if there is a problem tonight," he said.
"I will," Rachel said quietly.
Severus nodded and then turned and left the common room. Back in his office he took a Pain Relieving potion for his burgeoning migraine and then threw a handful of floo powder into the fireplace. "Headmaster's office. Albus, may I join you?"
"Please do," Albus called back.
Severus stepped through the fireplace and into Albus' office. Albus was sitting at his desk, his wand out, and the Goblet of Fire sitting inert on his desk.
"Any ideas?" Severus asked as he sat down across from Albus.
"Several, though I don't believe they will work. I'm having Barty Crouch bring me the scroll from the Ministry Archive. In the meantime I'm examining the rune work and the spells on the Goblet itself," Albus said.
"I don't suppose simply destroying the Goblet is an option?" Severus asked.
"No, I believe that will incur the withdrawal penalty on all of the champions," Albus said, looking up from the Goblet. "Severus, I will do what I can, but I believe it is likely that it will be necessary for Rachel to compete. The spell work on this is very delicate and I don't recognize much of it. Negating one portion of the spells may cause the entire set to cascade. I believe this was set up to prevent exactly what we're trying to do."
"Did you know about the penalty for withdrawing before you agreed to host the tournament?" Severus asked.
"I did, however I did not foresee that someone could be entered against their will. The possibility simply did not cross my mind," Albus said. "I am far from infallible, Severus."
"I know," Severus said. He knew that better than most. "We must at least try to remove her from the tournament. If that is not possible, I will help prepare her, unless you believe the spells on the Goblet will recognize that and disqualify her, in which case I will prepare one of her friends and have them prepare Rachel."
"That will not be necessary, there's nothing in the Goblet itself preventing champions from receiving help. That wasn't one of the original rules. I will find a way to involve you in the setting up of the tasks so that I can justify telling you about them," Albus said.
Severus nodded. "Is there anything I can do to assist you?"
"Discreetly question your upper year students to see if any of them placed Rachel's name in the Goblet," Albus instructed.
"Yes, Rachel had that concern as well. Another possibility is that Karkaroff did it, or one of the Durmstrang students did it under his direction," Severus said.
"Did you find Karkaroff to be a particularly good actor when you knew him?" Albus asked.
"No, which is why I believe his concern over the Dark Lord returning is sincere. However, it's possible that he has learned since I knew him," Severus said.
"He did a very convincing act at being indignant tonight, if he did enter Rachel's name into the Goblet," Albus said. "I think the most likely scenario that a powerful Confundus charm was placed on the Goblet, causing it to believe there were four schools."
"And Rachel's name was the only one entered under the fourth school, causing it to choose her," Severus reasoned.
"Precisely. You may want to check with Filius and ask him to judge who the most powerful students in his Charms class are who are at least seventeen. I think we can likely rule out anyone who isn't taking the NEWT class in Charms," Albus said.
"Avery Acker and Alice Jugson are the most likely candidates, though I will speak with all of my seventh and sixth year students under the guise of NEWT preparation advising to be certain," Severus said.
Albus nodded. "I think we must prepare ourselves for the Death Eaters to continue to take measures against Rachel as she grows older. Likely they would prefer to deal with her now, before she is a real danger to them. I'm afraid you must prepare Rachel to defend herself."
"I already am. I was working with her on defensive spells over the summer and I will continue to do so. She's aware that she needs to be careful," Severus said.
"I wish that wasn't the case, it's a large burden to place on her, but we must do whatever is necessary to ensure her safety," Albus said.
"I have been prepared to do this since I first adopted Rachel, and I have been gradually preparing Rachel as well. She knows how dangerous it is for her. We will keep her safe," Severus said. He would do whatever was necessary.
"I'm counting on you," Albus said, returning to examining the Goblet.
As soon as Severus left the common room people started talking loudly, everyone competing to be heard over each other.
Tracey, one of the fifth year prefects, approached Rachel. "Do you want an escort to your dorm so that people leave you alone?"
"Sure, thanks," Rachel said, though Millie would undoubtedly do it if she could find her. Plus, people would listen when a prefect told them to back off.
"No problem," Tracey said. "I'll deal with anyone who gets in our way."
They made their way through the common room, Tracey telling people to move when there wasn't a way through, and reminding people that Professor Snape had told them to leave Rachel alone when they tried to ask questions. Everyone had the same question - had Rachel entered her name in the Goblet.
Once they were in the hallway that led to the girls' dorms, Rachel felt the tightness in her chest ease a little bit. "I don't think I've had the chance to tell you, congratulations on becoming prefect," she said.
"Thanks. I wasn't too sure I wanted this," Tracey said, touching the prefect's badge pinned to her robe. "All things considered, I mean."
Rachel nodded, understanding that Tracey was referencing what Leander had done to them while he was a prefect.
"But after I thought about it for a while I decided I wanted to be a good prefect, and Slytherin needs good prefects. Besides, better me than one of the Carrows," Tracey said.
"That's true," Rachel said. She imagined Severus tried to keep prefect positions out of the hands of the children of Death Eaters when he could. "Thanks for walking with me."
"Glad I could help. And if people are giving you trouble, let me or one of the other prefects know," Tracey said.
"Thanks," Rachel said again. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight," Tracey said.
Rachel entered her dorm and slowly exhaled. It was slowly starting to feel more real now. She was a school champion in the Triwizard Tournament. Someone had entered her to try and kill her or force her to lose her magic. Someone, probably a Death Eater, wanted her dead.
Midnight meowing caught her attention and Rachel bent down and picked her up, cradling her against her chest. She went to her bed and sat down, focusing on the feeling of Midnight's fur and the way she felt in her arms.
The door opened and Rachel looked up and found Millie watching her.
"I think we have a few minutes before Pansy and Daphne show up," Millie said, closing the door behind herself and coming to sit next to Rachel. "How are you doing?"
Rachel put Midnight down on her lap and started petting her. "Scared. Severus is going to go to Professor Dumbledore and they're going to try and get me out of the tournament. But if they can't find a way, I either have to compete or I lose my magic."
"How? I've never heard of anything like that," Millie asked.
"I don't know, something to do with the Goblet, Mr. Crouch said. It's a curse of some kind," Rachel explained. "They think someone is trying to kill me and that's why they entered me into the tournament."
Millie nodded. "They're trying to figure out who it is?"
"Yeah, though I don't know how they'd be able to prove it was someone," Rachel said.
"I don't know either, but they'll figure something out. And we're going to help you with the tasks, if you're forced to compete. We stopped and talked with the rest of the study group before we came down here and we're going to do research and everything else to help you prepare. Did they tell you what the first task was?" Millie asked.
"We're not allowed to know, but I think Severus is trying to find out for me. We're not supposed to get help from teachers, but he said he would help me anyway," Rachel said.
"Good. Between us and Professor Snape you'll be ready," Millie said.
Rachel shook her head. "I don't want to be ready. I don't want to do this."
Millie leaned in and put her arm around Rachel's shoulders. "I know, and hopefully Professor Snape and Professor Dumbledore will find a way to get you out of it. But either way, you're not alone in this."
"What if next time they try to kill me more directly?" Rachel asked.
"Then we'll fight them. And we'll get help," Millie said firmly. "I'd be scared out of my mind too. Like, if Professor Dumbledore had called my name like that, I would have ran out of the Great Hall screaming."
Rachel felt the corners of her mouth lift a little. "I thought about it."
"Imagine if it had been Hermione. She would have given a lecture on why this tournament is a bad idea and how the rules should be modified to make it safe and inclusive," Millie said.
"Theo probably would have gone up to Professor Dumbledore and listed all the reasons why he couldn't compete in the tournament," Rachel said, feeling a little better.
"And Luna would have explained that because of the recent nargle and wrackspurt infestations she couldn't possibly compete," Millie said, smiling now.
"The muahorns told her she couldn't and if Professor Dumbledore paid attention to them, he'd know he should cancel the tournament," Rachel said.
Midnight gave a loud meow and both of them laughed.
"Thanks," Rachel said.
Millie shook her head. "I can't help in the same way Hermione and Theo can, but I want to help however I can."
"You do help, and you help in ways that Hermione and Theo can't," Rachel said.
Millie smiled. "Good. We'll let Hermione and Theo throw the library at the problem."
The door opened and Pansy and Daphne came in.
"Are you okay?" Daphne asked.
Rachel nodded. "I'm alright. Scared, but alright."
"You really didn't enter your name, did you?" Pansy asked.
"No, I didn't," Rachel said firmly.
"And they're going to make you compete anyway?" Daphne asked, looking upset.
"Professor Snape and Professor Dumbledore are trying to find a way to withdraw me, but if they can't, then I have to compete or I'll lose my magic," Rachel explained. She got the feeling she was going to be having this conversation a lot over the next few days.
"How is that not illegal?" Pansy asked as she went to sit on her bed. "That's as bad as killing someone."
In general Rachel wouldn't go that far, plenty of people got by without magic just fine. But, with her specifically, it would make it a lot easier for the Death Eaters to kill her if she didn't have magic.
"The enchantments on the Goblet were placed on it seven hundred years ago. They thought about things differently back then. There were even duels to the death during the tournament, held right here at Hogwarts," Millie said.
"And they used to hold singing and lute competitions too," Rachel said. "I think I'll take the deadly tasks over being forced to sing in front of people though."
"Me too," Millie said.
The four girls giggled at that.
"I can't believe Professor Dumbledore let this happen. Hogwarts is supposed to be safe," Daphne said.
Rachel glanced at Millie. Over the past three years they'd seen several things that suggested Hogwarts was not as safe as it was purported to be.
"I suppose he's doing his best," Millie said.
"Well he needs to do better or he needs to find someone who can. My mother told me that the Ministry has a lot of problems with the way Professor Dumbledore is running the school," Pansy said.
"But what can they do about it?" Rachel asked. "They can't stop him from being the Headmaster, can they?"
"No, the Board of Governors would have to have a vote of no confidence to remove Professor Dumbledore, and I don't think that's going to happen. But the Ministry can influence what we're being taught and what sort of things are allowed at Hogwarts," Daphne said.
Rachel nodded, she'd heard Severus talking about the Ministry interfering with what he taught.
"Well, the tasks are supposed to be safer now than they used to be, right?" Pansy asked.
"Supposed to be," Rachel agreed.
"I think you'll do alright. You're always getting high marks and you do the spells really easily in class. You probably won't win, but I think you'll get through it just fine," Pansy said. "And, if you want, I can show you some of the spells my mother taught me this summer that aren't usually taught at Hogwarts."
"Thanks," Rachel said. She didn't think Pansy was right - the tasks were probably going to be really dangerous, potentially deadly even. But she was willing to learn whatever Pansy would teach her.
"I'm going to go wash my hair while the bathrooms are mostly empty," Daphne said.
"I'll be there in a minute," Pansy said.
Rachel supposed that she should study. That's what she'd told Severus she was going to do, after all, but her mind kept circling around the last few hours and coming back to the thought that someone was trying to kill her. Not just in the way the Death Eaters had wanted her dead all her life, but in an actual tangible way.
"Do you want company?" Millie asked.
"I think I'm going to write for a bit before I go to bed, thanks though," Rachel said.
"Okay, keep Midnight for company, she likes your bed because you don't kick in your sleep like I do," Millie said.
Rachel smiled and ran her hand through Midnight's fur. "Thanks."
She got up long enough to change into her nightgown and then grabbed her journal and a quill and found a blank page to write her worries. 'The Death Eaters are trying to kill me.'