"Okay now all students can return to their dinner, while you three please, follow me" Hogwarts' headmaster said, nodding to a little door in the back of the hall. Albus sent a last glance to his brother, who waved and smiled at him, giving him the little bit of courage he needed to step towards the little room with Gellert and Jeanne in front of him.
The three of them followed the headmaster, reaching the room in the back and getting inside. They looked around, curious, since no student was allowed to this room aside from this occasion, and there was a man sitting by a large desk.
"These, dear champions, is the minister of magic" Black, the headmaster, said, nodding to the old man sitting on the chair. He looked up, and with a smirk and a spark in his eyes, he stood up.
"Oh children, you were lucky enough to be here, right now, in my presence. You are the three champions of the Triwizard Tournament this very year. However, there are a few rules you must know before this challenge begins..."
"Excuse me sir" a voice said, from the back, and the Durmstrang headmaster showed up, seeming nervous. Albus furrowed his eyebrows at his delay, but found it even more strange when Gellert took a step closer to him, away from the headmaster. "There was a mistake-"
"The goblet makes no mistakes, dear headmaster" the minster said, tilting his head. However, the small Hungarian man did not seem satisfied.
"No, of course not sir. However, mister Grindelwald was not supposed to put his name in the goblet in the first place. I know it is not advised but Durmstrang as well as Beauxbatons chooses their champions beforehand, so no other student is allowed to put their name inside."
"Did you know that?" Albus whispered, leaning down closer to Gellert, who gave him a single nod, saying nothing.
"Mister Karkarof, those are not contest rules" the minister insisted, but the man approached the minister.
"Sir, this is a fifth-year boy, he is not ready for this type of tournament. There is still so much time for the first task, we could add another week to the goblet, restart it. I know you have the power to do so minister" he said, and Gellert did not seem happy with it.
"Excuse me but if I put my name in the goblet, it was because I deem myself ready for its challenges" he huffed, crossing his arms, and his headmaster turned to him, looking furious.
"You are out of this contest, Grindelwald" he growled, walking to him and grabbing him by the arm. Gellert growled and reached for his wand, but the headmaster held his other arm too, moving closer. "This was not what I planned for you" he whispered between his teeth.
The room went silent for a long moment before Gellert seemed to relax on his hold, and Karkarof took a deep breath, turning towards the minister.
"I will bring our true champion, and we will fix this. The goblet can be altered to have Rosko as its champion" he said, firmly, and there seemed to be no objection in the room. The minster himself seemed quite tired of this dramatic scene, waving his hand and silently allowing him to do whatever he pleased.
"Actually, you can't"
All eyes turned to Jeanne, She had her arms crossed and was leaning against the closest wall. Karkarof narrowed his eyes, suspicious.
"And why is that, girl?"
"Because the goblet doesn't choose the strongest or wisest one from the school" she said, looking down at her nails. "It chooses three students that have the same amount of power in all categories so it is a fair fight. If you don't allow blondie to be a champion, the goblet will have to choose someone else from all the schools."
"And besides" Albus continued, after she shot him a glance "it is also stated in the last rule of the Tournament that if one of the schools do not accept their champion, this school will be disqualified. So even if you place someone else in your champion's place, and they win the tournament, the victory will not be accounted for by the goblet. So, basically, if you take Grindelwald away, Durmstrang has already lost."
Albus and Jeanne exchanged a quick glance, and then looked back at Karkarof, who still held Gellert by the arm in a very painful looking manner. He looked at the minister, at the other headmasters, and growled, pushing Gellert away from him.
"Then be it" he mumbled and walked out, probably to talk to Rosko. The minister looked over at Black, who hummed and nodded.
"Very well" he said, smiling. "Now minister, if you may continue?"
"There are rules all champions must know" he said, walking to the front of the desk. "First and most important, you are not allowed to leave the tournament in any way. You cannot give up. Second, this is a dangerous tournament. It will test your mental, emotional, and physical abilities, and therefore, consequences may follow even after the tournament. You can always bail out of a task, we will teach you a spell that will let us know you have given up. You can also be disqualified from a task if you do more than you are supposed to do. You lose the task if you do not do what you are supposed to do, and the winner is ultimately the one that takes the goblet in the last task, with the two other tasks simply giving you more advantages. Is that clear?"
"Yes sir" the three answered, and he nodded.
"My work here is done. Farewell champions, I shall return for the first task" he winked, and with a blink of an eye he was gone. It was time for Black, Hogwarts' headmaster, to turn to them and smile.
"For now, you must focus on your studies. The first task will be in two months. You will all receive a key to a separate common room, in case you all want to be away from your current dormitories, either to study or to think about your tasks" he waved his wand, and three keys appeared in front of him, one floating to each student. "The password for your common room is 'chocolate frog', don't forget it. There are three rooms inside, and your keys only open one each, so try not to get them mixed. And most importantly, I hope you three have fun."
"Thank you headmaster" Albus said, smiling wide, and he winked at him, before nodding.
"Now, you can go and rest. Tomorrow you have an interview with journalist Amanda Skeeter that might take you three the whole morning. So be ready and be rested."
After a few more advices from Beauxbatons' headmistress, the three students were allowed to leave to their new rooms. The main hall was empty when they came out of the room, and Gellert let out a loud sigh, turning to face both Albus and Jeanne.
"Thank you" he said, seeming honestly relieved and grateful. "I know I shouldn't have put my name but-"
"Of course you should. It is one of the rules" Jeanne interrupted, raising her eyebrow. "All students have a chance. I knew I was being trained for this, but I would have understood if I didn't become the champion. That Rosko boy had nothing to pick a fight with you."
"Perhaps... but what matters is that I am a champion, and the three of us have our own rooms" Gellert smirked, waving the key in front of them, making Jeanne smirk and Albus chuckle.
"Oh, I can't wait. The Hufflepuff dorms are so crowded" Jeanne groaned, rubbing her eyes. "At least I will be able to bring my girlfriend to my room with no fear of being watched by anyone."
"I won't bring anyone" Albus mumbled, looking to his key. "I don't think I will even use it. After all, I like my roommates. And the Gryffindor common room is so warm. Feels like home."
"Well I will be going there right now" Gellert said, smirking and waving. "See you later!"
And turning into three different hallways, the three champions left to their own dormitories, dreaming of what tasks they would face.