"Oh just kill me now Ade!" Cassius begged his laughing friend.
"Not happening, my friend. Honestly, I'd have paid good money to see her do this anyway! Adding into that the fact that you *actually* deserve it… Well, the only question becomes how much I should charge for the tickets to what is sure to be some quality entertainment," Adrian snickered.
Cassius glared at him, though the strength of it was rather weakened by how pale his face was. "Let's just get back to the castle because if she finds out about this from anyone else... You know though, maybe I should just wait here. If she finds out from someone else but can't find me right away, theoretically at least, she'd have a chance to calm down and realize I'm right to do this and maybe I can avoid being cursed…," Cassius mused.
"Care to wager on that? Say, 10 galleons?" Adrian smirked.
"You know what, I'll take that bet. After all, I'm going to be the Triwizard champion before the year is out! I'm sure I can manage to avoid one irate girl long enough for her to cool down!" Cassius decreed.
Adrian's smirk only grew as Cassius spoke. Cassius wasn't sure why Adrian was doing that, but quickly realized it probably didn't bode well for him, or his wallet. Alas, he wasn't quite fast enough because the petrificus totalus hit him from behind before he could question the evil twinkle in his best friend's eyes. As he fell forward into the dirt, Cassius had a sinking feeling that he knew *exactly* what Adrian was feeling so smug about.
This knowledge and dread solidified into a knot that settled firmly in his stomach, oddly enough in almost exactly the same spot as where someone with a troublingly small foot was now standing. 'Some best friend!,' he thought to himself as Adrian began to laugh at Cassius' troubles (which he was very certain had only just begun).
"Good day, Adrian. My thanks for not alerting him to my presence. Please excuse me while I remind my boyfriend why it is important to keep me informed of decisions, especially important and possibly life-threatening ones," at which point her heel ground forcibly into his spine for emphasis, "as well as why trying to run away from just punishment is never an intelligent plan," Étiennette said sweetly.
"Worry not, ma crevette (my shrimp, an endearment for a short friend), of course your boyfriend is yours alone to punish for such severe infractions. I would not *dream* of interfering," Adrian crowed happily as Cassius imagined increasingly elaborate death plots for his so-called best friend and groveling speeches to his enraged girlfriend.
Cassius felt the tingle of wards encompassing the area as Étiennette giggled above him. The knot in his stomach tightened as he realized his hope that Étiennette would take it easy on him since they were in public vanished. The foot on his spine lifted and he found himself being levitated and stuck to the side of a larger boulder. He could finally see but almost wished he couldn't because Étiennette's blue eyes were cold as ice and the smile on her face had an edge that could cut dragon hide. She was too well trained to have turned red with rage or to let her power become uncontrolled enough to spark off of her, but the cold fury was palpable and all the more terrifying for her control.
She walked toward him and calmly, almost lovingly, stroked the tip of her wand down his cheek and a cold sweat overtook him. "Not to worry mon cher (my dear), I would never leave marks where someone could see when you have such an important event to participate in this evening. Normally, I would prefer to avoid anything this unpleasant so close to such a spectacle, but I really cannot allow you to think that you can hide such things from me. Now, be a dear and hold still or I might miss and hit something important."
"Well Cas, I think it's safe to say you may just be the only champion to warrant a trip to the hospital wing before the insane death tournament even starts!" Adrian teased as they waited for Madam Pomfrey to return.
"Shut up Ade! Honestly I'm surprised she went as easy on me as she did. Étiennette has even less patience for my "Gryffindor antics" than you do. Normally she's only that scary to someone who picks on one of our firsties, I must have really freaked her out..," Cassius mused worriedly.
"Well I wonder why she'd be freaked out? You only entered a binding magical contract that could strip you of your magic or kill you if you attempt to back out of an insane death tournament run by the biggest and most incompetent idiots in the entire wizarding world?!" Adrian snarked back.
"I get it already, jeez just lay off a bit. I think I've sufficiently paid for my crimes by now and there's no getting out of it so let's just move on," he said tiredly.
The two boys sat in a heavy silence until the Matron burst back into the room carrying Cassius' potion. "Here you are, Mr. Warrington. Once you've taken the pain potion you're free to go. Do be more careful climbing up those boulders next time though or you'll end up with much worse than just a few bruises."
"You're lucky Étiennette healed most of that or your little boulder excuse wouldn't have worked so well. Honestly, I'd have let you suffer. Though, considering how long it took Madam Pomfrey to bring you a mild pain potion for your bruises, maybe she just didn't want to risk you being late to the ceremony." Adrian laughed as he patted Cassius on the back, just happening to catch one of the bruises Étiennette had left unhealed to make a point.
Cassius knew she hadn't healed him for appearances' sake like she'd claimed (though he was sure it had factored in a little) but because she didn't like to see people she cared about in pain. The fact she'd done more than shoot a mild stinging hex at him just showed that Cassius had made her go practically out of her mind with worry. Étiennette was more level headed than even Adrian normally, but she was a major worrier when it came to her loved ones' health. Guilt weighed on him heavily as he realized what he'd put them both through, but he also knew that there was little he could do about it now. The best he could do was to be the champion and show them just how under control he had everything. Once he won, they wouldn't have to worry anymore and things would be exactly the way they should.
Cassius and Adrian strode into the Great Hall and spotted Étiennette holding seats for them. Cas noted that Étiennette had put a tub of bruise paste sitting on his plate and smiled because he knew Étiennette could never stay mad at him for too long, even for this apparently. He reached over and took her hand and waited until she met his eyes before looking pointedly at the tub and kissing her hand gently in thanks. The troubled look in her eyes melted away in a wash of loving affection. Still holding her hand, he used it to pull her into a warm embrace as he whispered apologies in her ear.
Adrian cleared his throat to remind the couple that the hall was quickly filling with students ready for dinner. Cassius reluctantly pulled away with a quick kiss to her forehead and tucked the bruise paste into his pocket for later. The feast appeared in front of them and Cassius began to prepare a plate full of Étiennette's favorite dishes as she did the same for him. They smiled at each other as they switched plates and pointedly ignored Adrian's groaning about them making him sick with an ease born of plentiful practice.
The trio laughed and talked while they ate their dinner, happily pretending that none of them noticed the strain as they kept glancing at the head table where the goblet of fire stood. Cassius tried to ignore how his stomach was churning and how increasingly worried Étiennette and Adrian looked under their happy facades. He couldn't decide if the crackling of the goblet was making him feel excited or terrified. It was becoming increasingly more difficult to eat when Adrians comments about insane death tournaments and the officials' incompetency were ringing in his ears.
The feast seemed to fly by and Cassius' heart raced faster as the time to find out if he'd be competing or not approached. He was alternating rapidly between hoping he was picked and wishing that he'd never entered his name at all. Self preservation and ambition warred fiercely and drowned out Dumbledore's speech as the goblet's flames began to turn red. Étiennette gripped his hand tightly and glared at the goblet as if she could stop it from spitting out his name with her force of will alone. Cassius could feel her hand shaking in his and gently squeezed back in an attempt to give her a measure of comfort. Beside him Adrian's posture was stiffer than usual and his indifferent expression contrasted strongly with the tension pouring off of him in waves.
All three held their breath as first Viktor Krum's name was called and then Fleur Delacour's. The trio paid them little attention aside from mentally making a note to find their weaknesses at the earliest possibility in case Cassius had to compete against them. As the goblet turned red again Cassius closed his eyes and took a second to prepare himself for either outcome and make sure his face was as perfectly impassive as it needed to be. The piece of parchment slowly floated down into Dumbledore's outstretched hand and the whole of Hogwarts held their breath in anticipation of knowing their champion.
"And the Hogwarts champion is… Cassius Warrington!"
There was silence in the Great Hall and a collective intake of breath as everyone realized that a Slytherin would be representing Hogwarts. Cassius could hardly believe it himself! For all his confidence and posturing, Cassius didn't really expect that a slytherin would achieve such an honor while Dumbledore was in charge. 'I guess we know for sure the goblet is completely impartial now,' he thought to himself as he rose to his feet as steadily as he could manage. As he made his way toward the front of the hall and the room where the other champions awaited, Cassius saw the brief flicker of distaste in Dumbledore's eyes as he nodded before motioning Cassius towards the door.
As he walked, the shock seemed to wear off the room and the whispers began as the Hogwarts students fought to voice their opinions on a Slytherin champion first. The expected distaste rolled through the hall, but Cassius heard none of it. Instead, all he could hear was the thunderous cheering of his house. In that instant, none of them cared that he was a "lesser" pureblood or thought him beneath their notice. The cheers were for him and only him, not just the "team" like in Quidditch or the house as a whole when they won the House Cup. Their cheers made it hit home that *he* was the champion, chosen to represent the entire school and gain international recognition when he won, and he *would* win. He'd win for this feeling, this moment of complete acceptance and adoration. The wizarding world would remember his name forever and it all began in this moment.
AN: Sorry this one took a bit longer than I expected to get done, but there was a lot of work to get straight with introducing a new original character. Please put away the torches and pitchforks! I hope you all like this one enough that it was worth a bit of a wait. Maybe I'm spoiling you guys since a "wait" is technically still under a week but I'm just so excited to get this out. Anyway, what do you all think of Étiennette so far? Do you have a favorite character? I want to hear it all so drop a review or shoot me a message; who knows, maybe you will get some spoilers out of it ;)