Author's Note:
As to the concerns involving the Imperius Curse, Ginny has already shown her strength of character and as a witch by being able to fight back at the diary Horcrux, which is why I thought that she would be able to throw off the Imperius Curse when it was set upon her. I even had Na'eemah hint at her ability to do so many chapters ago in chapter 110:
("My understanding of this form of dark magic is not by any means top notch, but yes that's exactly what happened. Ginny, you were possessed by this diary, but you did not let it control you. In other words, imagine someone placed you under the Imperius Curse — a dark curse that allows another witch or wizard to control you — and they told you to jump out this window. You move to the window and you realize that's dumb, if you jump you'll die so, you refuse. So, someone comes along on the other side of you and places the Imperius Curse on you again and once more instructs you to jump out the window. You move a little closer, but again you think, no, I don't want to do this. So, once again, someone comes over and places the Imperius Curse on you and this time, you are bound and you do jump, but you catch yourself on the ledge and you hang there, questioning how to save yourself. Your will to live is stronger than your will to obey and you climb back inside. That is what you did on a daily basis, Ginny. You fought with every moment of every day to live as you and those moments, those black spots on your memory where you couldn't remember what you had done, those were the moments when you had been Imperiused more than three times. Do you understand what I'm saying?" "My soul was stronger than his.")
I felt like this hinted at her power to throw off unwanted mind control as once you are able to break that kind of mind control, you have the ability to do so again, at least in my mind.
In terms of Draco, he is well versed in Occlumency as his mother taught him. I like to think that he has the strength of mind to toss the curse off, but only for a few seconds. As noted, Moody saw that he had the potential to do it, but was soon put under the curse once more. I think that's just as important to note that he's not entirely successful at throwing off the curse and would still be under the thrall more often than not. Hope this helps.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the pieces of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, that belongs to the lovely JKR.
Again — this is the last chapter where there is some chunks from the book — some of the information just needs to be said. Thank you!
Also, it kind of bothered me that the dates were wrong in Goblet of Fire, Halloween of 1994 fell on a Monday so, in my story, I am keeping the date the same, but having Dumbledore alter the classes to make it fit because that just seems like something he would do.
Reviews and Comments: To love reading20613: Thank you! I'm glad you like how things were handled with Nott! To purplevictory: Wow! Thank you for such a long review! I'm glad you felt it was heartwarming! Thanks for saying I've created a nice balance of the relationship between Harry, Remus, and Sirius. He does get away with a lot, but he also knows how far he can go. Thanks for saying despite Harry disobeying, the love of the family took centre stage. Draco did not fully fight it off and re above for my explanation on Ginny. I think Snape was a good Head of House towards Slytherin students, but I do think he was a bully towards the ones he didn't like. I wanted to show why he is Head of House and why Dumbledore trusted him with this. Thank you very much! To Wolf's scream: Haha, Molly would definitely be unimpressed with Sophie Roper's behaviour. Harry did get off easily and yes, it was because Tonks intervened on his behalf. Theo does have adults in his corner and he deserves it! Thank you! To Steelcode: Thank you! I loved Harry tripping over his own paws. He's still getting coordinated. Harry getting a bath from Remus, he really is a Papa Wolf like Tonks said. As to Theo, I have plans for him. Lots of plans. Thank you!
To trekkifulron: Poor Theo. He's never had a good birthday before so this one was by far, the best. Thank you. To scrappy8: Thank you! To xXMizz Alec VolturiXx: Thank you! To Moony The Sheep: Thank you! To Guest: Thanks for starting to love Theo's character. I have so many plans for him. I think Remus knows that Tonks lied for Harry, but he's not going to do anything about it. He likes knowing that Tonks protects Harry like a big sister. Thank you! To LunaFireFly11: Thank you! I love Sirius and Narcissa coming together to help Theo. I wanted to show how they were different from the older generation. Thank you! To x-shadow-x-kisses-x: Thank you! I'm honoured it brought tears to your eyes! To Leaf Ranger: Yes, that will not be the end of Thaddeus Nott. Thank you! To HGRHfan35: Theo is safe for now. Thanks for loving his friendship with Draco and Ginny. Thank you! To alix33: Harry is so chuffed about Zee moving in. Him telling Ginny in his excitement only proves that. Thank you!
To HinnyMe: Theo does deserve a hug! I'm sure Ginny definitely found him and hugged him. Puppy Harry is cute, I agree! Thanks for loving Ginny being able to fight it off. Thank you! To Guest: Thank you! To speedsONEandONLY: Actually starting to like Snape? Interesting. Zee does love Harry so much! She wants him to be happy above all else! Hermione was not flying. She was hovering by the stands. Tonks is the best sister. Yes, Theo is such a cinnamon roll! I love him! Thank you for loving him too! To Guest: Thank you! To teachergirl: I did not say that Ginny had super powers and again, if you hate this story so much, not to be rude, but why are you still reading it? Ginny is a powerful witch and she fought off the Horcrux inside of Tom Riddle's diary. I specifically said that it was like fighting off the Imperius Curse. She was capable of it. As to Ginny defeating Harry in a duel, they are kids. Harry definitely underestimated her and he knows not to do that again. Saying I might as well make her the next Merlin is a gross overstatement of her character and where I am going with it. I am sorry you are enjoying this story. Please find another one to read. Thank you for your thoughts.
To Itsaka: I am sorry I made you cry, but thank you! To Jmcglynn522: I am sorry I made you cry, but yes, Zee is just so happy that Harry wants her living there full time! Snape and Dumbledore and Sirius and Narcissa all defending Theo, definitely. Thanks for loving him. Puppy Harry breaking the rules was cute. He's lucky Tonks saved him. As to who's the bad guy moment… we'll see. Thank you! To Bigmike33321: Thank you!
Thank you to my Beta — SilverStarwolfe!
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CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY:
The One With the Pretty Boy,
The Biggest Flirt,
And the Flying House
When Harry went down to breakfast on the morning of the thirtieth of October, he found that the Great Hall had been decorated overnight. Enormous silk banners hung from the walls, each of them representing a Hogwarts House: Red with a gold lion for Gryffindor, blue with a bronze eagle for Ravenclaw, yellow with a black badger for Hufflepuff, and green with a silver serpent for Slytherin. Behind the teachers' table, the largest banner of all bore the Hogwarts coat of arms: Lion, eagle, badger, and snake united around a large letter H.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat down beside Fred and George at the Gryffindor table. They were sitting apart from everyone else and conversing in low voices, not for the first time this year, and it was very unusual for them to not be loud and boisterous. Ron led the way over to them.
"It's a bummer, all right," George was saying gloomily to Fred. "But if he won't talk to us in person, we'll have to send him the letter after all. Or we'll stuff it into his hand. He can't avoid us forever."
"Who's avoiding you?" Ron asked, sitting down next to them.
"Wish you would," Fred said, looking irritated at the interruption.
"What's a bummer?" Ron asked George.
"Having a nosy git like you for a brother," George said.
"You two got any ideas on the TriWizard Tournament yet?" Harry asked. "Thought any more about trying to enter?"
"I asked McGonagall how the champions are chosen, but she wasn't telling," George said, bitterly. "She just told me to shut up and get on with transfiguring my raccoon."
"Wonder what the tasks are going to be?" Ron said, thoughtfully. "You know, I bet we could do them, Harry. We've done dangerous stuff before…"
"Not in front of a panel of judges, you haven't," Fred said. "McGonagall says that the champions get awarded points according to how well they've done on the tasks."
"Who are the judges?" Harry asked.
"Well, the Heads of the participating schools are always on the panel," Hermione said, and everyone looked around at her, rather surprised, "because all three of them were injured during the Tournament of 1792, when a cockatrice the champions were supposed to be catching went on the rampage." She noticed them all looking at her and said, with her usual air of impatience with the fact that nobody else had read all the books that she had, "It's all in Hogwarts, A History. Though, of course, that book's not entirely reliable. A Revised History of Hogwarts would be a more accurate title. Or A Highly Biased and Selective History of Hogwarts, Which Glosses Over the Nastier Aspects of the School."
"What are you on about?" Ron asked, though Harry thought that he knew what was coming.
"House elves!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes flashing. "Not once, in over a thousand pages, does Hogwarts, A History mention that we are all colluding in the oppression of a hundred slaves!"
Harry shook his head and applied himself to his scrambled eggs. His and Ron's lack of enthusiasm had done nothing whatsoever to curb Hermione's determination to pursue justice for house elves. True, both of them had paid two Sickles for a SPEW badge, but they had only done it to keep her quiet. Their Sickles had been wasted, however; if anything, they seemed to have made Hermione even more vociferous. She had been badgering Harry and Ron ever since; first to wear the badges, then to persuade others to do the same, and she had also taken to rattling around the Gryffindor common room every evening, cornering people and shaking the collecting tin under their noses.
"You do realize that your sheets are changed, your fires lit, your classrooms cleaned, and your food cooked by a group of magical creatures who are unpaid and enslaved?" She kept saying fiercely.
Some people, like Neville, had paid up just to stop Hermione from glowering at them. A few seemed mildly interested in what she had to say, but were reluctant to take a more active role in campaigning. Many regarded the whole thing as a joke.
Ron now rolled his eyes at the ceiling, which was flooding them all in autumn sunlight, as Harry leaned in towards her.
"Hermione, we've talked about this. They love their jobs. You knew that Hogwarts had house elves. We've been to the kitchens."
She let out a huff in response. "Now that I know they are unpaid and kept as slaves it tends to change my thoughts on the subject."
Harry sighed. "But they love their jobs."
Hermione glared at him. "And what about Winky, Harry? How is she doing now that Sirius took her in? She has become a slave all over again to him!"
"No, she hasn't," Harry tried to tell her. "Did you even write to Zee like I told you to? I sent her one of your pamphlets."
Hermione only stared him down. "She works in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures therefore she is part of the problem! It's right there in the name — control! That's all they want to do!"
"I don't think that you're seeing this right," Harry told her. "Change doesn't happen overnight. Did you learn nothing with how long it took that stupid Undesirable bill to get shoved aside in the Wizengamot? Uncle Rem had to be arrested for them to even realize the problem!"
"Harry, there are thousands of house elves working just in Great Britain alone as slaves!"
"Hermione, you can't change centuries of oppression with one pamphlet! Why don't you talk to some of the house elves? Go down to the kitchens and speak with them. Get a feel for what they want. I can ask Kreacher to come and you can speak with him as well if it will help."
"I will," she said, hotly, turning back to her breakfast.
Harry simply looked over at Ron and they both just rolled their eyes. Sometimes, talking to Hermione was more stressful than not talking to her, Harry thought.
~ ASC ~
After dealing with Hermione and her spew rant, they spent the rest of the day discussing the arrival of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. The day seemed to move slowly as everyone was waiting in anticipation for the evening's festivities. When the bell rang early, they hurried up to Gryffindor Tower, pulled on their cloaks, and rushed back downstairs into the entrance hall.
The Heads of Houses were ordering their students into lines in front of the castle. It was a cold, clear evening; dusk was falling and a pale, transparent moon was already shining over the Forbidden Forest.
"Nearly six," Ron said, checking his watch and then staring down across the bridge that led to the front gates. "How do you reckon they're coming? The train?"
"I doubt it," Hermione said.
"How, then? Broomsticks?" Harry suggested, looking up at the starry sky.
"I don't think so… not from that far away."
They scanned the darkening grounds excitedly, but nothing was moving. Harry was starting to feel cold. He wished they'd hurry up. Maybe the foreign students were preparing a dramatic entrance.
And then Dumbledore called out from the back row where he stood with the other teachers. "Aha! Unless I am very much mistaken, the delegation from Beauxbatons approaches!"
Something large, much larger than a hundred broomsticks was hurtling across the deep blue sky toward the castle, growing larger all the time.
"It's a dragon!" one of the first years shrieked, losing her head completely.
"Don't be stupid… it's a flying house!" Dennis Creevey said.
Dennis' guess was closer. As the gigantic black shape skimmed over the treetops of the Forbidden Forest and the lights shining from the castle windows hit it, they saw a gigantic, powder-blue, horse-drawn carriage, the size of a large house, soaring toward them, pulled through the air by a dozen winged horses, all palominos, and each the size of an elephant. The front three rows of students drew backward as the carriage hurtled ever lower, coming in to land at a tremendous speed as the horses' hooves, larger than dinner plates, hit the ground. A second later, the carriage landed too, bouncing upon its vast wheels, while the golden horses tossed their enormous heads and rolled large, fiery red eyes.
Harry just had time to see that the door of the carriage bore a coat of arms: Two crossed, golden wands, each emitting three stars, before it opened.
A boy in pale blue robes jumped down from the carriage, bent forward, fumbled for a moment with something on the carriage floor, and unfolded a set of golden steps. He sprang back respectfully. Then Harry saw a giant shining, high-heeled black shoe emerging from the inside of the carriage followed by the largest woman that he had ever seen in his life. He had only ever seen one person as large as this woman and that was Hagrid; he doubted whether there was an inch difference in their heights, but this woman seemed even more unnaturally large. As she stepped into the light flooding from the entrance hall, she was revealed to have a handsome, olive skinned face; large, black, liquid looking eyes; and a rather beaky nose. Her hair was drawn back in a shining knob at the base of her neck. She was dressed from head to foot in black satin, and many magnificent opals gleamed at her throat and on her thick fingers.
Dumbledore started to clap; the students, following his lead, broke into applause too, many of them standing on tiptoe, the better to look at this woman. Her face relaxed into a gracious smile and she walked forward toward Dumbledore, extending a glittering hand. Dumbledore, though tall himself, had barely to bend to kiss it.
"My dear, Madame Maxime," he said. "Welcome to Hogwarts."
"Bonjour, Dumbly-dore," Madame Maxime said in a deep voice. "I 'ope I find you well?"
"In excellent form, I thank you," Dumbledore said.
"Mes étudiants," Madame Maxime said, waving one of her enormous hands carelessly behind her.
Harry, whose attention had been focused completely upon Madame Maxime, now noticed that about a dozen boys and girls, all, by the look of them, in their late teens, had emerged from the carriage and were now standing behind Madame Maxime. They were shivering, which was unsurprising, given that their robes seemed to be made of fine silk, and none of them were wearing cloaks. A few had wrapped scarves and shawls around their heads. They were staring up at Hogwarts with apprehensive looks on their faces.
"'As Karkaroff arrived yet?" Madame Maxime asked.
"He should be here any moment," Dumbledore told her. "Would you like to wait here and greet him or would you prefer to step inside and warm up a trifle?"
"Warm up, I theenk," Madame Maxime said. "But ze 'orses —"
"Our Care of Magical Creatures teacher will be delighted to take care of them," Dumbledore assured her. "The moment that he has returned from dealing with a slight situation that has arisen with some of his other — er — charges."
"Skrewts," Ron muttered to Harry, grinning.
Ron, Hermione, and Neville had been filling him on the terrible creatures and Harry was quite pleased to no longer be in that class the more he heard about them. They sounded beyond dreadful.
"Suis moi," Madame Maxime said imperiously to her students, and the Hogwarts crowd parted to allow her and her students to pass up the stone steps.
"How big do you reckon Durmstrang's horses are going to be?" Seamus asked, leaning around Lavender and Parvati to address Harry and Ron.
"Well, if they're any bigger than this lot, even Hagrid won't be able to handle them," Harry said. "That's if he hasn't been attacked by his skrewts. Wonder what's up with them?"
"Maybe they've escaped," Ron said, hopefully.
"Oh, don't say that," Hermione said with a shudder. "Imagine that lot loose on the grounds…"
Harry grinned at her. Hermione was in Arithmancy with him, but had decided to drop Ancient Runes in favour of Care of Magical Creatures and after every class she was more horrified by the skrewts than the class before. He was about to say something about them escaping when they finally heard the sound of something else approaching the castle; a loud and oddly eerie noise was drifting toward them from out of the darkness: A muffled rumbling and sucking sound, as though an immense vacuum cleaner were moving along a riverbed.
"The lake!" Lee Jordan yelled, pointing down at it. "Look at the lake!"
From their position at the top of the lawns overlooking the grounds, they had a clear view of the smooth black surface of the water, except that the surface was suddenly not smooth at all. Some disturbance was taking place deep in the centre; great bubbles were forming on the surface, waves were now washing over the muddy banks — and then, out in the very middle of the lake, a whirlpool appeared, as if a giant plug had just been pulled out of the lake's floor. What seemed to be a long, black pole began to rise slowly out of the heart of the whirlpool and then Harry saw the rigging.
"It's a mast!" he said to Ron and Hermione.
Slowly, magnificently, the ship rose out of the water, gleaming in the moonlight. It had a strangely skeletal look about it, as though it were a resurrected wreck, and the dim, misty lights shimmering at its portholes looked like ghostly eyes. Finally, with a great sloshing noise, the ship emerged entirely, bobbing on the turbulent water, and began to glide toward the bank. A few moments later, they heard the splash of an anchor being thrown down in the shallows, and the thud of a plank being lowered onto the bank.
People were disembarking; they could see their silhouettes passing the lights in the ship's portholes. All of them were wearing cloaks of some kind of shaggy, matted fur. But the man who was leading them up to the castle was wearing furs of a different sort: Sleek and silver, like his hair.
"Dumbledore!" he called, heartily, as he walked up the slope. "How are you, my dear fellow, how are you?"
"Blooming, thank you, Professor Karkaroff," Dumbledore replied.
Karkaroff had a fruity, unctuous voice; when he stepped into the light pouring from the front doors of the castle they saw that he was tall and thin like Dumbledore, but his silver hair was short, and his goatee, finishing in a small curl, did not entirely hide his rather weak chin. When he reached Dumbledore, he shook hands with both of his own.
"Dear old Hogwarts," he said, looking up at the castle and smiling; his teeth were rather yellow, and Harry noticed that his smile did not extend to his eyes, which remained cold and shrewd. "How good it is to be here, how good… Viktor, come along, into the warmth. You don't mind, Dumbledore? Viktor has a slight head cold."
Karkaroff beckoned forward one of his students. As the boy passed, Harry caught a glimpse of a prominent curved nose and thick black eyebrows. He didn't need the punch on the arm Ron gave him, or the hiss in his ear, to recognize that profile.
"Harry — it's Krum! I don't believe it!" Ron said, in a stunned voice, as the Hogwarts students filed back up the steps behind the party from Durmstrang. "Krum, Harry! Viktor Krum!"
"For heaven's sake, Ron, he's only a Quidditch player," Hermione stated in exasperation.
"Only a Quidditch player?" Ron said, looking at her as though he couldn't believe his ears. "Hermione — he's one of the best Seekers in the whole world! I had no idea that he was still at school!"
As they headed back into the entrance hall, Harry saw Lee jumping up and down on the soles of his feet to get a better look at the back of Krum's head. Several sixth-year girls were frantically searching their pockets as they walked.
"Oh, I don't believe it, I haven't got a single quill on me!"
"Do you think that he'd sign my hat in lipstick?"
"Really," Hermione said, loftily, as they passed the girls, now squabbling over the lipstick.
"Hermione, you don't understand the intricacies of Quidditch and having a player like Krum still be in school is incredible!" Harry told her.
Hermione simply rolled her eyes. She mumbled something about boys and made to turn to Ginny, but scoffed when she saw that her friend was also on her toes, trying to get a look at Viktor Krum. "Honestly! He's just a Quidditch player."
Ginny linked her arm with Hermione's and smiled. "Hermione, love, you just don't appreciate the sport enough to understand. Imagine Godric Gryffindor or Rowena Ravenclaw just walked through the doors of the school, wouldn't you want to talk to them? Or Newt Scamander or Bathilda Bagshot?"
"Well, obviously, but Ginny, they are not remotely the same! They were brilliant witches and wizards who did some truly remarkable things in their lifetimes; not to mention Gryffindor and Ravenclaw helped create this school! I would have so many questions! And Scamander or Bagshot are brilliant and penned books with the research they did in their careers! That's just amazing!"
Ginny grinned. "And for those of us that love Quidditch, that amazing Seeker is to us who Scamander and Bagshot are to you, in terms of being in awe."
Hermione stared at her for a moment and then nodded. "Point made, but I still think it's ridiculous. He only catches a ball."
Ginny locked eyes with Harry and rolled them slowly making him grin as they walked over to the Gryffindor table and sat down. Ron took care to sit on the side facing the doorway, because Krum and his fellow Durmstrang students were still gathered around it, apparently unsure about where they should sit. The students from Beauxbatons had chosen seats at the Ravenclaw table. They were looking around the Great Hall with glum expressions on their faces. Three of them were still clutching scarves and shawls around their heads. The Durmstrang students decided to make themselves comfortable at the Slytherin table much to Ron's chagrin.
Up at the staff table, Filch, the caretaker, was adding chairs. He was wearing his mouldy old tailcoat in honour of the occasion. Harry was surprised to see that he added four chairs, two on either side of Dumbledore's.
When all of the students had entered the Hall and settled down at their House tables, the staff entered, filing up to the top table and taking their seats. Last in line were Professor Dumbledore, Professor Karkaroff, and Madame Maxime. Soon they were all eating the delicious feast, which had a greater variety of dishes in front of them than usual, including several that were definitely foreign.
"Excuse me, are you wanting ze bouillabaisse?" A girl with a long sheet of silvery-blonde hair that fell almost to her waist asked. She had large, deep blue eyes, and very white, even teeth.
Ron went purple. He stared up at her, opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out except a faint gurgling noise.
"Yeah, have it," Harry told her, pushing the dish toward the girl.
"You 'ave finished wiz it?"
"Yeah," Ron said breathlessly. "Yeah, it was excellent."
The girl picked up the dish and carried it carefully off to the Ravenclaw table. Ron was still goggling at the girl as though he had never seen one before. Harry started to laugh. The sound seemed to jog Ron back to his senses.
"She's a Veela!" he said, hoarsely.
"Of course she isn't!" Hermione said, tartly. "I don't see anyone else gaping at her like an idiot!"
But she wasn't entirely right about that. As the girl crossed the Hall, many boys' heads turned, and some of them seemed to have become temporarily speechless, just like Ron.
"I'm telling you, that's not a normal girl!" Ron insisted, leaning sideways so he could keep a clear view of her. "They don't make them like that at Hogwarts!"
Harry, who's eyes had found the candlelight dancing on the red hair next to him spoke without thinking. "They make them okay at Hogwarts."
Ginny laughed, the sound pulling Harry from his trance. "Ron sure knows how to make a fool out of himself."
Harry nodded as he turned back to his plate and Hermione scoffed at them.
"When you've both put your eyes back in, you'll be able to see who's just arrived."
She was pointing up at the staff table. The two remaining empty seats had just been filled. Ludo Bagman was now sitting on Professor Karkaroff's other side, while Mr Crouch, Percy's boss, was next to Madame Maxime.
"What are they doing here?" Harry asked in surprise.
"They organized the TriWizard Tournament, didn't they?" Hermione said. "I suppose they wanted to be here to see it start."
When dessert was finally cleaned up, Dumbledore rose to his feet. "The moment has come. The TriWizard Tournament is about to commence. I would like to say a few words of explanation before we bring in the casket just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation and Mr Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports." Applause broke out for the two men, a bit louder for Bagman. "Mr Bagman and Mr Crouch have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the TriWizard Tournament," Dumbledore continued. "And they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madame Maxime on the panel that will judge the champions' efforts. The casket, then, if you please, Mr Filch."
Filch walked over to the where Dumbledore was standing carrying a great wooden chest encrusted with jewels.
"The instructions for the tasks the champions will face this year have already been examined by Mr Crouch and Mr Bagman," Dumbledore said as Filch placed the chest carefully on the table before him. "And they have made the necessary arrangements for each challenge. There will be three tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways: Their magical prowess, their daring, their powers of deduction, and, of course, their ability to cope with danger."
At this last word, the Hall was filled with a silence so absolute that nobody seemed to be breathing.
"As you know, three champions compete in the tournament," Dumbledore went on calmly. "One from each of the participating schools. They will be marked on how well they perform each of the Tournament tasks and the champion with the highest total after task three will win the TriWizard Cup. The champions will be chosen by an impartial selector: The Goblet of Fire."
Dumbledore now took out his wand and tapped three times upon the top of the casket. The lid creaked slowly open to reveal a large, roughly hewn wooden cup, full to the brim with dancing blue-white flames.
"Anybody wishing to submit themselves as champion must write their name and school clearly upon a slip of parchment and drop it into the goblet," Dumbledore explained. "Aspiring champions have twenty-four hours in which to put their names forward. Tomorrow night on All Hallows Eve, the goblet will return the names of the three it has judged most worthy to represent their schools. The goblet will be placed in the entrance hall tonight, where it will be freely accessible to all those wishing to compete."
Whispers began to float around the hall again and Dumbledore merely held up his hand to silence the hall.
"To ensure that no underage student yields to temptation, I will be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet of Fire once it has been placed in the entrance hall. Nobody under the age of seventeen will be able to cross this line."
Fred grinned. "An Age Line! That should be fooled by an Aging Potion, shouldn't it?" he whispered, grinning widely. "And once your name's in the goblet, you're laughing! It can't tell whether you're seventeen or not!"
Harry only nodded, turning his attention back to Dumbledore.
"Finally, I wish to impress upon any of you wishing to compete that this tournament is not to be entered into lightly. Once a champion has been selected by the Goblet of Fire, he or she is obliged to see the tournament through to the end. The placing of your name in the goblet constitutes a binding, magical contract. There can be no change of heart once you have become a champion. Please be very sure, therefore, that you are wholeheartedly prepared to play before you drop your name into the goblet. A reminder that classes will be cancelled tomorrow and Tuesday morning, giving everyone a chance to observe the Goblet and be ready for the evening's festivities. Tuesday afternoon classes however, will be scheduled. Now, I think it is time for bed. Good night to you all."
Fred grinned at them. "The Aging Potion will work for sure, just a drop or two. We got this!"
"But I don't think anyone under seventeen will stand a chance," Hermione told them as they began to make their way out of the Great Hall. "We just haven't learned enough yet."
"Speak for yourself," George said, shortly. "You'll try and get in, won't you, Harry?"
Harry thought briefly of Dumbledore's insistence that nobody under seventeen should submit their name, but then the wonderful picture of himself winning the TriWizard Tournament filled his mind again. He wondered how angry Dumbledore would be if someone younger than seventeen did find a way to get over the Age Line.
"Yeah, why not. Let me know how the Aging Potion works."
Fred and George beamed at him as Hermione looked livid.
"Harry! You find danger enough on your own, do you really think throwing your hat into the ring is a good idea?" Hermione said, shrilly.
Harry simply shrugged. "Maybe not, but doing dangerous stuff for an award instead of just finding myself in that situation would be completely different, Hermione."
"Harry," Remus said quietly from behind them. "I'm not hearing you actually considering throwing your name in, am I?"
Harry flushed as he looked at his father. "Well, I mean… maybe?"
"You are not seventeen. The Goblet of Fire is not going to accept your name even if you do try," Remus warned him.
Harry shrugged as he glanced at Fred and George. "Fred and George reckon an Aging Potion should work."
Remus simply smiled. "They can try, but I can assure you, it will not work. Now, please promise me that you will not do anything foolish to get your name into this tournament? Please, Harry."
Harry sighed as he looked into the concerned eyes of his father and he nodded. He knew that Remus was right and that he should just watch the tournament. Why should he risk his life when he didn't have to?
"I promise."
Remus put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed lightly. "Thank you. We have enough going on without you being in this terrible tournament on top of it. Now go on, get up to bed. Tomorrow night Hogwarts will have an age appropriate champion for you to cheer on."
Harry nodded and hurried off to catch up with his friends. Remus had a point; there was more than enough for him to be worrying about and adding his name to a potentially deadly tournament wasn't a good idea. He said as much to Ron as they undressed for bed and Ron only nodded in agreement.
But they both couldn't wait to see if Fred and George's attempt the next day would be successful or not.
~ ASC ~
Ginny tapped Hermione on the shoulder when the boys headed upstairs, raising her eyebrow. "You have a minute?"
Hermione nodded, glancing at Ginny quizzically as she followed her to a deserted corner of the common room. "Sure."
"Are you okay?"
Hermione looked at her friend in surprise. "Am I okay? Of course, why wouldn't I be?"
Ginny shrugged, her eyes twinkling. "Well, you seemed extra annoyed tonight between Ron being fascinated with Krum, the boys talking about entering the tournament, and oh yeah, Ron's eyes falling out of his head at the sight of that girl."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Hermione scoffed.
Ginny smiled at her. "I love my brother, but he's dense and thicker than a brick wall sometimes. You know it's true. A beautiful woman comes into his view and well, all teenage boys are the same, are they not?"
Hermione sighed. "It's stupid, I know it is, but I looked at her with her beautiful hair and her blue eyes and her petite figure and I thought, of course boys like her. She has everything."
"Your hair is gorgeous, Hermione. It's curly and halfway down your back."
She shrugged. "I've noticed that if I keep it longer it's not as bushy, but my point is, I'm never going to look like her so, getting annoyed is pointless."
Ginny nodded. "Good strategy. I'm never going to look like her either. Ron will look, Hermione. He'll look and he'll drool and he'll wonder, but that's not the type of woman he wants."
Hermione bit her lip. "The other day in Care of Magical Creatures, he was so sweet and gentle, and he took control of the skrewts so that I didn't have to touch them, as they really are quite dangerous. I watched him and I just thought, he's wonderful."
"Look at us, fancying blokes we can't have," Ginny said, quietly.
Hermione's eyes met hers. "I thought you were over Harry."
"Mostly," she admitted. "But sometimes I think I'm only over him in the sense of trying not to get my heart broken. Other days… it's a crush, that's all. And you have a crush on Ron — that didn't start today."
She blushed. "It's stupid and he's my friend. I know it would never work."
Ginny shrugged. "He's too much of an idiot right now so, I agree with you, but never say never."
Hermione smiled and said goodnight to her friend, but when she went up to her room and climbed into bed, she dreamed of a tall man with bright red hair who swept her off her feet.
When she woke in the morning, she scolded herself for being foolish.
Ron had barely even realized girls existed, let alone was interested in her. She pushed her thoughts aside and got ready for the day to meet her friends. It was time to find out if the twins had gotten past Dumbledore's Age Line.
~ ASC ~
Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville all hurried downstairs early the next morning and they weren't the only ones. There were already about twenty people standing around the Goblet of Fire. It had been placed in the centre of the hall on the stool that normally bore the Sorting Hat. A thin golden line had been traced on the floor, forming a circle ten feet around it in every direction.
"Anyone put their name in yet?" Ron asked a third year girl, eagerly.
"All the Durmstrang lot," she replied. "But I haven't seen anyone from Hogwarts yet."
"Bet some of them put it in last night after we'd all gone to bed," Harry said. "I would've if it had been me… wouldn't have wanted everyone watching. What if that Goblet just tossed you right back out again?"
Someone laughed behind Harry. Turning, he saw Fred, George, and Lee all hurrying down the staircase, all three of them looking extremely excited.
"Done it," Fred said in a triumphant whisper to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Just taken it."
"What?" Ron asked.
"The Aging Potion, dung brains," Fred said, rolling his eyes at his brother.
Harry watched, fascinated, as Fred pulled a slip of parchment out of his pocket bearing the words: Fred Weasley — Hogwarts. Fred walked right up to the edge of the line and stood there, rocking on his toes like a diver preparing for a fifteen-metre drop. Then, with the eyes of every person in the entrance hall upon him, he took a great breath and stepped over the line.
For a split second Harry thought that it had worked, George certainly thought so, for he let out a yell of triumph and leapt after Fred, but in the next moment, there was a loud sizzling sound, and both twins were hurled out of the golden circle as if by an invisible force. They landed painfully, ten feet away on the cold stone floor, and to add insult to injury, there was a loud popping noise, and both of them sprouted identical long white beards.
The entrance hall rang with laughter. Even Fred and George joined in, once they had gotten to their feet and taken a good look at each other's beards.
"I did warn you," Dumbledore said coming out of the Great Hall and sounding greatly amused. He surveyed Fred and George, his eyes twinkling. "I suggest you both go up to Madam Pomfrey. She is already tending to Miss Fawcett and Mr Summers, both of whom decided to age themselves up a little too. Though I must say, neither of their beards is anything like as fine as yours."
Fred and George set off for the hospital wing, accompanied by Lee, who was howling with laughter, and Harry, Ron, Neville, and Hermione, also chortling, went in to breakfast.
The decorations in the Great Hall had changed again that morning. As it was Halloween, a cloud of live bats was fluttering around the enchanted ceiling, while hundreds of carved pumpkins leered from every corner. Harry led the way over to Dean and Seamus, who were discussing those Hogwarts students over seventeen who might be entering. They all agreed that Warrington from Slytherin was a terrible choice, but pretty-boy Diggory from Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw's biggest flirt, Roger Davies weren't much better. Harry was pleased to learn that his fellow Quidditch player Angelina Johnson had put her name in successfully. He had to agree that she would be a great champion.
After breakfast, Harry urged his friends to head outside with him so that they could run around in their animal forms. Ginny eagerly flagged Luna down to join them and they ran out to play near the Forbidden Forest and near Hagrid's hut. They had just transformed back into themselves, planning to say hello to Hagrid, but they were alarmed to see Hagrid emerge from his cabin in the ugliest suit that they had ever seen and with what looked like an attempt to brush his scraggly hair. Ginny giggled when she caught sight of Madame Maxime and they realized that Hagrid was trying to impress her.
"They would make the largest babies ever," Ron said making Luna bust into laughter.
Since Hagrid was clearly preoccupied, they decided to stay in their animal forms a little bit longer.
Puppy Harry barked happily, chasing the red panda who had climbed up the tree, hanging upside down from a branch, taunting the dog with her claws as he jumped to try to catch her, rather unsuccessfully. The badger rolled around under the tree as the wolverine leapt over him in an attempt to catch the red fox that had picked up the hare by her ears and was carrying her around. The hare escaped, running and hopping in glee before moving to lay next to the badger. The red fox leapt over the wolverine who growled menacingly at her. The dog barked happily, and ran around the tree.
It was where McGonagall found them thirty minutes later and Harry was relieved to see that she had a smile on her face.
"Well, I should have known that a report of strange animals on the school grounds would be you six," she exclaimed, her hands on her hips as she looked at all of them, pride in her eyes. "Well, I know this little pup is Harry, but let's see if I can guess the rest of you, shall I?"
Puppy Harry barked in response and put his paws on her legs so that she would rub under his chin.
She smiled as she pet the dog, her eyes on the five other animals. The red panda was hanging from the tree branch, swinging in delight, her long tail resting on her head; the red fox was curled up, brown eyes alert and staring ahead; the wolverine was rolling around on the grass, his belly pointing at the sky while the hare sat perfectly still beneath the tree, ears perked up high to listen; and the badger sat calmly against the tree, his little paws twitching as if he longed to grab onto something.
"Hmm," she said with a smile as a loud grumbling sound erupted from the wolverine making her laugh. "Well, I'm going to guess the hungry wolverine is Mr Weasley."
Ron grinned as he transformed back into himself. "Lucky guess, Professor."
She smiled at him. "A blue-eyed wolverine is pretty rare and when you add in those little brown freckles on his snout, it could be no one else. Well done, Ron." Her eyes moved back over the other students. She was watching the red fox closely. "Brown eyes and a rather bushy tail, I'm going to say the fox is Miss Granger."
When Hermione appeared she smiled.
McGonagall stared at the other three animals, examining them closely. "The badger has the same wide-eyed expression Mr Longbottom gives me when I ask him a question in class."
Neville grinned sheepishly as he transformed back into himself. "The same expression, Professor?"
"Yes, wishing that I would look at anyone else," she said chuckling. Her eyes moved over the last two and smiled. "Brown eyes, that autumn fur and the overall gait of how she's hanging there, I'd say that the red panda belongs to Miss Weasley."
Ginny transformed into herself, still sitting on the branch in the tree. "Overall gait, Professor?"
"You never can sit still in my class, always fidgeting, moving, shifting. You, Miss Weasley, are a constant bundle of energy just like your brother Fred."
Ginny grinned. "The highest of compliments, I'll take it!"
Harry moved over to the tree, holding his arms out to lift her down and she smiled gratefully at him as he lifted her and placed her on her feet.
"Thanks, Harry."
McGonagall smiled down at the hare. "I guess that leaves the hare as Miss Lovegood. The pale-blondish brown colour of your fur is indicative of your hair and when you add in those bright blue eyes and the expression of being a million worlds away, I would say that's Luna Lovegood."
Luna smiled dreamily as she transformed back into herself. "Good deductive skills, Professor."
"Thank you," she said with a smile. "You six all look rather brilliant. You've done very well for yourselves. Ten points to each of you."
"Thanks, Auntie Minnie," Harry said with a grin. "I think we're almost fully grown too."
"It looks like you are getting there," she said with a smile. "But you still have a while to go. And it's Professor, Harry."
He only grinned at her in response.
"All right, you lot, back to the castle. Try to stay further on the grounds when you change as you are not animals that are common enough to be on the Hogwarts grounds. By spring, you six should be full Animagi and we can talk about registering your forms with the Ministry."
"Thanks, Professor," Hermione said, brightly, as they followed her back up to the castle for the Halloween feast.
They spoke more about their animals and about who they thought the champions were going to be. Harry had to admit, out of the choices, he was betting on it being Diggory or Angelina, but he was hoping for Angelina. Having a Gryffindor Champion would be great. They ate the feast happily as they guessed, eyes all impatiently looking towards the Goblet of Fire and then at Dumbledore to see if he had finished eating yet.
At long last, the golden plates returned to their original spotless state; there was a sharp upswing in the level of noise within the Hall, which died away almost instantly as Dumbledore got to his feet. On either side of him, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime looked as tense and expectant as anyone. Ludo Bagman was beaming and winking at various students. Crouch, however, looked quite uninterested, almost bored.
"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," Dumbledore announced. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them to please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber," he instructed, indicating the door behind the staff table, "where they will be receiving their first instructions."
He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave with it; at once, all the candles except those inside the carved pumpkins were extinguished, plunging them into a state of semidarkness. The blue-white flames from the Goblet of Fire left an eerie glow around the hall. The flames inside the goblet turned red and parks began to fly from it. Next moment, a tongue of flame shot into the air, a charred piece of parchment fluttered out of it and the whole room gasped.
Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment and held it at arm's length, so that he could read it by the light of the flames, which had turned back to blue-white.
"The champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice. "Mr Viktor Krum."
"No surprises there!" Ron yelled as a storm of applause and cheering swept the Hall.
Harry saw Viktor Krum rise from the Slytherin table and slouch up toward Dumbledore; he turned right, walked along the staff table, and disappeared through the door into the next chamber.
The clapping and chatting died down. Now everyone's attention was focused again on the goblet, which, seconds later, turned red once more. A second piece of parchment shot out of it, propelled by the flames.
"The champion for Beauxbatons is Miss Fleur Delacour!" Dumbledore declared.
"It's her, Ron!" Harry shouted as the girl who so resembled a Veela got gracefully to her feet, shook back her sheet of silvery blonde hair, and swept up between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables.
"Oh look, they're all disappointed," Hermione said over the noise, nodding toward the remainder of the Beauxbatons party. That was a bit of an understatement in Harry's opinion as he watched as two of the girls who had not been selected had dissolved into tears and were sobbing with their heads on their arms.
When Fleur Delacour too had vanished into the side chamber, silence fell again, but this time it was a silence so stiff with excitement that you could almost taste it. The Hogwarts champion was next. The Goblet of Fire turned red once more; sparks showered out of it; the tongue of flame shot high into the air, and from its tip Dumbledore pulled the third piece of parchment.
"The Hogwarts champion is Cedric Diggory!"
Every single Hufflepuff had jumped to his or her feet, screaming and stamping, as Cedric made his way past them, grinning broadly, and headed off toward the chamber behind the teachers' table. Indeed, the applause for Cedric went on for so long that it was some time before Dumbledore could make himself heard again.
"Excellent!" Dumbledore called, happily, as at last the tumult died down. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure that I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support that you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real —"
But Dumbledore had suddenly stopped speaking.
The fire in the goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment.
Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at Dumbledore.
And then Dumbledore cleared his throat and read out: "Harry Potter."
Harry's mouth dropped open.
His eyes wide in shock as he stared at Dumbledore. He felt Hermione nudge him and he looked over at Ron, Ginny, and Neville as they all stared at him eyes wide.
He was stunned.
He felt numb.
He was surely dreaming.
He had not heard correctly.
There was no applause. A buzzing, as though of angry bees, was starting to fill the Hall; some students were standing up to get a better look at Harry as he sat, frozen, in his seat.
Up at the top table, McGonagall had got to her feet and swept past Ludo Bagman and Karkaroff to whisper urgently to Dumbledore, who bent his ear toward her, frowning slightly.
Harry turned to Ron and Hermione; beyond them, he saw the long Gryffindor table all watching him, openmouthed.
"I didn't put my name in," Harry said, blankly. "You know I didn't."
Both of them stared just as blankly back.
At the top table, Dumbledore had straightened up, nodding to McGonagall. "Harry Potter!" he called out again. "Harry! Up here, if you please!"
"Go on," Hermione whispered, giving Harry a slight push.
Harry got to his feet, stumbling slightly over his own feet. He set off up the gap between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables. It felt like an immensely long walk; the top table didn't seem to be getting any nearer at all, and he could feel hundreds and hundreds of eyes upon him, as though each were a searchlight. His eyes sought Remus at the Head Table as his feet moved forward and the mix of anger and worry in his gaze made him look down at his feet in shame.
"Through there, Harry, with the other Champions," Dumbledore instructed.
Harry merely swallowed and nodded, closing the door behind him. The last time that he had been in this room was at the beginning of the year when he had told Remus about his talk with Draco on the train. He closed his eyes as he looked up at the three champions who were all staring at him.
Viktor Krum, Cedric Diggory, and Fleur Delacour were grouped around the fire. They looked strangely impressive, silhouetted against the flames. Krum, hunched-up and brooding, was leaning against the mantelpiece, slightly apart from the other two. Cedric was standing with his hands behind his back, staring into the fire. Fleur Delacour looked around when Harry walked in and threw back her sheet of long, silvery hair.
"What is eet?" she asked. "Do zey want us back in ze Hall?"
She thought that he had come to deliver a message. Harry didn't know how to explain what had just happened. He just stood there, looking at the three champions, not sure what to say.
It was only a few seconds later before the door behind him opened and the teachers and judges made their way inside. Remus immediately put both of his hands on Harry's shoulders and squeezed and he let out a slow breath that he hadn't realized that he was holding, reaching back and gripping his father's robes for support. The feel of him standing behind him calmed him, slightly.
"Did you put your name into the Goblet of Fire, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, calmly. "Or get an older student to do it for you?"
Harry shook his head. "No, I swear I didn't!"
Remus' hands tightened on his shoulders.
"He's lying!" Crouch declared, his eyes flashing. "He somehow did it."
"He's not," Remus said, sternly. "If Harry says that he didn't do it then he didn't do it. My boy is not a liar."
Karkaroff scoffed. "But you are a werewolf, which makes your word just as invalid as his!"
"I'd trust his word over yours, Karkaroff," Snape declared from the other side of the room. "As much as it pains me to admit it, Potter isn't capable of getting his own name in there, not without help."
"Aha!" Karkaroff exclaimed. "So, you admit that he had help submitting his name!"
"I admit that someone else entered his name, yes, but Potter clearly had no part in it," Snape insisted.
McGonagall had moved over to Harry now, her eyes serious. "Harry, did you ask anyone to put your name in for you?"
"No! I swear, Auntie-Professor, I don't know who would do this!" Harry exclaimed.
Madame Maxime looked offended. "This child is actually going to compete with our champions? It's preposterous!"
"This young man is an extremely capable fourteen-year-old and he might surprise you," Remus said, loudly, his voice on edge.
"Za rules were for zeventeen years of age and older only! Krum and Delacour are eighteen, Diggory, zeventeen and Potter is fourteen, that is clearly against za rules! I insist that you let us redraw za names so that our zchools may also have two champions!"
"It doesn't work like that, Olympé," Crouch declared, his index finger absently stroking his pencil thin moustache. "The Goblet of Fire is a magically binding legal contract. Entering one's name is the same as signing it, whether the contestant entered themselves or not. Once drawn, the Goblet of Fire has set events in motion. No new names may be drawn until another tournament is called forth and the names chosen must compete. We must follow the rules, and the rules state clearly that those people whose names come out of the Goblet of Fire are bound to compete in the tournament, end of story."
"Well, Barty knows the rule book back to front," Bagman said, beaming and turning back to Karkaroff and Madame Maxime, as though the matter was now closed. Maxime and Karakroff both looked livid. Bagman however continued to look rather amused. "I think this tournament has just became even more exciting! Harry Potter involved? It's going to be a real crowd pleaser having The Boy Who Lived compete!"
Harry felt like he wanted to throw up. He looked at McGonagall gratefully when she gently tapped his cheek.
"Our champions must compete. Let's allow them to go up to their beds and get some rest. I can assure you that Gryffindor and Hufflepuff are anxious to celebrate with them."
Harry looked back at Remus desperately as Bagman spoke up again.
"Can't run off yet, have to give our champions their instructions, do we not? Barty, want to do the honours?"
Crouch seemed to come out of a deep thought. "Yes, instructions. Yes, the First Task…" He moved forward into the firelight. "The First Task is designed to test your daring so we are not going to be telling you what it is. Courage in the face of the unknown is an important quality in a wizard… very important. The First Task will take place on the twenty-fourth of November, in front of the other students and the panel of judges."
Harry swallowed… only twenty-four days away, he thought.
"The champions are not permitted to ask for or accept help of any kind from their teachers to complete the tasks in the tournament. The champions will face the first challenge armed only with their wands. They will receive information about the second task when the first is over. Owing to the demanding and time-consuming nature of the tournament, the champions are exempted from all end-of-year tests. I think that's all, Albus?"
"Yes, thank you. Harry, Cedric, I suggest that you two go on up to bed," Dumbledore instructed, smiling at both of them. "I am sure that Gryffindor and Hufflepuff are waiting to celebrate with you, and it would be a shame to deprive them of this excellent excuse to make a great deal of mess and noise."
Harry glanced at Cedric, who nodded, and they left together as Harry looked back once more at Remus who only nodded at him in reassurance.
The Great Hall was deserted now; the candles had burned low, giving the jagged smiles of the pumpkins an eerie, flickering quality.
"So," Cedric said slowly, with a slight smile. "We're playing against each other again!"
"I suppose," Harry said, quietly.
He really couldn't think of anything to say. The inside of his head seemed to be in complete disarray, as though his brain had been ransacked. He wasn't sure how this had happened or why it had happened, but he felt like he was trapped in a horrible dream.
"So… tell me," Cedric said, interrupting his thoughts as they reached the entrance hall, which was now lit only by torches in the absence of the Goblet of Fire. "How did you get your name in?"
"I didn't," Harry said, staring over at him. "I didn't put my name in. I was telling the truth."
"Ah, okay," Cedric said. Harry could tell that Cedric didn't believe him. "Well, see you, then."
Instead of going up the marble staircase, Cedric headed for a door to its right. Harry stood listening to him going down the stone steps beyond it, then, slowly, he started to climb the marble ones.
Was anyone except his friends going to believe him, or would they all think that he'd put himself in for the tournament? Yet how could anyone think that, when he was facing competitors who'd had three years' more magical education than he had — when he was now facing tasks that not only sounded very dangerous, but which were to be performed in front of hundreds of people? Yes, he'd thought about it; he'd fantasized about it, but it had been a joke, really, an idle sort of dream; he'd never really, seriously considered entering.
But someone else had considered it; someone else had wanted him in the tournament, and had made sure that he was entered. Why? To give him a treat; to see him make a fool of himself? Well, they were very likely to get their wish.
Harry got a shock to find himself facing the Fat Lady already. He had barely noticed where his feet were carrying him. It was also a surprise to see that she was not alone in her frame. The wizened witch who had flitted into her neighbour's painting when he had joined the champions downstairs was now sitting smugly beside the Fat Lady. She must have dashed through every picture lining over seven staircases to reach here before him. Both she and the Fat Lady were looking down at him with the keenest interest.
"Well, well, well," the Fat Lady declared. "Violet's just told me everything. Who's just been chosen as school champion, then?"
"Balderdash," Harry said dully.
"It most certainly isn't!" The pale witch exclaimed indignantly.
"No, no, Vi, it's the password," the Fat Lady proclaimed soothingly, and she swung forward on her hinges to let Harry into the common room.
The blast of noise that met Harry's ears when the portrait opened almost knocked him backward. Next thing he knew, he was being wrenched inside the common room by about a dozen pairs of hands, and was facing the whole of Gryffindor House, all of whom were screaming, applauding, and whistling.
"You should've told us that you'd entered!" Fred bellowed; he looked half annoyed, half deeply impressed.
"How did you do it without getting a beard? Brilliant!" George roared.
"I didn't," Harry said. "I don't know how my name —"
But Angelina had now swooped down upon him. "Oh, if it couldn't be me, at least it's a Gryffindor!"
"You'll be able to pay back Diggory for that last Quidditch match, Harry!" Katie Bell shrieked.
"We've got food, Harry, come and have some!"
"I'm not hungry, I had enough at the feast," he grumbled quietly.
But nobody wanted to hear that he wasn't hungry; nobody wanted to hear that he hadn't put his name into the goblet; not one single person seemed to have noticed that he wasn't at all in the mood to celebrate. Lee had unearthed a Gryffindor banner from somewhere, and he insisted on draping it around Harry like a cloak. Harry couldn't get away; whenever he tried to sidle over to the staircase up to the dormitories, the crowd around him closed ranks, forcing another butterbeer on him, stuffing crisps and peanuts into his hands. Everyone wanted to know how he had done it, how he had tricked Dumbledore's Age Line and managed to get his name into the goblet.
"I didn't," he said, over and over again, "I don't know how it happened."
But for all the notice anyone took, he might just as well not have answered at all.
He saw Ginny sitting with Colin and Neville on the other side of the common room, her chocolate brown eyes watching him with worry and he felt a pang of relief. She would believe him. He forced his way through the crowd over to her.
"I didn't enter."
Ginny tugged him down between her and Colin. "Of course not."
Harry let his head fall onto her shoulder as Neville moved to block them from the view of the crowd. "No one believes me."
Neville nodded at him. "We believe you, mate. What did Dumbledore say?"
Harry shrugged. "They don't know anything more than we do. But I have to compete because it's a magical contract and because it's a competition none of the teachers can help me. I'm doomed."
"Don't be stupid," Ginny said sharply, patting his cheek gently as he lifted his head. "You are a brilliant wizard who has been in difficult situations before. You can do this."
Neville nodded. "I agree and just because the teachers can't help you doesn't mean that the rest of us can't. You still have Sirius and Zee and Tonks who can assist you and I'm sure Lupin is going to give them ideas to tell you as well."
"You think so?"
"I know so," Ginny told him with a smile.
"Where's Ron and Hermione?"
"Hermione went up to bed. She had a headache and she thought that you were never going to get free from the crowd and I haven't seen Ron since the feast," Neville said. "But don't worry, mate, we're all on your side here!"
Harry smiled gratefully at them. "I think that I'm going to head up to bed. I'm really tired. Maybe when I wake up it will all have been a bad dream."
Ginny smiled sympathetically at him. "No, unfortunately that won't happen; but get some sleep."
He nodded and stood up just as the portrait hole opened and Remus and McGonagall stood there, beckoning Harry forward.
He sighed in defeat as he followed them out into the hall.
End Author's Notes:
(French) Bonjour = hello
(French) mes étudiants = my students
(French) Suis moi = follow me
I'm just editing chapter 161 and I will be posting that one today as well because I feel like this chapter is just a set up one.