Hermione was nervous. The second task was four weeks away and she had yet to figure out the clue from the egg. Each time she opened it, it let out a shrill scream, which did not seem to mean anything. Two months had gone by during which Hermione had researched and tried countless spells, but she had not found any information that could be remotely useful to her. She was starting to feel anxious, if she did not figure out the clue, then she would be at a disadvantage for the second task, she might even fail. Had anyone ever failed a task, she wondered, what would happen if she did? Hermione's bleak mood was reappearing, her thoughts turned darker as she sat in the library staring at her golden egg.

"Hermione," Cedric sat down in front of her and looked deep into her eyes, "you alright?"

Hermione's dark thoughts vanished as she looked at Cedric's face. His eyebrows were creased together and his eyes were wide with worry. He stared at her as if trying to decipher her thoughts.

"Yes, I just have a lot on my mind," she answered.

"What's wrong?"
"I don't know if we are allowed to talk about this but I am very nervous about the second task because I have yet to crack this stupid egg. No matter what I try, it continues to just screech at me. I cannot fail the second task, I am smarter than this."

"This is what's been bothering you?" Asked Cedric, "You should have told me sooner, I cracked mine about a week ago. I can help you."

"I didn't want to bring it up, and I don't think we are even supposed to talk about it much less help each other."

"You told me about the dragons; it's only fair I help you in return even if it's just a small hint."

Hermione felt conflicted, she wanted to find a solution on her own but she was also running out of options.

"Try taking a bath with it," said Cedric.

"Try taking a bath with it? What? That is so absurd yet incredibly simple. Why didn't I think of that?!"

"Because you would never take a bath with a golden egg. It's so simple but yet so hard."

"How did you figure it out?"

"Mad-Eye gave me a hint," answered Cedric.

"Mad-Eye? Why would Mad-Eye help you?"

"It doesn't really matter, the point is he helped and can be trusted. Anyways, I have to go to class but I will see you later, all right? Enjoy your bath, I hear the prefect bathroom is empty most of time and they have a great selection of bath salts."

"Thank you," responded Hermione as she blushed and looked down.

Cedric waved and walked away which let Hermione get back to her thoughts. She could not help but wonder why had Moody helped Cedric? Wasn't that against the rules? He is a famous auror and has been very kind to Hermione the few times she spoke with him, yet he was a very strange man with very disturbing teaching methods. He also turned Draco into a ferret, which is against the rules, but yet very funny to watch.

"We knew we'd find you here," said Ron, startling Hermione out of her thoughts.

"You okay?" asked Harry.

He could tell her mood had been going down as time progressed. She was worried about figuring out the second clue. He tried to see how she was doing but her face was a mix of emotions he could not decipher.

"Actually yes. Cedric was kind enough to give me a hint as to how to crack this egg. The strange part is he told me Moody helped him…"

Ron and Harry looked at each other quizzically. They both wondered why a teacher would help a student in this competition. Was that even allowed?

"I`m going to go figure out the clue," said Hermione as she packed her notebooks and grabbed her egg, "I will see you at dinner."

Hermione rushed to the prefects' bathroom. She barely noticed the startled faces as she pushed through the crowd and ran up three flights of stairs. She stopped short in front of the large wooden door and looked around, making sure no one spotted her before entering.

The bathroom was enormous with a tall ceiling and stain glass windows that covered the walls. To the left of the entrance were the urinals and to the right was a majestic bathtub. The tub was massive and sparkling white, it was practically big enough to swim in. There were five rows of faucets, each on top of each other and next to them was a small bookcase filled with different bath salts. Hermione picked one that smelled like lavender, hoping it would help calm her.

The faucets turned on when she uncorked and poured in the salt. The water from each rom came out a different color and mixed in the bathtub, making the water in the bathtub look like a runny rainbow. The mermaid in the window woke up and started to comb her hair.

Hermione hesitated before removing her clothes. She looked around the room, making sure no one was watching. She decided to wait until the bathtub filled up before quickly stripping down and getting in.

The water was very warm and immediately enveloped her. The lavender scent filled her nostrils as she felt her muscles unclench one by one. She closed her eyes and rested her head and arms on the edge tub. She stayed like that, frozen in the moment until she remembered why she was here to begin with. She grabbed the egg and opened it up over the bath, not knowing what to expect. The screeching sound resonated around the room, which made it seem ten times louder. Hermione quickly brought the egg to her chest and closed it. She closed her eyes and sighed while dropping the egg into her lap.

Hermione suddenly opened her eyes and sat up straight, she now understood what Cedric meant! She was supposed to open it under water. She sucked in her breath and dipped her whole head into the water as she maneuvered the egg in front of her and opened it. Instead of screaming music flowed out of the egg and a calming voice started singing.

Come seek us where our voices sound,

We cannot sing above the ground,

And while you're searching ponder this;

We've taken what you'll sorely miss,

An hour long you'll have to look,

And to recover what we took,

But past an hour, the prospect's black,

Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.

Hermione burst out of the water and exhaled. She smiled as she regained her breathe; she had just deciphered the clue! As she got dressed and watched the mermaid jump back into the water Hermione felt calm. Maybe she would make it through the tournament after all she thought as she walked out.