My Brother's Keeper
by ChatterChick
Summary: Sophie Potter is the younger sister of the infamous Harry Potter. Her life at Hogwarts should be set, but things take an unexpected turn when she is sorted into Slytherin. Being green is never easy, especially when those cunning folk will befriend you just as fast as they would cut your throat.
A/N: Sorry the last chapter, and part of this one, feel like a lot of canon rehash. I'm trying to progress the story from Sophie's POV and gloss over anything too canon-y like the arrival of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, but I do want her to visit some events.
Don't forget to review if you're enjoying this. Even if it's just a few words, those really make a writer's day :)
Chapter 17: The Goblet of Fire
The entire castle was abuzz October thirty-first. The day before, the delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang had arrived at Hogwarts and the Goblet of Fire had been revealed. The Hogwarts gossip mill was overactive with news about who had seen who putting their name into the Goblet and who people were hoping would be selected.
There was also some interest in members of the Beauxbatons and Durmstang delegations, most notably Viktor Krum. Even Nephele could hardly contain her excitement that the famous seeker was sitting just a few seats away from them at the Slytherin table. Jasper and Blaine kept going on about one of the Beauxbatons girls, swearing that she must have been a veela or something. Sophie felt there was something familiar her, but it wasn't until Astoria pointed out that they had seen her while shopping in Paris that Sophie remembered.
The Goblet of Fire sat in the middle of the Great Hall on a stool, its eerie blue flames somewhat dimmed in the daylight. There was a thin, golden line traced around it on the floor. A group of students eagerly crowded around it, but that seemed to discourage anyone from putting their name in that morning. People seemed almost shy to approach it, but there were plenty of rumours about who had stayed after the feast the night before and who had gotten up early to put their name in before anyone else was up.
At breakfast, Sophie caught up with her brother and his friends, asking if they knew anyone who had put their name in. There was a bit of speculation there, so far none of the Gryffindors had been spotted putting their name in. Ron's brothers, Fred and George, missed the age limit by a few months and had tried to trick Dumbledore's age line earlier in the morning. They had been sent to the Hospital Wing with a pair of long, white beards that rivalled Dumbledore's.
"There's a rumour going around that Warrington got up early and put his name in," one of Harry's roommates, Dean Thomas, informed them. He glanced at Sophie warily before adding, "The big bloke who looks like a sloth."
That description annoyed Sophie and she clenched her jaw. Cassius Warrington was big and built like a beater, naturally, but she would use the description teddy bear before sloth. She didn't realize he was old enough to enter as he was still a sixth year, but now that his name was suggested she hoped he would get it.
"We can't have a Slytherin champion!" protested Ron. Someone must have aimed a quick kick to his shins, because he winced before looking a little apologetic towards her.
When Ron, Dean and Seamus started mocking a Hufflepuff who put his name in, Sophie tuned them out to talk to Harry and Hermione. It was clear to her that they weren't really supportive of the idea of other houses having a champion. She was starting to think she'd root for anyone over a Gryffindor just to spite them.
"Would you put your name in if you had the chance?" Sophie asked her brother. "What's a few Ministry-controlled tasks after Slytherin's monster or a Cerberus?" She didn't bother mentioning the events of the last year, preferring to forget that that had happened.
If Harry wasn't underage, she could easily see him being chosen to represent Hogwarts. She was relieved that he was only fourteen. For once, they got to be normal siblings while someone else took the spotlight. It seemed that Harry shared her thoughts.
"It'll be nice to have a quiet year, let someone else have all the danger and attention for once," Harry ruefully told her. "Cheer on the Hogwarts champion from the sidelines."
"A Slytherin Hogwarts champion," she slyly added, feeling amused at the disgusted looks on Ron, Dean and Seamus' faces. It was too easy to rile them up.
Hermione began harassing her to join her club, SPEW, again. She eagerly waved a button in the midst of her tangent about the poor elves who had cooked breakfast and had to prepare two feasts two nights in a row. Sophie and her friends had yet to join, all of them quite familiar with house elves and how insulted they'd be if Dumbledore tried to pay them. The extra bustle in the castle no doubt had them excited as they tried to impress their foreign guests.
"It's the decent thing to do!" Hermione pressed.
Sophie was not going to be caught dead wearing one of those things in Slytherin. Why Harry and Ron encouraged her by buying one, she had no idea.
"Yes, well, indecent Slytherin here," she said, causing the boys to choke on their breakfast. Playing up the 'evil' stereotype in front of them was always fun. She decided that was her cue to leave. "I should get going or I'll be late."
She grabbed another piece of toast and left the Gryffindor table, rejoining Astoria, Kitty and Nephele on the way to the greenhouses. Herbology was Sophie's first class that morning, and with it came the perfect opportunity to chat with the other houses about who had put names in. So far, Sophie was rather limited to Slytherin's biased gossip, and the little she had gotten from Harry and his friends that morning.
Professor Sprout had decided to arrange the groups so that each one had a Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin and Ravenclaw in it. When she read out the group assignments, she noted that she was tired of seeing the houses cluster together in the same little cliques. Sprout was one of the few professors who was actively trying to promote unity between the houses. The rest of the professors didn't seem too bothered if they sat with their friends or partnered with their friends. Unless they became too chatty, then they would be moved.
"Hey Potter," Demelza greeted as she dropped her bag at their table.
Demelza Robins was a tall girl with tight, curly black hair and a quick smile. After being partnered with her for a few weeks, Sophie was starting to realize Demelza was one of the few Gryffindors she didn't mind. If Elliott and Myron had befriended her the year before, they might still be close friends.
They were soon joined by the two other members of their group; a Hufflepuff boy named Rhys Llewellyn and a Ravenclaw girl named Andrea Pfeffer.
Rhys dropped his bag, and immediately asked, "Did either of you two hear if anyone from Gryffindor or Slytherin put their name in?"
"Cassius Warrington put his name in this morning," Sophie said. Astoria had confirmed on what the Gryffindors had said on the walk to the greenhouse. He had turned seventeen earlier in the month and thus was eligible to put his name in for the Triwizard Tournament. Unfortunately Jason had a later birthday and couldn't enter, although Astoria seemed relieved that her brother wouldn't be able to participate.
"I'm hoping Angelina Johnson gets in," Demelza said as she put her pair of dragonhide gloves on. The first half of their double Herbology was always working on their project and then followed by a lesson.
Professor Sprout had given each group twenty different seeds and a plot in Greenhouse One. Over the year, they were expected to care for the garden and harvest the crops at the appropriate times so that Professor Snape could use them as potions ingredients for his classes. It was rather dull, as it was mostly mundane herbs and flowers, with the odd plant like Dragontails or Kneazlenip that had some magical properties.
"What are we talking about?" Andrea asked as she carefully sat down next to them, making sure not to get too much dirt on her robes.
"Who's entered from Hogwarts," said Demelza. "Did anyone from Ravenclaw?"
"Oh, there were a few seventh years, but honestly, I think everyone's expecting one of the Gryffindors," Andrea said with an eye-roll. "This sort of thing seems right up their alley."
Afternoon classes were cancelled, allowing students to get cleaned up for the Halloween Feast. Which was probably a good thing, given that everyone was too excited to get much work done. Sophie had Theory of Magic after Herbology and Professor Otterburn had given up trying to control his class. Sophie suspected he was just as excited as they were for the champion to be chosen. He spent most of the class talking about past Triwizard Tournaments and joining in with speculation on what the first task might be.
Sophie and the girls spent the rest of the afternoon in the common room. It was exciting every time someone new announced that they had put their name in. Since that morning, three seventh year Slytherins had also entered, including the female prefect Selena Dippet, but Sophie didn't know them that well. All of Slytherin was hoping one of their own would be selected as the Hogwarts champion. It was a point of pride that Slytherin was often the house full of the ambitious and talented. Who better to represent Hogwarts at an international level?
Fiona Greystone smiled brightly as she walked into the common room. "I did it, I put my name in the Goblet!"
The entire common room burst into applause, and the other sixth years congratulated her.
Pansy sat down in the armchair across from Sophie. "Shame she won't get it, she'd give a great show of what a Slytherin witch can do."
"I think she's got as much of a chance as any of the others," Astoria cocked her head thoughtfully. "Fiona's very talented, even if she's a sixth year and the rest are all seventh."
"Dumbledore's probably got it rigged to give it to some Gryffindor," Pansy explained. "Don't hold your breath for a champion we can all root for."
Sophie was starting to hope that all this competition between the houses would die down once a Hogwarts champion had been selected. It would be nice to be united as a school for once, with all this house rivalry behind them. Everyone wanted someone from their own house, and she got a bad feeling that even if Angelina Johnson or one of the Gryffindors was chosen, some of the Slytherins would spend the entire tournament saying Dumbledore fixed it.
"I bet he's disappointed his pet's too young to enter," Pansy smirked. "Potter getting picked would just be too much. He'll have to settle for one of the others like, - Merlin, I can't even think of their names."
Sophie shifted uncomfortably at the sudden mention her brother. Luckily, the conversation died after that. Daphne approached them, pulling a boy with dark brown hair and vivid blue eyes towards them. Her arm was looped through his and she was giggling, something that made Pansy roll her eyes. Sophie wondered if this was the boy that Daphne had been owling constantly all last summer. It seemed that she was finally going to introduce him.
"Theo, these are my sister's friends, Sophie Potter, Nephele Rosier and Kitty Penrose," Daphne gushed. "This is Theo Nott, my boyfriend."
Theo gave a bland smile towards them, it was that polite, but dismissive look older students often gave younger years. Like they weren't worth his time, but he'd humour them because his girlfriend's sister was among them.
"I think they can tell by the way you're hanging off of him," Pansy scoffed.
Sophie and Astoria shared an eye roll. Pansy made sure every girl in the school knew she was dating Draco Malfoy and hung off of him at every opportunity. Either she was completely blind to her own actions, or she thought she was some sort of special exception.
"You're such a hypocrite, Parkinson," another fourth year joined them, although these one needed no introduction. Half the common room had a crush on Blaise Zabini. Including Kitty, who started fixing her hair the moment Blaise sat next to Astoria. It seemed that the pair were already familiar with each other, because Blaise teased Astoria in a matter similar to the way Harry's friends teased her.
At quarter to six, most of the common room cleared out. Everyone was too excited for the feast to begin and the champions to be selected. They were joined by the Durmstrang students again. Sophie could see Viktor Krum sitting amongst the seventh years with his friends.
"Do you think it's too silly to ask for his autograph?" Nephele whispered.
She was trying to play it cool now that it seemed that the Durmstang students would be sitting with the Slytherins all year. Sophie and Astoria shared an amused smile. Sooner or later, Nephele would find her courage to talk to the famous seeker.
And get that autograph.
"It's probably silly, I don't want to look like another star-struck fangirl," Nephele talked herself out of it. "I'll strike up a conversation some time. A completely normal one, about something other than Quidditch because I'm sure that's all anyone ever wants to talk to him about."
Everyone kept glancing towards the staff table, eager for the moment Dumbledore finished eating. He seemed content to take his time, chatting merrily with the guests from the Ministry and Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime. Finally, dessert was vanished from the golden plates.
Dumbledore rose from his seat.
"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," said Dumbledore. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber" - he indicated the door behind the staff table - "where they will be receiving their first instructions."
He dimmed the lights in the Great Hall and the Goblet of Fire shone more brightly. Not that it needed any more attention, every single eye in the hall was on it, students and staff waiting with baited breath. The white-blue flames turned red and a single piece of parchment shot into the air.
"The champion for Durmstrang," Dumbledore read out in a strong, clear voice, "will be Viktor Krum!"
Everyone burst into applause, and the Durmstrang Headmaster, Karakaroff, looked thrilled at his school's selection. It seemed that not many had been surprised at the decision. Even the rest of the Durmstrang students, while disappointed, nodded and applauded. One of them gave Krum a friendly thump on the back.
Krum stood up from the end of the table and made his way towards Dumbledore as directed, walking along the staff table before turning and disappearing through the door into the chamber.
Once everyone's cheers and applause had died down, the goblet turned red once more before another piece of parchment shot out of it.
"The champion for Beauxbatons," said Dumbledore, "is Fleur Delacour!"
A rather beautiful girl with silvery hair stood up from the Ravenclaw table. She had attracted quite a lot of attention since her arrival the day before, and even Sophie caught herself staring in awe a few times. Never had she seen another girl so beautiful and graceful. The Beauxbatons students looked less thrilled at their champion. Two girls had started sobbing when Fleur had been chosen. Sophie felt embarrassed for them, they were making quite the scene.
Like Krum, Fleur Delacour approached Dumbledore before walking along the staff table and disappearing behind the door to the trophy room.
Once final time, the goblet turned red and shot out the third piece of parchment into the air. Dumbledore snatched it, unfolding it. Sophie held her breath, excitedly squeezing Astoria's hand. This was the moment they had been waiting for for that past twenty-four hours. She really hoped Fiona or Cassius would get it.
"The champion for Hogwarts," said Dumbledore, "is Cedric Diggory!"
There was a great uproar as Cedric stood up from the Hufflepuff table. Everyone else soon joined in for the Hogwarts champions, even Pansy and her lot. A Hufflepuff was better than a Gryffindor in most of their minds. Sophie snuck a glance down the table, seeing Cassius and Fiona join in the applause for their fellow sixth year. They looked a little disheartened at not being picked, but at least they weren't making a scene like the Beauxbatons girl, she thought with a small amount of pride.
Cedric walked along the staff table, disappearing into the trophy room with his fellow champions.
"Excellent!" Dumbledore called happily once the cheers had died down. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real -"
Suddenly, the goblet of fire turned red again. Dumbledore immediately stopped talking and the entire room was staring at the goblet, confused. Another piece of parchment was shot into the air and Dumbledore quickly snatched it.
"Harry Potter."
A silent hush fell over the room, as everyone turned to look at her brother. Angry murmuring broke out, and snatches of conversation drifted as people wondered not only how Harry had managed to trick Dumbledore's age line, but how he had just become a fourth champion. Sophie sat in her seat, avoiding eye contact with the rest of the Slytherins. She rested her chin on top of her fist, a frown on her face and annoyance bubbling over like an overcooked cauldron.
Of course they couldn't have a quiet, normal year. Her brother was Harry bloody Potter after all.