AUTHORS NOTE :P
Hello all! Here's the newest chapter, and I hope everyone likes it :) two more chapters before the champions are chosen :D
Now I'll answer some reviews...
Courtney DiLaurentis: be patient, it will happen soon :)
Pyro and Darnet co: you'll find out who the little boy is in a couple of chapters. And don't worry about bad reviews, they happen to everyone. Just ignore the haters, and concentrate on all the praising :)
jdr ride: sorry about the spelling mistakes... and everything shall be revealed shortly...
Arkell26: you really think so? thanks so much :)
Annie Bell: the suspense always makes everything better :)
signofthemoon: sorry about that :/
Now, let us continue with the story!
-Rach ;)
Max's POV
When I woke up the next morning, I had a plan. I got quietly got out of bed, got dressed and grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill. I left the dormitory without waking Hermione, and went down to the common room. I looked around, making sure no one was there, even though it was just after dawn. I climbed out of the portrait hole and walked through the silent castle. I arrived in the Owlery, which was in the West Tower.
The Owlery was a huge, circular room, cold and drafty because none of the windows had any glass in them. The floor was covered in straw, owl droppings, and the skeletons of mice and other small animals the owls ate. There were hundreds of owls, all different species imaginable, most of them asleep. I looked around for Freedom, but couldn't find him with the other owls.
"Just find him, okay? Before the Dementors do," I heard a familiar voice saying. It was Harry.
I looked over at the window where I heard his voice, and saw him tying a letter to Hedwig's leg. She hooted softly and nibbled at Harry's ear before spreading her wings and taking off through the window.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, walking closer to Harry. He wheeled around, blushing slightly. "I wrote a letter to Sirius, telling him that I probably imagined the pain in my scar, and not to come," Harry answered.
"But that's a lie," I said, "You know you didn't imagine the pain in your scar."
"I know that," Harry said, "I just don't want him to get caught. If he does, it'll be all my fault." I walked up beside Harry by the window and took Harry's hand. "I'm sorry about what I said last night, Harry. I wasn't thinking straight. I'm just really worried about Sirius."
Harry sighed, and squeezed my hand. "Don't worry about it Maxie. I understand. I just overreacted, I guess. I really shouldn't of told him, though."
"No, Harry. You were just worried. I would of done the same thing," I said. Harry looked at me, and he grinned. His green eyes sparkled brightly when he smiled, and he still hadn't let go of my hand.
"There have been a few times over the summer when I nearly wrote to him about my nightmares," I said quietly. I haven't told anyone this, and didn't like thinking about.
"What nightmares?" Harry asked.
"Nightmares about the School," I said. There was no need to say anything else.
"Why did you come up here?" Harry asked me after a few minutes. I pulled the parchment and quill out of my pocket and showed them to Harry.
"What-?" he started, then his eyes widened. "You were coming up to write a letter to Sirius, weren't you?" he asked.
"You caught me," I said, grinning sheepishly.
"What were you going to tell him?" Harry chuckled.
"I'm not even sure..." I said. "That you were off you're rocker and for him to stay where he was, well away from here. I would of said anything to make sure he stayed away."
"You know he's still going to come," Harry said quietly.
"Yeah, I know."
"Harry, that was a lie," Hermione said sternly at breakfast in the Great Hall after we told them what Harry did. "You know you're scar was actually hurting."
"That's what I said," I said, buttering my toast. .
"So what if I lied?" Harry said, "He isn't going to get chucked back into Azkaban because of me."
"Drop it," Ron said sharply to Hermione, who looked like she was going to argue more. For once, Hermione actually listened to him and kept her mouth shut.
Over the next few weeks, I tried my best not to worry about Sirius, but I couldn't stop from looking around every morning at the owls, looking for Hedwig, or reading the Daily Prophet every morning to see if he got caught. I tried my best not to see the horrible images of Sirius getting captured by Dementors at night. In classes, I tried to keep my mind off my father. I wish there was still Quidditch to distract me.
Most nights, I left my dormitory late at night after everyone had gone to sleep, and gone out to the forest to fly. I'd stretch out my wings and fly all over the grounds of Hogwarts; over the lake, over the forest, over Hagrid's hut. After a few nights of doing it on my own, I'd wake up the others from the flock, and we'd all fly together for hours. It didn't feel right, though, without the two youngest flock members. Without Angel and the Gasman there, it felt like my left wing was missing.
Our lessons were becoming more difficult and demanding than ever before. Especially in Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Professor Moody had surprised us all by announcing that he was going to put the Imperius Curse on each of us in turn, to show us it's power and whether or not anyone can resist it.
"But you said it was illegal," Iggy said as Moody cleared away the desks with his wand, leaving a huge clear space in the middle of the classroom. "You said to use it on another human was-"
"Dumbledore wants you taught what it feels like," Moody said, his magical eye fixing on Iggy with an eerie, unblinking stare. "If you'd rather learn it the hard way- when someone's putting it on you so that they can completely control you- fine by me. You're excused. Off you go."
He pointed a gnarled finger to the door. Iggy didn't move, he just stared back at Moody and after a few seconds, Moody looked away.
He began to beckon students to the front of the class one by one and put the Imperius Curse on them.
I watched as one by one, my classmates did strange and extraordinary things under the influence of the Imperius Curse. Dean hopped around the class three times without taking a break, Lavender imitated a squirrel, Neville performed some amazing gymnastics that he sure wouldn't of been able to do in his normal state. Yet no one was able to shake off the curse.
"Potter," Moody growled, "you next."
Harry moved forward into the middle of the class. Moody raised his wand and said, "Imperio!"
Harry's face went completely blank and he looked very relaxed.
"Jump on the desk, Potter," Moody ordered. Harry bent his knees, ready to jump...but he never moved. He looked like he was concentrating very hard, but after a few minutes, Harry kinda fell over onto the desk, knocking it over. It seemed he tried not to jump, and still jump.
"Now that's more like it!" Moody growled. "Look at that, you lot. Potter fought! He fought, and he nearly beat it! We'll try it again, Potter, and I want everyone watching closely."
He put Harry under the Imperius Curse five more times. Each time Harry fought it, and he always ended up falling over. But the last time, Harry managed to shake it off completely.
"Miss Ride, you're next," Moody growled after he let Harry sit down and nurse his aching knees. I walked over to the middle of the classroom and stared Moody in the eyes. "Imperio!" he cried.
Every worry, every thought, every feeling was blissfully erased from my mind. I felt relaxed, and happy. Then I heard a dull voice, from far away, trying to tell me to do something. Shut up, I told the voice, and it was gone. I didn't hear anything else, and my mind was left happily blank. But only after a few minutes of this wonderful bliss is was gone.
"Merlins beard!" Moody cried, actually smiled. "You didn't hear anything, did you?" he asked. I frowned, confused, and shook my head. "I was telling you to dance, and do back flips and the likes. But you never moved. What happened?"
"I'm not sure," I said. "I never heard anything."
"Well that's even more remarkable than Potter. We'll try that again, shall we?" Moody said and I nodded.
He cast the spell again, but instead of the blissful oblivion, there was a voice. But it wasn't Moody's telling me to something strange. It was the Voice. Yes I have a voice in my head, but I also have wings, so no biggie.
You have a strong mind Maximum. Everyone in the flock does. This will do you well in the war.
War? What war? I asked, but seeing as it was the Voice, it never answered me. It rarely did.
It was another few seconds before Moody lifted the spell. I could see my classmates staring at me in astonishment, but none near as astonished as Moody. "I think Miss Ride deserves a round of applause," Moody said, clapping his gnarled hands together. Everyone else clapped, then I walked back to where I was sitting.
When Moody called on Iggy, and then Fang, they were the same as me. They stood in the middle of the room while Moody put the Imperius Curse on them, but they didn't move when Moody ordered them to do something. I guess all those years in the School and disobeying whitecoats came in handy after all.
After Moody putting the curse on me, Harry, Fang and Iggy four times each again, we were allowed to go.
"The way he talks," Harry grumbled as he limped out of the Defense Against the Dark Arts, "you'd think we were all going to be attacked any second."
"Yeah I know," Ron said, who was still skipping every second step or so. He had more difficulty shaking off the spell than the rest of us, though Moody had assured him that the effects would wear off by lunchtime. "Talk about paranoid..." Ron nervously glanced over his shoulder, as if checking that Moody was indeed out of earshot. "No wonder they were glad to get rid of him at the Ministry. Did you hear him telling Seamus what he did to that witch that shouted `Boo!' behind him on April's Fool's Day? And when are we meant to read up on the Imperius Curse with everything else we've got to do?"
All the fourth years have noticed a definite increase in the work and homework we were bring given. Professor McGonagall had explained why when her Transfiguration class erupted in moans when she gave us loads of homework.
"You are all now entering a most important part of your magical education!" she said, her eyes flashing dangerously behind her glasses. "Your Ordinary Wizarding Levels are drawing closer-"
"We don't take O.W.L's till fifth year!" Dean said crossly.
"That may be so, but believe me Mr Thomas, you need all the preparation you can get. Miss Granger seems to be the only one who successfully managed to turn a hedgehog into a pincushion, and Mr Martinez and Miss Ride are the only ones getting closer and closer to making a satisfactory pincushion! I might remind you, Mr Thomas, that you're pincushion still curls up in fright when someone approaches it," McGonagall said.
Hermione blushed, and my cheeks went rather pink. Fang remained indifferent, but I could tell he was very pleased with himself.
Me, Harry, Ron, Fang and Iggy were all very amused when Professor Trelawney told us that we all received full marks for our predictions. She read aloud many of our predictions, complimenting the five for our unflinching acceptance at what was to happen- but we were all less amused when she told us we had to do one for the following month; we were running out of disasters.
Meanwhile, Professor Binns, the ghost that teaches History of Magic had us writing essays on the goblin rebellions of the eighteenth century. Professor Snape was making us research antidotes. We all took this one very seriously, as he had hinted that he might be poisoning someone in the class before Christmas to see if the antidote worked. Professor Flitwick asked us to read three extra books in preparation for our lesson on Summoning Charms.
Even Hagrid had added on the workload. The Blast-Ended Skrewts were growing at a remarkable pace given that nobody had yet figured out what they ate. Hagrid was delighted, and at part of our project, he suggested that we come down in the evenings to his hut and observe the Skrewts and note their behavior.
"I will not!" Malfoy exclaimed flatly after Hagrid made his suggestion. "I see enough of these foul things during our lessons, thanks."
Hagrid's smile faded.
"Yeh'll do wha' yer told," he growled, "or I'll be takin' a leaf outta Proffesor Moody's book... I hear yeh made a good ferret, Malfoy."
The Gryffindor's roared with laughter. Malfoy's pale face flushed with anger, but the memory of Moody's punishment was apparently too painful because he kept his mouth shut for the rest of the class.
The six of us walked back to the castle that night in high spirits. Seeing Hagrid get one over on Malfoy was always great to see, especially after everything Malfoy did to get Hagrid fired last year.
We entered the Entrance Hall, and I spotted Nudge walking down the marble staircase with her friends. She saw us, told her friends that she'd catch up, then she ran over to us.
"Hey guys! I haven't talked to you much since we started school this year! What do you think of Moody? Have you seen his face? It's all scarred! But his classes are so interesting! He really knows his stuff. Like Lupin! I really miss him- do you think we'll ever see him again-?"
"I'm sure we will Nudge," Fang said, putting his arm on hers and leading her over to where there was a large crowd of students gathered around a large sign. We followed them, curious.
Iggy, being the tallest, stood on tiptoe to see over the heads of everyone else and read the sign aloud. I was glad that during the summer Mrs Weasley gave the flock little Muggle lessons, or else we'd be entirely clueless and not very good at reading or spelling.
TRIWIZARD TOURNAMENT: THE DELEGATIONS FROM BEAUXBATONS AND DURMSTRANG WILL BE ARRIVING AT 6 O'CLOCK ON FRIDAY THE 30TH OF OCTOBER. LESSONS WILL END HALF AN HOUR EARLY-"
"Brilliant," I said, grinning, "Last class on Friday is Potions. Snape won't have time to poison anyone."
STUDENTS WILL RETURN THEIR BAGS AND BOOKS BACK TO THEIR DORMITORIES AND ASSEMBLE IN FRONT OF THE CASTLE TO GREET OUR GUESTS BEFORE THE WELCOMING FEAST.
"Only a week away!" said Ernie Macmillian, a Hufflepuff, emerging from the crowd, his eyes gleaming. "I wonder if Cedric knows. Think I'll go tell him..."
"Cedric?" Harry asked, staring after Ernie.
"He must be entering the tournament," Nudge said, her eyes sparkling with excitement of everything that was happening.
"That idiot? Hogwarts champion?" Ron said as we pushed our way through the crowd towards the staircase.
"He ins't an idiot. You just don't like him because he beat Gryffindor at Quidditch," Hermione said. "I've heard he's a really good student- and prefect." She spoke as if him being a prefect settled everything.
"You only like him because he's handsome," Iggy said, rolling his eyes.
"Excuse me, I don't like people just because their handsome!" Hermione said hotly.
Ron gave a loud, fake cough which sounded a lot like, "Lockhart!"
The appearance of the sign in the Entrance Hall had an obvious effect upon the inhabitants of the castle. During the following week, it was the only thing people seemed to talk about, no matter where I went. The Triwizard Tournament. I still hadn't come up with a genius plan to enter the Tournament, but I was still thinking hard whenever I had the chance. I was thinking about using an Aging Potion, but after reading about them in the library, I knew it wouldn't work.
Rumors were flying around the castle like crazy: who was trying for Hogwarts champion, what the tournament would involve, how different the students were from ourselves.
I also noticed that the castle seemed to be undergoing an extra-thorough cleaning.
Several usually grimy portraits had been scrubbed, much to the displeasure to the people in the pictures, who sat huddled in the corner of the frame, muttering darkly and wincing as they felt their raw, pink faces. The suits of armor were gleaming and moving without making a single squeak and Argus Filch, the caretaker, was behaving so ferociously to any students that forgot to wipe their shoes that he terrified a pair of first-year girls into hysterics.
Other members of staff seemed oddly tense as well.
"Longbottom, kindly do not reveal that you cannot perform a simply Switching Spell in front of anyone from Durmstrang," McGonagall barked after a difficult lesson, where Neville had accidentally transplanted his own ears onto a cactus.
When we went down to breakfast on the thirtieth of October, we found that the Great Hall had been decorated over night. There were huge silk banners hanging from the walls, each of them representing each of the Hogwarts houses; a 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 was the largest banner that bore the Hogwarts coat of arms: a lion, an eagle, a badger and a snake all united around a large H.
The six of us sat down beside Fred and George at the Gryffindor table. Once again, and most unusually, they were sitting apart from everyone else and talking in very low voices. Ron led the way over to them.
"It's a bummer, alright," George said gloomily, running his hand through his hair, "But if he won't talk to us in person, we'll have to send him the letter anyway. Or we'll stuff it into his hand. He can't avoid us forever."
"Who's avoiding you?" Ron asked, sitting beside his brothers.
"Wish you would," Fred said, irritated.
"What's a bummer?" Ron asked George.
"Having a nosing git like you for a brother," George said.
"Have you come up with any ideas on the Triwizard Tournament?" I asked. "Thought about how you were trying to enter?"
"I asked McGonagall how they were picking the champions, but she wasn't telling," George said bitterly. "She told me to shut up and get on with transfiguring my raccoon."
"Wonder what the tasks are going to be?" Iggy said thoughtfully. "You know I bet we could do them," he said, looking around at the six of us, "We've done dangerous stuff before... Heck, I bet Angel could do them without breaking a sweat."
"Well you haven't done dangerous stuff in front of a panel of judges, have you?" Fred said. "McGonagall said that the champions get awarded points on how well they do on the tasks."
"Who are the judges?" Harry asked.
"Well, the Head of the schools are always on the panel," Hermione said and everyone looked at her, rather surprised, "because all three of them were injured during the Tournament of 1792, when a cockatrice the champions were meant to be catching when on a rampage."
She noticed all of us looking at her and said, with her usual air of impatience she got when people didn't read the same books as her, "It's all in Hogwarts, A History. Though, of course, that's books 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 talking about?" Fang asked, though I knew what was coming.
"House-elves!" Hermione said, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Not once in a thousand pages does that book mention that Hogwarts is enslaving hundreds of elves!"
I chocked on my cereal and looked at Hermione. "Hogwart, A History is a thousand pages?"
Hermione's eyes narrowed. "Yes. You should know, you've read it, haven't you?"
I coughed. "Yeah, yeah I did. I just enjoyed it so much it only seemed like one hundred pages," I lied easily, but it was obvious that Hermione knew I never read the book.
Our lack of enthusiasm to S.P.E.W had done nothing whatsoever to curb Hermione's determination to pursue justice for house-elves. While I agreed completely with what she was trying to do, I knew it wouldn't work. House-elves were happy the way they were, but Hermione couldn't see that. But it was terrible the way their masters treated them. Now that should be Hermione's main priority, not wages and holidays.
True, the five of us had payed the two Sickles for a S.P.E.W badge, but we only did that to keep her quiet, while Nudge said she didn't have the two Sickles on her, even though I knew for a fact that she had a purse full of money in her trunk.
Hermione had been badgering us ever since to first wear the badges, then to get others to do the same and she had 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, and your meals are cooked by a group of creatures that are unpaid and enslaved?" she kept saying fiercely.
Some people, like Neville, had just payed Hermione to keep her quiet and to stop her glowering at them, while some actually seemed mildly interested, but didn't give her the money. Many regarded the whole thing as a joke.
Ron rolled his eyes at the ceiling, and the twins became very interested in their bacon (the two of them had refused to buy S.P.E.W badges). But after a few seconds, George looked up and leaned in toward Hermione.
"Listen, Hermione, have you ever actually been down in the kitchens?" he asked.
"No, of course not," Hermione said curtly, "I hardly think students are supposed to-"
"Well we have," Fred cut her off, gesturing to himself and George. "Loads of times, to nick food. And we've meet them, and they're happy. They think they have the best job in the world-"
"Because they're uneducated and brainwashed!" Hermione cried, but her following words were drowned out by the sudden whooshing from overhead, which announced the arrival of the post owls. I looked up and saw Hedwig soaring towards Harry. Hermione stopped talking at once, looking at Hedwig with wide eyes. I watched anxiously as Hedwig landed on Harry's shoulder and stuck her leg out with the letter on it.
Please let him be half way around the world. Please let him be half way around the world. Please let him be...
Harry pulled off Sirius's reply and offered Hedwig some of his bacon which she ate gratefully. Then checking that Fred and George were safely immersed in further discussions of the Tournament, Harry read out Sirius's reply in a whisper.
Nice try, Harry.
I'm back in the country and well hidden. There's no need to worry. I want you and Max, and any of the others, to keep me posted on anything that's going on in Hogwarts. Don't be using Hediwg, or Freedom, the entire time, keep changing owls. Don't worry about me, just watch out for yourselves- and I'm talking to all of you when I saw that, even Nudge. And Harry, don't forget what I said about your scar.
Sirius.
"Why do you have to keep changing owls?" Iggy asked.
"Because Hedwig is too noticeable," I said, rubbing Hedwig's head. "She'll attract too much attention. A snowy owl that keeps flying back and forth to wherever he's hiding... They aren't really native birds, are they?"
I watched Harry roll up the letter and put it inside his robes. I didn't know if I was more, or less, worried than before Harry got the letter. I suppose that Sirius getting back in the country without getting caught was something. I couldn't deny either that the idea that my father was even closer now was reassuring. At least we wouldn't have to wait as long for a response when we wrote.
"Thanks Hedwig," Harry said, stroking her. She hooted sleepily, dipped her beak into his goblet of pumpkin juice then took off again, clearly desperate for a nice long sleep in the Owlery.
There was a feeling of anticipation in the air that whole day. Nobody payed attention in classes, being more interested in the arrival of the people from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons that evening; I couldn't even believe it, but Potions was even more bearable than usual, and it was half an hour shorter.
When the bell rang early, the six of us hurried up to Gryffindor Tower, left our bags in our rooms and pulled on our cloaks, then rushed back down to the Entrance Hall.
The Heads of Houses were ordering their students into lines.
"Weasley, straighten your hat," McGonagall snapped at Ron. "Miss Ride, take that ridiculous thing out of your hair."
I scowled and took out the ruby hair clip that Harry had gotten me for Christmas two years ago, but put it right back into my hair when McGonagall turned around. Harry grinned at me when it saw it was back in my hair, and I shrugged, grinning back.
"Follow me please," McGonagall said. "First-years at the front, and then seconds years, and so on. No pushing..."
We filed down the steps and lined up in front of the castle. It was a cold, clear evening; dusk was falling and a pale, transparent looking moon was already shining brightly over the Forest. I saw Dennis Creevey shaking and shivering with anticipation among the first-years.
I saw Nudge standing in the second row, babbling away to her friends, her eyes shining with excitement. I waved at her and she beamed at me and mouthed "I'm so freaking excited!" I laughed and mouthed, "So am I!" She smiled a huge, radiant smile again and turned back to her friends when they started talking to her again.
"Nearly six," Ron said, checking his watch then looking down the drive that led to the front gates. "How'd reckon they're coming? The train?"
"I doubt it," Hermione said.
"How then? Broomsticks?" Fang asked, raising his dark eyebrows.
"Yeah, go fly to France on a broomstick and see if its fun," I said, sarcasm dripping from every word. He playfully hit my arm.
"How then?" Iggy asked. "Portkey?"
"Or they could Apparate," Ron suggested. "Maybe you can do it if you're under seventeen where they're from?"
"You can't Apparate inside the Hogwarts grounds, how often do I have to tell you?" Hermione said impatiently.
We scanned the darkening grounds excitedly but nothing was moving; everything was still and silent, and quiet as usual. I was starting to feel cold. Oh, I wish they'd hurry up, I kept thinking. Maybe they were preparing for some dramatic entrance... I remember what Mr Weasley said back at the camp before the Quidditch World Cup: "always the same- we can't resist showing off when we get together."
And then Dumbledore called out from where he was standing at the back with the other teachers, "Aha! Unless I am mistaken, the delegations from Beauxbatons are approaching!"
"Where?" a sixth year called.
"There!" I heard Nudge shout, pointing towards the forest. I could see it too- I suppose all the flock could, with our raptor vision.
Something large, much larger than a broomstick- or, well, a hundred broomsticks- were hurtling across the darkening sky toward the castle, growling larger all the time.
"It's a dragon!" a first-year shouted.
"Don't be stupid- it's a flying house!" Dennis Creevey said.
Dennis's guess was closer. As the gigantic black shape skimmed over the treetops of the Forbidden Forest and the lights shining from the castle widows hit it, we saw a huge, powder blue, hoarse drawn carriage, the size of a large house, soaring towards us, 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 backwards as the carriage hurtled ever lower, coming in to land at a tremendous speed- then with a huge crash that made Neville jump backwards into a Slytherin's foot, the horses hooves, the same size as dinner plates, landed on the grass. A second later the carriage landed, bouncing on it's huge wheels, which the large horses tossed their heads and rolled their fiery red eyes.
I just had time to see that the door of the carriage bore a coat of arms (two crossed, golden wands, each emitting three golden stars) before it opened. A very good looking boy in pale blue robes jumped down from the carriage, bent forward, fumbled for a second with something on the carriage door, then unfolded a set of golden steps. He hopped back respectfully. Then I saw a shining, high-heeled black shoe emerging from the inside of the carriage. I swear, it was the size of a kids sled.
It was followed immediately by the largest woman I have ever seen in my life. The size of the carriage and the horses was explained. A few people actually gasped.
I'd only seen one person as big as this woman, and that was Hagrid; I doubt there was an inch difference in their height. Yet, for some reason- maybe because I was so used to how tall Hagrid was- this woman seemed even bigger.
As she stepped into the light from the entrance hall, she was revealed to have a handsome, olive-skinned face (kinda the same shade as Fang's skin, but a little darker) and she had large, beady black eyes and a beaky nose. Her hair was pulled back in a tight, shining bun at the base of her neck. She was dressed head to foot in black satin and she was wearing loads of opal rings and necklaces.
Dumbledore started to clap, and the students followed his lead, breaking into applause and some cheering. Many students were standing on tiptoe, to get a better look at the huge woman.
Her face relaxed into a gracious smile and she walked up to Dumbledore, extending a glittering hand. Dumbledore, though quite tall himself, had barely bend to kiss it.
"My dear Madame Maxime," he said kindly, beaming, "Welcome to Hogwarts."
"Dumbly-dort," Maxime said, and I snorted, but covered it with a cough when McGonagall turned to glare at me, "I 'ope you are well?"
"I'm feeling marvelous, I thank you," Dumbledore said.
"My pupils," Maxime, waving her enormous hand carelessly behind her.
I only noticed now that there were a few dozen boys and girls, all in their late teens by the look of them, now standing behind Madame Maxime. They were all shivering, which wasn't surprising, given that their uniforms were made of fine silk, and none of them were wearing cloaks. A few had scarves or shawls wrapped around their heads. From what I could see of them, they were all staring up at Hogwarts with apprehensive looks on their faces.
" 'As Karkaroff arrived yet?" Maxime asked.
"He should be here any moment," Dumbledore said. "Would you like to wait and greet him or would you prefer to go inside to the warmth and help yourselves to a trifle?"
"Warm up, I think," Maxime said, "But ze 'orses-"
"Our Care of Magical Creatures teacher shall be delighted to tend to them," Dumbledore said, "the moment he had returned from dealing with a situation that has arisen with some of his other- er- charges."
"Skrewts," I muttered to Harry, grinning slightly.
"My steeds require- er- forceful 'andling," said Maxime, looking as if she highly doubted any Care of Magical Creatures teacher at Hogwarts could do the job. Stuck up much? "Zey are very strong."
"I assure you that Hagird will be well for the job," Dumbledore said, smiling. If I was him I would of her where she can go stuff her strong horses...
"Very well," Maxime said, bowing slightly. "Will you tell zis 'Agrid zat ze 'orses drink only single-malt whiskey?"
"I will of course, Madame," Dumbledore said, also bowing.
"Come," Maxime said to her students and the Hogwarts students parted like the Red Sea to allow her and her students pass up the stone steps.
"How big d'you reckon Durmstang's horses are going to be?" Seamus asked, leaning over Lavender and Parvarti to talk to us.
"Well if they're any bigger then that lot, Hagrid won't be able to handle them," Iggy said. "That is if he hasn't been attacked by Skrewts. Wonder what's wrong with them?"
"Maybe they escaped," I said hopefully, imaging the strange crab like creatures scuttling into the Forbidden Forest, and getting trampled on by centaurs...
"Oh don't say that," Hermione shivered, but it had nothing to do with the cold, "Imagine them loose in the grounds..."
For a few minutes, we stood, shivering slightly now, waiting for the Durmstang party to arrive. Mostly everyone was gazing hopefully up at the sky.
For those few minutes, the only thing breaking the silence was Madame Maxime's horses, snorting and stamping. But then- "Can you hear that?" Fang asked suddenly.
I listened. A loud and oddly eerie noise was drifting towards us from out in the darkness:a muffled rumbling and sucking sound, as though there was a huge vacuum cleaner sucking up the lake.
"The lake!" yelled Lee, pointing down to it, "Look at the lake!"
From where we were standing on top of the lawns that were overlooking the grounds, we had a clear view of the smooth black surface of the water- except the water wasn't smooth at all. Some disturbance was taking place deep, deep down in the center. Great bubbles were popping up at the surface, waves were washing over the muddy banks- and then, out in the middle of the lake, a whirlpool appeared, as if a giant plug had just been pulled out of the floor of the lake.
What seemed to be a long, black pole began slowly rising out of the heart of the whirlpool... and then I saw the rigging...
"It's a mast!" I said.
Slowly, the ship emerged from the water, gleaming in the moonlight. It had a strangely skeletal look about it, as though it was a resurrected wreck, and the dim, misty lights shimmering at it's portholes looked like ghostly eyes. Finally with a great sloshing noise, the ship emerged entirely, bobbing on the wavy water and began to glide towards the bank. A few minutes later, we heard the splash of an anchor being thrown into the shallows, and the thud of a plank being lowered onto the bank.
People were walking slowly off the boat onto the bank. All of them seemed to be built like Crabbe and Goyle... but as they drew closer, I saw that the bulk was really due to the fact that they were wearing cloaks of some kind of shaggy, matted fur. But the man leading them up to the castle was wearing a different sort of fur: sleek and soft, like his hair.
"Dumbledore!" he called heartily as he walked up the stone steps. "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 doors of the castle, we saw he was a thin man like Dumbledore, and his goatee (ending in a little curl- I really wanted to laugh at it! It was ridiculous! But I refrained myself...barely...) didn't hide his weak chin. When he reached Dumbledore, he shook his hand with both of his own.
"Dear old Hogwarts," he said, looking at the castle and smiling. His teeth were really yellow. I saw Nudge sticking her tongue out and miming getting sick.
I noticed that Karkaroff's smiles didn't quite reach his eyes- not the way Dumbledore's did. Karkaroff's eyes remained cold and lifeless. "How good it is to be here, how good..." Karkaroff went in. "Viktor, come along, into the warmth... you don't mind, Dumbledore? Viktor has a slight head cold..."
Karkaroff beckoned one of his students forward. As the boy passed, I saw the curved nose, the thick dark eyebrows. I didn't really need the punch in the arm from Ron, or the hiss in my ear to know who he was (he was punching all of us, and whispering who the boy was to everyone in our group).
"Max- It's Krum!"
And here it it!
I am very sorry this took so long! I'm really enjoying my summer holidays, and I'm busy babysitting and doing other things. Also, I have recently become addicted (once again) to Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Anyone else watch it? I looooooooooooooooove it! I really like Zuko now, before I hated him, but now I love him!
Anyway, I hope the chapter was enjoyable and everyone liked their butterbeer and cookies ;)
Oh anyone here read the Mortal Instruments books? I read the first one, and bought the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th a few days ago. But I'm reading another now (Inkdeath from the Inkheart series- anyone read them?) so I can't start the others yet. Are they any good? I liked the 1st one so I hope I like the others too :)
I'm going swimming tonight for the first time in like, 3 years! and I live 5 minutes away from the beach, and an indoor swimming pool! I'm so excited! We're going to the swimming pool, though. We're not swimming in the ocean at night- I'm never doing that again!
Some people are saying they can't wait for the Yule Ball and I can't wait to write it! But it's in another 8 chapters so you'll have to be patient! I'll try and be really fast so we can read about the Yule Ball faster! I promise!
Anyway, like always, when you review you get free butterbeer and cookies! and because it's summer, have some ice cream too! So...
REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!
LoVe YoU! x
-Rach ;)