AUTHORS NOTE! :P
I AM SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SORRRRRRRRY! PLEASE DON'T HATE ME!
It's been over a month, and I am so sorry, but I've just been so busy with school, and gaelic, and everything else, but I hope it doesn't go this long again. I am really sorry :(
Thanks for all the reviews, alerts and favourites :) I love you guys :) Can we please get to over 300 reviews by the chapter with the Pensieve in it? Pleeeeeease? I would love you all!
If this takes as long as the last chapter (which I really hope it won't...) I'm sorry but also this chapter is loooooong! So if it take's like, a million years like the last chapter, please don't hate me :(
Now to answer some reviews... :)
Arkell26: aw that sucks :/ my sister feel on salad and broke her elbow haha :)
AnikaandAj: good that you appreciate the cake haha :) Yeah, it was a filler chapter but now it's the second task! :O
Courtney DiLaurentis: updating, updating, updating! :D
FlyForver: haha gotta love it when Neville falls into it :D
Guest: patience, my dear reader, patience...
KatnissMaximum: I know and it's really annoying and it must be really annoying for you guys too, but for some reason I always get the two mixed up...but I'm working on it!
SevLoverKat: Because if Harry looked at the map, he would of seen who he really was.
Oh, who else loves Batman? He's freaking awesome!
Now, on with the chapter!
Enjoy!
-Rach ;)
Max's POV
"You said that you worked it out!" Hermione said indignantly.
"Keep your voice down!" Harry snapped. "I just need to- sort of fine-tune it, all right?"
The six of us were sitting at the very back of Charms class with a table to ourselves. We were supposed to be practising the opposite of a Summoning Charm today- a Banishing Charm. Because of the potential of someone getting seriously injured in this class, Professor Flitwick gave each student a set of cushions to practice. It was a good idea, but it wasn't working very well. Neville's aim was so bad that he kept sending much heavier objects across the room- like Professor Flitwick.
"Forget about the egg for a minute!" I said as Flitwick went flying passed us and landed on top of a large cabinet. "We're trying to tell you about Moody and Snape."
This was the ideal class for a private conversation, because everyone was having too much fun to notice us or listen. Me and Harry had been telling the others about what happened for at least half and hour and no one was paying us any attention.
"Snape said that Moody searched his office too?" Iggy said, watching as his cushion hit Parvati's head. "What, so Moody here's to keep an eye on Karkaroff and Snape?"
"Well I don't know if that's what Dumbledore asked him to do, but that's sure what he is doing," Harry said. "Moody said Dumbledore only lets Snape stay because he gave him a second chance or something..."
"What?" Ron said, his eyes widening. "Harry...Maybe Moody thinks that Snape put your name into the goblet!"
"Ron," Hermione said, shaking her head, "We thought Snape was trying to kill Harry before, and it only turned out that he was saving his life, remember?"
She banished her cushion and it flew right into the box that we were meant to be putting the cushions into. I looked at Hermione. It was true that Snape had saved Harry's live before, but it was still strange because Snape definitely hated us all, just like he hated my father, Sirius, Harry's father James, and the other Marauders when they went to school together. Snape loved taking points from us, and has certainly never missed the opportunity to give us punishments, or even to suggest that we be suspended from the school.
"I don't care what Moody says," Hermione said. "Dumbledore isn't stupid. He's right to trust Hagrid and Professor Lupin even when most people wouldn't have given them jobs, so why wouldn't he be right about Snape? Even if he is a bit-"
"Evil," Fang said simply. "Come on Hermione, why would all those Dark wizard catches be searching his office then?"
"Why was Mr Crouch pretending to be ill?" Hermione said, ignoring Fang. "It's a bit funny isn't it, that he can't manage to come to the Yule Ball, but he can get up here in the middle of the night and search someone's office?"
"You just don't like Crouch because of what he did to Winky," Iggy said, sending his cushion straight through the window.
"You lot just want to think that Snape is up to something," Hermione said.
"I want to know what Snape did with his first chance to have to get a second one," I said, my cushion landing neatly on top of Hermione's.
Just like Sirius asked, that night Harry and I wrote to him telling him about the night before, with Crouch breaking into Snape's office, and Snape and Moody's conversation. After Freedom left with the letter (we still weren't using Hedwig), we turned to the most important issue at hand: how Harry was going to survive underwater for an hour.
"Of course, the most ideal solution would be to Transfigure yourself into a submarine or something," Hermione said. "If only we'd done human transfiguration already! But I don't think we start that till sixth year, and it can go badly wrong if you don't know what you're doing..."
"Yeah, I don't really want to have to walk around with a periscope sticking out of my head," Harry said. "I s'pose I could always attack someone in front of Moody...he'd probably do it for me."
"I don't think he'd let you choose what you wanted to turn into, though," Hermione said seriously, "No, I think your best chance is some sort of charm."
So the six of us headed to the library, and buried ourselves in the books. I had enough of the library to last me a lifetime. We buried ourselves in massive dusty volumes, looking for a spell that would help Harry breath under water for an hour. However, even though there were six of us searching (and Nudge would help us sometimes) during breaks, at lunch, evenings, and whole weekends- Harry even asked Professor McGonagall for a note to use the Restricted Section, and even asked the vulture-like librarian Madam Pince for help- we still found nothing whatsoever.
I could tell that Harry was getting nervous again, and so was I. I found that every time I passed a window, the large dark lake would catch my eye.
Just like before the first task, it seemed like time was going much too fast. There was a week to go until February twenty-fourth (still time for Harry to figure it out)...there were five days (we were bound to find something soon)...three days (please let us find something...please...)
Two days to go, and I noticed that Harry started going off food again. The only good thing about breakfast on Monday was that Freedom came back with a reply from Sirius, the shortest answer that we've ever gotten back for him.
Send date for next Hogsmeade weekend by return owl as soon as possible.
I turned it over, hoping to see something else, but it was blank. "Weekend after next," Fang said, reading the letter over my shoulder.
"Here, take, my quill and send it back straight away," Hermione said, handing me her quill. I took it in my left hand and quickly scribbled down when the next Hogsmeade weekend was and tied it to Freedom's leg. I gave him some of my cereal and toast, then some water. He nipped at my fingers affectionately, and I watched him fly away.
"What's he want to know when the next Hogsmeade weekend is?" Ron asked.
"Dunno," I said. The tiny bit of happiness that had flared inside me at the sight of the owl disappeared. "Come on...we have Care of Magical Creatures..."
Whether Hagrid was trying to make up for the Blast-Ended Skrewts, or because there was only two of them left, or because he was trying to prove that he could do anything Professor Grubbly-Plank could, I didn't know, but Hagrid had been continuing on with the lessons on unicorns ever since he came back to work. It turned out that Hagrid knew quite as much about unicorns as he did about monsters, though it was obvious that he found their lack of fangs and claws disappointing.
Today he had managed to capture two unicorn foals. Instead of bright white, the foals were gold. I had to admit, they were freaking adorable and I said "Aw," along with all the other girls. I may be able to kick anyone's ass from here to next Tuesday, but I still found things cute. Like little baby unicorns for example, and owls, and Harry's eyes-
Okay, I never said that. Let's continue.
"Easier ter spot then adults," Hagrid was explained to the class. "They turn silver when they're abou' two years old, an' they grow horns at aroun' four. Don' go pure white till they're full grown, 'round about seven. They're a bit more trustin' when they're babies...don' mind boys as much...C'mon, move it a bit, yeh can pet 'em if yeh want...give 'em a few o' these sugar lumps..."
While everyone swarmed around the baby unicorns, Hagrid walked over to us.
"You okay, Harry?" Hagrid asked. I could tell that Hagrid wanted to talk to Harry on his own, but he didn't want to say it, so I grabbed the others and dragged them closer over to the unicorn. I could still hear what they were saying though.
"Yeah," Harry said.
"Jus' nervous, eh?" Hagrid said, smiling warmly.
"Bit," Harry said.
"Harry," Hagrid said, "I'd've bin worried before I saw yeh take on tha Horntail, but I know now that yeh can anythin' yeh set yer mind ter. I'm not worried at all. Yeh're goin' ter be fine. Got yer clue worked out, haven' yeh?"
I looked over my shoulder and saw Harry nod, a strained grin on his face.
"Yeh're goin' ter win," Hagrid said, smiling proudly, patting Harry's shoulder. "I know it. I can feel it. Yeh're goin' ter win."
Harry smiled again, then told Hagrid that he wanted to see the unicorns closer and then he walked over to us, quieter then usual.
It was the evening before the second task, and Harry seemed to be doing his best not to panic. Even if he did find something suitable for breathing under water, he'd have to master it overnight, something we aren't very good at doing.
The seven of us (Nudge was helping us) sat in the library as the sun set, tearing through pages, trying to find something, anything in the old books. I kept cracking my neck, trying to get the stiffness out of it. It's been stiff for days, especially at the sides. I rubbed my neck and looked back at the old books. My heart leapt every time I saw the word `water' on a page, put it was always just `add a teaspoon of water' or `take a pint of water'. Nothing that was useful to use in any way.
"I reckon that it can't be done," Iggy said, closing the huge book he had been looking through. He still wasn't as good at reading as the rest of us, having only gotten his eye sight back four years ago, but he was improving all the time. "Closest thing I found was how to drain puddles ponds with a Drought Charm. If you want to try that on the lake, go ahead, but I don't think it will work," he finished in a very sarcastic voice.
"There much be something," Hermione said, moving the candle closer to her. Her eyes were so tired that she was practically nose to nose with the page. "They would never have given a task that was undoable."
"Course they would," Ron said. "Harry listen, all you can do is go down to the lake tomorrow, stick your head in the lake and yell at the merpeople to give back whatever they took. Best thing to do, mate."
"There's a way of doing it," Hermione said determinedly. "There has to be!"
She seemed to be taking the library's lack of information as a personal insult. It's never failed her before.
"I know what I should of done," Harry said, lying down with his head on a book. "I should have learned to become an Animagus, like Sirius."
An Animagus was a wizard that could turn into an animal of their choice any time they wanted.
"Yeah, you could turn into a goldfish anytime you wanted," Nudge yawned.
"Or a frog," Harry said. He looked exhausted. We all did. None of us ever looked this bad when we were on the run with Jeb.
"Oh, come on. It would take years to become an Animagus," Fang said, leaning back in his chair.
"And you have to register and everything," Hermione said. We all stared at her. "Remember? McGonagall told us that you have to register with the Improper Use of Magic Office...what animal you become, your makrings. So you don't abuse it."
"Hermione I was joking," Harry said. "I know that I haven't a hope in becoming a frog by tomorrow morning."
"This is bloody useless," I said, snapping shut Weird Wizarding Dilemmas. "Who the hell wants to grow their nose hairs into ringlets?"
"I wouldn't mind it," came Fred's voice from behind the book cases. "It would be a conversation starter, wound't it?"
We looked around and saw Fred and George emerge from behind the bookcases.
"What are you two doing here?" Iggy asked.
"Looking for you lot," Fred said. "McGonagall wants to see you all. Well, all of you except for Harry."
"Why?" Nudge asked, surprised. "Are we in trouble? What did we do? I didn't do anything." She looked at us, glaring. "If you lot did something to get me into trouble, I will kill you."
"We dunno why she wants you," George said. "She looked quite grim though."
"We're supposed to take you to her office," Fred said.
We stared at Harry, who looked back with wide eyes. Was McGonagall going to give out to us for helping Harry? Was she going to tell us to let him figure it out on his own?
"We'll meet you back in the common room, okay?" I asked, standing up. He nodded, giving me a strained grin.
"Bring as much books back as you can," Hermione said as we walked out of the library.
"Right," Harry said.
We stood outside McGonagall's office, not really wanting to go in. We could hear voices inside.
"Good luck," Fred said, winking, as him and George walked off.
I knocked on the door, and heard, "Come in." But it wasn't McGonagall's voice- it was Dumbledore's.
I opened the door and we piled in. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Madame Maxime, Karkaroff, Ludo Bagman and Percy Weasley were standing against the wall, and Cho Chang and a little girl that looked like Fleur's little sister were sitting in chairs, looking slightly nervous.
"Ah, we can get started," Dumbledore said, rubbing his hands together. He seemed to be in his usual, cheerful, insane mood, but the twinkle was missing from his eyes.
"This is about the second task tomorrow. The champions are going to have to retrieve something that the merpeople took from them at the bottom of the lake. They will have one hour to do so. Those things they have to retrieve will be you."
We stared at him.
"I apologise, only four of you will be doing this. Miss Chang, Miss Delacour, Miss Granger and Miss Ride," Dumbledore said.
"Then why are we here, sir?" Fang asked.
Dumbledore looked at Percy, who said, "It seems that you have been helping Mr Potter too much. It would best if he figured it out on his own." Dumbledore looked like he was trying not to glare at Percy. Well, I did glare at Percy, who pretended not to notice.
"So we have to stay under water for an hour until someone finds us?" I asked.
"Yes, but there will be no way for anyone of you to drown. I shall place the four of you under a bewitched sleep, and the merpeople will make sure that nothing will happen to you," Dumbledore said. He turned to Fang, Iggy, Ron and Nudge. "Now, you four. You are to return to the Gryffindor common room, and go straight to bed. You have to do your best to avoid Harry, or he'll be asking questions."
They nodded, looked at us, Nudge smiling at us nervously, then they walked out.
"Who are we all going to be er- hostages for?" Hermione asked after Ron closed the door.
"Oh yes, of course. Miss Granger, you shall be, as you call it, a hostage for Mr Krum."
Hermione blushed a deep red and looked down at her feet. Karkaroff didn't look too happy about it.
"Miss Chang, you shall be waiting on Mr Diggory. Miss Delacour, your sister will be getting you, and Miss Ride, you're Mr Potter's hostage," Dumbledore explained as Madame Maxime translated to Fleur's sister the words she didn't know.
I blushed. They thought I was the thing Harry would miss most? Me? Where the hell did they pull that from?
"What happens if we aren't found in the hour?" Hermione asked.
"Absolutely nothing. If you aren't found in the provided time, the merpeople will bring you back to the surface. There is honestly no danger to any of you," McGonagall said.
"If any of you do not want to participate, no one will blame you. You don't not have to do this if you do not want to," Dumbledore said. No one moved. He smiled. "Excellent. Now, if you wouldn't mind, I think it's time to start with the bewitched sleep. I'll start with Miss Chang."
He walked over to Cho, who gave a nervous grin. He waved his wand and muttered under his breath, then Cho slumped in her seat, asleep. Dumbledore then did the same spell on Fleur's sister, who fell straight asleep too. Then he turned to Hermione, who shuffled her feet nervously before falling to the ground, fast asleep.
"Why did you pick me?" I blurted as Dumbledore turned towards me.
"Pardon?" he asked.
"Why did you pick me as Harry's hostage?" I asked, looking up at him. He smiled warmly.
"At first, we weren't sure which of you to choose. We were close to choosing Mr Weasley, but then I saw you and Harry dancing together at the Yule Ball. I'm sure that you are the thing he will miss most."
I stared at him, trying not to grin. The last thing that crossed my mind before I fell into darkness was that I was the thing that Harry would miss the most.
Harry's POV
By nine o'clock, Madam Pince had extinguished the lamps and was ushering me out the door. Stumbling over the weight of the many books, I made my way slowly back to the common room. It was empty when I got in, so I pulled a table in the corner and continued to search through the books. There was nothing in Madcap Magic for Wacky Warlocks...nothing in A Guide to Medieval Sorcery...not one mention of anything to do with water in An Anthology of Eighteenth-Century Charms...
Crookshanks climbed onto my lap, curled up and started purring loudly. By ten to midnight, Ron, Hermione, Max, Iggy, Fang and Nudge hadn't come back. (AN: to avoid confusion, they're all in their dormitories, and Harry doesn't go up there)
It's over, I told myself. I can't do it. I'll just have to go down to the lake tomorrow morning and tell the judges...
I imagined myself going down there in the morning, explaining that I couldn't do the task. I pictured Bagman's round, surprised eyes, Karkaroff's satisfied grin. I could almost hear Fleur's voice saying, "I knew it...'e is too young, 'e is only a little boy..." I saw Malfoy flashing his POTTER STINKS! badge at the front of the crowd, I saw Hagrid's crestfallen, disbelieving face...I saw Max's disappointed expression...
Forgetting that Crookshanks was on my lap, I stood up fast. Crookshanks hissed angrily as he landed on the floor, gave me a disgusted look, then stalked up the stairs with his tail in the air, but I was already walking over to the couch to get my bag. I opened it and pulled out my Invisibility Cloak and threw it over me. Checking that I was completely covered, I walked out of the common room. I was going to go back to the library and stay there all night if I had to.
"Lumos!" I whispered ten minutes later when I stood outside the library door.
Wand tip alight, I crept along the bookshelves, pulling down more and more books, each ones that I hoped would hold the answers I needed...books on merpeople, on water, on charms, on water monsters, on famous witches or wizards, or magical inventions, on anything at all that might include one passing reference to breathing underwater. I carried all the books over to a table and set them down, and started searching...again.
Every now and then, I'd check my watch...one in the morning...two in the morning...the only way I could keep going was to tell myself that it was in the next one, in the next one...
The mermaid was laughing. I was bobbing like a cork in the water next to her, while he held my Firebolt over my head.
"Come and get it!" she giggled. "Come on, jump!"
"I can't!" I panted, snatching at the Firebolt, and struggling not to drown. "Give it to me!"
But she just poked me painfully in the ribs with the end of the broomstick, laughing at me.
"Ouch- that hurts- get off- ow-"
"Harry Potter must wake up sir!"
"Stop poking me-"
"Dobby must poke Harry Potter, sir, he must wake up!"
I opened my eyes. I was still in the library; the Invisibility Cloak had slipped off my head as I slept, and the side of my face was stuck to the pages of a book. I sat up, straightening my glasses, blinking in the sudden sun light.
"Harry Potter needs to hurry!" Dobby squeaked. "The second task starts in ten minutes, and Harry Potter-"
"Ten minutes? Ten- ten minutes?" I croaked.
I looked down at my watch. Dobby was right. It was twenty past nice. My stomach dropped right to the ground.
"Hurry, Harry Potter!" squeaked Dobby, pulling at my sleeve. "You is supposed to be down at the lake with the other champions, sir!"
"It's too late, Dobby," I said hopelessly. "I can't do the task. I don't know how-"
"Harry Potter will do the task!" Dobby said. "Dobby knew Harry Potter had not found the right book, so Dobby did it for him!"
"But you couldn't have. You don't know what the second task is."
"Dobby knows, sir! Harry Potter has to go into the lake and find his Birdie-"
"Find my what?"
"-and take his Birdie back from the merpeople!"
"What's a Birdie?"
"Your Birdie, sir. The girl that flies, Harry Potter. With the yellow hair, sir."
"What?" I gasped, my heart beating fast. "They've got...they've got Max?"
"The thing Harry Potter will miss most, sir!" Dobby said, pulling on my sleeve again. "`But past an hour-'"
"-`the prospects black,'" I finished, remembering the song. "`Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.' Dobby-what do I have to do?"
"You has to eat this, sir!" squeaked the elf. He put his hand into the pocket of his shorts and drew out a ball of what looked like slimy, greenish-greyish rat tails. "Right before you go into the lake, sir! Gillyweed!"
"What's it do?" I asked, staring at the gillyweed.
"It will make Harry Potter breathe under water, sir!"
"Dobby," I said frantically, "Are you sure about this?"
I couldn't but think that the last time Dobby tried to help me, I ended up with no bones in my right arm.
"Dobby is quite sure, sir!" Dobby said. "Dobby hears things, sir, he is a house-elf, he goes all over the castle as he lights fires and mops floors. Dobby heard Professor McGongall and Professor Moody talking in the staff room...Dobby cannot let Harry Potter loose Biride!"
My doubts vanished. Jumping to my feet, I pulled the Invisibility Cloak off me, stuffed it into my bag, grabbed the gillyweed and put it into my pocket, then I sprinted out of the library with Dobby at my heels.
"Dobby is supposed to be in the kitchens, sir!" Dobby squealed as we burst into the corridor. "Dobby will be missed- good luck, Harry Potter sir!"
"See you later Dobby!" I called as I sprinted down the stairs, three at a time.
The entrance hall contained a few last minute stragglers, all leaving the Great Hall after breakfast and heading through the oak doors to watch the task. They stared as I rushed past, calling back apologized when I banged into someone.
As I ran down the lawn towards the lake, I saw that the seats that had been surrounding the dragon enclosure were not spread around the bank. The excited babble of the crowd echoed strangely across the water as I ran, flat-out towards the judges, who were sitting at another gold-draped table at the water's edge. Cedric, Fleur and Krum were standing beside the table, watching me as I sprinted towards them.
"I'm...here..." I panted, skidding to a stop beside the table and accidentally splattering mud all over Fleur's robes.
"Where have you been?" asked a disapproving, bossy voice. "The tasks about to start!"
I looked around. Percy Weasley was sitting at the judges table- Mr Crouch had failed to turn up again.
"Now, now Percy," said Ludo Bagman, who looked a bit too relieved to see me. "Let the boy catch his breath."
Dumbledore smiled at me, but Karkaroff and Maxime didn't look too happy to see me at all. It was obvious from the looks on their faces that they thought I wasn't going to come.
I bent over, hands on my knees, gasping for breath. I had a stitch in my side that felt like a knife went between my ribs, but there was no time to get rid of it. Ludo Bagman was now walking among the champions, spacing them out along the bank with ten feet between each champion. I was at the end of the line, next to Krum who was wearing swimming trunks and had his wand ready.
"Alright Harry?" Bagman whispered. "Know what you're going to do?"
"Yeah," I panted, massaging my ribs. He gave me a quick squeeze on the shoulder and went back to the judges' table; he pointed his wand at his throat, like he did at the world cup, and said, "Sonorus!" and his voice echoed all around the lake.
"Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have exactly one hour to recover what has been taken from them. On the count of three, then. One..."
I looked over at the crowd. The noise seemed to dim down.
"Two..."
I still couldn't see any of my friends. I looked around the crowd again, and spotted a flash of fiery red hair, and a bit of dark black hair-
"Three!"
The whistle echoed shrilly across the cold, still air; the stands erupted with cheers and applause; without looking to see what the other champions were doing, I reached down and pulled off my socks and shoes, threw them behind me, then I pulled out of the gillyweed from my pocket and stuffed it into my mouth. As I chewed on it, I waded out to the lake. The sound of the cheers dimmed as if I had suddenly gone deaf, and all I feel was the cold water seeping through my clothes.
It was so cold I could feel the skin on my legs searing as if they were in fire, not icy water. My sodden robes weighed me down as I walked in deeper; now the water was over my knees and my rapidly numbing feet were slipping over the slimy rocks. I was chewing the gillyweed as fast and as hard as I could; it felt rubbery and slimy and reminded me of octopus tentacles. Waist deep in the water I stopped, swallowing, and waited for something to happen.
I could hear laughter coming from the crowd and knew that I looked incredibly stupid, walking into the middle of lake and not showing any magical power. The part of me that as still dry was covered in goosebumps; half immersed in the icy water, a cruel breeze was making my dark hair go everywhere and I started shivering violently. I avoided looking at the stands; the laughter was becoming louder and there were catcalls and jeers, which I'm guessing was coming from the Slytherins.
Suddenly, I felt like there was an invisible pillow covering my nose and mouth. I tried drawing breath, but it just made my head spin; my lungs were empty and there was a piercing pain in my neck...
I clapped my hands around my throat and felt two large slits just below my ears, flapping in the cold wind...I had gills. Without pausing to think, I dived straight into the water.
The first gulp of icy lake water felt like a breath of live. My head stopped spinning and my lungs didn't feel like they were on fire anymore. I took another gulp of water and felt it pass smoothly through my gills, sending oxygen back to my brain. I stretched out my hands in front of me ans stared at them. They looked green and ghostly under the water, and they were webbed. I twisted around and looked at my bare feet- they had become webbed too. It looked like I got flippers.
The water didn't feel cold any more. I actually felt cool and light. I struck out again, amazed at how fast and how far my flipper-feet took me through the water, and noticing how clearly I could see, and how I didn't have to blink. I had swum so far into the lake that I could no longer see the bottom. I flipped over and dived straight down.
Silence pressed down on my ears as I soared over the dark, strange, foggy landscape. It kinda felt like I was flying, except I didn't have a broomstick. So maybe this was what Max was always making a fuss about...
I could only see about ten feet around me, so as I sped through the water, new scenes would suddenly come out of the looming darkness- forests of rippling, black weed, wide plains of mud littered with dull, glistening stones. I swam deeper and deeper, right into the middle of the lake, my eyes wide open.
Small fish flickered past me like silver darts. Once or twice I thought I saw something bigger then the fish in front of me, but when I got closer, I discovered that it was only a log, or a dense lump of weed. There were no sign of any of the other champions, merpeople, Max- or thankfully, the giant squid.
Light green weed stretched out in front of me as far as I could see, two feet deep, like a meadow of overgrown grass. I stared unblinkingly ahead of me, trying to figure out the shapes in the gloom- then without warning, something grabbed hold of my ankle.
I twisted around quickly and saw a grindylow, a small, horned creature, poking out from the weed, it's long fingers clutching my ankle with bruising force, it's sharp fangs bared- I stuck my webbed hand into my robes and fumbled to get my wand. By the time I got a hold on it, two more grindylow's rose from the weed and grabbed onto my robes, trying to drag me down to the bottom of the lake-
"Relashio!" I shouted, but no sound came out. Instead, a stream of large bubbles came from my mouth, and instead of my wand sending sparks at the grindylows, it pelted them with a jet of boiling water. Where it struck them, red angry patches appeared on their green skin. I pulled my ankle out of the grindylow's grip and swam on as fast as I could, occasionally sending more jets of hot water over my shoulder at random; every now and then I'd feel a grindylow grabbing at my foot and I'd kick out, hard; finally, I felt my foot connect with the grindylows face and looked back to see a dazed grindylow floating away while the others shook their fists angrily at me before swimming away.
I slowed down a little, and slipped my wand clumsily back into my robes. I looked around, listening. I turned in a full circle in the water, the silence pressing even harder against my eardrums. I knew I was even deeper into the lake now, but nothing was moving except for the weed...
"How are you getting on?"
I jumped (although I have no idea how I jumped in the water but I still managed it somehow) and looked behind me to see Moaning Myrtle floating in the water, gazing at me.
"Myrtle!" I tried to shout, but once again, nothing came out of my mouth but bubbles. Moaning Myrtle actually giggled.
"You want to try over there," Myrtle said, pointing to my right. "I won't come with you...I don't like them much, they always chase me what I get too close..."
I gave her the thumbs up to show my thanks and set off in the direction she pointed me in, careful to swim a bit higher over the weed to avoid any more grindylows.
I swam on for about twenty minutes, passing over wide expanses of black mud which swirled murkily as I disturbed the water. Then, finally, I heard a snatch of haunting mersong.
"An hour long you'll have to look,
And to recover what we took..."
I swam faster then before and soon saw a large rock emerge out of the muddy water ahead. It had paintings of merpeople on it; they were all carrying spears and chasing what seemed to be the giant squid. I swam past the rock, following the mersong.
"...you're time's half gone, so tarry not,
Lest what you seek stay here to rot..."
A cluster of stone dwellings loomed ahead out of the gloom on all sides. Here and there at the dark windows, I saw faces...faces that bore no resemblance to the beautiful mermaid on the window in the prefects bathroom...
The merpeople had greyish skin and long, dark green hair. There eyes were yellow, as were their broken teeth, and they wore pieces of rope and pebbles around their necks. They leered at me as I passed- one or two of them even got out of their caves to watch me swim passed, their powerful fish tails beating the water, spears clutched in their hands.
I sped on, staring around, hoping to catch a glimpse of Max, but soon the dwellings became more numerous; there were gardens of weed around some of them, and I even saw one had a pet grindylow tied to a stake outside a door. That was just freaky.
Merpeople were emerging from all sides now, watching me eagerly and pointing at my webbed hands and feet, talking behind their hands to one another. I sped around a corner and a very strange sight met my eyes.
A whole crowd of merpeople were floating in front of the houses that lined what looked like a mer-version of a village square. A choir of merpeople were singing in the middle, calling the champions towards them, a crude statue behind them;a gigantic merperson carved from a boulder. Four people were bound tightly to the tail of the merperson.
Max was tied between Hermione and Cho Chang, and beside Cho was a girl that had to be Fleur's sister. The four of them appeared to be in a deep sleep, with their heads lolling against their shoulders and a stream of bubbles kept issuing out of their mouths.
I sped towards the hostages, half expecting the merpeople to come charging at me with their spears, but they did nothing. The ropes of weed that was tying the hostages to the statue was thick and slimy, and very strong. For a fleeting moment I thought of the knife Sirius sent me for Christmas- locked in my trunk in the school a quarter of a mile away, absolutely useless to me now. Then I remembered that Sirius gave one to Max too. I searched her pockets quickly, but it turned out she didn't have it with her either.
I looked around desperately. Many of the merpeople surrounding me were carrying spears. I swam towards a seven-foot-tall merman with a long green beard and a choker of shark fangs and I tried to mime a request to borrow his spear. The merman laughed and shook his head.
"We do not help," he said in a harsh, cold voice.
"Come ON!" I snapped fiercely (but only bubbles came from my mouth) and I tried to pull the spear desperately from the merman, but the merman yanked it back, shaking his head and laughing.
I swirled around, looking for something, anything...
There were rocks littering the lake bottom. I dived straight down and snatched up a jagged rock and returned to the statue. I began hacking at the ropes around Max's ankle's, and finally after a few minutes' hard work, they broke apart. Max floated, unconscious, a few inches from the lake bottom.
I looked around. There was no sign of any of the other champions. What were they doing? Why didn't they hurry up? I looked back at Hermione, and raised the jag rock, and began hacking at her ropes too-
Straight away, strong grey hands grabbed my arms, pulling me away from Hermione, shaking their heads and laughing.
"You take your own hostage," one said, nodding towards Max. "Leave the others."
"No way!" I said furiously- but only two large bubbles came out.
"Your task if to retrieve your friend. Leave the others."
"She's my friend too!" I said, pointing at Hermione, an enormous bubble emerging soundlessly from my lips. "And I don't want them to die either!"
Cho's head was on Hermione's shoulder, and Fleur's sister was was ghostly green and pale. Max's hair was in front of her face and in the gloom, her usual dark blonde hair looked black. I struggled to fight off the mermen, but they just laughed harder then before and held me even tighter. I looked around widly. Where were the other champions? Would I have to take Max back to the surface and come back for the others? Would I even be able to find them again? I looked down at my watch to see how much time I had left- it had stopped working.
But then the merpeople started pointing excitedly over my head. I looked up and saw Cedric swimming towards us. There was an enormous bubble around his head, and it made his features seem oddly wide and stretched.
"Get lost!" he mouthed. "Fleur and Krum are coming now!"
Feeling enormously relieved, I watched Cedric pull a knife out of his pocket and he freed Cho. He pulled her towards him and they vanished from sight.
I looked around. Where was Fleur and Krum? Time was getting short, according to the song, and the hostages would be lost after an hour...
Suddenly, the merpeople started shrieking. The merpeople holding me loosened their grip and looked behind them. I turned and saw something monstrous cutting through the water towards us: a human body in swimming trunks with the head of a shark...it was Krum. He had Transfigured himself- but very badly.
The shark-man swam straight at Hermione and began snapping and biting at her ropes; the trouble was that Krum's new teeth were positioned very awkwardly for biting anything smaller then a dolphin, and I was sure that if Krum wasn't careful, he'd rip Hermione in half. Darting forward, I hit Krum hard on the shoulder and held up the jagged rock. Krum grabbed it and began to cut Hermione free. Within seconds, he had done it; he grabbed Hermione around the waist and without a backward glance, he began to rise rapidly towards the surface.
Now what? I thought desperately. If I just knew that Fleur was coming...but there was still no sign of her. There was nothing to be done except...
I snatched up the stone, which Krum had dropped, but the mermen now closed in around Max and the little girl, shaking their heads at them. I pulled out my wand.
"Get out of the way!"
Only bubbles flew out of my mouth, but I had a distinct impression that the mermen understood, because they suddenly stopped laughing. Their yellowish eyes were fixed on my wand, and they looked scared. There might be a lot more of them then there were of me, but they probably didn't know any more magic then the giant squid did.
"You've got until three!" I shouted; a giant stream of bubbles burst from my mouth, but I held up three fingers to make sure they got the message. "One..." (I put down a finger) "Two..." (I put down the second finger)-
They scattered. I darted forward and started hacking at the ropes binding the little girl to the statue, and at last she was free. I grabbed Max around the waist, and held onto the little girl's hand, and kicked off from the bottom of the lake.
It was very slow work. I couldn't use my hands to propel myself forward; I worked my flippers furiously, but Max and Fleur's sister were like potato-filled sacks dragging me down...don't tell Max I said that, or she'll kill me.
I fixed my eyes skyward, though I knew that I was still very deep down, the water above me still very dark.
Merpeople were rising with me. I could see them swirling around me with ease, watching me struggle through the water...Would they pull me back down to the depths when the time was up? My legs were seizing up with the effort to keep swimming...my shoulders were aching with the combined weight of Max and the little girl...
I was drawing breath with great difficulty. I could feel pain in my neck again...I was becoming aware of how wet the water felt in my mouth...yet the darkness was definitely fading...I could see daylight above me...
I kicked hard with my flippers and discovered that they were nothing more then just feet...water was flooding through my mouth into my lungs...I was starting to feel dizzy, but I knew that light and air were only ten feet above me...I had to get there...I had to...
I kicked my legs so fast and so hard that it was as if my muscles were screaming in protest; my brain felt waterlogged, I couldn't breath. I needed oxygen. I had to keep going. I couldn't stop-
And then my head broke the surface of the water. Wonderful, clean air was making my wet face sting. I sucked in the air, letting my breath even out. It was like I never breathed oxygen before, and panting, I pulled up Max and little girl with me. All around me, wild green-haired heads were emerging out of the water, and they were smiling at me.
I looked at Max, who was opening her brown eyes. She saw me and smiled. I beamed back at her, feeling a massive weight lifted from my shoulders.
I had completed the second task. It was done. I did it.
Max's POV
I opened my eyes, blinking in the sudden bright light. I had no idea where I was or what was happening. I was in water, and when I looked around I saw Harry was beside me with his hand around my waist, keeping me up.
Then I remembered- the second task. I looked around again and saw everyone watching us, cheering and clapping.
I looked back to Harry, smiling. He did it. He managed to get me back from the merpeople- not that I was happy about him having to `rescue' me. I was no damsel in distress.
"This is kinda wet," I said, splashing the water. Then I moved through the water to Harry and hugged him. "You did it," I said in his ear. I pulled away, and I saw that he was also holding up another girl- Fleur's sister.
She looked scared and confused. "Why did you bring her?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Fleur didn't show up. I couldn't leave her," Harry panted.
"You moron," I said bluntly. He stared at me. "Oh, Harry, please tell me that you didn't take that song seriously. Dumbledore wasn't going to let any of us drown!"
"The song said-"
"That was just so you did what you had to do in the time limit!" I said. "I hope you didn't waste much time down there trying to save everyone!"
Harry frowned, and I could tell that he felt not only stupid, but annoyed.
"C'mon," he said eventually. "Help me with her. I don't think she can swim very well."
Together, we pulled Fleur's sister through the water, back to the bank where the judges stood waiting, twenty merpeople accompanying them like a guard of honour, singing their terrible screechy songs.
I could see Madam Pomfrey fussing over Hermione, Krum, Cedric and Cho, and of whom were wrapped tightly in thick blankets.
Dumbledore and Ludo Bagman stood beaming and me and Harry from the bank as we swam closer, but Percy, who was looking very white and somehow much younger than usual, came splashing out to meet up. When he got close enough to us, and we were able to stand, he grabbed my arm and helped me up. I stared at him, wondering why he was helping me. Last night he didn't even seem to care what was going to happen.
I gave Percy a small grin, noticing how he looked concerned, but then I turned back around and helped Harry with the little girl. Behind us, Madame Maxime was trying to restrain Fleur, who was hysterical.
"Gabrielle! Gabrielle! Is she alive! Is she 'urt?"
Harry tried to tell her that she was all right, but Fleur managed to break free from Madame Maxime's hold and she was hugging her sister. "It was ze grindylows...zey attacked me...Oh, Gabrielle, I thought...I thought..."
"Come here you," Madame Maxime said. She seized Harry and me and pulled us over to Hermione and the others, wrapped us both in blankets so tightly it felt like I was in a straitjacket, and she forced a measure of very hot potion down my throat. Steam actually gushed from my ears.
"Harry well done!" Hermione said. "You did it, you found out how all by yourself!" Fang, Iggy, Nudge and Ron walked over to us, and they smiled at us.
"Everyone was thinking you guys drowned," Iggy said after hugging me and Harry. "You were nearly ten minutes out of the time limit. Everyone thought you drowned."
Fang gave me one of his lop-sided smiles and gave me a one armed hug. I was something rare from Fang, so I didn't complain.
"So how long did it take you to find out how to do it?" Ron asked.
"Well-" Harry said, put stopped. He was looking at something over my shoulder. I turned around and saw that he was staring at Karkaroff, who was looking at us. He was the only judge that didn't leave the table, or show any signs that he was relieved that me, Harry and Gabrielle were okay. "It didn't take me that long," he said loud enough for Karkaroff to hear him.
"You haff a water beetle in your hair, Herm-own-ninny," Krum said. I had the feeling that Krum was trying to draw her attention back to him; maybe to remind her that he saved her in the lake, but Hermione just pushed the beetle away impatiently and said, "You're well outside the time limit though, Harry...Did it take you long to find us?"
"No, I found you okay..."
Dumbledore was crouching at the water's edge, deep in conversation with what seemed like the chief merperson, a particularly fierce looking female. He was making the same kind of screeching noises that the merpeople made when they were above water. Clearly, Dumbledore could speak Mermish. Finally, he straightened up, turned to his fellow judges and said, "A conference before we give the marks, I think."
The judges went into a huddle. Madame Pomfrey had gone to fetch Fleur and her sister. Fleur had many cuts on her face and arms and her robes were torn, but she didn't seem to care, nor would she allow Madam Pomfrey to clean them.
"Look after Gabrielle," she kept saying, then she turned to me and Harry. "You saved 'er." she said breathlessly. "Even though she was not your 'ostage."
"Yeah," said Harry, looking awkward.
Fleur bent down and kissed Harry once on each cheek. Harry's face went a deep red, and I clenched my teeth. But then Fleur turned to me. "And you too- you 'elped."
"Just a bit," I said, my hands clenched into fists at my sides. Fleur hugged me tightly and thanks us both again. She smiled at the others, then went back to her sister.
Ludo Bagman's magically magnified voice boomed around us, making us all jump, and causing the crowd in the stands to go quiet.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Merchieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake. We have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows...
"Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated great use of the Bubble Head Charm, was attacked by grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award Miss Delacour twenty-five points."
Applause rose from the stands.
"I deserve a zero," Fleur mumbled miserably.
"Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble Head Charm, was the first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the limit of an hour." Enormous cheers rose from the Hufflepuffs in the crowd, and I saw Cho giving Cedric a glowing look. I thought I'd throw up. "We therefore award him forty-seven points."
I saw Harry's face fall. If Cedric had been outside the time limit, Harry definitely had been.
"Viktor Krum used an incomplete Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was second to return with his hostage. We award him forty points."
Karkaroff clapped particularly hard, looking very superior.
"Harry Potter used gillyweed to great effect," Bagman said. "He returned last, and was well outside the time limit on an hour. However, the Merchieftainess informs us that Harry Potter was the first to reach the hostages, and that the delay in his return was due to his determination to save not just his hostage, but to return all the hostages to safety."
We all looked at Harry, smiling.
"Most of the judges," Bagman gave Karkaroff a very nasty look "feels that this shows moral fiber and deserves full marks. However...we award Mr Potter forty-five marks."
Harry's eyes widened. He was now tying with Cedric. We stared at him, then we all started laughing and cheering with the rest of the crowd.
"There you go Harry!" I laughed. "You weren't being stupid- you were showing moral fiber!"
"The third task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June," continued Bagman. "The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely a month before hand. Thank you all for your support of the champions."
It was over, I thought. After all the preparation we put into this, it was over, just like that.
Madam Pomfrey was herding the champions and hostages back to the castle to get into dry clothes. We didn't have to worry about anything until the twenty-fourth of June.
Walking back to the castle, I grinned at Harry, who smiled back. He reached over and took my hand.
Nothing to worry about.
Once again, you guys, I AM TERRIBLY SORRY! I hope no one hates me now, I'm really sorry. Everything's just been really busy, and it was my sisters 21st birthday yesterday and...sorry :( I'll do my best to update faster next time, I promise.
So, can we get 300 reviews by the chapter with the Pensieve? Pretty pretty please with cherries on top?
So, to get cookies and butterbeer, you need to review so...
REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! :D
love you guys :)
-Rach ;)