Updated: September 27th, 2017
Chapter 12: Champions
Friday had come and gone. Saturday, however, seemed to drag on forever. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were still trying to get me to open up about Moody's class. I had no intention of telling them why I left so quickly and changed the subject every time they talked about it. Moody's class went from something to look forward to, to something I dreaded…and I only had it once.
That morning, I had been sitting outside reading with Hermione when the sun disappeared behind dark clouds. We were lucky enough to head into the Great Hall before the downpour began. She led me to a bench where we sat and watched some older students place their name in the Goblet of Fire. Each time, the blue flame roared, accepting the name entered. We applauded softly for each student as they walked away, their heads held a bit higher than before.
My attention went back down to my book until a loud commotion regained my attention. Running in, soaking wet, was Cedric and his friends. They patted his back and urged him forward as he approached the Goblet. The golden line shimmered as he entered the circle and placed his name in the Goblet. Blue flames erupted in acceptance and Cedric, his friends, and the Hogwarts spectators erupted in loud cheers. They all had run out of the Great Hall when Harry and Ron approached us.
"Has anyone besides him put their name in," Ron asked.
"A few of the Durmstrang boys and two or three Beauxbatons girls," I replied as I went back to my book. Aside from Cedric, only a Slytherin boy approach the Goblet.
From behind us, the crowd cheered loudly. The four of us turned to see Fred and George running up, clutching vials of clear liquid. George cheered with them, "Thank you, thank you. Well lads, we've done it."
"Cooked it up just this morning," Fred added as they addresses both Harry and Ron.
"It's not going to work," Hermione told the two in a sing-song voice.
The twins shared a look. They both crouched down to Hermione's level with fake interest written all over their faces. Fred placed his arm on top of my head. I swatted it away playfully. "Oh yeah? And why is that, Granger?"
"You see this," Hermione traced the golden line in the air with her finger. "This is an Age Line. Dumbledore drew it himself."
"So," Fred asked, looking unimpressed.
"So…" she snapped her book shut as she scoffed lightly. "A genius like Dumbledore couldn't possibly be fooled by something pathetically dimwitted such as an age potion."
"That's why it's so brilliant," George smiled widely.
"Because it's pathetically dimwitted," Fred smiled widely.
The two moved away from us and towards the Goblet. Standing close together, they began shaking their vials. The brothers linked arms as they drank from the other's vial. I have to admit I was quivering with anticipation. I watched, fascinated, as they jumped inside the age line. Nothing happened. Harry, Ron, and I joined in the cheering as the two older boys hammed it up for their eager audience. They placed their names in the Goblet and the crowd cheered again as the Goblet roared in acceptance. The two did an adorable victory dance and were all smiles.
Suddenly, there was a loud sizzling sound. The goblet roared as the blue flames shot out and flung them across the room. Forgetting my book, I rushed over with Ron, Harry, and the crowd to see if the Weasley twins were okay. The sound of them landing on the stone floor made me cringe as I pushed my way to the front. When the two recovered, the twins had sprouted identical long grey hair and beards. The whole hall rang with laughter and the boys stared at each other.
"You said…" they gasped collectively. The two rolled around, fighting on the floor. I went to pull the boys apart when the room became silent. I barely caught a glimpse of Victor Krum walking up to the Goblet with his assistant behind him. As he placed his name in the Goblet, he looked to the side and smirked at someone.
I turned back to the two boys on the floor. They had stopped fighting and were now examining their beards. I rolled my eyes good-naturedly. "Alright boys," I said as I tried to heave them up. "Let's get you to Madam Pomfrey."
"I dunno, Cora," George smiled as he stroked his long grey beard. "I kinda like it."
I pushed him towards the door. "Okay, sure…if you want to look like Dumbledore for the rest of the day."
With that said, I accompanied the twins to the hospital wing. When we got there, two students were sitting on beds with long grey beards. The twins and I laughed. Seemed like they weren't the only idiots in the school who tried to put their names in the Goblet. Madam Pomfrey shooed me out of the hospital wing the moment she came out of her office. I wished the twins well and went on my way.
As I walked down the corridor, I rounded the corner to see Angelina Johnson walking my way with a shit-eating grin. The tall black girl's eyes lit up when she saw me. Before I could greet her she said, "I just put my name in!"
My eyes widened in disbelief, "No way?!"
"Yes! My birthday was last week!"
"Well congrats to you, girl! I'm glad someone from our house entered. And you deserve it."
"Thank you, Cora. That means a lot," she smiled even wider.
"Well, better you than that Slytherin boy," I laughed.
Angelina's nose scrunched up in disgust, "Warrington…we cannot have a Slytherin champion."
"Agreed!"
"Hey, so I was on my way to see Alicia and Katie. Want to come along?"
I shrugged, "Sure. I think Harry, Ron, and Hermione will be fine without me for a while."
My older friend smiled as we made our way to the Gryffindor Tower to find her teammates. I spent the rest of my morning and afternoon with the three Chasers, gossiping and talking Quidditch. At half past five it began to grow dark. The three older girls and I decided to go down to the feast. I was sure the hall would be packed since the announcement of the school champions would follow the feast.
When we entered the Great Hall, the giant room was almost full. It was hard, squeezing through all the bodies, but we eventually made it to our table. I parted with the three as I nestled down in between Harry and Seamus. A little ways down I saw Fred and George. They were both clean-shaven and seemed to be taking the disappointment of being rejected rather well.
The whole hall buzzed with nervousness and excitement as the feast dragged on longer than usual. There were impatient looks on everyone's faces as they ignored the food and stared at the Goblet. Finally, after Dumbledore had finished eating, the plates were cleared and the noise level spiked. People stood up in anticipation, making sure they could see over the sea of bodies.
"Sit down please," Dumbledore announced good-naturedly. No one sat and the buzz of excitement hardly died down. "And now, the moment you've all been waiting for…the champions' selection!"
He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave. The candles dimmed and now the Goblet of Fire shined brighter than anything in the Great Hall. The whole hall was washed in the fire's bright blue hue. Now it was quiet. It was the kind of silence where you could quite literally hear a pin drop. The flames in the Goblet suddenly turned red as sparks flew from it. The next moment, a charred piece of parchment shot out and fluttered down to our Headmaster's hand.
"The Durmstrang champion is…Viktor Krum!"
Cheering erupted from the hall. "No surprises there," Ron shouted to me and Harry over the roar.
The Durmstrang boys stamped and made a loud commotion as Krum stood up from the Slytherin table and made his way to the front on the hall. He followed the staff table and disappeared through the door leading to another room. The clapping eventually died down and the Goblet was again the center of attention.
The second parchment fluttered out of the Goblet and Dumbledore caught it delicately. "The Beauxbatons champion…" he announced loudly. "…Fleur Delacour!"
The hall roared again. From the Ravenclaw table I saw a pretty blonde girl rise. She looked like a veela as she gracefully glided passed the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables. The disappointed looks from her fellow schoolmates did not go unnoticed by me or my three friends. One of the girls had even resorted to sobbing. Fleur Delacour disappeared behind the same door as Krum and the hall went quiet once more.
Now, we all awaited the name of the Hogwarts champion. I crossed my fingers in hope that Angelina's name was called. For the third time, the Goblet erupted in a flurry of red sparks, the last parchment fluttering down. It seemed as if time itself had slowed down as Dumbledore caught the parchment.
"And the Hogwarts champion…" I held by breath along with the rest of my schoolmates. "…Cedric Diggory!"
Ron cried out in disappointment but no one heard him. The roar from the Hufflepuff table was enough to rupture one's eardrums. Every single one of them was on his or her feet, screaming Cedric's name as he made his way to the door behind the staff table. I eventually stood in respect for my school champion, cheering as loudly as a Hufflepuff. It got to the point where Harry had to pull me down. I still cheered until Dumbledore had to wave his arms sporadically to get us to shut up.
"Excellent," he stopped moving his arms and held them up in place. "We now have our three champions! But in the end only one will go down in history. Only one will hoist this chalice of champions, this vessel of victory that is the Tri-Wizard Cup!"
It was apparent he had more to say but he was cut off by the Goblet going crazy. Red sparks shot out of the Goblet and a long flame shot up high into the air. Another parchment fluttered out and Dumbledore's hand seized it quicker than before. We all watched in anticipation as his eyes widened in what I thought looked like fear. During the long pause, Dumbledore's hands shook as he looked up, searching through the sea of people. Then, he spoke.
"Harry Potter…"