Updated: September 27th, 2017

Chapter 16: The First Task aka Dragons

Did you know that when you are really dreading something, time has the strange habit of speeding up? The days had passed all too fast and it was time for the first task. Dragons. It just had to be dragons. And Harry just had to let Cedric know. Yeah, I know it was the right thing to do, both being the Hogwarts champion and all. But maybe that slight advantage could have helped my friend. Hermione and I had helped him practice the Summoning Charm for hours. If there was one thing that was going to help Harry in this task, it was gonna be a simple charm.

When Harry was escorted from the Great Hall that morning, Hermione, Ginny, and I wished him luck. I swear I heard him mutter under his breath that all the luck in the world wouldn't help him. It annoyed me that people openly stared as Harry left with Professor McGonagall. They didn't watch as Viktor or Fleur or Cedric left. Deep down, I knew it was because they were waiting to see what Harry was going to do. Most of them wanted him to fail.

When the time came to head to the stadium, I began to feel more nervous. I walked in between Hermione and Ginny as we followed the hundreds upon hundreds of people down the path. All around us, people were talking excitedly and joking around. The three of us were silent, however, as we passed the Champions' Tent into the stadium. Ginny and I started climbing some stairs when Hermione called out to us. She said she had to do something and just left. The youngest Weasley pulled me down an aisle as I shouted back to Hermione that we'd save her a seat. Behind us, Fred and George were yelling and taking bets on the task.

"Don't you have something better to do," I whirled around, shouting at the two.

Fred looked at me with his amused grin as his twin kept shouting bet offers. Two Hufflepuff boys approached George and placed bets that Cedric would win first place. They sneered at us as they walked away. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Whatever makes a profit, dearest Coralynn," George smiled as he pocketed the coins. Before I could do some serious damage, Hermione took the seat next to me; her face looked flush and full of worry.

"I just saw Harry," she whispered to me.

"Oh my god," I gasped. "How is he? What's going on? Did you hear anything?"

My mind was running wild with questions. Hermione cut my thinking off, "I told him to concentrate and to –."

"Yeah, like that's really gonna help him battle a dragon!"

"Well, if you'd let me finish," she huffed. I motioned for her to continue. "I hugged him and then there was this flash. That awful Skeeter woman saw the whole thing! Then she even had the audacity to think – well she thought –"

"Out with it, Hermione!"

"She thought we were in love," I had never seen Hermione's face so red before. She looked like a tomato. I was about to comment, but she continued quickly, "Viktor told her off. He said the tent was for champions and friends."

"Damn…so if Rita Skeeter took your picture then that means you'll be on the front page of the Prophet! I don't know whether to be jealous or concerned."

Hermione shot me an exasperated look. I knew she was going to tell me off but the sound of cannon fire stopped her from doing so. The stadium roared to life. I strained my eyes as the tent flap opened. Cedric emerged, wand in hand. The cheer for the eldest Hogwarts champion was deafening. He stood still as he looked into the crowd and then at the golden egg-shaped prize in the middle of the enclosure. A thunderous roar silenced everyone. We all watched in anticipation as a Swedish Short-Snout dragon popped out of nowhere. Cedric sprang into action. I screamed and gasped along with the crowd as he dodged the creature, just missing its blue flames. He transfigured a rock into a dog, catching the dragon's attention. I didn't realize I was holding my breath until Cedric grabbed the egg, holding it high in the air. I cheered with the rest of the crowd as the dragon was corralled and Cedric's score was given.

A Welsh Green dragon was brought out to the ground. When the cannon went off again, Fleur came out of the tent. She looked determined but it was obvious she was shaking from nerves. The French girl didn't spring into action like Cedric. She walked into the enclosure tentatively. That's when the dragon let out a fiery jet out of its mouth. She was nearly singed as she rolled out of the way. Whatever spell she cast at the dragon didn't seem to work. Instead, the dragon swiped at her with its tail. The next spell she cast hit the dragon directly. It fell to the ground with a loud thud and began snoring. Fleur bolted to the egg in case the dragon woke up. I clapped in respect as the rest of the crowd (mostly the Beauxbaton group) cheered. She had beaten Cedric's time…but that's didn't mean she beat his tactics.

The cannon went off again. Viktor pushed the flap away, staring into the enclosure at the egg. A red and gold blur swiped at the Bulgarian, not wasting time in attacking. This time, instead of me standing and shouting, Hermione jumped to her feet. She screamed at the guy as he tumbled down the rocks below. He looked pissed as he dashed behind a rock, escaping the Chinese Fireball's golden spiked tail. Viktor shouted and his wand shot a pinkish jet at the dragon's face. It emitted a terrible roaring shriek as its eyes swelled, blinding it. Hermione gripped my wrist as the dragon stepped back, crushing some of the eggs it was protecting. Viktor ran through the dragon's legs and dove for the golden egg. There was a roar of applause for the pro Quidditch player.

Then came the moment I was dreading. It was Harry's turn. The cannon went off and Hermione, Ginny, the twins, and I cheered his name. The stadium cheered too. I didn't know if they were cheering for Harry or the dragon, but either way there was a lot of noise for the youngest champion. The golden egg sat in the middle of a small plateau unguarded. Harry made a run for it. The dragon, a Hungarian Horntail, suddenly popped up behind the rocks. Harry jumped behind a rock as it blast flames at him.

"You're wand, Harry," Hermione shouted as she banged on the railing in front of us. "Your wand!"

The dragon was crouching over the egg, daring Harry to come closer. From behind the rock I could see the tip of Harry's wand. I wasn't able to hear him over the sound of the noise but I was sure that Harry had summoned his broom. Then, out of nowhere, the Firebolt soared to Harry. Hermione and I shouted in delight as our friend jumped on and flew off.

"It's another match, Harry," I whispered. "Pretend it's another Quidditch match."

The dragon followed Harry, breathing fire all over the place. Harry kept circling the dragon, trying to make it dizzy. The Horntail was stretched to the chain's limit. With a terrible roar, it yanked itself up, pulling the chain right out of the ground. Screams of terror broke through the stunned silence as the dragon beat its large wings. My shouts of terror mixed with Hermione and Ginny's as Harry took off, leading the dragon away from the stadium. Before doing so, however, the dragon flew right up to where a bunch of non-students were seated. The dragon's tail smashed into the seats, sending debris and unlucky people flying.

I felt the blood drain from my face as the two dots disappeared towards the castle. He could be killed! I tried not to think of the terrible things the dragon could do to my friend. Behind me, Fred and George were whispering about what to do with the money if Harry was incinerated. I turned around and hit Fred in the gut.

"You jerk! Why the hell would you even –"

"LOOK!"

My head spun back around so fast I almost gave myself whiplash. In the distance, something was flying toward the stadium. Harry was bobbing up and down in his broom, leaving a trail of smoke. The arena burst into cheers as Harry flew over the stands. Hermione and I threw ourselves into the others arms, hugging the crap out of each other. Harry dove for the egg, snatching it up and raising it high. The noise was enough to make the deaf hear.

Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Moody rushed down to my friend. Harry had gotten passed the first task alive but not without scratches. The stadium buzzed with excitement; we all wanted to see his scores. It was out of ten from each judge. From down below, Madame Maxime raised her wand and a silvery eight sot out of the tip. Crouch gave Harry a nine. I cheered harder as a silver nine appeared out of Dumbledore's wand. Ludo Bagman, the commentator, gave a ten while Karkaroff gave a four. I swear I heard Ron's voice of protest somewhere. It wasn't just Gryffindor and Harry supporters now. Everyone was standing for Harry. I stared down at my friend as the final tally was given. Fleur came in third, Cedric second, and Harry and Viktor were tied for first. Before being led away, Harry seemed to be looking around the arena, trying to find someone. That's when he caught my gaze. I smiled widely, tears threatening to fall. I nodded my approval to Harry. He seemed to catch my dying anxiety as he nodded back with a lopsided grin. Harry would get through this. I knew it in my heart.