"I don't know what to do, Sirius! It involves the Lake, and by the sound of it, I'm going to need to hold my breath for a very long time," I exclaimed, placing my head in my hands.

Sirius's face crackled in the fire, and he suggested, "Maybe consult the library, I'm sure they have tons of helpful books."

"The library is closed for the night, and tomorrow is the Second Task. Sirius, I don't want to be in this Tournament!"

"I know, but you can't get out of it now. You're the bravest boy I've ever had the privilege to meet, you'll find a way."

"That's not it, there's also this girl-"

"Harry! There's no times for girls, are you insane? I recommend you forget about the girl and continue- I hear someone coming, I'll talk to you soon." Sirius said in a hushed voice, and the flames flickered out. I crossed my arms, wishing my godfather provided more help than what he had just given.

I turned around, and saw, "Dobby?"

Dobby announced, "Dobby is here to help Harry Potter!" I crawled over, and noticed the small plant in his hand.

"Is this it, Dobby?"

"Yes, Dobby brought gillyweed for Harry Potter for his Second Task!"

"What does it do, Dobby?" I asked, but before Dobby could answer, he snapped his fingers and disappeared. Ron and Hermione had entered the Common Room with a confused look on their face. "Guys, what are you doing?" I questioned them, placing the gillyweed in my pocket.

Hermione's eyebrows were furrowed and she replied, "Dumbledore requested us to see him…odd, isn't it?"

"Yes, especially at such a late hour." Ron added, running his hands through his hair.

I began to explain, "Well, wait, I think-"

"Sorry, Harry, but it says it's urgent." Hermione interrupted, giving me a disappointed smile. With those last words, the two left the Common Room, leaving me in my own thoughts.

The next morning, I looked around the dorm, but Ron was not in his bed. Him and Hermione probably went down to the Lake already, I thought to myself, so I changed my clothes rather quickly and headed down to the Black Lake. When I got there, I noticed that Hermione and Ron were not in the stands, but found Danni sitting next to Neville, Draco nowhere in sight. I ran up to her, since I had a few minutes before the Task began.

"Danni! Danni, where's Hermione and Ron?"

She shrugged, and stated, "I haven't seen Ron, Hermione, or Violet since last night."

"Violet too?" I said hopefully, noticeably perking up at the sound of her voice.

"Yeah, but I suggest you go stand by your other competition, because it looks like this is about to start," Danni reminded me, pointing at the other three Champions, who were standing at the edge of the dock. I nodded and turned around, but was stopped when Danni called out, "And Harry?" I looked at her and she continued, "Good luck, you've got this." I grinned and walked over to the others.

Cedric glared at me, but I just averted my eyes, trying not to stoop down to his level.

That's when I heard Crouch's voice being projected throughout the stands, "Alright, time for our Second Task! Champions, you have exactly one hour to retrieve what you value most, which is all the way at the bottom of the Lake. Your score will correlate with who gets back the quickest, so get ready!" Everyone began to clap, and all four champions bent in a ready position to dive in. "Your time starts…now!" Crouch yelled, the stands erupting in cheers.

I gulped, and yanked out my gillyweed, unsure of what would happen to me. Having no other choice, I sucked it all down, and collapsed in the water, shaking, but then, I realized I could breathe. I felt my neck, since it was now sore, and felt gills sucking in water and filtering in the air. Glancing down at my fins, I also noticed they were now flippers. Afraid of what was to come, I sped up, attempting to catch up with everyone else.

As I dove down, the seaweed grew thicker, tickling me. In the distance, I saw four swaying figures attached to ropes. Swimming as fast as ever, I reached them, and took notice of the face. There was a little blonde girl, who resembled the likeness of Fleur, next to her was Hermione, then Ron, then Violet. I was complete shock, unsure of who to take. All three of them were dearly important to me, and they all looked so helpless, hair swishing around softly, their faces pale.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cedric approaching, a Bubble-Head charm assisting him, by the looks of it. Cedric had obviously knew who was his to take back, and he began to untie Violet. He shot me a disgusted look, and shot out of the Lake, with Violet in his arms. After Cedric had disappeared, a giant shark had appeared out of nowhere, breaking Hermione's rope, and dragging her with it to the surface. I noticed that it was Krum, just with a failed attempt at a Transfiguration. I laughed at the thought of Hermione scolding Krum if she conscious to see it.

Treading water for what seemed like a long time, he didn't see Fleur anywhere. I couldn't just leave the little girl there, so I began to untie Ron, allowing him to float gradually to the surface. Then, I went to free the little girl, when three merpeople appeared from the depths, poking spears at me and hissing, "Just oneeee!" I shook my head at them, pulling at my wand and shoving it in their face.

"Back off!" I garbled, and the merpeople gave me some distance, slightly afraid of what I was capable of. Finally freeing the little girl, I propelled myself up to the surface, seeing Ron lazily swimming back to land. Catching up with him, I grabbed him with one arm, and held the girl closely with the other.

"Well, that's not how I was planning on spending my morning," Ron sputtered, letting out a choked chuckle as water splashed him in the face. When we reached the docks, I heard numerous gasps, and then a thunderous applause. Ron climbed up on the dock first, then helping the girl up on the dock. She was shivering tremendously, her lips purple.

"Gabrielle! Iz she okay?" Someone screamed from a crowd. It was Fleur, pushing her way through towards Gabrielle. Fleur dropped to her knees, hugging her with ferocity, as if she would never let go. I pulled myself onto the dock, feeling the gills and flippers disappear from my body. Fleur spun around towards Ron and cried, "You! You saved her! Thank you!" She planted a kiss directly on Ron's lips, and he managed to let out an odd noise, before turning a deep red color. Fleur walked Gabrielle away from the edge of the dock and to where the other Champions stood with their rescued people.

I panted, laying my back on the dock and staring at the sky. "Harry, don't you want to go join the other Champions? 'Mione is probably waiting on you," I heard Ron say, and he helped me up, since my legs were awfully weak.

"Harry!" Hermione squealed, crushing me in a hug that almost turned me to powder. "I thought you were never going to resurface, I was so worried!" She told him, her eyes that used to be clouded with fear now with excitement.

Ron stepped in between them and joked, "Ah, so you weren't worried about me?"

Hermione smirked, and pushed him playfully, "No, not even a bit." Ron rolled his eyes, trying to stop himself from smiling.

My eyes slowly drifted to Violet, who was talking intently with Cedric. They didn't look angry, just very focused. Then Violet said something, which led to Cedric hugging her, and I felt a little pang in my heart, but thought back to what Sirius had said. Girls shouldn't be on my list of worries, but at the moment, I couldn't wait. I squeezed my way through the throngs of people congratulating the Champions.

Just before I opened my mouth, Crouch voiced erupted once more, "We have calculated the scores! Fleur Declour has received 25 points. Viktor Krum has received 40 points. Cedric Diggory has gained 47 points, and Harry Potter, for demonstrating moral fiber, has earned 45 points, placing himself and Cedric Diggory as tied for first place! The next stage of the competition takes place on June 24th!"

There was a surge from the stands, everyone hollering and cheering both my name and Cedric's name. Ron and Hermione came out of nowhere and hugged him, screeching, "Harry, you're tied for first!" I kept my eyes on Violet, as she slinked away from the crowds from Hufflepuff approached Cedric.

I smiled slightly at the two of them and responded, "Yes, it's rather exciting. Now, if you two excuse me, I must be off. Tell everyone that I'll be in the Common Room soon and we'll celebrate." Before either one of my friends could say anything, I rushed off, chasing after Violet. "Violet! Violet!" I shouted, as she began to head back towards the castle. "Violet!" I called out once more, and she faced me, her eyes wide.

"Harry? What-"

"Listen, I know what happened was wrong, and I'm sorry for putting you in that situation. So, I wanted to make amends and end this silly fighting. I understand if you want to be with Cedric, but just know that I do still want to have our friendship," I explained, biting my lip, afraid of her answer.

Violet looked down at the ground and murmured, "I would really like that."

"You would?"

"Yes, but Harry, I think it is best for both of us if we just accept the fact that this," She motioned towards the two of us, "This can't actually happen. You have too much going on in your life right now, and I think we're just meant to stay friends. I will be there for you, Harry. You're one of the only people who have showed me such kindness, and broke me out of my shell this year, and I'm grateful for that."

I was so confused on how to feel, both hurt and happiness swirling around in my stomach, making me both nauseous and giddy at the same time. "I think that is for the best also," I finally agreed, making myself smile.

Violet nodded, and added, "Also, Harry, Cedric and I are…together, more or less, so, I thought I should just let you know."

I continued to keep the smile on my face and lied through my teeth, "That's quite alright. We're just friends, remember?"

Violet giggled, "Yes, I remember."

So there you have it, The Second Task, done! I would like to thank everyone who is following, favorited or reviewed the story, it really helps me out and motivates me.

Also, I predict there's approximately 10-12 more chapters of this story before this year is over and we move onto "Sparks", which is the Order of the Phoenix themed story. It picks up right after this one, so if you liked this story, be on the look out for that one.

Lastly, if you are waiting for this story to be updated, have no fear, because if you like this one, but are more interested in a story focused on Draco, check out "War With a Snake", which I update rather frequently. Thank you all so much, and as you know, stay awesome, Gotham!

-April