The Potter Twins and the Goblet of Fire
Chapter 10: The First Task
The following morning, the twins told Hermione all about last night; the dragons, their talk with Sirius, etc.
They spent some time in the library, trying to find all they could about the spell that could help Harry against the Dragon.
They encountered Krum in the library again, with his squad of fangirls tailing him….
….
Michael and Harry barely slept Sunday night, and when they awoke on Monday, they were both very tired.
Both of them had considered running away, but when they went down to the Great Hall, it brought back the more wonderful memories they had of this place.
Somehow, the knowledge that they would rather be here and facing a dragon than back on Privet Drive with Dudley was good to know; it made them feel slightly calmer. As they and Hermione got up, Harry saw Cedric Diggory leaving the Hufflepuff table.
Cedric still didn't know about the dragons…. The only champion who didn't, if Harry and Michael were right in thinking that Maxime and Karkaroff would have told Fleur and Krum….
Michael knew it was right to tell him, but he was still overcome with jealousy, so he and his brother knew it would be best if Harry warned him.
Harry said, coming to his decision as he watched Cedric leaving the hall, "Hermione, I'll see you in the greenhouses, you and Michael go on, I'll catch you up."
Hermione, "Harry, you'll be late, the bell's about to ring-"
Harry, "I'll catch you up, okay?"
Michael, "well…. Good luck, Harry…."
By the time Harry reached the bottom of the marble staircase, Cedric was at the top. He was with a load of sixth-year friends. Harry didn't want to talk to Cedric in front of them; they were among those who had been quoting Rita Skeeter's article at him every time he went near them. He followed Cedric at a distance and saw that he was heading toward the Charms corridor. This gave Harry an idea. Pausing at a distance from them, he pulled out his wand, and took careful aim.
"Diffindo!"
Cedric's bag split. Everything spilled out of it onto the floor.
Cedric said as his friends bent down to help him, "don't bother. Tell Flitwick I'm coming, go on…."
This was exactly what Harry had been hoping for. He slipped his wand back into his robes and waited until Cedric's friends had left, and hurried up the corridor, which was now empty of everyone but himself and Cedric.
Cedric, "hi. My bag just split…. Brand-new and all…."
Haery, "Cedric. The first task is dragons."
Cedric, "what?"
Harry, "Dragons. They've got five, one for each of us, and we've got to get past them."
Cedric stared at him. Harry saw some of the panic he'd been feeling since Saturday night flickering in Cedric's gray eyes.
Cedric, "are you sure?"
Harry, "dead sure. Me and Michael have seen them."
Cedric, "but how did you find out? We're not supposed to know…."
Harry, "never mind. But I'm not the only one who knows. My brother, Fleur and Krum will know by now. Maxime and Karkaroff both saw the dragons too."
Cedric straightened up, his arms full, his ripped bag dangling off one shoulder. He stared at Harry, and there was a puzzled, almost suspicious look in his eyes.
Cedric, "why are you telling me?"
Harry looked at him in disbelief. He was sure Cedric wouldn't have asked that if he had seen the dragons himself. Harry wouldn't have let his worst enemy face those monsters unprepared, well, perhaps Malfoy or Snape…. And he knows even Michael would tell him, even given his jealousy.
Harry, "it's just…. Fair, isn't it? We all know now…. We're on an even footing, aren't we?"
Cedric was still looking at him in a slightly suspicious way when Harry heard a familiar clunking noise behind him. He turned around and saw Mad-Eye Moody emerging with Michael in tow.
Moody, "come with me, Potter. Diggory, off you go."
Harry stared apprehensively at Moody. Had he overheard them?
Harry, "er, Professor, Michael and I are supposed to be in Herbology-"
Moody, "never mind that, Potters. I've excused you both. In my office, please…."
Harry and Michael followed him, wondering what was going to happen to them now. What if Moody wanted to know how they'd found out about the dragons? Would Moody go to Dumbledore and tell on Hagrid, or just turn the brothers into ferrets? Michsel already loved ferrets. And, it might be easier to get past a dragon if he were a ferret, and Michael was a fox. They'd be smaller, much less easy to see from a height of fifty feet….
They followed Moody into his office. Moody closed the door behind them and turned to look at the twins, his magical eye fixed upon them as well as the normal one.
Moody, "that was a very decent thing you just did, Potter."
Neither brother knew what to say; this wasn't the reaction they had expected at all.
Moody, "sit down."
Both brothers sat across from Moody.
They found all sorts of dark detectors around the room.
Including a strange trunk under the window. It had seven keyholes in a row. Michael and Harry wondered what was in there, until Moody's next question brought them sharply back to earth.
Moody, "so…. Found out about the dragons, have you? It's all right. Cheating's a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament and always has been."
Harry, "we didn't cheat."
Michael, "yeah, it was a sort of accident that we found out."
Moody, "I wasn't accusing you, laddie's. I've been telling Dumbledore from the start, they can be as high-minded as they like, but you can bet old Karkaroff and Maxime won't be. They'll have told their champions everything they can. They want to win. They want to beat Dumbledore. They'd like to prove he's only human. So…. Got any ideas how you're going to get past your dragons yet?"
Michael, "I'm skilled with fire magic, and my Animagus abilities should enable me to sneak past."
Moody, "good. And what about you, Harry?"
Harry, "no."
Moody, "well, I'm not going to tell you. I don't show favoritism, me. I'm just going to give you some good, general advice. And the first bit is; play to your strengths."
Harry, "I haven't got any."
Moody, "excuse me. You've got strengths if I say you've got them. Think now. What are you best at?"
Harry, "... Quidditch. And a fat lot of help-"
Moody, "that's right. You're a damn good flier from what I've heard."
Harry, "yeah, but…. I'm not allowed a broom, I've only got my wand-"
Moody, "my second piece of general advice, is to use a nice, simple spell that will enable you to get what you need…."
Harry was trying to figure it out, even after Michael had gotten what Moody meant.
Moody, "come on, boy. Put them together…. It's not that difficult…."
And it clicked. He was best at flying. He needed to pass the dragon in the air. For that, he needed his Firebolt. And for his Fire-bolt, he needed….
….
Harry whispered, when he and Michael had sped into the greenhouse three minutes later, uttering a hurried apology to Professor Sprout as they passed her, "Hermione. Hermione, I need you to help me."
Hermione, "what d'you think I've been trying to do, Harry?"
Harry, "Hermione, I need to learn how to do a Summoning Charm properly by tomorrow afternoon."
….
And so, for the rest of the day, in every ounce of spare time they had, Harry and Hermione practiced the charm until Harry was pitch perfect at it. Michael, during all of this, kept practicing his transformation and his skills with fire magic until he was confident that they would help him win the first task!
….
The next day seemed to breeze by until they reached the moment when McGonagall was hurrying over to them in the Great Hall. Lots of people were watching.
"Potters, the champions have to come down onto the grounds now…. You have to get ready for your first task."
Harry and Michael simply replied, "okay."
Hermione whispered, "good luck, boys. You'll be fine!"
Harry and Michael did their best to smile at her optimism.
They left the Great Hall with McGonagall. She didn't seem herself either; in fact, she looked nearly as anxious as Hermione. As she walked them down the stone steps and out into the cold November afternoon, she put her hands on their shoulders.
She said, "now, don't panic. Just keep cool heads…. We've got wizards standing by to control the situation if it gets out of hand…. The main thing is just to do your best, and nobody will think any the worse of you…. Are you alright?"
Michael and Harry managed to say, "yes. Yes, we're fine."
She was leading them toward the place where the dragons were, around the edge of the forest, but when they approached the clump of trees behind which the enclosure would be clearly visible, they saw that a tent had been erected, its entrance facing them, screening the dragons from view.
McGonagall, "you're to go in here with the other champions. And wait for your turn, Potter's. Mr. Bagman is in there…. He'll be telling you the procedure…. Good luck."
Michael, "thank you."
Harry, "thanks."
She left them at the entrance of the tent, and they went inside.
Fleur was sitting in a corner on a low wooden stool. She didn't look nearly as composed as usual, but rather pale and clammy. Krum looked even surlier than usual, which the twins supposed was his way of showing nerves. Cedric was pacing up and down. When the brothers entered, Cedric gave Harry a small smile, which Harry returned, feeling the muscles in his face working rather hard, as though they had forgotten how to do it. Michael forced a smile, even as his jealousy over Cedric spending so much time with Cho stuck with him.
Bagman, "Harry! Michael! Good-o! Come in, come in, make yourselves at home! Well, now we're all here, time to fill you in! When the audience has assembled, I'm going to be offering each of you this bag", he held up a small sack of purple silk and shook it at them, "from which you will each select a small model of the thing you are about to face! There are different, er, varieties, you see. And I have to tell you something else too…. Ah, yes…. Your task is to collect the golden egg!"
Michael and Harry glanced around. Cedric had nodded once, to show that he understood Bagman's words, and then started pacing around the tent again; he looked slightly green. Fleur and Krum hadn't reacted at all. Perhaps they thought they might be sick if they opened their mouths; that was certainly how the twins felt. But they, at least, had volunteered for this….
And in no time at all, hundreds upon hundreds of pairs of feet could be heard passing the tent, their owners talking excitedly, laughing, joking…. The twins felt as separate from the crowd as though they were a different species. And then, it seemed like about a second later to the twins, Bagman was opening the neck of the purple silk sack.
Bagman, "ladies first."
Fleur put a shaking hand inside the bag and drew out a tiny, perfect model of a dragon: a Welsh Green. It had the number two around its neck. And the twins knew, by the fact that Fleur showed no sign of surprise, but rather a determined resignation, that they had been right: Madame Maxime had told her what was coming. The same held true for Krum. He pulled out the scarlet Chinese Fireball. It had a number three around its neck. He didn't even blink, just sat back down and stared at the ground.
Cedric put his hand into the bag, and out came the blueish-gray Swedish Short-Snout, the number one tied around its neck. Hardy put his hand into the silk bag and pulled out the Hungarian Horntail, and the number four.
Michael pulled out the last dragon, the Greenland Gargantuan. He still thought the Dragon looked oddly familiar.
It stretched its wings as he looked down at it, and bared its minuscule fangs.
He said, "wicked…. Are we allowed to keep these?"
Bagman, "huh? Oh, yes, of course."
Michael, "cool. I'm gonna give this little one to Hagrid for Christmas, to remind him of Norberta…."
Bagman, "well, there you are! You have each pulled out the dragon you will face, and the numbers refer to the order in which you are to take on the dragons, do you see? Now, I'm going to have to leave you in a moment, because I'm commentating. Mr. Diggory, you're first, just go out into the enclosure when you hear a whistle, all right? Now…. Harry, Michael, could I have a quick word? Outside?"
Harry, "er…. Yes."
Michael, "sure…."
They got up and went out of the tent with Bagman, who walked them a short distance away, into the trees, and then turned to them with a fatherly expression on his face.
Bagman, "feeling alright, boys? Anything I can get you?"
Harry, "what? Er, no thank you."
Michael, "we're fine, but thanks for asking."
Bagman, "got a plan? Because I don't mind sharing a few pointers, if you'd like them, you know. I mean. You're the underdogs here, boys. Anything I can do to help…."
Harry, "no, no, I know what I'm going to do, thanks."
Michael, "yeah, me too."
"Nobody would know, boy's", said Bagman, winking at him.
Harry, "no, I'm fine. I've got a plan worked out."
Michael, "me to. I-"
A whistle had blown somewhere.
Bagman, "good lord, I've got to run!"
Harry and Michael walked back to the tent and saw Cedric emerging from it, greener than ever. Harry and even Michael tried to wish him luck as he walked past, but all that came out of their mouths were what sounded like horse grunts.
The twins went back inside to Fleur and Krum. Seconds later, they heard the roar of the crowd, which meant Cedric had entered the enclosure and was now face-to-face with the living counterpart of his model….
Each round made the twins' stomachs twist and turn as they could only imagine what each of the other champions went through.
Soon, the first three rounds finished with each champion getting their egg. It would be Harry's turn any moment. He stood up, noticing dimly that his legs seemed to be made of marshmallow. He waited. And then he heard the whistle blow.
He walked out through the entrance of the tent, hearing his brother yell, "you can do it, Harry!"
And now Harry was walking past the trees, through a gap in the enclosure fence.
He saw everything in front of him as though it was a very highly colored dream. There were hundreds and hundreds of faces staring down at him from stands that had been magicked there since he'd last stood on this spot. And there was the Horntail, at the other end of the enclosure, crouched low over her clutch of eggs, her wings half-furled, her evil, yellow eyes upon him, a monstrous, scaly, black lizard, thrashing her spiked tail, leaving yard-long gouge marks in the hard ground. The crowd was making a great deal of noise, but whether friendly or not, Harry didn't know or care. It was time to do what he had to do…. To focus his mind, entirely and absolutely, upon the thing that was his only chance….
He raised his wand.
Harry, "Accio Firebolt!"
Harry waited, every fiber of him hoping, praying…. If it hadn't worked…. If it wasn't coming…. He seemed to be looking at everything around him through some sort of shimmering, transparent barrier, like a heat haze, which made the enclosure and the hundreds of faces around him swim strangely….
And then he heard it, speeding through the air behind him; he turned and saw his Firebolt hurtling toward him around the edge of the woods, soaring into the enclosure, and stopping dead in midair beside him, waiting for him to mount. The crowd was making even more noise…. Bagman was shouting something, but Harry wasn't listening. He swung his leg over the broom and kicked off from the ground. And a second later, something miraculous happened…. As he soared upward, as the wind rushed through his hair, as the crowd's faces became mere flesh-colored pinpricks below, and the Horntail shrank to the size of a dog, he realized that he had left not only the ground behind, but also his fear…. He was back where he belonged….
This was just another Quidditch match, and that Horntail was just another ugly opposing team!
He looked down at the clutch of eggs and spotted the gold one, gleaming against the others, residing safely between the dragon's front legs.
Harry, "okay, diversionary tactics…. Let's go…."
He dived. The Horntail's head followed him; he knew what it was going to do and pulled out of the dive just in time; a jet of fire had been released exactly where he would have been had he not swerved away, but Harry didn't care, that was no more than dodging a Bludger!
Bagman, "Great Scott, he can fly! Are you watching this, Mr. Krum?"
The crowd shrieked and gasped.
Harry soared higher in a circle; the Horntail was still following his progress; its head revolving on its long neck, if he kept this up, it would be nicely dizzy, but better not push it too long, or it would be breathing fire again.
Harry plummeted just as the Horntail opened its mouth, but this time he was less lucky, he missed the flames, but the tail came whipping up to meet him instead, and as he swerved to the left, one of the long spikes grazed his shoulder, ripping his robes.
He could feel it stinging, he could hear screaming and groans from the crowd, but the cut didn't seem to be deep.
He zoomed around the back of the Horntail, and a possibility occurred to him!
The Horntail didn't seem to want to take off, she was too protective of her eggs. Though she writhed and twisted, furling and unfurling her wings and keeping those fearsome yellow eyes on Harry, she was afraid to move too far from them, but he had to persuade her to do it, or he'd never get near them. The trick was to do it carefully, gradually…. He began to fly, first this way, then the other, not near enough to make her breathe fire to stave him off, but still posing a sufficient threat to ensure she kept her eyes on him. Her head swayed around, watching him out of those vertical pupils, her fangs bared. He flew higher. The Horntail's head rose with him, her neck now stretched to its fullest extent, still swaying, like a snake before its charmer.
Harry rose a few more feet, and she let out a roar of exasperation. He was like a fly to her, a fly she was longing to swat; her tail thrashed again, but he was too high to reach now. She shot fire into the air, which he dodged. Her jaws opened wide!
Harry, "come on. Come on, come and get me…. Up you get now…."
And then she reared, spreading her great, black, leathery wings at last, as wide as those of a small airplane, and Harry dived.
Before the dragon knew what he had done, or where he had disappeared to, he was speeding toward the ground as fast as he could go, toward the eggs now, unprotected by her clawed front legs. He had taken his hands off his Firebolt, he had seized the golden egg, and with a huge spurt of speed, he was off, he was soaring out over the stands, the heavy egg safely under his uninjured arm, and it was as though somebody had just turned the volume back up, for the first time, he became aware of the noise of the crowd, which was screaming and applauding as loudly as the Irish supporters at the World Cup!
Bagman, "look at that! Will you look at that! Our champion is the quickest to get his egg! Well, this is going to shorten the odds on Mr. Harry Potter!"
Harry saw the dragon keepers rushing forward to subdue the Horntail, and, over at the entrance to the enclosure, McGonagall, Moody, and Hagrid hurrying to meet him, all of them waving him toward them, their smiles evident even from this distance. He flew back over the stands, the noise of the crowd, and came in smoothly to land, his heart lighter than it had been in weeks. He had got through the first task, he had survived.
McGonagall, "that was excellent, Potter!"
Hagrid, "yeh did it, Harry! Yeh did it! An' agains' the Horntail an' all, an' yeh know Charlie said that was the wors'."
Harry said loudly, so that Hagrid wouldn't blunder on and reveal that he had shown Harry and Michael the dragons beforehand, "yhanks, Hagrid!"
Moody looked very pleased too; his magical eye was dancing in its socket.
Moody, "nice and easy does the trick, Potter."
Harry quickly got his wounds checked by Madame Pomfrey, so he could see his score, as well as how Michael would do.
Harry didn't want to sit still: He was too full of adrenaline. He got to his feet, wanting to see what was going on outside, but before he'd reached the mouth of the tent, two people had come darting inside. Hermione, followed closely by Ron.
Harmione, "Harry, you were brilliant! You were amazing! You really were!"
But Harry was looking at Ron, who was staring at Harry as though he were a ghost.
Ron, "Harry. Whoever put your name in that goblet, I-I reckon they're trying to do you in!"
It was as though the last few weeks had never happened, as though Harry were meeting Ron for the first time, right after he'd been made champion.
Harry, "caught on, have you? Took you long enough."
Hermione stood nervously between them, looking from one to the other. Ron opened his mouth uncertainly. Harry knew Ron was about to apologize and suddenly he found he didn't need to hear it.
Harry, "it's okay. Forget it."
Ron, "no. I shouldn't've-"
Harry, "forget it."
Ron grinned nervously at him, and Harry grinned back.
Hermione burst into tears.
Harry, "there's nothing to cry about!"
Hermione, "you two are so stupid! At least Michael had some sense!"
Hermione hugged all three of them close.
Eventually they went out to see Harry's score before Michael was set to start.
He heard what the others had done to get their eggs. Cedric transfigured a rock into a dog as a distraction, Fleur put the Dragon into a trance, and Krum hit it in the eye with a spell.
Harry got:
8 from Maxine.
9 from Mr. Crouch.
9 from Dumbledore.
10 from Bagman.
And 4 from a biased Kakaroff.
Harry was tied in third place with Krum.
Harry was allowed to watch with the others as Michael's task began….
….
Michael felt his heart racing as he soon entered the area, seeing the Greenland Gargantuan sitting near it's eggs.
Michael quickly used his Animagus abilities to run and hide behind a large rock. The Dragon kept looking around for him as he kept running behind rocks.
Bagman, "amazing! Potter is using the abilities of an Animagus to get to the egg!"
The Dragon kept making a strange purring noise. Michael couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it sounded very familiar.
Michael turned back to normal behind a rock. He needed to get closer!
He quickly lept out and yelled, "Incendio!"
A huge ball of blue fire, which meant it burned more than a regular ball of fire being cast from a wand, distracted the Dragon as Michael hid behind another rock. He kept repeating this as he got ever closer to the golden egg. Now he just needed to grab the egg and go!
Bagman, "it seems that those fire spells have really come in handy for Potter! However, will he get the egg!?"
But Michael kept hearing the purring of the dragon. It kept purring, and purring, and purring!
Gah! Where had he heard that sound before!?
And then, it hit him like an anvil.
Michael walked out from his hiding place as everyone gasped!
But then…. Michael started making the same noise as the Dragon!
The Dragon tilted its head as Michael purred.
Then it's eyes widened! As if they had remembered something.
Or rather…. Someone!
She started purring with Michael, lowering her head as he approached, holding his hand out to her. He carefully placed his hand on her muzzle as she looked at him.
Michael smiled and said, "hello Norberta."
Norberta purred as she moved back, allowing Michael to grab the golden egg!
Everyone cheered!
Bagman, "in a stunning turn of events, Michael Potter has tamed the Dragon in order to get the golden egg! And with not a single scratch on him!"
Everyone cheered as Michael found himself running to the gates, where Harry, Ron and Hermione all stood. They all shared a hug. Ron and Michael didn't even need to share words of apology as they hugged.
They then all saw Michael's score.
10 from Maxine. She must have been impressed with Michael taming Norberta.
8 from Mr. Crouch. He seemed to want more action.
10 from Dumbledore. Michael nearly cried at the score given by his old friend.
10 from Bagman. Just like with Harry.
And 3 from a biased Kakaroff.
Just one point above Harry and Krum!
Michael was now in first place! He didn't care. He was just too happy that he and his brother had done it! They made it!
Charlie went to the twins and gave a quick congratulations before telling them that Bagman wanted to see the champions and then ran off.
Soon, Fleur, Cedric, and Krum all came in together after Michael and Harry had gotten to the tent. One side of Cedric's face was covered in a thick orange paste, which was presumably mending his burn. He grinned at Harry and Michael when he saw them.
He said, "good one, Harry. You too Michael."
Even with the jealousy between them, Cedric and Michael smiled at one another for a moment.
Harry, "and you."
Michael, "yeah. Good job."
Bagman, "well done, all of you! Now, just a quick few words. You've got a nice long break before the second task, which will take place at half past nine on the morning of February the twenty-fourth. But we're giving you something to think about in the meantime! If you look down at those golden eggs you're all holding, you will see that they open…. See the hinges there? You need to solve the clue inside the egg, because it will tell you what the second task is, and enable you to prepare for it! All clear? Sure? Well, off you go, then!"
Michael and Harry left the tent, rejoined Ron, and they started to walk back around the edge of the forest, talking hard; Harry and Michsel wanted to hear what the other champions had done in more detail. Then, as they rounded the clump of trees behind which the twins had first heard the dragons roar, a witch leapt out from behind them.
It was Rita Skeeter. She was wearing acid-green robes today; the Quick-Quotes Quill in her hand blended perfectly against them.
Rita, "congratulations, boys! I wonder if you could give me a quick word? How did you both feel about facing those dragons? How do you both feel now, about the fairness of the scoring? How amazing it was to tame a dragon like that?"
Harry, "yeah, you can have a word. Goodbye."
Michael, "I've got two words, but they're not appropriate for school…."
And they set off back to the castle with Ron….
….
Reviews:
Bailey Radcliff: thanks. I'm glad you liked the chapter.
Canadude2029: yeah. Things are getting intense as Hell.
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