I am so so so sorry people. My grandparents told me we'd have internet and we didn't cuz the provider people were bullshitting us. I have here the next chapter, which I really hope you'll like! If there's anything you'd like to see, tell me and I will try to incorporate it if it doesn't mess with my storyline. I won't be writing 'accents' all the time, okay? It wears me out and... really? There's no need for it.
I hope it's not too cheesy.
Anna kept her eyes fixed on the grass under her feet rather than looking around her. She stood between Pansy and Daphne as they waited for the guest schools to arrive, shivering of cold and exhaustion. Really, she should have known better than to meet up with Barty in the middle of the night but it was the only time they could actually talk to each other in earnest without being suspicious. And this meeting had been urgent; Barty was running out of polyjuice potion. He only had enough for a few months more and that was exactly the time necessary to brew up another batch.
A yawn forced itself up her throat and she covered her mouth with her hand.
Daphne turned to her and raised an eyebrow. "Tired?"
"Stayed up late."
"Again?" Her blonde friend rolled her eyes. "You should know better."
"I do know better." Anna grumbled.
"Then what's your excuse?" Pansy chimed in from her other side.
"It was an emergency." She snapped. "So stay out of it for your own peace of mind."
The girls were quiet for a few seconds before turning to her. Daphne reached up to Anna's hair and started fixing it while Pansy busied herself with straightening her clothing.
"At least let us help you. You look like you're half dead."
"You're not wrong." Anna muttered.
"What?"
"Nothing." She shook her head. "Nothing to worry about."
They gave her odd looks before nodding and turning away.
Suddenly there were exited shouts around them. A seventh year pointed at the sky where a box-like thing flew towards them. A wave of voices rose, shouting theories on what it could be as they watched it come closer. Within seconds, however, a large blue and gold carriage landed before them, rendering all these ideas incorrect.
Hagrid stepped forwards to take care of the huge winged horses that pulled the carriage just as the door opened.
A boy in periwinkle blue robes jumped down and placed some golden steps before the opening and a huge shoe emerged. The woman that stepped out of the carriage was enormous, clothed in silk and fur and with an elegant haircut. She walked gracefully towards Dumbledore and greeted him, extending a glittering hand. The old man grabbed it and placed a chaste kiss on it, barely having to bend over.
"My dear Madame Maxime," He said as he looked up. "Welcome to Hogwarts!"
"Dumbly-dorre, I 'ope I find you well?" She asked. Her voice was deep and smooth, rather elegant if Anna might say so.
"In excellent form, thank you." The Headmaster replied, giving her a glittering smile.
"My pupils." The woman said and waved a shovel-sized hand over her shoulder causing everyone to finally notice the large group of children forming behind her. They were all dressed in the same blue robes as the first boy and were seemingly not accustomed to the cold weather of Scotland, seeing as they were shivering violently. Their faces wore uneasy expressions as they looked up at the grand castle.
Hogwarts was older than Beauxbatons and of a much rougher build. The french school was a palace even grander than Versailles, if rumors were to be believed, and most people found it to be the most beautiful place on earth. In all honesty it must be a question of taste but one could not really fault the french students; Hogwarts did, after all, look inhospitable from their angle.
"'As Karkaroff arrived yet?" Anna heard Maxime ask.
Her heart sped up. She hadn't forgotten. They had made plans, Barty and her, that included the traitorous bastard. It would be difficult to keep to them, every fiber in her being was screaming for her to kill the little rat. The filthy back-stabber that sent her parents -and Barty- to jail. She knew it was hard for Barty too, she heart in his voice, but they couldn't kill him. Not yet. Still, she wanted him dead. She felt a hiss in her throat, trying to worm its way out, but she swallowed it. It wouldn't do to start cursing in parseltongue in the middle of the assembly.
Absentmindedly she watched the Beauxbatons students walk inside, having chosen to warm up rather than to wait for Durmstrang to show up.
In the minutes that passed afterwards Anna concentrated on keeping calm. She flexed her hands and fingers and closed her eyes, trying to take deep breaths. It was a horrible feeling, the same as she had felt after MacGonagall's visit in the orphanage, the feeling of anger spreading through your veins like acid, making you froth and bubble with rage until you felt you were melting in in, drowning in it. She bit her lip hard enough to draw blood and tasted the metal flooding into her mouth, but it didn't hurt. She was too busy trying to-
A hand landed on her shoulder and her eyes flew open. Draco stood in front of her, making the Slytherins around them give him strange looks, but he was only staring at her.
"Daphne, move over." He mumbled.
The other blonde took a step to the right, taking up the space beside Theo that Draco had occupied until then.
Anna watched her cousin stand beside her and grab her hand. He squeezed it gently and turned his head back to the front. She kept looking at him until a loud sound distracted her.
"The lake!" A Gryffindor suddenly yelled, pointing at the mass of dark water that had started to churn. "Look at the lake!"
There were large bubbles on the surface and waved started rising up from the center of the lake, causing a lot of water to rise on the edges and lap at the grass. A whirlpool appeared between the bubbled and the sound turned into a loud gurgling, as if a giant were drowning. From the whirlpool a large wooden mast emerged and soon after the rest of a ship. It was sleek and elegant, though it also looked slightly skeletal and haunting as it slid silently to the bank.
From its side emerged a large plank with the width of a bridge over which a mass of large bodies walked towards the castle.
As they drew nearer one could make out their bright red uniform under the thick fur cloaks draped over their shoulders. Their expressions were much more enthusiastic than their french counterparts as they looked up at Hogwarts with awe.
From among them a slender man stepped forwards, holding up his arms to Dumbledore. As he approached, Anna saw how elegant his clothing was and how clean he looked and she hated him even more.
"Dumbledore!" He boomed, his voice loud and steady. "How are you, my dear fellow, how are you?"
"Blooming, thank you, professor Karkaroff." Dumbledore replied and guided him and his students inside.
Anna immediately set off after them, pulling Draco along and ignoring the crowd's exited murmurs about Krum. Bile was churning in her stomach as she watched the thin, grey form of Karkaroff as he chatted and boasted in his fruity voice with his pathetically weak chin and ridiculous goatee.
"Ow!" Draco hissed as she clenched his hand too hard.
"Sorry." She muttered as she sat down at the Slytherin table.
Her eyes travelled to where she could feel Barty was. He was looking at her with Moody's face. He nodded and motioned for her to breathe, trying to get her to calm down. Then he tapped his temple to remind her of their plan.
Anna looked down at her lap. She didn't like the plan, but she had to do it. Good thing the Durmstrang students had sat down at their table.
As she calmed down, Draco had started talking to Krum, who had sat down just a few seats across the table from them. He was telling him about the History of Hogwarts, motioning towards the ceiling and the ghosts and the paintings of the founders behind the teachers' table, apparently explaining the house system. The Durmstrang students listened carefully while examining the golden plates and goblets, seemingly very impressed.
Then Draco introduced himself and Anna, who had remained quiet but plastered an elegant smile -that looked even better because of her painted lips- on her face.
One of the Durmstrang boys, the one sitting directly across from her, reached a hand over to her and she reached back. He kissed her knuckles.
"It is a pleasure, miss Connors." He smiled charmingly at her. "My name is Octavian Dalca."
Anna forced a giggle, ignoring the confused look and Draco's face and the furious scowl on Theo's face. "The pleasure's mine, Octavian."
"Is... mister Malfoy your... how you say... boyfriend?" He asked.
At this point, Krum lost interest and asked Draco another question, pulling her cousin's attention away from them.
"No." She answered, smiling. "I don't have a boyfriend."
Octavian, who she had to admit wasn't at all bad looking, beamed and started chattering to her. She did her best to keep him entertained, clenching her hands together under the table every time Theo glared over at them.
Thankfully, after a few minutes Dumbledore stood up and she had an excuse to turn away from Octavian. The Headmaster cleared his throat.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, ghosts and - most particularly - guests," said Dumbledore, beaming around at the foreign students. "I have great pleasure in welcoming you all to Hogwarts. I hope and trust that your stay here will be both comfortable and enjoyable." He looked around, beaming down at all of them. "The tournament will officially be opened at the end of the feast. Now I invite you all to eat, drink and make yourselves at home."
The plates filled with food and, making use of the Durmstrangs' surprise she started shoveling food on her plate and eating it. Octavian, to her immense frustration, recovered quickly and started talking to her again, asking which food was best and other personal information which she made up on the spot.
Draco, who was listening beside her, gave her confused looks every once in a while but kept silent at her flirting. Which was the only name to call the obvious giggling and smiling she directed at the foreign boy, as nauseating as she found it. Did she have to be so obvious? Yes, because now that they were eating some Polish dessert called Kisiel -which was delicious, actually- and he was talking about their culture was when she could take advantage of it.
"That is so amazing!" She said, beaming at Octavian. "I am so interested in that sort of thing. Do you think you could show me the ship? I bet you have so many things which you wouldn't see anywhere else!"
Octavian looked doubtful for a second and his classmates turned to him in expectation -having followed their conversation- so Anna made sure to blink up innocently at him. Give him a few seconds...
"I am not sure-"
Cue trembling lower lip-
Octavian looked slightly alarmed before he smiled broadly. "Sure. Of course you can. After this? Because then we'll be less... likely to be noticed by Karkaroff."
"Octavian-" Krum started.
"Come now, Viktor. You'll all help me get her there, right? Just for a few minutes." Octavian looked at his friend expectantly.
Krum huffed and nodded. "Fine. But do not mention us if Karkaroff catches you."
Octavian was about to reply when Dumbledore stood up again, causing everyone to be quiet once more.
"The moment has come." He said, smiling. "The Triwizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words of explanation before we bring in the casket, just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports."
There was applause for both men, though it was admittedly louder for Bagman, before the Headmaster could continue.
"Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Triwizard Tournament," Dumbledore continued, "and they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madame Maxime on the panel that will judge the champions' efforts."
Then he looked at the door behind the teachers' table. "The casket, then, if you please, Mr. Filch."
Filch shuffled forward, carrying a large wooden box encrusted with jewels. The old squib seemed to crumble under the large box's weight as he took it to the small table that stood next to Dumbledore.
"The instructions for the tasks the champions will face this year have already been examined by Mr. Crouch and Mr. Bagman and they have made the necessary arrangements for each challenge. There will be three tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways.. their magical prowess - their daring -their powers of deduction - and, of course, their ability to cope with danger." Dumbledore paused, as if to cause even more suspense. Anna didn't doubt that he did it on purpose. "As you know, three champions compete in the tournament, one from each of the participating schools. They will be marked on how well they perform each of the Tournament tasks and the champion with the highest total after task three will win the Triwizard Cup. The champions will be chosen by an impartial selector: the Goblet of Fire."
The old man took out his wand and tapped the box. With a soft creaking sound, the lid rose and he reached a hand inside to take out a small wooden goblet. It looked completely unremarkable. In fact, many made sounds of confusion at the small, rather boring object. That is, until it sprouted blue-white flames before Dumbledore had even put it down on top of the box.
"Anybody wishing to submit themselves as champion must write their name and school clearly upon a slip of parchment and drop it into the goblet," said Dumbledore. "Aspiring champions have twenty-four hours in which to put their names forward. Tomorrow night, Halloween, the goblet will return the names of the three it has judged most worthy to represent their schools. The goblet will be placed in the entrance hall tonight, where it will be freely accessible to all those wishing to compete.
"To ensure that no underage student yields to temptation," said Dumbledore, "I will be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet of Fire once it has been placed in the entrance hall. Nobody under the age of seventeen will be able to cross this line." He paused to let it sink in. "Finally, I wish to impress upon any of you wishing to compete that this tournament is not to be entered into lightly. Once a champion has been selected by the Goblet of Fire, he or she is obliged to see the tournament through to the end. The placing of your name in the goblet constitutes a binding, magical contract. There can be no change of heart once you have become a champion. Please be very sure, therefore, that you are wholeheartedly prepared to play before you drop your name into the goblet. Now, I think it is time for bed. Good night to you all."
At that rather abrupt ending, a loud chorus of protest rose up, as students complained about the Age Line. Anna ignored them, she already knew about it, and turned to Octavian, who was discussing something with his classmates. Then he turned to her.
"Alright, then." He waved her over to the end of the table as he walked with his classmates and then pulled her close to his chest, half hiding her between him and three other boys who stood in front behind and beside her. "Stay quiet and stay close." His breath tickled her neck and she had to resist the urge to squirm.
Unfortunately, at that moment she met Theo's eyes as he left the Great Hall with their friends. They were talking to him, whispering things. He looked... sad, hurt.
Anna lowered her eyes and tried to ignore Octavian's arm around her waist.
"Back to the ship then." She hear Karkaroff say. He sounded no more than a few meters away from her but she couldn't see him around the thick wall of fur around her.
"Viktor, how are you feeling? Did you eat enough? Should I send for some mulled wine from the kitchens?"
Krum must have refused because another student piped up. "Professor, I would like some wine."
"I wasn't offering it to you, Poliakoff." Karkaroff snarked, turning cold in a second. "I notice you have dribbled food all down the front of your robes again, disgusting boy -"
His voice faded away as he walked. Octavian pulled her along until they stopped quite suddenly.
"What is it?" She whispered.
Octavian looked down at her. "Potter."
Anna winced. Shit. If he saw her or sensed her-
"Yeah, that's Potter." Barty's voice came from behind them.
Anna sighed with relief.
"You!" Karkaroff yelled.
"Me." Barty drawled, his Slytherin slipping out slightly. "And unless you've got anything to say to Potter, Karkaroff, you might want to move. You're blocking the doorway."
And the chances of her being spotted rose by about 300%.
In seconds they were moving again and they were outside. For a second she was thankful that Octavian had draped his furs over her and she was almost lulled to sleep. Having slept about five hours in the last three days combined was not helping her but... at least tomorrow was Saturday.
She almost tripped when they started walking up the plank to the ship and seconds later they had ducked out of the line and were hidden in a dark corner in the rigging.
"Alright." Octavian said. "We'll wait until they've passed before I show you around."
Anna nodded and smiled, drawing her wand and keeping it hidden.
Time passed as they listened to the other Durmstrang students walking around and talking among themselves. She counted the seconds. 840. A cold breeze made her shiver and decided that was enough. She turned to the taller boy. He looked down at her, smiling, but she could see a strange glint in his eyes.
Of course. A seventeen year old boy who had gotten the wrong idea. Pity.
"Confundus." She said and Octavian crumpled.
She looked at him, lying on the ground, before dragging him further into the shadows and taking his fur cloak. You always felt cold when you were sleepy and, even though she was more alert now, she was still damn cold!
Grumbling slightly to herself she walked towards where she guessed was the captain's cabin, keeping close to the walls and trying to be as silent as she could. The door she found herself in front of was elegant and the windows to the sides let candle light shine through the colored glass.
She held onto her wand tightly with her right hand and knocked on the door with the left.
The Headmaster called out something in another language -presumably 'Go away!'.
She knocked again.
This time, his silver head emerged in the doorway and looked down at her in confusion. Before he could react she had pointed her wand at him.
"Imperio."
Anna groaned as she rolled out of bed and looked at the clock beside her. Eleven. She let out another undignified groan. Merlin. She shook off the sheets over her and sat up. She had to talk to Theo and explain things.
It was probably cold outside so she put on some stockings and a pretty skirt and blouse with warming charms and a pretty jacket. She combed her hair and pulled up her curls in a simple ponytail and put on some make up. Earrings? Yes. Rings? One. Necklace? ...No. With a sigh she left her room and walked to the common room.
Draco looked up at her when she entered. The girls and Blaise looked up too. All of them were scowling at her.
"Don't look at me like that." She snapped.
"Like what? Disapprovingly?" Draco asked.
"No. Like you're judging something without knowing the whole story." Anna bit out. "Because, trust me, you don't. I had my reasons."
"Well." Blaise sighed. "You better tell Theo that."
"That's what I was going to do." Anna scowled. "Where the hell is he?"
"Library."
"Thank you." She strode away. So she was skipping breakfast. Whatever.
Anna found him in the Ancient Runes section, browsing through books. She was sure sure he heard her approach, and he definitely heard her clear her throat, but he kept reading the spines as if they were the most interesting thing in the world.
From behind his chestnut brown brown hair reflected the sun as it stroked his neck over the collar of his dress shirt. Over the last months he had put on more weight and he wasn't lanky anymore. His shoulders had widened slightly and his voice had started to change. He was getting older.
Anna sighed and leaned against the book case, right next to him. He kept his eyes stubbornly on the books, even as he felt her watch him.
He had light brown eyes with long lashes over high cheekbones. There was a mole on the corner of his left eyes which he always scratched when he was concentrating or nervous and his hair was combed in waves to the right, casting light shadows over his face.
She sighed. "That's fine." She mumbled, keeping her voice low enough for no one else to hear them. Ideally, she would have had this conversation in the common room but... this was fine too. "You have every right to be angry. I'm sorry."
It was silent for a long while before he talked without looking at her.
"Why are you apologizing?"
"For the same reason you're angry."
He turned to her, a scowl on his face. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Yes, you do." She said and turned to him. She placed a hand on his cheek and looked up at him. He was no longer scowling, he just looked neutral. "I really am sorry. I just needed to do something on the ship and... and this was the quickest way to do it."
"So what was it?"
"I can't tell you."
Theo groaned and shook her hand away. He turned back to the books. "If you can't trust me-"
"You think I don't trust you?" She whispered harshly and turned him around to face her. "I trust you. I really do- I- I just can't tell you yet."
"Yet?" He raised an eyebrow.
She looked away. "You'd find out anyway so... there's no harm in telling you once it's done."
"So you actually want to tell me?" He asked.
"Well..." She looked down. "Yes, but I can't."
He stepped forwards until his chest was pressed up against her. "So you didn't mean any of it?"
"Any of what?"
"Of what you said with... whatever his name is."
"No!" She whispered. "No... Theo." She trailed a finger from the mole under his eye to the back of his neck where she laid her hand. "It was all a lie."
"Don't you think that's slightly unethical?" He asked, his eyes glinting with amusement.
"Ethics are subjective and overrated." She smirked.
Theo bowed his head until his breath tickled her lips. "Let me help you." He whispered, his voice taking a more serious tone.
"Then help me by... being there." She answered. "I'll tell you everything when I can but, until then just..."
His eyes bored into hers. "I can do that. Just trust me."
A smile tugged at her lips. "I've always trusted you."
Before she knew what was happening, Theo had pressed his lips against hers. It was a soft kiss, sweet and filled with caring as he cradled her face in his hands. Anna kissed him back, holding on to the front of his shirt and closing her eyes, letting him hold her. When they broke it he kept holding her, staring at her. She didn't say anything.
They didn't say anything else as they walked hand in hand back to the common room. They didn't have to.
Anna opened her eyes. She was sitting on Theo's lap in the common room as he read something. Their friends were chattering around them and Draco was sitting beside them with her feet in his lap. Apparently she had dozed off for a while because the water in the Black Lake was completely dark, unlike when they'd gotten back from dinner.
Octavian had tried to talk to her but she hadn't paid him any attention. In fact, she'd ignored his existence. Sure, poor him, but it would have been worse if Theo had cursed him. She looked up at him. He was reading with a confused frown on his face. She kissed his cheek and he blinked at her in surprise.
"You're awake."
"Almost." She mumbled. "What time is it?"
He looked at his watch. "Past midnight."
Anna nodded and stood up from his lap. She straightened her clothing and looked at her friends who had gone quiet. For a second she considered telling them to go to bed so they'd be even less suspicious, but then she realized she was being paranoid. She swallowed and turned to Theo, pecking him on the lips.
Beside them, Draco pretended to gag.
"Oh, stop it." She scowled. Then she looked around. "Don't wait up."
For some reason, the castle was barely supervised and she got to the Great Hall with little difficulty. It was funny how she and her friends -most slytherins, in fact- had so little disregard for the curfew it was almost as if there were no curfew. She came across a few slytherins on her way there but they ignored each other. It was an unspoken rule among them.
She waited a few seconds, holding back the urge to fidget, until she heard soft footsteps coming down the hall.
It took her a short while to recognize the slender, fair haired man standing in front of her. He had a straight nose and a slight stubble on his face. His cheeks were hollow and his eyes sunken, but he looked around alertly as he got closer to her. He raised his left arm and pulled back the sleeve of his old, ripped cloak to reveal a dark mark.
"Good evening, Barty." She whispered, smiling.
The man turned to her and gave her a tentative half-smile.
"Shall we get to work?"
After his nod, they opened the doors to the Great Hall and walked in, heading for the goblet.