The Potter Twins and the Goblet of Fire

Chapter 16: The Second Task

Michael and Harry told Ron and Hermione everything they knew of the egg and what had happened between Moody and Snape.

While Hermione was mostly concerned with the clues, the conversation eventually went on to what exactly Snape was up to, and why so many people were searching his office for something.

Following Sirius's wish of hearing about everything strange going on at Hogwarts, Harry and Michael sent him a letter that night, explaining all about Mr. Crouch being in Snape's office, as well as Moody and Snape's conversation. Then the twins turned their attention to the most urgent problem facing them: how to survive underwater for an hour during the second tak near the end of February.

They spent pretty much all of their time trying to find a way to breathe underwater for an hour, but with very little results.

And all they had gotten back from Sirius in a letter was….

"Send date of next Hogsmeade weekend by return owl."

They sent back a note to meet them the weekend after the next.

Care of Magical Creatures actually continued with unicorn studies, even with Hagrid back in the teachers position.

And they shared a rather touching moment with Hagrid, who was confident that the twins would win….

….

By the evening before the second task, Harry and Michael felt hopeless. They were fully aware that even if, by some miracle, they managed to find a suitable spell or two, they'd have a tough job mastering it overnight. How could they have let this happen? Why hadn't they got to work on the egg's clue sooner? Why had they ever let their minds wander in class? What if a teacher had once mentioned how to breathe underwater?

Harry wished he had learned to become an Animagus like Michael or Sirius.

But Michael pointed out that, even if he had become one, he probably would have turned into a stag, like his Potronus, much like how Michael turned into his, an Arctic fox.

For some reason, while they were in the library, McGonagall had called Ron and Hermione to meet with her, looking very grim about it.

Harry carried some books back to the common room while Michael kept looking through books in the library.

As he kept looking through books, he heard someone approaching.

He turned to see Cedric standing there.

Cedric, "hey…. Can we talk?"

Michael grunted.

Cedric sat across from him.

Cedric, "so…. I read the article..."

Michael, "come to make fun of me too?"

Cedric, "no! No, of course not. It's…. It's about Cho."

Michael, "what a shock."

Cedric, "so, is it true? You have a crush on her?"

Michael kept silent.

Cedric, "tell me!"

Michael, "yes, I did!"

Cedric, "then why didn't you say anything?"

Michael, "oh, why didn't I say anything to the rival champion who didn't believe me and my brother when we said we didn't enter, who's father kept boasting about how much better you are than us, and who stole pretty much the one girl I wanted to ask out from me!? Take a guess!"

Cedric, "so you'd rather be unhappy than say anything?"

Michael, "the only reason I haven't said anything, is because you make Cho happy, and I'd rather deal with every homophobe in the world then make her cry because I told off the guy who got to her first…."

Cedric was silent for a moment.

Michael went back to flipping through a book of charms as Cedric sighed and said, "glad we cleared that up….", before he got up and walked away.

As Michael kept flipping through pages in anger…. He suddenly stopped.

He had somehow stopped on a page with a very old charm.

"Aquatus Flippicus."

The definition: a charm that can only be cast underwater, and wears off once on land, that when performed correctly; transforms the wizard or witch into a half fish/ half human creature.

That was it! Michael could use this spell to breathe underwater and find whatever was stolen!

Michael began reading the instructions for the charm over and over again, memorizing as much as he could, until he felt he was confident enough to preform it tomorrow!

Michael soon made his way out of the library, noticing Luna being led down the hall by McGonagall….

….

Michael got back to the common room, crashing into the couch….

….

Michael was awoken by something rather fluffy.

He groggily opened his eyes to see Nosey and Fleet nuzzling his face.

Michael slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes, groaning and saying, "what time is it?"

He looked at the clock on the wall, and realized…. He had fifteen minutes to get to the challenge!

Michael quickly sprung to his feet and changed into a pair of trunks and tank top, along with his protective scarf, before dashing out of the common room and to the second task!

As Michael ran, he tried to think, who did he cherish more than Harry or Cho…?

The challenge involved some sort of underwater creature stealing something he loved.

So what could they have stolen?

And then it hit him.

Who else had been called to meet McGonagall besides Ron and Hermione?

Luna!

The girl he considered a sister!

Michael quickly kicked it into gear! He wouldn't lose one of his friends today!

….

Harry was soon awoken from their dreams by the shrill cry of, "HARRY POTTER!"

Harry was both wide-eyed as they saw Dobby was the one to wake him up.

Dobby, "Harry Potter needs to hurry! The second task starts in ten minutes, and Harry Potter-"

Harry, "ten minutes? Ten- ten minutes?"

He looked down at his watch. Dobby was right. It was twenty past nine. A large, dead weight seemed to fall through Harry's chest into his stomach.

Dobby, "hurry, Harry Potter! You is supposed to be down by the lake with the other champions; and your brother, sir!"

Harry, "it's too late, Dobby. I'm not doing the task, I don't know how-"

Dobby, "Harry Potter will do the task! Dobby knew Harry had not found the right book, so Dobby did it for him!"

Harry, "What? But you don't know what the second task is-"

Dobby, "Dobby knows, sir! Harry and Michael Potter has to go into the lake and find their Wheezy and Looney-"

Harry, "find our what?"

Dobby, "and take their Wheezy and Looney back from the merpeople!"

Harry, "what's a Wheezy and a Looney?"

Dobby, "your Wheezy, sir, your Wheezy- Wheezy who is giving Dobby his sweater! And Looney is the girl who take Michael Potter to dancing."

Dobby plucked at the shrunken maroon sweater he was now wearing over his shorts.

Harry, "what? They've got…. They've got Ron and Luna?"

Dobby, "the thing Harry and Michael Potter will miss most, sir. 'But past an hour'-"

Harry, "'the prospect's black. Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.' Dobby, what've I got to do?"

Dobby pulled out a ball of what looked like green rat tails and said, "you had to eat this, sir. Right before you go into the lake, sir gillyweed!"

Harry, "what's it do?"

Dobby, "it will make Harry Potter breathe underwater, sir!"

Harry, "Dobby. Listen- are you sure about this?"

Dobby, "Dobby is quite sure, sir! Dobby hears things, sir, he is a house-elf, he goes all over the castle as he lights the fires and mops the floors. Dobby heard the Professors in the staffroom, talking about the next task…. Dobby cannot let Harry Potter lose his Wheezy! Michael Potter has already found a charm that won't let him loose his Luna. Mr. Longybottom helped Dobby find the gillyweed, sir! After he and Moody talked about it at tea!"

Harry's doubts vanished. If even Neville found the courage to help Dobby in this, it should be a sure bet. Jumping to his feet he pulled off the Invisibility Cloak, stuffed it into his bag, grabbed the gillyweed, put it into his pocket, then tore out of the library with Dobby at his heels.

Dobby wished Harry luck as he ran off back to the kitchens.

The entrance hall contained a few last-minute stragglers, all leaving the Great Hall through the double oak doors to watch the second task. They stared as Harry ran past, sending the Creevey brothers flying as he leapt down the stone steps and out onto the bright, chilly grounds. As he ran, he saw that the seats that had encircled the dragons' enclosure were now ranged along the opposite bank, rising in stands that were packed full and reflected in the lake. The excited crowd echoed across the water as Harry ran around the other side of the lake toward the judges, who were sitting at another gold-draped table at the water's edge. Cedric, Fleur, and Krum were beside the judges' table, watching Harry sprint toward them. Michael was there as well, looking just as out of breath as Harry.

Harry panted, skidding to a halt in the mud and accidentally splattering Fleur's robes

Harry, "I'm…. Here…."

"Where have you been? The task's about to start!"

Harry looked around. Percy Weasley was sitting at the judges' table, being the one to speak. Mr. Crouch had failed to turn up again.

Bagman, "now, now, Percy! Let him catch his breath!"

Dumbledore smiled at Harry and Michael, but Karkaroff and Madame Maxime didn't look at all pleased to see them.

Bagman asks if Harry is okay for a moment. After Harry tells him yes, Bagman begins the second task.

"Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them. On the count of three, then. One…. Two…. Three!"

The whistle echoed shrilly; the stands erupted with cheers and applause; without looking to see what the other champions were doing, Harry pulled off his shoes and socks, pulled the handful of gillyweed out of his pocket, stuffed it into his mouth, and jumped into the lake.

It was so cold he felt his skin searing as though this were fire, not icy water. His sodden robes weighed him down as he sank. He was chewing the gillyweed as hard and fast as he could; it felt unpleasantly slimy and rubbery, like octopus tentacles.

But then…. The icy feeling stopped.

He felt the water entering his lungs as if it were air, and noticed that he now had gills and fins!

Michael felt the same icy feeling as he floated within the water.

Michael turned his wand on himself, and hoped he could perform this right!

"Aquatus Flippicus."

Within an instant, Michael felt his body changing!

His lungs began to form into gills on his sides!

His hands and feet turned into fins!

And his eyes bulged out, his teeth sharpened, and scales grew over his body! He looked like a piranha!

He and Harry looked at one another and nodded.

They needed to find their friends before time ran out!

As the two swam together, they were soon attacked by Grindylows in the water!

Harry began using the spell, "Relashio!"

Bubbles came out of his mouth as fire seemed to hit the Grindylows!

Michael, without even thinking, pointed his wand ahead and shot out blueball fire!

A fire that wasn't as effective on land, but underwater, it was super effective in fending off the ferocious underwater beasts!

With the threat taken care of, Michael and Harry resumed their search for their friends….

Eventually, they ran into Myrtle, who pointed them into the right direction.

They swam on for what felt like at least twenty minutes. They were passing over vast expanses of mud now, which swirled as they disturbed the water. Then, at long last, they heard a bit of the haunting mersong's.

They swam faster and soon saw a large rock emerge out of the muddy water ahead. It had paintings of merpeople on it; they were carrying spears and chasing what looked like the giant squid. The twins swam past the rock, following the mersong.

A cluster of crude stone dwellings stained with algae loomed ahead. Here and there, they saw faces…. Faces that bore no resemblance to the image of the mermaid in the prefects' bathroom…. The merpeople had grayish skin and long, wild, dark green hair. Their eyes were yellow, as were their teeth, and they wore thick ropes of pebbles around their necks.

They leered at the twins as they sped past.

They sped on, staring around, and soon the dwellings became more numerous; there were gardens of weed around some of them, and he even saw a pet grindylow tied to a stake outside one door.

Merpeople were emerging on all sides now, watching them eagerly, talking behind their hands to one another. The twins sped around a corner and a very strange sight met his eyes.

A whole crowd of merpeople was floating in front of the houses that lined what looked like a village square. A choir of merpeople was singing in the middle, calling the champions toward them, and behind them rose a crude statue; a gigantic merperson hewn from a boulder. Five people were bound tightly to the tail of the stone merperson.

Ron was tied between Hermione and Cho. Luna was right next to Hermione. There was also a girl who looked no older than eight, whose clouds of silvery hair made the brothers feel sure that she was Fleur's sister. All five of them appeared to be in a very deep sleep. Their heads were rolling onto their shoulders, and streams of bubbles kept issuing from their mouths.

Michael was terrified to see Luna and Cho in danger!

The twins sped toward the hostages, half expecting the merpeople to lower their spears and charge at them, but they did nothing. The ropes of weed tying the hostages to the statue were thick, slimy, and very strong. For a fleeting second they thought of the knife Sirius had bought Harry for Christmas…. Locked in their trunk in the castle a quarter of a mile away, no use to them whatsoever.

They looked around. Many of the merpeople surrounding them were carrying spears. Harry swam swiftly toward a seven-foot-tall merman with a long green beard and a choker of shark fangs and tried to mime a request to borrow the spear. The merman laughed and shook his head.

He said in a harsh, croaky voice, "we do not help."

Harry, "come on!"

Harry tried to pull the spear away from the merman, but the merman yanked it back, still shaking his head and laughing.

Michael, meanwhile, began using his sharpened teeth to chew through Luna's bindings.

Harry swirled around, staring about. Something sharp…. Anything…. There were rocks littering the lake bottom. He dived and snatched up a particularly jagged one and returned to the statue.

He began to hack at the ropes binding Ron, and after several minutes' hard work, they broke apart. Ron floated, unconscious, a few inches above the lake bottom, drifting a little in the ebb of the water.

Harry and Michael looked around. There was no sign of any of the other champions. What were they playing at? Why didn't they hurry up?

Harry turned back to Hermione, raised the jagged rock, and began to hack at her bindings too.

At once, several pairs of strong gray hands seized him. Half a dozen mermen were pulling him away from Hermione, shaking their green-haired heads, and laughing.

One said, "you take your own hostage. Leave the others…."

Harry, "no way!"

Michael was nearly through the vines as he growled, "nobody gets left behind!"

"Your task is to retrieve your own friend. Leave the others…."

Harry yelled, gesturing toward Hermione, "she's our friend too! And I don't want them to die either!"

Cho's head was on Hermione's shoulder. Harry struggled to fight off the mermen, but they laughed harder than ever, holding him back.

Michael finally managed to get Luna free and took her into his arms.

Harry and Michael looked wildly around. Where were the other champions?

Would they have time to take Ron and Luna to the surface and come back down for Hermione and the others? Would they be able to find them again? They looked down at Harry's watch to see how much time was left…. It had stopped working.

But then the merpeople pointed excitedly over their heads. The twins looked up and saw Cedric swimming toward them. Michael was happy to see him for once. There was an enormous bubble around his head, which made his features look oddly wide and stretched.

Cedric, "get lost! Fleur and Krum're coming now!"

Feeling enormously relieved, they watched Cedric pull a knife out of his pocket and cut Cho free. He pulled her upward and out of sight.

Michael may have been jealous, but was relieved to see Cho get to safety.

The twins looked around. Where were Fleur and Krum? Time was getting short, and according to the song, the hostages would be lost after an hour…. The merpeople started screeching animatedly. Those holding Harry loosened their grip. The twins turned and saw something monstrous cutting through the water toward them: a human body in swimming trunks with the head of a shark…. It was Krum. He appeared to have transfigured himself, but badly. He tried to chomp through Hermione's restraints, but to no avail. He wasn't as skilled with his sharp teeth as Michael was.

Darting forward, Harry hit Krum hard on the shoulder and held up the jagged stone. Krum seized it and began to cut Hermione free. Within seconds, he had done it; he grabbed Hermione around the waist, and without a backward glance, began to rise rapidly with her toward the surface.

Now what? Michael and Harry grew worried.

If they could be sure that Fleur was coming…. But still no sign. There was nothing to be done except…. Harry snatched up the stone Krum had dropped, but the mermen now closed in around Ron and the little girl, shaking their heads at him.

Harry pulled out his wand, "get out of the way!"

Only bubbles flew out of his mouth, but he had the distinct impression that the mermen had understood him, because they suddenly stopped laughing. Their yellowish eyes were fixed upon Harry's wand, and they looked scared. There might be a lot more of them than there were of him, but Harry could tell, by the looks on their faces, that they knew no more magic than the giant squid did.

Harry looked at Michael and yelled, "get Luna out of here! I'll help Ron and the girl!"

Michael nodded as he began swimming to the surface with Luna. As a merman tried to grab him, he fired a blast of blueball fire that scared him off, as did the growl and snarl he gave before swimming off….

Harry shouted; a great stream of bubbles burst from him, but he held up three fingers to make sure they got the message, "you've got until three... One…. Two…."

They scattered. Harry darted forward and began to hack at the ropes binding the small girl to the statue, and at last she was free.

He seized the little girl around the waist, grabbed the neck of Ron's robes, and kicked off from the bottom.

It was very slow work. He could no longer use his webbed hands to propel himself forward; he worked his flippers furiously, but Ron and Fleur's sister were like potato-filled sacks dragging him back down…. He fixed his eyes upward, though he knew he must still be very deep, since the water above him was so dark…. Merpeople were rising with him. He could see themaround him, watching him struggle through the water…. Would they pull him back down to the depths when the time was up? Did they perhaps eat humans? Harry's legs were seizing up with the effort to keep swimming; his shoulders were aching terribly with the effort of dragging Ron and the girl.

He was drawing breath with extreme difficulty. He could feel pain on the sides of his neck again. He was becoming very aware of how wet the water was in his mouth. Yet the darkness was definitely thinning now…. He could see daylight above him.

He kicked hard, but his flippers were now feet again. Water was flooding through his mouth into his lungs. He was starting to feel dizzy, but he knew light and air were only ten feet above him. He had to get there. He had to!

Harry kicked his legs so hard and fast it felt as though his muscles were screaming in protest; his very brain felt waterlogged, he couldn't breathe, he needed oxygen, he had to keep going, he could not stop!

But then he felt someone jumping into the water and helping him swim further up!

And then Harry felt his head break the surface of the lake; wonderful, cold, clear air was making his wet face sting; he gulped it down, feeling as though he had never breathed properly before, and pulled Ron and the little girl up with him.

He saw Michael swimming in front of him. His brother had jumped back in to save him! Luna was sitting with Neville hugging her close by the other champions and their friends.

All around them, wild, green-haired heads were emerging out of the water with them, but they were smiling at them.

The crowd in the stands was making a great deal of noise; shouting and screaming on their feet; Harry had the impression they thought that Ron and the little girl might be dead, but they were wrong. Both of them had opened their eyes; the girl looked scared and confused, but Ron merely expelled a great spout of water, blinked in the bright light, turned to Harry.

He said, "wet, this, isn't it? What did you bring her for?"

Harry, "Fleur didn't turn up, I couldn't leave her."

Michael, "well, you'll never believe the poppycock they told us!"

Ron, "yeah, you didn't take that song thing seriously, did you? Dumbledore wouldn't have let any of us drown!"

Harry, "the song said-"

Ron, "it was only to make sure you got back inside the time limit! I hope you didn't waste time down there acting the hero!"

Michael, "we both did, thank you very much. I only went back in to help him!"

Harry felt both stupid and annoyed. It was all very well for Ron; he'd been asleep, he hadn't felt how eerie it was down in the lake, surrounded by spear-carrying merpeople who'd looked more than capable of murder.

Harry, "c'mon. Help me with her, I don't think she can swim very well."

They pulled Fleur's sister through the water, back toward the bank where the judges stood watching, twenty merpeople accompanying them like a guard of honor.

Harry could see Madam Pomfrey fussing over Hermione, Krum, Cedric, and Cho, all of whom were wrapped in thick blankets.

Neville was fussing over Luna, believe it or not.

Dumbledore and Bagman stood beaming at Harry, Michael and Ron from the bank as they swam nearer, but Percy, who looked very white and somehow much younger than usual, came splashing out to meet them. Madame Maxime was trying to restrain Fleur, who was quite hysterical, fighting tooth and nail to return to the water.

"Gabrielle! Gabrielle! Is she alive? Is she 'urt?"

Harry, "she's fine."

Percy seized Ron and was dragging him back to the bank.

Dumbledore and Bagman were pulling Harry upright; Fleur had broken free of Madame Maxime and was hugging her sister.

Fleur, "it was ze grindylows…. Zey attacked me…. Oh Gabrielle, I thought…. I thought…."

Madam Pomfrey, "come here, you."

She seized Harry and Michael and pulled them over to Hermione and the others, wrapped them tightly in blankets, and forced a measure of very hot potion down their throats. Steam gushed out of their ears.

Hermione, "Harry, Michael, well done. You did it, you found out how all by yourselves!"

Michael did, but Harry almost admitted that Dobby had helped him before he noticed Karkaroff watching him. He was the only judge who had not left the table; the only judge not showing signs of pleasure and relief that Harry, Michael, Ron, and Fleur's sister had got back safely.

Harry, "yeah, that's right."

Krum went over to Hermione to make sure she was okay.

Hermione, "you're well outside the time limit, though…. Did it take you ages to find us?"

Harry, "no…. We found you okay…."

Harry's feeling of stupidity grew. Now that he was out of the water, it seemed perfectly clear that Dumbledore's safety precautions wouldn't have permitted the death of a hostage just because their champion hadn't turned up. Why hadn't he just grabbed Ron and gone? He would have been first back…. Cedric and Krum hadn't wasted time worrying about anyone else; they hadn't taken the songs seriously, and even Michael had gotten back before he did.

Dumbledore was crouching at the water's edge, deep in conversation with what seemed to be the chief merperson, a particularly wild and ferocious-looking female.

Michael thought that she looked kinda cute, in a ferocious kind of way.

Dumbeldore was making the same sort of screechy noises that the merpeople made when they were above water; clearly, Dumbledore could speak Mermish. Finally he straightened up, turned to his fellow judges, and said, "a conference before we give the marks, I think."

The judges went into a huddle. Madam Pomfrey had gone to rescue Ron from Percy's clutches; she led him over to Harry, Michael and the others, gave him a blanket and some Pepperup Potion, then went to fetch Fleur and her sister. Fleur had many cuts on her face and arms and her robes were torn, but she didn't seem to care, nor would she allow Madam Pomfrey to clean them.

"Look after Gabrielle", she told her, and then she turned to Harry, "you saved 'er. Even though she was not your 'ostage."

Harry, "yeah…."

Fleur bent down, kissed Harry twice on each cheek, (he felt his face burn and wouldn't have been surprised if steam was coming out of his ears again), then said to Michael, "and you too, you 'elped!"

Michael, "well, uh-"

Fleur suddenly kissed Michael on the lips!

His face grew as red as a tomato as he was as silent and stiff as a statue.

Fleur turned to Ron, "and you! You did too?"

Ron, "yeah. Yeah, a bit-"

Fleur swooped down on him too and kissed him. Hermione looked simply furious, but just then, Bagman's magically magnified voice boomed out beside them, making them all jump, and causing the crowd in the stands to go very quiet.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Merchieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows…. Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated excellent use of the Bubble-Head Charm, was attacked by grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award her twenty-five points."

Applause from the stands.

Fleur, "I deserved zero."

"Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble-Head Charm, was first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour."

Enormous cheers from the Hufflepuffs in the crowd; Michael saw Cho give Cedric a glowing look.

"We therefore award him forty-seven points."

Harry's heart sank. If Cedric had been outside the time limit, he most certainly had been. Michael felt the same way.

"Viktor Krum used an incomplete form of Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was second to return with his hostage. We award him forty points."

Karkaroff clapped particularly hard, looking very superior.

"Michael Potter was the third to get back with his hostage, and performed the Aquatus charm to great effect. He also jumped back into the lake in order to help rescue the others, when he wasn't supposed to, regardless of his bravery. And for that, we award him; forty three points!"

Michael smiled. He was above Krum and just below Cedric. He hoped Harry would get a high score too.

"Harry Potter used gillyweed to great effect. He returned last, and well outside the time limit of an hour. However, the Merchieftainess informs us that Mr. Potter was first to reach the hostages, and that the delay in his return was due to his determination to return all hostages to safety, not merely his own."

Ron and Hermione both gave Harry half-exasperated, half-commiserating looks.

Michael muttered, "we didn't know about the time limit being less dangerous."

Bagman said while giving a nasty look towards Karkaroff, "most of the judges feel that this shows moral fiber and merits full marks. However…. Harry Potter's score is forty-five points."

Harry's stomach leapt, he was now tying for first place with Cedric. Michael clapped for his brother. Ron and Hermione, caught by surprise, stared at Harry, then laughed and started applauding hard with the rest of the crowd.

Ron, "there you go, Harry! You weren't being thick after all, you were showing moral fiber!"

Fleur was clapping very hard too, but Krum didn't look happy at all. He attempted to engage Hermione in conversation again, but she was too busy cheering Harry to listen.

Bagman, "the third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June. The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions."

Michael and Harry both smiled dazedly as they were led away to get some medical care, walking up the castle steps.

Next time they were in Hogsmeade, Harry decided that he was going to buy Dobby a pair of socks for every day of the year.

And Michael would buy him mittens for helping his brother every chance he got!

….

Reviews:

Canadude2029: yep. Things are getting more and more crazy as the challenges occur. Glad you're excited for more.

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