The days until the first task seemingly flew by. Hermione, Harry, and Ron were spending all their free time finding empty classrooms in which to practise useful spells from the list curated by Hermione. Ron hadn't been too upset that they'd already met twice without him, and he was eager to catch up. Mainly they'd been trying out a few simple shield and protection spells, as those seemed most likely to be useful for an unknown danger.
There was a scheduled Hogsmeade visit on the Saturday before the first task. Ron convinced Hermione and Harry that it would be good to get out and relax for a bit. They had been working hard to keep up with classes and their extra practice sessions, so Hermione didn't protest. Harry looked relieved.
They waited until most of the other students had already left for the village before heading out themselves. Harry wanted to avoid the brunt of the usual disparaging comments thrown his way, as well as the guaranteed barrage of flashing red and green badges that Hermione had first seen on Malfoy. Though come to think of it, she couldn't remember having seen Malfoy wearing it since their encounter in the library.
Hermione wound her scarf tightly over her mouth and nose as they walked to keep out the worst of the chilly November wind. The path to Hogsmeade village was a considerable distance, and she wasn't keen to have smoke blowing out of her ears for the rest of the day after needing one of Madam Pomfrey's Pepper-Up Potions. Ron and Harry joked loudly, the fresh air beginning to provide the release they needed. She was glad to see Harry lightening up again. He even seemed more confident about having to compete in the tournament.
They started with visits to Honeydukes and Zonko's. Harry purchased a bag of Dungbombs in the latter to be used as a last resort for his upcoming talk with Sirius.
On their way to the Three Broomsticks for lunch and butterbeer, Harry suddenly darted into an alleyway, pulling Ron and Hermione with him. He pointed out a woman with elaborately-set blonde curls and a crocodile skin handbag coming out of the pub. She was followed closely by a photographer.
So that was the infamous Rita Skeeter. She was surely in town for the upcoming Tournament, and Hermione made a mental note to keep her distance.
Once inside, Hermione led them towards a table tucked away in the corner. As one of the more popular establishments in the village, the Three Broomsticks was packed full of students. Harry and Ron stopped to chat for a moment with Fred, George, and Lee sitting nearby, then took places across from her facing the wall. For some reason, Harry kept looking over his shoulder towards a table full of Ravenclaw girls near the entrance.
Scanning the pub once for a familiar shock of blonde hair, Hermione noticed Hagrid sitting with Professor Moody.
"Harry, Ron, it's Hagrid over there," she pointed out.
Hagrid and Moody scraped back in their chairs to get up, and Ron waved at Hagrid. Hagrid spotted him and made his way over to their table. Moody simply inclined his head in their direction and continued outside.
"All right, you three?" Hagrid boomed. Thankfully, Hagrid was large enough to block all three of them from view of the rest of the pub.
Hermione smiled. "Hello, Hagrid."
"Hey Hagrid," Harry began lightly, "what are you—" he cut off, for Hagrid suddenly leaned down quite close to Harry's ear.
Hagrid's bumblebee whisper carried just far enough for Hermione to hear. "Harry, meet me down at me cabin at midnight. Bring yer dad's cloak."
Hagrid straightened just as abruptly, giving them a conspicuous wink. "Nice ter see you all, I'll be headin' back ter the school, now."
Ron looked bemusedly at Harry. "What was that all about?" he asked.
"No idea," Harry responded. "I guess I've got to meet him, though, haven't I?"
Hermione bit her lip. "Well, I suppose so," she said finally. "I don't think Hagrid would ask if it wasn't important. At least whatever it is doesn't seem terribly serious."
"I hope he hasn't got another dragon," Ron joked.
Hermione and Harry burst out laughing. Hagrid wouldn't be that ridiculous… would he? Harry echoed her thoughts, and they sat speculating on what Hagrid could possibly have to tell Harry in the dead of night.
The rest of the day was uneventful, and Hermione sat dozing in a squashy armchair in front of the fire in the empty Gryffindor common room, a book lying open on her chest. Ron was leaning back, snoring on the sofa next to her, and Crookshanks was curled up by his leg.
The portrait hole slammed unexpectedly, and Hermione jolted awake. Heavy footsteps crashed across the room.
"Dragons," Harry panted, tearing off the invisibility cloak.
"What?" Ron mumbled sleepily. "Hagrid did get another one?"
"No." Harry dropped into the chair across from Hermione, still breathing heavily. "Dragons. That's the first task. We each have to get past a dragon."
Hermione's breath caught. She sat up, pushing her hair out of her eyes.
Ron had sat up, too. "You're joking!" he burst out.
"I'm not," Harry said gravely. "I saw them. They've got four tethered down by the forest. Your brother's here, too. Charlie. He helped bring them over, I guess."
"Charlie's here?" Ron asked. "How come I didn't know?"
Hermione spoke up. "Probably because nobody is supposed to know about what's coming for the first task. Why did Hagrid show you, Harry?"
"I dunno," Harry replied, wiping his glasses with the side of his robes before replacing them on his nose. "But he had Madam Maxime with him again. And I saw Karkaroff trying to get a look at them, too. So Fleur and Krum will definitely both know by now."
"Wow," Hermione breathed softly.
She, Ron, and Harry all sat silently, thinking furiously. None of them could come up with any single spell that could overcome a dragon. They finally decided to rest and regroup in the morning. Hermione would spend all day in the library researching dragons if she had to.
Hermione did spend all Sunday in the library to no avail. All of her free periods and most of Monday and Tuesday evenings, too. Almost all of the volumes available in the Hogwarts library consisted of caring for dragons and dragon-related diseases, which were rather unhelpful for someone needing to get past one.
Hermione noticed Krum was also spending a lot of time in the section on dragons. He always seemed to pop up wherever she was, but this instance could be easily dismissed. He obviously knew about the first task, too. Once Harry arrived to join Hermione at her table, Krum seemed rather sullen. Perhaps Krum had thought he was the only one with the advantage of knowing what was to come.
As it turned out, all of the champions now knew about the dragons. Harry, being noble to the point of impractical as usual, had caught up with Cedric on Monday morning to let him know about the first task. All of the champions would be on a level playing field for the first task — not that it helped Harry's case any. Hermione hoped Sirius would have a few ideas when they met with him after midnight.
Fortunately, Sirius did have one idea to help Harry with the first task; he suggested that Harry use a Conjunctivitus Curse, since a dragon's eyes were its weakest point. The dragon would be temporarily blinded, enabling Harry to get past it, or whatever he needed to do. It made sense, even if it did sound a little inhumane.
Sirius also told them about Karkaroff being a former Death Eater, and his theories on Karkaroff's involvement in submitting Harry for the tournament. Hermione remembered Malfoy mentioning that his dad and Karkaroff were friendly, and filed that information away for another time.
Sirius last spoke of a Ministry witch who had gone missing over the summer. She disappeared in Albania, the same place where rumour last had Voldemort. Sirius thought Karkaroff might have good reason to put Harry's name in the Goblet if he was trying to off Harry for Voldemort.
Wednesday evening, the night before the first task, saw Hermione, Harry, and Ron back in the library, methodically researching anything else that might be useful for Harry to have up his sleeve on Thursday afternoon. Hermione sat with an elbow on the table, a fist propping up her chin.
"I just don't know, Harry… Charlie said 'nesting mothers'?" She was beginning to feel like she was repeating herself. "It sounds like they're wanting the dragon to guard something, maybe hidden in the eggs. I'm not sure it's wise to blind it, even temporarily. You may never get what you're after then."
Harry sighed in exasperation. "I know, Hermione, but like I said last time, I don't have any other options. We haven't been able to come up with a single other spell to use against a nearly-indestructible, fire-breathing, flying dragon."
The word flying hit Hermione like a hammer between the eyes. "Harry — that's it!"
Hermione jumped up and began pacing. Ron and Harry watched her warily.
"What's it?" Ron ventured.
"Harry," Hermione began excitedly, "what's the one thing you've always been great at, ever since first year? Flying!" she added at his confused expression.
Harry's face didn't change. "Hermione, they're not going to let me take a broom inside—"
Ron, cottoning on, smacked his hand on the table. "Yeah. Yeah, she's right. Brilliant, Hermione! Harry… you can summon your broom from the castle!"
Harry gaped at them for a moment before his expression turned thoughtful. "Yeah, yeah I suppose…"
"It's perfect," Hermione finished, beaming.
They packed up to move to an empty classroom so that Harry could practise his Summoning Charm. He had mostly gotten the hang of it during their last training session, but it couldn't hurt to have it mastered.
On her way out of the library, Hermione realised Krum had been sitting close by again, probably within earshot. She hoped he wouldn't tell anyone that Hermione and Ron had been helping Harry. She gave him a small smile and waved, and he returned both gestures. If Krum had heard them, It didn't seem like he cared.
The day of the first task dawned and Hermione felt like a bundle of nerves. She couldn't imagine how Harry must feel. She could tell that Harry was not paying the slightest bit of attention throughout History of Magic that morning. In fact, neither was she. No matter, she would reread the chapter later.
On their way to lunch, Harry was stopped by Professor Moody, who pulled him off to the side of the corridor, speaking quietly. She and Ron waited, watching as Moody seemed to ask several questions of Harry. Moody's scarred eyebrows climbed ever higher at whatever answers Harry was giving.
Moody finally patted Harry on the shoulder with a gnarled hand and stumped off down the hallway, and Harry rejoined Hermione and Ron to say that Moody had been asking, if rather circumspectly, if Harry knew how he was going to get through the first task. Moody must have been really concerned about Harry to offer help. Hermione wondered if he expected whoever put Harry's name in the Goblet to make a move today.
At lunch, Professor McGonagall came to lead Harry out to the grounds where the champions were gathering. Hermione pushed away her untouched plate while Ron dashed off for the Gryffindor common room. He was going to move Harry's Firebolt down to Hagrid's Hut so that Harry wouldn't need to wait as long once he Summoned for it, then meet Hermione at the entrance to the stands.
Hermione was in such a daze that it felt as if one moment she was seated in the Great Hall, stomach churning as she stared after Ron's retreating form, and the next she was seated by Ron on a bench, staring down towards an enclosure where handlers were pulling in a blue-grey, full-sized dragon. Ron's brother Charlie was among them, his bright red hair clearly visible from this distance.
They settled the dragon over her clutch of eggs at the opposite end of the enclosure from where each champion would enter. Hermione barely heard Mr. Crouch explaining what the champions had to do, but she caught the words "golden egg". A shrill whistle blew somewhere, and Hermione clutched Ron's arm frantically, craning her neck to see if Harry would appear first.
Cedric walked in looking nervous but determined. He came halfway across the enclosure before pointing his wand at a large rock on the ground, which was suddenly transfigured into a Labrador. He sent the dog ahead of him to try distracting the dragon.
It almost worked. The dragon took several minutes to be convinced into going for the dog instead of keeping an eye on Cedric, but as Cedric was reaching the golden egg, the creature quickly turned around and blasted a bout of flames in his direction. Cedric managed to snatch up the egg and run, but not before he had received a nasty burn on the side of his face. The keepers surged back out to subdue the dragon, and replaced it with a different dragon, green this time. During the interlude, the judges held up their scores.
Fleur came out next and used a modified sleeping charm to try lulling her dragon into a stupor. The charm was slow to take effect, but it worked better than Hermione expected. Fleur had only to put out a few flames that caught the edge of her skirt when the dragon snored, releasing a burst of fire, as she bent for the egg. She received her marks and followed the path Cedric had taken to the infirmary tent to be checked over by Madam Pomfrey.
The next dragon brought out gleamed red in the afternoon sun.
Krum was third. Hermione was beginning to feel her muscles ache from tensing each time the next champion appeared. Harry would be last, then.
Krum immediately tried a Summoning Charm on the golden egg itself, but the egg didn't so much as twitch. The dragon watched him warily, but made no move to leave her eggs. Krum shrugged and walked around the enclosure for a better angle. He performed a Levitation Charm on one of the real eggs. It leapt up quickly this time, and Krum directed it to a patch of ground across the enclosure from himself and the other eggs.
One by one, he moved each of the real dragon eggs until they rested in a pile well apart from the golden egg, the dragon growing increasingly agitated. The dragon bent its forelegs to sniff at the last egg remaining and wasted no time scurrying over to the new pile containing all of the real eggs. Krum walked casually over and scooped up his golden egg to thunderous applause.
Ron was shaking his arm now, trying to loosen Hermione's grip as her nails dug in.
The keepers brought out the final dragon. It looked a good deal more frightening than the others, with huge black spikes lining its silhouette from head to tail. The whistle blew for the final time and Harry walked into the enclosure.
The noise from the crowd was deafening, but he didn't appear to notice. Harry raised his wand and his mouth moved, but only Hermione and Ron knew what was happening. Some of the crowd began standing at their seats, trying to figure out whether or not Harry had actually done anything. A flash of brown suddenly whipped around the edge of the forest and came to a stop mid-air beside Harry.
Hermione bound to her feet, screaming in elation as Harry jumped on his Firebolt and kicked off. Harry dove and swerved around the dragon, dodging jets of flame while trying to lure it off the ground. She gasped as the dragon's spiked tail swung up and caught the tip of Harry's shoulder during one of his attempts to reach the egg. He didn't appear seriously hurt, but Hermione clutched at her own chest watching him evade another spurt of fire.
At last, Harry managed to get the dragon to unfurl her wings and take flight. He hurtled straight towards the ground to scoop up the golden egg and flew back to safety.
Hermione dropped back to her seat in relief and exhaustion. She was startled to find that her cheeks were damp. Harry flew back in to land in the enclosure, where Professor McGonagall chivvied him towards the first aid tent. His eyes sought Ron and Hermione in the crowd before he left. Ron gave him two thumbs up and Hermione waved at him, smiling so hugely that her cheeks began to protest.
Ron began tugging her hand, suggesting they go down to meet Harry. As they reached the infirmary tent, Harry was just coming out, his wounds freshly dressed.
Hermione barrelled into him with a hug. "Harry, you were amazing!"
Ron clapped Harry on the back as they re-entered the enclosure to find out Harry's scores. "Bloody brilliant, mate! You were the fastest one."
Harry had come in second place overall, just behind Krum. Fleur and Cedric were tied for third place.
Ron swore when Harry's scores went up and Karkaroff's marks were significantly lower than the rest. "Bollocks. That's got to be a cock-up, that has — You were the best by far! Karkaroff's just favouring Krum. And he's probably mad you got through the task at all," Ron finished, throwing Karkaroff a dark look.
Harry simply shrugged, smiling faintly and looking as if he didn't much mind his rank so long as he didn't have to face another dragon.
Charlie Weasley trotted over to tell Harry that Ludo Bagman needed a word with the champions. Harry left for the champion's tent, and Ron left for the Owlery with Charlie to send an owl to their mum about the results of the first task.
Hermione watched Ron and Charlie go, dithering about whether or not she should wait for Harry. Seeing as she had no idea how long he would be, Hermione decided instead on a kip before dinner. After a tense couple of hours, the adrenaline was wearing off and her limbs felt heavy. She started back for the castle behind the few stragglers leftover from the crowd in the stands.
Hermione was just entering the Charms corridor when she spotted Malfoy, surprisingly alone, ahead of her. She quickened her step and fell in beside him.
He looked sideways at her. "Following me, Granger?"
Hermione ignored the question. "So, what did you think?"
"About what?"
"The first task," she supplied helpfully.
"It was… interesting."
Hermione watched Malfoy expectantly as they turned a corner, waiting for him to elaborate. When he didn't, she tried again.
"Harry did well, didn't he? All of the champions did."
Malfoy's mouth twisted distastefully at the mention of Harry, but she pressed on.
"Of course, Krum's method was the simplest, but it would have been something to see him fly again, too. I haven't got much interest in playing Quidditch myself, but I thought the Quidditch World Cup was exciting all the same, didn't you? Especially when Krum pulled off that Wonky-Faint—"
Malfoy groaned and came to a halt, clapping a hand over his eyes. "Tell me you did not just call it a 'Wonky-Faint'."
Hermione stopped next to him and shrugged, watching him curiously.
"Wronski Feint," he corrected. He crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall. "It's only one of the most infamous diversions a seeker can use. Right beside Rappeneau's Ruse and the Beater's Bait. Honestly, don't you read, Granger?"
She smiled. "Yes, but about important things. Like history, and house-elf rights, and—"
Malfoy cut her off with a wave and a scoff. "Yes, yes, but Quidditch is for fun."
"If you say so," Hermione replied doubtfully, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.
Malfoy smirked. "Ah, yes. I remember you on a broom in first year. I take it nothing's changed?"
She snorted. "Not in the least. You're an excellent flyer, though, from what I've seen."
Malfoy ran a hand through his hair and pushed off the wall. "Well, thanks. But I'm not sure how much of a compliment it is coming from you." He started walking again and Hermione kept pace.
"Point taken," she said with a laugh. "Do you miss it? Playing Quidditch?"
"Yeah." He sighed regretfully. "It's too bad they cancelled this year's Cup for the tournament. With homework the way it's been and no excuse of having team practise, I haven't been on a broom in ages." They turned another corner.
"You don't ever get out for a friendly with some of the other Slytherins? Nott, Zabini…?" she trailed off.
"No." Malfoy shook his head. "Crabbe and Goyle don't want to exercise any more than they have to. Zabini's shite at it and Theo… well, we don't hang out much outside of class anymore."
They started up a narrow staircase. "Oh," Hermione said, briefly twisting her lips to the side. "You and Theo used to be close?"
"Yeah," he replied. "We were best mates until…" He cut off and narrowed his eyes at her, almost tripping up the stairs in the process. She reached out unthinkingly to steady him with a hand, and he flinched back in surprise. Affecting not to notice his reaction, Hermione pulled away smoothly and started upwards again.
She needed to change tactics before he became suspicious of her motives. Deciding to take a gamble, Hermione took a deep breath.
"Well, I'll never be a Quidditch player, but I've considered trying to relearn the basics of flying. A casual setting outside of mandatory lessons may be more conducive to picking up on it." She hummed in thought. "Perhaps Harry would be willing to teach me, if he ever has time with this tournament going on. Or Ron — he's a decent flyer himself, you know." Malfoy eyed her sideways while she tapped a finger against her lips. "Although, Ron doesn't always have the patience for that sort of thing." She gave a small laugh. "We'd likely end up arguing. I know apparition testing is coming up in a few years, but flying still seems like a useful skill to have. During first year, I cross-referenced every volume about flying theory I could find trying to get the hang of it, but for whatever reason, I could never manage to be completely comfortable. Do you think brooms can tell if you're nervous?"
Malfoy blinked a few times at the verbal onslaught. "Um… Maybe. I've never really thought about it."
Hermione let the silence stretch a few more moments, waiting to see if Malfoy would say anything else. He didn't.
"Where are we going anyway?" Hermione asked cheerfully as they walked down another corridor.
"I'm going to the library, Granger. Where are you going?" Malfoy asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh, yes, me too." She was now, anyway. "Just going to return a book, then I think I'll have a kip before dinner. You should go flying," she suggested, trying again to bait him into talking. "I'll bet the pitch is completely empty."
"Wish I could," Malfoy said regretfully. "I promised I'd help Montague with an Alchemy essay."
"Alchemy?" Hermione repeated in surprise. "That's a high-level course. Only open to sixth and seventh years."
"It's just sort of a hobby." He shrugged. "Lots of old, interesting manuscripts to read through in the library at home."
Suddenly Malfoy stopped again and turned to face her, looking torn. Hermione bit her lip, stomach fluttering with anticipation as she watched a mixture of emotions pass across his features. Malfoy finally cast his eyes up towards the ceiling and sighed.
"Granger… look. I don't…" He trailed off, sighing again. "What I mean to say is, it's not exactly conventional, but maybe after I've finished with Montague—"
As if summoned, Graham Montague, a burly sixth year, turned the corner ahead of them and Malfoy broke off abruptly, leaping backwards to put more distance between himself and Hermione. Malfoy's expression looked mildly horrified, either for what he had been about to offer or Montague's sudden appearance, she couldn't say. Hermione stepped further to the side of the corridor as Montague drew closer, watching him warily.
"There you are, Draco," Montague said. "Thought you might have forgotten. Are you ready to—" He noticed Hermione, peering at her intently. "Is the Mudblood bothering you?"
Malfoy looked mildly alarmed at having his interaction with Hermione pointed out. "No, I just—"
Montague bowled over him. "Then what are you doing here with her, Draco?"
Malfoy's expression remained neutral except for a slight widening of his eyes. "I was… it was only—"
Hermione came to his rescue. "Malfoy had to give me some notes. I missed class the other day after he hexed me, and he was forced to copy the notes for me as recompense."
Montague barked a laugh. Hermione's eyes flashed quickly to Malfoy's face and away again. Malfoy was staring at her in consternation.
"Good one, Draco," Montague said nastily, sneering. "Now run along, Mudblood, before I think of a hex I'd like to try. Wouldn't want Potter's favourite Muggle to go missing, would we?"
Hermione threw Montague a look of disgust as she walked past him. She didn't look back, but she could feel Malfoy's eyes following her.
Instead of going to the library, which she really hadn't intended to do anyway, she kept walking until she reached the common room. It was packed with Gryffindors babbling excitedly about the first task, but no sign of Ron or Harry yet. From the sound of it, Harry was going to get another party in his honour after dinner.
Another wave of exhaustion rolled over her and Hermione aimed for her dormitory. Later, she would think about what she'd learned about Malfoy today, and about Montague's ill-timed interruption. What had Malfoy been about to say?
What she most certainly would not think about was Malfoy's reaction to being touched by her, flinching away as if she were as dirty as her supposedly muddy blood. She absolutely would not think about why his opinion of her should bother her more than it used to. Determinedly not remembering how her pulse had quickened at her brief contact with Malfoy, Hermione rolled over in her four-poster and closed her eyes.