He sat at the edge of the pool, legs crossed and staring at the water. Ismanna, who had grown another two meters in the past year, was resting mostly inside the water with her head lying down next to Godric. He had a hand on her snout as he pondered the dilemma before him.
Come seek us where our voices sound,
We cannot sing above the ground.
He had to go into the water, and that provided two distinct problems he had to face.
First: the temperature. The task happened at the end of the month, but it was still February in the highlands. The water would be frigid.
Second: breathing. He had to go into the water and seek them, meaning he would be under the water for an extended amount of time.
And while you're searching ponder this;
We've taken what you'll sorely miss.
An hour long you'll have to look,
To recover what we took.
He didn't know what would be taken that he would sorely miss. He cared little for possessions, even his paintings. They may not be replaceable, but they were not something he would sorely miss.
He had two questions based on those verses.
First: were they going to tell him what had been taken before the task began?
Second: how would he track it if they did, or didn't, tell him?
A conundrum he would focus on after he figured out how to breathe underwater.
The last verse, however, seemed a bit grave and gave him pause.
But past an hour, the prospect's black,
Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.
He pulled off his shoes and socks and placed his toes in the water. He yelped and quickly drew them back out, Ismanna raised her head to stare at him.
"I'm fine, just colder than I imagined."
She flicked her tongue out at him which he responded with in kind, before she lay back down.
For warmth... Godric cocked his head. Most used a Bluebell Flame charm during the winter, or layers. However, layers would slow him down. Ideally he'd go in a swimsuit, but he didn't have one with him. His nose scrunched up and Godric made a mental note to write to his mum to see if she'd send him his.
There was the water heating charm, but the spell was typically used to boil water. There was the air warming spell, but that would only be a temporary fix and he would have to cast it almost repeatedly for it to be of any use, and he could cause himself to go into shock from the constant back and forth from hot to cold.
For breathing underwater, Godric could do what he had done in his previous life: give himself gills to filter the water out and provide his body with oxygen as well as surround his organs with magic so they did not collapse in the dive. However, that was tricky magic and not one that children should know. They probably expected the Bubble-Head Charm or some such thing.
He could make the water breathing potion, but while he had a deft hand at potions, he was nowhere near at Salazar's level, and for breathing under water he'd rather depend on Salazar's skills than his own, so that threw that option out.
He was going to figure out what he was going to do on his own.
He gave Ismanna a pat. "Once I figure out what I'm going to do, you'll go swimming with me, I presume?"
Her head snapped up and her snout pressed against his chest, eager eyes on his as she accidentally pushed him onto his back.
His laughter echoed around the laboratory.
- - - - Founders - - - -
They.
Did.
What?
Godric stared at the judges, who had delivered the news to the entire stadium.
"The second task will start on my whistle!" Bagman continued speaking to the crowd.
They took Salazar and put him at the bottom of a frigid lake?
He had no doubt it was Salazar down there.
"They have precisely an hour to recover what was taken from them."
He turned his back to the judges and began stripping and said in a calm voice, "You best begin the task as I'm about to enter the lake."
"Miss Dunbar!" McGonagall's voice called out, but Godric soon stood barefoot in a one piece swimsuit, his wand holster still strapped to his arm, ring on his thumb, watch on his wrist. He began jogging down the platform that hovered over the edge of the lake. He began casting his spells as he broke into a sprint. Delacour and Krum began chasing after Godric, he could hear their feet pounding on the dock behind him.
"One-Two-Three!" The whistle blew as Godric's feet touched the edge of the platform.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Rowena - - - -
Rowena held her hand to her mouth. She couldn't have possibly heard that man correctly… yet it would explain where Salazar was. It wasn't like him to be late to an event, nor was it like the man to not be present to be a moral support for his best friend.
"Please, tell me I did not hear Bagman correctly."
Dani looked at the man that had brought her to the second task. Her attention turned back to the still waters when she admitted, "I'm afraid you did."
David closed his eyes, shook his head, and declared, "I'm not telling Serena. She's frightening."
"Father!" Rowena exclaimed.
"No," David looked at his daughter, and stated, "I won't do it. I didn't marry the woman. I'll inform Heath. He can do it."
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Rowena - - - -
He leapt off the edge, spell casting complete, and dove into the water.
The three times he had been in the lake with Ismanna, the giant snake had followed along and happily swam circles around the man as he explored. He had found the nest of the Giant Squid, at the deepest part of the lake.
Watching the two weave about each other in play had been amusing, the water rushing about them as the squid tried to catch the basilisk.
On the second trip, he had found the Grindylows, and Ismanna chased them off with bared fangs and a watery hiss. They parted without another glance backwards. Wandering down to the bottom of the lake, he found two stone statues of their kind and when he looked at Ismanna with a raised eyebrow, she used her tail and showed a multitude of scars along her side.
Godric was glad that Ismanna had petrified the Grindylows as a means to protect herself. He wasn't sure what Helga would do to the creatures if she found out they had harmed Ismanna.
Godric had found the merpeople's home on his last trip into the lake - his true aim when he went swimming with Ismanna. It was the merpeople who gave the clue, and they said in their clue to seek them. When he had caught sight of the homes, he found himself and Ismanna completely surrounded. He had his wand up and aimed, but he started laughing when he noticed that they were more concerned with petting Ismanna than paying him any attention.
Godric sent a pulse of magic into the ring and activated the locatator portion of the spell, and the anger he felt tripled as he had been proven right.
Helga's and Rowena's locations were above him in the stands - moving towards the middle of the lake - while Ismanna's and Salazar's were near the deepest part.
He kept away from the right side of the lake, where the Grindylows resided. They were territorial demons with horns, long fingers, webbed hands, sharp fangs, and spindly bodies.
He watched as Krum swam off towards the left with a shark head. Delacour went right with the Bubble-Head Charm. The spell was flimsy, and she would be in danger if it popped. And as she was heading towards the Grindylows... Godric shook his head and continued forward in the direction of Salazar's position.
He could not see far in front of him, as the water was murky and dark, and the lake itself large and deep. But he used the same wind spell as he did in the first task to propel him forward quickly.
Forests of weeds erupted from the depths around him, dark and tangling.
Logs floated, blackened by water.
Small fish flickered past, barely seen as silver flashes.
He went down, down, down to the bottom of the lake, close to the middle, following Salazar's beacon. He glanced at his watch: barely twenty minutes, and was now passing over a vast expanse of black mud, swirling behind him in a turret from the upset of his body passing over it and the vast amount of water that propelled him forward at a dizzying speed.
"An hour long you'll have to look,
To recover what we took..."
Instead of the singular voice from the egg, it was a cacophony of voices, achingly blending and soaring together. And there he saw a familiar sight: a giant rock with paintings of the merfolk holding spears and chasing off the giant squid.
"... Time's barely started, but tarry not
Lest what you seek stays here to rot..."
Godric grit his teeth as he soared past the crude stone dwellings, stained with algae, and faces pressed against the windows. The merpeople had gray skin, long and tangled, wild dark green hair, yellow eyes, broken, jagged teeth, and thick rope of pebbles worn about their necks.
He passed them all, eyes narrowed, and repeated to himself why he couldn't kill them. That he shouldn't kill them.
He passed gardens of weeds, a Grindylow tied to a stake, and whispering merfolk whose chatter followed behind him.
And then he made it the center of the village where a large statue of a crude merperson was hewn from a boulder. On the tail, three bodies were tied.
Salazar. Hermione. Both still in their school robes.
A small girl who looked too young to be a student. Her skin a ghostly green color and pale and could possibly pass as a relation to Delacour.
Their eyes were shut and they looked to be asleep.
And surrounding the statue, her giant head resting beneath the three tied people, was Ismanna. Her tail moved furiously in the water, eyes on the ones bound.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Helga - - - -
Throughout the entirety of the task, they had been able to watch what transpired in certain areas thanks to the runes that the professors had set up. Laughter had echoed around when Krum had gotten stuck in a log for a moment. Shouts went up when Grindylows started attacking Fleur and someone had apparated to the girl and brought her out of the lake.
When the area that held the hostages appeared on the screen, screams of terror echoed around Helga, which made her ears ring.
Blindly reaching out, she grasped Rowena's hand in her own. Ismanna lay coiled around a statue, head tilted up, and watching the three tied.
She looked agitated and confused, lashing out at the merfolk when they got too close.
"What is that?" Dani whispered when Godric came closer to Ismanna.
"I don't know," Rowena's father replied.
Rowena squeezed her hand, but Helga could only stare at the three tied there, looking… she shuddered. What had the professors been thinking?
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Helga - - - -
A choir of merpeople were above, singing, beckoning the champions to them. Merpeople with spears kept a loose circle around Ismanna and the statue, though Ismanna did not let them get too close.
Godric glanced at his watch: twenty-three minutes.
He took a moment to stare from the girl to Hermione. He fought his instincts to just grab them all and leave, but the other champions had to also showcase their skills, and he would come back after he got Salazar up top and completed his task.
Godric snarled, but swam directly to Salazar, wand pointed at the spear-wielding merfolk, but they did nothing to stop him.
Using a quick slashing movement, he cut Salazar free and gently grabbed his friend. His hair floated around him in thick waves.
Turning around, he found Ismanna's face centimeters from him and he smiled and rested a hand on her snout. She turned and looked at the other two and flicked her tongue out. He patted her scales and her focus once more turned to him.
"I'll be back," he warbled the words out, bubbles escaping his mouth. "I'll take Sal up first and then come back for them if I need to." Speaking to her underwater was usually a hit or miss, as the water distorted some of his words if he spoke too quickly, so he pointed at Salazar, then upwards, back at himself, and then the other two in case the words didn't come across.
Ismanna gently nudged him upwards with her head before resting once more under the statue, eyes agitated and body tense to protect the others still there.
Godric glared at the merfolk and readjusted his hold. He wrapped his legs around Salazar's, cupping the back of his friend best's head with his hand, and resting Salazar's forehead against his chest.
Just in case, he cast protection charms on all three of the captives' internal organs to provide extra support.
With his free hand he pointed his wand at the muddy earth and sent a burst of wind down, and let himself be carried straight upward, his focus on Rowena's location.
He heard the screech of the Grindylows. He saw logs with just enough time to twist around so they wouldn't be caught in their reaching limbs. Godric kept his eyes upward, waiting to see the light through the surface of the water.
Finally, finally he could see the darkness thinning. He turned himself, and Salazar, aiming for the platform he could just barely make out. When he was almost under it, he cancelled the charm he had cast to allow him to breathe underwater and sent a strong blast directly downwards and sent them up and into the air, water erupting around them as they surfaced.
Salazar coughed up a little water, but didn't fight Godric. The man started shuddering from the cold. His hands, which had been hanging limply by his sides until then, came up and wrapped around Godric's waist.
Cutting off the air stream, Godric twisted and sent a cushioning charm on the dock as he landed on his back and took the brunt of the hit with a grunt.
He released his hold on Salazar and helped his friend stand, shaking his head to get the water out of his ears.
The screams of the stadium hit him first and he flinched at the sound, but then what he saw had him growling in anger.
Madam Pomfrey was heading straight towards them, but Delacour was being held back by Madam Maxime.
Her eyes were wide, and she was screaming, staring right at Godric.
"Gabrielle! Gabrielle!"
Cursing, Godric cast a quick look at Salazar who looked about ready to murder someone. Sure that Salazar was safe and breathing and ok, Godric rolled his shoulders, eyes once more focused on the water.
"Is she alive? The snake... is Gabrielle alive?"
Madam Pomfrey was almost to them, towels and wand in hand. "Miss Dunbar, Miss Davis, I must che - "
"Yes," he shouted towards Fleur before he recast the charm and dove once more into the lake, body thrumming with anger.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Salazar stared at the smooth inky water and felt his anger flare once more. He allowed the Matron her due, but when she tried to usher him away he spoke as civilly as he could manage under the circumstances, "I appreciate your concern, but I'm well." The entire time he spoke with Madam Pomfrey, his eyes were watching the smooth water.
He knew what they were told… They'd be fine, as if you're sleeping… Salazar had their reassurances, but he knew better than to trust the headmaster and his view of 'safe'.
Turning on his heel, knowing that his best friend had things well in hand, or would shortly. Salazar went to the frantic girl from Beauxbaton. Fleur reached for Salazar. "Is she safe? Did you see her?"
Salazar shook his head and said simply, "Trust in Ric. He will see to her safety. You can always count on him."
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Godric focused on Ismanna and he sent himself once more into the depths.
He had to go straight down, with nothing between him and the merfolks abode.
Godric glanced at his watch: forty-three minutes.
And then he heard them.
"... And while you're searching ponder this;
We've taken what you'll sorely miss..."
He passed the painted statue, the tied Grindylow, the gossiping merfolk.
"... An hour long you'll have to look,
To recover what we took..."
Still wrapped around the statue was Ismanna, two girls still tied to the tail of the statue.
"... But your times almost gone, so don't ignore,
For they will wake and breathe no more..."
Except Ismanna's lower half seemed wrapped around something else, her tail periodically coming up and gently nudging something back into the coils of her large frame. Her head came up when she saw Godric and gently nudged him towards whatever new thing she had found, and Godric went as he didn't think it would take long to -
Inside Ismanna's coils was Krum, still with his shark head and human body, struggling to escape Ismanna's gentle grasp.
Godric turned to Ismanna who was staring intently at the captured Krum, and then Godric, and then back towards Krum. Godric patted her nose and spoke slowly, "He's fine. Saving Hermione." He pointed to the two still bound girls and began swimming towards Gabrielle, glad nothing of danger had come too close.
The merfolk came towards him, spears raised, and with angry expressions. Godric didn't desist his motion forward, but he did draw his wand.
Before he could cast anything, Ismanna lunged around them, wrapping the merfolk within her coils so they couldn't draw near Godric. In doing so, she released Krum, who spun a bit when the water swirled around him.
Ismanna stared up at Godric, who gave her a firm nod. He went to the statue, untied Gabrielle, and pressed her smaller frame to rest against his chest. Krum focused and came close behind and snapped the rope binding Hermione with sharp teeth and the two began to move upwards with their precious cargo.
Godric quickly glanced at his watch: fifty-three minutes.
The two moved, Krum barely keeping up with Godric with the merfolk following them with their dratted singing. And then Ismanna was between Krum and Godric, her giant head staying in pace with them. He sheathed his wand, stopped the current of water under him, wrapped his arm firmly around Gabrielle, and used his other arm to grab onto one of Ismanna's spikes behind her head and shouted, hoping Krum heard, "Hold on!" A moment later he saw Krum's arm grab hold onto one of Ismanna's spikes protruding from her head. Godric waited a few seconds for Krum to situate himself before ordering, "Suas," not realizing he had switched languages.
Ismanna didn't hesitate and she shot upwards, giant body slicing through the water with an ease no one else could manage, and the merfolk were left behind.
The amount of time it took to near the surface was diminutive and when he saw the light filtering through, he released Ismanna as she began to dive back downwards so her head would not breach the surface.
Godric strengthened his grip on the girl and once more shot upwards out of the water, but as he didn't have as much momentum as he had with Salazar, he landed on the dock on his feet, skidding a half a meter before he rightened himself.
Looking backwards at the Black Lake, he watched Ismanna's body curve over the water for a few seconds before her tail disappeared and she was gone. Moments later, Krum's head appeared with Hermione beside him, hacking and spitting up water.
Gabrielle coughed and hacked in Godric's ear, crying and clinging to him. His head snapped up at the roar of the crowd he had forgotten about and once more saw a harried looking Pomfrey rushing towards them with blankets.
He saw Salazar off to the side, blanket around his shoulders, and a furious look on his face as he glared at the judges.
"Gabrielle!" Delacour escaped the grip of her Headmistress and was racing towards them, the judges, the school heads, and Weasley had a more sedate pace. Godric released the trembling girl and watched as she threw herself at Fleur. "It was the grindylow... they attacked me... oh Gabrielle, I thought... I thought..."
The older girl burst into tears as she held her sister tightly just as Madam Pomfrey got to them and checked the younger girl over.
Godric turned to the judges, who seemed nonplussed as Bagman stated, amplifying charm not removed yet, "Well done, though no harm would have come to Gabrielle had you not gone for her."
Godric watched as Fleur sagged in relief and cast his own amplifying charm on himself and sang so all could hear him, out of tune and water logged:
"... Time's barely started, but tarry not
Lest what you seek stays here to rot..."
He paused for a moment, the entire stadium quiet, before he repeated the last lines he had heard.
"... But your times almost gone, so don't ignore,
For they will wake and breathe no more..."
Fleur started crying again, her grip on Gabrielle tightening.
"Ah, be that as it may, the students were not in danger. We -"
"I don't rightly care that -" Madam Pomfrey came up to Godric and wrapped a towel around him and began running a diagnostic charm on him, placing herself in between him and those he wished to face. "Madam, I suggest getting some aid so the other two can be taken out of the lake."
Once Madam Pomfrey looked and saw what Godric had said was true, she turned and began berating the staff on hand: 'why are they still in the water', and 'there are still children out there', and 'if they're sick because of your inactions.' The woman's voice could be heard floating back towards Godric and those around him as the staff moved to the edge of the deck.
Godric once more turned to the others. "You placed children into the lake. Where the temperature is frigid. Where there is a chance for their organs to collapse with how deep beneath the water they were. Grindylows have also been known to raid the Merpeople's home."
Salazar, dry and leaving the blanket behind, took up position beside Godric. He didn't say anything, he didn't have to.
"Everything was under control, Miss Dunbar."
"And if something went wrong? Who had the -"
"Perhaps we can go forward in awarding -"
"Not. Yet!" Godric's voice raised, and dimly he could hear the splash of water and movement behind him as Hermione and Krum were helped out of the lake.
Bagman countered the spells so their voices would no longer be heard throughout the stadium.
"Miss Dunbar, while your worry is admirable, it is unnecessary." Dumbledore strode forward, eyes firm and robes flowing about him as he walked. "I had everything well in hand."
"You were the one who held them in place?"
"Yes."
Maxime and Karkoff seemed a bit confused by the questions. The murmurs from the crowd grew, enveloping them in the sound.
"You were the one who gave them the ability to breathe underwater?"
"Yes."
Salazar's eyes narrowed with every question Godric threw out.
"You were the one who put protections around them?"
"Of course."
"How many spells did you have going at once?"
Dumbledore's head tilted, his beard and long hair catching on the wind. "Quite a few. What is your point, Miss Dunbar?"
"Having multiple spells going on at once on oneself is dangerous if you do not have the magical capacity and focus to sustain them. Putting on the same amount of spells on a different person - or in this case, three others - is quite a bit more taxing and dangerous. If you had lost focus for even one moment, all three of them could have either been crushed by the pressure, frozen by hypothermia, or asphyxiated. And you'd have been unable to get to them in time before their life expired." Godric's voice dropped with every word until he was nearly whispering, remembering to drop the other three charms he had on the other students.
Lethargy hit him all at once and he swayed. Salazar must have felt the release of his magic as the man moved forward a step to position himself behind Godric's left shoulder. The move was typical Salazar: positioning himself so Godric could lean just a little without anyone being the wiser.
Salazar gently gripped Godric's elbow, subtly twining warming charms onto the towel. Water dripped from Godric's body, down his face and soaked into the towel. His hair lay plastered to his face. The chill that had threatened to swamp over him was put at bay by Salazar's actions. His chest ached and his hands shook, but he glared at the judges.
The sounds of the crowd echoed around them, voices and conversations were heard, but not understood, the movement of water enveloping their words.
"As you can see, Miss Dunbar, everything turned out well."
"That isn't the issue, Headmaster Dumbledore." Godric pulled the towel tighter around himself and forced himself to stand straight, Salazar's presence grounding him so he didn't lose his temper too badly. "The problem is that you put innocents at risk. Did you ask their parents' permission?"
"Of course we did," Karkaroff spoke up, scoffing at the question.
"Let me rephrase," Godric smiled at the other man, teeth bared, "did you explain exactly what was going to happen to their children? That they would be kept underwater for well over an hour, protected only by one man's magic? No one knew what the next task was, only the competitors, if they figured out the clue, and the judges. I assure you, I know the Davis', they would not have agreed to allow Sal to go through this farce if they had been told the truth. I highly doubt that the parents of that child," Godric gestured to Gabrielle, who had released Fleur and was now in the arms of what could only be her and Fleur's mother, "would have allowed her anywhere near the water if they knew."
Godric watched as a few figures approached from the stands. One in Hufflepuff robes, another in Ravenclaw, a third in Gryffindor, and two adults.
Silence stretched between them and Bagman stepped forward, but Karkaroff broke the quiet first, "They knew what this tournament entails for the champions. If there is no risk there is no reward."
Helga, Rowena, Harry, Dani, and David reached them. The five flanked Godric and Salazar as Godric replied, "The risk is for the competitors, Headmaster, as they are the ones who agreed to the task. However, for the three who had been put down in the lake, it was an unnecessary risk and by their reactions from surfacing, nearly deadly despite the preparations."
"What are you saying?" Maxime asked, finally joining the conversion. She first looked at Gabrielle, then Salazar, and finally Hermione.
Dani scowled at the judges and began using the towel to scrub Godric dry, but David magically dried both Godric and Salazar before placing warming charms around them. Dani smiled at the man in thanks as Godric wormed his way out of his mother's arms.
Salazar answered Maxime's question, "We were expelling water from our lungs when we surfaced. All of us, though it was worse with Hermione and Gabrielle as they spent more time under water than I did. We had each begun to drown."
The giantess paled drastically as her head snapped to stare at the child in Delacour's hold.
Karkaroff looked surprised and he shook his head. "That would not have happened."
Dumbledore looked distraught.
"Thankfully, we won't know for sure," Godric replied. "However, I will be issuing a complaint and I imagine you will face enraged parents soon about the deception." He had started to turn away, when he said, "I would suggest not using any other people in this competition besides the competitors. You will not be pleased with the outcome if you do."
"Is that a threat?"
"Have you met Serena Davis?" David asked, bewildered.
Godric barely glanced over at Karkaroff, but before he could answer the man, Dani did. "That isn't a threat. That is my son stating a fact."
Godric turned and walked away, the others following. Once out of earshot, Helga threw up a privacy ward around them and Harry breathed, "That was wicked." Salazar raised an eyebrow at the boy, who had the decency to blush. "Telling them off, I mean."
- - - - Founders - - - -
Godric received the highest score for the task: forty-eight points. The reasoning of why he didn't receive a full fifty had never been disclosed to him. Viktor received thirty-seven for his incomplete form of Transfiguration and was just over the hour mark, through no fault of his own. Fleur received twenty-five points for her Bubble-Head Charm, but as she hadn't retrieved Gabrielle herself, a huge chunk of points had been taken off.
After the points were declared, Madam Pomfrey had gotten a hold of Godric and finally ran that diagnostic charm on him. Dani refused to let him go, keeping the towel wrapped around him, even though David had dried him off. Helga had given him a snack, Rowena had retrieved his discarded clothes, Salazar had checked his health, and Harry had fluttered about unsure of how to help. David and Dani were not impressed with how long it had taken the woman to make it to Ric.
Salazar had not been pleased with how low Godric's magic was and had let him know it.
Afterwards, as they all started to head back to the school, Dumbledore asked Godric, Dani, Viktor, and Karkaroff to come to the headmaster's office with him for a quick discussion. The other five had made to follow, but the Headmaster denied them so Godric simply told them he would speak with them later.
Once in the office, Godric took a look around and he grinned at the Sorting Hat. He made a beeline for Samuel. Dumbledore took a seat behind his desk, and Karkaroff and Viktor sat in two of the fluffy armchairs. Dani kept an amused eye on Godric.
He picked up Samuel and placed him on his head. 'Hello, Samuel.'
"Miss Dunbar, perhaps this is not the time."
"This won't take but a second, I'm curious to see what he has to say about me."
'You certainly do like to put on a show,' Samuel replied.
'Depends on the moment. Helga and Ro would skin me if I didn't ask: how are you doing? Also, has anything caught your attention?'
'I am doing just fine. Definitely more entertaining now that I am fully functional once more. As for anything amiss, I do not believe so. The only ones to visit the headmaster are the head of houses with news on the children. Now, perhaps, you should pay attention to the Headmaster.'
'Glad you're doing better, Samuel. Until next time.'
Godric replaced Samuel and went to stand next to his mum. Krum looked confused, Karkaroff displeased, and Dumbledore amused.
"What was the prognosis?"
"I am Gryffindor."
"Of that, there has been no doubt. Please, take a seat. This conversation will be a bit... unorthodox, I fear." He gestured to the two empty chairs.
Godric shook his head. "I'll stand, thank you." If he sat he would be hard pressed to get back up. Dani didn't move from her spot, throwing an arm over his shoulder and tucking him in close.
Dumbledore leaned forward, resting his forearms against the desk and said, "I have a bit of a dilemma as we have a creature in the lake that we had not been aware of before. As you both faced this creature, I wanted your thoughts on the matter."
Krum glanced over at Godric, who stared at Dumbledore's forehead. Godric spoke carefully, choosing his words with distinction so he would not give Ismanna away. "As I only encountered the merfolk, a tied Grindylow, and a giant snake, I'm going to assume the creature you're speaking of is the snake?"
"That is correct. Throughout the lake we placed runes that activated a camera of sorts so that the crowd could watch events that took place in the water. Imagine our surprise when we saw a giant serpent the first time you entered the village."
"Again, you prove my point that human captives were a terrible misjudgment and should never have occurred."
"You have made your point," Karkaroff bit out, and Godric barely sent a glance towards the man.
"Has he?" Dani asked, her arm squeezing across Godric's shoulders as she scowled at the man. "Somehow I don't think he has if you seem as unconcerned as you do."
Godric grinned up at his mum even as he asked the Headmaster, "What of the snake?"
"According to the Merchieftainess Murcus, the snake has been an active visitor to the lake and has mostly brought no harm to the inhabitants there. However, there have been some Grindylows found, petrified."
"Like the dementor last year."
Dumbledore's blue eyes narrowed on him, "Correct. Mr. Krum, Miss Dunbar, what we saw on the screen and what we saw when part of the creature broke the surface of the water has caused a bit of concern. I would like to know how the creature interacted with you, especially you, Miss Dunbar, as Merchieftainess Murcus claimed that you had visited with the serpent before."
Godric shrugged. "The clue said to seek them where their voices sound, so I went swimming in the lake to find their homes before the task."
Karkaroff scoffed. "So you cheated? That is why you were able to get your captive out so quickly?"
"How was Ric cheating?" Dani snapped.
"I had been told to prepare as best I could with the hints the egg gave me. It is hardly my fault that no one else thought to enter the lake before the actual task."
Krum nodded at Godric's words, but Dumbledore interrupted, "The snake?"
"What more can I say? I went swimming in the lake and the snake joined me whenever I went. Seemed more playful and watchful than anything. Chased off the Grindylows when I ran into them the first day. Didn't petrify them or anything. I did see some nasty scars that might have been left by the little demons."
Before Dumbledore said anything more, Viktor spoke slowly, his words thick with his accent, "More looking to protect. Very gentle when keeping me stuck. Not aiming to hurt. Understood language."
"What do you mean?" Karkaroff asked, leaning forward and staring at his student.
"Fay... sorry," Viktor backtracked when he caught Godric's flinch. "Ric, yes?" Godric nodded, giving the young man a small smile. "Ric said I was to save one and the snake was quick to release me. Also kept merfolk back from stopping the girl from being taken, too. Not attacking."
"Protecting. It seems as if the snake has done nothing but protect," Godric said.
"Also, I may go swimming again. Maybe it will allow me to ride again? Almost as good as a broom."
Godric smothered his laughter and refrained from warning him not to say that to Ismanna.
"I would not suggest another dip in the lake, Mr. Krum. As we are not sure of the species, we do not know how the creature will react to repeated exposure."
"Only one snake gets as large as that and is known to petrify prey, if not outright kill them," Karkaroff huffed. "You have a Basilisk problem, Dumbledore. You will need to look into that and dispose of it."
Godric could feel his mum tense, but she didn't say anything, though she did glance towards him.
Godric blinked past the sudden black spots dancing across his vision. "She has been nothing but protective of the students. She is less hostile than the dementors last year, the centaurs in the woods, and not to mention what we had here my first year!"
"Ric, what happened here your first year?" Dani asked quietly.
Well, he walked right into that one. "A bit of a Fluffy problem," Godric answered, keeping his attention at a point over Dumbledore's shoulder. "A very large dog, Mum."
"How do you know the snake is female?"
Godric floundered for a moment, before saying, "Protective instincts remind me of Mum," he glanced up at Dani and smiled, who tousled his hair lightly.
"I agree," Krum answered.
"And, on top of that, don't basilisk grow up to fifteen meters? She barely seemed like she was passed nine."
He fudged a bit, as she was nearing eleven meters, but they didn't need to know that.
"Mr. Krum, is that accurate?"
"I do not know. I was wrapped quickly. When free..." Viktor spun his hands around in a spiral, narrowed eyes on the motion. "I was... sick? Spinning?"
"Disoriented?" Godric offered.
"Yes! That is word. Could not tell. Freed Herm-own-ninny. And then got ride. No time to study..." he spread his arms out before saying, "length."
"Be that as it may, I would suggest not entering the lake. We do not know how... she or the Giant Squid are like around each other. Two large creatures could be quite territorial."
Godric tried to bite back the sarcastic reply, but ended up failing, "I see, now you are concerned about student safety." Dumbledore looked... Godric couldn't quite place it, but he sighed and added, "You don't have to worry about the Giant Squid and... the snake. They play. It is quite entertaining to watch."
"Excellent!" Krum grinned at Godric. "Will you teach spells you used?"
Godric shrugged. "Sure?"
Dani interrupted, "If that's all, Headmaster? I believe Ric and Mr. Krum deserve some rest after this morning."
"Yes, of course, thank you all for coming and speaking with me. As I said before, I do suggest not entering the water, as it can be just as dangerous as the forest."
Godric didn't bother waiting to see how Krum or Karkaroff reacted to his words. He left with Dani. He had some friends to see and hopefully some rest ahead as well.
Google Translate Time:
Suas = Up