May 1995

"Mandy, we've got mail!" Arabella opened the window, allowing Hedwig to swoop through to land on the coffee table. "Hello, Hedwig; there's some owl treats in the kitchen, if you want."

Hedwig hooted softly, let Arabella take the letter from her leg, and fluttered through the door in the direction of the aforementioned treats.

"Mandy, it's from Beth!"

"Just a second!"

Arabella opened the letter, which was addressed to Sirius, except his name had been crossed out, and Hermione had written beside it: Mandy and Arabella (and Remus, if you're there).

She must have duplicated the letter to Sirius and sent them the copy.

As it happened, Remus wasn't there - despite the fact that the women had a spare room, he insisted on keeping his small cottage down in Kent.

The cottage had belonged to his parents, but both Mandy and Arabella knew that it was more than sentimentality that kept him there - it was the reluctance to take any form of' 'charity', even though their numerous offers had nothing to do with that.

Mandy and Arabella hadn't lived together when they finished Hogwarts - Mandy lived in a Muggle area of London, near the visitors' entrance to the Ministry of Magic, and Arabella lived in a flat in Diagon alley, over the magical pet shop where she worked (and now owned, after inheriting it from the elderly owner).

However, after the downfall of Voldemort, the three remaining Marauders had gravitated towards one another for comfort, and when Mandy got a promotion and decided she wanted to live in a house (rather than her tiny little flat), she asked her friends if she would like to come along.

Only Arabella accepted, somewhat fed up with the constant comings and goings of Diagon Alley, but Remus was there almost every other day anyway.

Arabella read the letter through, frowning to herself. She wasn't sure how Bethany had concluded that Crouch had been suffering from the Imperius or a Memory Charm, but she had to admit that it did make sense.

"What's wrong with you?" Mandy asked, appearing in the doorway.

With a heavy sigh, Arabella handed her the letter and leaned back, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I feel a headache coming on."

"There's a fresh batch of potion in the kitchen," Mandy said absently, sinking into the armchair. "Oh dear … Oh, that's not good …"

"You think?" Arabella asked waspishly, making her way into the kitchen, where Hedwig was sitting on the back of a chair, her head tucked under her wing.

Working in DMGS was Mandy's dream job, but she had also always loved Potions, and the room off of their kitchen (originally intended to be a pantry) had long-since been transformed into a potions lab, so they were always very well-supplied.

Sure enough, there were fresh bottles in the medicine cupboard, and Arabella downed one, feeling the pain in her head disappear.

Arabella returned to the living room, where Mandy was now reading another letter. "Where'd that one come from?"

"Just arrived," Mandy said, folding it up and tucking it into her robes. "Work. I'm more concerned about Bethany."

Arabella nodded in agreement. "What do we do?"

Mandy sighed. "I really don't think there's anything we can do, Ara. Short of kidnapping her and bringing her here — no," she said firmly, as Arabella opened her mouth to say that, actually, that sounded like quite a good idea. "We're not doing that."

"Lily would have wanted us to," Arabella muttered mutinously.

"Well, Lily would have wanted Bethany to grow up away from those people," Mandy said with a scowl. "We don't seem to be very good at doing what Lily would have wanted."

"You're the one who said we couldn't do it," Arabella pointed out, bending down to pick up one of her cats, which had wound its way around her legs.

"Well, one of us has to be logical," Mandy said. "If Bethany doesn't compete in the third task, she risks losing her magic."

"Dammit," Arabella muttered, sitting down again. The Siamese in her arms purred and settled down on her lap, rubbing its head against her fingers. "I thought that was just, you know, a dramatic twist for the press."

"Unfortunately not," Mandy said with a sigh. "I was against the use of the Goblet of Fire from the beginning; I suggested that the three Headteachers should select their champion. But, oh no, we had to have all the traditions, didn't we? Technically, Beth doesn't have to go through the the task, she can just enter the maze and send up red sparks."

"She won't do that," Arabella predicted. "She's her father's daughter. James would have taken it as a matter of pride at this point."

"Yeah I know." Mandy stood up, walking over to gaze out of the window. "Even if we did kidnap Bethany, how are we supposed to keep her safe when we don't even know what the danger is?"

Arabella sighed heavily. "That's true."

Another of her cats appeared from under one of the sideboards and hopped up on top of it, mewing pitifully.

"I thought you'd fed them this morning," Mandy murmured, scratching its ears.

"I did." Arabella rolled her eyes fondly. "Mystic's just greedy; she's trying to wrangle a second breakfast."

Mandy chuckled. "How many have we got now?"

Arabella paused for a second, counting up. "Five. It was four, but Gran's getting on a bit, and she asked me to take Mr Paws in."

"Mr Paws?" Mandy repeated incredulously. "Honestly, Arabella, your grandmother has some strange names for her cats."

"Yeah, I know," Arabella said, Summoning the letter.

"Which one is Mr Paws?" Mandy asked.

"The tortoiseshell," Arabella answered, scanning the letter again.

Mandy frowned. "Aren't all tortoiseshells females?"

"Most of them," Arabella agreed. "And, yes, she is."

"Then why isn't she Mrs Paws?" Mandy asked.

"Because Gran didn't realise she was a female until she found her in the laundry cupboard with eight kittens," Arabella answered, frowning at the letter.

There was a particular line that had jumped out at her the first time round, and it made no sense this time around either.

We were wondering if Wormtail was the one that cursed Crouch, but ... we don't think he's powerful enough.

The words before 'we don't think' had been scribbled out, but it almost looked like Bethany had written 'Mum and Dad', which couldn't be right.

"I wonder what she meant."

"Which bit?" Arabella answered absently, stroking Morgana's head. "When she said they didn't think Peter was powerful enough to …" she broke off abruptly, suddenly realising what she was saying and who she was saying it to.

Peter Pettigrew had been an unspoken subject in their house from the beginning - Mandy certain he had died a hero, Arabella certain he had died a traitor (but both of them sure Sirius had killed him, for different reasons) - but since June he had been even more so.

For a few seconds, the silence in the room was palpable.

Mandy's hand froze on Mystic's back, but after a few seconds, she resumed her rhythmic stroking. "I noticed that," she said, in a deceptively calm voice. "It looked like she said Mum and Dad, which makes no sense. Unless she was talking in code for Sirius and altered it later. The 'we' looked like Hermione's handwriting."

"Why Mum and Dad?" Arabella asked cautiously.

Mandy shrugged, still not turning to face her. "Maybe it's not. It's crossed through; it might just look like that. It could be abbreviations for McGonagall and Dumbledore for all we know. Beth's handwriting isn't the most legible in the world."

"Gets that from her father," Arabella said. When her best friend didn't laugh, she sighed. "Mandy, are you alright?"

"Fine," Mandy said briskly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You're not looking at me, your voice sounds funny, and I just mentioned … him."

"You don't have to tiptoe around me, Ara," Mandy told her, finally turning around. "I'm fine."

"No, you're not," Arabella said gently. "You know, we haven't really talked about it. Do you … want to talk about it?"

"Not particularly," Mandy admitted. "But I suppose I probably should." She returned to the armchair, and Mystic leapt down from the sideboard and ran over to jump on to her lap. "Since when is she so fond of me?"

"Since you showed her attention," Arabella answered. "Don't change the subject."

Mandy heaved a heavy sigh. "I don't even know what to say, Ara. I thought he loved me; he stabbed us all in the back. End of story."

"I hate what he did," Mandy said in a low voice. "I can never forgive what he did. And yet, somehow, I can't stop loving him." She closed her eyes too late to stop the tear that slipped out. "And I feel like such a horrible person for that."

"Mandy …" Moving the Siamese, Arabella got up to perch on the arm of the armchair, wrapping an arm around her best friend's shoulders. "Honey, you are not a terrible person. You were together for over two years, and then you thought he was dead for thirteen. You've never had a chance to get over him. It's okay."

"No, it's not," Mandy disagreed, wiping her eyes. "He lied to us, Arabella. He lied to me. He'd go and get a cup of tea, and come back with a 'letter' from his mother. And then he'd kiss me goodbye, and tell me he loved me, and go off to kiss the robes of the man who wanted us all dead and who murdered my parents!" Her voice, which had risen in frustration, dropped to a whisper again. "It hurts that our entire relationship was a lie. And I don't know why that's not enough to make me hate him."

June 1995

One month later, Mr Crouch was still missing and Hermione was, once again, questioning the wisdom of whoever had thought up the Triwizard tasks.

The hedges of the maze were so tall and the pathways so dark that even the spectators in the Quidditch stands wouldn't be able to see what was happening.

As days went, it hadn't filled Hermione with confidence so far, given that it had opened with a new Skeeter article filled with a load of waffle about Bethany being 'disturbed and dangerous'.

The only good thing that had come out of it was that Hermione had finally figured out how Rita was getting her stories - she had reported about Bethany having a nightmare in Divination and waking up screaming, and yet that classroom was far too high for anything to be heard from the ground.

And it was only Gryffindors in that class - none of them would talk to Skeeter, even if the Slytherins were.

All of which pointed to Rita Skeeter somehow getting on to the grounds despite being banned. She had told Mandy and Arabella about her theory, and gained two vicious smiles. They had come to watch the third task as Bethany's family, although Remus had unfortunately been kept away, as that night was the full moon.

Bill and Mrs Weasley had also come along, the latter greeting Hermione very stiffly but with no comment about the Howler in February.

Fred had ignored his mother all day, in favour of being as affectionate as possible with his girlfriend.

Ginny and Ron had taken their mother to sit in the stands a few feet away, while Fred and George sat with Hermione, Mandy and Arabella.

The first stars had just started to appear, though sunset was still a few hours away, when Dumbledore raised his hands for silence. Professors McGonagall, Flitwick, Moody and Hagrid, their hats (or in Hagrid's case, his moleskin coat) adorned with red stars, had moved to stand at the outside the maze.

"They're the security," Mandy whispered to Hermione. "If a champion gets into trouble, they can send up red sparks and they'll be rescued."

"We offered to do it," Arabella added. "But Dumbledore felt we were too close to Bethany. Which, you know, fair enough."

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Bagman boomed. "The third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand! Tied in first place, with eighty-five points each - Mr Cedric Diggory and Miss Bethany Potter, both of Hogwarts School!"

The Hogwarts students exploded, Fred and George whistling loudly.

"In second place, with eighty points - Mr Viktor Krum, of Durmstrang Institute!"

For the first time since the Tournament began, Karkaroff was conspicuously quiet. Out of the corner of her eye, Hermione could see him applauding, but in a very subdued way.

Her discomfort grew.

"And in third place, with sixty-four points - Miss Fleur Delacour, of Beauxbatons Academy."

This applause - even from her own school-mates - seemed more out of politeness than anything.

Bethany glanced up and caught Hermione's eye, waving at them.

They all waved back, and Hermione sat back on the bench, taking a deep breath to keep her Empathy under control.

"The aim of this task is for the champions to make their way to the centre of this maze, where the Triwizard Cup awaits. Upon touching the cup, these hedges will vanish, and we will discover out winner. On my whistle, Bethany, Cedric," Bagman said with a grin. "Three … two … one …" He lifted the whistle to his lips and gave a short, sharp blast.

As Bethany and Cedric disappeared into the maze, Hermione sighed, realising that she had been right. There was really no way of knowing what was going on in there - or to whom.

Mandy put an arm around her shoulders. "Are you alright?"

"Just worried," Hermione whispered. "Someone …"

Mandy squeezed her shoulder. "It'll be alright, Hermione. A couple of hours, and this'll all be over, thank Merlin."

Hermione smiled weakly. "It must have been terrible for you."

"Oh, it has been," Arabella said. "We couldn't do a damn thing."

"As per usual," Mandy scowled. "I'm genuinely surprised Lily hasn't come back from the dead to curse us."

"Hermione, tell her she's being ridiculous," Lily said absently, from Fred's other side as the second whistle blew. She was sitting between the twins, who had left a space for her, George muttering that he felt weird about sitting 'in' someone, even if he couldn't see them.

But Hermione said nothing this time - she still hadn't told Mandy and Arabella about her Empathy, let alone about the Potters, and here and now was hardly the time to do it.

"It wasn't your fault," Hermione said quietly after a few minutes. "You thought Beth was safe - why would you doubt that?"

The third whistle blew, as Mandy shrugged. "I suppose so. She's been training, right?"

Hermione nodded. All four Marauders (because Remus had added a postscript to Mandy and Arabella's reply) had instructed Bethany to go nowhere alone or with anyone who wasn't someone she knew wasn't responsible for her current predicament. They had also advised that she armed herself with a secure knowledge of jinxes and hexes just in case.

"She could probably take her DADA OWL tomorrow," Hermione said. "So …" she paused, a gasp rippling around the stands. A silvery glow had appeared in the maze, but it vanished just as quickly. "That … Was that a Patronus?"

"It certainly looked like one," Arabella said. "Why would someone cast a Patronus?"

Hermione frowned. "A Boggart maybe? Bethany's Boggart is a Dementor - maybe her first thought was to cast her Patronus."

"I hope she's alright," Mandy fretted. "We hardly need her unconscious …"

"She'll be fine," Arabella said soothingly. "A light that bright would have to have come from a corporeal - the Boggart would have stumbled at least. Besides, how many did she drive off last June?"

"Too many," Hermione muttered.

"Speaking of corporeal Patronuses," Fred commented, "guess what Beth taught Hermione while she was training."

Hermione blushed, as the two women turned to stare at her.

"You too?" Mandy asked. "Impressive. What form does it take?"

"An otter," Hermione mumbled.

"Ah, the otter," Arabella said, smirking. "Friendship, kindness, empathy and … Oh, what's the other meaning, Talon?"

"Mischief," Mandy answered, grinning. Her eyes lingered on Fred and Hermione's joined hands. "I wonder why."

At that moment, a scream cut through the chatter of the crowd, and everyone fell silent.

"That was Fleur," Mandy whispered, white-faced. "Right? Not Beth?"

"It didn't sound like Beth," Hermione confirmed, gripping Fred's hand tightly.

There was an anxious wait, while Moody abandoned his post to speak to Hagrid, who strode into the maze. When he emerged, he was carrying the Beauxbatons champion, who was lying motionless in his arms.

The judges converged on her, while the crowd sat silent with bated breath.

"Miss Delacour has been hit with a Stunning Spell," Bagman announced. "She is officially out of the Tournament."

"A Stunning Spell?" Hermione repeated. "What in that maze would cast a Stunning Spell?"

"The Skrewts?" George suggested. "Not actually cast it, but … I wouldn't be surprised if Hagrid put some in there - their armour's thick enough to cause a rebound."

"That's true," Hermione agreed, though she wasn't convinced, and one glance at Mandy and Arabella told her that they didn't either. She glanced at Lily, who was bouncing up and down in her seat, chewing her lip nervously.

Clearing her throat slightly to get her attention, Hermione shrugged and nodded to the maze, silently asking why Lily wasn't in there.

"I can't do it," Lily whispered. "I can't watch her go through all that and not be able to help her. James is with her."

Hermione nodded slightly, leaning into Fred's embrace.

More than ten minutes passed without incident, and Hermione had just started to relax, when screams of pain ripped through the hair.

The crowd erupted.

"Who is it?"

"What's happening?"

"That's Cedric," Hermione whispered. "I'm sure of it. Viktor would still have an accent."

A few minutes later, red sparks flew into the air and hovered there. Once again, Hagrid entered the maze, this time accompanied by Professor Flitwick.

But when the returned, it was Viktor who was with him, unconscious just like Fleur.

Again, the judges converged and, again, Bagman announced that it was Stunning Spell responsible.

As the Hogwarts students began to buzz, realising that whoever reached the cup first, Hogwarts had won the Tournament, Hermione closed her eyes, carefully measuring her breathing.

Fred kissed her temple. "What's wrong?"

"Something's not right," Hermione whispered. "There's no way a rebounded spell got both of them. And if Viktor was Stunned, how did he send up the sparks?"

"Maybe Bethany or Cedric was nearby," Ginny suggested from down the row. "They sent up the sparks so he wouldn't get hurt by something else."

"Mad-Eye would have seen someone else in the maze, Hermione," Mandy said firmly. "The only other people in there with Viktor were Bethany and Cedric. Now I don't know Cedric all that well, but Beth would never …"

"Neither would Cedric," Hermione said with certainty. "But somebody did. A Stunning Spell didn't cause him to scream like that."

"Maybe Krum attacked Cedric and got Stunned in self-defence," George suggested.

Hermione pulled a face. "Maybe," she said diplomatically.

"What's your you-know-what telling you?" Fred asked quietly.

Hermione closed her eyes, letting her Empathy expand. She was instantly hit with a barrage of emotions, and retreated almost instantly, trying to comb through them.

"Something's not right," she whispered. "There's someone out there … it's excitement, but not … not what the spectators are feeling … they're waiting for something …"

"What?" Fred asked. "And who?"

Hermione shook her head hopelessly, tears springing to her eyes. "I don't know - there's too many people, too many emotions. But whoever put Beth's name in the Goblet is here somewhere, and they're waiting for something."

Bethany's heart was pounding, and not from exertion. Hearing Krum cast the Cruciatus Curse and Cedric's screams had been the worst thing she had ever experienced, and she was almost surprised that all she had done was Stun him.

She and Cedric had sent up red sparks, and reluctantly parted ways at the next junction.

Now they were both staring at the Triwizard Cup, gleaming on a plinth just a few feet away.

Cedric was closer, just as clearly out of breath as she was. She had crumpled to the ground after being dropped by the giant Acromantula that had come barrelling out of a side path.

It had taken both of them together to knock it out.

"Go on then," Bethany said softly. "You win."

But Cedric shook his head, stepping over the legs of the fallen spider to help her to her feet. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Bethany lied. "You won, Cedric. Take it."

"I had help," Cedric said. "If you hadn't told me about the dragons …"

"You gave me the hint about the Egg," Bethany interrupted. "We're even."

"I didn't even want to enter the Tournament," Cedric said. "This was all my father."

"I didn't enter the Tournament," Bethany retorted.

"You're the only reason I got this far," Cedric said.

"And you're the only reason I did." Bethany leaned against him, suddenly feeling very tired. Her ankle was screaming at her, telling her to sit down, and as though he heard it, he slipped his arm around her waist, taking the majority of her weight.

"You deserve to win," he said softly.

"So do you." Bethany could see that neither of them were going to give in. "Together."

Cedric grinned at her. "Hogwarts victory?"

Bethany smiled. "Hogwarts victory."

Cedric helped her over to the plinth. "Listen, Beth, before we do this … it's going to be pandemonium."

"Yeah, I know," Bethany grumbled.

"So I just want to say something first," Cedric said softly. "So you can't convince yourself it's adrenaline."

Bethany raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Cedric nodded. "I love you."

Bethany froze, her words sticking in her throat.

"You don't have to say anything," Cedric said, kissing her softly. "I just want you to know. Ready?"

Still rather shellshocked, Bethany nodded. "Ready."

"Three …"

"Two …"

"One …"

As soon as they touched the cup, Bethany felt the tug of a portkey behind her navel.

Something had gone horribly wrong.

SPOILERS for those that want them (because I know sometimes I do)

Cedric does appear to have been killed; however all is not as it seems.