November 1994

Thoughts of dragons and Death Eaters meant that Hermione slept very fitfully for the few hours that remained of the night, and she awoke determined to get Bethany through the First Task alive.

She sat up, her brain flitting from asleep to awake in a nanosecond, and saw that only Ginny remained in the dorm room, already dressed and waiting for her.

"Beth's gone to grab us some breakfast," Ginny said quietly. "She says we need somewhere to talk privately"

"She's right." Hermione grimaced.

The lake was far too open for this conversation, and even the Map only helped when you actually found the hidden rooms. Without knowing where they were, they could wander around all day and not find anything. "Where's Lily when you need her?"

"Lily?" Ginny questioned, alerting Hermione to the fact that she'd never told Ginny about the Potters.

"It's a long story," she said, ducking into the bathroom to shower.

When she emerged, Ginny hadn't moved. "We've got time."

"It's my Empathy," Hermione said, dressing quickly. "I can speak to James and Lily - you know, Beth's parents."

"But … aren't they dead?" Ginny asked.

"Apparently not," Hermione said, donning her cloak. "Don't ask me where they are; they have no bloody idea. But I bet Lily would know somewhere we could talk privately."

"The Room of Requirement," Lily said, appearing out of nowhere.

Ginny must have seen Hermione jump, because she asked, "She's here, isn't she? What did she say?"

Hermione didn't answer, frowning at Lily in confusion. "Where's that?"

"Seventh floor," Lily answered with a smile. "Find the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy - you know, the one trying to teach the trolls ballet. Walk up and down three times in front of the wall, and ask it for what you need."

"Won't need this then," Hermione said, removing her cloak. "C'mon, Gin; I've got somewhere."

Bethany was waiting in the Common Room with a bundle of toast. "Lake?"

"No," Hermione said, taking a slice of toast. "Somewhere more private. Follow me." She led them out of the common room and through the corridors until she found the tapestry Lily had identified.

The corridor was empty but for a few tapestries and a cool breeze drifting in from one of the windows. Their footsteps echoed off the cold stone, and Hermione ran a hand along the wall, frowning.

"Hermione?" Bethany asked. "I know it's deserted, but I wouldn't say this was more private than the lake."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Thank you, Bethany." Remembering Lily's instructions, she began to pace up and down, asking the castle for a private conversation space.

Ginny gasped suddenly, and Hermione spun on her heel to see a door appear in the wall. She pushed it open to find a room not unlike the Gryffindor Common Room, but much smaller and more intimate.

"That'll do," Bethany said, pulling the Marauders' Map from her pocket.

"Tell her not to bother, Hermione," James said, appearing on one of the sofas. "It's not on there."

"Your dad says not to bother - it's not on there," Hermione repeated, not looking at Bethany, but smirking at James. "You do realise that sitting down has no affect on you, right?"

James shrugged. "It gets a bit boring just standing around all the time."

"If the Marauders knew about it, why isn't it on the Map?" Ginny asked.

"My guess is that it's Unplottable," Hermione said, glancing at James, who nodded. "And I'm also guessing, since it's called the Room of Requirement, it becomes whatever you need it to, so I bet the size changes as well."

"Could be as small as a broom cupboard, or as big as a Quidditch stadium," James confirmed. "But the bigger it is, the more restrictions there are."

"Well, that makes sense," Hermione murmured. "Map or not, we can talk privately here."

"Okay, so what happened last night?" Ginny asked immediately.

"Sirius managed to get to a fire," Bethany answered. "We were talking over the floo."

The colour promptly drained from Ginny's face. "Oh, Beth, I'm so sorry! You must hate me!"

"Gin, don't be ridiculous!" Bethany said, rolling her eyes with a smile. "It's not like you knew what we were doing down there. We should have kept an eye on the Map, and we'd have known it was you, and it wouldn't have mattered, because you know he's innocent. But we found out a few things last night."

"Karkaroff was a Death Eater," Hermione said.

Ginny looked stunned. "What?"

"He was a Death Eater," Hermione repeated. "He was in Azkaban, gave the Ministry a load of names, and got released."

"Are you serious?!" Ginny asked loudly. "What, so if Sirius had 'confessed' to the murders, he'd have had more chance of getting out?! It's crazy!"

"I bet he had names as well," Hermione said heavily. "But we actually have bigger things to worry about. Hagrid showed Beth the first task last night."

"It's dragons," Bethany told her grimly.

Ginny's face had regained some colour in her frustration, but it promptly turned white again, and the slice of toast she was holding slipped from her numb fingers. "Dragons? You can't fight a dragon!"

"No, I think I just have to get past one," Bethany said. "I assume to retrieve something."

Ginny laughed humourlessly. "Beth, getting past it will probably mean fighting it, whether you like it or not."

"Damn," Bethany muttered. "I was worried about that."

"Well, let's state the obvious," Hermione said. "If Alicia's right, you could just walk out, send up sparks and forfeit."

"Yeah, I'm not doing that," Bethany said firmly.

Hermione sighed. "Of course you're not."

"What did Sirius say?" Ginny asked, taking another piece of toast from the pile, ignoring the piece that was now butter-side-down on the floor.

"Don't try stunning it," Bethany repeated. "And a simple spell's all I need." She winced. "And that's when you came in."

"Sorry," Ginny murmured absently, staring into the fire. "Charlie never talks about how to knock dragons out; he loves them too much."

Hermione stretched out on the sofa so she was staring at the ceiling. "James, what do you think?

"I think you just put your feet through my legs," James answered, moving to the arm of the sofa.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You're a spirit. You can't feel it."

"It's the principle of the thing," James said sniffily. "A dragon's eyes are its weakest point, but I've got nothing aside from that. COMC was never my strong point. Lils was pretty good at it, but … it doesn't really tell you how to fight dragons."

"Eyes are the weakest point …" Hermione repeated thoughtfully, for the others' benefit.

"Oh yeah," Ginny murmured. "I remember Charlie saying that now."

"How's that going to help?" Bethany asked. "Is there a simple spell I can use to blind her?"

"Her?" Hermione repeated.

Bethany nodded. "They're nesting mothers, Charlie said."

"Charlie's here?" Ginny asked, looking hurt. "Why hasn't he …? Hang on, back up a second. Nesting mothers?! Are they crazy?!"

"Probably," Hermione said, turning her head to look at her. As she did, she spotted a book on the coffee table that certainly hadn't been there two minutes ago. "Where'd that come from?"

Ginny picked it up and flicked through it. "They're all spells related to sight. It must have appeared when Bethany asked."

Hermione grinned. "I love this Room!"

James snorted. "Funny - that was Lily's response as well."

Ginny turned to the table of contents and grimaced. "It's no good. The simplest spells in here are NEWT level. Beth's only got two days."

"Okay." Hermione ran a hand over her face, thinking hard. "Okay." She sat up. "Let's look at this logically for a minute. Aside from the size and the strength, what can the dragon do that Beth can't?"

"I mean, the size and the strength are a pretty big deal," Bethany said, earning an irritated look from Hermione. "Breath fire. And fly. Oh, and one of them has these great big spikes on her tail that could …"

"Stop!" Hermione cringed at the very thought. "So there's only two things the dragon can do that Bethany can't … That hasn't helped at all, has it?"

"Not really," Ginny said. "Even if you take into account that Beth's a fantastic flier, so by that logic, it's only one advantage."

"Yeah, on my Firebolt," Bethany grumbled.

Ginny suddenly made a noise that was halfway between a yelp and a squeal. "Firebolt! Beth, you could fly past the dragon!"

Hermione stared at her, intending to shoot the idea down (as indeed, Lily was doing), but the more she thought about it, the more she realised … "That might actually work."

Bethany, on the other hand, stared at Ginny like she'd suddenly grown another head. "Ginny, I'm not allowed a broom, remember? I'm only allowed my wand, so …" she broke of abruptly, gaped at Ginny for a few more seconds, then turned to Hermione. "I need you to help me."

"Beth!" Hermione sighed irritably. "What in Merlin's name do you think I've been trying to do?"

"No!" A smile slowly spread across Bethany's face. "I need you to teach me how to do a Summoning Charm by Tuesday!"

November 1994

By Tuesday morning, Bethany had mastered the Summoning Charm, but that didn't make anything easier. The atmosphere in the school was one of great tension and excitement. Lessons were to stop at midday, giving all the students time to get down to the dragons' enclosure - though, of course, they didn't yet know what they would find there.

Bethany felt oddly separate from the people around her, whether they were wishing her good luck or hissing insults as she passed.

Before she knew it, Professor McGonagall was hurrying over to her in the Great Hall during lunch. "Miss Potter, the champions have to come down to the grounds now."

"Okay," Bethany said, letting her fork fall to her plate with a clatter.

"Good luck, Beth," Hermione whispered. "You'll be fine. Treacle tart for dinner tonight, yeah?"

"Yeah," Bethany said, her voice sounding strained to her ears.

McGonagall escorted him out of the castle towards the forest. "Now don't panic," she said, putting a hand on Bethany's shoulder. "Just keep a cool head. We've got wizards standing by to control the situation if it gets out of hand. The main thing is to just do your best, and nobody will think any the worse of you. Are you alright?"

"Yes," Bethany heard herself say. "I'm fine."

She didn't think she had ever been less fine in her life.

When they approached the clump of trees behind which the enclosure would be clearly visible, Bethany saw that a tent had been erected, screening the dragons from view.

"You're to go in here with the others," Professor McGonagall said, her voice trembling, "and wait for your turn. Mr Bagman is in there. He'll be telling you the — the procedure. Good luck."

"Thanks," Bethany said in a flat, distant voice.

The other three champions were already there. Fleur Delacour was sitting in a corner on a low wooden stool. She didn't look nearly as composed as usual, but rather pale and clammy.

Viktor Krum was leaning against a table, looking even surlier than usual, but Bethany could hardly blame him - her entire face felt numb.

Cedric was pacing up and down, but he gave Bethany a small smile, which Bethany returned, feeling as though the muscles in her face had forgotten how to do so.

"Bethany! Good-o!" Bagman greeted happily. "Come in, come in, make yourself at home!" He was bouncing on his toes like he had at the World Cup, beaming as though they were about to face a Quidditch game and not a huge dragon.

"Well, now we're all here - time to fill you in! When the audience has assembled, I'm going to be offering you this bag …" he held up a small sack of purple silk and shook it at them "… from which you will each select a small model of the thing you are about to face! There are different - er - varieties, you see. And I have to tell you something else too … ah, yes. Your task is to collect the golden egg!"

Bethany glanced around. Cedric had nodded once to show that he understood Bagman's words, and then started pacing around the tent again; he looked slightly green. Fleur and Krum hadn't reacted at all.

Perhaps they thought they might be sick if they opened their mouths; that was certainly how Bethany felt.

But they, at least, had volunteered for this.

Bagman left the tent again, presumably to check on proceedings, and Bethany tucked herself into a small corner of the tent, sitting down on the hard ground, mentally going over Quidditch plays in her head - as much to calm herself as to prepare herself.

Someone sat down beside her. "Alright?"

Bethany opened her eyes, giving Cedric a very small, tight smile - at least she hoped she managed a smile. "No." She hugged her knees to her chest. "Sorry about your bag, by the way."

Cedric managed a bit of a wider smile at that. "It was worth it."

Realising that Madame Maxime and Professor Karkaroff had both seen the dragons the night she had, Bethany had tracked Cedric down at the first opportunity to ensure that he had the same knowledge as the rest of them.

The only way to separate him from his friends had been a Cutting Hex at his bag, forcing him to stop to pick up his books.

Bethany sighed, a little louder than she intended. "Why couldn't we just have had a Quidditch rematch?"

Cedric laughed weakly. "I was all for a rematch, if you recall."

"You have played against von another?" Krum asked from across the tent.

"We're both Seekers," Cedric answered. "Only played each other once."

"He won," Bethany said, her forehead resting against her knees.

"Dementors invaded the pitch," Cedric said stubbornly. "You fell off your broom. It wasn't a fair win."

"A vin is a vin," Krum said. "But I vould not be satisfied vith that either."

"I'm the only Seeker in Hogwarts to ever beat her," Cedric told him. "I would have preferred to do it in a fair game."

"Zat is very noble of you," Fleur said.

"That's him," Bethany said. "Hogwarts' Golden Boy." There was more bite in her voice than she had intended, and she winced.

Cedric nudged his shoulder against hers. "Coming from the Golden Girl."

Bethany snorted. "That depends. Do they hate me or love me this week?"

Cedric shook his head. "Ridiculous."

Bethany lifted her head. "Okay - elephant in the room here. Please don't tell me I am the only one scared out of my mind?!"

Fleur and Krum looked a bit bewildered by the idiom, but Cedric chuckled. "No, I am too."

"As am I," Fleur admitted. "But we at least signed up for zis. You 'ave been forced into it."

"You should not have to compete," Krum said, his expression softening a little. "The contract forces you to take part. If you valk out and forfeit, that vill count."

"I know," Bethany said heavily. "And don't think I haven't considered it, but … Someone put my name in this thing for a reason. Whether it was to cause me some harm, or just to humiliate me, I don't know, but I'm not letting them win."

November 1994

"Dragons!" Ginny whimpered for what felt like the thousandth time in an hour, as Viktor Krum left the arena, golden egg safely under one arm. "What were they thinking?!"

Hermione winced as the redhead's nails dug into her arm. "Gin, could you loosen your grip a bit?" She hissed, as ten dragon-keepers led in a very large, very angry Hungarian Horntail. "I have a feeling things are about to heat up, and I'd rather you didn't cut off my blood supply in the process."

"Let's just hope that 'heat up' is just a turn of phrase in this instance," Ginny muttered, loosening her grip nonetheless.

Bethany was the last champion to face the dragons, the order decided by a blind selection from a hat.

The fact that Krum and Fleur had both come out with obvious plans confirmed Bethany's suspicions that they had already known - they were plans too well-thought-out to have been formed in the time Cedric had taken to get his egg.

Fleur had done the best so far, although her skirt had taken a scorching. She had used some kind of Charm to lull the dragon into a sleep, which probably would have worked completely, were it not for Bagman's enthusiastic commentary.

Krum had gone for the eyes, as James had suggested, but had lost points because the wounded dragon had proceeded to trample many of her eggs, and the real eggs were supposed to have been unharmed.

Cedric had gone first, and he had Transfigured a rock into a dog as a distraction. Unfortunately, the dragon had turned on him at the last moment. Unlike the other two, he hadn't left the medical tent to receive his scores, and Hermione hoped that he was alright.

"Hermione …"

Both Hermione and Ginny turned to glare. "What?!"

Ron recoiled slightly at the word, hissed in unison with no small amount of venom. "I wanted to apologise …"

"It's not me you have to apologise to," Hermione said coldly. "It's Bethany. You know she cried herself to sleep that first night?"

Ron flinched as though he'd be struck. "I was …"

"Jealous, I know." Hermione turned her gaze back to the arena, where Bethany had just appeared, looking ridiculously small. "Doesn't seem like such fun now, does it?"

"She'll be alright though," Ron said. "Won't she?"

"I hope so," Hermione said. "Now ssh!"

Bethany had raised her wand and was mouthing something - the Summoning Charm, she assumed - and then there was nothing.

Sniggers started to erupt from around her. The Slytherins down the row, smirking, pressed the buttons on their robes so they flashed 'Potter Stinks' at her.

Hermione ignored them, jigging nervously in place. "Come on." She should have brought the broom with her, stashed it somewhere nearby; maybe it was too far away - they hadn't tested it on distance.

The Horntail was getting restless, Bethany looked more and more worried, but then there was an odd noise, wood sweeping through air, and then there!

The Firebolt came speeding towards the arena; Hermione could hear Bagman shouting something from the commentators' box, but she paid him no heed, solely focused on Bethany, who seized her Firebolt, mounted and kicked off hard, soaring into the air, high above the Horntail.

She hovered there for a second, presumably going through Quidditch plays in her head. Her face was more serene than it had been for weeks, and Hermione relaxed a little.

Bethany in the air was a happy Bethany, a confident Bethany.

And if anyone could do this, she could.

Then, suddenly, Bethany dived, faster than she ever had before, and the Horntail's gaze followed her. She unleashed a great ball of fire, and Bethany pulled out of the dive just in time to avoid it.

With a scream, Hermione's hands flew to her mouth. Her nails were digging into her cheeks hard enough to leave marks, but she didn't care.

"Great Scott, she can fly!" Bagman cried. "Are you watching this, Mr Krum?"

The words seemed to wash over Bethany completely as she soared higher and higher, in a wide circle, like a bird of prey coasting the thermals.

"Take it easy, Beth," Hermione murmured through her fingers. "Don't worry about being the fastest. Just take it slow and steady."

The Horntail's head swivelled round, watching Bethany's every move, keeping a very close eye on her. If Bethany could convince her that she was a threat, the nesting dragon might just abandon her eggs to deal with her.

Bethany plummeted again, just as another fireball erupted. She missed the flames, but the great spiked tail flew up to meet her, and Hermione screamed again, as the spikes caught Bethany's shoulder, ripping her robes.

Hermione momentarily lost control, the emotions of the crowd slamming into her, and beside her Fred caught her before she could collapse.

"She'll be fine," he shouted over the roar of the crowd. "She's taken worse than that from a Bludger."

It seemed an optimistic statement, but George, Ginny and Ron were all nodding in agreement. Sure enough, Bethany rose out of the dive, her face twisted in pain, but flying steadily, as though nothing had happened.

Bethany stayed higher this time, high enough to prevent the dragon throwing another fireball, but still close enough that she was unsettled.

All eyes were fixed on the tiny form in the sky as Bethany edged slowly higher, weaving this way and that, taunting the Horntail until she finally snapped, rising up from her nest with a great roar, wings unfurling, each the size of a small aircraft.

And then, before anyone could realise she'd moved, Bethany dived - faster than Hermione had ever seen her dive before; faster, even, than Krum at the World Cup - even if she could manage to grab the egg, surely she was going to crash.

The crowd roared, their shouts escalating to screams as Bethany scooped the egg into her arms, and then - incredibly - pulled out of the dive with just millimetres to spare, speeding towards the exit to the arena to land safely outside the blast zone.

Heart thudding, and desperately trying to stop herself from hyperventilating, Hermione lowered her hands, barely flinching as Ginny threw her arms around her in relief. She raced along the row, Ron and Ginny hot on her heels, down the steps, around the chain-link fence - barely pausing to greet Charlie, who looked as relieved as they did - and into the medical tent.

Bethany was sitting on one of the cots, her robes torn where the Horntail had struck, but the skin beneath was mercifully undamaged.

The same couldn't be said for Cedric, who was sitting nearby with half of his face covered in burn ointment and one arm in a sling.

Madam Pomfrey was berating him about something - from the sound of it, he had left the tent to watch Bethany's attempt - but he was ignoring her, his eyes fixed on Bethany.

Lily was standing by her daughter, berating her in a voice so high-pitched that James, who seemed to be speechless with shock, frequently winced.

"Beth, you were brilliant!" Hermione cried. Her voice was squeaky, but she ignored it, hugging Bethany with trembling arms, and whispered: "Your mother would like to request that you never do anything like that again, ever."

"Done," Bethany said with a shaky smile. "Thanks for the message."

"That was amazing!" Ginny hugged her as well, her movements just as shaky.

"That," Cedric said finally, "was incredible."

"Still no reason to ignore medical advice," Madam Pomfrey chided.

Cedric threw up his uninjured arm in protest. "He said she was flying! Who outflies a dragon?!"

"Bethany Potter apparently," Madam Pomfrey said, giving Bethany an extremely disapproving look.

Cedric shook his head. "I don't know if you're mad or brilliant."

"I'll take both," Bethany said, her gaze sliding to the entrance of the tent.

Ron was standing there awkwardly, trying not to look at Cedric's injuries. "Beth," he began seriously, "whoever put your name in that Goblet … I reckon they're trying to do you in."

"Caught on, have you?" Bethany asked coldly. "Took you long enough."

Hermione and Ginny took a step back, exchanging a nervous glance.

"Look, mate, I'm sorry," Ron said. "I've been a complete and utter prat, alright? I know that. I should have known you'd never enter your name. I'll understand it if you never want to talk to me again."

"Forget it," Bethany said, her voice marginally warmer.

"But …"

"You're my brother," Bethany interrupted. "You're a prat. Both of those things are capable of being true at the same time."