Percy Jackson and the Triwizard Tournament (Goblet of Fire)

Chapter 34: Nico and the Ministry

The Atrium in the Ministry of Magic was quiet that night... Not a single person could be seen...

The freshly-polished, dark wood planks of flooring spread through every corner of the room. In the hall, there were grand fireplaces with gilded mantles and framing which lined the walls. Shadows crept from the empty holes of the lacking hearths, causing the entire place to feel cold, dark, and lonely. The walls had the same wooden texture as the flooring, but because of the stacked and thicker version of the wooden planks, it almost seemed more like bricks.

But what caught Harry's eye in his dream, what caused him to almost stumble back in fear, was the boy standing there. The same pale boy who had visited many times before, gazing up towards the Fountain of Magical Brethren.

The boy crinkled his nose in disgust, before raising his sword and slashing down against the fountain's base, right beneath the larger-than-life-sized Wizard model made of gold. The gash made from the fearful, black metal cut in right beneath its toes; even managing to leave a small crack at the corner of the Wizard's shoe. That is when Harry tipped his head upward to see the entirety of the fountain and statues.

At the moment, obviously sometime late at night (due to the eerie silence), the water wasn't running. There was a small pool at the bottom and droplets small enough to be mistaken as rain along the statues, but that was all... The Wizard's posture stood tall, his arm outstretched as he raised his wand triumphantly into the air. A witch stood beside him, in somewhat the same "superior" position. Below them stood a centaur, goblin, and house-elf; the three creatures looking inferior based off of the shrunken size and bowing positions beneath the others. Harry managed to notice the pale boy stare for an elongated time at the centaur, its position obviously infuriating him the most for some particular reason...

The boy breathed heavily, staring down at the gash cutting into the almost-perfect stone. It was only then when Harry noticed he had a Happy Meal in hand, which at the moment would've completely washed away his scary, death-like reputation if it weren't for the pure hatred the boy seemed to have.

A small fog began to cloud together in the far corner of the fountain, as a humanoid form drifted slowly towards the boy. Harry quickly recognized that the middle-aged woman walked towards the boy was a ghost.

He didn't seem that surprised, and as the woman began to open her mouth, the boy spoke first. It sent a usual chill up Harry's spine, "Bertha Jorkins... is that correct?"

The woman nodded, before asking fearfully, "W-what's going on?"

He smiled, before pointing towards the gate, leaving the Atrium, "You worked here... didn't you?"

Unlike most ghost, Bertha's formed didn't seem as solid as others, "I still do. I work in the Department of Magical Games and Sports..." her voice became faint for a few moments "W-why are we here so late? W-why can't I r-remember h-how I g-got here?"

The pale boy's lips curled into an evil grin, and let out a cold laugh, "It's a little foggy... Most are when they're so soon. Right now we have a job to do, so... lead the way."

As they reached the gate, the boy's hand reached for his sword once more. He swung it swiftly, breaking the padlock wrapped around the gate's golden bars. This shocked Harry; the Ministry seemed to be the place of top security... Weren't there enchantments? Does that mean this sword is more powerful than it looks? But the gate swung open swiftly, and the ghost and the boy walked towards the elevators.

For some reason, Bertha restrained from walking through objects as normal ghosts do... and the boy seemed to catch onto that, holding the gate open for her to walk inside. Once arriving to the elevators, he blocked her from pushing the buttons on her own, asking, "Which floor?"