𝙻𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚜 ❨ • Harry Potter Love Story • ❩

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙵𝚘𝚞𝚛

Now, according to him, we are friends.

I, personally, don't think we are. Yet, I never actually told him that. Usually, I would just do my best to avoid him and his insistent questions on how my summer was since just talking to him were enough to make me remarkably uncomfortable. It was partly because I felt the urge to punch the niceness away from his face and partly because I felt like being rude to him was the same as being rude to a puppy.

And everybody knows only jerks are rude to puppies.

Anyway.

I diverted my gaze from the boy, landing it at the staff table. I noticed there were two remaining empty seats, which caused me to wonder who else might be showing up. Before I could reach any plausible explanation, though, I was snapped out of my reveries with the second course of food with tons of unfamiliar desserts. Anything eatable is pretty much my thing, so once again, I just served myself with a bit of everything that looked good.

Finally, when the golden plates had been wiped clean, Dumbledore stood up again. A tension seemed to fill the hall now. I looked around, noticing the curious eyes of every student in that place.

"The moment has come," said Dumbledore, smiling around at the sea of upturned faces.

"The Triwizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words of explanation before we bring in the casket -"

"- just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them. Mr Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation" - there was a smattering of polite applause - "and Mr Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports. "

I stared at the two-man as they walked in, complete unfazed. Bagman make me want to punch him, and Crouch looked like he was bored out of his mind.

I feel you, Mr Crouch. I definably do.

"Mr Bagman and Mr Crouch have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Triwizard Tournament," Dumbledore continued.

"And they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madame Maxime on the panel that will judge, and a few other of our collaboration will be joining us tomorrow,"

When he finished introducing the two men, the attentiveness of the listening students seemed to sharpen. I rolled my eyes and just stared at the headmaster, wondering what he was going to do next. The old jerk smiled as he said.

"The casket, then, if you please, Mr Filch."

Grumpy man Filch, who up till then, was only lurking unnoticed in a far corner of the Great Hall, approached Dumbledore, carrying a great wooden chest encrusted with jewels. It looked very old, and potentially useless.

A murmur of excited interest rose from the watching students.

One of the younger brats, a little boy named Daniel Crawley or something, actually stood on his chair to see it accurately but got down after I glared murderously at him for bouncing too excitedly in front of me.

"The instructions for the tasks the champions will face this year have already been examined by Mr Crouch and Mr Bagman," said Dumbledore as Filch placed the chest carefully on the table before him.

"And they have made the necessary arrangements for each challenge. There will be three tasks; spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways... Their magical prowess - their daring - their powers of deduction - and, of course, their ability to cope with danger."