Nico di Angelo and the Goblet of Fire

Chapter 20: Preferably Avoidable Conversations

Nico is starting to feel bad for Hermione. Ever since the article had come out accusing her of being a philanderer, she had been receiving letter after letter chewing her out and threatening her. Nico understands being despised, hated, even, but not on such a large scale. It seems the entire wizarding world hates her now. So, at the advice of Hagrid, she had stopped opening the letters. Unfortunately this does not stop the barrage of Howlers, in which not opening them just makes them explode. Countless breakfasts end abruptly for them with rushing the poor girl to the hospital wing with singed eyebrows and burnt hands.

The hate seems to leech into every aspect of her life, bothering her in class, at meals, even Mrs. Weasley's Easter egg for Hermione was much smaller than any of theirs. Hermione becomes obsessed with finding out how Skeeter is listening to them. Honestly? Nico would like to know as well.

So, since Harry and Ron aren't any help (as usual), she and him spend hours upon hours brainstorming ways she could've done it.

"Invisibility cloak?" Nico suggests one afternoon, head resting on the dinner table after a painfully boring transfiguration class. Harry had been called away after it, and Ron is distracted by the feast, so they're going around in circles once more for any spark of a clue.

"Moody would've seen here." Hermione mumbles as she pours over yet another book.

"Could she have shrunk herself really tiny?"

"Somebody would have noticed a tiny woman, Nico."

"Can she-"

"Guys-" Ron interrupts Nico, spitting crumbs everywhere. "Just forget about it. It'll blow over in a bit."

"Ugh." Nico eyes Ron's mess, disgusted.

*

"-and Crouch evaporated, did he?" Hermione asks as Nico enters the Owlery in the early hours of the morning. Needless to say, he is not very pleased about having to come up here so early, and yet here he is.

"Why am I here?" He asks, rubbing at his tired and stinging eyes to force them to wake up.

They tell him about what had happened to Harry the night before, how he had gone to speak to Viktor and met Mr. Crouch. Harry described Crouch's state, how he had seemed absolutely loony and terrified of everything, how he'd disappeared and supposedly attacked Viktor. He was talking to the not present Percy Weasley, his dead wife and son, and talking about how Voldemort is getting stronger.

When they finish, Nico stares at them for a good moment while his brain pinwheels, trying to process this much information at the crack of dawn.

"Okay..." He finally settles on as a response.

"Okay? That's it?" Ron sounds flabbergasted, like Nico just spat on his shoes and done a cartwheel.

"Okay. Seems pretty par for the course. This school is weird enough, why not get the government involved too?" He shrugs. Really, this doesn't worry him too much. They had met much worse at Hogwarts, and he had seen the worst of the world. What harm can one old man bring?

"Are you not concerned that you-know-who is gaining power?"

"He's been 'gaining power' for the last four years. Where is he, Ron? Not here. It's rumors." Nonetheless, he can't shake the feeling that there is some merit to his words. It isn't the first big bad to be 'gaining power' in his time, and he'd seen the consequences of those with the ability to help ignoring the warning signs. Maybe he should look into it further. "Even so, Sirius should know. He knows more about him than any of us do."

"We need to see Professor Moody," Hermione says. "Find out if he ever found Mr. Crouch."

"If he had the Marauder's Map on him, it would've been easy." Says Harry.

"Unless Crouch was already outside the grounds," Says Ron in a way that makes Nico expect a very boring conversation is to follow. "Because it only shows up to the boundaries, doesn't-"

"Shh!" Hermione shushes him suddenly, and Nico can now hear some people approaching from outside the Owlery.

"-that's blackmail, that is, we could get in a lot of trouble for that-"

"-we've tried being polite, it's time to play dirty, like him. He wouldn't like the Ministry of Magic knowing what he did-"

"I'm telling you, if you put that in writing, it's blackmail!"

The door slams open and the group is now face to face with the Weasley twins.

"What are you doing here?" Ask Ron and Fred at the same time.

"Sending a letter." Harry and George respond.

"What, at this time?" Hermione and George ask.

"Oh my gods, shut up, all of you. It is way too early for this." Nico rubs at his face in exasperation. "Get on with whomever you're threatening and leave us alone."

Their smiles fall.

"We were only joking about that." George says coolly.

"Didn't sound like that." Ron crosses his arms.

The twins glance at each other, before Fred speaks. "I've told you before, Ron, keep your nose out if you like it the shape it is. Can't see why you would, but-"

"Yep, great, out. All of you." Nico grabs at various spots on his friends' clothing and pulls them out of the Owlery. It was far too early in the day to be getting involved in conspiracy and blackmail, and he'd at least like to have a glass of water before diving into the deep end.

Hello. It's been a while.

I hope you are all well, my dear Matchsticks <3

Love,

Sammy