UNTOLD | D.M (UNRAVEL BOOK 3)

[ 11 ]

Students marvelled at the sight of it, and Aine beamed at the beautiful prize. The cup's walls were stained in light turquoise with diamonds framing every facet of it, and three dragons snaked up to the rim, posing as handles as the frames plunged into the goblet's stem with a repousséd tree motif branching to the sides. The base of the trophy was a hexagon shape, mirroring the shape of the cup's walls. The letters, 'T, R, I, W, I, Z, A, R, D' were all etched around the glass plane with cracks and chips created and formed over time. It glowed brightly as students began gaping at it, their mouths hung open in awe.

However, Aine's eyes tore away from the cup when she saw Professor Snape frowning behind Dumbledore, his gaze hardened on the seething fire from the goblet, causing the Headmaster to turn in the direction the Potions Master was looking at. The blue flame trembled, hissing as it swayed aggressively into a tornado. The cheers died down as everyone fixated their attention on the goblet of fire, and all of the sudden, the flames shot upwards, before spitting out another paper that was falling down like a brittle sad leaf to which, Dumbledore had seized.

He looks down onto the parchment and his expression fell blank as he mutters in confusion, "Harry Potter."

Aine turns to Harry stiffly, not believing what she just heard, her brows pushed together as stares at him in disbelief.

"Harry Potter?" Dumbledore called again, whipping around the hall to find the boy. The whole cohort of students and staff darted to the boy's direction, glaring and scowling causing him to sit right back down, equally bewildered.

"No... No!" Harry says, shaking his head in denial.

"HARRY POTTER!" Dumbledore bellows, his voice full of rage demanding him to step forward. Hermione lurched towards the boy, "Come on, Harry," she urges him, growing impatient and uncomfortable with the attention, "Harry, for goodness sake." she mumbles under her breath, as she helps him up, pushing him forward.

Aine lips curled downwards, visibly upset and stunned. She watches as the boy plodded to the front, conscious of everyone's looks on him as he approaches Dumbledore who cast a glare towards him, waiting for his answer to how and why he was participating in this contest when he's not even of age. The man handed him the parchment, anger was displayed obviously on his face before Harry walks away hurriedly, at a frantic pace. Eyes wearily looking around to people who started calling him names, and more importantly...

"HE'S A CHEAT!"

"Cheater..."

"He's not even seventeen yet!" 

Harry passed by Snape who looks down at him, his expressionless face showing some emotions for the first time in so long. McGonagall steps towards him and squeezed his shoulders to offer some form of reassurance despite her graved face that was filled with worry before he passes her to the back chambers.

Everyone was either glowering with fury or even envy, feeling anxious, worried, or extremely confused, or perhaps all of it. However, Harry being chosen as one of the victors had caught everyone off their guards as all eyes simply looked towards Dumbledore, his wrath overflowing as it spreads around the hall before he asks the other school's Headmaster and Headmistress, a couple of professors alongside with Barty Crouch Snr to follow him to the hall's chambers to have a discussion on what's to be done.

It left students whispering as soon as they were gone, despite prefects and the remaining professors urging them to stay silent. However, they were all distracted by their curiosity as without a couple of minutes later, they could hear the loud objections of Madame Maxime, Professor McGonagall. 

"I protest!" screeches Madame Maxime.

"Silence!" Igor barks.

Aine looks to Hermione who shared her uneasiness as her mind began trailing into a series of thoughts in her head. It's not possible... It's not. How can he, a mere fourteen-year-old boy enter the competition? Was Harry really that eager to join it to gain eternal glory when he already had enough attention drawing onto him? Was he really that selfish of a person? Aine refused to believe that, seeing his face earlier; it seems that he too hadn't expected it. Even if he did want to enter, how was he able to step into the age line and not get blasted away with the same spell that caused Fred and George to be enchanted to be older? How did he do it?