𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐍 (2) || 𝘙𝘦𝘮𝘶𝘴 𝘓𝘶𝘱𝘪𝘯

𝐈𝐗. 𝐈𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐨𝐧'𝐬 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰

It wasn't pretty, not by a long shot. but it was necessary. The sooner the dragon's were calmed down, the sooner Charlie's colleagues could focus on the new stands for the First Task, the sooner the dragon's could be taken back to their reserves, and treated with the respect and care that they deserved.

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Atop the rooftop in the courtyard Edith sat in her other form, ruffling her wings as she watched the movement down below.

Her eyes moved between Cedric, who was laying down on a bench in the middle of his friends. And Harry, who was silently walking around the surrounding corridors, making his way onto the grassy space that separated him and the older boy.

Edith's eyes narrowed as two older Hufflepuff's stopped him at the archway, flashing a crudely enchanted badge in his face.

Harry's shoulders slumped and some words left him, unheard by Edith. The two older students refused to move. And so Harry huffed out a breath, deciding to just push past them to get through.

Edith watched as Harry ignored the taunts coming from nearly everyone in the quad, and she perked up with interest as he approached Cedric.

Cedric's surrounding friends took notice, grinning and 'ooo'ing as Harry stopped beside them, watching as Cedric sat up at the sight of him.

Edith fluttered closer, landing on the tree just above the group.

"Read the badge, Potter!" A student Edith knew as Scott Haring, from her time as a Head Girl, taunted loudly, snapping his book closed through a thin smile.

Harry ignored him, not looking away from Cedric. "Can I have a word?" He asked, tiredly gripping the strap of his bag.

Cedric seemed to consider it, before he shrugged, sending a short look over the shoulder to his friends before he stood, following Harry over to the large tree where neither knew Edith was. "Alright."

Harry and Cedric stopped a little aways from the group, and Harry took a moment before speaking up.

"Dragons. That's the first task. They've got one for each of us."

He couldn't do this.

Cedric's face creased in disbelief, and he blinked.

Harding once again yelled over to the two of them. "Come on, Ced!"

Cedric looked back towards Harry. "You.. are you serious?"

Harry nodded, unaware of a second pair of eyes on him.

Alastor Moody watched from an outer corridor, his prosthetic eye flickering from Harry to Cedric, and then upwards towards where a branch trembled in the wind below Edith's tiny talons.

"And Fleur and Krum, do they-?"

"Yeah."

"... Right." Cedric nodded to himself.

Harry moved to walk away, only for Cedric to catch his arm, lowering his voice. "Hey listen, about the badges. I've asked them not to wear them. And I've said that Professor Finch would have their heads for it, but-"

"Don't worry about it." Harry brushed him off, shaking his head before he kept walking.

His eyes caught Ron and Seamus walking down the hall, and Harry was fueled with anger.

His former 'best mate' didn't even have the guts to tell him about the dragon's himself, when they first arrived? Was Ron even going to tell Harry? Or would he only have realised tomorrow after the Ministry had thrown him into an arena along with a fire-breathing beast?