dragons » d.m [1]

vii

CHAPTER SEVEN
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F O U R T H

THE GIRL HUMMED A SOFT TUNE AS SHE WATERED Hagrid's pumpkins. Her working clothes were covered in dirt and her forehead glistened with sweat, due to the hard gardening work she had to endure.

"Girl!" Hagrid called me from his hut. "After finishing, come have some tea."

She hurriedly finished watering the pumpkins and took off her gloves, hanging them by the wooden fence.

The smell of pine trees inside of Hagrid's hut filled her lungs. She sat down as she watched him pour some boiling water (this time he hadn't forgotten his mittens) in her mug.

"Are you alright, girl?" He asked, noticing her lost gaze.

"Yes..." She sighed.

Hagrid sympathetically smiled and sat next to me, "come on, girl. Tell poor ol' Hagrid what's wrong."

"It's the Malfoy boy," she hissed, gritting her teeth.

"Oh, blimey!" He shook his head. "That boy... He's no good. The best you can do is just avoid him..."

She stayed silent, placing her hands around the mug, still upset about the way he made her feel.

"Hey... How about we talk about something interesting?"

"About what?" she smiled.

"Tonight, the Triwizard Tournament champions will be chosen!"

She nodded, excited. It was already noon and the ceremony would take place at eight.

"So go on, go change. You don't want to be late!" He said, "Me neither," he whispered to himself as he blushed, probably thinking about lady Maxime.

She hurriedly stripped her dirty clothes and hopped into the shower. After that, she quickly changed into her uniform.

"Ser Hagrid? Do you want me to wait for you?" she called.

"No, you go first, girl! I got somethin' to sort out!" He yelled from his room.

She stepped out of the hut and walked through the fields. She saw from the distance how some students were already getting inside. She sped up and finally reached the double doors.

The Great Hall was packed, and she quickly made her way towards the Gryffindor table next to Hermione. They kindly smiled at her and they chatted as they waited for the ceremony to begin.

Her gaze was unconsciously directed to the Slytherin table. She scanned every one of them, until her eyes landed on Malfoy.

"Ah, No-Name..." Fred nudged her arm.

"Yes, Fotocopy?" she asked.

"Hey!" They both said in unison, making her grin.

"So, No-Name. We see you like dragons..." Smiled George.

"What do you mean?" She asked confused.

"They mean Malfoy. Draco is his name," explained Ron.

She glared at them and then at Malfoy, "I- I do not like him. It's the complete opposite, he's repellent... I would not go near him!" she pouted.

"Ooh, No-Name's blushing!" Fred cooed, poking her rosey cheek.

"He's looking at you," whispered Hermione.

She directed her gaze towards him, giving him her best glare. She wanted to make him clear that she didn't want to do anything with him and that he absolutely disgusted her. She was expecting him to glare back at her, but instead, he smirked. She clenched her jaw, promising she wouldn't think about him anymore.

The Hall's chatter slowly drifted away as all the professors arrived. The torches that illuminated the room weakened, giving the environment a gloomy atmosphere. The Goblet placed in the middle, contrasted sharply with the darkness, making her enter a state of trance by staring at it again. She was too mesmerised by the flames' beauty, not caring about what Dumbledore said.

After all, she wasn't a contestant.

Then, he revealed a the Triwizard Cup.

The students stared at it in awe, deep within them thinking how much they wanted it as much as she did.

"Eternal glory! That's what awaits the student who wins the Triwizard Tournament!"

'Eternal glory?'

Dumbledore then proceeded to announce the champions of each school. He told the other contestants to not feel discouraged if they weren't picked, since the Goblet had its reasons, and such artefact wouldn't be able to make mistakes.

The blue flames of the Goblet gradually turned into a deep vermilion shade, revealing a piece of parchment Dumbledore caught.

"The first champion from Durmstrang Institution is..." He paused, unfolding the paper, "Viktor Krum!"

The Hall was filled with applause as Viktor stood up on the front.

The Goblet changed colour again, revealing a light blue piece of paper that delicately dangled in the air.

"From Beauxbatons Academy... Fleur Delacour!"

A girl with a blue uniform walked to the front with a swan-like elegance. She smiled to the cheering crowd as she stood next to Viktor.

The Goblet revealed the last contestant. Catching the piece of parchment, Dumbledore carefully unfolded it.

"Hogwarts champion will be... Cedric Diggory!"

The Hufflepuff table went mad. Cedric smiled widely as he confidently walked to the front. He stood next to the other champions.

"Here we have our three champions for this year's Triwizard Tournament!" Announced Dumbledore proudly, making the Hall, once again, erupt with applause.

Suddenly, the Goblet's fire started to change into a crimson colour once again, silencing the Hall. The Goblet violently released a red flame that reached the ceiling, making all of them gasp in sheer terror.

The flames ceased at once, leaving a faint trail of smoke lingering in thin air.

A burnt piece of paper started descending from the top. All the presents in the room watched as the paper landed softly on the ground, as Dumbledore was too astonished to catch it.

The headmaster bent his knee to reach the parchment, careful not to burn his fingers from the edges. He unfolded the paper, his eyes widening at the name he read out loud:

"(Y/n) Targaryen."