Magic? || Years 1-5

Mad-Eye Moody: Year 4

They stopped clapping very quickly, highly aware of the tension in the room.

"Moody? Mad-Eye Moody? The one your dad went to help this morning?" Harry whispered to Ron.

"Must be," Ron replied.

"What happened to him? What happened to his face?" Hermione asked quietly, looking up at him in shock.

"Dunno," Ron shrugged, still transfixed.

Moody reached into his traveling cloak and pulled out a hip flask, taking a long drink.

Professor Dumbledore cleared his throat, "As I was saying, we are to have the honor of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event that has not been held for over a century. It is my great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year."

"You're JOKING!" Fred exclaimed loudly, his voice echoing in the silent room, but then the room wasn't that silent.

Almost everyone laughed, the uncertainty and quiet broken.

"I am not joking, Mr. Weasley, though now that you mention it, I did hear an excellent one over the summer about a troll, a hag, and a leprechaun who all go into a bar..." He began merrily, cutting off as Professor McGonagall cleared her throat.

"Er -- by maybe this is not the time... no... where was I? Ah yes, the Triwizard Tournament... well, some of you will not know what this tournament involves, so I hope those who do know will forgive me for giving a short explanation, and allow their attention to wander freely. The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago as a friendly competition between the three largest European schools of wizardry: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang.

"A champion was selected to represent each school, and the three champions competed in three magical tasks. The schools took it in turns to host the tournament once every five years, and it was generally agreed to be a most excellent way of establishing ties between young witches and wizards of different nationalities -- until, that is, the death toll mounted so high that the tournament was discontinued."

"Death toll?" Hermione hissed, her eyes wide and anxious.

Everyone else, however, looked intrigued. There were many quiet, excited whispers, and quite a few people were leaning forward in their seats.

"There have been several attempts over the centuries to reinstate the tournament, none of which has been very successful. However, our own Departments of International Magical Cooperation and Magical Games and Sports have decided the time is ripe for another attempt.

"We have worked hard over the summer to ensure that this time, no champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger. The Heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving with their shortlisted contenders in October, and the selection of the three champions will take place at Halloween. An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the Triwizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand Galleons personal prize money."

"I'm going for it!" Fred announced, his face bright and eyes even brighter as he looked up at Dumbledore.

He wasn't the only one.

At every table there were people staring up at the Headmaster with laser focus, others whispering feverishly to each other. Even the first years, who had looked in shock and scared after the Sorting, were suddenly bright-eyed.

"Eager though I know all of you will be to bring the Triwizard Cup to Hogwarts, the Heads of the participating schools, along with the Ministry of Magic, have agreed to impose an age restriction on contenders this year. Only students who are of age -- that is to say, seventeen years or older -- will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration,"