Protected Ivory [2]

Twenty

"How did you convince him to stay in the stands?" I asked Hermione as we made our way towards a tent which had been put at the entrance of the Quidditch field. It no longer looked like the normal Quidditch field, but a rock fortress. On the other side, there was what appeared to be a cave. The dragons were no doubt in there, but I wasn't looking close enough to see. 

"It wasn't hard," she admitted, offering me a sad smile. I grimaced. "I don't know what you did, but I hope it was worth it."

"To be honest, I'm not completely sure."

After the night with Boris, things had been different. Neville knew I had done something, but because I wouldn't tell him, things had been a little tense between us. Harry had picked it up, but he chose to ignore it as we were trying to determine what to do about the dragon. Between us and Moody, we had figured something out. After we had all decided on the plan, Neville hadn't spoken to me much. Hermione had taken up his place by my side. As much as I loved her company, I wanted Neville by my side.

It didn't help Boris began following me around the next day, making sure I was alright and had everything I needed. I put a stop to it instantly, but it had raised questions with everyone. Dylan seemed to be keeping a close eye on me, waiting for another snap, but Dmitri avoided me at all costs. With as much as Neville knew about me and watched me, he knew something was wrong. The fact I wouldn't tell him, bothered him more then anything else. 

"Harry!" Hermione hissed once we reached the side of the tent. It was fairly thin, so we figured he would be able to hear us. 

"Hermione?" His voice sounded worried, and I could only imagine how nervous he was. 

"Yeah, me and Ivy," she said, motioning for me to come closer. "We just wanted to say good luck and well..."

"Don't die?" Harry finished, causing both of us to look at each other. We both had the same thought. We both struggled to get through the opening in the flap, finally colliding with him. He seemed surprised, but he hugged both of us back as we clung to him tightly. 

"Oh, isn't that precious?" a rather high voice said, causing us to pull apart, but it wasn't before a bright flash. "Rita Skeeter."

"Oh, you're the lying hag?" I asked, forgetting my place for a moment. Her fake smile fell and I noticed Fleur and Cedric struggling not to laugh. "Do you have any shame whatsoever, or do you just like playing games for the heck of it?"

"You're a feisty one, aren't you?" she mused, eyeing me with disdain. "What's your name?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," I said, raising my eyebrow at her. 

"Ah, yes, we're all here. Gather round!" Ludo said, coming into the tent from the entrance. Hermione and I made to back up, but the circle included us instantly. 

"Now," Dumbledore said, looking at everyone in turn with a smile. When he got to Hermione and I, he did a double take. "Ms. Granger, Ms. Hamilton, what are you two doing here?"

"We were just going," I said, grabbing Hermione's arm and leading her out the entrance, sending one last glare at Rita Skeeter. As we made our way back to our seats, where the rest of our house was waiting, I scowled. "I really don't like that woman."

"I noticed," she said, struggling not to laugh. "Wow, Iv. Whatever you did the other night, it gave you your spunk back."

"That it did," I said, but I didn't know if it was a good thing or not. I shouldn't be finding what I did comforting at all, but it had given me some of my confidence back. 

We were silent as we made our way up the stairs. Our section had grown in number since we'd been gone, as outside spectators arrived. They had opened the Tournament up to the public, which was the only time people would be allowed on the grounds. Dumbledore had seen the problem this might prove for me, and he stationed Moody by me, which wasn't weird. He was supporting Harry, which most of our house was even though they all thought he was a liar.