Medici the Magnificent meets Hogwarts. Maria Fiore, adopted friend and sister of the Medicis, must overcome her draw to the enigmatic Francesco Pazzi. Or give in.
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I had given it some thought all day.
Champions had to be seventeen. I was seventeen.
Champions had to work alone. I was kind of a loner when I wasn't with Bianca or her brothers.
Champions couldn't be faint-hearted. I didn't think I was faint-hearted, but maybe this would be a good way to improve myself if I was.
So after dinner that night while students hung around the goblet of fire to throw in their names and cheer for others who enlisted too, I scrawled my name on a shred of napkin and waited till most people were distracted and looking elsewhere. Sneaking up to the goblet, slipping across the age line, I tossed my name into the fire. It flared, but nothing else happened as I darted back unseen to the corner I had been hiding in previously.
Maybe it was an awful idea. Maybe I should have at least told Bianca about it. But a part of me knew I wouldn't be chosen anyway. The fact that I summoned the courage to put my name in at all had been accomplishing enough. I was proud of myself. Proud that I did something extra. I wasn't just a dull Hufflepuff. I was a girl who almost competed in the TriWizard Tournament.
My thoughts were interrupted by fingers suddenly digging into my sides. I jumped and gasped, but a second later greedy lips were kissing my cheek and neck.
Giuliano.
With a smile, I reached up to flick his nose. "I've been waiting for you for more than an hour. You said you would meet me."
"Sorry, love. Stuff came up."
"Stuff?"
"Guy stuff."
"So mysterious," I said in a dry tone, not nearly amused as he wanted me to be. My stomach twisted slightly, warning me that something was amiss, but I pushed it aside and kissed Giuliano's cheek instead. "Sit. Tell me about your day. I missed not having classes with you and Bianca."
A few minutes later, Lorenzo showed up. Then Bianca and Guglielmo. The two were holding hands, and Giuliano made an audible gagging sound. I smacked his knee, warning him to play nice.
Poor Guglielmo... He looked like a cornered mouse the moment Bianca dragged him over to sit with us and await the much-anticipated selection of champions at midnight. I attempted to smile at him, which he appreciated, but Giuliano immediately tried to pull me into his lap so I wouldn't interact with the Pazzi.
"You're such a child," I complained as I pushed myself off of him. "Stop it, Giuliano."
He huffed frustratedly for more than one reason, and the Pazzi problem wasn't all of it. I was the other half of the problem. Me and my refusal to be intimate in public. Or private. The furthest we ever got was making out. Touching beyond tame places made me squirmy, and it frustrated Giuliano to no end.
Luckily before another fight could brew between us, a surge of more students arrived along with Dumbledore and the other professors. It was one minute to midnight.
A hush fell over the students. The goblet began to pulse erratically. Suddenly, the flames flared violet, and a slip of paper was jettisoned into the sky. Dumbledore deftly caught it, yelling out a moment later the name of the Beauxbaton's champion. "Fleur Delacour!"
The pretty girl flounced up as applause broke out. She glided to where she was directed, and then the goblet flared again.
"Viktor Krum!"
Manly shouts broke out. The kind of shouts that came from overly hormonal and competitive boys.
Over the racket, Bianca leaned over to inform me, "I heard he's engaged to one of the Beauxbaton girls. Apparently it was arranged at birth by their pureblood families. It makes me so thankful my parents haven't forced that on me."
"Yet," Giuliano teased, but the comment stung a little. We all knew he would wish a loveless marriage for his sister if it meant she couldn't be with a Pazzi.
At last, it came time for the Hogwarts champion to be named. The fire flared again, and a slip of charred paper flit down into Dumbledore's hand.
We all held our breath. I realized then what a horrible mistake it had been to put my name in. I wasn't prepared at all to play the games if I was chosen.
"Francesco Pazzi!"
The applause was stilted. No one knew if they were allowed to cheer. The Slytherin section carried the first wave of applause, but Guglielmo cheered loudly for his brother in our corner.
"You've got to be kidding me," Giuliano complained. "Hogwarts is sure to lose. He's a tool."
"Hey!" Guglielmo dared to complain.
Lorenzo squeezed his brother's shoulder. "Francesco is a fine candidate. I'm sure he'll hold his own in the games."
Giuliano grunted in agreement, like he didn't really want to admit it. "Still, how can I be expected to cheer for my school's champion when it's a Pazzi? At this point, I'd rather see the Durmstrangs win."
"Or the Beauxbatons," Bianca interjected, because girls could win too.
Giuliano grimaced. He seemed to think otherwise.
The bickering faded when the blue flame flared again. Dumbledore whirled to see what was going on with the goblet. All three champions had already been chosen. So why did another name shoot into the air?
From where I sat, I couldn't be sure, but the piece of paper looked heavy. Like it might have been... a piece of napkin...
Dumbledore whispered the name, and I recognized the syllables on his lips. My stomach dropped. Then he yelled the name loud enough for all to hear.
