𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍

𝟏.𝟏𝟒 - 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐥𝐚𝐤𝐞

She opened the door and stepped back, gesturing for you to enter first. You did so, too nervous to notice that she had shut the door behind you. Her office was about the same size as your dorm room only it had fewer beds and more books. 

"Please take a seat dear," she instructed. 

You cautiously sat down in one of the plush velvet chairs across from her desk. McGonagall hurried over to the other side and sat down as well, placing her wand in a wand stand on the desktop. "Professor," you gulped. "If this is about the rumors in the paper, I can assure you that they are just that. Rumors."

"Rumors? Goodness no, dear," She all but chuckled, sliding a bowl of individually wrapped candies across the desk in your direction. "Before we start, would you mind? I find that students respond best to news when under the influence of sugar."

You nodded quickly and dug your hand into the shallow candy bowl, pulling it out with a single lemon drop between your fingers. You twisted the wrapper off, a surprisingly difficult task when your hands were shaking as violently as they were. You popped the sweet into your mouth and swirled it around. 

 The sourness of the candy overtook your senses and you leaned back calmly in the chair. "I'm confused," you spoke, voice muffled by the sweet. "If it's not about the rumors then why am I here?"

She looked almost guilty for a moment as she stood and loomed over you. The candy began to dissolve in your mouth. As the seconds drifted by, it became harder to hold your head upon your shoulders and your eyelids became heavier and heavier. 

"It'll all become clear soon, dear. Just try not to panic. And hold your breath!"

"Hold my wha-" Was all you got out before the blackness overtook you and you were rendered unconscious, head lulling to one side. It felt like only seconds had passed when you emerged from your sleeping state once more. You took quick, sputtering breaths, shocked to find yourself soaked from head to toe. Your eyes widened in a sudden panic and you looked all around you.

The feeling of cold water biting at your fingers hit you quickly and you struggled to swim, weighed down heavily by your robes. Looking over to your left, you saw Harry floating next to you. His face was serious as he tread water with his feet, his hands busy inspecting you. 

"Are you alright?" He asked, face bunched up with distress.

"Why am I in the lake?" You cried out, head briefly falling under the nearly pitch-black waters before rising back up, a fountain of freezing water exploding from your mouth as you coughed it out. Somehow taking this as a sign of your good health, Harry said nothing more as he guided you over to the platform behind you. 

 It was then that you noticed the loud cheering from the two tall floating platforms. Students were packed into the makeshift stands just as they had been for the first task. You could barely make out individual faces behind the protective glass barriers.

"You're alright, that's it," Harry encouraged in a low grunt, pushing you up toward the ladder. Ron and Hermione appeared before you, latching their arms around your elbows and hoisting you up onto the wooden dock. As soon as you were on dry ground, your head began to spin with intense vertigo. Others began showering you with soft linen blankets and thick fluffy towels.

After you were taken care of, Harry hauled himself up by his arms, muscles bulging as he flopped over onto his side. Neville came up behind him and tossed a small blue towel around his shoulders. He shrugged it off automatically, crawling over to you and placing it on top of your head. Your teeth chattered and Harry leaned in closer, pressing his lips to your forehead and holding them there for a moment before pulling away. His lips felt wonderfully warm against your freezing cold skin.