Rita Skeeter
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"Did the concussion give you dementia?"
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a/n: i'm aware that it was mad eye moody who originally put Harry's name in the goblet, but for the sake of this book, it was both Moody and Karkaroff. Moody had a wayy bigger part in it than Karkaroff did tho.
ROSE SPIT THE water everywhere.
The brown haired girl disgustedly wiped water from her eyes.
"My bad.." Rose whispered slowly, gulping.
The entire Hall's eyes were on Harry and Rose. Some looks of betrayal, jealousy, disbelief, and anger.
Rose felt the sweat on her hands. That was why she had been so nervous.
There was no way. He must have read the name wrong. She had to have heard him incorrectly.
There was no applause. Well, except the awkward clapping of Blaise and Daphne, who slowly stopped applauding after many judge-mental eyes were shot at them. Theo was too in shock to move.
Ron and Hermione were staring at them, blankly in shock.
"Harry Potter and Rose Black!" Dumbledore called again. "Up here, if you please!"
"Go," Hermione whispered, giving Rose a small push.
Rose pulled onto Harry's sleeve, indicating that they had to go.
It felt like an immensely long walk; the top table didn't seem to be getting any nearer at all, and they could feel hundreds of eyes upon them, as though each were a searchlight. Rose did not care, she knew they didn't put their names in. Someone else had to've.
And she had her suspicions.
After what seemed like an hour, they were right in front of Dumbledore, feeling the stares of all the teachers upon them.
"Well... through the door." said Dumbledore. He wasn't smiling.
Rose's eyes landed on McGonagall. Rose softly shook her head, mouthing, "I didn't do it."
McGonagall held sorrow upon her face, her hands fiddling with each other.
Harry and Rose went through the door and out of the great Hall and found themselves in a smaller room, lined with paintings of witches and wizards. A handsome fire was roaring in the fireplace opposite them.
Viktor Krum, Cedric Diggory, and Fleur Delacour were grouped around the fire. they look strangely impressive, silhouetted against the flames. Crumb, hunched up and brooding, was leaning against the mantle piece, slightly apart from the other two. Cedric was standing with his hands behind his back, staring into the fire. Fleur Delacour looked around when Harry and Rose walked in and threw back her sheet of long, silvery hair.
"What is it?" she said, fixing her hair when she saw Rose enter. "Do zey want us back in ze hall?"
Harry and Rose just stood there.
There was a sound of scurrying feet behind them, and Ludo Bagman entered the room. He went in between Rose and Harry, took them both by the arms and led them forward.
"Extraordinary!" he muttered, squeezing their arms. "Absolutely extraordinary! Gentleman... lady," he added, approaching the other three. "May i introduce - incredible though it may seem - the fourth, and fifth, Triwizard Champion?"
Viktor Krum straightened up. Cedric looked nonplussed. He looked from Bagman, to Rose, To Harry, and back over again as though sure he must have misheard what Bagman has said. Fleur, however, tossed her hair, smiling, and said, "Oh, vairy funny joke, Meester Bagman."
"Joke?" Bagman repeated. "No, no, not at all! Rose and Harry's name just came out of the Goblet!"
They were all bewildered.
"But evidently zair 'as been a mistake," she said contemptuously to Bagman, looking over Rose and Harry. "Zey cannot compete, zey is only fourteen."
"Well... it is amazing," said Bagman, rubbing his smooth chin and smiling down at Harry and Rose. " but, as you know, the age restriction was only imposed this year as an extra safety measure. And as their names come out of the goblet... I mean, I don't think there can be any ducking out at this stage....It's down in the rules, you're obliged... Rose and Harry will just have to do the best they—"
The door behind them opened again, and a large group of people came in: Professor Dumbledore, followed closely by Mr. Crouch, Professor Karkaroff, who Rose immediately tensed up at, Madame Maxime, professor McGonagall, and professor Snape. They heard the buzzing of the hundreds of students on the other side of the wall before Professor McGonagall closed the door.
"Madame Maxime!" said Fleur at once, striding over to her headmistress. "Zey are saying zat zis girl and boy is to compete also!"
"What is ze meaning of zis, Dumbly-dorr?" she said imperiously.
"I'd rather like to know that myself, Dumbledore," said Professor Karkaroff.
As if you don't know. Rose thought.
"Three Hogwarts Champions?" He continued. "I don't remember anyone telling me the host school is allowed three champions - or have i not read the rules carefully enough?"
He gave a short and nasty laugh. One that made Rose want to confront him about what she heard that one day right then and there.
"C'est impossible," said Madam Maxime, who enormous hand with its many superb opals was resting upon Fleurs shoulder. "Ogwarts cannot 'ave three champions. It is most injust."
"We were under the impression that your Age Line would keep out younger contestants, Dumbledore," said Karkaroff, his steely smile still in place, though his eyes were colder than ever. "Otherwise, we would, of course, have brought along a wider selection of candidates from our own schools."
"It's no ones fault but Potter and Black's, Karkaroff," said Snape softly. "Don't go blaming Dumbledore for Black and Potter's determination to break rules—"
"What a load of bullshit, why would we put our names in a suicide mission?" Rose interrupted, and everyones focus turned to her. "I did not put my name in this thing. Ever since the start of this i've been complaining about how absolutely idiotic this tournament is. I mean, a death toll? Who would be stupid enough to enter their name into a deadly tournament—"
"Hey," said Krum, Fleur, and Cedric.
"No offense,"
"Ah, but of course she is lying!" cried Madame Maxime.
Rose raised her eyebrows, "I know this big ass lady didn't just—"
"Rose!"
"What about you, Harry. Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?" Dumbledore asked calmly.
"No," said Harry.
"Did you ask an older student to put it into the Goblet for you?"
"No,"
Madame Maxime shook her head, "Zey are bo'z lying!"
"They could not have crossed the Age Line," said Professor McGonagall sharply.
"Dumbly-dorr must 'ave made a mistake wiz ze line," said Madame Maxime, shrugging.
"It is possible, of course," said Dumbledore politely.
"Dumbledore, you know perfectly well you did not make a mistake!" said Professor McGonagall angrily. "Really, what nonsense! Rose and Harry could not have crossed the line themselves, and as Professor Dumbledore believes that they did not persuade an older student to do it for them, I'm sure that should be good enough for everyone else!"
She shot a very angry look at Professor Snape.
Rose was very delighted that Minnie was standing up for them.
"Mr. Crouch... Mr. Bagman," said Karkaroff. "you are our - er - objective judges. Surely you will agree that this is most irregular?"
Bagman wiped his round, boyish face with his handkerchief and looked at Mr. Crouch.
"He must follow the rules," Mr. Crouch said, "and the rules state clearly that those people whose name's come out of the Goblet are bound to compete in the tournament."
"I don't want to compete!" Rose argued, looking at McGonagall for help.
"Why'd you put your name in, then?" Snape growled.
"I didn't!"
Karkaroff narrowed his eyes, "What do you expect happened then, Miss Black?"
She glared at him, did he want her to go there?
"I think someone put our names in without our permission." Looking Karkaroff in the eyes.
"Why is that?"
"Because, i know that i didn't do it, i know Harry didn't do it, and i know for a fact i didn't ask anybody to put it in for me. That would be the stupidest shit i'd ever do." She explained, struggling to not mention anything she heard being said between Karkaroff and Snape.
"Watch your language, please!" exclaimed Bagman.
"At a time like this, you expect me to not curse?"
"I insist upon resubmitting the names of the rest of my students," said Karkaroff. "You will set up the Goblet of Fire once more, and we will continue adding names until each school has three champions. It's only fair, Dumbledore."
"But Karkaroff, it doesn't work like that," said Bagman.
They continued arguing, for what felt like centuries. Harry had been oddly quiet.
Rose turned to him, looking him up and down. "Are you okay?"
He breathed out, "I didn't put my name in."
"Yeah, i know. I didn't either. I think i know who put our names in, though."
He looked her in the eyes quickly, "Who?"
"I'll tell you later."
When they turned back to the conversation, Mad-Eye Moody was there.
"You can't leave your champion now. Krum's got to compete." He said. "They've all got to compete. Binding magical contract, like Dumbledore said. Convenient, eh?"
"Convenient?" said Karkaroff. "I'm afriad i don't understand you, Moody."
"Don't you?" said Moody quietly. "It's very simple, Karkaroff. Someone put Black and Potters name in that goblet knowing they'd have to compete if it came out."
"Evidently, someone 'oo wished to give 'Ogwarts z'ree bites at ze apple!" said Madame Maxime.
"If anyone's got a reason to complain, it's Black and Potter," Growled Moody, "but... funny thing.. i don't hear them saying a word..."
"Why should zey complain?" burst out Fleur Delacour, stamping her foot. "Zey have ze chance to compete, 'asn't zey? We 'ave all been 'oping to be chosen for weeks and weeks! Ze honor for our schools! A thousand Galleons in prize money - zis is a chance many would die for!"
"Maybe someone's hoping Black and Potter are going to die for it," said Moody, with the merest trace of a growl.
An extremely tense silence followed these words.
Rose looked up at Moody. "Exactly," The attention was back to her. "That's what i've been trying to say. I believe someone has put our names in the goblet because they want us dead."
Moody looked at her curiously.
"I have my suspicions on who did it." Her eyes shifted to Moody and then Karkaroff for a fraction of a second, but only the two of them seemed to notice.
"Who?" Bagman asked.
"I won't say, because i'm not one hundred percent sure if it was them. I don't have solid evidence. Not yet." She looked at them again.
"See, Black is not stupid." said Moody. "She's smart, she figures things out before anybody else can."
"We all know Professor Moody considers the morning wasted if he hasn't discovered six plots to murder them before lunchtime," said Karkaroff loudly. "Apparently he is now teaching his students to fear assassination too. An odd quality in a defense against the dark arts teacher, Dumbledore, but no doubt you had your reasons."
"Imagining things, am i?" growled Moody. "Seeing things, eh? It was a skilled witch or wizard who put their name's in that goblet..."
"Ah, what evidence is zere of zat?" said Madame Maxime, throwing up her huge hands.
"Because they hoodwinked a very powerful magical object!" said Moody. "It would have needed an exceptionally strong and fundus charm to bamboozle that goblet into forgetting that only three schools compete in the tournament... I'm guessing they submitted Potter and Blacks name under a fourth and Fifth school, to make sure they were the only one's in their category..."
"You seem to have given this a great deal of thought, Moody." said Karkaroff coldly.
"How this situation arose, we do not know," said Dumbledore, speaking to everyone gathered in the room. "It seems to me, however, that we have no choice but to except it. Cedric, Rose, and Harry have been chosen to compete in the Tournament, This, therefore, they will do..."
are you serious.
"Dumbledore, we do not have enough spots to fulfill five students in the tournament, it was originally meant to be three only. What should we do, then?"
"Harry and Rose will be partners. They can work together. I'm sure they don't mind, do you, Harry, Rose?"
Harry and Rose looked at each other and back at Dumbledore.
Rose shrugged, "As long i don't die or have to deal with more everlasting trauma than i already have, that's fine with me."
Snape looked furious, Karkaroff was livid, Bagman, however, looked rather excited.
"Well, shall we crack on, then?" he said, rubbing his hands together while smiling around the room. "Got to give our five champions their instructions, haven't we? Barty, want to do the honors?"
"Yes," he said, "instructions. Yes... the first task...."
"The first task is designed to test your daring," he told Harry, Rose, Cedric, Fleur, and Victor. "so we are not going to be telling you what it is. Courage in the face of the unknown is an important quality in a wizard... very important. The first task will take place on November the Twenty-fourth, in front of the other students and the panel of judges."
"The champions are not permitted to ask for or accept help of any kind from their teachers to complete the tasks in the tournament." He continued, "The champions will face the first challenge armed with only their wands. They will receive information about the second task when the first task is over. Owing to the demanding and time-consuming nature of the tournament, the champions are exempted from end-of-year tests."
"Well, at least we don't have to take those tests.." Rose muttered to Harry.
Harry raised his eyebrows and shrugged his shoulders. "Hermione would be devastated."
"I think that's all, is it, Albus?"
"I think so," said Dumbledore, who was looking at Mr. Crouch with mild concern.
"Professor Karkaroff - Madame Maxime - a nightcap?" said Dumbledore.
but Madame Maxime had already put her arm around Fleurs shoulders and was leading her swiftly out of the room. They could hear them both talking very fast in French as they went off into the great Hall.
"What are they saying?" Harry whispered to Rose.
"You don't wanna know."
Karkaroff beckoned to Krum, and they, too, exited, through the silence.
"Rose, Harry, Cedric, i suggest you go up to bed," said Dumbledore, smiling at them. "I am sure Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin are waiting to celebrate with you."
"Do you know how many people in this school hate me because of my father?" Rose tilted her head, "This won't make it any better."
"Oh, it will be alright. Go on up to bed."
Harry had offered for Rose to come up to the Gryffindor common room with him, but that was a hard pass. With all those little petty bitches, she wouldn't be able to calm herself with the looks she'd receive.
Yes, with the conversation she had heard between Karkaroff and Snape, it was all making sense. It had made sense the moment her name was called by Dumbledore.
But now, Moody is making her question things.
Who really put her and Harry's name in the Goblet? Someone who want's them dead.
The only person who she knows wants her and Harry dead, is Voldemort. But it couldn't have been Voldemort that did it.
It was one of his followers.
Rose had gone to the dungeons alone. The second she had made it to the portrait, she said "Pureblood." and right as the portrait door swung open, she was met with shouts.
"You should've told me you'd entered!" bellowed Daphne, pulling her into the common room. She looked impressed, but in disbelief.
"I didn't."
"You didn't?"
"Well of course she did! How else would her name come out of the goblet?"
People started ranting.
Another seventeen year old Slytherin boy swooped over, "Well, if it couldn't be me, at least its a Slytherin—"
"We've got food, Rose, come and have some—"
"I'm not hungry—"
But nobody wanted to hear that she wasn't hungry; nobody wanted to hear that she didn't put her name in the goblet; not one single person seemed to have noticed that she wasn't at all in the mood to celebrate . . . Rose couldn't get away; whenever she tried to sidle over to the staircase up to the dormitories, the crowd around him closed ranks, forcing another butterbeer on her, stuffing crisps and peanuts into her hands. Everyone wanted to know how she got her name into the Goblet.
"How did you do it?"
"Did you use an Age Potion?"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Do you think you'll win?"
She had enough, "Shut up!"
The room filled with silence.
"Alright, Alright, that's enough." Blaise had pushed through the crowds to get in front of Rose. "Leave her be, she has enough stress on her already."
He pushed her to the girls dormitories, shoving through some people to get to it. She thanked him before going up the stairs to the dorms. Even after she was up there, she still heard the talk of all the other Slytherins.
The only person, other than Blaise, that had noticed her discomfort, was Draco. When he had first heard her name called in the Great Hall, he couldn't help the lurch of worry that seeped through his body. He knew how she was, he knew she wouldn't put her name in a competition like this one. It just didn't add up.
She was his cousin, after all.
She stepped in the dormitory's for Pansy to be the only other person in the room. Rose didn't even acknowledge her, she was tired and didn't have time for it.
"So," Pansy started, she second she saw her.
Rose plopped herself on her bed face first. "What now."
"You really put your name in the Goblet?" Pansy inquired. "I didn't take you for much of a risk taker."
"You didn't take me for much of a risk taker?" Rose mumbled through the pillows. "Do you even remember third year? Did the concussion give you dementia?"
"Wow that was such a funny joke." Pansy rolled her eyes, looking at the ceiling. "I lost three weeks out of my life for that, you know."
"I'm glad." said Rose before actually turning over and looking at her. "What you did, really hurt me mentally. I hope you know that."
Pansy turned to look at her as well. "Yeah, i know. I'm not going to say i was wrong because i hate doing that, but you get it."
"Yeah, whatever."
Pansy looked back at the ceiling. "How'd you get your name in the Goblet?"
"I didn't."
"What do you mean, you didn't?"
"I mean, i didn't. This entire year, i've been complaining to everybody about how stupid the tournament is." said Rose. "It is a literal suicide mission."
"How would your name have gotten in it, then?" Pansy questioned.
"I don't know."
Rose fell asleep that night thinking, i just had a decent conversation with Pansy Parkinson.
When Rose woke up on Sunday morning, The memory of the previous night rolled over her. She sat up and ripped back the curtains of her own four-poster.
She dressed and went down the staircase into the Slytherin common room. The moment she appeared, the people who had already finished breakfast broke into applause again. The prospect of going down into the Great Hall and facing the rest of the Slytherin's, all treating her like some sort of hero, was not inviting; it was better than being glared at and hated on like usual, but it still didn't feel the greatest.
She had pushed through people in the common room, exited the portrait, and walked the hallways as people stared.
She didn't want to go to the Great Hall and have to encounter all the stares from the rest of the students. Lord knows what Harry's dealing with.
She eventually arrived at the Owlery, with some parchment, a bottle of ink, and a quill.
She had realized she hadn't wrote to Alice in almost two years, it made her feel horrible. Although Alice did say that if Rose was too busy "living her teenage years, like she should be" then it was understandable. It didn't stop Rose from feeling bad.
She sat down against a wall and began writing the letter.
Dear Alice,
I'm so sorry for not keeping you updated on what's going on all of last year. I've talked to your son Blair maybe two times, he's nice.
I don't know if you've heard, you most likely have, but the Triwizard Tounament's happening this year and on Saturday night, me and Harry Potter were chosen as the fourth and fifth champions. I don't know who put our names in, i have suspicious though. The other Hogwarts Champion is Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff.
Hope you and your family are doing okay,
Rose.
Right as she finished, she heard footsteps in front of her.
"I can't use you," Rose heard Harry said to Hedwig, looking around for the school owls. "I've got to use one of these."
Hedwig gave a very loud hoot, and was about to take off.
Rose stood up quickly, "Can i use her?"
Harry and Hermione were startled, having not noticed her.
"Yeah, go ahead." said Harry.
Rose walked over to Hedwig and slowly reached her hand out to pet her. Once Hedwig was comfortable with her, Rose took her piece of parchment and handed it out to Hedwig. Hedwig bit down on it, and soured off.
"Where's Ron?" Rose asked, turning to look back at them.
Harry internally groaned. "He's pissed at me."
Rose furrowed her eyebrows, "Why?"
"Because, he believes i put my name in the Goblet," He explained, all three of them now walking out of the Owlery.
"Oh.. Does that mean he's mad at me too?"
Harry shrugged. "Probably."
The next few days were some of Harry's worst at Hogwarts. Not for Rose, though. She's been treated worse.
Rose could understand Hufflepuffs attitude towards them, even if she didn't appreciate it. Almost all the Slytherins supported Rose, they loved the thought that she disobeyed the rules and put her name in while being underaged. When she tried explaining that it's not what happened, no one wanted to listen. It was mostly Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs having the disrespectful attitude towards her. Which she couldn't care less about, it's nothing new. Its basically the Sirius Black situation all over again.
When she, Harry, and Hermione arrived at Snape's dungeon after lunch, they found the rest of the Slytherins waiting outside, each and every one of them wearing a large badge on the front of his or her robes. For one wild moment Harry thought they were SPEW badges - then they saw they all bore the same message, in luminous red letters:
SUPPORT ROSE BLACK —
THE REAL HOGWARTS CHAMPION!
"Like them?" said Draco loudly as Harry approached. "This isn't all they do, look!"
He pressed the badge into his chest, and the message upon it vanished, to be replaced by another one, which glowed green:
POTTER STINKS!
The Slytherins howled with laughter.
"Want one?" Draco handed it to Rose.
"What the hell, those aren't funny." She grabbed it out of his hands and snapped it in half.
"You know," Draco started, "the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws actually have badges saying Support Cedric Diggory. Yes, i made those too."
Rose tilted her head, "When?"
"Just yesterday—"
"—Did i ask?"
Draco huffed, "Whatever, we as Slytherins support you, Black. You should be thankful."
"I'd rather you all go back to calling me a blood traitor." said Rose.
All the rest of the Slytherins pressed onto their badges like Draco had, and the message POTTER STINKS was shining brightly all around them. Harry felt heat rise in his face and neck.
"Oh very funny," Hermione said sarcastically to Pansy Parkinson and her gang of Slytherin girls, who were laughing harder than anyone else, "really witty."
Ron was standing against the wall with Dean and Seamus. He wasn't laughing, but he wasn't sticking up for Harry either.
"How about you, Granger? Want one?" said Draco, holding out a badge to Hermione. "I've got loads. But don't touch my hand, now. I've just washed it, you see; don't want a Mudblood sliming it up."
Harry reached for his wand before he thought of what he was doing. People all around them scrambled out of the way, backing down the corridor.
"Go on, then, Potter," Malfoy said quietly, drawing out his own wand. "Moody's not here to look after you now - do it, if you've got the guts -"
For a split second they looked into each others eyes, then, at exactly the sane time, both acted.
"Funnynculus!" Harry yelled.
"Desaugeo!" screamed Malfoy.
Jets of light shot from both wands, hit each other in midair, and ricocheted off at angles — Harry's hit Goyle in the face, and Mafloys hit Hermuone. Goyle bellowed and put his hands to his nose, where great ugly boils were springing up - Hermione, whimpering in panic, was clutching her mouth.
Rose and Ron had hurried forward to see what was wrong with her. Harry turned and saw Rose dragging Hermiones hand away from her face. It wasn't a pretty sight. Hermione's front teeth, already larger than average, were now growing at an alarming rate; she was looking more and more like a beaver as her teeth elongated, past her bottom lip, toward her chin, panic-stricken, she felt them and let out a terrified cry.
"What is all this noise about?" said a soft, deadly voice.
Snape had arrived. Snape pointed a long yellow finger at Draco and said, "Explain."
"Potter attacked me, sir-"
"We attacked each other at the same time!" Harry shouted.
"Go to the hospital wing, Goyle," Snape said Calmly.
"This ugly bleached bitch made Hermione's teeth grow ten times their natural size!" Rose pointed at Draco.
Ron took Hermiones hands off of her mouth and made Hermione to show her teeth to Snape. Pansy Parkinson and the other Slytherin girls were doubled up with silent giggles, pointing at Hermione from behind Snape's back.
Rose turned her head and gave the girls a deadly glare. They silenced themselves immediately.
Snape looked coldly at Hermione, then said, "I see no difference."
Hermione let out a whimper; her eyes filled with tears, she turned on her heel and ran all the way up the corridor and out of sight.
It was lucky, perhaps, Rose, Harry, and Ron started cursing at Snape all at the same time; lucky their voices echoed so much in the stone corridor, it was impossible for him to hear exactly what they were calling him. However, He got the gist.
"Fifty points from Gryffindor and a detention each for Potter, Black, and Weasley. Now get inside, or it'll be a weeks worth of detention."
"You gonna take points away from Slytherin?" Rose walked closer, "You never do, i wanna see you do it. Take away fifty. Take away a hundred. Go on,"
"All three of you, get going. Now." said Snape.
Right at that moment, a dry, dying plant from behind Snape had blew up into flames. Snape was not surprised of it anymore. He knew who done it, however, he didn't know how she'd done it.
"Malfoy, put that out." He ordered, and Draco hurriedly pointed his wand at the plant and put the fire out.
"Black, one week's worth of detention. I suggest you leave."
"I suggest you get out of my face before i light your greasy hair on fire—"
Ron and Harry grabbed her arms and pulled her away from Snape. They didn't fancy her having a week of detention, imagine it being three weeks.
Rose ripped her arms from their hands, and hit her shoulder on Snape's as she passed him. Ron and Harry following behind her.
They were now in the middle of Snapes irritating class. Rose was fighting the urge to set his whole body on fire.
A knock on the dungeon door burst in on her thoughts.
It was Colin Creevey; he edged into the room, beaming at Harry, and walked up to Snape's desk at the front of the room.
"Yes?" said Snape curtly.
"Please, sir, i'm supposed to take Harry Potter and Rose Black upstairs." Snape stared down his hooked nose at Colin, whose smile faded from his eager face.
"Potter and Black have another hour of Potions to complete." said Snape coldly. "He will come upstairs when this class is finished."
Colin went pink. "Sir - sir, Mr. Bagman wants him," he said nervously. "All the champions have got to go, i think they want to take photographs..."
"Very well, very well," Snape snapped. "Potter, Black, leave your things here, i want you both back down here later to test your antidote."
"Please, sir - they've got to take their things with them," squeaked Colin. "All the champions..."
"Very well!" said Snape. "Take your bags and get out of my sight!"
Harry and Rose looked at each other from across the room suspiciously before swinging their bags over their shoulders, standing up, and heading for the door.
"It's amazing, isn't it?" said Colin, starting to speak the moment Rose had close the dungeon door behind them. "Isn't it, though? You both being champions?"
"Yeah, wonderful." said Rose heavily as they set off toward the steps into the entrance hall.
Harry breathed out and shook his head, "What do they want photos for, Colin?"
"The Daily Prophet, i think!"
"Great," said Harry dully.
"Exactly what we need," said Rose. "More publicity."
"Good luck!" said Colin, when they had reached the right room. Harry knocked on the door and they entered.
They were in a fairly small classroom; most of the desks had been pushed away to the back of the room, leaving a large space in the middle; three of them, however, had been placed end to end in front of the blackboard and covered with a long length of velvet. Five chairs had been set behind the velvet covered desks, and Ludo bagman was sitting in one of them, talking to a witch Harry and Rose had never seen before, who was wearing magenta robes.
Viktor Krum was standing moodily in a corner as usual and not talking to anybody. Cedric and Fleur or in a conversation. Fleur looked a good deal happier than Rose had seen her so far; she kept throwing back her head so that her long silvery hair caught the light. A punching man, holding a large black camera that was smoking slightly, was watching Fleur out of the corner of his eye.
Bagman suddenly spotted Harry and Rose, got up quickly, and bounded forward.
"Ah, here they are. Champion number four and five! In you come, in you come... nothing to worry about, it's just the wand weighing ceremony, the rest of the judges will be here in a moment-"
"Wand weighing?" Harry repeated nervously.
"We have to check that your wands are fully functional, no problems, you know, as they're your most important tools in the tasks ahead," said Bagman. "The experts upstairs now with Dumbledore. And then there's going to be a little photo shoot. This is Rita Skeeter," he added, gesturing toward the witch un magenta robes. "She's doing a small piece on the tournament for the daily prophet...."
"Maybe not that small, Ludo," said Rita Skeeter, her eyes on Rose and Harry. "I wonder if i could have a little word with Rose and Harry before we start? The youngest champions, you know... to add a bit of color?"
"Certainly!" cried Bagman. "That is - if Harry and Rose has no objection?"
"N—" said Rose.
"Lovely," interrupted Rita Skeeter, and in a second, her scarlet-taloned fingers had Harry and Rose's upper arm in a surprisingly strong grip, and was steering them out of the room again and opening a nearby door.
"We don't want to he in there with all that noise," she said. "Let's see... ah yes, this is nice and cozy."
It was a broom cupboard. They stared at her.
"Come along, dears - that's right - lovely," said Rita Skeeter again, perching herself precariously upon an upturned bucket, pushing Harry and Rose down onto two cardboard boxes, and closing the door. "Let's see now..."
She unsnapped her crocodile skin handbag and pulled out a handful of candles, which she lit with a wave of her wand and magicked into midair, so that they could see what they were doing.
"You won't mind, if i use a Quick-Quotes Quill? It leaves me free to talk to you normally..."
"A what?" said Harry.
She reached again into her crocodile bag and drew out a long acid-green quill and a roll of parchment, which she stretched out between them on a crate of Mrs. Skowers All Purpose Magical Mess Remover. She put the tip of the green quill into her mouth, sucked it for a moment with apparent relish, then placed it upright on the parchment, where it stood balanced on its point, quivering slightly.
"Testing... my name is Rita Skeeter, Daily Prophet reporter."
The moment she had spoken, the green quill had started to scribble, skidding across the parchment:
Attractive blonde Rita Skeeter, forty-three, who's savage quill has punctured many inflated reputations -
"Lovely," said Rita Skeeter, yet again, and she ripped the top piece if parchment off, crumpled it up, and stuffed it into her handbag. Now she leaned towards Harry and Rose and said, "So, what made you both decide to enter the Triwizard Tournament?"
"I didn't," said Harry, Rose didn't answer. "I don't know how my name got into the Goblet. I didn't put it in there."
Rita raised one heavily penciled eyebrow.
"What about you, Rose?"
She shrugged, "I didn't either."
Rita Skeeter sighed, smiling, "Come now, children, there's no need to be scared of getting into trouble. We all know you shouldn't really have entered at all. But don't worry about that. Our readers love a rebel."
Rose had rested her elbows on her knees, and her face in her hands.
"But— we didn't enter," Harry repeated. "I don't know who-"
"How do you both feel about the tasks ahead?" said Rita. "Excited? Nervous?"
"Oh yeah," Rose started sarcastically, "i am just so excited for a little game that could end with me dead."
"You're not wrong," said Rita Skeeter briskly. "Campions have died in the past, haven't they? Harry, have you thought about that at all?"
"Well.. they say it's gonna be a lot safer this year," said Harry.
Rose snorted, but it was muffled from her hands.
"Of course, you've looked death in the face before, haven't you, Harry?" said Rita, watching him closely.
"Er—" said Harry.
"Do you think that the trauma in your past might have made you keen to prove yourself? And you, Rose, maybe since Sirius Black isn't the main focus of the school anymore, you were just.. aching for a little more attention? To make him proud? To live up to your name?"
"We didn't enter." They both said, starting to feel irritated.
"Harry, can you remember your parents at all?" said Rita Skeeter, talking over them.
"No," he said.
"What about you, Rose? Do you remember the last time you saw your father, the mass murderer, before he went to Azkaban?"
"No." said Rose. Even though she does remember, she doesn't want to add on to the questions.
"How do you think they'd feel if they knew you both were competing in the Triwizard Tournament? Proud? Worried? Angry?"
Rose was feeling very annoyed now. How dare she bring up their parents, Harry's parents are dead for Christs sake.
Rose avoided her gaze and looked down at the words the quill had just written:
Tears fill those startlingly green and blue eyes as our conversation turns to the parents he can barely remember.
"We have not got tears in our eyes!" said Harry and Rose in unison.
Before Rita could say a word, the door of the cupboard was pulled open. Albus Dumbledore stood there, looking down at the three of them, squashed into the cupboard.
"Dumbledore!" cried Rita Skeeter, with every appearance of delight.
"How are you?" She stood up and handed out a hand to him. "I hope you saw my piece over the summer about the international Confederation of Wizards' Conference?"
"Enchantingly nasty," said Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling. "I particularly enjoyed your description of me as an obsolete dingbat."
"I was just making the point that some of your ideas are a little old fashioned, and that many wizards in the street-"
"I would be delighted to hear the reasoning behind the rudeness, Rita," said Dumbledore. "But i'm afraid we will have to discuss the matter later. The Weighing of the Wands is about to start, and it cannot take place if one of our champions is hidden in a broom cupboard."
Very glad to get away from Rita Skeeter, they hurried back into the room. The other champions were now sitting in chairs near the door, and they sat down quickly next to Cedric, looking up at the velvet covered table, where four of the five judges were now sitting - Professor Karkaroff, Madame Maxime, Mr. Crouch, and Ludo bagman.
"May i introduce, Me. Ollivander?" said Dumbledore, taking his place at the judges table and talking to the champions. "He will be checking your wands to ensure that they are in good condition before the tournament."
"Mademoiselle Delacour, could we have you first, please?" said Me Ollivander.
Fleur swept over to Mr. Ollivander and handed him her wand.
"Hmm.." he said.
Mr ollivander ran his fingers along the wand, apparently checking for scratches or bumps; then he muttered, "Orchideous!" and a bunch of flowers burst from the wand tip.
"Very well, it's in fine working order," He said. "Diggory, you next."
Soon enough, he had gone through Cedrics, Krum's, and Harry's.
Ollivander spent much longer examining Rose's wand than anyone elses. Eventually, he made a fountain of wine shoot out if it, and handed it back to Rose, announcing that it was still in perfect condition.
"Good thing it wasn't white wine.." Rose muttered to Harry once she sat back down by him.
"Rose!" He whisper-shouted.
"Thank you all," said Dumbledore, standing up at the judges table. "You may go down to dinner, as they are about to end-"
Rose and Harry got up to leave, but the man with the camera jumped up.
"Photos, Dumbledore, photos!" cried Bagman excitingly. "All the judges and champions."
The photographs took a long time. Madame Maxime cast everyone else into shadow wherever she stood, and the photographer couldn't stand far enough back to get her into the frame.
Atlas, they were all free to go.
As Rose stepped into her dormitory, she was greeted, again, to Pansy folding some of her clothing and putting it into her drawers. She stopped when she noticed Rose walk in. "You have an owl, it's been waiting on your windowsill for a little while."
She went back to her clothes.
"Oh - right," said Rose.
She strode over to the barn owl, took the letter off it's leg, and unrolled it.
Rose -
It's so nice to finally hear from you again! I really hope you're doing well. I have heard about the Goblet of Fire incident, and i think its a load of bologna! If you say you didn't put your name in, i believe you. Don't worry, Blair has told me he'll help you throughout the Tournament, if you'd like. He's smarter than he looks. I wonder who would've put your name in that goblet.. stay safe.
Alice.
A/n: Pansy and Rose will not become friends, so please do not think that. They will not be technically "rivals" but will certainly not be friends. Happy reading!
Lily <3