Heart thumping, I make my way through the maze, the silence practically pressing against my eardrums.
It is strange, because I do not seem to come across any of the obstacles of which I was forewarned about. I may as well be spending the evening in the grounds of Hampton Court, strolling leisurely through the estate's grand maze.
But then I hear a scream, which I'm pretty sure is Fleur's. The sound is so haunting that I find myself quickening my already fast pace, the lack of drama in my path only serving to make me feel more apprehensive.
I feel so sick with fear that I wish Fred or Dudley were with me. Get a grip girl! I scold myself. You are the champion here, not them.
So, I stride on, zapping Krum with my wand when the fucker tries to attack me.
"I should have Crucio'd you!" I spit down at his unconscious body as I step over him.
I go on, constantly alert for signs of danger. I go over and over all the training sessions with Fred in my head. But then it leads me to recall a time when things got rather hot and heavy after a particularly intense duelling session.
Fred had landed face down on top of me, panting hard. And instead of getting off me, we began majorly making out. His hands, which had first been in my hair, had crept their way down my body, and I was pleasantly shocked to find them kneading the side of my breasts. It was only when I moaned into his mouth had he realised what he was doing and immediately halted proceedings, cursing himself for getting out of control.
God I am so frustrated with longing for him, my sixteenth birthday cannot come quick enough. But then, I'll be at the Dursleys. I prayed Fred had some idea up his sleeve to get me out of there. Because there is no way I'm going to survive the summer without bonking him senseless.
I have barely finished this thought when I find myself colliding into Cedric Diggory at a fork in the path.
"Oh!" I pant, laughing in relief that he isn't a Dementor or anything. "Soz, I was in a world of my own."
"Harri," he pants, beckoning to the far end of the path which lays before us. "Look."
And sure enough, there is the trophy! Yay!
Cedric looks at me. And I look at Cedric.
Then we both run as fucking hard as we can, both of us equally determined to get to that cup first.
But, when it seems as though Cedric is going to win, the hedges start to attack him! He cries out in pain as he heavily hits the ground from being tripped up by snaking branches curling around his arms and legs.
"Harri! Help!" He cries as the hedge proceeds to eat him.
I hesitate.
I could go on and win that cup. But if Cedric dies from being eaten by a bush, then it might marr my victory a bit.
So I save him.
Well, that didn't age well.
*****
"Where are we?" Cedric breathes fearfully as we look around at our new surroundings after touching the cup - together.
"I- I'm not sure," I say, squinting down at the graveyard before us, taking my glasses off to give them a wipe on my robes. "Maybe it's part of the task?"
But even as I say that I do not believe it. Especially when, once I replace my glasses on my nose, I see a squat figure come stumbling towards us with what looks like a baby clutched in their arms.
My heart stops the second I recognise him.
"THE FUCK?!" I yell. "IT'S RON'S RAT!"
Cedric turns to me, confusion on his face. He goes to open his mouth, but before he can say anything, words cut him off.
"Kill the spare."
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"
A scream sticks in my throat as Cedric crumples to the ground right in front of my eyes.
I feel as though someone has walloped the entire air out of my lungs. I am too shocked to scream, too shocked to even contemplate that the boy before me - who was just a second ago alive - is now dead.
And then my scar burns, a deeply agonizing pain. I don't even know how I survived what happened next, or even how I will ever remember it.
But I do.
I remember evil rising from a cauldron. I remember Lord Voldemort's hot putrid breath against my cheek as he ridiculed me over my parents' murders. I remember the way Draco's father laughed unflinchingly whilst I was being Crucio'd over and over again upon Tom Riddle Snr's grave.
But I don't remember much else. I am just half myself when I somehow escape from that graveyard. Despite vaguely recalling my parents' ghosts being there, I somehow find myself back in Hogwarts, clutching Cedric's body tightly to me as I sob heavily, wishing with everything in me to undo the past couple of hours.
All I hear in my head, over and over again - playing like a stuck record is: Kill the spare. Kill the spare.
And then the screams start. At first I think the noise must be coming from me because all I want to do is scream and cry. But then I realise the screams are coming from outside, surrounding and closing in on me.
I keep my eyes firmly tight shut as I hold Cedric's body to me, determined not to let him go, determined not to let anyone else take him.
"Harri?"
A hand touches my back and I instantly flinch away.
"Harri, it's okay, you're safe."
But it's not okay. Cedric is dead and Voldemort is back. How can anything ever be okay again?
"MY BOY! MY BOY!"
Oh god, I think I'm going to vomit.
"Harri, please, Amos is coming over, you need to let him go."
And I shakily let go of Cedric, and let Fred pull me up into his arms.
"Oh, Harri," Fred murmurs, fervently clutching me to him as I sob against his chest, holding him just as dearly as I held onto Cedric.
"He's back," I say. "Voldemort's back."
Fred's eyes meet mine then, reflecting the fear I feel.
"He- he can't be-" Fred murmurs as he shakes his head. "He's dead."
"Harriet needs to come with me," an authoritative voice speaks. "It's important."
I turn around in Fred's arms to see Moody staggering towards us. I shrink back into Fred as Moody reaches out and grabs my arm.
"Come on then lassie," he growls. "We need to hurry."
"What for?" Fred asks, holding onto me tightly to prevent Moody from taking me.
"She's in shock," Moody growls, "and I've got the perfect thing for that in my office."
"I'm coming too, then." Fred demands.
Moody glares at him with his rolling eye. "That won't be necessary, boy."
"I don't care," Fred says, squaring up to him. "I'm coming or she stays here with me."
And then, to my horror, Moody flicks his wand at Fred whose eyes instantly glaze over as he quickly lets go of his hold on me.
"Come on," Moody says angrily, dragging me away.
I try to fight, but I have nothing left in me. I am too exhausted and weak from the graveyard. In the end I simply concede and let Moody take me away from Fred and back up to the castle where at least it's quiet and away from all those horrifying screams.
And just when I think my day couldn't get any worse, turns out Moody is not Moody at all, but Voldemort's most faithful servant.
Ah, crap.
******