After that big conversation and finding out that I would be in the Tri Wizard Tournament, we were all sent back to our rooms. I walked with Harry until we got to the Gryffindor entrance.
"Harry." I said, almost in a whisper.
"Yeah?"
"I'm scared. I mean first we see my father's mark and now this? It just doesn't feel right."
"We should tell Sirius."
"Yeah, I'll write him... I haven't in a while." He nodded and was about to say the Gryffindor password, but before he could I whispered again, "Harry."
"Yeah?" He said, not being able to stop himself from smiling.
"Thanks."
"For what?"
"For not automatically suspecting it was me."
He sighed and took my hand. I tried to avoid eye contact, but I couldn't. It was like his eyes were calling out to mine. "You're not evil, Lizzy. No matter what anyone says. Now, we should get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow okay?"
"Okay." (A/N: I swear if anyone puts a TFIOS comment I will ... eat your food? See this is why I'm not a gangster...)
He smiled and gave me a hug. "Goodnight Liz."
"Goodnight Harry."
Once I entered my room, Raven and Sarah were waiting for me on my bed along with Floyd, who was practically on top of them. It was kind of humorous how they were all trying to fit on one small bed.
"I didn't think you had it in you." Raven said, smiling. She then ran up to me and hugged me tightly. "I'm so proud of you." She said into my hair.
I couldn't help but laugh a little. I knew Raven was being silly. I understood how she was trying to lighten the situation and I couldn't help but love her for trying, but I knew I had to focus.
Something fishy was going on and I had to find out what.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I woke up to someone shaking me awake. I refused to open my eyes or else the terrorists would win. Instead, I kicked to where I thought the person was and all I got in reply was a familiar 'Ouch!' I opened my eyes and saw Professor McGonagall.
Immediately, I stood up and apologized. "I'm so so sorry. I thought you were one of my roommates."
I looked around and found Raven and Sarah silently laughing at me from our bathroom door. "That's alright. I just came to inform you that there's a interview for all the champions today."
The event of the previous night then came back to me. I was in the Tri Wizard Tournament and so was Harry. "So, theres no getting out of that huh?"
"No. I'm afraid not, Elizabeth."
"Just great." I mumbled.
"Sorry, say again?"
"Never mind."
"Okay. Well, the meeting starts in about an hour so get ready and I will meet you in the common room to take you there." I nodded and she left.
After she closed the door, I ran in the shower, ignoring Raven and Sarah's comments. I spent about a good 15 minutes in there then I came out and dried my hair, brushed my teeth; the normal routine.
I put on my robes and put my hair in a ponytail. I put everything I thought I would need in my enchanted purse and went out the door.
I walked into the room to see everyone already there. Harry looked back at me and smiled. Cedric looked a little uncomfortable, but he forced a smile. I wondered if he thought I had put my name in the goblet.
The photographer had two chairs for me and the other girl and had us take quite a few pictures. After the final photo was taken, there was a puff of smoke and a woman appeared. She was well groomed and dressed... colorfully.
She smiled at us. "What a charismatic quartet. Hello!"
She came over to us and shook each of our hands. "I'm Rita Skeeter, I write for the daily prophet." She said. When she shook my hand, I could feel how much lotion she had used before getting here. I casually wiped my hand on the inside of my robe.
"But of course you know that don't you. It's you we don't know, you're the news." She went to the girl an started to feel her cheeks. "What quirks lurk beneath those rosy cheeks?"
"What mysteries do the muscles mask?" She started to walk behind us. "Does courage lie beneath those curls? In short, what makes a champion tick. Me, myself and I want to know. Not to mention my rabid readers. So, who's feeling up to sharing? Mmm? Shall we start with the youngest. Lovely."
I watched as she took Harry's hand and brought him into the closet. "Why is she taking him in there?" I asked more to myself than to anyone else.
"I don't know, but she gives me the chills." The other girl said.
"She is weird." I laughed.
"Agreed," she giggled.
"What's your name?" I asked her.
"Fleur Delacour."
"Nice to meet you."
"Pleasure is all mine," she smiled.
I looked up at Cedric and laughed. "Your hair, she messed it up."He looked confused and tried to fix it but utterly failed.
"Here," I stood up and went do him. "May I?"
He nodded and I fixed his messy hair. "There, all better."
"Liz, can I talk to you?"
"Yeah."
We went to the other side of the room and he sighed. "Why would you do this?"
"Do what?" I asked, confused.
"Why would you put your name in the goblet? Here I though that you hated the tournament, but I guess that was all a lie." I could tell he was more hurt than angry.
"I didn't. I swear."
"Then can you explain how your name got into the goblet?"
"No, I cant. I wish I could then I could tell you, but I'm as clueless as you are when it comes to this. What I can tell you is that I'm scared. I'm so fricking scared. First there's death eaters at the Quidditch game and now Harry and I are in the tournament. I don't know what to think. The only reason I can think of is my father and that scares me. He ..." I could feel my voice breaking. "He scares me so much."
I then realized that I had never admitted this out loud, or to myself for that matter. I wanted to believe I was strong and that Voldemort didn't get to me, but I realized I was only lying to myself. Cedric hugged me hard and I felt good. I felt safe, but I knew it wouldn't last. We both heard the closet door open.
Harry came out first and the reporter, Ms. Skeeter. She looked around until he eyes landed on me. "Elizabeth Riddle, you're next."
Cedric let go of me and I walked up to her. She led me into the broom-cupboard. I sat down on one of the steps and she sat across from me. I didn't even want to ask why we were in there.
"Do you mind if I use the quill?"
"Oh, umm... I guess not."
"So Elizabeth, may I call you Liz?"
"Sure, go ahead."
"So you're what? 13?"
"14"
"So you're about to compete against three students who are vastly more emotionally mature than yourself and have mastered spells that you wouldn't attempt in your dizziest daydreams."
"Yeah... Um I guess."
"Concerned?"
"Well, I didn't want to be in this competition in the first place. So, yeah. I guess you could say I'm concerned."
"You didn't want to enter? Are you saying that you didn't put your name in the goblet?"
"No I didn't."
"So do you think Harry put in your name for you? Do you think he's out for revenge because of what your father did to his parents?"
"No of course not! Harry didn't have anything to do with this."
"If he didn't put your names in... did you?"
"I already told you I didn't!"
"But how do I know you're not lying? How do I know that you didn't put both of your names in to finish you father's job?"
"My father is nothing to me so can we stop bringing him up?!"
"You didn't answer my question."
"No, I didn't and I won't because I don't know! I have no idea how our names got in the goblet. I only know that Harry didn't do it and I didn't do it! So stop asking me because I have no idea!"
"Are you always grumpy or just in the mornings?"
I stood up and left the closet. I wasn't going to take this bullshit. Harry looked and me and sighed like he knew what she had asked me. "Wanna take a walk?"
"You read my mind."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, I was walking in the hallway when suddenly Harry grabbed my hand and ran. We ran until we arrived on the rooftop.
"Harry. What are we-" Before I could finsih my sentence an owl flew in with a letter. Immediately, Harry took it and began to read it aloud.
"Harry. I couldn't risk sending Edward. It was since the world cup and the ministry's been intercepting more and more owls and she's too easily recognised. We need to talk Harry. Face to face. Meet me in the Griffindore common room at one o clock this Saturday night and make sure you bring Elizabeth. P.S...."
I felt the owl bite my finger and I instantly pulled it away. "The bird bites."
That Saturday night I snuck out of my room at 12:39 and met Harry at the Gryffindor common room. For a while Harry and I walked around, waiting for Sirius to show up.
"Sirius?" Harry asked, getting a little impatient.
I sat down on the couch and picked up a newspaper. It had Cedric, Harry, Fleur, Viktor, and I on the front cover and the headline read "THE CHAMPIONS ARE SELECTED".
I started reading my column and it read:
'Elizabeth Riddle, age 13, commonly known as the daughter of He Who Should Not Be Named recently rebelliously entered in the tri-wizard tournament. It is unknown if she entered to--'
Not being able to read any further, I crumpled up the newspaper and put it in the fire. The fire suddenly flared up and a face immerged in it.
"Sirius?! How..." I started.
Hearing the mention of Sirius, Harry came up to me and looked at the fireplace in shock.
"I don't have much time, so let me get straight to it. Did you or did you not put your names into the goblet of fire?"
"No!" We said at the same time.
"Shh... I had to ask. Now, tell me about this dream of yours, Harry. You mentioned Wormtail and Voldemort, but who was the third man in the room?"
"Wait a dream? You didn't tell me anything about a dream." I said to Harry.
"I dunno." Harry said to Sirius, acting as if he didn't even hear my question.
"You didn't hear a name?"
"Anyone gonna tell me about this dream?" I asked.
"No. Umm.. Voldemort was giving him a job to do. Something important."
I gave up on the idea that they would tell me now, so I decided I would just listen for now and then asked Harry about it later.
"What was that?"
"He wanted... us, Elizabeth and me." I felt my heart stop for a second. It was no surprise that he would want me. He was always trying to get to me ever since Sirius helped me escape, but it still scared me. "I dunno why, but he was gonna use this man to get to us. I mean it was only a dream right?"
Sirius seemed hesitant, but he answered. "Yes. It's just a dream. Look Harry, Elizabeth, the deatheaters at the world cup, your names rising from that goblet these are not just coincidences. Hogwarts isn't safe any more."
"What are you saying?" I asked.
"I'm saying the devils are inside the walls. Igor Karkaroff, he was a deatheater. And no one, no one ever stops being a deatheater. Then there's Barty Crouch, heart of stone, sent his own son to Azkaban."
"Do you think one of them put our names in the goblet?" Harry asked.
"I haven't a clue who put your names in that goblet, but whoever did it is no friend to you. People die in this tournament."
"We're not ready for this Sirius." I said.
"Neither of you have a choice."
"Someone's coming!" Harry whispered. I immediately hid behind the couch and Harry stood up.
"Keep your friends close Harry."
I heard the footsteps reaching the bottom of the stairs.
"Who you talking to?" I heard Ron ask.
Immediately, I stood up and smiled. "He was talking to me."
"I heard a different voice." Ron said.
"Maybe you're imagining things... wouldn't be the first time." Harry said a little coldly.
"You two are probably just practicing for your next interview I expect." He said, leaving the room.
After Ron left, Harry went back to the fireplace only to find Sirius gone. I wanted to ask what was going on between him and Ron, but I decided it was best that I didn't. I said my goodbyes and left back to my dorm.