Analeigh left the Transfiguration Courtyard to head to her next class. She met up with Harry on the way, which was timely considering they had the upcoming class together. Unfortunately, a few minutes into their walk, Ron and Hermione came up from behind them, and they too would be having Potions with them.
"Walk faster, Leigh," Harry urged as they went down into the dungeons.
Analeigh, who didn't notice their other two friends a few feet away just yet, looked at him in confusion. "Why?"
"Don't look back, but there's —" But of course, before Harry could finish his sentence, Analeigh looked over her shoulder indeed to see who was behind them. Harry groaned and tugged her forwards, forcing her to face him again. "I told you not to look back!"
She merely gave a sheepish grin. "Sorry. But hey, at least I know why you said that, right?"
Harry gave her an unamused look as they trudged down another set of stairs. "Not funny."
When the two of them arrived in the dungeons, they were met with an odd sight. Right in the hall where the Potions classroom was located was Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, and the rest of the Slytherins that they shared the class with — this wasn't an unusual thing at all. What struck them was the bright badges they all had pinned on their robes. At first glance, Analeigh and Harry even thought that they were the ones Hermione creates for S.P.E.W., but of course, they knew they wouldn't ever wear those nor would Hermione even think about approaching them about the topic of elfish welfare. So as Analeigh, Harry, and even Hermione and Ron who were close behind neared the other fourth year students, they realized that the badges they wore bore the same message: Support CEDRIC DIGGORY— Hogwarts Champion!
"Like them, Potter?" Malfoy said loudly as the four walked closer. "And this isn't all they do— look!" He pressed on his badge and the message and design contorted and after a moment, the words changed to POTTER STINKS.
"Oh, very funny," Hermione suddenly stepped in, going to stand in between Analeigh and Harry. "Really witty. And for your information, Analeigh is a Hogwarts champion, too."
Analeigh sent a grateful smile her way but it soon dropped and her expression changed into one of annoyance when Malfoy laughed, saying, "I don't think so."
Analeigh raised her eyebrows at the platinum blonde-haired boy as if challenging him. "Oh, I'm sorry, are you that daft that you didn't understand anything that happened last night?"
Malfoy merely narrowed his eyes. "A blood traitor like yourself has no right to talk to me like that. Anyway, want a badge as well? I've got loads, and I'm being generous about it — oh, but don't touch my hand, now. I've just washed it, you see. Don't want a mudblood and blood-traitor sliming it up."
Harry, who had been quiet the whole time until now, just couldn't take it anymore. This was the last straw. He could handle Draco Malfoy insulting and irritating him, but when he discriminated his friends like that, he had to do something. So, he whipped his wand out from his pocket and stepped in front of the girls, pointing it straight at Malfoy.
While Analeigh's eyes widened slightly at his boldness, Hermione warningly exclaimed, "Harry!"
"Go on, then, Potter," Malfoy quietly said, drawing out his own wand. "Do it, if you've got the guts."
For a second, Analeigh thought that Harry would be smart instead of stupidly brave like he always is and back down even though she badly wanted him to hex Malfoy into oblivion (this just wasn't the right time, considering they were in the middle of the school corridor, right before class, and Snape could come any minute). They just glared intensely at each other, and all of a sudden, they acted at precisely the same time.
"Furnuculus!" Harry yelled.
"Densaugeo!" shouted Malfoy.
Jets of bright light flew out from each of their wands. A collective gasp rang through the crowd, both from the Slytherins and Gryffindors. There was a brighter flash as the two spells hit each other, then they rebounded into different directions. Harry's spell hit Goyle, who stood next to Malfoy, and Malfoy's spell hit Hermione, who was standing next to Harry, too. Goyle suddenly had huge, painful-looking, and disturbing boils growing all over his face and Hermione was whimpering, covering her mouth.
"Hermione!" Ron was the first to say, running over to her and abandoning his anger towards Analeigh and Harry for just a moment. All three of them crowded around the bushy-haired girl, unsure of what was happening to her until they noticed that her teeth were peeking out from behind her hands and growing past her chin at an alarmingly fast rate.
Analeigh couldn't help but let her jaw drop in surprise. "Merlin's beard..."
"And what is all this noise about?"
Quite unsurprisingly, there stood Snape, his face as cold as ever to match his deadly voice. He pointed at Malfoy only, ignoring the other Gryffindors as he said, "Explain."
"Potter attacked me, sir —"
"We attacked each other at the same time!" Harry interrupted angrily but no one payed attention to him.
"And he hit Goyle," Malfoy kept on lying. "Look." Snape stepped forward and examined the boil-covered boy.
"Hospital wing, Goyle," he said calmly. The boy nodded and obediently followed the professor's orders, walking away from the scene and to the hospital wing to get rid of those nasty boils.
"Malfoy got Hermione!" Ron added indignantly. "Look!"
Hermione felt ashamed with her appearance, but Analeigh gently forced the girl's hands away from her face (although her teeth had grown past her collar by now) to show Snape the damage that had been done unto her.
But even after Snape saw Hermione's teeth, he said, "I see no difference."
Once again, Analeigh's jaw dropped, but this time, she was shocked at how insensitive and cold this man was being. Hermione felt even worse, whimpering as her eyes filled with tears, and before anyone could comfort or even help her, she ran away without another word.
"Professor," Analeigh tried to say as politely as possible. "She was clearly hexed —"
"Silence," Snape snapped at her. "Everyone in my classroom now."
Analeigh clenched her fists, wanting so bad to lash out on her Potions teacher and call him foul names. But she knew better than that; defying him wouldn't change his ways, and it would only cause more trouble on her. And so, she kept her mouth shut. The boys, on the other hand, despite not directly talking with each other, had the same thought as one another and completely different actions as Analeigh's. Instead of following Snape, they started shouting at him at the same time, their loud voices overlapping and making it hard to comprehend what they were trying to say.
Snape, however, got the gist. When the boys eventually quieted down, he merely stared at them. "Let's see," he then began in a silky voice. "Fifty points from Gryffindor and a detention each for Potter and Weasley."
Analeigh didn't want them to take the full blame. After all, she was the one who first tried reasoning with him. "But, sir —"
"I said be quiet, Heart," Snape raised his voice. "That's another ten points from Gryffindor." Low groans came from the other Gryffindors in the same class, who came into the scene right before Goyle and Hermione were jinxed. "Now get inside and not another word from you as well or you'll be joining them in a week's worth of detention."
And with that, the fourth year Gryffindors filed into the Potions classroom after the Slytherins, majority of them sulking about losing house points and only three of them bummed out by the fact that one of their best friends was just humiliated and justice was not served.
★ ★ ★
Analeigh and Harry weren't in a good mood as they brewed their antidote. It felt like an eternity making it, and it wasn't even the second period of Double Potions. Luckily, when Analeigh was in the middle of stirring the potion counterclockwise, the door at the back of the classroom opened. This caused all the students in the room to turn around, wondering who was entering at this hour.
It was Colin Creevey, the third year Gryffindor whom Analeigh learned (from Hermione and Ron last year) idolized Harry since he first came into Hogwarts. He walked into the room, beaming brightly at Harry when he passed his and Analeigh's table. He then approached Snape's desk, still looking overjoyed after his encounter with Harry as he waited for Snape to notice him.
Finally, the man looked up and curtly said, "Yes?"
"Please, sir," Colin began eagerly. "I'm supposed to take Harry Potter and Analeigh Heart upstairs." At this, Harry and Analeigh shared almost excited looks. Though Analeigh strived to get high marks in every class, she wouldn't pass the chance to get out of another hour with the moodiest professor there was at Hogwarts.
"Potter and Heart have another hour of Potions to complete," Snape told him professionally. "They will come upstairs when this class is finished.
Colin turned a shade of pink, seemingly unsure of what to say now. "Sir — sir, Mr. Bagman wants them. All the champions have got to go, I think they want to take photographs..."
Huh, thought Analeigh. Cedric was right, then.
"Very well, very well," Snape cut him off in irritation before turning to look at Analeigh and Harry. "Potter, Heart, leave your things here. I want you back down here late to test your antidote."
"Please, sir," Colin then squeaked nervously. "They've got to take their things with them. All the champions —"
"Very well!" Snape was fuming now and Colin looked as if he wanted to run away. Snape then pointed at Harry and Analeigh and said, "Both of you, take your bags and get out of my sight!"
Usually, Analeigh would've calmly collected her things if a teacher had dismissed her. But since at that very moment, it was an angry Snape she was facing, she messily grabbed her belongings, stuffed them into her bag, then together with Harry, they stumbled out of the Potions classroom with Colin Creevey not too far behind.
"It's amazing, isn't it, Harry?" said Colin the moment the door closed behind us. "Isn't it, though? You being the seventh champion?"
"Yeah, really amazing," Harry replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Colin, who had taken the lead, failed to notice that, though.
"What do they want photos for, Colin?" Analeigh said as Colin brought them down another set of stairs.
"The Daily Prophet, I think!" he answered. Once again, Cedric was right.
"Great," Harry said dully. "Exactly what I need. More publicity."
The three of them were left in a brief silence as they continued on their way. After a little while, Colin stopped in front of a door that Analeigh knew lead to a small classroom.
"Good luck to both of you!" was the last thing Colin told them.
Harry politely knocked on the door they were brought to before swinging it open. It indeed revealed a fairly small classroom. The tables and chairs inside weren't arranged the usual way and instead were pushed to the sides and back and gave lots of space in the center of the room. There was only one table left with a few chairs, and it was located at the front where Ludo Bagman was, talking to a woman with short, curly blonde hair and was wearing emerald and magenta colored robes. Next to her stood a man with a big black camera, then next was Mr. Ollivander. Analeigh understood why there was a photographer here, of course, but the fact that a wand-maker was here puzzled her.
Analeigh turned away from the adults and set her eyes on the other champions. Viktor Krum stood at the corner of the room while his partner, Andrei Grigor, leaned on the wall a few feet away from him; they weren't conversing, just standing next to each other. Then there was Cedric, who sat in one of the chairs on the side with both Fleur Delacour and Brigitte Champney across him, happily chatting away.
"Ah!" Ludo Bagman finally spotted Analeigh and Harry and made his way towards them. "The other two Hogwarts champions! Everyone, gather around. Come in, nothing to worry about, it's just a photoshoot and before that, the wand weighing ceremony." So, that's why Ollivander was here. "The rest of the judges will be here in a moment —"
"Wand weighing?" Harry questioned nervously as the other champions neared him and Analeigh.
"We have to check that your wants are fully functional," Bagman explained. "And as I said, there will be a photoshoot after." He eyed the witch in the green and magenta robes and stood up as if this was her cue.
"What a charismatic group," she gushed, walking to the middle of the room where all champions now assembled. Meanwhile, Bagman walked away and began speaking to Ollivander and the photographer. "Hello, I'm Rita Skeeter. I write for the Daily Prophet, but of course, you know that, don't you? It's you we don't know. You're the juicy ones."
Rita Skeeter paused, looking at each of the champions' faces as if she was analyzing each of them. Then all of a sudden, she began to circle the group like a hawk. "What quirks lurk beneath those rosy cheeks?" she started, stroking Fleur's cheek and then patting it; Fleur's face gave off her confusion and annoyance at that gesture. "What mysteries do the muscles mask?" This time, Rita grabbed ahold of Cedric's soft hair — well, Analeigh could only assume that it was soft — and ruffled it, shaking him up in the process.
"In short," Rita went on. "What makes a champion tick? Me, myself, and I want to know. Not to mention my rabid readers." She stopped and her gaze narrowed in on Harry. "I wonder if I could have a little word with Harry before we start?"
"Certainly!" Bagman cried from the front of the room. "That is, if Harry has no objection?"
"Er —" said Harry.
"Lovely," Rita cut in. Without any chance to speak, she pulled Harry outside of the room, leaving Analeigh speechless.
"She's one strange woman," she muttered.
"Indeed, she is," Cedric said, having heard her.
Analeigh faced him. "I see you were right about having a photoshoot 'very soon,'" she noted.
Cedric grinned proudly. "I usually am right about things." At this, Analeigh rolled her eyes playfully. "By the way, is it true that a Slytherin and your friend Granger got jinxed earlier?"
Analeigh's eyebrows short up in surprise. "How did you hear about it?"
"Well, my friend, Alden Brown, is cousins with Lavender Brown. She bumped into us earlier and claims she witnessed the whole thing."
"Oh."
"It's true, then?"
"Well, yes. Yes it is," Analeigh answered with a sigh. "You sure do like to gossip, don't you?"
Cedric feigned being shocked, putting a hand on his chest where his heart should be. "What an accusation, Analeigh. I told you, I just like —"
"Finding out things," they finished together, Analeigh saying the line with a scoff whereas Cedric chuckled.
A couple of minutes later, the door had reopened. Analeigh expected Harry to be back with Rita Skeeter, but instead, in came Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, Madame Maxime, Igor Karkaroff, and Barty Crouch — the judges of the Triwizard Tournament, together with Ludo Bagman, of course. They approached Bagman and became immersed in a conversation the other champions could only catch bits and pieces of; all they really knew was that it was about the tournament. Soon enough, Harry walked back in with an unamused face while Rita looked satisfied with what Analeigh assumed was an interview.
As Harry approached Analeigh, he grumbled, "That Rita Skeeter is insane."
"I know," she merely sighed. "So, what did she do?"
"You'll see when you get the Daily Prophet tomorrow," he said grimly.
"May I introduce Mr. Ollivander?" Dumbledore's voice caught the attention of the champions. They all faced Dumbledore who was gesturing to the wand-maker. "He will be checking your wands to ensure that they are in good condition before the tournament."
Ollivander made his way to the center of the room. "Mademoiselle Delacour, could we have you first, please?" he said.
Fleur walked over to the old man and handed him her wand. He took it carefully, and with just one glance, he was able to know its components. "Yes... nine and a half inches, inflexible, rosewood... and containing... dear me..."
"An 'air from ze 'ead of a Veela," Fleur finished for him. "One of my grandmuzzer's."
"Yes, yes, I've never used Veela hair myself, of course. I find it makes for rather temperamental wands... however, to each his own, and if this suits you..." He ran his fingers along the wand one last time then muttered, "Orchideous!" A bunch of flowered burst from the wand tip. "Very well, very well, it's in fine working order. Mr. Krum, you next."
Ollivander scooped the bouquet of flowers and handed that and the wand back to Fleur before Viktor came up next and handed his wand over to the wand-maker.
"Hmm... This is a Gregorovitch creation, unless I'm much mistaken? A fine wand-maker, though the styling is never quite what I... however... Yes, hornbeam and dragon heartstring? Rather thicker than one usually sees... quite rigid... ten and a quarter inches..." Then, Ollivander swished the wand, saying, "Avis!" wherein a number of twittering birds flew out. "Good. Mr. Diggory, if you please."
Cedric stepped out from the row of champions and walked towards Ollivander. On his way, Analeigh saw Fleur send him a smile. That action alone made her raise her eyebrows, wondering when did they ever get so friendly all of a sudden.
"Ah," Ollivander said enthusiastically when he took Cedric's wand. "Now, this is one of mine, isn't it? Yes, I remember it well. Containing a single hair from the tail of a particularly fine male unicorn... must have been seventeen hands; nearly gored me with his horn after I plucked his tail. Twelve and a quarter inches... ash... pleasantly springy. It's in fine condition— you treat it regularly?"
"Polished it last night," Cedric informed him much to the wand-maker's pleasure. From the corner of Analeigh's eye, she saw Harry furiously wiping his wand on his robe in attempt to clean it.
Ollivander sent a stream of silver smoke rings across the room from the tip of Cedric's wand before returning it to the boy. Next came Andrei, whose wand was of course made by Gregorovitch as well, and then Brigitte, whose wand had similar properties to Fleur's, then finally, Analeigh was called.
"Ms. Heart." Analeigh made her way to the man who beamed upon taking her wand, which was one of his own, too. "Mine as well," he muttered. "Though, I remember clearly your father telling me you wouldn't be attending Hogwarts that year just yet... ah, mahogany... seems fairly taken care of. Unicorn hair... average length, about eleven inches exact... quite sturdy but not inflexible wood..." He pointed at one of the broken chairs to the side, causing some of the champions to follow the direction as he said, "Reparo!" At once, the chair mended itself back together, then Ollivander gave the wand back to Analeigh with a satisfied smile.
"And that leaves Mr. Potter." Ollivander had a mischievous glint in his eye as if Harry's wand was the most interesting to him. Analeigh didn't know if anyone else noticed or she was just overthinking things, so she stayed quiet and watched as Ollivander examined her friend's wand. "Eleven inches... holly... and a Phoenix feather, who also..." Mr. Ollivander trailed off. His last words were literally a cliffhanger, just like the ones Analeigh would read in novels. Eventually, Ollivander just made a fountain of wine shoot out from Harry's wand before giving it back to him. Ludo Bagman clapped his hands together happily once it was clear that the wand weighing ceremony was over.
"Photos, Dumbledore, photos!" he cried excitedly to the headmaster.
"Ah, yes," he agreed then face Rita Skeeter and the photographer with a nod.
"We'll start with all the champions and judges," Rita explained. With a wave of her wand, a chair was dragged from the back and into the center of the room. Rita instructed that Madame Maxime, being the tallest, would sit there at the center. The rest of the judges stood behind while the champions were either in front or beside them depending on their height.
About three shots were taken before Rita said, "Okay, now I would like the champions only, if you please. Ladies in the front, gentlemen at the back." She flicked her wand again and two more chairs zoomed into the middle and placed themselves on either side of the chair that was already there. "Hmm... let's have our two lovely Beauxbatons ladies on the left and right, then our pretty little Hogwarts lady in the middle."
Considering Analeigh was the only "Hogwarts lady," she made her way to the center seat and sat down as formally as she could. Rita directed the boys at the back, then the photographer began to take photos.
"Oh, perfect!" Rita gushed during the shoot. "Would it be all right to take shots of the champions for each school?"
"Um —" Ludo Bagman began.
"Perfect! Beauxbatons first."
Fleur and Brigitte were as beautiful as ever as they held their skirts up a little in a graceful manner, smiling sweetly at the camera as the photographer took a few shots of them. Viktor and Andrei came up next, and Rita seemed to like their serious expressions and let them stay that way, standing tall and unmoving as their pose.
Finally, Rita said, "And last but certainly not the least, Hogwarts!" Without any warning, she hurriedly pushed Analeigh, Cedric, and Harry altogether— Analeigh didn't know how, but Rita was able to do it anyway— to the center, shooing Viktor and Andrei away shamelessly.
Analeigh stood in the middle with Harry to her right and Cedric on her left upon Rita's orders. The woman paused and stared at the three of them, looking as if she was in deep thought.
Then, she said, "Stand closer, will you?" They didn't have a chance to do anything by themselves because Rita had pushed Harry to force the boy onto Analeigh and in turn would move her closer to Cedric. While Harry maintained his balance, Analeigh had tripped over slightly but was Cedric had luckily held out a hand to keep her stable. Cedric's hand on her waist alone for a few seconds alone was enough to make her turn red. Thankfully, the photographer ordered them to look at the camera, so Analeigh was sure nobody saw her face.
There were a few flashes, and finally, the photoshoot was over. Rita thanked Ludo Bagman and the rest of the judges before she stalked out of the room, leaving the champions alone with the adults.
"Thank you for all coming here," Dumbledore told the students. It wasn't like we had a choice, though, Analeigh thought. "I suggest you all hurry and return to your classes."
And so, the seven champions walked out of the classroom and went their separate ways, heading back to their respective classes.