C h a p t e r F i f t e e n
T h e S e c o n d T a s k
It was one month after the Yule Ball when the date for the second task was announced. The snow had now cleared from the castle, any remaining signs of the winter could be found on the peaks of the Scottish mountains which surrounded the Wizarding school.
Christmas and New Year had passed with Evelyn staying at Hogwarts for the holidays, so she could help Harry and Cedric figure out their next clue.
It allowed her to spend more time with her friends while her father kept his head low. Ron had apologised to her the day after the Ball, which allowed the two to make up and have a wonderful Christmas together as they were not going home to see their family this year.
Cedric had figured out his clue just after New Year, Evelyn had not helped Harry in a while after he assured her that he knew what he was doing.
It wasn't until days before the task that Harry admitted to Eve and Hermione that he hadn't accomplished unlocking the clue.
"Harry, you told me you'd figured the egg out weeks ago," Hermione snapped in disbelief. "The task is two days from now."
"Really? I had no idea," Harry questioned sarcastically. "I suppose Viktor and Cedric have already figured it out." He added, directing the statement towards the two girls.
Eve smiled slightly hearing the boy's name before she hid it quickly, Hermione had received all the news of what happened at the Yule Ball. But Harry hadn't been informed.
"Cedric has but we don't talk about what the clue was," Eve answered as she looked away from the beautiful view the covered bridge faced.
"Wouldn't know, we don't actually
talk about the tournament. Actually, we don't really talk at all. Viktor's more of a physical being."
Evelyn and Harry shared a smirk at the girl's words before she realised the innuendo she had made. "I just mean he's not particularly loquacious. Mostly, he watches me study. It's a bit annoying, actually."
Evelyn's laughter died down as she thought of the subject she and Hermione had discussed earlier. "You are trying to figure this egg out, aren't you?" She asked cautiously.
The boy's smiled dropped upon hearing Eve's words. "What's that supposed to mean?" He questioned.
"She just means these tasks are designed to test you...in the most brutal way. They're almost cruel," Hermione explained
"And we're scared for you," Evelyn admitted as she frowned at the boy. She placed her hand on top of his in means to gain his attention, "You got by the dragons mostly on nerve. We just don't know if nerve will be enough to get you through the rest."
"Hey, Potter!" A voice called. Evelyn turned to see Cedric coming down the bridge. She quickly smiled at him before she turned to frown at Harry, who had started heading in the opposite direction.
Eve signed seeing that Cedric had to run to catch up with Harry who eventually stopped to speak to him. Evelyn watched the interaction but she was unable to hear them, so she stood patiently waiting for them to finish.
Harry gave a heavy sigh as he stopped and turned to the Hufflepuff calling for him. "Cedric," he greeted unenthusiastically.
Cedric stopped in front of the younger student, he felt awkward knowing that the boy had a clear dislike for him. But he didn't want to make the situation awkward so he attempted to be polite. "How-? How are you?" He asked.
"Spectacular," Harry snapped sarcastically.
"Look I realized I never really thanked you properly for tipping me off about those dragons," Cedric explained.
"Forget it," the boy replied. "I'm sure you would've done the same for me."
"Exactly. You know the Prefects' bathroom on the fifth floor? It's not a bad place for a bath. Just take your egg. . .and mull things over in the hot water."
Harry was left confused as Cedric turned and approached the waiting Evelyn. He watched as the two greeted each other in a hug, before the boy kissed her on the cheek.
Harry had to admire the smile on Eve's face, she looked so happy. He wished he could be the one to do make her feel that way.
Despite his dislike for Cedric, Harry had an automatic smile upon seeing the brunette girl's happiness. She deserved it more than anyone else in the world.
*****
Harry followed Cedric's advice and went to the prefects' bathroom later that evening. Thanks to Moaning Myrtle, he discoverd the trick of the egg was to put it under water.
After finding the song inside the egg, he informed Hermione and Ron when he found them in the Common Room. Although they were confused when they discovered that Evelyn had not been with Harry. They soon came to the conclusion that no one had seen her since earlier that day on the covered bridge.
"I'm sure she's fine," Ron assured. "She's probably spent the day with Cedric after her last class with you two. We'll probably see her at dinner." They reluctantly agreed to the idea before the trio headed to the library, hoping to research more about mermaids and how it could help Harry with the next task.
*****
If the trio had asked Cedric where Evelyn was, then they would have discovered that the last time the boy had seen her was on the covered bridge. The two students had conversed, but were soon interrupted as a student had informed Evelyn that she was needed in Professor McGonogall's office.
Cedric and Eve had shared a goodbye kiss before she headed for the castle. She followed the direction to the Professor's office without stopping as she wanted to know what the meeting was regarding.
Eve stopped outside the large door, she gently knocked her knuckles on the wood and waited patiently. A few seconds later the door was opened by the head of Gryffindor who welcomed the girl into her office.
"Ah Miss Black, please come in." McGonogall smiled. The woman had a soft spot for the young witch, she would never voice favouritism in students but Evelyn was one of those students that she kept close to her heart.
"Thank you Professor," Eve greeted as she returned the smile. She passed the Professor who closed the door behind her. "How are you, Professor?"
"I'm wonderful, thank you Miss Black. I actually asked you here to ask you the same question," the teacher explained as she sat at her desk, gesturing for the girl to take the seat opposite her.
"Oh," Eve stated surprised as she rested her bag on the floor as she sat down. "Well I'm fine, Professor."
"Well I wanted to ask if any students have been giving you any trouble about your father," the woman explained as she poured herself a cup of tea before pouring one for the young witch. "I know it must be difficult with all the attention."
Evelyn smiled kindly at the woman, "I'm okay Professor, I know there's gossip around the school but no one has said anything to me."
"Well I'm pleased to hear it. If there ever is any trouble, I want you to report straight to a professor. Preferably myself so I can take pleasure in deciding an appropriate punishment."
The brunette girl laughed at McGonogall's tone, she was glad that she had a professor looking out for her.
"Is there anything else you wanted to talk about, Professor?" Eve asked before she took a sip of her tea.
"I need to discuss business with you about the second task of the Triwizard Tournament. You see the challenges requires us to find the person each champion cares about the most. We had difficulty deciding between recommending you for Mr Potter or Mr Diggory."
Eve was confused by what she would have to do to help with the challenge. "So, um...what exactly do I need to do?"
*****
Evelyn didn't wake until she broke through the surface of the murky lake water. She gasped as the freezing temperatures hit her like a wave. Loud cheering also caught her attention.
The girl looked around quickly before remembering the conversation she had with McGonogall the night before. This was the second task.
"Are you okay?" A voice asked as the figure pulled her closer to help support her above the water.
Evelyn turned to see Cedric as she kicked her legs to keep her head above water. The girl was not the best swimmer, she had been taught at a young age but her focus had always been on achieving her goal of being a Chaser in Quidditch.
"Yeah," Eve stuttered, her teeth chattering from the cold. Cedric started to guide the girl to one of the platformed structures that sat on the lake.
Cedric pushed Evelyn towards the ladder first, his friends were quick to pull the girl up and wrap numerous towels over her shoulders. Cedric followed after, a towel now on his shoulders too as he was quick to hug the girl.
"You're freezing," Cedric noted. Eve laughed quickly as her shivering started to cease.
"Well spotted," she smirked before she looked to the water upon hearing splashing. More cheered started, letting Eve know that another champion had finished.
She quickly rushed to the edge, hoping to see Harry, instead she gasped as she spotted another friend.
"Hermione," she called as she rushed to the wooden ladder to aid the girl out of the water. Eve quickly threw her towel over a dripping Hermione.
"We were looking everywhere for you!" Hermione snapped as she hugged her friend.
"McGonogall called me after classes, we spoke for a while and next thing I know I was getting some kind of spell for the challenge."
"McGonogall called Ron and I too," Hermione replied as she looked around. Both girls quickly noticed Fleur stood with her fellow students, it appeared she had failed the task.
"Wait, Ron is down there? So he was Harry's treasure."
It was then that Ron and a young girl - no older than 12 - appeared in the lake. Both coughing up water as they swam towards the platform.
Fleur rushed to help the young girl while Evelyn ran to hug her brother as soon as he left the water. "I was so worried about you," Ron rushed as towels were passed to him.
Eve hugged her brother back before she pulled away to look at him worridly. "Where's Harry? He should have came out with you."
Eve went to the edge of the platform and stared down at the water, looking for any sign of movement. "Come on Harry, come on!" She whispered desperately. She could hear Dumbledore and others behind her, all waiting for the last champion.
A body soared from the water, landing on the wooden platform with a hard thud. Evelyn took quick steps backwards to avoid being hit before she dived to the floor to help the person.
"Harry!" She gasped as he coughed up more water. Dumbledore also came to the boy's other side. Seamus had handed Evelyn a towel which she wrapped around Harry's shoulders. The girl was quick to put her arm around his back as she rubbed his arms to try and build some heat back into her best friend.
Harry gave a weak smile to the girl as he shivered. "Hi," he muttered.
"You scared me," Eve replied wide eyed.
"Sorry bout that."
Fleur rushed never and crouched in front of Harry. One hand clutched onto the little girl's hand that had appeared in the water with Ron. "You saved her, even though she wasn't yours to save. My little sister. Thank you."
Eve laughed as Fleur grabbed Harry, pressing a kiss to each cheek gratefully. She watched as Fleur did the same for Ron, who looked dazed after the gesture.
Another figure rushed over, her speed almost knocking over Harry and Eve. "Harry!" Hermione exclaimed as she dropped to her knees. "Are you all right? You must be freezing."
Hermione began to remove the towel that Evelyn had given her and wrapped it around the boy.
"Personally, I think you behaved admirably," Hermione stated.
"I finished last, Hermione."
Hermione excitedly placed a kiss on her friend's head before replying to him. "Next to last."
Eve continued to rub Harry's arm in attempt to heat him up as she explained. "Fleur never got past the Grindylows," she smiled at the boy.
"Attention!" Dumbledore called as he used his wand to expand his voice across all three structures. Evelyn and Ron helped Harry to his feet as they waited for the announced winner. Harry grabbed Evelyn's hand, wrapping his fingers between hers.
"The winner is Mr. Diggory," the headmaster announced. Evelyn cheered quickly as she watched Cedric celebrate his win. He grinned over at Eve, who winked at her friend in return. "Who showed innate command of the Bubble-Head Charm.
However, seeing as Mr. Potter
would have finished first, had it not been for his determination
to rescue not only Mr. Weasley but the others as well, we've agreed to award him second place!"
Evelyn released Harry's hand to pull him into an excited hug. The boy smiled in shock at the news before he returned the embrace.
"You're getting better at this," Evelyn joked. "Two down and one to go."
"As long as you help me with the next task," he replied with a smile.
"I promise," she stated as she pressed a soft kiss again his cheek.