"I suppose I get my strength from my parents, I know they'd be very proud of me if they could see me now... yes, sometimes at night I still cry about them, I'm not ashamed to admit it... I know nothing will hurt me during the Tournament, because they're watching over me..."
"Oh, shut up!" said Harry grumpily, noticing Y/N's smirk. "You know it's not true! We sleep in the same dormitory!"
Harry and Y/N were sitting in the Great Hall with the rest of the school for breakfast. The morning's edition of the Daily Prophet had just arrived, and Harry was fuming so hard over Rita Skeeter's interpretation of his 'er's that it was almost comical.
Y/N was angry as well, it was clear Skeeter had made this all up since Y/N had burned her parchment, but for Harry's sake, he tried to stay calm. Someone had to, and Harry sure wasn't.
"Let's keep reading," he suggested, ignoring the eyes that were burning into the back of their heads from around the Hall. "Oh - look, there's a bit about me here."
Harry is never seen at Hogwarts without his long term friend, Y/N L/N, who is well known for his questionable heritage. L/N has made it common to disrespect and even physically assault many students, making his place by Harry Potter's side very remarkable indeed. He has had so many reported bouts of violence that it is a miracle he remains a student in Hogwarts, of course, a close, personal acquaintance with the Headmaster does help.
"He once threatened to punch me!" claims a sixth year Ravenclaw girl. "He said he had no problem with the fact that I was a girl!"
Shockingly indeed, his violent behaviour does not seem to waver even with members of the opposite gender -
"Wow." said Y/N. "How does she interview these people, I wonder? And how is it that she writes the truth of a bully's words, but not the words of the great Harry Potter?"
Y/N turned to look at the Ravenclaw table, where the sixth year girl with the curly hair who had been harassing Luna earlier that year was sneering at him.
"At least Skeeter didn't report you attacking Professor Snape," said Harry, shuddering. "Can you imagine what parents would think? I wouldn't put it past the greasy git to lie about what really happened."
Harry has at last found love at Hogwarts. His close friend, Colin Creevey, says that Harry is rarely seen out of the company of Hermione Granger, a stunningly pretty Muggle-Born girl who, like Harry, is one of the top students in the school.
Harry swirled around in panic as Y/N began to choke on some pumpkin juice.
Oh crap, has it finally happened? thought Harry, half relieved, half scared for his life. Has my idiotic friend finally stopped being dense and realised his immense feelings for Hermione?
Apparently not, because Y/N was laughing.
"Harry, are you sure Skeeter hasn't got us confused, or something?" he said, sniggering. "You? One of the top students in the school?"
Harry had to physically restrain himself from repeatedly banging his head onto the table.
At that moment, Hermione entered the Hall. She had finally been dismissed from hospital wing and her teeth were as good as new. As though trying to confirm it, she flashed a smile at the two of them. Y/N squinted. There was something remarkably off about her smile, he just couldn't put his finger on it.
"Morning," she said, grabbing a slice of toast. She appeared to be in high spirits. "Why does Harry look so glum?"
"This," said Y/N simply, passing her the newspaper. She inspected it curiously, like Y/N, a slight smirk marred her features as she read Harry's 'interview'. However, she turned slightly red as she reached the part about Harry's love life.
"I know, right?" said Y/N, grimacing. "Harry, the best in the school? Please."
Hermione frowned. "Is that all that you're bothered by?" she said, rather dangerously.
"Well, the bit that says that Harry's in love with you does bother me a bit - " said Y/N, rereading the article.
Hermione's face brightened.
" - I mean, everyone knows that Harry only has the hots for Chang -"
There was a clang as Hermione dropped her spoon, threw her chair back and stood up angrily. "I'm going to the library," she said, sounding quite ticked off.
Her nose in the air, she marched out of the Great Hall, mumbling words that were too quiet to hear, but were quite obviously insults.
"Is she okay?" said Y/N blankly.
"Imbecile." muttered Harry.
* * *
Ever since the article, life was becoming even worse for Harry within the confines of the castle. Most of it contained the exaggerated and false information that they had read, and it took up six pages, all about Harry. The names of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang champions (misspelled) had been squashed into the last line of the article, and Cedric hadn't been mentioned at all.
From the moment the article appeared, Harry had to endure people - Slytherins, mainly - quoting it at him as he passed and making sneering comments.
"Want a hanky, Potter, in case you start crying in Transfiguration?"
"Since when have you been one of the top students in the school, Potter? Or is this a school you and Longbottom have set up together?"
"Hey - Harry!"
"Yeah, that's right," Harry found himself shouting, as he wheeled in the corridor, having had just about enough. "I've just been crying my eyes out over my dead mum, and I'm just off to do a bit more..."
"No - it was just - you dropped your quill."
It was Cho. Harry went very red.
"Oh - right - sorry," he muttered, taking the quill back.
"Er... Good luck for Tuesday, she said." I hope you do really well. "
Which left Harry feeling extremely stupid.
"You bollocked that one up, mate." said Y/N, poker-faced.
"You're one to talk."
Both Y/N and Hermione were having their fair share of unpleasantness, too. Of course, this was nothing new for Y/N, however, people had been starting to get used to him over the years, some even stopped fearing him, unfortunately the article had started up the rumours once again.
Hermione was dealing with the situation very admirably indeed.
"Stunningly pretty? Her?" Pansy Parkinson had shrieked, the first time she had come face to face with Hermione after Rita's article has appeared. "What was she judging against - a chipmuck?"
"Ignore it," Hermione said in a dignified voice, as Y/N snapped his head towards Parkinson dangerously. She held her head in the air and stalked past the sniggering Slytherin girls as though she couldn't hear them. "Just ignore it, Y/N."
"Who the hell is she to insult your looks?" Y/N muttered. "You're a hell of a sight nicer than her."
This made the dignified Hermione blush and stammer like a like an adolescent teenage girl, which, Y/N had to constantly remind himself, she was.
Snape wasn't helping matters either, and was taking the fact that Y/N was getting away with no punishment quite hard. Nowadays during Potions, he'd abuse Y/N as much, if not more than even Harry.
Speaking of which, Harry, unlike Hermione, couldn't ignore all the snide comments. Ron hadn't spoken to him since he had told them about Snape's detentions. On the day Rita's article had appeared, it seemed to confirm Ron's belief that Harry was really enjoying all the attention.
Hermione, as wonderful as she was, was still hoping that the two of them would make up, and she constantly tried to force them to talk to each other.
Y/N wasn't nearly as forgiving. He was furious with Ron, more so than even Harry. In his eyes, Ron had finally exposed himself for what he truly was. A greedy, attention-seeking, jealous, insignificant insect.
Harry seemed to agree with Y/N mostly, but it was blatantly obvious that he missed the red-haired prick.
Without Ron by their side, they were spending a lot of time in the library for their S.P.E.W. work. Now that both Y/N and Hermione were subjects to the schools criticism, S.P.E.W. had taken a big hit, and they had even lost a few members.
Victor Krum was in the library an awful lot, too, and Y/N wondered what he was up to. Was he studying, or was he looking for things to help him through the first task? Hermione often complained about Krum being there - not that he ever bothered them, but because groups if giggling girls often turned up to spy on him from behind bookshelves, and Hermione found the noise distracting.
"He's not even good-looking!" she muttered angrily, glaring at Krums sharp profile. "They only like him because he's famous! They wouldn't look twice at him if he couldn't do that Wonky Faint thing -"
"Wronski Feint," Harry corrected.
* * *
Harry's training with Y/N and Hermione was not going nearly as well as they would've hoped. As the day of the first task drew nearer, Harry started becoming more and more stressed, and it showed in his shoddy spellwork.
"Get up." said Y/N sternly, after Harry had taken a fifth stunner to the face, and had been Rennervated by Y/N. "Its only a Shield Charm, you shouldn't be finding it this difficult."
They had been using an abandoned classroom to train, and day after day Harry would find himself on the floor, slowly breaking under Y/N's tough regime.
"Er - Y/N," said Hermione meekly. "maybe you should give him a little break -"
"He won't learn like that." said Y/N mercilessly. "He's only got four days. If he wants to live he needs to take this seriously." he turned to Harry again, who was wheezing on the floor. "Now, try again."
After six more attempts, Harry finally managed to conjure a shield that was decent enough to reflect Y/N's stunners, which was progress, at least.
On the Saturday before the first task, all students in the third year and above went for their next Hogsmeade trip. Harry didn't need much persuasion to accompany Y/N and Hermione.
"I'll come, but I'm wearing my Invisibility Cloak."
"Fair enough," said Y/N, understanding Harry's need to get away from the crap their fellow students were putting him through.
So all three of them, Harry under the Cloak, set off for Hogsmeade. Coconut also accompanied them, hitching a ride in Y/N's hood.
As they entered the village, Y/N narrowed his eyes as he saw Rita Skeeter and her photographer friend emerging from the Three Broomsticks pub. Talking in low voices, they passed right by Hermione and Y/N without looking at them. Harry backed into the wall of Honeydukes to stop Rita Skeeter hitting him with her crocodile-skin handbag.
The Three Broomsticks was packed, mainly with Hogwarts students enjoying their free afternoon, but also with a variety of magical people Y/N had rarely seen anywhere else. Hogsmeade was the only all-wizards village in Britain, so it was a bit of a haven for creatures like hags, who were not as adept as wizards at disguising themselves. Not that wizards are any better, to be honest. Y/N thought, remembering the old Archie in the Quidditch World Cup.
After they had secured themselves a table, Y/N had fetched some Butter beers, and Coconut curled herself up in Y/N's lap once he had sat down, Hermione noticed Hagrid entering the pub, accompanied by and conversing with Professor Moody. They sat for a while, then heavily got to their feet.
Moody then tapped Hagrid on the shoulder, pointed at Y/N and Hermione and muttered something to him, and then the pair of them made their way back across the pub towards Y/N, Hermione and Harry's table.
"All righ', Y/N, Hermione?" said Hagrid loudly.
"Hello," said Hermione, smiling back.
"Hey," greeted Y/N.
Moody limped around the table and bent down, grinned, then muttered, "Nice Cloak, Potter."
"Can your eye - I mean, can you -?" came Harry's spluttering voice, sounding quite amazed.
"Yeah, it can see through Invisibility Cloaks," Moody said quietly. "And its come useful at times, I can tell you."
Hagrid was beaming down at the invisible gap between Y/N and Hermione too. Moody must have told him that Harry was there.
Hagrid also bent down, and said in a whisper that was so low that Y/N had to strain to hear it. "Harry, meet me tonight at midnight at me cabin. Wear that Cloak."
Straightening up, Hagrid said loudly, "Nice ter see yeh, Hermione, Y/N," winked, and departed. Moody followed after him.
"Why does he want me to meet him at midnight?" said Harry, sounding surprised.
"He might be showing you something to do with the task," Y/N suggested, stroking Coconut's white fur. "If so, then I'm coming with you."
* * *
At half past eleven that evening, Y/N and Harry, both of whom had pretended to go to bed early, pulled the Invisibility Cloak over themselves and crept down the stairs through the common room. Quite a few people were still in there. The Creevey brothers had managed to get hold of a stack of Support CEDRIC DIGGORY badges, and were trying to bewitch them to make them say Support HARRY POTTER instead. So far, however, all they had managed to do was get the badges stuck on POTTER STINKS. Hermione opened the portrait for them, and they were off.
The grounds were very dark. They walked down the lawn together in silence towards the lights shining in Hagrid's cabin. The inside of the enormous Beauxbatons carriage was also lit up.
"You there, Harry?" Hagrid whispered, opening the door and looking around.
"Yeah," said Harry, slipping inside the cabin and pulling the cloak off. "I brought Y/N, too. What's up?"
"Got summat ter show yeh," said Hagrid.
There was an air of enormous excitement about Hagrid. He was wearing a flower that resembled an oversized artichoke in his button hole. It looked as though he had abandoned the use of axle grease, but he had certainly attempted to comb his hair.
"What is it you needed to show?" said Y/N warily, seriously hoping it wasn't another display of Hagrid drooling over Madame Maxime.
"Come with me, you two, and keep yehselves covered with that Cloak," said Hagrid. "We won' take Fang, he won't like it..."
Hagrid then opened the cabin door and strode off into the night. To both Y/N and Harry's great surprise, he lead them over to the Beauxbatons carriage.
Y/N, feeling as though his fears were confirmed, mumbled, "Fuck this shit I'm out." and attempted to lift the Cloak over himself and flee, but Harry grabbed his arm, holding him firmly in place.
"Hagrid, what -?"
"Shhh!" said Hagrid, and he knocked three times on the door bearing the crossed, golden wands.
Madame Maxime opened it. She was wearing a silk shawl wrapped around her massive shoulders. She smiled when she saw Hagrid. "Ah, 'Agrid... it is time?"
"Bong-sewer," said Hagrid, being at her, and holding his hand to help her down the golden steps.
"What?" whispered Harry, confused.
"I think he's trying to say 'bonjour'," Y/N whispered back, trying not to gag.
Madame Maxime closed the door behind her, Hagrid offered her his arm, and they set off around the edge of the paddock containing Madame Maxime's giant winged horses, with Harry and Y/N running to keep up with them.
"Did Hagrid just want to show us how well his date would go?" whispered Y/N, sounding pissed.
But it seemed that Madame Maxime was in for the same treat as them, because after a while she said playfully, "Wair is it you are taking me, 'Agrid?"
"Yeh'll enjoy this," said Hagrid gruffly. "Worth seein', trus' me. On'y - don' go tellin' anyone I showed yeh, right? Yeh're not supposed ter know."
"Of course not," said Madame Maxime, fluttering her long eyelashes.
"That conniving, scheming little bitch!" fumed Y/N. "She's only flirting with him so he can show her whatever the hell this is! I'll bet it has something to do with the first task!"
And still they walked, both Y/N and Harry becoming more and more irritable as they jogged along their wake. Harry checked his watch every now and again, they had to make it back by one o' clock or they'd miss Sirius.
But then - when they they had walked so far around the perimeter of the forest that the castle and the lake were out of sight - Y/N heard something. Men were shouting up ahead... then came a deafening, ear-splitting roar...
Hagrid led Madame Maxime around a clump of trees, and came to halt. Harry and Y/N hurried alongside them - for a spilt second, it appeared as though bonfires were being lit, and men darting around them - and then Y/N almost shouted a derogatory word.
Dragons.
Four fully grown, enormous, vicious looking dragons were rearing on their hind legs inside an enclosure fenced with thick planks of wood, roaring and snorting - torrents of fire were shooting into dark sky from their open, fanged mouths, fifty feet above the ground on their outstretched necks. There was a silvery blue one with long, pointed horns, snapping and snarling at the wizards on the ground; a smooth-scaled one, which was writhing and stamping with all its might; a red one with an odd fringe of fine gold spikes around its face, which was shooting mushroom-shaped fire clouds into the air, and a gigantic black one, more lizard-like than the others, which was nearest to them.
I am gonna bloody kill whoever came up with this tournament. Y/N thought darkly.
Y/N felt Harry fall to his knees beside him, trembling horribly.
"Harry? Are you okay?" said Y/N, kneeling down with a concerned look on his face.
Harry wasn't doing too well. He looked extremely green around the face and was trembling so violently that Y/N couldn't properly distinguish his facial expression. Then -
A sick smell slapped Y/N in the face as Harry leaned forwards into the grass, retched, and threw up all over their feet, a horrible splattering sound ringing through Y/N's ears.
"Harry, Harry, calm down." Y/N whispered urgently. "It's bad, I know, but -"
Harry now had his hands over his ears, desperately trying to block out the dragon's ear splitting roars. He looked like a frightened little child. Small, frightened, and fragile. Harry had never shown such signs if weakness up until this point.
Worked hard to ensure that no champion will find themselves in mortal danger, huh? Y/N repeated Dumbledore's words in his head angrily. Yeah right.
As his friend trembled in agonising fear from beside him, Y/N slammed his fist into a nearby tree trunk.
"What the fuck."