| CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN |
COLD FEET?
NATASHA, ROSIE AND GRACE WERE sitting around in the Great Hall with Hermione Granger, the four girls found themselves at the same table accidentally, but all decided to stay there. The younger Gryffindor girl was lovely and extremely kind, chatting away with the three fifth year girls about the Tournament.
There was a large group of students standing around the Goblet of Fire, all of them looking at the blue flame in complete awe. Natasha couldn't deny that it did look magical. The blue flame cast a blue colour over the entire room. Some students walked right up to it, placing a piece of parchment into the flame, whilst others (the younger ones) tried to but when they did, it looked as if they walked into glass, one that prevented them from going any further - the age line, Dumbledore himself drew.
"Anyone from Hogwarts put their name in yet?" Grace questioned, looking over at the large crowd.
Hermione nodded, "Only a few Slytherins, but it's been mainly Durmstrang."
"Am I going crazy or did Krum just wink at you, Mione?" Natasha questioned, her eyes wide as she looked at the back of Krum's head (since he was walking out of the Great Hall now) and Hermione's almost bright red face.
The Gryffindor shrugged it off, "You're probably going crazy."
Rosie shook her head, "Actually, I saw it too," She sent a teasing smile to the younger girl.
Grace lifted her hand, "I didn't see it, but by the look on your face, Mione, it definitely seems that he did."
Hermione bit her lip and looked down, using her frizzy hair to shield her blushing cheeks, "I don't know what you're talking about."
Natasha would've continued to tease the younger girl, but a certain Hufflepuff caught her attention. Her ocean blue eyes watched as Cedric Diggory entered the Great Hall with Theo by his side, his eyes were full of determination as he walked straight towards the Goblet. The blonde noticed his hands shaking ever so slightly, his bottom lip embedded between his teeth.
When Cedric finally reached the Goblet, the chattering in the Hall died down and all eyes turned to him. Even Rosie and Grace stopped teasing Hermione and turned to look at the Hufflepuff. He took in a deep breath before glancing to the side. Almost instantly, his eyes found Nat's, his grey ones boring into her blue ones. She sent him a reassuring smile, sure, she was terrified about him competing, but she knew how much this meant to him. Plus, she knew just how smart Cedric was (he had been helping her with her Transfiguration homework recently).
She could practically feel his nerves from where she was sitting. So, without thinking, the blonde stood up. Rosie, Grace and Hermione watched her with puzzled expressions as she made a beeline over to Cedric. She could feel people's eyes on her but didn't mind as she reached Cedric's side.
"Cold feet?" Natasha asked, grinning warmly at him.
His eyes stayed focused purely on her, "I think so," He confessed.
Sending him a comforting smile, Natasha placed her hand on his bicep and squeezed it lightly, ignoring the strange fluttering sensation her heart gave out; maybe she was dying?
Cedric's eyes fell upon her hand, goosebumps ran down his arm as he felt his nerves slowly slipping away.
"You're going to be amazing, Ced," Natasha told him, her voice full of sincerity.
"I-I don't think so," He shook his head, his gaze dropping down to the ground, "Maybe this was a mistake."
"No," The blonde shook her head, she squeezed his arm, "You're going to be amazing in this, Ced. You're so smart, I honestly think you could do great things in this tournament."
Cedric finally looked up at her, his lips quirking up into a smile when he noticed the smile on her face. His eyes scanned her face for any signs of a lie, but he couldn't find any. She was telling him her honest opinion. Her eyes were full of emotion; something he was finally able to pick up on as they got to know each other more and more. He was probably the only person that could truly read Natasha Fields.
Taking a deep breath, he finally nodded, "Okay."
Natasha grinned, "Okay," She bit her lip and squeezed his arm once more, before dropping her hand and letting him walk forward. She watched as he stepped over the age line, and just before he threw the parchment with his name on it into the Goblet, he looked back over his shoulder once more. His eyes glued to Nat as she sent him a thumbs up, grinning proudly. Taking a deep breath, he let the parchment fall into the flame, before it got enveloped in it and disappeared from sight.