Chapter 9: Library, Jeers and First Task
Hermione was sitting at her normal table in the library as she looked through some books to forget about the upcoming task. It wasn't helping. She kept finding herself staring out the window at various periods before she would shake her head and bring herself back to reality.
She looked back down to her book, but the words blurred together and Hermione couldn't keep her concentration on the words. She sighed as she closed her book and then her eyes. She hated this feeling. She hated feeling helpless with Harry being in danger like this and she just wished that they had never brought the Triwizarding Tournament back.
Hermione opened her eyes suddenly when she felt eyes on her back. She turned around and found Krum's eyes once again staring into her. She shook her head and turned back to the front. The same thing happened all the time - she would be sitting at the table, reading, and he would just sit there and stare at her.
Hermione couldn't help but wish that Harry was sitting with her, comforting her, but he had something he needed to do.
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Harry was making his way across the courtyard when he caught sight of Cedric and hurried over to him.
"Cedric, I need to speak to you," Harry told him.
"What? Are you going to cast a spell on him to knock him out of running, Potter?" one of the Hufflepuffs asked.
"Makes you wonder how he even entered in the first place," another one continued.
"Are you really that dense?" A cold female voice asked and they turned to see Mia standing behind them. "The Goblet of Fire was only allowed to pick three champions - it spat out four instead. Any person with an IQ would be able to realise that someone had confunded the cup. Therefore, they set Harry up because they want him to die."
"You're just saying that because Harry is your cousin," Pansy stated from behind her and Mia sighed as she rubbed her forehead.
"Why doesn't this world just go to hell?" Mia muttered to herself before she turned to face Pansy. "None of us were talking to you - so you don't need to be here."
Pansy looked at her with an affronted look on her face. She couldn't believe that a half blood would try and dismiss her.
"Do you have any idea who you are talking to?" Pansy demanded as she stepped forward. She faltered for a second however when Mia stepped forward too.
"To a pureblood who would love nothing more than to bow down and lick the shoes of a half-blood coward," Mia informed Pansy with a hard glint. "The same man who tried to kill a one year old baby because he was scared of him."
"He's more powerful than all of you put together," Pansy hissed and Mia laughed.
"Sorry - did he or did he not get himself killed by a one year old baby? This is a part that you all seem to be missing here - your little lord is dead, thanks to a baby. He wasn't killed by another wizard or witch the same age or older - he was killed by a baby," Mia repeated before shaking her head. "I knew that some purebloods could be thick but you take the cake."
Pansy lifted up her hand to slap her but Mia caught her wrist and clicked her tongue.
"I wouldn't if I were you - I tend to react very badly to be being slapped by a coward. And I don't really want your filth on me," Mia informed her before she shoved Pansy away from her and turned around face the boys. "Any more problems? Or can Harry talk to Cedric without you guys foaming at the mouth?"
"He can talk to me," Cedric stated as he grabbed Harry's arm and pulled him away from the group. "She's scary." Harry grinned.
"I grew up with her - I should know how scary she can be when she wants to," Harry reminded him as they reached a more private spot.
"What's up?" Cedric asked.
"The first task - its dragons," Harry told him. Cedric's jaw dropped.
"Are you sure?" Cedric demanded and Harry nodded.
"Oh I'm sure - I saw them with my own eyes. And trust me - if I don't make it out alive, Hermione will bring me back just to kill me again," Harry told him. Cedric couldn't help the small grin appeared on his face at the mention of Hermione.
"She and Mia would be a force to reckon with," Cedric stated and Harry shrugged.
"Hey, as long they can protect themselves, I'm happy," Harry told him before shaking his head. "I just hate having to be in this tournament."
"Thanks for telling me," Cedric told him but Harry waved it off.
"No problem. Besides, Madam Maxime knows about it too so she would have told Fleur - and I'm betting that Viktor knows as well," Harry told him and Cedric nodded as they made their way back to the others. When they arrived, they saw that Mia had pinned someone to the ground.
"MIA!" Harry shouted, startling the gathered spectators.
Mia had been about to turn away from the others after she watched Cedric and Harry walk away when a voice stopped her. She turned around to see that one of the sixth year boys had moved closer to her.
"Black," one of the males started as he moved closer. Mia just stood her ground. He wrapped a strand of her black hair around his finger as he moved his face down towards hers. "I wanna know - just how fiery can you be?" he teased before he laughed along with the other guys in his group.
"Oh don't worry," Mia informed him sweetly as she tugged her hair out of his hand. "You won't be the person to find out." The laughter ceased. The male's brown eyes hardened in displeasure as he gripped Mia's arm.
"What is that supposed to mean?" he demanded and Mia smirked.
"It means I'm not interested," Mia informed him before she looked at her arm then back to him. "And I'd thank you to let me go."
"Oh come on Black... you know you want it," he informed her but Mia had lost her temper. She twisted her arm as she contorted her body and flipped the guy over her back. He landed with his back on the ground with a hard thud. Everyone just looked on in a stunned silence as the last echoes of laughter died around them.
Mia twisted his arm and placed her foot in the centre of his chest, pressing down painfully.
"MIA!" Harry's voice snapped across the courtyard. Mia lifted her head and caught Harry's hard glare. "Get over here. Now!" Mia scowled before she leaned down to the boy underneath her foot.
"Touch me again, and you'll lose your hand," Mia informed him dangerously before she let him go and walked off.
Hunter watched from a distance. He had been watching Mia since he had arrived at Hogwarts and found himself interested in the young girl. She was different from everyone else. She observed her surroundings and found everyone's weakest spot and pressed on it hard whenever she had to. She was definitely tough.
Hunter nodded to himself before he walked off, heading to his original destination.
"Mia," Cedric hurried after her, but Mia lifted her hands, cutting him off.
"Sorry, but right now, blood is thicker than water," she told him before shaking her head and walking off, leaving Cedric standing alone.
Harry walked after her. He had thought she had calmed down, but obviously something had happened to piss her off again and it was making Harry annoyed. He knew how much she wanted to take everyone on but she had to keep her temper under control before she lost it completely and did something she would regret.
"I can't believe you," Harry muttered as he caught up with her. Mia just stared stonily ahead of her. Harry grabbed her arm and spun her around to face him. "Mia - you can't keep doing this," Harry told her. "You are running around spent because you are holding onto the anger - it's not hate you need!"
Mia sighed as she ran a hand through her black locks before she looked at Harry.
"I just hate this," Mia told him. Harry sighed. "I hate being helpless - knowing that you have to do these tasks - and not being able to help you during them. You could die, Harry!"
"Mia," Harry's eyes softened as he moved closer to her.
"I don't want to lose my brother," she admitted as tears filled her eyes. Harry enveloped her in a hug and held her close. Mia clung to him and sobbed softly.
"You're not gonna lose me. I promise you," Harry whispered. Mia shook her head from where she had rested her mouth against his shoulder.
"You can't promise that," Mia told him before she lifted her head and looked into his eyes. "You can't promise you won't die."
"I will do whatever it takes to make sure I come back to you all…alive," Harry promised her before he kissed her forehead and held her close. She buried her face into his neck, hoping that he was right and that he would be able to keep his promise. "Besides - as I was telling Cedric, if I didn't come back you and Hermione would find someway to bring me back and kill me again."
Mia let out a half sob/half laugh as she lifted her head and looked at Harry.
"I love you big bro," Mia told him and Harry grinned as he ran a hand through her locks.
"I love you too little sis," Harry told her. Mia smiled softly before she kissed Harry's cheek and they both walked off with Mia resting her head on his shoulder and Harry's arm around her.
Later Harry found himself sitting on the roof of Hogwarts, staring out to the sky as it changed colours as the sun started to set.
"Hey," a male voice greeted. Harry turned and grinned when he saw Draco. He moved closer and sat down on the bench next to Harry and they both stared out at the scene. "How are you doing?"
"I swear, I feel like I'm just trading in one hysterical woman for another every day," Harry muttered and Draco laughed.
"Mia and Hermione freaking out?" Draco asked and Harry nodded.
"Big time - Mia nearly snapped a sixth year's hand off. Hermione has been clinging to me even more since she found out the first task contains dragons," Harry told him and Draco sighed.
"Dad is up to something," Draco admitted and Harry looked at him. "I don't like this Harry - I don't like the fact that you are in the middle of this - you know it's not gonna end good."
"Voldemort…" Harry trailed off and Draco nodded.
"I think they've found a way to bring him back. The fact that Peter has escaped from Azkaban isn't making me feel any better," Draco told him. Harry cursed as he leaned forward and caught Krum looking at Hermione reading at the base of a tree as he peered over the edge. "Okay, what are you mad at now?" Draco asked.
Startled, Harry looked back at Draco before grinning.
"Actually - I think that Viktor Krum is jealous of me. He keeps scowling at me and watching Hermione," Harry told him. Draco leaned over and saw the same scene that Harry had and frowned.
"Will Hermione be alright?" Draco asked and Harry nodded.
"Yeah - she can hold her own. I told her that if Viktor keeps annoying her even after she told him that she's not interested, she's to tell me and I'll talk with him," Harry told him. "It's better me than Mia - who is a loose cannon at the moment."
"She's just worried about you," Draco reminded him. "You would be even worse than her if she was the one whose name came out of the fire."
"Yeah - or even Hermione's," Harry told him. Draco snorted.
"Mate - you would have overturned the Ministry on the spot the moment they said that she had to compete," Draco told him and Harry grinned.
"I thought Mia was going to kill them for me," Harry admitted and Draco sighed.
"She's really that bad?" Draco asked and Harry nodded.
"Yeah - she's been worried about us before too, but this year is taking a toll on her and it's not even Christmas yet. She's gonna burn herself out before Christmas even comes at the rate she's going," Harry confessed to Draco, who leaned back and looked up at the sky.
"Uncle Sirius coming down?" Draco asked and Harry nodded.
"Yeah - he said he'll be here for the first task," Harry explained.
"Tell him about Mia and her actions. Uncle Sirius has to talk to her - maybe she'll listen to him," Draco suggested to Harry, who nodded.
"Yeah - either that or I go to Plan B," Harry muttered. Draco looked at him, interested in that comment.
"What's Plan B?" Draco asked.
"Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey," Harry informed Draco, who looked at Harry before laughing as understanding dawned on him.
"Mia would never forgive you!" Draco told him while laughing and Harry shrugged and gave Draco a sheepish smile.
"Would be worth it, though," Harry admitted before he gave into his own laughter as Draco fell off the side of the bench while holding his sides.
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Harry found himself pacing the tent the next morning. Hanging around with Draco the night before had relieved some of his tension, but now that the task was only a few hours away, it was really getting nerve wracking.
Death Eaters - he could take them on, but bloody hell... a dragon? Not just any dragon, either - a fully grown one!
Harry passed the flap only to hear a female voice call his name.
"Harry?" Hermione called out. Harry moved over to the flap and opened it slightly to see Hermione standing there.
"Hey, what are you doing here?" Harry asked. Hermione gave him a soft but nervous smile.
"I wanted to see how you were getting on," Hermione admitted.
"Getting pretty nervous," Harry admitted and Hermione nodded.
"It should be okay - all you need to do is focus on calling your broom to you and getting the task done," Hermione told him and Harry nodded.
"While fighting a dragon," Harry added on but that just pushed Hermione over to edge and she threw herself into his arms, making him stumble back slightly before he could wrap his arms around her waist. He held her close as he tried to comfort her.
A flash bulb went off, causing Harry and Hermione to blink and look in the direction of where it came from. Sure enough, a cameraman was standing there.
"Ah, young love," a female voice announced and Harry turned to see Rita Skeeter. His face tightened with restrained anger.
"Harry?" Hermione asked when she noticed his dislike of this new visitor.
"This is Rita Skeeter," Harry explained and understanding dawned on the younger female's face.
"You're not allowed in here, it's for champions only," Viktor spoke up as he stepped forward.
"Oh, don't be so silly," Rita informed him with a giggle. "Of course I'm allowed in here."
"No, you're not," Harry informed Rita with a steely glare as Hermione slipped her hand into his. Dumbledore appeared with Crouch and the other two heads of the other schools.
"Miss Skeeter, what are you doing here?" Dumbledore asked. Rita appeared very disappointed.
"Nothing, apparently," Rita informed them before she walked out of the tent with her camera man following her.
"Now, gather around everyone," Dumbledore ordered them and everyone moved forward. Dumbledore was about to speak, but remembered someone else in the tent that wasn't supposed to be there. Dumbledore arched an eyebrow as he addressed her.
"And what are you doing here Miss Granger?" Dumbledore asked. Hermione looked at him in realisation before she looked at Harry.
"Sorry, I was just here to wish Harry good luck," Hermione told him before she leaned over and kissed Harry on the cheek. She untangled her hand from his and left the tent with a lingering look at Harry as the flap closed behind her.
Dumbledore turned back to the champions.
"Here we are at the first task," Dumbledore started. "Your task is to grab the golden egg from the dragon."
"First you have to pick the dragon," Crouch told them as he moved forward with a small brown bag in his hand and held it out.
Fleur reached into the bag and pulled out a small Common Welsh Green Dragon with the number '2' on it.
Viktor reached into the bag and pulled out a small Chinese Fireball Red Dragon - it had the number '3' on it.
Cedric reached into the bag and pulled out a small Blue Swedish Short Snout Dragon with the number '1' on it.
Harry couldn't help the small gulp when he realised what dragon was left. He closed his eyes before he placed his hand into the bag and pulled out a small black Horntail Dragon with the number '4' on it. Harry let out a small sigh of defeat - it was one of the worst dragons to face.
"Excellent - now you have your dragon and your number. All you have to do is stay in here until your name is called out," Crouch informed them before he hurried out to finish the other preparations.
All four champions shared nervous looks at the upcoming task.
Ron led Hermione and Mia up to the stage where they would be sitting to watch the event. They reached their seats and remained standing for a minute while they looked at the arena. Hermione saw the dragon handlers bringing in a Blue Swedish Short Snout and reality hit her hard.
"Dragons," Hermione whispered. Ron just slipped his hand into hers only to regret it when her hand tightened in a death grip around his, almost cutting off his circulation.
"Bloody hell," Ron mouthed to Mia as pain contorted his face. Mia just covered her mouth in amusement. She knew all too well of Hermione's panic when it came to Harry and had wisely stayed away from Hermione's hands.
Hermione's mind was focused only on Harry and the fact that he had to face a dragon as they sat down in their seats.
Soon the champions had faced their dragons and it was now Harry's turn.
Harry couldn't still the butterflies in his stomach as he paced the tent, waiting for his name to be called. He just wanted to get the task over and done with.
"HARRY POTTER!" Crouch's voice finally shouted. Harry looked towards the opening of the tent before he straightened up, squared his shoulders and walked out of the tent.
Frowning when he couldn't see the dragon because he was surrounded by rocks, he scanned the area only to see the golden egg laying a few feet away from him.
Inching forward cautiously, Harry made his way over towards the egg. He ducked down quickly when a roar of flame shot over his head. The dragon had finally made her appearance.
"Shit," Harry swore as he looked around for another place to hide when he threw caution to the wind. He hurried over to the edge of the arena.
"Accio Firebolt!" Harry shouted as he waved his wand in a circle before jumping down and ducking again when the dragon sent another roar of flame towards him. Once he had himself hidden, he pressed his back against the rocks and let out a sigh. "I'm the element of fire and I'm hiding from a dragon. That's just fantastic," he muttered to himself.
Harry twisted his head to peer around the rock and saw the broom making it way over to him. He saw the dragon looking the other way, so he made a break for a higher point to grab his broom. The Dragon saw him out of the corner of her eye and she sent another ball of flame at him, causing Harry to lift up his hand and dispel the fire as he had been taught.
Dumbledore sat up straighter when he saw this. Harry had just dispelled the fire ball and an uneasy feeling started up in the pit of his stomach - there was more to Harry Potter than he realised.
Harry jumped onto his broom and weaved out of the rocks. He looked down at the stage and saw the golden egg. As he was about to swoop down he heard a loud cracking noise.
The dragon let out a howl as she freed herself from her tether and started flying after Harry, causing everyone to bolt up from their seats.
"That's not supposed to happen!" Hermione shouted, angry that they hadn't made the chain tougher
Harry's eyes widened when he saw the dragon flying after him and he swore under his breath. He turned his broom around and shot off away from the stage with the dragon hard on his tail.
Harry ducked and weaved each time the dragon shot out a flame of fire, desperate to kill the intruder that had stepped into the domain near her eggs.
Harry thought he might have lost her as he looked behind him without spotting her. Confused, his brows furrowed as scanned the area behind him, but when he turned back to the front he was shocked to see the dragon in front of him, already breathing a stream of flame.
"Whoa!" Harry exclaimed as he swerved the broom to the side, narrowly missing the flame before ducking down under the bridge. The dragon renewed her pursuit and followed him.
He needed to get back to the arena but he couldn't lure the dragon back with him - she was unpredictable and might attack the students if she felt they were in her way.
Frustrated, Harry looked around for somewhere to lose her but he couldn't find anything and he swore to himself. He was going to have to go along with his first plan.
Harry swung himself around on the broom so he was facing the dragon and just hoped that his broom wasn't going to crashing into anything. He locked eyes with the dragon and his green eyes flared brightly, showing the fire behind them.
The dragon stilled for a moment in confusion before she let out a small whine in the back of her throat. She shook her head and swooped after Harry even more determined.
Harry tried again and pushed his will out to the dragon, gritting his teeth as sweat adorned his forehead. The pressure was growing enormous before he finally broke through and his eyes flared even more brilliantly. He lifted his hand and a ball of fire formed just a few inches off his palm. He shot it at the dragon and hit her squarely in the middle of her head.
The dragon howled as she swung her tail and hit Harry on the shoulder, one of her horns cutting into him. Harry just gritted as his teeth as he created another fireball and threw it again. Again it exploded against her head and the dragon flinched back and stayed still.
Her wings were still beating and keeping her up in the air as Harry closed his eyes and concentrated on the dragon.
He willed it to go back to the stage where she would be safe and where she could protect her eggs from anyone that might attempt to steal them as she left her nest unprotected. The dragon let out a whine before Harry spun around on his broom and led the way back to the nest with the dragon following, but not attacking.
Harry flew back to the stage and swooped down to grab the golden egg just as the Dragon landed just outside of the stage, refusing to harm her eggs.
The dragon handlers hurried over to the dragon and stunned her couple of times before they carried her away to where she could rest and be safe.
Everyone let out a huge howl of cheers. Hermione just felt faint with relief as she slumped down on her seat with Mia and Ron sitting down next to her to make sure that she didn't pass out from the stress.
Harry wound up in the medical tent as Madam Pomfrey checked his wounds over to make sure that they weren't serious. She was smoothing some purple cream over the wound in his shoulder and jabbed her wand toward it after she was done, causing the cream to smoke as his wound closed.
"What's next?" Madam Pomfrey asked herself as she fussed over Harry. "Dementors last year, dragons this year..." She nodded with satisfaction when she saw that Harry's wound had healed itself up and cleaned off the excess potion.
Harry looked at his shoulder and grinned before looking to the hospital matron.
"Thanks," Harry told her. Madam Pomfrey just smiled back down at him before she moved on to the next curtain to check on her other patients. Harry got himself off the bed and made his way over to the flap of the tent only to see Hermione, Ron and Mia making their way over to him.
"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed as she hurried over and threw herself back into his arms and held him close.
Harry relaxed in her embrace and tried to comfort her as he looked at Mia and Ron over her shoulder and gave them a smile.
"I'm okay," Harry promised them. Mia shot him a look of relief while Ron just closed his eyes before looking at Harry with relief. "I'm okay," Harry repeated as he rubbed Hermione's back.
"Harry!" a male voice shouted and everyone turned to see Sirius rushing over to them. "That was brilliant - stupid but brilliant!" Sirius told him. Harry and Mia grinned at Sirius' unusual way of scolding him.
"Dad," Mia greeted as she stepped into her father's arms and hugged him tight. Sirius hugged her back before he held his daughter at arm's length and looked at her straight in the eye.
"And you, dear daughter, are going to talk with me about your actions this year," Sirius told her and Mia nodded. Sirius kissed her forehead before he hugged her closely once more and looked at Harry. "What's going on?" Sirius asked.
"My source says that it looks like Voldemort has found a way to come back - they think the Triwizarding championship is a diversion," Harry explained. Sirius sighed as he reached out and placed a steadying hand on Harry's shoulder.
"What ever you do, just stay safe. I do not want Voldemort or anyone else to get their hands on you. I couldn't deal with it if I lost any of you," Sirius told them.
Hermione let Harry go step closer to Sirius where the three of them embraced each other in a hug.
Ron just wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulders and pulled her close as she watched the family share a tender moment together with a soft smile.
"We'll watch out for them," Ron told Sirius, who looked at him. "You can count on it - us Weasleys are very protective." Sirius couldn't help the grin that appeared over his face at Ron's words.
"I know - but you take care yourself. You guys are becoming more like family every time we meet like this," Sirius told him. Ron nodded, flushing with pleasure at Sirius' words. He never thought that they would see him like family. Hermione elbowed him in the stomach, understanding where his thoughts had gone.
"Ron! I thought we made it clear that you were like another brother to us!" Hermione scolded him, startling Harry and Mia, who looked at Ron.
"So did I," they both exclaimed, causing Ron to blush even more.
"Sorry - I'm just not used to being a part of anyone else's family but my own," Ron admitted but Mia just waved it aside before she hugged him.
"You're like a brother to us - never ever doubt that!" Mia told him and Ron nodded as he hugged her back, causing Harry to reach over and embrace them in a hug before he pulled Hermione over to include her too.
Sirius hung back with a soft and pleased smile on his face as he watched his children growing up - even though Ron and Hermione weren't related to him by blood, they were still his children in his heart.
"Sirius," a soft female voice interrupted and Sirius turned to see McGonagall walking toward him.
"Professor McGonagall," Sirius greeted and she gave him a soft smile.
"Sirius, I haven't been your professor in a long time," she softly scolded him but Sirius just gave her his trademark cheeky grin.
"I still respect you Professor McGonagall," he told her, reminding her of the times he used to stay that all the time when he was younger.
McGonagall let out a small chuckle as she patted his shoulder.
"And you're still quite the flatterer," she scolded him before she looked at the children and smiled softly. "They are creating a stronger bond than I've ever seen." Sirius nodded as he looked at the kids too.
"Yeah - they are amazing," Sirius admitted.
"Kids," Professor McGonagall spoke up and they all looked toward her. "Harry - you need to check on your score and you all need to head back up to the castle - it's nearly time for bed."
"Yes Professor McGonagall," they all stated as Harry, Hermione and Mia hugged Sirius before they walked off with Ron, leaving the two adults staring after them with soft yet concerned expressions on their faces.
Harry looked up at the scoreboard and found that he had 40 points.
"So, I'm tied with Krum?" Harry asked and Hermione nodded.
"Yeah - they took points away from you because of your wound - you're not meant to get hurt," Hermione explained, causing Ron to shake his head.
"Amazing how they think you can face a dragon and get away unscathed," Ron told them.
"What happened with the others?" Harry asked.
"Cedric turned a stone into a dog to distract the dragon's attention. It worked, but the dragon got bored and shot a stream of flame at him, so he got singed a little bit," Ron told them.
"Fleur tried doing the veela dance - it made her dragon sleepy. It worked for a little while until the dragon snapped out of it and singed the bottom of her robes," Hermione explained and Mia rolled her eyes.
"Krum shot a spell at the dragon's eyes and caused it to howl in pain before stomping over the eggs - he got a majority of points taken away because you're not supposed to let the other eggs be damaged," Mia explained and Harry nodded.
Harry, Hermione, Ron and Mia made it to the common room before Ron asked Harry the question that has been burning in his mind.
"What did you to do the dragon?" Ron asked curiously and Harry sighed.
"I made a legilimency connection with her because we're fire related - let me tell you, it damn well nearly gave me a headache," Harry told them.
Ron had found out about them being elementals after Mia had saved Harry in their third year. He was shocked at first before he accepted it and encouraged them to use their abilities whenever it came up in practice.
Hermione had done research and found out that Ron was an encourager - meaning that he was to bond with one of the elementals to help them grow to their full potential.
Mia had made a connection with him and found that he was to bond with the element spirit because Ron could see things that other people missed and because he was a strategies, meaning that he was able to look at something and plot out a plan to get the result they needed - meaning he would work with elementals.
Harry and Hermione found out that they were each other encourager - Hermione to Harry because she was water, meaning she was able to keep his temper down and concentrate properly on what he need to do.
Harry to Hermione because he was the flame of passion - they both had blushed when they found out about that, much to Ron and Mia's amusement. It meant that Harry sparked a passion in Hermione to do whatever she wanted to do - for example, studying. Harry would encourage her with it and she would find herself completing a book with an hour.
"So you made a connection with the dragon and told her to go back to her nest because she had left it unprotected?" Hermione asked and Harry nodded.
"Yes - it was obvious that she wasn't going to let me go until one of us was dead and I didn't want to kill her. I couldn't lead her back to the nest the way she was because all the spectators were there, so I told her to go back and protect her eggs and to leave me alone," Harry explained, finishing off his tale.
After Hermione gave the Fat Lady the password and they all stepped in only to stumble when a loud cheer arose at their entrance and startled them all.
Harry looked around and found that all the Gryffindors were standing around the room with assortments of treats and drinks that the twins had brought up for a celebration. He grinned at their support.
"Happy and excited are you?" Harry teased them as a warm feeling crossed over his body. Gryffindor was the only house that had believed Harry when he said he hadn't put his name in the Goblet of Fire. The twins, Dean, Seamus and Neville had made it clear that they backed Harry because he wouldn't have placed his name in the Goblet of Fire.
The others had agreed with them because they had gotten to know Harry from the time they spent in the common room.
"You did it!" Dean exclaimed as he patted Harry's back. The twins yanked Harry to the middle of the group, leaving Mia rolling her eyes.
"Sure, they get to take our brother away from us," she muttered in a teasing way, causing Hermione to stifle a laugher as they all mingled with the other students.
Soon, everyone was chanting about listening to the egg and Harry grinned as he held up the golden egg.
"So, you really want to hear it?" Harry asked and the whole of Gryffindor shouted, "YES!" Harry laughed as he opened the egg and a horrible screeching noise emitted from it, causing everyone to cover their ears.
"Close it!" everyone screamed and Harry hurried to close the egg, cutting the noise off, much to everyone's relief.
"What the hell was that?" Seamus demanded and Dean shook his head.
"The next task - that's what," Dean informed them before Harry frowned.
"What on earth would I have to fight in the next task that sounds like that?" Harry asked.
"Who knows," Mia muttered under her breath as she racked her brain, trying to figure out if they had researched creatures that made those kinds of sounds. But she wasn't coming up with anything at all.
"Let's go to bed," Ron suggested. "We're all pretty worn out from today's excitement. Maybe we'll have a better idea of what the next task is tomorrow," Ron told them and got nods in agreement in return.
"Guys, can you carry the first years up to their beds - we'll do the same for the girls," Hermione asked them. They nodded and the fourth years each picked up a student and carried them up to their beds before they went to bed themselves. Each of them was out the moment their head hit the pillow.
TBC
About Ron knowing - Don't worry too much about it - it will be explained later in the story in a flashback - it was needed in this chapter.