Chapter 31

FLEUR DELACOUR

Fleur could feel her nerves flaring as she made her way toward the champions' tent. There were rows of stands built around the Black Lake. She had deciphered the clue from the Golden Egg about a month ago and had been preparing for the task ever since.

Her small lead from the first task gave her a bit of leeway, but she knew it did not matter much in the end. Her competition could claw back quite easily.

"Ohh, someone's ready for a swim," came the snark from a very familiar one, immediately easing her heart. She stopped and let Edward catch up, his eyes still over her outfit. Given the nature of the trial, she was wearing swimwear though it was enchanted.

On the other hand, he seemed to be dressed quite casually for the task, he was wearing rather simple clothes, and from the initial look, they weren't enchanted either.

"Well, it's better that you wear that robe above it. Otherwise, they would be missing two contestants for this task," he joked, making her heat up. She pinched his arm, making him jerk up.

"And you seem so casually dressed. It seems as if you have given up," she questioned, a hint of worry in her tone. Though, he simply laughed.

"Ohh, you shouldn't worry about me. I have prepared quite enough for the task," he spoke confidently, making her narrow her eyes.

"We shall see," she added. And just as they reached the face of the tent, he suddenly stopped. Fleur bumped into him.

"Ohh! Edward!" she admonished lightly as she rubbed her nose but found him staring at a specific place in the stands.

"What are you look…" but her words were cut mid-way as she recognized the people he was looking at for right there in the stand were her parents sitting as they cheered her on. Her mother's presence didn't faze Fleur. She often accompanied her to such competitions, yet the presence of her father was a bit of a surprise.

She waved back to her mother and saw Edwardo the same before they entered the tent. The tent was still empty, with only a few Ministry personnel present.

"Well, it seems we are early today," Edward began as he sat on an empty chair. Fleur joined him on a chair by his side.

"Well, it seems your father is here today to cheer you on as well," Edward spoke and Fleur simply nodded, noticing, and were about to speak up when the flaps to the tent were flared open, revealing the form of the Tournament officials and the third competitor.

"Ahh, it seems everyone is here. Now we can finally begin the Second task without further delay," began Ludo Bagman from the Ministry.

Both of them stood up and lined up for the instructions for the task, not noticing the weary look on Drumstrang's headmaster's face.

"Well, for the third task, all three of you are to retrieve one of your most prized people from the Great Lake."

Well, this task just got a lot more complicated

0000

EDWARD WRIGHT

Edward frowned as he looked at the tranquil surface of the Black Lake, waiting for the bell to ring so he could begin the task. As per the marks, Fleur had been given a five-minute headstart for winning the last task. The second task was a task of skill and daring and required one to have good control over their nerves.

For some reason, Edward felt a sense of unease and anxiety, something he attributed to the person he was supposed to rescue. Elizabeth White had been missing conspirationally since the morning, and his guess had been right when he had seen the names of the people on the list.

He clamped down on his nerves seeing the herald speak up once more, 'With Miss Delacour showcasing a perfect Bubble head charm and chant-less magic, will our next contestants be able to catch up? Hogwarts Edward Wright displayed a highly complex piece of magic in the first task. Will he do something similar, and what will be the response of the Quidditch superstar Viktor Krum! We shall find out in ten!'

And the countdown began, and beside him, Krum began to get ready, gearing up for the task. Both of us shared a glance and gave each other a small nod.

'Eight!'

"Best of luck, Viktor," he spoke up, and the Drumstrang champion nodded, giving me a smile as the whole area reverberated with the chants of our name.

'KRUMI! KRUM! KRUM!'

'WRIGHT! WRIGHT! WRIGHT!'

"Best of luck to you as well, and may the best man win," he added with the countdown now at four.

"Well, that just means that I would win," I quipped, and he simply narrowed his eyes at my joke.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," and then there was a loud bang.

'ZERO! YOU MAY NOW BEGIN!'

Krum sprang into action as soon as the words were said, his wand tracing a complex pattern as he muttered the transfiguration spell under his breath. And Edward noticed how his body began to transform into that of a shark, taking on a bluish tinge with gills appearing on his neck.

'AND MR. KRUM DOESN'T DISAPPOINT AS HE TRANSFUGURES HALF HIS BODY INTO THAT OF A SHARK! A VERY DARING UNDERTAKING! HIGHLIGHTING HOW HE IS NOT JUST THE KING OF THE SKIES BUT HAS THE SKILL TO CONQUER THE SEAS AS WELL!'

Well, now Edward couldn't just sit back now, could he? He had thought extensively about how to tackle the task and thought out several solutions. Ultimately, he decided to go an unorthodox route, so he closed his eyes as his wand lit up, his magic responding to his command just as he had expected.

Edward began to step forward just as Krum plunged into the water though his feet did not sink into the water as he began walking on the Black Lake's surface.

'AND WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE? EDWARD WRIGHT MAKES A UNIQUE CHOICE OF SHOWCASING HIS VERSATILITY! HE IS NOW WALKING ON WATER ITSELF, BYPASSING ALL THE OTHER CHALLENGES THE OTHER CHALLENGERS THE OTHER TWO CONTESTANTS MAY FACE!'

Edward smiles as his charm worked just as he had intended allowing him to walk on water. Using a point me spell, he already had a general location of the hostages. He could have faced the merpeople and the other aquatic creatures they might have placed in the river, yet this method was just cleaner.

He continued walking to the lake's center, the water's dark surface not allowing him to see anything underneath. As he reached the center of the lake, he stopped. He was now just about above the hostages.

'AND HE HAS STOPPED! WHAT SHALL HE DO NOW AS HE STANDS ABOVE THE CEN…! AND WAIT, WHAT IS THIS!'

And Edward could hear the stands quiet down as the water began to ripple around him, rising in a swirl as it formed an encompassing sphere around him.

'BRILLIANT! ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT! AND HE DOESN'T DISAPPOINT AS WATER FORMS A CACOON AROUND HIM, PROTECTING HIM AS HE VANISHES INTO THE WAVES!'

The voice died down as the water completely encircled him, and the sphere slowly lowered into the Black Lake. Edward smirked as he saw a couple of Merfolk trying to attack the sphere with their spears and claws, yet the sphere repelled their attacks.

Edward saw them snarl at him as he waved at them from inside the water sphere.

"Bye, bye," he said as he focused his senses in search of his friend. It was time to rescue Elizabeth from this dump, and then he would look into taking care of her little Flint situation.

There was no way that her life would be destroyed, that xenophobic bastard. Never as long as he lived.

0000

SIRIUS BLACK

Sirius watched as Hogwarts champion vanished into the lake, encircled by a sphere of water.

"He could have simply used the bubble head charm," Harry added from his side, and Sirius shook his head at Harry's comment.

"Well, that could have worked, but it would not have been as eye-catching as this," he elaborated, and Harry nodded, processing his words.

"And the theatrics matter in the tournament," Harry added, getting the point.

"Bingo!" Sirius said as he ruffled Harry's unruly hair annoying him by no small amount.

"So, Hermione's down there as well," Harry suddenly asked, and Sirius could hear a hint of jealousy in that tone. James had often had the same tone upon seeing Lily with Snivellus during his time.

"Yes, she is down there in the lake along with your Headgirl and the French girl's sister," Harry nodded, still frowning slightly, as he tried to rework his hair though that would be a failed effort.

"What would happen if they can't reach them in time?" Though McGonagall had given him a sufficient explanation when Sirius had posed a similar question.

"The Ministry has placed a portkey down in the lake. Thirty minutes after the allotted time, the portkey will bring them all back to the grounds," which seemed to be a reasonable solution.

"But Portkeys don't work inside Hogwarts," Harry remarked, and Sirius nodded.

"Normally, they don't, but Dumbledore gave the Ministry special permission to install one this time. As Headmaster, he can probably alter the wards to make an exception like this one," Harry nodded at his explanation focusing once more on the lake.

"It has been some time since the task began. Shouldn't they be coming out by now?" Harry questioned him once more, and Sirius just shrugged. There was still time left for them to make it out. Though, the French girl could have made it out by now.

"Well, the first task wasn't that easy, so there probably are some hurdles and challenges that must have been placed down there as well…." But Sirius stopped suddenly as he saw the lake begin to glow up. Its surface gained a greenish tinge as suddenly a green ray of lightning crashed out of it with a thunderous clap, sending shivers through his spine, for he had seen similar scenes many a times.

"Impossible," he muttered with a shaky voice as darkness began to spread across the Hogwarts' clear skies. Pandemonium broke out among the stands, with most people recognizing the huge symbol of tyranny, now spread across Hogwarts skies.

"It's the dark mark! But how!" Sirius found himself questioning, not noticing how his hand was shaking slightly, and neither giving any attention to the hissing voice that was just barely audible and how Harry's face was turning paler by the second.

Ruckus broke out as some people began to run, only for it to stop when the thunderous voice of the Greatest Wizard of their time spread out with a silvery phoenix erupting from the judges' platform.

"EVERYONE, PLEASE REMAIN CALM!"

Though even after that, the ruckus did not die down, with Sirius getting up and rushing towards the judges' platform, not noticing how his godson was behind him.

The silvery phoenix broke through the accursed green skull and snake symbol, breaking up the darkness, and the sky began to clear up once more. But the pandemonium in the stands indicated that the mark had achieved its purpose.

0000

In the graveyard of little Hangelton, a dozen or so death eaters stood with their wands drawn as six unconscious bodies were tied to the tombstones, their wands taken away from them. In front of the sic kneeled a short, plump man with crooked teeth.

Peter Pettigrew felt liberated as he had enacted his master's plan, setting the stage for his grand return.

"Your orders have been completed, master," Pettigrew spoke to the shadowy figure before him.

'You have done well, my servant. I can feel it. My time to rise approaches once more!'

0000

BOOM! Canon is dead, and now the game is on! Edward and Dumbledore let down their guard for one second, and now they must suffer the consequences.

Pettigrew modified the tournament files when he broke into Ludo's house, and then as he invaded the lake, he set up the whole apparatus to pull this off. Once the Ministry placed the portkey, he just had to corrupt it, and poof.