No one except the students who participated in the Physical Education class could truly understand the terror of fighting against their own classmates.
At a certain stage of their physical education training, they had begun working in small groups to fight against Professor Watson himself.
The battles took place inside Professor Watson's spiritual world. Because their bodies wouldn't actually die or bleed in that space, Professor Watson never showed them any mercy.
Every single student in this class, without exception, had experienced being killed in one strike by Professor Watson's spells.
Over time, through countless deaths and resurrections, this exposure to consequence-free mortality had gradually cultivated in the young wizards a fighting style that showed no mercy when they attacked. They had learned, through brutal repetition, that hesitation meant defeat.
That pulling punches meant lying on the ground while your opponent stood victorious above you.
In the later stages of their training, during the encirclement and counter-encirclement exercises that had consumed the final months of the school year, they had all used ruthless tactics against each other.
Friends had struck down friends without hesitation. Housemates had hunted housemates through the simulated forests and ruins of Professor Watson's spiritual landscapes.
The thought that now appeared in Hermione's mind was this:
If Professor Watson had chosen to use the actual Forbidden Forest as the designated area for encirclement and counter-encirclement trials, if this competition followed the same brutal rules they'd practiced under for months, she was almost completely certain that there would be casualties during the competition.
Another point worth mentioning was that during all their counter-encirclement training sessions in Professor Watson's spiritual world, successful discoveries by the hunted team had occurred only once or twice throughout the entire year.
And even those rare victories had only happened when the hunting party made critical tactical mistakes themselves.
"What do you think, Hermione?" Harry asked, breaking through her spiraling thoughts. He kept rubbing his fingers together nervously. His eyes were wide with anxiety. "Should we wear two layers of competition uniforms? That way we could provide ourselves with more protection, couldn't we? Double the enchantments?"
Having experienced the terrifying despair of the second match beneath the Black Lake's dark waters, Harry had developed a deep appreciation for the competition uniforms Professor Watson had created for the champions.
"These competition uniforms only provide one-time resistance against special magic, Harry," Hermione explained, though her mind was clearly racing through other possibilities even as she spoke.
Her brow furrowed deeply. "The enchantments don't stack or reinforce each other. In most combat situations, the protection they offer is nowhere near as effective as a properly cast Iron Armor Charm."
From the intensity of her furrowed brow and the distant focus of her eyes, Harry knew she was already thinking about how to break through an encirclement if they had to repeat encirclement warfare in the forest.
"Can we use the Summoning Charm?" Ron suddenly asked, his face having gone pale as paper. His voice had a tone of desperate hope. "If we have broomsticks, wouldn't our chances of winning increase greatly?"
Harry's eyes suddenly lit up with the first genuine spark of optimism he'd felt all morning. This was indeed an excellent idea. If he could bring his Firebolt into the Forbidden Forest, no one would be able to catch him!
He could scout from above, spot ambushes, coordinate their movements with a bird's eye view of the battlefield.
"Hermione, is this feasible?" Harry asked urgently. "Could it actually work?"
Ron's suggestion did make Hermione's heart flutter with possibility, a brief moment where she allowed herself to imagine the tactical advantages aerial superiority would provide.
But then reality punched in her face, and she pressed her lips together.
"I think it's extremely unlikely, Harry," Hermione said slowly, working through the logic even as she spoke.
"Consider this—if summoning objects were allowed, we could pack your Invisibility Cloak in a backpack along with potions, additional wands, emergency Portkeys, any number of advantages.
We could use the Summoning Charm to get the entire backpack into the Forbidden Forest once we arrived. With the Invisibility Cloak alone, we'd have an overwhelming advantage. We could move completely undetected, strike from nowhere, disappear before retaliation was possible."
She shook her head firmly. "But Professor Watson knows you have all these things, Harry. He knows exactly what resources each of us possesses, what advantages we might try to leverage. He's been teaching us all year. He couldn't possibly allow such a huge loophole in the competition rules."
The three of them continued discussing tensely, making the most of every precious second of their remaining time. They debated formations, communication signals, emergency fallback positions, and backup plans for a dozen different scenarios.
Meanwhile, Sirius, Remus, Mr. Weasley and the others simply watched the three young wizards' intense pre-competition strategy meeting with fond smiles, maintaining silence so as not to disturb their preparations with well-meaning but distracting commentary.
Five minutes before eight-thirty, Ludo Bagman from the Ministry of Magic appeared in the entrance hall.
Upon seeing him enter, the four House Heads seated at the staff table immediately stood and hurried over to meet him near the doors. They formed a small cluster, heads bent together in conversation.
After several moments of hushed discussion, Professor McGonagall detached from the group and walked toward the Gryffindor table. Simultaneously, Professor Sprout headed for the Hufflepuff table.
"Miss Granger, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley," Professor McGonagall said when she reached them. She looked as though she was barely suppressing tremendous excitement.
For her, seeing Gryffindor's young wizards bravely competing and distinguishing themselves on the field in front of international audiences was among the most joyful experiences.
In this third task, including Neville Longbottom, Gryffindor's young wizards had achieved the highest participation rate of any house.
"You must hurry to the competition grounds immediately," she continued, her voice took on a tone of urgency. "Bryan will explain the specific content and rules of the event a quarter of an hour before the competition officially begins. You don't want to be late!"
Harry, Ron, and Hermione jumped up from their benches with such haste that Ron nearly knocked over his pumpkin juice.
After hastily bidding farewell to Sirius, Remus, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Bill, and Amelia, they practically ran toward the entrance hall. From the Hufflepuff table, they could see Cedric, Neville, and Luna doing the same, moving with equal urgency toward the doors.
"Wait!" But halfway across the Hall, Hermione suddenly grabbed both Harry and Ron by their sleeves, yanking them to a halt with surprising strength. "We need to bring food! This contest might last all day—we have no idea how long we'll be in that forest!"
The three of them, suddenly struck by this eminently practical realization, immediately reversed direction and rushed back to the Gryffindor table, drawing curious and amused looks from their housemates.
"Sorry, Colin, I've really got to take this!" Harry said apologetically as he squeezed past Colin Creevey and his younger brother Dennis. He snatched an entire stack of bread from directly in front of them.
Ron, following Harry's lead, also grabbed several sausages that were glistening with grease and a handful of potato pies from in front of several bewildered first-year students, who watched with wide eyes as their breakfast disappeared.
"Put them in here!" Hermione commanded.
Without a proper bag available, and with no time to run back to Gryffindor Tower to fetch one, she made do with what was available. She roughly used a Severing Charm to cut off a large rectangular piece of the white linen tablecloth, careful to avoid the section that was stained with spilled pumpkin juice.
Then, with a Transfiguration Charm that demonstrated such precise wandwork and clear visualization that it would have greatly impressed even Professor McGonagall, she transformed the tablecloth into a sturdy canvas backpack complete with reinforced shoulder straps and a drawstring closure.
Their improvised actions also inspired Cedric and the others at the Hufflepuff table. Having trained in the same Physical Education class, they knew exactly what kind of long ordeal they were likely facing. They immediately followed suit, creating their own provisions bags with whatever materials were at hand.
Ludo Bagman, watching this entire frantic display of preparation from his position near the staff table, didn't interfere with the two groups of champions' actions. He simply observed their scrambling behavior with a smile, apparently finding their sudden panic amusing.
"Well then," Ludo asked jovially as the six finally approached him, slightly out of breath and filled with their hastily gathered supplies, "are you feeling confident?"
But no one responded to his enthusiastic question. The weight of what they were about to face pressed down too heavily for casual banter.
Meanwhile, the four House Heads and other staff members had begun the process of organizing the hundreds of young wizards filling the Great Hall into orderly lines, preparing to escort them in groups to the competition grounds to watch the event.
The excited chatter of students created a rising noise of anticipation that echoed off the ceiling.
The six competitors followed Ludo Bagman out of the castle and across the grounds toward the boundary between the Forbidden Forest and the open field. The morning sun was warm on their faces, and a light breeze carried the scent of grass and wildflowers. It would have been a beautiful day under any other circumstances.
The magnificent viewing stands had been erected to form a long, sweeping arc facing the forest's edge.
Harry scanned the rapidly filling stands and saw that most of the invited guests including Ministry officials, foreign dignitaries, prominent members of the Wizengamot were already sitting in the premium section behind the main platform.
On the platform itself, elevated above even the VIP section to provide the best possible view, sat Professor Watson and Professor Dumbledore. Beside them were Madame Maxime from Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang's new headmaster, a stern-looking old man with gray hair.
"Due to all the tragic circumstances we're all well aware of," Ludo's voice took on a more somber tone, though he still projected his words with the passionate energy that reminded Harry intensely of when Bagman used to commentate professional Quidditch matches, "there have been some necessary changes in the judging panel for this final task."
He gestured toward the stern newcomer. "Vipor Dreghorn, like Bryan, serves as a vice president of the International Confederation of Wizards. He's also recently assumed the position of Durmstrang's new headmaster, and he's graciously agreed to replace poor Karkaroff as a judge for today's competition. Meanwhile, Madam Amelia Bones has stepped in to replace Barty Crouch Senior in his judging duties."
Ludo paused, then added with attempted humor that fell somewhat flat, "Alas, who would have thought that in this Triwizard Tournament, being a judge would prove more dangerous than being a champion? Life certainly has an ironic sense of humor."
The witty remark hung in the air, but no one could manage even a polite chuckle. The memories of Karkaroff's death and Crouch's mysterious fate were too fresh.
They followed Ludo up the steel stairs that had been erected along the side of the platform. When the six competitors finally appeared on the raised stage, emerging into full view of the crowd, the headmasters and Ministry officials who had been engaged in discussion all stopped talking mid-sentence.
A hush fell over the platform.
Fleur Delacour and Viktor Krum, along with their respective teammates had been standing at the far edge of the platform. Upon seeing Hermione's group arrive, they immediately moved closer.
"I've brought them all, Bryan," Ludo announced cheerfully, gesturing to the young wizards like a showman presenting his main attraction. "Now you can announce the official competition rules to our eager participants!"
Ludo's words made all twelve young wizards, who had been covertly sizing each other up immediately straighten their postures and redirect their attention to Professor Watson's face which wore a warm smile.
"Ah, thank you for your efficiency, Ludo," Bryan said warmly. He rose from his seat, and his purple eyes swept across the competitors. "Now then, everyone please come closer. Gather round so you can all hear clearly."
Bryan beckoned to the twelve children with a welcoming gesture. Dumbledore and Madam Bones, understanding the need for space, stepped back from their positions, creating room for the champions and their teammates to form a semicircle around Bryan.
"The rules are quite straightforward," Bryan began, then turned and pointed to four identical stone doorways that had been located behind the steel pillars supporting the four massive screens.
The doors were ancient-looking, carved from dark granite and inscribed with runes that seemed to shimmer in the morning light.
"After I announce the official start of the competition, each champion will lead their team members through one of these doors. Each doorway has been enchanted to transport you to different, randomly selected areas of the Forbidden Forest."
A tall and thin boy standing beside Viktor immediately began to tremble with uneasiness. His face had gone pale, and he raised his hand tentatively, his voice was shaking slightly when he spoke. "But I heard there are many fierce beasts living in that forest, Professor Watson—"
"Please don't worry," Bryan said with a reassuring smile. "I've personally communicated with the centaur herd living in the Forbidden Forest. Some truly dangerous magical creatures have already been driven to the forest's far edges.
During the competition, the centaurs have agreed to patrol the perimeter continuously, ensuring that particularly dangerous creatures don't accidentally wander into the competition grounds. As for the rest of the forest's inhabitants, they're all things you are capable of handling."
'So at least we won't have to fight the centaurs themselves,' Harry thought with some relief.
Suddenly he saw Professor Watson wave his wand, and four palm-sized objects appeared in the air before them, glowing faintly before falling gently into the waiting hands of Hermione, Cedric, Fleur, and Viktor respectively.
Harry immediately leaned closer to look at what had appeared in Hermione's open palm. He found it was a stone tablet about half an inch thick, roughly the size and shape of a large medallion.
Both sides of the tablet were engraved with the Hogwarts crest, the four house animals surrounding a large letter 'H' rendered in remarkable detail. What Cedric held in his larger hand was identical to Hermione's, another Hogwarts badge that glinted in the sunlight.
Meanwhile, the stone tablets that had fallen into Fleur's and Viktor's hands bore their respective schools' crests instead.
"The competition rules are fairly simple in concept," Bryan said with that mysterious smile, looking at the bewildered young wizards who were turning the tablets over in their hands.
"Each team begins with one of these badges. They've been enchanted to be indestructible. The winning condition for this task is straightforward: obtain as many of these badges as possible by the time the competition ends. Understand?"
Harry nodded slowly, but then immediately shook his head as new questions arose. He glanced at Hermione and found her brown eyes also showed deep confusion.
Then Professor Watson waved his wand again in another motion, and four more objects appeared and fell from the air, floating gently down like falling leaves.
They were roughly the size of a piece of parchment, square-shaped and flat. Their material resembled the blackboards that professors used in classrooms. The surfaces were black in color. Each board was divided into a grid of small squares by crisscrossing transparent green lines.
"These are enchanted maps of the competition area," Bryan explained. "After you enter the Forbidden Forest and the competition officially begins, these maps will activate. Every half hour, they will display the real-time positions of all teams currently in the forest. However, the display will only last for half a minute before disappearing."
————————————
For More Chapters; patreon.com/FicFrenzy