Time itself seemed to be behaving more and more strangely. It was as though someone had pressed the fast-forward button, sending it racing ahead at full speed.
In the blink of an eye, it was November 24, the day of the first task.
Over the past few days, Harry and Ron had made up and returned to normal, restoring the trio.
As the "Crouching Dragon and Young Phoenix," Ron and Hermione had spent plenty of time helping Harry practice, making sure he had the ability to get through the first task.
Unlike Harry, who was anxious and practiced every day, Eda continued wandering leisurely around the castle.
Every now and then she even had snowball fights with the twins, enjoying herself immensely.
It wasn't until the evening before the competition that Eda seemed to remember she was also a champion and would have to face a dragon the next day.
Better late than never, so the library finally welcomed Eda's long-overdue return.
On the day of the competition, the students had been buzzing with excitement and nervousness since morning. They argued heatedly over what the first task might be, whether anyone would get hurt, and whether someone might fail to clear the very first challenge.
As Hogwarts' business geniuses, Fred and George immediately opened a betting pool.
Betting on Eda paid one-to-one because she had the highest chance of winning. Betting on Viktor Krum paid one-to-two because Krum was an international Quidditch superstar and had a solid chance as well. Fleur and Harry shared the same odds at one-to-five.
Harry was only in his fourth year, so those odds made sense. But giving Fleur the same odds showed that the twins clearly didn't think very highly of Beauxbatons' champion.
In truth, Fred and George had good reasons for those odds. While Eda spent her days taking it easy, the twins had been anything but idle. They had gone out of their way to befriend students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons.
Getting information out of the Beauxbatons students was easy. Fred and George only had to flatter Hector. Once they got him talking about Fleur, he could ramble on for ages by himself.
The twins were up to their old tricks again. They took advantage of Hector's infatuation and managed to gather plenty of firsthand information about Fleur.
The Durmstrang students were a little harder to deal with. The twins had to disguise themselves as Krum fans in order to fish for information. Fortunately, their efforts paid off, and they managed to learn quite a bit.
That was how they settled on the betting odds. The twins had thought them through very carefully. They weren't made up on a whim.
As soon as betting opened, students who had nowhere else to vent their excitement rushed over. Plenty of people placed bets, but the fewest bet on Eda. Although she looked like the safest choice, everyone seemed to prefer taking a gamble for a bigger payoff. More people actually bet on Fleur to win.
Take a chance. Turn a Shooting Star into a Firebolt and bankrupt the Weasley twins!
Even though Harry's odds were the same as Fleur's, not many people bet on him either, only slightly more than on Eda. Hogwarts' students still hadn't forgiven Harry for becoming the fourth champion.
At noon that day, classes were canceled so the entire school could head down to the dragon enclosure. Of course, the students had no idea what they were about to see.
The champions were summoned early to the tent beside the enclosure. Eda, Fleur, and Krum were already there. Harry was the only one missing.
Fleur Delacour sat on a low wooden stool in the corner, looking nervous. Her beautiful face was pale, and she looked sickly.
Viktor Krum looked even gloomier than usual. He was powerfully built but somehow seemed a bit slow-witted, living up to his nickname of "Mr. Unhappy." Eda genuinely couldn't figure out what had happened to Krum to leave him wearing that expression every single day. How much resentment could one person possibly carry?
Harry arrived last, accompanied by Professor McGonagall. He seemed to have forgotten how to smile. His expression was stiff, as though he'd had one cosmetic procedure too many.
With all four champions present, Ludo Bagman, wearing an old Wasps team uniform, stepped forward to explain the rules.
The first task involved dragons. Each champion would draw lots to determine which dragon they would face. Their objective was to get past the dragon guarding it and retrieve a golden egg.
Just as Ludo Bagman was trying to ease the tense atmosphere inside the tent, the sound of hundreds upon hundreds of footsteps came from outside. Their owners chatted and laughed excitedly as they walked.
People don't all share the same joys and sorrows. Except for Eda, everyone in the tent probably thought the noisy students outside were just a nuisance.
Ludo Bagman untied a purple silk bag and held it out to Fleur Delacour.
"Ladies first."
With trembling hands, the nervous Fleur reached into the bag and pulled out a small, exquisitely crafted dragon model. It was a Welsh Green, with the number two tied around its neck.
Fleur exchanged a glance with Madame Maxime. Her face wore an expression of complete resignation, as though she had no confidence whatsoever in dealing with a dragon.
"Ladies first once again," Ludo Bagman said as he held the bag out to Eda.
Eda reached into the bag and casually pulled out a model. It was a bright red Chinese Fireball, with the number three tied around its neck.
Krum drew number one, the Swedish Short-Snout. His expression didn't change at all when he saw it. He simply found a stool, sat down, and began regulating his breathing.
The last dragon left was the fiercest of the four, the Hungarian Horntail. Harry didn't even get a choice. The youngest champion was left with the most ferocious dragon. A classic protagonist's setup.
After the dragons had been assigned, Ludo Bagman left the tent. He still had to serve as the commentator for the event. The remaining time belonged to the champions, their final chance to prepare.
Not long afterward, Viktor Krum also left the tent and stepped onto the arena to the cheers of the students.
Outside, the crowd screamed... shouted... and gasped in shock. No matter which school Krum represented, the students were cheering for him and worrying about him.
A wizard who had only just come of age was facing a fully grown, ferocious dragon alone. That kind of courage and determination deserved everyone's admiration. No matter the outcome, simply standing before a dragon earned them applause.
Inside the tent, Fleur paced back and forth in circles, muttering continuously in French. It sounded like she was chanting some sort of spell, though Eda couldn't make out the exact words.
Harry was just as nervous. Sitting on his stool, he listened intently, not missing a single sound from outside the tent. He would soon have to face a dragon himself. Whatever was happening to Krum out there could happen to him next.
To Harry and Fleur, time inside the tent crawled by. Outside, however, Krum's task ended quickly. He used the Conjunctivitis Curse on the dragon. It worked well, keeping the dragon too distracted to attack him, but it also caused the dragon to crush many of its own real eggs.
Then Fleur left the tent as well. Only Eda and Harry remained.
Although Fleur held her head high and gripped her wand tightly as she walked out, the trembling of her body gave her away. She was probably even more nervous than Harry.
Harry was carrying an enormous burden. There were plenty of people outside waiting to see him embarrass himself. The same was true for Fleur.
Her striking beauty, outstanding ability, and proud personality had unintentionally made plenty of enemies. There were no shortage of people eager to see her fail.
"Nervous?" Eda asked softly.
Harry stared at the ground and silently nodded.
"I heard from Ron. You've done a ton of practice. Just perform the way you practiced. Besides, you're not getting first place anyway," Eda said with a smile. She didn't sound like she was talking about something that was about to happen. She sounded like she was stating an accomplished fact.
"That's certainly... a unique way of encouraging someone," Harry said with a bitter smile.
"I'm not very good at comforting people. I'm much better at discouraging them," Eda continued. "Besides, you're just a kid. What's with that gloomy smile?"
Eda stood up, walked to the entrance of the tent, and lifted the flap slightly to peek outside.
"Fleur Delacour's task is about to end."
As soon as the words left her mouth, Ludo Bagman announced that Fleur had finished the task successfully and had claimed the golden egg.
Fleur had used a magical spell to put the dragon to sleep, but she didn't seem very proficient with it. The dragon woke up halfway through and burned part of her clothing.
Bagman's voice rang out across the arena once more.
"Next up, representing Hogwarts, Twist!"
Harry suddenly looked up.
"Good luck, Eda."
"Stop worrying about me. Worry about yourself instead," Eda said with a smile. "The moment I decided to enter the Triwizard Tournament, the rest of you were only competing for second place."
...
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