Thunderous applause surged through the Great Hall of Hogwarts Castle as the Headmaster finally announced the candidates from whom a champion would be chosen to represent the school.
Envy showed plainly on many faces, after all, who wouldn't want to be in their place. That said, the cheering far outshone the doubtful looks, and even those hesitant faces joined in before long.
As the Headmaster himself had said, the names were not chosen by just anyone, or rather by no one at all, but by an impartial, enchanted alchemical masterpiece crafted by the most renowned alchemist alive.
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Amid the thundering applause, Harry pushed himself to his feet, a breath slipping free that he had not realized he was holding, while his hands clenched into tight fists and triumph slowly replaced shock.
Beside him, Ron stared in open envy, though it lasted only a heartbeat before he sprang to his feet as well and wrapped Harry in a crushing hug, while on the other side Hermione leaned in as well, murmuring her congratulations as she joined the embrace.
She felt that same fleeting envy Ron did, but it passed almost as soon as it came. Wanting to be chosen was natural, and yet she had long accepted her limits, aware that her magical energy would likely not reach such standard.
Harry, after all, had always stood apart, being the Boy Who Lived and all that, and Jean was no puzzle to her either, because she knew that her friend's strengths also ran along a path entirely different from most.
"Go," Hermione said softly, giving Harry a gentle push and smiling as the applause continued to ripple through the hall.
One by one, the five candidates gathered near Dumbledore, and at a small gesture from the old wizard, they climbed the few steps toward the staff platform, where the stern Professor of Transfiguration and the alchemy professor waited near the curtain, both giving brief nods that urged them forward.
The two professors would oversee the trial for the Hogwarts candidates, just as Dumbledore had said, and with that understanding the group passed through the curtain and into the chamber prepared for them.
Inside, contrary to what they were expecting, the room was empty, and silence lingered, broken only by the quiet echo of their footsteps as the five of them slowed and glanced around.
"Didn't the other schools enter this same place?"
It was the Slytherin seventh year, the oldest among them, who stepped slightly ahead of the others, his gaze sweeping over the bare walls before he voiced the thought plainly.
Before anyone could answer, more footsteps sounded behind them, and both McGonagall and Mavrick emerged through the curtains. Mavrick cast a brief glance to his right and gave a small nod, and with a casual wave of his hand an oval portal edged with crackling orange sparks tore open in the air beside them.
Sunlight poured through the opening, revealing beyond it a wide grassy field dotted with rocks and towering boulders beneath a clear blue sky, a stark contrast to the night they stood in.
"You do not need to concern yourself with the other schools just yet," McGonagall said, already gesturing toward the portal.
Cedric stared openly at the sparking edges, awe plain on his face, before turning toward her. "Professor, can you tell us the specifics of the trial now?"
McGonagall's expression did not change. "You will know soon enough, Mr Diggory." Her hand lifted slightly as she gestured toward the portal. "Now go on, all of you."
The children entered first, stepping through one by one, each casting curious glances at the shimmering edges as they passed, until all five stood upon the uneven grass, the warmth of the sun a sharp contrast to the tension tightening in their chests.
It was immediately apparent they were no longer in Britain, or even anywhere in Europe, judging by the sun blazing directly above them. By all common understanding, even the most skilled mages could not cross such vast distances through Apparition alone, and yet that simple portal had transported them at least halfway across the globe.
It was nothing short of incredible magic, though any sense of wonder was cut short as McGonagall's voice rang out once more from behind, carrying effortlessly across the field. "You are to undergo a trial, and by its outcome, two of you will be chosen to represent Hogwarts as champions."
She did not mince words and went straight to the point, not even bothering to explain so much as where they were.
Mavrick stepped up beside her and continued next. "The rules are simple. The field around you has been arranged beforehand. When I give the signal, you will spread out and take positions wherever you choose. Using agility and magic, and magic alone," his gaze flicked briefly toward the lone redhead at the word magic only, "you are to eliminate everyone else."
Like McGonagall, he also kept it short, outlining only the key points. "You may use any spells and any alchemical tools at your disposal," he continued, unbothered by their very, very puzzled expressions. "Do not worry about harming one another. We are here, and we will intervene if someone can no longer defend themselves."
McGonagall followed smoothly. "This trial is not about teamwork. It has nothing to do with how well you get along, and infact, you are strictly forbidden from teaming up with anyone else."
The more Mavrick and McGonagall explained, the more unsettled they became — instead of clarity, each rule only deepened the unease. This was nothing like what they had expected at all.
Calling it a trial felt almost misleading, because what was being described sounded far closer to something Durmstrang might conduct, barbaric in nature, an all out battle royal where only the last one standing truly mattered.
That said, unsettling as it sounded, it also held a certain excitement. Almost without realizing it, their gazes moved toward one another, no longer classmates but rivals, each expression reflecting a different calculation.
Mavrick's eyes moved across them one by one as he continued.
"If we have to intervene, the student we shield will be disqualified. If you team up, you will both be disqualified. If you lose your wand, you will be disqualified." He let the rules settle before adding, "In the end, the last two standing will be selected as Hogwarts champions."
"If you have questions," McGonagall said firmly, "keep them to yourselves. This trial is meant to test how you respond when faced with the unexpected."
Mavrick nodded once. "You have thirty seconds to prepare. Hide, use invisibility if you can, we don't care. When I give the signal, the trial begins."
Wands were drawn at once, breaths drawn deep, and hearts began to pound until McGonagall's voice cut in again.
"...twenty five seconds."
Harry was the first to move, sprinting to his right without hesitation. Jean followed a heartbeat later, darting toward a massive boulder nearby, while Cedric, Adrian, and Roger split off in three different directions, each claiming their own ground.
Mavrick and McGonagall exchanged brief, approving smiles as they rose smoothly into the air, stopping several meters above the field for a clear view of what was about to unfold.
"Impressive awareness from that little girl," McGonagall remarked.
"She is Charles's student as well. Before Hogwarts, she trained with the X-Men," Mavrick replied, nodding as his eyes flicked to the watch at his wrist. Then, with a subtle spell that carried his voice across the field, he spoke again.
"Begin..."
As soon as the words reached their ears, their grips on their wands tightened. Each of them hid ducked behind a boulder or rocks, staying out of each other's sight, and no spells were immediately fired. At least, none of them seemed overconfident enough to charge in head-on recklessly.
A quarter of a minute passed like that, and only the faint breeze lingered in the air of a tense silence. Harry's eyes darted to his left and right, then lit up as he thought of something and cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself.
"Impressive..." McGonagall remarked quietly from above to Mavrick. "A seamless execution of the invisibility spell. How, I wonder, did he learn that?" She gave Mavrick an inquiring glance as her lips curled into a smile.
"Didn't the Headmaster tell you?"
"What, that you have been conducting dueling practice with my three little cubs for the past three years?"
He let out a quiet chuckle. "Ah, so you did know."
"Nothing in that castle can be hidden from me, young man." McGonagall crossed her arms and puffed out her chest.
"Heh... looks like Potter's found his first target," Mavrick ignored her comment and glanced down, arching a brow toward one direction. The kids might not have been able to see Harry, but Mavrick's and McGonagall's senses were not limited to sight alone.
"Expelliarmus!"
Boom!
A thick red bolt of light blasted seemingly out of nowhere and struck a boulder, and Adrian Pucey scrambled hurriedly to the side, eyes bulging in bewilderment, robes dusted with debris.
"Expelliarmus!"
Another spell fired, this time from the opposite side, just as the Slytherin seventh year had stood up and barely taken a breath. Horror flashed across his face as it struck him squarely, sending him flying, his wand spinning away in the opposite direction before he could even raise it.
Unfortunately for him, that meant he was no longer in the game. It was not Harry who fired the second spell, because when Adrian moved to safety, he exposed himself directly to Cedric, and the pretty boy did not waste a second taking full advantage.
Harry, meanwhile, had already hidden again, invisible behind another boulder, his eyes fixed on the next target. Unfortunately, despite being invisible, his subtle movements were not subtle enough for one certain little redhead.
"Bombarda!"
Damn!
Harry felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end the instant the sound reached his ears, and he instinctively flicked his wand, conjuring a Shield Charm.
Boom! The rocks shattered, his invisibility collapsed, and he was dragged across the field by the force of the blast. To his credit, that split-second reaction casting a Protego did its job, barely, but he was still in the game.
He did not waste time. Trained by Mavrick in movement and dodging under pressure, Harry was already in motion, instinctively evading another disarming spell from the opposite side before slipping behind a boulder.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Spells soon began flying from all directions, meanwhile the first disqualified student was already brought up beside Mavrick and McGonagall to spectate. The boy was clearly in a foul mood, but as he watched the intense exchange below, he had to admit they were at least as skilled as him, if not more.
Another minute passed before Mavrick had to intervene again, dissolving a blasting hex moments before it could blow up the only Ravenclaw's head. He too was removed from the game and brought up to spectate next to Audrey. Now, only three remained: Cedric, Jean, and Harry.
At a glance, it was clear that Harry held an edge over the other two, far more agile and even sharper with his wand. That said, Jean was no slouch either. In fact, had Mavrick not restricted her to magic alone and forbidden the use of her mutant abilities, she would have secured a champion's spot without question.
Cedric, too, deserved credit. Despite not having undergone systematic dueling training, he held his own remarkably well, his reaction speed especially impressive, dodging attacks just in the nick of time. It was obvious that luck alone was not what kept him standing against the two little monsters.
The battlefield quieted briefly as the three took a moment to catch their breath, each hidden among broken stone and debris. It had not been long, barely ten minutes, but all the movement and dodging had their hearts pounding like war drums in their chests.
Three still stood, but only two would earn the spot, and more than adrenaline pounding in their veins, it was the thought of that choice that kept them taut with tension.
Harry returned to his first trick and vanished once more, while Jean chose a more straightforward approach, transfiguring two pieces of rock into mirrors and scouting both her left and right.
Cedric, on the other hand, remained deep in thought until his eyes widened suddenly when a thought struck him. He raised his hand and glanced at his storage ring, then acted without hesitation.
Pulling out his broomstick, he mounted it in one smooth motion and kicked off hard, shooting nearly ninety degrees straight into the air.
"Clever fellow..." McGonagall remarked, a clear note of approval in her eyes.
"Professor, isn't that cheating?" the Slytherin boy beside her asked, puzzled, staring at his former teammate's sudden action. Roger Davies also seemed to share the thought, though he kept silent, staring instead at the Deputy Headmistress for an answer.
"I recall stating quite clearly that any item of alchemy may be used to your advantage, Mr Pucey."
"Remember," Mavrick added, "this trial is not merely about your skills, but about your ability to think. Whether you forgot the instructions, or simply failed to consider what you had available to you, does not matter..."
In fact, both boys now disqualified had their brooms stored in their rings as well, but having failed to think of using them, all they could do now was slump their shoulders in regret.
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Author's Note:
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