September and October passed quickly at Hogwarts. The excitement for the upcoming Triwizard Tournament, as well as the anticipation of their foreign visitors. The sadness involving the lack of Quidditch for the year had dissolved once people began discussing what previous Tri-Wizard tournaments had done, a move that Harry had orchestrated the Sphinx Club to do after hearing the complaints from both his roommates, and his exceedingly distraught girlfriend Susan. Now the moans of the lack of games were filled with excited guessing on what this year's tasks may be. Fred and George Weasley had begun to take up bets on what each task would be, and said that once the events themselves were underway, they would also be managing a betting pool on the tournament as a whole. Harry thought that was bizarre, but thought little of it. He was simply happy to be able to experience such an exciting event, and hoped that perhaps Hogwarts would provide a safer environment for the tasks than previous events had.
October 30th saw the arrival of the students who were coming from the other schools, and the student body was huddled outside in the brisk autumn air waiting to catch a glimpse of the approaching student body.
"Up in the sky! Look!" Came the voice of Ginny Weasley, who was standing with the Sphinx Club as they awaited the delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. Following Ginny's direction, Harry squinted and was capable of making out a small dot in the sky that appeared to be growing larger.
"Good spot Ginny." Harry said, surprised at her prowess. Ginny had made the Gryffindor Quidditch team last year as its new seeker, a position that required her to spot small objects from great distances. It also required great technical flying skill, something Ginny had in spades. He wouldn't be surprised if the other seekers from the house Quidditch teams had been hoping for similar chances to show off, given their lack of competition this year. Harry imagined Ginny spotting it was driving Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw seeker mental.
The aerial speck grew larger and larger until its shape had fully revealed itself. It was a large carriage, being pulled by winged horses Harry knew were called Abraxans. Hagrid would be thrilled if he was allowed to help take care of those creatures while they were here. Harry hoped they would let him, aside from his excitement around any magical creature, Hagrid was an expert in their care, and was notably the only beastmaster in all of Europe to maintain a flock of Thestrals, which were carnivorous cousins of the Abraxan.
The carriage landed with what seemed to be little grace, as while the Abraxans set down on the ground in smooth motions, the carriage that they pulled seemed to bounce and turn uncontrollably. This seemed to bother the passengers little though, as when the first person emerged from the vehicle, she did not stumble or fetter, and walked with grace and diligence. At first, Harry thought she was a normal sized woman, but as Hagrid and Dumbledore walked over to meet her, it was apparent that the woman was far from average. Until this day, Hagrid had been the tallest person Harry could have ever imagined seeing, giving even the troll from his first year a run for his money in the height department. This woman however stood nearly two heads taller than Hagrid, making Dumbledore look like a bearded child in comparison.
The three adults spoke for a few moments, the pair of men bowing to the woman, who curtseyed in return. After a few minutes, another commotion occurred as several people saw something stirring in the lake. Without much warning, a massive Man O' War emerged from the waves, water streaming off its deck. The ship bobbed in the water for a few moments, before it turned and began making a short trip to shore. The ship seemed decrepit and skeletal, more like a recovered wreck than any properly constructed vessel, and it's dark colors and black as night sails gave it a foreboding appearance that gave the appearance as though it was here for war.
Shortly after arriving to the dock, Dumbledore and Snape arrived to meet the emissary who stepped off the ship. He was a dark man, dressed in many furs, although Harry could not see much more than this. He and Snape seemed of a kind though, with their dark hair and robes complimenting each other in a way that Harry thought was likely bad news. Dumbledore's purple robes and white beard seemed wildly out of place next to them, and gave Harry a small chuckle.
"Those must be the headmasters of the other schools then." Hermione said after a moment. "I imagine we'll be granted formal introductions at dinner."
"Likely, traveling like that must be exciting though, wouldn't you think?" Susan said, her hand holding on to Harry's for warmth. Susan hated the cold, and while it wasn't quite winter in Scotland, it was certainly far from summer.
"Probably just as exciting as a broomstick or a magic carpet." Padma said. "Long travel on carpets is done occasionally back home, they can be very fun, and I think are far more comfortable than a broom."
"I wonder if you can see underwater in the ship? It would be very fun to look for sea creatures in one if you can. Hermione, didn't you say muggles had such a vehicle?" Luna asked, rocking back and forth on her heels as she stood in the october air in her normal robes. While Susan couldn't stand the cold, Luna seemed entirely unphased.
"Yes, we have vehicles called submarines, they were mostly developed for wartime use, but several have been used for aquatic research. They can go remarkably deep, but pressure underwater still gets too high for them, so they've never reached the deepest parts of the ocean, although some living creatures do survive down there. One of those creatures is supposedly the Giant Squid like the one we have living in the lake. How this one survives in such low pressure and in fresh water is beyond me." Hermione said, rattling off a few additional facts.
"It's a magic lake with magic fish?" Harry offered, and Hermione huffed.
"Magic has rules Harry!" Hermione scolded, causing a round of laughter among the gathered group.
That evening, the students had been told to arrive early for dinner, and they were to be sat at their tables as though it were the Halloween feast. This was a tad unorthodox, but Harry imagined the entire situation with the Triwizard tournament was unorthodox, so thought little of it. Dumbledore stood at the podium where he typically gave his speeches and quieted the student talk before beginning. "Thank you, now I would like to introduce our new guests who will be joining us for the year, and then after they have filed in, I will make a few announcements. Firstly, let us welcome our neighbor from across the channel, Beauxbatons Academy of Magic!"
With this, the door to the great hall flew open, with small groups of butterflies spewing forth. Following it were many well dressed students, all in robin egg blue robes, adorned with a symbol that Harry caught a quick glimpse of. It was two wands crossed, with three stars emerging from one of the wands. The students walked with a certain pre-rehearsed skip, that seemed to speak of elegance and poise, not too dissimilar from a ballet. Harry was quite happy to see Fleur amongst the group that were there, and he hoped to have the chance to speak with her later. Following behind them though was the large woman from before, to whom the oversized doors of the Great Hall seemed almost normal, she curtseyed to each side of the room, before walking down the center corridor to stand beside Dumbledore. "A lovely performance Beauxbatons. Please allow me to introduce the Headmistress of Beauxbatons, a witch of formidable strength and knowledge, who I am pleased to call a longtime friend, Madame Olympe Maxine." Said woman provided another curtsey, before Dumbledore continued. "For the duration of your stay here at Hogwarts, Beauxbatons shall be seated alongside the students of the Ravenclaw house for meals we have together. Next I believe a similar performance from the students of Durmstrang!"
With those words, the doors to the Great Hall opened again, with many students in furred uniforms appearing marching in unison. They sang a cadence that Harry didn't understand, but it sounded sorrowful before they came to a halt on either side of the large central path in front of Dumbledore. From there one student called out commands that had all of them raised their wands, and another that had them shoot a small hail of sparks. Under these sparks, the dark haired man Harry had seen before walked with purpose to the podium, where he shook hand with Dumbledore and bowed to the students. "Wonderful! Thank you Durmstrang for the demonstration. Please allow me to introduce Igor Karkaroff, the headmaster of Durmstrang Institute. Students of Durmstrang, please take your places at the Slytherin table, where you will be seated during our collective meal times." The Durmstrang students took their seats.
"Now then. As you all have been informed, this year we are reinstating the Triwizard tournament! One competitor from each of our schools will be selected to compete in the three tasks that make up the tournament, and the victor will receive a wondrous prize. Not only will they received the Triwizard Cup, a marvelous Goblin constructed trophy, but also a one thousand galleon cash prize. We have the Ministry of Magic's Department of Magical Games and Sports, as well as the assistance of the Department of International Magical Cooperation to thank for allowing this event to occur after such a long hiatus. Now, for the selection of said champions, I present: the Goblet of Fire."
Suddenly, a large 3 meter tall goblet appeared beside Dumbledore, its open top bellowing in blue flame that seemed to roar and dim at various intervals. "This is a magical artifact that we will use to select the contestants. Applicants will write their name and school on a piece of parchment, and place the piece within the flames of the goblet. Be warned, the Triwizard Tournament tasks are not something to take lightly, many have faced death in the past in these games, and while we intend for this year to be safer than those that came before, there is still significant risk involved. Placing your name in the goblet also invokes a binding magical contract, one you are beholden to completing if you are selected. This means you must compete with all your heart in the three tasks set out before you. As a safety measure, only those above the age of wizarding majority, or those who will be so by the beginning of the first task in November will be eligible to compete. As such, I will be drawing an age line around the Goblet before names can be put in. Eternal glory and prizes can be yours if you are eligible and wish to partake. You have from dawn to dusk tomorrow to place your names in the Goblet, and the Champions will be chosen at the feast tomorrow night. Now, please do tuck-in."
Dinner appeared before the students, and Harry let out a sigh of relief that he hadn't realized he'd been holding in. "What's wrong Harry?" Padma asked, hearing the exhalation.
"Honestly, I was worried that I might feel the need to compete. If you have to be 17, then there is no worry about me feeling obligated, I don't qualify." Harry said, taking a sip of the pumpkin juice that sat before him.
"Why would you feel obligated?" Hermione asked, her gaze on her boyfriend from across the table.
"Well, I… enjoy competition. I like winning my dueling tournaments, and I like winning when we play quidditch and other games. I like to think I'm not a sore winner or loser either, but the thrill of competition is something that guides me. This… well this is likely one of the biggest competitions possible for me, even more so than the Dueling tournaments if I don't decide to go professional in those. A chance for me to carve out my own name as Harry Potter, Triwizard Champion, as opposed to Harry Potter, boy who accidentally defeated Voldemort." Harry said. "I just… it'd be nice for something I did to be the thing I could be remembered for, not something that just happened to me."
"So what about Harry Potter, the boy who saved the Know-It-All from the Troll when he was only 11?" Hermione asked.
"Harry Potter, the boy who saved the whole school from a Basilisk when he was 12?" Padma asked.
"Harry Potter, the boy who fought off a hundred Dementors to save me when he was 13?" Luna asked.
"Alright, you've proven your point." Harry said, a small smile on his face. "Maybe I've done some cool things, but I dunno, maybe someone expects me to top them."
"Harry, love, after killing a Basilisk I'm not sure there IS much you can do to top that." Padma said, kissing him on the cheek. "I'd rather not like to see you try either."
"Yeah, short of fighting off a dragon or a Nundu, I believe you have reached the pinnacle of magical creatures." Hermione said. "And do not take that as a challenge Mr. Potter, I will hex you."
"Noted, noted." Harry said, smiling as he took a bit of a bread roll that came with his meal.
"Do you think it's odd that we keep getting put into situations where we need Harry to save us?" Luna asked.
"I think it is for the best if we don't open that can of worms as it were. If Harry got it into his head that we were in danger because we were close to him, he might do something asinine like try and push us away." Hermione said. "We are not leaving Harry, you can get any thoughts of that out of that head of yours."
"Yes dear." Harry said, in a faux defeated voice. A round of chuckles followed.