PhoenixSong.net :: A Harry/Ginny Fanfic and Fanart Archive

Author: Grandma Kate

Story: Ginny's Third Year at Hogwarts

Part: 9:The Terrible Third Task-June 24

Rating: Everyone

Setting: Pre-OotP

Status: Completed

Reviews: 7

Words: 3,164

Updated: March 8, 2008, 2:04pm

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9:The Terrible Third Task-June 24

The Harry Potter Universe belongs to J.K. Rowling. I’m just borrowing the characters for a while. This is for pleasure only, no profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Bold Face Type indicates a direct quote from Chapter Thirty-one, The Third Task, in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling.

June 24^th dawned bright and clear. Molly made Bill’s favorite breakfast of sausages and eggs, toast with orange marmalade, and a mug of extra strong Wake Up Wizard coffee. She and Arthur knew better than to ask what Bill had brought from Egypt to be one of the obstacles in the maze so they spoke of everything else besides what was on their minds.

‘Do you think you’ll get a chance to find out what is bothering Fred and George while you are at Hogwarts?’ asked Molly.

‘I hope to,’ said Bill, enjoying his breakfast. ‘No one makes sausages like you do, Mum!’

Molly smiled at the compliment. ‘Your brother Percy doesn’t seem to agree with you. He’s hardly home at all and is so cranky that he doesn’t enjoy my cooking any more.’

Molly looked so downcast that Arthur patted her hand and said, ‘Percy’s going through a rough patch. He feels responsible for everything that Mr Crouch wants done. It’s been a big responsibility.’

‘I know,’ said Molly brightly. ‘I hope that everything will go back to normal when the Third Task is completed. Percy will be able to relax then.’

Bill and Arthur looked at each other and shook their heads. Arthur glanced at the morning paper and immediately hid it under the table so Molly would not see the picture of Harry on the front page, nor the banner headline- HARRY POTTER ‘DISTURBED AND DANGEROUS’. Bill looked at him quizzically.

‘I’ll try my best to get to the Third Task tonight. I’ll send an owl if it looks like I will be very delayed.’ Arthur tucked the copy of The Daily Prophet inside his robes and walked to the fireplace. ‘Take care of your mother if I don’t make it.’

‘I’ll take care of Mum,’ Bill assured him. ‘We want everything to go well today.’

Arthur kissed Molly and threw the Floo powder into the fireplace. She started the dishes washing themselves and went upstairs to put on the striped dress she had bought in Egypt and some sensible shoes. She carried a large cloak.

Molly and Bill Apparated to Hogsmeade and walked the familiar path up to the castle, both exclaiming about what had changed. Professor McGonagall greeted them in the Entrance Hall and led them to the chamber just off the Great Hall. Corrine and Amos were already there, talking to their son. Bill pointed out Victor Krum in a corner, conversing with his dark-haired mother and father in rapid Bulgarian. Then he noticed the most beautiful blonde-haired girl he had ever seen on the other side of the room. She was speaking French to an older woman who must be her mother. A younger girl was holding the older woman’s hand. Before he could comment on them, Harry entered the room.

‘Surprise!’ Molly said excitedly as he smiled broadly and walked over to them. ‘Thought we’d come and watch you, Harry!’ She bent down and kissed him on the cheek.

‘You all right?’ said Bill, grinning at Harry and shaking his hand. ‘Charlie wanted to come, but he couldn’t get time off. He said you were incredible against the Horntail.’

‘This is really nice of you,’ Harry muttered… ‘I thought for a moment- the Dursleys-‘

‘Hum,’ said Molly, pursing her lips. She had always refrained from criticizing the Dursleys in front of Harry, but her eyes flashed every time they were mentioned.

‘It’s great being back here,’ said Bill, looking around the chamber… His eyes lingered on the blonde trio in the corner of the room. His eyes met the startlingly blue eyes of the girl who must be the Champion of Beauxbaton. She smiled at him and Bill felt his mother’s eyes looking back and forth between them.

How long has it been since you were at Hogwarts, Bill?’ asked Molly. “Were you last here when Charlie’s team won the Quidditch Cup/’

Bill nodded, his eyes still on the girl in the corner. ‘Haven’t seen this place for five years. Is that picture of the mad knight still around? Sir Cadogan?’

‘Oh yeah,’ said Harry…

‘And the Fat Lady?’ said Bill.

‘She was here in my time, said his mother. ‘She gave me such a telling off one night when I got back to the dormitory at four in the morning-‘

‘What were you doing out of your dormitory at four in the morning?’ said Bill, surveying his mother with amazement.

Molly grinned, her eyes twinkling. ‘Your father and I had been for a nighttime stroll,’ she said. ‘He got caught by Apollyon Pringle- he was the caretaker in those days- your father’s still got the marks.’

‘Fancy giving us a tour, Harry?’ said Bill. He glanced again at the beautiful blonde-haired girl and was pleased to see that she was still smiling appreciatively at him. Molly looked back and forth between them again as she and Bill followed Harry toward the doorway.

Amos Diggory stopped them as they were leaving and said some unkind things about Harry and tried to get his son to back him up. Cedric looked apologetic and whispered apologies to Harry. Amos mentioned Rita Skeeter’s article in the morning newspaper.

‘Rita Skeeter goes out of her way to cause trouble, Amos!’ Molly said angrily. ‘I would have thought you’d know that, working at the Ministry.’

Amos looked like he was going to answer Molly but Corrine laid her hand on his arm and he remained silent. His son shrugged at Harry, looking embarrassed about his father’s ill temper. Harry smiled back at him.

Molly, Bill, and Harry walked all over the Hogwarts grounds. They ran into Fred and George, who said that they wanted to ask Bill about something. Bill told them he’d have time later in the day.

“How’s Percy?’ Harry asked as they walked around the greenhouses.

‘Not good,’ said Bill.

‘He’s very upset,’ said Molly, lowering her voice and glancing around. ‘The Ministry wants to keep Mr Crouch’s disappearance quiet, but Percy’s been hauled in for questioning about the instructions Mr Crouch has been sending in. They seem to think there’s a chance they weren’t genuinely written by him. Percy’s been under a lot of strain. They’re not letting him fill in for Mr Crouch as the fifth judge tonight. Cornelius Fudge is going to do it.’

They ate lunch with Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George. Molly asked how they were doing on their end of year exams but seemed determined to make Harry feel relaxed and as though he were a family member. Hermione turned up halfway through lunch and was greeted quite stiffly by Molly. She looked upset at the cold reception.

Harry looked between them, then said, ‘Mrs Weasley, you didn’t believe the rubbish Rita Skeeter wrote in Witch Weekly, did you? Because Hermione is not my girlfriend.’

‘Oh! … No- of course I didn’t!’ But she became considerably warmer toward Hermione, after that.

Harry and the rest of the Weasleys spent the afternoon walking around the castle and arrived in the Great Hall in plenty of time for the early dinner. An owl arrived from Arthur just as they finished. Molly opened it and read it aloud,

Dear Molly and children,

I wish that I could be there with you for the Third Task but the chances do not look good at all. I may have to be in Wales until this is sorted out. The dustbin lids are no longer playing ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’ but unfortunately have started to play ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’. The Muggle Pleeze-men have started singing along so I think it will be a long night. I will go to the Burrow as soon as I am finished here.

Good Luck Harry!

Love to you all,
Dad
P.S. Bill, take care of your mother.

Just as Molly finished reading the letter, Professor Dumbledore asked the Champions to step forward. They followed Ludo Bagman out to applause.

Molly gathered her children and Hermione around her and started walking toward the stands around the Quidditch Pitch. The maze shrubbery was twenty feet high. They found the front row seats reserved for them and settled in. Amos and Corrine Diggory were nearby and Molly smiled and waved at them. Corrine waved back and then poked Amos with her elbow so that he raised his hand in a salute. The family of the Bulgarian Champion and some Durmstrang students were seated farther down in the front row. The French woman and child were sitting quite close to the Weasleys along with some Beauxbaton students. Molly nodded to each family.

Ludo Bagman was announcing again. He said that Harry Potter and Cedric Diggory were to enter first, followed by Victor Krum and Fleur Delacour. Molly noticed that Bill repeated the name of the blonde girl. She quickly turned her attention to the scene spread out in front of her. Ludo blew a whistle and Harry and Ceddie entered together. Victor entered at the next whistle blast. Finally, Fleur was allowed to enter.

It was very hard to figure out what was going on inside the maze. Occasionally, bursts of light would glow from within and they would hear shouts but it was impossible to see what was happening from the outside. Molly wondered why the maze designer hadn’t cast a spell that would reveal what was happening to the observers but not to the contestants. She often thought that she would arrange contests differently.

After dusk, the sky grew darker and darker. Bill started telling Fred and George that he had brought a portion of the obstacles to be overcome from Egypt but that it was not anything too dangerous. He explained that it was just something each contestant must get by before he or she could reach the prize. He said it was one of the last problems that each of them had to solve. Ginny, Ron, and Hermione were listening with interest, when

suddenly a stream of red sparks shot straight up from within the maze and hovered in the air.

Molly and her children were so close that they saw the teachers who were on patrol head in to rescue one of the contestants. Professor McGonagall came out levitating Fleur Delacour. Her family rushed to her side as Madame Pomfrey began to revive her. Bill watched them keenly until she sat up and embraced her family. They wrapped her in a blanket but she did not have to go to the hospital wing.

Hagrid emerged from the maze. Then Professor Flitwick came out with an unconscious Victor Krum floating behind him. Madame Pomfrey attempted to revive him but finally turned to Professor Flitwick and said that he needed to be taken to the Spell Damage Ward at St Mungo’s. Professor Flitwick gave Portkeys to his parents so they could go with him and their son. The four of them vanished.

Screams came from within the maze. Molly was quite sure that she heard Harry and Ceddie shouting, ‘ Stupefy! Impedimenta! Stupefy!’ It was quiet for a short time. Then Cedric yelled, ’Stupefy!’ And Harry shouted, ‘Expelliarmus!’ Then they both yelled, ‘Stupefy!’ in unison. A silence fell. Molly fancied that she could still hear voices but could not make out what they were saying. She and the children stood up and huddled together. Amos put his arm around Corrine who looked to Molly as if she had gone into shock.

Harry’s voice echoed. ‘On three, right? One- Two-Three-‘

Then there was complete silence. No sounds came from within the maze. Professor McGonagall followed Professor Dumbledore and Hagrid into it, calling, “Professor Moody. Where are you? What’s happening?’ Everyone waited to see what would happen next. Here and there a girl began to sob.

After a few minutes, Dumbledore, McGonagall, Moody, and Hagrid came out and spoke to Ludo Bagman. He looked startled as he held his wand to his throat and said, ‘Sonorous!’ His voice was strangely high-pitched as he announced, ‘Professor Dumbledore has informed me that there is no one in the maze. Cedric Diggory and Harry Potter have disappeared with the Triwizard Tournament Cup. Perhaps this is some sort of prank, but it is not funny at all.’

Ginny leaned in to her mother and shivered. ‘What does he mean- Ceddie and Harry are not in the maze? We saw them go in.’

Molly patted her on the back and said, ‘Don’t worry. Professor Dumbledore will get to the bottom of this. I hope they don’t blame Percy for whatever went wrong.’

“I’m going to see if they will let me check with what I brought and ask her if she saw anything,’ said Bill. He walked toward Professor Dumbledore and Ludo Bagman and began to speak earnestly to them. They called Hagrid over and the four of them seemed to be deciding what to do. Professor Moody joined the group and seemed to be arguing against doing anything.

Finally, Molly watched Bill and Hagrid disappear into the maze. They came back out in just a short time and reported back to a group that now included all of the judges as well as Ludo Bagman and Professor Dumbledore. Bill returned to Molly and said, ‘the Sphinx told me that Harry and Cedric were almost to the cup the last time she saw them. Harry had solved the riddle.’

‘But what happened to them?’ asked Molly in a puzzled voice. ‘How could they have just disappeared?’

Molly went over to Corrine and Amos to tell them what Bill had said about Cedric and Harry being near the cup. ‘I’m sure they will be back soon and they’ll have a good laugh at our expense.’

Amos looked angry and said, ‘this is no laughing matter. It must have been Harry’s harebrained scheme. Ced would know we’d be worried.’ Corrine just stared blankly at him.

Molly returned to her family and started fussing that Ginny was not bundled up warmly enough. She held out her arm and wrapped it around her daughter under her own cloak. ‘Merlin, child, you are freezing,’ she said and began rubbing Ginny’s hands with her own.

‘I’m so frightened that something bad has happened to Harry and Ceddie,’ Ginny said in an anxious manner.

‘Fred and George, as soon as those boys show up, I want you to take your little sister down to the kitchen and get her some hot chocolate.’

‘Yes Mum,’ said the twins in unison. “We’ll take care of little Ginnikins.’

Ginny glowered at them.

Molly looked around for Bill and realized that he had gone over to the Delacour family and was talking to the younger daughter while Fleur and her mother smiled at the sight of the tall red-haired man leaning down to hear what the small fair girl was saying.

Suddenly, there was a thump, followed by shrieks. Professor Dumbledore picked up his robe and ran to the grass next to the maze. He seized Harry roughly and turned him over.

‘Harry! Harry!’

Albus Dumbledore was crouched over Harry, The dark shadows of a crowd of people pressed in around…

Molly could barely see Harry. He was holding a large cup and clutching Ceddie. He was telling Professor Dumbledore something when Cornelius Fudge pushed his way through to them.

‘What’s going on? What’s happened?’ The Minister of Magic bent low and looked at Harry and Ceddie. ‘My God- Diggory!’ he whispered. ‘Dumbledore- he’s dead!’

Molly felt like she was going to be sick as a hundred voices repeated, ‘He’s dead!’… ‘Cedric Diggory! Dead!’

With Ginny still under her cloak, Molly went to where Corrine and Amos had been. Amos was gone. Corrine was crying. Molly wrapped her in her cloak with the arm that was not holding Ginny. ‘I am so sorry for your loss,’ she repeated over and over as she rubbed the back of her old friend. ‘He was growing into such a fine man.’

As they stood there, all three of them crying, they heard Professor Dumbledore’s voice saying, ‘Harry, you can’t help him now. It’s over. Let go.’

They were close enough to just barely hear Harry’s response. ‘He wanted me to bring him back to his parents.’

Molly hugged Corrine tighter. ‘Harry brought him back to you. But where have they been?’

All around them, there was confusion. Many girls were crying. Fred and George came and asked if they should take Ginny to the kitchen and Molly agreed. ‘Take her straight up to the Gryffindor common room after she’s warmed up. There is nothing any of us can do here.’

Molly and Corrine walked together to where Amos was sitting on the grass, cradling Ceddie’s body. He was crying and moaning, ‘Cedric, my only son. Why has this happened to him? Why has this happened to us?’

Corrine sat on the grass next to him and Molly sat next to her. They cried and comforted each other until Madame Pomfrey and Professor Sprout came to ask if they wanted them to help clean up Cedric’s body. The four women and Amos moved Cedric to the room off the Great Hall where the champions had met with their families. Professor Sprout Summoned the dress robes he had worn to the Yule Ball. They did cleaning charms and then dressed him and arranged him on a table. He looked like he was sleeping. Professor Flitwick came in quietly and gave his condolences to the Diggorys and asked if they would mind if Cho Chang came to pay her respects to them and to say good-bye to Cedric. Corrine agreed immediately and she and Cho stood hand in hand next to Cedric’s body for about a quarter of an hour, both crying while they talked softly.

Molly asked Professor Flitwick about Victor Krum and was pleased when he said that his spell damage could be repaired. Professor Sprout returned with four of Cedric’s housemates and two goblets of Dreamless Sleep Potion for Amos and Corrine. She said that Hannah, Susan, Ernie, and Justin would stand as an honor guard while she took them to a guest room near the Hufflepuff common room. Molly hugged Corrine and asked if she wanted her to go with them but she said that Molly should go and check on her own children. She and Amos left with Professor Sprout.

Molly stood for a few minutes watching the four solemn Hufflepuffs. She thought of Ceddie and her own children playing together when they were young. Then she decided it was time to go to the Gryffindor common room and hug each child that she could find now. Then she would go and check on Harry.

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