A Little Bit of Love and Laughter

It seemed like an eternity had passed since that night at the Yule Ball. In Potions class, Severus could no longer maintain eye contact with me and had, surprisingly enough, started taking out his anger through the humiliation of the other sixth years. Though this made me feel the slightest bit more powerful, I did not use it to my advantage. Instead, I remained quiet at all times while in the dungeons and focused solely on the classwork at hand. I gave him no reason whatsoever to reprimand me.

I had not been paying much attention to the Triwizard Tournament events, as sports had never been my specialty. I had nearly fallen asleep during the first task before being shoved by the twins so I could watch as the infamous Harry Potter snatched up his golden egg. The twins had taken bets before the second task, and, assuming that it would be a wise investment, I gambled three Galleons on Potter. The bloke wound up in second when all was said and done, and I wound up out three Galleons.

When the third task finally came about, I was beyond done with this Tournament nonsense. The twins tried to encourage me, once again, to make an impulsive and foolish wager, but I managed to resist.

Nearly the entire school population, plus those of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, was present for the big, finale event. Dumbledore made the announcement that Diggory and Potter, who were both tied for first place, were to be given almost a head-start on the gigantic obstacle course maze that lay ahead of them, and I laughed because it seemed like such school favoritism.

It took the champions nearly ten minutes to enter the bloody maze, and I was beginning to get restless. I lay my head against Fred's shoulder, but he soon jumped with excitement, adding to the nearly deafening roar of the crowd.

"My money's on Cedric," a third-year Hufflepuff girl exclaimed giddily from the row in front of me.

The Gryffindor sitting next to her rolled his eyes. "Are you mad? Harry will win this, no doubt."

Some Slytherins eagerly joined the debate. "Krum'll crush both of them. He's a born champion, he is."

I rolled my eyes and glanced back again at the maze. From the outside, it was unclear as to what could possibly be happening. We couldn't tell who was in the lead or how far off the other competitors were, and I sighed, wondering how much longer it would take until one of them managed to stumble upon the middle and emerge victorious, Triwizard Cup in hand.

Glancing for the seventh time at my bare wrist, I realized how much I missed my muggle watch. It was difficult to keep track of time when each minute that passed seemed like an hour. The crowd had died down, and Fred and George were much less amped up due to the lack of exhilaration. Very little sound – if anything at all – was emitted from the maze, and the masses of people began to get a bit concerned.

Then, out of nowhere, popped out, none other than, Harry Potter and Cedric Diggory, those two who had been fan-favorites to win. The crowd erupted into a congratulatory cry until one-by-one everyone realized that something was not quite right.

"He's back!" Potter shrieked, clinging to Diggory, who lay motionless on the ground. "He's back, and he's killed Cedric."

I felt someone grab my arm and looked up to see Severus.

"Come with me," he commanded, and I struggled for a moment to get out of his grip and go back to Fred, who had lost all colour in his face and stared gravely at the scene below. Severus's grasp became too strong for me to fight against, and he dragged me away from the chaos that was ensuing from the stands.

My luggage was waiting for me near the double doors of the castle. "What’s going on?" I demanded, but he pushed me forward toward the bags.

"Everything is packed," he explained, hurriedly. "I want you to go to the entranceway and meet your mother at the gates."

"Why is my mother—?"

A look of blatant concern mixed with sheer terror flashed in his eyes. "You'll understand soon, Emily. Now, please, go!"

I hesitated for a moment, and he took that time to pull me into his arms, a fatherly act that I would never had anticipated, especially given the gravity of our last conversation. He was shaking, and his grip grew tighter before he released me and ushered me in the direction of the castle gates. "Go now," he ordered sternly, and those were the last words that I ever heard from him.