Barnaby might have jumped the gun when he said that Moody could give a better lesson than the previous professors. Oh, he definitely showed practical content and a unique perspective…
But he didn't expect him to show the Unforgivable Curses!
Now, not only were the students aware of their horrors, but everyone also remembered the spells to use them.
"From what Tonks told me about this man, it seems a bit odd that he took this kind of approach for his first class," Sanshi observed while sipping a cup of tea in the cabin.
It was strange that Calcifer wasn't in the fireplace, so much so that Hagrid sometimes forgot to light the fire when making stew, believing it would light itself as usual.
"Moody's always been an eccentric type; he doesn't even drink anything that's not from his personal flask, as far as I understand," Barnaby said, dismissing the oddity, while reviewing a scroll with the names of the dragon species he was going to use for the first task once the champions from each school were selected.
The Goblet of Fire was going to be transported to the school tonight after a brief period for the foreign students to acclimate to Hogwarts, announcing the rules for participation, and he also needed to inform them of the type of scenario or field he needed to prepare for the tasks.
Since the task ultimately involved stealing eggs, he decided that the field would be a large crater, with the "nest" in an elevated area at the center and several rocks scattered around.
That should help the champions avoid getting killed.
"Should I make them a life-saving amulet or something?" Barnaby scratched his head in frustration. Without knowing who the champions were, he couldn't adjust the difficulty appropriately, so he set what he considered suitable for people who had studied up to their sixth year, considering the age restriction imposed this time.
"You're not their nanny," Sanshi reminded him. "And you'd need expensive materials to make them; I don't think the Ministry would be willing to reimburse you."
"I know, but since I'm in charge of these damn tasks, as soon as someone dies…"
It wasn't like he wanted to kill anyone on purpose, but the challenge of the Triwizard Tournament had to be, well, challenging.
"Have you decided which three dragons you'll use?" Sanshi asked as he got up and approached to look at the scroll with curiosity, reading what was written. "Well, the selection is certainly varied."
"Do you think I overdid it?" Barnaby asked his familiar.
Although he couldn't summon too many dragons, his father and the other professors had made it clear that he was strictly forbidden from bringing out types that were too greedy and hard to control like Smaug, too ancient like the dragon Greyoll, or those that caused widespread damage like the Kushala Daora.
So he had to resort to some smaller ones, though in his opinion, that took away from the real fun.
"No, I'd say it's pretty well balanced," Sanshi found the selection interesting, eager to see how the three champions would face the chosen dragons.
That same night, in the Great Hall, the presence of the Goblet of Fire was revealed along with the requirements for participation. As soon as the restriction of being seventeen or older was announced, the boos quickly followed.
And naturally, the students tried to find ways to bypass the age line that Dumbledore himself had put around it as a security measure.
The Weasley twins now had matching white beards!
"What are you doing?" Cedric approached Barnaby, who was sitting on a nearby bench with a bag of popcorn in one hand and a drink in the other.
"I'm having fun watching the kids try to throw their names into the goblet. Some are unexpectedly creative," Barnaby explained as he offered him some buttered popcorn. "Too bad most don't use that enthusiasm for studying, or they'd have much better grades."
"Who do you think will be chosen as champion?" Cedric asked as he happily took a handful of popcorn.
"Well, I can't tell you about the other two schools because I hardly know anyone, but at Hogwarts…" Barnaby pondered. "I have three possibilities."
"Only three in the entire school?" Cedric looked at Barnaby in surprise, unsure if he didn't think others were up to the task or if he had his reasons.
"Remember there's an age limit," Barnaby reminded him. "If I had to bet, I'd say the possible Hogwarts champions would be: Angelina Johnson from Gryffindor, Michael Corner from Ravenclaw, or you for Hufflepuff."
"Me? Well, it's true I put my name in a little while ago," Cedric pointed at himself with a smile. "Wait, why no one from Slytherin?"
Barnaby looked at him and raised an eyebrow.
Slowly.
…
"Well, that's an irrefutable argument," Cedric understood what he meant.
If his understanding of the Goblet of Fire was correct, it leaned more toward those with the qualities of a champion. And among those qualities should be sportsmanship, a desire for recognition for the honor of the school, exceptional skills, and more.
And Slytherin was more focused on getting what they wanted at any cost. They had a desire for recognition, but for themselves, not for the school. Though considering how many pure-blood families there were in that house, at least the skills shouldn't be lacking too much.
He couldn't even say that Barnaby hated that house; just look at how well he got along with Professor Snape. And he never heard those snakes dare to say anything bad about Barnaby when he was around.
"By the way," Cedric switched to gossip mode, looking around before continuing. "Do you know that pretty girl from Beauxbatons?"
"You'll have to be a lot more specific," Barnaby replied distractedly as he watched a third-year student throw a rope around the goblet and try to pull it out of the age line, unsuccessfully.
Cedric was speechless.
It's true that most of the Beauxbatons girls took care of themselves and pampered themselves more than the girls at Hogwarts, and they had a generally higher level of beauty, but he didn't expect Barnaby to show such indifference to their presence.
"I mean the one with Veela blood. I think her name is Fleur Delacour," he said in a low voice. "She's been looking constipated for three days every time I see her in the corridors. Do you know if something happened to her?"
"Oh, don't worry about that," Barnaby dismissed the topic with a wave of his hand. "She'll be fine."
Miss Fleur (now he knew her name) was adamant that she had every right to be who she was. Barnaby nodded and didn't deny it, but he also had every right (permission granted and signed by Hogwarts' Deputy Headmistress) to establish a charm within the castle to forcibly suppress her Veela allure.
While Fleur was within the walls of the ancient castle, whether in the dungeons or the astronomy tower, she was just another exchange student. Though the suppression didn't affect areas like the Black Lake or the Forbidden Forest.
"Alright…" Cedric decided not to comment further on the matter. Barnaby knew what he was talking about, and he trusted him. "In that case, can I ask you something?"
"You already did, but I'll let you repeat," Barnaby turned to look at him face-to-face. "What's up?"
"Why did you suddenly start wearing rings?" Cedric pointed to the ring on Barnaby's ring finger. "I mean, the last time I saw you with one was when you wore that magical translation ring you negotiated with Cho."
"Oh, it was that," Barnaby realized he hadn't mentioned this matter due to how busy he had been before. "I proposed to Tonks at the Quidditch World Cup, and now we're engaged. Though we haven't thought of a date or anything like that yet."
"I see, congratulations! It must have been beautiful, proposing during the…" Cedric nodded, and then suddenly got stuck, his mental gears working at full speed as he comprehended the magnitude of the news he had just casually heard. "YOU'RE GETTING MARRIED?!"
Suddenly, the students in the Great Hall fell silent all at once and turned their heads in unison with the same expression of astonishment, processing what they had just heard.
Barnaby felt a bit annoyed by everyone's reaction, lowering the bag of popcorn to his lap.
What's with that expression of amazement?
He was a good catch and worked hard to set the best stage possible; it wasn't that strange that he had succeeded in his proposal!
Wait a second, now that he thought about it, he didn't actually remember telling his father or anyone else about the engagement.
Oops?
Eh… he might have a small problem imminent.
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