Splash!
Triumphant, Harry came out of the water with Cho in his arms. Following just behind him, Ron appeared with Hermione and Gabrielle at his side. As expected, confusion was on everyone's face. No quick announcement was made since the rules were unclear, and even the three headmasters had no clue.
Meanwhile, Hermione and Gabrielle woke up coughing water, along with Cho. The three girls stared at their savior in confusion since this wasn't the person they expected to be saved by.
"You!" Hermione felt somewhat shocked to see Ron holding her waist so tightly. "You saved me? But… What happened to Krum?"
Ron shrugged and answered for all to hear. "I woke up when I was in the water. I couldn't just leave you there with those Merpeople. What if something happened to you? So, with Harry, I brought your two along."
"You were worried for me?" Hermione muttered in disbelief.
"Well, of course," Ron nodded and looked at Gabriell, Fleur's little sister. "What I'm confused about is why Miss Fleur is out of the lake before Harry."
"She was attacked by the Grindylows and couldn't go on with the task," Neville came over and explained, cheering both Ron and Harry. "Harry won first place and… You're second? I don't know what's going on."
What Ron said was heard by Dumbledore and other headmasters as well. Clearly, they couldn't blame Ron for saving his friends when seeing them stuck underwater. But as expected, it annoyed the Headmaster of Durmstrang, which prompted him to growl and complain. But in the end, everyone saw what happened.
"After carefully discussing the events, Mister Potter has been awarded first place. Mister Krum is in second place for reaching the place of interest the quickest after Mister Potter. Likewise, third place goes to Mister Diggory and fourth place to Miss Fleur," Dumbledore announced with his magically amplified voice.
Ron merely smiled internally, knowing this was going to help his best friend in some way. But, to his surprise, he found some rewards for himself too. And this one came a little too quickly.
"Oh, merci beaucoup... Thank you so, so much, Monsieur Weasley. I owe you zis one."
Fleur came crying to Ron and sat down on her knees in front of him. Still in her bathing suit, Ron gulped at the sight of the graceful, blonde beauty with an attractive, lithe body, whose magical allure woke up the little friend inside his pants. Her thin lips, deep blue eyes, and fair skin once again reminded Ron of why he foolishly asked her out to dance that night.
"Thank you for saving Gabrielle." Fleur almost cried and, surprisingly, hugged him tightly in her embrace. She then showered kisses on his cheek, one, two, three, and then a few more. Now, just seeing Fleur was enough to arouse men, so what could such closeness do?
Ron found the answer as his hands rose on their own and held her by the waist. Her slim frame was amazing to touch, and the heat from her body was tantalizing.
"I will thank you properly later, Monsieur Weasley." Fleur finally realized how awkward it was and got herself away from Ron.
"I did what was right, Miss Fleur," Ron responded quickly, retracing his hands from her waist and returning to his senses.
Fleur suddenly blushed and stood up, "Just Fleur, Monsieur Weasley."
Good gracious, Merlin's beard! She's so pretty. Ron tried his best to hide his dreamy trance.
"I'll see you around then." Ron waved and looked to his side at Hermione, "Are you alright?"
Hermione nodded vigorously, biting her lips. "J-Just… cold."
"Oh." Ron quickly placed his blanket around her shoulders. He didn't know when he had become so quick to take action. But when confidence oozed in every single thought, he found it so much easier to do things.
And just like that, the second task came to an end. But he didn't expect the aftermath.
When morning came, and the newspapers flew into the Great Hall, the first page had an unlikely headline.
[Not The Champions, A Young Weasley Wins the Second Task!]
Surprisingly, it was an article written by Rita Skeeter that demeaned the four Champions, but while doing so, she added some unnecessary praises for the 'Young Weasley'—unofficially crowning him as the fifth Champion.
The loud murmurs across the Great Hall, the various turning gazes and laughs, made Ron feel a little extra alert. But that didn't mean he didn't enjoy the attention. In fact, he loved it. Especially the newfound attention the opposite gender seemed to be showering him with.
####
For the coming few months, other than hiding from Snape, who seemed to be getting interested in him, Ron spent time playing around with Padma whenever he could. Without speaking, both of them acknowledged that this was a mere relation of carnal pleasure, nothing less and nothing more.
But Ron couldn't lie. He was starting to grow bored.
It was amazing, no doubt. He loved the sex, and Padma was equally wild at it. But he wanted to taste a different flavor now. Besides, with his newfound fame, he couldn't help but look at each desirable girl walking past him as a hopeful partner. However, what he feared was commitment. He didn't want to meet another crazy one like Lavender.
But before he could settle for one candy out of so many, the third task was upon them. And once again, he wanted to help his best friend because he felt like he could. After the second task's debacle, he understood how easily the rules could be changed.
Alright, I got the broom, the dirty bombs from George, the camera, and the invisibility cloak. He prepared himself to fly over the big maze created for the task. Harry, you better be indebted to me for the rest of your life.
"What are you doing?" Hermione saw him trying to leave the viewer's stand.
Awkwardly, Ron tried to avert his gaze and chuckled, "Nothing… Just feeling hungry. I'll bring you something."
This went along with his usual attitude, so Hermione simply hummed and looked back at the four champions that gathered. "It's about to start. Come back quickly."
"Oh, don't worry. I'll be watching it very closely," Ron mumbled and left quickly to pick up the items he had prepared.
He waited until Dumbledore's loud voice echoed, and the students started cheering. He knew Harry would be entering first, so as soon as the students cheered, he donned the invisibility cloak and took to the sky.
Now, the champions weren't allowed to use brooms, but he was no champion. So, without any restriction, he watched Harry enter the complex maze that closed up behind him. It was pretty dark, but Harry, using his wand to illuminate his way, allowed Ron to follow him more easily.
Viktor is too fast. Cedric as well… Ah, Fleur is already suffering. He had the best spot to watch the events unfold. Oh, she's struggling against the vines. Wait, is that… Krum attacking her? What in the… What's going on?
"Aaaaa…" Fleur screamed.
And right then, Ron thought of a pretty nice idea. He quickly flew down and took out his wand, pointing at Viktor Krum.
"Stupefy," he whispered and struck Krum without being seen. The spell hit the man right from behind, throwing him unconscious. But by then, Fleur was already down and being swallowed by the vines.
"You're alright." Ron quickly got Fleur out of the vines and placed her beside Viktor's body. She was awake but in a daze. It was game over for her, so Ron flicked his wand at the sky and sent out a burst of light.
With this, Hogwarts will win no matter what. But why was Krum attacking her?
Woosh!
Crunch!
"What?!" He noticed the maze violently closing around him as if trying to trap him. Quickly, he jumped with his broom and flew out, barely saving himself from the claw-like vines trying to catch him.
By then, he noticed the entire maze had started to show activity as if it was alive. Furthermore, it was closing. So, Ron quickly flew around and found Harry, but Cedric was also there. He didn't want to cheat, so he let them be and simply watched until the final moment.
You can do it, Harry. No! No, throw him aside. Wait… He fell! Yes! Ron felt a multitude of emotions as he came down and stood beside the Triwizard Cup and watched the two champions run towards him.
No! Why are you stopping, Harry? Wait, why aren't the vines attacking Harry?
Somewhere in his heart, Ron slowly began to feel suspicious about the entire situation. Harry's name being thrown in, him winning all the way, and even now—it was as if someone wanted him to win. Someone much better at their job than him.
Come on, Harry. Ah, so you're going to save him. Ron watched as Harry saved Cedric from the vines, and then both made their way towards the trophy. Ron felt annoyed that Harry was giving up his win and decided to kick the cup towards Harry instead.
This isn't cheating, right?
Bam!
Woosh!
"What th—!"
Just as he kicked the cup, Harry grabbed onto one handle, and Cedric tripped on a vine and grabbed Harry's shoulder.
But then the feeling of his stomach churning came. Shocked, and confused, Ron groaned alone and looked up, finding himself in a strange place.
A graveyard? He realized.
"It's a Portkey!" Cedric exclaimed just then. "Harry, the cup is a Portkey!"
Ron heard it and stood up. The invisibility cloak was still on his body, and the broom was right beside him. He decided to come out and show himself as well since he felt like vomiting.
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