As the sun began to set over Hogwarts, its most famous student was sitting outside by the shore of the lake contemplating the events of the previous few days. 'Well, this year has gone downhill a little earlier than normal,' Harry Potter thought with a sad smile.
The previous night his name had come out of the Goblet of Fire, despite the fact that he had never put it in. Thinking about the Weasley twins' unsuccessful attempt to enter the contest he wondered how such a thing was even possible. As bad as that night had been, today was even worse.
No one, not even his best friends Ron and Hermione, believed him when he insisted that he had not put his name in the Goblet of Fire. Neville seemed to be the closest to believing him, and that was only because he responded with a confused look and a shrug saying "I don't know, Harry".
A huge screaming match had broken out at lunch when Harry tried to talk to Ron and convince him to see it from his point of view, and as a result he doubted that he would be on speaking terms with his alleged 'best mate' for quite some time. That had also cost his house 20 points, courtesy of Professor Snape.
Hermione didn't scream at him, but let it be plainly known that she didn't believe him either and was upset with him for breaking the rules so blatantly. So Harry was out here, trying to avoid them and rest of his classmates. But the sound of footsteps approaching told him that not everyone was trying to avoid him.
"Hello Potter" said a some what emotionless voice that was still quite pretty. Harry looked up from his thoughts to see Daphne Greengrass. At first he was a little surprised by her sudden appearance, but after a moment's thought realized it was entirely typical of their previous interactions with each other. Harry didn't think they were friends exactly, but it seemed like once every few months they would find themselves in long intense conversations, typically about the dangerous circumstances that Harry constantly found himself in. Other conversations were about her frustrations with the expectations placed on her as a member of one of the "elite pureblood families". It was odd in that there was usually very little small talk and at other times they barely even acknowledged each other. Harry reasoned that they were both amused about the secret "friendship" between a Gryffindor and a Slytherin. Not even Ron and Hermione were aware that Harry had ever talked to Daphne outside of class.
"Hello Greengrass."
As Daphne sat down on the shore a few feet from him, Harry took the opportunity to really look at her again. She had grown up quite a bit from the first time the spoke during the winter break of their first year. Harry knew the blond haired Slytherin had a reputation for not only being one of the most beautiful girls in the school but also as unapproachable. She had few friends and didn't seem interested in making any more, another one of the reasons that Harry was intrigued by their odd friendship. For a few minutes neither of them spoke, but simply turned and watched the lake. Finally, Daphne broke the silence.
"Well Potter, I'm waiting." she said, looking at Harry expectantly.
"Waiting for what?" Harry answered with a confused look on his face.
"For you to tell me that you didn't put your name in the Goblet of Fire." she answered simply.
"But I didn't! Why won't anyone believe me?" Harry said loudly.
"Calm down. I believe you, Potter. Putting your name in the goblet like that just isn't your style. Now if you believed that doing something so reckless and stupid might help out those ignorant friends of yours, then I believe you would do it without hesitation. But for fame? No, that just isn't you." Daphne explained. Harry let out a sigh, happy that someone had finally believed him. "So I take it you can't just refuse to compete can you?"
"No, apparently the fact that I didn't put my name in doesn't matter. It is still a magically binding contract, and the penalty for breaking it would apparently be severe." Daphne nodded at his response, having expected it. Anyone who broke a contract like that would likely end up dead, or if they were really lucky they would spend the rest of their life as a squib.
"Well then I guess you compete. Did they tell you anything about what the tasks are going to be?"
"Not a thing. I will probably just end up hoping to luck my way out of another bad situation. Seems to be my lot in life." Harry answered with a small laugh.
Daphne caught the genuine laugh at the end of his statement, realizing that his depressed mood was starting to lift a little. "Do you know what pisses me off the most about this though? That my two 'best friends' don't believe me. What's wrong with them? I mean, you figured it out and I would think that by now they would know me better than you. No offense to you, of course."
"None taken. They will probably come around eventually. Well, Granger will at least. Weasley strikes me as a jealous idiot so I wouldn't hold my breath on that one."
"I don't think I am going to worry about it. I just have too much else to think about right now. Like how in the hell I am going to get through three tasks set up to test the skills of wizards three years older than me."
Daphne nodded her head in agreement with his decision. "A wise choice, Potter. I knew you had it in you. Any idea how you are going to prepare?"
"It would be a whole lot easier if I knew what I was preparing for. I guess I will just start going through the defense and charms books for this year and the next few, trying to learn all the spells I can so that the other might not have too much of an advantage." Harry said with a sigh.
"I'm a little bit surprised you hadn't done that already. Don't give me that 'what are you talking about' look, you know exactly what I mean. You've somehow managed to get yourself into life threatening situations every single year that we've been here. I swear Potter, don't make me be the only one trying to keep you alive." Daphne answered with a smile and a small shake of her head.
Harry laughed and said "Yes but if you didn't that would mean there wasn't anyone in Gryffindor worth talking to, wouldn't it?"
"Too true." she said, softly laughing with him. And for a few minutes they just sat there silently, each enjoying the other's company while staring out over the Black Lake as the sun finally set. Eventually, Daphne turned back to him and said "It is getting dark, I'm going to head in. What about you?" she asked as she stood up and brushed the dirt off of her school robes.
"I think I will sit out here for a few more minutes."
"Suit yourself." Daphne responded as she turned to walk away.
"Hey, Greengrass." Harry said prompting Daphne to turn back towards him. "Thanks. I guess I needed someone to knock some sense into me." Daphne smiled at his thanks and answered, "Your welcome." Harry watched her take a few steps back towards the castle before she stopped and turned around again looking like there was something she wanted to say.
"You know, if you want some help preparing for the tournament I will be around." Daphne said with an uncertain look on her face.
"I'll remember that. Whatever it is I'll be doing, I would appreciate the help." Harry said with a grin on his face. Daphne didn't answer, just nodded in acceptance and continued walking back to the castle. Harry watched her go, feeling as if her offer of help had really been an offer of friendship. And he was glad to have at least one friend who wanted to be around him.