Chapter 64
The Weasley twins shouted, their voices carrying over the lakeside as they busily took bets from the gathered crowd. Suddenly, Dumbledore's voice boomed from a loudspeaker, calling for the crowd's attention. "Welcome to the second task. Last night, something was stolen from each of our champions—a treasure of sorts. These treasures now lie at the bottom of the Black Lake. In order to win, each champion must retrieve their treasure and return to the surface within one hour. After that, they'll be on their own." As Gray, along with the other champions, waited, he removed his shirt, much to the enjoyment of every woman in the stadium. "Gosh, look at that," came a voice, and immediately, whistles from the ladies started flying. Harry remarked, "Gosh, is there anything he's not good at?" Jamal added, "Well, in ancient England—" but, as usual, his voice was tuned out. Gray thought, "What could they possibly have that would be considered important to me?"
Dumbledore continued, "You may begin at the cannon's start. And special note to Gray Knight: the longer it stays in the water, the more it degrades. After all, it does come from the phoenix." As soon as Dumbledore finished, Gray paused and cursed under his breath, "You old fucking—" but his voice was drowned out. A thunderous boom signaled the task's start as the champions dove into the lake. Gray, of course, was the fastest, moving so quickly that other students didn't even get the chance to see him. Swimming at an incredible pace, he surfaced only briefly to put on a show for the cheering crowd before diving back under.
Gray swam deeper and saw Hermione, Cho Chang, and a young blonde girl from Beauxbatons tied by their ankles, along with a box. Gray began freeing Hermione, the little box, and the young girl—whom Rachel had asked him to save since it was originally Harry's task. Fierce merpeople swarmed him, snarling, but Gray's eyes turned into yellow circles, resembling a lion's. He stared at one of the merpeople, who sheepishly responded, "Only one." Despite this, Gray broke the bonds of all three, grabbing the box and the two girls, above, dumbledore's voice sounded. "The Beauxbatons champion, Miss Delacour, has unfortunately been forced to retire. She will take no further part in this task." as Cedric appeared, untying Cho and guiding her upward, followed by Viktor Krum who swam toward him, Gray left Hermione for Viktor even though he could have carried them but that would have been too much. The merpeople swam around but were too intimidated to attack.
Above water, Gray surfaced holding the blonde girl, outswimming Cedric, who was coughing but safe. Cedric was quickly helped out by a Beauxbatons student. Getting out of the water, Gray was once again a literal thirst trap for all the girls at Hogwarts, who melted at the sight of him drying himself. Fleur approached him, her face filled with gratitude. "You saved her, even though she wasn't yours to save—my little sister!" She kissed Gray's cheek, much to the jealousy of everyone present. Gray thought, WOh boy, this is going to be something."
Dumbledore's voice boomed again. "Attention! The winner is… Mr. Gray Knight!" But Gray was busy opening the box, which contained half a vial of phoenix tears. He frowned, looking up at Dumbledore, who was smirking at him. "Whatever," he sighed, leaving to prepare for the third task. Completely shutting off any Hogwarts contact aside from attending lessons, Gray focused solely on preparation. A storm was coming, and it was a big one—a very, very big red and white one, not that he was aware of it, but He didn't want to be caught unprepared none the less..
The final task arrived quickly. Music filled the air as a massive crowd gathered, cheering wildly as the champions emerged into the arena. Dumbledore raised his voice over the noise. "Earlier today, Professor Moody placed the Triwizard Cup deep within the maze. Only he knows its exact position. Now, as Mr. Knight—" The crowd erupted into cheers at Grays's name. Dumbledore continued, "—placed first, he will be the first to enter the maze, followed by Cedric and Mr. Krum..." At the mention of Viktor, the Bulgarian crowd went wild, their cheers deafening. "The first person to touch the cup will be the winner. I've instructed the staff to patrol the perimeter. If at any point a contestant wishes to withdraw from the task, he or she need only send up red sparks with their wand. Contestants, gather round." The champions moved closer as Dumbledore addressed them directly. "In the maze, you'll find not dragons or creatures of the deep. Instead, you'll face something more challenging. You see, people change in the maze. Oh, find the cup if you can, but be very wary. You could just lose yourselves along the way." Mad-Eye Moody's gruff voice cut in. "Champions! Prepare yourselves."
Cedric hugged his father quickly as Gray was approached by a distressed Ron, who asked, "Gray, have you seen Harry?" Confused, Gray looked at him and said, "No, I was busy preparing for the last task. What's wrong?" he asked. Ron replied, "He is missing," which made Gray frown before stepping forward. Dumbledore began the countdown. "On the count of three... ONE..." But before he could finish, the cannon fired prematurely. Mr. Filch shrugged with an apologetic look as Dumbledore groaned in exasperation. The champions immediately entered the maze. The entrances sealed behind them as heavy mist descended, and the maze loomed tall and foreboding.
"This should be interesting," thought Gray as he drank another enlightening potion, making him recall several ideas, some he had as a first year, while also hearing the distant sounds of creatures all around. Gray moved quickly as the walls began closing in on him. Although the walls wouldn't be able to crush him due to his enhanced strength, he still sprinted just enough to not seem superhuman. Fleur darted through the maze, her face pale with fear, only to be ambushed. She screamed as she was attacked and knocked unconscious. Viktor came across her still body and, without a word, walked on.
Meanwhile, Gray saw Fleur being swallowed by the undergrowth. He sighed; he could save her, but he didn't. After all, this wasn't a request from Rachel. However, he was nice enough to raise his cane and shoot a red spark into the air, signaling for help. A heavy wind picked up, and the maze walls began shifting again. Gray then ran fast, spotting a gleam of light in the distance. As he approached, Viktor appeared and fired a spell at him. Gray's protection charm activated as he cast the Immobilize Charm, freezing Viktor in place. Examining him, Gray muttered, "He's bewitched," before sighing and calling in the red spark again.
Gray continued through the maze and eventually saw Cedric running for the cup. Gray sighed again, deciding this time to use a little of his speed. He outpaced Cedric, reaching out to touch the cup just before him. He narrowly avoided a plant that attempted to wrap itself around him. The cup, which was actually a Portkey, whisked him away, teleporting him to an unknown location as the chaos of the maze swirled around him.
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A/N the next couple of chapters, i hope you are looking forward to it.