Cold Beauty (Harry Potter)

The Maze

As June came by, the only thing the students at Hogwarts could chatter about, was the Triwizard Tournament. Alexandra started feeling a mix of both excitement and nervousness as June twenty-fourth came closer and closer. 

That morning, as Alexandra, Nicholas and Bella sat together for breakfast at the Slytherin table, Bella had received the morning's newspaper from the Daily Prophet. Bella began skimming through it and so did Alexandra. Unfortunately, they had only found an article from Rita Skeeter which talked about how Harry was so 'unstable' or 'insane'. But of course, Alexandra didn't believe a bit of it, and nor did Nicholas or Bella.

Many of the fellow Slytherins that Alexandra knew such as Pansy and Draco, had talked trash about Harry to Skeeter. Although Alexandra wasn't surprised since they were big jerks, she still found it unfair. 

There was even a part where it read that Harry could speak Parseltongue. Now that part had been true. Alexandra knew Harry could speak Parseltongue since Severus had told her about it, but as for the rest of the article, Alexandra put no attention to it.

After all, it was written by Rita Skeeter of all people. 

"Hey, Potter! How's your head? You feeling alright? Sure you're not going to go berserk on us?" Malfoy yelled teasingly from his seat at the Slytherin table, loud enough for Harry to hear from the Gryffindor side of the Great Hall. 

"Malfoy!" Nicholas called out to him. "Keep your mouth shut."

"Or what are you going to do to me, Evergreen? Tell my mum?" Malfoy teased. 

"Seriously, Malfoy? Can't you, for even one second, just sit down and mind your own business instead of being your proud self?" Bella spoke up in Nicholas's defence. 

Malfoy looked like he was about to shoot another insult but Alexandra stood up. She had decided that although her friends were more than capable of taking care of themselves, she felt bad just watching them being treated like that.

And although she and Harry weren't very close friends, she knew he didn't deserve to be badmouthed that way.

"Malfoy," Alexandra stood up, her voice dangerously calm. In the time Alexandra had spent at Hogwarts, first becoming Quidditch captain and then becoming Triwizard champion, many of the students at Hogwarts knew that although Alexandra was generally nice, she was also someone not to be reckoned with. Like, hello! This was the girl who managed to defeat a Norwegian Ridgeback with her brains.

Even someone as proud as Malfoy now understood not to cross her. He merely gulped nervously when Alexandra shot a deadly glare at him. Thankfully, he said no more and sat down sheepishly. 

"That's more like it," Alexandra huffed, sitting back down. Alexandra, Nicholas and Bella looked up at the Gryffindor table where Harry sat. He was looking at the three of them wide-eyed, clearly, he had not been expecting them to stand up in his defence. But eventually, he cracked a grateful smile at them. 

Later on, during breakfast, Professor McGonagall notified Alexandra that the families of the champions would come to watch the third task. Severus was the only family Alexandra actually had and with him being a teacher at Hogwarts, he had got to watch Alexandra thrive through all the tasks of the tournament. Nonetheless, McGonagall still insisted on visiting Severus along with the families of other champions as it was a Triwizard Tournament tradition. 

When Alexandra went to meet Severus with the other champions in the same chamber where she had to go to when she was announced as a champion, she easily saw the other champions' families. 

Alexandra noticed Cedric with Amos Diggory, whom she had met during the World Cup. Fleur was holding the hand of her little sister, Gabrielle. Viktor Krum was in one corner, chatting away with his parents. Alexandra noticed a red-haired woman with a red-haired boy talking to Harry.