Why not join the dark?

First task

Harry sat down by the water of the black lake, shrouded in trees, while Neville, one of his only remaining friends, stood in the water looking at the plants.

"Amazing."

Harry reread the same chapter three times, none of it really seeming all that helpful.

"Amazing."

He looked up from his book, calling out to the other boy.

"Neville, you're doing it again." Said male looked up from the weeds in his hands and gave Harry an apologetic, sheepish loo.

"Ah, right, sorry Harry."

Harry looked down at the book beside him, picking it up to read the title as he set down his own, not having hot anywhere with it, anyway.

"Magical water plants of the highland lochs?" He looked over at the boy in the water, flicking semi-interestedly through the pages.

"Yeah, Moody gave it to me, that day we had tea." Neville then looked over Harry's shoulder and waved, causing Harry to turn around curiously, while the quieter boy just went back to what he was previously doing.

"-Ron, you just go and talk to him yourself!" He heard Hermione whisper as she, Ron and Ginny came down the bank. "Uh, Ron this is ridiculous. What do you want me to say again?" Harry couldn't hear what the boy whispered, but Hermione looked like she was concentrating to remember it so he readied himself to listen.

"Ronald, would like me to tell you, that Seamus to him, that Dean was told by Pavarotti, that...Hagrid's looking for you." Hermione relayed, having to pause to remember what she was asked to say.

"Is that right? Well... what?" He asked, confused by what she said and the way that she said it.

"Uh..." Hermione cringed and went back to listen to the message again.

After telling him once more, Harry was about to ask her to relay something back, when she got angry.

"I'm not an owl!" She shouted, walking off with Ginny.

Ron gave him a dirty look for upsetting their bushy-haired friend and then followed after the girls, looking back a couple of times, with a glare.

~~~~~

"Hope you brought your father's cloak, like I asked." Hagrid said, holding his lamp aloft, as he lead Harry through the dark Forrest.

"Look, Hagrid, not that I don't enjoy going into these woods with you, in the middle of the night, with no protection, but where are we going?" Harry asked his half-giant friend, looking up at him in confusion.

"You'll see soon enough," the gamekeeper dismissed his questions, "now pay attention, this is important." He then went silent, offering no further elaborations to what he had already told him.

Harry looked up at him in disbelief, suddenly noticing a giant read and orange flower, tucked into the front of his coat.

"What's with the flower?" He asked, Hagrid shifted it slightly, not making eye contact with Harry.

"Hagrid, have you combed your hair?" Harry asked, surprised, upon looking once again over at the large man.

"As a matter of fact, I have. You might like to try the same thing, every now and again." He retorted, looking down at Harry before continuing on.

"Hey! My hair's fine!" He defended himself.

There was a loud monstrous sound from up ahead and both Harry and Hagrid paused, looking off into the darker trees. Harry looked between Hagrid and the direction of the noise. If he knew Hagrid, and he was pretty damn sure that he did, they would be heading straight for it.