After the Lights Go Out

Part 5 - The Egg

You did not get a good night of sleep in advance, what Tom had said in the library kept you up restlessly as you could not seem to decipher the exact meaning of his words. After you had mocked him, suggesting that he perhaps regretted saving you from certain death – he had told you he had no regrets at all, but that you'd have to wait and see by tomorrow. As tomorrow became today, it became apparent that your lack of sleep and sense of impending doom would not give you any advantages in the upcoming Triwizard Tournament task at all. No, at this point in time you feared that perhaps even Terrence would somehow plot against you, to claim the win for himself.

So as it happened, the following task would not take place in any arena at all – but within the castle of Hogwarts itself. Perhaps you ought to have figured out the mission by now, after seeing Tom claim the golden rabbit. Of course, the task at hand was an egg hunt, just in time for the Easter holiday. While this seemed easy enough, there were several false eggs spread about the castle – and they were all guarded by voluntary students, acting as a major obstacle in the search.

You quickly came to realise that this task was perhaps even more difficult than the last, as you'd now much rather fight a mountain troll than to face this all at once. Of course, it was all within the rules this time as well, that the champions were allowed to duel and sabotage each other.

What was Tom planning this time? Would he undo his mistake of saving you? These were the questions rushing through your mind as the three of you awaited the Hogwarts Headmaster's signal to begin inside the great hall. All wands at ready, knowing that the second the hunt would begin – any of you could turn on each other at any moment. As Terrence gave you a final kiss on the cheek, Tom looked utterly indifferent and focused on the task at hand.

"... May the best champion win!"

Your heart was pounding as the three of you raced out of the hall, the cheers of the observing students sounded like a distant rushing waterfall as you rounded a corner, seemingly having shaken of the rest. There was a high possibility that you would not even run into another champion throughout the task, considering just how vast and maze-like the castle was. Other students however, were far more likely.

It did not take long untill you caught sight of a seemingly lone golden egg, laying in the corner of an abandoned hallway. You carefully approached it, ready for just about anything to jump out on you like some sort of magical troll-in-the-box.

"Cistem Aperio!" you chanted, and the golden egg split open. As expected a ghoulish creature leapt out of it and towards you. The ghoul made some sort of gargling noise as you blasted it with the first spell you could think of.

"Lapifors!" The pink light that hit the slimy creature, immediately transformed it into a tiny white rabbit. You quickly resumed the egg hunt, rounding another corridor towards the grand staircase. Time was ticking away, you wondered how many golden eggs Tom and Terrence had encountered so far, just as three students all blasted you at the same time with different stunning spells. If you had not tripped at the very last moment on a trick step, they would all have hit you at once.

"Bloody hell" you cursed, before quickly getting back up to face them, casting a cascading jinx at them all. The blue light turned into a blast, and they all fell unconscious. Luckily, the fall had also caused you to catch a glimpse of a golden egg positioned on a different staircase, which were now moving away to another direction.

You rushed towards it, all the while nervously anticipating another unexpected attack either from a student or one of the other champions. This time you wanted to win, and most of all you wanted to beat Tom. To see the sight of his face once he'd realised he had lost would be your greatest satisfaction.