Brooklyn and the Boy Who Lived

The Second Task

Brody certainly didn't expect this day to hand him a mission to protect a human he never met before for a gargoyle at the nearby Wizard school! He lived in the lake pretty much since he was born, being a merman and all. He knew the lake inside and out from research, and exploring every nook, cranny, and coral in it.

The only place he ever avoided was the reed bed, where those foul water demons, the Grindylows lived. Brody detested those things, always grabbing unsuspecting victims and pulling them down, choking them until they were dead.

Sometimes he would even visit the Giant Squid, who seemed vicious at first, but was quite friendly.

He and Brody would play around quite a lot, coming up with silly games here and there. But now Brody knew this mission was no fun and games, and he couldn't afford being caught helping Potter to be accused of cheating and disqualifying him from the tournament, plus him getting banished.

He was now swimming about the docks, awaiting the start of the Second Task, hoping that he would be successful in his secret mission.

The horn suddenly sounded, and Brody quickly found a hiding spot in the reeds, spotting the other three Champions diving in, Harry following last.

At first, Brody watched Harry struggle for a while in the water, worried that he hadn't been able to find a way to breathe, until flippers and gills formed.

Brody sighed in relief at this; he should have guessed Gillyweed. Heck, he should have presented Brooklyn with some to give to Harry in the first place! For there were some of those plants growing here and there near the swampy shores of the lake.

Harry then proceeded to swim, with Brody following in his wake through the depths of the lake.

Approaching the dreaded weed bed with those terrible water demons, Brody drew his knife, hacking at the weeds, hoping not to meet any Grindylows anytime soon!

At one point, the young merman spotted Fleur, the blonde human being snatched by those foul Grindylows. Their fingers were pretty much claws and could really hurt your skin; merman or human, it didn't matter.

He winced seeing her getting taken down, but she struggled until breaking free, eyes wide with terror as she abandoned her mission and swam back to the surface.

Then, a mermaid, whose name was Coralia, swam around Harry, guiding him to the village. It was the only time his tribe could help, to tell the Champions they were getting close. Brody followed in the shadows, until he saw his home.

It was a pretty practical mer village, with small coral houses here and there. Brody had a decent little home near the edge of the village, where he could be free to be himself, occasionally going to the library to study or simply enjoying swimming. The rest of his tribe never found the need to study as much as he did, which is why when any of his fellow merfolk spoke to anybody, all they heard was screeching and wailing, except occasional English in song to lure humans to their demise.

And don't compare Brody or any of the mer-people to the ones in the Little Mermaid, for they look nothing like human/fish hybrids, because of their green skin, talons, and gray or olive-green hair.

He followed Harry to the square, where Brody could see the Champions' victims, all tied to the statue of his chief.

His eyes went round as he saw Brooklyn tied there, along with three other girls. Brody guessed that Dumbledore had chosen the gargoyle to be the one Harry rescued.

Harry was trying to untie Brooklyn, hands slipping every time, until Brody spotted some sharp rocks on the floor. Glancing around to make sure no others were watching, he swam down, grabbing the sharpest rock. Going up next to Harry, he tapped on the boy's shoulder to get his attention. Jumping, Harry turned around, staring at Brody in confusion, who winked and pointed towards Brooklyn, until Harry got the message, and accepted the rock, untying him, who appeared to be in a deep sleep.