Silvermade || Draco Malfoy x Reader

Chapter 49 - The Candidates

The next day was Saturday, and everyone was in high spirits, not because it was Hogsmeade day, but because of the awaited choosing of Champions later at the Halloween Feast.

Draco, Blaise, and Theo were especially excited to watch whoever would drop their names in the Goblet. We all got down to the Great Hall for breakfast, where we found that the tables were slightly moved to make a large space in the middle of the hall for the Goblet of Fire. The Goblet burned the same blue-white flames we saw last night, and around it was a white smoky thin line, encircling the Goblet that stretched to ten feet.

The Age Line.

It was a bit cramped as we sat and ate our breakfast, but nobody really cared. Everyone's eyes were on the Goblet, waiting for whoever was brave enough to enter their names.

Twenty minutes after we finished eating, Daphne and Pansy had grown bored of watching eligible students drop pieces of parchment with their names into the fire. The two of them decided to go to Hogsmeade and shop instead. They invited me but I declined, since I was still curious of who would enter.

Long after the two of them left, there were still a great number of students that lingered in the Great Hall. I finally got tired of just sitting there and watching, so I stood up and decided that I would very much like to stretch my legs.

"Where are you off to?" Draco asked. Blaise and Theo looked up at me too.

"I'm going for a walk." I said.

"I'll go with you." Draco was about to stand up when a group of Durmstrang students entered the Great Hall, filing in a single line in front of the Goblet. I saw Draco's eyes twinkle in curiosity as he looked on.

"Stay here, Draco. I know you want to see everyone who enters." I said. "I'll be back later."

Draco looked like he wanted to protest, but the expression he had as he stared at the Durmstrang students betrayed him. Before he could say anything else, I quickly made my way out of the Great Hall.

I contemplated walking to Hogsmeade to find Pansy and Daphne, but when I saw a group of Beauxbatons girls heading their way to the village, I decided against it. I was pretty sure that Hogsmeade would be crowded with students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang anyways. In the end, I opted to go to the Black Lake instead.

I made my way towards the Black Lake and was thankful that no one was there. The Durmstrang ship calmly swayed on the surface of the Lake, and there was no sign of anyone being inside it either. However, when I neared the edge of the lake, I saw the familiar back of someone pacing back and forth.

"Cedric!" I called out as I walked towards him. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh. Y/N!" He said in a shaky breath. "Hi."

"What's wrong?" I asked, observing him. "You look a bit restless."

Cedric shook his head, but his voice was still a bit unsteady as he answered.

"Um...no, it's nothing."

I sat on one of the rock formations and turned to him. "You sure? If there's anything bothering you, I can lend an ear. Of course, that is if you want to share."

Cedric looked a bit hesitant for a second, he sighed heavily then sat beside me.

"It's...It's about the Triwizard Tournament." He then pulled out a slip of parchment from his robe pocket. "I'm planning to enter my name, but..."

"But?"

"I don't know, Y/N." He sighed. "I just feel a bit indecisive about it. I mean, what if I don't get chosen? What if the Goblet deems me not worthy enough to be Hogwarts Champion?"