On The Pitch: A Fremione AU

Chapter 7: The Fourth

October 31, 1994 (Halloween)

The blue flames turned red once more. All eyes were on the goblet as the hall was silent. What was happening? All three contestants had already been announced.. Still, the goblet quickly spit out one last piece of paper. Dumbledore caught the parchment and read intently. He slowly raised his head, wearing an indiscernible expression upon his face.

First he spoke quietly,and no one was completely sure what they had heard him say. But when he repeated the name, his voice rang through the Great Hall with great clarity.

"Hermione Granger."

***

Hermione felt ill. Something had to be wrong. That bloody goblet had to have been mistaken. She hadn't entered her name. She physically couldn't have even if she had wanted to. She wasn't of age. And had she entered her name, she shouldn't have been able to have been chosen. Cedric was the Hogwarts champion. This was all wrong. Had it been Harry instead, she probably wouldn't have been so stunned. I bet half the entire school half expected Harry to have been magically chosen somehow. But not her. Maybe she heard him wrong? No, he definitely said her name. What was she going to do? What would people think?

Hermione looked around at her friends at the table seeing a wide variety of facial expressions, but there was at least one common factor: confusion.

Hermione didn't want to stand up. Standing would make it all very real very fast. If she could just sit down and pretend it wasn't happening maybe it would all disappear. But Professor Dumbledore called for her once again. She looked up. She met the eyes of Neville. He saw the terror in her eyes, he knew that look all too well. He gave her a small comforting smile and a nod. Hermione watched as he mouthed "You can't keep him waiting." Damnit.

She stood up slowly. She made her way towards the front. The silence of the Great Hall was finally broken when Ginny Weasley's voice rang throughout, stopping Hermione in her tracks.

"You can't be serious Dumbledore! It's too dangerous! You can't allow this!"

Suddenly, as if a dam holding back all the unspoken thoughts of Hogwarts had just exploded, the Great Hall became quite rowdy. Everyone had their own reasons- anger, empathy, confusion, etc.- but the majority consensus? This was wrong.

"She's not even seventeen!"

"There's already three champions!"

"She's just a child, Albus," even McGonagall pleaded.

Hermione finally turned to meet eyes with Dumbledore. His face was still difficult to read, but she could see one thing in his eyes for sure: concern.

"SILENCE!" the great wizard commanded. The room fell silent once more. He nodded to Hermione, beckoning her to continue her way towards him. She finally reached him, and when he handed her the scrap, she couldn't help but let out a small gasp. Scrawled out onto the paper, in a somewhat sloppy and haphazard manner, was her name. 'Hermione Granger.' It was real. She was holding it.

Hermione felt herself become very dizzy very suddenly. The last the she heard as she fainted were the worried cries of her friends, "HERMIONE!"

***

Hermione began to come to in the Great Hall. The hall has been cleared out by everyone except the staff, the other champions, and her stubborn friends who refused to leave her side.

"Miss Weasley I need you to calm down-"

"Calm down? CALM DOWN? Professor Flitwick my friend is unconscious and is being forced to participate in a deathly dangerous tournament!" Ginny was fuming.

"Professor McGonagall," began Neville, "there's no way she can compete. She's too young! She's only just turned fifteen.."

"I wish I could prevent it from happening, Longbottom.. but.. it isn't up to me," McGonagall spoke solemnly.

"Well Granger couldn't have put her name in. She's too much of a goody goody-"

"Hey!" Hermione had come to and took offense at George's remark. But, really, he was right. Even if she had wanted to enter her name, she would never have broken Dumbledore's rules.

"Miss Granger," the old wizard looked at Hermione which such sympathetic eyes, "I may already well know the answer, but I must ask: Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire, or ask any older student to?"

"No, headmaster."

A chill.

"See, someone else must've done this to endanger her!" Fred spoke. The group was obviously on edge. "I could take her place."

Everyone looked at Fred. Was he just saying that just because he wanted to participate? Or was he really that worried for the young girl? Hermione would never allow it either way. She wouldn't want any of her friends to be in her position.

"I'm afraid you cannot Mr Weasley," Dumbledore finally spoke. He looked at Hermione and gave her a sympathetic half-frown-half-smile. "Barty, please inform the others of what you have informed me."

Barry Crouch stepped forward timidly and anxiously. Hermione, who already did not care for this man, knew she really was going to hate him after this.

"I apologize.. but.. it's- it's-"

"Oh just bloody spit it out already!" Fred barked out the antsy man. His hand had somehow found its way onto Hermione's tense shoulders. He unknowingly rubbed circles into her shoulder with his thumb in a subconscious attempt to not only calm her, but his own self as well.

"It's binding. Miss Granger has no other choice. She must compete.."

***

"I don't get it," Ron let out a frustrating a sigh as the group of young wizards gathered around the Gryffindor common room. "Why you? Who would target Hermione? I could understand if someone was after Harry-"

"Hey!"

"No offense, mate. You know what I mean. It just doesn't make much sense to me."

"It's not like I have any ideas. All I know is I have a very bad feeling about this. It makes my scar feel all weird," Harry spoke with a very uncomfortable expression etched across his face.

"Maybe it's that git Malfoy," suggested Ginny.

"No, Malfoy is pretty cruel, but I don't think he'd come up with a scheme like this. And he wouldn't have been able to do it himself anyways."

Everyone looked at Hermione. If she didn't think it was Malfoy, then they had no leads.The room fell silent.

"Alright well there's obviously nothing we can do about it right now, I'm sure Mione would appreciate some peace and a bit of rest. Everyone should probably just turn in, and we can discuss it tomorrow," Fred ushered everyone away. The group said their goodnights and headed to their respective room. All except Hermione, Fred, and George.

"You not going to bed?" George said standing at the base of the boys stairwell.

"I kinda don't feel like having to answer all the questions Parvati and Lavender must inevitably be waiting to ask me," Hermione let out a dejected half chuckle.

"We can stay down here too if you'd like," Fred sat by the exhausted girl.

"You two don't have to do that," Hermione quickly muttered. She hated people pitying her. She knew the Twins didn't but she still couldn't shake the feeling. They were too nice for their own good sometimes.

"Granger-" Fred swiftly cut in. A small grin began to spread across his face. George immediately began to grow a similar grin of his own.

"When have we ever left a friend-"

"Without a smile on their face?"