Link of Hogwarts

Forty-Three

Link was sure he spent the rest of the day with his friends and even managed to sleep that night, so it baffled him how his name come out of the Goblet of Fire. After all, he was tired of yesterday's celebration and the impromptu singing session that Dumbledore pulled on them. He didn't even know Hogwarts has a school song, so how was he to know the tune to sing it to?

Turned out the solution was to pick any tune and sing the lyrics to that. The Twins decided to sing along to a very slow funeral march and finished last. The Headmaster playing along caused McGonagall's face to sour. Meanwhile, Link felt like he changed the slowly worsening weather outside with his chosen tune. The tune make him extremely fatigued after so he knows that the blizzard outside was caused by him, one that he changed to calm by changing the tune.

It's just one of the things he simply knows...

Back to the present, he was just as surprised as his friends when his name was pulled out as the Fourth Champion; something that shouldn't happen. At the same time he couldn't help but wonder why he even feel surprised that something like this would happen. After all, strange and dangerous things kept happening around him. He really should just get used to it.

Albus stared at the stone faced Gryffindor who seemed have taken up the pretense of being part of the room's decoration. Link doesn't look like he knows what's going on. Although the boy have done some strange things before, he never went out of his way to cause trouble. If anything, Albus has never met a more silent Lion.

When Maxime and Karkaroff started bringing up the matter of choosing another Champion from their schools to balance out the two Hogwarts' chosen, Albus pointed out that the Goblet had chosen and it would be a very long time before the blue flames burn once more. When Albus finally asked Link for his opinion, the boy bluntly answered, "Sounded like someone want me dead,"

This silenced the group of incensed witches and wizards as they stared at him. Minerva asked, "What do you mean?"

Link straightened his shoulders and answered calmly, "I have not reach the age of majority, so I won't be able to cross the Age Line the Headmaster circled the Goblet with. I have no knowledge on how the circle is made so I have no idea how to counter or undo it and I have also seen the Twins failure to fool it using potions and no matter what Prof Snape said, they have the talent for potions which meant that their potion is perfectly made," Everyone has seen them racking their brain to try and join the Tournament and everyone has seen the spectacular sight of their failure.

"Also, this mean I have little to no knowledge to prepare myself for whatever trials, most probably dangerous and deadly trials, that will take during the Tournament. And because I am unwittingly bound to whatever contract between the Champions and the Goblet, I cannot back out of this. I have no choice but to compete," He's trapped and he knows it.

"Being underage and under prepared, I am bound to be dead before the Tournament even finished regardless of how safe the people in charge made it," He concluded grimly and the reality of what this meant for the Fourth Year sobered those in the room. Those older and wiser than Link had died, so who's to say he who has yet to receive his watch will survive?

Since he sobered them up from dreams of glory with the bleak reality of competing in the Tournament, Karkaroff grumbled something in his native tongue while Maxime studied the forced Champion with a perplexed look. After all, they were all incensed about the unfairness of a sudden Fourth Champion and drunk on dreams of fortune and fame that they forgot the steep price one has to pay to win the Tournament.

But the boy keeps a cool and clear head.

Viktor Krum, Champion of Durmstrang, studied his third opponent with a new light and Fleur Delacour, Champion of Beauxbatons, felt a twinge of shame of accusing him for wanting the glory of winning the Triwizard Tournament. Cedric Diggory, Champion of Hogwarts, stared at Link with a new found respect and slight pity. After all, the boy speaks the truth.

People had died in this Tournament, that's the reason why it was banned the past century.

After they all agreed to proceed, not that they have a choice in the matter, Link was returned to his dormitory. Ron glared at him, suspicion in his gaze but Neville's uncharacteristic stern look stayed his tongue. They were both with him throughout yesterday and this morning.

The only time Link could have possibly sneak away to put his name in the Goblet would be when everyone's asleep but that still doesn't explain how he cross the Age Line. The Twins had even tried throwing their names from afar into the Goblet only to have the parchment burst into flames long before it could reach the Goblet. So Link couldn't have done that either.

As Hermione had furiously pointed this all out when Ron grumbled about Link hogging it all, Neville had forced the temperamental boy to clear his head before Link comes back. He told Ron to recall how much Link would rather stay out of anyone's attention and how he literally hid himself when people started noticing him for more than just his unwanted fame.

Thought Ron still has his suspicions, after all Link has always been capable of the impossible, Ron decided to keep his silent. As the Gryffindor House split between celebrating their unprecedented Champion and scorning Link for trying to upstage Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff, Ron come to the decision to stand by Link. His promise to Link from First Year after the troll incident echoes;-

"I promise you this, Link. I will never leave your back open,"

The knowledge that he almost broke that solemn promise made so long ago send chills down his spine. Ron may be a lot of things to his friends and family, but he refused to play the part of a traitor.

So he was there with his friends when Link chased after Neville after that horrendous Defense class with Moody. Link's face had darkened and he was furious but his anger kept simmered low in his chest as he accompanied Neville to an empty corner in Hogwarts' castle.

The Three Unforgivable Curses. He'd never expect that the famed retired Auror and friend of the Headmaster would perform them before students that has never been exposed to cold violence. But the fact that Neville had gone white even when he was the one who gives name to the second Unforgivable set warning bells in Link's mind.

He understood how Ron would know, as the mind controlling curse was something his father probably had encountered one too often in his line of work, or even Hermione who made it her mission to learn. But Neville...his reaction was one of personal experience, or at least one that hits too close to home.

Neville had only ever spoken of Gran but never his parents. Though Link does not make it a habit to assume, he respected his friend's privacy so didn't think much about the lack of parent figure in Neville's life. After all, what would an orphan like Link knows of parenting?

Yet somehow...this reaction...

Link asked, "Did that happen to someone in your family?"

Neville's breath hitched before he pressed his lips tightly together that it turned white. Hermione turned to Ron as he would be the only one that would know anything about the Longbottoms. Ron thought back what he knows about Neville's family, things he heard from his parents. Lady Augusta Longbottom is quite famous, especially after last year with the Boggart. Now that he think of it, Mum sometimes find it pitiful about the Longbottoms and felt sorry for Neville on occasion when Ron brought up about him but she never elaborate.

Ron looked at his friend, "Neville...was it your parents?"

Neville shuddered and sighed, "Guess I never talked about it..." He sniffled, "Bellatrix Lestrange drove my parents to a catatonic state with the Cruciatus. Gran always spoke of it like it was some kind of grand sacrifice, that I should be proud of them for fighting to the very end. I always wanted to know just how bad it was that it would drive them to that..." He sobbed, "I'm...a terrible son..."

Link scowled, "No, you're not!"

His friends looked at him and he continued, "You're not ashamed of them. You're just sad...and there is nothing wrong in being sad, Neville. Being pained by a subject does not mean you are ashamed, but rather it is painful to even think about it. It shows how much you cared,"

As Neville sobbed and finally told his friends things he never felt like sharing, they accompanied him and listened until he calmed down...