glow. // cedric diggory

01

CHAPTER ONE

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The courtyards were filled with students, everyone cramming in next to each other to get the best view possible of the carriage descending onto school grounds. A few winged horses were leading a beautiful blue and gray cart through the sky, eliciting oohs and ahs from the crowd that had gathered.

Ellie Campbell was leaned against one of the pillars in the breezeway, standing next to her best friends Frankie Hill and Flora Abrahams. "That's new," Frankie said excitedly. "Wonder what it is."

"Look!" someone shouted from the other end. Ellie craned her neck and saw something rising from the water. It was a large, pirate ship-looking vessel. When it emerged from the water, the sails, previously rolled up, came down, revealing a school emblem.

"Everyone inside!" a voice from the courtyard yelled. Professor McGonagall began herding students back into the castle, instructing that everyone get changed and ready for the Sorting Ceremony.

Ellie and Frankie had already parted with Flora, who was on her way up to the Gryffindor common room with a few friends she had encountered, and were now headed downstairs.

"Do you have any idea what that was?" Ellie asked, glancing over at her friend.

"I mean, obviously those were other schools," Frankie said. "Not sure which, but I recognized the picture on the flag from the ship. I think I've seen it in my uncle's office before."

Ellie hummed thoughtfully. She was at the kitchens and was getting ready to go to her common room to change. "I'll see you at dinner," Ellie called out to Frankie.

She walked down the stairs into the Hufflepuff common room. There were already tons of people changed, but they were just loitering around by the fireplace, talking excitedly about the visitors. This year is already proving to be something different, Ellie thought. But was that a good thing or was it a bad thing?

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"Well, now that we're all settled in and sorted," Dumbledore began. "I'd like to make an announcement."

In the Great Hall, every student sat with bated breaths at their respective house tables. Ellie was sat next to her friend Addie Lenard and her boyfriend Jonah Karel. Addie looked over at her, eyebrows furrowed. Ellie just shrugged and looked back up at the front.

Suddenly, the large wooden doors at the back of the room opened. A few people looked over, thinking it would be someone from that ship or that carriage they had seen earlier in the day. Instead, it was just the castle caretaker, Mr. Filch. He hobbled down the thoroughfare towards the owl podium, where Professor Dumbledore was making his speech.

"This castle will not only be your home this year, but home to some very special guests as well," Dumbledore continued. He looked up and noticed Filch running toward him through his half-moon spectacles that sat on the bridge of his nose. "You see, Hogwarts has been chosen-"

The Headmaster was cut off when Filch reached the podium. The two began whispering quickly and many students began murmuring amongst themselves, trying to figure out what was being said.

With a nod, Filch ran off again, back down the line of tables, and exited the Great Hall and Dumbledore resumed his speech. "So, Hogwarts has been chosen to host a legendary event. The Triwizard Tournament."