𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑢𝑝𝑜𝑛 𝑎 𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚 \\ 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗷. 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿

𝑋𝑋𝑉𝐼𝐼.

— ✩ ☽ ✩ —

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙮-𝙨𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣

— ✩ ☽ ✩ —

ON A RAINY night, students from all three schools were placing their name in the Goblet of Fire, while younger students sat around and watched. Caroline and Hermione sat on a bench, reading their respective books. "How's Jacob feeling?" Hermione asked, looking up from her own book.

Caroline finished her paragraph. "He's well, I think. He just worried himself sick, according to Madam Pomfrey." she answered, looking around at the groups of students flung around the room.

"From the World Cup?" Hermione clarified.

Nodding, Caroline turned back towards her best friend. "Yeah. Madam Pomfrey released him last night, and he's in the Ravenclaw common room with Carson, catching up on work. He'll be fine, I know it."

Hermione nodded in agreement, and both girls went back to their books. Caroline ignored the clapping and cheering that occurred every so often. She wasn't paying attention to anything, until Hermione elbowed her in the ribs. "Ow, Hermione!"

"Look, and be quiet." Hermione whispered sharply, pointing to where Cedric Diggory was leaving the age line, looking towards Caroline. He gave her a wink and a smile, and she smiled back slightly, waving as he walked away.

Once he was gone, Caroline went back to her book with no care in the world. Hermione didn't press anything, and she went back to her own novel. This time, Caroline really did look up when cheering occurred, because Fred and George had run into the hall, high-fiving everyone. "Well, lads, we've done it." one twin said.

"Cooked it up just this morning." said the other. They were clearly referring to the potion they had drafted to make it past Dumbledore's age line to put their names in the Goblet.

Hermione and Caroline made eye contact, chuckling. "It's not going to work." Hermione said in a teasing voice.

"Honestly, there is no way for it to work." said Caroline, marking the page in her book.

The brothers approached the best friends. "Oh, yeah?" said one.

"And why is that, ladies?"

Caroline pointed to the age line as Fred and George sat on either side of the girls. George next to Hermione, Fred next to Caroline. "This is an age line, drawn by Dumbledore himself."

"So?" asked Fred.

Caroline scoffed, glancing at Hermione, who closed her book. "So, a genius like Dumbledore couldn't possibly be fooled by a dodge as pathetically dimwitted as an Aging Potion." Hermione reasoned.

"But that's why it's so brilliant." Fred started.

"Because it's so pathetically dimwitted," George finished, and the two left the girls and stood on the bench they sat on, shaking their vials of potion. "Ready, Fred?"

"Ready, George." they opened their potions, linking their arms together.

"Bottoms up." the twins drank their potions and jumped off the bench into the circle. Nothing happened, and they cheered and laughed, along with everybody besides Caroline and Hermione. Then they placed their names in the Goblet, and it seemed to have worked, until the Goblet spit out the papers and a ring of blue fire, knocking Fred and George out of the circle. When they sat up, they had white hair and white beards, causing them to wrestle each other.

As everyone started chanting for Fred and George to fight, Caroline and Hermione relocated with their books, sitting down away from the crowds. Caroline turned to Sonnet 19, about to begin reading when the Hall went silent. She and Hermione simultaneously looked up from their books, spotting Viktor Krum approaching the Goblet. He put his name in and stared at Hermione for a second before he walked away.

Caroline didn't pester her, and Hermione said nothing about Cedric, even though Caroline had told her best friend about their encounter. What Caroline didn't know was that Harry had overheard, which got him thinking.

Did Caroline like Cedric Diggory? Why did it bother him so much if she did? Did he like Caroline?

— ✩ ☽ ✩ —