How You Get the Girl |Harry Potter|

Chapter Thirteen

Harry looked doubtfully at the sloppy green plant life that was sitting on his palm. Nearby he heard the twins shouting and collecting bets from people. He was half tempted to join in and bet against him because this plant thing was his only hope.

He turned to Neville for encouragement, "You're sure about this, Neville?"

"Absolutely," Neville responded right away with a nod.

"For an hour," Harry clarified.

Neville hesitated for a moment before answering slowly, "Most likely..."

"Most likely?" Now Harry was even more worried. What if Harry drowned while trying to get to his treasure? What if he didn't have enough time to get back to the surface? He really wished Hermione was here to go over the logistics with him.

"Well, there is some debate among herbologists as to the effects of freshwater versus saltwater," Neville explained.

"You're telling me this now? You must be joking," Harry shook his head. Now he was really worried. Maybe he could visit with Elizabeth before the task to cheer himself up... But then again she'd probably either tolerate him or kill him. He wasn't sure how she felt about him and him avoiding her.

"I just wanted to help," Neville frowned. He took in Harry's straight posture and how his hands weren't hanging loosely at his sides like they normally do. "You seem a little tense, Harry."

Harry once again stared down at the piece of green on his hand and replied sarcastically, "Do I?"

He heard Dumbledore start introducing the task over a loudspeaker. His legs began to shake in nervousness and he gulped. This wasn't stressful at all.

"Harry! My bet's on you!" Ron called from where he was sitting with Seamus and Dean on the stands.

That's reassuring, Harry thought bitterly. Ron's going to lose money on me.

Professor Mad-Eye was standing behind Harry, making his presence known when he instructed, "Put that in your mouth."

If it were any other time Harry would've laughed at how inappropriate that sounded. Instead he did what was instructed, he lifted his palm up and scooped the gilliweed into his mouth.

He gags, it was not going down right. It stung the back of his throat and he felt lightheaded.

A cannon goes off, signalling the start of the task. Harry dimly is aware of the other champions diving into the water. He doubted that he could move with the choking feeling, but luckily he didn't have to. Because before he knew it, he was pushed in.

At first, he sunk like a rock. He wasn't sure if he could move, but the choking feeling lessened until he felt like himself. He opened his eyes and noticed that his fingers were webbed together.

Cool, he thought, admiring his duck-like hands.

He remembered the task at hand and tried swimming. He was an okay swimmer before, but now he was a natural. Maybe it was because he was part fish or duck or whatever he was now.

He flew out of the sea and into the air like a dolphin, earning cheers from the crowd. He grinned a sharp-toothed grin before heading on his way deeper into the lake.

Harry swum among the fish, admiring their ability to move with only small fins to propel them forward. Most of them were shades of peach, orange, and yellow; warm colours for an otherwise dreary lake.

He began to hear singing voices echoing through the water, similar ones to what were inside the egg. He must be getting close.

Harry heard screams from somewhere near him and notices that Fleur is trapped in the arms of a grindyglow. A merperson swims over and releases her, but right after grabbed her arm and pulled her upwards.