It Could Have Gone That Way; A Harmione Fanfiction

Chapter 41: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

"Harry?" Someone whispered from the other side of the tent flap.

"Hermione?" Harry pressed his ear against it.

"Are you all right?" Hermione asked in a trembling voice.

"Yeah, I'm doing great." He sighed sarcastically.

Hermione exhaled unsteadily,"The key is to concentrate. Then, all you have to do is-"

"Battle a dragon."

Harry felt Hermione nod through the material. Suddenly, she batted away the tent flap and flung herself onto him in a hug that nearly knocked him over. Fleur, Cedric and Viktor all looked away uncomfortably. A flash came from the other side of the tent. Harry and Hermione broke apart, red-faced and completely furious: Rita Skeeter was waggling her eyebrows at them, lime-green dress clinging to her petite figure.

She sighed dreamily,"Ah, young love!" Rita's voice grew suddenly sharper,"If all goes terribly today, you two just might make the front page."

"What are you doing here?" Harry growled, holding Hermione's hand tightly.

"My job, sweetheart." Rita bristled past him and lifted Hermione's chin up with one of her scarlet nails,"Ooh, yes, very pretty indeed!" The reporter muttered to herself,"Care to tell me a little about yourself, dearie? After all, we really ought to have all the juicy details for the paper." At the scowls she was earning, Rita added,"What? We could always go into another room, if you'd like some privacy."

"Soyez silencieux! Pars maintenant!" Fleur shouted. Harry seriously hoped she was telling Rita to leave them alone.

"Vis tent is for ve champ-ee-one only!" Viktor snarled,"Leave now!"

"Zat iz vat I says!" Fleur turned to him indignantly.

"This tent is for champions," Cedric looked at Hermione with a small smile,"and friends."

"You is not vis! You vill leave!" Viktor barked.

Rita looked taken-aback,"Oh! Well...I suppose I'll just...oh..." she didn't move her hand from Hermione's chin.

"Go on! Go!" Cedric growled.

She didn't move.

Harry slapped her arm away from Hermione's face,"Leave!"

Still grinning mischievously, Rita strode from the tent, crew of photographers following closely behind.

"Is you all vight, Her-her..." Viktor struggled.

"Hermione." She corrected him gently, stroking the small cut on her chin that Rita's nail had given her.

"Ah. Is you all vight, Her-my-own-inny?"

Smiling sweetly, Hermione replied,"Yes, thank you. I'm...wonderful."

Harry nearly threw up.

"Champions!" Professor Dumbledore waltzed into the tent cheerfully,"Gather around me, please. I suspect you all know what you shall be facing today by now-" Cedric shot Harry an appreciative grin, "-and I'm certain you have all spent a long time preparing. First things first..." Dumbledore's gentle eyes suddenly fell on Hermione, who had squeezed in between him and Harry,"...Miss Granger, what in Merlin's name are you doing here?"

Hermione jumped,"Oh...um...sorry, I'll just...go." She gave Harry a quick kiss on the cheek and whispered,"Good luck," into his ear before scurrying out of the tent the way she had come in.