Weasley Charm | Fred Weasley

Chapter 4-9: The Champions

Just a few days later Delaney sat with Hermione in the great hall and watched as the students began placing their names in the Goblet of Fire. She hadn't wanted to tell Hermione about what happened on the Quidditch Pitch but it was eating at her. So she finally gave in and told her. Hermione simply responded with a knowing smirk which made Delaney regret even telling her. She needed someone that would agree it was crazy, not egg it on. Right after Cedric Diggory entered his name in the Goblet, Delaney turned to Hermione.

"Hey did you hear about-" Delaney began but was cut off by a loud yell.

"Haha, yes!" Fred and George shouted as they ran into the great hall. Everyone turned their attention to the twins as they continued to the middle of the large group of students.

"Well, lads. We've done it," Fred said with a smile.

"Cooked it up just this morning," George said with the same smile on his face.

"So this was your brilliant plan to enter the tournament? An Aging Potion?" Delaney asked, wondering when the twins went from being some of the smartest in the family to the most dim-witted.

"It is quite brilliant isn't it?" Fred grinned, raising his eyebrows.

Delaney playfully rolled her eyes as she looked at him, "It's something alright."

"It's not going to work," Hermione said matter-of-factly.

"Oh yeah?" Fred asked, crouching down in between Delaney and Hermione. Delaney willed herself to not think about the last time she was this close to him, how intoxicating and freeing his scent made her feel.

"And why is that, Granger?" George asked from the other side of Hermione.

"You see this?" Hermione asked as she pointed to the circle drawn around the goblet. "This is an age line. Dumbledore drew it himself."

"So?" Fred asked.

"So? A genius like Dumbledore couldn't possibly be fooled by a dodge as pathetically dim-witted as an Aging Potion."

"But that's why it's so brilliant," Fred uttered.

"Because it's so pathetically dim-witted," George smiled as the two twins stood up. So it wasn't that they had become dim-witted, it's that they were banking on Dumbledore not protecting against something as simple as an aging potion.

"Ready Fred?" George asked, shaking his potion.

"Ready George," Fred said.

"Bottoms up," Fred and George said in unison as they drank the Aging Potions.

The two boys quickly jumped over the age line and into the circle. Cheers began to grow in the Great Hall at the fact that they had managed to cross it successfully. As Fred placed his name in the goblet he turned to look at Delaney and gave a quick wink before looking back to George. Not long after the two of them dropped their names into the goblet the flames began to dance around the circle, throwing the two of them out and over the crowd of students. Delaney sat next to Hermione with her mouth open at the sight of them being thrown over. Before anyone really knew what had happened Fred and George were turned into old men.

"You said!" George said, an accusatory tone finding his voice.

"You said!" Fred said, lunging towards his brother and starting a brawl between the two of them.

The students in the Great Hall started chanting, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Hermione looked at Delaney before saying, "And you have a crush on one of them."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I do not," Delaney said, quick to dismiss the idea.

"You keep telling yourself that," Hermione laughed before Delaney looked back at the old man version of Fred and smiled.

* * *

Delaney found herself sitting with the rest of the Hogwarts students as well as the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students in the great hall for the selection of the three champions. Fred and George walked in and sat near Delaney.

"Nice to see you don't look like an old man anymore," she laughed as she looked at Fred.

"Ah well, it was fun while it lasted. Madam Pomfrey took a liking to us in old man form, didn't she, George?" Fred asked with a joking smile plastered on his face.

"Oh yeah totally," George agreed with the same joking smile on his face.

"Sit down, please," Dumbledore said to the mass of students. The lights dimmed as Dumbledore passed his hands over them, "Now the moment you've all been waiting for, the champion selection."

The first paper flew out of the goblet in a mass of red flames. "The Durmstrang champion is...Victor Krum." Cheers began to grow from the Durmstrang section as Victor made his way over to Dumbledore.

After Victor made his way to the other room the goblet spat out another paper. "The champion of Beauxbatons is...Fleur Delacour." Once again cheers began to ring out from the Beauxbatons section as Fleur walked over to Dumbledore.

Once everyone settled back down the final champion's name flew out of the goblet. "The Hogwarts champion is...Cedric Diggory." An eruption of cheers began to sound from all of the Hogwarts students as Cedric stood up from the Hufflepuff table.

"Okay we can deal with Cedric being the champion," Fred shrugged.

"Well you're going to have to," Delaney laughed.

"Excellent!" Dumbledore shouted. "We now have our three champions. But in the end, only one will go down in history. Only one will hoist this chalice of champions, this vessel of victory, The Triwizard Cup!"

Just as the Triwizard Cup was unveiled everyone's attention was brought to the Goblet of Fire, as its flames began to dance once more. Dumbledore walked over skeptically and grabbed the piece of paper that had just been spat out of the Goblet.

"That's not possible, there have already been three champions selected," Delaney whispered to Hermione. Unease filled the Great Hall, even amongst the professors.

"Harry Potter?" Dumbledore muttered quietly. His head lifted and he spoke more clearly the second time, "Harry Potter?!"

"No, no," Hagrid shook his head from the front of the great hall.

"Harry Potter!" Dumbledore shouted again, trying to seek him out in the crowd.

"Go on Harry," Hermione paused. Her hands pushed on his back, forcing him to stand, "Harry for goodness sake."

The hall rang silent as Harry began to walk towards Dumbledore. It was just as silent as the class in which Moody had shown the fourth years the Unforgivable Curses. As Harry continued past the rest of the students and the teachers into the room where the other champions had gone people began to shout sly comments about him.

"What do you suppose they'll have him do?" Hermione asked, worry ebbing its way on her face.

"I don't know. This has never happened before," Delaney whispered to Hermione. The two girls looked with worried expressions on their faces at the door which Harry had just disappeared behind. Something was wrong, Delaney was sure of it.