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***
"Timothée, may I ask you a question?" I announced in my first language, and Timothée glanced up from his book lying on one of the great hall tables. Ever since we had arrived here, I had used English as a way to practice, but my dialect caught Timothée's attention.
"You will anyway. What is it?" he asked.
"Are you okay?" his eyes bored into mine with no emotions flowing through them. His eyes had always been emotionless but never so cold.
"Yes, I am fine," said Timothée. He looked back down at his book, causing a subtle frown to spread across my face.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
Fleur then walked past us to take a sample of fruit. Timothée sent her the dirtiest look I had ever seen him deliver, and that's when it hit me. "Is that what this is about? You are jealous that my sister got chosen and you did not?" I said, and he scoffed.
"Your sister is too weak for this tournament, and you know that. The goblet of fire was wrong to choose her," he replied.
"It should have chosen you then?"
"This tournament is one of the deadliest wizarding events in history. I am relieved I was not chosen."
"Then why did you insert your name into the cup?"
"So I could honor my school."
My teeth grit together as he sneered at me. "You are bitter that you are not brave enough for the goblet of fire to choose you. That is the issue here. Not Fleur. You."
With that as my final words, I stood up, grabbed my belongings, and stormed out of the hall.
***
"Fleur?" my sister stopped her conversation with her friends to look up at me. We hadn't spoken in more than a week. This was the longest one of our fights had lasted. "May we take a walk?" Fleur sighed and nodded before greeting her friends goodbye. We began strolling along the Hogwarts corridors in silence.
It was unbearable for several minutes until I broke it, "I am sorry about the way I acted." Fleur moved her gaze from admiring the paintings lining the wall to me. Another sigh left her lips, and she nodded.
"I am too. I know you are just worried for me. If I am honest, I am nervous too."
"This tournament is brutal, and I only want you safe. I do not know what life would be like without my big sister," I said, and a smile spread across her face. We continued walking across Hogwarts until we began stepping up moving stairs to an undetermined location. Discussing what we thought the first task would be. If someone from another school were to go past us, however, they would hear us rambling to each other in foreign words.
"Come on, Ronald! It's not Harry's fault. He didn't choose this --" a sharp voice hissed as the same boy with red hair I had seen in the great hall looking rude during the choosing of the champions, and the bushy-haired girl turned the corner. The girl seemed to be scolding him. Behind them was a shorter girl that looked to be the boy's little sister based on the strikingly similar looks. And in the very back was three more red-robed students. Two I recognized right away as Fred and George while one I had never seen before joked at their side. He was a few inches taller than the twins and had black dreadlocks matching his dark skin. The entire group had grey Hogwarts robes, the red-haired sibling's filthier than the others, and a red scarf striped with yellow flung across their necks.
"I think Harry's a genius! I'll have to ask him how he did it!" Fred exclaimed, and George nodded in agreement.
"I never thought of Harry as the creative type, but I don't want to be quick to judge," the black boy commented, and the brunette girl glared at him.
"Harry didn't do anything! Someone must've hijacked the goblet," she explained.
"Sure," the youngest ginger boy grumbled as me, and my sister walked past. I glanced up from Fleur to look towards the back of the group where Fred and George stood. I grinned softly at George, who followed my eyes and smiled back.
"I swear, Hogwarts is trying to fatten me up with all those meals. I am afraid I will not fit in my robes!" Fleur screeched, causing her to grab my attention again.
"I do not mind it, sister. You should not either," I advised, and she scoffed.
"Oh boo hoo," we heard one of the girls from the group of Hogwarts students mutter under her breath. Fleur and I looked over and saw the brunette gazing at us in disgust.
"Is there a problem here?" I asked, and the red-haired girl shrugged. Fleur raised one of her blonde eyebrows.
"My sister asked you a question," Fleur told the buck-toothed girl.
She merely scowled and took a step forward. "Nobody gives a damn if you fit into your robes or not," Fleur's mouth dropped, and she let out a shrill squeal of annoyance.
"Excuse me?" she cried. The girl was about to say something, but I cleared my throat before she could say anything. Everyone looked my way.
It was silent for a bit before I spoke up, "Nadeleine Delacour." I held out my hand, but she never shook it, so I put it back down. "This is my older sister Fleur. You may already know her as a Triwizard champion. Anyway, I must say what a beautiful school you have, and we are both honored to be here, along with our youngest sister Gabrielle. You all seem like nice people, and we would not want to start something" - I studied each student's features - "two fourth years, one third year, and three sixth years will attempt to finish. Now, leave us be, and we will leave you be. Okay?"
The younger students were baffled, but the twins and their friend were shaking their heads with snickers. "Alright," George smirked. "We'll leave your family be, and you'll do the same for ours."
I nodded in agreement and walked away with Fleur without another word.
