Harriet Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Chapter 11

Sure enough it was the first task. They were waiting inside a tent for Dumbledore to tell them what they had to do.

While Harriet was pacing someone called her.

"Harriet, is that you?" It was Hermione.

"Yeah." she said.

"How are you feeling? The key is to concentrate, then all you have to do is-"

"Battle a dragon."

"You can do it."

Then she left and a few seconds later Dumbledore appeared.

"Good day champions, good day champions. Now we've waited, we've wondered now we'll find out. Barty, the bag."

"Everyone, in a circle around me. Cedric over here, Ms. Delacour, here. Potter, Potter here. Ms. Delacour if you will."

She took a hand in the bag and took one.

"The welds green, Mr. Krum?"

He took his hand and got another one.

Chinese fireball, ooo!"

After that Cedric did the same thing.

"The sweetish short snout."

Then he turned to Harriet.

"Which leaves,"

"Horntail." she said quietly.

"What was that girl?"

"Nothing. Ah!"

"The Hungarian Horntail. Now, these are four very real dragons. Your collection is simple, collect the egg. That egg is what will tell you about the next task. Any questions?"

No one said anything.

"Very well, Mr. Diggory. When the canon goes off." Dumbledore said.

A few seconds later he was gone. While Harriet sat there thinking she wished the others good luck. Then it was her turn.

"And now our fourth and final championship." Dumbledore said.

"Harriet! Harriet!" people shouted.

So she walked out and looked around. Then she saw it and started walking to the egg. Suddenly there was a sound which got her to fall.

Everyone gasped or yelled. Harriet turned around behind a rock, took out her wand and shouted, "Accio Firebolt!"

Then she turned around again and barely missed getting hit by fire. Then she looked up and saw her broom. When it was close enough she jumped up and hopped on it.

"YEAH!" people yelled.

She barely missed the dragon. And sped up.

'Thank god I got this from Sirius as an apology last year.' she thought.

"Okay," she told herself, "diversionary tactics... let's go..."

She dived. The Horntail's head followed her; she knew what it was going to do and pulled out of the dive just in time; a jet of fire had been released exactly where she would have been had she not swerved away...

Harriet soared higher in a circle; the Horntail was still following her progress; its head revolving on its long neck - if she kept this up, it would be nicely dizzy –

Harriet plummeted just as the Horntail opened its mouth, but this time he was less lucky - she missed the flames, but the tail came whipping up to meet her instead, and as she swerved to the left, one of the long spikes grazed her shoulder, ripping her robes —

He began to fly, first this way, then the other, not near enough to make him breathe fire to stave him off, but still posing a sufficient threat to ensure he kept his eyes on her. His head swayed this way and that, watching him out of those vertical pupils, his fangs bared...

She flew higher. The Horntail's head rose with her, his neck now stretched to its fullest extent, still swaying, hike a snake before its charmer... Harriet rose a few more feet, and he let out a roar of exasperation. She was like a fly to him, a fly he was longing to swat; his tail thrashed again, but she was too high to reach now... He shot fire into the air, which she dodged... His jaws opened wide...

"Come on," Harriet hissed, swerving tantalizingly above him, "come on, come and get me... up you get now..."

And then he reared, spreading his great, black, leathery wings at last, as wide as those of a small airplane - and Harriet dived. Before the dragon knew what she had done, or where she had disappeared to, she was speeding toward the ground as fast as she could go, toward the eggs now unprotected by his clawed front legs - she had taken her hands off her Firebolt - she had seized the golden egg.