57. The Hungarian Horntail

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The first task was drawing steadily nearer and not knowing what it would be Y/n felt as though it were crouching ahead of him like some horrific monster, barring his path. He had spent his evenings trying to form a plan but with nothing to work off it was proving to be difficult, there were just too many variables for him to count. The best he was able to do right now was practice his spell work and increase the range of spells he could use to his advantage.


He was sat down at the Gryffindor table one morning, still in the middle with Hermione as Ron sat on the other side of her and Harry on his side. Ron was still refusing to outright talk to them but Y/n had given up now. It had been long enough for Ron to see sense, If he wished to remain sulking and broody then Y/n would leave him to it.

They were in the middle of breakfast when the post owls fluttered into the room. Y/n wasn't expecting any post for now so continued with his breakfast. Harry's eyes looked out to see if anything would drop for him. Harry had written back to Sirius saying that he would be beside the common room fire at the time Sirius had suggested, and he, Y/n and Hermione spent a long time going over plans for forcing any stragglers out of the common room on the night in question. If the worst came to the worst, they were going to drop a bag of Dungbombs, but they hoped they wouldn't have to resort to that, Filch would skin them alive.

But no mail came for them. Only letters for other students and several copies of the Daily Prophet.

A copy landed near the four and Y/n noticed what appeared to be his and Harry's images across the front of it. Curiosity got the better of him as he picked it up now and saw the headline that read.

'POTTER VS GRINDELWALD...GOOD VS EVIL?'

Y/n's annoyance began as he opened up the paper now and began to read through it. But the more he read the angrier he became.

"What absolute nonsense!" Y/n finally said angrily throwing the paper down on the table and walking out of the Great Hall leaving his breakfast unfinished.

Harry and Hermione looked at one another with worried looks. Hermione worried about Y/n's reaction while Harry worried about what Rita Skeeter had written about himself. Both picked up the paper and began to read through it.

It had turned out to be not so much a report on the tournament as a highly colored life story of Harry and Y/n's lives. Harry had been painted as the unsung hero of Hogwarts while Y/n was cast into the shadows as a villain who wished to follow in his Great Uncle and Parent's footsteps.

"But this is completely untrue!" Hermione said as they read through the article.

Harry got a sick, burning feeling of shame as he got to read that Rita Skeeter had reported him saying an awful lot of things that he couldn't remember ever saying in his life.

'I suppose I get my strength from my parents. I know they'd be very proud of me if they could see me now... Yes, sometimes at night I still cry about them, I'm not ashamed to admit it. I know nothing will hurt me during the tournament, because they're watching over me...'

"I have never said that..." Harry said.

But Rita Skeeter had gone even further than that she had interviewed other people about him and Y/n too.

'Y/n Grindelwald has always been unsociable. Only hanging around the likes of Harry Potter. Maybe he likes the attention? I remember he joined the Quidditch team only a year after Harry did.' One Ravenclaw says.'

'I remember in second year we were learning to duel. Y/n battled against his brother but toyed with him as if he were a lesser person. I think he's obsessed with gaining power as he's always nearly top in all our classes.' A fellow Gryffindor told this reporter.'

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