Bat-Bogey Hexers

72

A week before the end of October, an announcement was put up in the entrance hall. Ginny squeezed her way to the front of the crowd (she was too short to see over everyone's heads) to read it.

TRIWIZARD TOURNAMENT
THE DELEGATIONS FROM BEAUXBATONS AND DURMSTRANG WILL BE ARRIVING AT 6 O'CLOCK ON FRIDAY THE 30th OF OCTOBER. LESSONS WILL END AN HOUR EARLY. STUDENTS WILL RETURN THEIR BAGS AND BOOKS TO THEIR DORMITORIES AND ASSEMBLE IN FRONT OF THE CASTLE TO GREET OUR GUESTS BEFORE THE WELCOMING FEAST.

"Only a week away!" said Colin excitedly, popping up at Ginny's side.

"I wonder what the other schools will be like," said Demelza, who had also made her way through the crowd. It had taken her a bit longer as she was taller than Ginny and Colin.

They didn't have long to wonder. As soon as classes finished on Friday the 3oth, the Hogwarts students gathered on the steps outside of the building to await their guests. Alongside her friends from Gryffindor, and an absentminded Luna who had wandered along, Ginny watched the students from the other schools arrive.

Both arrived in quite a fashion. Beauxbatons arrived first in a huge carriage pulled by huge horses that came sailing over the treetops out of the deep blue evening sky ("It's a dragon!" one of the first years had shrieked as it came hurtling toward the castle. "Don't be stupid," a nearby Dennis Creevey had said, "It's a flying house." Which wasn't far from the truth.)

The carriage landed, bouncing upon its ginormous wheels, and a boy dressed in pale blue robes hoped out.

"I want to go to beauxbatons,"said Wish Proctor, goggling at the boy as he fumbled with something below the carriage, then let down a set of golden steps.

"Me too, the boy's there are dreamy," sighed Pamela.

Ginny and Demelza exchanged a glance before turning away to hide their laughter.

Then out stepped a woman who made even Wish and Pamela forget about the boy. She was ginormous. The only person that big Ginny had ever seen was Hagrid, and even he seemed smaller than her.

"That ladies huge!" Dennis Creevey cried.

Some nearby seventh years hushed him.

The woman moved forward to greet Dumbledore (after some stunned applause led by the headmaster) in a heavy French accent, then about a dozen students came out of the carriage behind her. They were all dressed in robes of pale blue silk, not at all suited for the cold October air.

"I want to go to beauxbatons," said Vera Raymond. "The outfits are dreamy."

"They're pretty, but they are going to freeze in this weather!" said Ginny, eyeing the shivering students, all of whom looked to be in their late teens.

The Beauxbatons students headed inside behind their professor, and the Hogwarts students returned to waiting for Durmstrang

Everyone's eyes went expectantly to the sky, but instead Durmstrang's form of transportation came rising out of the lake. They had arrived in the boat.

A man with sleek silver hair, a goatee, and yellow teeth lead his students across the darkening ground and up to the castle after departing from their ship.