Daughter of Mine | Harry Potter

XX.

Lalia eyes burst open. She coughed up water and saw Harry and Gabrielle floating on the surface of the Black Lake with her. Gabrielle looked scared and confused. 

"Where's Fleur?" Lalia asked, looking around for Gabrielle's sister.

"Fleur didn't turn up, I couldn't leave her," Harry panted. 

"Harry, you dumb sweetheart," said Lalia, "you didn't take that song thing seriously, did you? Dumbeldore wouldn't have let any of us drown!" 

"The song said -" 

"It was only to make sure you got back inside of the time limit!" said Lalia. "How long were you down there being a hero?" 

Harry ignored the line of sight of the girl, who knew him well enough to know he wasted time waiting for the other champions. 

"C'mon," Harry said shortly, "help me with her, I don't think she can swim very well."

They pulled Gabrielle through the water, back toward the bank where the judges stood watching, twenty merpeople accompanying them like a guard of honor, singing their horrible screechy songs. 

Harry could see Madam Pomfrey fussing over Hermione, Krum, Cedric, and Cho, all of whom were wrapped in thick blankets. 

Lalia feeling exhausted wasn't sure how much longer she could swim and support another human. The sleepless nights filled with nightmares were catching up to her. Thankfully, she saw Ron jump in the water after urging from McGonagall and swim to meet them almost at the bank. 

"I've got her for you," he said, taking Lalia's side on Gabrielle. 

"Thank you," panted out a tired Lalia. 

Dumbledore and Ludo Bagman stood beaming at them from the bank as they swam nearer, but Percy, who looked very white and somehow much younger than usual, came splashing out to meet them. Meanwhile Madame Maxime was trying to restrain Fleur Delacour, who was quite hysterical, fighting tooth and nail to return to the water. 

"Gabrielle! Gabrielle! Is she alive? Is she 'urt?"

"She's fine!" Harry tried to tell her, but he was so exhausted he could hardly talk, let alone shout. 

Percy seized Ron and was dragging him back to the bank; Dumbledore and Bagman were pulling Harry and Lalia upright; Fleur had broken free of Madame Maxime and was hugging her sister.

"It was ze grindylows ... zey attacked me ... oh Gabrielle, I thought... I thought... "

"Come here, you," said Madam Pomfrey. She seized Harry and Lalia and pulled them over to Hermione and the others, wrapped them so tightly in a blanket that it felt like a straitjacket, and forced a measure of a very hot potion down their throat. Steam gushed out of their ears. 

"Harry, well done!" Hermione cried. "You did it, you found out how all by yourself!"

"Well -" said Harry. Lalia could tell he wanted to say more, but she looked around and saw the stare of Karkaroff make him stop. "Yeah, that's right," said Harry, raising his voice slightly so that Karkaroff could hear him. 

"You haff a water beetle in your hair, Herm-own-ninny," said Krum. 

"You were well outside the time limit, though, Harry. ... Did it take you ages to find us?" asked Hermione, who impatiently brushed away the beetle. 

"No ... I found you okay. ..."

Lalia seeing the embarrassment on the boys face, grabbed his hand and gave it a small comforting squeeze. He looked at her and she nodded at him with a smile. Taking a deep breath, Harry nodded back.