Shifted: Book One

Chapter Twenty Two - The Hidden Clue

Harry made his way onto the bridge after lunch, desperate to find Hazel to explain himself. On his journey, he bumped into a familiar face, a face that belonged to Hufflepuff.

"Potter!", Cedric called out, running towards Harry in a bit of a rush.

"Cedric", Harry replied with a sigh.

"How are you?" Cedric stuttered, slightly out of breath and now facing Harry.

Harry looked at him in confusion but replied politely, hoping to end this conversation quickly to find Hazel.

"Spectacular", Harry responded sarcastically.

Cedric looked down in remorse, he not only found out about the conflict between him and Hazel, but he also had found out Harry took an interest in asking Cho to the dance. In addition, Cedric wanted to thank Harry for his help so far in the tournament.

"Look I realised I never properly thanked you for tipping me off about those dragons", he said, whilst looking at Harry who didn't seem completely bothered by the thanks.

"Forget about it, I'm sure you would've done the same for me", Harry said, about to leave before being stopped by Cedric.

"Exactly", Cedric said, slightly leaning in closer to Harry.

"You know the prefect's bathroom on the fifth floor?", Cedric asked, whilst Harry nodded his head intriguingly.

"It's not a bad place for a bath. Just take your egg and mull things over in the hot water", he whispered loudly into Harry's ear before slowly turning to walk away, leaving Harry with this cryptic clue.

Harry looked perplexed but interested, and immediately headed back to the common room to retrieve his egg and listen to Cedric's plan. He didn't know if Cedric was pulling a prank on him or not, but went with his gut and followed his idea, though he wasn't entirely sure what Cedric was asking him to do.

Whilst Harry went to find out the next clue to the second task, Hazel was still busy distancing herself from him. She wandered the empty corridors on the sixth floor, trying to clear her head. All was going well until she bumped into a boy and skidded against the ground.

"Oh, it's you again", he spoke with a snide tone. He watched Hazel as she stood back up and dusted her legs down.

"What do you have against me, Malfoy! I've barely even spoke to you since my arrival", Hazel asked, irritated with Draco's disgusting behaviour and manners.

He scoffed and looked Hazel up and down.

"Well that's just it, your abrupt arrival is suspicious, and my family and I are going to figure out who you are", he said before turning away.

Hazel crossed her arms and squinted at him. She hated his tone, it was unnecessarily spiteful and rude and she wanted to put him in his place.

"You and your family?", she chuckled under her breath.

Draco raced back to Hazel and pushed her against the brick wall she was stood by. He firmly gripped Hazel's wrist against the cold bricks, and his other hand was holding his wand, pointed at Hazel's neck. His face grew flustered and angry, his eyes stared right into Hazel's. They were full of fear, they were an enchanting hue of blue, they were fire in water, fury in ice. They were full of life yet afraid and so uncertain.

"How dare you speak of my family that way, mudblood!", he sneered, digging his wand into Hazel's neck ever so slightly.

His breathing intensified and his eyes grew more and more angry. Hazel's heart began to race, she wasn't afraid that Draco would harm her, she was just uncertain of his next move. She knew nothing about his family, nothing about him, so why was he so fixated on her? Hazel challenged the boy.