Chapter 79: The Champions Are…

The school year had begun fantastically. As expected Veronica and Vega were sorted into Gryffindor and Slytherin respectively which was a surprise to no one. Students cheered when Dumbledore announced that Rick would be the actual DADA teacher for the year. They had missed him the previous year, despite how demanding he could be. At least they were doing something interesting and actually learning. The news of the Triwizard tournament had everyone fired up.

“The Triwizard tournament had been discontinued two hundred years ago because of the death toll. Despite work having been done to make it safer, it is still an extremely dangerous competition. Think twice before putting your name forward because you will not be able to back out of it if you’re chosen as the champion. You may lose your magic or your life if you try to do so. It’s a very old binding magical contract. As such, the ministry decreed that only students of seventeen and above could participate.”

Cries of outrage and booing echoed in the Great Hall but Dumbledore quickly quieted everyone down.

“An age line will be drawn around the goblet of fire making sure no one underage can put their name in it. Professor Potter will also add some wards and spells so that no underage student could indirectly put their name in the goblet. I’ve been told that anyone who tries will suffer… Nasty consequences.”

Rick grinned evilly at the students and they all shuddered in fright. They knew how vicious he could be from the DADA practical classes.

“Because of this event I have good and bad news regarding quidditch. The bad news is: the quidditch cup between houses will be canceled BUT…” Dumbledore purposefully made a pause here for the students to calm down and for a bit of drama. “It will be replaced by a small open tournament. You are free to make a team with any one, from any house or any school. For those in their seventh year who aim to become a professional player after they graduate, be assured that recruiters had been warned and confirmed they would be present during the year for some scouting.”

With his speech over, Dumbledore sent everyone to bed. For the whole month of September and October the students talked about nothing but the Triwizard Tournament or the Quidditch tournament. Rick didn’t know what was talked about the most but if he had to bet it would be the latter. It was like a dream come true for them. Making your own team however you like. The dream team.

On October 30th. Both Beauxbatons and Drumstrang arrive at Hogwarts in quite the fanfare. The French school’s delegation arrived from the sky in a huge carriage, dragged by giant winged horses. Rick recognized them as Abraxas and found them impressive. The carriage itself was very… refined and luxurious as one would expect from something French. Even the students' uniforms look wondrous. Blue and form fitting. He would definitely make Lily and Bella wear one during their intimate time.

Durmstrang’s arrival was done by water. A huge wooden ship came from the depths of the Black Lake and docked near the boathouse. It amazingly looked sinister and grandiose at the same time. The students all look stoic and unexpressive, reminding them of his own son. Their uniform made Rick think of the military. Square, though and tight. Not cheap by any means however. Bella growled at his side when she saw the Highmaster of the Scandinavian school and it was Severus who clued Lily and Rick in.

“Igor Karkaroff. A Death Eater or former I suppose.”

“Karkaroff? I thought he was sent to Azkaban with Bella’s testimony?” inquired Lily.

“He was but got out for giving lots of names from the lower echelons.”

“Do you think he turned a new leaf?”

“... I’d like to say no but I honestly don’t know.”

“He has always been a coward and a bully. His loyalty is only to himself. I doubt he did.” Bella interjected.

The Beauxbatons students sat at the Ravenclaw’s table, perhaps because of the color blue they shared, while the students of Drumstrang sat at the Slytherin’s table. Rick believed it was because of their common interest in blood purity. The school did not accept muggle-born after all.

When Dumbledore invited Karkaroff and Madame Maxime in, the Beauxbaton headmistress, to the teacher’s table, the former Death Eater paled when he saw the maniacally grinning face of Bellatrix. It was without any surprise that he sat on the side of Dumbledore’s where she wasn’t.

“I think you have a fan.” Lily hit him gently with her elbow and Rick looked in the direction she was pointing at with her chin: Victor Krum. Beyond the dour and stoic face of the young man, Rick could see stars in the eyes of the current best seeker in the world.

“It seems that’s the case.”

Dumbledore did a short welcoming speech and talked about school cooperation. He expected Hogwarts students to help their guests find their marks around the castle during the week-end which started tomorrow. He was proud to see that they did.  While Durmstrang was more reserved and hung mostly with the Slytherins, Beauxtons got to mingle with pretty much everyone. It wasn’t much of a surprise. Both Scottish and French schools had a long standing friendship and positive rivalry which for a few centuries, has been going on.

All Saturday 31st, students came into the Great Hall to put their name inside the goblet of fire. Naturally, Gryffindors being Gryffindors, some of them who were underage tried to get their name in. Among them were the Weasley twins, Fred and George. They had tried to levitate their name from outside the age line, thinking the wards on the goblet wouldn’t extend beyond it.

“Guys, you know I love you like my own big brothers, right?”

“Heard that Fred? Little Rose-”“Love us. How could that be when I’m the more handsome twin?”

“Haha. Just so you know, what you’re doing now? It will backfire in your face horribly. There is no way my dad didn’t think of this.”

“Rose’s right, you know? Professor Potter is not the type to let a simple loophole like this.” Hermione commented by Rose’s side.

“It’s because it’s so simple-”“That Professor Potter overlooked it. He’s always pushing us-”“To find the most complicated and simple answers.”““No offense, Rose.””

“None taken.”

Suddenly the blue flame of the goblet surged and two pieces of parchment came flying out of it. They went straight to the twins’ forehead and enlarged. Their first name was replaced by the word ‘baby’.

“‘Baby Weasley?’ So much for the nasty consequences the Headmaster was talking about.” remarked Ron.

Fred or maybe George, tried to speak. The only sound that came out was the one of a baby babbling. The other twins laughed pointing at his brother but his voice too was one of a baby. They tried to remove the parchment from their forehead thinking it would break the spell but to no avail. Their emotions ran high and instead of wrestling each other like they usually did when they disagreed they began to bawl like actual babies. Crying and high pitch screams included.

That scared the hell out of everyone present who had been observing and those that had in mind their own method to try immediately gave up. The consequences were way too humiliating if you failed.

“I should have known it would be the two of you.”

All heads turned to the side to see Rick with his arms crossed but with an amused smile on his lips.

“You two or Camelia and Sage. Now what should we do with big babies like you? I wonder. Maybe calling your mom?”

The word ‘mom’ the twins calmed down and stopped bawling but kept on crying silently. Both got the hiccup.

“That someone brings them to the infirmary. Madam Pompfrey has everything she needs to undo this.”

Lee Jordan and Ron raised the twins from the ground and left the Great Hall towards the medical wing.

“Just so you know, it was the nicest of the consequences. They were lucky.” With an evil smile, he exited the hall after giving this last warning.

“Sweet Merlin. Your dad can be bloody scary, Rose.”

“Thanks, Cedric.” she replied to the seventh-year Hufflepuff that was standing to the side with his friends.

“That wasn’t a compliment.”

“I’m still taking it like one.” she laughed. “Dad never ever jokes about security. Otherwise he’s pretty chilled. I’m sure you noticed during DADA Practicals.”

“Yeah, we get hurt but it’s just bruises.”

“You’re putting your name in?” she asked, seeing the piece of parchment in his hand.

“Yep.”

“Aw, now I don’t know who to cheer for between you or Angelina being Hogwarts’ champion.”

“I’m a Hufflepuff, Rose. I won't mind if you cheer for both of us.”

Cedric Diggory, seeker and captain of the Hufflepuff quidditch team and all around good popular guy, put his name into the Goblet of Fire. Even Angelina Johnson (Eva’s niece) cheered and clapped her hands like the whole crowd in the Great Hall did.

Rose stayed there until dinner with her friends, talking and joking and all the while looking at who put their name inside the goblet. In her opinion only three people had a chance to be the champion of her school. Cedric and Angelina as she had already stated but also a seventh-year Ravenclaw which she wasn’t sure if the name was Bumblebee, Bumlee or Bumbly.Looking around she saw some Beauxbatons female students and not for the first time found their uniform beautiful. She wondered what her life would have been like if she had attended the French school instead of Hogwarts. Would have she been as liked and popular as she currently was? Without her mother and her father’s presence in the castle or their fame looming like a dark shadow over her? She remembers the first few months of her first and second year when people came to talk to her to know more about her parents and not for her. She had been a bit heartbroken and disappointed at first but she already had the support of her friends to cheer her up so it never lasted long.

Her parents had told her that many people would try that and that she shouldn't pay them any mind. They weren’t worth getting to know if they did, so it wasn’t a great loss. They constantly repeated to do what she felt like to do and not to let others’ expectations guide her actions and choices unless she wanted to be unhappy. She took that to heart and never regretted it once. People came to her now because she was nice and kind. Offering help to the students who struggled with classes thanks to the bit of learning she did before starting school, allowed her to bond with many people. Some friendships were superficial, some were not.

By being herself people started to see her as Rose Potter and not the daughter of the Woman-Who-Won and the Man-Who-Wins. It hasn’t been easy. Sometimes she wanted to pull her hair out and resented her parents for their achievements. It never lasted more than a moment however. She loved them too much for it to last and she knew they weren’t happy with their fame either and were sorry for how it affected her and her siblings. And yet she wondered about what her life would have been in Beauxbatons without the added pressure on her shoulders.

She shook her head to chase the thought away. There was no point in dwelling in what ifs. You couldn’t change the past. Beyond twelve hours.

The thought of a completely exhausted Hermione using a time turner the previous year to attend all her classes made her smile. Her friend not only wanted to learn everything by taking all electives but she wanted to do better than Rose’s mother. When Lily told them that she wasn’t actually attending all the electives and divided classes with Rick, Hermione had melted in tears for not having thought of that. Rose took pity on the bushy hair girl having a nervous breakdown and proposed to do the same. She hadn’t taken care of magical creatures and muggle studies because those were the electives that interested her the least. Hermione had agreed on the spot and she was doing much better this year.

“What are you thinking?” the muggle-born witch she saved from a troll their first year asked. She was glad she did so.

“That you’re doing great now that you’re not going to all classes.” The smile on Rose’s lips was genuine.

Hermione smiled happily but with a bit of an embarrassed blush. “Thank you again for that and sorry for dragging you into this.”

“It’s fine Hermione. I really don’t mind. If I did, I wouldn’t have suggested we do this in the first place. Despite my name, I’m no flower being pushed the way the wind blows.”

“That you’re not. Otherwise you’d have been Henry’s girlfriend for years now." The joke made Rose cringed.

“Please don’t talk about him.”

Henry Dodderidge has been asking her out since the second day of their first year. Now, she didn’t mind the bloke. He was nice most of the time and she liked him well enough. She just wanted to wrangle his neck when he was trying to flirt with her which happened at least five times a week. The fact that he too was a Gryffindor made avoiding him an impossible task. But only during school days. During the week-ends, Rose followed her heart and her father’s advice. She explored the castle and began to make a map. She knew secret passages and shortcuts that nobody but perhaps her father knew. She had also listened to Godric’s stories attentively and found some more secrets. Every time she got sight of Henry during the week-ends she hid in the nearest secret passage she could.

“He’s not that bad.”

“To you. You’re not the one he’s constantly hitting on.”

“Okay, I admit he can be a bit overbearing.”

“Who?”

Susan had come from the side and sat down on Rose’s right.

““Dodderidge.””

“Ah! Cute but too clingy and too dense. How many times did you reject him again?”

“I stop counting at the beginning of the second term in our first year. I was already in the three digits. Can we stop talking about him? He’s already everywhere. I don't want him in our conversation when he’s not.”

““Fair enough.””

The girls talked about everything and nothing until it was time for dinner. They rose from their seats and let Professor McGonagall put back the houses’ tables and benches in their original position. With two foreign schools eating in the Hall, the house elves had adapted the menu and Rose was very glad for it. She absolutely loved French food. Her great aunt Cassie always told her that if there was one thing the French were the best at and you should never argue about, it was food. Rose believed her. She felt sad for Ron who stuck to English food when he was eating for three people on a regular basis. He was missing on many great flavours.

But no matter how good the food was, the students’ excitement kept growing and growing. They knew that at the end of the meal the champions would be chosen. Many hoped to be the one. When the last student was done with dessert and the plates disappeared, Dumbledore stood up in front of everyone.

“It is time for the goblet of fire to give us the name of the champions for the Triwizard tournament.”

He walked down the few steps of the teachers' table and reached for the goblet.  The soft blue flame surged into an angry red and spit a small piece of parchment in the air. Dumbledore raised his hand and caught it.

“The champion of Durmstrang Institute of Magic is: Victor Krum!”

A wave of ovation from all tables resonated in the Great Hall. Krum stood up from his seat and went to Dumbledore who gave him his parchment and invited him to join Minerva who was standing near the door to a side room. When everyone calmed down another burst of red flame released another parchment.

“The champion of Beauxbatons Academy of Magic is: Fleur Delacour!”

This time the ovation was noticeably not as loud, after all, nobody but the students of the french school knew who the girl was. Still she got plenty of applause and just like Krum, was invited to go into the side room. Only the Hogwarts champion was left and most of the student population was hanging on the edge of their seats. Some hold their breath in anticipation.

A third and final burst of flame happened and small parchment flew in the air. For the Hogwarts students who put their name in the goblet, time seemed to slow down considerably.

“And the Champions of Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry is:”

There was a pause. Dumbledore looked up from the parchment at the students then looked back down as if to make sure he read correctly.

“Rose Potter!”

Students of Durmstrang and Beauxbaton clapped their hands as it was good manners but no one from Hogwarts did. Up to the teacher’s table Bella was hitting her husband’s back because the water he was drinking went from the wrong pipe and Severus held a faint Lily.

“Rose Potter!”

Albus Dumbledore repeated and at the Gryffindor’s table, Hermione hit her best friend in the ribs with her elbow. The Hogwarts’ champion’s mind had frozen. She thought it was a joke, a prank from Dumbledore but the look he was giving her told her it was anything but. She never even heard her name being called a second time. When she felt a sharp pain from her ribs, she turned to that side and saw Hermione with wide eyes, signaling her to get up. She did. Walking slowly towards the headmaster, he met her halfway and handed her to the care of her head of house. On the way, she saw a terrifying look on her father who was wand drawn and looking at the Goblet of Fire, followed by her Aunt Bella. She knew nothing more as she got inside the side room.

Dumbledore was thinking fast on how to salvage the situation and to understand how that could have happened. He made a final speech and joined the side room to get to the bottom of this. He didn’t stop to talk to Rick or Bella who were already working on the goblet of fire to find answers.

Rick was beyond livid. His baby girl had been entered into a deadly tournament against her will and he couldn’t do anything about it. He smashed away the powerlessness he felt and focused on looking at the wards, jinxes and hexes he put on the cup’s pedestal. He found nothing. Nothing that indicated that someone had tempered or tried to tempered with what he did. He didn’t feel any Dark Magic either but gave a look to Bella to be sure. She simply shook her head.

Making the goblet levitate, he turned around and went to the side chamber. The first thing he heard was his daughter’s voice.

“No, Headmaster I didn’t put my name in the goblet of fire. You know I couldn’t have. My dad made all the contingencies. There was no way I would be able to bypass them. And I spent all day in the Great Hall surrounded by my friends and many students saw me there. They will tell you I never approached the cup closer than a dozen feet away.”

“Albus, it doesn’t matter if she puts her name or not. What matters is how to get her out of this!”

Rick saw Lily completely furious and panicked right next to Rose.

“Bella and I checked the goblet and pedestal. No Dark Magic residues. My wards are in place, my jinxes and hexes too. Nothing was done to it. Which means someone put Rose’s name before I put them on.”

“Or you cheated to make your daughter the-”

A hot beam of light nearly hit Karkaroff’s head. It had been so powerful that it went through the thousand years old thick stone of the castle. You could see the outside from the golden snitch size hole the beam created. The huge drop of cold sweat that was running down Karkaroff’s temple was a clear indication that he was afraid. He was trying his best but his body was shaking in fright at the look in Rick’s eyes.“Rick.” Dumbledore said in a warning tone which prompted his professor to focus on the matter at hand. He wasn’t pleased by the attack nor by the destruction of Hogwarts.

“Lily… The only way for Rose to be free of the contract is for the tournament to be over.” Rick said in an apologetic tone.

“Lord Potter is correct. I’m sorry Lady Potter, your daughter had no choice but to compete or she will lose her magic and maybe her life.” Barty Crouch said from the side.

As the head of the Department of International Magical Co-operation he was the one most aware of the tournament since he was in charge of it. He and Ludo Bagman by his side (who was the head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports but in truth Bagman was an idiot so Crouch did all the work). They were present not only for the beginning of the tournament but also because they were two of the five judges, the other three being the respective heads of the schools.

“I want the rules book and a copy of the magical contract.” Lily insisted.

“And you’ll have them. In the meantime I am bound to tell the Champions that the first task will happen on November 24th and will be a test of bravery. Good Luck.”

With nothing more to say, Crouch left the room followed by Bagman. Rick ignored everyone else leaving. His focus was still on Rose who closed her eyes and breathed loudly. When she opened them, she had nothing but determination in her eyes. She reminded him so much of himself in that instant that it hurt. She had accepted she had to compete and so she will compete. Already, he knew she was thinking very fast about how to survive.

“Rick.” Lily called out to him, hiding as best she could the worry in her voice.

“... We need to tell her.” confused the redhead a bit until she understood what he meant by that.

“Absolutely not!”

“Tell me what?”

“Nothing!”

“Lily.”

“NO!”

“It’s for her safety! We can’t follow the schedule anymore!”

“What are you talking about?!” Rose shouted and was supported by Bella.

“What Rosie said!”

Seeing that a fight may break out, Dumbledore intervened, suggesting his own office to have a conversation. Whatever it was. Although he was pretty sure it was about the prophecy.

Lily was having a staring contest with her husband as if should she win, nothing would happen. Rick’s look was uncompromising however and she knew that this time she wouldn’t make him budge. Not when deep down she knew it was the best option to tell Rose. Admitting defeat she looked away.

Once inside his office, Dumbledore gave the family their privacy. Just in case, Rick put a soundproof charm up. He exchanged a glance with Lily in silence, not knowing where to start. Thankfully they could always count on Bella to shake things up.

“You know why Rose is in this stupid tournament, so spill it.”

“...”

“We think Voldemort is responsible.” Rick spoke because Lily didn’t seem to have the strength for it.

“Why would he-”

“He’s dead! Mom killed him all those years ago!”

Lily spoke softly but in a mournful tone. “He survived, sweetie.”

“With no head?! How?!”

Rick answered his eldest child with a bit of hesitation. “He… lost his physical body. Look, it’s complicated, I can’t tell you everything because of oaths and secrets but I’ll do my best.”

And Rick talked. About Voldemort’s survival and weakened state. About why that information was not publicly known and why it was a privilege for very few people. That he had been possessing Quirrell in her first year and that he got away when Dumbledore and Lily tried to capture him.

“But why me? Why target me?” Rose couldn’t understand it. It made no sense to her. Being his target to hurt her parents was one thing but orchestrating her participation in the Triwizard tournament went beyond that. It was obvious she was the target and an important one, not her parents.

“That’s because you're their daughter. He can’t hurt your parents so-”

“That’s not why.” The interruption froze Bella, mid-sentence. Rick took a deep breath and wiped his face with his hand. “What I’m about to tell you Rose is…Even fewer people know about it than the fact Voldemort is still alive. It’s… dangerous information. Very, very dangerous.”

“For who?”

“For you. Your mother and I… we wanted to tell you once you passed your OWLs.” he began and felt Lily’s hand slip into his own for support. “We wanted to protect you as long as we could. We tried to find a way for you to have a childhood free of worries but after what happened tonight… It’s better for you to know and be prepared.”

Rose didn’t like one bit what her father was saying nor the tone he was using. He sounded so desperate. She had never seen him like this. Her mother too. She looked so lost. Then he spoke and told her everything. About how a prophecy had been made before she was born. That someone would be designed by fate to have the power to vanquish once and for all Voldemort and that he would choose who would be the one. That Voldemort had chosen her and that her parents had been doing their very best for years to make sure she would both be ready and have as little to do as possible. To protect her, to have her as safe as they could. That was why they went to Godric’s Hollow in the first place. To act as bait and capture him so when the time came, Rose would have just to hit the final nail on Voldemort’s coffin.

“That’s bull-”

“What’s the prophecy?” Rose asked, cutting off Bella much like her father did earlier.

“The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...

And the Dark Lord will mark them as his equal, but they will have a power the Dark Lord knows not…And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives… The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…”

The room fell silent. Rose’s mind went into overdrive, trying to understand, to decipher the content of the prophecy. She understood the first part, she was born on July 31st, almost the first of August. You couldn’t do better in the ‘as the seventh month dies’ category. The power she knew not made her wonder but that wasn’t the most important part. The most important part came right after and she couldn’t make sense of it. And judging from her parents’ expression, neither did they.

“... Okay. If I remember correctly your lesson on divination at the beginning of Summer… This is an open-ended prophecy. Meaning it can go either way and I’m given a fighting chance.”

Lily had an instant outburst. “You will not fight!”

“Mom… I don’t have a choice. The part about-”

“Is unclear, Rose. I told you, prophecies are cryptic. That is still true but nowhere in this does it say you have to fight. You’re interpreting and that’s dangerous. Just because it speaks about dying from the other’s hand means there must be a fight. We don’t even know to whom the pronouns are referring to. If the power he knows not is your mother and I then it could very well be us that needs to do the deed for you to live. Remember my example with the man that was bound to walk on the moon?”

“... Yes. You said you could send him there and the prophecy would be fulfilled when he has done nothing.”

“‘Hand’ may not refer to your actual hand but maybe your right-hand man or woman or something else. You can’t let yourself dive into the prophecy, Rose. I know it’s hard, your mother and I have been struggling with it ever since we heard it but we mostly succeeded in resisting the temptation to do so.”

“ ‘The best thing to do regarding a prophecy is to not think about it. What will happen will happen so there is no point in turning yourself mad.’ That’s what you said back then but I can’t do nothing.”

“No. That’s why we’ve been preparing you for years to be able to defend yourself. All those games we played together and you loved? If you think about it I’m sure you’ll find a hidden objective. A lesson that you could use for your survival.”

“... Like. Making fake versions of me through distorted mirrors? It wasn’t about making a silly shape of me, it was about giving more targets to Voldemort and distracting him.”

“Yes. I’m sorry, Rose. I know it sounds like we trained your to be a soldier but we just-”

“Wanted for me to be able to handle myself.” Rose cut him off softly. There wasn’t an ounce of blame or reproach in her voice. “That’s alright. I’m not mad. I’m bloody furious but not at you. I’m furious at Fate and Voldemort for choosing me but not you. I had a great childhood and I wouldn’t change it for anything in the world.”

At this point Lily let out a sob and got out of her chair to take Rose in a hug. They whispered in each other’s ears something Rick couldn’t hear properly nor understand.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” inquired Bella. She was looking intently at her husband.

“It wasn’t out of mistrust, it was out of care. You were deep undercover at the time. You knowing about it could have been dangerous for you and Rose. Then… Once he was off to who knows where, I decided to not involve you more. At the time I trusted you because of the unbreakable vow but there was no love between us.”

“I…”

“You were obsessed, Bella, not in love. Love came afterwards. Fast and hit like an erumpent but still afterwards. I also didn’t know how you felt about Rose. I kept quiet because… Every morning I watched you. I saw the way you looked at your arm. I witnessed how much in that moment of the day he held control over you still and how much you hated it. I didn’t want you to think about him more than necessary. I didn’t want you to see him every time you looked at Rose. But… It wasn't a purely selfless decision. I didn’t like that you were still thinking of him, even in disgust, instead of me.”

His confession was barely finished that he fell backward with the chair. Bella had tackled him and was now kissing him for all she was worth.

“The second he’s dead and his stupid mark is gone, you’re marking me. You’re the only one I belong to and only you can mark me. A tattoo, a scar, a burn. I don’t care how, I don’t care where but I want the world to know I’m yours.”

“Are they always like this?”

“Bella is.” Lily replied.

The two redheads were done whispering and comforting each other and were looking at Rick and Bella in amusement.

“If you don’t mind. I’d like to talk about the current problem. I’m a champion. I am three years younger than Krum and Delacour. How-”

“Puh-lease! Rosie, you could pass your NEWTs next year.” interrupted Bella who still didn’t get up from Rick.

“Officially Champions can’t be helped by members of the teaching staff of their school with the exception of the Librarian. It’s Hogwash however. Every champion does and cheats. Unfortunately for you. Since your mother, Bella and I are teachers we will be looked upon even more closely. The fact that you're a champion is a scandal that will make the front page in the Prophet tomorrow. People will say we made it so you were chosen. Especially me since I was in charge of the Goblet’s security. We’ll have Andi mitigate as much as she can but there will probably be a severe backlash and-”

“Dad, focus. Me, Help, How?”

“Sorry.” Rick replied with a sheepish voice. “Read the tournament rules. Particularly the part about the champion’s status as a student.”

Rose nodded and stood up on her feet. As she wished everyone good night, she began to exit the office.

“Who knows about the prophecy? The full version?”

“Outside this room? Dumbledore, your grandmother, Amelia and Moody.”

The name of the paranoid man shocked Rose. “Moody?”

“If something happened to your mother and I, he was supposed to train you along with your grandmother.”

Nodding again, Rose left the office for good to return to her dorm for some rest.