Harry tossed and turned in his bed; he couldn't sleep! Having Daphne down there in the Black Lake was bad enough, but his brother too? Why did they need two hostages? Sirius had informed him immediately after the meeting about the changes. Not being able to go to sleep, he finally got up from the bed at dawn, pulled on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt for his morning run.
Two hours later, he returned to the Room of Requirement, tired but feeling a lot better. Visualising a bathtub, he let his aching muscles relax as he slipped into the hot water. Half an hour later, he called for a house-elf who provided him with breakfast. Once done, he checked his surrounding to ensure everything was ready, including the hip flask containing the Amphibian Potion. He shucked off all his clothes and put on a pair of tight emerald green swim trunks which he had specifically bought for the task. Wearing a robe to cover himself, he exited the room with everything he needed.
Harry calmly walked across the grounds to one of the boats which led to the judges' podium that was constructed in the middle of the Black Lake. He could see several stands all around the lake and the tens of thousands of people who had come to watch the task. Miller's Mirrors were placed everywhere so that they could watch the champions' progress up close. Harry walked up to where the other champions were standing and flicked his wand to conjure an armchair for himself. He sat down and closed his eyes to centre himself. He needed to focus; he couldn't let his emotions take control of him at such a crucial moment.
Fifteen minutes later, they heard a cannon blast as Lodo Bagman ascended up to the corner of the podium. "Ladies and Gentlemen," he began, his voice booming. "Welcome to the second task of the Triwizard Tournament. All our champions seem to have solved the puzzle of the egg and arrived at the clue given with it. Now, something precious has been taken from each of them and they have two hours to retrieve their hostages. Starting with Cedric Diggory, his hostages are Miss Cho Chang and Mr Joshua Hopkins; Viktor Krum is to rescue Miss Hermione Granger and Mr Abelard Muller; Fleur Delacour's hostages are Miss Gabrielle Delacour and Miss Abella Moreau; and finally, Harry Potter is to rescue Miss Daphne Greengrass and Mr Dylan Lestrange. Champions, get ready!"
Harry removed his robe and gave it to his godfather who was standing behind him.
"Good luck, Harry," whispered Sirius, sounding worried. "Do your best, but don't go looking for danger."
"My brother and fiancée are down there," said Harry flatly. There was no question in his mind that he would do everything possible to rescue them from under the lake.
He took the hip flask from Sirius and waited. When there were just a few seconds left, he drowned the potion; the cannon blast signified that the task had started. Already gasping for breath, Harry dived into the lake, soothing his newly formed gills.
" Lumos! "
A bright ball of light appeared at the tip of his wand as he swam forward. He only had to concentrate on the tracking charm located on both Daphne and Dylan's lockets which were tied to the locket he himself had around his neck. He had no idea how the other champions were supposed to find their hostages, but he did not care to find out.
"Both Miss Delacour and Mr Diggory seem to have used the Bubblehead Charm," Mr Bagman commented. "Mr Krum has done a remarkable piece of Transfiguration on himself, turning himself into half-shark. As a world-renowned expert on Transfiguration, I'd like your views on this, Professor Dumbledore. Mr Potter is the mystery because I saw him drink some sort of potion, though what, I'm not sure - oh, of course, Master Slughorn, go ahead - an Amphibian potion? You mean he invented a potion himself? At the age of fourteen? Incredible! Do tell me more!"
Down in the lake, Harry was swimming towards one of his targets when he encountered an illusionary ward. Scanning it, Harry was impressed. It gave off a feeling as though whatever was on the other side would be a tunnel leading him to one of the hostages and if anyone crossed it, it would create a whirlpool, swallowing them. If not for his advanced Occlumency, he would have fallen victim to the ward himself. He tried to avoid it and swim in the other direction, but the trap had been designed very well. He could not avoid it. Ten minutes of trial and error later, Harry disabled the ward and went on his way.
A few minutes later, Harry frowned when he encountered something he couldn't exactly identify. It was a concealment ward, but it was poorly designed. Suddenly, his senses were on alert and just as he turned, he was attacked by a horde of Grindylows. There were too many of them and they were clawing their way through his skin. Harry's eyes darkened in anger as he blasted several of them to smithereens; the concealment ward was merely a ruse to draw the champions' attention away from the Grindylows. The water demons realised that he was not prey and backed off. Cursing himself for not anticipating an attack, Harry hastily applied what little of healing charms he knew to seal the cuts on his body. Once done, he swam towards his target.
"Both Mr Potter and Mr Diggory have managed to defeat their Grindylows!" shouted Bagman. "Mr Potter has once again displayed his talent in ward-breaking! One hour and thirty minutes to go!"
There! He could see it from here. Conjuring a Patronus, he used the thunderbird to provide light as he realised that this hostage was Dylan. Dispelling the Patronus, he used a severing charm on the ropes binding his brother, put an arm around the younger boy's waist and began swimming towards the surface. Suddenly, Harry saw a movement from the corner of his eye. Turning around, it took all his willpower not to scream. In front of him was a massive snake, slithering around in the water. It came towards him, opening its mouth wide.
" Stop! I mean you no harm!" Harry said impulsively. Bubbles sprouted from his lips, but he could detect the hissing sound, even underwater. This was a surprise! The Amphibian potion must have given him the power of speech underwater as well! He would have to investigate this in depth later.
" A speaker!" hissed the sea serpent in surprise. " I have never met one of your kind before. I did not mean to startle you, young speaker. I wanted to eat the fish behind you."
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