Chapter 58: CH 58
I would like to discuss the first task with you, Fleur,' Madam Maxime told her firmly.
'You were not happy with my performance?' Fleur was confident she had done as well as she could.
'You performed perfectly,' her headmistress reassured her. 'I would like to discuss the other champions and their methods so that you are familiar with their skills.'
Fleur nodded eagerly. She had not been able to see any of the tasks and was quite eager to see exactly how Harry Potter had escaped the Hungarian Horntail entirely unscathed.
'The Hogwarts' Champion, Cedric Diggory, was the first to compete. His plan was commendable, but not carried out effectively. However he did display some advanced transfiguration and it would be wise to assume he is equally proficient in other subjects.'
Cedric Diggory seemed a brilliant student, but Fleur fancied she held an edge over him.
'I do not think that the Hogwarts' Champion will be your main source of competition,' Madame Maxime concluded.
Fleur nodded again and waited for her headmistress to continue, knowing about Cedric's task was useful, but not that which she was most interested in.
'Viktor Krum proficiency.'
too,
displayed
some Fleur suppressed an irritated frown, of course Harry Potter would be last.
'He used the Conjunctivitis Curse to blind his dragon, his casting was very swift and accurate, but his plan did not account for the damage the injured dragon would do. Durmstrang's Champion is clearly powerful and an accurate spell caster, but he lacks foresight. He is a dueller and a flyer, not a planner, he will prove a strong rival in any task with Karkaroff to help him plan.'
'And Harry Potter?' Fleur asked quickly.
'He cheated,' Madame Maxime smiled, seemingly impressed. 'He took the model dragon,' she gestured at the Welsh Green that was sleeping peacefully on Fleur's bed, 'and used a very powerful enlarging charm. The Horntail fought the model and while it was distracted Mr Potter used the Rupturing Curse to blind the eye on his side. The model, for all its enchantments, was only plastic and didn't last long, but the boy stole the egg in the gap.'
'An enlarging charm,' Fleur frowned. She had been hoping for something a bit more spectacular, something that would give a reason as to why he was so different.
'Oh,' her headmistress tapped her fingers on the doorframe, 'disappointed by his simple solution?'
'No.' Fleur had to concede it was a brilliant strategy.
'Jealous, then?' Madame Maxime pressed. Her headmistress was oddly fixed on getting Fleur to answer and she was afraid her teacher might have noticed her curiosity in the boy. 'It was a good solution,' Fleur decided, 'but only for this exact situation. I doubt he is capable of creating the enchantments that were already on the model, and even if he were, almost any magic would be able to defeat such a creation. It is impossible to create something that is capable of using magic as a witch or wizard does.'
'You must look deeper than his solution,' Madame Maxime remonstrated. 'The scale of the enlarging charm indicated surprising magical power for a fourteen year old, equal or better than any other champion, including yourself. His knowledge and use of a curse considered dark is also very interesting. Albus Dumbledore would not consent to it being taught here, so he must have another source of counsel.'
'You are impressed with him,' Fleur realised quietly.
'Indeed I am,' her headmistress admitted. 'There is something different about him, do not pretend you have not noticed it.'
'I might have,' Fleur confessed. Madame Maxime levelled a knowing stare at her.
'He does not react to your allure, does he?'
'No, he barely even noticed me until the first task.' Fleur scowled at the memories and her headmistress smiled amusedly at the expression on her face. Her amusement did not help Fleur's temper in the slightest.
'He is not to be underestimated,' Madame Maxime warned. 'You cannot beguile him, he appears to be much more powerful than we suspected, and knows at least one questionably immoral curse well beyond what wizards his age should.'
'I will not,' Fleur promised. 'Experience and knowledge will allow me to remain ahead. The first task is always the simplest. He is only resistant to my passive charm,' she added. 'I have met many who are like him in that regard. They crumble when I actually exert it upon them.'
Fleur made no mention that even those still noticed her, or that she suspected his solution to be as simplistic as possible for reasons other than his limited education. There had been no fear and no surprise in the eyes of the boy before the task. His distraction had been simple and spectacular, it drew the eye away from Harry Potter himself.
'Perhaps,' her headmistress replied, 'but I must insist you be wary of him. He has technically cheated already, he might do so again and in a less benign way. It was his breaking of the rules alone that cost him the points that would have placed him first. If he had had the presence of mind to summon the toy, you would be second.'
That was a humbling realisation. Fleur had been beaten by a fourteen year old. She might have more points, but his solution had been superior to hers.
It was unacceptable.
'I cannot guess at enough info the boys talents or personality to offer a useful opinion,' Madame Maxime began, 'but he is a dangerous unknown, one that seems to have unsettled even Albus Dumbledore.'
With that her headmistress retreated from the entrance to Fleur's room. Albus Dumbledore had not seemed particularly unsettled to Fleur. Concerned, yes, proud, perhaps, but no fourteen year old was going to unnerve a wizard of such legendary power. Harry Potter was different, unusual enough to catch her attention and then keep her curiosity, but, despite his legend and his evidently prodigious talent, it was unlikely he would win the tournament.
The fact that she was even considering him a rival was a surprise. Fleur had been sure he would not pass the first task, certain enough to pity him before facing the Horntail and even attempt to offer some comfort. She had been met with a cool, calm exterior and it had thrown her off.
He did not even know my name.
Fleur had been quite insulted by that. She knew that he must have heard it, if not at the choosing of the champions then at the Wand-weighing. It appeared she had been beneath his notice again and it hadn't helped when he returned to the medical tent after facing the nightmarish Hungarian Horntail without a scratch and only two points shy of her own score.
Fleur grumpily poked the sleeping model of the Welsh Green. This was not the time to contemplate her curiosity about Harry Potter. She had a letter to send and without an owl of her own that meant a trek to the Owlery.
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