Chapitre 25: Chapter Twenty-Four: The Goblet of Revolutions
A whimsical air surrounded the group of students as they resided in the Banquet Hall. Shivers rolled down their spines and goosebumps coated their arms as the students whispered amongst themselves. Every eye, ear and tongue revolved around one topic; the Goblet of Fire nestled between the mob of singing wood nymphs.
So far two people had been brave enough to step up to the Goblet. The first was a petit Dumstrang boy who hadn't bothered making a big deal of it. He simply walked through the crowd of muttering students and approached the heads of schools with a grimacing smile.
His strict gait and nonchalant way of dropping his name had the audience holding their breaths as the wood nymphs hummed a light tune. Cordelia was enchanted by how the nymphs dropped down to the stairs as they continued a light song, their gold dresses draping across the steps as they beckoned students forward.
Two Beauxbaton girls stood at the same time, however, the red-headed one returned to her seat as she glanced at the other girl. This girl had an air of confidence around her as she proceeded to the front of the hall. Cordelia might have been mistaken, but she swore a few of the students referred to the girl as 'queen'.
Regardless of her stature, the girl's sudden willingness encouraged the Beauxbaton crowd to approach the Goblet with muttered whispers and parchment slips.
It had been an hour since the students began placing their names in the goblet, every friend group had at least one candidate to offer to the point where the professors had abandoned their positions to lounge in their seats and whisper amongst themselves.
While the entire hall was filled with murmurs and occasional bursts of fire, one portion of the tables remained undisturbed.
The snakes' poised tails and fangs of deceit hadn't let up for the entire night, but the rest of the hall didn't see to catch onto their hesitance to drop their names. The pureblood heirs were certainly not afraid of walking up in front of the crowd, it was the opposite.
The snakes were craving to drop their names into the Goblet, but a certain serpent decided to take his time talking to Abarax. For unknown yet sexist reasons, Slughorn insisted on either Rodolphus or Tom being the first Slytherin to drop their name into the Goblet, but the former was busy flirting with French girls and the latter was absorbed in what Abarax had to say.
"If one of them doesn't get up this minute I'm going to hex them."
Cordelia's exclamation was met with chuckles from Druella and Phyllis as they glanced at the boys in question. Unfortunately, Riddle had better hearing than Lia thought.
The Dark Lord's head snapped up with an annoyed frown as he met Cordelia's gaze, abandoning his conversation with Abarax as the Malfoy heir too stared at her.
After their encounter in the hallway, the duo hadn't spoken throughout the night. Cordelia chose to stay quiet and evade questions by any male (including Antoine) while Tom was busy scheming something with his knights. Regardless of their sudden miscommunication, the duo had stolen quite a few gazes during Olympe's speech, which left them on even ground of sorts.
They were allies, to say the least.
However, they weren't close enough for Riddle to abandon his seat and walk towards the other side of the table to offer her his palm.
"If you wanted to visit the Goblet so bad you could have done so."
Cordelia rolled her eyes at his suggestion but was quick to accept his palm and abandon her seat.
"Slughorn."
Tom let out an ungraceful chuckle of sorts as they proceeded to the front, avoiding whispers and gazes sent their way.
"You've never listened to him before."
Cordelia rolled her eyes yet again as they finally reached the Goblet, causing the nymphs to increase their pitch.
"Beauxbaton changes things."
The statement held more weight than a mere reference to Hogwarts' prestige, but Tom didn't catch on as he let his name slip into the Goblet of Fire, Cordelia's following right after.
The palace of Beauxbaton had descended into a state of anxious murmurs and constant rambles. Many people had taken to contemplating who the three champions would be as they strolled through the gardens or hid in the library's alcoves. Cordelia, however, chose to hide out in her room as Druella and Phyllis anxiously murmured on about what taunts they would face from their parents if they failed.
While their words didn't help, Cordelia was often snapped out of her paranoid thoughts due to a whine from Druella or Phyllis bursting into tears. It didn't help matters that Orion was never around, neither were Theodore, Rodolphus or Ababrax.
One thing was clear; the Slytherin boys were planning something, and Tom Riddle was the heart of the matter.
"Lia, we'll be late!"
Phyllis's cries were met with a groan from the brunette as she lifted her head from her pillows. The past week had been terrifyingly overwhelming, so much so Cordelia couldn't fathom finally hearing the result.
"Lia."
This time it was Druella who egged her on, the gold-eyed girl's tone mimicking that of a disappointed pureblood mother.
"Coming."
A sigh escaped her lips as Cordelia finally abandoned her bed, choosing to lazily put on a cloak and abandon the room.
The walk to the Banquet Hall was one filled with deafening silence, each twist and turn being met with one of the girls clutching each other's wrists with whispers of nausea and fatigue. Cordelia would be lying if she said she hadn't constantly lifted her head to glare at any passer-by brave enough to murmur.
The Banquet Hall's chandelier was lit with blue crystals and its tables were filled to the brim, the Slytherin girls being one of the last to enter. Unlike every other day the nymphs lounged at the corners of the room, their gold flapper dresses replaced with baby blue robes.
"Come all, we must not delay."
Olympe Maxime's words made the hall quiet down as everyone settled into their seats, their attention diverted to the Goblet of Fire with blue flames.
"We have a special announcement."
It was shocking for Dippet to take over for Madame Maxime, but Cordelia couldn't help but smile at the headmaster's familiar voice.
"This Triwizard Tournament is unlike any other. Rather than three champions..." he paused for dramatics, making the French girls gasp and the Dumstrang boys groan, the Hogwarts students, however, were used to it.
"We shall have six!"
The hall broke out into loud exclamations of glee as the students contemplated whether they could be the possible extra champion.
"To start off, for Hogwarts..."
Cordelia practically swooned as she leaned into Druella, the latter patting her head and whispering consolations. The Goblet lit up as a slip of parchment escaped the flames, settling onto Dippet's waiting palm.
"Tom Marvolo Riddle."
The hall erupted in a chorus of applause, most of it coming from clusters of giggling girls. The smirk that befell Tom's face was one that made Cordelia look down in shame, a tear escaping her eye as she contemplated her loss. Druella, however, chose to be empathic as she laid a hand on Lia's shoulder.
"There's still one more name."
The statement made her grin as the brunette hopefully glanced up, noticing the small grin on Dippet's face as he flicked his gaze away from the paper and onto the group fo Slytherins in the corner.
"Cordelia Lucretia Black-McMillan."
All noise faded to the back of her mind as Druella excitedly shook Lia's shoulders with murmurs of congratulations. Phyllis's scream and Orion's excited whoop weren't enough to make Cordelia snap out of her dazed stupor, no it was the Dark Lord's smirk that made the blue-eyed brunette smile as she abandoned her seat.
The walk toward Dippet was one Cordelia would never forget, her mind constantly replaying the applause and grins sent her way, but all that didn't matter. In the end, the mutter of congratulations from Dippet was the only thing that made Cordelia finally accept her fate.
She was a Triwizard champion, and Tom Riddle was her partner.
"Beauxbaton certainly changes things."
L’AVIS DES CRÉATEURS 
thatfanficwriter
thatfanficwriter We're finally getting into the Triwizard arc!!
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