Feb 24, 1995; 7:30 AM; Hogwarts Castle Grounds

Consciousness slowly came back to me as I reveled in the blissful feeling of weightlessness.

I shifted to my side with a yawn, and faintly began to notice a slight discomfort building around my right shoulder.

Still, I maintained my position for a while longer before laying on my back, once more.

A faint, persistent beep gradually made itself known.

I half-opened my eyes, the light piercing through the organ and jump-starting my brain.

I blinked a few times, my vision foggy and blurred, before closing them again.

Maybe a few more minutes wouldn't hurt.

"Harry." Red's muffled voice came from under my pillow. "Harry, you need to wake up."

A wave of irritation built in the front of my brain, creating an uncomfortable pressure. I let out an inarticulate grunt of aggression before closing my eyes and going quiet again.

That'll make him think twice before bothering me again. I felt my mouth quirk in a smile of faint amusement.

However, Red didn't think twice. "Get up, you lazy butt. You've overslept, already. It's seven thirty!"

That got me into action.

As quick as I could manage, though still sluggishly, I rose to a sitting position.

Only to fall back into the pillow, the wave of dizziness laying me low.

"Bloody Hell." I muttered in annoyance and waited for the world to stop its horrible spinning. "Seven thirty. Really? I could have sworn I set the alarm."

"You did." Red said slowly as I rubbed circles into the temple of my head. "You just slept through it like it wasn't even there."

"Oh..." I said, wincing as the headache made itself known. "Damn. I was hoping I could get some last minute training before…"

The Second Task. I thought, my sleepiness dying in the few instants it took to continue my line of thought. It's today.

"You did what you could." Red said diplomatically. I palmed my face and rubbed the sand out of my eyes, hoping it would help with my headache.

Surprisingly enough, it did.

Attempt number two. I thought and slowly rose to a seated position in my four-poster bed. All of the other occupants of the dorm room were missing, with the exception of Ron, who loudly snored as he tossed and turned.

I took a deep breath, feeling it turn into a yawn as I stretched.

"You pushed yourself a little bit too hard last night, you know." Red said.

I sighed, remembering the events all too well.

“With Squirtle…” I shook my head and shut my mouth, not knowing what to say.

“You took on the dragon with Squirtle.” Red pointed out calmly, his voice soothing my growing anxiety.

“Squirtle, Charmander and Bulbasaur.” I corrected the man. “But now, even with Charmander evolved, he’s pretty much useless underwater. Bulbasaur, too.”

And wasn’t that a disappointment? I thought with a sigh.

I’d been hoping that Bulby, with her affinity against the sea creatures of the Black Lake, would be a great help. Much like with myself, I’d planned on using the Bubble Head Charm on her so that I’d have two partners underwater, instead of one.

What I hadn’t accounted for was the sheer level of cold the water would reach. Bulby was ill equipped to deal with the temperature shifts.

“Don’t worry about only having Squirtle as your companion.” Red said, correctly reading my mood. “Having Bulby along wouldn’t have helped us overmuch, despite the type advantage.”

I frowned, taking the Pokédex in hand and flipping it open, displaying Red in full view of me. “I thought you said—”

“—The type advantages are something we taught children, Harry.” Red interrupted. There was no judgment in his gaze. “The actual specifics of it all was something left for Trainers with higher proficiency, each district’s respective Gym Leaders, Pokémon Professors, Breeders and Researchers.”

I nodded, mind whirling with images of the old world my mechanical friend hailed from.

I wonder what it would be like to visit the world in those times. I thought of ancient heroes and masters.

“You can’t really teach anything more than the basics.” Red continued over my thoughts. “Take your Care of Magical Creatures class, for example. How much do you truly learn of the Creatures you've previously studied?”

I blinked, considering the question. In my opinion, Care was a great class, but was it really what I expected it to be?

The course taught us how to properly treat Magical Creatures; this included lessons on how to feed them, maintain their care, breed them, among other important protocols.

A flash of Malfoy bad mouthing Buckbeack came to the front of my mind. I nodded. Certainly, the class was quite useful.

But it’s nothing like the information I’ve seen on the Pokédex display. I thought, recalling the sheer amount of information which had been available on all of the Pokémon which had existed, back then.

Its newer scans, of course, were less detailed. However, even those possessed a great deal more information than I’d ever seen in a Creature Care book.

The academic weakness of the wizarding world, maybe? I thought of the Muggles, with their X-ray machines, incredibly detailed books on all facets of biology, whether it be virology, zoology, anatomy and more. Wizards focus too little on the physical, and much more on the spiritual.

Was that a good, or bad thing?

I had no answer.

Still… there were bigger things to worry about.

"It's a shame that Bulby can't safely consume any Fire seeds or the serum." I took a deep breath and got out of bed, closing the Pokédex. "I need to get ready."

"That'd be best." Red said and went quiet.

Digging through my trunk, I put on my Trainer get up, the same one I'd worn on the day of the First Task.

I adjusted my cap, staring at myself in the mirror.

"Think I can get clothes like that, d'you reckon?" Ron's voice startled me.

I spun to see the boy sitting on his bed. With a yawn, he waved me hello. "Morning."

"Morning." I said and returned the greeting with a nod, before checking over my clothes. "I'm sure there are plenty of places in the Muggle World that sell clothes like this."

Ron frowned in thought before flopping backwards into his bed again. "I wonder if Tracey will like it."

I thought about it. "You'd know her better, I reckon."

Ron winced. "She's sorry about… you know."

It took me a moment to realize what he was talking about. I remembered an encounter with the girl in the past; it hadn't been pretty.

I shrugged. "Yeah, I'd gathered as much."

"Mate—"

"No, no." I said, raising a hand in a calming gesture. "I get it. We probably need to clear the air, anyway, right? I'm fine with Tracey, mate."

Ron opened his mouth and closed it, before speaking again. "All right. Thanks, Harry."

"It's nothing." I sighed and moved to the trunk, grabbing my Pokébelt and clasping it around my waist. "I needed something to keep my mind off of the task today, anyway."

"You'll do great, Harry. You always do."

I smiled.

"Thanks, Ron."

————

I stared at the full plate before me.

C'mon, Potter. I said to myself. Just half. Just eat half.

"Harry…" Neville said from beside me. I turned to see his concerned look. "You need to eat, build up your strength for today."

What does he think I'm trying to do here? I thought in annoyance before replying. "I know. It's just that..."

My gaze drifted towards the Ravenclaw table and then to the Great Hall's entrance, hoping to see Luna, but she still wasn't there.

No sign of her.

She must have been taken like Red and I had suspected.

I couldn't help it. My anger rose to the surface. How could they do something like this? Didn't they know just how much danger they were putting Luna in?

She hadn't signed up for this. What sort of damage would she be receiving by being at the bottom of a lake, surrounded by possible predators and the like?

"She could be sleeping in?" Opposite of me, Ron offered, though he winced at his own faulty logic. "Forget what I said. With Hermione's missing, too, it can't be a coincidence."

I nodded. That had been the first thing we'd noticed when we went into the Common Room. Hermione hadn't been there. We'd even waited.

A quick check down the Ravenclaw showed that Chang was missing, as well. I turned my attention to the Hufflepuff table.

Diggory was staring right at me, his face a mixture of stress, anxiety and anger. I nodded towards the Ravenclaw table.

His expression turned severe, and he nodded in confirmation.

I leaned back in my seat, pushing my plate forward, my appetite completely gone.

"It's a few hours until the event begins." Ron said quietly.

"What are you thinking?" Neville turned his attention to the boy.

"Maybe rescue them before the task even starts?" Ron offered.

I shook my head. "I want to. I really do, but I don't know if that's going to be taken as a breach of contract by the Goblet of Fire."

"Bloody hell." Ron pushed his plate forward as well.

"Hermione." Neville lowered his voice. "She's Krum's… goal?"

I nodded, ignoring the way he said that, for the moment. There were bigger things to worry about. "I'm going to save her, too; all of them, if I can help it."

Neville could only nod in reply. "Right. Right. I'm sure you've made your preparations."

I smiled at that, patting my pocket. "I'm as ready as I could possibly be."

"I hear Looney Lovegood's missing, Potter." I turned to see Draco standing behind me, Crabbe and Goyle standing on either side of the arrogant boy.

How does he even— ah, daddy dearest, is it?

He continued, knowing full well that he was currently pushing just the right buttons. "Think you can rescue her before the time runs out, Potter?"

"Care to make another wager, Malfoy?" I forced myself to smile, not rising to his obvious bait.

I was tempted— so tempted— to say "to hell with it" and punch him in the face.

Ron and Neville shared smirks. That was one of the more popular stories making the rounds in Gryffindor.

"I believe you still have to hold up your end of the first one." My smile widened. "Or did you forget?"

"I never agreed to that!" Draco turned red and stomped away, his two guards following along; at least, he was smart enough to recognize his defeat and cut his losses.

Still doesn't make him any less of an unpleasant piece of shit. I thought to myself.

"Wicked." Ron said, laughing.

Neville and I joined with him, and I felt my stress lighten with the outburst.

"Did you see his face?" Neville said, still laughing in between words.

A few minutes passed before someone else made themselves known to me. "Mr. Potter?"

I turned to see a Ministry official, eyeing my clothes with distaste.

"Yes?" I graced him with a glare.

The man was taken aback by the hostility, but gathered himself quickly enough.

"The Champions are being called." He said, keeping his voice level. "I've been told to accompany you to the meeting point."

I nodded and pushed off of the table, telling the two boys my farewells.

"You'll do great, Harry." Neville said.

"You'll win it all, mate." Ron added in.

"Thanks, guys."

I followed the Ministry official out of the Great Hall, also joined by Diggory, who was stone faced.

I didn't get ten meters away from the doorway before someone called out for me.

"Potter!"

I stopped in my tracks and turned to address the voice. It was Daphne.

I winced. This was definitely not the time for that particular discussion.

I hadn't met up with the Slytherin girl ever since I started going steady with Luna.

"Hey Daphne. I can't talk right now, I have a—"

"I know." Daphne said, but approached anyway.

"I'm sorry, miss…?" The Ministry worker started. Cedric kept quiet, tapping his foot impatiently against the stone floor.

"Greengrass." Daphne said. "And this won't take long."

The Ministry worker looked annoyed, but nodded anyway. "We've some time."

Daphne nodded. "Perhaps some privacy?"

At that, the worker looked even more annoyed, muttering about children and their juvenile relationships. Cedric moved to lean against the wall, still completely silent.

I stared at Daphne, the implication of what he was saying hitting my mind like a ton of bricks.

Me and Daphne? I thought incredulously. No way! We beat the crap out of each other.

As she approached, however, all I could remember was the moment of closeness I had with her.

I gulped.

"I know you've been avoiding me." Daphne went straight to the point.

I winced and tried to answer, but she beat me to it.

"I get it, you don't want your girlfriend to get ideas." Daphne tucked her hair behind her ear. "But I just want to practice magic with someone who's smarter than the average flobberworm."

I nodded, seeing where she was coming from. "Right, I—"

"Glad you agree, Potter." Daphne cut me off again and walked away. "Friday, 8 PM, same place. Don't be late— assuming you don't get killed today, of course. Good luck, by the way."

I could only nod dumbly, watching her disappear as the Great Hall's doors closed behind her.

"That one's going to be a spitfire, for sure." The Ministry worker said as he came back.

She already is. I thought. "Yeah."

The worker nodded, amused at my confusion before gesturing for us to follow. "Shall we?"

The rest of the trip was spent in silence.

————

Watching Bagman get punched in the face by Delacour was the highlight of my day, so far.

"You put my sister at the bottom of a lake— en Février*!" Fleur cried angrily, slipping into French on accident. "Imbécile! Connard*!"

"Fleur!" Madame Maxime held a hand over her mouth in shock. "That is unacceptable."

"C'est ma soeur! Je m'en fou!*" Fleur sent a heated glare at the tall woman, before visibly composing herself.

Bagman, hand pressed against his jaw, gave the blonde lady a wary stare.

He cleared his throat, laughing nervously as he attempted to address us once again.

"Ah... as you can tell, your next task will occur in the lake." Bagman inched away from Fleur, who looked ready to punch him again.

I hoped she would.

"You will have one hour to find your, erm… lost treasure—" he was really trying his luck, wasn't he? "— it's a simple contest. Whoever returns first with their appointed charge wins."

"And if we can't save our charge?" Cedric asked, eyes as hard as steel chips.

"Why, you will receive last place, of course—"

Fleur visibly stopped herself from punching the man again, but her reaction seemed to startle him into a fit of stammers.

"I think what Cedric is asking is: 'what will happen to the hostages?'" I took a step forward, hoping I sounded as aggressive as I felt on the inside.

"Nothing, of course!" Bagman laughed nervously again. "We're committed to making everything as safe as it can be!"

Tell that to the fucking Hungarian Horntail I faced. I almost gave in to the urge to punch him, myself. "You'll excuse me if your commitment doesn't fill me with confidence."

“Bad track record.” Krum chimed in with a nod.

“Ah, there you are.” Dumbledore entered our tent. “Are you all ready?”

In the wake of the man’s words, a long, tense silence followed.

“We are.” Cedric said, stepping past the old man.

He and Chang must have gotten very close. I thought, following the older boy. As I stepped out of the tent flap, I was assaulted by the booming cheers of the gathered crowds.

At that moment, I felt nothing but contempt. Four people’s lives were possibly in mortal danger, and all these people cared about was the spectacle of it all!

I shook off these thoughts and made my way forward, standing beside Cedric at the edge of the water. A few moments later, we were joined by Delacour and Krum.

I briefly pondered the merits of forging an alliance— or at least a truce— with the other Champions, but kept my peace. Who knew whether that constituted a breach of contract, or not?

Magic was as fickle as it was wondrous.

I suppressed a sigh and steeled my resolve. I’d save everyone, myself, if it came down to it. I couldn’t just walk away from that sort of thing.

As Bagman began to play to the crowd, I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply.

Squirtle hadn’t evolved. Bulby and Charmeleon were useless in the water, but that was all right. I could work with this. I’d prepared as well as I possibly could have, given the circumstances.

Just because a hostage was involved, this time, didn’t mean that I couldn’t complete the task. Fishing out a small, orange vial from my pocket, I downed its contents quickly. Almost instantly, I felt its effects take hold.

The icy, late February wind suddenly began to feel like a cool, summer breeze. I could already feel myself beginning to sweat.

“Are you ready!?” Bagman called out, to which the assembled crowd roared. “Then, begin!”

I held my wand at the ready and moved it in an almost squiggly omega-like pattern, picturing the effect I wished for.

“Bulla Capitis!”

Without waiting to see if the spell had taken effect, I jumped down into the water— the sound of the cheering crowd muffled by the water— and sighed in relief as the icy waters soothed my hot skin.

Much better. I took a moment to double check that the bubble around my head was well-formed, before setting off at a sedate pace. A few moments later, I stopped, held my wand against my glasses’ side frame and incanted: “Epoximise!”

I winced, feeling the frame stick to my skin. I cast the spell on the other end, just to make sure. It wouldn’t do for my glasses to suddenly fly off.

Even if I could Summon them back, it would’ve been an egregious waste of time and resources, when I could simply stick them to my head.

“Let’s go.” I said, resuming my pace again. “Red.”

“Active scans enabled.” Red said, his voice distorted by the water around us. “Keep note that, in this environment, I can only detect things in a 2 meter radius.”

I nodded, feeling dismayed. “That’s fine. It’s better than nothing.”

I picked up the pace, keeping my breaths even and steady. That had been one of the most important things I’d learned while practicing for the Second Task. If I didn’t pace myself correctly, I would most likely be exhausted within twenty minutes, let alone the hour it would require for me to complete said Task.

I reached the lake bed, picked a random direction, and began to search. Five minutes passed, and there was no sign of anything but fish and algae.

“What do you think?” I said quietly. “Change direction?”

“I couldn’t tell you.” Red said. “I’m near useless, here.”

I nodded, and unclasped Squirtle’s Pokéball, pushing the button at its center. In a flash of white, Squirtle appeared before me. His dark brown eyes widened at his surroundings, before turning to me with a salute.

I smiled. “Hey, buddy. Think you can help me out? I’m looking for Luna, and Hermione.”

Squirtle’s expression shifted into one of incredulity.

“Yeah.” I said, feeling my anger rise again. “They took them for the task. We have to save them.”

Squirtle nodded, raising his cyan head higher in the water and closed his eyes. I felt my nervousness rise— what if he couldn’t find their ‘scent’? From my Pokédex studies, I knew that Squirtles weren’t the best trackers.

Still, this was all I had to go with.

I gave off a sigh of relief as Squirtle turned to his right and began to swim, anger leaching away into the cold water. I followed, doing my best to keep up.

I stared down at my jacket and pants. I’d been a little wary of putting them on, knowing that clothes dragged you down, but these barely even hindered me.

“I had the same thoughts in the past.” Red chimed from my pocket. “Silph makes some good stuff.”

I shook my head in amazement and continued to follow the turtle Pokémon through a large reef. A few moments in, and I felt my nervousness rising. Flora and fauna of all sorts writhed, darted and swam around the reef, driving me crazy with each sudden movement.

I was starting to think something had its eyes on me, but nothing happened for several minutes. I tried to shake it off.

Get it together, Potter. Luna’s counting on you.

Taking a deep breath, I sped up, hoping to just leave this damn place.

“4 o’clock!” Even as Red was speaking, I had already turned to engage my enemy. My eyes widened. Just seeing one Grindylow was quite horrifying, but now… There was a whole swarm of them surrounding us.

“Squirtle! I’ll handle this lot. Keep me safe if they come too close.” I ordered, and leveled my wand in the direction of the swarm. “Diffindo!”

The Severing Charm cut through one’s head, filling the water with dark green blood. Not waiting for the rest of the swarm to react, I continued to re-cast the Severing Charm into the chaotic swarm, reducing half of them into nothing more than fresh meat for the bottom feeders to feast upon.

A good thing I didn’t stop; the remaining Grindylows descending upon me in a wave of razor sharp fangs and tentacles. Squirtle kept my back safe, liberally blasting Bubblebeams at the lot and whipping the ones who’d got in close with his tail.

I felt one take hold of my arm and bite down, drawing blood. I suppressed the cry of pain and drove the wand into the offending creature, casting the Revulsion Jinx on it with a loud, “Relashio!”

Its cry of surprise only lasted for a moment, cut off by the Severing Charm through its neck. I registered its flailing limbs for a single moment before turning my attention back to my attackers, keeping to the same tactic.

I lost track of the time, launching curse after curse into the attackers until, finally, they relented and swam off, leaving their fallen behind.

I frowned, checking my wounds over. My arms were covered with scratch and bite marks, but the rest of my body was completely fine.

My attention turned to the massacre I had just committed. Nothing about this had felt right. Sure, Grindylows were prone to ambushing others, but to see them behave like this— feral and vicious… I didn’t know what to think.

I shook my head. I’d wasted enough time.

“Red. Time?”

“Forty minutes left.” Red said after a moment. “You should take another Fire seed solution.”

I nodded. It was starting to feel very chilly. I fished out another vial and turned to Squirtle, who looked completely fine.

Rain Dish hard at work, I see. I smiled down at the little guy. He hadn’t evolved, but he was certainly still a force to be reckoned with.

“Mind lending me a bubble?” I asked, holding the vial up towards him.

Squirtle took the vial in his hand and blew a bubble around it, before pushing the bubble towards my head. As the bubble joined my Bubble Head Charm, I cast the Levitation Charm around the vial, pulling its cap off with my teeth and tilting its contents into my mouth.

I swallowed the solution, feeling myself regain my previous warmth. This truly was an amazing idea. I wondered how the others were dealing with the effects of the cold for a moment, before turning to Squirtle.

“Ready?”

Squirtle saluted again and resumed its path. I followed it through the cloud of dark green blood, giving it one last look of mild regret before steeling myself again.

Luckily, for the next five minutes, there were no more encounters.

Squirtle gave a cry, and I found myself staring down at what looked to be an underwater village. It was unlike any place I’d ever seen, with primitive huts of stone, algae and sand circling its perimeter.

And, at its very center, I found my objective.

Luna was held at the bottom of the lake with a rope tied around her ankles. Beside her were Hermione, Chang and a little blond girl— Delacour’s quarry, most likely.

A little fucking girl.

I hardened my gaze and swam towards the town’s center, Squirtle moving along with me.

“There don’t seem to be any further traps.” I said as I entered the village proper. Five mermen burst out of the dwelling near the hostages, forming a guard around them.

They kept their eyes trained on me.

“Is it just me, or do they not like me?” I wondered as I slowed my pace, grasping my wand more tightly. “Squirtle, be ready.”

Squirtle nodded, though his expression turned curious. Still, I knew that, if push came to shove, he’d have my back just like with the Grindylows.

“Should I try to talk to them?” I said, stopping a few meters away from them. They maintained their stare, but I realized that it wasn’t directed at me, but at Squirtle, here.

Something was wrong. I’d never had any close encounters with the Merfolk, but, by all accounts, they were a peaceful sort, only resorting to violence if they were threatened.

So, why were they looking at us as if we’d killed their people?

Maybe Delacour or one of the others tangled with one of them, already?

“I could give it a shot.” Red suggested. “I can speak their language.”

I winced. “I’d rather not hear any screeching.”

“It sounds normal when underwater.” Red said as one of the mermen approached us, his eyes still trained on Squirtle, who met him halfway with a wave.

The merman tensed, almost brandishing his trident at the Pokémon, before shaking his head in confusion. Squirtle got close enough to touch the creature.

“Woah, easy there…” I said. “Squirtle, something’s wrong here. You need to—”

The merman near Squirtle snarled, driving his trident towards Squirtle’s head. Squirtle yelped and twisted his body, retracting his limbs into his hard shell and spinning in place. The trident bounced off, causing no damage.

That attack came out of nowhere! I thought as Squirtle’s tail popped out of his shell, catching the merman in the face as he maneuvered over to me.

The remaining mermen charged at us.

“Red!” I cried. “Damn it. Flipendo!”

Red began to try and communicate with them, even as I blasted a few away from me with well placed Knockback Jinxes. One got close enough to skewer me, only to find itself with a bubble around its head. It let go of its trident, choking as it was unable to breathe the air in the bubble.

“Thanks, Squirt.” I said quickly. “Make a wall of bubbles, keep them busy.”

Squirtle complied and opened his mouth; a wall of fist sized bubbles flew out of his maw and surrounded us in a sphere. The mermen cried in dismay and shoved their various weapons against the bubbles. I watched them bounce against each other, creating further confusion.

“Red, anything?”

“No.” He said. “They’re just speaking gibberish. I can understand the individual words, but unless ‘right fin of reef fish’, or ‘gill my tail down’ means anything to you, then I’m at a loss.”

What? I thought. “What the bloody Hell is going on?”

“Hold me up, Harry.”

I obliged, watching as the green light went through the bubbles and over one the mermen, who shrieked and stabbed at the light, his fellows joining in.

“It’s like they’re rabid.” I said, readying myself for a fight as the bubbles began to float up. Squirtle looked quite tired from the exertion, even with the water around us slowly rejuvenating him.

I suppose that was a bit too much for the poor guy. I thought as Red finished his scan. I pocketed the Pokédex. “Anything?”

“Their hormone levels are spiked.” Red said quickly. “Analysis shows a massive increase of aggressive behavior.”

I frowned, noticing that more merfolk formed up around the initial five, their weapons held at the ready.

Oh boy. I thought. “Seven… Ten… Fourteen?”

“Ambush!” Red said as the last of the bubbles floated up. “Eight o’clock!”

I swiveled and channeled my Aura. A green shield formed on my wand, expanding just in time to deflect three tridents thrown at me. Their source, three more fucking mermen, raged as they rushed me, baring their claws and fangs at me.

That brings us up to seventeen. I’m so glad I learned Protect. I thought and blasted two of them back with a wide Knockback Jinx, buying me some space to deal with the last one.

“Don’t hold back.” Red said as it quickly approached. “Play defensive, strike when you can.”

“Way ahead of you.” I said, barely avoiding its vicious swipe to my midsection and pressing my wand against its chest. “Impulsum!”

I watched as its chest caved in with a flash of light blue, blood spewing out of its now-corpse and forming a dark cloud of red in the water around us.

Turning to my left, I snapped my wand in a cutting motion, the Severing Charm lopping the merman’s arm off at the elbow. Its scream was stopped by a well placed, “Stupefy!”

Even as my most recent opponent slowly began to float towards the surface, I was already dealing with the third, coming from below.

I tried to swim away just as he reached me, but it was a futile effort. A few months of swimming practice were nothing in comparison to a sea creature, born and bred in the embrace of the water. I readied a spell in response, knowing it would be too late to defend.

If I’m going down... I thought viciously as I readied to cut the Merman’s head off. “You’re coming with me!”

However, I didn’t have to worry, as Squirtle’s telltale brown shell spun through the water at incredible speed, crashing into the merman’s skull, instantly pulping it on impact.

Rapid Spin. I realized, crying out in a mix of joy and relief. “Great hit, Squirtle!”

The Pokémon in question quickly exited his spin and moved to float beside me. It was then that I realized the poor guy had taken a lot of hits. I winced at his tail, they’d cut part of it off; the end’s bleeding was only kept at bay by the Pokémon’s ability.

Tenacious little guy. I nodded, staring down at the remaining twelve mermen— eyes widening as I counted six still conscious in the fight. The rest had been taken out, floating uselessly in the water. Definitely tenacious.

“Just a little more, Squirtle.” I said, and launched a Stunner at the closest merman; the red beam missed him by a few inches.

Damn. I thought, and prepared another spell. “Expelliarmus!”

This time, my aim was true; the merman’s weapon flew out of its hands and embedded itself into the one beside it.

Ignoring its cry of pain, I launched another Stunner at my foe, taking him out of the fight.

Four left. Just a little more. I thought, but I could barely move, at that point. My adrenaline was fading, and I was slowing down, hard.

Squirtle deflected a trident thrown at me with a blast of bubbles; it still tore into my side, filling my world with agony.

Squirtle gave a weak cry before sinking down onto the lake bed in exhaustion. The burning pain making me cringe, I nonetheless followed my friend down, determined to keep him safe.

No one’s touching him! I blasted the lake bed underneath the remaining mermen with a loud, “Reducto!”

Instantly, the ground exploded, filling our surroundings with a cloud of water and disorienting my enemies.

Above me, there was a rush of water. I weakly raised my head, noticing the familiar form. It was Krum; at least, it was a creature wearing his clothes. Vaguely shark-like in appearance— a Transfiguration, I realized.

Has he come to help? I thought, but quickly realized that wasn’t the case as he zero’ed in on Hermione, cutting her loose and pulling her up to the surface. The only indication he’d even noticed my presence was a slight pause in his movements.

I suppose it was too much to hope for. I sighed, beginning to see the darkness around the edges of my vision.

“Harry!” I heard Cedric’s cry from behind me. A moment later, he was floating in front of me. “What happened? Merlin— you’re bleeding pretty bad.”

He checked over my form, trying to find the source of all the blood floating around me.

He was right. That is way too much blood.

“Behind you!” Red’s voice cried out.

Cedric, not knowing the source of the voice, still turned, silently bringing his Shield Charm to bear. It rippled and clanged as it took the direct charge of two trident-wielding mermen, head on.

Dispelling his shield, Cedric conjured a swarm of fish and set them upon the two mermen. Huffing, he rubbed his side. “If I was still fresh, this would’ve been over quickly.”

With a few more snaps of his ash wand, his two opponents were unconscious. Cedric immediately turned his attention to me.

“Don’t worry, Harry.” He said. “I’ll get us all up to the surface, all right?”

I opened my mouth to speak, but found that I could barely mumble. “Th-three.”

“Three?”

“There were three of them!” Red’s voice came again.

“That voice… Who is talking?” Cedric looked around in a mixture of confusion and alarm. “Show yourself!”

“Nevermind that, you have to find the third—”

The third merman burst forth from the sandy floor, catching Cedric in the head with the butt of its trident. He floated away, sent unconscious by the blow.

“Harry…”

I tried to raise my wand to cast a spell at the remaining merman, but failed. My body refused to respond.

This is it, huh? A moment of clarity overrode my sluggish, tired mind.

I was going to die at the bottom of the lake, having failed to save Luna. It wasn’t supposed to end like this!

Try as I might, I still couldn’t move. I watched as the merman took his time in leveling his trident at me. He snarled and thrust his weapon forward, aiming for my throat.

I’m sorry, Luna.

A cloud of bubbles rushed around me, throwing me to the side, away from the merman and his wicked trident. With a cry of rage, the merman retracted his weapon and made to kill me once again, throwing his trident with enough force to snap a boulder in two.

Squirtle’s last ditch effort was in vain. I was still going to die.

A white silhouette, blurred by a massive flurry of bubbles, appeared between me and the trident.

What the—

The weapon bent as it impacted against the blur, snapping into two pieces from the pressure. A moment later, and the blur smashed against the merman, bisecting him at the waist and filling the water with its blood.

This is…

The light began to fade, revealing… Squirtle?

No. Wartortle! I realized in astonishment, watching as the turtle made his way to me, concern shining in his brown eyes. Twice the size as he was before, I could still tell that this was my little Squirt.

“Squirt.” I said weakly…

“Don’t worry, Harry.” Red said. “I got this. Wartortle, cut the hostages loose and get everyone to the surface!”

“Th-thank y-y-” I tried to speak, to fight it for longer, but my exhaustion finally caught up with me. I felt my eyes roll back as the darkness fully encompassed me. The last thing I heard was Wartortle’s cries of worry.