Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry - 
 
I can
’
t say everything I would like to in a letter, it
’
s too risky in case the owl is intercepted - we 
need to talk face-to-face. Can you ensure that you are alone by the fire in Gryffindor Tower at 
one o
’
clock in the morning on the 22nd ofNovember? 
 
I know better than anyone that you can look after yourself and while you
’
re around Dumbledore 
and Moody I don
’
t think anyone will be able to hurt you. However, someone seems to be having 
a good try. Entering you in that tournament would have been very risky, especially right under 
Dumbkdore
’
s nose. 
 
Be on the watch, Harry. I still want to hear about anything unusual. Let me know about the 22nd 
of November as quickly as you can. 
 
Sirius 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

---

CHAPTER NINETEEN 
 
 
The Hungarian Horntail
The prospect of talking face-to-face with Sirius was all that sustained Harry over the next 
fortnight, the only bright spot on a horizon that had never looked darker. The shock of finding 
himself school champion had worn off slightly now, and the fear of what was facing him had 
started to sink in. The first task was drawing steadily nearer; he felt as though it were crouching 
ahead of him like some horrific monster, barring his path. He had never suffered nerves like 
these; they were way beyond anything he had experienced before a Quidditch match, not even 
his last one against Slytherin, which had decided who would win the Quidditch Cup. Harry was 
finding it hard to think about the future at all; he felt as though his whole life had been heading 
up to, and would finish with, the first task.
Admittedly, he didn’t see how Sirius was going to make him feel any better about having to 
perform an unknown piece of difficult and dangerous magic in front of hundreds of people, but 
the mere sight of a friendly face would be something at the moment. Harry wrote back to Sirius 
saying that he would be beside the common room fire at the time Sirius had suggested; and he 
and Hermione spent a long time going over plans for forcing any stragglers out of the common 
room on the night in question. If the worst came to the worst, they were going to drop a bag of 
Dungbombs, but they hoped they wouldn’t have to resort to that - Filch would skin them alive. 
In the meantime, life became even worse for Harry within the confines of the castle, for Rita 
Skeeter had published her piece about the Triwizard Tournament, and it had turned out to be not 
so much a report on the tournament as a highly colored life story of Harry. Much of the front 
page had been given over to a picture of Harry; the article (continuing on pages two, six, and 
seven) had been all about Harry, the names of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang champions 
(misspelled) had been squashed into the last line of the article, and Cedric hadn’t been mentioned 
at all. 
The article had appeared ten days ago, and Harry still got a sick, burning feeling of shame in his 
stomach every time he thought about it. Rita Skeeter had reported him saying an awful lot of 
things that he couldn’t remember ever saying in his life, let alone in that broom cupboard. 
I suppose I get my strength from my parents. I know they
’
d be very proud of me if they could see