Harry Potter 04 - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

robes. ‘You helped me with the egg – we’re square.’
    ‘I had help on the egg in the first place,’ said Cedric.
    ‘We’re still square,’ said Harry, testing his leg gingerly; it shook violently as he put weight on it; he had sprained his ankle when the spider had dropped him.
    ‘You should’ve got more points on the second task,’ said Cedric mulishly. ‘You stayed behind to get all the hostages. I should’ve done that.’
    ‘I was the only one who was thick enough to take that song seriously!’ said Harry bitterly. ‘Just take the Cup!’
    ‘No,’ said Cedric.
    He stepped over the spider’s tangled legs to join Harry, who stared at him. Cedric was serious. He was walking away from the sort of glory Hufflepuff house hadn’t had in centuries.
    ‘Go on,’ Cedric said. He looked as though this was costing him every ounce of resolution he had, but his face was set, his arms were folded, he seemed decided.
    Harry looked from Cedric to the Cup. For one shining moment, he saw himself emerging from the maze, holding it. He saw himself holding the Triwizard Cup aloft, heard the roar of the crowd, saw Cho’s face shining with admiration, more clearly than he had ever seen it before … and then the picture faded, and he found himself staring at Cedric’s shadowy, stubborn face.
    ‘Both of us,’ Harry said.
    ‘What?’
    ‘We’ll take it at the same time. It’s still a Hogwarts victory. We’ll tie for it.’
    Cedric stared at Harry. He unfolded his arms. ‘You – you sure?’
    ‘Yeah,’ said Harry. ‘Yeah … we’ve helped each other out, haven’t we? We both got here. Let’s just take it together.’
    For a moment, Cedric looked as though he couldn’t believe his ears; then his face split in a grin.
    ‘You’re on,’ he said. ‘Come here.’
    He grabbed Harry’s arm below the shoulder, and helped Harry limp towards the plinth where the Cup stood. When they had reached it, they both held out a hand over one of the Cup’s gleaming handles.
    ‘On three, right?’ said Harry. ‘One – two – three –’
    He and Cedric both grasped a handle.
    Instantly, Harry felt a jerk somewhere behind his navel. His feet had left the ground. He could not unclench the hand holding the Triwizard Cup; it was pulling him onwards, in a howl of wind and swirling colour, Cedric at his side.

 
     
— CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO —
     
Flesh, Blood and Bone
    Harry felt his feet slam into the ground; his injured leg gave way and he fell forwards; his hand let go of the Triwizard Cup at last. He raised his head.
    ‘Where are we?’ he said.
    Cedric shook his head. He got up, pulled Harry to his feet, and they looked around.
    They had left the Hogwarts grounds completely; they had obviously travelled miles – perhaps hundreds of miles – for even the mountains surrounding the castle were gone. They were standing instead in a dark and overgrown graveyard; the black outline of a small church was visible beyond a large yew tree to their right. A hill rose above them to their left. Harry could just make out the outline of a fine old house on the hillside.
    Cedric looked down at the Triwizard Cup and then up at Harry.
    ‘Did anyone tell you the Cup was a Portkey?’ he asked.
    ‘Nope,’ said Harry. He was looking around the graveyard. It was completely silent, and slightly eerie. ‘Is this supposed to be part of the task?’
    ‘I dunno,’ said Cedric. He sounded slightly nervous. ‘Wands out, d’you reckon?’
    ‘Yeah,’ said Harry, glad that Cedric had made the suggestion rather than him.
    They pulled out their wands. Harry kept looking around him. He had, yet again, the strange feeling that they were being watched.
    ‘Someone’s coming,’ he said suddenly.
    Squinting tensely through the darkness, they watched the figure drawing nearer, walking steadily towards them between the graves. Harry couldn’t make out a face; but from the way it was walking, and holding its arms, he could tell that it was carrying something. Whoever they were, they were short, and wearing a hooded cloak pulled up over their head to obscure their face. And – several paces nearer, the space between them closing all the time – he saw that the thing in the person’s arms looked like a baby … or was it merely a bundle of robes?
    Harry lowered his wand slightly, and glanced sideways at Cedric. Cedric shot him a quizzical look. They both turned back to watch the approaching figure.
    It stopped beside a towering marble