Unexpected Selection
"Champions of Hogwarts—"
Dumbledore's voice rang out, and he cleared his throat before making the announcement.
"It's Harry Potter!"
The audience remained silent, and a buzzing sound filled the auditorium.
Professor McGonagall stood up from the main guest seat and quickly walked past Ludo Bagman and Professor Karkaroff. She leaned in, eagerly whispering something in Professor Dumbledore's ear.
All eyes were fixed on the Gryffindor table.
"I... I can't... I don't..." Harry muttered, confused.
Ron looked at him with a mix of surprise, disappointment, and even jealousy.
Hermione, pushing him slightly from behind, urged him, "Go!" And so, Harry stood up and made his way into the adjacent room under Professor McGonagall's guidance.
Hundreds of eyes followed him.
"He can't be 17 years old!"
"How did this happen?"
"Can he handle the Triwizard Tournament?"
Countless murmurs filled the air as Harry made his way, his mind almost blank.
Dumbledore's gaze returned to the Goblet of Fire.
Almost simultaneously, the flames inside the goblet turned red once more, crackling with sparks.
A long tongue of fire leaped into the air, carrying another piece of parchment.
Given the recent incident where a fourth-year Hogwarts student became a champion, this scene was not entirely unexpected.
Dumbledore reached out and took the parchment almost absentmindedly.
"Jon Hart!"
The buzzing sound intensified, but no one rose from their seats.
"Jon Hart!" Dumbledore repeated the name on the parchment.
Whispers broke out at the Hufflepuff table.
"Is Jon with you, Zacharias?"
"No, I haven't seen him at dinner. You can ask Hannah..."
"I haven't seen him either, not all day..."
"Jon Hart!" Dumbledore called for the third time.
Professor Severus Snape, wearing a subtle expression, rose from his seat. "That's enough, Dumbledore..."
"If I recall correctly," Professor Snape's voice carried throughout the auditorium, "Mr. Hart should be in my office, serving a detention... due to poor performance in Potions class."
...
In the potions teacher's office, Jon donned a protective suit made of dragon skin, including a hood, to ensure the blood of the Indian black eels didn't stain his clothes.
Killing an Indian black eel was simple, but collecting their blood into a glass bottle proved to be a challenge.
Their length made the task difficult.
After several failed attempts that resulted in blood splattered on the floor, Jon devised a method. He would strangle the eel by its neck after killing it, allowing the blood to flow into the glass bottle more smoothly.
Jon had already collected five bottles of blood, and the floor was littered with the corpses of over a dozen Indian black eels.
"Considering the timing, the banquet should be over by now," Jon muttered to himself.
However, according to the original plot, Harry Potter accidentally became the fourth champion selected by the Goblet of Fire, leading to a lengthy debate among the judges and professors. Thus, after completing his tasks, there should be some time left for him to study.
"Is anyone there?" A familiar voice came from outside, accompanied by a knock on the door.
"Come in, the door is unlocked," Jon casually replied.
...
Hannah Abbott, a Hufflepuff student, hurried to the potions teacher's office. Her mind was still reeling, unable to grasp what was happening.
Weren't only 17-year-old students eligible to participate in the Triwizard Tournament?
Why were both Harry and Jon chosen?
They were clearly fourth and third-year students, respectively.
And why were there two representatives from Hogwarts?
Was this some advantage granted to the organizers? Professor Dumbledore hadn't mentioned this while explaining the rules earlier.
One thing she knew for certain was Professor Sprout's recent order. She was instructed to rush to Professor Snape's office as quickly as possible and call back Jon, who was serving detention there.
With a jumble of thoughts, Hannah finally arrived at Professor Snape's office.
"Is anyone here?" she called out.
"Please come in, the door is unlocked!"
Hannah let out a sigh of relief upon recognizing the familiar voice from inside. She opened the door and stepped into Professor Snape's office.
"Ah!" Hannah screamed, horrified by the sight before her.
She trembled, dropping to the floor, and pointed forward with trembling fingers.
"Snake... snake... snake..."
...
"Don't come any closer..." Hannah screamed, placing her hands on the floor and shuffling backward.
Seeing the familiar face covered in blood, particularly the long, thick black snake wrapped around his neck, along with blood stains and black snake corpses scattered on the floor, Hannah couldn't contain her fear.
"It's just a black eel... I'm serving detention, Hannah!" Jon quickly explained.
"...Triwizard Tournament... Hogwarts... Harry... Two champions... Fourth place..." Hannah stammered, unable to articulate the entire story due to fear.
"There's a fourth champion in the Triwizard Tournament, and it's Harry Potter, right?" Fortunately, Jon possessed excellent deductive abilities and managed to "understand" what she was saying.
Hannah quickly shook her head and stammered again, "Professor Sprout... she told you... to attend the banquet..."
"It's alright, Hannah... I won't attend the banquet. I need to help Professor Snape with these tasks!" Jon declared, raising the black eel in his hand.
"Ah..." Hannah screamed once more, overcome with fear, and fled without looking back.
"This is strange!" Jon shook his head helplessly.
He walked over to the door and closed it, contemplating for a moment before deciding to lock it as well.
...
"Why haven't they started yet?" Fleur Delacour asked impatiently in the cabin adjacent to the auditorium.
"There was a minor mishap..." Ludo Bagman replied with a wry smile. "The fourth champion appeared..."
"What's the problem with the fourth champion? Just bring them over!" Victor Krum grumbled irritably. "We've been waiting here for almost twenty minutes."
"That's another small issue... the champion is currently serving detention!" Mr. Bagman explained, taking a step back. "I'll go check on the auditorium and see how things are progressing."
Returning to the auditorium, Mr. Bagman could hear footsteps outside the door. It seemed that the detained champion had returned?
"Ladies and gentlemen!" Mr. Bagman raised his voice. "Allow me to explain. Sometimes, the Goblet of Fire selects a fourth champion. It has happened before..."
As he rambled on, Mr. Bagman gestured toward the door. "Now, let us warmly welcome..."
The door swung open, and a distraught Hannah Abbott burst in, throwing herself into Professor Sprout's arms by the entrance.
"Professor..." Hannah sobbed, "Jon... Jon... he's surrounded by snakes!"
The faculty seats erupted in commotion, and even Professor Albus Dumbledore wore a bewildered expression.
...
Inside the potions office...
Jon dealt with the last black eel, piercing its neck to end its life.
Skillfully wrapping it around his neck, Jon aligned the eel's neck with a glass bottle.
Bang... bang... bang...
Loud knocking resounded from the door, or rather, it was a sound of something being smashed.
"Not again, who is it now?" Jon furrowed his brow.
Deciding to finish off the last black eel before opening the door, he resolved to investigate the disturbance afterward.