Second Event Ⅲ

Back on the surface, Rowan feels the moment the boat surges forward at its almost original speed with a bit of a grin. With a grunt, she wraps her left hand around the glowing orange-like magical rope and begins to pull. Her muscles screamed at her, but she firmly kept at it. She wasn't bulging with muscles, but she did exercise three times a week vigorously. She was toned and had some nice slim, but toned muscles in her upper arms.

The journey back across the lake felt endless and exhausting as bit-by-bit Rowan hauled Barrett Boone back to the surface of the lake. Loud cheers that had been faint before began to grow louder and louder as the boat carrying them drew closer. The cheers grew louder and louder until with a loud groan the boat sank into the bank.

Rowan was almost thrown from the force but managed to keep a firm grip on her wand. No longer worried about causing the boat to capsize from her pulling, she began to pull as fast as she could despite the screaming muscles of her left arm. She pulled and pulled until she felt a cluck of the top of the post hit against the hull of the boat.

Rowan's eyes snapped open as the magical rope disappeared, but the post remained half in the water and in the shallows of the lake. With a disgruntled expression on her face, she grinds her teeth and says, "Just typical," before letting out an annoyed huff and jumping into the icy lake waters. The frigid waters hit her about the lower thigh and feel like thousands of sharp, jagged needles.

Ignoring the cheers from the stands, Rowan points her wand at the wooden post that still holds the bound, unconscious figure of Barrett Boone. Using the first-year charm spell she had ever learned, she says, "Wingardium Leviosa."

Shivering at the bitter bone biting cold, Rowan splashes forward keeping Barrett Boone airborne behind her. It was a bit of a struggle to climb up the muddy banks and onto the grounds with her wand hand pointed behind her, but still, she managed to do so. With a tired grunt, she levitated Barrett Boone onto the ground and released his bounds.

With a sputtering cough, Barrett Boone let out a loud couch, while Rowan unceremoniously flops down next to the awakening form of Barret Boone onto the muddy grounds. Muttering, she removes a lake weed wrapped around her from damp, soggy trouser leg, and shoe.

Suddenly, Rowan winces in pain and holds her aching head as she hears Amundsen scream into the air, "And we have our Hogwarts champion complete her second task in a most unexpected twist. As expected of one of Professor Dumbledore's apprentices!"

Madam Pomfrey hurries over with thick blankets and proceeds to wrap Barret Boone like a burrito. Drying her clothes as best as she can, Rowan wetly sniffs but is far too tired to properly dry herself or to cast a warming charm on herself. Rather gratefully, she accepts a blanket from Madam Pomfrey, who fusses over them and casts warming charms on both of them.

With a rather loud cough to gain Rowan's attention, Barrett Boone says through clattering teeth, "Rowan, I certainly did not expect this, this morning."

"Neither did I," Rowan confessed. "For sure, I thought it'd be Severus."

Barrett chuckles and softly says, "I guess that's what I get for asking you to be my girlfriend."

"Mm, serves you right," Rowan smirked back as Madam Pomfrey quickly returned with hot chocolate for them to drink. The two of them huddle there on the muddy banks and wait for the other two champions to return as they sip their warm drinks. Hopefully, it will be soon, because both of them still felt cold.

Tragically, Jean Delacour only surfaces with only five minutes left on the hourglass, before all of the sand runs out. He valiantly carries the unconscious form of Apolline in his arms. There is more than one leering stare as the boys try to imprint the curved wet beauty's image in their minds. Madam Pomfrey hurries over with blankets to cover them up, before awakening Apolline up.

Amundsen begins to count down the last minute until he says, "3, 2, 1." Amundsen blows his whistle, before adding, "And the time is up!"

The Durmstrang students and rare fans let out moans as Professor Valchanova looks resigned as ever. He surely must have been expecting this to happen from the start. It was a sad day when the headmaster disliked his own champion. But then again, Igor Karkaroff wasn't one to be liked even if one ignored his rotten personality.

Madam Maxime looks rather pleased despite her champion coming in second. After all, her champion successfully completed the task and at present was in first place. There was no telling if the Hogwarts champion would surpass her own.

Dumbledore walks to the lake's edge as a couple of merpeople surface at the edge of the inky black lake. In between the two of them, they each carry the unconscious forms of both Karkaroff and the poor girl he took to the Yule Ball. Madam Pomfrey easily levitates them from the surface of the lake onto the muddy banks. There she begins to treat them both and awaken them.

Dumbledore crouches at the water's edge and begins to converse with the chief merperson, a particular wild and ferocious-looking female. Rowan for one knew that the merpeople of the lake were uglier due to the cold. The merpeople of the warmer climates were utter hotties. And she wasn't joking when she said that. Dumbledore had shown Severus and her images of the various merpeople around the world and those living in the warmer climates were much more attractive. Must be all the sun, they're getting.

"A conference before we give the marks, I think," Dumbledore said. The judges hurry over to huddle as Rowan yawns and sips the last of her drink. Thankfully at least her headache was now gone.

The judges move apart as Amundsen's booming voice begins to speak causing the stands to go very quiet. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decisions. Merchieftainess Murcurs has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows…..."

"Igor Karkaroff, though demonstrating an excellent partial transfiguration was attacked by grindlows and failed to escape nor much less rescue his hostage. As such we award him twenty-five points." There is a polite bout of applause from the stands as Karkaroff scowls irritably at everyone.

"Jean Delacour, who not only successfully used the Bubble-Head charm but was second to return with his hostage. And as such we award him forty-seven points!" The crowd roared for him since he had returned with a wet, lovely maiden in his arms.

"And last but not least, Rowan Prince for solving the second task in an unprecedented way and being the first to return, we award you forty-nine points!" The crowd goes wild as both Beauxbatons Champion and the Hogwarts Champion are tied at 89 points and Durmstrang is in last place with 63 points.

"The third and final task will take place at dusk on the fourth of June," Amundsen said. "The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand Thank you all for your support of the champions."

Thankfully it was finally over, Rowan privately thought to herself as she was herded by Madam Pomfrey along with the rest of the champions and hostages into the castle to change into dry clothes or simply get some food into their bellies. Frankly, Rowan was starving. She could probably eat an entire Hippocampus for brunch.