♫ hocus pocus

- focus

Content Warning: In case anyone here is sensitive regarding gambling, Fred and George take bets at the event like they do in the movie.

✧

The first task fell on a crisp November afternoon after classes. The crowd was rowdy and excited, thrilled to see what the first task would entail. Everyone walked down together to the quidditch field now turned arena.

Draco picked up Cilla in the Slytherin commons. He was standing beside the staircase to the girls dorms, gazing out at the Black Lake like he usually was. He had an air of cool surrounding him... and smugness. Maybe Cedric was right.

As they walked with the rest of the house to the arena, Draco swatted his friends away to get some one on one time with Cilla. He didn't get too close and didn't flirt, so Cilla didn't mind.

"I think Potter is gonna get bit -" he looked at Cilla quickly, remembering their conversation the other night, "sorry," he said lamely. "I don't think he can compare to Viktor Krum though, you can't deny me that opinion."

"The kid with a scar on his face versus a quidditch world cup champion? You're not wrong there," Cilla joked to ease him a bit. She appreciated his effort to break his bad habit of name calling every Gryffindor with a pulse. "I think Cedric is going to do great! I helped him come up with his gameplan."

Draco nodded in contemplation. "It'll be him or Krum that'll take the lead, thats my bet."

"What about Fleur?"

"Can you dance around a dragon?" Draco quipped in his aristocratic manner, making Cilla howl with laughter.

As they approached the stadium, they saw students cheering the names of the four champions and had homemade signs in blue, yellow, red, and deep burgundy. Crabbe and Goyle had one that crudely misspelled Cedric's name. The two had written 'Cedick' in big green letters on their poster, and McGonagall confiscated it.

Cilla looked at the stands to find her friends.

The Weasley twins walked around the stadium placing bets rather loudly despite it being illegal to gamble on campus. Those two were saving up for something, they had mentioned bets before. Cilla tired not to stare at Fred as he laughed and joked around, completely in his element. She'll have to talk to him later about who had the most bets placed.

Neville was trying his best to get names on the S.P.E.W. petition but was having very little luck. Students either outright laughed in his face or politely said no. He looked defeated when he eventually gave up and returned to the Gryffindors. 

Hermione on the other hand was completely missing from the action despite her plans at the S.P.E.W. meeting.

Draco, much to his pleasure, was seated next to Priscilla but on her other side, to his immense displeasure, was Nitara Dayal. 

"Does she have to be here?" he hissed to Priscilla, who glared in response with a cocked eyebrow, a warning in her eyes. 

Nitara crossed her arms in response. "Could say the same thing about you, Malfoy."

"Can you both just stop!" Cilla begged. "Nini, Draco promised me he wouldn't insult you again, look, he's sorry!" she grabbed his face despite his protests and made him smile with her hands. "See? He feels really bad about it!"

Nitara snorted in response and waved her off. "You better let go of him before the snake bites. I see him planning your funeral already!"

The girls laughed as she let Draco go and he rubbed his cheeks. Cilla could've sworn he almost smirked.

Pansy, Blaise, Cassius, and Adrian were sitting behind them. "Ugh!" Pansy exclaimed, waving her newspaper around. "How could the Prophet call Hermione Granger 'stunningly pretty'? I'm clearly the prettiest girl in the year. What we're they judging against, a chipmunk?"

"You're the chipmunk, Parkinson. And hey, I didn't know you could read!" Priscilla scoffed, causing Draco and Nitara to chuckle on either side of her. When they realized they had both shared a laugh, they cleared their throats and pretended it didn't happen.

Suddenly, a canon launched into the sky, marking the beginning of the tournament. Nitara and Priscilla stood up, cheering excitedly for Cedric (okay, more like screaming). He walked out onto the field with a concentrated expression on his face, wearing his Champion's tunic in Hufflepuff yellow. He looked over at Priscilla and Nitara and winked before approaching the middle of the stadium towards the Swedish Short-Snout. That wink alone left hundreds of girls in the audience sighing, loudest of all being Cho who was dressed head to toe in Hufflepuff yellow.

Nitara thought she was going to faint, whether it be from Cho's outfit or the sheer stress of having to see Cedric face off against a dragon.

"DIGGORY! DIGGORY! DIGGORY!"

The dragon was released from its cage and stepped into the arena. It's dragon's scales were a beautiful blueish-grey mixed with silver. It shot blue flames out of its nose as it exhaled. It roared from its perch as Cedric grew nearer, filled with determination.

"I feel like I'm at the fucking colloseum, and Cedric is about to fight a lion with a sword," Cilla worried through gritted teeth.

"You're not that far off," Draco said, pursing his lips at the scene.

Ludo Bagman was the announcer for the match. He re-introduced Cedric to the crowd, the girls screamed again on que, and the match was on.

The dragon lunged for Cedric immediately, and he dodged out of the way in time, rolling on his back. It looked like it hurt from the rocky terrain, and the dirt smeared his yellow jersey. Surveying the rocky terrain, he tried to find the golden egg and regain his footing. He had dropped his wand somewhere in the commotion.

Not the best prospects to work with at the beginning of a match against a dragon.

"Oooh, narrow miss there, very narrow, and now Diggory is without a wand!" Bagman announced to the crowd.

"C'mon Cedric!!" Nitara yelled, eyes wide and full of fear.

Cilla, on the other hand, was smirking. She stood up and yelled "You got this!!" trying her best to command enough space for him to see.

The dragon blew blue flames in his direction, which he dodged using a shielding charm using the wandless magic Priscilla taught him. "FUCK YEAH!" she screamed, earning her a glare from McGonagall and Snape, and a grin from Cedric below. "Do it again, Ceddie!"

"Wooooo!" Nitara hollared. "Did you teach him more tricks?"

Cilla nodded excitedly. "You bet your ass I did!"

Out of the corner of her eye, Cilla spotting Fred looking her way. He was winking down at her with a cheeky grin. She shook her head with a smile and returned her attention to Cedric.

He raised his hand in the air and cast a drone jinx, causing an awful sound to erupt from it. The dragon shook its head angrily in response and started flying towards Cedric viciously. The crowd gasped in response. "Clever move — pity it didn't work!" yelled Bagman.

"So far so good..." Priscilla said, clutching her fists.

"What d'you mean?" Draco asked, but she shushed him immediately.

"Melofors!" Cedric yelled. The crowd laughed as a huge pumpkin formed around the Short-Snout's head. It started to roar and writhe in the air trying to get it off, meanwhile, Cedric was narrowly running around it towards a pile of tiny rocks.

"Pullus!" he yelled again, throwing his hand behind him. The pile of rocks turned into an array of chicken and geese which started to squawk and waddle around.

When the dragon finally scratched the pumpkin off of its face, it had seeds and pumpkin guts all over its snout and eyes. It paused in a moment of distraction as it looked around at all the chicken and geese poking around.

That moment was all Cedric needed to grab the Golden Egg behind the dragon's back.

He had done it.

"IT WORKED!" Priscilla screamed, cheering. The horns blew and the band began to play as Cedric held up the egg to the crowd. 

Nitara screamed so loud for her friend that she knew she'd have no voice the next morning. Even Draco and the other Slytherins (save Cassius, who was still rather sour about the Tournament) were standing and cheering for Diggory as he retreated back into the tent.

"Priscilla!" the twins called.

She turned around with a wicked grin on her face. "Only a woman of your caliber could think of a plan like that!" George laughed.

"A little grass helps too," she said with a wink, making Nitara and even Draco laugh.

Nitara and George shared a quick glance before returning to the action. What was happening between those two? They had to make up, pronto. Clearly Nitara was holding out about some years-old betrayal and had to get over it if George was willing to be friends again.

And maybe Cilla should take her own advice and get over her shitty old friends at Ilvermorny, and enjoy her time with her new ones.

✧

The Hungarian Horntail was nowhere near as easy for Harry. It was like it was toying with him, and it was out for the kill.

Eventually, Harry summoned his firebolt with the Accio charm and was able to level the playing field, playing on his strengths. The dragon broke free of its chains and followed him straight out of the stadium, breaking through the professor's area of the stands first before escaping.

Surprisingly, Draco kept his comments to himself, but the scowl he wore couldn't be hidden.

"WELL DONE DRAGOOOOON!" the twins yelled, making the audience laugh.

Eventually, Harry got the golden egg, ending the first task. The crowd cheered one last final cheer for the fourth year, and he relished in his victory. 

"I'm going to go find Cedric," Nitara announced in the chaos, not wanting to be near Draco a moment longer. Priscilla waved her goodbye. 

As students began to empty out of the stadium, Priscilla looked around for Hermione and Neville. She had hoped that the petition was sizable enough, but doubted it.

Cilla exited with the rest of the Slytherins sitting nearby, excitedly chatting about the event until the adrenaline wore off.

"That Diggory is a menace!" Adrian exclaimed. "I've never seen such a clever tactic."

"Thank you, thank you," Cilla said, gloating.

"Would've been even better if I was out there," Cassius groaned.

Adrian put an arm around his saddened friend. "Right you are, mate. Right you are."

Priscilla strayed away from the Slytherins and turned her attention to spotting the Weasley twins in the crowd. She could only spot George and a very annoyed Ginny as her older brother was counting his bet money.

"Hey, Priscilla, Malfoy," she turned around, frightened, to see Fred standing right next to her. "Care for a walk?"

She tried to ignore Draco's expression. "Yeah, totally," she turned to Draco, "catch you later?" he muttered some incomprehensible response with a scowl in Fred's direction before stalking off to his friends.

"You sure do keep interesting company, eh Cilla?" Fred joked.

She shrugged with a smile. "Yes, I hang out with you, don't I?"

They made their way down the stadium stairs and around, finding some privacy under the stands as students continued to file out and make their way to the castle for dinner.

"That was absolutely brilliant, Priscilla," Fred complimented.

"Thanks, but it wasn't all me. Cedric was the one who thought of the pumpkin," she laughed as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

Fred nodded, impressed. "I suppose I didn't give the man enough credit, but that was clever. And what was that you said about grass?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

"It's just muggle weed, I only have a little bit left, but I don't mind rolling another joint if you want... later," she suggested, biting her lip.

Fred smirked down at her and she thought her knees were going to give out. He leaned forward and caught her by surprise with his lips. She giggled into the kiss, throwing her arms around his neck, but Fred wasn't finished or satisfied. He moved his attention to her neck again, peppering kisses and sucking on her jawline.

"Fred!" she hissed with a giggle, "here? Really?"

"You look hot when you're screaming," he shrugged huskily, making her laugh. He cut off her laugher with a kiss on the spot that she was most sensitive to. "Be my date?"

"To what?" she choked out, stifling a moan.

"You'll see..."

"OI!"

The two sprang apart, blushing deep shades of red. They noticed George and Ginny make their way over towards them from the crowd. "Look! It's Cilly!" he exclaimed, making Ginny chuckle.

"Cilly, I like that," Ginny concluded. "Although I could do without you making out with my brother."

Cilla ruffled Ginny's hair affectionately. "Course you do, Gin."

"Hey Freddie, you know what I'm thinking?"

"I think I might George..."

"Operation Forbidden Forest?" they said at the same time.

Priscilla sighed, memories flooding back to her of her singed radio from her last escapade into the forest. "Not this again," she groaned.

"What happened last time?" Ginny asked innocently.

"Let's just say I met your brother Charlie," Cilla replied.