Harry Potter: The Golden Viper

0575 Dread

"What?!" Sirius exclaimed incredulously, his jaw dropping in disbelief at Bryan's sudden words. "Aren't we supposed to be helping Hermione succeed in the tournament? I thought the whole point was to ensure she passed each challenge!"

"I never said that, Sirius, we need to stage a convincing show, and setbacks and obstacles are still necessary for her to overcome. It also can't appear too easy, or people will grow suspicious."

"But this is dangerous!" Sirius protested fervently; his brow furrowed with concern. "She could be seriously hurt or worse!"

"Have faith, Sirius. I have the utmost confidence in my students," Bryan reassured him. "Hermione is a capable young witch. She can handle a crisis like this."

This rapid-fire conversation between the two of them happened in five or six seconds, unnoticed by the captivated spectators. All eyes were fixed on the Chinese Fireball dragon, which had been listlessly pacing about moments ago but had now tensed its body, as if it had detected something amiss. It unfolded its bat-like wings fully and its dark crimson, vertically slit pupils flickered with a piercing, predatory light. 

"What's going on?" Ludo asked, his voice laced with bewilderment and a touch of uneasiness. "The dragon appears to have noticed something, but we didn't see anything out of the ordinary!"

'Now!' Bryan's voice rang out beside Sirius, prompting him into action.

The fascinated audience witnessed the Chinese Fireball raise back its neck and release another "roar". With a sudden, violent twist of its body, it lashed its tail out striking the rocky wall behind it with immense force!

A thunderous explosion shook the stadium, sending shockwaves rippling through the stands. Traces of twisted, distorted iron railings appeared amidst the rubble of the once-intact mountain wall as rough stones plunged through the air like deadly projectiles.

It seemed the Chinese Fireball had misjudged its own strength in its agitated state. Shrouded in billowing plumes of smoke and choking dust, the dragon's claws scrabbled for supporting grip on the trembling ground before it lost its balance and crashed to the ground with a boom.

Hermione, who had been stealthily crawling her way along the rock wall, drawing closer to the golden egg, suddenly felt an ominous gust of wind rush over her.

A fleeting glimpse of a massive black shadow appeared across her startled eyes. In the next instant, the solid rock wall she had been pressed against and the ground beneath her feet began to quake and shudder violently, as if due to the impacts of an earthquake and a hail of sharp stones bombarded down on her from above.

Before she could fully process the unfolding chaos, the powerful gusts generated by the dragon's thrashing tail had already torn away the invisibility cloak that had concealed her from view.

The abrupt brightness that assaulted her vision left Hermione momentarily dazed and disoriented. But the finely-honed survival instincts she had developed over those PE classes prompted her into action.

With lightning-quick reflexes, Hermione crouched low to the ground, simultaneously casting a Protego shield charm over her head to deflect the raining debris!

"What in Merlin's name is happening?" Many of the spectators cried out in unison with Ludo Bagman, unable to understand how the dragon had managed to detect Hermione's presence despite her seemingly foolproof concealment.

"It's the scent," Bryan provided a logical explanation, his voice carrying an air of certainty. "This Chinese Fireball has an extraordinarily keen sense of smell."

This was likely the most dangerous predicament that had risen since the start of the task for Hermione. Regardless of the cause behind the funny Fireball dragon's unexpected tumble, the undeniable reality was that Hermione, who had been so close to reaching the outer edge of the dragon's nest was now trapped against the rock wall by the Chinese Fireball.

The dragon's head alone was nearly twice the size of Hermione's entire body, and it loomed only a few dozen feet away from her where its fiery breath was palpable!

As Hermione stared into those fiery crimson eyes, a bone-chilling terror surged through her body, originating from the soles of her feet and rapidly engulfing her entire body.

The overwhelming fear crashed over her like a choking tidal wave, trying to drag her down into the depths of unconsciousness. Her voice failed her, trapped in her constricted throat, as the crushing pressure emanating from the dragon's head made her totally voiceless!

Lost in the shock and terror, Hermione failed to notice the fleeting glimmer of what almost appeared to be embarrassment in the Fireball's pupils.

This heart-stopping scene unfolding before the onlookers' eyes filled them with dread. As they watched the massive dragon stagger unsteadily to its feet, they collectively realized - once this beast regained its balance, Hermione Granger, trapped in such dangerous closeness with it, would undoubtedly meet a horrific and tragic end!

In the entrance tunnel, Harry gritted his teeth, clenching his teeth tightly to suppress the laughter as he observed the Chinese Fireball and the ashen-faced Hermione framed together on the enormous viewing screen.

His friends and classmates, however, showed an obviously different reaction. Ron and Neville, along with the rest of their Gryffindors, wore expressions of horror and disbelief. Even Professor McGonagall looked traumatized, as if she had already foreseen the gruesome fate that awaited Hermione - being mercilessly torn limb from limb by the enraged dragon!

"Quick, you must save her, Albus, Bryan!" Professor McGonagall pleaded desperately, her voice trembling with urgency.

McGonagall was so startled that her wizard hat fell off. She stood up and turned her head to shout at the high judges' seats, but to her despair, the two people in the judges' seats did not respond.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Hermione gazed up at the dragon in silence, paralyzed with horror, and powerless to do anything but watch as the beast struggled to get up. Its raised head was as high as a three-story building!

'It's over,' Hermione thought sadly, tears of hopelessness welling up in her brown eyes. Whether she met her demise by being ripped to shreds or roasted alive by searing dragonfire, the outcome was inevitable - she was clearly doomed.

She thought again that the person who had put her name in the Goblet of Fire was probably about to have their dream come true. Whether that person's goal was to kill her or to disgrace Hogwarts, they needed her to die in the arena.

But when she thought of this person who was harassing her with a conspiracy, a surge of anger suddenly welled up in Hermione's heart. This anger, filled with unwillingness, seemed to be her only remaining rationality that was not drowned by despair. She thought of the scares she had received during this period, the accusations and ridicule from some classmates, especially Ron--

But in any case, Harry and Ron were her best friends, and now the terrible relationship between the three of them was all thanks to this!

Moreover, she still hoped to prove that young wizards from Muggle descent like her could also be the best!

"What should I do now, Bryan?"

The dragon head spun slowly to focus its gaze upon Hermione huddled trembling at its feet and Sirius said irritably. "That previous scare was clearly too much for Hermione to handle. She appears to have lost all hope, all will to fight!"

"Oh, I don't think so, Sirius. You haven't seen the tenacious character of these children--" There was no sense of urgency in Bryan's voice, but rather, it was full of relaxation.

Sirius was about to question Bryan's statement, but he suddenly noticed that Hermione's terrified face, who was half-kneeling at his feet, had suddenly changed. The despair flickering in her eyes was still there, but there was an added determination!

"Breathe fire on her, Sirius--" Bryan ordered again.

"What?!" Sirius was stunned by this command. He almost looked in Bryan's direction, but fortunately he controlled his impulse in time. "I won't, Bryan. I'm not a real dragon!"

"It's okay, I'll help you--" Bryan, who was sitting beside the judges' seats, said calmly. When he saw Sirius baring his fangs at Hermione, a faint golden spark left the tip of Bryan's wand, escaped everyone's sight, quickly entered the field, climbed up the Fireball's scales, and then formed activating a scorching sun in the Fireball's mouth.

"Dear lord, we must..." Ludo Bagman stuttered, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head at the sight of a glowing ball of lava building within the dragon's jaws. "We must..."

At that exact instant, the entire arena froze. Every pair of eyes were locked on Hermione Granger. She stared directly into the growing golden sphere with a determined gaze completely at odds with her deathly pale face. She suddenly raised her wand and pointed it at the dragon's feet.

The crowd watched in absolute silence.

Then all hell broke loose.

The firm ground at the Fireball's feet suddenly transformed into a swamp. The change was so abrupt that its massive legs sank into the mud almost instantly.

In a flash, only the dragon's ferocious head was visible above the surface of the bubbling swamp. Its expression transformed from confusion to utter surprise as, instead of seizing the opportunity to flee to safety, Hermione still stood there with her wand still raised in its direction.

Roar! Accompanied by a crimson spell light flashing across everyone's eyes, the Chinese Fireball let out another earth-shattering roar, and this time, the meaning of pain in its howl was so clear!

"Miss Granger has hit the dragon with a masterful Conjunctivitis curse," Ludo Bagman cried out over the noise. "Achieving in one move what Viktor Krum failed to do in many! But alas, it may have been for naught! The situation has grown dire!"

Everyone understood what Ludo Bagman meant. The golden fireball held in the Fireball's mouth was about to explode, and at this distance, there was no way Hermione could survive!

Hermione also realized that the dragon's breath was about to burst out. She knew that if she turned and ran away, no matter in which direction, it would be a dead end, and the only way to live was--

Whoosh! The most thrilling scene appeared. As Hermione leapt into action. Instead of sensibly distancing herself from the immobilized dragon, she sprinted toward it!

At the last possible second before she would have slammed face first into the dragon's nose, she planted one foot on a small boulder that had just been swept down by the dragon's tail, leaped up, rolled a somersault in mid-air, and landed steadily on the big rock beside the head of the Chinese Fireball!

This stunning display of agility, the reckless courage etched upon Hermione's face as she faced the dragon drove the gathered crowd into a stunned silence. In that instant, no one present could see Hermione Granger as just another underage witch. No, in their awestruck eyes she was a warrior, a champion in the truest sense!

But this moment was cut short by a flash of blinding golden light and a wave of blistering heat. The fireball burst from the Chinese Fireball's jaws like a meteor and streaked toward the center of the arena.

The instant the sphere made contact with the stony ground it erupted into a towering pillar of flame. The inferno teared the sky radiating an aura of such destructive intensity that many of the spectators flinched back in instinctive terror.

This awe inspiring - and terrifying - display raged for more than a dozen seconds. As the flames receded, the crowd was astonished to see that a bubbling lake of molten rock had replaced the heart of the arena.

"Where is Miss Granger," Ludo Bagman shouted, shielding his eyes against the still brilliant glare with one shaking hand as he scanned the hellish landscape before him with rising panic.

"Is Miss Granger still...wait!" His eyes landed on an unexpected sight within the dragon's nest and widened in pure shock. A heartbeat later Ludo's magically amplified voice boomed across the stadium, transmitting his words across all of Wizarding Europe in a joyous cry, "Miss Granger has done it! She's got the egg! Hermione Granger is alive and unscathed!"

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