At Cassandra's request, the giant squid extended its massive tentacles and lifted the enormous bubble toward the lake's surface.
Cedric and the others, who had been hiding, finally emerged.
"What in the world was that?" Fleur asked, visibly shaken. "A squid? That thing was gigantic!"
Cedric was about to explain when Krum swam up beside him. "Whatever it was, it scared off the mermaids. Let's get the headmaster and the others ashore!" He gestured, and the two who understood him followed closely.
"Damn it!" Cedric gripped his father's shoulder, but the spell on Amos Diggory hadn't yet broken, and he remained unconscious. Cedric knew he needed to get him to safety immediately. He supported Amos with one arm and started paddling towards the shore.
Fleur, too, had rescued the unconscious Gabrielle and was swimming towards the surface.
Krum, meanwhile, was astonished to see Igor Karkaroff stirring!
Karkaroff's eyes fluttered open. He couldn't speak or move, but he stared intently at Krum. Tom had partially lifted the enchantment, enough to wake him, but not enough to allow him movement.
"Professor, I'm here." Krum hesitated only for a moment before giving his headmaster a bear hug. Karkaroff's frustration only intensified.
Fortunately, Krum quickly remembered the urgency of the situation, tucked Karkaroff under his arm, and swam towards the surface.
Malfoy, left behind, was speechless.
Shortly after everyone had left, a patch of dark grass at the bottom of the lake swayed unnaturally.
...
"Almost there! We're almost to the shore!" Cedric grunted. I'm no physical specimen like Harry or Malfoy. Even for a wizard, carrying an adult this distance was exhausting.
"Look out!" Krum shouted from behind.
Cedric instinctively shoved Amos aside and moved a short distance in the opposite direction. A kelpie shot between them!
He glanced back. Fleur, clutching Gabrielle, and Krum, with Karkaroff tucked under his arm, looked utterly terrified. They, too, had been attacked by the kelpie but were lucky enough to escape.
The kelpie was a dangerous magical creature, luring humans onto its back before dragging them to their deaths. This kelpie was clearly hungry!
"Ugh…" Amos, suddenly free of the spell, gasped, choking on the water. Cedric quickly cast a Bubble Head Charm. "Cedric?" Amos croaked.
After a quick assessment, Amos understood the gravity of the situation. As an employee of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, he knew the kelpie's classification meant it was second only to the most dangerous creatures in the world!
Encountering one on a boat was dangerous enough, let alone in the water! Helplessness washed over Amos as he realized he wasn't carrying his wand!
The kelpie, uncaring, turned and charged at Cedric, who was closest!
"Cedric!" Amos cried, swimming desperately toward them.
Cedric was powerless. In the water, the spells he knew were useless! He couldn't even cast a spell, and given the kelpie's speed, it would likely swallow him whole before he had the chance. Dodge it is!
But how could anyone outswim a kelpie in water?
Just as the monster was about to devour them, Cedric and Amos felt an invisible current pull them apart, and the kelpie seemed to freeze in place!
Then a pink "Meow-Meow Hammer" flew through the water and smashed into the kelpie!
Before the two could wonder what was happening, they heard a voice, "Hey! How dare you try to eat my brother?!"
A pink figure grabbed the hammer and began beating the kelpie!
"Harry?" Cedric was touched.
I thought I was about to become horse feed, but then Harry appeared in a pink dress and saved me! He's like the morning sun dispelling the darkness! If Harry weren't a boy, I might be in love.
Amos watched in the other direction. If it hadn't been for that strange current, we'd be dead. But what caused it?
In the distance floated a huge bubble, clearly created by magic, with Tom and Cassandra inside.
"Tom... Professor Riddle?" Amos hadn't even considered that Cassandra might have saved them. That precise control of the current reminds me of Dumbledore's water prison.
Saved by the Dark Lord? Amos had never considered it possible. Even now, witnessing it firsthand, he found it unbelievable.
But Tom ignored him. After doing all this, he let himself be "led away by Cassandra," remembering his role as "treasure."
Tom had only rescued Cedric because he liked him, and he'd suddenly noticed something dangerous behind him. Amos was just a side effect.
...
Harry's relentless hammer blows eventually forced the kelpie to flee in disarray. Its high danger ranking stemmed more from its methods than its actual strength. With Cedric and Amos disarmed, they simply had no way to defend themselves in the water.
After the kelpie fled, Cedric swam over to Harry.
But Harry only chatted briefly before bringing up the matter of Cedric joining the Death Eaters again.
"Perhaps…" Cedric glanced back at his father, "Alright, I'll join. Thank you."
"..."
Amos remained silent.
Harry, finally getting his wish, cheered with joy, making Cedric happy as well.
"Harry, have you brought Malfoy back to shore?" Cedric asked.
"..."
Harry paused, then turned and swam quickly towards the bottom of the lake. "I forgot about Malfoy!"
"..."
The Diggory father and son exchanged a look. Amos's impression of the Death Eaters had shifted.
...
If Malfoy were conscious at the bottom of the lake, he would have berated Harry. If the merman hadn't intervened, he would have been horse fodder instantly.
---
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