Victory

* * Prologue * *
From the window of the Hogwarts Express, Elisabeth could see her best friend Celia saying goodbye to her family. Her sister-in-law Gia held her baby tightly to her chest. Last time Elisabeth had seen them she was still pregnant. Though Celia had written her about the birth of Christopher, so it wasn't a total surprise to see the squealing, pink baby in Gia's arms. That baby was more important to Celia's family than all the gold in Gringotts.

Elisabeth's father hadn't come into King's Cross station with her, he did not like the company of muggles. Elisabeth really preferred it this way, though she was wondering why he had acted so weird upon her departure. Her father had wished her luck and said 'I have faith in you that when the time comes, you will do what is honourable for our family'. If there were any red flags, that was the biggest one in existence.

It did not take long for Celia to find Elisabeth, who had managed to secure a carriage for just the two of them. Before Elisabeth could even ask about Celia's summer, Celia revealed the reason why her father had behaved so oddly.

"Hogwarts is hosting the Triwizard Tournament this year." She said, discarding her coat on one of the seats and sitting down. "Well, sort of, according to dad they couldn't get Durmstrang or any of the other schools to join in. They're making it all about our school."

"Why wouldn't they join?" Elisabeth wondered out loud.

"Well they are all too worried about You-Know-Who of course," Celia said, her voice not louder than a whisper. "Though I doubt Durmstrang is worried about an attack. They're probably figuring out a faster way to teach their students-"

Celia quickly stopped talking when she noticed Regulus Black walk by. The door was closed, so he could not have heard them, but still, it was best not to share one's opinion on Lord Voldemort. You never know who is listening in.

Celia and Elisabeth had quickly become friends in an unfriendly place. Both girls came from proud pure-blooded families. But neither of them wore that like a badge of honour. Elisabeth, who really preferred to be called Beth, was the only born child of Carrick Batley. Her mother had died not long after her birth, and though she had plenty of cousins that would keep up the family name, there had always been a bright spotlight on Beth.
Celia bonded with Beth over this. The house of Devlin was a steady name with the other pure-blooded families. That name had been tarnished by the birth of Celia's siblings. Each and every one of them were squibs, with the exception of Celia.

"They don't know yet," Celia said, as the train started to drive out of the station and she got one last look at her family. "Christopher is still too young to see if he has an aptitude for magic." If her nephew did turn out to be a wizard, Celia's life would become a whole lot easier. However, with two squib parents, the boy did not have much going for him.

"Are you putting your name in then?" Beth asked her best friend, hoping to distract her.

"Of course." She answered. "Honour of the family and all that. You too?"

"Don't have a choice, do I?"

Chapter 1: Elisabeth Batley
Neither of the girls were very surprised when Dumbledore announced that after they had feasted, there would be a special announcement. Most of their classmates spoke of nothing else throughout the entire feast, though neither Beth or Celia really spoke to their classmates.

The girls were both in Slytherin. Celia had never revealed to Beth why she had been placed there, or perhaps the sorting hat simply hadn't told her. Beth, however, remembered it as though it happened only yesterday. Under the watchful eyes of hundreds of students, she had sat down on the stool. The hat was so big on her it had covered the top of her eyes and she heard its voice inside her own head.

"A Gryffindor through and through,
But where shall I put you?
Elisabeth has a role to play,
For the story may only end in one way.
Remember my words carefully.
You will create your own destiny."

Afterwards, the sorting hat had shouted 'Slytherin!' and no one in the great hall had been surprised. Amadeus Batley had been one of the students who Salazar Slytherin had handpicked to attend Hogwarts. Since then, there hadn't been any Batley that had not been sorted into his house.

As far as Beth could tell, she had been the only person the sorting hat had said a rhyme to. The older students she asked just looked at her weirdly. So much so that she eventually came to meet Celia Devlin, the girl surrounded by scandals.

"Students, a new year is upon us." Dumbledore started his speech. The tables were cleared of any leftovers, and the Great Hall seemed to be unnaturally quiet. Every single student was on the edge of their seat.
"Every year, each house uses their knowledge, kindness and talents to secure as many house points as you can. At the end of your year, we dine underneath the colours of the winning house. This year, we offer something else."

Dumbledore was a master at giving speeches, he knew exactly when to let a long pause happen. Even the infamous duo of Potter and Black seemed to be listening intently, and quietly. Something they rarely did.

"Eternal glory." He said, in nothing more than a whisper, though the entire Great Hall could hear it. "The honour to fight for your house and in the end win," Dumbledore took a few steps black and tugged at the end of a white sheet, that had been placed over the cup.

The cup was gold and had a large red ruby, a green emerald, a blue sapphire and a yellow citrine laid into it. There was a silver snake twisted around the bottom, chasing after a bronze raven. The golden Lion had been bewitched to run around the cup, always following the black badger. The cup was also filled to the brim with both gold coins and diamonds, it was practically overflowing with it.

"The Hogwarts Wizardry Cup," Dumbledore said, giving the students the time to get a proper look at it. "For many years Hogwarts hosted a competition between the four houses. Later this turned into the infamous Triwizard Tournament. From first years to last years, everyone is allowed to enter their name." He pulled on a second sheet.

The goblet of fire was larger than the cup. The flames licked the edges of the wooden cup, though Dumbledore did not seem to get burned by it. "The Goblet of Fire will serve as an impartial judge. It will find the students who are the most worthy, and these champions will represent their house."

"Do not enter your name lightly," Dumbledore warned. "As a first year, you must feel confident enough in your capabilities in magic to be able to take on a seventh-year student. People have gotten injured, even killed, in this tournament. Even though we have taken every precaution to ensure no harm will befall any of you, do not enter your name, if you are not ready to fight."