Allegiance
For a school that usually favours chaos, the entering of names was surprisingly organized. The goblet of fire had been moved to the study hall, where in a neat line the students one by one tossed in a small piece of parchment with their name on it.
Eternal glory, that surely motivated the Slytherins. Whereas Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw both had students that did not enter their name, Slytherin and Gryffindor could not relate. Whether it was the millennium-long feud between the two houses or the fact that the tournament would be an easy place to show one's bravery, seemingly every single Gryffindor entered his or her name into the goblet. Frequently, this was done with lots of cheering, jeering and back petting by their fellow Gryffindors.
For the first time in a long time, the Slytherins did not care about the actions of the Gryffindors. They did not care about the actions of other Slytherins. For most, if not all, it was their family's pride which was at stake. The ability to say that their son or daughter was the most worthy in their house was one thing, the thought of them winning was especially attractive.
Beth was in her third year at Hogwarts. So far she had found most subjects to be easy, with the exception of herbology, and passed everything if she just kept up with her homework. Celia was exceptionally smart and did not even bother with learning most of the time.
Beth watched as her best friend stepped forward, shrugging some of her auburn hair out of the way and standing on her tip-toes to reach the goblet. The flames swallowed the parchment, and Celia quickly stepped aside so that Beth could do the same thing.
Please, let it be me. She thought as she tossed the parchment into the blue flames. Even with her just being in her third year, she would be honoured enough to just be able to compete. Her father might actually be proud of her for once. She had to enter.
The two girls stepped aside and for a few moments watched other students enter as well. A group of Gryffindors laughed their way to the goblet, entering all four of their names at the same time. Next up was a Ravenclaw, his hand was shaking when he tossed his name in. Then came a Slytherin, though Beth couldn't remember his name. He was older than her, mostly quiet in the common room, and without many friends. When he lifted his hand to put his name into the goblet, he looked as though he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. His face was solemn, his back was straight. He stayed still as he watched the tiny paper burn up by the flames,
"Let's go." Celia suggested.
♜♛♜
They would not find out who was chosen until Friday, but the entire school had been speculating. There were some favourites for Gryffindor that Beth knew of, like James Potter or Lily Evans. But the Slytherins all stayed quiet about it. A familiar black owl swooped down at breakfast on Thursday and landed softly on the table in front of Beth.
"Hello Eli." she greeted the owl, giving it a quick scratch on the head before removing the letter. Celia pretended to be busy reading the Daily Prophet, while Beth started reading her father's letter.
"Dear Elisabeth,
I am delighted to hear that you have chosen to participate in the tournament, and with all my heart I hope that you will be selected. However, I must give you a word of warning. Should you be chosen over any of your classmates, you will be the centre of attention for all pure-blooded families. The Dark Lord is still out recruiting young souls to his cause. I trust that you know, when the time comes, where your true allegiances lie.
Dad"
Beth read the letter over a thousand times, her eyes following the black lines that her father had damn near scratched into the paper. It seemed like a rushed job, though she thought that he must have known about the tournament beforehand. She did not even know who he was faithful to, how was she supposed to know who she should follow? Her father had purposely been quiet about their feelings towards You-Know-Who. So quiet, that she did not even know herself.