The Triwizard Tournament was established seven centuries ago. Held once every five years, it was a friendly competition jointly organized by the three largest wizarding schools in Europe.
Unfortunately, it was eventually discontinued because too many contestants died. Seriously, think about that for a moment. A friendly competition had to be canceled because too many people were getting killed!
This year, however, the Ministry of Magic's Department of International Magical Co-operation and Department of Magical Games and Sports decided to revive this ancient tournament.
Dumbledore had been particularly enthusiastic about bringing the Triwizard Tournament back. The old man was probably eager to show off in front of his fellow educators and demonstrate to the faculty of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang just how dramatically the wizarding world had advanced.
While the other schools were still messing around with traditional magic, Hogwarts had already connected to the internet and was charging headfirst into the information age.
Of course, Hogwarts already held the record for the most Triwizard Tournament victories. It had always been Europe's most formidable wizarding school, practically a shining beacon of magical education.
The Triwizard Tournament was also closely associated with the Goblet of Fire. Anyone wishing to participate had to write their name on a slip of parchment and drop it into a flaming wooden goblet. This powerful magical artifact would then select the champions who would represent their respective schools.
The tournament itself would not officially begin until after Halloween, and the students and teachers from the other two schools were not scheduled to arrive until October.
Throughout September, however, the atmosphere at Hogwarts was already buzzing with excitement. Students were constantly discussing Beauxbatons, Durmstrang, and the upcoming Triwizard Tournament.
Beauxbatons Academy of Magic was located in the Pyrenees in southern France. It primarily recruited students from Western Europe, including France, Spain, Portugal, and Luxembourg.
As a respectable educational institution, Beauxbatons enjoyed a particularly friendly relationship with Hogwarts. The two schools had always maintained a healthy rivalry, and their competitive records were remarkably close.
Throughout the history of the Triwizard Tournament, Hogwarts had claimed the championship sixty-three times, while Beauxbatons had won sixty-two.
Durmstrang Institute, located in Northern Europe, was a rather different story.
It could more or less be regarded as an enlarged version of Slytherin House. Durmstrang refused to admit Muggle-born students and openly permitted the study of the Dark Arts.
Its current headmaster, Igor Karkaroff, had previously served Voldemort as a Death Eater.
It was also worth mentioning that the first Dark Lord, Gellert Grindelwald, had once attended Durmstrang.
He hadn't actually graduated, though.
His research into the Dark Arts had been so dangerous that even an institution that openly permitted such studies couldn't tolerate him. Consequently, he had been expelled.
Most Hogwarts students were eager to enter the tournament.
Winning glory and enhancing their future career prospects were certainly attractive benefits, but the most immediate incentive was naturally the champion's prize money of one thousand Galleons.
Rumor had it that Durmstrang offered its victorious students an even more generous reward.
Unfortunately, since the tournament's establishment, the school had never won a single championship.
Its enormous prize money was essentially a carrot dangling in front of a donkey, serving primarily as motivation.
A thousand gold Galleons still possessed considerable purchasing power. For ambitious young people hoping to start their own businesses, that kind of money could be an absolute lifesaver.
George and Fred Weasley, in particular, were counting on winning that prize.
Unfortunately, they were probably destined for disappointment.
During the start-of-term feast, Dumbledore had publicly announced that only students aged seventeen or older would be permitted to enter.
This unexpected additional requirement was like a bucket of cold water dumped over everyone's heads.
The students were extremely dissatisfied. After all, there had never been an age restriction on champions throughout the Triwizard Tournament's history.
The headmaster explained that the competition was extremely dangerous and unsuitable for students below their sixth or seventh year.
On the registration day in late October, Dumbledore introduced a concrete measure to enforce the rule.
He drew an Age Line around the Goblet of Fire, preventing any student under seventeen from crossing it.
Naturally, this restriction was riddled with loopholes.
However, very few students were capable of identifying those loopholes and successfully exploiting them.
Many clever students attempted to slip through by using various tricks.
The Weasley twins tried drinking Ageing Potion to fool the Age Line. Unfortunately, the moment they stepped across it, an invisible force sent them flying backward.
As an additional punishment, thick white beards sprouted all over their faces.
The students watching the spectacle practically collapsed with laughter.
Despite making complete fools of themselves in front of everyone, the Weasley twins weren't angry in the slightest. Instead, they joined in the laughter, demonstrating their remarkable optimism.
Other students attempted to bypass the Age Line by simply throwing their slips of parchment into the Goblet of Fire from a distance.
Those attempts failed as well. The slips disintegrated into ashes while still flying through the air.
In fact, while the Weasley twins were lying in the hospital wing receiving treatment for their newly grown beards, they had already worked out a genuine way to circumvent the restriction.
They simply needed to find someone older than seventeen to submit their names for them.
Dumbledore had never explicitly forbidden students from entering other people's names.
Why not find someone to throw the names of every student in Hogwarts into the Goblet of Fire?
That would merely be a perfectly legitimate exploitation of a loophole in the rules.
Nevertheless, when the registration deadline approached, relatively few students actually dared to enter.
Of the four Hogwarts Houses, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff displayed the greatest enthusiasm.
Gryffindors admired individual heroism, while Hufflepuffs placed considerable importance on collective honor.
Ravenclaw and Slytherin students, by comparison, were relatively indifferent.
Ever since Skyl's graduating class had left Hogwarts, the student now universally acknowledged as the school's most outstanding was none other than Cedric Diggory, a sixth-year Hufflepuff.
Not only was he a prefect, but he was also the captain of his Quidditch team. He excelled academically, had impeccable conduct, and possessed outstanding athletic abilities.
He was practically the embodiment of that infuriatingly perfect kid every parent wished their own child could be.
When everyone saw Cedric enter the tournament, they immediately began discussing how he was practically guaranteed to become Hogwarts' champion.
Some students privately whispered that if Harry Potter were allowed to compete, he certainly wouldn't be any worse than Cedric.
When the Goblet of Fire finally announced the list of competitors, however, everyone received the shock of their lives.
The Triwizard Tournament had selected four champions.
And Harry Potter's name was among them.
...
On the night before Halloween, Hogwarts Castle was utterly silent.
Even the ghosts were unusually quiet.
In the entrance hall, the Goblet of Fire continued burning with its blue-white flames.
A limping figure emerged through a side door and slowly approached the goblet.
The firelight illuminated his hideously disfigured face, which was covered in scars.
One of his eyes was considerably larger than the other, and the enormous eyeball never stopped swiveling.
This was none other than this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Mad-Eye Moody.
Without making a sound, he dropped a slip of parchment bearing Harry Potter's name into the Goblet of Fire.
Then he drew his wand and pointed it at the powerful magical artifact.
Muttering an incantation, he cast a Confundus Charm, tricking the Goblet of Fire into recognizing Harry's name as an entrant from a fourth school.
Since no fourth school actually existed, Harry would automatically qualify as its champion, being the only person entered under that school's name.
This was the only method that could guarantee his selection.
Having accomplished his objective, Mad-Eye Moody quietly departed the entrance hall.
Not long afterward, another figure slipped into the hall.
The newcomer stepped effortlessly across the Age Line and dropped a slip of parchment into the Goblet of Fire.
He then drew his wand and muttered a Confundus Charm.
The firelight illuminated his face.
It was James Potter!
After James departed, another figure slipped into the entrance hall.
This time, it was a beautiful woman, Lily Potter.
She repeated precisely the same procedure as the previous two visitors.
Lily had barely left when a large black dog appeared, carrying a slip of parchment in its mouth.
The dog approached the Goblet of Fire and dropped the parchment into the flames.
It was Sirius Black in his Animagus form.
He transformed back into a human, cast the Confundus Charm, and then turned into a large black dog once more.
Satisfied with his handiwork, he trotted away.
The Goblet of Fire trembled slightly.
It almost seemed to be suffering from indigestion...
Unfortunately, its ordeal was far from over.
During the latter half of the night, yet another figure entered the hall.
Grindelwald casually dropped a slip of parchment into the Goblet of Fire.
A satisfied smile appeared on his face as he cast the same Confundus Charm upon it.
After Grindelwald departed, dawn gradually approached.
Before the other students had awakened, Harry Potter arrived at the entrance hall alone.
The young wizard stood before the Goblet of Fire, studying it thoughtfully for a moment.
"Something doesn't seem quite right. Why does the Goblet of Fire look like it's hiccuping?"
He didn't dwell on the matter.
Instead, he drew his wand and pointed it at the pedestal supporting the goblet.
The floor began to flow and shift, carrying the pedestal and the Goblet of Fire outside the Age Line.
Harry then dropped a slip of parchment bearing his own name into the flames.
"Hmm... Maybe I should make absolutely sure."
Harry hesitated.
Although he was confident that he was stronger than Cedric, there was no guarantee that the Goblet of Fire wouldn't reject him because of his age.
Consequently, he decided to cast a Confundus Charm on the goblet as well.
...
On Halloween, the Goblet of Fire spat out nine slips of parchment in succession.
Beauxbatons' champion was Fleur Delacour.
Durmstrang's representative was Viktor Krum.
Hogwarts' champion was Cedric Diggory.
And then there were six Harry Potters.
"I'm screwed."
Harry couldn't help covering his face with his hands.
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