Chapter 495: The Approaching Guests
News of the Triwizard Tournament swept through the castle like wildfire, and within a single night, the excitement over Sirius had completely faded. The Tournament became the sole focus of conversation for the entire week.
One of the hottest topics was the selection of Champions. Each House had its own candidate in mind. Slytherin's top pick was Adrian Pucey; Ravenclaw's was Robert Andrews.
In Gryffindor, the frontrunner was Angelina Johnson—despite Fred and George repeatedly insisting that they were the true contenders for the honor. In reality, however, the twins' combined support was less than half of what Angelina had gathered.
Hufflepuff was the only House with two leading contenders, as support was split evenly between Kyle and Cedric. The rest of the Hufflepuffs couldn't decide, constantly switching sides between the two. Despite this, there was no animosity in Hufflepuff; for them, it would be a joyous event regardless of whether Kyle or Cedric was chosen as Champion.
Over the weekend, Fred and George made an early trip to Hogsmeade, returning with armfuls of items from Zonko's. They claimed these were their "secret weapons" for the Triwizard Tournament. Kyle strongly suspected that the Dungbombs would play a major role if either twin somehow managed to become the Champion. It was amusing to imagine Professor McGonagall's reaction if that ever came to pass.
As the days went by, excitement within the castle grew steadily. Everyone was eager to see what the students from the other two schools would be like. In preparation for their arrival, the castle was thoroughly cleaned. Dusty portraits were scrubbed spotless, and the suits of armor in the hallways gleamed so brightly that they almost hurt to look at in the mirrored reflection. Kyle often spotted suits of armor sprawled on the floor, as if trying to gather some dust back up, only for Filch to come by within minutes with a fresh piece of flannel to polish them again.
Filch, already notorious for his sour disposition, had become even more insufferable, snapping at anyone whose shoes bore even a trace of dust. The professors, too, seemed unusually tense. Hosting the finest students and headmasters from the other two schools was a first for them, even after so many years at Hogwarts.
In this charged atmosphere, the week flew by. When Kyle headed down to breakfast on the morning of October 30th, he found the Great Hall newly decorated. Enormous silk banners draped from the walls, reminiscent of the House Cup ceremonies, but this time, all four House banners were on display. Above the guests' table hung a banner bearing the Hogwarts crest, with the lion, eagle, badger, and snake surrounding a grand letter "H."
No sooner had Kyle and Kanna taken their seats than students began approaching, asking how they were and if they felt prepared. Kyle patiently explained, over and over, that today was simply for welcoming the guests from the other two schools, and that the Champion selection would happen later. By the time breakfast was underway, he had already repeated himself at least twenty times since waking up.