The description of the weather in Scotland was spot-on this time!

Brilliant description of the underwater world in the Black lake. I was quite impressed. I wonder if you're a diver.

Oh-wow, you did it. I really didn't expect it. I loved it.
I was always wondering who is selecting the baits for the champions. It's certainly neither the champions themselves nor is it Dumbledore. Probably a mysterious magical artefact that knows things about Harry he himself hasn't recognized yet.

I'm looking forward to Ginny's probing question of why she was what Harry sorely missed. Well, and Ron's question how it came that Harry would miss Ginny more than him. In case Ron will ever realize it, lol.

Have I ever said that I like your Neville? Even if I always forget it, I like him.

Great chapter! I loved it!

P.S. Of course, I do know that the before mentioned magical artefact is the author, lol

Author's Response: I'm no diver - I just saw a few pictures of underwater places, along with my memories to underwater aquariums when I was a kid. Of course, JKR's description of the lake was helpful too! :) The selection of the hostages is actually done by the Heads of the three schools for their students - so it is Dumbledore.

Oh, Harry! His "saving people" thing is ever present. Hopefully, he will get first place since his hostage was clearly the first to be rescued. I'm curious to see how the Weasley family reacts to Ginny being what Harry would miss the most.

Author's Response: The Weasley family - good point :P I haven't factored in their reactions at all - of those in the school, Ron's reaction will be known. Fred and George - well, they're not too bothered :D Should they be?

"
Bugger, he thought as he stared at the rock. He had been relying on this spell to work, so much so that he had not thought to trace his underwater route from his starting point. How was he to come back to the same spot now? He had no idea how he had reached here in the first place. And with another unpleasant jolt, he realized that even if he did track back and map out his course to the rock, there was no guarantee that the second task would start in the same place as where he had begun earlier that morning;"

Haha... that was literally what I was thinking as I was reading this part.

I am curious though... why did you decide on having Ginny be the one thing he missed the most? For the most part even though he has been interacting with her more than in canon he is still not quite there yet. Or at least THEY are not quite there yet. I don't think it is bad that you chose Ginny but it just has me curious. Hermione at this point in the story would have more of a reason to be down there (for Harry not Krum) than Ginny.

It doesn't take away from the overall story but its just something that came to mind.

I was afraid that Harry would still take the task too seriously. It seems that despite the extra time he had to prepare he still fell into the same trap as in the books. The boy has a Hero complex. That is one thing I always did dislike about Harry. He tends to react more to his feelings than to step back and think first.

Either way... I am curious to see what happens next. I have no doubt he will come in first place.

Author's Response: I put Ginny there because I could :P Okay no, she's not just a convenient plot device. I've left out two weeks of interaction between Harry and Ginny before the second task - they've grown a lot closer. It was evident how they cared for each other - maybe Dumbledore just wanted to give them a nudge in the right direction :P Yes he does have a hero complex, but this time it was quite justified, as you might have noticed from Chapter 8.