At the edge of the Forbidden Forest, the bonfire blazed brightly. Harry and the others sat around it, resting while listening to Lupin explain Defence Against the Dark Arts.
"Sirius, are you saying I should just give up taking part in the Third Task?" Harry asked, putting down his chocolate and frowning.
"No, not give up." Sirius shook his head. "There's still a Magical Contract between you and the Goblet of Fire. You can't withdraw from the Triwizard Tournament."
Lupin, who was poking at the fire, explained Sirius's meaning to Harry. "Sirius just wants you to protect yourself."
"I..."
Harry had barely begun to speak when Sirius cut him off.
"Albert believes the Third Task may put his life in danger, and that you're the one who brought this crisis upon him."
Hermione and Ron exchanged uneasy looks.
"You're sure this isn't a joke?" Harry did not find it funny at all.
"Do you think he's joking with us?" Sirius stared deeply at his godson.
"Let me explain!" Lupin interjected. "Harry, you must have realized that becoming Hogwarts' fourth Champion wasn't an accident."
"Someone wants to harm you," Sirius said. "No one's made a move against me for an entire year," Harry pointed out bluntly. "No one has dared do anything to me."
"It's not that they didn't dare. The time simply hadn't come yet," Sirius corrected.
"Wasn't someone trying to murder Harry through the Triwizard Tournament?" Ron felt Harry had already faced enough danger along the way.
The dragon in the First Task had been hard enough to deal with. One careless mistake, and he could have been burned to death by dragon fire.
The Second Task had required them to dive into an icy lake to rescue people. The Champions had likewise stood a good chance of drowning.