The entire competition ground was in chaos, with everyone trying to make their opinions heard.
The champions sat on their broomsticks in confusion, unsure what to do. The competition had barely begun, yet so much had happened that they could hardly keep up.
Fleur Delacour and Yachigusa Tsuki sat on their Nimbus 2001s, each female captain seeing the bewilderment and bitterness on the other's face.
Amid the uproar, Ludo Bagman announced a suspension. The fierce struggle in the second task had only just begun, but now it ground to a halt.
Harry panted. Only two minutes had passed, and he was already struggling to keep going.
His miracle in the first stage had not come without a price. Harry felt as though he had spent an entire afternoon training at the club.
"Harry, are you all right?"
Ron and Neville looked at the unnatural flush on Harry's face and asked worriedly.
Harry managed a smile. "I'm okay. I can keep going. No idea what's happened, though."
Just then, Hermione's urgent voice came through the device that had been sitting by his ear:
"Are you all right? Thank goodness, we can finally talk."
"Hermione!"
Harry, Ron, and Neville reacted as though their mother had arrived, all talking at once:
"Hermione, why weren't you saying anything before?"
"Why has the competition stopped?"
"Hermione, what should we do next?"
The boys could practically picture Hermione rolling her eyes on the staging platform:
"Oh, please. It's only been ten-odd minutes since the start, and Harry only just got the key. The situation in the second task is complicated. How could I come up with a plan that quickly?"
At this point, Hermione's voice took on a strange note:
"I don't know why they stopped it either, but I suspect it has something to do