At the bottom of the lake.
The Merpeople's beguiling voices receded from the three Champions' minds like an ebbing tide.
It was a strange calm that came after being hollowed out.
Cedric gazed at Cho Chang's adorable face inside the magical bubble, faintly flushed after she discovered sauce at the corner of her mouth.
The Merpeople's voices, the visions in his mind, all his earlier exhaustion, the sense of absurdity, and the anger at being played... vanished before that smile.
He smiled.
It was a heartfelt smile of relief, as though an immense weight had lifted from his shoulders.
True rescue isn't making her witness your sacrifice, but ensuring she never has to experience any of this.
The thought surfaced clearly in his heart.
Pheobe, meanwhile, watched her little sister gloating over having snatched some food, and the Merpeople's theory about "a hero's sacrifices" seemed laughable to her.
Protecting my family is only natural. Whose approval do I need?
First, she rolled her eyes at Gabrielle with extraordinary flair. Then she mouthed a clear, silent message to her sister:
"I'll deal with you when we get home."
Yet the irrepressible upward curve of her lips completely betrayed her true thoughts.
Krum's reaction was the most profound.
He watched Hermione quietly, watching that real, vibrant girl who would tussle with her friends over food.
He let out a long, deep sigh that held the weariness of having been played, but even more than that, a certain complete realization.
He finally understood that all his earlier fighting had not been to save Hermione, but to overcome the part of himself that craved validation and feared being looked down upon.
The moment he found that release, Hermione stopped what she was doing and gave him a smile through the bubble that said, "Congratulations."