Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: Chapter 12 Summary.
The Triwizard Tournament
Chapter 12 of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, titled ‘The Triwizard Tournament’ deals with a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, and an announcement about the Triwizard Tournament.
Welcome Back to Hogwarts
Students hurry to their carriages and towards the castle. The rain threatens to overflow the lake, so once their carriages are close enough, everyone rushes inside the entrance hall.
Thinking he is safe from the water now, Ron shakes his head dry, only for Peeves to throw a water balloon at him. Another one comes straight down, narrowly missing Hermione and bursting next to Harry’s feet.
Professor McGonagall comes rushing in and yells at Peeves to stop. It is only once she threatens to call Dumbledore does Peeves stop, and throws the last of his water balloons at the students. With Peeves gone, Professor McGonagall guides the students into the Great Hall.
The Great Hall looks splendid as usual. Nearly Headless Nick greets Harry and the others as they sit down, but nobody is in a good mood. Harry is also greeted by Colin Creevey, who announces his brother Dennis is starting Hogwarts this year.
Sorting of the First Years
Bored and hungry, Harry scans the teacher’s table and realizes it is looking emptier than usual. He looks for a new face, trying to find out who would be teaching them Defence against the Dark Arts for the year. However, there is none to be found, which makes Hermione think Dumbledore couldn’t find anyone this year.
Professor McGonagall enters the hall with the new First Years and gets the Sorting Hat ready. Like it happens every year, the Sorting Hat sings its signature sing and the sorting begins. Harry notes that the song it sang this time was different than what it had during their sorting. Ron explains that it has a new song every year. Life as a Hat has got to be very boring, and it probably spends all its time writing the next year’s song.
The First Years are sorted into their respective houses. Dennis Creevey, the brother of Colins Creevey gets sorted into Gryffindor and is welcomed to the table with cheers. After all First years have been sorted, Dumbledore asks the students to Tuck In. Food magically appears on all the tables, and the Welcome feast begins.
Nick talks about the commotion at the kitchens earlier. Peeves had wanted to join the feast, but the ghosts had denied him the opportunity. In turn, Peeves decided to throw a fit, which scared the house elves.
Hermione is shocked to find there are house elves in Hogwarts. Nick explains that they work in the kitchens during the day and only come out at night to do a bit of cleaning. She asks if they at least get paid, but they don’t. Horrified at the prospect, she refuses to have any more food.
The New Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor
After the feast, Dumbledore gets up to address the students. He announces that the list of forbidden objects within the castle has been extended by Argus Filch the caretaker, and that the full list can be found in his office. He also reminds the students that the Forbidden Forest is out of bounds for students, and Hogsmeade the wizard village is out of bounds for anyone under the third year.
Next, he announces that there will be no Quidditch Cup this year. This comes as a shock to everyone, and the students mouth soundlessly at their headmaster. Dumbledore continues, explaining that it is due to an event that will begin in October and continue throughout the school year. It would take up a lot of the teacher’s time and energy, but the students would surely enjoy it.
He is about to elaborate further when the doors of the Great Hall bang open. A man in a black cloak enters the hall and walks towards the teacher’s table. A fork of lightning illuminates his face for a second.
His face seems almost as if it has been carved out of weathered wood by a non-skilled worker. Every inch is covered with a scar, and he misses a major chunk of his nose. Moreover, one of his eyes is a vivid, electric blue and rolls around chaotically in its socket.
He shakes hands with Dumbledore and sits next to him. Dumbledore introduces the man as Professor Moody, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
The Triwizard Tournament
Ignoring the interruption, Dumbledore continues addressing the students. He announces that the Triwizard Tournament will be organized this year at Hogwarts. It is a tournament first established about seven hundred years ago, as a friendly competition between Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Dumstrang. A champion is selected to represent each school, and together they go through three magical tasks.
The schools took turns organizing the tournament every five years until the death toll became too high to be ignored. Hermione gets worried at this statement, but none of the other students seem to care.
The heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang would be arriving with their contenders in October, and an impartial judge would choose their champions. The prize at the end is glory for their school and a grand sum of 1000 galleons.
As students start picturing themselves as their school champion, Dumbledore declares that only students who are seventeen and above would be allowed to put their names for consideration. This is non-negotiable, and Dumbledore would enforce the rule personally. With this, he ends his speech, and bids good night to the students.
Everyone is disappointed to hear of the age restriction, and Fred wonders if an aging potion would help them get around it. Hermione reiterates that there have been deaths in the tournament, but again, nobody seems to care.
The chapter ends as students head back to their dormitory. Harry rolls around in his bed, imagining himself as the Hogwarts champion. Cho Chang’s face stands out in the crowd, and Harry grins into his pillow.
