Bunce pulled Harry, who was still sitting on the ground, up and looked around. The place they had come to resembled a vast, desolate, foggy swamp. In front of them stood two exhausted, grim-faced wizards, one of them holding a large gold watch, the other a thick roll of parchment and a quill. Both of them were disguised as Muggles, but not very good at it. The man with the gold watch was wearing a tweed suit and a pair of high rubber shoes that reached his thighs. His colleague was wearing a checkered skirt and a South American cape.
"Good morning, Basil," said Mr. Weasley, picking up the boot and handing it to the wizard in the checkered skirt. The man threw it into a large box beside him, which was full of used portkeys. Bunce could see an old newspaper, a rotten toothbrush, and a football riddled with holes.
"Hello, Arthur," said Basil wearily."Not on duty? Some of you are lucky we've been here all night and you'd better get out of the way, there's a large crowd coming from the Black Forest at 5:15. "Wait a minute, I'll find out where your camp is, Weasley Weasley." He was searching the parchment list. "About a quarter of a mile down the road, and the first camp up ahead is there. The grounds manager was Mr. Robert. Diggory, you'll look for Mr. Payne in the second camp.”
"Thank you, Basil," said Mr. Weasley, beckoning everyone to follow him.
They passed through the desolate swamp, where they could barely see anything in the thick fog. After walking for about twenty minutes, a door gradually appeared in front of him, followed by a small stone house. Bangs could just make out the thousands of oddly-shaped tents behind the stone house, which ran up the gentle slope of a large field that extended to a dark forest on the horizon. They said goodbye to the Diggories and headed for the door.
A man stood at the door, looking at the tents. Bunce could tell at a glance that he was the only real Muggle in the area. The man turned to look at them as soon as he heard their footsteps.
"Good morning!" said Mr. Weasley energetically.
"Good morning!" said the Muggle.
"Are you Mr. Robert?" asked Mr. Weasley.
"Ah, yes." Mr. Robert said," Who are you?”
"Weasley-two tents, ordered two days ago, are they available?”asked Mr. Weasley.
" Yes," said Mr. Robert, looking at a form pasted on the door." You have a place by the woods there. Only for one night?"
"Yes." said Mr. Weasley.
"Then, can I pay now?”Mr. Robert said.
"Ah-yes-no problem-" said Mr. Weasley. He backed away from the hut and motioned Harry to come up to him.
A moment later, with Harry's help, Mr. Weasley handed Mr. Robert the correct money.
"Are you a foreigner?" Mr. Robert asked.
"Foreigners?" repeated Mr. Weasley, puzzled.
"You're not the only one who can't figure out the money," said Mr. Robert, looking Mr. Weasley up and down."Just ten minutes ago, two people were going to pay me gold coins the size of beer caps.”
"Really?" said Mr. Weasley nervously.
Mr. Robert was fumbling for change in a tin can.
" There have never been so many people," he said suddenly, looking at the misty camp again." Hundreds of people have booked tents. People keep coming."
"Is there something wrong?" asked Mr. Weasley, reaching for the change, but Mr. Robert did not give it to him.
" Yes," Mr. Robert said thoughtfully." There are people from all over the world. Countless foreigners. Not only foreigners, but also many weirdos, you know? A guy was walking around in a checkered skirt and a South American cape.”
"Can't I?" said Mr. Weasley eagerly.
"It's like I don't know, it's like a trick.”Mr. Robert said," And they all seem to know each other. It's like a big party.”
At this moment, a wizard in bloopers suddenly descended from the sky and landed by the door of Mr. Robert's stone house.
"Forget everything!" he snapped, pointing his wand at Mr. Robert.
Suddenly, Mr. Robert's eyes became unfocused, and his brows relaxed. His face showed a dazed and indifferent expression. Bangs knew that this was what happened when a person's memory was altered.
"I'll give you a map of the camp.”Mr. Robert said calmly to Mr. Weasley.”
"Thank you very much." said Mr. Weasley.
The wizard in bloomers walked with them toward the camp gates. He looked tired: his unshaven chin was livid, and there were purple shadows under his eyes. When Mr. Robert could no longer hear them, the wizard muttered to Mr. Weasley,"He gave me a lot of trouble. To keep him happy, he had to recite the Memory Charm at least a dozen times a day. Ludo Bagman would only make things worse. Walking around, talking loudly about Bludgers and Quaffles, with no regard for Muggle safety. God, I can't wait for this to end. See you later, Arthur."
After saying that, he disappeared.
"I thought Mr. Bagman was the Head of the Department of Magical Sports," said Ginny, looking surprised."He'd know better than to talk about Bludgers around Muggles, wouldn't he?”
"Yes," said Mr. Weasley, smiling, leading them through the gates and into the camp."Ludo has always been a little careless about security. However, you couldn't find someone more passionate than him to be the leader of the Sports Department. He had played Quidditch for England, after all. He was the best hitter the Wimbledon Wasps had ever played.”
They trudged through the misty camp, passing between two long rows of tents. Most of the tents did not look very special, and it was clear that their owners had gone to great lengths to make them look as much like Muggle tents as possible, but some had gone too far and added chimneys, bell ropes, or weather indicators to make them look rather nondescript. However, there were a few tents that were obviously enchanted. In the middle of the camp, there was a tent that was particularly eye-catching. It was lavishly decorated with a large amount of striped silk, making it look like a small palace. There were a few live peacocks tied to the entrance. A little further ahead, they saw another tent in the shape of a four-story building with several turrets beside it. Further in, there was a tent with a garden in front of the door. There was a birdbath, a fountain, and so on.
"It's always like this," said Mr. Weasley, smiling."People can't resist showing off when they get together. Ah, here we are. Look, this is ours.”
They came to the edge of the forest at the end of the camp. There was an open space there, and there was a small sign on the ground."Wazley." (Weasley's misnomer.)
"This place couldn't be better!" said Mr. Weasley happily."The grounds are on the other side of the forest.”He took his backpack off his shoulders. "Well," he said excitedly,"strictly speaking, no magic, now that we're all in Muggle territory. We'll set up the tent with our own hands! It shouldn't be too hard. That's what Muggles do, Harry. Where do you think we should start?”
"Harry couldn't do it himself, could he?”Bance said.
"It's true, the Dursleys never took me out.”said Harry.
Mr. Weasley looked a little angry at this, but then it disappeared. Although Bunce, Harry, and Hermione had never set up a tent before, he had pretty much figured out where the poles and screws were supposed to be, and Mr. Weasley was always a happy bystander, who was always so excited when the sledgehammer was needed. Finally, they managed to set up two crooked two-man tents.
They all took a few steps back, admiring the fruits of their labor. Mr. Weasley was now on all fours inside the first tent.
"It'll be a little tight," he called,"but I think everyone can squeeze in." Come in and take a look."
Bunce bent down and slipped under the tent flap, a little surprised. He walked into an old-fashioned three-bedroom apartment with a bathroom and kitchen. The air was filled with the pungent smell of cats.
"Oh, this is only temporary." Mr. Weasley mopped his bald head with a handkerchief and peered out at the four bunk beds in his bedroom. Poor fellow, he's got lumbago and can't camp anymore.”
Mr. Weasley picked up the dusty kettle and peered inside. "We need some water."
"On the map the Muggle gave us, it's marked with a tap," said Ron, who and Hermione had entered after Harry."On the other side of the camp.”
"Well, then why don't you go get us some water with Bunce, Harry, and Hermione, and-" said Mr. Weasley, handing Bunce a jug of water-"the rest of us go get some firewood for the fire, will you?”
"But we've got a stove," said Ron."Why can't we just-"
"Ron, don't forget the Muggle-proof safety regulations!”said Mr. Weasley, looking excited with eagerness."Real Muggles make fires outside when they camp. I've seen it."
So Bunce, Harry, Ron, and Hermione set off across the camp, carrying kettles, jugs, and pans.
At this moment, the sun had just risen, and the mist was gradually dispersing. They could see tents everywhere, and they could not see the end of them. They moved slowly between the tents, looking around with great interest.
The people in the camp gradually woke up. The first to wake up were the families with children. A little boy of about two years old was crouching outside a large, pyramid-shaped tent, wand in hand, happily prodding a slug in the grass that was slowly swelling to the size of a sausage. As they reached him, the boy's mother hurried out of the tent.
"How many times have I told you, Kevin? Don't you ever-touch-your dad's-wand-ouch!”
She stepped on the giant slug and it exploded with a loud bang. Though they had gone far, they could still hear her shouting in the still air, mixed with the little boy's cries-"You stepped on Buggy! You stomped Buggy to death!"
A little farther on, they saw two young witches, about Kevin's age, riding low on two toy broomsticks, their feet brushing the dewy grass. A Ministry wizard had already spotted them, and he hurried past Bangs, muttering irritably,"In broad daylight! My parents are probably sleeping in."
From time to time, adult wizards could be seen emerging from their tents to make breakfast. some peered furtively around and lit the fire with their wands; Some were striking matches with doubtful looks on their faces, as if they thought it would not work. Three African wizards were sitting there talking seriously, all wearing long white robes and roasting a hare over a purple fire. Another group of middle-aged American male wizards sat there, chatting and laughing. A shiny banner hung high between their tents: Salem Wizard College.
"Heh-is there something wrong with my eyes? Why is everything green?”said Ron.
There was nothing wrong with Ron's eyes. They had just entered the area where all the tents were covered with a thick layer of three-leaf grass. It looked like countless strange-shaped green hills had emerged from the ground.
"Bangs! Harry! Ron! Hermione!"
It was Seamus Finnigan, their Gryffindor senior. He was sitting in front of his own shamrock-covered tent, next to a blonde-haired woman, who must have been his mother, and his best friend, Dean8226; Thomas, also from Gryffindor House.
"Do you like these decorations?" said Seamus, grinning.”
"Why can't we show our colors?”Mrs. Finnigan said."You should go see them. They've hung up all their tents. Of course you're supporting the Republic of Korea, aren't you?”she asked, her eyes sparkling at Bunce and the others. They assured her that they were really supporting the Republic of Korea, and then they set off again. Ron muttered,"What else could we say in that atmosphere?”
"Yes, if you've got that kind of courage, Ron.”Bangs said with a smile.
"I'd like to know what they've got hanging all over their tents.”said Hermione.
"A portrait of someone." Bance said.
"We'll see who it is," said Harry.
The tents in Sofia were not covered with plants, but each tent had the same poster of a very gloomy face with thick black eyebrows. Of course, the picture was moving, but the face was nothing but blinking and frowning.
"It's Krum," Ron whispered.
"What?" asked Hermione.
"Krum!" said Ron."Viktor 8226; Krum, the Sofia Seeker!”
"He looks too gloomy." said Hermione.
"Who cares about his appearance? He was extremely powerful! And he was especially young, only about eighteen years old. He's a genius, you'll see tonight.”
At the corner of the campsite, a small team had already lined up beside the tap. Bunce, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had joined the line, and in front of them were two men arguing fiercely. One of them was very old and wore a long floral pajamas. Another wizard, who was clearly working for the Ministry, was holding up a pair of pinstriped trousers and was on the verge of tears.
"Just be nice, Archies, and put it on. You can't walk around in that, the Muggle at the gate is starting to suspect-"
"I bought these trousers in a Muggle shop," said the old wizard stubbornly."Muggles wear them too.”
"Muggle women wear it, Archies, not men, men wear this.”said the Ministry wizard furiously, waving his pinstriped trousers.
" I'm not wearing it," said old Archer angrily." I'd like to let a healthy breeze blow my ass, thank you.”
Hermione couldn't help but laugh and run off at this, and didn't come back until after Archies had filled up the water and left.
They walked back through the camp, much slower because they were carrying water. Everywhere he went, he could always see some familiar faces.
"Who did you say they were?" Harry asked, pointing at a large group of teenagers he had never seen before.”
"They probably went to some foreign school.”said Ron."I know there are other schools. However, he didn't know anyone from those schools. Bill used to have a pen pal who went to school in Brazil many, many years ago. He wanted to go on an exchange trip or something, but his parents couldn't afford it. When he said he couldn't go, his pen-pal was so angry that he sent him a cursed hat that made his ears crinkle.”
"What took you so long?" grumbled George when they finally reached the Weasleys 'tent.
"I bumped into a few acquaintances." said Ron, putting the water down."You haven't started the fire yet?”
"Daddy is playing with matches." said Fred.
"Remember not to gamble with Bagman.”Bangs said as he put down the water.
"What?" asked Fred.
"If you don't want your private savings to run out, don't gamble.”Bance said.
"Brother, what are you talking about? Can you be more specific? We don't quite understand." said George.
"Then pretend I didn't say anything." Bangs sat down to rest.
"Tsk, you're keeping me in suspense again." said Fred disdainfully.
"He's just like that. You'll get used to it.”said Harry.
Mr. Weasley's fire did not make any progress, not for lack of trying. On the contrary, there were many matches scattered around him, and he did not seem to be in a hurry at all.
"Ouch!" He finally struck a match and threw it away with a yelp.
"Well, Mr. Weasley.”said Hermione gently, taking the matchbox from his hand and showing him what to do.
Fred and George kept trying to get more information out of Bunce, but failed. At least an hour later, the fire started to burn and they could start cooking. However, it was not boring while they waited. There were many things to see. Their tent appeared to be on one of the main roads leading to the stadium, and Ministry officials were hurrying up and down the road, greeting Mr. Weasley warmly as they passed. Mr. Weasley kept making introductions, mainly for Harry and Hermione's sake, because his own children were too familiar with the Ministry to interest them, and Bunce had a special status.
"That's Cuthbert 8226; Mockridge, the director of goblin communications. This is Gilbert8226; Whimper, he's on the Committee for Experimental Spells, and he's had those horns for a while. Pisgood, a Memory Eraser--a member of the team that reversed the accident. That's Bode and Crocker's job. No comment."
"What do they do?" asked Harry curiously.
"It's the Department of Mysteries, top secret. I don't know what they're up to," Mr. Weasley explained.
At last, the fire flared up, and they had barely started frying eggs and cooking sausages when Bill, Charlie, and Percy strode toward them from the woods.
"Just Apparated, Dad.”said Percy loudly."Ah, yes, there's good food!”
Bunzman was eating eggs and sausages all over the floor when Mr. Weasley jumped to his feet, smiling and waving at a man striding toward him. "Haha!" He said," The most important person at the moment! Ludo!"
Ludo Bagman was by far the most eye-catching person in the camp, not even old Archer in his flowery pajamas. Ludo was wearing a long Quidditch robe with wide yellow and black stripes and a giant wasp splashed across his chest. It looked like he had been strong before, but was now beginning to go downhill. His robes were pulled tight over his belly, which he had certainly not put on weight when he had played Quidditch for England. He looked like an oversized boy.
"Aha!" Bagman shouted happily. He hopped as he walked, as if he had springs under his feet. He was obviously in a state of extreme excitement.
"Arthur, old chap," he panted as he came to the fire,"it's a nice day, isn't it? The weather was great! Where else could he find one in such weather? There won't be any clouds at night. The whole preparation work is in order. I have nothing to do!”
Behind him, a group of haggard Ministry officials hurried past, and there were signs in the distance that someone was playing with magical fire, sending purple sparks shooting more than twenty feet into the air.
"Oh-yes," said Mr. Weasley, smiling,"this is my son, Percy. just started working at the Ministry-this is Fred-no, George, sorry-that's Fred-Bill, Charlie, Ron-my daughter Ginny-this is Ron's friend, Buns8226; Foley, Hermione, Granger, and Harry, Harry Potter."
Bagman looked mildly surprised at the mention of Harry's name, and his eyes darted to Harry's forehead.
"Let me introduce you," Mr. Weasley continued,"this is Ludo 8226; Bagman, you know who he is, it's all thanks to him that we've got such good tickets-"
Bagman grinned and waved his hand as if to say it was nothing.
"Want to bet on the match, Arthur?”He asked eagerly, rattling the pockets of his yellow and black robes. It seemed that there were quite a lot of gold coins inside. Pontenay made a bet with me that Sofia would score the first goal-I gave him good odds, considering that the third striker of the Republic of Iceland was the best I had seen in years-Agatha Jr. 8226; Timms bet half of her Eel Farm shares that the competition would last a week.”
"Oh, all right," said Mr. Weasley."Let me see. I'll bet a Galleon on the Irishman, okay?”
"A Garen?" Ludo was a little disappointed, but soon recovered."Very well, very well. Anyone else?”
"They're still young. They can't gamble." said Mr. Weasley."Molly wouldn't want-"
"No more." Bance said.
"Oh, forget it then. Can you do me a favor, Arthur? I've been looking for Barty 8226; Crouch. My equal in Sofia was giving us a hard time, but I couldn't understand a word he was saying. Barty would solve this problem. He could speak about 150 languages.”
"Mr. Crouch?" said Percy excitedly."He speaks two hundred languages! Mermaids, turkeys, and trolls."
"Anyone can speak troll language," said Fred disapprovingly."All you have to do is point at it and purr.”
Percy gave Fred a nasty look and stirred the fire so hard that the kettle was boiling again.
"Still no word from Bertha Jorkins, Ludo?”asked Mr. Weasley, as Bagman sat down on the grass beside them.
"Not even a shadow," said Bagman loudly."But don't worry, she'll turn up. Poor old Bertha, she's got a leaky cauldron of memory and a terrible sense of direction. He must be lost, believe it or not. One day in October, she would wander back to the office, thinking that it was still July.”
"Barty Crouch keeps saying that," said Bagman, his round blue eyes wide and innocent."But there's really no one to spare at the moment. Heh-just as I was talking about him, he came! Barty!"
a wizard had suddenly materialized beside their campfire, together with Ludo-8226, who was sitting lazily on the grass in his old Wasps robes; Compared to Bagman, there was a sharp contrast. Barty Crouch was a stiff, upright man of about fifty, dressed in a neat suit and tie. Her short black hair was messy, and the slit in the middle was a little unnatural. His narrow mustache, which was as narrow as a toothbrush, seemed to have been trimmed with a sliding ruler. His leather shoes were also polished.
"Sit down and rest, Barty." said Ludo happily, patting the grass beside him.
"No, thank you, Ludo," said Crouch, a tinge of impatience in his voice. The Buddhians insist that we add twelve more seats in the top box.”
"Oh, so that's what they want!”said Bagman."I thought the guy was going to borrow a pair of tweezers from me. His accent is too strong."
"Mr. Crouch!" Percy was panting with excitement. He leaned forward in a bow that made him look hunchbacked.”
"Oh," said Mr. Crouch, looking at Percy with slight surprise."Well-thank you, Weatherby.”(Ah, got Percy's name wrong.)
Fred and George were laughing so hard that they couldn't stand straight, and Percy, whose ears had turned pink, was pretending to be busy tending to the teapot.
"Well, there's something I've been meaning to tell you, Arthur," said Mr. Crouch, his sharp eyes falling back on Mr. Weasley. Basher is provoking you. He wants to talk to you about your ban on flying carpets.”
Mr. Weasley sighed heavily.
"I sent him an owl last week to talk about it. I've told him a hundred times that carpets are classified as Muggle artefacts on the register of prohibited magical objects, but will he listen?”
"I doubt he will," said Mr. Crouch, taking a cup of tea from Percy."He can't wait to get his carpet out here.”
"Ali thinks there's a loophole in the market for family transport," said Mr. Crouch."I remember my grandfather had an Uxminster carpet that could fit twelve people-but, of course, that was before flying carpets were banned.”
"How's it going, busy enough, Barty?”Bagman asked cheerfully.
"Quite busy," said Crouch dryly."It's not easy organizing and arranging the Portkeys on five continents, Ludo.”
"I suppose you'd all like this to be over?”asked Mr. Weasley.
"I can't wait! I've never been so happy, but there's hope ahead, isn't there, Barty? And organize a lot of events, don't you?”said Bagman, startled.
Mr. Crouch raised his eyebrows at Bagman.
" We promise not to announce it to the public. We will know all the details-"
"Oh, details!" said Bagman, waving his hand dismissively as though he were shooing away a swarm of mosquitoes. They agreed, didn't they? I'm willing to bet you that these children will know soon enough. I mean, it happened right here at Hogwarts-"
"Ludo, you should know, we've got to go see those Buddhians.”said Mr. Crouch sharply, interrupting Bagman.”
He pushed the empty teacup back into Percy's hand and waited for Ludo to rise. Ludo struggled to his feet and drank all the tea in his cup.
"See you later!" he said."You'll be in the top box with me-I'll be the commentator for the match!”He waved goodbye. Crouch nodded faintly, and both of them Apparated out of sight.
"What's going on at Hogwarts, Dad?”said Fred at once."What were they talking about?”
"You will know soon enough." said Mr. Weasley, smiling.
"I'm really looking forward to it!" Bangs looked up at the sky and said.
"It's a secret until the Ministry decides to make it public.”said Percy seriously."Mr. Crouch was right to keep secrets to himself.”
"Oh, shut up, Weatherby.”said Fred.
As the afternoon passed, a sense of excitement pervaded the camp like a cloud that could be touched. At dusk, even the still summer air seemed to tremble in anticipation. When the darkness shrouded the countless waiting wizards like a curtain, the last trace of disguise disappeared: The Ministry of Magic seemed to have succumbed to the inevitable and stopped opposing the people, allowing the obvious signs of magic to appear everywhere.
Every few steps, hawkers Apparated from the sky, carrying trays and pushing carts full of strange objects. There were glowing rose-shaped badges-the green ones for Iceland, the red ones for Sofia-and the ability to scream out the names of the players; There were tall green hats decorated with clovers dancing in the wind. There was the Sofia belt, and the lion printed on it could really roar. The national flags of the two countries would be waved and their respective national anthems played. and a small Firebolt that could actually fly; There were collectible figurines of famous players, small figurines that could walk up and down your palm, looking triumphant.
"I saved up my allowance for the whole summer just for this.”said Ron, buying souvenirs as the four of them strolled past the hawkers. Ron had bought a dancing shamrock hat and a large green rose badge, but he had also bought Viktor 8226, the Sofia Seeker; A figurine of Krum. The miniature Krum was pacing up and down Ron's hand, frowning at the green badge above him.
"Wow, look at these!" said Harry, dashing over to a cart that was piled high with what looked like binoculars, but covered with all sorts of odd buttons and wheels.
" Omnioculars," the wizard peddler urged enthusiastically." You can replay the scene in slow motion, and it can also flash a situation analysis quickly if you need it. Deal-ten Galleons for one.”
"I wish I didn't buy this hat.”said Ron, eyeing the Omnioculars.
"Don't buy it for me, Harry," Bance said.
"Why?" said Harry, pulling back his hand from the point of buying four.
"No need, just three will do. You know, I never had much interest in Quidditch.”Bance said.
"Alright then, I'll buy three." said Harry.
"Don't-don't bother," said Ron, blushing.
"You're not getting anything for Christmas," said Harry, thrusting the Omnioculars into Ron and Hermione's hands."Remember, you're not getting anything for ten years!”
"That's reasonable enough." said Ron, grinning.
"Thank you, Harry," said Hermione."Let me get everyone an instruction manual. Are you sure you don't want to buy anything, Bunce?”
"No need." Bangs said coldly.
Not long after they had returned to their tents, there was a deep, booming gong somewhere far away in the woods, and at once thousands of red and green lanterns lit up the path to the arena.
"Time's up!" said Mr. Weasley, looking as excited as everyone else.”
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