Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: Chapter Twelve Summary & Analysis

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville share a carriage up to the Hogwarts entrance. They race through the pouring rain but as soon as they make it into the entrance hall, Peeves starts pelting students with water bombs. Nearly Headless Nick warmly greets the students at the Gryffindor table and Colin Creevy, who idolizes Harry, excitedly shares that his brother Dennis is starting this year. Harry notices that there are a number of empty seats at the staff table as McGonagall leads a line of soaked first-years into the hall. One tiny boy whom Harry ascertains is Dennis is wearing Hagrid's moleskin coat.

McGonagall sets the Sorting Hat on a stool and it sings a song about the school's founding and the qualities of the different Houses. Then, McGonagall calls the names of the students and the hat sorts them each into one of the four school Houses. After Dennis is sorted into Gryffindor, he excitedly tells Colin that he fell in the lake. As Ron, Harry, and Hermione fill their plates with food, Nearly Headless Nick explains that they're lucky there's a feast at all: Peeves created mayhem in the kitchens earlier and terrified the house-elves. Hermione is shocked to hear this and when she learns that the elves don't get pay, sick leave, or pensions, she refuses to eat.

After the feast, Dumbledore stands and addresses the students. He says that the Quidditch Cup won't take place this year but before he can announce what will take its place, the doors open and a grizzled man with one wooden leg starts walking toward Dumbledore. He has one normal eye and one that's large, blue, and can swivel in every direction. The man shakes Dumbledore's hand and takes a seat at the staff table. Dumbledore introduces him as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Moody.

Dumbledore resumes his speech and says that this year, Hogwarts will host the Triwizard Tournament. He explains that the Tournament was established 700 years ago as a competition between the Wizarding schools Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. It hasn't happened for centuries as the death toll rose, but this time, there are safety measures in place. Nobody under the age of seventeen will be able to enter, and it will be impossible to hoodwink the "impartial judge" who will choose a champion from each school. Fred and George mutter angrily. Dumbledore says that students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will arrive in October and the selection will take place on Halloween. 

On the way up to the common room, Fred and George angrily say that they're going to enter anyway, since they'll turn seventeen in April. Ron says he'd consider entering too as Neville says his grandmother would like him to, but he hasn't learned enough. In the common room, Hermione sees the fireplace and mutters "slave labor" as she heads for bed. The boys go to their dormitory and as he lies in bed, Harry imagines himself winning the Triwizard Tournament.