Enchanting Melodies (HP SI)
- Thread starter athassprkr
- Start date
Akatsunami
The Bonetatoist
- Location
- Brazil
He likely doest want people looking too closely at the situation at all, hinting at something just off enough to start some rumours and passively hit Fumbledores reputation, but not being too direct about it in a way that would lead properly into scrutiny or an investigation is the fine line he seems to aiming for.
Chapter 275: Pearly Gladiator
Chapter 275: Pearly Gladiator
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
14 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Daphne Greengrass was not particularly happy to be in Rome. The Italian Arcane Academy was beautiful in its own militarized way, but it wasn't something that she particularly liked. She could understand why Blaise didn't regret coming to Hogwarts. He definitely wouldn't have been comfortable in this place. He was more of a laid-back person, who appreciated art and subtlety, not the straightforward warriors that the Accademia Arcana Italia liked to graduate.
References to Ancient Rome seemed to have sprung up everywhere. To be fair, the Roman Empire was huge and really powerful, but there was such a thing as living in the past… As Daphne walked around the corridors to their version of the Great Hall, she could see countless decorations and artefacts that only emphasized the school's obsession with its historical roots. Marble busts of famous Roman magicians and military leaders lined the hallways, each set on a pedestal that bore inscriptions of their most notable magical feats and battles. Mosaics depicting epic magical battles covered the floors, so intricate and detailed that Daphne felt as if she could hear the clash of swords and the chants of spells under her feet.
Tapestries hung from the walls, illustrating scenes from the Roman magical pantheon, vibrant yet fierce with depictions of gods and goddesses wielding thunderbolts and swords alongside wands and staffs. Every corner seemed to hold a shield or a suit of armour, as if ready for a spectral centurion to step out and march to battle. Even the lighting was dramatic, with torches encased in sconces that bore the faces of lions and eagles, casting eerie shadows that danced along the walls.
Alright, maybe she was biased since McGonagall had refused to let her go back to Hogwarts until the third task. She saw no true reason to stay… Harry wasn't competing, and neither was she. To make things worse, Astoria's condition was getting worse according to Tracy. The bracelet that Daphne had made was becoming less effective over time as the blood curse slowly adapted to the enchantments imbued within it.
Her new mentor had said that it was an eventuality anyway since Blood Magic is notorious in being backed by the very magic itself. There was a reason why people couldn't just dispel blood magic easily, and that was one of its properties. It made far more sense why her father had given up so quickly and that no healer could really help Astoria… Anything they could come up with would be barely useful for a few months at the most. It was a lot of resources for very few results, and healers just hadn't seen the point. Well, she expected that they had asked for a small fortune for each temporary counter-curse, and that would have quickly bankrupted the Greengrass family.
Still, Daphne would have preferred trying to find another counter-curse to help Astoria a bit more. Even if it was temporary, Astoria was well worth the investment. Unfortunately, without her sister being around her, Daphne couldn't really do anything, and that was maddening, especially since she was literally doing nothing of real importance in Italy.
In another life, she would have loved just walking through the streets of Rome with Harry, but time was ticking, and Astoria came before her non-existent love life. The only upside she had was in the form of her mentor, who happened to be Harry's mother.
It did explain a lot, especially about Harry's behaviour in Beauxbatons. He had obviously found out about her still being alive and was processing the information. The last Potter was a genius in many things, but when it came to emotions and relationships, he was as thick as a brick. She liked that about him… There was this innocence to him that was completely at odds with his capability that just endeared her, even if she wanted to punch him in the face sometimes…
The fact that he had tried to stop her blood magic lesson made a lot more sense when he knew for a fact that Lily Potter had killed her own husband and used a ritual that wiped out an entire village from the map, taking thousands of lives in the process.
This little fact made her more cautious around the redhead, but she couldn't stop her lessons. It was a risk that she was more than willing to take for the sake of her sister…
Thankfully, the redhead was completely professional during their lessons, which had taught her more than all her personal research on blood curses in the previous few years.
All in all, she would have rather been with her mentor, Harry, and Astoria at the same place. That would have been the perfect scenario. And since she would not see Astoria for months, Daphne was righteously grumpy about her situation.
When they entered the Great Hall, Daphne couldn't suppress her snort. The vast room was like stepping into a Roman legion's encampment reimagined for a magical era. Shields and banners adorned the walls, each emblazoned with the symbols of ancient Romans. The tables were arranged in a strict, orderly fashion reminiscent of a military mess hall, with seats positioned precisely two feet apart, enforcing a sense of discipline even during meals.
At the front of the hall, instead of the usual welcoming warmth of a headmaster's podium, there stood a raised dais with a commanding lectern fashioned from iron and stone, giving the impression that orders were to be issued here rather than gentle guidance or scholarly discourse. Above, the enchanted ceiling, instead of mirroring the sky outside as in Hogwarts, displayed a relentless panorama of Roman conquests, complete with spectral images of centurions on horseback charging into battle.
Everywhere she looked, Daphne saw reminders of a glorious and fierce past that the Accademia Arcana Italia seemed determined not just to remember, but to emulate.
She hated it with a passion.
To her, magic was more than just some militaristic tool. Magic was art, it was beauty in the form of change… And a school was more than just a place of discipline and classes, it was a place to make friends, to pursue individual interests…
Italy was the birthplace of so many wonderful things. From the Renaissance masterpieces that still awe the world to the intricate melodies that dance through its opera houses, Italy has long been a cradle of artistic brilliance. In terms of magical development, Italy's contribution was equally profound, particularly in the fusion of art and magic.
And yet, none of that was really shown in this school. It seemed like a waste, to solely focus on the military aspect, with a focus on Ancient Rome, instead of the rest of the nation's rich history and magic. It just felt wrong, and from the way Harry was frowning, he felt the same way…
As they waited for the rest of the delegations to arrive, Daphne decided to prepare for her next lesson with Harry's mother. Lily Potter might be a murderous bitch, but she knew her stuff and was more than a harsh taskmaster. They still hadn't done any practical magic, especially because of the high risk of injury from even the most basic blood magic spells, but they were getting close to it, a fact that the blonde was looking forward to.
Daphne sat at the table designated for the Hogwarts delegation. As she expected, Harry just took out his book and ignored everything else. As frustrated as Daphne was with this behaviour, it wasn't exactly something new. This always happened when he discovered something new or decided to explore a new field. To be perfectly fair, she had no clue how he was learning Alchemy of all things so quickly. Honestly, his progress was insane… He didn't really spend as much time researching as he did using spells... It was like the research was already done for him, somehow.
Flamel's book must have been amazing for Harry to make so much progress at once. Seriously, Daphne knew that transmutation was something that took NEWT students months to cast any simple spell with. Harry picked it up in an afternoon.
Yes, she had forgotten how bullshit Harry could be. Still, it was nice to see him learn something new… It had been a while since she had seen him genuinely excited about something.
Daphne's train of thought was interrupted when Angelina Johnson tapped her shoulder. She tilted her head in confusion, and the Gryffindor waved her wand to cast a privacy charm around them.
"What is it, Johnson?" the blonde asked.
"You need to convince Potter to compete…"
"We don't even know what the task is."
The dark-skinned girl didn't look amused, "We don't need to. Look, I get that you want to protect your boyfriend or whatever, but you know that he has put a target on all our backs with what happened in the first task. I'm not saying that it's his fault, but let's be honest here, the task is probably going to involve a lot of fighting considering how this place looks. Unfortunately, in a straight fight, we'll get massacred…"
Daphne raised an unimpressed eyebrow, "I don't see how that's our problem, Johnson. I don't see you going after Longbottom or Granger to join…"
"Don't be clever. I don't know what the fuck your boyfriend drinks to make him so insanely strong, but the truth is that we would have probably lost the last task without him. I know that Cedric thinks that we'll win with the power of teamwork, or whatever, but we need Potter…"
"Look, Harry doesn't want to compete and there's nothing that's going to change his mind unless he gets something he likes in return. And believe me, you'll need something big to make that happen. The truth is that he doesn't really like the prospect of competing. He only joined the delegation as a favour to his guardian, and he only entered the first task because he wanted Flamel's Diary."
The Gryffindor looked dejected at her response… Daphne didn't know what the older girl expected but she decided to throw her a bone, "You know, I'll deny it if you say anything, but you should try getting Granger to join… I think she'll surprise you."
Johnson looked like she wanted to say something, only to be interrupted by the headmaster standing up, "Welcome, delegates and future champions, to the second task of the European School tournament. I hope that your stay here will be constructive and that you'll take advantage of our educational resources accordingly. I'm sure you're all hungry, but before the feast, I have a few announcements to make. Firstly, the second task will take place a week from now, on the twenty-first of November. Each school will present three champions, who will fight in a team against the champions of the other schools. The last team standing will win the task."
Well, that seemed easy enough. It was a rather unimpressive task, to be perfectly honest… Just a glorified Gladiator fight.
The headmaster continued, "However, this will not be your only task… Because in the same arena, there will be seven different yet dangerous magical creatures, each with a small key attached to their person. Retrieving a key will not only allow an extra champion to enter the task, but will open a chest after the task, which will have very prestigious prizes and even clues for your next task. Let me be perfectly clear, you are at most to grab the key from the beasts, you are not allowed, in any way, to kill or harm them in any permanent manner. Doing so will disqualify you from the task, and may result in severe fines… Finally, the task will only end if only the members of a single team remain. If you have any questions regarding the task, feel free to come see me or the ICW organizers. Welcome to the Accademia Arcana Italia, and I hope you enjoy your stay here…"
And just like that, the food materialized in front of them, and the feast began. Well, that was a nice twist of events… The champions will have to either try to go for the win or go after the magical creatures for the keys. There weren't mentions of normal prizes for just winning, so it's a test between wanting the prizes or winning. And that's not to mention that they could win up to seven chests…
Well, that was a surprisingly interesting task… A gladiator match with magical creatures acting as a chaotic element. Now, that's a nice way to guarantee some entertainment.
AN: I'll be honest, I was tempted not to write anything today. I'm kinda sick and almost spent the whole day in bed... Anyway, I wanted to develop Daphne's character a bit since she's been a bit stale during this entire story and saw this as a chance to do it. As usual, let me know what you think and if you have any recommendations.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
14 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Daphne Greengrass was not particularly happy to be in Rome. The Italian Arcane Academy was beautiful in its own militarized way, but it wasn't something that she particularly liked. She could understand why Blaise didn't regret coming to Hogwarts. He definitely wouldn't have been comfortable in this place. He was more of a laid-back person, who appreciated art and subtlety, not the straightforward warriors that the Accademia Arcana Italia liked to graduate.
References to Ancient Rome seemed to have sprung up everywhere. To be fair, the Roman Empire was huge and really powerful, but there was such a thing as living in the past… As Daphne walked around the corridors to their version of the Great Hall, she could see countless decorations and artefacts that only emphasized the school's obsession with its historical roots. Marble busts of famous Roman magicians and military leaders lined the hallways, each set on a pedestal that bore inscriptions of their most notable magical feats and battles. Mosaics depicting epic magical battles covered the floors, so intricate and detailed that Daphne felt as if she could hear the clash of swords and the chants of spells under her feet.
Tapestries hung from the walls, illustrating scenes from the Roman magical pantheon, vibrant yet fierce with depictions of gods and goddesses wielding thunderbolts and swords alongside wands and staffs. Every corner seemed to hold a shield or a suit of armour, as if ready for a spectral centurion to step out and march to battle. Even the lighting was dramatic, with torches encased in sconces that bore the faces of lions and eagles, casting eerie shadows that danced along the walls.
Alright, maybe she was biased since McGonagall had refused to let her go back to Hogwarts until the third task. She saw no true reason to stay… Harry wasn't competing, and neither was she. To make things worse, Astoria's condition was getting worse according to Tracy. The bracelet that Daphne had made was becoming less effective over time as the blood curse slowly adapted to the enchantments imbued within it.
Her new mentor had said that it was an eventuality anyway since Blood Magic is notorious in being backed by the very magic itself. There was a reason why people couldn't just dispel blood magic easily, and that was one of its properties. It made far more sense why her father had given up so quickly and that no healer could really help Astoria… Anything they could come up with would be barely useful for a few months at the most. It was a lot of resources for very few results, and healers just hadn't seen the point. Well, she expected that they had asked for a small fortune for each temporary counter-curse, and that would have quickly bankrupted the Greengrass family.
Still, Daphne would have preferred trying to find another counter-curse to help Astoria a bit more. Even if it was temporary, Astoria was well worth the investment. Unfortunately, without her sister being around her, Daphne couldn't really do anything, and that was maddening, especially since she was literally doing nothing of real importance in Italy.
In another life, she would have loved just walking through the streets of Rome with Harry, but time was ticking, and Astoria came before her non-existent love life. The only upside she had was in the form of her mentor, who happened to be Harry's mother.
It did explain a lot, especially about Harry's behaviour in Beauxbatons. He had obviously found out about her still being alive and was processing the information. The last Potter was a genius in many things, but when it came to emotions and relationships, he was as thick as a brick. She liked that about him… There was this innocence to him that was completely at odds with his capability that just endeared her, even if she wanted to punch him in the face sometimes…
The fact that he had tried to stop her blood magic lesson made a lot more sense when he knew for a fact that Lily Potter had killed her own husband and used a ritual that wiped out an entire village from the map, taking thousands of lives in the process.
This little fact made her more cautious around the redhead, but she couldn't stop her lessons. It was a risk that she was more than willing to take for the sake of her sister…
Thankfully, the redhead was completely professional during their lessons, which had taught her more than all her personal research on blood curses in the previous few years.
All in all, she would have rather been with her mentor, Harry, and Astoria at the same place. That would have been the perfect scenario. And since she would not see Astoria for months, Daphne was righteously grumpy about her situation.
When they entered the Great Hall, Daphne couldn't suppress her snort. The vast room was like stepping into a Roman legion's encampment reimagined for a magical era. Shields and banners adorned the walls, each emblazoned with the symbols of ancient Romans. The tables were arranged in a strict, orderly fashion reminiscent of a military mess hall, with seats positioned precisely two feet apart, enforcing a sense of discipline even during meals.
At the front of the hall, instead of the usual welcoming warmth of a headmaster's podium, there stood a raised dais with a commanding lectern fashioned from iron and stone, giving the impression that orders were to be issued here rather than gentle guidance or scholarly discourse. Above, the enchanted ceiling, instead of mirroring the sky outside as in Hogwarts, displayed a relentless panorama of Roman conquests, complete with spectral images of centurions on horseback charging into battle.
Everywhere she looked, Daphne saw reminders of a glorious and fierce past that the Accademia Arcana Italia seemed determined not just to remember, but to emulate.
She hated it with a passion.
To her, magic was more than just some militaristic tool. Magic was art, it was beauty in the form of change… And a school was more than just a place of discipline and classes, it was a place to make friends, to pursue individual interests…
Italy was the birthplace of so many wonderful things. From the Renaissance masterpieces that still awe the world to the intricate melodies that dance through its opera houses, Italy has long been a cradle of artistic brilliance. In terms of magical development, Italy's contribution was equally profound, particularly in the fusion of art and magic.
And yet, none of that was really shown in this school. It seemed like a waste, to solely focus on the military aspect, with a focus on Ancient Rome, instead of the rest of the nation's rich history and magic. It just felt wrong, and from the way Harry was frowning, he felt the same way…
As they waited for the rest of the delegations to arrive, Daphne decided to prepare for her next lesson with Harry's mother. Lily Potter might be a murderous bitch, but she knew her stuff and was more than a harsh taskmaster. They still hadn't done any practical magic, especially because of the high risk of injury from even the most basic blood magic spells, but they were getting close to it, a fact that the blonde was looking forward to.
Daphne sat at the table designated for the Hogwarts delegation. As she expected, Harry just took out his book and ignored everything else. As frustrated as Daphne was with this behaviour, it wasn't exactly something new. This always happened when he discovered something new or decided to explore a new field. To be perfectly fair, she had no clue how he was learning Alchemy of all things so quickly. Honestly, his progress was insane… He didn't really spend as much time researching as he did using spells... It was like the research was already done for him, somehow.
Flamel's book must have been amazing for Harry to make so much progress at once. Seriously, Daphne knew that transmutation was something that took NEWT students months to cast any simple spell with. Harry picked it up in an afternoon.
Yes, she had forgotten how bullshit Harry could be. Still, it was nice to see him learn something new… It had been a while since she had seen him genuinely excited about something.
Daphne's train of thought was interrupted when Angelina Johnson tapped her shoulder. She tilted her head in confusion, and the Gryffindor waved her wand to cast a privacy charm around them.
"What is it, Johnson?" the blonde asked.
"You need to convince Potter to compete…"
"We don't even know what the task is."
The dark-skinned girl didn't look amused, "We don't need to. Look, I get that you want to protect your boyfriend or whatever, but you know that he has put a target on all our backs with what happened in the first task. I'm not saying that it's his fault, but let's be honest here, the task is probably going to involve a lot of fighting considering how this place looks. Unfortunately, in a straight fight, we'll get massacred…"
Daphne raised an unimpressed eyebrow, "I don't see how that's our problem, Johnson. I don't see you going after Longbottom or Granger to join…"
"Don't be clever. I don't know what the fuck your boyfriend drinks to make him so insanely strong, but the truth is that we would have probably lost the last task without him. I know that Cedric thinks that we'll win with the power of teamwork, or whatever, but we need Potter…"
"Look, Harry doesn't want to compete and there's nothing that's going to change his mind unless he gets something he likes in return. And believe me, you'll need something big to make that happen. The truth is that he doesn't really like the prospect of competing. He only joined the delegation as a favour to his guardian, and he only entered the first task because he wanted Flamel's Diary."
The Gryffindor looked dejected at her response… Daphne didn't know what the older girl expected but she decided to throw her a bone, "You know, I'll deny it if you say anything, but you should try getting Granger to join… I think she'll surprise you."
Johnson looked like she wanted to say something, only to be interrupted by the headmaster standing up, "Welcome, delegates and future champions, to the second task of the European School tournament. I hope that your stay here will be constructive and that you'll take advantage of our educational resources accordingly. I'm sure you're all hungry, but before the feast, I have a few announcements to make. Firstly, the second task will take place a week from now, on the twenty-first of November. Each school will present three champions, who will fight in a team against the champions of the other schools. The last team standing will win the task."
Well, that seemed easy enough. It was a rather unimpressive task, to be perfectly honest… Just a glorified Gladiator fight.
The headmaster continued, "However, this will not be your only task… Because in the same arena, there will be seven different yet dangerous magical creatures, each with a small key attached to their person. Retrieving a key will not only allow an extra champion to enter the task, but will open a chest after the task, which will have very prestigious prizes and even clues for your next task. Let me be perfectly clear, you are at most to grab the key from the beasts, you are not allowed, in any way, to kill or harm them in any permanent manner. Doing so will disqualify you from the task, and may result in severe fines… Finally, the task will only end if only the members of a single team remain. If you have any questions regarding the task, feel free to come see me or the ICW organizers. Welcome to the Accademia Arcana Italia, and I hope you enjoy your stay here…"
And just like that, the food materialized in front of them, and the feast began. Well, that was a nice twist of events… The champions will have to either try to go for the win or go after the magical creatures for the keys. There weren't mentions of normal prizes for just winning, so it's a test between wanting the prizes or winning. And that's not to mention that they could win up to seven chests…
Well, that was a surprisingly interesting task… A gladiator match with magical creatures acting as a chaotic element. Now, that's a nice way to guarantee some entertainment.
AN: I'll be honest, I was tempted not to write anything today. I'm kinda sick and almost spent the whole day in bed... Anyway, I wanted to develop Daphne's character a bit since she's been a bit stale during this entire story and saw this as a chance to do it. As usual, let me know what you think and if you have any recommendations.
Chapter 276: River Stroll
Chapter 276: River Stroll
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
17 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry Potter had a content smile on his face as he strolled through Rome, the late afternoon sun casting warm, golden hues over the cobblestone streets. He walked past ancient buildings cloaked in ivy; each stone etched with the silent narratives of history. The air carried the enticing aromas of freshly baked bread and rich espresso, intermingling with the gentle fragrance of blooming orange trees. The vibrant hum of tourists fused with the harmonious strains of an accordion in the distance.
Harry observed the lively scene with a reflective appreciation. He paused to admire a bustling piazza, where locals conversed with passionate gestures, their laughter reverberating around the majestic fountain at its heart, its waters gleaming under the soft glow of the setting sun.
It had been far too long since he had taken a walk without any worries. Well, that was a bit of an exaggeration… He still had more than enough worries to occupy his mind, thankfully, what he lacked was some crisis pressing down his neck, and that was a new breath of fresh air.
From being scared shitless because of some possessed professor, to a possible Basilisk attack, an Archmage wanting to kill him, and the countless tournaments, Harry's life since entering the magical world was chaotic to say the least. Which was a shame, since he was particularly looking forward to learning and exploring magic in peace… Alas, the world was rarely that accommodating.
The last Potter sat in a muggle café, drinking his third cup of coffee for the day, while watching the sunset. Ah, the view and coffee alone would have been enough to stay in this place. Unfortunately, the school left much to be desired.
Harry could understand people treasuring their legacy. Where someone came from, their origins could be very important… What he did not like was the concept of ignoring any form of progress outside of the framework that they had built for themselves. The sad truth was that someone had purposefully made sure that the Italians went back to their roots, specifically Ancient Rome while ignoring everything else that came after…
It was deliberate, and the militarization of the entire magical Italy was just tragic, especially in contrast to its muggle counterpart, which focused very heavily on the arts… It was something that he found no traces of in the sparse library that was available in the Italian Academy. Whatever caused this shift in prioritization had to have happened after the statute of secrecy was put in place. From the looks of things, someone had probably wanted to use the new shift in magical Italy to spearhead some sort of military attack, but either changed their mind or just died before they could put their plan into motion.
Still, it wasn't Harry's problem… And so far, he was enjoying muggle Italy, despite the whole second task going on. From the headmaster's description, it was a glorified magical Gladiatorial battle, with a few magical creatures that could act as trump cards should someone defeat them and gather their keys…
Honestly, the whole thing sounded very troublesome for very little in terms of gain… Harry had no intention of participating before the task was announced, and he was even less enthused about it after the welcoming feast. Plus, he already had his hands full with Flamel's Alchemy book… Honestly, the more he read the journal, the more terrified of Perenelle Flamel he became.
Seriously, he knew that seers were bullshit because of the rumours regarding Grindelwald, but that woman had pretty much gotten her husband to tailor the instructions specifically to match Harry's skills. Normally, Harry had to repeat a spell a few times, and analyse it with his Arcane Hearing to separate any magical resonance that it might have, then he would have to adapt it to make it his own. The reason why he had never gotten into Alchemy was the fact that he couldn't really afford to mess up even once, since the magic is permanent…
However, the Alchemical rituals that were in Flamel's diary were essentially safe blueprints that he could use for anything. To be perfectly frank, Harry had never seen anyone else take to Alchemy as quickly as he did. So far, he had been working only on transmutation, but if he progressed like this, he would end up becoming proficient in the field in just a few months, something that was unheard of…
He really needed to figure out what Dumbledore's plan was first… It was obviously a ritual of some sort, seven schools, competing in seven tasks. It was all so convenient… Assuming that the original European tournament would have been different if it had been held in Hogwarts, then whoever arranged the attack on the Quidditch World Cup could have done it for this purpose. This kind of investment meant that whatever this ritual was, it had to be very powerful. Conclusion: Dumbledore, or someone in league with him, had arranged the attack…
Now, the second clue is the magical discharge. According to Lily, a magical release of this extent had to have been something powerful being dispelled. It could have been a magical prison, a large ward, or even a prophecy… Anything could have done it as long as the discharge came from something magically powerful. So, that meant that the discharge itself wasn't the purpose, it was just the secondary effect…
The question was what the endgame was… What ritual was Dumbledore planning and why did he have to do something so elaborate and manipulate an entire continent just to pull it off?
His musings were interrupted when he heard a familiar song with his Arcane Hearing. A wizard was walking around the café. This wouldn't have been an issue, but it was the third time he had heard the same song… And there were over five other wizards who kept following him.
At first, he had thought that they were just the Italian version of Aurors, who were making sure that he wasn't breaking the statute of secrecy or committing any type of crime. However, after a prolonged exposure, Harry could feel the inherent malice that they felt for him.
He rolled his eyes… Yes, it was one of those days…
They were probably not going to go away anytime soon, and there was no reason to put the poor muggles around him in the crossfire. He quickly paid for his meal and strolled into a building that he could tell didn't have anyone inside.
He quickly entered it and started whistling. He was in some kind of abandoned warehouse. He didn't know those were a thing in Rome, but whatever. Harry waved his wand, and a chair flew towards his location, slowly being repaired while in mid-air.
Harry kept whistling as he felt the mages put up some privacy wards and some muggle-repellent charms. At least they weren't nutcases, even if their patience had really been tested for hours.
Anyway, he just waited until they started slowly moving towards him. Choosing to take them off-guard, he spoke up, "Well, I didn't expect any visitors… You must be tired from following me all day. Why don't you come to take a seat?"
Harry could practically hear their songs stop for a fraction of a second. They really had no idea what to do with that statement. Three of the mages decided to walk forward with their wands raised. They were wearing white, neutral masks, but their outfit was strangely similar to the ones Hit-Wizards wore… So, they were mercenaries… That was going to be tricky, to say the least.
He gave them a smirk, "Now, now… There's no need to be so violent. Manners are important, you know?"
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" one of the wizards exclaimed. There was an imperceptible German accent to the voice.
Harry simply shrugged, "Believe me, there's a lot wrong with me and I don't think you'd want to stay here for hours as we talk about my private life. Now, instead of such a boring conversation, why don't we focus on something a lot more interesting? Like, for example, why you've been following me all day?"
One of the other mercenaries chuckled, "Oh, we were just curious about seeing another wizard in Rome. People don't really visit the muggle side… And when I recognized you, Mr. Potter, I couldn't resist."
And that was a French accent… So, the mercenary team didn't come from any specific country… Very interesting.
"I suppose that the fact that Muggle Rome isn't really visited by wizards is true, which is a shame since it's very beautiful. Anyway, I suppose it is possible that multiple wizards in uniform, specifically some kind of mercenary armour, would follow a teenager for hours, only to hold him at wand-point in the middle of an abandoned warehouse. This sounds completely innocent, right?"
The mercenaries didn't seem to know how to handle him… He could feel the mages' teammates getting into position, ready to surround him…
The three in front of him decided to just treat it as a joke, "Well, you're right. We are mercenaries and we've been sent here to have a little conversation."
"You could have just sent an owl, but sure, I'm all ears…"
"You see, our employer is rather invested in the second task of the tournament, and your participation would mess with a lot of their plans."
Harry tilted his head in confusion, "But I'm not entering the second task…"
Again, that seemed to have taken them off-guard, "What?"
"Yes, I told the rest of the champions that I was sitting this one out. It didn't seem very interesting, you know, and I do have other things to do with my life. The only reason I even entered the first one was because of Flamel's Diary anyway."
"You're not entering?" the mercenary in the middle asked while sounding flabbergasted.
"Well, no. That's what I said."
The man on the right elbowed his friend, "Look, we can't really take the chance that you'll change your mind… It's about professional integrity, you see. We have to make sure that you won't be able to participate even if you wanted to…"
That seemed to embolden the two others and Harry simply shrugged, "What a shame. It seems like a peaceful resolution is unlikely."
"Pretty unlikely, I'll bet. Don't worry, since you obviously accommodated us here, we'll try to be gentle. You'll still be having a pretty painful week nonetheless."
"Are you sure you want this fight?"
The mercenary chuckled, "You won a school tournament. Sure, it was impressive and everything, but you've never fought experienced opponents, let alone the fact that we're not on our own."
"You mean the two in the ceiling, the five on my left, the four behind me and the three on my right? I'm still confident about my chances."
Again, that made them stiffen once more, "You really should learn to shut up, boy."
Harry nodded, "Yes, everyone keeps telling me that talking during a fight is a bad idea. Apparently, people are vulnerable if they keep trying to talk while fighting. There's a logic to it, of course… It's hard to multi-task, to focus on your enemies and what you're going to say at once. But you know, before we start sending spells at each other, I do have a question."
The mercenary nodded, "You see, I'm surrounded by trained mercenaries, probably each with a nice little kill count. You haven't attacked since you wasted so much time getting into an ambush position. Seventeen murders pointing their wands at me. I have nowhere to go, no way out. Now, my question is, do I look worried?"
Before they could answer he continued, "Because we both know I'm not an idiot, or reckless for that matter. I fought my fair share of people, and do you know what their biggest mistake was? They let me talk…"
With a snap of his fingers, the ground melted into some kind of liquid, making everyone bar Harry sink down, only for it to solidify once more, trapping them. With a flick of his wand, the two mercenaries on the ceiling were pushed down, only to land in liquid rock as well, and become trapped like their teammates.
He smirked, "Now, dearies, I think you should have a little nap."
With another wave of his wand, the mercenaries fell asleep. He then turned towards the corner, "Now, I know that this must be entertaining, but it's rude to just watch and not contribute…"
A woman melted out of the shadows. To say she was beautiful would have been an understatement. However, what truly captivated Harry was how familiar she looked. It was almost eery, "Hello, Harry Potter. My name is Isabella Zabini and I wish to talk to you about my son."
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
17 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry Potter had a content smile on his face as he strolled through Rome, the late afternoon sun casting warm, golden hues over the cobblestone streets. He walked past ancient buildings cloaked in ivy; each stone etched with the silent narratives of history. The air carried the enticing aromas of freshly baked bread and rich espresso, intermingling with the gentle fragrance of blooming orange trees. The vibrant hum of tourists fused with the harmonious strains of an accordion in the distance.
Harry observed the lively scene with a reflective appreciation. He paused to admire a bustling piazza, where locals conversed with passionate gestures, their laughter reverberating around the majestic fountain at its heart, its waters gleaming under the soft glow of the setting sun.
It had been far too long since he had taken a walk without any worries. Well, that was a bit of an exaggeration… He still had more than enough worries to occupy his mind, thankfully, what he lacked was some crisis pressing down his neck, and that was a new breath of fresh air.
From being scared shitless because of some possessed professor, to a possible Basilisk attack, an Archmage wanting to kill him, and the countless tournaments, Harry's life since entering the magical world was chaotic to say the least. Which was a shame, since he was particularly looking forward to learning and exploring magic in peace… Alas, the world was rarely that accommodating.
The last Potter sat in a muggle café, drinking his third cup of coffee for the day, while watching the sunset. Ah, the view and coffee alone would have been enough to stay in this place. Unfortunately, the school left much to be desired.
Harry could understand people treasuring their legacy. Where someone came from, their origins could be very important… What he did not like was the concept of ignoring any form of progress outside of the framework that they had built for themselves. The sad truth was that someone had purposefully made sure that the Italians went back to their roots, specifically Ancient Rome while ignoring everything else that came after…
It was deliberate, and the militarization of the entire magical Italy was just tragic, especially in contrast to its muggle counterpart, which focused very heavily on the arts… It was something that he found no traces of in the sparse library that was available in the Italian Academy. Whatever caused this shift in prioritization had to have happened after the statute of secrecy was put in place. From the looks of things, someone had probably wanted to use the new shift in magical Italy to spearhead some sort of military attack, but either changed their mind or just died before they could put their plan into motion.
Still, it wasn't Harry's problem… And so far, he was enjoying muggle Italy, despite the whole second task going on. From the headmaster's description, it was a glorified magical Gladiatorial battle, with a few magical creatures that could act as trump cards should someone defeat them and gather their keys…
Honestly, the whole thing sounded very troublesome for very little in terms of gain… Harry had no intention of participating before the task was announced, and he was even less enthused about it after the welcoming feast. Plus, he already had his hands full with Flamel's Alchemy book… Honestly, the more he read the journal, the more terrified of Perenelle Flamel he became.
Seriously, he knew that seers were bullshit because of the rumours regarding Grindelwald, but that woman had pretty much gotten her husband to tailor the instructions specifically to match Harry's skills. Normally, Harry had to repeat a spell a few times, and analyse it with his Arcane Hearing to separate any magical resonance that it might have, then he would have to adapt it to make it his own. The reason why he had never gotten into Alchemy was the fact that he couldn't really afford to mess up even once, since the magic is permanent…
However, the Alchemical rituals that were in Flamel's diary were essentially safe blueprints that he could use for anything. To be perfectly frank, Harry had never seen anyone else take to Alchemy as quickly as he did. So far, he had been working only on transmutation, but if he progressed like this, he would end up becoming proficient in the field in just a few months, something that was unheard of…
He really needed to figure out what Dumbledore's plan was first… It was obviously a ritual of some sort, seven schools, competing in seven tasks. It was all so convenient… Assuming that the original European tournament would have been different if it had been held in Hogwarts, then whoever arranged the attack on the Quidditch World Cup could have done it for this purpose. This kind of investment meant that whatever this ritual was, it had to be very powerful. Conclusion: Dumbledore, or someone in league with him, had arranged the attack…
Now, the second clue is the magical discharge. According to Lily, a magical release of this extent had to have been something powerful being dispelled. It could have been a magical prison, a large ward, or even a prophecy… Anything could have done it as long as the discharge came from something magically powerful. So, that meant that the discharge itself wasn't the purpose, it was just the secondary effect…
The question was what the endgame was… What ritual was Dumbledore planning and why did he have to do something so elaborate and manipulate an entire continent just to pull it off?
His musings were interrupted when he heard a familiar song with his Arcane Hearing. A wizard was walking around the café. This wouldn't have been an issue, but it was the third time he had heard the same song… And there were over five other wizards who kept following him.
At first, he had thought that they were just the Italian version of Aurors, who were making sure that he wasn't breaking the statute of secrecy or committing any type of crime. However, after a prolonged exposure, Harry could feel the inherent malice that they felt for him.
He rolled his eyes… Yes, it was one of those days…
They were probably not going to go away anytime soon, and there was no reason to put the poor muggles around him in the crossfire. He quickly paid for his meal and strolled into a building that he could tell didn't have anyone inside.
He quickly entered it and started whistling. He was in some kind of abandoned warehouse. He didn't know those were a thing in Rome, but whatever. Harry waved his wand, and a chair flew towards his location, slowly being repaired while in mid-air.
Harry kept whistling as he felt the mages put up some privacy wards and some muggle-repellent charms. At least they weren't nutcases, even if their patience had really been tested for hours.
Anyway, he just waited until they started slowly moving towards him. Choosing to take them off-guard, he spoke up, "Well, I didn't expect any visitors… You must be tired from following me all day. Why don't you come to take a seat?"
Harry could practically hear their songs stop for a fraction of a second. They really had no idea what to do with that statement. Three of the mages decided to walk forward with their wands raised. They were wearing white, neutral masks, but their outfit was strangely similar to the ones Hit-Wizards wore… So, they were mercenaries… That was going to be tricky, to say the least.
He gave them a smirk, "Now, now… There's no need to be so violent. Manners are important, you know?"
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" one of the wizards exclaimed. There was an imperceptible German accent to the voice.
Harry simply shrugged, "Believe me, there's a lot wrong with me and I don't think you'd want to stay here for hours as we talk about my private life. Now, instead of such a boring conversation, why don't we focus on something a lot more interesting? Like, for example, why you've been following me all day?"
One of the other mercenaries chuckled, "Oh, we were just curious about seeing another wizard in Rome. People don't really visit the muggle side… And when I recognized you, Mr. Potter, I couldn't resist."
And that was a French accent… So, the mercenary team didn't come from any specific country… Very interesting.
"I suppose that the fact that Muggle Rome isn't really visited by wizards is true, which is a shame since it's very beautiful. Anyway, I suppose it is possible that multiple wizards in uniform, specifically some kind of mercenary armour, would follow a teenager for hours, only to hold him at wand-point in the middle of an abandoned warehouse. This sounds completely innocent, right?"
The mercenaries didn't seem to know how to handle him… He could feel the mages' teammates getting into position, ready to surround him…
The three in front of him decided to just treat it as a joke, "Well, you're right. We are mercenaries and we've been sent here to have a little conversation."
"You could have just sent an owl, but sure, I'm all ears…"
"You see, our employer is rather invested in the second task of the tournament, and your participation would mess with a lot of their plans."
Harry tilted his head in confusion, "But I'm not entering the second task…"
Again, that seemed to have taken them off-guard, "What?"
"Yes, I told the rest of the champions that I was sitting this one out. It didn't seem very interesting, you know, and I do have other things to do with my life. The only reason I even entered the first one was because of Flamel's Diary anyway."
"You're not entering?" the mercenary in the middle asked while sounding flabbergasted.
"Well, no. That's what I said."
The man on the right elbowed his friend, "Look, we can't really take the chance that you'll change your mind… It's about professional integrity, you see. We have to make sure that you won't be able to participate even if you wanted to…"
That seemed to embolden the two others and Harry simply shrugged, "What a shame. It seems like a peaceful resolution is unlikely."
"Pretty unlikely, I'll bet. Don't worry, since you obviously accommodated us here, we'll try to be gentle. You'll still be having a pretty painful week nonetheless."
"Are you sure you want this fight?"
The mercenary chuckled, "You won a school tournament. Sure, it was impressive and everything, but you've never fought experienced opponents, let alone the fact that we're not on our own."
"You mean the two in the ceiling, the five on my left, the four behind me and the three on my right? I'm still confident about my chances."
Again, that made them stiffen once more, "You really should learn to shut up, boy."
Harry nodded, "Yes, everyone keeps telling me that talking during a fight is a bad idea. Apparently, people are vulnerable if they keep trying to talk while fighting. There's a logic to it, of course… It's hard to multi-task, to focus on your enemies and what you're going to say at once. But you know, before we start sending spells at each other, I do have a question."
The mercenary nodded, "You see, I'm surrounded by trained mercenaries, probably each with a nice little kill count. You haven't attacked since you wasted so much time getting into an ambush position. Seventeen murders pointing their wands at me. I have nowhere to go, no way out. Now, my question is, do I look worried?"
Before they could answer he continued, "Because we both know I'm not an idiot, or reckless for that matter. I fought my fair share of people, and do you know what their biggest mistake was? They let me talk…"
With a snap of his fingers, the ground melted into some kind of liquid, making everyone bar Harry sink down, only for it to solidify once more, trapping them. With a flick of his wand, the two mercenaries on the ceiling were pushed down, only to land in liquid rock as well, and become trapped like their teammates.
He smirked, "Now, dearies, I think you should have a little nap."
With another wave of his wand, the mercenaries fell asleep. He then turned towards the corner, "Now, I know that this must be entertaining, but it's rude to just watch and not contribute…"
A woman melted out of the shadows. To say she was beautiful would have been an understatement. However, what truly captivated Harry was how familiar she looked. It was almost eery, "Hello, Harry Potter. My name is Isabella Zabini and I wish to talk to you about my son."
YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
"I sent my son to Hogwarts because the Academy here in Rome is comparatively... lacking."
"You're correct about that, Madame Zabini. But, the official curriculum taught at Hogwarts is hardly better. I've done most of my schooling through self-study. While the staff of Hogwarts are usually exceptionally talented witches and wizards in their respective fields, for various reasons, they are NOT the best of educators."
"You're correct about that, Madame Zabini. But, the official curriculum taught at Hogwarts is hardly better. I've done most of my schooling through self-study. While the staff of Hogwarts are usually exceptionally talented witches and wizards in their respective fields, for various reasons, they are NOT the best of educators."
Chapter 277: Dark Spiders
Chapter 277: Dark Spiders
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
17 November 1994, Rome, Italy
A woman melted out of the shadows. To say she was beautiful would have been an understatement. However, what truly captivated Harry was how familiar she looked. It was almost eery, "Hello, Harry Potter. My name is Isabella Zabini and I wish to talk to you about my son."
Well, that was certainly surprising. For all the years Harry had known him, Blaise rarely ever mentioned his mother. He could understand why he didn't talk about her since the woman was an infamous serial killer that the authorities had given up even trying to catch. She had even earned the infamous monicker as the Black Widow, having married and killed around half a dozen men.
Harry could see why so many men ignored the rumours about the woman and married her. She was extremely beautiful, exotic in a way. Isabella Zabini carried herself with an enigmatic grace that was almost mesmerizing. Her deep, dark eyes could be described as enticing and unsettling. Her voice was soft yet resonant and alluring. Her presence was so commanding, so intoxicating, that it was easy to see how she could ensnare those around her.
He could sense that there also had to be some kind of magical component to it. If he had to guess, she had some sort of allure that was more subtle than that of Veelas, probably a charm, a family trait, or a non-human ancestry.
Honestly, it didn't really bother him, since he could hear her very soul thanks to the combination of the Resurrection Stone and his Arcane Hearing. Isabella Zabini did a good job of hiding her intentions and expressions, but her soul was loud and bare… She was a broken woman in so many ways… Huh, it was honestly surprising that Blaise had turned out as well as he did if he was raised by her…
The woman's smirk widened, "Oh, you've been staring at me for a while now. What would poor Daphne say if she knew…."
Harry simply shrugged, "You look like your son."
It was a good tactic to stop people from gaining the upper hand in a conversation. A random comment to take people off-guard. It wasn't even a false statement, just a random anecdote. To be fair, she did look like Blaise. They had the same cheekbones, the same nose and skin tone.
His tactic must have worked since she stiffened for a moment before regaining her previous expression, "Well, no one has ever made the comparison before…"
"You said that you wanted to talk about Blaise?"
"Ah, yes. I was disappointed that he didn't even try to join your delegation. I'm becoming a little worried about his lack of ambition, especially with him following around his little girlfriend like a puppy."
Harry raised an eyebrow, "Blaise said that there was a risk of him being abducted so that people could steal the Zabini crest…"
The woman snorted, "Is that what he said? I suppose there is some truth to it, but none of the old Familias would risk angering the ICW by attacking any members of a delegation. He was most likely trying to avoid me as much as possible…"
Harry turned towards the unconscious team of mercenaries and then gave the woman a dry look. She chuckled nervously, "Well, you see, you're a different issue entirely. The ICW would actually be happy with you gone, and since Dumbledore is around everyone is going to blame him either way. And, well, blaming Dumbledore and acting on it are two very different things… You're free real estate, kiddo. No one is going to care if you end up hurt because no one is going to be able to conduct a proper investigation. It's actually impressive how you somehow managed to do that. You're lucky you're powerful enough to deal with ambushes and the like."
The last Potter gave her another dry look before shaking his head, "I'm special like that. Again, you're changing the subject. Why did you come here?"
"Well, I was planning on doing a very dramatic reveal of myself and protecting you from your attackers, but you seemed to have that handled easily enough."
Very interesting. Was she planning on getting himself indebted to her by 'saving him'. She might have even been the one to hire the mercenaries. To be perfectly honest, both possibilities meant that she knew about the attack beforehand, and that meant that she was most likely a manipulative bitch…
Thankfully, Harry knew how to deal with those, "I don't know what to say to that?"
"Say, did you use Alchemy to attack them? Flamel's journal must have been very helpful for you to manage this level of transmutation in just a few days."
Harry simply shrugged, "I was always interested in Alchemy. Unfortunately, I happen to have sold the diary since I couldn't open it… It was quite the offer, I assure you."
"Oh, come on," the woman replied while pouting, "Considering how my son has been describing you, a pesky little enchantment wouldn't have stopped someone like you. You know you can tell me anything, don't you, Harry?"
Harry felt some kind of mental compulsion to trust the woman, which he immediately dispelled. Still, he decided to play along with her ruse, "I couldn't open it so I sold it to Dumbledore."
The woman looked put out, "A shame… I shudder to think what all the knowledge inside might have been worth. Hell, it could have even had instructions on creating a philosopher's stone."
"Why did you come here? I will not ask this question again. If your next sentence isn't a clear description of what you want, then I'll go back to the castle. You're already ruining a perfectly nice evening with the way you keep circling around the issue."
That took the Black Widow off-guard, and she looked slightly panicked. She must have realized that the compulsion hadn't worked on Harry, "I need your help."
"And why should I help you? You're a serial killer who essentially engineered a situation to make me grateful to you…"
"If you don't help, Blaise might end up in danger," she retorted.
"Explain."
"What do you know about the ruling body of Magical Italy?"
Harry simply shrugged, "Not much…"
"Well, it's similar to your ministry. Instead of the Wizengamot, we have the Senate, which is comprised of the oldest Familias in the country. We also have the ministry and everything. The thing is that our Senate is far more powerful than it has any right to be, and the seats are fully inherited. The Zabinis are one of the founding families of the ministry and there have been some very serious discussions about kicking us out of the Senate since Blaise hasn't been taught here in Rome, and I don't have the leverage to stop something like this…"
"I still don't understand how that has anything to do with me. It's your country and your son. He doesn't even care about his seat in the Senate."
The dark-skinned woman growled, "Don't remind me. I've done everything I could to safeguard his position here. I sent him to England to protect him from the vultures while I made allies here to protect him. The deal was to have him stay in Hogwarts for a few years before returning here to finish his education. I would have stabilized everything by then. Imagine my surprise when the brat said that he wasn't returning to Italy, to the birthplace of his father, to the place his ancestors built from the ground up! And for what, some teenage romance with a girl that has him entirely by the balls… He's risking losing his legacy, something that anyone in Rome would salivate over, for some gold digger that he met in school."
And there it was, the madness and coldness hidden beneath the careful façade that the woman put in place. Harry was almost disappointed that it came out so quickly. Ever since the woman started her rant, he could hear the faint cracks in her psyche, how broken she truly was. She must have loved Blaise's father very much for this to happen, but that also meant that she'd always been broken a little even before the man's loss.
Harry decided not to push things even further, "I can understand why you would be frustrated with his decision. After all, you've done so much for him, ensuring his future, only for him to essentially spit in your face."
"Exactly," the serial killer agreed, "But, because of his little girlfriend, Blaise refused to return and the allies I made just kept fading away. If he had joined the tournament and impressed people with his use of the Zabini crest, then I'd have had more time, but I'm losing allies by the minute. And when I do lose enough of them, then the Zabini seat will be removed from the senate."
"And where exactly do I come in?"
"As you probably know, the European tournament tasks aren't exactly fair. They're designed to be advantageous to the hosting schools. My political opponents have put up their children for the second task and have trained them extensively for it. They're confident about the win and are more than willing to bet on their certainty. The only obstacle they have is you… What you did in the first task showed that you were an unforeseen obstacle, which is why they sent these idiots to attack you."
Harry didn't exactly believe the woman but went along with what she was saying for the time being, "They don't want me to compete in the task. You do know that I don't have any plans on doing so, right?"
"That's even better. If you win, then people will just call you a freak of nature who ruined the task. No, what I need is something more embarrassing, which makes an even better statement. I want Hogwarts to win without you participating. I want everyone to understand that Blaise being in Hogwarts is an advantage, not him spitting on his heritage."
"So, let me get this straight, you want me to somehow get Hogwarts to win the task, without participating or showing that I had a hand in it. Do you realize just how unreasonable that sounds?"
The woman's eyes turned even darker, "Perhaps, but that's the best option. You see, if you don't stop the momentum of the other families, then I would be forced to take him out of Hogwarts. And if somehow that little hussy convinces him to defy me, then who knows what might happen? People around us, Zabinis, tend to die from mysterious reasons… However, I'd rather not resort to such extreme measures... Blaise will not lose this seat, whether he wants it or not."
Harry could see the madness in the woman's eyes. Yes, she was more than able to kill her son's girlfriend out of a misplaced sense of love. In fact, she was looking forward to it… What was it with insane mothers all appearing at once? First Lily and the bounty she put on his head, and now Blaise's mother threatening to kill Tracy, who also happened to be Harry's friend.
Of course, Harry wasn't going to allow anyone to threaten Tracy so brazenly. Having people threatening her so brazenly made him furious. He suppressed the urge to attack the woman and decided to take some time to analyse the situation a bit more.
Until then, he would humour the mad serial killer, "Fine. You want Hogwarts to win without me having anything to do with it… I'll think of something."
"Such a good boy, helping out your friend's mother. Why couldn't Blaise be more like you? Anyway, here's a list of the seven magical creatures that will be in the tournament. I think this should make your task a little easier."
Harry wanted to get as far away from the nutjob as he could. So far, he would play her game until he figured out what her real motive was… There was obviously a lot she wasn't telling him. It was hard to discern her motives or emotions because of how broken she was. It was honestly a miracle that she was still a member of society.
He turned towards the woman one last time, "Let me get something straight. You will not touch Tracy Davis. If you so much as cause her to have a papercut, I will come for you, and you will not like the consequences. What I did in the first task was me messing around… You wouldn't want to know what I am capable of if I'm properly motivated. Goodbye, Isabella Zabini."
Harry felt the woman shiver in fear. So far, the only reason he hadn't reacted violently was because he didn't know how it would impact Blaise. He really needed to speak to the dark-skinned boy and investigate his mother's claims.
He couldn't help but suppress a groan. Why did things always have to be so complicated? Thankfully, the blueprints of a plan started to form in his head. Oh, he was going to have fun with this…
AN: I'm not sure about my portrayal of Blaise's mother, to be perfectly honest. There is a lot to it, and the situation is a bit more complicated than she is showing in this chapter... I rewrote this chapter two times while trying not to give away too much of her plan, before settling on this since it felt the most natural. Please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
17 November 1994, Rome, Italy
A woman melted out of the shadows. To say she was beautiful would have been an understatement. However, what truly captivated Harry was how familiar she looked. It was almost eery, "Hello, Harry Potter. My name is Isabella Zabini and I wish to talk to you about my son."
Well, that was certainly surprising. For all the years Harry had known him, Blaise rarely ever mentioned his mother. He could understand why he didn't talk about her since the woman was an infamous serial killer that the authorities had given up even trying to catch. She had even earned the infamous monicker as the Black Widow, having married and killed around half a dozen men.
Harry could see why so many men ignored the rumours about the woman and married her. She was extremely beautiful, exotic in a way. Isabella Zabini carried herself with an enigmatic grace that was almost mesmerizing. Her deep, dark eyes could be described as enticing and unsettling. Her voice was soft yet resonant and alluring. Her presence was so commanding, so intoxicating, that it was easy to see how she could ensnare those around her.
He could sense that there also had to be some kind of magical component to it. If he had to guess, she had some sort of allure that was more subtle than that of Veelas, probably a charm, a family trait, or a non-human ancestry.
Honestly, it didn't really bother him, since he could hear her very soul thanks to the combination of the Resurrection Stone and his Arcane Hearing. Isabella Zabini did a good job of hiding her intentions and expressions, but her soul was loud and bare… She was a broken woman in so many ways… Huh, it was honestly surprising that Blaise had turned out as well as he did if he was raised by her…
The woman's smirk widened, "Oh, you've been staring at me for a while now. What would poor Daphne say if she knew…."
Harry simply shrugged, "You look like your son."
It was a good tactic to stop people from gaining the upper hand in a conversation. A random comment to take people off-guard. It wasn't even a false statement, just a random anecdote. To be fair, she did look like Blaise. They had the same cheekbones, the same nose and skin tone.
His tactic must have worked since she stiffened for a moment before regaining her previous expression, "Well, no one has ever made the comparison before…"
"You said that you wanted to talk about Blaise?"
"Ah, yes. I was disappointed that he didn't even try to join your delegation. I'm becoming a little worried about his lack of ambition, especially with him following around his little girlfriend like a puppy."
Harry raised an eyebrow, "Blaise said that there was a risk of him being abducted so that people could steal the Zabini crest…"
The woman snorted, "Is that what he said? I suppose there is some truth to it, but none of the old Familias would risk angering the ICW by attacking any members of a delegation. He was most likely trying to avoid me as much as possible…"
Harry turned towards the unconscious team of mercenaries and then gave the woman a dry look. She chuckled nervously, "Well, you see, you're a different issue entirely. The ICW would actually be happy with you gone, and since Dumbledore is around everyone is going to blame him either way. And, well, blaming Dumbledore and acting on it are two very different things… You're free real estate, kiddo. No one is going to care if you end up hurt because no one is going to be able to conduct a proper investigation. It's actually impressive how you somehow managed to do that. You're lucky you're powerful enough to deal with ambushes and the like."
The last Potter gave her another dry look before shaking his head, "I'm special like that. Again, you're changing the subject. Why did you come here?"
"Well, I was planning on doing a very dramatic reveal of myself and protecting you from your attackers, but you seemed to have that handled easily enough."
Very interesting. Was she planning on getting himself indebted to her by 'saving him'. She might have even been the one to hire the mercenaries. To be perfectly honest, both possibilities meant that she knew about the attack beforehand, and that meant that she was most likely a manipulative bitch…
Thankfully, Harry knew how to deal with those, "I don't know what to say to that?"
"Say, did you use Alchemy to attack them? Flamel's journal must have been very helpful for you to manage this level of transmutation in just a few days."
Harry simply shrugged, "I was always interested in Alchemy. Unfortunately, I happen to have sold the diary since I couldn't open it… It was quite the offer, I assure you."
"Oh, come on," the woman replied while pouting, "Considering how my son has been describing you, a pesky little enchantment wouldn't have stopped someone like you. You know you can tell me anything, don't you, Harry?"
Harry felt some kind of mental compulsion to trust the woman, which he immediately dispelled. Still, he decided to play along with her ruse, "I couldn't open it so I sold it to Dumbledore."
The woman looked put out, "A shame… I shudder to think what all the knowledge inside might have been worth. Hell, it could have even had instructions on creating a philosopher's stone."
"Why did you come here? I will not ask this question again. If your next sentence isn't a clear description of what you want, then I'll go back to the castle. You're already ruining a perfectly nice evening with the way you keep circling around the issue."
That took the Black Widow off-guard, and she looked slightly panicked. She must have realized that the compulsion hadn't worked on Harry, "I need your help."
"And why should I help you? You're a serial killer who essentially engineered a situation to make me grateful to you…"
"If you don't help, Blaise might end up in danger," she retorted.
"Explain."
"What do you know about the ruling body of Magical Italy?"
Harry simply shrugged, "Not much…"
"Well, it's similar to your ministry. Instead of the Wizengamot, we have the Senate, which is comprised of the oldest Familias in the country. We also have the ministry and everything. The thing is that our Senate is far more powerful than it has any right to be, and the seats are fully inherited. The Zabinis are one of the founding families of the ministry and there have been some very serious discussions about kicking us out of the Senate since Blaise hasn't been taught here in Rome, and I don't have the leverage to stop something like this…"
"I still don't understand how that has anything to do with me. It's your country and your son. He doesn't even care about his seat in the Senate."
The dark-skinned woman growled, "Don't remind me. I've done everything I could to safeguard his position here. I sent him to England to protect him from the vultures while I made allies here to protect him. The deal was to have him stay in Hogwarts for a few years before returning here to finish his education. I would have stabilized everything by then. Imagine my surprise when the brat said that he wasn't returning to Italy, to the birthplace of his father, to the place his ancestors built from the ground up! And for what, some teenage romance with a girl that has him entirely by the balls… He's risking losing his legacy, something that anyone in Rome would salivate over, for some gold digger that he met in school."
And there it was, the madness and coldness hidden beneath the careful façade that the woman put in place. Harry was almost disappointed that it came out so quickly. Ever since the woman started her rant, he could hear the faint cracks in her psyche, how broken she truly was. She must have loved Blaise's father very much for this to happen, but that also meant that she'd always been broken a little even before the man's loss.
Harry decided not to push things even further, "I can understand why you would be frustrated with his decision. After all, you've done so much for him, ensuring his future, only for him to essentially spit in your face."
"Exactly," the serial killer agreed, "But, because of his little girlfriend, Blaise refused to return and the allies I made just kept fading away. If he had joined the tournament and impressed people with his use of the Zabini crest, then I'd have had more time, but I'm losing allies by the minute. And when I do lose enough of them, then the Zabini seat will be removed from the senate."
"And where exactly do I come in?"
"As you probably know, the European tournament tasks aren't exactly fair. They're designed to be advantageous to the hosting schools. My political opponents have put up their children for the second task and have trained them extensively for it. They're confident about the win and are more than willing to bet on their certainty. The only obstacle they have is you… What you did in the first task showed that you were an unforeseen obstacle, which is why they sent these idiots to attack you."
Harry didn't exactly believe the woman but went along with what she was saying for the time being, "They don't want me to compete in the task. You do know that I don't have any plans on doing so, right?"
"That's even better. If you win, then people will just call you a freak of nature who ruined the task. No, what I need is something more embarrassing, which makes an even better statement. I want Hogwarts to win without you participating. I want everyone to understand that Blaise being in Hogwarts is an advantage, not him spitting on his heritage."
"So, let me get this straight, you want me to somehow get Hogwarts to win the task, without participating or showing that I had a hand in it. Do you realize just how unreasonable that sounds?"
The woman's eyes turned even darker, "Perhaps, but that's the best option. You see, if you don't stop the momentum of the other families, then I would be forced to take him out of Hogwarts. And if somehow that little hussy convinces him to defy me, then who knows what might happen? People around us, Zabinis, tend to die from mysterious reasons… However, I'd rather not resort to such extreme measures... Blaise will not lose this seat, whether he wants it or not."
Harry could see the madness in the woman's eyes. Yes, she was more than able to kill her son's girlfriend out of a misplaced sense of love. In fact, she was looking forward to it… What was it with insane mothers all appearing at once? First Lily and the bounty she put on his head, and now Blaise's mother threatening to kill Tracy, who also happened to be Harry's friend.
Of course, Harry wasn't going to allow anyone to threaten Tracy so brazenly. Having people threatening her so brazenly made him furious. He suppressed the urge to attack the woman and decided to take some time to analyse the situation a bit more.
Until then, he would humour the mad serial killer, "Fine. You want Hogwarts to win without me having anything to do with it… I'll think of something."
"Such a good boy, helping out your friend's mother. Why couldn't Blaise be more like you? Anyway, here's a list of the seven magical creatures that will be in the tournament. I think this should make your task a little easier."
Harry wanted to get as far away from the nutjob as he could. So far, he would play her game until he figured out what her real motive was… There was obviously a lot she wasn't telling him. It was hard to discern her motives or emotions because of how broken she was. It was honestly a miracle that she was still a member of society.
He turned towards the woman one last time, "Let me get something straight. You will not touch Tracy Davis. If you so much as cause her to have a papercut, I will come for you, and you will not like the consequences. What I did in the first task was me messing around… You wouldn't want to know what I am capable of if I'm properly motivated. Goodbye, Isabella Zabini."
Harry felt the woman shiver in fear. So far, the only reason he hadn't reacted violently was because he didn't know how it would impact Blaise. He really needed to speak to the dark-skinned boy and investigate his mother's claims.
He couldn't help but suppress a groan. Why did things always have to be so complicated? Thankfully, the blueprints of a plan started to form in his head. Oh, he was going to have fun with this…
AN: I'm not sure about my portrayal of Blaise's mother, to be perfectly honest. There is a lot to it, and the situation is a bit more complicated than she is showing in this chapter... I rewrote this chapter two times while trying not to give away too much of her plan, before settling on this since it felt the most natural. Please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
Arimai
Curmudgeon
There, right there. The perfect spot to strike. Bind and curse her to a Geas and imbue in her the Fear of God, should she so much as looks at Harry and his friends cross-eyed.
I am just laughing here because for all that he is still a child that doesn't change the fact that AS A TWELVE YEAR OLD he killed a God. And while I know that this isn't Campione where the act of killing a god lets you take their power, that fact still has to mean something. Compared to Jormungandr only the likes of powerhouses like Dumbledore and Grindelwald are more than just gnats.
Chapter 278: The Dropping Shoe
Chapter 278: The Dropping Shoe
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
17 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry couldn't help but feel a headache coming on as he returned to the metallic dragon, where he and the rest of the Hogwarts delegation were staying. And he was having such a nice day and everything. Unfortunately, it seemed like fate itself didn't want him to relax even for a bit. He wasn't even really being lazy; he'd just wanted a day off before investigating whatever Dumbledore was planning. He expected another release of magic during or after the task, and he wanted to, at least, estimate where the source of the release would be.
Now, he had to deal with Isabella Zabini of all people.
Seriously, from her reputation alone, Harry wanted nothing to do with the woman. However, there was something that felt odd during the interaction. Something just didn't make sense… It was right there, at the tip of his tongue.
He could understand the fact that she wanted her son to keep his legacy in Italy, but she wouldn't have sent him to Britain without considering the realistic possibility that he might not have wanted to return. And the way she went about it, hoping that her rivals' children would lose and embarrass the school just felt a bit too chaotic, too unpredictable. Harry personally wouldn't have gone along with such a flimsy plan…
The main question was, did he trust Isabella Zabini?
The answer was a resounding no.
As much as she was Blaise's mother, the woman was a bitch. Now, the issue wasn't if she was telling the truth about being worried about Blaise's future… No, the bigger issue was whether or not she would go through with her threat of killing Tracy.
To be perfectly honest, ever since they became a couple, Blaise and Tracy had started to drift away from Harry and, to a lesser degree, Daphne. It wasn't really serious, just them growing up. To be fair, they had been scared shitless of the crap Harry kept pulling in Hogwarts. Spending an entire year away from them wouldn't really help matters.
Harry was also slightly at fault here. The way Tracy and Blaise acted was so… childish. They had such small goals, and so few ambitions. Tracy wanted power, not for what she could do with it, but for the respect it would give her. Blaise wanted nothing other than to stay as far away as possible from his mother and to keep dating Tracy…
They weren't willing to explore, to push the boundaries of magic. He and Daphne were different in that regard. The blonde was doing it out of desperation more than anything, hoping to save her dying sister. But Harry, it was what he lived for. He wanted to explore magic, to truly understand it, in a way that no one ever had before.
Speaking of Daphne, she came back exhausted from another lesson with Lily. She decided to sit down next to Harry and lean on him. He gave her a faint smirk, "So, how was your lesson?"
From what Harry could discern from Daphne's rambling, Blood Magic was similar to Alchemy in the fact that it sought to make its effects last for a very long time. Instead of using spells, Blood mages used their very life force, through their blood, to ensure that the world itself would bend to accommodate their desires. In a way, it was a taboo. Normal magic was using what was already there, but blood magic added something external into the environment, making it adapt in return, instead of manipulating it directly.
It was a very delicate and terrifying field of magic, but one that Harry didn't find the need to explore. The cost was high for every spell. Using blood magic wasn't something that should be casually done, and every spell had to be calculated so that its users wouldn't kill themselves. The life force used would be gone until reclaimed once more, and even then, barely half remained.
It was a bit too much for Harry's tastes, and to be perfectly honest, he was worried for Daphne since she chose to specialize in this field for the sake of her sister.
"Your mother is a ruthless taskmaster… But it's working. I'm learning a lot, more than I thought was possible. She even said that I should be able to cast my first blood curse after this task. It's not anything too fancy, but it's a step forward…"
Harry froze at the fact that Daphne had called Lily his mother. He supposed that it was true, biologically, Lily Potter, or Evans as she liked to be called, was his mother. But, it didn't feel like she was. Harry was fourteen years old, and he had lived most of his childhood alone, without anyone giving a shit about him. He would have loved to have a mother then… In fact, he had dreamed of someone just whisking him away and taking care of him. Now, he was used to being independent. Even his relationship with Arcturus wasn't parental in any way. The Black Patriarch had noticed this trend and respected Harry's unspoken boundaries.
He could respect Lily Evans as a witch and even come to trust her one day, but as tragic as it was, it was very unlikely that he would see her as a parent. It was a little too late for that. Lily wasn't to blame, and neither was Harry. The world was very rarely a fair place.
Harry chose not to comment on the matter. Instead, he gave her a small smile, "I'm happy you're progressing well."
"I am too. Speaking of progress, how was your little relaxation trip in Muggle Rome?"
"It was good at first. Until the whole ambush and meeting the Black Widow."
He could feel the blonde stiffening on his side. She quickly turned, her eyes looking fierce, "Explain!"
"Well, apparently someone doesn't want me to participate in the next task. I think they hoped that I would be taken off-guard and taken out of commission for a while."
"Even the greatest wizards could die because of a surprise spell," Daphne reiterated, "I'm guessing that they weren't successful."
Harry snorted, "Well, considering that they're probably still unconscious, with their bodies buried in the ground, I'd say that you're right. Although, I wonder if anyone is going to find them since I didn't bother removing the privacy wards they put on the warehouse."
"And the fact that you met Blaise's mother?"
"We talked later. She wants me to get Hogwarts to win but not participate… Apparently, she's under pressure and she's planning on using this to reinforce Blaise's future position in the Senate or something. She threatened to bring Blaise back to Italy if Hogwarts didn't win…"
Daphne snorted, "And you believed her?"
"Well, of course not. But considering that she also said that she would kill Tracy, I decided not to ignore her…"
"SHE DID WHAT?"
Harry shrugged, "I knew that she was a massive bitch and a serial killer, but that was slightly outlandish. She kept saying that it was for her son, and that was what was important."
"I'm pretty sure Blaise said that she didn't give two shits about him or his future. She only sent him to Hogwarts so that he wouldn't bother her anymore... She's also had two husbands die on her watch in the last three years, so you don't have to guess very hard to figure out what she's been doing."
Yeah, that was more in line with what he thought. An inkling of what was happening was starting to form in his mind, and he only needed to get the remaining details, "Tell me about her political stronghold here…"
"A lot stronger than you'd think. Most of her dead husbands were filthy rich and she invested all her gold to gain a mercantile foothold to make up for her lack of political power. Even on that side, the word is that she had most of the government either bribed or charmed… I still don't know how she pulled it off, but I wouldn't be joking if I said that she was most likely one of the most dangerous people in this country. The ICW even investigated her and found no use of love potions or anything similar."
"Yeah, they wouldn't. She has a weird subtle charm, similar to that of a Veela only a lot less powerful, but it would make people around her more pliable, and easier to manipulate."
The blonde smirked, "It didn't work on you, did it?"
"Yeah, she seemed a little unsettled when that happened… So, what you're saying is that she could have handled the mess with Blaise's seat without using something as flimsy as the tournament to do it…"
"Oh, without a doubt. Even if she did want to use that, she could charm the Italian champions into embarrassing themselves… She could even arrange for a couple of assassinations in the Senate to cow her opponents into submission."
Harry nodded, agreeing with her input. Isabella Zabini did not ask for the Italian Champions to lose, but for Hogwarts to win without him… Assuming that a political agenda was unlikely and that the woman barely had any nationalistic pride, the conclusion was very clear.
It was clever of her, to give an entirely different scenario to Harry, only for her objective to be something entirely different. He hummed, "I know what she's after…"
The blonde brightened up, "What is it?"
"It's not that important, but it has nothing to do with Blaise at all. What's important is that from my impression of her, she wasn't someone who wouldn't follow up on her threats, even if she had lied about her motivations."
"Yes… Do you want to warn Tracy and Blaise?"
"No. Considering that the woman has successfully killed without impunity, it's very unlikely that we'll be able to prevent her from killing anyone. No, I need to hold up my end of the bargain."
Daphne scoffed, "So, just like that, you're ready to let that bitch win?"
"Of course not. Believe me, no matter what happens, she is not coming out of this as a winner. Now, the question is how I'm going to pull off the win. I already have a plan in mind… Who did they decide are going to be the Champions this time?"
"Well, we technically had to give ten different champions since someone could defeat all of the beasts. I'm actually number seven on the list. I think the first three are Diggory, Chang, and Johnson. Then there's Granger, then the Weasley twins, me, Longbottom, Davies, and finally you."
"Me?" Harry asked, amused.
"Come on. If we somehow take down all seven beasts, I'll turn my hair green for a month."
"Challenge accepted."
Daphne groaned, "I didn't mean it as a challenge, you arse."
"Anyway, that's nice. I can deal with Diggory, Chang, and Johnson. According to what Isabella Zabini told me, the beasts aren't going to be particularly dangerous to fight. Well, it won't be easy, but the Champions won't have to fight dragons or anything that ridiculous. Those three, if I train them up properly, should be able to at least beat a couple of beasts… I'll need to speak to McGonagall."
Without even turning to Daphne, Harry walked off towards the headmistress' office. An hour later, a smiling McGonagall went out of her office with Harry walking beside her. She quickly went to the common compartment and spoke up, "Ms. Johnson, Mr. Diggory, and Ms. Chang, would you please follow me."
Harry suppressed a chuckle at the expressions of the champions. They gave him a hesitant look before following. The headmistress led them to an empty compartment that she had probably just created. She gave Harry a nod, "I leave them in your care, Mr. Potter."
"Of course, Professor."
"What the fuck is going on, Potter," Cedric exclaimed when the headmistress left.
Harry gave them a bright smile, "Oh Diggory, it seems like I'm going to be training you for the task."
"Seriously?" Johnson asked while looking strangely excited.
"Yes… If you think this is going to be fun, then you'll be very disappointed. When I'm done with you, you should at least not embarrass yourselves in front of the entire continent. As I said before, welcome to the Potter boot camp… I hope you survive the experience with your sanity intact, as unlikely as it may be."
Harry's grin widened when he saw the scared looks on their faces. Oh, this was going to be fun.
AN: Not sure about this chapter tbh. Feels like a filler but there are a few key pieces of information that are important later. Kinda excited for the second task. As usual, let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
17 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry couldn't help but feel a headache coming on as he returned to the metallic dragon, where he and the rest of the Hogwarts delegation were staying. And he was having such a nice day and everything. Unfortunately, it seemed like fate itself didn't want him to relax even for a bit. He wasn't even really being lazy; he'd just wanted a day off before investigating whatever Dumbledore was planning. He expected another release of magic during or after the task, and he wanted to, at least, estimate where the source of the release would be.
Now, he had to deal with Isabella Zabini of all people.
Seriously, from her reputation alone, Harry wanted nothing to do with the woman. However, there was something that felt odd during the interaction. Something just didn't make sense… It was right there, at the tip of his tongue.
He could understand the fact that she wanted her son to keep his legacy in Italy, but she wouldn't have sent him to Britain without considering the realistic possibility that he might not have wanted to return. And the way she went about it, hoping that her rivals' children would lose and embarrass the school just felt a bit too chaotic, too unpredictable. Harry personally wouldn't have gone along with such a flimsy plan…
The main question was, did he trust Isabella Zabini?
The answer was a resounding no.
As much as she was Blaise's mother, the woman was a bitch. Now, the issue wasn't if she was telling the truth about being worried about Blaise's future… No, the bigger issue was whether or not she would go through with her threat of killing Tracy.
To be perfectly honest, ever since they became a couple, Blaise and Tracy had started to drift away from Harry and, to a lesser degree, Daphne. It wasn't really serious, just them growing up. To be fair, they had been scared shitless of the crap Harry kept pulling in Hogwarts. Spending an entire year away from them wouldn't really help matters.
Harry was also slightly at fault here. The way Tracy and Blaise acted was so… childish. They had such small goals, and so few ambitions. Tracy wanted power, not for what she could do with it, but for the respect it would give her. Blaise wanted nothing other than to stay as far away as possible from his mother and to keep dating Tracy…
They weren't willing to explore, to push the boundaries of magic. He and Daphne were different in that regard. The blonde was doing it out of desperation more than anything, hoping to save her dying sister. But Harry, it was what he lived for. He wanted to explore magic, to truly understand it, in a way that no one ever had before.
Speaking of Daphne, she came back exhausted from another lesson with Lily. She decided to sit down next to Harry and lean on him. He gave her a faint smirk, "So, how was your lesson?"
From what Harry could discern from Daphne's rambling, Blood Magic was similar to Alchemy in the fact that it sought to make its effects last for a very long time. Instead of using spells, Blood mages used their very life force, through their blood, to ensure that the world itself would bend to accommodate their desires. In a way, it was a taboo. Normal magic was using what was already there, but blood magic added something external into the environment, making it adapt in return, instead of manipulating it directly.
It was a very delicate and terrifying field of magic, but one that Harry didn't find the need to explore. The cost was high for every spell. Using blood magic wasn't something that should be casually done, and every spell had to be calculated so that its users wouldn't kill themselves. The life force used would be gone until reclaimed once more, and even then, barely half remained.
It was a bit too much for Harry's tastes, and to be perfectly honest, he was worried for Daphne since she chose to specialize in this field for the sake of her sister.
"Your mother is a ruthless taskmaster… But it's working. I'm learning a lot, more than I thought was possible. She even said that I should be able to cast my first blood curse after this task. It's not anything too fancy, but it's a step forward…"
Harry froze at the fact that Daphne had called Lily his mother. He supposed that it was true, biologically, Lily Potter, or Evans as she liked to be called, was his mother. But, it didn't feel like she was. Harry was fourteen years old, and he had lived most of his childhood alone, without anyone giving a shit about him. He would have loved to have a mother then… In fact, he had dreamed of someone just whisking him away and taking care of him. Now, he was used to being independent. Even his relationship with Arcturus wasn't parental in any way. The Black Patriarch had noticed this trend and respected Harry's unspoken boundaries.
He could respect Lily Evans as a witch and even come to trust her one day, but as tragic as it was, it was very unlikely that he would see her as a parent. It was a little too late for that. Lily wasn't to blame, and neither was Harry. The world was very rarely a fair place.
Harry chose not to comment on the matter. Instead, he gave her a small smile, "I'm happy you're progressing well."
"I am too. Speaking of progress, how was your little relaxation trip in Muggle Rome?"
"It was good at first. Until the whole ambush and meeting the Black Widow."
He could feel the blonde stiffening on his side. She quickly turned, her eyes looking fierce, "Explain!"
"Well, apparently someone doesn't want me to participate in the next task. I think they hoped that I would be taken off-guard and taken out of commission for a while."
"Even the greatest wizards could die because of a surprise spell," Daphne reiterated, "I'm guessing that they weren't successful."
Harry snorted, "Well, considering that they're probably still unconscious, with their bodies buried in the ground, I'd say that you're right. Although, I wonder if anyone is going to find them since I didn't bother removing the privacy wards they put on the warehouse."
"And the fact that you met Blaise's mother?"
"We talked later. She wants me to get Hogwarts to win but not participate… Apparently, she's under pressure and she's planning on using this to reinforce Blaise's future position in the Senate or something. She threatened to bring Blaise back to Italy if Hogwarts didn't win…"
Daphne snorted, "And you believed her?"
"Well, of course not. But considering that she also said that she would kill Tracy, I decided not to ignore her…"
"SHE DID WHAT?"
Harry shrugged, "I knew that she was a massive bitch and a serial killer, but that was slightly outlandish. She kept saying that it was for her son, and that was what was important."
"I'm pretty sure Blaise said that she didn't give two shits about him or his future. She only sent him to Hogwarts so that he wouldn't bother her anymore... She's also had two husbands die on her watch in the last three years, so you don't have to guess very hard to figure out what she's been doing."
Yeah, that was more in line with what he thought. An inkling of what was happening was starting to form in his mind, and he only needed to get the remaining details, "Tell me about her political stronghold here…"
"A lot stronger than you'd think. Most of her dead husbands were filthy rich and she invested all her gold to gain a mercantile foothold to make up for her lack of political power. Even on that side, the word is that she had most of the government either bribed or charmed… I still don't know how she pulled it off, but I wouldn't be joking if I said that she was most likely one of the most dangerous people in this country. The ICW even investigated her and found no use of love potions or anything similar."
"Yeah, they wouldn't. She has a weird subtle charm, similar to that of a Veela only a lot less powerful, but it would make people around her more pliable, and easier to manipulate."
The blonde smirked, "It didn't work on you, did it?"
"Yeah, she seemed a little unsettled when that happened… So, what you're saying is that she could have handled the mess with Blaise's seat without using something as flimsy as the tournament to do it…"
"Oh, without a doubt. Even if she did want to use that, she could charm the Italian champions into embarrassing themselves… She could even arrange for a couple of assassinations in the Senate to cow her opponents into submission."
Harry nodded, agreeing with her input. Isabella Zabini did not ask for the Italian Champions to lose, but for Hogwarts to win without him… Assuming that a political agenda was unlikely and that the woman barely had any nationalistic pride, the conclusion was very clear.
It was clever of her, to give an entirely different scenario to Harry, only for her objective to be something entirely different. He hummed, "I know what she's after…"
The blonde brightened up, "What is it?"
"It's not that important, but it has nothing to do with Blaise at all. What's important is that from my impression of her, she wasn't someone who wouldn't follow up on her threats, even if she had lied about her motivations."
"Yes… Do you want to warn Tracy and Blaise?"
"No. Considering that the woman has successfully killed without impunity, it's very unlikely that we'll be able to prevent her from killing anyone. No, I need to hold up my end of the bargain."
Daphne scoffed, "So, just like that, you're ready to let that bitch win?"
"Of course not. Believe me, no matter what happens, she is not coming out of this as a winner. Now, the question is how I'm going to pull off the win. I already have a plan in mind… Who did they decide are going to be the Champions this time?"
"Well, we technically had to give ten different champions since someone could defeat all of the beasts. I'm actually number seven on the list. I think the first three are Diggory, Chang, and Johnson. Then there's Granger, then the Weasley twins, me, Longbottom, Davies, and finally you."
"Me?" Harry asked, amused.
"Come on. If we somehow take down all seven beasts, I'll turn my hair green for a month."
"Challenge accepted."
Daphne groaned, "I didn't mean it as a challenge, you arse."
"Anyway, that's nice. I can deal with Diggory, Chang, and Johnson. According to what Isabella Zabini told me, the beasts aren't going to be particularly dangerous to fight. Well, it won't be easy, but the Champions won't have to fight dragons or anything that ridiculous. Those three, if I train them up properly, should be able to at least beat a couple of beasts… I'll need to speak to McGonagall."
Without even turning to Daphne, Harry walked off towards the headmistress' office. An hour later, a smiling McGonagall went out of her office with Harry walking beside her. She quickly went to the common compartment and spoke up, "Ms. Johnson, Mr. Diggory, and Ms. Chang, would you please follow me."
Harry suppressed a chuckle at the expressions of the champions. They gave him a hesitant look before following. The headmistress led them to an empty compartment that she had probably just created. She gave Harry a nod, "I leave them in your care, Mr. Potter."
"Of course, Professor."
"What the fuck is going on, Potter," Cedric exclaimed when the headmistress left.
Harry gave them a bright smile, "Oh Diggory, it seems like I'm going to be training you for the task."
"Seriously?" Johnson asked while looking strangely excited.
"Yes… If you think this is going to be fun, then you'll be very disappointed. When I'm done with you, you should at least not embarrass yourselves in front of the entire continent. As I said before, welcome to the Potter boot camp… I hope you survive the experience with your sanity intact, as unlikely as it may be."
Harry's grin widened when he saw the scared looks on their faces. Oh, this was going to be fun.
AN: Not sure about this chapter tbh. Feels like a filler but there are a few key pieces of information that are important later. Kinda excited for the second task. As usual, let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
- Location
- USA
That's a double negative.
Impunity means without punishment.
Without impunity means without not being punished, i.e. she was punished.
Try the more common phrase, "with impunity"
Chapter 279: Train Express
Chapter 279: Train Express
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
19 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Cedric Diggory fancied himself one of the best students in Hogwarts. To be perfectly fair, he was right in that aspect. He held the highest grade in his year, and he hadn't taken any easy classes. He was so confident that he was the best that he forgot what it was like to be utterly outclassed by someone, something that he was currently learning the hard way.
He had been dubious when he was told by McGonagall that Potter would take over their training for the task. Sure, the boy was a great wizard, definitely better than Cedric himself, but there was still some doubt that someone three years younger than him could be of some help in such a short time.
Cedric was regretting this doubt now as he ducked to avoid the incoming maw of the giant wolf, which almost bisected him. He followed up with an earth-repelling spell that Potter had taught them, which made the ground move like a wave and sent the beast away in surprise.
The wolf was an Alpha Dark Mongrel, a species of wolf that was apparently commonly found in the wild during the old days of Ancient Rome. It wasn't that hard to fight, just very quick and surprisingly quiet, with about the same magical resistance as a troll.
It was also on the list that Potter had put together of possible monsters for the task, and they were getting some experience fighting what they might end up facing in the tournament. To be honest, he didn't expect Potter to help them this way.
Speaking of the magical prodigy, he was standing impassively at the side and gave Cedric an approving look, "Well done Diggory. For magical creatures that can't fly, the ground is your greatest ally. Manipulating it is an easy way to get some distance and precious time to think."
Cedric noticed that Cho was getting overwhelmed by the Griffin, and he conjured a stone hand to bring her to him. She gave him a cute smile in return, "Thanks for the save, Cedric."
"Anytime…"
Johnson yelled out in a frustrated tone, "Can you two seriously flirt later? I need some backup here."
She was being accosted by the more complicated of the enemies that they had to face, a fucking Nemean Lion. It was, by far, the hardest enemy they had to face in this round of training, that's not to mention exceedingly rare and ludicrously expensive. Its hide was almost invulnerable, its claws as sharp as swords, and it was extremely agile and strong for its humongous size.
The Gryffindor had created a raised platform to have some high ground, something that the lion seemed to have taken issue with and kept trying to knock her down. Cedric cast the earth wave spell once more, pushing the Nemean Lion to the other side of the arena.
He quickly helped Johnson get back up but then froze when he heard Cho speak up with a hint of panic in her voice, "Guys, I think we have a problem."
Cedric turned and noticed that they were surrounded by the three beasts, the Alpha Mongrel, the Nemean Lion, and the Griffin. He suppressed the urge to gulp, and he looked at Potter for help.
The younger wizard simply shrugged, looking unconcerned, "You have the tools necessary to win. Analyse your position properly, and remember your enemies' strengths and weaknesses."
"The Nemean Lion doesn't have a fucking weakness, Potter!" Angelina exclaimed.
"Everything has a weakness. Perfection is nothing more than an illusion and an unrealistic dream. So, start with the Mongrel. What are its weaknesses?"
"It's magically resistant to physical attacks, blinding attacks, and any prison that might overwhelm its physical strength," Cho retorted exactly as Potter had taught them.
"Perfect, now what about the Griffin?"
Cedric thought about it. The half-lion and half-eagle hybrid had the usual magic resistance that most magical creatures had, but it wasn't that distinctive. The main issue it had was its mobility and aggressiveness, that's not to mention the wind magic that it seemed to be capable of, "It relies too much on the wind magic when it flies. If we destabilise its flight with a well-placed spell, we could probably stun it with just two of us."
Potter nodded, "Good plan, now finally, the Nemean Lion…"
The creature was a giant lion with an invincible hide. It was special in the way that it just couldn't be overwhelmed by any spells. Magically resistant creatures, even dragons, could be taken down if a large number of wizards tried to stun them at once. Not the Nemean Lion, though. It was why their hides were so sought after.
Huh, it was only the hide that was invincible though, right?
Cedric smirked, "the mouth. Its hide is invincible, but the insides aren't."
"Yes, you could try to hit the inside of its mouth. Personally, I would probably dose it with a potion…"
"We don't have any potions…"
Potter's grin turned vicious, "And whose fault is that? You knew that you'd be fighting magical creatures today, but you didn't make any preparations. There weren't any rules announced about you just having your wands, only that any form of expanded storage was not allowed. In the fight between any two opponents, nine times out of ten, the most prepared fighter wins. Now, that's enough talk, let's resume the training."
The three creatures, who had been silent during Potter's impromptu lecture, roared. The Griffin rose in the air and sent a blast of air at them. Cedric used a shield charm to protect them, "Johnson, get the damn bird with a concussion spell. Let me know when you're about to cast so that I can drop the shield. Follow up with a stunner with Cho."
Johnson aimed and yelled out, "Now!".
Cedric dispelled the shield and a white spell hit the griffin's chest while it was flying. After it fell down, the hybrid quickly succumbed to the two witches' stunners. The Hufflepuff didn't have time to celebrate and used the earth wave attack to repel the two incoming attackers.
Luckily, the Alpha Dark Mongrel wasn't able to stick the landing and Cedric yelled out, "Stunners, now!"
Three stunning charms reached the giant canine, and it slumped down, unconscious, leaving them to deal only with the most troublesome opponent…
Cedric did his best to use the Earth Wave spell to overwhelm it. Any time he tried to hit the beast's open maw, it stubbornly dodged. Potter was right, this was a lot less reliable than just trying to get a potion in.
Unfortunately, while thinking of another plan, he didn't notice that Cho had left herself open and that the Nemean Lion was leaping at her. He tried to reach her, but even as he did, he knew he'd be too late. He prepared to see the Asian girl die, but Cho's hand glowed and some weird Eastern symbols started to glow all around her arm. She pushed her palm forward and the Lion found itself frozen in mid-air, with its maw open.
Cho was obviously grimacing in exertion, but Cedric did not waste this chance and sent a stunner into the inside of the creature's mouth, knocking it out…
Of course, like at the end of every training session, the creatures turned into rubble. Potter was calmly clapping, "Very well done, Chang. I'm guessing this was your family crest."
The Ravenclaw nodded but did not add anything more to explain… To be fair, it was her family crest, and she was perfectly allowed not to elaborate on it. The last Potter didn't seem annoyed or anything, "Very well done, but you need to remember that this was just a simulation. An actual Nemean Lion could possibly escape from this spell, and you'd have been very injured if you used yourself as bait. So, what have we learned?"
"That you're a spiteful bastard and not to pick a fight with you," Johnson grumbled.
"If you're just learning that today then I'm worried about your intelligence Johnson," Potter retorted.
"We need to be more prepared for the fight," Chang answered.
"Yes. You knew that you'd be fighting magical beasts today, but you didn't bother to get anything to make things easier for yourselves. I'm talking about lures, repellent smokes, irritant potions, or anything else. You know what I told you… An unprepared wizard…"
The three of them interrupted him, "… is a dead wizard."
"Good. I'll be honest, you're probably not the best wizards in the task. So, that means that to compensate, you'll need to be prepared to deal with anything. Now, again, look back on the fight. Tell me what you think…"
Johnson looked pensive, "We really started taking them out when we worked together… It didn't go so well at the start."
Potter nodded, "That's true. You're three mages fighting on the same team, you need to act like it. Anything else?"
They all looked hesitant, "We won, didn't we?"
The Slytherin sighed in disappointment, "You might have won, but these are just the imitations of three beasts out of the seven you'll be fighting, that's not to mention the other teams who will be out for blood. If you went about things the same way during the actual fight, you'd probably end up taking out a single team and maybe even a beast at the most before someone takes you out in turn. What you should have done is the first trick in the book. Use your enemies' strengths against each other. You could have enraged the Griffin by getting the Mongrel to attack it. You could have started a fight without involving yourselves at all, just so you could then take out the winners. You also didn't attempt to take control of your environment. Conjuring mist to blind your opponents, certain smells to distract them, trying to hide and take them out stealthily... You went directly to challenging them up-front. You need to be more devious…"
Johnson grumbled, "Says the Slytherin."
"This has nothing to do with Hogwarts houses. If you had to choose between fighting someone stronger than you in direct combat or ambushing them, you should always ambush them. And believe me, you're on the weaker side here. After all, surprise and deception are very powerful agents and far more effective than you could possibly imagine."
"Come on, we still won," she complained.
"I suppose you did. You've improved a lot in the last few days, and since you're so happy with your victory, I believe it's time for us to kick things up a bit."
"Wait! What?" Cedric exclaimed.
"As I said, you were able to deal with three beasts at once, but you haven't really experienced fighting the beasts alongside other wizards. Don't worry, you'll only have to face little old me…"
Cho grumbled while giving Johnson a dirty look, "See, this is what happens when you open your mouth."
Potter raised his palm, "Don't worry, you just finished this exercise. You can rest for a few minutes, then I'll give you a choice of spells that will help you make up for the shortcomings I found during the fight… We'll practice them a bit, and then we'll do the new exercise."
Cedric ended up choosing a variation of the ground wave spell, which added spikes to the wave. Cho, on the other hand, chose a spell that conjured some mist that she could make see-through for her allies, and Johnson chose one that created a pit in the middle of the ground, which was good for catching enemies off-guard.
All in all, the training sessions with Harry Potter were physically gruelling, bordering on bullying, but they had shown him just how big the gap between him and the Slytherin was … The fake magical beasts alone that Potter used were more than enough. Sure, he knew that the boy had purposely created and enchanted them over the course of hours and that there were a lot of illusions, and discreet spell-use, to sell the idea that they were real, but the power and the control needed for something like this was completely out of his league. They were strangely similar to what McGonagall did with the dragon, but on a smaller scale.
It was some of the most demoralizing moments in Cedric's life. It was also a period where he had learned more about magic and tactics than he ever had before. The sad thing was that the boy didn't even use this kind of magic in his fights. He preferred to fight using tactics and pure trickery.
Cedric shuddered at the idea of Potter using his full might in a fight… He wasn't sure if he was excited or unsettled by the image that appeared in his head.
AN: I'll be completely honest here, I'm not really sure about this chapter. I know that I say that a lot, but I wrote this in a bit of a hurry and didn't have time to include a lot of stuff that I wanted to. You'll get what I mean when we get to the task itself, which is very soon. So, if you have any comments or suggestions please let me know. I don't mind modifying this chapter a bit when I have some free time.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
19 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Cedric Diggory fancied himself one of the best students in Hogwarts. To be perfectly fair, he was right in that aspect. He held the highest grade in his year, and he hadn't taken any easy classes. He was so confident that he was the best that he forgot what it was like to be utterly outclassed by someone, something that he was currently learning the hard way.
He had been dubious when he was told by McGonagall that Potter would take over their training for the task. Sure, the boy was a great wizard, definitely better than Cedric himself, but there was still some doubt that someone three years younger than him could be of some help in such a short time.
Cedric was regretting this doubt now as he ducked to avoid the incoming maw of the giant wolf, which almost bisected him. He followed up with an earth-repelling spell that Potter had taught them, which made the ground move like a wave and sent the beast away in surprise.
The wolf was an Alpha Dark Mongrel, a species of wolf that was apparently commonly found in the wild during the old days of Ancient Rome. It wasn't that hard to fight, just very quick and surprisingly quiet, with about the same magical resistance as a troll.
It was also on the list that Potter had put together of possible monsters for the task, and they were getting some experience fighting what they might end up facing in the tournament. To be honest, he didn't expect Potter to help them this way.
Speaking of the magical prodigy, he was standing impassively at the side and gave Cedric an approving look, "Well done Diggory. For magical creatures that can't fly, the ground is your greatest ally. Manipulating it is an easy way to get some distance and precious time to think."
Cedric noticed that Cho was getting overwhelmed by the Griffin, and he conjured a stone hand to bring her to him. She gave him a cute smile in return, "Thanks for the save, Cedric."
"Anytime…"
Johnson yelled out in a frustrated tone, "Can you two seriously flirt later? I need some backup here."
She was being accosted by the more complicated of the enemies that they had to face, a fucking Nemean Lion. It was, by far, the hardest enemy they had to face in this round of training, that's not to mention exceedingly rare and ludicrously expensive. Its hide was almost invulnerable, its claws as sharp as swords, and it was extremely agile and strong for its humongous size.
The Gryffindor had created a raised platform to have some high ground, something that the lion seemed to have taken issue with and kept trying to knock her down. Cedric cast the earth wave spell once more, pushing the Nemean Lion to the other side of the arena.
He quickly helped Johnson get back up but then froze when he heard Cho speak up with a hint of panic in her voice, "Guys, I think we have a problem."
Cedric turned and noticed that they were surrounded by the three beasts, the Alpha Mongrel, the Nemean Lion, and the Griffin. He suppressed the urge to gulp, and he looked at Potter for help.
The younger wizard simply shrugged, looking unconcerned, "You have the tools necessary to win. Analyse your position properly, and remember your enemies' strengths and weaknesses."
"The Nemean Lion doesn't have a fucking weakness, Potter!" Angelina exclaimed.
"Everything has a weakness. Perfection is nothing more than an illusion and an unrealistic dream. So, start with the Mongrel. What are its weaknesses?"
"It's magically resistant to physical attacks, blinding attacks, and any prison that might overwhelm its physical strength," Cho retorted exactly as Potter had taught them.
"Perfect, now what about the Griffin?"
Cedric thought about it. The half-lion and half-eagle hybrid had the usual magic resistance that most magical creatures had, but it wasn't that distinctive. The main issue it had was its mobility and aggressiveness, that's not to mention the wind magic that it seemed to be capable of, "It relies too much on the wind magic when it flies. If we destabilise its flight with a well-placed spell, we could probably stun it with just two of us."
Potter nodded, "Good plan, now finally, the Nemean Lion…"
The creature was a giant lion with an invincible hide. It was special in the way that it just couldn't be overwhelmed by any spells. Magically resistant creatures, even dragons, could be taken down if a large number of wizards tried to stun them at once. Not the Nemean Lion, though. It was why their hides were so sought after.
Huh, it was only the hide that was invincible though, right?
Cedric smirked, "the mouth. Its hide is invincible, but the insides aren't."
"Yes, you could try to hit the inside of its mouth. Personally, I would probably dose it with a potion…"
"We don't have any potions…"
Potter's grin turned vicious, "And whose fault is that? You knew that you'd be fighting magical creatures today, but you didn't make any preparations. There weren't any rules announced about you just having your wands, only that any form of expanded storage was not allowed. In the fight between any two opponents, nine times out of ten, the most prepared fighter wins. Now, that's enough talk, let's resume the training."
The three creatures, who had been silent during Potter's impromptu lecture, roared. The Griffin rose in the air and sent a blast of air at them. Cedric used a shield charm to protect them, "Johnson, get the damn bird with a concussion spell. Let me know when you're about to cast so that I can drop the shield. Follow up with a stunner with Cho."
Johnson aimed and yelled out, "Now!".
Cedric dispelled the shield and a white spell hit the griffin's chest while it was flying. After it fell down, the hybrid quickly succumbed to the two witches' stunners. The Hufflepuff didn't have time to celebrate and used the earth wave attack to repel the two incoming attackers.
Luckily, the Alpha Dark Mongrel wasn't able to stick the landing and Cedric yelled out, "Stunners, now!"
Three stunning charms reached the giant canine, and it slumped down, unconscious, leaving them to deal only with the most troublesome opponent…
Cedric did his best to use the Earth Wave spell to overwhelm it. Any time he tried to hit the beast's open maw, it stubbornly dodged. Potter was right, this was a lot less reliable than just trying to get a potion in.
Unfortunately, while thinking of another plan, he didn't notice that Cho had left herself open and that the Nemean Lion was leaping at her. He tried to reach her, but even as he did, he knew he'd be too late. He prepared to see the Asian girl die, but Cho's hand glowed and some weird Eastern symbols started to glow all around her arm. She pushed her palm forward and the Lion found itself frozen in mid-air, with its maw open.
Cho was obviously grimacing in exertion, but Cedric did not waste this chance and sent a stunner into the inside of the creature's mouth, knocking it out…
Of course, like at the end of every training session, the creatures turned into rubble. Potter was calmly clapping, "Very well done, Chang. I'm guessing this was your family crest."
The Ravenclaw nodded but did not add anything more to explain… To be fair, it was her family crest, and she was perfectly allowed not to elaborate on it. The last Potter didn't seem annoyed or anything, "Very well done, but you need to remember that this was just a simulation. An actual Nemean Lion could possibly escape from this spell, and you'd have been very injured if you used yourself as bait. So, what have we learned?"
"That you're a spiteful bastard and not to pick a fight with you," Johnson grumbled.
"If you're just learning that today then I'm worried about your intelligence Johnson," Potter retorted.
"We need to be more prepared for the fight," Chang answered.
"Yes. You knew that you'd be fighting magical beasts today, but you didn't bother to get anything to make things easier for yourselves. I'm talking about lures, repellent smokes, irritant potions, or anything else. You know what I told you… An unprepared wizard…"
The three of them interrupted him, "… is a dead wizard."
"Good. I'll be honest, you're probably not the best wizards in the task. So, that means that to compensate, you'll need to be prepared to deal with anything. Now, again, look back on the fight. Tell me what you think…"
Johnson looked pensive, "We really started taking them out when we worked together… It didn't go so well at the start."
Potter nodded, "That's true. You're three mages fighting on the same team, you need to act like it. Anything else?"
They all looked hesitant, "We won, didn't we?"
The Slytherin sighed in disappointment, "You might have won, but these are just the imitations of three beasts out of the seven you'll be fighting, that's not to mention the other teams who will be out for blood. If you went about things the same way during the actual fight, you'd probably end up taking out a single team and maybe even a beast at the most before someone takes you out in turn. What you should have done is the first trick in the book. Use your enemies' strengths against each other. You could have enraged the Griffin by getting the Mongrel to attack it. You could have started a fight without involving yourselves at all, just so you could then take out the winners. You also didn't attempt to take control of your environment. Conjuring mist to blind your opponents, certain smells to distract them, trying to hide and take them out stealthily... You went directly to challenging them up-front. You need to be more devious…"
Johnson grumbled, "Says the Slytherin."
"This has nothing to do with Hogwarts houses. If you had to choose between fighting someone stronger than you in direct combat or ambushing them, you should always ambush them. And believe me, you're on the weaker side here. After all, surprise and deception are very powerful agents and far more effective than you could possibly imagine."
"Come on, we still won," she complained.
"I suppose you did. You've improved a lot in the last few days, and since you're so happy with your victory, I believe it's time for us to kick things up a bit."
"Wait! What?" Cedric exclaimed.
"As I said, you were able to deal with three beasts at once, but you haven't really experienced fighting the beasts alongside other wizards. Don't worry, you'll only have to face little old me…"
Cho grumbled while giving Johnson a dirty look, "See, this is what happens when you open your mouth."
Potter raised his palm, "Don't worry, you just finished this exercise. You can rest for a few minutes, then I'll give you a choice of spells that will help you make up for the shortcomings I found during the fight… We'll practice them a bit, and then we'll do the new exercise."
Cedric ended up choosing a variation of the ground wave spell, which added spikes to the wave. Cho, on the other hand, chose a spell that conjured some mist that she could make see-through for her allies, and Johnson chose one that created a pit in the middle of the ground, which was good for catching enemies off-guard.
All in all, the training sessions with Harry Potter were physically gruelling, bordering on bullying, but they had shown him just how big the gap between him and the Slytherin was … The fake magical beasts alone that Potter used were more than enough. Sure, he knew that the boy had purposely created and enchanted them over the course of hours and that there were a lot of illusions, and discreet spell-use, to sell the idea that they were real, but the power and the control needed for something like this was completely out of his league. They were strangely similar to what McGonagall did with the dragon, but on a smaller scale.
It was some of the most demoralizing moments in Cedric's life. It was also a period where he had learned more about magic and tactics than he ever had before. The sad thing was that the boy didn't even use this kind of magic in his fights. He preferred to fight using tactics and pure trickery.
Cedric shuddered at the idea of Potter using his full might in a fight… He wasn't sure if he was excited or unsettled by the image that appeared in his head.
AN: I'll be completely honest here, I'm not really sure about this chapter. I know that I say that a lot, but I wrote this in a bit of a hurry and didn't have time to include a lot of stuff that I wanted to. You'll get what I mean when we get to the task itself, which is very soon. So, if you have any comments or suggestions please let me know. I don't mind modifying this chapter a bit when I have some free time.
Chapter 280: Stacking the Odds
Chapter 280: Stacking the Odds
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
20 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry smirked as he sent another round of stinging hexes at his three victims, or maybe it would have been better to call them his students, while they were defending against four of the beasts that he had animated. He found that stinging hexes and curses were painful enough to motivate them to not get hit, without really injuring any of them. It did help that he had jailbroken the spells to be able to modify the power output, so he could use them as a normal attack spell.
To be perfectly honest, this was sort of entertaining, not to mention mentally straining for Harry. In a real-world scenario, if he fought a group of wizards, he would not animate magical creatures while casting spells. There were thousands of better ways to fight. Still, the goal wasn't to defeat them but to train them and simulate what they would face in the second task.
However, this was a good exercise for Harry. Animating four constructs while casting spells whose paths were warped to simulate being attacked by different teams of mages was a feat of multitasking that very few people could manage, and it was entertaining.
He had stolen the animation charm from Lupin the previous year. It was surprisingly insightful as far as animation charms went. The animated creatures could be as fast as Harry himself could think, and they could be combined with a faint reflective rune shield to simulate magical resistance… Sure, Harry had modified it a bit to include some of the creatures' instincts in the animation, and cast a few spells to simulate their attacks…
It wasn't a perfect simulation of the magical creatures, but it was good enough to train the Hogwarts starting champions. Honestly, they were a sorry lot. Diggory was alright, magically at least, but had this whole knight in shining armour ideal that forced him to make stupid decisions. He kept overcommitting to attacks to prevent his teammates from getting hurt, even if they could have handled it themselves. Johnson took too many risks, and Chang rarely committed to an attack fully and had a tendency to overthink things.
If he had a full summer with them, Harry could have turned them into a great team. But at the moment, they were just competent. What Harry had done was make sure that they wouldn't embarrass themselves or really be surprised during the task. He had taught them spells specifically made to alter the environment and tutored them on the weaknesses of each creature they would end up fighting, not that they knew that these were the same creatures.
Seeing that they had gotten the gist of the exercise and that it was getting late enough, Harry decided to let them get to bed with a win. He actively made sure to weaken his animated creatures and slow them down. Ten minutes later, the four beasts were gone and each of the animated mannequins that simulated the human opponents had been taken out.
Honestly, Harry didn't want to burst their bubble, so he let them have their confidence. He gave them a faint smirk, "Well done. I believe you should have a nice break. After all, you have a big day ahead of you tomorrow."
"We have this in the bag," Johnson exclaimed.
Harry suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and thankfully Diggory made is so that he didn't really need to make a comment, "Thanks for the help, Potter."
"Don't worry about it," he just replied.
"Out of curiosity," the Hufflepuff continued, "how the hell can you cast spells that curve in the air the way they do?"
Of course, Harry wasn't going to tell him that he was warping the fabric of space to modify his spell's trajectory so instead, he said, "Trade secret, I'm afraid."
"Fine, I know when to stop digging," Diggory retorted before turning and joining his fellow champions outside of the arena.
When they all left, Harry spoke up loudly, "You can come out now."
Lily Evans removed her invisibility charm with a snicker, "Very impressive detection skills, and an even more impressive use of multitasking."
"What do you think?"
"About the brats? You did some good work with them, I'll admit that, but they're a far cry from a winning team…"
Harry scoffed, "I never expected them to win, especially since Hogwarts will most likely be targeted for winning the previous task."
"And whose fault is that?"
"Maybe it's mine, but I think I more than made up for it with my tutoring. I thought that with the teams being announced without me as a champion they would have laid off on Hogwarts."
The redhead snorted, "Yes, but as per the task rules, McGonagall could choose anyone to join the task if the team gets one of the keys. The other competitors will want to take them out before then, just so that they can't ask you to join."
Harry hummed. McGonagall had publicly stated that he wasn't going to enter the task. The news was met with a mixture of scepticism and cautious elation, even if it was 'leaked' to the press by one of the task organizers…
Apparently, the ICW organizers were pretty desperate to stop him from steamrolling the event, hoping that it would have some credibility. From what Harry could discern, McGonagall, while knowing that Harry had no intention on competing, still leveraged his lack of participation for a hefty donation to the school and a contract for the ICW to give them funding for a proper research centre in the castle and to provide the school with competent academics in case she needed to replace any professors.
The last Potter would have been lying if he said that he wasn't impressed. McGonagall seemed to want to actually improve the school and enhance the curriculum a bit. Apparently, she liked the extra electives in Beauxbatons and wanted to introduce a few of them in Britain. It was ambitious, to say the least, but it was something that the castle needed after decades of stagnation and even regression because of Dumbledore's administration.
Still, considering the issue at hand, "Do you think it will be enough?"
The fake Unspeakable replied, "Look if it was just fighting a few beasts or a team of mages, I'd say they had a chance at winning. But, no matter how much time you had to train them, they wouldn't have fared well against six teams of mages and seven magical creatures, who are most likely going to directly go after them. You taught them enough to hide and try to use whatever tools they had but the sad truth is that the odds are definitely not in their favour. They never would have been, even if you had more time."
"I don't need them to win. I need them to hold on for long enough for the plan to work… Speaking of which, have you wrapped up your side of the preparations?"
"Come on," the woman retorted while fluttering her eyelashes at him in a way that could be interpreted as innocent, but that Harry found disturbing on a grown woman's face, "would I ever disappoint you?"
She pouted and rolled her eyes before continuing, "Fine. Everything is in order. To be honest, I didn't expect you to ask this of all things."
"Desperate times call for desperate measures. What about the magic release detectors?"
Lily looked hesitant at his request before nodding, "I put them in place. We should be able to triangulate any large magical release in the area. Do you think it's a good idea to mess with whatever ritual Dumbledore is performing?"
"It could be dangerous and I'm not messing with it. I'm just trying to understand what it is. You can't tell me that whatever Dumbledore has planned, especially something of this scale, would be easy to handle. Plus, Isabella Zabini is the more pressing issue now. We still have five other tasks to figure out what Dumbledore's angle is."
"You could have just killed the bitch and been done with it," the older witch commented with a dry tone as if she didn't care if her son murdered someone.
It was moments like these that Harry could tell just how distorted Lily's worldview was. No mother would ever suggest killing the mother of her son's friend, even if that person was a serial killer who had threatened to kill one of his friends. And there were a lot of ways to deal with the woman. Ways far more subtle and which, more importantly, did not require him to commit murder.
He knew that she meant well, in her own weird way. For example, the fact that she put a bounty on him during the first task was effective in getting people to actively seek him out, instead of him hunting them. It was wrong, but it was efficient.
Harry did have that tendency… To make plans that were logically correct, but that weren't morally right… Meeting Lily was like meeting an extreme version of himself, and that had been a wake-up call as to where the path Harry was taking could lead.
Deciding not to condone the murder of Isabella Zabini, "I don't think Blaise would think kindly of me making him an orphan. Of course, that's besides the fact that the Italian ministry would take custody of him, probably bring him back to Rome, and maybe even force him to spread the Zabini crest. The sad truth is that Blaise is protected by his mother until he reaches his majority."
"Spoilsport," Lily retorted. The redhead had been incensed when she heard about the Black Widow's ultimatum, and Harry had to calm her down to stop her from burning her powerbase to the ground, "Wait a minute, you're confident. Oh, you figured out what her angle was, huh?"
"Yes, and I have taken measures to counter that. Whatever happens, she will not come out of this as a winner. In fact, she will lose quite a bit."
"And do you think that abiding by her deal but making her lose will stop her from killing that Tracy girl?"
Harry snorted, "Of course not… Not if her plan just doesn't pan out. Unfortunately, she held a knife to my friend's throat, hoping to manipulate me. It's only right that I do the same to her… I think she'll respect the terms then."
"It's always plans within plans with you, Harry. You're overcomplicating a very simple problem… You're trying to be smart, that's your problem, and you're expecting everything around you to be the same. You enjoy the chase, making your opponents bewildered as you defeat them, utterly and completely… You love the thrill it gives you."
The last Potter suppressed the urge to shudder at her accurate description. Lily continued, "It's all so nice and pretty until one day, you meet someone who doesn't care about pretty plans and schemes. One day, you'll get something wrong, and all your plans will just fall apart. And if you're really unlucky, you'll lose something precious, something that you can never get back. It's what happened to me, after all. I tried to be clever. And I was so, so clever. I tried to use a war for my benefit, for my freedom. I manipulated James, I manipulated everyone around me, really. And when I ended up faced with an entire army, with you in danger, I was lost. I did something dangerous and very reckless. I didn't expect Sirius to act so rashly, I didn't expect many things. And it cost me you…"
"I'm still here," Harry tried to console her.
"You are, but you know as much as I do that it's not enough. I lost the opportunity to raise you, to settle down and be free together. I lost over a decade of time with you, the most important decade, and when you needed me the most, I wasn't there. I won't say that I would have been the perfect mother, but I can't help but wonder what would have happened if I hadn't tried to be clever if I had just taken the fight to them and not schemed to be in the eye of the storm, safe and sound. But that's my regret, my greatest mistake, and I sincerely hope that you won't end up the same way as well."
The redhead turned and walked away before giving him one last look, "Think about what I said. I might not have had the privilege of raising you, Harry, but I hope that I can, at least, help you avoid the mistakes I made in my life. Good luck tomorrow, and I hope everything goes well."
And just like that, she left the arena, and Harry was alone with his thoughts. Needless to say, he did not sleep well that night.
AN: So the second task will start in the next chapter and I'm kinda excited to have one without Harry competing (Don't worry, he won't be idle). I know this chapter was kinda dry but it'll be very important later. As usual please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
20 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry smirked as he sent another round of stinging hexes at his three victims, or maybe it would have been better to call them his students, while they were defending against four of the beasts that he had animated. He found that stinging hexes and curses were painful enough to motivate them to not get hit, without really injuring any of them. It did help that he had jailbroken the spells to be able to modify the power output, so he could use them as a normal attack spell.
To be perfectly honest, this was sort of entertaining, not to mention mentally straining for Harry. In a real-world scenario, if he fought a group of wizards, he would not animate magical creatures while casting spells. There were thousands of better ways to fight. Still, the goal wasn't to defeat them but to train them and simulate what they would face in the second task.
However, this was a good exercise for Harry. Animating four constructs while casting spells whose paths were warped to simulate being attacked by different teams of mages was a feat of multitasking that very few people could manage, and it was entertaining.
He had stolen the animation charm from Lupin the previous year. It was surprisingly insightful as far as animation charms went. The animated creatures could be as fast as Harry himself could think, and they could be combined with a faint reflective rune shield to simulate magical resistance… Sure, Harry had modified it a bit to include some of the creatures' instincts in the animation, and cast a few spells to simulate their attacks…
It wasn't a perfect simulation of the magical creatures, but it was good enough to train the Hogwarts starting champions. Honestly, they were a sorry lot. Diggory was alright, magically at least, but had this whole knight in shining armour ideal that forced him to make stupid decisions. He kept overcommitting to attacks to prevent his teammates from getting hurt, even if they could have handled it themselves. Johnson took too many risks, and Chang rarely committed to an attack fully and had a tendency to overthink things.
If he had a full summer with them, Harry could have turned them into a great team. But at the moment, they were just competent. What Harry had done was make sure that they wouldn't embarrass themselves or really be surprised during the task. He had taught them spells specifically made to alter the environment and tutored them on the weaknesses of each creature they would end up fighting, not that they knew that these were the same creatures.
Seeing that they had gotten the gist of the exercise and that it was getting late enough, Harry decided to let them get to bed with a win. He actively made sure to weaken his animated creatures and slow them down. Ten minutes later, the four beasts were gone and each of the animated mannequins that simulated the human opponents had been taken out.
Honestly, Harry didn't want to burst their bubble, so he let them have their confidence. He gave them a faint smirk, "Well done. I believe you should have a nice break. After all, you have a big day ahead of you tomorrow."
"We have this in the bag," Johnson exclaimed.
Harry suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and thankfully Diggory made is so that he didn't really need to make a comment, "Thanks for the help, Potter."
"Don't worry about it," he just replied.
"Out of curiosity," the Hufflepuff continued, "how the hell can you cast spells that curve in the air the way they do?"
Of course, Harry wasn't going to tell him that he was warping the fabric of space to modify his spell's trajectory so instead, he said, "Trade secret, I'm afraid."
"Fine, I know when to stop digging," Diggory retorted before turning and joining his fellow champions outside of the arena.
When they all left, Harry spoke up loudly, "You can come out now."
Lily Evans removed her invisibility charm with a snicker, "Very impressive detection skills, and an even more impressive use of multitasking."
"What do you think?"
"About the brats? You did some good work with them, I'll admit that, but they're a far cry from a winning team…"
Harry scoffed, "I never expected them to win, especially since Hogwarts will most likely be targeted for winning the previous task."
"And whose fault is that?"
"Maybe it's mine, but I think I more than made up for it with my tutoring. I thought that with the teams being announced without me as a champion they would have laid off on Hogwarts."
The redhead snorted, "Yes, but as per the task rules, McGonagall could choose anyone to join the task if the team gets one of the keys. The other competitors will want to take them out before then, just so that they can't ask you to join."
Harry hummed. McGonagall had publicly stated that he wasn't going to enter the task. The news was met with a mixture of scepticism and cautious elation, even if it was 'leaked' to the press by one of the task organizers…
Apparently, the ICW organizers were pretty desperate to stop him from steamrolling the event, hoping that it would have some credibility. From what Harry could discern, McGonagall, while knowing that Harry had no intention on competing, still leveraged his lack of participation for a hefty donation to the school and a contract for the ICW to give them funding for a proper research centre in the castle and to provide the school with competent academics in case she needed to replace any professors.
The last Potter would have been lying if he said that he wasn't impressed. McGonagall seemed to want to actually improve the school and enhance the curriculum a bit. Apparently, she liked the extra electives in Beauxbatons and wanted to introduce a few of them in Britain. It was ambitious, to say the least, but it was something that the castle needed after decades of stagnation and even regression because of Dumbledore's administration.
Still, considering the issue at hand, "Do you think it will be enough?"
The fake Unspeakable replied, "Look if it was just fighting a few beasts or a team of mages, I'd say they had a chance at winning. But, no matter how much time you had to train them, they wouldn't have fared well against six teams of mages and seven magical creatures, who are most likely going to directly go after them. You taught them enough to hide and try to use whatever tools they had but the sad truth is that the odds are definitely not in their favour. They never would have been, even if you had more time."
"I don't need them to win. I need them to hold on for long enough for the plan to work… Speaking of which, have you wrapped up your side of the preparations?"
"Come on," the woman retorted while fluttering her eyelashes at him in a way that could be interpreted as innocent, but that Harry found disturbing on a grown woman's face, "would I ever disappoint you?"
She pouted and rolled her eyes before continuing, "Fine. Everything is in order. To be honest, I didn't expect you to ask this of all things."
"Desperate times call for desperate measures. What about the magic release detectors?"
Lily looked hesitant at his request before nodding, "I put them in place. We should be able to triangulate any large magical release in the area. Do you think it's a good idea to mess with whatever ritual Dumbledore is performing?"
"It could be dangerous and I'm not messing with it. I'm just trying to understand what it is. You can't tell me that whatever Dumbledore has planned, especially something of this scale, would be easy to handle. Plus, Isabella Zabini is the more pressing issue now. We still have five other tasks to figure out what Dumbledore's angle is."
"You could have just killed the bitch and been done with it," the older witch commented with a dry tone as if she didn't care if her son murdered someone.
It was moments like these that Harry could tell just how distorted Lily's worldview was. No mother would ever suggest killing the mother of her son's friend, even if that person was a serial killer who had threatened to kill one of his friends. And there were a lot of ways to deal with the woman. Ways far more subtle and which, more importantly, did not require him to commit murder.
He knew that she meant well, in her own weird way. For example, the fact that she put a bounty on him during the first task was effective in getting people to actively seek him out, instead of him hunting them. It was wrong, but it was efficient.
Harry did have that tendency… To make plans that were logically correct, but that weren't morally right… Meeting Lily was like meeting an extreme version of himself, and that had been a wake-up call as to where the path Harry was taking could lead.
Deciding not to condone the murder of Isabella Zabini, "I don't think Blaise would think kindly of me making him an orphan. Of course, that's besides the fact that the Italian ministry would take custody of him, probably bring him back to Rome, and maybe even force him to spread the Zabini crest. The sad truth is that Blaise is protected by his mother until he reaches his majority."
"Spoilsport," Lily retorted. The redhead had been incensed when she heard about the Black Widow's ultimatum, and Harry had to calm her down to stop her from burning her powerbase to the ground, "Wait a minute, you're confident. Oh, you figured out what her angle was, huh?"
"Yes, and I have taken measures to counter that. Whatever happens, she will not come out of this as a winner. In fact, she will lose quite a bit."
"And do you think that abiding by her deal but making her lose will stop her from killing that Tracy girl?"
Harry snorted, "Of course not… Not if her plan just doesn't pan out. Unfortunately, she held a knife to my friend's throat, hoping to manipulate me. It's only right that I do the same to her… I think she'll respect the terms then."
"It's always plans within plans with you, Harry. You're overcomplicating a very simple problem… You're trying to be smart, that's your problem, and you're expecting everything around you to be the same. You enjoy the chase, making your opponents bewildered as you defeat them, utterly and completely… You love the thrill it gives you."
The last Potter suppressed the urge to shudder at her accurate description. Lily continued, "It's all so nice and pretty until one day, you meet someone who doesn't care about pretty plans and schemes. One day, you'll get something wrong, and all your plans will just fall apart. And if you're really unlucky, you'll lose something precious, something that you can never get back. It's what happened to me, after all. I tried to be clever. And I was so, so clever. I tried to use a war for my benefit, for my freedom. I manipulated James, I manipulated everyone around me, really. And when I ended up faced with an entire army, with you in danger, I was lost. I did something dangerous and very reckless. I didn't expect Sirius to act so rashly, I didn't expect many things. And it cost me you…"
"I'm still here," Harry tried to console her.
"You are, but you know as much as I do that it's not enough. I lost the opportunity to raise you, to settle down and be free together. I lost over a decade of time with you, the most important decade, and when you needed me the most, I wasn't there. I won't say that I would have been the perfect mother, but I can't help but wonder what would have happened if I hadn't tried to be clever if I had just taken the fight to them and not schemed to be in the eye of the storm, safe and sound. But that's my regret, my greatest mistake, and I sincerely hope that you won't end up the same way as well."
The redhead turned and walked away before giving him one last look, "Think about what I said. I might not have had the privilege of raising you, Harry, but I hope that I can, at least, help you avoid the mistakes I made in my life. Good luck tomorrow, and I hope everything goes well."
And just like that, she left the arena, and Harry was alone with his thoughts. Needless to say, he did not sleep well that night.
AN: So the second task will start in the next chapter and I'm kinda excited to have one without Harry competing (Don't worry, he won't be idle). I know this chapter was kinda dry but it'll be very important later. As usual please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
He really shouldn't care if she does or not, it feels pretty obvious that she doesn't actually care. Hoping he just uses her till he can get rid of her permanently. Shouldn't risk having a crazy person like that out and about.
Chapter 281: Beneath the Hound
Chapter 281: Beneath the Hound
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Fleur Delacour was anxiously waiting in the Beauxbatons preparation room, readying herself for the second task of the European School Tournament. After her quick thinking and performance in the previous task, she was a shoo-in for this one. She didn't even get a choice in the matter. To be fair, Madame Maxime had faced a lot of criticism considering how the first task was concluded. The fact that the Beauxbatons champions ended up in second place was the only reason the politicians were placated. Still, logistically, the two-day event stopped being relevant after just a few hours, and that had left a lot of businesses which had rented stalls or even put up a few shops, in a very awkward position.
Fleur, in return, was lauded as the saviour of Beauxbatons… She had never been this popular with her schoolmates due to her nature and she didn't expect it to be so… uncomfortable. It had been something that she'd wished for when she was younger, but she felt undeserving of the title. She hadn't done anything impressive, she just faked being stunned and followed the Hogwarts Champions. That was it…
The end result was undeniable. She felt shackled by the expectations of others… She saw people instinctively look at her, not because of her beauty, but because of her deeds, and she hated it… More people paid attention to what she did, and it was just so stifling.
It was especially bad considering what would happen in the second task. It was barely more than an illusion that the tasks were not biased to the schools that were hosting them. In Beauxbatons, they were taught in their first year which creatures lived in the enchanted forest surrounding it and how to deal with them in case they accidentally ended up there. They also knew the general organisation of the forest and where the safest areas were. Even if they'd never entered the forest, the information was a goldmine. It was a subtle way for Madame Maxime to give her students an advantage.
The Romans had done the same, but they weren't nearly as subtle about it. Apparently, the task was a more difficult version of their 'war games'. Students had classes where they had to face magical creatures in an arena or fight other teams of students as well. It was an obvious way to give an advantage to their school.
Madame Maxime entered the room and all three champions stiffened. She spoke in a neutral tone, "I know that this task will not be easy. It will be chaotic and unpredictable. However, I entrust our school's honour to you… I want you to go into this arena, fight as a team, and do your best."
They all nodded, and the headmistress gave them a soft smile, "Alright. The task will start in just five minutes. You'll hear a loud bang, and the gates will open. Revise your plans, prepare yourselves… Good luck."
She then turned and left, leaving Fleur alone with her fellow champions. She was thankful that her best friend, Aurelie Dumont, wasn't forced to compete. The girl's strength was in the subtle arts, especially in Alchemy. She had drooled at the idea of Nicholas Flamel's diary being a prize for the first task and wished that she could have competed, if only for the small chance of getting this treasure and becoming the best alchemist in the world. Realistically, she wouldn't have won with Harry Potter participating, but it was nice to entertain her thoughts.
No, Fleur was joined by Eloise Fontaine, who hadn't had the opportunity to show off what she could do in the previous task, and Arthur Laurant, a muggleborn in the year below her, who was rumoured to be very good at duelling.
She gave Eloise a pointed look, "Do you remember the plan?"
"We're not idiots Delacour. I know you're France's darling and all, but that doesn't give you any authority over us."
"I wasn't aware that I had any… I just wanted to make sure that we're all on the same page."
Arthur, ever the conciliator, decided to intervene, "There's no harm in doing it…"
Fontaine groaned, "Fine. Arthur will conjure a wall to prevent us from being attacked from all sides and the two of us should sneak under a disillusionment charm to see the location of each team and which beasts they're forcing us to face. We'll target the weakest beasts first to get more people in. The idea is to get two, but one would do if only to not be at a disadvantage. Then, we'll either fortify our position or go to attack the remaining teams, depending on our position and who is left. It's not a complicated plan, Delacour, so stop being a bitch and leave us in peace."
She was going to return a cutting remark, but Arthur decided to change the subject, "What about Potter?"
"What about him?" Fleur returned.
"Well, did you seriously believe his headmistress when she said that he wasn't participating in the task? It could easily be a ploy to lower our guard and just have him come onto the field when they beat one magical creature. They have to know that everyone would target them if Potter could be participating."
Fleur nodded. She could understand the scepticism. Harry Potter had ruffled a lot of feathers during the first task. The Italian ministry didn't want to suffer the same fate as the previous organizers and there were even rumours that they'd asked a few seedy businessmen – which was a nice way to say members of organised crime – to intervene. Anyway, things had started to calm down when the headmistress said that Harry had no intention of participating in the second task, but the Veela thought that there had to have been a few deals made to get Minerva McGonagall to essentially give up on the second task.
Either way, since only the initial champions were announced and Harry wasn't among them, people had started to calm down, but there was always the implicit threat that they might bring him on later, which was why everyone was targeting them.
Still, Fleur wasn't exactly convinced, "I think the British wouldn't go back on whatever deal they made with the ICW. They're not in a position to risk angering anyone, really, especially after the Quidditch World Cup."
"I hope you're right," Fontaine said with a cautious tone, "Because if you're not and Hogwarts manages to take down even a single creature…"
She didn't have the time to continue since she was interrupted by a loud bang and the steel gates to the arena opening up. They quickly got up and ran forward. Just ten seconds in and half of the plan was gone. A giant sandstorm was enveloping the arena, blinding everyone…
The sand was fast enough to hurt her, and the wind was making it hard to move. Cursing, Fleur conjured a weather shield, a surprisingly handy spell considering that she had leaned it on a whim. Fleur extended her shield to envelop her fellow champions and spoke up, "Arthur, the wall, now!"
Understanding what she meant, he raised his wand and moved the earth itself into a raised wall. Fleur quickly enchanted the wall itself to create a weather shield for whoever was behind it, as well as put up a few fast war wards that her tutors taught her. By the end of it, her magic circuits were burning from the exertion, and she hissed in pain.
Eloise looked surprised and spoke up, "Are you alright?"
"I used a bit too much magic at once. I need a few minutes of rest."
The other girl seemed to hesitate for a couple of seconds before she grabbed Fleur's hand, which started to glow white. Suddenly, the burning and the aches disappeared, "What did you do?"
"That's not important now. We need to figure out what to do next. This fucking sandstorm is a nightmare."
Arthur spoke up, "We need some more information about what's happening. Do you have any ideas?"
Fleur nodded, "Sure, but I'll need someone to cover me."
They both nodded and Fleur grabbed the roundest rock she could find and started to enchant it while carving runes into it. It took almost ten minutes, but she had a working artefact. It was shoddy work at best, but it was the best she could do without any proper materials. She threw the rock into the air which started floating and activated the enchantment.
She saw the rock move near the middle of the arena. The other competitors had created safe zones from the sandstorm, which seemed to have originated from the Spanish Champions. They were switching every couple of minutes to power an artefact that activated the sandstorm. It seemed like they were immune from its effects or at least could see through it easily enough considering that there were four of them. They must have already taken out a beast…
Shit, this was really bad.
She looked to the other side and saw a vortex of wind which held a miniature battlefield inside. Five people in Roman uniforms were fighting off three people in Durmstrang uniforms. Damn, that was another beast taken out. She saw one of the Durmstrang competitors get overwhelmed by two spells at once, before disappearing into mist. Huh, so that's how they made sure no one would get hurt.
The Durmstrang students were very good, but the experience and teamwork from the Romans gave them a large advantage over their opponents. The fact that they had two extra champions probably helped matters. They were the most likely victors.
As for the other delegations, she couldn't see them. They were probably fighting in the fog that she couldn't see through on the other side of the arena. The Nebelheim and Olympus champions had probably gone after each other or Hogwarts.
Now, she needed to look for the beasts. Considering that three of them were gone, they were quickly running out of time. She quickly found them. There was a Griffin flying around, dissipating the sand on their way. She saw a Minotaur come out of the fog on the other side of the arena, and what seemed to be a giant wolf approaching the Spanish Champions. She kept looking for the fourth beast, only to hear a loud roar. She made the enchanted rock turn and saw a giant lion giving her a dirty look. With another roar, she felt her connection to the rock disappear. Did that thing just disintegrate the rock with just a single roar?
Still, it was similar to one of the creatures she'd read about in a book, a Nemean Lion. She murmured, "There's no way in hell we're going after that thing."
"What did you see?" Eloise asked.
"The other side has this weird fog. Couldn't see anything there, but three of the beasts have already been taken out. The Spanish are the ones who are powering the sandstorm. There's also a giant Wolf near them, which looks like an Alpha Mongrel. It's the best option considering the rest. Eloise and I will go after them… Arthur, we need you to defend this place. If we beat a beast and grab its key, you'll need to tell our reinforcements about our plan."
The Veela then summoned a stick, "I just enchanted this. Break it as a distress signal and we'll know that you're under attack."
The two girls immediately nodded, and Fleur put on the weather-blocking charm once more, and they quietly walked towards the Spanish camp. It was pretty well defended, but she knew from watching what Harry did in the first task that their security wards weren't that great. Suddenly, she had an idea… It was something that she had practised before, and she loved it.
She removed her bracelet, which set her allure free and started to sing. Enchanting a voice was something of an art. It was a personal thing, which singers all over the world mastered to the extreme to fully convey the meaning of their songs. Fleur had taken it to the extreme and had put on a compulsion with her allure on it. It bypassed the feeble wards that the Spanish had put in place and the Spanish Champions started to feel dizzy and fell asleep quickly enough.
Fleur pointed at Eloise, "The Alpha Mongrel should be around. I'll take the sandstorm artefact that they were using and see if they have anything else that's interesting. Don't touch anything, it could be cursed. Let me know if you find the Alpha Mongrel…"
Eloise nodded without saying a word and Fleur quickly dispelled the curses that the Spanish had put up and stunned them. Each time, they disappeared when she did so. And just like that the Spanish Champions were gone.
She grabbed the sandstorm artefact… There was nothing about stealing your enemies' weapons in the rules and this could be useful later. Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar scream. Eloise, she must have gotten into trouble.
She ran towards her teammate and found her limping while doing her best to fend off the giant wolf. Fleur summoned her by her robes, making her groan in pain, "I thought I told you not to fight it alone?"
"It ambushed me…" she gaped back.
"Send your strongest stunner at it at the count of three. One! Two! Three!"
Two jets of light hit the snarling giant wolf in the head, and it was knocked unconscious. Fleur, victoriously, grabbed the key, "We need to get back to Arthur and regroup now."
She was about to do just that, but she felt something fall all over the Spanish camp. It was some kind of red liquid that she quickly recognized to be blood. Disgusted, she quickly put on a detection charm to see what had happened and was confused when she realized that this was goat blood. It didn't make any sense. It didn't have any particular magical use outside the fact… Outside the fact that it was a lure for Griffins.
Right as she noticed what was happening, she heard a loud screech and saw the flying Griffin leap towards her with incredible speed. It was too fast to do anything or to conjure any shield. As she looked at her certain doom, her life flashed in front of her eyes and her thoughts turned to her sister. She wished she had spent more time with Gabrielle.
She expected this to be her last though… She expected the world to turn dark… However, she was baffled when the world turned a blinding white instead. What the fuck had just happened?
AN: I decided to start the task without the Hogwarts perspective. Considering what I had planned, I thought it would have been boring on that front. Anyway, Harry will also have some excitement coming up in the next chapter… As usual, please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Fleur Delacour was anxiously waiting in the Beauxbatons preparation room, readying herself for the second task of the European School Tournament. After her quick thinking and performance in the previous task, she was a shoo-in for this one. She didn't even get a choice in the matter. To be fair, Madame Maxime had faced a lot of criticism considering how the first task was concluded. The fact that the Beauxbatons champions ended up in second place was the only reason the politicians were placated. Still, logistically, the two-day event stopped being relevant after just a few hours, and that had left a lot of businesses which had rented stalls or even put up a few shops, in a very awkward position.
Fleur, in return, was lauded as the saviour of Beauxbatons… She had never been this popular with her schoolmates due to her nature and she didn't expect it to be so… uncomfortable. It had been something that she'd wished for when she was younger, but she felt undeserving of the title. She hadn't done anything impressive, she just faked being stunned and followed the Hogwarts Champions. That was it…
The end result was undeniable. She felt shackled by the expectations of others… She saw people instinctively look at her, not because of her beauty, but because of her deeds, and she hated it… More people paid attention to what she did, and it was just so stifling.
It was especially bad considering what would happen in the second task. It was barely more than an illusion that the tasks were not biased to the schools that were hosting them. In Beauxbatons, they were taught in their first year which creatures lived in the enchanted forest surrounding it and how to deal with them in case they accidentally ended up there. They also knew the general organisation of the forest and where the safest areas were. Even if they'd never entered the forest, the information was a goldmine. It was a subtle way for Madame Maxime to give her students an advantage.
The Romans had done the same, but they weren't nearly as subtle about it. Apparently, the task was a more difficult version of their 'war games'. Students had classes where they had to face magical creatures in an arena or fight other teams of students as well. It was an obvious way to give an advantage to their school.
Madame Maxime entered the room and all three champions stiffened. She spoke in a neutral tone, "I know that this task will not be easy. It will be chaotic and unpredictable. However, I entrust our school's honour to you… I want you to go into this arena, fight as a team, and do your best."
They all nodded, and the headmistress gave them a soft smile, "Alright. The task will start in just five minutes. You'll hear a loud bang, and the gates will open. Revise your plans, prepare yourselves… Good luck."
She then turned and left, leaving Fleur alone with her fellow champions. She was thankful that her best friend, Aurelie Dumont, wasn't forced to compete. The girl's strength was in the subtle arts, especially in Alchemy. She had drooled at the idea of Nicholas Flamel's diary being a prize for the first task and wished that she could have competed, if only for the small chance of getting this treasure and becoming the best alchemist in the world. Realistically, she wouldn't have won with Harry Potter participating, but it was nice to entertain her thoughts.
No, Fleur was joined by Eloise Fontaine, who hadn't had the opportunity to show off what she could do in the previous task, and Arthur Laurant, a muggleborn in the year below her, who was rumoured to be very good at duelling.
She gave Eloise a pointed look, "Do you remember the plan?"
"We're not idiots Delacour. I know you're France's darling and all, but that doesn't give you any authority over us."
"I wasn't aware that I had any… I just wanted to make sure that we're all on the same page."
Arthur, ever the conciliator, decided to intervene, "There's no harm in doing it…"
Fontaine groaned, "Fine. Arthur will conjure a wall to prevent us from being attacked from all sides and the two of us should sneak under a disillusionment charm to see the location of each team and which beasts they're forcing us to face. We'll target the weakest beasts first to get more people in. The idea is to get two, but one would do if only to not be at a disadvantage. Then, we'll either fortify our position or go to attack the remaining teams, depending on our position and who is left. It's not a complicated plan, Delacour, so stop being a bitch and leave us in peace."
She was going to return a cutting remark, but Arthur decided to change the subject, "What about Potter?"
"What about him?" Fleur returned.
"Well, did you seriously believe his headmistress when she said that he wasn't participating in the task? It could easily be a ploy to lower our guard and just have him come onto the field when they beat one magical creature. They have to know that everyone would target them if Potter could be participating."
Fleur nodded. She could understand the scepticism. Harry Potter had ruffled a lot of feathers during the first task. The Italian ministry didn't want to suffer the same fate as the previous organizers and there were even rumours that they'd asked a few seedy businessmen – which was a nice way to say members of organised crime – to intervene. Anyway, things had started to calm down when the headmistress said that Harry had no intention of participating in the second task, but the Veela thought that there had to have been a few deals made to get Minerva McGonagall to essentially give up on the second task.
Either way, since only the initial champions were announced and Harry wasn't among them, people had started to calm down, but there was always the implicit threat that they might bring him on later, which was why everyone was targeting them.
Still, Fleur wasn't exactly convinced, "I think the British wouldn't go back on whatever deal they made with the ICW. They're not in a position to risk angering anyone, really, especially after the Quidditch World Cup."
"I hope you're right," Fontaine said with a cautious tone, "Because if you're not and Hogwarts manages to take down even a single creature…"
She didn't have the time to continue since she was interrupted by a loud bang and the steel gates to the arena opening up. They quickly got up and ran forward. Just ten seconds in and half of the plan was gone. A giant sandstorm was enveloping the arena, blinding everyone…
The sand was fast enough to hurt her, and the wind was making it hard to move. Cursing, Fleur conjured a weather shield, a surprisingly handy spell considering that she had leaned it on a whim. Fleur extended her shield to envelop her fellow champions and spoke up, "Arthur, the wall, now!"
Understanding what she meant, he raised his wand and moved the earth itself into a raised wall. Fleur quickly enchanted the wall itself to create a weather shield for whoever was behind it, as well as put up a few fast war wards that her tutors taught her. By the end of it, her magic circuits were burning from the exertion, and she hissed in pain.
Eloise looked surprised and spoke up, "Are you alright?"
"I used a bit too much magic at once. I need a few minutes of rest."
The other girl seemed to hesitate for a couple of seconds before she grabbed Fleur's hand, which started to glow white. Suddenly, the burning and the aches disappeared, "What did you do?"
"That's not important now. We need to figure out what to do next. This fucking sandstorm is a nightmare."
Arthur spoke up, "We need some more information about what's happening. Do you have any ideas?"
Fleur nodded, "Sure, but I'll need someone to cover me."
They both nodded and Fleur grabbed the roundest rock she could find and started to enchant it while carving runes into it. It took almost ten minutes, but she had a working artefact. It was shoddy work at best, but it was the best she could do without any proper materials. She threw the rock into the air which started floating and activated the enchantment.
She saw the rock move near the middle of the arena. The other competitors had created safe zones from the sandstorm, which seemed to have originated from the Spanish Champions. They were switching every couple of minutes to power an artefact that activated the sandstorm. It seemed like they were immune from its effects or at least could see through it easily enough considering that there were four of them. They must have already taken out a beast…
Shit, this was really bad.
She looked to the other side and saw a vortex of wind which held a miniature battlefield inside. Five people in Roman uniforms were fighting off three people in Durmstrang uniforms. Damn, that was another beast taken out. She saw one of the Durmstrang competitors get overwhelmed by two spells at once, before disappearing into mist. Huh, so that's how they made sure no one would get hurt.
The Durmstrang students were very good, but the experience and teamwork from the Romans gave them a large advantage over their opponents. The fact that they had two extra champions probably helped matters. They were the most likely victors.
As for the other delegations, she couldn't see them. They were probably fighting in the fog that she couldn't see through on the other side of the arena. The Nebelheim and Olympus champions had probably gone after each other or Hogwarts.
Now, she needed to look for the beasts. Considering that three of them were gone, they were quickly running out of time. She quickly found them. There was a Griffin flying around, dissipating the sand on their way. She saw a Minotaur come out of the fog on the other side of the arena, and what seemed to be a giant wolf approaching the Spanish Champions. She kept looking for the fourth beast, only to hear a loud roar. She made the enchanted rock turn and saw a giant lion giving her a dirty look. With another roar, she felt her connection to the rock disappear. Did that thing just disintegrate the rock with just a single roar?
Still, it was similar to one of the creatures she'd read about in a book, a Nemean Lion. She murmured, "There's no way in hell we're going after that thing."
"What did you see?" Eloise asked.
"The other side has this weird fog. Couldn't see anything there, but three of the beasts have already been taken out. The Spanish are the ones who are powering the sandstorm. There's also a giant Wolf near them, which looks like an Alpha Mongrel. It's the best option considering the rest. Eloise and I will go after them… Arthur, we need you to defend this place. If we beat a beast and grab its key, you'll need to tell our reinforcements about our plan."
The Veela then summoned a stick, "I just enchanted this. Break it as a distress signal and we'll know that you're under attack."
The two girls immediately nodded, and Fleur put on the weather-blocking charm once more, and they quietly walked towards the Spanish camp. It was pretty well defended, but she knew from watching what Harry did in the first task that their security wards weren't that great. Suddenly, she had an idea… It was something that she had practised before, and she loved it.
She removed her bracelet, which set her allure free and started to sing. Enchanting a voice was something of an art. It was a personal thing, which singers all over the world mastered to the extreme to fully convey the meaning of their songs. Fleur had taken it to the extreme and had put on a compulsion with her allure on it. It bypassed the feeble wards that the Spanish had put in place and the Spanish Champions started to feel dizzy and fell asleep quickly enough.
Fleur pointed at Eloise, "The Alpha Mongrel should be around. I'll take the sandstorm artefact that they were using and see if they have anything else that's interesting. Don't touch anything, it could be cursed. Let me know if you find the Alpha Mongrel…"
Eloise nodded without saying a word and Fleur quickly dispelled the curses that the Spanish had put up and stunned them. Each time, they disappeared when she did so. And just like that the Spanish Champions were gone.
She grabbed the sandstorm artefact… There was nothing about stealing your enemies' weapons in the rules and this could be useful later. Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar scream. Eloise, she must have gotten into trouble.
She ran towards her teammate and found her limping while doing her best to fend off the giant wolf. Fleur summoned her by her robes, making her groan in pain, "I thought I told you not to fight it alone?"
"It ambushed me…" she gaped back.
"Send your strongest stunner at it at the count of three. One! Two! Three!"
Two jets of light hit the snarling giant wolf in the head, and it was knocked unconscious. Fleur, victoriously, grabbed the key, "We need to get back to Arthur and regroup now."
She was about to do just that, but she felt something fall all over the Spanish camp. It was some kind of red liquid that she quickly recognized to be blood. Disgusted, she quickly put on a detection charm to see what had happened and was confused when she realized that this was goat blood. It didn't make any sense. It didn't have any particular magical use outside the fact… Outside the fact that it was a lure for Griffins.
Right as she noticed what was happening, she heard a loud screech and saw the flying Griffin leap towards her with incredible speed. It was too fast to do anything or to conjure any shield. As she looked at her certain doom, her life flashed in front of her eyes and her thoughts turned to her sister. She wished she had spent more time with Gabrielle.
She expected this to be her last though… She expected the world to turn dark… However, she was baffled when the world turned a blinding white instead. What the fuck had just happened?
AN: I decided to start the task without the Hogwarts perspective. Considering what I had planned, I thought it would have been boring on that front. Anyway, Harry will also have some excitement coming up in the next chapter… As usual, please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
Chapter 282: Crimson Devil
Chapter 282: Crimson Devil
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry had left the cheering crowd the moment the task started. It was a shame since he would have loved to see what was going to happen, especially considering the sandstorm that the Spanish Champions had spun up. His prediction was that half of the teams would go directly at the Hogwarts delegation, while the others, the smarter ones, really, would go after the beasts and the keys they hold, since taking them all out would mean that Harry definitely wouldn't enter the task…
Unfortunately, Harry had more important things to worry about, mainly Dumbledore's plan, whatever that was. He wanted to locate the release of magic. The moment the task began, Lily's detectors started going wild… The task was definitely involved in the magic somehow.
But, that didn't make any sense… The magical release was far more powerful than what it was taking. It had to be a seal… There was no other explanation. Harry followed the trail outside the giant Gladiator pit that the Italians had built for the task.
The ritual couldn't be too far away from the crowd since magic does tend to dissipate into the atmosphere surprisingly quickly. Hundreds of thousands of people cheering, releasing their feelings and their excitement, meant that a minuscule amount of this magic was released as well, which was then collected by whatever Dumbledore had planned. The former headmaster wasn't even stealing the magic, he just used the fact that there were so many mages in the same place, so it had to be some released filter magic. It was strangely similar to what the man had planned to do to Harry with the Gardens of Avalon, only instead of just stealing all of Harry's potential magic, he was taking just the waste of hundreds of thousands of people at once. The tournament had made it so there would be at least seven events which should have similar attendance records….
But, what did Dumbledore do with the harnessed magic? The magical release was many orders of magnitude more powerful than whatever energy Dumbledore could ever harness in just a day. There was a reason why Harry was so overwhelmed by it during the first task.
Harry followed the trail with his wand raised, which kept taking him deeper into the Roman countryside, then a forest, where the air felt strangely alive. It wasn't any kind of specific enchantment, but there was magic in everything there. Leaves glimmered with a spectral light, and every tree seemed to whisper in the wind. Flickering sprites danced between branches, leading him onward. The flora was vibrant, with flowers glowing softly under the moon's caress, their colours more vivid than any artist's palette. The entire woodland thrummed with a harmonious magic, so potent and pure it felt as though the very earth under his feet pulsed with the heartbeats of centuries.
Which made the dark ominous portions inside all the more concerning. He felt the forest grow dark as if someone had turned off a cosmic light switch… It was odd. He felt as if everything around him was illuminated by moonlight and yet there was no moon in the sky. There was no sun. There were no stars. Just darkness. Harry heard something approaching him very quickly with his Arcane Hearing. He quickly warped space to the side and dodged whatever was coming at him.
He groaned when he realized what it was, "I hate vampires."
With a flick of his wrist, the vampire froze into solid ice and shattered into pieces. It was just a thrall, but he could feel the forest was filled with them. It definitely wasn't their natural habitat, and the forest was trying to reject them.
Harry noticed that he was being swarmed. He conjured a quick ice blade, cutting a few of the thralls that tried to sneak behind him, and then transformed it into an arrow that kept going after the thralls with blinding speeds, killing them all. It was a pretty handy spell that Harry had modified. Harry had tried to create a spell that could change directions mid-flight, but all he had managed was a conjuration with a few animation charms and space manipulation to create the illusion. It was far too much effort for a single spell, but it was surprisingly efficient when it came to fighting multiple enemies that didn't have a strong resistance to physical objects.
He heard clapping behind him, and another vampire materialized from the shadows. It was an Elder Vampire. Harry could tell by how similar it felt to the one that had attacked the Quidditch World Cup finals. Immediately, the young wizard was on guard, "Recognized what I am, have you? I'm even more impressed with that than with your fight against my thralls."
"Why is a Vampire Elder working with Dumbledore?"
"Oh, the little dear knows a lot, doesn't he? He does indeed. I wonder if I should tell you? I wonder if you'll even be able to handle it…"
Harry started to grow irritated, "Are you going to make sense anytime soon?"
"Oh, so hasty. Patience, young one, is a virtue. You're so fascinating, you know that? I haven't seen someone with such skill in magic in a while… Maybe a last remnant of the age of gods. No, that's not it. It's something more… Something sinister…. Something cold…."
"For fuck's sake, just answer the question. Is that so damn hard? Why are you working with Dumbledore?"
The Elder Vampire giggled, "Oh, you mean the white one. He's so passionate… Filled with so much hidden anger… He's our natural enemy, but for the first time in eons, the Light and Dark have become grey, because the circle must close… Or else everything will be lost. The circle must close."
"The white and dark have become grey?" Harry asked out loud, "Dumbledore is working with Grindelwald?"
"It not the time for answers, young Peverell. The circle must close…"
"Yeah, I got that. My question is about what you're doing here. What are you using all this magic for?"
The Vampire smirked, "Leave this forest while you still can. You will walk no further down this path…"
"I think I'm going to risk it. You're not the first Elder Vampire that I've fought."
"Perhaps, but I did not come here alone…"
Harry turned and saw four other elder vampires appear from thin air, and with them at least fifty Vampire Lords, and an entire army of thralls. He couldn't help but gulp slightly. To his Arcane Hearing, it was like a fifth of the forest had gone dark.
Instead of looking intimidated, he gave them all a large smile, "Greetings, Elders, Lords, and Thralls, if you can think, that is… As you all probably know, my name is Harry Potter. I'm guessing you're in the middle of something… I'm guessing some kind of ritual or unsealing. I'm very curious about that, but I don't think you're going to tell me about it. I want you to know before we start fighting and everything, that I'm fully prepared to accept your total surrender and let you go in peace…."
That seemed to have stunned them into silence, exactly like Harry wanted it to, "I know what you're going to say. I'm being extremely generous. But what's the point of being human if I didn't have a bit of mercy in me… Or so they say. I'm not really sure about that one, but what's life without trying out new things?"
Silence. Absolute silence. That was what met Harry's little speech. The sheer incredulity and confusion that the vampires expressed almost made the young mage burst into laughter. Unfortunately, it seemed like this was all the time he could buy; a few of the Vampire Lords, accompanied by their thralls, were leaping towards him.
Huh, it was enough to put a plan together. Hmm, five Elder Vampires, dozens of Vampire Lords, an entire swarm of thralls… All of them protected whatever ritual was being performed. It had to be something very important… Dumbledore definitely didn't want whatever this was to be interrupted.
Harry tilted to the side to avoid a spear of shadows by one of the Vampire Lords, before warping space to dodge a few of the leaping thralls. He quickly created a space pulse that threw them away and summoned one of them to block a beam of blood coming at him. He used his amateurish knowledge of Alchemy to turn the cursed body into flames, which he quickly manipulated using his space warping. The flames quickly morphed into a giant ring of fire that Harry pushed outwards.
The vampires did their best to either stifle or swallow the flames using their shadow magic. Unfortunately for them, this was not elemental magic, but primal fire created using Alchemy and imbued with their own blood curse. Almost half of the Vampire Lords and their thralls had perished in the attack before one of the elders sent a giant ball of darkness that swallowed the flames whole.
Harry wiped some of the dust from his coat and gave them all a large smile, "See what you made me do? I was all for talking and accepting your surrender… But no, you had to go out in style."
The Vampire Elder who had stopped the fire gave him a pointed look, "I was not aware that you were well-versed in Alchemy, child. As odd as your use of it is, I recognize the principles used."
"Well, I always did like being different. You know there was this whole rave about Flamel's journal and I thought I'd at least have a passing understanding of his field so that I could get something out of what was in there when I won… Unfortunately, it seemed like people had other ideas, but you know what that's like… But, there's something I noticed… You don't seem so broken up about me essentially killing off your lieutenants…"
"They were disposable…"
Harry didn't believe that. During the event of the Quidditch World Cup, the Vampire Elder attacking didn't care about a single Vampire Lord dying but became extremely agitated when Harry killed a lot of them. From what he had learned about Vampire Elders, they tended to gain long-term power from the Vampire Lords sworn to them…
If they didn't care about their underlings dying, it meant only one thing, "You don't care…"
"We live to serve our lord," one of the Elders simply retorted.
Harry decided to file that away, "You know, there's something I'm very curious about. I know you won't say anything about your lord's plan or whatever, and I'm sure I can figure it out. But what I did notice is the fact that people just do nothing when I talk. People never asked me why I do it… But if you examine things very carefully, I only really do it when I'm surrounded… It's often considered foolish to talk during battle, as many of you know… Unless, of course, you're stalling for something."
Before they could do anything, Harry opened a portal in front of him. The other side wasn't far in any way, just outside of the forest… More importantly, the location was fully exposed to the sun. And the moment the sunlight appeared from the portal every single Vampire Lord and thrall turned to dust.
Just as they were starting to come to terms with what had happened, Harry conjured another blade of ice which he imbued with the power of the resurrection stone. He warped space in front of the Elders and stabbed them each with the blade as he had done to the Elder during the Quidditch World Cup finals.
He had hoped to take them by surprise, and all but one, the first one who had spoken with him, had immediately turned to ash, dead… It was a lot easier to deal with them when he knew how to kill them.
The last remaining Elder Vampire had somehow conjured a blade of shadows and blocked his sneak attack. Harry conjured an illusion of himself that the enraged Vampire Elder pretended to be fooled by and suddenly leapt towards Harry. Just as he had planned, the last Potter activated his cloak and phased through the vampire's incoming attack, stabbing him in the back with his enchanted ice blade.
Unlike the others, Harry's last opponent didn't immediately turn into ash. He must have been stronger than the other Elders as well. The vampire went to his knees and gave the young mage a victorious look, "Do you seriously think you've won here? Distraction and misdirection can be very powerful indeed. For all your talent, you have much to learn, young Peverell."
Harry didn't let him continue and just threw the blade at the vampire, impaling him once more. He quickly dissipated into dust, but Harry didn't have time to celebrate his frankly very impressive victory. He felt the stream of magic coming from the stadium stop and heard a very loud scream on the other side of the forest.
He warped space at a ridiculous degree towards the noise. By the time he arrived, he noticed that the screaming had come from a glowing ritual circle, where a masked man was raising a glowing ritual knife towards a bound young girl.
Just as he was going to bring it down, Harry instinctively opened a portal in front of the blade to protect the girl. However, he gaped when the blade just cut through the portal as if it wasn't there. What the fuck?
He didn't have time to think of a magical explanation for what had happened, as the blade reached the young girl's heart. He felt like the entire world held its breath, then screamed. An immense pulse of magic originated from the girl's corpse, vaporizing the wizard in question, and Harry created a portal to outside the forest, landing heavily on the ground.
Harry slowly got up, feeling disoriented, and looked at the forest once more. He saw the woods darken and the leaves visibly fall… It was as if the forest itself had died during the ritual, whatever it was…
The last Potter found himself processing what the fuck he just witnessed. He had never heard or even read about something like this. He needed to speak with someone more knowledgeable than him about this stuff...
Harry looked at his watch and winced. He had disappeared for almost half an hour. He needed to get back to the tournament or his absence would be noticed, if it hadn't been already.
He couldn't help but feel like things had gotten a lot more complicated with this.
AN: To be honest, I'm kind of thinking I went a bit overboard with the whole death ritual thing, but I decided to keep it anyway since it's important for later. That said, I wanted to know your opinion on the matter and if you had any suggestions.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry had left the cheering crowd the moment the task started. It was a shame since he would have loved to see what was going to happen, especially considering the sandstorm that the Spanish Champions had spun up. His prediction was that half of the teams would go directly at the Hogwarts delegation, while the others, the smarter ones, really, would go after the beasts and the keys they hold, since taking them all out would mean that Harry definitely wouldn't enter the task…
Unfortunately, Harry had more important things to worry about, mainly Dumbledore's plan, whatever that was. He wanted to locate the release of magic. The moment the task began, Lily's detectors started going wild… The task was definitely involved in the magic somehow.
But, that didn't make any sense… The magical release was far more powerful than what it was taking. It had to be a seal… There was no other explanation. Harry followed the trail outside the giant Gladiator pit that the Italians had built for the task.
The ritual couldn't be too far away from the crowd since magic does tend to dissipate into the atmosphere surprisingly quickly. Hundreds of thousands of people cheering, releasing their feelings and their excitement, meant that a minuscule amount of this magic was released as well, which was then collected by whatever Dumbledore had planned. The former headmaster wasn't even stealing the magic, he just used the fact that there were so many mages in the same place, so it had to be some released filter magic. It was strangely similar to what the man had planned to do to Harry with the Gardens of Avalon, only instead of just stealing all of Harry's potential magic, he was taking just the waste of hundreds of thousands of people at once. The tournament had made it so there would be at least seven events which should have similar attendance records….
But, what did Dumbledore do with the harnessed magic? The magical release was many orders of magnitude more powerful than whatever energy Dumbledore could ever harness in just a day. There was a reason why Harry was so overwhelmed by it during the first task.
Harry followed the trail with his wand raised, which kept taking him deeper into the Roman countryside, then a forest, where the air felt strangely alive. It wasn't any kind of specific enchantment, but there was magic in everything there. Leaves glimmered with a spectral light, and every tree seemed to whisper in the wind. Flickering sprites danced between branches, leading him onward. The flora was vibrant, with flowers glowing softly under the moon's caress, their colours more vivid than any artist's palette. The entire woodland thrummed with a harmonious magic, so potent and pure it felt as though the very earth under his feet pulsed with the heartbeats of centuries.
Which made the dark ominous portions inside all the more concerning. He felt the forest grow dark as if someone had turned off a cosmic light switch… It was odd. He felt as if everything around him was illuminated by moonlight and yet there was no moon in the sky. There was no sun. There were no stars. Just darkness. Harry heard something approaching him very quickly with his Arcane Hearing. He quickly warped space to the side and dodged whatever was coming at him.
He groaned when he realized what it was, "I hate vampires."
With a flick of his wrist, the vampire froze into solid ice and shattered into pieces. It was just a thrall, but he could feel the forest was filled with them. It definitely wasn't their natural habitat, and the forest was trying to reject them.
Harry noticed that he was being swarmed. He conjured a quick ice blade, cutting a few of the thralls that tried to sneak behind him, and then transformed it into an arrow that kept going after the thralls with blinding speeds, killing them all. It was a pretty handy spell that Harry had modified. Harry had tried to create a spell that could change directions mid-flight, but all he had managed was a conjuration with a few animation charms and space manipulation to create the illusion. It was far too much effort for a single spell, but it was surprisingly efficient when it came to fighting multiple enemies that didn't have a strong resistance to physical objects.
He heard clapping behind him, and another vampire materialized from the shadows. It was an Elder Vampire. Harry could tell by how similar it felt to the one that had attacked the Quidditch World Cup finals. Immediately, the young wizard was on guard, "Recognized what I am, have you? I'm even more impressed with that than with your fight against my thralls."
"Why is a Vampire Elder working with Dumbledore?"
"Oh, the little dear knows a lot, doesn't he? He does indeed. I wonder if I should tell you? I wonder if you'll even be able to handle it…"
Harry started to grow irritated, "Are you going to make sense anytime soon?"
"Oh, so hasty. Patience, young one, is a virtue. You're so fascinating, you know that? I haven't seen someone with such skill in magic in a while… Maybe a last remnant of the age of gods. No, that's not it. It's something more… Something sinister…. Something cold…."
"For fuck's sake, just answer the question. Is that so damn hard? Why are you working with Dumbledore?"
The Elder Vampire giggled, "Oh, you mean the white one. He's so passionate… Filled with so much hidden anger… He's our natural enemy, but for the first time in eons, the Light and Dark have become grey, because the circle must close… Or else everything will be lost. The circle must close."
"The white and dark have become grey?" Harry asked out loud, "Dumbledore is working with Grindelwald?"
"It not the time for answers, young Peverell. The circle must close…"
"Yeah, I got that. My question is about what you're doing here. What are you using all this magic for?"
The Vampire smirked, "Leave this forest while you still can. You will walk no further down this path…"
"I think I'm going to risk it. You're not the first Elder Vampire that I've fought."
"Perhaps, but I did not come here alone…"
Harry turned and saw four other elder vampires appear from thin air, and with them at least fifty Vampire Lords, and an entire army of thralls. He couldn't help but gulp slightly. To his Arcane Hearing, it was like a fifth of the forest had gone dark.
Instead of looking intimidated, he gave them all a large smile, "Greetings, Elders, Lords, and Thralls, if you can think, that is… As you all probably know, my name is Harry Potter. I'm guessing you're in the middle of something… I'm guessing some kind of ritual or unsealing. I'm very curious about that, but I don't think you're going to tell me about it. I want you to know before we start fighting and everything, that I'm fully prepared to accept your total surrender and let you go in peace…."
That seemed to have stunned them into silence, exactly like Harry wanted it to, "I know what you're going to say. I'm being extremely generous. But what's the point of being human if I didn't have a bit of mercy in me… Or so they say. I'm not really sure about that one, but what's life without trying out new things?"
Silence. Absolute silence. That was what met Harry's little speech. The sheer incredulity and confusion that the vampires expressed almost made the young mage burst into laughter. Unfortunately, it seemed like this was all the time he could buy; a few of the Vampire Lords, accompanied by their thralls, were leaping towards him.
Huh, it was enough to put a plan together. Hmm, five Elder Vampires, dozens of Vampire Lords, an entire swarm of thralls… All of them protected whatever ritual was being performed. It had to be something very important… Dumbledore definitely didn't want whatever this was to be interrupted.
Harry tilted to the side to avoid a spear of shadows by one of the Vampire Lords, before warping space to dodge a few of the leaping thralls. He quickly created a space pulse that threw them away and summoned one of them to block a beam of blood coming at him. He used his amateurish knowledge of Alchemy to turn the cursed body into flames, which he quickly manipulated using his space warping. The flames quickly morphed into a giant ring of fire that Harry pushed outwards.
The vampires did their best to either stifle or swallow the flames using their shadow magic. Unfortunately for them, this was not elemental magic, but primal fire created using Alchemy and imbued with their own blood curse. Almost half of the Vampire Lords and their thralls had perished in the attack before one of the elders sent a giant ball of darkness that swallowed the flames whole.
Harry wiped some of the dust from his coat and gave them all a large smile, "See what you made me do? I was all for talking and accepting your surrender… But no, you had to go out in style."
The Vampire Elder who had stopped the fire gave him a pointed look, "I was not aware that you were well-versed in Alchemy, child. As odd as your use of it is, I recognize the principles used."
"Well, I always did like being different. You know there was this whole rave about Flamel's journal and I thought I'd at least have a passing understanding of his field so that I could get something out of what was in there when I won… Unfortunately, it seemed like people had other ideas, but you know what that's like… But, there's something I noticed… You don't seem so broken up about me essentially killing off your lieutenants…"
"They were disposable…"
Harry didn't believe that. During the event of the Quidditch World Cup, the Vampire Elder attacking didn't care about a single Vampire Lord dying but became extremely agitated when Harry killed a lot of them. From what he had learned about Vampire Elders, they tended to gain long-term power from the Vampire Lords sworn to them…
If they didn't care about their underlings dying, it meant only one thing, "You don't care…"
"We live to serve our lord," one of the Elders simply retorted.
Harry decided to file that away, "You know, there's something I'm very curious about. I know you won't say anything about your lord's plan or whatever, and I'm sure I can figure it out. But what I did notice is the fact that people just do nothing when I talk. People never asked me why I do it… But if you examine things very carefully, I only really do it when I'm surrounded… It's often considered foolish to talk during battle, as many of you know… Unless, of course, you're stalling for something."
Before they could do anything, Harry opened a portal in front of him. The other side wasn't far in any way, just outside of the forest… More importantly, the location was fully exposed to the sun. And the moment the sunlight appeared from the portal every single Vampire Lord and thrall turned to dust.
Just as they were starting to come to terms with what had happened, Harry conjured another blade of ice which he imbued with the power of the resurrection stone. He warped space in front of the Elders and stabbed them each with the blade as he had done to the Elder during the Quidditch World Cup finals.
He had hoped to take them by surprise, and all but one, the first one who had spoken with him, had immediately turned to ash, dead… It was a lot easier to deal with them when he knew how to kill them.
The last remaining Elder Vampire had somehow conjured a blade of shadows and blocked his sneak attack. Harry conjured an illusion of himself that the enraged Vampire Elder pretended to be fooled by and suddenly leapt towards Harry. Just as he had planned, the last Potter activated his cloak and phased through the vampire's incoming attack, stabbing him in the back with his enchanted ice blade.
Unlike the others, Harry's last opponent didn't immediately turn into ash. He must have been stronger than the other Elders as well. The vampire went to his knees and gave the young mage a victorious look, "Do you seriously think you've won here? Distraction and misdirection can be very powerful indeed. For all your talent, you have much to learn, young Peverell."
Harry didn't let him continue and just threw the blade at the vampire, impaling him once more. He quickly dissipated into dust, but Harry didn't have time to celebrate his frankly very impressive victory. He felt the stream of magic coming from the stadium stop and heard a very loud scream on the other side of the forest.
He warped space at a ridiculous degree towards the noise. By the time he arrived, he noticed that the screaming had come from a glowing ritual circle, where a masked man was raising a glowing ritual knife towards a bound young girl.
Just as he was going to bring it down, Harry instinctively opened a portal in front of the blade to protect the girl. However, he gaped when the blade just cut through the portal as if it wasn't there. What the fuck?
He didn't have time to think of a magical explanation for what had happened, as the blade reached the young girl's heart. He felt like the entire world held its breath, then screamed. An immense pulse of magic originated from the girl's corpse, vaporizing the wizard in question, and Harry created a portal to outside the forest, landing heavily on the ground.
Harry slowly got up, feeling disoriented, and looked at the forest once more. He saw the woods darken and the leaves visibly fall… It was as if the forest itself had died during the ritual, whatever it was…
The last Potter found himself processing what the fuck he just witnessed. He had never heard or even read about something like this. He needed to speak with someone more knowledgeable than him about this stuff...
Harry looked at his watch and winced. He had disappeared for almost half an hour. He needed to get back to the tournament or his absence would be noticed, if it hadn't been already.
He couldn't help but feel like things had gotten a lot more complicated with this.
AN: To be honest, I'm kind of thinking I went a bit overboard with the whole death ritual thing, but I decided to keep it anyway since it's important for later. That said, I wanted to know your opinion on the matter and if you had any suggestions.
...I know that this seems like a Loss but it's actually a Massive Screwup on Dumbass and Grins...SOMEONE knows that they are up to something concerning the cycle of Light and Dark...and i love how outclassed you made that vampire...unfortunately for him Harry is a GodSlayer.
Arimai
Curmudgeon
Dumbledore just keeps adding more and more reasons to kill him and ritualistic desecration of his corpse.
Chapter 283: The Cursed Reaper
Chapter 283: The Cursed Reaper
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry looked at his watch and winced. He had disappeared for almost half an hour. He needed to get back to the tournament or his absence would be noticed, if it hadn't been already. He couldn't help but feel like things had gotten a lot more complicated with this.
The last Potter used his cloak to sneak past the second task's security. He slowly walked to the stands, where the rest of the Hogwarts delegation sat in anticipation. And yet, he couldn't really care about the outcome of the task, no matter how much he had planned for it.
Instead, his mind was occupied by what he had just witnessed. He hadn't had the time to even digest what he had seen. He couldn't shake the image of the small girl with olive-coloured skin pleading silently for her attacker to spare her.
There was no justification for Dumbledore allowing this to happen. The girl was innocent. She was just a child…
Harry wasn't the most emotional of people. He would admit that fact easily. He could be apathetic sometimes, and he rarely cared for the fates of people he considered to be strangers. It was why, for all the lives he had saved, for all the extraordinary things he had accomplished, he would never consider himself to be a hero. He was just too selfish to be one…
But this was the first time he had seen a child die at the hands of another, and it disturbed him immensely. He didn't know how to describe it. It was a mixture of grief for the lost potential of the girl, mixed with regret and hatred at her assailants.
He couldn't refute that he also had his part to play in this. He had done as he always did and kept talking, hoping to distract his opponents so that he could put in place his convoluted plan, to be so clever. He had never considered the fact that the vampires allowed him to talk because they were also buying time for the ritual to be ready…
He could have probably saved the girl by avoiding the fight altogether and creating a portal to the girl and getting her out himself. But no, he had to fight…. He had to be clever.
Harry had failed before… Voldemort had almost killed him in his first year, Tom Riddle had tricked him many times in his second year, Dumbledore had trapped him in his third year, and that was just the tip of the iceberg… But he was always the one who paid for the consequences of his failure, or at least, he was able to stop them from affecting other people.
This was different… The girl, whose face just wouldn't leave his head, had died… She was a complete stranger, and it didn't make sense for him to be so hung up about it, and yet he was.
He knew that Dumbledore could be ruthless. Harry was thirteen years old when he'd trapped him in the Gardens of Avalon, but he always thought that it was about futureproofing his plans. Harry was a threat and he wanted it to be dealt with easily enough…
But he never expected the Light Champion to allow the killing of a girl in cold blood, just to power a ritual…
He needed answers. Something just wasn't right.
Harry's train of thought was interrupted by the masked form of Lily nudging him with a worried tone, "Are you alright? What happened?"
"Yes, I'm fine. You sensed the magical release?"
She nodded, "It was stronger than the first task. A lot stronger…"
"Huh, I thought so too… But then again, it happened right in front of me."
"What did you see?"
Harry swallowed and forced himself to speak, "I followed the trail of magic. There were vampires using some kind of shadow magic to be able to move around. We fought and I beat them. But, I wasn't fast enough. They were protecting this ritual. The magic from the stadium was powering this knife… They used it to kill a girl, barely more than a child. I tried to stop it, but it cut through my portal somehow…"
"That doesn't make any sense… A magical release of this size can't have been done from the sacrifice of an entire city, let alone a single person. The magic taken from the stadium alone would have been more than the sacrifice of a single girl… It just doesn't add up."
"A girl died… A child, not even at the age of coming to Hogwarts… Dead because of Dumbledore's plan. Dead because I was overconfident… and all you care about is how it doesn't make sense?"
The woman's voice got softer, "Of course I do… I know you probably feel like shit. I know I have, and I made a lot of mistakes, trust me. A lot of people died on my watch… It's a horrible feeling. But the sad truth is that hundreds of little girls, just like her, die every day. One more or one less doesn't make a difference. Dumbledore's plan, whatever it is, can have large-scale consequences. Stop thinking about the little girl that you failed and focus on the wider picture."
Harry wanted to yell at the woman but thought that it wasn't fair for him to do so when she was trying to comfort him, in her own weird way. He just nodded.
The masked redhead continued, "From what you said, I think that the purpose of the magic was to enhance the knife. The fact that it cut through your portal meant that the magic it absorbed was so overwhelming that any spell wouldn't affect it. It's a pretty old art, used in the old days to cut through certain wards during sieges. Using something like this to kill a girl would have been very counterproductive, but using it to bypass some kind of protection that she had, something that kept her safe, could explain the magical release. But, it had to be one hell of an enchantment, though, to cause something of this magnitude."
Was she trying to distract him with arcane knowledge? It was strangely working in this weird way. Harry decided to humour her a bit, "I guess so… But what kind of magical enchantment could be this powerful?"
"An old blood curse, maybe?" she replied sounding relieved, "Technically speaking, a blade imbued with such magic could cut through a blood pact, and the magic release from the blood pact could have a similar effect. But, the curse would have to be very powerful, considering the magical release. Still, a blade enhanced like this could cut through the magic itself, killing the girl was completely unnecessary. And it's definitely not like Dumbledore to do something like this… Sure, he could be ruthless and pragmatic, but killing kids for no reason isn't something he would condone, especially if there's another way to achieve the same result."
"Are you seriously defending the man? And the vampires did say that he was working with Grindelwald for some reason."
Lily froze, "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes. They said something about the Light and Dark Ones becoming allies. You seem worried. Why are you worried?"
"No, it's just that… The Light and Dark Champions should instinctively want to kill each other. Any partnership always ends in a battle and suffering. There is a reason why the Great War was so destructive and left massive scars all over the continent. For Dumbledore to risk another partnership with Grindelwald… Something big has to be happening. We've been planning on another great war, another fight, but what if we were going about things all wrong…"
Flamel's words about Ragnarök came to mind, but Harry didn't say anything. He was still coming to grips with the situation… The hidden redhead continued, "I'll try to figure out what I can. Give me a couple of days to figure this out. Tonight, I want you to conjure me an illusion of the girl in question, and I'll try to figure out who she was. It might give us a better idea about what's really going on."
"I can do that myself," Harry protested.
"I know you can. But can you do that and also take care of the situation with Isabella Zabini?"
He suppressed a groan. He had almost forgotten about the woman… As satisfying as it would be to wipe her smug smirk from her face and stop her from killing Tracy, he was so preoccupied with what had happened in the forest that it almost felt… underwhelming, in a weird way.
"You have a point. But, tell me when you find something. By the way, what's happening on that front? Are they doing well?"
"This task was actually pretty interesting. Every beast other than the Minotaur, the Griffin, and the Nemean Lion has been eliminated. Two by the Romans, one by the Spanish and one by the French. As for the teams, Durmstrang couldn't really do much against the Romans, even if they were able to take out just one of them. The Spanish were eliminated first at the hands of Beauxbatons, which was pretty surprising. The Veela girl, Delacour, I think, charmed her voice and put them all to sleep. But, the Italians are sending some goat blood at her to get the Griffin to do their job for them. Pretty efficient, to be honest."
He hummed in approval a bit. She was right, the task sounded pretty exciting, "What about Hogwarts?"
"Your teammates were immediately swarmed by Nebelheim and Olympus. The Gryffindor girl, Johnson, was taken out early on, but she took two Nebelheim Champions with her. That fog spell of yours was very effective. Diggory took out one of the Olympus champions as well. They're looking to get the minotaur to win, but elemental magic from Olympus is pushing them back."
Harry snorted, "A surprisingly good showing considering that I trained them for just a few days."
He grinned as the crow cheered when Cho lured a Nebelheim champion in with a spell, only for him to be stunned in the back by Diggory. Since they had full vision in the fog, that gave them a tremendous advantage. And the fog was very hard to dispel or dissipate with wind magic. The spell didn't even conjure a fog. It was a large-scale light illusion that was already calculated when Harry created the spell. Honestly, they would have been screwed if the competitors specialized in illusion magic, but Harry had checked the list of competitors beforehand and there wasn't anyone who really bothered with the field. Illusions weren't all that flashy, really…
Magic or no magic, teenagers still liked flashy things.
Speaking of flashy things, Fleur's partner sent a blinding white spell at the Griffin that was attacking the blood-soaked Veela. She hadn't even used her wand, so that must have been a family crest… Interesting. Harry didn't know that there were any crests remaining in France. The revolution a couple of centuries prior had caused the extinction of most old family lines in the country.
Anyway, the spell did not hurt the Griffin. Instead, the Eagle-Lion hybrid froze… Hmm, she'd taken control over the beast. Huh, it must have been a very powerful spell to subjugate the will of a creature that strong. The girl took the key from the Griffin's body and quickly checked over Fleur. With a flick of her wand, the blood had disappeared, and with a glare, she said something to the Griffin, which flew up into the air and in turn, started to attack the Italians with unnatural ferocity.
On the other side of the stadium, the Olympus champions were attacked by the Minotaur. They were able to defeat the beast without too much trouble… Harry saw the new Olympus champion enter the arena after speaking with one of their professors. He went in front of the fog and waved his wand in a complicated manner. A spell appeared from his wand and dissipated the illusion.
Chang found her position exposed by the lack of mist and was immediately accosted by the three Olympus champions. Diggory, instead of capitalizing on their distraction and taking a few out, decided to run and conjure a shield in front of him. Of course, the shield shattered from the attack of three opponents, and he was immediately taken out of the fight as well.
The last Potter smirked to himself. Everything was going remarkably smoothly. Hogwarts was doing quite well, considering that people didn't think they could last long without Harry being there. Because he hadn't trained them to win… He had trained them to last as long as they could.
And as Cho did her best to fend off the Olympus champions, and the French and Italians went at it, he wondered how people were going to react when his plan was activated. Oh, he was looking forward to seeing the looks on their faces…
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry looked at his watch and winced. He had disappeared for almost half an hour. He needed to get back to the tournament or his absence would be noticed, if it hadn't been already. He couldn't help but feel like things had gotten a lot more complicated with this.
The last Potter used his cloak to sneak past the second task's security. He slowly walked to the stands, where the rest of the Hogwarts delegation sat in anticipation. And yet, he couldn't really care about the outcome of the task, no matter how much he had planned for it.
Instead, his mind was occupied by what he had just witnessed. He hadn't had the time to even digest what he had seen. He couldn't shake the image of the small girl with olive-coloured skin pleading silently for her attacker to spare her.
There was no justification for Dumbledore allowing this to happen. The girl was innocent. She was just a child…
Harry wasn't the most emotional of people. He would admit that fact easily. He could be apathetic sometimes, and he rarely cared for the fates of people he considered to be strangers. It was why, for all the lives he had saved, for all the extraordinary things he had accomplished, he would never consider himself to be a hero. He was just too selfish to be one…
But this was the first time he had seen a child die at the hands of another, and it disturbed him immensely. He didn't know how to describe it. It was a mixture of grief for the lost potential of the girl, mixed with regret and hatred at her assailants.
He couldn't refute that he also had his part to play in this. He had done as he always did and kept talking, hoping to distract his opponents so that he could put in place his convoluted plan, to be so clever. He had never considered the fact that the vampires allowed him to talk because they were also buying time for the ritual to be ready…
He could have probably saved the girl by avoiding the fight altogether and creating a portal to the girl and getting her out himself. But no, he had to fight…. He had to be clever.
Harry had failed before… Voldemort had almost killed him in his first year, Tom Riddle had tricked him many times in his second year, Dumbledore had trapped him in his third year, and that was just the tip of the iceberg… But he was always the one who paid for the consequences of his failure, or at least, he was able to stop them from affecting other people.
This was different… The girl, whose face just wouldn't leave his head, had died… She was a complete stranger, and it didn't make sense for him to be so hung up about it, and yet he was.
He knew that Dumbledore could be ruthless. Harry was thirteen years old when he'd trapped him in the Gardens of Avalon, but he always thought that it was about futureproofing his plans. Harry was a threat and he wanted it to be dealt with easily enough…
But he never expected the Light Champion to allow the killing of a girl in cold blood, just to power a ritual…
He needed answers. Something just wasn't right.
Harry's train of thought was interrupted by the masked form of Lily nudging him with a worried tone, "Are you alright? What happened?"
"Yes, I'm fine. You sensed the magical release?"
She nodded, "It was stronger than the first task. A lot stronger…"
"Huh, I thought so too… But then again, it happened right in front of me."
"What did you see?"
Harry swallowed and forced himself to speak, "I followed the trail of magic. There were vampires using some kind of shadow magic to be able to move around. We fought and I beat them. But, I wasn't fast enough. They were protecting this ritual. The magic from the stadium was powering this knife… They used it to kill a girl, barely more than a child. I tried to stop it, but it cut through my portal somehow…"
"That doesn't make any sense… A magical release of this size can't have been done from the sacrifice of an entire city, let alone a single person. The magic taken from the stadium alone would have been more than the sacrifice of a single girl… It just doesn't add up."
"A girl died… A child, not even at the age of coming to Hogwarts… Dead because of Dumbledore's plan. Dead because I was overconfident… and all you care about is how it doesn't make sense?"
The woman's voice got softer, "Of course I do… I know you probably feel like shit. I know I have, and I made a lot of mistakes, trust me. A lot of people died on my watch… It's a horrible feeling. But the sad truth is that hundreds of little girls, just like her, die every day. One more or one less doesn't make a difference. Dumbledore's plan, whatever it is, can have large-scale consequences. Stop thinking about the little girl that you failed and focus on the wider picture."
Harry wanted to yell at the woman but thought that it wasn't fair for him to do so when she was trying to comfort him, in her own weird way. He just nodded.
The masked redhead continued, "From what you said, I think that the purpose of the magic was to enhance the knife. The fact that it cut through your portal meant that the magic it absorbed was so overwhelming that any spell wouldn't affect it. It's a pretty old art, used in the old days to cut through certain wards during sieges. Using something like this to kill a girl would have been very counterproductive, but using it to bypass some kind of protection that she had, something that kept her safe, could explain the magical release. But, it had to be one hell of an enchantment, though, to cause something of this magnitude."
Was she trying to distract him with arcane knowledge? It was strangely working in this weird way. Harry decided to humour her a bit, "I guess so… But what kind of magical enchantment could be this powerful?"
"An old blood curse, maybe?" she replied sounding relieved, "Technically speaking, a blade imbued with such magic could cut through a blood pact, and the magic release from the blood pact could have a similar effect. But, the curse would have to be very powerful, considering the magical release. Still, a blade enhanced like this could cut through the magic itself, killing the girl was completely unnecessary. And it's definitely not like Dumbledore to do something like this… Sure, he could be ruthless and pragmatic, but killing kids for no reason isn't something he would condone, especially if there's another way to achieve the same result."
"Are you seriously defending the man? And the vampires did say that he was working with Grindelwald for some reason."
Lily froze, "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes. They said something about the Light and Dark Ones becoming allies. You seem worried. Why are you worried?"
"No, it's just that… The Light and Dark Champions should instinctively want to kill each other. Any partnership always ends in a battle and suffering. There is a reason why the Great War was so destructive and left massive scars all over the continent. For Dumbledore to risk another partnership with Grindelwald… Something big has to be happening. We've been planning on another great war, another fight, but what if we were going about things all wrong…"
Flamel's words about Ragnarök came to mind, but Harry didn't say anything. He was still coming to grips with the situation… The hidden redhead continued, "I'll try to figure out what I can. Give me a couple of days to figure this out. Tonight, I want you to conjure me an illusion of the girl in question, and I'll try to figure out who she was. It might give us a better idea about what's really going on."
"I can do that myself," Harry protested.
"I know you can. But can you do that and also take care of the situation with Isabella Zabini?"
He suppressed a groan. He had almost forgotten about the woman… As satisfying as it would be to wipe her smug smirk from her face and stop her from killing Tracy, he was so preoccupied with what had happened in the forest that it almost felt… underwhelming, in a weird way.
"You have a point. But, tell me when you find something. By the way, what's happening on that front? Are they doing well?"
"This task was actually pretty interesting. Every beast other than the Minotaur, the Griffin, and the Nemean Lion has been eliminated. Two by the Romans, one by the Spanish and one by the French. As for the teams, Durmstrang couldn't really do much against the Romans, even if they were able to take out just one of them. The Spanish were eliminated first at the hands of Beauxbatons, which was pretty surprising. The Veela girl, Delacour, I think, charmed her voice and put them all to sleep. But, the Italians are sending some goat blood at her to get the Griffin to do their job for them. Pretty efficient, to be honest."
He hummed in approval a bit. She was right, the task sounded pretty exciting, "What about Hogwarts?"
"Your teammates were immediately swarmed by Nebelheim and Olympus. The Gryffindor girl, Johnson, was taken out early on, but she took two Nebelheim Champions with her. That fog spell of yours was very effective. Diggory took out one of the Olympus champions as well. They're looking to get the minotaur to win, but elemental magic from Olympus is pushing them back."
Harry snorted, "A surprisingly good showing considering that I trained them for just a few days."
He grinned as the crow cheered when Cho lured a Nebelheim champion in with a spell, only for him to be stunned in the back by Diggory. Since they had full vision in the fog, that gave them a tremendous advantage. And the fog was very hard to dispel or dissipate with wind magic. The spell didn't even conjure a fog. It was a large-scale light illusion that was already calculated when Harry created the spell. Honestly, they would have been screwed if the competitors specialized in illusion magic, but Harry had checked the list of competitors beforehand and there wasn't anyone who really bothered with the field. Illusions weren't all that flashy, really…
Magic or no magic, teenagers still liked flashy things.
Speaking of flashy things, Fleur's partner sent a blinding white spell at the Griffin that was attacking the blood-soaked Veela. She hadn't even used her wand, so that must have been a family crest… Interesting. Harry didn't know that there were any crests remaining in France. The revolution a couple of centuries prior had caused the extinction of most old family lines in the country.
Anyway, the spell did not hurt the Griffin. Instead, the Eagle-Lion hybrid froze… Hmm, she'd taken control over the beast. Huh, it must have been a very powerful spell to subjugate the will of a creature that strong. The girl took the key from the Griffin's body and quickly checked over Fleur. With a flick of her wand, the blood had disappeared, and with a glare, she said something to the Griffin, which flew up into the air and in turn, started to attack the Italians with unnatural ferocity.
On the other side of the stadium, the Olympus champions were attacked by the Minotaur. They were able to defeat the beast without too much trouble… Harry saw the new Olympus champion enter the arena after speaking with one of their professors. He went in front of the fog and waved his wand in a complicated manner. A spell appeared from his wand and dissipated the illusion.
Chang found her position exposed by the lack of mist and was immediately accosted by the three Olympus champions. Diggory, instead of capitalizing on their distraction and taking a few out, decided to run and conjure a shield in front of him. Of course, the shield shattered from the attack of three opponents, and he was immediately taken out of the fight as well.
The last Potter smirked to himself. Everything was going remarkably smoothly. Hogwarts was doing quite well, considering that people didn't think they could last long without Harry being there. Because he hadn't trained them to win… He had trained them to last as long as they could.
And as Cho did her best to fend off the Olympus champions, and the French and Italians went at it, he wondered how people were going to react when his plan was activated. Oh, he was looking forward to seeing the looks on their faces…
Chapter 284: Distorting Influence
Chapter 284: Distorting Influence
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Fleur expected this to be her last thought… She expected the world to turn dark… However, she was baffled when the world turned a blinding white instead. What the fuck had just happened?
Her answer came quickly enough as the Griffin froze just inches away from her. What was peculiar was the fact that its eyes were glowing white. She struggled to get up, but she managed to do it quickly enough. She turned and looked around to find out what had happened and saw that Eloise Fontaine's eyes were glowing the same colour.
The witch slowly walked towards the beast and grabbed the key around its neck. If no one had tried to attack their camp, Beauxbatons had just gained two extra Champions, meaning that they held a very real numerical advantage.
She turned towards Eloise, wincing with every step she took, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," the other girl simply responded.
"So, the rumours are true. You do have a family crest."
She nodded, "My family agreed to let me use it during the tournament. I didn't really get to do it before… It's not that handy during duelling, but it would have probably been handy if we had done the first task the proper way. Still, as you know, that didn't happen. So, what now?"
The Veela responded, "Well, the Spanish are out… Hogwarts, Nebelheim, and Olympus are on the other side of the arena, under some kind of mist. Durmstrang and the Romans were fighting each other near us, and considering the use of bait, one of them must have won. I'm personally thinking the Romans…"
"So, do we go back to camp to regroup and plan an attack?"
"We probably should," Fleur hummed, "Eloise, how good is your control over the Griffin?"
"Pretty good, if I say so myself. You're not seriously planning on attacking them with just the two of us?"
"Well, think about it. If we leave now, we run the risk of being ambushed by them. Their plan was to use blood to make the Griffin attack the Spanish. Either the Spanish would have won, or the Griffin would have beaten them. Either way, the Romans would either want to beat the Griffin and get the key or defeat the remaining Spanish champions whose numbers were probably going to be reduced. So, if they're coming here either way…"
The Fontaine scion grinned, "We can set a trap."
"We don't even have to beat all of them, just a few of them to lower their numbers… Most of the magical creatures have been defeated already. There's just the Minotaur near the other side of the arena, and the Nemean Lion… I think they must have put that creature in as a joke or something since beating one is almost impossible."
She was right, of course. Nemean Lions were creatures of legend. They were bred by someone back in Ancient Greece. They still had no idea how someone had managed to do this. The creature's hide wasn't magically resistant but actively repelled any signs of magic, that's not to mention the fact that it was also immune to physical damage… There were attempts at replicating the effects, but the very nature of its hide meant that it couldn't be analysed using magic.
Defeating a Nemean Lion wasn't impossible, but it required an insane amount of preparation and planning. You needed to create a trap that could somehow bind it in place, like unbreakable chains that would stop it from moving – and that was already difficult because of its frankly insane strength – and then keep it bound until it starved to death. And even then, if you wanted the hide, you had to wait for the corpse to rot off.
Asking students to defeat one was about as reasonable as telling them to fight a dragon…
So, that meant that there was only one beast in real play, and the worst-case scenario was for Hogwarts to get it and Harry to enter the arena. She hadn't seen a lot of the Nebelheim fight, so she couldn't really say much about what they could do if they beat it. But the Olympians, on the other hand, would probably add another elemental specialist to their midst, which was dangerous. Their main advantage now was their numbers, and they needed to use that.
So, the Romans, then Hogwarts, then Olympus…
Eloise smiled in approval of her plan, and they got to work. She got the Griffin to visibly fly in the air, around the Spanish camp, making it seem like it had beat them, meanwhile, they had put a few obscuring charms up to hide from any detection charms. They weren't foolproof, but considering the fact that the Romans specialized in battle spells, they would probably do…
Exactly as she planned, a group of four Romans entered in formation. The two in front were holding their physical shields, while the two others were trying to scout ahead and identify any threats. They entered the camp warily, and Fleur took the initiative by actively using her allure.
Normally, she wouldn't have done this… She disliked using her heritage to her advantage. It reminded her of how her father used her mother's charm against his political opponents.
The allure did its job as it distracted the Romans, and even when they tried to fight it off, it broke their formation. Of course, that was when Eloise commanded the Griffin to fly down at great speeds and attack them. In the chaos, Fleur followed up with a few spells of her own at their backs, eliminating two of them. She left the Griffin to deal with the other two in the meantime.
She quickly grabbed Eloise and ran away from the former camp. After having walked a sufficient distance, the Veela groaned, "So, how did we do?"
"The Griffin was defeated, and he took one of them with him. You got two others. There's only one Roman left. Should we go after him?"
"No, their greatest strength was their teamwork. Just one of them is not enough of a threat. It's better that we regroup with the others. The situation might have shifted, and it'll be better if I use my scrying spell again to figure out what to do next."
They quickly ran towards their teammates and saw Arthur Laurant standing with two new teammates, Francois Moreau, and Celine Bernard, who had also participated in the previous task with her. They didn't get the chance to show it in Beauxbatons, but she knew that they were some of the best duellists in their school. Personally, Fleur would have picked one of them and followed up with some kind of curse-breaker specialist, but Madame Maxime knew what she was doing, especially since she had more information than her regarding how the task was progressing.
She gave them a nod and spoke up, "Moreau, Bernard, any news or tactics from Madame Maxime?"
"Well, since Durmstrang and Nebelheim are gone and you took care of the Spanish, she told me to focus on the Romans, then the Olympians…" the boy retorted.
"What about the Minotaur?"
"The Olympians took care of it… The Nemean Lion is the only beast left and I'm not risking going after it. So, yeah, there's no risk of Potter ruining this task for us. Tactically, the Romans are the bigger risk if only because of their numbers."
Eloise snorted, "Not anymore. We took care of three of them. There's only one left."
"So, Olympus then? How many of them are left?"
Celine answered passively, "Three. I was the last one to come here and they were just bringing in their third one."
"What about the mist?"
"An illusion. It's a very elaborate one, but wind magic didn't do much to clear it up. I can counter it easily enough. It's still very impressive, all things considered. I didn't really recognize the spell."
Arthur retorted, "I don't think you'll have to… I think the new Olympian figured it out."
The Veela looked at the other side of the arena and saw the mist slowly dissipate into a faint light. They all ran towards the Greeks and saw them trying to attack the two remaining Hogwarts Champions. The boy tried to shield the girl but ended up being eliminated.
Deciding to use their distraction, Fleur motioned to sneakily attack the Olympians from behind. They managed to get two of them by surprise, but the third one summoned a bolt of lightning at them. Celine conjured a lightning rod, shielding them, but she was knocked unconscious by the process somehow.
Still, this was enough for them to eliminate the last Olympians.
That left only the girl from Hogwarts, who had disappeared in the middle of the chaos, and the last Roman. The centurion showed himself when he tried to ambush them. To be perfectly fair, it was his only real option. Fighting the Nemean Lion was beyond foolish, and he wasn't going to get a better chance at attacking them than this.
He actually managed to eliminate Eloise before being overwhelmed by the three remaining Beauxbatons Champions.
So, that left the three of them against the Hogwarts girl. To be perfectly honest, no one really expected Hogwarts to reach this point without Harry participating. However, the girl had managed to somehow crawl into second place without any issues.
They found her just a few yards away, being attacked by the Nemean Lion. Fleur decided not to risk it being a trap and told the others to wait the fight out. The girl was doing surprisingly well against the mythical beast and her hand started to glow. Suddenly, the Lion was stopped in its tracks for a fraction of a second and some kind of earth magic then sent the beast tumbling away… No, not away, towards them…
Fleur, out of pure instinct, overpowered a digging spell and created a large crater in the ground that the lion landed in. The idea came to her in less than a fraction of a second and the Hogwarts girl would have won if it hadn't been for that impulse decision.
The Nemean Lion was momentarily trapped, and the three of them walked towards the limping girl who looked strangely resigned, "I almost thought I was going to do it…"
"Did you really try to bait a Nemean Lion to attack you just to make a trap? That's beyond stupid!"
"Look, I'm two years younger than you, and there are three of you… I thought either I'd get eliminated, beat the Lion and get some backup, or redirect it towards you as a distraction."
Arthur snorted, "You seriously thought you could beat a Nemean Lion?"
"Potter taught us to attack the inside of the mouth of creatures with resistant hides and scales. Said that it was the most effective way to get spells to affect them. The damn thing was too smart to open its mouth for too long, and immediately realized what I was trying to do."
"Harry trained you?"
The girl gave her a smirk, "Harry, is it? Well, he trained the three of us for a few days… I really should have trusted his judgement more."
"How is that?" Fleur asked, curious and a little embarrassed.
"Well, you see, this plan was entirely made by Potter. The fog, the earth spells, everything… Don't get me wrong, he never planned on competing, but that didn't mean that he wasn't going to win. He predicted who would go after the beasts and who would go after us. He was wrong about Durmstrang going after us, though… But he was bang on about the rest."
"And what's his master plan for this?" Francois snarked back.
The girl simply shrugged, "He said to do my best."
"Fleur, let's just stop talking… She's obviously stalling and throwing Potter's name around to make us scared. Let's just get this over with."
The Veela nodded and attacked the British girl who was barely able to use something to send Arthur flying back – probably with a family crest of some sort – before being overwhelmed by the combined efforts of Fleur and Francois.
Right as she was falling, disarmed, and with half her body petrified, the girl smiled faintly, "He also told me that the moment you all entered my mist, I would win."
Just as the girl was falling unconscious, Fleur felt her own body freeze up. She heard Francois also yell out behind her. And after that, there was only darkness…
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Fleur expected this to be her last thought… She expected the world to turn dark… However, she was baffled when the world turned a blinding white instead. What the fuck had just happened?
Her answer came quickly enough as the Griffin froze just inches away from her. What was peculiar was the fact that its eyes were glowing white. She struggled to get up, but she managed to do it quickly enough. She turned and looked around to find out what had happened and saw that Eloise Fontaine's eyes were glowing the same colour.
The witch slowly walked towards the beast and grabbed the key around its neck. If no one had tried to attack their camp, Beauxbatons had just gained two extra Champions, meaning that they held a very real numerical advantage.
She turned towards Eloise, wincing with every step she took, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," the other girl simply responded.
"So, the rumours are true. You do have a family crest."
She nodded, "My family agreed to let me use it during the tournament. I didn't really get to do it before… It's not that handy during duelling, but it would have probably been handy if we had done the first task the proper way. Still, as you know, that didn't happen. So, what now?"
The Veela responded, "Well, the Spanish are out… Hogwarts, Nebelheim, and Olympus are on the other side of the arena, under some kind of mist. Durmstrang and the Romans were fighting each other near us, and considering the use of bait, one of them must have won. I'm personally thinking the Romans…"
"So, do we go back to camp to regroup and plan an attack?"
"We probably should," Fleur hummed, "Eloise, how good is your control over the Griffin?"
"Pretty good, if I say so myself. You're not seriously planning on attacking them with just the two of us?"
"Well, think about it. If we leave now, we run the risk of being ambushed by them. Their plan was to use blood to make the Griffin attack the Spanish. Either the Spanish would have won, or the Griffin would have beaten them. Either way, the Romans would either want to beat the Griffin and get the key or defeat the remaining Spanish champions whose numbers were probably going to be reduced. So, if they're coming here either way…"
The Fontaine scion grinned, "We can set a trap."
"We don't even have to beat all of them, just a few of them to lower their numbers… Most of the magical creatures have been defeated already. There's just the Minotaur near the other side of the arena, and the Nemean Lion… I think they must have put that creature in as a joke or something since beating one is almost impossible."
She was right, of course. Nemean Lions were creatures of legend. They were bred by someone back in Ancient Greece. They still had no idea how someone had managed to do this. The creature's hide wasn't magically resistant but actively repelled any signs of magic, that's not to mention the fact that it was also immune to physical damage… There were attempts at replicating the effects, but the very nature of its hide meant that it couldn't be analysed using magic.
Defeating a Nemean Lion wasn't impossible, but it required an insane amount of preparation and planning. You needed to create a trap that could somehow bind it in place, like unbreakable chains that would stop it from moving – and that was already difficult because of its frankly insane strength – and then keep it bound until it starved to death. And even then, if you wanted the hide, you had to wait for the corpse to rot off.
Asking students to defeat one was about as reasonable as telling them to fight a dragon…
So, that meant that there was only one beast in real play, and the worst-case scenario was for Hogwarts to get it and Harry to enter the arena. She hadn't seen a lot of the Nebelheim fight, so she couldn't really say much about what they could do if they beat it. But the Olympians, on the other hand, would probably add another elemental specialist to their midst, which was dangerous. Their main advantage now was their numbers, and they needed to use that.
So, the Romans, then Hogwarts, then Olympus…
Eloise smiled in approval of her plan, and they got to work. She got the Griffin to visibly fly in the air, around the Spanish camp, making it seem like it had beat them, meanwhile, they had put a few obscuring charms up to hide from any detection charms. They weren't foolproof, but considering the fact that the Romans specialized in battle spells, they would probably do…
Exactly as she planned, a group of four Romans entered in formation. The two in front were holding their physical shields, while the two others were trying to scout ahead and identify any threats. They entered the camp warily, and Fleur took the initiative by actively using her allure.
Normally, she wouldn't have done this… She disliked using her heritage to her advantage. It reminded her of how her father used her mother's charm against his political opponents.
The allure did its job as it distracted the Romans, and even when they tried to fight it off, it broke their formation. Of course, that was when Eloise commanded the Griffin to fly down at great speeds and attack them. In the chaos, Fleur followed up with a few spells of her own at their backs, eliminating two of them. She left the Griffin to deal with the other two in the meantime.
She quickly grabbed Eloise and ran away from the former camp. After having walked a sufficient distance, the Veela groaned, "So, how did we do?"
"The Griffin was defeated, and he took one of them with him. You got two others. There's only one Roman left. Should we go after him?"
"No, their greatest strength was their teamwork. Just one of them is not enough of a threat. It's better that we regroup with the others. The situation might have shifted, and it'll be better if I use my scrying spell again to figure out what to do next."
They quickly ran towards their teammates and saw Arthur Laurant standing with two new teammates, Francois Moreau, and Celine Bernard, who had also participated in the previous task with her. They didn't get the chance to show it in Beauxbatons, but she knew that they were some of the best duellists in their school. Personally, Fleur would have picked one of them and followed up with some kind of curse-breaker specialist, but Madame Maxime knew what she was doing, especially since she had more information than her regarding how the task was progressing.
She gave them a nod and spoke up, "Moreau, Bernard, any news or tactics from Madame Maxime?"
"Well, since Durmstrang and Nebelheim are gone and you took care of the Spanish, she told me to focus on the Romans, then the Olympians…" the boy retorted.
"What about the Minotaur?"
"The Olympians took care of it… The Nemean Lion is the only beast left and I'm not risking going after it. So, yeah, there's no risk of Potter ruining this task for us. Tactically, the Romans are the bigger risk if only because of their numbers."
Eloise snorted, "Not anymore. We took care of three of them. There's only one left."
"So, Olympus then? How many of them are left?"
Celine answered passively, "Three. I was the last one to come here and they were just bringing in their third one."
"What about the mist?"
"An illusion. It's a very elaborate one, but wind magic didn't do much to clear it up. I can counter it easily enough. It's still very impressive, all things considered. I didn't really recognize the spell."
Arthur retorted, "I don't think you'll have to… I think the new Olympian figured it out."
The Veela looked at the other side of the arena and saw the mist slowly dissipate into a faint light. They all ran towards the Greeks and saw them trying to attack the two remaining Hogwarts Champions. The boy tried to shield the girl but ended up being eliminated.
Deciding to use their distraction, Fleur motioned to sneakily attack the Olympians from behind. They managed to get two of them by surprise, but the third one summoned a bolt of lightning at them. Celine conjured a lightning rod, shielding them, but she was knocked unconscious by the process somehow.
Still, this was enough for them to eliminate the last Olympians.
That left only the girl from Hogwarts, who had disappeared in the middle of the chaos, and the last Roman. The centurion showed himself when he tried to ambush them. To be perfectly fair, it was his only real option. Fighting the Nemean Lion was beyond foolish, and he wasn't going to get a better chance at attacking them than this.
He actually managed to eliminate Eloise before being overwhelmed by the three remaining Beauxbatons Champions.
So, that left the three of them against the Hogwarts girl. To be perfectly honest, no one really expected Hogwarts to reach this point without Harry participating. However, the girl had managed to somehow crawl into second place without any issues.
They found her just a few yards away, being attacked by the Nemean Lion. Fleur decided not to risk it being a trap and told the others to wait the fight out. The girl was doing surprisingly well against the mythical beast and her hand started to glow. Suddenly, the Lion was stopped in its tracks for a fraction of a second and some kind of earth magic then sent the beast tumbling away… No, not away, towards them…
Fleur, out of pure instinct, overpowered a digging spell and created a large crater in the ground that the lion landed in. The idea came to her in less than a fraction of a second and the Hogwarts girl would have won if it hadn't been for that impulse decision.
The Nemean Lion was momentarily trapped, and the three of them walked towards the limping girl who looked strangely resigned, "I almost thought I was going to do it…"
"Did you really try to bait a Nemean Lion to attack you just to make a trap? That's beyond stupid!"
"Look, I'm two years younger than you, and there are three of you… I thought either I'd get eliminated, beat the Lion and get some backup, or redirect it towards you as a distraction."
Arthur snorted, "You seriously thought you could beat a Nemean Lion?"
"Potter taught us to attack the inside of the mouth of creatures with resistant hides and scales. Said that it was the most effective way to get spells to affect them. The damn thing was too smart to open its mouth for too long, and immediately realized what I was trying to do."
"Harry trained you?"
The girl gave her a smirk, "Harry, is it? Well, he trained the three of us for a few days… I really should have trusted his judgement more."
"How is that?" Fleur asked, curious and a little embarrassed.
"Well, you see, this plan was entirely made by Potter. The fog, the earth spells, everything… Don't get me wrong, he never planned on competing, but that didn't mean that he wasn't going to win. He predicted who would go after the beasts and who would go after us. He was wrong about Durmstrang going after us, though… But he was bang on about the rest."
"And what's his master plan for this?" Francois snarked back.
The girl simply shrugged, "He said to do my best."
"Fleur, let's just stop talking… She's obviously stalling and throwing Potter's name around to make us scared. Let's just get this over with."
The Veela nodded and attacked the British girl who was barely able to use something to send Arthur flying back – probably with a family crest of some sort – before being overwhelmed by the combined efforts of Fleur and Francois.
Right as she was falling, disarmed, and with half her body petrified, the girl smiled faintly, "He also told me that the moment you all entered my mist, I would win."
Just as the girl was falling unconscious, Fleur felt her own body freeze up. She heard Francois also yell out behind her. And after that, there was only darkness…
Evil Legend
Shiny Scales
- Location
- Ukraine
The sacrificed girl could well be the object of the prophecy. Dumbledore had previously mused that destroying a prophecy would release a huge amount of energy. And although he thought about the prophecy about Voldemort and Neville, this does not mean that this is the only prophecy that is relevant at the moment.
It also allowed the tournament to end rather neatly with Neville's sacrifice at Hogwarts. Or at least trying.
Maybe Dumbledore and Grindelwald are trying to use this multi-step ritual to create a weapon against the Ragnarok prophecy, if Lily's guesses about strengthening the sacrifice knife are worth anything.
Maybe it's something else.
We are waiting to continue to find out.
It also allowed the tournament to end rather neatly with Neville's sacrifice at Hogwarts. Or at least trying.
Maybe Dumbledore and Grindelwald are trying to use this multi-step ritual to create a weapon against the Ragnarok prophecy, if Lily's guesses about strengthening the sacrifice knife are worth anything.
Maybe it's something else.
We are waiting to continue to find out.
Last edited:
Chapter 285: Cornering a Spider
Chapter 285: Cornering a Spider
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry grinned at the sight of the uproar that was the end of the second task. The judges looked absolutely confused about what had happened, and so were the rest of the spectators. The chaos was just so beautiful…
Before the situation with the Zabini Matriarch, he had no plans to interfere in any way in the task, but he was glad he did if only to see other peoples' reactions. He saw Daphne physically gaping in front of him. Her expression quickly morphed into annoyance, and she hit him in the shoulder.
He pretended that he was hurt, "What was that for?"
"You tell me. How the fuck did you pull it off?"
Harry's smirk grew even wider, "It wasn't that hard if you know how to place the pieces…"
"Please tell me you didn't put runes on the competitors before they fought because that's just plain cheating and you could get into a lot of trouble…"
"Of course, I didn't. Do you seriously think I'm some hack or something? No, everything that happened here was caused by spells that the competitors cast with no intervention from the outside."
The blonde frowned, "I don't get it. How could they cast spells without knowing what they were doing?"
"Oh, they knew the effects of the spells. I just didn't tell them everything…"
"You tricked our school into winning?"
He grinned, "Even better. I tricked our school into drawing the first task. I personally think that is even more impressive."
"But how? And why go through all that effort?"
"The way I did it was surprisingly easy. I taught them a handful of spells, but the more useful ones were the fog spell and the earth spell. What I didn't tell them was that both spells were connected and had a few hidden features. I had Lily steal samples from every delegation, which I used to craft a spell which would recognize any of the signatures and mark them."
Daphne hummed, "You created a spell which would only locate the enemy champions and included it into the fog. It is the fog, right?"
"Yes, the moment any other champion entered the fog, they would be marked, even if they left. Even then, the fog itself was a mixture of conjuration and illusion… I'm a bit proud of that one. Of course, there's also the earth wave spell which happened to also be a long-term charm which would absorb the surrounding magic and target the marked individuals the moment the last Hogwarts champion gets eliminated, which would immediately knock out everyone else. A guaranteed tie for Hogwarts…"
"But only if Hogwarts wasn't eliminated before the spell activated and if all the champions went through the mist. Still, the fewer champions remained, the less energy the charm needed…"
He gave her a grin, "Exactly, and I had no plans for them to win. I just taught them how to survive and hide. It was why I chose those two spells to combine their strengths. There was a bit of risk, but that risk slowly decreased with every second that passed. And the best thing is that the spell is layered in a way that even if someone happens to dispel the illusion, its true purpose would still continue to work without anyone knowing. As you can probably tell, I'm a little proud of this little spell, to be honest. And even then, I didn't expect Hogwarts to be in the final two. Pretty neat plan, don't you think?"
"Sure, but why not just give them an activation spell or something to win? Why only knock out everyone else at the last moment?"
"Because that's exactly what I wanted. A tie…"
She snorted, "You almost didn't get one… Chang's last gambit with the Nemean Lion could have worked. She would have won…"
"And while it wouldn't have been my ideal scenario, it would have satisfied with my agreement with Isabella Zabini, and Tracy would have been safe."
"So, a tie does more for you than simply satisfying the agreement, some kind of loophole perhaps? Or even better, it somehow ruins whatever Blaise's mother was planning… But that'll only be valid if the judges don't rule this as cheating?"
The last Potter's face turned amused, "And why would it be considered cheating? Every spell that was cast can be retraced to a participant in the competition. They won't find any signs of cheating or outside interference because there just isn't any. The most they could complain about would be the magical signatures if they even figured it out, but even then, there was nothing wrong with creating targeted spells. They were just too impractical and too time-consuming to make, especially since they only work in very specific scenarios."
"And yet you made one just for the tournament… And I'm not talking about your bullshit magic prodigy crap. You literally created a spell, crafted it to be usable by other people who didn't even understand what they were doing, and you did that in just a couple of days."
"Let's just say that I have a better grasp of the intricacies of Arithmancy than most people… But you're missing the point. The judges have to rule it as a tie since everyone with an Omniocular would know that they were all knocked out at the same time. And, since they won't find any signs of cheating… The endgame is the same, a tie. And for all her passionate words, I have a feeling that the Zabini Matriarch isn't going to like this little fact."
"Do you think that she'll do something rash? Tracy's life is on the line, after all."
"Don't worry about it. I have something planned for that too. Oh, look, they're announcing the winners."
The whole speech was about what Harry expected. They had investigated the whole event thoroughly and found no signs of malfeasance. The spells were directly cast by the Hogwarts Champions and were verified through their wands and a team of expert arithmancers… And, of course, they announced that the final result was a tie between Hogwarts and Beauxbatons.
The French spectators apparently didn't like this judgement, and Harry was sure that there would be a lot of controversy around the judge's decision. People were still confused about what had happened and how the task had ended.
He turned towards McGonagall who gave him a warm smile and a nod. They had made a deal. She would not push for his participation in the tasks, and Harry would not have to participate in any task if he got Britain to win another one. He had kept his side of the bargain, and he liked to think that the headmistress would keep her own…
The way back from the stadium was interrupted by a group of Italian wizards blocking his way, "Harry Potter. You will come with me."
The Potter scion smirked. He knew exactly what was happening. He motioned for the rest of the Hogwarts delegation to continue, even Daphne, "Don't worry. I'll be back in a few minutes."
They walked in silence until they arrived at a rather lavish mansion on the beach. The guards guided him to the entrance, "The Lady will meet you now."
Harry walked inside confidently and whistled, "Well, isn't this a fancy place?"
He wasn't lying. The walls were filled with dozens of pieces of art, there were hand-crafted statues and weapons… All the works.
"I'm glad you think so," a voice returned behind him, "I believe we have a lot to talk about Mr. Potter."
"Ah, Mrs. Zabini… It's a pleasure to see you again."
"You have some nerve standing here as if nothing has happened…"
Harry snorted, "Well, why would I be nervous? I did everything you asked, didn't I? Hogwarts was in first place in the task exactly as you wanted, right? Your rivals will have no reason to doubt your son's education or Hogwarts' competence… So, problem solved."
"Problem not solved. I wanted Hogwarts to win…"
"No, you didn't. You wanted Hogwarts to be the only winner without me competing. But you didn't specify this in our agreement, did you? Of course, politically, this wouldn't have been an issue, but this was never about politics, was it?"
The woman flinched, "I don't know what you're talking about…"
"Well, let me refresh your memory. You made a sizable bet on Hogwarts winning the task without me competing. It was some very good odds and you stacked them in your favour. Only, you didn't really have enough gold to bet, just investments and properties, so you bet portions of your business empire in Rome instead. They agreed, of course, and you were so confident. This would have been such a massive stroke of genius! You could have expanded your empire, throughout Italy and even most of the ICW. And if you lost, the worst that would happen is having the shares of your properties that you bet distributed amongst hundreds of debtors. You could recoup your losses easily enough with your next husband. Sure, you would have lost a bit of income, but it would have been a temporary setback at best. But, you got greedy. You were so confident of your hold over me that you bet more than you should have, and now, you're screwed. They won't acknowledge that a tie for first place is the same as Hogwarts winning."
"I'll deal with it…"
Harry gave her a smug look, "I don't think you will. It's too much money. If they make an exception for you, they'll have to do it for all the bets on the French winning. And, of course, there's also the little fact that Arcturus Black happened to make a nice sizable bet that Hogwarts would tie for first place and that I wouldn't participate. And the odds on that bet… Well, let's just say they're very nice. He's looking at quite a nice payout, including your own properties. It looks like you're going to have a partner in most of your ventures… Isn't that great?"
The woman blanched at this. It was different to lose a portion of her investments to hundreds of people, each with a small percentage… She would still have had control over the situation and her investments. But, with a single person holding a big part of each investment, they could be a threat… And Arcturus Black had a reputation all over Europe for his ruthlessness.
"You bastard! You planned this…" the Italian woman snarled.
"Yes, I did. Believe me, it was harder than just giving them the win. A pretty nice challenge all things considered."
"I could have the bets cancelled, go to the ICW and…"
Harry interrupted her, "And what, exactly? Tell them that I gave my schoolmates a tactic that would ensure the task would end in a draw? That I tricked them into casting spells that would give them the win because that's exactly what I did? Everything that happened in that arena, every effect, was due to one of their spells. It was why the judges didn't disqualify anyone. You lost, Zabini, just accept it and move on with your life."
"I could just kill the Davis girl…"
"Sure, and then, I would tell Arcturus to destroy everything you hold dear. Your empire would disappear. So far, he's going to take the softer approach. But, he could just sell his portions of the properties to Gringotts. I wonder how long you'd survive when an entire army of goblin bankers is doing their best to take every single Knut from you? Still, you're not getting the point."
"And what is it?" the woman snarled back.
"It's very simple. Don't fuck with me… You thought you could manipulate me into making you a profit. You thought to use me for your goals. That was a foolish mistake. Dumbledore tried to do the same and you know what happened to him. And that was a fucking Archmage who happened to be a war hero. But, in a way, what you did was worse. You threatened my friend. I really don't like that. So, when other people come to you and ask you about using me, tell them to run away…"
The woman gulped and simply nodded, probably not trusting her own voice.
Harry grinned cheerily, "Excellent. That wasn't so hard, was it? Now, one last thing. I figure it was implied but I think it would be better for me to be a little more direct. If I find out that you so much as hurt Tracy, Blaise, Daphne, or any of my friends, I will burn you. I will find everything you hold dear and make you watch as I burn it into the ground… I will turn you into a lesson on what happens when someone tries to get to me through my friends and family. Do you understand, Isabella?"
The room got darker and colder as he continued talking. The woman was trembling in front of him, and he asked once more, "I said, do you understand, Isabella?"
"Y-Yes…" she stammered.
"Then we have nothing more to discuss."
And just like that, he disappeared, leaving the woman kneeling and shaking in fright. It was a shame; sometimes violence was the only language a few people could understand.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
21 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Harry grinned at the sight of the uproar that was the end of the second task. The judges looked absolutely confused about what had happened, and so were the rest of the spectators. The chaos was just so beautiful…
Before the situation with the Zabini Matriarch, he had no plans to interfere in any way in the task, but he was glad he did if only to see other peoples' reactions. He saw Daphne physically gaping in front of him. Her expression quickly morphed into annoyance, and she hit him in the shoulder.
He pretended that he was hurt, "What was that for?"
"You tell me. How the fuck did you pull it off?"
Harry's smirk grew even wider, "It wasn't that hard if you know how to place the pieces…"
"Please tell me you didn't put runes on the competitors before they fought because that's just plain cheating and you could get into a lot of trouble…"
"Of course, I didn't. Do you seriously think I'm some hack or something? No, everything that happened here was caused by spells that the competitors cast with no intervention from the outside."
The blonde frowned, "I don't get it. How could they cast spells without knowing what they were doing?"
"Oh, they knew the effects of the spells. I just didn't tell them everything…"
"You tricked our school into winning?"
He grinned, "Even better. I tricked our school into drawing the first task. I personally think that is even more impressive."
"But how? And why go through all that effort?"
"The way I did it was surprisingly easy. I taught them a handful of spells, but the more useful ones were the fog spell and the earth spell. What I didn't tell them was that both spells were connected and had a few hidden features. I had Lily steal samples from every delegation, which I used to craft a spell which would recognize any of the signatures and mark them."
Daphne hummed, "You created a spell which would only locate the enemy champions and included it into the fog. It is the fog, right?"
"Yes, the moment any other champion entered the fog, they would be marked, even if they left. Even then, the fog itself was a mixture of conjuration and illusion… I'm a bit proud of that one. Of course, there's also the earth wave spell which happened to also be a long-term charm which would absorb the surrounding magic and target the marked individuals the moment the last Hogwarts champion gets eliminated, which would immediately knock out everyone else. A guaranteed tie for Hogwarts…"
"But only if Hogwarts wasn't eliminated before the spell activated and if all the champions went through the mist. Still, the fewer champions remained, the less energy the charm needed…"
He gave her a grin, "Exactly, and I had no plans for them to win. I just taught them how to survive and hide. It was why I chose those two spells to combine their strengths. There was a bit of risk, but that risk slowly decreased with every second that passed. And the best thing is that the spell is layered in a way that even if someone happens to dispel the illusion, its true purpose would still continue to work without anyone knowing. As you can probably tell, I'm a little proud of this little spell, to be honest. And even then, I didn't expect Hogwarts to be in the final two. Pretty neat plan, don't you think?"
"Sure, but why not just give them an activation spell or something to win? Why only knock out everyone else at the last moment?"
"Because that's exactly what I wanted. A tie…"
She snorted, "You almost didn't get one… Chang's last gambit with the Nemean Lion could have worked. She would have won…"
"And while it wouldn't have been my ideal scenario, it would have satisfied with my agreement with Isabella Zabini, and Tracy would have been safe."
"So, a tie does more for you than simply satisfying the agreement, some kind of loophole perhaps? Or even better, it somehow ruins whatever Blaise's mother was planning… But that'll only be valid if the judges don't rule this as cheating?"
The last Potter's face turned amused, "And why would it be considered cheating? Every spell that was cast can be retraced to a participant in the competition. They won't find any signs of cheating or outside interference because there just isn't any. The most they could complain about would be the magical signatures if they even figured it out, but even then, there was nothing wrong with creating targeted spells. They were just too impractical and too time-consuming to make, especially since they only work in very specific scenarios."
"And yet you made one just for the tournament… And I'm not talking about your bullshit magic prodigy crap. You literally created a spell, crafted it to be usable by other people who didn't even understand what they were doing, and you did that in just a couple of days."
"Let's just say that I have a better grasp of the intricacies of Arithmancy than most people… But you're missing the point. The judges have to rule it as a tie since everyone with an Omniocular would know that they were all knocked out at the same time. And, since they won't find any signs of cheating… The endgame is the same, a tie. And for all her passionate words, I have a feeling that the Zabini Matriarch isn't going to like this little fact."
"Do you think that she'll do something rash? Tracy's life is on the line, after all."
"Don't worry about it. I have something planned for that too. Oh, look, they're announcing the winners."
The whole speech was about what Harry expected. They had investigated the whole event thoroughly and found no signs of malfeasance. The spells were directly cast by the Hogwarts Champions and were verified through their wands and a team of expert arithmancers… And, of course, they announced that the final result was a tie between Hogwarts and Beauxbatons.
The French spectators apparently didn't like this judgement, and Harry was sure that there would be a lot of controversy around the judge's decision. People were still confused about what had happened and how the task had ended.
He turned towards McGonagall who gave him a warm smile and a nod. They had made a deal. She would not push for his participation in the tasks, and Harry would not have to participate in any task if he got Britain to win another one. He had kept his side of the bargain, and he liked to think that the headmistress would keep her own…
The way back from the stadium was interrupted by a group of Italian wizards blocking his way, "Harry Potter. You will come with me."
The Potter scion smirked. He knew exactly what was happening. He motioned for the rest of the Hogwarts delegation to continue, even Daphne, "Don't worry. I'll be back in a few minutes."
They walked in silence until they arrived at a rather lavish mansion on the beach. The guards guided him to the entrance, "The Lady will meet you now."
Harry walked inside confidently and whistled, "Well, isn't this a fancy place?"
He wasn't lying. The walls were filled with dozens of pieces of art, there were hand-crafted statues and weapons… All the works.
"I'm glad you think so," a voice returned behind him, "I believe we have a lot to talk about Mr. Potter."
"Ah, Mrs. Zabini… It's a pleasure to see you again."
"You have some nerve standing here as if nothing has happened…"
Harry snorted, "Well, why would I be nervous? I did everything you asked, didn't I? Hogwarts was in first place in the task exactly as you wanted, right? Your rivals will have no reason to doubt your son's education or Hogwarts' competence… So, problem solved."
"Problem not solved. I wanted Hogwarts to win…"
"No, you didn't. You wanted Hogwarts to be the only winner without me competing. But you didn't specify this in our agreement, did you? Of course, politically, this wouldn't have been an issue, but this was never about politics, was it?"
The woman flinched, "I don't know what you're talking about…"
"Well, let me refresh your memory. You made a sizable bet on Hogwarts winning the task without me competing. It was some very good odds and you stacked them in your favour. Only, you didn't really have enough gold to bet, just investments and properties, so you bet portions of your business empire in Rome instead. They agreed, of course, and you were so confident. This would have been such a massive stroke of genius! You could have expanded your empire, throughout Italy and even most of the ICW. And if you lost, the worst that would happen is having the shares of your properties that you bet distributed amongst hundreds of debtors. You could recoup your losses easily enough with your next husband. Sure, you would have lost a bit of income, but it would have been a temporary setback at best. But, you got greedy. You were so confident of your hold over me that you bet more than you should have, and now, you're screwed. They won't acknowledge that a tie for first place is the same as Hogwarts winning."
"I'll deal with it…"
Harry gave her a smug look, "I don't think you will. It's too much money. If they make an exception for you, they'll have to do it for all the bets on the French winning. And, of course, there's also the little fact that Arcturus Black happened to make a nice sizable bet that Hogwarts would tie for first place and that I wouldn't participate. And the odds on that bet… Well, let's just say they're very nice. He's looking at quite a nice payout, including your own properties. It looks like you're going to have a partner in most of your ventures… Isn't that great?"
The woman blanched at this. It was different to lose a portion of her investments to hundreds of people, each with a small percentage… She would still have had control over the situation and her investments. But, with a single person holding a big part of each investment, they could be a threat… And Arcturus Black had a reputation all over Europe for his ruthlessness.
"You bastard! You planned this…" the Italian woman snarled.
"Yes, I did. Believe me, it was harder than just giving them the win. A pretty nice challenge all things considered."
"I could have the bets cancelled, go to the ICW and…"
Harry interrupted her, "And what, exactly? Tell them that I gave my schoolmates a tactic that would ensure the task would end in a draw? That I tricked them into casting spells that would give them the win because that's exactly what I did? Everything that happened in that arena, every effect, was due to one of their spells. It was why the judges didn't disqualify anyone. You lost, Zabini, just accept it and move on with your life."
"I could just kill the Davis girl…"
"Sure, and then, I would tell Arcturus to destroy everything you hold dear. Your empire would disappear. So far, he's going to take the softer approach. But, he could just sell his portions of the properties to Gringotts. I wonder how long you'd survive when an entire army of goblin bankers is doing their best to take every single Knut from you? Still, you're not getting the point."
"And what is it?" the woman snarled back.
"It's very simple. Don't fuck with me… You thought you could manipulate me into making you a profit. You thought to use me for your goals. That was a foolish mistake. Dumbledore tried to do the same and you know what happened to him. And that was a fucking Archmage who happened to be a war hero. But, in a way, what you did was worse. You threatened my friend. I really don't like that. So, when other people come to you and ask you about using me, tell them to run away…"
The woman gulped and simply nodded, probably not trusting her own voice.
Harry grinned cheerily, "Excellent. That wasn't so hard, was it? Now, one last thing. I figure it was implied but I think it would be better for me to be a little more direct. If I find out that you so much as hurt Tracy, Blaise, Daphne, or any of my friends, I will burn you. I will find everything you hold dear and make you watch as I burn it into the ground… I will turn you into a lesson on what happens when someone tries to get to me through my friends and family. Do you understand, Isabella?"
The room got darker and colder as he continued talking. The woman was trembling in front of him, and he asked once more, "I said, do you understand, Isabella?"
"Y-Yes…" she stammered.
"Then we have nothing more to discuss."
And just like that, he disappeared, leaving the woman kneeling and shaking in fright. It was a shame; sometimes violence was the only language a few people could understand.
Chapter 286: Glowing Petals
Chapter 286: Glowing Petals
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
22 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Albus Dumbledore sat in the room awarded to him by the Accademia Arcana Italia… Like the rest of the school, it was as spartan as it was empty. There weren't any luxuries or any enchanted amenities. As unusual as this was, Albus actually preferred this. The fact that there weren't many objects in the room meant that there were fewer opportunities to sneak in any curses to hit him. Normally, he would either vanish or temporarily store each item in one of his many caches all over the continent and conjure new ones during his stay.
The straight approach saved him a lot of time and effort when he arrived. All in all, he had enjoyed his stay in Rome. Everything was going according to plan… The second seal was removed without any issues. The only small thing was the fact that the enchanted forest had been contaminated by the ritual, but it would right itself in time. Everything did one day…
Other than that, the task had been surprisingly entertaining to watch, far better than the first one at Beauxbatons, which was extremely boring after the Potter boy finished… People obviously liked fast-paced events better than long and drawn-out ones…
The ending was also fascinating. He realized immediately what had happened… The Potter boy, again. At least it didn't really impact Albus in any way. The Diggory boy and the Chang girl cast spells that had hidden components imbibed in them, which then activated just as the last Hogwarts Champion was about to be eliminated.
This was confirmed when he had personally examined the spell thanks to their wands, alongside a few ICW specialists. They had been quite perplexed with the spell, but the former headmaster could see the Potter boy's fingerprint all over it…
The boy had tricked them into winning… Albus didn't know if he should have been impressed or not. He probably should since he showed that the rumours of the school's decline during his tenure as headmaster were nothing more than that, rumours.
His former worries looked so small, now that he looked back at everything. With his grand plan destroyed and Gellert's information about Ragnarök, Albus had a wild shift in perspective, so much so that he agreed to work with Gellert of all people.
Oh, he still hated the Potter boy with a passion, but there was something more important than satisfying the urge to kill the brat… Gellert was strangely opposed to the idea, something about the brat being important. Albus agreed not to do anything drastic, which was very tempting when he realized that Nicholas' Diary was destroyed and that the Philosopher's Stone was out of his reach once more.
Perhaps after the boy fulfilled his purpose…
He smiled slightly at the image. Of course, his pleasant daydream was interrupted when he sensed a presence materialize behind him, "Hello, Lily."
Yes, Lily Potter, or Evans as she preferred, was another complication that he wished would just go away. Her death had been the only positive point in the fiasco that was the attack on Godric's Hollow, and the fact that she was still alive meant that thousands of wizards, witches, and muggles had died for nothing. He wished her could just kill her and be done with it, but the woman's ruthlessness and intelligence meant that she had so many contingencies for her death that he would end up losing more than he would gain if he killed her at any time, she was expecting it.
If it had been anyone else, he would have tried to use her son against her… She seemed to like him in some weird way… Or she just wanted to use him. Albus wasn't actually sure which one it was, and he didn't care to know about it. Harry Potter was a headache by himself, let alone the combination of him and his mother.
"Albus…" the redhead simply retorted.
"I suppose I should congratulate you and your son. I believe he achieved a massive victory over the infamous Black Widow… And Arcturus Black's winnings were nothing to scoff at… Such a precise bet with such great odds being won. Some might call it a wonderful coincidence."
The witch snorted, "Let's just dispense of the pleasantries… You tried to play the kid and he took advantage of the situation like he always did…"
"Whatever do you mean? I haven't really done anything to the boy…"
"So, you didn't tell the Black Widow to go after Harry?"
Albus snorted, "No. It's true that I contacted Isabella Zabini and asked her to distract the boy in exchange for me ensuring that her political opposition wouldn't vote in a way that would jeopardize her wealth and power. I even specifically stated that he was not to be harmed. I'm unsure of what she did, and I did not care for it as long as the boy was distracted enough not to be a nuisance…"
To be perfectly honest, he also wished that the boy would be taken by the Black Widow. Considering his considerable resources, the boy was the exact target that the seductress preferred… She could have strung him along until his majority, married him, then killed him. It was distasteful, but it was an easy way of gaining revenge without really doing anything.
Lily gave him an amused look, "You thought he was just some hormonal teenager… Did you seriously think that he'd just turn stupid when he talked with an attractive woman?"
"Not really, I asked her to keep him occupied without him being injured. How she did so wasn't any of my concern."
Albus really hadn't cared about the method the woman used as long as she kept her side of the bargain and that she wouldn't involve him in any way.
Still, he didn't know why the woman had chosen to use him to win the task and overreached by betting too much on Hogwarts' victory. Did the boy pretend to be seduced to counter her ploys? The former headmaster didn't particularly care about the outcome. Even if it was just because of some greedy woman's scheme, the boy was distracted during the second task…
It seemed like the best way to manipulate the boy was through challenges… Giving him puzzles to solve. The former headmaster labelled that for a later date.
The redhead though, didn't look amused, "Well, that also didn't work. Harry investigated the magical release and came to a fascinating little scene in a forest not far from here."
And that made Albus freeze. He had thought that the boy would have been too distracted with the task to investigate Albus' plans… This was a problem, "What did he see?"
"Enough. Wiped out the vampires guarding your little ritual and saw someone slaughter a little girl. He was really shaken by this… He showed me what she looked like. It took me a whole day tracking her down…"
"Oh," he simply retorted.
"What do you mean, Oh? You fucking killed a child, Albus. Some orphan girl living with catholic nuns… I know you've always been ruthless. What you did to me, my son, Voldemort, and half our country… I know that you're perfectly capable of killing a child without losing any sleep over it. But you only ever do it as a last resort, using pure cold math, if it would make a benefit in the long run… But this! This isn't like you. I know I'm not the most ethical person out there, and that we don't see eye to eye. But using a child in a sacrificial ritual is wrong, no matter what you're trying to achieve."
"The situation is more complex than you could ever imagine. Young Maria's death, while tragic, was necessary."
The redhead snarled at him, "Necessary? Since when is killing children for rituals necessary? And since you did this, what would be the end of it? Will genocide be necessary as well? Where does this stop?"
That brought Albus short. As much as people liked to paint him as a manipulative monster, he never considered himself to be one. Everything he had done was for the greater good, for his grand plan of creating a magical Utopia. People might have suffered on the journey, but the destination would have made up for it.
He would admit that if it hadn't been for what they were facing, he wouldn't have gone through with the ritual and sacrificed the child. Unfortunately, he didn't have the luxury of morality. Ragnarök was coming and they needed to be ready, "It's necessary when the outcome is far more terrible than the life of a single child."
"What could possibly justify this, Dumbledore?"
"The end."
The witch seemed confused, "The end of what exactly?"
"The end of everything… Something is coming, a very old prophecy was activated, and we are now facing something that could cause the end of everything. Every human being, mage or muggle, every magical creature... Everything! So, tell me, Lily Evans, how does the life of a single girl matter in front of this? Do you think I like this, working with vampires and killing children? Do you think I would have done any of it if I had any other choice? As for the girl, do not mourn her… It was better that she died as an innocent child, anyway, considering the alternative..."
The moment he spoke that last sentence, he knew he had made a mistake. The truth was that Lily had poked in right in a sensitive spot. He had been doubtful when Gellert had told him about the plan for this particular seal. It had made him feel like a monster until he was reminded just what they were trying to prevent… Of course, then Gellert told him what the girl's fate would have been, and in a way, what they had given her was a mercy.
"And what role does the girl play? Why would sacrificing this random orphan cause anything…. Oh… A prophecy, that's what it was all about. The girl was the subject of a prophecy, one that was probably negative. You decided to play God, as you always do and decided not only to stop her prophecy but to use it for your ritual… That's why you needed the task, you used the large amount of energy to power get past Fate's protection for a fraction of a second, enough to use the magical released from the prophecy… You didn't just want to kill her, you wanted to do it in a way to benefit as much as possible."
This… This was why he hated dealing with Lily Potter and her infernal son. There really was such a thing as being too smart for their own good. Her guess was quite close. There really was a prophecy about young Maria… Well, not her specifically, but about a new conqueror from the bloodline of emperor Nero. She was the only remaining descendant of the tyrant… Even if she wouldn't have been responsible, how many lives had he saved by simply sacrificing the girl?
Even if the whole thing left a bad taste in his mouth, allowing something like this, even in the far future to come to fruition was just as evil as killing the girl, perhaps even more so. It was the exact definition of the greater good, of making difficult decisions when no one else could.
Of course, the witch had to continue, "My question is, what could you possibly do with seven prophecies? What are you planning?"
"I am not going to answer that. This isn't about you or about your child. This isn't some fight between good and evil, but preparations for humanity's survival. Yes, what I did was wrong, but it was the right decision. I have no time or energy for your games considering what's at stake."
"And yet you went after Harry again."
Albus corrected, "I kept him distracted… But you're right… I will not do so again, as long as you leave us be. I will not be tolerant… Not when it concerns humanity's survival."
"Do you remember the promise I made you weeks ago?"
The former headmaster shivered at the memory, "You would destroy the world, just for him?"
"Yes…"
The madness in her eyes was enough for him to believe her. He really needed to speak to Gellert. They needed to make a few amendments to their plans.
I would like to thank my beta, Awdyr, for his help in this chapter.
22 November 1994, Rome, Italy
Albus Dumbledore sat in the room awarded to him by the Accademia Arcana Italia… Like the rest of the school, it was as spartan as it was empty. There weren't any luxuries or any enchanted amenities. As unusual as this was, Albus actually preferred this. The fact that there weren't many objects in the room meant that there were fewer opportunities to sneak in any curses to hit him. Normally, he would either vanish or temporarily store each item in one of his many caches all over the continent and conjure new ones during his stay.
The straight approach saved him a lot of time and effort when he arrived. All in all, he had enjoyed his stay in Rome. Everything was going according to plan… The second seal was removed without any issues. The only small thing was the fact that the enchanted forest had been contaminated by the ritual, but it would right itself in time. Everything did one day…
Other than that, the task had been surprisingly entertaining to watch, far better than the first one at Beauxbatons, which was extremely boring after the Potter boy finished… People obviously liked fast-paced events better than long and drawn-out ones…
The ending was also fascinating. He realized immediately what had happened… The Potter boy, again. At least it didn't really impact Albus in any way. The Diggory boy and the Chang girl cast spells that had hidden components imbibed in them, which then activated just as the last Hogwarts Champion was about to be eliminated.
This was confirmed when he had personally examined the spell thanks to their wands, alongside a few ICW specialists. They had been quite perplexed with the spell, but the former headmaster could see the Potter boy's fingerprint all over it…
The boy had tricked them into winning… Albus didn't know if he should have been impressed or not. He probably should since he showed that the rumours of the school's decline during his tenure as headmaster were nothing more than that, rumours.
His former worries looked so small, now that he looked back at everything. With his grand plan destroyed and Gellert's information about Ragnarök, Albus had a wild shift in perspective, so much so that he agreed to work with Gellert of all people.
Oh, he still hated the Potter boy with a passion, but there was something more important than satisfying the urge to kill the brat… Gellert was strangely opposed to the idea, something about the brat being important. Albus agreed not to do anything drastic, which was very tempting when he realized that Nicholas' Diary was destroyed and that the Philosopher's Stone was out of his reach once more.
Perhaps after the boy fulfilled his purpose…
He smiled slightly at the image. Of course, his pleasant daydream was interrupted when he sensed a presence materialize behind him, "Hello, Lily."
Yes, Lily Potter, or Evans as she preferred, was another complication that he wished would just go away. Her death had been the only positive point in the fiasco that was the attack on Godric's Hollow, and the fact that she was still alive meant that thousands of wizards, witches, and muggles had died for nothing. He wished her could just kill her and be done with it, but the woman's ruthlessness and intelligence meant that she had so many contingencies for her death that he would end up losing more than he would gain if he killed her at any time, she was expecting it.
If it had been anyone else, he would have tried to use her son against her… She seemed to like him in some weird way… Or she just wanted to use him. Albus wasn't actually sure which one it was, and he didn't care to know about it. Harry Potter was a headache by himself, let alone the combination of him and his mother.
"Albus…" the redhead simply retorted.
"I suppose I should congratulate you and your son. I believe he achieved a massive victory over the infamous Black Widow… And Arcturus Black's winnings were nothing to scoff at… Such a precise bet with such great odds being won. Some might call it a wonderful coincidence."
The witch snorted, "Let's just dispense of the pleasantries… You tried to play the kid and he took advantage of the situation like he always did…"
"Whatever do you mean? I haven't really done anything to the boy…"
"So, you didn't tell the Black Widow to go after Harry?"
Albus snorted, "No. It's true that I contacted Isabella Zabini and asked her to distract the boy in exchange for me ensuring that her political opposition wouldn't vote in a way that would jeopardize her wealth and power. I even specifically stated that he was not to be harmed. I'm unsure of what she did, and I did not care for it as long as the boy was distracted enough not to be a nuisance…"
To be perfectly honest, he also wished that the boy would be taken by the Black Widow. Considering his considerable resources, the boy was the exact target that the seductress preferred… She could have strung him along until his majority, married him, then killed him. It was distasteful, but it was an easy way of gaining revenge without really doing anything.
Lily gave him an amused look, "You thought he was just some hormonal teenager… Did you seriously think that he'd just turn stupid when he talked with an attractive woman?"
"Not really, I asked her to keep him occupied without him being injured. How she did so wasn't any of my concern."
Albus really hadn't cared about the method the woman used as long as she kept her side of the bargain and that she wouldn't involve him in any way.
Still, he didn't know why the woman had chosen to use him to win the task and overreached by betting too much on Hogwarts' victory. Did the boy pretend to be seduced to counter her ploys? The former headmaster didn't particularly care about the outcome. Even if it was just because of some greedy woman's scheme, the boy was distracted during the second task…
It seemed like the best way to manipulate the boy was through challenges… Giving him puzzles to solve. The former headmaster labelled that for a later date.
The redhead though, didn't look amused, "Well, that also didn't work. Harry investigated the magical release and came to a fascinating little scene in a forest not far from here."
And that made Albus freeze. He had thought that the boy would have been too distracted with the task to investigate Albus' plans… This was a problem, "What did he see?"
"Enough. Wiped out the vampires guarding your little ritual and saw someone slaughter a little girl. He was really shaken by this… He showed me what she looked like. It took me a whole day tracking her down…"
"Oh," he simply retorted.
"What do you mean, Oh? You fucking killed a child, Albus. Some orphan girl living with catholic nuns… I know you've always been ruthless. What you did to me, my son, Voldemort, and half our country… I know that you're perfectly capable of killing a child without losing any sleep over it. But you only ever do it as a last resort, using pure cold math, if it would make a benefit in the long run… But this! This isn't like you. I know I'm not the most ethical person out there, and that we don't see eye to eye. But using a child in a sacrificial ritual is wrong, no matter what you're trying to achieve."
"The situation is more complex than you could ever imagine. Young Maria's death, while tragic, was necessary."
The redhead snarled at him, "Necessary? Since when is killing children for rituals necessary? And since you did this, what would be the end of it? Will genocide be necessary as well? Where does this stop?"
That brought Albus short. As much as people liked to paint him as a manipulative monster, he never considered himself to be one. Everything he had done was for the greater good, for his grand plan of creating a magical Utopia. People might have suffered on the journey, but the destination would have made up for it.
He would admit that if it hadn't been for what they were facing, he wouldn't have gone through with the ritual and sacrificed the child. Unfortunately, he didn't have the luxury of morality. Ragnarök was coming and they needed to be ready, "It's necessary when the outcome is far more terrible than the life of a single child."
"What could possibly justify this, Dumbledore?"
"The end."
The witch seemed confused, "The end of what exactly?"
"The end of everything… Something is coming, a very old prophecy was activated, and we are now facing something that could cause the end of everything. Every human being, mage or muggle, every magical creature... Everything! So, tell me, Lily Evans, how does the life of a single girl matter in front of this? Do you think I like this, working with vampires and killing children? Do you think I would have done any of it if I had any other choice? As for the girl, do not mourn her… It was better that she died as an innocent child, anyway, considering the alternative..."
The moment he spoke that last sentence, he knew he had made a mistake. The truth was that Lily had poked in right in a sensitive spot. He had been doubtful when Gellert had told him about the plan for this particular seal. It had made him feel like a monster until he was reminded just what they were trying to prevent… Of course, then Gellert told him what the girl's fate would have been, and in a way, what they had given her was a mercy.
"And what role does the girl play? Why would sacrificing this random orphan cause anything…. Oh… A prophecy, that's what it was all about. The girl was the subject of a prophecy, one that was probably negative. You decided to play God, as you always do and decided not only to stop her prophecy but to use it for your ritual… That's why you needed the task, you used the large amount of energy to power get past Fate's protection for a fraction of a second, enough to use the magical released from the prophecy… You didn't just want to kill her, you wanted to do it in a way to benefit as much as possible."
This… This was why he hated dealing with Lily Potter and her infernal son. There really was such a thing as being too smart for their own good. Her guess was quite close. There really was a prophecy about young Maria… Well, not her specifically, but about a new conqueror from the bloodline of emperor Nero. She was the only remaining descendant of the tyrant… Even if she wouldn't have been responsible, how many lives had he saved by simply sacrificing the girl?
Even if the whole thing left a bad taste in his mouth, allowing something like this, even in the far future to come to fruition was just as evil as killing the girl, perhaps even more so. It was the exact definition of the greater good, of making difficult decisions when no one else could.
Of course, the witch had to continue, "My question is, what could you possibly do with seven prophecies? What are you planning?"
"I am not going to answer that. This isn't about you or about your child. This isn't some fight between good and evil, but preparations for humanity's survival. Yes, what I did was wrong, but it was the right decision. I have no time or energy for your games considering what's at stake."
"And yet you went after Harry again."
Albus corrected, "I kept him distracted… But you're right… I will not do so again, as long as you leave us be. I will not be tolerant… Not when it concerns humanity's survival."
"Do you remember the promise I made you weeks ago?"
The former headmaster shivered at the memory, "You would destroy the world, just for him?"
"Yes…"
The madness in her eyes was enough for him to believe her. He really needed to speak to Gellert. They needed to make a few amendments to their plans.
this (alongside the resources mcgonagall managed to extract from the ICW in exchange for harry not competing) should go a long way towards restoring hogwarts' reputation
YIKES. this is typical dumbles but it's still reprehensible