Chapter Two: Maneuvers.
Harry slipped his way through the many secret passages through Hogwarts. The Marauders Map in his hand allowed him to know who lurked the hallway. Snape prowled the nights, and Harry avoided him.
Crouch slipped into Moody's office for some reason. Which was strange, because Harry saw Crouch leave, back to his job at the Ministry. Moody acted weird tonight, come to think of it, and not the good kind of weird either.
Well past Midnight, and Harry looked at the cluster of people waiting in the Gryffindor Common Room. They waited up for him. Boy would they be sorely disappointed when he didn't show up for his surprise party.
Harry stepped into one of the unused classrooms to draft a letter. Given someone tried to enter him into a magically binding contract without his knowledge, he would need legal representation. Who better to legally give him advice than Andromeda Tonks, someone who knew the ins and outs of all of the bullshit happening in the Ministry.
She had a daughter, who was a Metamorphmagus. A Metamorphmagus had their uses to be sure and only about half of them were sexual.
Harry sent off the quick letter he needed to do so. Breakfast would be rather enlightening for one way or another. Chances are Andromeda might show up to meet him in person and the shit was going to fly there.
The people involved in the tournament still thought Harry would compete. Sucked to the be them.
The sorcerer located a few little used locations at Hogwarts, many of them rather comfortable. It allowed him to be alone with all of his thoughts and helped him evade the scores of rapid fan girls and fan boys who wanted to tear out his hair so they could sleep with it underneath their pillow.
Harry entered one of the nicer rooms of the secret area of Hogwarts. Anyone who was willing to explore could find some secrets, but the founders only made certain parts of their school accessible. Harry passed the stacks of books, a library which once belonged to Rowena Ravenclaw.
He doubted very much the tomes inside amounted to even the slightest fraction of her connection. Harry used the books as a reference material, but decided only to show a fraction of his full potential. Only OWLs and NEWTs mattered anyway, so Harry couldn't be bothered to make his fingers bleed.
And then there were those entry exams to certain Ministry positions, not Harry wanted to work at the Ministry. He had far loftier goals in mind.
Harry wondered if Rowena had anything on magically binding contracts. He skimmed through the index, present to him. Once he touched the topic in mind, a book on the shelf lit up, shining a beacon of light at him.
'Let's see what she has to say.'
Harry picked up the book and dropped it down on the table. Rowena's collection, at least this part, might be hundreds of years old, but looked pristine as the day she acquired the books.
He made his way to magically binding agreements. Most wouldn't take a thousand year old tome as gospel, but the enchantments Rowena put on her books constantly refreshed them.
In the event of a forgery, the forger is bound by the terms of the contract. The only exception is if the victim displays intent to follow through the terms of the contract.
Harry wanted to receive a second opinion from Andromeda, but he was pretty sure if he failed to show up for the three tasks, it would mean he didn't compete. Therefore, he didn't accept the magically binding contract.
He could be wrong, he wasn't a lawyer.
Folding back the page in his book, Harry noticed the red gem on his watch started to glow. He smiled. His girlfriend returned from her trip, and boy did they have some catching up to do. The watches they wore allowed them to communicate with each other.
Still rather early, more than enough time for someone to get back, especially when they moved faster than a speeding bullet.
Harry pressed a button to confirm and allow her to track her to the location. The protections around Hogwarts worked to an extent, but the school allowed Harry's girlfriend inside whenever she pleased.
Hogwarts was pretty pissed off at Dumbledore and the Ministry over the past couple of years. Not Harry had a conversation with the school, but more like the vibe he experienced from the walls.
Candles flickered every time Dumbledore entered the Great Hall.
Fawkes appeared with a flash in the office of Minerva McGonagall. The woman looked to be tired, but still up late at night.
"I better go and tell them off, because it's obvious Mr. Potter isn't returning," Minerva said.
The stern teacher noticed Dumbledore's Phoenix on the side of her desk.
"Fawkes, does Dumbledore want to give me a message?" McGonagall asked.
Was it possible Dumbledore found out who tampered with the Goblet of Fire? Minerva crossed her fingers hoping for an answer. Every year since Mr. Potter arrived, despite the best laid plans, some security oversight reached it.
The nasty letters received by parents tripled and the accusations Dumbledore lost his touch increased.
Fawkes hung his head. Minerva experienced a cold feeling of dread rush through her body. The Phoenix attempted to tell her something.
"Take me."
Fawkes, with Minerva's permission, took her to Dumbledore's office. The two of them landed down on the ground.
Dumbledore's limp body laid at her feet. Minerva gasped, and seconds later, the entrance to Dumbledore's office open. A hassled Madam Pomfrey entered the office.
"Help me levitate him, Minerva."
A stretcher hovered in the air. The two witches levitated the broken body of Albus Dumbledore. Never in all of their wildest dreams did they think they would find Dumbledore like this. In some ways, Dumbledore was immortal in the eyes of many. The unbreakable wizard who couldn't be stopped, even though he always dubbed himself very human.
Pomfrey knew they raced against time, when they didn't have much time left. The Hospital Wing journey dragged on. Thanks to the Hogwarts defenses, there was no short-cuts, no way to teleport or transport Dumbledore.
For some reason, the journey was longer.
Pomfrey entered the back of the wing, towards the administrative section. She thanked herself for a small miracle. No students resided in the hospital wing this evening. Had they seen the Headmaster being carried up in the state they were in, panic would have occurred.
The Triwizard madness and everyone being preoccupied with the events involving the Goblet of Fire caused the attention to averted from the hallway.
A side entrance opened up. Severus Snape exited, looking fairly grim, even for him.
"I came as quickly as a could," Snape said.
"Yes, Severus, stand by, please. I need to see if he's been poisoned."
Who could poison Albus Dumbledore, especially with Moody by his side, no one knew. The Hogwarts Hospital Wing matron waved her wand over Dumbledore.
His body enveloped in a black shine of magic. No signs of life came from his body.
She tried to jab her wand at his heart, sending a pulse of energy to jump start it. Dumbledore's body moved only because of the force of the energy hitting it. No signs of life.
"He hasn't been poisoned," Pomfrey said. "He suffered a heart attack tonight."
Snape's face turned stoic. Anyone who looked at the Potions Master during the best of times found him hard to read.
"What do we tell the students?" Snape asked.
"The truth," Minerva said. "Albus Dumbledore might have been larger in life, but he's old. He's worked harder over the past several decades than any man should. The shock of tonight's events caused him to be pushed to the brink."
"Surely he must have had an idea Potter's name might have been entered into the Cup once the tournament was brought to Hogwarts?" Snape asked.
"I don't know, Snape, you tell me."
Moody appeared at the door an instant. Snape's gaze turned towards Moody. Pure hatred burned from Snape's eyes. A mutual amount of hatred returned to him.
"What are you doing here, Moody?" Snape asked.
"I noticed you moving from your office like a bat out of hell," Moody said. "Figured I'd take a look at what you're up to….Dumbledore's all gone, and there's nothing you could for him."
"No," Pompfrey said.
"It would have been easy to someone to slip him a poison, Dumbledore is trusting, too trusting," Moody said.
"But, he would have been able to receive an antidote," Minerva said. "He hasn't been poisoned….did you know something was wrong with him?"
Pompfrey took a second to gaze at Minerva.
"He doesn't confide in me of his medical conditions, despite me being willing to ensure his health," Pomfrey said. "He must have had a private healer. Not I could tell you if I wanted to. The oath I took as a healer prohibits me from saying anything."
The Hogwarts staff had a long road until the next morning. They would have to announce Dumbledore's death. And report what happened to the Ministry.
The one thing in the world which could bump Harry Potter being entered in the Triwizard Tournament, whether willingly or not, occurred. The death of Albus Dumbledore was the biggest event since the fall of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
Daphne Greengrass found herself roaming the halls of Hogwarts a fair bit more often. She wondered what might have been.
Many Slytherins speculated had Draco Malfoy not endeared himself to Harry Potter in his own charming way, Potter would have ended up in Slytherin and not Gryffindor. Daphne found herself entertaining the notion and almost amused.
Snape's conflict amused her as much as anything ever did. He found himself supporting his Slytherins no matter what. He would have to support the son of his most hated enemy. Daphne wondered what side of Snape would win out.
Other Slytherins whispered Dumbledore would have never allowed Potter to end up anywhere but Gryffindor. Daphne didn't even bother to name off half of the conspiracy theories regarding Dumbledore. All of them were just as she said, a theory.
She faced herself with cold hard reality. Lucius Malfoy pulled a bastard move to end all bastard moves, and called in a debt with the Greengrass family which had been incurred a long time ago. Only a higher standing family could arrange to have the debt nullified and Daphne didn't know who would have a higher standing.
Daphne feared Lucius would find out her heritage, and would use his pull at the Ministry to arrange to gift wrap both Daphne and Astoria to Draco as pets. It hadn't come to any marriage agreements yet. Draco and Parkinson were linked at the hip.
As much as Daphne thought Pansy was a bitch, she deserved better than Draco Malfoy. The one bitch at the Ministry, the one who looked like a toad, deserved better than Draco.
Daphne knew her inheritance might be danger in falling into the greedy hands of Draco. She could appeal to him, and beg him not to leave her without a knut to rub together. Daphne's pride refused to demean herself.
The primal nature within her wanted to rip Malfoy apart and toss him into the blackest pit of despair.
"I need someone….Potter….could he help me?"
Daphne shook her head for an instant. She remembered something, a rumor, regarding Malfoy. He challenged Potter to a duel during their first year. The idiot ginger in Potter's year accepted the challenge on Potter's behalf. Malfoy decided not to show up.
She was certain if Malfoy didn't show up, and Potter did, the Malfoys family would suffer dishonor, if Harry called them on it. They would be less popular than pond scum. Was it too late for Harry to call Draco and the Malfoys out on their cowardice?
Daphne needed to appeal to Potter and quick. After tonight, she could only begin to think of the mood the Triwizard Tournament left him in. She noticed it in his eyes, he didn't put his name in the Goblet.
Harry Potter changed last year, and if she judged him on the first two years, Daphne wouldn't think he was worth a piece of dragon dung. People did have the ability to change when they grew older.
At least most did, but some remained depressingly the same. Harry Potter allowed her a moment of hope she didn't allow for many.
Perhaps, he could be useful in the fix her family found herself in. On sheer principle, Slytherins kept within their own house. It didn't help the reputation they had with the school as anti-social assholes at best and evil pricks at worst. The older Slytherins discouraged the younger ones to mingle outside of their own house, because they were among the elite.
And people wondered why many judged Slytherins to be evil.
'Maybe it's time to destroy all of those trends.'
Harry arrived at the usual meeting place. The curtain fluttered open as Harry smiled.
"I'm here."
The eighteen year old woman slipped towards Harry. Her golden blonde hair shined in the moonlight. Her dazzling blue eyes brought a degree of warmth which caused Harry's mood to improve under the most dire of circumstances. She dressed in a blue tank top, a silver jacket, and a red skirt which came down to her knees. A pair of elegant red boots added.
"Kara, I'm glad you're here. You won't believe what happened."
Kara Zor-El, the heroine known as Supergirl, crossed the room and kissed Harry. Harry returned the kiss.
"Harry, given what you've been through, there's a lot about you I'd believe."
Kara and Harry took a journey to their usual haunt when Kara came to visit him at Hogwarts.
"Never mind me, what have you been up to?"
Kara raised her hand.
"Well, you know, I've been halfway across the galaxy, dealing with some tyrant who wants to cause a lot of mayhem and destruction, same old, same old."
"You won't let them get you down though," Harry said.
"No," Kara said. "Not if I can help it."
Kara and Harry plopped down on a couch. A bowl of fruit appeared in front of them. The Girl of Steel picked up the grape and fed it to Harry.
"You have the look like you want to leave Hogwarts, and never come back."
Harry smiled, as Kara leaned against him, feeding him the grape. He returned fire, feeding her a grape in return.
"You've known me longer than anyone else," Harry said. "Hogwarts is such a magical place."
"Yes, a kingdom of fun and wonder," Kara said. "Do you have to fight a three headed dragon this year or something?"
Harry raised his eyebrow, but didn't say anything. She popped another grape into his mouth which he accepted.
"I was entered into a magically binding contract."
Kara put two and two together.
"I see…and you didn't sign up for….it's the Tournament, isn't it?" Kara asked.
"Yes," Harry said. "Someone tried to enter me into the Triwzard Tournament under a fourth school."
"So four champions, in a Triwizard Tournament?" Kara asked. Harry nodded and she frowned. "Math is a little off to me, wouldn't you say?"
Harry put his forefinger and pinky together to make a motion.
"A tad bit, yes."
Kara sighed, and brushed her mate's hair out of his eyes.
"And to think, I have all of the money in the world and the best, smartest, girl anyone could have, and yet, I'm here at Hogwarts," Harry said.
"You can take your NEWTs at the end of the year if you choose to, can't you?"
"Yes, after I take my OWLs," Harry said. "I've been spending the last couple of years preparing. After the Chamber of Secrets, I made a decision I wanted to get out of here."
"What's worth staying?" Kara asked.
"Few of the women aren't too bad on the eyes," Harry said.
"You know it would serve them right if you took all of the talent worth a damn and let everyone to sink," Kara said.
"A bit too vindictive, aren't you, Girl Scout?"
Kara mock pouted at the term of endearment.
"You're confusing me with my cousin."
"So you think?"
Kara's lips curled into a knowing grin. She edged closer towards Harry and pressed her lips upon his for ten whole seconds.
"So, I think," Kara said. "In the end, you have to do what's best for you. To think the world would have been enslaved if it wasn't for the Dark Lord falling to a one year old."
Harry hated to be reminded of the simple fact. They didn't grasp what occurred on Halloween night. Over the years, Harry pieced together memories of the evening. The Dementors of all things helped jog his memories.
"They refuse to acknowledge the efforts of a woman to pull off a complex bit of magic to save her own son," Harry said.
"And help him become more extraordinary."
Kara slowly unbuttoned Harry's shirt and played with chest. She ran her fingers.
"You're amazing, Har," Kara said. "Some people might not appreciate what you're capable of, but those people aren't worth the ground."
His best friend, his lover, his soul mate, started to kiss the side of Harry's neck. He closed his eyes, with a smile.
"They won't know what they had, until you're gone. But…you're still here for another year, aren't you?"
"At least."
Kara trailed her fingers down, playing with his abs.
"And you're going to leave your mark before you leave," Kara said. She teased his belt for a second, but pulled back.
"Yes."
Kara smiled, looking over his amazing body. Physically an adult, once the glamours dropped, many outside of more advanced cultures would be disturbed by the fact he was only fourteen. Most likely after they caught themselves lusting after him.
He was only fourteen years old by the measure of the years he lived. Otherwise, he was more of an adult than some adults. Especially the ones who thought they were mature, but didn't have any idea.
"So, are you really glad to tell the Dursleys goodbye?"
"The Dursleys…talk about a mood killer."
Kara's face pulled into a sheepish grin.
"You have to admit, it was funny when I showed up, and told them I was staying for the summer. Nothing they could really do about it. Vernon looked like he was about to have a stroke."
Harry cupped Kara's face and played with her hair.
"No, beloved, he always looks like it. He's a walking heart attack risk, waiting to happen."
Kara straddled Harry's lap. His hands skimmed up her legs. She leaned in and tempted his body with a series of kisses.
"I think Diana showing up scared him to death," Harry said.
"So, Diana?" Kara asked. "She doesn't want to admit it, but she….enjoyed watching the two of us this summer. I think the Princess should experience some royal treatment soon enough. Hell, she isn't the only Princess you have in your sights….speaking of which….."
"Yes, I've given your suggestion some thought," Harry said.
His fingers pushed up Kara's skirt, skimming between her thighs, teasing her womanhood.
"Oh?"
"Yes," Harry said. "Granted, you didn't have to nudge me too far….and after my second magical maturity….my magic is going to seek out people."
"Do you really need an excuse?" Kara asked. "A strong male wouldn't allow strong women to fall under lesser mates."
She kissed his lips for a second.
"Well, one of the Triwizard Tournament champions, she's a Veela," Harry said. "Her thrall caused most of the other idiots to fall over themselves."
Kara grinned. Those idiots couldn't even look such a creature in the eyes without getting a nose bleed. Unlike her Harry, who wouldn't drive a creature driven by sex to pure lust.
She fished her fingers into the band of his pants.
"She called me a little boy."
Kara's eyes flared for a second.
"Hardly. Surprised a magical creature would allow herself to fall into preconceived notions based on age."
Harry chuckled, he figured he would give the Veela Princess the benefit of the doubt, at least somewhat.
"I think she was upset about having the spotlight in the Triwizard Tournament being taken off of her."
"Still doesn't excuse her from being a bitch," Kara said.
Harry looked into Kara's eyes. Her firm expression left little room for argument.
"I gave her a dose of my aura."
Kara, having slid halfway to her knees before Harry, kissing his abs, looked up at him.
"Good, she won't be able to keep a decent pair of panties until you give her what she wants."
"Soon enough, but let her choke for it."
Kara approved. She rubbed his crotch through his pants.
"So, Har, are you thinking about making the stuck-up hot bitch squirm, or are you thinking about what we're going to do….it's been two whole months, after all? Because you're as hard as a rock."
Harry threaded his hair through the back of Kara's golden locks. He looked down into her stunning eyes.
"How about a little of both?"
"I can live with that."
Kara made an executive decision to stay at Hogwarts with Harry after his name drew from the Goblet of Fire. After all, it was her duty as girlfriend, and also an upholder of truth, justice, and some other vaguely defined things, to makes sure no asshole tried to kill her Harry for the fourth year in a row.
Who was going to even say no to the girl who could burn you with her eyes and lift mountains? Especially if you ran the risk of pissing off Harry Potter, who most of the magical people liked this week, but even when they didn't like him, they knew pissing him off and forcing him from their world would make them the laughing stock of every magical community in the world.
More so than usual.
The Girl of Steel dressed in a snug version of the Hogwarts school uniform, minus the robes.
"Kind of playing into the magical stereotype wearing robes," Kara said. She flipped the tie she wore. "So, how do I look?"
"As beautiful as always, beloved," Harry said.
Harry earned a kiss from the smartest girl in the twenty eight known galaxies and all of the unknown ones.
The duo entered the Great Hall and received applause from the Gryffindor table. Harry sighed and looked at Kara.
"Obviously, they're applauding me. Must have been the kitten I rescued from a tree on my way here, put my popularity over the top."
The Ravenclaws stared at Harry, half glaring, and half trying to figure out what the hell happened. About three-fourths of the Hufflepuffs stared Harry down like he committed some great sin to them. For being the pushover house, Hufflepuffs could be real vindictive bastards.
Diggory gave him the most sheepish "sorry, bro" look he could muster. The Slytherins acted like their usual charming selves. Draco Malfoy rose to his feet. Because of course Malfoy would have to make a spectacle of himself when a lot of eyes were on him.
"Well, look who it is, the Hogwarts champion, and his super w….."
Kara rushed over at super speed and shoved a sock in Malfoy's mouth. She knew stealing it from Dudley's gym bag would come in handy.
The fact Dudley actually worked up enough of a sweat to have sweaty gym socks flabbergasted both Harry and Kara.
A lot of the Muggleborns looked at awe at the Girl of Steel at Hogwarts, and it was well known she and Harry had been dating for over a year, and had been friends for far longer. Kara received her fair share of jealous looks from bitches who she and Harry wouldn't allow into the collective anyway, so their opinion mattered little to either.
Malfoy started to gag on the sock. With help from Crabbe and Goyle he extracted it.
"Hope you enjoyed it Malfoy," Harry said. "It came from my muggle cousin's gym bag."
Malfoy's mortified look spread over his face and scrambled to the nearest bathroom. He needed to wash the Muggle germs from his mouth.
"Really, you think you would learn, Malfoy," Kara said.
Harry cleared his throat.
"May I have your attention please…excuse me people…."
They started to talk louder despite Harry's attempts to gain silence. He really needed a gavel.
Kara became progressively more annoyed.
"Harry Fucking Potter is talking, so shut up!" Kara yelled at the top of her lungs.
Harry smiled at his wonderful girlfriend managing to make the Great Hall shut up.
"Ladies and gentlemen….I have an announcement to make…."
A group of teachers came from the Great Hall, cutting off Harry's announcement. Harry threw his hands up.
Harry noticed a number conspicuous from their absence.
"No Dumbledore, odd," Harry said.
"Maybe you refusing to compete in the tournament caused him to have a stroke," Kara joked, but only so Harry could hear her.
McGonagall cleared her throat. She resembled a woman who aged twenty years in a night.
"I'm sorry to inform you Professor Dumbledore has passed away this morning. We believed he suffered a stroke in his office."
Shit meet fan. Everyone lost their minds.
Kara turned to Harry and threw her hands into the air.
"I was only kidding."
To Be Continued.