Disclaimer: This story is 100% alternate universe and most, if not all, of the characters in this story are out of character as well. Also I don't own anything by J.K. Rowling and I am not trying to steal her characters, plots, or moments within the books that she has written. This is my own story and I also claim to not copy off of anyone else's work either in the process.
Summary: Part One of Three. After Harry's name is chosen from the Goblet of Fire, things start to go horribly wrong for the chosen one and a nefarious plot to eliminate him, from his fellow classmates, is put into place. Can Harry find out who is responsible for the darkness surrounding him before it is too late? Mature rating is for violence, gore, and swearing.
What Happened Previously: Ginny and Luna attempt to see Harry before his surgery, but they arrive too late. Cedric is convinced his time is running out, while Terry Boot seeks a way to save himself. Dumbledore is aware of the plot to kill Harry Potter, but contemplates whether turning in the students involved is the best thing to do. After Lucius Malfoy is forced to kill in order to save himself, the Death Eater makes plans to leave Voldemort behind. Harry finally awakes from The Emptiness.
LAST EDITED: 3/6/18
Chapter 10: Arrival (Part 3)
Previously:
Miles away in the Hospital Wing of Hogwarts, the magic infused within the corpse of Harry Potter was finally beginning to activate.
The fingers began to twitch, the legs began to be restless, and the internal organs of the boy began to return to life.
As the rejuvenation ended, the boy finally opened his eyes and screamed so loud that the glass windows shattered all around him.
Shards of glass were dropping everywhere. The bed, his hair, and the floor were all covered in thick pieces, thin pieces, and powdered dust that sprayed areas near and far.
As the glass continued to fall, the boy made use of his surroundings. Since he was asleep for hours, his vision was sparse and needed time to adjust himself. As his eyes came back to normal, Harry was able to see that he was in another part of the castle he did not recognize.
He was in the Hospital Wing, there was no doubt of that, but he was in a section he had never seen before. Where exactly was he?
Looking ahead, Harry was able to locate the sign down the corridor and above his head read: "Intensive Care Unit".
So it seems there was more of the Hospital Wing than what was revealed. Harry knew his injuries must have been bad but apparently they were worse off than what he originally thought.
As he shrugged off some of the glass dust, and smaller fragments from his hair, the young man screamed in horror as he saw the state of his left arm.
"WHAT HAPPENED TO MY ARM?" Harry shouted with ample amounts of fear.
At least that's what he tried to say. Since Harry's vocal cords were burned, the only thing that came out of his mouth was the croaking screech that made a sickening lurch from his bowels.
"Raayyyyuuuchhhhhrr?" Harry screeched with a horrific slur as some blood sprayed out his mouth and landing in a splatter on the bed sheets.
Realizing that the sheets were stained and his vocal cords were useless, Harry attempted to see what other burns were on his body, but any time he moved the pain would harshly inflict upon his body. The boy decided to try and not move.
"What's going on here? Why can't I speak?" Harry thought to himself in a state of panic.
The young man closed his eyes and tried to remember what happened before he ended up there.
"I remember fighting the dragon, getting set on fire, then … I met Mum. She told me how to defeat Voldemort! I need to tell someone!"
Harry then tried to move his body once more, but found the experience to be even more excruciating than a few minutes ago.
"This is worse than anything the Dursleys have ever done to me." Harry thought.
Using the strength he had left, Harry jumped out of bed, but fell over because the muscles in his legs were massively under developed from the missing tissue and fell to the ground. As he landed on the cold floor, a blinding amount of pain coursed throughout his entire body which caused him to pass out.
The sound of Harry's body falling out of bed caused Madam Pomfrey to awaken from her nearby chambers. Being cautious, the medical matron grabbed her wand and created a light so she could see through the dark area. The first thing to do was to check on her patient's body in case someone disturbed it. Reaching closer to the bed, she was able to see that Harry Potter was gone. Initially her reaction was worried as to where he had gone, but after looking around the floor of the bed, she was able to see something large and mostly black.
The old woman knelt down and inspected the large object. After trying to determine what this thing could be, she heard the sound of breathing and a small amount of moaning. Madam Pomfrey now realized that this object was Harry Potter. Somehow he survived!
"Oh my Godric! Potter! You're alive! How in the name of Merlin is this possible?" Madam Pomfrey asked in shock.
"Help me Madam Pomfrey!" Harry tried to say, but all he could get out was: "Rrrraeehhhaaaaayycuuhhhh!" in a quiet voice.
"Your vocal cords are severely damaged from the fire, Mr. Potter. Please try not to talk. Can you understand me?"
The only thing Harry could do was nod his head slightly, but winced from the pain. Madam Pomfrey carefully pulled out her wand and levitated him back into bed all the while being careful not to to injure the young man. The healer then placed several pain relieving spells on the boy's body since swallowing anything would be detrimental.
"The spells I administered should get rid of some of the pain soon, Mr. Potter."
The matron then re-covered the young man in the bedsheet that was previously over his entire body.
"Please stay put and try not to move! I will alert the headmaster of your awakening. I'll be right back." said Madam Pomfrey.
The old healer scurried off in order to go to the Headmaster's office while leaving Harry alone on the bed.
Cedric Diggory was sitting in the Hufflepuff Common Room feeling more pressure than ever. There was a pretty good chance that Harry was going to die because of the dragon attack and the Fiend Fyre contamination on his clothes. From there, it would not be long before the Ministry of Magic sent a full team of Aurors to figure out what could have caused this to happen to one of the Tri-Wizard Champions.
Harry's death would be all over the newspaper outlets for a long time, and the people would demand justice for his murder. Everyone involved would be kissed, or worse, forced to spend eternity in Azkaban prison. This was something that Cedric wanted to avoid at all costs. He had a reputation to keep with his friends, teachers, and family. He was about to graduate Hogwarts after one more year of school, and he could finally become famous thanks to the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Unfortunately he knew that his time was running out and fast. He had to act before someone in their group told, or the Aurors figured out what happened to Harry Potter.
"What should I do?" Cedric though to himself.
"Hey Cedric great job out there! You handled the dragon like a pro!" said a fellow Hufflepuff as they walked in.
Cedric nodded in acknowledgement then returned back to his problem.
"I've already considered just getting a whole new identity and starting over, but what good would that do me? Someone would recognize me, or I'd slip up eventually and just be thrown in Azkaban anyway. My only other options are to place the blame on someone else, or at worse case, kill the others so it does not get traced back to me."
As soon as the thought entered his mind, a cold shiver went down his spine in the worst way possible.
"No. What am I saying? I can't kill anyone over this. I have to place the blame elsewhere. That's the only thing I can do. But where do I start? Who should I choose to take the fall? Okay let's go over the options. There's Draco Malfoy, Ron Weasley, Terry Boot, Cho Chang, Vincent Crabbe, Greg Goyle, and myself. Who would be the best person to choose? What can I do to make others believe in my innocence?"
"Cedric, you were fantastic today! You're doing a fine job of representing Hogwarts!" said someone else passing through the common room.
Once again Cedric acknowledged his fellow Hufflepuff. This time however, Cedric started to get really irritated with the people around him congratulating him constantly. If he could, Cedric would leave the common room but since the castle was on lock down from the events of the first task, he couldn't go out just yet. Then there was his room. Unfortunately he couldn't use that either since a bunch of other Hufflepuffs were having a study session, and Cedric wanted to be alone.
The only thing he could do was continue his thoughts.
"I won't be distracted again. If someone else says "hi" or "congratulations" to me then I will block them out. Now onto my choices. The obvious choice is to pick either Draco Malfoy for the fall. Draco is the one who started this whole thing anyways, so he should get all the credit. However ... Ron Weasley is also a good option. It's well known that Harry and the Weasleys are close, but I'm guessing that Ron and Harry are not friends if he decided to join our little group willingly. If he was selected to take credit for Harry's death, then it may throw the trail off of me entirely. There's one last thing to consider: Cho. I know she is completely smitten with me and will do whatever I ask, but the girl cannot keep a secret to save her life. Even if I do ask her to keep my role in this group secret, the truth will come out sooner or later. She absolutely needs to be silenced. But how?"
The Hufflepuff Champion could not find a peaceful way for Cho to keep quiet without having to resort to violence. But that was not his style. Even earlier today, he did not want to hurt the dragon or engage in contact at all. That's why he transfigured a nearby rock into a dog so the dragon would be distracted from him.
There was only one thing he could do to save his life. He would need to reach out to either Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, or Gregory Goyle. Cedric was positive that these three were no strangers to violence and liked to torment other students around Hogwarts.
Since he was already distracted, Cedric left the common room in order to clear his mind. Maybe along the way he could locate the three Slytherins, but the sixth year student doubted it.
There was still the issue of solving a screeching a golden egg as well. So even if he could not locate those three, at least the young man could try to get ahead of the other champions.
(After Madam Pomfrey left the Intensive Care Unit)
Harry Potter heard the doors to the Hospital Wing close and wasted no time. He got up and made a run for the door. Once again, he fell to the floor. Harry used all the strength he could muster to drag himself over to the doors of the Intensive Care Unit. Several scraps of flesh fell off the boy and remained on the ground with each movement. When he approached the door, the young man gave a hard push that barely moved the door at all. He was not going to get out of the Intensive Care Unit through the main doors.
"Ok. I guess I can't move the door. Maybe there's something else I can use to open the door." Harry thought to himself.
As Harry began to crawl himself over to the other side of the Intensive Care Unit, he heard the distinct sound of the Hospital Wing main doors opening. As quickly as he could, Harry got himself back into bed and feigned death just in case it was anyone besides Madam Pomfrey or Dumbledore. With his eyes closed, Harry attempted to remain as calm as possible.
Moments later, the door to the Intensive Care Unit opened and in came the sound of two different voices that Harry was very familiar with, even though their volumes were not louder than a whisper.
"I think he was placed in here. Let's go find him." the first voice said.
"I don't sense anyone else's presence here. We should be fine for a few minutes. I would make sure you say goodbye to him quickly. There's no telling when someone else could come in." the second voice said.
"I know that, Luna! Please don't rush me! I need to talk to him and I won't have you interrupting! Ok?"
A shadowed figure approached the bedside of the boy-who-lived. Even though Harry had his eyes closed, he could tell who it was almost instantly. That angelic voice could only belong to one person.
"Harry it's me, Ginny. Can you hear me?" Ginny Weasley asked quietly.
Harry wanted more than anything to respond back and let his girlfriend know he was alive, but he couldn't bring himself to do so. Ginny would be horrified to see Harry alive like this: not able to talk, can't walk, and most of his flesh had been scorched off. With a heavy heart, Harry kept his eyes shut so that Ginny would be none the wiser.
"Harry. In case you can hear me, I have some things to say." Ginny quietly began.
"Harry, I am so sorry! I am so sorry this happened to you. I can't imagine what kind of pain you're in. When I saw you go down from my view in the stands, I went numb. I only wish you were never part of this tournament! This is all Dumbledore's fault! He could have gotten you out of the tournament somehow, but instead this is what happens!"
Ginny took a moment to try and gather her emotions under control but it proved to be impossible. Tears fell from her eyes and there was no signs of stopping soon. The youngest Weasley threw herself lightly on Harry's body and continued to sob.
"Harry don't die on me! Please don't die! Please! Don't leave me." Ginny continued to exclaim loudly but gradually her voice formed into a small whisper.
As Ginny was upset over Harry's condition, Luna merely watched from behind her friend and felt sorrow for the young man on the bed. She knew that Harry was awake, due to the fact that she could sense energy flowing through his body. The young girl could not imagine how hard it would be to hear a loved one wish you were not going to die, so she understood that Harry would not want Ginny to know that he was awake.
"Luna, can you sense anything? Is Harry going to make it?" Ginny asked bringing Luna back to the present.
Luna came forward and lightly pressed her hand to Harry's head and made sure to not injure him too much. It wasn't going to take a psychic vision to see that Harry was in a lot of pain.
"His future is clouded, Ginny. I cannot see how he will fare beyond what we have witnessed."
"Are you sure you can't see anything? I really need to know Luna." Ginny pleaded.
"I'll try once more." Luna stated.
Before she pressed her hands to Harry's temple once more, the young Ravenclaw muttered under her breath "I'm sorry Harry." Luna pressed her hands on to Harry's head with a little more force than last time. The boy in the bed made sure not to scream.
As Luna held on to Harry's head, and closed her eyes, a clearer vision came into place. Everything around the blonde haired girl went dark, and suddenly she was alone. The girl began walking around the darkness until she could hear a voice far off in the distance. The voice muttered:
"He's coming."
As carefully as she could, Luna crept forward and the voice became even clearer. The sound of someone running toward her was also becoming more prevalent.
"He's coming. He's coming."
The voice was instantly recognizable to Luna. It sounded just like Harry was speaking. Suddenly the voice became louder than ever.
"He's coming. He's coming! He's coming!"
Luna turned around to see that it was in fact Harry who was speaking to her. He appeared to be fully healed from all of his injuries, but he was shaken with fear, and was sweating. He was even still in his tournament gear.
"Who is coming Harry?" Luna asked.
"Voldemort! He's back because of me!"
"How?"
Before Luna could receive an answer, the area changed to a dark corridor and Harry disappeared. The moon was out so Luna could tell it was somewhere outside, and the walls were made of hedges. Was she in a maze? The winds howled with ferocity that almost knocked the young girl over. The surrounding sounds of rustling made her quiver in fear but decided to press forward.
Luna began exploring the path laid out before her, but eventually ran into Cedric Diggory. This time however, Cedric could not see her. The young champion ran towards one of the walls for cover, and appeared to be waiting for someone. Moments later, Harry ran around the corner and started wondering which path to take next. As he started moving in to Luna's location, Cedric Diggory appeared behind him. His presence could only be described as raging fury.
"Harry!"
"Cedric! Thank Godric you're ok. I thought I heard you screaming back there!"
"Don't act like you care, Potter! You stole my moment in the spotlight! The cup chose me! NOT YOU!"
"I already told you that it wasn't my fault, Cedric! Please believe me!"
"Yeah right! You couldn't stand to have someone else take the glory away from you, so you found a way to enter the tournament! It's about time that someone put you in your place!" Cedric shouted as he began casting spells at Harry.
The two boys engaged in a wizarding duel that quickly became violent. Harry did evade some spells, but Cedric got a few cuts in that caused the Gryffindor champion some pain. Luna also noticed that the maze was reacting to their duel. The walls began swaying heavily and it looked like the roots were moving. Harry took refuge behind one of the maze walls to catch his breath, while Cedric appeared to be doing the same. The Boy-Who-Lived took in his surroundings, and noticed that straight ahead was the glistening light of the Tri-Wizard Cup. Perhaps he could get to it if he could find a way around the Hufflepuff champion.
"Stop this now, Cedric! I'm not your enemy!" Harry said.
"I don't care, Potter. I won't have anyone else steal my victory away from me. You have to die so I can win!"
The Gryffindor champion decided to sprint around his maze corner and head down the path of the cup. Another round of spells were shot towards Harry but he was able to dodge them in just the knick of time. As Harry made his way down the path, he realized that Cedric will not allow him to continue while he was still standing. The only thing to do was to take him down. So the Gryffindor Champion turned back, raised his wand, and faced his opponent.
"If that's the way you want it, then fine! If you want to kill me then I won't hold back. Let's see who's the better man!"
Harry blasted spell after spell at the Hufflepuff student. The result caused Cedric to fall over on his back. Harry tackled his foe and began beating him with his fists. The swings were numerous, but Cedric Diggory eventually overpowered him and continued his barrage of spells. Even though Cedric was more knowledgeable with spells, Harry was more powerful with each casted spell. The Boy-Who-Lived was able to defeat Cedric quickly by casting a few blasting hexes at his opponent, then when his guard was down, shot another hex at Cedric's knee.
The knee exploded in a bloody mess that surprised both Harry and Luna from the gore.
Cedric Diggory fell over from the loss of limb and shouted from the intense pain that resinated in his leg. The fourth year Gryffindor then came over to Cedric and grabbed him by the neck. Harry raised Cedric up to eye level so he could look into the eyes of his fallen foe.
"Go on then! End it!" Cedric yelled.
"I intend to." said Harry.
In the next moment, Cedric began screaming in pain Harry drained the life out of the sixth year Hufflepuff with a flash of red sparking energy.
Luna's eyes widened and was horrified from what she saw. The screaming continued on, despite the pleas for it to stop. When Cedric was nothing more than ash, Harry then turned around and faced Luna once more.
As Harry ran down the path towards the cup, the area changed once again to show Harry greatly injured in one of the halls of Hogwarts. The young man was hit in the back by a spell from an unknown assailant, and as a result, he hurt his head against the stone walls.
As Harry struggled to get up, he finally realized who he was dealing with.
"You? You're behind this?" Harry yelled with confusion.
Luna was about to tell Harry that she was not responsible for what happened, but another voice came in instead.
"Don't act surprised, put your name in the Goblet of Fire, and didn't tell me!" Ron Weasley yelled.
Luna then turned to see the youngest male Weasley with an expression of hate and his hand tightly gripping his wand.
"I didn't enter the damned tournament you insufferable git! I thought we were friends, but now I can see you're only an arse who only cares about himself!" Harry said as he began holding his sides.
"You've had this coming, Harry! Even though I wish this was all my doing, I can't take all the credit for this betrayal. I had help!"
Moments later, someone else began to emerge next to Ron.
"You're a cheat, Potter! You're nothing compared to me! I should have killed you sooner, but now it seems fate has given me the chance!" the determined voice of Draco Malfoy said.
"Why am I'm not surprised to see you, Malfoy? I should have known you were involved in this shite!" Harry answered back. He finally appeared to be able to stand up without holding his sides.
"You won't be able to take all of us on, Potter, but I will have the first strike against you! There won't be enough of your desecrated lifeless corpse to share after I'm done."
Another person suddenly materialized next to Draco.
"You murdered Cedric because he's the real Hogwarts champion, Harry! I'll kill you for this!" Cho Chang yelled with hurt and hatred behind her voice.
"He deserved to die, Cho! I'm glad I killed that glorious bastard! I never wanted to be in this tournament in the first place, but Cedric couldn't accept that I didn't enter, and took his revenge out on me!"
"I can't believe I was so blind. Malfoy was right! You're nothing more than a glory hound who took the spotlight away from my precious Cedric!"
"Enough, Cho! I'll make sure your death is short yet painful. Despite this betrayal, I did have feelings for you once." Harry angrily responded
Cho Chang said nothing, but held her angered expression at Harry, and began crying.
Luna could scarcely believe that Ron, Draco, Cedric, and Cho could have wanted Harry Potter dead, but these were not the last people to emerge from the darkness. Two more people came into view.
"We all want you dead you filthy blood traitor." Gregory Goyle muttered.
"No one will miss you, Potter." said Vincent Crabbe with a dastardly smile on his face.
"Of course. Mafloy's cronies. I'll make sure your bodies are hung on display in the Slytherin Common Room after I'm done!" Harry exclaimed.
"Enough talk, Potter! Cower at our power so our revenge will be even sweeter! Fire all spells!" Draco Malfoy shouted.
All of the vengeful students began firing spells towards Harry, but they began bouncing off of him with no effect.
Luna took cover from the spells by dodging out of the way just in time. When the Boy-Who-Lived reached Luna, he passed through her as if no one was there.
Harry then raised his hand and a dark red energy appeared. The energy began draining the life out of the remaining five students. Soon Harry's eyes glowed a sinister red as their energy and power were becoming his own. In moments, the bodies of Malfoy, Chang, Crabbe, and Goyle were ash. The only one who was spared was Ron.
Realizing he was outmatched, Ron attempted to get away by taking off in the other direction. He wasn't able to escape however.
"Crucio!" Harry shouted at his former friend.
Ron fell to the floor in agony. The pain coursed through his body with the intensity of a thousand knife wounds being inflicted at once.
"AHHH! STOP! HARRY STOP! PLEASE!" Ron begged.
Harry ignored his pleas for help. The screaming from Ron continued for several more minutes before the curse ended.
"Fine. I'll stop. I'm done with you anyways."
Harry raised his hand and finally absorbed Ron's energy quickly. A new pile of ash remained on the ground where the young man had previously been.
"Useless fools." Harry muttered.
The scene then changed one more time to show nothing but the dark area Luna and Harry were in earlier.
"You've done well, Harry." A new voice spoke from the darkness.
The dark figure approached Harry and Luna dressed in a cloak as dark as night. His face was more reptilian than human, and his wand was composed of pale white bone.
"Those fools could not stand against you, Harry. They were weak, useless, and disposable. You must join me, Harry Potter. Only together can we make this world anew."
"I will never join you, Tom. Your time is over. It's time for me to reign in this world, and take everything for my own!" said Harry.
"Luna?" a faint voice said in the background said.
Lord Voldemort raised his wand and uttered the curse that all wizards fear.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"
So did Harry.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"
As the two spells clashed, a blinding light emerged in the center, and finally enveloped the room.
"Luna? Can you hear me?" the voice background said again but this time it was louder than before.
The light was too much for Luna to stand, and had to shield herself.
"Luna! Luna wake up! Snap out of it!" the background voice yelled.
The blonde Ravenclaw opened her eyes and saw that she was back in Hogwarts. The vision was gone. She shakily removed her hands away from Harry's arm, and was gripped with fear from what she had witnessed.
"What happened, Luna? What did you see?" Ginny Weasley hesitantly asked.
Luna did not want to tell her friend what had happened in the vision. There was no way any of this was true, right? After all, not all of the visions Luna had seen in her life came true.
The only thing Luna could unfortunately do was tell her concerned friend a little, but save Ginny from some of the heartbreak.
"I see chaos … and death. Harry seems to have a dark energy surrounding him. I see that he will live." Luna admitted quietly with her eyes deadlocked on her friend.
"What do ..."
Before Ginny could finish her question, Luna cut her off.
"I can hear footsteps coming. Madam Pomfrey is back! We need to hide!"
Luna abruptly ran and grabbed ahold of Ginny's hand. She dragged herself and her friend to a few beds farther down and the two of them hid underneath. In no time at all, the doors to the Intensive Care Unit opened abruptly and out came Madam Pomfrey. She quickly rushed back over to Harry Potter once again and began speaking to him.
"Mr. Potter! Are you awake?"
Harry opened his eyes and Madam Pomfrey could see that he was awake.
"I tried to find the headmaster Mr. Potter, but he is currently not on the school grounds. I have sent for other professors and they will arrive shortly."
"Unhhmrmm" Harry said in order to try and let Madam Pomfrey know he heard her.
A few beds over, Ginny was able to hear Harry's grunts and gasped. Harry really was alive! He was going to live! The young girl could hardly contain her excitement but had to in order to not be discovered.
"You were right Luna!" Ginny whispered.
Luna however was not as excited as Ginny.
"Yes. He's alive."
Ginny gave her friend a questioning look, but decided to not press her. The two girls turned back to what was happening with Harry and Madam Pomfrey.
"Try not to speak Mr. Potter. Help is on the way and we will get you fixed up. I promise!" Madam Pomfrey quietly stated.
The matron then grabbed some nearby medical equipment so she could start to treat Harry's injuries once again. She instantly found a tan colored potion and uncorked it.
"Mr. Potter I need you to try and swallow this potion. I know there is a lot of damage to your body, and this may hurt a lot to swallow, but it will dilute your pain for some time. Can you try to do this for me?" Madam Pomfrey asked.
Harry tried his best to open his mouth, but found it extremely hard to do so because of the severe burns. Madam Pomfrey could see that the young man was at least trying, so she carefully opened the boy's jaws so the potion could be administered. The shriek of pain that followed next was well justified from what Harry was feeling.
"I'm so sorry, Harry." Ginny whispered to herself. She started to cry once more.
"Me too." said Luna. She held on to Ginny while Harry was screaming.
Madam Pomfrey was struggling to keep Harry's jaw open because his muscles were extremely stiff in his mouth. She began to apply more force than normal to open his mouth, but as soon as she did, something unexpected happened.
A murderous red glow formed around Harry Potter's body, and suddenly his scorched hand grasped the face of Madam Pomfrey. The boy began to crush her face in with the unknown strength he was possessing, and in a matter of seconds, the Medical Matron began screaming in agony.
"Aahhhh!"
Ginny and Luna could only watch on in horror as to what was happening to Madam Pomfrey, for they were too scared to move at all.
"Please. Stop! PLEASE! STOP! AHHH!"
As Harry continued to crush Madam Pomfrey's face, the body of the older witch began to wither away into ash before his very eyes. All too soon, Madam Pomfrey's remaining clothes fell to the floor in a large heap. There was nothing left of the poor woman.
Harry's body began to retake shape as soon as the witch's life essence was absorbed through his skin. His hands, feet, arms, and more were healing miraculously fast, and soon, the boy looked like his old self once again.
Underneath the nearby beds, the feeling of terror instilled within the third year girls. The two of them continued to not move or breathe as much as they could.
The glowing red light disappeared, and with it, Harry was able to fully grasp the gravity of the situation at hand. He had killed someone and took their life in order to restore his own.
"AHHH! MADAM POMFREY! NOO! WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME?" Harry yelled at the top of his lungs with no lingering croaking or screeching sounds whatsoever.
The doors suddenly opened, and Harry was able to see the person who came in.
"Potter!" said a familiar voice from the entrance to the room.
Harry was shocked to see that Severus Snape, the slimy potions master, was standing in the doorway to the Intensive Care Unit.
"Professor please help me! I swear professor, I didn't kill her on purpose! I don't know what happened!"
"Silence, Potter! Your problems are nothing to me! All that matters is that I report to my master that the transformation is complete. You however will not remember that I was here to witness your murder of Madam Pomfrey."
"You're what?" Harry tried to say before he was placed under a sleeping charm from the potions master.
"Rest you little imbecile. Rest and continue to gain power from other pathetic wizards and witches. It's too bad you won't remember this, by my master has commanded me to do so. Your increase in strength will make my master invincible once he absorbs you too." Snape admitted to the unconscious boy while cackling throughout.
"Do try to win the tournament you arrogant bastard of a child. I only wish your disgrace of a father were alive to witness your death at the hands of my master in the coming months. I'll be waiting for you at the end to witness Lord Voldemort's true return."
The Death Eater then turned away from Harry's healed body, and quickly made his way out of the Intensive Care Unit.
After a few moments had passed, Ginny and Luna got out from under their beds and nearly screamed in horror from what they had witnessed. Being as terrified as they were, neither one could produce any sound from their potential screaming.
After waiting a few minutes to make sure that Snape was gone, the two girls ran out of the wing as fast as they could. There was no real safe place for them to go in Hogwarts, but they had to get away fast.
(Right after Luna left to get Ginny, and then see Harry)
Terry Boot had seen Luna leave the common room only moments after asking her to meet with Ginny Weasley. The blonde girl had promised that she would get her friend to speak with Terry sometime tomorrow, but did not specify exactly when it would be.
Terry Boot was relieved that he was able to get Luna to listen him, but he knew the challenge was going to get Ginny Weasley to understand everything. He knew that she could have a fiery rage when angered, and had an extreme grudge against others when wronged.
As the seconds dragged on, the young man realized that this was not going to go well for him. Staying with this group of psychopaths, however, was a much worse option than to face a woman's wrath.
Could he possibly get out of this group, and hopefully take some of the others with him? That was a question he could not answer. Even though the young man was in Ravenclaw, the answer to the problem seemed elusive.
"Who would even consider abandoning this group anyways? If anyone left, Draco would make their lives unbearable and no one wants to be part of that. If only I could find out if someone wants to come clean and take down Malfoy." Terry thought to himself.
"Terry? What are you still doing here?" A voice from the stairs asked.
Terry knew that voice could only belong to Cho Chang, and instantly regretted being where he was right now. There was another meeting scheduled for tonight because of the success of their attack on Harry Potter, but Terry really did not want to go. The thought of celebrating someone's possible death was horrifying.
On second thought, this could probably work in his favor.
Terry had been getting the subtle hints that Cho was not always on board with what Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Weasley, and in some cases, Diggory had planned for Harry Potter in case he were to survive the fiend fyre attack. She would always protest, at first, that the other ideas the boys came up with were too cruel, but eventually went along with the group's decisions.
It seemed like the deciding factor for changing her mind was Cedric Diggory; her boyfriend. If he went through with something, Cho would always follow. So maybe that's the plan! First, Terry would need to get Cho to his side, and then force Cedric to comply if necessary. From there, the other members won't be as threatening if half the group wants to disband.
"Oh. Yes. I'm sorry. I lost track of time. Do you want to go together?" Terry asked.
"Yes that's fine. If we hurry we can catch up to Cedric before we all meet." Cho said as the two Ravenclaws started to head out of the common room.
"Do you know when we were supposed to meet him?"
"I know that Cedric wanted to be there about ten minutes early so he could start celebrating before the others arrived. Maybe we can get there before he gets too excited." Cho said.
"Great. Seems like Cedric is not going to budge on letting his revenge on Harry end." Terry thought.
The two of them continued walking with Cho taking the lead and Terry closely following behind. There was only a few more flights of stairs to go, before they reached their destination; the empty classroom on the second floor. Every meeting was hosted there because the classroom was, as of recently, always empty.
The classroom originally was the private hideaway for the Bloody Baron; ghost of the Slytherin house. Getting him to leave was not a problem though, since Draco was able to convince Alastor Moody to get the ghost to vacate. Terry was still amazed the Baron even bothered leaving at all considering how ruthless he could be sometimes.
Terry Boot turned the corner on the third floor's set of stairs one final time before he was stopped by Cho Chang.
"Where are you going? We are not meeting in that room today." Cho said in a quieter voice.
"I was never told of this. Who said we were meeting somewhere else?"
"It was Malfoy's idea. He wants to change the location from time to time in order for our tracks to be covered."
"Fine. Next time warn me about this so I don't end up going somewhere else." Terry stated.
Cho only nodded and once again took the lead. Terry followed closely behind. Instead of going back up, like the young man thought, Cho continued down the pathway of the third floor and went further inside.
"Why are we using a room on this floor? Most of these rooms are already occupied, and one of them is even bolted shut." Terry hesitantly asked.
"I know. The bolted locked room is where we are going." Cho said with some irritation in her voice.
Terry caught up with Cho so they were walking side by side. The young man was starting to get nervous, because of some nasty stories he had heard years earlier about a three headed dog that occupied that room. Surely Dumbledore would have gotten rid of that beast by now. Right?
The pair had finally arrived at the locked door at the end of the corridor. Since Cho was slightly ahead, she unlocked the bolts using the Alohamora spell a few times. The door finally swung open and Terry stepped inside first. The room was completely dark and the young man couldn't see anything.
"Where is everyone? I thought you said Cedric would be here by now?"
"Oh he won't be here, Terry. I heard you talking to Luna earlier and I know you were just trying to tell her and Ginny Weasley about our plans. This is something that we will not allow." Cho smugly answered.
"That doesn't make any sense, Cho! What would I stand to gain by abandoning this group?"
"Don't take me as some kind of fool! We all know you want to be out of this group because you never go along with any of our ideas, or even come up with anything yourself. Your intentions are a huge weakness Terry! Maybe next time you'll fare out better. Oh. Wait. Maybe not." Cho stated while chuckling to herself.
"What are you going to do to me? Why would you lead me to this room?"
"In case you forgot, there's a reason this room is tightly locked. This is where that three headed dog is being kept, because it was a guardian for a series of traps designed to hide the Sorcerer's Stone.
The best part of all of this, is that Dumbledore never moved the creature at all! He's still fed on a daily basis in this very room! I can assure you that he hasn't been fed today however. Filch is extremely easy to manipulate when given the right incentive."
Terry's eyes widened in surprise.
"You mean ... you're going to kill me? Over something you have completely misheard? This is insane! Why would I tell Loony Lovegood, and her friend who opened the Chamber of Secrets, about what we did? What kind of person do you take me for, Cho?" Terry said as he tried to defend himself.
Both Ravenclaws then started to hear the sounds of loud rustling in the background. It was only a matter of moments before the three headed dog would awaken.
"Oh please. We all know you were going to turn us in sooner or later! Don't try to deny it you sorry excuse for a Ravenclaw! Now hand over your wand, or I'll make you!"
Before Cho finished the end of her sentence, Terry tried to grab his wand as fast as he could and fire a spell at his fellow Ravenclaw. Even though Terry was quick, Cho was quicker.
The girl fired off an Expelliarmus spell before Terry could even finish the incantation. The young man's wand was knocked out of his hand and the power of the spell even caused him to step a bit back from where he was. Terry desperately tried to find his wand, but it was too late. Cho Chang sent out a Petrificus Totalus spell at him, which caused his body to freeze and fall down to the floor.
"Nice try Terry, but not good enough. This could have all been avoided if you hadn't decide to expose us. Unfortunately your time has come to a dramatic end. I only hope your corpse is not too terribly mutilated so that someone can recognize you." Cho stated as she began laughing at the gravity of the situation Terry Boot found himself in.
The door was then shut tight and the bolted locks were put back into place. The sounds from the door fully awakened the beast, but there was nothing Terry could do. As Cho Chang began to walk away, the distinct sounds of the beast roared in anger through the corridor.
Terry Boot was done for, another loose end was tied up for the Anti-Potter-League, and nothing would stand in their way. Cho only hoped this would make Cedric extremely proud of her, and perhaps, even earn a substantial reward for her efforts.
(Right after Lucius returns from facing Voldemort)
"Narcissa, start packing your things and don't ask too many questions. I'll explain in good time, but we must leave immediately!"
"What do you mean dear? What are we packing for? What is happening Lucius?" Narcissa Malfoy worryingly asked her husband.
Lucius knew he would never be able to get his belongings together without having to explain everything to his wife. The sooner it was done the better.
"Narcissa we need to leave immediately! Earlier today, the Dark Lord summoned Draco and myself to his old family home, but it was a trap.
Over the past few weeks, Draco and I have been planning a vendetta scheme on that Potter brat, but the plan backfired and the boy may die. When the Dark Lord found out about this failed plan, he forced me to kill Draco, as a reminder to those who fail their assignments."
Narcissa Malfoy gasped at the mentioning of her husband killing their only child. While it was true that Lucius and Draco did not always see things eye to eye, her husband would never kill her son. It was impossible to think such a thing! Wasn't it?
"I couldn't kill him Narcissa. He is our son, and the only heir to the Malfoy name and fortune. When I was about to beg the Dark Lord for another form of punishment, that slimy bastard Pettigrew got overzealous and wanted to kill Draco himself! I murdered the rat before he would ever lay a hand on Draco."
Narcissa released the breath she had been holding once her husband revealed that Draco was unharmed and still alive. She was still filled with questions however.
"Does that mean the dark lord still requires a blood payment?" Narcissa asked with some more hesitation in her voice.
"For the time being, no. But I am not going to sit around for him to make up his mind while you and Draco are within reach." Lucius answered back.
Narcissa seemed to accept that answer for about ten seconds, before she realized something incredibly important.
"Wait! Does this mean you are leaving me and Draco while you go back to him? After he ordered the death of our son, you're still going to follow the dark lord?" Narcissa asked with some venom in her voice.
Lucius grabbed hold of his wife rather forcefully so that the two of them were looking at one another. Narcissa didn't like the way she was being handled by her husband, but made a point to listen to him anyways.
"I have no choice, wife. While I do take pleasure in seeing lesser blooded wizards die by my hand, I cannot sit idly by while you two are in danger. As long as he lives, the both of you will never be safe. Now please stop asking questions and do as I say! I need to get you out first, and then withdraw Draco immediately from Hogwarts."
Narcissa knew that trying to reason with her husband right now was going to cause more problems than their worth. The troubled woman gathered up her belongings in breakneck speed, and was ready to leave the Malfoy Manor within ten minutes.
"Where are we going, Lucius? How are you going to keep us safe while the dark lord, has eyes everywhere?" Narcissa asked.
"Your destination has already been taken care of by someone who owes me a momentous favor. He will not betray your location to the dark lord, because he will not suspect him of knowing the information. Your hideaway will be a secret even from me, so that no one other than the secret keeper will know.
In the next minute, the portkey I am giving you will activate and you will remain there until this is all over. Before I do that, I need you to read this note. It contains your hideout location inside."
The woman opened the paper with the location written on it. The note read:
Narcissa Malfoy lives at 12 Grimmauld Place
"Why am I being sent here? Surely Lucius knows what kind of place that hellhole of a house has become?" Narcissa thought to herself.
After reading the note, Narcissa Malfoy was given a key to the house which was the portkey that Lucius spoke of. Knowing there was not a lot of time left for words to be said, Narcissa embraced her husband for what may be a long time.
"Don't come back to me until he's dead. Since the dark lord feels that Draco is expendable, I will no longer live in that monster's shadow."
"I will. Draco will be with you soon, and then the two of you must stay there until this whole event has ended."
Narcissa stepped away from Lucius with a watery smile. The key was activating in her hand, and the tug of apparation was upon her. In seconds the woman whom Lucius cared for had disappeared from view.
Now that Narcissa was safe, Lucius had to go after Draco as soon as possible. The Malfoy senior then apparated a short distance away from Hogwarts so that he could begin his long walk to the front gates.
Minutes later, Lucius was able to get to the doors of the school, but was caught off guard when a ward bounced him back and landed him sprawled out on his back. It seems Hogwarts was locked down thanks to the fiasco that happened earlier that day.
"Of course. Why make it easy, Dumbledore? I guess Nott got in thanks to Crouch, but the fool put the wards back up! I guess I will have to come back later to get Draco." Lucius thought.
After getting up and brushing himself off, Lucius grabbed his cane and turned back to go down the hill once more. When he finally got within reach of the apparation zones, Lucius headed off to Knockturn alley. Since the dark lord was still in charge, Lucius had no choice but to find a replacement for Wormtail.
That spawned filled hellhole was as great a place as any to start searching for some kind of drone to help his master.
(Sometime in the late hours of the evening)
The headmaster knew that the young Harry Potter was more than likely to die. To fix his sorrows, the old wizard headed to Hogsmeade and ordered a few stiff drinks at the Hogs Head. The headmaster rarely drank anything stronger than butterbeer, but made an exception tonight. The only saving grace was that his sibling, Aberforth, was not working this evening, and the replacement bartender was not aware that the two were in fact brothers.
Harry's potential death greatly upset the old man's plans to get Voldemort resurrected so that he could become mortal once more. The only reason why Albus Dumbledore even considered letting this heinous act come to fruition, is because of a prophecy that was made years ago that detailed Tom Riddle's death by the hands of a child who was born at the end of July fourteen years ago. Even though it could have been either Neville Longbottom, or Harry Potter, Voldemort saw Harry as his equal when he killed both of his parents that night.
It seems that Dumbledore's spy in Voldemort's inner circle was not going to be needed much longer. Snape had done his job, but with Potter most likely dead, there was not much else the potions master could do, except for a little reconnaissance work on the side.
Fourteen years of planning, manipulation, and searching for Tom Riddle's whereabouts were going up in smoke before his very eyes. Things were getting worse by the day, and soon, Dumbledore feared that the Ministry of Magic would get involved sooner rather than later.
The old man knew most of the members of a group that orchestrated the attempted murder (so far) on Harry Potter's life, but, as of a few hours ago, had decided not to pursue most of these hellions. Getting these children thrown in Azkaban or even kissed would be a waste of young life for right now, and Dumbledore only hoped that in time these students would serve his goals beautifully. Well ... except for one of them.
(Earlier)
It was fortunate that fate seemed to provide him the entire list of individuals who were members of the, as they deemed it, Anti-Potter-League. The final members were revealed to him through the assistance of the Ravenclaw student, Terry Boot. While the headmaster was aware of most of the group's members, Dumbledore could now confirm that Goyle, Crabbe, and Boot himself were also involved in the planning of Harry's demise.
The young man from Ravenclaw had come to him right after his farewell session with Harry Potter. The boy was adamant that he tried to sway the other members into doing something less violent, but his suggestions were overthrown in favor of Malfoy's heinous plots.
Terry Boot wanted immunity from the Ministry of Magic and being sentenced to Azkaban in exchange for the information about the other members. The old wizard gave into his requests, and then promised to speak to Terry about this in greater detail at some point tomorrow. But Dumbledore wanted more leverage on this group than just the support from Terry Boot.
Another point also entered the headmaster's mind. If this boy would easily betray the other members of the group, then there would be no reason for him not to inform the other professors of the school as well. The old man could not afford for this to come true.
As Terry left the headmaster's office, Dumbledore called his phoenix, Fawkes, to send a quick note to Cho Chang, the other Ravenclaw in this group. The phoenix left via his flame travel method, and then appeared again a minute later. With his message delivered, Dumbledore only had to wait thirteen minutes before the student from Ravenclaw entered his office.
Before Cho entered his office, Dumbledore made sure to charm the portraits into not being able to see this little meeting. Thankfully, this task was taken care of before the girl knocked on the door.
The girl walked into Dumbledore's office and seemed quite calm, as if nothing was wrong.
"You wanted to see me headmaster?" Cho asked politely.
"Yes Miss Chang. Thank you for coming. Would you care for a lemon drop? I am quite fond of these candies."
"No thank you, headmaster. Now what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"
"It seems that something has come to my attention that is deeply troubling me, Miss Chang." Dumbledore began.
At this point, Cho began to squirm uncomfortably a little in her chair. It seemed like Dumbledore was aware of her involvement in Harry's attempted murder. The only thing she could do was play dumb, and hopefully the headmaster would be none the wiser.
"Oh? And what would that be, sir?"
"Miss Chang, I have received evidence from some of the paintings around the school that you have conspired with Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Weasley, Mr. Diggory, and now Mr. Boot about the attempted murder on Harry Potter. Would you care to explain?"
Cho Chang tried to hide the fact that her eyes widened, but it seemed the facial expression was not lost on the headmaster.
"I believe you are mistaken, professor. I would not involve myself with such things when I have nothing against Harry Potter at all. I mean I do believe he somehow entered the tournament by tricking the Goblet of Fire, but that doesn't mean I want him dead." Cho said while trying to remain confident.
"That's not what I've heard Miss Chang." Dumbledore began to explain.
"You see, even though you would normally not associate yourself with the likes of someone like Mr. Malfoy, I do have it on good authority that you blame Harry for taking away your boyfriend's fifteen minutes of fame, thanks to a certain admission from Terry Boot."
"Why that little ... !" Cho began to shriek but was cut off by Dumbledore.
"It is quite astonishing that even you, a very brilliant student, believe Mr. Potter was able to trick the goblet at all, considering he is only a fourth year, and is not as skilled in spell casting or magical prowess as you, or any of your associates think he is.
What I don't understand is how you, or anyone else in this little group of delinquents, could have thought this was a good idea at all to try and kill someone. Do you realize that your actions could have very well killed this boy? Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Dumbledore asked the girl with some ferocity in his voice.
Only now did the Ravenclaw student realize the flaw in her logic. Harry Potter couldn't have entered himself in the tournament, because he wasn't smart enough or powerful enough to do so. Perhaps if he was a Ravenclaw it would seem more plausible, but he wasn't. Gryffindor students tended to charge into things without having to realize the severity of their actions.
The irony was not lost on the Ravenclaw girl that was currently sitting in the headmaster's office.
It seemed like there was no way out. Cho Chang was cornered and would be sent to trial at the ministry for conspiracy to murder, and attempted murder on top of that. That is, until Dumbledore came to her with an enticing offer.
"Miss Chang. If you are willing to listen, I would be able to forget we ever had this conversation, and in the process, spare you from a terrible fate in Azkaban Prison."
"I suppose I don't have any choice." The young girl stated while admitting to her guilt.
"I need you to do me a favor. Since you have no problem following orders in order to make your boyfriend more successful, I have a way to ensure that not only you are spared, but Mr. Diggory as well.
I want you to pretend that things are normal within your little group, but report anything that happens to me. On top of this, I want you to take action against the weaker members of your group if necessary. They must not reveal that this group exists. I think we both know of who we speak of as a weak link, Miss Chang.
I will also make it so any portraits around the school will not be able to detect yourself, or the likes of Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Diggory, Mr. Weasley, Mr. Crabbe, and Mr. Goyle. Are we in agreement?"
"Why are you helping me?" Cho asked with some confusion. "I was expecting you to arrest me after what I did! Why do I need to pretend as if nothing is wrong?"
"Fortunately for you, Miss Chang, there are more pressing matters to deal with than the attempted murder of a student. It is for the greater good, and I am but a humble servant for the light."
"Then I agree, headmaster. May I leave? I now have something that needs to be taken care of." Cho asked.
"Yes of course. Thank you for coming to my office today, Miss Chang."
The girl nodded and proceeded to head out the door when Dumbledore stopped her for one final time.
"Do not forget this arrangement, Miss Chang. I want everything that happens to be reported to me immediately, or else there will be dire consequences for you, and your champion."
Cho Chang gulped slightly from the fear that waved over her. Dumbledore was certainly not one to be trifled with, and now she had no choice but to help the old man.
The memory of this little arrangement between Miss Chang and the headmaster was extremely enticing for the old man. Mr. Boot would be taken care of, Miss Chang would be forced to comply in order to save her life and Mr. Diggory's, and Dumbledore would continue to gather information on this little group without their knowledge.
There was no way he could lose from this deal.
In the end, Dumbledore knew the only thing to do with these children was to reveal their actions to the Ministry, as an anonymous source of course. These students were only a means to an end to take down Tom Riddle. Everything else was merely an obstacle to overcome.
After finishing his drink, Dumbledore took his leave from the Hogs Head and apparated back to his office inside of Hogwarts. As the headmaster arrived, Fawkes' screeching sounds were intercepted immediately. Since Fawkes was his familiar, Dumbledore was informed that Professor Snape was on his way to speak to him.
The door to the headmaster's office opened suddenly, and a dark figure entered the chambers.
"Headmaster. I wish to inform you that Mr. Potter is awake. He also appears to have recovered from his injuries."
"This is wonderful news Severus! We must make haste and discover how the boy could have healed himself!"
The potions master quickly stood in front of the door so the headmaster could not pass by him.
"There is a problem you should be aware of, Dumbledore. It seems the dark lord tampered with his magical core, and has given him an extremely dark ability to absorb the magic of other witches or wizards."
"What does this mean, Severus?" The old wizard asked.
"I saw the boy absorb the magic right out of Madam Pomfrey. The boy drained her until there was nothing left but a pile of ash on the floor. Fortunately he will not be able to remember that I was there, and I have altered the memory so he is not aware of his new dark power."
Dumbledore was completely shocked. This was extremely bad and would surely disrupt all attempts to control the boy for his upcoming sacrifice for the greater good.
"We must not let Harry know of this, Severus. Will he be able to absorb the life of others easily? What should we do to keep everyone else safe?"
"I have seen this kind of magic be performed once before, headmaster. The dark lord tried this method on one of his followers years ago, but the ritual failed because the tribute could not handle the excessive amounts of power being absorbed into his body. The tribute was obviously less than worthy of this dark curse."
"What happened to the tribute, Severus?"
"The excess amounts of power killed him and caused a massive explosion. There were many casualties, but this did not stop the dark lord for long.
Since Potter is considered to be the chosen one, he may be able to sustain this much power and keep it under control. I cannot be sure, but, he may not have a limit to how much power he can absorb. When Voldemort gets his body resurrected, he will attempt to steal Potter's power for himself and become truly invincible."
Before the headmaster could respond, the potions master continued with his response.
"However. This could be a good thing, headmaster. If Potter were to absorb enough magic, and Voldemort were to steal it all from him, then it could cause the dark lord to explode, just like the unworthy sacrifice from before."
"And what would happen to Mr. Potter if Voldemort were to take his power?" Dumbledore asked.
"I assume he would turn to ash like any other victim. Regardless, Potter would be stripped of his magic and left as a muggle should he still survive the encounter." Snape confidently assured him.
Dumbledore, for once, could not find words easily to a given problem.
"This … is far worse than we could have ever imagined, Severus. Dark and difficult times definitely lie ahead for us. It is a shame that Harry was thrown into this situation, but there is no other way. We must, for the greater good, find a way to increase Harry Potter's power. It is the only chance we have to destroy Voldemort once and for all."
If Snape did actually care for Harry, then he would have done anything to prevent Dumbledore from going through with this insane plan. But any sense of care died the day the love of his life, Lily Evans, was taken from him by that bastard James Potter.
Ever since her death, Snape threw himself into the darkness and never looked back. That fool Dumbledore assumed that Snape was so distraught over Lily's death, that he would do anything to take down Voldemort before he destroyed the entire world. He was wrong. Snape never considered Voldemort to be the enemy at all. The only person who Severus Snape ever considered truly evil was James Potter.
It made no difference that Harry Potter was the son of Lilly Evans. Harry would die a fate worse than death at the hands of Lord Voldemort, and so would the rest of the world.
"I agree, headmaster. We must increase his magical core by any means necessary. Do you have any suggestions on how we could do this?" Snape asked.
"I do have one possible option. Are you aware that there is a group contained of a few students from Hogwarts who tried to kill Harry Potter today during the first task?"
"Yes. The dark lord was approached with an offer by Draco and Lucius Malfoy some time ago about humiliating Potter physically and mentally before the final task, making him extremely vulnerable. The plan backfired obviously, but as of now, Draco and Lucius have both been spared a horrible death from Voldemort.
The dark lord has not decided what to do with the other members of the group yet, but I will not worry. Voldemort always covers his bases. He will find some way to deal with these delinquents." Snape said.
"I see. Can you convince him to instead focus on the champions from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons? We can both agree that Harry is completely outmatched when compared to the other three champions. If Voldemort can manipulate the other two champions into trying to kill Harry, the boy would absorb their powers, giving him advantages along the way.
After the death of the other two champions, Mr. Potter would be able to get to the final task with hardly any issues. We need to make sure that Mr. Diggory survives until the end as well so that way Harry will kill him, and the other conspirators, during the final task." Dumbledore explained.
"How will you have Mr. Potter kill the other students before the dark lord regains his body?"
"I am not sure Severus, but we must find a way. The fate of the world depends on our actions. We must not fail." said Dumbledore with determination.
"Yes, headmaster."
With that, Severus Snape left the headmaster's office and shut the door behind him. While Dumbledore was unsure about the future duel between Voldemort and Harry, he was confident that both of them would meet their end during the final task. If not, it could mean the destruction of everything as they know it. No matter which one survived in the end.