CHAPTER 12:

AFTERSHOCKS

When Harry made it back to the Gryffindor Common Room, he glared at the Weasley Twins as they prepared to erect a banner, with the help of Lee Jordan. "Do not hang that up," he said coldly.

Fred and George blinked, looking at each other and Lee, while the plaintive voice of Colin Creevey, one of Charlie's fanboys, asked, "But why not?"

"One," Harry said harshly, "it's disrespectful to Cedric Diggory, who was chosen as Hogwarts' Champion."

"Who gives a fuck about the Badgers?" retorted someone who Harry was certain was Cormac McLaggen.

"That doesn't even deserve a response," Harry said. "Two, it's disrespectful to Charlie. Did any of you idiots pay attention to what his expression was when his name was taken out of the Goblet of Fire? He was surprised, and even scared. And he should be. This Tournament was meant to be for students at NEWTs level, and frankly, given the death toll in previous Tournaments, I'm actually concerned for him."

"Why do you care, Tonks?" Ginny sneered. "You've always hated Charlie! Or maybe that's what it is! You put his name into the Goblet to try to kill him!"

Harry should have known this stupid little tart would say something like this, and her words had set people talking. "I would be careful, Ginny Weasley. Blood feuds have been declared for less. Would the older siblings actually try to talk some sense into her? Besides, my brother is an arsehole, but he hasn't done anything to have me want to kill him."

"Liar!" Ginny howled.

"I can take Veritaserum and prove it. And Charlie can take Veritaserum and prove he didn't enter himself," Harry sneered back at her.

Fred and George hustled over to Ginny, followed shortly by Ron (who, for once in his life, looked like he was trying to do something sensible), and took her to a corner, despite her protests, and began talking to her. Harry, meanwhile, glared at the others, some of whom looked ashamed, others looking belligerent. "Now, Charlie is going to be coming up here, probably after being given a right bollocking by Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, and the heads of the other schools. If we're lucky, there's a chance he will be able to get the hell out of this Tournament. If not…then he's stuck in it. So for once in your life, think of him not as the Boy Who Fucking Lived, and as Charlie Potter! Give him time to process this, but don't make this out like this is at all a good thing, because IT ISN'T! If Ludo fucking Bagman is in charge of this Tournament, then the safety measures were put in place by a gambling addict who took too many Bludgers to the skull! Think about that!"

Harry stormed over to a corner, Hermione following him, and she set up a Privacy Charm. "That's not going to help them much," Hermione said grimly. "These people have the average IQ of a troll. I'd blame inbreeding, but I've met many Muggles and Devils equally as stupid."

"Don't need to tell me that," Harry said. "And that little ginger bitch spouting off her accusations is going to cause trouble, especially with Potter being a Hit-Wizard when he's not politicking. And considering that Potter is always champing at the bit to give me or my family trouble…"

"Do you think standing up for Charlie would help you?"

"No, he'd view it as a double bluff," Harry sneered. "Charlie might buy it, but James Potter? He'd see everything I do as a fucking conspiracy against him because he can't stand being a cuckold! In a way, I'm glad you found out about my heritage, Hermione. Because it means that I have an escape clause. If I get kicked out of Hogwarts, I can just head to the Underworld."

"You won't get kicked out of Hogwarts," Hermione said. "Dumbledore won't allow it. And Amelia Bones is head of the DMLE. She'd keep James Potter on a leash."

"She couldn't stop him from hounding Dora out of Auror training because of his connections," Harry retorted. "Bones may be a good head of the DMLE, but nepotism and connections rule, even there. Maybe he won't get Aurors to bring me in, but he can still feed info to The Daily Prophet, and that bitch Rita Skeeter listens to anyone who has either bribe money or leverage. And there's Mum's disappearance. He may not be able to drag me to the Wizengamot for trial, but he can certainly have me tried and convicted in the court of public opinion. And if it comes out that I'm part-Devil…"

Hermione nodded grimly. "While wizards haven't had the best of relations with the Church and the Exorcists, they still have some connections going on. The moment it comes out publicly, someone is going to send for an Exorcist, or even hire a Stray Exorcist. I'd probably have to come with you, and take my Peerage with me…"

When Charlie came in, he still looked shocked and dazed. But judging by Ginny and Neville's talking to him, and the glare he showed Harry, he seemed to believe Ginny's accusatory notion. Harry rolled his eyes. All his sympathy, attempts to try and cushion the blow…he shouldn't have done a damned thing. There wasn't a single grateful bone in Charlie's body.

Harry decided to sleep on the matter. However, the next day, he was called into Dumbledore's office and, in the presence of Amelia Bones, who had been called in as well, he agreed to undergo a brief testing via Veritaserum, as James Potter had already been causing a ruckus, calling for Harry to be brought into the DMLE. And while James Potter could gainsay Amelia Bones on some matters, Harry undergoing a supervised use of Veritaserum helped, especially as Harry didn't dodge any questions.

Harry, however, had enough. It was a Sunday, and he'd had enough of being stared at and glared at, so he decided to get some air. He'd considered going to the Underworld, but Rias and the others were on some trip to somewhere in Japan for the weekend, and he didn't want to rant and rave to his mother while she was still recovering. Going to the Room of Requirement to work off his anger didn't seem like it'd work. So, instead, he found himself wandering out onto the grounds, telling Hermione that he wanted to be alone. He ended up heading a little of the way into the Forbidden Forest, not that far in, not as far in as they did during the Stray Devil hunt…but far enough.

He realised, with a start, that he was being watched. "…Show yourself," he said.

"Well, that's rather rude," came a familiar, but perhaps unwelcome voice. Hopping down from a nearby tree came the form of Raynare, still dressed in the barely-covering BDSM-like costume she had worn last time.

"I came here to be alone," Harry said. "Anyway, what are you doing here?"

Raynare scoffed, folding her arms under her impressive bust. "Lord Azazel asked me to stay at Hogsmeade for a while with my cell, to keep an eye on the Red Dragon Emperor."

"Spying on me?" Harry asked dangerously.

She rolled her eyes. "Look, spying suggests that I'd be making more of an effort to keep it secret. Lord Azazel has his mad scientist hard-on for Sacred Gears, especially the Longinuses. Anyway, any possessor of Sacred Gears are worth tracking by any of the Three Factions. Don't worry. You're not in danger from me or my cell."

"…That's oddly specific."

Raynare scoffed again. "…Do you think the Grigori are united? There's different factions even within the Fallen, some of whom are more than willing to start war again. Killing a Devil on the grounds of Hogwarts, even though it's technically neutral? I'm all for killing Devils, true, but frankly, I'd rather not tickle that particular sleeping Dragon you've got in your soul. So, what's got your panties in a bunch?"

"Says the woman wearing the dominatrix outfit," Harry snarked.

"Hey, it's a lifestyle choice," Raynare retorted, before her features softened. "Is it something to do with last night? I read about it in The Daily Prophet this morning. The Brat Who Lived, entered into the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Are you pissed that he stole the limelight again?"

"…No. No, it's more that…I tried to be nice to him…and it didn't help." Harry, in something of a catharsis, began speaking to Raynare. He wasn't sure why. Raynare was, technically, an enemy, or at least not a friend by any means. But he did so anyway. And to her credit, Raynare listened.

Eventually, Raynare went over to a log, and sat down on it, patting part of it next to her. Harry, with some trepidation, did as he was bidden. Raynare looked up at the sky, visible through the treetops, and sighed. "…You know, you did better than I would've in that situation," the Fallen said. "Heh. Can't believe I'm admitting that a Cambion would do better than me. The thing is, you tried to do what you thought was the right thing. But, well…I'll admit, I'm a pretty cruel person. I probably would have stuck him full of enough Light Spears to make him look like a glow-in-the-dark hedgehog."

"…If you're so cruel, why did you listen to me?"

"I guess you needed someone to talk to, even if you didn't know it. God knows I've needed someone like that over the centuries." Raynare pointed up at the sky. "I Fell…so many centuries ago. I Fell because I fell in love with a human who took advantage of me, pretended to love me, when he didn't. Do you know what it's like to fall from grace? No, no human or Devil or Nephilim would know. From knowing the love of God…to being cut off from Him. And when the human destroyed my hope for a good life…I was only saved by Lord Azazel." A faint smile touched her lips. "I fell in love anew…but…Lord Azazel is not the sort of man to love me back. Oh, he's friendly with me, and I know he's attracted to me…but his first true loves are Sacred Gears."

"…Wow. Unrequited love with your boss. That sucks," Harry said. "…And is falling from grace that bad?"

"It's worse. It's like…a phantom limb, only it's part of your soul. Pain would be desirable by comparison. My point is…no good deed goes unpunished. Take it from someone who has lived for centuries. Take, for example, the Gremory girl. Azazel has told me about the little scheme Bael and Gremory cooked up. Agree to the proposal, and you'll have to fight your father. Disagree, and you leave Gremory to Riser Phenex's tender mercies, of which he has none. You'll have to fight every step of the way to get any chance of happiness…and you may see it snatched away before your very eyes. Not to mention you'll have more people after you than ever. You're a Cambion, a Phenex, and the Red Dragon Emperor."

"…And? Voldemort came to try and kill me when I was a toddler. I've had to deal with James Potter's shit and Charlie's strutting and preening and making himself out to be Merlin's second coming. I may not be strong enough to face everything coming after me…but I have had this crap happen to me enough to know I have to fight my way to get anywhere in life."

A low chuckle came out of Raynare's mouth, and she gave Harry a smile, a genuine one, albeit touched by a sardonic attitude. "You know what? I think despite myself, I like you."

"Yeesh, sometimes, there's not enough vomit in the world," came a voice from a nearby tree. Perched on a branch was what looked like a petite teenager dressed in Gothic Lolita style clothing…with black wings.

Raynare groaned. "Mittelt, what are you doing here? I thought you were patrolling the perimeter of the forest, you gooseberry."

Mittelt rolled her eyes. "Dohnaseek got it into his head to start giving the Acromantula nest nearby a bit of a culling, and Kalawarner decided to tag along. I got bored waiting around for them, so I decided to see where you had gotten to. Anyway, gooseberry? Isn't there a bit of an age gap between you and this guy? Or are you that desperate to date the Red Dragon Emperor? He's easy on the eyes, if a bit scrawny, but…"

"You're one to talk, Washboard," Raynare retorted. "The only people who'd want to date you are teenagers and paedophiles."

"I'm still growing!" Mittelt retorted.

Raynare rolled her eyes. "Yes. Maybe in a few centuries you might actually stop having to pad your bra." As Mittelt spluttered, Raynare looked at Harry. "It was surprisingly good talking to you, kid. And when you get around to kicking your father's arse, send a recording my way. I'm always up for seeing a Devil get beaten up, even if it's by another Devil, and especially one like Riser Phenex." Raynare then looked at Mittelt. "Come on, Mittelt. Let's go and see if Dohnaseek has worked off his murderboner. No doubt we'll have to clean up a very sticky mess…"

As the two Fallen made to fly off, Harry said, "Raynare." When she turned to face him, he said, quietly, "Thanks for talking to me. And I hope you find someone to love."

"Normally, I wouldn't say 'you're welcome' to a Devil, but…I guess today's surprising me. Be seeing you," Raynare said. She gave a short wave of goodbye, and then, with Mittelt, flew into the sky.

It was strange, how talking to one of the Fallen actually helped relieve him. He hadn't come to the Forbidden Forest to speak with anyone. In fact, he did so to get away from people. And yet, one of the Fallen, a being that normally would have killed him on sight, had not only spoken to him, but lifted a burden on his soul, ever so slightly.

Oh, he knew he was heading back into a shitstorm as he made his way back to the castle. But he felt a little better about it. And he knew that now, he shouldn't have to give a crap about Charlie. If Charlie thought that Harry wanted him dead…then Harry was content to let him go through this Tournament without any help from him. Not that the Brat Who Lived would accept it from Harry.

Then again, Harry had problems of his own to deal with. A potential marriage, a confrontation with his biological father, and coming to terms with his heritage. Let Charlie deal with his own problems. Harry wanted to concentrate on his own stuff…

CHAPTER 12 ANNOTATIONS:

Now, I've probably wiped out a lot of sympathy for Charlie, but frankly, he's still very much a brat. Not irredeemable, but certainly unpleasant and selfish. And this, aside from some post-Hogwarts stuff in other works, is the closest I've come to Ginny-bashing. Keep in mind, Ginny is just a teenaged girl smitten with Charlie. She's an idiot more than malicious. I didn't feel up to writing a confrontation between James Potter and Harry, either, hence the Veritaserum bit mentioned in passing.

As for Raynare, a few reviewers praised me for keeping closer to her canon portrayal, but I still wanted a sympathetic Raynare. Her getting involved in this chapter was a bit of an accident, but a happy one. Raynare doesn't really get much in the way of substantial characterisation in High School DxD, beyond an allusion to wanting to be loved. So I feel like I kept a balance between her more vicious bitchy side, and a sympathetic side that I think is plausible. She basically heard Harry out partly on a whim, being curious about him. She won't be part of the harem by any means. I'm viewing her as more of a big sister character, at least eventually.

Review-answering time! It's worth pointing out, for those who are confused, that in this story, Voldemort believes Charlie to be the BWL, hence Charlie's name coming out of the Goblet. Most of the time, it's not, but for this story, and my Black Lagoon crossover Disquiet, that is the case.

Xaax: While I am considering Fleur for the Peerage, it won't be in that way, at least not in a magical debt kind of way. Also, Ginny will be Charlie's hostage for the Second Task. Also, if you like Harry/Fleur, have you read my story In Spite of Obstinate Men and its sequel, In Spite of Appearances?

TimothyB: His face favours Lily more, though he does have some of Riser's features. He has brown hair, though, not red or blonde, though once the seal on his powers were removed, he gained a blonde streak.

No numbered annotations this time.