Across The Time

by izwan

An opportunity comes along that will enable him to make the change and once again reunited with the woman he truly loved. But circumstances have its own plan. A sacrifice would have to be made that will make or break everything he work so hard for. This is the story. Attention:Time Travel. Disclaimer: The usual bla3x..

25. Chapter 25

Chapter 24

"normal" – English conversation

"italic" – translated French conversation

Italic - thought

He felt he had barely lain down to sleep when he was being shaken awake by Ron.

"Wake up, Harry," said Ron, yawning and grabbing his towel as he made his way towards the bathroom.

Harry grudgingly sat up, one hand reaching out for his glasses which were on the bedside table. He put them on and the dormitory immediately came into focus. Soft, warm light of the morning sun filtered through the misted window. Everywhere within the dorm, with the exception of Seamus and Dean, everyone else had rouse from sleep. The two were still fast asleep. Thick blanket covered them from head to toe. That was pretty much the tradition every time comes weekend. The two best friends would only make their presences known during lunch hours.

Harry looked over towards his alarm clock. It showed thirty minutes past eight.

His younger self would cherish the chance of being able to lie in during the weekend. In the past, he would be just like Seamus and Dean, snuggling in his bed all morning, breakfast ignored and would only appeared during lunch time. His older self though thought otherwise. Waking up at 5.30am was the norm. 8.30am would be considered really, nearly late. Besides, he had things to do that morning.

Deciding that he could no longer fall asleep, he pushed himself off the bed and walked towards the bathroom.

The Great Hall that morning was largely sparse by the time he and Ron arrived. There were a lot of vacant seats at all tables. Both of them looked towards the Gryffindor table. Apart from Hermione, only a few first and second year Gryffindorians were having their breakfast. The food though was plentiful, as always. It just that there weren't many people who would be eating them.

The two boys made their way towards their usual spot, joining Hermione who was eating her cereal alone at that time. An unopened book lay beside her cereal bowl.

"Morning, Hermione," greeted Harry.

"Morning," Hermione greeted back. "Never thought I would see you both up this early on a Saturday."

"Yeah, well. We're just hungry," replied Ron as he began piling food onto his plate.

The trio had a silent breakfast, preferring to concentrate on the food than talking. Hermione was the first one to finish and while waiting for the other two, she opened the book she brought along and began reading.

Ron was heavily committed to his food, unlike Harry who had his eyes wandering around the Great Hall. He glanced at the staff table. For the first time ever, besides the Welcoming Feast, Moody was present at the Great Hall. He did not carry the flask with him though which was a sure sign that this Moody was the real Moody. He still checked on his food though, examining, sniffing and looking for any sign of poison that he thought might be embedded within the food he was about to consume. Snape was there too, seating a few chairs away from Moody. And there was Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Professor Trelawney and Professor Vector. The three headmasters were absent though.

And so did the foreign students.

Viktor and his friends were absent just like their headmaster. And it wasn't just the Durmstrang. Harry looked over his shoulder towards the Ravenclaw table and saw no Beauxbaton students there. He saw Cho Chang though, eating breakfast and chatting with her friends. His eyes lingered on her for a few moments before he turned to face to the front.

Hermione was still little bit preoccupied with her book. Ron was still with his food. And he was beginning to get a little bored.

He decided to break the silence.

"There aren't many people at breakfast today," he started.

Hermione looked up from her book. "Obviously," she said before returning to her book.

"Can't you just lay your hands off your book for like a second, Hermione?" said Ron, now munching on a chicken sausage. "It's Saturday."

Hermione once again looked up and gave Ron a very nasty look. "Can't you just lay your hands off your food for like a second, Ron?" she asked sardonically. "It's Saturday."

Ron looked down at his still unfinished sausage. "I'm eating this."

"And so am I," huffed Hermione before she returned to her book.

Ron just shrugged and continued eating.

Harry just shook his head at the antics of them both. Hermione apparently was in a bad mood that morning. Luckily, she wasn't his girlfriend. If she was, he would be sitting there, cracking his brain and trying to figure out what he did wrong. Just like what every boyfriend would do whenever their significant other got mad at them.

Minutes went by. Harry, now fully fed, sat there in full contentment. He glanced at the staff table every now and then, watching and waiting patiently for Snape and Moody to take their leave. That would be the signal for him to excuse himself from Ron and Hermione. In the meantime, he had taken to watch Hermione reading her book. Looking at Hermione, there was something soothing about her whenever she was in deep concentration. Her calm expression could be the reason for that, he proposed.

Apparently, Hermione seemed to realize that someone was watching her. She looked up and saw Harry was staring at her.

"What is it, Harry?" she asked softly.

Harry upon realizing that he was caught shook his head. "Err… nothing. Just thinking."

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Thinking about what?"

"Nothing. Just forget it, Hermione," said Harry.

Hermione stared at him for a few moments. She then closed her book and leaned slightly towards him. "Last night, what Dumbledore wants with you?" she asked.

"Yeah mate," said Ron, who had now finished eating and was taking a gulp of fresh orange juice from his goblet. "Everybody was talking about it."

"It's not always the headmaster would come down to fetch a student, Harry," said Hermione upon seeing Harry's expression. "Especially in front of everyone else. Rumors are spreading."

"Rumors?"

Both Hermione and Ron nodded.

"About what happened in the DADA class," said Hermione. She then shook her head. "You won't believe half of the stories they invented."

"You should hear what Malfoy spoke about you," added Ron. "The things he said, makes you want to punch his face and throw all three Unforgiveable Curses at him, all at once, over and over again. Clearly he had gained a new level of vindictiveness against you. Wonder why?"

Harry did not answer. He of course, knew the reason why.

"You honestly didn't know?" Hermione asked. Her eyebrows raised.

"What?" asked Ron in confusion. "What I didn't know?"

"It's about a girl, Ron."

"What girl?"

"Daphne Greengrass," said Hermione impatiently. "The Slytherin girl. Remember what we saw at the Entrance Hall many days ago?"

"Entrance Hall?" wondered Ron. Now he was even more confused. "No, I don't remember any of it. What happened?"

Hermione stared at Ron in disbelief. She was about to retort when Harry suddenly cut her off. "He wasn't with us at that time, Hermione. We came back from the library after visiting him at the hospital wing when the incident happened, remember?"

Hermione's eyes darted between Harry and Ron. Moments later she put her face into her hands and groaned rather loudly.

Harry just chuckled. He reached out to her and squeezed her shoulder. "That's okay, Hermione. Mistakes happen. You're just confused."

Hermione took her face out of her hands and looked embarrassingly at Ron and Harry. "I'm sorry," she said in a small voice.

Ron just sniggered. "Maybe we should take you back to see Madam Pomfrey, Hermione. Just in case," he teased.

Hermione immediately put down her hands. "I'm fine, Ron!" she said sternly.

Harry just shook his head. "Yeah, she's fine, Ron. There's no need to for her to see Poppy."

"Still," said Ron. "You haven't told me what really happened at the Entrance Hall. So, what happened?"

Harry and Hermione both exchanged glances.

"Maybe you should take this one," suggested Harry to her.

"Are you sure?" asked Hermione.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure. Don't worry. I'll fill up anything you miss," he assured her.

Hermione began to regale the tale and Ron listened to her with deep concentration. It turned out that Harry didn't have to do anything at all. She laid it all out correctly and in full details.

"…that's when we found out that Malfoy had a huge crush on her but unfortunately for him, she already had her eyes set firmly on someone else," finished Hermione. At the same time, she nodded pointedly at Harry.

Ron stared at Harry. "On him?" he asked incredulously. "But she's a Slytherin!"

Hermione just rolled her eyes. "This isn't about the houses, Ron! This is about a boy and a girl!" said Hermione impatiently.

"She's a Slytherin," repeated Ron.

"So what? People from different houses getting together aren't abnormal, you know."

"I know it isn't abnormal, Hermione," said Ron. "But we're talking about a girl from Slytherin who took an interest towards a boy from Gryffindor. And this boy happens to be Harry. Doesn't that make you suspicious?"

Hermione just sighed. "I can't believe I would be saying this but no. I don't feel suspicious at all. Greengrass hated Malfoy. That's one thing."

"But she might be pretending," argued Ron. "You know how it is with the Slytherin. And why do you side with them? It's not like they had done anything good to you?"

"I'm not siding with them," replied Hermione hotly. "I know a lot of them are jerks but maybe some of them are good. We don't know that, Ron. Anyway, she knocked Malfoy out cold. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. And for that, I'm willing to give her a chance."

"I still don't trust her," said Ron stubbornly.

"Fine. I really wish you could at least pretend to see the other side of them but whatever," said Hermione briskly, waving her hand in a mock defeat. She then turned to Harry who had decided to not embroil himself into their little debate earlier. "You haven't answered my question," she pointed out.

"I'm about to," said Harry. He gestured both of them to scoot closer to him. "Dumbledore brought me to see Moody. Moody apologized for what happened earlier in the DADA class," he said, half whispering.

"That's it?" asked Hermione. "Just that?"

"There's more. Madame Maxime threatened to bring this matter to the Ministry. Dumbledore, with the help from Professor Karkaroff somehow managed to talk her out of it."

"Blimey," said Ron. "Moody will be in a heap of trouble if the Ministry finds out about this."

"I know, right?" said Harry. "Madame Maxime was enraged because Moody performed the Imperius Curse on some of her students. If this leaks out, the Ministry will be the least of his problem. He will have the French government to contend with as well. Performing the curse is one thing. Doing it to someone else is another. I feel sorry for him though."

Harry was genuine about that. Moody was taking the hit for someone else shenanigans. He hoped that the ex-auror managed to walk through it unscathed.

"The French will have his head for this if they knew," said Hermione, worriedly. She covertly glanced at the staff table before continuing, "He should have been more careful. Beauxbaton is an elite magical school. Powerful families, both in political and business alike all over the world, send their children there. Moody could have started a war."

"So you mean to say that Beauxbaton is better than Hogwarts?" asked Ron, his eyebrows raised.

"No, I'm simply saying that they're an elite school. Their accommodations, facilities and campuses - all of that are lot better than what we have. Just look at their uniforms. Hogwarts has an edge in term of education though. And the collective magic that resides within the castle is a lot stronger than any magical dwelling known to mankind," explained Hermione.

Hermione of course was right about Beauxbaton. It was indeed an elite magical school. Harry visited the school several times back in the old timeline when Fleur was still a teacher. The design of the main building and buildings surrounding it within the campus were a mixture of French Renaissance and modern art. The lobby alone left Harry speechless. High painted ceiling, huge decorative stairways that led to the first floor behind the receptionist table, beautiful paintings and marble statues lined up each walls. Huge, dancing water fountain can be found in front of the entrance into the lobby. A well kept multi acres wide lawn with perfectly aligned trees, benches, a small lake, picnic area, jogging tracks criss-crossing the lawn and beautifully arranged flower bushes completed the whole package. There was also a huge garage where the institute's buses and various vehicles were kept and they also have a sport center where the students and staffs can play various indoor and outdoor sports such as tennis, squash and soccer. Strangely enough, there was no Quidditch pitch. A heated indoor swimming pool was also available for the students and staffs. A computer lab would be added a couple of years later after the war ended. Beauxbaton seemed to pride itself in mixing various aspects of magic and non-magic in its daily operations, unlike Hogwarts which dispensed anything that had to do with muggles completely. Like the other two magical schools however, it was still unplottable.

Harry also had the opportunity to have a look at Fleur's former dormitory in one of his visits. It had a good view of the Eiffel Tower and it was bigger, more spacious than the room he shared with the boys and far more luxurious with its own modern central heating and air conditioning system. The occupants had their own desks, bookshelves and wardrobes. The one similarity Beauxbaton's dormitory shared with Hogwarts was the usage of poster beds. Fleur only had to share the dormitory with one roommate throughout her education years which in this case was Cassandra. All Beauxbaton students received the same perk, as Harry would later found out. Gabrielle eventually took over the dormitory from her elder sister and she would live in it until her seventh year.

The fees were of course quite expensive. Luckily for French natives and to those who eligible, generous scholarships were provided by the French government to students who managed to claim a spot in the school. Term and conditions of course applied here.

Back to Moody matters, of course what Harry told them was basically incomplete. He purposely left out the part about Barty. Moody did apologize but it was for something else.

The trio continued to chat. Harry informed them that Dumbledore called in Moody not just to induct the former auror as a teacher, but also to be the head of security for the Triwizard Tournament event.

At one point, they heard loud clangs. They turned and saw Moody, limping heavily towards them.

"You alright, Potter?" asked Moody the moment he reached them.

"Yes, sir," replied Harry.

Moody was about to continue speaking when he realized that Hermione and Ron was staring suspiciously at him. He paused for a moment before giving them both a nod. He then turned back to Harry. "Come, laddie," he said. "I want to show you something."

"Of course, sir," Harry said as he got off the bench. "I'll see you guys back at the common room," he said to Ron and Hermione. After seeing the look on the faces, he hastily added, "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

"Okay, Harry," said the other two simultaneously. From their expression however, it was clear that they remained unconvinced.

---

"Your friends are suspicious of me," stated Moody as they both walked out of the Great Hall.

'I'm sorry, professor," said Harry apologetically. "Rumors are spreading about what happened in the DADA class. I know it wasn't your doing but aside from Professor Dumbledore, Professor Snape and Madam Pomfrey, the rest of the school thought it was you. Barty had clearly spoiled your reputation, sir."

But Moody waved off Harry's apology. "That's okay, son. I don't really give an arse about my reputation. What matters most is getting the job done. In my line of work, if you give a damn about your reputation, you won't be able to do anything."

Harry just nodded. How true that was, he thought.

They both continued to walk. It was then that Harry realized they were heading towards the Potion classroom. He pointed it out to Moody.

"Yes, I know," said Moody. "We are to meet Severus. Only he and Dumbledore knew where Barty is being kept. Besides, we need to bring along something and he has it."

Harry went silent.

They both arrived at the Potion classroom a few minutes later. Professor Snape was already waiting for them.

"Severus," said Moody. "Do you have it?"

Snape said nothing. He fished out a small bottle of clear liquid out of his cloak's pocket and showed it to Moody.

Harry gave a loud gasp.

The two teachers stared at him.

"You do know what this is, Potter," said Moody, pointing towards the vial Snape was holding.

Harry nodded. "Veritaserum. Might I ask why?"

"So you know your potion. Good," said Moody. He proceeded to explain. "If the conversation you had with Barty is true, he will know the location of where You-know-who is hiding along with his accomplice. That is what we're going to find out."

"And then what?" asked Harry. The feeling of dread crept into his mind.

"We're going to nip his comeback in the bud," supplied Moody. "Now let's not waste any more time. After you, Severus."

Snape and Harry exchanged glances before the Potion master began walking down the corridor that lead away from the Potion classroom towards, if Harry was not mistaken, the entrance into Slytherin's common room. Moody followed him with Harry made up the rear.

No! No! No! This should not happen! This should not happen! thought Harry worriedly. Voldemort must not be found before everything else had been done!

But there was nothing he could do at that moment. All he could hope was that by some miracles, Moody did not get what he seeks.

The three of them walked down several stairs and into a cold, marginally lit corridor. Something green was glowing up ahead. As they got nearer, they saw a glowing painting of an arch on the right side of the wall corridor. Harry knew what that was. It was the entrance into the Slytherin's common room. One need to speak the correct password before the arch melted away, revealing a passage that lead into the common room.

They silently walked past the arch. They turned left into another corridor and continued their way until they reach the end where they meet a brick wall. Snape took out his wand and began to tap the brick wall at several places. Then, in the same fashion as the brick wall that separated the Diagon Alley and the Leaky Cauldron opened up, the bricks rearranged themselves, revealing a passage. Moody and Harry followed Snape through the passage until they arrived into a large, dimly lit room with a curved ceiling. Nothing else was there except for an old looking elevator box, not unlike the ones Harry saw at the Ministry for Magic, located right at the center of the room.

The three of them entered the box. Just as Snape closed the door, the elevator box immediately sank into the floor.

Total darkness enveloped them. Harry could not see anything but by the creaking sound the elevator made, he knew that they were still on their way down. He strained his ears, trying to hear any other noises. Nothing came with the exception of the creaking sound and the sound of their breathing.

Minutes went past when Harry suddenly saw faint light from down below. It got brighter and brighter until, after several blinking of the eye to get it to adjust with the sudden brightness, Harry saw that they had entered a huge underground chamber from above. His jaw dropped. He had never seen anything like that before in all of his years of living. The chamber was huge. The distance from wall to wall would probably go up to several kilometers at its widest. Giant stalactites littered the ceiling of the cavern and between the stalactites, hundreds of giant crystals embedded within the cave's ceiling. The bluish illumination within the cave seemed to come from those crystals. He saw several huge passages that he suspected would lead to more chambers, just like the one they were currently in.

"This chamber," Snape spoke for the first time. "is far deeper than the Chamber of Secrets."

"No kidding," said Harry, still at awe. "How deep does this thing go?"

"Probably until the planet's core if we didn't stop the elevator," said Snape casually. "See that?" He pointed towards a speck that was getting larger and larger by the minutes. "That will be our destination."

"Do you know who built this chamber?"

"No one knows," answered Snape. "Most likely it's just a natural formation until the four founders found it and retool it to fit whatever purpose they had in mind."

"It's full of magic," stated Harry, looking around. "I can feel it."

"Indeed it is," agreed Snape. "Which is the reason why the castle was built on top of it."

Harry silently wondered if Tom Riddle, given his penchant for scouring the castle for anything useful to his ambition, knew about this place when he was still a student.

The elevator box finally made land on top of a platform. The three of them got out. Harry walked towards the end of the platform and took a peek over the edge. He saw only darkness down below with no bottom in sight. He looked up and saw gushes of water coming out of a huge hole embedded within the nameless cave wall in front of him. The water, most likely came from the Black Lake high above fell into the darkness. Then it struck him. They were not in a cave. They were in a hole. A really huge, bottomless hole. The platform itself was built on top of a huge floating rock. Nothing physical could be seen holding the rock. He could only surmise that magic was what holding the rock in place. He could also feel streams of cool air coming in from the giant passages that dotted the hole's wall.

"Potter!" called out Moody. "Careful, son. We don't want to risk you falling over the edge. Dumbledore will have my head if anything bad happens to you."

Harry obliged. He retreated from the edge of the platform and made his way back towards Moody and Snape. The two teachers were standing in front of a stone chair. And sitting rigidly on the chair was a man. Barty Crouch Jr.

Barty seemed to be unconscious. His head lolled down. Both his hands laid on the arm rest. It was then Harry saw the problem. Nothing bound Barty to the chair. He immediately took out his wand.

Snape however, saw the gesture. He put his hand on Harry's wand wielding hand and gently pushed it down. "He is well secured, Potter."

Harry once again obliged. He put his wand back into his pocket and waited.

"Time to wake him up," said Moody. He took out his wand and pointed at Barty.

"Ennervate!"

A bluish blob of light shot out of his wand and hit Barty right in the chest.

The death eater began to stir. He groaned several times, looked up and blinked his eyes. His face concocted rage when he saw who were standing in front of him. His eyes travelled from Harry to Moody until it finally settled on Snape. He tried to lunge at Snape but found that he could not. He was tightly bound to the chair.

Harry, Snape and Moody watched silently as Barty thrashed around on the chair, trying with all his might to break free. But alas, all his efforts were in vain. He could not break free, not even an inch. He finally stopped a few minutes later, panting and out of breath. His eyes laid firmly on Snape.

"Traitor!" he said with undisguised hatred. "I knew I should have just killed you back then when I found out that you love that whore!"

Harry glanced at Snape. The Potion master simply looked at Barty impassively. Harry knew that Barty was speaking about his mother.

"That's enough!" said Moody sternly. He then took a deep breath and began to calm down. He took a few steps closer to Barty and bent down towards him. His crooked face was just inches away from Barty's. "I don't usually do this. I fight. I catch. Or I kill if it comes to that. I don't do interrogations. I prefer to have it the easiest way if I can so help me make it easy. Where is your master, Barty? Where is he hiding?" he asked, menacingly.

Barty turned to look at Moody. His face turned into a sneer. "You can dig as much as you want Alastor, but you won't be getting anything from me. Do you think that I will give him up that easily? I much rather die than betray my master! Unlike Severus here!"

"Knew you would say that," said Moody. He straightened up and extended his hand towards Snape and said, "Severus, the potion if you will."

Snape walked up to him and handed the potion over to Moody. He then walked back and stood beside Harry.

Barty saw the vial and laughed maniacally. "A veritaserum?! My dear Alastor, you need to do better than that! If only you knew what it really does."

Moody pulled out the vial's stopper. "Oh, I know perfectly what it does," he said. With one hand, he clutched Barty's hair and pulled it to the back, forcing the death eater's mouth to open. He then poured three drops of the clear liquid down Barty's throat while making sure that the death eater swallowed every drop of the veritaserum. Once done, he let go of Barty's hair and took a few steps back.

Barty's earlier chaotic breathing began to ease. His eyes focused and unfocused several times. Once again, he sat rigidly on the stone chair.

"Can you hear me?" asked Moody.

"Yes," answered Barty, truthfully.

"What Potter said when he fought you, are those true?"

"Yes. All of it."

"You are planning to have him entered the tournament and have it delivered to your master. Is that true?" asked Moody.

"It wasn't my plan," answered Barty. "It was my master's. I am to take Alastor Moody's place as a teacher. Potter is to be entered into the tournament as one of the champions. My task is to guide him covertly through the tournament and make sure that he will be the one to reach the Triwizard Cup in the final task. The Cup shall act as a Portkey, which would take him straight to my master."

"What did your master want with Potter?" asked Moody.

"He said he wanted his blood. He said that Potter's blood is vital for his resurrection," said Barty.

"His resurrection?" asked Moody in surprise. "You mean that he had yet resurrected? How did you communicated with him?"

"Eye to eye. My master is weak. He had yet reached his full potential. He will soon once he got Potter's blood. He will then be invincible. He shall be the most powerful wizard ever to live."

Moody glanced at both Harry and Snape. He then turned back towards Barty. "Where is your master? Where is he hiding?"

Barty looked up towards Moody.

Harry held his breath, waiting for the inevitable.

"I don't know."

That answer took everyone by surprise.

"What do you mean you don't know?" asked Moody lividly.

"I do not know," repeated Barty. "My master met me at my house, where I was kept hidden. He was carried by one of his servant, Wormtail. He knew of my release from Azkaban. He subdued my father and put him under the Imperius Curse. It was there, based from the information given by a woman named Bertha Jorkins, that the plan was hatch. My master made my house as a temporary refuge. He told me that he will leave sometime after I come to Hogwarts. When he leaves and to where he will go I do not know. He said that I will know. Soon."

"To turn an object into a Portkey, you have to know to where it will travel to," growled Moody. "I doubt it that you do not know."

"My master thought of everything. He knew that in an unlikely case should I get captured; my captors will force me to divulge his location. He retains that information from me, until he sees fit to divulge it. It would only be then, that I will be able to turn the Cup into a Portkey."

Moody sighed in frustration. He turned to Snape. "Severus?"

"He spoke the truth," said Snape. "The truth serum is designed to prevent lies. It cannot create something out of nothing. If Barty said he does not know, then he does not know. It won't be easy to trick the dark lord either. He does not trust easily."

At this point, Barty's face developed an insane smile. He looked to Moody and said with a glee, "I told you, Alastor. If only you knew what it does."

Moody said nothing. Instead, he raised his fist and punched Barty's face.

Blood dripping from Barty's lip. The death eater however showed no pain. He just laughed. "Hitting me won't change a thing, Alastor. You will never get him. Never!"

Moody bent down until his face was just a few inches away from Barty's. "I know where you live," he half whispered. "And there is a good chance that your master is still hiding there. We will find him. And when we do, it will be the end of him."

Barty's face immediately turned into uncontrollable rage. "You will never find him! He will kill you all!"

Moody just smirked. "We'll see, Barty. We'll see." He straightened up and walked towards Harry and Moody. "Our work here is done. Come."

"TRAITOR!"

The three of them stopped on their tracks and turned to look at Barty.

Barty's eyes were fixated on Snape. "COWARD!" he yelled. "YOU SOLD OUR MASTER! AND IT ALL BECAUSE OF YOUR LOVE FOR THAT WHORE OF A WOMAN WHO GAVE BIRTH TO THE BASTARD THAT STOOD BESIDE YOU! YOU GONNA PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID, SNAPE! YOU GONNA PAY! AND YOU WILL DIE JUST LIKE THAT WHORE DID! YOU HEAR ME?! YOU WILL DIE!"

The three simply watched as Barty continued to rant. And rant. And rant.

"Let us leave him," said Moody calmly. He then turned around and walked towards the elevator box.

Harry stared at Barty with extreme disgust. His younger self would have thrown a curse or two at Barty. His older self however would remain calm. And that was what he was going to do. Remain calm.

He felt someone touching his shoulder. He looked back and saw it was Snape. Snape gestured him towards the elevator box.

Harry gave Barty one last look before he turned around and followed Snape towards the elevator box.

---

Nobody said anything on their journey back. Harry glanced at Snape. The Potion master looked calm but his clenched fist showed that he was struggling to control the anger that was raging inside of him.

They finally reached the Potion classroom. Without a word, Snape entered the classroom and closed the door behind him.

Harry and Moody stood outside the classroom, staring at the door.

"Love changes people. Love can also make people do things they had never done before," said Moody.

Harry looked up towards Moody and saw that the ex-auror was smiling at him.

"Severus loved your mother, Potter. In fact, he loved her so much that he was willing to forsake everything, even his life, just to see her safe. She was his world," said Moody softly. "Her death destroyed him."

"You knew?"

Moody solemnly nodded. "Yes. It took me some convincing but in the end, I know Dumbledore was right. I am among the very few whom he told about Severus."

"Have you ever fallen in love, sir?" asked Harry.

"I had," said Moody. "Once. She was a wonderful woman. But I did nothing. I let her go and kept that feeling with me knowing that the life I chose will only hurt her in the end. Aurors blood runs deep within my family, Potter. Such was the sacrifice that some of us had to make."

Both of them then stood in silent for the next few moments. Each drowned within their own thoughts.

Moody finally put his hand on Harry's shoulder and gestured him to follow. "Come," he said.

They began to walk.

"So what now?" asked Harry.

"Well," said Moody. "We know now where You-know-who could be hiding. We also know that Crouch was embroiled in a certain scheme that led to his son being able to escape the Azkaban Prison. We also know that he was now under the Imperius Curse. We're going to ambush his house. Tonight."

Harry knew that their search would be fruitless. From the dreams he had, it was clear that Voldemort at this point had left the Crouch Mansion. But Mr. Crouch would still live there. One out of two won't be so bad anyway.

"Can I come along?" asked Harry.

Moody stopped dead on his track. He turned to face Harry. "No, you can't. I can't let you do that," he said, firmly.

"Why not?"

"First of all, you're too valuable. Both to us and to him. Second, while Barty did mention about him being weak, I won't underestimate him. Despite his conditions, he could still come up with a brilliant plan and subdued Crouch. Crouch himself is no slouch when it comes to wand art. You-know-who is still lethal. It's best that you stay here," explained Moody. He was about to continue to walk when Harry called out to him.

"Sir, I fought Barty and saved your life."

Moody stopped. He turned back to look at Harry. "I can't say that I'm not impressed," he said. "But you're probably just lucky."

"As an auror, you know that luck had nothing to do with it."

Moody saw the fierce determination in Harry's eyes. "I fought Barty once. Took a while before I could bring him down. He was quite a fighter, just like his father. Very well," he said. "I'll ask Dumbledore. I won't like this but I have a feeling that he will agree. Come along, Potter."

Harry obliged. He caught up to him and they both continued to walk.

"How did you guess that he is still dangerous?" asked Harry, jogging along beside Moody.

"You-know-who has been well known to keep his minion under complete control," said Moody, now taking longer strides as if he was in a hurry. "I may be out of work but I am still not out of touch. I heard things, Potter. France had been reinforcing their borders and buffing up their security for many months now and so did the rest of continental Europe. Reports are coming in from all over the globe. Former death eaters are getting jittery. There had been reports of unusual movement of those we suspect still loyal to You-know-who. It would be just a matter of time before they show their true colors. The incident at the Quidditch World Cup was a solid proof."

"What about Britain?"

"Britain, like its minister, is sitting on its bum, twiddling its thumb and keeps repeating to itself that everything is peachy. We keep on living in the past when the future is already knocking on our door."

"Did Dumbledore know that you're planning to interrogate Barty?" asked Harry.

Moody gave Harry a smile. "Yes. And this time, I'm telling the truth."

They reached the corridor that lead to the Great Hall. Up ahead, they heard noises and saw students streaming into the Great Hall.

"Go on, laddie," said Moody. "It's nearly lunch time. I need to see Dumbledore. I'll keep you posted. And as always, stay vigilance."

"Thank you, professor."

Harry watched Moody's retreating back as the ex-auror made his way towards the headmaster office.

He nearly walked the same path as Moody. He silently wondered if this time, he will truly traverse it.

---

The Great Hall…

"Harry!"

He just entered the Great Hall when he heard his name being called. He saw a small congregation at the spot where he usually sits. Ernie Macmillan was there, together with several fourth year Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. And much to his surprise, Cassandra too. Viktor Krum was waving at him. All of them stopped talking and simply watched as he walked towards them.

"Mind to tell me what this is all about?" he asked the moment he reached them.

"Moody," said Ernie. "We heard what happened. What does he want?"

"Yeah, Harry. Tell us," asked one fourth year Ravenclaw whom Harry could not remember what her name was.

Cassandra meanwhile just stayed silent and stared at him.

Harry sighed. He pinched his nose bridge and said, "Nothing happened. He invited me to his office, showed me his thingamajigs and told me stories about his adventures. That's all."

There was a pause.

"So that's it?" asked Alexander Stukov, one of the boys who brought the wooden chest full of snitches during the little competition he had with Viktor before.

"Yes," said Harry dryly. "Oh wait, there's more. He apologized for what he did to me. As a matter a fact, he wanted to apologize to everyone. He admitted he was a little bit overzealous. He was just being a little bit enthusiastic. He felt horrible for what happened."

"Oh," said George. For some reason, he sounded a little bit disappointed. "We thought it would be something… you know."

"Something what?"

"Something important," said Fred.

George and Lee Jordan nodded fervently.

Harry just stared at the twins and their friend with deep amusement.

There were murmurs and the little crowd began to dissipate. Cassandra glanced at him knowingly before she left for the Ravenclaw table.

Harry took his seat. He stared at Ron and Hermione. "Alright, you two. Spill it out. What just happened back there?" he asked sternly.

Ron immediately raised both of his hand. "We didn't tell anyone anything," he said.

"It's true, Harry," said Hermione. "We didn't tell anyone."

"Then how do you explain that?"

"Harry, we're not the only one who saw you being picked up by Professor Moody," explained Hermione. "We really don't know what happened. The rumors just spread like wild fire. The next thing we know is that people keep coming to us asking questions about you."

"Yeah, mate," said Ron. "The story of how Moody put the Imperius Curse on everyone isn't exactly dead you know. Anyway, you did tell us that you're finally managed to throw that curse off. Guess that got everyone excited. A student who managed to throw off one of the Unforgiveable Curse isn't exactly small news you know. Daily Prophet will have it print on the front page if they got any sniff of it. "

Harry let out a long sigh. "Great. Just great. Like I really need any more attention," he grumbled.

Hermione reached out for his hand and touched it. "I'm sorry, Harry. I know you didn't like it but you know what, in some way, they all look up to you hence the attention. I'm afraid there's nothing you can do about it."

Harry looked around and saw everyone within his vicinity looked and smiled at him. Fred gave him a pat on his back. "Yeah, Harry," he said, smirking. "After everything you did this year you think we're just going to let you go? No way."

"Definitely and absolutely no way," said Lee Jordan.

"Our spotlight shall shine onto you, my good man," said George. "Twenty four hours a day and seven days a week."

"There'll be posters. Lots and lots of posters."

"And framed pictures of you."

"And toilet papers with your face on it."

"So that we all can-"

"Okay guys, that's enough," Harry quickly cut them off. "Thank you."

The three laughed.

Harry shook his head. He did smiled at the three's antics however. They had always been funny. Remembering that he had yet taken his lunch, he doled the beef casserole into his plate and began to eat.

He just hoped that the twins weren't serious about the toilet papers. Malfoy would be the first person to buy it, he suspected.

Nothing much happened for the rest of the lunch. They just chat and ate. Viktor and his friends however had to excuse themselves early, saying that they had extra class that afternoon. Fred asked him if he had reached the decision on when he wanted to hold the keeper's tryout. Harry pondered for a moment. He told Fred that it was his intention to hold the tryout sometime early next week.

"But then I realized we will all be tired from attending the classes so… How about tomorrow afternoon? Think the rest of the team can make it? I'll need all your help in this," said Harry.

"Yeah I think we can do it," said George. "Wait here. I'll go and ask the girls."

George got off the bench and walked towards the other end of the Gryffindor table where Angelina, Katie and Alicia were sitting.

"Why not today, Harry?" asked Seamus. "The weather is good. It'll be a good time to do the tryout."

Harry looked up towards the enchanted ceiling. The weather was indeed lovely that day. There were no clouds in sight. It was perfect.

Damn.

"I can't," said Harry, dejectedly. "I have some… prearranged meetings need attending this afternoon."

"Oh, okay," said Seamus.

George came back. "Alright. The girls agree," said George as he sat on the bench. "What time?"

Harry paused for a moment. He would be fulfilling Viktor's invitation in the morning so afternoon seemed to be good. "How about four pm? Two to three hours of tryout should be enough."

"Yeah that'll be good," agreed Fred. "We can go directly to dinner after that."

"Alright then. I better inform both Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. They might want to get their keepers ready," said Harry, feeling relieve that a concensus had been achieved pertaining the keeper's tryout.

He got off the bench and walked towards the Ravenclaw table. From afar, he could see Roger Davies, once again seating beside Fleur. They both were chatting though Harry could clearly see that Roger was fighting hard to control himself. That boy was losing the fight however. His eyes glazed even more as seconds went by. As for Fleur, she still entertained Roger. The difference was that she seemed to be lot less enthusiastic towards him than before.

His inner monster rose. Harry immediately quashed it just as fast as it came. It won't do for him to entertain his own jealousy. He may be trapped in a fourteen years old body, but his mind was a lot more mature. Harry decided that he did not want to care. Fleur can befriend whomever she wanted. It was not his place to decide that for her.

He approached them. Cassandra saw him first. She nudged Fleur on her rib and nodded at him. There was a surprise look on Fleur's face when she saw him. Her sparkling blue eyes followed him as he made his approach.

The group immediately went silent as Harry stopped right in front of Roger.

"Roger?"

"Yeah?" Roger was still staring at Fleur.

"Can I speak to you for a moment?"

"Yeah, sure. Whatever. Put it somewhere. I'll have a look at it later," mumbled Roger, still staring at Fleur. It seemed that he had totally lost it.

Harry tilted his head. He then reached out and snapped his finger loudly in front of Roger's face.

The Ravenclaw's Quidditch captain jumped a little. He shook his head and looked around. His eyes widened when he saw Harry standing in front of him.

"Harry?"

"Glad to see you back, Roger," said Harry, ignoring Fleur and her friends who were staring at him. "Relay this message to Grant. There'll be keeper's tryout tomorrow at four pm. Don't be late."

"Quidditch pitch?" asked Roger.

"Where else?" said Harry. "Can you do it?"

Roger nodded fervently. "Yeah. Sure thing, Harry. I'll tell him."

"Good," said Harry. He gave Fleur a glance. She was still staring at him. "And Roger," he continued. "Please wash your face. You don't want to embarrass yourself in front of our guest."

Without waiting for Roger's response, he immediately departed after that. He saw Cho Chang, seating not far from Fleur and her friends.

"Hey Cho," he greeted her.

Cho Chang immediately brightened up and smiled widely at him. "Hey, Harry."

"How's weekend?" asked Harry.

"Weekends okay," answered Cho. "You?"

"Same. You'll be watching the tryout tomorrow?"

"It's tomorrow?" said Cho in surprise. "Yeah sure thing, Harry."

"Alright. I'll see you there. Have a good weekend, Cho."

"You too, Harry," said Cho cheerfully.

He then approached Cedric. Much to his luck, Herbet Fleet was sitting beside the Hufflepuff captain. He informed them both about the tryout. Cedric and Herbet agreed with the schedule and promised Harry that they will be there.

Feeling satisfied that everything had gone according to plan, Harry made his way back to the Gryffindor table. But halfway there, he suddenly stopped. He turned to look at the Slytherin table. He saw Miles Bletchley, keeper for the Slytherin Quidditch team seating beside Marcus Flint, his captain. An idea suddenly flew into his head. He turned back and walked towards Slytherin table.

Malfoy saw him approaching. "What are you doing here, Potter! This table –"

"SHUT UP, MALFOY!"

Malfoy immediately quiet down when Harry yelled at him. There was a look of surprise on his face. The whole of Slytherin went silent, watching Harry's every move.

Harry could feel every eye within the Great Hall, including those at the staff table, were watching him. Ignoring them, he turned to Bletchley.

"Miles Bletchley," he said with a firm voice. "As a representative of Hogwarts, I would like to invite you to the keeper's tryout tomorrow at the Quidditch Pitch. Be there at four pm sharp."

"Why would I want to be there?" Bletchley sneered. "I don't remember offering myself as a keeper for the Gryffindor team."

"You don't," said Harry calmly. "And it's not Gryffindor's team. It's Hogwarts. But I still want you to be there."

"Are you really this desperate, Potter? If you do this just to embarrass me, you can forget it. I'm not going!"

"Nobody is going to embarrass anyone, Bletchley. You either make it into the team or you do not. If you think you have what it takes, if you think that you can contribute to something and if you feel like you want to be part of something big, this is your chance."

Bletchley shook his head. "You aren't going to win, Potter. You know that, right?"

"Then make yourself present at the Quidditch Pitch tomorrow. Try your best to win a place with the team and help us beat Durmstrang. You have until tomorrow to decide. That would be all."

Harry then turned and left, leaving Bletchley dumbfounded. He walked past Daphne Greengrass, who was seating nearby and staring at him impressively.

---

"What are you doing, Harry?!" said Ron.

The Gryffindorians apparently were shock by what Harry did.

Harry look over his shoulder towards the Slytherin table. Bletchley was in a serious discussion with the rest of his friends. The rest of the Slytherins, including Malfoy himself were looking at him in confusion.

"I'm offering the Slytherin's keeper a chance at the tryout," said Harry casually.

"We know that. We heard what you said to Bletchley but why?" said Seamus.

"It seems fair, doesn't it?" said Harry. "Nobody got left behind and everyone will have the chance to contribute to the cause."

"But we already have Herbert and Grant," said Lee Jordan. "It's just the matter of deciding which one of them is the best. There's no way we're going to work with the Slytherin, Harry. You know that."

There were murmurs of agreement all around Harry.

"I hate to disagree with you, Harry," said Fred. "But I'm with Lee. What you just did, it won't work."

Harry leaned forward, closer to them. "Look guys, this isn't the Interhouse Quidditch Match we're talking about. This is Britain versus Bulgaria and it so happens that we got the honor to represent Britain in the upcoming friendly. We still want to win, right? Even though it's just a friendly match. Sure we got Herbert and Grant and they both want to be a part of the team but what I really want is a keeper who wants to win, not a keeper who simply want to brag to everyone that he once part of a team who fought Viktor Krum and his team even though his own team loses. One thing that I learnt about the Slytherin is that they hated being part of a losing team. Remember, we beat them at the Quidditch for the past three years and we won the Cup last year. We are the winning team. They will want to join us and they will want a piece of that glory. They know that they have a lot to gain by siding with us."

His friends however remained unconvinced.

"I don't know, Harry," said George.

"Look, I was just extending an invitation, alright? I just don't want them to feel that they're being left out. Sure they're not in the best term with us and everyone else but they're still a part of this school. I don't want our guests to see us fractured just because we can't get over our differences," said Harry. "Anyway, there's no guarantee that Bletchley will come. But if he does and if you guys really don't want him to be part of the team, you guys know what to do. But if he does manage to win a place in our team, I would expect our team to be able to cooperate with him."

"He won't, Harry. I can promise you that," said Fred.

Harry just shrugged.

---

The news travelled fast and it immediately became the hot topic of the day. Everywhere, everyone was discussing about it. Some even place bets on who will grab that elusive place and whether or not Bletchley will make an appearance. Everyone was excited to watch the tryout the next day. Even Slytherin House who, as Harry would learn later, had planned to boycott the tryout earlier, only to cancel it after knowing that there were possibilities that one of their own would present at the tryout and may have the chance to claim the place.

Nobody, not one expected that a Gryffindor would extend a hand to the Slytherins. That had never happened before. Harry had everyone awed by him.

Harry however, had to endure questioning from the rest of his fellow house mates. Angelina, Alicia and Katie in particular were livid and began questioning his action. Harry answered all of their questions calmly but firmly made it clear that he won't back away from his decision. Professor McGonagall however was proud of him and praised him for his sense of sportsmanship and fair play. She went further by telling the rest of his fellow Gryffindor that what Harry did was the right thing and they should fully supported him for that.

---

The invitation…

It was fifteen minutes before four pm. Harry was walking down the castle's lawn towards the Beauxbaton's carriage.

He went to the owlery first to check on whether or not Daphne Lavinge was telling the truth. Unfortunately for him, she is.

From afar, he could see a few of the Beauxbaton students, all male, were loitering around outside the carriage, throwing Frisbees, reading a book, playing one to one soccer… just about any stuff one would do outside in a bright afternoon. A couple of them can be also seen sitting at the bank of the lake, fishing.

All of them immediately stopped what they were doing when they saw him approaching. The one who was holding the Frissbees walked up to him and extended his hand. He was taller than him, had dark hair and pale skin. His facial features though did remind Harry of young Tom Riddle.

"'Arry Potter," he said, his eyes did the typical flicking upwards and rested on his partly covered scar.

"Hello," said Harry as they both shook hands. "You might be?"

"Raphael Bertrand. At your service," said the other as they let go their hands. "You can call me Raphael. Or Raph if you like. So what are you doing 'ere, 'Arry?"

Harry hesitated for a moment. "Urm well, this is quite embarrassing actually."

Raphael eyebrows raised.

"Okay, here's the thing, Raph or Raphael. I was invited to your carriage a few days ago. Unfortunately, things happened after that so I'm not really sure if the invitation still holds. So if it still holds, I'm here to fulfill it. If not, I'm here to get my bird back," explained Harry.

"I see. Your bird? It iz 'ere inside the carriage?" asked Raphael curiously.

"An owl actually. Yes, that was basically what I was told."

"It so 'appen zhat I am aware of zhe invitation," he said. "But I've never seen any owl except zhe ones we already own. Are you sure, 'Arry?"

"Yes, I am sure. I check the castle's owlery before coming here. If she's back she would be there," said Harry.

Raphael nodded. He gestured Harry to follow him. "Come, 'Arry."

Harry followed Raphael towards the carriage's door. Along the way, he shook hands with some of the boys and got to know their names as well. Raphael climbed the golden steps and opened the door. He then gestured Harry to come inside.

Harry followed him inside.

Harry had visited the institute several times back in the old timeline but this was the first time he ever been into the carriage. A familiar sighting greeted him the moment he stepped inside the carriage. He was now inside a miniaturized version of the institute's lobby. The differences were that the walls, while still adorned with paintings and several marble statues lined along side of it, were painted light blue instead of pearlescent white, basically the same color as the carriage's exterior. There was still a wide stairway behind a small reception desk but it now led to the first floor verandahs that lined the left and right wall. Harry could see many white doors that lined up the first floor which he assumed were living quarters of students, teachers and staffs. A marble fireplace can be found built into the right wall. It did not have fire woods in it so Harry assume that the fireplace was use as a mean to access the Floo network for travelling.

"Impressive, izn't it?" said Raphael. "You won't know zhat it would be zhis huge from zhe outside. Az a matter a fact, zhis iz zhe first time I travel inside zhe carriage. We usually uses zhe institute buses and airplanes to travel anywhere wizhin France. We never really use magical transportation unless zhe place we want to get to 'ave it. Zhose white doors are where we sleep. Girls on zhe right side and boys on zhe left side. Would you like a tour?"

Harry was more concern about Hedwig and dearly wanted to get his owl back. He didn't feel like staying inside the carriage for long but he didn't want to be impolite either. Raphael though seemed eager to be a really good host. But then, Harry wasn't sure if Raphael was allowed to do that.

"Are you allowed to do that?" asked Harry out of concern. "I'm pretty sure there are some parts of this carriage that I'm not allowed to visit."

Raphael shrugged. "Well no outsiders are allowed inside zhe carriage actually but you were invited. I'm pretty sure zhe girl won't dare to do zhat if Madame Maxime doesn't agree. Come to zhink of it, zhis iz zhe first time she did zhat. She usually would disapprove any request for visitation unless it iz very important. I zhink she trusted you so I see no problem. Come."

Harry followed Raphael, somewhat reluctantly. As they climbed the stairway, he asked, "Why would Madame Maxime trusts me?"

Raphael glanced sideway at him. "Maybe because you're 'Arry Potter," he answered.

Harry just rolled his eyes. "You seem to not mind that the girls invited me here," he stated. "Most boys would be jealous."

Raphael chuckled. "You mean Fleur? If you must know, she iz my cousin on my mother's side. Her father iz my mother's brother. It took quite a long time for me to get use to 'er. You can't help but become a zombie and drool every time she appears. Zhat waz very embarrassing but you will get use to it. I am impress zhat you manage to control yourself in front of 'er. "

Harry was puzzle by this. "Hmm, Fleur never told me about-"

Harry immediately caught himself. He nearly spilled out the fact that he was a time traveler who was once married to Fleur. He racked his brain, trying to remember his conversations with Fleur pertaining to her relatives back in the old timeline. It was then he remembered about Fleur mentioning that quite a few of her relatives were murdered by death eaters. Fleur never mentioned about Raphael but he had a hunch that Raphael could be one of them.

Raphael looked curiously at him. "She never told you what, 'Arry?" he asked.

Harry shook his head. "Err… nothing. Nevermind about that. So you're a Delacour too?"

Raphael stared at him. There was something his eyes that Harry could not interpreted. "Yes. Basically," he said moments later.

"So shall we continue with the tour?" Harry quickly suggested in an effort to cover the awkwardness.

"Yes. Of course."

Raphael brought him to see the kitchen which was quite large but looked barely used given how clean and polish all the cookware were. Well, the Beauxbaton had most of their meals at the Great Hall anyway. But Raphael did told him that Madame Maxime was planning to ask Dumbledore if the Hogwarts house elves could send food to the carriage instead so that they don't have to brave the cold morning and harsh weather every time they wanted to eat. Next was the dining room which was big enough to accommodate all the occupants of the carriage. There was also a modestly sized library, a study area and a recreational room complete with sofas where they could lounge around, watching television and playing board game such as chess and backgammon. Harry also got to know where Madame Maxime living quarters is. Of course he wasn't allowed inside.

Raphael's living quarters was the last location he visited before they both decided to return to the lobby. He was sharing it with another boy. His roommate though wasn't in the room at that time.

"'e loves fishing," said Raphael as they exit his room. "'e immediately brightened up zhe moment 'e saw zhe lake outside zhe castle. Zhe bad news iz az you can see, my room now smells like a fish compartment. Come. Let's get you back to zhe lobby. Zhey probably waiting."

It turned out that they did not really have to go back to the lobby. Just as they came out of Raphael's room, they saw Marianne. She was walking up the stairs from the lobby.

Raphael put two of his fingers into his mouth and blew a loud whistle.

Marianne turned to look at him. Her eyes widened when she saw Harry, who was standing beside Raphael. She immediately marched towards them.

"Zhere you are!" she said to Harry the moment she arrived in front of them. She then turned to face Raphael, hands on her hip and spoke, "Raphael! What did you do to him?!"

"Calm down, Mary. I didn't do anything. I was just taking our guest here on a tour of our carriage," explained Raphael, rolling his eyes. "You shouldn't be here, you know. You're on the male side of the verandah. Yours on the other side. Now scoot. Oh before that, can Harry have his owl back?"

Marianne turned to look at Harry. Her eyebrows raised. "You come 'ere just for zhe owl?" she asked.

"Err…"

"He told me something happened so he did not know if the invitation still holds when he comes here. If not, he just wants his owl back. Come on, Mary. Be a nice girl and give the bird back to him," urged Raphael.

Marianne however ignored Raphael. "Of course zhe invitation still 'olds, 'Arry. We were waiting for you. We zhought you won't come," she said to Harry. She then grabbed Harry's hand but before pulling him along, she spoke to Raphael, "You have a lot to answer to Fleur, Raphael!"

Raphael once again rolled his eyes. "Please, what do you think my cousin will do, drool me to death? I've seen a lot of veelas to last me a lifetime."

"Well considering that you drooled every time you see a veela especially Fleur, she just might do that to you. Or she could burn you to crisp. You know she isn't the only veela on board this carriage?" said Marianne hotly.

"You mean Daphne and her sister? Bring it on!" challenged Raphael. At the same time, he winked at Harry.

"Urggh!"

Marianne who wasn't keen to entertain Raphael's antic any further immediately pulled Harry away from Raphael.

"See you later, 'Arry!" waved Raphael as he watched their retreating backs. "If anyzhing 'appen, just conjure a fire 'ydrant and 'ose down everyone and everyzhing! Zhe boys will zhank you for it!"

"Shut up, Raphael!" shouted Marianne back.

Raphael just laughed.

Harry had a feeling that Raphael was a funny guy, just like Lee Jordan and the twins. They would build up a great rapport if they meet. But still, three veelas on the carriage? He remembered about his meeting with Lavinge the night before. She was a pretty girl but she hadn't showed any sign of her being a veela. And who was the other one?

"Urggh. That Raphael really gets on my nerve. Every. Single. Time," grumbled Marianne as they walked past the verandah and into a well lit corridor.

Harry who noticed the romantic tension evidenced between the two blurted, "Maybe he likes you. Maybe he just wants your attention."

Marianne looked sideways at him. "If 'e really likes me, 'e uses zhe wrong way to win my affection. 'E won't claim my attention if 'e continues to act zhat way."

Evidently, you haven't meet Ron and Hermione, Harry thought.

Still, he hadn't the slightest idea to where they were going so he asked, "Where are we heading to?"

"To Fleur's bedroom," said Marianne. "Zhey all are waiting for you zhere."

Hearing this, Harry immediately skidded to a halt. Marianne who was holding his hand was also pulled back along with him. She looked at him questionably.

"What iz it, 'Arry?" she asked.

"Hold on! Fleur's bedroom? Are you crazy?" said Harry in shock. "I'm pretty sure no boys are allowed on the female side of the carriage, let alone their bedroom."

"Hmm, zhey said zhat you are noble," said Marianne thoughtfully. "Zhey said zhat zhis will 'appen."

"Who?" asked Harry.

"It iz not important," said Marianne dismissively. "Come."

She pulled Harry's hand but he wouldn't budge.

"Can't we just do this at your recreational room or something?" said Harry. "This is not right."

"Relax, 'Arry. If anyzhing 'appen, we will bear responsibilities. You should be proud. You shall be zhe very first male to enter a Beauxbaton female bedroom in one 'undred years."

Marianne once again pulled Harry's hand. Harry hesitantly followed.

"That is definitely not something to be proud of, you know," said Harry. "Anyway, who's the other two?"

"Two what?" asked Marianne.

"Veelas."

"'Ave you forgotten what Raphael said? Daphne and 'er sister. You'll meet zhem."

They had reached the end of the corridor. To the right there was an oak door. Marianne turned the knob and pushed the door open. She gestured Harry to come in.

But Harry just stood there causing Marianne to reach out and pulled him in.

He found himself in a medium sized bedroom. Of course it was much larger than the room occupied by Raphael. A large double bed can be found sitting closely to the right wall. To the left wall there was a door leading to what he presumed a personal bathroom. There was a small dining table able to sit six person, a three person couch and several bean bag chairs, all occupied by none other than Fleur's friends and the rest of Beauxbaton female students who were part of the delegates. On top of the dining tables were plates of cakes, pies and drinks. On top of a window side table there was a micro system churning out Confide in Me, a song sung by Kylie Minogue.

"'I Harry!"

"'Ello Harry!"

"Zhought you wouldn't come!"

Fleur's friends greeted him.

Harry's face reddened when he saw what they were wearing. With the exception of Marianne, all of them wore girl shorts that showed off their shapely legs and tight shirts that accentuated their curves. The low neck t-shirts showed hint of cleavages of their quite considerable bosom. Marianne didn't wear shorts however. She wore long white pants matched with a white short sleeveless shirt that showed her stomach and cleavage. All of them didn't wear their hair in buns and ponytails this time. Instead they let it fall freely over their shoulder. And all of them smelled really good.

"Raphael got to him first before I did," said Marianne as she walked towards the bed and sat cross legged on it. "He took him on a tour around the carriage. They were just coming out of his room when I found them. Harry thought we cancelled the invitation, Cassy."

Cassandra upon hearing what Marianne told her got off her bean bag chair and walked towards Harry. She folded her hands across her chest and spoke, "Now why would we do zhat?"

Harry tried hard not to look at Cassandra's pumped up chest. He was about to reply when Daphne Lavinge cut him off. She was sitting a bit further away on the couch. There was a book in her hand. He noticed that she was wearing a pair of thin rimmed glasses when last night she wasn't. He silently admitted she looked rather cute that way.

"It was last night, Cassy," she said. "Remember what I told you and the girls about the other guy?"

"You mean Roger Davies?" asked Cassandra.

"Yes. The one and only," came the reply.

Cassandra turned back to Harry and burst out laughing. It took her awhile before her laughter subsided.

"Are you jealous, Monsieur Potter?" asked Cassandra, wiping away the tears from her eyes. The other girls were smirking at him.

"No."

"Well maybe you should," said Cassandra, smirking. "Roger iz really into Fleur. 'E can't stop flirting with 'er. And Fleur receives 'im well. Zhey both really well match with each ozher considering zhat 'e waz only one year younger zhan 'er."

"And good looking too," added Adrienne, who was sitting at table. She was eating a piece of cupcake at that point.

Harry's hand twitched a little. His anger rose. He knew that Fleur's friends can be quite a bully. He remembered having to go through their interrogations back in the old timeline. He knew that they were just being protective of Fleur and wanted to ensure that he was really right for Fleur, considering what she had gone through post Bill's death. He didn't mind it back then. He really loved her and was willing to do anything for her and Fleur herself was ready to be with him. But this time it was different. He still loved her to death in this timeline but this was a different Fleur. The younger Fleur had yet gone through all the pain and suffering that eventually turned her into a strong, independent and wonderful woman he married for more than seventy years. This Fleur had yet fallen in love with anyone. This Fleur also can be quite snobbish as far as he remembered. Given how easily she was in falling in love with Bill, there was no doubt in Harry's mind that she could fell for Roger if the later managed to control himself in front of her. He knew he should probably fight for her affection but given what happened, he silently wondered if it will all be worth it.

Maybe he should just conjure a fire hydrant and hosed down everyone and everything within the room. Just like what Raphael suggested him to do.

Feeling that there won't be any point for him to stay for much longer, he said, "Which is why Roger should be the one you invited, not me. I told this to Daphne last night. Either she didn't hear me or she suffered from short term memory lost."

Daphne Lavinge immediately put down her book and stared at Harry.

But Harry ignored her. He continued with a much firmer voice, "I'm not here to fulfill the invitation. I'm here for Hedwig. Where is she?"

"Hoot."

He turned to look and saw Hedwig perched comfortably on top of a silver perch placed on top of a table located at the far end of the room. Bowl of food and water were placed below the perch. Apparently the Beauxbaton students treated her well.

But Harry did not care. He simply wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. "Hedwig!" he called out to her.

Hedwig stretched her wings, flew to him and landed on his outstretched hand. He was about to grab the door knob when Cassandra called back to him.

"But Fleur hazn't come back yet! You should at least meet 'er first!" She went to grab his arm.

Harry in anticipation of her action immediately moved his arm away before she could grab it. "Why would I want to meet her?" he asked sternly.

The room immediately went silent. Cassandra herself froze when she heard what Harry said.

Without waiting for her responses, he turned the knob and opened the door.

And he found himself face to face with Fleur.

---

From the position of her hands, Harry could see that she was about to open the door. And behind her was Madame Maxime.

"'Arry?" said Fleur, her eyebrows furrowed. "Where are you going?"

"Back to the castle," replied Harry simply.

There was a look of surprise on her face but Harry ignored it. He looked past her towards Madame Maxime.

"Madame Maxime," he greeted the Beauxbaton headmistress and politely bowed to her. "I apologize. I know I shouldn't be here but your students made me. I promise to you that it won't happen again."

"You don't 'ave to apologize, Monsieur Potter," said Madame Maxime. "I gave zhem zhe permission to invite you 'ere."

Harry nodded. "And I thank you for that. But if you'll excuse me, I have to go."

He was about to walk past Madame Maxime and Fleur when the later grabbed his arm.

"'Arry, please," said Fleur. "Stay."

"I'm sorry but I have to go."

He was about to again, walk away from there when Madame Maxime spoke, "My students worked 'ard to organize zhis little get togezher party. Zhe least you could do iz stay, even just for a short while."

Harry sighed. It took a while but he did finally nod.

Fleur who was still holding his arm smiled satisfactorily. "Thank you, Madame," said Fleur to Madame Maxime.

Madame Maxime nodded. She then took leave, leaving Harry and Fleur alone in the corridor.

Fleur turned to Harry. "'Arry? Come inside," she spoke softly. She then gently pulled his arm and Harry inadvertently followed her inside. After closing the door behind her, she walked up towards the table and pulled a chair out. She then gestured Harry to sit.

Harry hesitated at first before he finally obliged. But Cassandra immediately stopped him before he could do anything. He looked at her questionably before he realized what she intended to do.

Cassandra reached out to Hedwig who was perching comfortably on his shoulder. She took the owl off his shoulder and brought Hedwig back to the silver perch.

"'Arry?" Fleur called once again to him.

Harry walked up to her and sat on the offered seat. Fleur then placed a clean plate in front of him and poured him the drink. She then took the seat beside him.

"Pies, 'Arry?" she offered.

"Yes, please."

Fleur took a knife and carefully cut one of the pies – she chose the blueberry pie – and put the slice into Harry's plate. She then handed him a pair of silver fork and knife.

"Thank you," said Harry, still staring at her.

It was at this point that he realized how extraordinarily beautiful she was. Unlike the others, she wore her hair in a braid which fell over her left shoulder. Together with the thin make up she wore, she looked just like Queen Elsa from the movie Frozen. He remembered how much their daughter Victoire loved that movie. She was ten years old and she would always ask her mother to wear her hair in the same style as Elsa. Fleur of course obliged. And Victoire would always wear her hair in the same way as Princess Anna every time she cosplayed with her mother.

Fleur's clothing was more modest than the rest of the females within the room. It still showed some of her curves though.

Cassandra returned from putting Hedwig back on the silver perch and sat in the only vacant chair in front of Harry.

"Zhey were just teasing you, 'Arry," said Fleur, taking a bite out of a slice of chocolate cake. It seemed that she had guessed what really happened in the room prior to her arrival. "I zhink you know zhat, don't you?"

"Well, it didn't seem like it," Harry retorted. He had yet touched his pie.

Fleur frowned at him. "Roger and I are just friends. I waz just being polite to 'im. I'm not ready for new relationship at zhis point. I still 'ave one year left of my education. I want to concentrate on zhat first," explained Fleur, glancing at him.

Yeah right. You haven't met Bill yet, thought Harry.

"Harry, iz zhere somezhing wrong?" asked Fleur upon noticing the look on Harry's face.

"No. Nothing's wrong."

Fleur gazed at him for awhile. "I would like to apologize for my friends' behavior earlier," she said moments later. "Zhey mean well, 'Arry."

"'Arry, I am sorry," said Cassandra, who until that time was contend in watching the interaction between the two. "I zhought you were just like any ozher men who just want to take advantage of Fleur. Clearly I was wrong. You are different."

Fleur smiled when she heard that. "I told you he is different, Cassy. You didn't believe me."

Cassandra just shrugged. "Well, we still have to test him, don't we? When it comes to men, I will only believe it when I saw it with my own eyes. Luckily your man here passed the test."

Fleur playfully hit Cassandra's arm. The later just laugh.

Harry just shook his head at the antics between the two. His mood brightened up a bit. "That's okay, Cassandra," he said. "Apology accepted. I should have guessed that you mean well. As a matter a fact, I am glad that you and the rest have been a very good friend to Fleur. She couldn't ask for much better friends than all of you."

Fleur and the rest of the girls smiled widely upon hearing what Harry just said.

"Can I kiss you?" Cassandra suddenly blurted out to Harry.

*Smack*

Fleur once again hit Cassandra on her shoulder. This time a little bit harder than previously.

"I was just kidding, Fleur!" said Cassandra, rubbing her shoulder and laughing.

"You haven't apologize to me, Harry," said Daphne Lavinge. "You called me forgetful."

Harry turned to look at her. "I apologize," said Harry. "I guess I should have not said that."

Daphne Lavinge stern look turned into a smile. "Apology accepted," she said before returning to her book.

The mood within the small party lifted up considerably after that. They ate and they chat. Fleur told him that they baked all the pies and cakes themselves.

"We don't 'ave the ingredients unfortunately," said Marriane, standing beside Fleur and eating a slice of strawberry and vanilla cake. "Luckily zhe 'Ogwarts 'ouse elves were kind enough to give us some. We don't really like zhe food zhey cook, zhey are too greasy for our taste, but zhe ingredients are very good and really fresh."

"So which one of this you made, Fleur?"

"Zhe blueberry pie."

"It is very delicious, Fleur."

"Zhank you."

"Did you ever, you know, invite the boys into your party?" asked Harry curiously. He was now eating another slice of the blueberry pie after finishing the first one. The pie was indeed delicious. Baking was one of old Fleur's fortes.

Cassandra shook her head. "Only once. Zhey were nozhing but nuisance. All zhey wanted to do is snuggle with us and do romantic stuff. It gets even worse when Fleur got thrown into zhe mix. You are zhe first boy who manage to act around us with much decency. We may invite you to our next party."

No kidding. Fleur's beauty stood way above the rest, but her friends were pretty in their own right. And with the kind of clothing they currently wore, it was enough to shut down a man's brain and turned him into a monkey on heat.

"'Ave you met my cousins, 'Arry?" asked Fleur at one point.

"You mean Raphael? Yes. He's funny. I like him."

Fleur chuckled. "Not Raphael. Daphne. And 'er sister."

"I met her last night."

Fluer smiled and shook her head. "Not zhat Daphne," she said. "Zhat Daphne." She pointed towards the far corner of the room.

Harry suddenly realized there were two more people sitting there.

The girl suddenly rose from her chair and walked towards the table.

Harry's eyes widened when he saw who she was.

"Daphne Greengrass?!" he croaked.

"Hello, Harry," greeted Daphne Greengrass, smiling.

Harry turned to Fleur. "She's your cousin?" he asked in shock.

Fleur nodded. "Yes, she iz my cousin on my mother's side. 'Er mother iz my mother's younger sister."

Then it dawned upon him and Harry began to understand what Raphael and Marianne was talking about. He turned to Daphne Greengrass and asked, "You're a veela too?"

Daphne Greengrass didn't reply.

All of a sudden, Harry felt wave upon wave of veela allure washed over him. He was dazed for a moment before he effectively threw the allure off him. He somehow knew from where it came from.

Daphne Greengrass looked impressed. "This isn't the first time I did that to you. So what they say about you is true."

"This wasn't the first-… but I felt nothing before."

"I didn't turn up my allure in full, Harry," said Daphne Greengrass. "If I did, all the boys within the Great Hall will go crazy. You should have seen what Fleur is capable of though. She is much stronger than I am."

"But why no one knows about this?" asked Harry. "How come no one in Hogwarts knows that you're a veela?"

"I have the ability turn my allure all the way down, Harry. This is why no one noticed. My sister," she pointed towards another girl who looked like her albeit younger. "Also capable to turn her allure off. Have you met her?"

Harry looked over towards the girl Daphne Greengrass mentioned. The girl waved at Harry. "Hi Harry! I'm Astoria." she greeted him. Beside her was another girl with blonde hair.

"Who's that?" asked Harry, pointing towards the blonde girl.

"Tracy Davis. My friend in Slytherin. Astoria is in Ravenclaw. She's in the same year as that Weasley girl."

"I see." Harry then turned to Fleur. "Can you do the same as them?" he asked her.

Fleur however shook her head. "I wish I could," she said.

"Fleur won't be able to do what me and my sister could do, Harry," said Daphne Greengrass. "She's too powerful even among our kind. She could tune down her powers but it will only go as low as half of what I can do. But still, as you have seen, even with my allure fully turned off, men still acting stupid whenever I'm around them. Malfoy is a good example. And for that, I am grateful for what you did for me the other day. Thank you, Harry."

"Which is why we 'old zhis little party, 'Arry," said Cassandra. "Zhis iz our way to say zhank you for protecting one of our sisters. Zhere are ozher reasons of course. You don't need to know what zhey are for now."

Harry just rolled his eyes.

"I just did what I could, Daphne," he said, ignoring what Cassandra just said.

Fleur just smiled. "Always zhe modest man you are, 'Arry."

"One thing that I didn't get though," he said to Fleur. "Why didn't you tell me this when we were still-"

Harry immediately clammed up. He realized he nearly spilled out what he should not say to her. For all he knew, she and the rest of her friends would simply label him as that crazy boy if he didn't manage to stop in time.

"When we were still what, 'Arry?" asked Fleur curiously.

"Err… nothing. Just forget about what I said, Fleur."

Fleur and the rest of the girls exchanged glances. She then nodded. "Alright 'Arry. If zhat iz what you asked."

Luckily for him, Fleur and her friends decided to let the matter go. The party then continues. It was then Harry found out that Daphne Greengrass had been sleeping inside Fleur's bedroom for many days now. Her sister and Tracy joined her occasionally. They asked him about Cho Chang and Ginny. He said that they both were just friends.

He noticed that he was now surrounded by three veelas and a group of lovely young women inside a spacious bedroom. It was a wonder that he didn't turn into a monkey on heat.

---

The clock showed thirty minutes past six when Harry excused himself.

"Don't you want your owl back, 'Arry?" asked Adrienne.

Harry paused for a moment. He stared at Hedwig. He saw how comfortable she was living in the carriage. She had a clean perch, a clean bowl of water and clean food. And Fleur and her friends were fawning over her. He saw that during his time there. Her living condition was vastly superior compared to that cold and dirty owlery Hogwarts had. It was a miracle that none of the owls that lived within the owlery fell sick from the harsh living conditions they were subjected to.

And all of a sudden it dawned upon him. He may not survive for long given what he was planning to do. Hedwig needed someone to take care of her and someone to love her. She truly deserved it. And he already found someone who will.

"No," he slowly shook his head. "She looks happy here. She can stay here if you girls don't mind."

"Of course we won't mind," said Camille. "We like 'er. But what if you want to send letters?"

"The school owls will do," replied Harry. "It's not like I would be sending out letters every day."

He let out a small chuckle. And the chuckle went away as fast as it came.

"Will you love her? Will you take good care of her?" he asked them, trying as hard as he can to feign his sadness.

Fleur and her friends looked at him in puzzlement. "Of course, 'Arry," said Fleur.

"Thank you."

Harry stared at Hedwig. He took her in for as much as he can for that might be the last time he would see her.

"Goodbye, Hedwig."

He then turned around and walked out the door.

His heart shattered into many pieces. And he was the only who heard it.

---

Fleur and her friends, now dressed modestly, escorted him back to the carriage's entrance. Fleur herself was wearing a shawl on top of her head. This was to prevent the boys from losing their mind every time they saw her. The Beauxbaton boys did have some measure of controls over themselves but that usually didn't last long, Fleur told him. They packed him some of the pies and cakes for him to bring back.

"So 'ow's zhe party, 'Arry?" said Raphael. He was seating on bench outside the carriage with a couple of his friends. "How come you never invite us to your party, Cassy?"

"Behave yourself and maybe we will!" she replied.

"Owh shucks," said Raphael. "Did you conjure zhe fire 'ydrant like I told you to, 'Arry?"

"No," came the reply.

"Owh shucks."

Harry just shook his head. George, Fred and Lee Jordan will really like Raphael if they meet him. "Thank you," he said to the girls. "I had a great time."

"You're welcome, 'Arry."

Harry nodded. Suddenly, an idea flew into his head. "I would like to invite all of you, and yes including the boys to the Gryffindor Tower. I will tell you the time and date later. Will you accept it?"

This took the Beauxbaton students by surprise. "You can do zhat?" asked Raphael.

"Why not?" said Harry. "After all, you did allow me into your sanctuary. It's your turn now to see where I live."

"Zhat would be great, 'Arry," said Fleur. "We're looking forward to it. Zhank you."

He nodded. He then turned around and began walking towards the castle. But before he could go any further, he heard a melodious singing coming in from the sky. he stopped and looked up.

"Look!" One the Beauxbaton boys pointed towards the sky.

Indeed, up in the sky, they saw a beautiful bird with beautiful long tails circling the sky. It circled lower and lower until Harry could see what it was.

It was a phoenix and it belongs to Dumbledore.

Fawkes landed gently on Harry's shoulder. Everyone else was staring at the phoenix in awe.

"Iz-…iz zhat a phoenix?" asked Marianne.

"Yes it is," replied Harry.

"I 'ave never seen a phoenix in all my life. But I zhought 'Edwig waz your only familiar?" she said.

"Oh, he wasn't mine," said Harry as he stroked Fawkes's head. "He belongs to the headmaster. His name is Fawkes."

"Owh."

Fawkes extended his leg.

Harry saw a note attached to it. He untied the note from Fawkes's leg, unfolded it and began to read:-

Hold on tight, Harry.

Harry's brows furrowed. "Hold on-…. Wait what?!"

But before he could do anything, Fawkes suddenly burst into flame along with him.

"'Arry!"

But Harry and Fawkes disappeared without a trace once the flame extinguished.

To be continued…

A/n: Phew! Finally. This chapter is the longest chapter I have ever written since I first became active writing fanfics. It's 14.7k words long if you must know. My laptop's keyboard is screaming for its life right now.

As always, thanks for all the input. Kindly read my profile if you want to know a little bit more about this story.

So that's it. Till next time. Owh, update won't happen until March.

Update: Some corrections had been done.