Chapter 54, NOPE!
"Word" – Speech.
'Word' – Thought.
"Word" – Slender Speech.
#Word# - Texts, messages, phone calls and on-screen words. Will have speech marks if words are being spoken at the same time as they appear on-screen or through a speaker.
~Word~ - Written words.
$"Word"$ - Parseltongue.
Disclaimer, Harry Potter is the creative property of J.K Rowling and the studio that produced the films.
Any CreepyPastas mentioned in this fic will have their creators stated in the endnotes.
I also have no ownership of any brands, games, franchises or shows mentioned in this fic.
Any persons mentioned outside of the stories that this fic is based on, that I haven't stated are a reference, are purely fictional. I do not condone killing unless it is justified, i.e. hunting animals for food or as a last resort in defence. Any similarities to any persons mentioned are purely coincidental unless it is in reference then I will have stated where the reference was from if it is overly obscure at the end.
Locations in which the kills are chosen are selected by online generators and I zoom in to see what's near there on google maps. All kill scenes that I write that did not occur in the Harry Potter book series are not based on any real-life events.
Author's note.
I am ecstatic.
People!
I'm gotten fan art made of this story!
I got a message over the PM system requesting permission to make fan art, and I think that that was the perfect excuse to eat a certain salted caramel sponge cake I got and forgot about...
It was delicious... it served 6 people... but I didn't share... my stomach was not too pleased with me... 248 calories per serving... times that by 6... 1488 calories in under 10 minutes... hehehehehehehe...
I'm also quite happy to announce that I've got the next couple of EXTRAS chapters that I want to write in my head... and one of them may or may not be an AU style story...
But, those aren't ready to publish, yet, but I do have some wonderful reviews to get to.
So thank you to Rosy Willard for the lovely art that has replaced the cover art for this story!
(X) review (X)
Katropis12;
Yeah, I love cliffhangers.
Nope!
What more do you need than that word to sum up how Isaac's feeling about the entire situation.
(X) review (X)
Thunder-Death;
Thank you!
I've always had the idea that Fred, at least, would become a Proxy.
Hehehehe... Jeff can help you 'Go To Sleep'...
Hope you like this chapter!
(X) review (X)
DarkRavie;
Thanks for the review, but I'm gonna stop answering if nothing changed in your next one.
(X) review (X)
Iheartlife888 (Guest);
Thank you for making me think of Julian Richings with the Pheonix Wright hair.
Isaac could take down the entirety of Hogwarts if he felt like it.
Dumbledore... you'll see... eventually...
(X) review (X)
MyraZinshu;
I didn't expect to be uploading so soon as well.
I was fully intending to follow through with my plan to take a break, but I got too bored and decided to get writing again.
I love binging out on Macabre Musique, it's awesome!
I'll be adding a big CP kill chapter to the EXTRAS list, each character getting their own kill, to apologise for forgetting the CP kill scenes, or if I forget to put them on any on the future.
Texas does narrow it down from... the rest of the world... so it's progress.
It's not so much killing you... but more like making irritating mole holes in your garden.
I'll shimmy a little Wolfstar somewhere, most likely an EXTRAS, maybe past in the story.
Well, if you can think of any Mythos that might interest me, that might work with the story, feel free to suggest them.
Yeah, kinda gave away one of my ideas in that chapter, didn't I?
I don't know about George, yet...
I think I'll keep everyone in suspense for now...
I loved writing Jack's rant, that part was so fun to do.
Ben definitely had a bit of fun... and just wait until you see what I'm doing later...
You'll see... you'll see...
I loved that line! That line is my favourite thing about that chapter!
I'm glad that you liked it, hope you like this one!
(X) review (X)
HAH!
YingYangWriter thought that they could get away with not posting a chapter in time last week!
They posted two for chapter 53... cow... making me do more work... cow.
YingYangWriter;
Erm... whatever's cuter... I guess...
Erm... second thoughts... keep them...
I might have seen that video.
What else would you expect from him?
L.J and Jeff are dangerously efficient when they work together, but the problem is they spend too much time squabbling to get anything done most of the time.
Kalakuta popping up was one of my favourite parts of that chapter.
The second being L.J.
See... in my head, whenever L.J made an insult or snarky remark, he sounded like Peanut from Jeff Dunham when Peanut was making 'Grampa' jokes at Jeff.
Dumbledore is a blinded git at this point, and I do know what I'm doing with him.
Fred got lucky.
Yes, you missed reviewing on chapter 52 until the week after, shame on you.
Fred is... he'll be alright... and I may or may not need to consult with some of my readers about a thing or two...
L.J's rant was awesome, I loved writing that.
Madame will be alright.
Slenderman is gonna be pissed.
(X) review (X)
.549;
You got me to listen to Metallica, thank you for that.
I have no idea what I'm going to do with George and the secret.
I actually only just played Fallout 4 not too long ago...
(X) review (X)
wow-im-satan;
Thank you!
So... is that a no about the Hellhound?
(X) review (X)
Rosie isis and rai the kitsune;
Go watch more Doctor Who.
I've thought this out, don't worry about it.
(X) review (X)
Acherongoddess;
Thank you!
(X) review (X)
DariceSB;
Erm... are you new?
WELCOME!
Fred's gonna be fine... I'm just thinking some stuff over in my head with him...
What I've got planned is going to be...
'turns into John Simms'
Spectacular!
(X) review (X)
Not a Criminal;
Ok, I'm not that good with foreshadowing, though if I was I'd be very impressed.
Also, it's singular, 'Brother in Arms'.
It was more symbolic of Toby carrying Isaac to The Mansion back in chapter 1 and 2.
...
He is now!
Or, well... it's on the list of what might happen to him.
(X) review (X)
Sweet Smilie;
I said that the beer tastes like vomit, not that it knows how to...
Ok, translation barrier is getting in the way again, lovely.
I'll make a note of all of those drinks and try them at some point.
I'm still planning Fred's little story arc.
I did consider having the twins with the psychic maguffins that some people give them, but I didn't go with it because I was trying to avoid cliches at the start.
For some reason, I don't think I did too well at avoiding cliches.
There was a definite change in Ben's behaviour when he met Isaac, you might get an explanation of how sometime in the future if I'm feeling kind enough.
Ok, you kinda lost me after the part with the second task.
Sorry.
Slenderman to the rescue!
I fear for when my Mum reads it...
(X) review (X)
Ok, that was the last of the reviews for this week. What do you think of the idea of splitting them up with that little line break? Helps make things a little easier to read, doesn't it?
And I've just noticed how many lines in my old chapters start with 'He...' like, I've got to really get better at starting sentences, haven't I?
DP, any comments on the mess I've made this time?
Welcome back, guys. How was everyone's week?
Hope that you all had a good week, mine was...
I'm sick, I've got a cold and I am currently on what feels like my tenth Lemsip today.
Aside from that, that's everything done,
Enjoy this weeks chapter,
SteamGeek01.
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Everyone watched as Isaac slowly got to his feet, dead-eyed and expressionless.
"Nope!"
There wasn't a single noise in the hall, even the normally draughty castle seemed to grow quieter.
"Nope," Isaac said again, softer this time.
"Mr Rogers," Professor Dumbledore called as Isaac started walking out of the hall.
"Nope," was all he got in response.
"Mr..."
"NOPE!" Isaac said again, "I have gone through three years here with stuff trying to kill me each year.
I am not going through a fourth!"
"Mr Rogers," Professor Dumbledore said.
His voice was no longer pleasant, there was an icy tone underneath his words, almost like a warning.
"I'm not doing this," Isaac said, "I am not going through another year of bullshit!
Toodle-oo!" he waved as he walked out of sight past the doors.
Professor Dumbledore made to follow but was stopped with a hand to his arm by Professor McGonagall.
She didn't say anything, but the expression on her face definitely told the man to stay put while she sorted this out, before she walked away from him, passing the Goblet as it's flames slowly died away.
As she walked closer to the door a second pair of footsteps joined her.
She glanced down at the sight of Hermione Granger quickly joining her at her side.
"Do you know where he'll be likely to go?" she asked as the two of them reached the flagstone floor of the entrance hall.
"Erm... I believe that he'll probably be getting some parchment," Hermione said, "So... Gryffindor tower? Or maybe a classroom?"
Professor McGonagall's brow furrowed but didn't say anything.
She stopped at the first portrait of the staircase and asked the man inside if he had seen Isaac come past.
The man, and his companions in the surrounding portraits, muttered the same as all of them had been preparing for an early sleep.
"He's heading out to the Owlery," a reedy voice said.
A few moments later Peeves floated down from the upper floor.
"Grabbed a bit of parchment, a quill, and inkpot from Vector's office and leapt out the window,"
"He's done what?" Professor McGonagall squawked as her eyes went wide in shock.
"He does that," Hermione said apologetically.
Professor McGonagall looked down at Hermione before she started hurrying to the grounds outside of Professor vector's office.
Her shoulders dropped with relief when there was no Isaac splayed on the ground before she and Hermione made their way towards the Owlery.
Neither of them noticed something small scurrying in the grass.
They had just reached the steps to the tall tower that housed the owls that carried mail for the students when a few flew out from the top.
Then a couple more later...
Then a couple more...
Hermione and Professor McGonagall looked around the circular room for any sign of Isaac.
"Perhaps we missed him," Professor McGonagall said, turning to leave.
"Isaac?" Hermione called out, her voice echoing around the room.
"What?" a shout echoed back from the darkened ceiling.
Professor McGonagall's head snapped to the ceiling and she gasped, leaning against the wall, and a hand on her chest.
Isaac was lying along one of the highest beams in the Owlery, casually letting his arms swing below him.
"What are you doing?" Hermione called up.
"Waiting," came the reply as Isaac rolled over so he was on his front and able to look down at them, "Oh... hi Professor McGonagall!" he waved cheerily down.
Professor McGonagall's mouth opened and closed for a few moments before she regained her voice.
"Get down from there at once!" she commanded.
"But it's comfy," Isaac whined.
"Now!" she snapped.
A faint sigh drifted down before the sound of someone getting to their feet.
Old feathers and droppings fell to the floor before something dark and swift moved around the edges of the wall.
A blur leapt from roof beam to roof beam before dropping down, holding onto the alcoves that the owls rested inside.
Professor McGonagall's gasps followed each of Isaac's moves as he descended the walls of the Owlrey with... what almost looked like practised ease.
Isaac dropped the final part of the way, crouching down as he landed, and dusting his hands off as he stood back up.
"Hiya," Isaac said patting his clothes down, "What's up?"
Professor McGonagall looked astounded at him, for his nonchalance and surprisingly flipped demeanour.
"How are you feeling?" Hermione asked, unsure of what to say to Isaac.
"Pretty good, little stretched from doing all that," Isaac said, rolling his arms, "Shame I'm not like Kage, being double-jointed would be brilliant for parkour,"
He tried to twist his arms like he had seen Kagekao do before as Hermione and Professor McGonagall both sported slightly confused looks.
"And just what did you think you were doing?" Professor McGonagall had finally managed to regain her voice.
"Relaxing while I waited to hear back from them," Isaac told her, still sounding in this odd state of relaxation, "Do you think this is how Luna feels?"
Professor McGonagall made an odd tutting noise as Hermione frowned.
"What do you mean?" she asked, confused at what he was talking about.
"See... my first year we tried to save the stone from Quirrell...
Second, you got Medusa'd, I fought a snake with a literal killer death stare, Ginny was possessed, and... we all had to deal with the cluster of migraine clusters that was Lockhart...
Last year was the Dementors, Ron being an asshole, and I thought I was being hunted by a man who wanted to kill me but he was actually innocent and trying to get the guy who was the actual guilty one...
And now I'm probably going to be forced to partake in the Magical Hunger Games.
I've sent a letter off home to see what they can do, but, in the meantime...
I've somehow found this... this zen," Isaac said, his voice still calm and relaxed, "I...
Don't care.
Simply put?
I don't think that there are any more ways that my time at Hogwarts can bend me over and screw me harder than being forced into a literal death game.
So, why should I care about things?"
Hermione and Professor McGonagall shared an odd glance with each other.
"Your existential crisis aside," Professor McGonagall said, "I'm afraid you still have to meet with the other champions to begin the tournament,"
Isaac let out a slow breath.
"And like that, the Zen is gone," he said, visibly deflating, "Fine, let's go,"
He paused and jumped down from the steps to the Owlrey to pick something scurrying around in the grass.
"Told you to warn me if anyone was coming," he muttered to something small and midnight blue in his hands.
Everyone had been dismissed by the time that they were back in the hall.
"I'll wait for you at the portrait," Hermione said, hesitating a moment before giving Isaac a quick hug.
Isaac stood there awkwardly as he let Hermione hug him before she left, her shoes clicking on the floor.
Professor McGonagall gave a small, polite, cough to get his attention before nodding towards the door that led to the trophy room.
Isaac was unsurprised to find the other three champions still there with their respective Headmasters and the two Ministry wizards, Crouch and Bagman, waiting.
What was a surprise, though, was Professors Snape and Moody were also waiting there.
"Mr Potter!" Bagman said, rosy-cheeked and grinning widely, "What an hon..."
"If the next word out of your mouth is going to be 'honour', then I'm going to burn every last hair off your body," Isaac said icily.
Bagman's excited demeanour deflated faster than a stabbed balloon at his greeting was bluntly ignored as Isaac walked right past him without even glancing at him.
"I'm going to guess you've been debating at whether or not I put my name in," Isaac said, not looking at any of them in particular.
The flames of the large fireplace they were gathered round reflected in his eyes.
"I did not put my name in that Goblet, nor do I want any part in this stupid little tournament, in fact, I give it..." Isaac quickly checked his watch, "... fourteen hours before work to get me out of this starts, just over six if you want to be pedantic,"
The edges of Moody's mouth twitched upwards and Karkaroff sent him a brief glare before turning to Isaac.
"You seem very confident in your prediction," Karkaroff sneered, his eyes displaying obvious disbelief.
"I live with a guy you could call Death personified," Isaac said, meeting his glare, "So, yeah... pretty confident,"
A cough got their attention and Mr Crouch stepped forward to speak.
"The issue shall be brought up with your guardian at his earliest convenience..." Crouch said.
"Fourteen hours," Isaac muttered under his breath.
"... however, the Goblet constitutes a magical-binding contract, so you shall have to compete,"
"Wonderful," Isaac said, and many in the room were surprised that someone could lace a word with so much sarcasm.
"That's the spirit, Harry," Bagman said obliviously and clapped him on the shoulder.
Isaac steeled under his hand and barely turned his head to talk to him.
"I'm friends with Fred and George Weasley, they want to know when you're going to pay them back,"
As he finished speaking a small smirk had appeared on his face.
Before he had even finished saying George's name Bagman had let go of his shoulder and moved to the other side of the room.
"The first task," Mr Crouch spoke, wanting to get back on track, "... shall take place near the end of November, the twenty-fourth.
This task is designed to test your daring, therefore, you may not ask for, or receive, any outside help from their fellow students or teachers. All you will be permitted to take in with you is your wand,"
Crouch's eyes seemed gaunt in the light of the fireplace.
"You will receive information on the second task once you have completed the first.
Due to the demand, and time-consuming nature, of the tasks, all champions are exempt from the end of year examinations,"
Crouch bid them a good night before briskly moving away to talk to Dumbledore.
Madame Maxine chivied Fleur out of the room without a word to anyone.
Karkaroff led Krum out as well, pausing at the door to speak briefly to Dumbledore and Crouch.
"I fully intend to follow through with my complaint to The International Confederation of Wizards," he hissed at Dumbledore.
"Follow through all you want, Igor," Moody growled in a low undertone.
Karkaroff and Moody had a silent standoff before Karkaroff turned and walked out of the room, Krum in tow.
Dumbledore left the room with Crouch and Bagman, the two of them muttering to themselves as they followed Dumbledore.
There was a moment that almost made Isaac snort in laughter as the two men weren't paying attention to where they were going, trusting Dumbledore to lead them, and they collided with each other as they tried to walk through the narrow doorway.
Professor Snape paused for a moment, nodded curtly in Isaac and Professor McGonagall's direction, before leaving the room himself.
"Come now, Rogers," Professor McGonagall said, nodding towards the door.
Isaac spared another glance at the fire and at Cedric.
"Good luck," he said before walking off with Professor McGonagall.
"You too," Cedric said, standing a little awkwardly before walking out the doors.
Professor Moody cast a quick glance around the room before leaving for his office.
True to her word, Hermione was waiting for him and Professor McGonagall outside the portrait hole.
"So, all the hubbub is true?" the Fat Lady asked, raising an eyebrow at the trio.
"Balderdash," Professor McGonagall said curtly.
"It most certainly is not!" a woman in the adjacent portrait, who Isaac recognised as the Fat Lady's gossip pal, scoffed indignantly.
"No, no, Vi, it's the password," the Fat Lady sighed as she started to swing open.
"Wait," Isaac said, darting forward and holding the portrait closed, "Professor...
Last year, Professor Lupin taught me, among other things, the charm 'Arresto Momentum' so..."
"Mr Rogers," Professor McGonagall held a hand to politely interrupt him, "If this is going where I think it is going..."
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Inside the Gryffindor Common Room.
Fred watched the flames dancing in the fireplace as he turned the bottle of Butterbeer over in his hands.
"You planning on joining in anytime soon?" George asked, sliding into the chair next to him and kicking his feet up so he could use Fred as a footrest.
Fred glanced up at him before back at the fire.
"Just worried about Isaac," he told his twin brother, "This isn't going to end well,"
"I know it won't," George sighed as he dropped his feet back down to the floor, "And I can't wait for the fireworks this time around,"
Fred cast a worried glance at George.
"Isaac's folks ain't going to be too happy about this one," George said with an eager look, "Wonder what's going to happen," he mused.
'Murder, death, torture, blood everywhere,' the images flashed through Fred's mind one after the other.
"Me too," he said with a chuckle that came out more nervous than he would have liked.
George frowned at his brother, the gaze unseen as Fred was still looking into the flames.
"You alright?" George asked, nudging him in the shoulder, "You've been a bit... off lately, everything alright in the ol' noggin?"
"It's nothing, it's just... I'm worried about Isaac," Fred said, taking a drink of the Butterbeer to give himself time to think.
George shook his head, "No, before that, you've been off since you got back on Halloween,"
Fred felt his mouth go dry, despite the drink he had just taken.
"I-it's nothing," Fred said quickly.
"Ok... now say it like you're trying to convince me," George raised an unamused eyebrow.
Fred glanced at George, and George was shocked to see something akin to fear in his eyes.
"Not the time, or place, Georgie," Fred said.
"Later then," George nodded.
He'd been worried about his brother ever since he had gotten back from dying the water tanks in the toilets.
He would be finding out what had happened, one way or another.
He leant back in his chair and looked around the room.
It seemed that after the three minutes that people had celebrated a Gryffindor being a champion in the Tournament, everyone had drifted off into separate conversations.
The main topics of conversation?
Had Isaac put his name into the Goblet?
What would the tasks be?
What the hell Isaac was going to do in the tasks?
The portrait creaked open and everyone looked expectantly at the stone opening.
There were a couple that visibly deflated when they saw it was just Hermione, but the others waited until they saw the tall form of Professor McGonagall ascend behind her.
"Not wanting to be relentlessly pestered, Mr Rogers has already bid his goodnights," Professor McGonagall said, looking around the room before glancing out the window and descending back down the stairs as Hermione sat down between Fred and George.
As soon as she was gone, and the portrait closed, everyone crowded around Hermione; wanting to know what Isaac had done, was going to do, or doing.
"Back off!" George said, shoving a few that had surrounded them back, "Can't breathe without someone's arm getting in my mouth,"
His protest was ignored by everyone's questions.
"How did he get past the age-line?"
"What's he doing?"
"Where is he?"
"Is he going to be a champion?"
"Where is he?"
The rabble was silenced by a pair of loud whistles from the twins.
"Clear, OFF!" the two of them said and most of the crowd dispersed around the room, a few of the more stubborn classmates had to be shooed away by Ginny.
There had been a moment where a couple of seventh years laughed at the small girl before them telling them to get lost before they were sent scrambling from the room by a bat-bogey-hex chasing the both of them.
"He's been sent packing," came a derisive snort from the corner of the room, where a lone ginger was sat, "McGonagall's only told the bull about him sleeping somewhere else to give them time to clear his stuff out,"
Fred put a steadying hand on Ginny as she raised her wand once again.
"So, what did happen?" Ginny asked, softer and much nicer than anyone else in the room had.
Hermione shook her head.
"I don't really know," she said, "I came up here to wait for him getting back, then he asked Professor McGonagall if he could..." she clamped her hands over her mouth.
"Do what?" Fred asked.
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"Ok... this is definitely a lot taller than I thought it was..." Isaac muttered to himself as he slid along the outer wall of the Gryffindor tower.
He glanced down at the near hundred foot drop before turning around so that his back was to the wall.
Isaac fought with the urge to jump and experience the adrenaline rush from doing so.
He steadily made his way around the tower before scaling up to a window he saw not too far above him before he started humming to himself as he steadily made his way up, testing each handhold before pulling himself higher.
The wind picked up a little and he risked taking a hand away to pull his collar up before wishing he had his hoody on.
He made a silent pact to himself to always be wearing it under his cloak if he could from that point onward as he peered into the first set of windows but found them to be another dorm in the tower.
A hummed fanfare signalled that he had finally found the right dorm as he wiggled the window open before worming his way inside.
He had just managed to get his hips through the narrow window opening before he lost his grip on the polished window frame and fell onto the ground.
"Very graceful, Isaac," he muttered to himself, "Well done, you were as graceful as a drunk cat,"
He sighed as he dusted down his trousers so that they were free of any dust or dirt that had clung to them during his little climb.
Isaac had just stood back up when he paused as a soft, nervous, cough got his attention.
He turned to see Neville sitting on his bed, the Herbology book given to him by Moody sitting open on his lap.
"Hi," Neville said quietly.
Isaac raised his hand and pointed it at Neville with an open palm.
"You did not see Isaac fall on his face," he said as he waved his hand at him, "You saw him land a handstand after three successful backflips,"
Neville gave a small snort of laughter and set the thin ribbon of fabric that came with the book along the page to mark where he had gotten to.
"Are you ok?" he asked.
"Yeah, should all be sorted by tomorrow," Isaac said, tugging his jumper off and kicking his shoes off before he grabbed a pair of pyjamas out his drawer and crawled onto the bed while pulling the curtains closed behind him, opening them briefly to turn something on.
"BEN!" Isaac shouted as soon as he appeared in the field, startling the blonde, "The bullshits begun!"
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The Mansion.
Toby groaned as he tried to sit up, being pushed back down by a pair of hands while someone growled, "You do this again and you can set your own bones,"
E.J was not in a particularly happy mood.
He had been looking forward to relaxing for the day, but then Locklear had been called away by Slendy earlier that morning to check some bodies in a morgue across the country to see if there was anything out of the ordinary.
Then everyone started returning.
It seemed that there hadn't been a single easy job worked that day.
Jeff had dislocated his arm trying to jump to another building to get away from some trigger happy neighbours of his kill which had caused him to fall and break his wrist.
Jane had fractured her ankle and was sitting on the bed opposite Jeff, the two glaring daggers at each other.
Liu was there but thankfully he was fine, he had been out with Toby and had helped bring him home.
Toby was, by far, the worst out of the bunch.
Two broken ribs, dislocated elbow, lung damage from smoke inhalation, a wide gash above his eyebrows from being hit in the face and another currently wrapped in several layers of bandages on his leg.
There had been a couple others pass through, but they had all been patched up within a couple of minutes.
Jack didn't mind patching Toby up that much since he had blown a cult's attempt to summon what they believed to be some sort of magma demon to kingdom come.
"Keep still," Jack muttered to Toby as squirmed under their touch.
"Ticklish!" Toby snickered, "Would it make you feel better if I said ow?"
Jack had tried to get Toby to sit still by hitting him hard around the back of his head, forgetting that he couldn't feel the pain.
"I'd feel better if you hadn't blown yourself up," Jack growled.
It took another three minutes for Jack to properly bandage Toby up, but it took him longer to get him to stop picking at a few pieces of scabbed skin along his arms.
He sent Liu out to go get some of the higher strength sleeping pills that they had in the storage cupboards, they weren't risking giving him valium again.
"Got 'em," Liu said as he tossed the small bottle to Jack as he sat down next to Toby, "And you got a letter,"
Toby took the parchment eagerly and tore the envelope open to read it.
Jack turned back in time to see Toby halfway out the bed and tugging his shoes on.
"Get back in..."
"I need to see Slenderman," Toby grunted before walking out, the bandages on his leg starting to turn a little red.
"He needs to see Slenderman," Liu confirmed, reading the letter, taking the sleeping pills from Jack and grabbing a few more bandages just in case.
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The Great Hall, the next morning.
A few were surprised to see Isaac walk into the hall the next day, one red-head seemed particularly moody, and sit down at the Gryffindor table as if nothing was the problem.
The only thing that seemed more out of the ordinary was that he kept checking his watch and that there was so much fog rolling in across the grounds that the doors to the outside of the castle had been closed to keep it out.
Filch had been given the job of standing outside to wait for the foreign students and their Heads to open the doors for them.
Madame Maxine was standing at the bottom of the stairs to the carriage, looking out over the misted grounds as she took in a few steady breaths.
She had just been about to lead the Beauxbaton students to the castle for breakfast when a breeze quickly picked up across the grounds, causing her to turn the collar of her large coat up and more fog to roll out of the trees in the nearby forest.
The students descended from the carriage behind her, lining up diligently behind her and awaiting her say to go to the castle.
Across the fog, she could see Karkaroff getting ready to do the same.
Another breeze, one stronger than before, blew across the ground with another wave of fog as a crunching noise rippled through the air.
She turned to see a very tall, and thin, figure taking long steps across the grounds.
Filch peered out over the mist covered grounds, tightening the scarf around his neck to try and fight against the cold that nipped at his skin.
He shuffled where he stood, breathing heavily into his hands, as he heard the even paced footsteps of someone approaching... though there was an accompanying tap of something metal against stone.
He tugged the hat that he wore upon his head up a little to look at whoever had approached and gulped nervously at the sight of the person that towered over him.
Inside the hall, Dumbledore watched with a mild sense of amusement at the fog that had coated the grounds that morning.
It was foggy enough that the mist even drifted through the front doors slightly, seeping through the cracks around the doors.
He frowned as the doors shook for a moment, the fog growing more dense than it had been before.
The doors swung open and...
He couldn't help but sit a little taller at who he saw.
A man who towered over all but two persons on Hogwarts grounds was walking inside, a silver-tipped cane tapping against the flagstones on the ground every other step.
Fog swirling around his feet as he crossed the entrance hall and into the Great Hall.
At the Gryffindor table, Isaac's face split into a wide grin as the man walked closer.
Hushed whispers broke out across the hall as the rake-thin man walked slowly through the Great Hall.
There was a moment of confusion as the man paused and put a hand within his jacket, Moody tightened the grip on his wand.
Breathes were held as he withdrew something, but it only turned out to be an envelope that he gave to someone at the Gryffindor table before he continued silently onwards across the room.
Dumbledore rose from his chair as the tall man came closer to the head table.
Though he hadn't said anything there seemed to be a cold fire that burned in his wake, charging the air around him.
The man came to a stop at the head table, his cane held loosely in front of him with both hands, with a bored expression upon his face.
"Do I even need to say why I am here?" the voice of Samuel Thalmann carried itself to every corner of the room.
Dumbledore glanced behind him and saw the delegates from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang standing just outside the Great Hall, curiously watching.
"Mr Thalmann," Dumbledore was thankful that he could keep his voice calm, "I take it you are here about the... unfortunate incident with the Goblet of Fire?"
Thalmann didn't say anything, just raised an eyebrow at the old wizard before him.
"We are looking into how this happened," Dumbledore went on, "And I assure you, we have this under control..."
Dumbledore stopped as Thalmann leant down until there was just under a foot of space between their two faces.
He couldn't help but swallow as he looked into impossibly black eyes.
A tense moment passed before Thalmann spoke again.
"Do you feel in control?" Thalmann asked softly, not breaking eye contact with the man before him, "If you were then this situation would never have come around in the first place," there was a definite sense of ice lacing each word that came from him, despite how calm and formally he spoke.
Dumbledore couldn't help but feel small under the man's scrutinous gaze.
"Where is the item holding the contract that binds Mr Rogers?" Thalmann asked, standing back up and glancing around, 'Toby has a point,' he thought to himself as he looked around the inside of the Great Hall.
"The... the Goblet was taken back to The Ministry late last night," Dumbledore said, "I can summon the Ministry worker who handled the process for you if you would like?"
Thalmann merely nodded, continuing his unimpressed look around the hall before turning back to Dumbledore a few moments later.
"Are you waiting for a written request?" he asked and Dumbledore walked around the table and hurried from the hall.
Thalmann glanced up and down the head table once more before walking back between the row of tables.
"Walk with me," he said as he passed the halfway point of the Gryffindor table.
"I'll catch up with you guys later," Isaac said as he got up, crammed another bit of toast in his mouth, and hurried to catch up with Thalmann.
"So, how are your studies progressing?" Thalmann asked as they left the Great Hall.
"They're going well," Isaac said, "Starting time-delayed runes for things like traps in tombs and crypts next month,"
Thalmann nodded with more interest showing on his face than he had shown when looking over Hogwarts.
The two of them came to a stop at the doors in front of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrangs.
"Unless all of you are non-corporeal, would you mind stepping out of the way of the doors you are currently blocking?" Thalmann asked and Isaac smirked.
Somehow, Thalmann had a way of politely making his point but leaving people feeling like they had been insulted in the process.
Nonetheless, the students and Heads parted to make way for them.
Isaac glanced over his shoulder to see how far they had gotten from the castle before speaking again.
"You made all this fog, didn't you?" he asked.
"The castle is rather dull, I thought I would at least make it somewhat atmospheric," Thalmann said, looking out towards the forest.
"You just wanted to look cool when you walked in," Isaac laughed as they continued their walk around the castle.
"And so what if I did?" Thalmann glanced down, a smile stretching the muscles of his cheeks, "Are you alright?" he asked.
Isaac couldn't help but feel a little better at hearing the sincere concern in his voice.
"I'm fine, just wondering if I'll have to go through another year of..."
"Language," Thalmann reprimanded him before he could finish his sentence.
Isaac rolled his eyes but smiled none the less.
"Just wondering if I'll ever get a year of peace here," Isaac changed his statement.
"Time will tell," Thalmann said, "And you know you have the full support of everyone at home backing you no matter what happens,"
"Even Jane?" Isaac asked, faking shock.
"She has no choice, lest she suffers the wrath of Toby, or L.J," Thalmann said, a ghost of a laugh crossing his lips.
Isaac and Thalmann walked in silence for another moment before Isaac thought to ask something else.
"Erm... you know how I can do that... fire thing with my hands?" he glanced around to see if there was anyone out on the grounds, "Well... there were these things at the Quidditch World Cup that could do something similar, they were called Veela, so, I was wondering if..."
"You were wondering if you were part Veela?" Thalmann guessed his line of thought before he could finish, "While a reasonable conclusion, from what I know of them, no, you are not part Veela.
When I made you my Proxy I would have told you if you were, and I could not detect anything non-human within you.
Even that soul-shard was human, a very diluted, twisted, vile piece of a human, but human nonetheless,"
Isaac smiled and nodded.
While he wouldn't have cared if he had been, it was nice to know for sure that he wasn't.
A mixture of semi-dry leaves being crunched and click of stones underfoot had them both turn to see Dumbledore walking towards them with Mr Crouch by his side.
"I hope we aren't interrupting anything," Dumbledore said, though Isaac had to refrain from cackling at the slight glimmer of fear he saw in his eyes as he looked at Thalmann.
"Well, you've already forced a minor into a contest that was disbanded due to the number of deaths that occurred, so what's interrupting a little conversation?" Thalmann asked dryly.
Crouch stood awkwardly at the side of Dumbledore.
"Mr Thalmann, my name is..."
"Bartemius Crouch, yes, I know who you are," Thalmann said, sounding bored again.
"Yes... well, about the unfortunate incident with Mr Potter and the..." Crouch broke off as Thalmann turned and walked towards him.
He didn't crouch down to speak to him, merely tilted his head forward so that Mr Crouch had to look up at the imposing figure that towered over him.
"His name... is Isaac Rogers," Thalmann said and, for the first time, there was a dangerous undertone in his voice, "Am I clear?"
"Y-yes, sir," Mr Crouch said, "The unfortunate incident regarding Mr R-Rogers and The Goblet of Fire, the Goblet constitutes a binding magical contract, Mr Rogers will have to compete,"
"And what if his legal guardian requests that he not compete?" Thalmann asked, reaching into his jacket once more, "I have a written statement requesting that Isaac does not compete,"
"There are..." Mr Crouch gulped nervously, "There are no ways to remove someone from the contract, regardless of guardianship requests,"
"Question," Isaac said, "Am I still able to go home for the holidays?"
Mr Crouch glanced at Dumbledore and up at Thalmann nervously.
"The... the Goblet has a set limit to how far people can travel whilst the tournament is ongoing from where the tournament is being hosted," he tried to keep his voice calm and collected, "It will not allow Mr R-Rogers to travel further than the border of the country,"
"That certainly throws a spanner, or two, into those plans," Thalmann said, "Now, if you would excuse us, I'd like to finish my walk with Isaac,"
"I'm afraid that I will have to ask for a member of staff to accompany you," Dumbledore said, "To comply with the rules set for student protection,"
"Now you bother with student protection rules," Thalmann said, unamused, "And the fact that I am the emergency contact if Mr Roger's guardian is unavailable should override that little rule now, shouldn't it?"
Dumbledore smiled as kindly as he could and nodded to Thalmann.
"Yes, it would, but I would have to..."
Dumbledore didn't get to finish his request for written proof when Thalmann produced another piece of paper from within his jacket.
He took it. He read it. He looked back up at Thalmann.
"Everything seems to be in order," he said as he gave the piece of paper back to Thalmann, "Barty, care for a cup of tea before you return?"
Dumbledore and Crouch left, Crouch muttering his thanks to Dumbledore for the offer as they made their way back to Dumbledore's office.
"It seems we shall have to go another year without you for the holidays," Thalmann said as they turned to continue their walk, "Though, perhaps you can tell me something?"
"What?"
"Why is it that I can feel a second Proxy within Hogwarts?" Thalmann asked, glancing down at him.
"Erm... can I say what a lovely coat you have?" Isaac tried to change the topic.
"You may, it keeps me warm rather well when I ask people about why there is a Proxy aside from my own within Hogwarts," Thalmann said, raising an amused eyebrow at Isaac.
"Fred Weasley," Isaac said, "He saw Jack and Jeff through the crack in a door, Jack took him to the carnival while he asked me more about him and whether or not he'd be able to keep him there until Teer was able to wipe his mind, or go with his back up, which was..."
"To take him as a Proxy," Thalmann nodded, "I will be having words with Jack when I return.
How much does Mr Weasley know about us?"
"He was able to piece together most of who was who," Isaac told him, "I'm keeping an eye on him to make sure that he doesn't accidentally tell anyone,"
"And you trust him to keep this secret?" Thalmann asked.
"Yeah, he's loyal... plus I may or may not have given him the idea that if he does spill the secret then his life is forfeit and Jack can string him up with his own guts, as well as everyone else in his family," Isaac was quite pleased with himself for getting Fred to believe that bluff.
"Very well," Thalmann nodded, "I trust you to keep an eye on Mr Weasley, if at any time he seems about to reveal our existence, then you are to intervene immediately,"
Isaac nodded to show that he understood.
"Now, how are you feeling about the tournament?" Thalmann asked.
"Little nervous," Isaac said honestly, "I know it was disbanded because of deaths in the past and they'll probably have changed somethings so it'll be safer, but... common sense isn't that common, apparently, amongst the Ministry,"
"Timothy and Brian are meeting with the M.A.C.U.S.A worker later this week to discuss ways to try and get you out of this rather irritating situation.
Until then, I want you to keep your head down, but keep your ears and eyes open.
This world's fascination with your past is far from good, and the fact that someone has entered you into a Tournament such as this does not sit well with me.
If you miss a single weekend with Ben then I will return to keep a closer eye on you,"
"You think someone's out to get me?" Isaac asked, something flickering within his chest.
"Yes, though that does not mean you are to deliberately goad them into further action, or seek them out by yourself," Thalmann said, knowing that something similar was already on Isaac's mind, "Keep an eye out and send word of anything that seems out of the ordinary, but unless you have no other choice, do not act upon your findings,"
"Yes, sir," Isaac nodded.
"Now, is there anything else that you would like to discuss?"
"What happened to Toby?" Isaac asked.
The letter that Thalmann had given him had held an apology that Toby couldn't be there with him since he was being kept in the Infirmary.
"He was dismantling a group of idiots attempting to summon a being to bend to their will and was forced to act a little earlier than he had wanted to.
He was caught in the debris, Jack and Locklear are tending to him and chances are that he'll be asking me to bring him here as soon as your first trip to that nearby town rolls around,"
Isaac felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulder at knowing Toby was alright.
"Now... tell me about what you know of the first task," Thalmann asked as they reached the far side of the castle.
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Fred watching with wide eyes as a man taller, and more thin, than anyone he had ever seen walked into the room.
'Holy crap,' was all he could think as The Slenderman walked down the row of tables to the head table.
It seemed that even though none of the students, save for Isaac and himself, knew who the man really was, everyone seemed mildly afraid of the man who commanded such a presence to have Dumbledore stand for him.
He could have sworn that the man's darker than ink eyes had stared right through him as he passed.
Isaac bade his farewell and made to catch up with the man's long steps as whispers broke out all over the Great Hall.
"C'mon," George nudged his arm a few minutes later when he had finished eating, "Want to hear your thoughts on an idea I've had,"
"You can have ideas?" Fred pretended to be shocked.
"You can speak?" George mirrored his shocked expression.
The two of them laughed with each other as they made their way out of the hall and up to 'their' workshop.
"So, what's the idea?" Fred asked, "... and does it fix the problem with the Canary Creams?"
"I might have an idea about that, but I mainly want to know what's up with you and Isaac," George said, crossing his arms and leaning against a table.
Fred felt as if his blood had turned to ice.
"It's nothing," he said, maybe a little too quickly.
"And for some reason, you get worked up this easily about it," George said, "Since when have we kept secrets from each other?
Don't you trust me?"
"It's not my secret," Fred said, internally wincing and screaming at himself to hurry up and fix this, "It's...
I accidentally found something out about Isaac and he really doesn't want anyone to know.
From the way he spoke about it there's maybe two others, aside from me and him, that know about it back at his home, and I promised him that I would never tell anyone,"
Fred felt just as guilty as George looked.
"I... I didn't know it was something he didn't want to get out," George said, awkwardly rubbing his arms, "It's not something bad, is it?"
Fred paused for a moment.
"Depends on who you ask," he settled on.
"Must be pretty big if he hasn't told his folks about it," George muttered quietly.
"Trust me, I wish I didn't know just for his sake of mind," Fred said sincerely.
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"So, you have no idea what the task is, you are being sent in with only your wand, and you aren't allowed outside help," Thalmann summed up what Isaac had told him.
"Yeah," Isaac said, "Effectively going in blind with no idea what to do,"
Thalmann's breathing was slow and paced, filled with contempt for the idiots running the show.
"Then you know what you must do next, then," he said as they reached the back of the greenhouses.
"Yep," Isaac nodded, "Exploit every loophole under the sun,"
"Naturally," Thalmann agreed, "And make sure that you are well prepared for what the task is,"
"Any ideas on what the task is?" Isaac asked him.
"No, but I doubt that every detail will be kept secret for long," Thalmann said, leaning forward to examine some of the plants that had sprouted through a window.
"Any ideas on where to start?" Isaac asked.
"Your friends, the Weasley twins," Thalmann said, a brief note of amusement, "They are rather connected within the Ministry, from what I have overheard at The Ark, and might know something,"
Isaac mused this over for a few moments.
"I'll ask them," he said, "Aside from them maybe knowing something about the Tournament, they'll probably have a few handy spells I can learn,"
Thalmann nodded.
"I have other business to attend today, so I can not stay much longer,"
Isaac nodded, his shoulders falling slightly.
He froze for a moment when long arms wrapped themselves around him.
"I have every confidence that you can face anything that they throw at you," Thalmann softly assured him, "And Isaac..." he said as he stood back up.
"Yeah?"
"Give them Hell,"
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End notes.
Right, I feel like that's a good place to end it for now.
The time to the first task is getting closer, and I've already got a few things in my head.
So, who wants a couple of hints about what happens next chapter?
If you don't want them, then look away now.
George talks to Isaac about the secret.
Ben does some snooping around in the heads of others.
Toby does something slightly stupid and pisses off E.J
Right, you can look again.
Have fun, see you in the next one.
Thank you once again to the wonderful Rosy Willard for the brilliant artwork sent to me, love it!
SteamGeek01.
Creepypastas in this fic.
Ticci Toby – Kastoway.
Masky / Hoodie / The Operator – Marble Hornets.
Eyeless Jack – Kiki H.
Laughing Jack – Snuffbomb.
Jeff the Killer – BanninK.
Ben Drowned – Jadusable.
Sally – Kiki H.
Slenderman – Victor Surge.
Smile dog – God knows.
Puppeteer – BleedingHeartworks.
Bloody Painter – Delucat.
Kagekao – GingaAkam.
Homicidal Liu – Vampirenote13.
Jason the ToyMaker – Krisantyl.
Jane the Killer – AngryDogDesigns.
Clockwork – Can't find the original creator. If you have any ideas on how to, then suggest them.
Candy Pop and Candy Cane – XXDirtyNightClownsXX.
Pianist – jill0mccloud.
The Pianist – This story didn't have a credit, if anyone knows then please tell me so I can fix this.
Pokemon Dead Channel – star-byte. (BRVR's story)
The Good Doctor Locklear – Madame Macabre - check out her youtube channel, really recommend the music!
Feel free to leave a suggestion for stories to read, I've enjoyed the ones that have been sent in already, and I'm dying for more!
