Most of this from here on out will be following the books. I've found more in the books than the movies, and there have been few scenes in the movies that I've found decent enough for this. Thanks for all the comments/favorites/follows! Nox is definitely considering some big changes now—for those who were eager to see them—and has started prepping for what is to come. I've started reading the next book as well, and already have some ideas for what I'm going to do and what I want to change.

And for those who asked, all the fluff with Hermione and Nox is definitely getting more obvious now that they've realized they like the other. I just wrote the week leading up to the Yule Ball and hope you're all excited about that! :) I had a blast writing it.

The next morning, I was up early and dressed up in a pair of sweats, a jacket with a high collar, and sneakers—Muggle clothes I'd asked for from Sirius the previous month. He and Lupin had been confused by the request but had sent them over and that had given me something else to wear other than the school uniforms, which I would have undoubtedly tripped over while doing a jog around the castle grounds. It was early enough that no one saw me—the moon was still lit in the sky for at least another hour—and once I'd finished jogging, I settled in for my own exercise routine.

It was frustrating that that minor amount of exercise had me out of breath and sore. I'd expected myself to be in decent shape with my past experience dealing with the creatures, but apparently not enough. Hagrid had spotted me lifting pumpkins in his garden later on and I apologized for not asking his permission, but he was more concerned with what exactly I was up to. When I told him exercising, he had laughed, mentioning that it wouldn't exactly be useful with being a wizard. Still, I shrugged and continued. Much like the rumors going on about Harry, I knew people would say things and I would just need to ignore them or risk multiple detentions and removal of house points.

I nearly fell on my ass though, when Hermione and Harry had stepped out to the grounds where I'd been doing pull-ups on a tree near the lake.

"Nox? What are you doing here?"

I landed with a small wince, one of my legs having buckled in my surprise, but quickly grew sheepish with their eyes on my clothes and the sweat sliding down my face.

"Exercising," I muttered.

It was one thing to have some people questioning my logic, but it was another to receive the same looks from the two of them. Hermione, surprisingly enough, was the first to wave it off.

"At long as you're doing it properly," she huffed, poking my side and getting a mild wince from me. "Be sure to eat more while you exercise and don't pull anything. I'm sure Madam Pomfrey won't like it if you keep showing up in the infirmary."

"Yes, ma'am," I grumbled, earning a playful glare before I decided to ask the same of them. "What are you two up to?"

"We were talking about what happened with the goblet," Harry informed me, and I hummed, accepting a piece of toast that Hermione offered.

"Of course, I knew he hadn't entered himself," she scoffed. "The look on your face when Dumbledore read out your name! But the question is, who did put it in? Because Moody's right, Harry. I don't think any student could have done it. They'd never be able to fool the Goblet, or get over Dumbledore's—"

"Have you seen Ron?" Harry cut her off then and Hermione glanced at me before nodding slowly.

"Yes… He was at breakfast."

"Does he still think I entered myself?"

"Well… No, I don't think so. Not really."

"What's that supposed to mean, 'not really'?"

"He's not actually stupid, Harry," I jumped in as Hermione nodded.

"He's jealous!"

"Jealous? Jealous of what? He wants to make a prat of himself in front of the whole school, does he?"

"Think of his family, Harry," I countered. "Remember what he told you the first year? About his brothers getting all the praise for being prefects or getting jobs in the ministry? Ron's always been jealous of them, and now he's the sidekick of the most famous person in the school. Getting overshadowed every day is bound to make someone snap eventually, no offense."

Hermione agreed. "I know it's not your fault. I know you don't ask for it, but, well… you know. He's always shunted to one side whenever people see you, and he puts up with it, and he never mentions it, but I suppose this is just one time too many."

"Great," Harry said bitterly. "Really great. Tell him from me I'll swap any time he wants. Tell him from me he's welcome to it… People gawping at my forehead everywhere I go…"

I sighed, having known it wasn't going to be easy to get the two stubborn boys to play nice.

"I'm not telling him anything," Hermione said sharply. "Tell him yourself. It's the only way to sort this out."

"I'm not running around after him trying to make him grow up!" Harry shouted, loudly enough to make some owls in the tree fly off. "Maybe he'll believe I'm not enjoying myself once I've got my neck broken or—"

"Harry," I chided him, glancing towards Hermione, who looked anxious. "I get that Ron's being a twat, but you need to control yourself. Being angry isn't going to help you, it'll just make focusing on staying safe during this tournament harder."

Hermione nodded. "You need to write to Sirius. You've got to tell him what's happened. He asked you to keep him posted on everything that's going on at Hogwarts. It's almost as if he expected something like this to happen. I brought some parchment and a quill out with me…"

Harry looked a bit uncertain as she started to pull it out. "He came back to the country just because my scar twinged. He'll probably come bursting right into the castle if I tell him someone's entered me in the Triwizard Tournament."

"He'll play it safe, Harry," I argued for the man, though I knew he was actually entering the castle once a month to help me through my transformations. "He's got Lupin to keep him in line, and they're both at my place. Safe, remember? It's not more than a day's ride to get here from there, and he's not entirely stupid. He knows bursting into the castle won't do anyone any good."

I hope.

"He's going to find out anyway," Hermione added. "This isn't going to be kept quiet. This tournament's famous, and you're famous. I'll be really surprised if there isn't anything in the Daily Prophet about you competing. You're already in half the books about You-Know-Who, you know, and Sirius would rather hear it from you or Nox, I know he would."

Harry begrudgingly agreed, handing his last piece of toast to me to scarf down as we headed back for the castle. "Whose owl am I going to use?"

"You can use Dubh," I replied, lifting my arm as said bird flew out of the tree we'd just been under and landed with a caw. "Sirius already said he's okay. Less noticeable to see a crow than a bright white owl. She'll be upset with him though. Poor Dubh."

Harry and Hermione exchanged looks as I explained in a hushed whisper, covering Dubh's head a little.

"He fancies her, and she's easily jealous, you know."

The two snorted, chuckling for the first time since the train, which allowed me to smile a little as well. It was going to be a tense term, and they didn't need to be this uptight already. That was my job.

The unfortunate thing was the rest of Hogwarts wasn't about to let it go as easily. The Hufflepuffs were cold towards all Gryffindors with Harry taking away their first show of glory in the history of Hogwarts. Hermione and I were also being forced to deal with the ongoing bitterness between Ron and Harry, doing our best to keep them on some sort of good terms unsuccessfully. The Slytherins on the one hand though were just as annoying as always.

Then, lunch came around and I met up with Harry, leading him towards the library where at least we could talk without too many eyes on us. No one but Hermione would be in the library this early in the term anyway.

"So?" I hummed, plucking a few books on healing magic and potions off a shelf so I could at least study while I was talking with him. "I know you got some of the trouble off your chest while we talked with Hermione this morning, but I'm sure you've got questions or something, right?"

Harry nodded, frowning curiously at the books I'd picked out before drawing his attention back to the matter at hand. "How do you think they did it? Get my name in the goblet?"

I paused, knowing the answer, but biting my tongue to keep from spilling it out. "Like I said, it was probably an adult who used a spell on the goblet to force it into dumping out your name."

"But why, though? Do you really think they're trying to kill me? Like Moody said?"

"Maybe, but I don't think so," I said easily, surprising him.

"What?"

I wrinkled my nose, mildly annoyed that I was giving him this information, but already the growing need of wanting to do something nagged at me. "If they wanted to kill you, there's easier ways."

"Nox," Harry complained, and I waved my hand.

"What I mean is, trying to kill you in the tournament is a stupid idea. Dumbledore will be there as one of the judges and they'll have safeguards to keep people relatively unharmed because of what happened at previous tournaments. Dumbledore even said so in his speeches, remember?"

"So, why put my name in the goblet?"

"It could be a plan of Voldemort's, I suppose, but we don't know what he's trying to do."

"He wants me dead."

"Well, sure, but he seems the type to want to do it himself and he'd have to be able to kill you first," I pointed out. "Remember Quirrell? He couldn't even touch you and Voldemort has already been screwed over once trying to kill you. You're somehow safeguarded against him, so killing you wouldn't exactly be easy."

Harry gave me a look. "You seem like you've thought about how to kill me a lot, Nox."

I flushed, embarrassed. "I-I-I haven't! Not really! I-I just… Well, I-I'm worried, is all. I… I've been trying to figure out how to help. I'm just…"

I sagged a bit, thinking of all the things I could have changed thus far and didn't. All the people I could have helped or how I could have changed things for Harry to prevent him getting hurt in the first place. And while it was a bit of a lie to say I'd been thinking about how Voldemort could kill him—foreknowledge being the actual truth—I had been thinking… about a lot of things.

"I just don't want to keep being useless," I murmured, surprising him before clearing my throat. "Sorry. That probably doesn't really make much sense, but… if Voldemort is coming back, then I want to be better prepared. So, I'll help you," I promised, making him eye me in uncertainty.

He cracked a small smile. "Thanks, Nox." His smile fell a little though. "But we're not supposed to ask for help."

"So, just don't tell anyone, ya git," I teased. "I'll see what I can find out about the next task, but if you want, I was going to start practicing dueling and magic during lunch. I just need someone to duel with. I'll get Hermione and Ron too, maybe drag Neville along since I promised to teach him some spells and I'm sure he'd like the help. That way, you can be prepared for anything that comes up in the tasks."

"That would be great!" Harry beamed, calming down when the librarian shushed him. "When will we start?"

"Soon as I can secure a place, I'll let you know. I have a spot that might work, otherwise I can ask McGonagall about empty classrooms, or if we're really desperate, I suppose we could use the empty Chamber of Secrets."

I just need to get Harry prepared. I won't be able to go with him for any of the tasks, so when he meets Voldemort, he'll be helpless. All I can do is help prepare him for dueling and get him through the tasks. I just need to figure out what I can do about Barty Crouch Jr. now. I can't leave him be. Not with what he's going to do.

"Harry, one more thing," I said, stopping him from leaving.

"Hm?"

I eyed him seriously. "I need you to swear to me that if I tell you to do something, even if it sounds stupid or silly, that you'll do it."

"What?"

"I just need you to trust me," I urged. "If I ask you to do something you need to swear to me you'll do it."

He hesitated, looking concerned now. "W-Why?"

Because it might just save a life. "Just swear to me… please."

Harry slowly nodded, even managing a smile. "Sure, Nox. I'll trust you."

And that's going to have to do, because I doubt Barty Jr. would just give in if I reveal him early. Harry might very well be Cedric Diggory's only chance at living through the term.

Double potions that afternoon ended up a disaster. The badges supporting Cedric Diggory had been charmed to say, "Potter stinks!" and the Slytherins were constantly laughing about it. Then, because Nox was running late returning from the library, Malfoy had taken the chance to start a duel just outside. This left Hermione and Goyle being rushed to the infirmary, Harry and Ron losing points for Gryffindor, and Nox getting detention when he tossed the wrong ingredient into Malfoy's cauldron, causing a small fire. Harry was then spared from whatever lecture Nox would have received when Colin Creevey requested him for the tournament. Only to find out it was for a photoshoot with some reporter who's quill made up more lies than Fred and George.

On the positive side, he didn't eat alone at dinner thanks to Nox. Hermione was still in the hospital wing—Nox grumbling that she refused to have anyone visit—and when they returned to the tower, Dubh waited at the window with a reply to Harry's letter to Sirius. Ron informed them of their detentions with Snape the next evening and Harry almost went to speak with him about what was going on, but the letter from Sirius seemed more pressing and he let the redhead slip away to read it with Nox.

"'Harry, I can't say everything I would like to in a letter, it's too risky in case Dubh is intercepted. We need to talk face-to-face. Can you ensure that you are alone by the fire in Gryffindor Tower at one o'clock in the morning on the 22nd of November? I know better than anyone that you can look after yourself and while you're around Dumbledore and Moody I don't think anyone will be able to hurt you. However, someone seems to be having a good try. Entering you in that tournament would have been very risky, especially right under Dumbledore's nose. Be on the watch, Harry. I still want to hear about anything unusual. Let me know about the 22nd of November as quickly as you can.'" Harry looked to Nox. "What do you think?"

Nox shrugged, looking tired as he gathered some books. "Sounds logical enough. Ah, but there's another full moon around then. Think it's the seventeenth though. I should be able to stick around with you."

"How are those going?" Harry asked somewhat awkwardly. "I mean, you don't say much about being a werewolf."

"The transformations are more… annoying than anything right now. I mostly just sleep them off. Lupin said that's typically all he does too. The wolfsbane potion doesn't do much but keep us relatively sane instead of… you know…"

Harry nodded, glad that Nox wasn't too bothered or hurt by his new experiences, and more than grateful he wouldn't have to see a wild version of Nox's werewolf form anytime soon. They sent word back to Sirius that they would both be there, and when they informed Hermione, the trio came up with plans to get everyone to bed early enough to make the deadline Sirius wanted. Still, they had time. It was a whole two weeks away and the following week an article came out about Harry and Hermione. Harry only wished he was handling it as well as she was. And if he and Ron were talking again, he might have.

They'd been stubbornly refusing to talk to one another. Harry wanted an apology from Ron, and Ron wasn't about to admit that he was jealous. Thankfully, Nox had proven an ample distraction by finally getting an empty classroom for them during lunch. Harry had been trying his best to learn the Summoning Charm for class and he still struggled. So, Hermione suggested going over the theory for it, landing them in the library half the time to read through books on spell theories or—in Nox's case—potions and body-altering spells.

"Why are you looking this up again?" Hermione asked him one day as he dragged a hand through his hair tiredly—something Harry noticed she was watching every time he did it.

"I want to see if there's anything that could enhance someone physically. Like a strengthening potion or a spell to prevent muscle damage from overexertion. If I can find a way to move faster…"

Harry and Hermione had exchanged looks at that, neither sure where this sudden urge to be physically fit came from. For Harry, it simply didn't make sense. Why bother exercising if you could just summon items to you or lift heavy objects with a wave of your wand? Hermione was also rather confused but offered suggestions and would bring him books she thought might help. Then, came the one problem with being in the library.

Apparently, Viktor Krum was someone who had been frequenting the place as well, unknowingly dragging along a group of fans with him. Hermione complained about him being there often and even Nox would shoot glares either at him or the bundle of students trailing after him. Luckily, Hogsmeade was still occurring over the weekends which really helped Harry destress. Nox opted out of the first one though. It was too soon after his transformation and he was really not looking good this time around. He'd muttered something about it being a lunar eclipse and maybe that had something to do with it, but he holed himself in his bed and slept through breakfast that morning, not even being awake to send Harry and Hermione off.

I woke up late, but with no classes scheduled over the Hogsmeade weekend, I chose to just get up and do my run around the grounds, despite how out of it I felt after sleeping through the morning. It gave me a chance to think though, allowing my mind to bounce to various problems I was currently facing.

I need to figure out how I can oust Barty Jr.. I need proof though, and a believable story. Moody is locked in his trunk but I'm pretty sure Barty has the keys, so I can't just prove it like that. His hip flask would be good since it has his Polyjuice potion in it, but again, it's on his person. And with his damn magical eye that sees through invisibility cloaks, it's not like I can just sneak up on him.

"But maybe… if I can keep Harry quiet about the Marauder's Map, then Barty won't know about that, and his dad supposed to show up," I muttered under my breath as I ran.

So, if I can keep Barty Senior safe, then I won't need evidence. He'll be the proof. I just… I groaned in frustration, slowing to a walk and moving towards the pumpkin patch.

"I don't remember when that's supposed to happen."

Which leaves me trying to figure out what I can do to help Harry now. And it's not much. Hagrid will show him the dragons for this task, and I can tell him about how to beat them. He'll undoubtedly ask me since they're dragons, after all. And if he's sticking around for my lunch practices and mentions the second task around Neville, then Barty's trick with the gillyweed book should make that easy.

"But I still don't like letting him stick around for so long," I grumbled, before stopping—nearly dropping the pumpkin in my arms at the sight of Dumbledore heading across the grounds towards me.

I hastily set the pumpkin down before I could cause damage to it or my foot, and greeted Dumbledore.

"Hard at work, I see," the headmaster hummed, eyes crinkling behind his glasses as I wiped sweat out of my face with my sleeve.

"Need to stay in shape for when I go back home," I lied, the smile on his face growing ever so slightly telling me he knew I was lying.

"Of course," he replied anyway. "I actually wished to speak with you about something regarding your creatures, if I might have a word."

I nodded a little hesitantly. It wasn't often that Dumbledore went out actively looking for someone, so I assumed it must be important. He led me up to his office and waved me towards a chair.

"Tea?"

I winced, waving a hand. "I'd rather something cold, thanks."

He nodded, summoning a glass of lemonade that I greatly appreciated.

"What is it you wanted to speak with me about?" I asked as he settled down as well.

"First, I want you to promise me that what we discuss here isn't going to leave this room."

This sounds… ominous. "…All right."

His smile returned in an instant as there was a knock on the door and he allowed the person in.

"Nox! Nice to see ya again!" Charlie beamed, ruffling my hair much to my displeasure.

"Hi, Charlie," I hummed, giving Dumbledore a look as he spoke.

"Mr. Weasley here is in charge of the first Triwizard Tournament task and has requested your assistance."

You're fucking shitting me. I'm going to work with the dragons! It was a struggle to rein in my excitement and not reveal that I knew what the task was. Yet again though, Dumbledore gave me a smug smile. Should I be worried about how much he seems to know?

"As such, I've requested permission from the other judges who have agreed that it would be fine so long as you keep the task a secret from those who do not know about it and mention nothing about your involvement. Can you agree upon this?"

"Yes, sir," I nodded, agreeing easily.

He'd given me a loophole, after all. He said I couldn't say anything to those who didn't know about the task. He didn't say I couldn't help anyone after they knew what they were to face.

"Excellent! Then, since we are all in agreement, he is all yours, Mr. Weasley."

Charlie looked like a child on their birthday who just presented with a giant chocolate cake. "Wicked! Come on, Nox. You're gonna love this."

Harry had crept downstairs, hidden under his invisibility cloak as he moved across the grounds towards Hagrid's hut. Said half-giant had asked for him to meet with him at midnight to show him something and Harry fidgeted in uncertainty, knowing that it would be cutting it close to when he was supposed to meet with Sirius in the common room.

"You there, Harry?" Hagrid asked once he'd knocked.

"Yeah. What's up?" Harry slipped inside and tugged off his cloak as Hagrid smiled, looking excited.

"Got somethin' ta show ya."

Harry suddenly felt even more uncertain than before, considering that the things that usually excited Hagrid were dangerous. "What're you showing me?"

"Come with me, keep quiet, an' keep yourself covered with that cloak. We won't take Fang. He won't like it."

Harry tried to explain to Hagrid that he couldn't stay long, but the man was already striding towards the Beauxbatons carriage, shushing Harry as he knocked, and Madam Maxine opened the door.

"Ah, 'agrid. It is time?"

Hagrid offered a hand and a big grin, leading the woman away from the carriage and past her horses' paddock with Harry trailing behind them. She was just as confused as Harry too as Hagrid led them around the edge of the forest.

"Ya'll enjoy this. Worth seein', trust me. Only don't go tellin' anyone I showed ya, right? You're not supposed at know," Hagrid warned her and Harry.

Harry was getting frustrated though, checking his watch to keep track of time but as they neared the far reaches of the grounds, Harry heard men shouting and a loud roar that vibrated through his very bones. Harry picked up his pace, coming up beside Hagrid when they passed a patch of trees, only for his mouth to drop open in shock. What he'd thought were bonfires were actually the flames of dragons.

Four enormous dragons were behind a fenced enclosure, roaring and shooting fire into the sky from their fanged mouths. Harry idly recognized some of their breeds from Nox's description, seeing a Swedish Short-Snout and a Hungarian Horntail among them. Briefly, his hand reached up and wrapped around the black dragon scale dangling from a chain under his shirt as he swallowed thickly. If this is the first task… I-If dragons are the first task, I'm going to need all the help I can get from Nox.

"Keep back there, Hagrid!" A wizard yelled near the fence, holding a chain with a grimace. "They can shoot fire at a range of twenty feet, you know! I've seen this Horntail do forty!"

Hagrid was barely listening. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"It's no good! Where's the kid!" Another shouted.

"He's coming! Just finished with the Welsh Green!"

Then, a familiar person streaked over, his pale, grimy face catching in the firelight.

"Nox?" Harry gasped, forgetting he was supposed to be quiet, but going unnoticed as Madam Maxine shook her head.

"The boy is mad. Dumbly-dor requested his 'elp with the first task, but we did not expect this!"

Hagrid chuckled, pointing out at Nox. "The boy's a natural! He 'elped me with a small dragon I picked up too. Has all sorts back home. He'll be fine, he will. Look!"

Sure enough, Nox had moved closer than any of the other wizards to the large Hungarian, tossing a large fish that the beast snatched out of the air before growling and snapping at him. Nox hardly seemed bothered. In fact, Harry swore the boy look mildly annoyed.

"Yes, yes. I know you don't like me much," he complained, before taking an object from the only wizard willing to come up to him.

It looked like a large egg, and immediately, the Hungarian roared angrily, but Nox remained unfazed as he held it up and stepped closer. He then lowered it and backed off, allowing the dragon to swing a clawed hand out and pull the egg towards it with a hiss of discontent. Nox smiled though, doing the same with a number of other eggs until the dragon had a small clutch before he tossed it some more fish.

"Yeah, see now?" He hummed to the more subdued dragon. "Never wanted to take ya eggs. Even then."

The dragon huffed almost, a wave of hot steam rolling over Nox who reached out and pat the dragon's nose before turning his back to it. Harry wasn't the only one stunned. The wizards holding the chains connected to the dragon cheered and slapped his back—having been able to secure the beasts to their stakes with his help—and Madame Maxine looked about ready to faint.

"H-How… W-W-With dragons…"

Hagrid looked absolutely thrilled though, clapping his large hands with a burst of laughter as Charlie and Nox came over.

"All right, Hagrid?" Charlie asked, looking overjoyed as well. "They should be okay now, thanks to this kid! We put them out with a Sleeping Draft on the way here, thought it might be better for them to wake up in the dark and the quiet, but like you saw, they weren't happy. Not happy at all."

"What breeds you got here, Charlie?" Hagrid asked curiously, eyeing the black one Nox had just handled.

"The Hungarian Horntail and Chinese Fireball—that's the red one—are both Nox's old beasts," Charlie chirped. "It's why he was able to handle them so easily. Then, the Common Welsh Green is the smaller one over there and a Swedish Short-Snout is the blue-grey one."

"That was a brilliant show there though, Nox!" Hagrid praised, making Nox flush and scratch at something crusted on his cheek. "Ya're a right dragon handler, you are."

"I've worked with them before, is all," Nox muttered sheepishly. "The Welsh Green was a bit of trouble though."

Charlie had spotted Madam Maxine then, giving Hagrid a hesitant look. "I didn't know you were bringing her, Hagrid. The champions aren't supposed to know what's coming, and even Nox needed to get special permission. She's bound to tell her student, isn't she?"

"Just thought she'd like ta see 'em." Hagrid shrugged, making Charlie shake his head with a smile.

"Really romantic date, Hagrid."

"It's not?" Nox questioned, looking befuddled and earning a chuckle from Charlie as Hagrid eyed the dragons.

"Four… So, it's one for each of the champions, is it? What've they gotta do, fight 'em?"

"Oh, no," Nox countered, frowning a bit. "That's the last thing I want them to do."

"Just get past them, I think," Charlie explained. "We'll be on hand if it gets nasty. We've got extinguishing spells and Nox is our secret weapon. They wanted nesting mothers though. Don't know why, but I don't envy the one who gets the Horntail. Its back end's as dangerous as its front, look."

The spiked end of the dragon's tail was in perfect view and Harry shivered, not wanting to think about what sort of damage that would do to a person. A brief image of the scars on Nox's body made him remember than Nox had been dealing with these creatures for ages. He knew first-hand the danger involved in handling a dragon.

"Besides that," Nox cut in, nodding to the Horntail. "My dragons are fearful of wands. Nesting mothers is one thing, but bring a wand into play, and the champions will have trouble."

Harry took note of that, hoping he wouldn't have to deal with either of Nox's dragons if using his wand would only make things worse.

"How's Harry?" Charlie asked then, drawing Harry's attention as Hagrid eyed the eggs. "Don't bother, Hagrid. I've got them counted.

"Harry's fine."

"Just hope he's still fine after he's faced this lot. I didn't dare tell Mum what he's got to do for the first task; she's already having kittens about him." Charlie mimicked his mother's voice. "'How could they let him enter that tournament, he's much too young! I thought they were all safe, I thought there was going to be an age limit!' She was in floods after that Daily Prophet article about him. 'He still cries about his parents! Oh, bless him, I never knew!"

"You should tell her to cut back on Rita Skeeter articles," Nox muttered, earning a curious raised brow from Charlie. "Everything she writes is basically made up. I'll have to feed her to the dragons if she doesn't leave Harry alone."

Charlie chuckled, slapping Nox's back at his joke, except Harry swore that for a moment, the boy looked like he was seriously considering the threat. And after how he dealt with Lockhart, I'd hate to see what he does to her. Harry shivered again, shaking his head of the thought before heading back for the castle. His head was full of concerns about the dragons, wondering if Nox had been told not to help him and what he would do if that were the case. But he said he would. I… I have to trust him.

And along with that concern came the one about whether he felt relieved or not now that he knew what was coming, and what Sirius would think when he told him in a few moments. Then, after running into the Durmstrang headmaster and thankfully not getting caught, Harry realized something else. Cedric would quite possibly be the only one who had no idea what was coming. Harry wasn't sure if he'd tell him or not, and he suddenly felt kind of silly about wanting to ask Nox for his opinion. Nox couldn't hold his hand all the time, after all. But he always thinks everything through… more than I do, anyway…

Harry slipped into the empty common room, settling in an armchair and frowning over at the Support Cedric badges, before nearly jumping out of his skin when he saw Sirius's face in the fireplace. Thankfully, he'd already seen this odd way of communicating when Arthur Weasley was sent to deal with Moody, so he rushed forward and crouched by the hearth.

"Sirius, how're you doing?"

He looked well, in any case. He wasn't as gaunt as when he escaped from Azkaban and had shaved recently too. Even his hair was less ratty, and he looked much more like the young boy Harry had seen in photos of him and his parents.

"Never mind me, how are you?"

Harry went to say he was fine but couldn't. Everything had piled up to the bursting point and he hastily explained to Sirius what had happened up until now, where Hagrid had just revealed the first task of the tournament.

"Dragons? Well, I'm sure Nox will give you far more pointers than I could, anyway. Anyway, there's some things I need to warn you about."

Harry felt nervousness creep up on him before his heart leaped into his throat. "Someone's coming!"

"'s me, Harry," Nox called out, slipping through the portrait hole and looking exhausted with bits of ash clinging to his hair, dirt scuffing his clothes, and a scrape along his cheek starting to swell his right eye. "Sorry for interrupting."

"Blimey, you look a right mess," Sirius chimed in, earning a scowl from Nox.

"You would be too if you were just wrestling with a Chinese Fireball."

Sirius barked out a laugh as Nox sighed quietly. "Wrestling with dragons? How very like you, Nox!"

"You're gonna wake up half the school," Nox grumbled. "I'm going to shower. You two can continue whatever it is you're doing. Harry will probably just tell me later anyway, right?"

Harry nodded, and Nox stepped out, leaving Sirius able to speak with Harry alone once more.

"Karkaroff was a Death Eater," Sirius warned him, dropping a rather large bombshell on Harry.

"He—What?"

"He was caught, he was in Azkaban with me, but he got released. I'd bet everything that's why Dumbledore wanted an Auror at Hogwarts this year, to keep an eye on him. Moody caught Karkaroff. Put him into Azkaban in the first place."

"Karkaroff got released? Why did they release him?"

Sirius went on to explain the deal the Durmstrang headmaster had made, warning Harry to be careful of Krum as well for safety. Sirius seemed convinced that Karkaroff was the most likely person to have involved him in the tournament before moving onto another problem.

"Now, I've been keeping an eye on the Daily Prophet, Harry."

"You and the rest of the world," Harry grumbled under his breath.

"And reading between the lines of that Skeeter woman's article last month, Moody was attacked the night before he started at Hogwarts. Yes, I know she says it was another false alarm," he stopped Harry before he could say anything. "But I don't think so, somehow. I think someone tried to stop him from getting to Hogwarts. I think someone knew their job would be a lot more difficult with him around. And no one's going to look into it too closely; Mad-Eye's heard intruders a bit too often. But that doesn't mean he can't still spot the real thing. Moody was the best Auror the Ministry ever had."

"So… what are you saying? "Karkaroff's trying to kill me? But… why?"

Sirius hesitated before telling Harry about the strange things that he'd been hearing about. Death Eaters being more active. The Dark Mark at the Quidditch World Cup. Bertha Jorkins was even brought up—the witch who worked for the Ministry having gone missing with everyone believing she was too easily lost and sidetracked.

"So… So, Voldemort could have found out about the tournament?" Harry questioned. "Is that what you mean? You think Karkaroff might be here on his orders?"

"What's this about Karkaroff?" Nox asked, having stepped out of the shower with a towel over his head as he attempted to dry his unruly hair.

Harry turned to him, wondering his thoughts on things. "Sirius suspects Karkaroff—who used to be a Death Eater—was the one who put my name in the goblet."

Nox shot Sirius a disbelieving look. "Karkaroff would be the last person to do that."

"What makes you say that, Nox?"

"He betrayed Voldemort. He took the coward's way out and gave people up to avoid prison. If Voldemort is anything like the rumors and what we've seen, then he'd kill him on the spot—no matter how he was trying to make amends."

Sirius seemed to think about that for a moment, a hand coming up to his chin and the fireplace popping in the silence. "All right, but then, if not him, who?"

Nox shrugged. "I'm still trying to figure it out."

Sirius frowned, sternly. "Now, Nox. You shouldn't be getting involved in this. Leave it to Dumbledore to find—"

"I'm not going to stand by and watch people close to me being put at risk, Sirius," Nox said sharply, surprising Harry.

He didn't usually act like that when dealing with adults. Harry had always assumed it was because of his father and how he was treated, but he supposed that Nox could just be carefully picking his fights. And his temper could occasionally get out of hand—more so with his new werewolf issues.

"All I'm saying is… try not to get too close to this. We've already got our hands full keeping Harry out of trouble. Remus would skin me if he found out I didn't at least try and discourage you from getting in trouble yourself."

Nox's expression softened before he let out a sigh. "I've just got a better chance than any of you finding out. People always underestimate kids. I've narrowed it down too."

"Really?" Sirius questioned, looking interested. "How so?"

"They put all sorts of charms and such on and around the Goblet. Only someone higher than their sixth year—fifth at the lowest—could have gotten past it. They'd need a high-level charm to fool the goblet itself and decent rune experience to get past Dumbledore's age limit line."

"Runes?"

Nox nodded. "I'm taking the elective and recognized some of the symbology." He waved a hand though, brushing it off. "The thing is, they've got to be an adult. So, that leaves the professors, the headmasters, and Moody."

"Moody would never—"

"I'm not canceling anyone out unless I know for certain," Nox cut him off, drying his hair once more. "Dumbledore and McGonagall are the only trustworthy ones thus far. And if I'm being honest, I've got a bad feeling about Moody."

"What sort of bad feeling?"

Nox peered out from under his towel, looking mildly curious. "Oh, now you're interested?"

Sirius rolled his eyes as Harry snorted. "Your uncanny affinity for animals and knack for trouble means you might have some talent at sniffing out things that don't fit in. If you don't care for someone naturally, then there is a decent chance something is actually off… even with Moody."

Nox cracked a small smile at the sign of trust and abandoned his hair, leaning forward on the back of the sofa. "Moody was the first person attacked by someone, and as an ex-Auror, why would he do something so eye-catching as making trash bins fly? For what purpose? And by the time anyone showed up, anything could have happened. And while I understand teaching us about the Unforgivable Curses, he enjoyed them. It took Hermione calling out to make him stop doing the Cruciatus Curse. There's a point when an example goes too far, and he passed that limit."

Harry could see the point he was making, though still felt hesitant. "But why would Moody…"

Nox spared him a glance and Harry felt that familiar unsettling feeling he occasionally got from looking at Nox's tired—almost old—gaze. "Dunno. Could be someone controlling him. Could just not be Moody at all."

The room went quiet and Nox straightened up with a yawn and a stretch.

"Or, I could just be completely wrong. I don't exactly know him as you do."

"Either way," Sirius went on, "whoever put your name in that goblet did it for a reason, and I can't help thinking the tournament would be a very good way to attack you and make it look like an accident."

"Or, it's just part of some other more complex plan that we don't understand just yet," Nox added, earning an exasperated look from Sirius.

"You're just going to counter everything I say, aren't you?"

"Only if there's more than just your one theory that could be true."

Sirius narrowed his eyes. "Did I do something to upset you? Is that what this is?"

Nox crossed his arms over his chest, looking a little childish as he frowned at Sirius int eh fireplace. "I dunno. How was your summer, Sirius? Enjoy a nice beach? Taste some fine wines? Mine was a bit empty, you know. Just caring for the creatures and cleaning a big, old, empty house full of—"

"Oh, really? I leave for a couple of months and—"

Harry heard a noise then, silencing the two with a hiss before waving for Sirius to leave. Someone was coming downstairs. It was Ron ambled into sight, eyeing the two in confusion.

"What are you doing down here at this time of night?" Harry questioned; a bit annoyed with Ron interrupting the first meeting he'd had with Sirius in some time.

"I just wondered where you—" Ron stopped, shrugging and pretending like he hadn't just been worried about Harry and Nox. "Nothing. I'm going back to bed."

Harry opened his mouth, but Nox elbowed him harshly in the side, giving him a pointed look to not start anything. Begrudgingly, Harry went quiet again, the three of them heading to bed, for now, knowing that the days coming up weren't exactly going to be pleasant for any of them.