Daphne Greengrass woke up with a smile on her face.
Harry had actually invited her for a date! It wasn't going to be in public, and she didn't know when it would happen, but he had invited her. That meant he was at least a big interested, right?
She looked herself in the mirror while brushing her hair and a tough occurred to her.
'Since when am I interested in him? When did that happened?'
Harry had changed during those two weeks, and for the better, that's for sure. But when did the interest happen?
"Why do you have a goofy smile on your face?" Asked Astoria, who had entered the room to ask Daphne if she could borrow a bracelet, she thought would look good with the necklace she was wearing today.
"Well, apparently Mister Potter decided to invite your sister to a secret date" Answered Tracey, before Daphne got a chance to say something.
"Ohh is that so?" Asked her sister, always interested in juicy gossip. "When did that happen?"
"Last night, after dinner" answered Daphne, trying to put down the happy look that insisted to remain on her face.
"Uhh and were will you two go? Hogsmeade?"
"Tori, you know dad would never approve of this. Harry promise to take me somewhere we would not be seen by anyone. He didn't say where though."
"Unknown… exciting!" tease her sister "Well Daph, wish you the best of luck with your prince charming! Can I borrow this bracelet, by the way?"
"He's not my prince charming, okay? Please stop that! And you can only take it if you promise to stop teasing me about Harry!"
Astoria pretended she was considering the deal.
"You know what? I think I'm good" She said "Teasing you is too much fun to trade for a bracelet."
"For some reason that doesn't surprise me" intervened Tracey "teasing your sister is the thing you loved the most in the world after all!"
"That's true" said Astoria, faking a sad look "what a dreadful existence, always making fun of Daph!"
"At least, please, don't do it in public, okay? I can't risk this getting to father's ears."
"Of course not, sis! I'd never do that to you, right Tracey?"
"I wouldn't trust for that, but let's hope, for the sake of Daphne, that that's true."
They finished their morning duties and together went for breakfast.
Harry Potter woke up with a smile on his face.
He had actually invited her, and she said yes! Daphne was one of the most gorgeous girls in Hogwarts, even though it took quite a while for him to notice, and she had agreed to go on a date with him.
As he got up and started getting ready for the day, he heard Salazar's voice.
"So, that girl really got you good, did she?"
"What do you mean, got me good?" he asked.
"Well, you were way over excited last night when you came in, asking all those questions about Rowena's room, how it worked and all that, and now your standing there looking like a happy idiot. I assume that's because of the girl, right?"
"Well, yeah. She agreed to go on date with, but due to her father's politics we can't be seen together as more than friends. And I though that the room you always talked about would be the perfect set up. After all, if it can turn into anything we desire, I can turn it into the perfect dating place, right?"
"In theory yes. But don't forget I've never really found the room, even though Rowena confirmed its existence before she passed. I've narrowed the location to the seventh floor, but its still a big place to search. And if I, the Great Salazar Slytherin was unable to find it, I doubt you will."
Deciding to play along, harry responded "Well maybe I, the Great Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, slayer of basilisks and favorite descendant of the Great Salazar Slytherin will be able to finish the quest left by my ancestor."
"That's a big tittle for a fourteen-year-old" Said Salazar, skeptical "But I'll wait to see the results of your adventure. Don't get your hopes up, Rowena was a great sorcerer, she hid the entrance very well."
"I'll try my best. Now, you said we would be able to do the first ritual tomorrow. That leaves me three days to recover until the first task. Are you sure it is a good idea to do it on such a close timeline?"
"I do, this ritual is way less demanding because it will have little impact on you at the present time. This is one for the future and will be most noticeable when you reach your majority. What this will do is increase the magical receptors in your body, allowing you to slowly absorb more and more magic from the environment, which in practice will increase your magical power by a lot. I remember Tom doing this ritual as well, he was fully recovered in less than a day."
"So, that's how he got so powerful? It thought it was natural."
"Tom was powerful in his own right, I'm not denying that. But no human could ever become as powerful as he became without some ritual involved. You probably won't notice for now, but this really increases your magical capabilities. You'll be capable of way more than you would be without it. And the sooner you perform it, the more magic you'll be able to absorb before your magical power is set in stone, which happens at the moment your turn seventeen and reach your majority."
"Very well, I'll trust you. Let's do it tomorrow after the Ceremony, I'll finish the preparations after my morning routine."
A routine that included a morning workout, followed by a few warming up and accuracy sharpening spells, and then a big breakfast from the food he had in storage.
"Enjoy" was the response he got.
Fleur was getting anxious again. The Wand Weighing Ceremony was already in the next day, where she would be able to finally confront the guy who had been plaguing her dreams, night after night. She admonished herself, saying repeatedly that she was creating too much expectations about him, and that we would succumb to her allure eventually, but the perspective of a male who could resist her was too appealing.
She arrived at the Great Hall for breakfast, immediately looking for Luna.
They had become friends really fast, being both lonely beings, with Fleur looking at Luna as a sort of replacement for her little sister Gabrielle, and Luna just happy to have a friend. They had eaten all their meals together for the last few days, and with Fleur noticing that she was now wearing shoes. The morning after they had met, Fleur sat besides the smaller girl,, looking threatening at anyone who would even look at their general direction, and even going as far as bewitching, with prank charms, the people she heard calling her Loony.
She hoped this break for the girl would prolong for a long time, as no one deserved to be a victim of bullying.
"So, how was your morning, Luna?" she asked.
"It was all right, I guess. I have my shoes today, which is a good thing. I don't know why though, must be the Nargles around Ravenclaw Tower, they make people forget things, and we have been having a lot of them. Maybe people forgot about my shoes, which is good, right?"
Fleur looked at her, her eyes mixed with sadness and rage. Luna was different, always talking about this made up creatures. Fleur quickly realized she made them up to justify the bad that happened in the world. How Nargles made people forget things, or how Heliopaths made people angry. They were defense mechanisms, probably caused by years of torment, or one big trauma that happened in her past. Fleur hadn't found what cause it, but she had a big wish of helping the poor girl. Cast out by everyone, the similarities with her own situation were too much to ignore.
Finishing her Breakfast, she got up, wished Luna a good day of classes, and made her way to the Beauxbatons carriages, where she had her special classes with Madam in preparation for the tournament, and after that she had to get ready for the Wand Weighing Ceremony.
She knocked on Madam Maxime's door, but instead of hearing the usual "come in", the headmistress opened the door, gave her a package and said.
"Fleur, my dear. What you have in your hands is my invisibility cloak. The groundskeeper, Hagrid, invited me on a walk. He said he had something to show me regarding the first task. What I want you to do, is follow me with the cloak on. Knowing what the task will be a few days ahead is not a bad idea."
Harry decided to arrive early to the Wand Weighing Ceremony. It was better to be early than to lose something important after all.
As he arrived, Cedric was still the only one there, the other champions hadn't arrived yet, as well as the five judges. Cedric was speaking in is usual amicable tone with a blonde reporter, who was accompanied by one camera man.
Cedric was the first to notice Harry's presence, waving at him.
The moment the reporter turned around, a look of greed came upon her face.
"Harry Potter!" She exclaimed. "Welcome, welcome. What would you say about a little interview? An exclusive with our younger champions, I'm sure the people of Britain would love to read that."
"Excuse me, do I know you?" asked Harry, trying to be as polite and neutral as possible.
"I don't think we've had the pleasure to be introduced yet, Harry. My name is Rita Skeeter, the star reporter for Britain's biggest journal. The Daily Prophet."
"Skeeter, that name sounds familiar."
"Well, I've written a lot about your disappearance recently, maybe that's it?" She asked, eager to bond with the Boy-Who-Lived.
"Yes, of course! You were the one asking all those uncomfortable questions about Dumbledore. Sure, I can give you a small interview." And then Harry got an idea "But, if you don't mind, I'd like it to be in a private place. What do you say, after dinner is over tonight, you meet me near the Black Lake, and we'll talk then? Good for you?"
"Amazing. Now, what do you boys say about a few pictures of the two Hogwarts champions together?"
"I'm not really a Hogwarts champions" Harry quickly pointed out "Cedric is the only champion for the school. I'm just riding alone, against my will."
"Of course, "corrected Rita "Still, a few photos of both of you together would be great! You can even make first page!"
The boys looked at each other, Cedric shrugged, so they proceeded with the photoshoot.
Finally, they were all there. The champions, the judges, the press, and Mister Ollivander, that Harry recognized from his first trip to Diagon Alley.
"May I introduce Mr. Ollivander?" said Dumbledore, taking his place at the judges' table and talking to the champions. "He will be checking your wands to ensure that they are in good condition before the tournament."
"Mademoiselle Delacour, could we have you first, please?" said Mr. Ollivander, stepping into the empty space in the middle of the room.
Fleur Delacour swept over to Mr. Ollivander and handed him her wand.
"Hmm..." he said.
He twirled the wand between his long fingers like a baton and held the wand chose to his eyes and examined it carefully.
"Yes," he said quietly, "nine and a half inches...inflexible...rosewood...and containing...dear me..."
"An hair from a Veela" said Fleur. "One of my grandmother's"
"Yes," said Mr. Ollivander, "yes, I've never used veela hair myself, of course. I find it makes for rather temperamental wands...however, to each his own, and if this suits you..."
Mr. Ollivander ran his fingers along the wand, apparently checking for scratches or bumps; then he muttered, "Orchideous!" and a bunch of flowers burst from the wand tip.
"Very well, very well, it's in fine working order," said Mr. Ollivander, scooping up the flowers and handing them to a very uncomfortable looking Fleur, along with her wand. "Mr. Diggory, you next."
Fleur glided back to her seat, smiling at Cedric as he passed her.
"Ah, now, this is one of mine, isn't it?" said Mr. Ollivander, with much more enthusiasm, as Cedric handed over his wand. "Yes, I remember it well. Containing a single hair from the tail of a particularly fine male unicorn... nearly gored me with his horn after I plucked his tail. Twelve and a quarter inches... It's in fine condition...You treat it regularly?"
"Polished it last night," said Cedric, grinning.
Mr. Ollivander sent a stream of silver smoke rings across the room from the tip of Cedric's wand, pronounced himself satisfied, and then said, "Mr. Krum, if you please."
Viktor Krum got up and slouched, round-shouldered and duck-footed, toward Mr. Ollivander. He thrust out his wand and stood scowling, with his hands in the pockets of his robes.
"Hmm," said Mr. Ollivander, "this is a Gregorovitch creation, unless I'm much mistaken? A fine wand-maker, though the styling is never quite what I... however..."
He lifted the wand and examined it minutely, turning it over and over before his eyes.
"Yes...hornbeam and dragon heartstring?" he shot at Krum, who nodded. "Rather thicker than one usually sees...quite rigid...ten and a quarter inches... Avis!"
The hornbeam wand let off a blast hike a gun, and a number of small, twittering birds flew out of the end and through the open window into the watery sunlight.
"Good," said Mr. Ollivander, handing Krum back his wand. "Which leaves...Mr. Potter."
Harry got to his feet and walked past Krum to Mr. Ollivander. He handed over his wand.
"Aaaah, yes," said Mr. Ollivander, his pale eyes suddenly gleaming. "Yes, yes, yes. How well I remember this one. Eleven inches, holly, and a feather from a very particular Fenix, yes. A much unusual combination of wood and core"
Harry was nervous. Was the old man going to talk about the similarities with Voldemort's wand in front of everyone?
Ollivander spend a long time carefully examining Harry's wand. Almost ten minutes later he sent a jet of wine to the floor, declaring it to be in perfect condition for the tournament.
"Well, it seams we all set. You can now return to your classes, or maybe its better if you go directly out to dinner, as they are about to end. Miss Skeeter, Mister Ollivander, you are of course welcome to join us for dinner. I'm sure you miss Hogwarts food from your days as students."
Rita, remembering her appointment with Harry, gladly took the invitation, while Ollivander made his excuses and left.
Harry was about to leave when he was cornered by an expectant Fleur Delacour.
"Harry, hi, how are you?" She asked.
"Fleur?" He asked confused "What do you want from me?"
"Well, we will be competing through the entire year, why not get to know the competition a little bit?" She asked, smiling.
"Sure, we can hang out some that, if you really want that." He was nervous. The last he had spoken to her, he had anger filling his entire mind, but now he was calmer, he could feel a very intense need to please her, offering her everything he could. Suppressing those feeling, he looked around. The reporter, who had stayed behind to pack up his gear, was franticly taking pictures of Fleur, while Krum was looking at Fleur with a very unpleasant look on his face.
"Glad you agree. Why don't you invite me to dinner tonight? I can seat at the Slytherin table for all I know."
"ahh sure," he said, "want to have dinner at our table tonight Fleur?"
"I'd love to" she replied, beaming "I'll meet you there soon."
And with that, she turned around and left him standing there, not knowing how he had gotten himself into that situation.
Fleur's mood was above the clouds! He had actually resisted her completely during their interaction, even if a brief one. But at dinner she would have an opportunity to test him for a longer time. She would have to restrict her allure, otherwise every male on the Hall would be drooling, but with them so close for such a long time, it would be a good enough test for her.
She arrived at the Beauxbatons carriages to freshen up for dinner, and then made her way into the Great Hall.
When she arrived at the main gates, she found Luna on her way to the Hall as well.
"Luna, hey!" she called "I'm going to have dinner at Slytherin table tonight, would you like to come?"
Luna looked a bit scared of the idea "With the Slytherins, why?"
"Harry Potter invited me, so we can know each other better as champions! It will be fun, I promise."
Not happy with the prospect, but wanting to please her still recent friend, Luna agreed.
Harry sat with Blaise at the Slytherin table.
"So, you invited Fleur Delacour to dinner with us?"
"Well, she kind of forced my hand, but yes. I did."
"Man, first Daphne and now her? You really need to slow down. And have you thought about what Daphne is going to say about you inviting the hottest women in the school to dinner?"
Harry, obviously, hadn't thought of that. 'Shit'
"Well, I can't really cancel it now! I'm so screwed"
"It's your funeral, brother" laughed Blaise, finding very funny the idea of his best mate stuck between the two girls.
At that moment, Fleur arrived, bringing a small little blond girl with her.
"Harry, hi again! This is Luna, I've invited her to join us for dinner. She's kind of lonely with the Ravenclaws, you know."
"Of course," replied Harry, now feeling very anxious for Daphne's reaction when she arrived. "This is Blaise Zabini, a friend of mine. Hello Luna, how are you?"
The girl was looking very anxious, looking around every couple of seconds, like she expected some kind of threat on her way, but replied "Hello Harry, Hi Blaise. I'm well, thank you."
The girls sat in front of Harry and Blaise, with Fleur making obvious her intentions to sit in front of Harry.
"So, what did you thought of Mister Ollivander, kind of creepy, am I right?"
"Definitely" agreed Blaise, who was looking at Fleur with an adoring expression.
Seeing that, Fleur huffed and focused completely on Harry.
"So, Harry," she asked "How are your preparations for the tournament? We all heard about all that special training you were performing, how is that going?"
"All right, I guess. I had to make-up for all the disadvantage I had against you guys!"
"So, you don't think the tournament is stupid anymore? Trying to compete for real?"
"No, I still think its stupid. And I'm not trying to compete, I'm trying to survive. Whoever put my name in the Goblet, wants me dead, I'm sure."
She thought about that for a couple of seconds. He was being honest about only wanting to survive. Not wanting to see him get hurt, as he was one of the few who could speak with her in a normal manner, she made a decision.
"So, I'm going to tell you something, but you have to promise me you won't tell anyone you heard it from me."
"Sure, what is it?" he asked, curious about her secret.
"I've heard around, the first task will be dragons."
Upon hearing that, Harry immediately went pale. "Dr- dragons, you say? I'm going to have to kill a dragon?"
"I don't know about killing, but we'll have to face one, that's for sure".
Harry wasn't looking all that well now. All his previous concerns now looking small, with the perspective of a dragon upon him.
'That's going to be a very painful death' he thought.
"Well, thank you for telling me, Fleur. You may have just saved my life."
"Of course," she replied, "we may be adversaries, but I don't think anyone wants a death in the tournament. And you were put here against your will, and at such a disadvantage…"
Harry was not liking the condescending tone in her voice but was too grateful for the warning to even say something.
"WHAT IS LOONEY LOVEGOOD AND THAT FILTHY HALF CREATURE DOING IN OUR TABLE?"
Fleur looked around, and saw the origin of that scream, a blond and arrogant looking boy, around Harry's age, surrounded by two bigger fat boys, looking like they were his bodyguards.
"WHA. DID. YOU. SAY?" she asked, trembling with fury. "What. Did. You. Just. Call. Me?"
Before the boy even had a chance to reply, Fleur had her wand in her wand, and with a flick of her wrist, the blond arrogant went flying across the Hall, only stopping when he crashed against one of the walls.
Still furious, Fleur turned to Luna and said "Let's go Luna, I think the giant squid could use some bread right now. Sorry Harry, a raincheck on the dinner?"
"Sure" he said, seeing that the smaller girl was filled with tears, and not knowing how to deal with all that.
As he saw them leaving the Hall, and noticing Professor Snape getting up to assist Malfoy, his head was still stuck on the dragons.
AN: We finally got thru with the WWC and harry & Fleur's first real interaction. Too bad it ended in such a poor way. Let's hope at least Harry's interview with Rita goes well, am I right?
A few of you have said a word about my grammar and English mistakes in the story. I perfectly understand what you're saying, and trust me, I do by best. I reread the chapter two or three times before posting, but with English as my second language, some parts will not go perfectly. Until I find a Beta for this story, its just me. If anyone wants to volunteer for that, I'm all ears. I'll do my best, and probably in a few days will go back and correct all the mistakes I can find.
As always, thanks for the reviews and follows. Feedback is very important. Keep them coming.