A/N: I wished I owned Harry Potter. Alas, I do not. Ms. Rowling, I'd be happy to take it off your hands
Chapter 65: Spectator Sport
June 24th, 1995
"What do you think Victor faced as his fear?" Ginny asked Luna as they stared at the screen with the Durmstrang icon, waiting for Victor to appear.
"I don't know," Luna admitted. "Probably something horrible, like an influx of nargles. But then again, they probably wouldn't have him facing two creature related challenges in a row." Ginny just nodded. Sometimes it wasn't worth getting into it with her friend. "Ah, there he is!" The Durmstrang contingent cheered as Victor appeared on the screen, looking a little winded. Victor turned around and then a screen seemed to shiver, and a creature appeared in front of Victor.
"What is that?" Ginny asked, horrified at the beast that looked to be twice the large Bulgarian's size.
"That is a graphorn," Luna informed her matter-of-factly. "They are quite dangerous."
"But you aren't worried?" Ginny asked.
"Of course not," Luna replied. "Victor knows what he is doing. After Karkaroff had to leave, he has been training a lot. Victor thinks he can win, and so do I." Ginny nodded as the beast raced towards Victor, impacting on a shield. Despite the fact that Victor could easily be a few miles away, both girls winced at little at the massive impact.
"Look at those horns!" Ginny cried as Victor managed to dodge a slash from the horns that broke his shield.
"Victor will be fine," Luna said, but the fact that Luna had her arm in a death grip told Ginny that Luna was not as cool and calm as she seemed on the outside. The crowd ooh and ahhed as Victor managed to keep the distance and execute a few quick dodges. The few spells Victor threw in response at the beast seemed to do nothing more than annoy it.
"How long does he have to do this?" Ginny asked Luna, her eyes wide as Victor slid under the lunge of the beast, hitting it with a spell from underneath and knocking the beast off balance.
"I don't know," Luna admitted as the graphorn slowly rose to its feet, staring at Victor. "Victor wasn't told much about the tasks, just that he would have to face a great fear, a powerful creature, and then be tested on his knowledge. Trust me, he wasn't thrilled about it." The beast had recovered and charged through a swarm of birds, smashing into a conjured shield. Victor soared over it all and a few spells impacted on the creature.
"What in the world?" Ginny asked the resident creature expert at the graphorn began to steam.
"Victor must have really hurt it," Luna said, an edge of pride in her voice. "Elder graphorn have been rumored to be able to convert heat into quick healing, but its never been truly confirmed."
"Well, I guess it's confirmed now, but that doesn't help Victor much now, does it?" Ginny asked, and then the crowd watching Victor's screen gasped in horror as for the first time the beast landed a hit on Victor, leaving a bloody cut on his side. "Oh no!"
"He's ok," Luna said quietly.
"He's barely moving," Ginny contested.
"Self inventory," Luna explained. "Victor has been doing it ever since he became a serious quidditch player. He takes a few seconds and makes sure he doesn't have any dangerous injuries, to make sure his mobility isn't too compromised."
"That's awesome," Ginny said with a deep breath. Sure the twins and Harry were good quidditch players, but of course Victor Krum was on another level. The creature charged as the crowd held its collective breath as for the first time the Durmstrang champion confronted the beast head on, a stream of dark light bursting from his wand and forcing the graphorn back. They were locked in place, the graphorn straining to try and force its way forward, Victor sweating from the force of the magic. It was a remarkable display of magical strength against a creature that was known for magical resistance.
A chime was heard and Victor dropped his spell. Luna, Ginny and the Durmstrang crowd cheered, but the beast still charged at Victor. The Bulgarian reached into his robe, and when he withdrew his hand he flicked it at the beast, a steel ball attached to the chain smacking into the graphorn's head, slowing it. But the beast was undeterred as its charge carried it forward, smashing into Victor. But then Victor was gone, and the graphorn was looking around in surprise as its target had seemingly vanished. The screen whirled and Victor was seen climbing into a tunnel out of the range of the graphorn.
"Wow, that was exhilarating," Ginny said, and Luna nodded. "Do you think the others had to face something that crazy?"
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"What do you think Harry fears?" Neville asked Dean as they kept their eyes on the screen Harry was supposed to appear on.
"Ron's snores maybe," Dean said, causing Neville to laugh.
"That's truly terrifying," one of the twins agreed. "Don't even joke about that."
"Ok, retracted," Dean said. The Gryffindors cheered as Harry appeared on the screen. He looked frustrated and the Gryffindor champion whirled around, looking for whatever creature he was going to face.
"Where is his creature?" Neville asked. Everyone stared at the screen, but saw only Harry.
"There!" Someone called out, and a giant beast seemed to materialize out of thin air. All eyes were on the disturbance on the screen as the picture became clearer.
"Is that…"
"That's a sphinx, right?" Neville asked. Dean nodded. The two looked at each other, and then dissolved into laughter.
"What's so funny?" Angelina asked her boyfriend, who was snickering as well.
"Harry hates riddles," Fred said. "Anyone else would be thrilled to potentially not have to fight a beast. Harry might pick a fight with the sphinx just to avoid riddles. It's just hysterical."
"Fight a sphinx?" Alicia asked suspiciously.
"He's that bad," George agreed.
"Hold on, Harry's answering," Neville said, and the crowd stilled as Harry was saying something. The sphinx nodded and then spoke back to Harry. "Wait, why isn't it letting him past?"
"Because that's not a normal sphinx." Harry's friends whirled to see one of the older men that had come to see Harry standing behind them, his eyes alight on the screen. "I do not believe we have had the pleasure. I am Takashi Hayashi, and I believe you have had the pleasure of learning from my son this year."
"You are Professor Hayashi's father?" Neville asked.
"I am," the older Asian man said with a smile. "I was planning to meet and greet Harry's friend after all of this, but I figured you might be a little confused. Ah, the second riddle answered."
"How many more?" Dean asked.
"I suspect one," Takashi said. "You see the dark streaks on the wings?" Everyone nodded. "Yes, that is not a simple sphinx, one riddle and gone. It is a shadow sphinx. Supposedly, you must answer three riddles, each harder than the last. A truly tough task for Harry."
"You know Harry is bad at riddles too?" Fred asked.
"Harry is historically bad at riddles," Takashi said with a frown as he saw on the screen Harry tense. "It looks like he is ready to try the final riddle." Everyone turned in time to see Harry punch the sphinx across the chamber. "Of course."
"He's really going to fight a sphinx?" Dean shook his head. "Aren't they immortal?"
"Not immortal," Takashi said, his eyes glued to the screen as the sphinx seemed to vanish. He saw movement in the shadows and his eyes went a little wide. He had never encountered a shadow sphinx, but apparently the rumors of unique travel were true. The sphinx's paw flickered into sight and Harry leapt over it, and Takashi exhaled a little. If the sphinx had to appear before attacking, Harry would have a large advantage. "Just very hard to kill. All the stories have people solving the riddles. I believe that Cuhullin was rumored to have killed a sphinx, despite not having any magical power himself."
"Woah!" George said as Harry hit the sphinx and magic seemed to explode as Harry's fist connected.
"Was that a slip strike?" Neville wondered aloud.
"Indeed it was young man," Takashi said, placing a hand on Neville's shoulder. "Impressive analysis. I did not know Harry had any friends who were magical martial artists."
"Oh, I'm not," Neville stammered. "I'm a wizard who can do a little martial arts. Your son taught me a little."
"You must be Neville then." Neville nodded, but then his eyes were yanked back to the screen as Harry was knocked to the ground by a beam of magic. "We will talk after all of this. It looks like your friend is in for quite a fight. A sphinx that can use magic, quite a task indeed."
The crowd watching in awe as Harry dodged another series of attacks from paws that appeared and disappeared at will. Harry landed a kick on the sphinx and the crowd gasped as another burst of a black magic stream smashed Harry across the chamber. As he rose it was clear one of his arms was injured. Harry and the sphinx spoke for a moment, and then as the sphinx vanished, Harry snapped his wand out and the sphinx was frozen in place as it appeared.
The sphinx was snarling and thrashing against the invisible chains Harry had locked it in, and Harry seemed to draw a deep breath. The sphinx broke containment as Harry hit the sphinx with a spell, and then a gesture of his wand sent the sphinx flying into the air, smashing into the top of the cavern. The sphinx fell heavily and as it rose, the crowd could see that both wings were now broken. But the creature was far from beaten.
In a burst of speed the crowd couldn't even follow lacerations appeared on Harry's chest from a lightning quick exchange. Harry got some space and the familiar lightning appeared around the 4th year. The sphinx smashed through Harry, and Harry appeared on the back of the sphinx. The sphinx tried to rear and throw off Harry, but it was too late as two quick spells enveloped the half lion half human with lightning that swirled around it. The lightning eventually vanished, and the sphinx lay unmoving. Harry glared at the screen and although there was no sound, his body language and the glare indicated his silent words were furious.
"Holy…" Neville just stared at the screen with his jaw on the floor.
"Harry just killed a sphinx." Dean finished for him.
"A shadow sphinx," Fred reminded them.
"Don't tell me the other champions have to fight crazy stuff like this too?" His twin asked.
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"So I know why I'm watching Fleur," Susan told Hermione as they stared at the blank screen. "But why would you?"
"I trained with Fleur for close to 3 months," Hermione explained. Susan nodded, but her look told Hermione she needed more than that. "We became friendly. Not friends, per say, like you two. Besides, Harry has the entire Gryffindor house rooting for him." Susan's look intensified. "Fine. I can't even begin to learn from how Harry fights, or Victor. But maybe I can learn from watching Fleur."
"There it is," Susan said with a smile. The screen came to life, and they both perked up. "Well, let's see what there is to see." The blonde haired witch appeared on the screen. She waved her wands and lights floated up around her, giving the crowd an excellent view of the chamber. Fleur looked around, her face focused. She jumped back and the Beauxbatons students gasped as a claw smashed through her hastily erected shield.
"What in the world is that?" Susan exclaimed as two more creatures scuttled forward.
"Hagrid calls them blast-ended skrewts," Hermione explained. "It's got the fire capabilities of a fire crab, the armor and tail of a mainticore, and the temper of Victor after that articule about Luna." She shook her head. "It's crazy she has to face three of them."
"Looks like it," Susan agreed as a blasting curse splashed against the armor of the beast. "Though if they are beasts of fire, that gives Fleur a big advantage."
"I know she is Veela, but she didn't show any crazy power with her fire spells, and she didn't use a single fire charm when the ICW did their test," Hermione countered. Fleur cast a spell and slid through a gap in the blast-ended skrewts. "Oh, that's quite clever."
"Of course she didn't" Susan told Hermione as the oil was ignited, forcing the beasts back. "I don't think any of the champions used all of their special moves during the dueling test. I mean, Harry lost to Snape, for crying out loud. Trust me, Fleur's got crazy fire skills. She is really strong, and at the least, those monsters won't be able to hurt her with their fire."
It seemed like a ring of fire sprang up around Fleur and she jumped right through a burst of fire from one of the skrewts. She seemed to smack one of them and within a few seconds the skrewt was no longer moving, enveloped in flame.
"Wow," Hermione breathed out, and saw a cocky look from Susan. "Fine, she clearly didn't show everything she could do. Happy?" Susan just nodded. "I don't think I could learn how to do that either." Fleur shot another burst of fire and the beasts retreated. "Well, apparently they can learn."
Fleur was all offense now. She was a blur of movement with her wand, keeping the creatures at bay. A flurry of spells sent them back again, and a swirl of magic raced around one of the skrewts and it vanished. The crowd roared as Fleur advanced on her last foe. Hermione heard the Harry crowd explode in noise and a quick glance showed Harry emerging from under the screen. He looked bloodied and tired, but had a smile on his face. Then Hermione saw him bounce off an invisible wall. He looked confused, and Susan tapped Hermione on the shoulder.
"Fleur's finished too." Hermione glanced up and saw Fleur vanishing into a tunnel and the screen turned off. "What's Harry doing?"
"I don't know," Hermione said, as she Harry sit down. "Now I really don't know." The Durmstrang crowd came to their feet as Victor came out from underneath the screen, and after a few steps he came to a stop as well. "What in the world?"
"The chamber of logic," Susan chirped in. "I guess that is why they are both stuck." There was restless murmuring in the crowd as the two visible champions both sat in silence, and then Fleur emerged from underneath the screen. She was also stopped by an invisible barrier and soon set her to her task. "Didn't Cedric have a lead on her?"
"Yeah, he did, but maybe he had a tough time with one of the tasks." Hermione saw some wizards and witches start to congregate on the field. She saw Dumbledore and Professor Sprout head down towards the fields. "I assume that is what Dumbledore and your head of house are going to sort out right now."
"Do you mind if I run over to the Cedric section and see what he has to do?" Susan asked, and Hermione barely had time to nod before Susan raced off. Hermione tried to make out what the champions were doing. Victor looked to be reading a book, Harry had taken out a rune inscribing set, and Fleur was waving her wand over what looked like a hairbrush. Then the crowd exploded as Harry stepped through his barrier, a giant smile on his face. He couldn't have been more than a few feet from the goblet when he turned, and looked at the other champions.
Hermione wasn't sure whether to be proud or furious as Harry stopped. Most of the crowd had no idea what was going on in his head, but Hermione knew. Harry would happily have claimed the cup if all four champions were there. He had stopped arguing that he didn't deserve to be a champion, and simply settled for saying that while he would compete to the best of his ability, he couldn't care less about whether he won. And as someone who knew Harry all too well, Hermione wasn't the least bit surprised when Harry's wand came out and with a vicious spell he tore down the wards in front of Cedric's door and was gone down the tunnel, to the surprise of the crowd.
"Oh Harry," Hermione murmured, starting to move towards her housemates, most of whom were simply shocked at his actions. She saw Dean and Neville sitting near the front, conversing quietly. "What did he have to face?"
"Professor Hayashi's dad said it was a shadow sphinx," Neville told her, indicating to the open seat next to him. "It was a crazy fight. Any idea what's going on with Cedric?" Now the Durmstrang crowd was on their feet as Victor seemed to be clear of his obstacle. He was now arguing with the tournament officials, and with an angry shove Victor was down the tunnel as well. "This is crazy."
"Why don't the officials go with them?" Hermione asked. "If Cedric is really in danger, they should be going."
"They can't" Dean said simply, and both 4th years looked at him. "Remember what Harry told us back in November? Unless you forfeit the tasks, no one can interfere or it is a violation of the contract, and they might lose their magic. I guess after the second task the champions learned that they could interfere with each other. So apparently they are the only ones who can help Cedric."
Fleur was done now, and her argument seemed to be ongoing. Maxime was striding towards her student, but Fleur turned before her headmaster arrived and was a few feet from Cedric's tunnel when a rock wall smashed up, closing the tunnel. Fleur turned towards the tournament organizers and was gesturing angrily. Hermione barely registered movement as Akira raced past her, jumping from the stands and heading towards Dumbledore.
"What is going on?" Neville muttered. Hermione just shook her head. What would life be without one crazy last adventure.
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Harry saw the two shields below him go up from his fellow champions. He drew a deep breath. "Aragog! Stop this now, and leave. Take your brood and get out of here."
"I know you," the giant spider said. "You were Hagrid's friend. You hurt my children before."
"But I killed the giant snake, the one you feared," Harry shot back.
"I care not," Aragog spat. "You will pay for the blood of my children. All three of your will pay!"
"You asked for it," Harry muttered. He began to build up his remaining power all over his body, and as the spiders converged on him, he let go of the roof. He waved his hands as he dropped, adding speed to his decent. Right before he hit the floor, he raised his hands above his head and brought them down sharply as he impacted. The magic around him was instantly turned into lightning, sending a huge shockwave through the chamber. Harry rolled to the side as the cavern shook, rocks starting to fall from the ceiling. It took a few moments for the shaking to subside.
"Wow," Harry said as he slowly got to his feet. Flashing was mainly useful, and the railgun and lightning clone, while powerful techniques, were exclusively for one-on-one combat. His master had taught him lightning ring, but told him never to use it in an enclosed space, and only when in truly dire danger. Lightning was still flickering from the rock cavern, the power of the release still coursing through some of the spider's now motionless bodies. "'He wasn't kidding." A wave of exhaustion swept over Harry and he swayed.
"Easy," Harry heard from behind as strong hands hauled him up. "You were already exhausted, and that clearly took a lot out of you." Harry looked back as Victor looped an arm over his shoulder, holding him up.
"Not that I'm not happy to see you guys," Cedric said, "because I was starting to get a little overwhelmed, but what are you doing down here?"
"We were finished and you hadn't even shown up on your screen," Victor explained, and Harry nodded tiredly. "How many of those buggers are there?"
"I lost count," Cedric said tiredly. "What did you guys have to do?" Victor and Harry just glanced at each other. "That bad, huh?"
"I don't think you were supposed to face Aragog's entire brood," Harry said.
"I'm sorry, Aragog?" Cedric asked.
"Yeah. I met the giant one before. Long story, maybe I'll tell you after this is all done." Harry looked around, not seeing any movement. "I think I got them all. Can we get going?" The other two champions nodded and they slowly maneuvered over to the passage, Victor and Cedric both helping Harry, who was well and truly tapped.
"So Fleur wins after all of this?" Cedric asked. "Man, anyone who bet on her is going to make a killing with the twins."
"Anyone who bet with the twins is an idiot," Harry shot back. "What were the odds? I never asked."
"Even on you, 2-1 on Victor, 3-1 on me, and 4-1 on Fleur."
"They are selling her short," Harry said with a laugh. "Then again, I guess the twins killed it, since I doubt many of the Beauxbatons students even know the twins exist, and all of her Hogwarts friends probably didn't bet on her."
'Who actually would have won if you two didn't feel the need to rescue me?" Cedric asked.
"Harry finished first," Victor said.
"I already said I don't need to win. I've had just enough of eternal glory, and 1000 galleons don't even make a drop in the exceedingly large bucket I learned about on New Year's," Harry said. "It's all a little odd. I suspected something would happen during this final task. I even had some plans in place, but this is all a little anticlimactic."
"Haven't we had enough excitement over the course of the year?" Victor asked mildly, and Harry had to concede he was right. A roar echoed down the corridor and the three looked at each other. "Cedric, was there anything else down there?"
"Not that I know," Cedric said with a worried look down. The roar sounded again, much closer. "Harry, any chance you could pick up the pace?"
"My legs are dead, but I've got some magic back." Harry snapped his wand up, and a sled appeared underneath them. "Cast shields on 3. Behind us ok?" There was an element of command in Harry's voice, and Cedric and Victor gave shaky nods. "1,2, 3!" Shields rose behind them, and an explosion rocked against the shields, sending them soaring up through the tunnel. "Blasting curse in front!" Harry yelled and the two wizards complied, smashing through the slab in front of them. The sled went sailing into the clearing, and the crowd around them burst into the field. All three champions rolled off, and Harry saw Fleur racing over to him.
"Are you ok?" Fleur said, helping him to his feet and burying her head in his chest.
"Fine," Harry said, running his hand down her back. He turned and saw the cup sitting on the pedestal. "Fleur, why didn't you take it?"
"After finishing first and the year you had, you don't think you deserve it?" His girlfriend asked him. The roared echoed up into the stadium, and Fleur looked at him nervously. "What in the world was down there with Cedric?"
"Nothing that should be making that noise," Harry said with an odd glance at the assembled wizards and witches on the field, all hovering around the edges of the stadium. "You know normally I am up for a mystery challenge, but shouldn't the tournament organizers be stepping up now?"
"They can't step in until someone grabs the cup," Fleur said with a smile. "They were afraid that if they stepped in before the cup was grabbed-" This time the roar coincided with the sound of rock smashing, and every eye in the stadium turned to see a giant cat stepping clear of the now collapsing screen.
It took Harry half a second to collect himself. That half second ended in the blink of an eye as the cat rose from the rubble. Shields were coming up to protect the crowd as the cat roared. The spines around its neck as well as the spots were a dead give away. Harry was well aware that the tournament organizers were a little nutty, but he didn't even think they had the manpower to capture a beast like a Nundu, let alone let it loose with no binding spells. Sure, it wasn't full grown, since it was only around 40 feet head to tail, but this was still insanity. Even with the few nights of sleep he would need to fully recover, Harry would turn and run rather than fight this.
He turned and saw his master eagerly sitting in the front row behind a shield, and Harry sent him a plaintive look with his eyes. He was more than accustomed to his master's hands off approach to learning, but leaving an exhausted Harry to face a Nundu seemed a stretch far. Nambung simply shrugged, and pointed at the cup. It came to Harry in a flash. No one had actually touched the cup.
Fleur was a little stunned as Harry pulled from her grip, racing away from her. She quickly composed herself as the Nundu lowered its head, opening its massive maw. She prepared her most powerful shield, knowing in her heart that the poison breath could penetrate most shields. She turned to get one last glance of Harry and saw him wrapping his hand around the cup. His eyes went wide and with a crack Harry and the cup vanished.
The poison breath and accompanying roar raced around her and Fleur closed her eyes. Then she opened her eyes, as she was still hearing yelling and screaming. Across the field she saw the field of poison breath vanish as it came into contact with a flickering shield. A lightning shield! Fleur collapsed in relief as Nambung strode past her, his wand in his hand, Hayashi-San a step behind him.
"At least someone kept their head," Nambung said. "This looks like a nasty one. Takashi, get your son and that stupid old man to get everyone clear. If I need to let a breath attack go, it will go straight through those shields." Hayashi-San nodded and vanished from his size. "Girl, you might want to get back." Fleur hopped back as the lightning shield vanished and she saw the familiar lightning magic begin to crackle around the short man Harry called master.
It wasn't a cub, but Nambung suspected it was at most an adolescent. It wasn't like the ICW had the strength to subdue a full grown Nundu. Nambung wouldn't dare go against a full grown one on his own. By happenstance the Mibu Wolves had been contracted to subdue a full-grown one on a rampage in Ethiopia before he headed the group, and two members had lost their lives before the head of the group had brought it down. But this one… it would be a tough fight, but what was life without challenge?
There was no point pulling punches, especially with so many in danger. This would be over in a few attacks, or it wouldn't be over at all. His wand extended, and lightning began to collect on his wand point. The recoil from a overpowered railgun sent him staggering back half a step, and without even waiting to see what the effect of his attack was, Nambung leapt so that the apex of his jump had him hovering over the neck. Right before landed, his lightning aura burst, cascading all over the beast, which roared in pain. In a moment Nambung gathered a massive amount of energy in his foot, his seismic step smashing into the shoulder of the giant cat, driving it to the ground.
He rolled clear as two rainbow spells smashed against its head. Takashi and his son had joined the fight. The magical part lion part leopard opened its mouth, and Nambung shot forward, an incredibly forceful kick to the side of its neck forcing the mouth shut as the Nundu smashed into the far arena wall. Nambung just shook his head as the beast rose easily. Harry had told him that he expected some form of sabotage, but even in his wildest dreams he had not imagined something like this.
The Mibu Wolf spared a quick glance around, and saw most of the crowd was evacuated, but there were still some few students populated by the exits. Of more annoyance were the stupid adult wizards who would just be a burden on him, namely all of them. Given an open playing field, Nambung would have even asked Takashi to get clear, as he couldn't waste any energy shielding, and certainty didn't want to have to worry about a breath attack hitting someone behind him. But in this enclosed space with possible civilian causalities, the defensive expertise and magical martial arts of Takashi were a much needed boon.
The Nundu roared as it rose up on two feet. As it came back down, Nambung felt magic building up it it's mouth. He hadn't known Nundu had a breath attack, but apparently he would have to meet this straight on. With a quick hand movement, 5 pulsing bright lights appeared around him, and as the Nundu opened its mouth, the 5 lights fired beams of concentrating lightning magic. To the Korean wizard's surprise, the lightning struck dead on as the breath attack was sucked away.
"Nambung?" Nambung turned in surprise. He recognized that voice, and how he hated the owner. "What are you doing here?"
"I might ask you the same Rebecca." Rebecca Eagle, the self-proclaimed most powerful woman in the world, favored him with an evil grin. "I didn't know that Great Britain was in need of a she-devil."
"Oh, how I have missed your silver tongue," Rebecca shot back. "But trust me, I don't want to be in the backwater any longer than I have to. I need to talk to Takashi, since he asked me here."
"I didn't think you would come," Takashi said.
"You intrigued me," Rebecca said. "Now, how about we handle this beast so I can meet the girl you think I might take on as a student." Nambung shot Takashi a look that indicated there would be an extended discussion about this later. "I'll absorb it, and you take it down." Nambung nodded at the instruction, since it made sense.
Most powerful wizards and witches kept at least one aspect of their power hidden. Rebecca had the unique benefit of not only being absurdly powerful, but also being married to the unquestioned champion of earth, along with the protection of the Eagle clan. So her power of absorbing foreign magic was well known and documented. She was a tough matchup for anyone due to her unique and frustrating talent.
Rebecca's wand was a blur and the Nundu started to stumble. Nambung started to build his power in his right leg and foot, and the lightning began to course through the right side of his body. "It's crazy strong," Rebecca said through clenched teeth. "I can't hold it long." In an explosion of power that sent shockwaves through the stadium, Nambung closed the distance with one step and whipped his body around into a no holds barred spinning roundhouse kick.
He heard the beast's neck snap as he landed. There had been virtually no magical resistance thanks to Rebecca's presence, and although Nambung would rather cut off an arm than admit it, he had been low on ideas on how to combat it with all the collateral damage. He gave her a cursory nod, and she returned the favor. They both respected each other, but Rebecca knew he didn't like her, and was more than happy to return the favor.
"Wow, you English know how to throw a party!" Rebecca exclaimed. "How did you even get an adolescent Nundu?"
"Not important," Takashi said easily.
"I guess you are right. So, the student?" Rebecca asked.
"I don't know," Takashi admitted. "Nambung's heir was the one who told me. He said it needed to be kept under wraps until you arrived."
"Fine." Rebecca didn't look happy at it, and Nambung knew if not for his presence she would be bad-mouthing Harry this moment. "Where is your kid then, Nambung? I'd like to be home for dinner tonight."
"He grabbed a portkey right when all this started." Nambung whirled to the ICW wizards cowering by the stands. "One of you tell me where that portkey went so that I may retrieve Harry and make sure he is ok?"
"I'm sorry, portkey?" One of the braver witches asked.
"Yes, the tri-wizard cup. Where did it send him?" Nambung pressed.
"The cup wasn't a portkey," the witch answered.
"No," Fleur interjected. "I saw it as clear as day. Harry grabbed the cup and it took him somewhere."
"As did I," Takashi added. "I kept an eye on the cup to know when I could jump in."
"What if the Nundu was a distraction?" Nambung wondered aloud. "This whole year, we knew that there were attempts to kill the other champions. Harry was acting under the assumption that someone wanted them dead. What if the goal was all to make sure Harry was in one place at a pre-determined time?"
"What do you mean?" Rebecca asked. "What's so important about this boy?"
"Excuse me, do you truly-"
"Shut up for a moment Greybeard," Nambung snapped at the Hogwarts Headmaster. "It would be hard to take him at Hogwarts. It's not the easiest to get through these wards from the inside, not without a special ability. Anyone with that raw power, well Harry could sense them from a mile away. So you need a day when he is guaranteed to be out of the wards. He is beyond the wards all day today once the task starts."
"It's easy enough for him to win. You don't even have to release the Nundu until he takes it, to make sure no one follows. But then he deviates from the plan. Luckily, the Durmstrang champion has the same sense of honor. You know if you release the beast, the fastest thinking champion will grab the cup to release us to help them. Harry takes the cup and poof."
"You said something was going to happen," Takashi raged.
"Harry suspected sabotage of some kind," Nambung admitted. "Cleary, the Cedric boy was supposed to be knocked out of the running." He turned to Victor. "What was he facing?"
"Countless acromantula," Victor answered. "Harry killed most of them with a giant lightning attack.
"Whatever," Nambung dismissed. Victor just shook his head. Maybe for a guy who fought Nundu like it was no big deal, a giant spider wasn't much of a problem. "You know where, and you know when. Only thing left to do is charm the goblet. There must have been a moment of panic when Harry headed down the tunnel. Who among your staff panicked when Harry did that?"
"Alastor?" Dumbledore asked. "You seemed particularly distressed until Mister Krum followed Harry." The old auror stared at Dumbledore, but he was bound in the blink of an eye.
"Now, you can tell me," Nambung started, "Or I'll tear your head to tiny little shreds, and then you tell me."
"The dark lord will rise again," Moody croaked and then his head lolled back.
"Alastor!" Dumbledore cried, but was held back by Takashi. Nambung pried open his mouth, which was foaming.
"He had something in one of his teeth," Nambung said after a quick investigation. "It's a draught of living death, with a particularly fatal twist. I've seen this before." He sent Takashi a worried glance. "This dark lord, I assume he is talking about Voldemort?" The body of Alastor Moody stared to convulse. Muscles popped and the fake eye rolled out. The wooden peg leg was shot across the pitch, and in a minute an entirely different man lay there. "Who the hell is this?"
"Barty Crouch Jr," Dumbledore said breathlessly. "One of Voldemort's most deranged servants from the war. But he is dead."
"Clearly not," Akira said. "He had me fooled the entire year. He grabbed the hip flash and took a sniff. "Polyjuice."
"Severus, Flitwick if you could examine Alastor's quarters, the real one must be alive." The potions master hurried off with the charms master in tow.
"So we do not know where Harry is?" Takashi asked.
"No, but Harry was prepared for sabotage. He told me a week ago that he suspected that Voldemort was involved in all of this somehow, but did not tell me why." Nambung withdrew an envelope from his robes. "Headmaster Dumbledore, Deputy Headmistress McGonagall, Akira, I'll need your wand." All three placed their wand on the seal, and Nambung placed his as well. The envelope went up in flames, and Nambung snatched the parchment out of the air.
"Well?" Akira asked impatiently. "What does it say?"