HARRY POTTER AND THE HOUSE OF PENDRAGON
(A/N: Hi, this is Knight of Britannia. This is my first fanfiction that I am publishing. For many months I have been trying to write this story and now I have got the chance to do so. Kindly ignore the grammatical errors (if any) are there. This is going to be a multi-crossover HP fanfiction. Critical reviews are greatly accepted and appreciated. Hope you will like this. )
Chapter 1: The God Damned Tournament
November 1, 1994
Friday
Time: 4:30 p.m.
As the sun began to set over Hogwarts, its most famous student was sitting outside by the shore of the Great Lake contemplating the events of the previous few days. 'Well, this year has gone downhill a little earlier than normal,' Harry Potter thought with a sad smile.
On night of Halloween, his name had come out of the Goblet of Fire, despite the fact that he had never put it in. Thinking about the Weasley twins' unsuccessful attempt to enter the contest he wondered how such a thing was even possible.
As bad as that night had been, today was even worse.
No one, not even his best friends Ron and Hermione, had believed him the previous night when he insisted that he had not put his name in the Goblet of Fire.
After coming back from the antechamber, the previous night, a huge screaming match had broken out in the Gryffindor Common room when Harry tried to talk to Ron and convince him to see it from his point of view, and as a result he doubted that he would be on speaking terms with his alleged 'best mate' for quite some time.
Hermione had given him a disapproving look and just said, "You should not lie Harry. We all know that the Goblet of Fire is an ancient magical artefact, it cannot be tampered. Just admit that you cheated and entered your name." That was his final straw from his so called 'best friends'.
The problem was not only, did his former (best) friends had abandoned during his time of peril but also his entire Gryffindor house. He became a pariah in his own house. After he had returned back to his house common room, he was greeted by an angry and enraged crowd. None of them were ready to hear an explanation from him. They all wanted to hex him badly.
One even fired a low powered cutting hex which he missed narrowly. But a part of the hex was caught by his robes which caused it to tear open.
Ron chose this opportunity to belittle his 'former mate' and became the de facto leader in the movement in slandering his friend and started sprouting what a 'glory hound' and 'attention seeker' he was.
He even further accused him of using Dark Magic to enter the tournament. This further enraged his house mates and they unanimously voted to throw him out of their House Common room and declared him persona-non-grata in their common room.
They brought all of his belongings from his dormitory and threw them out in the seventh-floor corridor outside their common room like trash. Then they literally kicked him out in the corridor. When he tried to get up, a seventh-year student casted a Knock-Back Jinx which caused him to be smashed in a wall. He heard laughter from the common room before the entrance to the Gryffindor Common room was closed.
Tears had rolled down endlessly from his eyes after that. He simply thought, why? Why it happens only to me?
Rubbing his eyes, he got up and decided to find a habitable place for that night. After sometime, he had found an empty classroom in the fifth floor and made a make-shift bed with his wand. He somehow managed to sleep that night.
Today was more terrible than the previous night. The entire school decided to shun him. Wherever he went, the Hogwarts students were giving him dirty looks, as if he was some sort of filth. The teachers were no better than the students.
Professor McGonnagall gave him looks that clearly showed her disappointment in him. She kept on giving him silent treatment throughout her class. Professor Snape kept on sneering at his direction and deducted 50 points in his single class and gave him detention for 'being annoying and highly obnoxious'.
The worst scenario took place in Herbology class. Professor Sprout kept on glaring at Harry's direction for seizing Hufflepuff's glory. She mercilessly deducted points and gave him zero in his assignment under the pretext of 'poor quality of work'. The Herbology class was with the Hufflepuffs who were all glaring at him. Ernie Macmillan deliberately dropped bobutuber puss on Harry's feet. Professor Sprout gave Harry detention for making a mess in class and deducted 70 points!
But the person on which most of his anger was directed to was none other than the Headmaster Albus bloody-too-many-names Dumbledore.
Harry vividly remembered what happened in the antechamber after the selection of the Champions.
Flashback
*Harry shakingly entered in the antechamber shakingly. He did not know what to do. How did this happen? Who? Why? When? So many unanswered questions.
The other three champions looked at Harry curiously.
"What is it?" Fleur Delacaur said. "Do zey want us back in zey Hall?" Harry had no idea how to reply. How to say that he was the 4th champion? How to say that he had to participate in this god damn Tournament!
"Uh...umm..." even before he could make a proper reply. The doors of the antechamber opened and entered Professors Dumbledore, Madame Maxime of Beuxbatons, Karkaroff of Durmstrang, McGonnagall, Snape, Moody and two ministry officials; Ludo Bagman and Barty Crouch.
"Extraordinary!" Ludo Bagman said, squeezing Harry's arm. "Absolutely extraordinary! Ladies and Gentlemen," he added, approaching the fireside and addressing the other three. "May I introduce — incredible though it may seem — the fourth Triwizard champion?"
All the other three champions had bewildered looks filled with confusion and anguish.
Fleur Delacour, however, tossed her hair, smiling, and said, "Oh, vairy funny joke, Meester Bagman." "Joke?" Bagman repeated, bewildered. "No, no, not at all! Harry's name just came out of the Goblet of Fire!" Krum's thick eyebrows contracted slightly. Fleur frowned. "But evidently zair 'as been a mistake," she said contemptuously to Bagman. "'E cannot compete. 'E is too young."
"Well . . . it is amazing," said Bagman, smiling down at Harry. "But, as you know, the age restriction was only imposed this year as an extra safety measure. And as his name's come out of the goblet... I mean, I don't think there can be any ducking out at this stage. . .. It's down in the rules, you're obliged . . . Harry will just have to do the best he —"
"Madame Maxime!" said Fleur at once, striding over to her headmistress. "Zey are saying zat zis leetle boy is to compete also!"
Somewhere under Harry's numb disbelief he felt a ripple of anger. Little boy?
Madame Maxime had drawn herself up to her full, and considerable, height. The top of her handsome head brushed the candle filled chandelier, and her gigantic black-satin bosom swelled. "What is ze meaning of zis, Dumbly-dorr?" she said imperiously. "I'd rather like to know that myself, Dumbledore," said Professor Karkaroff. He was wearing a steely smile, and his blue eyes were like chips of ice. "Two Hogwarts champions? I don't remember anyone telling me the host school is allowed two champions — or have I not read the rules carefully enough?" He gave a short and nasty laugh.
Professor Dumbledore gave a weary reply "I don't know. I thought the age line was sufficient. I did not think such a thing would happen but now..." Dumbledore trailed off.
"Obviously the Potter brat thinks that he is always above all the rules. Just like his father." Snape sneered.
Harry was filled with a silent rage. Who does Snape think he is?
"Alas! The deed has been done so nothing can we do-" Dumbledore started but Harry had had enough. He would not sit silent and accept everything that was going on around him.
"But professor I truly did not submit my name!" Harry said earnestly with a tiniest bit of hope that at least Dumbledore would see his reasoning. But all his hopes were crushed by his next words.
"But my boy, we do not have any proof that someone else put your name in the goblet. Nevertheless, you will have to participate in the tournament or else you might lose your magic."
Anger, frustration, hurt, and last but not the least an uncontrollable rage was going inside his mind. His hands were shaking, his magic was flaring out from his body, his green eyes were glowing.
"WHY CAN'T YOU BELIEVE THAT I HAVE NOT PUT MY NAME IN THIS COMPETITION!"
Everyone present in the antechamber was astound by seeing the raw display of magic.
"Mr. Potter you control yourself and stop this tantrum at once!" Professor McGonnagall shouted. Slowly Harry regained his control over magic. But he was seething from inside.
He turned towards Barty Crouch (Sr.) and asked, "Is there no way to quit this tournament? " Crouch replied, "No Mr. Potter, you cannot quit this tournament without forfeiting your magic as it is a magically binding contract."
Harry was further devasted. Not only could he quit this tournament without forfeiting his magic but also there was a ninety nine percent chance that he would die in this tournament.
"Is that all?" Harry asked Bagman in an icy cold voice. " Umm..." Ludo Bagman faltered a bit before regaining his composure and said, "The first task is designed to test your daring," he told Harry, Cedric, Fleur, and Viktor, "so we are not going to be telling you what it is. Courage in the face of the unknown is an important quality in a wizard... very important... "The first task will take place on November the twenty-fourth, in front of the other students and the panel of judges. "The champions are not permitted to ask for or accept help of any kind from their teachers to complete the tasks in the tournament. The champions will face the first challenge armed only with their wands. They will receive information about the second task when the first is over. Owing to the demanding and time-consuming nature of the tournament, the champions are exempted from end-of-year tests." Mr. Crouch turned to look at Dumbledore. "I think that's all, is it, Albus?"
"I think so," said Dumbledore wearily. "I think that's enough for tonight. Off you go then" he told the champions.
Flashback ends
Harry was raging silently. Indeed, so much for being the greatest wizard since Merlin! Incapable old bastard! He kept on cursing his name for a while.
Now he was sitting by the shore of introspecting his entire life since he had entered the wizarding world.
First year: Voldemort in Quirrell's back Second Year: A sixty-foot basilisk that could kill just with their gaze. Third Year: Dementors and an escaped mass murder (though truth was something else).
Now in his Fourth year, this God damn Tournament where death is in every step.
But this time he had no support from any of his friends. He is going to be all alone.
"Friends!" Harry spat the word with utter disdain and great pain. His friends (or ex-friends rather) took his friendship for granted and chose this exact moment to abandon him. The moment he required their support, the moment he required their help, their compassion, at that time they decided that they were better off without him. He wondered whether truly they were his friends or not.
He finally sighed and muttered, "To hell with them!" with great irate. "Now is not the time to think about those bastards" he proclaimed loudly "Now is the time to think how to survive this whole year" the word 'alone' was not required to be said. Unknown to him, a pair of pale blue eyes was watching him the whole time.
