Chapter 21
"Is it dead?" a blond boy yelled loudly, breaking the silence, and at once dozens of people started muttering and speculating.
Fucking hell, what a mess.
Harry's mind went into overdrive, analysing the situation and quickly realizing he couldn't explain to the tournament officials how the dragon had dropped dead without seemingly a single curse fired. But wait, as the blond boy's comments just proved, the people in the stands didn't actually know for sure if the dragon was dead, at least not yet.
At once, Harry used a tiny amount of his necromantic powers to give the dragon's dead body a small jerk, as though the beast was unconscious but trying to wake up.
Immediately a loud 'Oooooh' echoed around the arena from the spectators realizing the dragon wasn't dead, but could in fact wake up at any time and burn Harry alive, perhaps even succeeding during its second attempt.
Harry wasted no time in executing his original plan for kidnapping a live dragon. The fact that the dragon was now dead didn't bother him one bit. That was what resurrection rituals were for, if Rigel wanted to be a dragon. Or if he didn't, then Harry could simply turn the dragon into an inferius. With confident steps, Harry walked around the dragon in a large circle, inscribing the necessary runes into the stone to create a portal that would open up under the dragon and transport it instantly to Harry's backyard on Magica. He also wove a few runes for a preservation charm into the circle, so the body wouldn't start decomposing. And every few seconds, Harry would make one of the dragon's legs or wings twitch, as though it were still alive, so the spectators were none the wiser of what had actually happened.
Before activating the portal, Harry gently placed the eggs outside the circle, since he had no use for a whole bunch of baby dragons. They'd grow up to be big dragons, with big appetites, and Magica could not support enough livestock to feed half a dozen hungry dragons.
Picking up the golden egg, Harry stepped out of the circle and with a wave of his hand he activated the runes. Instantly, a golden portal burst to life under the lifeless dragon and without any pause the whole beast fell through as if disappearing into nothing at all.
There were many shouts of surprise coming from the stands, but Harry ignored those and closed the portal again by deactivating the runes. Then he waved his wand around briefly to charm away the runes entirely. He didn't want anyone to get hold of a runic sequence that opened up a portal right to Harry's home.
Applause echoed around the arena as Harry left it with confident steps, even though his face still felt like it was on fire.
"This way," the school healer said, grabbing Harry by the elbow.
"What's the damage?" Harry asked as he followed her into the first-aid tent where he sat down on the edge of a nearby bed.
"Third-degree burns on your face and upper body," the healer said while she waved her wand over him. "But a burn salve will fix that right up."
"My great-grandmother invented that salve," Harry said to make a bit of conversation as the healer returned with a large jar of green paste. "Charis MacMillan-Black."
"How nice," the healer said, opening the jar. "That beard is going to have to come off for me to treat your face, Mr Potter."
Harry gaped at her in shock. "No."
"Oh yes, Mr Potter." The healer couldn't hold back an amused smile. "Over half of it is gone already anyway, so a little more won't hurt."
Still reeling in absolute shock, Harry carefully raised a hand to his face and felt around his beard, which felt very rough thanks to the singed edges. Well, what was left of it did, since the right side of his face seemed suspiciously bare already. Harry sighed and shook his head before giving the healer a pleading look. "Please be gentle."
V was never going to let him live this down, Harry just knew it.
The healer worked quickly and efficiently, and shaved Harry's precious beard off with a gentle charm before slathering his entire face and neck in thick, green paste. Next she removed his shirt and applied salve to his upper chest and shoulders as well, and lastly to his slightly burned hands. At least she let him keep the hair on his head, but Harry could tell by feeling it that it too had been burned in places and needed a good cut sooner rather than later.
Harry looked like an absolute clown when his friends came walking into the tent.
Remus was accompanied by a short, big-busted woman who couldn't stop pulling on her shirt.
"Thank you," Harry said to the healer once she told him to leave the salve on for at least twelve hours before giving him some privacy.
"How do women not go completely crazy from wearing a bra all day?" the woman muttered, pulling on her clothing again and only now did Harry realize that had to be Sirius.
The tent flap opened again, letting in Barty as Moody, and Voldemort the old man with grey beard. And V, who was sitting on Voldemort's shoulder as though he was a king being paraded around by his loyal subject. Voldemort himself was studiously ignoring the bird.
V took one look at Harry's green, beardless face and started cackling in sheer delight, flapping his wings in excitement.
"Yeah, yeah," Harry said while shaking his head in resignation. "I look weird, I get it."
V flew over to sit on Harry's knee while he clapped his beak. "Dumb beard gone!"
"I'm glad you're alright, with or without your beard," Remus said with a humorous glint in his eyes. "It looked for a moment like the dragon had burned you alive."
"Where did it go, the dragon?" Sirius asked.
"My backyard," Harry said with an unconcerned shrug.
Remus' eyes widened in alarm. "You let loose a dragon in Magica?"
"It's dead," Harry said in a rough whisper.
"Dead, dead," V cawed in agreement, giving Remus a frankly condescending look.
"Ah." Remus released a deep sigh and nodded. "I'm glad to hear that. It looked like she was still alive."
"Yeah, that was to throw everyone off the fact that I accidentally killed her," Harry said with a morose little smile.
"You accidentally killed a dragon," Barty said in a disbelieving tone, Moody's artificial eye spinning around wildly.
"I wanted to take her alive," Harry said while his shoulders hunched. He had just cocked everything up, hadn't he? Even in his old age, Harry was still really good at planning one thing, only for things to go sideways in the most spectacular fashion. "But she didn't like my scent and then she set me on fire and I panicked, okay?"
"Still, that portal was impressive," Voldemort said and then gestured towards the tent's entrance. "Lots of people out there are going to be wondering how you were able to create such a thing."
"When you're ready, Mr Potter, they're waiting for you outside to give you your score," the healer said as she approached him again.
"I don't care about a score, but I suppose I might as well go." Harry got up with a quiet groan, slipped his singed shirt back on and pulled on his burned cloak. V took his customary spot on Harry's shoulder, which was still a bit sore from the burns, and then they all trooped outside where three very anxious kids stood waiting for him.
"You're alright!" Hermione all but yelled when she spotted him.
"I'll be good as new soon," Harry assured his young assistants. "Just with less hair from now on."
Neville looked a little disappointed at that news. "I liked your beard. It made you look like Hagrid."
Harry shrugged while he offered Neville a grateful smile. "Thanks. I might try to regrow it, but I doubt V will let me."
"No beard!" V cawed while giving Harry's cheek a harsh peck. His beak came away partially covered in green paste.
"Mr Potter," a redhaired man who looked a lot like Ron approached them. "Where did the dragon go? We've got to find her."
"That's Charlie, my brother," Ron said quickly, not without a large amount of pride.
Harry made a production of looking rather confused. "You know, I'm not quite sure. I had to open that portal in a hurry before the dragon woke back up and finished me off, so I was simply aiming for the other side of the world."
Charlie Weasley's eyes widened almost comically. "The other side of the world?"
"Well, the rules didn't say we had to keep all accessories at the location of the first task," Harry explained with a pleasant smile. "Have a nice day." And without giving Charlie Weasley a chance to reply, Harry stepped around him and continued his way towards the jury tent.
After everyone had announced their scores, Harry was tied for the lead spot with Viktor Krum, but he honestly couldn't care less about that. Harry planned on getting back home in a hurry, since he had a dead dragon to deal with.
"Mr Potter," Professor McGonagall said as she stepped directly into Harry's path just as he was about to cross Hogwarts' wide lawn. "We don't make the official announcement at Hogwarts until later, but since you spend so little time here I thought it a good idea to inform you now."
"Inform me of what?" Harry asked impatiently.
"The Yule Ball," Professor McGonagall said with a tight smile, as though she couldn't quite decide if she found the whole situation distasteful or hilarious. "On Christmas night a ball will be held here at Hogwarts where the Champions are expected to attend. With a date."
Harry was tempted to hex her, honestly. His face still burned, he'd lost his beard and there was a perfectly good dead dragon going to waste in his backyard right at that moment. "Will I lose my magic if I don't attend?" Harry asked as he narrowed his eyes.
"No." McGonagall's lips pursed into a tight line. "But, Mr Potter, it is tradition –"
Harry cut her off with a sharp gesture of his hand. "Madam, I couldn't care less about your traditions. Please remember that I was forced into this tournament against my will and I was almost just burned to death by a fucking dragon, all for your people's entertainment. You can take that ball and shove it up your arse."
Remus and Sirius stood to the side, staring at Harry in absolute shock, mouths hanging open, as Harry shoved his way past McGonagall while V crowed, "Arse ball, arse ball."
Voldemort kept it together, but barely, as his lips kept twitching as he hurried after Harry across Hogwarts' lawn towards the gates.
"Seriously," Harry muttered, mood souring considerably. "Why does every fucking person here think they can treat me like I'm a kid."
"Because they have no idea about your true powers," Voldemort said as he caught up with Harry, matching his hurried steps. "You just tricked a whole stadium of people into thinking an obviously dead dragon wasn't dead at all and you didn't even raise your wand to do it. Moreover, you never raised your wand to kill the dragon in the first place."
"I suppose." Harry stopped once they passed the gates. "I'll be glad when this whole stupid tournament is over and done with and I can just focus on running Magica."
Before Voldemort could respond, a new voice called out across the grounds. "Mr Potter! Mr Potter!" Bartemius Crouch Sr hurried towards them, one hand holding his bowler hat firmly in place on his head.
"Oh, for fuck's sake," Harry muttered, tempted to just apparate away, but ultimately his magic was on the line because of this stupid tournament so he decided it was probably a good idea to see what the tournament official wanted with him now.
"Mr Potter," Crouch breathed as he reached them. "The Department of Education asked me to remind you that only wizards who have at least three OWLs are allowed to carry wands in Britain. They have sent you several missives to urge you to sign up for the OWLs this December, but they haven't yet received a reply."
Harry gave Crouch Sr an even stare. "Since when do Britain's laws apply to foreign citizens?"
"I beg your pardon?" Crouch frowned as he looked at Harry in confusion. "Well, Mr Potter, they don't. Every country has their own laws."
Harry leaned forwards a little and offered Crouch a smug little smile. "Exactly. By the laws of the country I live in I'm allowed to carry a wand."
"Wait…are you saying…" Crouch looked like he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"I'm no longer a British citizen. I've moved abroad. Good day." And with that, Harry apparated to the area in front of his castle. Voldemort appeared there a few moments later with a sharp crack.
"I've got a dragon to deal with," Harry said just as the doors of the castle pushed open and Keket slunk out. "Hello, girl. I'm still in one piece."
"Dumb beard gone!" V felt compelled to point out, even though Keket was already staring at Harry's face while she clicked in amusement.
"My Polyjuice potion is almost wearing off," Voldemort pointed out as he leaned one hand against the castle wall. "I will join you at the dragon in a moment."
Right then Remus and Sirius apparated to Harry's doorstep. "I'm going to check up on Reggie," Sirius called while rushing inside the castle. Remus gave Harry a nod and followed Sirius inside.
"So I killed the dragon," Harry told Keket as they walked around the castle. "Didn't mean to, but I can resurrect it. I was thinking of asking Rigel if he wanted to use the body for a while."
Keket rumbled in understanding and once she saw the dead dragon lying in the flowery meadow, she loped towards it, circling it so she could see it from every possible side. The moment she returned to Harry's side she bumped her large head against his hip before staring into his eyes. It was her way of telling Harry she wanted to talk to him. Without pause, Harry stared back and connected their minds with Legilimency.
Give me the dragon body. Keket said at once.
"Why?" Harry asked, unsure why Keket would ask such a thing. She'd been more than happy as a barok for well over a century now.
Keket sighed, hanging her head a little. This body is getting old, Harry. I feel it in my bones. I need lots of sleep. My joints hurt almost every day now.
"Oh." Harry was more than a little taken aback. He'd noticed, of course, that Keket slept more these days than she'd done decades ago but he'd never wondered about the reason for it. But it made sense. Baroks were not magical creatures. They were just animals, though fairly long lived ones.
Your magic and my soul have added many years of life to this body. Keket said in a patient tone. But my time is running out. I feel it.
Harry felt himself tear up a little as he crouched in front of his oldest friend, placing both his hands on the side of her massive head. He leaned his forehead against her broad snout, smearing green salve all over her black scales. "Okay, girl. We'll make you a dragon. I'm just going to miss having you around in the castle, sleeping on the foot of my bed. That's going to be impossible in your new body."
Keket clicked and rubbed her head against Harry's hands. Yes, but we could go flying together instead.
"That's true," Harry said with a watery smile, pushing himself back up with a sigh.
"Is everything alright?" Voldemort said as he joined them, looking all tall, dark and handsome again.
"Yes and no," Harry said while he gestured at Keket. "I put my oldest friend's soul in the barok's body many years ago," Harry explained to a visibly surprised Voldemort. "But the barok's body is getting old and she wants to be transferred into the dragon's body. That's fairly easy to do, but I can't keep a dragon inside my castle, so I'm going to miss having her around."
Voldemort nodded slowly a few times, staring down as though deep in thought. "Wait just a second with transferring her. I might have the solution to your problem." And without saying another thing, Voldemort apparated away.
"Well, we might as well set up the ritual circle. We'll need it no matter what we're going to do with the dragon," Harry said with one last stroke of his hand across Keket's head. Right as Harry had drawn the outline of the circle, Voldemort appeared again, carefully holding a glass carafe that contained an iridescent liquid that shimmered in the sunlight.
"This will rejuvenate your friend's current body," Voldemort said, briefly raising the carafe. "She will find her youth restored and she will be able to live for many years to come."
"Really?" Harry blinked as he stared at the carafe, unsure what sort of potion was capable of such a thing.
"Oh yes." Voldemort's smile reminded Harry's of a shark showing far too many teeth. "Of course, I would expect a… favour in return for this gift."
Ah. There is was. Harry almost wanted to laugh out loud but instead he just rolled his eyes and gestured at Voldemort to get on with it. Naturally a Dark Lord would want to turn every little thing around in his own favour.
Voldemort's predatory smile dimmed until it looked positively generous. "You seem most happy when you're getting hands-on with the construction of Magica, Harry. Let me take some of your responsibilities out of your hands."
"Hmm." Harry narrowed his eyes, seeing perfectly where Voldemort was going with this. What a fucking snake he was, though Harry supposed he couldn't and shouldn't be surprised by Voldemort's attempted power-grab.
"Make me Governor for the next five years," Voldemort said in a tone that was so very reasonable, even kind. "I'll take care of the politics and you can grow the land and have your friend by your side in the castle."
Harry threw his head back and laughed. "Nice try, neighbour." Then he turned his back to Voldemort in a clear dismissal and gave Keket a smile. "Looks like we'll be flying together before the sun sets today." Keket chirped in excitement.
"Harry." Voldemort's voice contained a clear amount of frustration. "Harry, be reasonable."
"No." Harry turned around to stare at Voldemort and he didn't care that his face was still covered in green goo and that his hair was a singed, uneven mess. He would not hand the rule of his country over to Voldemort, not for anything in the world. "If you want to be governor of Magica, you are welcome to run for that position in five years when it opens up for elections. But as clearly stated in the rules which you signed when moving here, I am the Governor of Magica for the next five years as we get the country developed. End of story. I am just deeply disappointed in you that you would try to blackmail me over this while the life of my oldest friend is at stake. Kindly go fuck yourself."
When Voldemort started talking again, Keket let out a loud roar and opened her mouth wide as she jumped towards Voldemort, who stumbled back in surprise, barely holding onto the carafe.
"Besides," Harry said to Keket as he gestured at her to join him as he completed the ritual circle. "You can be a dragon for a few years, just to have fun with it, and once you get tired of being so big and you want to move into the castle again, we'll find you a new body. They have lots of interesting magical creatures in this world."
"Thestral," V cawed while he kept giving Voldemort nasty glares. "Nundu."
"See?" Harry smiled down at Keket while she rubbed her head against his hip. "There are all sorts of interesting possibilities waiting for you."
"Are you really going to ignore me?" Voldemort demanded, voice holding a very real edge of anger.
Harry ignored him as he calmly completed the circle around the dragon. He had never given into blackmail and he wasn't about to start now.
"Fine," Voldemort finally said with a tired sigh. "I won't ask to be governor right now. I'll run for it in five years. Now make me a different offer. This is the Elixir of Life, Harry. It's worth more than a little something."
Harry shrugged, still not looking at Voldemort. "I don't even know what that is, so to me it's worthless."
Voldemort released an utterly frustrated sound. "The Elixir of Life. It's made from the Philosopher's Stone. It gives one eternal life when consumed on a regular basis. When ingesting a single doses it restores youth and health."
"Yeah, still not ringing any bells," Harry said in a voice that was dripping with not giving a fuck. "There, the circle is done."
"Harry…just…" Voldemort's whole face was pinched with frustration. "How can you just not care?"
"Years and years of practice," Harry replied with a teasing smile. Who knew riling up Dark Lords could be this much fun. "You want an offer? Here's my offer. I'll teach you how to walk the deathlands."
Voldemort's face relaxed into a smooth mask as he mulled over Harry's suggestion. "But you were going to offer me that anyway, without any cost."
"Take it or leave it." Harry turned his back to Voldemort again and gestured at Keket to step into the circle. "It won't hurt, girl, but it will probably feel very strange to switch bodies after having lived in this one for so long."
"Fine!" Voldemort sounded like he was very close to stomping his foot. "I'll take that as payment. Here, save your friend." Voldemort held out the carafe as though it held stale urine instead of a priceless elixir.
"Thanks." Harry accepted the carafe, nodded at Keket who was sitting patiently beside the dragon and then marched back to his castle.
"Harry, where are you going?" Voldemort demanded, brows furrowed.
"You never specified which friend," Harry called over his shoulder. "I'm just terribly disappointed in you that you saw that Regulus was on death's door and you never even once offered this elixir to save his life." Harry marched straight into his castle, V chattering on his shoulder. He understood all too well why Voldemort's hadn't offered the elixir to Regulus. There had been nothing in it for him. But now that Keket needed it, Voldemort figured he could use the situation to try to grab power away from Harry under the guise of being a caring friend.
Yeah, interesting try but Harry wasn't born yesterday. He would miss Keket the barok immensely, but Keket's soul would live on and that was what ultimately mattered the most.
Regulus was awake when Harry entered his room, with Sirius and Remus sitting at his bedside, apparently just done with telling Reggie all about Harry's recent adventures. Regulus was too weak to talk but his eyes crinkled in amusement while he raised one bony hand to gesture at Harry's beardless chin.
"Yeah, yeah, the dragon almost won, until it didn't," Harry said as he approached the unoccupied side of Regulus' bed. "I brought you a present. This will help heal you. It's called the Elixir of Life, but I have no clue what that is."
Sirius made a choking noise while Remus clapped a hand over his mouth in shock. "Where did you get this?" Remus whispered.
"Voldemort," Harry said, and at once Regulus shrank back in his pillow, eyes wide in obvious fear. "He's not coming for you, Regulus," Harry explained quickly. "In fact, he helped save your life."
"Dumbledore told us the Philosopher's Stone had been stolen," Remus said softly, still with a look of utter disbelief on his face as he stared at Harry.
"Ah." Harry shrugged, still not sure what the hell anyone was talking about when it came to that stone. "Here, you want it?" Harry held the carafe out towards Regulus, who gave it a very dubious look.
"If it makes you feel better," Harry said, understanding why Regulus would be more than a little apprehensive to drink anything offered by Voldemort. "He didn't mean for you to have this. He meant for Keket to drink it."
"Why would your hell-beast need the Elixir of Life?" Sirius asked, still sounding a little breathless with shock.
"Because her body's old and it doesn't have more time left. But I'm turning her into a dragon instead, so it's fine."
"What?" Sirius asked in a very small voice.
Regulus raised a trembling hand and gestured for Harry to give him the elixir. Harry smiled down at him while he carefully brought the edge of the carafe up to Reggie's chapped lips. Regulus closed his eyes while he slowly drank down the elixir, a little spilling down his chin. Once the carafe was empty Regulus lay perfectly still.
"Reggie?" Sirius asked as he leaned closer to the bed. "Are you okay?"
Some of Regulus' hair grew back before their eyes while his face filled out a bit and colour came back to his cheeks. When Regulus opened his eyes they were no longer sunken. "I feel great," Regulus said looking between Harry and Sirius in amazement. "Thank you, Mr Potter."
"Harry will do. Welcome back, Regulus."
"We can take you back to Black Manor," Sirius said. "And show you Magica. Imagine, Reggie, an island where we don't have to hide our magic. We can fly brooms from one end to the other without having to worry about muggles seeing us."
"That does sound amazing," Regulus said, looking at Sirius as if he worried his brother might be a mirage that could disappear at any moment. Then he glanced at Harry. "Thanks for your hospitality."
"You're more than welcome. I'll leave you to move back home." And with that, Harry left them to it, glad to see Regulus instantly restored to good health.
Right outside Regulus' room, Harry ran into Voldemort, who was holding another shimmering carafe.
"You are an impossible man!" Voldemort snarled, face a picture of quiet fury. "But I am willing to make a new deal."
"Name your price," Harry said with clear amusement in his voice.
Voldemort briefly bowed his head while inhaling a deep breath. "You are not the only one who has a dangerous animal for an old friend."
"Go on."
"I ask that you make a new island, off the coast of Magica. It doesn't have to be big. It needs some comfortable caves, some forests for wildlife and perhaps a small lake."
"That's easy enough to do," Harry said agreeably "What's going to live there?"
The look Voldemort gave Harry was almost challenging. "A basilisk."
Harry frowned in worry. "Aren't those really dangerous?"
And there was that frustration again painted all across Voldemort's face. "Says the man who currently has a dragon laying about in his yard and just talked about turning his friend into a nundu."
"Alright." Harry chuckled before nodding in understanding. "You make a good point. One well-warded island for your basilisk in exchange for the Elixir of Life for Keket. Deal?"
"Deal." Voldemort quickly handed the carafe to Harry as though afraid Harry might change his mind.
"Where is the basilisk currently? When would you be able to bring it here?"
"Ah." Voldemort's face smoothed out again while he sported a perfectly charming smile. "That's where it gets interesting. The basilisk is hidden at Hogwarts."
Harry raised both eyebrows in shock. What kind of a fucking society kept dangerous murder serpents in their schools?
"It would be difficult for me to break into Hogwarts right now without tripping the wards and alerting Dumbledore to my presence," Voldemort continued, tilting his head a little as if to portray himself as far more innocent than he really was.
"Then how are you getting the basilisk?" Harry asked, not fooled by Voldemort's charming façade for even one second.
"That is where you come in, Harry." Voldemort stepped a little closer to Harry. "You have an invitation to Hogwarts for Christmas day."
"No," Harry said at once when he realized where this was going. "Absolutely not."
Voldemort studied him while the door behind them opened and Sirius, Remus and Regulus walked out. They stopped once they saw the hallway was occupied and they stared at Harry and Voldemort in confusion.
"Harry," Voldemort said with a sugary-smooth voice. "Will you do me the honour of attending the Yule Ball with me?"