Chapter 57

This is part two of the lashing and Dumbledore's punishment.

The students from the other schools now understood why Potter was at the top of the food chain. Especially the students from Durmstrang who were amazed and impressed with his power and ferocity. While it was true that some of them despised Karkaroff with a passion, finding him a weak-willed headmaster who was only after serving his self-interest. They knew that crossing him would be bad. The duel yesterday clearly showed who was stronger, and it was clear that Potter was by far stronger than his opponent. Then, of course, they heard about his duel with the late Morrison and his battle against a basilisk. People from the international press and their head of government were enamored with the boy calling him a magical prodigy.

Both Beauxbaton and Durmstrang understood why Potter was not an enemy they wanted. The way he tore into some high-ranking individuals, reducing Madam Maxine to tears, and calling Dumbledore out was amazing. Speaking of the old headmaster in the past, many people revered him as the greatest wizard of his time. However, that hasn't been the case for a few years. Now people were questioning why he was allowed to still remain as headmaster of Hogwarts. At the moment, everyone was listening to what the boy who he implied was his apprentice tear into him.

"That is not the only thing you did either," Harry continued with a cold dissatisfied expression on his face. "In the third year, one of your biggest screwups was when you gave Granger a time-turner so she could take additional classes." People stared in bewilderment. Some looked at Dumbledore and Granger like they were crazy. "How you got permission to give that to a 13-year-old girl. I'll never know."

"How did you know I had a time-turner?"

Harry turned his head, "it wasn't that hard. The way you've been snapping at people, attending two classes at once, the bags under your eyes," he replied as if speaking to a child. "For someone who claims to be the smartest witch of her generation, you're pretty clueless. Did it not occur to you that over-exposure to time-turners or manipulating time would have severe consequences."

"Look, I was trying to," Harry cut her off.

"Trying to what? Prove that you are the only one who gets all the rewards. Trying to get into the accelerated program so you can show everybody else up." His voice became hard "the only thing you proved was how much of an idiot you really are."

"Lay off her, will you," Ron said darkly. "Hermione is already being punished enough and doesn't need you to bring up bad memories." He tried looking around for support, but no one would meet his gaze.

"Come on, guys, your seriously not going to attempt to help defend one of your own," taken back at how no one spoke up.

Neville responded. "Ron, you are in no position to be asking help from any of us," indicating to the rest of the lions. "Especially, not after what you two did. Far as I'm concerned at the moment, the two of you are lucky you're not being expelled at the moment."

Before Ron could say anything stupid, he was hit with a stunning spell from Blaise. The dark-skinned boy returned his wand to its holster. Then, surveying the hall as everyone looked at him, "what? I can't be the only one who was tired of him."

"Mr. Zabini, that will be 25 points from Slytherin House for attacking another student," Dumbledore's eyes were devoid of their trademark twinkle and laced with anger. Blaise only rolled his eyes.

Albus was about to speak but turned his head when he heard Harry chuckling, "thanks, Blaise. You saved me the trouble of doing it myself."

Blaise gave a mock bow "believe me. It was my pleasure, besides he had it coming after the stunt he pulled."

Harry nodded in agreement then turned to Dumbledore. "You know I've been pondering something for some time now," he began. "Why did you not handle Voldemort before he became a problem?" The people gasped when he said the name. "Instead of putting him down, you let him roam free. If you killed him before he became one of the worst bastards in history, then many more lives would have been saved. You knew how bad he was, and yet you sat on your lazy arse eating sweets."

Albus groaned. "What would that prove? I wanted to give him a chance so that he could build a life for himself. He may have hated muggles, but I never knew he would turn into such a monster. What he did in the last war has nothing to do with me."

"Are you shitting me right now?" Harry's voice became dangerous. "It has everything to do with you since you took an unhealthy interest in him. Out of all the other professors at the time, you saw what he truly was, and don't say you never knew because that's a load of hippogriff shite. You knew more about him than anyone else and insisted on taking an active part in his life. Translation: His actions are your responsibility, and everyone that he and his psychopaths killed that's all on you. You and he are no different from each other."

Never before had anyone ever compared him to Tom. That was probably the worst insult Albus had ever heard in his entire life. "I am nothing like him," he defended. "I only wanted him to understand."

"Understand what? That muggles are not all that bad," mocking the old man with his love for muggles. "Here is some free information, you retarded cock sucking bastard. Most muggles are not going to be happy when they discover that children are capable of performing magic. The probability of them accepting magical children is low as they're either taken away and experimented on. Or they'll be labeled as freaks by others and wanted for dead."

"You really want to tell me that muggles would be ecstatic to learn that their kids can make things happen others can't?" The muggleborns and those muggle raised nodded in agreement as they understood where he was coming from. Many were either ostracized, tormented, or treated like crap once people saw they could do magic. Their friends either abandoned them or their family members wanted nothing to do with them.

"As I said, you and Voldemort are no different as the two of you not only get people killed. You manipulate them into doing your dirty work. And once they are of no further use their tossed aside like a broken toy. The previous war should never have happened, and it's mainly your fault for not putting an end to him. Just how many people are you going to get killed to fix your mistake? Why didn't you just kill him before he turned into a murdering sociopath?"

"It's only due to my knowledge and skills that I can come out of each encounter alive," Dumbledore attempted to justify. "But, unfortunately, the times I've faced him, it takes everything I have to survive." However, he didn't like explaining his reasons as he wanted to redeem Tom to become his successor. "As for why I haven't tried to kill him yet is because I can't."

"You can't?" Harry raised an eyebrow at the man. "I think I've heard that before. 'Oh, I can't do this. I can't do that,'" he said in a mocking voice.

Dumbledore narrowed his eyes. "It's true I can't kill him," arguing the point.

"There's a difference between can't and won't," Harry stated, not believing a word Dumbledore said. "So, I'll ask you again why did you not kill him?"

"I told you. I can't."

"Why not?"

"I just can't, alright."

Lowering his eyebrow, "that is not an answer," shaking his head. "The only thing I'm hearing out of you is excuse after excuse. You can't do this; you can't do that. Is there anything you can do without being a complete fuck up? So, much for being the most powerful wizard in history can't even fix his own goddamn mistakes and too happy to sacrifice people for his greater good bullshite."

Damn this brat for questioning him. Who the hell did he think he was to question his judgments. He was Albus Dumbledore, the man who was said to be the second incoming of Merlin. His blue eyes were set ablaze as he was flexing his magic, attempting to make the boy back down. But, unfortunately, Harry was doing the same in flexing his own brand of magic. "Mr. Potter, you forget where we are and who you are speaking to. I am the headmaster of this school, and while you are here, you will show me some respect."

"And what are you going to do if I don't? Give me detentions? Take points away?" The magic he was channeling was holding the old man's at bay. "Haven't you learned by now that you have no power over me and taking points away means nothing to me. Aw, but if you take points away from me, then Gryffindor House will suffer and be unable to win the House Cup," he cooed. "Honestly, if you punish me, then you punish the other lions, and we all know how you don't want that."

Albus gritted his teeth as he was really in a bind. The boy was right. If he took points away from him, he would also be punishing the rest of the lions.

Harry continued, "oh, and here's something else you and those motherfucking bastards at the Ministry forgot. The second to the last time the Goblet was activated resulted in the extinction of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Manson."

The heirs and heiress from the prominent Houses looked at one another with questioning looks. Some wondered what he was talking about. Others heavily paled at the mention of the former House of Manson.

"Um, Harry, what are you talking about," Colin nervously asked.

Turning his attention to the mousy-haired boy, "before the last tournament when it was canceled, a group of idiots from Hogwarts thought it would be funny to enter a Hufflepuff third year in the tournament. The child in question was Sydney Manson, and he lost his mother and brother in a terrible accident. To make matters worse, a group of students wanted to have a little fun and put his name in the Goblet. However, they didn't know that it would constitute a magically binding contract." He paused for a moment, "the boy pleaded and begged the officials to not let him compete; even his father tried to get him out but was unable to."

"What happened to the boy?"

Releasing a breath, "the pressure became too much for him to bear, and he committed suicide in front of everyone." People gasped at what he said. "After witnessing the death of his remaining son, the former Lord had the people responsible sentenced to a fate worse than the dementors kiss." There were punishments of a higher caliber than made the dementor's kiss look tame by comparison.

"What could be worse than the dementor kiss?" Seamus looked moments away from spilling the contents of his stomach. The young Irish boy already browned his trousers. "They were pushed through the Veil of Death."

Arcturus grunted. "That would have been too easy for them." A sneer appeared on his face "the little shiet stains lost their magical cores and were banished from the magical world, and that was just to start. What came next was more frightening. They were robbed of their family jewels and forced to kill their relatives in the most heinous ways imaginable. Finally, the little bastards were subjected to pain far worse than the cruciatus curse, then only after they could barely breath were killed by hades fire."

Now, Seamus truly felt like hell and began throwing up along with some of the other students. The people heirs that were aware of the fate of the House of Mason already knew the history and knew it wasn't a lie.

Lord Black turned to face Bagman and Crouch "as for the two of you know this," his voice was so cold and filled with danger that it made their hearts stop. "If I lose my heir, then you two will find a whole new meaning to the words pain and suffering. Starting with what families you have left as they will be the first to die, but death will not come so easy for them as I will make them suffer endlessly Because I know that is more painful to the both of you, and only after they've suffered more than they thought possible will they die and I will make the two of you watch. Remember, Harry's life now depends on their lives."

The two ministry employees were so paled that they could only nod their heads.

Before they could speak, the Goblet of fire relit itself, but this time with a white flame. No, one knew what it meant until the flames released a big number '4' and a 'T' before going out. Harry's eyes became wide" oh shite, not good."

"Four tasks? They're four tasks now," Bagman exclaimed. "This changes everything."

Everyone looked at one another as they were prepared to see three tasks, not four.

"No, shite arsehole," training his eyes on the man. Harry looked murderous "instead of doing three tasks for this tournament, I now have to do four of them." He looked from them to Dumbledore "you three have really fucked this situation up, especially you old man."

"Mr. Potter, I had nothing to do with this," Dumbledore replied. "Though, as you know, the rules are absolute, and you must face each of the tasks or risk losing your magic."

Harry looked moments away from attacking him and was barely holding himself back. Then, releasing a breath, he quickly formed an idea "well, since I'm being forced to compete, know this. I will not represent Hogwarts in this fucked up tournament! Cedric was the one who entered and wanted to enter; thus, he is the champion of Hogwarts."

"Then who will you represent?"

A smirk appeared on Harry's face "according to the rules, the judges are required to give me five days to decide which school I wish to represent."

The students were whispering about the development as Potter refused to represent Hogwarts in the tournament, no that they blamed him. Meanwhile, Bagman and Crouch were skimming through the rule book to validate his claim.

Crouch raised his head to look at Dumbledore. "The boy is correct! The rules stipulate that if the champion wishes to not represent their given school, then they may choose another." He interrupted when Dumbledore was about to speak, "however, if Mr. Potter cannot find an institution, then one will be decided for him."

"Mr. Potter, you have five days to inform us of which school you wish to represent, or one will be chosen for you. Is that clear?"

"Crystal," the boy replied before turning to Dumbledore. "While I'm doing that, you need to deal with the two Gryffindor bullies Fred and George" he didn't get to finish.

"We're not bullies," the Weasley twins exclaimed.

Fred spoke, "we only try to have a little fun."

George took "If anything, we're like the Marauders."

McGonagall pinched the bridges of her nose while Sirius got a mixture of feelings. One of happiness, the other was regret.

Harry gave a sneer equivalent to one Severus would often give. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." He reached into his watch and pulled the map out.

Both Fred and George's mouths were open. "That's our map, and how do you know about the Marauders" the two exclaimed. They would have gotten up to get the map but were stopped when Cassiopeia and Arcturus pointed their wands at them with spells clearly on the tip of their tongues.

"You jackarses don't know anything about the Marauders," Harry stated. Holding the map up, "this map is Potter family property, and I'll be damned if I let the two of you have it." Their eyes became wide at what he said. In their first year, Snape took it from them. How the hell did Harry get it? "As for the Marauders, I know a lot more than you two as one of them happens to be over there," indicating to his godfather. "Gentlemen, I like you to meet Sirius Black, aka Padfoot. Prongs was my father, James Potter. Peter Pettigrew was Wormtail. And Remus Lupin was Moony." The two stared in awe as they were taught by one of the Marauders last year and didn't even know it.

"Now, let's clear a few things here, shall we, as the only child of the Marauders, this map is my birthright; therefore, I have a claim to it. The only way you two are getting it is by taking it by force, which isn't going to happen without a fight. Are you two willing to risk your lives to get this map?" Fred and George gulped. "I didn't think so. Next, you two are a pair bullies who enjoy tormenting others."

"That's not true," they defended.

"Shall we put that to the test," Harry sagely said. "Professors and students of Hogwarts, raise your hands if you think to raise your hand if you think Fred and George are bullies." To the twins' surprise, many of the students raised their hands as they agreed with him. Professor Snape was the first professor to raise his hand, followed by his colleagues. "I think that proves my point. Let me give you two a little rundown here. Pranking is one thing, but the number of times you two do it is a form of bullying, and honestly, their kind of stale. The marauders thought of themselves as prankers, but they were a pair of bullies to others, and they paid the ultimate price. Sirius was accused of betraying his best friends and lost years of his life in Azkaban. My father, James Potter, is six feet under with his wife. Lupin was turned into a werewolf when he was younger and can barely find a job. Pettigrew became a death eater. Now, do you two want to end up like them? Because I'm pretty sure your friend Jordan doesn't want to be turned into a werewolf nor does he want to end up in either Azkaban or dead."

The twins, plus Lee, were scared and yellowing their pants. Jordan was even shitting himself.

"Oh, and before I forget, the only reason why you two haven't been expelled yet is because this cock sucking piece of shit keeps pulling strings," pointing to Dumbledore. "Were if you two attended a different institution, then your sorry arses would have been long gone." He let that seep into them, then turned to Dumbledore "as for you, old man. You have been spared the rod for far too long, and it's time that you've been punished. All those in favor of relieving Dumbledore from his position as headmaster show of hands."

Once again, a majority of the students raised their hands along with a few professors. The only ones on Dumbledore's side were his followers, which wasn't an overwhelming amount as it was barely 15%. Harry could tell that his dad wanted to raise his hand but had to appear as if he was still in the old man's pocket. McGonagall wasn't any different as she also wanted Albus gone. The man she thought she knew betrayed and used her as if she was like a chess piece. Albus was mortified at the number of people who wanted him gone.

"Madam Black, I believe this is where you take over," Harry gestured for Amelia to proceed.

A ghost of a smile appeared on her face as she was impressed by his maneuver. "Albus Dumbledore as the Head of the Magical Law Enforcement of magical Britain and Ireland. I hereby place you under arrest for child endangerment, neglect, and for abusing your permission as headmaster of Hogwarts. You will be taken to a holding cell to await your trial."

Everyone's jaws hit the ground as they were speechless. No one was more surprised than Dumbledore, who looked moments away from bursting a blood vessel. Then, trying to salvage what little control he had, "Amelia, please, is this really necessary. I assure you that everything I do is for the betterment of this institution."

Amelia narrowed her eyes at him as she was not cowed by his grandfather persona. "It's either Director Bones or lady Black to you, Mr. Dumbledore" she made sure to emphasize the mister part. "You can come of your own free will or be escorted out in chains. The choice is yours."

Seeing no alternative, he sighed. "I'll come quietly. Professor Vector, you are in charge until I get back" the Arithmancy professor nodded though she was trying to keep a smile from appearing on her face. On the inside, she was jumping for joy. Amelia motioned for the Nymphadora, Alice, and Frank to escort Dumbledore out of the castle.

On the other hand, Harry knew that Dumbledore would never allow himself to be removed from his position so easily and would likely use the many favors owed to him to get a reduced sentence. However, this was all part of his plan as it would weaken the old man! With Dumbledore out of Hogwarts, he could do as he pleased without any interference from the goat. This might be temporary, but it was a start. Professor Vector stood up to speak.

"I believe tonight's events are finished. Everyone back to their common rooms except for the ones involved in this tournament."

Madam Maxine and Igor Karkaroff ushered their students out of the hall, though the former still had tears coming down her eyes and was now sweating bullets. The situation she was in at the moment was bad. Very bad! She silently prayed that the Delacours would be merciful with her. Alastor retrieved the memory crystal and pocketed it in his coat.

Severus glared at his snakes. "I want every single member of my House in the common room by the time I get down, or there will be hell to pay." The cold iron in his voice showed that he meant it "and inform misters Goyle, Nott, Crabbe, Malfoy, Flint, and miss Parkinson that they better be present." Nobody from his House dared to question him as they raced back to their common room as fast as their legs could carry them.

When all that was left were the champions, their headmaster/headmistresses, the representative from the Ministry, and the Blacks. Professor Vector asked Crouch to proceed with the instructions.

(0^0)

Twenty-five minutes later, in the lion's den, the Gryffindors were in a right state as morale was at an all-time low. Many of them were trying to process the events of what happened in the great hall. Not only did Potter rip into some high-ranking people, but they bore witness to the true history of the Goblet of fire. It was an absolute shock to learn about the dark truth behind the ancient device as they now understood that it truly was a dark and dangerous object. The biggest surprise was how Dumbledore was arrested and will likely be removed from his post as headmaster. A majority believed that he had it coming, given how Harry explained some of the things that could have either been minimized or never should've occurred. Ron and Hermione were either outraged or very upset as things have taken a turn for the worse for them. Their fellow housemates refused to give them any sympathy as their expressions were of pure loathing.

"I can't believe this," Ron's face was the same color as his hair. "I can't believe you guys didn't even try to defend us," he yelled at everyone.

"For once in your goddamn life would you stop bitching like a little girl," Neville sent a cold glare at Ron. "Really, after everything you two did. You have the nerve to act like you're the victims here. If anything, you two should have been expelled by now, not that it wouldn't have been justified." Some of the others nodded in agreement.

"But it's not fair," Hermione bit back. "We were only doing what we thought was necessary at the time. During the whole incident with the chamber of secrets, we thought it was Malfoy who was responsible for the attacks."

"So, that gives you the right to steal from a professor, drug a pair of students, and break into their common room," Parvati took over for Neville. "Did it not occur to you that that would yield in severe consequences for the rest of us. That arrogant git is all bark and no bite."

"Look at his family," Hermione snapped back. "I mean, they're all pureblood supremacists who hate muggleborns and half-bloods. Practically all of them were in Slytherin when they attended school."

She received a lot of angry glares. "Are you out of your fucking mind," Neville shouted.

"Language," Hermione said.

"Granger shut the fuck up," everyone shouted at her except for Ron and his siblings. Hermione took a few steps back until her back was against the wall.

Neville resumed, "what you and Ron did was out of line. Just so you know, a lot of purebloods hate muggleborns, that doesn't mean that they would all kill them. If you've forgotten their purebloods in this school, they either don't like muggleborns or are friends with them. Now, thanks to the two of you, we're going to be put in the line of fire. As if things around here weren't already tense enough."

Ron was about to speak when McGonagall came stomping in with a mixture of grave and angry expressions on her face. "Ms. Granger, Mister. Weasley, the two of you will be going home tomorrow after breakfast. So, I suggest you pack your trunks tonight."

"Professor, you can't honestly allow Potter to punish us this way," Ron pleaded.

"Silence," she shouted. Her voice rang through the common room, telling everyone of her lions to remain quiet. "In all my years of being the Head of Gryffindor House, never have I ever been as ashamed in two of my own. I am very close to handing in my resignation and allowing another professor to be in control." Narrowing her eyes at Ron and Hermione, "the punishments stand. I have never seen such a disregard for the school's bylaws, and the two of you should be thankful that you haven't been chucked out of the gates. Now, get to your dorms and pack your belongings."

Ron and Hermione didn't waste a minute as they did what they were told and went up to their year dorms. McGonagall told everyone to be in bed in ten minutes before leaving in a huff. Unfortunately, Ron and Hermione weren't the only ones suffering, as Lee and the twins were being chewed out by the chasers. Then it happened. Much to the boy's shock, Angelina broke up with George, as he didn't understand why she wanted to end their relationship. Angelina said that while she liked him. She would not date a person who was a bully and refused to grow up. Alicia warned Fred that if he didn't grow up and act his age, then they would be over as well. The dark-skinned girl went as far as to put a hold on her relationship with him. On the other hand, Katie slapped Lee across his face, leaving a red handprint before leaving up the stairs with Alicia and Angelina.

(0^0)

In the dungeons of the Slytherin common room, things were much similar as the atmosphere was very tense with Flint, Parkinson, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle throwing were ranting and raving about how they lost so much of their father's money to Potter. While they were whining like a bunch of babies, Malfoy was trying to make sense of what happened. He brought a polyjuiced blood-traitor and mudblood into the common room without checking who they really were. The Malfoy heir became pale as he feared what his father would do to him once he got the letter. Just imagining his father's punishment sent shivers down his spine. He mentally thanked Merlin that, unlike his friends, he didn't cost his father any money.

"I can't believe this," Pansy exclaimed, bringing Draco out of his thought. "Potter is costing me all of my family's money." But she continued ranting, "there is no way this could be legal, and once my father learns what's happened, then Potter will pay."

"Parkinson, I know your only good for spreading your legs but try using a little common sense" Blaise narrowed his eyes at her.

Pansy sneered at him "shut it, Zabini. You forget that my father is a close friend of the Minister of Magic. They can easily make your Houses life hell" she attempted to make herself seem more important than him.

Blaise snorted. "Please Parkinson, after your little stunt in the great hall, your death eater of a father won't be able to bribe the Minister anymore." Pansy's face became even redder with anger as she was about to retort but was cut off. "Don't even try to deny it, as it's pretty well-known that your father only got off after claiming to be under the imperius curse."

"Time to face the fact, without your family's money, you got nothing. In fact, the only thing keeping you from being as poor as the Weasley family is that your family still owns a few companies. Though, they might not last!"

Pansy snarled as she pulled her wand out on the dark-skinned boy, though she didn't count on his friends doing the same.

"Guys, stand down. Parkinson doesn't have the guts to curse me" he stepped forward until her wand was literally poking him in the chest.

"You really think that Zabini," she said challengingly, trying to sound tough even though she was slightly scared.

"I don't think. I know you won't," Blaise clarified. "You don't have the boobs to curse me," shocking the other girls and many of the males. "Your all bark and no bite!"

"I am not scared of you" he could see her fear growing. Then, pressing on, "oh, I think you are. You've always been a coward hiding behind people. A true Slytherin would stand up and prove why he or she deserves to be at the top, and you're at the bottom of the list." Then, he felt the tip of her wand heat up with a spell clearly on the tip of her tongue. "Come on, Parkinson, do it. Curse me, and for your sake, you better hope it a good spell because there will be nothing to stop me from beating your ugly bitch arse all over this common room."

"The very moment you fire a curse at me, then I promise that you will experience pain far worse than you ever thought possible. So, what's it going to be, you're an unattractive pug face slag? You going to curse me or not?"

The common room looked expectantly at what Pany's response would be. However, it was widely known how weak the pug was, and if she tried anything, the consequences would be on her head. So finally, after what seemed like forever, even though it had only been a minute or two, Pansy lowered her wand and sneered at Blaise.

"You're lucky I'm in a good mood today, Zabini, or you would not be able to move any" she didn't get to finish as Blaise punched her dead in the face making her fall on her bum. Everyone looked at him with bewilderment.

Blaise extended his hand to grab the top part of her head as she held her broken nose. "I don't appreciate you tone bitch, and just so we're crystal clear. You need to learn your place" bringing her head down, he kneed the girl in the face then delivered a few punches to her ribs. When she was coughing, Blaise threw her against the wall, and before she could regain herself, he grabbed her by the throat and held her up.

"Let this serve as a lesson to you. Know that I can snap your neck right here and now," tightening his grip on her neck, making it hard for her to breathe.

"Please, I… don't want to die" she was having a hard time speaking. "Please, I want… to live" he then released the girl to let her slide down the wall as she coughed.

"That is only a sample of what will happen to you should you try and act all high and mighty. Whenever you want to act like a filthy cunt remember my hand on your throat because next time I will not be so charitable." She raised her head to look at him "got me bitch!" Pansy then started sobbing as he moved away.

Not a moment later, Professor Snape entered the common room with a look that said he was pissed. When he saw the state of Parkinson, he enquired to what happened. Blaise explained that Parkinson pulled her wand on him with the intent to curse him. He reacted and taught the girl her place. Snape narrowed his eyes at him for a moment before ordering Millicent Bulstrode to take Parkinson to see Madam Pomfrey. After speaking to her, he turned his attention to the rest of the Slytherin and voiced his displeasure on some, looking at Flint, Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, Malfoy, and the injured Parkinson embarrassed the noble House of Slytherin tonight.

"Did I not make it perfectly clear that Slytherin was supposed to represent the best of what Hogwarts had to represent? I know what I said because I stood here as I said it," using a voice he normally reserved for Gryffindors or Granger and the Weasley twins. "I told you, idiots, to act your best for the evening! Not to act like a bunch of spoiled brats" his voice was cold as ice.

"But Professor, it was all Potter's fault," the troll-like boy didn't get to finish as he was met by the cold black eyes of his head of the house.

Severus was seething for two reasons. One the idiot had the nerve to blame his son for the way he acted tonight. The second was because the fool was a disgrace to the House of Slytherins, "and pray tell how it was the Potter brat's fault that you not only had the nerve to question him in front of the entire school about his right of conquest."

"Well, it was obvious at the time" Snape cut him off. "What is obvious is that my snakes don't have any cunning; instead, they acted like a bunch of spoiled Gryffindors," he said as if he swallowed a sour lemon. "I also know that if you don't give the brat his money by next Monday, then you bastards will lose your magics and become lesser than the Weasley's."

That made the four boys go green as they looked about ready to be sick. The last thing they wanted to be as compared to the Weasley family. Severus, however, gave no quarters "yes, you fools now understand the predicament you are in. The reputation of Slytherin House was always high, but that is not the case anymore as the six of you destroyed that tonight."

Severus continued tearing into them for the next twenty minutes, making Marcus shit himself with fear. Crabbe and Goyle pissed themselves, and Nott looked on the verge of fainting. Their head of house then drilled into Draco for his incompetence in bringing Granger and Weasley into the common room. Draco tried to defend himself, saying that he didn't know it was them, to begin with, as they looked exactly like Crabbe and Goyle at the time. Unfortunately, this only served to anger the man further as he literally got in the boy's face making him pale heavily.

"Look into my eyes and tell me what you see," Severus ordered.

Draco fearfully complied and what he saw terrified him even worse. "It's an empty void of cold darkness with no light."

"That is your future at the moment. Mr. Malfoy, you and your friends, have dishonored this House with what you've done. As punishment, you six are now under house arrest, will spend the next two months in detention with Filch, and are banned from Hogsmeade until I think you are capable of acting your ages. If I hear any complaining, you will experience displeasure far worse than you've ever thought possible. Now get out of my sight!" he ordered.

Draco and his companion didn't need to be told twice as they raced up the stairs with the intent of warding their rooms shut.

Soon after that, many of the others headed toward their dorms until it was only Severus along with his son's friends. Giving them a knowing nod. He ushered Nicole to escort the rest to her room; Daphne would know what to do from there. Finally, Severus left for his own quarters with the intent of using the floo network to arrive in Harry's room. The amount of emotions he was sensing from the boy was considerable as it ranged from anger, annoyance, and rage.

Arriving in the apartment, he grabbed some powder, stepped into the fireplace, and threw it on the ground. He was transported to his son's room; he saw Emily standing against the wall while walking out. Before he could move forward, she stopped him from going forward as Harry was locked in a ferocious battle with twenty or so magical dummies. Spying the level they were at, his eyes became wide as their level was set to level six, meaning lethal. However, something else shocked him as the way Harry was handling them. The power and fighting style he employed was dangerous as Harry was literally channeling his inner darkness to fuel his attacks. Most of his spells were very dark and destructive, with only a few greys. A moment later, the boy's friends came via Iroh's shadow traveling, and they were torn between being scared and awestruck at the power Harry was channeling.

Adrian and Daphne tried stepping forward to try and calm him down but were painfully repelled back by the wards.

"What was that?" Adrian exclaimed, rubbing his arm.

"That was a warning," Emily explained. "What you felt was only the first function of the wards, and I wouldn't try doing that again because the next time will be much more painful."

"How long has he been at it?" Daphne's voice held concern as she'd never seen him use this fighting style or this level of destructive magic. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she was concerned as he could accidentally kill himself.

Emily sympathized with her as she, too, was concerned for him. "He's been here since they released the champions from the antechamber." She continued watching as he destroyed each of the magical dummies which were far more advanced than the regular ones they used.

The last group appeared in front of him, and she noticed their levels were at seven, meaning trouble. Then he did something that shocked her instead of using the regular fire comet spell. Instead, he used a more powerful version of it and amplified it with the elements of earth and lightning. Unfortunately, the attack resulted in causing a massive explosion that destroyed the wards around them and annihilated the dummies as if they were tissue papers. Luckily Severus, Emily, and Nicole were able to put up a shield to avoid the blast.

It all ended when Harry fell to one knee, heavily panting and sweating all over. The first to reach him were Daphne and Emily, followed by Severus and then the others. "We're not going to leave you," Daphne placed a hand on his left shoulder while Emily did the same on his right.

"This is turning out to be one fucked up year," Aaron commented with a grim expression on his face.

Severus was more occupied with consoling his son rather than reprimanding the Vaisey for his language. "There is no way in hell you're going out there unprepared," he coolly declared. "As soon as you get the rules from Mrs. Schwarber, we'll soon begin learning what you will need to expect."

Tracey soon chimed in, "no matter what happens, we'll stay with you," giving him a grin. The others nodded in agreement, saying they would also stick with him.

Harry gave them a look of gratitude before releasing a breath "this is going to be a tough year," he began. "These four tasks are going to be stressful, and I'm going to need to be at my best."

"Did they give you any clues as to what the first task will be?" Blaise started wondering what the tasks would be. "Or who you'll be representing?"

Harry looked thoughtful for a few minutes. "For one thing, I will not represent Hogwarts in this endeavor," he declared firmly. "If headmaster Yoshi allows it, I can be a champion for Mahoutokoro, but I'm going to need a representative. As for the first task, Crouch only said it would test my daring's whatever that means."

"Wow, no wonder people die in these tournaments," Blaise commented though quickly recoiled after receiving a death glare from Daphne and Emily. This was followed by a cold glare from Nicole and a slap in the back of the head from Tracey. "What I mean is you got this. All you have to do is play your cards right, and you'll come out on top."

"Thanks," Harry sarcastically said.

Giving Blaise another death glare, Emily looked at her brother. "Is there anything else?"

"In two weeks, there's going to be a wand weighing ceremony. According to that useless meat bag Bagman, they're going to check our wands and have a reporter do an interview about us."

"Did they say who was going to be conducting the interviews?"

Harry answered. "No! But I have a feeling I know who it's going to be. A certain unattractive bug-eyed cunt who doesn't know how to write a true story to save her life."

"Rita Skeeter," they all said in unison.

Spying out the corner of his left eye, he noticed Iroh trotting over to his bed near the fire with a yawn. The hellhound lay on his bed, preparing to fall asleep. "I'm going to bed for the night," rising to his feet, he made to leave for his room.

Severus let out a breath, gesturing for the others to follow suit. The only ones who remained were Daphne and Emily. The others used the passageways the room required to return to their separate dorms/quarters. Emily vacated to a bedroom the room provided for her while Daphne followed up the stairs behind Harry.

Close to the end of last month, Daphne had spent every night sleeping next to him as she also slept better next to him. Harry, of course, didn't have any issues with the arrangement as he felt the same way. Severus being his adoptive father held his reservations about two teenagers sleeping in the same bed together, but he eventually came around. When she opened the door, she found him lying on the bed, reading his grimoire, wearing a loose shirt and a pair of sweatpants. Going to the drawers, she pulled out some pajamas and went into the bathroom to get changed. After quickly switching out of her clothes, Daphne walked back into the bedroom, where she got into bed with him.

"It'll be alright," she said, maneuvering herself into a comfortable position "you'll pull through. I know you can do it."

Harry closed his grimoire and put it on the nightstand next to the bed. "I hope so," releasing a breath. "Whoever put my name in the Goblet of fire better pray I don't get my hands on them because the moment I find them. They're going to be begging for the safety of Azkaban."

"Give it time, and you will. Just remember that you have people like you who care about you."

He leaned down and kissed her cheek "thank you, Daphne. Thank you for being you." Resting his head on the pillow, he pulled her closer with her head at the crook of his neck, and the two soon fell asleep.

The next morning Harry woke up early as he usually did to see a still sleeping Daphne. How anyone could look so beautiful while sleeping was beyond him. Careful, he maneuvered himself out of bed and went downstairs to place a few calls. Daphne, on the other hand, was still sound asleep, having a pleasant dream. She was sitting on the bench with a girl who had long black hair and green eyes. Over in the distance was an older version of Harry playing a little boy with blue eyes and unruly blond hair.

A smile appeared on her face when they came over. Harry came over to give a quick kiss before picking up the little girl. However, the dream didn't last long as she was woken up by her morning alarm; wiping her eyes to clear her vision, she noticed Harry was gone. Rising from the bed, she made her way downstairs; her face was a bit flushed as the dream she had was amazing. Those thoughts followed her way down until she reached the bottom of the stairs, where she heard a collection of people.

"This matter is quite troubling," Daphne recognized the voice of the ICW commander. "However, I will do everything I can to help you."

"Same with me," the Mahoutokoro headmaster said. "The school of Mahoutokoro will always stand to protect one of its students."

Harry respectfully nodded. "I'm going to need a representative."

"I'll do it. I just need to know when the tasks will be."

"November 24th!"

"And what of your academics? But, of course, since you're a champion now, you don't really have to attend classes."

Grinning a bit. "I am mostly done with the syllabuses," he admitted. "At the rate, I was going, I should have been done with them completely by the end of November at the very least. However, since I no longer have to attend classes, I should be through with them much earlier."

Yoshi looked thoughtful for a moment "let me see, speak to the school board. Maybe I can convince them to take a couple of your exams in March when you come here."

"Thank you, headmaster," giving a respectful bow. Soon everyone signed off, and he released a breath. A second later, he felt a pair of hands around his waist the familiar scent of vanilla filled his nose. "Morning Sapphire."

"Any news about what your next move will be," she asked as he turned around to look down at her.

"Ragnok and Griphook looked through the rules of the tournament and found out that I have officially been declared an adult," pausing for a moment to take in her scent. "Headmaster Yoshi has agreed to represent me throughout the entire tournament, and Taymore has agreed to pass on any information he can."

Daphne buried her face in his chest, listening to his heartbeat. "I'm scared for you. I read how dangerous this tournament can be, and what it does to people," muffling into his chest.

Harry pulled back a bit to look her in the eyes. He was captivated by how beautiful her eyes were. "I promise to do everything I can to survive through this tournament" pulling her close, he rested his head on top of hers, his hands on her back.

They stayed like that for a few minutes before using the bathrooms to get ready for the day. After showering and putting on some fresh clothes, they were soon joined by Emily, and the three went to the great hall for breakfast. Upon their arrival, they found some open seats at the Ravenclaw table. Just as they began filling their plates, the other students started coming in. Many of the students from all three schools stared at Harry with bewilderment as they didn't know what to make of him. Last night, he proved to have a lot of power and quite a venomous tongue that and he was able to make Dumbledore look like a fool and got the man arrested. While a few students wanted to call him a cheat for entering the tournament but found they couldn't as he swore a magical vow proving his innocence. One thing was for sure though, he was not an enemy they wanted to make.

The rest of Harry's friends arrived to sit with them. The ones who knew him best knew how much he wanted to be away from this tournament and had no desire to participate in it. People like Luna, Susan, Hannah, Cedric, and Nicole sat with him, showing they supported him. However, not everyone was happy with Harry, evidenced by the angry look he was getting from Ron and the group of snakes who were now under house arrest. Hermione's eyes were red as it was clear she'd been crying and didn't get much sleep. Never in all her life would she have ever imagined being suspended from school. This was a disaster for her as she loved everything about school, but now she was being sent home for doing what she thought was right.

As the students continued eating, a handful of students from Durmstrang approached Harry and the others. "Excuse me, Mr. Potter, we would like to talk with you," one of the Durmstrang students said. Harry turned around to see fourteen of them.

"What do you need?" the person he was looking at looked to be around 18 and was well built.

The man continued after swallowing a lump in his throat. "We that is my colleagues and me here," gesturing to the group behind him, "are impressed with your performance the past two days. You not only defeated our headmaster in single combat, but you've proven to be very resourceful when gathering allies. I have to say that your reputation precedes you as not only an accomplished scholar but a formidable combatant. Your headmaster at Mahoutokoro must be very proud to have such a powerful person like yourself as a student."

"I do what I must to survive," he said with an expressionless voice.

Surprisingly the Durmstrang chuckled with amusement "indeed. Survival is a necessity," one of them said. But then, the one in front resumed, "obviously, you are very powerful. We want to see just how skilled you truly are. Would you take us on in a duel?"

That startled the people listening as they couldn't believe what they had the guts to challenge Potter to a duel. The boy in question was also surprised for a moment; however, he could see that they were serious. Everyone's attention was on Harry, waiting to see what his answer would be.

"Before, I answer you. I have one question." The man nodded. "What rules will we use during the duel?"

Giving him a smile, "will Durmstrang regulations work for you?"

"I'm good with that" Harry grinned. "Can we do it on the Quidditch pitch at noon?"

"I was about to ask the same thing," liking how the stage was being set.

Harry held out his hand "just so you know, I have no intentions of losing," he said with determination in his eyes.

The man liked the fire in Harry's eyes took his hand "neither do we. See you on the pitch," releasing his hand. He and the others walked away.

Harry sat back down, ignoring the stares and whispers directed at him. People knew how powerful Potter was, but they've never seen him take on multiple opponents. Most of them thought he was crazy for accepting a duel against fourteen seventh-year students, though they were eager to see how it would turn out. People had already started placing bets on the outcome. Ironically so did Aaron and Blaise. The others, however, shook their heads at them.

"I hope you know what you're getting into," Daphne whispered to him. "I know your good and all, but to go up against fourteen of those idiots is pushing it."

He responded by giving her his trademark smile "don't worry so much," he assured her. "Besides, I wouldn't have accepted without just cause. Also, I'm interested in seeing just how powerful they all are, plus it would be a good workout for me."

Daphne knew that he was extremely adept when it came to magical combat. She had seen it multiple times in the past, like last night. His power was on a whole other level compared to everyone else's, but she couldn't shake her concern. As skilled as he may be, the odds were against him. There were fourteen of them against him, and they were going to use the dueling regulations of Durmstrang. Even though he was a dueling prodigy, who'd been dueling since before even attending Mahoutokoro. She knew of the regulations at Durmstrang, for they specialized in dark magic and trained in the arts of power and brutality. "Just be careful."

Harry nodded at her. Turning around, he saw Aaron and Blaise placing bets. "Tell Aaron and Blaise they are paying me half of what they've earned." That was all he said before getting up to leave the great hall.

Meanwhile, during the end of breakfast, the two male Slytherins finally sat back down and were joined by the Gryffindor chasers. Judging by their faces, something happened last night. Nicole spied over at the lion's table and saw the angry looks of Lee Jordan and George Weasley. The former looked murderous at Aaron as he and Katie were talking. If the idiot knew what was good for him, he better not try anything cute, she thought. Angelina briefly scanned the area for Harry but found no sight of him.

"Where did Harry go? I know he's not the sociable type, but he's usually here."

Emily shrugged her shoulders "knowing him, he's either outside on the pitch or by the lake. So no need to worry if he wants to be found, then he will be."

Angelina looked at her fellow chasers for a moment as they all shared a concerned look. Then, finally, Alicia spoke, "you don't seem all that worried about the fact of him dueling students from Durmstrang." Emily raised an eyebrow. "I mean, don't get me wrong, Harry's very powerful. There's no question there. But aren't you concerned?"

"Not at all," she began inspecting her nails. "If anybody should be worried, then it should be the students from Durmstrang."

"But it's fourteen against one."

"Wrong, it's fourteen against Harry," Emily corrected. "You seem to have forgotten where we attended before we came to Hogwarts."

Blaise began laughing "no need to remind me. Harry is a Potter, and like his ancestors, they're warriors." Shaking his head, "sometimes I forget how powerful that boy really is, and he's only fourteen. I wonder what he'll be like once he's full grown or gets his magical maturity."

The chasers eyes opened wide at what he said. "Are you telling me that he's this powerful and hasn't even had his maturity yet" surprise was heard in Katie's voice. He nodded. "Damn," her mind began racing at trying to figure out just how powerful he really was. "All things considered; today's match should be pretty interesting." Angelina and Alicia nodded in agreement.

"Oh yeah, he asked me to pass on a message to the two of you." Daphne looked directly at Aaron and Blaise. "He said you two are giving him half of what you guys win off the bets you've made."

The two chuckled. "Yeah, seems fair!" A smile plastered on Aaron's face.

(0^0)

Hours later, news about the duel between Harry and the Durmstrang students spread like fiendfyre, and people talked about it. Even the professors wanted to witness the outcome of the duel. Soon everybody was seated in the stands with the professors in the staff area looking down at the pitch. The entire duel was being overseen by Deputy headmistress Septima Vector. Say what you want about the woman, but she knew how to run a school and control the students. Down on the pitch were the Durmstrang students and Harry himself. At first, she was against it, but he somehow convinced her to let them duel. Next to her were Igor Karkaroff and Madame Maxine. The former looked superior; evidently, he was still reeling from the pain Potter dished out and wanted some payback. Moody pulled out a recording crystal as he wanted to capture the match.

Septima added a quick wave after she drew her wand to amplify her voice. After giving a speech about the rules of the duel that was to take place. She made sure to let them know that anything goes so long as there was no killing and the unforgivables were not to be used. Anything else was fair game. Once she was through, they were told to take their stances "and battle begin!"

The Durmstrang students wasted no time in firing questioning spells at Harry, who dodged them all with acrobatics. Having spent most of his life being trained extensively and intensively in both magical and muggle combat, Harry was accustomed to both areas of fighting. He then retaliated with grey magic, but he was only testing them to see how skilled they truly were. He was only using a fraction of his power at the time as there was no need to use everything from the start. After deflecting some curses back at them, he quickly fired an explosion curse at the ground and sent three back. Then, without wasting a moment, he aimed his wand straight in the air and began twisting it in a patter till the clouds started to become violent. Quickly adding a complex motion to his wand movement, this eventually created two giant twisters that hit the ground.

It was the same move he used against Miwa during their exams last year, which seemed to work against the Bulgarian students who were shielding themselves against the powerful winds. However, Harry wasn't done with his opponents distracted dealing with the winds. He pointed his wand at the ground and sent a spell that shook beneath them. For his next move, he fired a multi-colored ball of light from his wand at the ground. It was a modified version of the terrain spell Miwa created. The spell didn't increase the effectiveness of lightning spells; it doubled the effects of the caster's spells.

The students of Durmstrang couldn't believe what was going on as one boy could handle the fourteen of them. The group leader thought they would have the match easily, yet he was proven wrong as Potter was not only able to fend them off. He was able to launch a counteroffensive. It was something completely unexpected, even less than it was coming from a fourteen-year-old, as not many were capable of this feat of magic. The twisters were one thing, but the ground shaking was another as they were finding a hard time maintaining their balance. The slashes of wind were tearing into them, leaving severe cuts, so a couple of the students decided to get rid of them while the others dealt with the shaking ground. When they finally got everything under control, they were about to resume their attacks but were suddenly hit with a pink spell. Seeing as it had no effects, they saw Potter firing a ball of light in the air; thinking it was a ball of light, they covered their eyes.

A smile appeared on Harry's face as his opponents reacted just like he thought they would and shielded their eyes. The next moment the ball of white light broke into several smaller versions and began bombarding them. Thanks to the modified terrain spell, his attack was far more powerful as the Durmstrang were desperately trying to dodge the white beams. Now that he had them right where he wanted them, Harry created a long fire lash that covered the area. Many of the older boys tried dodging his attack; only a few tried shielding but were blown back. This was Harry's style of combat. Deconstructing his opponents once they've shown their hand, he takes them down with all necessary force. He followed his attack up by firing a series of piercing, bone-shattering, blasting curses, explosion one, and a couple balls of electricity. Since the effects of his spells were amplified, that meant they'd be a lot more painful and hard to deal with. Few by few, the Durmstrang's fell.

Some, in particular, couldn't believe what was happening. They were getting beaten by a fourteen-year-old boy. It was kind of ironic that a fourteen-year-old boy could fight off the fourteen of them as if it was nothing. However, despite their injuries, they refused to give up and lost momentum. In a last-ditch effort, they used all the power they had at once to either create a giant tornado of fire, a fire circle, a couple of fiery animals, along with some of the darker curses that would tear a man apart. Harry's only emotion was excitement as his opponents were finally starting to take things interesting. He batted the curse they sent him away as if they were nothing. When the roaring fires approach, he thrust his left hand at them, catching the flames, and rotated his wand above his head.

As the flames near him, they momentarily stopped in their tracks. His magical grip over them allowed him to control them with ease. As such, they were now under his control, much to the older boys' shock, for they could only stare at what Potter was doing. He was controlling the flames with relative ease like it was an extension of his body.

Harry began laughing "this is actually a pretty decent workout. You boys sure play for keeps, but sadly your powers just don't measure up," continuing with his wand movement. "Since these flames were yours, to begin with, it's only right that I return them." They wondered what he meant by wanting the flames back, but as soon as that entered their minds, the flames circling Potter started condensing, becoming smaller. The next moment they became larger and sent towards them more powerful and faster than before. Harry then created a bomb of pure lightning as the flames raced towards them while the flames distracted them. They didn't have a chance to see the explosion of yellow lightning coming their way.

If they thought the raging fires were hard to deal with, it was nothing compared to the effects of the lightning explosion. Potter not only augmented the flames but also made them hard to deal with, that combined with the lightning, they collapsed on the ground, twitching in pain. Their pain couldn't be explained as their bodies were littered with cuts, many broken bones, and mild burns. Two or three of them hoped the boy was done, but he wasn't as a giant cloud of black smoke enveloped the field, making it hard for them to see. Harry pocketed his wand, raced into the dark cloud of smoke, and delivered a series of magically infused kicks and punches to foreign students. They didn't even have a chance to retaliate against him as he took them down with a series of muggle combat techniques. The only thing that could be heard was their groans of pain as Harry broke their bodies one by one. When he finished off the last one with a couple of punches, four in the jaw, six in his ribs, and finally sent him to the ground with a wheel kick.

Seeing his job done, Harry backflipped away until he was out of the smoke. Then, taking his wand back out, he waved it to vanish the smoke. As the smoke cleared, all that was left was the Durmstrang students who were groaning in pain and agony. The people in the bleachers stared with amazement. The students from Durmstrang who weren't dueling jeered at Potter's ruthlessness and brutality. Brutality was a key component for them as their education was mainly about survival, and what he did was amazing. The members of Beauxbaton were torn between either applauding the boy or being terrified of him. While it came as to no surprise that Harry was powerful, the students of Hogwarts were impressed that he could duel fourteen seventh years at once. Everyone watched as the duelist from Durmstrang struggled to their feet, and they could only imagine the pain they were going through.

Harry saw how battered and exhausted his opponents were and decided to end things. He carefully moved forward with his green eyes still burning with fire. Although his warrior side was telling them to quickly finish them, having enjoyed himself for the day, he debated how to end things. It took a moment, but he reached a decision. Charging up his attack, he twirled his wand in a circle and fired a red and purple energy orb covered in fire at them. His last spell rocketed towards them, which they attempted to get out of the way, but it hit the ground, causing a big explosion that created a sizable crater and knocked them to different ends of the pitch. They were effectively defeated and out of commission now.

The professors were applauding such an amazing duel in the staff section, with the loudest being from Moody and Flitwick. The former retrieved the recording crystal, pocketing it. His magical eye saw that Karkaroff was both seething with anger and had a twinge of fear given his face. Septima took her wand out as she got to her feet, adding a sonorous charm "the winner is Hadrian Potter." Again, the crowd burst out applauding him.

Pretty soon, Madam Pomfrey was on the field with a handful of Durmstrang students trying to levitate their injured to the hospital wing for treatment. Harry, however, walked off the pitch to one of the entrances, where he was soon met by Emily, Daphne, and the others. The two congratulated him on his victory. Aaron and Blaise were equally as happy, they not only made a shit load of money, but they got to see a great duel.

"How much money did you guys win?" Harry eyed the pair of them.

Aaron answered. "742 galleons" a proud smile appeared on his face.

Blaise replied next. "I made 814!" Aaron glared at Blaise, who outdid him.

"You two owe me half of what you've earned," Harry grinned at the both of them. They groaned in irritation but agreed, seeing as they did bet on him winning. Within the next few minutes, Harry deposited the money in his wallet. "If you need me, I'll be by the lake," he made to leave.

Daphne followed behind, "do you want any company?"

Looking over his shoulder, he replied with a smile. "I wouldn't mind."

Together they left the pitch completely and went to the shoreline of the black lake. A good thing was that it wasn't cold, yet so the pair could enjoy the little warmth while they could. "You were amazing out there. The way you dealt with them was brilliant."

Harry diverted his attention away from the horizon, "they've been trained well, and their teamwork wasn't too shabby either," he admitted. "Though, I'm pretty sure if you were dueling them, then you would have emerged victorious."

Daphne's cheeks went pink. "Stop it. I doubt that I will be able to handle more than ten of them at the time." It was true, as her magic may have grown, and she'd sparred with multiple dummies before. However, the idea of facing fourteen at once was pushing it.

"No, I'm serious," he encouragingly stated. "You're not only very beautiful but very smart and exceptionally powerful. Hell, you are practically one of the most gifted students in the entire school." It took a moment before he realized what he had said and blushed scarlet, much like she did.

"Thanks, Harry," Daphne said somewhat bashfully. "You really think that about me?"

He looked into her eyes. Her beautiful blue eyes. "I do. Well, as long as you keep working as hard as you've been, though you'll never be able to beat me" a mischievous grin appeared on his face.

"Oh, really, I seem to remember tripping you up during our last sparring session, or don't you remember" a mischievous look appeared on her face as well.

"Right! And who's to say I didn't let you surprise me" he sagely asked. She playfully shoved him. "Alright, you want to take on the champ, bring it on."

"I hope you still have your A-game. Because you are going to need it. I learned a few new tricks."

They squared off, taking combat stances. "Let's see what you got, don't let me see it coming," he said with a smile.

"I wouldn't worry about it" was all she said before throwing a couple playful punches while laughing.

The two continued exchanging kicks and punches with one another while at the same time laughing and enjoying themselves. Finally, Harry blocked her kicks and tried swinging at her, though she dodged them. "Okay," he happily said before resuming.

After trading a few more blows, she caught his right hook and pulled him close to grab him from behind the head before flipping him on his back. "Hmm, guess I win," smiling down at him with a triumphed look.

"You really think that?" a smile was still on his face. Then, just as he was about to raise his right hand, she stopped him with her foot and, making sure he couldn't use his other hand, did the same.

"I know that" she playfully answered. "You see, I learned from last time we were in this situation."

"Alright, I admit," she expected him to defeat, but he reversed it by wrapping his legs across her torso and slammed her to the ground. The next moment he jumped on her locking her hands in a vice grip. "You got better, but you're not the only one with tricks up their sleeves."

"Cheater," playfully pouting at him, though it didn't last as they started laughing. He then got up and sat next to her as she got up. "I thought I would have had you that time."

"Well, you did surprise me," he admitted.

They turned to face the great lake to look off into the distance; unknowingly, they held each other's hand. Neither could explain it, but they felt at peace. Daphne then commented, "it's very beautiful," she said, watching the waves.

"Sure is," he agreed. "Though, I know something even more beautiful."

Turning her head to him, "like what?"

He mirrored her gaze and looked her in the eyes. Green eyes met blue as they unconsciously moved their heads closer to one another. Then, just as their lips were about to touch, a voice was heard.

"Oh, for the love of Merlin. Would you kiss her already," someone exclaimed from behind the bushes, making the two jump apart, looking completely embarrassed.

A/N: I hope you all are satisfied with part 2 as I always enjoy making Dumbledore look like fool. In all honesty he really should have known better than to bring the tournament back and should have taken more precautions when adding securities. An example would be Mad Eye Moody. The two may have been friends for years, but don't you all think it's weird that he couldn't tell the difference between the real and fake Moody?

My question to you all is do you think Dumbledore knew Barty was impersonating his old friend Moody?

Next question: What are your opinions of how I punished Hermione, the Weasley's, and the Slytherin idiots?

Next Chapter: Pissed off fathers and the bug-eyed bitch strikes.