Ch. 9

AS it turned out, Sloane was two steps ahead of Harry. At breakfast, the next day, Sloane walked over to the Gryffindor table. He could feel Snape's eyes on him, as well as those from his house and Harry's.

"Look, bro, I've got a letter from mom. I wanted to write her back today, seeing as how it's a free day." Sloane said, ignoring the death glare from Ron. "However, since I know you need to write mom back as well, how about we write one long letter together, instead of two short ones?"

Harry smiled. He could see what his brother was up to and agreed. If Fate and Misfortune wanted to ruin Harry's life this time, they would have to be sneakier then normal. Sloane didn't plan on letting Harry out of his sight.

They spent the entire day inside the library. Madam Pince huffed and glared at them as they sat in the back, but they were quiet and didn't get their grubby hands on her precious books.

Harry was surprised at how well his day was going. No one commented on how strange it was to have a Gryffindor sitting next to a Slytherian. In fact, much to Harry's surprise, when Draco stopped by to see Sloane, the blond boy didn't sneer or taunt him. Draco seemed perfectly willing to pretend that Harry wasn't there.

The same went for when Hermione and Ron showed up to talk to Harry. They wanted to tell Harry all about how Hermione tried to get Hagrid to join S.P.E.W.

"That Astronomy Tower is looking mighty fine at the moment, right?" Sloane whispered to Harry, who laughed. Hermione and Ron looked confused, but didn't bother asking what the joke was. They almost never got a straight answer when the joke was mainly between the Mars brothers.

"Anyway," Hermione continued, "after our very horrible time with Hagrid, I sat and watched as people put their names in the goblet. Fred and George tried, you know. They took an aging potion and got white beards for their efforts. Then, Krum came in."

"He was so collected, Harry," Ron gushed. "Just walked up and dropped the name in. And guess what! He looked over at us when he did. I'm going to ask for his autograph next time I see him!"

Finally, it was dinner time. Harry was starving, having hurried through lunch so that no one could try to tempt him into breaking the rules. He looked over to the Slytherian table and saw that Sloane was engaged in a conversation with Krum. He made a mental note to thank his brother for his help today.

"Vhy didn't you tell me your brother vas Harry Potter?" Krum asked Sloane the second he sat down.

"Well," Sloane said, trying to come up with a logical answer. "I'm not very comfortable with name dropping. I mean, look how you reacted when you found out who my mom was."

"He grew up wit you? Ve never heard about that." Krum said. "We heard that Tori Mars had two children; you and Daniel."

Sloane grinned. "Well, not that it's a secret, but Harry is Daniel. However, I could put it up in a huge display of fireworks and fanfare, and no one here would really understand that Harry and Daniel are the same person."

Krum looked confused and merely shrugged. The feast started, and there was an array of exotic foods as there was the night before. Neither Harry nor Sloane were as impressed this night, but the excitement over the announcement of the Champions could have been the cause of their ho-hum attitude to the food. They watched as everyone around them fidgeted and shuffled, waiting for the moment of truth. Even Ron hurried through his food, faster then normal, in anticipation for the naming of the champions. Harry double-checked to see if the plate was still there.

Dumbledore stood up and smiled. It was time! The Goblet glowed and spewed forth a burst of red flame. A single bit of parchment was in the middle of the flame and Dumbledore reached out and took the parchment. As he read off the name, the room exploded into applause.

"The champion for Durmstrang is Victor Krum!"

A few seconds later, the Goblet lit up again. "The champion for Beauxbatons is Fluer Delacour!"

A third time. "The champion for Hogwarts is Cedric Diggory!"

Harry clapped happily, pleased that it wasn't anyone from Slytherian house that was chosen as the champion. Several of his housemates glared at him, but he didn't care. He's support Cedric to the bitter end.

Dumbledore began to congratulate the champions as they left for the back room. He turned to the remaining students, talking about how important it was to cheer their champions on. He didn't get very far in his speech when the Goblet of Fire roared to life a fourth time. Dumbledore automatically reached out and pulled the parchment from the flame.

"Harry Potter."

Harry felt his heart stop. After all of his careful planning to thwart Fate and Misfortune, they had won again. He looked over at Sloane, who was as confused as he was. All Harry could do was shake his head, feeling like he was caught in a bad dream.

"Harry Potter, hurry up if you please!"

Harry had no choice but to go with Dumbledore. He noticed that the man wasn't smiling. This wasn't one of his manipulations! Dumbledore was stumped, as was Harry. Well, Harry thought, nice to know I'm in good company here in the Twilight Zone!

In the room, the three champions were standing majestically in front of the fireplace. Each one with the look of a champion - impressive and brooding Krum, handsome Cedric, and the unearthly beautiful Fluer. They watched him enter the room and go straight to an empty chair. Harry sat there, huddled, trying to remember to breathe. For some reason, it was hard take his next breath. His hand clutched his chest as he felt his heart slowly constrict.

When Ludo Bagman and Barty Crounch, the other judges besides the heads of the participating schools, entered and announced that Harry was the fourth champion, the room exploded into protests.

Fluer was outraged that a little boy would be competing. Karkaroff and Maxine were furious that Hogwarts had two champions and thus two chances to win!

"We were under the impression that your Age Line would stop this, Dumbledore!" Karkaroff hissed.

"Do not blame the Headmaster, Karkaroff," Snape said softly from where he was leaning in the corner. "Potter has been breaking the rules and crossing lines ever since he came here."

"Thank you, Severus." Dumbledore said firmly. Snape merely shifted against the wall, crossing his arms and staring at Harry. Harry's eyes had sought out his professor when he heard his voice. At Snape's comment, Harry wrapped his arms around his chest, shaking slightly. Without realizing, he sank gracefully, kneeling on the floor.

Dumbledore knelt in front of Harry, a little worried now that he could see the faint sheen of sweat on the boy's brow, but he was furious at the outcome.Angered, he demanded,"Did you put your name in the Goblet, Harry?"

"No," he whispered. He winced slightly when Snape made a soft sound of disbelief. Only Dumbledore noticed.

"Did you have an older student put your name in for you?" Dumbledore asked.

"No," Harry whispered again. "Professor, can we open a window, please?"

Dumbledore was puzzled. The room was large and airy, and yet Harry seemed to be having trouble breathing. He was shaking, rocking slightly in his seat. His eyes held such fear and shock that Dumbledore doubted that Harry really knew what was going on at the moment.

"Potter, don't lie to the headmaster. Tell him how your name was placed in the Goblet!" Snape hissed.

The reaction wasn't one that anyone in the room would have imagined. Harry reached out and grabbed Dumbledore's robes, the fear evident in his face.

"Please, I can't breathe. Can we please open a window?" Harry begged. His breaths were erratic and Dumbledore could feel that his skin was cold and clammy. Something was wrong with Harry.

Snape frowned and looked at the boy. He could hear the boy's labored breathing from where he stood. Finally, when he noticed the slight tinge of blue forming around Harry's lips, he turned to McGonagall.

"Minerva, go get Sloane Mars. He'll know what's wrong and what to do." Snape commanded. McGonagall didn't question the order and ran out of the room. Seconds later, Sloane walked in.

Sloane took one look at Harry and muttered a curse in Italian. He chanted a small spell that brought forth an ordinary Muggle brown paper bag. Pushing Dumbledore aside, Slone took his brother and cradled himagainst his chest. He had Harry breath into the bag, gently rocking the boy as he hyperventilated himself to sleep.

"What happened?" Sloane asked once Harry had passed out.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Dumbledore said.

Sloane sighed, looking down at his brother. "He had a panic attack. I need to know what triggered it since he hasn't had one this bad for years."

"We were merely trying to find out how his name was put into the Goblet." Snape said. "He either did it himself, or he had an older student do it for him."

"I know Harry didn't put his name in. I was with him all day today." Sloane said. "And I can tell you this, he's taking his oath seriously. He wouldn't have had anyone put his name in the Goblet since that would have been breaking the rules."

Sloane then looked up at Snape. "Did you check the parchment, Professor? Of anyone in this room, you'd know for certain if Harry was lying."

Snape seemed slightly taken back. He reached into his pockets and pulled out a parchment. He unfolded it and looked down at it.

"It's still red," he said, wonder in his soft voice.

"Harry did seem to collapse after Severus voiced his opinion that Harry was lying," Dumbledore said softly. The old man walked over to the Potions Professor, trying to see the parchment, but Snape quickly put it away.

Sloane gave a soft laugh, rocking his brother. "How utterly ironic. After all that you've been through - facing the darkest wizard of all time twice and living, fighting snake monsters, braving a hungry werewolf, facing an escaped murderer, taking on twenty Dementors, mom's wrath, and what is it that nearly does you in? Our Potions Professor."

"Mr. Mars, what is that paper that Severus had to consult?" McGonagall asked.

Dumbledore, on learning of the blood oath, was furious. He demanded to know why Harry had given such a sacred oath in the first place. Sloane had to fish Snape's fat from the fire and explain that the oath was Harry's idea and Snape hadn't asked for it.

They let Harry rest a while longer while the professors discussed who could have put Harry's name in. Moody's suggestion that it was someone with a desire to kill Harry brought a few protests, but Sloane thought he was on the money. The question was, who had done it? All of Harry's most hated enemies were away from Hogwarts. Sloane doubted very much that Voldemort had waltzed in and dropped Harry's name.

Dumbledore finally woke Harry up to inform him of his responsibilities as a Champion. When Harry reluctantly agreed to honor the contract, Dumbledore announced that it was time for bed. Madam Maxine and Fluer left, chattering in French. Now, French wasn't on of the five languages that Harry and Sloane could speak fluently, but since Italian and Spanish were, they understood what was being said. Sloane and Harry rolled their eyes as they heard Madam Maxine tell Fluer that she would win over the child.

Karkaroff led Krum away, both blissfully silent. Sloane let out a small sigh of relief once Karkaroff was gone. The man had been staring at him as if he were wondering if Sloane had a crunchy or creamy center.

Snape followed the Hogwarts students out, planning on walking down with Sloane on his way to the dungeons. At the doors of the Great Hall, however, he stopped and turned to Harry.

"I am relieved, Mr. Potter, that you didn't break the rules," Snape said softly, "this time."

"Thank you, sir." Harry said. He watched as the Potions Professor led his brother away.

"I never thought I'd live to see the day that Professor Snape came remotely close to apologizing to a student," Cedric muttered.

Harry shrugged. He and Cedric walked in quiet, barely saying good night when it came time for them to part ways. Harry was dreading the scene that he was sure would greet him in the Common Room. It had been a struggle to get his professors to believe him. He couldn't imagine how much harder it would be to convince his housemates.

Sure enough, his worst fears were realized. Everyone in Gryffindor had crowded into the Common Room to celebrate his being named a Champion. Fred and George Weasley continued to pester him on how he could have tricked the Age Line while the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team tried to force him to drink his weight in butterbeer. After a while of no one listening to how he didn't know anything, Harry began to entertain thoughts of hexing everyone so he could go to bed. He wondered how much trouble he'd be in if he just blew everyone up.

Finally, he was able to escape. He climbed the stairs to his dorm, wanting only to sleep. He knew he had to talk to Ron and Hermione in the morning. They would be his voice of sanity in these insane times.

Harry had ripped the Gryffindor banner that Lee Jordan had knotted around his shoulders when he saw Ron. The redhead was watching him from his bed, a forced smile on his face.

"I take it congratulations are in order," Ron said. There was something in his voice that made Harry feel uneasy.

"Congratulations?" Harry snorted. "Please, Ron, this is the worst thing that has ever happened to me, and that's including having a power-hungry wizard wanting to kill me."

"The worst? You got over the Age Line! How did you do it, Harry? Why didn't you tell me?" Ron said.

"I didn't put my name in the Goblet. Someone else must have."

"Why would they do that?"

"I don't know," Harry grumped. He was tempted to tell Ron about Moody's suggestion, but felt like it would a little melodramatic.

Ron didn't hide the fact that he didn't believe Harry. Instead, he snarled something out about how Harry had it so easy - the chance to win a thousand galleon prize and get out of the End-of-Term exams, plus all that publicity.

"None of that does me any good if I'm pushing up daisies!" Harry yelled. "You know, I must be in the Twilight Zone! Snape believes me and you don't!"

"If Snape is on your side, why don't you go join Slytherian just like your brother! It's obvious that you're as sneaky as a snake!" Ron shouted.

When Harry sputtered, trying to answer, Ron merely wrenched the curtains on his bed closed, shutting Harry out. Harry rolled his eyes and crawled into his own bed. After he had closed his curtains, he pulled out some parchment and a Muggle ballpoint pen. He quickly wrote letters to Sirius, Lupin and his mom.

The next day, Ron left for breakfast early. Harry was faced with either staying in his dorm where the Gryffindors there treated him like a hero, or risk going into the school where any Gryffindors out of the dorm could treat him like a hero.

He decided to go to breakfast in hopes of seeing Ron. He'd make Ron believe him.

However, Hermione stopped him as he was leaving. She had brought him some toast and suggested that they go for a walk. Harry told Hermione everything about the night before, including his panic attack and the fact that he had taken a blood oath for Snape.

"So, Professor Snape knows you didn't put your name in?" Hermione asked. "I mean, how could you have? I think Moody is right. Maybe someone, really powerful and dark someone, put your name in."

"What does Ron think?" Harry asked.

Hermione sighed. "Well, he . . . I spoke to him at breakfast -"

"Does he think I put my name in?"

"Not really,"

Harry turned to look at her. "Not really? What kind of answer is that?"

"Harry, he's jealous."

"Who's jealous?" Sloane's voice rang out as he walked over to them. In his hands was his spare cloak. Harry had left without grabbing his.

"You'll catch your death of cold, bro." Sloane said. "Now, what am I butting into?"

"Ron's jealous." Harry said.

"It's just, Harry, it's always you that these things happen to. I know it's not your fault, but he feels a little left out. In your shadow, type of thing." Hermione said.

"He's jealous that I'm the world's whipping boy!" Harry cried. "You let him know that any time he wants to trade places, he can be my guest! He can loose his family to a madman and then risk loosing the only loving family he knows to a bunch of stuck up wizards a whole continent away! He can have the scar that everyone gawks at! It makes me feel like a freak!"

Sloane placed an arm around his brother. "Say, Harry, you - ah - want that I should fix this matter?" Sloane asked in a very bad Italian accent. "Ya know, I can get the boyz ta gather and, uh, have Ron sleep wit tha fishies."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Harry, you do know what you need to do, right?"

"Give Ron a good kick up the -"

"Write to Sirius!" Hermione interrupted.

"I did. I'll mail it as soon as I get back." Harry said.

"And then kick Ron," Sloane added.

A/N: Wheeee! Saw the movie yesterday! Still glowing over it!