"Dry Her Eyes"

By Loki Palmer

Author's Note: Harry Potter and all related characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The Avengers and all related characters belong to Stan Lee and Marvel Comics.

My thanks to everyone for their support. It lightens my heart to hear it, I assure you.

As a side addendum, it looks like I may have to postpone publication of "Gargoyle Willie" until I can gather up enough money to pay off my investment on it – hopefully by November, I estimate. I'm not giving up on it, so regardless of whether the publication will be completed by sometime next year (2021), or come what may, I will get it published.

In the meantime, enjoy this next chapter!

Chapter 13

The night before the Second Task, Harry, Hermione and Neville were in the Hogwarts Library.

"You're sure you have a plan?" said Hermione.

"Yes, dear, I have a plan … might not hurt to have a backup, but I have a plan."

"Can we hear it?" said Neville.

Harry grinned. "No, that would spoil the surprise."

"What, you have an ability to breathe underwater we haven't heard of?" said Hermione.

"Powerful as my parents may be, they don't have any such ability … but nice guess, Hermione."

"Well, I know Gillyweed can help … maybe that could be a Plan B."

"Tempting, Neville, but it's not exactly a common herb. It could work, but I think my original plan is better. I don't want to risk souring the alliance between Grandfather Odin and Professor Snape by stealing from his stores."

"Don't let your Father hear you say that," said Neville with a grin. "He would wonder who you were and what you did with His Son."

Harry and Hermione rolled their eyes. "Speaking of his stores, Professor Snape told me he's suspicious of some missing Boomslang skin and Lacewing flies."

"Somebody's brewing Polyjuice Potion," said Hermione. "Any idea?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "At least I'm not the guilty party, despite our misadventure with Polyjuice during our second year. Remember how you changed into the most adorable feline-human hybrid I had ever seen? Remember the petting and the saucers of milk? Remember the way you purred?"

"Hello, are you Hermione Granger?" said a small girl in a Gryffindor robe.

Hermione jolted from the shock of the girl's quiet appearance, but relaxed. "Yes. Are you new here? I can't say I've seen you around."

The small girl shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, allow me to make introductions: this is Neville …"

"Hi, little one …"

"And the other dashing young bloke with me is my boyfriend …"

"Harry Potter," the girl said with a smile. "Everyone knows who Harry Potter is."

"Great …" said Harry, "another member of the Harry Potter Fan Club. What would you like – an autograph?"

She giggled, but Harry paled as he heard another voice in his mind say, 'I guess I'm the founding member of thy Fan Club, Harald – thy Number One Fan, if thou willst? Or perhaps I'm number two, after thy sweet maiden friend Hermione?'

"Harry! Are you okay?" said Neville.

Harry waved it off. "I must be getting tired. Óðins skegg (Odin's beard), no wonder – the hour is late upon us!"

"That reminds me," said the little girl, "Professor McGonagall sent me to find you, Hermione."

Hermione hugged Harry and Neville. "Now, off to bed with you two!"

"Yes'm!" Harry and Neville said as they left the Library.

"They are such friendly young men, aren't they?" said a new voice behind Hermione.

Hermione turned. The small girl was gone, and in her place was a taller girl with a needle-thin rapier at her side. Her index finger was at her lips, as if she were asking for quiet.

"Fear not, dearest Hermione. My brother has his plans, and I have Mine as well …"

"If something bad happens to me, you know he'll come like lightning before the storm."

"My plans don't involve harming thee, worry not. I may be crazy, but I have not a death wish. As to him coming?" She put an emphasis on the last word. "I'm counting on it."

~DRY HER EYES~

"Are you sure you don't want a SCUBA suit?" said Tony Stark the next morning.

"I'm sure about that, Tony. Thanks for the offer."

"Just trying to look out for you, kid, that's all. Coffee?"

"Thank you, don't mind if I do," said Thor, grabbing the mug and quaffing it in one gulp. "ANOTHER!" He smashed it on the table.

"Honestly, brother, I could have filled it for you with more coffee if you didn't smash it," said Loki.

"Reindeer Games is right, Point Break. Number 1: That is not how you order another mug of coffee. Number 2 …" The Iron Man suit came on. "… You owe me another mug."

Harry pointed his wand at the broken mug. "Reparo!" The mug repaired itself as the Iron Man suit came off. "Your mug, Tony. I don't want any fights breaking out today. I have a Second Task of this bloody Tournament to focus on. I can't do that and play Peacemaker between you guys when tempers get short. Or, if you prefer, Dr. Banner's Not-So-Jolly Green Giant can play the role …"

"No can do, Harry," said Dr. Banner. "He's terrible at that role, so please don't drag him into this."

"You and I are in agreement, good Doctor," said Loki. "One smashing is enough for a lifetime."

"The memories of the Hulk's smashing session – and the amusement we all received thereby – will last into eternity, brother," said a grinning Thor.

Captain America ran into the Great Hall. "Whew! It's a good day to have your coat on, Harry! I can't say I've experienced cold like this growing up in Brooklyn."

"Not even when you were frozen in the ice?" said Tony.

"I couldn't feel anything in the ice."

"Point taken. Well, Cap, we are at a higher latitude than Brooklyn, ergo, it is colder here."

Captain America nodded. "Good point."

"Coffee, Captain Rogers?"

"Oh, yes, please, thank you, JARVIS." He sipped from the mug of coffee. "Ah, that hits the spot."

"Well, this cold is hardly anything to complain about, compared to Moscow," said Natasha.

"Jotunheim – the Realm of Frost Giants – is colder than Moscow, I assure you," said Loki with a smile.

Natasha turned to Captain America. "You know what warms me up after a time out in the cold?"

Captain America shook his head. "I'm not going to guess."

"Well, Captain," said Loki, "if you aren't going to guess the answer to her question, I shall. Is it a nice roll in the sack?"

"Мы не орозные? Ответ нет. Волос малый суки …" (Aren't we naughty? The answer is no. A little hair of the bitch …)

"Смотри язык твой!" (Watch your language!)

"Is it me, or did Cap chide Agent Romanoff for her vulgarity – in her own language?" said Tony, as Thor spit out coffee from his third mug thereof in laughter. "Whoa, easy there, Point Break!"

"It wasn't you – yes, Cap did chide her," said Loki with a chuckle.

"Well, Agent Romanoff, the expression would be Волос малый собаки – a little hair of the dog," said Tony. "The other word you used is considered vulgar, not to mention insulting, in both languages."

"I know – I was trying to get a rise out of Cap."

Captain America shook his head in amusement. "Well, Mission Accomplished on that front."

"Yeah," said Tony, "unlike President Dubya and his War in Iraq …"

A roar of cheers from the Avengers – and those at the Gryffindor table – resounded through the Great Hall at Tony's epic burn …

Author's Note: Another chapter done. Read and review!

Smiles and laughter,

Loki Palmer