Chapter 3: The Goblet of Fire
Harriet Potter sat in the common room late one evening, reading the book Morgan had given her after their first session. She was so absorbed that she didn't see when Hermione walked up behind her.
"What is that book?" asked Hermione, "it looks old."
"It is old," said Harriet, "This is a direct copy of the original manuscript. This is 'A History of the Guardians of Atlantis,' by Reginald Ottercrock. Morgan said it was the only decent history of the Guardians, though it incorrectly lists them as defunct."
"That does sound interesting," admitted Hermione.
Harriet sighed as she looked at the book. The book had shown the Guardians of Atlantis as the biggest proponents of spreading magic in the world. But it had never been about exclusivity.
"The original Guardians would (and the current ones probably still do) hate the Statute of Secrecy," said Harriet, "When a magical crisis happened somewhere in the world, they would use the Atlantean Runestone to create an Archon, a powerful wizard who had godlike powers. When those wizards died, sometimes the Archon would leave behind… a memory. That memory could be worshipped like a god, and sometimes the power of the Archon could return and be summoned by others, as an Avatar. Crazy stuff. So many mythological figures are actually Archons. Athena for example was definitely an Archon. The entire Norse Pantheon was probably the result of a war between Archons. In later years they stopped creating new Archons and relied mostly on summoning Avatars."
"Crazy," said Hermione.
"But as for the Guardians, towards the very end of the Atlantis era, they stopped singling out people entirely," admitted Harriet, "It turns out that some of the people they trusted to become Archons went bad, and they had to create other Archons to kill them. But the powers of those dark Archons could still be summoned to make Avatars, so Dark Wizards would become Avatars of the Dark Archons. And if you managed to perfect your Avatar link with an Archon you could, under the right circumstances, become an Archon yourself. In their last years in Atlantis the Guardians brutally suppressed the knowledge of how to become an Avatar in an attempt to prevent this. As a result, the only modern practitioners are some Hindu and Buddhist wizarding groups who summon them to commune with their gods, not to create new Archons. The Guardians themselves began to link themselves directly to the Atlantean runestone."
"The thing is that there are a lot of deities that can be summoned as avatars, but aren't based on any specific Archon," said Harriet, "A lot of Hindu lore is full of them. But the exact relationships between them and the archons is unknown. The exact nature of what an avatar is, is not understood either."
"So in their later years the Guardians all drew from a shared well of power?" mused Hermione.
"If they needed it yes!" agreed Harriet excitedly, "Obviously they didn't draw from that power all the time, but it was available to them if they were in danger. The King of Atlantis realised what this meant, and when he moved against the Guardians his first action was to smash the Runestone to pieces."
"The Guardians continued on as protectors of the keystones for a long time of course, but eventually all of the keystones fell into other hands," continued Harriet, "Salazar Slytherin reformed the Guardians when he came to Britain. They had died out years before, though at Avalon meticulous records still existed. Slytherin eventually passed the leadership to Arthur, and from Arthur it passed to Merlin. They used the same rites and powers, even using the keystone they had to power their magic. They even swore the same oaths."
"They would hate how the magical world hides," said Harriet sadly, "The Guardians were dedicated to the idea that magic should benefit all, magical and non-magical."
"Oaths?" asked Hermione, "what oaths?"
Harriet flipped through the book. "Here it is," she said finally.
Then she read the words aloud:
I come to defend the weak against the strong.
I come to guide the lost to their shelter.
I come to stop the advance of the powers of Darkness
I know that the world is aflame so I come to quench it.
I know my power alone is insufficient, so I come here to join with a greater power.
Together we are stronger, and together we triumph.
I come seeking not Glory, nor Power, nor Riches
I come to stand guard across all the countless ages of time
I will stand against the darkness forever.
I am a Guardian of Atlantis.
A strange feeling suddenly came over Harriet as she finished reading the oath. She didn't know why, but somehow Harriet felt as if she had meant the oath, and it felt binding on her. And she thought she had seen her hand glow for a second when she finished the oath. Hermione didn't seem to have seen anything though.
Harriet shook her head. She was just imagining it. She wanted to think she had just inducted herself into the Guardians of Atlantis. There was no way it would be that easy.
XXXXX
Nicolas Flamel was in the Library of Avalon with Valerii, helping her look up a treatise on Dark Magic. They had both been looking for a way to disrupt the return of Lord Voldemort from a distance, but it was starting to look hopeless.
However they were interrupted by Perenelle. Nicolas smiled as his wife approached. "Ah, is my potion finished boiling already? I thought it would be some hours yet."
"It will be," said Perenelle seriously, "I was passing through the Keystone Chamber, on my way to the Hall of Memories. And I saw the keystone come alight. Someone has sworn the oaths."
"Impossible," said Nicolas vehemently, "No one has passed the tests!"
"I know what I saw, my husband," said Perenelle without malice. She knew as well as he that it should be impossible.
"There was one who did pass the tests," noted Valerii, "The tests laid down by Percival."
"Harriet Potter," said Nicolas incredulously.
"What is Morgana teaching her?" wondered Perenelle.
"Perhaps Morgana is on our side, in which case she is preparing Harriet to join our number," said Valerii, her voice not sounding convinced.
"You don't believe that," said Nicolas directly.
"No, I do not," said Valerii wryly, "I think Morgana has made a huge mistake. One she will not fully understand for a while."
XXXXX
Harriet had to admit that she wasn't really prepared for how much her self defense class had grown.
The previous year it had been invitation only for Harriet and her friends, but this year everyone was inviting their friends. And who could blame them? The attack on the World Cup Final had everyone on edge. Pretty much every member of Harry's year in Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw was now attending. But the class had spread further. Cho Chang had asked to come, and Harriet, remembering the time Umbridge had used the Cruciatus on Cho, had agreed. She had been trying to invite Cedric Diggory, but he didn't seem particularly interested. Harriet had provided Cho with a few suggestions as to how to get his attention, though to be fair, she thought Cho had his attention, she just needed to suggest something other than playing fake hero with a bunch of fourth years.
Other sixth years were more supportive. Fred and George had dragged all their friends to help with the meetings, and that meant Alicia, Lee and Angelina. Harriet had immediately deputised Angelina, Fred, and George. They were all relatively skilled at self defense and could help Harriet tutor. Lee Jordan and Alicia Spinnet were pretty much worthless though.
Actually, Harriet had to note that the dynamic in that group was a little odd. Fred and Angelina were clearly on the cusp of being a couple, as were Alicia and George. But they hadn't quite made the jump. After a while, Harriet understood. If they all started dating each other, it would leave Lee the odd man out. Which explained another oddity. Fred and George were constantly on the lookout for a girlfriend for Lee. To the point of being annoying about it really. No wonder he didn't have a girlfriend; Fred and George were scaring everyone off!
For all of her observations, Harriet had to admit she still didn't fully understand the dynamics in that group. But maybe that was for the best. She had a hunch that there was a bit more going on there than she had quite guessed.
Their help had been useful, she had to admit. And Harriet was glad that older students were helping out. But why remained an open question. So Harriet held Angelina for a moment after their training session, and asked her.
"Why did we help you, huh?" repeated Angelina.
"Yes," said Harriet, "I am not ungrateful, but you have never shown any interest in this before."
"Yeah, well Fred and George told me about Crouch Jr.," admitted Angelina, "And I get why you are doing what you are doing. I don't fully agree, but I get it. But if Crouch Jr. is going to be around in any capacity, I want to help you get stronger. Plus…"
"There's more?" asked Harriet, who was clearly confused.
"I've been looking for a way to help you out for a while," admitted Angelina, "I… know you've been struggling with some things. Your feelings for girls for example."
"You know?" gasped Harriet.
"You may have been staring in the shower a bit last year," Angelina replied with a shadow of a smile on her face.
Harriet's eyes went wide. "That's what you meant! And you wanted to help me because of that?"
"It isn't exactly socially acceptable, is it?" complained Angelina, "And I didn't want you to think that there was something wrong with what you are feeling. It's too easy for such things to get… muddled. But I don't know who else would be so open with you."
"I told Professor Solaire," said Harriet, "She… has some experience in this area."
"That's good," said Angelina, "But you should really talk with someone your own age. I know Hermione would never…"
"I can't tell Hermione," interrupted Harriet with a blush, "I uhhh, have certain feelings there."
"I think she would be very respectful of whatever you feel," said Angelina, "But I can understand that you might not be ready for that yet. What about Parvati? She's pretty clever about those things."
Harriet had to admit, Angelina made a good point. Parvati might have some advice for her.
"It isn't great for you to keep all this bottled up Harriet," said Angelina, "And Morgan Solaire is a wonderful woman, but she's an adult, and there are some things that it's best to discuss with friends. To work out for yourself. If you really need help, you can ask Sirius too. He seems very open about things."
A voice in the back of Harriet's mind seemed to be angry at Angelina for implying that there were things she couldn't bring to Morgan. Harriet thought that this was odd, but another impulse pushed her to drop the matter. It was just her paranoia again most likely.
"Thanks," said Harriet, "This… it means a lot."
Angelina put her hand on Harriet's head and ruffled her hair a bit. "No problem Harry. I see one of my players with troubles, I do what I can to help out." And she walked out of the Room of Requirement.
Harriet sat thinking for a long time afterwards.
XXXXX
That evening, Harriet was sitting on her bed, when Hermione came in. Harriet realised that Hermione looked puzzled.
"Something on your mind?" asked Harriet.
"Goblins," said Hermione cryptically.
"What about them?" pushed Harriet.
"Well, you and Remus seem to indicate that Goblins just require respect and understanding to get along with Wizards," said Hermione, "But everything I have read recently seems to say the opposite, that Goblins have a fundamentally different system of morality and etiquette than we do. I don't know how to rectify those two positions."
"Well, I can understand that," agreed Harriet, "There are two misconceptions you seem to have. The first is that the goblin system of etiquette isn't fundamentally different from ours. It is incidentally different. Plenty of wizards misunderstand Goblins, and they see their different customs as being the same thing as different motivations. Goblins want the same basic things that wizards want, to be treated with respect and dignity, but how we convey those sorts of feelings is very different from how Goblins do. They don't like being condescended to, but they do like being challenged. The primary thing is that they dislike being seen as weak. So well meaning people will come into the Ministry and offer to give the Goblins all sorts of new rights for nothing, which comes off as pity. So they reject those offers. Goblins value relationships where both parties benefit, and relationships where one party gives to another for no reason are seen as condescending."
"The second thing is that Goblins do not expect the ordinary witch or wizard to treat them with Goblin style respect," continued Harriet, "They aren't stupid. They know when you are treating them with a wizard's version of respect, and they generally will respond to that with the Goblin version of the same. A lot of wizards do misunderstand this as hostility, but it isn't. They do expect the Ministry to treat them with Goblin respect as a matter of diplomacy. The Ministry never does, of course, which is why every time Ministry and Goblin officials meet it's a disaster."
"That's pretty arrogant on the part of the wizards," insisted Hermione.
"Tell me about it," said Harriet, not able to hide her amusement, "And of course this all means that when we do get someone who wants to help the Goblins in power, they inevitably make things worse. You have to negotiate with Goblins, because if you don't, that means to them that you don't see them as a threat or equal."
"And that isn't even counting how out of date most wizard's understanding of Goblins is," bemoaned Harriet, "Many contemporary accounts still say that Goblins fight duels and have blood feuds. I mean, they used to, but duels have been banned in all Goblin settlements in Europe for over 200 years. Anyone declaring a blood feud is immediately assigned a mediator to help resolve things peacefully. Honestly, Goblin society resembles modern muggle society more than wizarding society does. Because Goblins don't actually dislike muggles, they just aren't really allowed to interact with them much."
"That's… actually really horrible," said Hermione, "Oh, Merlin. Goblins can't interact with muggles in person at all, can they? That's so unfair."
"That's the Statute of Secrecy for you," agreed Harriet, "The advent of telephones and now computers has allowed Goblins to start dabbling in muggle finance though."
Hermione sat down on her bed. "Thanks for the information," she said simply, "I don't quite know what to do with it, but I will think of something."
"What is there to do about it?" asked Harriet suspiciously, "Don't do anything stupid Hermione. Goblins do not want witches and wizards trying to 'help' them."
"I understand," said Hermione absently. Harriet hoped she understood. She didn't need to get on the bad side of the goblins.
XXXXX
Morgana smiled as she watched Harriet enter the room. Perfect, right on time.
"Good to see you again Harriet," said Morgana, flashing her brightest smile at her most brilliant student.
Harriet blushed slightly. That was a good sign. It meant the geas was working. Not perfectly, but it was working. Morgana would have to reinforce it again today. The spell wouldn't really take until Harriet fulfilled the task that the geas had given her, (which Morgana had yet to set) but even at this stage it was having an effect on the girl. Still Harriet's mind was formidable. Morgana would take no chances. She would reinforce the geas at every opportunity.
"What do you have for me tonight?" asked Harriet.
"First, I would like to know how you have been doing," asked Morgana, "You were understandably troubled the last time we met like this." Morgan held her hand behind Harriet's head and began weaving the geas again.
"I've been doing better," admitted Harriet, "It turns out that Angelina Johnson figured out what was going on. She was very supportive. That was a tremendous help to me."
Morgana frowned as she finished weaving the geas. Harriet might be even more resistant than she had suspected. She shouldn't be seeking out other outlets to vent to now that she was under the influence of Morgana's spell. It was possible that Angelina had approached Harriet, but even then Harriet shouldn't really care while she was in Morgana's presence. This meant that Harriet might not be ready to start listening to Morgana's story. A small problem.
Morgana had to admit, she had liked the fact that Harriet was depending on her for support in regards to her sexuality. That Harriet could now go to Angelina irritated her for some reason. She knew that it probably was better for Harriet to get advice from someone closer to her own age, but she couldn't quite let go of her ego.
"Well, I suppose that is a good thing," said Morgana grudgingly, "Perhaps I should teach you something practical tonight."
"How practical are we talking here?" asked Harriet curiously.
"How would you like to learn how to apparate?" asked Morgana.
Harriet's eyes went wide. "I'd love to, but we can't apparate on Hogwarts grounds."
Morgana grinned, "Maybe other people can't, but we can. I will teach you how to apparate like a house elf."
Harriet gasped. "Really?" she asked excitedly.
"Really," confirmed Morgana, "Though obviously you can't tell anybody. You are too young to learn this, and if the wrong people find out that you can apparate…"
"I won't tell anyone," agreed Harriet, uncharacteristically.
Usually she would insist on being able to tell Hermione, thought Morgana. Slowly but surely the geas was working.
XXXXX
The day before Halloween the contingents from the other schools arrived.
The group from Beauxbatons came in a flying carriage, led by a team of massive horses. The Headmistress of Beauxbatons was a large woman, but Harriet would not call her overweight. She was large of frame, both tall and broadly built. Harriet thought she was impressive, and she would long have a very strong opinion of Madame Maxine of Beauxbatons. The students were all coordinated in their dress, but their cloaks and hats seemed utterly impractical for the upcoming Scottish Highland winter. Harriet hoped they had packed heavier clothes.
The group from Durmstrang came on an underwater ship, an old 17th/18th century ship of some sort. Harriet thought a pirate ship submarine was fantastic, and said so. The Headmaster of Durmstrang was named Albrecht Wisner. He was German, which was a bit odd, given that the school was in the north of Norway and Sweden (it was precisely on the border), and he looked like death warmed over. His students were all dressed in massive fur cloaks, so they at least were prepared for a Scottish winter.
The big news was that Viktor Krum, Seeker for the Bulgarian National Quidditch team, was still a student at Durmstrang. Harriet grinned when she saw him. She would have to introduce herself. And that was when she suddenly came up with a way to do it, without it seeming weird.
She waved at Cedric and Cho, then pointed to herself then pointed to Krum. Hesitating for a moment, she then did the same to Malfoy. All of them immediately understood.
"What are you doing, Harriet?" asked Hermione.
"I will be right back, gonna meet Viktor Krum," quipped Harriet, "And sorry Ron, this is a seeker thing."
Ron seemed a little miffed, but he didn't try to follow. Harriet was glad of that. She led the other seekers right up to Krum, who was talking with Wisner quietly. Wisner frowned when he saw them, but Krum seemed to realise what was going on instantly.
"You are the seekers from the Hogwarts Quidditch teams?" Krum asked carefully.
"Got it in one," said Harriet, "This is Cedric Diggory, the Hufflepuff Seeker."
Cedric waved, and Krum waved back.
"Cho Chang, from Ravenclaw," introduced Harriet.
"Pleased to meet you," said Cho warmly.
"This disreputable looking fellow is Draco Malfoy, the Slytherin Seeker," said Harriet as politely as she could.
Draco offered his hand to Krum, who took it. "She almost managed to get through that without insulting me. I think she's going soft," said Draco. Krum grinned at that.
"I'm Harriet Potter, Gryffindor Seeker," said Harriet, ignoring Draco, "I also know all the quiet places where no one can find you, so if you want to escape your fans for a bit, I can point the way."
Harriet extended her hand and Krum took it in a firm handshake.
"I vill be most grateful if you do," said Krum.
"Anything we can do to make you feel welcome…" said Cedric.
"Thank you, really," said Krum happily, "Ve vill haff to talk Quidditch sometime."
XXXXX
When everyone had gathered in the Great Hall, Harriet noticed that Barty Crouch Jr. was once again in attendance. So were Sirius and Griselda. She was grateful for the support, of course. She did feel they would prevent Jr. from trying anything. But she was feeling rather bullish. She wanted Jr. to try something. She had rather quickly mastered apparition, and the idea that she could use it against Jr. was tantalizing.
Jr. was explaining the rules of the Tournament. All very anticipated. Harriet really was rooting for Angelina in all this. She really hoped she was the Hogwarts Champion. Fred and George seemed disappointed that they couldn't compete, but also seemed like they were planning something. Somehow Harriet didn't think that was going to end well.
The lighting of the Goblet of Fire was suitably impressive, with the colours of the Goblet splashing all across the walls of the Great Hall. Harriet wasn't sure, but she thought that Jr. looked a little smug about the whole thing.
After the presentation she went up to Sirius and Griselda. "Jr. looked pleased with himself," she noted.
Sirius nodded grimly. "I noticed that," he agreed, "Maybe Dumbledore needs to take a look at the Goblet."
" I already have plans to do just that," said Morgan, who had walked up behind Harriet. She suddenly took a step back when she saw Griselda.
"Sorry," said Morgan carefully, "I haven't been paying attention it seems. I didn't realise that you were… part of that organization."
Something in Harriet's brain said that this wasn't quite true, but that was her paranoia again. Why would Morgan lie?
"Of course not, Morgan," said Griselda, but she pronounced Morgan as if she had been about to say Morgana, "I am able to hide it in most situations. But this close to the Goblet…"
"Has someone been telling my secrets?" Morgan asked Sirius playfully.
"That's my fault actually," said Harriet, "Flamel straight up asked me if it was true, and I refused to answer."
"It wasn't particularly hard to come up with the answer," said Griselda, "You did tell Merlin that you would be coming back after all." The last part was said quietly.
"That's right," admitted Morgan just as quietly, "It was a deathbed confession of sorts. Merlin had just stabbed the shit out of me during the battle for Hogwarts. It makes sense that he would leave a warning."
"A warning we take very seriously Morgan," said Griselda, "We are watching you."
"Good," said Morgan, "I am… coping with the incident that happened last year."
"Well, if you feel any urges to perform any Dark Rituals, or to hunt down and eat a Dementor, let me know," offered Griselda with a slight smile, "There are things I can do to help."
"Thank you," said Morgan, inclining her head slightly, before being waved over by the Headmaster, "If you will excuse me."
After Morgana had left, Griselda scowled. "I was careless," she chided herself, "Now Morgan knows I am watching her."
"You don't think she will betray us, do you?" asked Harriet. Something about the very idea of not trusting Morgan struck her as wrong. Morgan was self-evidently on their side.
"Not likely to betray us, no," said Sirius, "But maybe likely to do Dark Magic of some sort. Just be careful around her."
Harriet wanted to say that if Morgan was going to do Dark Magic, surely she would have a reason, but she stopped herself. That probably wouldn't help Morgan's case.
So she just said, "I'll be careful," instead.
XXXXX
Later that night, Morgana quietly slipped into the Great Hall.
There was no one there. It was after midnight, so that was no surprise. She could see the faint shimmering from Dumbledore's age line around the Goblet. A clever piece of magic, that. It was very good at doing what it was supposed to do, Morgana admitted. Underage students could not enter their own names. And the Goblet itself requires the signature on whatever was thrown into it to be written by the person themselves. Very clever.
Morgana was taking no chances. She began casting detection spells on the Goblet. Including a few only she knew. Crouch had indeed modified the Goblet so it would pick a fourth Champion, from a fourth school. Very, very clever. The precision of that spell casting must have been prodigious. Modifying an artifact like this was difficult.
Not for the first time Morgana considered simply not putting Harriet's name in the Goblet. If Morgana herself made a mistake, Harriet might still be chosen. But Morgana had not become the most powerful Dark Witch in history through lack of confidence in her own abilities. And if Voldemort found out, well, it would be awkward.
She took the signed corner of Harriet's homework assignment, and threw it into the Goblet. The Goblet flared. Then, painstakingly, Morgana began to work. After almost 20 minutes Morgana smiled. She had modified the Goblet again. Now the Fourth Champion would come from any school but the fictional fourth school Harriet had been entered into. Harriet would not become a Triwizard Champion. Morgana turned and left the room.
Of course, Morgana had added something else to the mix, unbeknownst to even her. She had added some of her own intent. Not something that could be observed or quantified. But she had added to the choosing parameters a desire to be rid of one Angelina Johnson. The Goblet of Fire didn't care of course. But suddenly, the harm that might come to her had become a plus in Angelina's favour, for the place in that fourth spot only.
XXXXX
Angelina got up good and early. She took a long shower, and made sure that she had a subtle but extremely agreeable perfume on. Angelina was honest, and she figured that her chances of becoming Hogwarts Champion were small, but if she was chosen, she wanted to make sure she looked and smelled her best. She had a nasty tendency to perspire, and wanted to be sure.
Down in the common room, Fred, George and Lee were hunched over in a corner brewing a potion. An Ageing Potion? Ohhhh, that wasn't going to work. But Angelina didn't want to say so if they weren't going to ask her. She liked it when the twins made fools of themselves, almost as much as they did. It was cute.
Fred had positioned himself so that he could see Angelina come down the stairs. He leapt up and walked over to her quickly. As he approached his face became… different.
"You… smell good," said Fred, turning slightly red.
"So you're smelling me now?" teased Angelina.
"If you are going to smell like this, yeah," acknowledged Fred.
Suddenly Fred's eyes went narrow. "Maybe from a bit closer up?" He stepped closer to Angelina.
Angelina managed to avoid laughing. He was trying to be suggestive, but he had overplayed his hand a bit. This was decidedly unsexy. So she decided to punish him. Just a bit.
"Anytime," she breathed, leaning forward to whisper in his ear, "if you can."
And she brought up her hand, her forefinger and middle finger extended. And she put them both into his nostrils.
"If you are going to come on to me about my smell," quipped Angelina, "Try to not smell of Ageing Potion when you do it."
And she pushed him away, then pulled her fingers out of his nose. The tips were covered in a light coating of snot. Why on earth had she done that?
George and Lee both began laughing hysterically as Fred retreated. "Don't worry Fred!" laughed George, "If she's willing to stick her fingers up your nose, it must be true love!"
Angelina didn't bother to grace that with a response, but instead headed to the nearest loo. She needed to clean her fingers off.
After she finished disinfecting her fingers, Angelina headed down to the ground floor. There was a large buffet table in the Entrance hall, and she grabbed some food quickly. Then she went into the Great Hall. All the tables were gone, and the benches were now on the sides of the room, some on elevated platforms. Obviously most of the school was gathered here to watch the potential Champions enter. Angelina walked over and put her name into the Goblet. A cheer came up from some of the Gryffindors.
Angelina spotted Harriet. She was with Hermione and Ron of course, but Ginny and Neville were also there. Angelina walked up to them.
"Anyone interesting enter so far?" asked Angelina.
"Cedric Diggory, Roger Davies and a Ravenclaw girl I don't know is about it," said Harriet, "A few Slytherins, but the current lot of adult Slytherins is…"
"Less than impressive," finished Hermione, who was reading and didn't even look up.
"That," agreed Harriet.
Angelina scowled. Cedric entering meant that she was very unlikely to get it. A lot of people at Hogwarts underestimated Hufflepuffs. Angelina wasn't among them. Cedric was probably the most skilled wizard in her year.
"Fred and George still plotting something up there?" asked Ginny.
"Oh yes," said Angelina with a laugh, "An Ageing Potion."
"Oh really," said Hermione disappointedly, again without looking up from her book, "That won't work. There's no way Dumbledore hasn't thought of that."
"Probably true," said Angelina.
"It's Luna!" said Harriet suddenly, jumping to her feet, "Be right back!"
Harriet ran over to where Luna Lovegood was entering the room. Harriet gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek, both of which Luna returned. The two of them soon came back to sit down.
"No sitting on your own today," said Harriet, "In fact you can sit by me whenever, Luna. We don't see nearly enough of each other."
Luna smiled. "I am sorry, I tend to be a bit of a loner sometimes."
"You remember Angelina Johnson from our defense sessions," introduced Harriet, "Angelina, Luna Lovegood."
Angelina held out her hand, and Luna took it, but not in a handshake. She pulled Angelina's hand up to her nose and sniffed it!
"Smells like bogeys," said Luna, who then proceeded to lick Angelina's finger tips, "Tastes like them too."
"Luna!" yelled a mortified Neville. Everyone else was familiar with Luna except Angelina though, so they just laughed.
Angelina laughed as well. "I did stick those fingers up Fred's nose, so that makes sense," she said.
"Why did you do that?" asked Ron, looking as if he was afraid of the answer.
"He was smelling me," said Angelina wryly.
Harriet snorted, trying to contain her laughter.
"I didn't know you minded people smelling you," said Luna apologetically.
"I don't," said Angelina with a smile, "Fred just tried to make a play that didn't quite work out for him."
There was a murmur that went through the room. The Beauxbatons students has entered. And in one group they all deposited their names in the Goblet. Then they dispersed to talk to the Hogwarts students. One girl in particular was attracting a bit of a crowd, all boys. Harriet scowled. "That girl is part Veela," she said shortly.
Angelina scowled. The girl seemed annoyed, but none of the other Beauxbatons students moved to help her, despite her obvious discomfort. So Angelina stood up and began shooing the boys away.
"Get out of here, move it!" snapped Angelina at the crowd of boys, "This girl is a guest here! Move!"
"That's right! Get out of here," shouted Harriet, who had followed Angelina. Her eyes were positively murderous.
The boys all scattered, and Angelina led Fleur to the side of the room, near the Portrait Gallery, Harriet right behind.
"I'm Angelina, and this is Harriet," said Angelina, putting her hand forward to shake the girl's hand. The girl accepted it graciously.
"I am Fleur Delacour," said the girl.
"The daughter of Henri and Apolline Delacour?" asked Harriet.
"Ah, you 'ave 'eard of them?" asked Fleur.
"My godfather knows them," said Harriet, suddenly blushing, "Sirius Black."
"Ah," said Fleur briefly, "My cousin once knew a Monsieur Black. Perhaps I know why you are blushing."
The change happened so fast that Angelina couldn't believe it. One second Harriet looked relatively normal, the next her eyes seemed to go vacant. Harriet was staring at Fleur, and no longer seemed to be entirely lucid.
"You are very beautiful Fleur," said Harriet out of nowhere, "Does anyone ever tell you that?"
Angelina turned to Fleur in horror. It was clear that Fleur also realised what was happening before her. Without a word, Angelina grabbed one of Harriet's arms, Fleur grabbed the other, and they lifted Harriet into the Portrait gallery, out of view of everyone.
"Harriet are you all right?" asked Angelina.
Harriet shook her head a bit, then slowly seemed to come to her senses. "I think… yeah, I am. I… oh Merlin, what did I do?!"
She turned to Fleur abruptly. "I am so sorry Fleur, I didn't mean to do that!" she apologized.
"Eet ees not entirely your fault," admitted Fleur guiltily, "I thought I was safe for the moment, around you two. I let my allure out een full. Eet was a mistake. You did well to resist eet before that."
"You aren't mad?" asked Harriet.
"You are not the first girl to fall prey to my allure," laughed Fleur, "Eet ees no big thing. Girls always compliment me anyways, where the boys try to impress me with the stupidest things. I like being complimented, as long as you are sincere."
"Well you are beautiful, but I probably wouldn't have said so without your allure present," said Harriet blushing, "I don't need that sort of attention."
"Some magicals are quite close-minded in Britain," explained Angelina.
"Eet ees the same in France," said Fleur, "but I will not judge you for eet. Thank you for the compliment."
Then Fleur leaned over and kissed Harriet lightly on the lips. She immediately turned and left.
"Oh, oh wow," said Harriet, seeming to lose strength in her legs. Angelina hooked an arm around Harriet's waist.
"You alright?" asked Angelina.
"Very much so," said Harriet, "That was a hell of a first kiss. I'll be fantasizing about that tonight. I mean…"
Harriet grimaced, realising what she had just said.
"Don't be embarrassed," said Angelina with a laugh, "It is perfectly normal."
Suddenly a mischievous thought hit Angelina, and she couldn't contain her curiosity. "Do you ever fantasize about me?" Angelina asked.
Harriet pulled herself away from Angelina. "Umm, on occasion," she admitted, blushing furiously.
"Well, I appreciate a compliment as well as Fleur does, so don't worry about it," said Angelina.
"I fantasize about Hermione the most though," admitted Harriet.
"I'm not surprised," said Angelina.
It only took a couple of minutes for Harriet to finish her recovery. When they returned to Harriet friends everyone was looking at them oddly.
"What was that about?" asked Neville.
"Harriet said something a bit off colour," said Angelina, "We pulled her out of here to spare Fleur and Harriet further embarrassment."
"Fleur is the daughter of the woman that Sirius was talking about, you know Apolline Delacour," said Harriet to Hermione, "You know, the one with the cousin that Sirius…"
"I remember," said Hermione, "You brought that up?"
Harriet nodded glumly.
Hermione just laughed. "How like you."
Another murmur went through the gathered crowd. The Durmstrang delegation had arrived, led by Viktor Krum. He threw in his name, then walked over towards Harriet.
"Hello, Harriet Potter," said Krum in a friendly tone. Ron's eyes were bulging. Ginny seemed a bit speechless as well.
"Hello Mr. Krum," said Harriet politely.
"Call me Viktor, all of you," said Krum, "These are your friends?"
"This is Neville Longbottom," said Harriet, clapping Neville on the back, "Those two are Luna Lovegood and Ginny Weasley. The boy whose eyes are about to explode is Ginny's older brother Ronald, and the girl who won't look up from her book is Hermione Granger."
Ron tried to say something but couldn't. Hermione raised one hand in greeting.
"This is Angelina Johnson," said Harriet, "The Gryffindor Quidditch Captain."
"Pleased to meet you all," said Krum politely.
"Likewise," said Angelina.
"You said something about a place to hide yesterday?" asked Krum.
Harriet laughed. "I did!"
Before she could continue, another burst of activity revealed Fred, George and Lee all carrying tiny vials to cheers from the surrounding students.
"Oh, you will want to see this," said Angelina with a grin.
"Vhat are they doing?" demanded Krum.
"Trying to cross the age line underage," said Angelina.
Fred and George both were chugging down their potions. They waited a moment for the potions to take effect, then leapt across the line. For a moment it seemed to work, so Lee chugged his potion and followed them. Suddenly all three were hurled from the area around the Goblet. And now all three of them sported full white beards.
Everyone burst out laughing. "Those twins are our beaters," said Angelina as she struggled to stay upright from laughing.
"And my idiot brothers," said Ginny, who was in a similar state.
Krum was laughing along with the rest of them. Like a normal person. Good to know.
"That's what they get for trying to outsmart one of the cleverest wizards alive," said Hermione, without looking up. She was smiling though.
And that was when Dumbledore came in and saw the twins. Angelina stepped forward. "I'll take these old fogeys to the Hospital Wing," she volunteered, "They'll probably need me to carry them upstairs."
Everyone laughed again. As Angelina led the twins on she goaded them. "I knew it wasn't going to work," she said smugly.
"Why didn't you tell us!" shouted Lee, frustrated.
"And spoil this?" asked Fred, pointing at his beard, scandalized, "No, the girl I like would never do something like that."
"You know," said Angelina, "If you didn't have a beard, I might kiss you."
"Undone by my own hubris!" shouted Fred, shaking his fist at the sky (or more properly, the ceiling).
Angelina smiled. There might be some hope for this boy.
XXXXX
Hermione sat down next to Harriet as the last few stragglers came into the Great Hall.
"It was a lot of effort keeping this seat for you," said Harriet accusingly.
"Sorry, Harry. I lost track of time," apologised Hermione, "Arithmancy is very interesting."
The Goblet was back at the front of the room. Sirius and Griselda were there again, as was Crouch Jr. By general agreement, Dumbledore would catch and read the names that came out of the Goblet.
The hall hushed as the Goblet flared. A single scrap of paper flew out of the Goblet. Dumbledore caught it, then quickly examined it.
"The Durmstrang Champion is Viktor Krum!" called out Dumbledore. There was a great applause as Krum walked forward. Crouch Jr. directed him into the Portrait Gallery.
After a moment, the Goblet flared again. Again a slip of paper flew out, and again Dumbledore caught it.
"The Beauxbatons Champion is Fleur Delacour," shouted Dumbledore.
There was less applause for Fleur, and more murmuring. But in general, the reception to her was friendly. She stood and made her way to the Portrait Gallery.
After a moment, the Goblet flared a third time. Another slip of paper emerged. Dumbledore had to jump to catch it, but he managed it.
"The Hogwarts Champion is Cedric Diggory," shouted Dumbledore.
A huge roar of approval came up from the Hufflepuffs. The other houses were muted, but Harriet and many other Gryffindors and Ravenclaws applauded politely. Harriet had been hoping Angelina would get it, but Cedric was a good guy. He walked towards the Portrait Gallery, waving to his house.
Once he was gone, Dumbledore turned back to the assembly. "Now that the Champions have been chosen…"
"The Goblet hasn't gone out," said Hermione, louder than she had anticipated. It had been a casual observation, but Dumbledore heard her. He turned back towards the Goblet. It flared again, sending forth one last scrap of paper. Then the Goblet went dark.
Harriet tensed up as she watched Dumbledore snatch the tiny shred of paper from the air. Hermione put an arm across Harriet's back. Harriet had to think this would be her name. It always was. Looking around, Hermione saw Sirius and Griselda both glaring at Crouch Jr. murderously. Morgan's face was impassive, which may have been the most ominous of all.
However, when Dumbledore looked up from the scrap of paper, he looked puzzled rather than grim. "Angelina Johnson," he said, his voice not bothering to hide his bewilderment.
Morgan grunted, her eyes suddenly very intent on what was happening. And something about that sent a chill down Hermione's spine. Something was wrong, Hermione knew, but her heart told her it must have something to do with Morgan Solaire.
Author's Note: So something that is different in this story is I choose the point of view I am writing from a bit differently. Usually any scene with Harriet in it will have Harriet as the main POV character, unless she is a minor character in the scene or I need to tell another POV (usually Herqmione's). However, while I don't abandon Harriet POV's in this story, I do use her less and other characters more when she is in a scene. This is because Harriet, who is falling under mind control, would be basically be having the same mind control reactions in most of these scenes. As a result, Angelina, Ginny, Ron and especially Hermione get more POV time.
Angelina getting entered into the tournament instead of Harriet was just something that sort of developed organically. I knew I didn't want Harriet in the tournament, but the tournament actually allows for a lot of interesting scenes, so I also knew that I needed for Harriet to get involved in some way. Having her be concerned for Angelina was a logical hook.
The Archons and Avatars thing is a bit complicated, but it forms the fundamental basis for the way really advanced magic works in this world. There will be a more complex explanation of what is going on in Part 6. The alternate universe story I am developing, Avatars and Archons, will also go into more detail, and the other story I am working on, Killing Hermione, will involve a rogue Avatar forcing Harry to use time travel shenanigans to fix things.