Harry woke up early Tuesday with morning wood. He decided that with a long day of classes ahead, taking care of it might take the edge off a bit for the day.

He had just reached down and grabbed his dick when, from the next bed over, Ron called out in a loud whisper "Hey Mate, where were you last night? You weren't at dinner. What did McGonagall say? Did she keep you long?"

"Oh, well, um, not too long," Harry said. "She was just kind of encouraging me for the tournament, saying how great it would be for Hogwarts and Gryffindor if I could win and to be sure to practice all my spells really well because the third task would be really hard. That sort of thing."

"Oh. And then you went to sleep early, right?" Ron said.

"I think all those nights staying up before the second task finally caught up with me," Harry lied. "I just got so tired all of a sudden and I came up here thinking to take a nap and now here I am."

"Oh," said Ron. He gave a slight turn of his head as if he found this odd. "Ok." he paused again, then seemed to put his other thoughts aside. "Well do you want to go down and get breakfast?" he asked.

"Sure," said Harry with a grin.

All through breakfast, Harry tried to act like he didn't have the weight of a serious decision on his shoulders. He laughed at Ron's jokes and talked through the coming classes with Hermione. And he managed to get a decent breakfast down. But the truth was that what he happened was weighing on him. He wasn't entirely focused. He tried to concentrate. But the the thought of the magnitude of what he would soon have to decide was overpowering. His mind was a mess. Commitment? Romance? Cho hadn't even gone to the Yule ball with him… How could he possibly even contemplate it? Then shards of feelings and images of being with Gabrielle would come to him and the task wouldn't seem quite so monumental or unpleasing. Then thoughts of Dumbledore and the professors came to him. What did they want? What did they expect? What would they think if he said no? Would he be thought a coward? Unwilling to help another human being? What would they think if he said yes? Would they think he was a creep, lusting over a young girl with a foolish crush on him?

He even thought about what his parents would want. What sort of life would they have wanted for him? What would they have told him to do?

—

"Mr. Potter," Snape's drawl cut into his thinking. "I'm sure you must have better things to think about," (this got a few snorts and titters from the Slytherins), "but if you don't stop stirring that, I will have to upturn it upon you."

Harry jolted back to the reality in front of him. It was the late afternoon. He stopped stirring. He paused, not sure what to do next. Hermione whispered a few instructions to him from behind him to help him get back going on his potion. But it was hard to stay concentrated. Most of the day was gone. He couldn't help but think about how he was hours away from a life altering decision. Ron had to nudge him to keep him working.

Class was soon over and Harry decided to go back to the tower to rest before dinner. But he hadn't been resting long when Ron called up the stairs from the common room for him to head on to dinner. Harry didn't really feel like eating but he also felt it would be too suspicious to skip dinner two days in a row.

As they ate, Harry glanced up at the head table. Harry wondered if Dumbledore had conferred with the other professors already. They didn't look to be discussing anything too serious. Professor Sprout was chuckling at something McGonagall had just said.

—

Out in the carriage, Gabrielle felt like climbing the walls. Her discomfort was worse. She hadn't slept well. She was trying to nap. But she couldn't get comfortable and felt more discomfort than ever. Her hips and spine ached. Her knees felt like they were bruising each other when she lay on her side. She had a knot in her back, to the left of her spine, that was killing her with its throbbing pain. And she went back and forth between feeling hot and cold.

Just then, Gabrielle's mother Apolline came into the room with a tray with hot soup, a piece of baguette, some butter, and a tiny vase with flowers in it.

"Here you are mon cher," her mother said.

"I don't want anything," said Gabrielle.

"But darling, eating a little will help you fell better. You can't fight this awful spell on an empty stomach."

"I said I don't want anything," said Gabrielle, more irritated.

"Darling you need to eat. How can you—"

Gabrielle cut her off with a frigid look, interjecting "Maman, I said I don't want anything!" As she said the word anything, she gestured with her arm for her to go away and the tray with the dishes and the vase sprung out of Apolline's hand and everything was dashed against the wall in the direction of Gabrielle's gesture. Apolline gasped and Gabrielle let out a little shriek. The soup was splattered all over the wall and all the dishes were shattered while the tray clattered to a rest on the floor.

"Mon dieu! Wandless magic! And so powerful!" Apolline exclaimed.

Gabrielle moaned. Another problem. She felt as though she wasn't in control of herself. It had almost felt good to let go of her emotions for a little bit but what a mess had happened from it. What was she supposed to do?

Apolline began cleaning up the mess with her own wand. Gabrielle said a few apologies but felt uncomfortable and like she didn't know what to say.

—

As Harry walked out from dinner with Ron and Hermione, it felt comfortable, almost normal. He just so wished he didn't have to make this choice. He thought about what it would mean to commit to one person. To never get to take Cho out, or any other girl. What would it be like to only ever be with one person romantically? He didn't even notice that they weren't heading back to Gryffindor until Hermione went into an empty classroom and Ron pulled him in and closed the door.

"Hey, what's going on?" said Harry.

"Alright mate. Spill it. You tell us what's going on," said Ron.

"What are you talking about? Nothing's going on!"

"Come now, Harry," said Hermione. "Don't you think you better tell us? We know it must be something serious."

"What? No, there's nothing really. I'm just thinking about the tournament."

"Now now," said Hermione, "that's a lot to think about, but it wouldn't distract you this much so far ahead of the next task. Professor Flitwick had to remind you three times today that you had to use your wand to charm things."

"And you would have blown up your potion if we hadn't helped you," said Ron.

Harry sighed for just a second and looked down.

"Does it have something to do with what Professor McGonagall told you yesterday? What happened with her?" Hermione asked, with a compassionate look in her eye.

"Well," said Harry, looking up at Hermione and then over at Ron, "Kind of. But Dumbledore doesn't want me to tell anyone."

"So there is something?" Ron exclaimed.

"Yes," said Harry, "although Dumbledore recommended I not tell."

"I knew it!" Ron said.

Harry tried to smile but didn't manage much of one.

"Alright so he recommended you not tell anyone? He didn't forbid you, right?" Harry shook his head. "Ok, then so don't follow his recommendation. Just tell us. We're not going to tell anyone."

"Ron! Don't you think Dumbledore has a pretty good idea of what we can know and what would be a risk?" Hermione said.

"Well, I think so but he doesn't know us as well as we know us. He doesn't know for sure that we can be trusted. You know we're not going to spread anything. And maybe we can help Harry."

"Yes, well, we still need to be careful. And it's up to Harry, really."

"What do you think, mate?" Ron asked.

Harry slumped into a chair. He exhaled.

"I really shouldn't," he said. He rubbed his forehead. There was a barely perceptible release of tension in the room as Ron and Hermione realized that they wouldn't be finding out any more about whatever was eating him. Then Harry felt like voice inside him reached him. If you follow his recommendations all the time, the thought reverberated, you'll never be your own man.

"No," Harry said, "no, whatever happens, you're going to know this, so I may as well tell you now."

"Are you sure?" said Hermione.

"Yes," said Harry resolutely. "I trust you both. I know you won't do anything that would harm anything related to me or this issue."

Ron and Hermione looked at each other with slight confusion when Harry said "this issue."

"Of course. We'll keep our mouths shut," said Ron with a slight grin.

Harry offered a weak half smile and sighed.

"So," he said, "after McGonagall met me, she took me up to Dumbledore's office." And it all began tumbling out of him. The reaction of the spell and the bond. His confusion that Dumbledore or a healer couldn't just solve it. His bewilderment that this young girl had gotten herself into this situation over him. His frustration that just when he thought he might have a little time to relax for a bit, this huge moral issue was put on his plate. His confusion over what he was supposed to do, not knowing much about marriage or romance but not wanting that girl to suffer and die. How he had told Dumbledore he wanted to hear from all the other professors about if this was really irreversible, if she would really die if he didn't. And how he would be going up there in 40 minutes and didn't know what would happen but didn't know what to think about relationships and marriage now but did know he didn't want anyone to die.

Ron and Hermione were good through the whole performance, listening attentively and restraining themselves from asking questions. They could tell this meant a lot to Harry. By the time he was finished most of the questions that had occurred to Ron as Harry talked had been answered and he simply sat there quietly, rather stunned. But Hermione burst out "Oh Harry, I'm so sorry! This must have been eating you alive! What an awful spot you've been put in!"
She went over to give him a hug but it turned into a half hug as it was awkward behind the desk.

"I've read about the challenges of bonding charms. They're very powerful magic and they take some time to complete," Hermione said. "But I've never heard of this interacting with a life debt. I'll have to do some more research into it."

"Do you think it really could be that way, that she could really suffer and die if I don't choose to be with her?"

Hermione paused. Then she looked Harry in the eye. "I honestly don't know," she said. "But I don't think Dumbledore and McGonagall would bring you in for this if they didn't think it was real."

Harry exhaled and then sniffed. He looked down at the desk.

"I don't know why stuff keeps happening to me. I didn't put my name in the Goblet. I didn't ask for this."

"I know mate," said Ron. "I don't know why it all falls on you. But you're not alone. We're with you whatever happens."

Harry looked at him and gave a weak smile.

"I'd better get going," he said. "If all those professors are coming, I don't want to be late."

"Right," said Hermione as they stood up and got ready to leave.

"We'll meet up when it's over in the common room," said Ron.

"Ok," said Harry.

Harry ducked out the door.

"You head on back," Hermione said to Ron. "I'll meet you back there. I need to go to the library."