"Coronatio. Protego." Two words cut through the silence after the explosion. The crowd began to cheer wildly, and Albus felt a tear fall. He never looked away from Harry as he started to walk toward the two dragons. His eyes were fixated on the half mask that sat on Harry's face.

Covering exactly half his face, the mask was an ivory white. Green vapor, that Albus recognized as magic itself, leaked from the broken edges and the single eye hole. "My dear boy… what did you do?" He watched in silence as with a roar that had a secondary tone under it, Harry attacked.

Everything burned. Agony darted through his legs as he took a step, and his vision swam. The two dragons roared in defiance, even as hot blood poured from the Horntail's wounds, and the scales of the Vilispa cooled. Harry flicked his wand twice, and two massive spires of earth speared into the Horntail. As it was pinned by the spires that skewered it, Harry started blasting it with explosion curses, banishing charms, and Drax spells formed from the very air.

"Good lord! I'm not sure what I am seeing Clyde! Harry Potter has a half mask on his face, and is blasting the horntail into submission! There has to be a hundred spells coming from his wand!" Ludo's voice carried the action to the rest of the world.

The burning intensified as the magic erupted from Harry's wand. Still, even as his arms burned, and he stopped feeling his feet, he blasted magic forward. Finally, the Horntail fell to the onslaught. With a wail, an exploding curse slammed into her eye. With a shattering finality, the Horntail died.

The Vilispa watched as the Horntail died. It instinctually knew that it couldn't move until its scales cooled and when the onslaught of exploding curses and Drax spells fell upon it, it hunkered down, preparing itself. Exploding curses bounced of its hide, drax spells formed of blasts of sharpened wind cut into the scales, and the Vilispa waited as it slowly built up its toxic breath.

Harry stopped his advance and magical assault. With a flick up of his wand, a dull spire of earth forced the Vilispa's head up, just as it blasted out toxic gas. Working quickly, Harry transfigured the spire into a collar for the dragon, keeping it immobile. He summoned one of Krum's knives, still cursed and enlarged it so the blade was as thick as the dragon's neck. Levitating it above the Vilispa's neck, just below the Task's collar, Harry let it fall.

The audience was horrified by the scream from the dragon when the knife failed to cut through it's spine on the first try. The audience was shocked when Harry lifted the enlarged knife again, and drove it down once more. The Vilispa ceased its struggling as its head detached from the body. The crowd roared as the blood of the dragon showered the arena.

Harry could barely see. His vision swam, and when it was steady, there were flashes of red. Breathing was hard, his chest burned. He stumbled toward the Vilispa, and dragged his disk out of his pocket. He fumbled as it slipped into place and the collar fell off the stump of the dragon's neck. He suddenly couldn't feel his fingers of his left hand. He raised his wand to the exit that the Vilispa entered from, and Summoned the wall of Arena. By the time he landed outside the door, his mask had shattered, and he knew no more.

Albus fired a patronus to Poppy. If he was right about what he just saw, Harry needed help now. In the mean-time, he watched as Fleur woke up and gasped in horror at what she saw.

"Moi Dieu." The whispered swearing was picked up by the wind, and every person in the arena heard it. Fleur slowly stood and started to stagger toward the corpse of the Horntail. Her vision, blurry from slamming face first into a dragon, saw only the collar around the throat of the dragon. Only when she staggered out of the arena, the only champion to do so under her own power, did the crowd start to cheer again.

Madam Poppy Pomfrey had seen it all. She was a mediwitch-in-training when Grindlewald's war ended. She was fully trained and on staff at Hogwarts when Voldemort declared war. But as she cast at Harry Potter's body with one hand and poured potions down his throat with the other, she was shocked.

When the Headmaster ran in, she yelled, still doing her best to save him. "Albus! What in the blazes were you thinking?!"

Albus joined in the casting, easing some of the stress that Poppy was feeling. While not a medic by any means, Albus was capable at the charms that Poppy was using. Being in the school for over a century now, with access to the Hogwarts Library, he could boast one of the largest spell repertoire in Britain if not the world. "I have no idea what you are saying Poppy. I had nothing to do with Harry's training. What exactly is wrong?" Albus kept casting spells, charms and even more as he was gestured by his MediWitch.

"Rapid Muscle degeneration, nerve damage to the left arm, a collapsed lung, It looks like he broke both legs and three ribs, and his magic is way too high for the damage. Its as if he was held under the Cruciatus for over an hour, but it was cast by a 4th year. That doesn't take into account the second degree burns on his wand arm, because he shielded against DRAGON FIRE!" For the first time in her whole tenure at the school, she screamed at the headmaster. At her scream, the door to the hospital wing burst open and a shaggy black dog ran in.

"Snuffles, come here boy!" Ron Weasley ran after the dog, gesturing wildly about. When he caught sight of Dumbledore, still firing spells at Harry's body looking at the dog, he swore.

"We will discuss this after we save Harry. In the meantime, please remind Snuffles that he is to behave while laying by the bed." The headmaster said before his attention fully went back to the matter of mending his student. Ron quietly went back outside and shut the Hospital Wing doors behind him.

Saving Harry took over 3 hours. 2 of those were spent ensuring the degeneration ceased, and the rest was to heal the other injuries. Throughout the entire process, the dog never moved from its place beside the bed.

Ron paced up and down the hall infront of the closed Hospital Wing doors. Within an hour, Professor McGonagall and Cedric Diggory had joined his vigil. Ron snarled at Cedric," If he dies in there, I will have your head Diggory!"

"Mr. Weasley! Calm yourself now! Mr. Diggory had nothing to do with what did in that arena. Right Mr. Diggory?" The latter portion of that was directed towards Cedric, and had the tone of 'I had better be right.'

"I told him to never use it." Cedric sighed as he sat against the wall. "He first tested it out three days ago, and he never used a full half mask. Even with that, it took everything I had, all my training for the last five years, just to keep up."

Minerva's eyes were wide, and Ron was grumbling. "Cedric, you are the best in the school. If Mr. Potter wasn't chosen you would have been."

Cedric laughed hollowly. " Of course professor. I don't deny that. But Harry is catching up. Fast. Even without that, he is good enough to make me sweat, and with it… its overwhelming."

"That's nice Diggory, but what is it?!" Ron bit out as he continued to pace.

"I don't know. But I can tell you what I suspect. I think it's a physical manifestation of magic that acts as an amplification. When he wore a scrap of that mask, he was faster, his spells hit harder, and he fired more of them. He blocked a toxin powered dragon fire explosion with a protego. That shouldn't be possible. It would have taken Dumbledore himself, putting everything he had into it, just to pull that off. And Harry started firing. Do you know how many stunners it takes to down a dragon? A team of six, firing constantly. At least 24 stunners is minimum. Harry blasted that dragon, according to some with over a hundred spells!"

"Yea?! BIG DEAL! WILL HE LIVE?!" Ron exploded. He stormed towards Cedric who looked at him with cold distant eyes.

"MR. WEASLEY!" With a flick of her wand, Minerva had Ron restrained and floating an inch off the floor. "Calm down, or I will insure you never leave detention until Easter holiday. Am I clear?"

"Yes Professor."

"He will likely live. He probably over did it. The body is not meant to force an amplification like that. And the reason it's a big deal, Weasley, is simple. A senior Auror, during a standard week during the war did not on average fire a hundred spells. In three weeks of Hogwarts, you would not fire a hundred spells. The last time I can remember a wizard firing a hundred spells was the Dumbledore and Grindlewald duel in '45." Cedric explained.

"It happened in '78 too Mr. Diggory. You-Know-Who had attacked Diagon Alley, and Professor Dumbledore responded. The duel lasted two hours. Though there were rumors of it happening in '80 too. I don't know who could have done that however, because the timing was wrong. The only other candidate I could think of was Charles Potter, but he was killed in '79 when 20 Death Eaters and You-Know-Who attacked one of the Potter Properties." Professor McGonagall spoke absently.

"'79 you say? Would that be in the summer, I remember reading about the lack of activity that fall…" Ron spoke up. While worried still, the history of the Last War was something that wasn't spoke of in the Weasley household.

"Aye, Mr. Weasley." The voice of Alastor Moody cut through the hall, and he chucked as 3 wands pointed at him. "Good, but if I hadn't said something, y'all would be dead. Constant Vigilance. Back to the topic, Mr. Weasley. In the summer of '79, The Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort-"

"Alastor! Don't use that name!" Professor McGonagall broke in.

"Fine, In the summer of that year, a team of Death Eaters, numbering 20, led by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, attacked a Potter property that was not their manor, or the Cottage that hid the Potters in '81. We don't know what property it was, 'cause the goblins are stingy like that. At around 13:00, the invaders broke the wards. Aurors arrived on scene 13 minutes 24 seconds later. It was a warzone, and the only thing left standing was the porch and a few walls. I was on duty that night. I remember Charles' wife, Dorea's last words. The woman was not savable. She said,"They found out why it was a bad idea. Charles' is pissed." It took us another 10 minutes to get to where Charles Potter was. He had dueled three people at once, two in black cloaks and masks, and You-Know-Who himself. We know that, because the two in masks were still alive, if barely. Charles was dead, killed with a killing curse to the fingertips, because he didn't dodge enough. 21 went into that building, and only 1 walked out. We are also fairly sure that He didn't walk out unscathed either, as attacks didn't occur for three months. After testing Dorea's wand to see what happened, we saw that she cast two spells, a shield and a reductor that missed we assume since no one was injured by one. She got a cutter in response. From what we can tell, Charles went nuts, and sent 20 of them to the next plane in response." Moody's dark chuckle brought the three out of his story.

"That isn't something that is funny Alastor." Minerva spat.

"Professor, with all due respect… they learned the hard way. We are all taught at birth that there are three things you don't do. You don't attack family, you don't invade private property and if you do, don't be upset when the invaders are sent back in boxes. There is a reason why people don't try anything at the balls that Purebloods throw." Cedric pointed out.

"Aye, lad's right. You go into someone's home, and expect to walk out after throwing curses, you better be immortal or damn good. Grindlewald wasn't stupid enough to pull that shit, and look where it got You-Know-Who. Every time he pulled it, he suffered casualties. Massive ones. I remember the Bone's Manor attack. Like the Potter property attack, except more casualties. At least 40 death eaters went in. We know for a fact only 3 came out of that death trap."

"That's what made the Longbottom attack so weird. They got in without being killed…" Cedric spat out, a look of revulsion on his face.

"Wait the Longbottom attack?" Ron asked. "When was that?" Confusion was all over his face. He knew the others, they were at the height of the last war, and were horror stories that every kid heard now.

"Alastor, don't you dare." Minerva glared at the Defense professor who looked like he was about to open his mouth.

"Aye Professor. Lad, if you want that information, you gotta find a way to find it for yourself. Don't be asking the Longbottom lad either. Got that?!" Moody barked at the red head.

"Yes professor."

While Albus and Poppy slaved away and the four outside the Hospital Wing spoke about morbid history, Harry was floating.

Nothing hurt, he could see without his glasses, and when he reached up to feel his forehead, he didn't notice a scar. He bolted upright. All around him swirled mist. Even as he looked, the mist swirled and turned as if he were staring deeply in an ever churning pool of blackened water. He stood, and found himself standing firmly on the mist, even as it swirled around and under his feet. His confusion was only heightened by the voice from behind him.

"Hello Harry." A slightly deeper voice than Harry's own came from behind him, causing Harry to spin and grab for his wand. Only to stop in shock. Standing less than 4 feet away, was a man who looked extremely like Harry. Messy unkept hair, looking as if he just got off a broom, a strong wiry build much like an archer or swimmer, covered by a sweater that was pattered and grey. He wore jeans and simple trainers, his hand stuck in the pockets as if he were just strolling the park.

"Dad." Harry's voice choked out before he darted toward his dad. He went to wrap his arms around him but found that his limbs just drifted through.

"I'm sorry son… but I am only here because you used the Crowning. Not even family magic can bring back the dead…" James frowned sadly at Harry.

"Why… why can't you stay? I don't need to touch you dad! I just.. I just want to talk." Harry sat on the mist and brought his knees up so he could rest his chin on them.

"Harry… I would love to stay, and we can talk after we have a serious conversation. Now, stand up and join me at the table." James turned, and hid his smile when he heard his son obey.

Walking through the mist, they found a small white table with two chairs. The Potters settled themselves in the chairs, and Harry focused on James' face.

"Now son. I don't think I need to tell you how much you pushed it. A half mask at your age?! Are you insane?" Harry looked down at the table while James continued his rant. Finally he spoke up

"I didn't have much of a choice. Anything less wouldn't have allowed me to survive the explosion."

"Yes, and then you could have let portions of it go as you continued, so you wouldn't be in this position!" James snapped.

"Well sorry! I didn't know that! I learned how to Crown less than three days ago thank you very much!" Harry finally yelled.

"Wait… you learned to Crown in three days?" James asked flabbergasted.

"Well yea… it was my last resort. Three dragons meant I needed an ace that I could guarantee a victory. I felt that Crowning was the only option I had to ensure I could pull it off." Harry mumbled.

"I understand… I'm just surprised because it took me 2 months, and it took dad, your grandfather, 5 to pull it off the first time. I'm proud of you for your accomplishment." James smiled at his son.

"Thanks dad…" Harry smiled back, and James was struck by how much he looked like Lily in that moment.

"Son, as much as I am proud of you, don't do it again. You know what Crowning does right?" James asked his heir.

"It just boosts my power output right?" Harry asked confused.

"Magic isn't like a battery Harry. You don't have a core, like many muggleborns think, and you don't have unlimited power either. Magic is odd. Your body itself is a conduit for the magic of the world. Some people are better conduits than others, and some train their bodies to be the best conduits they can. That is how you get wizards who are old, such as Dumbledore, who are extremely strong magically. Then there are some who are weaker conduits for magic. There are other factors too, like how well bonded a wand is, and confidence and concentration among others."

"Okay, so what does that mean about the Mask dad?" Harry asked.

"Crowning is Potter family magic that was discovered in Rome. It creates a manifestation of your soul, that then, turns your own body into magic." James looked at Harry with steely hazel eyes.

"It turns my body to magic?"

"Yes. It converts your very cellular structure into magic, at a rapid pace. A full mask, a Perfect Crowning, will convert it at a slower more efficient pace than the partial Crowning you did. But there are caveats. There is an absolute Rule that you must create, and you must obey it."

"I read about it, and thought it only applied to the Perfect Crowning. The Grimoire wasn't clear there."

"Son, the next time you Crown, you will have a full mask. And if you don't have a Rule, the mask will kill you." James spoke harshly.

Albus and Poppy finally stepped away from Harry's bed. The centenarian Headmaster slumped onto a bed to the side, while the Matron of the ward chugged a Pepper-Up Potion that she kept in her apron.

"You okay Headmaster?" The matron swayed slightly as the potion did its work to rouse her enough to go to her office.

"Merely catching my breathe dear. Thank you, go rest Poppy. I think we are in the clear."Dumbledore spoke softly as he slowly sat up from his prone position.

Poppy Pomfery shook her head. 'that man will kneel over some day from trying too much at his age.' She didn't disobey however, and shuffled to her cot that was in her office. A small kip would be okay.

As soon as the door shut to the office, Albus had his wand on the dog by Harry's bed. "Sirius, if your intent is innocent, you will transform right now and tell me what you are doing in England."

The black shaggy dog shifted into a shaggy man, garbed in rags and holding a wand by his side. "My godson is in a tournament designed to murder, and you expect me to listen to it on the radio? Sod off Albus."

With a sigh, the headmaster put away his wand. "I suspected that you would come. Did you see the task?" At Sirius' nod, Albus continued. " He pushed it too far. I can only assume it was family magic, but when he had that mask on, he burned with magic. I could feel it as if he were a bonfire in winter."

"I can't tell you the name, or what it does. It is family magic, but you are right in a sense… it is a bonfire." Sirius stroked Harry's hair as he spoke. The two men stared at the sleeping Chosen, before Albus spoke again.

"He got 43 points out of 45. He got the highest score in the Task." There was quiet pride in there.

"Of course he won Albus. Potters don't lose." Sirius smirked. His pride in his godson was much more visible.

"If you think this is winning Sirius, I doubt your ability to think rationally." Albus retaliated. He had no issues with Sirius, but he would not allow him to taint this disaster as anything less than it was.

"How is it not a victory. He did as he was told. He lived." Sirius countered.

"He killed two dragons, one of which was the last confirmed of its species, and nearly died in the attempt. It was merely luck that every single Chosen survived! Mr. Krum had 2 broken ribs and a cracked sternum, Ms. Delacour a concussion and internal bleeding, and Harry nearly killed himself! How pray tell is that a victory?" Albus responded heatedly.

"Harry walked away. I don't care about anything else. He won Albus. Now, if you wish to continue spouting shite, please do so outside. If you want to arrest me, please do so after the Tournament, because I will be by Harry's side until then, no matter what I have to do to do so. Understand Headmaster?" Sirius made eye contact, and Albus was astounded by the fire in his onyx eyes.

"I understand. I… If you would like Sirius, I can do something I should have long ago-" Albus spoke after a moment of studying Sirius.

"If you are attempting to harm me, know that I am calling my Godfather's oath. As long as this Tournament continues, I will not leave Harry's location." Sirius responded as he tightened his hold on his wand. Albus smiled as a line of magic stretched between Sirius and Harry.

"Come to my office Sirius. There is much we must do to ensure that Harry and you are not separated. I cannot in good conscience allow such an oath to be circumvented as per my role as Chief Warlock." Albus stood slowly. "No need to transform either. As of now, I am placing you under arrest as my ability as Chief Warlock. Also, per my position I am going to have to question you. Please come quietly."

The four in the hall outside the Hospital Wing looked towards the doors when they opened. It was only Cedric Alastor and Minerva that pointed wands at Sirius from his position behind Albus his arms folded.

"BLACK!" Alastor spat as a spell shot from his wand. Dumbledore deflect the spell before it travelled half way.

"Alastor, he is already arrested! Minerva, Mr. Diggory, I want you two to sit by Mr. Potter until I return. Mr. Weasley, go back to your common room, and kindly let slip that is fine, and that he won the Task. 43 out of 45. Alastor, help me escort Mr. Black to my office. I am going to interrogate him here. Before I apprehended him, I saw a feat of magic that should not be possible if he were guilty." Albus spoke quickly as his eyes darted to each person he addressed. "Rita, if you are here, and I have a strong suspicion you are, if this gets in print before I file it at the ministry, I will know, and it will not be pleasant."

None of the others knew who or what he was talking about, though Mad Eye's eye darted around the area swiftly.

The group dispersed and did as the headmaster bid. Meanwhile, Harry slept and spoke with his father.

AN: Well, this came out slower than I thought it would. Writing it was more difficult than I thought mainly because my outline had at least three plot lines converge here. If you all can find them, that would be really make my day. The next chapter maybe slower than usual as well, since its the last portion of the month and I have duties to do. But, in the mean time... What do you all think is about to happen? What will James and Harry talk about? What is Albus' play? How is Fleur and Victor? How is Harry speaking to his father? What about Lily? Maybe all of these will be answered next chapter... or not.

Thanks for the new favorites and follows, and I would love to read some of your thoughts in reviews. Until next time,
Zero