October 31st 1994, Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland
Harry was sitting next to his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermoine Granger. He, as well as the rest of the students of three schools, were waiting intently for the choosing of the Triwizard champions. Harry could feel Hermoine shuddering when the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, started to caress the goblet of fire. He could understand her, if someone as old as the headmaster touched him like that he would bolt it before showering in bleach. Seemingly feeling uncomfortable, the goblet of fire flared red and spit out a single piece of parchment.
"The champion of Durmstrang is…VIKTOR KRUM!" yelled Dumbledore. The mentioned bulgarian star seeker stood up, accompanied by thunderous applause and cheers, mostly from his classmates, but also from Ron. Harry feared he would go deaf.
"The champion of Beauxbatons is…FLEUR DELACOUR!" The next champion was announced. The beautiful girl rose gracefully to her feet and walked towards the antechamber. The applause from her school was strangely reserved, compared to the other schools, thought Harry. A yelp from Ron informed him that Hermoine once again kicked him in the shin because he was drooling at the sight of Fleur. Harry sighed and refocused on the goblet.
"And last but not least, the Hogwarts champion is…CEDRIC DIGGORY!" announced the aged headmaster. Harry was pretty sure he was now deaf. He never heard anything louder. The handsome black haired Huffelpuff smiled widely and also walked into the trophy room.
Dumbledore started his speech regarding the triwizard tournament, when the goblet suddenly flared once again. Confused, everyone looked at the goblet and the mighty artefact threw out a fourth parchment. With vigour, Dumbledore grabbed the parchment and read it. He called out "HARRY POTTER!" The green eyed wizard in question blanched, he looked around like a kid that lost his parents in a store, unsure what he should do. Hermoine gave him a gentle shove and said "go Harry before it gets worse".
Seeing the genuine concern in her eyes, he stood up, missing the angry glare he got from Ron. As he stood up, a soft clink sound reminded him of his two precious rings. While he walked, he slipped them as discreetly as he could on his index fingers. The Lion ring on the left hand, the Wolf ring on the right. The feeling of unrivalled strength and unbendable will power always calmed Harry down. And so, when he walked down the great hall to reach the trophy room, he remembered how he discovered what the old blacksmith Andre meant all those years ago.
Flashback, underground chamber of the philosopher's stone, 1992
Harry was wearing the rings the whole time he, Hermoine and Ron fought through the "traps". The whole time Harry thought it was a joke, considering the three first years were able to get through the traps. But when he stepped alone into the last chamber, alone, and faced Quirrel-or Voldemort, he still wasn't sure about that- a surge of confidence blew through his body. Both rings glowed softly, Lion gold, Wolf silver, and Harry battled and defeated Quirrelmort.
Chamber of secrets, 1993
When he was entering the chamber, Harry realised that there is no bigger threat than a basilisk. Seeing the challenge and danger, he slipped the rings on his finger and entered the chamber. The second he pulled the sword of Gryffindor out of the sorting hat, the Wolf ring glowed brightly, a deep blue light filled the chamber. And suddenly, Harry could feel his body moving on his own, like it always knew how to use a sword masterfully. WIth jumps that would make any athlete jealous, he rammed the sword through the basilisk's head from above. The memory of Tom Riddle could only stare in horror when the twelve year old wizard destroyed his diary with the sword.
Shore of the black lake, 1994
When Harry and Hermoine jumped back in time using her time turner, Harry knew it was time for business. That's why he once again slipped into his rings. When he and Hermoine were hiding from the Werewolf form of Professor Lupin, the Wolf ring started to sing softly. And just when the Werewolf raised its paw to slay his prey, a loud growl followed by a aggressive howling stopped Moony, who jumped away from the two teens and ran into the woods as fast as he could, interestingly in the opposite direction of the howl. Buckbeak then never left the side of the two, he seemed distressed by the howl.
As they watched the Dementors attack Harry and Sirius of the past (or present? Argh, time travels are confusing :( ) Harry suddenly realised, it wasn't his dad that summoned the mighty patronus, it was himself from the future. And then he summoned the overpowered patronus charm, not realising that the Lion ring was glowing in a rich red, but he knew that his magic was suddenly supercharged
Flashback end
Smiling at the memories, something weird happened. Harry heard something, and I mean not the muttering and angry calls of the other students. There were two voices, strong and deep male voices. And they were talking to him! "Worry not my brother! Nothing will happen to you. We will make sure of it, like we always did" This voice held authority, and commanded respect. It also made his left hand tingle. "He is right son. Trust in us and in your own strength, and then nothing will be able to stop you!" The second voice was somehow melodic and gave a feeling of trust. Harry felt protected by it. Also, it made his right hand tingle.
Still walking, Harry asked in his head "Who are you?" Two gasps were heard before the first voice answered "You can finally hear us? Oh by the lords, what a glorious day! Allow me to introduce myself brother, I am Dragon Slayer Ornstein, chief of the guard" "And I am Sir Knight Artorias, the Abysswalker. It's a pleasure to finally meet you son."
"Nice to meet you too. I am Harry Potter. So…..where are you?"
Artorias chuckled and said "Still haven't figured it out? We are in the rings. As the wolf Knight, a fragment of my soul rests in the Wolf ring."
"So Ornstein is in the Lion ring?" Asked Harry while he was slowly walking down the steps to the trophy room. "That is correct my brother. We will talk later, I think you now have to focus on the other people. But don't worry, we will help you"
Harry nodded internally and looked towards the fireplace, where the other champions stood and waited for something to happen. Upon seeing him, Krum raised a confused eyebrow, Cedric frowned and Fleur took a step forward. "What iz eet? Do zey want us back?" Asked the blonde french witch. Harry shook his head and opened his mouth to answer her, but suddenly the door flew open and the three headmasters, Dumbledore, Madame Maxime and Karkaroff, the two ministry workers, Bagman and Crouch, and, to Harry's irritation, Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall. He didn't have a problem with the Scottish witch, but the greasy potion master? Harry was never sure who he would prefer to spend his time with, his relatives or Snape.
His train of thoughts were interrupted when Dumbledore grabbed his shoulders and slammed him against the next shelf. "HARRY" he roared "DID YOU PUT YOUR NAME INTO THE GOBLET OR DID YOU ASK SOMEONE TO DO IT FOR YOU?!" the spit that hit him in the face irritated Harry. The Wolf ring started to glow silver and Harry firmly, but respectfully, removed the bony hands of the headmaster from his shoulders and stared back at him "No sir, I have no idea how this could have happened." Something about Harry's calm answer enraged the headmaster even more. Before the aged wizard could explode, another voice came "Typical for you Potter. Can't you even live one day without seeking the attention of the whole school?"
The Lion ring gave a soft golden glow, and Harry answered the greasy dungeon bat "Dunno Snivellus, you seem to be unable to go a day where you spend an hour for body hygiene soo…." Furious, Snape roared "YOU ARROGANT BRAT, JUST LIKE YOUR FATHER!" He drew his wand but the curse he had on his lips was stopped by a threat. The gentle blue glow of the Wolf ring summoned the sword of Gryffindor into Harry's hand, who now pointed the priceless weapon at the potion master's throat. "Come on Professor" he said with an ice cold voice "give me a reason to make a shish kebab out of you" The tension in the small room was tense enough to cut it.
"MR. POTTER! STOP THIS RIGHT NOW AND HAND OVER THE SWORD!" Yelled Dumbledore, desperately trying to regain control over the situation. Harry just swung the sword over his shoulder and glared at the adults in the room. "How about we get to the business we have on hand? I would first like to apologise " he then turned to the other three selected champions "to you three. This was supposed to be your time to shine, but thanks to some meddling from someone who wishes me harm, you were robbed of this chance. And for that I'm deeply sorry" He bowed his head a little. Viktor and Ceddric seemed ok with this apology, but a snort from the french blonde caught the attention of everyone. "Oh please, 'ow can we be sure zat you mean it leetle boi? I'm sure you are internally cheering over zis" said Fleur in an angry voice with a rather snobbish expression on her face.
Harry's eyebrow twitched in anger before a tingling in his right hand caught his attention. "Calm down my son and let me handle this" came the soothing voice of Artorias. Squinting at his right hand, Harry asked in his head "Handle this? How?" Now his left hand tingles and the authoritarian voice of Ornstein said "Relax brother and let him take control. He always had a way with the ladies" Confused, Harry relaxed his mind and suddenly felt like he was placed in the passenger seat. His body moved and talked on its own.
Snape smirked while Madame Maxime scowled at the outburst of the quarter Veela. But still, everybody was confused when Harry suddenly dropped to one knee, the sword firmly held in both hands with the tip on the ground. "My fair lady, by all my honour and my sword, I swear to you that I told you nothing but the truth. Nothing would be further from my intentions than lie to such a fair maiden. I would feel honoured if you would allow me to escort you back to your quarters after we finish here. But if you would feel my company indisposed of your grace, I would understand it and honour your decision." Everyone was shocked by this, but none more than Fleur. That any man would be able to talk to her in such a gallant manner surprised her. And the blush that spread on her cheeks was also a surprise to her. With a cough, she answered "I guess you speak zee truth. I would love to 'ave you accompany me back" Harry nodded and stood up.
Half an hour later, the four Triwizard champions were briefed on the process of the tournament. The first task would be held on the 24th of November, till then the champions had time to prepare for the task that they knew nothing about. Dumbledore wanted to talk to Harry, but the black haired boy, with the advice of Artorias, respectfully declined the headmaster and reminded him that he had a lady to escort. So he offered his arm to Fleur, who placed her small hands around it, and walked off. When the two reached the Beauxbatons carriage, Harry opened the door and waited for Fleur to enter. The beautiful french witch looked over Harry and gave him a dazzling smile. "I must admit, I 'ave misjudged you 'arry. Never ever was someone so polite and chivalrous to me, safe for my family. 'Opfefully we will converse some more in the future" She gave him a quick kiss on the right cheek and entered the carriage.
Harry on the other hand stood stunned in front of the carriage. With a blush he touched the place where Fleur kissed him, and with a stupid smile on his face he walked back into the castle. It was an hour before curefree, so he decided to take a long stroll through the castle on his way back to Gryffindor tower. But just as he passed the great hall and was about to start climbing the grand staircase, a voice stopped him.
"I have a few questions Potter, and you are going to answer them" Harry turned around and stumbled in surprise. Only a few inches away from his face were a pair of violet-blue eyes, framed by golden blond hair. After he landed on his backside, Harry saw that the eyes belonged to a witch in his year, dressed in Slytherin robes. He knew her, although just vaguely. "What the hell Greengrass? Never heard of something called personal space?" The fourth year Slytherin, Daphne Greengrass, blinked slowly, her expressionless face never changing. "Well, considering that Granger is practically glued to you and you just escorted that frenchy girl with your arms locked, I didn't think you would mind." Wondering if the infamous "Ice-Queen of Slytherin" just cracked a joke or not, Harry stood up and asked "Never mind, what did you want to ask me?" Daphne stared at him for a second before she linked her arms with him. "Escort me back to my dorm Potter, we will talk on the way." Harry wanted to give her a sassy reply like "Normally people would say please when wanting something" but Artorias took control once more. "With pleasure my lady" and so they were off.
"Alright Potter spill, what are those rings you wear?" asked the blonde witch halfway to the dungeons. Harry looked at her for a moment before he replied "nothing special, an old blacksmith gave them to me as a gift when I was a kid as some kind of good luck charm, they are nothing special" he figured that it would be better to keep the true nature of the rings a secret for now. "Don't think I'm stupid Potter!" hissed Daphne. "You don't wear the Potter ring, but when you play Quidditch you wear those two rings. And when you got announced as a champion, you slipped them on. Why?" Harry scowled for two reasons. First, what did she mean with "Potter ring"? And second, he cursed her observation skills. "Ok Greengrass, maybe they are something more, maybe they are not. Better question is, why should I tell you?" Two perfectly trimmed eyebrows rose, before a light chuckle came from the girl in green. "Very good answer Potter. Why should you tell me? Because I want to know. It's that simple." Snorting in amusement, this time he was sure she was serious. No wait, Sirius was his godfather (I couldn't resist :D). The pun he just told himself made Harry laugh. This didn't bode well with the Greengrass heiress, who was now feeling insulted, thinking Harry made fun of her. So she kicked him in the shin, quite hardly I may add. Harry yelped in pain and glared at the girl. "Sorry 'bout that. I wasn't laughing at you. However, your reason is not enough to tell you what you want to know"
Daphne didn't like this one bit, her thirst for knowledge was driving her mad right now, because this pigheaded fellow refused to give her what she wanted. So she chose a more bold course of action. Pressing herself as closely at Harry as she could, and effectively pulling his arm deeper between her, for a fourteen year old, quite ample breasts, she blinked seductively at Harry. "Come on Potter, why won't you tell me hm?" Blushing at the close contact, Harry bit his cheek and replied "Well, that's because I have no reason to trust that you keep your mouth shut about it." Once again, Daphne raised her eyebrows, before furrowing them angrily. "And WHY don't you trust me?!" Her fierce glare normally sends every boy away running in fear, but this time the target of her glare was stubborn enough for a whole herd of donkeys. "Well, normally I don't judge someone based on bias, but consider this: First, you are in Slytherin, the house where most people like to make my life complicated. And that goes for students and your head of house. Second, this is the first time we both talked with each other, and if you recall our first year, that's certainly not because of my lack of trying." Daphne flinched at the second reason, it was quite true. In the first two months of first year, Harry sat with different people in each class, ignoring the colours of their robes and trying to make new friends and getting to know his year mates. But Daphne blocked all his attempts by either ignoring him or sending stinging hexes at him.
Arriving at the entrance to the Slytherin common room, Daphne was surprised that Harry was able to lead the way. She knew she had to swallow a bit of her pride, so she said "Alright I get it. I'm sorry for how I was in my first year. You will only tell me when I get to earn your trust. I will try and earn that trust. Thanks for accompanying me. Good night and see you tomorrow Potter" Feeling bold, she gave Harry a quick peck on his left cheek and hurried into the common room.
Harry was walking back to the Gryffindor common room in a daze. Today was certainly eventful. First he was involuntarily selected as a Triwizard champion-there was no way out of it now so he had to make the best out of it now-second he discovered that his rings contained the souls of two men he suspected were knights, and third he was kissed on the cheek by two beautiful blonde witches. Indeed a wild day. And so, with a happy smile he entered his common room, wondering what might happen next.
So the first chapter of this story. Hope you liked it, I for my part had a lot of fun writing it so far. And now just to make something clear, this story will contain bashing, I think I will go with the standard of Snape, Malfoy and Dumbledore. Don't know if I will add Ron to the bashed squad, let's see how it plays out. Also, this story will be Harry/Daphne/Fleur. Everything else, we'll see how it all plays out. Leave a review what you think about this story so far, and I'll see you in the next chapter. Bye :D