A/N WARNING THESE CHAPTERS HAVE NOT BEEN BETA READ WARNING
Ok so that is clear and please enjoy the story for what it is and not the typos and grammar failures. Also note this is the start of the tournament so this will be getting closer to the end.
Thank you all for the votes on the next ones. I might just throw out a couple teasers to see how the ideas go.
Untill then on with the Madness...
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Chapter. 14
The Morning came for the school as they went about their studies and some stepped into the side room for a minute or two of respect. The Royals 'held court' as the students called it in a larger room on the first floor in order to keep their respected Nations in line. The fact that the Students were allowed to sit to the side and observe the different governing methods was a very important thing. It showed very clearly how each nation had prospered so long.
In fact a couple Wizengamot members came in to speak with Lord Potter about some of the past laws they were reviewing. One was very cross to have to come all the way to the castle just to discuss the issue in an open room with others listening. Harry smiled as he stood.
"Lord Vandburn, did you just state that the laws we use to govern the Wizarding British citizens should NOT be discussed in their very presence? Did you just imply that a flawed law does not need to be exposed so it can be addressed and not repeated in their future. These are the Heirs to seated families after all and they will be doing the very thing we are doing right now. Please see clearly, that it is your words and actions that taint the once honorable Wizengamot when you do and say such things in public. I also will point out that we are openly discussing other Nations business here in front of these students so they can see exactly how a government doing its job looks from multiple perspectives. Then you came in with your actions as a Representative of the British Wizards and Witches and showed how not to behave."
As he sat down the poor man was pale as he scanned the room seeing foreign delegates and students as well as the heirs Harry had stated. In his arrogance he forgot where he was and who was around him. He pursed his lips and nodded as he left quickly.
Emperor Gantz chuckled at the sight. "If he was one of mine I would have him executed where he stood. Your way sends the same message but makes it clear who was in the wrong. It is so entertaining to see how you deal with such fools. I am hoping these future Lords and Ladies learn from this. It is the reason we do our duties in the open."
Harry nodded as he took the papers from the other who came in. "True on all accounts...Ah I see the issue. His businesses run on the need for this law so if it gets dropped or even reworded he loses a lot of income. ...I see thank you for bringing me this. I will address it at the next meeting. It shall be removed right then, However I ask that if you find others not yet removed due to that ...thing's.. signature you will send me a notify right away." The woman bowed and calmly left. Harry however was writing something down as Hedwig and her servants arrived. This raised a few eyebrows till Harry returned to the Nagas before him.
When the three hours were up the royals headed to lunch. Gantz subtly inquired about the need to send a message during the 'Court' and Harry just grinned. "When I first learned of the Wizengamot I learned of a very annoying person in the Ministry using 'its' authority to pass 'anti-creature' laws, the very same laws that break the old treaties. After learning about the houses I was Lord of, I learned this person was not who they claimed to be. All Laws she pushed through or voted on were to be removed and reviewed right away. Long story short is that we are still finding those laws out there and I am not going to play nice about it."
The Drakens laughed at the boy standing there looking like a true royal but the fire in his eyes made him even more respected. These fools had no idea what was going to happen at the next session.
When they entered the Great hall the room fell silent as they passed. When they sat down the room returned to its normal state. Harry looked at Mcgonagall to see if she could explain but she looked equally confused. Finally the ever quiet Snape broke the tension. "After your dressing down of a Wizengamot member in full public, they are hoping to hear more from you in those regards. You were talking just outside the doors so they held the noise to hear about this latest gossip."
The room fell silent again as an attractive woman seemed to float into the room but then they saw the Spider half of her body, one red head boy yelped and ran from his seat straight into the wall behind him. The woman looked at him and held her hand over her mouth to hide the obvious laughter. Asha decided to ease the room as she slid up to the approaching Arachnid. "Greetings Aramana, I had hoped you could get here sooner but I understand the delay. How is your Mother?"
The other woman relaxed and bowed. "She is well dear and wished good health from One queen to another. My sisters are still highly confused about all this but have agreed to the alliance terms during their reigns as well. Oh and I bring word from one elder named Aragog to one Hagrid?"
After being led to the half-giant she handed him a scroll and then was given a seat beside Asha. The fact she shied away from the Draken was noticed but she did bow and greet them. They would later learn that the Arachnea took over the Acromantula island's care allowing the others to easily get the silk and sheddings from the nest. The message was to let the Gameskeeper know they were happy with the new location and the odd spiders aiding them. He also says Hargid needs to eat more to get as big as him.
The room was in constant chatter as some were explaining that the Arachnea were the latest to agree to the Magical nations treaties. A few of the girls were admiring her silk dress as the boys were more in favor of admiring the human part of her body.
The meal went well and Luna and Hermione both greeted the New arrival. Hemione was still keeping her questions controlled but she did ask if there was a chance to get some clothing items from the Arachnea nation. Her reply was to get with Lady Black about the new items delivered to the Caverns.
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The last few classes went smoothly and the box and goblet had been under guard all night and all day. Albus was getting annoyed as he was escorted to the Dinner/Choosing and not one student looked at him. in fact they seemed to be very clearly ignoring him as he was directed past them. He knew it was not a 'Notice-Me-Not' spell as they did walk around him and parted the path at a distance. (too far to be the effect of the Spell) The worst part was when he was seated and only the Non human guards were present, These were also new ones so he had no idea about their personalities.
The staff arrived with the Goblet and Box in tow and started the feast as last minute names were added. Harry was clearly in his element around the adults and the Royals sitting with him. This was going to be harder than the old man thought as he saw not a weak and malleable boy but a leader and politician, he saw the very thing he was supposed to be and yet here he was away from the place of influencing these creatures.
He watched in silence as the room filled with students from all schools and soon the feast began. There were no divided houses even on this momentous night. even the other students were scattered among the tables. This was an insult to the pride that they should have for each school and yet no one else seemed to care.
When the food was whisked away Dumbledore was ready to plan his next move. The chosen students would be told to go to the side room to be told about the first task vaguely. He would be there to offer words of encouragement and maybe a compulsion or to to speak kindly about his efforts.
The staff all stood as the Goblet turned from red to blue. They watched as the first paper flew out of a gout of flames. Mcgonagall caught the paper. "Albus Dumbledore!"
The room stood silent as the old man blinked at the confusion that just occurred. He looked at the Paper as it was placed before him after being shown to the other Adults and Harry. The woman grinned so sweetly he flinched. "We knew about the enchantment to make the first name placed in the Goblet turn to 'Harry Potter' so by vote of the Judges and school Masters we altered the contract that any name of a non student will be changed to yours as original signer of the Goblets contract. Therefore….Welcome to the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Please head to the side room to await the other champions of the goblet."
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Harry had to hold his composure but as soon as the man was escorted into the room He burst out laughing. "Students of Hogwarts, thank you so much for your help. As the Hogwarts Headmistress said we knew about the extra enchantment on the Goblet but we made it invalid with a simple loophole. It did not matter if it was my name or someone else's'. If a non-student was chosen then the name would turn to Albus Dumbledore and since he did physically sign the Goblet contract he has to compete. Now the Headmasters and the royals have a friendly wager and decided to allow the goblet a way to do its job. Each school is sponsoring the chosen champion from each Nation as a student."
The goblet spit out another name. "GRISH NAGA of the house of Mamba, Sponsored by Beaubaxton."
Harry smiled and nodded to the Naga as he was given a short cloak in the school's colors and crest. "Well that just proved my words now let's enjoy the rest."
The next name was called out as BROM of the Draken Empire sponsored by Drumsrtang and GRIMTONGUE the Goblin sponsored by Hogwarts.
The pensive of Dumbledore's face when the champions entered the room with school crests and the reasoning for them Being told to him by the representatives of the Three Ministries and the Nations was sent to the Daily Prophet. He was also informed the tasks were different from what he planned so he had no advantage over the others.
Back in the Great Hall the Box had chosen Victor Krum of Drumstrang, Fluer Delacour of Beauxbaton, and Cedrick Diggory of Hogwarts. The students took a place at the stage as they were given a brief speech about the Tournament and a warning that the first Task would be facing the Unknown, to be prepared physically and mentally to adapt and persevere. With that concluded the students congratulated the Champions and headed to bed. Harry sat at the table talking with the others about the next events. The one he was looking forward to was practical application events like Herbology and Potions.
Snape agreed to only aid in getting good ingredients from the Herbology event. He was also very interested in learning about the different potions from the Guests. When he first heard about the severe lack of education he had compared to these 'other Masters' he refused to believe it till he was given a small book with basic potions recipes. That opened his eyes to the big difference and now he was working on getting a second Mastery with these other nations.
Professor Sprout was also happy for the chance to work with new plant species. Her green houses had been enhanced and upgraded for better teaching. The inclusion of Dryads and other forest creatures to help care for the greenhouses gave her more time to aid her students.
The other staff also saw improvements in the way the school operated with the inclusion of magical beings. Teaching things was a lot easier when there was a different perspective to show. Even having Muggleborn Parents coming for visits was an improvement. The very fact that the Classes could be split up even among year to cover the subjects better and free more time for individual studies was the best boon to them.
The weekend had arrived and the latest Event was to start. Clothing designs for ANY Magical. Needless to say it was a big hit with the girls and some of the guys that liked artistic work. The top three designs would receive a cash prize and contract for using the designs in select fashion companies.
As Harry, Asha, Starma, and Ragnok walked by the design teams they stopped at one that had scale models of Armor for each of the warrior magicals. The thing that flagged the group was the filigree design. The goblin king was very pleased with the designs and the card stating these were designs only as the family was not skilled in smithing.
The Goblin looked closely at the models then grinned. "I see the fine details of rune work in these, and the fact that the Armor is practical and functional for the various frames...hmmm, if you do or do not rank in the upper three, I will ask that you come by Gringotts with these designs. I see a very profitable future for your family." The small framed king seemed to be calculating in his manner as they continued.
Starma was very pleased as well when some of the guards were asked to be models on their off time. She saw that many had embraced the more open minded direction for the magical nations.
At the end of it the winners were pleased and even thanked the rest for such challenging ideas to compete against. The fashion publications and a few mechent scouts had come to see the potential in these students as well. Aramana was also pleased with a new dress with a more friendly design for her legs. It even had an easy to place clasp underneath to ensure it stayed in place when on walls or ceilings.
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The days rolled by as the new Task was being set up and soon the champions were looking at the quickly built arena near the Quidditch pitch. The School teams had also included the visiting teams who came for a couple fun games against the Hogwarts team. Albus was simply told he had to compete or lose his magic, and was also only allowed his wand at the beginning of the task if needed and he had to return it right after.
He was scheming with ways to get the student under his command and how to regain control of the school. He never did learn of how the wards were reset nor of all the new ones. He did know Harry had been busy with all these magical nations and needed more training in order to pass his Newts..(yes he was still under the belief the boy was still being educated even if out of school.)
With all the new things he had seen when being led to his room he was sure there was animosity among the staff and students. He never would accept the creatures as staff for core classes and he was also curious as to how the school could afford so many teachers?
(Harry had looked into all the funds for the school and noticed where certain families had stated about giving money to the school but those funds were never received. The new Head of those families made sure to rectify that issue and soon the school was back in full service. It also helped that Dumbledore was no longer sucking out the money with fake accounts for non-existent staff, or non-living ones.)
When the day of his first task arrived he was stunned to see the school had not been present but he did see several of the dragon people and snake people holding odd crystals. One lone Goblin with very strong armor and a helm with a crest walked up to them. "I am the announcer for today. You will each start at that table and be given a puzzle, Solve the puzzle to move to the next location, each path will test your logic and your wisdom. No magic, No inherited gifts. Any warrior can fight but using your smarts and learning will be a true test of your greatness.,, Begin!"
The others moved to the table as Dumbledor held out his hand to the Auror, The man simply shook his head restating 'No magic'. Thus the older wizard moved to the table to be roughly handed a puzzle minutes after the others had completed their puzzles and left did Dumbledor do so. The picture in the box was of the Black lake so he headed over to it. He saw a table being manned by a Draken with its wings out soaking up the sun.
The draken cracked open his eye and grinned. "A dragon stands before you unmoving, unswayable. You must choose the best reason for this. Begin!" That had another fifteen minutes and a few failed attempts. Finally Dumbledor asked the right question. 'what was it guarding and was that something that was needed by the wizard?' He was given another picture of the quidditch field and headed that way. his old bones protesting all the walking but he persevered.
His sight upon arrival was a very well endowed and noticeably pregnant Lamia sunning herself on a large flat rock. A Naga beside her smiling at the female. "So, the wizard has come. Tell me, wizard what do you see before you?"
The Serpents never moved from their spot as the old goat looked around. "I see a man and a woman with a child enjoying the sun." The sad look on their faces said more than Albus could know. They told him to go to the Great hall and receive his score. As he left the Lamia pulled the Naga into a kiss, her eyes still scowling at the slow moving human.
The steps seemed to aggravate the old man's bones as he headed into the castle. There in the Great hall were large mirrors and the champions' images in them. The other three were already there and sitting in chairs waiting for the wizard. The goblin from earlier stepped up to them as Dumbledore stood beside them. "The wizard finally arrives, Due to this taking longer than estimated we will deduct points. The Naga Grish came first and his logic was more diplomatic yet with a warriors edge, his final answer was correct as well, he gained 45 points due to his delay in the puzzle box."
The announcer moved to the Draken, 'this one, Brom, came second but flew to the great hall, points taken to earn 35, his puzzle was clean and fast, his logic quick and fair, and the final answer was correct." He turned to the goblin. "This one came right after the Draken but obeyed the rules. He did get aggressive with the puzzle but still completed it quickly. his logic was reasonable but also a bit biased, his final answer was correct. He earned 30 points."
The small goblin finally turned to Albus but did not approach. "The wizard took too long to see the patterns on the box and solved it with old fashioned trial and error. His logic was flawed as he first started thinking of combat and other magics. He did not think of 'a reason' till after fifteen minutes. When he arrived at the final test he was clearly biased to the couple. His answer was not correct. He only saw the individuals and not the real answer. He earned 10 points."
When he was led to the side table and allowed to eat he let his mind wander around the final question but it did not seem to be coming to him. He spoke clearly what he saw so how was stating it the way he did the wrong answer? When his meal finished he would be returned to his room but he noticed a piece of parchment on the bed. 'To the wizard. think this over in your time. You were asked what you see. You stated individual pieces like in a game, like pawns and knights. What the others answered was 'family' or 'the future'. Think of this as a wake up call. We are not pawns or spell fodder to our Nations. We are our Nations. Without our families and children we will die out. The lamia was ensuring she was keeping warm for her clutch and the Naga was protecting her. By the way, I am a seventh year Slytherin so I am not biased to the Nations. I am wise and practical as I should be as a Slytherin… We are not your game pieces, we are the future. Live out your life in obscurity and let us live ours.'
That night Albus was actually in a world of his own. He was reeling as he did not even see the true meaning of the last question. He was educated by a seventh year, a slytherin even. And now he had to wait for the next Task. He was told to stay put as a large mirror was placed on his wall so he could watch the Other 'main Events' for the younger champions. His contract was for the 'tasks' and so he was present as he had to compete. Now he was going to be isolated as he watched the others do the tasks he designed for the tournament.
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Albus would later be told that the dragons were informed and given fake eggs for the event and yet they would protect them as if real. The students were told after the event so as to appease the more vocal groups. Lord Potter was quick to calm them and even got the calmer dragons to lounge around the grounds so the students could see they were ok. Fluer's dragon decided to follow her around as it had loved the soothing song she did during the event. This brought a good laugh when the other girls claimed she had charmed another male, This dragon was female.
Krum's dragon head butted Krum who stood there to take it as a sign of respect. After that they were amicable. Diggory however had to contend with a very amorous dragon that seemed to like his more careful but effective actions. It was also funny that it kept all but Miss Change from getting near Cedric when it was around.
The next day Albus was portrayed back to the DMLE cells to wait for the next Task. He was reminded that his 'participation' and 'Presence' was for the tasks and ball not for the time between. Also the mandatory start of the ball and date was excluded from the new contract. He was to be isolated again.
The next Quidditch games were fun and even the Nations enjoyed them. The part that Harry was enjoying was getting a repeal on the Transportation laws. He had the Patil family bring in several makes and models of Flying carpets for the students to try and explain the fact that all carpets had a powerful anti-muggle and notice-me-not spell woven into them.
Hemma looked confused as she was singled out and pulled to a carpet with the Patil twins. The look in her eyes as she slowly and expertly flew around the castle and taking in the fresh air was what set the other Serpentine to trying it. Soon the others were taking turns riding it and enjoyed it. The Draken Emperor and his wife seemed to be deep in thought as they landed and after a discussion with Lord Patil they ordered twenty carpets with reinforced weave and spell weaves. The explanation was that in times of injury it was hard to sustain a steady flight with a carry cloth and patient, but these would limit the amount of needed personnel and ensure the wounds did not reopen on the way to the healers.
Lord Patil was amazed with the idea and soon he was talking with his family about this improvement. The Twins gifted a carpet to Hemma as a thank you for getting the others to try them. The poor little Lamia was overjoyed to the point of near fainting. Harry simply told them to get with Asha about trade connections with the Serpentin nation, there were several Lamia and Naga interested in the new way to fly.
The next big step was a Wizengamot meeting where some of the more traditional families were not happy with so many 'non-humans' at the school. The Minister shot that down asking if they wanted to 'volunteer their time to be guards and aids for the tournament?' When they replied in the negative he told them to grow up and get their heads on right. The fact that every one of those 'non-humans' were volunteers and not being paid meant less drain on the school. It also meant more connection to this new market that was denied by prior traditionalists who were wizard biased and did not see the harm they were doing to the wizarding world. His last verbal slap was that the other wizard communities were already on better terms with the other nations long before Grindelwald rose to power.
That ended the debate but opened the floor for another complaint. Having Albus Dumbledore represent the wizarding world at the tournament was making them look bad…..
Lord Black laughed at the statement, "So do we need to remind everyone about the spell on the Goblet that would have forced an underage LORD to participate in this tournament being puppeteered by the old goat. Or remind you all that the new spell forced his name in the event his spell worked and therefore trap him in his own game? What part of that Daily Prophet report did you not remember?"
Amilia Bones stood next, "We did not choose him to represent us, His manipulations made him participate in this stupidity. We simply have to ensure he fails on his own merit and if we must we will remind all of the reason he is even allowed to participate….unless the Wizengamot wishes to take a vote right now about keeping him from the next task and thus being stripped of all his magic. He is old and it would not be long before his non magical body gives in to that age."
The rest of the session was for review and restructure of laws. Harry let the others take charge as he saw a vast improvement in the way they were looking into things. He no longer had to tear down the laws to the bare Biased and pureblood levels he did before. The new changes were slow but as with the great Hogwarts, the change was clearly a good thing.
Harry had to go to the ICW the next day and Asha joined him in her natural form. The other wives asked her about last time and soon she was told to never push herself that hard by them. They liked having a new woman with good ideas and vast connections around. The fact she was young was just a formality to them. Harry was pleased with the positive response and soon took his seat in the chambers.
The chairman stood and looked around. "Ladies and Gentlemen, We are called here today as a great travesty has finally arrived. Despite the Statute of Secrecy several persons of magical descent have been orchestrating attacks on muggle villages. We have done a lot of recovery and cover ups but this needs to be culled. We need to know the source of this arrogance and end it soon."
The Romanian representative stood. "We believe a dark lord is on the rise but we are spread too thin to fully investigate. However the Vampires have given aid to us. Due to the treaty I have agreed to their aid and it has repealed several attacks. They too have been approached by former Deatheaters about the possible return of the one now known as Tom Riddle though the fools still call him Voldemort. We have been looking into this but again we have not the needed manpower."
Bulgaria representative stood. "This too is the case and the were and vamps due aid us. We see good things to come with this level of trust. They too speak for this return, but they like the new ways and will not break the treaty. Lord Potter has been a godsend for this peace. WE do have manpower but it is still scattered groups all with only one consistent thought. 'the dark lord returns'. I say we need to punish this uprising swiftly and be consistent this time. Does the British Ministry agree to this?"
They all turn to Minister Scrimgeour who stands. "If they are marked and they are caught then they are guilty enough to be tried by any means to prove without a doubt of their innocence. We will not allow this to continue. We have given the second chance but the moment one takes the 'dark mark' they are guilty of fowl deeds in that act alone." He then stated what was required to take the mark causing quite the uproar. The few repentant ones had done their time and were still under scrutiny but did not turn their backs on the second chance. Professor Snape being one of them. He was happy to conduct the Newt level classes and brew for the School as well as St. Mungos.
The room came to a full consensus that anyone committing a crime was to be checked for the mark and then if found, treated like the vile devils they were. Lord Belmont of the European lands was not too happy about the treaty with the vampires yet even he had admitted that their timely help was a boon, the fact he was allowed to hunt the rabel that did not follow the treaty was a small plus in his books. When asked to be part of the Deatheater hunting parties he agreed quickly.
The Undead King sat on his throne to the side of the chambers smiling at these silly wand wavers and their politics. It was the amusement he was looking for. He had even suggested to let the rival house of Belmont aid in hunting these Deatheaters. His eyes quirked at the quick agreement. This was going to be very fun indeed.
Asha was just happy she did not have to present her scale patterns during the two hours they were there and even was allowed to stretch her tail out with the ladies afterward. They of course had to get into fashion and Asha had a hogwarts elf bring some of the pictures and designs from the event a month ago. This had caused a few conversations as it showed the different styles these students had come up with. They even discussed the first task that was reported around the world. Asha did remind them that the man dug his hole and it was all on him, not the Witches and Wizards.
When Harry arrived to collect his wife the women were treated to a very heartwarming site of Asha wrapped around the boy with a loving kiss. It was still hard to believe this teenager was so gifted to hold his own in the political field and to be a very influential person in the Wizarding world. They teased him a bit but he did enjoy their acceptance of the boy's choices.
When he returned to Hogwarts he saw the beginnings for the plan of the Yule ball, He did remind the teachers to let the students know ahead of time about the Ball and was surprised when a certain Veela asked if he would escort her. He turned her down politely stating that was the privilege of his wife and that the rules were one date per student at most but not required. He also reminded her that he would dance with her later in the ball as well. Asha approved of her asking knowing he would turn her down but did also state that there were other nations allowed to join in the ball as well.
The week flowed as they continued classes with the foriegn students taking a shine to the various teachers and unbiased methods. THe introductions continued with a new twist as four pairs of Non-magical adults took the stage. They represented the different countries the Three schools were from as well as one couple being involved in high level government activities, like the public monitoring systems.
THis was to show that the Non magicals were as equal to the future as all the others. It was also a way to show how much the Ministry had hidden from the people before now. The parents all explained their jobs and how each person in an office or factory had to work together to get the job done. They explained to these children that one part was never enough when it stood alone. it had to be a combined effort.
The next day a few of the new Slytherins approached Harry at the Hufflepuff table Where he was visiting with Susan and Hannah. They asked if he could really stop the Deatheaters that were causing problems? Harry simply smiled at them, "That is the issue, you asked if I could stop them. You did not say 'we' or such words that mean more than just me. I am making an alliance that once existed long ago. That alliance is what will stop the fools, one way or another."
By the end of the day The children and their houses all felt the weight of Lord Potter's words. He was very clear in the fact that the Deatheaters were not going to survive this time and there will be no second chances. The old ways of 'Pureblood rule' were gone and the older traditions were coming back but for the betterment of everyone.
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A/N next time on the show... WHat will happen when you annoy very powerful people with you ignorance? Read and see...
