Chapter 5: The Tri-Wizard Tournament Pt. 2
10 November 1993
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Visiting Hogwarts again after so many years had been a treat Kat hadn't expected. Staying for an extended period, now not as a student was strange. She had been invited to join the teachers at table for meals, but couldn't quite get past how odd it felt looking out over the students. It was simply too bizarre. She joined Charlie and some of the other dragon handlers at the Three Broomsticks a few nights but often ate on her own. She was on her way down to the kitchens to scratch up something to eat when she noticed a now familiar mass of curls lurking outside the kitchens.
"Something you need, Miss Granger?"
Hermione started where she stood and turned. The young witch visibly relaxed upon seeing Kat's familiar face instead of that of a prefect or professor and exhaled in relief. Kat raised an eyebrow and leaned against the wall. Hermione had been studying the painting of fruit intently and had significantly full pockets which bulged from her robes.
"Most of your classmates finished supper an hour ago and more. And the prefects will be along to patrol the halls shortly, I suspect. Unless they're too busy finding corners to snog in, that is."
"I was just…walking about. Stretching my legs."
Kat couldn't help it, the laugh burst out of her before she could catch it. "I'm sorry, I really am, but you're a positively terrible liar, Hermione. Come on, I'm getting a bite to eat. And this way you can honestly say you didn't break into the kitchens."
Still chuckling to herself and ignoring the bright flush across the young Gryffindor's face, Katyanna crossed to the painting and brushed her fingers along the edge of the green pear in the fruit bowl until it squirmed and giggled and then transformed into a bright green knob. Turning this, she went inside and gestured for Hermione to follow her. Their entrance was met with the notice of several house elves, some of whom exclaimed with greetings and a couple who scurried up to Kat excitedly. To a non-magical person this might have looked alarming, as the house elves stood between two and three feet tall, a sea of pale and spindly limbed magical creatures padding toward them rapidly was a sight even to Hermione, who looked around the room in awe.
"Good evening, all. Hello, Beely."
"Is Miss hungry? We know miss does not like eating in the Great Hall, but miss must eat food. Roory was worried when miss did not come for food yesterday but Beely told him that miss would surely not miss eating two days."
The house elves voices were high, much like Dobby's but each had their own unique tenor. Beely, who was actively reporting to Kat, had taken up position atop a barrel and had his wiry hands on his hips matter-of-factly while another elf, who must surely be Roory was looking embarrassed and trying to hide behind a rather large mixing bowl filled with dough.
Kat hardly had the opportunity to speak after confessing that she hadn't eaten since breakfast at the three broomsticks. The elves swarmed and within minutes she and Hermione were both seated in front of the massive brick fireplace at the end of the room. A low table sat between them and small dishes of food were brought and replaced one after the other as the house elves fussed. Kat kept up a steady stream of greetings and chatter with many of the elves between eating, but Hermione sat stiff and still, refusing to touch anything.
"You'll hurt their feelings if you don't eat a bit, you know." Kat had waited until there was a lull in the flow of food and lowered her voice so that the elves across the kitchen couldn't hear her as easily.
Hermione who had been still and silent since entering the kitchen behind Kat bristled and burst out in the worst excuse for a whisper imaginable, "This is barbaric! They're no better than slaves! Bowing and scraping down here all day! It's monstrous! How can you just sit there as if it's nothing?!"
There was a pregnant pause as Kat waited to see if the younger girl was finished and used the opportunity to polish off the last of the meat pie on her plate before setting it down and picking up a mug of cider from the table.
"Hermione what did you see when we came in?" Kat inquired calmly.
Hermione didn't miss a beat, "Dozens of house elves running about and slaving over trying to make sure a castle full of ungrateful people is fed sumptuous feasts while they toil in rags."
Kat nodded and finished her cider. No sooner had she set it down than Roory, the quiet elf who had been the subject of Beely's taunts earlier shuffled over to the table and replaced it with two goblets of icy cold milk and a plate of still steaming cookies.
"Miss' must be careful not to burn themselves."
"They look amazing, thank you Roory. We promise to be careful, don't we Hermione?"
The elf smiled and nodded and padded back across the kitchen to join his companions. Hermione didn't respond, she left the milk and cookies where they had been set and when Kat reached down and picked up one of the fresh cookies, she crossed her arms and glared into the fire.
"I can see you're upset, and I can tell this means a great deal to you, but you're an incredibly intelligent witch, Hermione. Look at their faces. Do they seem unhappy or abused?"
There was no response. Kat sighed and drank some of the milk and leaned forward, elbows resting on her knees. "You are right that the house elves make all of the food we eat here at the castle. They also make sure the dormitories are tidy and frequently are responsible for finding things that we lose. They're kind and gentle souls who keep the castle running more than most ever realize. You're not the first person to want better for them. To want them safe and protected and appreciated. Helga Hufflepuff was the one who brought the house elves to Hogwarts. She couldn't stand seeing the abuse and living circumstances they were enduring."
That caught Hermione's attention, but whether she was holding onto her pride or something else, she didn't look away from the fire.
"It speaks very highly of you that you want a better life for them. But before you try to change their lives, you should talk to them and make sure they want you to change it. Fighting for those who can't fight for themselves is honorable, fighting a battle for a lie isn't. The best intentions can have the worst consequences. Make sure you're doing the right thing."
Kat rose, finished her milk and set the cup down on one of the empty plates and gathered it up.
"Oh, and eat the cookies. Chocolate helps everything."
She made it almost halfway to the sink before she was besieged by house elves who swept the dishes out of her hands and scurried them over to the scullery sink. Back by the fire, Hermione listened as they chatted about taking Kat needing to be sure she took care of herself and coercing promises that she would eat breakfast.
Kat had taken a break during the chill period of November and early December to pick up a case or two with Gringotts and had returned to Hogwarts in time to be informed by the staff that two of the professors who had been signed on as chaperones had been called away on family matters of their own for the holiday and thus they needed assistance with the Yule ball.
"If I'd come back a week later this wouldn't have been a problem.", Kat muttered to herself as she raised her wand and performed a charm to tame the frizz in her hair to more manageable coils before drawing it up into a twist behind her head. It took several pins and a bit of magic, but she could get it to stay up save for a couple of ringlets which she dismissed as fashionable enough to fall loose.
Coming back after the holidays had been her initial plan, a plan which had been scrapped when her mother had won a cruise in the Caribbean and she didn't have the heart to spring herself on her father at so little notice. So, she had come back to Hogwarts early, having completely forgotten about the Yule Ball. Chaperoning the school dance wasn't how she had anticipated spending the holiday, but she had been agreeable to it…up until it was pointed out that she was to be held to the same rules as the professors and school staff and thus had to conform to the formal dress guidelines.
She had been saving up her credit with Twillfit and Tattings for a good while to get herself something nice. This hadn't quite been what she had in mind for using it on though. Still, true to form the shop had come through and her dress had arrived by post with the morning's mail. After a moments review, she enchanted a few of the silver pins in her hair until they shifted and reformed into delicate silver vines with tiny emerald and diamond leaves. Satisfied, she turned back to the paper wrapped parcel on the bed and unwrapped the plain brown paper.
The gown within was smooth as sin and felt like cool water under her fingertips. It was a marvel of forest green satin, unadorned with a single sleeve which was long and flowing nearly to the same length of the gown itself. The design was elegant, leaving her opposite arm exposed in an almost Grecian style with the neckline cut diagonally down across her collar bone. The whole effect was striking in its simplistic elegance. She donned it carefully, unaccustomed to the richness of the garment and was pleased to find that it fell to precisely the correct length once she had on her shoes.
Kat slipped her wand into the holster on her thigh, accessible through a near invisible slit hidden in the folds of the dress and slipped out of the room, locking the door behind her and making her way toward the great hall. A familiar swath of black caught her eye as she turned a corner and she arched an eyebrow as she caught up with the figure ahead of her.
"And where are your dress robes, Professor Snape? Wasn't it you who told me that everyone was required to be "suitably attired"?"
The look he turned on her would have sent ice down the spine of even the boldest student, but drew from her a smile as they proceeded along the hall, the noise of his robes and her shoes soon being drowned by the chatter of students who hurried along the halls around them.
"Fortunately for all involved I have been asked to patrol the grounds and thus am not required to submit to unnecessary frivolity of dress. However, I am pleased that you were able to acquire something passable on such short notice."
"Passable? Oh, dear me, professor, how shall I ever be able to take such a high compliment?"
The scowl he shot her from the corner of his eye was halfhearted at best and it was clear from the twitch at the side of his mouth that he was trying not to laugh. Though whether at her or at himself was unclear.
"Miss McCullough, were you still a student I would dock points from you."
"Professor, were I student I wouldn't blame you. But as I'm not, and as I'm about to be subjected to a school dance full of rowdy teenagers while you'll be enjoying the relative quiet outside, I think I can be forgiven my sarcasm."
The great hall was sumptuously decorated for the ball, the atmosphere filled with an elation that one would be hard pressed to find in any school dance of the muggle world. The champions of the three schools had the first dance. Cedric Diggory, who had asked a lovely Ravenclaw girl to be his companion looked intensely happy. Harry Potter however, seemed to find the experience more a curse than a gift. The bottle green of his dress robes brought out the light of his eyes, but his hair was just as disheveled as ever and his companion seemed less than impressed both with this and with his utter lack of grace on the dance floor. Hermione Granger surprised the entire room upon her appearance as the companion of Viktor Krum, drawing jealous looks from other girls and shock from some of the boys of her year.
The last champion was Fleur Delacour. With her Veela heritage and her charm, the girl had won over nearly every male in sight and a good number of the ladies as well. She was a beautiful girl and she was nearly as clever as she was attractive. Kat didn't like her. She tried to tell herself that she was being unfair. After all, the very things that irked her in Fleur were traits that many of her former house admired. The girl manipulated people and situations to suit her interests seemingly without care or consideration for the aftermath. As a Slytherin, Kat had a respect for cunning and use of resources but the way Fleur used these skills seemed wrong, dark and unpleasant.
Luckily for all involved, Kat didn't need to like Fleur. She didn't even have to deal with her once the tournament was over, and with her own task approaching the end wouldn't be far. Turning away from the dance floor, Kat began her circuit of the room, her eyes trailing over students and attendees as the music shifted away from the smooth classical renderings of Professor Flitwick and his orchestra and yielded to The Weird Sisters and their significantly louder overtures.
"You look bored."
The voice startled Kat from her reverie and she turned to see a familiar rugged face smiling down at her. "Charlie! I thought you already headed back to Romania, what are you doing here?"
He shrugged and flashed her a grin as he held out a hand. "Asking a beautiful woman to dance. And yourself?"
She laughed and took his outstretched hand. "Accepting the offer of a dance from a red-haired rogue."
Kat paused to ask McGonagall if it was alright for her to step away for a few minutes, but Dumbledore spoke before she could and motioned them toward the dance floor with a comment about being young and spritely. Over the course of the dance Charlie confided that he had come back to deal with rumors of dragon eggs being traded in Edinburgh and had agreed to deliver Christmas presents from the Burrow while he was in the country.
As the music wound down steadily from the ruckus roar of upbeat songs to more sedate and steady tunes, Charlie took her waist and hand in his own large and scarred hands and eased into the slower dance. He held her with an easy touch, respectful without being distant. Kat felt strangely comfortable with him and said as much, earning a laugh from him.
"There's at least three reasons for that. The first is that you know I'm more interested in Dragons than relationships. The second is that any person I did happen to get involved with would have to be alright with that. Hell, they'd have to be more than alright with it. I just don't see the fuss about all the physical stuff."
There was a beat and she raised an eyebrow, still smiling from his previous statements. "And the third?"
"Bill would murder me if I hurt you; and I can't work with dragons if I'm dead."
Kat rolled her eyes at this last reason, "You're exaggerating."
Charlie shook his head, the smile giving way to a look of intense seriousness. "I'm right."
Unsure of how to respond to that, silence had fallen between them. It didn't linger too long and soon enough they were back to talking shop, this mostly consisting of Charlie relating the trip from England back to Romania with the dragons that had been brought in for the first challenge. The horntail had been particularly difficult, surprising no one, and had been given plenty of space and solitude to recover from the trip once they got back. He tried to ask about the upcoming challenge but she had silenced him with a nod toward the few remaining students who hadn't yet left the great hall. Strictly speaking she wasn't supposed to discuss the challenge at all, but she especially couldn't risk students overhearing anything about it.
As the evening wound down, Charlie joined Kat and the other professors and staff in the task of checking the halls and corridors for stray students and harrying them back to their respective dormitories. There were surprisingly few that they found tucked away, which Kat jokingly said meant that either students were getting better at finding places to snog, or the students were getting more boring as time went on. By the time Kat finally made it back to her borrowed room, barefoot now, with her heels held from one hand, she was starting to consider that perhaps being a bit more boring wasn't so much a bad thing if it meant she could get more sleep.
It was late enough that the torches lining the halls had been extinguished and she navigated the corridors mostly by touch, holding her skirt up with the same hand she held her shoes and had started reaching for her wand to unlock her door as she got nearer and cursed as pain bloomed in her toes from an object that should not have been in her path. Pulling out her wand she shone light down at the offending object, a box with a bright blue bow. Still muttering curses, she unlocked the door and shoved her way in, tossing the shoes on the bed before stooping to retrieve the box.
Happy Christmas. Don't scream.
~Bill
She turned the card over, looking for some hint as to what exactly this might contain that would drive her to scream but that was all that was written on it. After a moment of consideration, Kat changed into her pajamas, neatly packing the dress away before perching on the bed, wand in hand to open the box. The present itself made her laugh out loud. It was a paperweight of unmarred glass free of bubbles which held inside a scorpion the size of her palm. The paperweight itself was capped with gold paint and shaped like a pyramid; it looked like something a muggle tourist would buy in a shop. It was the most endearing thing she'd seen in ages.
27 January 1995
The Black Lake, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
"Do you have any final questions, Miss McCullough?" Dumbledore stood with Barty Crouch and Professor Snape in the boathouse while Kat and Professor McGonagall got settled into the boat.
"No, Professor Dumbledore." Kat checked over the satchel which crossed her chest from one shoulder to her hip.
She had made it herself of materials from the lake and in the same fashion used by the colony of merpeople who resided there. The bag held only the most basic of supplies. She wouldn't need much once she was fully settled. There was a sealed and waterproofed pouch which held her wand. She wouldn't use it unless she had to, but refused to go so long without it in her possession. The pouch had been the only logical step to protect it from long exposure to the water without extensive spell work.
The ministry representative felt the need to once again review the terms of her assignment and she listened patiently, nodded politely and thanked all that was good in the world when she and professor McGonagall finally departed from the boat house and made their way toward the center of the lake. It was quiet on the lake. The light of dawn scarcely touched the horizon and the lake was shrouded in a thin layer of mist. It would be enough to conceal the details of their activities if not their entire presence. The boat stopped at last and Kat took a deep breath of the cool January air. One of the last comfortable breaths of surface air she would take for a while.
"Are you ready, dear?" McGonagall's voice was steady and calm. She had spoken strongly on the idea of anyone taking on such a dangerous task. The risks of this level of transfiguration were many and they all knew it. But having someone as envoy to the colony was essential. Kat had faced many dangers as a curse breaker, this would be no worse than anything she might face in the field. Even knowing that she had spent the last several weeks working with Professor McGonagall to perfect the transfiguration that would sustain Kat over the next several weeks.
"As I'll ever be."
Reaching up, Kat unzipped her jumper and folded it neatly. Politely the professors and representatives all turned their backs as she disrobed, all save Professor McGonagall. The rest of her clothes followed and she draped the strap of her satchel over the side of the boat so that she could reach it once she was in the water. The air was icy and gooseflesh had broken out over her skin as she was exposed to the winter air. The water felt like knifes as she climbed out of the boat and slowly submerged herself into the lake. She shivered so hard that her grip on the side of the boat was shaking the wood.
"Any time now professor…please."
McGonagall nodded and raised her wand. The transformation didn't hurt as badly as the icy water, but it did feel strange. She tried to focus on the sensations as she felt her legs join and elongate, calves, feet and toes giving way to a long and strong tail that shifted with the current of the water. Her musculature shifted and changed, adapting to its new form. Webbing spread out along her fingers and she let go of the boat as her grip shifted. She sank under the water as the last of the spell did its work and when she opened her eyes again the water which had seemed murky and dark was almost clear and while it was still cold, was not as painfully biting as it had been a moment ago.
When at last, the changes seemed finished, Kat rose to the surface and retrieved her bag from the boat. The air that had felt crisp and refreshing a few minutes ago now felt too heavy and thick. Still she went through the final checks with Professor McGonagall, confirming that she had all her limbs and that they were all functional and that everything was in order before finally waving to the older witch and diving down into the steadily lightening green depths of the lake.
24 February 1995
The Black Lake, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Had the cold water truly bothered her before? It felt perfectly normal now after almost a month beneath the waters of the black lake. She almost didn't want to return to the surface at all. Kat shook herself, a shiver running from the base of her neck all the way down her spine and through her tail. It was one of the biggest risks to transfiguration, especially on this scale. The ability to change back wouldn't be a problem, she had Dumbledore and McGonagall above to help her. But the desire to return to her normal life had started to blur in the last few days. How could walking around with crowds of people on the surface possibly compare to cutting smoothly through the velveteen waters of this majestic place? Were not her fins strong enough to carry her wherever she might wish to go? Didn't she enjoy the way the kelp felt against her webbed fingers? Hadn't she seen things that no one at Hogwarts could imagine? Yes, all of this was true. But she couldn't let the spell of it ensnare her. Giving another push, she circled the platform that had been erected in the lake for onlookers and made her way up foot by foot until she was near enough to the surface that she could hear the dull roar of the crowds above. There were boats circling the platforms and she swam around them for a few minutes until she found the one she sought, marked with the Hogwarts crest in paint on the hull. Approaching this one she reached up and knocked firmly against it.
In her current state, she knew she could rise above the surface. She would be able to breath for a brief span of time, though even if she did, she didn't trust herself to switch back to English swiftly enough for her contact to understand her, and she doubted they spoke Mermish. Her contact in the boat knew this, of course and responded by knocking twice against the hull, signaling that they were prepared as well. Satisfied, she turned, giving a flip of her tail off to the side of the boat before diving to a more comfortable depth within sight of the platform. She took up a position from which she could see but was not overtly visible and waited for the task to begin. The canon sounded above, a low rumble from beneath the waves and a moment later three bodies crashed into the lake in a flurry of bubbles.
She watched carefully as the three drew their wands and cast the enchantments which would allow them to breathe under water. Two chose charms, bubble head it looked like. The boy, Cedric, performed his charm in record time before taking off in search of his hidden treasure. Fleur's seemed to be doing the trick but didn't look terribly sturdy. The other boy, Viktor, had chosen a far more dangerous course and used transfiguration. She cringed back against the kelp of her hiding place as his head and neck transformed into that of a shark, the natural instincts of her current body screaming out against the presence of such an obvious predator. She flinched as he swam past her and turned her attention back to the surface.
Three had entered the water…but there should be four. Where was Harry? A final splash and explosion of bubbles answered her question as he hit the water and fell startlingly fast. His entrance into the water didn't look to have been deliberate, he must have fallen. Kat tensed as she watched him struggle. It looked like he was drowning. She wasn't supposed to interfere, but she had no intention of letting anyone die on her watch. When the gills appeared on his neck he sucked in water, his body adapting. She noticed with some interest that once his transformation was complete he no longer seemed human to her mermish senses. She couldn't quite put a finger on what he did seem like…but it wasn't human.
Seeming to realize that he wasn't going to die and that he was in fact perfectly well, Kat watched as Harry shot up toward the surface in elation and then dove back in, this time with deliberation as he put distance between himself and the surface and began his hunt.
She let the champions get on and trailed after them, keeping her distance and watching with satisfaction as the merpeople steadily herded the champions toward the city center where their treasures lay. Harry and Fleur reached the Kelp forest at the same time. Kat lurked on the edge for a few seconds after Harry disappeared before following the two in, trying with no great success to keep an eye on both champions. Strictly speaking she didn't have to trail them, but the grindylows were feisty today though the giant squid had been put off by all the activity and was nowhere to be seen as the children swam unchecked through the kelp.
She cursed as a gurgled scream cut through and she reached Fleur in time to see the girl struggling against the mobbing creatures trying to pull her down. Her pale skin had already started to turn red from their vicious tentacles and her charm had failed. Kat rushed forward, swirling around Fleur's feet and knocking the grindylows from the girl's legs before pushing her none too gently toward the surface. It took Kat several tries to get the girl to understand that she wasn't trying to drown her and eventually she was able to get her to the waiting boats.
Once Fleur was safely deposited, Kat bolted back into the forest, hunting for Harry. The grindylows seemed to still be scattered from her first show of force and thankfully hadn't come back. If Harry continued along the path he had been headed when she left to save Fleur he would have exited on the outskirts of the city by now. And yet the kelp was waving in such a way that she could see he was still inside. Exasperated, she circled to give herself a bit of speed and rushed up behind him, knocking him a bit as she brushed past. Reaching the edge of the forest she turned over her shoulder and called out, her voice an echoing sound. He wouldn't understand her urge for him to hurry, but hopefully he would get the hint and follow her.
He did follow her, thankfully. Slowly, far too slowly. Clearly, he had no idea how little time he had left. She circled the columns as he finally caught sight of the four students bound in the square. Cedric came into sight moments after him and used a charm which irritated the merpeople nearest. She could sympathize. The light was bright and it burned the eyes, not to mention the strange taste it left in the water. Cedric signaled for Harry to hurry and made his ascent with his treasure in tow. Kat nearly screamed when Harry, having already unbound Ron attempted to free Hermione as well. She didn't have time to warn him or even to reach where he was. The merfolk surrounded him, chiding him against taking more than one treasure. He didn't have time to argue as moments later the merfolk fled in a flurry as Viktor, still half-transfigured as a shark, freed Hermione himself.
Her heart raced in her chest. As soon as Harry had gone she would retrieve the last treasure herself and bring her to the surface. Harry looked about him, looking for Fleur, Kat realized. He wouldn't know that she had already been returned to the surface, unable to complete the task. He made his decision before any of the merfolk could respond or stop him, and freed her with a wave of his wand, taking both and heading toward the surface. Kat couldn't help but be impressed. He had no way of knowing that the girl would have been safe. It spoke very highly of him. She smiled and turned, following him toward the surface.
It didn't take long to notice that something was going wrong. His feet started changing, then his hands. The gills on his neck retracted and he pushed the two rescued students toward the surface as he struggled with the transformation. Then just as he cleared the top of the kelp, the grindylows struck, dozens of them all attacking him at once. She had nearly reached him when he waved his wand, a stunning spell rippling through the water. It hit the grindylows in the water like an electric shock, the force of it reverberating through her own body as well. She cringed, nearly doubling over from the pain of it. She shook it off just before the grindylows and circled them. Between Harry's spell and her hissing threats, they scattered. Kat lost sight of him and panicked as she saw him sinking. He looked like he was about to lose consciousness, but she didn't have to worry for long, he pulled himself together and muttered a spell, flying toward the surface like a rocket.
He was safe. All the students were returned safely to the surface. Kat ached from the ends of her hair to the tips of her tail. She just had to push a little further, she told herself. She raised her arms and swam for the surface, seeking out the boat with the Hogwarts crest. This time the person in the boat leaned over and dipped their head into the water once she tapped on the hull. She reported what she had seen as quickly and concisely as she could, only slipping a few times from English back into the mermish she had been speaking for the last several weeks. Finally, she had given all of the information that was pertinent to the task at hand and her contact returned to relay her report to the judges, leaving Kat to finish her own task.
It didn't take long to return to the city of the merfolk. She would spend one last evening with them. A great feast in the square had been prepared, and the next day she would return to the surface for the last time and return to life on land.