Author's Note:
Reviews and Comments: To iKingAnomalyII: Thank you for saying my second task was fantastic. It was an eye-opener for everyone except Hinny lol. Thank you! To Tmriddle: Sorry, let's more Hinny tension to come! Thank you! To Leaf Ranger: We will see more of Michael's reaction later. Remus does grasp the situation, but he's worried about his son. Thank you! To scrappy8: Thank you! To LunaFireFly11: Thanks for loving my twist on the second task. Ginny definitely thinks Harry is just being an overprotective big brother who will never be more than her friend. Thank you very much! To Steelcode: Yes, the champions standing up to Bagman was nice to see. You think Bagman has a lack of humanity? Interesting. Thank you! To Guest: Harry is lying to himself so he might as well lie to those around him as well. Thank you! To supersandman86: Ginny will definitely question it, but she doesn't want to get her hopes up either. You think the badges will kick off something? We shall see. Thank you!
To speedsONEandONLY: I'm glad you enjoyed my little Sirius fun moment with his codewords and the new take on the Fidelius Charm, renaming it the Marauder Charm, I liked that one myself. It is the perfect spell for them. Harry definitely has a lot of good friends, even if they are snogging. Thank you! To Moony The Sheep: Thank you so much for saying this was better than the book. Yes, a Horcrux exorcism does sound a bit dangerous. It's going to be a bumpy ride! Thank you! To Ari Black-18: Thank you! I love that you're living for the Hinny parts and thank you for loving my Percy. He's a good guy despite his annoying tendencies. Thank you! To coloredwords: Yes, Ginny was his first friend and maybe Dumbledore was trying to give him a push in the right direction LOL. Thank you! To Josh Todd: Thank you for saying ASC is one of the best fanfics you've read. To Faaan'Taaas'Tilique: Thank you! To xXMizz Alec VolturiXx: Thank you!
To Magic Black Jaguar: Thank you! To alix33: No, Sirius and Remus do not know about the Room of Requirement. I always got the impression that the Marauders had never stumbled upon it or if they did, never realized what it was because it was not on the map or ever mentioned. In my story at this time, no one knows about the room that we know of. Thank you! To Guest: Yes, Tonks and Zee still do not know about Harry and yes, they will be finding out very soon. I'm glad you enjoyed my Remus the rabbit comments from Sirius lol. Remus is starting to notice a little bit, but Harry isn't pushing his feelings aside because he thinks he doesn't deserve Ginny, he just thinks that they are better as friends, and he doesn't want to ruin the friendship. He is also very much in denial and will continue to be for a bit. Thank you! To MinervaMcGee: Thank you! I think Ginny definitely made sense as Harry's hostage! To EnchantedLynx: Harry is hopelessly in denial. Thank you! To Wolf's scream: Neville is very wise and yes, him not saying anything about Harry's rant on Ginny proves that. Thanks for liking the Gillyweed bit. I wanted to change the Second Task just a little bit and I thought having the Gillyweed as a means of helping Fleur was a good way to tie it in. Yes, the horseback riding lessons helped. Thank you!
To x-shadow-x-kisses-x: Thank you! Hinny is a slow burn so still a bit away. To darkpegasuzz: Thank you! To LifeonEarth: Ha, Harry "We're Just Friends" Potter made me laugh! It does describe his attitude and will continue to for the next little while, but I can confirm I have officially started writing the beginning of Hinny. As for Ginny, she is oblivious to Harry at this time as well because in her mind, he told her he wasn't interested in being anything other than friends and in her attempt to get over him, she friend-zoned him. Thank you! To storp930: Thank you for saying that was the best second task you've ever read. Ginny comforting Harry did fit, thank you! I'm glad the new charm had you laughing! Thank you! To notthatchhavi: Vagina and Dick Eaters, so childish and yet so entertaining. Sirius is always ready for a laugh LOL. Thank you! To Soveliss: Thank you! Harry is getting more adept at spell casting. Thank you for thinking Bagman is an interesting character. Sirius is definitely immature sometimes. Thank you! To Yami_Faerie: Thank you very much!
Thanks to Steel for letting me talk over my ideas here.
Thank you to my Beta — SilverStarwolfe!
My posting schedule: Once a week and sometimes on weekends.
As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!
Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!
CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-TWO:
The One With the Love Potion
Remus sighed as he watched Harry leave with his friends. "He truly did amazing down there in the lake. Seeing it all just now… he handled himself brilliantly and that spell you taught him, Zee. It worked better than I ever imagined."
Zee grinned. "It really did! Merlin, I was so proud of him down there. And the way he dove right at Fleur and breathed life into her like that… thank Merlin, you gave him that Gillyweed, Sirius."
Sirius nodded, stretching his legs out to put his feet up on the coffee table. "Thank Merlin, I conned Snape into giving me some from his private stores."
Remus chuckled. "That was a surprise. Any news from him since he hauled in Peter?"
Sirius shook his head. "Nothing that I know of. I know he plans on laying low for now until he figures out his game plan. But when he makes first contact I'm assuming that he'll reach out to one of us — if not Dumbledore."
Zee nodded and stood up, holding her hand out to Sirius. "Well, we should head home. Harry is going to be busy celebrating with his friends and I know Remus mentioned that he has a lot of work to do."
Tonks smiled, kissing her mate's cheek. "He does. I need to head into work myself. I told King that I would come back after the task and finish up my own case files. I'm going through a practice run for the A3 practical with Auror Atwell at seven tonight as well."
Remus kissed her softly. "You're going to do amazing."
"I hope so," she said with a grin. "After what happened with Crouch, everything got pushed back. The torture and murder of such a high ranking official, the Ministry is still in an uproar."
"What did King say when you told him it was Crouch Jr?" Sirius asked.
Tonks shrugged. "He's starting to question where I'm getting my information. Look, I know it's not my call, but King's brill and he should definitely be on the top of the list as a recruit for the Order."
Sirius nodded. "I agree. I'll run it by Dumbledore. We're still looking into recruiting people and starting it up again, officially. So far only Molly and Arthur have been brought on board."
She smiled and stood up, leaning down to kiss Remus softly. "I'll be late. Knowing Atwell she'll run me through the course a minimum of three times. It will be after two at least."
He smiled at her. "Go kick some butt, my bad-arse Auror."
Tonks grinned at him and moved into the fire, disappearing in a flash of green.
Sirius smiled at Remus. "You can come back to the house with us, if you want? We're just going to throw something together for dinner and watch a movie?"
Zee nodded. "We rented some film called Speed that looks kind of fun."
Remus smiled at them. "You two enjoy. I have thirty assignments to mark and three classes worth of quizzes. I think I'm just going to hang out here and try to get it done."
Zee smiled at him. "Well, if you change your mind, you're welcome to pop by."
"If the Floo's closed we're having sex in the living room," Sirius said, laughing when Zee smacked him. "What? At least I'm giving him fair warning?"
"Prat," Zee said, waving goodbye before she too disappeared into the fireplace.
Sirius waved goodbye and followed his girlfriend into the fire as Remus just shook his head. Some things never changed, he thought with a grin. He sighed and stood up, stretching his arms up over his head. He was going to grab his stuff from his office and curl up right here at the coffee table with a nice cup of tea and listen to some Billy Joel, he thought.
It sounded like a decent plan to him.
~ ASC ~
The figure stood in the dark alley behind the pub, fingers tapping impatiently. He was almost thirty minutes late and being outside in the cold waiting for him was making the figure feel slightly annoyed. The cigarette dangling from the dry lips was the only light.
When the man Apparated into the alley, the figure jolted slightly, stepping on the cigarette with their boot and swallowing slowly.
"You're late, Malfoy."
Abraxas Malfoy merely raised a perfectly coiffed eyebrow. "Am I? Don't forget who's in charge here."
The words were met with terrified silence and Malfoy smirked.
"How did Potter do?"
"Second place. I thought that we lost him in the lake, but it turned out that he was playing hero, and it looked good to the judges. Listen, I think that we can do this another way. He's a bright and talented young man. I don't think we need to set him up to die."
Abraxas smiled, coldly. "Don't we? The Dark Lord will rise again and he will do so with Potter's blood on his hands. Are you telling me that you don't want to help out anymore? You submitted his name without a problem. Why are you backing out now?"
"I'm not!"
Abraxas snorted. "Sure seems like it. No one backs out of a deal with me, you bloody twit! If you do not make sure that the TriWizard Cup is a portkey and that Potter touches it, I will do more than just kill you. I will make what happened to Crouch look like child's play, do you understand."
The figure turned ghostly white and nodded. "What about the other champions? How am I supposed to intervene without being suspicious? What if they get to the cup first? I can't just impose myself into the Third Task?"
Abraxas only stared. "I trust you to find a way. You're being watched. Oh, and one more thing?"
The pale figure looked at Abraxas carefully. "What's that?"
"If anyone other than Potter comes out of that portkey, no matter the outcome, you're entire family will be dead within the hour and when I come for you, and oh, I will come for you… the Dark Lord will let all of us play — because do you know what we hate more than a coward?"
The figure only stared.
"Betrayers," he said, coldly. "Bring Potter to me and don't contact me again."
The figure fumbled to light another cigarette; the trembling fingers on their wand caused it to shoot sparks and singe the bottom of their trousers as they brought the cigarette to their lips and took a long drag.
Concern for Potter didn't matter now. The TriWizard Cup had to be made into a portkey and no matter what, Potter had to be the one to touch it.
The other champions be damned.
Personal survival came first and that was that.
~ ASC ~
Hermione watched Harry pull Ginny into the classroom to talk to her. She hadn't been remotely surprised to learn that she was who he would miss most, but she could see that he was. She had always admired how much they both relied on the other. They were truly great friends and Harry was starting to see Ginny as something more and she wondered how much longer he would convince himself otherwise.
She smiled when she saw the figure outside of Gryffindor Tower. He was pacing back and forth and looked rather annoyed as he brooded.
"Viktor?"
His head shot up quickly and a wicked grin split across his face as he took four steps towards her, grabbing her hands and squeezing lightly. He nodded to Ron, Neville, and Luna as they headed past him through the portrait hole.
"Can ve talk?"
Hermione nodded, told her friends that she would catch up and took his hand. She led him down the hall to one of the empty study rooms, closing the door behind her and moving to sit in one of the large comfy armchairs by the fire. Viktor immediately sat next to her in the chair and let out a slow breath.
"I've been going crazy vaiting for you."
"I'm sorry. Harry asked us to view his memory of his time in the lake. I saw you as a half shark; that was very impressive Transfiguration work," she said reaching up to brush his wet hair out of his eyes. "Thank you for saving me."
He grabbed the hand touching his hair and pressed his lips to her palm. "I am sorry it vas you down there."
She smiled. "The person that you would miss the most? It was certainly unexpected."
Viktor nodded, his dark eyes on hers. "I care about you great deal, moyata kafyava krasavitsa."
"I care about you, too," she whispered as he kissed her palm again, holding it up to the side of his face where she could feel the beginning of a five o'clock shadow.
"I am no good at saying vhat I vant to say to you."
"But you're using your tee sounds!"
He smiled. "I have good teacher."
"You have a good teacher and yes, you do."
He smiled and leaned down to kiss her softly. "Da?"
"Yes," she said, smiling against his lips. "But you can keep saying 'da.' I think it's kind of sexy," she admitted, biting her bottom lip.
Viktor leaned in, tugging her bottom lip into his mouth and suckling gently before he crushed his lips to hers. She slid her hands up his back as he kissed her and when he deepened the kiss, she moaned into his mouth. She wasn't sure which one of them moved, but soon she was in his lap as they kissed, his mouth moving over her neck and her cheeks. His soft lips trailing over hers, along her jaw and down her neck before moving back up to her lips and repeating the process. He left her feeling breathless and hot and bothered and when his hips rutted forward, the feel of him, hard as rock through his trousers brushing against her own heat sent an electric thrill through her system.
She licked his earlobe, sucking it into her mouth and she gasped in surprise when his hands slid up the back of her jumper and boldly unhooked her bra.
Viktor's forehead rested against hers and she was pleased to find him as breathless as she was. "I'm sorry, too fast, da?"
She nodded, moving off of his lap to sit next to him.
Viktor bent his head to kiss her again. "You are so krasiv, I vant to see all of you."
Hermione blushed under his dark gaze. "Viktor... I've never... you're the first I've ever even kissed."
He grinned, bending his head and kissing her deeply. "This pleases me, da? All of your pleasure only comes from me."
She smiled and re-hooked her bra back up before her hands were sliding over his broad chest, feeling his muscles quiver beneath her palms and she bit her bottom lip when he simply pulled his shirt up and over his head. His skin was pale from the winter months, but soft. She trailed her fingers through the dark curly hairs on his chest in fascination, following it to where it stopped at his chest only to continue in a dark trail beneath his belly button and below his slacks.
She tapped his belt buckle before letting her hand slip back up over his chest. "You're so beautiful."
He smiled. "I do not think beautiful is the vord to describe me."
Hermione bit her lip again as her hands brushed over the corded muscles in his neck. "I would." She bent her head and pressed her lips to his shoulder, to his neck, pressing soft open mouthed kisses against his skin. She kissed over his heart, the centre of his chest and then she boldly slid her tongue across a nipple and he groaned.
"Moyata kafyava krasavitsa, you slay me."
Hermione smiled, kissing the nipple again and watching in fascination as it hardened and before she could talk herself out of it, she sucked.
Viktor moaned her name, his hands sliding up her back; they slid beneath the jumper, fingers stroking slowly across her back, up and down. "May I?"
His fingers were holding the hem of her jumper as she sucked on his nipple so, she nodded, removing her mouth as he tugged her jumper over her head, revealing her pretty white and blue striped cotton bra.
Hermione crossed her arms in front of her chest self-consciously and he smiled, tugging them down. She still hadn't gotten used to the fact that she even had breasts yet, let alone to be wearing something so revealing in front of him.
"You are krasiv," he said quietly. "Beautiful. Do not feel ashamed."
He bent his head, kissing the swell of her breasts, fondling them in his large hands and she let her head fall back in pleasure.
And then his lips were back on hers and she knew that she had never felt so happy in all of her life.
~ ASC ~
Ginny grinned when Michael tugged her close and kissed her the moment that she had come into the common room. She grinned foolishly at him.
"What are you doing here?"
"I came with Matthews. He said that his boyfriend was a Gryffindor and that he would help me get in to join in the celebrations." Michael kissed her, softly. "Are you okay? After the champions dove into the lake, Bagman revealed who each champion was set to rescue and when I heard your name… are you all right?"
"I'm fine. I wasn't hurt at all."
"I'm glad," he said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Waiting for Potter to rescue you was awful. I wanted to go down there myself."
"That's sweet, Michael. But I was fine. Dumbledore brought us up to his office for a chat and then I suppose he must have brought us down into the lake. He gave us tea and honestly, I don't remember anything else until breaking the surface of the lake with Harry."
He nodded, his eyes narrowed.
"It was a surprise, knowing that I was who Harry would miss the most, but he's one of my best friends so, it does make sense."
Michael frowned at that. "Seems strange to me that it would be you over his other friends."
Ginny merely raised an eyebrow. "Well, it was."
Michael seemed to notice her annoyance because he cleared his throat. "So, um, what was it like riding that water demon?"
"The Kelpie?"
"Yeah."
"Kind of awesome," she admitted with a grin. "Not as good as being on a broomstick, mind you, but it was great! I felt like I was flying above the water on a cloud or something."
Michael put his arm around her. "Tell me about it."
Ginny smiled at him as she began to describe the underwater adventure as she knew it, Michael's eyes on her. She had thought that she had detected a slight jealous edge to her boyfriend's voice, but the way he was looking at her now made her think she had imagined it. He understood that she and Harry were friends and nothing more.
When she finished talking and he tugged her close to kiss her, she grinned against his mouth. Yeah, things with Michael were just fine, she thought.
~ ASC ~
The celebrations were high in the Tower and Harry was relieved to hear that this time, not everyone wanted to talk to him. Ginny and Hermione were both equally in high demand. Especially Hermione as everyone wanted to know what it was that Hermione had done to make herself worthy of being the person that Viktor Krum would miss the most; even more so when they realized that she was missing. Harry knew that she was talking (and most likely celebrating) with Viktor.
Her celebrating had definitely involved snogging as well, he thought when he watched her tug Viktor through the portrait hole a little while later. Her hair was a bit messy and Viktor's was standing on end as well, but they were both grinning widely.
There was endless food and drink around the common room and Harry made his way to one of the tables to help himself to some more pumpkin juice. He smiled kindly at the pretty dark haired girl who slowly approached the table. He had seen her around quite often. She was often in the group of fangirls that followed him around, or that was the term Hermione used for the gaggle of giggling girls.
The girl brightened when he smiled at her and she moved closer to him.
"That was really brave, Harry, what you did in the lake."
He smiled at her. "Thanks. I think that it was rather stupid, myself. I should have known all of the captives would be safe."
"No, it shows that you have a big heart and I think that's so brave. I'm Romilda," she said a little breathlessly. "But most people call me Romy."
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Romy."
"It was my birthday last month."
"Oh, well congratulations," he said. "I mean, Happy Birthday."
"I turned fourteen," she told him, smiling widely.
"Ah well, good for you." he said, not really knowing where she was going with this.
She smiled brightly at him. Harry watched her take his glass and freshen up his pumpkin juice. She turned with his glass in her hand and grabbed a cupcake, putting a small chocolate candy on the top before passing them both to Harry with a smile.
"For you, the Hogwarts Champion."
"Thanks."
He bit into the chocolate cupcake and the candy, thinking that it was rather mouth watering before he drank his juice, emptying his glass. His stomach gave a lurch that surprised him. He suddenly felt rather queer, he thought to himself.
And then his eyes fell on her.
She was more than pretty, he thought. Pretty wasn't quite the right word. Her long dark hair was shiny and soft and her blue eyes were sparkling at him. Her smile was soft and she had a dimple in her left cheek. Her eyes were outlined in long dark lashes. She was beautiful.
He grinned hugely at her and reached out to take her hand. "Want to come for a walk with me?"
Romilda nodded, eagerly. "Yes, I'd like that."
He entwined his fingers in hers, feeling happy to be lucky enough to be holding her hand and the two of them left the Gryffindor common room together.
"How have I never noticed you before?" he asked, his eyes taking in every part of her.
She shrugged. "Maybe you weren't looking hard enough."
"I need to rectify that immediately," he said, tugging her into the empty classroom on the left and kissing her softly, making her moan against his mouth. "Tell me that you don't have a boyfriend," he whispered.
"I don't have a boyfriend," she admitted, shyly.
Harry kissed her again. Her lips were soft and supple beneath his. "Be my girlfriend, Romy, please?"
"Yes," she moaned wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him deeply.
This was perfect, he thought. This was exactly what he needed. Someone who appreciated the hard work that he had done as a champion; someone who appreciated him. His hands slid into her hair and she kissed him back, eagerly, her own hands sliding over his back.
Harry couldn't put into words what it was like being with Romilda, but when she moved away from him, he felt like he was going to fall apart.
He needed to be with her.
He needed to touch her.
He needed to be near her.
When she kissed him, he felt like his life was finally right.
But he couldn't explain why.
She kept giving him chocolate covered candies and when she placed them in his mouth, he'd grin, swallow, and then kiss her. They spent almost two hours snogging quite intensely in the empty classroom and Harry never wanted to stop touching her.
They were sitting on the floor and Romilda was curled up in his arms, sighing happily.
"This is everything that I ever wanted, Harry," she said, smiling up at him.
He bent his head, kissing her again, lingering over her lips. He couldn't stop kissing her. She moved into his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck as she held him in place and they snogged, eagerly. Harry knew that he wanted to keep kissing her; to just go on and on, his lips on hers, but his body soon had other ideas. Romilda noticed as well because she grinned at him.
"It's a bit soon for that, isn't it?"
Harry responded by kissing her neck, sucking on the pulse point and she let her head fall back in pleasure. She tasted so soft he thought, so good. Like Harley had, he remembered.
Harley. The thought of her made him smile. Harley was long gone and he hadn't had a proper snog since then, that was true, and then lately he'd been having those weird thoughts and dreams about kissing Ginny, which was preposterous because Ginny was his friend.
Ginny! She had been under the lake and he had saved her and then —
"Ginny!" he exclaimed aloud, his eyes wide as he pulled away from Romilda. "Where's Ginny?"
Romilda shook her head. "Don't worry about Ginny, Harry. She's fine," she told him, slipping another chocolate coated candy into his mouth.
Harry chewed thoughtfully for a moment and then his eyes brightened and he bent his head to kiss her again. "You're so beautiful, Romy. So perfect. So wonderful. So soft."
Romilda smiled at him and he smiled back, his expression rather dreamy. "Harry, it's almost curfew. Do you think that we should go back inside and see if the party is still going on?"
He nodded, taking her hand in his. "As long as we're together, I'll go wherever you want."
She smiled. "Of course."
He let her lead him back to the Gryffindor common room, his hand clasped tightly in hers. He saw Ron and Neville and immediately put an arm around Romilda's shoulders.
"Ron! Neville! You know, Romy, right?"
Neville shook his head. "No. Romy, is it?"
"Romilda actually, Romilda Vane, but everyone calls me Romy."
"And you and Harry are...?"
Harry kissed Romilda's cheek tenderly. "She's my girlfriend, Nev."
"Damn Potter, you do work fast," Dean said with a grin from where he sat, his eyes kept moving across the room to where Parvati and Lavender were talking. "Rescuing Ginny and now you've found a girlfriend in one night. Impressive"
Harry hugged Romilda tighter to him. "She's perfect. I'm so lucky to have found her."
Ron frowned at that. "Er, sure. If you say so. How did you meet anyway?"
"She's a Gryffindor, Ron, obviously they met at the party," Seamus said, grinning when Will put an arm around him and kissed his cheek.
Harry grinned at his friends. "She's amazing."
Romilda tugged his face down to hers and proceeded to kiss him passionately, earning a collective groan from his friends.
Fred blanched at the sight of it, reaching around the snogging couple for a handful of crisps. "Oi! Harry! Go suck face somewhere private! Champion or not, some of us would like to keep our dinners down!"
"Hear, hear!" George said, as laughter drifted through the common room. "It's bad enough we've seen ickle Ronnikins with his lips smashed against Brown's like he's a starving man."
"Oi!" Ron exclaimed. "That's my girlfriend."
Fred only gave his brother a pointed look. "We know. We're questioning her taste, not yours."
Lavender overheard them and rushed over, throwing her arms around Ron and pulling his mouth to hers for a long kiss. "He's perfect! My Won Won!"
George made a gagging sound from behind them which Ron and Lavender promptly ignored.
"Haha," Harry said, finding a seat in an armchair near the fire and snuggling Romilda down into his arms. She kissed his cheek and he grinned at his friends, a big goofy grin on his face. He turned his head to kiss her again and she grinned up at him.
Neville cleared his throat, loudly. "So, um, Romilda, is it? What did you think of the Second Task? Harry was pretty brilliant trying to save everyone, wasn't he?"
"He's always brilliant," she said, dreamily. "And he's always a hero."
Neville nodded. "Well, of course, yeah, but this was quite heroic even for him. To have to go down below the lake and rescue Ginny, that's great and he even rescued that Delacour girl's sister."
"Ginny," Harry said, his eyes narrowing a bit as he looked around for her. "Where is Ginny?"
Ron managed to pry himself loose from Lavender's clutches as Parvati called her over. She patted Ron's cheek lightly and hurried off as Ron turned to Harry and Neville, moving to sit in the chair across from Harry.
"She went for a walk with that stupid git," Ron said sullenly, making Neville laugh.
"She's allowed to have a boyfriend, Ron."
Ron scowled. "No, she's not! He's an idiot. Ginny is never allowed to date anyone, ever. Pretty sure that's a rule."
"Pretty sure, it's not," Neville said, making Ron growl at him.
Harry grinned and started to stand up. "I'll go tell her that. We can go together and let her know that Michael's not good enough for her. I'm going to go find her."
Romilda tugged him back down and popped a candy in his mouth before she kissed him. "Stay with me instead."
Harry looked like he wanted to protest, but then his eyes softened as he looked into his girlfriend's eyes. "Yeah, okay." He kissed her again, lingering on her lips as she stared dreamily up at him.
Neville cast a sideways glance at Ron who shrugged at him.
By the time they decided to head up to bed that night, Harry had spent most of the evening snogging his new girlfriend and staring into her eyes as people congratulated him on a job well done. Ron and Neville left them in the common room as they headed up stairs.
Dean was scowling when they got to the dorm.
"What's up mate?" Ron asked, tugging his shirt over his head.
Dean rubbed his palms over his face. "Vati just broke up with me."
"Ah bollocks, that's shit, mate," Ron told him, sympathetically.
Neville nodded. "What happened?"
"I don't even know. I thought that we were happy!"
Ron changed into his pyjama pants, tossing his dirty clothes on the floor near the hamper. "I'm sorry."
"She made up some stupid excuse," he muttered.
"Like what?"
Dean shrugged, looking uncomfortable. "It's nothing. It's… nothing. It was stupid."
"Where's Seamus?" Ron asked, stifling a yawn.
"Last I saw him, he and Will were still snogging near the portrait hole," Neville said.
Dean scowled darkly at that as he crawled into his own bed, shutting the curtains around himself.
Neville changed into his own pyjamas as he spoke. "Ron, do you think that Harry was acting a bit strange downstairs?"
Ron shrugged. "A little, yeah. But Romilda obviously seems to make him happy by the amount of snogging they were doing."
Neville 'hmmed' in acknowledgment.
"You don't think so?"
"I don't know. He seems too happy like almost fake happy, which I know doesn't make sense, but he does."
Ron frowned. "No, I thought the same if I'm honest. But every time I tried to get a closer look he and Romy were too busy snogging. I think the twins might have snuck him some Firewhiskey."
Neville nodded. "And I mean suddenly she's just his girlfriend, I mean, he didn't even know her before the party tonight?"
"I know. The whole thing is really strange," Ron admitted, turning when they heard movement behind the door.
Harry came into the room, attempting to unbutton his shirt and struggling. He stopped what he was doing when he saw his friends, staring blankly ahead. "I have to go find Romy."
Neville raised an eyebrow. "Why? She's going to bed, Harry. You'll see her in the morning at breakfast."
Harry frowned. "I miss her."
Ron snorted. "You literally just snogged her less than a minute ago. Your lips are swollen and your face, lips, and neck are covered in pink lipstick."
"But I need her."
"Harry, you've literally known her for all of today; you don't need to be with her twenty-four/seven," Ron said, his voice rather snarky.
"But I do! I need her here! How can I sleep, Ron, if I'm not holding her in my arms?"
Ron looked at Neville, uneasily. "Same way that you slept last night, mate. Well, I'd reckon better actually, as you won't be worrying about the Second Task."
"Send Hermione a Patronus, Harry," Neville suggested. "She'll get Romilda down here for you."
Harry beamed brightly, but when he waved his wand and said the words nothing happened. He frowned. "That's strange. My Patronus doesn't want to work."
"Try it again," Ron suggested.
He did, waving his wand and loudly bellowing 'Expecto Patronum!'
But nothing happened.
Harry looked completely perplexed; like his entire world had gone askew and he didn't know why.
"Try it again, Harry. Think of something happy," Neville said reassuringly. "If you can't make a Patronus then Hermione won't know that you want to see Romy."
Harry nodded and tried again and again, but nothing happened. His wand just made swirling mists of silver and blue.
"How come it's not working?" Neville asked, looking uneasily at Ron.
Dean stuck his head out of his bed, interested in the commotion. "Harry can't make a Patronus? Maybe he's not happy enough."
"But I'm so happy!" Harry protested. "It's the happiest that I've ever been! Romy is the greatest thing to ever have happened to me! She's perfect and I love her more than anything in the whole world! How come I can't make a Patronus?"
Ron frowned, looking at Neville and Dean. "We're not sure, Harry. Look, maybe you're just tired. With the Second Task and the adventure under the water, on top of spending the evening with Romilda, I think that you're just tired. Why don't you get into bed and try to get some sleep, okay?"
Harry nodded, struggling with his buttons again. Ron took pity on him and unbuttoned his shirt. When Harry only stared at him blankly, Ron frowned and undid his friend's trousers, pushing them down his hips. He helped Harry into his pyjamas as if he was a helpless child before helping his friend into bed. Once the bed curtains were closed around him, he frowned at Neville.
"If I didn't know better, Nev, I'd think he was drunk. Are we sure the twins didn't slip him anything?"
Dean, who had moved to stand by his bed, crossed his arms in front of his chest. "He only had pumpkin juice and some Butterbeer and whatever those chocolate candies were that what's-her-face was feeding him in between their snogging."
Neville's eyebrow furrowed. "Something's wrong with him. He says that he loves her?"
Ron nodded. "I agree. Are we sure that he's not just drunk?"
Dean rolled his eyes. "I just told you — he didn't drink anything out of the ordinary."
Seamus came into the dorm, grinning foolishly. "Great celebration, eh? Harry really was fantastic out there! Is he asleep already?"
Neville shook his head. "No, but he's acting quite strangely. We think he might be drunk or something? But Dean swears he didn't see him take anything out of the ordinary. Do you know Romilda Vane?"
"No, should I?"
"She's Harry's new girlfriend and he's in love with her," Dean supplied.
Seamus nodded, undressing and changing into pyjama bottoms and a tee shirt. "Right, that pretty dark-haired girl he was snogging. Good for him."
Harry pushed his head out of the curtains of his bed. "Did you say Romy's name? Is she here? Can I see her?"
"She's coming, Harry," Neville said, smiling softly. "But she's going to be upset if you're not resting. You need to sleep. You had a long day."
Harry nodded. "But she's coming up here? I can hold her while I sleep?"
"Er, of course," Neville said, reassuringly. "But you have to go to sleep first."
Harry beamed and snuggled back into his pillows. "Good. I like holding her. She's perfect. I love her."
Neville shook his head, his eyes moving to where Seamus and Dean were staring at Harry in confusion. "He seems drunk, right?"
Seamus nodded. "He's slurring his words a bit and he doesn't seem to look at you when he's talking. If I didn't know any better, I would definitely say drunk."
Neville let out a deep sigh. "Let's just hope that he sleeps it off."
Dean bit his bottom lip. "I think that we should keep an eye on him for a bit first, make sure that he goes to sleep safely."
Ron nodded, scratching his chin. "Good call. Don't need him to get sick in his bed or something."
Dean moved to make himself comfortable on the end of Harry's bed. "Harry, mate, why don't you tell me about your Romy? How did you meet her?"
Harry grinned widely, sitting up. "At the party. She's so beautiful. She has perfect hair and beautiful eyes and soft lips and that pretty little beauty mark on her cheek. I like her lips. I like her lips on mine. I wish I was kissing her right now. I love her. She's amazing. She's the best thing to ever happen to me. I don't deserve her, she's too incredible. Her skin is soft and beautiful and she has a beautiful smile."
Dean raised an eyebrow as Harry continued to ramble on about the perfections of one Romilda Vane. "It's going to be a long night," he murmured as the boys all looked uneasily at each other.
~ ASC ~
It took an hour for Harry to finally settle down and go to sleep. The four boys still weren't sure what was wrong with him, but Dean returned to his own bed for the night and they all settled themselves down to try to get some sleep.
Harry lied in his bed listening to his roommates settle in. When Romilda still hadn't come up, he had decided that his friends were just waiting for him to go to sleep. He couldn't have that so, he pretended to fall asleep so that they would stop watching him.
He knew now that they were keeping Romilda from him.
He didn't know why, but he couldn't trust them.
They were lying to him.
He had to get away.
He lied there in his bed with his eyes closed, listening to them chat. Dean sounded a bit heartbroken over Parvati and Seamus sounded stupid happy with Will; Ron and Neville were trying to figure out when Harry had gotten drunk.
He wasn't drunk, he thought bitterly. He'd had one Butterbeer and a glass of pumpkin juice. He just missed her. She was the love of his life. She was the most amazing and most beautiful girl that he had ever known. He just wanted to be with her. What was wrong with that? He punched his pillow, waiting rather impatiently for his friends to go to sleep. It wasn't right of her to just let him go off alone like this. They were meant to be together. Anyone could see that.
After what felt like hours, but was really only about ten minutes, the room was finally quiet. Harry threw his bed curtains open, grabbed his wand and hurried out of the dorm.
He had to get to her.
He had to tell her how much he loved her.
The common room was empty and dark, the embers of the fire glowing a soft warmth through the room. He waited a beat before he transformed into his Animagus and ran up the stairs to the girls' dormitories. He was surprised to realize that it worked and he changed back into himself outside of the door that said: 'Third Years' and pushed it open.
His eyes moved around the room desperately searching for that long dark hair. If he could just see her for a moment, he was sure that he would be okay. He had only taken two steps into the room when Ginny stepped out of the bathroom in a baggy tee shirt that went down to her knees and her hair wet down her back.
"Harry?" she whispered in shock.
The sound of her voice coursed through him and he moved towards her. "Ginny? I — I— where's Romy?" he asked, quietly.
Ginny's eyebrow rose. "I heard that you and her are dating now. She's the one at the end with the huge poster of you in your Quidditch uniform from last year."
Harry turned, alarmed to see the giant poster of himself on the wall across from the bed. "Where did she —?"
"It was one of the photos that Colin took last year during the championship match. She begged and begged him for it."
He nodded. Her hair seemed too bright, too vibrant, too beautiful. Looking at her made his head hurt. She was so clear and so perfect and the room was blurry in comparison.
"Ginny... Ginny... Ginny..."
Ginny frowned and took a step towards him. "Hey! Are you okay, Harry?"
He put a hand to his aching temple. "Something's not right," he whispered. His stomach was churning again. Why had he come in here?
Ginny moved towards him, taking his hand in hers as he began to hyperventilate. She placed his one hand over her heart. "Hey! Look at me. Feel my heartbeat?" When he nodded, she smiled. "Concentrate on that. One, two, deep breaths, Harry, come on. One, two, in and out, that's it."
It only took him a moment before his breathing evened out.
"There," she said smiling at him. She reached up to cup his cheeks. "Are you all right?"
He nodded, covering her hands with his. "I… I don't feel so well."
"Harry?"
He turned, his eyes turbulent as he tore his gaze away from Ginny to see Romilda staring at him from where she was sitting on her bed.
"What are you doing in here?"
"Romy," he said. "I... why am I here? How did I…" he glanced around in confusion. "Something's not right," he muttered again.
Romilda jumped to her feet as Ginny grabbed his waist when he faltered.
"Harry, let's get you to the hospital wing," Ginny said, looking up at him in concern. "Something's not right with you, I agree."
He nodded leaning into her, bending his head to bury his nose in her hair. "Your hair smells nice."
She chuckled. "Thank you."
Romilda jumped up to take Harry's hand. "I'll take him, Ginny. He's my boyfriend after all!"
Ginny looked like she wanted to protest this, but Harry was already leaning into Romilda, a big goofy grin on his face. "Sure. Do you want some help getting him to the hospital wing?"
Romilda shook her head. "No. I got this. He's my boyfriend, not yours!"
Ginny watched Romilda lead Harry out of the dorm and then she heard Harry giggle as the stairs turned into a slide and they slid down them. She made to go to her own bed, but then she changed her mind. As long as she had known Harry, she had never seen him acting so strangely. Not to mention the way he had clung to her… he had sniffed her hair! Something was definitely off about him. She slipped out carefully, moving up to the next level and sneaking into the fourth year dorm.
If anyone would know what was going on it would be Hermione.
~ ASC ~
Harry was still grinning from the slide as he pinned Romilda up against the wall of the common room and kissed her deeply once they reached the bottom. His hands slid up her sides, brushing her breasts as they kissed.
"Harry —" she said in between kisses.
But he didn't stop kissing her. He kissed her deeper and longer and with every kiss he felt like he was drowning.
Romilda pushed him away from her. "Shh, it's okay. I'm right here."
The sound of her voice seemed to calm him and he let her lead him over to a chair where she curled up in his lap. Harry buried his face against her soft breasts, resting his head against the softness of them.
She opened her hand to give him a chocolate candied heart. "For you."
He kissed her hand. "No, I don't want anymore chocolate. My head hurts, Romy, and my stomach… I feel sick."
"This will make you feel better, sweetheart, I promise," she pushed the little chocolate candy into his mouth and he sighed into her, chewing softly. "See? All better."
Then she was kissing him again.
"Harry?"
He pulled his lips away from Romilda's blinking around the room and his eyes focusing on the bushy brown curls of his friend. Everything seemed blurry around the edges, except his Romy — she was perfect. He turned back to her and kissed her neck.
"I love you," he said hazily.
"Harry!"
He jolted and turned back to where Hermione was standing. "Hi, Hermione," he said, nuzzling Romilda's shoulder. "Did you meet Romy yet? She's so pretty."
Hermione frowned. "She is, yes. Harry, can I talk to you for a minute?"
Harry wrapped his arms tighter around Romilda. "Okay."
"Just you and me, Harry. You can see Romy again after."
Harry shook his head, nuzzling her shoulder again. "Nuh-uh. She stays."
Romilda gave Hermione a dirty look. "He's my boyfriend, not yours, so, piss off!"
Hermione glared at her. "He is your boyfriend, you're right." She marched over and grabbed Romilda's arm, yanking her off of Harry's lap and pushing her to the floor as she shrieked. "Now, get off of him!"
Harry was staring at where Romilda had fallen to the floor, his eyes blinking in and out of focus. "Romy, why did you leave?"
Neville and Ron came down the stairs in time to grab Romilda before she shoved Hermione.
"He seems drunk, right?" Ron repeated for the umpteenth time. "We thought we'd gotten him to sleep! We only just realized he'd snuck out."
Hermione shook her head, her hand against Harry's cheek. "No, he's not drunk. He's flushed and his pupils are dilated to saucers! I think that he's been dosed with something!"
Ginny, who had gone upstairs to find Ron and Neville, pushed past Hermione and sat on the couch next to Harry. She took his hand in hers and placed it over her heart again. "Feel my heartbeat, Harry? Remember, breathe in and out, in and out."
He stared at her, his jaw slightly slack, but did as she instructed, his eyes drowning in her chocolate brown ones.
"Let me go!" Romilda exclaimed, trying to elbow her way out of Neville's grip.
"Ron, go to Professor Lupin's suite and see if he's still here, otherwise use the Floo to call him."
"Want me to get the mirror?"
Hermione hesitated. "No, let's get Professor Lupin here first. Harry says that Sirius tends to overreact a bit. I think Lupin is the best choice for the moment."
Ron nodded and hurried out of the portrait hole.
"He's fine!" Romilda exclaimed angrily, tears in her eyes. "We're in love and he just wants to be with me!"
"Romy?" he asked, his eyes widening when he saw her. "Come sit with me?"
Ginny moved to kneel in her seat on the couch, standing high on her knees, blocking Romilda from his view and still clutching Harry's hand over her heart. "Hey, look at me, Harry."
He blinked owlishly. "Your hair is so pretty. It's like an open flame. It dances in the light and catches the red and the gold and the orange and the sun."
Ginny smiled at him. She was still clutching his hand over her heart. "That's right, look at my hair. Focus on my hair, Harry."
Hermione frowned and turned to glare at Romilda, her eyes widening. "You gave him a love potion!"
Romilda blanched. "How dare you! I would never! He's in love with me! And I love him!"
Hermione scoffed. "He didn't even know who you were until the party! You've been following him around for months like some creepy little stalker and now he's suddenly in love with you? I don't buy it."
"He said that his head hurt earlier and that his stomach was upset. He's befuddled and confused. He can barely keep his balance," Ginny said, watching as his eyes moved over her hair as if he was in a trance. "And he's completely mesmerized by my hair… this isn't Harry."
Neville nodded. "He couldn't undress himself earlier. Ron had to help him. It was like he forgot how to undo buttons and then we tried to get him to make a Patronus to see if Hermione would get his girlfriend for him, because he kept asking for her, but he couldn't make one."
Hermione's eyebrow rose. "He couldn't cast a Patronus?"
Neville shook his head. "Not at all. It was barely a wisp of a spell."
Ginny turned to glare at Romilda. "How dare you do this to him!"
Romilda glared back at her. "You're just jealous because he's with me!"
Hermione turned around and silenced Romilda before petrifying her. The girl fell back onto the floor as Neville's eyes widened in shock.
"Hermione!"
Hermione shrugged. "She needed to shut up. Ginny, can you get him to stand? We need to check his balance levels."
Ginny nodded, still holding his hand over her heart as she stood up, tugging him up with her. "How are you feeling, Harry?"
"Funny," he said.
The portrait hole opened behind them and Remus came in with Ron. His eyes fell on the petrified girl on the floor before moving around to Neville, Hermione, Ginny, and Harry.
"What is going on? Why is Miss Vane petrified?"
"I did it, Professor," Hermione told him. "I think that she dosed Harry with a love potion."
Remus' eyes narrowed. "Finite Incantatem," he said, pointing his wand at Romilda.
She jumped to her feet, eyes blazing in rage. "That bitch just petrified me!"
Remus merely raised an eyebrow and when he spoke his voice was cold. "Did she? All of you, follow me, now!"
Ginny kept Harry's hand on her heart. "He keeps hyperventilating, Professor. I'm trying to get him to count my heartbeats."
"That's good, Ginny, that's great advice. Just keep doing that. We're going down to the dungeons. Miss Vane, you too."
Romilda glared menacingly at Hermione, but she reluctantly followed them out of the portrait hole and down the stairs to the dungeons. Remus made for them to wait in the hall before he moved down to the door on the far left from the Potions classroom. He said something to the door because it opened and he stepped through it.
Romilda immediately pushed Ginny out of the way and threw her arms around Harry.
"Romy," he said happily, kissing her neck.
"I love you, Harry!" she said, desperately.
He only nodded and kissed her.
Hermione grabbed Romilda again and pulled her away from Harry as Ron and Neville moved to grab Harry's arms.
"No," Harry said, stubbornly. "I want her! Give her back to me!"
Romilda stared smugly at them. "He's mine. He wants to be with me! Let us be together!"
Ginny scowled at her. "If we're wrong, we'll apologize, but until proven otherwise, you keep your mangy paws off of him!"
Harry was pouting as Ron and Neville each held him tightly and then there was a flash of red light and Ron and Neville each went flying, smashing into the walls as if they had been stunned and Harry strolled towards Romilda, grabbing her and pulling her into his arms.
"She's mine," he said, angrily.
Romilda smirked at them, wrapping her arms around Harry. "I'm right here, sweetheart."
Harry nuzzled into her neck happily as Remus and Snape emerged from the door at the end of the hall.
Snape stared at them in disgust. "There seems to be a problem here?"
"I think Romilda dosed Harry with a love potion, Professor!" Hermione exclaimed, staring at Harry in alarm.
This was not her friend. He was not the kind of bloke to stun his friends like that and the power had just erupted from him. He hadn't even used his wand, she thought.
Remus, who moved to help Ron and Neville frowned. "What happened here?"
"They tried to take him away from Romilda and he stunned them."
Remus nodded, his eyes narrowed. "He's definitely been bewitched, Severus."
Snape stared at Harry, his arms still wrapped around Romilda. "I have an antidote in my Potions cabinet. Do any of you know how he ingested it?"
"It's not a love potion!" Romilda cried. "He really loves me!"
Snape only stared at her and scoffed. "I rather doubt that."
"There were these chocolate candies that she kept feeding him!" Neville exclaimed. "Dean mentioned how she'd been shoving them in his mouth in between snogging him all night!"
Hermione raised her wand. "Accio chocolate candies!"
Romilda gasped as ten chocolate candies were ripped from her pockets and flew out into Hermione's hands. "Those are mine! Give them back!"
Hermione passed them to Snape. He nodded at her and tilted his head to urge them to follow. Snape moved around his cabinet for a few moments before he pulled out a phial with a clear liquid in it.
"He has to drink it all for it take effect," Snape said.
Hermione took the phial from him and held it to Harry's lips. "If you drink this, Harry, you and Romy can leave together."
Harry grinned at her and downed the liquid, making a face. "That tastes foul."
And then his shoulders slumped in defeat.
"Hermione, I… I feel… awful."
Hermione wrapped her arms around him, kissing his cheek. His arms moved around her as well, hugging her tightly against him. "It's okay. We're here."
Romilda screamed. "How dare you!"
Snape rounded on her, his eyes flashing dangerously. "You stupid child! Amorentia is nothing to be trifled with! You infected that boy with lustful feelings and nothing more!"
Romilda blanched, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I just… I just wanted him to like me."
Remus glared at her. "Did you ever try talking to him? Fifty points from Gryffindor for that dismal behaviour! You will be serving detention with me for the remainder of the school year. I will be speaking to not only your Head of House about this, but I will be personally contacting your parents!"
"You aren't bright enough to have brewed this yourself," Snape declared, viciously. "You can barely brew a suitable antidote to common poisons, where did you get…" he scoffed. "Rhea."
Remus glanced at Snape in curiosity. "Who?"
"Rhea Vane. One of my most gifted Potions students. She and her sister Regina own Venus Copia in Diagon Alley — the cosmetics and beauty supply shop. She brewed the Amorentia for you, didn't she?"
Tears were rolling down Romilda's face as she nodded. "She-she-she sent it in the candies. She said that he would have to eat lots of them for it to work."
"How many did you feed him, girl?" Snape demanded.
Romilda sniffed. "She—she—she gave me a hundred."
"There's only ten left," Hermione said.
Snape sneered. "Brainless bint."
"Severus!" Remus exclaimed, glaring at him. "Is Harry going to be all right?"
"He's going to feel incredibly depressed for at least the next twelve hours and will most likely suffer from memory loss until the depression fades. I'd recommend you boys take him back to his dorm or bring him to Black. He shouldn't be left alone. He will most likely sleep it off, but someone should watch him just to be safe. But after that he'll be fine," Snape said.
Remus nodded. "Can you guys take care of Harry? I have to fill Sirius in and deal with Miss Vane."
Hermione nodded, hugging him. "He won't be alone, Professor."
Remus smiled at her. "Thank you for coming to get me. You did well. Romilda, you're coming with me. We're going to speak to McGonagall and then we're going to contact your parents and I'm sending an agent from the Department of Intoxicating Substances to Venus Copia. I think that your sisters' supplies need to be thoroughly checked for any illegal or dangerous substances."
"But Professor —"
"— Do not speak," Remus said, sternly. "What you did is wrong and harmful to not only Harry, but to those around him. In his attempt to get to you, he could have hurt his friends. Love potions are extremely dangerous!"
Tears poured down Romilda's cheeks. "I — please don't send an agent out to my sisters' shop, Professor, please!"
Snape nodded at him, turning to Ron, Neville, Hermione, Ginny and Harry. "Get Potter to bed. Miss Vane, follow Lupin and I."
Hermione kept her arm around Harry's waist as the five of them headed back to Gryffindor Tower. Ginny moved to wrap an arm around his other side.
"What happened?" Harry asked, looking around at his friends in bewilderment.
"You were given a love potion, Harry," Ginny told him.
He looked at her, his eyes wide. "Shouldn't I feel happier then?"
She smiled and stood on her toes to kiss his cheek. "You will. I promise. You were amazing today in the Second Task. You saved me and Gabrielle Delacour. It was brilliant."
Ron nodded, grinning at his sister. "Everyone was cheering for you, mate."
Harry smiled, a little dazed. "That's fun."
They continued to tell him how great he was in the Second Task until they returned to the dorm. Hermione and Ginny said goodnight and let Ron and Neville take over. They helped Harry crawl into bed.
"Get some sleep, Harry, we'll be here if you need us," Ron assured him. "We're going to sleep right here."
Harry nodded, watching as they made a fort of blankets and pillows between his and Ron's bed and he and Neville bunked down under the blankets on the floor. "Can I stay there, too?"
Ron smiled. "Of course, mate; come on over."
Harry grinned and snuggled under his blankets between his friends. "Was I really under a love potion?"
"Yeah."
"Who was I in love with?"
"Romilda Vane," Neville said with a smirk.
Harry's brow furrowed. "Who the hell is that?"
Ron and Neville grinned at each other and then they busted into laughter. "Don't worry, mate. In the morning, we'll explain everything. We promise."
Harry shrugged and snuggled into his pillow. "Okay. If you say so."
Within minutes, he was sleeping soundly and Ron and Neville grinned at each other. Neville stifled a yawn. "Want me to take first watch?"
Ron shook his head. "Nah, you sleep. I'll wake you in an hour."
Neville nodded, smiling at his friend. "Okay. If he wakes, let me know."
Ron nodded and leaned back against the side of his bed, watching his friend sleep. He would keep watch. He would keep his eye on his friend and make sure that he slept peacefully until the antidote fully filtered his system and he was able to remember everything that happened without the feeling of depression moving in. It was the least he could do.
After all, his friend had most definitely not been drunk.
~ ASC ~
Remus was beyond livid as he settled Romilda into Snape's office and called McGonagall and Dumbledore there. After he explained the situation, Romilda was in tears as McGonagall and Dumbledore spoke to her about the implications of her actions. By the time he contacted Sirius, his rage had died down a little, but he was still spitting mad.
Sirius yawned as his head appeared in the fireplace. "Hi, Moony. It's late, what's going on? Is Harry all right?"
"The first thing that I want to tell you is that he's fine. Ron and Neville are taking care of him and come the morning, he is going to be completely fine."
"Come the — what happened?" Sirius asked, his grey eyes clearing from the sleep filled eyes that had answered the Patronus by Floo call.
Remus let out a slow breath. "Harry was given a love potion which resulted in a few problems for the evening."
"A love potion?" Sirius asked, grinning slightly. "Actually?"
Remus scowled. "Actually. A third year Gryffindor girl slipped it to him by way of candies and he became insanely lustful for her in such a regard that his magic lashed out and threw Ron and Neville away from him when they attempted to help."
Sirius' eyes darkened. "Wait, did some bird force herself on him?"
"Siri, you know as well as I do that anything you do under the influence of a love potion isn't within your realm of control. It is essentially a date-rape potion. Thankfully, his friends realized that something was wrong with him and they came to get me. Snape had an antidote available. He's going to be fine, but from what I gathered, he spent most of his evening snogging this girl."
Sirius and Zee arrived two minutes later as Remus filled them in on what had happened. He explained how he, McGonagall, Snape, and Dumbledore had all agreed that suspending her for two weeks was only the start. She was being sent home for those two weeks and when she returned, she would spend every evening in detention alternating between Remus, Snape, and McGonagall. She lost one hundred points from her house and McGonagall would be putting a restraining charm upon her which did not allow her within one metre of Harry.
Romilda had cried the entire time, desperately apologizing. Snape had proceeded to lecture her on the dangers of the love potion and how it could be perceived as date-rape. He had even gone so far as to tell her that Harry could have raped her under the potion, which had made Romilda's eyes widen in shock.
"People under a love potion will do anything to be with the object of their lust and if that lust reached the appropriate level within Potter, he could have lost control; the lust can make the individual need more contact with the object of his desires. If you had given Potter the love potion and he decided to force you to have sex with him, he would not have been punished for it," Snape declared, viciously, his eyes on Romilda's tear filled ones. "Do you understand the severity of that? He could have hurt you just as badly as you could have hurt him and yet you would have been to blame for it because you administered him a controlled substance without his knowledge."
McGonagall had gone on to explain how a love potion alters a person's mental state and makes them think that they are in love with the person who brewed the potion, or in Romilda's case, the potion brewed for her. They learned that Snape had been right, it had been Rhea Vane who had not only brewed the potion, but had added a bit of Romilda's hair into the potion which made Harry susceptible to Romilda's charms, instead of Rhea's. It had been Regina Vane who had then given the potion to her sister through the candies.
Mr and Mrs Vane were completely appalled by the actions of their daughter when they arrived at Hogwarts to speak with the professors and Sirius. The Vanes attempted to apologize for her, but Sirius had only glared at them. He told them that if Romilda ever attempted anything like this again or came close to his son, he would make sure that she spent the rest of her life in Azkaban. When they learned that it had been done with the help of their two eldest daughters, they had been shocked and even more apologetic. By eight the next morning, Remus had the Aurors from the Department of Intoxicating Substances in the school to talk to Romilda Vane and then follow up on an inspection of Venus Copia.
By the afternoon, all three of the Vane sisters were in serious trouble. The Aurors of the DIS had found two barrels full of Amortentia. For the right price, the Vane Sisters were adding it to any beauty supply product the customer asked for. This was considered the selling of a controlled substance with the potential to harm and Regina and Rhea Vane had immediately been arrested.
Rhea and Regina had both been charged with distributing an illegal substance, administering a noxious substance without consent, second degree assault on a minor, as well as illegally manufacturing a controlled substance with the intent to sell. Both were fined, their shop closed down, and they were sentenced to five years in Azkaban. Romilda, being a minor, was given three hundred hours of community service and it was being put on her permanent record. Fourteen was declared still old enough to understand the severity of her actions and the restraining charm would last for six months unless Harry Potter wanted it to remain on her longer.
Sirius, Zee, and Remus had all threatened to sue the Vanes if any harm befell Harry because of Romilda's actions. By the time the day was over and the Aurors had taken over, Remus felt drained and he knew that Sirius and Zee felt the same. Those responsible were being punished and Harry was safe.
That was all that mattered.
~ ASC ~
Harry was appalled that he had let someone slip him a love potion and thoroughly annoyed with himself for being foolish enough to accept food and drink from someone that he didn't know. Romilda had come to apologize to him that morning with her parents standing behind her and he had only nodded curtly at her. The last thing that he wanted to do was talk to the girl who had done such a terrible thing. Hearing about what had happened the night before was awful and he felt violated. He had snogged her almost all night and it hadn't been of his own free will.
He said as much to Sirius when his father had pulled him aside after the Vanes had apologized to him.
"How are you holding up?"
Harry shrugged. "I'm fine, I just… I feel a little dirty."
Sirius shook his head. "Don't. I know it's a lot easier to say that then to do it, but don't. You did nothing wrong, Harry. You were given a love potion and therefore are not responsible for any of your actions under said potion. You kissed a pretty girl under the influence of a potion that she gave you. You are not to blame. This is on her and her meddlesome sisters, who are all being charged accordingly for their crimes. You're lucky that you have such great friends and that they knew something was wrong."
He nodded. He knew that and he had thanked them profusely when he found what they had done. Ron kept apologizing as he had been convinced that Harry had been drunk and hadn't realized that he had been dosed with a love potion, but he didn't blame his friend. He wouldn't have thought love potion if he had seen any of his friends acting the way he had.
Sirius, Zee, and Remus had told him about the charges laid upon Romilda Vane and what the DIS had discovered about Venus Copia. Harry was pleased to learn the shop was being shut down, but he couldn't help but wonder who else may have been a victim of a love potion because of the antics of the Vane sisters. The Aurors apparently had the same questions and were investigating the shop records further to try to discover any other victims.
It made Harry feel a little better to know that it was being taken seriously, but he still felt a bit used by the whole thing. He was just glad that at least for him, it was all over.
It was a few days after everything had happened and he was sitting in the Quidditch stands, his broom on his lap when Hermione found him. She slid onto the seat next to him and looked out across the pitch.
"Warm weather's coming soon. You'll have better flying conditions."
He snuck a look at her from under his lashes. "And what do you know about better flying conditions?"
Hermione smirked at him. "Viktor says ideally it's a cloudy day because the sun doesn't blind the players and it makes the Golden Snitch easier to spot in the sky."
"Look at you, learning about Quidditch."
She smiled and tucked her arm in his. "He asked me to visit him in Bulgaria this summer."
Harry's eyes widened. "Really?"
Hermione nodded, biting her bottom lip. "Yeah. He said that he's going to invite me to a game, too. The first one of the season is apparently in the middle of July. His family is supposed to attend the Third Task and they want to meet me. Something came up and they couldn't be here for the Second Task."
"Are you nervous?"
"Incredibly. Harry, what if they don't like me?"
"Only strange people don't like you. You're the brightest witch of our age."
She smiled. "I really like him, Harry. Like, really like him. He makes me smile and he's intelligent and he has all of these plans to be a Transfiguration researcher, you know, once Quidditch is over."
"I like that he makes you smile," he said.
Hermione leaned into him and he wrapped his arm around her, kissing the top of her head. "Harry… if I decide to go… to Bulgaria, that is… would you come with me?"
Harry looked down at her in surprise. "What?"
She blew her hair out of her eyes. "I know my parents would never let me go alone and frankly, I don't want to go alone. Bulgaria isn't exactly next door and I wouldn't know anyone outside of Viktor's family and possibly Andrei and Dimo, but… if you came we could go to his match together and… will you, please?"
He smiled at her. "If you want me there, I'll be there. I bet Uncle Sirius and Zee might even tag along."
Hermione grinned up at him and hugged him, tightly. "Thanks, Harry. I'll let you know what I decide, I mean … who knows what's going to happen between Viktor and I over the coming months. But if I do decide to go, I'd really love to have a friend tag along."
"Hey, any friend who bodily throws a crazy girl off of me, then petrifies said girl, and then steals her love potion candies in an attempt to free said friend from crazy girl's clutches — is the best friend a bloke can ask for!"
She blushed. "I—I just wanted you to be able to think clearly without her influencing your presence."
He grinned. "And you succeeded." He hugged her close. "Thanks, Hermione."
Hermione grinned back at him. "You're welcome. I introduced Viktor to Mum and Dad through the mirror. Mum says that he's charming and Dad scowled at lot, but they both like him."
"That's good."
She smiled. "I think so. Mum said that I could invite him to stay for a week in the summer, too, and when I suggested it, he was so pleased. I really like him."
"I know," Harry said with a grin. "You've been glowing with happiness for months now."
Hermione grinned back at him. "So, are you going to fly that broom or just stare at it?"
"Depends, want to go for a ride?"
"Oh no!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes wide. "I am here in a strictly observing capacity only!"
Harry tugged her to her feet. "Come on; just a little lap around the pitch?"
Hermione tugged her hand free. "Do it and die, Potter!"
Harry laughed and hopped onto his broom, soaring above her. "You don't know what you're missing!"
Hermione watched him zoom off, doing a quick loop-the-loop into the air and her own stomach lurched. She knew exactly what she was missing and the ground was the place she was most happy.
But she was glad to see her best friend with a smile on his face once again.
End Author's Notes:
(Bulgarian) moyata kafyava krasavitsa = my brown haired beauty
(Bulgarian) krasiv = beautiful
As mentioned in the author's note of chapter 114, I moved Romilda Vane up to be in the same year as Ginny because I had this idea in mind. I felt like this needed to happen because in the book it wasn't discussed and I wanted it to happen to Harry and not to Ron. I wanted to write this chapter for a few reasons, but the main was one is because I do not think a love potion is a joke. It is essentially a date-rape drug as someone is not in their right mind when it is administered. I wanted that to be emphasized; for the professors to take it seriously, and report to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement because it is in fact a crime, and for Romilda Vane to be properly punished as it wasn't in Half-Blood Prince and that always bothered me. Yes, it was shadowed by Draco's attempt to kill Dumbledore through Slughorn's poisoned mead being given to Ron, but it was still a very serious offence that I felt like needed to be addressed. I hope I got that across here.
Thank you for reading and please review :D