Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Harry Potter or the Witcher franchises.

Chapter 3

Sweat dripped off of Harry's body as he stared down his opponent. He had been rudely woken up at four in the morning and forced outside for an impromptu training session; one that Geralt was determined to get him to complete before their focus was needed on the champion of Beauxbatons. He was expected to master the Quen sign, and so far he was doing pretty poorly.

Bruises covered his body from Geralt's strikes and Harry was hard pressed to keep up with his mentor. Even though they were both using practice blades, Harry was still learning how to get comfortable with the weight. For that reason, his reaction times were slower than Geralt's and it showed in the number of blows he suffered.

"Focus Harry, you can't use your signs without focusing," the older man commanded. "Forget about the blade for a moment."

Harry tried, but he found that his mind kept drifting back to focusing on Geralt's movements. He was nervous, and it was preventing him from relaxing enough to taste the power of the sign. Casting a sign was always difficult the first time. Once a witcher had cast it, they would be able to use it subsequently with little effort. It was like muscle memory. It became ingrained into them, and they were able to incorporate it into the rest of their combat style.

"Yow!"

A cry of pain escaped from Harry as he felt Geralt's blunted blade smack into his side: again. His thoughts must have drifted off too far. Clutching at the throbbing spot on his abdomen, Harry fought back a string of curses.

"I said focus, not daydream!"

"Yes sir!"

Harry quickly recovered himself and got back into position. Drawing on his magical core, he focused on the Quen sign. He knew how to perform it and what it would do for him, now he just had to apply it. Opening his eyes, he watched Geralt approach, blade flashing in the sunrise, and forced the sign to work.

The blade came down with a crack on Harry's training armour and he crumpled under the pressure. However, there was no pain. Instead, Harry was struggling under the weight of his mentor's blow, not the pain from it.

Tearing his arms upwards; Harry's own training blade crashed into Geralt's and forced it far enough up that the teen was able to stand. Clambering to his feet, Harry readied himself for the next blow. Now that he had cast the Quen sign once, Geralt was going to force him to use it as many times as he possibly could.

"Good, you're all ready to go," the older man said. "Now, this time, we'll be using it in a sparring match. Prepare yourself!"

Holding his sword in a combat position, Harry nodded in understanding. It was going to be a long morning, and he would make sure that Geralt was just as tired as he was by the end of it.

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It was nearly eight in the morning by the time that Harry stumbled into the great hall to get some breakfast. Students from all three schools were mulling about, the day being a weekend and all. Halloween celebrations would be starting soon, and Harry could already identify a slight change in the hall from the night before. October 31st never left a good taste in his mouth though; his parents had died on that night to protect him. Their act had led to his first few years with the Dursleys, and he was ever thankful that Geralt rescued him from them; even if he was in an orphanage at the time.

"Harry, come over here."

Cedric's voice drew Harry out of his thoughts. Looking over towards where the boy was seated; Harry grinned and started towards him. Taking the open seat across from the seventeen-year-old, Harry was pleased to see that there was still a large selection of breakfast options.

"They keep the breakfast topped up for an extra couple of hours on weekends," Cedric said jovially. "There are many stragglers. Actually, you should expect it to get pretty busy in about an hour."

"Yes, and I know there are a few girls who want to speak with you," Susan added.

Once again, Harry leapt a distance away. Somehow, Susan was continually managing to sneak up on him. That, or she had been there from the start and he hadn't noticed her. He really hoped it was the second option as Geralt would be putting him through the basics again if he found out.

"Good morning Susan," Cedric said. "Did Hannah enjoy the stories you had to tell her last night?"

Susan groaned at the mention of the other girl.

"Who's Hannah?" Harry asked.

"My best friend," Susan mumbled. "Actually, we claim we're best friends, but she's more of a parole officer than anything else."

Harry looked confused at the statement; more so due to Susan using very muggle terms, than the fact that her best friend was the equivalent of her parole officer. After all he had heard the night before, there was very little doubt in his mind that she was a havoc to everyone she interacted with. Though, he couldn't deny the charm he found in that sort of personality trait. Refocusing, he decided that searching out the reason for why she used muggle terms was not the intent of the moment, so pushed the thought aside.

"Hannah and I are kind of responsible for keeping Susan from being expelled. She's a wild spirit and has a tendency to cross all the boundaries set before her," Cedric said. "Actually, in her second year she nearly got expelled for creeping on the Defense teacher."

"Professor Lockhart was hot, what am I to do about that?"

Susan's complaint earned laughs from the two boys. Harry was finding the dynamics of the two Hogwarts students to be enjoyable. They were lively and friendly, two things he wasn't completely used to; travelling the world left little time for friendships after all. The fact that he had maintained his friendships with Fleur and Gabrielle was a testament to his effort though, and right now Cedric and Susan seemed like people he would want to keep that same thing with. At least, in Susan's case, if she could stop sneaking up on him.

"Now come on, you need to eat breakfast so that we can give you the tour," the redhead demanded. "Sit, sit, eat, eat."

Her thin hand wrapped around his own and Harry found himself pulled onto the seat beside her. He soon found a plate loaded with different, sweet looking, breakfast foods placed in front of him. Tentatively digging in, the teen was stunned by the flavour. Out on the road as often as he was, fast food places were about the best that he would eat at. The worst was devouring a granola bar and claiming that it was enough to fill him for a day, or two; depending on their money situation.

To be eating such sweet, and rich, breakfast foods was a new experience. Even when they stayed with the Delacour family, they didn't eat anything this fancy.

"You like?" Susan asked; her blue eyes once again wide with curiosity.

"Mhmm," Harry replied.

"Good. Now, let's get going before Hannah decides to come and drag me away. Ced's not getting you all to himself for the tour. Not when his lovely girlfriend will start getting the wrong idea about things," Susan declared.

"Cho's not going to think anything of it," Cedric grumbled as he finished his food. "Not unless you've started feeding rumours to the student body again?"

"Not at all," Susan replied cheerily. "Now get moving."

Cedric and Harry clambered out of their seats and followed after the redhead as she made her way to exit the great hall. Neither wanted to be left behind; especially Harry, who had yet to learn the lay of the land.

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A startled Fleur couldn't believe that she had slept in. Even though she had no intention of getting up ridiculously early, she couldn't believe that it was already nine in the morning. Harry was probably already up and moving by this point and she had missed out on her chance to see him sparring.

Even though she projected an air of cold indifference to most of those she interacted with, a necessity due to being of veela blood, Harry provided her with a chance to release the mask and be a normal young woman. No one quite understood why, and Geralt had discussed far too many possibilities for her to be certain, Harry was relatively immune to hers and her younger sister's allure. This made him a very sociable and enjoyable young man to interact with.

In all truth, he was probably her best friend. Unlike Gabrielle, Fleur struggled to befriend those around her. Somehow, her baby sister was capable of containing her allure; a skill only full veela were supposed to be able to master. It made her jealous, as her sister was exhibiting powers that only her grandmother had shown before. She had even been able to make friends who didn't abandon her when her veela powers started to show up.

However, to her pleasure, Harry spent more time around her. It gave her a feeling of importance and acceptance that she didn't find among her classmates. It also gave her one-up on Gabrielle. As much as she loved the girl, Harry provided a friendship that she desperately needed. He didn't judge her, and he was completely accepting of her nature. Granted, rumours were that he was also a half-breed; an effect of becoming a witcher.

Racing out of her quarters, the quarter-veela decided that she'd attempt to find Harry at breakfast. Students from all the schools were given full access to the Hogwarts Great Hall during meals and she assumed that Harry would be taking advantage of that. Though neither he, nor Geralt, said much about it; she could tell that they usually didn't eat very well while out on the road. The Hogwarts food would definitely be tempting. Especially since the headmistress was kind of cheap and determined to not bring their own food supplies; instead relying on the hospitality of Hogwarts to feed the sixty-three students and the staff.

Stopping only momentarily to check her appearance in one of the mirrors in the carriage's halls, Fleur proceeded towards the exit. Stepping out into the fresh air, she found that the temperature was quite pleasant for the end of October. The sun was shining in the sky, and not a cloud was in sight. Even the cool breeze wasn't too strong or too weak. However, Fleur barely paid any of that attention as she searched for any sign of Harry on the grounds.

Finding none, she determined that he was probably inside the castle. Entering, she headed into the Great Hall, only to find him once again with the redheaded girl hanging off of him. A wave of jealousy cut through her, but she fought it down. It wouldn't do to act jealous around him. She had a reputation to uphold amongst her school, and acting jealous over anyone was not part of it. It would provide too much for her enemies to use against her, and she would not allow that.

The fact that he was a witcher didn't help either. Even though her family were some of the strongest supporters of the work that a witcher performed, most of wizarding society looked down upon them, as if they were lesser than them. Dark creatures they were called; labelled so unfairly, just for being the first line of defense between humans and the other races that wandered the world.

Veela, though, were viewed much higher than witchers, and fraternizing with them was not looked kindly upon. They were still, tentatively, on the dark creatures list as well, but people were far more accepting of them. It probably had to do with the rumours of the sex that they could provide.

Fleur stopped herself from scoffing at the thought, but was unable to avoid catching Harry's attention. His eyes lit up as he saw her, and he started moving towards her; excusing himself from the presence of the redheaded girl.

"Fleur, it's great to see you. We were just about to go on a tour of the school, would you care to join us?" he asked as he approached, drawing the attention of those gathered in the Great Hall.

Keeping herself poised as the sudden wave of attention fell over them, she couldn't help, but admire Harry's ability to ignore it all. Even though she didn't flinch, or blush, under the scrutiny, she was well aware of it. She wondered if he noticed it as well.

"Would it be alright for me to join you? It looks like you 'ave another boy in your group. Are you certain that he won't be affected by me?" she asked, pushing aside her other questions for the time being.

"Cedric should be fine. It sounds like he's already in a pretty tight relationship. Plus, you've got me to make sure nothing untoward happens," Harry said, grinning at her.

Forcing a sigh, Fleur put on a pensive expression. It also wouldn't do to seem easy, no matter how much she appreciated the invitation. She had to make sure that those around didn't think that she would do anything when asked. Putting on the show, she knew Harry would be patient. He always seemed to instinctively know when to wait, and to hide any annoyance he may feel, and she had a feeling that Geralt had helped him to develop this trait. It was impressive for a fourteen-year-old.

"I'll take your word for it," she said in French.

Harry's grin widened and he nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"You have my guarantee, milady," he replied, also in French.

Fleur actually struggled to fight down the blush that tried to burst onto her face.

"Harry is your lovely friend joining our little excursion?" the Hogwarts boy asked as he finally approached them.

Fleur was thankful for his presence. It allowed her a moment to recover.

"Yeah, she'll be joining us Cedric. Though, I think we should give her a chance to get breakfast first."

"I am fine without. If you are ready to start, I would be more than pleased to accompany you," Fleur said.

"Okay, we'll just get lunch sooner then," a female voice interceded.

Looking over at the owner of the voice, Fleur found the redheaded girl who had been hanging off of Harry staring at her. Immediately ready to get on the defensive, she was surprised by what the girl said next.

"After all, the more the merrier, right."

A bright smile spread across her face as she spoke. With that, Fleur was settled on joining them; no hesitation left at all.

"Yes, the more the merrier," she said.

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Harry felt at ease once Fleur had agreed to join them. It wasn't that he didn't trust Cedric, or Susan – if her were honest. He just felt more comfortable with a familiar face in the crowd. The fact that she had so readily agreed, if her body language said anything, was also pleasing.

He hadn't been able to spend much time with his friend since they left for Hogwarts. Actually, he hadn't had all that much time when he was at Beauxbatons either. She had been caught up in the numerous activities that were required of a student in their final year of school. So, it would be nice to spend some time with her; especially since his time would be taken up with the tournament by the end of the night.

Glancing over at Cedric, Harry was impressed to see that his new friend was doing a reputable job of ignoring Fleur's allure. It helped that he was in a relationship already. Veela, while reputed to be men-stealers, were practically unable to steal a man away from someone he truly loved. Unless they poured a good portion of magic into their allure, if a man was in love he would be able to resist.

Harry had learned this when he had first been found out to be immune to Fleur and Gabrielle's allure. And now, it seemed that Cedric was living up to the qualifications. Whoever this Cho was, she was definitely a special girl to hold his heart to this extent.

"So, where are we off to first Ced?" Susan asked, interrupting Harry's thoughts.

"I thought I'd give a tour of the school, starting from this floor and working our way to the top," Cedric replied.

"Anywhere specific that you want to make sure they see?"

Cedric stopped moving at the tone of Susan's voice. Turning on the girl, he gave her a stern look before replying evenly.

"We are not going to show them that. After what happened, I think its best that we leave it all well enough alone."

"What happened?" Harry asked.

As a witcher, anytime someone mentioned something happened his curiosity was piqued. It was an after-effect of having to keep an ear to the ground for paying jobs for so long. Anything that could possibly turn into one was immediately on his radar.

"I concur, what happened that you don't seem to want to talk about?" Fleur added, her voice joining Harry's.

Cedric sighed, but he seemed to cave. Before he could explain, however, Susan cut in excitedly.

"There was a basilisk on the school grounds," she started. "I was only in my second year when it happened, but after the first attack, the Hogwarts professors managed to kill it. Rumours persist, though, that the Chamber of Secrets was its home."

"Chamber of Secrets?" Harry inquired.

Susan blushed as she seemed to catch up with the fact that her audience had no idea what she was talking about.

"Su here is trying to say that one of the four founders of Hogwarts, Salazar Slytherin, had a secret room which the professors found while hunting down the basilisk," Cedric interceded.

"Yeah, what Ced said," Susan added.

"Can we go see it?" Harry asked quickly, excitement building up in him.

"Um, there's actually only rumours about where it's located," Cedric said. "No one in the school actually knows where it is. Well, the Weasley girl does, but she doesn't talk much anymore."

Harry nodded in understanding. But his curiosity wouldn't quit. Now that he knew that someplace like this existed on the school grounds, he would be reticent to give up the hunt.

"Sounds pleasant," Fleur said; her disinterest audible. "But is there anywhere, less foul to see?"

"Of course," Cedric said. "Let's start with this floor and work our way up."

Harry nodded, but his mind was now caught up with the idea of the Chamber of Secrets. Maybe he could get Geralt to deem it a worthwhile endeavour and help him find it. With that thought in mind, he followed alongside the others.

End Chapter 3

A/N: Okay, this was a long one coming. Writing this was a lot of fun because I was able to start incorporating elements of The Witcher universe into this and more will be coming soon. Anyway, I apologize for the long wait, but I do hope to update more frequently. Thanks to all who have read and supported the story. It is appreciated.

Now, since I have some space, I'm going to respond to a couple of questions here. Firstly, yes, the Wild Hunt will come into play. How and when? Well, I can't say that as it plays heavily into the story and I don't feel like revealing anything about that yet.

Secondly, others learning swordplay may or may not happen. It depends on if it fits with the characters that Harry interacts with. So far, I'm leaning towards the no. But that could change at some point if it fits the build up to the desired result I need from this story.

Finally, I can't say anything on the champion topic; mainly because the next chapter will cover the Goblet and its choosing. I have things planned and won't be revealing them yet.

Anyway, thanks again to all who follow and support this story. Until next time,

Nanashi Wanderer