Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Harry Potter! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every Saturday!
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Severus and Lily watched Harriet closely for the rest of the summer.
They were very fortunate her other admirer, Anuman, was such a polite, gentle soul.
Although he sat in plain sight while the girl he loved pranced about her bedroom, sometimes completely nude after she undressed for a shower or while she searched for clean clothes, he always averted his reptilian eyes.
It was doubtful Draco, Fenrir, or Tom would have had the decency to do the same under similar circumstances.
Weeks passed.
Soon, Harriet once again rode the Hogwarts Express back to the castle for another year of magical education.
As the train chugged along its track, she couldn't help but notice what looked like a flying carriage in the distance once her school came into view.
"That's a bit odd, itn't it?" Ron asked as he squinted through the window to peer at the winged, white horses that carried the baroque-looking vehicle.
"What about that?" Harriet asked as she pointed in the distance towards what appeared to be a mast rising out of the Black Lake.
"Is that……..Is that a ship?!" Hermione gasped as she narrowed her eyes.
Slowly, the mast rose to reveal a sail, a deck, rudders……
"It looks like a ship." Harriet shrugged.
While Ellery enjoyed pleasant conversation with his Slytherin friends a few compartments down, the Golden Trio exchanged incredulous scowls as they watched the train, the ship, and the flying carriage all head towards the castle.
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Severus and Lily sat next to each other at the High Table as the students in the Great Hall chatted amongst themselves, eager to find out more about the strange things they had seen during their journey to school.
The Sorting Ceremony was quickly conducted for the first year students before Professor McGonagall quickly took the stool away as the headmaster approached the wooden podium.
"If I could have everyone's attention for a moment……A moment only!" Dumbledore called with a wave of his hands as the noisy chatter hurriedly silenced, "Many of you may have heard rumors, others perhaps not, but for this academic year, Hogwarts will be hosting The Triwizard Tournament! An ancient competition to distinguish the most talented witches and wizards of our age. Joining us for the next several months are students led by Igor Karkaroff, from the well-respected institution of Durmstrang….." He announced as he raised his hands towards the closed doors of the Great Hall.
Everyone turned just in time to see the doors fly open as a scowling, bearded man stomped into the room, dressed in a heavy, white coat.
Behind him followed a gaggle of sixth and seventh year boys, all dressed in identical brown uniforms.
"Merlin's beard!" Ron gasped as the Golden Trio watched a very serious, broad-shouldered boy with short hair march into the Great Hall.
The boy followed the man in the white coat while his classmates demonstrated their military might through somersaults and the casting of an impressive fire spell.
"What?" Harriet blinked.
"Harriet, don't you know who that is?!" Hermione snapped, "Even I know who that is and I-"
"-Who are we talking about?!" Harriet hissed.
Ron abandoned all hopes of discretion as he stretched himself across the table to point at the broad-shouldered boy while he shouted, "THERE! That's him!...That's……Viktor Krum!"
"Oh……Isn't he on Bulgaria's professional Quidditch team?" Harriet asked.
Hermione sighed in frustration while Ron looked at her as if she had struck him, "Bloody Hell, Harriet, yes! He's on Bulgaria's professional Quidditch team! If you had come to the World Cup this summer, you could have seen him in action! It was wicked, let me tell you, it was wicked!"
A frown of remorse passed over Harriet's fair face as she began to explain, "Yeah, well, my Mum and Dad-"
Dumbledore interrupted before she could finish.
The Golden Trio, along with everyone else, silenced themselves while Dumbledore spoke again, "-And in addition to our friends from Durmstrang, also joining us this year will be Madam Maxine and the lovely ladies of Beauxbaton."
Everyone looked towards the doorway once more to watch a tall, elegant, dark-haired woman enter the room.
Her beautiful robes were made from swirling velvet.
The fabric floated around her feet like sumptuous clouds as a group of lovely, lithe girls slipped into the Great Hall and sighed as blue butterflies appeared from their synchronized motions.
Ron's eyes widened as the Beauxbatons strolled past Gryffindor's table.
Hermione frowned but Harriet laughed as her best friend openly gawked at the curves highlighted by their silky, blue uniforms.
Across the room, Harriet couldn't care less that Draco didn't pay the Beauxbatons one bit of attention, unlike most of Hogwarts' other boys.
Instead of the rosy-cheeked, smiling beauties that skipped effortlessly down the middle of the Great Hall, Draco's grey stare bore into Harriet.
It terrified him to consider the real possibility Viktor Krum or another handsome delicacy from Durmstrang would catch her eye.
Severus and Lily glanced around while Dumbledore prepared to speak again, but while they kept their attention focused on the new students and Harriet, they failed to notice their son.
Fleur Delacour stood next to Madam Maxine with a proud smirk on her face as she gazed at the unglamourous pupils of Hogwarts and Durmstrang.
As she stood next to the headmistress, Fleur's sister, Gabrielle, looked around as well, but not with quite as much haughtiness as her older sibling.
Flawlessly beautiful, Gabrielle resembled a porcelain doll with her bright, blue eyes, fair hair, and smooth skin.
She could have easily looked at any boy, but her gaze landed on one with a hooked nose and greasy, black hair down to his shoulders.
Gabrielle's sapphire eyes glowed with admiration as she gave Ellery a warm, welcoming grin.
Unaccustomed to receiving any attention at all from girls, his sad frown fell away as a soft, shy smile dared to dance across his lips.
"It is every staff members' hope that our visitors this year….." Dumbledore began while everyone in the Great Hall quieted, "...Will usher in new friendships and teach us to appreciate those different from ourselves. The Triwizard Tournament itself is indeed an ancient competition filled with peril and excitement, conducted through three tasks of skill and finesse that end with one winner obtaining eternal glory and this….." Dumbledore paused while he walked over and pulled a draped shroud down from a tall post close to the High Table, "...The Triwizard Cup!"
Gasps rang out as the magnificent, magical artifact glistened in the Great Hall's glowing candlelight.
The hearts of many students instantly filled with the desire to compete, but Dumbledore promptly crushed several dreams as he raised a hand and added, "The contest will be open to those aged seventeen and older."
Disappointed sighs and groans rang out through the room.
"However…." Dumbledore called over the irritated moans, "Those who do wish to enter this competition should not do so lightly, these tasks will push those involved beyond anything they've ever experienced before….Not to mention, each competitor will face great danger."
A hand shot into the air as a boy from Ravenclaw called out amongst the anxious whisperings, "Has anyone ever died in the tournament, Professor Dumbledore?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Dumbledore admitted with a nod. A furious new swath of curious gossip immediately erupted as he addressed the boy who had spoken, "As I said, entry is not for the faint-hearted."
"For those of age who do wish to compete!" Dumbledore called over the noise, "You have until tomorrow evening to submit yourself for consideration, by placing your name in the Goblet of Fire, which will be left here!" Dumbledore called as he took another veil off a second, tall post and revealed a large, bronze goblet, "A name will be chosen from each school! One champion from each institution will take part in the tournament! Those whom the Goblet chooses to compete will be revealed after dinner tomorrow!"
In the flurry of heated conversations that followed once Dumbledore finished speaking, Harriet, Ron, and Hermione began placing bets on who they thought would enter.
Draco scowled at Viktor Krum, threatened by his ability to enter the tournament and beside himself with dread that his new rival may still win Harriet's heart.
Although Harriet had no interest in Viktor, she couldn't wait to tell Tom all about what had happened as soon as she made it back to her dormitory room that night.
Yes, that does sound exhilarating.
His response came after she had explained the evening's events on the diary's blank page.
If only I could be there next to you…….
Harriet smiled wryly as a soft sigh escaped her lips.
She thought for a moment before she picked up her quill and scrawled back.
I would do anything to be with you, Tom.
A frown marred her fair face as an extended moment passed before his reply came.
Anything, Harriet Snape?
She smirked as she wrote her answer.
Anything.
His response arrived much more swiftly as the words scrawled across the diary's page.
Listen closely for the voice within the walls, it will lead you to me when the time is right.
Harriet furrowed her brow as she stared down at the written lines in confusion before they disappeared.
The voice within the walls?
What was that supposed to mean?
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Once Professor Snape and his wife returned home that evening, the couple decided to relax by taking a warm bath together.
"Well, this should be an interesting year." Lily mused as she sat on his lap in the tub.
"We should be grateful neither of our children is of age to enter…..the tournament." Severus purred as he gently washed his lover after he lathered his elegant hands with soap.
Lily leaned back and sighed as his palms moved over her throat and down her chest to knead at her breasts.
"Mmm, you mean Harriet, Sev…..I don't think Ellery would ever put his name in the Goblet." She mused.
"...Unless he sought to impress someone." Severus drawled.
Lily sat up and met Severus's dark gaze while she asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I noticed our son exchanged glances with one of the Beauxbatons tonight." He huffed.
A wide, knowing grin spread across Lily's lips.
She laughed as she said, "Ellery is growing up too, you know? Good for him! Maybe they can become friends like you and I did."
"...And where has that led us?" Severus quipped as he gave Lily's tender nipples a sharp pinch.
"Ahh!" She gasped.
Severus's black eyes glimmered as a shudder ran down his spine at the sound of his wife's cry.
Although he seemed content to continue her torment, Lily saw no point in delaying their mutual gratification.
She bent forward in the water and kissed his lips with a hurried eagerness.
A noise somewhere between a growl and a purr escaped Severus's throat as his beloved flower pressed her soft, bare body against him…….
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While Lily and Severus enjoyed an evening of intimacy, back at the castle, Scabbers slipped out of his cage next to Ron's bed and scurried down the dormitory stairs.
He paused to linger in the shadows until Gryffindor's prefect completed his patrol rounds and opened the Fat Lady's portrait to retire for the night.
Scabbers slid through the portrait, passed the boy undetected, and rushed down the castle's winding staircases until he slipped under the door of the Great Hall where the Goblet of Fire stood, eager to accept names.
As Scabbers transformed back into Peter Pettigrew, he gnawed his own lip as he stepped through the age line Dumbledore had drawn.
A single slip of parchment fell from his filthy hand into the Goblet of Fire before it disintegrated into a bright, purple flame.
Peter laughed wickedly before he resumed his Animagus form and scampered away.
He prided himself on successfully completing his task.
Peter had to wait until morning, but as soon as a fifth year girl opened the portrait on her way to breakfast, he finally reentered the dormitory and climbed Gryffindor Tower's steep steps.
By the time Ron climbed out of bed, Scabbers crouched innocently in his cage.