The Singing Egg

8th of December, 1994.

Harry was sitting in the Owlery looking out over the snowy grounds below. He was petting Hedwig gently. Professor McGonagall had dropped a bomb on them earlier that day. There was going to be a ball. A dance. Now, if there was something he didn't know how to do, it was dance. McGonagall had offered them lessons. He felt like he needed more than that though. He also had to ask a girl out. He sighed. He didn't feel like it, but he couldn't skip out since he was one of the Champions. They had to dance.

He smiled as he saw Fleur walking into the Beauxbatons' carriage. Maybe he could ask Fleur. He got up. He was at least going to ask her if she was willing to teach him how to dance since he needed lessons, and he assumed she knew how to.

He made his way down to the courtyard and over to the carriage. He knocked on the door. A girl opened it. She gave him a hard look and went back inside. They knew him well enough to know who he wanted to see. Most of them didn't like him much, but they were polite enough to tell Fleur he was there despite their dislike of her. Some of them had noticed that the boys acted less like idiots around Fleur when Harry was there and they saw that as a good thing.

Fleur showed up and invited him inside. "'Arry 'ow nice to see you," she said.

"I hope I'm not intruding," Harry said.

"Non, not at all," Fleur said. "Please come in it's cold out 'ere." Harry followed her into her room. "So what do I owe the pleasure?" she asked.

"Well, I just learned that there is going to be a ball at Christmas," Harry said. "I don't know how to dance. I hope you would be willing to teach me because I don't want to make a fool out of myself."

Fleur laughed. He was looking at her with such a pathetic gaze. He looked so cute. "I'll aide you," she said with a smile.

"Thank you," Harry said happily. He'd taken the glamour of the moment the door had closed. He stood up and bowed low. "Will you dance with me mademoiselle?" he said and held a hand out.

Fleur laughed again as she took his hand. He helped her up and placed his right hand on her waist. "This is right, yeah?" he said.

"Oui," Fleur said. She shifted his hands a little and pulled her wand. She pointed it at a music player and then she made her furniture move out of the way. "There," she said as the music started playing. She moved them in time with the music. It didn't take long before Harry was the one leading. He messed up at times, but the longer they went on the better he did. He realised very quickly that all his other training helped a lot with dancing.

"This is very nice," Fleur said softly. She leaned in closer to Harry.

"Do you want to go to the ball with me?" Harry asked. "You'll have to stand the glamour so we would have to train that way too but…" he didn't finish the sentence. "You'd have to stand everyone else being idiots of course," he added.

"I don't care about what they think," Fleur said. She smiled up at him "You are a good friend. I would rather dance with you than any of those guys that can't see past the allure."

Harry smiled at her and twirled them around. "I guess all you need is some confidence," he said.

"Oui, that makes things easier," Fleur said. "Can you adapt the robes we bought for you to fit the glamour?"

"Yes, any clothes I wear before applying the glamour will just adapt with the magic of the glamour," Harry said.

"Wear the blue set," Fleur said.

"With purple and silver or …?"

"Oui, that one is good," Fleur said. She sighed. "This will be the first yule when I do not go home and see my family. I will miss Gabrielle. She always gets so excited about decorations and baking." They swayed back and forth with the music for a while. Fleur corrected Harry when he made a mistake.

"I never went home," Harry said after a while. "Back before my trip to Skyrim. I never went back to the Dursleys for Christmas. They didn't want me so it felt pointless."

"You 'aven't told me about them," Fleur said. "They are your only living family, non?"

Harry nodded. "I lived with Petunia Dursley and her family after my parents were killed. She's my mother's sister. They didn't like me much. They weren't …" He closed his eyes. "They weren't physically abusive but they did starve me and lock me up in a tight dark space a great deal. I know that what they did was wrong." He shrugged. "I would rather just never have anything to do with them again. My cousin Dudley would beat me up when he could catch me. I was pretty fast on my feet though." He spun them around again. "Rashall, Naya and Katla did their best to reverse the damage done. They managed pretty well. Maybe I'm not as tall as I could be but that isn't so bad." He could feel Fleur's allure crackling around him. She was furious.

"I 'ave suggested it before," Fleur said. "You can come to stay with my family for the summer. No child should be treated that way. Those people are monsters."

Harry smiled. He hugged the quarter Veela close. "Calm Fleur you're making the air sparkle," he said. "I'm okay now. I had years to think about all that, and I know why they didn't like me. They were afraid of magic. I'm not going to be the monster they thought I might become." She kissed him on the cheek. "You are a very nice person 'Arry," she said.

They stopped dancing after a while and sat down with a photo album filled with pictures of Fleur and her little sister Gabrielle. She had cousins just as lovely as her, and he could see where she got it from when he saw pictures of her mother. Her father looked out of place, but they all seemed happy.

"The only photos I have are of my parents and their friends," Harry said as Fleur closed the album.

"Really can I see?" Fleur asked.

Harry nodded, "Sure." He shifted away from her slightly. "Winky," he said.

The little elf appeared. She looked really neat. She had made a maid uniform out of Harry's old clothes. She had been stunned when he'd said she could do that. "What does Master Harry want from his Winky?" she asked.

"Could you fetch my photo album, please… and it should be about dinner time now," he looked over at Fleur who nodded, "could you make some oven-baked salmon with a nice fresh salad please," Harry said. Hermione would've killed him if she'd heard him.

"Winky will be right back with Master's album then Winky will make food for Master and Master's friend," the little elf said before disappearing.

"Is that your elf 'Arry?" Fleur said. "She's cute. The dress is very fitting. I 'ave never understood why people make them wear such ugly clothes."

"She sewed it herself out of my older Hogwarts robes. I just wanted her to wear proper clothes and not some rag. She is amazing." he held his hands out. "Thank you, Winky," told the elf as she handed him the photo album.

Winky lit up and she popped off again. She landed in the kitchen. She had a new Master. She was conflicted though. He was so different from Master Crouch. She didn't want to think badly of her old Master but… She pushed the thoughts away. Maybe she could work that over later. She walked over to the storage. Her Master wanted her to make something special. The other elves were happier around her now too. They didn't mind that she worked for one of the students at all. She looked over at Dobby as she cut the tomatoes for the salad. He had been a little put out when he'd heard that she was Master Harry's elf. She had asked Master why he hadn't taken Dobby since they knew each other. He had told her he didn't trust Dobby to keep his secrets the way he trusted her. She was protecting her old Master still and he respected that. It had made her happy and Dobby was a little excitable.

She finished the salad and laid it up on plates. The fish was almost done. She smiled as she placed the fish down as well. It looked delicious. She had done a fantastic job. She took the plates and popped out. "That looks lovely Winky," her Master said. She felt all warm inside.

"There is a table over there. We'll act like civilised people when we eat," Harry said. He stood up and offered his hand to Fleur. He walked her over to the table and pulled her chair out.

Winky had popped out and fetched water for them.

"Thank you Winky, Harry said as she placed the carafe on the table.

"Thank you," Fleur said as well.

Winky turned to her. She looked over at her Master. "This is Fleur," Harry said. "Fleur this is Winky the best elf on Earth."

"Master is being bragging," Winky said. She looked back up at Fleur. "Miss Flower is very nice not like Miss 'Mione who says evil things." She placed her hands over her mouth to quiet herself.

Harry chuckled. "Don't worry Winky," he said. "Just no talking like that in front of Hermione."

Winky nodded. "Of course Master Harry," she said before popping away again.

"She is quite something," Fleur said. "Your friend 'Ermione is irritating 'er?"

"Hermione sees house-elves as slaves. She wants to free them all," Harry said. "The house-elves in the kitchen don't seem too happy with her. I think that Hermione is right yet doesn't quite know how to handle it. There are certainly elves out there who need her help. Not all elves are mistreated though and they have been conditioned to live the way they are so we need to take this slow."

Fleur nodded. "But you also think that elves should be free?" she said.

"I do," Harry said. "I'm approaching it differently than Hermione is though."

They fell silent as they ate. The food was really good.

After dinner, they relocated to the loveseat for another hour or so before Harry decided that it was time to leave.

9th of December, 1994.

Herbology was first on the schedule the next morning. Harry, Hermione and Neville were gathered by a set of pots tending for some little green plants. They wouldn't grow any bigger until long after spring had returned, but they had to be treated for the cold.

Harry had gotten Neville talking and now he wasn't quiet for more than a second. He was telling them all about the little plants and what they could do. Hermione seemed to have had an epiphany regarding what he was trying to achieve with Neville. She had jumped straight on it. It would make his job easier.

From Herbology they went to Care of Magical Creatures. There were only ten Blast-Ended Skrewts left since they were so intent on killing each other. Harry wondered if the class wouldn't do better if there wasn't a trough of single-malt whisky standing just a few feet away from them making everyone a bit dizzy. He had cast a silent spell to clear the air he was breathing so he wouldn't have to deal with that. He handled most of the monsters that Hagrid had bred. It was easier for him since he could calm them down. He also wasn't afraid of the dangerous hybrid. He did, however, feel like killing them with the sword he had lying under his bed back up in the common room would have been a better idea than what he was currently doing.

Hagrid wanted to try and see if they would hibernate. Harry thought he was crazy. Why would they hibernate?

The giant scorpion-like creatures were repulsive. Their thick armour protecting their backs seemed impenetrable. He spent most of the class trying to figure out the best way to kill them. He wasn't sure his sword could penetrate that. Now, normally he wouldn't wish death upon anything, but Blast-Ended Skrewts were not supposed to live. He didn't even want to consider how the lesson would have turned out if he hadn't been around. He averted several small disasters without anyone the wiser.

Harry was so concentrated on keeping everyone safe, that he didn't notice much else. When Rita Skeeter was suddenly standing next to Hagrid, he was surprised. It wasn't his fight though. Hagrid would just have to take care of himself. He caught the last Skrewt with his lasso and pulled it over before tying it up. They hadn't managed to get a single one into the pillow-lined boxes that Hagrid had placed out for them. Thankfully Hagrid had realised pretty early on that it wouldn't work out.

They had done their best to just tie the monsters up.

Harry closed his eyes and sighed. He was so done with that. At least they were all caught now. His poor classmates had burn marks all over their hands and arms.

They had lunch and then Harry said he would head to the library as the others went to their classes. Harry disappeared into a niche along the way to the library and turned invisible. He needed to take another trip to Diagon Alley. This was one of the best times for him to go unless he wanted to skip out on a day with Fleur. He left the Hogwarts grounds and changed to Kato before disapparating. It hadn't been hard to figure out how to do it after Fleur had brought them over last time.

Kato entered Gringotts and checked in with Dumac. He learnt that the Dwemer were still arguing whether his claim to the money he had was real or not.

"Considering your gold is minted it shouldn't be that much of a problem," Dumac said. "It is just semantics and Chief Radac will handle it."

"I brought the gold," Kato said. "And I also brought the blade Keening as a sign of my goodwill towards the Dwemer people." he placed the dagger down before Dumac whose eyes widened. "I trust that Clan Alfknif will make sure this dagger ends up in a good place."

Dumac nodded slowly. "Anything else that needs to be done today?" he asked.

"I'm looking for land. A lot of land in the same place," Harry said. "I want to build my own house."

"I can look into that for you," Dumac said.

"I also have a cure for lycanthropy with me. It was created by another, but she granted me a refilling bottle. I want every werewolf that wants to be cured to be able to get it. Is that something that you could oversee as well?"

"You want this to be free?" Dumac asked.

"Yes, most people who are plagued by this have no money. Demanding money for the cure is crazy," Kato said.

Dumac didn't necessarily agree, but he wouldn't argue with his client. "There will be a handling fee," he said.

"That is fine. I would like to start investing," Kato said.

"That I can handle for you," Dumac said. "I can guarantee an increase in your wealth."

"I trust you with that," Kato said. He thought about what other things he might want to do. There was nothing else Dumac could help him with. He took leave of his accountant and headed out to the Alley. He figured he might as well look for Yule gifts. He wanted to enchant something for Fleur. Hermione always liked books, but he wasn't sure what to get her. Maybe he would get her something else. People always got her books. She wanted to tame her hair down so maybe there was a way to do that. He wandered around for a good long while before he realised that he might be able to help her with her hair. All he needed was a good comb. He would just enchant it himself. He found a beautiful wood comb in a second-hand store. He could fix it up and make sure it would never break.

For Fleur, he found a beautiful blue cloak that he would enchant to stay just the perfect temperature no matter the weather. He got a box of jokes for Ron and a box of interesting ingredients for Fred and George. They had been talking about making a joke shop and they were already making products. He figured giving them something to work with would be good. He bought candy for his year mates in Gryffindor and a nice pair of gloves for Ginny. Then he had Neville left.

Kato stopped by Ollivanders. Neville needed a new wand and Kato needed a wand. He knew what his materials were. He knew that he wanted to use the Gildergreen branch for Neville and he had this feeling about wisp wrappings as the core. He entered the store.

Mr Ollivander shuffled out of a corner of his store where he had been stacking boxes. Kato brought out a big box filled with items. "I wish to commission two wands," he said.

"I seldom work in such a way, sir," Mr Ollivander said. "The wand chooses the wizard. Commissioning a wand does not mean that it will suit you."

"I am willing to take that risk," Kato said. He brought forward a piece of ebony and the feather that Yolsu had given him. He placed an amethyst down next to the other materials. Then he started picking the things out for Neville's wand.

"These materials are not common in this world," Mr Ollivander said. He touched the two kinds of wood that Kato had placed down. One was so hard he wasn't quite sure how to work it, but he liked the challenge. There was enough of both types of wood to make more than one wand. Ollivander would love to experiment with them.

"They are not," Kato said. "That is true." He packed his box away. "These are the wands I want to be made. Ebony with a Jill feather core and Gildergreen with a wisp wrapping core. And pommel stones amethyst for the ebony wand and moonstone for the Gildergreen wand."

"This branch is clutching seeds," Ollivander said. "Growing them may be a wise move."

Kato nodded. He took out a small box from his bag and placed the seeds that Ollivander handed him inside.

"Can I keep the exes wood?" Mr Ollivander asked.

"Certainly," Kato said.

"This one is for you," Ollivander pointed at the ebony. "And the other one?"

"Neville Longbottom," Kato answered.

"I see."

"Will there be a problem?"

"No," Ollivander said. "I will warn you that the wand may not accept you."

"I'm willing to take that risk," Kato said. "I'm fairly certain that I'm correct about these materials."

Mr Ollivander nodded slowly. "This will take me a little while. I do not like to rush my work," he said.

"A week from now? Two weeks?" Kato asked. "Do you want payment now or later?"

"You pay when you get the wands," Mr Ollivander said. "Will need the full two weeks if you want these to be perfect."

Kato bowed. "As you say. I will return in two weeks' time," he said. As he left the store, he could hear Ollivander muttering to himself.

"Well, well, Mr Potter. This is an interesting development indeed. We shall see what changes you may bring now."

Kato rolled his eyes. Of course, Ollivander could see through his glamour. That man was something special. Ollivander wouldn't say anything to anyone. Of that he was certain. He headed back to Hogwarts and arrived in time to act like he had been to the bathroom when Hermione got to the library.

16th of December, 1994.

After lunch, a week later Harry decided to deal with his golden egg. He told Hermione about his plans and she agreed wholeheartedly that it was a very good idea. They would meet in the common room later to deal with their homework.

Harry had spent a bit of time with the egg open already and he had come to the conclusion that it was most likely someone talking, he just couldn't understand. He doubted that they needed to learn an entire language so now he was going to check for language that didn't demand that you learnt them to understand them. He figured there were some. It took him a little over an hour to find what he wanted. Merpeople spoke a language that could be understood underwater. So if he placed the egg in a tub of water, he could possibly learn the clue.

That was good enough for him. Now he just needed water. He headed out of the library and into an empty classroom. "Winky!"

"What can Winky do for Master Harry?" Winky asked as she appeared.

"I need a tub of water or something similar that will fit this egg," Harry said as he brought the golden egg out of his shoulder bag. Can you help me with that?"

Winky nodded. "Winky can fix," she said. She disappeared for a moment and returned a short while later with a huge pot filled with water.

Harry chuckled. "Thank you Winky," he said.

Winky scraped her foot on the floor. "Head Elf wants this back soon," she said.

"I'll work quickly," Harry said. He placed the egg in the pot and opened it. It wasn't screaming. He dunked his head in and listened. It was a song. He had to dunk his head into the pot several times to get the whole song but he did it eventually.

"Come seek us where our voices sound. We cannot sing above the ground," he repeated. At Hogwarts that probably meant in the Black Lake. "And while you're searching ponder this; we've taken what you'll sorely miss." He didn't like that. It could be an item sure, but he was fairly certain none of them had an item they would miss that much. A person though. That was certainly possible. If they took Hermione or Neville and placed them at the bottom of the lake he wouldn't be very happy with them. "An hour long you'll have to look to recover what we took." That was just giving them a time limit. Considering Dumbledore was involved he doubted that the people at the bottom of the lake would be in any real danger. He still didn't like the concept. Even if the song did say they would lose what they would sorely miss after the hour was over, he didn't think that would happen.

"You can take the pot back now Winky. Thank you," Harry said.

"Anything for Master Harry," Winky said before she disappeared with the pot.

Harry dried his hair and headed up to the common room. He sat down next to Hermione and they started working on their Potion homework. Neville joined them eventually and they pointed him in the right direction.

Harry looked up as whistles sounded through the common room. Fred Weasley had asked Angelina Jonson to the ball and Ron was standing nearby red in the face. "So that is how it is done," George said as he walked over to Harry and the rest with Ron. Fred followed closely behind them with a big grin on his face.

"Way to go, man," Harry said.

"Yeah, you have one too, Harry," Fred said.

"Sure I do. Asked her the first day we learned about the ball," Harry said.

"That's the way to go. Listen to that little brother," George said as he play-punched Ronald.

"You really have a date?" Ron asked Harry as he sat down in one of the armchairs.

"Yes, I do," Harry said.

Ron sighed. "Am I the only one without a date?" he asked whiningly.

"I guess," Harry said. He knew Neville was going with Ginny because he had tried asking Hermione first but she was apparently taken. Harry didn't mind. It was good that his friends were finding dates even if he didn't know who they were.

"What are you boys up to?" Hermione asked as she looked up from her book.

Harry looked up at her with a smile. "Ron is having a girl crisis," he said. "He doesn't have a date."

"All the good-looking ones taken, Ron?" Hermione said. "Eloise Midgen starting to look quite pretty now, is she? Well, I'm sure you'll find someone somewhere who'll have you."

Harry felt like he was missing some part of that conversation. Like Ron had insinuated that only good-looking girls were good enough. Then he cringed as Ron looked at Hermione.

"Hermione, Neville's right… you are a girl…"

"Oh, well spotted," Hermione said acidly.

"Well, you can go with me!"

"No, I can't," Hermione snapped.

"Oh, come on Hermione," Ron said impatiently. "I need a partner. I'm going to look really stupid if I don't have one, everyone else has …"

Hermione just narrowed her eyes.

Harry placed a hand on her shoulder. "Just ignore him," he whispered in her ear.

"I can't go with you because I already have a date for the ball," Hermione said there was a faint blush clinging to her cheeks.

"No, you do not!" Ron exclaimed. "You just said that to get rid of Neville!"

Neville stood up angrily just as Harry grabbed Hermione and pulled her out of the common room. Ron was going to get a dressing down from what looked like half the common room. They didn't need to help. "Don't care about him," he told Hermione. "He is an idiot. You're a very pretty girl not to mention intelligent and fun. I'm not surprised someone noticed."

"I would rather have gone with Neville than him anyway," Hermione said. "Neville is nice and I like him. I would have gone with him if someone else hadn't asked me first."

"I don't know what he has against Neville," Harry said. He ran a thumb along her cheek to wipe away angry tears. "Better now?" he asked.

Hermione blushed. "Yeah, I'm better," she said. "Thank you."

Harry let go of her. "He's not worth your anger. Just ignore him," he said. "He'll see when you stand there on Yule Day."

Hermione smiled. "You are right," she said.

They headed back into the common room which was suspiciously empty to tuck in for the night.

17th of December, 1994.

Harry passed by Filch and noted his absence down for the day before he walked over to the Beauxbaton's carriage. The door opened as he reached it. "Bonjour Fleur," he said.

"Bonjour 'Arry," Fleur said as she pulled a hood up tighter around her head. "It's cold 'ere."

"We'll be going in and out of stores. I'm sure we'll be fine," Harry said. He took her arm and warmth flowed from him to her.

"Merci," Fleur said softly.

Hermione and Neville walked out of the castle and joined them. "Hermione. Neville. This is Fleur," he introduced her before introducing them in French.

Fleur chuckled. "It's nice to meet you," she said.

"A pleasure to meet you too," Hermione said. She figured that if Harry could spend hours upon hours with Fleur then she couldn't be so bad.

With introductions over and done with, the four of them headed down to Hogsmeade. They went from store to store and split up along the way. Everyone was getting other people Christmas gifts.

Fleur and Hermione had ended up together in their search for something for the boys. They passed by a music shop and Fleur stopped. "I think 'Arry would like a guitar," she said. She knew he had played a similar instrument before and would probably like one very much.

"Really?" Hermione asked. She had no idea Harry had an interest in music. He had never mentioned it. Though she guessed that maybe they had painted each other into specific boxes and never actually ventured outside of those very specific beliefs. She knew that she sometimes wished that Harry and Ron knew more about her than the fact that she liked a good book. Harry was certainly getting better at it, and Neville probably knew more about her than Ron ever had, but she wasn't sure how to get closer to Harry. He seemed so closed off; he always had been in a way. Maybe Fleur had somehow broken through that.

"Oh, 'e would love it," Fleur said.

"A guitar is kind of expensive though isn't it?" Hermione said.

"We can buy it for 'im together," Fleur suggested. She could have bought one herself, but she could tell that Hermione was having some trouble picking something, and she was right; a good guitar was expensive. They walked into Dominic Maestro's Music Shop and looked around.

A man showed up behind the counter, presuming Dominic, and waved at them. "What would two lovely ladies want from my humble store?" he asked as they got closer.

"We are looking for a guitar for a friend," Fleur said. "'E hasn't played in a while, but 'e knows 'ow to. 'E is the learning by doing type, and I know 'e'll love a guitar and use it if not daily then weekly at the very least. What do you recommend?"

Dominic looked thoughtful for a moment. "I take it he is more the quality over flashy kind of guy?" he asked.

"Certainly," Fleur said.

"I also take it he will want a guitar to play it and not just to impress on the girls considering the two of you are buying it for him," Dominic said.

"What does someone who just wants to impress a girl get?" Hermione asked suspiciously.

"A self-playing guitar no skill needed can play up to ten different songs of your choosing muggle or magical does not matter," Dominic said.

"'E wants a real guitar," Fleur said.

Dominic nodded. "Always tuned and unbreakable?" he asked.

"Does that affect the sound?" Fleur asked.

"It does, but unless he has played a lot on a guitar without the spells I don't think it will matter to him," Dominic said. "There are some who don't want those spells on, they say the guitar doesn't sound right to them but others think they are great so it really is up to the person."

"Then we'll have the spells," Fleur said.

"Good choice that is an extra eight galleons and a ten-year guarantee on the guitar," Dominic said.

"Eight galleons and we haven't even picked a guitar yet," Hermione said. She looked at Fleur who didn't seem fazed.

"Twelve strings or six strings?" Dominic asked.

"Twelve," Fleur said.

"That is trickier to play," Dominic pointed out.

"Won't be a problem," Fleur said.

Hermione just watched as a rack of guitars was rolled out in front of them. She wasn't sure what to say but the price tags had her eyes widen just a tad. Fleur looked at several guitars until she settled on a beautiful mahogany one that just seemed right.

"Do you want a strap with that or a case or both?" Dominic asked.

"Both," Fleur answered. She looked down at Hermione "'Ow about you pick a nice strap and case for 'im," she said.

"Oh, alright," Dominic walked her over to a set of cases. There was one that would let you shrink the guitar without harming it at all, and Hermione just knew Harry would like that. It was clean black leather with a soft interior that would protect the guitar. It was brought to the front of the store, and she paid six galleons for it and a nice strap to go on the guitar so Harry could carry it around.

They packed it all up and then Fleur called Winky.

"What can Winky do for nice Miss Flower?" Winky asked while eyeing Hermione.

"This is a Christmas gift for Harry. Could you take it back to my room so he doesn't see it, please?" Fleur said.

"Winky can do that," Winky said. She took the guitar in its case and popped off with it.

"How do you know Winky?" Hermione asked.

"She works for Harry," Fleur said.

Hermione's gaze turned steely and Fleur sighed. "'Ermione. Last time you saw Winky 'ow did she feel?" Fleur asked.

Hermione stopped and thought for a moment. "She was really sad and she was drinking," she said.

"And 'ow did she look now?" Fleur asked.

"Happy," Hermione said. "But…"

"Non, 'Ermione, She is 'appy because she 'as a Master that takes care of 'er. 'Arry knows slavery is wrong so 'e is trying to get 'er to take care of 'erself more. 'E even asked 'er what she would like to learn and she wanted to learn gardening so 'e went out and got 'er books on 'ow to do that. 'E is slowly doing 'is best to make 'er think of 'erslef as well as others. You cannot force freedom on someone who does not understand what it means. 'Arry will look after Winky. 'E will take care of 'er. You 'ave to trust 'im in this and then 'opefully if Winky 'as children they will be free and they will want to be free. Do you see?" Fleur said.

"He is doing it the slow way," Hermione said softly. "Because that will work better with Winky." She would have to think about this. She didn't see Harry as a bad Master. She doubted he could be bad, but she didn't want House-elves to have to be slaves at all.

"She isn't so much a slave as she is a maid or butler," Fleur said calmly. "She just doesn't want payment so 'Arry gives that to 'er by offering 'er tasks to do and jobs that she will be 'appy with instead. 'E will give 'er anything she needs to do what she wants to do even if she is limiting 'erself, but look around you 'Ermione. Does money bring happiness?"

Hermione smiled sadly. She knew it didn't. She knew money didn't bring happiness. It could help as long as you had enough, but more than that didn't make you happier.

"'Arry 'as asked me to give 'er things to do sometimes so she won't get bored," Fleur said. "Winky 'ates being bored."

"Sounds to me like my horrible secret is out and I should get ready to face my maker," Harry said calmly as he walked up behind them.

"I don't think so," Fleur said. "I've talked to 'er."

Harry nodded. "Now I want to get a gift for Winky and one for the elves in general," he said.

"What are you getting Winky?" Fleur asked.

"Gardening tools and a seed start-up kit," Harry said.

"Harry, really that is horrible," Hermione said.

Neville looked affronted. "I think it sounds lovely," he said, causing Hermione to blush. She hadn't considered the fact that Neville liked gardening and plants quite a lot. "I'm sorry Neville. I didn't mean it that way," she said.

"I know what you meant and it is a little narrow-minded," Harry said.

Hermione's blush deepened. She wished she could defend herself, but there was nothing she could say that wouldn't sound silly or petty.

"We really should meet up and exchange gifts just us," Fleur said. "Not Christmas morning though because I have far too much to do getting ready for the ball."

"Day after then?" Harry asked, "or New Year's Eve maybe."

"I like New Year's," Hermione said. "Then we can sit up all night together."

Fleur smiled. "That sounds like a date," she said.

"What will you get the other elves?" Neville asked Harry as they started walking again. "Recipes I think. They seem to enjoy cooking so why not give them a few Asian and South American cookbooks."

Hermione was about to say something and then she stopped herself. The elves would be so happy that anyone got them anything that she just couldn't bring herself to say that it was a selfish gift. Because if she said that weren't all gifts selfish in one way or another?

Once they were done shopping they sat down in The Three Broomsticks and had a drink. People were rushing in and out and most had bags filled with what would come to be Christmas gifts for their family and friends.

It was warm and bright.

People laughed and talked.

The front door opened up and people came inside to warm themselves.

Ron showed up at one point but didn't stick around. He had been so surprised by Fleur's presence at the table that he didn't quite know what to say. Thankfully, he hadn't said anything he would regret later.

Then they headed back to the castle as snow fell slowly from the dark sky above. Fleur left them and headed to the carriage while the other three continued towards the castle.

18th of December, 1994.

Harry leaned back in Fleur's loveseat. They had spent most of the morning dancing and his feet hurt. Fleur walked back into the room and rolled her eyes at him. "What?" Harry asked.

"You certainly look comfortable," Fleur pointed out.

"I would be even more comfortable if you came here and joined me," Harry said as he winked at her.

Fleur laughed. She walked up to him and he moved his feet so she could sit down.

"Have you solved your egg yet?" Harry asked.

"Oui," Fleur said.

"I don't like it," Harry said. "I worry that they will take someone we care about and put them at the bottom of the lake for us to find. Although I didn't sign up for this, to begin with, I still wouldn't have signed up for that."

Fleur looked thoughtful for a moment as she mulled what he had said over. "Apart from you," she said, "there is no one 'ere that I would miss that much."

"That just means they will get someone from somewhere else I guess," Harry said. "I have both Neville and Hermione… apart from you of course." He smiled at Fleur.

"Alistair, Céline or … Gabrielle," Fleur said. "I really 'ope they do not place Gabrielle at the bottom of the lake."

"That's why I was wondering if it wouldn't be best to just work together," Harry said. "All of us I mean to just show how much we dislike the idea of them placing people we love in danger."

Fleur nodded slowly. "If you speak with Diggory I will speak with Krum and we could meet on Tuesday."

"Sounds like a plan," Harry said.

20th of December, 1994.

Harry and Fleur were walking through Hogwarts. Harry had checked with the Weasley twins what their schedule was like, and he knew Cedric should be ending Potions right about now. "Diggory we need to talk to you," Harry said as Cedric came walking up from the dungeons.

Cedric looked from Harry to Fleur. He had heard rumours that the two spent time together, but he hadn't paid it that much attention. Gossip really wasn't his thing. "Sure," he said. He figured that if two out of four champions wanted to talk to him he might as well have a chat with them.

"This way Krum is waiting," Harry said as he started walking again.

'Scratch that,' Cedric thought. All the champions were gathering. Then it was probably a good idea to go along with it. He wondered briefly if Harry had solved the clue in the egg yet or if he could maybe help him out. He didn't have to wonder for long.

They stepped into an unused classroom that was surprisingly neat. A good sturdy table stood in the middle of it and four chairs stood around that. Viktor Krum was pacing back and forth slowly as he waited for them.

"So vhat do you vant?" Viktor asked as the other three sat down.

"I hope everyone has solved the clue in the egg," Harry said. "To be frank I don't care at this point. I'll start by saying that I will, if possible, sit the last task out. I don't need the prize money. I don't need fame. This competition should be between the three of you and I will not interfere with that. Now…" he took a deep breath and continued before anyone else could say anything. "The egg tells us that something or someone will be taken from us. That object or person will most likely be placed at the bottom of the lake for us to find. If that is indeed an object. I don't see why we can't just go ahead with the competition as intended. My problem lies in them placing people down there. My best friends. Fleur's sister or best friends. People you care about. None of them has signed up for this and I don't think using them as hostages like this is alright."

"So vhat do you vant us to do?" Viktor asked.

"If they have taken people we care about and placed them down there I think we should work together to free them," Harry said.

"To show that we don't approve," Cedric said with a nod. "I can see that working. It would render the task useless."

"It would leave Viktor in the lead for now," Harry said.

"And you," Cedric said.

"Which is pointless since I don't want to win," Harry said.

Viktor nodded slowly. "I agree that other people shouldn't be made part of the tournament," he said. "If they have taken hostages, ve can vork together to save them."

"That means we'll have to practice together," Cedric said.

"Only a few times though in case we are wrong," Harry said.

"Once a week starting on the 13th," Fleur said.

With that conclusion reached Viktor nodded before walking out of the room. Just like Harry, he didn't want to be there. There were plenty of people at Durmstrang that were better suited to do this, and he didn't need the fame or the money. Karkaroff had insisted though so here he was. Unlike Harry though he wanted to compete now. He wanted to win for his school. The other's seemed like nice guys though. He wouldn't mind leaving with a few more friends he guessed.