Dislcaimer: I do not own Harry Potter
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Cedric copied the notes that Professor Flitwick had written on the board, taking the information for the charm to heart. While it seemed somewhat rudimentary given the challenges that he would be facing would likely require something more advanced, there were still assignments that needed to be submitted. Just because he was the Hogwarts Champion sadly didn't make him immune to having to keep up with the rest of the student body.
Something which Professor Snape had reminded him on multiple occasions.
"Excuse me Professor," said one of his classmates as they went to raise a question, only to be immediately silenced as the door to the classroom was booted open, the hinges barely hanging on.
"Mister Potter!" exclaimed Professor Flitwick, his wand in hand having been prepared to defend his students at a second's notice. "What is the meaning of this?"
"Cedric! Grab your shit and come with me, champion's meeting," declared Harry, as if that explained everything to everybody in attendance. While the rest of the students were looking between Harry and Cedric, Professor Flitwick still had his wand in hand.
"I heard no information on such a meeting from Professor Dumbledore," said Flitwick.
"That's because he didn't organize it," said Harry, shooting Flitwick a cold glare. "It is well within my right to discuss upcoming tournament events with a fellow contestant if I so choose it and I choose to do so. If there's a problem, take it up with my lawyer."
"I see," said Flitwick, a disgruntled look on his face as he finally lowered his wand. "Very well then but I will be raising this up with the Headmaster."
"You make it seem like I care," said Harry as he turned to move towards the exit.
Cedric meanwhile remained rooted in place flabbergasted for several more seconds before looking at Professor Flitwick as if seeking some sort of validation to follow. The professor was only able to give him a small nod before turning his attention to the rest of the class, aware of how much effort it would take to get any of them back on track. Not to mention the fact that Professor Dumbledore needed to know of this display immediately.
Gathering his belongings, Cedric offered a small apology on Harry's behalf before giving chase to the youngest member of the competition. It only took him a handful of seconds to catch up, shuffling the paperwork in his arms as he did so. "Did you really have to kick the door in Harry?" asked the Hufflepuff student.
"Given what Fleur and I discovered after I woke up, I needed to vent," said Harry.
"Can you really just pull me out of class like this?" Cedric asked.
"Don't know, don't care," said Harry with a shrug.
"And the lawyers?"
"Don't have one, but if necessary I'm sure I can hire one."
"Well, never let me play cards with you cause I never know where to take you seriously or not. Anyways, what's so serious that you had to drag me out of class?" asked Cedric.
"Fleur and I deciphered the code in the egg and, as you may have gathered, we are pissed!" stated Harry. "I'll tell you when we meet up with the other two cause I don't want to have to repeat myself if necessary."
"I see..." said Cedric slowly. While he had managed to listen to the clue underwater, he hadn't taken too much thought to it as of the moment. The second task was months away so he hadn't wanted to rush into too quickly. They wouldn't simply give them a clue this far in advance and expect them to solve it within a matter of days.
It seemed though as if Harry and Fleur had taken the time and broken down every part of the clue. If they wanted to share with him then he was happy to accept the information as it came. There had been a verbal agreement between them to share information just before the first task had commenced but he hadn;t thought it would happen so swiftly and in such fashion. Clearly though if he felt like he discovered something that he believed the rest of the contestants were unaware of he would be honor bound to let them know about it posthaste. Regardless, what they had deciphered that caused Harry to effectively break down the door of the Charms classroom must be urgent. Thankfully he wouldn't have to take too long for the answer to be given to him.
...
It had taken mere minutes for Albus Dumbledore to have heard that the door to Professor Flitwick's class had almost been caved in, Harry having made his way in via the use of pure strength as opposed to using the door handle. It had definitely been a choice for him to have done so and if Harry was meeting with the other champions due to wanting to discuss future aspects of the tournament, it was certainly unexpected.
A champion's meeting. In theory it held merit and on the surface level could be seen as Harry actively reaching out to the other champion's for assistance. That most likely wasn't the case however. Given what he had learnt of Harry's nature along with the fact that he had opted to kick a door down to get to Cedric meant that he had more than likely figured out the riddle in it's entirety and was not happy with what he had found. This champion's meeting was to likely inform the rest of the champion's of what he had discovered.
Again, on the surface, this could be taken as a great step forward. The four champions of the Triwizard Tournament working together to make their way past the next step of the tournament would make a stellar story for the Daily Prophet and possibly bolster relationships with the international schools. That still didn't particularly answer why. If Harry had managed to solve it, and in such quick time at that, why wasn't he hoarding this information to himself? He was giving up a clear advantage to bolster his chances at winning.
Perhaps though, it wasn't truly victory he sought. Harry had been brought into this competition and while his battle against the dragon had been unorthodox for ninety five percent of the time, he still had managed to defeat the most fearsome creature of the four. He could have done so at any stage. He had wanted to annoy them and had done just that. Even now Dumbledore could still hear the voices of Ludo Bagman and Bartemius Crouch in his ear telling him to change the task or force Harry to act outside of the rules they had set for everybody else. It hadn't helped that both Madam Maxine and Igor Karkaroff had seemed more than content to sit and watch the politicians squabble pointlessly.
Still, this was a new development and one that needed to be monitored. How to do so was the next question however. Considering there was one aspect of the Triwizard Tournament that hadn't yet been discussed with the participants, he still had one card to play which would hopefully get their minds off of the next task and allow them to loosen up.
With that in mind, he summoned Professor McGonagall to his office.
...
"You truly believe that they would use the people that we love as props for this tournament?" questioned Krum, hunched over with his elbows on his knees.
"We 'ave all heard ze song," stated Fleur as she crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "Did you truly believe zey would put you're broomstick for you to fetch?"
"But still," budged in Cedric, taking a bit of the pressure off of the Bulgarian. "What the two of you are saying is that they're actively going to be putting people underneath the Black Lake. People! Are they willing to kill bystanders for the sake of a tournament or are the two of you overthinking things here."
"Too late, it's gone, it won't come back. We've taken what you'll sorely miss," recited Harry, picking two lines that stood out. "You can't simply sorely miss something if you can buy a replacement for it. So it's not going to be something practical and I for one don't think that they'd be stupid enough to put my motorbike underwater under the thought I'd retrieve it."
"So you really think that they'd get the people closest to us? Do you think that people would be taken against their will to compete?" asked Viktor.
"If zey believed zat zey would be rescued by said champion, zen what is stopping zem?" counterted Fleur. "If zey truly believed in ze strength of said friend, ze would go if asked."
"But then the part at the end, 'it won't come back.' Are they actively telling us that they are willing to let someone die if we fail on our end or is that just a bluff?" asked Cedric.
"While the four of us could simply wait out the task and let the hour roll by, I for one don't want to be responsible for the death of our friends and family," stated Harry. "At the same time though, we need to send a message telling these officials that they are seriously messed up for wanting to kill someone off for the sense of entertainment."
"Would they really do something like that?" asked Cedric.
"People have died in prior tournament, some have been bystander," stated Viktor. "It not impossible for them to think that this good idea to make us motivated and raise stake."
"My family are planning to come and watch ze next task and if ze so much as zink of hurting Gabrielle..." started Fleur before she trailed off as her anger began to rise.
"Look, we all have someone we care about," said Cedric, trying to calm Fleur before she burst. "If this, all of this is true, then I don't like it anymore than I do. I have a lot of friends and the thought that any of them could die because I messed up is sickening. Whether it is an elaborate bluff or not, the fact they are willing to make us believe that lives are on the line is messed up."
"While I do not know they may take on my part, you have a sister that they could use for you, do they not Harry?" asked Krum, looking directly at the youngest contestant.
Harry remained silent for several long moments, the other three champions looking at him as he processed this information. "Fact of the matter is, they are more than likely going to use somebody close to us," he said, dismissing the comment in a not so subtle way. While it may have only been there for a split moment, there had been a genuine look of concern spread across his features. "If the four of us wait out the test and our friends die, then we're the assholes. If our friends get rescued after the task, then we're still the assholes. While I don't particularly care about what people think of me, I think such an opinion may be detrimental to your sporting career."
"Indeed it would," said Krum. "So what is the plan then? Do we..."
Krum was cut off as their was a curt nod at the door to the room they were occupying before the door opened and allowed the Deputy Headmistress to enter. "Ah, it is fortunate that I found the four of you together," said Professor McGonagall, confidentantly stepping forward. "Is it possible that I may have a moment of your time?"
"If it ain't about the tournament then we're not interested," declared Harry, speaking for the four of them. Cedric couldn't help but send a glance towards Harry while wondering if that was the best course of action.
"You will be happy to know Mister Potter that this is about the Triwizard Tournament," clarified Minerva. Clearing her throat, she continued, "As part of the tradition of this tournament, we are to have a ball on Christmas Day where it is imperative that the four of you are present and accounted for."
"So what you're saying is that our foreign correspondence aren't allowed to travel back home to spend this time with their family," stated Harry abruptly.
"As representatives of their school, they should be..."
"Condemned to spend more time in zis castle," concluded Fleur. "You say zat zis is tradition but magically speaking, ze four of us need only to compete in ze challenges to maintain our magic no?"
"While that is true it would be best to..."
"Focus on challenges at hand," stated Viktor. "If we are representing best in school then we do so with skill and not with dance. We cannot prove worth by showing Foxtrot."
"Professor," said Cedric, silencing Minerva before she had the chance to speak again. "If what we've discovered turns out to be true, then it's not the time to be talking about a ball. Give us some time, make it a public announcement and then we will give you our answers okay?"
"Very well Mister Diggory," said Minerva in huff, clearly upset about having been dismissed in the way that she had. "I will hope to hear positive feedback in the coming weeks. It would not do well to break a long standing tradition such as this."
"We will zee," said Fleur as Professor McGonagall made her exit, closing the door behind her. "Well zat dampened ze mood."
"Maybe it best for us to part for now. Much to think about and we still have time," suggested Viktor.
"If that's the case, I still have classes to attend," said Cedric as he gathered his belongings before addressing the other competitors. "If I hear word of anything regarding the tournament moving forward, I'll let you know straight away."
"Much appreciated," said Harry before the Hogwarts representative made himself sparse. After he did so, Viktor Krum stepped up from his spot.
"While preventing the loss of life comes first, this still competition. If we can come up with plausible solution that suits both chance to win and chance to save everyone, you will have my ear," said Viktor before he gave a light bow and left.
There was an awkward pause after the Drumstrang representative had left before Fleur looked at Harry, the young wizard deep in thought. "'Arry, if you wish to talk..." she started.
"I know where to find you," said Harry, cutting Fleur off.
While it had been rude of him to do so, Fleur understood the weight of what Harry was feeling at that moment. "Very well, in zat case I hope to zee from you shortly."
"Here's hoping," said Harry in a casual dismissal as he turned his head away fro Fleur, his thoughts clouded at that moment in time.
With a subtle nod of understanding, Fleur left Harry alone to his own devices. The urge to break something swelled within Harry's mind as he considered his options and if everything had gone the way they theorized, who they would place underwater for him to rescue? Looking outside of the obvious, the two people he had socialized with the most were Hermione and Luna. Luna he could take out of the equation due to the fact their relationship was mostly based around a professional one, excluding that time he had stepped in when she had was being bullied.
Hermione was an interesting one and one that he couldn't dismiss. She had been used against her will on him in the past and which meant there was a chance it would happen again. Due to that and other circumstances, Hermione Granger was indeed somebody that could very well end up being used in the second task.
Undoubtedly though, the front runner was his sister. Iris Potter, his only blood relative. The main issue with that however was that she was a scion of House Potter. If he somehow buggered up the task and it was as fatal for the secondaries as they had made it out to be, would Albus Dumbledore really be willing to kill off House Potter in the space of an hour?
Or would it be justified for the sake of entertainment and news tabloids?
Sadly, Harry believed he already knew the answer.
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