A few days after the task, Harry was with Ron and Hermione, when Neville came rushing up. He was looking quite panicked, "Guys! It's Mr. Crouch! Bloke just suddenly turned up and he was babbling some nonsense. I was just mentoring Mackenzie in Herbology when he just came stumbling out of nowhere. Luckily, Krum was nearby and agreed to watch him. She's gone to get Dumbledore, and I came to fetch you guys."

Harry grabbed him and steadied him, "Nev… breathe mate. Take us to where you found him."

Neville led the trio outside the castle. By the time they reached, Dumbledore and Mackenzie had reached the scene first, along with Moody and an incensed Karkaroff. Unfortunately, the only other person present at the scene was Viktor Krum, who was tenderly rubbing the back of his head.

The Durmstrang headmaster was furiously screaming, "Treachery! It is a plot! You and your Ministry of Magic have lured me here under false pretences, Dumbledore! This is not an equal competition! One of your Ministry friends attempts to put my champion out of action! I smell double-dealing and corruption in this whole affair, and you, Dumbledore, you, with your talk of closer international Wizarding links, of rebuilding old ties, of forgetting old differences — here's what I think of you!"

The man spat onto the ground by Dumbledore's feet and stormed off. Dumbledore rubbed his forehead, "This does not look good. Mr. Crouch is extremely well-respected. I do wonder what happened to him. According to Ms Dursley, he was rather out-of-sorts and rambling. I suspect he was hallucinating a little bit."

Moody grunted, "I'll go see what I can find. Can't rule out a kidnapping. He could be anywhere. Only thing we know for sure is that he is not here."

He glanced at Harry, "Potter, you just keep your mind on the third task. Should be right up your street, this one. From what Dumbledore's said, you've managed to get through stuff like this plenty of times in Hogwarts. Broke your way through a series of obstacles guarding the Sorcerer's Stone in your first year, didn't you?"

Harry nodded, "My friends helped."

Moody grinned, "Well, help him practice for this one, and I'll be very surprised if he doesn't win. In the meantime... constant vigilance, Potter. Constant vigilance. You two stick close to Potter, all right? I'm keeping an eye on things, but all the same... you can never have too many eyes out."

Over the next few days, Harry practiced his spell work. In addition to that, he and Neville often sparred with their swords. That night, Harry had a strange dream. He was riding on the back of an eagle owl, soaring through the clear blue sky toward an old, ivy-covered house set high on a hillside. Lower and lower they flew, the wind blowing pleasantly in his face, until they reached a dark and broken window in the upper story of the house and entered. Now they were flying along a gloomy passageway, into a dark room whose windows were boarded up.

The room was empty, save for two dark shapes on the floor beside a chair, and both of them were stirring. One was a huge snake, and the other was a man. He was tall with long pale blonde hair tied in a neat braid. He was also clad in long magnificent flowing robes.

The chair was also occupied, but Harry could not see who it was. However, a familiar cold, high-pitched voice spoke, "You are in luck, Yaxley. You are very fortunate indeed. Your blunder has not ruined everything. He is dead, thanks to Wormtail."

Yaxley gasped from his position on the floor, "My Lord! My Lord, I am... I am so pleased… and so sorry..."

Voldemort's voice sounded again, "Nagini, you are out of luck. I will not be feeding Yaxley to you, after all... but never mind, never mind... there is still Harry Potter..."

He turned back to a pale Yaxley, "Now, perhaps another little reminder why I will not tolerate any more blunders."

Before Yaxley could cry out a protest, Voldemort barked, "Crucio!"

The Death Eater began screaming loud enough to wake the dead. He screamed as if every nerve in his body were on fire. Even though Corban Yaxley was his enemy, Harry couldn't help wincing in sympathy. While he may not have been a victim of the Cruciatus Curse, holding up the sky was just as excruciating, if not more painful.

That was the last scene that he witnessed as the demigod woke up with a start, panting heavily. It was half past six in the morning, and his actions had woken Ron and Neville up. The redhead softly called out, "Harry? You alright, mate?"

Harry controlled his breathing, "Yeah… I'm fine. Just had a bad dream. I'll tell you about it after we've showered."

In 20 minutes, the three boys went down, just in time to see Hermione sitting on the couch, reading a book as usual. She glanced up and Harry asked her, "Hey, can you find Bianca, Mackenzie and Katie? We need a meeting, ASAP."

Not long after, Harry and his group gathered in a private corner at breakfast time. He explained about what happened in his dream and Katie frowned. She mused, "That's kind of worrying. I'm guessing that Pettigrew was the one who killed Mr Crouch."

Ron suddenly started, "Blimey! He would have had time to escape after the deed because of his Animagus form."

Hermione glanced at Harry with her expression serious, "Harry… maybe You-Know-Who and his Death-Eaters plan to hijack the Third Task to take you out. Why else would they choose now to break out? This Yaxley fellow works in the Ministry, right?"

Neville nodded, "Yeah, I think he works somewhere high up in the Ministry. He was one of the people who gave the Imperius excuse."

Hermione acknowledged him, "Precisely, maybe he sneaked into Azkaban and broke them out. Now that there are no Dementors, there's not much stopping them from escaping."

Harry spoke up, "If he wants to face me, he will have me. I need to take him out as soon as possible. We dodged a bullet when Thorn the Manticore, killed Lucius. Lucius Malfoy could have easily found out about the demigod world. I dread to think what would happen if You-Know-Who and Kronos ever teamed up. I need to take out the Dark Lord before he potentially aligns himself with Kronos."

On that happy thought, they continued training him. In return, he helped them study for their Fourth-Year exams. Since he was in the Tri-Wizard Tournament, he got an exemption, and his success automatically qualified him for a passing grade. By the time June arrived, the atmosphere had grown excited and tense. Everyone was looking forward to the Third Task, which was just a week before the term ended. Aside from his own demigod training, he mastered spells like the Impediment Curse, the Reductor Curse, and a Location Charm.

Ron, Neville and Hermione all appeared for their exams, and still found time to help him. Mackenzie, Bianca and Ginny also helped out. Katie would have joined them, but she had her OWL exams, and Harry wanted her to focus on that.

On the day of the Third task, McGonagall approached him at breakfast time. She told him, "Mr. Potter, the champions are congregating in the chamber off the Hall after breakfast. The champions' families are invited to watch the final task. This is a chance for you to spend some time with them."

Excitement filled him, because family could either mean the Hunters, Mother Artemis, as unlikely as that was, or even Sirius and Remus. Wolfing down his food, he headed straight for the ante chamber near the Great Hall. Cedric, Fleur, Viktor, Yuliya and Marion were also heading there. Sure enough, he had a broad grin on his face when he spotted a familiar girl with black spiky hair. He ran up, "Thalia! Good to see you! How are the girls and Mother?"

She laughed and ruffled his salt and pepper hair, "Everyone's great! She's a little caught up in a few important meetings, so she couldn't make it. But she said that she was proud of you. So this is Hogwarts, eh? Nice!"

Thalia wasn't alone, as Sirius, Remus, Mrs Weasley and Bill had also shown up. Cedric and his parents were just inside the door. Viktor Krum was over in a corner, conversing with his father in rapid Bulgarian. He had inherited his father's hooked nose.

On the other side of the room, Fleur was jabbering away in French to her father. Fleur's little sister, Gabrielle, was holding her hand and she waved at Harry, who waved back, smiling. Yuliya and Marion were also with their respective families.

Bill grinned at Harry, "Charlie wanted to come, but he couldn't get time off. It's great being back here. Haven't seen this place in five years. Hey Harry, mind taking a walk with us? We can give Thalia here, a tour."

Thalia was quite fascinated with the school. Though she did shudder at the sight of people flying around on brooms. Harry had a hard time stopping himself from teasing her. They whiled away the afternoon, and at some point, Harry got Thalia alone and repeated what he told his friends.

That was enough for her hand to instinctively creep towards her collapsible Mace canister, which was also her spear. She spoke softly, "I think you're right about them potentially striking during the Third Task. Be on your guard. I'll do the same here too. Phoebe is coming later tonight and she'll be in touch with the animals to be on the lookout."

The outing lasted until evening, when they all returned to the castle for the evening feast. As per their custom, Harry, Bianca and Thalia made their offerings to the Gods. No one really batted an eye, because they were all used to it by now.

As the enchanted ceiling overhead began to fade from blue to a dusky purple, Dumbledore rose to his feet at the staff table, and silence fell.

He announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, in five minutes' time, I will be asking you to make your way down to the Quidditch field for the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament. Will the champions please follow Mr. Bagman down to the stadium now."

Thalia gave him one last hug before he followed Cedric and the other Champions. Bagman sidled up to Harry, "Feeling all right, Harry? Confident?"

Harry replied, "As confident as I can be, sir."

By the time they reached the Quidditch field, it was unrecognisable. A twenty-foot-high hedge ran all the way around the edge of it. There was a gap right in front of them: the entrance to the vast maze. The passage beyond it looked dark and creepy.

Meanwhile, the stands began to fill up and excited voices filled the air. The sky was a deep, clear blue, and the first stars were starting to appear. Hagrid, Professor Moody, Professor McGonagall, and Professor Flitwick entered the stadium and approached Bagman and the champions.

McGonagall faced them and spoke, "We are going to be patrolling the outside of the maze. If you get into difficulty, and wish to be rescued, send red sparks into the air, and one of us will come and get you, do you understand?"

Everyone nodded firmly and Bagman pointed his wand at his throat. After a whispered Sonorus he began announcing, "Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand! In first place, with ninety-two points Mr. Harry Potter, from Hogwarts! In second place with eighty-five points is Cedric Diggory, also from Hogwarts. In third place is Viktor Krum from Durmstrang with eighty points. Ms Fleur Delacour is fourth with seventy-nine points. Finally, Ms Popov and his Hubert are tied with seventy-five points each!"

Bagman looked at Harry, "On my whistle, Harry. Three! Two! One!"

With a short blast of the whistle, Harry jogged into the maze. He barely made it a 100 meters and was about to turn right when he heard a scream from the stands. Harry glanced to his right and saw a large spider bearing down on him. It was not quite the size of an Acromantula, and he identified it as a Thornback Shooter. Thinking quickly and letting his battle instincts take over, he pulled out his wand and roared, "Arania Exumai!"

The spider was flung backwards, struck the ground and lay still. Harry forged ahead with his wand out, just as another whistle blew, signifying that Cedric had entered the maze. The towering hedges cast black shadows across the path. As he ventured deeper, there was not much sound, apart from his own breathing and the sounds of the various critters around him. Harry guessed that it was largely because the hedges had been.

He came to a fork in the maze and dropped down to use his tracking skills. Cedric had caught up to him while he was observing the ground. After a while, Harry went left and Cedric went right. There was another whistle, which meant the Krum was in the maze. After sometime and more whistles, all six champions were in the maze.

To be perfectly honest, it took a while for Harry to forge ahead. After fending off a sixth attack from a monster, with the last one being a Scythian dracaena, he grumbled to himself, "This is why I hate being a demigod."

Then, he heard movement right behind him. Harry spun around, ready to attack, but spotted Cedric backing away with his arms raised in surrender. He shot Harry an easy-going grin, "Whoa! Mate! It's just me. I see you're taking Mad Eye Moody's 'Constant Vigilance' bellows to heart."

The Hufflepuff then hurriedly put out a smouldering flame on his sleeve. He said, "Ran into one of Hagrid's Blast-Ended Skrewts. They're enormous! I only just got away. Blimey! What happened to you? You look like you went a few rounds with the entire Slytherin House, solo."

Harry grumbled, "Feels like it. If I survive this, I'm definitely going to feel that in the morning."

The two boys then split up once again and Harry forged ahead. Turning around the corner, he nearly got the shock of his life. A few metres ahead of him, was himself, and a huge black void resting on his back. His identical copy was straining under the void and was slowly getting crushed. Snapping himself out of it, he recognised a Boggart, and yelled, "Riddikulus!"

The void began to rapidly dissipate, sounding like a deflating balloon. His copy also began to stand up straighter and then disappeared with a *Pop*. With that out of the way, he continued onwards. As he walked, he heard the sound of fighting nearby. He jogged on and turned left into a corner to see Fleur fighting against a Hellhound.

Wasting no time, he summoned his bow and arrows and charged in. As she fought, she acknowledged his presence and they battled shoulder-to-shoulder. Finally, she stabbed it with a Celestial Bronze dagger and he fired one last arrow, killing it. She smiled gratefully at him and pecked him on the cheek before they parted ways.

A few minutes later, he heard a scream, and it sounded a lot like Marion. He quickened his pace, looking for the French girl. Then he heard Cedric's voice yelling, "What are you doing? What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Yuliya's voice sounded, "Crucio"

A moment later, Cedric's pain-filled screams filled the air. Harry willed himself to go faster and sprinted like a gazelle. Rounding a corner with his wand raised, he spotted the Durmstrang girl standing over Cedric. He yelled out a Stunning Spell and knocked her back. The Hufflepuff was twitching for a while until he stopped and began to recover.

He panted, "Don't know what got into her. I heard a scream and went to investigate. Then I saw Yuliya and she didn't look like herself. Wait here, I'll send up some red sparks so that someone can fetch Yuliya. I'll see if I can find Marion as well and get help for her too."

Cedric then performed the action before looking at Harry, "Well… I suppose we had better get a move on."

"Wait! We'll go together! Strength in numbers?"

Cedric smiled and messed with Harry's hair, "Appreciate the concern, mate. You would have been a fine Hufflepuff."

Once again, they parted ways, albeit reluctantly. After a while, he walked further on, and around the next corner, was a stunningly beautiful woman. He stopped short, "Lady Aphrodite?"

She smiled genially at him, "Harry! There you are!"

He walked up to her, "What are you doing here?"

The goddess pouted cutely at him, "Aww… Can't I check on my favourite pseudo-son?"

He waited for the penny to drop, and then she gave a dramatic sigh, "Oh alright! I came here to give you a teensy tiny helping hand. As you know, Lord Zeus insisted that we gods do not interfere with mortal or demigod affairs. Though he didn't say anything about helping take out other minor annoyances. It's all about the loopholes, darling."

Harry asked, "So you're going to help me take down the Dark Lord?"

She tittered, "Indirectly, my dear sweet boy. Remember that protection that your mother used? Please hold out your hand."

He extended his hand and she took it, as if to perform a handshake. However, the moment she touched his hand, it felt like a massive amount of power was flowing through him. They stayed like that for a minute until she finally let go. Aphrodite smiled prettily at him, "There we go! I've strengthened the protection, enough to destroy that ruffian. Ta-ta!"

Harry turned away as she made her exit and continued onwards. He jogged down a long straight path and slowed down when he noticed movement ahead. Approaching warily, he saw a massive sphinx blocking the path.

It had the body of an over-large lion: great clawed paws and a long yellowish tail ending in a brown tuft. Its head, however, was that of a woman. She turned her long, almond-shaped eyes upon Harry as he approached. He raised his wand, hesitating. She was not crouching as if to spring, but pacing from side to side of the path, blocking his progress. Then she spoke, in a deep, hoarse voice.

She said, "You are very near your goal. The quickest way is past me. That is unless you can answer my riddle, young demigod. Answer on your first guess — I let you pass. Answer wrongly — I attack. Remain silent — I will let you walk away from me unscathed."

Harry nodded firmly, "Alright… May I hear the riddle?"

The sphinx recited, "First think of the person who lives in disguise,

Who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.

Next, tell me what's always the last thing to mend,

The middle of middle and end of the end?

And finally give me the sound often heard

During the search for a hard-to-find word.

Now string them together, and answer me this,

Which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?"

Harry began pacing around as he pondered the answer. He mumbled to himself, "Person in disguise… a spy. Middle of middle… Crumbs, that's a tough one… Sound often heard…"

Then it clicked for him, "It's a spider!"

The sphinx smiled broadly, got up and moved aside to let him pass. He called out a quick thank you and sprinted past.

As he ran, he saw a light in the distance and dashed for it. Then he noticed movement to his right and spotted Cedric running next to him, having emerged from another path. Suddenly, three dark shapes leaped down in front of them and they screeched to a stop. Right in front of them were three massive spiders of different sizes. One was a Thornback Shooter, another was a Venomous Scurriour, and the third was an Acromantula. Nodding to each other, Harry and Cedric teamed up and attacked immediately. A pair of Stunners took down the Scurriour, Cedric's Disarming spell sent the Thornback flying and Harry downed the Acromantula with the Spider-Repelling Charm.

By the time the assault ended, both boys were panting and the Tri-Wizard Cup stood just a few feet away on its grassy pedestal. Cedric glanced at the Cup and waited for Harry to recover. He pointed his wand at Harry and intoned, "Episkey". Most of Harry's wounds healed and Cedric said, "Let's do it together, mate. Make it a Hogwarts victory. You told me about the dragons. I would've gone down in the first task if you hadn't told me what was coming."

Harry breathed, "You helped me with the egg — we're square. You should take it."

Cedric shook his head, "We do it together."

Finally, Harry relented, "Okay… Together, then."

Both of them stood in front of the Cup, and Harry said, "On three, One, Two, Three!"

He and Cedric both grasped a handle. In an instant, Harry felt a jerk somewhere behind his navel. His feet had left the ground. He could not unclench the hand holding the Triwizard Cup; it was pulling him onward in a howl of wind and swirling colour, Cedric at his side.

When they landed, it took a while to recover. Cedric glanced around him, "Where are we? This supposed to be part of the task? I didn't know the Cup was a Portkey."

Harry shook his head and took in his surroundings. They were obviously nowhere near Hogwarts castle. Wherever this place was, it was several kilometres away. There were no recognisable landmark, as even the mountains surrounding the castle were gone.

Instead, they were standing instead in a dark and overgrown graveyard; the black outline of a small church was visible beyond a large yew tree to their right. A hill rose above them to their left. Harry could just make out the outline of a fine old house on the hillside. The area was also surrounded by a small forest.

Instinctively, they pulled out their wands and slowly crept forward. Just then, Harry heard faint footsteps approaching and he tensed up, "Someone's coming."

A figure drew nearer, walking steadily toward them between the graves. Harry couldn't make out a face, but from the way it was walking and holding its arms, he could tell that it was carrying something. Whoever it was, he was tall, and wearing a hooded cloak pulled up over his head to obscure his face. Several paces nearer, the gap between them closing all the time — Harry saw that the thing in the person's arms looked like a baby... or was it merely a bundle of robes?

The figure stopped beside a towering marble headstone, only six feet from them. For a second, Harry and Cedric and the stranger simply looked at one another. A cold voice suddenly ordered, "Kill the spare!"

There was a swishing noise and a second voice, roared the words "Avada Kedavra!"

A jet of green light arced towards them at high speed, but Harry was faster. He tackled Cedric out of the way and grunted, "Oh fuck no! No one else is dying on my watch! Not if I can help it!"

The spell missed Cedric and the boys scrambled to their feet and began running into the forest. The Hufflepuff breathed as he ran, "You saved my life, Harry! I owe you!"

Harry snapped, "Less talking, more running!"

They sprinted for a few minutes, with Cedric dodging more Killing Curses. Then Harry realised something, the pursuers were after him, not Diggory. He screeched to a stop, and Diggory stopped a few metres ahead, "Harry?"

Harry snapped, "Go! It's me, they're after!"

Unfortunately, the older boy chose that moment to be obstinate. He stubbornly said, "I'm not leaving you!"

Harry activated his shield and parried another Killing Curse, "Cedric, I appreciate the Hufflepuff loyalty, but this isn't the time! I don't want anyone else dying on my hands."

As he said this, an image of Zoe flashed in his mind. Cedric misinterpreted his thoughts, "Look mate, Khanna's death wasn't your fault. But I'm not-"

He was cut off as another spell came dangerously close to striking him. Harry firmly yelled, "Just go, Cedric! I'll be fine! Trust me!"

Reluctantly, Cedric Diggory fled deeper into the forest and Harry stood there calmly after collapsing his shield. Eventually, the figure caught up to him and he recognised him as Corban Yaxley. He raised his wand towards Cedric's rapidly fading figure, when the cold voice spoke up again, "Leave him be. We have what we came for. The other boy is of no consequence."

Reluctantly, Yaxley lowered his wand and then turned to Harry with a menacing grin. He grabbed Harry and frog-marched him back towards the graveyard. Stopping in front of the marble headstone, Harry caught the name, TOM RIDDLE. Meanwhile, the cloaked man was now conjuring tight cords around Harry, tying him from neck to ankles to the headstone. This was after he relieved Harry of his wand and holster.

Yaxley finished tying Harry and stuffed some black material roughly into Harry's mouth. The bundle of robes that Harry had thought was a baby was close by, at the foot of the grave. It seemed to be stirring fretfully.

Harry could hear noises at his feet. He looked down and saw a gigantic snake slithering through the grass, circling the headstone where he was tied. Yaxley came back within Harry's range of vision, and Harry saw him pushing a stone cauldron to the foot of the grave. It was full of what seemed to be water. It was larger than any cauldron Harry had ever used; a great stone belly large enough for a full-grown man to sit in.

The Death-Eater then began preparing the cauldron, as the snake slithered away. Finally, he announced that the concoction was ready and he went to open the bundle of robes. The thing Yaxley had been carrying had the shape of a crouched human child, except that Harry had never seen anything less like a child. It was hairless and scaly-looking, a dark, raw, reddish black. Its arms and legs were thin and feeble, and its face flat and snake-like, with gleaming red eyes.

Yaxley picked up the hideous creature and lowered it into the cauldron. With a hiss, the figure was submerged, and Harry hoped that it had drowned. Yaxley then began to chant, "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will resurrect your son."

He turned away and beckoned to someone. Another figure emerged from the house, none other than a whimpering Peter Pettigrew. He approached and held out his arm. Yaxley chanted, "Flesh of the servant, willingly given, you will revive your master."

With a flourish, he withdrew a dagger and practically amputated Pettigrew's arm. The shorter man screamed in agony and collapsed with a whimper. Finally, Yaxley advanced on Harry, "Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe!"

Yaxley pierced Harry's arm and let the red blood drip into the cauldron. On cue, the liquid within the cauldron turned, instantly, a blinding white. The cauldron simmered, sending diamond sparks in all directions, so blindingly bright that it turned all else to velvety blackness.

For a moment, all was still, until the sparks were extinguished. A surge of white steam billowed thickly from the cauldron instead, obliterating everything in front of Harry. When it died down, the dark outline of a man, tall and skeletally thin, rising slowly from inside the cauldron.

Yaxley dutifully robed him and the resurrected figure turned to Harry. The boy stared back into the face that he despised. Whiter than a skull, with wide, livid scarlet eyes and a nose that was flat as a snake's with slits for nostrils.

Harry snarled, "Voldemort…"

The man inspected his own body. His hands were like large, pale spiders; his long white fingers caressed his own chest, his arms, his face; the red eyes, whose pupils were slits, like a cat's, gleamed still more brightly through the darkness. He held up his hands and flexed the fingers, his expression rapt and exultant.

Then he looked at his two followers and beckoned them forward. Yaxley stepped forward and Voldemort rolled up his sleeve to reveal the Dark Mark. He prodded it and Yaxley bit back a wince.

Once he was done, he softly said, "It is back. They will all have noticed it... and now, we shall see... now we shall know... How many will be brave enough to return when they feel it? And how many will be foolish enough to stay away?"

He paced up and down, waiting for all of his followers to arrive. Finally, he noticed the tied-up Harry. He hissed, "You stand, Harry Potter, upon the remains of my late father. A Muggle and a fool... very like your dear mother. But they both had their uses, did they not? Your mother died to defend you as a child... and I killed my father, and see how useful he has proved himself, in death..."

He pointed to the house over yonder. The dark wizard explained, "You see that house upon the hillside, Potter? My father lived there. My mother, a witch who lived here in this village, fell in love with him. But he abandoned her when she told him what she was... He didn't like magic, my father... He left her and returned to his Muggle parents before I was even born, Potter, and she died giving birth to me, leaving me to be raised in a Muggle orphanage. I vowed to find him... I revenged myself upon him, that fool who gave me his name... Tom Riddle..."

Harry just looked at him with a bored expression, as if asking whether he should feel sorry for him. Voldemort was brought out of his musing, "Listen to me, reliving family history. Why, I am growing quite sentimental. But look, Harry! My true family returns."

Sure enough, The air was suddenly full of the swishing of cloaks. Between graves, behind the yew tree, in every shadowy space, wizards were Apparating. There were about a 100+ Death-Eaters. All of them were hooded and masked. One by one they moved forward, slowly, cautiously, as though they could hardly believe their eyes. Voldemort stood in silence, waiting for them. Then one of the Death Eaters fell to his knees, crawled toward Voldemort, and kissed the hem of his black robes.

He surveyed them with cold eyes, "Welcome, Death Eaters. Years... Years since last we met. Yet you answer my call as though it were yesterday. . . . We are still united under the Dark Mark, then! Or are we? I smell guilt. "There is a stench of guilt upon the air. I see you all, whole and healthy, with your powers intact — such prompt appearances! — and I ask myself . . . why did this band of wizards never come to the aid of their master, to whom they swore eternal loyalty?"

No one spoke, so he filled in the answer himself. He said, "I answer myself. They must have believed me broken, they thought I was gone. They slipped back among my enemies, and they pleaded innocence, and ignorance, and bewitchment. But how could they have believed I would not rise again? They, who knew the steps I took, long ago, to guard myself against mortal death? They, who had seen proofs of the immensity of my power in the times when I was mightier than any wizard living?

There was dead silence, save for a few hoots from owls flying about. Voldemort continued, "Perhaps they believed a still greater power could exist, one that could vanquish even Lord Voldemort. Do they now pay allegiance to another, perhaps that champion of commoners, of Mudbloods and Muggles, Albus Dumbledore?"

At the mere mention of Dumbledore's name, all of the Death-Eaters stirred and muttered. Voldemort sighed, "It is a disappointment to me. I confess myself disappointed."

One of the men suddenly flung himself forward, breaking the circle. Trembling from head to foot, he collapsed at Voldemort's feet.

"Master!" he shrieked, "Master, forgive me! Forgive us all!"

Voldemort began to laugh. He raised his wand.

"Crucio!"

The man writhed and screamed for what seemed like ages. When he let up, he sneered, "Get up, Avery. Stand up. You ask for forgiveness? I do not forgive. I do not forget. Several long years . . . I want many years' repayment before I forgive you. Wormtail and Yaxley here have paid some of their debt already, have you not? You returned to me, not out of loyalty, but out of fear of your old friends. You deserve this pain, Wormtail. You know that, don't you?"

"Yes, Master," moaned Wormtail, "please, Master . . . please . . ."

"Yet you helped return me to my body," said Voldemort coolly, watching Wormtail sob on the ground. "Worthless and traitorous as you are, you helped me . . . and Lord Voldemort rewards his helpers. . . ."

With a wave of his newly-acquired wand, he conjured a gleaming replica of a human hand. The silvery hand then floated down and fixed itself on Pettigrew's bleeding stump.

Pettigrew's sobbing stopped abruptly. His breathing harsh and ragged, he raised his head and stared in disbelief at the silver hand, now attached seamlessly to his arm, as though he were wearing a dazzling glove. He flexed the shining fingers, then, trembling, picked up a small twig on the ground and crushed it into powder.

As Peter continued to grovel, Voldemort scanned the crowd, "Pray tell… Where is Lucius?"

One Death-Eater stepped up and unmasked, revealing the face of Bellatrix Lestrange. She curtseyed, "My Lord… Lucius was a fool. He somehow had the brilliantly foolish idea to hire 'Muggle' mercenaries to kidnap Potter during the World Cup. The twat got double-crossed and killed by them, according to Jugson."

The Dark Lord tutted like a disappointed teacher, "I see… it is a shame, or good riddance. He ran from my Mark when a faithful Death-Eater sent it into the sky last summer."

He took a breath and continued, "Is there anyone else left to break out of Azkaban? I also wish to meet the Dementors, for I am sure that they will join us."

Another Death-Eater stepped forward and unmasked. The toad-like face of Dolores Umbridge revealed itself. She too curtseyed, "My Lord… I'm afraid that I have bad news on that front. All Dementors inexplicably vanished, two years ago. Even that fool, Fudge's personal Dementor has vanished."

"Hmm… That warrants a thorough investigation. However, I look among you and notice six missing. Three dead in my service. One, too cowardly to return, he will pay. One, who I believe has left me forever, he will be killed, of course, and one, who remains my most faithful servant, and who has already re-entered my service."

Harry had no doubt that he was referring to Karkaroff and Snape, respectively. However, he was blanking on the third one. Voldemort grinned, "He is at Hogwarts, that faithful servant. From what I hear, he did not have much to do to get our young friend to arrive here tonight. Yes, Harry Potter has kindly joined us for my rebirthing party. One might go so far as to call him my guest of honour. I will be seeing young Barty Crouch Jr, very soon. I'm impressed that he has fooled Dumbledore for so long with his impersonation of Alastor Moody…"

There was no sound, save for the hooting of owls. Unbeknownst to anyone, some of the hooting was coming from Harry himself, who was communicating with a nearby owl to send a message to Dumbledore somehow.

Voldemort began expositing again, explaining how he stayed alive all those years ago.

Meanwhile back at Hogwarts, while Voldemort was in storyteller mode, the barn owl flew as fast as it could. Ten minutes flew by until it finally reached Hogwarts and the owl eventually spotted its target, Thalia. It softly flew up and landed on her shoulder, getting her and Katie's attention. The two of them looked at each other and quietly slipped away. The only one who noticed was Lady Hecate, who followed them.

A few 100 metres away from the Quidditch stadium, the owl landed and began scratching on the dusty ground. The message read, 'DEATH-EATER BARTY CROUCH JR DISGUISED AS PROFESSOR MOODY'. As the owl flapped its wings to gt rid of the evidence, Katie was thunderstruck, "We have a freaking Death-Eater masquerading as a teacher!"

Hecate's voice sounded behind them, "Do not fret Ms Bell and Ms Thalia. I know how to deal with this."

Back in the graveyard, Voldemort had finished with what he believed was the truth behind his resurrection. Finally, he faced Harry with a sadistic grin on his face. He intoned, "And here he is... the boy you all believed had been my downfall..."

Voldemort moved slowly forward and turned to face Harry. He raised his wand and barked, "Crucio!"

Harry collapsed on the ground as pain enveloped his body. It felt like his bones and his nerves were on fire. Though if he was being honest, it wasn't nearly as mind-numbing as the pain he felt when holding up the sky. This kind of pain was just two notches below that. As a result, he grit his teeth and fought through the Torture Curse, standing up.

All of the Death-Eaters were stunned to silence. No one had been able to resist the Cruciatus Curse, at all. Voldemort chuckled, "Well, well, well… It seems that Barty was right. You are a lot tougher than you look. Excellent. I'd hate to have a weak opponent. Make it more fun for me. Wormtail! Untie him and give him back his wand."

The short, portly man stepped up, untied and ungagged Harry. He then returned Harry's wand and holster. He smirked, "Some kind of metal eh, Harry? Pretty fancy! Maybe after The Dark Lord finishes you off, I'll keep it as a trophy."

The Death-Eaters closed ranks around him, cutting off his escape. Harry backed himself under the yew tree and considered his options. The Tri-Wizard trophy lay a couple of feet away, but he had other ideas.

Voldemort stood on the other side and called out, "You've been taught how to duel, Potter?"

Harry just gave a single nod in acknowledgement. The snake-faced man gave a slight bow and lectured as if he were talking to a toddler. He said, "We bow to each other, Harry. Come, the niceties must be observed. Dumbledore would like you to show manners. Bow to death, Harry."

Harry just gave a short bow, never taking his eyes off his opponent, and then got into his usual grappling stance. He also didn't bother correcting Voldemort about being death. The arrogant swine would be meeting the REAL embodiment of Death, very soon.

The man softly said, "Very good. And now you face me, like a man. Straight-backed and proud, the way your father died. And now — we duel."

Voldemort raised his wand and fired the Cruciatus Curse. Harry simply allowed his demigod reflexes to take over and he nimbly dodged. The man chortled, "My, my… It seems you do possess a little skill. I think I might enjoy this."

He fired another spell and Harry retaliated immediately. Back and forth the two opponents went, until Voldemort hit him with the Imperius Curse. The villain ordered him to submit to him, however Harry fought it off. The duel was fierce and Voldemort began to advance. That's when an idea struck Harry and he decided to play one ace.

As soon as he was within striking distance, Harry morphed into his dire wolf Animagus form, with a Killing Curse sailing over where his human head used to be. Before anyone could even register what had happened, he pounced on Voldemort, knocking him down and getting a good solid bite off of him. Harry bounded back to get some distance and transformed back into a human form.

Voldemort clutched his bleeding arm before chuckling. He chortled, "Well, well, well… You are full of surprises Harry Potter. I did not expect you to be an Animagus. But now, it is time to end this. Avada Kedavra!"

Harry retaliated immediately by dodging and firing a Disarming Spell. They clashed one more time before another plan formed in his head. He had noticed the giant snake slithering in the background and thanks to his correspondence with Thanatos, knew that it was a Horcrux. The next spell that left his lips was a Cutting Curse, Voldemort dodged it, but his snake who was directly behind him, was not so lucky. With a terrifying screech, the snake evaporated in a cloud of dust.

He stiffened, "Nagini! Oh my poor sweet Nagini… POTTER! You will pay for killing my familiar!"

The enraged man was now fighting fiercer and wilder now. It was only thanks to his demigod reflexes that Harry was still alive. Then he noticed an opening and charged in towards his sworn enemy and revealed his final ace. Harry bellowed, "Mutatio!" and his wand instantly transformed into the Sword of Gryffindor. Naturally, this caught Voldemort off guard, so he just stood there when it went straight through his heart.

Harry pulled out the sword cleaned it and turned it back into a wand before dropping the man. Voldemort grinned evilly, "This changes nothing, Potter! I found ways to preserve my soul! I am immortal! A God!"

The boy smirked, "Oh, you mean your Horcruxes? I have bad news for you, Riddle. They're all gone. I figured it out early and my allies and I went about and destroyed all of them. Nagini was your only one, and I got her. Checkmate. Also, you think you're a god? I've met several, and you've royally pissed off one of them."

With shock on his face, the dying Voldemort fell backward, arms splayed, the slit pupils of the scarlet eyes rolling upward. Tom Riddle hit the floor with a mundane finality, his body feeble and shrunken, the white hands empty, the snakelike face vacant and unknowing.

All around them, the Death-Eaters were stunned to silence. Nothing happened as the air grew slightly colder. Suddenly, Bellatrix Lestrange screeched, "He killed him! Harry Potter killed our Dark Lord! Get him!"

Harry began backing up until his back hit the yew tree. Around him, the Death-Eaters advanced and they looked menacing. The air was now so cold that Harry could see his breath. Then he saw something behind the Death-Eater horde and his eyes widened in horror.

"GRRRAHHH!"

The next thing anybody knew, several Death-Eaters were sent flying and landed with sickening crunches, all dead. The remaining ones whirled around to see a massive thirty-foot giant with blue skin and icy grey hair, wielding a huge spiky club. Dolores Umbridge screamed, "What are you waiting for, you fools! Attack it!"

Several curses flew from their wands, but none of them seemed to faze the giant. From his position, Harry muttered to himself, "Never thought I'd be glad to see a Hyperborean Giant."

More Death-Eaters were mowed down and Harry coolly watched the carnage. Umbridge attempted to cast the Killing Curse, but the giant blocked it with its club. In return, she got a spiky club to the face, and that was the end of her. Only three Death-Eaters remained, including Bellatrix Lestrange. She fought fiercely, firing Cruciatus Curse after Cruciatus Curse. That only served to make the giant madder. With one final swing, all Death-Eaters were dead, smashed to a pulp or frozen from head to toe.

Suddenly, a large shape dropped down next to Harry, startling him. Cedric Diggory nearly got Hexed for the jump-scare, "Whoa! It's just me!"

Harry's arm slumped in relief, "Fucking hell! You scared the shit out of me!"

Cedric's eyes widened when the Hyperborean turned to them and began advancing, "Whoa! What the fuck is that thing!"

Harry turned his wand back into a sword, "Look, I'll explain later when we get out of here, alive."

He took off his rings and turned them into a bow and quiver. Harry pressed them into Cedric's hands, "How good is your aim?"

With that, Harry charged and rolled under the giant's swing. Recovering, he stabbed it in the heel and it roared in pain. There was more roaring and bellowing, as Cedric's arrows found their mark. Though Harry had to duck a few times to avoid stray arrows in his direction. It took five full minutes, but the giant was eventually felled.

Harry staggered up to the Hufflepuff and turned his sword back into its base form. The demigod was a mess, he was cut up and bleeding everywhere, and he was also covered in blue blood from the giant. Cedric steadied him, "Come on mate, let's get out of here before anything else shows up."

They limped over to the Cup, but before Cedric could grab it, Harry said, "What happened here, stays here. We don't want to start a panic."

Cedric retorted, "Mate, that was bloody You-Know-Who! How did he come back? Is he gone for good now? And what was that thing?"

"I said I'll explain later. It's a promise."

"I'll hold you to it."

Together, they grabbed the Cup and were Portkeyed back.