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Chapter 51 – The Unexpected Task

Surprisingly things returned to normal almost overnight. The following morning Snape was back to his usual cantankerous self, it was as if the conversation the previous day had never happened. The teens were only too glad to follow their professor's lead in that regard; it had been awkward enough, there was no need to drag it out. Harry pushed aside thoughts of the prophecy quite quickly, which for Ginny, Ron and Hermione, was more of a surprise than Snape going back to being Snape. Given his reaction to finding out about the prophecy they were justly concerned that it would eat away at him for the foreseeable future. Harry, though, reasoned that while the prophecy's existence changed how he viewed the past, it did not, in fact, do anything to the present or future. Voldemort was always going to try and kill him, with or without the prophecy, and it wasn't like the prophecy told who would win or how either would be defeated, so practically speaking it didn't matter. Ginny was proud of how quickly he came to that realization on his own.

While things went back to normal quickly, there were three things that would never be as they were before. The first two they were actually quite glad about, and that was that that both Snape and Sirius had taken to heart Harry's words and began working together to train them. Even if the tension was immense when both Snape and Sirius were in the same room, and they broke out into frequent petty arguments, when it came down to it they were both dedicated to finding the best way to ensure the teens stayed alive and shocking enough they agreed more often than not on how to go about it. This ended up being a very good thing, for Bill's time training them was diminished as he was now working tirelessly with the goblins to find and destroy Voldemort's other horcruxes. This was the second thing that they were glad would never be the same: competent beings were now not just trying to give teenagers the means to survive a deranged dark wizard, but were themselves actively working on destroying him. This had not been the case over the last thirteen years; not even Dumbledore took this active a role in Voldemort's downfall.

Harry's feelings regarding the Headmaster was the final thing that would never be the same again. He had always been weary of Dumbledore, but had ultimately trusted the man. However, after learning the secrets Dumbledore had kept and the decisions he'd made that he had had no right to make, that trust was shattered and no matter how many times the Headmaster tried to speak with him, Harry would have none of it. It helped that the goblins were just as angry at Dumbledore, and were only too happy to inform the Headmaster that anything he had to say to Friend Potter could be directed to either Griphook or Ragnok himself. As a Friend of the Goblin Nation, Harry was under Gringotts' protection and given Dumbledore's blatant disregard for his safety as a mere baby they considered the Headmaster a potential threat to him so had no qualms about banning the Headmaster from speaking to him without a goblin present.

It was more tricky to explain to Cornelius and Aldora this sudden hostility, Harry's guardians having noticed it immediately that very day. Or it would have been if Harry didn't know how to play them so well. After the discussion with Snape, Sirius and Remus, the teens had discovered that many people were still waiting to talk to him, his guardians included. He had disappeared from the medical tent after receiving his scores, returning to Hogwarts a couple hours later. The goblins had explained it away as a debriefing with their champion, but it meant that Cornelius and Aldora, along with all the other Ministry and international officials hadn't had a chance to congratulate or speak with him so had decided to wait around until he returned. With such important guests on school grounds Dumbledore didn't stay in his office for long but joined them and it was then that the Fudges saw a new animosity between their ward and the Headmaster. Harry, of course, knew how to play the Fudges to perfection and said that he'd just learned that Dumbledore had been the one to leave him on the Dursleys' doorstep all those years ago, claiming one of the goblins had mentioned it offhandedly, thinking he already knew. He had already known, of course, but his time before being taken in as their ward was something that Cornelius and Aldora didn't talk about, so he was confident they wouldn't remember that he'd already known that bit of information. In fact, he was completely sure that they would look at him in awkward understanding and then immediately change the subject, which is exactly what they did.

-H/G-

Three days after the First Task saw the four champions gathering in the goblin training room around the three golden eggs that had not been melted beyond recognition. All four had agreed it was best not to put off figuring the clue out and so they got right down to it, though their ears were regretting that decision the moment they opened the egg. The screeching noise the egg made when opened was so bad that none of them wanted to repeat what they'd just endured, but they did so with all three eggs just to ensure the clue was the same, which it was.

"How the bloody hell are we supposed to figure out the clue if we can't even stand to listen to it for even a second?" Harry muttered.

"Obviously we have to figure out how to dispel the screeching." Cedric got right down to it, and because it was Cedric, one of the most humble and genuine people Harry had ever met, he didn't take Cedric's comment of 'obviously' to be an insult, but merely a statement of fact. "But is it actually a spell we're trying to dismantle? Or several spells?"

"Eet could also be something naturelle." Said Fleur.

"There are many creatures that cannot be understood by humans." Viktor joined in, the three proving once again why they had been chosen as the true champions. It became a process of elimination to see what would unravel the clue, but after a week they still hadn't found the answer and something else came up that took precedence.

"The Yule Ball is approaching." Professor McGonagall made the announcement after having called a meeting with all her Gryffindors in the common room, something that only rarely happened, and usually was the result of some catastrophe, like the opening of the Chamber of Secrets, or a mass murderer breaking into the castle. "It is a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament and an opportunity for us to socialize with our foreign guests. Now, the ball will be open only to fourth years and above, although you may invite a younger student if you wish. Dress robes will be worn, and the ball will start at eight o'clock on Christmas Day, finishing at midnight in the Great Hall. Now then…" Professor McGonagall stared deliberately around the common room. "The Yule Ball is of course a chance for us all to - er - let our hair down." she said in a disapproving voice. Several of the girls giggled and Harry could see what was so funny: Professor McGonagall, with her hair in its normal tight bun, looked as though she had never let her hair down at any point in her life.

"Silence!" McGongall snapped. "This does NOT mean that we will be relaxing the standards of behavior we expect from Hogwarts students. Let me be quite clear on this: the house of Godric Gryffindor has commanded the respect of the wizarding world for over ten centuries, and I will be most seriously displeased if any one of you embarrasses the school in any way." She stared them all down much as she had the night Beauxbatons and Durmstrang arrived and none of them, not even the Weasley twins, were left with any question as to what would happen to them if they misbehaved. "Very well then, you are dismissed." There was a scuffle of activity as everyone began filing out to head to bed for the night, but Professor McGonagall called above the noise. "Potter, a word, if you please." Harry wondered what he'd done wrong, but quickly discounted that when he saw no anger in his professor's eyes. Shrugging to Ginny, Ron and Hermione, he made his way across the room towards McGonagall, his three friends waiting for him by the stairs when McGonagall didn't tell them to leave.

"Have I done something wrong, professor?" Even though McGonagall didn't look angry, Harry still had to wonder.

"No, Potter. I merely wished to inform you that the champions and their partners-"

"What partners?" Harry interrupted and Professor McGonagall looked suspiciously at him, as though she thought he was trying to be funny.

"Your partner for the Yule Ball, Potter." She said coldly. "Your dance partner." Harry felt his heart stop.

"D-dance partners?" He stuttered. "I can't dance." Much to Aldora's dismay he was entirely correct. Harry's coordination and precision on the quidditch pitch was almost legendary, but no amount of lessons seemed to make him graceful on the dance floor and Aldora had given up trying last year.

"Oh yes, you can." Said Professor McGonagall irritably, clearly not going to be as lenient as Aldora. "That's what I'm telling you. Traditionally, the champions and their partners open the ball." Harry had a sudden mental image of himself tripping over his feet not five seconds into the first dance, much as he had done at his first Ministry Christmas Ball.

"I'm not dancing." He said. McGonagall's eyes narrowed.

"It is traditional." She said firmly. "You may not officially be a Hogwarts champion, Potter, but you are still a Hogwarts student, and you will do what is expected of you as a representative of the school. So, make sure you get yourself a partner, Potter."

"But-"

"You heard me, Potter." Professor McGonagall called over her shoulder as she swept out of the room, the conversation clearly at an end. Harry turned to his friends. Ron, he had no doubt, wore the same ashen, wide eyed expression he did while Hermione's face was inscrutable. Ginny, though, simply looked amused, no doubt remembering his attempts at dancing during the last Christmas ball at the Ministry, the one after which Aldora finally gave up on him. Seeing Ginny, the thought of needing a partner for the ball returned and he immediately went over to her, taking her hands in his.

"Will you go to the ball with me?" He all but blurted out. Ginny's smile widened, turning to joy.

"Yes!" She said, giving him a quick peck on the lips.

"I'm sorry that wasn't more romantic." Harry backpaddled, having immediately regretted the way he'd almost screamed the question at her. "I should get flowers, or something, and ask you again, I-"

"Harry, I've already said yes." Ginny interrupted. "And this was romantic enough. You didn't even hesitate or think of taking anyone else, you came straight over and asked me. That's far better than some flowers you know I probably won't like." Ginny's aversion to girly things after growing up with six brothers was probably extreme, but the thought of a boy bringing her flowers like many girls gushed about was nearly abhorrent. Harry smiled and bent to kiss her again, though ended the kiss very quickly at a loud cleared throat from Ron.

"What about you guys? Know who you want to go with?" Harry turned to Ron and Hermione, looking pointed between them. Both of them blushed and Ron's ears turned red as they stammered out that they didn't know what he was talking about. "Sure you don't." Harry said with an eye roll, but otherwise let it go for now, allowing the two to escape up to their separate dorms.

-H/G-

The following day was Saturday, though that didn't mean there wasn't work to be done. Aside from his homework, which thankfully wasn't too heavy this week, Harry had training to do and an egg to figure out with the other champions, though when he arrived at the goblin pavilion following lunch, Harry saw that today would be a very different kind of training. Griphook had hired a dancing instructor, one Harry was unfortunately familiar with, he being the most prominent dance instructor in Britain, meaning he was the first one Aldora had hired to teach him.

"I do hope, Mr. Potter, that you will prove a more adept pupil this time around." Harry flushed with embarrassment, but knew he'd have to be. The goblins had gotten involved now, and they would never accept anything beyond perfection from a person who was physically capable of performing the given task. That was the nice thing about goblins. They were exacting, and arguably tougher than even Snape was, but they knew that not everyone was capable of doing everything and would never ask a blind person to see, or a paralyzed person to walk, or, as the case may be, dance. They acknowledged a person's limitations and worked within those boundaries. Harry, though, had the full function of his body and so was physically capable of dancing, meaning the excuse that he had two left feet wouldn't fly with the goblins. The champions paired off, Harry noticing then that Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Cho Chang, Cedric's girlfriend, were also present. Naturally Harry paired with Ginny and Cedric with Cho, and Harry could see that Ron wanted to pair with Hermione, but Viktor beat him to it and asked her to dance first. That left Ron with Fleur and had Harry cringing. Ron could barely say two words to Fleur, being highly affected by her allure. Not that Fleur tried to use her veela allure on purpose, but veela naturally had a small amount of allure that they couldn't control, it was just a part of who they were, and some men were very susceptible to it, such as Ron, who was making a complete fool of himself as he stepped on Fleur's toes for what must be the fifth time in as many minutes. Finally the dancing instructor sidelined him, handing him a book that outlined the steps of the dance and saying that it'd be best if he read that before trying to dance again. He then enlisted the help of Bill, which obviously delighted Fleur, who still harboured a crush for him. A crush that she appeared to be ready to do anything to make real.

"Do you see that?" Ginny hissed, glaring angrily at the French champion. Harry turned to look and saw that Fleur appeared to be glowing as she stared into Bill's eyes, her smile bright. Seeing her smile Harry felt himself go all warm inside and knew then that she was actively using her allure on Bill, and given she was looking into his eyes, Harry couldn't imagine how the older man was feeling.

"Don't do anything stupid. Your brother can take care of himself." Harry said, but Ginny was too angry that this bint would try and forcibly ensnare her brother. Just as she was about to march over there and curse Fleur, the instructor called them to a stop, saying to take a break, and they watched as Bill simply walked away, seemingly unaffected by a veela's allure. Fleur looked stunned and it was that expression that kept Ginny's wand in her pocket, but nothing would stop her from giving the other girl a piece of her mind.

"What the bloody hell was that?!" Ginny snapped at Fleur. "You dare try and enslave my brother with your allure?!"

"Eet did not work." Fleur replied, sounding a little bit like she was in a trance, as a small smile appeared on her face. "'E was completely unaffected."

"And that makes it alright for-"

"Eet was a test." Fleur still didn't look at them, continuing to look at Bill, who was now in conversation with Griphook. "I would nevair truly entrap someone with my allure, but Beel 'as always seemed so calm around me zat I 'ad to know eef 'e was affected at all. And 'e is not."

"And why did you have to know that?" Ginny asked through clenched teeth, though Harry was happy to see she was no longer on the rampage.

"Only a veela's mate is completely immune to 'er allure. Eet is magique's way of ensuring zat veela know true love. Ozairwise a veela would nevair know eef eet was 'er allure zat made a man love 'er or not." Ginny was stunned silent, which allowed Fleur to escape. She went over to Bill and with an apology to Griphook dragged him outside the pavilion, ignoring his protests.

"M-mate?" Ginny finally stammered. "She thinks Bill is her mate? I don't want to be stuck with her as a sister-in-law!"

"I don't think you have a say in who any of your potential future sisters-in-law are going to be." Harry said. "Besides, Fleur's not so bad once you actually get to know her, which you've avoided doing." Ginny groaned but knew he was right. She was still thinking of Fleur as the stuck up witch who called Harry a 'leetle boy', but Harry had actually spent time with her alongside the other champions, so was in a better position to say what she was really like.

"Alright, everyone, break is over, back to starting positions!" The dance instructor called them back to the lesson. "But where is Miss Delacour? And Mr. Krum?" The latter was a few seconds late, but was coming from outside the pavilion, a smile on his face as he held Hermione's hand. It was the blush on Hermione's cheeks, though, that drew Harry's attention. While not the smartest when it came to relationships, Harry wasn't entirely clueless and he wasn't sure he wanted to know why Hermione was blushing after spending some alone time with a boy. All he knew was that whatever had happened would not end well, a fact made only too clear when he looked over to Ron, who was glaring at the back of Viktor's head.

A/N - Sorry for the delay, wish I had an excuse...

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