I certainly have no rights to Harry Potter, but this won't stop me writing this story. However, you probably already know this. As it is my specialty, and as in my other big stories, this shows how things go if something went different right at the beginning. Please note that I'm not a fan of bashing and also don't expect the two main pairings to differ from canon. However, the path to them certainly will be quite different. I also want to try and subvert certain plots and things that became common in the fandom over the years.
For now, the story will update every second Saturday, until I say otherwise.
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Chapter 44: The First Task Sabotaged
Far away from the excitement that was Hogwarts and it hosting the Triwizard Tournament, life went on as usual in boring Little Whinging. Right at the moment Veronica was checking if Mark's school uniform was in order, knowing her son tended to slack a bit on putting it on properly, while Thomas was checking if he got all the floppy disks needed for the new software project in his company.
Their morning routine had changed over the years. First due to Harry leaving for Hogwarts, meaning he only was present when school was out, and then Mark getting older. That and him being at school had convinced Veronica to try and get back into working, even if only in a small part-time job. With one son in a boarding school and the other son also being busy with school and other things, there was less to do in the house.
Of course she also knew that it would only be a temporary thing, since she was fully planning on having another child once Mark was away at Hogwarts, but for the past two years her also getting ready for work after sending off their son to school was the new routine.
"There! I honestly wonder how you always manage to make look like you just threw it on," Veronica told her son.
"There are some secrets I won't tell, Mum," Mark told her with a small grin. "The other boys after all also never tell their mothers everything."
Watching her son pick up his school bag and then slip out of the door, Veronica sighed. "You know, Thomas, our son by now is showing quite some cheek."
Thomas only chuckled when hearing what his wife had to say. "You remember how Harry at times acted at that age?"
Veronica rolled her eyes. "Yes, I do. That's why I do pray our next child will be a girl."
"Be careful what you wish for," Thomas warned her. "Girls do have a tendency to be even more problematic. Just ask Molly how Ginny turned out to be and the gray hairs it caused her."
Veronica did remember Molly telling her how Ginny due to growing up with so many brothers became a tomboy and of the girl's constant rebellion against what she saw as overly traditional expectations on how a girl was supposed to act. She then imagined Harry and Mark similarly influencing a future sister, causing her to rebel as well.
"I wish you had not said this..." she groaned.
It was when they opened the door that a snowy owl intercepted them, looking a bit ticked off while she landed on the perch in the living room reserved for her. Veronica gasped. "Oh, sorry, Hedwig! I forgot to keep the window open for you."
Hedwig looked quite annoyed while allowing Thomas to remove Harry's letter from her leg. "Can we make it up to you later? I guess right now you want to rest after having to wait outside," he offered the owl, who looked like she wanted to hold the grudge a little longer, but her body language showed acceptance.
"I have to go to the pet shop to get a few mice for her as a proper apology," Veronica decided while they left the house. Thomas would drop her off at the train station with the car.
The work day went by without anything being out of the ordinary.
Thanks to the time of the year it was already starting to be dark when Thomas was on his way back home. Due to a road works having torn up part of the road, he had to take a detour trough Privet Drive to return home. Veronica had called him earlier to tell him that the Blacks had invited them over for the evening and it always was nice to get together with them - the twins certainly liked spending time with Mark.
However, driving into Privet Drive, he noticed something was going on, quickly stopped at the side of the street and got out of the car.
It indeed did look quite tense and even a bit dangerous. Vernon Dursley, who seemingly had just returned from work and was still wearing his suit and tie, was quite red with anger while shouting at Sirius, who clearly had been busy with cleaning his motorcycle and now gave Vernon dark looks while having his arms crossed in defiance.
"If you think you can scare me anymore because you can wave a stick around, you are wrong!" Vernon shouted, having yelled himself into a rage.
Sirius for his part snorted, obviously not being intimidated. "I don't need my 'stick' to deal with you. Did you forget what I'm doing as my job? Think carefully about what you are about to do, or you could come to regret it."
It was only that reminder that seemed to stop Vernon from from doing something he would regret later on. "One day... one day..."
Thomas watched the man retreat to his own house and he could spot Petunia at the window. She had also spotted him, but instead of the look of contempt Thomas had expected, Petunia looked... more sad than anything. Thomas was no expert about other people, but for Petunia that was highly unusual. Granted, he had not seen her for over a year in any way, but this change still was a bit concerning.
"What was that about?" Thomas asked Sirius once the two men were alone.
"Beats me. I was minding my own business washing my motorcycle when he flipped out. But that's not an isolated incident. I tell you more later this evening," Sirius promised him.
If he was being honest, Thomas feared the explanation a little.
Two hours later, after a nice dinner, Mark was upstairs with Steve and Kathleen, entertaining the twins until it was time for bed. The adults meanwhile all sat close to the fireplace - a fireplace that wasn't bricked up and didn't have one of these tacky fake fires, since Sirius knew he maybe one day could need a floo connection. They had decided to not talk about it with the children present, but now in the orange light of the fire, they could speak openly.
"All right, so what's the story behind Dursley almost trying to wring your neck? You acted not surprised," Thomas finally asked.
"Oh, his mood has been worsening for months now. He hates me for being a wizard and a boatload of other things, but his fear of magic up until now kept him in check. Something must have changed and things have been escalating in recent weeks and he's becoming more and more verbally abusive. Today was the first time I had to remind him I'm a member of the police," Sirius explained.
Veronica had listened and now looked thoughtful. "I remember Harry mentioning in his letters that Dudley has become alienated from his father. You think there is a connection?"
Diane for her part frowned. "I did notice Dudley having become quite polite to us. Compared to how he previously had been, it's a vast improvement. However, I also noticed that unlike in earlier years, he and his father stopped communicating and what I did see over the Summer was downright icy. I'm worried where this is going."
Diane was speaking from experience. While Little Whinging was a rather sleepy and peaceful community, even here Sirius and her had seen their share of cases where the root cause was a family falling apart. What was happening at the Dursleys right now had all the warning signs of it and Vernon showed all the early indicators that he was capable of something drastic.
"I know what you mean, but I also think Dudley not being present right now is keeping a lid on the worst of it. Come next summer however..." Sirius was also talking from experience.
Seeing Thomas and Veronica giving them concerned looks, Diane sighed. "Sorry, but as depressing as it is, we need to be more vigilant. Something bad is bound to happen sooner or later."
It was a somber atmosphere that concluded the evening.
...Hogsmeade, November 19th...
Once more the Hogsmeade weekend had arrived and all the students who got permission were getting ready to leave for the village. Thankfully, unlike last year the security measures were less strict, though Filch still wanted to check every single permission slip. Was it petty? Maybe. However, after last year no one would complain anymore.
"Oh man, I really can't wait to finally walk through Hogsmeade. I head a lot of stuff about it!" Colin said excitedly while checking if his camera was loaded with film.
"Don't get too excited," Harry told Colin. "Most of Hogsmeade is just boring residential houses. Next to all of the interesting stuff is on the main streets. Trust me, the novelty wears off quickly and then it's mainly for buying things and relaxing."
This did not seem to dampen Colin's anticipation. "Oh yes, buying. Dennis was a bit envious that he has to wait for two years before he can go. He actually gave me a list of things to buy for him." While he said that, Colin fished a note out of his pocket.
"Can I see?" Hermione asked and Colin did show her the list, causing her to sigh. "Just as I thought for an eleven-year old boy. Every single article on that list is from Honeydukes."
"Why would that be a problem?" Ron asked and Hermione decided to better not give him an answer at all, since that potentially could come over as her being too blunt.
Thankfully, the line moved forward at that point and soon enough they were able to leave the castle and start their trek down to Hogsmeade. After all the security last year, it was a relief that this year they could move much more freely and without fear that someone could jump them at any moment - a fear that had proven to be justified after Greyback had ambushed Harry and Ginny.
"Excuse me."
That voice carried a heavy French accent, so it had to be one of the Beauxbatons students. They acutally saw two students, a boy and a girl, approach them, and even out of uniform they recognized Fleur's two friends. They had not actually spoken with them yet, since there simply never seemed to be an opportunity.
"Oh, hello. The two of you are Fleur's friends, right? We are sorry, but she didn't tell us you names," Harry told them, hoping it didn't sound rude.
These two clearly didn't take offense. "We thought that would happen. I'm Marc Anciel and this is Sabrina Raincomprix. We won't take up much of your time for now, but we wanted to tell you something about Fleur."
"Considering she's not here, you don't want her to know," Luna observed.
The French girl grimaced. "It's not that. We only don't want you to get the wrong idea. Fleur is actually wants to speak with you again, but she is reluctant to do so. Please don't hold it against her, but after years of being a social outcast that's difficult for her."
"Yes, please give her time... a lot of it. We are sure she will come around," Marc asked.
"Yes, but should she take too long, we'll... encourage her," Sabrina added.
It was noticable that apart from the Frnech accent, those two spoke much better English than Fleur.
"Uh, all right. Can we talk a bit more when we are not in a hurry?" Ron asked, being a bit impatient, which caused Hermione to roll her eyes.
"Oh, thanks! You have no idea about some of the questions we got," Sabrina told them.
After saying their goodbyes they continued their trek, now however also thinking about what talking to the French students at length would be like. However, for now they pushed the issue aside when they reached Hogsmeade.
"Should we split as usual until we converge back at the Three Broomsticks?" Ron asked when they arrived on the main street, since it had proven to be better than them staying in one group during the visit of the village.
There were nods of agreement and Harry looked to his wrist watch. "Yes, one hour before we meet back at the three broomsticks. That should be more than enough for our shopping... Hey, take a look at that."
They did look to where Harry was looking and got quite the sight. It were Cedric and Cho Chang, and the two of them clearly were out on a date. However, the amusing part was, how resigned Cedric looked while Cho was dragging him towards one certain, very tacky tea shop. No one said anything until those two had vanished inside.
"She must be a bit of a sadist, dragging Diggory into that horrible death trap," Neville remarked, remembering Luna's reaction to Madam Puddifoot's. Luna for her part had closed her eyes and tried to keep her breathing under control, still remembering her trauma relapse when seeing that tea shop.
"Makes me wonder how that happened in the first place," Ron added. He knew too little about Cho to really be able to judge her character. Cedric on the other hand was an all right bloke in his mind. "Still, his bad luck. Maybe we can learn later if he got out of there in one piece."
After that little nugget they split to shop in peace. There was a silent agreement on the three pairs. The boys had little idea that the girls wanted it to stay that way for certain reasons.
Ginny and Harry surprisingly did not visit Honeydukes as their first thing, despite Ginny's great weakness for sweet stuff.
No, instead their first visit was to the broom supply shop. Harry wanted to see if he could get a better polishing wax, since his old one was a bit disappointing. Ginny's broom servicing kit on the other hand had recently suffered an accident thanks to Fred and George - an incident for which she had hexed their arses to burn like thousand hells - and she thus needed a replacement.
Their next two stops also were not Honeydukes. Harry needed some owl treats from the pet shop, since after her latest mail delivery Hedwig had made silent complaints about him having run out of them. Both of them also needed writing paper and new fountain pen ink, which the stationary shop had in stock.
They then relaxed on a bench for some moments before they would go to Honeydukes.
"You know, I never asked, but how exactly did Fred and George ruin your old serving kit?" Harry asked Ginny.
"How else but due to one of their prank items? They are still developing them, even at school now that they have more than enough time for it," Ginny told him, still looking annoyed. "My servicing kit looked like a paint bomb went off inside it and it was ruined. No way even magic could fix that mess."
"So that's why they had to stay overnight in the hospital wing and you got three days of detention," Harry said in realization.
"I draw the line when my stuff is destroyed. They deserved it and it was worth the detention." Ginny sat silent for some moments, before she looked to Harry. "Harry, can I ask you something?"
"Sure, Ginny. What's on you mind?" Harry asked her.
"It's rather personal..." Seeing Ginny look a bit flustered, Harry wondered what this could be about. "Harry, do you think I'm pretty?" Ginny then finally blurted out.
Harry honestly had not expected that question and at first was at a loss how to answer, but knew there were many wrong answers with disastrous results. One one hand, tomboyish Ginny was his friend of years and Ron's sister, which made it a bit awkward. Ginny was a girl who honestly had little mind for things that were seen as typically feminine like make-up, dresses and love novels, and instead seemed perfectly at ease with hanging out with the boys as one of them.
On the other hand, he had noticed how Ginny had changed physically over the past months and how his perception of Ginny had changed. He had noticed how Ginny was starting to fill out her uniform in interesting ways and especially how nice her backside all of a sudden looked to him. Ginny now very definitely was a teenage girl and he had noticed.
Thinking about it - yes, Ginny was a tomboy, she was doing all these things that would make advocates of what was thought of as traditional female roles run away in terror. Yet, Ginny's question finally opened his eyes to the fact that despite that, to him she looked way more attractive than those girls who depended on nice clothes and make-up to get the same effect. Let her play Quidditch, let her be splattered with mud or let her curse loudly, it did not take away from the fact that Ginny was a pretty girl.
I better don't tell Ron. She's his sister after all. Harry then noticed another effect his realization got on him. Crap, if that persists, I imagine I'll visit toilet stalls often in the future.
Harry then finally looked to Ginny. "Ginny... I honestly can't speak for how others see you... But yes, to me you are a pretty girl."
Ginny's eyes widened, feeling that Harry was indeed honest about it, then suddenly she scooted over to Harry's side of the bench and hugged him. "Thank you! Thank you! You have no idea how much that means to me!"
It indeed meant a lot to her. However, after some moments she noticed what she was doing and let go, blushing a little at her impulsive action. "Ehm... oops?"
Harry, while still being surprised by Ginny's reaction, was not offended. "You know... that actually felt really nice."
Becoming acutely aware that right at the moment they were two awkward teenagers of opposite genders, they decided that a distraction was needed. "To Honeydukes!" they both decided at once.
Thankfully, their excursion to the sweet shop - as well as some chocolate after both of them were done in it - helped them to calm down and they then went to meet with their friends in the Three Broomsticks at the time agreed on with the others.
The Three Broomsticks was full as usual during Hogsmeade weekends, though right now it was even fuller than normal due to the tournament going on and the first task not being far off. Thankfully, an "Over here!" from Neville showed them a table where their other friends already sat, two seats still empty.
"Thanks for saving the seats for us. This is much worse than normal," Harry thanked them while sitting down.
"Wouldn't we know it? By the way, thank Hermione that you even got a seat. She had the idea to book the table first thing after we parted ways," Ron told Harry and Ginny.
"Which shows that planning ahead is not as dumb as you sometimes seem to think it is," Hermione added, looking very pleased when Ginny and Harry did thank her for thinking ahead.
They got interrupted when a serving girl - clearly Madam Rosmerta felt she needed help due to booming business - put six big mugs of cold, foamy butterbeer onto their table. They were about to ask when she said that it's already been paid for, leaving them wondering what that was about, when suddenly they saw Professor Slughorn approach their table.
"I hope the six of you don't mind me paying for your drinks," he told the six, while clearly holding a mug with a pint of actual ale in his hand.
That came out of nowhere for them, and it was Hermione who finally asked the important question. "We don't mind, thank you, Professor. However, what is the occasion for this generosity?"
"Ohh, it's because I needed to have a word with all of you. You see, I had planned to introduce you again to interesting people at the big come-together before Christmas. Sadly, sadly, something planned by the tournament made my own plans moot. How unlucky!" Slughorn was a bit more theatrical than normal, most likely due to the alcohol.
"This is very sad for you, Professor," Luna said, being comically serious about it.
"Yes, indeed. However, a Horace Slughorn does adapt! Be prepared for a surprise... Oh, and please dress well, since you want to make a good impression," Slughorn said cryptically. "Also, there will be small informal gatherings of the Slug Club starting the new year. The foundation is laid and we most certainly can help each other."
That said, Slughorn left and they saw several teachers at the table that he returned to.
"I honestly wonder what that was about?" Ginny wondered, then drank some of her butterbeer. "Still, nice of him to buy us betterbeer. That really hit the spot."
"He mentioned dressing well. I can harbor a guess that it concerns the event we had to buy evening wear for. Knowing Professor Slughorn, he hijacked part of it to insert his own touch into whatever the school is planning," Hermione guessed.
"Hey, look over there!" Ron suddenly said.
They all looked and saw a surprising sight.
They did see Hagrid enter and then hold the door open like a gentleman to allow Madame Maxime easy entrance as well (though of course both of them still had to duck so they wouldn't hit their heads). Hagrid had gotten rid of that atrocity of a suit and instead was wearing a much better one in more neutral colors. It clearly was a special comission and he actually looked quite sharp in it.
Watching them walk to a clearly reserved table, they found the whole thing surprisingly moving. "Looks like Hagrid heeded our advice. Both of them certainly look like they have a good time," Ron remarked.
"Hagrid most certainly deserves some happiness, considering how much grief his ancestry got him. This is his only chance to experience something like that," Hermione adeed while they watched those two getting each a pint of ale and Maxime taking a swig. "Despite how she normally shows class, Maxime doesn't seem above relaxing like that."
"That's good for Hagrid. We both know she has to return to France eventually, but maybe they can make it work somehow?" Neville wondered.
At a different table meanwhile, another pair was enjoying their own butterbeer.
People who disliked Draco and Pansy would be surprised to see that these two also knew how to relax and have a good time completely without any scheming. Just a teenage boy and girl enjoying a little come-together, though it could hardly be called romantic due to how crowded the pub was.
"Thank you again for sending these two idiots away. These two always pull down the mood," Pansy told Draco while drinking her butterbeer through a straw, unwilling to get foam onto her face.
"I didn't want them along for this , and to be honest, if not for my parents insisting, I would have gotten rid of them by now for good. They say it's important to appease these two families," Draco explained, not looking broken that he'd managed to ditch Crabble and Goyle for the Hogsmeade visit.
Pansy looked a bit confused. "Why are they even insisting on appeasing the Crabbles and Goyles? These two families, while pure-blood, are full of imbeciles."
"Dumb muscle and useful idiots, my parents said. Appeasing them costs next to nothing as well, though it means I'm stuck with these two for three more years." Draco didn't look happy with the idea.
"Well, enough about them." Pansy leaned a little closer to Draco. "It's actually quite nice, you and me together. You continue to stick up for me despite your parents still not liking me being close to you."
Draco knew his parents had softened their stance on Pansy after the whole chamber affair, but there still was a dislike that most likely would never go away. "They tried to tell me who I can be friends with, and as much as I respect them, it's my business alone who I'm friends with."
"Mhhh, that's what I like in you. You are strong and determined, not letting your parents dictate your life," Pansy told him with a small smile, leaning towards him a bit further so her chest was at a better viewing angle.
Draco for his part of course had noticed the physical changes Pansy had gone through over the past year - since he himself also was going through changes - but only now became acutely aware of them. As a prepubescent girl, Pansy had been somewhat plain-looking, but this was now changing rapidly, puberty being good to her.
Draco was a bit startled that he started to see her in a different way, but decided to go with the flow. After all, it wasn't that he disliked these changes.
o
Unlike other students, Dudley and Millicent had decided to visit the Three Broomsticks first before doing their purchases in Hogsmeade, thus they had left it mere minutes before Harry's friends had walked into it, missing them entirely. They were right now walking down the main street.
"Daphne could have found a better excuse for not being with us in Hogsmeade. Astoria can't even visit Hogsmeade yet. She could just have said that she wanted to give us a little alone time," Millicent remarked, rolling her eyes.
"Recently she has become a bit push when it comes to both of us," Dudley said with a sigh. "Don't get me wrong, there is a lot about you that's very likable, but I want it to be our own decision only."
That caused Millicent to stop. "Dudley... do you find me... attractive?"
Don't mess it up now, Duds! You thought about that often enough, Dudley told himself, part of him having dreaded this moment.
Gathering his courage, he decided to be honest. "One has to be blind to not find you attractive. Millie, can I be frank and crass about it?"
Already flattered by that admission, Millicent nodded, waiting what Dudley had to say.
No going back now... "Millie, people saying you are growing to become an Amazon really mean it. You have a beautiful face with very kissable lips. Yes, you are quite muscular, but you also have nicely developing curves and it combines wonderfully with your feminine softness. You have a nice, full arse and your breasts are sure to grow the size of melons. Yes, you are a hell of an attractive girl."
Yes, it was quite crass, but to Millicent that was the most beautiful thing someone had ever said about her. She suddenly hugged Dudley. "This... this was the most beautiful thing someone ever said about me. Thank you so much!"
Dudley blushed a little when she gave him a kiss onto the cheek. "It's... not only that. I admit it helps, but what attracts me the most is your good heart. I know it sounds corny..."
"I ... don't ... care that it sounds corny!" Millicent whispered into his ear, before letting go of him.
Both of them were trying to process what had just happened. This was a significant step and it had changed things between them. It had come out of nowhere and what it meant was only slowly reaching their brains. Granted, it meant nothing bad, but both of them were a bit overwhelmed by this sudden change in their relationship.
However, before they could think further about it... "OUGH!"
The moment was shattered when out of nowhere they got attacked, causing other pedestrians to scream and try to get distance. Despite the pain from the first against his jaw, Dudley's instincts and training took over and he threw a haymaker towards his attacker, his fist colliding perfectly, causing his attacker to back off a bit.
"Grrr, YOU?!" Dudley growled when recognizing Crabble as his attacker.
To make matters worse, he saw that Millicent got attacked as well - her by Goyle - and while she also had managed to fend off the attack, she was bleeding from her mouth. Nonetheless, the girl looked majorly pissed off, looking downright ready to take Goyle apart for this unprovoked attack.
Things got ugly after this.
Crabble and Goyle might be big and strong, but so were Dudley and Millicent. To make matters worse for them, they had no actual fighting training, while Dudley and Millicent had learned how to attack, punch and fight more effectively. While Crabble and Goyle could still manage to score some hits, they received at least triple the number in return. The dimwitted duo clearly had not expected that outcome.
Dudley was trying to keep his anger under control while hitting Crabble with precise hits, the other boy having no concept of fighting beyond hitting hard, and thus had next to no defense against Dudley's attacks. Millicent meanwhile made up for the fact that she had less training with a rain of strikes powered by her fury over this unprovoked attack. If Goyle had thought this would be easy due to her being a girl, he was was proven to be very wrong.
Finally, Crabble and Goyle were beaten green and blue and got sent to the ground. They were trying to get up, when...
-Bang!- "Break it up! Break it up!" Two Aurors had arrived and most certainly did not look impressed.
The whole episode meant that all four of them, after first being sent to Madam Pomfrey to get them patched up properly, were being escorted to the office of the Headmaster.
Granted, he had been in this room before, but that had been during the whole basilisk crisis and he had a good reason to be here. This time however it more felt like when he was in the Headmaster's office during primary school, even though he now was the injured party. He also realized that the Headmaster looking disappointed was something he didn't want to experience again.
After the whole clusterfuck all four of them had been marched to Dumbledore's office, where they had given their version of what had happened. Crabble and Goyle of course tried to lie and make it sound like Millicent and him had attacked them, but it was a pretty weak lie, which also was due to both of them not being very bright in getting their facts straight.
As it stood right now, there were two conflicting versions and only one could be the truth.
Dumbledore clearly was unhappy with the situation. "I see, so both parties accuse each other of attacking first."
McGonagall and Slughorn didn't look happy about it, either. Their weekend got interrupted by this incident since as the head of the impacted house and the Headmaster's Deputy they had to be present for this. Of course everyone knew that Crabble and Goyle were problem students, but due to the chaos when the Aurors had pulled them apart, it was difficult to also prove it.
"Sir..." Dudley finally asked after having gathered his courage. "Isn't there any way we can prove our version of events? After all, there were dozens of witnesses."
Dumbledore noticed the looks McGonagall and Slughorn were giving him. His nonverbal answer was clear: he would not violate the privacy of his students with Legilimency. However, there were other, non-intrusive ways. "There certainly is one. While we could call upon witnesses easy enough, I have something that can shed light on this affair right away."
Walking over to a black cabinet, Dumbledore pulled out something and put it onto his desk. It was a shallow stone basin, odd carvings of runes and symbols running around his edge. "This is a pensive. To make a long story short, this is an artifact which can replay extracted memories. Thankfully, this is not a court of law, so the procedure is easy. I need one of you to volunteer."
Of course Crabble and Goyle knew they could hardly volunteer without revealing they had lied. Only now did they realize that their hare-brained idea of attacking the pair - a decision that was spur of the moment, driven by the hope that it would show Draco they are doing something - was about to backfire and they got the bad feeling the day wouldn't end well for them.
Dudley was about to raise his hand, when Millicent jumped up. "I'll do it! Anything to prove our innocence."
Despite the situation, Dumbledore was a little amused. "You enthusiasm in honor, Miss Bulstrode, just think of the incident while I touch the tip of my wand against your temple."
Millicent did as told and then almost jumped when the Headmaster seemed to pull silver, hair-like wisps out of her head, gently depositing them in the pensive. "This feels strange. I still know it happened, but there is a void where the memory should be."
"Don't worry, I will return it to you once we are done with examining the evidence. We will replay it instead of going into the pensive of course." That said, Dumbledore used his wand to make the pensive replay the memory.
Of course it did replay the true events of how Dudley and Millicent had minded their own business and got a new understanding about their relationship - something they wished the adults had not seen - until they suddenly got ambushed by Crabble and Goyle for no reason whatsoever. It showed them defending themselves and overpowering their attackers. The memory ended when the authorities arrived.
Dubledore said nothing, instead nodded to Slughorn. The man looked very disappointed as well. "Mr. Crabble, Mr. Goyle, attacking other students physically like that is a severe matter. Should something like that ever happen again, the Headmaster WILL expel you. Both of you do get a whole month with Mr. Filch. Now follow me."
Hearing the normally laid-back Slughorn being so chilly shut both boys up and they quietly followed their Head of House out of the office.
Dumbledore meanwhile had transfered the memory into a drinking glass. "Here, Miss Bulstrode. I think you can harbor a guess what you have to do to regain the memory."
Millicent looked a little skeptical at the glass, but then decided to get over with it and drank all of it in one go. "This feels weird... Like a hole in my head is being filled. Now I again remember all of it."
"Thank you that you actually put in the effort. Others would have just looked for the most convenient party to put the blame on," Dudley thanked the Headmaster.
"It was no problem, Mr. Dursley. After all, I always want to ensure justice is done." Dumbledore said that due to also remembering his predecessor Dippet, who sadly had been in the habit of simply assigning blame as an easy way out. The way his portrait tried to look away made it clear it understood the meaning of the words.
A little later students were returning from Hogsmeade and got greeted with a highly amusing sight - for them.
Crabble and Goyle were being busy with cleaning the great stairs... with toothbrushes. Both boys looked really unhappy, but didn't dare to say anything due to being watched by Argus Filch, who sat on a nearby chair, passing the time with reading a novel when not checking if the boys were doing their work. His cat Mrs. Norris also hissed at the boys whenever they started to slack off.
"Better put in more effort, you two delinquents. You have four more hours ahead of you, and this is only day one. I know of a lot of things that have to be done around the castle. I know all about little hooligans like you and how they only learn by literally having to hold crap in their hands," Filch told them when looking up from his literature.
When Pansy and Draco returned, Pansy took one look at it and rolled her eyes. Draco for his part just said "Buttheads..." and left them to their self-inflicted fate. He could ask them later what the hell they had done.
...November 23rd...
"Reminds me of our earlier years. Just the two of us and whatever we came up with," Ginny said while she leaned onto the stone railing, looking over an interior yard of Hogwarts. The sight was breathtaking, but she saw little of it as distracted as she was.
"Mhh, yes. It is kind of sad that we never again will have the same freedom that we enjoyed during those days. Our responsibilities will only grown instead of getting smaller," Luna replied while being busy with something.
Ginny glanced to Luna fiddling with a badge. "Luna, what is that?"
Looking up, Luna showed her the badge, which displayed the words 'I support Cedric Diggory, the Hogwarts Champion'. "The Hufflepuffs have been giving these out the whole day, now that the first task is so close. Very supportive of them, but I'm trying to find out if the words can be changed with an enchantment."
"Why would you do that?" Ginny asked, since at times Luna's thought processes could be strange.
"It would be highly embarrassing for us to wear them, only for them to suddenly proclaim their support for a different champion... or display profanity," Luna explained her reasoning. "It also made me wonder if someone could use the enchantment on books to falsify their content. You can never know, after all."
While the latter part sounded like one of Luna's typical conspiracy theories - though the implications were frightening - the first part was a real concern. "Don't tell Fred and George. No need to invite them actually trying to enchant the badges."
Luna gave Ginny a deep look, then put the badge away. "You most certainly did not want to talk with me about that. You are unsure about something and need advice from me as your oldest friend and a girl."
"Sometimes it's scary how easy you see through people..." Ginny said, these blue eyes behind the glasses seemingly spotting her inner secrets easily. "You see... in Hogsmeade I asked Harry out of the blue if I'm pretty."
Luna's expression didn't change. "How did he answer?"
Now Ginny could no longer suppress it and started to blush. "He said yes... to him I do look pretty. Then I hugged him before I realized what I'm doing."
"Then where is the problem?" Luna asked.
Ginny thanked all goodness for Luna's bluntness. She always cut to the core of the problem right away, thus saving a lot of time. "Look, I wanted him to give me that kind of attention, but now that I'm actually getting it... all of a sudden I'm getting insecure about myself."
Now Luna blinked, clearly being a bit astonished at that admission. "You have nothing to be insecure about."
Ginny sighed. "Luna, I'm not like you. If you want something, you say so outright and you are not as concerned about social norms as other people. Which reminds me that maybe you should take a closer look at yourself. I know you feel something for Neville, but with that topic you suddenly got a mouth blockade when talking to him."
Now Luna did lose her cool and actually blushed, which was very prominent on her pale skin. "While I do spend a lot of time with him... it's surprisingly difficult for me to admit my feelings to him. I tried... but at the last moment always keep it more general."
Having pity with her friend, Ginny put a hand onto Luna's shoulder. "If you ask me, don't force it. The right moment will come all on its own and you'll know when that is."
"If you think so..." Luna's blush didn't lessen and she played a little with her fingers. "But what about you? What are you insecure about in regards to Harry?"
Now it was Ginny's turn to blush, her feeling that her face wanted to match her hair color. "Ever since he said he sees me as pretty... I've started to wonder if I should try to be less of a tomboy. I know it sounds dumb and I never did so before, but I fear I couldn't be feminine enough..."
Ginny stopped when Luna put her hands onto her shoulders. "Ginny, you are my best friend... but at times you can be really dumb and I have to set you straight." Ginny looked shocked but said nothing. "Harry likes the girl who plants her arse onto a broom and plays Quidditch, the girl who thinks nothing about getting splattered from head to toe in mud and the girl he thinks is pretty even without a shred of make-up. He likes Ginny the tomboy. To him you already are feminine, though in a different way."
It was highly unusual for Luna to be so verbal, proof of how strongly she felt about this. "You are right, I was dumb... But it can't hurt to pretty up a bit further once in a while, right?"
Luna blinked, imagining herself prettying up and Neville's reaction. "Maybe for special occasions..."
Both girls still blushed, testament how emotional the whole thing was for them. "Getting our bodies flooded with estrogen is really stressful at time," Ginny then admitted, finding puberty to be quite taxing at times.
"I have to agree." Luna herself was amazed how emotional she had become. "It causes me to do all kind of things I never before thought about." If anything Luna now became as red as a tomato. "As a result I need to wash my hands more often and use up more tissues. I also hope the elves don't check the linen basket too closely."
Ginny needed a moment before she understood and became redder as well. "I know... I have the same urges and any girl who says she doesn't do that is a liar."
Thing was, Ginny had even spotted Hermione in recent months vanish into toilet stalls more often than normal, and since Hermione didn't have a bladder weakness, it was pretty obvious what the girl was doing in there. Granted, it was a natural part of puberty, but after Luna's little confession she honestly didn't want to imagine Hermione doing that.
After all, she could only take so much in one day.
...the next day, Defense class...
Today's class of double Defense - the final class of this Thursday - already promised to be different from normal. As soon as Moody had walked in, he had ordered them to leave their bags where they were, pick up their wands and follow him. That was unusual enough that no one questioned that order - though they in general never questioned Moody's orders after the first week.
"Where do you think he is taking us?" Neville wondered while they walked down a corridor.
"No idea, but it must be something special if he's doing this," Ron answered, wondering what the answer to that mystery was.
They walked down a few more corridors before many recognized where they were. "We are walking to the Chamber of Secrets. That over there is the door to Myrtle's bathroom."
Indeed, said ghost, clearly having heard the noise, poked her head through the door to see what this was about. "Oh, I had not expected a whole class walk down here at this time of the day."
Moody acknowledged her with a grunt, his magical eye homing in on her. "Going down to the chamber. Don't you have anything better to do, lass?"
That caused Myrtle to giggle. "No... and I think I'll simply tag along!" She then phased through the bathroom door fully and joined the end of the row. Moody clearly wasn't thrilled, but knew there was little he could do about it.
"All right, we are going down into the chamber, which I understand since we do use it for the Dueling Club, but that can't be all. There has to be something else," Harry speculated, feeling Moody wouldn't make all this effort just for using a different place for the lesson.
"Who knows? Ever since the very first class he's proven to be full of surprises," Ron said with a shrug.
Down they walked the stairs until reaching the corridor that led to the Chamber of Secrets. For those who had been down here during the crisis surrounding the Heir of Slytherin, the contrast was still glaring. Back then the corridor had been a ruin, looking like it could collapse at any moment. Now all of it was solid stone work and well-lit as well. The school had worked really hard to not only make it safe, but also to look welcoming.
It was when they entered the chamber itself that they saw the actual surprise.
"What the...? Am I seeing things?" Harry blurted out when seeing Remus and Dora waiting for them.
"No, both of us are very real," Remus replied, looking quite pleased with that reaction. Pulling a surprise on Harry had become more difficult over the years, but this one clearly was a success.
Basically everyone tried to ask questions at that point, fondly remembering how Remus and Dora had been really helpful the previous year. Moody had none of that. "Silence!" That command made everyone shut up. "Now, as you see, this here is the surprise. Most certainly not what you expected?"
The Ravenclaw Oliver Rivers was brave enough to raise his hand for a question. "Professor... how is that possible? I distinctly remember Mr. Lupin being forced to resign." He made little secret how highly he thought of Remus, being muggleborn and having gone through the preschool.
"Yes, he was forced to resign. However, he just isn't employed by the school now. He is a volunteer wanting to help with the lessons on occasion - meaning every second week. Nothing forbids the school from accepting qualified people being guest lecturers." It was pretty obvious Moody was quite pleased by that legal loophole.
"When I offered your Professor to help out in his lessons, he gladly accepted my offer. It's very humbling that I can still contribute to your education, even after the events of last year," Remus told them, though he could read the mood: everyone was excited to see him again.
I know right away that this will step on the toes of a number of people. I guess Dumbledore wants to show a big middle finger to the Ministry, Harry thought, knowing the usual suspects wouldn't be happy with this development.
"As for Auror Tonks here..." Moody then made it clear Dora had to explain.
"Oh, no big secret here. Mad-Eye just politely asked if he can borrow me for lessons from time to time, and my superior was eager to let me. Do not think I will go easy on you - especially not in front of my mentor," Dora warned them with a smirk.
"Please don't tell me we again get our arses zapped," Padma Patil said with a grimace, remembering Dora's slightly sadistic streak when dishing out that actually harmless punishment.
Now Dora actually chuckled. "Some harmless encouragement is never wrong."
After several months of Moody's lessons they all knew that she had to have gotten that slightly mean streak from Moody - though she was honest in that she only used it as a way to motivate the students, not to actually torment them. There after all was a difference between tough teaching and being an actual sadist.
Moody looked to Myrtle. "If you want to make yourself useful, tell them what they did wrong when they get sent to fall onto their arses."
"Ohh, don't worry, I'll keep a close eye on everyone," Myrtle promised.
No one knew what to think about Myrtle basically being given the go ahead to ogle them. They just thanked the heavens that this was the final class of the day, meaning they directly afterward could recover from what was awaiting them.
...November 26th, Hogwarts Quidditch pitch...
Finally, the day of the first task in the Triwizard Tournament had arrived. The stands of the Quidditch pitch were filled to capacity with not only students but also numerous other spectators who had gained admission to watch the tournament live - of course only after paying an outrageous sum for the right. The press was present as well in significant numbers, the limited number of press slots having almost literally been fought over.
Up in the stands, the six friends were making themselves comfortable, having brought along snack foods and drinks - vendors for those having gotten a special permit for the days of the tasks and thus having erected their tents right next to the entrances to the pitch. It was still a bit before the task would officially start and no one yet knew what it actually would be about. The champions at least were not in sight. However, some rather strange-looking structures had been erected on the pitch.
"I honestly wonder what these elevated platforms are about? Also, what are these things on them? They do look a bit like bath tubs, but I highly doubt someone wants to take a bath there," Ron observed, scratching his head at the unusual set-up.
"Bath tubs...?" Hermione sometimes wondered how Ron came up with such comparisons. "I do recognize the uniforms of the three men beside each of these big stone basins. Unspeakables. Whatever those things are, they are complicated enough to require their presence."
"Whatever they are, the platforms are high enough to almost be on our level," Harry observed while munching on some crispy flakes.
Indeed, the platforms did stand on wooden towers high enough that they almost were on eye level with the stands. Besides the wooden platform towers, there also was a long table down on the pitch, at which the five judges sat. In the middle of the pitch was a wooden dias with three small pillars, each holding a golden sphere on top of it. Each of the three pillars also had the coat of arms of one of the three competing schools fastened to it.
"Ah, there you are! Thanks for keeping these seats reserved for us."
Looking up, they saw their three friends from Slytherin. Like them, they were loaded with snacks and drinks. "It was no problem. Not after you asked so nicely since you were further back in the line," Neville told them while they sat down.
"Hello, tiger. Or maybe I should call you Big D? Your little clash with the moronic duo is still the talk of the school besides the tournament," Harry greeted Dudley with amusement.
"Harry, please no nicknames!" Dudley pleaded, holding up his hands defensively. "I've heard my share of them over the past days and have grown sick of them." He then looked to Millicent. "The same goes for Millie."
"Oh, that's too bad. Millicent, did you know that numerous girls actually admire you for beating up Goyle instead of being victimized by him?" Ginny asked Millicent.
That actually was news to Millicent. "That's the first time I've heard of that. What are they saying?"
"Many girls have to admit they wouldn't have been strong or brave enough to defend themselves like you did, feeling that they perhaps have misjudged you. Some even try to find out how they can get as strong as you are," Luna explained.
Millicent looked utterly surprised at that reaction and Daphne patted her on the back. "See? I told you one day these girls would be forced to eat crow and admit that being a tall and strong girl does have its advantages."
-dong dong dong- -dong dong dong-
"Looks like it's about to start," Neville said and the crowd went silent when hearing the bell.
"Yes, and sadly it's Bagman who's about to speak," Hermione said, not even bothering to hide her distaste for the man. Bagman indeed walked up to the horn that normally was used for commentary on Quidditch matches, and which for this occasion was located close to the central dias.
"It could be worse. We should all be thankful that the Minister is content with just watching for now," Harry reminded everyone, looing to where Fudge had made himself comfortable in the seat normally reserved for the Headmaster.
"Welcome, welcome!" Bagman greeted everyone. "I bet all of you have waited in anticipation, but the time has finally arrived for the first task of the Triwizard Tournament! Ohhh, I can hear the question how we will even watch the task, since the champions are not present? ... Watch!"
With these words, the Unspeakables next to the big stone basins drew their wands and tapped the bowls. White mist arose from whatever liquid was stored in these basins, but to everyone's surprise, the steam from each basin showed a picture, as if using a television - and it worked from every viewing angle. The transmitted pictures clearly were from the air - people on brooms - and showed Cedric, Krum and Fleur waiting at something that looked like a starting line. There however was no sound.
"Impressive, isn't it?! All of you can watch the champions from here... Although as great as this is, it sadly has little real practical use, since apart from the lack of sound it can't broadcast for more than 20 kilometers." Bagman clearly had went off-script for the last part.
"That explains why we haven't seen any of this before. No chance this can keep up with the telly, so it's useless for any sort of mass media," Dudley remarked when hearing that admission.
"It's a little funny that my communication mirror has more reach and sound on top of it. Makes me wonder who cooked up such a flawed system," Harry added, wondering if that broadcast system was some sort of white elephant.
Bagman for his part tried to raise the anticipation even more. "The first task our champions have to go through is an iron man race, where they have to show strength, daring and smarts to reach this stadium and claim their prize! Through the forest on the other side of the lake and over the lake itself before finally reaching here!"
The pictures zoomed in on the champions.
"I understand why Delacour looks nervous, and there's little chance to read Krum, but why does Cedric look like he'd bitten into a lemon?" Daphne wondered.
At the starting line meanwhile the why for Cedric's lowered mood was more obvious. He was still thinking about Bagman actually approaching him and trying to spoil the obstacles on his path, so that he could prepare perfectly. Of course he'd told the man to get lost, since he wanted to win fair and square, but he had a feeling Bagman would try again.
I wonder what his game is? Cedic thought while waiting for the signal to get ready, glancing up to the witches on brooms holding the transmission crystals.
The other two champions also were waiting in their own way.
Fleur was indeed nervous, now that things were getting serious. After all, all of Magical France would learn if she screws this up - no pressure, right? At least all three of them had been told in advance to wear clothes well-suited for a run through the forest, since she sincerely doubted that a skirt would have been practical in this situation. She had also put her long hair into a bun, knowing it otherwise would be in danger.
Krum for his part tried to not show any emotion. Karkaroff had approached him before they had left for the starting line, again telling him that he's competing for the glory of Durmstrang. Of course Krum knew that in reality this meant Karkaroff's glory, the man always trying to attach himself to him like a leech. He would do his best, but not for Karkaroff.
"All three of you get ready!" the Ministry official said, looking at his pocket watch. The champions waited. "3... 2... 1... GO!"
Everyone watched all three champions start their race through the forest, each of them on a separate path. At first it looked like a normal run, until the first obstacle appeared. "Well, it wouldn't be a task without obstacles, right?!"
"Woah, all these branches trying to snatch them look like the children of the late Whomping Willow," Neville gasped at the sight. "And... ouch, they are not gentle."
"However, look closely. While the branches most certainly cause them injury, their main objective seems to ensnare them and hold them in place," Luna observed.
Indeed, unlike the late willow, which would have tried to rip them into pieces, the worst the champions were getting were nasty scratches, although the blood still was not a nice sight. All three of them finally got rid of them problem in their own way. Kurm set the trees on fire, causing the branches to die. Fleur used severing charms to cut her way through, while Cedric used a miniature tornado to break the branches. The race then continued.
Crap, that had hurt, Cedric thought while following the marked path. He then stopped when seeing the next obstacle. "You've got to be kidding me!"
The next obstacle was a pit. Not especially deep, but containing half a dozen creatures the size of a small dog sporting some impressive teeth. In the stadium, Bagman heard the gasps. "Oh, don't you worry. While falling into the pit would be highly unpleasant, the worst these critters will give them are several nasty bite wounds before they back off... hopefully. Of course that is not exactly good for your health."
"Any of you has any idea what those are supposed to be? They look like shrunk-down wolves," Millicent asked, shivering a little at the sight.
Hermione shook her head. "I know Hagrid has a weakness for strange creatures, so he probably supplied them. But I honestly have no idea what those are; I only know I never want to meet them."
All three champions clearly had no wish to end up in that pit, either, and seemed to ponder how to get to the other side. Suddenly...
"Eh, I know there is no sound, but doesn't it look like Fleur is singing?" Harry wondered.
Indeed, Fleur was singing and to the amazement of everyone, the critters sat down and went to sleep. Fleur then carefully jumped down into the pit and walked to the other side, avoiding stepping onto the sleeping critters, before she started to climb up the other side. They speculated that since she was partially Veela, she also maybe had a singing power like a siren. These after all were related species.
Meanwhile, Cedric and Krum both had solved their problem in other ways. Cedric had conjured a rope that was magically tied to a thick branch above him and then swung over the pit like Tarzan, though one critter jumping up had almost bitten him in the ass. Krum for his part had made the soles of his boots very bouncy and after a running start managed to jump straight over the pit - though the landing was a bit undignified.
"They DID IT! But of course the dangers are far from being over!"
"I would give something for him to shut up," Ron complained, finding Bagman's commentary annoying.
"He reminds me of football commentators on the telly that state the obvious," Dudley added. "All of this is a bit like a real-life adaption of American Gladiators." That comparison of course caused questioning looks, forcing Dudley to explain.
The champions by now were wary what other obstacles this iron man race would put into their way.
Не е толкова лесно, колкото се опасявах, че може да бъде, [It's not as easy as I feared it could be,] Krum thought. For his part he was glad for the challenge and also relieved that they weren't making them do something insane like fighting a dragon.
Right then the next obstacle came in sight. "Мамка му!" [Damn it!] he cursed.
Two goblins in full armor were blocking the path. "Е, няма да минеш. Радвайте се, че не ни е позволено да ви навредим, но и на вас не е позволено да ни наранявате. По-добре измисли нещо," [Well, you won't pass. Be glad we are not allowed to harm you, but you also are not allowed to harm us. Better think of something,] one of the goblins told him with a smirk in perfect Bulgarian.
"Now, not always is brute force the solution to your problems! How can they pass without using violence?"
"I wonder how much they must have paid the goblins for this?" Daphne wondered, knowing goblins were proud people and their services not cheap.
"Maybe we don't even want to know." Millicent for her part was relieved that violence was forbidden in that encounter on both sides. Goblins were said to be especially nasty in a fight.
Everyone waited how the champions would solve that dilemma; getting by the goblins without using violence. Fleur seemed to sigh, then all of a sudden the goblins looked all too eager to let her pass. It was very obvious that her allure also worked on goblins - though instead of finding her attractive, they only became really polite - and Fleur had reluctantly used it to pass. Cedric meanwhile had clearly resorted to a strong tickle charm, both goblins collapsing in laughter, allowing him to pass. Krum on the other hand must have concluded that tying them up did not count as violence, conjured ropes binding both goblins, allowing him to pass as well.
C'était trop facile, [That was too easy,] Fleur thought. They were getting close to the lake, so she was expecting a stumbling block very soon.
The path was blocked by black flames and sitting at a table next to the path was an old crone. "Bienvenu Cheri. Désolé, mais ton sex-appeal ne t'aidera pas avec moi," [Welcome, dear. Sorry, but your sex appeal won't help you with me,] she greeted Fleur.
Fleur had expected that after the previous obstacle had been too easy. "Que dois-je faire?" [What am I to do?] she asked.
The crone pointed at the seven differntly shaped bottels on the table, then at the scroll next to them. "Résolvez le puzzle et buvez dans la bonne bouteille, et vous pourrez passer. Buvez dans la mauvaise bouteille et vous serez transformé en grenouille. Oh, ne t'inquiète pas, je vais te refouler et il ne t'arrivera rien de mal, mais je vais prendre mon temps et tu dois encore trouver la bonne bouteille." [Solve the puzzle and drink from the correct bottle, and you can pass. Drink from the wrong bottle and you'll be turned into a frog. Oh, don't worry, I will turn you back and no harm will come to you, but I'll take my sweet time and you still have to find the correct bottle.]
"Ahhh, a test of the brains. Now, this could cause some interesting results, so let us watch..." In order to make it easier for the audience to also try to solve the puzzle, the setup of the bottles was shown, as well as the puzzle itself.
"Indeed, not an easy puzzle. It is too bad that many wizards are not good at logic and I honestly can't see them solve it on the first try," Luna observed, clearly already going through the puzzle in her mind.
"Want to give it a try?" Ron asked Hermione while seeing how many Ravenclaws were already busy with trying to find the solution.
"I'm already on it..." It took Hermione several minutes, but she found the answer before the champions did. "It's the smallest bottle. Now let's see if any of them gets it on the first try."
None of them did manage it on the first try, all three of them spending almost two minutes as a frog before being turned back to their natural form; all three of them being shaken by the nasty experience.
-waahhhrggll- Fleur evacuated the contents of her stomach into a bush at the side of the path. Being transfigured into an animal - which was distinctively different from an animagus ability - was a terrible experience, especially since it felt like losing yourself to a void. No wonder she now had to vomit. The old crone chuckling at her predicament didn't help, either.
Since she had narrowed it down to two choices, she took the other bottle and this time the fire did vanish. "Continue," [Go on,] the crone told her.
"Looks like Mademoiselle Delacour is the first to solve the puzzle! Does that mean she can gain a lead over the others? After all, the path to the shore is not called 'the gauntlet' for nothing!"
'The gauntlet' was a fitting name for the path down to the shore of the lake. It was like everything was trying to stop Fleur, from the plants down to overly aggressive rodents. It took her liberal use of her magic - as well as some well-placed kicks - to fight her way through this onslaught. She knew by now she was not looking like a beauty with her clothes torn in many places, being covered in dirt, having bleeding scratches and wounds all over and her hair looking like a rat's nest. However, she already had the shore in sight and the gauntlet behind her.
Suddenly something wrapped itself around her ankles, causing her to fall! "Wahhh! Zut alors!" Roots had wrapped themselves around her ankles and were trying to drag her back up the path. Struggling, she tried to pick up her lost wand.
"People, am I imagining things, or do the judges look a bit strange after seeing this?" Neville asked.
Indeed, not only did Madame Maxime and Mr. Castamere look baffled, but Bagman also seemed at a loss at this final trap, as if he had not expected it in the first place. Other officials also looked like it had caught them on the wrong foot, especially since Fleur seemed to struggle a lot while finally having gotten hold of her wand, starting to cut the roots.
"Really weird. But it certainly has cost Fleur, since the other two are about to reach the shore themselves," Harry remarked, seeing the progress Cedric and Krum were making.
Indeed, while Fleur was still busy with freeing herself, Cedric and Krum had already reached the shore, each of them seeing a small rowing boat, which obviously was meant for them to cross the lake with. They just had to push it into the water and start rowing.
"Well, this is the final challenge before the run into the stadium, but don't think it will be easy. After all, the merpeople in the lake have agreed to make it difficult if the champions take too long! A bath in the lake in November most certainly is not great, though of course they won't let our champions drown."
Indeed, when Cedric and Krum started rowing - Fleuer had only just reached the shore - merpeople reached the surface, holding spears and tridents. They did not look particularly hostile, but quite eager to make life difficult for the champions.
I have to hurry, Krum seems to have quite some strength in his arms, Cedric thought while rowing as fast as he could. Suddenly... -Snap!- "What the fuck?!" Suddenly his oars had broken, leaving him stranded in the middle of the lake.
This again caused unrest with the officials, who watched in disbelief at Cedric looking at the broken remains of his oars.
"I don't think that was supposed to happen," Ginny said, especially since Krum and Fleur seemed fine with their oars.
"Especially both oars and at the same time," Daphne added.
"This can't be possible..." Cedric cursed, then saw the merpeople coming closer, their gestures making it clear that either he should think of something quick, or he would take a cold bath in the lake and be dragged to the shore. "Wait a second, what do I have my magic for?!"
Fleur and Krum both were annoyed at getting harassed by merpeople while rowing to the other side of the lake, when suddenly the boat with Cedric in it zipped by, Cedric holding his wand towards the stern of the boat. It was only then that they felt especially stupid since they had forgotten they could use magic instead of rowing the normal way.
All three boats zipped over the lake, but Cedric by now had a substantial lead and went ashore first, running towards the stadium. Krum and Fleur arrived almost at the same time, but Krum was proving to be the better runner of the two. So it came as little surprise when Cedric reached the stadium first and claimed his sphere, Krum came next and Fleur last.
That also was reflected in the points given... after medical treatment and a change of clothes after a quick shower in the changing rooms of the Quidditch teams. Karkaroff of course acted biased, though by now everyone had expected that, while all the other judges gave fair scores for the performances.
Then an explanation about the spheres followed.
Up in the stands there was some discussion when they heard the explanation. "A riddle inside these spheres to give a vital clue for the next task? Very thoughtful of them instead of dropping the next task onto the champions out of nowhere," Luna remarked after they had heard what the deal was with these spheres.
"I'm more surprised you have no great theory about these spheres," Neville remarked, knowing Luna too well by now.
Luna gave him a deep look. "I actually made several during the task. At first I thought they were dragon eggs, but then realized they were not egg-shaped. Now my main task will be to find out which species has eggs that are perfectly round. This will be most fascinating"
They couldn't bring themselves to tell Luna that sometimes a sphere simply was a sphere. Since she seemed to have fun with her little guessing game, they decided to just let her do it until she lost interest in it.
"People, I think show's over. Fudge is about to give a speech," Harry told them, pointing to where the Minister was entering the pitch.
Considering how boring and full of waffle Fudge's speeches were - the one at the selection of the champions had them bored to tears - and that their snacks were all gone by this time, they decided that the show was indeed over and they started to leave the stadium. They were not the only ones - not that that Fudge noticed when starting to hold a speech full of empty buzzwords.
...later that day...
"I tell you, if these incidents were accidents, then I have two natural eyes," Moody said, looking quite agitated over the day's events.
"You've said that several times, Alastor, but we still have to wait until the Headmaster returns, before we can start. You know that," McGonagall reminded Moody.
"He'll only confirm it," Moody said, looking a bit impatient.
Though no one had said anything officially, and thus the press was none the wiser, the incidents with Fleur and Cedric during the task had caused raised eyebrows. After all, no one remembered setting up these roots - especially since the other two champions didn't have to deal with such an obstacle - and that both of Cedric's oars broke was a bit too much of a coincidence.
The teachers had already gathered, waiting for Dumbledore to return from his investigations. Dumbledore would also tell them the Ministry's stance one the whole issue, though by now expectations on that were rather low. After the recent failures of the Ministry, no one was expecting anything substantial.
Finally the Headmaster entered... together with Madame Maxime.
"Now, I know you will ask why my dear colleague is present as well. Madame Maxime also has a vested interest in investigating this incident, since it impacted her student as well," Dumbledore said, stopping any protest from being articulated.
"Albus, what did your investigation unveil?" McGonagall asked, wanting to get to the point of the matter.
"Ah yes. Madame Maxime, first your findings about what happened to your student," Dumbledore said.
"Someone enchanted these roots - someone who clearly was not involved in building the task. Monsieur Weasley confirmed when he had inspected the course the previous day, that the enchantment had not been present. Someone had added it sometime during the night," Maxime said, clearly trying to keep down her anger at the clear sabotage.
"As for Mr. Diggory, the merpeople managed to recover all parts of the broken oars. Both of them had been carefully manipulated to weaken them enough that they would break after enough usage," Dumbledore added, looking displeased at the implications of that revelation.
"And I know exactly who is responsible..." Maxime growled, making no secret of how insulted she felt.
"Sadly, while the manipulation can be proven, there is nothing to link it to Igor Karkaroff. There is no way we could officially accuse him of sabotage," Dumbledore said, looking unhappy, which was kind of disturbing.
"I knew it." Moody looked grim. "That man might be utter scum, but he is no idiot. No way he would leave behind evidence linking him to that plot."
"What's the official stance of the Ministry?" McGonagall asked, though she already knew the answer.
If anything, Dumbledore now looked even more disappointed. "The stance of those that even acknowledge it, is, that such a minor incident can be swept under the rug and that the show must go on. For the greater good of society."
"Morons..." Moody grumbled. "They actually mean for the greater good of themselves and their boss."
"This is scandalous..." Madame Maxime made no secret of her sheer disappointment. "Your Minister better believes that I will report all of this to my government in Paris. I'm very sure they will send observers of their own very soon."
Soon enough after some further discussion and the depressing truth that there was nothing they could do right now, everyone decided to go their way.
However, Snape stayed behind and Dumbledore knew what this was about.
"We are now alone, Severus," Dumbledore said, having an idea what this could be about. "This is most certainly not about about Karkaroff's cheating ways?"
"I couldn't care less what that fool is doing with that tournament as long as he doesn't endanger our students. No, it's this..." Snape then showed his Dark Mark, which again had become a bit darker and more defined. "Unless you know what you are looking for, it's difficult to notice. Like he's suppressing it intentionally."
"Whatever Tom is planning, he seems to have no interest in attracting attention. Have you heard anything through your usual channels?" Dumbledore asked Snape.
"Nothing - recently the usual channels have dried up. The silence is concerning me; it's like they are too afraid to say anything anymore. This has never happened before," Snape told the Headmaster.
Dumbledore thought about it for a moment. "We have to intensify our preparations then. Time is running out. You think Karkaroff has noticed his mark darkening?"
Snape snorted at the thought of the man. "If he did, he has not told me yet. Of course he knows should the Dark Lord return, it's his head ending up on the chopping block. The only punishment the Dark Lord has for Karkaroff's treachery is death."
At the same time, Karkaroff was brooding in his cabin on the Durmstrang ship.
In there he was sure of his privacy and had refused a room in the guest building for that reason. After all, he had put so many security enchantments onto his cabin that it bordered on outright paranoia. However, for someone in his position, what an outsider might see as paranoia he saw as justified security. That no one could hear him right now was good, since he was cursing.
His sabotage had not gained Viktor the first place in the first task, which was a disappointment. Also, he had been too obvious in his sabotage, though of course no one could trace it back to him. They would now keep a closer eye on him - especially that pest Moody - meaning he had to be more careful in how to ensure that Durmstrang would in the end get all of the glory of the tournament.
A small itch from his arm caused him to grimace slightly. In the past weeks his old mark had started to annoy him at times and he had tried his best to ignore the whole matter. Ignorance was bliss, since after all, the consequences for him should it be true would be catastrophically.
Of course, one could only ignore something for so long before being forced to face reality.
to be continued...
Next Episode:
"The Yule Ball"
Notes:
Here the notes.
We get a little glimpse of how things are going in Little Whinging, and... we do get hints things will go ugly soon enough.
The Hogwarts visit is filled with all kind of things, way too many to list them here, though the further development between Harry and Ginny stands out. I hope all of it is interesting. You probably also didn't expect a scene with Draco and Pansy just acting like normal teenagers.
Some more development between Dudley and Millicent, but of course Crabble and Goyle had to do their stupid thing, but learned the hard way to not attack someone who's learning boxing. I wonder how many of you still remember Dumbledore talking about the new punishments and now Crabble and Goyle actually doing exactly the one he gave as an example.
Luna and Ginny prove here how they are all teenagers with all that comes with it. It was pretty obvious they would do THAT as well.
I thought, since Moody has little love for the bigwigs at the Ministry anyway, what is to stop him from bringing in volunteer assistants? Enter Remus and Dora.
And of course the first task. After ditching the insane task of canon, I worked hard to have a task that's hard, reasonably dangerous without getting the students into lethal danger, and gives everyone something to see. I hope I did well with it. But of course Karkaroff showed he's willing to do more for his school to win.