Assassins in the Wizarding World.
Chapter Fifteen: The Second Task.
(Two Weeks Later; In an Unused Classroom; With Harry, Daphne, Susan, Hermione and the Empire Group. Two days before the Second Task)
"No way!" Susan and Daphne exclaimed, as they listened to the Empire's Group story. "You three and Professor Esdeath are from another world that doesn't have magic, but have a weapon called Imperial Arms!?"
Harry, Hermione and the Empire Group laughed at Susan's and Daphne's stun expressions on their faces. They were in an unused classroom, hanging out for the first time since they were so busy. Hermione has hanged out with Harry from now on since her friendship with Ron is over. She was a bit sad to end it, but Ron brought this on himself.
It has been two weeks since Akame has returned to her normal self, Harry getting his body healed and things had been returning to normal. The school noticed that Akame was being cheerful again, and they were happy for her, despite not knowing the girl. A lot of boys made rumors that they would've done better to cheer her up, only to find themselves in the Hospital Wing, much to the teacher's frustration, and Madam Pomfrey's shock and confusion.
However, Harry was the one who was getting a lot of attention, mostly from girls. Two weeks had past when Harry got his body healed, and the school was shocked to see a healed Harry Potter entered the Great Hall one day, wearing a set of training clothes- a black sleeveless shirt and black pants with white lines on each opposite side, and he wasn't even wearing glasses!
Is this the Harry Potter they have known for three years, or an imposter?!
But when he sat down and looked around, Harry gave everyone a dramatic wink, causing a lot of chaos in the Great Hall.
All the girls in Hogwarts, including the girls in Beauxbatons, blushed up a storm, with steam coming out of their ears, along with a small nosebleed. Though one person, a girl name Hannah Abbott, fainted with a mega nosebleed and mumbled inappropriate words with a perverted blush. Even one of the younger teachers that teaches Hogwarts fainted with a mega nosebleed and said inappropriate words too, making the teachers embarrassed as hell before glaring at Harry, who waved innocently at them.
Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling madly, very amused at what Harry did, though his Deputy was trying to conceal a smile that was threatening to burst through her lips.
The boys, on the other hand, were filled with insanely jealousy, except Cedric Diggory, who was laughing so hard that tears of amusement fell down his face. They couldn't believe that Potter would make a huge scene in the Great Hall and make all the girls blush heavily. They are asking themselves two things: How in the name of hell did Harry Potter became more handsome and muscular and how can he get girls to blush?
It was a question that was going through every boy's mind, including Snape, but they would never get their answer.
The Empire Group, who was in the Great Hall when it happened, simply laughed at the chaos, though Leone was the one being the loudest as she was rolling around on the ground, while clutching her stomach. She had tears rolling down her face, and her face was turning red from laughing.
It was all the students can talk about for the next two weeks.
"Yep," Leone said, still chuckling at Harry's friends. "And I'm glad that we didn't had magic in our world, otherwise there will be a very huge problem." She stopped chuckling when she said the last part and had a serious look. "I really don't want to deal with the problem again, after we just delt with it."
"What kind of problem?" Daphne and Susan asked, staring at the blonde with a confused frown. They didn't understand why the Empire Group doesn't want magic in their world. Having magic in a world is a great thing, so why doesn't the Empire Group doesn't want magic in their world?
Hermione also gave them a confused look, wondering why the Empire Group doesn't want magic in their world.
The Empire's Group faces turned dark a bit, and Akame replied, "War."
Harry grimace when Akame said that. After spending time with Esdeath the last few months, he was starting to learn more about the Empire's group world. In their world, there was a great war that was filled with so much bloodshed. The war caused a lot of terrible things, like killing a lot of innocent people, selling children at a young age and villages being burn down from not paying taxes.
As Harry learned more about the Empire's Group world, he was shocked when Esdeath told him a dark secret. A secret that should never be released into the public. He can still remember the words Esdeath said when they were training one time.
(Flashback; With Harry and Esdeath)
We find Harry and Esdeath in Esdeath's classroom, which the former was doing push-ups while the latter was staring at him with lust in her eyes. To be honest, the way Harry's training going with her, and the way he got his body healed up, she couldn't help but stare at his lean and muscular body. The way his arms flexed and bulged every push-up made Esdeath blush and a bit of drool ran down her mouth
'I can't believe this.' Esdeath thought, very jealous that her student was more handsome than her boyfriend. 'Harry gets laid by Susan and Daphne, and me, Akame and Leone hadn't gotten laid at all, and even after the war, we still haven't got laid.' She then released a huff of irritation. 'When we are going to do that, Tatsumi?'
"I must say, Harry, you're becoming a very handsome man." Esdeath commented, staring at the new Harry Potter, who blushed a bit before continuing doing his push-ups. "I'm glad that you listen to Daphne and Susan to go to the Hospital Wing to get your body healed up." Harry smiled, despite feeling exhausted a bit. "And you're becoming a better Wizard than anyone else, unlike those weaklings." Her face became distaste when she saw the students on the day when Harry cleared his name. "But you are special, Harry. Special than them."
"Yeah, I can feel myself stronger than ever." Harry said, doing one last push-up before standing up and grabbing a towel. His whole body was drenched in sweat, making the black sleeveless shirt he wore sticking to his body. "With my body healed up, my Magical Core has increased heavily, making my spells more powerful than before, including my Ice Elemental powers."
"Oh, that reminds me." Esdeath said, making Harry turned to look at her. "How close are you from achieving that form I mention when we were sparing each other two weeks ago?"
"Hmmm." Harry mused, putting a hand on his chin and became thoughtful. Despite having his body healed, he was still not closed to activate the form, but he was getting there. "I'm not sure, but I'm guessing that I should have it before the Second Task."
"I see…" Esdeath said, looking at Harry before releasing a soft laugh. "Well, I'll be looking forward to face that form when we fight each other after the Third Task."
"Me too, Esdeath. Me too." Harry said, chuckling a bit. "And I can't wait to beat you, just so I can show you that I'm not weak." Esdeath couldn't help but smiled at Harry's determination.
'You really starting to become a responsible and strong man, Harry.' Esdeath thought, still having that smile on her face. 'Your parents would be proud of you.' It was then Esdeath noticed that Harry stopped chuckling and had a frown on his face.
"What is it, Harry?" Esdeath asked, losing her smile.
"There's...something that has been bothering me." Harry said, still having that frown on his face as he turned to look at Esdeath. "During the First Task, I was watching Tatsumi doing his performance, and I was surprised and shock at the speed he had, including the punch and kick he did to the Dragon."
"Where are you going with this?" Esdeath asked, raising an eyebrow while crossing her arms.
"What I'm saying is that no human can ever have that speed and strength." Harry replied, crossing his arms. "And then, there is these Imperial Arms. Call me crazy, but I think that these weapons were used for the war in your world." He narrowed his green eyes at the blue-hair woman, who was starting to become shocked and a bit scared. "So, this brings me a question that I want you to answer honestly: Are you an assassin like Akame, Leone and Tatsumi?"
Esdeath froze when Harry asked that. She couldn't believe that Harry had figure it out what they were. She thought that Harry wasn't that observant, but it seemed she underestimated him.
'Damn it, Tatsumi, Akame, Leone. Why do you three have to talk about our world?' Esdeath thought, cursing her friends and boyfriend before sighing heavily.
"Yes, Harry. Me and the others are assassins." Esdeath replied, her voice was cold and blunt, surprising Harry completely.
"This isn't a joke, right?" Harry asked, a bit cautious of Esdeath now.
"It's no joke, Harry." Esdeath firmly replied, making Harry widened his eyes. "I did told you about the war in our world, right?" Harry nodded. "Well, what I didn't tell you was that the Revolution – the good guys – send a team of trained people to take out targets in the Capital."
"And that team of people were Akame, Leone and Tatsumi, right?" Harry asked, making Esdeath nodded her head.
"Yes, but as they continued taking out targets in the Capital, they were losing a few of their men." Esdeath said, a look of guilt and regret on her face.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, sitting down in front of Esdeath.
Esdeath sat down in front of Harry and took a deep breath before explaining everything to Harry.
(Flashback Ends)
'I feel bad for the Empire Group.' Harry thought, feeling sadness for Akame, Leone and Tatsumi, as he gazed at Akame. 'Akame and her little sister were sold to the Empire, and it turned them into killers. She then lost all her friends when growing up, and she learned what the Empire is. She tried to take her sister to the Revolution, but she didn't leave.' He then turned to gaze at Tatsumi. 'And Tatsumi lost his friends to a noble person and lost two Night Raid members that was like a sister and older brother to him.'
"A war? How can that be a problem?" Hermione asked, a frown on her face.
"Because there are cruel people out there, wanting to abuse it's power for their own needs and desires." Leone explained, putting her feet on the table, still having that serious look on her face.
"I agree with Leone." Harry said, earning the attention of everyone in the room. "If there was magic in their world, a war would take place and lots of people would die." He then clenched his fist tightly. "And can you imagine the look of greed and lust for power on people's faces?
Susan, Hermione and Daphne couldn't help but shudder horribly when they thought about the looks.
"Let's talk about something else." Akame said, not wanting to discuss about wars.
"Do you have any idea how to navigate through that lake, Tatsumi?" Daphne asked, laying her head on Harry's shoulder.
"The song said that the mermaids were at bottom of the lake." Tatsumi replied, putting a hand on his chin. "So, all I have to do is go to the bottom, right?"
"Technically, yes, but it's getting there is the problem." Susan said, also laying her head on Harry's shoulder. "The Black Lake is fill with a lot of water creatures, but the most dangerous water creatures are Grindylows. They are creatures that lived in seaweeds, which is at the bottom of the lake. If you go near them, they will do everything they can do drown you. And even you had your sword, there are like hundreds of them in that lake."
"What should I do?" Tatsumi asked, not liking the idea of facing them. He could slash them all, but it would exhaust him, making him vulnerable.
"You can try using the Point Me spell." Daphne suggested, earning a raised eyebrow from Tatsumi. "The Point Me spell can point to any location, as long as you think of an object or person."
"But I don't have a wand." Tatsumi said, making Daphne widened her eyes.
"Didn't one of the teachers order you one?" Susan asked, frowning at the brown-hair male.
"Well, no." Tatsumi replied, shaking his head. "The judges say that I didn't have to use one."
"Then we need to get you one and practice the spell." Hermione said, standing up and began walking towards the door. "We can't have you getting lost in that lake, and we need to make sure you are prepared to face the Grindylows. So, let's go see Professor McGonagall and see if you can go to Diagon Alley today to get a wand from Ollivander's." She then left, leaving a group of people in the room.
"That girl…" Leone said, shaking her head as a smile spread across her face before standing up and began walking towards the door. "I'll never understand her."
"Me too, Leone." Harry said, chuckling at what Leone said. "Me too."
(Two Days Later; The Day of The Second Task)
Like the day of the First Task, there was excitement in the air as students entered the Great Hall. It was currently closed to nine o'clock, and the students had just been informed what the Second Task is and what the champions have to do. They were talking in groups, wondering what the champions are going to use to breath underwater.
"What do you think they're going to use to breath underwater?"
"My best bet is a Bubblehead Charm."
"It could be Gillyweed. It's a plant that lets the person grow gills and fins."
"Or maybe they can use Human Transfiguration to turn themselves into a water creature."
As the students kept gossiping, three of the five champions entered the Great Hall, except Harry and Tatsumi, making the students in the hall cheer and clap for them. Cedric was wearing a yellow sleeveless shirt, with the Hogwarts crest in the front and his last name in the back in black letters, and black shorts that went to his kneecaps. He looked nervous, but he was smiling at everyone. He then sat down and began eating with his friends, who are encouraging him.
Viktor Krum was wearing a light skin shirt, that had the crest of his school on the front, with his name on the back with red letters, and red swim trunks. He was scowling a bit, though he did looked a bit nervous.
Fleur Delacour was wearing a silky robe that was covering the one-piece swimsuit she was wearing, making the boys wolf whistled lowly, though they were silence when they saw the glares from their Head of Houses. They send an apologetic look towards the silver-blonde woman, who waved it off.
Fifteen minutes later, the final two champions entered the hall, making all the girls blushed heavily, including Fleur. Both champions were wearing no shirt, showing off their lean and muscular body. The only clothing they had on was training pants that was comfortable to swim in.
Harry's training pants was red with gold lines on each side, it was clearly showing that he was supporting Gryffindor. Tatsumi's training pants was purple with white lines on each side like Harry's, but on the left side of the pants, there was a symbol that looked like a bird that had one eye, with a moon in the background.
Harry and Tatsumi sat down at the Gryffindor table with Akame, who had a worried look on her face and was looking at the door to the Great Hall.
"What's the matter, Akame?" Tatsumi asked, noticing the worried look on his girlfriend's face.
"Tatsumi, I don't know where Leone is." Akame replied, still looking at the door. "She hasn't come back last night after McGonagall told her to meet her office. And I haven't seen Hermione either."
Tatsumi and Harry shared a glance at each other before turning to look the Slytherin table. They can see Daphne talking to her two friends, which made Harry feel happy. But when he turned to look at the Hufflepuff table, his blood turned ice when he didn't see a certain auburn-hair girl. As he looked around to see if this was a joke, he saw a sad Hannah Abbott eating her food slowly before glancing at the doors.
"They wouldn't…" Harry said, his voice was deathly quiet, making Tatsumi and Akame turned to look at him.
"What? What is it?" Tatsumi asked, wondering what Harry was talking about.
"Remember the mermaid song, Tatsumi?" Harry asked, his voice was ice cold, and his hair was shadowing his eyes. "The song said that something we sorely miss will be taken from us, and we have an hour to collect before it turns black. The mermaids took Leone, Hermione and Susan."
Tatsumi and Akame froze when Harry said that, and their minds went back to the haunting song they heard when they were taking a bath.
"We've taken what you sorely missed."
"An hour long you'll have to look."
"But past an hour, the prospect's black."
"Too late, it's gone, it won't come back."
Needless to say, the duo of the Empire Group are very pissed off at a certain judge, who felt a cold shiver down his spine.
"I'll kill Bagman." Akame growled, thinking multiply ways to hurt Bagman before killing him.
"Get in line." Tatsumi snarled, releasing a small amount of killing intent, making the students freeze for a moment before Tatsumi made it disappeared.
Akame, Tatsumi and Harry ate breakfast in silence, not in a mood to talk to anybody or each other. Tatsumi and Harry noticed that Esdeath was also in a very foul mood, knowing that she was not happy with Bagman. They then stood up before walking towards the place where the champions are supposed to be.
"Welcome everyone to the Second Task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament!" Bagman exclaimed, making people in the stands cheered loudly. "Before we can start the Task, can everyone see the five screens that are floating in mid-air?"
Everyone looked up to see five screens floating in mid-air.
"We had this excellent idea to broadcast the Tri-Wizard Tournament world-wide to let the Wizarding World to see!" Bagman explained, making the crowd cheered. "A charm will be placed on the champions, and when they are in the lake, we can see what they do, and what spells they'll use."
The crowd 'Oohed' at Bagman's words.
"Now, are we all ready to go into the lake, champions?" Bagman asked, turning to face the champions, who are staring at the lake before turning to face the man and nodded. "Good, now positions yourselves until we are ready to start the Task."
"You still got the Gillyweed?" Harry asked, positioning himself next on Tatsumi's right side.
'Yeah." Tatsumi replied, pulling out a green ball that was slimy and gross. "You got yours?"
Harry nodded, pulling out a similar ball like Tatsumi's. They are not worried how to use Gillyweed, since both practiced the plant before. Cedric position himself next to Tatsumi, though he was on the left side. Fleur was next to Cedric and Krum was next to Fleur, placing himself at the far left, while Harry is at the far right.
"Champions, at the count of three, you have one hour to retrieve your item and bring it back here!" Bagman exclaimed, waving his wand on the champions, and the five screens were filled with the champion's faces. Each one was determined, unless you are Tatsumi and Harry Potter, who have a murderous look on their faces, much to the shock of the judges and the crowd, though Bagman didn't see it. "You may begin…now!"
That was all Harry and Tatsumi needed as they quickly popped the Gillyweed into their mouths, took out their wands, cast a charm on their throats, so they can speak underwater and jumped into the Black Lake with the rest of the champions.
'HOLY CRAP! THIS WATER IS FREEZING COLD!' Tatsumi thought, shivering horribly in the dark and cold water. Goosebumps appeared over his body as he tried, and failed, to make himself warm. 'AND TO MAKE IT WORSE, IT'S FREAKING FEBRUARY!'
Tatsumi and Harry were still at the place where they jumped into the lake, chewing on the Gillyweed before swallowing it. Cedric, Krum and Fleur had swim off in different directions, each using their own methods. Cedric and Fleur had used a Bubble-Head Charm – a charm that lets a person to breath underwater. When cast, an enormous bubble would appear around the casters head.
Krum, on other hand, used a Human Transfiguration to turn himself into a half-man/half-shark. The top part of Krum's body was the shark, with a fin on his back and sharp teeth, while the bottom part was human.
It has been one minute since the Second Task started, and Harry and Tatsumi were now waiting for the Gillyweed transformation. They could hear talking in the crowd, wondering what they are doing and why they aren't moving.
Harry, on the other hand, sighed happily in the water with his eyes closed, making a few bubbles released from his mouth. Ever since he became an Ice Elemental, the cold hasn't bothered him at all. He had learned this from the books Esdeath sent him. Apparently, Ice Elementals cannot feel any their own respective element, and Harry was glad of that. Without it, he would be a shivering mess like Tatsumi is right now.
It was then Harry began to wonder how Esdeath gotten her Imperial Arms. Akame said that the weapons were made by the remains of Danger-Beasts, but Harry noticed that the only thing Esdeath was carrying, when she and her friends came from the Goblet of Fire, was her rapier and it didn't seem special at all. So, how did she get her Imperial Arms?
'I'll have to ask Tatsumi about it.' Harry thought, still having that relaxed expression on his face, though he was a bit concerned inwardly. He wanted to get as much information as he can, so he can use it to his advantage when he fights Esdeath after the Third Task.
Tatsumi noticed the relaxed expression on Harry's face and demanded, "How can you be relaxed in this freezing water?" His voice was watery and echoey, like a whale.
Harry opened one eye when he turned to face the brown-hair man and smirked, irritating Tatsumi a bit. "Ah, ah, ah." Harry said, wagging one finger in front of Tatsumi. "That would be telling, dear Tatsumi. The Wizarding World is watching us, and I'm planning on showing them what a Potter can do and why you shouldn't mess with one."
Tatsumi growled and was about to retort when he and Harry felt a piercing pain coming from their necks, feet, ears and eyes. They both let out a grunt as the pain increased when suddenly, the pain stopped, and they can breathe. Harry and Tatsumi grabbed the sides of their own necks and felt two slimy slits. They had grown gills.
'This transformation is amazing!' Harry and Tatsumi both thought, as they gazed at their feet and legs. Their feet have become long and webbed, like flippers had sprouted, and their hands were also webbed and was connected to their fingers. The color for the flippers and hands was green and it looked ghostly.
Tatsumi and Harry looked at each other and nodded. It was time to go and search for Susan, Hermione and Leone. With a burst of speed from their flippers, they swam off in different directions, each going on their own paths.
(Above the Black Lake; With the Judges)
"And Mr. Potter and Tatsumi are off!" Bagman exclaimed, as the crowd and judges watched Tatsumi and Harry swim off in different directions. Both had a determine face to save their loved ones. "Both champions are using Gillyweed! For those who don't know what Gillyweed is, or how it works, it is a plant that lets people grow gills, web-hands and flippers."
The crowd let out an 'Ooh' when Bagman what Gillyweed was about and how it works.
"But should we be wondering what Mr. Potter just said?" A female reporter asked, making the judges turned to look at her.
"What do you mean?" Madam Maxime asked, frowning at the reporter. What was she talking about?
"Didn't you hear what Mr. Potter just said a moment ago?" A male reporter asked, annoyed at the large woman. "'I'm planning on showing them what a Potter can do and why you shouldn't mess with one.' That is what I meant. What did he mean?"
"Alas, I think me and Miss Esdeath can explain that." Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling a bit.
The crowd leaned forward a bit, wanting to hear what Dumbledore was about to say.
Dumbledore cleared his throat and began explaining, "Ever since Mr. Potter learned about being the Boy-Who-Lived when he came to the Wizarding World, he was tired of people praising him for what he did to Voldemort." Everyone shuddered in fear when he said the Dark Lord's name. "He found it insulting that we were celebrating about Voldemort being gone."
"How can he find it insulting?" The same female reporter asked, frowning at Dumbledore. "He should be glad that You-Know-Who is gone."
"Because while everyone was celebrating Voldemort's defeat, Harry didn't have a family to look after him." Esdeath replied coldly, a look of distaste on her face.
Everyone in the stands, including the people in the Wizarding World, winced and looked down in shame when Esdeath said that. They were so busy celebrating the defeat of the Dark Lord, that they haven't thought about little Harry Potter.
"But we heard that Mr. Potter was being looked at by a family of Muggles." Another male reporter said, making the crowd widened their eyes a bit. Their savior was being raised by Muggles? "Dumbledore said that he had placed Mr. Potter there to keep him safe from harm."
Esdeath then let out a cold laugh that sent chills of fear down everyone's spines.
"Wow, Albus. I'm surprised that you haven't told them the truth about Harry's relatives." Esdeath said, making Dumbledore looked at the ground in sadness.
"What truth?" The reporters asked, now narrowing their eyes at Dumbledore. "What is she talking about, Dumbledore?"
"Let's just say that Harry didn't had a happy childhood at all." Was all Esdeath said before turning to look at the giant screens, making the crowd whispered to each other.
It was after a few moments that the female reporter realized that her question was still not answered.
"Oh, look! Krum is battling a Sea Serpent!" Bagman exclaimed, making the crowd turned to look at Krum's screen.
(With Harry)
'Okay, I'm still far away from the mermaid village, but I'm getting closed to them.' Harry thought, as he swam through a forest of seaweed. His wand was out, and he was looking around in the seaweed with narrowed eyes. 'I should be fine as long as I don't run into-"
He was cut-off from his thoughts when he felt something grabbed his ankle. Twisting his upper body around, he saw a small creature that looked like a water demon. It had pale-green skin, with sharp little horns above its eyes, and green eyes that were slitted side-ways. Harry recognized it as a Grindylow.
Harry's eyes narrowed even more before cursing himself for letting his senses down. He then pointed his wand at the water demon and said, "Relashio!"
The Revulsion Jinx had caused the small creature to let go of his leg, putting it some distance from him. But before Harry can do anything, it let out a screech and he was surrounded by thirty Grindylows in less than a minute. They were all letting out angry noises and baring their sharp teeth at Harry.
Harry looked around for a moment before a sadistic smirk spread across his face, making the Grindylows a bit scared. He then gripped his wand a bit tightly in his right hand and spun around in circles while yelling out, "Diffindo!"
The Severing Charm had cut all the surrounding seaweed Harry was in into tiny pieces, giving him enough space that he wouldn't be strangle in the weeds. He then turned to look at the Grindylows, who were now glaring very hatefully at Harry for ruining their forest of seaweed.
"Alright, you little sons of bitches, come and attack me with all your might." Harry said, still having that sadistic smirk on his face. "Unless you're all weaklings and cowards."
The Grindylows let out an incredibly angry screech, not liking a human insulting them, and swam towards their prey.
(Back with The Judges)
"Ooh! It looks like Mr. Potter has taunted the Grindylows and they don't seem happy!" Bagman exclaimed, as he and the judges were staring at Harry in disbelief from what he said to the Grindylows.
The crowd was a bit unnerved from seeing that sadistic smirk that Harry had on his face, and for some reason, it sent shivers of fear down everyone's spines, except Esdeath and Daphne, which the former was chuckling softly under her breath, and the latter face-palming herself from what her boyfriend just said.
'Don't provoke them, you idiot!' Daphne thought with a twitching eyebrow, as she glared at her boyfriend. 'You'll only pissed them off more!'
In the stands where the Gryffindor's are, Akame was looking at Tatsumi's screen with a worried look on her face, but when she heard what Harry said to the Grindylows, she looked at his screen with a disbelief face, like she couldn't believe what she just heard.
'This is what I was afraid of.' Akame thought, her worrying increased tenfold when she saw the sadistic smirk on Harry's face. 'Esdeath's training is starting to influence Harry, making him believe the survival of the fittest and he's starting to talk like her. I need to have a serious conversation with him and Esdeath.'
(Back with Harry)
The Grindylows were trying to grab Harry and pull him down to the depths of the seaweed, but so far, they haven't touched him, or even got closed to him. It was like something invisible is blocking them from getting their prey.
'This is getting boring.' Harry thought, his face filled with boredom, as he continued to watch the Grindylows. He had cast an invisible Shield Charm around himself, so that the water demons won't be able to touch him. 'I so much want to use my Elemental powers, but I have a feeling that I'm going to be facing someone at the end of the Task, so I better keep it hidden for now.'
But as much as he wanted to fight the Grindylows, he needed to find Susan, Hermione and Leone and he was wasting a bit of time.
He looked around for a bit to see if he could use something and he smirked when he found that the seaweed, which he cut a while ago, was still floating around him. He quickly formed a plan and hoped it would work.
With such speed that would put the Aurors to shame, Harry quickly transfigured almost all the seaweeds into a giant net and swung it around in a circle, catching all the Grindylows, except a few. He then transfigured the last bit of seaweeds into a katana. It wasn't that special at all.
Harry grabbed the katana in his left hand and slashed the remaining Grindylows with a single swift swipe, decapitating their little heads. He then quickly put a Silencing Charm on the trapped Grindylows, not wanting to deal with any more of them, and sent them sinking towards the uncut seaweeds.
Harry sighed heavily, feeling disappointed of the Grindylows lack of strength. They were supposed to put up more of a fight, but they were nothing but weaklings.
'It seems that Esdeath's lessons are starting to influence me, making me believe the survival of the fittest.' Harry thought with a frown, wondering if what he was saying, or thinking was a good thing or a bad thing. He then looked at the headless Grindylows and had a disturbing image of a human being in the Grindylow's place, headless and blood coming out on the person's neck.
He shook his head, clearing his thoughts. He didn't have time to think about his behavior, and he needed to see what time it was. He quickly cast a Tempus Spell and to his relief, it was reading 9.25 am. He still had time to find Susan, Hermione and Leone.
"No more wasting time, Potter." Harry said to himself, shaking his head. "You need to go find your friends." He then quickly conjured a sheath for his katana, used a patch of seaweed to create a rope that he can tie it around his hip, used the Point Me spell and saw that he had to go Northwest to reach the mermaid village. He swam off in that direction, leaving five headless and floating Grindylows.
(Back with The Judges)
"What an excellent use of Transfiguration Mr. Potter had just done!" Bagman exclaimed, making the crowd cheered happily, though they were bit scared when they saw Harry decapitating the Grindylows. "Are you watching this, Professor McGonagall?!"
Everyone turned to see Professor McGonagall having a smug smile on her face, though they could see a bit of fear in her eyes.
"That's great Transfiguration, but I don't like how Mr. Potter killed those poor creatures." Dumbledore said, a slight frown on his wrinkled face.
"It was either he gets himself taken out of the tournament, or he fights those weird creatures back." Esdeath said, sending a look at Dumbledore.
Dumbledore sighed heavily, not liking the killing thing Harry did. While he was proud of the boy becoming a better Wizard, he was worried that Esdeath's classes were changing Harry into a person who believes the survival of the fittest. He didn't know what Esdeath was teaching Harry in private, but he was sure it wasn't good.
'I don't want to even imagine the conversation me and Harry will have after the Task is done.' Dumbledore thought, as he remembered the sad expression on Minerva's face when she told him about the meeting between her and Harry. 'I just hope that I can explain things to Harry, so he can understand what I did.'
"Uh-oh, it looks like Miss Delacour is being attacked by Grindylows!" Bagman suddenly said, making the crowd to turned to look at Fleur's screen. The young woman was surrounded by Grindylows and was having trouble fighting them. She tried to say a spell, but one of the water demons swipe its claw hand through her bubble mask, making the water leaking in.
After struggling for a few moments, the Grindylows finally managed to get rid of Fleur's bubble and she was now drowning. Fortunately for her, a team of Wizards got rid of the Grindylows and pulled Fleur up to the surface.
"I'm sorry to say this, ladies and gentlemen, but Fleur Delacour has failed the Second Task, and was unable to get her treasure!" Bagman said, making the crowd groaned a bit. "She will not be able to participate the Task again after she is healed up."
Fleur was then carried out of the water by the team of Wizards, and was dragged off towards the judges, covered in scratches and looking extremely worried.
(Twenty Minutes Later; In the Black Lake; With Tatsumi)
'Things have been going so well.' Tatsumi thought, as he swam through a small patch of seaweed and looked around. He didn't know exactly where he was, but he was sure that he was at the bottom of the lake. He was floating in a mud and slimy area. 'I haven't met any Grindylows, or any kind of water creature, which is good. If I keep this up, I should find the mermaid village and get Leone out of the lake.'
After swimming for a bit, Tatsumi heard something that made him freeze a bit.
"An hour long you'll have to look, to recover what we took."
'The mermaid song!' Tatsumi thought, getting out of his frozen state and swam towards the direction where the song was. As he kept swimming, he heard more of the beautiful, but haunting song.
"Your time's half gone, so tarry not. Lest what you seek stays here to rot.'
Angry at what the song said, Tatsumi kept swimming where the song was, though he did check the time, and with a slight panic, it was reading 9:45 am. He was running out of time.
With determination, Tatsumi began propelling himself forward. The closer Tatsumi got to the song, the louder it was becoming. He had to be closed to the village. When he passed through a crudely made stone that had a picture of a mermaid chasing a Grindylow, he saw a sight that made him pause.
Tatsumi was looking at a well-made, though crudely, stone village that had tall buildings with windows, seaweed for garden grass, and fish for pets. There were even small houses that were made out of crude stone, and unlike the tall buildings that had windows, these houses didn't have them.
It was then Tatsumi got a close look what a mermaid is, and he was completely surprised when he saw one.
The mermaids were definitely not what Tatsumi had imagine when he saw one in the Prefect's bathroom one time when he was taking a break from training. They had long, wild, dark green hair and green skin with a blueish tinge. Their eyes were yellow, as well as their teeth, which were broken, and they wore thick pebbles around their necks.
Tatsumi narrowed his eyes and tightly gripped his wand, ready to defend himself against these violent creatures. But all they did was stared at him and talked in low voices. He then cautiously made his way towards the village, while keeping an eye on the Mermaids.
When he reached the center, where a bunch of merpeople were singing that haunting song to call the champions towards them, Tatsumi looked up and what he saw made him stopped in his tracks.
In the center of the mermaid village, there were five pillars, with a crowd of merpeople gathering around them. They were carrying spears and tridents with very sharp points, something that made Tatsumi on edge. They didn't attack him when they turned to look at him, much to his surprised. They just merely watched him.
Feeling that the merpeople won't attack him, Tatsumi swam towards the pillars, but he stopped again, and his heart turned cold when he saw who was tied to the pillars. It was Susan, Hermione, Cho Chang, a little girl with silvery-hair and the last one was…
"Leone!" Tatsumi exclaimed, horror filling inside him when he saw his girlfriend tied between Cho and the little girl. Her eyes were closed, and her skin, while pale, was a bit whiter than before. Her long hair was flouting around, and a few bubbles left her mouth. She was wearing a black shirt that was sleeveless, black pants and black shoes.
Tatsumi quickly swam towards the beautiful blonde and placed both hands on her face. He let out a sigh of relief when he felt a pulse.
'She seems to be in a deep sleep.' Tatsumi concluded, noticing that the other hostages were also in a deep sleep.
Tatsumi suddenly felt a huge wave of anger inside him, and he began to shake a bit, while letting out killer intent. How dare Bagman used his girlfriend as a hostage?! He was really going to kill the man when he gets out of the lake. But first, he needed to get Leone to the surface, so he swam down to the rope that was wrapped around Leone's leg, and tried to untangle it. But after a couple of minutes, he gave up.
'Why did I leave my sword in the Living Quarters?' Tatsumi thought, mentally face-palming himself for his stupidity.
The mermaids suddenly squealed happily, looking at something and Tatsumi turned around to see a figure swimming towards them. When the person got closer, he realized it was Harry.
"Harry!" Tatsumi exclaimed, getting Harry's attention and the raven-hair man lowered his wand. 'He probably thought that the Merpeople might attack him. Smart decision.'
"Tatsumi?" Harry asked, swimming over to him. "When did you get here?"
"I got here a couple minutes ago." Tatsumi replied before becoming serious. "But we're running out of time. I can't untangle the vines around Leone."
"Here, use this." Harry offered, handing Tatsumi his katana he transfigured. Tatsumi accepted it and with one slash, Leone was free from the rope. Tatsumi grabbed Leone around the waist and handed the katana back to Harry, who used it to free Susan.
"Okay, you go up while I'll stay here." Harry said, grabbing Susan around the waist with his right arm make her stop moving in the water.
"What? No way, Harry." Tatsumi said, shaking his head firmly. "I'm not leaving you down here." He was Harry's friend, and he was sure as hell not leaving him in a place that was filled with dangerous creatures.
"Tatsumi, the Gillyweed transformation is almost done, and we need to get them to the surface." Harry retorted, turning to glare at Tatsumi. "And besides…Akame is waiting for you and Leone to come back safely."
Tatsumi froze when Harry said that. If he stayed down here, and didn't make it back to the surface, then Akame will be sad that she will not only lose one friend but lose her boyfriend as well.
'What should I do?' Tatsumi thought, gritting his teeth. 'I don't want to leave Harry down here with these creatures…but he has a point. I made a promise to Akame that I'll bring Leone back from the Black Lake.' He then released a heavy sigh, making a huge bubble released from his mouth.
"Fine, but you better come back up if the other champions got their hostages." Tatsumi finally said, after a moment of silence. "Otherwise, I'll kick your ass." He glared at Harry to prove his point.
Harry nodded, unfazed what Tatsumi said, and the brown-hair male began ascending his way up to the surface with Leone. He then began looking around for the other champions.
'Where are Cedric, Krum and Fleur?' Harry thought, after a few minutes. He was starting to get a bit worried that the champions didn't know where the mermaid village is, and if that doesn't help, the hostage's skin was getting whiter and whiter, like they were drowning. 'The time limit is almost up, and the hostage's skins are getting whiter.'
After waiting for another few minutes, the mermaids squealed happily, making Harry looking around for a bit before spotting someone in the street. When the figure got closed, Harry realized it was Cedric. He had an enormous bubble around his face, and he looked on the verge of panicking. He quickly swam towards Cho and freed her with a small knife.
Once Cho was in Cedric's arms, he began ascending towards the surface, though not before stopping and turning around to yell at Harry, "I got lost! Fleur and Krum are coming now!"
Harry nodded, and Cedric continued to ascend towards the surface, leaving three deep sleep people and one champion in the middle of the mermaid village.
(Back with The Judges)
"Mr. Tatsumi and Diggory are getting really closed to the surface!" Bagman exclaimed, as the crowd watched Tatsumi's and Cedric's screens. "But it looks like Tatsumi's Gillyweed transformation time has run out." He was right, Tatsumi's webbed hands and flippers were gone, replaced by normal hands and feet.
'Come on, Tatsumi.' Akame thought, gripping her hands tightly as she watched Tatsumi struggling a bit in the water. She can see that he wasn't near the surface, but he was getting there.
A few seconds later, Tatsumi's and Leone's head burst through the water, and the crowd and everyone across Europe began cheering wildly. Tatsumi coughed out water a bit violently, but he didn't care. All he cared about was Leone. She was safe.
"There you have it, ladies and gentlemen! Our first champion to make it back is Tatsumi!" Bagman shouted, increasing the crowds' cheers. "And Mr. Diggory is the second person to return to the surface!"
"Ugh, what happened?" Leone asked, opening her eyes and looked around before landing on Tatsumi. "And why am I all wet?"
"You were used as a hostage for the Second Task and placed at the bottom of the lake." Tatsumi explained, earning a raised eyebrow from Leone. "Do you remembered McGonagall asking you to meet her in her office yesterday?"
Leone's face was scrunched up, as she tried to remember something. After a few moments, recognition was on her face. "Oh, now I remember!" She exclaimed; her eyes widened. "I went inside McGonagall's office, and a bunch of people were there, including Dumbledore and Bagman. Apparently, they told us what we have to do for the Second Task. I told them I wasn't interested doing it."
"But how come they still let you be a hostage?" Tatsumi asked, wondering why Leone still became a hostage if she didn't want to do it.
"Bagman said if we don't do it, the champions would lose their magic." Leone replied, hanging her head. "I know that you're starting to use magic, so I didn't want you to lose it. And then, I decided to do it."
"Come on, let's get out of the water, Leone." Tatsumi said, his eyes stinging a bit from hearing Leone's confession. "Akame is waiting for us, so be prepared for a hug."
"Thanks for the warning." Leone muttered before giving Tatsumi a passionate kiss on the lips, making the crowd wolf whistled.
"What was that for?" Tatsumi asked with a small blush and smile on his face.
"That was for saving me, my knight in shining armor." Leone replied, giggling at her boyfriend's embarrassed face from what she called him. The crowd also laughed at Tatsumi, making him more embarrassed than before.
They swam over to the stands, and a bunch of Wizards helped them out the water, followed by Cedric and Cho, who had just came out of the water. Bagman came over to them, and with a wave of his wand, Tatsumi's and Cedric's screens went black. They were then dragged towards the school nurse to get towels and a potion to warm them up.
"Take this Pepperup potion." Madam Pomfrey said, handing Tatsumi and Leone a potion. "It will warm you up."
Tatsumi and Leone chugged it down in one gulp, though they regretted it since the potion was very hot, and they felt steam coming out of their ears. While they were coughing, they heard a voice calling out to them.
"Leone!" Akame exclaimed, running towards where the champions and hostages were and crashed into the blonde woman. "I'm so glad that you're alright!"
"Oomph!" Leone grunted, almost losing her balance because what the raven-hair girl did. She managed to balance herself before hugging Akame back. "Akame, did you really have to do that? I'm all right."
"Well, she was worried about you this morning." Tatsumi said, taking two towels from Pomfrey and handed one to Leone.
"Aw, you were worried about little old me?" Leone asked, placing a hand on Akame's head after they stopped hugging and rubbing it. "What about Tatsumi? He's the one you should be asking, and he was in the Black Lake with unknown creatures."
"Uh…umm…uh…" Akame stammered, her face turning red in embarrassment. She was so worried about her friend that she had forgotten Tatsumi.
"It's okay, Akame." Tatsumi said, placing a hand on Akame's shoulder. "No, really." He continued when he saw the look on her face. "I was worried about Leone too, and I didn't care what happened to me as long as my girlfriend was okay. And besides…" A smile appeared on his face. "I made a promise to you that I won't let anyone of my friends die, remember?"
A small smile spread across Akame's face as she remembered the promise Tatsumi made when her friend died.
It was then Tatsumi noticed that Fleur Delacour was at the surface without her hostage, looking at the screen with a very nervous look, and it made him instantly confused and concerned.
"How come Fleur is back up on the surface?" Tatsumi asked, making Akame stiffen. "Didn't she get her hostage?"
Akame turned her gaze to the floor and replied, "Tatsumi…if the champion is disquafiled, they can't go back into the lake."
"So…what happens to the hostage?" Leone asked, an uneasy feeling inside her chest. Tatsumi also had an uneasy in his chest and was wondering if the mermaid song was real or fake.
"The judges didn't say nothing about it…" Akame replied, still looking at the ground.
Tatsumi and Leone looked at each other, and hoped that the hostages would be alright.
(Back with Harry)
'Hurry up, Krum! Fleur! Your hostage needs your help!' Harry thought desperately, starting to panic as he kept looking around for any signs of the last two champions. 'I know I should head back to the surface, but I can't just leave Hermione and this little girl down here.' He noticed that the final two hostages were become ghostly white, indicating that they need to get to the surface.
He did not know how long he have been in the lake, but he knew that the time limit is almost up. He did a quick Tempus Spell and to his horror, it was reading 9:55 am. He had less than five minutes to make it to the surface.
The mermaids suddenly screeched in fear, and they swam away, much to Harry's confusion. He then felt a presence that was coming towards him fast and swiftly turned around to see a…shark? Harry narrowed his eyes, thinking that the shark was going to kill the hostages, and was about to attack it, only to see a pair of red shorts. Harry instantly realized that he was about to attack Krum and moved out of the way, so Krum can set Hermione free.
Krum used his shark teeth to bite Hermione's rope off, and once the rope was off, he grabbed her around the arm, send a curt nod towards Harry and began ascending towards the surface.
(Back with The Judges)
"Krum has gotten his hostage!" Bagman shouted. "With his friend ascending to the surface, will Harry leave with his hostage? But it looks like he's waiting for Miss Delacour…this might be a problem."
Fleur, who was still looking at the screen, was begging inwardly for Harry to save her little sister.
After waiting for a minute, Harry realized that Fleur has been attack and wasn't coming to get her hostage. He then un-sheath his katana and was about the cut the little girl's rope off when he suddenly felt a sharp object at his throat.
"Only one!" A merperson hissed at Harry, pointing its trident at his neck. Other merpeople also pointed their tridents at Harry.
Everyone's breath baited as they watched Harry stared at the trident. There was no emotion on his face, it was just blank look. He didn't move at all, something that made the merpeople smirked. But they lost it when Harry spoke.
"If you think I'm going to leave that girl down here…" Harry said very quietly, his hair shadowing his eyes. "You are deeply mistaken."
Harry looked up and the crowd was stunned to see a pair of glowing green eyes with a tint of blue in them. They then begin to say things like,
"Great Merlin, look at those eyes!"
"How did he do that?"
"Why do they have a tint of blue in them?"
"They're so beautiful…" A girl from the crowd sighed dreamily. All the other girls, including the older women that were watching the Second Task, nodded their heads in agreement.
The crowd watch as Harry quickly aimed his wand at the merperson and fired a couple of sparks. All the merpeople near the little girl scattered away with fearful looks on their faces.
"If you even try and stop me…" Harry said angrily, sending a death glare towards the merpeople, who froze from the glare. "I will end you all with a single swipe of my sword and put your heads on a spike."
It was clear that the threat hit home because all the mermaids, including the ones who were singing the mermaid song, quickly swam towards their homes with very scared looks, and barricaded themselves in, hoping that the boy would grab the hostage and leave their home.
The crowd were staring at Harry's face with pure disbelief looks.
'H-H-Harry…d-don't you think that was a bit too much?' Daphne thought, staring at her boyfriend with more than a bit of fear. She had never heard such a threat before. It was clear that Harry was extremely mad that the judges would used a little girl as a hostage.
Harry freed the little girl from the tight rope with his katana and sheath his katana away before gently grabbing the little girl around the arm. He made sure that his grip around Susan was good and raised his wand upwards. "Ascendio."
Harry, Susan and the little girl sped upwards to the surface, with Harry's transformation coming to an end. But Harry didn't pay attention to it, as he was focusing getting to the surface. He could stop and use the Bubble-Head Charm on Susan and the little girl, but he didn't have time for that.
As Harry saw daylight above him, he let out a sigh of relief, making a few bubbles leave his mouth. But when he got closer, he heard something that made him stopped using the Ascendio Charm.
"Hello, young Harry. Why don't you take a nap?" A mysterious voice asked, making Harry looking around wildly.
Thinking that something bad was going to happened to him, Harry quickly push Susan and the little girl away from him and aimed his wand at them. "Ascendio!" He shouted, and the two girls began speeding up to the surface.
Before Harry can do anything else, he felt something slammed in the back of his head, and his world turned black.
The crowd was shocked to see a figure in the water, holding an unconscious Harry in the person's arms. Before a team of Wizards can go help him, the person held up an object that released a bright light, making the crowd closed their eyes. When the light diminished and they turned back to look at the screen, it was static.
The crowd was silent for a moment before a lot of things happened at once. There were screams and shouts, and the judges were being swarm by the crowd, each asking a question. The champions and the hostages exchanged a horrified look before rushing towards the judges.
Susan's and the little girl's head came out of the water, looking confused. Susan noticed that the little girl next to her couldn't swim well, and she helped her towards the stands. A team of Wizards help Susan and the little girl out of the water and dragged them towards Madam Pomfrey, who was struggling not to cry from what happened to Harry.
As Susan and the little girl were being wrapped in towels, Susan asked one question that made everyone freeze.
"Where's Harry?"
WOW! What a crazy chapter! Who knew that Harry can be scary?!
I know that I was supposed to reveal what Tatsumi's wand is, but I decided to write that in a future chapter.
Write a review if you like this story and enjoy the chapter.
Next Chapter: Harry meets Khione, the Goddess of Ice.