Colours of Obsession
A story of how the meeting of three colours finally manages to bring together an unknown romance between an obsessed, in-denial Daphne Greengrass and an equally obsessed, and less in-denial, Harry Potter.
*O*O*O*
"But I'll pray for you all the time.
If I could be by your side,
I'll give you all my life, my seasons."
*O*O*O*
It had been about three days since Hogsmeade. And today was a big day for the school. And for Harry.
Hogwarts would be finally welcoming the students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons for the Triwizard Tournament, the first time the games would be held in centuries. This was, of course, initially due to the games having been put on hold because of the high death toll of the wizards participating in the games, which Harry already took as a bad sign.
Whenever the word 'danger' or 'death' or even 'pain' was used, Harry just knew he was bound to get involved somehow.
And the reason why it was a big day for Harry too… Well, he was just glad to finally be getting those books!
After watching her receive a large package at lunch from a massive grey owl, Daphne had given him the secret sign to meet her in the abandoned class, which was an inconspicuous wink and two coughs. Quickly finishing the remnants of his mashed potatoes and lamb chop, he quickly departed for his destination.
There, she had given him the books she had been sent but kept the letter addressed to her from her father. She left Harry to read the books by the tables they used when Hermione was giving them lessons, while she strolled over to the teacher's desk and opened the envelope from her father.
Crisp paper crinkled under Daphne's gentle touch. Slipping a sharp fingernail under the green wax seal bearing the Greengrass' coat of arms, Daphne cut right through it with ease and carefully pried the letter out of its envelope.
The letter began as follows:
*O*O*O*
"Daphne,
I'm most pleased to hear you are faring well this year too.
You and Astoria never cease to bring pride to our family's name. Continue striving in your studies and it will be reflected in your results.
Speaking of Astoria… Your mother and I are also glad to hear that your younger sister is thriving in Hogwarts. With your guidance, perhaps she can become a little more restrained in her behaviour, though your mother and I do not expect much in that regard."
Daphne smiled softly at the thought of trying to correct Astoria's behaviour. A truly impossible endeavour for one to try and partake in.
"Your sister aside, I understand that dynamics between Slytherins and Gryffindors are usually full of conflict, so it brings me great pleasure to hear that you have chosen the road less travelled by your peers considering your newfound friendship with Harry Potter. I rest easy knowing that you truly have the necessary foresight to lead the Greengrass family in the event that anything were to happen to me or your mother."
Daphne was surprised with her father's response.
A little pushback and caution from her father had been expected, but that seemed to be completely absent. She had been certain that he would favour Harry's presence as a friend of the family's, but this was far warmer of an acceptance than she had expected.
Then her eyes caught the distinct words that followed up the previous paragraph.
"And, should you wish to pursue a romantic relationship with Mr. Potter, you have our full support in doing so. In fact, your mother and I fully encourage it."
Had she been drinking water, she likely would've done a spit-take. Or choked on it. Either seemed likely, because what she thought had been a warm reception to Harry was, in fact, blazing hot.
Actually, Harry's reception might've been on fire.
Daphne's eyes had shot wide open halfway through the letter, even as she continued to read, biting down a very Astoria-like squeal of joy.
Behind her, Harry was far too engrossed in the book to have noticed her sudden startled look.
"We have heard from the other families that Harry has gone through quite the change over the last year and has developed into quite the outstanding young man.
While our family may not uphold the typical Pureblood traditions in marrying off our children through betrothal contracts, your mother and I would like you to get into Harry's good graces.
Though we still have no intentions in offering your hand in marriage to him (without your express permission), we believe he might be a suitable candidate for you to strongly consider — if you haven't already done so.
I do not presume anything, but if you are willing to request books of such nature on his behalf, I can only assume you two are good friends, at the very least.
[Daphne could sense a smirk on her father's face when he had penned those last paragraphs down.]
In any case, be it a friend, or a future husband-to-be, we believe that Harry Potter will be a key person of interest to be allied with.
In regards to the books—"
*O*O*O*
There was a bit more her father had written down, but by then Daphne's brain had already ceased trying to make sense of the information.
Her parents fully supported their relationship!
Hell, they were basically encouraging her to pick Harry as her future husband!
She clutched the piece of paper with trembling hands.
As much as she tried to get it under control, her heart felt like it was doing endless somersaults and cartwheels, desperately attempting to escape from her chest.
The obvious elation that was spreading across her pretty face could not be contained either, despite her best efforts.
Daphne was so happy she felt like she could cry.
In fact, she felt like a kid who had behaved all year round, finally opening up their gift boxes on Winter Solstice morning and finding that every single item on their wishlist had been fulfilled.
It was like a dream come true. A dream that had been in the making for quite a while too!
Harry, glancing up from the book, finally noticed the expression on Daphne's face and cocked a brow, smiling softly at her.
"With a smile like that, plenty of good news I hope."
"Y—Yep!" Daphne said, perhaps a little too loudly, turning ever so slightly away from him so that her flushed face would be hidden from Harry's view by a curtain of blonde hair.
After a momentary use of minor Occlumency, Daphne managed to reel her emotions back in and under wraps, enough so that Harry didn't think anything was amiss. She coughed lightly and schooled her voice back under control.
"Father just says to return the books as soon as possible, and not to share any information in it with anyone."
"I won't. I owe your dad a lot for this."
Then Harry gave her a slightly worried look.
"Daphne, do you… um, plan on writing to your dad… about us?" He gestured between the two of them rather awkwardly as he wasn't too sure where he stood in the eyes of his girlfriend's father.
Daphne had to bite back a laugh at his apparent worry about the Greengrass patriarch and his approval.
If only he knew.
"Yes, I think I will." Daphne replied promptly.
"I wonder what he'll say…" Harry groaned, worried that her father would disapprove of their relationship.
His girlfriend had a knowing smirk as she slipped the letter into her robes' pockets.
"Something tells me he'll be very receptive to it."
*O*O*O*
It had been later in the evening that the two, alongside all of the Hogwarts students, had returned to the Great Hall.
Apparently, there had been some very impressive display of the other school's arrivals that Harry and Daphne had missed.
The Beauxbaton students had arrived via a majestic flying carriage, while the Durmstrang students came with a submersible boat, which had breached the waters of the school and anchored right by the shores of the lake.
From her seat at the Slytherin table, Daphne could see that from lecturer to student, all were present and accounted for the introduction of their two rival schools in the upcoming games.
Harry was with Weasley and Hermione just a table away, a few seats further down from being parallel to herself and Tracey. Astoria was seated further away with a group of boys and girls, with her clearly being the centre of attention and the de facto leader of her little group.
Dumbledore had started it all with an introduction to the Triwizard Tournament and the safety precautions they had taken this year to try their best to prevent any further fatalities and injuries from here on out, such as the addition of an age limit.
Harry snorted, wondering how many times a year he had heard Dumbledore talk about events that would involve students dying or getting maimed in his speeches.
If only he got a galleon each time he did…
Then, with a thunderous boom of his voice, the Hogwarts Headmaster announced the first group of students.
"Introducing the lovely ladies of Beauxbatons' Academy of Magic and their headmistress, Madame Maxime!"
The large doors swung open, and three rows of female students, all dressed in form-fitting baby-blue robes, came strutting in between the tables, dancing forwards on nimble feet.
'Oohs and aahs' erupted from the seated students of Hogwarts at the graceful display of the beautiful girls that paraded down the hall.
Behind them all was a very large woman, dressed in a very fancy mauve dress and feather boa.
Or maybe that was just part of her dress. Harry didn't really know. What he did know and recognise was the awestruck look on Hagrid's face though, which he nudged Ron and Hermione to look at too. They all shared a giggle.
Their dear groundskeeper looked like he had fallen in love at first sight.
A majority of the boys found their eyes wandering, enjoying all the sights of the gorgeous, older girls. Some were even bold enough to begin whistling and cheering. To them, it was a breath of fresh air seeing so many pretty new faces in the same place! Some were already concocting hopeful plans to bag themselves a long-distance girlfriend.
From the reactions of the Beauxbatons students, it seemed as though they didn't mind the ogling eyes from the rowdy teens. In fact, some were even egging them on with captivating winks and high-pitched giggles.
But the one that caught nearly all of the attention was the girl who led the rest of the cohort at the front.
By all standard definitions, she was pretty. Very much so.
She possessed a set of bewitching, dark blue eyes, which were framed by blonde hair, the rest of which was tucked neatly under a pointy cap. Much like the rest, she had a visibly slim, sexy frame under her tight uniform, and bore a pretty smile that warmed the hearts of boys aplenty.
Based on her looks and figure, as well as her position amongst her peers, it was easy to tell that she was the leading lady of their batch. The one most likely to be Beauxbatons' champion in the upcoming games.
There was also a strange alluring aura around her, which seemed to make the fairer sex's heart rate spike when they saw her.
She had looked Harry's way briefly, glancing past him before doing a double take. She then pointed directly at him and blew him a kiss before smoothly returning to her routine without breaking a stride.
To his credit, Harry did not seem to be affected by her charms like the rest of the Gryffindor boys did.
In fact, he even began swatting the air repeatedly as if to divert the trajectory of the kiss.
While the students of Beauxbatons were all very beautiful girls in their own right, none of them even came close to holding a candle to the gorgeous girl that was seated just a table away from him.
One who also happened to be his girlfriend.
A few of the boys around him, Ron included, gave him an odd look, but didn't voice their thoughts at Harry having brushed off such a pretty girl's affections.
Meanwhile, Hermione giggled behind her sleeve, being one of the few who knew why he was acting the way he was.
A pair of blue eyes spied the scene from the table over, an entertained smile appearing on Daphne's face at her boyfriend's reaction to being hit on by another pretty girl.
As usual, he was not giving her any kind of leeway to even pretend to be jealous.
But then again…
Daphne smirked.
Watching him squirm like this was kind of cute.
Still, overall Daphne didn't really think much of the Beauxbatons students beyond liking the colour and design of their robes. They looked a little big for her to wear now, considering the difference in ages, but they were still very comfortable and soft, yet stylish.
She wondered if any of them had spares they were willing to trade.
It was a good thing she was fluent in French.
Beside her, Tracey was voicing her disappointment at the lack of pretty French boys.
"I'm sure the boys from Durmstrang will be plenty handsome." Daphne reassured her as the Beauxbaton students' little performance came to an end.
Magical butterflies escaped the sleeves of the female students as they raised their arms and bowed deeply. The insects fluttered high up before exploding in small flashes of brilliant white, scattering twinkling glitter upon the clapping students.
"An amazing display!" Dumbledore exclaimed with a soft smile, gesturing to the ladies once more as the applause died down.
"Now, our friends from the North, please welcome the proud sons of Durmstrang and their headmaster, Igor Karkaroff."
There was a great, resounding boom as the first of the Durmstrang students entered. Shocked gasps could barely be heard as they came marching in with winter boots and thick fur coats.
Wielding steel staves that sparked as they banged them against the stone floors, the Hogwarts students were stunned into silence as they fell into the Hall in an orderly fashion, setting a much more serious tone when compared to the entrance of Beauxbatons'.
Breathing fire from the tips of their wands, some began to manipulate the flames into an image of a proud hawk that screeched loudly before vanishing.
It was only when one particular student, who entered last with their headmaster, that Ron started to nudge Harry to get his attention.
"Blimey! Harry! It's Viktor Krum!"
Harry stared, now slightly slack-jawed as the fur-coated young man strode past him, a deep-set scowl etched onto his stony face. The Bulgarian looked like he was ready to kill. Or get a snitch. Whichever was necessary to get a win.
Harry's eyes followed Viktor up until the young man reached the front with the rest of his cohort. Then Harry glanced back at his girlfriend and silently mouthed the words 'Holy shit. It's Viktor Krum!' at her, all the while discreetly pointing at him.
Daphne rolled her eyes and sighed, but smiled nonetheless.
She was both exasperated yet entertained at the difference in excitement her boyfriend showed between a pretty foreign student flirting with him and seeing a famous Quidditch player up close.
It was practically night and day.
Ah, she supposed it was finally about time Harry had someone as famous as himself to gawk at. It must have felt good for him to push the spotlight he never wanted onto someone other than himself for once.
That, and the simple fact remained: 'Boys would be boys'.
"A fantastic show of the Durmstrang's iron will and fiery spirit!" The Hogwarts headmaster declared as he waved the Durmstrang's headmaster over to join him and Madame Maxime by the front.
"Now, I will make it clear once more that only students at the age of seventeen and above will be able to participate in the tournament! Tomorrow night, after your names have been submitted, we will draw the names of the selected champions from the Goblet of Fire!"
The announcement was met with resounding applause and palpable excitement from the combined students of all three schools.
"But for now, please, dig in! We hope we've adequately prepared your favourite meals so you'll still feel at home with us. And feel free to mix and mingle with each other for dinner."
There was another, shorter cheer as discussions broke out amongst the students on who they wanted to have seated with them.
The Beauxbaton students found themselves following their leader, moving like they were a flock of swans.
She made her way over to the Ravenclaw table, sitting directly opposite Harry and his friends, while the rest of them filed in around her. A number of Ravenclaw boys, and even girls, clamoured over towards them, while the rest of the houses who had their eye on her growled in disappointment.
Meanwhile, a lot of the other students who hadn't been charmed by her looks were waving to the Quidditch star, who stood solemnly by his headmaster.
Karkaroff seemed to lean into his prized student's ear and whispered something, gesturing towards the Slytherin's table.
Krum nodded after a moment before breaking off from the rest of his coat-wearing peers, striding on over towards the Slytherins and plonking himself down right next to Draco in particular, all without acknowledging anyone. The difference in size between the two was not lost on any of the students.
"Viktor Krum?" The chummy tone he was taking up with Viktor was reminiscent of smarmy politicians, "Malfoy. Draco Malfoy. A pleasure to finally meet you."
Draco reached an arm out for him to take. Viktor glanced towards the blond teen, then at his tiny, outstretched hand, and then back at him again before slowly reaching his own out. His much larger hand enveloped Draco's and when he shook it, witnesses swore Draco's arm nearly popped from its socket.
"Hello." The young Bulgarian spoke with a heavy accent, before turning back towards the table, saying not a word more.
Draco winced but said nothing, lest Krum actually ripped his arm off.
Daphne smiled at the sight, glad that Draco was getting no special treatment from Krum, even after flexing the name of House Malfoy.
It didn't take long before the first Slytherin students stood and headed over to try and speak to Viktor.
When students from other houses had attempted it though, a foul look from Malfoy and his goons had sent them back to their tables. It seemed Malfoy was keen on monopolizing the time he had with Krum all to himself and the other Slytherins.
"What do you think about him, Trace?" Daphne asked her best friend as they both peered down the table towards Krum.
"Meh, a little too cold for my tastes. And way too rugged." Tracey hummed as she sipped at a goblet of juice, "I prefer my men 'ta be on the pretty side."
"I mean about his fame." Both watched as a horde of Slytherin boys left their meals behind to try and exchange words with Krum, only to be met with stony silence and one-word answers.
"He rides brooms and catches balls for a livin', Daphne. It's no wonder he's popular with the boys." Tracey sniggered into her cup at her joke.
The sexual innuendos were not lost on a smiling Daphne.
Truth be told, Daphne thought so too. She wondered what about him was so interesting to Harry that he was such an excitable fan…
Oh wait…
Of course!
Daphne suddenly felt like an idiot. How had she not connected the dots earlier?
"Be right back." Daphne rushed off towards the dorms, vanishing into the throng of students crowding around the table, and leaving a confused Tracey behind.
*O*O*O*
Harry could feel the Beauxbaton girl's eyes burning holes in him from how hard she was staring at him.
He wondered how he had earned this girl's unwanted attention.
Instead of thinking about that though, he had turned to Hermione and Ron, deciding to talk about the other student that was drawing the other half of the room's attention.
"Do you think we could get an autograph from Krum, Ron?" Ron was still staring at the leader of the Beauxbatons when Harry spoke. But it seemed like the mention of the Quidditch star was enough to break Ron out of his daze.
"I'unno Harry," Ron frowned, glancing at the trio of Slytherins who were hellbent on guarding their newfound 'treasure', "Seems like Malfoy's not keen on sharing."
"I'm sure we could find the time tomorrow to ask." Harry said as he reached over to pick up a small, sliced piece of baguette with ham and pickles on it.
Hermione pulled a small bowl of Shopska salad over to herself. It was full of cubed cucumbers, diced tomatoes, and crumbly cheese, the national dish of Bulgaria that featured the colours of their flag.
"He's going to be here for a few months anyway. I'm sure you two can find the time to get his signature." Hermione reminded them helpfully, to which Harry and Ron nodded.
"Maybe you can even challenge him to a friendly match." Ron suggested to Harry, which the teen baulked at as he chewed on his appetizer.
"I'd rather not get run down by the 'Bulgarian Bull', thank you very much." Krum was known for his incredible charges for the Snitch, which would plough through other seekers if they got too close to him. The thought of getting shoved by a person of Viktor's form, even with Harry's own strong stature, was not a pleasant one.
"What do you think, Hermione?" Ron asked as he finally chowed down on his meal, a bowl of stewed meat and vegetables, which had been getting cold from all the leering he was doing.
"About what?"
"Viktor, of course."
"Well, he's definitely handsome, even if he does seem a little intimidating. But if he was a nice person, I think I'd like him a bit more." She sighed as she absently stabbed at her salad.
Ron seemed a little upset but said nothing as he returned to staring at the Beauxbatons girls.
"I wonder what her name is." He sighed dreamily.
"I think I heard someone say it was 'Fleur'." Hermione helpfully mentioned between bites of greens, reds, and whites.
"Fleur…" Ron sighed, letting her name roll off his tongue. He sounded love-struck. "Even her name is pretty."
Hermione rolled her eyes at the smitten boy and glanced over to Harry, who was quietly chewing on another piece of bread.
She gave him a look, nodding her head towards where Fleur was as if to remind him that the foreign female had given him a little more attention than he wanted.
He caught her look and shook his head. Harry did not want to think about it now, nor get involved if he didn't need to.
All the young teen wanted to do after dinner was just to go back to his room and read up more on the portkey books.
*O*O*O*
Daphne reached the Slytherin dorms, having sprinted there in record time.
She wasted no time heading towards the door that led to the out-of-bounds space for any girl — the boy's dorm.
With everyone at the Hall, there was slim to no chance of her getting caught, so Daphne liked her odds.
She scampered towards the door that definitely belonged to Draco Malfoy and his goons and opened it.
Looking inside, she saw that one half of the room was immaculate, with a massive king-sized bed for one, flanked by a large cabinet and a dresser with a big mirror.
The other side of the room which contained two smaller beds was quite a pigsty in comparison. Robes, textbooks and loose articles of clothing were scattered all over, reflecting the personalities of Crabbe and Goyle quite well in her opinion.
She stepped in and closed the door behind her.
Daphne gingerly stepped over all of the rubbish. She tiptoed over to the cleaner half of the room, and opened the magnificent wooden cabinets, revealing all of Draco Malfoy's clothes. Stacks of well-folded towels, shirts, pants, robes, and underwear lined the shelves neatly.
At least Malfoy kept his stuff in order.
But there, stuck to the inside of the cabinet's door, was exactly what she was looking for.
Daphne reached a dainty hand out and gingerly pried the object off of the door, before rolling it up and sliding it into her robes.
Petty thievery was not exactly something Daphne was proud of, but she wasn't going to lose sleep over this.
Malfoy deserved worse.
She closed the doors of the cabinet and made her way past the trash and back out of the room, with a satisfied smile on her face.
*O*O*O*
The boy walked away dejectedly while the group of Beauxbaton girls giggled behind him.
Harry winced, watching yet another optimistic Ravenclaw get rebuffed by the girl he now knew as Fleur. The outcome of anyone approaching her was not looking too good.
Harry glanced back down the Gryffindor side and saw that a few brave souls were finding the courage to try their luck with Fleur, or, if not her then, one of her friends. They shook as they stood tentatively, somehow willing their shaky legs to move them towards the table of pretty girls.
"Enjoy watching Gryffindors make a fool of themselves?"
"Because if you do, you better keep your eyes on us!"
Harry glanced over his shoulder and saw the twin faces of Fred and George standing right behind him.
The twins slid into the seats next to Harry, their arms wrapped around his shoulders, surprisingly levelled despite the difference in their ages.
"Fred, George." Harry greeted with a smile. To say he was extremely fond of the prankster twins was putting it lightly. He appreciated their joviality. Even if they were in a bad situation, they always seemed to lighten the mood. "And what fresh Hell are you two about to unleash on our poor foreign friends?"
"Oh, posh. They haven't earned any reason for us to bother them." Fred said.
"Not yet at least." George added, "No, what we have planned is more for the two of us."
"And if things go as planned, then we might make ourselves scarce from school soon!"
"And what exactly do you two have planned?" Hermione gave them a concerned look of worry.
"Tomorrow's the deadline for putting your name in the cup," George announced to the lot of them, which was already known from Dumbledore's earlier announcement.
"And, wouldn't you know it, we're a few days shy of our birthday."
Ron snorted.
"More like months."
Under the table, two separate feet kicked him in the shins.
"Ow!'
"So we're going to drink an ageing potion—"
"—then put our names into the goblet, and—"
"—as the pretty French girl that's been looking your way would say—"
"—Voila! We've beaten them at their own game!"
Harry was absolutely certain such a harebrained scheme would never work, and that Dumbledore likely expected someone to try this and had measures against it. Still, he didn't say a word to sway them otherwise. He knew the two wouldn't listen anyway.
"You guys seem keen on participating in potentially life-ending games for fun." Harry said, seemingly confused as to their sudden interest in joining the tournament.
"Tsk, tsk. Not just for fun, Harry-boy." George tutted his tongue, correcting him.
"Indeed. As soon as they announced the games back when — we did a little digging."
Fred and George leaned in close, their voices going slightly hushed. It was clear whatever they were about to say was not meant for anyone else outside of the trios' ears.
"...And what we found was that the winner takes it all."
"And by 'all', we mean galleons."
"And by 'galleons', we mean roughly a thousand of them."
"Adjusted for inflation, of course." Fred ended, a pleased smile on his face.
Ron had his mouth hanging open in disbelief at the idea of a thousand galleons, while Hermione had her eyes wide in surprise.
Harry hummed in understanding.
With that much money on the line, it made sense why they were keen on joining now.
"What makes you so sure they're still giving out the prize money this year?" He asked, wanting to know their certainty.
"Well, we're not supposed to say this…" George put his finger to his lips.
"But dear ol' Bill owed us an old favour—"
"—And in exchange for wiping the slate clean—"
"—We made him find out through his connections at Gringotts if Hogwarts recently made a withdrawal."
"They did."
"A big one."
"Can only mean one thing." Fred waggled his finger knowingly.
"Wow, you guys are really hedging your bets on this, huh." It was reasonable. A thousand galleons for the Weasley family was a life-changing amount of money.
However what exactly the two planned to do with the money was a separate issue altogether.
"What exactly is your plan if you do get into the games?" Hermione inquired.
"When either one of us becomes Hogwarts' champion, we'll be sure to do what we're best at."
"Playing dirty." Fred said without the slightest bit of remorse.
How these two never ended up in Slytherin, Harry would never understand. Though, he supposed that did make them even more Slytherin-esque by pretending to be Gryffindors.
"We've got loads of plans. We can switch in and out during the games so we're never tired, or maybe have one of us dedicate their time to pranking the other champions."
"Two heads are better than one, after all."
"So where do I come in on this?" Harry finally asked with a cocked brow.
"To make that ageing potion, we're going have to go procure some ingredients…"
The way the word was spoken was not lost on Harry. It was obvious they were planning a heist.
"And for that, we'll need your handy cloak."
"Just for a while. Long enough to keep us safe…"
"From prying eyes…"
"...And prying people."
"But don't you worry your little heads off."
"It's only people we have a mutual dislike for."
"No harm/foul."They both said at the exact same time.
Harry was losing track of who was saying what now as their voices bounced between his ears. But it was very obvious that the pair were referring to the school's current Potions Master in particular as the victim.
Harry shrugged. It wasn't really his business what shenanigans the two would be up to. But he trusted them enough with the cloak to lend it to them and get it back. After all, they had given him the map with no strings attached. It was only fair to repay the favour.
"Sure. I'll pass it to you two after dinner."
"Attaboy." George slapped his fellow Gryffindor on the back, "If we win—"
"—When we win—" Fred cut in and corrected his twin, to which George apologised, "—and take our winnings to start 'Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes', we'll make sure to give you a ten percent discount."
"Five percent." George corrected Fred this time.
The brothers shared a look and shrugged, the discounted amount for Harry not quite agreed upon yet.
"Whatever the amount is, just know there'll be a discount. A small one, but a discount nonetheless."
"Wha—? What about me?" Ron jabbed at his chest, "I'm your brother!"
"That's not doing us much good for the tournament, now is that?" Fred asked his twin brother.
"Nope. Quite useless indeed." George responded.
The youngest Weasley of the three groaned in response.
"What's 'Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes'?" Hermione asked.
"It's a shop we're planning to open." That was all she needed to know. Hermione dared not ask what they planned on selling. Whatever it was, it couldn't have been for good. The less she knew now, the better.
Then both twins caught sight of something and waved, big smiles on their faces.
Harry immediately noted that where they were waving was in the direction where Daphne had been.
Did they know about their relationship?
His head snapped over to see, half expecting to see a horrified Daphne.
Instead, Daphne had disappeared from the table. All that remained was a grinning Tracey Davis, who was waving back at the two brothers.
Noticing that Harry was now looking, Tracey purposefully mocked him by repeating the actions Fleur had done earlier to the two twins instead, indicating that she and Daphne had likely seen it.
Harry sighed, hoping that Daphne wasn't upset about it, and looked back to the table rather dejectedly.
"When did you two get so chummy with the snakes?" Ron asked, a look of scorn on his face.
"Let's just say the three of us got up to no good on the Hogsmeade trip."
"She's a gal after our own heart. Doesn't hurt that she's plenty cute either." George smiled.
"And she's got a great arm for throwing snowballs." Fred grinned at the memory of the chaos the three of them had wrought upon the streets of Hogsmeade.
*O*O*O*
Daphne had finally returned to the Hall and saw that a massive group of students from various houses had started forming at the Slytherin's table. It seemed that even Malfoy's best efforts couldn't keep them from coming to meet, greet, and get autographs, as the Bulgarian was absently signing all sorts of objects that were brought to him.
It seemed he was very used to this and was just trying to get this over and done with.
She glanced to the side and saw that Harry was busy chatting with the Weasley twins. That was fine. Maybe she'd even get to surprise him.
She approached the back of the group with her usual poise and made no attempt at pushing through the crowd. However, as soon as the students in front seemed to notice her, they'd part ever so slightly for her to move forward.
Be it out of fear or awe, Daphne quickly found herself at the front of the line.
Malfoy was still seated by Krum's side, and he gave her a once-over.
"Greengrass… I didn't think you cared much for Quidditch." Draco had taken a haughty tone, "You never seem to care when Slytherin wins."
"Ha." Daphne laughed mirthlessly, "And when exactly was the last time Slytherin won?"
"We beat Ravenclaw the last time." Draco said, defensively, hoping that Krum wasn't listening in to their conversation.
"After a terrible thrashing from Gryffindor." Daphne tacked on and tutted, "Very low standards, Draco. What would Daddy say if he knew all those galleons spent on all those shiny new brooms still amounted to nothing?"
"You bit—!" Draco stood, his finger pointed at her before he realised he had nothing but rude words to call her.
He collected himself before he could say what was really on his mind, and sat back down, a scowl on his face.
"Watch yourself, Greengrass. Hate to see something happen to you…" Then he glanced further down the table and eyed her sister, "...or your sister."
She dared him to try anything. She would castrate him faster than he could call out for his father. But she kept her words to herself. Would do the Greengrass family no good by threatening physical harm to the only heir of the Malfoys.
"Terrifying, Draco." Daphne put her hands up in mock terror, though her face remained disinterested, "But maybe you should channel that energy into Quidditch instead."
With nothing left to say to each other, Draco looked away, fuming. Daphne turned to the bearded young man next to him.
"Hello." His accented voice was softer than usual.
"Evening, Mr Krum." Daphne addressed him politely.
He held a hand out to stop her.
"Pleaze. Mr Krum iz my father." Then he expressed the first bit of emotion anyone had seen today, by cracking the smallest of smiles, "Call me Viktor."
Many of the students silently wondered if he had just made a joke.
"Ah, Viktor then. Would you mind signing my poster?" Daphne produced the poster from her robes, unfurling it in front of Viktor.
The poster was a meter in length and about 30 centimetres in width. It featured a moving image of Viktor, garbed in his Quidditch gear, riding on his broom and moving at top speeds. Everything but the young man and his broom was a blur as he flew forward in an endless loop. The words 'Team Bulgaria' were plastered on the top of the image, while 'VIKTOR KRUM' filled the bottom in large, bolded text.
Draco looked at it for a moment before he looked away—
Hey! He recognised that poster!
—Then his head snapped back to the object in Daphne's hands, his eyes wide in surprise.
Was that his?!
But he kept his mouth shut, lest he interrupt Viktor Krum and upset him. This was the most the Bulgarian had spoken all night, and Draco was not about to upset him.
It seemed like he was very interested in Daphne and the polite tone she took with him. It was a big difference compared to all the other fans he had met up until now.
"Wow. You muzt be big fan." Viktor remarked, seemingly impressed, "Thiz poster… iz limited edition, you know?"
Daphne gave him a reassuring smile.
"Yes, I know."
She did not know this.
Still, she played along just fine, using what little she knew of recent Quidditch happenings that she had heard from Harry onto Krum.
"Shame about your recent loss to Ireland. Here's hoping you'll be champions next year."
"Glad to have pretty girl as fan. Pleaze continue supporting me." Krum signed the poster, though he added a bit more of a flourish to Daphne's than anyone else's. He finalised his signature with a swish of his hand, marking a heart shape at the very tail end of his name.
Daphne's eyes widened barely, hiding her surprise at the sight.
Oh dear. Was he infatuated with her?
Not one to presume, Daphne simply thanked him with a small smile and walked off, sliding the poster back into her robes after rolling it back up.
Viktor would watch the younger girl leave, before turning to a twitchy-eyed Draco.
"What iz her name again?"
"Greengrass…" Draco said through gritted teeth and furrowed brows, "Daphne Greengrass…"
*O*O*O*
For the remainder of the night, Daphne remained seated with the Slytherins despite her intentions to approach Harry with his gift (which she stole from Malfoy), lest she expose the nature of their secret relationship.
It was only when Harry excused himself from the table and headed out of the Hall and towards the bathrooms that she saw the leader of the Beauxbaton troupe doing the same.
She watched as Harry vanished behind the small doors to the side, followed by Fleur, before she herself rose from her seat and followed suit.
A knowing wink from Tracey as she left made it clear that she was not doing a good job at hiding her intentions of following the two.
Daphne pushed through the doors, following the path the two took, the sounds of the students in the Hall fading quickly in the background.
Then, she rounded the next hallway and saw that the pretty girl in baby-blue robes had effectively cornered Harry, though it did not seem to have been on purpose.
If anything, it seemed more like Harry had pushed himself into a corner on his own.
The Gryffindor looked like he was trying to melt into the wall with how hard he was pushing his back up against it, all in an attempt to create as much distance between himself and the older girl before him.
"Sorry, is this going to take long, ma'am?"
"Not'ma'am'. Fleur." The girl corrected him softly, the French accent thick in her voice. "It iz Fleur Delacour."
"Right. Fleur." Harry nodded. Then he began to fire off words rapidly, his urgency rising, introducing himself despite the situation. "Harry. Nice to meet you. Sorry, I had a lot to drink earlier so I really need to use the loo."
She didn't seem to hear most of his words, instead, she stared at him with puzzlement.
"Do you 'ave a girlfriend, 'Arry?"
"I— Uh… Well… Y'see—" All thought of the toilet was forgotten as Harry began to flounder on the spot, his prior talk with Daphne earlier about their relationship and how it was meant to be a secret still very much in his head.
Seeing that her boyfriend was searching for a way out of this conversation but finding no solution in sight without being rude to their guest, Daphne decided to help.
She stepped into the conversation using Fleur's first language, French.
"Pleasure to meet you, Fleur." She stepped forward, causing both Fleur and Harry to look at her. "I'm Daphne Greengrass, his girlfriend."
Harry looked bewildered at his girlfriend and the fluent French that came effortlessly out of her mouth.
Between being accosted by the pretty French girl who was flirting with him earlier, to his girlfriend suddenly appearing and speaking French (which he didn't even know she could), Harry felt so lost at the moment.
"My boyfriend needs to use the restroom. Meanwhile, I'll be more than happy to answer any questions you may have."
Daphne's tight smile was one that made it obvious that she did not appreciate another woman harassing her boyfriend in such a manner.
She waved for Harry to carry on, and at his girlfriend's gesture, he didn't think twice. He scampered down the hallway and towards the bathroom, the urgency returning to him.
Meanwhile, Fleur had a look of surprise on her face as she reeled back slightly before answering in her native tongue.
"Boyfriend? Oh my apologies, I wouldn't have approached him if I knew. It's just… even as a quarter-Veela, it is so hard to find boys that don't start drooling when they see you." Then she blushed ever so slightly, "Plus, 'Arry is quite handsome compared to the others…"
The sincere tone in her voice told Daphne that Fleur did indeed mean what she said.
Laughing, Daphne brushed Fleur's worries aside, delighted that her boyfriend was getting compliments from pretty, foreign girls.
It made her very happy to know that he was hers!
"Don't worry. You have good taste in men. Unfortunately, it just so happens that this one is unavailable. Ah, but please do keep this a secret. We haven't made things public yet."
Fleur smiled at Daphne at that.
"Of course. You have my word as a woman that my lips are sealed." Then she gestured back the way they had come, "Shall we head back then?"
"Let's." Daphne offered her arm to Fleur. The older girl looped her arm through Daphne's, and they began to return to the Hall.
As they walked, Daphne suddenly asked Fleur the question she had been thinking about the moment she saw them enter the hall.
"By the way… you wouldn't happen to have extra uniforms, would you?"
*O*O*O*
Many had been confused at the sight of Daphne Greengrass and Fleur Delacour returning together. Even more so when Fleur had accompanied Daphne to the Slytherin's table, both deep in conversation. Not that anyone could understand them, given that it was entirely in French.
Tracey sat with the two, occasionally speaking gibberish and nonsense in English just to mess with Fleur.
By the time Harry had returned to the Hall, the students were already making a move to depart back to their rooms.
The first to leave were the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students, who would be staying in their respective modes of transportation for the duration of the Tournament.
He watched as Fleur separated from Daphne, the older blonde waving goodbye to her new friend as she joined up with the rest of her peers and their very tall headmistress.
Even someone like him, who may have had issues reading girls, could tell that something was potentially amiss if his girlfriend was hanging out with the girl who flirted with him.
Having missed their earlier conversation and interaction, he could only silently speculate.
The Durmstrang students were next, marching out of the hall with regimented discipline while their headmaster skulked after them.
As the rest of the Hogwarts students stood from their tables, Harry took note that Daphne had once again made the sign to meet in the classroom, though they'd be doing so tomorrow given the current time of day.
He gave her a curt nod before he shuffled off with the rest of his Gryffindor peers.
A lot had happened today, and he had a lot of things on his mind. From seeing Viktor Krum to lending a hand to the Weasley Twins and their scheme, to Fleur and Daphne's newfound friendship.
And then finding out Daphne could speak French…
Okay, Harry wasn't going to lie. Seeing Daphne take control of the situation and speaking the 'language of love' had actually been… kind of hot.
In any case, the teen was just glad the day was pretty much over at this point.
Now, it was time for him to get to work on reading up more on portkeys.
*O*O*O*
As soon as Harry had entered their usual spot the next morning, he couldn't help but yawn loudly.
"Morning, sleepy." Daphne's voice was like a faceful of cold water, and Harry felt slightly more awake than before, "Stayed up all night reading, huh?"
She was seated on the teacher's table as usual, her leg crossed over the other and swinging absently.
"Yeah. Didn't get much sleep." Harry said drearily as he approached Daphne, "But on the bright side, I know way more about portkeys now. Even how to make one, actually."
"Did you try?" Daphne asked.
Harry was busy rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, blinking rapidly after as his vision filled with squiggles and lines. His vision cleared and he shook his head to clear his mind before answering.
"Well, the instructions were actually pretty clear and easy, so it's no wonder the ministry keeps this stuff under lock and key. But no. I know how to make them… in theory. I just haven't actually tried it yet. The last thing I want to do is blow up my room in the middle of the night. I'll probably start experimenting soon though." Then he arched his back forward, grunting as he stretched his spine, "What did you want to meet for?"
"I was thinking about our Hogsmeade date again."
"Aha… Glad I made an impression." He joked with his girlfriend.
This earned him a harmless poke to the side.
"And I've been thinking a lot about your gift…"
She hooked a single finger around her necklace and pulled it out from her shirt, twirling it around her finger lazily.
"...and what I could get you too."
"B—But you already got me the triangle." Harry said in surprise, "And the photos!"
And the kiss on the cheek.
It took all his will not to slip that last part in.
"The triangle wasn't meant to be taken seriously, Harry." Daphne said, releasing the necklace with an embarrassed smile, "It was more like a… a 'gag' gift."
Harry smiled softly at her and Daphne swore that the earnest look in his eyes made her heart skip a beat.
"Not to me."
*O*O*O*
In the Gryffindor dorms, sequestered away from any of his roommates, was the first gift Harry had ever received from Daphne.
Strung up by a single blue ribbon onto one of the bedposts next to his pillow, and hidden amongst its curtains, was the small steel instrument.
A bit of glue had been applied to the bottom bar of the triangle, where the moving photos they had taken that day had been tacked to, effectively combining the two gifts into one.
Ever since the day he had received them, and under the privacy of his drawn curtains, Harry would find himself getting lost in the photos a little longer than he'd admit to.
He honestly couldn't get enough of Daphne, even as he gazed at the pictures.
Her face. Her smile. Her silent laughter. Her lips.
Her kiss.
She was dangerously intoxicating.
And Harry's roommates would swear that in the middle of the night, on occasion, they would hear a distinctive 'ding!' coming from somewhere in the room. Though try as they might, they could never pinpoint nor find exactly where the source of the sound was coming from.
*O*O*O*
Daphne couldn't believe he treasured her silly little gift so much.
Other boys would have likely thought the same as she did — treating it as nothing more than a joke gift. But here he was, making sure that the first few gifts he received from her were cherished.
It made her feel like her heart was being twisted and thrown into loops in her chest from how absolutely sweet the gesture was.
She leaned into him, bumping her forehead into his chest and casting her gaze to the ground.
Her face looked like a muggle 'STOP' sign with how red it was getting.
"You could've just shoved that silly thing into a drawer…" She mumbled, touched by his actions.
"A gift from Queen Green herself? Not in any lifetime." Harry mumbled back as he wrapped his arms around her back, resting his chin on the top of her blonde locks. The faint traces of vanilla, apples, and cinnamon filled his nose, a heavenly combination that made Harry feel very calm.
They stayed like that for a few seconds before they separated, her gaze now meeting his again. Her rosy face now bore a wry expression.
"Excuse me? 'Queen Green'?" She asked, her tone amused yet questioning.
"I think it's a cute nickname, don't you?" He snickered.
She hummed in agreement.
"It's awful… but not the worst thing to be called by my boyfriend, I suppose. It does sound like something Tracey would call me."
"It fits you though, doesn't it? You're the 'supposed' Ice Queen of Hogwarts, the unofficial Queen of Slytherin House, and you're the heiress of the Greengrass family."
At his last point, a thought surged to the forefront of her mind again.
Not unless we get married!
Daphne gulped and suppressed the urge to share with Harry the news her father had told her not too long ago.
Even Daphne knew it was still too early in their relationship to tell him that!
Still, she wanted to express those feelings in a different way.
"I promise not to use it too much." Harry chuckled, making sure to show her his hands to prove that his fingers weren't crossed.
"Fine." Her eyes rolled, relenting with little resistance, "Only because it's you, Potter."
Then she leaned up and planted a soft, lingering kiss on the side of his cheek.
It was for being such a sweetheart. For treating even the smallest, insignificant gifts like they were worth their weight in gold. For making her feel like she was always on cloud nine with him.
Even for the silly little nickname.
Ah! She was so utterly smitten with this handsome fool.
When she finally leaned out of the kiss, Harry looked like he had just taken a whiff of black market 'Pixie Dust', which was a high-end wizarding hallucinogen.
His eyes were hazed over and half-lidded, and he had his usual dopey smile plastered onto his features.
He hadn't gotten to really soak the first kiss she had given him in the photo booth since they had to leave immediately after, so he was really basking in it now.
After a moment, he seemed to return to normal, eliciting a laugh from Daphne at how ridiculous his reaction was to being kissed.
He gingerly touched his cheek, fingertips tracing the spot where her lips had seared their touch against his flesh. It felt like Daphne had just stoked a small fire that burned inside him, making it grow intensely.
God. Harry wanted to kiss her on the lips so desperately.
But he was sure that there would be a better time for that. A time when doing so would be the sweetest, in a sense.
There was some kind of comparison to be made here with like… uh, sweeter grapes and… lots of patience, or, uh… something… but Harry couldn't quite think straight at the moment. His brain had been scrambled by that kiss.
Regardless, he did his best to maintain his composure.
"Graced by the Queen again. Lucky me."
"Lucky you, indeed. Because that's not the only gift you're getting today."
Finally, Daphne pulled out the gift from inside her robes that she had meant to hand him earlier before she had gotten so distracted.
"Here, this is for you."
Harry took it in his hands and carefully unfurled the poster, gazing upon it for a moment before realisation set in.
"A limited edition poster of Viktor Krum?! Signed too?!" His jaw dropped as his big green eyes flickered between the gift and his giggling girlfriend.
"A better gift than the triangle, no?"
Harry's flabbergasted expression was something Daphne took a mental photo of and kept it aside. He looked so childlike now, turning the poster and examining it with his jaw hanging open.
"Where did you even get this?!" The wonder and disbelief in his voice was childlike. It was almost like she was trying to help to make up for the years of neglect he suffered at the hands of his muggle family.
What little he had shared with her had been enough to make Daphne absolutely livid. So seeing him now in this childlike state made her heart very happy, yet heartbroken.
It greatly reminded her not to take the life she had been blessed with for granted and was very hopeful to share it with Harry.
"Oh, you know… I have my… sources…"
Daphne may or may not have heard a loud scream of frustration coming from the boy's dorm the night before, ringing throughout the Slytherin dungeons after the discovery of her thievery.
Draco had been glaring daggers her way since this morning but could prove nothing. With Viktor Krum taking all eyes off her, no one besides Tracey could definitively say they witnessed her leave the Hall last night. And Tracey sure as Hell wasn't going to tell Malfoy any of that.
"Oh! He even put a little heart here…" Harry said as he held the poster close up to his face, examining Krum's signature closely, "Huh. Who'd have thought? I didn't have him pegged as such an expressive guy…"
After seeing his cold exterior yesterday, Harry realised he must have misjudged Viktor Krum's overall personality. Though the gloomy look on Viktor's face, as he soared on his broom, did still make Harry feel otherwise.
"Ha… Right?" Daphne agreed with a half-hearted smile.
"This is an amazing gift, Daphne…" Harry breathed out as he lowered the poster, looking at his girlfriend with a warm, appreciative look in his eyes.
"I'm really glad you like it." She smiled, enjoying the fuzzy feeling that came from seeing her lover so happy from receiving one of her gifts.
"I'm going to put this up by my bed." He furled the poster up once more before slowly sliding it into his robes. "I'll meet you for the ceremony later?"
"Of course. I'll see you then, Harry."
"Oh, before I go though…" Harry trailed off, turning towards Daphne and reaching a handout.
Gently, he cupped her chin with his hand and leaned forward. He pressed his lips against her cheek and planted his first official kiss on Daphne, just like how she had done to him moments ago.
Daphne sat there on the desk, stunned as she felt Harry's lips up against her bare skin. She felt herself naturally lean into him, wanting him to apply even more pressure. It was so much so that the sides of their lips brushed against each other.
Daphne couldn't stop the tiny gasp that escaped her at the sensation. Her fingers gripped the table, and her toes curled ever so slightly.
From that moment onwards, things were kind of a blur as she felt her brain start to melt like a dribbling scoop of ice cream on a cone.
"Revenge taken." Harry had a radiant smile on his face, having finally fulfilled the threats he had made back in the carriage ride home from Hogsmeade in regards to returning her kiss to her, "Ah, I guess I still owe you one more. Don't worry, I'll pay it back with interest!"
Though, by this point, Daphne wasn't really even paying attention anymore. He had said something else she couldn't really make sense of before he waved goodbye for now and departed the room.
Now it was her turn to sit there like she had taken a dose of Pixie Dust, her eyes half-lidded and lost in a dream, while a small but giddy grin spread out across her face.
So this was what Harry felt like when she kissed him.
She could get used to this.
*O*O*O*
The rest of the day had come like a storm.
Students from all three schools had flooded the room with the goblet and it was about as rowdy as the Great Hall last night.
The room had been renovated ever so slightly too. Now, instead of a barren room with a single massive burning goblet, all four walls were filled with bleacher-style benches, allowing students to sit and watch as their peers put their names into the Goblet.
At the Eastern wall, Harry, Hermione and Ron sat at the top left corner. While on the Northern wall, Daphne and Tracey sat on the top right corner. Even Astoria was seated nearby with her own clique of friends.
This meant that both Harry and Daphne were practically next to each other, and far away from any prying eyes too.
As they weren't allowed to even put their names into the Goblet, they saw no need to get too close to the burning brazier in the middle of the room. They were content sitting at the top of the seats watching as the students down below slipped small sheets of paper into it.
Knowing that they'd likely have words to exchange in private, Hermione kept Ron busy with talk of chess and his recent wins against Neville.
"I never got to thank you earlier," Daphne murmured to him in regard to the kiss he gave her hours earlier. She was separated from her boyfriend's side by just mere centimetres.
She wasn't going to lie. It kind of irked her.
"I should thank you for letting me kiss you." Harry joked, equally as quiet. "Also, should I be concerned that you're speaking to Fleur, the same lady who cornered me when I tried to go to the bathroom?"
"I'm sure she couldn't help herself around such a handsome young man." She smiled dryly, her eyes still looking at the goblet, "Besides, she's a friend now, and won't be trying anything again soon. Not while I'm around, at least."
"Another reason for you and I to spend more time together." Then Harry asked, "Are girls usually that upfront?"
"Maybe French girls. But the tragic reality of the situation is that you're probably going to have to get used to being hit on by girls from now on, especially if they don't know you're taken."
"That sucks…" Harry groaned, desiring little of the attention of any other girl besides the one beside him.
All the play-flirting he did with others was merely good fun, like that Hogsmeade day with helping everyone off the carriage.
Someone actually flirting with him actually made him uncomfortable, especially now that he was in a relationship with the girl of his dreams.
Even more so when they were stopping him from trying to empty his bladder!
"The cost of being a cute hunk is steep. Now you know how girls feel when guys approach us." Daphne shrugged with a smile, "C'est la vie (Such is life)."
Hearing her speak French again, Harry was reminded of how Daphne had intervened yesterday.
"Also, literally speaking of the French language, I never knew you spoke it."
"Never had a reason to bring it up, but I had to learn conversational levels of French because Father had intentions to send me to Beauxbatons when I was younger. Far away from all the icky boys." She gave him a happy smile, "It's a very good thing he didn't."
"I'll say…" Then Harry paused as a thought raced through his head, "Wait, you mean… you could've been wearing… their uniform?"
Harry sucked air in through his clenched teeth at the sudden thought of Daphne in those form-fitting robes.
"Yes, why?" Then after a second of consideration, Daphne gave him a knowing smile, her eyes full of amusement at reading her boyfriend's mind. "Did you just imagine me in them? Potter, you cheeky bugger."
Even with the delighted tone in her voice, Harry still got a little stuttery.
"Ah… Well, yes. But I was just… just wondering..."
Daphne leaned close for a moment, her voice now no louder than a sultry whisper, something she had seen her mother do to her father to great success.
"And you liked what you saw?"
"God… yes. Yes, I did." Harry admitted shamefully, his face twisting up as if the embarrassment pained him. It felt like he was a mere sinner, admitting his wrongdoings in the confessional.
Daphne leaned back out, her voice returning back to a murmur.
"Then you'd be glad to know that Fleur and I struck up an agreement yesterday night." She announced to him with a wink, "We're trading our spare uniforms with each other."
Harry grunted and then turned his body ever so slightly so that his Gryffindor friends couldn't see him. Clutching his chest dramatically, he looked at Daphne with an anguished face.
"Seriously… I don't know if my poor heart can take seeing you in it."
She would've slapped his arm if they weren't trying to be inconspicuous. Instead, his girlfriend snorted at his dramatic display over the trivial matter of her in another school's uniform.
"Good, because it'll likely take another year or two before I fill out enough to wear Fleur's uniform. You'll have plenty of time to get your heart ready." The unfortunate reality of exchanging uniforms with an older student meant that some growth was needed in order to fill out certain parts of the uniform.
Though, Daphne had no doubt that her lower half would be able to fit into it, snug as a bug.
"Damn it." Harry visibly deflated, which Daphne giggled at.
They fell into relative silence, speaking only to their friends for a little longer before all of their attention was drawn towards the centre of the room, where a pair of redheaded boys were gesturing to all the students around them.
"Well, let's see how this goes." Ron said aloud as he sat a little straighter, wondering if his brothers would make it in.
"I'd hate to know what happens if it doesn't work." Hermione was still very much morbidly curious to know the outcome of a failed attempt at trying to beat Albus Dumbledore's magic.
"I'm sure they'll be fine." Harry said, sounding a little unconvinced of his own words, "Probably."
The Weasley Twins stood at the edge of the circle that marked the age barrier for any willing students trying to enter their names into the goblet. Students watched in bated breath at the potential success/disaster that was about to unfold before them.
Raising their hands, small vials in each of their grasps, they downed the potion at the same time and hopped over the line together.
There was a pause as everyone took in the moment together. Seeing that nothing had gone wrong for them, cheers erupted from the rest of the students as they seemed to make it through unfazed.
Ron sighed in relief, having half-expected his two brothers to have been blown to bits or something. The last thing he really wanted to do was to explain to his mum about how his brothers had done themselves in before the potentially deadly competition they were trying to join had even started.
"I suppose they made it in…" Hermione said, humming in surprise. It was a little evident that she had been expecting the worst too.
The two ginger teens dropped their names into the goblets and waited for a moment as the blue flames seemed to consider it.
After a moment passed, the flames picked up in intensity, surging out of the goblet like it had been given life. The students screamed as the flames circled the two, before picking them up and launching them back across the Age Line.
They landed on the floor in a heap of tangled, gangly limbs, the wind knocked right out of them.
The students watched as the two twins began to show some signs of ageing rapidly. Their hair turned grey and grew to their shoulders, and unkempt facial hair sprung forth, shrouding the rest of their face in a pale grey beard. Despite this, they still looked the same age, doing no serious damage to the two would-be rule breakers besides desperately requiring a haircut and a trim.
Soon, laughter filled the room as the two began to wrestle on the floor in frustration with the other.
Ron joined in on having a hearty laugh on his brothers' behalf. Harry, Daphne, and Tracey were chuckling too at the sight of the brawling bearded brothers.
"...or not." Hermione leaned back, as amused as her friends at the sight of the two hairy figures being helped up and escorted out by Lee Jordan and Oliver Wood.
"At least we know the circle works." Harry concluded, feeling rather relieved that one of the safety measures implemented by the schools worked. It filled him with a little bit more confidence that he would scrape by the event without any issue.
"Good thing you couldn't join them this time, Trace." Daphne looked at Tracey, "I don't think a beard would suit you very well."
"That's not nice, Daph." Tracey said with a pleasant smile, "I, on the other hand, think a beard would suit you perfectly!" The two snorted with laughter at the silly comments they made about the other.
Despite the mishap with the Weasley Twins, things continued as normal. Students of appropriate ages continued to put their names into the goblet without issue. Over the course of an hour and a half, Harry watched as Viktor Krum, Fleur, and all of their respective schoolmates stepped up and put their names in.
He noted even Cedric had joined in, alongside Roger Davies and a number of older students he didn't quite know.
Shortly after that, the three headmasters entered the room, alongside the rest of the Hogwarts staff and the last of the five judges, Ludovic Bagman and Bartemius Crouch, Sr.
The students, seeing their arrival, immediately took their seats, eager to see the results of the night.
Dumbledore stepped up to the Goblet and raised his hand up to the students around him.
"Students! Now the moment you've been waiting for. Tonight, the Goblet will select the champions for each of the schools!"
Silence fell and anticipation grew as Dumbledore turned to the flaming goblet and pressed his hand up against the surface of it. From Dumbledore's reaction, it didn't seem hot at all. Then the elder man took a step back. The flames surged upwards as it had done prior when the Weasley Twins had tried and failed to get their names in, though it didn't spill out of the Goblet.
It turned a bright pink for a moment before going back to blue, dying back down as it shot out a single slip of paper, which the wizened headmaster caught deftly as it sailed down.
"For Durmstrang, Viktor Krum!"
The Durmstrang students roared to life in excitement over the selection, the Goblet having chosen their best student for the tournament, as they had expected. Karkaroff was off to the side, grinning like a dingy sewer rat that had just found a particularly large piece of cheese.
"Alright!" Ron cheered with a smile while Harry clapped along with the other students. Daphne was smiling at the excitement that was evident on her boyfriend's face.
It seemed as though he couldn't wait to see the 'Bulgarian Bull' in action during the games!
Viktor stood with a proud smile before walking up to Dumbledore and shaking his hand. Then the Hogwarts Headmaster gestured to the door off to the side, which the Quidditch star headed towards.
Dumbledore waited for a moment for the excitement to die down before he repeated the process.
Once again, the brazier expelled another slip of paper.
Dumbledore read it aloud after catching it.
"For Beauxbatons, Fleur Delacour!"
There was a gentle smattering of squeals and claps as the Beauxbaton girls celebrated the choosing of their leader, who waved in thanks to all the other students. Their headmistress waved a napkin at Fleur, giving her blessings to her best student at being selected.
Fleur followed in Krum's actions and went behind the door too.
Once more, Dumbledore repeated the action and held the final piece of paper for the night in his hands.
The Hogwarts students watched in bated breath as the headmaster read the name of the chosen champion with a proud smile behind his bushy beard.
"Finally, for Hogwarts, Cedric Diggory!"
The table where the Hufflepuffs sat immediately burst into cheers and whoops, while their chosen champion stood up from his seat. They slapped him on the back, and shook his hand, proud that the Puffs were finally in the spotlight for once.
At the top of the bleachers, Harry breathed out a sigh of relief, one he hadn't realised he had been subconsciously holding in. Daphne reached a hand over to Harry and squeezed his own reassuringly, thankful that Harry hadn't been somehow dragged into danger this year.
Cedric had a humble and grateful expression and waved to the rest of the students before shaking his headmaster's hand, eventually disappearing behind the door as well.
It was only after Cedric had departed that Dumbledore turned back to address the rest of the students.
"Congratulations again to the schools and their chosen champions! Now, as you all know, only one will stand victorious after the games are over, hoisting up the Triwizard Cup in the name of their school!"
There was a grand reveal as Dumbledore gestured to a nearby stone pedestal. A piece of flying cloth circled the space above it, spinning round and round before swooshing away to reveal a massive, glowing blue trophy.
The students clapped once again, excited to see who would be the one to claim the cup by the end of the events.
But as the Hogwarts Headmaster spoke, a few noticed that the brazier still burned with purpose.
And if anything, it was far brighter than before.
"We will be announcing the start of the first task sometime… next week…" The older wizard's words trailed off as he turned back to face the Goblet.
Finally noticing the bright flames, all eyes turned back to the Goblet, and silence fell upon the room.
Under her touch, Daphne felt Harry's body tense up.
As if performing its final swan song, there was a loud 'poof' from the Goblet, and the flame turned pink one last time for the night.
The hair on the back of his neck bristled up.
Ejecting one last piece of paper into the air, the Goblet's fire finally subsided.
Dumbledore watched in surprise, before snatching the paper out of the air once more.
The entire student body watched in complete silence at the sudden and unforeseen appearance of a fourth champion.
He glanced down at the name and then paused.
Harry felt his fight-or-flight symptoms kicking in.
Dumbledore looked confused, then — grim.
At the sight of the headmaster's face, Harry's blood turned cold.
He prepared himself for the worst.
Then the name came forth from the headmaster's lips and hit Harry like the branches of the Whomping Willow.
"Harry Potter." Dumbledore's voice was tinged with disbelief.
Harry just put his head into his hands and sighed.
"...Fuck."
*O*O*O*
Chapter 8: End
*O*O*O*
Important A/N:
Edit: I'm reuploading this chapter again after my inital upload on the 17th of September. I'm not sure how many of you initially saw it, but I left it up overnight but for some reason did not seem to register any views on the chapter despite new favourites and follows, so I thought it was buggy. Hope it works now.
Hello all! Here's another large chapter for you to enjoy. Hope it tides you over until my next update in a while.
I know despite the topic of marriage being brought up to her, neither Daphne nor Harry have yet to say the 'L' word ((no, not 'lesbians') it's 'love') to each other yet. But I'm saving it for a moment that's coming up eventually!
And just to clarify, I'm mixing a bit of the book, the movie, and my own personal AU-style into the story. So please don't be too surprised if situations are different, or some characters like Krum, Fleur, etc, act out of character or whatever. Most of the time I refer to Google, or youtube clips of the movie, or just my own intuition, so I'm bound to get some things wrong.
Sorry about the lack of Tracey and Astoria too. It's a little hard for me to naturally fit them into the flow of dialogue since there isn't a good reason for them to be interacting with Harry publicly.
I'll promise I'll have them harass Daphne more once their relationship is public.
I don't have much else to say. feel free to let me know what your thoughts are, or if you enjoyed reading the chapter.
Less Important A/N:
Sorry if the Weasley Twins dialogue was a little long, but I couldn't help myself! I had so much fun writing their back-and-forths! Whenever I read fanfics with them in it, I always want to try and write their banter for myself. And it finally happened! Ugh, I adore the two of them!
Plus, idk if it's ever mentioned anywhere, but I wanted to expand on the canon reason for why they even attempted to join the tournament, and their desire to get the prize money Harry gives them.
Thanks for the support as usual, and I hope y'all had a good read!
Have a good week ahead!