Unfortunately for Harry, all Mr. Crouch did was completely ignore his quip and continue talking to the tree. Meanwhile Krum started looking at Harry in bewilderment, taken aback by Harry's dark tone.
Given there was a man literally talking to a tree, Harry thought Krum's bewilderment at him was a tad insulting. Sighing, Harry marched over to the mad man, which allowed him to listen into the conversation.
"- done that, Weatherby, send an owl to Dumbledore confirming the number of Durmstrang students who will be attending the Tournament, Karkaroff has just sent word there will be twelve… and then send another owl to Madame Maxime -"
"Mr. Crouch, a tree can't send an owl." Harry interrupted loudly, again going completely ignored. As the man continued giving instructions to a tree named Weatherby, Harry tried to shout over him. "Oi, Crouch! What's wrong with you? You can't just leave my friend to be skewed by mermen then just appear raving mad!"
Despite Harry's shouting, Crouch continued to instruct the tree, causing Harry to growl in anger. Unbeknownst to himself till now, he had pinned Luna's temporary death on two men; Dumbledore and Crouch.
Given he did still love Dumbledore, his mind had pushed the majority of the blame on Crouch, since he was the one who'd agreed to talk to the mermen. The vindictive part of Harry was thrilled at having Crouch readily available, only for the man to be mentally unable to appreciate Harry's anger.
Annoyed, Harry pushed Crouch to the ground with a strong shove, letting a small current of electricity pass into the man as he did. Whether it was the physical contact, electricity or hitting the ground, Crouch seemed to snap out of his madness.
For a few seconds only meaningless sounds came out of Crouch, until the man's eyes shockingly snapped onto Harry. Looking into the man's eyes, Harry could see there was still lingering madness, but also a surprising sharpness and intensity.
Desperately Crouch reached his hands out, grasping the end of Harry's trench-coat and trying to pull him closer. Of course, the man's strength was pitiful compared to Harry's magically boosted one, while the dragon-hide remained unaffected.
"Dumbledore! I need… see… Dumbledore…"
"Sure. Get up and I'll take you to him.
"I've done… stupid… thing…" Crouch breathed, eyes bulging, while a trickle of spittle slid down his chin. It seemed like every word caused the man pain. "Must… tell… Dumbledore…"
"Yeah, you seem to be doing plenty of stupid things recently." Harry muttered, taking in the sight of the man. He then stilled when he felt a fourth presence cautiously approach. Trying to be discreet, Harry threw his magesight around, detecting nothing unusual nearby. Despite that confirmation, he wasn't relieved. The trees within the forest were thick enough to block most of his vision, both normal and magical.
"You… Potter?..." Crouch asked feebly, eyes first roving up to take in his scar, then down onto his distinctive coat.
"Yes, that's right. I'm Potter, this is Krum, you're Crouch."
"Not… his?"
Giving up on the man, Harry leant down and easily picked up the man and threw him over his shoulders into a fireman's hold. Ignoring the rambling man, who had talked some more about warning Dumbledore before deciding Harry's arm was the new Weatherby.
"It might be best if you came with us Krum, means I won't have to explain as much." Harry suggested, starting the trek back to Hogwarts. With Crouch over his shoulders, Harry's speed was limited, something which was causing him considerable unease.
Despite their slowed speed, both Harry and Krum were fit and athletic and were making good ground, which meant once they were out of the forest he could speak freely. "Keep an eye out behind us, Crouch didn't come from nowhere. I didn't want to say anything, but I kept feeling like there was someone else near us there."
"Truly?" Krum asked perturbed, craning his neck to get a good look of the forest behind them. They continued walking in a cautious silence, until Krum suddenly cried out and pointed behind them.
"There! A branch just broke off tree, and a foot appeared! It was like invisibility cloak got caught. It was coming towards us!"
Craning his own neck, Harry threw his mage sight far behind them, which confirmed Krum's claim. Under his sight, there was a dead spot of magic, easily the size of a human, somewhere between themselves and the forest.
A second more direct throw caused his eyes to widen as his Sight placed the dead spot a few feet closer to them. Whatever it was, it was coming towards them, fast.
"Run!" Harry commanded, shifting Crouch higher on his back and going as fast as he could, cursing.
In a case of thoughtlessness, he had placed Crouch over his dominant right shoulder, which meant that arm was stuck keeping the man up. His wand meanwhile was in its standard spot, tucked into the inside pocket on his left side.
There was no way to reach it with his left hand, and he couldn't afford to even briefly let go of Crouch. To make matters worse, his unstable gauntlet was locked up in his workshop.
He could summon his spear, but even with its ability to hit any target, he'd still need to see the target first. With no other choice, Harry summoned his saber, although he didn't ignite it yet.
To further complicate matters, Krum had refused to run ahead, instead dropping slightly behind and trying to provide cover. Which was when a colourless spell impacted Krum and sent him flying ahead, where he laid still.
Without bothering to turn his head, Harry sent a final wave of magesight, alleviating his nerves somewhat when the invisible assailant was further back than it could've been.
His sight also let him detect a second spell, which he managed to roll under. Letting go of both a babbling Crouch and his saber mid roll, Harry came up with his wand free, pointing into the darkness. Casting a wide facea volare jinx down the grounds, Harry hoped to flush out his opponent.
To his incredible dismay, the entire wave of purple magic was banished, confirming the worst. None of the students in any of the three schools present was strong enough to banish the entirety of his jinx like that, even some adult wizard's would've struggled.
Given his opponent had vanished it all was itself a tell. Just because you had the power, didn't mean it was wise to use it. For as many adults that could've banished it, most would've struggled to do anything else, especially when different options were readily available.
Overtime Daphne had grown to the point her shield could withstand the wave long enough to have it pass around her harmlessly, an option which any competent adult could've done. In fact, this had been what Harry had been hoping for.
Banishing the entire wave proved that a; this opponent was smart enough to figure out Harry's plan and figured out a way around it, b; this opponent was strong enough to banish the entire wave, probably with plenty of magic left over, and c; had used the distraction to conjure a giant spider which had just jumped at Harry's face.
Letting his instinct guide him, Harry's charm froze it solid, killing it instantly. Morbidly, Harry couldn't help comparing the falling still spider to the long dead spider Moody had used the killing curse on.
Senses flaring, Harry barely blocked the jet of a bright red stunner, his protego quivering under the power it had just deflected. Two more brightly coloured spells impacted it, until a previously unnoticed gas-like pale lime green glob of magic tore through the bottom right hand corner.
For a moment, he had no idea why his opponent had aimed there, until he heard the pained groans of Crouch. Turning, he just barely got to see a thin layer of the magic spread over Crouch, before it compressed and sunk into his skin.
With one last spasm, Crouch fell still, only his heavy breathing giving any sign of life. While he'd been looking, Harry had simultaneously been busy weaving the bomba moale charm into existence, spreading the light grey spores outwards.
Unlike in the duelling tournament, Harry summoned enough to blanket the entire area around him, then sent them drifting across the grounds. After a few moments, gravity took effect and the magical mines grazed the ground, causing violent explosions.
Finally, the brief glow of a shield appeared, absorbing both the spores and their explosions, although it swiftly vanished the moment it was safe.
With both his memory of the location and the craters now surrounding it, Harry hurried to send out his missile jinx. Its golden bolt of light almost blinding under the dark of night.
Splitting half way there, the smaller fragments peppered the area, getting one satisfying hit. The hit was costly however, as a dark blue spell zigzagged towards him.
With each zigzag it sped up, until it seemed to jump forward into his chest. Feeling the brown foreign dark magic spread through him, his defences unable to hold it back, he found himself instantly falling limp.
Flopping onto the ground, all he could do was stare up at the stars, just barely able to make out the grounds at the bottom of his vision. Even his eyes refused to follow his commands, even as they sent information to him.
Worst of all, he couldn't feel his magic, at all. It was even worse than when he had been a child, before he'd discovered his magic. At least there it had been an unrealised constant presence, a presence which had stayed with him his entire life.
Even while he'd been under the basilisk's stare he had been able to fortify his magic and escape its control, yet he now found his magic unreachable.
He knew what had happened, he was locked inside his own mind, feeling like only himself and the mithrilium in his head existed within a void. Everything else, from the earth's atmospheric magic, his personal core and his mithril to Hogwarts deep booming pulse were unreachable.
As he helplessly laid there, he was consumed by anger, anger that his unknown opponent had dared take away his magic. To him his magic meant everything. It was his ticket away from the Dursleys, his path to never being looked down on again.
To his great relief, the grounds were almost immediately lit up as large light blue arcs of electricity snaked across the air, each one sprouting large branches, which joined the arcs beside them. Soon a large grid-like net of electricity hovered a few feet above the grounds directly in front of them.
Holding it all in place was a kneeling Krum, defiantly channelling an impressive amount of power. To both of their dismay, there was a sudden large shimmer of lilac air within one of the net segments.
When the lightning made contact with the shimmer, it instantly curved downwards and into the ground. No matter what Krum tried to do, it seemed like he was incapable of getting the electricity to pass the shimmer.
Unfortunately, it seemed the same was not true for their opponent, who's dull stunning and shinning killing curses sailed unopposed. It was only the fortuitous sacrifice of a flying stone boar which saved Mr. Crouch's life.
From where he was lying, Harry was just able to see a furious Dumbledore emerge from the entrance hall, easily leaping down the steps onto the grounds.
With Krum being forced to dodge the stunner, his electrical net had failed, dropping the grounds into a sharp darkness.
Elder Wand raised high, Dumbledore first erected three impressive shields all around them, strong enough to look like pure diamonds, shimmering through all colours of the rainbow like a kaleidoscope. Within a moment of his shields appearing, two dark curses impacted it along with another transfigured giant spider.
While the two curses were easily absorbed into the shields, while the spider seemed to just cease to exist as it tried to pass through. Pointing his wand at the source of the spells, the second flying stone boar charged through the shields and into the grounds.
A second simple flick had the Elder Wand's power rush over Harry, shredding the curse holding his mind hostage.
Instantly he felt everything rush back, unable to stop twitching as his body regained control over its muscles. At the same time, his mind was bombarded by his magical senses, almost suffocating him under its pressure.
As such, he almost missed Snape's arrival, huffing and puffing from the journey. Soon after, Hagrid and Fang came sprinting up from his cabin, a large crossbow held tight.
"Hagrid, I need you to fetch Professor Karkaroff, his student has been attacked." Dumbledore instructed, opening his shields just enough to let them speak. "When you've done that, kindly alert Professor Moody about what's happened. There's an intruder on the grounds, who must be found."
"No need, Dumbledore." Moody growled, limping through the hall, part of his dark robes caught between the stump of his leg and his artificial metal one. "Damn feckin' leg. I'd taken it off for the night, then saw the flashes of light through my window. Hurried here as fast as I could."
As he talked, he removed a small metal key and stuck it into the side of his leg. With a simple twist, there was a swift hiss as some sort of white mist escaped the false leg.
Leaning heavily on his staff and remaining leg, Moody shook the stump of his leg free from its metal casing, allowing him to pull his robes free.
Carefully lowering his leg back down, taking care to ensure his leg was unencumbered before turning the key the other way. This time there was a higher pitched squeal as the leg sealed back into place.
"I don't know who it was, but there's someone out there, Alastor. Find them."
Nodding grimly, Moody limped away at a good pace, Dumbledore's shields rippling as he passed through. Without a second's delay, he set off to where Harry had last seen their attack's spells.
"Severus, awaken Minerva, tell her what's happened and that I need her to fully seal Hogwarts. Nobody enters or exits without my direct permission. When you've done that, call for the Aurors. By the time I'm done down here, they'll be ready for me to let them through."
Still trying to get used to his magic again, Harry was content to rest his head against the cool ground and let events play around him. As such, he tuned out Dumbledore dealling with an irate Karkaroff, although Krum was doing a valiant job of mediating his headmaster's temper.
Also choosing to ignore the blustering Durmstrang Headmaster, a concerned Hagrid had checked in with Harry, which touched Harry even as he waved away his friend's worries. Harry was finding it surprisingly difficult processing everything again, even after just a few minutes of total exclusion.
"Hagrid, you know this forest better than anyone. I need you to find out where Crouch came from. Did this invisible assailant come from the same location? Was this invisible assailant chasing Crouch or leading him?"
"Understood Professor. I'll see if the centaurs know o' any visitors. Come on, Fang."
"What are we going to do about my champion!" Karkaroff finally exploded, gesturing wildly in Dumbledore's face. "He has been attacked, on your grounds. This is a plot!"
"Igor, be quiet!" Dumbledore thundered, eyes burning with anger. "Do not forget, Harry, my student, has been attacked too! And somewhere on these grounds, we have what is most likely an assassin, who was throwing around magic strong enough for me to feel it. I was in the headmaster's office, one of the most warded buildings, right over the heart of this school.
"The fact I could feel the fight all the way down here, quite frankly that terrifies me. So you will be quiet. You will let me and my staff deal with this catastrophic issue. If you would like to be helpful, I suspected Mr. Krum would benefit from a visit to our infirmary."
After taking a physical step back, a clearly disturbed Karkaroff whisked Krum into the school, casting a final concerned glance at Dumbledore's glowing rainbow shields.
Wincing as he got to his feet, Harry resolutely ignored those shields, already knowing they'd flood his magesight with unwanted knowledge. Already he felt like he'd gain a tan just from proximity to their brilliance.
"Harry, before anything else, I must ask; May I have your memory of this event, from leaving the great hall to right now?" Dumbledore pressed gently.
Nodding, Harry focused and drew out the requested memory, guiding it into the vial Dumbledore had procured. Easily pocketing it, Dumbledore led Harry back up into the castle, where he summoned a fourth kaleidoscope shield within the doorway.
New shield in place, he let the previous three drop, creating an awful sound akin to glass being crushed. Now that he had his senses restored, Harry could feel the arcane Magick being pulled into the shield's shape.
"Loquela Magick, Harry. The arcane Magick draws in the verbarn Magick of a ward I developed. In essence, I am extending the wards across the entire grounds into this shape. From there, I don't need to imbue any intent, seeing as its own compressed density is enough to overwhelm anything within the same space." Dumbledore quietly explained.
"Now, are you alright? That wasn't a nice curse you'd been struck with, especially for one as attuned to magic as yourself."
"I think I'm okay. It's just… shocking, I guess. I don't know how I lost so easily, especially when everyone points out how strong I'm meant to be." Harry replied morosely, resolutely staring at the saber's hilt in his clenched fist.
Feeling a strong grip upon his shoulder, he looked up towards Dumbledore's grim face.
"Do not base your sense of worth upon this one event Harry. You are strong, never doubt that. If I am to be lauded as the strongest wizard of my time, then what does that say about you, who's far stronger than I was at the same age. From what I can tell, you were caught unawares by a wizard with a shocking amount of power and skill.
"Everyone loses, it is inevitable. I've lost plenty of duels in my time, even when I was desperately trying to win. So, I'd advise going to Madam Pomfrey for some dreamless-sleep, then talk with Nicholas tomorrow. I shall no doubt be busy entertaining ministry officials for weeks, but you are welcome to join us anytime should you wish."
Waking up in the infirmary, the events of the previous night flashed before his eyes.
Glancing over, he spotted the still sleeping form of Krum, who'd nearly exhausted himself casting the electrical net. While his output was higher than Harry's, his regeneration was relatively terrible.
Meanwhile Mr. Crouch was a different story. Harry didn't know what the man had been hit with, but he'd been rushed to Saint Mungos before Dumbledore had closed the school down.
"Good morning Harry." Luna's voice called, causing him to turn the other way and spot her calmly waiting next to his bed.
"Morning… Been waiting long?" He asked gravelly, flipping his wand into his palm and checking the time.
"Not long, I knew roughly when you'd wake up. The aurors are still scouring the entire school, so it was quite nice to sit in the quiet here." Luna airily commented, subtly pointing out the tall black auror slowly pacing by the giant hospital wing doors.
"I was thinking Professor Lupin might want to be told about last night." Luna then said leadingly, handing over his trench-coat. "You can borrow Mamillius if you'd like."
Taking Luna's clue, the two snuck out of the hospital wing, with the auror merely raising an eyebrow with a wry smile. Writing out a quick note, listing what had happened while promising to visit as soon as possible,
Stepping into the owlery, Luna called down her owl, a relatively large blue-grey boreal owl. Of course, even then he was still small enough to easily rest on the side of her hand. For several moments, both Luna and Mamillius stared at each other… owlishly, until Luna blinked and turned to Harry.
"He said he'd deliver your letter." She declared cheerfully, taking his note and trying it to the owl's feet. Hooting equally cheerfully, the owl hopped onto the windowsill before leaping off. For several seconds the bird just plummeted downwards, until it spread its wings and glided away.
"I'm telling you, that's blackmail. I don't know why you're insisting on this, if the goblins can't get money out of him, what hope do you think we have?" One of the Weasley twins demanded, barging into the owlery only to stop dumb as he spotted Harry and Luna.
"Yeah, but the goblins- Oh, hello you two."
"What're you doing here?" The left twin asked.
"Sending a letter." Luna replied.
"What, at this time?" From the right twin.
"I assume you heard what happened last night? Well I just woke up and wanted to tell my godfather about it." Harry said easily, seeing no point in lying. "What about you two?"
Glancing first at each other, then at Luna, the twins sighed in sync, before the left twin explained.
"It's Bagman, he still refuses to talk to us, let alone pay off our debt."
"How much does he owe you?"
"Thirty-seven Galleons, fifteen Sickles, three Knuts-"
"Forty-two Galleons, he said he'd give us 5 Galleons for the wand, remember?"
"Right, that much. After we got to speak to the goblins, they told us they were taking as much of his pay-cheques as they can, but it will be years till we get a Knut from that. Fred is hoping if we threaten Bagman, he'll somehow find the funds we need, skipping round the goblins."
"Listen, it's partially my fault Bagman can't pay you, since the goblins wouldn't let him bet on me. I can probably get you that money soon enough."
"Don't be daft, you didn't make Bagman a pillock." Fred scoffed.
"Yeah, he's right Harry, we can't ask you to pay off someone else's debt. We'll be fine, don't worry. We'll find our own way, especially since we want Bagman to pay."
Nodding in unison, the two swiftly left the tower, leaving no room for Harry to reply.
"I like them, but they can be very cruel at times." Luna murmured, "Come on, the others want to talk to you too."
During the research for this chapter, I realised how messed up the Hogwarts layout really is. To start with, Harry and Dumbledore go straight from the marble staircase to the grounds, but every map I can find of the school has the entrance hall on the lake side of the school rather than the forest side.
Equally, the forest is massive, such that you could apparently fit Hogwarts castle within the forest over 5 times and still have plenty of trees left.