Chapter 16

"The champion for Durmstrang," Dumbledore read in a loud and clear voice." -will be Mr. Viktor Krum!"

Viktor rose to a storm of applause and cheers. Everyone around him, both from Gryffindor and Durmstrang patted his back and shook his hand. Even Ron who earlier did an unmistakable impression of a clam through the course of the dinner.

"Knew it will be you," said Harry as he shook Viktor's hand.

Viktor smiled widely. He then went up to Dumbledore, shook the headmaster's hand, and disappeared behind the door into the next chamber.

The clapping and cheering died down. Once again everyone's focus turned towards the Goblet. The flame turned red and out came from it another parchment.

"The champion for Beauxbaton," announced Dumbledore. "- is Miss Fleur Delacour!"

This time, the applause given out was much louder than before, especially from the male students who finally got to know the name of the extremely beautiful girl. The Beauxbaton delegates clapped more politely, however. None of the members of the delegates cried of disappointment this time. It was as if they already knew who would be chosen. Just like the Durmstrang.

Fleur stood gracefully. She held her head high and walked towards the High Table. Like Viktor, she also made her way towards the door to the chamber after shaking Dumbledore's hand. But just as she was about to open the door, she suddenly stopped. She looked over her shoulder towards the Gryffindor table momentarily and then disappeared into the chamber.

Silence once again engulfed the hall. This time though, it was so stiff that one could almost taste it. There was no doubt why. The Hogwarts champion will be chosen next.

Minutes passed by. Here and there, murmurs can be heard throughout the hall. Everyone was puzzled. The Goblet of Fire this time had taken far longer than before to decide who the next champion would be.

Harry himself felt nervous. This did not feel right.

Questions began to bombard his head. Had everything gone wrong? Would he still be one of the champions this time around?

*"Normal" - English language

*"French/Bulgarian" - French or Bulgarian language

"Why does it take so long?"

"You think there's a problem with it? I mean it does look kind of old. That goblet could be faulty for all we know."

"Maybe because there were too many Hogwarts students putting their name in it? The Goblet may not have enough time."

Murmurs within the Great Hall were getting louder and louder. Everyone was getting impatient.

Including him. His eyes transfixed at the Goblet of Fire, waiting for the inevitable.

And so did Dumbledore who was still looking at the Goblet, waiting patiently for the Goblet to spit out the name of the champion that would represent his school. At some point, and Ludo Bagman, together with the two competing school's headmasters, joined him. They talked. Dumbledore could be seen nodding at a certain point raised by Professor Karkaroff.

Harry placed his face into his palm. He truly did not like this at all. He did not want to be one of the champions. Once was enough. It was not about facing the eventual ridicule. He was mature enough to easily dismiss all of that. He wouldn't worry about Ron either. He was perfectly aware of the true nature of his best friend. It was the fact that being pulled into the tournament would derail his plan. Everything from then on would become just a carbon copy of the old timeline. A lot of people would die.

Someone touched his shoulder. He looked up and saw it was Ron.

"You're okay, Harry?" asked Ron looking concerned.

Harry nodded and looked away from the redhead boy. "Yeah, I'm fine, Ron," he said. He then took a deep breath. "I'm just… feeling a bit tired. That's all."

Ron nodded. "It won't be long, mate. Once this is over you could go back to the dormitory and have a really good rest."

Harry put up a faint smile. That will entirely depend on the Goblet of Fire, he thought.

"Oh look!" Someone pointed it out.

Harry turned to look and saw the Goblet's flame turned red.

As before, a partially burnt piece of parchment shoots out of the tongue of the flame. Dumbledore immediately caught it. He held the parchment at arm's length and read, "The Hogwarts champion will be," - he paused - "Mr. Cedric Diggory!"

There was a huge celebration as virtually all Hogwarts students rose from their seats and gave Cedric a standing applause. Cedric's friends grabbed the seventh-year Hufflepuff and carried him over their shoulders towards Dumbledore. They placed him down once they reached the headmaster. Cedric, smiling widely, shook hands with Dumbledore and walked towards the door behind the staff's table.

Harry's heart was beating fast. He held his breath and….

'Puff!'

The Goblet of Fire's flame summarily extinguished.

There was another round of applause.

Harry let out a sigh of relief. He did not become one of the champions. He reached up to wipe his face and was surprised to find that he was sweating profusely. He then joined the rest of the students in clapping their hands. He felt so relieved and so happy. To him, this must be what it felt like being on the other side of the fence for once. This must be what it felt like to be a spectator instead of an actor on the stage whose performance everyone wanted to see. The best part was that he wouldn't be robbing the House of Hufflepuff of their well-deserved glory. He now could join the rest of the Hogwarts students in cheering for their only champion, Cedric Diggory. And he promised to himself that he would cheer Cedric the hardest.

He once again turned his gaze towards the staff's table and saw 'Moody' was looking at the Goblet dejectedly.

This wouldn't be your only failure, Crouch, he thought satisfactorily.

"Excellent!" Dumbledore called happily as the last of the applause died down. "Now that we have our three champions, I am sure I can count on every one of you to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. We could of course continue to celebrate but alas, time is the enemy. It's getting late and all of you will have to be ready for your classes tomorrow. We certainly do not wish to keep you up. To the Beauxbaton and Durmstrang students, please gather at the Entrance Hall. A teacher shall be assigned to escort you back to your place of accommodation. I bid all of you a very goodnight and sweet dreams."

Dumbledore then turned towards the staff and the visitors and gestured them towards the side chamber. 'Moody', being forced to follow, gave Harry one last look before he tailed Dumbledore into the chamber.

Feet could be heard shuffling as the students began making their way towards the exit. The Durmstrang students after bidding the Gryffindors goodnight, made a beeline towards the Great Hall entrance.

"Ve'll see you tomorrow, Harry Potter," said Alexander. He then leaned towards Harry and whispered, "Ve probably von't be sleeping tonight if you know vhat I mean. I invite you if I can but you know, 'regulations'." He then gave Harry a wink.

A visibly happy-looking Harry smiled and nodded. "I know what you mean. Have fun. I'll see you guys tomorrow."

The trio remained at their seats, waiting for the traffic of students to subside before they made their way back to the Gryffindor Tower.

"Wonder what happened in there," said Ron who was eyeing the entrance into the chamber with curiosity. "Do you have any idea, Harry?"

"The champions are probably briefed for the tournament," said Harry, remembering his own experience as the fourth champion back in the distant past. "That is likely what happens in that chamber."

"Yeah, you're probably right. I bet the Hufflepuff House will be the first to know," said Ron. "Cedric will tell them. God, I wish one of us gets to be the champion then we wouldn't have to wait."

Harry knowing that the champions would undoubtedly have no idea what they were going to face until the very last minute said nothing. He of course knew everything that was to know about the tournament but decided to keep the information only to himself. The last thing he needed was a lot more unnecessary questions coming his way.

"I wonder what it is like to be in there," said Neville, who decided to wait for the heavy traffic at the Great Hall's entrance to subside with the trio. "It must be exciting, you know, to become a champion. I bet they can't wait to know what the first task will be."

"Definitely involving something incomprehensibly dangerous. Remember what Dumbledore said at the beginning of the school year about the Tournament?" said Ron. "But honestly people wouldn't care, not when there's a thousand Galleon waiting to be won. Fred and George would not hesitate to donate their left testicle each for a chance to face one, I know that for sure."

"Eww, Ron!" Hermione protested. "Language!"

Ron was about to reply when Harry suddenly interrupted, "The traffic is nearly cleared. We should go now."

The four of them got to their feet and made their way towards the Great Hall entrance. There were still many students snaking their way out but the four of them decided they waited long enough. They joined the crowd and slowly crept their way into the Entrance Hall.

Harry was walking behind Hermione and Ron when all of a sudden he felt someone bumped him from behind. Strangely enough, the bump that person gave was unusually warm and soft. He looked back and saw it was Daphne. He looked down and suddenly realized that it was her chest that touched his back earlier.

"Any slower you'll be walking backward, Potter," said Daphne, unconcerned that her 'asset' had touched a Gryffindor boy.

This was the first time ever he got into really close proximity to a female Slytherin. He never had that chance before. The girls of the Slytherin tended to stay as far away as possible from him back in the past. He met the adult Daphne before, thanks to Fleur. The bump Daphne gave him rendered him the chance to analyze the younger version of her carefully. She had a fair complexion. Her skin looked soft and free from any imperfections and blemishes. And her eyes, those green orbs, they shined like green emeralds. She was a really beautiful girl. Just like the adult version of her.

She should be. She was a Veela after all. Like Fleur, her beauty was difficult to describe. And just like Fleur, she would grow even prettier as time flies.

However, Harry couldn't help but noticed there was something else behind all those eyes. Something so familiar. It was something he always saw whenever he laid his eyes on Fleur.

"Well?" Her soft voice woke him up from his musing. "Aren't you going to say anything? A retort maybe just like what you used to do to Draco?"

Harry however said nothing. He somehow did not feel like starting any confrontation with the Slytherin girl, especially when the girl herself did not start any. He moved aside, intending to give Daphne a

clear path out of the Great Hall.

But Daphne did not move. She just continued standing there, looking at Harry.

"There won't be any retort tonight," said Harry to her. "This is a night of celebration even if you are not a Hufflepuff. You should move along. You're blocking the way."

Indeed she was. She looked back and saw students behind her craning their necks wondering why the traffic jammed up.

Daphne turned back to look at him. She was about to speak when suddenly she realized that Hermione and Ron were staring at her. Hermione looked impassive. As for Ron, he looked as if he could not decide whether to hate or give Daphne all of his heart. She looked at them momentarily before turning her gaze back to Harry.

"I'll see you in class, Harry."

Harry just watched her walk away. He did not fail to notice that Daphne used his first name in her last sentences which was a rarity for a Slytherin. He also noticed that many Slytherins were staring at him with that curious look on their face as they walked by. He had a hunch that his exchange with Daphne would be one of many topics of discussion within the Dungeon that night.

"What was that all about?" asked Hermione.

Harry just shook his head. "I have no idea. Come on. Let's go back to the common room. And Ron, you look like you're having constipation."

"What?! I most certainly am not!" replied Ron hotly.

"You like Daphne, don't you?"

"Shut up, Harry!"

Harry sniggered. His smile, however, was quickly wiped off his face when he saw the look on Hermione's face.

"Sorry," he said to her.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. I think I know more about your friend here than you do," she said. "Ron! Will you please get out of the way?! God, you just make me sick sometimes!"

Without waiting for Ron's response, she pushed her way through, nearly causing Ron to fall down in the process, and marched towards the Gryffindor Tower.

"What's up with her?" asked Ron, painfully massaging the place where Hermione rammed into not a moment ago.

The dormitory later that night…

Cladded in his pajamas, Harry lay on his bed, listening idly to his dorm mates' conversation.

"What do you think the First Task will be?" Dean wondered aloud. "What kind of thing do they need to do? Do they have to fight something? Or maybe find anything? Solving puzzles? Do they need to save anyone or anything?"

Harry listened in amusement. Those things that Dean said were exactly what the champions would have to do. Each and every one of it. He remained silent though.

"I figure the First Task will be the easiest one," Ron commented. "The second and the third one will be more difficult. No idea how difficult they will be though. We have yet known what the First Task will be to make any well-informed judgment."

"1000 Galleons. The Triwizard Cup. The promise of eternal glory. None of the tasks will be easy, mate. I'll bet you that. Funny enough, your brothers told me they found another way to make 1000 Galleons," said Seamus.

Ron raised his eyebrows. "Really? How?"

"Betting! No idea how many types of bets are already in place right now. You'll just have to ask them. The last I saw they had already begun to collect downstairs."

Ron shook his head. "Mum will blow a fit if she ever finds out," he muttered.

Harry silently agreed.

"Yeah, but you can't deny they're brilliant at it. You know, at making money. At this rate, they will be filthy rich before the seventh year," Seamus opined. "They know their stuff."

Again Harry silently agreed. And the conversation faded as his mind traveled to the past.

Indeed, Fred and George got rich back in the past. Far earlier than what Seamus anticipated actually. At the end of his fourth year, Harry surrendered his Triwizard's winning to them. They made it good on his winning. They became rich. Then the Battle of Hogwarts happened. Tragedy struck but George kept going. Together with Ron, they both were named The Wizarding Businessmen of The Decade by The Wizard Business Tribune twenty years after the Second Wizarding War.

Harry rarely visited the Weasley Wizarding Wheeze during his days as an Auror. That place reminded him too much of the price paid for the twins' success. But still, he was proud of them.

He was brought back to present when Ron jabbed him on his shoulder. "Harry! Hey Harry! Are you still here?"

"Eh.. what?! What?"

"Good to see you back. Where have you been?"

Harry stared at Ron. "I wasn't going anywhere," he said.

Seamus sniggered. "Well, your brain did. We saw you zoning out. Ron has been talking to you for like twenty minutes."

Harry turned to look at Ron. "Really?" he asked in surprise.

"Nah! Don't listen to him. I was asking for your opinion on Cedric," said Ron. "But he's right. You were somewhere else. I thought you were in a trance or something. I was worried for a bit back then."

Seamus took a pillow and hugged it. "I'll be honest with you, I am deeply surprised that he got selected. I mean Viktor Krum is a natural. He's the best Seeker in the world after all! Fleur Delacour? The Goblet of Fire won't be the only one who chose her. I'll choose her too. But Diggory? I don't know."

"The French champion is mighty pretty," said Neville. "I've never seen anything like her. I like her."

There was a murmur of agreement.

Harry shot Neville a glance. He was surprised that Neville could come up with something like that.

"Yeah, she is," said Dean. "Do you think she's still single?"

"Dean, you already got a girlfriend!" exclaimed Seamus to his closest mate. "And even if you're still single, she's out of your league, man! She's superbly gorgeous. She's a Triwizard Champion. And from the look of it, she probably comes from a very well-to-do family which means that she's rich. A girl like her won't spare a look at guys like us. Besides, she's already seventeen years old. We're all just a bunch of fourteen years old blokes who never even had a girlfriend." He then sighed and shook his head. "I hate my life."

"I hate your life too, Seamus. But all in all, you should be happy that I have a girlfriend," Dean blurted.

Seamus rolled his eyes. "Thank you for reminding me of how acutely single I am."

"That doesn't stop many guys from trying to get to her though," said Neville.

"Anyone we know, Neville?" asked Ron.

"I know one," said Seamus. "You know Roger Davies? That bloke from Ravenclaw who also happens to be their Quidditch captain? He ordered a bouquet of red roses this morning and had it sent to the Beauxbaton carriage in the afternoon. Parvati told me that this afternoon."

"Wow, seriously?" asked Ron. "But that doesn't mean that he was sending it to her, does it? He could be sending it to anyone from Beauxbaton."

Seamus just shrugged. "Probably. A lot of rumors are flying these days but I believe that his bouquet is for the Delacour girl. All the boys are talking about her, you know. Nobody in Hogwarts had ever seen a girl as attractive as her. Nobody in their right mind would ignore her whenever she's around. Blokes will try to get her attention in any way they can, you'll see. This is just the beginning, my friend. We're going to see a lot of Hogwarts couples breaking up after this."

What Seamus said gave Harry a pause. There were a lot of beautiful girls in Hogwarts. ChoChang was one of them. And then there were the Patil sisters, Susan Bones, Angelina Johnson, Katie Bell, and Alicia Spinner to name a few as well. And there was Hermione. Granted that she looked kind of messy most of the time, her appearance at the Yule Ball back in the past changed his view of her. Hermione was a pretty girl. Daphne Greengrass and her younger sister also come to mind.

Of course, all of them paled into comparison whenever Fleur, whose beauty stood way above the rest even among the Veelas, was included in the equation.

He would not worry about Roger Davies though. That boy hardly managed to control himself in front of Fleur in the past. It would be the same this time around. Fleur herself admitted in the past that she was never fond of Roger.

For the next couple of hours, they continued to chat about the tournament. Harry's dorm mates were highly skeptical about Cedric Diggory's chances of winning the tournament, stating that the Hufflepuffs had nothing but only a pretty face. Harry though countered by reminding them that the Goblet chose Cedric for a reason, which they needed to wait until the First Task to see what Cedric was capable of.

At some point, Neville yawned widely. Harry turned to look at his bedside clock and realized that it was already an hour past midnight. He told them that it was time for them to turn in. They will be having the Herbology class early tomorrow.

"Blimey! The weekend comes and goes fast, yeah?" said Seamus as he beat his pillow, trying desperately to make it softer. "Just for the record, I hate Mondays."

All of them chuckled.

"Don't we all, Seamus," said Harry. "Well, good night."

"Good night," the rest of his dorm mates echoed him.

In the darkness, Harry lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling. That weekend had become a whirlwind of activities for him. It culminated into the Triwizard Tournament Champion Selection where he thankfully was not chosen to be one.

That was strike one for Barty Crouch Jr.

But Harry knew that he must not be complacent. He knew that the Death Eater was fully aware that his master did not take failures kindly. Returning to Voldemort empty-handed would usually mean death.

Barty would try again.

And as before, he would be ready for him.

Drowsiness took over him. His eyelids began to close and before long, the image of a room within the old Tom Riddle's house, Peter Pettigrew, and the badly decomposed and half-mangled body of the poor old housekeeper came into view.

The next morning…

There were attempts by many to dig out what went on inside the chamber from the champions during breakfast that morning.

"Nothing much," said a groggy-looking Viktor when several Gryffindors approached him. "The First Task vill happen on November the twenty-fourth. They didn't tell us vhat the First Task vill be. All ve got vas a speech about how the First Task vill tests our daring, courage, and… many other kinds of stuff. Like that vill be useful to us. Pretty convenient, eh Harry?" Viktor shook his head and downed whatever was left inside his coffee cup. That was his fifth cup of coffee of the day by the way.

They had Herbology with the Hufflepuff as their first subject of the day. As expected, the Hufflepuff was elated that one of them was selected to be the champion of Hogwarts. Even Professor Sprout was in a celebratory mood that morning. She ended up giving them a really easy assignment. All they had to do was to water the plants.

"So, did you guys celebrate last night?" asked Harry to Ernie Mcmillan, a Hufflepuff who eventually became his good friend after the second year. They both were busy watering some of the brightly colored flower plants within the Floral Section of the Greenhouse Three.

"Yeah, we sure did," said Ernie, smiling. "We only slept at three in the morning."

"That was quite a party, Ernie."

"It was," Ernie chuckled. "There were a lot of foods and stuff." He then leaned towards Harry and whispered, "We knick them all from the kitchen. We even got butter beer courtesy of the Weasley twins. They charged us quite a bit but hey! It's not always we get to celebrate."

Of course, butter beer was Fred and George's specialty. Only the twins knew how to smuggle those into the school.

"So you guys know how to get into the kitchen?" Harry whispered back.

"Of course, we know," said Ernie. "The kitchen's entrance is not far from the entrance into our common room, Harry. All Hufflepuffs know how to get into the kitchen. We taught everyone including the first year."

"I see."

"I could teach you how to get into the kitchen Harry, but not now. Maybe sometime later when the coast is clear," whispered Ernie.

"Thanks," said Harry, who decided that it would be wise to not divulge to Ernie that he already knew how to get into the kitchen. "So Professor Sprout, she didn't tell you guys off for partying too hard?"

Ernie once again chuckled. "Nope. She came in around midnight, shook her head at us, and left."

"Only that?"

"Yeah," confirmed Ernie. "I mean, she understands. We Hufflepuff…we don't really have a lot of things to celebrate, Harry. We know we are always the underdog. With Cedric being chosen as the Champion, it's awesome. Unbelievable but awesome. It's a testament, Harry. That we can do just as well as everyone else. "

Harry of course understood the sentiment. And Ernie of course was right."I agree, Ernie."

"You know, I was hoping that the rest of the school would give Cedric the full support he needs. I mean, it doesn't matter that he's from Hufflepuff. He represents us all, you know."

Harry smiled and patted Ernie on the back. "Don't worry, Ernie. We will support him. We will support him in droves. The Gryffindor will have the Hufflepuff's back."

Ernie smiled satisfactorily. "Thanks, Harry. You're the best. Anyway, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"What's up with you and the Greengrass girl?"

"Err…"

The Gryffindor had the Care of Magical Creatures class next. Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor walked down the sloping lawn towards Hagrid's hut. They walked past the Beauxbaton carriage along the way. Harry took a glance at it. No one else was outside of it. They were probably having classes inside the carriage. They probably had their breakfast in there as well given that Harry did not see them at the Great Hall that morning.

Hagrid was busy tending the Blast-Ended Skrewt when they arrived. The skrewts were growing at a remarkable pace despite the fact their favorite food had yet to be found.

"Mornin'!" he said jovially when he saw them.

"Good morning," said Hermione. "So, have you found out what the skrewts like to eat, Hagrid?"

"Not yet," Hagrid answered. "Haven't found any so far though they do seem ter like my fingers." He proceeded to show Hermione his bandaged fingers.

"That looks bad, Hagrid."

"Nah, this is nothing. I'll be fine."

The Slytherins arrived minutes later. Malfoy saw Harry and immediately looked away. He ended up strutting away from Harry as far as he could with both his henchmen following him.

Daphne however gave a much different reaction from Malfoy. She gave him a faint smile and ended up standing not far from him. Harry had no doubt that she would try to get close to him if it was not for Ron and Hermione.

The lesson then began. That day, instead of trying to figure out what the skrewts like to eat, Hagrid tasked them to observe the skrewts' behavior and make notes out of it.

Harry immediately gets to work. With a piece of parchment in one hand and a quill in another, he began to jot down every detail and observation about the Blast-Ended Skrewts he could find.

Minutes passed by. Crouching, Harry was busy monitoring one of the smaller skrewts when all of a sudden he felt someone standing close beside him. He looked up and saw it was Daphne.

"Interesting creatures, isn't it?" she said.

Harry returned to the baby skrewt he monitored earlier. "Yeah."

She then crouched beside him. Her leg nearly touched him. Her perfume dominated his sense of smell. "I didn't know you were into this kind of thing."

"Well, we do have to pass the subject, don't we?" said Harry nonchalantly. He continued to scribble on his parchment. "You can hate the subject but you still have to pass it."

"True but I still couldn't understand the point of all of these. But like you said, I still have to pass it. Do you hate this subject?"

"No."

"Why?" said Daphne. "Is it because of your fondness for him?" She nodded towards Hagrid who at that time was busy reeling in some of the wilder skrewts.

"Part of it," said Harry as he continued to write down his latest observation on the skrewts. "Hagrid is a good person and I am happy for him. He finally got the recognition he deserved. I'll fight anyone who tries to take that away from him."

"I see."

"You should get back to your skrewt."

Daphne raised her eyebrows. "Are you trying to get rid of me, Harry?"

"No, but we both got a job to do. Also, I don't think your friends like it that we're talking."

Indeed many of the Slytherins were watching them. Harry noticed Malfoy's face for one could be seen reddened with jealousy with each passing second.

"True but I don't really care. All they could do is sneer which is not going to affect me in any way."

"Malfoy is looking very pissed right now. Are you sure about the 'not going to affect me in any way' part?" said Harry.

Daphne glanced over at Malfoy. "He can be pissy for all I care. I am not bothered. I can take care of myself."

"Well, good to know that."

"Your friends are looking at us. I expect that red-headed friend of yours will interrogate you once I leave," said Daphne, glancing at Ron and Hermione.

Harry too glanced in the same direction and saw the expression on Ron's face. "I'll survive," he said simply and returned to his parchment.

"Why do I get the feeling that you hated me?" asked Daphne. "You didn't even bother to look at me."

Harry stopped writing. Turning to Daphne, he spoke, "I'm busy. Rest assured I do not hate you. You gave me no reason to feel that way. Unlike teenage Malfoy."

"Teenage Malfoy?"

Harry nearly slapped himself in his face. "I mean Malfoy," he quickly corrected himself.

Daphne stared at Harry.

Harry avoided Daphne's stare by returning to his parchment. He sincerely hoped Daphne wouldn't press the matter further.

"It's good to know that you didn't feel that way about me," said Daphne moments later.

Harry felt relief. "Yeah, don't worry about it. I know not all Slytherins are the same," he said. His eyes were still on his parchment.

Even without looking at her, he could sense Daphne was smiling at him. He wanted to turn and see that smile of hers but ultimately decided against it. Knowing Fleur, he had a hunch that Daphne's smile would be just as beautiful as Fleur's. Fleur's smile affected him. Daphne's smile would probably do the same.

"That is a lot coming from you. I appreciate that. Thank you, Harry," said Daphne softly. She then reached out to him and gently squeezed his arm. "I let you get back to it then."

She then stood up but before she departed, she said, "There are things you ought to know but this isn't the right time for that. Just be aware that things might get complicated from here on."

She then rejoined her friends, leaving Harry looking puzzled.

The trio stayed behind to have a chat with Hagrid after the class ended. Ron interrogated Harry about Daphne. He told him that they were just talking.

"You shouldn't trust them, Harry," claimed Ron. "None of them can be trusted."

"I'll make a note of that, Ron," Harry replied, rolling his eyes.

Hermione, on the other hand, defended Daphne which took both Harry and Ron by surprise. "There's nothing wrong with her wanting to talk to Harry, Ron. If you must know, she and her friend Tracy Davis talked to me in the Arithmancy classes and they were nice. But I must say, she never showed any interest in Harry last year. I wonder what gives?"

"Did you all always talk about me in classes, Hermione?" asked Harry rather curiously.

"Not last year. You were the first thing she asked about when we met in the first Arithmancy class this term," Hermione replied. "It was quite unsettling, really."

"Did you ask her why the sudden interest?" asked Harry.

"Yes. She told me something about the end of our term last year. You remember that 'adventure' we had last year?" said Hermione, her hands making an air quote at the same time.

"She was interested in that? I thought everyone already got over it by now," said Harry.

"Now that will make anyone interested," Hagrid suddenly chimed in. "I mean Harry conjured the Patronus that drove those bloody Dementors away. I was told it was the biggest, most powerful anyone had ever seen. You told me that, Hermione. Sirius got away then and we all know what happened ter poor Remus. She will want ter know the whole bloody story."

Hermione just shrugged. She looked unconvinced.

It was nearly lunch when they began their journey back to the castle. Hagrid told them to wait for him.

"I'll come with yeh," said Hagrid, rather a bit over excitedly. "Just let me put on sumthin'." He then disappeared into his hut and reappeared a few minutes later. A truly horrible smell reached the trio's noses the moment Hagrid arrived right in front of them.

"Hagrid," said Hermione, her nose scrunched. "Are you wearing an aftershave?"

"Well yeah," said Hagrid. "I just want ter smell nice, don't I? Now come on. We'll stop by at the carriage first."

"The carriage?"

But Hagrid had already walked ahead.

The trio immediately set off to catch up to him.

The carriage door opened just as they arrived. Madame Maxime smiled widely just as she saw Hagrid.

"Monsieur Hagrid," she greeted Hagrid and extended her hand towards him.

"Olymp," said Hagrid as he bowed to kiss her hand. "Shall we?"

"My pupil must come with us," she said.

"Of course."

One by one the Beauxbaton students filed out. Fleur was one of them. She gave out a look of surprise when she saw the trio was there. Her eyes lingered on Harry for a few moments. Madame Maxime who noticed Fleur was staring at Harry gestured for the Beauxbaton champion to follow her.

"Come, Fleur," she said. She signaled Fleur to walk beside her.

"Yes, Madame," Fleur replied. She gave Harry another look before joining her Headmistress.

Both Hagrid and Madame Maxime began to walk towards the castle with the rest of her students in tow. The trio made up the rear.

The Beauxbaton students threw curious looks every now and then at the trio during their walk to the castle. It was then one of them decided to join the trio. It was Cassandra.

"'Ello," she greeted Hermione.

"Hi," Hermione greeted back, smiling.

"You remember me, yes? Are you wiz 'im?" asked Cassandra, nodding towards Hagrid.

"Yes. He is our teacher actually. We had just finished his class," replied Hermione. "I didn't see any of you during breakfast this morning."

"Oh, we were 'aving breakfast at zhe carriage. One of us sponsored our breakfast directly from France. Forgive me, we don't really like 'Ogwarts food zhat much," Cassandra explained.

Hermione smiled at this. "It is understandable. I'm Hermione. Hermione Granger."

"My name iz Cassandra Osman. You can call me Cassy," Cassandra replied. She then glanced at Harry who at this point was walking further away from them. "Are you wiz 'im too?" she asked, nodding towards Harry.

Hermione glanced over her shoulder and was surprised to see Harry and Ron were no longer walking beside her. The boys had broken off from the main group and were walking quite a distance away from her at the rear.

"Yes," she replied with creased eyebrows. "They are with me. They seemed to be walking extra slow today. I have no idea why."

"Zhat iz not somezhing we should worried, no?" said Cassandra, she was still eyeing Harry. "Az long az zhey are still walking," Turning to Hermione, she continued," I want to zhank you again for zhat night. I waz quite embarrassed, you see. You saved me, unlike your friend back zhere."

Cassandra seemed to purposely speak louder on that last sentence. Harry could hear her very clearly. He just shrugged.

There were reasons why he and Ron broke off from the group and it was due to Ron. Earlier when the Beauxbaton students were gathering outside their carriage, Ron, who saw Fleur, pulled him to the side and whispered to him, "Harry, I am in danger of embarrassing myself if you know what I mean."

Harry, understanding what Ron meant by that, suggested that they both walked further apart from the group. Ron immediately agreed.

But that wasn't the only reason. Harry for some reason felt that it would be better for him to not get too close to the Beauxbaton delegates. He had no idea why that instinct came to him though but upon hearing what Cassandra said, it was probably the right choice.

Hermione smiled at Cassandra. "It was nothing. You don't have to thank me and please forgive Harry. He can be –*Harry raised his eyebrows at this* -really stupid at times but generally he's okay."

Cassandra laughed. "Yes, 'e seems to be zhat way, izn't 'e? Anyway, come. I want to introduce you to someone. We can talk a lot more too."

Harry saw Cassandra summarily grab Hermione's hand and pull her towards Fleur who at that time was walking just behind Madame Maxime. He saw Cassandra introducing Hermione to Fleur. Fleur in turn greeted Hermione warmly. A little bit too warm as a matter of fact. Any outsider who saw them would think that Fleur and Hermione had already known each other for a long time. He continued to observe the two girls' interaction with increasing curiosity. He was even surprised to see Fleur holding Hermione's hand at some point during their walk to the castle. And she held Hermione's hand right until they reached the castle.

"Well, that's odd," he muttered.

"What's odd, Harry?" asked Ron.

Harry was about to reply when he was interrupted by someone else. Cassandra wasn't the only one interested in getting to know the trio apparently. One of the Beauxbaton boys suddenly broke off from his group of friends to join Harry and Ron.

"'Bonjour!" the boy extended his hand to greet Harry and Ron.

Harry of course knew who that boy was. He met him before in the past. His name was Raphael Bertrand, another of Fleur's cousins. He was a pale-skinned, dark-haired boy, looking a little bit like the teenage Tom Riddle. But unlike the murderous Tom Riddle, Raphael was a funny guy.

"Hi!" Ron and Harry returned the greeting. The three of them shook hands.

"So you are 'Arry Potter. I am sorry if zhis comes out as awkward but it iz nice to finally meet you," said Raphael.

"Nah that's fine. Nice to meet you too," said Harry, smiling.

"You are very well known among us, 'Arry Potter. Zhe stories zhat we 'eard were unbelievable. Did you really do all zhose zhings zhat we 'eard, 'Arry Potter?" said Raphael.

Harry cringed at this. He said nothing.

Raphael upon noticing how uncomfortable Harry had become quickly apologized, "I am sorry. I thought you were like one of zhose people who loves to revel in 'is own success. You are a down-to-earth man. I like zhat. I'll date you if you're a girl, you know."

Harry had no idea on how to respond to that.

They continued to talk along the way. Raphael however didn't tell much about him and Harry didn't bother to ask either. He already knew Raphael. Asking him what he already knew felt odd. Most of their conversation centered around Hogwarts and the Triwizard Tournament. Nothing more.

The Great Hall, a few minutes later…

Raphael left Harry and Ron and rejoined his friends as they entered the Entrance Hall. He promised to talk to Harry again when the chance came.

"You know I just realized something," said Ron as they both watched Raphael walking towards his friends.

"What?"

"He never told us his name."

"He must have forgotten. You'll know his name eventually," said Harry. He decided not to divulge the fact that he actually knew the boy's name. The less everyone knew the amount of knowledge he possessed the better for him.

"You mean we. We'll know his name eventually."

"Yes. We."

That wasn't the only thing that was odd. Harry and Ron chose to linger at the marble stairs, waiting for their turn to enter the Great Hall after the Beauxbaton delegates. They both saw an argument erupt between Raphael and Aurielie just outside the door into the Great Hall. There were no shouting matches between the two Beauxbaton students, however. Just frantic whispering so it was hard for Harry to hear what they were arguing about. Both of them stopped and quickly went inside the Great Hall when they noticed Harry was watching them.

Harry also saw Fleur and her friends insist that Hermione join them at the Ravenclaw table. Hermione however declined but she promised them that she would join them some other time. They then went their separate ways.

"I thought you had renounced Hogwarts and declared allegiance to the Beauxbaton," said Ron the moment he sat down beside her.

Hermione gave Ron a sharp look. "Maybe I'll consider that," she said as she doled out the salad onto her plate and began to eat.

"So Fleur Delacour," said Harry. "What was she like?"

He silently admitted he was super curious. Curious at the way Fleur acted. Curious at how odd the Beauxbaton students were behaving lately.

"Well, for one she is super friendly," said Hermione, jabbing her fork into her salad. "And so are her friends. She certainly defied my expectation by a huge mile."

"I saw her holding your hands all the way to the castle."

"Oh, you saw that, huh? Yeah, that took me by surprise. It was awkward for me since I just met her but that feeling quickly went away. She knows how to make people very comfortable, you know. We talked a bit."

"About what?" His heart was racing.

"A few things. About Hogwarts. About me. About the tournament. About how they got here. But mostly about me," said Hermione as she swallowed a forkful of salad.

"And you told her everything?"

Hermione nodded. "Mm-hmm. I mean there's nothing about me that I need to keep in secret so why not? She seems genuinely interested."

"Even things you prefer keeping to yourself? I'm sure you haven't told Ron and me everything that is to know about you. You just met her, Hermione," Harry reminded her.

Hermione paused. Her face fell upon realizing the horror of what she had just done. "Yeah, I probably should have thought about that. But you can't help it you know. You just want to spill out everything in front of her. You can't help but trust her. I-." She then buried her face in her hands. "Oh my God! What did I just do?!"

"It's okay, Hermione. It already happened. I'm sure she won't be using your information for nefarious purposes. She's a good person," said Harry.

Indeed, Fleur was a genuinely good person. He had known her for many decades. He married her. He knew her more than anyone else. Except maybe her parents.

"You think so?" Her face was still in her hands.

"I know so. The Goblet of Fire wouldn't have chosen her if she isn't worthy and I am sure that includes being a good person," said Harry.

Hermione slowly lifted her face from her hands. She then looked over her shoulder towards the Ravenclaw table. Harry too looked over in the same direction.

Fleur and her friends were eating their lunch and chatting. Fleur suddenly noticed Harry and Hermione were looking in her direction. She smiled and gave a small wave at them. Hermione reciprocated.

Harry's heart meanwhile skipped a beat upon seeing Fleur's smile. He truly missed that smile.

Hermione gave out a sigh. Turning back to Harry, she said, "I hope you're right."

"Don't worry about it. You already confessed that you don't have any secret to hide so why worry? Anyway, is that all you and she talked about?" asked Harry as he tore his eyes away from Fleur.

"Yeah, that's about it. Why?"

"Err… nothing. I thought there would be a lot more… than that." At this point, Harry felt a little bit deflated.

Hermione stared at Harry with amusement. "Harry, Fleur, and I just met. You said it yourself. She and I couldn't possibly talk about everything and everyone in such a short period. Of course, I blurted out everything about me to her which is a huge mistake. I don't even know the details of her friends yet. But we'll talk more when we meet next time, I am sure of it. Oh, for the record, she never raised any questions nor she initiates any conversation about you which is a first and I am so glad for it. I am so tired of people wanting to talk about you whenever they realize we're friends."

Harry fell silent. Once again he glanced over to the Ravenclaw table. Fleur no longer was looking his way. She was in a deep discussion with Marianne and Cammille.

He quickly quelled that feeling of disappointment. He knew he needed to pull himself together. There was no reason for him to feel that way. Hermione was right. Not having people incessantly nosing on him was a breath of fresh air. But still, he wouldn't reject a sliver of attention coming his way from her. That would make him very happy. Then again, teenage Fleur back in his past never gives a rat's arse about him. She only became friendly with him after the Second Task. Why should this time be different?

Then again there was a reason for it. Fleur seldom deals with façades. To her, those were nothing more than a parade of shows. She liked good-looking men undoubtedly, that was one of the reasons why she was attracted to Bill Weasley in the first place. Bill once told him that while Fleur initiated the friendship, wooing her was never easy. Fleur only agreed to a romantic relationship with him after nearly a year of trying. Things did get sped up after that, however.

His status as the Boy-Who-Lived won't win Fleur. He would just have to try some other way.

The Durmstrang delegates joined them half an hour later. For a few moments, Harry's mind got a temporary respite from thinking about Fleur by Viktor's appearance.

"You're very late," Harry said just as Viktor arrived and sat beside him. "Lunch will be over in like fifteen minutes. What kept you?"

"Ve vere held up," said Viktor as he began to pile his plate with mashed potatoes, steaks, and sausages and began to eat. "Ve vere listening to a speech by the Bulgarian president. It vas so long some of us doze off."

"I see."

" Listen, do you have any plans this afternoon?" asked Viktor.

"Well," Harry said as he drank from his goblet. He had just finished eating. "We'll be having a double period after lunch but nothing after that. Why?"

Viktor nodded. "Five pm. Quidditch pitch. Vhat do you say?"

"Will brooms be involved this time?"

"Absolutely. Please don't tell anyone else. Ve don't vant a repeat like yesterday if you know vhat I mean."

"Yeah sure," Harry gave his agreement. Flying on his broom would take his mind off the event that happened minutes before. "I'll see you there."

They continued to eat and chat. Ron fared better this time around. He finally gathered enough bravery to strike up a meaningful conversation with Viktor and much to Harry's surprise, it went well.

"It's Divination time, Ron," said Harry near the end of lunchtime. "Let's go."

"Right," said Ron as he too lugged his bag over his shoulder.

"See you this afternoon, Viktor," said Harry. "See you later, Hermione."

Viktor just nodded. "Don't forget, Harry."

He and Ron then took off and made their way towards the Divination Tower. Little did he realize that as he made his exit, many pairs of eyes from the Ravenclaw table were looking at him.

Divination classroom, North Tower, a few minutes later…

Compared to last year, Divination classes nowadays were much more bearable. Professor Trelawney no longer made predicting his fate her favorite pastime. However, she did keep on reminding him to come and see her whenever he got the chance every time the class ended. Harry had not forgotten her reminders actually. It was just that he never bothered doing it. These days, he would much rather spend his time doing other things and be in other places rather than being stuck at the North Tower.

They were still studying the astronomical aspect of the Divination and as always, Harry's mind would drift to other places, no doubt an after-effect from the burning incense and Professor Trelawney's long and slow lecture about the movement of celestial bodies and its effect on humans. Her lectures ended with her giving each of them a task where they needed to study the movement of the solar system's outer bodies that month by using a complex circular chart she handed to them a few classes ago.

And as always, he and Ron would use their most effective method whenever the Divination teacher gave them assignments. They both would just make up everything and see what happens.

Professor Trelawney told them to stop twenty minutes before the class ended. She asked if any of them had finished. As expected, no one managed to complete the task in time. She seemed to not mind about it. She told them that the task would be their homework and she expected them to hand it over during the next class.

"You can go now," she said.

Surprised that they were let out early, the students began to gather their things and made their way out of the classroom.

Harry was about to do the same when Professor Trelawney called out to him. "Harry, please stay."

Ron and Harry looked at each other. "You go on. I'll see you back in the common room," said Harry.

Ron nodded. "Yeah, okay. Can I come with you later to the Quidditch pitch?"

"Yeah, sure. Just don't blurt out the news to other people. Viktor won't like it."

"Sure thing, Harry. See ya."

Ron then took leave. Now it was just Harry and Professor Trelawney.

The Divination teacher motioned Harry to sit. He obliged and took a seat at the opposite side of her desk.

"Tea?" she offered.

Harry shook his head. "No thank you, professor. I had my lunch."

Professor Trelawney just smiled. "Fate told me that you will want to have a cup of tea," she said.

Without waiting for his response, she walked towards a nearby small kitchen set-up within the classroom and began making tea.

Harry just rolled his eyes behind her.

Moments later, she came back with two steaming cups of tea. She gave one to Harry.

Harry took it and muttered thanks. He took a sip and was pleasantly surprised. That cup of tea was really good. It was different compared to the tasteless ones he had the displeasure of drinking when

they studied tea leaves. It was even better than what Fleur used to concoct for him. But of course, the girl liked coffee more than tea.

Professor Trelawney noticed the impression printed on Harry's face. "I can see that you like the tea."

"Well, it is tastier than the usual. Sorry, I mean- ," admitted Harry as he took further sips.

But Professor Trelawney waived off Harry's apology. She put her cup down and said, "Even better than what the Beauxbaton champion used to make?"

Harry immediately froze. He looked up at her, wide-eyed.

Professor Trelawney looked calmly back at him. "You are not from here. Harry Potter," she said in a much firmer tone. Gone had her usual airy-fairy self. "Not in a sense of locations, but in the sense of time. You are from the future and your return shall have far-reaching consequences."

To be continued…