A/N: And here we are People! New Chapter of The Merlin's Cup!
Trevor Bent: Thanks and I will.
nils123: No his wand still works for him as such he won't go to Ollivander's.
Galagon17: No Problem and glad that you enjoyed it. Here is the New Chapter.
This is going to be a long Story that will introduce new characters and expand the Wizarding World! To those who came here after reading Griffin's Prophecy, the interlude story by the name of The Summer of 1995 is there and has some important stuff hence I recommend reading it.
This chapter is Un-Betaed.
Other Schools arrive at Hogwarts!
"Dialogue"
"Dialogues in Different language"
'Thoughts'
(Visions)
*Dreams*
{Written Letter}
{Spell Casting!}
Now without any more meaningless drabble! On to the Chapter!
⨳⨳※※※~WELCOME TO HOGWARTS~※※※⨳⨳
October 1st, Hogwarts
Early Morning
As the month came to an end it was time for Hogwarts to attend to their guests who were coming today.
After the announcement made by Headmaster on the 8th about the student committee, a massive number of students from all three years volunteered to join for the perks. It was almost all of the 7th years from all four houses while half of the 6th years and few 5th years.
The castle as a whole changed, along with a moat around the castle, and the old wings of the castle were open to accommodate their guest but they weren't enough to house a contingent of 60 students all with professors and magical ministry countries of 7 income schools. As such the accommodations were made near the castle side of the black lake which was also a request of Castleobruxo.
The delegations also included the magical creatures and Artifacts that were to be used in the tournament. All the tournament-related equipment was looked over by the ICW deployed Auror and specialized handlers.
The grounds of the castle were immaculate in the front and in the back, which is a testament to the abilities of Professor Sprout and Hagrid along with the best students in herbology who were part of the student committee. The castle was scrubbed clean of the centuries-old dirt and filth by House elves along with making every suit of armor shiny.
At the moment the whole student was having breakfast with excitement in the air to the arrivals of the delegations today but before them just after lunch in the afternoon. At Gryffindor's table, Daphne and others were waiting for Harry who was held up due to the quidditch practice after his workout earlier in the morning.
Hermione was getting anxious as she saw Dumbledore walk over to the podium as she looked at the great hall door saying "Where in the magics name is he? He is late by 10 minutes he stopped being late since last year"
Daphne rolled her eyes saying "Clam down Granger! He must be on his way, just sit down and relax, you will sprain your neck if you keep craning like that" as she took another bite of her porridge.
Hermione took a seat huffing and continuing with her breakfast. Just as she took a sip of her tea out of the corner of her eyes she saw her best friend enter the hall.
Harry knew that he was late for breakfast which was something that Hermione didn't like so as he reached them and noticed her annoyed expression he was quick to say "I know I know, I am late but what could I do, Coach wanted to discuss some gameplay strategies and what we can improve in our game-play" as he sat beside Daphne.
Hermione nodded saying "Okay but don't fall into the habit of tardiness again"
He smiled saying "Okay Mum! Now can you please pass the fruit bowl so I can have breakfast? Mum" Hermione didn't reply only gave him a glare and a silent smirk passing the bowl just. He smiled replying "Thank you! And good morning to you!"
Before he turned to Daphne saying "And good morning Daph!"
She greeted him back and he started his breakfast but the moment he started to eat he looked around the hall to look for his other fiancee and found her at her usual spot at the Hufflepuff table talking with Hannah happily. As he wandered he glanced at the Slytherin table and noticed Blasie seating with Draco, this didn't sit right with him for some reason next he saw Luna and Tracey over to the Ravenclaw table.
Next, as his eyes went to the head table, for what was the millionth time in the past 4 years he caught Snape glaring at him with a dour expression on his face which was annoying and beside him was Jugson who was the worst Defense Teacher in his opinion, that was after counting a man possessed by the spirit of wizard of wanted to kill him and his werewolf uncle.
Shaking his head he completed his breakfast just before he saw Dumbledore walk up to the Podium announcing "Good Morning to All! I would like to inform all of your classes for today are canceled as the Delegation of ICW arrived last night and the competing countries are arriving today. To welcome them I would like to request all of you to be present at the front courtyard at 12, Thank You!"
Daphne turned to Harry asking "So ready to meet your Competition, Potter?"
He nodded saying "Well yeah I mean it will be exciting to see people from all over the world I mean last time it was just 2 this time it's 7 think about how many different people we could meet and learn new things from them!" with a grin
"You are so freaking nervous!" Hermione said deadpanned
Daphne nodded adding "Yeah you have pretty obvious tell"
Harry gaped saying "Wh-wh-what? I have a tell? And for your information Mione, I am not nervous" trying to keep a straight face trying to not smile but failed as he grinned.
Hermione smirked saying "Oh you have me fooled Harry!" in a sarcastic tone.
Harry pouted saying " I am not nervous and I don't have a tell!"
Daphne cooed saying "Oh, of course, you don't baby!" as she patted him on the shoulder before saying "So we have some time free what are you guys doing?"
Harry shrugged saying "I don't know I just want to relax near the lake!"
Hermione nodded saying "Yeah me too it's better to be out of the castle as the committee is on working all around the castle, so I can't even open a book and read in peace" huffing in annoyance.
Daphne sighed saying "Yeah Weasley is not making it easy for any of us! That git is just being spiteful, If he could give detention he would have given all of us every time he saw us passing by in the halls" as she glared at the Youngest Weasley brother sitting far up with a smug expression on his face cause he was chosen to as second in command by Dumbledore's suggestion while Angelina was head the committee.
Harry shook his head wondering what happened to his once friend to become like this as he stood up saying "Leave it guys to come on let's go!" before leaving he looked at Susan and catching his eyes he mouthed lake, to which she nodded and stood up from her spot joining them to the lake along with Neville and Hannah.
Reaching the lake all of them sat near the shore talking about what school they were most excited to meet and learn from. Neville was excited to meet with the Chinese and Brazilian schools to learn about plants grown in their countries. Hannah wanted to learn about all the cultures but was particularly fascinated by Greek culture. Harry, Susan, and Daphne were more intrigued by what kind of magic they used in general.
Seeing as they had extra time all of them got busy with different things Neville and Hannah got to their herbology assignments while Harry, Susan, and Daphne got in a stone skipping competition across the lake.
During his turn, Harry heard a squeaky voice "Hey! Stop throwing damn rocks!" which made him look around for the source but didn't find any person or a snake. Soon it was an hour before the arrival so they went to get ready for the Welcome ceremony!
An hour later the whole student body was present in the front courtyard of the castle waiting for the arrival of their guests. As a champion of England Harry was to stand in the front of the crowd just behind Headmaster to receive the guests.
As the clock struck 12 the waiting crowd of the Hogwarts students felt the air pick up speed turning into winds which then turned into a gale. The sudden change made them look around while the faculty looked indifferent to the change. It was soon that a Ravenclaw first year pointed at the far end of the forbidden forest saying "Look there's a storm coming this way!" shifting the eyes of the whole student body to the same direction.
Harry too was looking in the direction and saw the said storm was moving towards them as if it was driven by someone and also that at the top of the storm something glinted. As it reached the other edge of the forest the rolling storm started fizzling a little before It changed into something that the whole student body.
A Giant Bronze Eagle that was flying high in the air with a chariot made up of white and gold floral design along with the crest of the Olympian school of Magic (golden Greek omega symbol with white mount Olympus in the background with two wands crossed with a Gladius sword in the middle)
The chariot itself was a not chariot but a semi-circular platform with a wooden roof and a warded open front which allowed the occupants to sit inside comfortably without worrying about the weather outside during travels. The metal bird gave a loud screech as it started it spiral downwards to the vast grounds of Hogwarts.
The bird flew a few meters above the ground for a long stretch as the chariot wheels touched down on the ground before it came to a complete halt and the occupants of the chariots started getting off.
The first one to get off was a woman with an aristocratic face, blond hair, and crystal blue eyes dressed in a pure white gown with a golden Himation that had the symbol of the school. She looked in her 30s but looked as wise as Dumbledore.
Behind her students followed along with a few professors all of whom wore White chiton with Himation of different colors on over them and dark brown leather pants with brown leather boots or sandals.
As they walked up to the courtyard Dumbledore walked forward greeting them with Angelina following "Hogwarts Welcomes you Headmistress Thena along with your students!" with a grandfatherly smile.
The woman in front of him gave a polite smile saying "Thank you for hosting us Headmaster Dumbledore! We are grateful for your Hospitality!"
Dumbledore nodded before saying "Thinking nothing Hogwarts and I am personally grateful for receiving such an opportunity, now you must be tired from your journey please follow Ms. Johnson here, she will show you the wing that is going to be your home for the rest of the year!" he gestured to Angelina who was standing behind him.
With a crisp nod, the Headmistress walked past the Headmaster and was following Angelina before she stopped in front of Harry greeting him "Good Morning, Mr. Potter I assume" with a genuine smile on her face as she offered her hand.
Startled for a moment Harry smiled taking her hand and brushing his lips on her knuckles saying "Yes Ma'am I am Harry James Potter, a Pleasure to Meet you Ma…"
She gave him an appreciative smile before saying " A Pleasure as well Mr. Potter. I have heard many things about you, Mr. Potter"
He smiled a little sheepishly as he noticed the conversation was attracting attention from everyone present around him as he replied "I can't say 'all good' cause I know it's not all good, so I hope that you will judge me only after seeing me for I truly am, Ma'am"
Thea loved a man with a good head over his head and this young man gave the best answer he could after analyzing the situation that she put him in. Her smile got broader as she praised "Well answered Mr. Potter! I have a year to see you in and out of the tournament but I already know what kind of man you are but I think I would like to know your better, we will meet later Mr. Potter" Before she turned to her Angelina and gestured to continue their way towards their accommodations for the year.
Her students followed behind her all but two girls who came forward to Harry. The caramel blond girl greeted him saying "Chairete! I am Cassandra Valentine champion of Magical Greece and this is My beloved Dimitra, It's a Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Potter"
Harry looked at the Pair of older girls with a smile saying "It's a Pleasure to meet you too, I am Harry James Potter champion of Magical Britain!"
Dimitra smirked saying "Oh we know Mr. Potter my girlfriend here has been following you in the tournament since last year! She is a big fan of yours if not the Biggest!"
Harry was stumped and looked a little uncomfortable with information about one of his champions being one of his fan girls! Just as dread started to creep up, Cassandra with an incredulous expression looked at her girlfriend saying "That's not True! I followed all the champion's progress! I was interested in Harry's cause his case was so unique! He is the only underage wizard in the tournament! So spare me for being curious about something unique!"
Dimitra laughed out loud at her reaction at the same time Harry took a huge breath of relief that it was not what he thought, seeing this Dimitra laughed even harder which made Harry chuckle.
Cassandra huffed saying "Anyway I just wanted to say that this tournament is dangerous and we will be pitted against each other on more than one occasion. So before it, all starts I just wanted to say that while I want to win this tournament I would also like to make some friends and learn about the culture of their countries so what's say Harry Friends?"
Harry nodded saying "I am of a similar mindset! I know people get very competitive in the tournament and forget at the base it's just a sport. Just like you said I want to learn about cultures and magics from other countries, so what better way to do that than becoming friends and learning together, so yeah friends!" with a wide smile offering his hand which Cassandra took and shook.
Dimitra rolled her eyes saying "Seriously that looked like you guys were reading from a script! Who asks permission to become friends? You just hangout and become one or you just say that I am your friend! See like this!" as she turned to look at Harry saying "Hey Harry I am your friend from now on, come one let's go and do something fun!" in an animated voice.
It made Cassandra and Harry laugh before the former said: "Well it was nice to meet you Harry I will see you around later as I want to have a tour of your school!"
He nodded saying "Of course, I will give you a tour later"
Dimitra shook her head saying "Okay you can walk all day but I want to have a bath right so hurry up, let's go!"
Cassandra snorted before saying "Bye Harry see you later!" with Dimitra pushing her from behind much to Harry's amusement.
He smiled seeing the wried couple vanish into the castle along with their schoolmates. He sighed looking at the shocked expression of his fellow students at his interactions with the foreign guests. He was still a little jittery under all the attention but he was relieved when his eye went to his friends who flashed him a reassuring smile.
Taking a deep breath he centered himself and ignored the stares from the crowd. It was not long before once again the crowd of students in the courtyard had their attention turned straight ahead where the path which went straight to the most Hogsmeade village.
It was the cause of another odd occurrence as they saw the cloud of dirt coming towards the courtyard along with what seemed to be a roar of a beast. Hearing it on instinct Harry became alert for anything that could danger him and others in the courtyard as he unconsciously moved in front of the crowd.
As the cloud of sand kept its speed towards them the roars kept getting more louder. The atmosphere was tenser as everyone was afraid of what was coming especially Harry after his experience in the last tournament so he summoned his wand from the holster and gripped it tightly getting ready.
But his alertness was not necessary as soon the object came into the view, it was a carriage pulled by Erumpent. The carriage was bronze colored with the hieroglyphs on it along the official crest of Amunet Academy of Mystic Arts (it was the wings of Amunet in the foreground with the Great Pyramid of Giza in the back with open skies which seemed to change as with the time of the day)
In the front of the carriage sat a man wearing what could only be described as warrior's armor along with black and gold Head gear. The man had a khopesh on the left side of his waist along with a dagger on the other side, he drove the beasts of burden until they were right in front of the courtyard.
The carriage doors opened and a few men with similar clothing to the driver of the carriage took position on either side of the door in guarded stances. The next person to exit was an elderly short man with a black staff sporting him as he was walking with a limp.
He was dressed in sandy brown baggy clothes with a huge golden necklace with the Wings of Amunet as the pendant. Behind him, his students and professors followed. The professors were dressed in white robes while students were wearing normal clothes underneath white robes over them.
As they entered the courtyard Dumbledore stepped forward saying "Ah! Head Master Taafeef! It's so good to see you again my friend" in a jovial tone hugging the man "Ahlan- wa- Sahlan!"
The elderly man chuckled hugging him back and saying "Please to see you too Albus!" they broke the hug saying "Now If I may, as you can see me and my students are tired from the journey, so if you will just show us our rooms we would like to rest"
Dumbledore nodded with a smile saying "Of course, my friend, Ms. Spinnet here will show you to your Accommodation, see you at the feast, my friend"
With a smile and nod Headmaster Taafeef nodded before saying "Indeed" as he and his started following Alicia to the wing prepared for them. As they walked passed Harry he felt someone among the crowd eying him so tried to glance at the source but couldn't make out who it was as they were blended into the crowd of students.
But then he caught pair of cyan eyes looking at him and were getting closer to him. As he diverted his attention from her gorgeous eyes he looked at her overall appearance, she was wearing a white strapless dress with a golden necklace (Wesekh) with a blue lotus in the middle along with a golden belt on the waist along with bracelets. Her face was covered with a velvet mask from nose down, just like all other students.
"Hello, Harry Potter it's nice to meet you!" a silky voice said which sent a shiver down Harry's Spine but it was equal part pleasure and dread. It was strange cause felt a strange attraction toward her along with a sense of danger.
That same sense made him somewhat weary as he gave a polite smile greeting her "Hello, Welcome to Hogwarts, I hope you enjoy your stay here Ms.?"
"Heba Bakir, Mr. Potter Nice to meet you. I thought as a fellow champion I should come and introduce myself. I am looking forward to meeting new people and making new friends" the last part coming out huskily.
Harry nodded saying "It's nice to meet you and I will be honored to become your friend Ms. Bakir. I am intrigued to learn more about Eqyptian culture I don't know any more than that it's famous for Its pyramids and oh I meet a sphinx a few months"
She smiled at his musing not that he could see as she said "My country has many more mysteries than just pyramids and sphinx, Mr. Potter" as she caressed his face with her finger continuing huskily "And if you are curious I might reveal some of them during our year together, Mr. Potter"
He once again shiver under her touch and flinched at her touch with a little dust of pink on his cheeks as he nodded gulping and saying with a little stutter "I a…m loo…ki…ng forward to it Ms. Bakir but I think you should follow your escort to your room"
She smirked seeing him all flustered before she stepped back saying "Oh I think I missed my Escort, Mr. Potter would please lead me to my room instead?" innocently.
Harry sighed he didn't know what it was but his senses were haywire swinging between attraction and weariness. So he heard his inner gracious host saying "Of course" as they started walking towards the castle walking side by side.
Heba asked "It looks like you know this castle pretty well, Mr. Potter"
He nodded saying "Yeah I was so fascinated when I got first to hear that I explored it in my free time during my first and second years. Still, Hogwarts holds multiple mysteries waiting to be uncovered but I am too busy for them right now with tournament and what not, so they have to wait"
"Hmm I like a good mystery myself Mr. Potter maybe we can explore the remaining mysteries of this castle together, Mr. Potter" she mused and continued "that is if you are willing to keep your curiosity about Egypt in check" suggestively.
Harry knew she was right cause his attraction toward her perfect olive-skinned curvy body was something that he didn't understand. Taking a deep breath he cleared his head saying "I think that is true but I know for my will Ms. Bakir, so don't worry I won't lose myself in pursuit of Egyptian Mysteries" with a little steely tone.
Before she could give another coy retort he said "Ah! As you know I am the Champion of the hosting school, Ms. Bakir so I have to go back to the courtyard to Welcome our other guests, as such I have to take your leave but Alicia here" he gestured towards the girl coming towards them and continued "to your room!"
She smiled saying "Of course Mr. Potter I understand and I hope I see you again later" she followed Alicia who gave a confused look to Harry who just shrugged before he started his walk back to the front courtyard.
He didn't know what the year had for the coming in next coming months, he already had one potential friend and another champion who was a mystery that loved mysteries.
As he reached the courtyard he felt the eyes of the crowd on his back making him ever more uncomfortable but he powered through and took his position to wait for their next guests to arrive. It was near 2 in the afternoon when there was a moment in the lake.
For a minute nothing happened but then a giant sting ray jumped out of the water in the air along with a turquoise colored oval shaped carriage which had a scaly texture and blue-tinted windows on the side with the symbol (a Snowflake with all the spokes colored in White, magenta, indigo, Black, azure, and violet with light blue background with a white silhouette of the castle) of the school embossed on the glass.
As they came onto the ground the stingray turned into water and disappeared, leaving the oval carriage levitating in air 3 inches above the ground.
A minute later the doors opened from the back of the oval open outwards with a creaking sound dissimilar to that of the old wooden doors. The first person to come out was a tall muscular man with broad shoulders wearing red and cream-colored robes with feather lining on the neck and his brown shoulder pads.
He was a rather imposing figure with his 6'7" height along with a big well-trimmed beard a ponytail of his salt & pepper hair, with his scared face. There was a little afar from the lake so the Russian delegation followed the man who Harry could only assume was the headmaster.
After 10 minutes of tracking towards the courtyard, the delegation finally made it to the courtyard as they entered Dumbledore greeted saying "Welcome Headmaster Kurshov good to see you, Hogwarts is humbled to host you for the tournament!"
The man nodded with a small smile saying " It is good to see you Head Master Dumbledore, Koldovstoretz is grateful and eager for our stay here"
It was then that Dumbledore looked behind the Russian man gasping "Ah! Your Highness Hogwarts is honored to host the heir of Arcane & Royal House of Romanov!"
Natasha gave a Small smile saying "The honor is mine Headmaster Dumbledore it's a pleasure to meet you. I am Natasha Romanov Rurik, it's a pleasure to be your acquaintance"
Dumbledore nodded in politely saying "Once Again it's an honor Milady, now I think the journey must be tiring for all of you so Ms. Bell here will show you to your accommodation" gesturing to the 6th-year girl on his left.
Katie smiled saying "If you will please follow me!" as she lead them to the entrance of the castle.
Standing there as he was watching the Delegation pass Harry's eyes went to the beautiful redhead who was walking close behind the Russian headmaster. She had long red hair that was a darker shade of red, an aristocratic face, and sea blue-green eyes. She was wearing a most a white dress underneath her black woolen robes which had a violet flower.
For some reason Harry knew her or rather he remembered her eyes, he knew those eyes but at the same time, he didn't remember her! But he was brought out of his mind by Headmaster Kurshov saying "Mr. Potter I assume?"
He gave polite smile saying "Yes Sir, I am Harry James Potter, Pleasure to meet you"
The man greeted back saying "A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Potter, I am Dimitri Krushov Headmaster of Koldovstoretz School of Magic. I would also like to introduce you to our champion" as he gestured to the same redhead girl and Headmaster continued "This is Heir Natasha Romanov Rurik of Arcane & Royal House of Romanov next ruler of Magical Russia!"
On his side, Natasha was freaking out! She is here! She is standing in front of him and he is looking at her now! At this, she was so grateful for her occulumency training her mother forced her to take cause her mental barriers were the only thing s keeping her from hugging him and kissing the life out of her Dorogoy
'What are you doing Tupaya Devchonka? Greet him!' she scolded herself in her mind before greeting the boy in front of her "It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Potter' offering her hand, her heart thumping so loudly she could hear it outside her body!
Badump….. Badump….. Badump….
He took her hand saying "No, the pleasure is all mine milady!" as he kissed her knuckle which made her heart beat got faster,
Badump… Badump… Badump…
She smiled saying "I have heard a lot about you in the last four years, Mr. Potter"
Harry sighed thinking 'Yeah and I have heard that too much of that for today!' before saying "Yes, but not everything known about me is true, Milady" with a little edge in his voice.
"Please call me Natasha, I may be royalty but I am champion same as you, as such we are equal so you are allowed to call me by my first name, Mr. Potter," the Russian Witch said with a smile before continuing "as for the news, I know from my own experience as such I form my opinion about a person after spend some time around them" thinking 'I don't care for stupid media says! I know what kind of person you are Harry'
A little sheepishly he smiled at her saying "And you can call me Harry. I am sorry it's just I have been meeting people all day who said the same thing as you which had me a little on edge"
She chuckled saying "It's okay Harry, I know how irritating it can be to hear people say or ask the same things and to answer them over & over, in a respectful manner. That's why I don't like to party that much, so I understand your situation"
He gave her a genuine smile saying "It's nice to meet someone who can understand what a curse of fame feels like" admiring her facial features.
Natasha nodded saying "Feelings mutual Harry, it's refreshing to meet you and I hope we can spend more time together getting to know each other in this coming year" she heard a throat clear from behind her which made her turn back and look at her Headmaster who was telling her to hurry up.
She nodded before saying "Well as you can see my school delegation is waiting for me so I have to go for now but I will see you later at dinner"
He smiled saying "Of course, I would love to talk more with you later"
She smiled saying "See you later Harry" as she walked back to her friends adding extra sway to her hips, she looked at Polina who smirked knowingly and nodded which in turn made her smile knowing that Harry's eyes were following every moment of her hips.
Harry shook his head saying "Get it together Potter!"
Far to the side where Hogwarts students were standing and watching everything that was happening, there were varied reactions. Well, the boys were jealous of the Hogwarts champion who was talking to the beautiful women while opposite them girls were giving stink eyes to the foreign girls.
While that was the general reaction Ron Weasley was seething in anger looking at his former best friend chatting with gorgeous women while he was stuck in the shadows, his face was set in a permanent scowl with the addition of a dark look in his eyes, not unlike his sister beside him.
Draco and Blaise observed all interactions between the two parties with neutral expressions on their faces while Susan and Daphne noted the interactions of the Greek Headmistress, Egyptian and Russian champions in the mind as something to keep eyes on as they could see they were attracted toward their fiancé, as something to talk about with family later.
It was not long before the next weird thing appeared this time once again in the sky after an hour during which most of the students took lunch while some opted to wait for dinner instead. From the east of the castle people, students saw something snake-like coming in their direction.
It was not too long before the dragon came flying high above the castle circling it a few times in the swirling before it started coming down which started giving the people on the ground realization of how big the magnificent creature was!
Its head alone was 10 feet in length along with a width of 8 feet with its body being 20m tall from head to tail. It had green scales with its underbelly being yellow along with long orange mustaches and the same colored feather along its spine. With two sets of huge Yellow horns!
On the midsection of its body was a redwood carriage tied while just behind its head was the seating on a chair with reigns in his hand as she guided the creature down in the front of the courtyard.
As laid down a giant cloud of dust from underneath the Dragon as it settle down on the ground. All the students watched the majestic creatures while professors looked amused Hagrid was positively giddy like a child in the Honeydukes which made Harry chuckle.
The rider jumped down and petted the dragon before walking to the carriage and pressing a rune on the large leather belt that held the carriage in place. It glowed before it opened from the underneath dragon and levitated in the air along with the carriage before it landed on the courtyard side.
The carriage itself was made of redwood with golden carvings depicting the castle's 4 magical creatures. On the top of, it was a Fenghuang wooden statue with carvings of Qilin on the left, Jian on the right, and Xiangliu on the back.
Just above the door of the carriage was the official symbol of the school which was a red Fenghuang with its wings spread in the circle which had the name of the school written in Mandarin.
As the carriage door opened and the Chinese delegations came to the courtyard led by the man who had a frown that could give Snape a run for money according to Harry. The man was of average height with no facial hair and was wearing a Red colored Pao Hanfu with a white phoenix.
He was followed by the students who wore different colors of halves with some of the boys wearing tang suits and girls wearing cheongsam. As they reached the courtyard the Chinese headmaster bowed saying "Ni hao! Headmaster Dumbledore it's an honor to meet you" offering his hand.
The aged headmaster shook the hand saying "The Honor is mine Headmaster Haoyu, I have heard a lot about your work in the medical field"
The man chuckled saying "You honor me with your praise Headmaster Dumbledore especially when most of my work was inspired by your work with Dragon Blood along with one Nicholas Flammel"
Dumbledore chuckled saying "Ah! Those were good ol'days but I muse, you must be tired from the journey, Ms. Johnson while leading you to your accommodations for the rest of the year"
The Chinese headmaster nodded saying "I will see you later Headmaster also can you send someone to help Qianfan to locate Chinxi somewhere comfortable?" as he gestured to the man at some distance standing with the dragon.
"You don't have to worry Hagrid here is an expert on the magical creatures he will assist Mr. Qianfan in taking care of Chinxi" Dumbledore reassured him.
Giving another nod the man followed Angelina to the castle and walked past the crowd without stopping to talk with Harry, much to his relief. He sighed saying "Well at least I am not famous in that part of the world" looking at his feet.
He opened his eyes and looked up only to see the dragon looking directly at him with its yellow eyes as if it was judging him or something. It kept looking at him which made Harry flinch and he swear the dragon smirked at him before huffing, turning its head, and resting its face on his coiled body.
Harry shook his head saying "Great now I am imagining things! Maybe I am getting hungry and it is making me delirious? Okay three more hours to dinner, nothing big I can do it!"
As he looked around he saw the dragon handler trying to climb back on the dragon's back only to lose his footing and fall on his backside hard. As that happened he saw the dragon let off short huffs which sounded like laughs.
Finally, with help of Hagrid, the man climbed back to his seat and took the reigns in hand before nodding to Hagrid and wiping the reigns saying "Yeep! Yeep!"
And just like that the dragon uncoiled its body and took off in the direction of the courtyard before turning back and flying over to the Forbidden Forest, disappearing out of the sight.
Once again the cycle repeated itself for 5th time as all the students were waiting for their next guest to arrive in the courtyard. In the front of the courtyard Headmaster Dumbledore saw it and feeling a little tired himself he conjured a plush high-back chair. Seeing this, the student body which was tired and frustrated from waiting for the next guest to arrive started conjuring chairs for themselves to sit with higher years helping their juniors.
Harry copied the actions of the populous and conjured himself a basic chair taking a seat at the side of the courtyard. His mind went back to all the interactions he had so far and what he observed about 4 different schools he met today.
Greeks were okay and somewhat fun to be around if Cassandra was an indication to go on with. The Egyptians were more intimidating and mysterious, they had a strange aura around them and Heba was a constant tease with her talks about 'mysteries', Harry was not that dense to understand what she was implying.
Cause you can't just stay in a manor full of gorgeous women without getting teased for a whole summer, especially with Dora & Bella who took great pleasure in making him squirm.
As for Russian champions, she was something else, something genuine he felt the honesty when she said that she wants to get to know him better and he too was eager to know her as for some reason he recognized her.
He didn't remember meeting her ever in his life but somehow he remembered her eyes so clearly in the back of his mind, it was confusing. Seating there as he tried to remember where he met her he started getting a headache and he started rubbing his temples.
He tried to ease the pain and kept searching his head for the memory of the meeting but it only worsened the pain. The pain didn't stop so Harry gave up on recollecting the memory and gasped bowing his head and looking at his lap.
After a few short breaths, he took a deep breath to center himself and relax as he threw his head back and looked up at the gray sky indicating that it was going to rain soon which was not an unusual occurrence in Scotland and the Isles of Britain.
It was not long before the thunder started rumbling high in the sky above the clouds along with lightning roaring like a beast of the wild soon the rain started pouring down but everyone in the courtyard was dry due to the enchantment covering its open roof.
Not long after that once again down the path that led to Hogsmeade people from the courtyard could see something coming toward them but unlike the Egyptian delegation, it didn't create a plume of dust instead it was making a swishing sound as if it was cutting through the air.
The rain made it harder for the people students and professors to discern what was the object it wasn't until it was just at the front of the courtyard that people saw that they were standard school carriages pulled by thestrals which made some of the students groan in disappointment as they expected to see another magnificent creature.
Instead, it was only carriages of the school which left everyone thoroughly underwhelmed much to the professor's amusement. But the carriages were not that special but they had the logo of Illvermony on the doors along with the symbol of MACUSA on the front.
As the carriages opened and the American delegation got out and made their way towards the courtyard strutting under the rain to get under the cover of the enchantments. The delegation was led by an average height male with short blond hair dressed in the Blue and Cranberry robes fastened with golden Gordian Knot, much like all the students just in the conversed, where cranberry was the main color in the student robes with blue highlights the man was wearing Blue robes with cranberry highlights.
After 5 minutes they were all in the courtyard and dried themselves up using drying charms before warming up by casting the heating charms on their robes. As soon as they were comfortable Dumbledore stepped forward saying "Welcome back to Hogwarts, Mr. Watts"
The middle-aged man smiled saying "It's good to be back Headmaster, I have missed the castle so much over the years" he looked at the castle with a fond smile on his face and a far along look in his eyes.
Dumbledore chuckled saying "It's good to have you back my boy both as a student and guest of the school! Now Ms. Spinnet here will lead you to your accommodations for the year!"
Standing at the side Alicia smiled saying "Sir if you will follow me please" with a curt nod.
Headmaster Watts nodded saying "Thanks please lead the way"
As Alicia started leading them into the castle a group of four got out of the last carriage and ran as they were left behind making their way to the courtyard. As they reached the courtyard Dumbledore chuckled saying "Ah late are we? Don't worry Mr. Potter Here will guide to you your accommodations"
Harry nodded saying "If you will follow me Ladies Gentleman"
Steve, Emily, Rebeca, and Caleb made their way to him, Steve started "Hey, I am Steve Aron Champions of Ilvermorny and MACUSA it's nice to meet you" he offered his hand which Harry shook
Emily was next "Hello, I am Emily Watts, I am part of the Ilvermorny Dueling team, it's nice to meet you" she gave her hand and Harry kissed her knuckles which made Emily blush while Steve looked a little irate.
Caleb introduced himself "Hey, I am Caleb Miller, I am part of the Ilvermony Quidditch team, it's nice to meet you" shaking Harry's hand.
Finally, Rebeca did her introduction "Hello, I am Rebeca Aron, I too am part of Ilvermony Quidditch Team, it a pleasure to meet you" offering Harry her hand which he kissed it making her blush a little.
"Welcome to Hogwarts, I am Harry Potter, Champion of Hogwarts and Magical Britain, it's nice to have you all here, come one you guys must shivering," Harry said taking his wand cast a quick drying charm followed by a warming charm.
All of them shivered in relief as they felt from the cold they didn't even notice in their worry of being late. Caleb shivered saying "Ooooh! Wow thanks, man, I would have frozen to death!"
Rebeca nodded saying "Oh no! Harry, you just broke my dream but as you saved me from getting frostbite, so I will let you pass"
Her comment made Emily and Steve chuckle while Harry gave a confused look asking "I am sorry?"
Emily shook her head saying "Don't worry Harry that's regular for both of them"
Harry's mouth shaped in o as he realized they were just like Hermione and Ron when they were friends but better. Cause none of them was jealous of the other like Ron is of Hermione as he nodded in understanding.
Steve looked at the younger champion asking "You know someone like them don't you?"
Harry chuckled saying "Yeah these two remind me of my sister in all but blood and my ex-best friend. They used to fight a lot and used to give me headaches in the morning before breakfast even starts"
Steve & Emily looked at each other before saying together "Yeah we know what you are talking about"
He chuckled at their reaction as they continued their way towards the wing that housed others of the American delegation. Reaching there Harry turned to the four behind him saying "Well here we are, you just have to go up the floor and there will be a room with your name, your luggage is already in your rooms by the house elves, and dinner is at 7 so see you all at the dinner!"
Steve nodded saying "Yeah, see you at the dinner" as he started walking up the stairs Caleb gave a nod before following his best friend up the stairs
Emily waved her hand saying "Bye Harry, see you later"
Rebeca gave him a mischievous smile before kissing him on the cheek saying "See you later Sweetie!" and climbing upstairs
Harry blushed a little before he shook his head saying "Damn it! What is happening today?" as he turned around and started his trek back to the courtyard which was across the castle.
His mind went back to the kiss Rebeca gave him and it made him feel like he was cheating on his fiancee but he didn't feel this bad about other girls he was attracted to today, it was so confusing!
He grumbled saying "Why does everything in my life have to be so complicated can't anything be easy and simple?"
As he made stomped his way through the castle making his way back towards the courtyard. As he reached this destination he took his place cause traversing to and back from the American wing which was at the other end of the castle took him 20 minutes and came back with 5 minutes of talking made was, all in all, took 45 mins in total leaving him winded.
As he took his seat for a rest he noticed that most of the rain had slowed down a little but that in turn had the effect of turning the temperature cooler as the wind picked up speed.
After another 10 minutes of waiting a roar was heard coming from the forbidden forest which once again ignited the curiosity in the student body as they looked in that direction along with the professors.
They could see the most of trees move aside as if something was making its way toward them and it was coming at the full speed like a wild animal on the hunt. Soon the animal came out of the tree line near Hagrid's hut.
The creature was not something that the student body had ever seen before in books or ever heard of, it was large almost 20 m in height standing on its four legs and 30 meters from its snout to tail. While the body was covered in brownish fur like a great bear but its face looked like that of a dragon with large horns red eyes and big furry ears.
Just behind it, there was a large carriage that it was lugging but no man was holding its reigns, which made it sure that the creature was intelligent enough to know where to go just like the postal owls.
But for its size, the creature was ridiculously fast and strong which made the ground thump as it galloped towards the courtyard. It was only a minute later that creature was standing in front of the populous Hogwarts.
The carriage was made of Purple heartwood with the symbol (it was a shield which was divided into four sections with a circle in the center while the four sections were filled with four elements fire, water, earth, and air. In the center there was a bush with CB has written in gold with a toucan sitting on the top of C) Castleobruxo engraved on the side.
The Brazilian delegation came out led by an elderly lady wearing forest green robes with the symbol of the school embossed on the right chest as she walked with the support of her brown wooden staff.
Behind her the staff of the school dressed in similar forest green robes while all the students were wearing cherry red, sky blue, light yellow, olive green, and dark brown colored robes with basic beige-colored clothes underneath.
Just as they reached the courtyard the large creature started shrinking and kept on it until it was the size of a house cat. Now the cat-sized creature pranced its way to the Headmistress nuzzling on her leg before jumping onto her shoulder.
Smiling the elderly woman stroked the way beast's head saying "Oh! You must be tired Quino! You can rest now dear!" as she kept walking.
As they entered the courtyard just like other guests Dumbledore stepped forward to greet them saying "It's an Honor to Meet you Senora Daniela" giving a curt nod to the woman in front of him
The older woman smiled saying "Ah is that Albus I hear? It's been so long I heard your voice my boy!" as she offered him her hand.
Dumbledore took her wrinkled hand saying "Yes it has been almost 75 years master!"
Daniela nodded saying "Yes and I am happy to see you are well Albus! Now my old knees are tired from the journey so If you woul….."
Dumbledore nodded saying "Of course Senora I will take you there personally, I prepared your school's accommodation by the lake just like you like, Master"
"Ah! You remembered, well then I hope I have plenty of the jelly cups in my chambers!" the Brazilian headmistress said chuckling a little.
As they were passing by Harry, the creature leaped from Daniela to his which made startled the young Hogwarts champion making him jump a little "AHH!" as he suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder.
The brown cat-sized magical beast nuzzled its face against his cheek which made him giggle before he brought his hand up and stroked it under its chin saying "Hello, uh… Quino…..is it?" he got the answer in form of a purr.
He smiled saying "Oh well Hello to you Quino! I don't know what you are but It's nice to meet you Quino!"
"He is a forest Yak and the last of his species, he likes to make friends whenever he can and it seems like he likes you Senor Potter" the elderly woman informed him standing in front of him.
Harry gave a nervous smile saying "Oh then I am honored to his friend" as he continued to stroke the furry creature on his shoulder before turning to the headmistress "I am Harry James Potter, It's a Pleasure to meet you Ma'am" as he was now standing across her he noticed that she is blind.
The woman smiled asking "can I have your hand young man?"
Giving a confused look Harry obliged and gave her his hands, which she took hold of and stood silent for a minute before saying "Mmmmmh, you are warrior young man, yes definitely! Have been fighting since the day you were born. You have faced obstacles greater than any only cause you could save others from the pain. Mmmh… Oh! you have someone special in your life or should I say multiple someone and some you still seek. You have a great journey ahead of you young and when the time comes you will do the right thing as you have always done, I see Quino will play a small part in your journey too! Nice to meet you Harry James Potter!" before she walked back to Dumbledore to continue their way to the lake.
Harry stood there stunned before his attention was once again drawn by Forest Yak on his shoulder who was now licking his face which tickled and caused him to giggle "Well nothing is normal with me is it?" with a little melancholy in his voice.
Quino nuzzled his face before settling on his shoulder and sleeping there which made him chuckle at it.
"Hola!"
The voice made him turn back to see a raven-haired girl wearing Light Yellow robes that hid her perfect figure but it was easy to see that she was athletic person and energetic which was evident from her cheerful demeanor.
He smiled saying "Hello"
She offered her hand saying "Hey, I am Adrianna Diaz, I am the champion of Castelobruxo and Brazil. I just thought I will come and introduce myself to my competition"
Harry took her hand and kissed it saying "It's a Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Diaz, I am Harry James Potter Champion of Hogwarts and Magical Britain"
She smiled saying "I know and I know what an amazing competitor you are, I mean you are the youngest champion in the tournament history for that alone you have my respect, Mr. Potter"
He blushed at her praise saying "Umm… Thank you, Ms. Diaz"
She smiled saying "See you around Mr. Potter after all we are going to live in the same castle for this coming year" as she walked back towards her school delegation.
Harry waved saying "Bye!" and watched her go but couldn't help but look at her big jiggly butt for a minute before he shook his head out of his daze.
The next and the last delegation they were waiting for was Mahoutokoro from Japan which came earlier and in a way that was surprising to many students including the staff.
Just in the front of the courtyard, a white circle appeared on the ground which started glowing dimly and started getting brighter by the minute. It continued for 10 minutes before the light became blinding making everyone in the courtyard cover their eyes with their hands.
As the light finally exploded and vanished only to reveal 70 people standing in the spot of the circle shocking everyone with their sudden appearance. All of them were wearing outfits similar to students of the Chinese delegation yet they were different.
They were wearing kimonos which were unisex Japanese clothing that had multiple layers saving them from the chill of Scotland. The delegation itself was led by a middle-aged short woman with jade black hair and obsidian black eyes who was wearing a floral kimono which was pink in color with white cherry blossom flower along with a dark pink obi belt with a large bow on the back of her hip.
As they entered the courtyard an amused and curious Dumbledore stepped forward to greet them "Welcome to Hogwarts, Head Mistress Chihiro-san we are honored to have you as a guest for the next year"
The Japanese woman smiled saying " the honor is our Headmaster Dumbledore and we will be looking forward to having a year in your hospitality" giving a short bow from the waist above.
Dumbledore nodded before asking "Now I do know that you are tired from your journey but I am curious about your mode of transportation as it bypassed the wards around the school, I am curious as to how that is possible?"
The woman chuckled saying "Ah! Don't worry Dumbledore-san but I can't share that information as it is a national secret and I am not allowed by magic to share it with you"
Dumbledore's eyes twitched as he hated when people kept secrets from him but he knew he couldn't push as it would backfire and will damage his reputation, so he smiled saying "Of course, I apologize my curiosity got better of me, Madame now I know you are all tired from the long journey so Ms. Bell will show to your rooms for the year"
Head Mistress Chihiro nodded with a smile saying "Arigato, Dumbledore San, but before we go I would like to introduce Champion of Japan as he is a huge admirer of yours" before she looked back at her students and nodded to the raven hair teen wearing indigo kimonos with a white obi belt with the symbol of Tokugawa Clan on his upper right side of his kimono.
As he stepped forward, standing beside her as she introduced her saying "This is Shinra Haki Kun, Champion of Mahoutokoro and Magical Japan"
The young man bowed saying "It's an honor to meet you Dumbledore Sensei"
The old headmaster smiled with a twinkle in his eyes saying "Ah well met young men and I would also like for you to meet the champion of Hogwarts and Magical Britain, Harry James Potter" as he gestured to the messy-haired teen.
Harry noticed his name being called out and stepped forward saying "Hello, Ma'am it's a pleasure to meet you and I hope you like you stay at Hogwarts"
Giving a polite smile Japanese witch nodded saying "A Pleasure to meet you as well Potter Kun I am looking forward to seeing how you fare against Shinra Kun here in the tournament after everything I heard about you"
Keeping a fake smile etched on his face he replied saying "I hope I meet your expectations Ma'am I would hate to disappoint you"
The woman chuckled but before she could answer Shinra cut her saying "Well I think you should prepare for the possibility of that happening, after all, it's a show of skill and magic that is based on the experience of a wizard, not luck. Oh, I am sorry I forgot to introduce myself I am Shinra Haki champion of Mahoutokoro and Magical Japan, nice to meet you, Potter" as he offered his hand to him.
Keeping his anger in control of the obvious remark on his skills and implication that he was the champion by luck, he ignored the comment saying "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Haki"
All while the headmasters watched interactions between their champions with calculating gazes, while Dumbledore was making his plans to make Shinra another one of his pawns across him Chihiro gave a smug smile with a praising look at Shinra as she appreciated the competitive attitude of her students while a look of respect to the English champion for not raising to the insult bait.
Sighing she turned to him saying "it's a pleasure to meet you Potter-San" before she walked past him following Katie. Shinra followed behind but as he walked past Harry he bumped his shoulder hard making him lose balance and fall on his backside with a huff.
Harry glared at the back of the boy's head and his magic was reacting to his anger. His aura appeared around him as he got on his feet, Harry could hear a voice in his head hiss 'KILL HIM, HE THINKS HE IS BETTER THAN YOU! HE INSULTED YOU! KILL HIM, TAKE YOUR REVENGE!'
In the foray of the Japanese Delegations, there were many smug faces but only one that gasped, Akeno as he saw the young man who was her mate and knew that he was angry as she could see his multi-colored aura of his magic which she knew was due to that Baka Shinra.
Hair on her backside stood up as she felt his killing intent which was confusing to her as his aura was not that of a killer but a warrior and a king. But she didn't have time to wonder and stand in awe so she moved towards him keeping a hand on his shoulder delicately.
Harry turned to look at who was behind him only to see a raven-haired woman with a very buxom figure that could compete with Amelia standing in white kimono which a hard green floral pattern along with a golden yellow obi belt with a kind smile on her face.
"I am sorry for Shinra-Kun, Harry-san! I have no explanation for his behavior nor do I have an excuse, he is what he is but I hope you won't let him color your opinion of what people are like in our country. Not all of us are like him and some could be your friends" she said.
Her apology calmed him and with a genuine smile saying "it's okay ma'am you don't have to apologize for that git and I don't judge group people on the basis of how one individual treats me, also I would like to make some friends" with a
She wanted to kiss him then and there but much like the Russian champion, she knew she had to wait and play it slow to make space in his heart. So she offered her hand saying "then I would like the honor to be your first Japanese friend, Potter-san, Hello I am Akeno Hayashi, professor of Youkai studies at Mahoutokoro School of Magic"
Harry chuckled taking her hand and kissing it(making her blush a little) it before saying "It's nice to meet you and I would love to be your friend, Ms. Hayashi"
Just then McGonagall called all the students back to the castle and ordered them back to their common rooms. Hearing this Harry sighed before saying "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Hayashi…."
She stopped him saying "Please Potter-San call me Akeno"
He gave an amused look saying "Well, Akeno you can call me Harry, I'm sorry but I have to go but I will see you later Ms. Haya… urgh… Akeno!" before running back into the castle leaving her standing in the courtyard.
She smiled saying "I will see you later, Watashi no Ai!" before she walked inside the castle herself.
A/N: Okay how was it? was it up to the mark? was it worse than before? Tell me I want to know it all!
Harry's unblocked core 60 (It didn't change since June. I thought about unlocking it during his vacation but then it came to me that he needs to acclimate with his current core first, so I scraped that idea)
Next Chapter: The Welcome Ball.
Stay tuned and I will see you next Week!
Drakpacer Out!