Chapter 4: Back to Hogwarts

The next day dawned in a flurry of activity as everyone realized the safety wards around the tent had been triggered, somehow without alerting any of the occupants. Sirius had then been assaulted by an owl carrying a missive from the ministry calling him into the office from the incident from last night.

The Daily Prophet was in a tizzy about the Death Eaters that had been found unconscious pages of stories unfolding about the members who had been found. Speculations abounded about the mysterious figure who had stunned the Death Eaters and Acolytes unconscious. They were all low-level members of their respective organizations, Harry noted, simply members of pure-blooded houses.

Overall, Harry considered the entire situation an absolute win.

That was excepting, though, that Rose and her friends now seemed to be treating him differently. He wondered if he had been discovered at first, but he was sure that if he had been there would have been far more questions.

Notably, the girls seemed to be more touch shy than they had been the previous night. Rose especially.

Whenever Rose looked at him, he would see a massive flush encompass her face before she looked away.

It worried at Harry's gut seeing the girl avoiding him. So he had done his best to corner the redhead.

Rose had been packing her trunk in her room, preparing to leave for Kings Cross in some twenty minutes, when he walked in.

She spun around, and her face flushed like it had recently, "Harry," she said softly, looking at him with emerald eyes that seemed to pierce into him.

Harry gave the girl a grin, "Hey, Rose," he replied.

There was an awkward silence between them before Rose looked away, "Are you packed?" she asked, not meeting Harry's eyes.

Harry had been packed and ready to go since he had got here, but he replied anyway, "Yeah," and then despite himself, he asked, "Do you need some help?"

Rose hesitated, then nodded, "If you don't mind, can you fold some clothes for me? The material is sensitive, so I'd rather not use magic."

Harry walked up to where she had directed him and began to fold the clothes easily, laying them down into her trunk one after another.

They worked in silence for several long minutes before Harry ran straight into the first explosive rune of the situation.

He had just folded a skirt when he ran across a lacy pink garment, which he grabbed before he realized what it was.

It was a bra, and it was something that Harry had no experience folding, so he turned to Rose.

"Hey, Rose? How do I fold this?"

Rose turned to him, opening her mouth before it seemed she realized what he was holding, her face quickly turned a bright red.

Rose Potter was an innocent girl. At least, that's what her friends thought of her.

She had never had a boyfriend. Never so much as kissed someone. Still, she had some habits which, if her friends knew about, would stain the image of the Girl Who Lived.

For one thing, she was a voracious reader of books that she thought of as art but were probably more correctly known as smut.

For another thing, she liked wearing lingerie. No one had ever seen her in them, of course. The mere thought of it made her burn in shame. Yet she wore it all the same, enjoying the boost in confidence that came from doing so.

She had been admittedly off-kilter recently discovering that her brother had apparently not died that Halloween night all those years ago had been a massive shock, but there was something even larger than that, even more shameful.

That morning when she woke up in the arms of her brother those weeks ago. Her chest had stirred in a way it definitely should not have as she looked at him.

She had tried to disregard it, but the more time she spent with the enigmatic man, the more flushed she would find herself, the more focused on his broad back and shoulders.

The more her nipples would twinge when she hugged him, crinkling tightly as she held him. The wetter she would feel when he gave a rare grin and the more often she would have to change her panties.

It wasn't fair, she thought. Why did her brother have to look as he did? Why did he have to listen to her with a kind smile that did things to her?

And why was she only just now feeling these feelings?

And now he was holding something which was usually pressed to a very private part of her body.

"Harry!" she cried out in shock; she could feel her face blushing a brilliant red.

"Uh, Rose?" he replied, cocking his head in adorable confusion at her. It was clear to her from the very beginning there were things her brother did not understand, and she had resolved to explain as best she could, but this was too much!

Rose bit her lip, "It's my bra, Harry; you can give it to me to fold," she said softly.

Harry held the lacy garment out to her, and she took it carefully, folding it before she placed it in the trunk.

They worked for several more minutes in silence though Rose had trouble pushing down the embarrassment that settled in her gut.

It was as they were reaching for the last shirt together that her hand brushed over his.

His broad palm stopped, and she pressed her own soft hand down on it.

She locked eyes with emerald green, so like her own. His eyes always seemed so much darker than her own, she thought, staring into them.

What had her brother seen? She knew bits and pieces from what he said. She sometimes noted the odd scar on his forearm, which looked like something massive had punctured through it. It reminded her of her own similar scar from a now-dead basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets.

As she looked at Harry she realized that unbeknownst to her, her own face had drawn closer to his, her lips hovering inches away from his.

Wasn't this mood kind of dangerous?

"Rose?" Harry asked her softly, his warm, minty breath blowing over her lips.

"Yeah?" she murmured, leaning further forward, her eyes falling shut as she did so. She could feel Harry's ambient warmth on the top of her skin, she took a deep breath, desiring more than anything for him to run his fingertips down her smooth curves. To trail and dip through her valleys and peaks.

"Harry! Rose! We need to go!" Lily called out.

Rose's eyes shot open, and she gasped, startled and unbalanced; she fell forward, impacting softly into his chest.

Harry gently grasped her in a hug and called out, "We're coming, Lily!" he called out before lowering his voice as he looked down at Rose, "Are you ready to get going?"

Rose nodded slowly, her brain still playing catchup.

Harry smiled warmly at her before he let her go and began to exit the room.

Heat suffused through Rose's cheeks as she watched him go; what had she been thinking?!

They had made it to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters with time to spare, and Harry was struck by the nostalgia of seeing the scarlet train again. A lifetime ago, it felt like he had stood here excited to once again be learning magic at Hogwarts, the first place that had truly felt like somewhere he could belong.

He didn't have the same feeling anymore. He hadn't ever really had a place since then that felt like home.

Even the Potter family home, while comfortable, felt like a place where he didn't really belong.

Lily was fussing over both of them, and he could see her eyes swelling slightly with liquid, which made him feel a little uncomfortable.

"Make sure to write, the both of you," she was saying.

"We will, Mum," Rose said, looking at Lily with a soft, happy smile.

Harry wondered if he had ever had such an expression on his face. A distinctly uncomfortable, nasty feeling swelled in his gut as he looked at them, which he realized strangely enough was jealousy, though he was unsure why he would feel such.

Lily pulled both of them into a warm embrace, pushing them into her chest, and Harry noted the soft roundness pressed against his stomach absentmindedly.

Standing on her tiptoes, Lily placed a soft, wet kiss on Harry's cheek, looking at him with wet eyes, "Take care of your sister." She said softly.

Harry nodded firmly, "Of course," he gave her a half grin and he was surprised to realize it was a smile he actually felt.

He boarded the train with Rose, and she led them to an empty compartment where they placed their trunks up on the luggage rack.

Harry sat down and Rose joined him, almost hesitant he noted as she sat by him shooting him the occasional glance.

The train slowly filled with students, and Harry watched the platform full of parents thoughtfully. He recognized a number of them, and idly he picked out the ones that in his world had been Death Eaters or Death Eater sympathizers.

Not that his information was totally foolproof, he acknowledged to himself. Bellatrix Black, as far as he could tell, was completely different in this world. Without more information, he couldn't possibly know who to worry about or not. Plus, there was the added factor of Grindelwald's Acolytes, though from what he had read, they were mostly based in Europe and somewhat in the Americas.

Harry hummed thoughtfully, pulling out a book on Sumerian runes; the Wizards of that time he had once read had unique perceptions of soul magic. Something he desperately needed more information on.

Rose, after all, was very likely a Horcrux, and even though Harry's previous methods for getting rid of his Horcrux had succeeded, his stomach twisted uneasily about running that experiment with Rose.

Some minutes later, Angelica and Celene entered the compartment. Angelica's eyes coolly surveyed the compartment, flipping her black hair behind her, though Harry noted her cheeks reddened when she saw him. Celene lazily flicked her golden blonde locks back as she gracelessly threw herself into her seat.

"Hi Angelica, hi Celene," Rose said cheerfully.

"Morning," yawned Celene, looking just about to settle into a nap on the seat before Angelica pushed her legs off the seat so that she could sit.

Angelica sniffed, shooting Celene a disappointed look, "It can barely be considered Morning Celene, and would it kill you not to look like you rolled out of bed ten minutes ago?"

"But I did?" Celene said sleepily.

Angelica sighed but seemed to have given up on the blonde, turning to Rose, "You look nice," Angelica said, "You don't usually do your hair up like that."

Rose's red hair was in a braid that draped over her chest, and Harry noted the small touches of makeup on her face, which highlighted her looks.

Rose looked embarrassed, her cheeks flushing slightly, but she smiled warmly at her friend. "Well, you know. I figured it wouldn't be too bad to put in some effort."

"It's unusual," Celene said, raising her half-lidded gaze to look at Rose, "Don't tell me a boy has finally caught your eye?"

Rose's cheeks lit up, and she began to stammer, "Well. It's not like that-, It's just-"

Celene's eyes opened entirely, and the girl looked shocked, "You're kidding! There is one! Who?"

"Celene," chided Angelica, "It's not our business," then she seemed to hesitate a little before she looked at Rose, "Unless you wanted to tell us…" she trailed off.

Rose looked practically incandescent before she spoke softly, "It's nothing." Harry noticed her eyes glance at him for a moment before she looked at her friends again, "I just wanted to look nice, is all."

"Well, I approve," Angelica smiled warmly at Rose, her face losing its usual cool expression.

The girl's discussion devolved from there, and Harry returned to his book, letting the warm conversation flow around him, occasionally commenting when one of the girls engaged him.

As the train ride continued, Harry felt Rose push into him, her soft body molding to his side, her breasts gently resting against his arm.

No one else in the compartment made a comment about it, so he let Rose be, although he found he enjoyed the close physical contact more than he would have expected.

A part of him thought about reaching for his occlumency but he dismissed it.

The train ride continued for some hours, with the snack trolley passing by the compartment several times before someone intruded on their compartment.

Daphne Greengrass opened the compartment door, and Rose, who had been giggling, froze as she looked at the blonde-haired cold-eyed girl.

"Greengrass," she said coolly.

"Potter," responded Daphne before she looked at the other two girls, "Black, Lupin," she turned to look at Harry, her eyes flowing over him seemingly examining every facet of his person.

"We met at Flourish and Blotts and were not properly introduced. My name is Daphne Greengrass. I'm eighteen years old, and I am in my fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I've been looking for you. Are you dating anyone?" she asked, and Harry noted a small upward lilt in her soft tone.

Rose's face reddened to the roots of her hair. Angelica choked a small gasp, leaving her lips. Celene's eyes widened before an awful grin appeared on her face.

"He basically is," Celene said, her grin widening, "You should see the letters Rose wrote to us this summer. I swear that every one of them has included Harry."

Rose choked, glaring at Celene, her mouth opening and closing before she gasped out, "I'm not dating Harry!" she said.

Daphne nodded seriously, "I understand, that is a relief." Then she looked at Rose, "If you do not mind, I would like to borrow him."

Rose blinked, confused, "What?" she asked, seeming entirely thrown off.

"I would like to talk with him," Daphne said as if that explained everything.

Rose frowned, "Anything you have to say to him can be said here."

Daphne nodded, "I see; these things are not typically said in front of others, but I will if I must."

She turned to look seriously at Harry, "I would like for you to take me out on a date."

The drop of a pin could have been heard in the compartment.

Harry looked at the girl, confused, "Why?" he asked.

Daphne looked seriously at him, "I believe it is called 'love at first sight' from the books I have read on the subject. When I met you that day at Flourish and Blotts your appearance made me feel things I have never felt before. After further investigation I have determined these feelings are attraction."

The compartment fell back into complete silence as Harry looked at the girl, despite himself a little surprised. This was not at all how he remembered the Daphne Greengrass of his world, though he supposed there he hadn't actually interacted with her much. Still, this girl seemed very serious as she looked at him, and Harry thought it would be unfair not to respond in equal seriousness.

"Okay," he said simply, "I'll do that."

Daphne blinked once, and then her lips quirked infinitesimally upward, so small that Harry doubted many would notice it, "I appreciate your consideration."

Then she turned and exited the compartment as quickly as she came.

Harry looked back down to his book, flipping the page again.

He got another couple of pages before he realized the discussion had not resumed, and he looked up to see the three girls in the compartment staring at him with clear expressions of shock.

"Is something wrong?" he asked confused.

Harry stepped into the cool evening air, wishing idly for his wonderful red coat.

Rose, Celene, and Angelica walked behind him, oddly quiet as they had been since Daphne Greengrass had come to the compartment.

Harry walked up to one of the carriages, idly running his hand along one of the thestrals flanks, admiring the creature.

He opened the door and hopped inside, followed by the three girls. The Carriage started with a small jerk, and Harry found himself gazing out the window for his first sight of Hogwarts in years.

Rose sat close to his side as she had in the train though she looked somewhat down and it made Harry's gut twinge in concern.

The carriage began its path up toward Hogwarts, traveling for what felt to Harry like a long distance, though he knew it wasn't. The quietude of the three girls was beginning to bother him but for the life of him he didn't know what had changed their behavior.

"I'm sorry," Harry said sincerely, "Did I do something wrong on the train?"

Had he been rude? He didn't think so, but he was never the best with people.

Celene seemingly found her voice first, "It's nothing Harry. I think we were just surprised that you agreed to go on a date. With Daphne Greengrass of all people."

"Should I not have?" Harry cocked his head.

Celene bit her lip, looking at her other friends, seemingly for help.

Angelica spoke up, "It's just, well, Greengrass has seemingly never taken an interest in a boy, despite the fact more than a couple have thrown themselves at her."

"Why did you say yes, Harry?" Rose asked, and Harry turned to see the girl looking away from him.

Harry shrugged, a little confused himself, "She just seemed really serious, I suppose. I wouldn't feel right just turning her down out of hand."

Rose sighed and then shook herself, turning to face Harry fully, "Well, you better not let her take advantage of you! Who knows what she might be planning!" she said, glaring at Harry seriously.

"Planning?" Harry questioned.

Celene shrugged, a wry, lazy smile on her face, "Don't mind Rose too much. She has issues with Daphne.

"You do, too!" glared Rose, raising her voice slightly.

Celene shrugged, "For solidarity reasons, yes. Still, you have to admit she's never actually done anything to us."

Rose frowned and glared out the window. The carriage ride settled down after that, and the conversation that had been absent started up again.

They arrived at the castle, filing out into the Great Hall. Just as they were about to enter, Harry heard a familiar voice: "Mr. Peverell!"

He turned to see Minerva McGonagall standing by the door. He walked over to her through the crowd of students till he was standing there facing her.

She glanced over at him, and Harry noted the strain on her face before she spoke again, "Mr. Peverell, as you are a new student, you will need to be sorted before you join the others if you could wait here."

"Of course, Professor," Harry nodded easily, waving Rose, Celene, and Angelica away as they stopped to wait for him. They nodded and walked away, though their expressions looked a little conflicted.

It was sometime before the First years showed up, and Harry amusedly noted their expressions of awe and wonder as they looked around the castle, along with the confused looks they shot his way.

Soon enough, McGonagall gave her speech and then let them in, where they were set upon by the eyes of the other students.

Stares had long since stopped bothering Harry, and he focused on the ceiling, idly feeling out the enchantment, wondering if he could spot a difference in it in this world. Strangely enough, or perhaps not so strangely, the magic felt the same as it rolled over him. Harry took note of the teachers at the table identifying the usual suspects but was surprised to note Bellatrix Black sat at the table in a fashionable black dress.

Her eyes locked onto him, and then she shot him a wink before turning away, surprising Harry.

The Sorting Hat opened its mouth and sang a familiar song, which Harry recognized from his own world about the traits of the houses.

The First Years began to be sorted, and Harry watched on in polite interest until the end.

"Peverell Harry," Professor McGonagall said, and Harry noted the whispers caused by the announcement as he walked up to the stool and new eyes focusing on him.

He settled down on it, and McGonagall had to reach up much higher to reach his head than she had for the first years.

He felt the presence immediately at the edge of his mind and opened his barriers slightly to allow for communication.

'Ah, Mr. Peverell, you're quite a bit older than those I usually sort.' A warm, familiar voice rasped through his mind

'I suppose,' Harry replied in his mind, 'So where am I going?'

Amusement trickled through his mind, 'Do you not wish to make your opinion known? Will you truly accept anywhere?'

Harry frowned thoughtfully, 'Does it matter?'

'Hmm, perhaps only to others. Well, regardless, an instrument such as yourself? Is there even a question?'

"Gryffindor," roared the hat, and Harry noted it had only been several seconds that the hat spent on his head.

Just like last time, Harry thought amused.

Harry stood up, handing the hat back to McGonagall with a nod before he walked through the politely clapping hall, settling down to a seat side by side with Rose.

She positively beamed at him, wrapping her arms around him happily, and Harry instantly noticed the uptick in attention around the Great Hall. It seemed Rose was just as infamous as he had been in his school years.

"With the sorting done, we can now eat!" Dumbledore clapped his hands, and the feast appeared.

Consciously, Harry ignored the looks shot at him from around the hall and began to partake of the feast. It was rare back in his own world to eat so well as he had traveled so often that he had sometimes been reduced to relying on what passed for wizarding rations.

Rose, Angelica, and Celene joked back and forth, but he noted some tenseness on their face, which he wondered about.

Looking up and down the table, Harry spotted familiar faces, including a bushy brown-haired girl in deep discussion with a blonde with a sizeable bust. Hermione Granger and Lavender Brown.

A group of rowdy boys jostled each other down the table, and Harry recognized Ronald Weasley, Seamus Finnegan, Neville Longbottom, and Dean Thomas. Neville Longbottom was the most different of them, with a strangely confident smile and a somewhat rakish smile that looked unusual to Harry on his face.

Dinner disappeared after the last crumbs had been eaten, and Dumbledore rose to his feet and began to speak.

"So!" said Dumbledore, smiling around at them all. "Now that we are fed and watered, I must ask once more for your attention while I give out a few notices. Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to tell you that the list of objects forbidden inside the castle this year has been extended to include Screaming Yo-yos, Fanged Frisbees, and Ever-Bashing Boomerangs. The full list comprises some four hundred and thirty-seven items, I believe, and can be viewed in Mr. Filch's office if anybody would like to check it,"

The corners of Dumbledore's mouth twitched.

He continued, "As ever, I would like to remind you that the Forest on the grounds is out of bounds to students, as is the village of Hogsmeade to all below third year,"

Then Dumbledore paused somewhat dramatically, a wry smile crossing onto his face, "It is also my painful duty to inform you that the inter-house Quidditch Cup will not take place this year,"

Instantly, Harry saw the familiar quidditch teams, though they were older than he remembered, jostling back in shock, and Rose looked outraged.

Dumbledore continued, "This is due to an event that will be starting in October and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teacher's time and energy, but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year at Hogwarts, we are to have the honor of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event that has not been held for over a century. It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year,"

A familiar red-headed boy startled up from his seat, "You're JOKING!" cried out Fred Weasley loudly.

"No, I am not joking, Mr. Weasley," he said, "Though I did hear an excellent one over the summer about a troll, a hag, and a leprechaun who all go into a bar –"

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat loudly.

"Er – but maybe this is not the time… no..." said Dumbledore. "Where was I? Ah, yes, the Triwizard Tournament… well, some of you will not know what this tournament involves, so I hope those who do know will forgive me for giving a short explanation, and allow their attention to wander freely. The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago, as a friendly competition between the three largest European schools of wizardry – Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. A champion was selected to represent each school, and the three champions competed in three magical tasks. The schools took it in turns to host the Tournament once every five years, and it was generally agreed to be a most excellent way of establishing ties between young witches and wizards of different nationalities – until, that is, the death toll mounted so high that the Tournament was discontinued."

Harry swore Dumbledore's mouth twitched down at the last bit, and he would describe the man's face as close to irritable as he had ever seen the man. Come to think of it, in Harry's previous world, Dumbledore hadn't really supported the tournament then either.

"There have been several attempts over the centuries to reinstate the Tournament," Dumbledore continued, "none of which have been very successful. However, our own Departments of International Magical Co-Operation and Magical Games and Sports have decided the time is ripe for another attempt. We have worked hard over the summer to ensure that, this time, no champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger."

Harry was pretty sure this Dumbledore wasn't particularly happy about the tournament either judging by what he was saying, or more appropriately what he was not saying.

"Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will arrive at the end of the week, and on Halloween, we will have the Champion Selections. An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the Triwizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand galleon personal prize money."

"Eager though I know all of you will be able to bring the Triwizard Cup to Hogwarts," he said, "the heads of the participating schools, along with the Ministry of Magic, have agreed to impose an agreed restriction on contenders this year. Only students who are of age – that is to say, eighteen years or older – will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration. This" – Dumbledore raised his voice slightly for several of the second and third years had made noises of discount, "is a measure we feel is necessary, given that the Tournament tasks will still be difficult and dangerous, whatever precautions we take, and it is highly unlikely that students below fourth year will be able to cope with them. I will personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge into making them Hogwarts champion." His light-blue eyes twinkled as they flickered to the faces of an older-looking Colin Creevy and his brother. "I therefore beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you are under seventeen,"

"Fuck," Rose said so softly that only Harry, Celene, and Angelica could hear her as multiple looks from around the Great Hall were shot in her direction. Harry looked at her incredulously surprised to hear those words leave Rose's lips.

"Don't look at me," her face firmed up as she pouted at them, "I've had enough adventurers and fame for a lifetime. Make someone else do it." Harry noted the faint note of worry and almost resignation in her voice, almost as if she expected something to happen.

Harry looked at Rose appraisingly; he had been entered against his will, and something irritable stirred in his gut, and unconsciously, he worried his lip if Rose had any of the kind of luck that he had he might need to keep a close eye on things this year.

"The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be staying with us for the greater part of this year. I know that you will all extend every courtesy to our foreign guests while they are with us, and will give your whole-hearted support to the Hogwarts champion when he or she is selected. And now, it is late, and I know how important it is to you all to be alert and rested as you enter you lessons tomorrow morning. Bedtime! Chop Chop!"

The hall rose to its feet, filling out, and Harry followed along, enjoying the strangeness of walking through a castle that was Hogwarts but not quite. The announcement of the Tri-Wizard tournament had him on edge, though. There had been a number of similarities to his own world so far. Perhaps he should try to gently question Rose to see if there was anything outstanding that would be affecting things.

While he had spent a decent amount of time with the girl, he realized that it was starting to bother him how little Rose had told him about her own stay at Hogwarts.

Having spent the better part of a decade sleeping somewhere by himself, Harry found it somewhat difficult to get used to sleeping in the common dorm room in Gryffindor Tower once again.

That and his new roommates were making it difficult to get sleep.

They were rowdy and joking, tossing pillows at each other while they drank butter beer, and Harry found it almost intolerable to be around them. He had been able to handle Rose, Celene, and Angelica just fine, but this was too much chaos, and he had his instincts that had been honed to battle flickering about his mind rapidly as he suppressed the urge to stun the entire dorm room.

Harry got ready for bed efficiently before he flicked his wand about his bed, casting his typical enchantments. Magic poured out of his wand, and the noise around his bed dimmed to nothing, along with a predecessor to the Fidelius charm, making it so that the bed was forgotten by those in the nearby proximity.

Harry bit his lip a little unsurely but settled for the protections being good enough for now. He couldn't hear the chaos around the dorm room, and his curtains weren't soon going to be yanked away from the bed, which was without a small fireworks show.

Harry fell back in his bed; his dreams that night, as they had been many nights before, were haunted by platinum blonde hair, though the blue eyes in these dreams were alight warm and happy as they gazed at him. As true with many other recent dreams, he had red, black, and a softer shade of blonde enter his dreams, their owner's faces flashing through his mind, laughing as they had in the compartment. They were joined by yet another pale blonde hair, a cool expression on her face, and piercing blue eyes.

Unknown to Harry, the people who haunted his dreams that night had their own dreams haunted by bright emerald eyes and raven black hair.