Note 1: This chapter features a song with original lyrics, but it's done to the tune of Glittertind's "Landkjenning". If you'd like to listen along when it comes up, I recommend listening to the music up to 2:15 of the song, because I then repeat the first verse as a finish.
Note 2: This chapter has direct quotes from the book.
Note 3 : Bonus points to anyone that catches today's media reference ;)
The Great Hall was decorated to the max for tonight's feast! Giant jack o'lanterns flickered with flames of ominous faces; hundreds of bats decorated the sky-charmed ceiling; the feast, though late due to the choir's performances, came with a spread of foreign and festive treats; and all in attendance chatted happily with excited and joyful spirits.
Except, that is, for a section of the Slytherin NEWT students.
"I told you, I'm fine!" Melissa snapped at Jacqueline.
"You are not fine!" Jacqueline argued. "Cedric said you had a seizure and were crying in pain!"
"Well Cedric needs to learn to mind his own bloody business!"
"Melissa," Domonkos said with a pleading voice, "we just want to make sure you're alright."
"Well I'm here, aren't I?" Melissa gestured to the table. "If I wasn't fine I'd be in the hospital wing, would I be?"
Adrian, the sole Slytherin witness, gave a snort, "That's only because you told Madam Pomfrey that it was just a strong vision and promised to come back for a check up tomorrow morning."
Melissa gave him a death glare. You fucking tattletale!
"You had another vision?" Amy asked. "Was it about the tournament?"
Melissa looked down at her plate with an angry look, "I'm not talking about it."
"A vision?" That voice was Lev's. "Vot is zat?"
Rusalka answered him in Russian, and the answer was shared in various languages across the table.
"Zat's incredible, Melissa!" Lev said. Melissa flicked her eyes up to acknowledge him. "Not many can do vot you do. It is a gift!"
A 'gift', eh? Melissa huffed, "Heh. Maybe in the German sense."
"Vot?" The boy looked confused.
She gave him a sharp, sardonic grin, "Es ist ein Gift."
Lev, Astrid, Domonkos, and Garrick all flinched into frowns.
Astrid gave her a sympathetic look, "You see many bad things, yes?"
Melissa gave a tiny nod. The other four, thankfully, made efforts to drag the rest of her friends away from scolding her about not staying in the hospital wing. That reprieve gave her time to consider the Deathly elephant in the room.
Harry Potter, Master of Death, had done something today. Something powerful, something dangerous. She could feel it in her bones and in her time-tethered soul. She may not be a true seer or an angel-blessed saint, but what she felt a short few hours ago might as well have been an apparition of horrific proportions. It really was like standing before an Eldritch horror. Overwhelmed by its power, dwarfed by its size, in awe of Knowing- only to grow mad from losing the ability to Understand, and- at the end of it all- terrifying in the sole remaining knowledge that it has the power to snuff out your puny soul from existence.
Whatever the fuck it was, Melissa never wants to experience it again.
Yet there sits Harry, talking with fellow Hufflepuffs as if nothing was amiss.
Just what the hell did he do?!
Minutes of fearful contemplation later, goblets of mead appeared on the table. It was the silent signal the groups were waiting for.
Melissa inhaled and released a deep breath, Let it go, Mel. You have shit to do.
*POUND!*
*POUND!*
*POUND!*
*POUND!*
She slammed her fist on the table. Then again, and again. Across the four student tables, others were doing the same. All talk stopped, aside from exclamations of confusion. And then, on Flitwick's swish, the chosen leads began to sing.
"Who do you call in to JOIN the fight,
As enemies draw closer in?
The answer, my friends, is the HONey badger,
With them you'll always win!
Their fur may give you paaauuse,
But mess with their friends, and you'll meeeeeeet… their claws!"
A drumming came from the tables, and the rest of the muggleborns and Frog Choir joined the tune.
"WHEN YOU MESS WITH A HONEY BADGER,
AND THREATEN THOSE THAT THEY HOLD DEAR,
THEY'LL FACE YOUR POISON, JAWS, AND TALONS,
AND TEACH YOU THE MEANING OF FEAR!
THEY'LL SHAKE OFF YOUR CRASHING BLOWS
DEVOUR YOUR MEAT, AND CRUSH… YOUR BONES!
"WITH DEADLY CLAWS AND THEIR SKIN OF STEEL,
NO BEAST CAN MATCH WITH THEIR MIGHT!
WHEN MOTIVATED NONE CAN STOP THEM,
FROM DOING WHAT IS RIGHT!
THEY'LL EMERGE FROM THEIR BURROW,
AND DESTROYING THEIR FOE'S WILL BE… THOROUGH!"
The sitting singers raised the mead goblets into the air.
"RAISE A CUP TO THE HONEY BADGER!"
It was with a grin that Melissa noticed that other students were doing the same.
"RAISE A CUP TO THE HONEY BADGER!
"WHO DO YOU CALL IN TO JOIN THE FIGHT,
AS ENEMIES DRAW CLOSER IN?
THE ANSWER, MY FRIENDS, IS THE HONEY BADGER,
WITH THEM YOU'LL ALWAYS WIN!"
The singers rose in unison and turned towards the draping banner of the Hogwarts Crest above the head table.
"RAISE YOUR MEAD UP IN TRIBUTE!
HONEY BADGERS,
WE GIVE OUR SALUTE!
"THEY'RE WHO YOU CALL TO JOIN IN THE FIGHT,
AS ENEMIES DRAW CLOSER IN!
WHEN YOU'RE A FRIEND OF THE HONEY BADGER,
YOU KNOW THAT YOU'LL ALWAYS WIN!
YES, YOU KNOW THAT YOU'LL ALWAYS WIN!
*POUND!*
*POUND!*
*POUND!*
"SALUTE!"
The song ended. With its end came the beginning of thunderous applause! Whistles, claps, and cheers rang out through the hall. The singers basked in it, or drank their tribute in honour of Hogwarts. Even Dumbledore laughed joyously, raising his own goblet to the school. Soon others at the head and student tables joined in, many shouting "SALUTE" or "TO THE HONEY BADGERS" in the process.
Melissa gave a strained smile, ignoring the pain, and allowing herself to bask in the energy of the room. She gave nods to the leaders of this prank, Professor Flitwick, Jason, Lucy, Ben, and a handful of young teens, and took in a deep drink.
"SALUTE!"
"TO THE HONEY BADGERS!" Harry cried out, clinking glasses with Oliver and Megan in toast.
The group laughed at the spectacle of it all, and many gave Lily and Sally pats on the back. "I can't believe you kept that from us!" Hannah exclaimed. "How long were you all planning that prank?"
"Since the start of term, practically," Sally answered. "Professor Flitwick said it would be a great way to show school spirit."
"And show up the other schools!" Sophie Roper called out from the Gryffindor table. The comment was followed by loud whoops from the other Gryffindors.
Megan grinned among her fellow Puffs, "Now I really hope someone in Hufflepuff gets chosen!"
"Hear! Hear!" cried Oliver.
"Me, too," Harry nodded. On seeing some frowns, he shot Hannah, Kevin, and Wayne a glare, "Someone of age."
They all had the decency to wince in shame.
"Right."
"Obviously."
"Sorry, Harry."
Sure, now that 24 hours have passed with at least one of them keeping an eye on him or planting hexes on his stuff they're all suddenly apologetic. Still, he didn't feel in a forgiving mood just yet.
Some time later, the gold plates cleared, signalling the end of the feast. Chatter in the room rose with excitement, only to hush to silence as Dumbledore stood to address them. "Well, the Goblet is almost ready to make its decision." The other headmasters looked tense, while the other four judges looked on with excitement. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber where they will be receiving their first instructions."
With a grand sweeping wave of his wand, Dumbledore extinguished all of the candles in the room, save for those inside of the jack o'lanterns, plunging the hall into a semi-darkness. The darkness made the Goblet of Fire shine even brighter with its blue-white flames, and all eyes were cast upon it watching… waiting… until the flames turned red and sparked with a decision made. Dumbledore snatched the charred piece of parchment from the air, and moved so that he could read the entry from the now-white flames.
"The champion for Durmstrang will be Viktor Krum."
The hall burst into applause at that pronouncement. Many at Hogwarts were delighted and unsurprised by the selected champion, having known the famous Bulgarian's exploits as a world-class seeker. Though none were so excited as his own Headmaster, as Karkaroff shouted loudly over the crowd, "Bravo, Viktor! Knew you had it in you!"
Krum, in Harry's opinion, didn't seem shocked either. The way he walked towards the head table, slouched yet serious, Harry felt that the boy seemed… resigned, or maybe disliking the attention? Perhaps Harry could find a kindred spirit in this fellow celebrity?
He pondered on that for a moment, only to break from those thoughts as the Goblet went red once again. He leaned in close as Dumbledore read the next name. "The champion for Beauxbatons is Fleur Delacour!"
Harry frowned, but gave a polite applause. He looked over to the Beauxbatons contingent, giving a sympathetic look to Ornella as she faced rejection from the tournament. She was sad, he could tell. Still, she was handling it much better than some of the others. Two girls were outright sobbing into their arms, being consoled by Jean-Luc and some of the quidditch players who didn't want to compete.
Then again, Harry thought, Madeline said Fleur Delacour is their reserve seeker, right? Her and Krum… maybe seekers are the best pick for this tournament? …Oh, god, is that why I could get chosen over someone of age?! Panic lanced through him at the thought. Still, he had to assure himself that No, he won't be forced into this tournament. Dumbledore put in the age line, and not a single underage person has managed to pull it off.
…Except for Melly, for some reason. But she didn't actually enter, apparently. That, and she'd never put his name in. …Right? Not after making such a big deal about keeping him away from the Goblet?
Another name fired out of the Goblet, and Harry prayed that his fears wouldn't come to pass.
"The Hogwarts champion," Dumbledore said, "is Cedric Diggory!"
"YES!"
The Hufflepuffs burst into thunderous applause. Cheers rang out for Cedric in a seemingly unending wave.
"GO CEDRIC!"
"KNEW IT WOULD BE YOU!"
"HONEY BADGERS, FOREVER!"
"MAKE US PROUD!"
More cheers followed the older teen as he walked down the hall, waving and smiling to everyone as he passed.
"Thank god, she was wrong!" Harry cried jubilantly. He turned to some of the others, "You have no idea how terrified I was thinking someone would put my name in!"
"I was!" Wayne said, then laughed. "Sorry, again, about all of that. Guess we were wrong, then?"
Okay, Harry was willing to give one small smile. "Obviously. So now that makes three seekers as Champions. I can bet what sort of tasks they're going to do."
"Oh!"
"Wait, what?"
He explained his theory to the others as the cheers continued on. They had to stop, of course, once Dumbledore managed to quiet everyone down.
"Excellent! Well, now we have our three champions," Dumbledore said with a wide smile. "I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real-" his voice cut off, distracted by the Goblet of Fire …as it sparked red once again.
Oh- oh god!
"Oh no!" Hannah gasped.
Another piece of parchment shot out of the Goblet! Dumbledore reached forth and snagged the wayward piece. He looked down at the parchment, and several looked to Harry as the boy's body filled with dread.
He didn't have to hear what Dumbledore was about to say- the man's alarmed look said it all- yet still he cleared his throat and said the two words Harry didn't wish to hear, "Harry Potter."
This can't be happening!
And yet it is.
With closed eyes, Harry gave a small groan. He could already hear the accusatory whispers around him. Feeling resolute, he opened his eyes and looked over at Hannah, Wayne, and Kevin. "Just so we're clear, you can all confirm that at least one of you has been with me for the past twenty-four hours, right?"
They nodded nervously. "Yeah?"
"Good. Tell them that!"
He forced himself out of the seat as the Headmaster called his name again. That said, he wasn't ready to leave. Instead, he pointed a finger at Melody, who looked about as upset as he was, and said loudly, "JUST FOR THE RECORD, MELODY, I HATE IT WHEN YOU'RE RIGHT."
"BELIEVE ME, HOUDINI," she called back, "SO AM I."
Harry marched forward, doing his best to ignore everyone's staring and frowns as he walked down the hall. He gave a small glare at Dumbledore as he passed him, unable to hold back his voice as, "I warned you," snarled out of him. Still, he did not falter, he marched on, reached the antechamber, and shut the door behind him.
"Well, Bennett, when you're right, you're right!" Jacinth laughed over the Wireless playing music in the common room. "Two Honey Badgers for champions! Who'd have thought?!"
"I expected one," Domonkos teased.
"Same here," a seventh year girl said.
Cassius gave the three a glare, as did a few seventh years who were unappreciative of the absent votes of confidence for their house. "You can't be serious, Jace!"
"Come on, Cass," Jacinth laughed into his glass. "Between that song prank and her visions, you can't say it wasn't expected."
Melissa was moping into her own glass, "I was hoping it'd just be Cedric. This is bullshit!"
"You're damn right!" A seventh year shouted. "I don't care if he's the Boy-Who-Lived, or friends with the Heir, Potter weaselling his way into the tournament shouldn't be allowed!"
"He didn't, but you're right," Melissa muttered.
Domonkos gave her a suspicious look, "Are you sure he didn't enter?"
"Positive," she clipped.
"Definitely not," Draco added, entering the conversation. "Harry told me he has no interest in entering." Draco smiled, "If anything, I think he'd sooner pull something on Diggory or Chang so that he can get onto the quidditch team."
"Say, there's a good idea!" Graham Montague shouted. "With Diggory and Potter as champions, we're stuck with Chang. We should hex her and convince Hooch to get Malfoy on the team!"
Shouts of encouragement rang out, and a large part of the room converged toward Montague to plot ways of getting Chang out of the quidditch equation.
With that distraction, no one noticed as another seventh year moved to stand innocuously beside Melissa. "Here," the boy muttered, sliding a small coin purse into her hand. "Splitting your bets to give the illusion of an uncertain future. Bold move, Bennett."
"I don't know what you mean," Melissa answered with (false) resigned innocence. "I can't imagine anyone seeing something like this coming."
"Sure, Bennett. Whatever you say."
The bookie walked off, and Melissa tucked the purse out of sight. The tiniest of smiles graced her face in the process. (Hey, just because she didn't like the outcome, doesn't mean she should lose money out of it!)
Melissa got up and walked over to grab another butterbeer-
-Then fell to the floor in a state of convulsions.
"What in Merlin's name-?!"
"IT'S HAPPENING AGAIN!"
"MELISSA?!"
"SOMEONE GET PROFESSOR SNAPE!"
"Melissa!" Jacqueline raced over, lifting her head off the ground and shouting orders Melissa could no longer hear as sensations overwhelmed her.
Void.
Death.
Terrifying.
Embracing.
An Eldritch force.
An Old Friend.
Everything went black.
It felt like an eternity before she could hear voices again.
"Bennett! Bennett, can you hear my voice?"
Her body shook from the cold. Her face was wet. Her throat felt raw. An emptiness raked her back, its vast claws gripping her spine whole, pulling her, beckoning her to fall further.
But she doesn't want to fall. She wants to flee!
She wants to LIVE!
A gasp of life filled her lungs! Her body shuddered violently with fear and small relief. Her vision cleared, and she found herself under a ring of fearful students, and Severus Snape kneeling over her with genuine concern.
"Bennett, are you alright?" …She was unable to answer. Her brain could barely comprehend her own state. "Can you tell me what happened?"
What happened?
Happened?
Her mind flickered to the cold, to the void. It wasn't gone. No. She could still feel it. No longer gripping her in a vice but still… somewhere. Its presence was like a beacon, shimmering not down but up as though… as though it were here, somewhere in the castle. Inside of Hogwarts!
Just like that, there was Understanding through the madness.
"Harry claimed the wand."
"What?"
Her voice was a hoarse whisper, one only Snape could hear; but she had to say it, say SOMETHING before horror's madness took its toll!
"I can feel it through the bond-" her breath gasped greedily for life and air. "He has full control- as Master of Death…" she begged for understanding, yet the man seemed confused. She needs him to UNDERSTAND! "Harry has the Elder Wand!"
After depositing the girl into Poppy's trusting care, Severus marched over to Albus' office and banged on it loudly.
"There's no need to be so abrasive, Severus. Come inside."
Oh, he went in alright! He stormed right over to Albus, uncaring of the old man's own despondent face as he shouted at him, "Tell me you did not give the DEATH STICK to a FOURTEEN YEAR OLD CHILD!"
Albus had the audacity to look shocked by this statement, "How do you know about that? Mister Potter left here not twenty minutes ago."
Blast! The bumbling old fool!
"Because while you were surrendering the most dangerous wand known to man to a child," he reiterated, "our death-touched seer had a fit in the middle of the common room!"
Albus paled. "How many heard her?"
Severus scoffed, "Only myself, I hope. Though I'm certain she would have shouted it to the Heavens if she had the capacity."
"And she gave you a prophecy?"
He paused before answering, "Not a prophecy, per se, though it certainly followed a structured form." It was the form of a Japanese Tanka, yet it rhymed like her known prophecy, and it came out in a rasp so like Sybill's had all those years ago. So, yes, Severus felt certain that it counted as far as the seer's visions go. He took a breath and recited what the girl told him.
"Harry claimed the wand,
I can feel it through the bond,
He has full control,
As Master of Death,
Harry has the Elder Wand."
It was a long moment before Albus spoke.
"He has full control… as Master of Death." Albus lowered slowly into his seat. "...To have full control, that would suggest that the boy has possession of the Resurrection Stone."
"Does he?!" Severus asked earnestly. Surely that's impossible, isn't it?! Between the Wand and the Stone, Severus wasn't sure which concept terrified him more. …That, or Master of Death. Yes. That's the most terrifying aspect of this whole situation.
"I have no idea," Albus answered. "Surely a magic so potent would be noticed." He looked over to phoenix's empty perch. "Then again, Fawkes did leave rather abruptly just before Potter arrived at my office."
A phoenix who embraces a reincarnated muggle as a friend, and flees from a fourteen year old child with the powers of death itself. Now isn't that a twisted turn of events?
"Have you noticed anything strange about the boy?" Albus asked.
"No, I have not." A thought then occurred to him, "Pierce did inform me that this was Bennett's second seizure today. Pucey confirmed that the second was far worse than the first."
Albus' eyebrows knitted to a frown. "When was this?"
"Third period. Is it relevant?"
Albus pulled out a folder of parchments and looked it over. "The fourth year Hufflepuffs had the afternoon off. He had free reign to do as he wished during that time."
To sneak himself into the tournament, or to use the stone? Perhaps even both?
Oh, Potter, what have you done!
"Mister Potter has assured me that he has witnesses who can confirm his whereabouts for the entirety of the day. That said, I wouldn't mind doing a small amount of investigating to confirm those alibis."
"And what good does that do us?" Severus asked. "If the boy has all three, who knows what destruction could be wrought!"
"Perhaps, but hopefully they will be at the right target."
Severus blinked in confusion, "What do you mean?"
"You've seen the same signs as I have, even more than I have, in fact," he gestured at Severus' arm, where the slowly darkening Dark Mark resided. "If Voldemort is returning, as I have long feared, the boy must be prepared for what's to come. The Master of Death… death, which Voldemort flees from. Perhaps that is exactly the power Harry needs to conquer this foe?"
He wasn't sure whether or not to be worried about Albus' desire to throw the boy into the Dark Lord's line of fire. "Or the ammunition to bring about more death than any of us can imagine."
"Do you believe Harry desires using these abilities for the sake of destruction?"
"...No, but one can never be certain of the future, especially with the boy being forced to compete in the tournament."
"That is true." He gave a wistful smile, "Though I am confident that Sight towards the future is truly on our side."
So, who caught the media reference? ^_^
Note 4: I likely won't be posting a chapter on December 26th. If I don't, I'll see you all in 2025!