Chapter 41: Midnight Meeting - Fleur EntersNotes:Hey guys!!! apologies for the delay in posting. I sam still a bit sick. But, here you go, the chapter is here.
Also, if you wanna read ahead, you can follow the link to enjoy that as well - https://www.instagram.com/bibliophile1722/
Chapter Text
The group had settled into a kind of tense patience. Tonks leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, Hermione sat upright with her hands folded, Luna stared into the pensieve as if she could already see what was inside, and Daphne stayed composed, watching Harry like she was still deciding whether this was a mistake. Susan glanced at the door every few seconds, her confusion slowly mixing with curiosity.
Then the air shimmered near the far wall.
It wasn't the door this time. It was a ripple — faint at first, then brighter, until a soft pop broke the silence.
Dobby appeared with Fleur, slightly out of breath but grinning. "Master Harry Potter, sir!" he squeaked. "Dobby has brought the French witch, just as Master asked!"
She landed lightly on her feet, her long silver-blonde hair falling over one shoulder, blue eyes narrowing as she scanned the room. Her wand was already in her hand, angled low but ready.
Dobby straightened proudly. "See, Master Harry Potter sir, Dobby did it! Miss Fleur is here safe!"
Harry gave him a quick nod. "Good job, Dobby. Wait outside, alright?"
"Yes, Master Harry Potter sir!" Dobby squeaked, vanishing with a sharp pop.
The silence that followed was heavy.
Fleur's gaze finally settled on Harry. Her expression was neutral, but her tone was wary. "You are lucky I trusted your letter, 'Arry Potter, and I only trusted you because the way you treated me earlier in the dinner. And the way you were unaffected by my allure," she said, her accent lilting but her words precise. "Most wizards would not get me to leave my dormitory in ze middle of ze night."
Harry met her eyes evenly. "I know. Thank you for coming."
Fleur didn't move closer, but she lowered her wand slightly. "I am not sure why I am here, but…" she hesitated, studying him. "When I read your note, it— how do you say— stayed in my mind. I could not ignore it. And the way you were unaffected and gentle while we conversed, it swayed my decision towards coming here."
Hermione exchanged a look with Tonks. Luna smiled faintly, like she understood something unspoken.
Harry just nodded. "And now you'll know soon enough why I have gathered us all here."
Fleur's eyes flicked around the room, noting the others. Recognition passed across her face when she spotted Hermione and Luna, but her attention lingered a moment longer on Daphne — and then on Tonks, who gave her a small, easy grin.
Fleur's guard didn't drop, but her stance softened. "You have quite a… variety of company, Potter," she said finally.
"Yeah," Harry said, tone dry. "It's complicated."
Fleur crossed her arms lightly, her eyes narrowing on Harry again. "You say that like it is nothing, but I would like to know what you are doing calling me like this, in ze middle of the night."
Harry exhaled slowly. "You will. But before I explain anything, everyone needed to be here. And now," he looked around the room, "we are."
The group fell quiet again, waiting.
Fleur, still standing, took in the space properly for the first time — the warm light, the chairs arranged in a half-circle, the pensieve at the center of the table. Her expression softened slightly as her curiosity edged past suspicion.
Susan leaned forward slightly. "Are you— you're from Beauxbatons, right?"
Fleur gave a polite nod. "Oui. Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. I came with Madame Maxime for ze Tournament."
"This place," she murmured, glancing around. "It feels… different. Alive."
"It's called the Room of Requirement," Hermione said, almost reflexively, her tone slipping into her usual explanatory mode. "It gives you what you need, when you need it."
Fleur's eyes flicked toward her. "It gave 'Arry Potter what he needed tonight, then."
Everyone's reaction was different. Hermione was shocked. Susan had her mouth open with no sound coming out of it. Tonks initially shocked, was laughing her ass of now. Daphne, snorted. Luna giggled. And Harry, well he was dumbfounded over Fleur's not so adult joke.
Fleur turned back to Harry, moving a bit closer, moving into his personal space. "So," she whispered sensually, "what is it you needed, 'Arry?"
Harry didn't answer right away. He was shocked at seeing Fleur flirt with him so openly. But then he brought his bearings back, then, he looked at each of them again — Hermione, Luna, Tonks, Susan, Daphne, Fleur.
Every single one of them was watching him now. Expecting. Waiting.
He felt the familiar weight settle in his chest — the knowledge that once he spoke, there would be no turning back.
He took a slow breath. "You'll know everything in a moment. But before that— thank you. All of you. For trusting me enough to come."
Tonks muttered something that sounded like, "Better be worth the walk," but she smiled faintly as she said it.
Fleur arched an eyebrow. "I will hold you to zat, Potter."
Harry nodded once, calm but focused. "Fair enough."
He stepped toward the pensieve, the soft silver light reflecting off his glasses. "What I'm about to show you, and tell you" he said quietly, "isn't easy to explain or tell. But you deserve to know what's really going on — who I am, and why you matter in this."
The room went still.
Hermione and Luna leaned forward, catching everyone elses expressions, trying to read their thoughts. Daphne's fingers tightened slightly on the armrest of her chair. Tonks straightened, expression turning serious. Susan swallowed hard, glancing between them.
And Fleur… she tilted her head, the faintest flicker of emotion passing through her gaze — confusion, intrigue, and something else she couldn't quite name.
Whatever this was, whatever Harry was about to reveal, she could feel instinctively that it mattered.
She had seen a dozen arrogant boys in her life, all trying to impress her with words or charm. Harry Potter wasn't one of them. He hadn't looked at her that way once — not even now. That alone made her curious.
And somehow, that simple fact — that strange, quiet steadiness — was what had made her come tonight.
She crossed her arms again, voice steady. "Alright, 'Arry. Show us."
Harry nodded, stepping closer to the pensieve. "Alright. So, I'm from the future and you all are my soulmates. I was sent in past by lady Death and a mission to stop Voldemort. And, to explain you better, let me show you what happens if things go the way they are currently going."
He touched the surface, and pressed a rune. The memory started to play at top of the pensieve like a movie and everyone except Hermione and Luna, and up to an extent, even Tonks, still shocked started watching.
The truth was about to begin.
Chapter 42Chapter Text
The pensieve's surface trembled beneath Harry's fingers like a held breath. The silver ran slow and steady, catching the light from the small hearth and throwing soft reflections across the faces in the room. He looked up once, meeting each pair of eyes in turn: Hermione's and Luna's calm supporting gaze; Tonks's guarded, but also, steady stare; Daphne's reserved, measuring gaze; Susan's worried but resolute expression; Fleur's cool, skeptical eyes unreadable for now.
"You won't believe me if I say it, I'm gnna show you instead. This is my life," Harry said plainly. "The one I lived before this one. I only shared this with Hermione and Luna, and lastly Tonks because of a very important reason, which i'll tell you once you are finished watching my memories. And i didn't tell anyone else because if it got out, I would have been either locked in Department of Myteries or obliviated to the childhood. But you guys deserved to know. You needed to see it for yourselves."
Hermione let out a small breath. "You need to know everything. You all, deserve that. We deserve that"
Luna shifted forward, as if to make room for the others to step up. "It fits," she said softly. "It will fit."
Tonks gave a single nod. "I have already gone through these memories, and I'll be here when you are done with this. And Harry, you said we'd go through this together. And we will."
Harry set his jaw and moved the pensieve bowl toward Daphne, Fleur, and Susan, Tonks joined them. "Stand in front and touch the surface when you're ready. You can do it all together. Don't be afraid — it's not some trap. It's my memories. They might be horrifying but they are all true."
Daphne moved first, stepping out of her chair with deliberate composure and placing her fingers at the pensieve's edge. Her face didn't change. She looked like someone approaching a professional assessment, not a memory that would show her a dead future. She met Harry's eyes for a second.
"I want the truth," she said quietly.
"You'll have it," Harry replied.
Fleur took a breath and went next. She kept her wand in hand but lowered it when Harry's small nod told her she could. Susan's hands trembled slightly as she rose, but she did not hesitate. She was quieter than the rest, but once she made a move, she moved straight.
Harry stepped back. Hermione, Luna, and Tonks formed a loose semicircle behind the three. Hermione's expression was tight, arms folded; Luna looked serene; Tonks' shoulders were set like someone ready to spring. Harry steadied himself and lowered his hand from the pensieve.
"Remember," he said. "You see what I saw. You see it as it happened. If you want to step back at any moment, pull your hand away. I'll pull you out."
They nodded. Daphne's fingers touched silver first. The surface swallowed her hand and then her, breathless for a second, and then she was inside.
They didn't go gently into memory. The pensieve dropped them right into chaos — the clatter of spells, the scream of metal and stone, the smell of smoke and blood. Hogwarts was burning. The sky above the grounds was a black smear with hot light. Screams cut across the air.
Daphne's breath hitched audibly. Fleur's hand tightened around her wand. Susan's mouth was a thin line.
They watched Harry younger and older at once: running, shouting, dueling, armor and cloak torn. Students and teachers fought everywhere. The camera of memory moved with Harry, close enough to feel the heat from explosions, far enough to show the scope. They saw comrades fall — names and faces that would make any witness hold their own breath.
Tonks gasped when she saw herself fall. Her composure fractured in that moment. She put a hand over her mouth and did not move.
Hermione's face had drained of color. She'd seen this before, but seeing it with new witnesses made it worse, as if the horror became more public, more real.
At the center of the chaos was the final confrontation. Spells collided in lines of green and red. Voldemort stood opposite Harry, white-faced and furious. Harry lifted his wand; the duel was a blur of motion and sound. The last spells — a green strike, a flash of light, a silence that seemed to hollow out the world — and then Harry crumpled.
Daphne watched him die, and there was a small, disorienting flush of fury in her. She wasn't supposed to feel that level of attachment, she reminded herself, and yet the memory lodged under her ribs.
When the scene shifted, it did not go to darkness but to a white, liminal space. There was a thin, clinical quiet there. Ariel appeared — Death in the businesslike form they had already been told about — and she spoke to Harry. The words were short, not melodramatic: a chance, a choice, a way back at a cost. Harry accepted. The memory ended with the choice itself: a hand extended, an acceptance, and then the cold rush of being drawn back.
Fleur covered her mouth in a quick movement that no one told her to make. "Mon dieu," she breathed.
Susan's hands were clenched in her lap within the memory, and even then she looked like she wanted to reach into the silver glass and take him back herself.
Daphne had a different expression — the calculation of someone seeing a problem up close for the first time. She swallowed. The next memory began.
The next set of images were quieter but heavier: funerals, faces with grief carved into them, the private moments of collapse no one saw. Scenes of Ron's jealousy and of Dumbledore choosing words that seemed kind but withheld the whole picture. Moments where Harry's trust fractured; small decisions that set bigger tragedies in motion. They watched him age in a few minutes of recollection, his shoulders sinking, his eyes becoming less like a child's and more like someone who had to learn to hold the world upright.
Hermione had to step back for air; she put her hand to her mouth and blinked fast. Tonks' jaw set; she looked at Harry with an expression somewhere between anger and pity. Luna made no sound but her small fingers tightened on the pensieve's rim behind Daphne.
Fleur's initial skepticism had been replaced by a raw, quiet shock. She squeezed the wand in her hand once as if she could grip the whole story and not let it slip. Susan's face had gone white, but she did not move. She watched the whole way through.
In the memory of Dumbledore's later manipulations — choices taken with an eye to a larger picture, choices that hurt individuals for a supposed greater good — Daphne said nothing, but the careful set of her lips told Harry enough. She understood consequences now in a way that wasn't abstract.
At the end of this sequence, the pensieve showed the moment where Death offered Harry another chance. The white room again, the exchange. Luna's whispering voice in the memory was soft. "She was always watching."
When the memories ended, none of the three newcomers stepped away quickly. They returned to the present slowly, breath heavy, eyes stunned but wide. The pensieve's surface smoothed, pale silver collapsing into quiet.
For a long minute, everyone simply sat. The hearth hummed. Even the Room of Requirement seemed to hold its breath. Hermione was the first to find words; she didn't speak accusingly, only plainly.
"You saw it now," she said. "You know why he's been like this. Why he's pushed you all so hard. He's been through what you just saw. He's trying not to let it happen again."
Daphne's mouth pressed into a thin line. "I thought I knew the broad strokes," she said quietly. "I didn't think… I didn't expect the depth." She dragged a hand through her hair and then forced it back under control. Her voice was level. "You carried that by yourself?"
Harry nodded. "For a while. I couldn't risk telling a lot of people. Some things can't be risked getting out. If they had—" He cut himself off.
Fleur was pale but steady. "You came back," she said. "And you decided to change… everything. That's what you told me. It's one thing to say it, and another to see it." She looked at him honestly. "You are the same man I saw in the battle."
Susan's hand went to her mouth as she took in a breath. Her eyes met Harry's and were firm. "Why did you bring us here tonight?" she asked. "If you already had people who knew, why these three now?"
Harry met each of them with a simple answer. "Because I need you. I can't do this alone. I won't do it alone. You've seen enough to know why that matters. You're not just witnesses — you'll be part of the effort. I need your trust and your help. I didn't tell the others because this kind of knowledge makes you a target. I wanted you to decide knowing what it meant."
Tonks rubbed her thumb over her knuckle, one of her small, restless gestures. "So you're telling us: sign up, or run?" Her tone had humor under it, but it was serious. "You don't get a third option."
Harry gave a short, exhausted smile. "Pretty much."
Daphne exhaled slowly. "If I'm going to stand on the front lines of anything," she said, "I'd rather do it where I can act, not stand by. This is practical — I can contribute." She looked at each face in the room. Her voice didn't betray fear. It was an assessment.
Fleur nodded. "I will not pretend I am not afraid." She looked at Harry. "But I believe you. I felt something when you invited me. I could not explain it. Now I can. I will help."
Susan's fingers pressed into her palm. "My aunt taught me what it means to stand up," she said quietly. "If you're asking for help, then you have it."
Hermione's expression tightened with an inward shift toward planning. "There's a lot to be done. We'll need to be organised. Training, intelligence, wards, who we can trust —"
"Yes," Harry said. "We'll need all of that. But before anything else, there's one more thing I can't do without your consent."
He moved toward the pensieve and pushed the silver aside. The room seemed to gather closer; everyone leaned in. Harry's voice was flat and direct.
"I need you to bond with me. Not because I want an army. Because last time I did this alone, it cost people their lives. If you're bound, you share what I've shared and what I will share. You'll be able to see, to feel, to act in ways we can't do otherwise. It's trust, and it's power combined. Hermione and Luna already are bondedwith me. Tonks knew about my ast as well and made the choice to be my soulmate. But the rest of you — you have to choose."
Daphne looked at the pensieve. Her face was level as ever, but now something flickered — an emotion she normally kept in check. "If this bond means I will see what you see," she said slowly, "and if it makes me better able to prevent what I just witnessed, then I will do it."
Fleur's mouth formed a thin line. "You ask a lot. You ask me to hold your past as part of our future." She didn't sound romantic or theatrical — she sounded practical. "But I will not run from what I saw. I will bind."
Susan's breathing was steady but shallow. The decision lined itself on her face like a slow setting of the jaw. "If I can stop even one person from ending up in that white light," she said, "then I'll do it."
Tonks grinned, the grin less careless than usual. "Alright then. Get on with it, Potter."
It was not a dramatic cinematic moment. No banners unfurled, no thunderclap. It was a quiet, deliberate closing of ranks. They knelt, formed a circle, and Harry set both palms on the pensieve's rim again. The room hummed like the throat of a being breathing through sleep.
Harry kissed Daphne first, a blinding light filled the room, and the same happened when he kissed Susan, Fleur and Tonks.
"Harry, I see golden lights connecting you with us, but there are also weak lines, connecting us all as well. I believe, if we also kiss each other, it will become a coven and we all will become stronger. By now, Daphne, Susan, Fleur and Tonks were out of their head and processing the knowledge they received by being kissed by Harry.
All of them were breathing hard, still processing the memories and knowledge they have received, it was a heavy burden they have also received with the main things.
And Harry was processing what Luna has said, if what she said had truth in it, it will become a huge boon for all of them. Luna, after sharing her thoughts, did not wait for anyone else's response and grabbed Hermione and kissed her directly on her lips.
Surprising not just Hermione but also everyone else, when another blinding light filled the room, and then she cycled through the rest and kissed them, filling the room with blinding light. This was a huge discovery for Harry and others.
Hermione was in a shock, as well the rest of them, besides Luna, who was smiling blindingly on her plan's success. Her magical sight had guided her and she had achieved what was required, all that remained was rest of the girls kissing the other girls in the coven, and the coven would be established.
"L…Luna, what did you do?" asked hermione.
"Went with my sight Hermione, and did what we needed to do, and you should move on finish establishing the bond with others as well, it will motivate them to do the same." finished saying Luna.
It did not take much time, but everyone was convinced that this is the best way possible, as all of them recovered their previous life memories and the knowledge and Luna's discovery made a lot of sense, so they all kissed each other and the coven was established.
Somehow, they all remembered a shared dream they all had in the summers and blushed.
It was about to be morning, so before bidding them away, he addressed the issue of his name coming out of goblet, and his plan to handle the Voldemort problem.
After that they all left to get some sleep before the day's activity started.
They all again shared a same dream, an action from our own Lady Death herself, where they were sharing the bed again, and pleasuring each other, beyond measures. The air, crinkling with sparkles and lightening. The room filled with pleasure and moans.
Chapter 43: The Fourth Triwizard ChampionNotes:This is the last chapter for this fic, and I'll start the new story by weekend with better writing, probably, and better story. Adios until then.
Chapter TextHarry woke later than usual.
For the past two months, he'd been up before dawn every day, but this morning his body refused to respond immediately. The night in the Room of Requirement had stretched on long past longer than the time he had ever slept this year. The bonding had taken effort — not painful, just draining, but very pleasant, a consistent warmth in his heart — and he'd felt the pull of each new connection humming through him long after he'd crawled into his four-poster.
He sat up slowly. All of the boys were already gone; even Ron, it seemed.
Harry rubbed his eyes, steadying himself as the bond pulsed lightly in his mind — six threads, each present but not intrusive. Hermione's was calm and sharp, Luna's soft and drifting, Tonks's energetic even at rest. Daphne's was a quiet pressure, Fleur's steady and warm in an unfamiliar way, Susan's gentle but firm.
So it works, he thought, pulling on his robes.
He freshened up and dressed quickly, then headed down the stairs.
The Great Hall was half-full by the time he arrived. He spotted Hermione first — her hair tied back, flipping through a Transfiguration text even though it was Saturday. She looked up as he approached, relief flickering briefly in her eyes through the bond.
"You slept in," she said quietly, shifting to make space.
"For once, and by the looks of it, even you and the others also were late, it seems," he answered.
Luna sat beside her, humming faintly to herself, eating the pudding she had gotten from a house elf from the kitchen by asking. Before he even sat down, she slid a plate of toast toward him.
Daphne, Susan, and Tonks were at their respective tables, also having a late breakfast with their housemates. And once they noticed Harry's gaze on them, they nodded back with a subtle nod and smile, acknowledging him.
Fleur took a seat at the Ravenclaw table, but her eyes flicked toward Harry's group several times. She nodded once, acknowledging the connection even across the room.
There were other people milling around it, some of them eating toast, all examining the Goblet of Fire. It had been placed in the center of the hall on the stool that normally bore the Sorting Hat. A thin golden line had been traced on the floor, forming a circle ten feet around it in every direction. Harry heard the same conversation between Ron and a 3rd year girl asking her who had entered their name so far, and her answer being all the Durmstrang lot but none so far from Hogwarts.
Someone laughed behind Harry. Turning, he saw Fred, George, and Lee Jordan hurrying down the staircase, all three of them looking extremely excited.
"Done it," Fred said in a triumphant whisper to Harry, Hermione, and Luna. "Just taken it."
Harry, could't help but laugh internally at what's going to happen. He saw the same reaction of Fred and George getting the hair and beard like Dumbledore, while Dumbledore himself entered with his flourish, grandfatherly smile, and twinkling eyes, amusingly saying, "I did warn you."
He surveyed Fred and George, his eyes twinkling. "I suggest you both go up to Madam Pomfrey. She is already tending to Miss Fawcett, of Ravenclaw, and Mr. Summers, of Hufflepuff, both of whom decided to age themselves up a little too. Though I must say, neither of their
beards is anything like as fine as yours." Fred and George set off for the hospital wing, accompanied by Lee, who was howling with laughter.
All of this Harry had seen and experienced before, and it was still funny this time around. He also remembered Dean telling him who had entered from Slytherin, and this time Dean was sharing the same tidbit of information with Seamus and Ron. Neville was sitting somewhere in between and was privy to both sides of the conversation happening at the table. Harry also saw Angelina putting her name into the Goblet and coming back to the Gryffindor table.
Harry knew the outcome of it, he knew tonight would be another long night with students of all the school would either see him as a liar and a cheater, even if he was innocent, or if what he had planned worked out, then he would have the high ground. Time will tell.
He didn't to do anything heavy so he asked if Hermione and Luna would join him for a walk around black lake, he also asked Neville and then he gave a meaningful gaze to Fleur, Daphne, Susan and Tonks, and started walking towards the entrance door.
Hermione, Luna and Neville followed him right away, and the others followed a little after. He was leading them towards a hidden alcove where no one will disturb them. Susan had also brought Hannah and Daphne had brought Tracy with her. Fleur had followed alone and tagging along more with Tonks.
In his previous life, Harry hadn't bothered to know more about his friends, because of one thing or another, whether that was his adventures or Potter luck. And to remedy that, he had taken conscious effort to ask them more about their life, and how they grew up. He also exchanged letters with Sirius regularly and in one of the letter he got to know that there is still no news from Lupin or where he is.
So, Harry started making these conversations while enjoying the quiet afternoon with his group, everyone was enjoyin,g and then the conversation took a turn towards who would be the champions. Harry and his mates knew, but for the rest, it was unknown, and they kept it that way, speculating and playing guessing.
In the end, to get the confidence of the people who were not in the know, Harry got serious and said, "Guys, tonight when the selection is happening, there is a possibility that my name can come out, even though I haven't entered my name."
Shock and gaps were the reactions from most of them, "Bu…But Harry, if you haven't entered your name, then how come you think your name can come out of the goblet as the champion?" asked Neville. Others who were not in the know had the same question written on their face.
"Well, every year since I have been in Hogwarts, something wrong has always happened at Halloween. 1st year, it was the troll. 2nd year, it was the basilisk. And the 3rd year, it was Sirius, although at them time, he was a fugitive and declared a danger to me. And this year, I can tell, it would be my name coming out of the goblet, I reckon, if i bet on it, I would be richer than how I'm currently." explained Harry.
Everyone was in their own thoughts, so Harry called Dobby and asked him to get them a good picnic tiffin for their outing right now. As everyone mulled over Harry's words, their food arrived and they ate lunch outside together. No one had seen such a group before and it was all coming together because of the efforts they have taken together.
After the lunch, Harry called Dobby again and he went away after packing and cleaning up after them, the group returned back to the school, and in Fleur's case, she went back to her carriage. Soon it would be the feast time and they would be ready for it.
Soon it was the time for the feast, and after that the selection of champions. Harry and his group from the study group and his soulmates have already arrived, and sat around in their own house tables in the great hall. And soon enough, other students from Hogwarts also came and started to sit, and then the students from Durmstrang arrived, who sat with Slytherins, Victor Krum leading the whole set with his dour expression. At last, the students from Beauxbatons arrived, Fleur trailing at the end, her expression a mask for outsiders, but her eyes said everything. She wanted to sit with him, but not tonight.
The Great Hall was almost full and lit with candles. The Goblet of Fire had been moved; it was now standing in front of Dumbledore's empty chair at the teachers' table. Fred and George - clean-shaven again - seemed to have taken their disappointment fairly well.
"Hope it's Angelina," said Fred to Harry, Neville, and Hermione as he and George sat down.
"So do I!" said Hermione excitedly. "Well, we'll soon know!"
Harry also noticed that it was not just Barty Crouch Sr. and Ludo Bagman from the ministry, but Madam Bones was also present there. He looked towards Susan, and it took a second, but she also looked at him. It was just a conversation with eyes, but she conveyed that she invited her aunt to witness this and help them with whatever happens. He hadn't even thought of inviting her.
Because of this, Harry hadn't noticed it, but Moody or Crouch Jr. wasn't in a good mood, where he also had to chat with Amelia Bones, the current director and head of DMLE.
It also felt like that the Halloween feast was dragging longer than any feast he had attended. Just like last time. Last time he was excited to know who was going to get selected, and was really happy when it was Cedric's name that came out of the goblet for Hogwarts, but then all hell broke loose, and the goblet also threw out his name out of it. And whatever happened after that, he remembered scarcely. He could see now, the impatient expressions on every face, the fidgeting, and the standing up to see whether Dumbledore had finished eating yet.
It was all a brilliant play, to keep the audience, or students in this case, captivated, excited, on their toes, and whatever general term you can use for this. Dumbledore was a master manipulator with multiple achievements to his name, and keeping just the students excited and ready for his announcement this way made him look more powerful in their eyes, a brilliant ploy to keep his self-importance high, and to play everyone sitting in the hall.
At long last, the golden plates returned to their original spotless state; there was a sharp upswing in the level of noise within the Hall, which died away almost instantly as Dumbledore got to his feet. On either side of him, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime looked as tense and expectant as anyone. Ludo Bagman was beaming and winking at various students. Mr. Crouch, however, looked quite uninterested, almost bored. And Madam Bones looked very attentive. This was the moment where Dumbledore would realise that he hadn't just lost his reins, he had lost full control of Harry.
It went like just as before. "Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," said Dumbledore. "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" - he indicated the door behind the staff table - "where they will be receiving their first instructions."
He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave with it; at once, all the candles except those inside the carved pumpkins were extinguished, plunging them into a state of semidarkness. The Goblet of Fire now shone more brightly than anything in the whole Hall, the sparkling bright, bluey-whiteness of the flames almost painful on the eyes. Everyone watched, waiting. . . . A few people kept checking their watches. . .
"Any second," Lee Jordan whispered, two seats away from Harry
The flames inside the goblet turned suddenly red again. Sparks began to fly from it. Next moment, a tongue of flame shot into the air, a charred piece of parchment fluttered out of it - the whole room gasped. Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment and held it at arm's length, so that he could read it by the light of the flames, which had turned back to blue-white.
"The champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice, "will be Viktor Krum."
"No surprises there!" yelled Ron as a storm of applause and cheering swept the Hall. Harry saw Viktor Krum rise from the Slytherin table and slouch up toward Dumbledore; he turned right, walked along the staff table, and disappeared through the door into the next chamber.
"Bravo, Viktor!" boomed Karkaroff, so loudly that everyone could hear him, even over all the applause. "Knew you had it in you!" The clapping and chatting died down. Now everyone's attention was focused again on the goblet, which, seconds later, turned red once more. A second piece of parchment shot out of it, propelled by the flames.
"The champion for Beauxbatons," said Dumbledore, "is Fleur Delacour!" Fleur stood up and glanced once towards Harry, and then followed the same path as Krum. Hermione held Harry's hand, silent reassurance for what was to come. Beauxbaton's other students were same as before, feeling disappointed, some even cried.
When Fleur Delacour too had vanished into the side chamber, silence fell again, but this time it was a silence so stiff with excitement you could almost taste it. The Hogwarts champion next…
And the Goblet of Fire turned red once more; sparks showered out of it; the tongue of flame shot high into the air, and from its tip Dumbledore pulled the third piece of parchment.
"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"
"No! " said Ron loudly, but nobody heard him except Harry; the uproar from the next table was too great. Every single Hufflepuff had jumped to his or her feet, screaming and stamping, as Cedric made his way past them, grinning broadly, and headed off toward the chamber behind the teachers' table. Indeed, the applause for Cedric went on so long that it was some time before Dumbledore could make himself heard again.
And Harry got ready, for what is to come. As Dumbledore was congratulating Cedric, and sent him away to the chamber, he continued he announcement, "Well, we now have our three champions. 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 ––"
But Dumbledore suddenly stopped speaking, and it was apparent to everybody what had distracted him.
The fire in the goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment. And Harry took a deep breath.
Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at Dumbledore.
And then Dumbledore cleared his throat and read out - "Harry Potter."
Harry cheered and clapped for every champion announced, Victor from Durmstrung, Fleur from Beauxbatons, and Cedric from Hogwarts, and now was the moment of truth. He was alert and ready for what was about to happen next, and he heard it. The goblet throws another piece of parchment, Dumbledore catches it, and then.
"Harry Potter!"
There was no applause. A buzzing, as though of angry bees, was starting to fill the
Hall; some students were standing up to get a better look at Harry as he sat, alert, but not stunned or numb.
In his previous life, when his name was called, he was stunned. Everyone was looking at him, just as they are now, but then, he was actually just a 4th-year Hogwarts student, but right now, he is much older. Hermione squeezed his hand once and then let go.
Harry stood up, he didn't say anything, he let his anger show, not by his facial expression, but by letting his magic loose, students slowly started to feel the cool thrumming of his magic waving off of him, and he took his step towards the table before Dumbledore would ask him to come again.
With every step, he let more of his power roll off, it was like a walk of letting go of the control he had kept so close and tight, except when he was training alone. It was a risk, to be honest, but it was also a perfect bait for Voldemort as well, because Barty Jr. will definitely reveal the whole thing when he reports back.
He was walking between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables. He could feel hundreds and hundreds of eyes upon him, and the buzzing grew louder and louder, alongside the thrum of his magic.
"Well.. . through the door, Harry," said Dumbledore. He wasn't smiling.
But Harry didn't move; he stared at Dumbledore, while his face showed no emotion, and even his eyes had lost the usual twinkle.
"No, Headmaster, I need to clear something first".
He then turned around and faced the other students. Every eye was on him, the students whispering to each other. He hadn't made eye contact with any of his mates, but their eyes were also on him, full of support and love. They have just bonded, but the love wasn't just of this life.
Harry pulled out his wand, raised it over his head, Dumbledore finally realised what Harry was gonna and he wasn't fast enough to stop Harry, and Harry started, "I, Harry James Potter, swear on my magic, that I did not enter my name in the goblet, neither did I ask anyone else to do it." with a blinding light, he sealed his oath and everyone present in the hall was shocked, but that wasn't enough for Harry.
"Expecto atronum" - with a whisper, he called his patronus. What he didn't expect was to see his animagus form come forward as the patronus. With a silent roar, his dragon patronus looked for a threat, but once it didn't find one, he came back to Harry. His spell was so strong, his patronus felt more solid than ever. Harry rubbed his palm over the dragon's snout, and when he touched it, it felt like happiness. he felt the love he had for his soulmates, his love for Sirius, and every loved one.
"You can rest now,"- Harry again whispered, and the patronus dissipated.
While there was a buzz in greathall, now it was silence, if someone had dropped a pin, ithe sound of it touching the ground would have echoed throughout the hall, like that silence and then it was a cacophony of the sound, everyone was shouting and screaming, they were shocked, they hadn't thought, no one had thought, he would swear on his magic and come out with it. The populus really was fickle, one second he could be the boy-who-lived, who vanquished Voldemort, and the next second, the heir of the Slytherin. He actually was, that's a next thought in this.
Albus was shocked as well; he never thought Harry would be able to do this. He didn't even know how Harry came to even know about the oaths. And what was this about the power Harry was releasing? It felt chilling to be the primary recipient of it.
Barty was happy when Potter's name came out of the goblet as his master's plan, but he never could have imagined anything that happened in any of his expectations. He also felt the magic rolling off of his body and took another swig from his flask..
The other professors were equally shocked and were witnessing something really amazing.
Madam Bones went from observing the proceedings with a neutral mask to being shocked when Harry's name also came out of the goblet. Even when she knew this was gonna happen when Harry had shown them his memory, it was still a shocking experience. Her niece had asked her in the morning itself to arrange for her to come with the ministry delegation and the responsible people for the Triwizard tournament, and her insistence now felt very real to her. She was even more shocked when Harry Potter gave the oath and then called on his patronus, and it was a fucking dragon. The positive energy she felt from it was amazing, and the power oozing out of it was more. Not even all the aurors could perform the Patronus charm properly. Most can only produce a mist and even less the corporeal form, and here Harry Potter was showing off with his powerful Patronus.
Finally, Albus Dumbledore came out of his thoughts when Harry cancelled the charm, and his patronus disappeared. He started saying, "Now, Harry, through the door now."
"Not yet, sir," He turned to Madam Bones. "Madam Bones, as I swore in my oath, I haven't entered my name nor did I ask anyone to do it, yet my name came out of the goblet. Could you please look into who could have put my name in the goblet? I formally asked you as the Heir of the House Potter and raised the concern that someone is trying to get me into this tournament to kill the last of House Potter."
Madam Bones took a minute to hear what Harry had said, then replied, "Yes, Heir Potter, I will definitely look into it, and only persons I'm fully confident in will be helping me with"
And after that, without anymore objection or discussion, Harry went through the door to the chamber where the other champions were present. Madam Maxine and Headmaster Karkaroff still had their mouth dropped open. Even Barty Crouch Sr. was shocked and rooted to his place. Dumbledore bid the rest of the students farewell and followed after Harry. The rest of the responsible persons had already left for the chamber.
Chapter 44: Rewrite is upChapter TextHey you all,
Just adding this chapter here to inform you that the rewrite is up, just posted the first chapter,
here is the link:
Chapter 44: Rewrite is upChapter TextHey you all,
Just adding this chapter here to inform you that the rewrite is up, just posted the first chapter,
here is the link:
Only up to 19 chapters on 3-16-26