Chapter 1
Unexpected Assistance
In the green hills of Scotland, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the troubled green eyes of Harry Potter stared blankly into the canopy above his four post bed. He had hoped that he might finally have a normal school year, but his name coming out of the Goblet of Fire naming him the fourth champion of the Tri-Wizard Tournament had smashed those hopes to pieces. Through no fault of his own, Harry now found himself ostracized by most of his classmates while the rest, save one, congratulated him on cheating his way past the cup's defenses. Even his so-called best friend Ron Weasley had refused to believe his claims of innocence. Luckily for Harry, he still had one person he knew he could turn to who would help him as much as she could.
Harry couldn't help but smile thinking about how his bushy-haired best friend Hermione Granger had never left his side since he rescued her from a troll in their first year. This year she had been the only one to believe that he didn't enter himself in the Tournament, and he swore to thank her for her support the first chance he got.
Finally giving up on going back to sleep, Harry grabbed a quick shower before heading off to the kitchens for a quiet breakfast. As the door to the common room swung open, he found himself nearly colliding with the very witch he was hoping to find.
Clutching a plate of bacon and eggs and a glass of pumpkin juice, Hermione gave him a warm smile that made his heart do a back flip. Taking the offered meal with a whispered thanks, Harry made his way over to the couch in front of the fireplace with Hermione taking a seat beside him.
"I figured you would want to avoid the great hall today," she said, and Harry grinned at how well his friend knew him. Her smile quickly dissolved into a look of concern before she continued. "Oh Harry, I'm so afraid. I can't believe they're making you compete in this dreadful tournament! There has to be a way to get you out of having to compete. When you finish eating we'll go to the library and read anything we can find on magical contracts. If there's a way, we'll find it."
"I'm not sure how much good it will do. Nobody seemed too concerned about it last night, not even the headmaster. Even after Moody mentioned that someone probably entered my name in an attempt to hurt me, nobody could tell me anything but that I had no choice but to compete. Snape said something about trying to draw whoever it is out into the open." Harry showed his frustration with a particularly vicious stab of his fork. He continued eating for a few minutes before he noticed that his companion had grown strangely quiet. When he looked up he was shocked at the look of fury building on her face.
"Bait," Hermione ground out in a tense whisper. "They're making you take part in one of the most dangerous tournaments in the wizarding world just so they can use you as bait!" Her voice had continued to increase in volume until she was practically screaming. "Just what the bloody hell are they playing at?" Harry stared at her like she had grown a second head. In four years of friendship he had never heard her curse. He realized that his best friend was quickly working herself into a towering rage. He knew he needed to cool her off before she marched up to the headmaster and hexed his beard off. Thinking quickly, Harry reached out and drew the girl into a tight embrace, whispering soothing words into her ear. Slowly he felt her relax in his arms until she gave a sigh and snaked her arms around his chest, returning the hug.
"I don't think I've ever told you how wonderful you are Hermione. You always stick by me no matter what, and I'm sorry I've never thanked you before for all the times you've been there for me. I promise I'll be a better friend to you in the future." Hermione was now gently crying into his chest, her anger washed away by his heartfelt words.
"Oh Harry, you don't need to thank me. You're my best friend; where else would I be than by your side?" The teens sat together for a while in silence, each taking comfort in the other's presence. Reluctantly, Harry released the embrace and stood, drawing Hermione up with him.
"Come on, let's take a walk. I think we could both use some fresh air." Smiling brightly and nodding, Hermione followed him out of the common room and through the castle, eventually making their way to the Black Lake. Finding a comfy enough rock, the pair sat together and began discussing the preparations Harry needed to make to survive the tournament. As they listed useful spells to study, Harry's thoughts began to stray to their wayward red-headed friend. Once again showing how well she knew him, Hermione answered Harry's unspoken thought.
"Don't worry Harry, he'll come around eventually." Hermione chuckled at his gobsmacked expression. "Honestly Harry, you're not exactly a closed book you know. Not to me anyway." She added the last part in an undertone, but Harry still heard her and grinned to himself. "He just needs some time to get over his jealousy. Things will be back to normal in no time, you'll see." She tried to give him a reassuring smile, but Harry noticed that it didn't quite reach her eyes. Harry decided to think about what that could mean later.
"I don't know Hermione. He's been my friend as long as you have, and yet you're here and he's not. After everything we've been through, I would hope he knows me better than to think I actually entered this tournament myself." Both teens were surprised when a voice behind them spoke.
"Any idiot could see you didn't enter yourself, which explains Weasley's refusal to believe you." Harry and Hermione jerked their heads around to find themselves under the impassive gaze of Daphne Greengrass, the so-called Ice Queen of Slytherin. Looking at her it was easy to see where she picked up the nickname. Long blonde hair cascaded down her back, framing a pretty face with eyes the color of rich sapphires. Her green-trimmed school robes hid a deceptively slender figure which few had seen outside of her sister Astoria and her best friend Tracy Davis. Beginning in her first year she quickly gained a reputation for being nearly unapproachable, even by members of her own house, and rumor had it that she had an impressive knowledge of curses and hexes to enforce it.
"Greengrass," Harry greeted her coolly. "What brings you here?" If Daphne was bothered by his icy tone or the suspicious glare she was receiving from Hermione, she didn't show it.
"I was in the great hall when I suddenly needed some fresh air. Between Malfoy's senseless prattling about Victor Krum and Weasley's complaints about the Boy-Who-Cheated blaring across the hall, it seems they managed to fill the room with hot air." Both Gryffindors had to fight back the smirks they felt at the Slytherin witch's deadpan delivery. Neither one had any cause to dislike the girl, but they were both still wondering why she was talking to them now after having not said a word to them for the last three years. "You know I could never tell what either of you saw in that oaf. The smartest witch of the age and the most powerful student in the school hanging around the boy who does more thinking with his stomach than his brain; it's no wonder he lets his jealousy get the best of him. You two are a tough act to beat." Both teens felt a strange mixture of indignation at the insults directed at their friend and pride at their own compliments. The friends shared a puzzled look, both unsure of how to proceed. Daphne noticed their confusion and decided to redirect it to more pertinent concerns.
"I noticed that you don't wear your Head of House ring, Potter. Is that due to Weasley's jealousy too?" This had the desired effect of bringing the conversation around to where Daphne wanted it.
"What do you mean? What Head of House ring?" A quick glance at Hermione showed him that she was just as lost as he, which led to them both turning their attention to Daphne.
"You are the last living member of the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter, one of the oldest and most influential families in the wizarding world. You should've been notified of your status as Heir to House Potter at age 11, and received your Head of House ring at 14, granting you the title of Lord Potter as well as access to the Potter Family Vaults. This should've been explained to you before you set foot in Hogwarts. If I may ask, who took you to Gringotts for your first visit?" Harry's nervous reply that Hagrid had been the one to take him caused the Slytherin witch to raise a delicate eyebrow, which was more emotion than Harry or Hermione had ever seen from her. "Hagrid? Dumbledore sent the groundskeeper to collect the Scion of House Potter? Someone of your station should've had the Deputy Headmistress at least!"
Professor McGonagall took me," Hermione said. "She answered every question my parents and I could think to ask. She even knew things that aren't in Hogwarts: a History."
"You were lucky. Almost every question I asked had Hagrid telling me that he wasn't the person to answer it. He even forgot to tell me how to get onto Platform 9 ¾!"
"It would appear that someone didn't want you to know of your rightful place in our world," Daphne said. "This would cause a massive public outcry if it reached the press. You might want to keep that in mind Potter, you might be able to use it to your advantage one day. In any case, you should plan a visit to Gringotts at your earliest convenience. If the goblins give you any trouble, try telling them that by allowing your participation in the Tri-Wizard Tournament, both Hogwarts and the Ministry recognize you as being of-age and therefore entitled to your inheritance. I doubt they will need much convincing, however."
"You seem to have given this a lot of thought," Harry said after a moment. "Not that I don't appreciate any help I can get at the moment, but why are you telling me all this? What's in it for you?" The slight upturn of the corners of Daphne's mouth told him that she was impressed that he had asked that question.
"I admit that my speaking to you is not entirely altruistic. I was actually asked to approach you on behalf of my father, Lord Cyrus Greengrass. He suggested that by helping you, you may be more inclined to return the favor as they say. My father is a shrewd businessman; he realizes that an alliance with House Potter would be quite beneficial. Nothing is asked or expected of you now, of course. I was asked to simply open the door." Even though his hackles rose at the thought of being manipulated for financial gain, after some thought Harry realized that Daphne had been completely up front with her father's request. He decided to ignore his mistrust of Slytherin House and give her the benefit of the doubt, for now.
"Thanks for being honest with me. I have to admit that until now I never had much reason to trust anyone in Slytherin. Malfoy made sure of that first year." Daphne made a sour face at the mention of the blonde ponce.
"That's no surprise. Draco and his goons seem to pride themselves on making the rest of the school hate our house. In fact, most of the students in Slytherin can't stand him. The way he talks about riding his father's coattails as if it's the greatest accomplishment of the century makes one wonder how he wound up in the house of the cunning." Both Gryffindors' opinions of the Slytherin witch rose dramatically at her jibe against Malfoy. Looking at his watch, Harry realized that they had been there for almost three hours and had deviated widely from their original purpose.
"Thanks for the heads up Greengr… Daphne. I'll stop by Gringotts during Christmas and ask about this lordship."
"Why wait so long? Next weekend is a Hogmseade weekend; you could just floo there from the Three Broomsticks. From what I hear neither one of you are strangers to a little rule breaking." Harry and Hermione each looked away sporting sheepish grins.
"I guess that would be possible," Harry said, "although I'll probably need from now till Christmas to learn enough goblin customs to not accidentally kick off the next goblin-wizard war. Besides, I still have the first task of the Tournament to survive."
"I believe I can be of some help with both of those," Daphne said. "This time, however, the offer is strictly personal. You see you're a bit of an enigma, Harry Potter, and I would like to get to know you better. From what I can tell there's much more to the Boy-Who-Lived than most people get to see, and that intrigues me. I can tell that you don't trust others easily, not that I blame you. I believe we both have felt the sting of betrayal from those we called friends." Harry's dark mood threatened to return at the mention of Ron's recent actions, so Daphne quickly pressed on. "Anyway, I would be willing to tutor you in goblin etiquette as well as wizarding customs befitting a Lord and Head of an Ancient and Noble House, as well as help you train for the Tri-Wizard Tournament. All I ask in return is the chance to prove that not everyone who wears the silver and green is a pureblood bigot like Malfoy. So, what do you say?" Daphne waited patiently while Harry thought it over.
"Well, the truth is I don't know the first thing about goblin or wizard customs, and like I said before I'll take all the help I can get at this point. Making a new friend in the process doesn't sound like a bad idea either." At his mention of friendship, Daphne's stoic expression relaxed, and a genuine smile lit up her face.
"I think I would like that… Harry." Daphne turned to Hermione. "What do you think about all of this?" Hermione was shocked to be asked her opinion.
"I…uh…well, yes, I mean anything that helps Harry is great. If he trusts you, then I trust you. I hope the offer of friendship extends to me as well." The return of Daphne's smile eased the other girl's sudden attack of insecurity.
"Of course it does! It would be nice to have another girl to talk to sometimes besides Tracy and Astoria. Besides, I always knew that the two of you come as a package deal, so I'm glad that you're willing to give me a chance, Hermione." Noticing the time, Daphne rose and slipped smoothly back into her Ice Queen persona. After seeing what they figured to be the real Daphne, Harry and Hermione realized that what they were now seeing was a defense mechanism she used to keep others from getting too close. They each felt privileged to have been allowed to see the girl behind the mask, and they both liked what they saw.
"Now that our business is concluded," the Ice Queen said, "I think it would be best to avoid further contact in public. I fear that some members of our houses would not take kindly to our interacting in a social setting. If it would be acceptable to you, I shall meet you in the library every evening after dinner to further discuss our mutual business. Good day Potter, Granger." At the others' mock-stern nods, Daphne took her leave. Neither Harry nor Hermione missed the glint of amusement in Daphne's blue eyes.
The next week passed in a blur for the trio. Daphne proved to be nearly as intelligent as Hermione and the two of them became fast friends. They quickly fell into a routine. After dinner, they would meet in the library where a few quick privacy spells would let them work undisturbed. While Daphne tutored Harry on goblin customs and etiquette, Hermione would research spells for his use in the tournament. After an hour or two the trio would move to an empty classroom that Professor McGonagall had set aside for Harry's use and practice the new spells Hermione had found. Daphne would often teach spells from her own repertoire, and while some were somewhat darker than what was normally learned at Hogwarts, Harry and Hermione both recognized their usefulness in the tournament. Anytime Harry and Hermione saw Daphne in class or in the hallways, they didn't acknowledge each other except for the smallest of nods. While all three of them hated hiding their new friendship, they each knew the deception was necessary. The Gryffindor pair found themselves looking forward to their evening study sessions more and more, and by the end of the week they were barely giving Ronald Weasley a second thought.
Saturday morning found Harry and Hermione slowly making their way to Hogsmeade in the November sunshine. Upon entering the Three Broomsticks they quickly made their way over to Daphne, who greeted them with a curt nod. Moving to a dark corner, Harry made sure there was nobody watching them before throwing his invisibility cloak over all three of them. With a quick pinch of powder and a whispered word the three teens were off to Gringotts completely unnoticed.
Picking himself up off the polished stone floor, Harry stowed his cloak and straightened his robes before striding confidently up to a goblin teller. When the goblin looked up, Harry surprised him by giving a low bow.
"Greetings, Master Goblin. May your vaults overflow and your enemies cower at your feet." Harry finished his greeting with a toothless smile as Daphne had instructed him.
"Greetings to you as well, young wizard. May your gold flow like a river and your enemies flee before you. What can I do for you today?"
"Master Goblin, my name is Harry Potter. Through no fault of the bank I was not made aware of my Head of House status at the appropriate time. I have come today to hear of my inheritance and take my place as Head of House Potter."
"I would be glad to be of assistance Lord Potter. Before we begin, I will require a few drops of blood to verify your identity." Taking the ornate dagger from the teller, Harry sliced his thumb and allowed a few drops of blood to fall into a stone bowl as indicated by the goblin. With a wave of the goblin's hand the cut healed, and Harry watched as his blood mixed with the liquid in the bowl for a few moments before glowing green. The goblin nodded and stepped off his stool, indicating for Harry to follow him. After receiving nods and reassuring smiles from the girls, Harry followed the goblin through an ornate stone door and further into the bank. He was led into a richly decorated office, surrounded on three walls by tall bookshelves containing hundreds of priceless tomes and artifacts. The room was dominated by a large wooden desk in the center, with two comfortable looking chairs in front of it. Seated behind the desk was a particularly fierce looking goblin who was scribbling furiously on a piece of parchment. Bowing to the teller as he took his leave, Harry stood patiently and waited to be acknowledged. After a few moments, the goblin put down his quill and looked up at Harry with a piercing gaze.
"Thank you for waiting Lord Potter. How may I be of service?" As he did with the teller, Harry gave the goblin a deep bow.
"Greetings Master Goblin, may your gold multiply and your enemies tremble at your name. I wish to be informed of my inheritance and to take up the mantle of Head of House Potter." The goblin smiled at Harry's formal greeting.
"Well met, Lord Potter. May your fortune be borne on the blood of your enemies. I believe I can be of assistance." Opening a drawer on his massive desk, the goblin withdrew a portfolio of parchment and a small wooden box. The box was presented to Harry, who opened it to reveal two beautiful signet rings. The Potter ring featured a wide golden band set with a large ruby in the center, flanked on either side by two intricately crafted griffons. The other ring, which Harry didn't recognize, was a silver band containing a stone Harry guessed to be onyx. The black stone, held in the jaws of a silver Grim, seemed to absorb the light around it, giving it the illusion of a deep pool of ink. Noting his confusion, the goblin spoke.
"Allow me to explain the second ring. A few months ago we received a visit from someone with a most unusual set of circumstances. It seems that this man had spent the last twelve years in Azkaban for a crime he did not commit." Harry's eyes widened as he realized who the goblin was speaking about. "When we looked further into the matter, we discovered that he had, in fact, never received a trial. His name was Sirius Black, your godfather." Harry leaned forward in his chair, listening intently. "Lord Black approached us about setting up a will naming you his sole heir. It seems that his time in Azkaban left him unable to bear children. He knew that when word of his condition was made public, the laws of family succession would consider him effectively deceased, passing control of the Black family to the nearest male blood relative. I believe you may have knowledge of one Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Malfoy nee Black, Lord Black's cousin." Harry nodded grimly. "By naming you his heir, he prevented the family fortune from falling into… less than favorable hands. As you are eligible to take your place as Lord Potter, you may therefore accept the title of Lord Black, granting you the title of Lord Harry James Potter-Black, head of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Houses of Potter and Black. You will have access to the Potter and Black family vaults as well as any properties owned by both families. Of course, in order to continue both family lines you must take a wife for each line. Considering the power and wealth commanded by someone at the head of two such influential families, I doubt that finding two witches willing to enter such an arrangement will be a problem." The goblin smirked in amusement at Harry's suddenly red face. He allowed the boy to fidget uncomfortably for a few moments more before continuing. "Not to worry my Lord, such matters are better handled in a few years, and there is no rush. I was merely informing you as a courtesy. Now, to accept your lordships, simply place the rings on your finger and the family magic of the rings will do the rest." With a deep breath and a resolute nod to the goblin, Harry picked up the Potter family ring and slid it onto the ring finger of his right hand. With a flash of magic, the ring automatically resized to fit snugly on his finger. As the Black family ring joined the Potter ring on his finger, it too resized itself as the flash of magic signified Harry's acceptance as the new Lord Black. As Harry watched with wide eyes, the rings seemed to melt together until only the Potter ring was showing.
"The rings are charmed to become invisible on command, as well as to show either ring with just a thought. Congratulations, Lord Potter-Black. Now, would you like to review your holdings?" Tearing his eyes away from his new rings, which were cycling back and forth between the two to Harry's great amusement, it took a moment before Harry processed the goblin's question.
"Actually I have a question if I may?" At the goblin's nod, Harry continued. "Who was responsible for notifying me of my inheritance?"
"That would be your magical guardian, one Albus Dumbledore." Harry added this to his growing list of complaints against the headmaster to be brought up later.
"Thank you Master Goblin. May I visit the Potter Family Vault?" With a nod, the goblin led him through the bank to the carts which led to the vaults. After a much longer ride than he remembered from his first visit, the cart stopped in front of a large door deep under the bank.
"Place your family ring in the door to open it," the goblin said, indicating a small indentation in the center of the door. "Take as much time as you need. I will wait here until you are finished." After thanking the goblin, Harry placed his ring in the hole. He shuddered as he felt a wave of powerful magic pass over him as if searching for something. As the magic faded, the huge door gave a massive jerk before swinging outward slowly. Harry's eyes were as wide as saucers as he gaped at the contents of his new vault.
It was almost the size of the great hall at Hogwarts. Piles of galleons, sickles, and knuts were stacked almost to the ceiling, but Harry only had eyes for the other treasures lining the walls. Much like the goblin's office in the bank above, the Potter Family Vault contained thousands of books on towering shelves along the walls. Harry chuckled, imagining Hermione's reaction to seeing a magical library that was easily three times the size of the one at Hogwarts. Knowing that his time here was limited, Harry began scanning the nearest shelf for anything that looked useful. Taking a few books on defense and potions, Harry noticed a couple of leather bound notebooks that caught his eye. Tears sprang to his eyes as he read the covers of the personal journals of James and Lily Potter. Gently placing the precious tomes on top of his pile, Harry was turning to leave when another slim volume made him pause. The title, Portkeys: Their Creation and Use, piqued his interest. Harry remembered the portkey trip he and his friends took to get to the Quidditch World Cup that summer and thought about how useful it might be to know how to make one. Adding the book to the ones he was taking with him, he left the vault and spent the cart ride to the surface going over the events of the last few hours in his mind. After withdrawing a few hundred galleons from his vault, Harry and the girls donned the invisibility cloak and flooed back to the Three Broomsticks, where they ordered lunch and three butterbeers before taking a table in an out of the way corner. Throwing up their usual privacy charms, the girls sat with baited breath as Harry recounted his experience at the bank. The girls were incensed upon hearing that it was Dumbledore who had kept his inheritance a secret from him. Daphne's eyebrows disappeared into her hairline when Harry showed them his Black Family ring and told her the story of his innocent godfather, and Hermione had to be restrained from dragging Harry back to Gringotts to get lost in the Potter library. Both girls were impressed with Harry's book choices, and neither of them missed the longing glances he kept giving the books written by his parents.
The three friends spent the rest of the afternoon talking and laughing, each wishing they were free to do so during the week at Hogwarts. Harry and Hermione found that behind the Ice Queen was a charming girl with a quick wit and a mind to match. She could easily hold a conversation about spell theory with Hermione or talk Quidditch with Harry, sometimes doing both simultaneously. She told them that she had explained their situation to her friend Tracy and her younger sister Astoria, who was a first-year in Slytherin, and that both girls had been very supportive of their newfound friendship. The Gryffindors were relieved that Daphne's friends had been accepting of the situation, but didn't hold out much hope of finding the same acceptance in their own house. Their friendship with Daphne meant more to them than the acceptance of their fickle peers however, so they didn't dwell too long on it. Much sooner than any of them liked, it was time to head back to the castle. Exchanging friendly hugs and goodbyes, Harry and Hermione waited five minutes after Daphne left before making their way to Hogwarts arm in arm. Daphne had advised Harry to keep their trip to Gringotts and his lordships a secret for as long as possible, but all three couldn't help but feel excited about the results of their venture. Harry was especially optimistic about his chances of surviving the tournament, as he now had the castle's two smartest witches helping him prepare. Hermione noticed the smile on Harry's face and tightened her grip on his arm, secretly thrilled that it had been she and Daphne that had put it there.
Chapter 2
Monday and Tuesday passed as normal for the trio, but Wednesday morning saw Harry and Hermione meeting a nervous looking Daphne in an empty classroom after she had slipped them a note during breakfast. After they assured her that nobody had seen them enter, Daphne explained.
"I think you both need to see this," she said as she pulled a button from the pocket of her robes. It featured a picture of a smiling Cedric Diggory with the words "Support Cedric Diggory – the REAL Hogwarts Champion!" flashing around the perimeter.
"I don't understand, Daph," Harry said. "We all know that Cedric actually is the only real Hogwarts Champion. Why would we be upset about this?" Daphne simply raised a delicate eyebrow and tapped the button with her wand. The image swirled and was replaced with a picture of Harry with the words "Potter Stinks!" in bright red letters across his forehead.
"I'll give you three guesses as to whose clever idea this is," Daphne said, "but I bet you'll only need one."
"Malfoy," Harry hissed, his hands fisted at his sides.
"Right in one!" Daphne mock cheered. "He's been passing them out all morning. He's already given one to every student in Slytherin and quite a few from the other houses, even some in yours. He plans on having everyone wear them during lunch today as, and I quote, 'a surprise for old scarhead.' He seems quite proud of himself." By now Harry was seeing red. As he made his way to the door, intent on hexing himself a ferret, he was stopped by two pairs of feminine hands gently grabbing his shoulders.
"Harry, stop," Hermione pleaded gently. "You know attacking him will only end badly for you. Sure, you may enjoy cursing the git, but think of the punishment Snape is bound to heap on you if you do. Besides, if you go after him now, Malfoy will know that someone tipped you off about the buttons, and that could mean trouble for Daphne." The Slytherin witch gave Hermione a grateful smile, before turning a sympathetic gaze towards Harry.
"She's right, Harry. This is exactly the reaction Malfoy expects from you, to go charging like a lion without considering the consequences. It's become a game of sorts between Snape and Malfoy actually, to see which one can push your buttons the worst. They're nothing but a couple of bullies, Harry, and by going after them directly you play right into their hands." She could see that Harry understood what the girls were saying, but the helplessness she saw in his brilliant green eyes broke her heart. Gently placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, she shared a look with Hermione pleading with the other girl to back her up. Seeing Hermione's accepting nod, she turned back to the dejected boy between them.
"You can fight back, you know. The trick is to not give them the reaction they expect. By doing the unexpected, you play their game with your rules, and that's how you win." Seeing the questioning looks on both Gryffindors' faces, Daphne gave them a sly grin. "How do you feel about releasing your inner Slytherin, Harry?" Hermione's face immediately broke in to a grin to match Daphne's, with Harry's just a few seconds behind her.
"Did I ever tell you that the Sorting Hat actually wanted to put me in Slytherin?" Enjoying the shocked looks on both girls' faces, Harry drew out the silence for a few moments before explaining. "It's true! In fact, if Malfoy hadn't been such an arse when I first met him, I may have let it!"
"You mean to tell me that I missed out on knowing you for three years because of that pompous arsehole?" Harry blushed and nodded. "Oh, that does it. This is personal now!" Daphne's grin was predatory, making her friends secretly vow never to get on her bad side.
"Well you know I'm in," Hermione added. "That ponce has been a pain in my backside for as long as I've known him. I'd love to see Harry knock him down a peg." Sporting a look of mischief that would make the Marauders proud, Harry nodded once and gave Daphne his full attention.
"Teach me."
-ooOoo-
As Harry and Hermione sat in their usual spots at the Gryffindor table during lunch, they noticed the noise in the unusually packed great hall changed from the normal lunchtime chatter to a mixture of excited whispering and quiet snickering. This was their cue that Draco Malfoy was making his way over for a visit. Keeping his attention firmly on the plate in front of him and quickly going over Daphne's lesson from that morning in his head, Harry showed no reaction when Malfoy's drawling voice signaled to the great hall that the show was starting.
"Well Scarhead, are you ready to show everyone just how big of a phony you are? I bet you don't even show up for the first task. You'll probably be too busy hiding under your bed trying not to wet yourself!" Malfoy's remarks were met with quite a few snickers and guffaws, but most of the Hogwarts students were holding their breath, eagerly anticipating the explosion they all knew was coming. To their great surprise, both Harry and Hermione continued eating calmly and conversing quietly together, not giving Malfoy or his goons so much as a glance. Nonplussed, Malfoy pressed on.
"What's the matter, Potter? Can't hear me over the know-it-all's incessant nagging? You think maybe if you give her enough attention she'll let you shag her? Lord knows you'd be the only one that would want to!" Sharp breaths were taken around the hall, and those students sitting closest to the pair instinctively moved back, not wanting to be caught by any stray spells which would surely be flying any second now. The tense silence dragged on as neither Harry nor Hermione showed any sign of having even heard Malfoy's taunting. Deciding to go to his main attack, Draco tried again.
"What do you think of the buttons, Potter? I've only had them since this morning and I've already run out! It seems not everyone is as taken with you as you would have us believe!" At this point Harry finally raised his head, casting a disinterested glance around the hall. He saw buttons on the robes of everyone at the Slytherin table, as well as most of the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws, and even a few Gryffindors. More interesting to Harry were the reactions, or rather the lack thereof, of the people sitting at the head table to the confrontation occurring in the middle of the hall. Professor McGonagall looked murderous, but judging by her glances between Malfoy and Dumbledore she had been instructed by the headmaster not to interfere. The man himself looked on with his customary twinkling eyes as if watching a marionette show in the park. Flitwick and Sprout looked concerned, and Harry noticed the charms professor's hand twitching for his wand. The look on professor Snape's face was not one that most people thought the dour potions master was capable of: undisguised glee. Harry smiled to himself at the dark fury etched on Hagrid's features as he struggled to remain seated. Finally turning to Malfoy's smirking face, Harry gave a bored shrug before returning to his meal. By now people were beginning to wonder who the imposter at the Gryffindor table was and what they had done with Harry Potter. Where was the temper, the screaming, the punches thrown or the curses cast? Since when did Potter have such control over his emotions? And why was Granger not jumping to his defense as usual? Clearly this was not the same Harry Potter and Hermione Granger that everyone was used to, and many were beginning to wonder just what had Malfoy gotten himself into. Draco himself, embarrassed that his plan to rattle Potter in front of such a large audience had failed so completely, was about to find out just how different Harry Potter really was. As Harry laughed at a comment made by Hermione, Draco's temper finally exploded.
"How dare you sit there and ignore me, you pathetic half-blood! You and your filthy mudblood whore are a disgrace to proper wizarding society and should be banished from this school, along with all the worthless muggle-lovers and blood-traitors! You're pathetic, Potter. When my father hears of this he'll make sure that you're both tossed out of here quicker than you can say 'pureblood.' Then it won't be long before you're both found dead in a ditch somewhere, just like dear mummy and daddy!" By now it was clear to everyone that something had gone terribly wrong. Making fun of a cheater was one thing, but publicly insulting the son of two war heroes of the wizarding world, who happened to be a war hero himself, and in front of an international audience, was something entirely different. Many were rethinking their decision to take part in Malfoy's little button game, but everyone was too shocked by what they were hearing to do anything more than stare open-mouthed at the vitriol spewing from the mouth of the blonde buffoon.
Harry had been pleasantly surprised by how easy he had found it to remain calm throughout Malfoy's verbal assault. After Daphne had explained to them the essentials of dealing with his abuse, it had been easy for them both to get the better of him by not giving him the reaction he wanted. She had explained that by ignoring him completely, it forced him to try more and more extreme measures to get a rise out of them, inevitably drawing more negative attention than he cared for. At some point he would either back off completely due to embarrassment – or escalate to rage-induced violence. Daphne had been adamant that should he attack them, they should only do what was necessary to end the fight while causing as little actual harm to the git as possible. While neither found that to be the ideal response, they both saw the logic in maintaining the high road throughout the confrontation. That being said, neither one of them was stupid. While they had been calmly weathering the verbal assault of the junior Death Eater, they had each discreetly drawn their wands and held them hidden under the table, while keeping alert for the first sign of an attack that they knew by now was coming. They didn't have to wait much longer as the sight of Neville's eyes widening from across the table alerted them to the moment they'd been waiting for. The curse was still leaving Malfoy's lips as Harry spun in his seat, his shield halting the spell fired from a few feet away. Quicker than anyone could follow three surprised Slytherins found themselves wandless, silenced, and petrified on the floor of the great hall, surrounded by the shocked expressions of their classmates and under the steady wands of an angry pair of Gryffindors. The resulting silence was broken by a bellow from the head table.
"One hundred fifty points from Gryffindor and a week's worth of detention to both of you for this outrageous display! Mr. Potter, Ms. Granger, let's see if scraping cauldron bottoms for a few hours a night has any effect on your total disregard for school rules! If it were up to me you'd both be expelled and halfway to London by nightfall!" When neither student moved to acknowledge him, the potions master was livid. "Well? Do either of you two dimwitted fools have anything to say for yourselves?" Harry and Hermione both turned calm expressions to the fuming professor.
"No, sir," said Harry, before he and Hermione quietly collected their bags and made to leave the hall. Smirking, Snape delivered his customary parting blow.
"I didn't think so. Maybe you're not as arrogant as your father after all, Potter." Snape's smirk grew into a wide grin as Harry stopped and turned to face him.
"I'm afraid you misunderstood me, professor. What I meant was that Hermione and I refuse to serve any detentions with you for what happened here today. We were clearly acting in self defense, and as you can see, apart from some dust on their robes no students were harmed at all during the altercation. In fact, if anyone should be serving detentions, it's these three." Harry nudged the petrified Crabbe with his foot. "They're the only ones that actually broke any rules."
At this point Voldemort could've waltzed through the doors of the great hall singing show tunes in a leopard print leotard and nobody would've noticed. Even the normally unflappable headmaster was agape at the two students' audacity at publicly defying the nastiest professor in England. On the other hand, Professor McGonagall looked like Christmas had come early. She was elated that someone had finally stood up to the hated potions master, and especially glad that it had been two of her very own lions to have done it. Noticing said potions master quickly gathering steam for a record-breaking explosion, she decided that it was finally time for this spectacle to end, Dumbledore be damned.
"Quite right you are, Mr. Potter. I believe that it's quite obvious to everyone present just who the guilty parties are. I hereby return one hundred fifty points to Gryffindor and neither of you will be serving any detentions for your actions here today. I further award you each seventy-five points for your impressive restraint in the face of such disgusting behavior. Let it be known here and now that any further use of that dreadful slur against muggleborns will result in detention and loss of house points! This school prides itself on being a place where children can come and learn magic safely regardless of their origins, be they magical or muggle." Here she turned to address the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang specifically. "I would also like to apologize to all of you for Mr. Malfoy's abhorrent behavior today. Let me assure you that he most definitely does not in any way represent the school or its students with the garbage you heard from his mouth. He and I will be having a serious discussion very soon with regards to what is and is not acceptable conduct at this school. Now then, I believe we have had quite enough entertainment for today. all of you kindly finish eating and make your way to your next class. Thank you." As the students began making their way out of the hall, Snape and McGonagall were engaged in a silent battle of wills across the head table. After a few moments of furious glaring, Snape gave a great huff and stormed out of the hall, nearly knocking over any student unlucky enough to be in his path. Looking quite satisfied, McGonagall gave the headmaster a smug look before joining Harry and Hermione at the Gryffindor table. She released the three attackers and escorted them from the hall as other students came up to say a few words to their new heroes. Draco glanced back into the hall and thought he saw Harry and Hermione talking to Daphne Greengrass, but he couldn't be sure before McGonagall whisked him off to her office for the conversation she had mentioned.
Dumbledore was too deep in thought to notice any of this byplay however. His mind was in turmoil over the unusual actions of Harry Potter and Hermione Granger just a few minutes ago. He, like everyone else that knew them, had been expecting the situation to escalate quickly as soon as Mr. Malfoy began his verbal assault. Knowing the boy as Albus did, he was mildly surprised at Harry's lack of reaction to the personal insults, but was downright shocked that he didn't immediately jump to the defense of Ms. Granger. Ms. Granger's own lack of response to anything said to or about her led the headmaster to believe that the two had been prepared for the confrontation ahead of time. He wondered if they had been coached on how to deal with Mr. Malfoy and Professor Snape, since the manner in which they had handled the situation seemed much too…Slytherin, for them to have come up with it on their own. Then again, as each year seemed to demonstrate, Harry Potter was nothing if not full of surprises.
Chapter 3
A few days before the first task of the tournament, Hermione was sitting alone in the common room waiting for Harry to return from his late night visit to Hagrid's. She had a book of advanced transfiguration open on her lap in front of her, but she had stopped reading it an hour ago and was instead staring into the fire, allowing her mind to wander over the events of the past few months. Like Harry, she had hoped for a nice, calm, uneventful school year, but it seems that being the best friend of the Boy-Who-Lived has its price. She couldn't help but feel sorry for Harry, knowing that he never asked for any of the misfortunes that he seemed to find himself at the center of. The troll, the Philosopher's Stone and Quirrel, the Heir of Slytherin and the basilisk, and now this bloody tournament; any one of those was more than most wizards ever face in their lifetime, and Harry had gone through it all and lived to tell the tale. Hermione felt a swell of pride knowing that it had largely been due to her help that Harry had come through all those adventures, and she was happy to be by his side for this one. It had hurt them both when Ron decided to be a jealous prat rather than a supportive best friend, but then Daphne had stepped in to fill the void. Hermione couldn't help but think that the 'gold and silver trio' as she thought of them was stronger now than it ever had been with Ron. She secretly hoped that, should Harry forgive him, Ron would be mature enough to allow them to remain friends with Daphne. Hermione found that having another girl around to talk to was a welcome change from chess and Quidditch, and thinking about how close the two of them had become gave her a warm feeling she couldn't quite describe.
She was roused from her thoughts by a badly shaken Harry stepping through the portrait hole. She was at his side in an instant, gently taking his hand and leading him to their usual spot on the couch in front of the fire. As soon as they sat down, Hermione was shocked to find herself locked in the embrace of the raven-haired boy, who was clinging to her for dear life. All she could do was to wrap her arms around him and hold him until he finally calmed down enough to speak. She knew that whatever he had seen that had rattled him this badly, she probably wasn't going to like it. After a few minutes, she felt Harry relax his arms and pull back enough for them to be face to face, but not enough to completely break contact. The first word out of his mouth when he spoke sent chills down her spine.
"Dragons," he croaked. "The first task is dragons. There are four of them, one for each champion. Ron's brother Charlie is with the team that brought them in from Romania. They expect us to fight bloody dragons!" Hermione knew that the look of shock and horror etched into Harry's features must be reflected in her own, but she was determined to be strong for him. Gently taking his hands in her own, she took a few breaths to steady her voice before speaking.
"Harry, listen to me. In my research about the Tri-Wizard Tournament in the past, I noticed that the tasks follow a pattern. The first task usually involves getting past a dangerous magical animal to retrieve something that contains a clue to the second task. I don't think you have to fight the dragon, just distract it long enough to go get whatever it's guarding. That shouldn't be too hard, don't you think?" Hermione could see that Harry was processing what she had told him. She smiled faintly as she watched some color return to his face.
"What are the other two tasks?" he asked. Hermione furrowed her head in thought.
"Well, the second task usually involves rescuing something of great personal value from a dangerous area, like a lake or a jungle, and the third task is almost always a maze filled with traps, with the Tri-Wizard Cup at its center. So, the second task will probably involve swimming in the lake, but I'm not sure what they'll do for the third task. Whatever it is though, you know that Daphne and I will be right there helping you train for it."
"I know you will Hermione, and thank you. If I didn't have you and Daph helping me with this I think I'd go spare. Hell, that still might happen, but I feel much better about it knowing that I've got the two smartest witches in the castle by my side." Hermione smiled and blushed prettily at Harry's compliment, and he shot her a sly grin. "Of course, it helps that they're very easy on the eyes, too." Harry found himself wondering just how far Hermione's blush reached before shaking off that train of thought. Hermione decided that a little turnabout was in order.
"Be careful Harry. You keep going around saying things like that and you might find yourself dragged into a broom closet when you least expect it." Neither teen voiced their thoughts that that didn't sound like a bad thing at all. Seeing that her teasing had the desired effect of leaving Harry beet red and stammering, Hermione took pity on the boy and changed the subject.
"OK. Now that we know what the task is, we can work on ways for you to get past the dragon in one piece. We can read up on dragons and ways to get around them, as well as the summoning charm. It would be really easy to focus so much on the dragon that you overlook the simplest solution, which would be summoning the object to you. In the event that they've prepared for that, you should have at least three backup plans in place. I'm sure Daphne will have something interesting to say about this."
The next night in the library, it was only a quick silencing ward by Hermione that kept the entire castle from hearing just what interesting things their friend had to say.
"Bloody bollocking shite! A Dragon! They expect you to get past a dragon, and a nesting mother at that! Oh, if I ever get my wand on the person that got you into this bloody tournament they'll be begging to be fed to a dragon before I'm through with them! The same goes for those idiots Dumbledore and Crouch for making you compete in this bloody fiasco! What the hell are they thinking?" As Hermione moved to help calm Daphne down, Harry ran his hand through his messy hair and sighed.
"I basically asked the same thing when my name came out of the goblet and they told me I had to compete. Moody, Snape and Dumbledore all agree that whoever entered my name wasn't doing me a favor, but they decided to let it go and see if my competing somehow draws the person out. The fact that I could die in any number of gruesome and painful ways was never discussed." By now the Slytherin witch had recovered from her earlier outburst and was staring at Harry with an intensity that almost made him uncomfortable.
"Harry," she began slowly, "what exactly is your goal for this tournament?"
"Daph, my only goal for this bloody tournament is to be alive and kicking at the end of it. I couldn't care less about the money or the eternal glory, and as far as school pride is concerned, Cedric has that covered. I'd much rather be in the stands cheering him on than facing a hacked off mother dragon any day. Why do you ask?" Ignoring the question, Daphne continued.
"What if you were forced to do something…unpleasant to survive, would you do it?"
"I don't know, I suppose it depends on what unpleasant thing you're talking about. I mean if you're about to tell me that I have to snog Filch or something then you can forget it, because nothing would be worse than that!" Harry chuckled nervously at his own joke, but stopped quickly when it was clear that the girls weren't laughing. "Alright Daph, you're starting to scare me. Just what are you getting at?"
"Alright, before I answer that, I want you both to promise me that you will stay and hear me out before making any decisions. I'm not sure what you'll think of me after I tell you this, but I really hope that I don't regret it." Seeing nods of understanding from each of them, Daphne continued." Ok. First of all, you need a little background. As you know, I'm the eldest daughter of House Greengrass, and even though I'm a girl, by wizarding law I'm still next in line to gain control of my family's assets as I don't have any brothers to carry on the family name. Now, this makes me a target for people wishing to kidnap me for ransom against my father, who would do anything to see my safe return. With this threat in mind, my father made sure that I was taught what I needed to know to escape such a situation by any means necessary. This included training in quite a few so-called 'dark' curses – including the Unforgivables." Flinching at the startled gasps from her two friends, Daphne's voice dropped to barely above a whisper. "Before you ask, no, I've never killed anyone with the Killing Curse, but I have cast it before, as well as Crucio and Imperio. My father taught them to me using practice dummies and explained to me that in situations like I mentioned before, nothing was unforgivable. You see, if I was to be captured, my captors would not kill me. In fact, they would make sure that I remained alive for as long as possible to draw out a possible concession from my father, taking years if necessary. Their reasoning is that, should something happen to my father, as long as I'm alive the family business could not continue and would fail. It couldn't be passed to Astoria as long as I still lived, so by keeping me hostage the kidnapper would effectively keep the family business hostage too. Of course, that wouldn't stop them from…using me, as long as I was kept alive. Can you understand the necessity for being able to kill to avoid such a hell?"
Harry and Hermione could feel their hearts breaking as Daphne bared her greatest fear to them. As she burst into shuddering sobs, neither teen hesitated for an instant before jumping up and wrapping her in a tight embrace. They each clung to the others for dear life as the contemplated the horrifying realities of the scenario Daphne had just described. After a long while, her sobbing gave way to watery sniffles and the Gryffindors each pulled a chair over to sit next to Daphne, each taking one of her hands in a show of solidarity. Drawing strength from the knowledge that her two friends didn't think her dark for knowing those awful curses, Daphne turned to Harry.
"Harry, the reason I bring this up…is because I think it would be a good idea for you to learn how to cast the Unforgivables, or at least Imperio and Avada Kedavra. They're only illegal if used on another human, and the Killing Curse is the only way you could stop an adult dragon if got hold of you. Harry, I'm scared to death for you, and it would kill me to see you hurt or killed in this tournament and know that there was something more I could've shown you to save your life. You mean too much to me to take the chance on you not being there to hug me after the task is over. I know it's a lot for me to ask of you, but please, consider it." Harry could see the pleading in her eyes, and he knew that her only thought was making sure he survived this tournament. He had seen the same look in Hermione's eyes the night before, and it made his heart swell with joy that these two beautiful witches cared so much about him. With a squeeze of the hand and a reassuring smile, Harry set out to ease both girls' minds.
"Daph, with you and Hermione helping me I doubt very much that it will come to that. However, if it would ease your mind for me to be able to cast them, even if it's only at a practice dummy, then I'll do it. My only question is where can we go to practice Unforgivables and not get caught?" At this point the three teens jumped in surprise as a familiar house elf popped into their midst.
"Master Harry Potter and his miss Mione and miss Daphne be's needing a place to practice spells and not be found?" Harry nodded dumbly. Dobby was bouncing on his feet in his excitement to be helping Harry. "You can use the Come-and-Go room! It be's on the seventh floor, across from the painting of the dancing trolls! Just walk past the wall three times and be thinking of the room you want and the room will appear! It be's powerful old magic, very useful for Master Harry Potter!"
"Dobby, why are you calling Harry 'master'? It's not as if you're…" Dobby's ears drooping guiltily had a very angry Hermione whirling on a very confused Harry while a very amused Daphne looked on. "Harry James Potter! How dare you own a house elf? You free him from Malfoy only to go and enslave him again! How could you?" She was taking a breath to continue her tirade when Harry interrupted her.
"Hold on, slow down Hermione! I have no idea what you're talking about! What do you mean I enslaved him?" Seeing that Hermione was too upset to answer him, Harry turned to the nervous elf. "Care to explain what she's going on about?"
"When Master Harry Potter be's freeing Dobby from the bad masters, Dobby is bonding himself to Master Harry Potter as his personal elf. Dobby works at Hogwarts to be close to Master should he need Dobby. Dobby is a bad elf for bonding himself to Master Harry Potter when Master doesn't want him!" Recognizing what Dobby was about to start doing, Harry quickly grabbed the elf just before he slammed his head on the library table. Kneeling in front of the little creature, Harry spoke in the most soothing voice he could muster.
"Dobby, I'd be very happy to have you work for me as my elf. However, for you to do that there are some rules you must follow. The first rule is that you will never punish yourself again. If you think you did something bad, come tell me and I'll decide whether or not to punish you, is that clear?" The elf nodded his head vigorously, causing Daphne to stifle a giggle. Shooting her a mock glare, Harry continued. "The second rule is that you must accept payment of one galleon a week, as well as three days off a month. Is that satisfactory?" This question was directed more towards a fuming Hermione, who after seeing the hopeful look on the little elf's face, gave a great sigh and nodded her head resignedly. Harry had to brace himself as he was immediately set upon by a deliriously happy Dobby, whose cries of Harry's greatness made them all grateful for the silencing charms. Gently extracting himself from the clingy creature, Harry instructed him to continue performing his Hogwarts duties until Harry called for him again. With a few more exultations of the Great Harry Potter, Dobby popped away from the three amused teens.
"Well, shall we go see about this Come-and-Go room he mentioned?" The girls nodded and began packing up their things before the trio made their way up to the portrait of the dancing trolls on the seventh floor. Just as Dobby said it would, a door appeared out of the wall as Harry passed it for the third time thinking about a room to practice spellwork undisturbed. The teens entered to find a large room with a table and some comfy chairs in front of a fireplace. Next to that, a dueling arena with several practice dummies was set up, as well as a bookshelf with several books on curses and charms.
"I love magic," Harry said as he and the girls made their way over to the practice area. Lining up in front of a dummy, Daphne began explaining to Harry and Hermione the theory and history of the Unforgivables.
"Few wizards actually know the history of these spells," she told them. "The Ministry would not like it to be known that their origins are not at all dark, but that their misuse during times of war has given them the reputation they have today. The truth is, two of the three Unforgivables were originally used by healers, and were invented by Helga Hufflepuff herself. The Imperious Curse was used in cases where the patient was fighting the healers as they tried to work on them. Rather than stunning the patient, the healer would cast Imperio and instruct the patient to calm down and follow the instructions they were given during treatment. When the patient was no longer in any danger, the curse was released. It was also used to help people with phobias to remain calm while facing their fears. Now, do either of you know of a magical way to restart a stopped heart?" Harry and Hermione both thought for a minute then shook their heads 'no.' "Few people do. That was the original purpose of the Cruciatus Curse. It was cast repeatedly for less than a second each time in an attempt to shock the heart back into beating. I believe the muggles have developed a device that performs the same function." Harry and Hermione, having grown up in the muggle world, knew the description of a defibrillator when they heard it, and told Daphne so. "Ah, I see. So it uses electricity?" At their nods, she continued. "So it would make sense that if someone were to expose another person to a continuous shock from the device that it could hurt or kill the victim?" Again, two nods. "Well then. Is the use of such a device, for any reason, considered a crime punishable by life imprisonment?" Daphne smiled as looks of astonished realization blossomed on her friends' faces. "So you see, it's not the magic itself that is dark, rather the intent of the caster that makes it so. For example, the Killing Curse was used as a humane way to slaughter animals for meat. Now do you see why the Ministry has done all it can to make sure that this information never sees daylight?" Hermione answered the girl with a question of her own.
"If this information is such a big secret, how did you learn it?" Daphne chuckled as she realized that the ice in Hermione's voice wasn't directed at her, but rather at the fact that precious information had been hidden from her.
"Hermione, I will have to have you over to Greengrass Manor sometime. I'm sure you'll find some of the books in our library to be quite…informative. Of course you're more than welcome to come too, Harry." Hermione's eyes glazed over at the thought of perusing a library with such ancient knowledge.
"I'd love to." Harry snickered at the dreamy expression on his friend's face before snapping his fingers in front of her eyes.
"Hello, Earth to Hermione! You should close your mouth soon, you'll let flies in." Hermione's mouth closed with a snap and she pouted playfully at Harry in mock indignation. Daphne chuckled at their antics, bringing their attention back to her.
"Alright, now that you have some background on where they came from, it's time to learn how to cast them. They're actually relatively easy, having no specific wand movements. Of course you already know the incantations." Harry and Hermione both nodded. "Good. Now, since magic is about intent, many people say that you need to truly hate someone to cast the Killing Curse, or that you want to cause pain in order for Crucio to work correctly. The truth is that you simply have to focus enough power through them in order for them to work. After all, it would hardly make sense for a healer to hate the patient whose heart they were attempting to restart, would it? So, let's begin with Crucio. Focus on the power of the spell rather than a specific emotion, and give it a try." Nodding, Harry and Hermione stepped up to the firing line and concentrated on powering their spells. Aiming their wands at their respective practice dummies, both teens said the incantation and watched as the dummies lit up a bright red, signaling that their spells had connected. After a few more casts each, Daphne motioned for them to stop.
"Good job! You can see that even though people call that a dark spell, it's hardly the soul-blackening monstrosity that the Ministry would make it out to be. I'm not saying that it should be legalized by any means, but it does have its uses. Now, we'll save Imperiofor last since it has no effect on dummies and move right to the big one. Like the Cruciatus, Avada Kedavra doesn't need a strong negative emotion to cast it, just enough focused power. Give it a shot." Again, Harry and Hermione faced off with their dummies, and with unison cries of "Avada Kedavra" the practice dummies exploded under the impact of twin jets of green light. As the dust settled, the Room's magic repaired the dummies automatically, only to see them blasted apart with another round of the Killing Curse. Three more sets of dummies met the same fate before Daphne again signaled for them to stop.
"Looks like you've both got that one, so let's move on to the Imperious Curse. This one is tricky. Since it has no effect on practice dummies, you have to learn to cast it on an actual person. Why don't you take turns casting it on each other and we'll see if either of you can fight it off, which is another good skill to have, especially for you Hermione. Harry, why don't you go first?" Harry looked uncertainly between Daphne and Hermione, who guessed his hesitation.
"It's ok, Harry. I trust you." Nodding nervously at his brunette friend, Harry raised his wand towards her and cast the spell. He noticed Hermione's eyes immediately glass over and a look of serenity grace her features.
"Now you have complete control over her actions, Harry. Can you feel her trying to throw off the spell?" Harry nodded. It felt like something fighting against his magic, but he found that he could easily overpower her, which scared him. "That's good Harry. The stronger the will of the person you're casting on, the harder you have to fight for control. Why don't you give her a few simple commands to get used to it?" Harry did as Daphne suggested, having Hermione walk around the room, sit in one of the chairs, and blow a kiss to Daphne, causing the blonde girl to giggle. Finally, Harry allowed the spell to break. Hermione shook her head to clear it, then walked over and gave Harry a gentle hug.
"Thank you for not making me do anything too embarrassing Harry. I know it was uncomfortable for you to use that spell on me, but it's important that I learn to break it eventually. I'd hate to see what someone like Malfoy would make me do with it." All three of them shuddered at the thought of what vile things the ferret might think up for Hermione to do. Before they could dwell on it for too long, Daphne addressed Hermione.
"Hermione, don't feel bad about not being able to break the spell. It took me a week of being exposed to it every day to be able to shake it off. We'll work with you every day until you can fight off the effects. I know I would feel better knowing you could throw it if you had to, and I'm sure Harry would too." The boy in question nodded emphatically. "Alright Hermione, it's your turn." Hermione nodded and turned to face Harry. Harry took a deep breath and watched as Hermione pointed her wand between his eyes.
"Imperio."
Instantly Harry felt a wave of calmness wash over him. All of his worries and cares were replaced by a sense of euphoria like he'd never felt before. Through the fog of his senses he could hear a voice speaking to him, and he felt himself wanting to do everything in his power to comply with what it was telling him to do.
"Stand on one foot."
As Harry moved to do as he was commanded, he felt something deep within him begin to fight for control. It sounded like his own voice screaming at him to fight…something…
"Stand on one foot, Harry."
The voice was more insistent this time, and Harry had almost lifted his foot from the floor when he heard the other voice again, screaming to fight for control. Harry became confused as to which voice he was supposed to listen to, and why the second one seemed to be getting louder…
"Harry Potter, listen to me. Obey only my voice. Stand on one foot, now."
What was once the voice of a soothing angel had become the harsh commands of a ruthless goddess, and Harry was helpless to resist. Almost immediately his own voice blast like a trumpet in his ears, telling him to cast out the usurper of his mind and take back control of his senses. As the two voices raged for dominance, Harry found himself drawing strength from his own inner voice, and with a roar of defiance he pushed with all his might against the alien presence in his mind. As his senses cleared he found himself back in the Room of Requirement, looking at a startled-looking Daphne helping an equally startled-looking Hermione off the floor. As the brunette witch regained her feet, her mouth opened and shut dumbly a few times before she was able to speak.
"Harry, that was incredible. I was putting everything I had into that spell and you threw it off with enough force to knock me down. When I was under it I felt like I was pounding on a brick wall for all the good it did me, and you kicked me out before I could even get you to do anything. That was amazing!" Daphne too was ecstatic at Harry's accomplishment.
"It really was, Harry. I've never heard of anyone that was able to fight off the Imperious their first time! You made it look easy, too! Would you mind if I tried casting it on you?" Harry shrugged his shoulders and turned to face Daphne.
"Imperio."
Again Harry felt the wave of euphoria cascade over his senses, but this time his own inner voice was immediately calling out, giving him strength. He thought that he might be able to throw Daphne out right then and there, but he decided to have a little fun with her first.
"Harry, I want you to come over here and kneel in front of me. Do it for me, Harry. Do it now." Harry noticed that Daphne's voice was slightly stronger than Hermione's had been. He guessed that she had gone right to full power to try and catch him off guard. Slowly, Harry walked over to where Daphne was standing. When he got close enough to touch her, he acted like he was complying with her command. Halfway to his knees, he suddenly jumped up in the air and yelled "Boo!" causing Daphne and Hermione to scream and jump backwards. As the girls fought to catch their breath, Harry simply stood there smirking at them, a triumphant grin on his face. His grin turned to a look of panic as with simultaneous growls the girls both lunged at him, pinning him to the couch and tickling him mercilessly.
"No…please…can't…can't br…breathe…mercy…" Harry fought in vain to escape the girls' clutches, until all three dissolved into a giggling pile of limbs. As the teens' breathing returned to normal, Harry found himself in the very pleasant position of having two beautiful girls snuggled up to either side of him. The girls too decided that sitting on a couch with Harry between them, his arms around their shoulders and their heads leaning on his chest, was quickly becoming their favorite place to be. The trio sat there for a while in comfortable silence before a clock appeared on the wall telling them that it was five minutes to curfew. Reluctantly, the three teens disentangled themselves from each other and went to collect their things.
"I feel much better knowing that you'll be able to escape the dragon if all else fails, Harry," Daphne said as they headed for the door. "We still have a few days before the task to come up with as many plans as we can to make sure that it doesn't come down to that last resort. Don't forget to look through the books from your vault; you never know what they might have in them that we wouldn't otherwise think of. Now that we know about this room, we can start meeting here to practice our spellwork every night." Wrapping first Hermione and then Harry in a warm hug, Daphne was about to open the door when she was stopped by Harry.
"Wait! Daph, let's check and make sure the coast is clear first." Daphne looked on in confusion as Harry removed a blank piece of parchment from his robes.
"Good thinking Harry! Daphne, I think you'll like this." Hermione's statement only served to confuse the blonde girl further before Harry pulled out his wand and tapped it to the parchment.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Daphne's eyes became as big as saucers as the Marauder's Map activated, showing the outlines of the castle's hallways. Hermione and Harry searched the 7th floor hallway for their names but were puzzled when they failed to appear.
"I guess the Marauders never found this place. I wonder if I can talk to Sirius and Remus about adding it," Harry said as he studied the map.
"Who are these Marauders? Are these them?" Daphne asked, pointing to their names on the Map's title.
"Oh yeah, sorry, the Marauders were a group of pranksters from when my parents were in Hogwarts. My dad was actually one of them," Harry said, pointing to 'Prongs' on the Map. "The others were Professor Lupin, my godfather Sirius, and Peter Pettigrew, the Death Eater who betrayed my parents." Harry pointed to each of the Marauder's aliases as he listed their names, giving 'Wormtail' a particularly vicious jab of his finger.
"What did the names mean?"
"Well, Professor Lupin was bitten by a werewolf when he was very young. When his friends found out about his 'furry little problem,' they all became animagi in their 5th year to help him through his time as a wolf during the full moon. That's where the name 'Moony' comes from, and the other three names had to do with their animagus forms. 'Prongs,' my dad, was a stag; 'Padfoot' was Sirius, and he was a Grim; and Peter Pettigrew was 'Wormtail,' a particularly ugly rat. We actually caught Pettigrew living in the Gryffindor dorms as Ron Weasley's pet Scabbers last year, but he got away before we could get him to the Aurors and clear Sirius's name. Anyway, this Map was how they got away with all of the pranks that they did. It's dead useful for sneaking around the castle, along with my dad's invisibility cloak." Daphne studied the Map with Harry and Hermione for a moment, marveling at the impressive charms work. Seeing that the 7th floor hallway was clear, she gave her friends a warm smile before slipping off to the Slytherin dorms. As Hermione and Harry made their own way back to the Gryffindor common room, Harry gave Hermione a shy smile before offering her his arm. Smiling brightly, Hermione took it and drew herself up close to him as they walked back together in silence, the smiles never leaving their faces.