Harry conjured a chair in the middle of the Quidditch pitch and sat down on it after handing the judges the four coins he had collected from the boxes. He looked at the big screens that showed what the champions were currently up to.
Diggory was working on what looked to be Krum's box. All the other boxes in his room were still untouched it seemed.
On the other hand, Fleur was working on the box with the Triwizard insignia on it... the teacher's box. Harry could also make out two open boxes and another box with his symbol on it, meaning that she had already broken through the wards on Krum's and Diggory's boxes.
Viktor Krum too had two open boxes and was working on the third box which had the Beauxbatons academy's symbol on it while Harry's box was still locked. That meant he had broken through the Teacher's box along with Diggory's.
Harry looked at the clock which showed that the champions still had twenty minutes left for the task. And from the looks of it, it looked like Krum was leading among the three followed by Fleur. Cedric had no hopes to even come third in this round it seemed. He was still working on Krum's box and three boxes were still left: One from the teachers, Fleur's, and his own.
Fleur opened the teacher's box at the twelve-minute mark and cast a detection charm before removing a coin.
Suddenly, all the screens that were showing Fleur, zoomed in and showed the initials on the coin: I.K.- Igor Karkaroff.
Harry saw several people rise to their feet and cheer for the Beauxbatons champion (though no noise penetrated through the wards) as Fleur pocketed the coin and moved to Harry's box before starting to wave her wand over it before frowning.
Harry smirked and turned to the screens showing Krum and Cedric. They were still stuck on the boxes they were working on when Harry had first come out of the room.
When seven minutes were left, Krum broke through the wards on Fleur's box and went to pick the coin up but moments later, he fell on the ground, as stiff as a board. It seemed that he had fallen for Fleur's trap. But, Harry doubted if Fleur would get the points for Krum failing to get her coin as technically Krum had done the task. The worst part was that Karkaroff was likely to protest against any decision that wasn't in his champion's favor. But, there was also the fact that Krum hadn't bothered to pick the dragon-hide gloves on the chair for some reason, which would act against Krum.
Harry decided to just wait and watch.
A couple of curse breakers and Healer Wynter immediately rushed into Krum's room and began checking him before enervating him and freeing him from the body-bind. The screen showed Krum groaning before shakily getting to his feet before being escorted out by the healer and the curse-breakers. Harry could see that Krum was talking animatedly with the officials but could only guess what Krum was on about.
As soon as he exited the room, he jogged towards the Judge's table and began speaking with them. A few moments later, Karkaroff too got to his feet and started shouting something at them but they were too far away for Harry to hear. Harry didn't even bother to cast a listening charm as he knew it was probably about Fleur putting a trap on the coin and it being unfair.
And, Sirius would tell him what happened, once the task ended on his two-way mirror.
Harry looked back at the screens and to his surprise, saw that Cedric had opened Krum's box and taken out the coin from it.
Four minutes later, a gong rang followed by Bagman announcing that the time was up.
Harry was extremely pleased to see that no champion had managed to breach the wards on his box. He was in the lead in this round too. He had received 130 points. Fleur, it seemed had received at least ninety-five points or 105 if the judges decided that Krum had failed. Krum had received at least seventy points or eighty-five if the judges ruled in his favor... which seemed unlikely judging from Karkaroff's expressions. Cedric had received thirty-five points.
"Please come out of the rooms, champions!" Bagman's voice boomed.
After fifteen minutes of calculating points and everything, including a small fight between Karkaroff and Maxime, Bagman stood up once again before putting his wand to his throat.
"Attention everyone! The final points have been calculated by us judges. So, without further adieu, here are the points: In the first place, once again we have Mr. Harry Potter who managed to break through each and every ward in record time. Also, none of the champions managed to break through his wards."
The crowd rose to their feet and cheered loudly., signifying someone had taken down the silencing dome.
"So, Mr. Potter receives one hundred and thirty points. He is followed by Miss Delacour who receives one hundred and five points. There was a little disagreement between the judges if she should receive the ten points for Mr. Krum's failure to take the coin or not. But, our esteemed judges ruled in her favor. So, as a result, Mr. Krum has received seventy points."
Cue, cheering from the audience.
"Last, but not least, Mr. Diggory has received thirty-five points for breaking through the wards put up on the room and the wards on Mr. Krum's box. Give them all a huge round of applause dear audience!" Bagman half-yelled. His tone was as excited as a five-year-old's in a candy factory.
"Now, the final points! In the first place, we've Harry Potter with three hundred and twenty-eight points! He is followed by Miss Delacour with 240 points! They are followed by Viktor Krum who has a total of one hundred and ninety-five points. Finally, we have Cedric Diggory with eighty-three points! Give all our champions a huge round of applause audience!"
The audience cheered so loudly that even the residents of Hogsmeade heard it. Once the cheering subsided, Bagman cleared his throat.
"The third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June," continued Bagman. "The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions."
27th February 1995
Potions Classroom, Hogwarts
Harry sat beside Hermione in his least favorite class of Hogwarts: Potions.
It wasn't that he disliked the subject. No, he disliked... in fact, hated the teacher who taught the subject at Hogwarts- Severus Snape.
Severus Snape was a bitter man who hated Harry with every fiber of his being. He was a Death Eater to boot too. He hated Harry for the demise of his master and had spent three years making Harry's life hell at Hogwarts. As of now, Severus Snape was staying as far away from Harry as possible. This had of course happened after Harry had nearly paved a path to send the man to Azkaban at the end of his third year.
Oh, and Snape also hated Harry because of James Potter. Apparently, he was still pissed that James Potter, the guy who bullied him at school also got the girl Snape crushed on: Harry's mother, Lily Potter.
And, he took out the anger of his failure on Harry for his first three years of schooling.
Anyhow, Harry currently was sitting beside Hermione brewing a wit-sharpening potion. The worse part was, it was a double-potions class and he had to tolerate Snape's stupid face for two whole lessons and bear him breathing down everyone's neck while taking points from Gryffindor.
Another problem was that Parkinson and Malfoy were trying to sabotage Harry's potion from behind and glaring daggers at his back. Parkinson had tried to taunt Harry regarding him being declared the hottest man of Britain by the Teen Witch Weekly magazine. They also had printed a picture of a half-naked Harry on the front page. Harry had replied to Parkinson's jab by saying that if she didn't like his face why was she carrying his photo around especially when Malfoy was with her.
That had left her stuttering in front of everyone.
Harry and Hermione submitted their potion several minutes before the period ended and had begun packing up. When Snape said, "Potter, come here please."
Harry raised his eyebrow but compiled nonetheless giving Hermione a gesture to go ahead with her packing.
Harry moved to the corner of the room Snape had gestured to. Snape came nearer and waved his wand. Harry felt a privacy dome go up around them.
"Yes?" Harry asked curtly.
Snape narrowed his eyes at Harry. "It seems all the press attention you have been getting lately has inflated your already overly large head, Potter. You might be laboring under the delusion that the entire wizarding world is impressed with you. But I don't care how many times your picture appears in the papers or how much you accomplish. To me, Potter, you are nothing but a nasty little boy who considers rules to be beneath him."
"And you seem under the delusion that I care what a death eater thinks," Harry replied with narrowed eyes.
"I give you fair warning, Potter," Snape continued in a softer and more dangerous voice, "pint-sized celebrity or not you will hold your tongue in my class and if I catch you breaking into my office one more time—"
"I haven't been anywhere near your office Professor. No one in their sane mind would be in your office without a very good reason." Harry sassed.
"Don't lie to me," Snape hissed, his fathomless black eyes boring into Harry's vibrant green ones. "Boomslang skin. Gillyweed. Lacewing flies. All come from my private stores, and I know who stole them."
"Sorry? Do you think I stole Gillyweed that I used in the second task from you? Sorry to break your delusions, but I am rich enough to buy a batch of Gillyweed from anywhere in the world and do not need to steal from you of all people."
"Don't. Lie. To. Me. Potter."
"If you want proof that I ordered Gillyweed, I can show you the bill of me buying ten batches of Gillyweed from the store Professor," Harry replied.
"And the Boomslang skin? Lacewing flies? What about them Potter? I trust you know what they are used for?"
"Polyjuice Potion," Harry answered knowing there was only one potion where those two ingredients were used together.
"Correct. And do not tell me you have not brewed the potion before... in your second year... am I, wrong Potter?" Snape said in a dangerous tone. "Didn't you friend, Miss Granger break into my office two years ago and stole the very same ingredients?"
"I don't seem to recall anything of such sort Professor," Harry replied in an uncaring tone.
Snape's eyes flashed. He plunged a hand into the inside of his black robes. For one wild moment, Harry thought Snape was about to pull out his wand to curse him and Harry prepared himself for an attack— then he saw that Snape had drawn out a small crystal bottle of a completely clear potion.
"Do you know what this is, Potter?" Snape said, his eyes glittering dangerously again.
"All I can see is a clear liquid which could be several things ranging from water to Veritaserum. Though, I am inclined to believe that it is Veritaserum judging from your... track record." Harry replied.
"It is Veritaserum — a Truth Potion so powerful that three drops would have you spilling your innermost secrets for this entire class to hear," said Snape viciously. "Now, the use of this potion is controlled by very strict Ministry guidelines. But unless you watch your step, you might just find that my hand slips" — he shook the crystal bottle slightly — "right over your evening pumpkin juice. And then, Potter... then we'll find out whether you've been in my office or not."
"You seem under several delusions today sir. You think that you could get away with feeding the heir of two Most Noble and Most Ancient houses the truth potion. Perhaps you should do it... it would get you the place you deserve Snape: Azkaban." Harry sneered. "Now, unless you have any proof of your baseless accusations, I am going back. Also, if you blame me again for anything without proper proof, I will make sure that you face grave consequences for it."
Saying so, Harry whirled around and went back to his seat and opened a book. He was using occlumency to control his anger. How dare Snape accuse him of stealing? Okay, he may not be entirely innocent as he had stolen potion ingredients in his second year to make the Polyjuice potion. It took Harry a few minutes to completely calm down.
He started thinking rationally. Someone had stolen ingredients for the Polyjuice potion from Snape's office and framed him for it by taking Gillyweed too along with the potion ingredients.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the dungeon door.
"Enter," said Snape in his usual voice. The class looked around as the door opened. Professor Karkaroff came in. Everyone watched him as he walked up toward Snape's desk. He was twisting his finger around his goatee and looking agitated. "We need to talk," said Karkaroff abruptly when he had reached Snape. He seemed so determined that nobody should hear what he was saying that he was barely opening his lips; it was as though he were a rather poor ventriloquist.
Harry discreetly and wandlessly cast a listening charm to clearly hear what the two men were talking.
"I'll talk to you after my lesson, Karkaroff," Snape muttered, but Karkaroff interrupted him.
"I want to talk now, while you can't slip off, Severus. You've been avoiding me."
"After the lesson," Snape snapped.
Karkaroff hovered behind Snape's desk for the rest of the double period. He seemed intent on preventing Snape from slipping away at the end of class.
Harry whispered in Hermione's ear, "After the bell rings, you continue ahead. Do not wait for me. I have some important work."
"Why?"
"Will tell you later Hermione," Harry replied.
When the bell rang five minutes later, the class started moving noisily towards the door while Harry cast an invisibility charm and silencing charm on himself before donning his invisibility cloak. It was to ensure that Snape nor Karkaroff could either see him or detect him.
Seconds later, Harry was thankful that he had donned his cloak because Snape locked the door and cast a detection charm before putting up a privacy ward on the door.
"What's so urgent?" Snape hissed at Karkaroff.
"This," said Karkaroff before he pulled up the left-hand sleeve of his robe and showed Snape the dark mark on his inner forearm. It looked clearer than Harry had seen in the photos that Lord Greengrass had shown him.
"Well?" said Karkaroff, still making every effort not to move his lips. "Do you see? It's never been this clear, never since—"
"Put it away!" snarled Snape.
"But you must have noticed —" Karkaroff began in an agitated voice.
"I have noticed it Karkaroff. And so have others. But, it means nothing. The dark lord died on Halloween thirteen years ago at Potter's hand. He is not returning!"
"Then what does this mean Severus? We all felt the pain from the mark thirteen years ago on Halloween night and the dark mark faded. Now, it is darkening again!" Karkaroff hissed.
Snape sighed noisily. "We've had this conversation before Igor. If you're so scared then flee."
"Flee? FLEE?" Karkaroff let out a bitter laugh. "You know Severus that if he wants he will find me anyways and kill me. Listen to me, Severus. We both are traitors to his cause. I gave away names of his inner circle to secure my finger while you were vouched for by Dumbledore that you were a spy. He will kill us both if he returns Severus."
"He will know my true alliance if he returns," Snape replied promptly.
"Then so be it."
"The dark lord, in case he returns, he would need the members of his inner circle who are currently free. He is not a fool to go about killing us for the actions we committed to save ourselves. Most of his inner circle is in Azkaban and out of them, some have already died due to the dementors Karkaroff."
Karkaroff didn't answer.
Snape wasn't wrong. Some of the dark lord's most fanatic followers had succumbed to the dementors over the last thirteen years: Carrow senior, Alexander Gibbon, Yaxley senior, The Lees, Aston Wilkes, and his son, and most recently, Augustus Rookwood. Rookwood had died a couple of weeks ago in Azkaban. He was one of Voldemort's most fanatical and useful supporters right up with Bellatrix Lestrange. He was an excellent duelist, a ruthless killer, and had experience with rarer branches of magic due to him being the assistant head of the Department of Mysteries before being detained.
"If you have nothing else to bother me with, please leave my classroom. I have a class coming." Snape said curtly.
Karkaroff turned on his heel and strode out of the dungeon. He looked both worried and angry.
Harry apparated straight to the Gryffindor dorms and gathered his things for the next class. He also needed to talk to Helga and Salazar about this.
15th March 1995
Room of requirement, Hogwarts
"Imperio. Dance Susan." Harry ordered putting the Imperious curse on his girlfriend before starting a melodic tune with a wave of his wand. Susan started slowly dancing but her moments weren't smooth, signifying that she was fighting the curse.
"She's fighting it," Daphne whispered. Harry nodded in agreement and decided to give her a more outrageous command.
"Turn around and spank yourself."
Daphne choked on her spit beside Harry and gave him an incredulous look. This was the most outrageous command Harry had given to either of the girls in the past two days since they had started practicing the art to throw off the imperious curse. Till now, Harry was giving simple commands like jump, dance, do cartwheels, walking on hands, etc.
Susan hesitantly turned around. Her hand quivered in mid-air. Harry thought that she had it when Susan's hand came down and spanked her butt cheek.
Harry sighed and ended the curse. Susan blinked and came out of the trance before muttering to herself.
"You did good Susan. You almost threw it off. I think you will have it down by the end of the week." Harry said patting Susan's shoulder as she came back to sit down next to him on the couch.
"Now my chance!" Daphne exclaimed before bouncing to the center of the room.
"You sound awfully cheerful for someone who is about to be put under the imperious curse, Daphne," Harry said dryly.
"I almost threw it off yesterday! I might be successful today." Daphne replied and prepared herself by taking deep breaths.
She wasn't wrong as she had almost thrown it off the previous day. Harry had told her to do cartwheels and she had resisted mid-way causing her to fall face-first onto the unforgiving ground.
"I'm ready," Daphne told Harry.
"Imperio. Dance Daphne."
Daphne moved a little at first, her movements jerky before beginning to move fluidly.
Harry frowned. Something was wrong.
Daphne started to move towards the couch while still dancing to an imaginary tone.
'Stop.' Harry commanded mentally but nothing happened. Daphne continued moving towards him while dancing in what would be called an extremely seductive manner. She closed the distance between herself and Harry and sat down on Harry's lap and began wriggling before rubbing herself against him.
Harry slapped her arse. "Cheeky minx. But congratulations on throwing off the curse."
"What? She threw it off?" Susan asked.
"Yes. I commanded her to stop but she didn't. With the imperious curse, you don't need to speak out loud." Harry told her.
"So I am the only one who can not throw it off yet," Susan said with a sigh.
"Don't be disappointed, Susan. Daphne and I are much well versed in Occlumency than you're. Daphne has started with level five while you are still at level four. I am almost a master Occlumens as I almost have it down. I will finish it by April end at the latest."
"Must be fun." Daphne mused. "You know, bending magic to your will. Like just concentrating on what you want to do and doing it. Manipulating elements to your will and all. You must already be able to do some things, can't you?"
"Several. Multiple conjurations of different things, illusion magic, flight without support, etc." Harry replied.
"Can you show us a few things?" Susan asked.
Harry just gave a nod and stood up before waving his wand. Everything in the room bar the couch the girls were sitting on went to the corners of a room. Harry dramatically spread his arms and his cloak started billowing moments before Harry levitated into the air. He shot a grin at his girlfriends moments before his body started multiplying and began flying in different directions. A few seconds later Susan and Daphne looked in awe as they were surrounded by a few scores of Harrys floating in a dome formation around the two of them.
(AN: Think of Doctor Strange during his fight against Thanos on Titan in Avengers Infinity war.)
"Fucking hell. This is awesome." Susan muttered under her breath.
All of the Harrys shot a grin at her before they asked, "Guess who is real?"
Daphne and Susan looked around as the voice came from every Harry who was in the room.
"Damn you, Potter. Come down before I start shooting curses at you all." Daphne said twirling her wand in her hand.
"Boo." A voice said from behind Daphne and she jumped high in the air in fright, screaming shrilly.
Harry started rolling on the floor with laughter as Daphne realized what he had done. She glared at him as the Harrys forming the dome disappeared. Even Susan started snickering even though she too had screamed when Harry had scared her from behind.
"Harry, you prat!" Daphne said while still glaring at him. Harry sobered up a bit.
"Ok, ok. I will not laugh." Harry said before he let out a snort.
Daphne shot a stinging hex at Harry which Harry redirected wandlessly at the floor before wrapping his arms around Daphne and pulling her into his lap and tickling her and Susan joined him.
16th March 1995
Great Hall, Hogwarts
Harry sat at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall beside Ron while Hermione was sitting in front of him across the table. He chewed on a pancake as he skimmed through the Daily Prophet.
There was not much of use in there apart from the potions section which had an article about an improvement in the potency of the high-degree-burns slave. A Potions master had invented a new recipe that reduced the cost as well as healed the burn faster than the one that was being used before. St. Mungo's hospital and many other institutes had contracted the potions master to use the recipe.
"Monsieur Potter." A melodic voice called from behind Harry and he turned around to see Fleur Delacour standing behind him wearing her blue Beauxbatons uniform. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see several boys looking at Fleur with an enthralled look on their faces.
"Miss Delacour. What can I do for you on this fine day."
"I 'ave a letter from my father for you. I on the behalf of my family invite you for dinner this Saturday. We hope you will accept our invitation for dinner." Saying so, she handed Harry a royal purple-colored envelope. The envelope had a grand-looking crest on it. The crest had the letter 'D' written elegantly in the middle and various patterns surrounded it.
"Thank you, Miss Delacour," Harry said with a nod as custom dictated.
"We all hope you accept our invitation. We will await your letter." Fleur said before turning around and walking back to the Ravenclaw table.
"Harry, why is Fleur inviting you for dinner with her family?" Hermione asked.
"Cause Harry saved her during the lake task, didn't he. They probably want to thank him." Ron said in between mouthfuls of food.
"Ronald, finish your food before eating!" Hermione admonished. "That is disgusting."
Harry ignored them and opened the envelope and removed the parchment inside. Harry immediately recognized that the parchment was made of vellum, a hand-made paper that was several times costlier than normal parchment. It was only used on rare occasions which were deemed as important to a family. Harry opened the parchment and read the words on it written in an elegant script.
Dear Monsieur Potter,
I am Sebastian Delacour, father of Fleur Delacour. First, I would like to thank you for saving my daughter,
Fleur during the first round of the second task when her life was in mortal peril under the lake.
Words fall short to thank you for what you have done for me and my family.
As a gesture of my gratitude,
I humbly invite you to dine with the Delacour Family on the 18th of March, Saturday at 7.30 in the evening.
The Headmistress of Beauxbatons has allowed us to arrange the dinner in the Beauxbatons carriage so you do not have any problems.
We sincerely hope you join me and my family.
Thank you once again,
Sebastian Delacour
Lord of House Delacour
Harry folded the letter and put it back in the envelope, deciding to write the reply letter after the classes ended for the day. He was of course going to accept the invitation as he had no reason to decline. And, it would be considered a big insult against House Delacour if he declined.
House Delacour was one of the richest families in France. While the Hierarchy system and the Noble-house system had ended in France with the French revolution, their name still carried a lot of weight in their country. Magical Britain and some other countries still followed the Noble-house and Hierarchy system in their legislative bodies while some countries like France, the Magical USA, etc. followed democracy.
But, the family's wealth that they had gathered for centuries was still intact, and not to mention their reputation gave them importance despite losing the Hereditary seat they had on their legislative bodies. They may not have a vote but they still had a lot of wealth and influence in France.
Also, Sebastian Delacour was the head-hit wizard of French DMLE. His word carried a lot of influence.
And, now he owed Harry for saving his daughter. While Harry had not thought of all this while saving Fleur and had done it selflessly, the implications and results the action had were something that would come to benefit greatly when needed in the future. Especially with the warning signs of Lord Voldemort rising.
20th March 1995
Beauxbatons Carriage, Hogwarts grounds
Harry knocked on the carriage door of the Beauxbatons carriage at exactly one minute to half-past seven. He was dressed immaculately in formal robes which bore the Potter and Black crest. His heir rings were visible on his fingers in which he also held a bouquet which he would give to Lord Delacour as a gesture of appreciation. The door to the carriage opened to reveal Madame Maxime standing there.
"Monsieur Potter. I trust you're here to see the Delacours?"
"Yes, Madame Maxime."
"Very well, I shall lead you to them and take my leave to eat dinner with my students in the Great Hall." She said before leading him inside the carriage.
From the outside, the carriage looked no bigger than a small truck but, it was as big as the whole Gryffindor common room from the inside and had two staircases leading above, probably to the student dorms. Their common area had several comfortable couches, several chairs, study tables, a bookshelf full of books on various subjects, and a huge fireplace. The room also had several doors which led to different areas of importance... or so Harry assumed.
Madame Maxime led him to a huge, grand-looking mahogany door and knocked. Fleur opened the door and bowed to Madame Maxime.
"Fleur, I have your guest here. Give Sebastian my regards." Madame Maxime told Fleur in French.
"Oui Madame," Fleur replied.
Madame Maxime gave her a nod before turning to Harry. "Have a good time Monsieur Potter."
Saying so, she left the carriage. Harry turned to Fleur and smiled at her. "Harry, please come in," Fleur said informally.
"Thank you, Fleur," Harry replied similarly and stepped into the room. The first thing he felt was a powerful wave of Veela Allure. Thankfully, he was very well versed in the mind arts and shrugged the allure off, preventive himself from turning into a drooling mess.
Then he saw the occupants of the room. First, he recognized the little girl whom Fleur had pulled out of the lake. Next, he laid eyes on perhaps the most beautiful woman he had seen in his life, whom Harry assumed to be Fleur's mother. Fleur's mother looked like an older version of Fleur with her silvery-blonde hair, aristocratic face, and an hourglass figure. The most alluring part of her face were her eyes though. They were of no definite color. Colors were swirling in her eyes making it look like she had a rainbow in her eyes.
Beside her, stood an intimidating man. Harry was almost reminded of Lucius Malfoy when he saw the man. He had the same proud look and his hair was similarly styled as Malfoy's. But his eyes were much more welcoming. Harry also knew for a fact that this man was loads more dangerous than Lucius.
"Lord Delacour." Harry greeted, stepping forward and shaking hands with the said person.
"Heir Potter-Black." He replied with a curt nod.
Harry turned to the Lady and kissed her knuckles. "Lady Delacour, charmed."
She smiled and gave him a nod. Harry then turned to the little girl who was trying to contain her excitement... and was failing miserably.
Harry knelt at the girl's height and kissed her knuckles too. Gabrielle squealed in delight and Harry felt an extremely powerful wave of allure being released from the young girl. He ignored it and said in French, "Gabrielle Delacour. I see the talk of your beauty is absolutely right."
At that, Harry could swear he saw a galaxy of stars shine in the little girl's eyes.
(AN: From now, till the scene ends, ASSUME that the conversations are taking place in the French language.)
"Don't encourage her." A melodic female voice spoke from Harry's left. "My youngest is enough trouble already. And she has just started her Veela-maturity a couple of days ago. Also, if you feel her allure spiking, please don't hold it against her as it is something that she cannot control. Her maturity has just begun unexpectedly and her allure will be uncontrollable for a few weeks at least. All young Veelas go through this at the start of their maturity."
"Understandable Lady Delacour."
"You shouldn't be so uptight about the titles Monsieur Potter. Please call me Apolline." The Delacour matriarch said melodiously.
"Then please call me Harry. You both are elder to me."
"Very well, Harry. And you can call me Sebastian. Why are you standing? Please let us all sit down."
The five took a seat around a circular table. Fleur sat on Harry's left and Apolline Delacour sat at Harry's right. Gabrielle, who was still looking at Harry with starry eyes, sat opposite him, between Fleur and her father.
"Harry, first and foremost, I would like to thank you for saving my daughter's life in the lake during the second task." Sebastian Delacour said.
"I just did what was right Sebastian. I would've done it for anyone." Harry replied.
"Still... Thank you for saving her." Apolline said.
Harry gave her a nod and all of them engaged in light conversation as starters started getting served. The Delacour family had pulled out all stops while deciding the menu it seemed because the food was something that would be seen only at highly important dinner parties amongst the elite.
Harry had started to suspect that the Delacour parents had something much more important to discuss than thanking him for saving their daughter. He still enjoyed the conversation though. The Delacour ladies had a sharp tongue it seemed, judging from the witty replies that they were giving during the discussions on myriad topics ranging from Quidditch to international politics.
After desert, Lord Delacour asked Gabrielle to go to her Fleur's room in the carriage. (Fleur had a private suite in the carriage... a privilege of being the Beauxbatons champion.)
"Harry, there is something of great importance we would like to discuss with you." Sebastian Delacour said after Gabrielle closed the door behind her.
Harry's suspicion had proven true. The meeting was not just a gesture of gratitude from the Delacour family but something more.
"Speak what is on your mind, sir."
"I was wondering if it would be possible for a union between our families Heir Potter-Black."
Harry nearly choked at the sentence that Sebastian Delacour had used. He was asking for a betrothal between Fleur and himself.
"Might I ask... what brought this... idea into your head lord Delacour," Harry asked in a silky voice, one he reserved when talking to politicians.
"Certainly. You see Harry, you are a very rare and special person and only a couple of years younger than Fleur here. You're powerful, both magically and politically. You've done things that most adults would shudder to even face. You're handsome. You're brave. You're rich. What else would a father look for to find a suitable match for her daughter?"
Harry narrowed his eyes. "With all due respect Lord Delacour, it seems like you're more interested in my fame and wealth—"
"No, no. You get me wrong, child. I was just saying that you could keep my daughter happy and I couldn't find a better match for her than you. I have no interest in your fame and wealth Harry. I am rich enough to run France for a year without becoming broke. And I am pretty famous for being the Head-hit wizard for the French DMLE and, that is not to mention the power the name Delacour carries in France. Of course, it is not as powerful as it was before the French revolution... but, still pretty useful."
"I already have a girlfriend, Lord Delacour. And our guardians have already agreed to sign a contract that will be signed this summer." Harry added.
"And you have two titles to fill, out of which, I can assure you that your girlfriend, Susan Bones will take up none as she has to take up the seat as Lady Bones unless she wishes for House Bones to die out." Lord Delacour countered with a raised eyebrow.
Damn. He had done his homework before coming.
"You do realize that if you want your daughter to marry me, she will have to share me with two other women?" Harry asked the man.
"Mr. Potter." Apolline Delacour interrupted the conversation. "We know that already. And Fleur has no problem with it. We Veela have no problem with being in a relationship with either of the genders. Veelas are bisexual by nature... but we do prefer men more."
Harry looked at Fleur who nodded in agreement.
"And in addition, it is hard for a Veela to find a worthy male lover who is immune to her allure." Apolline Delacour continued. "The most important characteristic we looked for in you was that you did not fall to Fleur's allure. And neither did you fall under the influence of three Veelas who were in this room. Since Gabrielle started her maturity a few days ago, even Sebastian has been wearing a special Necklace that dampens the effect of the allure on him."
In response, Sebastian pulled out a necklace that had been hidden by his robes so far and showed it to Harry. It was a beautiful necklace with a platinum chain and it had a blue crystal attached to it which was glowing faintly.
"Look Harry, I am not saying that you agree to this immediately. It is not like we are going to force you into this." Sebastian Delacour said in a soft voice. "We... we are just asking you to consider it. You need a Lady for two houses or they will die with you. We need a worthy man for Fleur. You see, she is already of age and the older families have already started trying to get her hand. To put it quite frankly, most of those are pigs who are neither powerful nor have a good mental forte."
"And Veela look for both of this in men Harry. It is in our nature... and there is nothing we can do about it." Apolline added. "We do not want to be forced into giving Fleur to someone who won't be able to handle her and keep her because she is a Veela. As Sebastian said, several older families are trying to push us into signing a betrothal for Fleur with their families. And we, as parents have to do something to secure our little flower."
"Yes. See Harry. We are not telling you to make this decision right now. And we advise you not to. I tell you? Date Fleur. She is here at Hogwarts till June end and not going anywhere. And, she still has one year left at Beauxbatons Academy after this tournament ends. We have time till her NEWT results come. Then the pressure to find a suitable groom for Fleur will increase exponentially especially from the French Noble houses who are still very traditional." Sebastian Delacour concluded.
"And what do you think about this Fleur?" I asked, looking into Fleur's eyes.
"Harry... I always liked you since you defeated me in the dueling tournament. I guess it was my Veela Heritage that attracted me to you at that time." She said in French before delicately brushing a few strands of her silvery-blonde hair out of her face with her fingers and tucking it behind her ear. "I was pleasantly surprised that you did not react my allure... not even the slightest glaze or... stuttering like most boys do. To be frank, you are the first boy near my age with whom I held a decent conversation without feeling uncomfortable."
Fleur took a deep breath and continued, "To be frank, I always wanted to meet you in person to see what was so special about you... When I saw you at the tournament, I was pretty confident that I would easily defeat you if we crossed wands. Heck, I thought that none were a match for me in this tournament because of the training I had gone through under the best instructors France could provide. But, that rapidly changed the moment I saw you duel. And then... and then you even defeated me and won the tournament. It was a humbling experience of sorts for me, you know? Losing to someone younger than yourself. Then there is this tournament where you prove yourself to be superior to every other champion despite being younger than us and being unwillingly entered into the tournament. And then in the lake-task, you proved that you're a good person too, Harry Potter. And it is not like we are marrying right away. If in case, things don't work out between us, there will be no repercussions anyways." Fleur said.
Harry could tell whatever she was saying were her thoughts due to her expressions and what she spoke. She had not prepared it beforehand. So, Harry contemplated what to do.
"I would have to talk to Susan about this." Harry finally said after nearly a minute of silence. "And then we will see what to do."
"I have no problem with that Harry," Fleur said.
"And neither do we. Tell Fleur what you decide and we leave it to you kids to do as you see fit now." Sebastian Delacour agreed as his wife nodded in agreement to his statement.
20th March 1995
Chamber of Secrets, Hogwarts
Harry sat in the Ritual Chamber located in the chamber of secrets as he drew yet another ritual circle on the floor. This was going to be a relatively simple ritual that would increase his sensitivity towards magic.
While the other rituals and his occlumency had made Harry pretty aware of how the magic around him was, this ritual would give him the ability to sense any trace of magic in the air or his surroundings. If he trained in this art properly, he would be able to go as far as to feel what the magic did and distinguish magical signatures. It could also enable him to know the magical passwords on locks, portkeys, etc.
The best part was that he would also be able to sense magical beings in his immediate vicinity immediately after this ritual and Salazar had informed him that if he honed the skill enough, he would be able to sense the magical signature of a person and be able to tell who they were even without looking at them.
That was when it had clicked to Harry. Dumbledore always knew who was outside his door. This was how he did it. He felt the magic of the person approaching his door and distinguished their magical signatures before calling them out moments before they knocked at the door.
Harry finished drawing the ritual circle and stood up before he looked at Salazar and Helga. Salazar gave him an approving nod first and Helga followed a few seconds later.
"The ritual circle has been drawn perfectly. You can do the ritual when the clock strikes one." Helga said and Harry nodded.
"Oh, by the way, Dumbledore is currently talking to Professor Sprout and Hagrid about planting the Labyrinth plant seedlings on the Quidditch pitch soon as they have to be ready for the third task"
"They are making a maze?" Harry asked the two founders.
"Yes, and you know about the Labyrinth plant, don't you?" Helga said giving Harry an expectant look.
"Of course I do. Labyrinth plants are a rare variety of plants originating from Greece. They are extremely magic-resistant and are semi-sentimental. They are used in magical mazes as they can change their layout according to the person who enters the vicinity. They are extremely unpredictable and some varieties can shoot vines that grab the person walking near them."
"Correct. And they take a long time to germinate but once they do, they grow rapidly." Helga said with a nod.
"Oh, and now Dumbledore is asking Hagrid how the Skrewts are coming along as he says that they will be placed in the maze with... a couple of acromantula, boggarts, a troll... and now he is speaking about an animal being imported... from Egypt... A female Sphinx who will ask the champions riddles to go past her near the center of the maze."
"So that is easy... I have to answer a riddle and get past her. That isn't tough."
"Might I remind you that if you accept the challenge and then fail to answer the riddle, the sphinx will attack? That is in their nature."
"If it comes to that, I will have to subdue or kill her, unfortunately. I am not risking my life to entertain a Sphinx."
"Fair enough. And it is almost time to activate the ritual. Two minutes left."
Harry nodded and stepped into the ritual circle and laid down on the ground. At exactly 1 PM, Harry chanted in Latin and, the ritual circle glowed.
27th May 1995
Quidditch Field, Hogwarts
Harry leisurely walked down onto the Quidditch field at 9 PM. He had been informed by professor McGonagall that he had to be present at the Quidditch Pitch at 9 PM sharp as the champions would be given instructions for the third task.
He arrived to see that Krum and Fleur were already there and so was Ludo Bagman.
As soon as Fleur saw Harry arrive, she beamed at him and Harry smiled back in response.
The relationship between Harry and Fleur was going well. They were dating for more than two months now. Daphne and Susan had accepted Fleur into their little group of lovers too, even though there was now a little friendly competition that had started between the three. The relationship that they were having was kept under wraps and no one except them knew the truth about it. As far as the world was concerned, Harry Potter was dating Susan Bones while Daphne and Fleur were single. And, Harry preferred that the status should be kept as it was, at least till the contracts were signed. He didn't want the girls, especially Daphne to get into trouble due to being in a relationship with him. The relationship between Harry and Daphne would be kept secret, preferably till they graduated from Hogwarts or were of age at least.
As for Harry and Fleur's relationship, they had decided to keep it a secret till Fleur gave her NEWTs and graduated from Beauxbatons, given that they agreed to sign the Betrothal contract making Fleur either the future Lady Black or the future Lady Potter.
Also, the four of them had decided that their group won't be expanding further and, Harry wholeheartedly agreed to the sentiment. Three girls were more than enough trouble for him. And, now he didn't need more wives to fill the Lady position of his houses as the British law dictated. Also, the future of House Bones would be secured once Harry and Susan signed the line-continuation contract in the summer.
"Hello there!" Bagman called in an overly-cheerful voice.
"Good evening Mr. Bagman." Harry greeted back politely and stood beside Fleur and engaged Fleur and Krum in a conversation
Nearly a minute later, their conversation was interrupted by a scandalized voice saying, "What've they done to it?"
Harry turned and saw Cedric Diggory glaring at the hedges that had been grown on the Quidditch field. The hedges were about three feet tall at the moment and they were yet to start working their magic. The shifting and trapping begin once the Labyrinth plants reached thirteen feet of height from the ground level.
"Well, what d'you think?" asked Bagman happily as Cedric came near where the champions were standing. "Growing nicely, aren't they? Give them a month and Hagrid'll have them twenty feet high. Don't worry," he added, grinning, spotting the less-than-happy expressions on Cedric's face, "you'll have your Quidditch field back to normal once the task is over!"
Then, Bagman continued as if he were talking to a bunch of five-year-old children. "Now, can any of you guess what we're making here?"
"Maze," grunted Krum after a few seconds of incredulous silence.
"That's right!" said Bagman, like he was surprised that one of the champions had guessed what it was. "A Maze! The third task's really very straightforward. The Triwizard Cup will be placed in the center of the maze. The first champion to touch it will receive full marks and win the tournament."
"We simply 'ave to get through the maze?" asked Fleur.
"There will be obstacles," said Bagman happily, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Hagrid is providing several creatures... then there will be spells that must be broken... all that sort of thing, you know. Now, the champion who is leading on points will get a head start into the maze." Bagman grinned at Harry at the statement. "Then Ms. Delacour will enter... then, Mr. Krum finally followed by Mr. Diggory. But you'll all be in with a fighting chance, depending on how well you get past the obstacles. Should be fun, eh?"
Cedric looked torn between feeling scared shitless and hopeless. Harry understood why he was feeling that. He was scared, knowing what type of creatures Hagrid liked and hopeless as he would enter the last in the maze and subsequently have the least chance of winning. Poor boy.
"Very well," Bagman said after a few moments "if you haven't got any questions, we'll go back up to the castle, shall we, it's a bit chilly..."
Harry resisted the urge to strangle the man. He had called everyone down here for speaking two simple sentences? He could've just told them in the castle or made Dumbledore announce it at dinner in the Great Hall.
"Harry, can I have a word?" Fleur asked and Harry nodded.
They walked together towards the Beauxbatons carriage but, instead of going in, Fleur led Harry towards the boundary of the forbidden forest.
"Harry, I just wanted to ask what—" Harry stopped her short as he pulled her behind himself and palmed his wand. The reason was that branches had rustled behind Fleur and Harry had experience with the sort of things that lurked in the forest.
Even Fleur became alert instantly and took out her wand.
Suddenly a man staggered out from behind a tall oak. For a moment, Harry didn't recognize him... then he realized it was Mr. Crouch.
He looked as though he had been traveling for days. The knees of his robes were ripped and bloody, his face scratched; he was unshaven and gray with exhaustion. His neat hair and mustache were both in need of a wash and a trim. His strange appearance, however, was nothing to the way he was behaving. Muttering and gesticulating, Mr. Crouch appeared to be talking to someone that he alone could see.
"Crouch?" Harry asked raising his wand. The man may be an asshole but he currently looked like he required immediate medical attention.
"He is a Head of Department in your ministry, isn't he?" Fleur asked Harry.
"No. He was fired." Harry replied before cautiously walking near Crouch.
"Po-Pott-Po." Mr. Crouch's eyes were bulging as he spoke the words. Then, he stood staring at the tree, muttering soundlessly at it. Then he staggered sideways and fell to his knees.
Harry immediately hurried forward and Fleur followed.
"What's wrong with him?" Fleur asked looking at the man who was muttering to the tree.
"Dumbledore!" gasped Mr. Crouch suddenly. He reached out and seized a handful of Harry's robes, dragging him closer, though his eyes were staring over Harry's head. "I need... see... Dumbledore..."
"Alright, come with me," Harry said but before he could help the man up Crouch started to say something again. His eyes were glazing in and out of focus.
'Imperious curse' Harry realized with a start. Someone had put Barty Crouch under the imperious curse.
"Warn... Dumbledore..." Crouch gasped.
Harry immediately sent a Legilimency probe at Crouch to gather what the man was speaking about but was blocked by a void of nothingness.
Harry immediately retreated.
Someone had put up a mind shield of some sort on Crouch. That was the only reason why he felt a void in Crouch's mind. No person was capable of performing Occlumency to block a Legilimency probe while under the influence of the imperious curse even if he or she were trying to fight it.
"Harry... he is under—"
"Imperious. We need to take him to Dumbledore." Harry said. There were only two ways to pull someone out of an imperious curse: One: to kill the caster and two: to influence the victim and his mind enough to break through the curse.
Harry didn't know who had cast the curse and he had no experience or training with the latter. He couldn't do it without damaging Crouch's mind at least. This would need a trained mind healer.
"Fleur, grab Crouch's arm," Harry said before gripping the man's right forearm tightly. Fleur did the same with the left forearm.
"HEDWIG!" Harry yelled and the phoenix arrived in a flash of flames before Harry grabbed Hedwig's tail feathers and all of them vanished in a swirl of rich purple flames.