Underwater Madness (2)

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Lily's job was more important than Harry had initially thought. The Second Task would begin soon and she was not among the judges. Bellatrix had to cover for her. Harry wondered what Lily's job was for it to be important enough to make the Head Auror cover for her less important role. He supposed the rumour of Lily being an Unspeakable was true.

Casting his clothes aside, Harry settled with a pair of swimming pants that ended slightly above his knees. The female audience cheered as they saw his impressively defined torso. Even the Veela standing beside him almost lost control. Fleur needed to focus on her meagre Occlumency to prevent herself from ravaging Harry in public.

"I didn't know your brother was a muscle maniac, mate," Ron exclaimed in the audience seat. "Do you think he will train us? The ladies seem to fancy it."

Charlus smiled wryly as he looked around. The audience seat was filled with red-faced girls. Ron's observation was not wrong but flawed. Charlus also exercised. His body was not as well-defined as Harry's but sexy enough, in his humble opinion. However, he couldn't elicit the same reaction the girls gave to Harry. It highly depends on the person.

Charlus wanted to say that to Ron but held himself in the end. Hermione would likely support him, but she was not with them. He didn't want to deal with Ron's whining. When Harry turned to Bellatrix to wave at her, the girls commented about his sexy V-line and the scar on his side. It was also Charlus' first time seeing the scar inflicted by the Death Eater, so he was equally intrigued.

"Is it wrong to fantasize myself kissing his abs? I mean, he is such a young man."

"That's tame. I am thinking about pulling his pants down and playing with the monster he is hiding."

Charlus went red and decided to tune out the older witches. His mother was right when she advised him never to eavesdrop on witches' conversations. They might look like the most lovable and innocent person ever and the things that came out of their mouth could scar you. Charlus wisely stopped listening to the witches ever since.

"Look at that French witch's perky arse. I can't wait to see her pants hugging her arse when it is wet. Oh, don't forget those jiggly mounds too."

But then Charlus learned the wizards were not so different. In the end, he concluded there were many perverts in the audience seat.

On the dock, Harry waved his wand at the water. His Magic pulsed, detecting the three presences at the bottom of the lake. He also detected various magical signatures different from humans. A particular signature attracted his attention as it made him shiver instinctively. A frown marred his face as a hint of apprehension flashed across his eyes.

Harry's enhanced analytical prowess told him everything would be fine as long as he was careful. Knowing where he stood in the Magical world, that fact wasn't very comforting. Harry could go toe to toe with Dumbledore thanks to the boons Kowalski had given him. However, whatever was under the lack was fearsome enough to threaten him.

These Voldemort's cocksuckers are getting desperate.

Harry could easily conclude the Death Eaters were planning to get him even if it cost other's lives. The dark creature was terrifying enough to threaten Harry. His fellow contestants would be a late-night snack for the creature; not to mention the innocent people trapped underwater. It was much to Harry's chagrin also that he couldn't identify his 'precious possession.' Whoever was trapped for him to rescue was under a concealing charm.

"I will kill that motherfucker when this is done," Harry grumbled as his eyes met the disguised Barty Jr. The bugger remained stoic, but Harry could spot the amusement dancing in his eyes.

"Cheer for our Champions, everyone! Best of luck, all of you!"

Ludo's announcement started the second task. Viktor transfigured part of himself into a shark and Fleur cast a Bubblehead Charm on herself. Harry twirled his wand around his body, encapsulating himself in an ethereal barrier that quickly hugged his body as if second skin. He jumped into the water, followed quickly by the two Champions.

Because of her Veela heritage, Fleur felt sluggish underwater, so her swimming pace paled in comparison to her fellow contestants. Viktor looked like he belonged to the water, which was partly true. Even so, he couldn't catch up to Harry who swam like a torpedo. They knew Harry would win this stage too, so they resolved to fight for the second spot.

Harry no longer cared about the tournament—although, admittedly, he never had in the very first place. His Magic constantly pulsed, locating the unknown signature that belonged to the one he should save. Whichever innocent was roped into the mess would die if he dawdled. He didn't want an innocent's blood on his hands.

I hope Viktor and Fleur can save Hermione and Gabrielle.

Despite knowing how it ended in the original Harry Potter universe, Harry hoped Fleur would manage to save Gabrielle. If she couldn't, well, he would think about that later. He had to rescue his 'loved one' first. Ten minutes later, Harry found the hostages in the Merpeople town, bound by underwater weed.

Harry's eyes darkened as the Merpeople looked at him urgently. Something had gone wrong. They were looking out for something. Feeling a clutter of presence, Harry turned around and found a swarm of mad Grindylows coming at him. Pointing his wand at them, he drew an X. The water spit briefly before the Grindylows were torn to pieces.

"Leave, take the hostages with you. It is not safe here."

Harry returned his attention to the Merpeople and frowned sombrely. He immediately cut the weed tying the hostages, letting them slowly float to the surface.

"Where is the other hostage?"

"We have no idea. She was here yesterday, but now she is gone."

"What do you mean she's gone?"

"She is gone when that…abomination comes."

A scowl marred Harry's face at the revelation. He was not naïve enough to think that the last hostage was simply swept away by the current. He asked what the abomination was to the Merpeople, but they said they didn't know and didn't want to figure it out. With a murderous look, he headed in the direction of the abomination.

Imagine his surprise when he found a building-sized octopus staring menacingly at him at the end of his search. Its tentacles danced wildly in the water, threatening to tear him to pieces. A Kraken had somehow appeared under the Black Lake. Harry would have laughed at the absurdity if he hadn't seen Lily wrapped by one of the tentacles.

Is this a stunt? No. Lily wouldn't agree to this madness. Even if she had, the Kraken the committee used wouldn't be this big.

Crack!

Harry's thought was interrupted when the Kraken lashed its tentacle at him. The force of the tentacle would kill him. Not even his lucky star could save him. Harry's emerald eyes shone intensely as his Magic roused. He sent a water cannon at the Kraken, knocking one of its tentacles. The amount of Magic required to do that was substantial.

Swimming at Lily, Harry avoided the tentacle strikes and batted those he couldn't dodge with Spells. When he was close to Lily, he cast an overpowered Severing Charm, cutting the tentacle wrapped around her. Quickly taking Lily into his arms, Harry pointed his wand upward and accelerated their ascent.

A quick analysis told Harry that Lily was put in stasis. The charm cast on her was designed to deactivate as soon as they reached the surface. Lily's serene expression calmed Harry down despite the situation. He bitterly realized that he was smitten by his mother. The saving grace was his mother was equally smitten.

Swoosh!

"Fuck!" Harry cursed, dodging a high-pressured water cannon shot by the Kraken. "I swear these Death Eaters are trying to get me." He wished the Death Eaters were as stupid as they were in canon.

As determined as he was to get Lily to the surface, Harry couldn't help but stop when he found Viktor and Fleur assaulted by a colony of Grindylows. They were doing their best to defend Hermione and Gabrielle. A mirthless laugh escaped him when the Kraken stopped chasing him and went to the group.

"Merlin's twisted panties! I will kill Baldiemort and his goons when this is done!" Harry cursed. Letting go of Lily, he cast the strongest protective charm in his repertoire, the one he made. "Aegeas!"

A golden layer of barrier wrapped around Lily like a cocoon. It was strong enough to withstand the Kraken's ten consecutive strikes. Harry decided it should suffice since he didn't plan on letting the Kraken hit Lily. He immediately turned his attention to his fellow Champions and their loved ones. The look on their faces showed how absurd they found their situation was.

"Bombarda Maxima!"

Harry's Spell hit the Kraken on its head, derailing it from its course. The water separated for a moment as the explosion occurred. Fleur and Viktor turned to Harry in relief. The distraction Harry had provided gave them the chance to escape from the Grindylows with their respective loved ones. They swam to Harry, thinking it was over.

Harry knew it was far from over. The Kraken regained its composure and everything went dark.