hpml211-220

Chapter 211

Barty grunted. "They don't bypass every shield, boy. Just magical shields."

"What other form of shield is there?" Malfoy snarked.

Barty tossed out a quick spell at the child and the boy squawked falling out of his chair as

he rocked out of the way. Barty sent another two spells at him until the idiot finally

managed to flip his chair to block the spell which hit it harmlessly. "That sort of shield,

ferret. A physical item will block an Unforgivable. A protego doesn't do squat. Your second

point was correct though. The Unforgivables are so classed because of their target." Well,

mostly. The cruico had originally been a medical spell but no self-respecting mediwitch

would ever bring that up these days. Not since someone had worked out long ago how to

ramp it up and make it last longer than a second. Really, who'd want to restart a heart

anyway? They were so much better off when they stopped beating.

"Each Unforgivable manipulates the target's soul. One forces the soul to submit, another

twists it with unimaginable pain and the third simply severs the connections with the body.

The Ministry rather frowns on touching someone else's soul. They frown on touching your

own soul as well but most people aren't stupid enough to do that so there are no laws

against it." He saw with some humor Potter shifting uncomfortably. "Now, who can name

the first Unforgivable? How 'bout you, ferret? Your father has some…experience with that

one."

Malfoy scowled. "The Imperius Curse."

"Aye. The Imperius takes full control of the victim by forcing them to submit to the caster.

A particularly strong will is required to resist." He took out of the spiders from the jar and

idly pointed his wand at it. "Imperio." The spider stopped trying to scuttle away and

instead stayed put. He cast a quick enlargement making it the size of his hand before

sending it off to tapdance around the table. The spider then took a flying leap and landing

on Weasley's table gaining Barty a scream from the red-head. He immediately moved the

spider through a few other tables to spread the love before dancing it back to the table

and dropped the normal sized spider back into the jar.

"Next curse? The pain one. Longbottom?"

Longbottom snarled. Oh the poor boy. Barty might actually have had a bit of a fight on his

hands had the child recognized that one of the people who tortured his parents into

insanity was standing right in front of him! "Cruciatus. It fires every nerve ending and

makes the victim wish they died."

"Good. That is the physical result of twisting the soul of the victim. About five minutes

continuous exposure will utterly break most minds. A few particular individuals can last a

bit longer. Once you start hitting ten continuous minutes though, well it doesn't really

matter how strong the mind is because the body starts failing. The heart drops out first

most times but it's been known to rupture arteries throughout the body too." Barty

grabbed his second spider and a quick cruicio later, the thing was twitching and jerking all

over the desk. He didn't hold it long. He wasn't a monster after all. It's not like he was

Bellatrix or one of the Lestrange brothers!

"Third curse. Potter?"

Harry sighed and nodded leaning back. "The Killing Curse."

"Correct. Avada Kedevra. An interesting fact about this one, it's well known that you need

to hate in order to cast it. What isn't as well known is that that hate can be self-hatred. So

never let your guard down around someone you think doesn't like you even if you're

convinced they can't muster up hating you. They could always try hating themselves and

use that to curse you from behind. It's happened before. Constant Vigilance!" Barty

smirked to himself as he caught several of the students with his shout. He drew out the

third spider and a quick green flash later, the spider was gone.

Davis raised her hand and Barty nodded to her. "Professor, you said those curses target the

soul. But the First Task basically proved that most animals don't have one. Or at least, the

chimera doesn't have one. How can the Killing Curse work on them then? How can any of

them work on animals?"

Barty nodded his approval. This girl was no slouch. "They're all hybrid spells. For example,

Avada Kedavra is a combination of a livestock killing curse from ancient times tied into the

soul targeting one from a millennium or two ago. The two working together are what make

it so dangerous. Just the soul targeting and it wouldn't do very much. Just the livestock one

and it couldn't affect humans. But with both, the initial intent of each spell is twisted and

perverted into something that can affect any living animal or person it touches and

instantly separates souls from bodies. The other two are similar corruptions of base spells

allowing them to work on any living target as well. Good question, Davis. Ten points to

Slytherin."

Barty grinned. "Now, let's try resisting the Imperius shall we? You'll never be able to

practice this real world so might as well do a bit of it now while we have the chance." And

if he could ensure Potter or one of his cohorts was his completely…well all the better!

The rest of the class was an exercise in amusement for Barty. Almost none had been able

to put up any sort of defense against his Imperius Curse. Of course he was rather skilled

with it, but still, it was somewhat disappointing. Malfoy was bouncing around like the

ferret he was; Finnegan was quacking like a duck; Weasel kissed a spider…the interesting

people finally came with Potter's group. Greengrass was barely under for two seconds

before she threw the curse off completely. Longbottom was able to wriggle out from his

control after about five seconds. Granger's organized mind let him in easily enough but

somehow his commands kept getting lost in an internal labyrinth and she managed to

throw him out completely after a few seconds. It was an unusual defense but privately

Barty admitted it was effective. The true surprises though had been Potter and Davis.

Neither was swayed for even a moment! He had expected some resistance from Potter

especially after learning that he was resistant to Veela but Davis! Perhaps it had something

to do with the rumors about the diary the girl had possessed briefly during her second

year?

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Chapter 212

The students left the class giving Barty something to think on. He'd have to let his Master

know of course. The Dark Lord would most likely still want to test Potter himself. Who

knew, maybe the boy would actually end up surviving this next Task too and come even

closer to satisfying the Dark Lord's curiosity!

The last Hogsmeade weekend before the Second Task was upon the school and many were

taking advantage of the little bit of leisure offered. Unfortunately not everyone was

looking forward to the day's activities; Daphne and Tracey, for one, were arguing together

near the Black Lake. "Oh so now you want to spend time with me?" Tracey said glaring at

her girlfriend.

Daphne rolled her eyes and snorted. "What is that supposed to mean? We're dating. Of

course I want to spend time with you."

"Are we dating? Are we really dating, Daphne?" Tracey asked. She tossed her head and

crossed her arms. "I barely even see you anymore. Even in the dorms you're always either

studying and making notes or just falling right asleep. You spend all your time with him!"

Daphne gaped for a moment utterly lost, before her eyes narrowed and she stood up

straighter. "Are you talking about Harry? Seriously?"

"Oh course I'm talking about Harry! Who bloody else would I be talking about?"

"Jealousy is very unbecoming of you, Tracey," Daphne said lowly and crossing her own

arms. "You know very well that all I'm doing is trying to keep our friend alive."

"Oh please, don't give me that shite. He's being personally tutored by two of the best

professors in the school, the youngest Auror of her generation and a Veela in her last

year!"

"And not a single one of them know or are willing to teach the things that I do!" Daphne

yelled back. "He saved your life, Tracey! Why are you being like this?"

"You both saved my life, Daph!" Tracey snarled and turned away. "I feel like I'm losing you

to a guy who doesn't even freaking get it!"

"Tracey, I'm not going anywhere," Daphne said with a heavy sigh. She started to reach out

to Tracey but dropped her hand halfway through the gesture. "I'm also not going to

apologize for spending my time with Harry either. There're at least two, possibly three

people, trying to kill him this year. I have very few true friends and I refuse to risk losing

one because my girlfriend is jealous."

"He let you give him those tattoos, Daph," Tracey said softly. "I've looked that up. Done

wrong, you could've made him a squib or worse. Do you have any idea how much he trusts

you? Or are you willfully ignoring it?"

"He's my friend, Trace." Daphne moved to stand next to the other girl both staring out

over the lake. "I'm not going to abandon you just because I have someone else I care about.

We've known each other since we were five. How can you think I'd just leave?"

"You're avoiding the question."

"Trace…"

"Whatever," Tracey shook her head and turned on her heel to start walking towards the

gates. "I think I'll go on this thing alone today."

Daphne's eyes widened and she opened her mouth to say something to her friend before

slowly shaking her head and deciding against it. Instead she just started walking slowly

after her and slotted into the line to get out of the gates by Fleur, Tonks, Hermione and

Harry.

Daphne heard Harry talking emphatically with Tonks and Hermione. "I'm sure. You two go,

I'll just wander for a bit. I need to pick up some sugar quills and other snacks anyway and

you guys need to hang out alone more if this going to work between the three of us."

Tonks rolled her eyes. "Well if you want to miss out on all this hot action between your

partners that's your prerogative, Wonder Boy." She looped an arm through one of

Hermione's and waved to the others. "I'll take care of the brainy beauty, Harry. Don't mope

too much!"

Fleur smirked and stepped up to Harry's side. "Would you mind showing me around ze

town, 'arry? I 'ave yet to see zis area."

Harry shrugged and said, "Sure, I can show you a few of the sights."

Daphne saw Tonks cast a calculating glance at Fleur before the metamorph shrugged.

"Have fun you two. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Harry smirked. "So I can pretty much do anything then?"

Hermione leaned back and playfully smacked the back of his head. "Don't be a prat, Harry.

No teasing Tonks on date day."

"Spoilsport," Harry chuckled. He turned to Daphne and frowned as he saw her carefully

neutral expression. "Daph," Harry said softly, "you okay? Why is Tracey up there and

you're back here? I thought you guys were going to spend some together today?"

Daphne smiled at him, admittedly slightly surprised that he had seen through her mask so

easily. "We had a bit of a fight. She's angry and wanted to be alone for a while. I'll meet up

with her later."

"You should come wiz us zen," Fleur said nodding to the Slytherin. Daphne cocked her

head to the side considering for a long moment. She was about to say no when Luna

walked past the small group.

"Don't worry, Daphne. I'll keep Tracey company. You go and enjoy the day," the younger

girl said with a dreamy smile.

"Well…okay, sure. Might as well. Will you make sure she's not too depressed or angry for

me?"

Luna nodded. "Of course." She crossed the short distance and Daphne distantly heard Luna

comment, "Hello, Tracey. I think I should walk with you today."

"I'd actually rather prefer to be alone at the moment, Luna. I need to think a bit," Tracey

said.

"But you'll never get to think if you are alone while frustrated like that," Luna stated

matter-of-factly. "It attracts the blibbering humdingers. Once they start chattering you'll

never be able to think easily with the racket they cause."

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Chapter 213

Daphne snorted at the little Ravenclaw's tactic though she noted with a small grin that

Tracey just rolled her eyes and let Luna lead her forward. Trust Luna to brighten the mood.

"I still find it hard to believe that you are so okay with all this, Hermione," Tonks said

drinking her butterbeer next to the brunette in the Three Broomsticks. The one good thing

about the Skeeter fallout had been that she didn't have to try and hide that she was in a

relationship with the two teens. And how weird was that…That her mother and cousin had

managed to spin it from being weird and creepy into Tonks upholding true pureblood

standards boggled her mind. Politics made no sense whatsoever.

Hermione shrugged and sipped her own drink. "My parents are rather open-minded. They

certainly never expected me to enter into a polyamorous union, but they were remarkably

accepting when I brought it up originally. I'm somewhat convinced that they were worried

I'd come home magically bound and married before I hit fifteen. So when I told them I was

going to have both a boyfriend and a girlfriend they were simply far too happy I wasn't

married to care about the particulars."

Tonks snorted and her hair shifted colors as she tried to keep her laughter in check. "Wow.

I think I'm going to like your folks, Hermione."

The younger girl grinned. "From what Harry said about your mother – and Luna's

comments about her additions to the Quibbler article – I imagine Andromeda will get

along quite well with them too."

"Oh, Merlin, that's going to be a scary combination," Tonks groaned. She shuddered

slightly. "Two dentists and a Black daughter…I weep for whoever gets in their way. Us

included."

Hermione waved it off. "We'll just deflect to Sirius. He's a good target for deflection. The

four of them can get into a mini war and forget about the rest of us."

Tonks laughed. "Oh that is too perfect! You sure you aren't a Slytherin?"

"I might have a bit of Gryfferin tendencies ever so often," she replied with a smirk.

"Well they are adorable to hear," Tonks said. She leaned over and gently kissed Hermione.

Both girls pulled back blushing slightly. "You know you never really did answer my actual

comment."

"I didn't, did I?" Hermione paused for a moment and frowned in thought. "Honestly I think

it mostly comes down to Harry. I've always been rather independent and headstrong. I

used to practically worship books – even my mother's romance novels. I loved those books,

but I knew I could never be like the heroines in them. Those women drop everything for

their man and tend to be rather subservient. I can't do that. I don't need to be directing

everything, but I need a strong say in matters. But Harry…he needs more support than I

feel I can give him alone. I can rein him in when he starts going off on tangents or taking

his experiments too far. But with how he was raised…I don't feel like I'd be enough. I love

that boy and I want him to be as happy as possible. If I have to share him to ensure that

he's happy I'm fine with that."

Hermione blushed deeper and said, "It also helps that no matter what form you're in, you

are quite attractive, Tonks. I don't mean your body. I mean your mind. I haven't met many

women who stand up for themselves and others like you have. It's…inspiring."

Tonks smiled warmly and looped an arm around Hermione's shoulders. "Thanks, Hermione.

That's really sweet of you. And if you want, Harry's taken to calling me 'Nym' when we're

alone. You can do that too." Hermione leaned into Tonks' side and mumbled something.

"Say again? Didn't catch that one."

Lifting her head slightly, Hermione shyly murmured, "I like that, Nym. Call me, Mione."

Tonks smiled and hugged the younger girl tighter.

"And this is Zonko's," Harry said gesturing towards the joke shop. "They have some fun

stuff, but their inventory never really changes and apparently it hasn't added more than

one or two new items since Sirius' day. It's part of the reason why Fred and George are

expecting to do so well and why my prank runes are selling so quickly. Together the three

of us might end up putting Zonko's out of business if they don't step up their game."

"Very impressive, 'arry," Fleur said nodding along. She noticed Daphne smiling

appreciatively at Harry on his other side. The friendship between the two was rather

intriguing to Fleur. Both were attached to others, yet both gravitated to the each other as

well. Fleur could feel the attraction thanks to her nature just as she could feel the strained

bond between Daphne and Tracey. The whole situation certainly complicated her goals.

Harry's budding romance with Tonks hadn't been unexpected. That Fleur hadn't made

better progress prior to the official start of the relationship was a little disappointing

perhaps, but not disastrous. She still had several months left with which to build her own

foundation; she just had to insure that that foundation now included three bases instead

of two. Granted, she was more interested in the two teenagers then the metamorphmagus,

but Tonks was certainly nice enough herself to maintain Fleur's interest so it wasn't a deal

breaker. The woman's battle prowess and determination was exceedingly impressive not

to mention the humor she brought to the table. Both Harry and Hermione needed to relax

more so that was probably the best contribution. Fleur could tease all day long, but she

knew she rather lacked in the jokes department.

Daphne though made things far more…interesting. If the girl ever decided to make a move,

Fleur could easily see herself shunted to the side. She somewhat doubted that Harry would

be accepting of four women in his life. It would be hard enough to convince him that he

was worthy of three. With the trust and support both showed the other…Fleur had to start

seriously considering whether she wanted to ramp up her attempts or simply step aside

and encourage the other girl. She seriously didn't see the relationship between the two

Slytherins lasting much longer – especially not while Luna Lovegood was still available as a

shoulder for Tracey to cry on afterwards. Fleur could only hope that when the break finally

happened, the two still remained friends.

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Chapter 214

Perhaps after the next Task was over she would speak to Hermione and get the younger

girl's thoughts. Beating around the bush was not going to work much longer and she

needed to know whether the brunette would even be open to it. She'd probably have to

speak with Daphne at some point before Yule as well if only to offer her advice concerning

Tracey. If Daphne did prove to be interested…well perhaps they could both join forces and

attempt to convince Harry to accept each of them as Consorts.

It was certainly a nice dream.

"And this is Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop. I'm not taking either of you in there so don't

even bother teasing me, Daph…" Harry droned on beside her. Fleur smiled again at the

young man. He really was simply adorable.

"That shop sells some corsets and lots of lingerie plus some other stuff. I'm not entirely

sure what, but I do know that it is all supposed to be somewhat adult oriented. At least I

would assume so since McGonagall has made it clear if she ever catches any student in

there we won't we be out of detention for months. This building over here is – "

Fleur's attention snapped back to the moment and she stopped to peer critically at the

'clothes' shop. "Adult oriented you say?" Fleur said interrupting Harry. He turned back to

her and she grinned. His little shudder was so cute. Daphne's hungry grin was also rather

welcome. "I zink zis shop has promise."

"Fleur," Daphne said with a note of amusement. "From what the older Slytherins say, that

shop's other items are of a somewhat more…personal use; or at least items meant for use

with just a partner. They sell rather unholy things dealing with rubber and leather from

what I hear."

Fleur's grin widened. Yes, this indeed fit her interests nicely! "Even better. Come along,

Harry!"

"Wait, what?!" Harry shouted as both girls grabbed his arms and maneuvered him. "I'll

wait outside! I'll wait outside!"

The weekend following the Hogsmeade outing, Harry again sat waiting in the tent prior to

starting the Second Task sweating and scratching at his new tattoos. The Spiker and the

Knockback were still itching almost two weeks after application. Shiva and Madame

Pomfrey had taken a look and both insisted that the itching was just in his mind. He wasn't

sure if that was supposed to make him feel better.

His utility belt was back in the stands with Shiva again and he was hopeful that he'd

actually be able to use it this time. He really wanted to have the Silver Spirit if he was

going to be fighting something that induced depression. The Sword would probably work,

but using it still scared him and it was definitely not a distance weapon anyway.

Bagman walked into the tent again all smiles and practically bouncing. One of these days

Harry really was going to end up punching the man. Or Viktor would do it. Viktor was

getting increasingly short-tempered with the former Quidditch player. Bagman apparently

had been trying to hound the younger Champion for playing tips. Harry was privately

supremely thankful that the idiot hadn't focused on him and he and Viktor had shared

some butterbeers and a few prank runes over the annoyance. The announcer still had the

purple hair induced by the Metahair rune Harry had given Viktor earlier in the week.

"I hope everyone is excited for the Second Task!" Bagman said. Crickets greeted him. "Yes,

well, successful completion of this Task will see you given the key to opening your golden

egg from the First Task afterwards. This time we won't be drawing for opponents, however

we will be drawing for turn order. Miss Delacour, if you please." Fleur ended up with the

fourth slot this time while Harry took third, Viktor took second and Fred first. "A final

reminder that you will unable to exit the arena until the Task is complete. This event's

primary opponent will be an…alternate version of yourself. At least that's the idea! I don't

know if you've heard of them, but in Australia they've been testing a new device termed

the Aspect Column. This item is a large runic array construct that samples anyone

approaching within a certain distance. It will then create a phantom version of that person

for them to fight against. The phantom embodies their darker elements and is intended to

act both as a training aid and as a tool to assist in personal reflection. I wish you all the

best of luck! Show those doppelgangers what for!"

Still smiling Bagman left them alone and Harry relaxed ever so slightly. Turning to Fleur he

tried to grin a bit though he only managed a very slight pull at his lips. "Well, at least it's

not a horde of Dementors." Harry's forced levity faded as he took in Fleur's extremely

worried expression. "Hey, Fleur? Fleur. Fleur!"

She jerked and shook her head. Turning to him she let out a sigh. "Sorry, 'arry. Zis Task…I

do not zink I will enjoy zis." Harry just grimace and squeezed her shoulder in support.

Viktor shrugged and gave her a salute from the other side of the room. "Vell you made a

hydra appear easy. I vould think you vill better than you expect here."

"Yeah, it'll be fine. How bad can this be? It's intended to be used as a training and

reflection aid. The phantoms shouldn't actually be able to do too much to us I'd think,"

Fred said nodding his agreement.

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Chapter 215

Harry shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. "Three things, Fred. One, Umbridge

is involved. Two, when has anything I'm involved in been simple like that? Three, made in

Australia. The country where even the grass can kill you."

Fred opened his mouth, closed it, held up his hand, put down and eventually groaned.

"Point taken." The gong sounded and Fred shrugged. "Well, guess I'll find out in a moment.

Good luck everyone."

Fred walked into the battlefield with a smile plastered on his face a bounce in his step.

Even if he was nervous it wouldn't due to show that before facing the enemy. After contact

all rules went away but beforehand, appearances were paramount. He saw the perimeter

barrier flare into life and immediately lifted his wand to summon his potions jacket from

George. Nodding with a genuinely happy grin, he watched the tools sail through the ward

and into his outstretched hand. Casually tossing his jacket on, he strode towards the large

pillar in the center of the stage.

The meter-diameter pillar had etchings across each of its eight faces, inscriptions done in

both red and black at seemingly random intervals. The whole structure itself was

seemingly pure white and slightly translucent with a dull fading pulse of light emanating

inside. The light illuminated the runes every few seconds in a manner that was partly

creepy and partly beautiful. Once Fred got within about 50 meters of the pillar the light

flared briefly and every visible rune lit up.

As the spots in his eyes faded, Fred looked out and narrowed his eyes in confusion. A little

ways ahead, directly in front of him was a man who looked somewhat like Fred. An older

Fred. A Fred who had lost quite a bit of hair, the remainder of which had lost a lot of the

vibrant red and seemed almost dull. Evil Fred wore glasses and a pinstriped set of robes

and was carrying a briefcase in one hand and a stack of papers in the other. He looked

exhausted. An impression not helped when he squinted towards Fred and sighed.

Setting the briefcase on the ground, Evil Fred rubbing his forehead above his glasses. "Ah.

An Aspect Column. I think I'm supposed to fight you, but there doesn't seem to be much

point."

Fred frowned and cautiously walked forward. He made a short circle around his

doppelganger finally ending in front of him and poked the Evil Twin in the side of mouth. A

small grimace and rolled eyes was the only reply. "Who are you?" Fred asked rather

confused.

"I'm you. Well more specifically, I'm what you're afraid you could be," Evil Fred said simply.

"Nah, not buying it. You're hardly an Evil Fred. Maybe a Percy Fred but not an Evil Fred. Evil

Fred would be trying to kill me with a Lightning Swamp or a Cat-Got-The-Canary or a

Twister-In-A-Can. You're an awful Evil Fred," the redhead said cocking his head to the side.

"Did I say I was evil?" Not So Evil Fred asked with raised eyebrows in a dull, bored voice. "I

said I'm what you're afraid of becoming. I'm you without George. I'm you without Alicia.

I'm you without Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. I'm the you who lost everyone and just

doesn't really care enough to do much of anything anymore. I'm the you that Mum thinks

we are. The one who doesn't amount to much of anything and just walks through life

letting opportunity after opportunity pass him by."

Fred had grown increasingly nervous during the little monologue and had slowly backed

away from the double, bringing his wand to bear. "I'd never sink to the depths that you

have. I'd find something to be excited about."

Evil Fred shrugged. "Why bother? There's no reason to get excited if there's no one to

share it with. I lost half myself when George died and I lost the rest when Alicia left."

Fred shook his head trying to push down the little voice that was nodding along with the

clone and whole-heartedly agreeing that it fully understood exactly what the other man

was saying. "No. No I refuse to acknowledge that! Let's get this over with you pompous

prat!" He plunged a hand into the left pocket of his jacket and pulled out a Squawking

Growth Egg. That'd work nicely as a distraction.

Evil Fred just gave a sad grin. "It's been quite a long time since I fought an actual battle so

like I said originally, there's not much point to this. Perhaps we could instead check my

report on cauldron thickness over for errors?" He hefted the stack of papers in his hand

and waved it in Fred's direction." "I've been told by Percy and his assistants that my work

could qualify as attempted murder. If you make it all the way through without quitting we

call it your win?"

Fred gaped in horror. What could possibly cause him to ever turn into…this?! He

completely forgot about all his tools and potions and prank stones and just cast a powerful

reducto at the Evil Twin. The doppelganger didn't even try to dodge and as a large hole

appeared in the center of his chest, he flicked out of existence and the light in the Aspect

Column faded away.

Shuddering and fighting to avoid hyperventilating, Fred turned on his heel and quickly

paced out of the arena.

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Chapter 216

Viktor was feeling slightly anxious over the lack of excited calls and frenzied commentary.

The First Task had left him with a keen sense of just how dangerous things could get and he

dearly hoped that Fred's Task had not been so incredibly deadly that the audience was too

shocked to even cry out if he had been killed. Viktor liked the jokester. The man was funny

and had a good sense of humor. Not to mention he appreciated Viktor's attempts to be

somewhat more social. He sincerely hoped the man had made it through okay.

Walking towards the large white pillar Viktor paused as it lit up momentarily blinding him.

As his vision cleared, Viktor's eyes widened and he stumbled back a step, throwing up a

hand in front of him and desperately attempting to keep his stomach from rebelling.

In front of him, there was a huge, dirty, grotesque mass of flesh. It was sitting down on the

ground, the robes covering it were stained all over. Pieces of food and condiments were

still openly prevalent in places. The thing had to be over 600 pounds! The mass cocked

what must have been its head towards him and spoke, "I forgot I used to be skinny. Do you

have any food? I'm – "

Viktor uttered a blood-curdling scream and whipped his wand forward casting a

continuous series of the most destructive curses he could think of. 30 seconds later, the

horrid mass in front of the Bulgarian had been wiped from existence and Viktor ran from

the arena desperate for alcohol or someone who could obliviate him.

Harry concentrated on his breathing as he stepped into the arena. He felt the perimeter

ward flare and stopped to quickly examine the wardstone nearby. Breathing out a quick

sigh of relief he saw it would actually let items and people in this time. Raising his wand,

Harry called his utility belt to him and smiled as the rune stone harness flew into his hand.

Taking the time to carefully strap it on, Harry turned to the white pillar in the center. He

briefly tried to decipher the mass of carvings and etchings on the structure, but shook his

head after a few moments. Figuring out how it worked would take too long – the

interweaves were just far too intricate to risk carefully dismantling it.

Squaring his shoulders, Harry walked forward. The Aspect Column flared in response and

as the light died Harry's doppelganger came into view. Evil Harry was dressed all in black

with form fitting cargo pants and a skintight T-shirt. His bare arms were covered in tattoos

and there were several around his eyes and ears as well. The twin had a belt looped

around him with dozens of dangling rune stones and more hung from a harness similar to

Harry's draped over his chest though the twin's had far more stones. He wasn't wearing

glasses and his hair had been cut extremely short barely even qualifying as a buzz cut.

Evil Harry grinned and Harry felt a shiver run up his spine. That was a predator's grin

through and through and it promised pain. "Well this is interesting." The doppelganger

twisted so that he could take in the pillar behind him and as he turned back to Harry the

grin grew even larger. "So we're supposed to fight, but did you see that transference

section?" He hitched a thumb towards one part of the etchings. Harry squinted and just

managed to make out a Soul rune before redirecting his attention back to his opponent

who had shifted slightly to the side. "Nice bit of work there. I can use that. If I'm careful I

might even be able to switch in before I disappear."

The shiver of fear turned into an icy spike of pure dread. "Switch in?" he asked, mouth

completely dry.

"Yeah. Switch into you. Have to oust the original soul though. I think I have…ah here we

go," Evil Harry purred as he caressed a small rune stone on one of his belts. "I haven't used

the Soul Rend stone since I killed old Tommy Boy. But let's not jump straight there. I know

I'm technically not real yet, but I feel real enough. And I have had so few real challenges for

so long. Might as well enjoy this before I claim your body."

Harry gulped. It was just a projection right? It couldn't actually do that? It was a…shite!

Harry's eyes widened as he caught sight of a pulsing segment of the Column higher up. It

was supposed to be the safety features, but it didn't look to be strongly tied into anything

beyond the banishing cluster. This doppelganger would disappear sure, but anything it did

while still corporeal was fair game.

His Evil Twin looked like he was going to keep monologuing so Harry used the opportunity

to launch into a spell chain. There was no point in limiting his arsenal at all. His spells

couldn't get out of the barrier, his Evil Twin wasn't exactly real and, most importantly of all,

this arse wanted to destroy his soul and take up residence. No mercy was warranted.

He sent the most destructive spells he knew at Evil Harry, everything Daphne had grilled

into him, all the higher level items that Fleur had taught, the more dangerous spells that

Flitwick showed and the more explosive varieties of transfiguration that McGonagall had

directed him in. For a full minute Harry launched spell after spell not pausing even once.

Breathing hard he finally let the arsenal stop and waited for the dust surrounding his target

to clear.

"Not bad!" A mirthful voice sounded from the haze causing Harry's eyes to widen in horror.

"You're what? A Fourth Year? That was pretty impressive actually." A slow clap resounded

across the battlefield and Harry could only stare. His doppelganger stood in the exact same

spot he'd been in before with a glimmering sheen of a shield surrounding him. Some minor

pockmarks surrounded his booted feet but there wasn't a scratch on the man himself.

"That's not possible," Harry whispered. "Some of those were designed to blast apart

shields…"

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Chapter 217

Evil Harry shrugged. "You've been designing the Fortress of Solitude for years. Did you

think I'd just sit idle and not have perfected it? Such a useful little thing." He lifted his shirt

with that crazy smile evident and lightly fingered a rune cluster tattooed into his stomach.

"I figured out the movement problem by the way, so in addition to every attack

strengthening my shield I'm not limited to staying put with it active. Plus I even managed

to build in a modification for my arsenal so I can attack without having to drop it! You can't

touch me, Mini-Me while I get impunity to fire off whatever I want! Care to try to guess the

password to shut it down? I'll give you one free shot at it."

Harry gaped. His Evil Twin had worked out an even more gamebreaking form of the shield

from his first real conversation with Shiva…that was…he was screwed. He was going to lose

his soul and die. He didn't even know how to finish his own weaker version let alone how

to beat a monster-sized variant!

"Um…err…uh…" Harry desperately tried to think of what he'd possibly use as a password

lock on a personal shield. If his double was going to try and be sporting then Harry needed

to use the opportunity since it was probably going to be the only shot he had at survival.

Opening his mouth to start to say his own intended password, Harry quickly snapped it

closed and bit off the word before it could form. This version of himself wouldn't use

Harry's password. He'd use a perverted form. Stall. He had to stall. "Can I ask a question

first?"

Evil Harry shrugged. "Sure. Why not? Go ahead."

"What happened to you?"

"Oh such a loaded question!" his twin smirked and shrugged. "Mostly I got tired of dealing

with the idiots and hypocrites surrounding me. I got exhausted of being told again and

again that I couldn't cut the legs out from under the people torturing me and trying to kill

me year after year. When Luna died because they convinced me to hold back I…decided I'd

had enough. The school fell the next day. The Ministry in under a week. I killed Tommy Boy

about three days after that," his grin widened and he started laughing. "That was fun

actually. He tried to run from his body. I ate his soul. Nym, Nev and Shiva all said I went too

far and turned on me then. I had to kill them before they killed me. Hermione lasted longer.

My glorious Dark Lady stuck with me through the entire time it took to take over Britain,

Europe and Asia. She only decided to betray me when I started to think about how to get

rid of magic-hating Muggles."

Evil Harry frowned and rubbed his chin while Harry just gaped in mind numbing shock. "I

still don't get why she had a problem with that. I have nothing against Muggles in general.

It wasn't like I was going to touch her parents. I just wanted to kill all the people like the

Dursleys. Maybe some politicians too…Ah whatever, point is I had to kill her too. I was

willing to just let her have the Americas, but she insisted we had to fight. I like to think it

was her way of apologizing and ensuring I moved on." He raised an eyebrow. "I guess I

shouldn't really be all that surprised that Daphne was the only one to stay at my side. It's

ironic really. I was going to give her the Fortress tattoo but the Weasleys got to her the

night before. Killed her in her sleep." Evil Harry's eyes darkened. "I stopped playing nice

then. No more Benevolent Overlord for me! I went full Evil Overlord after that. Didn't take

much longer to take over everything. Amazing what a bit of logic, practicality and

ruthlessness will do isn't it? Granted it helps that I'm functionally immortal, can't be

touched by spells, am immune to any and all poisons and made sure to anchor my soul to

my body so that Gryffindor's Sword won't do anything if I accidentally cut myself. Does

that answer your question?"

Harry worked his mouth for a few long moments before violently shaking his head side to

side. "No. No! I'd never do that! I'd never do any of that! I'd never hurt them! I'd never –

no!"

Evil Harry rolled his eyes. "Some part of you obviously would. Otherwise that pathetic

thing would never have made me," he gestured to the Aspect Column. "Now, I'd have your

guess to my Fortress password so we can get on with this, please."

Harry kept shaking his head trying to think through the voice inside screaming that the Evil

Twin was wrong, that he would never do what had just been described. He didn't fully

succeed.

"Uh, Vader marches on."

Evil Harry cocked his head and smirked. "Not a bad one. That was one of my first. Changed

it after Hermione died though." His grin turned predatory again. "My turn."

Harry barely managed to jump to the side as a rock spike nearly four feet in diameter flew

from his doppelganger's lower arm tattoo. The thing impacted so close to him that Harry

felt the wind on his pants leg and then he was rolling again, dodging a storm of lighting

shooting out the man's right hand. Twisting to the side Harry somehow managed to leap

over a stream of bubbling tar that spewed from his twin's other elbow.

Harry tried to raise a wall separating them only to see a small rune stone sailed over it.

Eyes wide, Harry quickly lifted the Freezer and encased it in a layer of ice. The small

grenade rune stone exploded an instant later showering ice everywhere and leaving Harry

with many small bleeding cuts. The wall melted a second after revealing his twin who had

been walking slowly forward with all the speed of a determined Terminator. It was all

Harry could do to turn enough to raise his left forearm and send out a spike of his own

towards Evil Harry. The twin didn't even bother dodging; he just reached up and flicked a

finger sending the spike ricocheting off into the outer barrier.

Cursing, Harry jumped backwards to avoid another lightning strike and tried to send his

Silver Spirit panther towards the doppelganger. Evil Harry let it come still grinning and

spread his arms wide. Harry watched the silver form crash into the shield surrounding his

twin and simply vanished in a bright flash. He let out a scream of pain and collapsed to the

ground, clutching his arms around his sides. His body felt like it had just been soaked in

water and attached to a live wire.

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Chapter 218

Evil Harry chuckled. "To be fair, without the Fortress that actually would have been a good

idea. The Spirit can't really be blocked easily. Unfortunately for you, as a mostly magical

construct my Fortress eats it. As it has a tiny part of you inside it you feel the pain as it dies.

Fun huh?" Harry fought off the urge to vomit and managed to slowly regain his feet,

breathing hard. "You're doing better than I expected honestly. I would've thought I'd have

at least taken one of your arms or legs by now. Let's keep going!"

Harry saw his twin lift his arms, bringing them together and without thinking Harry lifted

his left hand sending out the most powerful bludgeoner he could. The spell hit the stream

of magma that had just started to issue from Evil Harry's hands and sent it straight back

over him. Harry ran forward knowing that wouldn't do much but figuring he could at least

try just straight up beating the guy down. He barely took a single step before shifting into

his animagus form and closing the distance on four paws.

Evil Harry shattered the magma dome that had covered him and grimaced as a burn

showed up momentarily on his right side. It flashed; an instant later the skin was perfectly

healed. Harry had just leaped to try and slash the man with his claws, but Evil Harry

stepped into the maneuver and caught him, tossing him off to the side. The doppelganger

raised his hand and Harry panicked. With no time to shift or dodge he lifted his left paw to

try and cast the bludgeoner again. Pain lanced down his left front leg and Harry yowled

falling onto his face.

Evil Harry eyebrows rose. He lowered his hand and started laughing. Harry yowled again

and shifted back to human. He could barely even feel his left arm and he knew he wouldn't

be running on it anymore. "Was that your first time trying to use an R-Tat while shifted?"

Evil Harry wheezed out between breaths. "They alter as your shape does, idiot! If you want

to do that you need to completely redo any interesting ones on your other form and avoid

using those while human! It's not remotely worth the trouble, Mini-Me." He finally got his

laughing under control and shook his head in amusement. "I love to run on four legs, but

the cat's rather useless for me in a fight when I have all this to use instead," he said

gesturing to his encompass his body.

Harry grunted and risked a glance into the stands while his Evil Twin was still distracted. He

had figured someone would've tried to get in to help by this point. His eyes widened as he

saw most of his main group prowling the edge of the barrier ward and Shiva fiddling with

three other Tournament supervisors with the Ward Anchor. "Oh, you finally noticed?" Evil

Harry asked sounding surprised. "I added my own Anchor while you were hiding from the

Feedback grenade. No one's interrupting us. I'd really like that body of yours. It's so

annoying to not be actually real you know? Stupid pathetic pillar can't even pull from

alternate universes."

With a start Harry suddenly realized something. Both he and his doppelganger had been

ignored the easiest way to win this battle. Well, really the only way for Harry to win this

battle. But…he wasn't strong or skilled enough to pull it off like a Gryffindor. He'd have to

do it like a Slytherin instead.

Shifting a meter to the side and trying to shake a bit of feeling into his left arm he managed

to grab one of the Chain Reactor Beams from its pouch. "One more dance then?" Harry

asked trying to display some confidence he definitely wasn't feeling.

Evil Harry smirked. "Of course, Mini-Me. Let's make this sporting again. I can see from here

that's one of your single use stones so I'll give you one more free shot. I'll even agree to

show you my improved version once yours fails!"

Harry gulped, but raised his hand and charged the stone. Barely a second after he took aim,

the Chain Reactor Beam reached cascade failure and the energies of the feedback loop fed

into itself. Each failing rune set had its destructive power directed into the next layer. The

final result was a magical Beam-of-War almost two feet wide and pure white streaking

across the battlefield towards his Evil Twin's feet. He had aimed to try and destroy the

earth around the double and have him be cut up by the debris. It didn't work very well.

The beam only lasted a second or two and ended up doing more tunneling than exploding.

Evil Harry nodded towards him and waved a hand at the new crater. "That was the original

version of the Chain Reactor right? Not really your best idea to use that here, but hey, B for

effort! Now," he grinned and lifted a rune stone from a pocket, "here's my version. The

Yamato Cannon."

Harry watched the orange energy of destruction form on the face of the rune in slow

motion. He waited just long enough for the energy's path to be inevitable before leaping to

the side. The Yamato Cannon's shot was nearly six feet wide and almost pure orange.

Instead of a long lasting beam though, it was more like a cohesive ball of roiling energy

with a flaming tail of power. Harry was rather grateful for that honestly since had it been

any longer lasting, his doppelganger could have twisted to hit him as he moved.

Harry grinned triumphantly as the energy ball smashed into the Aspect Column behind

where Harry had been standing before he dodged. The Pillar didn't stand a chance. It

exploded in a shower of rock shards and tongues of flame. Evil Harry roared and started to

reach for him before vanishing in a twinkle of light.

Harry blinked a few times making sure it hadn't been just a trick. He could hear the sounds

of the audience gasping again. Nodding to himself, Harry turned towards where Shiva was

standing at the Ward Anchor gaping at him and started shuffling forward holding his limp

left arm.

Fleur didn't know exactly why they were taking so long to usher her turn in. She had heard

quite a lot of muted explosions and desperate shouting following by two blasts that

managed to ruffle the tent. It had been all she could do to avoid rushing out and trying to

help and the final blasts were just too much. By the time the crowd started cheering she

had been standing and reaching for the flap out. Now ten minutes later all she had been

told was that Harry had survived his Task with a few injuries and that she would have to

wait due to damage to the arena and the need to bring in a replacement Column.

Finally the gong sounded for Fleur to start. She wasted no time in rushing out. The sooner

she finished this, the sooner she could find her friend and make certain he was alright.

Stepping into the battlefield, the barrier flared behind her and she briskly strode towards

the translucent pillar in the center. The Aspect Column flashed and Fleur froze solid. In her

fears about Harry, she had forgotten just why she was so worried about this specific Task.

Unfortunately, her cause for concern had not been overstated.

In front of Fleur, was a mirror version. One that didn't bother with Fleur's self-control. One

that not only acknowledged her heritage, but took it to the logical extreme. This

doppelganger was clad in form-hugging yoga pants and a skintight white top. Neither left

anything to the imagination. Her arms were completely covered with feathers and her face

was slightly angular while her wings had fully formed and were curled against her back

regally. In short, the twin made no effort at all to appear remotely normal. She was not

human; she was a harpy.

"Ah. My, my, how strange," the harpy said cocking her head and peering at Fleur not unlike

a bird would do. She felt icy pangs of fear snake through her. This was not good at all. "You

are me, but not me. You are...far too human. Why?"

"My fazzer was human," Fleur snarled. "As is yours if I understand zis correctly."

The harpy shrugged. "Of course I have human blood. All Veela have human blood. We

certainly wouldn't be mating with centaurs or goblins now would we?" She shuddered at

the thought and then narrowed her eyes. "I was not speaking of blood. I was speaking of

mannerisms, sister. Why hide who and what you are? Why cloak yourself in the human

deception? Be free! Be strong!"

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Chapter 219

"You do not know of what you speak!" Fleur said. Her hands clenched and she had to fight

to keep her feathers from showing. That would be a rather quick loss of this moral

argument. "You would 'ave me constantly broadcast zat I am not one zem? Zat I am to be

feared? Are you mad?!"

The harpy chuckled though it held no mirth. "But you aren't one of them. You are Veela!

You are strong and proud and worthy of their adulation, their devotion, their worship!

Take what you want from who you want! You are Veela!"

"I am Fleur Delacour. Daughter of Sébastien and Apolline Delacour. I am not defined by my

blood!"

"Weak, foolish girl," the harpy said softly, shaking her head. "Allow me to show you what a

Veela who embraces her nature can do."

Fleur's eyes widened praying that perimeter barrier would not let the harpy do what she

obviously intended.

Harry's arm was still mostly numb, but at least he had a bit of tingling back in it and the

fingers moved when he tried to wiggle them. It was rather disconcerting to watch his hand

moving and not be able to feel it...Shiva and Tonks had stayed with him while he managed

to get the others to head back into the stands and watch Fleur after they had all been

satisfied that he wasn't going to collapse into a ball in the corner of the room. That was

certainly going to happen of course. He just thought his nervous breakdown should wait

until after Fleur got through her thing was all.

Shiva had been sending odd glances his way for the past ten minutes when Harry felt a

wave of desire and love wash over him. Harry gasped as he almost swooned from the need

to go to his goddess, to see her, to grovel in front of her, to give her everything he had and

to –

Harry uttered a strangled growl as he wrenched his mind away from the spiral loop of

devotion. "Holy freaking hellfire! Merlin's balls, that was worse than the Imperius!" He

turned to look at the others in the tent. Krum was still out like a light from the Dreamless

Sleep he had insisted on. Fred was looking towards the arena with flickers of

comprehension being repeatedly drowned out with drooling looks of devotion. Pomfrey

had sat down with a completely glazed expression. Shiva was grimacing and jerky but

gazing towards the field as well. Tonks was breathing hard and squeezing his hand in a

death grip.

"Tonks? Tonks! NYM! Snap out of it!" Harry yelled. Tonks' lips curled into a silent grimace

and her hair started shifting colors rapidly. She didn't respond at all otherwise. Harry

quickly stood and grabbed the side of her face with his good hand. "Nym! Nymphadora!

Dammit, Nym, bigger shifts! Break through!" Tonks shuddered and her body started having

little ripples run through the visible skin – evidence of rapid back and forth metamorph

changes. None of the changes were large, the last time Harry and Tonks had trained with

Fleur she had said that she usually ended up just making quick shifts between her base

body and her current chosen form. Harry assumed that's what she was doing now though

it was a lot faster and more continuous than he had ever seen her do previously.

Gasping, Tonks shook her head and her eyes cleared, her body still rippling. "Harry?

Wha-what the fucking hell is going on? I can barely think!"

"Yeah you and everyone else! We have to get to the arena; I think Fleur's Task is going as

bad as mine!"

"Yeah. Yeah, okay." She stood and immediately stumbled only being saved from falling by

Harry catching her. "I can barely walk. I have to keep shifting to keep thinking. Go ahead,

I'll catch up!"

Harry scowled and turned to Shiva. She had lifted a hand towards the arena and was

halfway out of her seat but still looking conflicted. "No. No I may need someone else to

run interference. Especially with only one good hand. Hop on my back!" He knelt down

and beckoned for Tonks to climb up in a piggyback. She looked like she was going to argue,

but shook her head and moved to him. Changing slightly so that her form was slimmer and

shorter she wrapped her arms and legs around him. "Let me know if my left hand slips,

Nym. It's still mostly useless."

"Just go!"

Standing up, Harry started running towards the arena. Thankfully the medical tent was

only a short ways from the battlefield proper. As it came into view Harry very nearly wiped

out. Fleur was in the center of the arena desperately dodging left and right, backwards and

forwards. Spells and curses were raining down into the arena from hundreds of places in

the stands. She could barely stay ahead of each spell and transfiguration. Some people

weren't bothering to toss spells but were instead throwing anything they could get their

hands on at the girl. He saw knives and chairs and Quaffles and rocks raining down into the

arena. Throughout it all, Fleur's doppelganger stood near the Aspect Column with a small

grin on her face as she glanced between Fleur and the crowd.

"I…Nym…"

"Opaque the barrier, Harry," Tonks whispered into his ear. "We'd never get close with

Queen Fleur controlling the whole fucking crowd."

Harry nodded despondently and shifted course to head towards the Ward Anchor. As he

ran, he saw some of the crowd climbing over the stands to get to the battlefield. One had

almost jumped over the side when a stunner lashed out and dropped him into

unconsciousness. Another ran into a shield and knocked himself out. Giving a quick glance

up, Harry saw Daphne and Hermione both moving in fits and spurts halfway under the

thrall of the Allure and halfway cognizant. Both were stunning and blocking anyone who

looked to be close to entering the arena while they could think straight. He uttered a silent

prayer that Queen Fleur wouldn't notice them and turn the crowd against them too.

Reaching the Ward Anchor he dropped Tonks onto the ground and knelt to examine it.

"You sure we should do this, Nym?"

"Fleur's strong and smart," she said nodding. He could hear the strain in her voice though

whether that was from the situation, the suggestion, or the effort from so much

continuous shifting he didn't know. "She can handle the harpy bitch on her own if we can

stop the rain of spells and make sure that no innocents get caught inside the damn thing

for her to worry about too."

Harry started working to modify the necessary segment. "What if one of us is inside when I

finish this? Then we could still help!"

Tonks gasped and clutched her sides. "No, I can't finish the mod so it would be me in there.

And I would be a liability because I can barely move, Harry." She gave a low moan. "Hurry,

Wonder Boy."

Scowling, Harry moved to the final segment. One man dropped to the ground right in front

of him but immediately fell to the ground unconscious from a stunner cast by Tonks. "Okay,

I...got it!" Harry yelled as the ward barrier flashed and suddenly dozens of spells and items

started ricocheting off the now solid barrier. He slumped a bit as the haze over his

thoughts cut off.

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Chapter 220

Tonks groaned and slumped over, but Harry caught her before she could fully collapse.

"Nice job, Wonder Boy."

"I hope so…Let's hope, Fleur's still going to be okay…"

"Trust her, Harry. She can do this."

Fleur took a flying leap and managed to just barely get out of the way of something that

looked suspiciously like a disemboweling curse. Abruptly, just as fast as they had started,

the rain of spells and attacks stopped. Gasping for breath and clutching her side, Fleur

cautiously looked around. She saw Harry and Tonks slumped over together near the

Anchor and the crowd glancing confusedly between themselves. The harpy's face had

devolved into a full avian appearance as she scowled.

"That's cheating," the harpy snarled. "They were mine. You took away what was mine!"

"Zey are zeir own persons!" Fleur tried to yell. It came out as little more than a loud

whisper – her voice was so hoarse from shouting spells and counter-curses and shields.

"You 'ave no claim to zem!"

"I have every claim! They were MINE! EVERYONE is MINE! Anyone I want I take! Anyone

who harms me dies! If I want someone to do something they do it! I am Veela! That is my

right!" The harpy was practically foaming at the mouth in her rage.

"You are insane!" Fleur growled. "You would 'ave my people destroy millennia of progress

for your own selfishness!"

"It is my right!" the harpy screamed. "It is your right! You want the boy. You want the girl.

Take them! You are Veela!"

Fleur finally got her breath back. She could not let this go on any longer. The harpy was still

too angry to focus properly. She was still too concerned about losing her toys. Fleur didn't

even bother responding to the accusations. She shifted. Her wings sprouted as Fleur ran

and took a running leap at the harpy. She didn't bother with forming passionfyre – it

would have taken too long to fully form. The harpy's eyes widened and her lips pulled back

in a snarl. Her arms lifted and the balls of flame began to form. The harpy had just started

to move her right hand forward as Fleur reached the Queen Bitch.

Thrusting ahead with her arm Fleur hit the harpy's chest at full speed, taloned fingers

completely extended. A shriek of rage and pain echoed and abruptly cut off. Fleur's hand

speared completely through the harpy holding the phantom's heart. She growled and

squeezed crushing the useless organ and pulled her arm back out of her doppelganger's

chest. A moment later the phantom winked out of existence and the arena barrier dropped.

Breathing deeply, Fleur turned and headed to where Harry and Tonks still sat, leaning on

each other.

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"I want them both arrested!" Umbridge screamed at the head in Rosmerta's Floo.

Rosmerta just cringed. Why she had bothered to let the toad woman in escaped her.

Head Auror Scrimgeour shut his eyes and shook his head. "No."

"What do you mean NO!?"

"N. O. No. Dolores, I may make many mistakes, but I am not incapable of learning from

some of them. The fact that you are calling me immediately after the expected end of the

Second Task in your thrice damned Tournament means that – yet again – something has

gone horribly wrong. The last time I left to arrest someone as soon as you called I nearly

lost my job for not checking my facts beforehand," Scrimgeour said scowling. Rosmerta

held in her snort. She would have paid good money to have seen that conversation.

"I am the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic!" Dolores screamed her face

going red.

"And your star is falling! Every time this Tournament goes belly-up you get another black

eye, Dolores. I have aspirations! I will not let you drag me down with you. What did they

even do this time?"

The toad woman stood up straighter and glared. "Potter destroyed Ministry property

during his Task. He is to be arrested and fined at minimum. The French abomination

mind-controlled the entire audience into her willing slaves. I will see her arrested and

Kissed before the evening ends!"

Scrimgeour made a sound somewhere between a sigh and growl. "You idiotic woman…One,

those Columns you had imported were insured by the International Committee due to the

likelihood of possible destruction – whether intentional or accidental. The very

Department you've been overseeing as Interim Head. Two, nothing any of the Champions

does while in the performance of a Triwizard Tournament Task can be prosecuted. They all

have sovereign immunity, Dolores! It's in the damn rules! Read the blasted things before

trying to cite them."

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