Harry grinned to himself as he brushed his teeth on Monday. So far it was a pretty nice day. The clouds outside were dark, but it still didn't dampen Harry's mood any. In fact, he rather enjoyed darker days. He loved to watch the rain and was often caught by Hermione sitting in the window sill while getting splashed with droplets. A snowfall would be nice before the tournament this Friday, however, and Harry was hoping for a shower of flakes. Rinsing out his mouth, Harry gave his reflection a grin and patted his face with a wash cloth. On his way to the bathroom door, he grabbed his from the towel rack on the way in and put it on on his way out.
Breath of Fire VII
By:
Satashi
Harry made his way to the great hall while finger combing his hair. When he was semi-sure they were in the usual spikes, he left it alone and strode down the hallways, letting his robe billow out behind him like a cape. Several girls waved at him on his way, to which he waved back or nodded with a smile. Upon reaching his destination, he scanned the room for his friends and found them sitting together near the front of the table, near the teachers.
"Hey guys." He greeted, lightly smacking Ron on the back of the head while he sat down. Ron nodded at him while taking a drink of pumpkin juice. "What's going on?"
"Nothing too much." Dean answered him while eating. A few moments later the sound of several wings beating met their ears. The group looked up expectantly and snagged their mail as it was delivered.
Harry gave Hedwig a bit of bacon as a thank you and then proceeded to read the Hogwarts Press while Hedwig flew back off to the owlery.
The Christmas Ball celebrating the Sorcerer's Circle went off without a hitch, writes Colin, The music was good and the food was superb as usual. Much thanks to the people who put in lots of time and hard work to make the ball a success for us students. The votes are in and the cutest couple has been voted on. The winners: Dumbledore and McGonagall.
Harry almost spit out his drink in laughter at the picture of the head master and the head of his house dancing to a particularly fast song. This one was definitely going to go into his scrap book.
Runners up include Harry Potter and Hermione Granger; Ronald Weasley and Lavender Brown. Amazingly, the trio's tendency to be in the spot light turned them all into great dancers as well. The best one being Harry Potter as he led the gang in a free for all during the Cha cha slide.
The picture now showed Harry at the head of the triangle, busting a move with his friends behind him. Grinning, Harry skipped the rest about the ball and turned to the interviews section.
This week we interviewed Ron Weasley, member of the upcoming Sorcerer's Circle tournament.
"Ron, you didn't tell me you were being interviewed!" Harry scolded, looking over the paper at his friend, who was in the process of eating a biscuit.
"Hm?" He swallowed and waved him off. "It's kind of embarrassing."
"I guess I can understand that." Harry considered, shrugging. "Oh well, congrats anyway."
"Thanks."
Colin: So, Ron, How does it feel to be part of the Sorcerer's Circle?
Ron: Pretty good, I mean, we're supposed to be elite, right? I bet my parent's are proud. *grins *
Colin: That's true. Do you think your team will go far?
Ron: Go far? Ha! We'll win this thing!
Colin: Brave words. You that confident about winning? Do you think your teammates will do as well as you hope?
Ron: Harry never ceases to surprise me. We are known for being a team and I have no doubts he will deliver what is expected of him. Hermione is also one of the smartest girls in school. If anyone can make me confident, it's her. Ginny… well she's my sister; she has never disappointed me and never will.
Collin: What about Draco Malfoy? It's no secret that your friends and he are worst enemies.
Ron: Malfoy isn't being as big of a -expletive deleted- as he used to be, and is actually working quite well with us. I still don't think we'll be 'friends' any time soon, but Malfoy can hold his own and won't be a weak link in our team.
Colin: Words of a true Wizard. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer and you hold the key to victory. Ron, I wish you the best of luck in the tournament.
Ron: thanks, Colin.
Colin: Summing up in one word, how can you describe your plans on winning?
Ron: …Strategy.
Harry clapped a hand on Ron's shoulder and gave him a brief nod with a grin. Ron responded by returning his attention to his food, but held a smirk that showed he was proud of himself as well. Flipping the page, Harry looked at the interview with the teachers, this time being professor Flintwik.
"Hey Harry!" Hermione greeted, kissing his cheek as she sat next to him and getting a grin from all the guys around her. "Oh, go back to breakfast." She teased them all. "You're just jealous I don't peck you on the cheek in the mornings."
The males grumbled to themselves, but went back to eating and reading their mail like usual. Harry, however, smiled at Hermione and gave her a Daily Prophet that an owl dropped off to him for her. She took it with a smile and started to drink her latté while reading. Harry smiled at her
~**~
Ron groaned as they approached the tower to their Divination class. Hermione smiled and took her arms from her two guys' and turned to walk backwards a little bit. "You boys should have dropped when I did." She grinned at them and turned at the next corner, making sure to move in a cross between seductive and casual. The girl smiled to herself when she felt their eyes on her as she departed.
"Since when did Hermione walk like that?" Ron asked, unsure whether to be amazed, turned on, or just plain scared.
"You should see her in bed." Harry said without thinking. "An animal."
"….."
"…Was that out loud?"
"An ANIMAL!?"
Harry looked at his watch. "Whoops, look at the time, we're gonna be late!" And with that, he took off down the hall laughing.
"Yo, Harry, mate!" Ron called after him, trying to keep up. "Details man, come on!"
~**~
"At least admit she was great." Ron asked/told Harry in a whisper while Trelawny talked about reading the 'inner self' and how to visualize it.
"Oh she's great," Harry grinned, also whispering, "She's perfect."
Ron smirked. "But an animal?"
Harry looked away. "Let's pretend I never said that."
"Oh no, man, if you lose your virginity before me, I'm sure as heck going to hear about it!"
"Potter, Weasley, would you demonstrate for us please?" Trelawny asked, making the two boys jump to their feet.
"Of course." Ron stammered, looking at Harry in panic.
"Errrr…."
"Colour of auras." One of Harry's friends whispered helpfully up to them.
"Right." Harry nodded. "Ron was just telling me how you are, er," He paused a second and closed his eyes.
"Red, sweetie."
"Yes, that's right, red." Harry continued, making Ron's eyes go wide and getting an impressed look on Trelawny's face. "You see," He went on to venture. "Ron and I were discussing how this room makes us feel…"
"…Purple is what you are looking for, but I would say orange if you don't want detention."
"Orange. Yes, most definitely orange."
Ron gave Harry a weird look, but quickly shifted it. "Yes, I feel that way too." Ron added in, trying to play along smoothly. "We were in discussion about it, when you called on us. That's why we were a bit surprised."
Trelawny looked as if she had just gained two new favourite students. "Thirty points to Gryffindor!" She congratulated, obviously impressed. "Now, follow these boys' example and write down your own ideas about your aura colours and turn in Wednesday. Weasley and Potter are exempted, of course, for telling us in class, as you all will be doing next meeting."
'Thanks, Cecilia.' Harry thought to his friend.
"Next time I won't help you out in class." She scolded him. "I just didn't want to see you embarrassed."
'Thanks Just the same, I don't know how I got by without you.'
"Honestly, I don't either, Harry. I don't either."
The bell rang then, signaling the end of the class. Ron immediately clapped his friend on the back and gave him the thumbs up. "Harry, my friend," he began, "I don't know how you did it, but I'm glad ya did it! Come on, let's sneak off to Hogsmeade and I'll buy you lunch!"
"Score! Come on, let's grab the shades!"
~**~
Hermione walked into the room she shared with Harry, tossed her book bag beside her on the bed and then took off her shoes. On her way to the mirror, she stripped herself of her robes and untucked her shirt. "Harry?" She called out, suddenly realizing that he wasn't snoring from his usual post-Divination nap. "Where arrreeeee yyyooooouuuuu?" Hermione gripped the curtains of Harry's bed and yanked them back. "Found you! Huh?" On his bed was a folded piece of parchment. Confused, Hermione reached down and picked it up. After unfolding it, she read the words to herself.
Hermione,
Me and Ron did great in Divination today and even got our house 30 points! In honour of our good job in class, we are cutting charms and going to Hogsmeade to celebrate. I'll bring you back some quills, love!
~Harry
"In honour of doing well you're cutting class to celebrate!?" Hermione asked, amazed. "Harold James Potter, you are such an idiot!"
~**~
Harry waved good bye/goodnight to Ron as they parted at the top of the stairs. As it turned out, their little 'lunch' had turned into a 'Let's shop around!' and then into an 'I'll buy us Dinner since you got Lunch' and finally came down to an 'Oh crap, we gotta get back!'
Opening the door to his room slowly, Harry crept in as silently as he could. It was pitch black inside the room, but his sunglasses had an illumination charm on them, making him able to see in the darkness. Slowly, Harry took off his jeans and then his shirt, pushing them into the corner of his room that doubled as his dirty cloths hamper. Now that he was in his usual sleeping attire, Harry wished his dragon friend a good night and took off his sunglasses. The room was immediately plunged into darkness. Harry felt his way to the curtains of his bed and pulled them back, only to see Hermione leaning back in the bed, reading by wand light.
"About time." She said with a sigh. "I was wondering how long you'd be out there before getting in bed.
Harry sighed. "Should have known. You didn't have to wait up for me, you know." He hopped into his bed and sat next to her, placing an arm around her shoulders. "What are you reading?"
"Your dragon book." She informed him, closing it after bookmarking her place. "Harry, we're prefects, sometimes we've got to act like them you know?"
He considered it. "I guess you're right. Hey! Just yesterday I took five points away from Hufflepuff because a first year pushed another kid down!"
Hermione arched an eyebrow. "And then what?"
He blushed lightly. "I taught the other kid how to do a tickling spell to get even…"
She sighed. "That's what I mean, Harry, you're too… too…"
"Irresistible?" he helped, tilting his head to the side.
"Yeah! And it's… Harry!" She swatted at him, making him laugh and move out of the way. "I'm serious here! You need to start doing your job. The first years look up to you."
"Yeah, ever since we stopped playing tricks on them." That earned him a glare. "Oops."
Hermione sighed. "I guess that's just you. Playful, irresponsible Harry Potter."
"You love me."
"Somehow." Hermione held up her wand. "Nox." The light on her wand dimmed slowly and then went out all together. "Well we need to turn in now. Tomorrow we have a Sorcerer's meeting and we'll probably train a lot before Friday. Then we're going to study for our N.E.W.T.S all together so we can help each other out."
Harry smiled and got under the covers. "Wow, you always think ahead don't you?"
"I try." Hermione leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "Sweet dreams, love."
"You too, Herms."
The pair snuggled close together and was soon in a deep slumber.
~**~
Hermione opened her eyes quickly when she felt a sudden jerk around her waist. Rolling over, she snatched her wand from the bed side dresser and shouted out "Lumos!", only to be greeted with the terrifying sight of Harry Potter having one of his legendary nightmares. This one, however, seemed to be much, much worse than his others.
Harry gripped the bed sheets and pulled on them as his back arched into the air. He let out a horrid scream of pain and suffering. He pulled the sheets on their bed so hard they began to tear. Hermione tried to help him by embracing him in a hug, but whenever she got close he would yell again and jerk away.
Hermione yelped when she noticed that his eyes were wide open, but unseeing. Harry rolled off of the bed and landed on his knees, bending over and grasping his head with both of his hands. "Don't!" He yelled terrified.
Hermione tried to place a hand on him, but Harry shouted again and spasmed as if hit by a spell. "Make it stop!" Harry suddenly whispered, as he curled into a fetal position, eyes shut tight. "Make it stop! Make it stop!" He shook his head violently a moment before calming down. Hermione once gain tried to reach him, but he started to talk again. "Move. Move. Move. Move! Move! Move! Move! Come on, Move! Move! Move! Move! Move! They are all counting on me! Move! Move! Move! Move! There's no point to this so come on already! Move!"
Harry opened his eyes.
"Harry?" Hermione asked the boy as he slowly moved to sit on his knees and place a hand on his head, covering his scar. "Are you okay? Harry?"
"I saw it." He spoke calmly. "I saw him. Voldemort. He's going to attack..."
"Harry, listen to me." Hermione gripped his shoulders and made him look at her. "It was a nightmare." She took Harry's hands into hers and gasped when she felt them. Looking down at his hand, she saw blood. Slowly she looked up to his forehead, where his scar was bleeding.
"Dragons can't see the future." He told her calmly. "But with my link with Voldemort and Cecilia's power, we did it some how…" He stood and walked over to his desk, picked up a quill and started writing on a parchment. Hermione, used to this after a nightmare, went to her trunk and got out her massage oil and incense.
"We're skipping a few classes tomorrow." She informed him. "You are going to sleep in and I'm going to make sure you do it."
"Hm."
Hermione gathered her things and went to Harry's bed. She set her things down and picked up a washcloth. Tapping her wand to it, she muttered a few choice words and was pleased to find it damp and cool. She walked over to Harry again and placed it on his forehead. His scar usually burned when he slept, but this was the first time it actually bled. He didn't show any sign of realizing what she was doing, but chose instead to talk to himself.
Quite literally.
"Cecilia, he came in an open area with lots of people. The Quidditch pitch? Yeah, that sounds about right. Also there were banners. Lots of them. I can't remember what they said… okay, yeah… And Sirius was there, as well as Lupin. They were next to each other. Sirius was wearing a black cloak with red lining. Lupin was wearing the same thing in grey…"
"Harry, love, can Cecilia remember your dreams?"
"No," Harry replied, pausing a second to turn and look at her. "She can only see things in my mind, so…" Hermione arched an eyebrow, making Harry sigh. "I'll tell you later, let me finish this."
Hermione nodded and started to prepare her massaging things. A few minutes later Harry took out a second parchment and wrote a letter to Sirius on it. When it was done, he folded the two together and inserted them into an envelope. Standing, he stretched out. "It feels so much better after writing it down." He informed her with a small smile. "It makes me feel better that I'm doing something about it." The tired boy then lay on his bed, face down.
Soon he found Hermione's warm hands on his back, making him moan. "You're muscles are tight." She told him softly, sitting on his waist and rubbing them a little more firmly. "Relax, Harry. It's okay now. You did your part."
"Yeah…" He agreed, taking a long breath. "You're right… I guess it's time I told you about Cecilia isn't it?"
"Past time." She confirmed, pausing a bit to Nox the lights; once again casting them into darkness. "Take your time."
Harry nodded lightly, letting the incense dull his mind. "I guess you already know she's my necklace." He heard her reply with an 'mmhmm' before he continued. "You see, Cecilia was a dragon a long time ago. She looked after a village for a long, long time. Some time ago, not sure just how long, she fought against Voldemort. After holding him off for a while, he finally broke through her defenses and changed her into a necklace. She talks to me through some kind of 'mind speak'."
"Did she also change your eyes and hair and body?" She asked, rubbing his arms now, paying attention to every finger while she did so.
"Yeah," Harry nodded into the pillow. "She takes my power from me and stores it. That's how she can have enough power to move around and talk to me. However, when she teaches me magic, I have to use her power to cast anything that's dragon magic. When I take power from her, it changes my body to suit its form. Hence my growth spurt and new muscles. She gave me dragon's vision the day after we met. Sort of a meeting gift."
"She sounds nice."
"She is. Her real name is Celestial. I call her Cecilia as a nickname." Harry paused a moment. "She said it's nice to meet you."
"Her too." Hermione smiled. "Anything else?"
"Not tonight." He pleaded. "My mind's too buzzed for anything else. Just ask me questions later, okay?"
"Sure thing."
So Hermione finished her massage slowly for him in silence. When done, she noticed he was already asleep again. Gathering her things, she placed them next to the bed and sighed. "Poor boy," she said, running a finger over his scar, flaking off some dried blood. "What kind of dream could be so bad that it made your scar bleed?" She let her hand trail over his jaw line before resting on his cheek. "Don't worry, Harry, I'm here for you." Hermione leaned down and kissed his scar. "And your friends are, too. We won't let anything happen to you. Ever."
~**~
It's creepy how time flies when you don't want it to. Harry was all too familiar with this phenomenon, and it once again was haunting him... Tuesday and Wednesday just seemed to fly right past him. Thursday went by in the blink of an eye and Friday was now upon him. The classes shot past, and he soon found himself walking down to the Quidditch changing room.
He was currently pulling on his gloves as he paced, making his teammates even more nervous. He had on his black shirt with the cut off jacket that Lupin had given him. Also he had on the jeans and red bandana that billowed out behind him while he paced. Of course Celestial was on his chest, held there by the silver necklace. To help calm his nerves, he thought back to talking to Sirius the night before. Professor Lupin had called him to his office that night and he was greeted by his Godfather's face in the fire. Although they talked mainly about his nightmare, it was still good to see that he was doing okay.
"Calm down." Malfoy said, glaring. "You're creeping me out, Potter."
"Save it." Ron snapped. "The whole school will be watching. I'm kind of creeped myself."
"It's time, guys." Ginny said, poking her head in the male changing room and cutting off any replies they might have made. The three nodded and began walking to the door, following Ginny and Hermione. A moment later they stopped at the door leading outside, waiting to be introduced.
Harry took a deep breath as he looked at the door in front of him. He had stood there many times before, but this was the first time he was going to be walking out instead of flying on a broom stick. To his right he felt Hermione take his hand and give it an uncertain squeeze. To his left he could hear Ron taking steadying breaths. Malfoy stood behind him, whispering random spells and strategies to himself. Only Ginny stood in front of him, looking at the door head on. Although she looked brave, he could almost literally feel the nervousness coming from all four of the seventh year students and the single sixth year.
It was time for the tournament to begin, and they were up first against the Blitz Team. The crowd could be heard from inside the small room, usually used for Quidditch players, clearly. The entire school was watching. Friday afternoon classes were cancelled and everyone showed up. The stands were never this full, not even for the Quidditch matches. The only time Harry could remember hearing so many people yell was the time he was in the Tri-wizard tournament. On the outside he could hear Professor Lupin's voice announcing the beginning of the tournament. Swallowing, Harry looked at the door again and watched the bottom of it rise, showing light as it did.
Hermione gave his hand one last squeeze before letting go and walking out of the room. He heard Lupin announce Hermione Granger and the deafening screams that followed. Soon Ron's name was called along with his sister's. Even more people cheered them on as they joined Hermione. Next Malfoy's name was called. Not many people cheered for him, but the crowd was still going wild with excitement. Finally Harry heard his name being called and he too joined his friends outside of the small room.
It was amazing. Simply amazing. The stands were somehow magically lowered for a better view of the field and there was a huge display in the air of the humongous stone slabs on the ground. The stage formed a perfect circle, but was so large Harry knew that not many matches would be won by a ring out. Taking his attention to the screen in the air, Harry pondered how it worked, but Hermione voiced her thoughts aloud. It was her reaction to being nervous. "It's quite simple," she said, looking at it. "Just a simple cloud with a light reflection spell on it. Kind of like a mirror."
"Yeah, and I bet it will reflect us once we begin fighting." Malfoy spoke, fingering his robes. "Man, all these people watching… As if Quidditch wasn't bad enough…"
Harry raised an eyebrow. "You're stage shy? What about all those games you played?"
Malfoy smirked. "Kicking your ass always got me through." But it was said lightly, and the boy turned to offer an unsure smirk to his worst enemy turned partner. Harry returned the smirk with his own trademark lopsided smile.
"And their opponents, the Blitz Team!" A new voice rang out. Surprisingly it was Lee Jordan. Harry shook his head with a smile. He probably came to watch and ended up begging the head master to help do the play by play. With this thought, Harry turned to look at the crowd and realized that the stands hadn't been lowered as he had originally thought; there was a whole new set of stands around the area. Which could only mean that this tournament was going to be viewed by more than just the school. Sure enough, when Harry looked, he saw the Weasley clan with a huge sign displaying all their names except Malfoy's.
"The leader of the team," Lee went on with his commentary, "is the lovely Ashley from Hufflepuff!" More cheers were called out as the girl walked to the platform as well. "Following is none other than the Ravenclaw Rebecca!" Another girl walked out and smiled, holding her hands in the air. "Look out because Gallows is coming out next! This six foot five giant is in the house of Hufflepuff!" All the girls in the stands seemed to call out his name at the same time, making the boy look down and blush. "Next are the brothers Jet and Kei!" Two more boys walked from the other side of the arena.
"Yes it's a great day to open the first ever Sorcerer's Circle tournament." Lee went on while the two teams stood at opposite ends of the circle. "The rules are simple. You lose by either being knocked out of the ring or being knocked on the ground for ten seconds or more."
"That does not include lying down voluntarily!" Lupin reminded good naturedly.
"That's right, professor." Lee nodded and continued. "The first match will be set in a cave stage. Spectators can look at the image above the area for a close up of the players. Please take note that once the contestants are in the area, they will not be able to hear what you are saying."
Lupin took up then. "Special rules of this match are: if you lose your wand or are injured too badly to continue, you are out of the match. There is a thirty minute time limit. If it comes to it, the winner will be chosen by our judges." Here the professor pointed to his right, where several teachers were sitting, including Dumbledore himself. "Contestants at your ready!" Ashley walked up the four stairs leading to the stone circle and stood at the rim. Her teammates cheered her on with the crowd.
"I'll go first." Hermione said, determined. She walked to the stairs and turned back to her friends, giving them a smile and a peace sign. "I won't make you wait long." And with that, she too stepped onto the arena.
"She's brave, isn't she?" Ron asked nobody in particular, but was amazed to find Malfoy answer him.
"I was wrong about her," he said, not looking at anyone. "Maybe I didn't give her enough credit."
Ron nodded to himself, not looking at him. Ginny, however, smiled contentedly to herself and allowed herself to stand next to him, discreetly taking his hand with two of her fingers and giving a squeeze, showing that she was proud of him. Malfoy, however, didn't show any signs of this other than a very light and curt nod.
The stage shifted quickly around her, giving her a queasy feeling. When it was done, Hermione opened her eyes to see what appeared to be the inside of a cave. There were transparent walls around her, showing where the ring ended. She looked across the field and was surprised to see a solid looking wall not twenty feet from her. It seemed that the area was completely shifted into a cave. No, a water side cave. The floor was completely covered in a clear blue liquid. Gathering her nerves, she stepped forward, cringing as the cold water soaked into her shoes and socks. The sound of dripping water was all around her, making her realize for the first time that she couldn't hear anyone else. Taking a deep breath, she began to run into the cave.
~**~
"I thought the first match was in a forest!" Ron whispered to Harry when he saw Hermione through the transparent walls. "What's with this?!"
"They are changing the stage with each match." Harry suddenly realized. "Of course it won't be the first thing we see! Ron, there are 5 stages set in there already. We only saw one of them!"
Ron slapped his forehead in frustration. "And we spent all that time learning how to navigate a forest for nothing!"
~**~
'Okay, think logically.' She thought as she navigated through the cave. 'The area is inside the Quidditch pitch; therefore it can't be too incredibly big. At my pace, assuming she is doing the same, we should cross paths soon. Somewhere about… here.'
Hermione ducked behind a large stone slab and pressed her back up against it. She could feel the cold water soaking into her back and realized that the rock was covered in water as well. There was a steady drip falling on it. Footsteps soon mixed with the sounds of dripping water, telling her that Ashley was on her way. When the footsteps stopped, Hermione judged the position and sprang from her shelter, yelling 'Tidus' as she did so.
Water shot from the tip of her wand and crashed into Ashley. Hermione grinned and pulled her wand back, stopping the flow. What she saw afterwards, however, made her grin freeze in place. Ashley was completely dry; a slightly damp shield was manifested in front of her. "Thundara!"
Hermione yelped as the lighting struck her and caused her to fly back several feet and into the stone wall. Being wet, she felt the tingling sensation of the shock long after it was over. Grunting in determination, Hermione got up and rolled over in time to avoid another spell of the same variety. With a flash of her wand and a short "Bendigous!", Hermione sent a flash of rocks toward the other girl. Once again, however, a sort of curved shield appeared in front of Ashley, making Hermione's attack useless.
"Expelliarmus!" The blast hit Hermione square in the chest, making her fly once again into the wall. The girl, however, still gripped her wand with a hold that was turning her knuckles white.
"That's not going to work." Hermione breathed heavily, forcing her wand to rise again. "Eathious."
The ground under Ashley rocketed upwards, but the shield was transferred to her feet, stopping the stone spikes from imprisoning the blond woman. "Nice try, but I can control where my shield goes." Ashley informed her, once more performing a spell. "Lundous!"
Hermione screamed as she felt the walls cave in on her. Falling to her knees, she brought her hands to her head and prepared for the impact. After a few seconds, her mind kicked in past her blind panic and she remembered that it was a sensory delusional spell that had been cast on her. Grasping her courage, Hermione stood and ran forward. The walls stopped moving, and Ashley was shocked enough to let her run right past her.
Turning, Hermione held out her hand "Nemus!"
Ashley quickly turned and put up the shield again. To her surprise, Hermione grinned and soon Ashley felt the spell crash into her from behind. "Wha…?" Slowly, the shield went down and Ashley found herself starting to fall asleep. With a slow turn, the blond saw Hermione's wand wedged in between two rocks where she had just been kneeling. "You used your wand to deflect the spell…?"
Ashley fell and hit the ground, her wand rolling from her grasp.
"Hermione Granger wins the match with the sleeping spell!" Lee yelled out, using the power of magic to amplify his voice.
The walls and stone around her faded away slowly, allowing Hermione to once again see the outside world. The crowd was going wild, screaming her name over and over again. The Gryffindor retrieved her wand and started walking to her teammates as Ashley was helped off of the field.
"Great job, Herms!" Harry instantly congratulated, hugging her.
"Ow! Harry, that hurts!"
"Sorry."
"Hey, 'Mione," Ron grinned, looking over her. "Loving the new look.
The abuse that she had taken, along with the lightning spell, had done quite a job on her. Her face was smudged with a few black marks and her hair was way out of control. The robes she wore were wet and clinging to her, along with her normal cloths as well. "Thanks Ron." She slurred, sitting down. "I don't feel so good."
"In the freezing cold, no wonder." Ginny stepped forward and cast a quick heating charm on her while Harry dried her clothes with a well thought out wind spell.
"The Marauders lead one to nothing!" Lupin shouted from the top box. "Next round contestants, please make your way to the arena!"
Ginny stepped forward. "My turn."
"You sure you don't want me to go?" Ron asked his sister, looking down at her. On the other side of the arena, Rebecca walked to the ring. "Ah, never mind, I can't fight a girl as well as a guy."
"So, what, you're saying girls are weaker than guys!?" Hermione looked positively furious at the statement.
"No, no," Ron covered smoothly. "You could kick my butt any day."
This seemed to calm the chestnut haired girl down long enough for Ron to make a face at Harry, who quickly tried to stifle a laugh.
Ginny shook her head and walked up the stairs to the arena. Once at the top, she turned back to see her friends all grinning at her and cheering. Malfoy, however, simply met her eye and gave a light wave with the two forefingers of his right hand while his arms were crossed.
The arena shifted before Ginny's eyes, and soon she found herself on an unsteady surface. Her balance was quickly lost and she fell onto her backside, looking dizzily up at the sky. "The rules for this match are simple." The announcer's voice came to her while she tried to stand up on what she suddenly realized was ice. "The first lady to fall into the water and completely submerge is the loser. Wand losses are acceptable and the player will only be out when either they are dunked or out of the ring."
"Sounds fun." Ginny said with a smirk.
"Ready!? FIGHT!"
Instantly the outside noise was cut off from Ginny's ears and the sound of a harsh wind replaced it. The sky above them suddenly grew dark and snow started falling (not hard, but just enough to compromise vision and stability).
"Stabulus." The bottom of Ginny's feet grew small spikes that sank into the ice she was standing on. Surveying the arena, she realized they were more or less on what looked to be a frozen pond with more than 'several' holes in it. A better assumption would be water with a few floating blocks of ice on it.
Shaking her head, Ginny leapt to the nearest ice block and screamed when it tilted. Quickly she flailed her arms out in a windmill motion and regained her balance. "Dang!" She breathed, holding one hand to her chest and breathing.
"Eclosieptus!"
Ginny let out a sharp yell of pain when the block she was standing on exploded, sending her flying into the air. She found herself landing with a loud crack a few moments later. Her vision flashed with small black dots, making her mind go into medical mode. She knew she had hit her head a little too hard. With a quick spell, she could see again. Standing, she looked to see where her opponent was, but saw nothing but snow.
"En fuego!"
Ginny yelped as her feet started dancing to unheard music. Not a good thing when standing on a small, thin, sheet of ice on a pond. Thinking fast, she cast the anti curse and jumped to the next block of ice. The place where she had stood exploded into tiny chunks of ice. Ginny smiled as she twisted her body in the air like a cat, pointing her wand in the general direction where the attack had come from. "Firaga!"
Flames shot through the snow and a moment later, a female shrieked and jumped out of the way. Seeing her chance, Ginny ice hopped over to the other figure and landed on the same block of ice. "Rebecca."
"Ginny."
The two girls slowly circled as the ice block started to crack under their weight. Ginny attacked first, using her stabilization to her advantage. Quickly she was able to run the few steps forward needed to shove her opponent. Rebecca, however, saw a chance as well. Using her Sorceress's hand-to-hand training, she grabbed Ginny's hands and kicked her in the stomach. With the momentum sustained, Rebecca tossed Ginny over her shoulders.
Ginny's eyes went wide as she realized what had just happened. There was a loud splash as Rebecca slid off the ice due to her own move. Ginny, however, realized that she had landed on a rather hard substance. It was solid and dry. Had she won and the ring turned back before she fell into the water?
No.
Ginny looked to her right, where she saw her opponent's teammates. She was tossed out of the ring. Crossing her arms and giving the world her classic cute pout, she let out her frustration in a single, word. "Hmmph!"
"Ring out!" Lee called out, using his wand like a microphone. "But Rebecca also got submerged. Judges?" He, along with Lupin, looked to the judges, who just got out of a huddle.
"We declare it…" Dumbledore began, looking at the two females on the field. "A draw game."
"Ah well, can't win them all." Rebecca said, wringing out her ponytail and walking over to her group. On the way she helped Ginny up and shook her hand, smiling. Ginny nodded back at her and gave her own smile. On her way to her teammates, she heard Jet ask Rebecca if she was all right and offer a few words of comfort. When she reached her group, however, all of them congratulated her soundly for doing so well. Ron, especially, was pleased with her and even gave her a hug. Harry patted her on the head and smiled, while Hermione was gushing over her choice of attacks and the spell for her shoes.
When things settled down a bit, Ginny stood next to Malfoy, who stayed in the same spot since she came back. Curiously, she looked up at him for his approval. In return, he gave a slight nod. In addition, much to Ginny's surprise, he also gave her a side long glance and smiled a true, honestly proud smile.
She instantly felt her cheeks burn and turned her head.
"I'm up." Ron declared, stepping forward before Harry had the chance to. "I'll get us a win. If I do, then we win by default. Best three out of five, right?" Harry nodded at his friend, prompting him to continue. "Well then, I guess I better show them just what I'm made out of."
"Better not." Harry said sternly, making his friend turn with a hurt look on his face. Before Ron could say anything, Harry smirked and clapped his friend on the shoulder. "If you go all out, you just may kill them."
Ron returned his friend's smirk and placed his hand on Harry's shoulder, opposite of the one Harry had on his. "I'll try and take it easy on them."
"You do that."
The two young men then did a really spiffy looking ten second hand shake that ended with a loud "MARAUDERS!" Now prepped up, Ron leapt the stairs and looked across the area to see who his opponent was. A man by the name of Kei stood at the other end of the field. He was blond with sharp looking glasses and loose clothing. Ron nodded at him and got a nod back, showing it would be a good clean match.
"Hold this for me, will ya pal?" Ron asked, taking off his robes and tossing them off stage. Harry gave a small jump and snagged them out of the air. The older Weasley of the team was wearing a tight fitting long sleeve blackish blue shirt with matching fighting pants. At the current moment he was tightening the fit on dragon scale gloves that he got as a present from Charlie. All in all, he looked like quite the impressive fighter. Over the years he had gained muscle from the strain that being Harry's friend seemed to come with.
"Ronald Weasley vs. Kei Smith! A straight forward one on one match up! The rules of this match are: Ten second down, ring out, wand loss, or surrendering. Ready!? FIGHT!"
Ron ran forward as soon as the words were said. As this was a straight forward match, the arena did not change for them and both could still hear the crowd cheering them on. It seemed like ages until the two boys clashed (as the arena was so big), but when they did, it was a show that Hogwarts wouldn't forget for a long, long time.
Kei held out his wand, yelling out a spell that Ron didn't quite hear. Instead of a hex coming out of the wand, however, a long whip emerged. The red head had little time to roll on the ground to avoid a crack of the whip. Ron did, however, think fast enough to throw out his legs and use his height to his advantage and trip Kei.
The Blitz team representative, however, was quick enough to pull off a hand spring and gain distance again. With another lash of the whip, Ron held out his wand and changed it into a sword with one magical word. The whip was sliced neatly in half and Ron charged forward, only to have an invisible wall erected in front of him.
Ron hit the wall full force, but regained his composure fast enough to side step a disarming charm from his opponent. Giving a quick spin, Ron lashed out his foot in a wide round house. Kei took the hit to his ribs and flew a good foot before rolling a few times. He, however, seemed to spin onto his feet and thrust out his wand, sending a small fireball at Ron, catching him full in the chest and forcing him to slide back several yards before stopping.
The two boys gasped for air while staring at each other. Ron had his free hand on his chest, covering the burn mark while Kei was clutching his ribs and leaning a bit to the side. After the five second breather, the boys ran at each other yet again and exchanged spells. Kei was first with his spell, shouting out a "Baksai tenketsu!" and making the ground in front of Ron explode.
The Marauder covered his eyes with his arms and charged through the explosion, surprising Kei enough to get in a good energy blast spell that sent him reeling. In mid air, Kei righted himself and formed a ball of magical energy in his hand and slung it at Ron, making him dive out of the way. Upon landing, another ball was released and clipped the red head on his leg, making him fall over.
Kei used a magical boost to make himself jump several feet into the air. At his peak, he transformed his wand into a whip again and began his descent to Ron, who was just standing.
"UP!" Harry screamed from the sidelines, successfully getting Ron to look into the air.
"Oh sod it all…" Ron said lightly as Kei's whip lashed out against him. Gritting his teeth, Ron held out his arm and let the whip hit him and wrap around it. When the immediate pain was over, Ron grasped the whip and yanked it hard. Kei, not wanting to lose his wand, gripped his whip tightly; getting pulled as well. With a loud yell, Ron took his wand and aimed it right at Kei' stomach. "EXPELLIARMUS!"
Kei gasped as the blast hit him, but quickly twisted his wand, making the whip encircle his wrist. The force from the blast sent him flying backwards and he felt his wrist pop with the strain. His plan, however, worked like a charm. Ron, still having the whip wrapped around his forearm, was pulled after him. Kei grabbed the whip with his free hand as they flew through the air and magicked it shorter. Next he twisted his body around so he was on top of Ron and kicked off.
Ron, under the new force of the kick, hit the arena floor and skidded a few times before rolling to a stop, arm hanging off the side of the stone floor. Kei also landed roughly and slid across the floor himself.
"Double down!" Lupin said from the top box.
"Counting now!" Lee added, starting to count while moving his hand in a counting motion.
"What the hell is that idiot teaching them in that class!?" Snape asked himself after seeing the melee moves.
"One! Two! Three!-"
"Get up Ron!" Hermione coached from the side.
"You can do it mate!" Harry added in loudly.
"SIX! SEVEN!"
"Ron!"
"EIGHT!"
"Kei is up!" Lupin shouted, getting their attention. The Blitzer ran toward Ron then.
"Uggghh…." Ron slowly got to his knees and looked to the side where Kei was charging. "Oh man…" He whispered, still winded from the attack. "No choice." When Kei was about to push him off, Ron dropped, grabbed Kei's shirt, and used the momentum to throw him out of the ring.
"Ring out!" Ginny shrieked, jumping on Harry's shoulders and cheering.
"Match over!" Lupin called.
"Kei is the winner!" Lee continued for him. "What a close match!"
"What!?" the Marauder team, save Malfoy and Ron, shouted at the same time.
"Guys, he's right." Ron said, finally getting his breath back. "I was counted out before Kei was knocked out of the ring."
Harry opened his mouth to say something, but stopped. He tried again, and then stopped a second time, finally he settled for kicking up grass on the field. It was true. Ron never did make it to his feet during the count.
"Hey, Ron…"
Ron looked over at Kei, who looked pretty roughed up. "Yeah?"
"Good fight man." He held out his hand and Ron took it appreciatively.
"Ah. Next time I won't go so easy on you." He grinned
"Looking forward to it." Kei returned the smirk before starting to limp his way back to his team members and getting glomped by a worried Ashley about half way there.
"Good match, pal." Harry congratulated, putting an arm around him and helping him over to the stairs, where he sat down against them. "I'm impressed. You was all Jackie Chan on them!"
"Who?"
"It's a compliment." Hermione assured, giving Harry a weird look. "Ginny, I think his arm is hurt pretty bad…"
"No, it's okay." Ron waved them off with his good hand. "I'll be treated after we win this thing." He nodded at Harry. "Two more wins and we have it."
"One win each and a draw." Malfoy said aloud to himself. "Which means the first one to lose cannot win. But to be fair, both matches must be fought. What if the other team loses that one? It'll be a draw game."
"How about a two on two?" A voice called to them, drawing their attention to the area just above the stairs. Jet and Gallows stood there, looking at them with a smile. "Hell of a match, Ron!" Jet congratulated with a smirk. "I hope Harry and Malfoy can give us a good one too!"
"It sounds fair." Harry said slowly, looking at the two challengers. "But I don't know…"
"Draco and Harry won't fight well together." Ginny said a little nervously.
"It can't be helped." Malfoy started walking forward. "Come on Potter, it's come to this."
"Wait, I think we'll need something if we're going in on it as partners." Harry suddenly said, looking to the castle. "Accio Marauder's Sun Shades!"
~**~
"Two on two?" Lee asked Lupin in a whisper. "Is that okay?"
Professor Lupin nodded. "It's fine, as long as both teams agree on it. "
A nod. "Okay then, let's do it." Once again he cast the voice amplification and spoke into his wand like a mic. "It's been decided as a two on two match up! The Blitz team's Jet and Gallows vs. the Marauder's Harry and Malfoy!"
~**~
"What are these?" Malfoy asked, looking at the sunglasses/visor handed to him. "I don't need eye protection."
"Just put it on." Harry said, tapping the glasses with his hand and whispering spells. "They'll show us what we need to know. All out side artifacts are allowed."
Malfoy looked at them and shrugged. He took a pair and slid it on. "Oh wow. No wonder you were always so good at sneaking around! With these, I could have…"
"I just got them." Harry interrupted. "Only used them once and I got caught while doing it."
"Guys!" Ginny broke up their conversation. "The match!"
"Oh, right." Harry turned and walked up the stairs, followed by Malfoy. Their opponents were already at the other side of the arena.
"Rules for this match!" Lee shouted out like a professional, which he almost was. "Lose the wand, you lose the match! Lose consciousness, lose the match! Ring out, lose the match! Contestants READY!? FIGHT!"
The two teams rushed forward and into an instantaneous jungle. The sound from the outside was cut of as soon as the jungle was full around them.
"All right, they are splitting up." Harry said, watching the dots on his map move. "I bet you anything they are going to regroup half way in to try and get us from both sides. They plan we'll go straight."
Malfoy nodded. "Let's go left."
"I think right would be a better place to start. Jet will be easier to take out."
"Jet's faster. Gallows will be a better target."
Harry took a breath. "It's a text book play." He said calmly. "Take out the faster target first and they can't give you trouble later."
"But Gallows will fall easy!"
"Look Malfoy, I'm the leader of this team and I say we go after Jet!"
"You're not the boss of me." Malfoy countered. "I'll be on the same team as you but I'll be damned before I take orders from anyone anymore!" He pulled a rather large twig away from his face and looked back. "I think your plan will fail. Mine is a sure shot!"
"Not if we don't work together!"
"Exactly. Let's go left!" With that, Malfoy ran in that direction, jumping a fallen log and cutting through a little foliage.
"Malfoy! Sod it! I'm going right!"
~**~
"We are so dead." Ron spat, kicking the dirt at his feet, making a little grass fly.
Ginny looked up at the large screen in the air, now split into four parts, and clasped her hands in front of her. "Draco…"
~**~
Harry jumped over a small brook on the ground and crouched behind a fallen tree, looking over it slightly to see the figure of Jet. His opponent was walking slowly, eyes scanning the area intensely. The shades on Harry's face kept his figure outlined, flashing a 'warning' message where his compass normally should be. On the right side of his lens he saw Gallows, which meant that Malfoy had also found his prey. The only thing that bugged him was that in the time it took him and Malfoy to argue and find their intended opponents, they would have had plenty of time to regroup.
That could only mean one thing.
Harry jumped straight into the air as a magical blast hit where he was just standing. Jerking around, he landed in a one-armed hand spring and used the momentum to shoot into a tree. With a quick and well planned wind spell, he was able to climb high enough to gain a few precious seconds to think of what just happened. An image on his lens made him turnaround, however. He was now face to face with Malfoy. "I told you, you should have listened to me!" He accused, obviously mad. "We almost bit it back there!"
"Because you didn't listen to me!" Harry spat back, poking his chest.
"I should have known better than to think we could be friends." Malfoy glared at him, old hatred back in his eyes. "I gave you a shot and you're not willing to cooperate!"
"Malfoy, you are the one being stubborn!"
The tree the two were standing on suddenly lurched, making the boys jump to safety. Harry used a wind spell to slow his decent while Malfoy grabbed a vine and slid down. When the two were on solid ground again, each shot a blast of energy towards the origin of the attack.
Gallows and Jet took cover behind the same fallen tree Harry had earlier. The two Marauders were forced to lay in a small trench with water in it, backs pressed against the moss covered dirt. "This is pathetic." Harry groaned, seeing a few energy spells shot over their heads.
"No, you're pathetic. We would have won by now if you listened to me! Geeze were you born this stupid or did you have to work for it!?"
Oh that did it.
Harry grabbed Malfoy's collar and moved him so they were face to face. "Do you want to finish what we started last year!?" He yelled at him furiously.
"You're still pissed because Slytherin won the house cup last year, aren't you?" Malfoy accused, glaring. "Slytherin is better anyway!"
"Gryffindor!"
"Slytherin!"
"Gryffindor!"
"Slytherin!"
"Gryffindor!"
The two glared at each other a moment before each giving off their own little smirk. "Left!" Harry suddenly yelled, moving out of the way as a disrupting blast hit right where they once were.
"Right!" Malfoy suddenly said, once again moving with Harry to avoid the second shot. They then looked at each other and let out a war cry together. "Get'm!"
The two boys jumped from the trench and ran at their opponents. A blast shot straight for them, but both leapt to the side and rolled in perfect timing. Malfoy jumped into their air, getting a boost from Harry's wind spell. With his new height advantage, Malfoy targeted Jet and grinned to himself. "Show them how it's done, Christina! Holy Fire!" Blue flame surrounded Malfoy for a moment before channeling to his wand and blasting the frozen opponent.
"Don't forget about me!" Harry yelled, holding out his hand. "Cecilia, Wind of the Faye!" The air around Harry ripped out behind him before shooting at Gallows. The pressure knocked him into a flaming Jet and then into a tree.
"Ha!" Malfoy snorted with a triumphant grin when he landed. "Take that!"
"Don't forget that they have the title 'sorcerer'." Harry reminded, scanning the field.
Instantly Malfoy was serious again. "You're right. They are no longer on my visor. Back to back."
Harry nodded briefly and stood behind Malfoy, each slowly turning and looking around. "You see them?"
"Not yet. They must be hiding behind something really thick to jam our lock on them."
"Either that or they realized what we were doing and put a blocking shield around themselves."
"Jerks."
"Heh, you said it. Above!"
The two leapt to the side as two more figures landed where they just were. Harry was blasted with a stunning spell while Malfoy suffered an energy blast. Both flew backwards a good six feet before falling and skidding to a halt. Unconsciously, the seconds ticked off in Harry's mind while he struggled to stand. His body felt heavy and he knew that he lost his speed until he could shake the effects of the spell off of him. Looking over, he saw Jet and Gallows nod to each other and prepare another spell to finish them off. Groaning, Harry held out both of his hands, forming a shield around him. Jet's spell fizzled on his shield, giving Harry the chance he needed.
Dashing forward, Harry moved his hand to the side and flicked his wrist, sending his wand into his hand. Jumping, Harry mouthed his spell out and a blade of wind formed at the tip of his wand. Gallows, however, reacted fast enough to draw up his wand and begin the disarming charm.
That's when Harry's world blurred.
Instantly he found himself to be moving so fast, his enemies literally looked like they were standing still. With ease, Harry slashed both of them with his wind sword. His feet touched the ground lightly, but the ground gave way under him, leaving two small dents. A blink later, he seemed to be at normal speed again. Turning, he looked at his opponents, pleased to find them both on the ground. His sword was pure concentrated wind. When struck, it would compress the air in their lungs, making them feel as if they were suffocating. A quick and effective way of downing an opponent.
Harry sheathed his wand back into his holster on his arm and turned to Malfoy, who looked quite smug. "Not so bad, man." He told Harry, offering his hand.
"Not so bad yourself, Malfoy."
"After six years, you think you'd learn that my name is Draco, you idiot."
"And mine's Harry." He took the offered hand and shook it. They let go quickly and turned to look opposite ways while the trees around them faded and dissolved.
"Nice hair, Harry." A voice whispered to him.
"Huh?" Harry reached to finger comb his hair, but gasped when he realized that it went well past his shoulders. "What the…"
~**~
"You did it!" Hermione screeched, jumping on him in a huge hug. "Way to go Harry!"
"Hey, save some for me!" Ron grinned, yelling just as loud and hugging Harry as well, soon followed by Ginny.
"It's over! It's over!" Lee shouted happily. "The Marauders won! The Marauders!" The stands were going crazy as they all flooded onto the field and formed around the ring.
Draco smirked to himself as he saw the people cheer for them. It was the first time the entire crowd was yelling for him, and it felt good. It was no secret on Quidditch, Slytherins booed everyone but themselves and everyone booed the Slytherins. Now, however, he heard many people shouting his name and screaming how well they fought. It didn't just feel good. It felt great.
"Draco!"
Draco turned and smirked at Ginny. "Hey."
"Great job!" She proclaimed as she leapt at him and gave him a hug in front of everyone.
"Hey, hey," He started, actually blushing. "Everyone is looking!"
"I don't care, you did wonderfully!"
"Yo, Draco!" Harry called playfully while the Blitz team walked over to them. "Better watch out for Ron!" Ron was too busy celebrating with Lavender, who had somehow managed to get past the crowd and onto the stage.
"Good game, guys." Jet said when he reached them. "It was fun."
"Yeah," Agreed Rebecca with a smile. "I'll work hard from now on."
"Nice teamwork." Gallows grinned at them.
"And strategy." Kei and Ashley said at the same time, making them blush.
"Hey, you guys did great too!" Harry said, shaking Ashley's hand. "I am proud to have faced you first."
Suddenly Harry found himself lifted into the air by Fred and George. They all laughed while Ron, Ginny, Hermione, and surprisingly Draco were lifted into the air as well. Ron looked down at Charlie and Bill, who were keeping him up. "Glad you guys could make it."
"Wouldn't miss it for the world, little bro." Bill said with a wink.
"Yeah!" Charlie shouted over all the noise. They were now crowd surfing toward the door. "As soon as we heard they were letting people not in school watch the tournament, we came as soon as we could!"
"We'll talk later!" Ron shouted as he was moved atop the crowd.
~**~
"Harry, when did your hair get so long?" Hermione asked him when they were in the changing room.
Harry ran a hand threw it. "I don't know…When I was fighting, I suddenly felt like I was moving so fast… It was as if…" Harry's eyes widened. "That's it!"
Hermione blinked. "What's it?"
"It's so clear!" Harry continued as if she never spoke. "Why didn't I see it before!?"
"See what before?" She demanded.
"Draco!" Harry told her as if it was obvious. "The way his hair got so long over the summer! Why when we talked on the rain, it seemed fast for me but hours for you! His ring! What did he call out? Christina? Yes, that was it! An angel! The blessed being that can alter time!"
"Time?" She echoed.
"Very well done." Celestial congratulated him. "That young man's helper is an angel put under the same spell as I was."
Harry nodded. "That explains how he once beat up six Slytherins who tried to jump him that one time!" He looked at Hermione. "Ginny told me about it! Did you not notice how his hair always seemed to be getting longer? It has to be a side effect of time altering!"
"Kind of like how you don't get younger when using a time turner, but you still actually age while you're in the past?"
"Exactly." Harry agreed, nodding and pacing. "He can't go back in time, but he can alter the current state and make time flow faster around himself. As a side effect of moving so fast in time, his hair grows abnormally quick!"
Hermione looked proud. "I'm impressed, Harry. You figured that out on your own?"
He blushed lightly, holding his necklace. "Well, Cecilia helped me a little."
"A little?" she asked his mind indignantly. "I all but told you! You just didn't figure it out."
"Yeah, yeah." Harry waved her off. "Thanks anyway." He grinned.
~**~
"Charlie, Bill!" Harry exclaimed, walking into the common room. "Fred! George! You guys made it!"
"It's been ages since I've been in here." Bill said standing and shaking Harry's hand. "I wasn't about to miss it."
"We came for the tournament," George (or was it Fred?) continued with a grin. "But we're gonna party!"
Harry shook his head and laughed a little. "I'd love to guys, but I'm kind of beat. Jumping around like that and all. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Would, but we gotta leave before tonight's over with. Dumbledore doesn't know we're here." Charlie nodded at him. "But you're welcome to come by any time and see me."
"Thanks." Harry grinned. "I just might do that. Nice seeing you again guys."
"Yeah."
"I'm turning in too." Hermione stood. "I've had a long day as well."
"'Night, 'Mione." Ron called, waving. "I'm gonna stay and chat with my brothers for a bit."
"Nighty night!"
Harry smiled at Hermione and took her hand to lead her up the stairs, getting a few 'ooh's' from the Weasley clan in the process. "Ah, shadup or I'll teach you guys a lesson in manners!" Harry threatened them playfully.
"I'll teach you something, Harry." Hermione whispered seductively up at him with a wink. "There's a reason I came with you…"
"Please, Teacher." Harry grinned, pulling her into the room and closing the door.
"Harry!?" Charlie asked, amazed.
"The girls go nutters over him." Ron sighed, shaking his head. "Quite annoying, really. I walked in on them once. Not a pretty sight let me tell you."
"I don't know which would be worse, having to hear them or being in potions class." Bill laughed to himself.
"Potions definitely." Ron answered his older brother. "Last time he made us clean our cauldrons out completely without magic, to show us dedication in our trade. By the all mighty Tuesday I hate doing that!"
The room full of read heads all had a good laugh at that before grinning and catching up together as a family.
~~**~~
A/N wow, about 11,200 words this time. Heh, I guess it'll make up a bit for chapter five, huh? Sorry again about that one being so short. Anyway, let's see. What's new, what's new… well I'm changing the names of the chapters a bit. After midnight will be this chapter: "Wake" followed by "Rise, Walk, Run, Lay, Sleep." That's 12 chapters in all. I'm assuming that should be enough to finish this up. Sleep may be an epilog, however. I'm not quite sure yet.
OKAY! Listen up guys; this is where you make your impact on this story! I'm holding a contest to see what stages the gang should fight on next. What you need to do, if you want to enter, is send an email to: Satashi@scifianime.com with the subject: BoF: Tournament Stages. In the subject of the email, tell me the type of field you want to see them fight on and any catches or cool things the stage can do. Don't be shy, email as many ideas as you want. I'll pick out quite a few of them, and give you credit in the authors notes at the end of the chapter ^_^. Don't hold back, and let the ideas flow!
Also, I would like to take this time to say a very heart felt "Thanks" to everyone at Port key who has reviewed this story. 140 reviews as of right now….Guys, I don't know what to say. I mean… thanks a lot. I don't look at my story much there besides uploading so I didn't think I had any reviews. Well, when I saw them, quite by accident, and I had 132 it was just…. Wow. Thanks guys, because of all of you, I feel motivated to write more and faster if at all possible.
A new shout out goes to Babygrrl, my new beta reader. I'm sure a lot of you noticed that my usual grammar errors and things were fixed this time. Thanks and credit goes to her! Domo arigato gozaimasu, Sempai! You made this fanfic that much better (if it was good to begin with :-p)
Next chapter will start by explaining Draco's ring and powers, as well as giving a look at his life and just why he ran from his home and isn't with Voldemort right now. I know some of you don't really like Draco, or his pairing with Ginny, but he's an essential part of this story and I feel it's high time he gets some limelight and an explanation. Don't worry, though, from what I have planned, even if you don't Like Draco, you'll still be entertained.
OH! And if I confused a few of you by the sudden switch of 'Malfoy' to 'Draco', it's because that Harry now calls him by his first name after they because 'friends', and I feel it's a changing point in his life. It's just more dramatic this way :-p!
This was posted early as a Valentine's Day gift. It's not chocolate, but hey, I tried ^_^
See you guys next Monday! As in not this coming up 'cause this one was posted early ;-)