Chapter 37 - The Second Task
"WORMTAIL! WORMTAIL, WHERE ARE YOU!" a cold, high-pitched voice sounded through the room.
Peter hurried up to the chair where his master lay. "Sss…sorry, Master, but Nagini wanted…"
"No more excuses, Wormtail. I do not want to hear you say 'Sss…sorry, Master' for the rest of the day. Don't make me regret keeping you around any more than I already do. Now, have you done what I asked you to do?"
"Y…Yes, Master…I sent the message to our…er… inside contact as you asked. He is to proceed fully with the original plan."
Voldemort sounded amused. "Wormtail, you don't have to be so secretive here. We're not a Muggle intelligence service, you know. You can use Barty Jr.'s name around me - I am quite aware that he is impersonating Alastor Moody."
"Sss…sorry, Master."
Voldemort let out what sounded like a heavy sigh. "Never mind. Did he respond already? What has he been doing while he has been at Hogwarts? Fortunately, it appears that the Muggle-Lover, Albus, has not discovered that yet or else surely he would have moved to reveal him. And, if he did that…"
"Yes, my Lord. You would have had to attack Harry directly. But, Barty has been maintaining appearances in his role as the DADA professor. He says he thoroughly enjoyed his small bit of revenge on Mr. Malfoy through his son at the beginning of the term, and hopes to be able to have a similar opportunity with Lucius at the proper time. He has been feeding Potter the necessary clues and help all along, so nothing much will change. Apparently, Potter has been distracted for some reason and has not been investigating the second task clue as he should have, so Barty has been working on some more drastic measures to make sure he does not fail to complete this next portion. Thanks to Potter, Barty reports that he has recently obtained a map that will help him in his task. As you have said, it would not do to have him fail to complete a task at this point in our plan."
Voldemort was silent for a moment, and then said "Yes…Harry does seem to be distracted for some reason. I am still able to barely detect his general mood, even now. I am also puzzled as to what happened. I felt I was on the verge of breaking through to his mind and taking him over completely up until he returned to Hogwarts, and for a time I thought that I could sense…other minds there, too, but then, the evening of the first day of classes, the link went completely dead. It was so sudden, I was almost convinced that he might have died also, but our spies confirmed that he was back in school the next morning. I wonder…maybe Albus suspected something was amiss and meddled in my affairs again. No matter, though - we have our original plan to fall back on. He should be truly dead by the time the year is over, and I will be restored. Now, you fool, move me closer to the fire. My strength is still lacking, but soon, Potter…soon, I will have you where I want you…and then I will not be stopped!"
*******
"You said you'd already worked out that egg clue!" said Hermione indignantly.
"Keep your voice down!" said Harry softly. "I just need to - sort of fine-tune it, all right?"
He, Ron, and Hermione were sitting at the very back of the Charms class with a table to themselves. They were supposed to be practicing the opposite of the Summoning Charm today - the Banishing Charm. Owing to the potential for nasty accidents when objects kept flying across the room, Professor Flitwick had given each student a stack of cushions on which to practice, the theory being that these wouldn't hurt anyone if they went off target. It was a good theory, but it wasn't working very well. Neville's aim was so poor that he kept accidentally sending much heavier things flying across the room - Professor Flitwick, for instance.
"Just forget the egg for a minute, all right?" Harry whispered as Professor Flitwick went whizzing resignedly past them, landing on top of a large cabinet. "I'm trying to tell you about Snape and Moody…"
*
"You just don't like Crouch because of that elf, Winky," said Ron, sending a cushion soaring into the window.
"You just want to think Snape's up to something," said Hermione, sending her cushion zooming neatly into the box.
"I just want to know what Snape did with his first chance, if he's on his second one," said Harry grimly, and his cushion, to his relief, flew straight across the room and landed neatly on top of Hermione's, just where he wanted it. Immediately, he looked over at Hermione to see her reaction. At first, she looked mildly surprised, but then, a wave of understanding seemed to go through her. Then, as she noticed Harry looking at her, she smiled and winked at him.
****
By the evening before the second task, Harry felt as though he were trapped in a nightmare. He was fully aware that even if, by some miracle, he managed to find a suitable spell, he'd have a real job mastering it overnight, even with Hermione's help. How could he have let this happen? Why hadn't he got to work on the egg's clue sooner? Why had he let the Yule Ball and Hagrid's problems related to Rita Skeeter's article distract him so? Why had he ever let his mind wander in class - what if a teacher had once mentioned how to breathe underwater? <Ah…but that's silly. If that had ever happened, Hermione would surely remember, and she would have told me by now!>He looked at her sitting next to him in the library, intently reading one of the many books the three of them had found in the library that day. Ron seemed to be nearly asleep, but Hermione was still as alert as ever, worry evident on her face as she closed the book and moved on to the next one. <She really does care about me…doesn't she? How could I be so lucky to have a friend…well, a girlfriend, actually, as beautiful and brilliant as she is?>
"Oh, this is no use," Hermione said, snapping shut Weird Wizarding Dilemmas. "Who on earth wants to make their nose hair grow into ringlets?"
"I wouldn't mind," said Fred Weasley's voice. "Be a talking point, wouldn't it?"
Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked up. Fred and George had just emerged from behind some bookshelves.
"What're you two doing here?" Ron asked.
"Looking for the three of you," said George. "McGonagall wants you, Hermione. She said you'd probably be in the library with Harry and Ron, and she was right. Although, that wasn't too difficult for her to figure out, come to think of it."
"What does she want me for?" said Hermione, looking surprised.
"Dunno…she was looking a bit grim, though," said Fred.
"We're supposed to take you down to her office," said George.
Ron and Hermione stared at Harry, who felt his stomach drop. <How will I be able to find what I need without Hermione here to help me? I'm doomed without her!>
Hermione stood up and looked at Harry. "I'll meet you two in the common room when I get back. Ron, when you're done here, help Harry get these books to the common room. Between the two of you, you should be able to take them all." As Ron started piling the books they had discarded into a stack he could carry, she turned to Harry and put her hand on his arm in reassurance. "Don't worry, Harry…I'll find something to help you. Don't give up on me yet!" she whispered. For some reason, Harry felt the urge to kiss her good-bye, but she smiled at him and turned to follow the twins.
****
The mermaid in the painting at the prefect's bathroom was laughing. Harry was bobbing like a cork in bubbly water next to her rock, while she held his Firebolt over his head.
"Come and get it!" she giggled maliciously. "Come on, jump!"
"I can't," Harry panted, snatching at the Firebolt, and struggling not to sink. "Give it to me!"
But she just poked him painfully in the side with the end of the broomstick, laughing at him.
"That hurts - get off - ouch -"
"Harry Potter must wake up, sir!"
"Stop poking me -"
"Dobby must poke Harry Potter, sir, he must wake up!"
Harry opened his eyes. He was still in the library, the Invisibility Cloak had slipped off his head as he'd slept, and the side of his face was stuck to the pages of Where There's a Wand, There's a Way. After Ron had begged off studying soon after they had returned to the Common Room to wait for Hermione, he had snuck off to the library under his Invisibility Cloak when it was obvious Hermione wasn't going to come back that night. At the time, he was quite disappointed in both of his friends, but most especially in Hermione. <She promised to come back, didn't she…she knows how much I need her...or…does she? Maybe I'll have to tell her…if I don't drown during the task, that is.> He sat up, straightening his glasses, blinking in the bright daylight.
"Harry Potter needs to hurry!" squeaked Dobby. "The second task starts in ten minutes, and Harry Potter -"
"Ten minutes?" Harry croaked. "Ten - ten minutes?"
He looked down at his watch. Dobby was right. It was twenty past nine. A large, dead weight seemed to fall through Harry's chest into his stomach.
"Hurry, Harry Potter!" squeaked Dobby, plucking at Harry's sleeve. "You is supposed to be down by the lake with the other champions, sir!"
"It's too late, Dobby," Harry said hopelessly. "I'm not doing the task. I don't know how -"
"Harry Potter will do the task!" squeaked the elf. "Dobby knew Harry had not found the right book, so Dobby did it for him!"
"What?" said Harry. "But you don't know what the second task is -"
"Dobby knows, sir! Harry Potter has to go into the lake and find his…his…"
"My what, Dobby? My Firebolt? What is it that I have to find?"
As far as Harry could tell, Dobby seemed to be blushing. "You have to find…your special friend…and take your Hermy back from the merpeople!"
"What? They have Hermione?"
"The thing Harry Potter will miss most, sir!" squeaked Dobby. "'But past an hour-'"
"-'the prospect's black,'" Harry recited, staring, horror-struck, at the elf. "'Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.' Dobby - what've I got to do?"
"You has to eat this, sir!" squeaked the elf, and he put his hand in the pocket of his shorts and drew out a ball of what looked like slimy, grayish-green rat tails. "Right before you go into the lake, sir - gillyweed!"
"What's it do?" said Harry, staring at the gillyweed.
"It will make Harry Potter breathe underwater, sir!"
"Dobby," said Harry frantically, as he considered Hermione being held captive underwater by the merpeople. "Listen, - are you sure about this?"
He couldn't quite forget that the last time Dobby had tried to "help" him he had ended up with no bones in his right arm.
"Dobby is quite sure, sir!" said the elf earnestly. "Dobby hears things, sir, he is a house-elf, he goes all over the castle as he lights the fires and mops the floors. Dobby heard Professor McGonagall and Professor Moody in the staffroom, talking about the next task…Dobby cannot let Harry Potter lose his Hermy!"
Harry's doubts vanished. Jumping to his feet he pulled off the Invisibility Cloak, stuffed it into his bag, grabbed the gillyweed, and put it into his pocket, then tore out of the library with Dobby at his heels.
*****
After swimming for what seemed like forever, he finally swam through the merpeople's village square. A choir of merpeople was singing in the middle, calling the champions toward them, and behind them rose a crude sort of statue; a gigantic merperson hewn from a boulder. Four people were bound tightly to the tail of the stone merperson. As he recognized who they were, he was not surprised by the choices in the least.
Hermione was tied next to Cho Chang…and Miss Puckle. <I guess Viktor was really impressed with Harmony!> There was also a girl who looked no older than eight, whose clouds of silvery hair made Harry feel sure that she was Fleur Delacour's sister. All four of them appeared to be in a very deep sleep. Their heads were lolling onto their shoulders, and fine streams of bubbles kept issuing from their mouths.
Harry sped towards the hostages, half expecting the merpeople to lower their spears and charge at him, but they did nothing. The ropes of weed tying the hostages to the statue were thick, slimy, and very strong. For a fleeting second he thought of the knife Sirius had bought him for Christmas - locked in his trunk in the castle a quarter of a mile away, no use to him whatsoever.
He looked around. Many of the merpeople surrounding them were carrying spears. He swam swiftly toward a seven-foot-tall merman with a long green beard and a choker of shark fangs and tried to mime a request to borrow the spear. The merman laughed and shook his head.
"We do not help," he said in a harsh, croaky voice.
"Come ON!" Harry said fiercely (but only bubbles issued from his mouth), and he tried to pull the spear away from the merman, but the merman yanked it back, still shaking his head and laughing.
Harry swirled around, staring about. Something sharp … anything…
There were rocks littering the lake bottom. He dived and snatched up a particularly jagged one and returned to the statue. He began to hack at the ropes binding Hermione, and after several minutes hard work, they broke apart. Hermione floated, unconscious, a few inches above the lake bottom. Harry was embarrassed to see that her loose top had come untucked from her skirt and floated up quite a lot, which exposed most of her lower back as she drifted in the ebb of the water. For a second, he attempted to pull it back into place unsuccessfully, then, blushing, he quickly turned back to Miss Puckle, raised the jagged rock, and began to hack at her bindings too -
At once, several pairs of strong, gray hands seized him. Half a dozen mermen were pulling him away from Harmony, shaking their green-haired heads, and laughing.
"You take your own hostage," one of them said to him. "Leave the others…"
"No way!" said Harry furiously - but only two large bubbles came out.
"Your task is to retrieve your own friend …leave the others…"
"She's one of my teachers, and my friend, too!" Harry yelled, gesturing toward Harmony, an enormous silver bubble emerging soundlessly from his lips. "And I don't want them to die either!"
Cho's head was on Harmony's shoulder, the small silver-haired girl was ghostly green and pale. Harry struggled to fight off the mermen, but they laughed harder than ever, holding him back. Harry looked wildly around. Where were the other champions? Would he have time to take Hermione to the surface and come back down for Harmony and the others? Would he be able to find them again? He looked down at his watch to see how much time was left - it had stopped working.
But the merpeople around him pointed excitedly over his head. Harry looked up and saw Cedric swimming toward them. There was an enormous bubble around his head, which made his features look oddly wide and stretched.
"Got lost!" he mouthed, looking panic-stricken. "Fleur and Krum're coming now!"
Feeling enormously relieved, Harry watched Cedric pull a knife out of his pocket and cut Cho free…
***
And then he felt his head break the surface of the lake; wonderful, cold, clear air was making his wet face sting; he gulped it down, feeling as though he had never breathed properly before, and, panting, pulled Hermione and the little girl up with him. All around him, wild, green-haired heads were emerging out of the water with him, but they were smiling at him.
Finally, he made it to the shore. As he handed Hermione and the little girl over to Madame Pomfrey, who was ready with blankets and hot potions, he saw Ron running up to him with a puzzled look on his face as he pointed to Fleur's sister. "What did you bring her for?"
"Fleur didn't turn up, I couldn't leave her," Harry panted.
"Harry, you prat," said Ron. "You KNOW that Dumbledore wouldn't have let anyone drown! Think about it!"
"The song said -"
"Percy explained it to me while we were waiting for you to come back. The song was only to make sure you got back inside the time limit!" said Ron. "I hope you didn't waste time down there acting the hero!", and then his voice turned decidedly cool. "Besides, you already found what you wanted down there - what you'd miss the most, right? I saw her when she got out of the water just now…her wet top…exposed like that, all that skin showing - positively indecent! Is THAT what took you so long? Had to stop for a bit of fun, did you?"
"What ARE you talking about, Ron?" Harry said, bristling at what his roommate was suggesting. "When I cut her loose and she floated free, I saw her top had come untucked. I tried for a second to tuck it back in, but I was afraid she'd wake up right then and catch me, so I stopped. You should know I'd never do…anything like that to Hermione! <Unless she was awake and willing…Now where did THAT thought come from?>. Besides, she'd probably hex me into next week if I tried!"
Behind him, he heard Hermione's voice. "Tried what, Harry…?" She and Harmony, both wrapped in blankets but still looking quite waterlogged, came up to the two of them.
Hermione handed him one of Pomfrey's blankets and helped him wrap it snugly around him, as Miss Puckle gave him a steaming mug of potion. He held the warm container gratefully, as he could now start to feel his frozen fingers again.
Harry could tell from Ron's wicked expression that he was about to blurt out what he thought Harry had been doing, so he quickly cut him off. "Oh, never mind about that. Ron was just telling me I was stupid for bringing back both you and Fleur's sister…that's all." He quickly took a large swallow of the hot potion, causing steam to pour out of his ears.
"Oh…well, I thought it was brilliant of you…and quite brave, besides!" Hermione said, looking askance at Ron.
Harmony smiled at him. "Harry, well done! You did it! You found out how all by yourself!"
"Well -" said Harry. He would have told her about Dobby, but he had just noticed Karkaroff watching him. He was the only judge who had not left the table; the only judge not showing signs of pleasure and relief that Harry, Hermione, and Fleur's sister had got back safely. "Yeah, that's right," said Harry, raising his voice slightly so that Karkaroff could hear him.
"You haff a water beetle in you hair, Harr-monnny" said Krum. Harry had the impression that Krum was drawing her attention back onto himself; perhaps to remind her that he had just rescued her from the lake. Harmony reached to brush away the beetle, but Harry saw a mischievous expression slowly build on her face. "Just a second, Viktor. Let me take care of this poor lost beetle - wouldn't want it to get hurt, you know!" she said with definite amusement in her voice. "Hmmm…if it's a water beetle, it must have got caught in my hair when I was waiting for you to rescue me. Well, we'd best get it back to where it came from." She quickly walked over to the shore where one of the merpeople was watching the general commotion. "Here, kind merman…could you return this beetle to your village? No, don't eat it! I doubt you would find it very tasty. That type of beetle is QUITE nasty - acidic, actually," she said, mostly to herself. "That's it…just take it back into the lake and let it go. I'm sure she…I mean, it, will be fine…as long as it can swim, that is." By this time, Harry could definitely see that Miss Puckle seemed to be enjoying herself way too much for what appeared to be a simple act of kindness. If he didn't know better, he would have sworn he almost heard…revenge in her voice as she talked.
Hermione broke in to his thoughts and said, "But Harry…you're well outside the time limit, though, Harry…Did it take you ages to find me…er…us, I mean?"
"No…I found you okay…"
****
"Look after Gabrielle," Fleur told Madame Pomfrey, and then she turned to Harry. "You saved 'er," she said breathlessly. "Even though she was not your 'ostage."
"Yeah," said Harry, who was now heartily wishing he'd left the other two girls tied to the statue.
Fleur bent down, kissed Harry twice on each cheek. He felt his face burn and wouldn't have been surprised if steam was coming out of his ears again. Then he caught a glimpse of Hermione's face, looking daggers at the witch from Beauxbatons. <Bit jealous, are we?>, he thought with a grin. He caught her eye and shrugged, trying to let her know that it wasn't his idea, but he could tell she was furious. But just then, Ludo Bagman's magically magnified voice boomed out beside them, making them all jump, and causing the crowd in the stands to go very quiet and look towards him.
No one noticed, therefore, as a completely soaked Rita Skeeter climbed out of the lake behind them and sloshed towards the castle grounds, her hair plastered wetly to her head as Bagman announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision…"
****
For the first few days, everyone at Hogwarts had congratulated Harry and Cedric being tied for first place in the tournament standings so many times, Harry found himself avoiding students as much as possible in the halls, as did Diggory. But it wasn't long before the excitement died down and students settled back into their class work with determination. The fifth year students were busy studying for their O.W.L.S., as were the seventh-years for their N.E.W.T.s which were fast approaching. Harry, however, being exempt from end-of-year testing, soon realized that he found that being with Hermione was sufficient motivation to keep attending his regular schedule of classes. Even though Ron was always with them, he soon noticed that Hermione made it a point to sit on one side of him with Ron on the other. Ron didn't seem to notice too much, or care, for that matter, so the whole arrangement suited Harry just fine.
One day a little over a week after the second task, the trio was descending the steps into the dungeons for double Potions with the Slytherins. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were standing in a huddle outside the classroom door with Pansy Parkinson's gang of Slytherin girls. All of them were looking at something Harry couldn't see and sniggering heartily. Pansy's pug-like face peered excitedly around Goyle's broad back as Ron, Harry, and Hermione approached.
"There he is…there he is!" she giggled, and the knot of Slytherins broke apart. Harry saw that Pansy had a magazine in her hands - Witch Weekly. The moving picture on the front showed a curly-haired witch who was smiling toothily and pointing at a large sponge cake with her wand.
"You might find something to interest you in there, Potter!" Pansy said loudly, and she threw the magazine at Harry, who caught it, looking startled. At that moment, the dungeon door opened, and Snape beckoned them all inside. Hermione, Harry, and Ron headed for a table at the back of the dungeon as usual. Once Snape had turned his back on them to write up the ingredients of today's potion on the blackboard, Harry hastily rifled through the magazine under the desk. At last, in the center pages, Harry found what they were looking for. Hermione and Ron leaned in closer. A color photograph of Harry headed a short piece entitled:
Harry Potter's Forbidden Love
A boy like no other, perhaps, yet a boy suffering all the usual pangs of adolescence, writes Rita Skeeter. Deprived of love since the tragic demise of his parents, fourteen-year-old Harry Potter seemed to have caught the eye of his prettiest teacher - Asst. Professor of Charms Miss Harmony June Puckle, age unknown, who joined the staff at Hogwarts the same day that young Mr. Potter started his schooling at the renowned Wizarding institution. Since that time, many students have noticed that Harry has attracted the interest of the beautiful, yet mysterious, young faculty member. (For an exposition of the horrible mismanagement and questionable hiring practices at Hogwarts during Albus Dumbledore's tenure as Headmaster, see page 35 of the latest issue of the Daily Prophet - Subscribe now through Owl Post!)
Pretty as she is with her dark, black hair, shining blue eyes, and charming visage, that does not excuse her apparent fascination (or is that infatuation?) with the famous Boy-Who-Lived. We do not blame Mr. Potter, of course. He's a normal, healthy teenager that is probably flattered by her feminine wiles, no matter how misguided or illegal they may be. For one thing, according to Mr. Lucius Malfoy, former member of the Hogwarts Board of Governors, the bylaws specifically forbid any such relationship between students and teachers, no matter how famous or good-looking they may be. Mr. Malfoy said in an exclusive interview with this reporter, "Oh, yes, that would be grounds for immediate dismissal of the teacher and, if the facts warranted, dismissal of the student unless it could be proven he or she were innocent. Mark my words, if I were still a school governor, I would launch an immediate investigation into this disgusting lack of professional behavior and corresponding lack of oversight on the esteemed, yet possibly past his prime, Headmaster." (For more background on the questionable series of accusations that led to the dismissal of Mr. Malfoy, one of the Wizarding World's best know supporters of charitable causes, including the Witch Weekly Orphan's fund, and head of one of the truly great Wizarding pure-blood lines, see page 40.)
However, Miss Puckle, who apparently came out of nowhere when she appeared on the scene, seems to have a taste for famous wizards that Harry alone cannot satisfy. (For the inconclusive results of the research into Miss Puckle's background and credentials, see the sidebar on the last page of this article.) Since the arrival at Hogwarts of Viktor Krum, Bulgarian Seeker and hero of the last World Quidditch Cup, Miss Puckle has been toying with both young men's affections. Krum, who is openly smitten with the devious Miss Puckle, has already invited her to visit him in Bulgaria over the summer holidays, and insists that he has "never felt this vay about any other girl."
Further investigation has also revealed the shocking proof that Miss Puckle was a known associate of famous author and current resident of St. Mungo's, Gilderoy Lockhart, when he taught at Hogwarts during Harry's second year. Students at the time reported seeing her coming from Gilderoy's private quarters, obviously flushed in appearance with her robes in disarray. It doesn't take a Nicholas Flamel to realize what they must have been doing that day, especially considering Gilderoy's reputation with the ladies. Miss Puckle was even reported as being in the front row during his book signing where he announced he had accepted the DADA position - an obvious ploy of a fangirl trying to be noticed.
From this evidence, it appears that while Miss Puckle may have a thing for underage boys, she also craves the attentions of more mature, athletic types and known ladies men to fulfill her baser desires. No doubt Albus Dumbledore will want to investigate these shocking claims. In the meantime, we hope to see her put on administrative leave to keep her from having the opportunity to charm some other young wizard in one of her classes. Harry Potter's well-wishers must also hope that, next time, he bestows his heart on a worthier candidate.
"Wow…wonder what Miss Puckle did to set her off? Someone should have warned her not to mess with Rita Skeeter, whatever it was she did." Ron muttered as he stared at the article. She's made her out to be some sort of - of scarlet woman!"
Hermione stopped looking astonished and snorted with laughter. "Scarlet woman?" she repeated, shaking with suppressed giggles as she looked past Harry at Ron.
"It's what my mum calls them," Ron muttered again as his ears went red.
Still giggling, Hermione continued, "If that's the best Rita can do, she's losing her touch. Miss Puckle…in love with Harry? Rubbish!", although Harry noticed a little worry on Hermione's face as she threw the magazine onto the empty chair beside her.
"There's something funny, though," said Hermione ten minutes later, holding her pestle suspended over a bowl of scarab beetles. "How could Rita Skeeter have known...?"
"Known what?" said Ron quickly.
As she started to pound her beetles again, she said, quietly, "How did she know Viktor asked Harmony to visit him over the summer? He's graduating from Durmstrang this year, and he's definitely of age, so he was hoping on showing her his home country. Miss Puckle's always been fascinated with anything related to Wizarding history in Europe, so he thought she would enjoy being shown around by a native. He asked her right after he pulled her from the lake. Harmony only told me about it yesterday."
"And, what did she say?" said Ron.
"And he did say he'd never felt the same way about anyone else," Hermione went on, avoiding answering Ron's question. "But how could Rita Skeeter have heard him? She wasn't there…or was she? Maybe she has got an Invisibility Cloak; maybe she sneaked onto the grounds to watch the second task…"
"And, what did she say?" Ron repeated, strangely interested all of a sudden in Miss Puckle's love life.
"Well, she was too busy seeing whether Harry and I were okay, and then she had that merman rescue that poor water beetle - "
"Fascinating as that story may be, Miss Granger," said an icy voice right behind them, and all three of them jumped, "I must ask you not to discuss it in my class. Ten points from Gryffindor."
Snape had glided over to their desk while they were talking. The whole class was now looking around at them; Malfoy took the opportunity to flash POTTER STINKS across the dungeon at Harry.
"Ah…reading magazines under the table as well?" Snape added, snatching up the copy of Witch Weekly. "A further ten points from Gryffindor…oh but of course…" Snape's black eyes glittered as they fell on Rita Skeeter's article. "Potter has to keep up with his press cuttings…"
The dungeons rang with the Slytherins' laughter, and an unpleasant smile curled Snape's thin mouth. To Harry's fury, he began to read the article aloud.
"'Harry Potter's Forbidden Love'…dear, dear, Potter…what's this about? 'A boy like no other, perhaps…'"
After what seemed to Harry to be an interminably long time, Snape finally finished reading the entire article out loud to the class. "…'Harry Potter's well-wishers must hope that, next time, he bestows his heart upon a worthier candidate.' How very touching," sneered Snape, rolling up the magazine to continued gales of laughter from the Slytherins. "Well, I think I had better separate you three since you seem to be more interested in the questionable tastes of one of my fellow teachers than you do in your Potions assignment. Weasley, you stay here. Miss Granger, over there, beside Miss Parkinson. Potter - that table in front of my desk. Move. Now."
****
"Do you know what this is, Potter?" Snape said, his eyes glittering dangerously as he showed him a small crystal bottle of a completely clear potion.
"No," said Harry, with a complete honesty this time.
"It is Veritaserum - a Truth Potion so powerful that three drops would have you spilling your innermost secrets for this entire class to hear," said Snape viciously. "Now, the use of this potion is controlled by very strict Ministry guidelines. But unless you watch your step, you might just find that my hand slips" - he shook the crystal bottle slightly - "right over your evening pumpkin juice. And then, Potter…then we'll find out whether you've been in my office or not. Since I am quite sure that I have the only stock of gillyweed in the area, I am sure you must have stolen it somehow. No student has EVER gotten away with stealing from my private stores in all the years I've been here…-" <That's not right…I seem to remember that Hermione took Boomslang skin before…don't I? That doesn't make any sense…Hermione stealing something? She'd never do that, would she? Why would I remember her sneaking out with Boomslang skin…?>
As Harry realized that Snape had finished threatening him, he said nothing and turned back to his ginger roots once more, picked up his knife, and started slicing them again. He didn't like the sound of that Truth Potion at all, nor would he put it past Snape to slip him some. He repressed a shudder at the thought of what might come spilling out of his mouth if Snape did it…quite apart from landing Dobby in trouble, there were all the other things he was concealing…like the fact that he was in contact with Sirius…and - his insides squirmed at the thought - how he felt about Hermione…<How DO I feel about her, anyway…sometimes its like I've known her forever…but whenever I try to remember the details, they're just not there. Hmmm…maybe the Veritaserum would help, come to think of it. Have to ask the Headmaster about it sometime.>
There was a knock on the dungeon door.
"Enter" said Snape in his usual voice.
The class looked around as the door opened. Professor Karkaroff came in. Everyone watched him as he walked up towards Snape's desk. He was twisting his finger around his goatee and looking agitated.
"We need to talk," said Karkaroff…
***
The following Monday, after meeting with Sirius and getting socks for Dobby, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were eating breakfast when the post owls arrived.
"Harry…look at Miss Puckle!" Hermione said with alarm. Harry looked up to the head table and saw that Harmony was surrounded by flocks of owls, most of which appeared to be carrying…howlers!
Immediately, the Great Hall was filled with loud, angry voices denouncing Miss Puckle as being a child molester or worse and demanding that she resign her position immediately. Finally, with tears streaming down her face she ran from the hall, followed by a number of post owls and Professor McGonagall.
The general commotion coming from all of the students in the hall was halted as Dumbledore stood up, performed the Sonorus charm on himself, and said in a booming voice, "MAY I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION, PLEASE! PLEASE BE SEATED AT ONCE!"
As soon as the students quieted down, he performed the counter charm and continued. "Now, that's better. I have only one thing to say to all of your students, and I will just say it once. Please pass what I am about to say on to your parents. If I ever have any reason to believe that ANY of my staff has behaved in such a manner as a recent news article has reported, they will be immediately suspended until the truth can be discerned. However, I have full confidence in Miss Puckle, and I am quite certain that the libelous charges against her are completely untrue. I have known Miss Puckle for many years now and I have met with her on many occasions, and I know that she is above reproach in this manner, with respect to either Mr. Potter OR Mr. Krum. I also have additional knowledge with respect to her supposed relationship with our former DADA professor, Gilderoy Lockhart - that completely satisfies any concerns along those lines, also. Now, please return to your excellent meal. The House Elves have outdone themselves today. If you see one, be sure and thank them for their fine work." Harry swore that he winked at Hermione when he said that.
Harry, Hermione, and Ron walked up to Miss Puckle's place at the table to see if they could help clean up the mess caused by all of the howlers and hate mail that had been delivered. As Hermione read some of the opened notes, she was shocked by the hateful words and threats that she saw there. As she picked up the last envelope, though, she screamed as the contents gushed over her hands, causing large yellow boils to erupt.
"Undiluted bubotuber pus!" said Ron, picking up the envelope gingerly and sniffing it.
****
Even after Dumbledore had written a letter to the editor of Witch Weekly in which he stated his continuing support for Miss Puckle, hate mail continued to arrive for her over the following week. She had long since stopped opening the mail, but the Howlers could not be ignored as they exploded. Even those people who didn't read the magazine knew all about the supposed Harry-Krum-Harmony triangle now. Harry was getting sick of telling people that Miss Puckle was not his girlfriend and that he wasn't getting extra credit in Charms class because of their supposed relationship. One thing that did come out of this was that Harry and Hermione ended up spending more time together. For one thing, Albus had thought it was best that Harry not be seen with Miss Puckle outside of class for any reason, and he suggested that Hermione serve as a chaperone to verify this. Since they were quite accustomed by this time to working in the library together, this was no problem for either of them. Ron, who was still a bit upset with Harry over the leprechaun gold incident, generally found other things to occupy himself when they spend time walking together around the lake or doing research in the library.
****
The start of the summer term would normally have meant that Harry was training hard for the last Quidditch match of the season. This year, however, it was the third and final task in the Triwizard Tournament for which he needed to prepare, but he still didn't know what he would have to do. Finally, in the last week of May, Professor McGonagall held him back in Transfiguration.
"You are to go down to the Quidditch field tonight at nine o'clock, Potter," she told him. "Mr. Bagman will be there to tell the champions about the third task."
So, at half past eight that night, Harry left Hermione to study with Ron and Ginny in the tower and went downstairs. As he crossed the entrance hall, Cedric came up from the Hufflepuff common room.
"What d'you reckon it's going to be?" he asked Harry as they went together down the stone steps, out into the cloudy night. "Fleur keeps going on about underground tunnels; she reckons we've got to find treasure."
******
"Maze," grunted Krum, as Bagman asked for a guess as to what the Quidditch pitch had been turned in to.
"That's right!" said Bagman "A maze. The third task's really very straightforward. The Triwizard Cup will be place in the center of the maze. The first champion to touch it will receive full marks."
*******
"What're we going this way for?" said Harry as they passed Hagrid's cabin and the illuminated Beauxbatons carriage.
"Don't vont to be overheard," said Krum shortly.
When at last they had reached a quiet stretch of ground a short way from the Beauxbatons horse's paddock, Krum stopped in the shade of the trees and turned to face Harry.
"I vant to know," he said, glowering, "vot there is between you and Hermy-own-ninny."
Harry was doubly shocked at what he had just been asked. For one thing, he would have expected the question to be about Miss Puckle, and, for another, because he was surprised that Krum would be concerned about Hermione. As he collected his thoughts, he decided to be direct with Krum and said. "Viktor, why do you want to know? Besides, aren't you more interested in my supposed relationship with Miss Puckle? She's the one you would most miss, you know."
Viktor shook his head quickly. "No, Harry. I vill admit that I haff greatly enjoyed getting to know Miss Puckle this year, and I vill miss her after this tournament is completed. However, she has made it qvite clear that her heart is spoken for. There is …someone from her past, apparently, that she still loves greatly. And, before you ask if I am interested in Miss Granger, I assure you that is not vy I am asking. While she is a charming young vitch, she is much too young for me, just as I am too young for Miss Puckle. It would not be appropriate under the vizarding traditions vere I come from. The reason I am talking to you now is because I haff noticed that you spend much time with her, but only as friends. Are you not interested in her that way, Harry? It is quite obvious she has feelings for you, even if she vill not admit it to herself, and if you do not return those feelings you should tell her soon so she can get on vith her life."
Harry couldn't quite believe he was having a conversation about his feelings for Hermione with Viktor Krum, the famous International Quidditch player. He looked thoughtful for a minute, and then said, "Honestly, Viktor, I cannot say just what my feelings are for Hermione. Yes, I think of Hermione as a very good friend, and sometimes I seem to …well, remember, that there could be more to our relationship than just friendship, but then it is almost as if I can't keep my mind focused - as if something is blocking me from that line of thought. I have even considered having someone administer Truth Potion to me to see if that will help."
Viktor smiled. "Vell, Harry, I vish you vell in your efforts to find out the truth. If you don't mind my saying so, I think she vud make a vunderful girlfriend for you. She seems to be always there for you each time you are in need."
Harry blushed as he realized how true that statement was. "Thanks, Viktor. I'll keep that in mind. Yes, you're right. I think I need to have a talk with her…after the third task is over, that is. Good luck, by the way!" he said as he stuck out his hand.
Viktor shook his hand and said, "You fly very vell. I vos votching at the first task."
*****
(A/N - Another long chapter…but a lot to cover, too. For those of you who are Sirius fans that may be upset that I'm not including much of that story arc from canon, all I can say is 1. This is primarily an H/Hr story. 2. The chapters recapping GOF for this time loop would have been WAY too long if I had incorporated that story line or much about S.P.E.W, which in my opinion is probably more interesting from an H/Hr relationship standpoint, anyway; and 3. If you want to know about those plot lines, just reread the appropriate sections in canon. Besides, there's still more chapters coming - and Sirius will be back before the end of the story.)