"Draw?"
"Draw."
Harry and Fleur gently fell upon the shores of the Great Lake, both panting heavily. They had just engaged in one of their dueling sessions - something that was beginning to become more and more common. It was unfortunately necessary; if Harry was to face off against one of Voldemort's senior Death Eaters, he would have to be at his best.
They continued to practice their dueling by the shore rather than the Chamber of Secrets, almost always accompanied by Hedwig (as they were now). Madame Maxime was simply getting more and more suspicious of Fleur, something that was obviously not good for them. Sneaking off to even the shores was becoming more and more difficult for Fleur; the Chamber of Secrets was no longer a realistic option.
Perhaps her suspicions had something to do with how unusually content Fleur had been over the past month. Until recently Fleur had always retained a sliver of her cold persona, even when with Harry. Ever since the second task, however, it had been completely non-existent within his presence. Even around others, it was significantly less prominent (although it had by no means disappeared).
Her slight change was more noticeable than both Harry and Fleur had initially realised. If one who knew her well (as Madame Maxime seemingly did) looked her closely in the eyes, they would see the newfound happiness brimming within her. She would still act as she always did: superior, aloof, and closed off, but there was a diminutive difference. Fortunately, Madame Maxime seemed to be the only one who had noticed - Fleur's family had returned to France now, making it impossible for them to be included.
It was now May; flowers littered the grounds of Hogwarts, appeasing the eyes of all that saw them. Harry and Fleur were chief among them, for they spent the majority of their time at their spot on the shores of the Great Lake, just close enough to the grounds to see the beautiful plants.
The location of the their spot on the shores turned out to be rather convenient. By spending the majority of their time there, they were both within a short walking distance of the carriage. Both could leave the area very quickly if needed; Fleur would simply return to the carriage, and Hedwig would flame Harry to the Chamber of Secrets.
When Harry was in the chamber (which unfortunately was almost always without Fleur), and was not practicing his Occlumency, he and Salazar would learn more about his connection with Hedwig. It was unlike anything he had ever read about, and was certainly far superior to the relationship between Dumbledore and Fawkes.
As far as Harry knew, Fawkes could only tell if Dumbledore wished to be flamed somewhere if the bird was within hearing range. With Harry and Hedwig, however, it was different; a few weeks ago Harry had simply said Hedwig's name while she was hunting, and she had suddenly appeared. That had certainly surprised him - he was immensely grateful that it had happened in the Chamber of Secrets rather than anywhere else.
Harry also felt like he could understand her better than most understood a bird of any kind, although that might have just been because of how long he knew her.
He had initially asked Salazar whether he might be able to speak to Hedwig, or something of the sort. The portrait had been rather put off with Harry after that. According to Salazar, birds did not speak any language, something which Harry had a hard time understanding.
The question had slowly transitioned to a conversation about Parseltongue. Salazar had informed him that snakes did not truly speak a language either, something that surprised and confused Harry even further. Apparently, most snakes were simply not intelligent enough to truly speak (the only exceptions being those of a magical variety).
As it turned out, a snake's general intellect (or, at the very least, their ability to express themselves) increased when in the presence of a Parselmouth, allowing them to translate their general thoughts into proper speech. Harry had certainly not known that, although in hindsight he should have had at least an iota of suspicion. Perhaps he had simply believed it to be another quirk of the magical world.
Harry was not sure what else had changed between Hedwig and himself, as he had no true way to tell. She would follow almost any instruction he gave, both before and after the ritual. The same could be said about her hooting in amusement whenever Harry did something particularly stupid (as he had countless times whilst learning how to apparate).
Thankfully, Harry was now pleased to note that he was quite capable of apparating properly. He still made a slight crack when he did so, and likely would for a while. Fleur was currently one of the few magicals capable of apparating completely silently, something that she did not forget to inform him every now and then. Still, he was fourteen; he could work on the finer details later on.
"You know," began Fleur as the two of them lay across the sandy floors of the shore as they often did, "We tied."
"We did." said Harry with a smile.
"That is very good." said Fleur, also smiling, "You are getting better at combat every passing day, as am I with runes, warding and charms. We will be very well prepared for anything coming."
Since Fleur could not come to the chamber often, Harry had opted to sneak books to her, something which she used to study. The few times she could make it to the Chamber of Secrets were dedicated to her learning anything that required the assistance of the portrait.
As Harry had expected, the moment Fleur learnt Salazar's methods for Ancient Runes, she had instantly surpassed him in the art, completely leaving him in the dust. The same could be said about warding and enchanting. Not that Harry minded; he himself was improving in other areas, areas that he was far more proficient in.
They had both been rather pleased with their talents; Harry favoured combative magics such as offensive magic, defensive magic, and transfiguration. Fleur excelled in charms, runes, and enchanting. They were still both relatively proficient in the other's skills, causing their combined talents to align rather nicely.
"You know, you might be able to sneak into the chamber at night." suggested Harry as the two of them watched the setting sun, "I could give you the Marauder's Map - that way you wouldn't have to worry about being caught."
"Non." said Fleur with a gentle shake of her head, "Madame Maxime implemented wards into the carriage that prevent any magical from entering or exiting after curfew. I could likely break them, but doing so would notify her by morning - they were designed very well."
"Is it around the entrances and exits, or the entire carriage?" asked Harry, "Because if it's the former - "
" - Hedwig could flame me into the chamber while everyone is asleep." interrupted Fleur, "I already checked, it is the latter. Like I said, they were designed very well."
"Well, I've got nothing then." said Harry, allowing his head to fall gently into the sand.
"It is fine, at least I still get to see you. I just don't get to see that grumpy old portrait often."
"And the basilisk." added Harry, "Salazar wouldn't like it if you forgot about Lilith."
"Right, Lilith as well then." Fleur hastily amended, "That reminds me, I - "
Fleur stopped speaking, her eyes glued to something off in the distance. From what Harry could see, it was a bird of some sort. It was too large to be an owl of any kind (for not even Malfoy's Eurasian eagle-owl could match such a size), yet Harry could easily see the letter held within its claws.
A letter meant for me or Fleur if its flight path is at all accurate.
As the bird flew closer, Harry finally recognized it. It was a large tropical bird, similar to the ones Sirius had used to send him mail previously. His godfather had not sent him any mail recently; or perhaps he had - Harry wouldn't know. He lived within the Chamber of Secrets for now, a place that was not easily accessible. He could imagine a bird having a rather difficult time entering it, what with it being an underground chamber.
"It's from Sirius." Harry informed Fleur, causing her eyes to widen.
"This has to be a joke." declared Fleur as the bird landed, holding out its leg for Harry, "The entire wizarding world is on the lookout for him, and he is lounging around in some tropical country?"
"That's Sirius for you." said Harry.
"He does a poor job living up to his name."
"From what he's told me, his mum agrees with you."
Fleur rolled her eyes, waiting for Harry to detach the letter. Once he had done so, he held it out for the two of them to read.
'Dear Harry,
I've sent two letters previously, but you haven't answered either of them. Thank Merlin I sent a letter to Dumbledore about it; if he hadn't responded I would have probably returned to Britain by now. Cheers, by the way - it's quite an accomplishment to live somewhere in Hogwarts without even Dumbledore knowing.
My guess would probably be the Room of Requirement, I don't think he knows about that one, but it doesn't matter. As long as you're safe, it's fine.
I've put a charm on the letter, it'll let me know when someone takes this letter, and who it is. If you can, head to the Gryffindor common room at midnight, the evening you get this. If I have to worry about sending letters to you, then I'll just talk to you in the fire - that way I can really understand what's going on, and give you enough advice (at least I think it's advice, Remus might disagree) to last you the rest of the year.
I'm near a small wizarding settlement, I should be able to speak to you quite easily.
Stay safe, I'll see you in a bit.
- Snuffles'
"I am not sure this is the best decision for a man on the run," noted Fleur, having finished reading the letter, "but he has not yet been caught, so he must know what he is doing. Will you go?"
"Yes." answered Harry, "He's going to pop into the fireplace either way, to check if I'm there. It would be best not to waste his time."
"Then I am coming."
"I thought you said Madame Maxime warded the carriage?"
"She did." said Fleur, "But, like I said, they should only inform her by morning. This is important, you could get in serious trouble - I will not let you go alone."
Harry narrowed his eyes before hastily sighing.
"Fine." he said with a sigh, "But you're wearing my invisibility cloak, not a Disillusionment Charm."
"The Peverell cloak?" questioned Fleur, "It will hide our magic, non?"
"Yes, it should." said Harry, "I think Dumbledore thought I used it to bypass the age line."
"If I had known at the time, I likely would have thought the same thing." admitted Fleur, nodding her head in agreement.
"You also have to stay under the cloak the entire time." said Harry.
"That is fine." said Fleur, "It would be a bad idea for him to know of me, anyway. He seems to be too strongly connected to Dumbledore - it is not a good idea for someone so reliant on a man who might wish you dead to know of my connection to you."
"He is my only living family, though." said Harry thoughtfully, "Him and the other Blacks, we're related through my dad's mum. But that's it - they're all I have. Aside from Riddle, I suppose, though thankfully that's a much more distant connection. Does this make you think it would be a bad idea for your family to know about me?"
"Non, I do not." Fleur easily answered, "They would not do anything - that would risk our connection going public, which would put me in danger. Besides, grandma would probably force my parents not to do anything, and you know Gabrielle adores you."
The two sat by the lake for another half hour, eventually departing just minutes before curfew.
Harry slowly made his way towards the courtyard, the entirety of his body covered by the invisibility cloak. He and Fleur had agreed to meet there; this way Harry could cover them both with his invisibility cloak as soon as possible, entirely hiding their magic.
It was hard for Harry to find Fleur. The darkness, combined with Fleur's prowess with charms (particularly the Disillusionment Charm) made the task near impossible, though he had thankfully not forgotten to bring the Marauder's Map.
"Madame Maxime will have me slaughtered." whispered Fleur, hastily pecking Harry on the cheek as she got under the cloak.
The two of them slowly made their way towards the Gryffindor common room, watching the Marauder's Map with a vigilance that would have made Moody cry tears of joy. The journey ended up taking quite some time, especially considering how they had been forced to avoid Filch and Peeves, but it was well worth it. They had purposefully left for the Gryffindor common room an hour and a half early; they wanted to ensure that they were not caught. If they were seen together, especially at such a time, the results would be unpleasant at best.
"Now what?" Fleur asked as they arrived in front of the snoozing portrait of a rather plump woman, "You can not possibly know the password, you have not set foot in this room for months."
"Merde." whispered Harry, causing Fleur to smile despite herself. It appeared as though some of her favorite expressions were rubbing off on him.
"Hedwig?" whispered Harry before quickly continuing, "Flame under the cloak, otherwise you'll be seen!"
Thankfully, the majestic bird seemed to have heard him. After a flash of violet flames which harmed neither Fleur nor Harry, Hedwig appeared, resting upon Fleur and Harry's shoulders, both of which were pressed up against each other.
"Could you flame us into the common room under the cloak?" asked Harry quickly and quietly; the fat lady was already starting to stir in her sleep.
Hedwig hooted softly and a moment later they found themselves within the Gryffindor common room.
It was just as Harry remembered it. Even now, after Harry's falling out with the majority of Gryffindor House, the room still felt cozy to him. The couches were covered in poorly-knitted clothing, books were sprawled about, and the orange flames within the fire roared happily. On the far side of the room were the badges Malfoy had been handing out earlier in the school year. They now read 'Support Harry Potter, the REAL Hogwarts Champion!'.
I suppose Colin and Dennis learnt how to do it in the end.
Harry and Fleur made their way over to the staircases where Fleur set up wards to prevent anyone from interrupting them. As she did so, Harry gently nuzzled Hedwig's beak, telling her to return back to whatever she had been doing. Once all the necessary wards were in place, Harry and Fleur moved over to the fire.
They sat together underneath the cloak, basking in the heat of the fireplace. Fleur sat in front of Harry, leaning her back into his front as his arms wrapped around her torso. They were of equal height now, something which Harry deeply appreciated.
An hour passed with nothing of importance occurring, although perhaps that wasn't the case. The time was spent simply talking to one another. They spoke of nothing serious, nothing of concern, but rather of the trivial things that did not truly matter. Yet Harry could not help but feel that little things like this were of more importance to him than anything else.
A half-formed silvery king slowly grew in a chamber deep within the school, its formation now nearing completion.
"It is time." said Fleur after a casual flick of her wand, "He should appear through the flames any moment."
She slowly removed herself from Harry's arms, allowing for him to exit the cloak. She remained within it, mere feet from Harry. Harry knew she was watching both himself and the Marauder's Map, making sure that they did not get in trouble.
Harry quickly moved his eyes from the fire, checking to make sure that Fleur could not be seen before looking back. It was only thanks to his Occlumency that he did not jump in surprise; Sirius' head now hovered within the flames, watching him in an appraising manner.
Harry's face quickly morphed into a happy smile. Sirius looked very different from what he had been nearly a year prior; his face was no longer nearly as gaunt or sunken, his hair now clean and cut properly to shoulder length.
"Sirius!" Harry whispered happily, prompting a grin from the man in return.
"You look good." said Sirius, "Before you looked like the wind could blow you over."
"I could say the same about you, you know." replied Harry, trying hard not to think of how Fleur was likely smirking under the cloak.
"I escaped Azkaban." defended Sirius, "But never mind that. So, are you staying in the Room of Requirement? That's the only place I could think of."
"What?" questioned Harry, "I don't even know what that is."
"And you still haven't been caught by Dumbledore?" asked Sirius with wide eyes, "Must be the Marauder blood in you, I'm impressed."
"Sirius, what's the Room of Requirement?"
"Later, we have more pressing things to worry about. The first two tasks are now over - brilliant job on them, by the way - but that means there's only one task left for someone trying to do you in - "
"Whoever that might be." interrupted Harry sarcastically.
" - which certainly isn't good for you." finished Sirius, "I saw you in the tasks, I know you've improved beyond measure, even if some others are somehow too blind to see it - but it's not enough. Incredible, probably better than I ever was - I don't know how the hell you've done it. But it still isn't enough."
"I know." said Harry miserably. He almost jumped in surprise when he felt Fleur's hands wrap around his arm in a comforting manner.
"I'm working on it." Harry continued, "I genuinely think I can hold my own against some of Voldemort's higher ranking Death Eaters, at least for a certain amount of time, but if anyone catches me by surprise - "
" - then you're in trouble." finished Sirius, "You'll have to work on your senses for that, I don't know much else that can help."
"And what about Voldemort?" asked Harry, noticing how Sirius flinched ever so slightly, "I know he's trying to get back a body, he tried when I was eleven and twelve, probably other times as well."
"You'd better hope he never gets a body back, Harry." said Sirius, his tone of voice uncharacteristically living up to his name, "There's a reason people fear him. I saw him once, during the war - he made the best of us look like muggles in his presence."
"I'm going to have to fight him, eventually." said Harry, continuing before Sirius could interrupt, "He'll come after me either way, it isn't like I have a choice. I'll do everything I can to prepare, I've been doing that since the start of the school year."
"Try not to worry too much about what may never come." advised Sirius, although his hesitation ruined the effect, "But I'll help you out as much as I can. I know Dumbledore is trying to reinstate the Order of the Phoenix, I might be able to live with you in a few summers if that's the case."
"What's the Order of the Phoenix?"
"A secret group that fought against Voldemort in the last war." Sirius explained, "Dumbledore seems to think You-Know-Who is becoming more and more powerful; at least, that's what I think. From what I've found out, nobody else in the order knows that You-Know-Who is still alive, so they're not too concerned at the moment."
It makes sense, I suppose; ignorance is bliss - No wonder Dudley always seemed so pleased with himself.
After that, the subject slowly turned towards the dangerous witches and wizards within the castle, chiefly Igor Karkaroff. As it turned out, the Durmstrang Headmaster was a convicted Death Eater. Harry, of course, knew that already. He still remembered seeing the Dark Mark burnt upon the man's left arm, something which he suspected was used to brand Death Eaters.
To him, it seemed like a rather foolish idea on Riddle's part, allowing a mark branded upon your secret followers to remain visible. He did not, however, know how such magic worked - not yet, anyway. Perhaps it had some other, more subtle uses - uses that could not be fulfilled if the mark was hidden. The magic imbued within the mark was likely far too potent to be concealed by a simple Glamour Charm. Perhaps something that allowed for Voldemort to interact with them, or something similar in function.
After that, the subject of conversation slowly became less stress-inducing, something Harry could tell Sirius appreciated.
"Will you tell me what it is?" asked Harry in annoyance, "This 'Room of Requirement' isn't on the Marauder's Map; I've studied that thing for hours at a time, I would know."
"It's unplottable." explained Sirius with a grin, "I myself didn't discover it until my seventh year - we barely had any time to put it to good use."
"And how, exactly, did you find it?"
"The room reveals a door whenever someone walks past it three times, thinking about what they want." revealed Sirius, "And, well, Marlene McKinnon was with me at the time, and even though she didn't like me much I still thought she was - well, you know. But the room suddenly appeared, and then I had to explain to Marlene why it was filled to the brim with - "
" - alright, alright, I got it!" interrupted Harry, "I didn't go through the trouble of coming here to hear that."
"You used the map to get here, right?"
"And the cloak, yes."
"Ah." said Sirius, a grin emerging upon his face, "I hope you've washed it. I don't know about James and Lily, but I can think of at least three different witches I've slept with under that - a real lifesaver, that is. Never knew invisibility could be so damn useful."
From Harry's left came a strangled choking sound, although thankfully Sirius didn't appear to have heard it.
Harry chatted amicably with Sirius for quite some time before eventually the constant tightening of Fleur's hand around his wrist became too painful (both from the heat and the surprising strength of her grip).
"See you, Sirius." Harry whispered some time later, watching as Sirius' head vanished from the flames.
Fleur instantly tore the cloak away from her, throwing it upon the ground while letting out a stream of curses in rapid French.
"Absolutely not!" hissed Fleur, watching with narrowed eyes as Harry wandlessly levitated the cloak towards her, "I would rather make the journey back completely visible!"
"Relax, I wasn't going to ask you to wear it." said Harry with amusement, "I don't even want to wear it, I'll have to wash it."
The two of them spent the next few minutes taking down the wards Fleur had constructed as well as checking the map to make sure there was no one around to catch them. Once they were sure it was safe, they departed from the common room.
"I'll walk with you back to the courtyard." whispered a disillusioned Harry.
They traversed the castle, arriving upon their destination a quarter of an hour later. Once they had, both Fleur and Harry made their way into a small corner where they dropped their Disillusionment Charms for a few seconds.
"See you tomorrow." said Harry gently as he removed his lips from Fleur's.
Fleur nodded with a smile before disillusioning herself once more, no doubt heading back to the Beauxbatons Carriage. Harry watched her progress on the Marauder's Map as he made his way back to the Chamber of Secrets, only removing his eyes from the map when he was sure she had made it back safely without the aid of the map.
Fleur hastily made her way back to the Beauxbatons Carriage, hoping desperately that her absence had not yet been noticed. As far as she knew, Madame Maxime's wards did not inform her who it was that broke curfew, but rather the fact that someone had done so. Perhaps, if she was lucky, Madame Maxime would simply assume that some of the other students were making fools of themselves again.
It's not even hard to believe.
After casting a quick Silencing Charm upon herself, Fleur pointed her wand at the door of the Beauxbatons Carriage, which was currently locked into place.
Alohomora.
Fleur gently pulled the door open, making her way into the main living room within the carriage. She could not see well due to the lack of light, yet she still knew how to get to her room from here.
Sizzle.
The sound of a candle being lit suddenly reached Fleur's ears, accompanied by a flow of light meeting her eyes. Sitting upon the chair lowest to the ground (yet still having her head a few feet from the tall ceiling) was none other than Madame Maxime, the one person Fleur had been hoping to not run into.
The headmistress observed Fleur's pale face with narrowed eyes before gently pushing herself up from the armchair which had held her.
"Come." whispered Madame Maxime in heavily accented French, "I have been meaning to speak with you."
Fleur nodded slowly, allowing herself to follow Madame Maxime out of the carriage. She stood beside her headmistress, who was currently gazing at the admittedly beautiful sky, trying her hardest not to appear as guilty as she felt.
"Do you know, Fleur," began Madame Maxime, "How we selected the hostages for the second task?"
Fleur shook her head, now thoroughly confused.
"We used the Goblet of Fire." revealed Madame Maxime, "We submitted the names of each of the champions, and allowed the goblet to create a list of those whom the champion would miss the most. Normally, it would not be capable of doing such a thing, but you are all Triwizard Champions, and so the goblet relented."
Fleur's already pale face lost the small iotas of colour that had remained. She was starting to understand what her headmistress was saying - something that she did not at all like to hear.
"It was agreed that the only person to see the list of those the champions might miss most would be their head of school. After that, they would select whoever it was they deemed the best candidate for a hostage, and that would be it."
Fleur stood in silence, bracing herself for what she knew was about to come.
"So imagine my surprise," continued Madame Maxime, "When one of the two names upon your list - one of two, mind you - is that of Harry Potter."
"We became cordial at the Yule Ball." defended Fleur, her voice cold, "He is not necessarily close to me; he is simply closer than anyone else."
Fleur winced slightly as she spoke. She could tell that she had not at all been convincing; she had not spoken with sincerity, and had accidentally allowed her voice to warm ever so slightly as she finished her statement. It would not be obvious to most - after all, Fleur had been wearing her mask of coldness for years. But Madame Maxime would know, Fleur simply knew it.
The thought was certainly confirmed by the expression of disbelief upon the headmistress' face.
"I have seen you two together," added Madame Maxime, "down by the shores of the Great Lake, under immensely powerful wards that took several weeks for me to so much as notice. What I saw was not something I would simply refer to as 'cordial'."
Merde.
Fleur and Harry had both thought they had been spotted by Madame Maxime as they were creating or removing their wards. They had both simply shrugged it off, assuming it to be nothing. After all, Madame Maxime had not said a word to Fleur about it.
"I do not wish to hear excuses." said Madame Maxime as Fleur opened her mouth, "I am glad that you have made a friend. However, I can not say that I approve of your choice."
"And why is that?" asked Fleur, fighting to keep her voice neutral.
"He is dangerous." explained Madame Maxime simply, "There is not a witch or wizard that does not know his name, and many of those witches and wizards are not particularly pleased with him."
"Millions of witches and wizards know about myself." replied Fleur, "And even if that is not the case, it would not matter. I know what I am doing."
"I would hope so. Judging from your own list, I think we can both find out the names on Mr. Potter's list - the list read by Albus Dumbledore."
The paleness upon Fleur's face became even more prominent. Madame Maxime was correct in thinking that this might be a problem for Fleur, but she did not truly understand how big of a problem it might be.
Dumbledore was one of the two wizards who was interfering and meddling with the life of her beloved companion. It was he who had sent Harry to live with the Dursleys, he who had been responsible for the horrible childhood Harry had endured, and he who had likely been planning to use Harry as a sort of sacrifice, likely in the hopes of removing the horcrux lodged within Harry's head.
That was all the reason Fleur needed to despise the man. Perhaps he was acting for the betterment of others, perhaps he was trying to save as many people as he could. Perhaps he did not truly wish for Harry's death, but thought it necessary. It mattered little to Fleur; he was quite evidently willing to sacrifice Harry, something that would make him the subject of Fleur's animosity.
She could only hope that the aged headmaster of Hogwarts had ignored the inclusion of her name upon Harry's list. After all, Harry had a grand total of zero friends at the time (as far as Dumbledore knew), and had additionally taken Fleur with him to the Yule Ball. Dumbledore might simply take it to mean that Harry was closer to Fleur at the time than he was anyone else.
Still, Fleur knew better than to hope that Dumbledore would act foolish. He would never discard the information entirely, and would likely store it away until it became relevant.
Thankfully there was nothing Dumbledore could do to sabotage her relationship with Harry - their connection was too strong, a side effect of having been far too open with one another (which, in turn, was a side effect of having had very limited social connections). It did not seem like something the headmaster would do - but even if he tried, he would have no success.
The headmaster could, however, make their lives more difficult. Fleur couldn't truly be certain, having never properly met the man, nor having ever spoken to him properly. All she knew was that he was not someone whom she would be placing her own faith in.
That will remain with myself and Harry, no one else.
"I will be careful." Fleur assured her headmistress, "But I will not leave him."
The eyes of Madame Maxime narrowed slightly before the woman eventually sighed.
"Go to bed." said the headmistress, "And be careful - this choice will likely define your life, for better or worse."
I know.