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Anaticula Pt 38

Pt 1 - Pt 2 - Pt 3 - Pt 4 - Pt 5 - Pt 6 - Pt 7 - Pt 8 - Pt 9 - Pt 10 - Pt 11 - Pt 12 - Pt 13 - Pt 14 - Pt 15 - Pt 16 - Pt 17 - Pt 18 - Pt 19 - Pt 20 - Pt 21 - Pt 21b - Pt 22 - Pt 23 - Pt 24 - Pt 25 - Pt 26 - Pt 27 - Pt 28 - Pt 29 - Pt 30 - Pt 31 - Pt 33 - Pt 34 - Pt 35 - Pt 36 - Pt 37 -

...

New Years again bled into the final ten days of the break before you were back to your normal classes and the creeping feeling that another challenge was coming up before the big Lake Task.

Wk 1

Match 1 - Beaux 1 – Ravenclaw

Evangelinne as Beater led her team up against the Ravenclaw team, which under Cho’s swift dive for the unnoticed snitch ended the match in what could have been the saving goal for Beaux 1.

Match 2 – Gryffindor - Beaux 3

Wk 2 brought up another double match on Saturday leading to Hogsmeade on the Sunday after.

Match 1 - Slytherin - Beaux 2

Match 2 - Durm 1 - Durm 2

This match especially stirring up a surprising palpable in home rivalry leaving the Krums on edge with their biggest competition from home. Your support seemed especially crucial and after you were Sebastian’s first stop to curl around until he wound down from the match.

By Hogsmeade though it had calmed down entirely and they were all ready for the next set of matches in the following week.

Wk 3

Match 1 - Durm 3 - Beaux 4

Match 2 – Hufflepuff - Durm 4

Another easy match for you came with more and more images and footage of your skills were captured. And sure enough with the semester of images already captured a full year opening issue was dedicated to the promising talent tucked away in Hogwarts with you three leading the way after a mention that Oliver had already been offered a spot on the Kenmare Kestrals stirring up speculation that soon for the retiring members on that same team could be easily replaced with a clearly capable team easy to mold together in time to pick up between seasons if need be. Of course all that led to more articles about you and Sebastian on how it would effect your relationship if pitted against one another.

Matching origami owls came floating down from the rafters while you and Cedric sat in Double Potions, right in the middle of a lecture Snape sighed and asked, “And just what is this test?”

You both shrugged and stood leaving your bags with the twins as Cedric said, “It says to meet in the Astronomy tower.”

Snape chortled, “No doubt if they trap you in it we should get a clear view of the tower collapsing.”

You smirked at him in return as Cedric chuckled and joined you in strolling around the desks and to the door. Again you joined up with the other Champions, all in the same confused state and following you two and Harry to the tower where in deed you were locked inside with labeled tables coated in random vials and open bottles of liquid you all looked over left you puzzled. Completely alone you eyed each of them then glanced at each other until a ripple of notes appeared in blue flames reading simply, ‘Pick your Poison’.

Narrowing your eyes at the selection you mumbled, “It all looks like poison.”

Cedric shrugged and he said, “Maybe we’re meant to choose the fastest?”

Fleur, “What good is choosing a poison?”

Vivi wet her lips and then said, “Well, if they are all poisons-,” her hand extended over the table and she lifted one only to shriek at the following burst of flames revealing a rare breed of horned lizard that extended its jaws joined by another for each of your tables, “I can’t kill that thing!” She promptly set the vial down only to be hurled out of the room in a high pitched shriek through the opening and slamming of the hatch in the floor.

Wetting your lips you eyed the table again while Lukas asked, “We have to kill a creature to score points?”

Cedric looked to you, “Wait, Jaqi, that’s not a lizard, is it?”

Viktor, “Clearly it is!”

You shook your head, “No, it’s a reptilian shape shifter that lives off of poisonous fungus, meaning,”

Harry, “We find its food?”

You nodded again and raised an oddly neon green vial of goopy liquid, “I believe this is Pixies’ Carnage.” Cedric and Harry promptly found their matching vials they all joined you in feeding to your lizards, all of whom giddily rippled and turned into what appeared to be baby hippos the other teens quickly copied. The Hippos all hopped off the tables chasing after the colored smoke filled bubbles that the tables exploded into. Up against the walls behind you until all the bubbles were gone you watched your Hippos in their feasting while colored numbers floated above them racking up leaving you baffled for their meaning until the hatch opened and the hippos climbed back into their cages. Climbing through the hatch you found Vivi in the hall still and shared the useless challenge.

Harry, “Hungry Hungry Hippos, they really made a challenge off of Hungry Hungry Hippos?”

You shrugged again, “Maybe they’re running out of ideas.” Back to your classes you went and shared the useless challenge making even Snape roll his eyes then promptly award you both 20 points for selecting the proper poison by look alone.

5th test – Poison

Viktor - 17

Sebastian - 18

Lukas - 16

Fleur - 19

Charlotte - 16

Vivi - 0

Cedric - 17

Jaqi - 18

Harry – 19

…

Wk 4

Match 1 - Beaux 1 - Durm 2

Evangelinne again faced up against Durmstrang once again and managed to snag away a clear victory.

Match 2 - Gryffindor – Hufflepuff

Just barely you managed to get to bed the night before after you had gotten carried away on outlining another paper due in the following day. Though even in your exhausted state your steady offence and defense was unmatched by the younger team.

February reared its head and with it brought on the snow and the eagerness of the students for the mini Valentines mixer after yet another Durm/Beaux match.

Match 1 – Slyth – Rav

Match 2 – Durm 1 – Beaux 2

Krums vs Fleur

Wk 2

Match 1 – Beaux 4 – Durm 4

Match 2 – Beaux 3 – Durm 3

With the match over in the mixture of powder blue decorations paper hearts and confetti rained down on the couples in the Great Halls that was filled with sweets and little mailboxes looking like tiny cookoo clocks for each student for Valentines. Lost to the jealousy of your getting a great supply from the visiting males as well as your usual joke ones from Slytherin Sebastian moped for a few minutes until you reminded him of his own vast supply and gave him a firm peck on the cheek calming him down enough to steal a kiss on your lips and snuggle with you possessively for the rest of the evening.

Halfway asleep once again you were pulled from your beds and left to sit in empty classrooms across from a pair of people. A conversation was to be had and after you had determined which was the true one and which was the one under the Polyjuice disguise. One rambling sentence stemmed into two and finally the key words from a passing utterance in their visit the day prior sparked the clue for you all leading to a matching score of five for you all that freed you back to what little sleep you could manage.

…

Wk 3

Match 1 – Beaux 1 – Beaux 4

Match 2 – Gryff – Durm 2

…

The night of the 23rd came and under a clap of thunder in the Great Hall you sat in the empty room looking over a full spread of maps for all you could remember of the lake with Cedric upstairs going over a list of his own choices. Off in your own corners you had been sent by Minerva for whatever reason you trusted to be explained later. Harry of course had been clever enough to call dibs on the library he was sharing with Lukas, the pair of whom were scouring the shelves for any help at all. Curiously in seeing Harry’s collection of Herbology books Neville neared him and set a copy of Goshawks Guide to Herbology down, “You’d be better off with this one to start out.”

Harry nodded and continued to flip through his book, “Thanks, I’ll add it to the pile.”

Neville wet his lips, “Do you know there’s a Wizard in Nepal who’s growing gravity resistant trees?”

Harry glanced up with a sigh and shook his head, “No, I did not Neville. Though, for the dragons I got to use my broom, something simple, and now I’ll have to spend an hour under water, and for the life of me I can’t remember what that damn plant is the twins keep using. Could be a Tibetan Turnip for all these useless books tell me.”

Neville narrowed his eyes and shook his head, “I don’t know about any turnips, but I do know they use gillyweed.”

Harry, “Gillyweed?”

Neville nodded, “Ya, we’ve got a whole stash of it back home. I could bring you some tomorrow. Best leave it till right before to let it air out or you might drown.” He looked around and asked, “Why are you here alone?”

Harry shrugged, “McGonagall sent us all off alone. No telling why.”

Neville, “Well first thing I’ll fetch some for you, best to gather it in sunlight, put it in a nice jar and all.”

Harry chuckled and said, “Thank you, Neville.”

Neville sat down and asked, “So, I’ve been down there, it’s a clear shot to, well, everywhere, that can’t really be it, can it? I mean, there’s Merpeople, Grindylows, Kelpies, the Giant Squid, not even mentioning those odd lobster creatures. That can’t be it.”

Harry sighed and set his forehead down on the desk, “Haven’t the foggiest.”

Morning rolled around and in a row of boats you joined the other champions out to the filled towers in the middle of the vast lake packed with fellow students. Open mouthed Harry scanned over the Gryffindor tower and said, “Ron and Hermione aren’t here.”

Looking over to Ravenclaw you tapped Cedric’s arm, “Cho and Draco are missing too.”

Harry, “So we have to find them?”

Cedric, “Seems plausible.”

“Let’s just hope it’s not some underwater hide and seek game.” Wetting your lips you pulled your long sleeved emerald jersey tighter over your torso as your legs bounced in the chilly air due to your shorts over your bikini bottoms. In a shaky exhale you sat watching the smaller boat that split off yours carrying Harry off to the Gryffindor tower while Cedric reached up for the dangling ladder you would climb for the Hufflepuff tower as your own boat split off to the Slytheirn tower.

Fully confused for your place here you accepted a first year’s help up to the platform then looked around seeing even those with the greatest loathing for your blood traitor status welcomed you among their numbers while Snape stated, “It was believed to be best to have each Champion represent their own houses, and as you were first sorted to Slytherin Dumbledore accepted this trade.”

Crabbe quickly added, “Give ‘em hell.”

Goyle nodded, “Got ten Galleons on you.”

With a smirk you turned around as Barty inched closer to your side cockily teasing, “Only ten?”

Chuckling to yourself you spotted the other champions looking around until Percy standing in for sick Bartemis held his wand to his throat, “Today we are all here to witness the Second Task. Now as you have all surely ascertained from your eggs from the First task something has been taken from each of the Champions and they now have one hour to go and find it.” He glanced around saying, “Champions, on your marks,”

Pulling your jersey off over your head your swimsuit stunned those looking on in comparison to the one piece suits the females from Beauxbatons had chosen in their house colors. In a halter top style the top of your two piece swimsuit in a silver shade was comprised of woven strips that covered from your neck to your ribs on the front and showed more skin on your back around the cutout designs there of leaves. Those close enough could see bumps rising on your midriff and arms until eyes followed your fingertips adjusting the waistband of your emerald colored shorts and the wand holster strap on your arm.

The skin baring suit confused the other Headmasters, who had all advised their Champions to dress in more sensible suits while the guys wore full tank tops over their shorts. Barty claimed the jersey and all objections to your suit vanished as at the canon sounding you leapt off the platform and in an elegant front flip dive. Captured in a wave of flashes lips parted seeing the dazzling silvery blue tail sprouting from your now joined legs vanishing behind your torso into the water you now felt comfort from the frigid water. The transformation mid fall gave way for a picture perfect reaction photo of awe from the Pears tucked within your family in the crowds who were anxious to see how you would have faced this challenge.

Straight under the surface where you expected a clear path ahead under the murky water though all at once you were inside a sunken ship. Peering through the small round window you saw the giant jar the ship was trapped inside. Remembering Draco’s model ship phase you guessed you were in the Captain’s Quarters and after snagging a floating flag on your left you swam through the door you opened using your wand you drew from your arm sheath.

Room by room you glanced into each eyeing the various fish and octopi swimming around you in your search for more flags you made from a swaying bit of kelp you wove together a pouch you hung around your middle. Behind you a little wind up fish followed broadcasting your path to those above along with that of the other champions. A blasting charm freed you onto the deck where an Immobilizing charm stunned the skeleton army ready to attack you.

Glancing around you eyed the three more flags you added to the rest in your pouch before swimming up to the jar. On the other side of the glass you saw the maze of seaweed swaying and lurching from side to side in the circle of other sunken ships. Closing your eyes you zapped on the other side of the jar stunning the onlookers while your family cheered in the guest tower excited at the near impossible task of apparating underwater over the clear explosion they all had expected from you. After a glance at your watch you avoided the Grindylows that urged you to sink into the maze, inside which you were pulled into a treasure chest that opened sucking you through the chest that let you out in a clearing at the bottom of a ravine.

A deep sigh left your lips and grumbling under your breath you raced up the ravine ignoring the lobster creatures heading straight for the one place you hoped there was no enchantments. Straight off through the rocky deserted stretch ahead the Aurors who set up the course along with Albus questioned where you were headed as none of them had gone to that area for fear of the creatures there.

Faster and faster you raced until one creature crossed your path. A low reverberating bellow made the hearts of those looking on flinch until your arm outstretched and looped around the neck of the Hippocampus heading the herd in a racing path through their lands ending at the borders of the Mermaid Colony.

The familiar city grew in front of you and in an easy release you avoided the path of a Kelpie on its path to Lukas’ path and continued on seeing the Mermaids around the borders eyeing you carefully. In your approach you held your speed until a courtyard on the edge of the lands where you harvest your pearls held the bodies of nine people. Swimming a bit closer you mumbled to yourself, “Ok, Gabrielle, clearly for Fleur, those four, no clue who they are. Cleo, clearly not mine. Leaving, Ron, Hermione, Cho and Draco.”

A shriek in the distance had you inch closer saying, “If Cleo is for Seb then Hermi is for Viktor. Ron would be Harry’s and Cho is clearly Cedric’s.” A flick of your wand severed the rope holding Draco’s ankle and you swam closer giggling, “I could really ruin Ced’s day and steal Cho away.” Looping Draco’s arms around your neck you stretched his sleeves out you magically bonded then began the frantic swim up to the surface missing Sebastian’s entrance to the courtyard and glance up to you. In a quick motion in his Sea Serpent form he bit the rope and gently held his sister between his jaws for the swim up after you.

Harry entered next stumped between Hermione and Ron while Lukas’ and Charlotte’s people were sucked into chests under their feet that floated up to the surface joining Vivi’s. Cedric using a bubble charm after his own batch of gillyweed had worn off in the maze freed Cho and tapped his watch to urge Harry on. A near miss on his left had Harry avoiding Viktor in his partial shark form biting the rope under Hermione’s ankle to carry her up. Wetting his lips Harry refused to leave Gabrielle alone and after noticing he had already crossed over the hour mark he grabbed both her and Ron and made his way up to the surface.

From the moment your head broke the surface your body morphed back shifting your shorts from a skirt back to shorts over your bikini bottoms and in Draco’s stunned coughs you mentally formed a set of ice stairs up to the platform for the Champions stirring up another wave of photos. At your side he shivered in the cold in his wet clothes until the hot jet of air your wand let out dried and warmed him for the trot up as you dried and warmed yourself.

Up the steps behind you as you accepted the blanket from Minerva on the platform you watched Cleo clamber up the steps while Sebastian shifted back and crawled up after her, both of whom thanked you for drying and warming them and gladly snuggled with you after Sebastian had extended your blanket. Already on the platform were the Beauxbaton girls and Lukas, all warming up themselves after having been drug up to the surface by various creatures set in their paths.

“Miss Black, leading the others using a mermaid form, and a superb use of apparition underwater clearly came in the lead.

Sebastian clearly in second with his Sea Serpent form.

Where Harry Potter would have made third, he outlasted the hour for his concern that all the hostages were safely released. We have agreed to grant him an extra seven points for outstanding moral fiber.”

Ron chortled as Harry scoffed to himself, “Moral fiber, eh?”

Ron, “Blimey, even when it goes wrong it turns out right.”

“Cedric Diggory comes in third for his innate command of the bubble head charm.

Behind him came Viktor Krum, who took a partial shark form yet overstayed the time.”

Your score was leading the pack, a full 20 for all ten flags and ten for beating the hour and rescuing your person. Sebastian was behind you with a matching 20. Cedric was behind him at 19 contently dry on your empty side with Cho huddled with him under his blanket still slightly startled at waking up in the lake. Viktor broke the surface and helped Hermione up your steps to the blankets accepting his solid 10 at breaking the hour mark.

Harry was left and peering down under the surface you spotted the Grindylows swarming until Harry shot up out of the water and landed hard after having sent Ron and Gabrielle up ahead of him in the swarm. Accepting his 10 he coughed and sputtered as you all warmed and dried him after Fleur had hugged and peppered his cheeks with a pair of kisses in gratitude for his rescuing her sister.

For those drug to the surface Fleur had the lead with 7, Vivi was next with 6, Charlotte after her with 5 and Lukas in the rear with 4 after his creature had stolen him in his reach for another. Alongside the team of judges, including Percy all agreed on the scores after having tallied your flags and shared them with all looking on before you all hurried back to your own boats to head back for the promised cocoa waiting for you back in the Great Hall.

A figure strolling against the crowd brought Bartemis Sr into your path. Straight to your side looking on at Harry he stopped in front of you drawing the eye of a group of Professors who quickened their paces.

Bartemis, “A fine achievement.”

At his direct eye contact to Harry he answered, “Thank you.”

Bartemis, “Well done, boy.”

Continuing on Bathilda said, “See you at the castle, Harry.”

Harry nodded at her with a grin, Bartemis said, “I'm sorry we haven't spoken. After all, your story is one I've heard so many times. Quite remarkable, really. Tragic, of course...to lose one's family. Never whole again, are we?” By now the Professors were off to the side confused as to why he was saying this, especially without saying anything to you. “Still, life goes on...and here we stand. I'm sure your parents would be very proud of you today, Potter.”

Alastor moved closer patting your shoulder with his hand, “Bartemis! Not trying to lure Potter into one of the Ministry's summer internships, are we? The last boy who went into the Department of Mysteries never came out!”

Bartemis’ face dropped as Harry shook his head saying, “I don’t want an internship.”

His eyes then turned to you and then back to Alastor as you nudged Harry forward saying, “We thought you were sick, glad to see you could make it.”

Alastor patted his shoulder and joined Barty in escorting you back to the castle while Bartemis continued on to speak with Dumbledore.

To the scoreboard along the wall you read the final scores so far,

Viktor – 80, Sebastian – 97, Lukas – 69

Fleur – 77, Charlotte – 70, Vivi – 54

Cedric – 94, Jaqi – 107, Harry – 67

Clearly in the lead you only held by a mere 10 points over Sebastian, who only held his lead over Cedric by a measly three points for the top three. The others aimed to do better in the smaller challenges, of which supposedly would grow more complicated and allow more room for growth in points for those lagging behind meaning the visiting students were upping their study lessons in hopes that they could be ready for anything.

A stolen few moments with your families came to an end as the cocoa ran out sending them all to Hogsmeade or home again freeing you to all change and go to your common rooms for your houses conversations on how you had done compared to others while you snacked some more. Until you inevitably fell asleep on the couch with Cedric drooping over onto your side in his own nap captured for the next weeks paper.

“Mr. Crouch? You are certain it is him?” Fudge asked.

Dumbledore, “A man has died here, Fudge. And he won't be the last. You must take action.”

Fudge, “I will not. In times like these, the wizard world looks to its leaders for strength, Dumbledore!”

Dumbledore, “Then for once show them some!”

Fudge, “The Triwizard Tournament will not be canceled. I will not be seen as a coward!”

Dumbledore, “A true leader does what is right, no matter what others think.”

Fudge, “What did you say to me?”

Closed up in your dorms in the early morning you all shared hushed conversations until the news was finally broken to you that Bartemis Sr was found dead in Hogsmeade. Clearly Dumbledore had no need to question Barty as when it had happened he was with you, Snape, Alastor and Minerva discussing what the next challenge might bring well into the night with lists on all the ‘hints’ they had picked up from Aurors along the way.

Unable to sleep Harry found his way up to the Headmaster’s office knowing full well even you were troubled by the death so close to school grounds. A knock went unanswered and through the office he strolled finding it dim with only the light of a glowing mirrored stand of a liquid with a silvery mist inside it.

At the door closing behind him Harry flinched and turned to see Dumbledore now in his office, “Curiosity is not a sin, Harry. But you should exercise caution. It's a Pensieve. Very useful if, like me, you find your mind a wee bit stretched. It allows me to see once more things I've already seen. You see, Harry, I have searched and searched for something... some small detail...something I might have overlooked...something that would explain why these terrible things have happened. Every time I get close to an answer, it slips away. It's maddening.”

Harry, “About Voldemort sir?”

Dumbledore, “Yes, why do you ask?”

Harry, “It's just that I...I had a dream about him. It was in the summer, before school. In the dream, I was in a house. And Voldemort was there, only he wasn 't quite human. And Wormtail was there too. And someone else i don't know.”

Dumbledore, “Have there been others like this dream?”

Harry, “Yes. Always the same one.” After a pause he asked, “Sir, these dreams...what I see, you don't think it's actually happening, do you?”

Dumbledore, “I think it's unwise for you to linger over these dreams, Harry. I think it's best if you simply...cast them away.” Without the answer he had hoped for Harry returned to his dorm with more questions than answers, especially about Dumbledore dismissing his concern about his dreams.

“It’s a sign Severus!” Around the corner you strolled on your rounds in the lower floors only to pause finding Karkaroff and Snape in his storeroom with Karkaroff revealing his Dark Mark tattoo he promptly covered when he saw you.

Snape pushed Karkaroff away from his path through the door to ask you, “It appears I am missing lace wing flies and boomslang skin.”

Your eyes narrowed and you shook your head puzzling Igor, “Couldn’t be the trio they swore it off after what happened last time. And I can’t imagine who it would be, maybe one of the Aurors?”

Snape nodded, “I will have a word with them to keep their hands out of my store room.” His eyes however followed your glance to Karkaroff who was now smirking at you.

Thickly he said, “So interesting to see you so under her heel Severus. With a past like yours to kneel for a child.”

Before Karkaroff could answer you replied in Parseltongue, “As if a coward like you could ever fathom the truth.” By the third word he was gripping his forearm and groaning in pain at his burning mark. When you had stopped talking his eyes raised to you widely with his mouth agape as you said plainly at him in his hunched position, “I would advise caution in showing off that mark of yours while we’ve got an unexplained murder so near to the school, unless you find yourself so eager to return to Azkaban. Trust me when I say Fudge could care less as long as the fear has a name to blot out and forget.”

Smirking to himself Snape watched as you returned to your rounds then looked to Igor and pulled him up and pushed him out of his store room he locked behind him, “You really are an idiot Igor.”

Behind him Igor followed, “And just how did she learn to do that?!”

Snape turned grabbing Igor by the collar to slam him against the wall inside his classroom he locked behind them, “That child, as you affectionately named her, knows where the Dark Lord is.” Igor’s mouth fell open, “And is facilitating his return to power. Now either you can fall in line and show her the respect she deserves or trust me when I say she will not be kind in speaking up in your favor when the unloyal are questioned for after his fall.”

Pt 39

#Lake Task

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