- After First Task -
"The dragons! They're loose!"
Harry's Thunderbird senses went haywire, every instinct screaming at him to leave.
From somewhere near the arena, three deafening, earsplitting roars sounded as the massive forms of the dragons flew overhead. Bagman took one look at them and sprinted off into the crowd, running for his life.
Krum spotted Karkaroff leading the Durmstrang students down towards the lake where their ship sat. Without a word, he left Harry and Fleur as he quickly hobbled over to them.
From the crowd, Minerva came running over to them. "Thank goodness you're both okay!"
"What happened?" Harry asked, "Why aren't the dragon handlers taking care of the dragons? Or Headmaster Dumbledore?" There were over thirty dragon handlers when they saw the enclosure, there should be enough to take care of it.
"They've been attacked, too many of them are down to handle the dragons. And Albus is doing everything he can to shield the students from the dragon's fire. Now quickly, we need to get back to the castle!" She replied, trying to get them moving as the Short-Snout flew overhead.
As he turned to leave with them, a thought struck him. While he only had about half of his magic after his conjuration, the Animagus transformation took very little.
"Wait!" Harry yelled, drawing Minerva and Fleur's attention. "I have an idea." Running towards the back of the Champion's tent that was out of sight, the two followed him confused.
"Harry, what are you doing? We must get to safety." Minerva warned, not understanding what came over him.
"I can draw their attention away from the students." He replied, staring at Minerva who finally caught on to what he was saying.
"Are you sure that you can do it?"
"Yes." Harry nodded determined. Fleur glanced between the two, wondering what they were talking about. Seeing her look, Harry explained. "I was going to tell you about this later, and I need you to keep it a secret. Okay?"
Seeing her nod, he revealed, "I'm an Animagus." Before she could reply, his body started to shift as he grew several feet, feathers sprouting from his skin as his face elongated into an eagle.
Fleur gasped wide-eyed as she stared at Harry's Animagus form. "Impozzible…" She muttered, "You are a Thunderbird?"
Harry nodded before taking to the sky, his six wings spreading out as he quickly flew over the running crowd, leaving behind a stunned Fleur and a worried Minerva who watched him go.
Scanning the area with his enhanced bird vision, he spotted the Dragons congregating around a small group of dragon handlers trying desperately to hit them with Stunners. Not too far from their location, Dumbledore had cast a spell to help repel the heat and flames from the running students.
Letting out a loud screech, Harry called out to challenge the Dragons and get their attention.
…
As the dragon handlers struggled between hiding from dragon fire and trying to stun them, they perked up as a bird's cry rang out.
"Screeeeech!"
The dragon fire stopped immediately. Every head turned to stare at the massive Thunderbird flying overhead. The Horntail was the first to react, its single good eye glaring venomously at the bird as it spread its massive black-scaled wings to take to the sky, roaring out loudly.
The Short-Snout and the Fireball both followed behind, letting loose their own roars as they chased the Thunderbird into the sky.
Down on the ground, the dragon handlers looked around at each other confused. "W-Was that a Thunderbird?" One of them called out, wondering if they had hallucinated the whole thing.
…
Up in the sky, Harry led the dragons on a chase towards the clouds. He knew that his Animagus form was no match for the scaled hides, fire, and claws of the dragons.
Luckily, he didn't need to actually fight them personally.
Above him, the sky darkened as massive grey clouds began to form, the rumble of thunder and lightning sounding across the area.
If he couldn't beat them in physical combat, then he would use the Thunderbird's ability to conjure storms to do it for him. The magical cost to summon the storm would drain him of nearly all the magic he had left, but it was only until the storm was created.
Once it was formed, nature would handle the rest.
His danger senses went off, causing him to twist out of the way as a stream of fire from the Horntail nearly burned him.
'Shit, they're gaining on me... Climb!' Harry thought, pushing his form to go faster. A Thunderbird can outfly a dragon any day, thanks to its multiple sets of wings and lighter body, but that counted for very little when they were almost vertical.
Up above, he could see a massive storm gathering, swirling in a circle of dark grey clouds like a tornado. It was moments before he finally disappeared into the eye of them, the dragons following close behind.
…
After they disappeared into the clouds, all anyone could see is flashes of lightning mixed in with flares of red and blue flames as three large shadows chased a fourth.
BOOM!
Suddenly, a massive bolt of lightning struck one of the three chasing shadows, lighting up their location in the clouds before dying back down into grey.
Soon, the form of the Short-Snout fell out of the sky, its scaled form smoking as it fell limply to the ground with a loud crash. The dragon handlers quickly rushed to check on it, unsure if it was still alive or not.
The fight overhead continued, small glimpses of the creatures could be seen as they raced in and out of the storm-clouds. The Thunderbird's form was covered in lightning, the clouds striking its cloud-like feathers and leaving it unharmed.
Now that they were no longer flying vertical, it could now use its faster speed to outfly the two chasing dragons.
Their inability to catch their prey angered the great beasts, roaring as they pursued.
The Thunderbird quickly banked in the air, making a sharp turn as it flew right past them. One of its larger wings struck the body of the Fireball, electrocuting it like a static shock. The Fireball gave a terrible, agonizing roar as its body was fried before falling out of the clouds.
With just one dragon left, the Thunderbird was almost hit by the spiked tail of the Horntail after getting so close to it and the Fireball.
…
Having to almost jerk his body out of the way, Harry noticed that the Horntail had difficulty spotting him within the storm-clouds, its single good eye blearily making out his form as the wind and rain messed with its vision.
Turning out of the way, he once again dodged a long stream of fire. 'I need to keep using hit-and-run tactics to take it out.' He thought, the feathers of his Animagus form allowing him to blend in with the storm as he dove into a darker area.
…
The Horntail lost sight of its prey, slowing down as it spewed streams of fire in every direction, hoping to get a lucky hit.
From behind, it heard something flying swiftly past it. Quickly turning around, the Horntail roared when it couldn't see anything.
Before it could try releasing more fire, another sound came from behind again, the Thunderbird moving fast behind its back. As the Horntail turned to burn where the prey used to be, it suddenly felt a massive bolt of lightning strike it.
…
Everyone watched as the last dragon fell from the sky, its obsidian-black body falling like a dark comet before landing with a BOOM!
Glancing back up, confused eyes searched the clouds, no longer seeing the shadow of the Thunderbird.
Overhead, the storm began to fade as the Thunderbird disappeared from site as Harry struggled to transform back into his human form in front of a worried Fleur and Minerva.
"'Arry!" Fleur called out, panicking as she fell to her knees beside him. "Are you 'urt?"
Harry panted on his hands and knees; his back heaving as sweat dripped from his head. His vision was incredibly blurry, and his head pounded too much to think.
That was the most intense thing he had ever done, and trying to draw on that much power from his Animagus form taxed what strength he had left.
"Y-Yeah…" He panted, "I'm okay." What should have reassured them, only increased their worry as his limbs shook.
With Fleur and Minerva helping him up, he looked around at the area, spotting the still forms of the three dragons being taken back to the enclosure as everyone looked around for a glimpse at the Thunderbird that saved them all.
"Come on, let's get you to the Hospital Wing." Minerva said, helping him walk back up to the castle with an arm over her and Fleur's shoulders.
- Hospital Wing -
"Honestly, Mr. Potter…how you wind up in these situations I'll never understand." Pomfrey replied, once again checking his health. "It's nothing more than a rather severe case of magical exhaustion. You will need to stay here for a few days so that I can monitor your situation, and ensure that it does not become something worse."
"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey." Harry replied, laying back in one of the hospital beds dressed in patient's clothing. His padded robes had been drenched in sweat, and it was only moments in the Hospital Wing before Pomfrey placed a set of thin white clothes on the bed for him to change into.
Harry was just grateful that the pounding headache had finally dulled down enough that he could actually think properly, and the blurriness of his vision had cleared to reveal Fleur and Minerva's worried faces.
"That waz…something." Fleur spoke up as Pomfrey walked away, Fleur was still processing the fact that Harry has a magical Animagus form.
"Indeed," Minerva replied, "it was quite a surprise when he first transformed. We've kept it a secret out of worry for what the magical community would do if they discovered his form."
Fleur nodded; she could imagine what people would do to get their hands on him.
"We will leave you to get some rest now, Harry." Minerva said, smiling down at his tired face and drooping eyes. "I'm so proud of you." With a smile to Fleur, she left the Hospital Wing to give them some space.
"As am I." Fleur smiled softly, leaning down to kiss him gently on the lips. "Sweet dreams…" That was the last thing Harry heard as his exhaustion took over him.
- Timeskip: Four Days Later -
It took several days for his magic to recover enough to leave the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey warned him several times before his departure against any major spell-casting until his magic was back to normal.
Cho, Marietta, and Hermione came to visit him every day after classes, and Fleur practically lived in the Hospital Wing as she used her champion status to ignore her own studies, not willing to leave his side.
When he was finally able to walk out on his own, it wasn't long until Minerva came to get him after dinner. "Harry, the Headmaster would like to speak with you." She said, getting a confused look from Hermione and knowing glances from Fleur, Cho, and Marietta.
…
Inside the Headmaster's Office were Dumbledore, Moody, and Minerva. It had taken several days to get everything back into order after the events of the First Task, and they all looked exhausted. "You wished to see me, Headmaster?" Harry asked, standing in front of the Headmaster's desk.
"Yes, Harry." Dumbledore replied, peering at him from over his half-moon glasses. "I felt it best to inform you as to what happened following the end of the First Task."
"It has been revealed that Mr. Crouch, the Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, was bewitched by the Imperious Curse." He said, sighing in disappointment at his own inability to recognize it.
"We have since learned that it was he, who entered you into the Tournament. Crouch could not remember who it was that bewitched him, but his orders were to release the dragons and curse several of the dragon handlers."
Harry was surprised to hear that. Part of him had thought that Crouch Sr. might have been Polyjuiced, but he was afraid that with the some of the changes that were happening, that it wasn't the case.
It's a good thing he didn't go through it. That would have been awkward...
Dumbledore, unaware of Harry's thoughts, sighed as he continued. "Thankfully, we were able to stun him and get him to St. Mungo's, where he will receive the proper care he needs to recover from this ordeal."
"Who do you think placed him under the curse?" Harry asked. It was nice to know that Crouch was going to be okay, but he was curious to find out who they think did it.
The thought of it being Crouch Jr. was obviously on his mind, but he had already guessed wrong once before.
Dumbledore glanced at Moody for moment before replying. "We believe that whoever it is, may be a servant of Voldemort, looking to take revenge against you for their master." Minerva flinched slightly at the name, and Moody's fake eye gave a loud whirl as it spun to every corner of the room.
"Like Mr. Malfoy?" He couldn't help asking, if there was perhaps one person he would guess by name, it'd be Draco's father.
Which is why he was surprised to see Dumbledore shaking his head. "No, Harry. I do not believe it is Mr. Malfoy."
What? "Why not?" The disbelief clear in his tone.
"Because," Dumbledore explained, "The inner circle members worked hard to keep out of Azkaban when Voldemort lost power. They gave all sorts of information and lies in order to save themselves, and will not be looking to risk their safety once again."
"In fact, I dare say they would not even return to his side, should they be called upon." Seeing Harry's incredulous look, he elaborated.
"Whatever your thoughts may be about the Pureblood Faction, Harry, there is no denying that their families have survived for centuries. And while those that now rule as Lords and Ladies of those houses are not like their ancestors, they have still kept enough of their political savvy to recognize a lost cause."
"But…" Harry almost revealed the fact that Malfoy had placed a Horcrux in Ginny Weasley's cauldron to possess her, but the more he thought about, the more Dumbledore's words made sense.
If Malfoy was loyal to Voldemort, why would he get rid of the Horcrux by passing it off to someone? Even if he didn't know what it was, Voldemort would have surely told him to keep it safe and never reveal its existence to anyone.
"The families of the Sacred Twenty-Eight may have supported him in the past, when he was at the height of his power…but if he should return, their opinions of him will have changed." Dumbledore said.
"Voldemort was defeated, not by a powerful witch or wizard, but by a mere baby. The image of an Unstoppable Force that he once was, is no more. And that is something they cannot, and will not, overlook." There a tone on finality to his words, and considering this was a man who led the British Magical Government's equivalent of the Supreme Court, there was an immense amount of knowledge backing his statements.
Thinking over it for a moment, Harry asked hopefully, "So…does that mean, if Voldemort returns, they'll fight against him?"
"No." There was no guessing in Dumbledore's tone as he quickly shot down the idea. "They will not. In fact, I do believe that they will do everything in their power to stay out of the fighting, and wait to see who the victor is before they make their move."
That wasn't what Harry had hoped to hear, but it was better than the alternative of having the richest and most powerful families in Magical Britain against him.
"Be warned, Harry. From here on out, whoever it is that put your name in the Goblet of Fire, may very well try to come after you again." Dumbledore finished.
Harry grimaced as he thought, 'As if that wasn't obvious.'
- Next Day -
After the conversation with Dumbledore, Harry trudged back to the Ravenclaw Tower, ignoring his dorm and heading straight for Cho and Marietta's.
The girls didn't say a word, noticing his exhaustion before opening their arms for him to join them.
Collapsing on their bed, Harry felt them press against his front and back before drifting off to sleep. Even with several days' rest, his body was still struggling to move after a full day of walking around.
Thankfully, Madam Pomfrey had said it would only take another day or two before he was back to full health.
Waking up the next morning, the three quickly showered and got dressed before heading down to the Great Hall where Fleur was waiting at the Ravenclaw table for them.
"'Arry, are you feeling better?" She asked as soon as he sat down at her side, pulling him into a hug and kissing him gently on the lips.
For a moment, Harry cared about nothing else but the feel of her soft, full lips against his own. Her presence was like a balm to his tired body. When they finally pulled back from the kiss, he breathed in that familiar Cinnamon scent before replying. "Yeah…" He sighed; his eyes fixed on her slightly concerned sapphire ones. "I'm better now that you're here."
Cho and Marietta laughed at the corniness from the other side of the table facing them. Marietta was making kissing faces at them before Cho playfully smacked her girlfriend on the shoulder.
"Good." Fleur smirked, "Then we should start working on the Golden Eggz, non?" Her English was getting better the more she practiced with them, but she still made sure to always call him 'Arry' with that wonderful little purr in her voice that she knew he liked.
Her words made Harry pause, realizing that this was probably the best time to reveal another of his secrets to the girls. "Where's Hermione?"
He wasn't sure how he felt about including Hermione on the secret. While they were definitely friends, it wasn't anywhere as deep as what he had with Cho and Marietta, or what he and Fleur were building together.
"She iz over there with Cedric." Fleur pointed to the Hufflepuff table, where Hermione sat next to Cedric eating and talking with some of the Hufflepuff students. It seemed that she was making friends in Hufflepuff fairly easily now that she no longer had her old bossy attitude.
Turning back to the table, Harry asked. "Then will you three meet me on the Seventh Floor after breakfast? I'll need to grab my egg, and you should grab yours too, Fleur." When they looked at him confused, he explained, "I think I know of something that can help us figure out the clue in the eggs."
- Seventh Floor -
Walking up to the main stairway on the Seventh Floor, Harry held his golden egg in the crux of his arm as he spotted Cho and Marietta waiting for him. Standing there for a few moments, Fleur quickly joined them with her own egg in hand.
Motioning them to follow, Harry led them towards the secret doorway of the Room of Requirement as he explained. "I'm sure you've noticed by now, Cho, Mary, that I sometimes disappear in the morning…"
The two in question nodded. "You said it was so that you could exercise, right?" Cho replied, remembering what he told them when they asked where he went all the time.
"That's correct." He said, reaching the blank wall. "This is another one of my secrets that I wish to share with you three. You already know about my Animagus form," That drew surprised looks from Cho and Marietta, who turned their heads to look at Fleur. Instead of replying, Fleur simply grinned back at them.
"This is something I discovered early in my first year." Harry began walking back and forth in front of the blank wall three times until a door appeared to the girls' wide eyes. "I call it, the Room of Requirement."
Turning around, he pushed the doors open and motioned the girls into the room.
…
The room was configured as a large empty chamber, with two couches facing each other and a table in the middle. The wall opposite the door was a floor to ceiling window that he usually chose, looking out at the winter landscape. The weather was getting colder every week, and snow had already started to fall on the ground, sprinkling the green grass with flakes of pure white.
The girls looked around the room curiously, "What doez it do?" Fleur asked.
Smiling, Harry commanded the floor of the room to change into a shag carpet, causing them to gasp slightly in surprise. "The room allows me to change it into nearly anything I require."
"Okay…" Marietta said, "This is really cool, but what does it have to do with the eggs?" It was an obvious question, there were tons of empty classrooms in the castle where they could have worked out the egg in.
She was glad that Harry was opening up with another secret of his, but the connection between the Room and the egg was going over her head.
"I wanted us to go somewhere where we could work on the eggs without being overheard. And if there's something we need, the Room can provide it for us without having to stop everything to get it." Harry replied. In reality, he knew that the eggs would require dunking it underwater, and he had already tested out the Room's ability to create a pool for them to swim in.
The others seemed a little skeptical, but agreed that it was still a nice thing that he shared with them.
"Have you already tried opening your egg, Fleur?" Harry asked, wondering how far she got in finding out the clue.
Her white-gold locks flowed from side to side as she shook her head. "Non, I 'ave been waiting for you. We said that we would do thiz together, and that iz what we will do." She said, drawing smiles from Cho and Marietta. They were really starting to like Fleur, and thought that she and Harry made a truly wonderful couple.
The only concern for them now, was what Fleur would think of their close relationship with her boyfriend.
"Then let's find out." Harry placed his egg on the table as they sat down on the couches. Fleur sat beside him while Marietta and Cho sat on the opposite couch facing them.
Lifting his hand up to the clasp at the top, Harry internally cringed as he twisted the clasp open.
SKEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!
Immediately slamming the sides of the egg shut, he twisted the clasp to lock it before rubbing at his ears. Around him, the girls cringed with their hands over their ears after trying to block out the deafening noise.
"What the hell was that?" Marietta asked, her voice unusually loud as she waited for the ringing in her ears to stop.
"I think…" Harry replied, not wanting to risk opening it again, he decided to just skip ahead. "That was the sound of whatever creature we have to face." Not a complete lie.
"I'm guessing it's something that's difficult for us to hear."
"What if it iz zomething that requires a catalyst?" Fleur asked, her brain working quickly as her experience with magical creatures came into play. Being a Veela, her people had a better understanding of what others called 'Magical Creatures' than most others. "A Banshee, for inztance, requirez a special type of ear protection to understand their wailz az wordz."
"So, we'll need a book on magical creatures, one that lists those who require something to understand them." Cho muttered, thinking it over before turning to Harry. "You said the Room could provide us with whatever requirement we need, right?"
He nodded.
"Can the Room provide us with a specific book like that?"
Shrugging, Harry commanded the Room to place such a book on the table. Sure enough, four books appeared that were opened to a section on magical creatures who spoke in unique ways and languages.
"I think these might be from the Restricted Section." Cho pointed out, flipping the front cover over to read the title.
"Wherever they're from, let's hope they have what we need." Marietta said, starting to flip through the pages as they all got to reading.
…
It took them several minutes before Harry just skipped to the part where the Merpeople section was before calling out. "I think I've found it."
The girls all moved to gather around him as he read. "Merpeople have their own unique language called Mermish, that sounds similar to English underwater, but comes off as a screech when they are out of water."
"So, we need to place the eggz underwater then?" Fleur thought aloud, glancing at her egg before looking around for a water source.
Snapping his book shut, Harry got up from the couch. "If that's the case, then we'll need something to put them in." Commanding the Room once again, the room they were in stretched out to the side as a large pool not unlike the Prefect's Bathroom appeared.
It was a massive, circular swimming pool with stairs leading down into the water. Steam could be seen rising up as the warmth of the water heated the slightly chilly room.
Staring at the new addition, Marietta turned to Harry with a raised eyebrow. "A pool?"
Harry chuckled as he shrugged, "It will work, right?"
"It will," Cho nodded, "But we don't have any swimsuits to wear." She pointed out. If it was just her, Marietta, and Harry, she wouldn't mind skinny dipping. But with Fleur involved, she didn't want to be too forward and potentially make her uncomfortable.
"I do not mind going in my underwear." Fleur spoke up, not the least bit shy. Everyone turned to her surprised.
"What? We 'ave nude beachez in France, and what is a little nudity between friendz?" She replied, not even waiting as she started taking off her powder-blue Beauxbatons robes.
Glancing at each other, they followed her example, taking off their own Hogwarts robes.
Soon, everyone was down to their underwear and glancing appreciatively at each other's bodies.
Harry was a pair on simple black boxers, and his defined pecks and prominent four-pack drew lustful glances from the girls.
Cho stood smiling in a grey sports bra and panties. She had planned on going flying later, and was dressed in preparation. Her smaller B-cup chest sat firm and perky, her small nipples poking through the material showing that the new circumstances were arousing her. The panties, while not exactly flattering, framed her toned ass magnificently.
Marietta leaned against her girlfriend, wearing a purple bra and thong. Her larger D-cup chest, wide hips, and larger ass highlighting her full-figured frame. The way her thong barely hid her core from view made Harry's already hardening member from seeing Cho's body stand out proudly.
Marietta noticed his tenting boxers and gave him a wink as she shook her shoulders, making her breasts jiggle enticingly.
Fleur noticed the teasing and laughed humorously, standing completely unashamed as they all turned wide-eyed to ogle her figure. Her body was tall and willowy, barely an inch taller than Harry, and her unnatural beauty was undeniable.
The burn-scar on her leg was beginning to heal enough that the small scar it would leave was becoming more noticeable, but that did nothing to detract from her beauty. To Harry, it only added to it. After all, it was a scar to commemorate the time that she went up against a full-grown dragon. All the scar did was prove her to be a badass.
Turning his gaze away from the scar, he noticed that she wore a baby-blue, half-cup bra that showed a hint of her pink areolas as the material cupped her C-cup chest perfectly, not needing to provide any support with their perfectly perky state. The baby-blue panties framed her lower lips, giving a subtle outline of her camel-toe peeking out between her gorgeous long legs.
The material of her underwear looked like silk, and Cho and Marietta commented on it curiously. "Where did you get those?"
Smiling proudly, Fleur replied. "They are from my family's business. We own a company called Victoria's Secret where we make beautiful underwear like thiz." Motioning to her body. "If you like, I can provide you with a spare catalogue I have for you to order your own."
Cho and Marietta nodded eagerly as Fleur motioned them over to feel the material of her bra and panties.
Harry watched it all happen wide-eyed. His erection painfully hard at the sight of his bestfriends feeling up his girlfriend, lewd fantasies clouding over his thoughts. Fleur spotted his excitement as she giggled. "You can feel too, if you wish."
Wide-eyed, he tore his gaze from her body to stare into her sapphire eyes. "Are you sure?"
They had done some over-the-clothes fondling since they got together, but this is was a step forward in their relationship.
"Oui," She nodded. "We are a couple, it iz only natural that we explore each other's bodiez. Unless…" She smirked, reaching up to grab her bra-clad breasts before giving them a shake teasingly, "You are afraid of them?"
Marietta and Cho laughed as they turned to him, "Yeah, Harry." Marietta teased, "Not afraid of a pair of breasts, are you?"
Sighing at their teasing, he stepped closer to Fleur's gorgeous body. If she was giving him permission to ogle and feel her up, he was going to take it.
Gently grabbing one of her breasts, Harry marveled at how soft, yet firm and perky they were. Glancing at Fleur to make sure she was still okay with it, he smirked at the light blush on her cheeks.
Continuing to grope his girlfriend, Harry had to admit that the bra did feel incredible, the texture like that of the finest silk. The girls smirked at each other, knowing that he was less interested in the bra, and more interested in what they contained.
"They feel nice, non?" Harry nodded in reply, still focused on groping her chest. Whether she meant the bra or her breasts, his answer was still the same. "Don't forget to feel the pantiez."
Blinking, he stared at her for a moment, encouraged by a wink from Fleur who subtly motioned over her shoulder.
Keeping one hand on her chest, groping a perfect tit, he reached around her back to grab a handful of her firm ass. If her mother Apolline was any indication of what Fleur's body would look like in the future, Harry knew he would be a very happy man. Not to say he wasn't already, but it was just the cherry on top of the sundae at this point.
Off to the side, Cho and Marietta had started fondling each other as they watched their bestfriend fondle the goddess's body. The allure that Fleur gave off heightening their arousal as a small damp spot grew on their underwear.
When Fleur had to try and stifle a moan at her boyfriend's groping, feeling her lower half growing wet with desire, she batted his hands away gently. "I think that iz enough, yes?"
At her words, the others seemed to come out of their lustful haze as they nodded.
With his lust calmed down somewhat, Harry stepped away from Fleur to grab both of their golden eggs before handing hers over.
Together, all four of them climbed down the steps leading into the pool. Once they were a few feet in and the comfortably warm water was at their chest height, Fleur and Harry nodded together before dunking the eggs and opening them.
They all prepared themselves, but instead of the horrible shrieking sound, a gurgling song played out. The specific words sung were indistinguishable under the water, but they all breathed a sigh of relief nonetheless.
As one, all four of them dipped underneath the water to hear the chorus of eerie voices singing in unison from the open eggs.
"Come seek us where our voices sound,
We cannot sing above the ground.
And while you're searching ponder this:
We've taken what you'll sorely miss.
An hour long you'll have to look,
And to recover what we took.
But past an hour - the prospect's black,
Too late, it's gone, it won't come back."
When the song finished, they all rose back up out of the water, taking deep breaths after being underwater long enough to hear the song play twice. They had to listen and wait for it to start again since the song had already been halfway through by the time they were underwater.
Glancing at each of the girls, their soaked hair flat against their heads as water dripped down over their faces, Harry was concerned when he saw their looks of dread.
While he knew whoever was taken wouldn't actually be in danger, there was a very real concern that whoever was behind releasing the dragons might try something else in the Second Task.
'And I barely know how to swim, too.' Harry thought, his face now having the same dread in it as the girls.
- Timeskip: Days Later -
After figuring out the clue to the egg, the four of them sat together, going over their options for the Second Task.
It was rather easy to figure out where it would be held. The largest body of water at Hogwarts was the Black Lake, and Hogwarts: A History stated it had one of the largest populations of Merpeople in Britain.
Now that they knew where is what, the main topic of their discussions was on how they were going to breathe underwater for an hour.
"What about Gillyweed?" Harry proposed, remembering the plant that allowed you to grow gills and webbed hands and feet.
Fleur shook her head at his idea, "It might be possible for you, but not me." She replied, drawing curious looks from the others.
"What do you mean?" Cho asked, looking up from reading through a book on magical plants that Harry had commanded the Room to provide them. "It says here that Gillyweed will allow you to grow gills and fish-like appendages to help move around in water. That sounds like exactly what we're looking for."
Fleur set her own book down as she turned her attention to them.
"It is because I am Veela." She replied, noticing their confusion. "Veela cannot transform our bodiez into anything other than our more primal state. Should I try to use Gillyweed, my body will instantly change into my other form and expel the substance from my mouth."
Cho and Marietta grimaced at the mental image, putting that idea to the side for now as they continued thinking up other ideas for her while Fleur turned to Harry. "You should be careful in using it too, Harry."
Blinking, he looked up from his book. "What do you mean?"
"The transformation cauzed by Gillyweed can be undone quite eazily with a powerful Finite Incantatem. If you rely on the plant as your only solution, you could place yourzelf in great danger." She replied, her tone worried at the thought that he would be left defenseless in the middle of the Black Lake.
The Finite Incantatem is a general Counter-Spell that can reverse, counter, or undo a magical effect. The more magic that someone puts into the spell, the more powerful spells and effects it can undo. When Harry's body and magic finally grew old enough, he could potentially undo things as powerful as Portkeys and Wards.
"You will need something else in case it failz." Fleur finished.
There wasn't much else he could think of. He could try what Krum did in the storybooks and Transfigure his head into a sea-creatures, but that ran the risk of his mind becoming reduced to that of the animals.
There were many warnings in his Transfiguration texts about witches and wizards who tried to turn their bodies into an animal's, only to become permanently stuck that way if they weren't an Animagus.
"What about the Bubble-head Charm?" He asked, getting hesitant nods in return.
"It could work," Marietta replied, "But that charm is even slower and more fragile than Gillyweed, because you lose out on the transformed limbs. We used the charm on our trip to the U.S. to go diving, and it only takes a swift motion or something coming into contact with the bubble for it to pop."
They were quickly running out of options, and every option they came across had its fair share of downsides to it.
Eventually, it was decided that Harry would only take a small bit of Gillyweed with him that would last for half an hour, and then he would use another small dose later if he hadn't finished the task by then. If someone undid his Gillyweed transformation, Harry was to transfigure fins onto his arms and legs before attempting to reach somewhere safe and taking another dose of Gillyweed.
For Fleur, since she couldn't use Gillyweed, they had to fall back on her talents of Enchanting for the answer. Using a special enchantment, she made it so that one of her scarfs would act as a type of underwater breathing apparatus, filtering in air as long as she kept it wrapped around her mouth. She had offered to make one for Harry, but he didn't want anyone to accuse them of cheating.
In case their plans failed, they made sure to practice the Bubble-head Charm as a last resort. Now they just had to work on their swimming.
…
At the end of classes that day, Flitwick gathered all of Ravenclaws in the Common Room for an announcement.
"The Yule Ball is approaching," the diminutive Head of House exclaimed, "A traditional part of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and an opportunity for us to socialize with our foreign guests. Now, the ball will be open only to Fourth-years and above, though you may invite a younger student if you wish…"
Excited whispers broke out around the Ravenclaw students, questions about what to wear and who they'd go with were passed around before being silenced by Flitwick's voice. "Dress robes will be worn, and the Ball will start at Eight o'clock, on the evening of Christmas Day, before finishing at midnight in the Great Hall."
Waiting for more whispered conversations to die down, he continued. "There has been an addition train departure waiting on the morning of Yule to bring students who go home for Winter Break back to Hogwarts, and another that will return you to King's Cross the morning after."
Relieved sighs went out around the room. Many of the students were worried that they would have to miss spending the holiday with their family in order to attend the Ball.
After dismissing everyone, Flitwick came over to where Harry was sitting with Cho and Marietta.
"Harry, the Champions and their dates are traditionally required to be the first dance at the Yule Ball. I would recommend getting your partner as soon as possible, and begin practicing your dancing." He advised, getting a nod from Harry before taking his leave.
Cho and Marietta turned back to Harry as Cho asked, "You're going to take Fleur, right?" Her question was mostly rhetorical, but Harry answered her anyways.
"Of course," Harry replied immediately, pausing before he asked, "I just wasn't sure if either of you wanted to go with me instead?"
Cho and Marietta shook their heads. "No, we're going to go together." Marietta replied, throwing an arm over Cho's shoulder. "If anyone asks, we'll just say that no guys interested either of us enough."
Harry smiled at them, happy that they wouldn't have to go alone to the dance or miss it entirely, despite their worries about what others will say.
Now, he just needed to find Fleur and ask her to the Ball.
…
It turns out that the second the other Houses found out about the Ball, and even knowing that she was in a relationship with Harry, over a dozen boys had tried to ask Fleur to be their date.
Spotting his girlfriend coldly rejecting an arrogant looking Malfoy, who looked about ready to draw his wand before receiving a blast of allure to the face and stumbling off dazed, Harry chuckled as he walked over to her.
Fleur was about to hex the next person that asked her to the Ball when she spotted Harry smiling at her.
Relieved, she threw her arms around his neck as she muttered into his ear. "I cannot take any more of their asking. It is only the first day since they announced the Ball, and already I am being bombarded." Her French was slightly muffled as she squeezed him tighter against her, drawing strength from his presence as her head rested against his neck.
Wrapping one arm around her waist as the other came up to rest against her white-gold locks, Harry kissed her temple before whispering back. "Then would you be upset if I asked you to be my date for the Yule Ball?"
She shook her head before leaning back enough to kiss him softly. "Non, I would love to go with you."
Smiling, Harry had to admit he was surprised to hear her use the word 'Love', but their relationship was certainly going in that direction.
He knew that what he felt for Fleur was love, but he wanted to wait until the right moment before telling him.
And the Yule Ball seemed like the perfect opportunity.