Secret of the Male Veela

AN1: Warning for MASSIVE OCness. You get an idea of what Harry might become in this chapter.

Last Updated: 1/28/2006
Edited by: Yogert
Huge, HUGE thanks to Yogert for providing insights, pointing out plot holes and for his valiant efforts to keep my story in character. Needless to say, I don’t think he succeeded as much as he liked.

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Chapter 4: Leaving Feast

The next week or so, Harry fell into a routine … of sorts. Early morning to lunchtime was quiet time, when Harry studied privately, meditated on Voldemort’s memories and mentally planned for the future. Lunch to early afternoon, he tried to make time for friends, housemates and anyone else that desired his company. At first, he was constantly cornered by people demanding to know what happened at the graveyard. Harry, one way or another, succeeded in avoiding giving the full answer but said enough about the battle to turn most of his interrogators white as chalk. He also put to use much of his, as of yet, unused fame by chatting up a couple of well known fan girls as a means of diverting attention from that fateful day. That ended up being a mistake more times than not seeing how he often found himself swarmed. True, there were a few gems, like the Beauxbatons prefect, Regine Fountaine, but more likely than not he would be surrounded by silly, giggly second year students. Fleur, of course, found everything terribly hilarious when he recounted his plights to her in the afternoon.

Harry smiled. And the afternoon, of course, was the best part of his day when he and the sexy French veela rut like rabbits.

Aw¸ life was pretty good. Ever since their talk, both Harry and Fleur had come to accept what he was and their relationship. Fleur had grown back to be her amorous self when she learned that he had no interest in pursuing others while she was still around, while Harry, himself, learned to skillfully apply his Slytherin cunningness to tease and provoke the older girl in public much to her delight.

The unnatural closeness the two champions developed did turn a few heads, even though most passed it off as a result of Gabrielle’s attachment to her savior. Nevertheless, a few envious males did try to make trouble. Roger Davies, Fleur’s Yule Ball date loudly protested when Harry tried to sit at the Ravenclaw table. Little Gabrielle answered for the Beauxbatons girls as a whole by soundly kicking the jealous prat right in the shin and then dragged an amused Harry to sit beside her older sister while a stunned hall looked on. Prefect Davies never spoke up again against the inclusion of Harry as an honorary Ravenclaw of sort during meal times. Though there was one time when Harry asked for him to pass the sugar and Davies subsequently went red in the face, stood up angrily and noisily marched out of the hall with everyone’s eyes on him.

Harry wasn’t dumb enough to think Roger was finished. Here was a young man, given his intelligence and position, which could very well make trouble for him or possibly gather other liked minded Harry haters. The 4th year Gryffindor had no doubt that he could only make more enemies as time went on; especially if he started collecting the finest female specimens of Hogwarts. Guys don’t take kindly to their love interest being snatched away from them; especially if the other guy already has a whole horde of them. An interesting problem to be sure.

But, as is…the subjugation of Roger Davies did effectively turn Ravenclaw House if not in Harry’s favor then at least from being against him. A few chosen words with several Hufflepuffs, namely Susan, Hannah and Ernie along with a tactful and private apology to that house also caused Hufflepuff House to align firmly with Harry. As for Slytherins…well Slytherins were Slytherins.

His own Gryffindor house gave him a bit of an unpleasant surprise. He was not the least bit amused when several 5th year males made disparaging and crude remarks about him and his recent ‘infatuation’ – as they called it – with the French champion and her school. In fact, he was quite angry when he realized that even though most of his year was present, including all the guys and Hermione, only Hermione and Neville spoke up and Hermione only did so because, apparently, she thought the language was inappropriate. Good old Neville was his lone defender. Harry vowed to remember that act of loyalty, but as for the rest of them…

Was this the great Gryffindor honor and nobility he heard about it? Harry had voiced his concerns to his new Beauxbatons friends and Regine provided the best answer.

“Sounds like you don’t exactly fit in as a Gryffindor then. Of all the ‘houses,’” Regine said the word with distain, emphasizing the point by flicking her blonde hair back. “I found all the Gryffindors not only to be prejudiced, but also prone to act without thinking...”

“…all except for you.” Harry had a knack for trusting his instincts, so when it told him to feel Goosebumps up his back, he knew something was up. Fleur, of course, happened to be oblivious to this momentous event as she chatted cheerfully with two of her friends in French. True, all of Fleur’s fellow schoolmates flirted rather openly with him, apparently with Fleur’s approval because Harry just didn’t see it happening otherwise, but Regine really was a special case. Maybe it was the way she licked her lips whenever her eyes looked at him as if he were a piece of meat, or the way she tried to send him as much innuendo as possible when no one was looking. But Harry knew instinctively that here was a young woman, who was not only serious, but intended to succeed. And Harry vaguely wondered if despite all logic, Fleur is not helping her friend along. So, even when the French prefect greeted him the next day as if nothing had changed, Harry knew that it was simply a matter of waiting the other shoe to fall.

But, while Fleur seemed content to ignore her friend’s interest in her secret lover, she most certainly was not unaware of similar interest being shown by certain elements of Hogwarts’ student body; which incidentally considered her a threat. Indeed, Harry wasn’t the only one that came under undue pressure. Fleur found herself cornered many times by several cute younger girls who tried to look intimidating and demanding but couldn’t quite do it in front of the enchantingly beautiful foreign veela. It was all kind of cute… for now at least.

Harry walked calmly into the Great Hall, very much aware that his entrance dampened the noise levels by quite a bit.

He sat with his house briefly, exchanging pleasantries with Ron, Hermione and several others. Ever since he’s been spending time with Fleur and others at the Ravenclaw table, a certain level of aloofness seemed to permeate the air between the trio. Harry was quite aware that his old friends felt jaded and ‘expected’ him to take the initiative to make up. He was quite willing, if a bit unhappy, to do this until the incident in the common room. The Beauxbatons prefect’s assessment made him think. Why should he make such a strong effort to repair a friendship that would seem tenuous and perhaps even fated to dissolve? Couldn’t he just let it go? Well, he sure wasn’t going to fight tooth and nail for it…

Seeing Fleur wave at him at the edge of his vision, Harry wished his housemates best of luck and then made his way over to the Ravenclaw table, greeting a few people he knew along the way. The first time Harry went out of his way to publicly greet students from the other houses, they stared at him as if he had grown another head. Harry thought little of it, but as he kept doing it they gradually warmed up to him. Some of the younger year students even actively greeted him whenever they saw him. At the end of the week, Harry realized he had started something new. Here he was, the archetypical Gryffindor hero, saying ‘hello’ and ‘how are you’ to normal people and people he rarely ever saw in other houses like they were ‘equal.’ If that didn’t shore up his image, nothing else would. It brought a smile to Harry’s face whenever he recalls how a flashy Slytherin 5th year student got hit with half a dozen jinx and hexes when he made a very inappropriate and inopportune comment about Harry while a mixed group of 3rd year students was passing by.

He was even able to make some headway within the lower houses of Slytherin house. What happened was that while Harry occasionally extended the same courtesy to individual or duets of the younger Slytherins, he acted as if he didn’t know them in public. When one, rather indignant and unquestionably brave girl, confronted him after he waved at a Ravenclaw beside her but not her, Harry told her why. His response was that he didn’t want to cause her any trouble with her housemates. He almost felt the seed of doubt being planted in the Slytherin girl and in Slytherin house soon after. It was the doubt that their constant paranoia of others and dependency on their own; their own cunningness, their own abilities and their own house might not necessarily be good.

“Hi, Harry.”

“Hello, Padma.” Greeted Harry in return at the smiling Indian girl.

He had first approached the twin sister of his housemate to convey an apology of sort to Parvati. Harry had wanted to make a belated apology for his behavior at the ball but found that his former date to be quite unapproachable. So one afternoon while lugging around the Ravenclaw common room, he approached the surprised girl. Harry never knew what happened to that apology as the Gryffindor girl became almost downright hostile to him. But her Ravenclaw sister, on the other hand, warmed up to him considerably and pointedly told him to avoid her sister, dismissing her as being in one of her ‘moods’. Harry thought that was rather strange but thought little of it. As a result of their first liaison and given Harry’s effective daytime residence in the Ravenclaw dorm, he ended up on more than one occasion caught up in a deep discussion with the intelligent and pretty dark girl. She reminded him of the better parts of Hermione, without that haughty, condescending and patronizing edge.

Just as Harry was about to speak further, a sharp voice spoke out in derision.

“One’s not enough for you Potter?”

Padma, along with the other girls sitting at the table (both Ravenclaw and Beauxbatons) glared at the speaker. Most had always found the Gryffindor star seeker and hero to be quite fetching, but he really seemed to have come into his own recently. As for the rumor that Harry had murdered Cedric… Well, considering it was the likes of snake face Malfoy and thoroughly discredited and jealous Davies making the most noise about it, most were willing to give the charming Boy Who Lived the benefit of the doubt. The only lament the girls had was how the blasted French beauty queen seemed to have the new and improved Harry Potter wrapped around her finger; even if they didn’t really think, or dared to think, that the two had a real relationship going. If the poor girls only knew…

Harry whirled his head around to see a rather prissy looking Roger Davies stabbing at his food. The younger boy thought within the depth of his mind. ‘Perfect timing.’

Harry had managed to deflect much of the dark feelings about him and a prevailing sense of gloominess as a result of Cedric’s death, but he could also sense quite a bit of resentment and knew that some were disgusted at how carefree he was when his classmate had so recently died. This was one of the reasons why Ravenclaw house, as a whole, still wasn’t exactly smitten with him.

‘Just a little longer.’ Harry had no intention of running from what happened that night. Tonight, tonight they would get his side of the story. But before then, a little humor to lighten the mood seemed appropriate.

Putting on a devious smile, which didn’t extend anywhere close to his eyes, Harry turned to give his rival/enemy his full attention.

“Excuse me? I’m not sure I know what you mean?” That was a complete lie of course, but Roger was clearly too caught up in his distain for Harry to see that it was bait. So despite being the center of decidedly negative attention, the Ravenclaw prefect plowed on right ahead into a trap.

“Shut up with the old chum routine. You know exactly what I mean, Potter! How about leaving some for the rest of us normal guys?” The disgruntled guys who foolishly grunted in support were swiftly silenced with harsh whacks from their nearest female neighbors. If the girls were annoyed before, they were now angry that Roger Davies, once thought to be one of the most popular boys in school, outright acknowledged them to be akin to possessions to be passed around and traded.

Keeping his cool demeanor and fake smile, Harry made an exaggerated show of scratching his chin as he tried to figure out what he meant.

“Ah I see. You like Padma?” The girl in question blushed. This definitely wasn’t what she expected, though to be truthful she did used to think about the older Quidditch captain.

“Of course not, why would I like her?”

‘Ouch’ Harry winced in his mind. He peaked a look to see an outraged Padma being comforted and restrained by her friends from cursing the hell out of the insensitive prick. The entire hall had gone almost utterly silent as everyone including the teaching staff looked on with interest. The setting could not be more perfect.

Harry waited until he caught Fleur’s eyes before sending her a warning look. His bonded gave an almost imperceptible nod of understanding before relaying it to Regine, who sat beside her. Seeing both girls tense up presumably in readiness, Harry decided to risk his grand finale.

“So what kind of girls do you like?”

Whether Roger was just looking for a beat down or some how thought saying what he said would hurt Harry’s house pride, the Ravenclaw stared back darkly and uttered for everyone to hear.

“Gryffindor girls, they are more fun…”

Two shields went up around the Beauxbatons section of the table while Harry cast another one around the lower end, covering most of the younger students. Then he leaped aside just in time to avoid the half a dozen or so jinx, hexes and curses shot by angry Gryffindor boys. The curses slammed into Roger Davies, sending him flailing out of his seat and food all over his neighbors. An angry Davies along with friends retaliated and soon a mixed Gryffindor- Ravenclaw brawl was taking place in the middle of the hall while spells and food were exchanged between the two middle tables. The Slytherin table, which was on the other side of the Gryffindor one, was dragged in at some point when Malfoy stood to talk but was shut up with a curse. The Durmstrang contingent, however, followed the Beauxbatons example and barricaded themselves within several shields.

“Silence!!” Finally the booming voice of the headmaster cut through the chaos. Gradually anarchy gave way to order until the brawling 6th and 7th year Gryffindor and Ravenclaw boys stopped as well. The staff was appalled to see three of the four tables in complete disarray, except for the shielded foreign and younger Ravenclaw students. The Hufflepuffs occupied the only table spared the devastation of spells and editable projectiles.

Harry laughed uproariously as he saw the expressions that graced most of the teachers. Despite suffering the ignominy of having his robes smeared with food (though he avoided all the spells) he thought that it was a small price to pay and there was no way anyone could blame him for it.

“Potter!” Of course, that wouldn’t stop some from trying.

“50 points from.…”

“May I ask for what?” Questioned Harry indignantly. Snape began spluttering in the way he always did when he couldn’t get something to go his way.

“Yes, there’s no reason to punish the innocent¸ Severus.” The big bat looked ready to challenge that statement, but changed his mind in the last minute and decided it wasn’t worth his efforts or time to do so.

“Minerva, it was your students’ unprovoked attack against Mr. Malfoy that….”

“My students! Clearly it was the imprudence of Mr. Rogers, whom I demand to be replaced… absolutely intolerable for a prefect of this….”

“Excuse me, Minerva, Severus. I must protest….”

The three of the house heads soon engaged in a three-way heated argument with points being taken off from all over the place while amazed students and the visiting guests watched on. Even Headmaster Dumbledore seemed at a loss as to what to do, though the slight twitching of his beard showed that he was clearly amused.

Harry, meanwhile seeing the disgruntled older boys picking themselves off the ground, tried to lend a hand.

“Piss off Potter.” Harry stopped. Having been pushed enough, he fought off the urge to curse the pompous git. God, he never realized how many Malfoy wanna-bes there were around him. Luckily for him, a Ravenclaw girl dragged him back to the table where to the envy of others no less than four girls then fawned over the Gryffindor boy, ‘trying’ to clean him up. This went on for a few minutes, until someone cast a cleaning charm over him. The four girls glared at the smiling face of Regine Fountaine.

“Come and sit, Harry.” The French prefect said, patting the small space she and Fleur made between them on the other side of the table. Harry cast a questioning glance at his still giggling lover, who only shrugged as if saying: ‘suit yourself’. Deciding that he might as well, Harry flipped himself across the table and smoothly slid in to place between the two blondes.

“My, my, that was quite something. Tell me, is it always this fun with you, Harry Potter?” The bold question caused several people, both male and female, to gasp and to choke.
Fleur said something in French, presumably to admonish her friend for being so crass.

“I’m afraid not, but I try to keep a few surprises up my sleeve.” Answered Harry with a charming smile. Those not looking on with jealousy or some other teenage emotion were amazed at how calm the 4th year boy managed to act, snuggled in between the two older beauties.

“Mind showing me some of those surprises sometime, Harry? Provided Fleur is willing to share.” Laughing openly now, Fleur, careful, dainty, perfect lady Fleur, picked up a piece of meat and threw it at her friend in mock anger. Harry remained silent, realizing that he had no safe answer for that. He caught the Weasley twins grinning at him from the Gryffindor table, making small but distinct bowing motions and chatting something along the lines of ‘iron balls’. Meanwhile, those around the Gryffindor twin didn’t know whether to laugh or blush. Ron, Harry saw, chose the latter while Hermione seemed busy telling everyone off.

At last, order was completely restored amongst students and staff. Roger Davies sat about four seats down from Harry on the opposite side. The prefect refused to meet Harry’s eyes as he whispered something to a solemn looking Cho Chang, who sat beside him. Harry had no choice but to avoid the distraught Ravenclaw in the aftermath of Cedric’s death, knowing that he could do nothing for her without revealing his hand too soon. Unfortunately, this action was viewed with suspicion by some and exasperated by the likes of Mr. Davies. Harry felt his eyes narrowing and his body tensing¸ all of which were not missed by the two girls sitting so bodily close to him.

“‘arry?”

“It’s ok.”

The mood in the hall hit a new low as Dumbledore talked about Cedric. Harry heard his name towards the end of the speech.

“…Harry Potter managed to escape Lord Voldemort…returned Cedric’s body to Hogwarts… showed the sort of bravery that few wizards showed… for this I honor him.”

Harry nodded courteously in acknowledgement as he downed his goblet. Some followed suit without hesitation, others did so reluctantly, and the rest, of course, refused to honor him so.

As soon as Dumbledore finished his speech and before the noise level picked back up, Harry rose.

“Headmaster, sir!” He called out loudly. “May I be allowed a moment to address the school?”

The entire hall looked at him in confusion, including Fleur and Regine. A curious headmaster gave him the go ahead before Snape could object.

Harry stepped away from the Ravenclaw table, took two steps forward and turned around towards the rest of the hall, expanding his magic to draw himself to his full height. It was the first time he tried magical manipulation to enhance his charisma, and based on the initial results, it looked like it was a success.

‘This is it. Give it your all, old boy.’ Thought Harry to himself.

“I wish to correct a mistake our esteemed headmaster made?” Mutters and grumblings broke out immediately. Harry waited half a minute for it to subside before continuing.

“I have not been nearly as brave as Headmaster Dumbledore made me out to be. In fact, some might consider me a coward.” Many of the Slytherins and their allies broke out in laughter, while others looked at Harry curiously wondering where he was going with his self-deprecating remark. All were confused when a slightly devious smirk crossed the Gryffindor’s face.

“Why you ask? I, myself, wondered for many a sleepless night since the fateful 3rd task. True, I did survive a duel with Voldemort,”

Gasp.

“… and escaped the clutches of his Death Eaters, perhaps even killing a few.”

The Slytherins paled.

Another gasp, this time inclusive of the staff. Dumbledore’s eyes had lost all of their twinkle. ‘Old codger is probably working out what that meant. Better talk fast.’ Harry thought.

“But I am, nevertheless, a coward because even as I discovered the identities of the ‘scum’ inhabiting this earth¸ I could NOT, yes, I, Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, could not prevail on the authorities to ensure that justice is done. Yes, the proper authorities…” Harry grounded out with distain. “… will let go the very scum, who have murdered and maimed your families and friends!”

Stunned silence greeted the hall. Few missed the direct attack on Ministry corruption.

“I’m a coward because even as you have placed your faith in me, I have not fought against evil at every turn! I’m a coward because I have allowed the flesh and blood of these very same scum to taint and defile us with their very presence!”

No one was at a loss what was meant as Harry cast one hateful glare at Draco Malfoy.

“I’m coward because I have allowed scum to roam freely and taint your lives when they scarcely have the right to live! And if unchecked, my cowardice will cause YOU,”

Here, Harry gave the entire hall a look over.

“… to suffer the same fate as your parents, your uncles, your aunts, your loved ones and friends because the kind of scum that committed atrocities against your parents, your uncles, your aunts, your loved ones and friends also exists amongst us here today!”

Harry was all but yelling as the clamor caused by excited and impassioned students reached a crescendo. Those students that might have been otherwise unsure or hesitant about Harry became swept up in the fervor of the moment. Gryffindors, in particular, who had recently been suspicious of how much time Harry spent with Ravenclaws and their Beauxbatons guests, now took to the forefront to show house solidarity.

“Do you wish me to remain a coward?”

“NO!” The crowd thundered in response.

The Slytherin students were horrified and furious beyond belief. And for the non- DE offspring, they were scared for their lives. Some of the dissenters, seeing the righteous anger of their schoolmates, vowed to cease their quiet acceptance of their darker brethren.

“POTTER!” Shocked speechlessness, only at the end did Snape manage to recompose himself, determined now to make the upstart Potter brat pay. Unfortunately for Snivelus, Dumbledore checked his enraged potions master before he could hurt someone or himself. Of course, this also meant the headmaster couldn’t turn his attention to deal with Harry and the super emotionally charged student body he spurred on.

Thankfully for Harry, Draco stepped up to the plate. The pink flash of light didn’t travel two meters from the Slytherin’s wand, before Harry made a wide slashing movement complete with graphical and coloring effects that tossed the curse back. Draco’s own curse smashed into him, ripping the front of his robes and slamming him into the wall behind Slytherin table. The boy was unconscious before he even hit the ground.

The hall looked on in silence before erupting in cheers. Some of the students who lost loved ones in the first war began actively pumping fists into the air or hugging their friends. The Slytherins, of course, didn’t back down as most of the table rose up defiantly… only to be met by their fellow school mates, who rose for one reason or another in Harry’s defense. Harry felt himself swell with joy as the Beauxbatons students also joined his side while the Durmstrang conspicuously separated themselves from the Slytherin lot. Harry noted his thanks to Krum when the two caught each other’s eyes.

Seeing several hundred wands being pointed at them, most Slytherins lost heart, crumbling back into their seats. Harry felt a brief flash of pity for the younger years, especially those he befriended. They looked so lost, unsure of which side to support. Yet, this was a necessary, if albeit harsh, lesson these youngsters need to learn.

“POTTER! Detention for….” Snape realized belatedly that punishment of this sort didn’t really work out.

“School’s out in a day, professor, unless you intend to keep me here for duration of the summer, which would be fine by me. Besides, if you were paying attention, you would have seen that all I did was toss Malfoy’s curse back at him. If anyone’s punished, it should be him.” Severus turned to the headmaster for help, but finding little support from the silently scheming old man, sat back down.

‘I’m doing good, today.’ Thought the Gryffindor provocateur.

Harry raised his hand, motioning for silence and the masses obeyed. Alas, Roger Davies, who was grumbling darkly, was not one to listen.

“Am I boring you, Roger?” The entire hall swerved to look at the Ravenclaw prefect. Harry smiled as the people beside him instinctively veered away out of his line of sight.

“Don’t you think it’s funny that a murderer could be so popular, Cho?” The doomed boy taunted, ignoring the Gryffindor. The Asian girl looked absolutely terrified at this point for being put on the spot. Harry felt himself flash with anger.

“Killing a Death Eater or two in self defense could hardly be considered murder, Roger.”

“That’s not what I mean and you know it Potter. I’m talking about Cedric.” Despite being a prefect of the house known for its intelligence, Roger Davies most certainly wasn’t being intelligent. A quick scan of the hall told Harry that many, including most of Hufflepuff house, were not impressed with the older boy dragging the memory of their deceased champion into his private vendetta against the remaining Hogwarts champion.

“You are talking about something you have no knowledge about.” Harry fired back.

“And if you are going to insult me, at least look at me, not her!” Harry gave Cho a look in which he hoped he conveyed sympathy and understanding. “She’s been through enough.”

Roger Davies jumped in surprise but did as he demanded. Since his ‘transformation,’ Harry had been experimenting on seeing if he could find uses for his powers other than seducing girls. One was that if he inverted the veela’s female attraction charm, it served as a very potent intimidation aura for guys. After taking one look at Harry, the poor Ravenclaw suddenly had to fight from soiling himself as Harry, aided by his magic, and intensified his icy glare.

“Mr. Davies, Mr. Potter, that is enough.” Exclaimed Dumbledore in a booming voice. “The ministry has confirmed that it was the killing curse that ended Cedric Diggory’s life and rest assured that that spell was not cast from Mr. Potter’s wand.”

“Potter could have used another wand to do it.” Heads turned and Harry noticed that it was someone from the Hufflepuff table who spoke out. It would seem that no one house could ever fall in line with him 100% as dissenters always existed. But it did drive the point home that Harry could never depend on any single faction and that he would need to shore up his support base within all the houses. Some, like Harry’s most ardent converts within Hufflepuff House, wanted to protest this new line questioning, but Harry decided that he had better nick this one in the butt. While he suspected, from the antagonism and hint of distain in the speaker’s voice, that that person in question was unlikely to be a convert of his faith. No matter his explanation, he might as well use the current situation as the springboard for his final event.

“You are?”

“Zacharias Smith.”

Harry made a note to remember that name. The guy might be in his year and looked like trouble.

“I’m sorry Cho, but you could have come to me. You deserved to know what happened to Cedric, but I simply didn’t want to deal with…certain people and I never could get you alone.” Probably not the most appropriate words at the moment, but Harry ignored the sniggers. “But today, I shall satisfy everyone’s curiosity.”

Indeed, if people had not been curious before, they most certainly were now, especially when Victor Krum walked forward with two fellow Durmstrang students carrying a large pensive like bowl. But unlike the clear liquid that filled the pensive, this one was filled with an opaque substance that radiated an almost sinister darkness. Out of the corner of his eyes, Harry saw recognition spread across Dumbledore’s face.

“Thank you, Victor.”

“You’re welcome, Harry.”

The two greeted each other like old friends as Harry directed the pensive to be set on the old sorting hat stool. While Harry didn’t try to hide his interactions with the Beauxbatons students, he did try very hard to keep his discrete impromptu meetings with Victor secret. It had been quite a task, given where the Durmstrang students resided, but based on the dumbfounded looks on everyone’s face, it had been worth it. The darker pro-Voldemort Slytherins looked vaguely nauseous as they saw what they thought were foreign compatriots conspiring with their enemy.

“As you can see, our friends at Durmstang have been kind enough to provide one of their memory projectors for my use.”

The hall buzzed with questions.

“For those wondering, it’s essentially a pensive that projects a memory outwards so that crowds of people could see. The images and the sounds are not very clear, but I think they would be adequate for our purposes.”

Before anyone could object, Harry lifted his wand and pulled the appropriate strand of memory and deposited into the bowl of swirling black liquid.

A holographic like scene sprung to life in the middle of the great hall.

The entire hall watched with a mixture of amazement and horror. They saw the green light of death rob Cedric of his life; they saw Voldemort rise up once again; they saw the renewed Dark Lord greet his Death Eaters, confirming what many already suspected; and they saw through Harry’s eyes as the Avada Kedavra screamed towards them…

“That’s ENOUGH!” Dumbledore dissipated the image with one majestic swish of his wand. Harry had to resist the urge to cow before the powerful wizard. He knew the headmaster was not pleased, but the cunning Gryffindor also knew that he could do nothing at this point. He couldn’t even stop Harry at this point as his attention was centered on an angry Snape, who decided to try to intervene once again. Harry smiled inwardly.

“I’m sorry that I could do no more than bring Cedric’s body back.” Harry stated apologetically towards Cho and the Hufflepuffs. But then, he whirled on a pale looking Ravenclaw prefect.

“But to those who have questioned me time and again and rattled about things they don’t know! I really wonder what you would have done. Tell me, Roger, what would have you done had you been facing Voldemort? Piss your pants and faint?” Harry gave the older boy a disgusted look, as Davies seriously looked ready to do just that.

“Mr. Potter, if that is all.” Dumbledore’s eyes were cold and with out light. Harry met them and locked his shields into place. His inside purred with delight as a look of surprise registered on the wizened mage. This undoubtedly would make trouble for him in the future, but at the time, it seemed worth it.

“Yes, sir.” Harry nodded in acceptance as he made his way back to his seat between the French beauties. Fleur was smiling broadly, if albeit nervously, at him, while Regine was giving him a slight predatory appraising look as if she was reassessing his worth.

As the noises and conversations returned, many of which relating to the Gryffindor hero’s impromptu performance, Harry’s sharpened vision caught sight of a beetle flying away. He was still rather skeptical about providing the likes of Rita the scope on such a sensitive issue, but at the end, Harry knew that it would be infinitely better for the Prophet to get news about that night from him than someone like Lucius Malfoy.

Harry relished the taste of the delicious shepherd’s pie, watching with amusement as a vaguely disgusted Fleur poked at her food suspiciously.

Today, he humiliated the Death Eaters, their spawn, and Snape;

…He put into question the competence and legitimacy of the wizarding government and its leaders,

… Successfully utilized his fame and prestige to evoke a call for action,

… Ensured that his image within the school had been enhanced to a degree that no negative rumor can hope to negate in the near future;

… Ensured that never again would he be underestimated by actors that would seek to use him;

And Harry Potter did all this in one single, masterful, stroke. Best of all, there was not a single thing Dumbledore could do at this point. School would be out in a day. For once, the coming of summer would work in Harry’s favor.

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