Chapter Forty-Six

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Note: During the Second Task, Fred went into the water and George stayed up with Harry although he kept referring to Fred as George so as to help spread confusion. I guess it worked. :p

Also, people have expressed surprise that Krum is in last place. Harry and Fred, of course, have the advantage of being from the future or having his twin competing as well, respectively. Cedric also had some solid plans. Fleur's low scores were due to her skirt catching fire when she put the dragon to sleep and being attacked by some grindylows, both of which can be put down to chance. The odds of both of those things happening again when it was mostly just bad luck she was standing in the way and ran into the grindylows wasn't good enough for it to need to happen again. Krum's low scores were due to his not thinking to get the dragon out of the way before he hexed it and just being really late, the first which was a tactical error on his part and the second due to his still not bringing a knife or something like Cedric did and not having Harry there to hand him a rock, even if he did find the hostages faster due to chance.

"You know," Sirius said with a theatrical sigh, "it wasn't so bad learning all about your life through Rita Skeeter articles when I was on the run and literally risking my very soul in order to see you. When I'm teaching at your school and you're taking my class, though…it's kind of pathetic."

"You could always make an effort to seek me out," Harry pointed out.

"And I am doing so, right now," Sirius replied. "And let me tell you, I am both incredibly proud of but slightly disturbed about the latest update on your little love square."

"I wouldn't say it's a 'square' as I don't think Ginny, Hermione, or Luna have feelings for each other, so it would really be more like a bisected triangle," Harry nit-picked. "Oh, and they're not even fighting over me in the first place."

"That's not what Rita Skeeter says," Sirius countered. "I read all about it in today's article. Have you seen it? It's delightfully vapid."

Harry shook his head. "I never bother reading what Rita Skeeter has to say about me because my solicitor knows to sue for libel the minute the Daily Prophet crosses the line and everyone else always lets me know what's going on in my life soon enough. Seriously, I would never have guessed these things about myself!"

"Rita Skeeter: exposing such deep, dark secrets that you don't even realize you have them," Sirius agreed.

"So what's it say today?" Harry asked.

"Take a look," Sirius responded, tossing the paper at him.

Harry looked down at the article.

Harry Potter: Testing the Waters

By Rita Skeeter

As you are no-doubt aware, Harry Potter is the Boy-Who-Lived and saved us all from certain doom at the hands of You-Know-Who but thirteen years ago. He is also a fourth-year Gryffindor and the American Representative in the Pentawizard Playoffs. One thing that is easy to forget, however, is the fact that he is also a teenage boy.

Like many boys his age, Potter has just started to realize that half of the people around him are – in fact – girls. Three in particular have caught his attention: Muggleborn Hermione Granger and Purebloods Luna Lovegood and Ginevra Weasley.

Each girl has their own unique advantages and disadvantages. Granger is one of Potter's closest friends and spends the most time with him, but a bad break-up could spell the end of that powerful friendship. Weasley is a fiery red-head like Potter's mother, but she is a year younger than him and Potter's best friend might not take too kindly to Potter dating his sister! Finally, Lovegood is a very open-minded and free-spirited individual who can support many of Potter's unconventional views, but is in a different house and a year below him as well as being a judge in the Playoffs.

Potter himself has expressed no preference to any of the girls leading some to speculate that he is merely leading them on. Potter has vehemently denied such claims, stating "Luna, Ginny, and Hermione are really great friends of mine. I respect all three far too much to even think of trying to pull something like that. Besides, I'm far too busy right now to worry about dating someone. When I do decide to start, though, I'm sure you'll know about it before I will."

"I can't believe she actually put that in there…" Harry said, shaking his head in amusement. "Seriously, do people have NOTHING better to do than obsess over my non-existent love-life?"

"Apparently not," Sirius replied.

"I just hope that Molly doesn't believe that I'm playing with her daughter, the girl she used to babysit, and her son's crush's heart's…" Harry murmured. "I mean, just look at how she treated Hermione when she thought she was two-timing me…"

"So how does the article fair after a quick reality check?" Sirius inquired.

Harry snorted. "It doesn't even rate. Hermione never liked me before I started being as annoying as I possibly can, Luna knows about my crippling fear of accidentally being a pedophile, and Ginny…well, I am hoping she'll come around but hopefully not for a while yet so I don't have to reject her because she's too young and hurt my future chances with her."

"You DO realize that just because you ended up with her in the past isn't necessarily an indication that you'll do so again in the future?" Sirius asked. "I mean, you're both different people and she isn't the girl you have all those shared experiences with. It wouldn't be fair to her to constantly compare everything she does to the person she was in another time."

"I wouldn't!" Harry declared heatedly. "Shared experiences or not, Ginny is Ginny and I love her! I don't want to be creepy so I need to wait, but that isn't going to change!"

Sirius eyed him carefully. "Just…don't take it for granted, okay? I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Why can't they just tell us whatever we need to know inside?" Fred grumbled as he, his twin, Cedric, and Harry made their way down to the Quidditch Pitch to receive their instructions about the Third Task.

"They just have to rub it in that we didn't get to play Quidditch this year," George added.

"Maybe they want to make sure no one can overhear us or maybe they're using the Quidditch Pitch for the Third Task," Cedric suggested.

"What could they possibly be using the Pitch for?" George asked skeptically.

"What do you think, Harry?" Fred asked.

Harry shrugged. "I don't really care one way or another but my scar's with Cedric."

"Your scar always takes Cedric's side," Fred noted.

"Is it possible it's in love with him?" George asked.

Harry shuddered. "Dear God I hope not. No offense or anything, Cedric, but that would be pretty awkward, I like girls, and there are enough rumors floating around about my love life as it is."

"None taken," Cedric assured him. "I, too, feel it would be rather awkward to have my friend's supposedly psychic 'facial disfigurement' in love with me. I mean, there's no way I'd even know unless you told me, but – knowing you – you probably would. In excruciating detail."

Harry shrugged again. "If I would have to deal with it, so would you." He bumped into Fred. "Hey, why'd you stop?"

Fred and George both took that moment to fall to their knees instead of answering him. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"What the-?" Harry was all for melodrama, but usually it had a purpose. What was wrong?

"The Pitch!" Cedric exclaimed, sounding a little upset.

"Oh, right," Harry remembered. "The Pitch is being turned into a hedge maze."

George turned accusing eyes to Harry. "You knew?"

"I told you my scar agreed with Cedric," Harry pointed out.

"I'm going to take the fact that you didn't feel the need to mention this to me as a clear sign that your scar sees me as just a friend and then let the matter drop," Cedric announced.

"Good, because we have more pressing things to worry about," Fred told him. "Such as…why, God, why?"

"Surely it's not that bad," Bagman claimed as he stepped forward to greet them. He had been standing with Fleur and Viktor just twenty feet away from them.

"You're speaking to four Quidditch fanatics, sir," Harry informed him. "Five if you count Viktor. Six if – do you play?" he asked Fleur.

"A little," she answered. "I was not on any 'Ouse team, though."

Bagman's smile faded a little. "Well…it will be back to normal in no time after the Playoffs are over, don't worry."

"Is this why we couldn't have Quidditch this year?" Harry demanded. "Because you'd think we could have just gotten all the matches out of the way before April."

"You'd have to ask Professor Dumbledore about that, I'm afraid," Bagman replied. "Can anyone tell me what this is?"

"If we do do we get a prize?" Harry asked immediately.

"…No," Bagman answered shortly.

"Then I'm sure I don't know," Harry said.

No one said anything for a moment; they just stared at each other waiting for someone to answer the obvious question. Viktor looked away first.

"Maze," he supplied, rolling his eyes.

"Very good!" Bagman beamed like being able to recognize a maze was any sort of accomplishment at their age. "A maze. The third task's really very straightforward. The Triwizard Cup will be placed in the center of the maze. The first champion to touch it will receive full marks."

"We simply 'ave to get through the maze?" said Fleur, looking decidedly unimpressed. How that girl had ever chosen to stay in Great Britain after so very clearly hating every minute of her seventh year there was, quite frankly, a complete mystery.

"There will be obstacles," said Bagman happily, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Hagrid is providing a number of creatures… then there will be spells that must be broken… all that sort of thing, you know. Now, the champions who are leading on points will get a head start into the maze." Bagman grinned at Harry, Fred, and George. "Followed by Mr. Diggory. Then Miss Delacour will enter… and finally Mr. Krum But you'll all be in with a fighting chance, depending how well you get past the obstacles. Should be fun, eh?"

"So you are saying zhat our point totals are completely worthless?" Fleur asked. "Because it does not matter 'oo is ahead but 'oo touches the Cup first?"

"Not at all!" Bagman insisted. "Because the more points you have, the sooner you get to go into the maze. For instance, Harry and Mr. Weasley each have 121 points while Mr. Krum has but 95. That's a 26 point differences, which means they should have a good fifteen minute head start."

"But since it is a maze then I am thinking that you really mean that ve didn't need to bother vith the first two Tasks at all," Krum countered.

"Well, if there are no more questions then we can all head back up to the castle," Bagman said loudly.

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean," Lockhart was saying as Harry walked by an apparently occupied classroom. Naturally, he stopped to listen.

Moody laughed harshly. "I'm sure you don't. I've never thought you were anywhere near talented enough to pull off half of the accomplishments you've laid claim to and with the amnesia that pops up at the site of each of your victories…you have to wonder."

"No, you really don't," Lockhart countered, sounding annoyed. "I prefer to let my accomplishments speak for themselves and not go around showing off my magical prowess because that would just be over-the-top. Dumbledore does, but he also hasn't written a series of books, so that's not too much as far as he's concerned."

"And the amnesia?" Moody impressed.

"Psychological trauma? Head trauma? Spell gone wrong?" Lockhart suggested.

"That last one sounds about right," Moody informed him.

"One case of lost memory in a town where they've had such problems that I've needed to step in is hardly out of the ordinary," Lockhart insisted. "Now don't you have anything better to do?"

"Better than investigating a possible crime or series of crimes?" Moody challenged. "What could possibly be more important than that?"

"Grading papers?" Lockhart offered. "Interrogating either Snape or Karkaroff about possible Death Eater activity? Stopping Bagman from scamming schoolchildren with bets he has no intention of repaying? Keeping Rita Skeeter off the premise?"

"I've already done the first three," Moody announced. "And that last one is really none of my concern."

"For the love of God, aren't you supposed to be retired?" Lockhart exclaimed.

"I am," Moody conceded, opening the classroom door. "But that's not nearly as entertaining as you might think. I'll let you go for now, but I'll be back when I have more questions."

"Don't hurry back," Lockhart called after him.

Moody nodded at Harry. "Potter."

"Harry?" Lockhart brightened immediately. "How are you?"

"I'm good," Harry said distractedly. "Is he-?"

"Who? Moody?" Lockhart asked. "No, don't worry about it. He's suspicious about me, but then he's suspicious about everyone up to and including Professor Dumbledore himself. Apparently his sister had some sort of mysterious death or something…either way, he has no proof and I'm not careless enough for there to be any for him to find."

"That's good," Harry said. "So how's being a Headmaster suiting you?"

"Surprising well," Lockhart replied. "The lack of an actual school or students aside from Fred and George means there's practically no work but the publicity is great. Though you would not believe the flood of applications I keep getting."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Applications?"

Lockhart shook his head pityingly. "Harry, Harry, Harry…you create a 'Harry Potter School of Awesomeness' which combines two things that people love – you and awesomeness – and you don't expect people to apply? You've come along way but you clearly have some work yet to do."

"Well, I've only been at it for a little over two years," Harry said defensively.

"Still, you're leaps and bounds ahead of Viktor," Lockhart remarked. "He just looked confused when I suggested that he sue whoever is selling unauthorized merchandise of him and get in on the profits. He's coming around, though. But enough about that: how are you as far as the Third Task?"

Harry shrugged. "It's a maze; I know a spell that can help me find the Cup's general location."

"Could you be any less specific?" Lockhart requested.

Harry made a face. "I really don't know. There's supposed to be magical creatures in there so a Boggart's a good guess. There are acromantula in the Forbidden Forest so maybe there will be a few of them roaming about. A sphinx is always good for a maze so maybe I should brush up on inane riddles and they've got to get rid of the Blast-Ended Skrewts somehow, right?"

"So you've got a plan?" Lockhart asked. "After all, it simply wouldn't due to fail miserably during the Task and possibly even need rescuing after such a strong showing. Remember, Harry, your age makes you the underdog in the competition and no one wants to see the underdog lose."

Harry nodded. "I know and I'm about as prepared as I can be. It's not even the maze I'm really worried about because I'll be fine, I just need to get to the Cup before anybody else does."

"Well, yes, I suppose it would be exceedingly difficult to die during the Playoffs since Dumbledore has introduced all these ridiculous 'safety features'," Lockhart concurred. "But should any of you die, at least you waited until the Third Task."

"Because when you die, timing is just so important," Harry deadpanned.

"Exactly," Lockhart agreed, sounding perfectly serious.

Note: Next up: the Third Task. Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow!

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