Family Matters

The days ahead were uneventful for the most part, except for Jason's increasingly frequent panic attacks. These were blamed on Bruce mentioning that Charlie had been kidnapped, a fact that gnawed at everyone. 

Before anyone knew it, the night before the first tournament task arrived, and Hari was freaking out. Sirius and Jason had done their best to coach him through various spells, teaching him everything they could. Cedric had gotten a tip-off that the first task involved dragons and had politely shared it. Jason quickly let the Hufflepuff join the un-sanctioned training sessions, where Hari learned that Cedric’s reaction times weren’t the best. That could work out in his favor in the future, he supposed.

Moody had tried a time or two to get Hari alone, much to his distaste. Fortunately, he was always with someone and more ready than he should be to fistfight a professor if necessary.

"Alright Hari, I think tonight you should rest so you're right and proper for tomorrow," Sirius said as he sat in the Room of Requirement with his team. That team consisted of Jason, Draco, Hermione, and his godfather.

"Extra rest could do you good if you weren’t so restless," Hermione eyed the way Hari was moving about. "Please take some of the potion Draco brewed for you."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Or don’t and get horribly maimed tomorrow. It isn’t much of a problem for me either way." He passed a teacup over to Hari. "Draco!"

"I know I should take it. I’m just nervous about this whole thing, and Ron somehow making those 'Harry stinks' pins is weirdly aggravating." Hari slurped his tea. "He isn’t even good at charms."

"Was that before or after you made him have nightmares for a whole month?" Jason asked, curled up in a blanket. "Are you mortal enemies with him now?"

A large gasp filled the room. "That is my title; I won't lose it to a Weasley," Draco sneered.

Hari grimaced; the tea was off. "Well technically, Volde-daddy is my mortal enemy. You can still be my main rival though. Ron’s just a nuisance my brain focuses on every so often."

Sirius spit out his firewhiskey. "Volde-what?!"

The brothers spoke in unison. "Volde-daddy."

Hermione, stifling a giggle, added, "Hari recently learned about the power of propaganda in Muggle studies. He is determined to ruin his enemies' names now."

"If I could draw, I’d have pictures posted on every bulletin board," Hari sipped his tea some more.

Sirius yawned. "That is brilliant, next-level stuff you're thinking about there, kid."

Hari realized he could barely keep his eyes open. "One of you drugged me," was the last thing he said before falling backwards asleep.

Sirius collapsed not ten seconds after.

"Okay, I did Hari. Which one of you did Sirius?" Draco repaired the teacup, staring at the other two in the room.

"I did Sirius," Jason muttered. "I thought he’d be worse tonight."

"All these sedatives he’s been getting can’t be good for him," Draco said, sprawled out on a chair, yawning. "Hermione, did you?"

His girlfriend shrugged. "Thought you’d be worse."

---

Spending the night in the Room of Requirement wasn’t uncommon for the group. They enjoyed basking in the comfort of family tenderness and safety they weren’t feeling anywhere else at the moment.

Jason sat with Hari in the champions' tent the next day. Sirius was pacing in the corner opposite Diggory. "You’d think he was the one competing today," Hari muttered with a smirk. He had no doubts that Sirius would love to fight in Hari’s place.

"He’ll live. Otherwise, we’ll have to make a trip to a personal pharmacist, Dr. Dre-co," Jason giggled to himself.

"I don’t get it."

"You are uncultured; that's why you don’t get it," Jason pouted. "Careful, here comes Rita."

"Mr. Potter! I was hoping to get that interview with you," Skeeter tried sliding up to Hari.

And in Hari’s already exhausted mind, he said, "SIRIUS! AN ADULT I DON’T KNOW IS TOUCHING ME!"

He had never seen so many people move so fast in his life. Jason twisted himself between Rita and Hari. Viktor strode over with Cedric forming a wall, Fleur went outside to grab an official, and Lord Black was scolding her seven ways to Sunday as her backward movements caused her to trip and fall into a pile of mud. Hari tried not to giggle as he tuned into some of the lecture. "I will be talking with your higher-ups about the way you conduct yourself, MISS Skeeter. Accosting a child, let alone touching one! Please have your solicitor contact mine, save me the trouble of that, will you? If I—"

The headmasters returned with the minister, cutting Sirius off mid-rant. They politely asked her to leave as Fleur situated herself in position.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Champions, you've waited. You've wondered. And now the moment is here."

The champions arranged themselves around the adults. Sirius stood behind Hari, with Jason.

"A moment only you four can fully appreciate. Which begs the question: Why are you here in this moment, Mister Black-Potter?"

"Fine. I’ll take my seat. Knock 'em dead, everyone." Jason began to leave, only to flip off Dumbledore as his back was turned. Crouch, unaware why the champions were giggling, continued, "Surely it's been excruciating for you all, speculating these many weeks as to just what it is that awaits you tonight. Within this bag lies the answer. Miss Delacour, if you will."

Crouch held out a bag made of purple silk. Fleur took a breath as she reached in and pulled out a tiny lifelike dragon by its tail, a curious grass-green thing that chirped at its champion.

"Welsh Green. Now you, Mr. Krum."

From the angle Hari was at, he couldn’t see the miniature, but Crouch announced the Chinese Fireball as the Russian's challenger. Cedric looked in disbelief as he pulled his, the Swedish Short-Snout.

Hari groaned as the Hungarian Horntail bit his finger as he pulled it from the bag. Even Dumbledore was off-put by the dragon Hari had to fight. "These represent four very real dragons, each of which has been given a golden egg to protect. Your objective is simple: Collect the egg. This you must do, for each egg contains a clue, without which you cannot hope to survive the next task. Any questions?"

The room was silent, the heft of the task weighing on each student.

"Very well. Good luck to you all. Mr. Diggory, at the sound of the cannon, you may pro—" Dumbledore sighed as the cannon was blown prematurely. Sirius flinched the hardest out of everyone in the room.

Slowly, as the competition progressed, Hari felt more and more nervous. "Sirius, I don’t think I can do this."

"You can, Hari. You’ve been doing well in your training, and the swots have been beating dragon knowledge into you every moment they aren’t busy." His reference to Hermione and Draco left Hari cracking a smirk.

"You’re next. Now remember: Chin up, head down, and believe in yourself." Sirius gave him one last hug before sending Hari into the next death-defying task of his life.

Hari entered the arena on cue, with little idea what to do. For once, having too many plans would be his downfall.

The Horntail had yet to spot him, giving Hari a few moments to breathe and think as he looked at the wide-open sky. "Allucinatio."

A replica of Hari began walking a less protected path, drawing the dragon’s attention to the other side of the field. "Accio Firebolt."

He watched as the dragon's breath turned some stones red, but the illusion of Hari was unaffected. Carefully, in time with his own broom arriving, he made the false Hari take flight.

The dragon pulled on its chains, snapping its jaws at the false Hari, who was just out of reach, until the chains snapped.

Hastily, the false Hari took off into the sky until Hari couldn’t keep the illusion up anymore, but it didn’t matter too much. He had already mounted his broom and took off toward the egg.

It was awkward in his grasp, even more so when he flew into the champions' tent, almost crashing into the wall.

Everyone could hear the cries of the Horntail desperately trying to find the one who took her egg.

"Bloody hell, Hari, that was brilliant!" Cedric congratulated him. "Did Jason teach you that spell? Or Sirius? I haven’t seen an illusion charm so flawless before."

Hari blushed at the praise, vaguely hearing the yells as the dragon tamers attempted to settle the dragon. "Tim actually. He developed it, but Sirius helped him get the fine tunings down."

Once the dragons were safely removed from the field, the champions were called back into the arena. Hari spaced out a bit during the point distribution; he was just trying to live through this, after all.

--------------

Something Lily found hilarious was that James was the parent having a panic attack right now. "MY BABY!" he cried out when Hari was in the arena, as if he wasn't in the ring with him. "Daddy’s here. I’ll protect you." James pulled out his wand, though he was a bit at a loss for what to do.

Lily and Regulus were sitting on the ledge of the viewing point.

"What are you going to do, prank the dragon to death?" Regulus asked, practicing his own spells. It was harder than when he was alive, but maybe he could be good enough, strong enough one day to actually help his children, from the in-between.

"No, no, he's going to strip it naked since we're in front of the whole school already!" Lily spat an acidic line, not that James was paying attention.

"Not letting that Snape thing go, huh?" Regulus bit his lip, trying to strengthen his Lumos.

"I lost my best friend. I’m a little miffed still."

"Your best friend called you a Mudblood, then proceeded to get you, your son, and husband killed."

"And I will fight him when he dies too. My hands are rated E for everyone." Lily mocked throwing a few punches. "Is James on fire?"

"HOW?!"