Chapter 8
Luna was sitting in the hall watching all the idiots place their names in the goblet with Colin who was trying to get a grip on the Potter as a family rather than a group of friends. He had taken Hermione's words to heart and was trying to spend as much time as he could with who he wanted to be his future family. He learned from Luna that every Potter had earned their rune by earning Harry's trust, earning a rune basically cemented your place within the family, it meant Harry liked you enough to not want you to die. The Runes were made from Harry's blood and was an extremely dangerous tool in the wrong hands so he could understand why he was rather skeptical of people. Colin planned to earn his place in the family no matter how long it took.
Coiln had taken a liking to Luna and spent most of his time around her, although her warnings of slight things that happened a minute later had taken some getting used to. "Don't tell me you're thinking about it." Her dreamy voice brought him back to reality as he saw Cedric in front of them with a small slip of paper in hand with his name scrawled across it.
Cedric shrugged, "It's not like I can get seriously hurt."
Luna rolled her eyes, "Yeah, you're cheating. You know how Harry feels about cheating, and he won't let you take it off."
"Don't worry I'll ask Harry weaken it for the tasks."
"You have to ask Harry to take them off?" Colin asked. They were rings, bracelets, necklaces and arm bands, he figured they came off all the time.
Cedirc nodded to the younger boy, "yeah Harry was in his situation because his parents died, so he's a little paranoid."
"Not to mention that if some rando got a Potter blood rune it could cause all kinds of problems," Luna added. "We ask Harry to take them off and give them to him until we need or want them back."
Almost as if summoned Harry appeared leaning on the doorway arms crossed as he watched Cedirc, Luna, and Colin talk amongst themselves. Wednesday appeared beside him never, straying far, leaning against his shoulder watching the gits who happily placed themselves in an expiry cavalry. He watched the twins run in with aging potions that he knew Hermione helped them with so it wouldn't work. Although he was the head of the family, he didn't stop anyone from doing something they really wanted so he didn't stop Cedric from placing his name in the goblet. Hermione on the other hand had no qualms about stopping the twins. He watched and laughed, and Hermione giggled like a maniac as the twins tackled her for their aging mishap. He loved his dysfunctional family.
Wednesday ran her hands up Harry's sleeves and along the three deep slashes on his forearm, "can you tell me?" She asked.
He turned to her; he didn't need to ask what she meant. He drew her hand down, without breaking eye contact, to the one closest to his wrist, "Hermione, Neville, and Luna. My second year I heard Dumbledore speaking with Mrs. Weasley after my adventure into the chamber of secrets, that's when I found out I couldn't trust Ron or Ginny. I had learned that Hermione and Neville were a lot like me. We found small eleven-year-old Luna trying to use dark magic on her bullies. That summer I bought a book on runes and started them. I sent the three after many failed attempts." He drew her hand up to the next one, "Cedric, Fred, and George the next year. They had proven trustworthy and slightly crazed Cedric had muttered murder plans for the headmaster and the twins spoke of their plans on torturing Ron for his lack of empathy after I fell off my broom. Later that year I met Sirius in the shrieking shack and Pansy and Draco were there. Hermione knocked out Ron who was shouting at them for no reason and Draco explained that Sirius was his uncle and he and Pansy were trying to help him. We came to and understanding after I got the story straight and confounded Ron to not remember the two of them in the shack. I gave them a rune the last day of school."
Wednesday admired his judge of character it seemed everyone is his family was trustworthy and equally as crazy and all that from small snippets of out of context mumbles. She gave him a firm kiss before looking back at the cup.
~~~
A week later they were all sitting in the great hall awaiting the champions draw. "Sit down please. And now the moment you've all been waiting for, the champions selection!" Dumbledore announced. Harry was buzzing with excitement the thought of legally watching someone in pain or die was wonderful.
Dumbledore approaches the blue flamed goblet, and it glows red. A name comes out, everyone looks on anxiously. "The Durmstrang champion is ... Viktor Krum!" Harry clapped politely. The Durmstrang crowd cheered loudly. Another name comes out, "The champion from Beauxbatons... Fleur Delacour." The Beauxbatons girls cheer as Fleur walks up. The last name comes out. "The Hogwarts champion... Cedric Diggory." Hogwarts pupils cheer as Cedric walks up. All three walked into the back room.
Harry cast a glance at his brother in arms and prayed to the forgotten gods. He had on the rune but even still you can't be too careful. Wednesday took his hand and ran her thumb over his scared knuckles. Harry had no qualms about watching others die but his family was sacred to him as he had very little growing up and what he had now were all broken parts, thrown, glued and taped together. "Excellent! we now have our three champions! But in the end only one will go down in history. Only one will hoist this chalice of champions, this vessel of victory the tri-wizard cup!" Everyone started to cheer, pulling Harry from his prayers. The goblet glows red once more mumbling ensues and another name flies out. Dumbledore cautiously pulls it from the air and reads... "Harry Potter."
The room fell silent the air was thick with fury and outage. Harry could feel it burn his skin. He whirled around to his girlfriend eyes wide breath quickening, crack! "I didn't do it," he defended in a quick hysterical whisper as The Hufflepuff's glared at him for stealing Cedric's spotlight. They had been so overlooked and this was their chance at glory, once again it was snatched away by a Gryffindor, snap! "I was with you the whole time," he told Wednesday and Hermione who was on either side of him.
"I know Mon Cher someone must have done it for you. Or rather against you," she rushed back. Split! Hermione's eye twitched.
"Who would want to do that," Hermione growled bang!
"Someone who wants him dead," Pugsley answered. Creak!
"Harry Potter!" Dumbledore screamed. Harry stood but stayed planted in his spot, "Harry through that door ple-"
"No," he snapped feeling the glares turn into wide eyes. "I didn't enter I've been with Hermione and Wednesday for days; I never placed my name in there, I don't wanna do this and you can't make me," he slid back a bit. He cracked his neck whirling his head around much like Dumbledore remembered of Tom Riddle, it worried the old man.
The man recovered quickly, "We'll speak of this in the back-"
"No, I don't wanna do this. I am a minor, and I am constantly in some sort of death-defying ballocks," The student body gasped at Harry Potter, the Gryffindor prince's vulgar wording. "That I never wanna be in because you don't hire competent teachers. Everything I've done should be the defense teachers' job, but they're constantly the ones trying to kill me. I have played along silently for years. Not this time, I will not compete. Give me one good reason why it should."
The students of Hogwarts were in shock, they could see the fear and agony on Harry's face he didn't want this, he was afraid, and Dumbledore was basically forcing him to compete. "It's a magically binding artifact, you will lose your magic otherwise!" the old man finally snapped.
Shatter! Harry's eyes widened an insane gleamed glistened across them. His head twitched to the side twice and a smiled filled with blood lust lit up his features. He let out a painful harsh laugh of disbelief, "Excuse me?"
Wednesday smiled as she recognized that laughed, it was the shattering of his porcelain mask. It had happened to many people who entered her own family. Crash! "This is Bullshit!" Hermione yelled her own mask falling as she stood up her eyes basically pulsing with magic, "You're sending who might as well be my brother to his death. He's less experienced!" No one had ever seen this of the Gryffindor Princess.
Colin stood up, "someone is trying to kill him that much is obvious, his three years behind the other champions he could die! You have to do something about it, you're supposed to protect us! Harry has been in life threatening situations yearly and you never help him!"
"Make him an adult, emancipate him if he has to compete!" Pansy shocked everyone as she stood up. "This is for emancipated adults it seems only fair!" She glared fiercely.
He looked to Pansy then back to the headmaster, "yes emancipate me if I have to compete."
"Harry that really isn't-"
"What necessary, why? Because of your blood wards?" Harry asked calmly. Dumbledor's eyes widened, "yes I know about them and new flash they help me from outside threats, but the inside abuse is very real."
"Now that is just over dramatic," Albus suggest.
"Ov- over dramitic-" his voice trailed off as he though back to his childhood, "I was locked in a cupboard for ten years!" there was a ripple of murmurs. "If I have to compete to save my magic, I'm getting my freedom out of it."
"We can discuss this late-"
"I don't think so," Wednesday growled finally standing up. "You won't hide him away anymore and continue your web of lies," she smirked. "Show everyone right here right now make him the promise. Take the consequences for your actions you drew the age line."
Fred and George Jumped to her defense, "yeah say it with witnesses."
"So, we can support Harry."
"If you mess up again."
"What's it gonna be?" Pugsley cackled.
The old man was backed into a corner his school had turned on him, "Albus," Minerva McGonagall growled, snapping back to the land of the living. After hearing that her cub was abused, she had frozen, "Do. It." Her voice was so deadly it could have made the Addams' shiver.
He sighed being left with no choice and frankly afraid of Minerva, "Very well Mr. Potter will become a legal adult now please follow the other champions."
But Harry still didn't move, "swear on your magic."
Loud gasps ripped through the crowd, "Harry-"
"No If I am at risk of losing my magic you will be too."
He had no choice, "I swear on my magic," he gritted out, "With lady Hecate as our witness."
Harry gave Wednesday a kiss on the head, stepping on broken the remains of his mask crushing it into finer pieces that would never be found, he snatched the paper with his name on it away from Dumbledore no respect in his actions. His eyes glowed their Avada kadavara green color, magic pulsing across the hall from the two Gryffindor siblings in arms, they weren't bothering to hide their power anymore. It reached out for one another and mingled together finding comfort with each other.
The show was over, the curtains closed, the wizarding worlds golden children, the Prince and Princess of Gryffindor, Hogwarts hero's, were gone and what was left in their place were Murderers, tortures, practitioners of the dark arts and chaos magic, genius wonderful masterminds with not an ounce of sanity to their names.
If they wanted and death parade, they would give them a bloodbath, a scorched valley, and a crumbling castle.