The Interdimensional Goblet of Fire

A pillar of flames burst to life, whirling in heatless blue. It only lasted a few moments before fading away, revealing…

A tall, thin young man wearing what appeared to be a purple suit with black lining. Intense green eyes peered out from beneath a tophat adorned with a red band, purple feather, and a skull and crossbones. He had a pencil mustache and was leaning on a black cane topped in a purple sphere.

The young man looked around for a moment with an amused smile on his lips. “Well, this certainly isn’t Louisiana. What do we have here?”

Before Dumbledore could present himself the young man turned to him and sketched out a low bow, sweeping his hat from to his head to reveal a messy nest of black hair and a familiar scar above one eye. “Harry Facilier, humble Assistant Shopkeeper of Dr. Facilier’s Voodoo Emporium, where we can make all your dreams come true.” The can spun around in an intricate pattern before being planted again and the newly named Harry leaned on it.

The Headmaster blinked for a moment before offering his best grandfatherly smile. “I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Welcome. Though most people arrive through the gates, rather than a pillar of fire.”

Harry returned the smile, though his was decidedly less grandfatherly and considerably wider. “Witchcraft you say. Well isn’t that interesting. As for the pillar of fire, can’t say as I know much about that. There I was, minding the store while daddy was out for an errand, then the next thing I know I’m here.”

Turning away from the Headmaster, Harry turned his gaze around the Great Hall, taking in the sight of all the students looking on in interest. “I just know there is a fascinating story behind how I got here and I would love to hear it.” Standing his cane off to the side, he pulled several roses from his sleeves and took a few steps to the nearest table, handing out the flowers to a variety of girls there. After offering them a short bow, he skipped back to the Headmaster, who appeared to be looking on in amusement.

“However, it does appear we have quite an audience. Unless we’re wanting to include them all in our discussion, perhaps we could move things to a more private venue?”

Albus nodded to the young man then turned to Professors who were looking on in a mixture of interest and annoyance. “Filius, if you and Pamona would mind finishing the Feast, then getting the students off to their dorms, Severus and I will see to our new guest. Minerva, would you mind looking in on the champions, and letting them know that I have been delayed but that they are free to retire for the evening and we will complete the Choosing in the morning?”

Once he had acknowledgement from each of the Professors, the Headmaster turned to the young man and beckoned him to follow.

The group made their way down the Great Hall, with Harry pausing occasionally to hand out flowers or business cards. Albus watched him out of the corner of his eye, taking note of the natural way Harry seemed to interact with everyone even though they were all strangers. The young man seemed to have a natural charisma and friendliness that boded well should things prove to have gone the way he was hoping they had.

Soon the small group was settling into the Headmaster’s Office, with Albus behind the desk, Severus standing off to one side, and Harry seated across from him. Leaning back in his chair, Dumbledore folded his hands in his lap and looked at the new arrival over the top of his halfmoon glasses. “So said your family name is Facilier. I can’t say I’m familiar with any family of that name on the British Isles.”

Harry offered a small smile. “British Isles? Is that where we are? Quite the trip to get me all the way here. Home is Louisiana and Facilier is the name I’m known by. Daddy adopted me when I was just a tike and I’ve been there for as long as I can remember.”

The Headmaster nodded. “Do you know anything about your adoption? It’s just that you remind me of a dear child that we thought lost many years ago. With your mother’s eyes and your father’s hair, you could be him. Harry Potter.” Off to the side, Severus scowled but held his silence.

Harry looked down at the crystal sphere atop his cane, where it rested between his legs. “That is quite the story you tell.” Glancing up past the brim of his tophat, though green eyes seemed to flash for a moment though that could have just been a trick of the light. “Turns out daddy told me about how he’d found me in a basket with a letter. A letter with the name Harry Potter.”

“Oh Harry my boy, it’s so good to see you after all these years.” Albus made to stand, only to pause as Harry held up a hand.

“While our stories may coincide, that doesn’t make them true. We’ve just met and while it seems we may share a connection, that was years ago. I don’t know you and you don’t know me. So let’s check some things first, shall we?” Harry reached into his suit and pulled out a deck of cards.

Albus caught Severus scowling out of the corner of his eyes, but at least the Potions Master had the self control not to comment at the moment. Normally something like that apparent disrespect would have set the man off. Turning back to Harry, he noticed the young man shufflingt what appeared to be Tarot Cards. “It is rare that I meet a practice of cartomancy.”

Cards flashed through Harry’s hands and danced through the air. Spinning several of the cards in his hand, he shuffled the deck one more time before presenting it to the Headmaster with a smile. After Albus cut the deck, the deck was set on the table. “The cards will tell. The past, the present, and the future as well.”

After dealing three cards onto the table, Harry turned over the first one. “The past, talking of loss and travel. I can see that I was displaced and found, so that seems to support your theory.” Another card flipped. “The present, speaking of challenge, or competition. Seems like there is more to my being here than just reconnecting. Something to do with that pillar of fire that brought me here.” He leaned over slightly, as if listening to something before nodding. “Perhaps linked to the Goblet in the Great Hall?”

Turning over the final card, he frowned. “The future is connected to the past, a circle completed. Well isn’t that interesting.”

Leaning back, he lifted the brim of his hat with his cane, exposing the scar. “Well Albus, you don’t mind if I call you that, do you Albus? Seems like there might be something to the story you’re selling. Let’s talk some more and learn from each other, shall we?” Turning to the other man in the room, he gave another smile. “Also, what’s up with dark and broody? Reminds me of some of daddy’s friends from the other side.”

Albus chuckled softly before nodding his head towards Severus. “This is Professor Severus Snape, Potions Master and a man with my complete trust.”

Harry offered the man a nod. “Daddy’s taught me a bit about potions, but I imagine things are done differently here. Later we can talk shop, I hope. Meeting another professional is always a good time.”

Severus looked startled at the praise, especially coming from the son of his rival. Though Harry didn’t look much like James Potter. While his hair had appeared to be the same, with it kept out of sight beneath the tophat it was a non-issue. Potter would also never be caught dead with that mustache, though Lupin might have sported something alike. It was the eyes though, those green eyes that reminded him so much of Lily. He decided to give the young man a chance. Returning the nod, he said, “Indeed” and left it at that.

Harry returned his grin to the Headmaster. “So, let's see if we can figure out how I got from one side of the world to the other, shall we?”

***

Harry sat in the foyer of the suite assigned to him as thought about his circumstances. Not only had he been summoned across space, but time as well. Additionally, he’d been locked in to participate in some kind of Tournament with his magic at stake. He’d never liked being at the sharp end of the stick. His preferred method was much more the man in the shadows, like daddy taught him.

Thinking of his adoptive father, Harry reached into his suit and pulled out a small voodoo mask. Pricking his finger on a protruding fang, he allowed the mask to taste his blood to empower the artifact. The mask woke up and looked at him before it frowned and went quiet.

Blinking, Harry looked down at the mask before frowning. Looked like the connection couldn’t be made across both time and space. That made sense, once he took a moment to think about it. While frustrating and disappointing, it wouldn’t change things. Returning the mask to his suit pocket, he turned to the wall instead. His shadow seemed to look back at him before doffing its hat and bowing. He laughed and returned the gesture.

Other figures emerged from the shadows, flickering on the wall. None of them he recognized but that wasn’t an issue. He’d dealt with a wide variety of friends on the other side. They rotated sometimes or new ones found him interesting or lost interest. They all had some interest in the waking world though, otherwise they wouldn’t be reading out to people like himself and daddy.

Standing, he opened his arms wide. “Friends! We have a unique opportunity here! It would seem that this world is filled with some special souls. Now I know what you’re thinking, one soul is just as good as any other. However, these souls have a special flavour. These ones have magic!”

The shadows looked at each other before turning grins on Harry. He returned the grin.

“What we have here is the chance to break into a new market. These wizards and witches had no idea who they’ve brought into their home.” He flicked his wrist and one of the tarot cards emerged, the lovers. Flipping the card around, it turned into an upside down Magician.

“The way I see it I’ve got a few options. I could learn their ways and wow and amaze. Or I could keep to the shadows, learn what I can about them and about this world. Make the deals and steals until we have them eating out the palm of our hands.” Grinning at the shadows, he continued. “What I need from you is to find out their secrets. What are these little school kids hiding from their teachers, from each other. From the world.”

The card in his hand flipped again, this time revealing Death. “It’s time for a change in here. Time for me to step out of the daddy’s shadow and into my own darkness.”

One last time the card flipped, revealing the world. “Time to take my place firmly in the shadows.”

***

Harry sat at the Hufflepuff table in the Great Hall, enjoying lunch. All around him were students of the house, eagerly drinking up the stories of his home in the States and his time spent dodging gators and snakes in the bayou. In front of him on the table was a mixture of foods that he had convinced the house elves to prepare, even taught a few of them the recipes of home, especially gumbo. While the fried english food was tasty enough, he needed something a little more hearty to really get going. For all his skinny physique, he packed away a ton of food, given his propensity for hurtling around the city.

Just as he was wrapping up a story he noticed one of the shadows pointing behind him. Turning his head slightly, he caught sight of a group of students, Slitherins given the green trim on their robes, aligning behind him, a blond at the center of the group.

Spinning in his chair, he placed his cane between his legs and leaned on the head, offering the newcomers a wide smile. “If it isn’t my dear friends from the House of Ambition. How can this little shopkeep help you? I don’t have quite the inventory that I usually have on hand, but perhaps I can interest you in a few items.” Reaching into his suit, he pulled out a variety of knick knacks and pamphlets.

The central blond frowned briefly before schooling his features into an aristocratic neutrality. “Is it true then, that you’re Harry Potter?”

Harry smiled, reaching up with one hand to remove his tophat and sketch a seated bow. He made sure to reveal the scar above his eye before replacing the hat tilted back to keep the scar in sight. “Harry Potter Facilier to be exact. Formally adopted by my father in the colonies. And who might you be?”

The blond didn’t quite sneer but it was a close thing. Harry took mental note of the expression. It was actually impressive and probably took a lot of practice in the mirror.

“Draco Malfoy. You’ll soon find that some wizarding families are more important than others. I can help you navigate our world, since you didn’t get the chance to grow up in it.” The young Malfoy extended his hand.

“Can you now? That’s quite the generous offer.” Reaching out, he took the offered handshake, making note of how many at the Hufflepuff table seemed to frown at the action. Even some of the students in the blond’s contingent didn’t seem as eager as others. Harry’s smile turned into a wide grin. “The quest then begs, what’s in it for you? Nothing is free.”

Blond and aristocratic seemed to draw himself, standing as tall as he could. Being as he appeared to be in his early teens, that wasn’t considerable. “The Potter name still holds weight in the right circles. That weight can be leveraged to help pass certain legislation for the betterment of the right people.”

Harry whistled and leaned back, eyes wide. “Well my my my, that certainly does seem like quite the deal, all for a little introduction. Why don’t we do this, Draco. Show me that knowing you is worthwhile. I’ve already got friends who can introduce me to people.” He made a show of waving his hand around the Hufflepuff table and smiling at everyone gathered. They were quick to smile back.

The scowl returned to Draco’s face. “I don’t know what you see if a bunch of Puffs, but you’d better think about what’s best for you, Potter. You’re new and so you don’t know how to navigate things so let me give you a bit of advice, just to prove myself. Puffs aren’t worth the time.”

“Did you hear that, Cedric? Apparently the Hogwarts Champion isn’t worth my time!”

Draco went pale for a moment before turning and scurrying away. A couple of the other Slitherin students delayed long enough to give Harry a slight nod, including the dark skinned gentleman and a pair of ladies. Harry made a mental note to have his friends check into those three before turning back to the students of Hufflepuff. “Well now, where were we? Oh yes, there was this one time when…”

***

“What do you mean there are dragons in the forest?”

Harry paced around the sitting room of his suite, glancing between the shadows. The latest news from his friends on the other side was a lot more disturbing than the tidbits they’d been sharing on the various students running around Hogwarts and the surroundings. Even the news that other races existed, besides the house elves (and weren’t they clever little things), didn’t matter as much as the dragons.

Four dragons. Newly brought to the Forbidden Forest. Just enough for each champion to have one.

What would they have to do with the dragons? Fight them? Tame them? Just what kind of Tournament had he been roped into? None of the magic that they’d been showing him in the classes could compare to something like a dragon! Certainly none of his voodoo would affect a dragon either.

Taking off his hat, he ran a hand through his unruly hair before replacing the hat. He really should have taken the time to read through that handbook they’d given him on the Tournament rather than just skimming it. Wasn’t there a history of the tournament somewhere? Was it time to venture into the Library?

Harry grimaced. Daddy had always been a more hands on type of person and he’d followed along willingly. Getting one's hands dirty was much more fun than learning about it. Especially when he got to interact with all the fascinating people out there. There had been one library back home and he didn’t think he’d ever set foot in it.

Shaking his head, he banished that thought. It wasn’t important now. He had to deal with dragons. Or did he? The dragons had just arrived. The other champions wouldn’t know about them yet. The tasks were supposed to be big secrets, after all. Perhaps he could leverage the information.

Tapping the brim of his hat with the sphere atop his cane, he smiled. There were always ways to make a deal. One just needed to know who and how. Time to talk to some of the other champions.

***

“My friends, are we all ready to discover the mystery of the first task?” Harry smiled widely at the champions assembled in the tent. Fleur rolled her eyes at him, as she had with most of the things he said around her. No warming up the frog, it would appear. C'est la vie.

Cedric offered a returned smile, though his was a bit sickly. The young man still seemed nervous about facing the dragons, even with all the warning he had graciously given them by offering the information to them, at a steep discount too! Still, they were nice enough to share their knowledge of dragons and direct him to some of the books he could read. Fortunately, Harry had been able to find some students willing to do the research for him and give him a summary.

Victor merely grunted, as was his response to most things. The Durmstrang champion had been the most resistant to making any deals. Turned out that the surly Quiddich Champion had already been informed by his Headmaster about the Task, even before the dragons had arrived.

Thinking back on what his shadows had told him, Harry realized that each of the champions had sources of their own for the information. The two foreign Headmasters had been willing to share the information, though Madame Maxine had waited too long, letting Harry get there first. Which, come to think of it, might explain some of the chill from Fleur.

The Hogwarts Champion had a more direct line of things. His father was part of the ministry, working for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. He probably knew about the dragons as soon as the request came through to acquire them.

Mentally tossing those notes into the back of his mind, Harry focused on the task as it was being explained by Ludo Bagman. Now there was a piece of work. Excessive Gambling Debts with the Goblins. Fascinating creatures. Ludo apparently wanted to use the Tournament to make some money to pay off some of those debts. Given the demonstrated intelligence of the man, Harry didn’t think it likely. The question would be how to properly leverage that information.

Wait, what was that? They just had to retrieve an egg from the dragon, not defeat it in combat? How had the shadows missed that?

Harry must have let some of his emotions show through because Fleur was smirking at him now. He’d show that frog just what it meant to mess with the Shadow Man.

Slinking into a shadowed corner of the tent after selecting his dragon, Harry thought on the task. Tricking a dragon would be so much easier than fighting one. The real trick would be keeping the audience entertained. His was not the most powerful of magic, but what he did have, especially when augmented by the magic he was learning in Hogwarts, should be sufficient.

Soon enough it was his turn to face his dragon.

Stepping from the tent into the arena, Harry cast his gaze about, taking note of the rocky terrain. Now that wouldn’t do. While he wasn’t opposed to sneaking about, this was about making a show for the fine folks.

Looking across at the dragon chained up on the other side of the arena, he spotted the nest with the golden egg nestled amongst the real ones. A few whispers had some of his friends running around the edges of the arena, then he turned to face the Judge’s Table.

Doffing his tophat, he offered them an elaborate bow before drawing his wand and turning to the audience. A quick spell had his voice booming through the air.

“My friends, witches and wizards! I’m sure you’ve all seen some masterful magic from my fine fellow champions. Their bravery and skill are to be commended. I only wish I had been able to watch myself. Since I wasn’t able to see what they had done, I figure it’s only fair I do my best to put on a show!”

A flick of his wrists had fireworks, compliments of the Weasley Twins, flashing through the sky to burst over the arena. Several even made their way towards the dragon, who crouched lower over her nest and roared at him.

Waving his wand at the fireworks, he took hold of their magic and shaped it into a dragon that soared through the skies. He reveled in the shocked gasps from the audience and their cheers and applause. His motions grew more elaborate as he directed the dragon on a slow charge towards the very real and very angry dragon across the arena.

The fireworks dragon shot off more sparks that swirled and exploded in all directions as it came in low over the ground. Suddenly a gout of flames engulfed the illusory construct, snuffing it from existence. However, by that time, more of the other fireworks had been transformed into a number of different flying nuisances that buzzed and bombed the dragon.

Harry backed away from the main area of the arena and ducked behind a rock, picking up the egg which had been hidden there by one of his shadowy friends. As the last of the fireworks met a fiery death, he stepped back into view, conjuring a bit of light around the egg to give it a bright sheen. Holding it aloft, he shouted, “Success!”

With another hat doffing bow, he turned and headed into the tent, satisfied with his performance.

He was less than satisfied to learn of his low scores for bringing in outside equipment with the fireworks.

***

Harry quickly closed the egg. “Huh. Reminds me of some of the folks back home.”

Glaring at the egg, he leaned back in his chair. There had to be more to the screeching that he was missing. He had hoped to easily solve the riddle so he could trade that information to the other champions. Perhaps he would go the other way around this time. Find something that he could trade to the others for their information on the next Task. It shouldn’t be too hard to find out what they needed.

Putting the egg aside, he drew his cards, shuffling them up. Even alone he kept with the flair in his movements, making sure to keep in practice. The cards danced through his fingers and through the air. Dealing them out, he focused on each of the champions in turn, doing a reading one at a time. While this wouldn’t be as good as if he’d had them cut the decks themselves, it still gave him a basic understanding and somewhere to go from.

Deciding to do one last reading, he did one for himself. He frowned at the three cards in front of him before a House Elf popped in, letting him know that one of the Professors was looking for him. Sweeping the cards back into his suit, he made to follow the elf.

***

“A dance you say? Well now, isn’t that a surprise. Didn’t think people did that round these parts. I look forward to it.”

***

“So Victor and Cedric had both been swimming in the lake and Fleur has been practicing some underwater charms as well. My my my that is interesting. So our next task will have to do with the lake.” Harry shivered. Scotland was far colder than back home. Going into the bayou was a comfortable activity, if one ignored the wildlife. The Black Lake was far from it. Just thinking about it gave him the chills.

None of the other champions had given in to his charms and let slip the information about the next task. Fortunately he’d been able to gather the information regardless, as their friends were more apt to share, according to the cards.

What he needed now was a plan to deal with the water. He wasn’t the best of swimmers, despite living in an area that would have made for pleasant swimming. He preferred the trappings of the city.

Perhaps some inspiration from the bayou would help. Time for a little more research on transfiguration.

***

“I must say, my dear. You look utterly delectable.” Harry reached out and took Tracey Davies’s hand, pressing a kiss to the back of it. He’d altered his normal outfit to be a little more formal, based on what he remembered of the fat cats back home. He’d also swapped the trim to match the colors of her dress.

Offering his elbow, he escorted her to the dance, the wide smile on his face much more natural than usual.

***

Harry had to admit, his swimsuit seemed a bit more excessive than the others. He’d gone with the type he’d seen the most back home, a full one piece outfit that kept most of him covered. There were also generous warming charms being applied to his clothing. However, he didn’t fill them out nearly as well as the other three. Victor and Cedric were both athletes, while Fleur was breathtaking… for a frenchie. He banished that last thought to the shadows of his mind and refused to think about them.

What he did have to think about was that something important had been taken from him, but he wasn’t sure what. None of his few possessions had been taken. There had been shadows guarding everything he owned. Well, he would find out once he got to the bottom of the lake and found it. Hopefully before the others but at this point, with his score from the first task having been so tragic, he wasn’t as worried about how the judges would rate his performance. After all, it wasn’t like he’d entered the tournament of his own volition.

Looking between the still lake and the poor people in the bleachers, he knew he had to rescue them from boredom once again.

After Ludo’s introduction and the cannon firing, the other three champions dove into the waters. Harry ignored them all, except for a quick glance at Fleur.

Turning to the audience, he gave them all a quick wave before beginning an even more elaborate motion with his wand. The ground near the docks shivered for a moment, sending ripples along the waters of the shore. Slowly, the dirt seemed to heave before a shape rose up.

Stone jaws snapped at the air, short stumpy legs pulled the creature from the earth, and a long tail slapped the ground. Eyes of glowing green glared from the craggy head as the earthen gator pushed its way free of the soil, then slid into the water and over to the docks. Harry was glad that it floated as he hadn’t been sure his transfiguration would work like that.

Once the gator was at the side of the dock beneath him, he hopped on, a quick sticking charm on his feet keeping him in place. Stone reins rose up from the construct, allowing Harry to guide the beast. A quick bubblehead charm (thanks to the wonderful people of Ravenclaw for teaching him and Hufflepuff for helping him practice) and they dove in.

The water itself was much darker than Harry expected, but he was perfectly comfortable in the shadows of the lake. The most important thing to him was the warming charm on his clothing keeping him from freezing to death.

Nothing in the lake threatened the summoned gator and it swam through the waters with all the grace of the original. All too soon he was on the bottom of the lake and they slowed to investigate. He wasn’t sure where he was going, having not taken the time to explore the lake prior to the Task. The duo had some idea of where to go though, as the shadows were unaffected by the waters and shot ahead to scout for him.

Soon they reported a village filled with merfolk. Yet another magical race. This place was just filled with them.

Nestled in the center of the stone village was a clearing that held four people. Harry scowled as he saw his date from the ball tied to stone along with the others. That was what they thought he would miss most? While they’d shared a number of conversations, their relationship, if it could be called that, was strictly casual.

Heading towards the clearing, Harry noticed some of the merfolk keeping their distance. Apparently they didn’t want to tangle with the gator and he didn’t blame them. By the time he arrived at the stone holding Tracey, there was an observing group of merfolk hovering out of reach. He waved to them before having the gator cut the rope holding Tracey to the rock, then stuck her to the gator behind him.

Looking at the other three hostages, he pondered. What would happen should he bring all four up with him? Would that disqualify the others? Before he could think more on that a half shark half man darted past, biting through the rope holding one of the people then dragging her away. Fitting for the Quiddich player really. The man was most aggressive.

A moment later and Cedric appeared, appearing to hesitate a moment upon catching sight of the gator, but then swimming in to free one of the others. Harry offered the man a thumbs up. Cedric returned the gesture before heading off.

Since two of the others had already rescued their hostage, Harry decided to give it a moment for the frenchie to arrive. With the speed of the gator, he could still get back before Victor if he cared. Not that he cared.

After a few minutes with no sign of the Beauxbaton’s champion, Harry shrugged and directed the gator back towards the surface. However, along the way he saw Fleur tangled with some critters that didn’t seem too friendly. For a moment he thought about just passing by, but he couldn’t resist the opportunity to get the girl in his debt.

The gator made short work of the critters, swallowing whole many of them before the rest scattered. Gathering up the girl alongside Tracey, he turned back to the village, moving to gather the last person there, who looked like a miniature version of the frog. Some of the merfolk moved to stop him, tridents at the ready, but the gator managed to slap a few around with its tail before the others moved back out of range.

Four people made for slower going, even for the conjured gator, but he wasn’t worried about the time. That first task had soured him to his scores and instead he just looked to make the audience love him. Seeing him rescue three women would go along nicely towards that goal.

***

“He’s a what?”

Harry looked at the shadows and began pacing his room. Turned out one of the Professors wasn’t who he seemed. Fortunately it wasn’t one of the ones he was close to, though not for lack of trying on the man’s part. It has always seemed like a scam to him, and he should know. At least it all made sense though, the way the man acted, how paranoid he was, even for a former officer having been involved in a war. That war had been almost a decade and a half ago and there was no reason for the man to have been as constantly vigilant as he seemed.

What to do about the man was the main question. Should he be confronted? Even if the man was only pretending to be Alastor, whoever he happened to be also happened to be fairly powerful, since he had to have overpowered the original in order to take his place. He was also skilled enough to fool the Headmaster and everyone else. Direct confrontations just weren’t Harry’s style either.

Suddenly Harry paused in his pacing. Why would he have to confront the man? So far nothing the fake Professor had done had been detrimental to him. In fact, the man had gone out of his way to offer advice and tips. Whatever agenda he had, it wasn’t immediately malevolent. Maybe in the long term. After all, why would anyone infiltrate a school without some sort of nefarious intention.

Watch and learn were the words that Harry lived by. Hopefully he would be able to learn what the man wanted and turn it to his advantage. He could always be outed if things grew too dangerous.

***

“Ronald, while I am friendly with your elder brothers due to utilizing their products and helping to setup their shopping system, that does not automatically make me your friend. With that said, would you kinda stop telling people that we are best friends.”

The young redhead shook his head. “Come on mate, we’re best friends. I mean, you’re Harry Potter!”

Harry sigh and leaned heavily on his cane. “My name, is Harry Potter Facilier. I have told you this many times. My connection to my family is very important. Both of my families. That you keep insisting on only referring to one part, after repeated warnings, just goes to show that you don’t take my feelings or desires into consideration. That means that we are not best friends, nor even general friends.”

Behind the redhead Harry’s shadow made a motion as if strangling the young man. Harry gave a minute shake of his head, though he was tempted. So tempted.

“Don’t be that way, mate! That’s no way to treat your best mate.”

Harry reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose. Fortunately, he was rescues by the Weasley Twins. “We’ll handle this one, Harry.” They each took an arm and elbow, practically lifting their younger brother off the ground, then guided him from the Great Hall, despite his protests that he wasn’t done eating.

Turning back to the group of Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and single Gryffindor, Harry offered them all a wide smile. “Now that that’s out of the way, what say we get back to our discussion of the types of magic found around the world. I’m particularly interested in hearing about the evolution of magic in the new world!”

***

“You’ve ignored me for the last time, Potter.”

Harry turned around in the hallway outside of the Potions Lab. Draco stood there, backed up as always by his two minions. However, the rest of the usual entourage was absent. Barely suppressing a smile at seeing plans come to fruition, he instead offered the blond a slight frown. “For the last time, it’s Facilier. Potter-Facilier if you must insist. And it is your continued slight against my daddy that keeps me from dealing with you.” Harry paused before his frown flipped into a grin. “You’re rather like a certain redheaded Griffyndor in that way.”

The Malfoy scion scowled. “How dare you compare me to a Weasley!” Behind him the two bookends cracked their knuckles.

Harry planted his cane with a loud thud that seemed to echo down the hallway. A hallway empty of students. “Look here, little man. I’ve tried to be patient. I’ve tried to be friendly. But you’ve exhausted my patience. So I’m gonna give you one chance to back away. Your little boys don’t scare me and neither do you.”

Draco’s scowl deepened. “Was that a threat?”

Behind Harry the shadows deepened and seemed to flicker from unseen torchlight. Tilting his head down, he looked at Draco from just below the brim of his tophat, emerald eyes aglow. “No, little Draco. This is a threat. If you fail to show my daddy the proper respect he deserves by forgetting who I am, I will feed your souls to the shadows.”

The two thugs looked at each other then at Draco and backed away slightly. Draco was made of slightly sterner stuff and managed to stammer out, “What my father hears about this…”

“Yes. Scurry on back to daddy. We’ll see who wins out in the end on that one. Go on now.”

Harry watched the trio scramble away. A three on one fight would not have been good. Fortunately his shadowy friends had been watching for any help, not to mention ready to jump in if needed. Not to mention his efforts in negotiating with the other Slitherin students. Most of them weren’t happy with the way Draco tried to lord it over them. Others had things they wanted to get a hold of, things that Harry was able to source through the Twins, without letting them know who the ultimate client was, of course. Those negotiations had left Draco with no support in the dorm, especially among the students in his year or above.

Tilting his head back, he enjoyed the way the shadows seemed to flex and laugh before they too retreated and Harry was able to continue on his way.

***

The final Task dawned and Harry felt conflicted. On the one hand he wanted to perform for the crowd. Unfortunately that wasn’t likely, as with the second Task, this one would feature the audience staring at the outside without being able to see the champions. How was he supposed to show off for people who couldn’t even see him?

On the other hand, he was looking forward to just being done. The constant threat of losing his magic was like some of the stories he had heard from daddy dealing with their friends on the other side and how deals could go wrong. Fortunately none had thus far.

While his own dealings with the shadowy world had been profitable thus far, especially here among the witches and wizards who didn’t take what he was offering seriously, especially the Slitherins, there was always the chance of a deal going south due to forces out of his control. Or from just making the wrong deal and incurring a debt that he couldn’t repay.

Fortunately, he’d bought a lot of credit with his friends on the other side when he had fed him part of his soul.

Reaching up, he briefly touched the scar that rested beneath the brim of his tophat. Finding out that he’d had part of a soul lodged in the scar, sucking up all the darkness in his life had been a surprise. Daddy had been able to negotiate for their friends on the other side to suck out that portion of a soul without taking anything extra. They had seemed delighted by what they found.

Refocusing on the task at hand, he waited for everyone to be given the spiel by Ludo (who even now owed Harry and the goblins a small fortune). Once the explanation was done, he turned back to the audience. Behind him the other champions rolled their eyes, though at least Fleur seemed to have thawed since he had rescued her sister.

“My friends, I come before you one final time. With my fellow champions, “ He included them with a wave of his arm, “we go forth to challenge the Maze. While you may not be able to see us during the event, know that we always have you in our hearts and minds.”

With another flourishing bow, he returned to the group and when it was his turn, proceeded into the maze.

***

Navigating the maze had been a breeze. Between the help he was seemingly getting from outside, and he had his suspicions on where that was coming from, especially considering what he had found out about Barty Jr., and the guidance he was getting from his friends on the other side, he had managed to avoid any of the more dangerous denizens of the maze. A single encounter with a sphinx of all things had been a fun little puzzle, yet trivial.

All too soon he arrived at the center of the maze, the cup in sight. While he didn’t care about the tournament, he wasn’t one to turn down easy money.

***

Waking up groggily and finding himself tied up, told Harry he should have turned down the easy money. The cup had been a portkey and when he arrived disoriented someone had stunned him.

Now that he was awake, he looked around and found himself in a graveyard. That would prove useful later on, as graveyards were closer to the other side. What caught his attention though was the fat man attending a cauldron. Strangers in a graveyard with a bubbling cauldron just spoke of the kind of witches that he wanted nothing to do with. While Mama Odie may have been mostly benign in her voodoo, she was crazy powerful.

Concentrating a little, he found his bonds already being loosened by his shadow self. He could also tell that the fat man wasn’t nearly as versed in whatever he was working with as he presented himself. The man was skittish to an extreme. It was the bundle at his feet that drew Harry’s attention. There was a familiar feeling to it.

Suddenly his eyes widened. He recognized that soul, but how could it be? There was only one way to find out.

Bursting from his bonds, he called his cane back to his hand then landed a wallop on the fat man. Taking the man’s wand, he stunned him before turning back to the bundle. Lifting one cover, he quickly replaced the wrapping. It reminded him of Grandmum. A quick stunner took care of it and he made his way over to the cauldron, kicking it over and spilling whatever concoction had been brewing.

Raising one hand, he brought a voodoo mask into existence over his face, the skull glowing in the flames and his emerald eyes shining brighter through the eye holes. A pinch of powder in the fire had the right type of smoke billowing out.

“My friends, it seems we have an opportunity on our hands. Long ago you sucked a stray piece of soul out of my scar. I bring to you the other part of the soul, wrapped and packaged for you.”

The shadows lengthened and lights seemed to wrap around nearby gravestones. Several wooden masks shimmered into existence around Harry and the bundle. The chanting grew as the largest of the masks hovered closer to the bundle before opening its jaw wide.

Harry watched as something was sucked from the bundle, which then collapsed into nothing, even the blanket turning to ash.

A moment later he gave the shadows a startled link. “What do you mean there are more parts of that soul? Who even parts out their soul once, let alone multiple times?”