Harry Potter, History Repeats 2
A few moments later, Harry felt himself arrive in the graveyard, the rough ground shifting beneath him. Catching his balance and slowly looking around, he took a few steps to the side, placing the Triwizard Cup out of sight behind a gravestone. He looked around slowly, hearing voices in the distance.
Wait. Why wasn't his scar hurting? Something to think about, later.
"Wormtail, the portkey came through my wards, he's here," came a high-pitched voice.
"Are you sure, Master, I don't see anything?" Pettigrew stated, looking around in confusion.
"Yes, you dolt, I'm sure..." A pause, "Yes, Nagini also says someone is here." Harry swore as he Voldemort look in his direction. Trust Voldemort to have wards already in place. He also probably cast a revealing charm of some sort. Harry could almost hear Moody yelling 'Constant Vigilance' in his head.
He held back, not wanting Voldemort to know just how skilled he was, so cast verbally. "Bombarda Maxima!" Harry quickly cast a powerful Exploding Charm at ground between them, and saw Pettigrew go flying while Voldemort tried to shield the explosion. Unfortunately, his sheer lack of size sent him staggering back a few feet even as the shield absorbed most of the blow. "Stupefy." A quick Stunning Spell caught Pettigrew in midair, even as Harry dodged Voldemort's Killing Curse. He had to keep the rat alive until Sirius could be freed, or he'd have used a different spell. "You are one ugly baby," Harry said to the figure, trying to throw him off-balance.
"You dare? I am Voldemort, and you will die." Another Killing Curse streaked towards him and Harry ducked behind a gravestone, shielding to prevent any shards of rock from hitting him.
"You'll find that I dare a lot of things." Animalis Revelio. Silently casting a revealing charm, Harry looked around quickly, even as he cast a curse at Voldemort, just to keep him distracted. "Sectumsempra!" Watching the dark cutting curse streak towards Voldemort only to be blocked with a Shield Charm, he cast a few more spells at him. "Diffindo. Bombarda. Defodio." Nagini would be coming.
Even as Voldemort cast a return volley at him, Harry moved, dodging them and shielding in turn. Killing Curses, Blood-Boiling Curses, Evisceration Curses, and more. Voldemort still had power and knowledge; he simply couldn't properly duel in that small, unwieldy body of his. Finally, Harry spotted a blue flash to his right and turned. "Sectumsempra!" he called. The dark curse streaked out and struck Nagini, slaying the serpent and causing a wailing cry as dark smoke seemed to emerge from the corpse.
Harry heard Voldemort screech in rage. "NAGINI! You dare!"
"Are you an idiot?" Harry continued to banter to distract the evil creature, again dodging Voldemort's attacks. "You think I'd let a snake get near me so it could bite me? Snakes are icky." He didn't want Voldemort to think he had another reason for targeting Nagini. He cast more spells at Voldemort, vocalizing each one. "Stupefy. Bombarda. Sectumsempra. Defodio." Harry was careful not to go into any real spell chains; he wanted to look like a talented amateur, but not someone Voldemort had to really worry about he procured a body.
"You are a talented boy, you should join me. I could make you great," Voldemort began, before tossing more spells at Harry suddenly.
The raven-haired boy snorted, "First you say to join you, then you try to kill me. Good way to recruit someone," he snarked, before sending another Exploding Charm, this one directed behind Voldemort and to the side. "Bombarda!"
Harry slowly moved to place himself in position behind a gravestone even as Voldemort laughed, "That didn't come close, getting tired, Harry?"
Not responding to the homunculus' words, he gestured with his wand, half-hidden from sight, and transfigured a shard of rock behind Voldemort into a spike. Mutio Inanimata. "Accio!" Putting a lot of power into the last spell, the spike slammed into Voldemort's head from behind, and he fell twitching onto the ground.
A few moments passed, and a black, wraith-like figure rose from the corpse, "You dare; when I return, you and your friends will suffer greatly!" After his first year, Voldemort knew not to try to attack Harry in this form, so Harry watched as it fled.
It's too bad I couldn't bring him back to Hogwarts, Harry thought. Even as a disgusting snake-homunculus, I couldn't take the chance; he's too dangerous. Not to mention that I know Dumbledore might try something.
Harry moved over towards where Pettigrew fell and checked on him. Nodding, he stunned him again, making sure to put a lot of power into the spell. Then, he gestured with his wand, transfiguring Pettigrew into a small hamster, adding the Body-Bind Curse as well. The rat wasn't going to get away this time, unlike in his Third Year. He wrapped him in his invisibility cloak, and slipped the bundle into his pocket. He then went to where Nagini's body was and transfigured it into a bone and vanished the blood, pocketing the bone as well.
Time to return, Harry thought, and moved towards where he'd stashed the Triwizard Cup. Taking a breath, he grabbed it.
Once again, he felt the tug of the portkey.
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When Harry arrived on the winner's stand, there was chaos. People were talking and he could see Dumbledore and Snape talking quietly together. He heard a call, "Harry!" as Hermione rushed forward towards him, Ron near her. "Hey, Hermione, Ron," Harry said tiredly, offering a halfhearted smile as she ran into him, hugging him tightly.
"Mr. Potter, what happened? You were supposed to arrive on stage, but you didn't for some time!" demanded Bagman, even as Dumbledore and Snape began to make their way towards him.
"I'm not entirely sure," Harry told him. "I took the trophy and I ended up in a graveyard somewhere. I was attacked and I dived out of the way of a Killing Curse, then defended myself." Harry was watching Dumbledore carefully out of the corner of his eye as he spoke, "Fortunately for me, the trophy still had a portkey here so when I finally managed to get back to the trophy, it brought me back here." He was speaking carefully, telling the truth but not the whole truth. There was a brief flash of disappointment in Dumbledore's gaze and Harry sighed. "I was lucky to get back, I think."
"Harry, can you tell us more?" Dumbledore asked him, and Harry shrugged.
"There's not much more to tell. I basically just ran and dodged, though I did cast a few spells now and then to try to distract whoever was attacking me. I'm just glad to be alive. Some of the spells they used looked scary. I'm glad I can dodge so well." He didn't meet Dumbledore's eyes, looking down as if tired, "I feel like I'm going to collapse, sorry, sir," he told him, and Ron reached out to grab his arm supportively. Harry felt a rush of affection for his friend. Sure, they'd had their problems, but he was there when it mattered. He also grew up.
For a moment, Harry thought Dumbledore might try to demand more information, but eventually he said, "All right, Harry. I'll send Madame Pomfrey examine you and make sure you're all right. Minister Fudge already left; your reward will be given to you when he gets around to it, I'm sure."
"Thank you, sir. Honestly, I'm just happy to be alive. I'd prefer to avoid an examination as I'm not really hurt, but I guess she probably should look me over to be safe," Harry acknowledged. He let Ron help him towards the school with Hermione, and was met halfway by Pomfrey, who began to fuss over him.
"Mr. Potter! Are you all right? The Headmaster said you had been taken away and gotten into a fight," she began.
"You might say that. There was a second portkey layered onto the trophy, and it took me to a graveyard somewhere, where I was attacked. I'm all right, but I know you probably want to look me over, anyway," Harry admitted. "I don't want to stay in the infirmary, though; it's not necessary."
"That's my decision," she chided, "But if you're truly all right, I'll let you rest in Gryffindor Tower," she stated.
Harry nodded, and followed her to the infirmary. Sitting down on the bed, he simply remained quiet as she waved her wand, examining him carefully. "You don't seem to be hurt," Pomfrey said, her voice a bit surprised. "That's a shock, considering some of the things you've been up to in the past. I'll give you an Invigoration Draught to keep you awake until you can get upstairs and rest."
Harry rolled his eyes, saying dryly, "I do apologize for not giving you injuries to heal." He was given a curious glance by Hermione, before he watched Pomfrey head to the storage room to retrieve the potion.
Hermione spoke up then, "Harry! Where were you this morning? We were looking for you. The Fat Lady said you'd gotten up really early and left."
"Hermione, calm down," Harry told her, just glancing at her a moment. "I was preparing for the Third Task, and making plans. I needed time alone."
"We were worried about you, you should have told us where you were going," Hermione said with a frown.
"Hermione." Harry looked at her. "You are not my mother. You are my friend. I'm sorry if you were worried, but I did not have to tell you where I was going. I'm allowed some privacy now and then."
Hermione looked incensed and opened her mouth to argue, but Ron said to her, "He's right, Hermione. Do you tell him everywhere you go?"
For a moment, she looked like she wanted to argue, then slumped. "You're right, sorry. I was just worried, with the Task coming up," she said to him.
"I understand," Harry assured her as Madame Pomfrey returned, offering him a potion vial. "Drink this, young man, and then you can go. You should go right to Gryffindor Tower to rest."
"I will rest, I promise," Harry assured her after drinking the potion and feeling energy surge through his veins. He rose to his feet, saying to Hermione and Ron, "Come on." Slowly heading his towards the stairs, he started up them, answering Ron and Hermione's questions about the maze as they went. "There were a lot of Hagrid's creatures. Blast-End skrewts, acromantula...I bet Fluffy was there, though I didn't see him, myself," he added, ignoring Ron's shudder at the mention of acromantula.
As they arrived at the door to Gryffindor, Harry said to the Fat Lady, "Aurum," and she opened the portrait door for them. Stepping through, he heard cheers. Lifting a hand, Harry squared his shoulders and said, "All right, calm down. Yes, I won. Yes, something happened at the end of the Task. No, I won't tell everyone about it right now, I need to rest, I'm exhausted and Madame Pomfrey ordered me to not exert myself. I don't know about you, but I'm not going to disobey her!" He smiled at the laughter, and moved his way through the common room, slipping a few coins to Fred and George, murmuring to them, and they nodded, "Fred and George will be back with a few cases of butterbeer, so have fun!"
He didn't notice Hermione's considering look as he made his way to the stairs. Turning, he said to Ron and Hermione "I'm going to go lay down and try to sleep." He leaned in and hugged Hermione, nodded at Ron, and disappeared up the stairs.
Slowly, Harry looked around. He could hear people celebrating in the common room. He slipped onto his bed and crossed his legs, casting a few spells to silence his bed and adding a Notice-Me-Not so if anyone came looking for him, they'll get distracted. After this, he took a breath, calling, "Dobby."
The house elf appeared, "Harry Sir called for Dobby?" he asked.
"Can you please take me to Crouch?" Harry asked, and the excitable elf nodded quickly and grabbed his arm. They appeared in the Room of Requirement, which now looked like a cross between a jail and a study. One side of the room had chairs and tables. On the other was a large metal cage in which a very naked Barty Crouch Junior could be seen, his clothing in a pile a distance away. Harry sighed and quickly waved his wand over the man's clothing, and pulled out the robe, handing it to Dobby, "Put this on him." As he spoke, he vanished the rest of the clothing, leaving Moody's peg leg and eye.
As Dobby dressed the unconscious man, Harry pulled his invisibility cloak from his pocket and unwrapped it to reveal Pettigrew. He glanced up as Dobby neared him, "Can you get me something made of metal, Dobby? Even just an old chair or table from one of the abandoned classrooms would work." Dobby nodded and disappeared, reappearing a few moments later with a metal chair.
Waving his wand, Harry transfigured the chair into metal box with a wire mesh on top so the inside of the box could be seen. He added a few protections on the box and then opened the cage. Putting Pettigrew on the ground, he gestured with his wand. Rennervate. Confundo. He watched as the man turned into his animagus form, and Harry quickly picked up and put him in the cage, shutting it firmly. Revelio. Waving his wand, Harry made sure all the protections were operational on the cage, before nodding to himself.
"Crouch and Pettigrew, captured. Now to get Sirius cleared," Harry murmured to himself. This would take more time. Especially as Dumbledore would try to block it. He had the perfect way to distract the old man. "Dobby, I need you to do a few things for me. I need potion ingredients. I also need you to tell McGonagall that you heard moaning coming from a trunk in Professor Moody's room while you were cleaning it."
"Dobby can do that, Harry Sir!" the elf declared, popping out of sight.
There. Moody will be rescued. Now to do some brewing... Harry concentrated, and a potion lab appeared in the corner of the room.
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The next day, Harry left Gryffindor Tower. Dobby was keeping an eye on the two prisoners. Not that he was worried about them so much as someone finding them. He'd taken a few hours the other night and brewed two Draughts of Living Death to put them into magical stasis. Word around the school was that Professor Moody was seen in the infirmary, so Harry didn't have to worry about him for the moment.
Every now and then he was stopped by well wishers, though there were some who glared at him. As he entered the great hall, Cedric stepped up towards him. "Hey, Harry! I wanted to say congratulations, I didn't get a chance yesterday."
"Oh, thank you, Cedric," Harry said, offering a hand, "I was surprised, honestly, I expected you or one of the others to get there first." As he spoke, he couldn't help but think about what had happened last time, of returning with Cedric's dead body.
This was better.
Shaking his hand, Cedric shook his head, "Honestly, I got distracted by an acromantula, the thing wouldn't leave me alone and was fast enough to dodge my spells."
"Ugh," Harry said, remembering the creature from last time, "I hate acromantulas. There's a whole colony in the Forbidden Forest."
Cedric paled, "There is?"
"Yeah. Hagrid had one as a pet," Harry said with a shudder, "I met it in my second year." As he spoke, he glanced to the head table, "I need to speak to a Professor, if you'll excuse me?"
"Oh, of course," Cedric agreed. "If you like, come sit with me for breakfast?"
"Sure!" Harry acknowledged, and moved to approach the head table. At least no one was sitting near the Headmaster, yet. Stopping in front of Dumbledore, Harry looked at the man's chin. "Professor Dumbledore? May we speak a moment?"
"Of course, Harry," Dumbledore told him, "How may I help you?"
Still not meeting the man's eyes, Harry said, "I had a strange dream last night, I thought I should tell you in case it was important. I heard Voldemort talking to someone, saying he was going to go free Grindelwald from prison for some reason. Isn't Grindelwald that Dark Lord you fought during World War II?"
Harry saw Dumbledore's eyes open wide, "You're sure?" He asked.
"That's what I heard. I didn't get much in the way of details as I woke up, but it sounded like he was going to do it soon, he mentioned wanting it done by August?" Harry told him.
Dumbledore frowned, and nodded, "All right. You go eat breakfast. I'll handle this," he said as he rose to his feet and left the table quickly.
As Harry walked over to the Hufflepuff table to sit near Cedric, he thought, There. The Order isn't mobilized yet, and he won't trust anyone else to deal with Grindelwald anyway. Too many secrets might come out. He'll be out of the country for the next month at least, monitoring Grindelwald. Harry went on to greet those at the table, "Hey, Cedric asked me to join him, hope you don't mind."
A few of the Hufflepuffs looked less than happy, including Ernie Macmillan and Zacharias Smith. Harry ignored them, even as Susan Bones said, "No, not at all. What was the Third Task like for you? Cedric told us his bit..."
"The worst part was probably the sphinx," Harry began. "Riddles are not my forte, I'm more of a muscle head," he joked as they began to talk.
He had always been too insular in school. It was time to change that.
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Harry carried his shrunk trunk in a pocket as he walked with Ron and Hermione towards the carriages. He had done a great deal of preparation, including showing Dobby the Chamber of Secrets and having him move Crouch and Pettigrew there so they couldn't be found. He would have to spend some time in the summer harvesting the basilisk's remains and selling them, it'd be worth a fair amount of gold.
Dumbledore had to leave the school for 'important matters', according to McGonagall's announcement. Harry would have to take steps and arrange for Sirius' trial while Dumbledore was away. He didn't think it'd be too difficult. Amelia Bones was a hard ass and a little too cautious at times, but she had been scrupulously honest.
Interacting with Ron and Hermione had been easier than Harry had thought it would be. He had to be careful not to say anything he shouldn't, but they were still themselves, if a little more innocent. He had fallen into the usual joke and teasing, though he'd slipped up once by pointing out an error in Hermione's Runes homework.
He'd had to 'admit' that he'd been studying Runes on the side in the hopes of testing into the class next year, as he was tired of Trelawney constantly predicting his demise. Ron had been disappointed, but had definitely understood wanting to get away from that. Hermione had looked proud of him.
Soon, they arrived on the train and Harry claimed a compartment for them. Idly, he waved his wand at the door, locking the door. "So, looking forward to the summer?" asked Harry.
"Yes, my parents are planning on taking me to France," Hermione said to him with a smile. "I practiced my French a bit with the Beauxbatons students, I'm hoping to have more practice."
"Just going to relax," Ron said from his seat, digging into his pocket to pull out a small packet of Cauldron Cakes. "Play some Quidditch. You, Harry?"
"Oh, the usual. Stay at my relative's house," Harry said with a shrug, "Do a bit of reading, I don't get to read enough fun stuff at school." He wasn't particularly worried as he knew he could definitely handle his relatives now.
The train ride seemed to pass quickly. The only trouble they had was when Draco tried to enter the compartment, only to find the door locked. He couldn't figure out how to unlock it, as Harry had used a more complex locking spell than Colloportus. Eventually, they reached King's Cross, and Harry emerged from the train. Emerging onto the Muggle side of the station, he was grabbed painfully by his Uncle, "Come on, you. I don't want to stand around waiting," Vernon growled.
Harry sighed and pulled his arm away from Vernon, ignoring the glare. "Yes, Uncle," He told him as he followed him towards the car. When they reached the car and were out of sight, Vernon whirled to him, "What do you think you're doing, pulling away from me, you little freak?"
It was obvious he was about to go into one of his tirades. Harry shook his head and gestured with his hand. Confundo. The man's expression went slightly slack before clearing and he got into his car, Harry getting into the back seat, and drove away.
When they arrived at Privet Drive, Harry got out of the car. As they entered the house, he gestured again, reinforcing the Confundus and then when he saw Petunia and Dudley in the kitchen, doing the same to them. He'd have to reapply it from time to time, but they'd ignore him while he was here. Turning, he headed upstairs to his room and put his chest down, touching it with a finger and unshrinking it.
"Dobby?" Harry called.
The house elf appeared, "What may Dobby do for Harry Sir?"
"Please clean this room. I am going to write a few letters that I want you to deliver. You can find my godfather Sirius, right?" Harry asked.
"Yes, Harry Sir!" Dobby agreed as he started to pop around, snapping his fingers and cleaning the room.
"Good, I'm going to send you with a few letters. Sirius and Amelia Bones for sure," Harry said.
He had a trial to plan for.