Chapter 92 - The Second Task Pt 1

***** Make Up Chapter 1 ***** A/N: Im staying away from reading/catching up on my fanfics for now, while im catching up on my chapter releases. Which means I probably won't be reading comments for the next week. Not that I'll be avoiding you guys, or anything like that.... I still appreciate all your corrections/opinions/comments! So please keep them coming! It's what keeps me going tbh, just knowing that people are just as invested in this story as I am.

Honestly speaking, I just know myself. And knowing me, I'll get distracted away from my writing, just reading/catching up on everything else (comments and fanfics wise). And my sole goal for the next week at least, is to pump out chapters to make up for my disappearance to you readers!

Anyways.... onwards with the story! Hope you All enjoy! *****

"I'm thinking that its more along the lines they end up taking something more symbolic to yourself, and not necessarily valuable." Khan explained, while toweling himself off. "Maybe something similar to a personal talisman of sorts."

It had been a few more weeks since Khan's Hogsmeade visit where he had coincidentally met, completely unprepared for mind you, his future In-Laws.

And while that conversation had gone as well as possible considering the circumstances, Jordan later learned to his horror, that her family had business in England, and would be staying in Hogsmeade for the foreseeable future.....

You see, Khan had a sneaking suspicion that the 'business' Fleur's father, Louis Delacour, was staying in England for, was to primarily keep a close watch over him, and in particular, his closeness to Fleur.

In fact, there were more than a few instances, that Jordan and Fleur had their various times together interrupted by Mr. Delacour, leading to this suspicion in the first place.

And while at first, it was only during their dinner dates out in Hogsmeade that they were originally disturbed, soon things would begin to escalate as they would later also have their various dinners together in the Great Hall interrupted by Louis, his excuse being that he was in Hogwarts to visit and speak with both Dumbledore and Maxime.

Soon enough, it wasn't just their dinners together that was getting interrupted, but their nights together as well, as Fleur had begun sharing her room with her little sister Gabrielle.

In fact, It got so bad that the only time Jordan and Fleur had together that ended up being private, were their various night swim practices that they had together, in preparation of course, for the second task.

And after spending basically every night together for the past month, needless to say, Khan truly was missing various nightly 'activities' with Fleur.

But aside from the current damper on Jordan's love life courtesy of Fleur's family, he was nonetheless busier than ever.

You see, in addition to his regular duties, being a student teacher, Jordan had also promised to help Daphne Greengrass attempt to solve her family's blood curse.

Unfortunately, even though Khan was a Defense teacher, unlike his friend Sebastian who had studied blood curses at length due to wanting to help his sister, he was not too familiar with blood curses, himself being more specialized in combat related curses, primarily due to his previous combat experience.

As a result, Khan was spending an increasing amount of time researching the curse, and talking with Daphne, in an attempt to understand the curse better, and hopefully help his student.

Speaking of Sebastian.... Jordan still had yet to do any real research regarding his old friend, and his possible whereabouts/doings.

Although he had indeed visited his lab over the holidays, even finding an old journal entry of his, in truth, Khan was still not much closer to figuring out and confirming if his old friend was indeed a dark lord, as Natty believed he was.

And it wasn't that Jordan didn't believe Natty, or trust her Divination, it was simply that he was sure that there was a misunderstanding somewhere.

Although Sebastian did show signs of deterioration while studying the Dark magic relic previously, Khan did not want to give up on his old best friend, and believe that he had been truly corrupted by Dark Magic.

Perhaps it was possible that he had been able to figure out a way to counteract the corruption caused by said dark magic?

Unfortunately, as much as Jordan wanted to drop everything else, to focus on searching for his old friend, he still had all responsibilities, not to mention, the second task to prepare for.

As such, both Jordan and Fleur had kept up their increased practice schedule, occupying the prefect's bathroom every night, in order to hone their water based spells.

This particular night, still two days away from the start of the second task, they had cut their practical session short, and had instead gotten into a strategy discussion instead.

"I don't know...." Fleur who was also drying herself off, was hesitant to agree with her husband regarding this particular situation. "With the clue, 'Too late, it's gone, it won't come back' warning us, it makes me think that it is possible to fail this task, resulting in us losing said 'item' to the merpeople."

"Yes, that's why I think it would be something more personal to you, and not necessarily valuable." Khan replied thoughtfully. "In this case, there would still be an innate desire for all of the champions to want to complete the task, due to them wanting to get back their personal 'talisman'."

"At the same time, there would not be as big a risk, if that champion were to fail their task, losing said personal item, since it wouldn't be that valuable." Khan finished.

"I guess that makes sense.... They are probably trying to avoid any more tournament mishaps, especially after that debacle of a first task, after all." Fleur replied with a slightly flush face, fondly remembering her husband's performance that particular afternoon.

Strong, powerful, commanding... and that was just Fleur referring to his magical power, to say nothing of his handsome yet equally imposing demeanor, as he dressed down the tournament judges.

Fleur couldn't help but begin to get excited, especially after not 'sleeping' with Jordan for the past few weeks with Gabby now sharing her room, thinking of that first task while looking upon her muscular husband as he toweled off...

"I wonder if there are any rules against safeguarding our important items.... something like attaching an automatic portkey, to transport the item back to the second task starting point, a few minutes after the task starts...." Khan thought out loud to himself, not noticing Fleur's sudden change in mood, instead still thinking of possible exploits regarding the second task.

"What do you think Fleur? Do you think something like that could work?"

"..."

"Fleur?" Hearing no response, he called out again.

"..."

Finally finished drying off, he turned to look at his beautiful girlfriend, wondering if he had done anything wrong... Why else would she be now ignori-

"Oh...."

Looking over, he saw his beautiful girlfriend, giving him a rather heated look, he knew and loved.

And although he didn't know how talking about the second task could have possible have led to Fleur getting turned on like this, he was not one to not look a gift horse in the mouth, so to speak.

It had been a few weeks after all, since he had last performed his favorite 'activity'.

*****

'I wonder if they'll be taking the item tonight.'

It was the night before the second task, and Khan was currently in his RoR, studying and making last minute preparations for the second task.

Having just finished reviewing all his aquatic based spells, he was seated at his desk, in his study nook, and had out in front of him his Pocket-watch from Fleur, and the Summoner's Cup he had commissioned.

Out of all the things he owned (and he owned a lot due to his Kleptomaniac tendencies), he considered these the most personally valuable to him.

Well... these two items, AND his Hogwarts Field guide.

And while he had indeed considered hiding his items away for safe keeping, Jordan had ultimately decided against it, not wanting to give the tournament organizers a harder time than necessary.

As a result, Khan had taken them all out, placing them on his desk, in plain sight, and was currently wondering if house-elves or someone else would come to fetch the item tonight.

'I don't really want to show anyone my Room of Requirement just yet.... perhaps I should take these items and store them in my Ravenclaw dorm, in case it is not a house-elf that comes to grab this item, and instead, a tournament organizer...' Khan thought to himself worriedly.

Aside from his three original best friends, Khan still had yet to show anyone else his RoR after all. Not even Fleur. And this was with her being arguably his closest companion currently.

And it wasn't that he didn't trust her or anything like that.

It was simply that with all his current responsibilities and how busy he was with all his various tasks, he just wanted a place that was just for himself; a sanctuary of sorts.

'Ya... lets do that...'

Placing the watch and Cup away in his inventory, Khan then reached for his bookshelf, grabbing his Hogwarts Field guide to also put away in his inventory before moving back to his dorm room for the night.

In his haste however, along with his Field Guide, he ended up pulling another book off shelf that was located right beside it, said book falling down to the floor with a loud

*THUD*

Placing the field guide in his inventory, he then reached down to grab his dropped book, before stopping himself, freezing in place from shock.

It was that same book he had found in his RoR that summer day he woke up! The same book that himself and Sebastian had encountered, looking through the restricted section.

'Secrets of the Darkest Art'.

But it was not the book that had Khan surprised. Instead, it was what had fallen out of it, that surprised Jordan.

A loose piece of paper, Khan immediately recognized the handwriting, even without having to view it up close.

It was Sebastian!

Breaking out of his frozen state, Jordan hurriedly reached down to grab the letter, leaving the book still on the floor.

Seems like luck was on his side!

Even while not looking for clues regarding Sebastian, reading it over quickly, from the looks of it, Khan had unintentionally found another one of his journal entries!

But this now brought up more worrisome questions for Jordan; Mainly... why was a journal entry hidden in this 'Dark Magic' book? Was this book significant in any way?

And with Sebastian working for the unspeakables, Jordan even finding a similar Journal entry in his lab, itself being all the way in London, how did that Dark magic book get into his RoR in the first place?

Could it be that his old friend left this for him to find as a clue?

Looking over the journal entry again, Khan decided to read it more slowly, to see if there was anything he was missing.

~

Dear Journal,

The sands of time have shifted since my last contemplations, and I find myself deep in the heart of this intricate enigma.

The days have blurred into nights as I navigate the labyrinthine corridors of the ancient ritual's knowledge.

This journey, my journey, is marked by both discovery and frustration, a dance of light and shadow that keeps me perpetually enthralled.

The pursuit of the ritual's essence has revealed a complex tapestry woven from threads of history, mythology, and arcane wisdom.

The more I uncover, the more I realize that this ritual isn't merely a sequence of actions; it's a symphony of intentions, carefully orchestrated by those who sought to bridge the mortal realm with the supernatural.

The knowledge required to execute this ritual feels akin to deciphering a language not of this world, an abstract mosaic where intuition often trumps logic.

My encounters with obstacles have been as numerous as the grains of sand in the desert. The precise translations, the correct alignment of celestial bodies, the invocation of ancient deities – each step requires a meticulous precision that leaves no room for error.

More than once, I've found myself at the brink of despair, wondering if I am truly capable of unraveling this cosmic riddle. Doubt creeps in like a specter, its whispers insidious and persistent.

There have been nights when I've immersed myself in incantations, surrounded by the flickering light of candles, attempting to capture the essence of the ritual's energy.

The air itself seems to hum with anticipation, as if the ancient souls of Egypt's past are watching, waiting to see if I am worthy of wielding the power they once harnessed.

And yet, despite my best efforts, the ritual's central core remains elusive, veiled in shadows that refuse to yield their secrets.

The old parchment rests by my side, its surface now worn from my fingers' constant touch. It's both a beacon of hope and a testament to the gaps in my understanding.

I find solace in the memories of my initial discovery, in the spark of curiosity that ignited this journey. That ember still burns within me, fanning the flames of determination even when the path ahead seems shrouded in darkness.

As I stand at this crossroads of knowledge and mystery, I am reminded that the most profound revelations often come from the struggle itself.

Each stumbling block, each dead end, propels me forward, guiding me towards an understanding that transcends the boundaries of the ordinary.

I am committed to persevering, to forging a connection with the past that will unlock the power of the ritual's secrets.

The journey continues, my dear Journal, and as I write these words, I can almost sense the ancient sands shifting beneath my feet, carrying me closer to the heart of this enigmatic quest. The struggle is real, the pursuit unyielding, but I am undeterred.

With each day that passes, I inch closer to the light that beckons from beyond the shadows. For only there, can salvation be found.

Until next we meet, with the pages of this Journal as my witness, I remain steadfast in my pursuit of the unknown.

Yours, unwaveringly,

S. Sallow

~