CH 251

Finally, the three and their families sat for the final meal before the third task. Harry ate very little. His godfather noticed.

"Harry," said Sirius. "You need to eat!"

"Sorry, Sirius," sighed Harry. "I've just got this real bad feeling about tonight. Something's wrong, and I can feel it in my bones!"

"Your bones hurt?" godfather.

asked

a

confused

"No," said Harry shaking his head. "It's a muggle expression. It implies you know something for a fact when there is no evidence to support it. Think of it as a very strong gut feeling."

"And your guts are telling you something's going to go wrong," said Sirius, now understanding.

"Yeah, that's the crux of it," replied Harry, grumbling.

Listening, Matthias said, "Madam Bones will have her aurors all over the place, tonight. If something happens, they'll be right there."

With a glance and a long look at his two wives, Harry decided to eat a little rice with a light stew. It wouldn't sit too heavily in his stomach.

As the enchanted ceiling overhead began to fade from blue to a dusky purple, Dumbledore rose to his feet at the staff table, and silence fell.

"Ladies and gentlemen, in five minutes' time, I will be asking you to make your way down to the Quidditch pitch and stands for the third and final task of the Tri-wizard Tournament. Will the champions... and Mister Potter... please follow Mister Bagman down to the stadium now."

Harry rose in place, quickly followed by his family. They all wished him good luck while he also received chaste kisses from his wives. And he headed off out of the Great Hall with Cedric, Fleur, and Viktor.

"Feeling all right, Harry?" asked Bagman, as they went down the stone steps onto the grounds. "Confident?"

"I'm fine, Useless. Given the Weasley twins their money, yet?" said Harry. It was sort of true; he was nervous, but he kept running over everything he needed to do before the night was over.

Bagman turned away with a scowl and led them outside. As soon as they stepped out the doors they were flanked by four aurors, who followed them down to the pitch.

They walked onto the Quidditch pitch, which was now completely unrecognizable. A twenty-foot-high hedge ran all the way around just inside the edge of it. There was a gap right in front of them: the entrance to the vast maze. The passage beyond it looked dark and creepy.

Looking around, Harry spotted no less than a half dozen aurors spaced out across their side of the maze. He suspected there were a great many more where he couldn't see them. Five minutes later, the stands had begun to fill. The air was full of excited voices and the rumbling of feet as the hundreds of students, family members and other guests filed into their seats. The sky was a deep, clear indigo now, and the first stars were starting to appear. Hagrid, Professor McGonagall, Professor Sinistra and Professor Flitwick came walking into the stadium and approached Bagman and the champions. They were wearing large, red, luminous stars on their hats, all except Hagrid, who had his on the back of his moleskin vest.

"We are going to be patrolling the outside of the maze," said Professor McGonagall to the four competitors. "If you get into difficulty, and wish to be rescued, send red sparks into the air, and one of us or one of the aurors will come and get you, do you understand?" The four nodded.

"Off you go, then!" said Bagman brightly to the four staff patrollers. The aurors were already in place.

"Good luck, 'Arry," whispered Hagrid, as the four of them walked away in different directions, to station themselves around the maze.

Bagman, pointing his wand at his throat, muttered, "Sonorus," and his magically magnified voice echoed into the stands.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Tri-wizard Tournament is about to begin!"

As the cheers of the audience died down again, he continued, "Let me remind you how the points currently stand! In first place, with eighty-eight points, is Mister Harry Potter of Hogwarts!" The cheers and applause sent birds from the Forbidden Forest fluttering into the darkening sky. "In second place, with eighty points, is Mister Viktor Krum of Durmstrang!" More applause. "And tied in third place, with seventy-eight points each is Mister Cedric Diggory of Hogwarts! And, Miss Fleur Delacour of Beauxbatons!" More, but louder applause than for Victor.

Harry could just make out his family halfway up the stands. He waved up at them, and they waved back, beaming at him; though, both wives were justifiably nervous.

"So... on my whistle, Harry!" said Bagman. "Three... two... one!" He gave a short blast on his whistle, and Harry ran into the maze.

Knowing what to expect and when, plus with using a 'Point Me' charm on his 'known' wand, Harry made it to the Cup a lot quicker than he did in the previous timeline. He hoped it was also so fast that Pettigrew wouldn't be ready for him.

With his wand in his hand as he blasted an acromantula away into soggy pieces, Harry looked about and took a couple of deep, calming breaths.

"Alright," he muttered. "Here we go!" With his holly wand in his right hand he grabbed the Cup handle with his left.

Harry felt his feet slam into the ground and he immediately fell forward, letting go of the Cup in the process. He quickly raised his head and looked around. 'Yup, the cemetery,' he thought. 'Now I have to allow myself to be captured by the rat.' Squinting tensely through the darkness, he watched the rat draw nearer, walking steadily toward him between the graves. Pettigrew was wearing his cowled cloak and had 'Voldebaby' in his arms.

As with last time, Pettigrew stopped beside a towering marble headstone, only six feet from him, for a moment. Then Pettigrew placed Voldebaby on the ground between his feet before he suddenly launched a stunner at Harry. Harry made as if to block it and dive out of the way, but allowed it to hit him.

When he came to, he was bound to the Riddle Senior headstone, and Pettigrew was in his face.

"You!" gasped Harry.

But Pettigrew, who had finished conjuring ropes to bind him in place, did not reply; he was busy checking the tightness of the cords, his fingers trembling uncontrollably, rumbling over the knots.

As with the previous timeline, once sure Harry was bound so tightly to the headstone he couldn't move an inch, Pettigrew drew a length of some black material from the inside of his cloak and stuffed it roughly into Harry's mouth. Then, without a word, he turned from Harry and hurried away.

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