Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 42: Stay Calm
The group entered a smaller room that appeared to have been used for storage, given the numerous shelves filled with various containers and tools.
"Dumbledore!" Karkaroff approached the Headmaster and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Did you put this boy's name in the Goblet?!" he asked calmly.
"Mister Karkaroff, please calm down!" McGonagall tried to pry the man's hands away from the Headmaster.
"I am already calm!" Karkaroff spat the words.
"Now, let us discuss this like civilized people." Barty Crouch tried to step in between them. "But first, I would like to clarify that the Ministry of Magic had nothing to do with whatever Dumbledore was trying to accomplish with this… stunt."
A short distance away from them were the three selected champions, all staring at Harry with sour expressions.
"Are you really Harry Potter?" Cedric was the first one to ask.
"As far as I know, yes." Harry responded.
"Aren't you supposed to be dead?" Viktor Krum muttered. "That's what everyone said at the time."
"No, as you can see, I'm not dead…" Harry said.
"You should go home." Fleur got in front of him and crossed her arms. "A little boy like you would only get hurt in this tournament."
"Little boy…?" Harry raised an eyebrow while staring at the tall blonde girl. There was something unusual in her magic that caught his attention.
But before he could investigate further, he noted that the 'adults' in the room seemed to be done with their discussion and were now looking at him with much interest.
"Mister Potter." Dumbledore approached him with a beaming smile on his face. "I am so relieved to finally see you again. You may not remember me, but I—"
"I do remember you, Mister Dumbledore." Harry interrupted him. "You once visited me when I was sent to the hospital due to my Muggle uncle trying to murder me. We spoke for a bit, and then you tried to erase my memories with an 'Obliviate' charm."
"He did what?!" McGonagall sounded horrified.
"Albus, is that true?" Madam Maxime looked shocked.
Albus Dumbledore had carefully built a reputation as the perfect example of an ideal wizard, not just in his skills but also in his strong sense of morals.
Recent events were starting to collapse that image.
"You remember that?" Dumbledore took a few steps closer to Harry. "My boy, I assure you that I always had your best interests in mind. I was merely trying to protect y—"
"Save it." Harry interrupted him again. "A simple apology would have been enough for that. However, what you have done now… is much worse."
"Well… I will admit that it was not ideal. But after being missing for four years, I found a chance to bring you home. How could I not make the attempt, at least?" Dumbledore claimed. "I was the only one who never gave up on you, Harry."
"Bring me home…? Is this my home?" Harry pointed at the walls of the school. "I never asked to be rescued. I left the house of those Muggles out of my own free will, because it had been nothing but a prison to me."
Harry noted the look of horror on McGonagall's face.
"But… you were taken by Collectors," Dumbledore said.
"Collectors?" Harry now sounded confused. "What are you talking about?"
"The Collectors are a group of criminals who deal in human trafficking and… well, a lot of other terrible things," McGonagall said carefully. "The Auror investigation concluded that you were taken by them. We all lost hope after a while when they could not find you…"
"I still have no idea what you are talking about." He had long forgotten about the three men he killed outside of Morgan's shop.
"However, your actions have disturbed my life." He glanced at Dumbledore.
"Harry, I have only been trying to save you! My only concern had been to bring y—"
"You are very good at lying, Mister Dumbledore," Harry said. "But not good enough to fool my senses. I can perceive the changes in your heart rate and breathing. I can even see the slight movement in your eyes when you are trying to invent something. It's subtle, which tells me that you are mixing some truth with lies."
An appalled Dumbledore was having a hard time finding the words to respond. This was nothing like how he had imagined their first proper encounter. "N-No… I just…"
"Mister Potter, I can imagine that you have been through a lot, but please, be more respectful when talking to the Headmaster," McGonagall told him.
Harry completely ignored the professor. "I care not for your lies or for whatever plans you had for me, Mister Dumbledore. But let me tell you something… by bringing me here, you are putting this school and everyone inside in grave danger. I would advise you to release me from this contract before it's too late."
"Ehmm… excuse me, Mister Potter?" Barty Crouch waved his hand at him.
"Yes?" Harry glanced at the elegantly dressed man.
"I am Barty Crouch, the official Chief Organizer for the Tri-Wizard Tournament. And… I'm afraid that it's not possible to release you from the soul contract with the Goblet of Fire."
"…What?"
"What I mean to say is that now that your name came out of the Goblet of Fire, you are bound to participate as the fourth champion. Only when the last task is completed will you be released from your contractual obligation," Crouch said.
"You tied me into a soul contract to force me into some silly tournament?!" Harry was outraged at the disrespect displayed by the old Headmaster.
"How dare you?!"
For the first time, Dumbledore could feel Harry's magic reacting to his words, and it made him question if the decision of bringing him here had been the correct one.
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