127 It All Comes to a Head

Path Back to the Potter Tent

"What a match!" Sirius cried happily, thumping Nathan on the back as the group walked back to their tents. "Too bad about Viktor though, Harry."

Harry nodded his head in disappointment. The Irish Chasers had proved to be too much for Bulgaria, and Viktor had been forced to catch the Snitch knowing that his team would not have enough points to win.

"The Irish played incredibly," Charlie Weasley said. "We knew how good their Chasers were coming in, but I don't think anyone predicted just how outplayed the Bulgarians would be. If the Bulgarian Chasers had been able to hold them off a little bit longer, Krum would have easily won the game for Bulgaria."

"Couldn't agree more," James interjected. "Lynch was barely conscious at the end there. No way he would have been able to see the Snitch, let alone outfly Krum to catch it. Your friend has nothing to be ashamed of Harry, he played incredibly. Man of the match as far as I'm concerned."

"I'll be sure to tell him that, Dad," Harry said, "But, knowing Viktor, I don't think it'll matter much to him. He's all about winning."

All the Quidditch enthusiasts in the group seemed to nod their heads solemnly, easily understanding the point.

"Well, this is us," Arthur called out, stopping outside the Weasley tent. "What time were you planning on leaving tomorrow, James?"

After a quick glance at his wife, James shrugged. "I don't know, Arthur, maybe around noon. I doubt the Irish are going to be awake until late in the afternoon, so we can probably all sleep in a bit. Maybe do brunch before we leave?"

"Sounds splendid," Molly said, quickly agreeing. "I can prepare something. Would you like to arrive around eleven?"

"That sounds wonderful, Molly," Lily said happily. "We'll see you then."

"See you tomorrow, Ron, Hermione," Nathan said.

Hermione smiled broadly. "Bye Nathan!"

"Later, mate," Ron said, following his brothers into his family's tent.

As the Potters turned to make their way towards their tent, Sirius leaned over to Harry and quietly asked, "Nervous?"

Clearing his mind of emotion, Harry looked up at his godfather with a blank expression. "Very."

Sirius shook his head. "Anyone ever told you Occlumency is creepy?"

Allowing a small smile to cross his face, Harry nodded.

"Did you give Calypso directions on how to reach our tent?" Lily asked pleasantly.

"Yes, Mum," Harry said, "she said she'd be here after the match."

"Did she watch from Viktor's box?" Nathan asked, unable to keep the slight awe out of his voice. After seeing Viktor Krum fly in person, he was, for the first time, made painfully aware just how far he had to go if he wanted to play Quidditch professionally.

Harry shrugged. "Probably."

"Well, I hope she gets here soon," Lily said, pushing open the tent flap and leading everyone inside. "It's quite dark out, and I'd hate for her to get caught up with all those Irish fans doing Merlin knows what."

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Harry said, walking into the small living area and taking a seat.

"Feet off the table, Harry," Lily scolded, seeing her oldest son stretching out.

"Nervous?" Nathan asked, sitting next to his brother, a large grin spread wide across his face. "Merlin knows I don't want to think about the first girl I bring to meet Mum and Dad."

"Please." Harry snorted. "They already met and like Hermione."

"Hermione's not my girlfriend."

Harry laughed. "Not yet."

"What," Nathan spluttered, looking incomprehensibly at his brother. "Hermione and I are just friends. That's all!"

Wanting to do anything but think about the upcoming argument with his parents, Harry just smiled knowingly at his brother. "For now."

"Forever," Nathan said, turning a little pink around the neck.

Once again, Harry laughed, quickly drawing the attention of the adults.

"What's so funny?" James asked as everyone sat down.

"Harry thinks Hermione and I are dating." Nathan said immediately. "We're not!"

"I didn't say you were dating," Harry replied. "Just that you weren't dating yet."

Sirius snorted while Lily and James looked amused by Nathan's continued denials.

"There's nothing going on between Hermione and I, and if you say anything to her I'll–"

"Harry," James laughed, stopping the argument. "I do believe your friend is outside."

Knowing that his father had placed several protective charms around their tent, Harry stood up and left the tent. He saw Calypso walking – well limping – up the dirt path near their tent's entrance. He quickly ran over to her, concern on his face.

Before he could ask what happened though, Calypso spoke. "Proximity ward?"

"Something like that," Harry replied, looking Calypso up and down. Besides the slight limp, her left eye was turning yellow, and she seemed to be favoring her right side slightly.

Calypso nodded in understanding. "So who won the match?"

"Calypso, what happened?" Harry asked, a little annoyed that his parents first impression of Calypso was going to be of her after she was in some kind of fight.

"I," Calypso started angrily, "was minding my own business, watching the start of the match with the Krums and Megara. That was until the bitch tried to curse me in the back."

"Are you serious?" Harry asked. Kira was a lot of things, but he didn't think she'd start a fight in front of Viktor's parents.

"I might have mentioned to Mrs. Krum about Megara being Greek. It's not my fault Mrs. Krum asked why she didn't go to the Athenian Academy," Calypso scowled darkly. "Bitch waited until I went to the loo before she tried anything."

"What happened?" Harry asked in concern.

"I got lucky," Calypso admitted distastefully. "A freakin house elf popped in and took the spell to the chest. Little bastard flew into my side, but at least I didn't take the curse full on. After that, Kira and I kind of fought."

Harry shook his head at the likely understatement. "Who won?"

"Well," Calypso looked particularly indignant as they walked into the Potter family tent. "I think I was a spell or two away from crushing her, but security arrived and stunned us both. Fortunately, they just threw us out and didn't arrest us."

Maybe it was all the tension he felt at the thought of introducing Calypso to his parents for the first time; maybe it was the idea of Calypso and Kira being stunned and taken away by security; maybe it was the thought of Calypso meeting his parents with a bruising eye and a limp, but Harry simply found the entire situation hilarious. Slowly, he started to snicker, which quickly turned into a chuckle, eventually becoming a belly laugh.

"Stop laughing!" Calypso said indignantly, following Harry into his family's tent. "Did Krum at least win the stupid game?"

"Harry, aren't you going to introduce us? Or at the very least tell us what's so funny?" James asked, slightly concerned. While the sound of his son laughing uproariously at something was very welcome, the sight of the slightly beaten up girl that had followed him into the tent was not.

"Sorry Dad." Harry snickered a few more times before taking a deep breath and clearing his mind.

Sending a slight scowl at Harry, Calypso turned to the Potters and limped slightly over to them. "I apologize for my appearance, Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Viktor Krum's girlfriend and I have never seen eye to eye about, well, anything."

"You were in a fight?" Lily asked, running her wand over the girl, parental concern taking precedence over what she considered poor behavior.

"She sent a curse at my back when I left the box to use the loo," Calypso said, clearly annoyed.

Immediately, any sign of disapproval left Lily's face as she cast several healing Charms. "What a horrid thing to do!"

Idly, Harry recognized almost half the spells his mother was using, and he couldn't help but realize that Calypso certainly knew those spells as well. Wondering just how 'injured' his girlfriend really was, and how much of this was for show, Harry schooled his face into a blank mask so as not to give anything away.

"Thank you, ma'am." Calypso smiled. "I don't suppose you could tell me who won the match? Kira and I were both stunned for fighting and escorted outside."

"The Irish, but Krum caught the snitch," Nathan said, standing up to get a better view of his brother's girlfriend. "Hi, I'm Harry's brother, Nathan."

Smiling at the extended hand, Calypso quickly shook it. "It's nice to meet you, I'm Harry's girlfriend, Calypso Rosier."

Though it was slight, Harry noticed his mother stiffen slightly while his father's eyes narrowed and seemed to track Calypso's movements a bit more intently. Nathan simply paused, as if trying to place the name, before shrugging in an uncaring manner.

"Nice to meet you, too." Gesturing to Calypso's rapidly disappearing injuries, he asked, "Did you at least win the fight?"

"They stunned us pretty quickly, but I think I would have won eventually. Kira's a coward, that's why she tried to curse me in the back."

"Well, it's nice to officially meet you," Sirius said, smiling at the girl. "Now that you've mastered English and all."

"Nice to see you again, Mr. Black." Calypso grinned. "Hope you didn't mind my little joke."

Once again, Harry felt slightly uncomfortable. He'd mentioned that his father and Sirius liked to joke a few times to Calypso, and, not for the first time, he wondered just how carefully Calypso had planned meeting his family.

Sirius simply smirked. "I love jokes. Since you're such a fan, I'll be sure to show you a few of mine."

Any awkward feelings Lily and James might have felt around Calypso were momentarily quelled at the thought of Sirius throwing low level jinxes at a guest. "Sirius Black," Lily said sharply, "You will not do anything to Harry's friend while she's here, understood?"

"Not your fault you were taken for a sucker, Padfoot," James said teasingly. "Why don't you have a seat, Calypso."

"Thank you, sir."

The group walked back to the living room where they all took seats around a small table. Harry couldn't help but notice that there was still a noticeable tension in the air, but before he could even begin to think how to start the conversation, Sirius spoke up.

"So, it feels like we've known you for some time. Harry here has told us stories since your first year."

Calypso nodded. "Harry's been my best friend since first year."

"How did you meet?" Lily asked, curiously, though not unfriendly.

"I saw him wandering around the library looking absolutely lost." Calypso smiled in remembrance. "I helped him find a few books and we sort of started a study group soon after that."

"Harry? Lost in a library?" Nathan laughed. "No way. He was right at home at Hogwarts."

"It was my first week, and I was really busy." Harry felt the need to defend himself slightly. "I had to learn an entire semester's worth of spell creation in less than a month. It was tough."

"Well, thanks for keeping Harry's little head above water, Calypso," Sirius said, doing his best to praise the girl.

Calypso sighed dramatically. "It was tough, Mr. Black. I still don't know what Harry would do without me. Likely fail out of school. Maybe take up conducting the Knight Bus."

"Ha ha, Calypso," Harry said dryly.

"Oh relax, Harry," James said, finding himself more and more comfortable around the girl. "We're just having a little fun."

"Yeah, Harry. That's what it was when you were talking about Hermione, wasn't it?" Nathan said, clearly enjoying his brother's discomfort after their conversation earlier.

"Are you from England, Calypso?" Lily asked. "I wasn't aware that the Knight Bus ran internationally."

"No ma'am, I was born in France, but I live with relatives in Scandinavia." Calypso replied. "I stayed with my Uncle Lucius and Aunt Narcissa the summer after my first year. That's when I first heard of the Knight Bus."

"The Malfoys are your Aunt and Uncle?" Nathan asked, recoiling slightly.

"Yes, though I haven't been invited back for any more 'etiquette' lessons from my Aunt Narcissa." Calypso said easily. "I don't think they found my hexing Draco nearly as funny as I did."

"You hexed Draco," Nathan said, his entire demeanor changing. "Please, tell me everything!"

"Nathan," Lily scolded before turning a slightly disapproving gaze at Calypso. "You really shouldn't hex anyone if it can be avoided."

"I know ma'am," Calypso said earnestly, "but he was unbearable. Every five seconds he would go on and on about how old his family's manor is. How rich his family is, or how they can trace their line nearly a millennium. Afterwards, he'd act like just because I was in his house, I was his servant or something. Trust me, the stinging hex to the face was well deserved."

While Lily seemed to be doing her best to suppress a smile, Sirius, and Nathan did little to hide their laughter.

"Oh, that's brilliant," Nathan said. "I can't wait to tell Ron and Hermione. Draco's always going on about how 'uncouth' Hermione is just because she's Muggleborn."

"So you live with relatives in Scandinavia?" James asked, seemingly bringing the conversation back. "What happened to your parents?"

For the first time, Calypso appeared slightly uncomfortable. "My mom died giving birth to me, and my father fought in the war here in England."

Harry did his best to remain calm. He understood what Calypso was saying and what she wasn't. It was a risky move, and he was suddenly very glad he never mentioned Mr. Rosier to anyone.

"Oh," Nathan said sympathetically. "Um, did the Death Eaters get him?"

"No Nathan," Sirius said, speaking up softly. "I dare say that Calypso's father was done in by old Mad Eye Moody."

"The Auror?" Nathan asked in confusion. "Why would he..." Nathan seemed to trail off until comprehension struck him. His eyes widened, and he looked at Calypso in shock. "I knew I remembered the name Rosier from somewhere! Your father was a Death Eater!"

Meeting Nathan's gaze evenly, Calypso said, "Yes."

Once again, there was a tense and uncomfortable silence that seemed to drag on forever. Harry watched as his brother seemed to glance between Calypso and his parents as if wondering what to do.

"Don't judge Calypso because of her family, Nathan." Sirius' voice was uncommonly passionate and everyone found themselves looking at the last member of the house of Black. "People don't always grow up like their family, especially if they can get away from them. Almost all of my family consisted of the nastiest group of bastards you could ever meet, Nathan. That didn't stop your dad from giving me a chance, and there's no reason for you not to give Calypso the same one. Wouldn't you agree, James?"

Without the slightest hesitation, James met his best friend's gaze and said, "Absolutely. Sirius is right, Nathan. Don't judge Calypso just because her father did some bad things."

"Besides," Sirius said quickly, continuing, "Do you really think your brother would befriend someone who sympathized with Death Eaters?"

Nathan turned his head to look at his brother. Frowningly slightly at the blank and empty look on Harry's face, Nathan said, "No, he wouldn't. Err... I'm sorry, Calypso. I didn't mean anything by it. I just... err... well, sorry."

"It's alright," Calypso said. "You don't really know me, so it's okay."

"Well, that's why we're here," Lily said, smiling at the girl for the first time. "To get to know you a bit. So, tell us about yourself? What do you like most about Durmstrang?"

"And do you have any embarrassing stories about Harry?" Nathan asked eagerly.

Calypso laughed and smiled softly at Harry. "Did he ever tell you about the duck incident when he was first learning how to make a receptacle for the space enhancement charm?"

Harry felt his face suddenly pale. "Calypso, you and Viktor promised!"

"I believe that you told us to never mention it; however, I don't think we ever agreed to anything."

Groaning, Harry sagged into his chair as Calypso began to tell the story. Glancing up, he couldn't help but notice the happy and grinning faces around the table. Compared to how the evening could have gone, a little embarrassment wasn't that bad.

"... and then the ducks just start to multiply, and Harry screams, 'Go get Professor Kosarev before they take over!'"

As his family roared with laughter, Harry momentarily met Calypso's eyes. While he felt a great deal of humor and amusement coming from her, there was one overwhelming emotion that dominated everything else. At first, Harry had a hard time placing it, but, eventually, he realized what it was.

Triumph.