Chapter 43: The Third Task P1

Harry's footsteps echoed throughout the vacant corridors of Hogwarts as he made his way towards Dumbledore's office. Most of the hallways should have been bustling with students but they remained vacant. The upperclassmen were busy with their NEWTs and OWLs while the rest were tackling the end-of-the-year exams. While the exams gave him more time for training there was a disadvantage. His free movement inside Hogwarts was affected because of the lack of students. Earlier with a lot of students mingling around, he could evade the curious eyes of the portraits. He could turn a corner and use the Disillusion charm or even a Notice-me-not charm to evade any spies. These precautions were a necessity when he was spending most of his training in the Room of Requirement.

But now, the situation has changed. If he wanted to go somewhere without being followed he needed Dobby's help.

Even though the current situation was not to his liking he walked with a spring in his steps. The reason was quite simple. Before the war has even begun he had felt two major blows to Voldemort. That could become three if the Diary is also taken into account. Because of his preemptive strike, there were only four Horcruxes left. Out of the four, he was constructing a plan for Nagini as well. He was not entirely sure whether that will pan out as he hoped but Nagini was personally an important target.

'Like me, the snake is also a Horcrux.' Harry thought.

Nagini is the only other living Horcrux that he knew. Not even the many reading materials he went through so far a bit Horcruxes holds any mention of a living being turned into a Horcrux. So, if he was to safely get rid of the soul shard latching onto his body he need a guinea pig. Nagini fitted the bill perfectly. He could experiment on her leading to hopefully developing a spell capable of removing a Horcrux without destroying the host.

It was a tall task but he was very hopeful. Unfortunately, getting his hands on Nagini itself was going to be a tough task. He knew Voldemort would be in his most vulnerable state in the graveyard. But, the Dark Lord was a crafty fellow. Not to mention, the possible repercussions Nagini's absence would unleash.

It's not as if Voldemort would not bat an eye over Nagini's absence. The potential consequence of Nagini's disappearance would possibly force Voldemort to check in on his other Horcruxes. So, there were some serious risks involved.

All of those thoughts left his mind when he finally reached the Gargoyle that guarded the stairs to Dumbledore's office.

"Cockroach cluster."

The Gargoyle moved aside allowing Harry entry to the stairs. Climbing the fought of stairs he arrived at Dumbledore's office which was vacant with the doors wide open.

"Professor Dumbledore?" Harry called, but no one answered. Even the portraits in the office were strangely vacant.

"Well, don't just stand there. Come on in."

Harry blinked a few times and looked around but he could not see anyone nearby.

"I'm up here on the shelf."

Harry finally found the culprit. It was none other than the Sorting Hat.

"Hi. How're you doing?" Harry asked, carefully looking around the room and finding no one else, not even Fawkes.

"I'll survive. What about you Mr Potter? How have you been?" asked the Sorting Hat.

"I'm still among the living. So, that has to count for something given the circumstances." said Harry, wandering around the office.

"I see. Headmaster Dumbledore will be here momentarily. You are welcome to take your seat."

Harry hummed noncommittally but otherwise remained standing. He went straight for the open shelf holding a collection of books in the corner of the office. It was a concise collection of books but most of the books were the rarest of the rare. A whole section of books was dedicated to Alchemy alone.

As he traced every nook and corner of the office he came across a glass cabinet covered with a cotton cloth.

'That's new.' Harry thought, moving closer to the glass cabinet.

Once he removed the cotton covering the glass cabinet, silver light flooded the room. A shallow stone basin was inside the cabinet littered with overlapping and intertwining runes. Some of the runes were so small he was sure only a magnifying glass could properly identify them. However, the silver light came from the contents inside the stone basin. It was silver water flattering away as if it came down from the crucible of the stars. There was also a cloud of white vapour swirling around inside the silver liquid.

'A memory.' Harry realized.

There was no doubt. The stone basin was undoubtedly a Pensive. The urge to see the memory inside the pensive was there in his mind but he suppressed that urge. He'd not play into Dumbledore's hands. The man was obviously monitoring the office somehow and he was sure the Headmaster didn't leave the pensive here by happenstance.

'Nothing happens in Hogwarts by coincidence. There's always a plan afoot.' Harry thought.

He covered the glass cabinet with the cotton sheet and took a seat facing the Headmaster's office desk. On the desk, the Sword of Gryffindor lay proudly showing off its indestructible silver blade made of Goblin forging techniques. Its blade was not just indestructible but also poisonous enough to kill a dragon.

'Quite deadly just as it was in Gryffindor's hands.' Harry thought, disregarding the modern interpretation of wizarding history which paints Godric Gryffindor as some saintly figure.

"Ah, Harry. Forgive my tardiness. I was otherwise engaged with my guests." said Dumbledore, entering the office making Harry turn around in his seat.

Dumbeldore was not alone. There was a group of three following the Headmaster. Harry immediately recognized the witch dressed in pink robes. It was none other than Dolores Umbridge. He gathered the other two were Aurors.

"Mr Potter. We meet at last. I'm Delores Umbridge. It was my wish that you be present here despite Headmaster Dumbledore's wishes." said Umbridge, a simpering smile on her face.

"Charmed to meet you, ma'am. If you don't mind me asking, why am I here?" asked Harry, looking curiously at the woman.

"Well, you see Mr Potter. I've been charged by the Minister to oversee the investigation into Bartemius Crouch's disappearance and his further illegal acts. The trial of Mr Black exposed Crouch's illegal activities. I suspect he was not just involved in the wrongful incarceration of Mr Black but also responsible for your entry into the Tri-wizard tournament."

Harry blinked a few times looking uncomprehendingly at the woman who smiled indulgently at him. It took him a moment to realize the Ministry was dumping all the blame on Crouch's head and washing their hands off the issue. Crouch was the perfect scapegoat. The man was unamusing and strict. He has no friends in the Ministry and most importantly the guy was part of the old regime. Blaming everything on Crouch would absolve the present regime politically. At least, that's how they'd present the plot to the people.

All things considered, it was a smart move. Harry was not going to challenge the findings of Umbridge. Mostly because there was no point. If the official Ministry version puts the blame on Barry Crouch Sr for Harry's entry into the Tournament he was quite happy. Barry Crouch Jr's exposure would only strengthen the Ministry version forcing them to stick to their current story in the future. That should neatly avoid any allegations sticking to his name in the future.

So, Harry stood up with a warm and welcoming smile on his face.

"I appreciate your candour, ma'am. Now that you have identified the culprit I hope the Ministry will promptly capture Mr Crouch and bring him to justice." said Harry, showing his appreciation by dipping his head respectfully.

"Of course. The Ministry will promptly bring Mr Crouch to justice. We do not tolerate such unscrupulous characters in the Ministry." Umbridge replied cheerfully with an air of importance around herself as if she was personally about to capture Crouch. "However, there is one thing. I have some questions for you. It will be helpful to my investigation."

"Of course. Please ask away." said Harry, waving his hand in a welcoming gesture.

"Thank you, Mr Potter. When was the first time you met Mr Crouch?" Umbridge asked while an Auror quickly took out a quill and began scribbling down on a notepad.

"I met Mr Crouch at the Quidditch stadium where Ireland was playing against the Bulgarians."

"Have you ever conversed with Mr Crouch?"

"I have not ma'am. I was however present when Mr Crouch explained the rules of the Tournament after my name came out of the Goblet of Fire." Harry answered while Umbridge nodded before skipping to her next query.

"It is the Ministry's opinion and mine as well that Mr Crouch intended to endanger you by illegally entering you into this tournament. While some do not share this opinion..." Umbridge eyed Dumbledore who was calmly sitting at his seat behind the table. "...we at the Ministry strongly believe so."

Clearing her throat Umbridge turned her back on Dumbledore and her beady eyes bored into Harry's green eyes.

"You've been extremely cooperative and helpful so far Mr Potter. Now, I ask you, is there anything else you want to tell me? Anything at all?" Umbridge asked earnestly putting on an act of a concerned aunt.

'She's good when she's not a psychotic child abuser.' Harry thought.

Truth be told he had quite a lot of stuff he needed to say to Umbridge. Not that he mistook her act as a genuine desire to help out a teenage kid caught up in a situation well out of his control or anything.

No. Instead, he saw her for what she truly was. A cutthroat politician looking to undermine her 'enemy' in some way. She was fishing for something to use against Dumbledore. Unfortunately, Harry was not in a position to divulge anything significant that could harm Dumbledore especially when the man was sitting three feet from him. Though, Harry was incapable of throwing a bone at the woman he could still reassure her of her faith that her 'enemy' was none other than Dumbledore.

So, Harry carefully strayed his eyes from Umbridge to look at Dumbledore. He hoped he put the right amount of questioning look on his face before he abruptly jerked his eyes back to Umbridge. He could see a flash of understanding being lit in Umbridge's eyes. If he was correct, Umbridge would assume he was fearful of Dumbledore and the Headmaster has something to hide. Umbridge was certainly not coming to this realization at that moment. She was already suspicious and holds some unsavoury views about Dumbledore. Harry was merely reinforcing her beliefs and pointing her against Dumbledore.

"I think that's about it, Mr Potter. I thank you for your cooperation." said Umbridge, a satisfied smile adorning her face.

"Glad to be of assistance, ma'am." Harry, tacitly replied.

Harry observed as a silent spectator as Umbridge exchanged some meaningless pleasantries with Dumbledore before taking her leave along with the two Aurors using the floo. Now, it was just Harry and Dumbledore in the office.

"Tell me, Harry. Has anything happened that should be brought to my attention?" Dumbledore asked all of a sudden.

"Well, I can't think of anything out of the ordinary." Harry answered keeping a straight face.

He got the feeling Dumbledore was fishing for something. Exactly what, he had no idea.

"I see. If there is nothing else then I won't keep you away from your preparations for the Third Task." said Dumbledore, a clear dismissal if nothing else.

Harry didn't dally around. He took the offered chance and bolted out of the office. But, instead of continuing the training, he went straight for the kitchens. Training could come later. He was quite famished. The elves might be open to offering him some biscuits and tea if he asked nicely. Besides, as far as training was concerned he only needed to practice some of the jinxes Hermione picked out for him from the library. The rest of the plan was coming along smoothly. He was ready to take on the Third Task and Voldemort. Time would tell whether his preparation was enough.