Play to Your Strengths by Lady FoxFire

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The day of the third and last task had finally arrived and the atmosphere was more circus-like than the previous two tasks as people from all over arrived to see the last task. Merchants with portable shops hawked their wares as they wandered around selling items bearing the likeness of the Champions.

As the minutes ticked down to the start of the third task people started to head for their seats in the stands of the quidditch field. On the ground Hagrid, Professor Moody, McGonagall and Flitwick walked over to where the Champions and Bagman stood.

“We are going to be patrolling the outside of the maze,” McGonagall said. “If you get into difficulty, and wish to be rescued, send red sparks into the air and one of us will come and get you, do you understand?”

The champions nodded.

“Off you go, then!” Bagman said happily before pointing his wand at his throat and saying the spell that would magnify his voice. “Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Triwizard is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand! In first place with 85 points is Mr. Cedric Diggory of Hogwarts.”

The crowded cheer and applause for the current leader.

“In second place, with 80 points is Mr. Viktor Krum of Durmstrang Institute!”

There was more applause and cheering.

“In third place is Miss Fleur Delacour of Beauxbatons Academy with 76 points.”

Once again the crowd cheered and applauded for the Champions.

“And is last place,” Bagman’s voice changed from the happy, excited voice he used to announce the other Champions to that of voice a parent would use when a child was misbehaving and proving to be a disappointment, “is Harry Potter.”

The reaction to Harry’s name would be something Dean would be very familiar if he ever had to attend a game between Manchester United and Chelsea on the field. A few mothers in the stands were forced to scourgify charms on the mouths of their fellow audience members when they thought that the language they were used was too much for the young ears in the audience.

The other Champions had the decency to look embarrassed for Harry, to which Harry shrugged his shoulder as if to say that none of that mattered.

“So… on my whistle, Cedric!” Bagman said. “Three… two… one!”

Bagman blew the whistle and Cedric ran into the maze. A few minutes later he blew it again and Krum entered the maze. Then Fleur. After a long wait Harry was allowed to enter the maze.

Harry walked into the maze at a casual pace. He walked to the first place the maze split then turnaround and walked back to the entrance. A few feet from the entrance, he stopped and sat down. Using a bit of magic, Harry created a light and pull a paperback book from his robes and started to read.

Those gathered to see the start of the last task looked at each other and then at Harry and back at each other.

With a wearied sigh, Dumbledore left his spot among the other judges and walked over to the entrance of the maze. “Mr. Potter,” he said in a disapproving tone.

Harry looked up from his book. “Yes, Headmaster?”

“While you might find that book very interesting, I believe you have a task to complete,” Dumbledore stated.

“But I have,” Harry replied.

Dumbledore blinked a couple time at Harry’s comment. “Your task was to find the center of the maze and retrieve the cup before anyone else.”

“No. My task was to enter the maze and use magic of some type,” Harry pointed up at the ball of light floating next to him. “Now if I wanted to play your little game I would try to find the cup but honestly I really don’t care about any of it. Now if you will excuse me I need to return to my book. It seems Sam Vimes and I share a number of common aspects of our life. Namely being assassination attempts and dragons but his have a tendency to blow themselves up.”

And with that Harry turned back to his book and ignored any attempt by Dumbledore to talk to him.

It was almost an hour and a half before the first red sparks appeared over the maze. Less than ten minutes later another series red sparks brightened the sky.

If Harry had looked up from his book he would have seen McGonagall hurrying over to the judges. If he had been closer he would have heard McGonagall tell the judges how Krum had been found under the Imperius and how Delacour was found suffering the after effects of Cruciatus.

It was thirty minutes after the first set of sparks were seen when a third set appeared in the sky above the maze.

It was shortly after that, that Bagman appeared at the maze entrance.

“Potter,” Bagman called out.

With a sigh, Harry put his bookmark in place as he looked up. “Yes, Mr. Bagman?”

“You got an easy win now, kid,” Bagman said encouragingly. “The other Champions are out. You can win easily!”

“They’re out?” Harry said in confusion.

Bagman nodded his head. “Injuries and all that rot. You win! All you have to do is collect the cup.”

Harry nodded his head as he climbed to his feet. “Well in that case there is only one thing to do.”

And with that Harry pointed his wand towards the sky and shot off a series of red sparks.

Bagman stared at Harry in shock as Harry walked towards the maze entrance. “What… why?” he demanded as the maze started to disappear.

“Because I don’t care,” Harry answered. “I don’t care about this stupid tournament. I don’t care about your opinion or anyone else’s. I don’t care about fame or fortune. So bloody well piss off.”

And with that Harry walked past Bagman, towards the tent the other Champions were having their injuries treated in.

Bagman stared in the direction that Harry had walked away in before he turned to the other judges. “He doesn’t care,” he said simply.

Dumbledore shook his head sadly at Bagman’s announcement.

“It appears that my student has won,” Karkaroff said smugly.

Dumbledore looked at Durmstrang Institute headmaster in surprise. “If I remember right Mr. Diggory was ahead on points,” he said. “And he lasted longer in the maze than your student.”

“Yes. Yes, but it was undoubtly your Mr. Diggory who cast the Unforgivable on my student,” Karkaroff stated.

Dumbledore snorted. “I’m sure that once everything has been investigated, it will show that someone else cast that spell. After all the Diggory are a well know family of the Light.”

“Be that as it may, I must insist that we have someone investigate the attack on my student,” Madame Maxime said.

Dumbledore nodded his head in acceptance. “Very well,” he said. “Allow me to collect the cup before we summon the Aurors.”

Dumbledore turned and pointed his wand at the cup and cast the summoning charm. As soon as his hand touched the Cup, Dumbledore vanished with the Cup.

~*~

The disappearance of a famous and important wizard such as Dumbledore meant that the Ministry responded promptly.

It was only good fortune that one Auror, who had been sent to investigate Dumbledore’s disappearance, had been trained under and served with Moody so that when he saw the ex-Auror acting slightly odd he stunned the older man, assuming he had been under the Imperius the same as the Krum boy had been. It was soon discovered that the man that they believed was Moody was in fact an imposter. The Healers were quite surprised when the polyjuice wore off and revealed that the person was in fact was Bartemius Crouch, Jr., a person who was a known Death Eater and believed to have died a long time ago.

It was shortly after the discovery of the Death Eater at Hogwarts that Dumbledore reappeared. While the elderly wizard was relatively uninjured he was far from happy, in fact he was pissed off. His mood did not improve any when he learned that the man he had teaching his students for the year was not his friend Moody but was Crouch Jr. He was even less pleased to learn that Crouch Jr. had put Potter’s name in the cup and spelled the cup so that Potter name would come out of it. Dumbledore was livid when he further learned that Crouch had spelled the cup to become a portkey in the hope of kidnapping Potter and had used the Unforgiveable on the other Champions so that Potter would have a chance to reach the cup first.

The knowledge that a Death Eater had been impersonating Moody and arranged Potter’s name to be come out of the Cup so he could kidnapped him was on everyone’s lips at Hogwarts and be carried far and wide on the wings of owls as Fudge tried to cover up the truth.

When the Aurors finally questioned Dumbledore about his kidnapping, he would only admit that the portkey had transported him to a graveyard where he briefly battled a wizard before said wizard fled.

Of course with the knowledge that Harry was forced to participate in the tournament meant that Harry suddenly had a large number of friends again as each one of them swore they didn’t really believe Harry put his name in the Cup. There were some who could not forgive Harry for cheating in the first Task even when it was pointed out there was no rules against using Muggle items. It was simply not the wizard way to do things. And then there was Ron Weasley, who could not accept the fact that his best friend had left him at the bottom of the lake during the second Task and had not really tried to rescue him.

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Play to Your Strengths by Lady FoxFire [Reviews - 19] Chapter or Story Table of Contents - Text Size + The day of the third and last task had finally arrived and the atmosphere was more circus-like than the previous two tasks as people from all over arrived to see the last task. Merchants with portable shops hawked their wares as they wandered around selling items bearing the likeness of the Champions. As the minutes ticked down to the start of the third task people started to head for their seats in the stands of the quidditch field. On the ground Hagrid, Professor Moody, McGonagall and Flitwick walked over to where the Champions and Bagman stood. “We are going to be patrolling the outside of the maze,” McGonagall said. “If you get into difficulty, and wish to be rescued, send red sparks into the air and one of us will come and get you, do you understand?” The champions nodded. “Off you go, then!” Bagman said happily before pointing his wand at his throat and saying the spell that would magnify his voice. “Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Triwizard is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand! In first place with 85 points is Mr. Cedric Diggory of Hogwarts.” The crowded cheer and applause for the current leader. “In second place, with 80 points is Mr. Viktor Krum of Durmstrang Institute!” There was more applause and cheering. “In third place is Miss Fleur Delacour of Beauxbatons Academy with 76 points.” Once again the crowd cheered and applauded for the Champions. “And is last place,” Bagman’s voice changed from the happy, excited voice he used to announce the other Champions to that of voice a parent would use when a child was misbehaving and proving to be a disappointment, “is Harry Potter.” The reaction to Harry’s name would be something Dean would be very familiar if he ever had to attend a game between Manchester United and Chelsea on the field. A few mothers in the stands were forced to scourgify charms on the mouths of their fellow audience members when they thought that the language they were used was too much for the young ears in the audience. The other Champions had the decency to look embarrassed for Harry, to which Harry shrugged his shoulder as if to say that none of that mattered. “So… on my whistle, Cedric!” Bagman said. “Three… two… one!” Bagman blew the whistle and Cedric ran into the maze. A few minutes later he blew it again and Krum entered the maze. Then Fleur. After a long wait Harry was allowed to enter the maze. Harry walked into the maze at a casual pace. He walked to the first place the maze split then turnaround and walked back to the entrance. A few feet from the entrance, he stopped and sat down. Using a bit of magic, Harry created a light and pull a paperback book from his robes and started to read. Those gathered to see the start of the last task looked at each other and then at Harry and back at each other. With a wearied sigh, Dumbledore left his spot among the other judges and walked over to the entrance of the maze. “Mr. Potter,” he said in a disapproving tone. Harry looked up from his book. “Yes, Headmaster?” “While you might find that book very interesting, I believe you have a task to complete,” Dumbledore stated. “But I have,” Harry replied. Dumbledore blinked a couple time at Harry’s comment. “Your task was to find the center of the maze and retrieve the cup before anyone else.” “No. My task was to enter the maze and use magic of some type,” Harry pointed up at the ball of light floating next to him. “Now if I wanted to play your little game I would try to find the cup but honestly I really don’t care about any of it. Now if you will excuse me I need to return to my book. It seems Sam Vimes and I share a number of common aspects of our life. Namely being assassination attempts and dragons but his have a tendency to blow themselves up.” And with that Harry turned back to his book and ignored any attempt by Dumbledore to talk to him. It was almost an hour and a half before the first red sparks appeared over the maze. Less than ten minutes later another series red sparks brightened the sky. If Harry had looked up from his book he would have seen McGonagall hurrying over to the judges. If he had been closer he would have heard McGonagall tell the judges how Krum had been found under the Imperius and how Delacour was found suffering the after effects of Cruciatus. It was thirty minutes after the first set of sparks were seen when a third set appeared in the sky above the maze. It was shortly after that, that Bagman appeared at the maze entrance. “Potter,” Bagman called out. With a sigh, Harry put his bookmark in place as he looked up. “Yes, Mr. Bagman?” “You got an easy win now, kid,” Bagman said encouragingly. “The other Champions are out. You can win easily!” “They’re out?” Harry said in confusion. Bagman nodded his head. “Injuries and all that rot. You win! All you have to do is collect the cup.” Harry nodded his head as he climbed to his feet. “Well in that case there is only one thing to do.” And with that Harry pointed his wand towards the sky and shot off a series of red sparks. Bagman stared at Harry in shock as Harry walked towards the maze entrance. “What… why?” he demanded as the maze started to disappear. “Because I don’t care,” Harry answered. “I don’t care about this stupid tournament. I don’t care about your opinion or anyone else’s. I don’t care about fame or fortune. So bloody well piss off.” And with that Harry walked past Bagman, towards the tent the other Champions were having their injuries treated in. Bagman stared in the direction that Harry had walked away in before he turned to the other judges. “He doesn’t care,” he said simply. Dumbledore shook his head sadly at Bagman’s announcement. “It appears that my student has won,” Karkaroff said smugly. Dumbledore looked at Durmstrang Institute headmaster in surprise. “If I remember right Mr. Diggory was ahead on points,” he said. “And he lasted longer in the maze than your student.” “Yes. Yes, but it was undoubtly your Mr. Diggory who cast the Unforgivable on my student,” Karkaroff stated. Dumbledore snorted. “I’m sure that once everything has been investigated, it will show that someone else cast that spell. After all the Diggory are a well know family of the Light.” “Be that as it may, I must insist that we have someone investigate the attack on my student,” Madame Maxime said. Dumbledore nodded his head in acceptance. “Very well,” he said. “Allow me to collect the cup before we summon the Aurors.” Dumbledore turned and pointed his wand at the cup and cast the summoning charm. As soon as his hand touched the Cup, Dumbledore vanished with the Cup. ~*~ The disappearance of a famous and important wizard such as Dumbledore meant that the Ministry responded promptly. It was only good fortune that one Auror, who had been sent to investigate Dumbledore’s disappearance, had been trained under and served with Moody so that when he saw the ex-Auror acting slightly odd he stunned the older man, assuming he had been under the Imperius the same as the Krum boy had been. It was soon discovered that the man that they believed was Moody was in fact an imposter. The Healers were quite surprised when the polyjuice wore off and revealed that the person was in fact was Bartemius Crouch, Jr., a person who was a known Death Eater and believed to have died a long time ago. It was shortly after the discovery of the Death Eater at Hogwarts that Dumbledore reappeared. While the elderly wizard was relatively uninjured he was far from happy, in fact he was pissed off. His mood did not improve any when he learned that the man he had teaching his students for the year was not his friend Moody but was Crouch Jr. He was even less pleased to learn that Crouch Jr. had put Potter’s name in the cup and spelled the cup so that Potter name would come out of it. Dumbledore was livid when he further learned that Crouch had spelled the cup to become a portkey in the hope of kidnapping Potter and had used the Unforgiveable on the other Champions so that Potter would have a chance to reach the cup first. The knowledge that a Death Eater had been impersonating Moody and arranged Potter’s name to be come out of the Cup so he could kidnapped him was on everyone’s lips at Hogwarts and be carried far and wide on the wings of owls as Fudge tried to cover up the truth. When the Aurors finally questioned Dumbledore about his kidnapping, he would only admit that the portkey had transported him to a graveyard where he briefly battled a wizard before said wizard fled. Of course with the knowledge that Harry was forced to participate in the tournament meant that Harry suddenly had a large number of friends again as each one of them swore they didn’t really believe Harry put his name in the Cup. There were some who could not forgive Harry for cheating in the first Task even when it was pointed out there was no rules against using Muggle items. It was simply not the wizard way to do things. And then there was Ron Weasley, who could not accept the fact that his best friend had left him at the bottom of the lake during the second Task and had not really tried to rescue him. Previous Next You must login (register) to review.

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