A/N: Here's the neter! Which also means the four chapters are up on my Patreon for early access as well as the ce to vote on the dire of the story!

  Harry spins Albus' head around. The Headmaster would be so proud if it wasn't being doo him~ -x-X-x- “Ah, Harry… please have a seat. Lemon drop?” “No thanks, Headmaster.” He could have teically met Dumbledore’s eyes and known beyond a shadow of a doubt that the older wizard wasn’t in his mind. His Occlumency was more than powerful enough to block even the most skilled Legilimens from accessing his thoughts. Hell, he hadn’t had a single ‘bad dream’ from Voldemort so far this year for a reason… though he might turn around and use that e to the Dark Lord ter on for his own purposes. Regardless, it wasn’t until after the Headmaster’s death in the inal timelihat Harry had realized just how much the man must have used Legilimency to skim the surface thoughts of those he spoke with in order to maintain that all-knowing fa?ade of him. Diving deeper to get at the really juicy stuff robably out of the question, but just some light surface-level reading could tell Dumbledore an awful lot and help him steer any versation he wanted in any dire he wao seer it. That said, Harry didn’t want to give the Hogwarts Headmaster even the slightest inkling of his Occlumency Shields. After all, Harry Potter, Fourth Year Student, wasn’t supposed to HAVE Occlumency Shields. And while he could have gone ahead and created a facsimile of what his mind should look like to try and fool Dumbledore, that wasn’t a guarahe Headmaster wasn’t known as one of the greatest wizards of all time for no reason. In the end, Harry didn’t have to try and fool Dumbledore… he just had to have an excuse outside of mind-reading for why he wasn’t willing to meet the Headmaster’s eyes. Thankfully, Harry had a ready-made excuse… ohat the inal Fourth Year version of him never would have thought up, but with enough time to mull it over in the years since, had felt more than appropriate. “Harry my boy? Is something the matter?” It’s rather out of character for him and Harry knows that… but heless, he offers a half-hearted shrug, tinuing to avert his gaze and not speaking immediately. He imagine Dumbledore’s brow furrowing in sternation. He also imagihe Headmaster ging tacks. Whatever he initially called Harry up here for, whether it was Rita’s article or any of the other strahings that have happened so far this year, Dumbledore knows full well that his retionship with Harry is paramount to making sure the boy does exactly what he wants him to do. … Though that’s a fairly uncharitable impression of the Hogwarts Headmaster and Harry knows it. As maniputive as Dumbledore is, he’s not a bad person. He’s not evil in the same way Voldemort and his Death Eaters are. But he is… ful. And as previously mentioned, maniputive. In all fairness, the death of the Wizarding World had e long after Dumbledore’s demise, so one could argue that it wasn’t his fault what had ultimately ended up happening. But one could alsue that it was Albus Dumbledore’s decades-long soft grip on the power structures of the Wizarding World that had ultimately left them all too pt to rea time. He, along with many others, had been ignorant of the dahat the Muggle World represented. Harry wouldn’t make the same mistakes they all had, now that he had this sed bsp;“Harry… if I’ve done something to upset you, please let me know. I care about you greatly, I hope you know that.” The funny thing is, Harry believes him. Dumbledore does care about him. He cares about all of his students, even the ones all but guarao turn out to be bad eggs. However… that doesn’t mean Dumbledore wouldn’t sacrifice Harry at the drop of a hat to remove the horcrux from his cursed scar. It doesn’t mean the old man won’t do some dastardly things for the sake of his Greater Good. Yes, Dumbledore cares. But that’s irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Still, he couldn’t stay quiet forever. “… I just don’t uand why my pulled out of the cup, Headmaster.” Moderating his tone so its just the appropriate amount of mulish and hurt, Harry makes a point of looking down at his hands and frowning in ption. Albus, meanwhile, is quiet for a moment before speaking. “That should never have happened, Harry. I believe that you didn’t put your name in the cup you know. You couldn’t have gotten past my Age Line I’m sure.” Harry scoffs at that, remembering something else Albus had said that night. “No… but I could have had someone else put my name in for me, is that it? That’s what they all think I did, even if you don’t Headmaster. But… why?” Another pause as Dumbledore no doubt furrows his brow. “Why, my boy?” Nodding, Harry looks off to the side, specifically at Fawkes the Phoenix. Some cimed that Fawkes was Albus Dumbledore’s Familiar, but Harry knew better. Fawkes and Albus were life long friends, but not familiar and master. Otherwise, Albus might have been able to use Legilimency through Fawkes’ eyes. Knowing that he couldn’t, Harry felt safe iending he was a hurt young man talking to the phoenix instead of Albus. “Why was that possible in the first pce? It doesn’t make sense, Headmaster. Everything I’ve heard about the Triwizard Tour says it’s supposed to be dangerous. Incredibly so. That’s why you put an age limit on things to begin with, right?” “… Yes, though you must uand that the Goblet of Fire is an a magical artifact, Harry. It has existed since long before our modern day sensibilities. The Age Line was supposed to keep aoo young from putting their name forth and thus being made to participate…” SLAM! Suddenly standing up, Harry sms his fist into the Headmaster’s desk and then immediately turns away, making it seem as though he’s doing so to avoid hitting the desk further or breaking anything. Pag the length of the room, Harry lets some very real anger leak into his voice as he demands answers from an aging Albus Dumbledore. “But WHY?! You say the Goblet of Fire is an a magical artifact! Are you saying it was designed with the iion of allowing just ao submit anyone else’s o it?! If this so-called a magical artifact is so damn powerful that it take my magic if I don’t participate, then why is there su obvious loophole? Why ’t it dis precisely who put in a name and force THEM to take part iour instead?! And more than that, how the hell did I get submitted as a fourth school in the first pce?! Obviously Cedric Diggory is the Hogwarts Champion… so what the fuck am I supposed to be?!” Finally ing to an end, a little out of breath and barely having to fake his anger, Harry keeps his back turo Albus and his fists ched at his sides. There’s a much longer pause this time, before he hears Albus rise from his chair. Harry stiffens at that, causing the Headmaster to stop aate for a moment before speaking from behind his desk, not immediately moving closer. “… Initial reports suggest that the Goblet was… founded, Harry. I suspect that was how someone was able to submit your name for you in your stead, and how they mao vihe Goblet that there was a fourth school peting iour.” Harry scoffs at that. That was the expnation st time too. And hey, maybe it was everuth. But holy… how the fuck did that even work? How did a washed-up Death Eater who’d spent over a decade in captivity uhe Imperius Curse found a supposedly a magical artifact? How had Barty Crouch Jr. do? Did Voldemive him some special pieagic that made it possible? Harry didn’t know… nor did he really care. The truth was, he was only as bound to the Goblet of Fire and this iour as he wao be. Being a partit suited his is for the time being, so he’d maintaihe e forced upon him by the draian magical tract that having his name shoot out of the Goblet had somehow created. But Dumbledore certainly didn’t o know any of that. “So much for an a magical artifact. If it be fouo let my name be put in the Goblet in the first pce, then it be fouo let me ght? And besides, isn’t it literally called the Triwizard Tour?! There shouldn’t even BE a fourth school allowed to pete!” As Harry rants with his back turo Albus, he feels the Headmaster slowly begin to approach. He pretends like he doesn’t notice Dumbledore until the Headmaster puts a calming hand on his shoulder, at which point Harry pretends to nearly jump out of his skin in response. He tenses up, ready to make a big show of st out of the office regardless of what Albus said … but to his surprise, the Headmaster mao actually catch him off guard and make him go still. “I’m sorry, Harry. I’ve failed you. If there’s anything I do to make it up to you, please let me know.” Now see, that was iing. Because as old as Dumbledore was, he still had plenty of power. It was like having a genie offer to grant you a wish. You didn’t just turn down such a thing. Especially seeing as Harry could hear the genuine triteness in the Headmaster’s voice. Whether Harry’s ranting and raving had been enough to prompt Dumbledore to take a good long look at what led them to this point or he was just feeling guilty… it didn’t matter. There was a lot Harry could ask for. There was also a lot he couldn’t ask for. He o be careful not to alert Dumbledore to his true iions… but he couldn’t pass up an opportunity like this. Anht not e along soon enough for his tastes. “… I want an iigation. A proper one by the DMLE, Headmaster. I want to know that the Head of the DMLE herself is aware of what’s going on here and that someone is trying to kill me this year… again.” He feel Dumbledore rock ba surprise at that. After all, involving the Aurors was the st thing Albus wao do. “Harry-!” Timing it perfectly, Harry jerks his shoulder out of Albus’ hand, taking an aborted step towards the door out of the Headmaster’s Office. That shuts the older wizard up for a moment, f him to resider his approach. Harry is fully ready for Albus to say no, of course. But… it would be an excellent step in the right dire if he could get aloh Amelia Bones. After all, while he’d only learned about it after her death in the previous timeline… in this timeline he could make use of the woman’s secret, just as he had Aurora’s. But if Dumbledore won’t cave, then Harry will just have to find another way to- “… I’ll see what be done, my boy. You must uand though, with visiting fn schools, bringing British Aurors on campus could be seen as… provocative.” Harry, because his back is hidden from the Headmaster, allows himself a small smirk at that. “Of course, sir. Wouldn’t want to upset them, would he? Not like they’re already upset because they think we’re cheating by having me pete or anything like that…” Dumbledoes quiet again at that before letting out a long, drawn-out sigh. “As I said Harry, I’ll see what I do.” It’s about as best as Harry is going to get, all things sidered. So he nods his head without ever turning to look at Albus, sidering his time here done. “Then I think that’s all we have to talk about for the time being, Headmaster.” And with that he just walks out. Dumbledore is so stuhat he doesn’t even try to stop him or call him baaybe the older man is just so taken aback by the versation he had that he needs a breather as well. Either way, Harry has successfully mao deflect from whatever Albus ACTUALLY wao talk about, at least for the time being. Eventually, he’s sure that the Headmaster will e back around to him, either mustering up the ce for another harrowing enter with a mulish and angry Harry Potter, or something else. Whether Albus will actually e through regarding the DMLE iigation or not… whether Harry will actually get a face to face with Amelia Bones or not… well, that’s very much up in the air. And somehow, Harry suspects its uo happen before the First Task two weeks from now. All things sidered, two weeks isn’t long at all for much more to happen save for the First Task itself. Then again, Harry had made a bet with Fleur Decour. A bet he had every iion of winning. He didn’t quite know what he was going to do with the beautiful vee yet of course… nothing too humiliating, he would make sure of that. But even still, he wasn’t going to let her beat him. That just wasn’t in the cards. However, that did mean Harry had a decision to make. He COULD go out and rush the quest of one more wit the wo weeks. There were a couple of options in Hogwarts itself that would prove to be child’s py to bind to him, either because they were rgely weak-willed or because they were already loyal to him in the first pbsp;That said, there was teically o rush. Harry khe First Task like the back of his hand. He knew he against dragons and if everything stayed true to form, he would be up against the worst of the lot, the Hungarian Horn-Tail. But Harry wasn’t afraid. Even with just two bindings, he was far more powerful than he had been at this point in the inal timeline. And far more knowledgeable as well. As well, if he fucked Aurora arix more over the wo weeks he could further solidify the bindings so to speak, giving him easier access to their magibsp;It wouldn’t be resting on his urels to just… rex for these wo weeks. It would be preparing for the First Task in the same way going for a third binding would be. They were just two different paths and Harry had to choose. Get ready to make Fleur eat his dust by letting the bindings he already had settle a bit more… o for a third binding to up his pht before the First Task arrived? -x-X-x- The Patreon Vote: [X] Spend the wo weeks solidifying his bindings on Bel and Aurora (sex with them) - 76%[ ] Spend the wo weeks rushing a third binding before First Task (sex with someone else) - 24%

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