Chapter 172: Chapter 172: Chaotic Retribution
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28 November 1993, Hogwarts
Harry sat in his common room, mindlessly reading his new translated tome. Alas, his spirit just wasn't in it. He wasn't even paying attention to the words on the page he had been looking at for the better part of an hour; his mind was preoccupied with the events of the previous night.
Dumbledore's announcement changed things and Harry was never fond of change. There had always been something soothing about having a routine of some sort. Of course, Harry's routine in the past few years was far from average. He met an enemy, studied them, prepared some kind of counter plan, defeated them without getting too much recognition, and went on with his life. The last Potter was fully prepared for his future conflict with Sirius Black to follow that trend and he was perfectly fine with that.
The lack of recognition never really bothered him. Harry never understood people's obsession with fame. Fortune, he could get. After all, gold provided some kind of financial security for your family and descendants, but fame… It was just too cumbersome. Who would want to have their every move constantly watched? Who would want to be bothered constantly with what society expects of them, of how they should behave, even in private?
What Harry craved was not fame and recognition, it was to be remembered. To leave a mark in the world that even thousands of years later, people would still remember his name. He didn't want to be a Dark Lord or a Light Lord, there were too many of those. No, Harry wanted to change the world, change how people would think of magic. It wasn't an easy dream to have, but what value would dreams have if they were easy to achieve?
So, being recognized as the next Dark Lord or the next Light Lord did not appeal to Harry in any way, and yet it was what Dumbledore was pushing him to become. The man must have puzzled that Harry liked his privacy and decided to shine a light on him. It was an easy deduction to make that Harry would have no interest in joining the European school tournament the following year and had made a move to forcibly drag Harry to the spotlight.
There were no logical reasons as to why he made the school tournament mandatory, and why he specifically chose to include third-year students or older. Alright, after some ponderation, he would admit to seeing a point as to why he made the participation mandatory since barely more than a couple of students per year would join. A contest with barely ten contestants wouldn't have been entertaining enough to sell tickets, making the event profitable for the school. The man was obviously banking on parents coming to watch their children compete.
But he should have left it at OWL students and up because a duelling championship between a third-year and a seventh-year would definitely not be entertaining to watch. If he had to guess, Dumbledore was going to group each task by school year to make it competitive enough to be entertaining, even if a duelling match between Ron Weasley and Vincent Crabbe would be anything but entertaining to watch…
The only reason Harry could see the headmaster choosing that particular year would be either because he was making plans regarding Harry or plans regarding Longbottom. Maybe it could even be both and wasn't that a disturbing thought?
Furthermore, the headmaster could technically justify holding the contest for the upper years in the guise of finding talented wizards and witches to push into being the school champions the following year. That's not to mention that people couldn't possibly think that a task that a seventh year could achieve could technically be done by students four years their junior. Either the tasks will be too easy for the upper years, or they'll be too hard for the lower years. Finding a middle ground just wasn't a feasible idea, and Harry wondered how the headmaster planned to address those concerns.
Harry's contemplation was broken when his friends sat down next to him, looking just as troubled as the rest of the house. Yes, the previous night, the members of House Slytherin returned to their common room with frowns on their faces, looking perturbed at the idea of being forced to participate in a school tournament that might severely impact their futures.
A few idiots were happy at the opportunity to showcase their skills, and OWL and NEWT students would fight tooth and nail for the chance at a higher grade. Technically, the winner of the three tasks could raise a failing grade into an outstanding one, something that Harry just couldn't see the Department of Magical Education agreeing with. Perhaps, they could only raise one grade in a single subject? There had to be some kind of caveat.
Back to his friends, Blaise was looking at him with a frown on his face, "So, what are we going to do?"
Harry shrugged, "I do not know. I can't make a plan without knowing the full details of the competition. Like what would happen if one were to not compete, or if one could forfeit. There are just too many unknowns to make any concrete decision."
And wasn't that the truth? Harry literally had no idea about what he should do, because there was no information about what he could do. Oh, he had come up with enough plans to fill a book, but they were all based on his own deductions of the tournament's rules.
Tracy wasn't convinced, "So, we'll just follow along the headmaster's wishes like good little ducklings…"
"I never said that. We need to learn more about the tournament's rules before making a decision."
Daphne gave him a hesitant look, "We could just not compete…"
Harry shrugged, "If that was an option, Dumbledore wouldn't have said that it was mandatory. I think he's planning on removing most of the Hogwarts privileges and giving very long detentions to people who just choose not to participate. That's not mentioning the fact that he'll probably bank on upper years pushing younger students to do it by adding some severe house point penalties if you don't show up, which would guarantee that their house would lose the house cup, which is an easy way to get fourth and sixth years to target you. And outside of our year, people will probably want to participate in the tournament anyway."
"Why is that?" Tracy asked.
"Well, for the seventh years, it's a good way to present their strength and get noticed by some important people, for sixth years and fourth years, they'll want to get the highest scores possible for their house to win the house cup, since they'll be the ones to benefit the most from that next year. The fifth-years would be able to get an extra OWL grade per task, which is a very attractive offer. The only ones without any true reason to participate would be our year, but most of them are too tempted by the gold prize since they'll only technically have to compete with their year mates. And to be perfectly honest, the three of you don't have much to fear in this tournament, not like me, at least."
"And why is that?" Blaise asked while frowning.
"People will not watch you expecting something. I don't mean that as an insult, but the fact is that you're in your third year, and every single person here will forget all about your performance as long as it's not too good or too bad. You don't have that much to lose by participating, not like I do. People did listen to what Dumbledore said last summer, whether I like it or not. They're either expecting me to dominate the competition or be an average student. In both outcomes, they will remember me, either in fear since I would have confirmed what Dumbledore proclaimed in my hearing, or in disappointment, which will linger in their minds for years after I graduate. Either way, I lose."
His friends' eyes widened in shock, "I didn't think of it that way. Not that it matters, I just heard from Higgs that the court will decide on their nominations depending on our performance during the tournament."
Harry snorted, "Well, that's just being lazy…"
Tracy chuckled, "Call it whatever you like, but we still have a lot to lose if they don't pick us."
The last Potter rolled his eyes, he could tell where things were going, "You want me to train you…"
"We have never asked you for much, mate," Blaise responded, "And you do owe us for Hogsmeade."
Harry gritted his teeth at the reminder of the Battle of Hogsmeade. He would have agreed either way since they were his friends, but pushing this as a favor, when they were the ones who asked to join him the previous year, was just distasteful. That's not to mention that Tracy and Blaise's behaviour during the Hogsmeade attack rubbed him the wrong way. He would have been fine if they had just refused when he asked them for help in the preparation for the attack.
Still, he took a deep breath and calmed himself. Damn, teenagers were infuriating to deal with sometimes, "Fine. We'll go to the Room tonight after dinner. I'll prepare the three of you for the tournament."
Blaise and Tracy's faces brightened, and they hugged him, "Thank you, Harry."
When they let go, Tracy's stomach grumbled, and she excused herself to get her breakfast, Blaise quickly following after her. The moment they left the common room, Daphne looked at him with a frown on her face, "They're taking advantage of you…"
Harry shrugged, "Not an untrue statement, but a bit over the top, don't you think?"
"I can't believe they brought up Hogsmeade."
"They're not being thoughtful, that's for sure, but their actions are not malicious in nature. They're a bit bratty, but as I understand, it's a common thing for people their age…"
Daphne gave him a puzzled look, "I don't act like that, and neither do you…"
"We don't because we know better, because we have experienced more of the world than they have. I had that until I knew about your sister, your behaviour puzzled me. You were too mature, too controlled. People who experience the darkness of the world, who have a concrete goal that they would be willing to sacrifice nearly anything to achieve, well, they don't take things for granted. The situation with your sister is tragic, do not doubt that. But without it, you wouldn't have been the person you are now. You forged your entire core around the idea that you don't want to watch your sister suffer anymore. It's a beautiful purpose, pure. Blaise and Tracy have wanted to join the Court of Slytherin ever since they even knew it existed. But what is a glorified school club compared to your dream, your ambition, of seeing your sister safe and sound? That's what makes you different, Daphne Greengrass."
"What about you, Harry?" she asked with teary eyes.
"I was alone for most of my life. If I needed to learn something, I taught myself. If I needed money, I got it myself. If I needed to eat, I cooked for myself. I used to watch people, trying to understand their ambitions, their goals and dreams. And when I was very young, I discovered that most of them were just so boring. They wanted more wealth, more prestige, more recognition. It was all so pointless, compared to what they already had, and I decided that I won't settle for something so ordinary, so boring when I dream."
"And what is your dream," she couldn't help but ask.
The last Potter gave her a cheeky grin, "Spoilers…."
She hit his shoulder in frustration, "Come on, Harry. I told you about Astoria."
Harry's grin faded slightly, "Perhaps, one day I'll tell you, but not today. But let's talk about something a bit more interesting. I was starting to research for our lessons about curses. Do you want to get to the library before dinner to make a curriculum together?"
Daphne brightened at his suggestion, "Of course…"
As they walked out of the room, she frowned slightly, "Harry, you're not really helpless against Dumbledore's tournament, are you? You're going to find a way out, right?"
Harry smiled at the faith she had in him, "Of course I have a plan. I always have a plan. There is only one thing you can do when you're forced to do something against your will. When you have no other move but to do what you're told, you have to do it in a way that would hurt your enemies more than yourself."
"And how is that?"
"Tell me, Daph. Have you ever heard of malicious compliance?"
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