A/N: Here's the new Chapter! Which also ans the next four chapters are up on my Patreon for early access as well as the chance to vote on the direction of the story!
The Yule Ball was fun, but it cos with consequences~
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At breakfast the next morning, Hermione sits beside him, but not too closely. In fact, in the light of day, the brunette muggleborn almost seems a tad self-conscious about everything that happened the night before. Frankly, Harry is still processing it all himself. Things… certainly hadn’t gone to plan.
Oh sure, Harry had been fully prepared for the night to end with him and Hermione in bed together. Only if she wanted it of course, but if she did push for it, he definitely wasn’t going to say no, especially not when she was just as beautiful if not more so than he rembered from the original tiline on this evening.
However, he definitely hadn’t expected her to take him out to the gardens, find a secluded corner, and drop to her knees so she could suck his cock. A walk in the gardens to get away from everyone inside of the Great Hall had sounded like a wonderful idea, but everything else that had happened had been beyond his reckoning.
Including Fleur Delacour tracking them down. He’d known the blonde was watching from the mont she’d stumbled upon them, of course. He’d been well aware of just how much Fleur had been… observing him ever since that kiss. Harry fully understood that for her, he’d beco veritable catnip, a curiosity that she just couldn’t let go.
That said, he hadn’t anticipated her leaping into the fray like she had. When she’d found them in that corner of the gardens, with Hermione on her knees sucking his cock, Harry had expected Fleur to watch or leave in a huff. He hadn’t expected her to try to involve herself in everything.
Still, all was well that ended well. The Beauxbatons Champion’s attempt at taking control and trying to assert dominance just because she was a little older (or so she thought) than him and Hermione… had failed completely when Harry made it clear he wasn’t going to take any of her shit. After that, he’d been magnanimous in allowing Hermione to bring Fleur with them to the Room of Requirent, where the three had… enjoyed their night together.
And yes, he’d refused to give Fleur the dicking she wanted. She got a couple loads of his cum, and she would just have to be happy with that for the ti being, because Harry knew full well what would happen once he properly fucked the part veela. She was obsessed now, but that was nothing compared to the sort of possessiveness she’d likely exhibit once she’d gotten more than just a taste of the real deal.
Perhaps after the Second Task was over, but for now he was content to leave her hanging, even after consummating his relationship with Hermione and claiming her virginity. It wasn’t how he’d thought it would happen, but he wasn’t about to deny Hermione when she’d asked him to fuck her silly.
Now here they all were the next morning. The Great Hall is relatively quiet, and sowhat sparsely populated. Everyone had partied rather hard the night before, and quite a few students had even gotten their hands on alcohol that had no doubt left them with hangovers galore.
So of those students were at breakfast with their heads down, mindlessly eating their food, but just as many seed to have decided to sleep in instead.
Fleur was there with a small contingent of her fellow Beauxbatons Witches, looking just as put together as ever. If Harry hadn’t known what she experienced the night before, he wouldn’t have thought she got up to any tomfoolery whatsoever. Of course, he could feel her eyes boring into the side of his head damn near constantly all the sa. Unfortunately for Fleur, he’s not giving her the ti of day at the mont.
“Harry… was last night… really okay?”
Looking at Hermione, Harry doesn’t hesitate to take her hand in his underneath the table. Interlocking his fingers with hers, he smiles at her.
“Did you enjoy yourself, ‘Mione?”
After a beat, Hermione hesitantly nods.
“Did you have a good ti?”
Another nod, though she also blushes and bites her lower lip. Possibly because of the question, but also possibly because he’s rubbing circles into the back of her hand with his thumb.
“Do you have any regrets?”
Hermione fully hesitates at that, and her eyes almost flicker over to where Fleur is sat with her fellow Beauxbatons Witches before she aborts the movent. It takes a long mont for her to decide, but eventually the brunette just shakes her head. No regrets.
Giving her hand a squeeze, Harry chuckles.
“Then it was more than okay, Hermione. It was perfect. You were perfect. Selfless as well. So really… you have nothing to worry about.”
Now Hermione is damn near incandescent, clearly not sure how to take Harry’s praise. Finally, she just ducks her head and smiles.
“O-Okay.”
No sooner has that interaction co to an end then the morning mail starts to flow in on the talons of owls. Quite a few of the owls simply circle around the top of the Great Hall for a mont, clearly not seeing the intended recipient for the mail they currently have. Those particular mail owls leave after a bit to return to the owlery.
But so owls find their quarry… including a large owl that lands in front of Harry and Hermione and steals a piece of bacon while simultaneously holding out its leg for Harry.
Raising an eyebrow, not entirely sure who is sending him mail, Harry takes the letter and wordlessly and wandlessly casts a diagnostic charm, making sure it’s not booby-trapped. It’s not, so he casually flicks it open, even as the owl takes one last strip of bacon and then flies away.
“Who… who is it from Harry?”
There’s no na. It’s not really a letter at all either. Rather, it’s a summons. A ti and place and nothing else, but the demand for him to show up is as palpable and obvious as it is unwritten. Harry still knows who it cos from imdiately though, of course. He’s just not sure what sort of ga she thinks she’s playing.
Giving Hermione an encouraging smile, Harry shakes his head and tucks the note away.
“Just sothing I have to take care of later, Hermione.”
Looking unconvinced, Hermione frowns.
“Is it anything I can help with?”
He actually does contemplate the offer for a mont… but Hermione isn’t ready to be introduced to that side of things just yet. Especially when he doesn’t know quite how this… eting is going to go. In the end, he just shakes his head again.
“Not this ti, Hermione. But don’t worry… there will be plenty I need your help with soon enough. Especially if we’re going to save the world together.”
He says that last part quietly, a re whisper for only Hermione’s ears before placing a kiss on her brow. Then, rising from the table, he gives her a nod.
“I’ll talk to you later, alright?”
“A-Alright…”
Then, as he’s leaving the Great Hall, Harry finally makes eye contact with Fleur Delacour… and smirks. The part veela imdiately flushes and averts her gaze, but it’s too late. Harry walks out of the Great Hall with his head held high, knowing full well that Fleur’s friends will have noticed and probably be all a-titter at the exchange.
anwhile… he’s gotta decide exactly what he’s going to do with one Rita Skeeter.
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It’s telling that Rita’s summons told him to et her in the Forbidden Forest, rather than in the Room of Requirent. Clearly, she’d convinced herself that the Room, and maybe Hogwarts in general, was his seat of power. Demanding a eting in the Forbidden Forest, removing him from that seat of power… it sent a very particular ssage, one that Harry wasn’t sure was intentional on Rita’s part.
But, intentional or not, Harry was nothing if not adaptable. And Rita was laboring under a misconception. No, Hogwarts was not the seat of his power. No, eting in the Forest or the Room didn’t make her any safer one way or the other. Because at the end of the day… Harry’s power was within him. And he took it with him wherever he went.
Arriving far ahead of ti at the eting spot in the Forbidden Forest, Harry isn’t surprised that Rita is already there, but in her animagus form watching from up in a tree. Obviously, Harry knew about her status as an illegal animagus, and Rita knew Harry knew. But there was a big difference between knowing that soone was a Beetle Animagus and locating a Beetle Animagus in the middle of a forest densely populated with all sorts of wildlife.
Well, a big difference for anyone but him, he supposed.
“Rita. I’m here. Do co out so we can talk like adults my dear.”
Harry pauses and waits, as silence falls around him. Really now… she wanted to play gas? He resists the urge to roll his eyes. He also resists the urge to do any number of things to force Rita’s hand. After all, why get his own hands dirty when he’d brought along back up this ti around?
Sending off an unseen signal, Harry remains where he is, knowing full well that Beetle Rita is focused entirely on him and him alone as he stands there in the center of the clearing. Right up until she isn’t, mostly because her Beetle form is suddenly gently but firmly pinned down beneath a large paw.
As an invisible Bellatrix in HER Animagus Form pins Rita in place, Harry watches the disguised reporter promptly freak out. First, Rita tries to escape from Bella’s hold, but that’s no good. Then, realizing she’s trapped, she goes still. Harry turns to her and the invisible greyhound and begins walking over.
“Really Rita. What is this? What are you playing at? What’s your ga?”
He stares down at the shivering beetle for a long mont before sighing.
“I suppose I can’t find out so long as you’re still in that form.”
He snaps his fingers and Bellatrix lets Beetle Rita go. There’s a brief mont of stillness… and then Rita transforms back into her human form, looking downright harried and frazzled as she glances back behind her, but still can’t see the invisible greyhound that pinned her in place so delicately but so firmly. Frankly, she’d gotten lucky. If Harry hadn’t given very exact instructions, Bellatrix probably would have pulled off a leg or two… and who knows how that would have affected Rita in her human form?
“You… y-you’re early. Hours e-early!”
Harry hums as he tilts his head to the side.
“So are you, Rita. I figured you’d be out here, waiting for . Probably wanting to make sure I didn’t spell the place to hell and back before you revealed yourself. Well, you know I haven’t done so now, don’t you? So let’s talk.”
Rita bites her lower lip for a mont, before clamoring to her feet. She looks behind her again, and then scowls at him.
“What was that?”
Rather than answer her, Harry just shakes his head as Bella prowls along invisibly in the background of this conversation.
“I can tell sothing has you spooked, Rita. Sothing has you running scared. Why is that? What has made you so… confrontational?”
Rita twitches briefly, before glancing off to the side.
“… I was there last night. I followed you and your date out into the gardens. I followed you, your date, and Ms. Delacour to the Room.”
Ah, he should have anticipated that. Though, Rita definitely hadn’t followed them into the Room of Requirent. If she had, he would have detected her. But no, she’d been smart enough to stay off his radar. Still, why was she telling him this?
“It’s the juiciest gossip I’ve gotten all year. Even better than the things you’ve told so far. The Boy-Who-Lived and his slutty muggleborn date getting down and dirty is good enough, but a nage de trois between them and the Beauxbatons Champion? That’s… amazing.”
Harry’s jaw clenches as Rita’s… Rita-ness shines through. He’d given her way better stories than this one. He’d given her actual scandals, real misdeeds, true injustices. Right now, she was associated with getting the Minister of Magic ousted, for fuck’s sake! And yet… she was here claiming that his sex life was juicier?
He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised. That was Rita Skeeter to a fucking tee. But he’d really thought she’d been changing for the better these past months.
Then again… maybe she had.
“If that’s true, Rita… why did I receive a note from you this morning, instead of having my dirty laundry blasted across the whole of the Wizarding World without so much as a ‘by your leave’?”
Rita twitches… looks away… and in that mont, Harry knows he has her. And not just has her asure but has HER.
“Is there sothing you want to tell , Rita? Sothing you want to confess?”
The venomous reporter scowls furiously at that, glaring daggers at Harry.
“You… you did this to . You’re right. I should have had the story written and published by this morning, before you could stop . Instead… instead I felt compelled to talk to you first. To et with you. You’ve… changed . I hate it!”
She even stomps her foot at that last bit, causing Harry to raise his brow in response.
“Do you really hate it, Rita? Or are you just afraid of what it ans?”
The poisonous blonde woman freezes as Harry steps closer to her. He doesn’t stop, moving right up in front of her and tilting his head to the side consideringly.
“All your life, you’ve felt invisible, Rita. You didn’t know how to make people acknowledge your existence any other way, so you turned towards tearing people down. You do everything you can to be seen, to be heard, to be acknowledged. You crave attention, you demand to be noticed, and you won’t stop until the world notices you, until they truly see you.”
Rita stares at him with wide eyes, mouth open but nothing coming out.
“And then I co along and give you so real stories. I give you information that doesn’t just set the world on fire, but also paints you in a better light than most have ever seen you. I helped you go from poison quill reporter to an actual journalist. Your work saw a corrupt Minister of Magic removed from power. It saw an innocent Lord of an Ancient and Noble House exonerated of cris he didn’t commit.”
Reaching out, Harry places a hand on Rita’s cheek and she instinctively leans into his palm.
“Rita… you’re not mad at . You’re scared. But you don’t need to be. For the first ti in your life, you have another way… a better way. All you have to do… is submit.”
He’d put this off for far too long anyways. He just hoped Rita could be persuaded… otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to let her leave the Forbidden Forest alive.
-x-X-x- The Vote: [X] Rita surrenders herself willingly, showing how much she's changed - 87%
[ ] Rita can't change, and won't change, forcing Harry to put her down - 13%
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