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HP: Harry From The Ancient House Of Black [ Chapter 28 ]
🕑 Added 2024-10-28 11:02:14 +0000 UTC"I just wanted to say good luck Aries," Arianna began in Spanish, no doubt to keep Daphne ignorant.
"Do not be a showman, defeat your challenge and return back to me safely. Or else." She hugged him fiercely and planted a soft kiss on his cheek before she walked to where Haydn and Ivan waited for him.
The two boys, along with Draco, had already wished him luck, preferring a pre-celebration last night over a few shots of firewhiskey rather than with sentimental words. It was just another reason why he honestly liked the three boys.
"Well, no doubt she'll be upset to know that I in fact do know Spanish. Or at least enough." Daphne said with a grin.
She took a step closer and Aries wondered if she might kiss him, but she gave him a tight hug, and kissed his left cheek softly.
"Good luck Aries." She gave him a sly smile before heading over to her friends as well.
Aries should have known he'd land himself in this predicament and the conversation he knew he should have with Arianna was beginning to become an absolute necessity.
If it came to a duel between the girls even he wasn't sure who he would choose.
Arianna was his friend, hell almost like a sister to him, but Daphne provided so much more and could prove invaluable to his future plans.
Now was not the time to consider this, and like so many other things, he pushed it to the back of his mind.
Unlike with the Weighing of the Wands, Aries was the last champion to enter. The other three were clearly nervous and he was proud of the calm demeanor he projected. Bagman noticed his entrance and pulled out a small purple silk bag.
"Well now that we're all here, time to fill you in! I'm going to offer each of you this bag from which you will each select a small model of the thing you are about to face!”
“There are different, ah, varieties, you see. And I have to tell you something else too, ah, yes, you task is to collect the golden egg!"
None of the champions reacted as Bagman probably would've hoped, though Diggory had begin pacing while looking slightly green. "Ladies first."
Fleur reached inside the bag and pulled out a perfect tiny model of a dragon, the Welsh Green to be exact. It had the number two around his neck.
Next Diggory reached inside, pulling out the Swedish Short-Snout, the number one tied around its neck. Now it was Aries' turn.
He reached into the bag and felt a rather large model claw onto his hand and he pulled out a menacing looking grey dragon, the Ukrainian Iron-Belly, with a three around its neck.
That left the Hungarian Horntail for Potter meaning that the two younger champions would face two of the most dangerous dragons in the world.
The idea sent Aries' blood racing and he wished that he could be the first two go.
He noticed that Bagman pulled Thomas aside, and he could not help but wonder if Bagman's gambling problem would influence the tournament.
Aries played idly with the model of his dragon while Diggory and Delacour fought the real-life size of theirs.
The screams and cheers of the crowd passed him by without a care and he chose to ignore Potter's annoying pacing.
Somewhere in his mind, he registered that Bagman was commentating, but he paid the man no mind. He wanted to focus on the adrenaline and the desire to win.
At last the third canon sounded and it was the Black Heir's turn. A stasis spell froze the model which he pocketed, it would be a good memento from the task.
The stadium was more like a coliseum, the students and staff were raised high, looking down on the rocky ground that awaited him.
It was the size of the dragon that struck him first. Ivan had found many interesting books on dragons, but somehow the descriptions paled in comparison to the actual thing.
Aries scanned the crowd and made eye contact with von Reich, who looked at him not with pride, but expectancy.
He had made up his mind at that moment and a stinging hex to the dragons tail got its attention.
The Ukrainian Iron-Belly turned, its massive steps sending tremors through the ground, and roared mightily at him.
Aries showed no fear and sent another stinging hex, finally getting the reaction he wanted. The great dragon opened its jaws and unleashed a stream of dragon fire at him.
The crowd gasped, and the screams warning of his impending death rang through the coliseum.
Aries thrust his left hand towards the stream of fire and swirled his wand around his head before slashing it across his body.
The dragon fire struck his hand and flared around him. Unimaginable heat threatened to overwhelm him, but he pushed against it with as much power as he dared.
He waited as the dragon fire continued relentlessly, causing the great swirling ball of fire around him to enlarge until at last the dragon yielded.
Aries focused on keeping control of the flame and drew his magic up to him. The barrier that he had long kept between himself and the storm inside broke, raging over him like a torrent.
He could feel the flame fluctuating, threatening to rip itself from his grasp as he wrestled the powerful magic into his control.
It tasted sweet in his mouth and everything became clearer as if the world itself was brighter.
Aries brought it under his control, power that he had never dared release in the presence of others and threw the dragon fire back at the dragon.
As he hoped, the dragon leapt back, using its powerful wings to push itself into the air, and the dragon fire struck stone, melting it.
The Iron-Belly landed but the ground was no longer stable, and it struggled to stabilize itself as it unleashed another torrent of fire.
