Unveiling Destiny: Harry Potter and the Triwizard Revelation

He thought he'd told Natalia before, and he was thinking it again, but Harry really could get used to this. Waking up in bed with Natalia, again, was just… wonderful.

It didn't have all that much to do with the fact Natalia had joined him in bed with only a tee shirt and knickers on, and although the shirt was long enough to cover down to the bottom of her arse's cheeks, even if barely, her shirt had ridden up during the night and was now most of the way up her torso. The lower part, almost two-thirds of her body was only covered by one small, delicate item of clothing.

Wonderful wasn't really a strong enough word for the sight before him… Amazingly wonderful?

Wow, his brain was totally not functioning properly this early if that was the best he could come up with. Perhaps it was the more centralization of blood flow keeping it from reaching his head, well, the upper one anyways…

It was funny that this was now the third time he'd 'shared' a bed with a girl and he'd been almost entirely chaste everytime. Even now, with quite a lot of her arse bared before him, as she was lying prone on her front, he could, ostensibly, run his hands all over it, maybe even get away with a few squeezes on her bare flesh. But, as before, he refrained from even doing that.

There would be a time and place for progressing their physical side along but Harry wasn't the kind of lad who would be taking something she hadn't explicitly offered. As much as he'd love to do what his mind was envisioning, it just felt wrong and he wouldn't succumb to his baser desires. Instead, he'd settle for the great position he was in now, watching the amazing beauty beside him sleep, admiring what was there to be seen, his eyes taking in her strong muscular legs and following up her hamstrings, to where the curve of her cheek met it.

He'd always imagined it would be a bit more plump or, like, more curved, but it was more of a toned curve than a rounded one. It's not like he was disappointed or anything, it was an incredibly enticing sight and he couldn't help his body reacting naturally to it.

This was something he hadn't really done before. When he had been around Fleur, even with her top off, he didn't have an opportunity to just stop and stare at the young woman's body and just take in everything he could about it. With Fleur, he had always been acting, his hands busy exploring, his lips occupied and his eyes entranced by her breasts and picking his next target for his hands and lips. Not that he hadn't enjoyed that immensely and that he wouldn't want to re-enact that with Natalia in the near future, very near, if he was fortunate.

This was just different. This was just more visceral and less physical, just an alternative form of delightfulness.

Harry's eyes were drawn up to her face as she turned her head, Natalia would've been able to see him now, if only her eyes had been open. With closed eyes, she yawned, arms rising above her head as she did so. Her lips elicited such cute little noises as the beautiful young woman's eyes began to flutter open.

Harry smiled, "Good morning, Natalia," he said softly and extended his arm so the back of his hand could caress her cheek.

Natalia nuzzled into the contact and murmured, "Mmm, that's nice." Harry kept if up for another half minute or so, and then, having gained confidence from her obvious enjoyment of what he was doing, he got slightly more adventurous, running his hand down the side of her neck, down her shoulder and then dropped down her side.

There wasn't any audible reaction but from the way she pushed her body into it, and kept creeping closer towards him, signaled her obvious approval. Harry decided that this had been more than enough encouragement and moved over himself before he turned his body, ending up on his side. Harry's arm now had far more reach, and thus access, to roam around her back. He let his hand slip down her side, until he hit the top of her knickers. Finding that, he used them as a guide to trace his fingers across to the middle of her back, just at the top of her arse.

Harry could feel his heart rate going up, and the more he caressed her soft skin, the more turned on he was becoming, it was like every few seconds things amplified. His hand continued to run along her back, going up and down, side to side, and his fingers splaying to get ahold of as much of her bare skin as possible.

Harry kept it up and he continued to push things little by little, and, coincidentally, of course, her shirt kept getting pushed higher and higher by his gentle ministrations. As he kept it up, he began being more adventurous still. His fingers began running further down her sides, trying to not be obvious that his fingers were trying to find where her side ended and her breast began. He tried to disguise it by running his fingers close to where her breast might begin and then keeping it in that line down her entire side.

Everytime he pressed to find that boundary, Harry swore he could feel her suck in a breath in heightened anticipation. The one thing he was absolutely sure of, was when he let a tiny bit of his fingers slip inside the back of her knickers, she would lift her hips and press into the new found contact. He'd hear her let out a tiny moan of disappointment when his hand would slide back up, but, with her clothes still on, and no express permission given, he wasn't willing to push things too far.

How long he continued to feel her body, how long he kept pushing the boundaries, he didn't know. He kept this up, always with her approval, but eventually, her slight moans and enjoyment weren't enough for her. Natalia rolled over and stared up at him full of burning desire, her head resting back on the pillow. She grabbed a hold of his arm and pulled him on top of her.

Harry swallowed as he looked down, her silk bottoms were dipped lower than the tops of her hips, though they didn't show anything but smooth skin. His earlier work, the gradual movement of her shirt up had caused it to be pulled taut across her chest. Only the bottom of the swell of her breasts had kept it from floating up higher. With the back of her shirt being raised higher, it made it look like her top was trying to slide up higher on her chest and was only barely held in place by the assets on her chest.

Harry almost licked his lips in anticipation, he descended down onto hers and felt her hands reach up to begin exploring his body and he quickly lifted off his shirt to better accommodate her desire. His green eyes looked down at her and then flicked down to her shirt before settling on her eyes again. The movements asking the question he dared not vocalize, but desperately wanted to hear, or see, approval of.

Both of Natalia's hands went to the hem of her shirt, crossing as they did so. Harry felt his heart begin to try and beat a way out of his chest. He could see that her nipples were hard and trying to poke out of the constraiting shirt. But, she didn't immediately pull it off.

Harry needily looked at her in question, silently asking if there was something wrong. She looked at him and a flash of concern went across her face and the hesitance was all Harry needed to know. He had wanted her to do it but it needed to be something that Natalia wanted to do as well, not just him. He wanted her but only if she wanted him to have her.

Harry placed his hands on her arms and then leaned down, gently holding them in place. He exhaled his disappointment and felt his heart slow. Softly, he kissed her, starting with her bottom lip, moving to both, the top lip and then following a straight line towards her ears. Harry stopped his lips from gently kissing her and whispered, "It's okay." He waited for her to say something, to contradict him and change the course their morning was now headed in, but it never came. He pushed her arms away, forcing them to release her shirt, and dropped his lips onto hers one final time.

Harry sat back up and looked down at her. His earlier need was ebbing; the moment had been locked, her hesitance had wrecked things. Now, he looked down at her but felt as though there was a barrier of awkwardness between them.

Their last kiss no longer matched their earlier intensity. He sighed and pulled away, rolling off of her, and flopping onto the bed beside her. He stared at the ceiling as his chest moved up and down, his blood pressure falling and his body normalizing. Disappointment welled up within him, after he had been so excited. He swallowed then blinked rapidly, willing his body to not react to that kind of rejection.

Maybe he'd pushed too quickly? But hadn't Natalia been the one to wear so little? Hadn't she been the one to roll over and slip her hands inside his shirt. If she hadn't wanted to do more, then why had she grabbed the bottom of her top? Why had she allowed him to slip fingers inside her knickers? Had she just backed out at the moment she was about to bare her breasts before him?

He stifled a groan and tried to turn it into a yawn, though it ended more like a sigh than a typical yawn. He quickly decided to get up and get on to breakfast, he didn't want to stay in bed with her anymore, even as her hand came to rest on his chest.

"Harry?" she asked, her tone shy and unsure, delicate, brittle even.

He didn't look back at her, worried her enticing body might be too much to resist coming back to, especially if she had taken off her shirt, after the earlier reluctance.

"It's time to get up. I'm hungry," he said quickly and threw on some of his training clothes, a shirt and trousers, the two articles of clothing he wandlessly levitated to him. After his talk with Dumbledore last night, he wanted to keep practicing it every second, as the more he did, the better he would get. Harry wanted to do it until his familiarity with it became monotonous.

"O-okay…" Her voice was even smaller and despondent.

Harry didn't turn back, he moved out of the bedroom and went to the study, where he normally took his breakfast. He arrived at the desk, where two plates with food already on it and a third plate, empty, in front of the second chair, sat. He knew Dobby hadn't put the food on it yet, as Natalia hadn't been just about to enter the room, he was weirdly efficient like that.

Cuddles was already in the room and was right in front of her plate of raw meat, a whole plateful of meat that was a couple inches thick. She quickly began roasting a small part of it with her breath and started to devour it.

Harry smiled faintly, there was something so comforting about his familiar. She was so trusty and always there for him, even when he was frustrated and a bit disappointed. Sometimes it was just hard to wrap his mind around the fact that he had a fucking dragon . Sure, she was all small and cuddly, most of the time, but if anyone saw her in the Forbidden Forest, if anyone had seen the destruction she was capable of, they'd know the sight of true fear, her maw open and turned to you, the back of her throat alight with the fires which were fractions of a second away from ending your pitiful existence.

Yet, here she was, his, and quietly eating atop his desk. It was strange, bizzare and her presence so, so, so comforting to him. Harry could just feel Cuddles when she was anywhere near his person. He gazed fondly at her and let his food grow cold as he just pet her and centered himself within her calming presence.

Harry heard movement behind him and went to greet Natalia with a reassuring hug, his previous disappointment was mostly gone and it wasn't like he was going to break up with her or anything. However, it was not Natalia who stepped into the office. It was Daphne.

Her eyes widened as he stepped into her personal space but when he backed up she asked, "Morning, Harry," she said, her eyes narrowing at his odd greeting, "Are you okay?"

Harry backpedalled and went to quickly sit in his chair. He noticed there was now a third chair at the desk, one which must have materialized while he was fondly watching Cuddles. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?" Harry replied hurriedly, now worried about Natalia walking in. Daphne wasn't normally here this early and how would it look to her?

"You just kind of took off, shortly after Dumbledore did his theatrics," her lips were pinched together and she shook her head slowly. "What did he say, or, why did he even do that?" she asked as she sat opposite him.

"Oh, just that he knows, or suspects, that I was behind Malfoy and that it was wrong to do. Then, you know, the usual," he shrugged and forked a mouthful of eggs.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him, elegantly, awaiting clarification as to what that meant.

Harry chewed his eggs and swallowed before answering nonchalantly, "Just a threat to ' end me '," he said, using air quotes with his free hand, "if I get to fifty rituals," he opened his mouth and shoved a generous helping of food into it.

Daphne blinked, then blinked again. For good measure she did it a third time, her face utterly blank before it morphed into latent fury, "He threatened you?!"

Harry shrugged again, enjoying this, "Yeah, compared me to Riddle and everything. Said he wouldn't let me become a monster, the third Dark Lord to rise under his watch. If I do too many rituals, even just one too many, he'd be coming for me," Harry said, and found it kind of odd how lightly he was saying it, even to his own ears. He didn't doubt that Dumbledore would actually try and put an end to him.

"And you just came here to sleep and aren't freaking out because ?" Daphne asked in a tone that was more than slightly incredulous, she still hadn't started eating her food.

Harry shrugged again, making a habit of doing that whenever Daphne asked him anything this morning, and finished chewing his food before answering again, "What am I gonna do? I don't plan to do fifty rituals. So, it's not like I should really be all that worried?" The last part came out as a question when she began to frown heavily.

Really, from everything he had read, it was NEVER in the plans doing more than the forty-nine. So, why would he ever, deliberately, do a fiftieth? It felt like an asinine worry to him. It's not like he was so anxious that he was going to do something like shoot himself in the head, he didn't own a muggle gun and never planned on purchasing one. What was he supposed to concern himself with that too?

Daphne had opened her mouth to respond but then closed it and adopted a look of consternation before shrugging and simply saying, "Okay." She then began to eat her own breakfast, which had generously been provided by the invisible, impressive, infallible and impeccable Dobby.

"Okay, just like that? No comment about Malfoy even?" Harry asked, disbelief of his own creeping into his voice.

It was Daphne who kept up the 'shrugging at questions routine' this time, humor dancing in her eyes, "It's not like you would have told him anything concrete and, as you said, you'd never do an extra ritual, so, what's there to worry about?" She held her stoic face for a few seconds and then began to laugh.

Harry began to as well and this was the scene Natalia walked in on, still only clad in a tee shirt, though this time it was one of Harry's clean quidditch jerseys accompanied by a fresh pair of back silk knickers. The combination was incredibly alluring and more risqué than the previous one, if the quick flash he had gotten was any indication.

Natalia's eyes widened and her head backed up in surprise, at seeing Daphne. She looked embarrassed for a second, pulling down the jersey to cover a little more, by way of stretching it, trying to preserve a tiny shred more of her modesty.

Suddenly however, she stopped, jutting out her chin and letting go of the shirt. Natalia took a few purposeful steps and wrapped herself around Harry's back and turned his head, by way of grabbing his chin, and then placed a heated kiss on his lips.

The suddenly confident seductress then sauntered to her seat, coming to a stop on the far side of the chair. Then, using some of her ballerina training, Natalia brought her leg up over the back of the chair, forcing her to twist around on a single foot and stretch airborne her leg up high. It just so happened to be the leg closer to Harry that went vertical and, in doing so, exposed, momentarily, an unbelievably flexible and unhibited view of her pantie clad crotch.

Harry had been watching her out of the corner of his eye but when her leg went up, he'd turned his entire head and his eyes had bulged at the view he was presented with. Natalia sat down as if that wasn't some outrageous display and began to eat her yogurt and granola with mixed fruit, a light yet hearty meal.

"Do you eat breakfast with Daphne often? I didn't see her the last time I slept over." Natalia asked and commented in a way that came across as trying to be too casual.

Harry was debating how to answer but Daphne beat him to it, he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not though.

"No, usually he's training in the mornings and I normally eat in the Great Hall. I grabbed a quick snack on my way here today, but Dobby apparently doesn't believe I've eaten enough yet," she answered sweetly.

Harry noticed her fare was lighter than both of the other breakfasts but it wasn't entirely meager. Daphne turned her attention to Harry and her far too innocent look worried Harry.

"You didn't tell me the dress code down here was just 'Harry's jersey and knickers'. Do you know if a thong would be okay instead?" she asked, putting her finger on her chin, her eyes wide and innocent as the young heiress made herself look as if she was in deep thought. "I much prefer them and it would be so much more comfortable to study down here for hours, all alone, with just Harry for company… it gets ever so stuffy in here, with the fireplace. I just didn't know that was an option for when I get, oh, so very hot."

Harry didn't know whether to groan in frustration, because a catfight might be breaking out here, or grin stupidly, thinking that two gorgeous girls might be in his jersey and a thong sans everything else. The latter prospect held the slight advantage and he sat there, frozen in his indecision.

"It's not a dress code but it is comfortable. You can join me if you'd like," Natalia challenged back, daring her to remove some clothes.

Harry did the smart thing here. He shut his mouth, adopted as blank a look as possible, no way in hell he was going to comment either way. If he eagerly said he would love to see more of Daphne's body, then Natalia might flip on him; and, if he declined, then that may upset Daphne. Honestly, Harry was learning; there were certain circumstances with women, where either answer would cause him trouble and he was getting to know how to avoid these situations altogether.

"Another time, perhaps. I don't have anything on under my pants and I'm not sure Harry could handle me in just a jersey," Daphne teased and gave Harry a saucy wink for effect.

"It's alright, I get you're younger and not as well developed . Or, maybe," Natalia stood, her eyes boring into Daphne's, "you're just ashamed of what your clothes are hiding." She was almost sneering now and placed her thumbs on the sides of her hips, pushing them down her bare skin and dipping them into the top of the sole article of clothing preventing her lower half from being fully on display. Slowly, staring at Daphne, she lowered them, scarcely a millimeter at a time.

Harry's eyes were glued onto Natalia's actions until something drew his gaze. His eyes sought the movement they'd caught and he saw that Daphne had taken off her outer robe and was glaring at Natalia, her chest jutted out and she took two steps, getting around to the side of the desk, advancing on Natalia like a predator stalking in for the kill.

Natalia didn't back down and stepped to the side, so she was directly in front of Daphne, her thumbs no longer moving down and, quite unfortunately in Harry's opinion, they had only lowered the edges of her black silk knickers an inch, not even enough to affect the height of the front or back.

As the two got closer to each other, Harry slipped his wand into his hand. As much as it might be awesome to see them fight, or perhaps lose more articles of clothing, he didn't want to let things escalate anymore. If this was the kind of thing he was going to have to get used to, if he married more than one girl, he may as well drop the idea. It wouldn't be worth these sort of headaches becoming a regular occurence.

Just as Daphne had taken another step forward, Natalia launched herself forward and wrapped Daphne up in a hug, giggling and laughing, Daphne doing the same, mirroring her actions.

Harry stared at them, bewildered. What had just happened?

The two separated and turned to face him, smiling, their faces filled with merriment and their body language totally relaxed, aside from the letting out of the last few giggles.

Daphne, who was smiling widely, her arm wrapping around Natalia, spoke up in explanation, "We planned this, Harry. Don't be upset," she said gently, as a frown formed on Harry's face, "I'm in contact with Natalia too and knew that her family was going to force her into her current predicament. The two of us secretly made this plan because if you had known about it, Ivan might've seen through false reactions."

Harry crossed his arms and stared down the two of them, his eyebrows furrowed as he stood. He widened his stance as Cuddles stopped her eating and flew up to perch herself on Harry's shoulder, her tail wrapping around the back of his neck.

"The Pavlov family wanted Natalia to vow to seduce you, and for her agreement, they'd fund the ballet production, thus, getting her away from them. In return, we also got them to swear to not interfere in her attempts at the seduction. Plus, the biggest concession was that if you found out about it, she would then be free to talk about it, though she'd still have to attempt to seduce you until they released her, or, you were married."

Natalia gasped and then looked so elated, free, happy. "Finally!" She cheered and hugged Daphne one more, giving her a kiss on the cheek as well, before she bounced over to Harry, intending to glomp him.

Cuddles let out an angry screech and puffed out a short burst of fire, stopping Natalia in her tracks. Harry's arms hadn't uncrossed and he, as of yet, was not mollified by their explanation.

Harry looked sharply at Daphne, "You've just told me you manipulated me, working with Natalia behind my back," he turned to Natalia, no less angry, "and you just agreed that you are trying to seduce me on your parents orders," he grit out, trying to not let his frustrations over take him. "What neither of you have told me, is how that whole plan is a good thing, for me. Explain."

Natalia, who had pulled back instead of continuing toward an upset and angry little dragon, was now looking abashed and winced at the harsh truth of his words. "Sorry, I guess we should have done that first," she spoke up shyly. "Sorry, Harry. Really," she added the last part with emphasis.

"The courting contract has a mechanism for knowing if we, err, do it. So, if you get locked into it and then they find out you have taken advantage of it, they will gain leverage in the negotiations." Natalia explained solemnly, her face mirroring her tone, as if she was willing for Harry to believe and trust her.

"Okay..and this?" He pointed to the two of them.

"Natalia had the idea and wanted to check it over with me, to make sure it would work. She put in the clause about being able to talk about it, knowing I would be able to tell you, the day after it went into effect, and we discussed how to not make the vow do anything that could actually be a problem," Daphne explained, her words still not satisfying Harry.

"I'm failing to see how going forward with this isn't going to be a problem. There are magical ways of seeing if someone is a virgin, whether I sign the courting contract or not," Harry said dryly.

"Don't you see it though? I promised to try and seduce you, I didn't vow I would, or even gave any timeline to it. I can keep trying to seduce you as long as you want me to, with no consequences for failure; plus, it's not like I don't want to do what we did this morning, and more," she smiled shyly again, realizing what she had just admitted to him, in front of another person.

"Except, you weren't all that interested in going further this morning," Harry pointed out, not reacting to her previous admission, though her point about not giving a timeline was a good one. That would be an effective way to prolong and essentially negate the oath. As long as she tried, or meant to eventually seduce him, the vow wouldn't really force anything on him at all.

Natalia huffed. "I was trying to make sure you knew this, so I didn't want to push things along and then have you thinking I was just doing it because of the vow," Natalia told him indignantly. "Vow or no vow, I've wanted to push things past just kissing for a while now," she exasperated, throwing her hands up and letting them drop. "You're too damn noble and I was worried about what my family could extort if we let them gain any sort of leverage over you. I only kept my shirt on because you didn't know about the vow yet."

Harry exhaled deeply. There was no use getting overly emotional here. Natalia's explanation made sense and would explain why one hand had wanted to go up while the other held the shirt in place.

"Look, Harry, I'm sorry. I didn't want to let any chance of them knowing that we turned their plans back around against them. We let you know right away and Natalia swore she would be careful before I had a chance to bring you into the loop," Daphne lifted her hands up, slight above her waist, palms forward and she ducked her head as she did so. "We weren't working on manipulating you or anything. We're just trying to protect you, honestly."

Harry grunted, satisfied with their answers but it didn't change his mood to suddenly be happy again. Cuddles huffed out a small fireball and then dove off Harry's shoulder, content to go back to cooking and eating the rest of her food, now that she didn't need to protect Harry any longer.

He sighed and looked over at Natalia, who was standing there, her hands clasped together and restless. He held out his arms and gestured for her to come closer. He stepped toward her and gave her a hug, running his hand down her hair soothingly. He released her and indicated, with a movement of his head, that he was going to finish his food.

"Thanks," he said sincerely as he sat back down and picked up his cutlery. "I'm a bit touchy when it comes to manipulation and what feels like betrayal," he offered as an explanation for why he had snapped at them.

"It's our fault as well. I could have told you last night or brought you in on it from the start." Daphne said, accepting his thanks but not excusing herself of her own part that contributed to it.

"I could have asked Daphne to tell you. I'm worried our books are monitored, based on some conversations with mother and father," Natalia looked sheepish and apologetic as well.

Harry nodded and waved it off, he was willing to look past it; he wouldn't know of every scheme and everything that affects him. He knew he would still be irritated but resolved to not let that bother him, they'd learn a lesson here or Harry would find out that it wasn't learnt and ensure it couldn't happen again.

"So I can't entertain the possibility of going all the way with Natalia, that's the plan then?" Harry didn't like how that killed the idea of doing the virginity ritual. Ever since he learned of that, he'd been wanting to make Natalia his. Never letting someone else sink their claws in Natalia. The very idea of it was something he abhorred, hated with every fiber of his being. If Natalia was to be his, then he wanted it to be all of her, not have her beholden to her family.

It was the same with Fleur. If he had agreed to take her as his only wife, then Harry knew he'd get all of her. She'd be his, fully his, and he'd never have to share her. The Delacour family would never deign to consider making their daughter swear Unbreakable Vows to their own greedy ends.

At the end of the day, if someone was going to be his, his wife, partner, and mate, then they'd be fully his. If any dared to try and take them from him, once they were his, if any tried to control them, then they'd feel his fiery wrath. A fully grown Cuddles would be the least of their worries because he'd only let her feast on their charred carcass.

It was an anathema to him, that he'd marry someone that wasn't fully his, and, yet, it made him feel duplicitous to think that way. That he would demand all of them, all their loyalty, all their magic, all their being and yet, at the same time, he'd be asking them to be okay with them sharing him.

But that wasn't completely true. In one sense, the obvious one, they'd be sharing him. At the same time, it wasn't quite so obvious. Harry would give each one of them all of himself, they'd get every fiber of his being. He'd love them with all that he was, he'd care for them as if they were the most precious things in the world, each of them, individually, would receive that.

It was funny how he had always thought of just having one wife, a couple kids, hopefully one of each gender, and then go to work at a normal job and do things like cut his grass and keep up his flower beds so he had one of the nicest homes on the blocks. It was something that had been born out of a twisted desire to prove Vernon and Petunia wrong.

Harry had wanted to show them he could do what Vernon could, but better. He had wanted to get a better wife than Petunia, prettier, more successful and with a child of each gender, something that Petunia was loath to admit she had desired and failed to achieve. His whole purpose for having a family was one born from his longing of having something he had desperately wanted as a child, something the Dursley family had ensured he had never had.

It had taken extensive discussion with Horace for him to understand that some of his worldviews were the result of an unhappy childhood. They had talked about how Harry wasn't a muggle, how he shouldn't be someone who should only aspire to be normal, adequate or average. He was Harry Potter, an extraordinary young man who had the ability to bring about changes to the wizarding world. So, why would he limit himself, why would he let his future be defined by muggles who were disgusting examples of human beings?

Horace had talked with him until he began to understand that the way he viewed the world, growing up, wasn't necessarily correct. That his mother had been somewhat like him, competitive and wanted to outdo her sister. Horace had to, with her and now Harry as well, point out that basing their goals around other's inadequacies was inherently wrong.

This was something he was still coming to terms with.

"Actually, I was thinking the opposite," Daphne said, breaking through his brooding.

Harry's head snapped up, completely spaced out, "Wot?"

"Well, the leverage that they hoped to gain on you is a double-edged sword," Daphne said with the grin he knew meant trouble for someone, often him, from having spent a lot of time together down in the Chamber.

"The Pavlov's believe that the contract will trap you and that they could sully your reputation by threatening to break off the courtship while releasing to the press that you two had been intimate. It has the potential to become a scandal, forever tarnishing your reputation," Daphne explained.

He mulled that over and saw an issue, "But they'd be breaking off the negotiations, not me," Harry pointed out that if they were going to try and make it into a scandal it would look much worse if his side was the one to break off negotiations. Their plan may have a weakness. Harry could go to the press and tell them that he wanted to marry Natalia and they were the ones to break it off, not him.

Natalia huffed out a breath and sulked, keeping silent, shooting Harry an apologetic look and turning back to Daphne, waiting for her to respond.

Daphne's eyes softened, when she returned Natalia's look, and she gave a slight nod to her, before replying. "They'd have already leaked out that you were making unreasonable demands, knowing that you'd first ruined her as 'spoiled goods' to future prospects."

"But with my word against theirs? With their reputation versus mine?" Harry questioned with a frown, he was skeptical that it would tarnish his reputation all that badly, should the worst happen.

"You don't think 'pubescent celebrity gets enamoured with a pretty girl and couldn't keep it in his pants' is believable? That the press wouldn't love to cover a scandal like that? Even if you put out an interview with the truth, some would think you were lying, that you were just doing damage control, or, at the very least, that there was something more to the story," Daphne easily countered his objection, much to Harry's annoyance.

He scowled, not at her but at his irritation with this whole situation. "Fine," he bit out petulantly, still not pleased with ceding to Daphne's well reasoned arguments. "Then what is the play? You two didn't just scheme for this result."

"No, we did not," Daphne gave an enigmatic smile, "but Natalia might be under oath to aid her family over you, and I won't be explaining it in her presence." There was no malice in her voice toward Natalia, no rancor either. That was just how things were.

Harry nodded his assent and saw Natalia wasn't upset or offended by it. She had reached out and rubbed Daphne's shoulder. Harry quickly checked the time and realized the morning was slipping away and he'd need to be getting on with his day shortly.

Though he was frustrated, it had been a nice night with Natalia, her presence calming him after Dumbledore's actions in the Great Hall. It was nothing his spell workout wouldn't get out of his system.

If there was one thing beyond getting out his frustration and improving his capabilities with his wand that the constant spellwork provided, was that it allowed him to have time alone just to think. It allowed his mind to go on autopilot while the rest of his brain functions were set to just wander and think things over, like his morning with Natalia and Daphne.

There was a wildcard at play here, one he wasn't sure of. What was Daphne up to? She'd been colluding with Natalia for quite a while and to a level he hadn't suspected previously. Now, she had even been spending time with Fleur?

What was her angle? What was she up to?

Harry had also found out more about Hermione. What Patrice had found out was correct. Someone had bankrolled them. They were far better off financially, having sold their practice in England and bought another in America. That they had a perfectly seamless transfer and had Hermione living at home with them, instead of being gone for most of the year.

Hermione too was well settled, enjoying a school that didn't care about her blood status and was in a program with a curriculum specialized for muggleborns, teaching both muggle and magical subjects simultaneously, allowing her to pursue both worlds.

They had exchanged a letter each. Harry had apologized for reacting as he had done, he had apologized for hiding himself away and not remaining friends, for not clearing the air between them. Harry had written his letter first and Horace arranged its discreet delivery, by the potions professor. Harry had received a reply already.

Hermione had explained someone had approached her parents and thoroughly educated them on what happened in the last Blood War. Specifically on how almost all muggleborns had vacated the country. There was an explanation of why being best friends with the man that was going to always be the target of attacks, ranging from public ridicule to outright assassination, and her being a muggleborn would make her the softer target, now, and for the rest of her life.

That she had already been almost killed by a troll, involved in an altercation that led to the death of a professor, petrified by luck, instead of instant death, and almost having her soul sucked out by dementors, not to mention playing with time. Hermione had been forced to confess this all and her parents had forbidden her from remaining friends with Harry while his life was endangered, or until she reached the age of majority. In her sole letter, she had asked him not to write. Hermione had made a deal with her parents, she would avoid him and they would allow her to stay in the magical world, and would honour it, even if she wished otherwise.

It had not been an easy letter to read. He had been hasty in turning from her. While she had faults, there was one thing that he could have counted on, she wouldn't have split loyalties. Hermione was his friend from the troll incident on. While he had been cross with her at times, they were normal bumps in a friendship or times when she had done something she believed to be to his benefit, like the Firebolt and McGonagall incident. She had risked her life for his godfather and even if she had thought he had put his name in, she wouldn't have blabbed his secrets and turned her back on him.

But that was the Hermione of the past tense. Not the one that would have to choose to give up her parents if she would be friends with him now. It would sure be nice to have her perspective on things, on Daphne, on Natalia, on Fleur.

Harry sighed, it was time to chat with Daphne again and see if he could make sense of anything.

"Hey," Harry said as he walked into the study again, Daphne perched in her usual chair reading.

She looked up, "Hey," she shut her book, "done with your training?" she queried politely.

"Yeah, you're taking a break now or you're going to read for a bit longer?" There were some days where she was too engrossed in her work to chat but often, when she was down here, they did spend a bit of time just talking, from the inane to talks like the one they were about to have.

"I'm done for now. And, we should talk." Daphne calmly said as she rearranged herself to be sitting across from him, Harry went and joined her by the fireplace, instead of sitting behind the desk. The two arm chairs were more comfortable to just sit and read at.

"Natalia doesn't know, nor would the Pavlov family, about the virginity ritual. If, and I don't see why it wouldn't, given how every other ritual you have done has worked as it should, and doing that before the contract, will flip her to our side, it will make her beholden to you, not her family."

It was strange how the two of them were just sitting by the fire talking about rituals and sex as if it wasn't a big deal. Harry sat in his chair and considered her words before he began voicing them out loud.

"If I understand it correctly, the ritual will marry Natalia and I, magically making her mine," the possessive way he said the world sent a pleasant thrum through his body. Harry tapped his fingers on the arm rest, "You suspect they have her under oath to always work for the Pavlov family first and foremost?" He queried with a tilt of his head.

"Yes. If their play is public pressure, then Natalia can't be forced to swear it was you and she could do a joint interview with you," she was smirking now.

"It sounds like a good plan. Mind if we run it by Horace, Cyrus and Patrice first?" Harry questioned, not doubting she would be fine with that.

"Father already knows, I updated him last night, when I knew you were meeting with Ivan and Natalia," Daphne informed him. "I expect he will have updated the other two and we'll hear their thoughts on it shortly.

Harry nodded, "Alright, was there something else you wanted to… talk about?" The way she had said that she had wanted to talk earlier made him think that definitely was.

Daphne shifted forward, lifting herself off the cushion and sliding her bum backwards before leaning towards Harry. "My Father has been wanting to do this for some time, however, I have held him off as I wanted to be the one to do this," her eyes matched her solemn tone, her face hard, as if carved out of stone.

Harry sensed this morning, while Natalia and Daphne were talking, that there was more going on that he wasn't aware of. It had been a part of what had set him off and left him feeling uncomfortable.

"Father has been a stalwart ally since knowing you, even before you were in contact, he had been seeking ways to thwart the Malfoy family, as having a future Greengrass beholden to them was less than ideal," Harry schooled his features and stared at her, he wasn't sure where this was going but there was certainly strong build up to whatever she wanted.

"I have, since we began associating, been working towards your betterment." Harry gave her a skeptical look and she amended her statement, "Our benefit."

"You know I have been talking with Natalia for some time now, you are aware I have spent time with Fleur, however, you wouldn't know I have been trying to spend time with Fleur for a long time," she closed her eyes for a second and straightened her clothes.

"I've been working to set up an environment where both Natalia and Fleur will be wife along with myself." Daphne spoke slowly and without inflection. "Natalia, in truth, wasn't hard to convince. She had expected worse fates, and I really think she loves you, or is very close to it."

Harry was sure there was some surprise showing on his face, if he was hearing this right, Daphne had been trying to set him up with two other girls and stake a claim herself. In fact, this might be a blatant propositioning.

"Fleur though… Fleur has been… difficult . It wasn't until you informed her that you would not solely marry her that she would do more than politely tolerate my presence, humoring my attempts, as we are both allies of yours," there was some chagrin to her words, a quiet undertone that was almost missed if Harry hadn't been looking and listening closely.

"But, recently, she has been willing to spend time talking with me…" Her eyes lit up and she adopted a posture that practically screamed 'I know something that you don't'. "Did you know she went on a date recently?"

Harry grit his teeth together, trying to keep his visible and immediate reaction to that statement. His blood was burning in his veins though, anger coursing through his arteries as his heart rate rose with his frustration and jealousy. "No, I hadn't heard that," Harry tried to respond casually.

Daphne either saw right through it or knew enough to be aware of how he responded, her lips had tugged into a smirk. "Don't worry, Harry, you've nothing to worry about," she said in a patronizing manner. Harry felt she would've pat him on the cheek if she was but in arms reach of him; he didn't enjoy it but kept silent, not rising to her teasing taunt.

"She went to Hogsmeade with Ron Weasley's eldest brother. You know him, don't you? The accomplished Cursebreaker and roguishly handsome former Head Boy, William Weasley." Daphne paused for a second, she enjoyed riling him up, getting him off balance.

Harry mentally worked to keep his breathing slow, calm and deliberate, breathing nasally, his chest cavity expanding and contracting as he wished it, no further, no more. He was sure his eyes were burning as his fucking traitorous mind supplied him with all the ways Bill had hit on Fleur, how he had lusted after her and how he may have get an advantage by consoling a distraught Fleur. His fingers were heavily depressed into the armchair and he was staring straight at Daphne.

"I happened upon them and discreetly watched as William put on his best front. He was charming and had ample stories that were impressive. Why, if I wasn't pursuing you, ' arry, he'd be quite the catch. Tall, strong, both physically and magically, and with an impressive life so far. A young man who has made something of himself, coming from meager means and already amassing himself a tidy sum."

By this point, Harry was well within control, he was staring at her flatly and waiting for her to get to the point of things. Her little game wasn't going to yield any more results. He was feeling distinctly unimpressed with this tactic and if she was hoping to woo him, this wasn't the right method of doing so.

"I was going to try and keep her from making a mistake; I had planned to interrupt things if it looked like he was taking advantage of her but I soon found it wasn't necessary," she gave him a slight smile now, one that radiated warmth and soothing as she shifted to lean to the right in the chair.

"The first time I thought it was just shock or surprise, like she hadn't expected him to be so forward but as I thought about it, that just wasn't right. A young woman like Fleur would be used to casual contact like that," she shook her head. "No, it wasn't that at all. The second time William brushed his hand up against hers, Fleur definitely pulled away after a brief moment of contact. After the third attempt it ended, Fleur pulled back within herself and their conversation became stilted. I turned my attention from them, I had seen enough and knew what was going to be happening."

With her tale finished, a short companionable silence had followed. Harry asked the question burning on his lips, "What was the point of telling me that?" Was it just to rile him up and annoy him? It certainly made it clear he wasn't over Fleur and demonstrated the thought of another man having her made him want to burn the world down around him, made him want to crush, destroy and desecrate anyone willing to try and take what he wished was his.

"Fleur isn't over you. She wants to be with you still and when I found her silently crying on her way back to the Beauxbatons carriage, I was able to finally make some headway with her," Daphne informed him bluntly. "I won't betray what she told me, but we had a good talk and you should speak with her. It might be a bit messy, she's still wroth with you, but if you want her by your side, and Merlin only knows how long you moped for her, you'll do just that."

Harry frowned, he wondered if it was as simple as Daphne had suggested. He considered the hint of Patrice and the words of his wife.

"But that all brings things back to my original point," she turned the attention back to herself. "I've looked out for you, I've done much, when you have asked and also when not, and been nothing but loyal."

Harry nodded, she had taken a lot of time to help his cause. Daphne was even acting like his personal assistant these days, with her ease of access to go between herself and Cyrus, plus her assistance with mail and rituals, amongst many other things.

"You know about the contract and that we can amend it so we can fulfill it, instead of our children, or our children's children." That was always something that the Greengrass side didn't like to acknowledge. If Harry didn't fulfill it, somewhere down the line, a Black Heir and Greengrass daughter would match the age tolerances and have to marry, but that wasn't a guarantee in the next generation.

"I know you find me attractive and I'd like to formalize our relationship one way or another. You already know two foreign marriages hurt your standing here . Just like you know cementing a Greengrass-Black-Potter alliance creates a strong triumvirate. The Black name still has power and wealth, the Potter name respect and strength, and my family, business acumen and a bevy of associates that stand with us," her words were measured and the entire vibe of her sitting there, across from him, felt more like a business presentation than anything else.

"You are attractive Daphne, incredibly so," that was more of an understatement than anything. She was widely considered to be the best looking student at Hogwarts. "You, and your family, have been loyal and beyond helpful. We get on well and… but… is that… enough?" Harry really struggled with how to say that, butchering it in the process. But it just felt strange. Natalia and he had been attracted to one another and dated. Fleur had flirted with him relentlessly and they eventually acted on their mutual attraction.

But Daphne and he? They'd danced around each other a little… but there hadn't really been anything that was truly romantic between them. It had been awkward; would they shake hands if he agreed to date her after this?

"That wasn't quite all I was going to say, Harry." Daphne said, her voice tight, her face pinched. "If we do this, if you agree to amend the contract, then I want to be your first."

Harry's eyes nearly bulged out and his surprise covered the ironically humorous thought that he had wondered, earlier, if this was leading to a blatant propositioning.

"Wh-why's that? Why would you want that?" Harry stumbled to get his thoughts coherent, his eyes dipping down her blouse.

"I'm sure you have some idea, Harry," she rolled her eyes at him. "Your magic is reaching its peak for instability. You're powerful and giving me something of value, me giving you something of value, is symbolic. It shows intent, intent that you are choosing me over them. That there is more to us than chemistry, as friends, and both of us being attractive."

Harry's mouth was slightly parted, whether that was from the mental images of the girl before him being intimate with him, or from the audacity of her words, he wasn't sure, nor did he care.

"I'm not sure what you've read, what Salazar has taught you, but I know what I've read. And he believes that our actions and magic are intrinsically linked. That what we do becomes a part of who we are; that our mind instructs our body, that our mind wills magic, and that the three, mind, body and magic, are kept in harmony," she looked at him in an unimpressed manner.

Harry ignored that, she wasn't pleased when he played dumb there, while he knew full well why she wanted that, and asked the question he was going to use to deflect her atention while he thought on it more. "I know that I don't have to be a virgin to do the Virginity Ritual with Natalia, but wouldn't it be more effective that way? Or if I did the other one with Fleur, assuming she'd have me?" The last part he muttered but assumed Daphne would have heard it.

She scoffed immediately. "If the ritual called for that, or if it modified it in some way, Salazar would have detailed it. I don't, for a single second, believe otherwise and neither do you," her eyebrows were raised and her arms crossed just underneath her bust. "Plus, it might be better for you to practice first, so you can keep focused on not mucking up the ritual."

Harry put his arms up in a show of surrender. "I know I've never given you guys a straight answer and I should, will, soon," he really had to, if Apolline's assumption was to be believed.

"I know I might not be quite up to the beauty standards of a Veela," she referencing Fleur, "and I don't have a foreign accent, ' arry . Nor can I, at present, match her skill with a wand or outstanding grades." There was nothing spiteful in her words, just honest reflection as she highlighted attributes Fleur brought to the table.

"The Greengrass family can't match the prestige of what the Delacours can. We don't have the dangerous reputation of the Pavlov family and I'm not the forbidden fruit, one that can enrapture you with graceful and practiced body movements." Daphne pivoted to the Pavlov family and Natalia. Now he could feel the build up, that she'd said all this for the purpose of whatever was coming next.

"But that doesn't mean we can't be beneficial. Already you know the value of our stewardship. You've been here for four years and know there is no one prettier than I within this castle," she stood up now and adjusted her clothes, making herself the picture of perfection.

Daphne took a step towards him and leaned down to be eye level with him as her hand fished into the bag that was now just to her left. Suspiciously, he had a prime view at her cleavage, not that she was dressed in a way that he could really see all that much.

She stood up and readjusted her robes again, closing them up, hiding her chest from view. "Think about it, Harry, and give me your answer," she turned on the spot and took a half step away before she abruptly stopped. Her feet stayed planted forward but her body turned around to look at him, giving him a view of her body profile.

"Oh," She said, though, to Harry, she didn't appear to be genuinely surprised, "you might want this." Daphne turned on her heel and beelined straight towards Harry, a predatory glint in her eyes. As she got to him, she bent down, levelling herself with him and she pushed the bag into his lap.

But, her body didn't stop descending when he felt her place the bag in on his thighs.

Before Harry grasped what she was doing, Daphne's moist lips were on his, kissing him hard and heavy. Her soft lips massaging his unresponsive ones, her smell invading his nostrils and, before he could engage his lips, she broke it off. The beautiful brunette quickly stood up and retreated backwards two steps, out of Harry's reach.

She looked quite pleased with herself as she stared down at him, having caught him off guard with her kiss. "And Harry, don't forget I have more than my looks, I can be damn useful." As the words left her mouth she made a brisk exit out of the room.

Harry stared after her, watching her leave the room, her hypnotic hips swaying as she left.

He opened the bag and found a note at the top.

Harry,

Don't worry, I already removed the taint from it. Thought you'd like to see it for yourself. The Runic Room is rather awe inspiring, it's the kind of place where a gal might accept a proposal for her hand in marriage.

Think about it, would you?

Yours, if you want me to be,

Daphne Greengrass

He frowned at the paper and then put his hand in the bag, wanting to see what was in there. He felt his fingers grip cool metal and pulled out the lightweight item. He was initially puzzled, wondering what this was. It looked like an ornate headpiece. An old fashioned tiara?

His fingers brushed along its surface and found an inscription: ' Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure'.