Archive of Our Own ^beta

Harry walked with Ron to the Halloween feast. He was a bit upset today, because it was the 31st of the tenth month, where his life fell to ruin. 

Hermione was already there, so him and Ron entered the Great Hall and went to sit with her. They sat and ate their food, and Harry knew his stomach wasn’t well enough ti eat too heavily yet.

As Dumbledore finished his meal, he stood next to the Goblet of Fire and cast a Sonorous charm. The Goblet’s fire turned a beautiful furischia color as it spit out a slightly charred piece of paper.

“Beauxbatons champion! Is Fleur Delacour!”

Most of the Beauxbaton students cheered, and others clapped in politeness. The same happened with the Durmstrang champion, Victor Krum, and Hogwarts champion, Cedric Diggory. 

Harry was smiling, because this Halloween, nothing had happened. At least until the goblets fire colored furischia again. He knew something would happen. Why didn’t he prepare?-

Dumbledore spoke calmly, yet his voice echoed through the silent room. Even the most daft of them had figured that the ticket was only meant to spit out 3 papers, not 4.

“Harry Potter.”

Harry felt hundreds of eyes pierce into his being, he felt the rush of adrenaline in his veins, and he did the thing he was best at.

Harry ran.

Harry ran, he ran and ran and ran until he couldn’t. He didn’t know where he’d ended up. 

Harry knew he looked like a coward to Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. He didn’t care, he was a snake in lions clothing, and he knew it.

He was only vaguely aware of a familiar looking door growing into the wall. 

Harry’s room.

Harry felt his breath running short, coming in short spasms. He yanked the door open, yet in forced habit, closed it quickly and silently. 

Because Harry knew. He knew that,

He cannot get out, but they cannot get in.

Harry barely registered the light bulb’s dim light supplying visibility to the small cupboard. He felt his breathing slow, he was safe. 

He cannot get out, but they cannot get in.

He saw the cupboard was a direct replica. The dirty mattress, Alistair the spider(yes, Harry thought Alistair was perfect. Perfect for the boy in the cupboard under the stairs. 

His toy statue that Dudley hadn’t wanted, that Harry had managed to steal, the cobwebs, the drawing stuck to the door that read “Harry’s room.” 

It was safe.

He cannot get out, but they cannot get in.

Harry curled up on the dirty and thin mattress, and had only registered the calling he heard from outside his cupboard door after knowing who it was.

“Harry!! Harry, where are you!!!”

“Mr. Potter! Forgo this pathetic act of hiding!”

Snape and Hermione. Hermione was safe. Snape was not. He had to only hope nobody saw his cupboard door, but he knew it was worth no hope when he saw the light of a lumos charm.

 They found him.

He cannot get out, but they cannot get in.

They got in.

Harry found himself instinctively sucking in his breath, hiding in the nooks of the cupboard. He watched the paper from the sign that said “Harry room” be exposed to the light.

He watched Snape look at the mattress with disgust, and Hermiones lips twitch downwards.

“Potter. Out of the… cupboard.”

Harry shuffled out. His body was tense. Being brought out of the cupboard was always punishment. He hadn’t felt this small in years.

He let himself follow Snape, and let his surrounding become fuzzy. He had long since accepted his punishment. He finally focused his gaze when he was sat in a chair, and Snape began speaking.

“Potter! You are absolutely ridiculous! You have put your name in the goblet, and will face the consequences of your actions!”

Harry finally registered where he was. He was in Dumbledore’s office. Headmistress Maxine, Karkaroff, and Dumbledore were there, as well as McGonagall and Snape. He felt numb as they all looked at him, but he looked at Snape, and let his emotions leak through.

“You think I put my name in the goblet? You think I wanted this?! I have been put in danger in ’the safest place in wizarding Britain’ for 3 consecutive years since my introduction! And those are only major events! I’ve faced Voldemort twice, a werewolf, a basilisk, attempted possession, getting my soul sucked out my body, the foolishness of 2 years of Defense Agaisnt the Dark Arts professor, and getting eaten by an acromantula by the end of my third year! I don’t want this! I never have! At this point, I was better off in the muggle world! Without knowing magic!”

Harry sucked in a breath as he finally realized what he said. He slapped a hand over his mouth, and saw them all staring at him. 

Dumbledore began speaking, “My boy-”

Harry decided he wouldn’t take any of their shit anymore.

“No. You don’t get to call me that. I’ve been told You’re the one who left me at the Dursley’s house. And if that has any truth to it, you made a giant mistake, because they hate me-”

Harry didn’t let himself continue. Nobody was supposed to know even a hint of it. Ron seeing the bars was bad enough, he was just lucky Ron had brushed it off to be a strange muggle niche.

But then he saw Snape. Snape looked livid.

Harry tensed, he mentally prepared for yelling, or even physical harm. He wouldn't put it above Snape. But Snape didn’t say anything, so Harry turned to Dumbledore.

“Professor Dumbledore..! Is there anyway I don’t have to participate?”

Harry’s tone was anxious, he had no idea how this conversation would go.

“I’m afraid not, my boy. The goblet is binding.”

“Headmaster, I’m not your boy.”

“Of course. Apologies, Harry.”

Harry watched Karkaroff and Madame Maxine leave Dumbledore’s office.

Snape turned on Dumbledore the moment everyone else was out of the room. Harry was about to get up and leave, but Snapes yelling sat him back down. He’d seen a similar look in his eyes that said, ’I’m not done with you, boy.’

“Albus! You put him with Petunia?! That is possibly the worst decision you’ve ever made! You put a magical child with Petunia Evans?! You’re lucky an obscurial wasn’t made of the boy!”

Dumbledore sighed, “Severus, please. It is important he stays there.”

“Albus, explain. Your word is not law, and certainly not to a child who lacks trust in authority figures after attempted murder by 3 of the ones he was meant to trust! You especially don’t have complete trust from me. So, explain.”

Dumbledores eyes that usually held a grandfatherly twinkle to them, had changed to be one more fitting of a chess master. “Severus, you of all people must understand blood wards.”

“Albus, is this child going to d-..”

Snape paused for a moment, and Harry realized they’d forgotten he was there. He’d also realized he hadn’t expected them to remember, but his thoughts were cut short at Snapes next words.

“Albus. You’ve been raising the boy as a pig for slaughter!”

“Severus-”

“You have kept him alive so that he can die at the right moment?”

“Yes.”

Harry stared at them in horror, surely they hadn’t meant to have this conversation with him in the room. 

So Harry did what he did best.

Harry ran. He ran to the Gryffindor common room. 

Harry ran right into a party, and this party made him angry. He didn’t want this tournament. He was clapped on the back, and this was the last ember of reluctance before his temper flared.

“Stop! This is fucking ridiculous! Do not ask me how I put my name in, because I didn’t put my fucking name in the Goblet!”

Everyone quieted down at that, they’d all been happy to have a Gryffindor champion, especially since they’d likely win because their champion was The-Boy-Who-Lived. So why was he upset?

Harry grit his teeth. He saw all the heads turn to him, and he couldn’t bring himself to care.

“This is all stupid! Why are you all celebrating?!”

Someone spoke up, albeit it was Cormac McLaggen. “Because Gryffindor has a champion..? Even if it’s you.”

Harry sneered. “Idiots. The lot of you. Is it not obvious I don’t want to participate in this death match of a tournament?!”

Harry stormed off to his room, and heard the party end abruptly, obviously since he dampened the mood. He put his stuff on his bed, and saw Ron sitting on his.

“Hey, Ron..”

Ron looked up from where he was sitting, and glared at Harry. “Why didn’t you tell me how to put my name in the Goblet?”

Harry felt his temper flare again. “Ron, take my fucking place in the tournament. Please, I don’t want to. What am I going to have to tell you that will convince you I don’t want to be in the tournament?!”

Ron quieted, and Harry assumed he saw reason. He was proven correct when Ron spoke. “Right. Sorry, mate. I didn’t mean to get angry at you, it was probably Mad-Eye-Moody. If the statistics prove right.”

Harry snorted, “Merlin, you sound like Hermione.”

Ron rolled his eyes and muttered, “Nice to know you’re still in there.”

Harry sighed, and got into bed. He usually never went to bed this early, but he thought it was deserved after the day he had, and what he’d face tomorrow.

“Night, Ron.”

“Night, Harry. I- uh.. hope you don’t die?”

Harry snorted and turned over to face away from Ron, but there was a small smile on his face as he drifted off to sleep.