Hogwarts: Era of Darkness

"Was it from Slytherin's book?" I asked the moment we were back in our room, the clock's arms already passing by midnight.

"Yeah, and I, luckily, failed to create it perfectly!" Quincy answered while undressing behind a room divider, throwing her clothes at the top of it.

"Wait... what does that mean?!" I asked, feeling my eyes twitch, listening to her somewhat embarrassed voice.

"Well, I knew it wouldn't work out on the first try, so I wasn't that worried! But... if I had done it perfectly, the smell of the poisons would also affect wizards! It wasn't made to deal with muggles but with... guests that Slytherin didn't appreciate. I simply won because Flamel thought it was an original recipe! I am more worried about his girls..."

"I never heard about something like their concoction."

"I read about it!" She continued, sticking her head out behind the divider, looking at me, and turning deep red as I was also in the middle of undressing.

"And?" I asked, unbothered by it, standing in my underwear, looking for my pajamas.

"It is an old punishment drink, as they called it in medieval times! If someone was deemed guilty of a serious crime but not severe enough to be killed, they would brew it and make him drink it!"

"Why not use Professor Lockhart's favorite spell?"

"Because this is permanent!" Quincy said with a profound warning, coming out in her nightgown while brushing her hair. "It will destroy memories! It erases part of the mind, part of yourself! If you want to talk about spells that were called Unforgivable once, then this ranks amongst the same in the world of potions!"

"Oh... I see... Huh! It does sound evil!"

"I am more concerned that they knew how to brew it..."

"And it looked easy to make..." I murmured, now thinking about it more, crossing my arms.

"Its recipe was destroyed in the 16th century. We only know of its effects, its smell, and its characteristics! We don't know half of its ingredients and the method to brew it! If it were me judging, I would not have guessed it at all!"

"Shit... so... was this some kind of warning or boasting from their side?"

"Most likely!" She agreed, sitting down next to me. "Never accept anything from them! If they damage your memories, it could be fatal! Not to mention, if you forget yourself, they can remold you anew! Insidious to the bone!"

"Well... then they have done goofed it up!" I grinned, "Now nobody would trust them now!"

"Who knows what they are playing at!" She shrugged, hugging me when we lay on the bed, and soon, we were spooning in the dark, letting our minds and bodies relax.

"I have my own master alchemist... so I'm all confident~!"

"Hehe... I am still far away from that... but! If I ever become one, I'll make a philosopher's stone for us both!"

"And live forever? With you? I would love that~!"

"Mhm... me too!" She snuggled up to me, murmuring before falling asleep, "I would love to travel the world with you without... thinking about... tribulations..."

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The following few days were finally... average. As much as possible, at least. We sometimes brushed away the other champions or their groups, but there were no real problems between the factions. It was... surprisingly calm and friendly. I expected more fire... well, they say, be wary of what you wish for, yes?

We were planning on Quincy's route into the forest, trying to pinpoint it on modern, local maps by the lead on the clue we unlocked. No matter how we looked at it, she would have to go into deep and through a part that was marked as infested by spiders. My part? It went in the opposite direction without any warning labels. I was sure I identified the correct route on our map and... I was kinda surprised. It was within safe zones and without any warnings at all! Unlike Quincy's task, mine seemed to be... easy?

"Want to swap?" I asked, but she just shrugged.

"No, they would notice it for sure!"

"No rules had been set up against it! I never heard one!" I argued, ready to truly exchange our tasks, but she refused it again.

"Nope! I will do it! Trust me, I CAN do it! You would scare away all the spiders with your smell!"

"I do not smell..." I murmured, sniffing myself, making her laugh and kiss my cheeks.

"You know what I mean~! I will be fine! You focus on your end!"

"Ooookaaaay!" I shrugged, giving up in persuading her and that was when multiple students flooded the library. There were not just Slytherings but from all the other houses and clearly looking for us. "Quick!" I whispered, closing the books and mixing them up with the dummy codexes we picked randomly from the shelves. We had to have precautions ready...

"What happened?" Quincy asked when they got close, and a senior, probably a fifth or sixth-year Ravenclaw, exclaimed loudly.

"The Durmstrang students! They have been badmouthing you!"

"A-and?" We asked back, surprised, looking at each other. We expected something like this to happen. What was truly wild to me was that it didn't happen sooner.

"Well..." They flinched, not expecting our indifference, "There was a scuffle, and their champion appeared and used spells to knock us out! Three of us ended up in the hospital wing!" Now... that made a difference.

"Which was it?" I asked, turning more serious, nodding at Quincy, and we were heading out, letting them lead us forward.

"The other... um..." A Hufflepuff girl thought loudly, trying to remember his name.

"Martyn Poliakoff," I said, remembering his face and how it looked on the night of Hallowe'en... and between him and Krum, he was more jealous than his partner.

"That's the one!"

"Okay... lead us! If a champion interfered, we won't back down either! But guys... girls? If they badmouth us, don't lose your temper, okay?" I grinned, looking at them one by one, "We don't really care! The weak can bark at us; we will win anyway!"

I know that I may have sounded smug or boastful at that moment... but... heh! Sometimes, you just need to be a little bit arrogant, or others may think they can step over you! Plus, I didn't want to let our fellow students think we were afraid or didn't care about them.

In the end, we were guided to the gardens, close to the greenhouse, where a collection of Durmstrang students were still gathering, laughing, mockingly discussing what happened in an excellent mood. I didn't know their language, nor did I care... their tone, their expressions, and their mocking gestures were enough to know it was us who they were talking about. I noticed Poliakoff at once, being at the center of attention and enjoying it. Good... I will make him enjoy it even more.

"I hope you guys told me the truth!" I smiled at the rest while my wand slipped from my sleeve, landing in my hand. Quincy just nodded at me, encouraging me and stopping in place, halting the group with one hand. They were still in the middle of figuring out what I meant when I released the first spell.

With a flash and a bang, two Durmstrang student was flipped into the air, spinning like fallen leaves before landing unconscious. By then, I was already casting a new spell, disarming those of them who were in the motion of drawing their own wands... which was a futile effort. A quick flash, multiple yelps of pain, and only one student was remaining standing... Mr. Champion.

I won't sugarcoat it... I felt liberated at that moment, and it was... good. It was satisfying to put them into their place. With another wave of my hand, I blocked his panicked attack that, after deflection, landed on a nearby statue, blasting it apart. Quincy, with a quick movement, already used the repair spell, fixing it while I sidestepped another one, bowed, and indicated with a smile to continue.

Yes... I was mocking him. I didn't intend to hold back at all. If the potion was the Beauxbatons' power demonstration, this would be ours! With the duels we went through the summer, fighting my Father, this was nothing. I felt as if Poliakoff was way too slow to be a proper wizard. I parried or deflected all his spells but refused to deal a finishing blow. I wanted him to fear me.

I was younger, I should be weaker, well, if he wants to bully us... so be it. I will play their game, even if they are secret allies of us. Well... probably only the top branch and not the students, but... who cares about that right now? Not me, that is for sure. When he seemingly ran out of magic or spells to throw at me, I simply shrugged, shaking my head and casting two spells in such quick succession that they looked like one only.

"How far are we from the lake?" I asked while holding my wand, and Poliakoff was dangling in the air, screaming something in his weird tongue.

"Положи меня, или ты попадешь в большие неприятности!¹Put me down, or you will be in big trouble!"

"Shut it." I groaned, having enough of his bullshit.

"Around... 500 meters? 800? Why?" Quincy asked, and I just shrugged.

"Pray she is right!" I grinned, winking at Poliakoff, and flicked my wrist. The next moment, he shot out like a bullet, flying and disappearing over the castle, heading towards the lake like some kind of pebble.

"If he doesn't land in the water..." I shrugged, "Oh well, he should still have his wand; he can deal with it!"

Before the others could say anything, another voice interjected.

"You shouldn't done it."

From the accent alone, I knew who it was... Victor Krum.

"Oh? Why?" I asked, turning towards him and raising an eyebrow. "Want to duel me yourself then?"

"Yes." He nodded, crossing his arms, but didn't reach for his wand, looking into my eyes with a steady gaze. "Let's duel."