Chapter 60
CASSIUS MALFOY
So, with his decision made, Cassius withdrew from his classes, as Albus Dumbledore agreed to train him so that he could bridge the gap between him and the amalgamation of Tom and Harry, which threatened to destroy this world.
Still, duelling was no easy task, and given that he was a student and Albus Dumbledore the Headmaster, they needed a place to train. Thankfully, he knew just the place.
"I always knew that the Room was here," the Headmaster commented as they stood against an empty wall.
"Though I never managed to sense it," and that he knew, as Cassius sought a place to duel and paced three times in front of the empty wall.
And with that, a door appeared, as the Headmaster raised a brow.
"What did you do?" he asked, genuinely curious, and Cassius shrugged.
I just thought about needing a place to practise duelling." The Headmaster looked intrigued. It was familiar to the one he used for himself, having quite a few training dummies, and a few books placed in a rack along the wall.
"So, this is the famous Come and Go Room?" the Headmaster whispered, and his surprise was genuine, which confirmed that, unlike himself, Tom and many others, Albus Dumbledore had never found the place.
"Did you really not know how to access it?" he asked, and the man shook his head.
"No, I did not," and he had his wand out as he cast some basic spells.
"There is a mention of it in Helga's diaries, but the secret to it has eluded me for decades," and Cassius was truly intrigued by these diaries, for the Headmaster had mentioned them before.
"The diaries of the founders and the previous Headmasters, can I read them?" he asked, and the old wizard's lips thinned as he shook his head.
"I am afraid not quite yet," he denied him, though not without a good reason.
"Only a Headmaster is allowed to read them, and the founders made it certain that no one apart from the Headmaster is allowed to read these diaries and records. Few even leave anything, and fewer still venture into the tales of the past, though I have always been much intrigued by it," and who wouldn't be.
"Still, don't worry. One day, you will be able to read them all, including my own little addition to the collection," and those words caught him by surprise, for Cassius had not really given much thought to his future.
He enjoyed dueling and tinkering with runes and artifacts, but that was mostly it. He had enough money and political clout that he did not need to work at all if he so desired.
"You think I will be Headmaster one day?" he questioned, and the old wizard smiled sagely.
"I don't think that, my boy. I know that," and he did not share the old man's belief, still they had wasted enough time on small talk.
"Still, the magic of the founders continues to surprise me to this day," and he was not much different. The entirety of Hogwarts was a magical marvel that had no equal.
It was the first school of its kind and, in many ways, the foundation of the magical world.
"Still, I believe we have wasted enough time," and so the two of them stood at opposite corners of the arena, and drew their wands.
"A simple duel to gauge where you stand," he offered, and Cassius nodded as he prepared himself to go all out, with little to no restraint.
"I won't be holding back," and the Headmaster smiled at his words.
"Neither will I," and with that, Cassius was the first to move, as he twisted the wand in his hand, and sent a purple orb racing towards the Headmaster....
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.
.
The whole lesson lasted a few hours, and the two of them duelled for over half a dozen times, and only in the last duel did Cassius manage to last more than a few minutes against the Headmaster.
"He is a damn monster," Cassius complained to the old woman who had become a constant companion to him in his solitude.
"Albus is the strongest wizard of his generation," Perenelle whispered proudly.
"There is a reason that both Gellert and Voldemort feared only him, despite their prowess," and now he knew the reason as well, for though he knew that there was a massive gap between them, he had failed to fathom the sheer depth of it.
"Still, I would say that you were quite impressive as well," and he scoffed, as he looked up at her.
"Don't patronize me," and she shook her head.
"I am not. You truly were quite impressive," and he really doubted that.
"Believe it or not, Albus was not holding back against you after the third duel," and the first two duels had ended in but two minutes, but Cassius had begun to fight back a bit after that as he got accustomed to the man's blinding speed and mastery over magic itself.
"Still, I don't just want to defeat Voldemort," he whispered, for the Headmaster was giving him an opportunity, one where he was offering him the proverbial hat.
"You want to defeat Albus in the Third Round?" Perenelle guessed his intentions, and he nodded.
"Yes," and he had his own reasons for doing that.
This world, the one that he was born into had changed much because of it, and for many nights now he wondered if the change that had come with him was all good—and the sad thing was that he could not answer that question with a resolute 'Yes',
Voldemort was alive once more and had taken over the body of an innocent Harry Potter. The Dark Lord's followers had nearly killed his friends, and Hermione had nearly died twice, and all of it was because of him.
And so a part of him felt responsible for ending the Evil which he had allowed to flourish, and much more. Unlike the rest of his peers, Cassius was cursed with the knowledge of the times to come, and knew very well of the dangers that lay ahead not just for his friends but for the entire wizarding world.
Perenlle had told him how he carried the weight of the magical world on his shoulders, and with his knowledge, he was beginning to understand just what exactly she meant by that. He knew that the age of the internet was about to begin, and soon enough, it would become impossible to hide the magical world as it is.
He could parrot his concerns to everyone, but no one would pay him any heed, but if he were to be the heir to the proverbial throne of Albus Dumbledore, then that would give his voice much weight.
"But now I don't think that I can do it," Perenelle floated in the air.
"You can," she whispered, making him look up.
"How?" and she pointed at the stone sitting on the table.
"By using that," and he frowned.
"Albus is powerful indeed. But there have been wizards far more powerful than him, all of whom are but a simple thought away from you," and he did plan on summoning Salazar Slytherin to learn more about the Patronus, then he could do the same thing for the Headmaster.
"But whom do I call?" he questioned, and Perenelle.
"Well, you leave that to me. Your duelling style is quite similar to a few wizards from the past," and she was rubbing her chin.
"There are a dozen wizards and witches who can teach you a lot, but the man you need most is none other than Salazar Slytherin..."
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HERMIONE GRANGER
As Cassius trained in secret, someone he'd sworn to protect stirred from slumber.
It took her two days to wake up from her potion-induced slumber, and even after that, the Matron remained rather strict with her and confined her to the Hospital Wing for monitoring as Hermione slowly recovered from her brush with death.
And the mere experience of being unable to move as water crept up inside your lungs was truly haunting, and she had thought her lost, forfeit until just before she had lost her consciousness, the water around her had vanished.
She did not need to see who it was, for she knew that there was only one wizard on that stage who would do something like that, yet she had not seen him once, even once, after waking up.
"Where is he?" she asked Daphne and Tracey as they came for their regular visit just before Breakfast, and the two girls looked at each other before giving a short answer.
"He is busy," Tracey answered, but she could sense that there was something more to it.
"Busy with what?" she asked, and she wanted to see him. Wanted to thank him, but he was not here, and she had an idea why.
"He blames himself for this, doesn't he?" she questioned as her fists balled up, and Hermione had read his letters from when she had been attacked at the World Cup, and had realised just how big of a mistake she had made.
"You know what he is like. But he will be fine..."
"He is going to finish this," Daphne cut in as Hermione's head snapped towards the blonde girl.
"What?" she asked.
"He is going to get revenge for you, for all of us," and with that, the blonde put a copy of the Prophet on the bed.
And with that the girls left, leaving behind only a copy of the Prophet to keep her company and as she opened the paper, plastered on the first page was a massive picture from a few months ago when the Ministry had presented both Cassius and Harry with their Order of Merlin Badges, and below the moving picture was a headline that explained everything.
~~THE CHOSEN ONE VS THE UNCHOSEN ONE~~
By Rita Skeeter
In a bid to salvage the reputation of the disastrous tournament, the committee has arranged an exhibition duel a day before the Final Task. The purpose of the event is to reignite the passion for duelling amongst the new generation of witches and wizards, and who better to spread this message than two of the most prized wizards of the new generation.
Harry Potter, the boy who lived twice, the chosen one, whose magical prowess has shown himself to be a bit of a late bloomer, and has finally begun to live up to his promise, will be facing off against the Unchosen champion Cassius Black.
The young Black heir's protest against his alleged forced participation in the Tournament is known to all, and he may not have beaten the Killing Curse twice, but his feats are no less impressive.
The Boy brought down the fiend, Fenrir Greyback, and recently subdued a Hungarian Horntail all by himself.
And though this is but one of the many bouts that have been prepared, but there is little doubt in my mind that it is the Crown Jewel of the itinerary and will set hearts ablaze all over the Wizarding World....
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.
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In the Room of Requirement, a young Cassius stood once more, the Resurrection stone in hand, as he took a deep breath and rolled it in his hand as he had done so a dozen times before, as he closed his eyes and whispered the name of the wizard whose legacy shook the entire world to this day.
"Salazar Slytherin..."
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