Chapter 63
CASSIUS BLACK
The entire school gathered in the stands once more, as the Third and Final task of the Tri-Wizard tournament was set to begin. But before the task, they were set to hold a few exhibition matches, organized to set the mood.
There were going to be a total of three matches, set in such a way to indicate different levels of mastery over duelling arts.
The first match was set to happen between two students, him and Harry. The second was between two professors, and in that Snape was set to face off against Professor Flitwick in a duel that was set to be very exciting, and the last match was supposed to be between Headmasters, where Dumbledore himself was going to face off against the Deputy Headmaster of Drumstrang.
Igor Karkaroff had suddenly landed himself in quite some trouble and had been taken away by Bulgarian authorities over allegations of embezzlement and other crimes.
And it was good that they had taken him away, because otherwise Cassius would have exacted his own revenge in such a way that could have caused everyone some trouble.
But that did not matter now, and as he stood there in the tunnels waiting for the announcer to finish making the introductions and informing everyone of the formats, he gazed at the wand in his hand.
Unlike his usual Aspen, this one was longer and made of Elder with an unknown magical core, and while he had speculated that the power of the wand was a myth, but his speculations had been wrong.
"The Elder Wand," whispered the woman who had become sort of a mentor to him, whispered from the side. He could feel a subtle magical connection between the wand and the stone, and wondered if, just like the myth of the power of the Elder wand, there was perhaps more to the rumors about uniting the Three Hallows.
"Do you have any idea how many wizard and witches have dedicated their entire lives just to search for this one wand?" she continued, and the number was somewhere in the thousands.
The Elder Wand had a rather bloody history and for good reason, though a part of him wondered if he truly deserved it.
"Do you think he drew that duel on purpose?" and she was quiet for a moment before she answered.
"I don't think it matters really," she answered, making him frown as he looked up at her.
"A duel is not a true measure of a wizard's strength. It is a complex clash of spells and magics that involves a thousand factors," and it did really range from one's physical fitness, to their mental prowess, and the repertoire of spells available to them.
"The question should be, are you as powerful a wizard as Albus or not?" and he looked into those greyish silver eyes and asked that very question.
"Am I as powerful as him or not?" he asked.
"You are," she assured him, with the smile of a proud parent.
"And you have the potential to be much stronger," and the wand in his hand began to heat up, as if assuring him of its support and power, as she turned to the side and frowned.
"I believe we have some guests," she said, and with that, her body vanished. A few seconds later, he heard the sound of boots, and turned to the side and saw Daphne walk towards him.
"What are you doing here?" he asked with a joyous smile, as the blonde raised a brow as she walked forward until she was inches from him.
"Why? Were you waiting for someone else?" she asked with a tease, and he smirked.
"And who else would I ever wait for?" and she smiled, before nodding.
"Well, once you walk outside, you will learn that you have become quite a hot commodity," and he knew that, for much like Harry, he had gained a nickname for himself as well.
The Unchosen One, based upon his unwilling and unexplainable selection in the Tri-Wizard tournament. And so, the Daily Prophet was dubbing this match as the match between the proverbial Chosen One vs the Unchosen One.
And he kinda liked the name.
"Do you feel threatened?" he teased her, and the blonde smirked.
"Because of you," she began, looking into his eyes.
"Never," and amongst their friends, she was the only person who knew exactly what was at stake today, and who exactly he was set to face in the body of Harry, and as he heard Dead call for Harry amidst a roaring cheer, he knew that he would have to go soon as well.
"Well, I guess it is time for me to go," and before he could move, she stopped him, as she grabbed his face.
"The world may never know about the burdens that you carry, but always remember that I know," she began, as she looked him in the eye.
"And while I may not be able to walk out onto that arena, know this that come heaven or hell, death or life, I will always stand with you," and though it was subtle, he could sense a thread of magic emerge in between them, as she made an unbreakable vow.
"Daphne..."
"I am yours, and you are mine," and with that, she pushed herself up in the boldest act ever and crashed her lips on his own, and she tasted so sweet and minty that it surprised him before she backed away as Dean called out his name.
"Go and kick the Dark lord out of Harry," she said with a smile.
"I will be waiting for you right here," and though he had always trusted her more than anyone else, this went beyond that.
"I will be right back," he assured her with a smirk, as the elder wand felt warm in the holster, rearing for victory as he walked out of the tunnel amidst a thundering cheer.
"AND HERE WE HAVE OUR SECOND COMPETITOR! THE HEIR TO THE BLACK FAMILY! THE SLAYER OF DRAGONS! THE UNCHOSEN ONE HIMSELF!" and Dean would have a really good career as a commentator in the future as Cassius slowly strode forward and stood in the arena, face to face against the Dark Lord who threatened all that he held dear.
"CASSIUS BLACK!" and unlike before, the stands were almost equally divided, and hundreds cheered for him, as he looked Voldemort in the eye, and he had given up on all pretences. He had taken off the glasses, showing everyone his red glowing orbs.
"I will give you one last chance," he began as those eyes gleamed.
"Kneel!" and Cassius whipped out his wand in response and took his stance.
"And I will say only one thing to you," he taunted, feeling a bit cheeky as he smirked.
"Leave!" and those lips thinned as he drew upon Harry's wand, and took his stance as they both got ready for the duel.
"Let no one ever say that the Dark Lord is not a generous man." In the end, the entire arena grew silent, as the sound of canon fire indicated the start of the match, and Harry's wand blurred as a giant purple orb rushed towards him. Still, Cassius surprised him, as he cast his first spell using parsel tongue, and saw those red eyes widen as the ground under his feet morphed into snakes, and they began to coil up his body, while they bit into his skin.
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ALBUS DUMBLEDORE
Few people understood exactly what was at stake here, as the two young wizards began to duel, and as the first spells were cast, the realization dawned on the onlookers that this would not be a simple duel.
That while Harry and Cassius may be the youngest of the candidates, the duel between them hardly reflected that, as Cassius showcased his mastery over parselmagic, becoming the first wizard in perhaps a hundred years to use it so openly.
"Was that?" Madam Maxime gasped from the side, as snakes began to coil up over Harry's body, as Cassius split apart the purple orb and launched a barrage of simple spell chains at Yom, who took a second to break free from the parselmagic spell.
"Yes, that was parselmagic," he confirmed, as the Beauxbaton's Headmistress frowned.
"But how?" and he shrugged.
"Cassius Black is a boy of many mysteries. This is just one of them," and the boy's prowess
Despite his disadvantage, Tom did not back down and dodged and blocked many of the spells going on the defensive as Cassius began to push his advantage, and he saw him move his wand in that familiar pattern as an invisible slash rushed at Tom, bypassing his rapidly erect shield forcing him to jump to the side to avoid the spell.
And just as Cassius was about to attack him once more, Tom moved forward and used his raw magical prowess to dispel all the spells, as he began a barrage of his own.
"Are they really just fourth-year students?" gasped Mikitov, the Drumstrange Vice Headmaster who had replaced Igor, and he was not the only one filled with surprise, for the entire arena had grown silent in awe of the magic at display as Cassius parried away magic after magic.
And unlike him who had seen this before, Tom was not prepared for the plan for as he smelt an opportunity, and blasted a massive spell towards him.
"BOMBARDA MAXIMA!" and this orb was nearly half as big as his own body, as it raced towards Cassius, and it was strong enough that even if Cassius was to bring up a shield, the impact would be strong enough to give Tom a perfect opportunity
"This has to be stopped! The spell could harm him!" Madam Maxime gasped from the side, but Dumbledore remained seated as he saw Cassius raise his wand straight in the air, and the Elder Wand's tip gleamed in an ominous white light as he brought it down, as the entire arena heard his whisper.
"~Cleave!~" and the words were uttered in Parseltongue, and Albus only knew the meaning for he had asked Cassius for it, and as he brought it down, it was not just the spell he split.
Tom's experience showed, as he jumped at the last second, though not before, a massive slash landed on his shoulder, as the very arena grounds were split into two.
"You have to stop this!" Maxime whispered, but with Igor gone, he was the chief organizer once more.
"Let them duel!" Bagman added joyously, as he glanced on excitedly, as Tom glared at Cassius, as the split spell exploded, and caused massive craters.
"Duel! This is more like a death match!" Mikitov added, but he did not support Maxime.
"But I am with the Bagman! Let the boys show us what they are made of!" and he remembered old tales from years ago, about Drumstrang and how the school was rather lax with student safety, and how everything there was decided based on powers.
"Let them make a good showing," Albus defended his stance as lightning sparkled around Cassius's wand, as he used his favourite spell, and threw lightning towards Tom.
"After all, this is not a simple duel, really. This might serve as motivation for the students," he added, hoping that this would inspire an entire generation of wizards to experiment and dream, just as him and Gellert had done so for a generation years ago.
"Tempest!" and that spell reminded him so much of someone from his youth, when suddenly Tom's eyes gleamed.
"Protego Deprovo!" and darkness gushed out of Tom's body. They swallowed the lightning, as the massive cloud of darkness rushed towards Cassius, as it threatened to encapsulate the entire arena, and he saw Cassius try to push it back. Still, Tom's spell was menacing, and it blew past his shields and encapsulated the entire arena.
"We cannot see anything now!" and if the sparks of light were anything to go by, he could tell that the duel continued under the cover of shadows. Still, the darkness put Cassius at a disadvantage, when suddenly he saw the cloud of darkness expand, as if it was trying to contain a storm. Still, a second later it splittered, and was thrown apart as a massive torrent of fire emerged from the centre of the arena, and blew away the cloud of darkness.
And then he watched as Cassius spun the wand around his head, as the fire began to coil around him, just as the Darkness did the same for Tom, and as the Darkness began to take the form of a snake, coiling around Tom, the fire shifted and morphed into the form of a skeleton as they both whispered the names of theit spells.
"Protego..." "PROTEGO...."
"...diabolica!"
"...DIABLOICA!"
And the serpent rushed towards Cassius as the giant, massive, fire skeletal monster pushed forth his hand, and smashed into the darkness of serpents, and by now the secret was out as all eyes in the booth turned towards him, as Maxime and Scrimegour were the first to notice that something was wrong here.
"Tell me, Albus!" the Beauxbaton's Headmistress whispered as she gave him a sharp look.
"What exactly is going on here!"
"Indeed," Scrimegour chimed in as all eyes turned towards him.
"Because, this is no duel between mere children...."
"It is not," he answered, truthfully.
"This is a duel that will determine the future of our world...."
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