Changing Destiny

Sixty-One: A Charged First Meeting

Fleur

The entire ambiance of Hogwarts was both subdued and solemn when Fleur Delacour made her way to the Great Hall. The Tri-Wizard Tournament was ending on a very tragic note, and even though she came in second place, and her family needed some of that prize money, it still felt like blood money to her. Cedric Diggory was dead, and she was carrying his child, his only living descendant. Everyone who wasn't a Hogwarts employee, or student, was dressed in funeral couture, one might say.

More news came as a result of Cedric's death: apparently, Peter Pettigrew was alive this whole time as an illegal animagus, and had been the Weasley pet rat for twelve years. He had been the one to kill Cedric Diggory, and so the criminal charges against Sirius Black were dropped. Professor Moody, that creepy Quasimodo-like wizard with one metal leg, and a perverted leering eye, murdered the chief games safety wizard Barty Crouch, and it was even more scandalous that his son, known deatheater Barty Crouch Jr had escaped auror custody just in the nick of time from receiving The Last Kiss by dementors. All of this happened in one night.

Fleur caught up with her friends from school, and then found Astoria Greengrass, Daphne's twin sister, who was mingling mostly with Harry Potter and his friends at the other end of the hall. They made small talk, and then the teachers, and school Governors made their way into the Great Hall.

There was a tall, very handsome wizard with long blonde hair tied back with a black velvet bow. He wore expensive dress robes suited for business, and Fleur felt the strongest pull of attraction she had ever felt for a wizard in her life. Astoria gasped in astonishment, "Oh my, Fleur. Your eyes...they flashed black for a moment. Did you say you were half a veela?"

Fleur shook her head of this wizard's intoxicating scent, and failed miserably. "I...Yes, I did. When were my eyes dark?"

Astoria whispered in her ear, "When you were looking at Mr Lucius Malfoy. I'm engaged to his son Draco. I'm not surprised he is here, being a school Governor, but I don't know why Mrs Malfoy isn't here. You're not like...attracted to him, are you? That would be most scandalous."

Draco joined them, and Fleur forced her eyes away from his extremely attractive father. "You must be Fleur," Draco said politely. "I'm Draco Malfoy."

She shook his hand. "Charmed, I'm sure. This is a very sad day for us all."

Draco nodded. "Yeah. I didn't know Diggory, but he was a good Quidditch Chaser I have to admit."

"That's nice. I--"

Dumbledore cleared his throat as he approached the golden owl pulpit, "This day, I want to acknowledge a very painful loss, that is being currently felt all over this school. We are here to not only send off the fourth years for their mid term break, but to celebrate the life of Cedric Diggory. He was an exceptionally hard working, diligent student, a loyal, steadfast friend to all those who befriended him, and in the end, bravely died protecting who he loved most in this world. He lived up to what it truly means to be a Hufflepuff, and for that I ask for a moment of silence to commemorate his life. Then, I open up the food service for anyone who wishes to eat before their journey home on the Hogwarts Express, or in your wheelhouse, if you are Beauxbatons students, naturally."

Dumbledore lifted up his wand to cast lumos. Fleur cast hers next, and then everyone followed suit, and no one said a word, but there were a lot of tears shed. The Hufflepuffs cried the most, but Harry Potter looked like he was operating on auto pilot, like he was too numb to cry, and it was only Daphne keeping him aware that he was supposed to not wallow in the depression he was no doubt feeling. But as for Fleur herself, she ironically could only feel a surface sadness for the late father of her unborn child. She barely knew him, and she honestly knew Roger Davies more, which was not saying much, and he was only her date to the Yule Ball.