A sirius matter

Chapter 29 - The First Task

The next few days went by quickly. After thanking Hermione for claiming the dragon remains for him, Harry hired a professional to harvest everything from his horntail that was possible. The dragon-leather was being used to make protective outfits for Harry, Hermione, and Sirius. There would be enough for seven more outfits, but Harry was going to think about who would get them. He was also considering making several vests instead that he could loan out if the castle were attacked or something.

The outfits consisted of a vest with attachable sleeves and gloves, shorts with attachable legs and socks, a hood that attached to the vest, and a pair of boots. The owners would always wear as much of the armor as was practical for the situation.

Hermione was thrilled to find out how much of the dragon's remains could be used in potion ingredients. About half the blood was salvageable. After everything was harvested, she stored them in Harry's special trunk.

As soon as Harry was released from the hospital wing, he used his map to find Cedric Diggory to warn him about the first task. He found Cedric in the hall talking to Cho Chang.

"Hi, Cedric. Hi, Cho," greeted Harry as he approached them.

"Hi, Harry," responded Cedric while Cho blushed.

"Cedric, could I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure." They walked into a nearby classroom and Harry closed the door. "What's up?"

"Dragons," Potter looked at him intently. "The first task is dragons. I've seen them myself. So has Madam Maxime."

Diggory's face paled. "I heard your girlfriend flew you into the castle on a broom and you left a small trail of blood behind you. Was it from them?"

Harry nodded. "I was stupid and ran into Lucius Malfoy and Igor Karkaroff. They managed to capture me and threw me in with three dragons." He took a deep breath. "I barely got out of there alive." At that moment he realized something. "I should have portkeyed away! Dammit! I was so scared I should've…never mind. The point is that you'll be facing a dragon."

"Does Krum know?"

"Not yet. I was going to tell him…"

"I'll do it. We don't know him. He might be loyal to Karkaroff. He might attack you if you're alone together." Cedric grinned. "Of course, you've already escaped dragons, so a Quidditch Player should be easy."

"Ha, ha. Thanks, Cedric." They left the room and went their separate ways – Cedric to Cho and Harry to Hermione.

-ASM-

When Harry found Hermione, he told her about his realization that he should have used his emergency portkey when he was with the dragons.

"You were panicking," she explained. "So was I. Not only that, but you couldn't stand still for a moment to think. What if you'd accidentally taken a dragon with you to Sirius' house? Or worse yet, my house? And I'm glad you didn't try apparition either, because it was still within school grounds. Even if it weren't, you'd have probably splinched yourself in your hurry and your…your parts left there would've been…"

"Eaten." He shrugged. "What about when I was in the air?" he asked, determined to berate himself.

"You were in need of medical attention. You couldn't have apparated in that condition even if you weren't still inside the wards, and you'd have probably passed out and died if you'd portkeyed then. I know I would've if I'd seen you just disappear. I'd have been sure Voldemort caught you."

"Voldemort! We should've left as soon as we were brought to that cemetery."

"We were separated immediately, and neither one of us was willing to abandon the other. I certainly couldn't have portkeyed away when Wormtail was holding me. Besides, I'll bet Voldemort had wards in place to stop you from apparating or portkeying away. That blanket was probably made to pass through his ward. The book said that there are several ways to create wards to prevent most portkeys from working, and it's impossible to make one that goes through every ward. You have to know what is being used to stop the portkey to make it so it gets through the barrier.