Paid In Blood - Revised

Chapter 10

Wanting to dress casual, Harry put on a plain white t-shirt under a grey sweater to go along with his black trousers and plain black trainers. He slid his black casual robes on overtop, which were long enough to reach his shin even though the sleeves only reached halfway down his arm. Dobby had tailored the robes for him following the design of the combat robes Harry had worn in the future. They also had the added convenience of built in enchantments to keep them warm, lightweight, and impervious to dirt and water.

Looking at himself more closely in the mirror, he noticed the light stubble growing on his face and used a grooming charm to remove it. He took a step back to take in his reflection and found himself appreciating the sight. With a satisfied smirk, he clasped his hands behind his back and surveyed the state of the Chamber's living quarters, making sure it was ready to accommodate him and Daphne for the next several hours. He noticed the Kit-Kat and Crunch bars lying next to the teacups, which meant Dobby must have acquired them during the night.

Today he intended to finish the story of Voldemort before starting the story of their own lives together. He sighed audibly, wondering to himself how Daphne would react to everything. Decided it was best not to think about that for now, Harry picked up his glasses from the desk and called for Dobby to bring him to his bed in the Slytherin dorms. By the sounds of their snoring, he could tell his dormmates were still asleep. He snorted at the racket they were making, and with a shake of his head he made his way to the common room.

The events of the previous evening were still fresh in his mind, including the not-so-subtle interrogation by his dormmates regarding the status of his relationship with Daphne. They seemed a little too eager to gossip, which made Harry even less inclined to give them any details. He told them that he and Daphne had just started dating that afternoon, but he left it at that. The other boys wanted to know more, of course, but they eventually accepted that Harry wasn't in the mood to share.

One of the best parts about getting up early on the weekend was that the common room was usually unoccupied. He sat down in one of the chairs near the fireplace and stared absently into the flames while he considered the next stages of his plans. Recent events had him re-evaluating his strategy, at least in regard to Voldemort.

Specifically, he was reconsidering the need to kill Voldemort with witnesses around. The idea had merit, but simply destroying all the Horcruxes and killing the bastard before he could reincorporate would be so easy - almost effortless. The events of the previous day had made the headmaster even more wary of him, which made Harry wonder if the original plan was worth the risk. In order for it to work, the rest of the tournament would need to play out more or less exactly as it had before. If an increasingly suspicious Dumbledore chose to meddle further, who's to say how that could affect events going forward?

He ultimately decided against altering his plans, though. He would need influence in the future if he were to achieve his long-term goals, and what better way than to publicly vanquish a powerful enemy? Dumbledore himself was a prime example of this, having translated the notoriety gained from defeating Grindelwald into becoming arguably the most influential wizard of the age. He decided it might be a good idea to pay Voldemort a visit at Riddle Manor and put him under a Veritas Imperio spell, just to make sure there would be no unexpected complications. He could even save himself a trip and take care of the ring Horcrux on the same night.

After letting his mind wander for a bit, his thoughts turned to the Yule Ball. He and Daphne both had everything they needed, and he had to admit he was very much looking forward to it. He was determined to make everything perfect for her and actually enjoy himself this time around. They still had over a week to go before the event, but time would fly by quickly, especially considering all the time he'd be spending explaining his past to Daphne.