"Edward, I can promise Minevera and Poppy won't say a thing to anyone about your condition," he said, his calm voice soothing and genuine.

"And Alastor?" I pressed.

"He is a trustworthy man, Edward," the old wizard said, but he hadn't directly answered my question. I didn't like the feeling that settled in my stomach at the headmaster's words. I grumbled but didn't speak again. Albus Dumbledore was like a lock box. The only person that could understand him was the one with the key, and he held the one and only key. He only allowed certain bits of information to slip through when he thought someone needed to know. It was kind of like working with Mustang. Only, Dumbledore was a hundred times worse.

Finally, the woods opened up into a wide glade, most of which was taken up by a large stadium. It was a great, round structure and students and teachers alike were already filing into their seats among their respective houses. I followed the other teachers up a seemingly endless amount of stairs, and I sighed when I finally fell into one of the chairs. Thank Truth teachers were blessed with having backings on their seats unlike the students who were left to sit upon wooden benches.

"So, dragons," I said to no one in particular, but I knew the headmaster I was sitting next to was listening. "Never seen one of those," I commented. "Still not sure what they have to do with the first task," I added.

"Do you ever listen to anything anyone has to say to you, Elric?" the headmaster of Durmstrang asked, a scoff punctuating his sentence. "Rumors have been running rampant, and even you, a teacher, doesn't know what's going on with his own students?" he challenged me. I turned in my seat to stare at the smiling man sitting two rows behind me.

"I have a lot going on, Karkaroff! I can't remember every damn thing every single person tells me," I snapped at the man. He looked like he wanted to say something in return, but Hagrid beat him to it, excitedly going into an in depth explanation of the task. I was equally thankful for the distraction as the explanation.

Soon, the first task was underway, and we were left to watch as each champion faced a dragon. A real life dragon! I would definitely have to do some more talking to Hagrid about the existence of dragons, knowing Al would never let me come home without a little bit of information about the creatures. Each student fared better than I had originally expected, but I had been on the edge of my seat from the first champion to the last.

When it was Potter's turn to fight the Hungarian Horntail as Hagrid said it was called, I was itching to do something to help the boy, but I knew there was nothing that could be done. If I interfered with the competition, there would be consequences, not only for me but Harry as well. I was supposed to keep this boy safe, and here he was sitting a damned dragon! Of all the crazy things I've done and seen in my life, this was at the top of the list. I had to keep this boy safe. The Truth had not discussed what would happen if I failed this mission, but I could guarantee I would be losing my little brother again. This boy had to live through the end of this year. If he didn't, I would never forgive the person who forced him into this cursed competition against his will. I would never forgive Dumbeldore. I would never forgive myself.

I could finally breathe out a sigh of relief and relax into the chair behind me when Harry had successfully passed the first task. I pinched the bridge of my nose between my thumb and my forefinger, completely stressed and in need of a very quiet evening. Only to more tasks. It'll be a wonder if I don't have a heart attack before the end of the school year.

I lagged behind the teachers a little bit on the way back to the castle, wanting a little moment of peace before I reentered the very changing, always alive building that was Hogwarts. The entire student body of all three schools were alive with excitement as they recounted the drama of the day. At least everyone was safe, alive, and the students were happy. Despite my earlier feelings and thoughts, I found myself smiling at the joy and enthusiasm radiating from the students.

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