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An Impossible Change

A Fanfiction Story by Gfyuwatr7

"You have shown bravery beyond anything I could have expected of you. I ask you to demonstrate your courage one more time. I ask you to tell us what happened."

Harry, Professor Dumbledore, and Sirius Black were standing in Dumbledore's office. It had been a few hours since Harry had emerged from the maze, clutching Cedric Diggory's dead body. It had been a mass of confusion at the entrance to the maze upon his return; everyone was screaming, yelling, asking questions. And amidst it all, the tormented cries of a young woman, cries that spoke of anguish, as though the world had ended…

Immediately, he had been led away from the scene by Professor Moody. They had gone to his office, and he had asked Harry for his account of events in the maze. Harry had not felt ready to recount his ordeal; the pain was too raw, his memories and emotions a terrible blur; Cedric's final stand, his death, and Voldemort's return…. Yet little did he know, he was not out of danger yet.

Professor Moody had begun to act strangely, speaking of things he could not have known, places only Harry had seen. He spoke of the graveyard as though he had been there himself. How could he know?

It became clear that Moody was insane. He began to rave like a lunatic, claiming he was Voldemort's most trusted servant, the only one who could truly understand him. He had pulled out his wand and was about to kill Harry, when the door to the office was blown open by an explosion. Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape entered and disarmed Moody. Under the influence of Veritaserum, a potion that forced its drinker to speak only the truth, Moody revealed the reasons behind his madness; he was not Mad-Eye Moody at all, he was Barty Crouch Junior. The man that had tormented Harry's dreams the entire year was now before him. He had replaced Moody, using a constant supply of Polyjuice Potion to maintain the appearance of the grizzled wizard.

He was the one who placed Harry's name in the Goblet of Fire. He was the one who had been sneaking into Snape's office after hours. He had been the one guiding Cedric and Hagrid to help Harry whenever he hit a dead end, and he had been the one to cast the Imperius Curse on Viktor Krum, in order to allow Harry to easily reach the Triwizard Cup. He was also responsible for turning the Cup into a Portkey, an object that could teleport people to a certain fixed location.

Once the effects of the Polyjuice Potion had worn off, the identity of this impostor had been revealed. He was a tall man, with short, messy black hair. His tongue constantly darted out from between his teeth, like a snake. Proudly, he described how he had killed his own father, and how he had hidden his body in the Forbidden Forest. Harry felt sick to his stomach. He had trusted this man, and all this time…

Recalling where he was, he looked up at Fawkes the phoenix, who was perched on Harry's knee. Fawkes gave a soft cry, and suddenly Harry felt strengthened.

And so, with a deep breath, Harry began his account of the night's events…

The Graveyard

A whirlwind of color and sound swept past Harry and Cedric, then suddenly, they landed. Their feet collided heavily with the ground, and their knees buckled underneath them. The Triwizard Cup flew out of their grasp.

Harry got up slowly, gasping for air. Taking in their surroundings, he realized he had seen this place before. It was the graveyard from his dreams, in the shadow of the house where he had seen Voldemort. It wasn't possible…

"You okay?" Cedric asked breathlessly, getting up from the ground. He began to pace around the tombstones surrounding them warily.

"Yeah, you?"

"Where are we?" Cedric asked quietly as he walked toward the Cup.

Harry didn't answer immediately. "I've been here before," Harry said softly. This couldn't be happening…

"It's a Portkey," Cedric said, sounding impressed. He was kneeling beside the Cup and examining it, but he didn't touch it. "Harry, the Cup's a Portkey-"

"I've been here before," Harry repeated, "in a dream!" Examining a large tombstone nearby, he read the name engraved on it. And his blood froze.

TOM RIDDLE

1905-1943

"Cedric, we have to get back to the Cup!" Harry said urgently. "Now!"

Cedric turned to him quickly, noting the alarm in his voice. "What're you talking about?" he said worriedly. His hand had gone to his pocket, and he was slowly pulling his wand out. Hearing a noise behind him, they turned quickly to its source.

A door creaked open before them on a wall by the edge of the graveyard, and a small man stepped forward. He was carrying a small bundle of cloth near his chest. And for some reason, Harry feared to even glance at what was inside of that bundle. Suddenly, his scar burst into flame, or it felt like it did. It was as though someone were stabbing his forehead with a white-hot sword. The pain was excruciating. Yelling, he collapsed to the ground. A cauldron suddenly appeared between them and the man, its base swirling with flame, a murky liquid bubbling within it.

"Harry!" Cedric yelled, running to his side. "Harry, what's wrong?"

"Get back to the Cup!" Harry groaned, clutching his scar and grinding his teeth. Glancing up, Harry's worst fears were confirmed; wrapped in the bundle, looking pale and sickly, was an infant-sized Voldemort. His slit-like nose flaring, he glared at them. The man carrying him, who Harry now recognized was Wormtail, the coward who had betrayed Harry's parents and caused their death, stepped forward.

Cedric ignored Harry's plea, and immediately took an offensive stance, pointing his wand at Wormtail.

"Who are you, what do you want?!" he demanded.

"Kill the spare!"

"No, Cedric!" Harry screamed.

"Avada Kedavra!"

"Ha!" Cedric yelled, dodging behind the cauldron. He was just in time; the deadly spell hit the ground where he had been standing. Weaving out of cover, he sent a spell flying toward Wormtail. It knocked him down, and the bundle of cloth, with Voldemort inside it, was sent crashing to the ground.

"You fool! Kill him!" Voldemort screamed.

Wormtail rose quickly to his feet, deflecting another quick spell from Cedric. He tried to cast the Killing Curse again, but Cedric dodged once more.

Cedric put his arm around Harry, and quickly helped him duck behind a tombstone. They heard a crack, and a piece of the tombstone fell to the ground.

"Harry!" Cedric said urgently. "Can you walk? We need to get to the Cup!"

"I'll only slow you down," Harry groaned, clutching his scar. "You need to warn Dumbledore, warn everyone! Go, Cedric, I'll be fine!"

"I'm not leaving you!" Cedric said. He looked out past the tombstone briefly, only to duck back quickly into cover. Another piece of tombstone fell to the ground. Their cover was falling apart, and fast.

"What was that spell you used?" Cedric asked desperately. "The one in the First Task?"

"It's the Summoning Charm," Harry replied, "but there's no time to learn it now, and I can't concentrate…"

"Okay, then…" Cedric grumbled. He paused, gathering his strength. "Look, I'm going to make a run for the Cup, and I'm going to get help. I'll be back as soon as I can, just hang in there until I do, alright?"

"Be careful, Cedric," Harry said quietly, shaking his hand. Cedric nodded tersely. Bouncing on the balls of his feet, he dove out of cover.

Only to be hit by the Killing Curse a few paces away from the Cup.

"Cedric!"

Hospital Wing

"But you must know where he is!" Mrs. Weasley said desperately to Madame Pomfrey, the Healer at Hogwarts. She, Ron, Hermione, Bill, Cho, and the Dursleys were in the Hospital Wing, trying to find out what had happened to Harry. After he had reappeared at the entrance to the maze, all of the staff and senior witches and wizards had rushed forward, trying to find out what had happened. When he went missing, Professors Dumbledore, Snape, and McGonagall went searching for him. Eventually, after waiting for a couple of hours, Cho and the others returned to the castle, and concluded that he must be in the Hospital Wing.

Unfortunately, Harry was nowhere to be seen. They were all becoming increasingly worried and agitated. Harry's cousin, in particular, looked very shaken. He had never been exposed to anything quite like what had happened that night.

Cho didn't know how to feel. She was relieved Harry had come back alive, but she also felt a huge weight on her heart over Cedric's death. They had once been friends, after all. Despite the way he had been acting recently, it didn't mean that she didn't care about him. Now she felt as though she should have done more to help him, somehow. The whole night had been like an emotional Floo Powder ride. She felt drained and exhausted. If she felt this way, she couldn't begin to imagine how Marietta felt.

Her friend was an utter wreck. As soon as she realized Cedric was dead, she had started screaming and crying hysterically. Cho and a few others had to restrain her in order to stop Marietta rushing out to see his dead body. Stephanie and the other girls volunteered to take her back to their dormitory. Cho could still hear her cries as she was taken from the field. She knew her friend would never be the same. Marietta had always had a bad habit of becoming too attached to people. She'd practically had an obsession with Cedric. His rejection of her affection took its toll on her, but this was much worse. Cho wasn't sure if Marietta would ever recover from this.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the doors of the Hospital Wing bursting open. Turning, she was immensely relieved to see Harry with Professor Dumbledore. They walked in slowly, and Cho saw the expression on Harry's face: withdrawn, tired, as though he had aged a few years in the hours that she hadn't seen him. Just as she had started moving forward, Mrs. Weasley stepped past her, about to engulf Harry in a hug. Professor Dumbledore moved between them and raised a hand.

"Molly," he said gently, "please listen to me for a moment. Harry has been through a horrible ordeal tonight. He has just had to relive it to me. What he needs now is sleep, and peace, and quiet. If he would like you all to stay with him," he added, looking around at them all, "you may do so. But I do not want you questioning him until he is ready to answer, and certainly not this evening."

Mrs. Weasley nodded, her face pale white. Turning to the others, she said, "Did you hear? Harry needs quiet!" At this, Harry's uncle looked as though he wanted to say something, but his wife laid on his arm, and he subsided.

As they all nodded their assent, Cho noticed that a dog had been standing in the room. She wondered when it had gotten inside, and where it had come from. Professor Dumbledore explained to Madame Pomfrey that the dog would be staying by Harry's side that night. As they were speaking, the dog turned suddenly towards her, gazing at her with intelligent eyes. She felt as though it were studying her, sizing her up. Finally, it seemed to nod to itself, and it turned away.

Dumbledore left, and once Harry had changed into pajamas and climbed into bed, everyone gathered around him. He looked up at them all, his gaze resting on Cho for a moment longer than the others. He looked exhausted.

"I'm all right," he told them. "Just tired."

Tentatively, Cho took his hand with her own. He squeezed hers lightly, giving her a brief, tired smile. That alone gave her hope that he would recover.

The Parting of the Ways

"It is my belief-and never have I so hoped that I am mistaken-that we are all facing dark and difficult times. Some of you in this Hall have already suffered directly at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Many of your families have been torn asunder. A week ago, a student was taken from our midst…Remember Cedric Diggory."

-Albus Dumbledore

Cho's trunk was packed, her owl in its cage. She, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were in the crowded entrance hall, awaiting the carriages that would take them to Hogsmeade Station. While it was a beautiful summer morning, Cho didn't gain any pleasure from it. Too much had happened in the last few days. The Ministry of Magic had decided to cover up the events of the Third Task, including Cedric's death. Her relationship with Marietta was on the rocks once again, and Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, also happened to be a great liar.

Liar's too strong a word, don't you think? a little voice in her mind said reasonably. After all, he didn't specifically lie about his godfather being Sirius Black.

I know that, Cho thought irritably. And I can see why he didn't say anything. I just can't help wondering what else he might be hiding. Maybe it's not my business to know, but...

But now he's told you everything, hasn't he?

It was true. The day before, Harry had asked her to meet with him in the library. Finding a solitary place for them to talk without being overheard, he told her the truth about Sirius and how he had been framed. He also told her how he had been reunited with him the previous year. It was something she was still trying to wrap her brain around. Animagi, prison escapes, and close encounters with a werewolf and a hundred Dementors. And time travel! It all seemed too convenient and contrived. And yet she believed him. She saw the truth of what Harry told her in his eyes.

She'd had a million other questions, but keeping in mind Dumbledore's instructions, she held her tongue for the time being. One day, perhaps, she would know everything. She remembered the hollow expression he wore on his face when she saw him in the Hospital Wing. He hadn't mentioned the maze, Cedric, or You-Know-Who since that night. Cho could tell he wasn't ready to recount his experience just yet.

As the Hogwarts Express pulled into the station and everyone piled in, Cho considered looking for Marietta. Walking past a few compartments, she finally found her sitting alone, facing the window. Her friend glanced behind her briefly, and catching sight of Cho, she turned back to the window. Her heart sinking, Cho followed Harry and the others into a compartment. She remembered clearly the conversation they'd had the morning after the Third Task.

"Cho, please! I need to know what happened to Cedric!" Marietta implored. The common room was empty, save for them. Everyone had moved outside to the grounds for some air. No one felt like staying indoors. Cho clenched her fists on her knees, trying to maintain control of her emotions. She hated seeing her friend like this.

"Marietta, I don't know anything, I swear," she said quietly. "I didn't ask Harry anything because Dumbledore told us not to. He told us not to ask him about it just now, remember? Harry needs time to recover."

"Yes, and he's had a whole night to do that!" Marietta cried desperately. "Maybe he'll talk now, or-"

"Marietta, Harry's not going to recover after just one night!" Cho snapped, her patience fraying. "He was there, he saw it happen! You can't ask him to relive that."

"Why not?" Marietta fired back. "It's not like he really fought You-Know-Who or anything. He's lying. He's hiding what really happened, I can feel it!"

"That's-what?" Cho spluttered. "That's ridiculous! He's not lying, what on Earth would he need to hide?"

"I don't know," Marietta said, "but anyone who can speak Parseltongue and likes to fake pain just to get out of class obviously has more to hide. And I'm going to find out what it is." She moved toward the entrance of the common room. "I'm going to the Hospital Wing, and I'll wring the truth out of him."

"I can't let you do that, Marietta," Cho said firmly. "Dumbledore told us that You-Know-Who is back. And he told us not to ask Harry about it until he was ready. We have to trust him, and that's all we can do for now. Harry will tell you what happened, I promise he will. Just not now, please."

Marietta paused. "You don't understand," she whispered shakily. "Cedric's dead. I need to know what happened, and why. You can't stop me."

"I can and I will," Cho said, "but I don't want to."

Marietta ignored her and made her way to the door.

"Marietta," Cho said firmly, "Marietta!"

Her tone stopped Marietta once more, and as she turned around, Cho's hand unconsciously moved toward her wand in her pocket. Marietta froze in place.

"You're going to attack me?" Marietta scoffed. "Over him?"

"Leave him alone," Cho said quietly, her hand still hovering over her wand. She had no idea why she was doing this; she didn't have it in her to hurt her friend over this…did she? Before she could consider her intentions more closely, Marietta interrupted her.

"Fine, I see how it is," she sniffed. "You've been taken in by him. It doesn't matter what he's done or what he might be, you'll never leave him, will you? And people say I was obsessed…I'll leave you two alone for now. But next term, I'm getting some answers, you hear?" Without waiting for an answer, she left the common room and slammed the door behind her.

As the train sped further south, the more Harry felt that he could relax. Dumbledore's speech at the end-of-term feast had helped him feel better, at least a little. He realized that he was opening up about the events of that night, discussing it more freely. It wasn't much, but it was a start. He felt quite relieved, actually. His friends wanted to help him, it didn't make sense to hide things from them. And now Cho was in on their secrets as well. As they discussed the Tasks and what might be happening in the outside world, she would stop them to ask for details or clarification on certain things. Now, she was forming theories with them, almost as though they had all known each other since that fateful first year. Harry was very proud of her. She could have easily felt put off by their antics and their history, but she wanted to join instead. They stopped their conversations only when the lunch trolley arrived.

The rest of the journey was quite uneventful. Hermione revealed to them how Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent, had been getting her stories: she was an unregistered Animagus, being able to turn into a beetle. Hermione had caught her in a jar. Then, after an altercation with Malfoy and his cronies that left them covered in bruises and warts, they were joined by the Weasley twins. They enjoyed various games of Exploding Snap until they finally pulled into King's Cross Station. Harry gave his Triwizard winning money to the Weasley twins (after threatening to hex them), then climbed down from the train. He followed his friends through the barrier in the wall, and emerged between platforms nine and ten on the Muggle train station.

To the side, waiting for him, were the Dursleys. Though they looked genuinely relieved to see him, Harry could tell they were trying their best to hide it. Next to them, the Weasley family was getting ready to leave as well. But Harry was looking for Cho, the one who, despite not knowing all the details, had been by his side. He saw her, sitting down on a bench, looking for someone. He walked over to her and sat down next to her.

"Hey," he said uncertainly. She turned and smiled at him, which helped him to relax.

"Hey, yourself," she replied.

They paused, not knowing what to say. A lot had happened in the last week or so. Maybe too much. Harry knew Cho still had questions, but was stopping herself from asking. Honestly, he wasn't sure if she even still trusted him or not. He was about to begin apologizing (even though he had already done so, numerous times), but she put a finger to his lips.

"It's okay," she said gently, "I know."

With just four words, Harry was reassured. Four words was enough to tell him that in spite of everything, she still loved him. And he returned the favor in two words.

"Thank you."

End

A.N. : And there you have it, everyone. The final chapter of what began as a little experiment is here. This took so long to write, and I apologize for that. School has kept me incredibly busy. I can't promise that I'll write again soon, but I'll do my best. There are a lot of loose ends to address.

I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed and followed this story, even for reading it in the first place. I'm really grateful to all of you.

Okay, mushy stuff over, now for some news. I'll try to write the next part of this AU series as soon as I can. At the same time, I'll be trying to write a prequel to this story, explaining how Cedric became the way he was. It will also eventually branch out into its own story. I know this is all really vague, but I hope that you guys will like it once I start it.

Reviews, comments, and constructive criticism are all welcome. Thanks again for the support, I'll try to start my new projects as soon as I can. Hang tight.

Update: I've posted the first chapter for my new story, "The Hidden Army"! It's a sequel to this story, so once you've finished reading this story, you can start right away with the next one. Also, I've posted the first chapter for the prequel to this story, explaining what happened to Cedric and how he changed. It's called "Fixed Point in Time". Both of these stories can be found on my profile, just click on my name and you'll find them. Hope you guys enjoy!