Harry Contention Battle

Harry paused for a moment, and before he could answer, he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"I already said that."

Everyone turned their heads at the same time. Veratia was standing at the gate of the courtyard, wearing a simple dark robe, with a faint smile on her face.

She arrived here using Apparition; the air behind her was still swirling.

"Ms. Grindelwald!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed with delight, "You've come too? Please come in, please come in!"

"Excuse me, Mrs. Weasley." Veratia nodded politely, her gaze sweeping over the crowd before settling on Harry. "I happened to have some free time, so I came to check on things."

Her tone was casual, but her eyes remained fixed on Harry.

Cassandra stood next to Harry, her lips pursed sharply, her face clearly saying "I don't believe it."

"Ms. Grindelwald is really thoughtful," she said sarcastically, "She came straight over after just finishing up Confederation business."

Veratia looked at her and simply smiled slightly.

"We can't let you have Harry all to yourself Cass, can we?"

Their eyes met in mid-air, and everyone could feel the crackling sparks that flew at the point where their gazes met.

Women are terrifying.

The yard suddenly fell silent. George and Fred exchanged a glance, both revealing expressions of anticipation, as if they were watching a good show.

The usually oblivious Ron didn't notice the awkward atmosphere. He scratched his head and asked, "What are you all doing standing at the door? Come on in!"

Hermione secretly pinched him.

"What?" Ron asked, rubbing his arm in a wronged tone.

Hermione rolled her eyes, too lazy to explain.

Harry cleared his throat, breaking the tense atmosphere. "Come on in. Mrs. Weasley, is there anything I can help you with?"

"No, no!" Mrs. Weasley quickly waved her hand. "You are all guests, please sit down! Ruby is here too, helping out in the Kitchen!"

The Merpeople in, making the already cramped Living Room of the Burrow even more crowded.

Ron was squeezed into a corner, Hermione sat next to him, Ginny came down from upstairs, raised an eyebrow when she saw the scene.

Wow, everyone's here?

Her gaze swept between Harry, Cassandra, and Veratia, a knowing smile playing on her lips.

"I'm going to help Mom cook," she said, turning and slipping into the Kitchen.

George and Fred occupied the best spots in front of the fireplace, sitting upright with expressions of anticipation for a good show. Bill and Phoebe sat on the sofa, Phoebe leaning on Bill's shoulder with a faint smile on her face—she had also noticed something.

Only Arthur was still immersed in the world of Muggle Studies, clutching a radio he'd picked up from who-knows-where, completely unaware of the undercurrents swirling in the Living Room.

"This—" he said excitedly to Kingsley, "Is called a transistor radio! Muggle use it to receive sounds coming from the air! No magic, no owls, you can hear people talking hundreds of kilometers away!"

Kingsley nodded politely, but his gaze kept drifting towards Harry.

Harry sat on a single sofa—which Mrs. Weasley had insisted on giving him, saying he needed to rest after the battle.

Cassandra sat down naturally on the armrest next to him, her posture casual, as if it were the natural thing to do.

Veratia looked around and found there were no empty seats. She raised an eyebrow, walked to the other side of Harry's sofa, and sat down on the armrest, almost landing on Harry's forearm.

So Harry was caught between the two women.

Cassandra is on the left, and Veratia is on the right.

Both of them sat naturally, calmly, and as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

The air in the Living Room froze. George nudged Fred with his elbow, and Fred nudged him back with his elbow.

The two exchanged a silent glance, a glance that spoke volumes.

Ron finally realized something and whispered to Hermione, "I feel like there's something weird going on."

Hermione said expressionlessly, "Eat your Licorice Wand."

I just finished eating----

"Then let's have another one."

Ron obediently picked up a Licorice Wand, put it in his mouth, but his gaze still couldn't help drifting towards Harry.

Harry sat there, feeling that the temperature on both sides was a bit off. The two women were very close to him, so close that he could feel their breathing.

"Harry," Veratia spoke first, her voice soft, "How did you sleep last night?"

"It's... it's alright," Harry said.

"Are you alright?" Cassandra chimed in. "I remember someone saying last night that they couldn't sleep, and those things kept coming back to them whenever they closed their eyes."

Her tone was flat, but it was clearly intentional, meant to provoke Veratia.

After all, Veratia has been extremely busy with the International Confederation of Wizards lately and hasn't had any time to reunite with Harry.

Veratia looked at her and smiled slightly, "You're very observant, Cass."

"After all, I was here all night," Cassandra said.

Veratia nodded. "Thank you for your hard work."

"It's not hard work," Cassandra said. "It's nothing."

The two exchanged a glance, then simultaneously looked away.

Harry, sandwiched in the middle, suddenly felt his presence become very strong.

George finally couldn't hold back any longer, coughed, and said, "Um, Fred, shouldn't we go and look into the new product?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Fred immediately stood up. "The new product is important! Extremely important!"

The two disappeared in a flash at the top of the stairs.

Bill stood up and pulled Phoebe along, saying, "Let's go outside for some fresh air."

Phoebe nodded, glancing at Harry before leaving with a mischievous look in her eyes.

Ginny poked her head out from the Kitchen: "Mom said dinner will be a little while longer, you two chat first!"

Then she shrank back in.

The Living Room emptied by more than half in an instant. Kingsley and Lupin exchanged a glance and walked over to Arthur, pretending to be very interested in the radio.

Arthur was excitedly explaining things to them, completely unaware of what was happening.

So, around that single sofa, only Harry, Cassandra, and Veratia remained, along with Ron, who sat silently in the corner, and Hermione remained expressionless.

"Um—" Ron started to say something, but Hermione quickly covered his mouth.

"Quiet," Hermione whispered.

Ron whimpered twice and gave up.

Veratia looked at Harry, her gaze softening. "I heard about the situation in Peru from Kingsley. You did a great job."

"It's not just him," Cassandra said. "We're all in this together."

"Yes, yes, you deserve just as much credit," Veratia said with a smile, as if she were coaxing a child.

Cassandra took a deep breath but said nothing more.

This woman----

Harry felt he should say something; he couldn't just stand there like that.

"You—" he began, but didn't know what to say.

Veratia looked at him. "What? Did I say something wrong?"

"No—" Harry said, "it's just—"

"Just what?" Cassandra asked.

Harry looked at them and suddenly smiled.

"I just feel like I'm pretty lucky."

Veratia and Cassandra exchanged a glance and simultaneously let out a soft hum.

"Good to know." They both said in unison.

After saying that, they were both stunned for a moment, and then simultaneously looked away.

In the corner, Ron finally broke free from Hermione's grasp and whispered, "I know what's wrong. They've started that fighting over Harry again!"

Hermione looked at him with a complicated expression.

"You finally figured it out."

In the Kitchen, Mrs. Weasley was busy at work, while Ginny helped her chop vegetables.

"Mom," Ginny whispered, "Have you noticed what's happening outside?"

"What's going on?" Mrs. Weasley asked without turning around. "Harry and the others are back. Of course I noticed."

"No, not that one," Ginny said. "It's— Ms. Grindelwald and Miss Malfoy."

Mrs. Weasley paused, her spatula hovering in her hand.

What happened to them?

Ginny leaned closer and whispered, "They all really like Harry."

1

Mrs. Weasley paused for a moment, then continued stirring the vegetables in the pan.

"Let the young people handle their own affairs," she said. "As long as Harry's happy—no, it's not a secret, why are you bringing this up?"

"I'm just curious, if they were to have a public wedding, who would Harry choose as his bride?" Ginny asked with a smile. "Don't you think that's quite interesting?"

Mrs. Weasley was taken aback; she hadn't really considered this question.

"Alright, this isn't our concern," she finally said. "Go, hand me the salt over there."

At lunchtime, the tables were full of people.

Mrs. Weasley used all her skills to prepare a table full of dishes, which made Ron's eyes widen in amazement.

"Mom, is it Chinese New Year today?"

"More important than the New Year!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed. "Harry and the others are back safe and sound; of course, we should celebrate!"

Everyone took their seats, and this time Harry was smarter, taking the first seat in the middle of the long table.

But Veratia and Cassandra had no intention of letting him go, and sat down on either side of him.

George and Fred sat opposite each other, exchanged a glance, and simultaneously lowered their heads to suppress their laughter.

Kingsley and Lupin sat next to Arthur and continued their discussion about the radio's workings— Kingsley was clearly trying to find something to talk about to escape the atmosphere.

Bill and Phoebe sat at the other end, talking in hushed tones, but their eyes kept drifting over.

Anne sat quietly opposite Harry, in a position that allowed her to clearly see the interaction between the three of them. She didn't speak, but a faint smile played on her lips, and her eyes curved into crescent shapes.

She was used to it; she had seen this kind of scene far too often—whether it was when the two of them were at odds a hundred years ago, or after they reconciled a hundred years later.

Veratia and Cassandra always occupied the seats on either side of Harry, occasionally bickering and exchanging sarcastic remarks, but then they could turn around and have tea and chat together.

Sometimes Anne felt quite lucky – she didn't have to participate in this kind of competition and could just stay quietly by.

Anyway, Harry has feelings for her, and she knows that, and that's enough.

Not competing is competing.

At the dining table, Veratia was the first to pick up her chopsticks.

She picked up a piece of roast beef and put it on Harry's plate.

Eat more, you've lost weight recently.

As soon as she finished speaking, Cassandra also picked up a piece of Yorkshire pudding and placed it on the other side of Harry's plate.

"This is delicious, Mrs. Weasley's specialty."

Harry stared at the food that had piled up on his plate, and his shoulders slumped helplessly.

Are you trying to fatten me up?

"I want one too, Fatty," Veratia said calmly, but it almost made the people eavesdropping across the room choke.

Cassandra glanced at her and said slowly, "You're so blunt, you philanderer."

"I think you're in a hurry." Veratia looked at her and smiled slightly.

Cassandra raised an eyebrow. "No."

"That's good." Veratia nodded. "So, do you think this piece of beef is enough? If not, I'll give him more."

Cassandra glanced at the small mountain of food on Harry's plate and pursed her lips.

"That's enough. If you pinch him any more, he'll protest."

Harry nodded immediately. "Yes, yes, that's enough."

Veratia glanced at him and reached out to ruffle his messy hair.

"Okay, whatever you say."

Cassandra gave a soft hum beside her, but said nothing.

Not far away, George and Fred exchanged a glance. George whispered, "I bet five Galleon that Harry will be overfed tonight."

.

"I'd bet ten," Fred said, "And he wouldn't dare refuse."

"Make a deal."

Ron, who had been listening nearby, finally couldn't help but whisper to Hermione, "Do you really think there's any possibility of them coexisting peacefully?"

I remember that before Voldemort died, the two of them seemed to have calmed down for a while, but now that Voldemort is gone, it feels like that feeling has returned."

Hermione opened her mouth, but ultimately sighed, "Hard to say."

"How could Harry possibly stand it?"

Hermione glanced at Harry, who was engrossed in his food. Veratia was watching him tenderly from his left, while Cassandra occasionally handed him water from his right to prevent him from choking.

"Him?" Hermione smiled. "He probably thinks he's quite happy."

Ron nodded thoughtfully, then said, "What about Pabbie and Anne?"

"Pabbie, Pabbie doesn't have any conflicts with them. Besides, Pabbie's personality is so innocent and carefree, no one could dislike her."

After saying that, Hermione looked at Anne.

Anne was eating quietly, occasionally glancing up at Harry with a faint smile on her face.

There was no jealousy or dissatisfaction in that smile, only a gentle satisfaction.

"Anne is different," Hermione said. "She doesn't fight for it."

"Non-contention?"

"Yes," Hermione said, "She knows what she wants and what she can get. So there's no need for her to fight for it."

Ron nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Ginny brought out a plate of freshly baked Pumpkin Pasty from the Kitchen and placed it in the center of the table.

Her gaze swept over Harry, Veratia, Cassandra, then lingered on Anne for a moment before she smiled meaningfully.

"Harry," she said, "You're being treated really well today."

Harry looked up, his mouth still stuffed with food, and mumbled, "What?"

Ginny smiled and shook her head, offering no explanation.

"So what are your plans after School Opening?" Veratia asked. "Are you going to continue your studies at Hogwarts? Or are you going to leave school like Hermione and only go back for the NEWTs exams?"