A Whole New Life

by MadWritingBibliomaniac

Summary:

After Harry and Hermione died at Malfoy Manor, Harry meets his reaper in the afterlife. To his surprise, this isn't remotely the first time he had died, but to finally fulfil his destiny this time he will be sent back with his memories and some additional preparation thanks to some long dead people like the founders and a few of his ancestors. This time Dumbledore's manipulations and the Weasleys' love potioning won't happen, rest assured.

Back at Ollivanders with Hagrid, Harry starts changing things rapidly, especially since he ran into his soulmate - Hermione. Upon a first touch she starts to remember everything. Minerva McGonagall and the Grangers rescue Harry from the Dursleys and as Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter, with advanced magical skill, knowledge of Dumbledore's and Voldemort's plans and his soulmate on his side a whole new life can begin.

My personal interpretation of the Grim Reaper challenge.

Notes:

Hello reader,
I'm glad you found this work and hope you enjoy it. As this is my first published work and I'm working on some original work too, I hope I can update regularly, a few chapters are already done.

On a sidenote, English isn't my first language, so I apologise for any grammar and vocabulary mistakes.

At some point you might recognise some paragraphs because they are inspired or taken from the Harry Potter books, like the Sorting Hat's song. Those are obviously not mine but cited from JKR's books
And last but not least, I obviously don't own Harry Potter and any affiliated characters, this is merely a fanfiction.

Chapter 1: Afterlife and Rebirth

Based on the “Don’t fear the grim reaper” - challenge

"STORYLINE:

*) Harry is killed at 17 during the fight with Voldemort. at Malfoy Manor (out of plot reasons). He's sent to his Death's office (explained later) and finds out that this isn't the first time that this has happened.

*) Harry's Death (who can have a human name) is mad at his arrival. Apparently, people dying before their time is a black mark on the various Deaths' records, and Harry is getting perilously close to getting this particular one fired.

*) When Harry asks what was supposed to have happened, Death goes off on a rant saying how he was supposed to have killed Voldemort, found his soulmate ("Some Granger girl…") and lived to be a centennial age. But since Harry keeps getting into life-threatening situations for one reason or another, he keeps dying before that happens. Harry is surprised about the soul mate part.

*) Death gives Harry a paper to sign that allows him to retain his memories (the previous times, he wasn't given this option for some reason). Harry is deposited to a previous time of the writer's choosing.

*) Eventually, Harry gets it right. He kills Voldemort, gets the girl, and lives to a ripe old age of whatever. And Death doesn't get fired.

REQUIREMENTS:

*) Harry must have died at least three times before this one

*) The memory keeping contract must be included

*) Death must refer to Hermione as "some Granger girl" when Harry's soul mate turns up in his rant

*) Obviously, must be H/Hr

*) Have fun

OPTIONAL:

*) Dumbledore's manipulations can be a factor in Harry's premature demises"

 

Chapter 1

Harry had no clue what just happened. Barely a second ago he was at Malfoy Manor, attacking Bellatrix with Wormtail's wand, it all went green and then here he was. The boy-who-lived was nearly certain that Bella's Avada hit him, when he threw a Sectumsempra in her direction. As his eyes started to adapt to the bright light he shook his head: he should have gone for an unforgivable, just to avenge Hermione. Though he was not absolutely certain of her death, from the looks of it she either passed out or died from Bella's Cruciatus-torture. Tears started to run down the young wizard's cheek, but he was rather rudely interrupted by an upset sounding male voice.

“Potter, Harry James. Once again. You have no intention of fulfilling your destiny, don't you? That is what, the ninth time you didn't manage to keep yourself alive. Not good for my track record, I'll probably get fired because of you.”

“I'm sorry, what?”

“You are dead, Mr. Potter. Welcome to the afterlife, I'm your personal reaper, John. Each and every time I have to tell you the same thing: you were not supposed to die yet, but still you manage to do it. This time was the second furthest you've gotten yet, one life earlier Voldemort killed you in the forbidden forest and I was so hoping that this time you'd manage to stay alive. Not even Merlin was so exhausting, from what I've heard.”

“Wait a second, I'm dead, and not for the first time? How's that?”

The reaper, John, dressed in a wide dark grey coat, shook his head in disbelief, because the young wizard, who was supposed to save the world, was apparently not the fastest one when it came to understanding. Slowly he repeated what he just said, until Harry finally got it.

“So, and what now? Do I get another try to kill the dark bastard and what will be waiting for me afterwards?”

The reaper nodded and opened the file in front of him, to give Harry a small impression of what happened and what was to come if he succeeded.

“Harry James Potter, the boy-who-lived. Lord of, well, a variety of noble and most ancient houses, not only Potter and Peverell, Member of the Wizengamot, defeater of Voldemort, married to his soulmate, give me a second... ah, yes, some Granger girl and lived to the respectable age of somewhat over two hundred years. Enough or shall I continue?”

Harry was, to put it mildly, stunned. He should have had a long and successful life, happily married to...Hermione. As soon as he realised that, he looked up to his reaper.

“Married to my soulmate Hermione? What about Ginny?”

The reaper looked at him in disbelief: “Ginevra Molly Weasley? That girl caused most of your early demises, at least kind of. Mainly it was the fault of the old madman Dumbledore, who can't stop manipulating, even if destiny has other plans. You remember when Molly told Ginny about brewing love potion in her younger years? Well, that's how she originally got Arthur's attention and both Ginevra and Ronald used the same method to get both you and Hermione. Otherwise there would not have been a chance to keep you two apart. Molly really liked your money and name and Ginny desperately wanted her hero from the tales her mother told her. An unhealthy obsession if I might add. Now, how are we gonna do this? I'm up for revision soon so I do want you to succeed so I might give you a little head start.”

Harry was not able to understand what the reaper just said. Well, he understood but didn't comprehend it. Ginny dosed him with potion and so did Ron with Mione. Does that make sense? Now, as he was dead and looked back, it might actually make sense and explain a lot. Still, somehow he couldn't believe the Weasley's would do something like that. And what was that about Dumbledore?

“How was Professor Dumbledore guilty of me dying before my time?” Harry's reaper shook his head, as he was asked that. “Who on heaven and earth leaves an infant on a doorstep at night, when your aunt didn't expect you to be brought to her? The basilik, the dragon at the tournament, you, crashing with your broom because of the dementors, your death on the astronomy tower instead of his, Quirrell, your stupid rescuing attempt in the ministry, Voldemort in the forbidden forest and now that madwoman Lestrange. At least you don't die the same way twice, but you can see how many of those are directly or indirectly the old man's fault. Each and every one of them.”

Now Harry was stunned, every time he got away with his life so close, he actually died in a previous or later attempt. He only wondered that he never messed up the graveyard, but then he realised that out of his nine attempts he only got there four times. Slowly he started to get the bigger picture while realising that he might actually be in love with his best friend. No, not Ron, but Hermione. It all somehow made sense to him now.

“So, what's your plan?”

After laying out a very different beginning of his time at Hogwarts, including leaving the Dursleys earlier and meeting up with his soulmate, who should regain her memories as well, they would attempt to save several lives this time. The question, why he didn't regain his memories on an earlier try, John explained with the fact that this was highly irregular and an extraordinary measure that was only justified by the number of deaths he already had.

“Now, two more things. We'll have a brief chat with your parents and some other important individuals to give you a better chance and before that we have to get rid of the Horcrux in your scar so you'll finally be able to really use your powers. That damn thing has been blocking major parts of your magical core and mental abilities, not to forget the Occlumency. Theoretically you should be damn good with that, kind of your heritage.”

Once again, Harry was stunned, not only because of the fact that he'd be meeting his parents soon, but rather because of the Horcrux. After some explanation of why and how he realised that it was practically obvious and explained both Parseltongue and his visions of the dark bastard. John explained that he might feel a bit overwhelmed once he was back, his body would have to adapt to his new powers. As Harry asked if he'd lose his Parseltongue, John shook his head, because the old fool was wrong, it was not a side-effect from the Horcrux but rather a family trait. Harry would have to go to Gringotts to verify that and take upon the heritage of those houses if possible, but he had the blood of not only Slytherin but all the founders. Even though Marvolo Gaunt thought the Peverell and Slytherin line had intertwined in the past, that was wrong. The three brothers were direct descendants of Salazar and Harry was the one true heir of Ignotus Peverell. From the Potter side as well came the blood of Gryffindor, while the Evans were descendants of Rowena's daughter, which would make the grey lady his ancestor and his mother anything but a muggleborn. Maybe he'd get into the “Sacred twenty-eight” (then twenty-nine) eventually, Harry thought, laughing. Henry Potter should have been more stubborn, though neither Harry nor his ancestor were pure-blood extremists. It would strengthen his position in the Wizengamot though. Anyway, the Hufflepuff blood floating through his veins was not so much, but the Evans picked it up when a Smith woman married into the family several hundred years ago, who was distantly related to the late Hepzibah Smith.

Harry really was surprised by all the revelations he got, but that didn't really matter to him when John took him into another room, where he saw the ghosts of nine different people. Some he recognized, others he didn't. Ignoring anything, he sprinted towards his parents and hugged them in a manner that would make Hermione proud. By then he realised that they were anything but ghosts, he could touch them, feel them and tears started running down his cheeks as he held them for several minutes. Most of the people present had some tears running down their cheeks, but the one showing nearly no affection coughed respectfully in a nearly Umbridge-like manner, but no that disrespectful. It was no other than the great Salazar Slytherin, who wanted to go on with what they intended on doing to prepare the boy. The other founders nodded and James released his son, though Lily stayed in the hug for another minute. After that, John introduced the four founders and thanked them for taking their time, as well as the old wizard in green robes, the one and only Merlin, the most famous wizard of all times. The other two were Henry Potter, Harry's great-grandfather and Ariana Dumbledore, Albus' sister.

 

They conspired for something that felt like days, which is completely irrelevant as time was not playing a factor here, in the afterlife. Now, after they were done, Harry had plans to free Sirius, escape from the Dursleys, get in possession of his Lordship and inheritance, including the Potter Manor, about which Henry explained a lot, to counter Dumbledore’s manipulations and get friendly with Snape. Merlin and the founders gave him some helpful advice for dealing with the castle and some ancient knowledge or at least the means to acquire it. What they unfortunately couldn't tell him was where the Diadem and the Cup were located, so Harry would have to hunt those Horcruxes down by himself.

 

After some emotional goodbyes, Harry and his Reaper left and went back into the Office, where Harry first woke up. The two of them still had to work out the formalities and not everything was clear by now: “So, before I leave, could you please explain the whole soulmate thing to me in detail?” John nodded: “Basically you two are two parts of a whole, you share a soul. It is possible to exist independently, but not really a good idea. Some say the connection is mainly romantic, but it is way more than that. Your souls are not just simply bonded, that mainly occurs in siblings or best friends, like the Weasley twins or the Marauders, but with soulmates, nothing can keep them apart. You might share your minds or memories, you feel the others presence and much more, but that differs from pair to pair. As soon as you meet your mate when you're back, she will recognize you and retain some memories, it is not possible to predict how fast until she knows everything again.”

The last and final act of Harry's reaper was to give him the necessary documents to sign, which was a lot apparently, since it was not only about getting another chance but about the removal of a Horcrux as well plus the retaining of the memories. After everything was done, John led the young man to a huge steel door and when he opened it, there was just light behind it, a bit like the veil in the ministry, he signalised Harry to walk into there and when the wizard felt a strong power pulling him away he could have sworn he heard the reaper say: “Don't you dare coming earlier than in over two centuries.”

 

July 31 st 1991 – Ollivanders

Harry opened his eyes and after a fraction of a second he realised at which point in time he reappeared. They planned for this day, yes, but returning someone from the dead was not an exact science. The old wandmaker came back to Harry and Hagrid, carrying the box, which contained the wand Harry knew and loved. The twin-cores were not ideal, but he was familiar with that one and he knew where to find another for the long term use. He heard Ollivander speak about it, “Holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches,” though Harry didn't really pay any attention because he tried to figure out how to make the plan work, when he already visited Gringotts. He needed to go there, together with Hagrid, because he had the key. After waving his wand and this time purposefully showing off, while realising how much more power he had available, Hagrid said something to the wandmaker that made him look up. It was different this time: “Could you be so friendly and send the bill to Harry's vault, we haven't been to the bank yet. The young man here wanted a wand first.” Ollivander nodded, it was not that uncommon that customers did that, Galleons were heavy. After stating once more how “curious” the choice of wand was, Harry gladly left the shop.

 

Harry was quite certain that his favourite reaper was playing destiny because after they got Hedwig and most of the other things he needed, they ran into a group of four people he never expected to see so early. A change of plans was deemed necessary, Harry decided and on their way to Gringotts he carefully steered Hagrid into the direction where he could feel Hermione's presence, though he couldn't see her. The tall woman next to her and her parents on the other hand he couldn't miss, maybe she would be a good person to confide in just now. They had planned that for later though, so all his plans were falling apart, he would have to improvise a lot.

“Hagrid. Good to see you. What is your business in Diagon Alley today? Mr and Mrs Granger, Hermione, that man there is the keeper of grounds and keys of Hogwarts. I think I told you about him. Oh and that can't be...” As soon as Minerva McGonagall saw the young wizard she knew better to yell his name across the street. The group around the Head of House Gryffindor moved closer and she gladly shook Harry's hand. “Harry Potter. It is a pleasure to see you again, though you probably won't remember the last time we met. I was there when Albus... Professor Dumbledore brought you to your aunt and uncle. Why don't you two join us if you don't mind?” The last half was directed towards the Grangers, who were happy at the thought of Hermione getting friends with someone her age and... abilities. They still felt not very comfortable in the wizarding world and after a brief exchange of looks they asked McGonagall if she would be okay if they left the magical street and met up later, so the kids would be less disturbed. Hermione never really had any friends and the prospect of getting to know a classmate even before school wouldn't harm, rather the opposite. The professor thought that this would be a very good idea and asked Hagrid, if he didn't have to do something else for the headmaster and against all odds he understood the implication.

 

During the conversation of the adults, Harry moved closer to Hermione and offered her his hand, which she shook. She wanted to introduce herself to the black-haired boy in front of her but as soon as their hands touched, tens of thousands of memories returned into the witches' head and Harry, knowing her well, saw that she recognized him. After all these years and being on the run he could practically read her facial expressions, if not her mind.

“Mione? Do you know where we are?” She nodded and tried to understand: “I know where we aren't: Malfoy Manor with Ron. I only recall getting tortured by Lestrange. What did you do?”

So she remembered, at least huge parts. That was a good thing and soon they would go to Gringotts together with Minerva and the plans could get set into motion, at least some.“ Well, Wormtail, that rat, still owed me a life debt and I used his wand to blast my way out of the basement, you were laying on the ground and I threw a sectumsempra at Bella, but her Avada was faster. I died and my reaper let me return to fulfil my destiny. I came back just around half an hour ago.” Hermione nodded again and tried to not freak out, but there was still a major question unanswered: “Why do I remember everything?”

Harry blushed at that and gave her a short summary. She would find out eventually. “You and me, we are supposed to be soulmates and apparently Molly, Ginny and Ron love-potioned us. At least that is what my file in the afterlife said.”

Once again, Harry could see her mind working, thinking about what he just said and simultaneously blushing. Hermione was – obviously – familiar with soulmates, it was clear to her what that meant. The part with the Weasleys on the other hand was a horrific thought, though not completely absurd. The girl knew that, by the looks of it, Harry was telling the truth. This made it so much easier for her to accept everything he just said and to play along until they had the time to talk about all of that in detail, because now both her parents and Hagrid were leaving and McGonagall's attention was fully focused on them.

 

On the way to Gringotts, the professor asked Harry how life was with the Dursleys and this time he couldn't hold back, he needed her trust. “Honestly? I guess you saw them back then. It is pure torture there, I have to do all the chores, don't get enough food, slept in a cupboard for a decade and both my uncle and cousin didn't hesitate to hit me. How do you expect I am?”

Sure, Hermione knew basically everything Harry said, but he never stated it so directly and McGonagall was just stunned. She knew from her previous observations that they were not the best kind of people but that she hadn’t expected.

“I told him, but does Albus ever listen to someone else? Damn...”

This brief moment of anger and horror disappeared as fast as it appeared before and then she directed her words to the young wizard: “Mr Potter, I truly apologise. I hope that you can forgive me but Professor Dumbledore said it was only for your best and who am I to doubt this man's word? I could have checked on you but I took comfort in his reassurances, and I will never forgive myself.”

Hermione, standing next to Harry during McGonagall's apology, took the opportunity to hug her best friend and both had tears running down their cheeks, though they didn't know why. The professor's apology was truly moving and more emotional than anything they had ever heard from her. Harry took comfort in Hermione's touch and after they let go of each other, something so unexpected happened: McGonagall followed Hermione's example and hugged the young boy as well. None of the three could believe that this just happened, she wasn't the kind of person to show such empathy and love towards students, but with the young Mr Potter it was something different. She felt guilty and realised that probably no one except Miss Granger here had ever shown empathy towards the boy, at least in his memory. James and Lily were very lovely back then but he certainly didn't remember. As the witch let go of him, he said something that was way beyond his age: “You don't have to worry professor, I forgive you. I was never your fault, only Dumbledore can blame himself, but he won't. For him it was always about the “Greater Good”.”

If Minerva wouldn't have been so rattled she might have taken notice of Harry's knowledge about the headmaster, but she didn't and so they made their way towards the bank. Harry couldn't tell Hermione what his plan was but he needed to find an explanation for McGonagall. He wasn't sure the truth would be good at this point in time, though she was certainly someone in whom they could confide.

 

After a short explanation of the bank's history by the professor and an exchange of muggle money into Galleons for Hermione, Harry stepped forward to greet Griphook, while McGonagall handed him the small golden key she got from Hagrid. “I will explain everything to you later, professor. Teller Griphook, may your vaults overflow and your enemies fall at your hand.” The goblin looked surprised and replied to the young wizard: “May your gold never run out and your opponents flinch at your name. It's uncommon for a wizard your age – or for wizards in general – to know our traditions. What is it you desire, young man?”

“Harry James Potter, Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter wishes to see the Potter account manager for the reading of the wills of James Potter and Lily Potter, née Evans as well as for claiming my heritage and Lordship.”

Each and everyone around him was stunned, Griphook included, but he nodded and left to make the necessary arrangements. As soon as he was gone, McGonagall started to speak: “Mr Potter, where did you learn all of this? I might have to floo Dumbledore so he can join us, since he is your legal guardian.” Harry expressed that he disagreed with her statement: “He is most certainly not, Professor. As for how I know all of that, let's just say we've known each other for years. If you know a little bit of Legilimency I can show you bits and pieces.”

Back in the afterlife they discussed that it would be wise to confide in someone powerful to help and do as they planned and Harry just went for the opportunity. What he didn't know was that he was not the only person allowed to return with their memories at one point of their life. He was also unaware that McGonagall had a brief, but very successful career at the DMLE (Department of Magical Law Enforcement). So Harry was quite surprised when she whispered, still in disbelief: “You retained your memories? How often and how old were you?” That threw Harry off-course. “I was seventeen and it was the ninth time. I take it you went through that as well?” Minerva nodded: “Before teaching I had a brief career at the DMLE and one mission failed horribly. My reaper sent me back a year and after I successfully finished that mission I left the ministry and went to Hogwarts. Would you really be willing to show me some of your memories?”

 

Until Griphook returned, Minerva took a short trip through Harry's time at Hogwarts, just the highlights to get an impression of the two and their skill set, since they had only a few minutes.

“So, what's your plan, Harry?” That he didn't want to tell, since both Snape and Dumbledore were rather fond of mind reading, as he had experienced. Harry just wanted to have her back: “Main point is that I won't go back to the Dursleys. With the Lordship I'll get emancipated and take over Potter Manor. After that I'll free Sirius and lay low until the fourth year, when we know both time and place Voldemort will be. That means I won't change a lot of things until then, just some.” He didn't show any specifics about the Horcruxes, but she knew of their existence.

After all Minerva had seen, she was so upset with Albus. The Dursleys' torture, a god-damn basilik and all those times the boy and his friends fought against you-know-who. She vowed secrecy, but that didn't mean she couldn't prevent Albus' stupidity and Severus' bullying.

 

“Account manager Gornuk would see you now, Mr Potter. Do you want your companions to join you or stay here.” Harry thanked the Goblin and asked the two women to follow him into the office of his family's account manager. After a formal exchange of greetings that left Gornuk as surprised as Griphook earlier, he asked Harry to take a seat and presented the wills from Harry's parents.

“It is my understanding that Albus Dumbledore has asked to inform us if someone wanted to access those. But since you are the heir you could deny that, if you wish.” Harry definitely didn't want the headmaster to know about this so he denied: “Informing Dumbledore would be against my wishes and if any guardian supervision would be necessary, he isn't mine. Since Sirius Black is illegitimately held in Azkaban, Alice Longbottom is a permanent resident of St. Mungo's and Remus Lupin is not in the country and if he were it would be prohibited through the anti-werewolf legislation, none of my godparents or potential surrogates are available. It would surely follow my parents' wishes that Minerva McGonagall be my guardian rather than Albus Dumbledore.” The last sentence stunned the elderly witch and she had to hide her tears, not only because of James' and Lily's death but at their trust in her.

The goblin accepted the young wizard's wishes, wondering how he knew so much about his godparents since the wills were sealed. Then he broke the seal and started to read.

 

Last will and testament of James Potter, Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter.

 

In the case of my demise before my wife Lily Potter, née Evans, she would inherit all of my and our private vaults as well as our estate in Godric's Hollow. As for the other vaults and estates in my possession, as they belong to the House of Potter, they will be going to my son and heir Harry James Potter. He will get a trust vault with G1000 annually and full control of all his other inheritance on the day of his emancipation and gain of the Lordship of House Potter. Until then this will all be under the control of his mother or in case of her death his godparents and by that legal guardians in the following order:

Sirius Orion Black, Alice Longbottom or Remus John Lupin.

If all of those were unavailable as godparents and guardians, our next choices would be Minerva McGonagall, Amelia Bones or Andromeda Tonks, whomever would claim the role as guardian first.

The godparents would get an annual deposit of G1000 into their vaults from Lily and my private vault for both Harry's care and their expenses.

Sirius Black will receive a number of personal items listed below with sentimental value to both him and me, as he won't be in the need of financial assets and would decline to accept them.

Remus Lupin will receive some items listed below as well, together with G25.000, even if he wants to decline them.

Gornuk stopped reading here, because the paragraph about Peter Pettigrew was crossed out, a backup spell in case of the Fidelius being broken and Peter's betrayal did that, as he was well aware. He continued.

 

If my wife has already passed, when this will is being read, all her inheritance will go to my son as well, who then has the possibility to take Lordship of House Potter and all other Houses he might be eligible to by blood if he has reached age eleven and has the permit of his legal guardian.

The only things my wife and I deny Harry's legal guardian in case of both our demises are that he lives with Lily's sister and her family, that the guardian accepts any betrothal agreements for Harry without his own agreement and the acceptance of ANY betrothal agreement before the age of fourteen, following Potter traditions so that the child can actively participate in the creation of such an agreement.

I also name Harry's guardian the only legitimate proxy for all of Harry's seats in the Wizengamot until emancipation.

 

James Potter, Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter

 

Witnesses: Lily Potter, née Evans; Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore; Sirius Orion Black

 

After finishing James' testament, Gornuk opened Lily's and after reading it quietly he handed it to Harry and stated correctly, that it was practically the same, but here obviously just about the bit of wealth she and her husband acquired. She left a bit of money for Petunia but that was about it.

 

“I wish to take Lordship and hereby emancipate myself, if the present guardian, Professor Minerva McGonagall accepts that request. If she doesn’t disagree she should take custody of me until my coming of age, despite my magical emancipation. I am still a kid and need an adult guardian.” Both the goblin and the young wizard looked to the professor, who knew how old Harry practically was. Still not really believing that Albus took matters into his own hands, despite his knowledge of the wills, she granted Harry's request and Gornuk grabbed a small box containing the ring of House Potter and handed it to Harry.

“By taking that ring you accept your heritage and title, with all its benefits and duties. Are you aware of that?”

Harry nodded and took the ring with the Potter coat of arms on it. Before he put it on he asked the goblin where they got it from. He claimed that it was ancient magic and that the ring was never returned after James' death but eventually it will return if the heir wants to take the title. Everyone thought the same thing: Dumbledore surely got his hands on the ring to prevent today's happenings.

As soon as he slipped the ring on his finger, its size adapted and was now no longer removable until his death or loss of title. The family magic flooded through his bloodstream and now he knew what Henry talked about. Ancient knowledge, the locations of his estates and their wards and many other things were now in his mind. Harry stood up, knowing what he had to do.

“I, Harry James Potter, Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter hereby proclaim myself the Lord of my House following ancient tradition and my predecessor's will.”

Minerva got up, because she was the only witch of age present.

“I, Minerva McGonagall hereby witness Harry Potter taking his Lordship and back his claim. As stated in his parents’ will, I hereby also claim custody of Lord Potter until his coming of age and accept the will’s demands.”

With these formalities having been done, Harry was now officially emancipated in the eyes of the ministry and magic should adapt to these changes instantly. The paperwork for McGonagall taking custody should be in the Department of Records by now as well.

“Thank you. Now I would like to add a few titles to that, so I'll have a stronger position in the Wizengamot. With the apparent death of Tom Riddle, the only living descendant of Cadmus Peverell, I should be able to claim the title of Lord Peverell as well, as heir of Ignotus Peverell, his younger brother. His only grandchild, Iolanthe Peverell, married Hardwin Potter. Through the same line I think I can claim Slytherin as well, with the Peverells being his descendants.” Minerva looked surprised, she definitely wanted him to be one of her lions and not a snake. “Through the Potter-line I should be the only living heir of Godric Gryffindor and through the Evans-line the heir of Helena and Rowena Ravenclaw. Somewhere along the line there should be a Smith married into the Evans, descending from Helga Hufflepuff, though I think that is too distant to be claimed by me. Oh, and depending on the will of Arcturus Black I hope that at least Heir of House of Black is a possibility. Henry Potter's wife was Electra Black, Arcturus' eldest aunt. Blacks and their traditions to name their kids after stars, kind of funny, isn’t it? But anyway, I am willing to pay Gringotts to check those claims and give me the possibility to claim those titles and any others you might find as soon as possible.”

Gornuk wrote all of Harry's potential claims down and assured him to follow his wishes, while McGonagall and Hermione were still stunned. When Gornuk left them after Harry asked for a list of the vault's contents, he cast a wordless Muffliato. “I hope it is obvious that this matter should stay between us for the beginning. You surely want to know how I am aware of all that?” Both witches definitely did and even held back any questions, because they wanted to hear what he had to say: “Well, on the other side my reaper and I decided to give me a head start. We conspired a bit with my parents, my great-grandfather, the founders, Merlin and Ariana Dumbledore to be able to archive the best outcome.”

Now he had to answer dozens of questions about the founders, the other side and many other things but that all stopped when Gornuk returned and Harry lifted the spell.

“Well, Lord Potter, you are a very lucky and now very wealthy man. I have listed seventeen estates as well as other properties, for example in Diagon Alley, which have been rented, some very lucrative business shares, a vast amount of books, furniture, art and jewellery locked away in the vaults and a bit over three quarters of a billion of Galleons, annual income of around G20.000 and costs of around G7.000. Those include maintenance, Gringotts and other things that are listed in detail here.” Harry was handed a ledger that was quite thick, showing all those numbers. He was way beyond surprised and from his previous life he knew that there were hardly any families that were richer, one of them was House Black. “Are you currently investing or do you need my permission to do that?” The goblin explained that he was currently not able to work towards enriching the Potter family but with Harry's permission he could easily do so, and that with a guarantee of success or repayment by the bank. No loopholes existed there, but that method was only available to the high-profile customers. Harry granted said permission and asked for a good number of Galleons and muggle money before the trio left the bank, thanking the goblin in the appropriate way, just like the greeting.

 

As soon as they stepped out of the bank and into the sunshine in Diagon Alley, Harry felt relieved and actually happy. He didn't intend on going back to the Dursleys and he made that pretty clear. Minerva – she asked them both to call her that outside of class, since they had some unique history and she had a duty towards the boy as of his parents' will – was not so happy about that and expected that Dumbledore would be furious with them, especially because of the blood wards. Still, Harry was legally an adult and theoretically seventeen years old, so she could live with that, if she were to supervise and assist him if needed. Maybe she also wanted a glimpse at the Potter library, but she definitely cared. The plan was now to get Hermione back to her parents and then floo to Potter Manor as Harry should be able to pass through the wards. Hermione hoped to get her parents' approval to tag along or make them join. But that had to wait, because already from afar the two were able to see the Malfoys heading into their direction. This time Harry intended on handling this first meeting with young Draco way better. Lucius saw the professor and just had to drop a snappy comment about her having to guide the new muggleborns. Before Minerva could reply, Harry answered Malfoy's comment: “You are mistaken, Mr Malfoy. It was my wish that the deputy headmistress would accompany me and my good friend here to Diagon Alley. She might not have magical parents, but don't make the mistake and assume that you know who I am. Compared to me you are a nothing, poor and worthless.”

Malfoy seemed to get even angrier when Harry began to insult him and would have certainly grabbed his wand if it weren't for McGonagall standing behind Harry.

“And who are you, if you deem the Noble House of Malfoy unworthy and poor, you little fool?” Harry smiled: “Who am I? I thought my appearance would make that obvious for you. Harry James Potter, Lord apparent of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter. I can't say it's a pleasure.” He purposely declined to shake Malfoy's hand, not just to hide his ring, and just left after Lucius couldn't contain his surprise and anger. Harry had grabbed Hermione's Hand and walked towards the exit of Diagon Alley while McGonagall sent a patronus message to Hagrid telling him that she'd take care of Harry.

The Grangers were already waiting in the Leaky Cauldron and were quite happy when they saw their daughter close to the young wizard. They obviously got along very well. Minerva took the liberty of informing the Grangers of at least some of the things that had happened. Since Hermione hasn't been able to stop reading the books McGonagall brought along on her first visit, they were very familiar with the name Harry Potter and his backstory. After explaining how he was treated at the Dursleys' and that he took Lordship of his house to escape that with her now being one of his legal guardians (though he was theoretically considered an adult he was still objectively eleven) the Grangers offered for him to stay with them until school began. Hermione was thrilled, when her mother, Emma, suggested that and immediately turned towards Harry.

“Really? I would gladly accept that offer, but before that I would love to have a look at Potter Manor with professor McGonagall and – if she wants to – Hermione. And you, of course, if you want to. What the professor left out was the fact that my family's inheritance is rather large and makes me Head one of the wealthiest wizarding families in Europe. You have been made aware of the exchange rate between Galleons and Pounds?” Hermione's parents nodded. “Well, in my vaults in Gringotts I have over three quarter of a billion of them, a steady income through assets and shares, some properties and over a dozen estates. My family is quite ancient and never spent too much.” That revelation left the Grangers stunned and now Dan, Hermione's father, now allowed his daughter to see the Manor the little boy apparently owned. It was not like Hermione had made any real friends in her life before so her parents wanted her to get to know the young boy, and as long as Professor McGonagall was with them there was nothing to worry about. Minerva promised them even to apparate their daughter home so they were able to leave now and didn't have to wait.

By McGonagall's request Tom, the barkeeper, let them use a fireplace in a more private room to floo, since they didn't really need to make all of that information public.

Harry took Hermione's hand and told McGonagall that he'd open the wards for her after entering the Manor, took a handful of floo powder and stepped into the green flames with Hermione at his side.

Notes:

So, what do you think? I'd be happy about any comments

Depending on the feedback I might upload the Potter Manor chapter too this week, I'm currently working on chapter five.

See ya soon

Chapter 2: Potter Manor and meeting the Grangers

Notes:

So, like I said, here is the second chapter. Thank you all for your feedback, it is very great to get some response to what I've written.
From now on I want to post new chapters more or less weekly, I should be able to manage that.

As soon as the two friends stepped out of the fireplace in which they landed, Harry opened the wards for McGonagall, who followed them within seconds. Apparently they landed in one of the living rooms, and a rather large one to be precise. Both Harry and Hermione instantly went towards a window to have a look at what's outside. Aside from the gigantic garden, which needed a bit of care but was still impressive they saw a pond, a swimming pool, a quidditch pitch and a very nice sitting area, but the biggest surprise was the size of the Manor. Yes, they haven't been in many wizard homes, but the Burrow, the Lovegood's house, Shell Cottage or even Malfoy Manor were small in comparison. And Harry knew for a matter of fact, that the grounds were rather large and contained some small cottages in the outskirts of the property.

The young wizard's thoughts were interrupted by his soon to be head of house at Hogwarts, who mentioned that she'd been here several times when Euphemia and Fleamont Potter, Harry's grandparents, resided here, since Euphemia was an old friend from her school days. She waved her wand a few times, firstly checking the wards and if there was anyone around and then to get rid of all the dust so she could take a seat on one of the sofas. As far as she was able to detect, there were no house-elves left in Potter Manor, but maybe they resided at a different location or passed away, since no one sat foot in this house for around a decade and no Potters were around.

“So, Harry. Now that we are here would you please explain the only thing I haven't fully comprehended yet: why does Ms Granger remember? I take it you do, otherwise your behaviour would have been quite different I guess.”

The last sentence went towards the young witch, who firstly asked the professor to stick to her first name when they should call her Minerva. Then she tried to explain why she suspected that her knowledge came back.

“You know, Harry said something along the lines of us being soulmates and that's why I regained my memories when we touched earlier. But I don't know much more than you about Harry's plans and how he returned, that's all I've gathered.”

She kept the part about the Weasleys for herself, because that could be avoided and maybe the golden trio will exist in some way similar to the previous timeline.

Harry nodded, Mione was right. Then he started to explain a few things that he had planned in the afterlife: “Well, you are right about the soul mate thing, but we'll discuss the meaning of that in the future. It's important that the headmaster doesn't find out about all that, I mean that fool is guilty of me dying over and over again, more or less. And since I was a Horcrux and he certainly knew that, he just raised and protected me to die, so the dark bastard could be vanquished as his lovely prophecy said. I intend on playing along with Quirrell and the philosopher's stone as well as the Chamber, maybe less injuries and casualties along the way. No clue about the third year, since I want Sirius freed and possibly that rat Pettigrew in Azkaban by then, though letting him escape might be necessary for the resurrection. The tournament should go down like last time with Riddle's return and in the best case scenario all Horcruxes are destroyed by then so we can kill him for good. I have a few surprises along the way but those I won't tell you just now since Albus tends to use illegal Legilimency, and so does Severus.“

If Minerva hadn't already been stunned by the revelation that Harry was a Horcrux, the use of Legilimency at Hogwarts would have shocked her. She could very distinctively recall a conversation with Albus about Harry's scar, proof enough for her that he knew about that bloody dark thing in the boy's head. Hermione on the other hand was not so surprised, she had actually considered that possibility back in the tent.

While the head of Gryffindor House found the liquor cabinet, Harry and Hermione went on a tour through the manor. It was truly fabulous and even the great hall of Hogwarts seemed boring and small in comparison to Potter Manor. Harry knew that his best friend would certainly want to see the library, so he told her that could wait. They still had some weeks' holidays and since they both could theoretically apparate, Harry as an adult even legally, they could make trips from the Granger household to Potter Manor. The two had decided it would probably be better if he accepted her parents' offer to stay with them instead of being here alone.

After an hour or so of discovering so many things Harry never knew he possessed, he finally found what he was looking for: his parents' room. Lily had all her notes and schoolbooks in her trunk, some of those books might even be more helpful than the half-blood prince's book and his father had a variety of belongings like personal objects and his own map in his old school trunk which Harry intended on taking to school with him.

“Oh, Mione, look at that! I solemnly swear I'm up to no good.”

It seemed like Harry had found his father's map, which instantly greeted the new Head of House Potter:

The Messrs. Moony, Padfoot and Prongs are proud to welcome the newest addition to the Marauders. May Mr. Prongslet take Wormtail's place on our side and do his best to bring mischief over Hogwarts.

“Prongslet? Seems like your father had already made plans for your name, Harry. And it knows about Wormtail's betrayal.”

After that they continued looking through all the things Harry now owned and had Hermione already started to sort out what they'd need at Hogwarts. She had completely forgotten to look for the library of the Potters, but Harry remembered and told her, mainly because all that stuff from his parents was starting to get quite painful for him. One day he'd go through all of it with her by his side but not now. She understood and together they packed everything back into the trunks and closets, though Harry's new trunk was already filled with all the things they would take to school. He was so looking forward to his first potions lesson, where he would not only be able to answer Snape's questions, but also intended to take his mother's potions book with him. Snape would be so shocked. Harry decided not to tell Mione that, simply to surprise her and see her reaction.

“Could you give me a minute, Mione? I'll be with you soon but I have to do something.”

Wondering what he would do, she left and waited in front of the door, while looking around a bit. They were in one of the top floors with a magnificent view over the grounds, but indoors was just as beautiful as the gardens. Over all the whole building was designed in very bright colours and reminded her a bit of Hogwarts, but way more colourful. All the paintings on the walls were still asleep and it was dusty, but that had to be expected. Without some elves it might take a while to bring life back into Potter Manor.

Hermione's thinking was interrupted by Harry, who stepped out of his parent's room wearing proper clothes for the first time in this timeline. He never even wore something like that in the previous one.

Harry had decided to shrink some of his father's clothes that had the Potter crest on the chest and suited him in his role as Lord Potter. Underneath the dark red robe he wore a buttoned up shirt in the same colour, black pants and waistcoat as well as dragonhide shoes. His father's pocket watch on a golden chain completed the outfit. Seeing that, Hermione felt something she hadn't really felt in years and she was sure it was partly the whole soulmate thing that made her look at Harry in a very different way.

“Wow, Harry. That...you look incredible. I’m stunned. There might even be some truth to the whole soulmate thing. All your father's clothes?”

He blushed and smiled as Mione approved of his clothing. The whole soulmate topic was something they had to discuss someday soon. 

“Thanks. One last thing before we go back to Minerva, okay? We'll do the library another time.”

Harry still wanted to take precautions since he was aware of the priori incantatem issue of his wand. In the afterlife they had planned for two other possible wands, but neither of them was in reach so he had to pick one of his ancestors' as a hidden backup. Following great-grandfather Henry's instructions he led her to a large painting on the ground floor which showed something that Hermione instantly recognized as Camelot. A copy of that painting was the most commonly used picture of Camelot in books but she had no idea that the original still existed.

“ I call upon thee, power of the three!”

When Harry spoke these words in a calm and clear manner, Mione smiled. He had changed so much since they came back. Stronger, more confident. Hogwarts was going to be fun.

A flaming symbol of the Hallows appeared and Harry took Hermione's hand as he walked through the painting. The password was a nice reference to his Peverell ancestry, Harry thought.

The armoury itself was very impressive and contained probably enough weapons to arm a whole army but Harry was currently not looking for swords but wands. It took a few minutes but then he found the right cabinet, whose drawers contained dozens of wands, each and every one of them had a small brass label with the owner's name and dates of birth and death. Sadly his parent's wands weren't here, but he had an idea where they might find them.

It took him nearly ten minutes to have three favourites which would word: the wand of Linfred of Stinchcombe, called “the Potterer” and founder of the Potter family, the wand of Ignotus Peverell, whose granddaughter and only descendant married Linfred's eldest son Hardwin Potter and the wand of Henry Potter. All of them worked just fine but in the end he went with Ignotus' because it looked rather similar to his own holly wand. It was simply the most discrete of the three for his purposes. Harry put the wand in a second holster he was wearing and then the two left again, looking for Minerva. She was still comfortably seated in the living room they appeared in, drinking a glass of whiskey to cope with all the revelations. Upon entering, the professor looked up and was mildly surprised to see Harry in his father's clothes.

“I take it you were successful in your attempt to discover the Manor's secrets? It's as beautiful as ever, but I gotta admit that I miss Euphemia's presence. She was a friend of mine and we went to school together.”

As the three were seated they started discussing detailed plans for the nearer future. Harry was looking forward to staying with the Grangers, but they planned to spend time here as well and prepare themselves for school. This time Harry wouldn't be so unprepared. Minerva was going to sort out things with the Dursleys so Harry wouldn't have to return to them again anytime soon, if ever. As desperately as Harry wanted to free his godfather, that would probably cause too much trouble at the ministry. He knew from Sirius that he never got a real trial and overturning his imprisonment was not that impossible even without Peter but again, Dumbledore shouldn’t find out anything by now and he still was Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. Maybe they’d snatch Peter soon so they could use Sirius to get into Grimmauld Place for the locket, but that was not a priority. The cup and most likely a Ravenclaw artefact, according to Rowena most certainly her diadem, were still missing, that’s where they’d start as soon as Hogwarts would begin. Since Helena Rawenclaw had stolen it and ran away to Albania, it was almost a certainty that this would be the Horcrux. Helena was a ghost at the castle and Albania had been Riddle’s hideout, it was more than likely that he found out about it through her and then went for it. Finding it would be a challenge. Until then, they could do some preparations and enjoy the free time. Minerva was very willing to share some stories from her past that they never got to hear the first time around, including childhood tales from James Potter. 

 

When the day slowly came to an end, they all got up, Harry summoned his trunk (wordlessly, even if he didn’t realise it), shrunk it and then looked to Minerva, who waited for them to get ready for a side-along apparition to the Grangers. 

“Very strong and beautiful summoning charm, Harry. Out of interest, do you still possess the same magical strength as before your trip back? I’ve never seen a first-year do a wordless summoning charm, even with your knowledge, your magical core shouldn’t be so strong.”

“I think I’m even stronger, but that might be because of the Horcrux which is no longer there. My reaper said something along the lines of that thing blocking my core and my occlumency. So I presume I’ve kept my power and since it’s my ninth time…maybe that’s why I could summon a patronus in third year and overpowered Riddle’s Avada in the graveyard in fourth. But now it feels like my power is off the charts. Expecto patronum.”

The familiar form of Prongs appeared and walked across the living room before Harry let him go. He felt it pulsating inside of him, all the magical energy. What a power.

As soon as Minerva saw that Patronus appear, she recalled the memory Harry had shown her of the end of third year. The bright glowing stag was beyond impressive and a very nice homage to James Potter. Even though the Marauders hid it, she had known of their trips to the forest as animagi. She was, after all, a transfiguration master and was able to detect the signs of students working towards a transformation. But now was not the time to think about the past but rather bring the two young students to the Grangers. With a vigorous wand movement she got rid of all the traces of them even being there and offered Harry and Hermione her hands. As they grabbed those, she apparated.

Harry knew why he hated side-along apparition, but he’s never been at the Grangers’ and theoretically he wasn’t even licensed yet, even with the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Magic no longer applying to him. Now Harry felt lucky that he was hungry, if he had eaten something he would have probably thrown up as soon as they touched the ground. Opening his eyes he was able to see Hermione’s parents’ house and it appeared as if they were rather well-off. The house was rather big with a lawn so nice that it would even make Aunt Petunia jealous and two cars in the currently opened garage. Dan just stepped out of the silver Mercedes, grabbing a bag full of groceries out of the back of the car and walked towards the house when he saw the three people and started to smile. 

“Hermione! Professor, Harry, good to see all of you. I take it everything went well? Nice set of clothing you have there, boy. Is that what all wizards wear?”

Harry stepped forward and shook the tall man’s hand, smiled and thanked him for offering him to stay here until Hogwarts started. When the four entered the house, they were greeted by a smiling Emma Granger, currently cooking dinner, who gave Hermione, and then even Harry, a hug that reminded the boy of his best friend. It seemed like Mione was like a small copy of her mother, both from behaviour and appearance. 

After Emma told her daughter which room they had prepared for their guest both kids went upstairs to settle in. Harry’s room was just opposite from Hermione’s and very nice. With his friend’s help he put his clothing in the wardrobe after enlarging his trunk, though the amount of muggle clothing was very small and he probably would have to go shopping for a proper wardrobe for the muggle world. He fed Hedwig, put a few school books on the small desk of the guest room and then went over into Hermione’s room. She had asked him for help to go through all the stuff they had bought and so Harry stepped into his best friend’s room for the first time. 

Hermione’s room was just as he had expected it, shelves filled with books, parchment and quill already on her desk to prepare for school. It was very warm and comfortable, a big red couch was standing on one of the room’s walls, which reminded him of the common room. Slightly ashamed she closed some of the opened books and shoved them away to offer Harry a place to get seated. It was the first time she ever invited a friend into her room and she was happy that he felt very comfortable. 

After sorting everything out they both relaxed on the couch, talking about the future, respectively their past. All those months in the tent have had an everlasting effect on them and they took great comfort in each other's presence. Mione’s head was resting on Harry’s shoulder and they were practically cuddling, just happy to be alive and together here, away from Voldemort or Dumbledore’s manipulations.

“Hey, do you want to talk about the whole soulmate thing? I mean we both know what that’s supposed to mean and I don’t think that my reaper was wrong if I’m honest with you.”

Hermione shook her head. She knew that they were apparently destined to be together and just the Weasley’s manipulations had hindered them in the past, but she didn’t want to force anything.

“How about we just ease into that? We have until fourth year to make the changes we want to make and get rid of Tom and after that we could live in peace. Until then - let’s just not force anything, even if we know, or at least think we’re destined to be together someday. If it happens earlier, then I’ll be glad, but then we need to keep it secret. We don’t need the additional attention or the changes in the timeline that could change everything.”

If he hadn’t known her that well, he would have wondered how she could be that rational, but she was right. No upsetting the timeline, even if that means getting along with the Weasley’s. Some changes were okay, as he had planned out in the afterlife, but others not so much. Stopping Quirrell or the basilisk earlier was not as bad as changing his entire social circle. And after all, he still liked the twins or Arthur. Actually the only problems were Ginny, Ron and Molly, but even that could be avoided. 

Harry’s thoughts were rather abruptly interrupted, when Emma called them down for dinner, surprisingly with Minerva in attendance. The five of them had some lovely conversation during dinner, but then Dan decided to ask Harry about his family and his living conditions. He knew that it might be a delicate topic, but he wanted to know what the boy suffered in the past. After a slight bit of hesitation Harry started with the less cruel things like being called “freak” or having to do all the chores but then continued with the bullying and physical violence that occasionally happened. Emma was rather shocked at the thought of him sleeping in a cupboard. Once the hesitation was gone he was hardly able to stop but still managed to portray everything better than it really was. 

Everyone, even Hermione, who knew practically every bit of that, was shocked. They all offered their support, but Harry was just thankful for all that had happened today. 

“Again, Dan, Emma, I’m so grateful for everything you have done for me in that short time you’ve known me. Someone taking me in after barely knowing me means the world for me and I surely will return the favour. Now, with all my family’s wealth and belongings the only thing I needed is someone who shows empathy towards me, someone who cares. You gave that to me, and even more important, with your daughter I got my first friend. I could hardly wish for more.”

If Hermione wouldn’t have known how old Harry practically was then she would have been surprised by his maturity and the way he expressed himself. He really managed himself quite well and made it sound like he was well-educated, praised her parents’ and Minerva’s generosity and kindness as well as the food or their interior decoration. The whole conversation became so comfortable and relaxed that her smile never left her face. 

“You know, mom, we should probably try to show Harry the brighter side of life, maybe go to the movies. And we need to go shopping! All his old clothes are from his cousin and are way too big and these wizard clothes do look nice but are probably not ideal in our world.”

That made Minerva look up rather abruptly, because when Hermione mentioned Dudley she realised that she had intended to go talk to the Dursleys. As soon as dinner was over, she quickly got up, said her goodbyes and hurried away.

“I don’t get why she rushed that much, it’s not like they really care.”

Since neither Dan nor Emma wanted to continue a conversation about Harry’s family as they were disturbed by their behaviour, they sent the kids up into their rooms so they could chat a bit before they’d go into bed. That meant that the two still had another half an hour or so before one of Mione’s parents would come up here and tell them to go into bed. Up until then they were just casually chatting on the couch, since Hermione had dozens of things she wanted to show her friend in the muggle world and she had apparently already planned so many things. The next month before they had to go to Hogwarts would be so much fun.

When Emma Granger walked up the stairs and approached her daughter’s room she wasn’t sure what to expect there. Her little Hermione has never been a person who made any real friends and always felt secluded, but with Harry that was something very different. She herself had felt very sorry for him as soon as she’d seen him in the Leaky Cauldron and heard his story from Professor McGonagall and offered sanctuary without hesitation. The Grangers had trusted the Professor’s assessment since they already knew her for nearly a year as Hermione had gotten her letter on her eleventh birthday last september. Since then their daughter had had so many questions about magic, Minerva McGonagall had visited them on several occasions over the past year. And when the elderly witch had said that young Harry had been mistreated over the last decade, they believed that. Harry’s honesty about that at dinner had surprised nearly as much as the bond her daughter had formed with him over less than a day. Nothing could make her happier than that.

Upon entering Hermione’s room through the opened door she saw the two sitting comfortable and close together on the big red couch, both an opened book in front of them and quietly chatting. 

“Hey you two. As much as I hate to break that up, it’s already getting late and you two had an exhausting day. Harry, has Hermione shown you everything?”

Upon getting up Harry nodded, then Hermione gave him a fierce hug and wished him a good night. He smiled and even Emma was able to see the happiness radiating from the two kids. When Hermione’s mother left the room together with him he thanked her once again and followed his best friend’s example and hugged her. The tall woman was now as happy as she has ever been, since her daughter was happy beyond measure, they gave Harry a better life and now she had no reason to doubt that Hermione’s life at Hogwarts was going to be great, since she had at least one friend. Wishing the boy a good night she went back downstairs and was greeted by her husband with a glass of wine, who saw her good mood and listened attentively when she told him everything. 

It took Harry less than ten minutes until he was laying in his bed and already starting to feel tired. It might have had something to do with the fact that earlier today he was still being kept prisoner at Malfoy Manor, got killed, spent something that felt like two days in the afterlife and then came back just to live through an eventful day. The happiness of having Hermione with him and being at a place where he felt secure had made him forget his tiredness until now. From the moment in which he laid down in the bed his eyelids became heavier and after just a few minutes he slowly drifted away into a deep and restful sleep.

Notes:

There we go, Harry is no longer living with the Dursleys. First major change with long-term impact. What else is gonna happen to our heroes soon?
Let's wait and see what the future brings, though if anyone has any ideas/wishes about what they might change, I'm open to suggestions and input, but let me tell you that everything up to the sorting is already done.

Well, see you all soon!

Chapter 3: House Elves, Books and a lying Dumbledore

Notes:

Hello everyone,
first of all thank you for the amount of feedback and ideas I received, it's fantastic to hear what you all are thinking.
I've decided to try to make Thursday morning (at least here in Germany, who knows what time it will be at your's) my usual time of posting a new chapter.
And now, have fun with the following chapter

It was rather early when Harry left the bathroom freshly showered and nicely dressed, though not as posh as on the day before. He wasn’t in the wizarding world where he had to live up to his name and status. Not that he had done that the last time around, but that might have been quite the problem and this time he was a Lord. Maybe it would change how the purebloods at Hogwarts would perceive him but until then he wouldn’t worry about that. Silently he moved down the stairs, noticing that Hermione’s door was still closed and it hadn’t looked like someone already had been in the bathroom. Well, that someone would only have been Mione, since her parents had a separate one. That meant that she was still asleep but someone was already in the kitchen. Upon entering he saw that it was Dan, preparing breakfast, and greeted him. 

“Good morning Harry. You're up early, I hope you had a good night’s rest. Why don’t you make yourself comfortable and we eat in a few minutes? I need to get to work early today but the others will soon be up as well.”

Instead of doing what Dan had suggested, Harry started to help him out in the kitchen as this was something he was used to doing. Old habits die hard. But other than with the Dursleys, it actually was fun and when they were done setting the table the two of them started eating. Harry started making some inquiries about the Grangers and their jobs as he didn’t really know them, not even from his previous life. Both Dan and Emma were successful dentists with their own practice and lived a quiet and happy life in the suburbs. Just like their daughter they were well-educated and enjoyed reading just as much as their yearly vacations in southern France or skiing in the alps. Harry smiled as Dan said that, recalling Hermione’s retellings of these trips at school. Now it was Harry’s turn to get questioned, even though that was not as interesting as Dan’s stories. They stayed away from the topic of his home life and rather talked about his time at school or what he had found out about his parents and the wizarding world.

Just as Harry told the story of his hair regrowing over night when Petunia had tried to cut it, the other members of the household stepped into the dining room. Mother and daughter were smiling when they heard the two laughing and joined them after a quick exchange of greetings. Right after Dan told how great Harry in the kitchen was and how he had insisted on helping out they continued the storytelling and the young wizard told the story from the zoo a while back where he set the Boa Constrictor free. They all couldn’t stop laughing at the thought of the stupid face Dudley must have made and for the first time Harry was really glad that they were rather amused than afraid of his ability to speak Parsel. 

Dan left shortly after breakfast and Emma suggested that she’d take the kids into the city to go shopping and have a bit of fun before she had to work in the afternoon. The broad smile on Mione’s face showed how much she wanted to go buying clothes with and for Harry and he wasn’t sure if he shouldn’t be afraid of that. Emma laughed at his facial expression and told him not to worry as Hermione just wanted the best for him. Laughing, he stated that he was not so sure about that but that he’d go for it either way. Something about not wanting his friend to kick him out already which resulted in her slapping him on his shoulder and acting disappointed before he smiled at her. Even though they all knew it was a joke, Emma felt the need to reassure him that this wouldn’t happen and his presence was absolutely no trouble for them. Within the short period of time he had been here she had grown rather fond of him and the effect he had on her daughter. 

It was only a short drive to the next mall and Hermione’s enthusiasm was extreme but he thought it was just very cute how she acted. In those moments she fell back into being a kid rather than a grown-up in a kid’s body. Something he couldn’t do, at least not yet. But he tried, especially when she dragged him into a clothing store and selected a dozen different outfits, most of them very casual but still good-looking. Yes, from time to time she handed him a piece of clothing she just gave him to look absolutely ridiculous and save that picture in her memory, but she was mostly serious. With more than just a handful of clothing Emma wanted to go to the counter but he stopped her for two reasons. He had no intention of letting her pay for all that, even though she made clear that they were well-off but he countered with the fact that he was simply rich and insisted on paying for his wardrobe. The other reason was that they had walked past a cute summer dress at which Hermione had glanced and he went to pick that up as well. That earned him a hug from Mione and a smile from Emma who had decided to stop arguing with the boy and after all he paid for the clothes. 

When it was lunchtime, Emma asked Harry what kind of food he’d like to have and after a short while of consideration both kids unanimously decided that there was nothing better than pizza. Well, it was not like Harry had had any in his life but he knew about it. Searching for the next pizza parlour they wandered around the mall for nearly ten minutes before they were successful. While Emma was rather quick at deciding, Harry and Hermione spent minutes looking over the menu until finally settling for a decision. 

 

After that the three of them went back home rather quickly as Emma had to go to work as well. Upon arriving they were surprised to see a certain witch again waiting at their doorstep, a suitcase next to her that Harry identified as one of the Dursley’s suitcases. Professor McGonagall smiled when the two laughing kids left the car and quickly walked over to her.

Minerva had already seen them arrive from afar and was happy when Harry and Hermione came to her. Both were in a good mood and having fun, which made her think that Harry staying here was the best thing that could have happened to him. After she had left them the day before she apparated to Privet Drive and knocked on the Dursleys’ door, and Petunia opened. The woman, who looked nothing like that little Lily Evans she had known, instantly recognised her. To avoid her husband she stepped out and asked what the Professor was doing here and where her nephew was. The furious witch, who could hardly contain herself explained that she took custody of Harry as stated in James’ and Lily’s wills and he’d stay with someone else she trusted. Petunia winced at the sound of the witch's voice and hastily agreed to hand over any of Harry’s things which Minerva collected with a flick of her wand. Lastly she threatened her into not mentioning this to anyone and she’d be so generous to ignore the abusive behaviour for the time being and then left without another word.

In the suitcase there was practically nothing of any worth, but Harry thanked Minerva either way. Hermione invited her in while Emma said her goodbyes and left for work, kissing her daughter on the cheek and patting Harry’s shoulder softly. While the young witch prepared tea and asked Minerva to take a seat in the living room, Harry brought his newly-bought clothes into his room, using his wand for that as the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery no longer applied to him. When he came down again he could hear the two witches laugh from afar as Hermione told the Professor what she had let him wear and what they had bought. 

“Very funny, Mione, very funny. Minerva, is there any way that we could contact some of the members of the light’s alliance that are not only loyal to Dumbledore without the headmaster’s knowing? I was thinking of talking to the Longbottoms even before school started, maybe even the Lovegoods, though Luna starts a year later. I just want to talk so we could work out a political angle to freeing Sirius before he breaks out of Azkaban.”

“Well, I could owl Augusta later and see if we can meet next week, but I’m not going to use your name in the letter. Albus doesn’t need to find out yet. Any plans on how to deal with that?”

“Not yet and we all need to be ready when he does. Who knows if he doesn’t have his spies around like the old Mrs. Figg, who’s a squib? Unless we find a better way, in that scenario you should probably claim that you couldn’t stand my treatment from the muggles. No need to discuss the opened wills yet, he’ll be furious.”

That was a good plan and if they’d be able to meet with Neville before Hogwarts that would be awesome. He suggested Diagon Alley as a meeting point because he hoped to get contacted by Gringotts before then and Ollivander should probably have a look at his second wand as this hadn’t been used in centuries. Yes, it had the downsides of being a public place but Mrs. Longbottom would more likely agree to that as to meeting in a private, not disclosed location with not knowing whom to expect there aside from Minerva. And the Manor was certainly not in the shape of being visited by potential political allies. That was something he needed to work on as well, and that’s why he suggested a trip to the Manor, as Hermione’s parents were gone until the evening and they had nothing else planned. Mione was excited as she still wanted to have a look at the library so Harry summoned his robe in case of bad weather later as well as his friend’s coat and they side-along apparated with Minerva as she was now able to pass the wards. 

 

The three of them landed in the same room as last time but something was different that made all of them raise their wands. Everything was dust-free and shiny as if someone had started to clean the Manor. And apparently that’s exactly what had happened, because just seconds after their arrival they heard a loud crack and a little house-elf, dressed in the Potters’ red colours appeared and instantly greeted them.

“Lord Potter! We’re delighted to have you back here. I’m Dolly, the head house-elf since nearly seventy years. We felt you trip the wards yesterday and came from Potter Castle as soon as we could, but apparently missed you. How may we be of service?” 

Well, that solved some of Harry’s problems, since there were still house-elves left. He greeted little Dolly and introduced Hermione, but Minerva didn’t need an introduction.

“Professor Minerva! It has been too many years. You’d be taking care of our young lord? Lady Euphemia would be so happy.”

After nearly half an hour of introductions with all the nine other elves here and a delegation of tasks the three of them finally found the time to get into the Potter library, but not before Harry asked the elves to be prepared for spontaneous dinners here. Food was already being stocked and everything was being kept clean and Harry was very thankful for that. The reason for that would be that he’d love to invite all the Grangers to a dinner at Potter Manor just to show his enormous gratitude towards them. Hypothetically they could even stay here for a few days and explore the grounds and do a bit of training as he knew that the old wards would hide underage magic. Some old pureblood families had that and that was why their children excelled at school. Silently he thanked Henry Potter for the lessons on wards, pureblood traditions, family magic and etiquette. That would be an enormous advantage in comparison to last time. With that he’d build a political alliance to help himself and the light side to prevent Riddle’s rise to power like last time. Harry knew a few good people and others he had to get rid of, using politics and future knowledge. But that could wait. Now it was time to let Hermione loose in the library of Potter Manor.

Only Minerva was not that impressed by the sight of the library wing as she has spent so many hours here with Euphemia, and not only after her marriage with Fleamont Potter. They had been a couple since late third year and she was friends with both of them. The three had been the elite of their class and had spent so much time studying together and after Euphemia and Fleamont became a thing, she was often invited to this Manor when the two of them were studying together in the holidays. The majority of their O.W.L and N.E.W.T studies had happened here. That’s why it felt like a home to her. The laughter and the magical experiments, frustration and success, her being the first person getting told that Euphemia and Fleamont got engaged, the news of the pregnancy with James and so much more had happened or taken place here.

Harry laughed when Hermione practically ran off and from afar he was able to hear her delightful squeals as soon as she saw something that she’d never believed she would ever see. Hogwarts’ library was truly nothing in comparison to that one here. It was so big, they could get lost in here for days trying to find a way out. But that only theoretically since Harry as the owner had total control and sort of a sixth sense when it came to his estate. He knew where he and everyone else was at the moment, saw the schematics in his mind and felt every ward the building had. Not that he’d ever need the wards to find his best friend, he still felt her somehow, but this time even stronger than in their previous life. Using a shortcut he found himself next to her looking at books about spellcrafting which was kind of a family tradition, most of his ancestors had been creative and inventive, either with potions or spells. 

Despite Hermione wanting to continue studying those books Harry dragged her further to a section even Minerva had only been to a few times. A few rows further there was a giant “door” made out of stone. Fleamont’s father Henry had once told the three pupils that frequently visited his library that it was a monolith, blessed at Stonehenge and built into the Manor when it was first constructed. It was a pathway that needed the head of house to open and additionally let only people true at heart and close to the Lord enter as well. She hadn’t been a stranger to the family back then and Henry had made a little tour for the three of them.

Hermione was stunned at the revelations of Minerva’s story and eagerly watched Harry as he touched the cold stone with his hands, which lighted up brightly and disappeared, showing them a pathway through. Harry indicated with a gesture that they should follow him through and Hermione had to admit that it was one of the strangest feelings she ever had had when she entered the sacred section, as Harry had called it. 

While the two women attentively looked at every book and became more and more impressed, Harry walked towards an old, thick book, cased in leather. Minerva had by now realised that she had missed out on so many famous works back then, now having gained the knowledge about these tomes, thought to be long lost forever .

Harry knew that it would be hard for him to get the two women out of the room again, not that he couldn’t understand their obsession, but that was not why he was here. The grimoire of the Potter family was in front of him. Since Linfred, his eldest ancestor, this book has been carrying the secrets of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter, including one spell Dumbledore surely would have loved to know the last time. With this one he’d be able to cleanse Horcrux vessels without destroying them. Not so long ago his family had been the strongest force of the light and he intended to retake that position once again. This knowledge before him would be the key to his goals and the destruction of the Dark Lord. Harry carefully touched the old leather, when something happened.

It took Harry screaming to get the two witches away from the fascinating books on the shelves. Neither of them had any idea what had happened, but Harry’s hand was still gripping the Potter grimoire. Bright blue flames appeared to be shot out of the book, surrounding Harry completely. Minerva’s diagnostic spell came up empty as Harry was not being injured and seemed still healthy. During a more precise analysis of the readings the flames suddenly vanished and both witches, who were familiar with the diagnostic spell, saw the massive spike in Harry’s magical power. Well, it wasn’t exactly a spike since it didn’t go down again and Minerva realised by then what had happened.

“Oh my, there must have been a binding on his core, potentially limiting his output or access. But the grimoire didn’t allow that and freed his master from all external influences. It seems like Harry was just running on ten per cent. How strong is he truly? And even more important, who the bloody hell did that?”

Hermione looked a bit surprised at Minerva’s choice of words and continued to hurry to her friend who seemed to be back to normal. At least under the presumption that the enormous amount of pulsating power that she was able to feel while just sitting next to him was considered normal. When Hermione delicately put her hand on Harry’s shoulder, she felt overwhelmed for a fraction of a second until he had gained full control of his magical core. 

Even though Minerva had advised against it, Harry had read in the grimoire and was now familiar with a variety of spells only the Lord of the House of Potter could perform. After that they went back into the library again, realising how late it already was, which made Minerva suggest that they’d better go back to the Grangers’ place. They all agreed to that, but before they left Harry used a summoning charm and shoved a few things in his robe’s pockets. The questioning look from Hermione he completely ignored, because he didn’t want her to find out what he’d taken. It should be a surprise for her, one he’d give her at Hogwarts or maybe even earlier. 

 

Emma Granger shrieked surprised as the three suddenly apparated into the living room which made Dan rush out of the kitchen, worrying that something had happened. As soon as he had a glance into the living room, he started laughing loudly while trying to tell his wife that she should probably get used to it, though the laughing made it nearly impossible to understand him. Still laughing he went back into the kitchen to finish cooking dinner while Harry took Hermione’s and Minerva's coats and hung them up on the coat rack, brought his own robe back into his room, hid the content of its pocket and went back down where he came just in time to hear the end of Hermione telling today’s tales. He took the opportunity of the short moment of silence to officially invite all the people currently present to a dinner at his Manor, now that everything was up and running, with house-elves ready to cook or prepare guest rooms at any moment. Naturally, everyone thankfully accepted the invitation, especially as the Grangers now finally wanted to see the house and wealth Harry apparently possessed. They were quite certain that the term “Manor” was surely exaggerated and thought that Hermione was surely just too easy to impress or she didn’t want to disappoint her friend. Both kids were able to recognise the doubt on their faces, looked at each other and hid their laughter as Hermione’s parents would be so stunned. Minerva just smiled as she silently watched the interaction of the other four people. Yes, she didn’t remember the life Harry and Hermione had lived, but she had seen enough of their interactions to be certain that they had meant a lot to her. Gaining custody of Harry and placing him at the Grangers was one of the best ideas she had ever had, but surely no permanent solution. By the end of the first year she might approach the boy about moving to Potter Manor permanently, if he would accept her presence there. She usually lived at the school, but now her situation had completely changed. 

Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted when Dan asked Minerva if she’d like to stay for dinner, but she had to decline as the beginning of the school year came closer and she as deputy headmistress had a tremendous amount of work to do in the meantime. After wishing everyone a good night she apparated away, as close to Hogwarts as she could. When walking up the path leading to the main gate of the castle she carefully planned her next steps. Minerva had a meeting with the headmaster coming up this very evening and wanted to hear his opinion on Harry’s living conditions without giving away what she had done. Harry mistrusted Albus by now but she still hoped that she would be able to avoid all those things she saw from happening. Upon reaching the third floor, Minerva told the big gargoyle the current password and walked up into Dumbledore’s office. He was already awaiting her, but much to her disliking not alone. In a chair in front of the headmaster’s desk she saw her least favourite colleague sitting, Severus Snape.

“Minerva, good to see you. We have a lot of planning to do for the upcoming school year. Severus volunteered to assist us in doing that. Come, take a seat.”

The witch nodded but before either Albus or Severus were able to say something she confronted the headmaster.

“Albus, you’re probably aware of the fact that I met the young Mr. Potter yesterday in Diagon Alley. It was me who took him to Gringotts, thinking that Hagrid was not the best choice to introduce Harry to our world. What I found out was very disturbing indeed. I told you back then that these muggles were not remotely the best choice as guardians, seeing how they abused and mistreated him.”

Towards the end Minerva’s voice got harsher and louder, but Dumbledore didn’t really seem impressed by that. Surprisingly it was Severus who looked shocked, his hatred for Harry had probably not manifested by now, but it would once he would see and recognise him as his father’s son.

“Minerva, surely you must be exaggerating. Petunia could never do something like that to her nephew and I repeatedly checked on his well-being. And, don’t forget that it was his parent’s choice to send him to the Dursleys, making them his worldly and me his magical guardian. The wills were very clear.”

It was a gigantic struggle for Minerva to hide her anger as she was well aware of the will’s precise content and the fact that he never checked in on Harry. It took just those four sentences for her to lose every bit of trust and confidence she had had in Dumbledore, but now was not the time to play all her cards so she just pretended to accept his statement while realising that Severus was not so sure of Dumbledore’s honesty either. He knew Petunia personally and was well aware that Lily would never do such a thing to her only child but he carefully hid it. Maybe she could one day turn Severus and make him help her. But until then she had to play along with the headmaster.

Notes:

Well, that's it for today, hope you liked it. As always, looking forward to your thoughts on that chapter.
See you next week

Chapter 4: Horcruxes, Goblins and the Longbottoms

Notes:

Hello everyone,
there we go, here is chapter four.
I can't say it often enough, your feedback is very supporting and keeps me motivated.
Have fun!

Over the course of the rest of the week, nothing really interesting happened. Both Harry and Hermione continued to study for the first few weeks of school as well as some advanced magical theory that would help in the fight against Riddle. What made Hermione very happy was the fact that her friend wanted to learn Runes and Arithmancy, since he didn’t attend those classes the last time and with his new repertoire of magical books and knowledge he wanted to understand and use as much as possible. They didn’t go back to Potter Manor but rather used the house-elves to bring them books out of the library. Hermione still wasn’t happy with the treatment of elves but after some research realised that the bond to a wizard was necessary for an elf to ensure his survival. That didn’t mean that she’d give up S.P.E.W but she would need to change a lot.

They obviously didn’t just study but had a lot of fun in the muggle world and Hermione showed Harry a lot of things he had never known. Emma and Dan became more and more happy with the choice they made with Minerva because the young boy really embraced his new freedom and grew in self-confidence. But it wasn’t just the fact that they took him out of an abusive home and gave him a safe place to stay, or the fact that he had grown close to Hermione, it was more than that. They cared for him, they started to love him like a second child. It was so much fun having him around, he couldn’t stop helping or thanking them in many ways and he was just so happy about everything. It was probably the first time he had really had a proper childhood and people who cared for him. And because of that he invited all of them for dinner on Sunday. Minerva was coming as well and while Harry had already used one of his house-elves to get to the Manor and prepare everything, the Grangers were dressing up. Dan went for a nice suit with a waistcoat, both in a dark grey colour. His wife’s dress was plain and shared the colour of Dan’s suit, Emma also wore a bit of jewellery, nothing too fancy though. Hermione was still struggling between a long dark blue dress and a set of dress robes Harry had shrunken and left on her bed. The latter was way fancier and had a very dark red colour, she would even say it was burgundy. 

It took the counselling of Emma Granger to finally decide and she went with the burgundy dress together with the fitting black cloak. The golden necklace her mother had once gifted her completed the outfit and Hermione went happily down the stairs where Minerva and her Dad were already waiting. The elderly witch was stunned and tried to wipe away a tear without anyone noticing.

“Wonderful, Hermione. I doubt that Harry knew it, but Lily Potter wore the exact same outfit at their graduation. It seems like he tried to find you some proper witch clothing in the certainly extensive wardrobe at the Manor. He has a good choice in clothes, that is for sure. Now, I suggest you all hold on to me and we apparate, Harry is certainly waiting for us.”

 

At Potter Manor Harry was trying to supervise his elves preparing the dining room but he felt rather not needed and moved into the big drawing room where Minerva was going to appear within the next few minutes. The dark blue couches and armchairs were extremely comfortable and so he sank back onto a couch and grabbed his current reading material, Runic Alphabets and their Grammar broken down , which was an introduction into all sorts of runic languages, even those not covered in the Hogwarts curriculum. With a flick of his wand he turned on the music. Usually technology didn’t work in wizarding homes but his grandfather had built a magical record player for muggle vinyls and both him and his father had collected quite a lot of records over the years. Harry was just enjoying a piece of classical music as he heard the familiar sound of someone apparating and simultaneously felt four people crossing the wards and appearing in front of him. His guests had arrived. Having read and learned about magical etiquette he closed his book, got up and greeted all the three ladies with a proper kiss on the knuckles. Yes, he was aware that he ignored protocol when starting with his best friend instead of the most elder lady, but he loved to see Hermione blush. That blushing got even worse when he silently complimented her on her looks before kissing Minerva’s and Emma’s knuckles and shaking Dan’s hand. The last time he saw them was only an hour or so ago, but he was well aware of his duties as a Lord of a Noble and Most Ancient House.

As he led his guests from the drawing room through the corridors down to the smaller dining room, Dan and Emma now began to realise that neither Hermione nor Harry were exaggerating when they talked about the Manor. The room in which Harry had led them was way bigger than their dining room and had a big, oval table in the centre, probably two centuries old and very decorative. Because they were on the ground floor, large windows allowed a magnificent view into the rose garden. The other walls were generously decorated with landscape paintings and the music was playing here as well. Harry had offered his arm to his best friend and led her to her chair on his left side, Minerva as his guardian on his right. Dan and Emma were seated next to Hermione and when all of them were sitting, Harry began to speak.

“Thank you that you all are here today as guests in my home. It really is a pleasure, because over the course of less than a week you all took me in and showed me, what it means to have friends and a caring family. I doubt I will ever be able to make that up to you, simply because it means so much to me, more than you could ever imagine.”

He stopped for a second and looked around the table until his eyes fixated on Hermione. Harry simply smiled and she returned that smile, brighter than he had ever seen. Then he cleared his throat, clearly emotionally moved and expressed his hope that this all wouldn’t change, whatever the future might hold. Deep down inside he already knew what could and would happen and if he was completely honest, it was now scarier than ever. Now he had something to lose, but on the other hand he had much more power and possibilities to influence future events. But that was not something he wanted to think about now, not this evening. In a direct, but friendly manner he asked the elves to start serving the food and sat down.

Dinner was very delightful and the elves had really done their best to welcome the new Lord Potter and his guests. After over an hour, it had already transitioned from eating to chatting, Dan asked Harry if he’d be willing to show him around, the young wizard agreed and so they got up and started wandering down the corridors. Hermione’s father was not only a dentist but also very interested in history and art, a hobby that was actually annoying his wife from time to time, he admitted to Harry. For him the trip through the Manor was a spectacle, and that for several reasons. The art and antique furniture were definitely impressive, but Dan’s highlight was probably the amount of displayed swords and axes from the middle ages. They didn’t visit the armoury, but that was certainly unnecessary, seeing how much stuff was openly displayed. Then Harry came up with a crazy suggestion, that Dan loved, because it resulted in some sort of sword fight on the corridors between the two men, obviously with the proper spells on the swords to decrease the danger. 

The three women on the other hand stayed for quite some time in the dining room, until Minerva suggested showing Hermione and Emma some of the more beautiful places she knew. One of those was the parlour of the Lady of the House of Potter, a room that was surprisingly unchanged. Before entering, Minerva told Hermione and Emma that traditionally every new Lady Potter furnished the parlour herself and that she had never seen what Lily had done with it. But as soon as he stepped into the room and saw the light blue curtains and the familiar tea service on the small cherry wood table she realised that Lily had never had the chance to change anything in here. When Euphemia and Fleamont died in 1979, Lily was already pregnant and she and James were in hiding or working for the order. 

Silently the three women were sitting in the parlour, after Minerva had shared her thoughts they realised how young Harry’s parents had been when they died. A true tragedy. They were all rather thoughtful, but not for long as they were able to hear yelling and metallic sounds from afar, coming closer. Minerva recognised the sound as what it was - a swordfight. With a speed that probably no one would have expected from the elderly transfiguration master she rushed off, holding her wand in her hand but lowering it soon as she was able to spot the two men down the hall, laughing. Neither of them had any real experience with a sword, visible not only at the lack of the appropriate posture. Not that it hindered them in any way though as they were thoroughly enjoying themselves.

“Mr. Potter! No fighting in the corridors.” 

Harry flinched when he heard the very familiar voice of Minerva McGonagall shouting at him, just like during the last timeline. It took him a second to remember that he wasn’t at school yet and that she was just making fun of him as she knew he was - or will be, time travel is a complicated thing  - a troublemaker like his father.

“We’re not at school yet, I think you’ll find it hard to give me detention or take away points. I’m not even sorted yet.”

Both of them started laughing with everyone joining in. The rather thoughtful mood the three women had been in was gone, the image of the two fighting men was too funny, as was the interaction between Harry and Minerva. After a few minutes of laughing they decided to call it a day here as the sky outside was already dark and the kids were starting to get tired. After thanking the house-elves for the very delicious meal, Minerva apparated them back and within less than half an hour Harry and Hermione were already asleep. 

 

Until a few days later nothing special happened. While the kids continued both studying and enjoying themselves in the muggle world, they were still waiting for a response from Minerva. It was Wednesday when a big, dark brown owl arrived in the morning with a note stating that Augusta Longbottom was willing to meet Minerva on the next day at Diagon Alley. While Harry wrote a response to the Hogwarts professor stating that they’d be happy to attend, Hermione fed the owl with little pieces of meat. Since Emma only had to work in the afternoon, she was able to tell the kids that she would drive them to the Leaky Cauldron. 

The rest of the day Harry and Hermione started to plan for the next day. It was important that they’d get Augusta Longbottom, Regent of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom, on their side and befriend Neville. Since they wanted to visit Ollivanders’ because of Harry’s backup wand they might even be able to get Neville a working wand instead of his father’s. Another Gringotts visit was also on the schedule, where they hoped to find another Horcrux. It was only a theory but would explain Lestrange’s reaction back at Malfoy Manor. She must have had something of value for the Dark Lord in her vault, otherwise she wouldn’t have gone so mad after finding Gryffindor’s sword in their possession. It was a reasonable deduction and with Harry’s knowledge of goblin laws and customs he might be able to get rid of it once and for all, while strengthening his position with the goblins. They were lucky that Horcruxes were considered vile and dark beyond everything in their laws and culture. 

 

The next morning they all were pretty nervous and prepared themselves to the uttermost. Both kids were wearing formal wizarding clothes, Harry offered his friend once more formal wear out of his mother’s wardrobe, and they were certain that they had studied etiquette well enough to approach the Longbottoms without anything to worry. 

When Minerva McGonagall left Hogwarts through the headmaster’s floo, even she felt nervous. Leaving the Leaky Cauldron she steered into the direction of Gringotts, in front of which she would meet Augusta. Even from quite a distance she was able to see the elderly witch together with her grandson, always on time and already waiting. They exchanged greetings and Minerva led the two of them inside, into a private chamber they had booked at the bank.

“I know you won’t like it, Augusta, but I’ll need both of your vows of secrecy. It is of the highest importance that no one, not even Albus finds out about the content of this meeting. 

Minerva was right, Augusta wasn’t happy but complied, as well as her grandson, whom she had educated in vows. As soon as that was done the professor sent her patronus, a cat obviously, away, with a message for Harry and Hermione. It took them approximately two minutes to reach the chamber and enter it.

“Are you joking, Minerva? You bring me here to meet the Heir of House Potter without his guardian? Not that I wouldn’t appreciate it but you said something about politics and young Mr. Potter here is far away from claiming his seat and title.”

“Regent of the House of Longbottom, it is an honour to meet you, a representative of a house that has been allied with my house for centuries and I’m looking forward to renewing that.”

With this statement Harry greeted the elderly lady and kissed her knuckles as traditional protocol commanded. After that he offered Neville his hand as the Heir of House Longbottom, which the young boy accepted: “It is a great honour to meet you, Heir Potter and I would very much enjoy if our Houses could work towards a future in which we are friends and allies.”

After that, Harry introduced Hermione as a close friend of his, both Longbottoms greeted her, showing no sign of any issues with her blood status. That was a good start.

“And now to the issue you mentioned earlier, Lady Longbottom. I’m glad to inform you that I am legally emancipated and Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter, as my parents’ will wished.” He showed her the ring on his finger and ignored her surprise, before he continued. “The reason we asked for confidentiality is that the Chief Warlock had sealed the wills and ordered to be informed if they ever were to be read, which Gringotts ignored, thanks to my wishes. He acted against the wills despite being a witness to them, placing me with my muggle relatives who are not fond of witchcraft, to put it mildly. When Rubeus Hagrid came and told me about this world, I luckily met Minerva in Diagon Alley, who took over for Hagrid. We opened the wills and she became my guardian, as neither of the three previous listed individuals were available. It might interest you that those were Sirius Black, Alice Longbottom and Remus Lupin, in that order. Minerva was the first available, but Dumbledore has no clue. The Grangers, who happened to be at Diagon Alley with Minerva, took me in but I’m also working on Potter Manor with my elves so I might live there someday.”

Obviously, that was a lot to handle at once and luckily the chamber had rather comfortable chairs so Augusta could take a seat and process everything, while Harry and Mione started chatting with her grandson. Neville was shy and quiet as always but rather interested in getting to know the boy-who-lived, though that demeanour changed as soon as Harry asked him to look beyond that image, as it reminded him of what he lost, something that Neville obviously understood.

Both Harry and Hermione realised that Neville was truly nice which made them think about how secluded the “golden trio” had been at Hogwarts. They had barely done anything with someone else, which was kind of stupid. None of them had had any other close friends in their year or even house. Neville, Dean, Seamus, Lavender, the Patil twins, Susan, Hannah and many more with whom they had hardly talked at all. Another thing they had to change.

 

While Minerva provided Augusta with more tales about Dumbledore’s failures and the Potters’ wills, Harry went to his account manager, together with Hermione. He still had some business to attend to. After all the formal greetings were spoken, Harry started to explain some things to the goblin.

“Well, there are a few things I’m here for today. I wanted to check in on how the research about my heritage was looking and hoped that you could remove a few bans and bindings from me. I fear that Dumbledore has done more than just an owl redirection ban to me. And at last I fear that your noble institution has been misused for safekeeping a vile magical object that violates even your rules.”

“And what would that be, Lord Potter?”

“A vessel containing a soul piece of Lord Voldemort. I figure you know what I’m talking about and want to inform you that as the Lord of the House of Potter I can perform a spell to cleanse it. By ancient law I’d like to claim the object as my property afterwards. Any other of my potential claims through the violation of contract shall be kept by Gringotts for the time being and by your judgement distributed between the vault’s owner’s victims, I don’t need the money.”

The goblin was deeply shocked as he knew what the Lord of Potter was insinuating. If someone truly kept a Horcrux of you-know-who in a vault, it would be careless to not act against that.
“Whose vault are we talking about, Lord Potter?”
“Bellatrix Lestrange’s.”

 

It didn’t take more than a quarter of an hour for a goblin search party, led by Gornuk, to return. They were, to put it mildly, shocked and carried a heavy metal chest, reluctant to touch it more than necessary. After it was placed on the desk, they opened it and both Harry and Hermione leaned forward to look inside, while Harry had an interesting revelation.

“I still feel it somehow, but my scar doesn't hurt. Interesting. And we were right, Bella had one in her vault, that’s why she had acted the way she did. That’s Hufflepuff’s cup, the one Riddle took from Mrs. Smith together with the locket.”

Now no longer whispering he addressed Gornuk, asking for permission to cleanse the relict of one of the Hogwarts founders. The goblin nodded and stepped aside, though he stayed so close that he would still be able to witness the whole thing.

“Do I have the permission to draw both wand and weapon on Gringotts ground, account manager Gornuk?”

The goblin consented and watched in awe how the young wizard drew a goblin-made dagger that once belonged to Godric Gryffindor. Other than the sword, that one had stayed in the family and with it he would slay the spirit of the Dark Lord that would come out of the soul vessel. Other than in the previous timeline they didn’t need a weapon infused by basilisk venom as they weren’t destroying the horcrux per se but only the spirit.

After the young Lord Potter had asked permission to draw his wand in addition to the dagger, he pointed it at the cup and chanted with a deep voice.

“The Lord of Potter rids you from the evil inside of you, the Lord of Potter rips away the splintered soul to free you. I summon thee, dark force, I summon thee!”

He had to repeat that exact same phrase three times to finally get some response, obviously Riddle had protected his horcrux well. With a loud bang, the familiar black smoke came out of the cup and took the form of a young Voldemort, yelling at Harry, though the young wizard was not very impressed by that and with one big slashing motion he sliced the dagger through “Riddle’s” chest, which led to a painful scream, followed by the destruction of the creature. Harry was relieved by that but instantly realised the difference to the previous timeline: he didn’t feel any pain in his scar, neither in the Dark Lord’s presence nor in general. What a lovely feeling.

 

The rest of their Gringotts business didn’t take long, since his encounter with the Potter Grimoire had not only freed his magical core but had removed any other previously existing bindings. That had the negative side-effect that there was no proof of Dumbledore’s illegal actions, but it was not like that would have been their main accusation. Research-wise they were on a good path, with the Lordship of the Houses of Peverell, Gryffindor and Slytherin proven to belong to Harry, but Black and everything on the Evans side was a bit more complicated. 

After the first war many family lines became extinct and the research about potential heirs from distant branches was complicated. Yes, both the ministry and Gringotts were in the possession of magically updating family trees and records, but those were still extensive because they included the muggle descendants of squibs as well, just like his mother’s family. It might take Gringotts months to prove that Harry was the first-in-line for Lord Ravenclaw. Since it had been only a squib-great-granddaughter of Rowena who had married an Evans man, his claim was weak, but all other lines had been eradicated by the war. It was also thanks to the war, Riddle’s “death” to be precise, that he qualified for Peverell and Slytherin. 

Even despite the uncertainties on some of the other titles, Harry wanted to claim those three houses now and not wait for the end of the Goblins’ research. As he already was a Lord, there was no need for an additional witness like last time, when he took the titles. 

The only thing Harry found a bit unfortunate was that the ring of House Peverell wasn’t the horcrux one, so he still had to search for it, but he had expected that to be honest. After everything had been completed 

After that, the business at Gringotts was over pretty fast, once they got back to the Longbottoms and Minerva. Regent Longbottom, Neville’s gran, was very happy to suggest an alliance between the two houses, as it had been often in the past centuries. Harry decided to keep the other houses a secret, even to Augusta.

“I, Augusta, Regent of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom, stand here in my house’s heir’s stead to ask you, the Lord Potter, for an alliance, in wartime as in peaceful times, in politics as in trades. May our wands be aligned against all our enemies and our voices strong together in the wizengamot. Do you, Lord Potter, accept this offer of mine and honour us with friendship and alliance?”

Harry, thanks to his time in the afterlife being educated about wizarding etiquette, responded in the appropriate manner: “I, Harry James Potter, Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter, accept your offer of friendship and alliance for our houses, Regent Longbottom. My wand is yours as much as yours is mine, from now on forward. So mote it be!”

“My wand is yours as much as yours is mine, from now on forward. So mote it be!”

As soon as Regent Longbottom had spoken these words, a bright white glow of light appeared and magic sealed the bond between the partners of the alliance. With a big smile on her face, the elderly woman offered Harry her hand and thanked him for everything, before he suggested a trip to the Alley together so the kids could get to know each other. A great idea as far as Augusta Longbottom was concerned, but Harry had something very important on his mind. He clearly remembered how much Neville’s skills had improved when he got himself a new wand. His father’s wand had never really worked for him. If they were able to get him an own from the beginning on, that might induce some very beneficial changes.

 

After leaving Gringotts together, the whole group walked down Diagon Alley and the first store they ended up in was Madame Malkin’s. It was not like anyone needed something in particular, they just looked at various formal robes. Under the guidance of Regent Longbottom the two young boys learned a lot about formal dress code for Lords and Heirs, but from time to time she added some information about traditional Ladies wear for Hermione, seeing how much she enjoyed learning. 

After quite some time of shopping they did end up in Ollivanders and within the second they entered the store the old man looked up and gave Augusta Longbottom a stern look. “Ash and dragon heartstring, twelve inches, unyielding. This wand still belongs to Frank Longbottom and he did great things with it, but, Regent Longbottom, trust my word when I say that ash wood doesn’t perform well for others than their first, their true owner. No proper inheritance wand has ever come from an ash wood tree and this wand won’t be one either. Let your grandson and future Lord choose one for himself.”

Harry smiled, because it had all worked according to their plan and now, even before first year, Neville had his cherry and unicorn hair wand. With a bright smile the boy had waved his new wand, creating so many sparks and lights that even his gran got happy. All the worries that her grandson was basically a squib was now gone, even if he didn’t have his father’s wand. 

 

“Now, Mr Ollivander, I do have a question of my own today. I found a suitable family wand to be my backup, but I’d like you to check it for me first. It hasn’t been used in quite a long time.”
He pulled Ignotus Peverell’s wand and handed it to the elderly wandmaker, who looked quite stunned. Never in his lifetime had he seen something that well-crafted before.

“Holly with an ebony handle, brilliantly conjoined. A wand, perfect for a good and loving leader, a brilliant wizard and thanks to the handle, ideal for both combat and transfiguration. The core is very rare, I’ve never seen the hair of a demiguise in a wand. Those lovely creatures, whose hair is mainly used for making invisibility cloaks, can predict the near future. This might make that wand react intuitively in combat situations to deflect dark spells and curses. Whom did it once belong to, Mr Potter?”

Harry smiled at the wandmaker and after a few seconds of silence he calmly said: “Ignotus Peverell.”

The facial expression of Garrick Ollivander was basically indescribable, it was shock and fascination. He obviously knew of the Peverell brothers and their wandmaking skills. They were the ones who created the deathstick, the elder wand, and many more things. This wand in his hands was centuries old and probably crafted by one of the greatest wandmakers ever. It was a powerful, but difficult to archive combination of wand materials, and the fact that this wand had obviously bonded to the young Mr Potter was truly fascinating and promised an interesting future. This might change Albus Dumbledore’s plans, but he didn’t intend on telling him that. It was quite amusing that Albus had come to him a few months back and urged him to give Harry the phoenix wand, even though they both were aware of the priori incantatem dangers, if he should ever face Riddle. Whatever game the Leader of the Light was playing, he was slowly losing control of it. That would be fun to watch.

Notes:

Well, there we go. That's it for this week. Next Thursday we're finally gonna reach Hogwarts and meet the redheads - how's that going to go down? Who know's? (Well, I do, and with a bit of patience so do you soon)
See ya all next week!

Chapter 5: Hogwarts, we're coming!

Notes:

Hello everyone,
once again thank you for all your feedback, that's pretty overwhelming.

Here we go, it's finally time for our heroes to reach Hogwarts.
Have fun!

Over the course of the following weeks the two kids met twice with Neville, spent quite a lot of time at Potter Manor and often went out into the muggle world to enjoy themselves before Hogwarts began. But September first came quicker than expected and on that Sunday morning they all got up earlier than usual to enjoy a thorough breakfast one last time before the term began. They laughed a lot and Emma Granger cried when she said goodbye to her daughter, as she had to leave for work. Both kids got a crushing hug from her that seemed pretty familiar to Harry. Like mother, like daughter. 

A while after that Dan loaded the two big trunks into the car, as well as Hedwig in her cage, though she didn’t seem too happy about it. The drive to King’s Cross didn’t take them too long and they arrived around quarter past ten, quickly hurrying to the platform. As Hermione’s father couldn’t pass through the barrier he said his goodbyes before they went onto platform nine and three-quarters. Right after the young witch had crossed the barrier, Dan held Harry back.

“Please, Harry. Look out for her. Don’t tell her that I said that but you made her life so much better, please continue that and keep her safe. You are not the only one with experience of bullying, as you know. Don’t let that happen to her, cheer her up and be there for her. Owl me, keep me posted on the truth, I want more then the stories she’ll tell her mother.”

Harry nodded, and shook the hand Dan offered him. For the first time in his life he had found a proper father figure, the situation had never allowed Remus or Sirius to take that role properly. And Dan cared, not only because he was good for Hermione, but because he saw how Harry had been treated and wanted to offer him a better life.

“Oh, and on a side note: Emma expects both of you back on Christmas, don’t you dare disappoint her.”

He laughed at the last sentence, and so did Harry, stating that he would never do that, because he wouldn’t willingly risk the fury of one or even two Granger women. Harry ensured that he’d be there for Christmas and then quickly hurried through the barrier as he was able to see a bunch of red-heads coming closer. That was strange, because he was certain that the last time the Weasleys entered the platform together with him, nearly half an hour later. Had that been Dumbledore’s plan? Hagrid not telling him how to enter the platform and running into Molly Weasley, loudly talking about muggles, so Ron would be able to join him afterwards. It actually made sense now that he thought about it. He’d need Hermione’s opinion on that.

Hermione had already found an empty compartment and waited for her best friend to appear, which he did soon after. It was quite comfortable to be back in the Hogwarts Express, and without Ron it was even very quiet and both of them started reading a book they had packed for the train ride, as someone knocked on the door. They looked at each other, sharing the same thought: “ Malfoy or Weasley?” But surprisingly it was neither one of those, but Neville, whom they welcomed into their compartment. He seemed way more confident than last time around, a bit fitter and Trevor was sitting on his shoulder. Apparently the toad liked the change in character of its owner and stopped disappearing. Harry and Neville exchanged the formal greetings as they were in an alliance but then both grinned and dropped the formal attitude: “That should have been enough to satisfy your gran, now let’s drop that, come on and sit down. How is it going?”

When the train slowly started to move, they already were in a deep conversation about wizarding history, though it was mostly Harry and Neville, since Hermione was reading Hogwarts - A History once again. And then, after a while it finally happened. Ronald Weasley opened the compartment door without even knocking and looked around, wanting to say something but then realised they were all reading books and seemed rather familiar with each other.

“Oh, hey Longbottom. I was going to ask if I could join but since you future Claws can’t seem to stop reading I’ll find another compartment with more fun going on. Maybe I’ll even find Potter, but Mum said maybe he didn’t find the way to the platform, even though we… Forget it, I’m talking too much. If you see him though, he’ll certainly be lonely and in need for a best mate, just tell him that I was looking for him.”

With that he left, leaving the three first speechless, then laughing as Weasley totally embarrassed himself there. 

“What was that all about, Harry? Ever had something to do with the Weasleys until now?”

“Nah, probably another person wanting to get their piece of fame being best buddies with the boy-who-lived. I guess Dumbledore had something to do with that, remember what we said at Gringotts? He’s looking to manipulate me, but thanks to Minerva… Professor McGonagall he can’t really do that. I’m pretty sure he sent Hagrid on purpose so I’d learn close to nothing about the magical world so I’d be needing a friend to help me out and that Weasley guy would coincidentally be there for me. And he calls himself the Leader of the Light.”

It didn’t take really long until the basically obligatory visit by the ferret. Pompous as ever Draco Malfoy entered the trio’s compartment with his two totally stupid goons.

“We finally meet again, Potter. What kind of company is that you’re in here? The squib Longbottom and this mudblood again. The Malfoy family would like to get allied with you as you would certainly need a strong and powerful ally.”

While Harry glared at Malfoy for the usage of THE word, Neville started to laugh: “Malfoy, you’re really pathetic. Neither the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom nor the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter would need any kind of assistance from a mere Noble House, whose wealth is nothing in comparison to either of our houses. Shove off and leave my ally alone.”

“And don’t you dare insult my friend here ever again. I take great offence on the use of that word and it will have severe consequences if it’d ever happen again.”

A both very surprised and angry Draco Malfoy took off rather quickly after that. It had been his father who had told him to approach Potter again, as House Potter was extremely old, wealthy and powerful. They hadn’t expected him to be aware of all that, as he was raised by muggles and the so-called Leader of the Light kept him away from every bit of information to shape the young Potter for his own plans. At least that’s what his father had gathered over the past years. Sometimes Lucius Malfoy had really wondered how Albus Dubledore had been a Gryffindor, not a Syltherin, seeing how he had acted during the past decade. But now the Malfoy family had to wait and see how the game would continue, which Albus Dumbledore had been playing since Halloween 1981. Would he be able to manipulate the Potter Heir and take all his political and financial power for himself or use it for the greater good? That was the main question.

 

The rest of the train ride was rather unspectacular, no one else tried to enter their compartment anymore. Yes, they did buy some sweets and this time Harry got the same card from a chocolate frog as last time: Dumbledore, which had given them the hint towards Flamel and the philosopher’s stone at some point. But aside from that nothing really happened, reading was basically all that they did. When Hogwarts came closer, they changed into their school robes, this time Harry wore ones with a better quality, with automatic resizing and cleaning charms just like those his father had gotten before his first year. It really had been so nice to read his parents’ diaries before Hogwarts, it gave him quite a variety of new and helpful input for the next few years.

Now, as they slowly started leaving the train, Harry thought about his plans for the future and all he wanted to achieve. Sirius should walk free as soon as possible, first of all to live with him, but also because of the locket and the Wizengamot seat of Lord Black for political power. Dumbledore unfortunately had to stay until the triwizard tournament was initiated, after that he wanted Minerva to be headmistress, and Remus for DADA and the head of Gryffindor. For that they had to find out where the curse on the position was coming from. Harry’s theory, and Rowena had concurred that it was most likely thanks to Riddle after he got refused for that position, maybe even a side product of the missing horcrux. That would mean it was at Hogwarts, which seemed plausible. Like with the Gaunt shack or the cave from his orphanage days, Hogwarts was an important place in Riddle’s past. But those thoughts had to wait, because right now Hagrid was collecting the first years. The giant man briefly smiled at Harry before he continued to lead the students towards the boats.

The fourth person in their boat, besides Neville of course, was a blonde girl Harry didn’t recognise. She did ask very politely if she could join them, so they invited her to sit with them. When the boats started to move towards the castle, both Neville and Harry spoke up at the same time to introduce themselves as Augusta had told them to in the final week of the holidays.

“Building friendships at Hogwarts is important, boys. Not only for now, but especially when you’ll be sitting in the wizengamot. Be polite, no matter what your opposite’s blood status is, but be especially formal when dealing with purebloods. As Lords you are most likely going to run into those in the future.”

Both boys started to laugh and even Hermione giggled a bit, but then Neville did take the lead and introduced himself first, as well as his companions.

“I’m Neville of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom, to my right there is Harry of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter together with his best friend Hermione Granger, born to non-magicals. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss…?”

“Greengrass. Daphne of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Greengrass. It’s an honour meeting all three of you.”

Now Harry recognised her, the blonde girl was one of the more reserved but smart Slytherin girls. She had never been part of Malfoy’s group, and had often been seen with Tracey Davis or Blaise Zabini, some of the less dark members of this year’s Slytherin students. If they could befriend the eldest child of a sacred twenty-eight family with neutral to grey tendencies in the wizengamot, they might be able to form connections beyond the light families. That was something his great-grandfather Henry had suggested.

 

“You know, Harry, even though you’ll find great support among the light families, don’t forget the neutral and grey ones. Sometimes even dark families can be of help if you sell them your proposals and legislations well enough. With my marriage to my dear Electra I gained an easy way to approach dark families.”

“So you suggest I marry a dark pureblood witch? You remember that Hermione is my soulmate?”

“That’s not what I meant, and believe me, I married Electra out of love. But being married to the eldest daughter of House Black,made my life so much easier when I came to politics. What I mean is: make friends, even in Slytherin House. Maybe not the Malfoys, but for example the Notts and Greengrasses. Those families were always cunning and calculating, but never the biggest blood purists and bigots.”

 

Those words in mind he started chatting with Daphne and included Hermione quite a lot, hoping that with a few weeks and months of work she’d get more tolerant towards muggle-born students, or at least Hermione. Like every other student, she was a bit nervous but played it down, trying to create a cold and serious image of herself. This facade broke as soon as the boats were slowly sailing through the curtain of ivy into the long tunnel, enlightened by only a handful of torches, until they finally reached the end. Now it was time to walk up the stairs, meet Miner…Professor McGonagall, as Harry corrected himself, and then there would be the sorting and feast. That was good, because, knowing what to expect, he didn’t eat a lot on the train. 

Just like the last time she took all the first years and brought them in the smaller chamber next to the great hall. Even her speech was nearly identical:

“Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats among the other students in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room.

The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rulebreaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.

The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting.”

For a few seconds Minerva let her eye wander across the room and as soon as she saw Hermione, Neville and Harry, she smiled at them, before she left, asking them to wait for her return. Instantly the same muttering as last time started and everyone was panicking about the sorting ceremony, especially because Ron Weasley was spreading the same rumour about having to fight a troll, but this time around Harry wasn’t freaking out, but instead laughed at Weasley.

“Do you really believe everything your older brothers tell you? Believe me, the sorting is totally easy and has nothing to do with fighting. The sorting hat is going to decide which house we’ll be going to.

The students became much calmer, but Weasley couldn’t stop spitting stupid comments and proclaiming that he was right, until Draco Malfoy spoke up.

“It’s funny, you know? You out of all people, the one person who ran up and down the train to look for Harry Potter now calls him a liar. The wizarding community is right in calling the Weasley family poor and worthless, you’re the perfect example for that.”

The soon-to-be Slytherins - except Daphne, Theo and Blaise, mainly Draco’s little gang -  started to snicker, which led to Ron pulling his wand out, but before he was able to point it at Draco, McGonagall came back in and someone else, Harry thought it might have been Dean, though he was too far away to be sure, warned him. Weasley tried to look as innocent as possible and luckily the professor hadn’t noticed and started to lead them into the Great Hall, at the same time a variety of ghosts came floating through the walls and started chatting with the new students. 

Yes, entering the Great Hall for the first time was certainly impressive, but for neither Harry nor Hermione this admittedly impressive place was anything new. For years they have been walking in and out of that very room, even though they tried to act as impressed as anyone else, it wasn’t really authentic. 

“Wow, look at that! What an impressive ceiling. It’s bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts: A History. ”

When she heard those words Hermione looked around, seemingly surprised. As soon as she had realised that it had been the boy to her right, making fun of her, she playfully punched him and quietly said under her breath: “Prat!”

He grinned at her, damn well knowing that it was she, who had said that the last time around. Harry was doing a good job at making fun of her, or rather her “know-it-all” persona. Since she had grown out of that, it was quite likely that this kind of bullying wouldn't happen this time. 

 

This time around it was quite clear that it was Harry who led the group of firsties down the great hall. He showed confidence and leadership skills, combined with the fact that he had calmed everyone down about the sorting all other students were following his example. With Hermione to his left and Neville to his right he walked up to Professor McGonagall, beaming at him proudly, while the others formed a queue behind them.

Now the professor placed the stool with the sorting hat on top of it in front of them and let it sing his song again:

“Oh you may not think I'm pretty,

But don't judge on what you see,

I'll eat myself if you can find

A smarter hat than me.

 

You can keep your bowlers black,

Your top hats sleek and tall,

For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat

And I can cap them all.

 

There's nothing hidden in your head

The Sorting Hat can't see,

So try me on and I will tell you

Where you ought to be.

 

You might belong in Gryffindor,

Where dwell the brave at heart,

Their daring, nerve, and chivalry

Set Gryffindors apart;

 

You might belong in Hufflepuff,

Where they are just and loyal,

Those patient Hufflepuffs are true

And unafraid of toil;

 

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,

if you've a ready mind,

Where those of wit and learning,

Will always find their kind;

 

Or perhaps in Slytherin

You'll make your real friends,

Those cunning folks use any means

To achieve their ends.

 

So put me on! Don't be afraid!

And don't get in a flap!

You're in safe hands (though I have none)

For I'm a Thinking Cap!”

 

Harry thought to himself that this all felt like a big déjà-vu experience and despite this strange feeling he tried to act as normal as possible, because even from afar he was able to see the headmaster, whose twinkling eyes were trying to get into his mind. Thank god that he was a natural Occlumens and without that parasitic fragment of Riddle he could finally embrace his talents. But he didn’t want to be too obvious, so he just turned away from Dumbledore and started chatting with Hermione. 

 

As soon as the new first years entered the Great Hall, Albus Dumbledore instantly tried to find young Harry. It took him nearly half a minute, since he wasn’t in the company of the Weasley boy but rather Neville Longbottom and a witch he didn’t recognise, probably a muggleborn. Not only wasn’t he in a company he neither had expected nor wanted, he also led the group of students and showed more self-confidence than a boy coming from an abusive home should have. Something was off and he deemed it wise to use his Legilimency against the boy, strengthened through the Elder Wand. Not even Severus was able to resist that, despite the fact that he was probably the best Occlumens in Great Britain. He just needed a good look into his eyes and then…what was that?

It took all of Dumbledore’s willpower to stay calm and not start yelling in anger. How could Harry resist his Legilimency without even knowing about Occlumency? Yes, that trait ran in parts of the Potter family, but with the Horcrux, that shouldn’t be dormant, if existent. Albus made a mental note to himself to ask Severus if he’d have the same issues with getting into the boy’s head. If that were the case then it would make everything  more complicated. 

 

Harry felt the incoming attack on his mind by Dumbledore but it was more than easy to defend himself, Snape really had tried to teach him Occlumency, it was only due to the Horcrux that he had failed. After the mental attack had ended he again focussed on McGonagall, who just now started the sorting by reading out Hannah Abbot’s name, Both Susan and her became Hufflepuffs before Terry Boot got sorted into Ravenclaw. Soon, it was time for Mione to be sorted and when Minerva said: “Granger, Hermione!”, he grabbed her hand for a second and held it, giving her reassurance that he was with her. 

This time around it took even longer to sort Hermione, but after a few minutes the hat once again shouted “GRYFFINDOR!” The girl smiled and walked down to the table, where the other lions were already cheering for her.

After a long list of names, including Daphne, Neville and Malfoy it was finally time for Harry. During Sally-Anne Perks’ sorting he smiled, knowing that they had already changed things. This time Neville hadn’t lost Trevor, hadn’t been nervous at all and definitely didn’t run to the Gryffindor table with the sorting hat still on his head. In the past weeks, he had become more confident, something to look forward to.

“Potter, Harry!”

Just like last time, the murmurs started as soon as Minerva called his name, but this time with a bright smile on her face. By now Harry was used to being famous and wasn’t remotely as nervous as during his previous sorting.

 

Oh, I see. You’re the reason for the young lady remembering a different future and life. Mr. Potter, you seem to be a quite unlucky person with a destiny to fulfil. Not many like you have sat under me, and you are always the most interesting to sort. Having lived a life, but being stuck in such a young body. All the others are young and not yet formed, but you already show your true character.

“Then why did you put Hermione into Gryffindor? She would have been a great Ravenclaw and just wished for Gryffindor because of Dumbledore.”

Another’s sorting is nothing for you to worry about but since she is your soulmate… Just think about the years with her and the battles with her on your side. She’s brilliant, but even more brave. Don’t you know that?
But now back to you, Harry. You have lived a life, filled with dangers and obstacles. You never backed down and your friends always had your back. You wouldn’t be wrong in Hufflepuff, loyal as you are. But you are more than that, the young boy that confronted the darkest wizard of your time over and over again, braver than anybody else. Last time around Gryffindor was the right choice for you, and it wouldn’t be wrong now either, Lord Gryffindor.

On the other hand, thanks to the lovely Miss Granger you have discovered the scholar inside you, that would make you a nice addition to this year’s Ravenclaws. All this talent, combined with your enormous power, shouldn’t be wasted.

And just like I said last time, Slytherin house would suit you well, my Lord Slytherin. All your meticulous planning and your cunning to reach your destiny, your fantastic skills. Ideal for someone to rule over the dungeons of Slytherin.

“Well, it seems like you have one hell of a decision to make. I can understand all of your points, every house would suit me, but there can only be one decision. And to be honest, I don’t think I could survive seven years with Draco in my house, and even with Ron I would have my issues, but on the other hand I don’t want to leave Mione alone. But maybe Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw could be something new and different this time. I don’t know, but you saved my life by giving me the sword, so I trust you and your decision.”

Well, Mr. Potter, the others are slowly getting impatient. As much as I like our chat and that glimpse into your mind, it’s time to make a decision now. Your house for your whole new life at Hogwarts will be…

Notes:

Sorry for the cliffhanger, people, but that was just way too ideal.
Wanna take your guesses?

Oh and by the way, I finally decided where we're going with this story in the long run, be prepared for some madness.

See ya all next week

Chapter 6: The first week at Hogwarts - again

Notes:

Hey again,

sorry for the cliffhanger last time, but that one was just to good to not write it.
Have fun reading.

Well, Mr. Potter, the others are slowly getting impatient. As much as I like our chat and that glimpse into your mind, it’s time to make a decision now. Your house for your whole new life at Hogwarts will be…

GRYFFINDOR!

As always, only the last word of that conversation had been spoken aloud and the crowd instantly reacted. The Gryffindor table cheered extremely loud and the Weasley twins were basically jumping around, yelling “We got Potter, we got Potter!” over and over again. Percy then shook his hand as soon as he had reached the table, taking his place between Neville and Hermione. From afar he was able to see Ronald’s surprised look as he realised that he had met Potter and didn’t recognise him. But that was something that Harry didn’t care about, because he sat next to Hermione and it seemed like no one was the slightest bit suspicious.

During the rest of the sorting Harry hardly paid attention and silently chatted with Hermione and Neville, telling them that Dumbledore had tried to use Legilimency on him. Despite the fact that Neville had no idea about them being from the future, they had told him all about the headmaster’s manipulations during the past decade to gain another ally.
Once all the Weasleys started clapping, they knew that Ronald had been sorted and they expected him to show up next to them instantly. Sadly, exactly that happened.

“Harry, mate, why didn’t you say something earlier on the train. Could have rescued you from those reading geeks. Oi Longbottom, move over!”

Unbelievable. Ronald really tried to get Neville to move over so he could sit next to Harry, but the future Lord Longbottom was no longer the scared little boy with way too little self-confidence.

“I beg your pardon. What do you think you’re doing? Harry has made it absolutely clear that he wanted to sit between Hermione and me and correct me if I’m wrong but you’ve never even met him and yet claim to be his friend. So the answer is no, I won’t move over.”

With that he just turned away and continued to talk to Harry, completely ignoring Ronald’s attempts to provoke him. What they did see was the blush and anger on Percy’s face, afraid that his younger brother would ruin his family’s name and by that his future through simply stupid interactions with two future Lords. Both House Potter and Longbottom were among the most powerful families in the Wizengamot. Because of that he tried to intervene and reprimand his brother but he was too late. Just after Blaise Zabini got sorted into Slytherin, Professor McGonagall spoke up:

“Mr. Weasley! No, not you two, your little brother. You’ve clearly tried the patience of both Mr. Potter and Mr. Longbottom. Take a seat and leave those two and Miss Granger alone, before you’ll set a record for the fastest assigned detention in the history of Hogwarts.”

With that, Ron backed down and took a seat between Seamus and one of the twins, Harry suspected it to be Fred but wasn’t entirely sure. Now Dumbledore held the same - absolutely pointless - speech: “Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!” And then, finally, the food started to appear.

Soon the usual chatter started. The Start-of-Term Feasts tended to be very joyful, with people chatting about their holidays, and it ranked among the top occasions food-wise. Only Halloween, Yule and the Leaving Feast were able to rival this one. In addition to the amount of food on the tables there were dozens of the castle’s ghosts, floating through the air and the tables, frightening the little firsties. Truth be told, Harry had waited for that, just to have another laugh about some other time-travel insider. Soon Nick appeared and introduced himself, which led to Ron shouting: “I know who you are! My brothers told me about you - you’re Nearly Headless Nick!”

As expected, he was not amused with being called that name and replied with the “I would prefer you to call me Sir Nicholas de…” but before he could finish that and even before Seamus was able to interrupt him, both Harry and Hermione spoke up:

“Nearly Headless? How can you be nearly headless?”

Describing Seamus’ facial expression as “startled” would have been an understatement, but the stunned looks on the twins’ faces was even better. Just like Harry and Hermione they started speaking unisono:

“Look at that, just at Hogwarts for a few minutes and already stealing our number! May we introduce ourselves:”

“We are the castle’s biggest pranksters…”

“...feared by everyone…”

“... we are the Weasley twins…”

“...Gred and Forge, to your service.”

They would never admit it, but the two of them had actually missed the twinspeak, something that had faded over the years. It was a beautiful sign that everyone was still carefree. No Dark Lord in sight, no war or fear of Death Eater attack.

“The castle’s biggest pranksters? I highly doubt that, I’ve heard about a group of gentlemen that really managed their mischief. But well, we’ll see.”

With that, Hermione was able to utterly shock the twins, who did understand her reference to the Marauder’s Map’s password. But instead of explaining she just grinned at them and continued talking to Neville and Harry, ignoring the twins for the rest of the feast.

 

When the last of the desserts finally started to disappear, Dumbledore stood up and gave his notices to the students, the usual speech about the forest, magic in the corridors, the quidditch trials and last but not least the third-floor corridor on the right hand side.

“To be honest, now that I hear that again, he really provoked students to break the rules and make them go there. “Don’t go there, it’s dangerous” is basically an invitation. Besides, the whole “painful death awaits you” is pretty careless in a school, don’t you think?”

Harry couldn't really do anything else than nod at Mione’s statement. The old fool claiming to be the Leader of the Light was in truth a cold and calculating man, or entirely stupid.

After the school hymn Harry had a last glance at the old headmaster before they started following Percy. They were able to remember that last time they both were way too tired to really pay attention to the beauty of the castle, but not now. After many years of walking through the castle and the months in the tent they were much more in shape, even if their bodies were back to the young and untrained form. Their mindset had changed, and that was all that mattered.
Just how wary they were of their surroundings showed when the flying walking sticks appeared in front of them. Both of them had their wands ready before Percy whispered to them that it was Peeves, the poltergeist, ready to deflect his attacks, but it was unnecessary. The prefect’s threat to call the Baron worked just fine and so they reached the picture of the fat lady unharmed. After saying the password (Hermione did obviously recall that one, just as every other password, it was Caput Draconis), Percy led them into the common room and directed them to their dorm rooms. Harry hardly had found the time to wish Mione a good night before they got shooed away. The only lucky thing was that Ronald had eaten so much that he basically fell asleep the moment he saw his new bed, not being able to annoy Harry with questions and attempts to create a friendship. That gave the young wizard the possibility to use a new spell from the Grimoire he had learned, an untraceable tracking spell. He had disillusioned his second wand and in a moment where he was sure that Scabbers looked into the opposite direction, he hit him with it. Just in case the whole “keeping the timeline so steady that Riddle gets reborn for killing him” failed and he went for the “damage control”, as Salazar Slytherin had put it.

“Playing around with the timeline is dangerous. Even the most minor differences can change everything and in the end you won’t be able to contain the changes. Avoid that!”

“And if it happens? What should I do?”

“That’s simple. I would call it “damage control”. Use all your future knowledge to make positive changes before it gets all moot. In that case I would say capture the rat, free Sirius, announce all your titles and emancipation, use both your and your godfather’s political power to topple Fudge. Take Dumbledore apart with everything you’ve got and go after the free and loyal Death Eaters, either with politics or stealthy assassinations.”

After that a vivid discussion about the ethical standpoint of assassinating the Death Eaters had started, of which Harry had no intention of ever reliving. His mother truly had been one hell of a scary witch. In the end they came to the conclusion that he should avoid it but not rule it out entirely. But let’s just hope it would never come to damage control. With that thought he dozed off, into a deep and dreamless sleep.

 

Not everyone had been that happy with how the day went down, because just after McGonagall came back up to the staff table and Albus held his short speech, he quietly confronted her for her actions.

“Oh Minerva, was that truly necessary? Why did you have to reprimand the young Weasley boy and shoo him away? Young Harry needs the best company he can get and I don’t think that the timid Longbottom boy and a muggleborn are the best he could get. I’m sure they must be imposing themselves on Harry. I believe to have heard that the Weasleys met Harry at King’s Cross and the two of them shared a compartment. Don’t tell me you want to overwhelm him, he should stick to one good friend from a good family.”

For a fraction of a second, Minerva’s facial expression basically screamed “Unbelievable Albus, do you ever listen to yourself?” but since he continued to stare at young Harry, only Severus Snape saw that. Taking a deep breath, she started phrasing an answer in her head and then replying to the headmaster:

“Seriously, Albus? First of all that’s all bloody wrong, those three shared a compartment and it would surprise me if he met the Weasleys on the platform. Doesn’t seem like either of the older one’s know Mr. Potter. Second of all, he did meet Miss Granger in Diagon Alley. I was there with her and her family when Hagrid brought him there. As he surely told you, I found myself more suitable to introduce him to our world than him. Potter and Granger have become friends even before Hogwarts and I believe they even met up in the muggle world beforehand. And the young Mr. Longbottom ran into us when we revisited Ollivanders to satisfy Miss Granger’s curiosity and never ending wish to study and learn. Augusta finally got him a proper wand and stopped having the illusion that he would have to use Frank’s. Oh and by the way, it’s anything but appropriate if you call Mr. Potter by his first name. We surely don’t want it to look like you have your favourites.”

Truth be told, it was only thanks to Dumbledore’s Occlumency skill that he was able to stay calm - or  at least appear to be calm. He was both furious and confused, afraid of losing control. There was no real way for him to assess the damages Minerva had done to his plans without gaining too much attention, no way to find out what she had told him. And how on earth did Augusta break the confundus charm he had placed on her with the elder wand? Yes, it had been nearly a decade but still, that should have worked and kept the young Longbottom weak and timid. Instead he was now self-confident and a true Gryffindor. Albus had hoped that he’d be sorted into Hufflepuff. Now he could only wait and hope that everything would still fall into place. All sorts of mental manipulation charms would be dangerous, Minerva had been an elite auror and she was certainly interested in keeping the young Harry safe. If she’d only known that legally she could have taken him in she would probably challenge him to a duel to the death and even with him having the elder wand Minerva still was one hell of a scary witch. And for him that meant that he just gave her the “disappointed old grandfather” look and continued eating in silence, deep down inside raging. Even though he hid his anger, both Minerva and Severus knew it was there and that’s why the potions professor approached McGonagall after the feast when he was sure that no one saw them.

“Minerva, whatever game you’re playing, look after yourself. The old man won’t like it. Believe me when I tell you that I know Petunia Dursley, though back then she only was little Tuney Evans. I trust your judgement when you say they mistreated him and I damn well know that he doesn’t look like a freshly abused kid to me. Whatever you do, it’s working. But don’t tell me!”

Severus had his suspicions but since he wasn’t the only master Legilimens in the castle he really didn’t want to know the specifics.

“He may look like James Potter to me, but if I’m right then he and I share similar experiences. You had me as a student, you know what I mean. I guarantee you that I won’t treat him like he was just the spawn of James Potter. A thought that Dumbledore had tried to implant in my head, just for the record.”

And without waiting for a response or any kind of reaction at all, he was gone. Within seconds he had disappeared behind a corner and made his way down to the Slytherin common rooms to check if his prefects were able to manage all the new firsties. 

Minerva was stunned. She had seen the future and knew what had happened, how he had behaved, and all this was a sign for a changing timeline. Very interesting.

 

The next morning Harry woke quite early, partly because he couldn’t stand Ronald’s snoring anymore, but getting up early had become a habit in the tent. After having a short shower he went down into the common room, his bag filled with today’s school books with him. Since he was alone down here, he started revising some of the runic alphabets he had begun to learn, when after less than twenty minutes Hermione came down as well, grinning at the sight of a studying Harry. That didn’t mean though that she had nothing to criticise:

“You might wanna put those books back, Harry. We didn’t get our timetable yet.”

Fair point, he hadn’t thought about that. He went back up into their dorm, placed the books in his trunk again and wanted to walk down again when he ran into Neville, who had just finished dressing. That led to the three of them walking down to the great hall for breakfast together, but not the same way they went up to the tower yesterday. Obviously Neville had heard stories about the Marauders and Harry had even shown him his own map but that didn’t mean he wasn’t stunned by Harry's casual use of the many secret passages. They did need less than half the normal time to reach the hall, which by the way was pretty empty at that time of day. 

Luckily for Minerva, Dumbledore hadn’t come down yet, only Severus, Quirinius and Bathsheda were sitting at the staff table with her. Using that opportunity she got up as soon as she saw the trio enter, handed them their timetable and asked for a private word with Harry. She took his aside and started telling him what she had discovered the day before. 

“From what I could gather he orchestrated the Weasley meeting, he told me he was pretty certain you met and shared a compartment, complaining about the fact that we overwhelm you with too many people and you should “stick to one good friend from a good family”. Oh, and it might interest you that Severus approached me after I shouted at Albus. He’s losing his trust in the headmaster and made pretty precise assumptions about your childhood. Severus is not unfamiliar with “Tuney Evans”, as he called her. Let’s hope that’s good and not destroying your timeline plans. I doubt they’re already planning the tournament. If I had to take a guess, the end of your second year should be the earliest time to consider “damage control” if unavoidable. By then plans should already be in motion.”

Harry nodded. The only important thing was to make the tournament happen and eliminate all the horcruxes before that to kill Riddle in the graveyard. Otherwise he’d be floating around without a body somewhere, no one knowing when and where he’d strike. If they were able to keep the timeline stable was probably the biggest uncertainty, but he did prepare for all hell breaking loose too. Not that he’d want that, but still.

After breakfast they all hurried back into the tower to get their stuff for classes. Just as they left they ran into Dean and Ronald, both looking exhausted, and Dean told them that they’d get lost and at some point they were trying to force their way through a door and Filch promised them all sorts of detention because it was the door to the forbidden floor, but Quirrell luckily saved them from being locked up in the dungeons or something like that. Harry had to try really hard to not burst out laughing, the same thing had happened to Ron and him last time around, but it had been on their way to class, not to breakfast. Seemed like some things never change.

Now the trio made their way into the classroom for Theory of Magic, basically a short introduction into magic, usage of wands and a bit about power levels and exhaustion of the magical core. This class was only being held during the first few weeks of first year, but nonetheless it was fascinating. Well, if it had been unknown to them, then it would have been fascinating, but that was obviously not the case here. What they did realise was that Neville now was able to use his core completely, no longer having a wand that rejected him. If Hermione would push him into studying like she did with Ron and him he would certainly be among the top of the class in both theory and practical use.

 

In the afternoon they had their first transfiguration class, which was something they were looking forward to and being afraid of at the same time. Could they downplay their skill level or not? Luckily Minerva knew about them and could help them.

Both Harry and Hermione had mastered the matches into needles transfiguration long ago and could probably pass their OWLs if not NEWTs right now, but they had to act like they were unable to perform the spell properly. At one point though Minerva came up to them, silently put up a notice-me-not charm and looked at them, expecting to see their true skill level. First Harry and then Hermione performed flawlessly, which made Minerva smile. After Mione reversed her transfiguration, McGonagall dropped the notice-me-not.

“Great work, Potter. Seems like you inherited your father’s talent for transfiguration. And now Miss Granger, don’t hold back, I’ve seen you succeed. Five points for not bragging with your success. And now, please.”

Hermione smiled and did as Minerva asked, though she purposefully put less power into the spell so it took a second longer to complete the transfiguration.

“Bravo! Ten points each for Gryffindor.”

 

By the end of the lesson Neville too gained points because his match did transfigure into metal, though not remotely as pointy as it should have been. Only a small success, but for someone who was believed to be a squib for most of his life this was more than satisfying.

Talking about something being satisfying, DADA did not count to one of those things. Yes, Harry lacked his horrible headache since the soul fragment was gone, but knowing that Tom Riddle was in the classroom did create some discomfort. That, and he was still able to feel him, but without all the pain. He might even still be able to use that as a horcrux detector. 

 

Aside from having Tom Riddle as a DADA teacher, ironic if you knew that he once wanted to have that position, the first week of term was pretty comfortable, aside from Weasley’s horrible attempts at forming a friendship with Harry. The trio was on the right track with their essays and classes too were manageable. By now they managed to downplay their skill after training to cast silent notice-me-not’s and acting clumsy in charms. They still managed to make Flitwick very happy with their performance, even with a dialled-back power. Said power seemed to be quite the topic amongst the professors, they all felt his strong core that could arguably be stronger than Dumbledore’s. From what Minerva told them it seemed like Flitwick was very enthusiastic. He must have said something like “the talent for charmes like Lily Evans, for transfiguration and DADA like James Potter, very literate and power levels that are off the charts. What a potential that boy has.”

 

The day Harry had been looking forward to most was Friday. They would have their first potions lesson, together with the Slytherins, which should be very interesting. But before that he did get a message via Hedwig in the morning, and again the timeline did seem to be intact because Hagrid had invited him for tea this afternoon. Just like last time he scribbled a “yes, please” on the letter and gave it back to his owl. 

After they finished eating, the trio made their way down to the dungeons. On the way they were able to overhear Ronald’s complaints about Snape, while Dean, Seamus and Lavender all closely listened to him. His brothers had told him a lot, and most of it was actually true, which made most of the Gryffindors averse to potions before even having it once. Harry on the other hand was looking forward to it, because Lily and he had made plans for the Snape interactions, combined with Minerva’s statements about Snape doubting Dumbledore, this was bound to be fun. 

The memory of the conversation with his mother made him remember the last missing thing for his plan. He’d been carrying it in one of his pockets for way too long. 

“Mione, we still have enough time to be at least five minutes early. Can I speak to you alone for a moment?”

She nodded and both of them went around the next corner, making Neville wait in the corridor. With a flick of his wand Harry cast a Muffliato and pulled something out of his pocket. Hermione blushed and started smiling shyly, especially when Harry carefully put it on her. Her response was hugging him fiercely, and as she looked at him, seeing him grin, she couldn’t help herself and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. 

Once they ended their hug, both were as scarlet red as the walls in the Gryffindor common room. Oh yes, without any Weasley interference and love potions the whole soulmate thing was quite obvious. Smiling brightly they walked back around the corner and together with Neville completed the trip down to the potions classroom. What they didn’t see, thanks to being absolutely mentally absent, was Neville’s cheeky grin. Nothing and no one would be able to change his opinion, those two were so destined to be. And if he only knew that they were soulmates and quite literally destined to be he’d just say something like “don’t you dare to act surprised, you already share a brain from time to time, not a big leap to sharing your soul.” 

 

And now, as they reached their destination, Harry became nervous. After all, Snape had killed Dumbledore, but Slytherin was pretty sure that this had been a gigantic ruse by the old fool himself. The ring’s curse had certainly been deadly and they did consider this killing as mercy delivered by the potions master.

Now Harry would have to face HIM again.

Severus Snape.

Notes:

Well, you all know what will be coming next week - the first encounter with Snape.
Until then, I'm always looking forward to your comments and reviews.

See ya

Chapter 7: The Potions Master (less mean than last time though)

Notes:

Hello everyone,
first of all a big "thank you" to all of you, with the last chapter this story didn't only reach 10, but also 12k hits and a hundred reviews. That is still astonishing.

And here we finally are, meeting Severus Snape. What's gonna happen this time around?
Have fun

Harry didn’t know how, but he found himself partnered with Hermione - no big surprise there - but Neville was partnered with Daphne. They had chatted on the corridors on a few occasions but they still had suspected she’d join her best friend, Tracey Davis. But since she was the only Slytherin willing to partner up with a lion and they were an odd number, Tracey partnered with Bulstrode, Malfoy with Parkinson, Crabbe with Goyle and Theo with Blaise. All the others had sorted themselves into duos too, for example Seamus and Dean (Harry was certain that would be dangerous at some point), Parvati and Lavender and because there was no one else left, Fay Dunbar had to partner up with Weasley. Neither of them was really happy with that, but it didn’t seem like there would be an alternative with the current constellation.

Barely a minute after they all had settled in, the cold voice of Severus Snape sounded through the classroom, greeting them. As melodramatic as always he walked to his desk, grabbed a scroll of parchment and started to read out the names of students and check if everyone was in attendance. As soon as he reached “Potter, Harry.” he looked up and said “let’s hope that you live up to your name, shall we? Fame isn’t everything, Mr. Potter.”

After Snape’s same old “I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death…” speech, he again started asking Harry questions, but this time a bit more friendly, to Harry’s surprise.

“Mr. Potter, what would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?”

Hesitating barely a second Harry replied: “Powdered root of asphodel? With an infusion of wormwood that should give you the basis of a potion called Draught of Living Death. A sleeping potion that is rumoured to be a creation of the potion master Linfred of Stinchcombe, the “potterer.” Though that can hardly be proven now, but since he invented an early form of Skele-Gro and Pepperup, it’s not unlikely.”

To say that Snape was stunned was an understatement. How could that little boy know that? What had Minerva done? As Draco started giggling because of “the potterer” and asking if that was one of Harry’s ancestors, Snape took a more precise look at the book in front of the student. It wasn’t a new copy, that was for sure, but why? But then a little purple stain on the side of the book caught his attention. How was that possible?

Severus remembered that moment very precisely. It was very early in first year when he, partnering with Lily Evans, spilled some potion onto her book, creating that stain. He had been so ashamed, but she just laughed and told him that it would always make her remember potions class with him. For the rest of the year -  actually until the end of their friendship - they regularly partnered up and added notes to both their books, improving the potions significantly.

If he had his mother’s books, then he would have her notes, diaries and the same from Potter. So that’s what Minerva had done. Took him away from the Dursleys and brought him to one of the Potter properties. Maybe the young boy had taken the ring and was Heir or even Lord Potter, depending on the will of James Potter. Smart woman. She was opposing Dumbledore with that. Dangerous, but potentially successful. Maybe there would be a third side in the upcoming conflict, one without a master demanding complete obedience like Voldemort or Dumbledore. So he would need to get on Potter's good side. Not that he liked that, but young Harry wasn’t only his father’s son but also Lily’s son. He couldn’t be that bad. And because of that Severus decided to call out Malfoy.

“Actually that’s not that funny, Malfoy. Mr. Potter is really a direct descendant of said potion master, the founding patriarch of the Potter family if I’m not mistaken. A twelfth-century pureblood, way older than the Malfoys. It seems that your mother’s teachings about wizarding genealogy were not that successful. Five points from Slytherin house and your mother will get a letter about that.

Oh, and Mr. Potter, where would you look for a bezoar, and why?”

“That’s a stone from a goat’s stomach and an antidote to most potions.”

Snape was happy with Harry’s replies. Either he had studied his mother’s books for many, many hours or he had her natural gift for potions. Since he knew that Minerva had first met him on his birthday and if she had freed him then, he would only have had a month of studying, possibly less. And he seemed cosy with the muggleborn witch next to him, apparently gifted too.

“Miss…Granger, was it? Can you tell me the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?”

Hermione was more than surprised that Snape had asked her something, but replied instantly: “Sure, professor. There is none, it’s the same plant, going by the name of aconite as well, or aconitum, if you prefer the Latin name.”

Snape thought that this was a satisfactory answer, walked up to both of them, wanting to give points, when he saw a gleam around her neck. A necklace. 

Severus didn’t know why exactly it had caught his attention, but again, it took him only moments to recognise it. It was the silver necklace that Lily was given by her mother for her eleventh birthday, the one with the emerald pendant that matched her eyes. Something was up with those two. 

“Lacewing flies, fluxweed, knotgrass, leeches. Add horn of bicorn and boomslang skin. What do you get?”

The duo had realised Severus’ stare at the necklace and the book, he knew something was up. But most of all he didn’t hate them. He would be one hell of an ally, so they looked at each other, then back at him and simultaneously answered:

“Polyjuice potion!”

“Very good, five points to Gryffindor each for advanced knowledge. And now, you dunderheads, why aren’t you taking notes of what they just said? Forget my last question, but the rest is part of the curriculum.”

 

To say that they were stunned was an understatement. Apparently it had really been Dumbledore who implanted the hate for Harry in Snape’s head, but now… He was way nicer and even gave them points. That gave them something to think about while brewing their first potion. With their experience and Lily’s notes, probably inspired by Snape, they succeeded. During the process of brewing the professor came up to them and silently cast a Muffliato.

“Muffliato? That’s a nice one, mum wrote about that one, haven’t tried it yet though. I assume some of those corrections were inspired by you, professor?”

Harry pointed onto the notes, scribbled into the margins. Severus nodded.

“Whatever game Minerva is playing, it is working. Trying to startle me with the book and the necklace - you would have been such nice Slytherins. And by the way, that potion is actually quite good, even with having some of my notes.”

The kids smiled. Their life was already way better, and with Snape doubting Dumbledore they considered it unlikely that the old meddler would find out about the professor’s observations. After ending this potions class with some extra points (though Ron lost them some) and a nicely brewed potion, they went back up into the great hall to spend some time amongst their peers. They had the afternoon free and because of that were seated at the Gryffindor table. Simply to ease the situation with the redheads they even tried to chat casually about potions with the rest of their fellow lions, including Ronald. At one point Mione called over to Daphne sitting at the Slytherin table and asked her to come over, but the Slytherin girl didn’t react instantly, mainly because Ron started complaining. 

“Granger! Why would you invite a snake to our table? Besides, she’s not allowed to sit here either way.”

Mione shook her head and replied to the redhead: “That’s wrong, we only need to sit at our house tables at the big feasts. And if you have any problems with Daphne then just leave.”

A variety of first year students overheard that statement and within minutes half a dozen students joined the lively conversation, including Daphne, Blaise, Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott. Despite Ron’s clear discomfort he kept quiet, probably to get closer to Harry. It became abundantly clear that Neville and Daphne got along very well, at some point even Daphne’s best friend, the half-blood Slytherin Tracey, joined in and conversed with the Heir Longbottom. 

That made Harry smile. Something he had always missed in the previous timeline was this unity amongst his peers, no matter what house they were in. After Padma Patil joined them as well to chat with her sister, they had students from all houses combined at the Gryffindor house table. It didn’t take long for the teachers to realise that, especially since ghosts loved to gossip. Both Minerva and Filius Flitwick, both having no classes at that time, took a walk down to the great hall to see it themselves. Though they came independently, they arrived at the same time, just looked at each other, then they looked at the table and after whispering a few words Minerva spoke up.

“What an unusual sight. Slytherins at the Gryffindor table, together with Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. Very unusual.”

Hermione wanted to speak up to defend that, fearing criticism, but McGonagall cut her short.

“I’m not here to break that up, Miss Granger, definitely not. We both know it is allowed by Hogwarts rules, though most students are unfamiliar with that fact. Professor Flitwick and I are here to reward you for the promotion of inter-house unity. Together we decided to give twenty points each to all actively participating students, that would be eighty for Gryffindor with Messrs. Potter and Longbottom, Miss Granger and Miss Patil, forty for Hufflepuff for Miss Abbott and Miss Bones, Twenty for Ravenclaw thanks to Miss Patil and sixty for Slytherin for Mr Zabini, Miss Greengrass and Miss Davis.”

They were stunned by Minerva’s actions and that actually led to more students switching tables, even in the upper years, though not so many of those were here, most had classes. Flitwick too smiled at the students and then walked up to Harry and asked if he was allowed to join them.

“Mr Potter, may I join you? Your actions here made me remember a story that included your mother, one I would like to share with you and your friends if you want me to.”

Harry nodded and he, Mione, Daphne, Neville and Tracey started to listen to a tale of Lily Evans and her study group. She, as a Gryffindor, was often to be seen with Alice Rowle, soon to be Longbottom, Aurelia Nott, who was now Lady Greengrass and Daphne’s mother as well as Andromeda Black and Marlene McKinnon. With Andi being a Slytherin, Aurelia a Ravenclaw, Marlene a Hufflepuff and Lily and Alice being Gryffindors, that group of friends was one of the very few ones with students from all houses, not just at that time but during Flitwick’s whole time as professor. For most of the staff it had always been something they couldn’t comprehend, but it had been a functioning group. Most of those girls were amongst the top of the year, only rivalled by the Marauders (James in transfiguration and DADA, Sirius in DADA and Runes and Remus in all of the above as well as potions and Arithmancy) or Snape, who had been a bigger potions prodigy than Lily Evans or even Slughorn.

 

While the students in the great hall were pretty chatty, Albus Dumbledore had to endure a living hell. During his long life he had been part of many confrontations and fights, but hardly anyone could rival Molly Weasley neé Prewett. The Prewetts had always had a certain temper and a loud voice, but Molly was certainly one of a kind. 

Currently the headmaster was standing in the Burrow’s living room, where the Weasley matriarch yelled at him. They had to use that spot for their meetings, because of all the pictures in his office. Yes, they were bound to keep his secrets when he commanded them too, but some of those had other loyalties too and oaths of secrecy always had their grey zones. If Sirius were to get free eventually, which he hoped would never happen, Phineas Black would certainly be able to spill some of Dumbledore’s secrets to his Lord Black, for example. That’s why they had never met there for that topic of discussion.

“Dumbledore, you promised me that Ron would get close to the Potter boy. Giving him a fair share of the boy’s fame and wealth if he were to become his best friend. You promised me that after the Potters’ deaths and since then dozens of times. He grew up knowing that the boy-who-lived would not only go to school with him but that he’d be a fellow Gryffindor and best friend. Just like with Ginny. We still have that betrothal contract for their marriage. My daughter will raise the next Potter kids with my help, if the boy really needs to die. I trusted you!”

Dumbledore, glad that he had put up an anti-eavesdropping charm, shook his head and gave Molly his “disappointed grandfather” look.

“Molly, the plans are still in motion but I fear that Minerva had accidentally guided him another way. She ran into him in the Alley when he was there with Hagrid. He probably knew his way to the platform through her. But no worries, I have ordered Hagrid to invite both Harry and Ron to his hut. They’ll get closer, and if it means I have to remove the muggleborn girl or the Longbottom boy from his side. And yes, the contract is still in play. The goblins won’t recognise its validity though but if it ever comes to it I’ll force it through the wizengamot. But Harry will trust me and when I tell him it was his parents who created it he will concede.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you and your skill, Albus, but I think once Ginny gets close to the Potter boy I’ll add some of my special potions to ensure success. It did work with Arthur too.”

Dumbledore smiled, though if you looked close enough you could have seen the devilish grin underneath. And that’s the person wizarding Britain calls the Leader of the Light. Seemed like one hell of a joke. If the world would only know that it took quite some convincing to make the sorting hat put him into Gryffindor, not Slytherin, they might see him very differently. But he needed to keep up that image for the greater good. There was a prophecy after all which needed to be fulfilled, and that wouldn’t happen without his help.

 

At Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry the group persisting out of firsties from all houses slowly broke up as there were still some essays to write and Harry had to make his way down to Hagrid’s as three o’clock was approaching. Both Hermione and Neville had opted for staying in the castle since Hagrid hadn’t said anything about bringing friends along, though last time it hadn’t worried him with Ron. Still, it was something that Augusta would certainly disapprove of. 

When Harry knocked, he heard Fang’s familiar, loud barks and Hagrid calling him back while the half-giant made his way to the door and opened. The sight that presented itself here was just like always: a warm fire, the smell of food, Fang going absolutely insane, Ron sitting at the table, tea being prepared…wait a second, why was Ronald there?

“Weasley? What are YOU doing here? Oh, sorry for that reaction, hey Hagrid, how are you doing, thanks for the invite.” 

Harry needed a second to calm himself and behave politely like Augusta had told him to. He entered and took the offered seat while smiling at Ronald, appearing to be completely calm. In the inside of his head though he was anything but calm. So that’s why Hagrid hadn’t had an issue with Ron tagging along last time, probably another plan by old Dumbles himself. 

“So, Harry, I was just telling Ron here a few stories about the past. Did you know that his uncles knew your parents? The Prewett twins and the Potters were some of the closest allies Dumbledore had in the last war.”

Ah, so that’s what that here was. With old stories they wanted to make him feel like they should be friends, because their families were. What a lousy attempt.

“Oh really? Interesting to hear, are they still around to tell me some stories about mum and dad?”

Ron shook his head and told him that they hadn’t survived the war, that they had died fighting alongside his family and Dumbledore’s order. This time Ron sounded sincerely sad and Harry gave him his condolences. He was pretty sure that that had not been an act, both he and Mione believed that Ron had mainly been a pawn in Dumbledore’s plan and not a calculating mastermind and damn good actor. Maybe they could turn one of the old meddler’s pawns against him, but then they would have to overcome their hate against him. So he’ll just play nice for now, but not get too friendly.

The main topic of discussion was the recent break-in at Gringotts a while back, the one that had been aimed at stealing the philosopher’s stone. Just like last time around Hagrid avoided talking about it, but was not as secretive, maybe because he didn’t go to the vault together with Harry so from his point of view there was no way the student would connect those events. Afterwards they did some quidditch talking with Harry acting like he had barely a clue and the only knowledge he possessed came from reading books about it. Strangely it felt good, despite his hatred towards Ronald, simply because it had been just like that for the past seven years. On the other hand it was not something he desired to have again, Neville and Hermione were so much better company and he didn’t feel the need to dial back his skill so Ron wouldn’t be disappointed in himself. He didn’t need to act like he hated the library and enjoyed gobstones or wizard’s chess simply to make Ron stay in a good mood. 

Now that he thought about it, it had always been so obvious. And in the end it had always been Ron who left him when he needed his help the most - be it the tournament or the tent. Hermione had always been there. He had been an idiot.

 

After about two hours of chatting Harry excused himself and went back up to the castle. Ronald seemed like he wanted to join him, but Hagrid’s desire to talk about the dragons Charlie was caring for wasn’t satisfied and so he kept the conversation ongoing. 

As soon as Harry had walked back into the castle he wished to have his invisibility cloak again, because around a corner he was able to hear Malfoy and his two henchmen whispering and plotting, though he couldn’t make out anything in particular from that distance. Luckily he still had his future knowledge and could still cast a disillusionment charm, using his second wand for that. That was mere prevention if someone should ever check his phoenix wand for previously cast spells.

“...and I’ll just wait for the right opportunity. Father showed me some simple dark spells to use in duels and Potter won’t stand a chance against me. Once I challenge him to a duel, his fate will be sealed.”

So, that was what they were talking about. The stupid midnight duel in the trophy room. He should have never agreed to that - or wait, it was Ron who accepted and proclaimed himself his second. Another thing to manage better this time. But since it was nothing to really worry about he just ignored that and made his way back to the common room.

 

Without even knocking Severus Snape barged into Minerva McGonagall’s office, being absolutely furious. He had barely been able to contain himself in class, the amount of references to Lily and the knowledge the kids possessed nearly made him lose his mind.

“What have you done, Minerva? The Potter boy gave his friend a necklace Lily Evans once wore and came in with her books. And the knowledge - how? They both told me the recipe for Polyjuice simultaneously and without hesitation. You must have brought him to Gringotts yourself and he’s not either Heir or Lord. That won’t make Dumbledore happy, we both know that the lack of magical knowledge Harry was supposed to have was the main reason for giving him to those muggles. The boy is no longer malleable, good job. I still haven't managed to see your endgame.”

Now with all his anger gone he plunged himself into one of the dark red armchairs in the professor’s office. Without having to ask for it Minerva handed him a glass filled with Scotch, both Severus’ and her preferred drink.

“I could have taken him in, you know? With Black in Azkaban, the Longbottoms not able to take him and Remus Lupin being prohibited to do so as a werewolf, Andi Tonks, Amelia Bones or I would have been the next in line. I would have gladly done it.”

The former death eater had to admit that he had never seen McGonagall with so much resignation and sheer disappointment on her face. But if what she said was true (and he suspected it was) then she had not only seen the wills, but also lost all trust in Albus Dumbledore.

“I think you know it already but be prepared, the Dark Lord is not dead, not completely at least. I don’t know how, but he’s still looking for Harry. It’s all my fault. And since I know that you want the best for the boy and don’t just use him like either of the two cruel masters I serve, you’ll have my support. For Lily, for Harry.”

With that he emptied his drink, put down the glass and shook his head in disbelief.

“Am I really that predictable that you already prepared veritaserum for me? Perfectly hidden, Minerva, didn’t think you still had it in you. I would have told you the same regardless though. They startled me, they showed me that it wasn’t either the Dark Lord or Albus, they showed me that you had rejected Albus’ plans. A third party, one not looking for power. Oh damn, I’m just gonna leave now, still gracefully, before I tell you all my darkest secrets. There’s a reason I hate veritaserum. Good job though, but don’t try it ever again, this time I forgive you for the boy’s sake.”

And with that he was gone, faster than he had appeared. Minerva thought that this was undoubtedly the strangest encounter she had ever had with the potions master. Once Harry had left for Hagrid’s, Hermione had visited her and told her all about potions class. Thank god that Snape had been in class until now, otherwise she would have gone into that meeting without any preparation. 

Yes, her initial thought had been that the kids went mildly overboard with the behaviour in Snape’s class, but it had worked. Luckily she still had her contacts in the auror department to get a hold of veritaserum in under an hour. Now she was calm and felt confident. Snape was on her side.

 

During Minerva’s revelation Harry stormed into the common room and looked for Hermione, who sat alone in a corner, reading a book about goblin culture when Harry approached her.

“And, how was it at Hagrid’s?”

The boy shook his head and blurted out the truth:

“Ron’s been there and I think everything is and has been a setup. How could we have missed that?”

After he told her everything she was frustrated and upset, though at the same time agreeing with him that they might be able to remove one of Dumbledore’s pawns if they really befriended him. She still hated Ron’s future self because of the love potioning and deemed the idea of befriending Ron as stupid, but couldn’t completely disagree with Harry. Main thing was that they’d stay clear of potions and Dumbledore’s manipulations, everything else came later.

That line of thought was interrupted by Neville, who just came from the greenhouses to ask if they had already started their potions essay. Since they didn’t, all three took a stroll down to the library.

Life now was so much better than ever before.

Notes:

So, that's it for today. Just a brief uptade on how the story is coming along:
Next week's chapter is nearly done and I've got the chapters structured and planned up to Chapter 18, which should be beginning of year 2. And I already have plans how that's gonna end, I hope you'll stick around.

Until then, see ya all next week

Chapter 8: Brooms, Duels and three-headed dogs

Notes:

Hello everyone,

there you go, next chapter. This week a few things that needed to be done before Halloween.
Once again thanks for all the feedback, you all are amazing

Just a few days after the whole potions incident it was time for their first flying lesson. Harry did want to get into the quidditch team again, but without Neville having and needing the remebrall he wasn’t sure how to do that. 

Once both the lions and the snakes were assembled and Madame Hooch appeared, they all started to try to “up” their broom. Having practised in the summer, Harry and Mione did it flawlessly. Even Neville only needed a few tries and this time was almost certainly not in danger of accidentally flying away and crashing down. This time around it was Seamus.

Harry wasn’t sure if it had been either the timeline trying to stay the same or his reaper helping him out, which led to the scenario which would bring him back into the quidditch team. Either way, once Seamus had broken his wrist after crashing with a rouge broom and had been taken away by Hooch, Malfoy again started to make trouble. After joking about Seamus’ inability to use a broom he then suddenly saw Trevor, Neville’s toad, hopping around in front of him.

Oh no, please don’t do what I think you’re about to do was all that Harry could think. But Draco, the little ferret, couldn’t resist. He grabbed Trevor and jumped on a broom, levitating about three feet above the ground.

“That’s your toad, Longbottom, isn’t it? Wanna come and get it, you squib?”

With that he continued to rise, the croaking toad still in his hand. Neville was about to jump on his broom, when Mione held him back, reminding him that Harry was the better flyer as they had found out in the holidays. And it was so true, because when Hermione was talking Nev down, Harry was already grabbing the next-best Cleansweep broom and followed Draco. And while the blonde Slytherin surely had some experience on a broom, Harry was a prodigy when it came to flying. In addition to that he had seven years of experience and had had a broom encounter with a Hungarian Horntail. Right now, Harry was sure of it, he could easily outmanoeuvre Viktor Krum. Which meant that little Draco Malfoy here was anything but a challenge.

Hermione saw that Harry was playing with Draco, always cutting off the path for the blonde ferret. But he didn’t come close to him, not wanting to endanger the boy by ripping the toad out of his hands. After having sent a Patronus message to Minerva, with a notice-me-not obviously, though unnecessary thanks to Harry’s breathtaking flying skills that caught everyone’s attention, she decided to hex Malfoy into dropping Trevor so Harry could catch him. Despite the fact that he deserved so much worse than that she just went for a mild stinging jinx into the lower back that hit precisely. After the DA training and their horcrux hunt her aim was pretty good.

Harry saw the hex coming, but Draco didn’t. He squealed and dropped Trevor right away, making Harry go into a fast dive as if he had seen the snitch. Comfortably, with quite some distance to the ground he caught the toad and landed skillfully in front of Neville, handing him the toad while he saw Minerva fast approaching.

“Mr Malfoy. Come down right now!”

Harry had to admit, the only two voices that were more frightening than an upset Minerva were Riddle and Snape, which made her voice quite terrifying. And it did work, because Malfoy landed as fast as possible, though not as skillfully as Harry before and nearly crashed down thanks to being nervous. His first words after getting up from the ground were his lousy attempts at justifying his flying and making Harry look guilty. Luckily the head of House Gryffindor had seen most of the incident herself and interrupted Draco before he could continue his slanders.

“Silence, Mr Malfoy. Don’t think your lies can fool me, I’ve seen it all from my office window. That’ll be twenty points from Slytherin for endangering someone else’s familiar and disobeying a teacher’s order, as well as a detention with Mr Filch. Mr Potter, the point loss for recklessness and the points for courage and helping a friend negate each other, but would you be so kind and follow me now?”

Other than last time Draco wasn’t snickering and during when he was just leaving Neville came up to him and thanked him, not as a friend but as the Heir Longbottom to the Heir (yes, both know he was Lord but they still didn’t want that secret to get out) Potter. That clearly signalled the purebloods in attendance that despite his apparent lack of knowledge about the wizarding world and his heritage, Harry was still recognised as Heir of his house by at least one ancient and most noble family. That was one hell of a statement to make by Nev, now truly showing his Gryffindor side.

 

“So, professor, are you now gonna fetch Oliver Wood from Flitwick’s charms class to tell him you found him a seeker?”

Minnie laughed and nodded, again telling how much she wanted the cup again in her office. And despite having seen some flashes of Harry’s memories from quidditch games, seeing his skill live in action was something entirely different. Neither Charlie Weasley nor James Potter had ever delivered a move like that, and especially not in such a young age (at least physical age). It didn’t matter to her that he would be the youngest player in well over a century, she was simply an ambitious woman and would bend the rules to fit her agenda. But first she’d have to tell Wood the news.

Oliver Wood became the righteous new captain this year, since he was undoubtedly the best keeper Hogwarts had ever seen and Puddlemere had already made its offer for when he finished his NEWTs if he kept up his talent. She had to admit, she was proud of him.

“Filius, would you be so kind and let me borrow Mr Wood for the rest of your lesson? I need him in regards to some house business.”

A bit confused, Wood left class, not only because he felt the aftermath of Percy Weasley’s confundus charm, which they were currently studying, but also because he was surprised. What could his head of house possibly want? And then she said the last thing he expected her to say:

“Wood, I found you a new Seeker.”

That left him stunned. Since Charlie left they were pretty much done, no good seeker was found in Gryffindor house. And now she came to him, smiling like he had never seen her before, and telling him that young Harry Potter would be his new seeker.

“You won’t believe it without having seen it yourself, but after another student had stolen Mr Longbottom’s toad and lifted off he followed, pulling manoeuvres like professional players and catching the falling toad in a fifty feet dive without any scratch on himself. And his landing… he’ll even be a better player than his father before him.”

Eventually Minnie left, having to go to class while Oliver went to the Quidditch pitch with Harry, teaching him the basic elements of the game - again. This time around he didn’t wait for Harry to get his broom though, he was way too interested now. Afterwards they did a bit of flying, which left Oliver stunned all over again (because of Harry’s talent, not again thanks to some spell, though he was pushing Harry so much that the young first-year considered to stupefy him. But officially he didn’t know that spell so…not possible). 

Oliver went back into the common rooms after quite an interesting training session with his new seeker, having to tell that to his teammates. This year, this quidditch season was not only going to be fun, but most likely very successful. Now they only had to get Potter a broom. If he could really convince McGonagall into buying one from the house funds…so many possibilities. 

 

Sometimes - no, actually most of the time - being a time traveller had its perks. At dinner Harry was again reminded of that, when Ron and the Weasley twins came up to him, the youngest redhead starting with the whole “ youngest player in over a century” while the twins were just happy about a new seeker. But what was more interesting than that was Malfoy. This time he couldn’t come up to Harry, basically asking him when he had to leave after the broom incident, but had heard the ferret planning to challenge him to a duel. This time around it was only due to wanting revenge.

“Potter! You will pay for what you’ve done!”

“Oh come on Malfoy, you stole Nev’s toad and I just hunted you down and flew way better than you. You’re just jealous.”

Obviously Draco didn’t take that statement very well and would have raised his wand if there would not have been teachers around. Instead he leaned forward and whispered:

“You, me, wizard’s duel. I challenge you. Trophy room at midnight, that one’s never locked, just wands, no contact.”

Harry shook his head, such a challenge he wouldn’t accept. Though he did overhear Malfoy talking about some dark spells he knew, last time he had been a no-show.

“If, then public in the great hall, and now, otherwise I’ll decline. For a proper duel of satisfaction we need a judge and a duelling platform.”

“Oh, you’re chickening out? Don’t be boring, Potter and name your second.”

Once the ferret had said that, Ronald Weasley jumped up and proclaimed himself Harry’s second. Obviously, that was not something he wanted.

“Stop it Weasley! If that duel were to take place I’d always choose Neville here as my second, because House Potter and House Longbottom have been allies for centuries. Now sit down and don’t embarrass your family further.”

 

Ronald Weasley couldn’t believe it. Harry Potter had the chance to fight in a proper duel against that bigoted idiot Malfoy and he refused. Apparently he didn’t have the Gryffindor courage like Dumbledore had always told him. Lately he realised that Harry Potter was completely different than what the headmaster had promised. Lonely, magically weak, no friends and so much more. Nothing of that was true and so he didn’t have a chance in becoming Harry’s friend, not with the plans his mother and Dumbledore had made. He even tried to get friendly with the other houses’ students when they had joined the Gryffindor table, but chatting with a snake… That was too much to ask from him, no matter how much gold and fame he’d get as the best mate of the boy-who-lived. There should be something he could do to get closer to Harry, but what that was he didn’t know. 

All those thoughts led Ron Weasley to do something that neither he nor anyone else had ever expected from him: to make a plan. 

 

As soon as it was after curfew and all his roommates were asleep, Ronald Weasley snuck out of the dorms and into the common room. Luckily no one else was down there at that time of night so without any problems he left, ignoring the complaints of the fat lady. He made his way down to the trophy room to confront Malfoy in Potter’s stead to defend his honour. Afterwards there was no chance that they wouldn’t become friends. 

What had led to that absurd theory was the fact that Bill Weasley once told him that a second would not only fight after the dueller had died but could also fight in the dueller’s stead. And since he openly proclaimed himself Potter’s second (hoping that Malfoy, who had already left when Harry had scolded Ron, hadn’t heard that he made that stupid Longbottom kid his second), Malfoy would hopefully fight him.

 

Thankfully Ronald Weasley’s absence was noticed by Harry, obviously not really asleep since he had expected something like that, who hurried down into the common room just minutes after the redhead had left. He grabbed his own Marauder’s Map and murmured the correct words to alert Hermione, or to be precise the charm on the necklace he had given her. It was one of his father’s “inventions” with the help of the Potter grimoire to alert his wife in case of emergency. 

While Harry waited, he realised that he had actually forgotten to tell Mione about that charm, hoping that she’d still understand the message. For a second he already hoped that she was coming down to meet him when he heard footsteps but against all odds it had been the Weasley twins, holding their own Map.

“Oh look at that, Fred. Little Harry down here all alone.”

“Hello Harry. What are you doing here around that time of night?”

Oh no. Either they were up to something or they had seen Ron leaving the common room with their map. That was not ideal, especially because when following Ron they might stumble across wormtail on the map. He couldn't allow that to happen. So there was only one thing to do: take their map.

“Okay guys, let’s cut that short please. And no twin-speak. Please tell me you have the Marauder’s Map and you’re on your way to follow your younger brother.”

That actually left the twins speechless. No one else knew of the map, not even Lee. And how did Harry know that they were following Ron? But their line of thought was interrupted by another voice, Hermione had finally arrived.

“Harry! The next time you give me something that is charmed please tell me. I don’t want to end up with a heart attack. Oh, Fred, George. What are you doing here?”

Now the pranksters were officially confused. What was going on here?

It was George, who finally spoke up after nearly a minute of silence and staring at each other. 

“How…how do you know of the map? Have you ever heard of the marauders?”

Both nodded and Harry asked to see the map, wanting to know whose it was and hopefully find a good reason to keep it. After a bit of hesitation, they surrendered the piece of parchment, which Harry placed on one of the tables in the common room. He tapped it with his wand and spoke:

“Mr Prongslet solemnly swears that he’s up to no good.”

The Messrs. Moony, Padfoot and Prongs are proud to see that Mr Prongslet has found his way to Hogwarts. How may we be of help?

“Would you be so kind and show me whose map that is? 

Mr Padfoot greets his Mr Prongslet and is happy that he has found his map. There is no one more deserving of it than him.

Harry smiled. It was Sirius’ map, which meant he could argue with a legal claim to take it from the twins.

“What…”

“…was…”

“...that?”

“Guys, I know you probably love the map, but don’t tell me you still need it for the passages. My dad was one of the marauders and that map belonged to my godfather. It’s mine by birthright and means a lot to me. And despite the fact that I have my father’s, I want Mione to have that one. How about a deal: you can borrow it from time to time and I try to introduce you to as many marauders as possible. Only Prongs, my dad, is dead, the others are still alive. I know their names.”

Usually the twins would have debated with Harry and discussed his offer for days, but they still wanted to follow Ron, so after a brief exchange of words they turned over the map. Yes, they did know it quite well and meeting even just one marauder…that would be a dream come true.

So now Mione had her own map, and then they left together to get Ron. On the way the bushy-haired genius checked for Pettigrew and obviously he was visible on the map and in the first year boys dormitory like Harry had told her. He said his tracking spell was perfect.

They had previously discussed why the twins had never seen Peter on the map, and the rat had either been lucky or the twins had never bothered to look at the other boys' dormitories for it would have been strange to watch Percy or afterwards Ron in their bedrooms. Still, too big a risk to take. They had needed to get a hold of the map.

Since the four of them had spent longer than planned in the common room it was already past midnight when they reached the trophy room. Obviously Draco had never shown, apparently the chance of Harry actually showing had been too low for him. That also meant that Ronald was long gone, and a brief glimpse on the map did confirm that. 

 

Ronald Weasley was furious. As soon as he had reached the trophy room he had waited for Malfoy to show. Shortly after it was midnight he finally accepted that there never was a duel planned, and instead it had been a trap. That conclusion was supported by the fact that he was able to hear Filch and his stupid cat coming closer. 

“That blonde bastard. He told Filch. Damn.”

Since he obviously didn’t want to get caught, he ran. He didn’t know where he was going but the main thing was to get away as far as possible. Not that that was an easy task. Locked doors and that stupid Peeves were quite a hindrance. But eventually he was able to escape them all. Now all he needed to do was figure out where exactly he was. Then he heard someone else talking, quiet voices coming closer.

“He should be right there, down that corridor around the corner. Why did that idiot have to run into the off-limits corridor? I really hope that the headmaster was joking with his whole “painful death”-speech.”

It took him a second to recognise but it was without a doubt the stupid know-it-all Granger, Potter’s best friend. And was that one of the twins replying to her?

Just a few seconds later he bumped into the four students on the lookout for him, who had anything but friendly words for him and his actions. His stupid defenses were basically torn apart and Fred and George were close to punching their idiot brother (no, not Percy this time). But they all held back, simply because Filch was still around and after all that trouble they just went through they didn’t want to get caught.

 

Despite the fact that Hermione had tried to stay as far away from the “Fluffy-Corridor” as they called it, in the end their way led them there, because the stupid poltergeist was blocking their way back. And even though both Harry and Mione walked past the locked door, Fred saw an opportunity to sneak into there and hide. Before the two could react, the three redheads were already gone.

“Why did he open that door? What an idiot…no, a whole bunch of idiots. Come on Harry, we don’t want them to get eaten.”

They rushed in, just as the screams began. No Weasley had been stupid enough (hard to believe, yes) to get close to Fluffy but a three-headed dog was still quite a terrifying sight. Just as fast as the three had entered that corridor they ran out again, but not without Harry and Hermione hitting them all with a confundus charm to make them forget the trapdoor underneath the creature.

Luckily by now Peeves was gone and so they made their way back into the Gryffindor common room, where Mione berated Ronald about his complete stupidity and recklessness, before then deciding that it was already getting late.

“So, after that whole mess, I’m going to bed now, if you don’t mind. We could have been killed.”

Harry couldn’t resist doing another inside joke and said:

“...or worse, expelled. Isn’t that true, Mione?”

Already laughing, he tried to run away, but she was faster. Mione playfully punched him on the shoulder, giving him her best attempt at an evil stare for less than five seconds, before she as well burst out laughing.

“Prat! You’re a stupid Prat, Harry James Potter.”

 

The next morning they were once again able to see Draco’s disappointment when they were all well, laughing and not expelled.
Well, who was not laughing was Ronald Weasley, simply because neither the twins nor Harry were really on speaking terms with him. The stupid Granger girl wasn’t as well to be precise, but he actually preferred that. Stupid know-it-all. He would have to write to his mother soon, she surely would have some ideas to help him out.

 

On the next Monday Harry received a package at breakfast, and quite a big one. Obviously it was a broom, but he was confused. The last time it had been days later when he got his Nimbus, why would that change? But once he read the note on it, he understood.

Lord Potter,

You have done a great service to the Heir of House Longbottom in saving his familiar with an action that was described to me as dangerous. After my grandson had written to me about said incident I reached out to your head of house and asked her if I could do anything for you. Apparently Professor McGongall was going to buy you a broom with the house funds, but to repay the debt we owe you after saving Heir Longbottom’s familiar I insisted on doing that myself. Despite the fact that we are allied, I also insist that you accept that gift.

Sincerely,

Regent Apparent Longbottom

A smaller, less formal note was included as well:

Harry,

Thank you. And please, stop doing such crazy things. Minerva said you would become the best seeker for Gryffindor, so take that broom and win the cup. I’m happy to hear that you all are doing quite well at school, keep that up and don’t forget to write to me too from time to time. Don’t get into trouble and try staying away from the headmaster.
I hope that we can host you and your friend Hermione at our Manor in the summer so you can tell me all the tales from your first year.

Love,

Augusta

The elderly woman had apparently decided to take the role as his grandmother since Alice had been his godmother, next to Sirius and with Remus as unofficial third one (a third one because of the ongoing war as “backup” and only unofficial because of the laws regarding werewolves) and he could have been raised at Longbottom Manor alongside Neville if things had gone better. 

Now, with his new Nimbus 2000 he hurried up into the common rooms, accompanied by Hermione and a smirking Neville who had apparently known about it all along. As expected Malfoy and his goons stopped him and tried to take the broom while laughing about the certainly upcoming expulsion. And again, Flitwick saved them, leaving a furious Draco behind. 

The upcoming training session with Wood this evening was nothing special, since they had already trained once. But this time Harry could show off his new Nimbus, making Wood the happiest quidditch captain at Hogwarts.

 

The only other important event at Hogwarts this week was Hermione’s birthday. Last time he didn't know but this time he did, and he had bought her something. Well, to be precise he asked Emma and Dan for permission and then Minnie went and bought it for him at Diagon Alley.

It was damn early when Harry and Minnie met in the common room, so she could hand him the present. Together they waited for Mione to show up, and when she finally came down she smiled brightly. Usually it would be her giving out bone-crushing hugs but this time it was Harry who initiated the hug, nearly knocking her over and whispering her a “happy birthday” in her ear. For that he even got a little kiss on the cheek, which made both of them blush. Before he could hand her his gift she walked over to Minne, who congratulated her, and thanked her for everything - with a hug. Minerva wasn’t sure when a student had hugged her the last time, but she really appreciated the gesture and smiled. Those two were simply something special. 

And then it was finally time for presents. Mione wanted to begin with Harry’s but he shook his head.

“The big surprise comes after Minerva’s present. Come on, go ahead.”

Minnie had gifted her an old wand holster, one that she had gotten after finishing auror training. She commented with “you’ll need something like that, we all know of the upcoming dangers and battles. It’s dragon skin and enchanted, resistant to magic and will protect your wand.”

Some might think it would be hard to top that, but Harry handed her a big basket that started shaking and meowing as soon as she took it.

“No! Are you absolutely insane? Oh my god, that you Harry. Hello crookshanks, how are you, little fellow?”

All three of them smiled, even Minerva now knew what the cat had meant to Hermione after Harry had told her. For that she even made that little trip to Diagon Alley, something she had never thought she’d do for a student. And she didn’t regret it.

Obviously, this time around having gotten to know more people, Hermione did get more presents. Neville and his gran gave her an old book about wizarding families, Daphne one on pure-blood traditions (they all shared the opinion that this should be taught, this only created disadvantages for the muggleborns and thereby loss of traditions) and even a box of chocolates from the Patil twins. Something that would have been unimaginable in the previous timeline. They did improve something.

That thought made Hermione smile.

Notes:

Well, that's it for today, hope you liked it.

As usual, please share your thoughts in the comments.

See ya all next week

Chapter 9: Halloween

Notes:

Good Morning everyone, here you go, the Halloween chapter.
Have fun

The only memorable incident in the weeks between the “Fluffy-incident” and Halloween was the fact that for the first time in many years not only colleagues and old friends, but also students had gifted Minerva McGonagall something on her birthday.

On the morning of October 4th, when the owl post arrived, a handful of birds brought her gifts and cards, others she would usually get per Floo post. But when Hedwig flew up to her instead of Harry, she was surprised. By now probably half the school knew that owl, she was unmistakable and right now carried a package for her with a card attached.

Upon opening the letter she realised it had been written by Miss Granger, stating that the book in the package was a birthday present and a “thank you” for all that she had done for them. The book came from the Potter library, but they both chose it together, after having looked at the inventory list for hours. Now Minnie was curious, put the letter aside and started opening the package.

Severus, sitting next to her, started to cast glances at the package, having recognised Hedwig as well. Luckily, Dumbledore was rarely in the hall during breakfasts. That would have certainly made him suspicious, especially now that he saw what the boy’s present for his head of house was.

Minnie’s hands were shaking once she removed the gift wrap, because she was now holding an ancient looking book. After turning it in her hands and looking at the back of the book she nearly dropped it. Only the fact that she knew its value and rarity made her hold it tightly. She couldn’t believe it.

It was after nearly a minute of staring that Severus Snape quietly asked her, what book it was. His question made her nearly jump up, and then she turned to him and whispered:

“It is the Grimoire de Transfiguratione , originally written by Morgana Le Fay. That copy is probably around eight- to nine hundred years old. The last time one of those publically surfaced was even before Albus was born.”

After saying that she just got up and left, heading straight for her office to secure that book, but Snape hurried after her.

“Wait a second! Just give me a chance to hand you my present. Here, you’ll probably need that if I don’t misjudge the whole situation.”

A bit surprised she took the present, thanked Severus and continued to hurry away.

It was then in her office that she opened that package and started laughing, because Snape had given her a bottle of her favourite Scotch with a note saying “ you’ll probably need it” .

 

Halloween 1991 - Charms Classroom

On Halloween Flitwick had them again in pairs to work on the levitation charm, combining the worst with the best students, hoping that it might help them. That meant that Mione had to work with Ronald again, Harry with Dean and Neville with Seamus. Yes, this time Hermione was more patient, but she still corrected Ron’s pronunciation of Wingardium Leviosa since it was terrible. Following the redhead’s angry outburst, Mione just glared at him, demonstrated the charm and asked Flitwick if he could change the partners for Ronald was too ignorant to listen to her. Harry sacrificed himself for his best friend, walking over to Ron before the professor was even able to reply.

“Come on, Weasley. You know you’re butchering the pronunciation, Hermione is absolutely right, you’re just ignorant and too stubborn to listen to the probably brightest witch of our age.”

“What the hell do you see in that girl? She’s bossy, reads much more than even the claws and is absolutely annoying. I should get you checked for loyalty and trust potions.”

That statement was kind of funny, because what Ronald was implying was something that his family had done to him for years - or would be doing. Time travel was very confusing from time to time. Anyway, the statement both amused and angered him. Harry glared at Ron, but decided to not respond. 

 

After the end of the lesson, Ronald Weasley had still not managed to levitate his feather and was absolutely angry. Upon leaving the charms classroom he started ranting about Hermione and why no one could stand her and why she didn’t have any real friends. Instead of making her cry and run into a bathroom, she just shook her head and continued talking to her friends. That itself made Ronald and his rant look even more pathetic and didn’t really make him more popular with most of his co-students. Well, aside from some of those who didn’t like Hermione either and loved to gossip about and badmouth other students, like Lavender Brown.

 

After said day’s classes were over and all of the school started to gather in the great hall for the Halloween feast, Harry decided to approach the headmaster for the first time. He walked up to the staff table, Minerva and Severus already watching him with a questioning look, and stood in front of Dumbledore, who was just as surprised.

“Headmaster, I’d like to get permission to not participate in the feast but instead eat in the common room with Hermione together. I’m not in the mood for celebrations, it’s my parents’ tenth death day. Please, I can’t stand all that happiness today.”

Dumbledore was surprised, both about Harry’s approach and the question. After a minute of thinking he finally responded with a yes, accepting that any other answer wouldn’t satisfy the rest of the staff, who were awaiting an answer from him too. The thought of letting the Weasley boy accompany him did cross his mind, but angering Potter today…not a good idea.

Harry smiled briefly at him and left again, thanking the headmaster wordlessly. He nodded at Hermione, who was watching him attentively, telling her that they had received a yes, and then walking out of the great hall together. That caught the attention of Draco Malfoy, who jumped up and yelled at Harry.

“Potter! Getting special treatment I see. You think it’s beneath you to spend the Halloween feast with us normal people?”

Harry turned around, glaring at Draco Malfoy. Yes, he had many years of experience in dealing with that idiot, but despite that Harry nearly snapped. Mione saw his hand twitch, but before the wizard could grab his wand, she put a hand on his shoulder and calmed him down.

“He’s not worth it, Harry. If you attack him now, all our plans become obsolete. And he’s just a little stupid boy.”

Yes, she didn’t like defending Malfoy, but she couldn’t risk Harry starting to duel Draco. Especially not with his skillset thanks to the war. And Harry understood, took a breath and then replied to the blonde Slytherin.

“Well Malfoy, for that you’ve got to thank your good old dad and his buddies. Today’s my parents’ death day and I’m obviously not in the mood to celebrate. So if you have a problem with that, not my bad, you…”

Draco got angry at being scolded by Harry and by him implicating his dad in the Potter murders and jumped up, but even in his anger he saw that the majority of the students supported Potter and now continuing to speak up would ruin his standing, so he gave in. 

 

After having a brief dinner in the common rooms they were still alone, since the feast tended to take quite some time. It was long before curfew so they both thought about what they could do now. From going to the library or hanging out on the astronomy tower to sneaking down to the lake, nothing sounded really good to them, but then Harry had an idea.

“Mione, I think we haven’t been to the room since we’ve been here, haven’t we?”

That was true, they had simply forgotten to visit the room of requirement and now that did sound ideal. Harry was actually in a bad mood, thanks to Halloween. Bad things tended to happen on that date. And since the room could create whatever one desired, it could and would calm Harry down. 

 

It took them some time to get up to the seventh floor, but as soon as they were there and Harry started to walk up and down in front of the correct wall section, they heard paintings screaming. Something was happening in the castle and it obviously upset the paintings. 

“What the hell is going on? Hello, could one of you stop panicking and tell me what’s happening?”

Hermione herself was basically screaming towards the end of the sentence, simply because it was so loud. It was then when a victorian-era clothed woman stopped briefly and told them about the troll on the fourth floor.

“Fourth floor? Pretty sure last time it was somewhere different, remember Quirrell saying it was in the dungeons?”

“Not that the troll really was there, but yes. I think that’s what happened. You know I wasn’t in the hall at that time.”

Up until then Hermione had been hiding and crying in a bathroom, when the troll suddenly entered. But that must have been the second floor, something was certainly different than last time.

It is debatable if the two of them were quite lucky or unlucky, because on their way down they ran into the troll in a secluded corridor. He was once again rampaging with his giant club, hitting everything in his path. Nothing they could let happen so both drew their wands.

The two of them divided the tasks at hand, Mione pulled everything out of the troll’s way to reduce the damages while Harry threw stunners at it. Not that it worked, they just bounced off the troll’s skin. At least it didn’t get closer to them.

“We both know that stunners don’t work on trolls, what do you want me to do? I can take it out but that’s gonna make a mess.”

Hermione was sure that they’d be able to cover up anything they would do, so she nodded and told him to go for it. Little did she know that they weren’t alone anymore, because then she would have told him to either hold back or wait.

 

Once Quirrell had stumbled into the great hall, panic broke out. The prefects all tried to contain the outbreak of panic, but it was not an easy task to bring the students back into the common rooms. It was then when Minerva and Severus realised that they didn’t know if Harry and Hermione really were in the common rooms. Yes, Minnie knew that they would be aware of the troll and could defend themselves, but Severus insisted on hunting the troll himself to make sure they were not in its close proximity. He murmured something about a promise to keep Lily’s son safe and hurried away while silently casting detection spells for dark creatures.

While he wondered how the beast both got in and into the fourth floor, he ran, using every secret passage and shortcut he knew. That thing was a danger to the students. 

Once he was close to it he slowed down and disillusioned himself. Severus heard a loud noise, but to his surprise it wasn’t only the troll, but the sounds of a battle. And really, both Potter and Granger were duelling the troll in a way no first-year, especially the muggle raised ones, could do. He already had his suspicions about the two, but it was still unbelievable. Little did he know that in a few seconds he would have proof for his theory. 

Well, not exactly, but it would be undeniable.

Severus saw Harry raise his wand once again, but what came afterwards was totally unexpected.

“Sectumsempra!”

With that the troll was decapitated and his body collapsed, but Snape couldn’t believe what he had just seen: little Harry Potter using a dark spell on a troll, a spell he could know through one of his parents’ notebooks, probably Lily’s, but never pulled off. Not as a first year. And it was now that Severus had a quote in mind, from books he had loved as a child. Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth. It was something that Arthur Conan Doyle had written for his Sherlock Holmes. A character Snape loved to read about, even now. And in this case here he could easily say that Harry and Hermione duelling that way and Harry casting sectumsempra was impossible if they were first-years. Add that to the knowledge that they had and you get the conclusion that they couldn’t be eleven years old (yes, Granger was twelve now but that didn’t change anything). No matter how improbable it sounded, they had to be some sort of time-travellers. Now it all made sense. They were outplaying Dumbledore and his manipulations before some even happened. 

“You’re not really from now, are you?”

It was only a whisper, but they heard him. At that moment they didn’t look their age, but mature. The look in their eyes - they must have seen death and destruction, if not war. He recognised it from himself and many others from his generation. 

 

Harry and Mione both turned around rapidly once they heard Snape’s whisper and just looked at him, with all the seriousness and maturity displayed on their faces. Neither of them did deny anything, but they also didn’t confirm it. The three just stared at each other in silence. It was clear to the potions professor that they wouldn’t verify his assumption, but he was okay with that. But now there was another issue at hand.

“Well, you two. It was quite unfortunate that you ran into the troll on the way to the library. The next time I’ll probably won’t be there to kill the monster for you.”

Both students nodded. They were relieved that Snape had just created a cover story for them, which actually seemed plausible. He knew Sectumsempra, it was even his spell. It was something that Dumbledore would believe.

Speaking about Dumbledore, just moments after that he arrived and stared at the bloody mess in the corridor.

“Severus! I take it that’s your work? Surely that was unnecessary. Oh, Harry, Miss Granger. What are you doing here?”

Thankfully Severus took the lead here and fell back into the role of the mean potions professor.

“Well, headmaster. Those two had the incredibly smart idea to go into the library at that time of day and ran into the troll. They should be glad I took it out.”

And with that he just walked away, while Dumbledore looked at the troll’s body. It did not seem like he would want to talk to Harry or Hermione, the two took that opportunity and walked away, back to the common room.

 

Albus Dumbledore thought about stopping them and talking to Harry, but first of all not in the presence of that stupid little muggleborn girl and second of all he wanted to make the boy like him, look up to him. Another traumatising Halloween was certainly not the ideal day for that. 

Now he would have to clean up that mess. Vanishing the body of the troll wouldn’t be an issue, but removing the residual dark magic from Severus’ sectumsempra curse would be more difficult. It was a nasty spell and had brought much pain to his order back in the day. Luckily Tom had never learned it, that would have been disastrous. 

 

The whole troll-incident was kept more or less secret, no one knew that Harry and Hermione were anywhere near that thing, the only bit the students knew was that the situation had been resolved. Yes, the two told Nev and Daphne about it, but even they thought Snape took it out. The only person knowing the whole truth was Minnie. 

Severus had told her what he had seen and had said that he believed they weren’t from now, but he was not looking for confirmation. The less people who knew all the facts, the better. 

 

The next major event was the opening game of the quidditch cup, Gryffindor against Slytherin, Harry’s debut game. A game he had trained for a lot, despite his years of experience. He knew he would outfly Higgs easily, but this time he wouldn’t catch the Snitch with his mouth but deliver one hell of a show.

Game day was a cold November day, not the best weather to play. Since it was a bit foggy, it would be difficult for the seekers to spot the Snitch. Thank god Harry had a talent for that, for him the weather wouldn’t really be an issue. 

As soon as the captains - Oli Wood and Marcus Flint - had shaken hands, Hooch started the game. After a few minutes, Angelina scored first with a magnificent throw of the Quaffle, giving Bletchley no chance of catching that one. Not that he was a bad keeper, much the opposite, but the Gryffindor chaser line was quite strong. Nevertheless, the Slytherins played strong, not with elaborate game plans but rather with brute force.

After a while, the score was 30 - 20 for Gryffindor, Higgs spotted the Snitch for the first time. Harry had seen it too, following its path for minutes now. Once the opposing seeker started racing towards the small golden ball, Harry followed. He braced himself for an impact since he knew that at least last time Flint blocked him, and indeed, he did the same this time around. Hooch instantly awarded the penalty, which Alicia used to extend their lead, but now the Snitch was no longer in sight. 

It took Harry about ten more minutes until he found the little golden ball again and decided to end it quickly, racing towards the Snitch. Higgs tried to keep up with him, but he didn’t stand a chance. 

Showing an impressive set of skills Harry tried to catch the Snitch, but then his broom started to act out. Damn Quirrell was jinxing it again. He missed the ball by millimetres.

 

Severus Snape saw that the broom started to do strange things, someone was manipulating it, but who?

It took him less than twenty seconds to look at the crowd and see who was whispering jinxes. To his surprise it was the foolish DADA professor, Quirrell, whom he really couldn’t stand. The reasons for that he’d find out later, but now he had to start countering him. But since he wasn’t alone, he could deal with that way faster. While murmuring the counter-jinxes, he signalled Minerva, who sent a confundus at the other professor. 

That, to Severus’ surprise, didn’t work, so Minnie casted a weak Expelliarmus to make Quirrell drop his wand while Snape countered all the jinxes. Luckily, that did work out and Harry’s broom worked again just fine. Yes, his house would lose in quidditch, but Quirrell was manipulating the game and Potter was so much better. 

Less than half a minute after his broom was back to normal Harry ended the match with a spectacular dive while catching the Snitch with his left hand and then landing elegantly. The final score was 200 - 50, so they won by one hell of a margin, better than last time. As soon as the other players reached the ground, they started celebrating. The party following that game in the common room was enormous, even for the first years. Most of the students from higher years apparently partied longer, looking at their faces the next morning in the great hall. 

 

It was not until the next Friday that Snape found the right time to talk to both Harry and Hermione about Quirrell’s attack, but then, during potions class he clearly signalled them to stay afterwards.

“So, Mr Potter, Miss Granger, I think you owe me an explanation of what that was, the whole incident with Quirrell. Can you tell me why a professor would want to kill you?”

When Snape said that, Harry had to suppress a laugh. So many teachers had tried to or even succeeded to harm him. Quirrell was just one of them.

“Well, professor. Would you believe me when I tell you that our DADA professor has the leech of the Dark Lord sticking to the back of his head?”

Severus nearly dropped the glass filled with mistletoe berries he was putting away, when Harry mentioned the Dark Lord. That shouldn’t be possible. Yes, he knew that Riddle wasn’t dead, but here in the castle? As the headmaster Dumbledore had control over the school’s wards and they should have told him about possessions right away, just like with polyjuice usage or portkeys. Why didn’t Dumbledore do anything or what was his plan?

“I sincerely hope you are joking, because the headmaster should know about possessions thanks to the wards. Just like with portkeys or polyjuice. I think it was under headmaster Black that this was installed.”

That was a surprise to Harry and Hermione, something that was not written in Hogwarts - A history. And it also meant something very terrifying.

“He knew about Crouch Jr all along. He wanted the resurrection to happen. And this man calls himself the “leader of the light”. What a joke.”

Harry was nearly yelling at that point, he just began to realise that so many things had been manipulated. Yes, the whole love potioning itself was horrible, but to participate in the resurrection of the Dark Lord - willingly - was something very different. Dumbledore was anything but light, rather a dark lord himself, working under the pretence of fulfilling a prophecy for the greater good. He would probably wait for Harry to die and take Voldemort out himself, because then the prophecy would have been fulfilled. That meant the whole stone-incident was either a test for him and his powers or the first attempt to get Riddle back to life.

 

Severus had to admit, he didn’t understand what the boy was talking about. Crouch Jr was supposed to be dead but once he had said “polyjuice potion” Harry had lost it. And the resurrection? That surely had to mean that Riddle had come from the dead. What game was Albus playing?

“Alright, Mr Potter. I can very much relate to your anger at the headmaster, but I’m not really able to follow your rambles here. Whatever future knowledge that is, I’d prefer if you don’t speak it out loud. Still, I’m lacking an explanation for Qurinius’ behaviour, or shall I say the Dark Lord’s? Why is he here at Hogwarts?”

“I thought that was obvious, he’s here for the philosopher’s stone to get a new body. Quirrell is going to steal it - or at least try to.”

Now Severus felt a little bit stupid, that would have been the obvious answer. But why…

“Son of a bitch, he’s baiting the Dark Lord with the stone. That was the break-in at Gringotts and now it’s here. Hogwarts is a school! Not that I like the children but putting them in harm's way. That’s just pure negligence.”

The following minutes they had to listen to Severus’ rambles about Dumbledore, before they finally decided to depart. That conversation had worked better than expected and even though they did tell some future knowledge, they didn’t say too much. And, don’t forget, they had learned something. The full extent of the headmaster’s manipulations was shocking.

 

The person who had no idea that people were plotting against him, Albus Dumbledore, was sitting in his office, looking at the legendary invisibility cloak of the Potter family. Another deathly hallow in his hands, decades after he had stopped looking for them. Maybe he should continue his quest and oppose Tom with the hallows after the Potter boy had died. That would be spectacular and all of magical Britain, if not the world, would look up to him, the strongest wizard in the history of magic.

But no, he had to return the cloak, so Harry could sneak out and find the stone. He had already found Fluffy thanks to that compulsion charm he had placed on the youngest Weasley boy. And once he’d have the cloak, he would certainly snoop around the castle even more. With luck and some compulsion charms he’d be able to get the boy into the corridor. And then he would lure Quirrell down there to create a confrontation between the two of them. 

Before that he would have to enchant the cloak though so he would be able to track it and look through it. Thank god he had the elder wand, without it that would be impossible. He had tried for years to manipulate the cloak without the deathstick or replicate its effects, but not even he could do that. But still, he would do anything in his power to fulfil his plans and if that meant returning the cloak, then he had to do that. For the greater good.

Notes:

So, hope you liked it. As always, I'm looking forward to your comments.

See ya all next week

Chapter 10: Christmas

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here's the latest chapter.
Got a bit longer than usual, but I'm sure none of you mind that. But be advised, I just got all my wisdom teeth pulled yesterday and only finished the chapter afterwards so be lenient with me if I made any stupid mistakes.

Anyway, have fun reading.

It was around two weeks before the end of term when Minerva McGonagall started taking the names of those students who would stay in the castle during the Christmas holidays, like always. This time she was genuinely surprised to see the names of all Weasley kids on the list. Usually Molly Weasley insisted on all her children attending the celebration at the Burrow. Maybe she had given that up with her oldest two being out of the country or it was a plan by Dumbledore. Little did he know though that Harry was going home - or at least leaving Hogwarts. The Grangers had reached out to her as his guardian and informed her of their invitation. Not that she’d tell that to the old man.

Oh yes, by now Minerva had lost not only all trust, but also all respect for him and in private didn’t even refer to him as “headmaster” for she thought he was not worthy of that title anymore. Secretly she hoped to succeed him at some point when the Dark Lord was defeated and they wouldn’t need to follow the old timeline anymore. Then she would destroy his reputation once and for all, already working on a dossier that would get him into Azkaban without any doubt. Or even better, into Nurmengard with his old lover Grindelwald. 

That had truly surprised her, his relationship with Grindelwald. Not Albus’ sexual orientation, to her that didn’t matter despite the prevalent prejudice in the wizarding world, but the fact that he had used his teenage years to create plans for world domination with someone who later became the first dark lord in over a century. There was so much she had never known about the man who once was her mentor. 

 

Shortly before the term ended, the Gryffindor students had to endure Ronald Weasley’s stories about how his parents were visiting his brother, the dragon handler Charlie, over Christmas. Harry did have his doubts because he was able to recall conversations with Molly stating that she’d wish to be able to visit him once in Romania. Probably all just a pretence to stay at Hogwarts with Harry.

Little did Ronald know that Harry was invited by the Grangers to stay at theirs for the holidays. And so Harry just kept quiet, studying for the first round of exams this year and training with Oli Wood (rather getting tortured, Oli was a tough captain and trainer). The latter got even worse once Hogwarts was again covered in several feet of snow, but not even a blizzard would have stopped the Gryffindor quidditch captain from training. 

Hermione was actually split between thinking that was good and bad, now she knew that wizards tended to ignore physical fitness way too much, relying on magic all the time. At least the quidditch players were fit, from which Harry could benefit in battles or if they needed to go on the run again (yes, that was unlikely, but Hermione just loved to overthink everything). She even thought about starting with something herself, probably running, once the winter was over.

Well, but on the other hand she feared that Harry would get ill, since the weather truly was horrible. Once she had voiced her concerns he agreed and promised to take it slower if possible. But he made it clear that he had every intention of winning the cup this year. Last time around they lost because he was in the hospital wing after the stone-incident during the Ravenclaw - Gryffindor match. Not gonna happen this year. Both house and quidditch cup would be Gryffindor’s, especially because he wouldn’t let the whole Norbert-incident happen and both he and Hermione were excelling at class. 

 

The end of term and the train ride back to London came all so fast, it had barely felt that long. But here they were, boarding the Hogwarts Express for Christmas. A first for Harry. The only time he left the castle during the winter holidays was in fifth year when Arthur got attacked, but that wasn’t via train. 

Once the two kids got back to London they parted from Neville and Daphne, who still seemed to be deep in conversation, and went looking for either of Mione’s parents. It didn’t take them long to find Dan, standing there with his bright smile. And once she had spotted him, his daughter ran at him and gave him a classy bone-crushing hug like only she could. Harry walked towards the two Grangers and greeted Dan as well, getting a hug too. Mione’s father took the opportunity and thanked Harry quietly, because he has kept his promise to send regular letters to him sounding a little less “fairy-tale” than Mione’s. 

 

Before going home though both Harry and Hermione insisted on making a stop at Diagon Alley to get some presents for friends and family. Most of their other yearmates would get cards, like the Patil twins or Dean and Seamus, maybe with some chocolates or something similar attached, but at least Neville and Daphne would get a real present. Not to forget, the Granger parents, Augusta, Minerva and maybe even Snape. Oh, and last but not least obviously they would have to buy something for each other. 

 

Dan dropped the kids off at the Leaky Cauldron and told them when he’d be back from some shopping so they would have enough time to do the Christmas shopping. And that was exactly what they did.

The alley was anything but empty, it appeared like half of wizarding Britain was doing their shopping on the last day before Christmas. Harry and Hermione ran into the occasional Hogwarts student, though none of their close circle of friends. That was good, because then they were able to buy their presents.

For Neville Harry bought a set of advanced herbology tools and Hermione a book about Botany. Daphne on the other hand was way more difficult. Harry as the Heir Potter (at least that’s what everyone thought) got her a quill from a peacock feather while Hermione decided to buy something muggle for their pureblood friend. An idea Harry supported, but since he didn’t want to make any blunder in regards to pureblood traditions he stuck to something magical. 

After they got some small boxes of sweets from Diagon Alley’s Honeydukes branch the two of them left the alley through the Leaky Cauldron and Mione led Harry to the next bookstore where she bought a muggle history book for their Syltherin friend before they went back to the pub and waited for Dan. 

 

Once they all got back to the Granger residence they reunited with Emma and despite the fact that Harry had thought the reunion of Mione and Dan was quite emotional, the reunion of mother and daughter was even more energetic and emotional. But Hermione wasn’t the only one greeted dearly, Harry too. Having read letters from both of them and seeing them now together reassured the parents that both kids were managing school quite well, not only intellectually but socially as well. Something their daughter had always struggled with.

Dinner that evening was a very lively event, celebrating the first term and return of the kids. It obviously was no big dinner like on Christmas Eve but the mood was fantastic. For hours they told tales about their adventures, be it quidditch or sneaking out and running into Fluffy (the consensus was that Ronald was an idiot, but they were still reckless). At some point they did decide though, that it was way too late now and the Grangers sent the kids into bed.

 

At Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore came down to dinner as well, fully expecting to see Harry Potter, basically forced to sit with the Weasleys. He had confunded all of the kids so they thought that their parents were visiting Charlie in Romania, even though that was not the case, simply to make the kids stay at the castle. He needed them to get close to Potter. But the problem was that he wasn’t there.

“Minerva, where’s young Harry? I fully expected him to be here at his house table.”

The witch smiled while Severus started to eavesdrop on the conversation that was about to happen.

“Oh, he didn’t put his name down on the list of people who’d stay here over Christmas. I guess he’s going home or got invited by a classmate. I don’t know to be honest.”

Albus was furious, but again hiding it. He deemed it beyond unlikely that Harry Potter voluntarily went back to the Dursleys for Christmas so the most reasonable explanation might either be Lady Longbottom or the damn Grangers. Now he had to write some letters and find out the truth.

Minne did instantly realise that she had given away more than she had wanted to, but now it was too late. Well, to be precise she didn’t give anything away, but her statement made the headmaster think. Now she had to inform the young Mr Potter about that as soon as possible. 

 

On the morning of the 24th both kids stayed in bed longer than usual, but, once they had gotten up, helped Emma in the kitchen preparing Dinner. Apparently Christmas at the Grangers was a very big thing, Harry realised. While they were busy with the food, Dan was finalising the decorations in the house, raising the Christmas spirit even more. 

Even though Harry had always felt like a part of the Weasley family, this dynamic here was so much more to him. He lacked words to describe the difference, but now he had a family. The only times he had felt such a feeling, or at least that strong, was with Moony and Padfoot. Which reminded him of something.

The next time he found the opportunity to talk to Mione alone and in secret he told her of his plan to write letters to both of them, disguised in a marauder-worthy style. Christmas cards, he knew, sometimes got into Azkaban.

Less than an hour later and thanks to Harry no longer being prohibited to use magic outside of school thanks to his emancipation, Hedwig took off with a bunch of cards, some others they sent to Minnie via Potter-houselves so she could send them. Harry’s owl was after all unmistakable and it would raise questions if he were to write Sirius.

 

At the end of the day Harry was absolutely tired but filled with joy. They had laughed and joked the entire evening or either of the Granger parents had told some tales out of their lives. Dinner had been incredible, rivalling some of Hogwarts’ feasts. But now neither he nor Mione could wait until Christmas day, even though they were mentally adults, deep down they were children as well. And after death, war and terror they did need some joy. 

 

Mione was happy. Her parents had all but outright adopted Harry within those months since Diagon Alley, despite the fact that they’ve been at school for months now. The young witch scolded herself quietly that they had never done anything like that during the last timeline, maybe she would have realised what kind of feelings she had for him.

Yes, they did say that the whole soulmate thing could wait and that was the right decision, but she wouldn’t deny her feelings. Never. 

 

On Christmas day a lot of interesting things happened to quite a variety of people:

A while after he had left the pack in southern Latvia, Remus Lupin had reached the polish-german border. It had been a full moon on Saturday the 21st and it had been a rough one. No chance of getting wolfsbane anywhere and so he endured the pain, locked away by himself. It had delayed his plans, he had planned to meet up with a pack leader in northern Germany around Christmas, but sometimes the pain of the transformations were simply horrible. Nothing really unusual, that happened around once a year. Still, Dumbledore wouldn’t be too happy, since he wanted to get as many reports as possible. Why, the werewolf didn’t know, but who was he to question the Leader of the Light.

His travels were rough, either via muggle cargo trains or on foot. Thus, Remus was very exhausted most of the time. But that was simply the life of a werewolf. No proper job, no money and no home. At least Dumbledore sent him some Galleons every few months, that’s why he followed him. And because he had no one and nothing else. James and Peter were dead, Sirius in Azkaban (he couldn’t imagine why he had betrayed James but there was obviously no doubt since he was the secret keeper) and Dumbledore hiding Harry, keeping him safe. Remus never liked the arrangement, but again - who was he to argue with that. He had tried and failed, over and over again. He might never see Prongslet again.

But then something very unexpected happened, like a little Christmas miracle for Remus. An owl came for him and obviously not one of Albus. He always worked with hidden drop-offs. Maybe it was Andi or her daughter Dora again, they had tried contacting him a few times. But no, once he opened the letter, it was just an empty piece of paper. Unless…it wasn’t.

“I solemnly swear I’m up to no good.”

It was just a crazy thought, no one knowing that code phrase would or could send him a letter. He knew it wouldn’t do anything, it was just for old times sake that he said it, but then he saw something.

“You’ve got to be kidding! Who…?”

Words started to form and after just a few seconds he held a letter in his hand, the writing itself looked both familiar and unfamiliar. He recognised some of those loops that James’ writing had had, just like his father’s before him, some other letters were more edgy than round, like reminding him of Lily’s scribbled notes. Always more focussed on an efficient writing instead of a beautiful one. Oh yes, handwriting was definitely hereditary. But it couldn’t be from him.

Dear Uncle Moony,

First of all, Merry Christmas to you. I hope you are doing well, because, as you might wanna know, I am. At least now. 

I know you’re still working for Dumbledore (don’t ask how I know that), but believe me, stop that right away. The old man sealed mum’s and dad’s wills and brought me to Petunia. I think that is self-explanatory, you can guess how badly they treated me. Once I got my letter, Hagrid!!!! gave me the introduction to the wizarding world (if you can call that an introduction, I like the guy but seriously? Even Snape would have done that better). Luckily Minnie - Professor McGonagall - ran into us in the Alley and took over, where she started to realise how much the old man had manipulated us. Never bothered to look once, never cared that I got hit and starved. There was a list of people in the will, one of them should have been my guardian. I have a copy attached, you’ll find it once you “mischief managed” the letter. Minnie brought me to Gringotts to my account manager, we read the wills and she became my guardian (despite getting emancipated too). We visited the Manor and I found all of Mum’s and Dad’s stuff, including his map and diaries. 

Currently I’m living with a friend from school, approved by Minnie, but I won’t tell you more details yet. Just know that I’m safe and soon Dumbledore will pay for all what he has done. Distance yourself and come back into the country, we can meet during the summer holidays. I want to get to know you.

I assume you still know where the Manor (the main one) is, you’re still recognised as a friend by the wards. Stay there and lay low. If you don’t find your way there on your own, contact Minnie discreetly. I hope I have your Marauder’s promise you won’t tell old Dumbles.

Oh gosh, I nearly forgot to put that into the letter, Hermi my friend reminded me to tell you that Padfoot is innocent and Wormtail, the rat, was the true secret keeper. And don’t forget, it was old Dumbles himself casting the Fidelius. He knew. It’s his fault I wasn’t raised by Padfoot and you. Hagrid basically stole me out of his arms before he went crazy and hunted the rat, which is alive by the way. I bet that was a compulsion by the old man. 

Anyway, I shouldn’t tell you all of that via letter, that’s why I’m using the nicknames too. Please come and visit me, Uncle Moony. Merry Christmas!

Love,

Lord Prongslet 

 

It took Remus Lupin certainly longer than five minutes to recover from that letter, he lost all sense of time and just stared at the paper for who knows how long. After that he summoned the will just like little Harry had told him, and there it was. He was right and Dumbledore was a liar.

Now Moony started to realise why he did get those assignments. As far away from Harry as possible, potentially deadly and keeping him from interfering. 

The wolf inside Remus Lupin awoke now, motivating him, forcing him to return to Britain. He hadn’t been there since he got his Defence Mastery in the US four years back. Probably even longer. Remus couldn’t recall when he last sat foot on British soil, if you exclude Gibraltar in ‘88. But, as he reminded himself, that didn’t matter. There were more important things at hand now. He had to return.

What a Christmas present.

 

Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape had met on the 24th, coincidentally at the same time as the house-elf came with the letters. That Snape now knew Harry was Lord Potter was not a problem for Minnie, by now all three of them trusted him. He basically knew everything.

Yes, once the transfiguration professor looked at the recipients of the letters, she was surprised, and so was Snape.

“Lupin and Black? I mean the werewolf I do understand, but why that stupid Black? He betrayed Lily to the Dark Lord.”

Minnie shook her head and decided to bring up Severus’ death eater past.

“Come on Severus, do you really think Riddle wouldn’t have bragged about marking all the Blacks. Well, at least the heir, I’m pretty sure good old Arcturus stayed out of that until the end. He had Regulus and Bellatrix. Andromeda was kicked out of the family and Narcissa is basically a death eater, marked or not. Sirius was never evil and never betrayed James. Come on, guess what happened.”

And again, Snape, the Sherlock Holmes fan that he was, thought through what Minerva had said. Under the presumption that Black was innocent, who was the traitor and who wanted to keep Black in prison? Lupin couldn’t have been the traitor, he despised Greyback too much to work together with him under the Dark Lord. He couldn’t have faked that. 

But wait, Dumbledore was the one who had casted the Fidelius and said Black was the secret keeper afterwards. And with Black in Azkaban, Albus could take Harry into his custody and seal the wills as Chief Warlock. 

“He wanted to gain custody. Dumbledore, I mean. Black had political power and would be next in line for Lord, no matter what his crazy mother said. Arcturus was the Lord and I’m pretty sure he didn’t kick him out. Surely he was a witness to the wills and knew the contents of those, sealing wouldn’t have done anything. For god's sake, he probably had his own copy. But what I don’t get is who the secret keeper was. It was more or less common knowledge and he even admitted it was his fault after he blew up…”

Now it clicked. Snape understood what the old man had done and he had to admit, that was one hell of a plan.

“Pettigrew was the secret keeper and that stupid Black insisted on being a distraction. He was the obvious choice, so they didn’t take him. That is why Black went after him, why he thought it was his fault. The distraction idea sounds like one of his pranks, for sure. And the old man used that opportunity. Smart. Pettigrew was a death eater.”

He grinned, having reached a plausible conclusion, but that grin disappeared after seconds. Lily’s death still hit too hard. But then he saw Minerva shake her head.

“Not completely. Pettigrew played Sirius, blew everything up himself, cut off his finger and transformed. You know they were animagi. He’s still out there, but we’re still waiting for the right moment. Don’t want to shake things up too much.”

Snape was caught between understanding and shock. Pettigrew, a loyal death eater, alive and well, Black innocent and imprisoned and the two kids wanting to not disturb the timeline too much.

“Don’t answer me, but I think the kids want something to happen. During the troll incident they went mad when I said Dumbledore can feel polyjuice and portkeys inside and said something about a resurrection and Crouch Jr. I suspect he’s out there, using those two things to kidnap Potter for Voldemort’s resurrection. There’s only one ritual for that and Riddle has no greater enemy than Potter in his eyes. They want to kill him then. So don’t change too much. Smart.”

And with that statement their conversation was over and once again he left. He just didn’t want to know too much, should Riddle return soon he would have to offer his mind to him and Dumbles had looked through there a few times himself too. Not too pleasant.

 

Albus Dumbledore smiled. He had used the fact that only the young Mr Weasley was currently sleeping in the Gryffindor dorms to plant the cloak on Harry’s bed. It wasn’t ideal that the boy was absent for the time being, but at least he would discover the present once he returned. For his plans to work he needed to make Harry see the mirror, so he had added some compulsions to his tracking and eavesdropping charms. Those should work, no one was strong enough to resist his magic, and especially not Potter with all the bindings on his core. That had been a wise decision.

 

In a dark and tiny cell, somewhere in the middle of the North Sea, Sirius Black was having another horrible Christmas. He only knew that since the guards couldn’t stop complaining about having this shift instead of being with their families.

Family. 

That was something he truly missed, and by that he meant James, Lily, Moony and little Harry, his godson. The only bit of family he got during his stay at Azkaban was Bella three cells down the corridor, and that was something he could truly go without. Her occasional mad laughter was truly horrifying. 

Sirius Black felt forgotten and mistreated. Why, he hadn’t understood for years. Dumbledore had cast the Fidelius charm and knew the truth, so he purposefully wanted him out of the picture, probably so the old meddler could control Harry. Damn prophecy. He didn’t know the whole one, but James told him what Albus had told them. A danger for Voldemort, a vanquisher. That was, what Harry was apparently destined to be. And good old Dumbledore wanted to shape the future after his wishes. What a bas…

Before he could finish the insult, he got interrupted by a guard, rattling at his cell door.

“Black! A letter for you. Looks like your lucky day.”

Sirius was truly surprised, because whether letters reached a prisoner or not was always a bit of a gamble and depending on the mood of the guards. And on Christmas of all days, where everyone was usually in a bad mood. Maybe they just felt sorry for him, since it was his first letter since his incarceration. 

With shaking fingers he unrolled the parchment and stared at it once letters started to form. And even though he hadn’t read or even seen letters and words in a decade, it was no difficulty for him. Lucky him, because that letter was definitely worth reading.

Uncle Padfoot,

I’m just writing a short note with not so many important infos on it so it won’t fall into the wrong hands at Azkaban.

Merry Christmas!

I know what the old man has done to you, I know that Wormtail is still out there. An associate of mine (you know and like her) helps me against him, but we need to be careful. We’re gonna try getting a visit to Azkaban this summer and talk to you. 

We’re gonna take the old man down, Moony is informed too. Don’t worry about me, I’m fine now.

Love, 

Lord Prongslet

 

Sirius burst out laughing. Harry was doing well and working on the downfall of Dumbledore with apparently powerful friends. Otherwise getting a visit would be impossible. And it seemed like he took the ring of Lord Potter. That certainly wouldn’t go well with Dumbledore’s plans. 

Now Sirius felt way better, and that despite the dementors. He had already started to make plans for his escape with help from Padfoot, but that was not necessary anymore. Now he could wait for Harry.

 

On Christmas morning, Harry was actually the first one up, but just after he left the bathroom freshly showered, he ran into Mione. The two of them hugged and wished each other a Merry Christmas. 

Once Hermione was done as well, both kids went downstairs to unpack the presents, but before that they set the table for breakfast. That must have been quite an hilarious sight, because despite their best efforts, they still wanted to get it done and thus hurried. Once they decided that this had to be enough, they went into the living room and started to look through the presents. Some that had arrived via owl post had been put under the tree as well. It was more than Harry had ever gotten in his life on any Christmas, including the previous timeline.

They started with the presents by their closer friends, beginning with Neville’s. For Harry he sent a leather coat, the family crests of both Longbottom and Potter engraved on its silver buttons. The included card told him that it was a traditional garment and sign of their houses’ friendship. 

For Mione he sent an old book - apparently everyone thought that would be an ideal present for her - about house-elves, but one that was long prohibited by Britain’s bigots. The author’s take on the bond between master and elf was less about servitude but rather symbiosis. Something that Mione definitely wanted to read.

Daphne had also sent a book, but it was something quite different, it was the Tales of Beedle the Bard. It seemed like the Heiress Greengrass wanted to educate Mione on wizarding traditions, something that muggleborns definitely lacked.

Harry’s present from her was something much more personal, assembled with the help of her mother. Just like Professor Flitwick had told, both their mothers had been part of the same study group and so Aurelia Greengrass had assembled some of their old stuff like notes and pictures in an album. Apparently mother and daughter had conversed via letters about that for some weeks now.

Aside from some minor gifts that Mione got from family members and some chocolates and letters from schoolmates, there were Hagrid’s flute, some new pieces of muggle clothing for both from Dan and Emma, advanced transfiguration books from Minnie, there were only small presents from Snape and each others. The potions professor had sent Harry a short letter combined with some muggle and magical pictures from him and Lily, some even pre-Hogwarts. Mione got a small book, which was a summary of the most essential potions basics. Something that she would have appreciated during her first time around. 

Now, Dan and Emma were already watching the kids quietly, they only had each other's presents left. They grinned at each other and started opening it simultaneously. Harry had his box opened first, looking stunned at the elegant quill in a small case. Up until now he had written with the quill bought in Diagon Alley with Hagrid, nothing too nice but at least functional. But that one was incredible, he realised it once he held it. Harry looked at Mione, smiling, while she still unpacked her present. For her he had bought a periwinkle blue scarf and a silver hair clip, both she absolutely loved as he could see. Mione jumped up and hugged the boy while her parents watched the adorable scene.

This Christmas was truly an incredible one.

 

The only person who didn’t really have an incredible Christmas was Ronald Bilius Weasley. Nothing up until this point had worked out like his mother and Dumbledore had promised him. Potter was a completely different person that promised and he didn’t even stay at Hogwarts during the holidays. Now he was alone in this dorm, and nearly alone at school with mainly his older siblings in attendance.

He got up and walked towards the window, looking out on the grounds of Hogwarts. It was snowy and seemed cold outside. He hated this holiday. With the amount of money - or lack thereof - his family had it was always depressing, barely food and just those stupid sweaters for Christmas. Nothing was good in his life.

But then, out of nowhere, it all changed. He didn’t know where the impulse of snooping came from, but he looked across the room and something on top of Potter’s bed caught his eye. Yes, it was stupid, but he still went towards it and grabbed it, ignoring the note laying there. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me. An invisibility cloak. No chance he’s gonna ever receive that.”

Ronald Weasley grinned. It now seemed like things would get better for him now and with this cloak… It held so many possibilities.

Notes:

So, that was it, hope you liked it. As always I'm looking forward to your opinions in the comments.

See ya all next week

Chapter 11: Holidays, kings and cloaks

Notes:

Hello everyone,
new week, new chapter. There you go

Once the end of the Christmas holidays came closer, Harry was sure that never in his life he had had a better time than now. He literally felt like he’d be a part of the Granger family. They had made some day trips during the holidays, Mione using that opportunity to show her friend so many things he had never seen thanks to the Dursleys. 

Another nice thing was New Year’s Eve, because Harry had never seen such an amount of fireworks. At the Dursleys he was never allowed to go outside or even participate at the festivities. Preparing the food was the only thing he did, since the Dursleys always invited half their neighbourhood he used to hate the holiday. But now no longer. 

During the countdown to midnight both kids got so excited, grinned happily and held each other's hands, which was out of their own perspectivity nothing romantic, but at least didn’t go unnoticed by the Grangers. Once the clock hit midnight, they looked at each other, wished a happy new year and then Mione kissed Harry on the cheek. Again, nothing new, that had happened occasionally, but not really often in that timeline. Dan and Emma smiled at each other.

 

At Hogwarts Ronald Weasley started to use “his” cloak to explore the castle. He first had his try at the girls bathroom or dormitory in the Gryffindor tower since he did like Lavender, though just as young as him, and those chaser girls. It failed magnificently, as one would expect after having read Hogwarts - a history. Obviously Ronald hadn’t read it. Afterwards he focussed on actually discovering things and out of nowhere he just felt the urge to walk through a certain door, behind which he saw a nearly empty room, one in which he hadn’t been before. It contained a mirror. And even though he didn’t know why, he couldn’t stop himself from walking towards it and staring at the reflecting surface.

“What the…?”

He didn’t see himself -  well, at least not only. What he saw was somewhere between fantastic and horrifying. It was him as an adult, having a beautiful though currently faceless woman standing behind him. His robes were beyond exquisit and he had an expensive looking watch on his wrist. It was an amazing sight. Everything he was dreaming of.

 

Albus Dumbledore was having a more or less good time. Yes, Harry wasn’t at Hogwarts, but he had successfully planted the cloak. Once the boy was back, he would find it and with it the compulsions. As soon as term started again, he would start to check the tracking charms, waiting for Harry to move towards the mirror. Until then…some more lemon drops wouldn’t hurt.

 

On the day before the kids had to return with the Express to Hogwarts, an owl came for Harry during breakfast. It was the first unknown owl to appear since they’ve been back, only some of their friends had sent messages. The kids secretly hoped that it might be from the headmaster, at some point sending him the cloak, but that wasn’t the case. Harry didn’t worry though, he wouldn’t need it during the holidays and eventually would find it on his dorm bed.

Either way, the owl was from Gringotts, summoning the “Lord Potter, Peverell, Gryffindor, Slytherin” into their offices, asking if he’d manage before they would go back to Scotland. After asking Emma about making a short trip to Diagon Alley early the next day before the Express would leave and her saying that would be okay, Harry wrote a short reply that he’d be happy to arrive at seven thirty the next morning and sent off the owl.

“What could they want from you, Harry?”

He shrugged, it could be about any vault or money related thing or even the research in regards to his titles. No idea.

 

Thanks to Harry’s house-elves, who were over eager to help them out with the packing, which was then finished as efficiently and fast as ever. And because of that they could make themselves comfortable in the evening, something that had never been possible with the Weasleys. They had always been messy and unstructured, Molly never really had had control over her kids.

The next morning Harry grabbed one of his best robes and put it on. Under normal circumstances he wouldn’t have done that, but he had to visit Gringotts and even though hardly anyone knew that, he was a lord.

Under a glamour charm he walked through Diagon Alley, Hermione and Emma by his side. No one paid them any real attention and so they reached the bank. Once they had entered the building, Harry dropped the glamour word- and wandlessly. Wandless magic was something they had continued to study over the past months, and that very successfully. 

Harry walked up to one of the tellers and greeted him.

“Greetings, Teller. May your gold never run out and your weapons stay sharp forever.”

“May your vaults be always full and your enemies shudder at your name. Not many young wizards, or wizards at all, know our traditions. What is your request?”

“I’m the Lord Potter and have been summoned by my account manager for an appointment at seven thirthy. Would you be so kind and inform account manager Gornuk that I’m available.” 

The goblin instantly realised what was going on, he had one of their most wealthy clients in front of them and if you trusted the chatter inside the bank he knew why Gornuk had summoned him. Something like that you couldn’t keep quiet inside Gringotts.

“Sure, Lord Potter. It’s an honour to meet one of our oldest clients, both House Potter and House Peverell have always had a very good relationship with us, as did all the Hogwarts founders’ families. Please follow me. Am I right in assuming that your companions are allowed to accompany you? We don’t have any issue with that, be it pureblood or muggle. As long as you follow our rules and laws you’re welcome in Gringotts.”

Harry nodded, confirming that Mione and Emma were allowed to accompany him, and then the three of them followed the teller into the depths of the bank.

Little did Harry know that he was not just summoned to meet with Gornuk, King Ragnok, chieftain of the Goblins, had invited him here. That had two reasons, one, Harry was a very prominent and wealthy client, with his new titles even more so, and two, the young wizard had done the goblins a very big favour in pointing out and destroying the horcrux. 

 

Once Harry entered the room he was led into, he was very surprised. It was not a normal office or meeting room, but rather a big and pompous looking hall. They took a seat on the offered chairs and then the goblin teller excused himself, he still had to inform Gornuk. Harry thanked him on his way out, again following goblin customs. 

Less than five minutes later the door opened again and two goblins entered. One of them was Gornuk, but the other one neither of them had ever seen. His clothing though was able to tell them exactly who he was. Only one goblin was allowed to wear a purpur cloak over a silver armour. And because of him Harry basically jumped up, his companions imitating his action.

“Chieftain Ragnok? It is an honour to meet you, may your enemies fall at your hand and your leadership keep the goblin nation strong.”

Harry bowed, and both Hermione and Emma followed the suit. Then they repeated the whole greeting with Gornuk, before they all took a seat again.

“Lord Potter, you might wonder why I myself am meeting with you today. This has several reasons, the finalisation of the research regarding your titles being only one of them. With the destruction of Tom Riddle’s horcrux you did us a big favour and our magicians were able to create a locator map thanks to the spellwork on the cup. The goblin nation thanks you and gives you that as a gift.”

Harry couldn’t believe it, and neither could Hermione. They now had a magical map of all the horcruxes.

“Look at that, Harry! That one’s in London, that’s the locket in Grimmauld Place. There’s the ring in Little Hangleton, and that one in Wiltshire must be Malfoy Manor and the diary. That leaves the diadem - is that Hogwarts?”

That took them by surprise, they had suspected this, partly because of the meaning Hogwarts had for Riddle, but also because it could explain the DADA curse. But to have proof of it did surprise them. The diadem was at Hogwarts.

“I don’t want to interrupt you at all, Mr. Potter, but if I’m not mistaken you need to get on the Express soon and I don’t have unlimited time either. How about we talk about your titles now?”

That did sound like a good idea, especially because it meant they would change the topic and wouldn’t have to explain how they knew what the horcruxes were. Obviously there weren’t any big surprises in regards to the titles, just a few minutes later he was Lord Ravenclaw. Hufflepuff he was somehow related but there were a few people more eligible. For the House of Black he got the heir ring, since he was related to the family through Henry Potter’s wife being Arcturus Black’s eldest aunt, Sirius was still alive so he couldn’t become Lord in his stead and thanks to being his godson he ranked higher than Draco Malfoy. True, he’d only keep that title until Sirius was free and had a son of his own, but at least the ferret wouldn’t get the title.

Afterwards they briefly discussed the new properties and business shares as well as the gold and artefacts, but it was slowly getting late so Harry asked for permission to summon one of his house-elves for their luggage and use the Gringotts floo to the platform. The chieftain allowed that and because of that, after a formal goodbye, they sat in the Express five minutes later. Emma hadn’t flooed with them since muggles couldn’t get onto nine and three quarters, but she had wished the kids a lot of fun and hugged them before the two had walked into the green flames. 

 

At Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore was pacing in his office. Harry was due to return today. He did not only want to find out where he had been but also hoped that his compulsions would work. Charming a hallow wasn’t easy and basically unheard of. 

He really hoped that the whole thing with the stone would work, it hadn’t been easy to steal it from Nicolas. Obviously he’d return it or tell him some elaborate tale. And if everything failed, hardly anyone would or could resist an obliviation with the elder wand.

 

Ronald Weasley had barely left the mirror chamber, as he called it, only to get some food during mealtimes. He hadn’t slept in days, or even been in his dorm, didn’t bother to change his clothing or even remotely think about school work. The illusions, which at some point became more than a reflection but something like a vision or hallucination, were so captivating. He couldn’t not look at them and spend hours in front of it, dreaming about a life where he was everything he desired to be. Powerful, strong, with a wife and mistresses by his side, obeying him. Taking everything he wanted, just like stupid Potter’s cloak. He’d have quite a portion of his fame but in the end surpass him, rising higher than the damn boy-who-lived. He was a great wizard, a great quidditch player, a magnificent lover, he was successful…

“Ronald! What the hell have you been doing?”

Fred shook his brother, pulling him out of his trance. Both twins were here, holding some sort of parchment and looking horrified. 

“What is it? Did I miss lunch or what?”

“Ron, the holidays are over, term starts tomorrow. I think you should get away from that mirror, whatever it is, it didn’t do you any good.”

“But it showed me the future! Everything I want!”

The twins ignored his complaining and pulled him with them, realising how dangerous the mirror must be. Thank god Harry allowed them to borrow the map, or to be precise in this case Hermione. Otherwise they probably wouldn’t have found Ron here. 

 

Harry and Hermione hadn’t been long at the castle before the twins came up to them and asked for the map since they couldn’t find Ron. Neither of the two really thought about that though and since Harry’s elves had brought their stuff into the dorms, they shared a couch in the common room. Once the twins had brought Ronald up into his bed, they asked what was wrong and, downplaying the whole incident and wanting to keep that secret, said he got lost and was now utterly exhausted. It was only a bit more than half an hour later that Harry and Mione walked up into the boys dorm, because it seemed like one of Mione’s books had landed in his trunk, when they started discovering the truth. 

“Wait a second, Mione. Let me just open my trunk and then I can look for that book, but you’re probably right. I had it last, only plausible that it ended up with my stuff.”

Carefully he began unloading some of the books and other things, sorting through them and placing them next to his bed, when he found a piece of paper lying halfway underneath his bed. He instantly knew what it was - Dumbledore’s note that came with the cloak. But there was no sign of his heirloom anywhere. But then, as he heard Ron silently speaking to the twins, he came to a conclusion and believe it or not, thanks to his fury and anger his head was even more red than Ronald’s hair. 

“RONALD WEASLEY!”

The boy flinched, as did every other person in the room. Harry then held the note up and asked him if he knew what that was. When the redhead shook his head, Harry told him that it was a note which apparently had been attached to a Christmas present of his. As he was the only boy who spent the holiday here, he must know what happened to it.

“No mate, sorry. No idea what that was all about.”

Harry glared at him. It was obvious to him that Ron had the cloak and probably sneaked in front of the mirror every day.

“Well, thanks to some interesting stories about my parents’ time here I know what the present was. An ancient Potter family heirloom, given from father to son for around eight centuries. You better hand it to me now, don’t tell me you didn’t use it for the past weeks. If you give in, we’ll forget the whole thing.”

At that point Neville, being the only (at least everyone believed that) pureblood heir in the room, chimed in and told everyone that stealing family heirlooms was one of the biggest crimes and wizards of all ages could be brought in front of the wizengamot because of that. The rulings were usually very harsh and tended to destroy a family’s reputation. After naming several examples of that, Ron gave in and pulled the cloak from under his mattress. He threw it at Harry and turned around, ashamed. Now the twins got furious and started scolding their younger brother, before they asked Harry for forgiveness, which he gladly gave to their family, but not to Ron as an individual. They thanked him and warned Ronald, before leaving the dorm. Their father would certainly get a letter about that.

 

Just after curfew the two kids met and decided to sneak out of the common room under the cloak. Their original intention was to visit Minnie, but somehow Mione insisted on making a few strange turns before Harry realised she was leading him to the mirror. 

“Damn compulsions! That bloody bastard.”

That exclamation made Mione shake off the effects of the compulsion and now she was raging too. Without further talking they hurried to Minnie’s office as fast as possible before the spell could take a hold over them again. Once they knocked and she opened, they rushed in, closed the door and then pulled down the invisibility cloak, which made Minnie’s facial expression change from confusion to understanding. Once the professor asked what was wrong, Harry started to rant about Dumbledore and Weasley, but since it was not really making any sense, Mione filled her in and Minnie’s response was to rant as well, something along the lines of “old, stupid fool who can’t stop meddling”.

After a while, when all of them were more or less calm again, they discussed what they could do against those charms, when Minerva asked how Dumbles was even able to charm it. Harry had an easy answer for that, dropping that fact as it had been common knowledge.

“With the elder wand obviously.”

For the first few seconds he didn’t even realise the stares he got from the two witches, seemingly upset that he hadn’t told him and how he knew it.

“Oh, I thought we had discussed that. It had been one of the last conclusions I made before Riddle came to Malfoy Manor. He was excited and so I got to see even more of his thoughts as usual. Remember Gregorovitch? Riddle was seeking him out and searched for something. I saw the memory of a young man stealing something from him, as I told you. And then, at Bathilda Bagshot’s I recognised him in the pictures. It was the young Grindelwald. I saw Riddle kill him at Nurmengard and after our visit to Xeno Lovegood it just clicked. Dumbledore took it from him after defeating him. The only plausible scenario. Must have slipped my mind.”

Despite the fact that Mione was somehow upset about him forgetting that and at herself for not reaching that conclusion herself, she hardly showed it. Other things were relevant now, not that. 

“Any chance you can claim the wand as Lord Peverell if we ever go with damage control ?”

“That’s it Mione, you’re brilliant. I’m gonna claim the cloak properly, that might break the charms.”

Now he had to explain even more. It was something both his Dad and Henry had told him about.

 

“Well, Harry, you never properly claimed the cloak. I mean it was yours from birth, just like I gave it to my Fleamont and he to James.”

“Exactly. Gramps is right, Prongslet. If you formally claim it by your birthright and title, it adapts to you and your needs, like size adjustment. At least to some degree. How do you imagine we four marauders managed to sneak out before we could transform? Though that was the biggest the cloak could get, during the later years it didn’t manage all four.”

 

“I, Harry James Potter, the true Lord Potter and Lord Peverell, claim this cloak, this heirloom, as mine by birthright and title.”

The change was obvious, it resized instantly, fitting Harry perfectly as he tried it on. Once Mione sneaked under it, it grew in size so both were hidden perfectly. That info would have been useful last time but old Dumbles probably didn’t want to mention his family and titles. Minnie checked the cloak and so did Mione, both agreeing it was now free of any residual charmwork.

After finishing up with that and after some additional scolding about forgetting to tell them about the elder wand, Minerva shooed them back to their dorms. She herself sent a patronus message to Severus, wanting to keep him updated.

 

Once Harry had claimed the cloak, a levitating crystal ball with whom Dumbledore could monitor the invisibility cloak shattered. The headmaster, still working on his desk on some letters from the board of governors, was startled by that. 

“What the hell was that?”

It took him only mere seconds to realise what had transpired and sighted. He should have expected that ownership transferred via touch and his charms got broken. Well, then he’d have to cast compulsions on the boy whenever he could. As strong and as often as possible. He didn’t care that it was both immoral and illegal, some day the wizarding community would thank him for it. Him, the defeater of Grindelwald and Voldemort…No, that didn’t sound right. The defeater of Grindelwald and the vanquisher of Voldemort, Leader of the Light and Chief Warlock. That didn’t sound too bad, though he could work on the exact phrasing. 

 

From said day on Dumbles cast compulsions at Harry during nearly every meal and on several other occasions. Not only did Harry’s natural and inherited Occlumency skill prohibit those from working, he documented every single one of them. Well, not he, but Minnie and Severus did, creating some more factual proof of the old meddler’s wrongdoings. After whole two weeks of charms they decided - not unanimously though - that it might be wise to just show up in front of the mirror at some point. Hermione didn’t like the idea, but the three others reasoned with her so in the end she agreed. 

And so, one late evening Harry sneaked out of the common room and found his way into the unused classroom he knew would be housing the Mirror of the Erised. To some degree he was interested in seeing what it would show him but on the other hand he really hated that thing.

 

Once Harry was staring at the mirror while being monitored by Minne, Severus and Mione via the map (according to both teachers an impressive magical artefact, and even Snape and to praise the marauders), he instantly felt that pull towards it. What he saw was very different from last time, while he saw his parents, he also saw Sirius and Remus, as well as Minnie and Severus. Next to him, being around seventeen again, was Mione, him holding her hand, while he saw her parents smiling from afar. A future together with her and surrounded by a lot of familiar and friendly faces. 

Then the scenery changed. He saw Riddle fall and Dumbledore being thrown into Azkaban, so magical Britain was safe again. If the old man only knew that his precious boy-who-lived, his weapon, wanted his downfall, he’d probably lose his mind. 

 

“Harry, my boy. I see you found the Mirror of the Erised. I take it you know what it does by now?”

“Oh, headmaster. I didn’t see you there. And yes, I think I know what it does. After all, Erised backwards means desire. I see my parents, I have a family. That’s what I desire.”

Dumbledore was a bit surprised that the boy had understood the concept that fast. But then he nodded and continued to tell Harry he’d better not sneak out with his cloak anymore. If you only knew how hard the headmaster had tried to bring Harry here, that statement was both hilarious and absolutely idiotic. After that they more or less repeated the conversation from last time around, Dumbledore’s reflection in the mirror (surely a lie though), him not needing a cloak to get invisible and the fact that it would be moved now. Nothing truly interesting.

Once Harry was sure he was out of Dumbledore’s sight again he hurried into Minnie’s office, where the three of them were already waiting for his report. The map was still placed on a table, they all standing around it. Dumbles had found his way back into his office and now they were safe again.

The report the young wizard gave was not really interesting, but on the other hand showed how crazy the old meddler truly was. Trying to get Harry in front of the mirror for weeks just to tell him then that he’d move it away and he better not look for it. Interesting on the other hand had been his recount of the true reflection in the mirror. While he first tried to keep the fact quiet that he was with Hermione, definitely not as friends though, in his reflection, she was still able to basically read his mind. Both kids blushed and Severus shook his head while simultaneously being touched by the fact that Lily’s son wanted him in his life. 

Mione and Harry were to some degree still shy and self-conscious when Minnie couldn’t stand that anymore.

“Oh, bloody hell, stop blushing! You both know you’re soulmates, no point in denying any of that. Idiots.”

That had the desired effect, all of them burst out laughing, but after just a few seconds Severus stopped for a moment and asked if that was just a phrasing or if she meant that in a literal sense. The answer that it wasn’t just a saying but serious (not Harry’s godfather, as the boy pointed out, which was followed by groaning because of that stupid name pun), did surprise him briefly, but he had seen stranger and more unlikely things. And, as he pointed out, it made him quite happy that Harry, whose safety he had sworn to protect, had found a perfect love match once they would activate the bond with a kiss. Not one on the cheek or something like that, but a proper one. This would make them basically betrothed and any other contract would get cancelled. Something that neither of them would want to do yet, it would create too many changes in the timeline. The triwiz and Riddle’s rebirth still had to happen so they could kill him once and for all. But before that they would have to find all his horcruxes, including the one in the castle. That would be another exhausting task they would have to do in complete secrecy. 

It wouldn’t be easy, but not impossible either.

Notes:

That's it for today people, hope you liked it.
Let me know in the comments what you think.

See ya all next week :)

Chapter 12: A baby dragon, the forest and the Dark Lord - or: Ronald Weasley being a cowardly idiot

Notes:

Hello everyone,

there you go, have fun reading.

Towards the end of February the next quidditch match was scheduled, this time Gryffindor against the Puffs. Severus had insisted on being the referee himself after the debacle of the last time Harry played seeker in a match. And again, this game was both spectacular and absolutely unspectacular. 

While Malfoy still started a fight with Weasley, this time neither Mione nor Neville took part in it. Another thing was that old Dumbles himself was in attendance, but aside from that nothing happened. Severus did his job as referee not as bad as last time, especially not as biassed. Not that Harry even gave him a chance for that, he once again caught the snitch damn fast, even quicker this time. Setting the record once again had been Harry’s goal, and in that he succeeded. 

Afterwards even the headmaster came up to him, mumbling something about not dwelling on dreams and forgetting the mirror. The old fool really wanted him to think about the mirror, didn’t he? What a manipulative bastard.

 

After that, they all had some peace and quiet, just some simple studying. Both Harry and Hermione were still easily top of the class, surely going to score all outstandings at the end of the year. Unofficially both Minnie and Severus gave them some harder assignments, mainly things from seventh year and masteries. Those were challenging but manageable.

Other than last time around they ignored Ronald's birthday completely, and so did the twins. They were still mad about the stealing of Harry's heirloom, something Ron apparently got heavily scolded for by Arthur while Molly sent a howler to the twins. Harry and Hermione hadn't heard it but she somehow hadn't seen any issues with stealing. Not surprising since she had planned to dose Harry with love potion to get a hold of his fortune by marrying her daughter off to him.

 

Shortly before the Easter holidays Mione again started to prepare for the exams, not that she'd need it but they helped Nev and Daphne. Both were doing very well in class, but obviously not remotely as well as Harry and Mione.

Towards the end of the holidays Harry began to wonder about Hagrid and Norbert(a). He hadn't received a message and they hadn’t seen him in the library grabbing the dragon book. But he would surely have the egg yet. Maybe he should walk down to him at some point and check for himself. But shortly after he no longer had a need for that as Ronald suddenly appeared in class with a huge bite in his hand. They took that as an indication that Norbert had already hatched and right around now there was a baby dragon running around the Hogwarts ground - or to be more precise in Hagrid’s wooden hut. 

And because of that Harry decided to take a walk down to Hagrid’s to check in, the encounter basically going like he had expected.

Hagrid had only opened the door partly to make sure no one could look inside, then getting noticeably relieved once he saw it was Harry. Despite that he didn’t let him in but asked what he was here for. The boy replied with a very direct approach that he wasn’t stupid and knew that Weasley had caught a dragon bite here and that he was utterly insane it keeping the beast here. The half-giant, now letting Harry inside, was surprisingly understanding in regards to the young wizard's anger and told him that said issue was dealt with and on this very evening Ronald's brother Charlie, the dragon handler, would send some people to get the dragon. Ronald and Seamus would sneak up to the Astronomy tower at midnight to deliver Norbert, but he had no idea how they'd do that.

 

Harry was somehow surprised, because Ronald managed to make a more or less valid plan, but he had no idea how they'd get there unnoticed. Ron couldn't count on the cloak, though Harry considered the possibility that he might try to steal it from him. That wouldn't be happening thanks to his father's trunk, that one was very heavily protected. Either way, if it would go completely south, old Dumbles would probably redeem his little minion Ronald. So, no need to worry, though he might keep an eye out for himself. Something he'd have to discuss with Minnie and Mione first though.

 

Minerva McGonagall was absolutely furious. Once Harry had told her that Hagrid had hatched a dragon in his hut, she totally lost it. After nearly ten minutes of ranting about Dumbledore and his half-giant, she finally calmed down and promised Harry to look the other way that night with Ronald and Seamus if he would follow them underneath his cloak. This way they could all avoid the damn forest detention.

 

Draco Malfoy was not sure what else he could do now. After having seen the weasel and that other lion idiot who tended to blow things up with the baby dragon, he ran straight to his head of house, just to have him laugh about that tale. Maybe it had something to do with disturbing him during a complicated brew, but Draco had to admit, his tale did sound like something made-up. And because of that Snape said he wouldn't keep watch that night, he already had had enough midnight patrols that week. 

Now Draco was thinking to whom he could go now. Quirrell was an idiot, that much was clear. And as a son of a Death Eater, DADA professors would probably not really like him. Sprout was too nice and harmless to give real detentions and the goblin wouldn't believe him either way. But…

He knocked on an office door, waiting to be called in. Once that happened, he approached the professor.

“Professor Sinistra, I came to tell you something that might interest you…”

 

Ronald Weasley was pacing in the dorms. Why had he agreed - no, suggested - to do that? Hagrid sometimes was a bit crazy, that he already knew from his brothers, but hatching a dragon? Truly insane. And now he would have to bring the creature on top of the astronomy tower at midnight to get rid of it. Maybe he could “borrow” Potter's cloak for that. Since no one else was here currently he took the opportunity and sneaked to the boy's trunk. It was one of the finest quality, with the initials JFP in golden letters on the side. Probably Harry's father. Not that it mattered.

Once he touched the leather and attempted to open it up, he heard the magic resonating under his touch. But since he was absolutely unfamiliar with something like that he ignored the warning and continued, with that provoking the defense mechanisms to kick in.

Usually trunks like that one shocked the attempting thief and copied his magical signature for identification but this was after all a marauder's trunk and James Potter had been fantastic in transfiguration. And because of that Ronald Weasley found himself now with a set of donkey ears and a gigantic foxtail. And as if that wouldn't be bad enough, he now had a red glowing nose. Damn Potter.

Even though he had hoped that, he wasn't able to hurry through the common room unnoticed. And out of all people, it had to be the twins. Laughing, they decided to escort him to the hospital wing while trying to find out what had happened. Him not saying that though made the twins very eager to find out who was able to do such great prank transfigurations. In the end it was Madame Pomfrey, who gave them a hint.

"Mr. Weasley? What happened to you? Haven't seen something like that since the marauders were at Hogwarts. The glowing nose was basically a signature of James Potter, while the animal transfiguration was repeatedly archived by him and Black together. Oh, I remember that time that little Severus…”

Now she realised that she was telling tales of one of her fellow staff members and decided to focus on reversing the spells while being quiet. 

 

Nearly half an hour later Ronald Weasley was again able to leave the hospital wing, returned to his normal state, and thanks to one of the older snakes coming in after a brawl with that McLaggen bloke, half the school knew about the incident. Nearly everyone now started wondering what had transpired and which brilliant wizard or witch had done that. Even though he didn’t show it, Potter had sure as hell realised it and decided to keep the whole thing quiet since he hadn’t managed to steal anything.

Since the theft of the invisibility cloak hadn’t worked, both Ronald and Seamus had decided to continue with their plan either way. Once it was close to midnight, both boys got up, sneaking silently out of the dorm. All their roommates had their curtains closed and were sleeping, so they were good to go. The common room itself was dark and empty too, just the fireplace glowing softly. Yes, the fat lady did complain about them leaving but she was magically bound - since Godric’s times - to not tell anyone else. Now they made their way down to one of the exits, where Hagrid had promised to meet them and hand over his dragon.

 

“Hey Hagrid! Are you ready to hand over the beas…uhm…Norbert?”

Seamus didn’t really know why he agreed to do that, but he had to admit that he liked the friendly giant. And to be honest, fire was kind of his thing, so the possibility of seeing a real baby dragon… The plan was reckless, but absolutely worth it.

Hagrid then handed Norbert over, caged in a wooden crate. Ronald tried to grab it and then the fun really began - if you could call it fun. The damn thing was heavy but Seamus managed to lift it up with a wingardium leviosa, how he didn't know. Ronald helped to carry it and then off then went. They had to sneak through several floors with each having professors or prefects making their rounds, but somehow they managed it. Once there was a pretty close call when Percy appeared out of nowhere and they abruptly stopped, hiding behind a corner and fearing the worst, but then one of the Ravenclaw prefects - Ronald was sure her name was Patricia…no, Penelope - appeared. Her and Percy then started snogging while trying to find a secluded corner themselves. As soon as they were out of sight again, their trip up to the Astronomy tower continued.

 

Professor Aurora Sinistra hurried up to her tower. One of her first years, the little blonde Slytherin and Lord Malfoy’s son, had told her that two fellow firsties were planning on sneaking up to the Astronomy tower to get some sort of a delivery done, he hadn’t been able to tell her precisely. Yes, she knew that some of the higher years used the tower to snog or make out, but that was something entirely different.

Once she had reached the top of the tower, she ran into two Gryffindor students, one of them being a Weasley, the other one being that boy who had a tendency to blow things up. That couldn’t be a good combination.

“Weasley, Finnegan! Out of bed and on my tower. That’s detention and fifty points from Gryffindor for both of you. I’m sure Hagrid won’t mind some help for his duties, he recently mentioned that to the professors. Seems like a good idea for you.”

Now she was able to hear a laugh behind her, rather quiet but definitely there. It took her only very few seconds and a silently cast homenum revelio to find Draco Malfoy hiding behind a corner. He had apparently followed her to have a laugh at Weasley’s and Finnegan’s situation, but he had not expected that simply because of that he would get the same punishment as them.

 

What neither of them had known was that Harry was hidden up here too, but under his cloak and by that not noticeable with a mere homenum revelio. He had been the one to lift up the crate because Seamus had been too weak. Now that Charlie's friends had arrived, taken the dragon and left he had hoped it was all over.

But no. He had to admit, that was not something he had expected. Malfoy had tried to rat the other lions out, but somehow he did pick Sinistra this time while getting punished himself too. So now all three of them, Seamus, Ron and Malfoy would have detention with Hagrid, probably in the forest too. Thank god that last time said detention was about two weeks later so if things followed the timeline they would have enough time to prepare themselves for said night and keep the other kids safe from the Dark Lord in the forest.

 

“The forest? The stupid giant is actually taking three students into the forest during nighttime and old Dumbles allowes that. What the hell is going wrong in this castle?”

To say that Severus Snape was livid would have been an enormous understatement, just like calling Hermione smart. Once Harry told him that they’d probably run into old Voldy drinking unicorn blood he nearly ran off to Avada the headmaster, just being held back by Minnie’s full body bind spell. After over half an hour of screaming and shouting about old Dumbles’ idiocy they started devising a plan, meaning the two professors would try to excuse themselves in the evening and trail the detention group while Harry and Mione would follow under the cloak. As much as they hated Ronald Weasley, a dead redhead would probably tear the timeline apart.

 

And just like they had planned, it happened. Yes, Snape had tried to veto the whole detention, arguing as Draco's godfather, but the headmaster had assured him that Hagrid had his complete trust and there was no need to worry at all. They had decided that Minnie wouldn't assist him in arguing because that those two were in agreement was a rare occurrence and a bit too obvious. Still, she at least told Dumbledore later on that she was unhappy too but trusted his judgement (not really, but he didn't have to know that).

After dinner on the day of the detention Snape stormed off saying something about having to supervise a potion while Minne excused herself twenty minutes later to correct some essays. No one paid any special attention to that, neither teacher nor student. The latter were all focussed on Weasley, Finnegan and Malfoy complaining about their detention. The little ferret continuously spouted his “ my father will hear about that” and his other usual nonsense. Harry didn't know how they found out about the nature of the detention, they only found out much later, once they'd met with Hagrid.

 

Later that evening it was time for the detention and the three met with Hagrid and Fang, then walking down to the Forbidden Forest. Severus was already waiting in the area where Harry said that the dead unicorn should appear but that he under no circumstances should face the Dark Lord. It’s not like he liked the idea but accepted it. Minnie on the other hand followed the students disillusioned and Harry and Mione were under the cloak. 

 

It was like the universe was purposefully messing with Ronald Weasley. Not only did they only have this detention because of Hagrid, no, he was partnered with Malfoy and Hagrid’s stupid dog. Well, but maybe something would attack them and kill the blonde, he wouldn’t really mind that. He’d even like that. Something that could kill unicorns could certainly kill stupid blondes too. 

It wasn’t that long after splitting up that the odd duo saw something in the distance. It was a light.

“Look, Weasel, that’s gonna be the fat giant. Maybe he has found something and we can end that whole thing here.”

They started walking towards the light, but then they suddenly realised that they were wrong. It was not Hagrid at all, but rather someone, a dark, hooded figure standing over the white shining body of a unicorn. The being, because “person” was certainly not the right word, appeared to drink the beautiful animal’s blood. 

Harry saw him too, standing not far away from the clearing with the unicorn. He felt the disillusionment charm by Snape not far away, knowing that he was watching as well. Minnie had decided that the three of them would be enough and she kept an eye out on Seamus, not really trusting Hagrid with one of her lions. 

All three of them had their wands out, ready to intervene, but then Ronald started screaming in panic. Draco had at least some brains and sent out the red sparks for Hagrid before running away like the little Gryffindor. The startled creature - Lord Voldemort’s wraith - took off just as quickly as the two students, rendering any intervention by the two students and the former Death Eater redundant. But what was now happening was very different from last time. 

Harry had expected that one of the centaurs, probably Firenze, would show up again to save the students though deep down he still believed that he had only done it the last time to influence the faith of him and Voldemort. Centaurs and their eternal stargazing. He’d probably never understand it. But no, none of the centaurs did so.

Firenze showed up either way though, walked towards the unicorn, looked at it and then spoke loudly.

“I know that you’re there, Mr Potter. The stars are reversed once again, but this time more differently. You know it, you know everything. Your fate is a very interesting one. I’m looking forward to seeing how it ends this time.”

And then he just walked away. 

“Crazy fellow, but somehow I think he knows way more than anyone else. But come on, now let’s have a look at Ronald and Malfoy and see if they found their way back to Hagrid.”

After a while of walking through the forest the three of them found all the students and Hagrid again, seemingly rather well. They officially ended the detention and walked up to the castle, accompanied by the half-giant. And once they were gone, both Minne and Severus dropped their disillusionment chams, while Harry pulled the cloak down from both him and his friend. The first thing the young boy realised was that the transfiguration professor was absolutely furious. Hagrid had used most of the detention to chat with Seamus and his overall careless attitude towards student safety didn’t really make Minnie like and trust him. Visiting the forest with three first years at night and looking for a beast that kills unicorns was not really what the usual detention was all about. She would certainly voice a complaint to the headmaster. 

 

And exactly that was what she did the next day. Minnie walked up to Albus’ office and demanded an audience. He had no idea what that was all about and so he let her in, asking her what the issue might be.

“Oh, come on Albus. We both know what that’s all about. Yesterday’s detention with Hagrid was a disaster and extremely dangerous. They encountered something in the forest that could have killed them and Hagrid had even left Mr Malfoy and Mr Weasley alone with his dog, hunting something that kills unicorns. First of all, the forest is a no-go, even for detentions, second of all Hagrid is obviously not qualified for detentions and lastly if something is killing unicorns then inform the department for magical creatures.”

Albus shook his head and argued that he didn’t even know if there was actually something killing unicorns or if Hagrid was imagining that and that he trusted the giant to keep his students safe. Lastly he told her that he had heard the story about the detention from Mr Weasley and that he had painted a very different picture of the detention. 

“Well, if Mr Weasley says that…Mr Malfoy tells a very different story. Severus assures me that they’ve been attacked by some kind of creature that had killed a unicorn. Doesn’t matter if that’s true or not, I’m sure that Lucius Malfoy is going to complain about you.”

And once again, Dumbledore gave her his usual grandfatherly smile which basically meant that he had now ended the meeting with not wanting to give her an answer to her last statement. Nothing new. 

 

Harry and Hermione had expected a great aftermath, but that didn’t really happen at all. Ronald continued to brag about his bravery (yes, he truly did that despite him cowardly running away) and Malfoy was more upset and mad then ever, always threatening with his father’s retribution. In addition to that everyone (well, not really, but those who wanted to achieve good grades at school at least) were slowly starting to panic. The detention had taken place on Tuesday evening and from Monday on they were going to have exams the whole week, finishing with the History of Magic exam on Thursday, the day Quirrell was going to attempt stealing the stone. Or at least that’s what he had done last time. That basically meant they now had to finish their studies (yes, they were both skilled and had already done those exams last time, but Hermione was Hermione after all) and in addition to that come up with a plan to defeat the Dark Lord on Quirrell’s head without destroying the timeline. 

That would be fun.

Notes:

That's it, a bit shorter than usual, but the whole Norbert incident was the last thing I had to write about before we can go on with the stone.

Hope you liked it and that we'll see each other again next week when the end of first year is coming closer and closer.
Looking forward to your comments and see ya next week

Chapter 13: The stone

Notes:

Hello everyone.
Here we go, the first year is slowly coming to an end. Do our heroes manage to resolve the whole situation without destroying the timeline? We'll see.

Thank you all for the continuous support with all your reviews. That is really quite the motivation :)

Finally, the week they’ve all been dreading has come. For most students it was the week of the finals, but for Harry and Hermione it was the week where Quirrell would attempt to steal the stone. In between their study group with Neville, Daphne, Tracey and the Patil twins they planned the whole thing out. With Minnie’s assistance they learned a spell to bypass the chess set, some backdoor she had built in, Severus’ logic puzzle was not an issue at all. The rest was not difficult either, they’d just have to wait until Dumbles was lured away after the History of Magic exam.

But before that it was exam time.

They all started out with transfiguration, which was no big deal after all. Minnie had to grin all the time when she examined their skill, knowing they would get the perfect score despite her testing way harder than usual. DADA was quite literally a joke and any other class was barely a challenge. Not even the Forgetfulness potion he had struggled with last time, there he was quite certain to score an O (yes, he’d probably do that in all of them, but it was potions, formerly his least favourite subject)

Even Neville, with whom they spent most of their time outside of classes, told them that he was pretty certain he did quite well, both in the practicals and the theoreticals. Daphne, who got herself the reputation of being an emotionless, cold pureblood princess in Slytherin house but was quite comfortable with all of them, was quite certain of her success as well. Both the heir Longbottom and the heiress Greengrass had grown a bit closer over the past year and were excelling at school. Most of Gryffindor house was not that happy about Neville getting close to a snake, like they put it, but he didn’t care. And besides, the whole group of Harry, Mione, Nev and Daphne were friends with students from most houses. Yes, mainly the pureblood heirs, but not only them. 

The main reason for that was that Nev and Daphne had basically grown up with most of them or at least had met at many social gatherings. Well, mainly Daphne because Augusta Longbottom had cut most ties with the outside world after the attack on her son and daughter-in-law. Nev had mostly met sons from old light-sided families, otherwise he would have known Daphne beforehand. But combined both of them knew basically all the future Lords and Ladys, which Harry used for his benefit. Yes, he made several friendships with other students as well, but he had to work calculating. It would help him to form magical Britain that way that all the prejudice and bigotry would be gone, so no Dark Lord could ever rise again. But before that he would have to deal with a very certain Dark Lord - and with Voldemort too. 

He laughed quietly at that thought. The prophecy never stated that it was Riddle, and the way Dumbledore had acted, it might as well be him, at least in this very timeline. 

Either way, no matter about whom the prophecy was talking, he would have to deal with both eventually. Sometimes he asked himself why fate was hating him so much that he would have to deal with so many evils - and that in several lifetimes. 

 

And then it was finally Thursday. 

The morning started with Minnie telling all the first years at breakfast where they would write the History of Magic exam, afterwards walking up to Harry and then, under a discreetly cast Muffliato informing him that old Dumbles had left the school, heading for London. He nodded, understanding what she was saying. They hadn’t ruined the timeline and so Quirrell was having a try at stealing the stone today. Just like they had expected.

 

History of Magic had been a rather easy though exhausting exam. The material that was taught in class by Binns was more than boring and very prejudiced in regards to goblins. They didn’t even talk about Grindelwald or Voldemort, just the good old goblin wars. But he had studied that material thoroughly so he managed to write the whole exam in basically half the time. 

 

At lunch Harry wanted to take a bite from some treacle tart, but his hand started to shake. Neville, Mione and Daphne (who had joined them at the Gryffindor table today) all looked up, when the young Greengrass heiress spoke up.

“Harry, are you wearing a Lord ring? I know that from my father, it’s the warning mechanism for hidden potions and that reaction looks way too strong to just be the Heir ring. Someone tried to sneak something into your food.” 

Yes, Harry had recognised the warning mechanisms, but he hadn’t expected someone else to see or even understand that. While Mione instantly started checking that food with potion detection spells, he carefully looked around, checking that no one was listening, then put up a Muffliato and a notice-me-not. Finally, he let the rings appear on his hand and without hesitating, Daphne grabbed said hand and stared at every single ring.

“What in… That one’s Potter, that’s obvious. This should be the Peverell crest. I think someone married into the Potter family at some point. You’ve got to be joking! Slytherin, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw? How? And that…”

She burst out laughing once she saw the Heir Black ring, which had to be explained by her. Most of Draco Malfoy’s reputation and position in Slytherin house came from him claiming to become the next Lord Black once he’d reach his maturity. Combined with being the sole heir to the House of Malfoy he was certainly a good catch - at least to those who valued money and title above looks and character.

“Damn it, that’s certainly one of Dumbledore’s. A compulsion potion. I can imagine what it’s supposed to do.”

Mione interrupted their discussion as soon as she was able to decipher the detection spells she had cast. Now that she saw the two confused looks on both Neville’s and Daphne’s faces she silently scolded herself for blurting that out without thinking. While she was still thinking about what to do, Harry intervened with telling them some part of the truth.

“Well, Dumbledore wants me to face Voldemort because we’re destined to fight to our deaths and he is trying to be the puppet master of my whole life. Thanks to Minnie - Professor McGonagall I’m escaping his manipulations though we do have to play along a bit so he doesn’t get suspicious. He’s hiding the philosopher’s stone here which Voldemort needs to gain a body once more. And now that the old man is gone for the day, he’s creating the opportunity for Voldemort’s servant to steal it.”

To Neville, not much of that was new, since his grandmother did tell him quite a bit and he knew all along about the headmaster’s intentions, since that day they all met in Diagon Alley. Daphne was a little bit more surprised, but to be honest, her parents were not allied with the light side and they had repeatedly told her that Dumbledore was a master manipulator.

Another person coming up to them interrupted all their thinking.

“Mr Potter.”

Snape hesitated because there were two other students, both of which had nothing to do with the whole thing, sitting with Harry and Hermione. While considering his options Harry responded to him in a way no one could understand what precisely they were talking about.

“I assume he is on his way now? Then we’ll give him twenty minutes and then we’re good to go. Thank you, professor.”

Snape nodded and hurried away, not wanting to spend so much time at the Gryffindor table talking to Harry. That could possibly blow his cover, both with the Dark Lord and the headmaster.

 

After the twenty minutes were over and most of the students were already outside because of the nice weather, Harry and Hermione wanted to get going, but neither Neville nor Daphne was willing to let them go without them. After minutes of hefty debating they gave in, especially because they didn’t want to give Quirrell even more time alone.

“Good, then you come with us, but stay behind and do as we say.”

Both nodded and then the four made their way up to the forbidden corridor on the third floor. They had to admit, neither Nev nor Daphne showed any fear but trusted them, despite the fact that they right now went to the place which Dumbledore had named off-limits because it was dangerous. After entering the corridor, Harry advised them to be quiet before Mione made a step forward and used a melody charm to make Fluffy fall asleep. That particular charm was not usually taught but Mione had read about it sometime during their sixth year and obviously she still remembered it. The big cerberus responded nearly instantly to the music and collapsed loudly on the floor, which was kind of what they wanted to achieve, but he also blocked the trapdoor. That meant that they now needed a strong Wingardium Leviosa, which Harry gladly provided.

Despite having said that Nev and Daphne should stay behind them, the little Heir Longbottom insisted on jumping down first. He didn’t know what was down there but still. Harry had to admit, he liked this Neville way more than last time’s. 

 

“Devil’s snare? Why would anyone try building an obstacle with that? It’s damn dangerous, so everyone who would try to get past it would get killed or would know how to disable it. In a school! I would call that negligent. Lumos!”

Nev’s Lumos was not strong enough to completely disable the plant, but at least it stopped throttling them. Mione then cast a Lumos Maxima, while Harry and Daphne both went for the bluebell flames. That finally defeated the plant and now, free again, they followed the path through the stone passageway until they reached the room with the flying keys. 

It didn’t take Harry, the trained and experienced seeker that he was, to spot the correct key flying around and point at it. 

“There, it has to be that one. I’ll go and get it.”

Everyone was stunned how he always managed that, just like with spotting the snitch. For spectators it always seemed like he just randomly flew around until he found and caught it, but no. He had a natural talent for that.

It didn’t take him more than a minute to catch it and land gracefully, so that they could open up the door and end up in the room with Minnie’s giant chess set.

“Oh damn, I hate chess!”

Daphne just couldn’t hold back that exclamation, which made everyone laugh, but then Mione reassured her that they wouldn’t have to. She explained that Professor McGonagall had created that and she had also told the two of them her backdoor to deactivate it. Mione went to the rook on the left side, placed her one hand on him and with her other hand she began to make intricate wand movements. After around twenty seconds she finished with a quietly and calmly spoken Finite, which made all the chess pieces disappear until the next person would enter and reset the board. Now they could go on and enter the next room.

Harry knew what was laying ahead and prepared himself to cast a bubble-head charm, but Daphne was faster. 

“Florate fragantia!”

It was a spell that only Hermione had ever heard of, but she herself had to admit that it hadn’t crossed her mind to use it against the smell of the freshly dead troll.

“Smart, Daphne. How do you know that charm?”

The blonde girl blushed.

“Well, it is something my mother used to do when I was younger. I loved the smell of flowers even back then and I could sleep way better. I taught it myself from memory and an advanced book once I got here. Our common room smells way too much like mould and the sea’s water.”

Mione smiled. Seems like she wasn’t the only smart and talented witch in their year, she had just never bothered to look beneath the surface of many, many fellow students.

 

Next up was - finally - the potions room. Upon entering black flames lit up in the passageways behind and before them. The only thing inside the room was a table with seven potion bottles next to each other and a piece of parchment laying in front of it. Before Mione could go ahead with solving it, Daphne hurried forward and grabbed the parchment, beginning to read the riddle out aloud,

“Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,

Two of us will help you, whichever you would find,

One among us seven will let you move ahead,

Another will transport the drinker back instead,

Two among our number hold only nettle wine,

Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in line.

Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,

To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:

First, however slyly the poison tries to hide

You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;

Second, different are those who stand at either end,

But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;

Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,

Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;

Fourth, the second left and the second on the right

Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight.”

 

Neville, that much was clear, was clueless, but Daphne was already working on solving it. Mione had to admit, the girl was very clever and had something most wizards lacked: logic. Otherwise they all would have seen how old Dumbles was playing them.

It took the Slytherin witch a while, but eventually she got there and picked the smallest bottle, handing it to Harry, who smiled in return. Neville was both excited and surprised, pulling Daphne into a hug, before they started to think about how to proceed. Thankfully, Harry and Hermione already had a plan for that, adapting it to the changed circumstances.

“So, I learned the Doubling charm and I think I can duplicate the potion. I guess the smartest thing to do is that I duplicate the potion for the way back for you two and the one to go on for us. Grab two of the brooms from the key room and inform McGonagall and Snape that everything is going according to our plan. No, don’t even start to argue, I don’t want you to face Voldemort.”

Mione made quite clear that there was no way she would change her mind and handed both kids the right potion, hugging them briefly before going ahead through the flames with Harry.

 

“Mr Potter! And…how are you here, Miss Granger? Well, it doesn’t matter. Good to see that you are finally joining us.”

“Quirrell! Oh believe me, there is no way I’m gonna help you get the stone for Voldemort.”

The man flinched, being surprised at Harry’s lack of surprise, his knowledge about his plans and the fact that he dared saying the Dark Lord’s name. With a flick of his wand he entrapped both kids in ropes of an incarcerous spell. Then he summoned both their wands, tossing them in some distant corner of the room. Then the strange dialogue between Quirrell and the Dark Lord began, just like last time Riddle wanted to talk to Harry but the professor thought it wouldn’t be a good idea. Still, Dark Lords had the tendency to get what they wanted and so Quirrell took off his turban, and turned around, revealing Riddle’s face on the back of his head. 

“Harry Potter…”

Harry grinned and replied with ease.

“Hey Tom, long time no see.”

Lord Voldemort, usually never showing any of his fears, was startled for a fraction of a second, but then just snarled.

“Don’t you dare, Potter! I don’t know how you know that name, but you’ll tell me once I’ve got that stone. Quirinius, let the boy look into the mirror.”

And the Dark Lord’s servant bowed and fulfilled his master’s wishes. Harry was still bound by ropes but had gotten a hold of his backup wandd while being levitated in front of the mirror. Once again - Dumbledore must have charmed the mirror so only Harry could get it out, since he had definitely no desire to get a hold of it - the stone appeared in his pocket while he told Tom a lie about what he saw. Without really paying attention he wondered how the old meddler had managed to bewitch the mirror - an ancient artefact - to not show him his desires anymore. A beautiful piece of magic, that he had to admit, even if it used him as bait for Riddle. Now he had the stone, the one thing the Dark Lord needed and wanted. That meant that it was time to drop the act and initiate their attack on Tom.

Voldemort was still watching Harry, not believing him what story he was telling him, but before the Dark Lord could tell Quirrell to send a Cruciatus in the girl’s direction for motivation, Harry’s posture changed. He seemed - confident. How could that little first year appear so confident?

 

Harry, despite being by now able to utilise some wandless magic, used his second wand, which was always charmed invisible on his side, to lift the incarcerous spell. The ropes dropped and with a flick of his wand he sent a stunner towards Quirrell. Sure, he was able to block the spell, but it had only been a distraction to free Mione and summon their wands. Which actually had worked. 

What followed now was probably the least impressive duel in the history of magic, with maybe the exception of Lockhart against Snape. Well, Quirrell was at least able to throw some spells at Harry, but he really was a timid and weak man. Tom himself couldn’t intervene since he was too weak to take over the body. That meant that Harry and Mione threw some mild curses to neutralise but not maim Quirrell. That would be hard  to explain.  

After a leg locker combined with a banishing charm slamming Quirrell into a wall, Mione summoned his wand while Harry walked up to him. They had thoroughly discussed what they would do with Quirrell and had come to the conclusion that he was more or less dead already, or he at least would be when Harry would banish the Dark Lord out of him. That meant Harry wouldn’t have to feel bad for evoking his mother’s protection. 

Riddle was screaming, not yet out of pain but anger. That would change though, since Harry Potter was now coming up to him, planting both his hands on Quirrell’s head.

Pain.

Terrible pain.

That was the only thing he was able to feel while the skin of his weak little vessel began burning. He knew that this body wouldn’t be able to contain him any longer so he did the only smart thing.

He left. 

The leech, that Tom Riddle currently was, headed out of the castle, leaving Quirrell to die, making his way further south hoping to find one of his servants to bring him back. That was certainly not the last they had seen of the powerful Lord Voldemort.

 

In the small chamber, Harry and Hermione were now standing next to a burnt body, hugging and being relieved that it was all over. Now they had to hurry, because Dumbledore would probably arrive every second now, surely monitoring his enchantment on the mirror or something like that. Didn’t matter how, but he probably knew that the stone was now no longer inside the mirror and he was on his way. 

Simply because he didn’t want to take any chances with Riddle trying to steal it again, Harry smashed the stone on the floor, just in time. Because only a few seconds after that the flames in the passageway collapsed and Dumbledore, Minnie and Severus were hurrying into the room.

“Mr Potter… and Miss Granger. Are you alright?”

“Headmaster! Yes, now we are. It was Quirrell, he wanted to steal the stone and we just couldn’t let that happen. He would have brought Voldemort back.”

Severus had to grin, the kids were playing their roles pretty good. A while after Harry and his friends had disappeared, Neville and Daphne had returned. He wasn’t really happy with them being involved but it was quite clear that those two were stubborn. Just moments later Dumbledore apparated into the castle, one of the perks of being headmaster. He fed them some lie of realising halfway to London that Fudge, who was asking for him, was currently at a convention of the ICW in Norway and so the whole thing must be a trick to get him out of Hogwarts. All hogwash if you’d ask Severus. 

Either way, the three of them then hurried down into the chamber with the stone in it, only to see Quirrell dead and both Harry and Hermione alive and well. While Harry told what had transpired here, though most of it was probably a lie, Minnie rushed to Hermione and acted like she had to comfort her. Obviously, that girl has had worse than that and was presumably tougher than many wizards, for the old meddler she was still only a muggleborn first year, confused and clueless. 

After some basic explanations of Lily’s sacrifice and the reassurance that the destruction of the stone was no big deal, they were all escorted back up through a hidden passage that opened when Dumbles touched a certain spot on the wall. They all ended up behind a painting of Merlin near the grand staircase, then the kids were all shooed to the hospital wing since they did just face the Dark Lord and killed his vessel.

 

Obviously both of them were sent back to their dorms pretty quickly since they had not sustained any injury at all, well, excluding the bit of bruising thanks to the incarcerous. The whole school was talking about Quirrell’s disappearance, though no one knew he died, excluding Nev and Daphne. But to be honest, that topic of discussion got boring pretty fast since the exams were already done and no one really missed the professor. He hadn’t been that good a teacher and was pretty secretive. 

Instead, everyone started talking about the upcoming quidditch match between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, because the lions were top candidates for the cup, especially thanks to Harry. He, though no one knew it, was very very eager to win said game since last time he had missed it and because of that they lost. Not this time.

 

And Harry was right. It was a long game, yes, but in the end their chaser line was damn strong. Especially Katie, also playing her first season this year, delivered quite strong. The lions were already ninety points ahead, before Harry spotted the snitch near the Ravenclaw chaser, a sixth year whose name he honestly didn’t remember. But instead of racing towards him he tried to outplay him with a Wronski Feint, the move he had copied off from Victor Krum at the world cup. He could basically feel Mione panicking though he didn’t even see her during his nosedive. She never liked it when he pulled manoeuvres like that, but he still did it, because he was skilled enough and it tended to work. Just like this time. 

The Ravenclaw seeker, flying on a Nimbus 2000 just like Harry, spectacularly crashed into the ground, giving Harry the time to pull up and hunt the little golden ball, which he easily caught, ending the game with a lead of two hundred and forty points, hereby easily securing the quidditch cup. 

Madame Hooch handed the cup to Oliver Wood once all the players had landed, who then instantly gave it to Harry. After some cheering Harry then continued to hand it over, this time to a brightly smiling Minerva McGonagall. All of Gryffindor house then made their way into the common room to celebrate properly. Believe it or not, they wanted to carry Harry all the way, but the boy denied that, claiming that he had to finish something before he joined. 

Truth be told, he just wanted some peace and quiet, sitting next to Mione and thinking about how much better their school year was without any gigantic changes. The result was still the same so they hoped all was still on track.

But what they couldn’t deny after all was that things had changed. Not only the whole situation with Ronald Weasley, no, so much more. They realised that all over again when Severus came over to them once the crowd was gone, congratulating Harry for the win and admitting that he had inherited some of his father’s talents. Not even Snape could deny that James had been quite skilled in a variety of things, despite all the bullying and pranking.

But Snape wouldn’t be Snape if he didn’t point out that Harry had - luckily - inherited more of his mother’s talents. A statement which made the young boy smile, not only because it was something nice to hear, but also because it was a symbol for all the changes they had made under the radar of the old meddler.

Notes:

That's it for today, hope you liked it.

Always looking forward to your reviews. See ya all next week

Chapter 14: The end of first year

Notes:

Finally we reached the end of first year. What an achievement, I still can't believe it.
Your support is still overwhelming, a big thanks to you all.

So far I have planned out the story until the end of second year, so don't worry, updates should come on a weekly basis.

Now have fun with the chapter.

Neither Harry nor Hermione had any idea how that had happened. It was basically the end of term. Their first year at Hogwarts was coming to an end and there wasn’t much left on their agenda. The end-of-year feast, which would see Gryffindor winning the cup with nearly an absolute certainty as well as the exam results coming out were the last things happening this school year. Classes were over and they all enjoyed their free time, mostly outside around the lake as the weather was pretty good. 

Well, not everyone did that. 

As one might expect, the two time-travelling first years used the opportunity and spent their time mainly in the library or the Room of Requirement. Even though the library of Potter Manor was incredible, the restricted section at the castle still topped that, at least in most areas. With either Minnie or Severus (yes, he had by now insisted on a first name basis since they were no ordinary students but practically adults and war veterans) giving them access or using the cloak they quickly advanced in several magical fields. After Mione got the basics of Occlumency (Harry was a natural after all, he had no need for that) and both had improved their word- and wandless casting, they continued with some elemental magic and warding, topics that were hardly taught at school anymore.

 

On the evening of the end-of-term feast, the great hall was already decorated in red and gold, different from last time. Because of that, Dumbbells didn’t even hand out points for their success against Quirrell, though Slytherin would have secured second place with those points, being only ten points behind the claws. Yes, people tended to call Severus biassed, but the headmaster wasn’t any different. His speech was very unspectacular, barely mentioning Quirrell at all and not acknowledging what the group of four first years had achieved. 

Minerva McGonagall was happy. Well, no she wasn’t but acted that way. Deep down inside she was angry and upset. The past year had shown her the truth about many things and yet she had barely managed to make anything better. Sure, she couldn’t because they were trying to give Voldemort his resurrection so they could eliminate him once and for all, but that hardly made her feel less upset and bad. 

Yes, securing both the Quidditch cup and the House cup was nice, but there were other things at stake here. Thankfully she had at least Severus with whom she could rant about everything at any time. Both of them had to admit that they’ve grown closer since Harry Potter had started at Hogwarts, before the transfiguration teacher had disliked the former death eater very much. Now she understood what was driving him. They had a common goal.

 

It was just a few days later when all the students (except fifth years who’d get their owl results during the holidays) were called in by their head of house, starting with the first years directly after breakfast. Yes, that was maybe not the most ideal order, since the seventh years had to wait the longest to know if they managed their NEWTs but it had always been that way and Dumbledore didn’t even properly listen to any complaints about that. 

Not really surprising, all of the first years had managed to advance to second year. Hardly anyone failed that badly to have to repeat a year, and if, then Dumbledore did like to intervene. Bad for the image, he tended to say.

Yes, some students barely managed to get passable scores like Ronald or Draco’s two little goons. The ferret himself was a different story, because he was actually rather good at school and started to boast of “being the best student of their year”. Unfortunately, Harry and Hermione were by now so close with Severus that they got him to shake his head after they threw a questioning glance at him, signifying that Malfoy wasn’t as good as them.

“Really, Malfoy? You managed to score top of the year? I highly doubt that.”

Harry just had to do this. Both of them, with Neville close behind, walked up to the Slytherin table and Harry showed Draco his exam results, he even handed them to anyone who wanted to know. Within seconds the snakes started murmuring, because there was no chance that Malfoy would have scored all Os too, making him a liar. 

What made the situation even better was that Mione showed her results too, the same scores as Harry. Last but not least Neville came forward and asked Malfoy if he had at least outscored him, with Os in all but Astronomy and History of Magic, where he had Es. Funnily, that made Daphne get up and join in, embarrassing the young Heir Malfoy as she had scored the same as Neville (might have been because they had studied together).

Eventually, one of the older snakes simply grabbed Malfoy’s results as he was by now the laughingstock of Slytherin house. Unsurprisingly, Draco scored less than even Neville and Daphne. He wasn’t bad at all, but simply not that good either. Now the ferret blushed even more, realising that by now he was totally losing his standing in Slytherin house.

 

After said incident, nothing remarkable happened until their last day at school. Harry and Hermione had discussed it very thoroughly, at first not sure if it was wise but then coming to the conclusion that it would be the smartest move.

They knocked on Professor Snape’s private office door.

He opened, looking surprised and inviting them in. After they were all seated and had a cup of tea each, Harry started talking after asking Severus to let him finish first before he would ask any questions.

“So, you know we’re not from this time around. The details of this future and our death and return is not really important. Oh come on, don’t look surprised. You must have guessed that dying and being sent back was the most plausible thing, if you believe in the afterlife. Well, being part of a prophecy or having a certain destiny can have its benefits.

“Anyway, we have a plan to defeat Riddle once and for all. Please don’t freak out, but we’ve got to tell you how he did it. With horcruxes.”

Despite that Harry had asked him not to freak out, Severus just did that. After some yelling and shouting out of anger he calmed down and asked if Dumbledore knew. They had to admit they were not sure, at least at this point in time. After getting the diary at the end of second year he certainly knew. The thought of sending three students on a horcrux hunt after his death (even though they didn’t want to tell Severus that he had killed Dumbledore, they eventually did. Since they were sure it was an elaborate plan by the old man himself, it just upset Severus even more) was making the whole thing even worse. 

“So, now that I know about Dumbledore’s complete idiocy and his manipulations, do you want to tell me your plan now?”

“Sure, Severus. We already managed to destroy some of the horcruxes. One was inside my scar but I came back without it. Hufflepuff’s cup was in Bella Lestrange’s vault and we asked the goblins for help. They even provided us with a map. Lucius Malfoy has got a diary which is gonna find its way to Hogwarts next year and is essential. One is at the Black home in London, stolen by Regulus. Now that I’m Heir Black I might be able to enter it with permission of Lord Black. That’s one of the reasons why we’re gonna sneak into Azkaban in the summer. Another one is hidden in the village of Little Hangleton, but with that one we’ll wait. The last one is in the castle and very probably the Diadem of Ravenclaw, likely the source of the DADA curse too. We want to keep the timeline as intact as possible until he gets resurrected at the end of fourth year so we take him out then, together with the snake. That one should become a Horcrux at the beginning of the year or in the holidays. Not sure if it was the murder of Bertha Jorkins or Frank Bryce. That means, as much as we want to get rid of Dumbledore, we need him and the Triwizard Tournament for the resurrection.”

Severus Snape was shocked - to put it mildly - by many of the revelations. Harry had been a Horcrux. Riddle had split his soul so many times. The idiot Dumbledore was bringing back the bloody tournament. But…

“What if you fail? And I don’t mean with your efforts to defeat the Dark Lord, but with the timeline. Simply my behaviour could change everything, or your animosity against Weasley, Minerva told me you had been close. What do you do then?”

Harry nodded, Severus was right. 

“That’s why we’re here. I had the help of a few brilliant men in afterlife, some had the surname Potter - three to be precise, ever heard of Henry Potter? But the founders were helpful too. Salazar truly was brilliant and no bigot at all. He was just afraid of muggleborns’ families taking part in the witch hunts and endangering the students by that. Anyway, we call it damage control.”

“Damage control?”

“Yes, it means that when all goes irreversibly sideways we use all the future knowledge we have at once before it becomes useless. Something along the lines of toppling the government and Dumbledore as well as freeing Sirius, trapping Pettigrew, who by the way is hiding as Ronald Weasley’s pet rat and things like that. Minnie is already working on a dossier which, as soon as she submits it, would basically throw Dumbledore into Azkaban. My Lordships as well as a newly freed Sirius and a new Minister of Magic - hopefully someone like Madame Bones or Madame Longbottom would make sure of that. We’d destroy the horcruxes instantly and declare war on the death eaters publically. I hope you will join us and renounce both Dumbledore and Voldemort.”

Severus understood what their plan was and if it would ever come to that, he knew exactly what to do.

“Sure, Harry. I have just the right thing in mind for that, but please let’s not make that happen intentionally.”

 

Shortly after that conversation with Severus the train left, heading for London. Now, on the trip back they were seated in a compartment with a few more people than on the ride to Hogwarts. In addition to Neville there was Daphne (by now Harry and Hermione were sure that they both had an enormous crush on each other), as well as Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott (those two had joined them during their studying towards the end of the year even more often and were quite nice). A few times the Weasley twins joined for a bit but tended to hang out with Lee Jordan and Oliver Wood. Neither Ronald nor Draco dropped by, luckily. 

The only strange and maybe not too friendly encounter was Tracey Davis. She didn’t seem too happy that Daphne - her best friend - had developed the tendency to rather be with Nev, Harry and Mione. Yes sure, she had joined them too often but she was a half-blood after all and had because of that not the best standing in Slytherin house in general. Daphne was the Heir Greengrass as well as stubborn and headstrong, she had no problems at being a respected in their house despite her close friendship with lions (and all the other houses, but those were less an issue), especially Potter and “his too smart mudblood companion” like the other snakes liked to say. 

She, little Tracey Davis couldn’t do that. She had to keep her distance often enough, which in return had created a distance between her best friend and her. And that was why she had dropped by the compartment in which Daphne was sitting, asking her to join her and the other Slytherins. 

Daphne laughed at that suggestion.

“Seriously? Come on Tracey, join us. Don’t tell me you wanna endure Malfoy and Parkinson as well as those two idiots Crabbe and Goyle voluntarily. Those conversations are always about either something very bigoted or bragging with their family’s wealth. Bunch of idiots.”

Tracey just stormed off after that statement. Yes, Daphne was right, but didn’t she see the situation she was in? 

 

After Harry and Neville looked at Daphne with a scolding expression she blushed and promised to talk to Tracey on the platform, whatever her problem was, she wouldn’t let anything get between them. 

 

Sometime later they finally reached their destination: London. Well, finally would be a bit of an overstatement, because the group had grown rather close over the past year, but they would undoubtedly meet up during the holidays. Which led to a very interesting though brief conversation with Daphne while leaving the train.

“Wait, so you say Dumbledore left you with your muggle relatives while not only ignoring but doing the exact opposite of the wills? Professor McGonagall saved you and now you’re an emancipated Lord, living in both your manor and with Hermione? And the headmaster has no idea of that? You all should be Slytherins.”

Even though that would have been an insult for the majority of the Gryffindors, they both took it as a compliment and then said their goodbyes as they were now on the platform and found their way to all the respective sets of parents or whatever family member was picking them up. Augusta literally beamed out of happiness, she had heard everything about Neville’s achievements at school.

Dan and Emma were already waiting outside of the platform and greeted Harry and Hermione happily, but that was not without consequence. From afar they heard the loud voice of Molly Weasley.

“Harry! Look, Ginny! There he is. And who are you, if I might ask, you’re definitely not his relatives?”

Before either Dan or Emma could answer, Mione intervened.

“Oh, you must be Mrs Weasley. We heard about you thanks to your fantastic sons. The twins are good friends of ours. Oh, and Percy is very pleasant too. I don’t know if you heard about me, I’m Harry’s best friend Hermione Granger and not that it would be any of your business as you have never met Harry before, but those are my parents. Since the Dursleys, Harry’s aunt and uncle, are not very fond of wizards and don’t want to come to the platform because of that, we’re dropping him off at theirs. Now, have a good day. Fred, George, Percy, have a nice summer, see you all in September.”

And with that she took off before Molly Weasley’s anger about Mione’s behaviour and her constant ignoring of Ronald got unleashed. Harry, Dan and Emma followed right behind. The Granger parents were looking just as flabbergasted as Arthur Weasley, who had no idea what was going on there in general. Since he was an honest and proud man he would never take part in Molly’s plans, ergo he was now completely confused.

 

Who was also very confused was Daphne Greengrass. Since she and Tracey had been friends from their childhood on, both sets of parents were waiting together. But just before they reached them, Tracey pulled her aside.

“Come on, Daph. Are you really that blind that you don’t see why I’m upset?”

Daphne looked confused, she truly had no idea.

“I can’t do what you do, hanging out with the Gryffindors and all the others. I’m just a halfblood, my standing in Slytherin house is bad enough without all that. You truly don’t get it.”

Now the Greengrass heir understood, but she had a hard time accepting that, and that out of several reasons. With Harry and Hermione doing what they were doing all year the animosity between the houses got less and less. It hadn’t really affected the older years but if the trend continued Tracey wouldn’t have to worry anymore. She should just do as they did and be a trendsetter. 

“You’re insane and just as arrogant as all the other purebloods.”

With that the young halfblood basically ran off to her parents, greeting Daphne’s parents and then urging her parents to leave to avoid her best friend. The Greengrasses didn’t even start to ask their daughter about that incident, realising that they wouldn’t get anything out of her. What a nice start to the summer. 

 

Once Molly Weasley had reached the Burrow with all her kids, Arthur had gone back to the ministry, she flooed Dumbledore right away to get rid of all her frustration. After retelling the whole incident Albus shook his head out of disbelief. How did the young Miss Granger get so close with Harry, and that even before school had started? Her parents bringing him to the Dursleys because they didn’t want to meet any wizards did sound plausible though, he knew how Vernon and Petunia were. No, he had never visited them, why should he, but he knew. 

“Come on, Molly. Just send the boy some of your favourite potion during the summer, saying it came from Ronald or something like that. Then he will fall for young Ginevra as soon as they meet at school, forgetting Miss Granger and all of his other friends without a doubt.”

Molly nodded, she would follow Dumbledore’s advice as always. He would tell her the best thing to do so her family, no, her little daughter would get what she’d deserve. 

 

Lucius Malfoy himself went down to King’s Cross to get his son. There were some very important committee sessions at the ministry, and he should be there to blackmail and bribe people for information and to manipulate votes, but no. Today he had something important in mind. The diary of his Lord had spoken to him and it wanted to go to Hogwarts. Now he only needed to find the right person and before school started again, place it with him or her so it would find his way into the castle, closer to the Potter boy.

And while a bunch of redheads left the platform, the Greengrass heir seemed to argue with the Davis girl and Heir Longbottom greeted his grandmother, Lucius smiled. He had an idea, now he only needed an opportunity.

 

Neville and Augusta were just leaving their platform, especially because they had seen Lord Malfoy staring at the Weasley family and knew that he wouldn’t be up to anything good for all light families, and heading to the public floo, when Augusta made a change of plans. Her grandson had done fantastically and she had the need to bring him to St. Mungo’s to tell his parents. They hadn’t been there in a long time, but now did seem ideal. 

While they were entering the Janus Thickey ward, Augusta herself began to feel her own fears come up again, but Neville, her little Neville, held her hand and led her to his parents. He had not only grown so much, he now was a confident and strong boy, a great future Lord and destined to be a magnificent wizard. Deep down inside he was shaking too, but he didn’t show that. He was a Longbottom after all, and they were all strong and powerful.

“Hey Mum, hey Dad, it’s me. I’m back from Hogwarts and let me tell you, it was great. I met so many new friends. I’m gonna tell you all about them…”

 

Once Harry and Hermione were back home, they immediately brought their trunks into their respective rooms, but before they could empty them they got called down to dinner. Dan and Emma had cooked together, a small but delicious welcoming meal. While enjoying that, they all started chatting about the school year and telling their tales. Well, to be honest most they already knew since both kids had written letters to them, usually around twice per week. Harry had kept his promise to Dan and had been brutally honest (if you ignore the whole time travelling). Yes, here and there he used white lies like with the troll, sticking to the “official” story with Severus killing it, but he had described the Voldemort incident pretty thoroughly. While neither of the Granger parents were happy about Dumbledore and how he was acting, they were thankful that Harry and Hermione had each other and some adult help. They had realised that Harry couldn’t avoid “this dark, evil wizard with the strange name”, like Emma had put it at first, and were glad that they had professors who would help them. 

“I mean it’s not your fault that he wants your death, don’t worry. Are we happy that Mione could be in danger? No, definitely not. But as a muggleborn she would be either way, that much we have understood by now. And it does seem like you have not only a talent for attracting danger, but also one for surviving it. Then we’d rather have her with you in potential danger but very much protected as well, instead of on her own in a world filled with prejudices against people like her.”

After Emma had finished her statement, Harry jumped up and hugged the woman tightly. For the first time in all his life, including the future he had lived, he had found a person who voluntarily stood in for his mother, who cared and loved him like only a mother could. It also made him happy that they were not angry at him for endangering Mione by simply being his friend. 

Harry Potter was happy.

This summer was going to be very, very great.

Notes:

So, there we are. It's summer now. Let's wait and see what our heroes do during the holidays.

Looking forward to your comments, see ya all next week

Chapter 15: Summer Part One, or: How Severus Snape and Remus Lupin got drunk

Notes:

Good morning everyone!

Once again, thank you for all your comments, especially under the last few chapters when year one came to a close. Your feedback is incredible.

Now we are heading into a very interesting summer, ranging around two and a half chapters. I hope you'll like it. The chapter kind of got out of hand and is quite a bit longer than usual, but I'm sure you all won't mind.

A week into the summer holidays both kids were pretty happy and in a damn good mood. All their school assignments were done by now, everything else they did were some extracurricular things to advance their knowledge. The only bad thing here was that, other than Harry, Mione couldn’t use her wand to work on their battle and elemental magic. Well, at least they weren’t sure about that, not knowing how much the trace detection had improved in the recent years and if it could penetrate the Potter Manor wards. But there was a simple solution to that.

Since basically all they did was study advanced magic and both of them had to work on the practical application too, Harry found his best friend a traceless spare wand which was more or less well-suited. That created a whole new set of opportunities for them, mainly duelling in a controlled environment. The Potter Manor held, like most of the old families’ homes, a duelling chamber with the necessary enchantments. Combined with the house-elves, some of whom had healing experience mainly thanks to the Marauders, it all was basically harmless. 

Well, it was dangerous, but they always came out unscathed. How, they didn’t know since they threw quite a variety of curses at each other. Thankfully Dan and Emma had no idea of what precisely they were doing and assumed it was studying, which it was - sort of. 

 

Mione threw a fire dragon curse, a gigantic flame in the shape of a dragon burning nearly as hot as fiendfyre, at Harry, while he skillfully built shields of water out of the air humidity to deflect it. The whole duelling chamber was filled with hot steam as those spells clashed, an opportunity Harry just had to use. 

Fog, smoke and steam were rather easy to manipulate but could be used very efficiently to blind the opponent, which is what Harry did. And since the steam was hot, Mione had to focus on defensive casting for a few seconds, which gave Harry the opportunity to cast a simple banishing and disarming spell. It was one of the spell fusions they had learned from the Grimoire, creating so many possibilities. 

It knocked Mione out, throwing her against the wall, and Harry summoned her wand, before dropping the steam manipulation charm and walking up to her. The room’s wards had protected her from any real physical damage and because of that she was already getting up again when Harry handed her the wand. She smiled at him.

“Nice one, that with the steam was damn mean. Took me way too long to protect me from the heat so…”

She was interrupted by a loud bang, which made her panic. Were they under attack?

Harry had an answer to that as he started to rush away, yelling that someone had tried to get through the main teleporting wards. That meant an unauthorised access via portkey or apparition, which usually led to the individual being ported into the holding chamber beneath the manor. That room wasn’t anything like the prison basement at Malfoy Manor since the Potters were too light for something like that, but essentially it was there for the same reason.

Before opening the door in the basement, Harry thought about who it might be. Dumbledore was always an option, if he somehow found out, Remus was unlikely since he had told him to go to Minnie if he didn’t know the location and the werewolf was smart enough to know about the defence systems. Any death eater would be possible too, but he had honestly never expected THAT person.

“Dobby?”

 

Yes, it was the Malfoys’ little house elf, who had tried to enter his Manor. Made kind of sense, now that Harry thought about it. He was probably attempting to steal any incoming letters to prevent Harry from returning again, which was absolutely pointless.

“Yous be Mr Potter, Harry Potter! How comes you not living with family?”

Harry groaned. Dobby’s stupid interferences were the last thing he needed. Still, it was good to see him, even if he looked bad and mistreated. He couldn’t remember when he had last seen him, probably when he had found Mundungus Fletcher for him. 

“You, house elf, tell me who’s your master and what you are doing here.”

He had to play that role, as much as he hated it, because as of now Dobby was still Lucius Malfoy’s elf.

“Yous be in grave danger, Mr Potter. Dobby is here to tell you not to return to Hogwarts.”

“Don’t worry, I’m strong enough to protect myself. And you still haven’t answered my question.”

“Dobby can’t. His bad mas…Oh no, Dobby has to punish himself for speaking badly of great great master.”

Luckily, he accepted it when Harry forbade him to do so, but still, the little elf was anything but forthcoming. That was beyond unfortunate, because he couldn’t have him interfere at all currently, or someone might find out that he was no longer with the Dursleys. On the other hand, Dobby was important for the timeline. Maybe the impact of keeping the elf in the Manor wouldn’t be so bad. Or he would ask Mione to obliviate him. 

Yes, that was a good idea. Implanting false memories into Dobby’s head based on Harry’s memories from the previous timeline, combined with a compulsion to not continue stealing Harry’s letters.

He turned around and stepped out of the room, where his best friend was already waiting. She hadn’t wanted to give away her presence to Dobby, but had to admit that Harry’s solution was pretty nice. After using some legilimency she had enough of Harry’s memory to alter Dobby’s mind, so she stepped into the room, muttering Obliviate.  

After around twenty seconds of working something started to happen, because the little house elf started to scream out of pain. First she thought she had done something wrong, but after he murmured something along the lines of “master be calling poor Dobby again” she understood. Dobby was trying to elf-teleport out of the Manor despite its wards to return to Lucius. House elf magic was strong and barely anyone understood it so she was expecting him to pop away any second now, making her speed up the process. 

Then he disappeared.

“Did you do it?”

“I honestly don’t know, Harry.”

 

A few days later both kids accepted an invitation to Longbottom Manor, flooing from Harry’s place to them to meet up with Neville. Little did they know that he wasn’t the only one there. Augusta had invited the Greengrasses too, but not only so Daphne and Neville (a match she would appreciate very much) could spend some time, but also that Harry could tell Lord Greengrass his tale (well, the part Augusta knew obviously, not the time travel). 

Lord Arthur Greengrass was a proud and cold man. 

Well, at least that was what most people believed. Just like his daughter (mainly in the previous timeline) he kept his emotions to himself and always seemed distant. Actually he was a very kind and loving person, showing very much empathy towards Harry. He had never been one of the biggest Dumbledore fans, but the tale of young Harry Potter and all the bad that had been done to him totally shocked him.

Not as much though as the young boy’s variety of titles. That had come out of nowhere. Yes, Lord Potter for sure, Peverell made sense now that he thought about it. If he were to help him out, then they would be able to make remarkable political changes. He was a Slytherin after all, cunning and calculating. He wouldn’t abuse the boy’s trust once he got it, Harry was one of Daphne’s friends after all, but he would definitely try teaming up to push some of his ideas through the Wizengamot. If the price for that would be supporting muggleborn tolerance and acceptance even more than he did now and less strict creature and werewolf laws, then he would do that. And that much he admitted to Harry.

“You can count on my support, Lord Potter. I do hope that I can have yours too in the Wizengamot. With me you’ll get the neutral and grey families on board for your werewolf and creature laws, and working against the systematic bigotry will be achievable too, if you back me.”

Lord Greengrass, that much Harry understood, was a politician through and through. Harry had many titles and by that quite the political power, but with the support of one of the biggest neutral to grey houses he could do basically anything on his agenda. The light’s support was mostly granted, and with the neutrals… that did sound like a good idea.

“So, what is your agenda precisely? If you were to tell me when you’d expect my support, once I go public with my titles and claim the seats obviously, then I’d suggest an alliance.”

Arthur Greengrass nodded and summoned one of his elves, asking to bring him a document from his desk, which he used to negotiate alliances. It had all of his main points written down, explaining how flexible each and every one of those were, plus his voting behaviour on all previous topic-related points. Harry planned to go through the whole thing with both Augusta and Mione and promised him to make a decision before the end of the holidays. 

The remainder of the day all four kids explored parts of the Longbottom Manor and its lands. Since the library wasn’t really interesting (Hermione’s words, though after Hogwarts and Potter Manor she had very, very high expectations), they were mostly outside and looking at the park and the greenhouses, which were bigger and more fascinating than Hogwarts’. That did explain Nev’s knowledge and skill in Herbology.

They also had quite the interesting conversation with one of the paintings, a direct ancestor of Neville, though around six hundred years back. He, Lord Franklin Longbottom, had some interesting stories to share, and listening to him was something Neville had done quite often in the past. Now, as soon as the group stepped in front of the painting, it demanded to know who they were. Daphne instantly stepped forward and introduced herself as Heiress Greengrass, then Mione as a muggleborn (though the possible connection with the Dagworth-Granger family was brought up again, something she had disproven in the previous timeline), and then it was Harry’s turn.

“Lord Harry James Potter, my Lord.”

“A Potter! And a Lord? My condolences then, young man.”

Harry smiled and thanked the former Lord Longbottom, before he then continued to introduce himself.

“But to be precise, I’m not only Lord Potter. Mainly due to the past wars the wizarding world has been decimated and so I’m also the Lord of the Houses Peverell, Slytherin, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, as well as Heir Black.”

As proof he lifted up his hand to show the variety of all his rings to the painting, which in turn burst out laughing. Not only was the notion of one boy being Lord to so many ancient and most noble houses quite hilarious, the combination was very amusing too. The Gryffindor and Slytherin titles being held by one person was very funny (Lord Franklin’s words), but Potter and Black was hardly less funny. 

This led to quite a handful of stories about many of his ancestors from the middle ages, most of them being on different sides of the conflict. They had quite a laugh, before they went on looking at the greenhouses, but not without having to promise the painting to drop by again.

 

Unfortunately, this day ended way too fast and eventually Harry and Hermione left via house elf, this evening heading to the Manor. Both Dan and Emma had a few free days and so they decided to spend their time there. Dan mostly sat around reading (yes, just like his daughter), but mainly about mediaeval sword fighting and stuff like that. Emma on the other hand, together with one of the house elves used the nice summer days to make the rose garden beautiful again. 

The kids did - surprisingly - not only learn all the time, but also grew rather fond of the pool and Harry even got Mione to play some quidditch. After a war heights didn’t really make her uncomfortable anymore and once she stopped overthinking everything and just played, she wasn’t that bad a chaser. It was really another ideal and perfect summer. Just peace and quiet.

Little did they know that all of that was about to change. 

Harry was the first one to notice as he had control over the wards. Minne was here - but not alone. A powerful ringing in his ears told him that she brought a werewolf, but he had already known that. He would recognise the feeling of Remus Lupin’s magic everywhere. And so did the wards, since Remus was classified as a friend. He just had to make that entry into the ledger of the disease and creature ward too, or otherwise he would have that stupid noise in his ears all the time. 

“He’s here, Mione!”

The witch didn’t understand whom he meant, but since Harry started to slowly land, and that with a smile on his face and sounding pretty happy, she assumed he neither meant Riddle nor Dumbledore. Obviously she followed him, reaching the ground only a few seconds later. At that time though, he was already running towards the house, when Mione spotted him. Just a fraction of a second later, Harry started shouting “Uncle Moony!” and hugged the man (well, he would have probably tackled him down if he wouldn’t have werewolf strength), who was mildly surprised. Still, he embraced Harry’s hug.

 

Remus Lupin had reached British soil on the day before. It hadn’t been an easy journey, especially because he had tried to travel undetected. As soon as he had arrived, he apparated north, closer to Hogwarts. After around an hour of walking - he hadn’t managed to apparate further due to his exhaust - he arrived in Hogsmeade. It was a quiet day with hardly anyone on the streets, so there was no real danger of him being spotted, as he sneaked into Honeydukes.

His plan was to use the secret passageway in the shop to get into the castle where he would look for Minnie. The headmaster would luckily not be there, since the Wizengamot had an important meeting today.

It felt good to be back here, he thought. For years Remus had dreamed of returning to the castle some day, maybe even as a teacher, but to now be here…Hogwarts was still stunning, and it was still a place he could call home. After a long walk through the cold corridors he ended up in front of Minerva’s office. Since a silently cast homenum revelio told him that there was only one person in there, he knocked.

 

“Remus! Good to see you, it has been years. Come on in, you want some tea?”

The elderly witch let him in and asked one of her elves to bring them some tea, before they sat down. 

Minnie’s office was not the biggest one, but she loved that room. As deputy she had access to another office, but that one was on the ground floor and way too big and posh for her. That she only entered when holding official meetings with staff, ministry or parents in her deputy function. 

The office of the head of Gryffindor house was located in a little tower next to the Gryffindor tower, just steps away from the fat lady. It was very cosy and warm, kind of like the common room. The big fireplace was always lit and all the walls were plastered with pictures of students, former students, newspaper clippings about some of them and some very treasured photographs from Gryffindor parties, where she had let herself go and joined the fun. Hadn’t happened in over a decade though.

Both Minnie and Remus took a seat on the big, red couch, while the elf placed a tablet with their tea and some biscuits on the little table in front of it. After exchanging some pleasantries and stories of how they’ve been, Minnie started retelling Harry’s first year. Yes, she hadn’t discussed it with Harry and Hermione, but she dropped enough hints for Remus to understand that they had come back from the future.

“You know, Minerva, I have actually heard of things like that before. I studied for my mastery with a travelling defence master in Middle and South America. He’s sort of a legend there and tours through all the countries to solve their creature and dark wizard problems when needed. And in Peru I have heard tales of ancient wizards who claimed to have knowledge of several lifetimes and someone had given them another chance. Sure, they tended to claim it was some of their ancient gods, but I still believed it.”

“Really? I didn’t know that there was any knowledge about things like that, we found nothing in the library here. And I thought you did your mastery in the US?”

“Well, yes, the examination. My master said that the US-American examiners were the best in the world, making a mastery from there the most valuable. I thought that might give me a job despite my affliction. Unfortunately there were very little openings and yes, I was one of the best, but some people over there still have an issue with lycanthropy. That brought me back into Dumbledore’s service. He could at least give me some minor guarantees.”

 

After they had finished up the story time and Remus was familiar with their plans, Minnie suggested that they floo to Potter Manor, but Remus disagreed.

“As much as I want to see him, I need to rest. Apparating that far while trying to stay anonymous and hidden brought me to the verge of magical exhaustion. I think I’d like a nice meal and about twelve hours of sleep, maybe more, and then I’ll get cleaned up, before we head to him.”

She understood and suggested to him that they could get some food up to her office and then he could stay in one of the guest quarters. That did sound like a good idea.

Minnie did have another idea too, but didn’t tell Remus. She headed to the fireplace, threw in some floo powder and stuck her head into the green flames. 

“Severus? Would you be so kind and join me for dinner in my office? I have to tell you something.”

 

The potions master put the cauldron he was currently working on under a stasis charm and rushed up to Minerva’s office, using every shortcut he knew, because otherwise it would have taken him around twenty minutes. He managed it in under half the time and then proceeded to knock on Minnie’s door. He was able to hear her say “could you please get the door?” to he had no idea whom, but the door opened.

“Lupin?”

“Snape?”

 

The following dinner was an…interesting one. The two men mostly kept to themselves for the first half of it, both not really ready to talk to each other after the whole incident during their time at school. At some point though Minerva had enough and scolded both men for their childish ignorance and that they should try burying the “god-damn bloody hatchet” so they could focus on helping Harry with both Voldemort and Dumbledore.

Both men had to agree that they were behaving childishly. And to be honest, the whole werewolf incident was both of their faults, and Sirius had played a major part too. It wasn’t like Snape hadn’t known Remus was a werewolf, for a brilliant student like him that had been obvious. 

In the end they accepted that Minnie was right. Harry was all that mattered now, and they had to work together. Both men shook hands and slowly started to get to know each other, chatting about their time at school or their successes in their respective areas of expertise. Unsurprisingly, Severus was very able to talk to Remus about dark creatures, in his years under the Dark Lord he had seen, fought or even befriended many of them.

Hours later Minnie had left them alone. They had emptied a half-full bottle of firewhiskey, sitting around in front of the fireplace and chatting about how horrible both their lives were. The one a gifted Defence Master, but unable to work properly since he was a werewolf, the other a potions prodigy, bound to two masters and having lost the love of his life. 

“We really are pathetic, are we not, Severus? And life just hates us.”

The potions master nodded, already half asleep and slightly drunk (slightly drunk being an euphemism for totally wasted). Remus was hardly better off, but somehow managed to get up and say that he was to meet Harry tomorrow, so he would need his sleep. 

Severus just briefly smiled at him, before he fell asleep on Minnie’s couch. It was just thanks to Moony that Remus was able to walk down to his quarters and fall into bed there instead of on Minnie’s couch.

 

After that evening Remus slept until the early afternoon, but once he had woken up he saw the plate with warm lunch, charmed by elf magic, and next to it a potion with a piece of parchment laying next to it. It said:

Good morning Remus,

Since you’re gonna go and meet Harry and Hermione today, I sent one of the elves with a sobering potion to you, you’ll probably need it just as much as I did. Falling asleep on Minerva’s couch…that is certainly a first for me. She wasn’t amused, but at least we did bury the hatchet.

She’ll wait for you in her office, but look out, the old meddler is back in the castle, though he’ll probably won’t leave his office.

I suggest we’ll stay in contact, don’t hesitate to owl me anytime.

Severus

 

Things were definitely changing rapidly, Remus thought. He had no idea how Harry’s previous life had been, but him and Severus being on friendly terms was probably new.

 

And that is how Remus Lupin ended up at Potter Manor with Minnie, getting hugged by young Harry. The young, bushy-haired girl - Hermione, he figured - then walked up to him, shook his hand for him to shake it and introduced herself. She seemed pretty nice and friendly and was supposed to be damn brilliant too. 

After all the introductions - to the Granger parents too - were done, the four wizards and witches went inside to have a conversation. Mione though stopped Harry and punched him softly on his shoulder.

“That was stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid Harry James Potter. Running towards Remus and yelling “Uncle Moony.” You want to blow up the timeline?”

Minnie had stopped too as soon as she had realised that the kids were still a few steps back and intervened.

“Well, Hermione, I had already expected something like that to happen, so Remus is already fully informed. And if you don’t disagree, we’ll do the same with Sirius Black. They are too close to you, they’d eventually realise that you know more about them than you should.”

 

Mione was clearly unhappy, but had to agree to Minnie. Both Remus and Sirius meant so much to them, eventually they would slip and drop something they shouldn’t. And having both of them on board with their plan was brilliant too. 

 

And so they spent the rest of the afternoon with conversations and detailed plans of what they could do, as well as Remus promising to train and teach them during the holidays as they both could use wands, Harry thanks to his emancipation and Mione with the old spare one they matched to her. The werewolf was very happy to be here and to help, letting out all his anger and frustration at Dumbledore, which in turn made Harry even more furious.

“Eventually, we’ll take old Dumbles down too. The meddler had it coming for a long time.”

 

While the four of them were ranting about Dumbledore and his plans, one of those got set into motion. The headmaster had come by the Burrow to help Molly with hiding her finally completed love potion inside of some treacle tart, while they asked Ginny to write a letter to Harry that she had made this for him. Even though the little girl had absolutely no talent whatsoever in the kitchen, she didn’t hesitate in claiming she had baked for “her Harry.” After finishing a two-page love letter, which did sound slightly obsessive, Molly sent the letter and package off with Errol. The potion should begin to work immediately, but kick in really strong as soon as they meet on the express. She knew it would work, it did with Arthur when he was nearly a grown wizard and Harry Potter was just a little boy.

 

The owl arrived the following morning, since Errol was ancient and very weak. Dan and Emma were both back to work and the kids were still at the Manor with Remus, all currently sitting at the breakfast table and eating. As soon as Harry felt the owl crossing the ward he looked up to the window through which the birds usually came in. Once he saw and identified it, he turned around to one of the elves and told him to go get Minerva from Hogwarts.

“What is it, Prongslet? Do you know this owl?”

Harry nodded and began to explain to Remus that it was the Weasley family owl and that they were afraid that at some point Molly Weasley would go for love potions again. That made the man growl so loudly that you could actually hear the werewolf inside of him, especially because the full moon was already approaching again.

“Don’t open that package, Harry!”

Luckily Minnie was already here and rushed forward, muttering like half a dozen spells and charming the package, before placing it in the middle of the table. She signalled Harry that he could now go ahead, which he then did. 

The first thing he grabbed was Ginny Weasley’s letter. Careless he ripped it open and skimmed across the parchment before tossing it away, but not without Mione catching it mid-air and reading it too.

“Oh gosh. Are we sure she wrote that herself, because if, then she should definitely see a mind healer. It practically screams unhealthy obsession.”

Both Remus and Minerva agreed, it really did not sound like the girl would be sane at all, but rather a victim of Molly’s and Dumbles’ manipulations and brainwashing. 

“Now, I’ve put several charms on that package so that it could be used in front of the wizengamot. I’m an auror in retirement after all, my auror-grade evidence protection spells can’t be doubted at all. It hinders us or anyone else from tampering with it. Now, do go on and see if that really is just treacle tart.”

Now they realised how hard the professor was working on the dossier to incriminate Dumbledore. Minerva McGonagall was no woman whom you would want as an enemy. 

Harry had to admit, he was a fan of treacle tart, and that one did look very delicious, but he knew better. After letting his hand hover over the food he knew for sure. His hand was vibrating at such an intensity he was quite literally getting afraid, because not even the compulsion concoction Dumbledore had slipped him had created such a response. 

“How about we call Severus and let him analyse the potion? He’s a certified potions master, which would make our position even stronger.”

Harry nodded, Hermione was as always right. And so the young Lord Potter added Severus Snape to the wards as a person allowed to enter, while Minnie floo-called him to come over. Unfortunately, since the headmaster had called for Snape in regards to some business concerning Slytherin students it took over an hour until he was finally able to come over. 

“I didn’t think that I’d ever see that in my lifetime. Severus Snape coming into Potter Manor as a welcomed guest.” 

Remus smiled as he said that and offered the potions professor his hand, which he took, smiling as well. Yes, they had come to more than just an understanding. They were accepting each other.

 

The scanning of the food took just over five minutes, and then Severus turned around. He was, to put it mildly, terrified. 

“What kind of person would send…no, create such a strong love potion? It basically sends you into submission and you lose your free will. How could Molly Weasley do something like that?”

Everyone was both surprised and shocked. Last time they hadn’t done that to him, at least not in that magnitude. Sure, his reaper had told him that he’d been dosed with love potion, especially from fifth year on, once they were all staying at Grimmauld Place. But something like that…

“Well, one thing is for sure, that would get you thrown into Azkaban immediately, especially when given to a pureblood wizard or witch. Yes, I know you’re not really a pureblood per se, but that only depends on how you define that word. Lily was a descendant of Rowena Ravenclaw after all. Add to that that you’re a lord and the Wizengamot would throw her into Azkaban for the rest of her life while giving you financial reparations. Line theft is something the lords hate extremely.”

Harry listened carefully to Severus’ explanations, realising how much incriminating material they had at hand. Once they could risk blowing up the timeline, he would destroy them.

“Alright, thank you Severus. Seems like Dumbledore is meddling again. He’ll never know what’s coming for him. He already lost the fight and will one day pay for it.” 

Everyone nodded in support. Hearing what Dumbles had done in the future was shocking, ignoring the wills and placing Harry at the Dursleys’ was horrible too, and so was the whole thing with creating a confrontation between the kids and Voldemort. But now they had reached a new level. If Dumbledore wanted war, then he would get it. He was already doomed to lose.

Notes:

So, that's it for today, hope you liked it :)

As always, looking forward to your comments, see ya all next week

Chapter 16: Summer Part Two, or: A great birthday present

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here is the latest chapter.

First of all a wanna thank all of you, the story has by now reached 1k Kudos and over 41k hits. It's...unbelievable. Thank you

Second of all, it has now been noted by some of you that they hope our heroes are going to blow up the timeline and are saying how naive Harry and Mione are believing that their changes are minor. "Damage control" has always been the plan, it's some more chapters until then though.

And now, have fun reading!

Yes, Harry had said the exact same thing the year before, but this truly was the best summer of his life, including the last timeline. Remus moved in with them, giving the kids the possibility to stay more often at the Manor, now that Dan and Emma were mostly back to working. It was all going very well, the Grangers had no issue with Remus being a werewolf and since he had stayed at the Manor before as a friend of James over the summer, Fleamont had insisted on installing a chamber for the transformations. Combine that with Severus brewing the wolfsbane (at Harry's expense, the boy insisted on that), there was objectively speaking nothing to worry about at all.

Together the trio focussed on extending the kids’ knowledge of combat and elemental spells, not that they told Dan and Emma though. Yes sure, they did quite the amount of theoretical studies, but mainly the practical applications. They even went that far and studied the biggest elemental spells like fiendfyre or their counterparts in water and wind magics. Even Remus hadn’t known the wind one, it had been mostly forgotten but was written down in an ancient Grimoire. 

The tornado spell, like Harry called it, created basically what you would expect from a spell called that - a tornado. At the beginning they tried to manipulate the air into the right movements, which took an awful amount of power, and after three days of trying Harry was the first one to do it, though it was hardly bigger than his hand. From then on he slowly increased the size, after a week managing to create one as tall as him. 

Remus had to admit, Harry had so freaking much magical energy in his core, it was terrifying. And the things he could do with it…

Teaching them was so much fun, especially because nothing seemed to be able to stop them. They managed everything and didn't back down at all. Remus smiled. If he wouldn’t have lycanthropy then he would already have applied for a job at Hogwarts. DADA professor Remus John Lupin. That did sound right.

 

The wizard wasn’t the only one thinking about the DADA position at the moment. Albus Dumbledore was too. He had just finished an interview with someone claiming to be an experienced wizard in that field and since there was no one else with enough competence applying he gave him the job.

Gilderoy Lockhard as a teacher wouldn’t be that bad publicity-wise too, he was after all a famous author, even though Dumbledore hadn’t read one single book by him to be honest. Still, he would be a great addition to the staff.

 

To be honest, Dumbledore was the only one who believed that. Since he hadn’t kept it a secret that Lockhart had applied for a job here, all the teachers knew about it. Most of them didn’t really care but thought that someone acting like the biggest celebrity in the world would be bad for the mood within the staff. 

And then there were Severus and Minnie, both of whom knew that Lockhart was a fraud. They couldn’t let that happen, and so they started looking through his novels, independently of course. Otherwise Dumbledore would be very surprised. 

It didn’t take either of them long to discover all the flaws and inconsistencies in Lockhart’s stories, sometimes things just didn’t make any sense at all, how he defeated some creature for example. But what was way more obvious were the mistakes when it came to dates and places. For more than two thirds of his novels to be entirely accurate, he would have to be in two or even three different places at the same time, often enough even on different continents. In a few of the stories the setting didn’t make any sense at all, for that to be an accurate description it must have happened decades back, in one instance at least a century, and not within the last few years. 

One novel in particular stood out to Minnie, since she knew the witch who had actually lived through that adventure. And so did Albus.

 

“No, you can’t hire that fraud. I won’t accept it, and Severus has already said the same. He and I had come to the same conclusion. The only thing Lockhart can do properly is a memory charm, well, and maybe writing, though I loathe his style.”

Albus shook his head. Why was Minerva against the young Gilderoy?

“Minerva, please. I know he was not the…easiest student, but we all heard of his successes.”

“Have you ever read one of his books?”

When the headmaster shook his head, Minerva sighted and basically threw him the giant file on his desk.

“There you go. All his claims. First of all, some don’t even make sense. We both know that werewolves are not weaker under sunlight for example. The dates and locations are totally conflicting and some must have happened decades back so that the description of the countries and their people would be accurate. And look at that, we both know who achieved that, and it wasn’t Lockhart.”

Albus looked through Minerva’s very thorough research, realising she was correct. 

“Oh my, you are right. That one story was one of Galatea’s favourites. She told us that at least twice per term.”

That was what Minnie had realised too. The former DADA professor Galatea Merrythought had often told them about this adventure and had published a book about it too.

“That little…”

For a second Dumbledore nearly started to lose it, but then took a breath and calmed.

“Those two. I know the wizards of those too, though I would have to look through my correspondence for their names. One is an African wizard who suddenly couldn’t remember a story he had told me about in a previous letter, the other one is an Australian, who is now suffering from a strong case of Alzheimers. Or so I thought.”

“So you’ll fire him?”

“I think I will. We could employ him to show the world what a fraud he is, but with all the evidence I could simply write an article for the Prophet and the International Wizarding Post. Or even better, you do that. I’ll try to find the names of the two wizards and then I’ll give them to you. But please wait until we have someone new for the job.”

With that he made clear that the conversation was over, despite the fact that Minnie still had a matter to discuss. Well, Dumbledore didn’t seem to be in a too chatty mood, so she decided that she’d try again the next day. Then she would get what she wanted.

 

Harry’s birthday was coming up, and Remus Lupin was happier than he had ever been. The boy - yes, he knew that mentally he was already a grown-up and often behaved like that - was fantastic. A combination of Lily and James, so similar to both of them, brilliant, ambitious and kind. And he had been given the chance to take part in his life, despite being gone the past decade, despite being a werewolf. And once they had Padfoot back…

Remus smiled.

 

On the morning of Harry’s birthday - they were staying at the Manor again, since the kids just liked to be around Remus - Mione stormed into his room at a time where it was still dark outside and basically hopped onto his bed, waking Harry. It was truly hilarious to see how he wordlessly summoned his wand and looked around, panicking, while Mione burst out laughing and hugged the now smiling boy, wishing him a happy birthday.

Since his room was only a few doors down the corridor and his hearing was exceptionally great, he got up too and walked up to Harry’s room. There he waited, standing in the doorframe and looking at the joyful kids. It took them some time to realise that he was standing there, but once they did, Harry walked up to him, receiving another big hug.

After breakfast Harry started to open all his presents, beginning with Dan and Emma’s. They had gifted him an album with pictures from the past summer and christmas, showing their little “family”. Aside from being a very nice memorandum, it was also a declaration that he’d always be a part of their family. 

Both Minnie and Severus had arrived shortly after breakfast to join their celebrations. From the potions professor he got an advanced set of toolkits for potions, all of them very beautiful. The casing had “property of the half-blood prince” imprinted, a nickname Harry (to Severus’ surprise) recognised. He had bought it for his NEWT year, but after finishing his mastery he had gotten one by his master so he hadn’t used this one in years. Harry, who was this time around really good with potions, thanked Severus and stated that he was looking forward to using it. That in turn led to the offer that the potions professor could teach them how to brew wolfsbane over the summer, which they both wanted to do. 

Then it was Remus’ turn. He had never been a man of wealth and so, despite having gotten the money from James’ will, his present was something of emotional value. To him that always meant the most, other than James and Sirius, both wealthy kids even back then. They never hesitated to gift something expensive, but did value his more personal presents above all else.

“What’s that, Remus? A diary with notes from…”

Harry nearly dropped it and was very speechless, because the little notebook was filled with notes by all the marauders, documenting their way towards their transformation. Even Remus had written down a lot, since he truly had been the research guy of the Marauders.

Seeing James’ handwriting nearly made Harry cry. 

Yes, he was in possession of many of his fathers things, diaries and notebooks included, but somehow that present just..,felt like more. It was hard to explain what he felt.

Remus now found himself in the most emotional hug he had ever been. Harry truly loved the werewolf, for him his Uncle Moony was family. 

Since Minnie insisted that hers would be the last, he started opening all the cards and boxes, with Remus and Severus spell-checking everything. Nothing stood out though, not even Ronald’s letter (which was horribly written by the way) and since Molly probably thought Harry was already falling in love with Ginny she hadn’t added anything to her little girl’s letter. 

Most of their classmates had written to him, probably since he had congratulated most of them too. Surprisingly many snakes, with Daphne, Theo, Blaise and - though sounding very strange, maybe because of her current mindset - Tracey, all having written. From those who had added more than just a box of chocolates or something like that, he mostly got books on very interesting subjects, most not taught at Hogwarts. Seemed like both Daphne and Neville had conversed about that as they had both sent him tomes on basic Alchemy (different ones, but from the same author, which kind of gave away that they had been in contact). Susan had sent him a book about Auror defence spells and Hannah one about rare magical creatures. 

To him and Mione it did seem kind of funny that he now got all those presents Mione would have gotten if she had had any other close friends at school last time. He was a different person than last time. 

Yes, Harry and Hermione both were very oblivious to all the changes they had already done. To them this was all minor and wouldn’t change anything of importance. They still had the belief that they would manage to keep everything together until fourth year, or at least until the Triwiz was completely planned so it would happen.

Minnie on the other hand saw all of that, she herself was convinced to be a little less careful. The butterfly effect was basically unavoidable, and they had changed so many things. That was why she had a few things in mind to make the world a better place. She wouldn’t work against their students, no, she wouldn’t end up like Dumbledore. 

“Well, if you’d open Hermione’s present now, Harry, then I could tell you what you’ll get from me.”

He nodded, proceeding to open the box, which contained a leather satchel with his name imprinted on the inside. But that wasn’t everything.

“Gosh, Mione. Undetectable extension charm and I guess a feather-light charm too? Did the charmwork yourself?”

She nodded and received another hug by the boy, who really liked his present. Up until now he had used his mother’s satchel at school, but with all the stuff he tended to carry around it was always pretty full and heavy. Yes, he could cast the feather-light charm himself, but he still struggled with the permanent one. Mione was way more familiar with the runes to make it last longer.

All the adult wizards and witches inspected the charmwork, which was pretty good, even for someone who had finished her NEWTs (which she hadn’t, of course, which just made it more impressive).

 

“Now I guess it’s my turn, Harry. Here you go.”

Minerva held out something that looked like an old piece of rope, causing confusion. But then Harry understood.

“Portkey?”

She nodded, then he grabbed the other end of the rope.

“Azkaban?”

“Yes. I still have some friends high up in the DMLE. Activation phrase: Sirius Black !”

And with that they both disappeared. 

“Now that’s a birthday present no one can top. We wanted to meet Padfoot, but had no idea how it would be possible. She said that there was no chance at the time being, but that obviously wasn’t true. She knows how to surprise someone.”

 

Only moments later Harry and Minerva appeared in a dark room, which seemed like it was not being used at all. And that was true, Minnie’s old friend at the department had made sure that the portkey would take them somewhere close to Sirius Black, but also to a place where no one would see them portkey in. Close by on a table there was a map and a small note, describing how they could get to Sirius and what the guard schedule was.

“Oh, that’s good. He was able to transfer Sirius into a solitary cell down the corridor. That means we should be able to get down there undetected. And if not…I’d prefer confundus charms over obliviation. Let’s just hope it won’t come to that.”

And it didn’t. At least on their way down to Sirius’ cell they didn’t run into anyone, not even a dementor. Sure, they felt their coldness from far away, but it really seemed like Minnie’s contact had thrown Sirius into some dark and lonely hole away from everyone and everything. The professor had obviously not told the true story why Harry wanted to see him, but made her contact believe he just wanted to look the man who betrayed his parents in the face and ask him why, or something like that. 

 

“So, if that is correct, then we should only have to head through that door and then…Sirius?”

Harry was both surprised and happy to see his godfather. Yes obviously he had known that they would meet him here, but seeing him…that was something entirely different. 

“Jam…No, Harry! And you too, Minerva! You got bigger, Prongslet.” 

If the bars of the prison cell wouldn’t permit it, Harry would have rushed to him, but as that was not possible he just grabbed his hand through the bars. 

“Hey, Padfoot. Good to see you.”

“Oh, you have no idea how lucky I feel seeing you. And I was already wondering why they put me into solitary. Minnie, Minnie, Minnie, using your contacts at the ministry is something I would have never expected from you, but thank you. I guess it’s on you that this little boy here is doing so fine.”

Now the professor walked up to her former student, also smiling brightly.

“Well, he did well enough by himself already, but I am happy to help where I can. He’s…a special boy.”

Sirius started to laugh loudly.

“Oh, believe me, I’ve known his parents better than you did, I can imagine that.”

“Oh no, you can’t, Sirius.”

Harry groaned, because it seemed like Minnie was already on her way to tell another person their secrets. If they’d continued that way at some point it would get out of hand. But it was just Sirius, he thought. That couldn’t hurt.

“Well, the short version is I died and they sent me back to fulfil my destiny. I was nearly through my seventh year and now I’m back with some planning and revenge against those who harmed me, at least when the time is right.”

For about two seconds Sirius was starting to laugh, but then he saw the grim looks on their faces, realising that they were not joking. He, thanks to Harry’s note from Christmas being in a way better mental state than you’d expect from a prisoner at Azkaban, straightened his back and now the pureblood lord in him came to light. With a demanding voice he spoke up.

“Everything, now! Don’t even think about keeping anything from me.”

 

Back at Potter Manor Mione was talking to Remus and Severus, mainly because she was damn nervous. Padfoot was after all a prisoner, and he had been one for a decade. She herself knew how bad dementors could be so Mione was afraid he might not really be in his right mind. Last time around he had still been quite crazy after nearly a year away from those damn soul-suckers. And now he was still in there. Surprisingly it was Severus who calmed her down, repeatedly stating that animani were way less influenced by the dementors and Harry had after all sent him a letter at Christmas, in which he had expressed his desire to meet him in the summer. 

“You know, Black broke out of Azkaban for Harry without even knowing if the boy would like him. Now he knows he has his support and he will visit. I know desperate people can be and how much they would do. So don’t worry.”

Remus agreed to that and gave the girl a reassuring smile. He liked her, and not only because she made Harry happy and was helping him. She was a kind and brilliant girl, a bit like Lily Evans back then, maybe a little less temper though. Or she was just hiding it, he didn’t know. Over all he was happy to have become a part of this family, and that he was now Uncle Moony to not only one, but two young brilliant kids.

 

At Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore was thinking. Life had become a lot more difficult with both Minerva and Severus bringing forward the evidence against young Gilderoy. Really no one wanted to do this job by now anymore, Tom’s curse still haunting the position. He hadn’t been able to spot the origin of the curse though, despite trying for many, many years now. And so he found himself often enough with the problem of hiring a new DADA professor.

Minerva had come to him the day before and suggested hiring Remus Lupin for this year. He apparently was in the country so he could catch up with the few remaining friends in Britain and to officially register his mastery in the ministry. Yes, the foreign ministries always sent the files and documents of British wizards getting masteries abroad to the ministry, but thanks to some legislation the wizard had to officiate that himself here. Why, no one knew anymore, that law was older than Dumbledore himself. 

But that was completely unimportant, because he had a valid candidate for the job. One under his control, especially if Remus wanted to get close to Harry. He would make some rules part of the job agreement so the werewolf wouldn’t run to Harry at the first chance. Yes, he was no pureblood and might not know all about lordships and noble and most ancient houses, but the chance of him realising that Harry hadn’t taken the heir ring or even opened the wills was not small. That meant he had to pressure him into keeping his distance from the boy if he would ever want to teach or get to know Harry. And if all went south, there still was the curse. Chances were high that after that year Remus Lupin wouldn’t be an issue for him anymore.

After all, it didn't seem like that bad an idea.

 

Around three hours after Harry and Minnie had left Potter Manor via portkey, they came back, both exhausted. Remus, the defence master that he was, handed both of them a big chunk of chocolate, which somehow felt like a deja vu to third year.

“Sirius was more upset than I’ve ever seen him before. We filled him in, and yes, Mione, the whole story. Believe me, now I know why Blacks are known to be terrifying. I’d rather face a crazy Bella than an upset Sirius.”

Severus found that statement somehow funny, asking Harry if he had any idea what he was talking about.

“Oh, believe me, Bella was the one killing us last time around and before that, in our fifth year at the battle at the ministry, she threw Sirius through the veil. I had that bitch laughing at me for failing to make my Cruciatus cause her any pain. What a…”

He turned around, now realising that the wards had triggered a few seconds back, but since it had been a as friendly declared person he had missed the notification. With his wand raised he turned around to the floo, where a woman with short grey hair was standing, appearing to be very shocked.

“Damn it, seriously? Everything’s getting out of hand slowly. Madame Bones, may I ask what you are doing at my property without invitation?”

The woman, who had been to school with Severus and Remus, only having her grey hair thanks to an evil curse she had caught as an auror, was still a bit confused, as she had heard the entirety of Harry’s statement.

“Mr. Potter, I…”

“Lord Potter. That much should be obvious. No, Mione, she already heard all I said about dying and a previous life, it’s pretty pointless to try denying and I doubt that you could obliviate Amelia Bones. Besides, I won’t let her pass through the wards without a vow of secrecy.”

Harry then made his rings - all of them - visible and held his hand out to Madame Bones. She was very taken aback by that revelation. Then she tried to start talking again.

“Apologies, Lord Potter. If I had known that it was you I’d be following I would have announced myself beforehand. I assume it was one of my men you know from your time at the department that created the portkey, Lady McGonagall? He tried hiding the paperwork, but I found it by accident. I went to Azkaban and used a spell to trace the destination of the portkey. I was pretty sure I’d still get in here, but expected it to be more or less vacant. My guess would have been another death eater spy close to the Potters, since he or she could enter.”

“And you came alone? Surely that’s not auror procedure?”

“Oh no, but I wanted to keep it to myself until I had more information, not knowing who had created the portkey. And besides, I’m probably the only auror who is declared as a friend by the Potter wards and breaking them would be an impossibility. I wanted to do some scouting, but since its Lord has returned the wards are back to full power and killed my disillusionment. Yes, stupid, I know, but I was afraid I still had spies.”

After all the explaining was over, Harry sighed and turned to Mione.

“I already told Sirius everything today, now it’s your turn. And don’t look so unhappy, telling Madame Bones will help us with the dossier against Dumbles and Molly Weasley. You still think damage control can be evaded? I don’t and this is just ideal for that.”

Now it was Mione’s turn to sigh and tell a rather long story after demanding a vow of secrecy.

 

“This is - outrageous. You know, if there wouldn’t be the vow I’d be legally obliged to arrest Dumbledore and Molly Weasley on the spot. But your plan is both good and necessary. How about we do that…”

Then she used some elaborate spell on the dossier to duplicate it and charmed the two now existing ones to synchronise so she’d see it whenever Minnie added anything. It actually was very brilliant, Harry could see how she had gotten the top spot in the DMLE.

“The only thing that really hurts me is that Siri is still in Azkaban. I can live with postponing the punishment for Dumbledore and Weasley if it helps us fight - what did you say his name was…Tom Riddle. But Sirius in Azkaban…I might find a reason to question him and tell him I’m on board with everything. That might even be a good idea so we can free him on the spot. Whenever you follow your crazy plan I’ll arrest Dumbledore and Mrs. Weasley immediately and we charge them with you making your titles common knowledge, then acquit Sirius in the same session of the Wizengamot. Now I really understand why Susan was so impressed by you.”

Okay, Mione had to admit, Amelia Bones was a brilliant woman. Maybe it hadn’t been that stupid an idea to make their story known to a few more people. Now there was only one thing missing.

“Here, those I’ve created, let me just duplicate it once more for you, Madame Bones. It’s a small pendant that will heat up when either Harry or I initiate plan Damage Control. Here you go. Harry or I just have to say the words while pointing a wand at it. Once that happens, you all know what your job is. But let’s hope we’ll manage to keep everything the way it’s supposed to be.”

To be honest, Mione was the only one who truly believed that they’d manage to not blow the timeline up, even Harry started to have his doubts. But at least they would be prepared.

 

After Amelia had left again, Minerva pulled Remus aside to tell him that she had gotten a letter from Dumbledore, asking her to offer him the position as DADA professor.

“Really, Minerva? Are you serious about that? My answer is yes, sure. Tell the old man that I’ll come to see him for the details. And Minnie… you’re really willing to risk the timeline with that, apparently I’m only supposed to get that position a year later.”

“Oh come on, be rational. I’m expecting things to go sideways pretty soon, all those changes with Severus and you alone could do the trick. I’ve seen the memories from the last timeline and it’s already so different. No chance all of that is going to work out. Main thing is we’re with them once that happens so we help them.”

Remus nodded. He shared that thought and was ready to be there. Let’s just hope that they wouldn’t be too upset about him taking the position. He hoped that they wouldn’t find out before school starts, because then they couldn’t openly confront him.

Oh damn, now he had to plan seven years worth of lessons.

That was going to be fun.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week, hope you all liked it. As always looking forward to your reviews :)

See ya all next week

Chapter 17: Kreacher, Walburga Black and the trip back to Hogwarts

Notes:

Good morning everyone.
Here you go, a new chapter. This time we're gonna visit Grimmauld Place, Diagon Alley and then - finally - Kings Cross to get back to Hogwarts. Hope you'll like it :)

Have fun reading

During August Remus had started to spend more and more time in his new office. Because there were more and more often people staying at the Manor, Harry and Mione had started to make all rooms usable, for example bedrooms for Minnie, Remus, the Grangers and even Severus, who had decided to stay for a few days while Dumbles was out of the country to do some brewing with the kids. Remus was the only constant inhabitant of the Manor as the kids did occasionally stay at the Grangers, but that got less once Amelia Bones unofficially connected the Grangers’ fireplace with the floo network. It wasn’t publicly accessible, but at least allowed travels from the Manor to the Grangers, even for the two adult muggles, who were obviously not able to apparate. 

Remus and Minnie both started working out of small office spaces on the higher floors, while Severus tended to spend most of his time in the very impressive potions lab. 

The kids didn’t know what exactly Remus was doing, they were split between making lesson plans for third year as he now knew he’d be a professor then and writing a book. But they didn’t try to find out, he’d tell them once he was ready. Besides, they still had some other things on their agenda.

Aside from doing their shopping for school - no Lockhart books surprisingly, but Mione suspected that Minnie had intervened and forced the man to use proper literature for class - they still had to destroy a Horcrux. Well, to be honest they were still missing four, the locket, the Gaunt ring, presumably the diadem and the diary. The latter shouldn’t be an issue, Dobby’s behaviour told them that it would still come into play this year. The ring they had located, but since they didn’t know where leech Riddle was hiding they had to assume he was there. The diadem they’d try to find during the school year - Harry had begun suspecting it was hidden in the chamber - which left the locket. That had become possible thanks to Sirius. Since Harry was the Heir Black and Sirius the Lord, once he took the ring, he was able to give Harry access to Grimmauld Place, which was under both Fidelius and lockdown.

That meant that Harry, Mione and Severus (Remus was busy and Severus too was damn good when it came to handling dark arts) made a trip to London. Once they reached the street, they noted that Mione could see the house too, despite the fact that she didn’t know the secret in that timeline. 

Harry stood in front of the house, made his rings visible and spoke the words the ring told him to say.

“I, Lord Harry James Potter, Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black demand entrance into this ancestral home of mine. I hereby lift the spells that keep it closed off from the world and name myself secret keeper as well, by the permission of my Lord Black.”

With a flash of light the ring reacted with the house’s wards, Harry felt the transition of power to him, turned around and said “The ancestral London home of the House of Black is located at 12 Grimmauld Place, London.”

Now Severus saw the same thing Harry had seen once before, how the house got visible. Believe it or not, that had been the first time that he witnessed a Fidelius charm. 

Harry was the first one to step forward and begin entering the house, something he kind of dreaded. The last time they had been here was after their ministry break-in, but that had led to terrible consequences. 

At first glance the building was in worse shape than the first time he had set foot on it. It was still dark and dusty, no place worthy of the Black family. He’d have to put Kreacher in his place, tell him that he was no more than a servant to Sirius and the Black family. Yes, house elves were no slaves, but the bond they needed to survive and stay sane was a bond of servitude. The locket and Walburga Black’s picture had corrupted the elf terribly.

“Who are you to enter the Black’s home, you blood traitors and mudbloods.”

He started attacking Severus with a wooden cooking spoon, but then Harry raised his hand and the rings started glowing. Now it was time to play every last part of the pureblood etiquette training he had had.

“YOU STOP THAT RIGHT NOW. I am your Heir Black, acting under the orders of our Lord. I command you to stand down and end using this foul language, or you’ll face clothes and your head will join those over there. Get this place cleaned up properly, your Lord will return in the not so far future. Collect the dark artefacts and hand them over to me and my associates, especially…”

The little elf fell down on his knees, feeling all the radiating power coming from the rings. He knew Harry was more than just Heir Black, he was a strong and powerful Lord. But that wasn’t what had interrupted Harry. Instead, it had been the loud voice of Walpurga Black, yelling - as usual -  about blood traitors and mudbloods corrupting her house. But not with Harry.

“I command you to be quiet!”

Surprisingly it worked. For a fraction of a second Harry wondered why she had never followed Sirius’ commands, but that might have had something to do with him not taking up the ring. Another one of Dumbles’ manipulations.

“Who are you that you can command me? You’re no Black.”

The woman spoke in a calm and quiet manner, probably forced due to his commands.

“I am Lord Harry James Potter, Heir to the House of Black, Lord of the Houses Potter, Peverell, Slytherin, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. My Lord Black, you son Sirius, will take up the ring as soon as his illegal imprisonment has ended, and as you can see, magic has obviously accepted his claim, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. If you want to stay here, and believe me I could end that sticking charm and burn you, then you’ll keep more or less quiet and end the usage of this foul language, just like I told your little house elf here. The House of Black will find back to its old glory and if you hinder that, I’ll simply remove you. Understood?”

Not wanting to endure more of her shrill voice he hadn’t given her a chance to react to his revelations, but now that he had ended his monologue, she just nodded submissively.

Kreacher too was very stunned and decided that if this young man could command Lady Walpurga, then he’d be a worthy heir to serve. He was already beginning to clean up the entrance hall, when Harry called him.

“Yes, my Lord?”

“Don’t ask me how, but I know of Regulus Black’s task. As Lord Potter I can achieve what you’ve failed to do for so many years and rid the locket from all evil. If you do your job here properly, then you can keep it on loan, as I am the Lord Slytherin, though I might need it from time to time.”

Now the elf was halfway crying. His new master was stronger than every wizard he had known before, even old master Arcturus. He felt the familiar blood, knew that he was a descendant of master Arcturus’ aunt, knew he was the godson of his righteous Lord and held the blood of many many ancient families. And now he was relieving him of the only task he had ever failed, master Regulus’ last command. Not even hesitating he handed the locket with the dark spirit in it over and then witnessed the power of master Harry.

“The Lord of Potter rids you from the evil inside of you, the Lord of Potter rips away the splintered soul to free you. I summon thee, dark force, I summon thee!”

This time he only had to repeat it once before the spirit of Tom Riddle appeared, probably it had less protection on it as it had been in a very secluded and protected place. Snape intuitively drew his wand on the Dark Lord, but Harry was faster, pulling that disillusioned dagger of Godric Gryffindor from his side and stabbing the spirit in the chest. It screamed loudly, which everyone, especially Severus, seemed to enjoy.

Another Horcrux gone and destroyed. One less they needed to worry about. Things were undoubtedly looking better and better with every day that passed. As far as planned they would have a calm time now, until school would start again.

 

In other parts of Wizarding Britain that was not really the case. The Weasley family was very busy and chaotic all the time. Arthur for example had to deal with dozens of ministry raids, at one point even nine during one night. It was simply exhausting.

That was one of the reasons why the family patriarch rarely noticed anything strange at all in regards to his wife’s behaviour, and if he did, she wasn’t to conservative to use mind modification and compulsion spells. Over the years this had made the energetic, stubborn and very vivacious man become calm, reserved and submissive. He didn’t realise at all, and hardly anyone else bothered. Bill and Charlie, the two, who had really known their father’s original temperament, always thought it was the age and the exhaust, always working so much so the family would get by. 

And in truth they very well did - or would, if Molly Weasley wouldn’t secretly take up to half of her husband’s earnings and put them into a private vault or buy some nice things for her little girl. That included all the potions ingredients that she had used for the love potions to get Ginny the boy-who-lived and future head of the Potter family. Little did that boy know that he was indeed very wealthy, Albus had made sure that no one would tell him any of that. And by now their plan was, that - since Albus intended for the boy to die due to that prophecy - Ginny would get pregnant beforehand and either just give birth to the next Lord Potter (yes, illegitimate children had close to no chance to get the title, but there was nobody else) or to guilt-trip him into marrying Ginny despite their age. Sure, she had to hand some of the funds and relics over to Albus, but they would still be damn rich.

Until then, they would have to manage somehow without spending all of her money. No idea how much expense was needed to get there, especially with that Granger mudblood being close to Harry. What a cheeky little devil that girl was. And that in front of her parents. Absolutely not appropriate.

 

The most exhausting thing was that they had to do the Hogwarts shopping towards the end of holidays. That, with all the kids, was beyond horrible. Even worse was that they had coincidentally picked the day, on which Gilderoy Lockhart would be signing his books all day long in Flourish and Blotts. Not that Molly didn’t like him, much the opposite, but that just created more chaos in the Alley. 

And that's why they waited with the book shopping as long as they could, finishing everything else beforehand, but that had hardly changed a thing. Once they were entering the bookstore, they saw a lot of more or less familiar faces, some friendlier than others, many with children in Ron’s year. And one of those familiar faces was Luicus Malfoy.

 

The Lord of the Malfoy family hadn’t had such a nice time during the summer. Throughout the entire year, Draco had sent him letters about his time at school, and not to forget, Harry Potter. This boy did act very strangely, so it seemed. He wasn’t close at all with Dumbledore’s most devoted followers, the Weasleys. Or at least their youngest son, a boy in his and Draco’s year. Potter did even seem to despise that kid, especially because he was very pushy and appeared to think he’d be Potter’s “best mate”. But no, Potter was in - partly - better company (if you’d exclude that sadly brilliant mudblood). The young Longbottom, who was not at all a squib (Draco still insisted on that but Lucius had other sources from inside the castle. That boy outperformed Draco in theory and practical application), the Greengrass girl, as well as Bones, Abbott and occasionally some of the other descendants of old blood. None of the dark faction, but at least grey families. Dumbledore didn’t seem to have the boy under his command, it was rather McGonagall, whom he trusted and looked up to. Interesting.

But all of those thoughts, as well as Draco’s complaints about Potter’s quidditch skill, were occupying him during the summer, a time when he should actually work on his political standing. Damn Arthur Weasley was annoying him with ideas of a new “muggleborn protection act”. 

Even worse than that was the current amount of raids though, but he had been spared up until now. That was why he had visited Borgin and Burkes with Draco earlier, and that was why he was carrying that damn diary with him. 

The compulsion charm to write in it had overpowered him in a moment of weakness and idiocy, but then it had ordered him to make sure it got to Hogwarts, close to Harry Potter. The spirit within, he had no idea what it was though, had been very interested in the story behind the boy. 

Was it really that good to bring something that his Lord had handed him into circulation?

Well, it didn’t matter what he thought, he was an obedient servant. And he had already made his choice at the platform after the end of the year. That is, if he’d manage that. If not, there were enough other people here, which would more or less work.

Lucius saw the damn pack of redheads, this time with the smallest one, the girl, he saw the Greengrass family, the Davis family, and those Indian wizards with the twins in Draco’s year…Patil, that was it. Enough possibilities to sneak the diary into a shopping bag. Unfortunate was that he didn’t see Potter’s mudblood, but that would have been too risky, from what he had heard she would have never fallen for that. 

 

Half an hour later Lucius Malfoy left Diagon Alley with a smug grin. No, actually he didn’t, but he would have if Arthur Weasley wouldn’t have broken his nose. Yes, it was healed again, thanks to his…let’s call it “fun evenings” with fellow death eaters back in the day, he was not that bad when it came to healing charms. 

At least he had been successful.

 

And on the same evening, a girl, looking through the things they had bought her today, was very surprised when she found a black leather diary amongst all those things. She couldn’t even remember that they had bought one. But she wasn’t complaining, since a diary was just what she needed. So many things were currently on her mind, things she couldn’t tell anyone about. So many issues and problems, Harry Potter just one of them. 

 

Believe it or not, but the summer holidays were already over again. Harry and Hermione didn’t really believe it, and that despite the fact that they were standing at Kings Cross right now, being accompanied by Remus and Emma. Dan had an early operation to perform at the clinic so this time it wasn’t him dropping them off at the station. Once they had reached the barrier, Emma said her goodbyes and left, also having to head to work quickly. London traffic had been horrible this morning. They were basically the only ones still outside of the barrier. Remus, who was obviously not dependent on someone with whom he could drive back, decided to stay with them until the express left. 

Well, if we’re being honest here, Remus was boarding the train too, carrying his trunk shrunken down in his pocket, but he wanted to see the kids’ surprise at the feast. That also had the benefit that Mione couldn’t yell at him since they were in public, Remus thought, suppressing a laugh. 

Now that they were starting to head for the border, Harry already suspected the worst. And yes, it did happen. 

They couldn’t pass through.

“That stupid house elf. Once again he’s not letting me through the barrier, and since I have no intention of flying by car - don’t ask - we’ll have to find a different way. Damn traffic, we should have been here half an hour ago with the majority of students arriving at the same time, then he couldn’t have done this.”

Mione, brilliant as she was (well, it was a very obvious solution, but she was still brilliant) asked Remus if they could simply apparate onto the platform. After a few seconds of thinking if he knew any reason why they couldn’t, he nodded. As far as he knew there were no anti-apparition wards there.

 

And yes, that really was the case, and so the three of them easily reached the train. Since they were in a hurry, both gave Remus a quick hug and ran off, wanting to find a nice compartment. As soon as they were out of sight, Remus himself got onto the Hogwarts Express, for the first time since 1978. Back then with Lily and James, damn cute together, Sirius, who was dating Amy Bones and little Peter. Those had been better times. 

 

Harry and Mione were looking for Nev or Daphne, with whom they had agreed to meet, but before they found them, someone else ran into them. A very, very dreamy person and a very dear friend back in their previous lives.

“Harry, Hermione! You’re back…again. But this time the wrackspurts are all gone. That is good for you two. May I join you on your search for a compartment, until now I haven’t found one myself. Or did I know I was waiting for you without even knowing it? So many fuzzy thoughts. Come with me.” 

And with that Luna just ran off. After exchanging glances they just followed her, hoping she would know where she was heading. Luna tended to know things.

“You know, Mione, I’m not even going to question that. That’s just so Luna.”

Hermione nodded. Most of the time she had deemed the girl a little bit too dreamy, maybe because of the incident where her mother had died. Some sort of compensation and suppression of those memories. But no, she actually knew things. 

The blonde girl suddenly came to a halt in front of a closed compartment door, gesturing to Harry to knock. And who would have thought, it was actually Neville and Daphne sitting in there. Both did seem to blush a little, that much was obvious. 

 

After all introductions had been made, the five of them sat all together and chatted about their summer. Nev and Daphne had met up quite often, even if you ignore those times all four of them had met and explored one of their families’ Manors or the muggle world. 

Highlight for Daphne and her family had been that the Grangers had taken all of them into an amusement park, followed by going to the cinema. The usually grey leaning Greengrass family suddenly started to enjoy muggle culture and Arthur Greengrass became more open to work on even more tolerant muggleborn laws. 

For Neville the highlight had also been something in the muggle world. After finding out about his love for nature and herbology, Dan had taken the boy and his grandmother to Kew Gardens, an incredible botanic garden in London, which both Neville and Augusta had enjoyed immensely. The elderly Regent Longbottom had seen many things in her life, including plants from all over the world (the benefits of marrying into a family of herbology maniacs), but that had surpassed everything.

Now Luna started telling tales about how her father and her had visited Iceland, hoping to find proof of the existence of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks. They didn’t, unfortunately, but the trip had still been incredible.

Harry and Hermione’s stories were a bit less fascinating as they had spent their time (when not with friends) studying. They didn’t tell that most of that had been practical, mostly advanced duelling, but no one really had any interest in asking any detailed questions, thankfully.

 

Some of their yearmates had dropped by like Susan, Hannah, the Patil twins, Theo and Blaise as well as Draco, at whom they all just glared until he left without stupid comments. Then something Harry had been dreading had happened.

He had just taken a short trip to the loo, when he spotted a very specific redhead he had wanted to avoid. The shy little girl was probably following her mother’s orders in confronting him. She was just so convinced he was in love with her that she basically threw herself at him, hugging him tightly. Ginny was even trying to give her hero a kiss on the cheek, but Harry stood firm. Then his hand, or to be precise his rings, started to shake softly while he was already smelling something.

How the…seriously, Molly? The perfume was spiked with Amortentia. Silently and wandlessly he cast a protection spell he had learned from Severus, preventing the caster from breathing in fumes from potions. Then Harry - though carefully - shoved her away from him.

“Don’t you ever dare coming close to me again. I don’t even know who you are.” 

With that he just turned away and left, leaving Ginny nearly in tears. Yes, it was mean, but the Weasleys deserved that. He had probably just started to shake the foundation of her belief system by telling her that he didn’t know who she was. Maybe, once all of this was done, he could get her to visit a mind healer. That girl had been thoroughly brainwashed. 

Upon reentering the compartment, Mione saw that something was wrong and got up immediately. The two just went in front of the door, set up a silencing spell and then Harry told her the whole thing. Surprisingly, Hermione didn’t really get upset at Ginny and wanted to hunt her down, she actually pitied her for being, at least at this point in time, another one of Molly’s victims. Sure, they assumed that in the later years she got ambitious and cunning herself, but right now she was a little girl having been promised her own prince. They would have to look out for more moves by Molly and Dumbledore. This year was going to be terrible.

 

A while later Hogwarts came in sight and they all changed into their school robes. Once the kids left the train, Harry loudly called for Padma, who turned around and walked up to him. Mione was looking very surprised by that, having no idea what he was about to do.

“Could you do me a favour? We have met that little first-year girl, that blonde over there, Luna. She’s… special. Luna is very dreamy and often talks about imaginary creatures, I guess she’s living in her own fantasy world. Might have something to do with her witnessing her mom’s death, quite a horrible accident. She just seems so…lost from time to time and we’re a bit afraid she’ll end up as a bullying victim. No matter where she ends up, I want to have someone looking out for her inside her house. If she’s a lion, we’ll do that, Daphne in Slytherin and I’m gonna talk to Susan too, but I got the feeling she’s gonna be a Ravenclaw. Could you do that?”

Padma smiled at Harry, then nodded. 

“Sure, Harry. I had my fair share of bullying in the past, and from what I could gather neither of you was better off. I won’t let that happen to her. And if you say she’s gonna be a Claw, then I guess I’ll go talk to her briefly before Hagrid takes them to the boats.”

And with that Padma was gone, heading towards Luna.

“Oh Harry, that was nice of you. I would never have thought of asking Padma for help. And they call me the smart one, look at you.”

Now they were slowly making their way to the carriages, the four of them sharing one. Daphne was the only one who couldn’t see the thestrals, leading to an explanation by Harry and Mione of what those were. Thankfully Daphne didn’t ask any of them why they could see them, as two of them hadn’t really seen death in this timeline. That would have been hard to explain.

What none of those four had realised was that there was one person missing on the train. And this person was Ronald Weasley.

The second-year redhead had already boarded the train and watched Harry’s arrival through the window of his compartment, when suddenly Scabbers started to act out. He had no idea what was going on with this stupid rat, he acted like he was afraid for his life. While trying to calm Scabbers down, he hopped out of Ronald’s arms and ran off, the boy following close behind. 

Just as Ronald saw the man who had accompanied Harry and that Granger girl onto the platform walking on the train in the opposite direction, leading to a moment of confusion (because what was that man doing on the train) Scabbers used the opportunity and hopped off the train and onto the platform.

Why was that happening to him?

Ronald rushed after his rat for quite some time, until the stupid beast hopped through the wall which was the barrier to the muggle world. After hesitating for a second he followed behind, knowing he had to hurry to get back onto the Express.

After passing the barrier he actually had luck and caught the damn beast which had started to calm down. Now he only had around five minutes left, so he picked the rat up and went towards the barrier. Thankfully he wasn’t afraid anymore like last year. His mother had told him back then to close his eyes and run. This time he walked at a normal speed through it…or he would have if the barrier hadn’t been closed, making the wall pretty solid now. 

After a few attempts Ronald had accepted his fate. He couldn’t get back on the platform and by now the train was already starting to leave. 

It was then when he had a great, no, a brilliant idea.

Notes:

And that's it for this week, hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think in the comments :)

See ya all next week

Chapter 18: Howlers, Slugs and Ronald Weasley being an idiot part 2

Notes:

Good morning everyone.

Here is your weekly chapter, have fun reading.
And, I can't say it often enough, thank you all for your incredible feedback :)

Upon entering the great hall, both Harry and Hermione immediately saw something that surprised them, or rather the fact that they didn’t. One seat at the High Table wasn’t filled yet - Lockhart’s. The stupid braggart wasn’t here yet. 

But they didn’t really get much time to think about that, since Percy now rushed forward, something that caught all their attention, and whispered something to Minnie, who in turn appeared to look annoyed by that. She then spoke up so that everyone could hear her.

“Has anyone by chance seen the young Mr Weasley? It seems like he’s missing.”

Harry groaned and wondered, how the hell that had happened. Mione and him had been the last to enter the platform, Ron must have been on the Express before them, together with his siblings. That made no sense at all.

 

What made no sense at all too was that the barrier had been closed. Ronald Weasley couldn’t believe it. How did something like that happen, and why to him? 

At least he had been able to take the car, his mum had gone shopping and his dad had apparated to work. Meaning he couldn’t reach either, but the car was available. Not wanting to risk her scolding and arriving late at school, he didn’t wait for her next to the car but just took it, thinking it would be cool and make him more popular.

It was slowly starting to get chilly up here in the blue Ford Anglia, while he tried to follow the train underneath him. For hours he had been flying now, hoping to soon reach the castle, when the engine started to make funny sounds. He had long given up on hoping that the invisibility would come back on, but now the engine… Thankfully he now saw the silhouette of the castle, though still some distance away. 

Eventually, the unavoidable happened. If Harry too had been in the car he simply would have groaned and yelled “damn car, don’t you dare crash into the Whomping Willow again!” but that was exactly what was currently happening to Ronald. 

 

His wand was broken, the car was gone, it had rolled into the forest, and the damn tree had punched him several times, but somehow he had gotten away. Now Ron only had to sneak into the great hall for the feast undetected. He was so damn hungry right now.

But luck was not really with Ronald Weasley, because once he got up from the ground and wiped off all the dirt from his pants, he heard footsteps. Someone was coming closer and Ronald turned around, where he saw a tall man standing. It was dark, so he couldn’t really make out his face, which, to be honest, scared the crap out of him. 

“Ronald Weasley!”

 

Just as the murmuring in the great hall started to get out of control, everyone talking about what might have happened to Ron Weasley, the door was opened loudly. Suddenly, everyone was silent.

“I think you lost a student, Minerva. This young fella here tried to fly to school with an enchanted car and had one hell of a crash landing in the Whomping Willow. Pomona, you might want to check that out tomorrow. So, why don’t you take a seat at your house table so you can eat something after the sorting and get back to strength from your little adventure. Believe me, you’ll need that strength to survive Professor McGonagall’s scolding.”

Both Harry and Hermione just stared at the tall man standing at the end of the great hall. Why the hell was Remus here? Thankfully, Dumbledore answered that question.

“Thank you, Professor Lupin. I’m just gonna take that chance and introduce to you the newest addition to our staff, Professor Remus Lupin. He has got an impressive mastery in Defence and will be your teacher in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Welcome back to Hogwarts, Remus.”

Mione was so close to yelling at Remus, but thanks to her Occlumency training she was able to contain her anger and frustration at the werewolf. She leaned over to Harry and whispered into his ear.

“Did you know? What the hell is he doing?”

“No, I didn’t, but I’m pretty sure who’s to blame. Look at Minnie smirking. She probably didn’t want the fraud Lockhart teaching.”

Now Mione saw it too. Minnie was grinning at them. They hadn’t told them so she couldn’t try talking them out of it and now she wasn’t even able to yell at them in anger. 

“Come on, I get it. They want the best for us students and I’m pretty sure none of them really believes our plan is going to succeed. They’re just waiting for us to call Damage Control.”

 

Now Remus took his seat on the High Table, the whole school applauding him, since he made quite the impression with that entrance. Since the issue with a missing student was solved, Minnie hurried out and brought the new firsties in. Ronald had now taken his seat too, next to Seamus and Dean who were both applauding him, but a few seats down Percy was already writing a letter (Harry had no idea where he had gotten the quill and parchment from though) to their mother. The twins were undecided between complimenting and glaring, since he had destroyed the car. They had always dreamt of using that thing themselves. Now it appeared like that couldn’t happen in the future.

 

It was finally time for the sorting, one that Harry hadn’t participated in last time around. Nothing interesting happened though, aside from the fact that the sorting hat had needed three and a half minutes to sort Luna into Ravenclaw. Ginny, upon being sorted into Gryffindor, took a seat as far away from Harry as possible, still shocked by his reaction to her behaviour. Her mother had guaranteed that he’d fall for her instantly. But sadly, that hadn’t happened. She would now need to write back to her mom and find out why, and also what she could do against it.

 

Padma Patil was smiling. Luna truly was a very nice person, maybe a bit quirky, but very nice. Yes, she saw what Harry had meant, the girl was basically the ideal victim for bullies and so Padma had promised herself that she wouldn’t let that happen, especially now that little Luna was a Claw too. 

 

For the remainder of the evening, especially once the boys were all back in their dormitory, both Nev and Harry had to endure Ron’s stupid bragging about the ride with the car, which was, to put it mildly, annoying. But well, it seemed like Seamus and Dean still found the whole thing fascinating, so they let him continue while silently chatting about their expectations for the upcoming term. And then there was the thing with Remus.

Neville knew the werewolf, obviously, but was just as surprised as Harry by the fact that he’d be their teacher this year. And especially since they all had had a glimpse at his skills (both in DADA as well as teaching), Neville was very much looking forward to Remus’ lessons.

 

The next morning at breakfast something very unusual happened. The Weasleys’ family owl, as frail as always, dragged herself into the great hall and crashingly landed in front of Ronald Weasley. 

“Errol! Oh no.”

Seamus looked up and asked Ron what was wrong.

“She sent me a howler. Oh damn.”

He got up and tried running out of the Great Hall as the thing started to heat up. Ron didn’t want to open that red envelope within the range of any other student, but that he didn’t manage. Only seconds after he had started to run off, the envelope exploded and Molly Weasely’s loud voice sounded through the hall.

 

“RONALD WEASLEY, ARE YOU ABSOLUTELY INSANE? STEALING THE CAR AND FLYING TO HOGWARTS, DO YOU WANT TO IMAGINE HOW I PANICKED WHEN THE CAR WAS GONE? WHY NOT SIMPLY WAIT FOR MY RETURN? YOU ARE UTTERLY INSANE AND A SHAME FOR THE FAMILY. NONE OF MY OTHER KIDS HAVE EVER COME SO CLOSE TO AN EXPULSION AS YOU. AND DID YOU EVEN THINK OF ALL THE MUGGLES WHO SAW YOU, THE MINISTRY HAD TO SEND OBLIVIATORS TO ALL OVER THE COUNTRY…”

 

Harry just snickered and hurried up eating his breakfast. It seemed like he and Mione were the only ones not paying attention to the rest of the howler, most of the students found the embarrassment of Ronald Weasley very funny. Even Minnie and Remus were grinning a bit, and if Harry wasn’t completely wrong, Severus was holding back a grin too. After all those times brewing at Potter Manor he was more familiar with the man, on a few occasions they even broached the topic of Severus’ friendship with Lily. 

 

Right after breakfast, Ron was by now the laughingstock of all of Hogwarts, they had herbology, together with the Puffs. Last time around they hadn’t known many of their classmates, but now this was different. With basically all of those they were friendly, some were even friends.

When walking up to the greenhouses they saw professor Sprout chatting with their new DADA teacher, Remus. Mione thought that was funny, despite the fact that they had a completely different teacher this time around it still happened the same, only strengthening her hope for avoiding Damage Control. 

The werewolf smiled at her and Harry, then greeted the whole class.

“Hello everyone. I was just talking to professor Sprout about the Whomping Willow. Did you know it hasn’t been on Hogwarts’ grounds for such a long time? It was a present from the late Lord Longbottom, your grandfather, Neville. It actually got planted in the summer holidays before my first year. Your grandfather apparently had quite the reputation when it came to Herbology, at least that’s what your father always said. Oh yes, James, your dad and my good friend, Harry, and Frank always joked around whose father was the bigger prodigy in his field. Fleamont in potions and William in herbology.”

Professor Sprout smiled when listening to those tales, but then reminded Remus that he was getting off the track here and she’d like to start her lesson, but suggested that he should at some point invite some of the kids whose fathers had been his friends after lessons. She was pretty sure that he could tell Harry and Neville stories about their parents they hadn’t heard before, especially because he had been a co-student and not a teacher at their time at Hogwarts.

Mione smiled, she had now understood what Remus had been doing here: he had acted like he would get totally nostalgic when seeing Harry and Neville and by that keeping up the image of not having met them before while getting the opportunity to get to know them. So if Dumbles was keeping an eye out on the werewolf, he wouldn’t become suspicious. 

 

Now in Greenhouse three, they were starting to work with Mandrakes. This time, Harry and Mione gave Neville the opportunity to answer when Sprout started asking the questions. The young Longbottom boy was after all a herbology prodigy, earning twenty points for Gryffindor. Then they were sent to work in groups of four. Last time around that had been the “golden trio” and Justin Finch-Fletchley, but now it was Harry, Mione, Susan and Hannah. Yes, they had wanted Nev in their group, but Sprout wanted him to assist a group of students, who weren’t so great with Herbology, consisting of Ron, Fay Dunbar and Justin. Clearly, none of the students was happy about working together with Ron, who by now was almost as popular as Draco Malfoy (meaning not at all, Dean and Seamus tolerated him most of the time, but that was about it).

To lighten up the mood (and simply because it was funny), Mione secretly cast a charm at Ronald’s earmuffs, decreasing their ability to muffle the cry of the mandrakes. Not to a point where the cry would be fatal, but it would knock him out and give him one hell of a headache. And since the redhead was utterly incompetent when handling mandrakes (well, to be honest he was generally incompetent, but that’s a different story), it didn’t take long until that happened. 

For about a second Sprout was panicking, before seeing that the boy was still breathing. With a flick of her wand she put all the mandrakes away and asked all her students to wait in front of the greenhouse until she was back from the hospital wing.

Around ten minutes later she came back, followed by the headmaster, whose grandfatherly smile was more or less gone at the moment. He was holding the earmuffs in his hand and as soon as he had reached the group of students, he spoke to them.

“Good morning, students. May I see all of your wands, it seems like the charm on Mr Weasley’s earmuffs was weakened, maybe due to a prankster within your group. And even though pranking is mostly tolerated, a mandrake’s cry can be lethal. So please, show me your wands.”

Once he had ended, the whispering amongst the students started.

“Is he really serious about that, Harry? He had never done anything like that before.”

“Maybe it’s because the victim is a Weasley and they’re his strongest supporters, but you’re right. That old meddler is such a…”

Harry was interrupted by professor Sprout, ordering them to form a line so the headmaster could “priori incantatem” their wands. 

After all the Puffs had been cleared, it was time for the Lions. Once Dumbles had reached Harry, the boy hesitated for a second, but then decided to not go into a confrontation and held out his wand. Thank god he mostly used his other wand for his training with advanced magic and so Dumbles only saw the last twenty spells, all very benign and normal. 

Then it was Mione’s turn, and Dumbles did look at her with a distrusting expression. Harry started to panic, but when the girl next to him handed the headmaster her wand he calmed down. She appeared very calm herself and so he didn’t worry too much anymore.

“Good, you’re cleared too, Miss Granger. That was everyone now. It seems, Pomona, that your chams are simply weakening. Maybe he got one of the older earmuffs.”

With that he gave the pink fluffy earmuffs back to the herbology professor and walked back up to the castle.

“Well, kids, then I think we’re gonna end the lesson for today. Revise the properties of mandrakes and read the chapter in your textbooks. Thank you.”

 

Right before her class started, Minerva McGonagall was finishing her letter to the Daily Prophet. It had taken her quite some convincing to make them wait to publish the article about Gilderoy Lockhart, but eventually they agreed. And now she was ready to have that published. It was quite mean, to time that with a book signing event of his that would happen next week, but the braggart deserved just that. 

Now her students were entering the classroom, Harry and Hermione first. The young witch immediately headed towards her to keep her updated.

“I think the meddler distrusts me. I might have weakened the muffling charm on Weasley’s earmuffs so he’d faint from the cries of the mandrake, but just that, I know what I’m doing. Once Sprout had brought him into the hospital wing, she came back with Dumbles himself.”

“He came himself? Dumbledore never does that, but maybe it was because the victim was a Weasley. Anyway, what happened?”

“He used the priori incantatem on all wands, but luckily I had used my spare, so he blamed it on an old and weakening charm. Still, from the way he looked at me…he doesn’t trust me since I’m not playing along with his games.”

 

Since by now the rest of the class had entered, Minnie just nodded and started her lesson. Nothing too special, just the revision of the good old “beetles into buttons” transfiguration. With Ronald still not being back from the hospital wing they didn’t even have to endure his lousy attempts at casting with his basically broken wand. Repairing it with spellotape hadn’t worked last time around and even though Harry hadn’t seen the wand in action this time, he presumed it wasn’t better off.

 

Afterwards it was time for the lunch break, and Ronald had come back from Madame Pomfrey, he didn’t look so bad anymore (he probably never did but used the opportunity to claim he had been in mortal peril). With his usual lack of table manners he started retelling the tale of his “near death experience.” That did give him some attention, but not enough, he thought. And that annoyed him thoroughly. His mother had always promised he’d be the best mate of Harry Potter, but that just wasn’t true. Potter was simply too smart and bookish for him, something Ron couldn’t understand.

 

Finally, they had all been waiting for it, it was time for Defence Against the Dark Arts. Everyone by now knew Remus Lupin, and with the exception of one very special redhead, everyone seemed to like their newest professor. The topic of their first lesson was not that special, Remus had chosen to first revise what they had learned from Quirrell, before then giving them the basic introduction to Hinkypunks.

“Yes, guys, I know it’s rather third year material, but the ministry’s curriculum is not that great when it comes to DADA. Professors tend to teach just for one year here and so the requirements for the OWLs and NEWTs softened. Let me tell you, I do not intend on leaving Hogwarts after just one year and I haven’t made my defence mastery so I could teach you just some basics. Defence will be demanding, but you’ll be ready to face the world out there afterwards.”

Yes, Draco Malfoy tried arguing against Remus’ statement, but luckily the professor could prove his claims with some very compelling numbers and graphs. At the end of the lesson they all agreed on the fact that Remus Lupin teaching at Hogwarts was the best thing that had ever happened to them.

 

During the DADA lesson, Albus Dumbledore decided to visit Molly Weasley. Yes, she’d be absolutely furious, but he had promised her to keep her updated on everything. Luckily Arthur was working at the ministry today, which meant they wouldn’t even need to be careful. 

After retelling the tale of Ron’s trip to Hogwarts, the damages and the loss of his standing amongst the students, he broached the topic of her son’s most recent visit to the hospital wing. The reply to that was nearly rivalling the howler when it came to volume. 

“You want to tell me my son was affected by mandrake cries? Don’t you know what earmuffs are? He could have died.”

Albus tried calming her down by explaining that he had been wearing earmuffs, but the charm had just been weakened. And Molly, as a witch with quite the experience in both potions and herbology, was almost instantly calmed by that. She knew that even normal, muggle earmuffs saved one from dying, one just fainted and had one hell of a headache. Still, something like that shouldn’t happen.

“I know, Molly, and right now Pomona is checking all her earmuffs. I thought it might have been that Granger girl, but I checked all their wands. I was so sure though.”

And Molly did believe that. She had developed hatred towards the girl since that little confrontation at Kings Cross. 

“Oh, and Molly, I have some more news for you, Ginny’s letter probably hasn’t reached you yet. One of my spies, a painting in that little secluded corridor near the Fat Lady has told me something,”

For a brief moment Molly was optimistic again. She knew said corridor from her own time at Hogwarts, there weren’t few who used that spot for crying when down or snogging. Had Ginny stolen a kiss from the Potter boy?

But no, that wasn’t the case. Her little baby daughter had cried alone since the bloody “boy-who-lived” had rejected her on the train, he told her he didn’t know who she was. How the hell did that happen? Her love potion had been so strong, it would have affected anyone, no matter how high the natural resistance.

“But Albus, if he doesn’t fall for her, then all our plans will fail. Can’t you just…I don’t know, get rid of the little mudblood brat?”

And believe it or not, Albus Dumbledore was actually considering that, though the question would be how. Already working on his plans for that he flooed back into his office, leaving Molly Weasley alone with all her anger and frustration. Once the old man was gone, the witch opened a drawer and pulled out another red envelope. 

 

Said letter arrived the next morning at breakfast, thanks to Errol, who once again basically crashed on the Gryffindor table. All the Weasleys were already looking at the owl, wondering for whom the letter might be. Fred was the first one to grab the envelope, instantly being shocked by the fact that it was another howler and that it was addressed to Harry. 

“Harry? What have you done? Cause that one’s for you.”

The black-haired boy grabbed the envelope while Percy had already left his seat and hurried to him. He, who was an ambitious young wizard, couldn't let his family ruin everything. Young Harry would after all be the Lord Potter at some point, someone on whose good side he should be if he’d head into politics.

Harry was already about to draw his wand and destroy the howler, something he was able to do with his skillset, but Mione put her hand on his arm, signalling to not do that. It would be a giveaway of their skill. 

“HARRY JAMES POTTER, HOW DARE YOU…”

Out of nowhere, three fireballs came heading for the flying red envelope and evaporated it. Basically all the students were looking at the High Table, where they saw the professors McGonagall, Lupin and Snape with drawn wands. Albus Dumbledore was very confused.

“Why did you do that? If a student gets a howler, he obviously deserved it, so why would you interfere? It’s just normal parenting.”

“Harry doesn’t even know Molly Weasley, Albus. She has no right to send a howler to him. As his head of house I intervened, following school rules.”

“James named me one of Harry’s honorary uncles. I’m more or less the only real family he has left. You don’t expect me to do nothing in that situation, Albus?”

Dumbledore had to admit, those were very good reasons, and besides, it would be unwise if everyone would hear of Ginny’s failed attempt to get close to Harry. The howler would just make it sound like Molly had been telling her daughter to do so - which she had done, truth be told. 

Albus still had one last question. He turned to Severus.

“Oh come on, Headmaster, you don’t expect me to endure Molly Weasley’s shrill and loud voice twice a week. I’d rather take a Cruciatus by the Dark Lord, that’s less torture.”

Half of the students broke out in laughter, among them the Weasley twins. Percy just shook his head in disbelief of Snape’s straightforwardness while suppressing a smile himself. Ron and Ginny on the other hand started to get upset, their faces nearly as red as their hair. Quite the funny sight.

 

Talking about funny sights, Ronald Weasley vomiting slugs was another one of those. This time around it hardly happened differently than last time.

Harry was making his way down to the Quidditch pitch way too early for his liking, being followed (stalked, to be honest) by Colin Creevey. Then Oliver Wood gave them the introduction into his new game tactics before they wanted to start with their training. Ronald was already watching from the sidelines, probably trying to learn some Quidditch strategies, when the Snakes turned up.

Major difference was that Snape hadn’t given them permission to use the field and so Wood insisted on their team training.

“Come on Wood, move. You don’t wanna catch a curse, do you. We need to train our new seeker here.”

And yes, Marcus Flint was so stupid that he thought threatening a Gryffindor would somehow work our for him. By now Ron had moved closer to the two captains, their argument slowly getting heated. Once the redhead had seen Draco Malfoy, being the new seeker for the Slytherin team, with a new Nimbus 2001 (not the whole team though, probably his performance during first year hadn’t been convincing at all), he stormed to them and, without hesitation, casted the Slug-vomiting Charm at Draco, but - what a surprise - his wand backfired and the spell hit him in his face.

No one, not even the Gryffindors, were able to hold back their laughter anymore. Ronald Weasley was not among the most liked students in their house, he was a braggart, his behaviour towards Harry at the beginning of first year didn’t really make him any popular at all either and someone, Ron suspected the twins, had leaked the tale of him stealing a Potter family heirloom. That alone would be bad enough, but Harry didn’t have any family at all anymore, which made the whole thing worse.

Because of all of that and more, no one did really bother to bring the redhead to the Hospital Wing until, minutes later, the twins had mercy and helped their brother up, bringing him up to the castle while vanishing the slugs he vomited.

As one might expect, news of that did reach Minerva McGonagall and she simply responded to that by adding some time to Ron’s detention for trying to attack another student.

Once the Gryffindor beaters had returned, they started doing their training. Flint’s threats didn’t really bother Oliver at all, but he at least promised him to cut their own training short so they’d have the field for some time before lunch at their disposal. And even though that might sound very generous from Oli, he just did that in anticipation of his team’s exhaustion. His new working schedule was tough after all. 

 

On the evening of the same day, while Ronald Weasley was polishing the cups in the Trophy Room, Harry and Hermione were walking to Remus’ office underneath the invisibility cloak, when Harry suddenly stopped and told Mione to be quiet for a second. 

He heard something.

“Oh damn, here we go.”

Notes:

Well, I could say sorry for the cliffhanger, but that would be a lie. Aside from that, you should all be able to guess what had happened.

So, always looking forward to your comments, see ya all next week

Chapter 19: The Basilisk

Notes:

Good morning everyone! Here is this week's chapter.
But first of all I want to thank you all, because with the last chapter the story reached 50k hits (and more). I still can't believe all of that to be honest :)

But anyway, have fun reading!

Only minutes later the kids rushed through Remus’ office door and before he had the chance to ask a question Mione ran to his fireplace and floo-called Minnie and then Severus. Afterwards she dropped onto the couch next to Harry.

“What was…?”

Mione shook her head, telling him that they only wanted to say it once and Remus nodded. Minutes later, first Severus and then Minnie arrived.

“The diary is here. I heard the god-damn basilisk. It’s already longing for blood.”

What followed was a vivid discussion between the faction “we want to keep the students safe, just command that damn beast to lay low or kill it, and if that’s leading to damage control” (yes, very long description, but that was basically their opinion) and the “let’s keep the timeline steady” faction, with Mione in the end convincing the three professors to worry less and trust her. Not that she knew it, but the three just accepted that because they were expecting the timeline to go crazy any second now.

But that didn’t happen.

Not until now at least.

 

The number of notable events until Mione’s birthday about two weeks later was close to none. Oliver continued his quidditch practice (torture), classes were as boring as usual, at least for Harry and Hermione. Because of that they did invest quite a lot of time in study groups, especially with Nev, Daphne, Susan, Hannah and Padma. Parvati was, at least currently, not really on speaking terms with her twin sister. She had made the mistake of making a joke about Luna, which Padma didn’t find funny at all. 

Not on speaking terms as well were Daphne and Tracey, especially because the latter was very stubborn. That tended to make Daphne a bit moody, though not as often. She had accepted it and her - well, you couldn’t call it a relationship yet - with Neville as well as her other friends made up for that.

Only one thing you could actually call notable, and that was the Prophet article about Lockhart that finally came out. Most of the students of Hogwarts got the newspaper delivered every morning and so the shock was huge. Yes, it was a Skeeter article, but co-written by Minnie and thanks to that not as bad as Skeeter’s usual writing.

 

Crimes of the worst sort - Gilderoy Lockhart an evil fraud

By: Rita Skeeter and Professor Minerva McGonagall

Gilderoy Lockhart. One might think he is a successful wizard, but the truth is that he’s nothing but a fraud. Researching his background before he would be employed as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts, the professors McGonagall and Snape both independently found many conflicting statements within Lockhart’s books.

Not only had he accomplished none of his tales, no, it was even worse. Professor McGonagall recognised one of the stories from an old and well-known colleague of hers, Professor Galatea Merrythought. Gilderoy Lockhart had simply just stolen that tale and claimed it as his long after Merrythought’s death.

After a thorough review of the evidence by Headmaster, Chief Warlock and Supreme Mugwump Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, the extent of Lockhart’s crimes became completely clear. Dumbledore recognised even more of the stories and realised that Lockhart had obliviated the wizards and witches who had actually accomplished all of those things. 

Head of the DMLE, Lady Amelia Bones stated “I have been made aware of those facts as soon as Professor McGonagall had finished her research. We have an own investigation checking those claims, but on a personal note: I think we will bring charges forward within the week.

For more details on the contradictions within the stories, read page 5

For more details on the wizards and witches, whose memories Lockhart stole, read page 8

 

Gilderoy Lockhart, who had not yet read the Prophet on said morning, just walked into Flourish and Blotts for his book signing, when two dozen angry witches stared at him. He just put up his usual charming smile, but almost instantly got hit in the face by a newspaper. 

It was then that he saw it. An article about his crimes. He didn’t even need to read it, the headline gave it away. Add to that, that there were two pictures below, one of him and one of Professor Merrythought. Meaning he would have to get away.

And with that Gilderoy Lockhart turned around, hurrying out of the store and quite literally running into a woman. The shield charms on her auror robes made the man fly backwards, getting tossed into a wall. Then she walked up to him and smiled.

“Mr Lockhart. I’m Head of the DMLE Lady Amelia Bones. We have some questions for you.”

Things were really not looking good for Gilderoy Lockhart.

 

On Mione’s birthday they had two parties for her. Well, the latter was hardly a party, but they celebrated together with Remus, Minnie and Severus in the Room of Requirement. Before that they had gotten the permission to use an empty classroom for a small birthday party with their friends. Among the guests were Neville, Luna, Daphne, the Patil twins, the Weasley twins as well as the rest of the quidditch team (all of whom were more than familiar with their little seeker’s best friend), Fay and Lily Moon.

As one might expect, most of them gave her either books or gift coupons for Flourish and Blotts. Luna gave her something that looked more or less like a self-made dreamcatcher, but apparently it was good for “finding and catching all the evil spirits in your life”, whatever that meant. From Daphne she got a set of beautiful formal witches’ robes in Gryffindor red and Nev had a magical flower for her, something he had seen her adore in the Longbottom greenhouses, where she said that something like those would be a beautiful addition to their garden.

The birthday party was fun, thanks to the Weasley twins the house elves supplied them with a variety of food from the kitchens, making everything even better. But after a bit more than one and a half hours it slowly ended, then giving Harry and Hermione the opportunity to meet up with their three favourite professors. 

None of those had ever heard of something like the Room of Requirement and so they were all waiting on the seventh floor in front of the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. When Harry and Mione then finally arrived, they were being carefully watched by the three professors, all of whom having no idea what to expect.

“Well, the Room of Requirement can basically create anything you want and need. I mean aside from food, we all know Gamp’s Law of Elemental Transfiguration. During fifth year we held the DA here, our secret defence class. So basically you just walk up and down in front of the hidden entrance here, thinking about what you need. There we go.”

A wooden door appeared, which Mione then opened. To her surprise the room did look like the reading room at Potter Manor.

“Seems like that is a “private space to relax with friends” to the room. But yes, it is not wrong. I love the reading room.”

All of them walked in now, the professors being damn surprised. Severus was already considering the possibilities of using it as a hidden potions lab out of Dumbles’ reach while Remus thought about implementing it on the Marauders Map.

What none of them noticed was the soft glow coming from Mione’s satchel.

 

Remus and Severus had both gotten Mione a book from their respective areas of expertise, and none of the usual ones. Neither was available in any normal bookstore, maybe one dealing in antiques would have a version, but that’s about it. 

While opening the wrapping of Severus’ present and seeing what was in there, Mione burst out laughing, which did confuse the potions professor.

“Sorry, Severus. Don’t get me wrong, that’s a fabulous present, thank you. Funny thing is though, last time around, sometime this November, I tricked Lockhart into signing me a permission slip for that book so we could brew Polyjuice and sneak into the Slytherin common room.”

Now Harry started to laugh as well, remembering that incident.

“Oh yes, and you wanna guess who tried to steal a hair from Bulstrode’s robes and ended up as a mutated cat? That sight… I don’t even wanna know what Madame Pomfrey must have thought.”

The picture of Mione as a fusion of cat and human made them all laugh, even Severus. Somehow that ended with Harry showing - against Mione’s laughing protests - the memory of that to Severus and Minnie. Remus wasn’t able to do Legilimency, that was generally hard for werewolves. The beast in their mind rarely played along with mind magic. Yes, they possessed something like a natural Occlumency, but not on purpose. Anything more than that was hardly achievable. 

From Minnie Mione then got a little charmed crystal that would light up red if she was under the influence of any potion or spell. A neat little magic trick that she had gotten from a Peruan Warlock on one of her trips during the summer break.

Then, last but not least it was time for Harry’s gift.

The box he handed her was rather small and with absolutely no idea what could be in there she slowly opened it up.

“Oh no, Harry. That’s so beautiful.”

She took out the small silver bracelet, which was very beautiful. Undoubtedly goblin-made…and were those runes?

“Before you ask, yes, I enchanted it myself over the summer. Remus had a look to ensure I'd done it properly. That thing has been sitting around in the vaults, completely untouched and forgotten about.”

Once Hermione had put the bracelet on, she practically beamed out of joy and kissed Harry on his cheek. Minnie and Remus were just grinning at the display of emotion there, while Severus shook his head.

“Be careful, you two. Don’t give him a proper kiss without thinking about it, if you’re really soulmates. I think I told you once, that would activate the bond, which will be magically registered at the ministry. It could be possible that they inform the old meddler when he’s got a pair of soulmates at his school. Never happened during my time here. Minerva?”

She just shrugged, but agreed that this would be a possibility. 

“But wouldn’t that at least make Molly Weasley stop? A soulbond is impossible to break.”

Harry just laughed at that while subconsciously scratching his head again, it had been itching since entering the room.

“Oh come on, Uncle Moony. They’d just see that as a reason to kill Mione off so in my sorrow I’d stumble into Ginny’s arms. Don’t think that good old Molly “Howler” Weasley would back down from something as benign as a soulmate bond when it comes to her daughter’s wishes. I mean, look at the potions she used. I’m pretty sure that wasn’t this way last time, my friendship with Mione and hatred for Ron made her do that.”

Harry scratched and rubbed his forehead again, while Mione was now putting away all the presents. It was then that she realised that something was glowing inside her bag.

“Wait, what is that? Oh, Luna’s present, but why’s it glowing? And can you stop scratching your scar again, that…”

Then she paused and looked at Harry, who now realised that he had been rubbing and scratching his scar for quite some time.

“Didn’t Luna say that it would…”

“...find and catch evil spirits…”

“...and the fact that you scratch your scar…”

The professors were absolutely confused, such kind of behaviour was normally only shown by the Weasley twins. But now, as the kids came to a conclusion and stated it together, both grinning.

“The Horcrux is in the Room of Requirement!”

 

After explaining why they thought that, the five of them instantly left the Room to try opening it again, this time asking for the Horcrux. 

That didn’t work, and neither did asking for the Diadem of Ravenclaw. After several attempts Harry suggested the Room of Hidden Things, which Mione first deemed crazy (thousands of students had hidden things there, Riddle probably thought it was not safe enough) but then conceded that it was plausible that all things stored in the Room, no matter which form it took, ended up in there.

 

They spent around two hours - Harry and Hermione had to get back before curfew - searching in the Room of Hidden Things. Not that they were successful, but all of them had found other interesting stuff, be it old potions equipment, ancient wands and brooms, books, clothing and a surprising amount of furniture, some things probably as old as the castle itself.

Harry had found and collected some old goblin relics, which he would return the next time he would meet with his account manager. A bit of friendliness with the goblins wouldn't hurt. Since some of those objects were cursed, he tossed them into a bag with an undetectable extension charm and curse protections on it, something Remus had offered to borrow him.

 

With all the classes and Oli Wood’s way too hard training they only managed to get through a very small percentage of the Room of Hidden Things. With the help of some Potter elves they not only looked through the stuff but also sorted it, vanished some and kept some. AFter having a look at the school rules and checking in with the goblins they agreed that as finder and as Lord of three founder-houses plus the (not yet official, but blood-wise) affiliation with Hufflepuff, he could easily claim those items without any problems. 

But he didn’t keep everything. Not even remotely. 

Much went into the trash (they vanished it), and the rest they split between them. Goblin artefacts were to be returned, wands were put into safekeeping by all of them together (so the professors could hand out a spare in case of a wand being destroyed until a new one was bought), brooms would be checked and at some point (with a valid story behind them) added to the school’s brooms. All of worth was collected and put into an “emergency fund” for things like the possibly upcoming war. For that Harry rented, via mail, a new vault at Gringotts, from which withdrawals could only be made by at least three of the five together. Books they divided amongst them, everyone took what interested them. Everything else they sorted and kept there.

In those cases where they could actually identify the owner, like books with the name written in it, clothing with name tags or things with family crests on them (except goblin-made things. Those they returned since most of those had been stolen or loaned. The goblins had promised to give everything to its legal owner), they returned the items, mostly with Minnie or Severus writing a letter to said person or his/her heir, stating that it had been found in the castle.

Still, until now no diadem (or Horcrux in general if they were mistaken about which item it was).

 

A few days before Halloween Harry, Hermione and Neville came across Nearly Headless Nick in a deserted corridor. Just like last time he was rambling about the fact that he was not completely headless and his upcoming deathday party, and as soon as he saw them he invited the trio to the celebrations. Despite the fact that Harry and Mione knew how boring that would be, they accepted. Preserving the timeline above all else.

Nev then spoke up and addressed the ghost.

“Sir Nick, am I allowed to have a friend of mine accompany me to that celebration of yours? Though out of Slytherin house, she’s a brave and brilliant witch.”

The fact that Nev was asking about a Slytherin - Daphne of course - made the ghost hesitate briefly, but then he gave the young Heir Longbottom permission. All the ghosts in the castle knew that those three were admirable students and people (and he knew of the close relationship between Neville and Daphne, whom he considered a worthy witch despite being a snake).

“Of course, young man. If she wants, then bring Heiress Greengrass with you.”

And with that he was gone, floating through the next wall, leaving a flabbergasted Neville alone with both Harry and Hermione laughing.

“Well, Nev, seems like even the ghosts know of your girlfriend. Better hope they don’t gossip or Ron will shun you even more.”

Neville blushed, though he didn’t even try denying the fact that he and Daphne were a couple. It was not common knowledge, but Harry and Mione were well aware of that.

 

Daphne was somehow actually looking forward to spending the evening of Halloween with the trio, since she still didn’t really speak with Tracey, her - former, it seemed - best friend. Besides, when did you get the chance to see a real deathday party, and on Halloween of all days. 

Once she met with the three in front of the Great Hall, she hugged Neville, then heard Harry groan. She turned around and looked at the black-haired wizard, who then explained to her that she didn’t need to act differently just because they were with them, he and Hermione were well aware of their relationship. 

The girl sighed with relief and then grabbed Nev’s hand, grinning and blushing lightly.

“So Harry, Nev said you insisted on meeting upstairs. Why’s that, we could have met in the dungeons, our common room is there?”

Now it was Harry’s time to grin.

“You really don’t want to know what ghosts “eat” so we’re gonna make a short trip to the kitchens first to grab some food for us.”

“You’re joking! How do you know where the kitchens are?”

Both Harry and Hermione just smiled and began to lead the way. One day soon they’d tell them about the map, but not today. 

 

“So, there we are, guys. One of you now has got to tickle the pear.”

After some confusing looks followed by shrugging, Daphne stepped forward and did as Harry had asked, revealing the entrance to the kitchens. There were hundreds of house elves down here, all of them well-fed and smiling. Apparently, at least the elves had said so, Hogwarts had become a refuge for all the elves which had been mistreated and managed to get away, elves no one wanted anymore.

“Mr Potter, Miss Granger. How can Twinkly be of service for our favourite students?”

Twinkly was one of those elves born in the castle, coming from a long line of Hogwarts elves. She had been around during the Marauders’ time at school, but back then not her but her mother had been head elf. But for a few years now this was her job. And she had grown rather fond of Harry and Hermione since they started visiting them occasionally from last year on. That is why she supplied them with snacks or even full meals whenever they asked. 

It took less than two minutes until Twinkly brought them a basket filled with sandwiches, snacks and butterbeer. After thanking the elves they left, now heading for the dungeons.

 

To be honest, the deathday party was damn boring. Even Daphne, who had thought it might be interesting, realised that. But leaving would have been unfriendly, especially because Nick was very delighted to host them all.

At some point Harry was able to spot a female ghost on the opposite side of the room, looking lonely herself. It was Myrtle. 

Harry walked over to her, accidentally startling her since she hadn’t expected to be addressed by anyone this evening. 

“Miss Warren?”

“Oh hello. At least someone who doesn’t call poor Myrtle the Moaning Myrtle . Tell me, young man, how do you know who I am?”

Harry then claimed to have read about the whole incident regarding her death in Hogwarts: A history, which wasn’t entirely true, but not wrong either. In the versions from 1945 and later (she died in ‘43 but there was no revision of the book until two years later), the incident was somehow explained. Not properly, but at least well enough for him to claim he knew it from there. In truth he obviously knew about it from her and Riddle.

After some chatting with the ghost, the other three had long joined them and invited Myrtle to visit from time to time, it was slowly getting late and they thought it would be better if they left now to get back before curfew. 

Once they were on their way back up the stairs they ran into Minnie, already looking for them.

“Ah, Messrs Potter and Longbottom, Miss Granger, Miss Greengrass. I thought it would be wise to check on you, since I’ve heard about you rather - unusual, I might say - Halloween plans. Have you already eaten?”

The kids all nodded, while Harry and Hermione were already busy thinking why the witch was here, but that didn’t take them long to realise. She was giving Harry an alibi for the - hopefully - upcoming petrification to avoid the hate he had to endure last time around.

But it would be boring if that plan would actually work out. Or that is at least what destiny must have thought.

 

Harry heard the basilisk when they were walking down a corridor with Minerva. Daphne was still with them as Snape had asked Minnie to bring her to the great hall so he could then lead all of his students into the common room and do some house business. Seemed like he didn’t want Daphne alone in the common room because he feared she might head to bed and miss all of his announcements.

The damn beast was apparently very eager to hunt this evening, much more than he remembered it to be. But then, after a minute or so it was quiet again, which made him feel both relieved and terrified of what exactly had happened. Which was something he was just about to find out.

 

“Argus!”

Minnie’s outcry startled them, but then they saw it too. Not only was the cat of the old caretaker laying there in a puddle of water, petrified, but also Filch himself. How did that happen? 

Thanks to Minerva’s outcry, which was even heard in the Great Hall, students started to rush towards them, wanting to know what happened.

“THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.

I pity you, Granger, seems like you mudblood will be on top of that list after the old squib here. Well, actually I don’t pity you.”

“Mr Malfoy! Twenty points from Slytherin for insulting a fellow student.”

Draco, just like most of the entire school, was by now aware of what happened and was standing around the scene of the crime, reading out the writing on the wall behind them. 

Amongst the students was also Ronald Weasley, already spouting wild theories some started to believe.

“Hah, Potter! Now we know you’re evil. You did that. Being friends with all the snakes and not with us lightsided wizards should have made that obvious long ago. I hope you’ll get expelled for that, but only after your stupid mudbl…muggleborn is dead.”

 

Ron Weasley couldn’t believe that all the other teachers and students were just standing there, while Potter was next to the dead caretaker. Not that it bothered him much that old Filch was dead, but it seemed like no one was able to come to the obvious conclusion. Potter not only avoided, but hated him, a light-sided wizard and instead befriended the bloody snakes and mudbloods. His mother and Dumbledore had always promised him that Potter would be his best mate, not good at school and without friends. But they were wrong. Potter must have changed his affiliations, ending up on the dark side. Otherwise he wouldn’t be so strong.

And why did no one bother that he hadn’t attended the feast, but instead ended up at the scene of the crime together with a damn snake. McGonagall even caught him, obviously.

“Thirty points from Gryffindor for insulting another student and wishing another one harm, Mr Weasley.”

Before he could protest against McGonagall taking points from him, Snape and Dumbledore appeared, followed by Lupin. 

“Minerva, what happened here?”

“It was all Potter, headmaster. He’s a dark…”

Snape’s silencing spell hit him in the face.

“Severus! That was not necessary.”

“Oh, I think it was, Albus. Thank you, Severus. Mr Filch and his cat are petrified, they’re not dead. You see the message yourself, someone claims the chamber was opened again. And while I usually don’t condone the usage of spells on students, Mr Weasley here began to insult and accuse Mr Potter here, saying he was an evil wizard and did all of that, because he was, and I quote: being friends with all the snakes and not with us lightsided wizards. ”

Then she addressed all the students around her:

“For all those who are stupid enough to believe Mr Weasley’s accusations here, Mr Potter and his friends all spent the evening at Sir Nicholas’ deathday party. There are around three hundred ghosts, including all house ghosts, who can verify that. And I myself picked them up from the party downstairs, they haven’t been without supervision since before the beginning of the feast. And since we all saw Mr Filch during the feast in the Great Hall, I can tell you without doubt that neither one of those students was even remotely able to do this. Besides, there are probably no students able to petrify a human being. So I hope that not a single one of you, including you, Mr Weasley, will bring up those accusations ever again. Those who do will get detention with me and a loss of twenty points.”

Severus, as well as Remus, Sprout, Flitwick, Hooch and Sinistra, basically all the teachers which were standing here, nodded in agreement. Dumbledore just sighed. Why was Ronald Weasley such a brainless idiot? He should have been Harry’s friend, not biggest enemy.

Notes:

So, that's it. I do hope you liked it. Let me know about it in the comments and see ya all next week

Chapter 20: Albus Dumbledore finds out that one shouldn't anger werewolves

Notes:

Good morning everyone! Here is the latest chapter for you all. As always, thanks very very much for all of your feedback, that's still one hell of a motivation.
Have fun with today's chapter!

The days following the first attack, everyone was quite tense. This time around not really anyone started accusing Harry and it was mainly Ron glaring at him. Well, Seamus and Dean were not really sure what to believe, but Harry wasn’t really close with them at all, so he didn’t care. 

To be precise, there were other people glaring at him, but those were just girls who were jealous. It seemed like Ginny had told her story from the train to Lavender, wanting to know if it was because Harry and Hermione were an item. That led to Lavender assuming they were, meaning Harry and Mione had dozens of glaring girls staring at him, for example Ginny, Cho, Marietta, Parvati or that Hufflepuff girl, whose name Harry couldn’t recall. That friend of Katie’s…Leanne, that was her name. 

But that was not so bad, they could live with that.

In regards to the Chamber, the rumours and theories became crazier every day. Suddenly, all copies of Hogwarts: A History were borrowed from the library, a sight that would have made Hermione happy any other day but in that instance it just led to speculation. She herself knew how helpful the book really was in regards to the Chamber - not at all. That’s why the question about it came up in a History of Magic lesson, but this time not from Mione. 

“Yes, Miss Dunbar?”

“Professor, could you tell us something about the Chamber of Secrets? Hogwarts: A History doesn’t really have much information about that in it.”

“Miss Dunbar, I’m teaching history and that is all we are going to talk about in class. I don’t have the time to discuss myths.”

Now Hermione chimed in.

“But Professor, doesn’t every myth have some sort of truth in it? Besides, you must have already been teaching here when it was opened last in 1943.”

Harry wasn’t sure who was more surprised by that statement, the students now finding out that it had already been opened once, or Binns being absolutely shocked that Hermione knew about it.

“And how did you get aware of that, Miss Granger? I’m very certain that Headmaster Dipped didn’t share the specifics of the incident from ‘43 with anyone outside of the staff and the head of the DMLE.”

“Oh, I didn’t know for sure until now, but I’ve read about the death of Myrtle Warren and there are still some reports from students about writing on walls. Besided, as you might be aware, we attended Sir Nick’s deathday party and had a conversation with Myrtle then. It was the most logical conclusion and you confirmed it”

The ghost looked upset first, but then gave her ten points for her brilliance before admitting that this was true. Myrtle Warren, also known as Moaning Myrtle, had been killed when the chamber was opened the last time, but then stated that the ministry had caught the perpetrator.

“Oh please, Professor. I think we can agree on the fact that it wasn’t Hagrid. Yes, I heard he raised an acromantula in the castle, but that creature neither petrifies nor kills without leaving any marks on the body. They eat their prey. The ministry just broke his wand because he’s a half-giant, or at least I’m fairly certain he is. That accusation is utter nonsense.”

After that statement, the ghost actually had to agree with her but then continued to tell the story behind Slytherin’s hidden chamber and the myth of the beast within it, which would some day purge the school from all unworthy to study magic. That did not really have any calming effect on any of the muggleborn students, neither in this specific class nor in the whole school, because by the end of the day everyone knew about it. At some point even old Dumbles himself heard that Miss Granger had been telling stories about the last opening of the Chamber of Secrets, and so he ordered his deputy to bring the girl to his office after dinner. 

 

“Miss Granger!”

“Yes, professor, what can I do for you?”

“The headmaster has tasked me with telling you that he would like to see you in his office immediately after dinner. And before you ask, I don’t know what it is about.”

Mione nodded. To be honest, she should have expected something like that. After that history lesson it was about time that the headmaster would want to have a private word with her. And to her shock, he had even denied Minerva to join the conversation as Head of House, apparently the Hogwarts student statute only granted that right when it had something to do with a violation of the school rules or it was related to performances in class. Dumbledore had only changed that a few years back apparently, maybe even as preparation for the many times he would speak to Harry in his office. 

Minerva led her student to the stone gargoyle, asking it nicely to allow Hermione passage, before conjuring a chair. No chance she would go away, she would continue sitting here until Hermione came back so she could check her for potions or charms. Or even better, she would check her for charms and then take her to Severus, he was much better with potions - obviously. She sent him a patronus message right away.

 

Dumbledore, who thought that his office filled with rare tomes and obscure magical artefacts would impress the young Miss Granger and get her in a mood for talking and spilling her secrets, was very surprised that the young witch was barely talking to him. After a very brief and almost clinical description of how she came to the conclusion in regards to Myrtle and the Chamber, she was silent and avoided his gaze, meaning he couldn’t even use his legilimency skills on her. Well, he probably shouldn’t do that either way. Not because it was very unethical, but rather because the bright young witch might even recognise his attempts or at least describe the feeling of his mind probe to Minerva or another teacher, wanting to know what that was. That girl was a danger to him and his plans.

Well, but maybe the Basilisk - he wasn’t stupid after all, he had figured it out back then in ‘43 when he still had his hopes of Tom following him - would take care of her. Once the wards would detect another movement from the snake, then he could confound her and toss her somewhere in close proximity to it. Then all his problems would be gone.

To be honest, not all of them. He had no idea who the guilty one was. Last time it had been obvious, but allowing Tom to go through with blaming Hagrid had been the best solution to the whole issue. Now he had an obedient half-giant, owing him everything. And without his wand Hagrid would never get a normal job, so he was bound to Hogwarts after all. A very cheap way to manage the grounds.

“But Miss Granger, before I allow you to head back to your common room, I have another question. Why did you invite Harry to your home last Christmas without asking for permission to do that?”

Oh gosh, he knows about that, was all that Mione could think at that moment. But thankfully she was brilliant and had made plans how to respond to that together with Harry. But first, play the role of the naive kid.

“Headmaster, how do you know about that?”

He laughed and smiled at her in his usual grandfatherly fashion.

“Oh, I have my way to find out things, but to be honest, I just wrote letters to Harry’s aunt Petunia and to Augusta Longbottom. Those were for me the most logical possibilities.”

“Ah, that makes sense.”

The girl was panicking a little bit, but if he hadn’t unmasked their plans until now, then Minnie must have created some protective measures.

“Oh, I wonder what Mrs. Dursley had written to you. Harry had asked them via owl if he should stay at the castle and she replied that she would need his help for their annual New Year’s Eve dinner, but then, on the day we left she had somehow acquired and owl - probably she still remembers things like the muggle parent owl service (muggle parents could order an owl via the normal mail if they wouldn’t have an owl themselves) from her sister - and told Harry that she didn’t need him anymore. But by then we were already on the train, so once we reached Kings Cross I asked my parents, we called the Dursleys and at some point in the holidays I even owled Professor McGonagall a letter about that. She said it was okay.”

Dumbledore nodded, apparently satisfied with the answer and then sent the girl back to her common room.

 

After exiting the gargoyle both Minnie and Snape - who had rushed up here as soon as he got the patronus message - cornered her and cast dozens of spells to make sure she was fine. The girl didn’t even complain, knowing it was the right thing to do. Once they had made sure all was fine, she recited the whole conversation, followed by asking Minerva - Severus had already put up a Muffliato - what she had done about the Dursleys.

“Oh, they don’t get any owl post anymore, I asked Gringotts - since Harry is officially in my custody - to divert all letters that they would still get as his former guardians to me. In addition to that I put up wards to tell me whenever wizards visit there or anything else magical happens. I replied to Albus’ letters.”

Mione was so happy right now that the transfiguration professor was on their side, because she was a brilliant witch with whom no one would want to mess with.

 

Saturday was a day that Harry was dreading. Well, not Saturdays in general, but this one definitely. It was time for the Gryffindor - Slytherin Quidditch match, and if memory serves, then Harry would have quite the issue with a very nasty bludger all day. 

On the bright side, Lockhart was not at school this time around, so he would at least keep the bones in his arm now. Oh, and right, in only a few days time Colin would get petrified, which would give Harry a lot more peace and quiet in his free time. Not that he didn’t like the boy, but especially in this year with all the photographs…just exhausting.

 

The day of the game was very rainy and rather cold, so not really the most pleasant weather to play. Oliver wasn’t really in the best mood either, because they all knew that the newest Slytherin seeker - Malfoy - was flying his brand-new Nimbus 2001.  But he still held his usual motivation speech, not that it really worked. 

The Slytherins started off with very dominant offensive playing, leading 40:0 within just under ten minutes, but then slowly the Gryffindor chaser line warmed up and took the lead with six quick goals, four of them alone scored by Katie Bell. Oliver now started performing on his usual level, not allowing any further goals. At that point the game was getting a bit boring, with the lions scoring just occasionally and the snakes not at all for over an hour, but then something changed.

One of the bludgers, which Fred - or was it George - sent towards Pucey, who was in possession of the quaffle, suddenly made a sharp right turn and aimed at Harry. Yes, George - well, at least the other Weasley twin - tried racing towards Harry, wanting to deflect it, but he wasn’t fast enough. Luckily, Harry had outflown a full-grown Hungarian Horntail, a rogue bludger thanks to Dobby was no challenge at all.

After that happened around a dozen times, Oliver tried to use a timeout, but Harry intervened. He was having not really any problems whatsoever, it was actually fun. 

Around twenty minutes, the score was now 80:50 for the lions, Harry spotted the snitch for the first time, dancing around Malfoy’s broom, but the little ferret didn’t even realise it. Acting like he would be taunting Draco, he came closer to him, dropping stupid comments about him having bought his way onto the teams, distracting the other seeker. 

Then the bludger came racing towards him again and Harry thought that he better act fast now, rushed forward, grabbing the snitch which was flying directly underneath Draco’s broomstick and ducked. Madame Hooch ended the game by blowing her whistle once she saw Harry raising his hand with the snitch in it, but then the metal ball flew towards him again.

 

Remus Lupin now had enough from that damn rogue bludger and cast a rare variation of the immobulus charm at the ball, making it drop down right away and before anyone could intervene he summoned it.

“So, I think we can all agree on the fact that something is wrong with that ball. I’ll examine it and you all will get the results.”

 

Not that far away from the quidditch pitch, a small house elf was fuming. Why had the stupid wolf immobilised the ball made to harm young Harry Potter so he would leave Hogwarts? Now Harry Potter wasn’t hurt at all. 

After this horrible failure, Dobby ended up punishing himself thoroughly for failing this mission, as well as disobeying his master’s orders.

 

As one might expect, the party in the Gryffindor common room was damn wild and crazy. Thanks to the twins’ friendship with the elves and their knowledge of the passageway to Honeydukes they had a lot of sweets and other food for their party. At some point, even Minnie joined in and ate with them,  but then continued to send all the students from third year and below that to bed, giving the older ones a bit of leeway.

Remus on the other hand was busy analysing the magic on the bludger. Yes, he knew it was a house elf, and he even knew which one precisely it had been, but now it was about proving that. 

And that task was seemingly impossible. Yes, he easily proved that a house elf had manipulated the iron ball, but elves did not have an unique magical signature. At least that’s what he discovered after a few hours of research and, since there was hardly any unbiased and detailed information available, talking with some elves, both from the kitchens and from the Manor. For the latter he even left the castle so Dumbledore wouldn’t pick up on any of that through the wards.

On the following day Remus went to the headmaster’s office and presented his findings to Dumbledore, the four heads and Hooch. Everyone but the old meddler himself was shocked and they already started devising plans to find out more and prevent that from ever happening again, but then they were rather harshly interrupted by Dumbledore. He vehemently disagreed with them, called the whole incident “probably a joke, no big deal” and prohibited them from continuing their planning.

Severus Snape could not believe what he was hearing right now. The old meddler probably knew who the guilty party was and didn’t want to take the whole thing seriously, just like the petrification incident in general. But before the potions master could raise his voice in disagreement, claiming he didn’t want that to happen to his Slytherins, he was beaten to it by an angry werewolf.

“No, Dumbledore! You can’t just ignore a thread, no, an attempt on any student’s life, and as the closest thing to family that Harry has, I insist on an investigation. No chance I’ll let you sweep the whole thing under the rug, just like you always do. You probably haven’t even informed Amelia Bones that you have something petrifying people at school, haven’t you? Negligent old fool!”

With that he just turned around and left the office.

Dumbledore put on his usual “disappointed grandfather” smile and was starting to say something, but was stopped by Minerva getting up and leaving without a word. After a few moments of shock and surprise, all the other teachers followed her suit, even Severus. That was what surprised the headmaster the most. How could his spy side with the werewolf that nearly killed him all those years ago.

Even the portraits of the former headmasters didn’t start speaking, even his old friend Phineas hadn’t said anything in months. Little did he know that this was Harry’s fault.

After the destruction of the locket Horcrux, Harry, Hermione and Severus stayed for a while at Grimmauld Place, just a few hours to satisfy their curiosity. During that time, Severus was the first to encounter an empty picture frame in which a very familiar person walked in just as he was passing by.

“Severus? How did you get here, into my ancestral home?”

“Damn it. HARRY! I have a problem here.”

The young boy came rushing towards him and immediately realised what was wrong. 

“Headmaster Black! Your Heir Black commands you to keep his and his associates’ secrets, especially from Headmaster Dumbledore. With the power given to me by our Lord Black I silence you to all outsiders!”

“Potter! You boy, how did you get…wait, what?”

Phineas Nigellus Black rushed out of the painting, presumably into his other frame, the one at Hogwarts. Just mere seconds later he returned, looking both upset and surprised. By now Harry was holding up his hand with all the rings, making Phineas realise he had been speaking the truth.

After a short retelling of all the wrongs Dumbledore had done (nothing about the time travel though), the painting was fully on their side and promised to gather intelligence for them, as this would be a proper Slytherin attempt to weaken an opponent.

 

Remus’ outburst spread amongst the staff and at some point, probably thanks to Hagrid, even the students found out about it. The support from the heads of house was something that was very well received among all students. Yes, a few hesitant Gryffindors, Ron for example, were still strong supporters of the headmaster, but the majority was demanding further investigations in both the petrifying and the bludger incident. Not that the headmaster cared.

 

A few days later (later than last time around, whyever that was) Colin got petrified. Minerva made that announcement at breakfast after having forewarned her lions (at least those that had been awake and in the common room at that time) the night before. Dumbledore, who was sitting next to her, didn’t look too pleased with that while Remus had a very visible smug grin on his face.

“And while I know that many of you might not feel safe on the corridors anymore, I have to inform you that neither DMLE nor staff and board of governors were able to get permission for the stationing of aurors as safeguard. Luckily, at least an investigation can’t be denied so don’t be surprised if you run into aurors or Lady Bones as head of the DMLE. She might even want to talk to witnesses, those interviews would have to be held in the presence of your head of house or a by them named proxy in case of being indisposed.”

Any of Dumbledore’s attempts of interrupting or expressing his disapproval were stopped, either by Minerva glaring at him or Filius discreetly throwing a silencing charm at him.

Harry wasn’t too unhappy about that change, Dumbles did deserve that kind of treatment. Mione on the other hand was constantly complaining about the timeline but simultaneously couldn’t deny that all the hatred towards Ronald and Dumbledore was very, very satisfying.

 

After breakfast they had potions class, nothing interesting since they were all very skilled at it. The four of them (Harry, Mione, Nev and Daph) often changed around the pairing during class so everyone could benefit from each other. This time it was Harry and Daphne. Because they were brewing a fire protection potion, nothing too complicated and the same one as from the potions riddle last year, they had lots of time to talk.

“So, still no change in Tracey’s behaviour?”

“No, not really. By now she either hangs out with Parkinson and Bulstrode or is on her own. She’s just… I don’t know, closing off I’d say. And no, it’s no longer only the thing with Nev and you guys, I think she just hoped nothing would ever change, always her and me like before Hogwarts. But with being around so many people for nine months a year that is absurd.”

And while this was right, it didn’t make anything easier. Harry began to wonder if people just tended to argue more this time around or if he just heard about it more since he was friends with much more people from his year. It wasn’t only Daphne and Tracey, but the Patil twins too. Ginny was overall acting a bit strange, but that at least he could blame on something - her stupid crush and obsession as well as the diary. Then Seamus, Dean and Ron, who had massive issues with him, Terry Boot and Anthony Goldstein were having major disagreements currently and it seemed like Lisa Turpin was not really talking to anyone right now. Luna had claimed that it was a heavy case of Nargles in her case. 

The one person luckily doing very well was Luna. She and Padma were close friends by now, studying together and spending much time outside of class with each other. No one was even trying to bully the little blonde girl, but maybe that had something to do with Harry obviously befriending Luna or with Padma hexing Cho for a “loony Lovegood” comment. Maybe both. The only thing the little blonde missed on occasion was the long-time childhood friend, Ginny Weasley, though she was having a heavy case of Nargles (and Blibbering Humdinger too, apparently). Luna was still optimistic that she could win back her friend at some point.

Despite his thoughtfulness, Harry and Daphne still managed to brew a flawless potion and hand it in, receiving five points each. Didn’t make Harry more popular with Ronald, the whole “fraternising with Snakes and Professor Snape” continued to convince him of Harry being dark. At least he didn’t say it out aloud anymore (most of the time).

 

Somewhere in Hogwarts, on a late evening, a girl was once again writing down all her sorrows in her diary. At first it had appeared strange to her that it replied, but by now she was used to that. Her new friend - Tom, that’s what he called himself - was always up for listening to her and her problems. Friends and family were just exhausting, had been for quite some time now, and school wasn’t really better. Classes were not really nice and she hardly got along with anyone.

Once again the girl was complaining to Tom, this time even mentioning the blackouts she had started to get more and more often over the past weeks. For a while she even panicked that during those times she had done something to those petrified people, but Tom - the only one she could rely on - told her that this couldn’t be the case. There was no way she would be able to do that. 

Now reassured the girl returned to her usual complaints, and Tom listened. He always listened. Sometimes he even asked her things, be it about her family, her friends - especially her former best friend, with whom she had spent so much time in her childhood. Visits from the blonde girl with whom she had always been able to do crazy things had been everything to her - and on occasion even about Harry Potter. Whyever that was. It seemed like Tom had no idea what the boy had achieved, so she filled him in. He was very impressed by the stories, but also lacked the understanding of what had happened that night in Godric’s Hollow.

At some point the girl said good night to her friend and closed the diary. She couldn’t continue listening to Tom’s rambles about Harry Potter this evening and since she was feeling weak, and has been the entire week - she headed to bed.

Little did she know that the spirit, the soul within the leather diary, was very happy. With every day that passed, he got stronger and stronger. In only a few months he would be able to come back through the girl. Her power became his, her magical core became his, her life became his.

Lord Voldemort would return from the dead.

Notes:

So, that's it for today. Things seem to get out of hand, don't they? Let me know what you think in the comments.

See ya all next week

Chapter 21: Duelling snakes (and Malfoy), petrified ghosts, and a lovely Christmas song

Notes:

Good morning everyone. Have fun reading the latest chapter :)

In the first week of December, until now nothing new had happened at Hogwarts, the duo sat together with their three favourite professors, discussing what to do about Christmas. Doing the same thing like last year was maybe a stupid idea, they had no clue if Dumbles would prevent them from that. So, that made them consider staying, though the Grangers wouldn’t be too happy about it. 

“Alright, I think that’s the best idea. I’ll write to my parents and inform them, okay?”

But then Minerva had a better suggestion: apparently she had connected her floo with the Granger fireplace just a few days ago (having the head of the DMLE on your side did have its perks) so she could floo-call them. They even put up spells so Dumbledore should not even realise it, and if then Minnie would come up with some excuse of what she had been doing. 

And so the bushy-haired girl kneeled down in front of Minerva’s fireplace, threw in some floo-powder and said “Granger family home!”

Once she had stuck her head into the green flames and was - judging from the sound of it - talking to her very surprised mother, Harry got up. Even though he hid it most of the time, he was still the heir of two Marauders, and a third one was sitting right there.

“You know what Padfoot or Prongs would do right now, Moony?”

Remus threw a glance at him, thinking for a second, but then grinning.

Harry walked up to Mione, carefully so she wouldn’t register his movements and then jumped forward, grabbing her by the waist and then pushing her into the green flames with a big grin.

 

Emma Granger was just talking to her daughter, which was a very interesting thing to do through a fireplace, when her little girl squeaked and rolled out of the fireplace, both laughing and shouting something along the lines of “Harry James Potter, you damn prat!” until she got up to hug her mother. 

 

“Okay, let me summarise that: you all want to stay at Hogwarts because the old meddler (yes, the Granger parents were very much aware of most of Dumbles’ actions, they just didn’t know about the time travel) is not happy with Harry visiting us? If you guys think that’s the best thing to do, then go ahead. Maybe then Dan and I can finally go for that wellness vacation we’ve been wanting to do for years.”

 

Once Mione had returned to Hogwarts - since the summer her parents were in possession of floo powder - she first went and punched Harry playfully on the shoulder, before informing all of them that they would stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. Minnie instantly put their names down, she’d start collecting the other names on the following day. 

This year, there were not many people staying for the holidays, even less than usual. Yes, Dumbledore still insisted that the school would be safe, but not many believed that. Ginny was staying too, apparently she had an argument with her mother (if Harry would have to guess, he would say it was about him and the failure of the potions. Maybe the girl would try something again over the holidays). Luna was staying too, just like Susan Bones (mainly because Amelia was staying at the castle for her investigations very often). Nev and Daphne both went home, they had told Harry and Hermione that their families would hold a Christmas party together. The potential union between the houses Longbottom and Greengrass was something that the families both wanted to happen, not only for their children’s happiness, but also because of the political power. Together with Harry and his Lordships they would be the strongest alliance in the Wizengamot.

Aside from those, all the others who would stay were people Harry and Mione didn’t know and were from upper years. This Christmas would be very interesting.

But before it was time for that, there were still some other things to do. One of them would be the duelling club. This time, thanks to Lockhart’s absence, it was offered by Remus, and the attendance was even higher, so that not only Snape but Flitwick as well were assisting.

After an impressive display of Severus’ Expelliarmus (Remus wasn’t thrown backwards like Lockhart and it had taken Snape three tries to breach the werewolf’s defences) they divided the students in three groups (years 1-3 with Remus, 4-5 with Flitwick and the 6-7 with Severus) to teach them some duelling techniques. Nothing special happened, they learned some new things and used it in partner work. Harry was paired with Dean Thomas and Mione with Parkinson, both playing down their skill and actually helping the others. Then Remus decided to let them duel each other (with strict rules obviously) in pairings he dictated.

Around half an hour later, when the teachers wanted to wrap it up for the day, Malfoy (the damn idiot) went up onto the duelling platform and addressed the room.

“Potter! I challenge you to a wizard’s duel. Come on, don’t be a coward and back out of it.”

Even though he had wanted to avoid exactly this from happening, he knew that duelling Malfoy and showing off his Parsel abilities were essential for the timeline. But with so many more friends and a knowledge of what to do he should be able to keep the backlash from his “dark abilities” small.

Remus sighed, Fliwick looked surprised and Severus, wanting to keep his cover intact, allowed the duel. 

“Alright. Mr Potter, Mr Malfoy, I will be the referee. Duel until first blood is drawn. No permanent injuries and nothing illegal. Bow!”

 

Draco was the first one to fire a spell, but Harry just dodged it. None of the spells from the ferret were anyhow dangerous and Harry had to laugh inwardly. After a jelly-legs curse and a tickling charm Draco finally decided to change his strategy and yelled Serpensortia!

The huge dark grey snake jumped in Harry’s direction and the young boy was able to see that Flitwick began to move, but Remus held him back. Draco was grinning, giving Harry the chance to throw a powerful Expelliarmus at him, knocking him off his feet. The blonde boy flew backwards and hit the floor so hard that his nose started to bleed. Harry had won, but the snake was still moving towards him.

“Stand down, my friend. I’m a speaker and you have to obey me.”

“A speaker? How did I get here?”

“This blonde fella over there conjured you to aid him in his duel with me. He didn’t know I’m a speaker. I will send you home, my friend, if that is what you desire. Please come here and leave the other younglings alone, they are afraid of you.”

The snake obeyed and slithered towards Harry, then stopped in front of him and bowed. The students who had watched the duel were already murmuring about Harry’s display of Parseltongue while he kneeled down, softly patted the snake’s head and whispered the counter-spell to the conjuring.

Once he got up again, the whispers got louder, some people now openly accusing him of being evil and the heir or next Dark Lord. Ronald was - surprise, surprise - amongst the loudest voices, spouting his usual nonsense. Now both Lupin and Flitwick started to intervene, deducted points and handed out detentions.

“Come on, why do you all think I’m a Dark Lord? My parents died at the hands of one. And being the damn heir, are you all not able to think logically? My mom was a muggleborn, my best friend is a muggleborn and you all are convinced I want the death of muggleborns. How do you all arrive at your conclusions? And if you ask Malfoy, he will be able to tell you that I too am a descendant of the House of Black and Parseltongue has always been a rare genetic trait amongst Blacks.”

Harry knew that this probably wasn’t where he had it from, rather the Peverell and Slytherin ancestry, but it wasn’t a lie.

Draco, slowly getting up now, nodded.

“Potter’s right. Hate to admit it, but he’s right. Good duel, Potter.”

That response was something that no one had expected but the stupid ferret was growing weary of being embarrassed all the time. His mother - he had written to her about that issue - had told him to dial back his animosity if he wanted to save his status, regardless of what Lucius said. She often met with other parents from Hogwarts students at social events and was well aware that the Potter boy was powerful and had a strong social standing amongst all houses at Hogwarts, even some Slytherins. It would harm Draco’s future if he continued this way. No, he wouldn’t need to become friends with him, but at least he shouldn’t try bullying him as much as the Weasley boy did. 

 

After the duelling club had ended, Snape took Malfoy aside and questioned him why he had acted the way he did after losing (after berating him for challenging Potter).

“Father wanted me to duel Potter, I knew that I would probably lose. But mother told me to stop bullying Potter that much because it seems my standing isn’t so good anymore amongst the old families while Potter is getting popular. Even with Zabini and Greengrass for example. I’ve heard a rumour that Lord Greengrass even hosted Potter during the summer holidays. I don’t want to embarrass myself as much as the damn blood traitor Weasley does. One day I’ll be Lord Malfoy and Lord Black, I can’t ruin my name.”

 

Harry and Hermione found the whole thing utterly hilarious after Severus had told them that. It seemed like the ferret’s Slytherin survival instincts had kicked in. 

What they also discussed on that evening was the other students’ reaction to the Parseltongue. The snakes kept mostly quiet though some were a bit jealous. They all were well aware of genetic traits from the ancient houses and didn’t really mind, some even had more respect for Potter now. 

The claws had done a check of Potter’s ancestry as well as of the hereditary aspects of Parseltongue to prove his claims, and after establishing that he was correct they decided that they didn’t really mind at all. Once the Hufflepuffs had heard of that they too decided that it wasn’t Harry’s fault that he possessed a power which was connoted dark. Most of the Puffs in Harry’s year had said that all along, but now it was the overall consensus. All in all, no one from the three other houses did bully Harry because of that or even considered that he might be the heir. 

Only the lions weren’t so sure about it. Yes, every house had a few people that disagreed with their house’s view, but the lions were basically divided into two groups of remotely the same size. While the Quidditch team and most of Harry’s year (all the girls but Parvati and Lavender, though the latter had no real side in the conflict and ignored it, but from the boys only Neville) were on his side, just like Percy, the opposing side had people like Ronald, Finnegan, Thomas, McLaggen, Ginny and most of her year as well as about a quarter of the higher years. 

This obviously led to some shouting matches in the common room and several attempts of sabotaging Harry’s trunk and bed, though he was too greatly protected against it, as Ron had already found out during their first year.

A few people ended up in the Hospital Wing to get rid of the effects of the prank and protection spells, then McGonagall got wind of it and intervened. The trio and Daphne had spent a free period after breakfast on the day after the duelling club incident in the Room of Requirement (about which they had finally told Nev and Daphne so they could study better), meaning they didn’t even realise that seven different people had tried sabotaging Harry’s trunk. Yes, he had a notification charm on it but since he had expected something like that to happen, he had adjusted it so he would only get notified if it was breached. Once Minnie sent them a patronus message to inform them about it, they immediately hurried down to her office. 

To be honest, Harry and Mione found the idiocy of some lions pretty funny, as well as the story that Minnie told them. Apparently Ronald and Finnegan also had had another attempt at Harry’s trunk, obviously not successful, but Ronald ended up with a bright glowing red nose - again. Even though he had tried, he didn’t get through the common room undetected and some muggleborn fifth year started chanting a variation of something that was apparently a famous muggle Christmas song, at least that’s what Minnie had been told. Most halfbloods and muggleborns had started singing along and Ronald Weasley had to escape the common room, absolutely embarrassed. 

Mione couldn’t hold back the question and asked what they had been singing, and Minnie’s reply led to her and Harry bursting out in laughter. It seemed like Hogwarts had found a new favourite Christmas tune.

It was called Ronald, the red-nosed reindeer.

 

The evening of said day came closer and both Harry and Hermione were pretty nervous about it. If the timeline was still somehow intact, then Justin Finch-Fletchley would turn up petrified, as well as Sir Nicholas. Yes, this time around no one claimed that Harry had wanted to attack Justin with the snake, but he was still afraid of some more backlash now that everyone knew he was a Parselmouth. If anyone would figure out that the beast was a basilisk… 

That’s why Harry decided to spend most of the afternoon and evening (aside from the classes obviously) in the great hall, studying with Daphne, Neville, Mione, Susan and Hannah. Unfortunately, even Ronald was there, playing wizard’s chess with Finnegan and complaining loudly about Snakes (and Claws and Puffs, but mainly about the “slimy snakes”) at the Gryffindor table. Thankfully Harry was quite skilled with putting up a silencing charm around the redhead. Fred and George would have probably thought that that was very funny, Percy would have sighed and said “I get it, Harry, I’m sorry for his behaviour” and Ginny would have gone crazy and yelled at Harry. But none of that happened, Ronald was the only redhead in the great hall around now.

They were able to spend even more time in the great hall than on a usual Friday, because thanks to the awful blizzard outside the last herbology class of this term got cancelled. That meant that the only class this afternoon would be transfiguration, but before they were heading to Minnie’s classroom they saw Hagrid coming into the great hall, looking for Dumbledore. 

To be honest, Harry wasn’t really too friendly with Hagrid this time around and had tended to ignore most of his invitations, simply because the half-giant was Dumbledore’s man through and through and because Harry couldn’t forgive him the whole “stealing him out of Sirius’ arms and leaving him at the Dursleys.” He didn’t hate Hagrid, no, but they just weren’t close.

Ronald, who on the other hand was close with Hagrid, got up (outside of the range of the silencing charm) and asked what was wrong. The half-giant held up two dead roosters and told Weasley (and by that the whole room since he couldn’t talk quietly) that someone or something had killed them. He was now asking for Dumbles’ help to protect his precious animals.

Harry turned to Mione and whispered into her ear.

“Do you think that the old meddler wouldn’t figure out that the beast is a basilisk. Petrification, dead rooster and disappearing spiders, like Severus said, and we all know that Slytherins’s symbol is a snake.”

Mione agreed, a man as smart as Dumbledore should figure that out.

“Yes, but he must know that Tom claimed to be Slytherin’s heir, and I mean he was until he “died.” I guess he just wants you to confront him. If he only knew that you’re the righteous Lord Slytherin… that would be funny.”

That fact had already led to a discussion with Daphne and Neville after the whole Halloween incident, because they knew that he was Lord Slytherin. Not that they thought he was guilty, but just to make sure. They told them about Tom (since they knew of his return after the whole stone incident) and the basilisk as well as the Parseltongue but insisted on keeping that quiet. Since McGonagall, Snape, Lupin and Amelia Bones knew about it the two kids agreed and trusted the judgement of the adults.

 

Now, as the transfiguration class was about to begin, all the Gryffindor and Slytherin in the great hall got up and went towards Professor McGonagall’s classroom. They started with some repetition before starting to study the softening charm. That one they already learned in first-year charms class, but only the basics, now on a more elaborate level. But once they started reading the chapter in their school book, Cedric Digorry rushed into the classroom.

“Mr. Diggory? What makes you think you can just interrupt my lesson? If it’s urgent, at least knock.”

He was out of breath and seemed to be completely rattled. 

“Apologies, Professor. Professor Snape insisted that I should get you. There has been another petrification, it’s Justin Finch-Flechley. He was late on his way to Charms and never arrived. It was Moaning Myrtle that informed us about his petrification.”

Minnie got up and dismissed the class, though ordering them to stay in here until a professor or prefect would escort them to their common rooms, but Cedric wasn’t done yet. 

“Professor, it wasn’t only Justin, who got petrified. Sir Nicholas too.”

 

After news of that broke, the whole castle was in uproar. How the hell could someone petrify a ghost? The only positive thing that came with that was that Ronald had to admit (after accusing Harry loudly) that he had seen Harry all afternoon in either the great hall, on their way to class or in class. That did calm down most of the Lions that were against Harry, but there was still animosity.

That luckily changed only a few days later, not because all those idiots realised that they were idiots, but because they all went home for Christmas. Suddenly Harry had peace and quiet in the castle. The - usually pretty loud - Gryffindor common room was silent and empty, giving the duo much time to study and prepare, but also to relax. The occasional appearance of Ginny Weasley had hardly any influence on that. She mostly disappeared for hours and took her meals quietly and quickly. 

Tracey and Lisa Turpin had spontaneously decided to stay too. Well, decide was the wrong word, in both cases the parents had written to the head of houses. In Lisa’s case it had something to do with troubles at home. The girl was a halfblood living in a muggle area and apparently had been bullied all summer. Her parents had used the usual “my kid’s going to a special school for gifted kids” excuse like everyone else did, but her childhood friends didn’t believe that and made fun of her all summer long. The Turpins had hoped that would stop after Lisa went back to school and they had a conversation with the other parents, but recently got wind that the kids’ mindset hadn’t changed so they asked Lisa if it’d be okay if she stayed for Christmas, for her sake. It was actually so bad at home that the whole issue with the petrifications was the lesser evil.

In Tracey’s case it had been a family emergency, for which her parents had to travel to relatives in Italy in the week before Christmas and since the Davis family wasn’t wealthy they couldn’t afford an international portkey for their daughter on such short notice. Usually, when things like that happened, Tracey stayed at Daphne’s, but that was still not something she wanted to do. 

 

The atmosphere on Christmas eve was…interesting. Dumbledore did try to engage in conversation with Harry, but the boy politely declined always, still upset at the fact that they couldn’t be at the Grangers’ right now. Not that the company was too bad, but there was still a major part of the family missing. At least they had some nice conversations with Luna, Susan and Lisa (who warmed up to them after a while). Ginny and Tracey both sat alone, and all the other students they didn’t really know were in their separate groups.

Once the feast was over, Harry and Hermione left the hall to reconvene with the professor trio in the Room of Requirement, but they didn’t really had a chance to get rid of the other three students until Amelia Bones, still staying most of the time at Hogwarts (both for work and annoying Dumbledore) saved them. The head of the DMLE invited her niece and the two Ravenclaw girls into her quarters to celebrate on a smaller scale. She then threw a glance at Harry and Hermione, telling them to go up there and meet the others. It was pretty good to have her on board.

 

In the Room the five of them were served some more food and beverages by friendly elves, before it was time to exchange gifts and later hand them over to the elves so they would end up underneath the tree in the morning. Overall it was a very nice evening with a lot of storytelling by the professors and a lot of laughter.

 

The next morning both kids got up early to unpack their gifts. Somehow they managed to arrive in the common room at exactly the same time, grinned at each other and started to unwrap the presents.

Most of it were books or sweets, but the Grangers had both gotten them some new muggle winter clothing. From Severus came a commented version of the OWL Potions book for each of them, both being copies from the book Lily and Severus had shared that year. Despite the fact that she had made a lot of notes in hers (which Harry had), Severus’ notes were even more advanced and brilliant. Minnie and Remus had worked together on one present, a new and advanced version of the communication mirrors that the Marauders had back then. This one was unbreakable, could dial several people at once, had a vibration function when getting called and had a heavy notice-me-not charm on it.

Mione’s gift for Harry was something she had created herself. While looking through the Room of Hidden Things she found a (destroyed) set of cufflinks with a house crest on them. Minnie had managed to return them to the current Lord Yaxley (not the executioner, but his uncle. At least a little less evil), but that got her thinking. Yes, Harry was wearing ancient Potter cufflinks when wearing a formal robe, but she decided that once they wouldn’t have to hide anymore and he could wear nice robes more often (by now he actually preferred them over muggle clothing). For that he would need another set of cufflinks. So she put her transfiguration skills to good use and created a pair, resembling an otter on the back of a stag, their two patronus animals. They were actually even able to move and constantly danced around, a symbol for their friendship and all the joy and happiness. 

Harry absolutely loved his present and then watched Mione as she opened his gift. Since she always complained about missing her favourite music and the Wireless being full with a lot of horrible wizard music, he created a musical jukebox around the size of a book which could play her favourite songs. It had been a very exhausting process, collecting those titles (secret trips via house elves into the muggle world on weekends) and getting the crystals to save the songs. Then he only needed a speaker, which he based on the concept of the Wizarding Wireless, and then he was done.

As one might expect, both kids were pretty surprised and happy about each other's gifts, but what they didn’t know until the evening was that Severus was even happier about his present than they were about theirs. Since they learned that he was a huge Sir Arthur Conan Doyle fan, they purchased an old collection of the complete works of Conan Doyle. That was probably the best gift Severus had ever gotten.

 

The girl with the diary continued to complain to it every single day, not noticing how much weaker she got. It drained her, weakening her core and lifeforce. Unless someone took it from her, he would have enough power to leave the diary and take physical form by the end of February or mid of March. Then the world would finally see that he was truly invincible. He, Tom Riddle, Lord Voldemort, would come back and rule over all wizards, he would purify the wizarding society. Dumbledore would fall, and with him all the other muggle lovers.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. As always, looking forward to your comments.

See ya all next week

Chapter 22: Beginning of the new term

Notes:

Good morning everyone,
here is the latest chapter. Hope you'll like it.

Pretty soon term started again, and nothing had really changed. Girls still glared at Mione because of jealousy, Ron and his friends still hated Harry, despite the fact that they couldn’t deny that he couldn’t be behind the attacks. Tracey and Parvati still acted strange, Ginny always disappeared on weekends and between classes, something that Harry and Hermione blamed on the diary. Aside from that, everything was fine, there were no new attacks or other events worth mentioning. 

During their free time they were still searching for the diadem in the Room. Thanks to the weather outside, mostly blizzards or storms during January and February, Oliver Wood held less training lessons, giving at least Harry more free time for that. Mione always joined him (they had decided to not go in there and search on their own), and the professors did the same when they didn’t have to grade essays or prepare classes. It wasn’t really motivation though, that they were never successful. Sure, some things in here were quite interesting, but none of that was helping them in any way.

 

Ronald Weasley and Seamus Finnegan were amongst the only students which regularly left the castle during those blizzards as they were visiting Hagrid rather often. After the whole incident with the dead roosters and Dumbledore’s lack of willingness to help him, the boys had visited him in his shack to ask if he had any idea whatsoever. But the half-giant had simply no clue. He then offered the two of them, because the weather was anything but nice, that they could stay for tea.

From then on they did that regularly, despite the not so great baking skills of Hagrid. They liked the guy, and that was all that mattered. A few times he even took them into the forest to look after some of his animals. Not that they went in deep, but the prospect of visiting the forbidden forest was another thing that kept them going. 

One of those days, during the last week of February, Hagrid started telling them that one of his oldest friends, an animal named Aragog, had told him that most of his younglings were disappearing and fleeing. Hagrid, who loved that animal (whatever it was, he didn’t specify that), had promised his old buddy that he would come out there and check what was going on. 

 

“Wait, you’re saying that Aragog fella lives deep in the forest? Damn sure, Seamus and I are so in for visiting him.”

And so the trio (+ Fang) headed into the deeper parts of the forbidden forest, to spots none of the students ever got to see. Sure, the Weasley twins, the group around James Potter or Marcus Flint and his mates and many more, they all sneaked or had sneaked into the forest on a regular basis, but not so far. Only Hagrid knew those spots.

“So, since when do you know that friend of yours, Hagrid?”

The half-giant turned to Seamus.

“Oh, since he was damn small. I actually hatched him back in the forties, when I was at Hogwarts. Got me expelled though, yeh know. Good ol’ Dumbledore, he tried everything, but Dippet stopped him. Dunno why, I reckon he believed Tom, the prefect. But Tom didn’t know any better, thought that little Aragog hurt someone.”

Seamus wasn’t sure what to believe. Sure, he trusted Hagrid, the man clearly knew how to deal with all kinds of creatures, but getting expelled. That was something very harsh and usually didn’t happen at all. He would have to check with the records to find out more about it. Not that he was really going to do that, that would be such a Granger or Potter kind of thing. Besides, Dumbledore trusted Hagrid obviously enough to give him a job here. That should be enough.

 

After a while they reached a clearing, and Seamus was able to see Ronald shuddering. Oh true, he was afraid of spiders and the whole clearing was filled with giant cobwebs. 

“Aragog! I’m here!”

“Oh please, Hagrid, don’t tell me that friend of yours is a spider.”

“Well, kind of yes, He’s an acromantula.”

That didn’t calm Ron at all, his brother Bill had told him about those spiders once. Sure, they weren’t native to Egypt where Bill worked, but during his Gringotts training he had spent a few weeks on Borneo, where they were native. Now the redhead hoped that Hagrid had control of those ugly beasts.

 

“Hello Hagrid. I see you brought some younglings from the castle with you.”

“Yeh, I did. Those fellas are helpin’ me with some issues I’m havin’. My roosters are gettin’ killed. But anyway, what’s goin’ on here in the forest, what’s your problem?”

The giant spider slowly walked towards them, leaving the forest’s shadows and Ronald was freaking out. He didn’t show it, but if he wouldn’t be so afraid of them eating him he’d start running away. That’s why he didn’t really manage to listen to any of the things Hagrid and Aragog were discussing. He only got something along the lines of ‘the spiders are fleeing from the beast’, whatever that meant. Ronald didn’t care, for him that freaking giant spider was beast enough. If the spiders were fleeing, then he didn’t have any problem whatsoever with that. 

Suddenly a few smaller (only relatively) spiders came forward and started chatting with Hagrid, while Ronald was shaking more and more. He really hated spiders.

“Hagrid, I think one of your younglings is not doing well. That one with the red hair over there.”

Aragog stepped forward and pointed at Ronald, who at that point just snapped. He hadn’t paid attention to anything that had been spoken. Now as the huge spider was coming closer to him and pointing with his legs, he thought that now he would get eaten. Ronald reached for his wand and attempted to throw a knockback jinx at Aragog, but he was way too nervous to properly perform the wand movement. 

Now dozens of spiders came at them, thinking that their leader had been attacked. Aragog hissed and jumped into Ronald’s direction. Now Hagrid intervened. Yes, he would like to yell at Ronald, but that was not the time for it. He caught Aragog in the air and threw him backwards while ordering the two boys to start running.

Which they obviously did.

Seamus, before freaking out completely, still managed to cast some red sparks, hoping that anyone at the castle would see them. If no one would come to their help, they might not make it out of here alive.

Ronald, the unlucky, clumsy idiot he was, managed to stumble over a root and fall, which led to some smaller acromantulas catching up with him and attacking the poor boy. He got bitten and injected with acromantula poison several times, before someone blasted all the spiders away from him.

 

Lady Amelia Bones, head of the DMLE, was still residing at Hogwarts most of the time. Sure, she travelled to the ministry on around four days per week, but the nights she mainly stayed here, claiming to be here for the students’ sake. Not that this wasn’t true, but she knew what was going on, she knew that it was a basilisk attacking the students. Her main goal though was gathering more intel on Dumbledore so they could bring him down as soon as Harry and Hermione were ready for that. 

While finishing a report, someone knocked on her door. Amelia sighed, got up and, after opening, looked at her very startled niece.

“Red sparks! There are red sparks over the forest, but no sight of Dumbledore yet. Hannah is informing McGonagall and Sprout, but your office was closest. Can you take a look?”

As soon as she heard “red sparks” the woman got up, summoned her auror robes and left her office, rushing down to the forest. Thankfully her quarters were on the ground floor, so she was outside pretty quickly, heading in the general direction of the sparks.

After a few minutes of running, she heard two male voices, young schoolboys, and a barking dog. A Gryffindor second year - Seamus Finnegan, she remembered - ran past her, screaming that the spiders had gotten Ron (presumably Weasley). Knowing that, she sped up, following the screaming, which presumably came from Weasley.

Just a few metres further she saw around a dozen acromantulas, biting Ronald Weasley. With a flick of her wand she blasted the creatures off the boy, followed by a few blasting curses into the direction of more incoming spiders. Since Ronald was cramping and whining, she didn’t start pursuing the animals but lifted him up and levitated him out of the forest. 

Remus and Minerva were already rushing towards her when she left the forest. After handing out orders to check for other students and hold back the spiders, she brought Ronald Weasley into the hospital wing. Poppy Pomfrey wasn’t amused that now she had a patient, poisoned with acromantula venom - again. 

Once Amy Bones heard that, she got furious. Not only were there actomantulas in the forest, they had even attacked students on numerous occasions. She had to do something against that.

 

Harry and Hermione heard about that from Severus and made their way to the hospital wing, not to visit Ronald, but to intercept Amelia Bones. They told the woman where the spiders came from, a fact that she didn’t enjoy hearing. 

 

When Amelia stormed into Albus Dumbledore’s office, she didn’t see both Weasley parents before she had already started yelling at him.

“ALBUS DUMBLEDORE! How can you allow Hagrid to keep his acromantulas? You out of all people should know about them, that’s why he got expelled back in the forties. And how dare you ignore over a dozen attacks on students? We should have been informed right away. I will oversee the removal of all the acromantulas myself.

Oh, good afternoon, Mrs. Weasley, good afternoon, Arthur. Poppy says Ronald will be fine.”

Arthur Weasley smiled at the woman, thanking her for saving Ronald. Molly just smiled at her, still taken aback that Amelia Bones dared yelling at Albus, but hiding that. She was Dumbledore’s follower through and through, just like Hagrid. Only difference was that she was not purely obedient, but ruthless and calculating. And right now she had recognised Amelia Bones as a threat to the plans of both of them.

“But please, Mrs. Bones, we won’t press any charges. None of us wants to punish Hagrid, and since Ron is going to be fine, we can just put the whole matter to rest.”

Arthur was about to protest, but then decided against speaking up. He wasn’t the young and fierce man anymore. No, Molly would know what was right.

Amelia - for once - ignored the fact that Molly Weasley called her Mrs. instead of Lady (she wasn’t even married), and just got up and left. She knew what would have to be done.

 

Through Minerva’s office she flooed into the ministry, firstly heading into her department and assembling a dozen of her best aurors who were not on assignment, briefed them on the acromantula situation (which made all of them pretty upset) and told them to stay put until she was back. Then she headed to Amos Diggory’s office.

 

“Amelia! Good to see you, how can I help you?”

“Hello Amos, I have a situation at hand that needs both of our attention. You know that I’m mostly staying at Hogwarts because of the whole petrification situation? Earlier this afternoon Ronald Weasley went into the forbidden forest with another student and Rubeus Hagrid. They visited a ‘friend’ of Hagrid’s in the forest, an aromantula by the name of Aragog.”

Amos basically jumped up and wanted to ask a lot of questions, but Amelia wasn’t done yet.

“There actually is a whole colony in the forest. Thing is, Hagrid has hatched the spider himself when he was a student. That is why he got expelled in the first place, so Dumbledore knows about it. Ronald Weasley got attacked and bitten earlier. He’s in Poppy’s care and going to be fine, but she said that he’s not the first one. Dumbledore wants to ignore it and the Weasleys won’t press charges. Still, we need those things gone. I have aurors assembled and with your approval as deputy head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creature I could move right now and no one would be able to complain afterwards.”

There actually was a law that if an action, sanctioned by a department head (Amelia in this case) and the head or deputy of another department, if there were legal grounds for said action, would be executed, then only a review board, appointed by the Wizengamot, could declare said action as unfounded and illegal. With Amos' backing, Amelia strengthened her position. Now Dumbledore couldn’t simply stop her, he would need to go the long way.

Amos, still shocked, approved and assembled a team of his own, while Amelia went to the minister. By informing him she strengthened her position even more, it didn't matter if he would agree. And if he wouldn’t, then she had another thing to add to their dossier against the minister.

 

“I need to see them minister. NOW!”

With those words she just walked past the secretary and opened the door to Fudge’s office, who was just talking to his Senior Undersecretary, Dolores Umbridge. Amy knew how bad that woman was, the only unfortunate thing was that up until now she hadn’t done anything that would see her in Azkaban.

“Amelia! The minister and I are in a meeting.”

The head of the DMLE simply ignored the horrid woman and addressed the minister.

“Minister, I’m here to inform you that I, with the backing of Amos Diggory, am going to lead a team into the forbidden forest to remove the colony of acromantulas there. It appears as though Dumbledore kept dozens of attacks over the years quiet, but I was there when earlier today Ronald Weasley got attacked and bitten. Thankfully Poppy Pomfrey is by now used to that. The headmaster has convinced the Weasleys to not press charges, but it’s a security risk, since acromantulas fall under the revised dangerous animal act of 1852 I am not only allowed, but obliged to remove them by all means necessary.”

Thankfully, since that action would harm Dumbledore’s reputation, Fudge nodded and informed Amelia that she would have his backing too, he even gave her that in writing. Thanking the minister, as much as it hurt her, she left and wanted to take the assembled team of twenty-seven wizards and witches plus Amos and herself to the floo office, but Amos stopped her. After assembling his team, he managed to secure a portkey, leading to Hogwarts grounds.

 

Albus Dumbledore was sitting in his office, when suddenly he felt a soft tug. It was the wards signalling him that someone had portkeyed in. Wondering what that was and fearing that Lady Bones would do something rash, he left his office and headed to the main entrance, where the portkey had appeared. And truly, it was a rather big group of aurors and ministry employees heading towards the forest. Unfortunately, Albus was slow and so they would certainly be in the forest before he reached them.

But it seemed to be his lucky day, since Hagrid stopped the group on the edge of the forest,

 

That was something that Amelia had wanted to avoid. Hagrid.

“Hagrid, please step aside. We’re obliged to remove all the acromantulas from the forest, and any attempt of stopping us will result in an arrest and prosecution for hindering the execution of ministerial orders and wilful endangerment of children.”

“Nah, ye can’t do that. Aragog has done nothin’ wrong. Ah, Headmaster, please tell ‘em that they can’t do that.”

Now Dumbledore had finally reached them, a bit out of breath, but sadly that didn’t stop him from speaking.

“Lady Bones, I must protest. You can’t just come onto Hogwarts grounds and take out a species of magical creatures. Besided, the Weasleys didn’t press charges. You can’t do that. I shall speak to Cornelius about that.”

Amelia held out the documents that allowed her to take out the spiders. Already anticipating that confrontation she had assembled the necessary legislation as well as the signed forms, both the one from Amos and her, as well as the one signed by the minister.

“You and I both know that I can and I will, Dumbledore. I have Amos’ backing, so you can only do something against my actions through a Wizengamot appointed review board. And you see that Cornelius is backing me too. Even without the Weasleys, I would either find one of the many other victims, or even simpler, argue with endangering the students. And don’t tell me that the forest is off-limits, we both know that its name just attracts more students to sneak in. It’s not like you’d prevent them from doing so. And even without all the endangering, their existence outside of a secure and authorised facility is illegal. Please step aside.”

 

Albus Dumbledore rarely backed down, but in this case he saw that this fight was lost. He stepped aside and allowed Amelia and her team passage, but what neither he nor anyone else expected was Hagrid getting physical. No, he didn’t get violent, but simply used his size. A half-giant was a bit scary, but Amelia Bones didn’t back down either.

“Please, Mr. Hagrid. Step aside or we will resort to a forceful removal, as much as I’d hate that.”

Unfortunately, Hagrid didn’t back down. When Kingsley, one of Amelia’s most trusted aurors, made a step forward and tried walking past Hagrid, it all started to escalate. The half-giant, usually friendly, just couldn’t imagine one of his oldest friends getting hurt and then grabbed the tall man. All the aurors raised their wands.

Hagrid, not being in his right mind, then threw Kingsley a few feet backwards and grabbed his pink umbrella, which he was constantly hiding underneath his coat. He didn’t like attacking other people, but they just couldn’t hurt Aragog. He cast a stunner at a man that looked quite familiar, though he couldn’t place where he knew him from.

Amos Diggory barely deflected the curse since it came absolutely unexpectedly, but then started to fire back. And so did all the other ministry workers.

 

Albus Dumbledore couldn’t believe it. Hagrid had attacked all those wizards, especially with his - officially destroyed - wand in the umbrella. His most obedient servant just got himself a prison sentence, no matter how much he would try to defend him. Maybe he could avoid Azkaban for Hagrid, but that was about it. 

 

After a few minutes of throwing spells at Hagrid (not too harmful ones, basically everyone of them knew and liked him) and avoiding his punches, they successfully stunned the half-giant. Amelia then delegated two of her aurors to use an emergency portkey to bring Hagrid into one the ministry holding cells. No, she wouldn’t put him into Azkaban, unless the Wizengamot would sentence him to that, but she would hold him on all his charges (hatching and possessing a creature, classified as dangerous, hindering the ministry to execute a sanctioned action and usage of a wand despite it being snapped).

Now they could finally remove all the damn spiders, so the forest would be safer again.

 

A few hours after entering the forest, most of the spiders, including Aragog, were either dead or stunned and transported to a facility where they were already keeping acromantulas, Amelia headed back into the castle. After having a short discussion with a very disappointed but actually very understanding Dumbledore (at least he acted like he understood), she met with Minerva.

Not long after that, the transfiguration professor informed the others about it. It was hard to say who was more surprised, Remus or Harry. They couldn’t believe what had happened. But like Hermione put it: “the timeline is obviously trying to stay intact. Yes, it’s earlier than last time, but Hagrid still got arrested.”

 

The day after Hagrid got arrested, another interesting thing happened. Harry, Hermione and Remus were in the Room of Requirement, looking for the diadem, when the young, black-haired wizard suddenly shrieked. He fell onto his knees and rubbed his forehead. The diadem was near.

While Mione went to look after Harry, Remus continued to search for the diadem in the immediate area and sent a patronus message to Minnie. Severus was busy brewing a potion for Albus, he couldn’t postpone that.

A while later, when Harry was back on his feet, all four of them were vanishing items at a very high rate to uncover the diadem. 

In the end it was Remus, who uncovered Ravenclaw's diadem. It was stashed in the drawer of an ancient looking cupboard, wrapped in a silk cloth. Actually, it wasn’t very well hidden if you knew which cupboard to open. The package was laying on top of a stack of books in the top drawer, very accessible. Kind of underwhelming. Seemed like Riddle was quite the arrogant bastard. 

 

The destruction of the soul fragment was as satisfying as always, it was simply nice to hear Tom Riddle scream out of pain. Now they had only the diary and the ring left, since Nagini wasn’t a vessel yet. That meant that after year two, ending with the diary’s destruction, they could recover the Gaunt ring rather quickly and destroy it, so they would only need to wait for Tom’s resurrection to happen. With all the advanced knowledge Harry had, his chances of winning weren’t that bad. Besides, he wasn’t alone. He would never be alone again.

 

Roger Davies, the fourth year Ravenclaw and keeper for his house’s quidditch team, suddenly started laughing. He had been successful. Sure, now Pince was glaring at him, but at least he now knew what the monster was. Roger had been researching for a few weeks now, but not that successfully. But after hearing what had happened to that Weasley boy - the idiot one with no table manners…correction, no manners at all - and Finnegan, it finally clicked. The fact that the acromantula was afraid and had said something about her children fleeing from the beast had narrowed the number of possibilities. 

The book even said “spiders flee from it.” Slytherin’s monster was a god-damn basilisk. 

After Roger had spotted that phrase, he started thinking about why no one had died, but got petrified instead. Now it all began to make sense. Filch and his cat must have seen the reflection in the puddle, the annoying little Gryffindor most likely had had his camera at hand as always. That young Hufflepuff, Justin, must have seen the basilisk through the ghost, and well, killing a ghost isn’t possible. Add to that that Slytherin’s symbol is a snake. It was pretty obvious. Why had no one found that out yet?

Or maybe they had and were already searching for the chamber and the basilisk, but not telling anyone so there wouldn’t be even more panic. 

Potter was a parselmouth, could he be…no, they had already eliminated that possibility. It was a rumour that Potter had fought you-know-who’s spirit end of last year, but no one knew if that was true. 

Maybe it was he who shall not be named as a spirit, he had been a parselmouth after all. A student or teacher could be possessed. Was that why no one had disclosed that it was a basilisk? They didn’t know who it was and were investigating?

Roger, while hurrying out of the library, a copied page of the “basilisk” entry in his hand, was creating the wildest theories. Who could be the possessed person? And what could be responsible for the survival of you-know-who? He was a Ravenclaw after all, feeling the need to find out as much as possible.

But first, he needed to find Amelia Bones. She would be the right person to tell abo…

After running down a corridor and turning left, Roger found himself eye-to-eye with a basilisk.

Notes:

So... thing's are escalating, aren't they? Let's wait and see.

Until then, Merry Christmas to everyone and see you all next week. Looking forward to your comments

Chapter 23: The escalation?

Notes:

Good morning everyone, I hope all of you had a nice Christmas.
Here is the latest chapter, one I think most of you will like. Things might seem to escalate. Have fun reading it.

After the destruction of the diadem horcrux, Harry and Hermione took the rest of the afternoon off. Once they had left the Room of Hidden Things, the two kids entered the Room again, this time a more comfortable shape and appearance, similar to the sitting room at Potter Manor. Remus and Minnie went into the dungeons to meet with Severus and keep him informed.

The potions master was just finishing up some stuff he had to do for Dumbledore, when the others entered. He looked up and immediately asked what was going on. Usually they didn’t meet so publicly and they were grinning.

“We found it. We found the god-damn diadem, Harry destroyed it. Riddle just put it in a drawer on top of some old book. Yes, wrapped in a silk cloth, but still pretty obvious. What an arrogant bastard, as if he’d be the only one to find the room.”

Severus smiled. Just two years back Minnie had never even expected to ever see him smile genuinely.

“That’s…fantastic. The last thing I expected today. Give me a minute to clean up my workstation and I’ll fetch us a bottle of scotch to celebrate.”

 

Just a few minutes later they were all sitting in Severus’ office and drinking, the mood was fantastic. Little did they know that all of that was about to change.

 

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. Severus put down his glass, opened the door and slipped out. Both Remus and Minnie were both able to overhear the conversation between Severus and Adrian Pucey, a fourth-year Slytherin.

“Professor Snape, the headmaster and Lady Bones are summoning you, they need you near Lady Bones’ quarters. It’s because of Roger Davies.”

Minnie and Remus looked at each other, both wondering if there was something wrong, if another petrification had happened.

“Yes, what is the matter with Mr. Davies? Was there another petrification?”

“No, professor. He’s dead.”

 

After hearing that, the other two professors left Severus’ office, ignoring Pucey’s confused facial expression. They all followed the student, only Remus allowed himself to fall back for a few seconds and send a mirror message to Harry and Hermione, telling them to come and meet them near Bones’ quarters.

Upon entering the scene of the crime, Minerva walked up to Filius, who was currently standing next to the body, putting a hand on his shoulder. He gave her a sad smile, but then continued to perform dozens of different charms to analyse everything, though he remained clueless for the moment. 

Remus started comforting some of the Ravenclaw students who had been close to the boy. By now most students had heard and many of them were gathering near the scene. Amelia and the aurors, which she had called, were at least keeping them out of the line of sight. The DADA professor, well-liked by all four houses, then addressed all of them, asking them to reconvene in the great hall, where he would stay with them and give them the opportunity to talk to him. 

Harry, now finally arriving with Mione, then hid underneath the invisibility cloak, so they could join Amelia, Severus and Minerva once all the others were gone. That didn’t take long, not only did the students leave pretty quickly, but Albus Dumbledore got sent away as well. He was as uncooperative as always, claiming Hogwarts was outside of ministry jurisdiction and wanted to cover up the whole thing. Amelia wasn’t gonna let that happen, so she ordered one of her aurors to escort the headmaster back to his office. 

“Harry, Hermione, I am pretty certain you’re still hiding out there. Now you can come forward, you can trust Filius.”

Upon hearing Minnie address them, Harry pulled off the cloak and walked up to them. In the immediate vicinity of the body, there were only Minnie, Amelia, Severus and Filius, so they decided to talk more or less freely now.

“How much does Professor Flitwick know, Minnie?”

The half-goblin, very surprised to actually hear Harry addressing Minerva that way, did know most of the whole thing. He had started asking questions after noticing some of the unusual behaviour this year and the interactions with both Remus and Severus (one he shouldn’t know at all, and the other should hypothetically hate him, but he had spotted them in a more private setting a few times). 

“He does know most of it, saw you and Severus, as well as you and Remus interact differently than you all act in public. Filius also guessed that it’s a basilisk and filling him in was the easiest way to keep everything together.”

Now Mione was getting a bit upset, because once again Minerva had told someone, totally ignoring the risks that brought to the timeline.

“Doesn’t seem like that worked out. Last time we had a few petrifications, that’s not too bad, I speak from experience. But now, look at that! Roger is dead! That’s horrible! Now we have no idea what’s going to happen, no way to prevent Riddle from taking over the world again. If we now destroy the diary and the ring, then his spirit is still out there, probably latching onto an animal or a weak-minded person. We have no idea what will happen now!”

Now Severus spoke up.

“Are you two finally gonna call it?”

Everyone knew what he was talking about. Harry and Mione looked at each other, then Mione answered.

“No, not yet. In the original timeline Harry had gotten ahold of the diary and spoken to Tom, probably severing the connection between Ginny and Riddle. We have no idea how strong he is, since that didn’t happen and they’re still connected. Before we do anything rash, I’d say we steal the diary.”

 

And that was exactly what they then prepared to do. On the following day, a Sunday, Harry and Mione would study in the common room, hoping that at one point it would be empty. Then Hermione would sneak up to Ginny’s dorm and snatch the diary out of her trunk or bed or wherever she had it. Harry would be the lookout during that, even though Mione would use the cloak. What they would do then was still undecided.

If they would just eliminate the horcrux, then they’d need to find a plausible solution to why the attacks stopped. But on the other hand they couldn’t plant a horcrux on a first-year on purpose, that’d be just cruel. 

 

While they were going over their plans, Filius Flitwick was deep in thought. All year long it had bothered him about what was going on with the young Mr. Potter and his brilliant friend, Miss Granger. Despite the fact that the animosity between him and Severus was well-known, if not even encouraged by the headmaster, he had seen them interact very differently a few times, as if they’d be friends. And Remus…he was so sure that he and Harry had never met, Dumbledore had prevented that (Filius had always been unhappy about Harry’s living situation, but the headmaster had been ignorant, no matter how often he had tried during the last decade). Still, they too acted as if they’d be very close. And their school work…flawless. It had taken him a while to see it, but they were dialling back their power and playing down their skill. He had only realised that because he had witnessed Mr. Potter casting silently, even though the boy probably didn’t realise he had done so. 

And just because Dumbledore said that he was living with the Dursleys, that did not necessarily have to be right. Minerva had complained last year, maybe she had saved him. With that thought in mind he managed to find and bypass all the notice-me-not charms, be it on the clothing or the school books. A watch, previously belonging to James Potter, Miss Granger wearing Lily Evans’ necklace, and all the books…even from afar he recognised the handwriting.

Then the dawning realisation when it came to the basilisk. He wasn’t stupid, obviously it had to be one. But when he saw that Harry spoke Parsel, he feared that the boy wasn’t himself, that he was doing all of that. Not that he thought Harry would do something like that, but there were a lot of mysteries surrounding the boy.

That was when he decided to visit Minerva and tell her all about his findings.

She in turn then began to tell him a story about two time-travellers, soulmates, who were here to fix a lot of wrongs. That he didn’t expect, not at all, but it made more sense than Harry being behind the attack. And while he was no big fan of the “we’ll try to let everything happen the way it did originally so Riddle comes back and we kill him,” he saw the need for it. Horcruxes were a very cruel kind of magic.

And all of Albus’ doings…he couldn’t believe it. No, he actually could, but he didn’t want to believe it. Even though it wasn’t beneficial in regards to the big picture, he so badly wanted to throw Albus out of Hogwarts. Maybe the death, which was quite horrible, Roger had been a smart and nice student, would make things go crazy. 

 

Sunday morning, Ginny left the common room together with one of her year-mates, Demelza Robins, to head down to breakfast. Harry and Mione had already eaten, they were after all friendly with the house-elves and had sneaked into the kitchens at the crack of dawn. Currently they were sitting over a charms essay, now, after Flitwick was in on their plans, using their full knowledge. No longer having to dumb down their schoolwork in charms (as well as transfiguration, potions and this year DADA) was pretty nice.

Once the majority of people were gone, Mione got up and walked up the stairs, to where the girl dorms were located. Harry was the lookout, he had his communication mirror in his pocket, ready to call Mione.

Hermione went into her own dorm, which was empty. Then she put on the cloak, grabbed Luna’s dream catcher - though Horcrux catcher would be a good name too - and headed for Ginny’s dorm. 

The room itself was a bit of a mess, but Mione had no problem finding Ginny’s bed and trunk. After all, she had been up here in the previous timeline. Firstly she swept the whole bed, but without any success. The only thing she found there, stashed under the mattress, was a picture of Harry, probably one of Colin’s snapshots, with little hearts drawn all over it. That girl was just…

Mione had to admit, she was jealous and couldn’t deny her feelings for Harry. Ever since she found herself back in this timeline, able to remember the moments with Ron (luckily none that were more than adoring him from afar, even with love potions that boy was too much of a coward and idiot to make a move, thank god. Otherwise she wouldn’t be able to resist killing him.) without feeling the effect from the potions, she realised that she didn’t love him. She never had. It was Harry. Without love (and probably friendship) potions, she wouldn’t have been able to endure Ronald and his attitude.

Speaking about potions, that was the next thing out of the ordinary she found. And quite a lot of them. But what she couldn’t do was take them. Not now at least. And if she’d use a switching spell, she’d ruin the evidence. Despite the Lord rings, they would need to be on the lookout. 

 

After nearly twenty minutes of searching, Mione was on the verge of giving up. There was no way she could have missed the diary here. Could it really be that the girl was running around Hogwarts with it? She pulled out the “Horcrux catcher,” and to her dismay it was not glowing. She could have saved so much time if she’d just done that first, but she had been so sure of it.

Hermione tapped on her mirror.

“Is it clear to come down? It’s not up here.”

“Wait what? As if she’s walking around with it. But sure, you can come down, I’m alone here.”

 

Now they went down into the great hall, where the girl was still having breakfast, one of the very few who was still sitting here. Finding out if she was walking around with it was rather simple. Harry just walked past Ginny, heading for Minerva at the High Table, while Mione was underneath the cloak with the Horcrux catcher, walking next to him. That way he could prevent people running into Mione while standing invisibly behind Ginny and no one would wonder about the glowing item in Mione’s hands.

Harry walked extra slow, giving Mione enough time to check, then he addressed Minerva, asking her to come with him. Since no other teacher was currently around, he didn’t even have to hide his request with another phrasing.

Once out of the great hall and in an empty corridor, Mione pulled down the cloak, telling them her findings.

“She doesn’t have it. Ginny doesn’t have the diary!”

 

Hermione was panicking. If Ginny didn’t have the diary, then who had it? What had they done to change the timeline so much?

The five plus Amelia Bones were now discussing their plans, because now everything had changed at once. Sure they could move forward and initiate damage control, but that wouldn’t solve the diary issue. Especially because they had no idea how much of the victim’s power it had drained. Last time, Harry had already been in possession of the diary, severing or at least interrupting the connection with Ginny. That meant that they had no idea when Tom could manifest a body. The diary was the biggest of all soul fragments, it was probably very strong, for example in comparison to the locket. That would have taken years to drain enough power, if they wouldn’t have switched who carried it regularly. 

“But don’t you have any idea who could have it? Come on, Lucius would surely have picked a person close to you two, anyone behaving strangely all year long? And you three are teaching, you should be able to come up with possibilities too.”

Amelia Bones was not too happy with them. She demanded that each of them would start compiling a list of names, which she would then compare. After that they shouldn’t have too many names left, and those they could check. 

Then the head of the DMLE turned to Harry.

“Any chance you could go down into the chamber and kill the basilisk? Or simply talk it down?”

“I mean killing it could be doable, but difficult after all. Besides, what would be your cover story for that? And if we manage to defuse the whole situation I’d like to keep her and give her refuge at Potter castle. Haven’t been there, but the elves said it’s on a small island off the coast and it would have enough space. As Lord Slytherin I could probably talk her down eventually, but with Riddle manipulating her since the forties? He’d need to be out of the picture to be sure, I’m not willing to take that risk.”

 

Shortly they all went their separate ways, everyone now wanting to work on a list with potential names on it. On their way back into the common room, Harry had to endure Mione asking him if he was serious about keeping the basilisk, but when he explained her that she had cried out in pain during their fight, probably brainwashed by Tom, and he’d try to get her to feel well again, she smiled. 

“And come on, Mione. She knew Salazar, and he told me back in afterlife that he had raised her personally. She’s been at Hogwarts for a thousand years. Can you imagine a better pet than Salazar’s best friend and familiar, and one that had witnessed all of Hogwarts’ history? I’ll even translate for you.”

Now that was something that Mione couldn’t say no to. 

But then their conversation topic changed and they discussed who could have the diary, if not Ginny. They were pretty sure that they could exclude their closest friends, that they would have noticed. Daphne and Neville surely not, and neither Susan or Hannah. Parvati was acting strange on occasion, maybe she had it. With Lavender they had hardly anything to do, maybe it was her. Before Christmas they would have considered Lisa Turpin with the mood she was in, but now they knew where it came from. Mione even speculated it could be Ron, making his animosity even worse, but Harry thought he’d have felt that. Tracey came up too, but Harry was pretty certain her behaviour was mainly because of Neville’s and Daphne’s friendship and then relationship, but it could be that it was her. Any of the other Slytherin girls could be the diary owner too, those they didn’t know very well. Anything in upper and lower years they couldn’t say and would have to rely on the teachers.

 

Until dinner that day, all of them were quite busy making lists, which they’d compare on the following day -  a Monday - after classes, so the teachers had some more time to look at their students’ behaviour, now knowing one had the diary. 

Little did they know that all of that would be pointless by the end of the day, because right around now, while the whole school was gathered in the great hall for dinner, the soul piece in Tom Riddle’s diary had become strong enough to manifest itself. It - no, he, for he was basically human again - wouldn’t need to rely on possessing the girl anymore. No, he’d have an own body, and since it was her core that had fed him, her wand would obey as if it’d be his. Tom Riddle could - and would - finally return.

 

Pansy Parkinson was dead tired. She had spent the majority of the day with Millicent and the Davis halfblood, they had been looking for a clue to who might be the heir of Slytherin. Surely someone like that was worthy of their allegiance. Not that they had been successful until now.

But despite the fact that she nearly dozed off at dinner, she was the first one to notice it. Something was happening with the Davis girl.

Out of nowhere, Tracey dropped her fork. No one thought anything of it, maybe she was just clumsy or tired. But then her eyes shut and she fell backwards, off the bench, while black smoke was enclosing her. The smoke, Pansy realised, was both coming out of her bag and - as strange as it might seem - out of Tracey. Panicking, the girl opened the smoking bag and tried snatching whatever was causing that. 

Suddenly, she felt pain. Pansy pulled back, but not without grabbing the object which had caused it. 

 

This had transpired within only seconds, so once Harry and Hermione had heard the shrieks coming from Slytherin table and turned around, they were able to see Pansy dropping something on the ground. Something, which had been in Tracey Davis’ bag.

It was a black diary.

 

“Fuck! Tracey had it. Tracey had the god-damn diary all along!”

 

Albus Dumbledore was confused. He did recognise the black smoke, since he had read each and every text referencing Horcruxes since realising that Harry had one in his scar. But did that mean that someone had smuggled another one of Tom’s soul pieces into the school? Could that be why the basilisk was back? And what was young Harry talking about?

 

Remus, Severus and Minerva were already running down towards Tracey, and so were Harry and Mione. Filius Flitwick though was casting as many protective charms and spells as he could, trying to prevent the students from getting into harm’s way. 

Before anyone could reach Tracey Davis, a tall figure emerged out of the black smoke. It was a young man wearing Slytherin robes. Thomas Marvolo Riddle was back.

With a flick of his wand, Tom set up a protective barrier around him and called his little pet, ordering her to keep her eyes shut. He would make all of them fear him, before he would kill the mudbloods.

The quintet was already firing spells against Tom’s barrier, while the students all started to panic. Some tried to make a run for the doors, but Tom wouldn’t let that happen. All the exits were closed, only he and his pet would be able to come and go as they pleased. 

 

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw Dumbledore beginning to move. They all had heard his attempts at ordering them to stand down, but now he was afraid the old meddler would start to intervene. So he turned around and aimed his wand at Dumbledore, but he had underestimated the man’s willingness to attack, and so the holly and phoenix wand flew across the room. 

“Harry, my boy. Don’t do that. I fear Lord Voldemort has corrupted your soul. You need to stand down.”

Now Harry snapped. After one and a half years of enduring Dumbles’ idiocy, he could hold back anymore.

“Drop the act, old man. Voldemort is standing over there, he’s no longer in my scar. You can thank Minerva and the goblins for that (sure, that was a lie, but he didn’t want Dumbledore to know that he travelled back in time). Now, either you drop your wand, or we shall see which Peverell wand is stronger, Antioch’s or Ignotus’. I don’t think that you’ll win, the hallows will obey their true master.”

He pulled his - until now disillusioned - wand and threw half a dozen curses at Dumbledore, including the advanced elemental magic they had started training with during the summer. Only the wind equivalent of fiendfyre, a tornado, which was damn hard to control, reached its target. Now the old meddler realised that he had no idea what exactly he was facing. 

This was to Harry’s benefit. He used all he had, except unforgivables, to hurt the old meddler, and he was pretty successful. This duel was not at all what Albus had expected.

After dodging a pretty nasty pink curse, he didn’t even want to know what that was, Harry deflected a stunner. Which, he realised, was pretty weak - for Dumbledore at least. It seemed like the Elder Wand didn’t want to fight its true master, which he assumed he was, because he was Lord Peverell. 

Because of that he put more power into his spells, seeing that his opponent was not able to keep up with him. With a bit of luck and the element of surprise, he’d win that fight.

Wordlessly and wandlessly he summoned his holly and phoenix feather wand into his left hand, while distracting Dumbledore with a sectumsempra curse. Then he pointed his left hand at Dumbles.

“Expecto Patronum!”

Albus Dumbledore was exhausted. Harry Potter was, though he didn’t know how, overpowering him. The boy claimed that the horcrux was gone, but how would you explain his powers then? Maybe Minerva had really taken the boy in and brought him to Potter Manor. But no, he would have heard about that, since he was still Harry’s guardian. To get into the Manor, they would have needed to visit Harry’s account manager, who would have informed him. 

The corporeal patronus surprised him, making Albus forget his thoughts. It was a stag, how beautiful. But corporeal? How? And why cast that?

The answer to that came only fractions of a second later, when Harry’s expelliarmus, cast with the other wand, hit him and threw him back.

 

The Elder Wand flew across the great hall, and Harry caught it with the skill and precision of a seeker, feeling the warmth in the wood and knowing it would serve him always. But not now, he thought, as he put away his holly wand and the Elder Wand. He had to deal with a resurrected Dark Lord.

Dumbledore found himself immobilised on his chair, while Harry put away the Elder Wand. He knew that he had lost his allegiance. That meant he would have to summon his original one from his office. During normal school days, he didn’t carry it with him, as a spare. He was good with wandless magic, but knew that for breaking those charms he’d need a wand that obeyed him. But getting it here wasn’t easy, he still had to try.

 

Now, with the Elder Wand in his pocket, Harry once again focussed on the Dark Lord who was resisting the other four. 

“You can’t kill him, he’s still a horcrux manifestation! The diary!”

Upon hearing Harry, Severus leaped forward, pulling a dagger from somewhere and plunging it into the diary, but nothing happened.

“Doesn’t work! And yes, that’s freshly soaked in basilisk venom. I did that after Davies’ death.”

Tom laughed.

“Basilisk venom? Nice try, but I’m no longer trapped in there.”

Mione understood.

“Damn! It’s Tracey. He’s connected to her lifeforce and magical core. Now he can manifest and shortly she’ll die. Then he’s really back.”

Now Daphne cried out from somewhere, hoping that her best friend wouldn’t die. She now understood that Tracey had been possessed and nothing had really been her fault. 

Harry was about to perform the ritual of banishing the horcrux again, but then the main entrance into the great hall opened, and the basilisk slithered into the room. 

Everyone screamed, well, everyone except Tom. He laughed. 

Slowly the room got silent, everyone was afraid. Fearing that Tom might let the basilisk loose, the quintet stopped throwing curses at him for the time being. Their wands weren’t lowered, but at least they had stopped. Then the Dark Lord started speaking.

“Harry Potter! I have heard so much about you! Young Tracey here was very informative in regards to that. Poor girl, she’ll have to die so Lord Voldemort can live. And you, old man, defeated by your followers? Did I miss something? But anyway, today I’m not in the mood for long speeches, you all should know my basilisk by now. She’s the one petrifying the mudbloods. Now, if the halfbloods want to survive, you better point out every single mudblood to me. Purebloods, I expect the same from you! I’ll rid you from those that taint our magic, like my ancestor had always prayed. I AM LORD VOLDEMORT, THE HEIR OF SLYTHERIN.”

Before anyone could even make a move and point out muggleborns, Harry started to laugh. Everyone, including Dumbledore and Riddle, was in shock.

“Come on, Tom! You’re pathetic.”

“HOW DARE YOU…”

“Calling you by your name? Tom Marvolo Riddle, son of the muggle Thomas Riddle and the, well, can’t call her a witch, she was nearly a squib, Merope Gaunt. You dare command the basilisk?”

“I am Slytherin’s heir, my family is even descended from the Peverells! Who else could command the basilisk? And you, you’re a nobody, Harry Potter! Come on my friend, go ahead and kill the brown-haired here. But don’t look at her, eat her!”

He pointed at Hermione and then hissed the same thing, so the basilisk would understand. 

Harry jumped in front of the basilisk and lifted his right hand, now making all his rings visible. Then he addressed the giant snake herself.

“Stay back, my friend. I’m Lord Slytherin, and you know that. You’ll obey me! Your old master wanted to protect the students, not kill them. Stand down.”

Tom gasped as he heard those words and as the snake bowed in front of Harry.

“See, Tom. You are nothing. You claim you are the Heir of Slytherin, but that is a lie. I am the Lord of House Slytherin, and the basilisk will obey my orders now, not yours. Who did you call a nobody? I’m the Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter, the Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Peverell, the Noble and Most Ancient House of Slytherin, the Noble and Most Ancient House of Ravenclaw and the Noble and Most Ancient House of Gryffindor. Gosh, that’s not much fun to say out loud, what a painfully long list.”

Then he turned his head for a moment, searching and finding Draco Malfoy.

“Oh, and before I forget it, I’m also Heir Black, and Sirius is Lord. Fuck you, Malfoy!”

The ferret’s face was now quite literally red, probably even more red than all the Weasleys’ hair. He was now probably upset, both at his parents for making him believe he was Heir Black and at Harry for being Heir Black. Some of that facial colour might be a blush though, being embarrassed that he had bragged with that title all his life. Harry was now grinning, upsetting Malfoy was fun, but that was now besides the point. 

Now it was time to face Riddle. The basilisk, despite Tom’s angry screams and hisses, slid away from the battlefield. Since Tom was still controlling the doors, she curled herself up in a corner, next to a bunch of very frightened students.

After a few seconds of staring at each other silently, they all began exchanging spells. Yes, it was five against one (Flitwick continued to build magical barriers around the students and added some spells to the already existing ones on Dumbledore) but Riddle was still very skilled. The main issue was that for the time being he wasn’t fully back yet, and so they couldn’t physically harm or kill him. Yes, he took some weakening blasts, but that just slowed him down.

“Help! I think Tracey’s getting weaker.”

Severus turned his head, looking at Miss Greengrass, who was next to Miss Davis. Apparently the girl was right. Damn. They couldn’t let Riddle return fully, because then they would have two of them, and it would kill Tracey. Yes, he might be killable then, but he’d then also have full power. Nothing they could risk.

“Harry! We’ll keep him busy, try your horcrux spell!”

The boy nodded, Severus was right. He took a step back, then realising that Professor Babbling had taken his place. And even though he had never seen her fight, he expected her to be quite the opponent. While walking up to Tracey, he looked at her joining the fight. 

The Ancient Runes professor was damn great with elemental magic, at least that was his first impression. During her attacks she even managed to draw runic symbols with flames on the ground, which had a variety of effects. Some exploded once Riddle came close, others seemed to build a barrier or drain magical power. He had only read about that technique, maybe Mione and him could take some lessons once that was over. But now he had to focus on Tracey.

“The Lord of Potter rids you from the evil inside of you, the Lord of Potter rips away the splintered soul to free you. I summon thee, dark force, I summon thee!”

This time he had to repeat the by now familiar phrasing six times, slowly starting to feel the exhaustion, before the black shadow left Tracey’s body. It tried flying to the manifested body of Tom Riddle, but luckily the barrier that Babbling had built by now, out of fire, ice, earth and lightning runes, didn’t allow it to pass through. Luckily. Who knows what would have happened? 

Harry attacked the black cloud so it was aiming at him. Once it was close enough he held out his hand so his Head of House rings would give him some protection, while drawing Godric’s dagger with the other hand and stabbing the cloud. 

As usual, the horcrux died, but at the same time Tom started to crumble to dust, screaming even louder than the soul fragment itself. With a quiet noise the wand dropped on the ground, and that was the only thing left from Tom. 

Tracey gasped and opened her eyes in the same moment, now being finally herself again. The doors to the Great Hall opened all at once and as the basilisk slithered out of the hall and back into the chamber, Amelia Bones stormed in. She had been outside of the hall when the doors closed and after getting no response she had sent for an auror team. By her command, they let the basilisk slither away and hurried inside, not knowing what to expect.

Every single one of those involved in the fight dropped either on the ground or the next free seat on one of the benches, all of them being utterly exhausted. Thanks to that, the spells on Dumbledore got so weak that he broke them, standing up and looking at Harry, seemingly disappointed.

“Harry, my boy. I must strongly object to your emancipation and the Lordships. I’ll tell Cornelius to revoke them. How could you…”

“Oh, shut it, old man. Your days are counted. And so are Fudge’s.”

Minerva looked at Harry, expecting him to say it. Severus on the other hand groaned. Yes, he wanted it to happen, but what he would have to do wouldn’t be nice. No one knew about it, they’d object. It was the only possible way though. 

Harry looked to Mione, who just shrugged. It was all over by now either way, no chance to fix this so the timeline would be back to normal.

“I didn’t want to do this, old man, but now I’m out of options.”

Everyone was staring at him, but Harry was hesitant. He really didn’t want to say it, Salazar had warned him. If he’d do that, then things could go so much worse in the long term. But now he had openly battled Riddle with advanced magic, taken the Elder Wand from Dumbledore and made his titles public knowledge. It was over. He brought himself to do it, lifted his wand - well, Ignotus Peverell’s wand, if we want to be precise - and pointed it at the small pendant on the necklace around his neck.

“Oh come on, fuck it. Damage Control!”

Notes:

So, here we are. It finally happened.
Let me know what you think in the comments. Thank you for reading my story and reviewing. It truly means a lot :)
A Happy New Year to all of you.

-Benedikt

Chapter 24: Damage Control Part 1

Notes:

Hello everyone.

We finally reached it, the moment you've all probably been waiting for. The timeline is blown and now it's time for Damage Control. Can our heroes change things for the better or will everything end way worse than in the last timeline. We shall see.
Until then, have fun reading!

“I didn’t want to do this, old man, but now I’m out of options.”

Everyone was staring at him, but Harry was hesitant. He really didn’t want to say it, Salazar had warned him. If he’d do that, then things could go so much worse in the long term. But now he had openly battled Riddle with advanced magic, taken the Elder Wand from Dumbledore and made his titles public knowledge. It was over. He brought himself to do it, lifted his wand - well, Ignotus Peverell’s wand, if we want to be precise - and pointed it at the small pendant on the necklace around his neck.

“Oh come on, fuck it. Damage Control!”

 

All the pendants started to heat up and glow, a fact that made Albus Dumbledore hesitate in summoning his wand. Currently it was already levitating on the second floor, but then he decided to stash it up there and wait how that would play out. Mr. Potter, Miss Granger, Minerva, Remus, Severus and Amelia Bones seemed to work together, since they were all wearing the same pendant. Filius was apparently working with them too, and Bathsheda had joined them during the fight with Tom. Add the amount of aurors and Fawkes’ apparent unwillingness to teleport him away - he had tried that silently, but the bird hadn’t responded - and it was quite clear that he would lose. Especially without the Elder Wand.

 

“Sectumsempra!”

Everyone turned to Severus, who had cast that spell. The potions master started screaming right away, just managing to stop the wound from bleeding with the counter curse before he fainted. He had severed his left arm, at least from the elbow downwards. Minerva was the first one to react to that, vanishing the severed arm before looking after the man, at least until Poppy, who had entered together with the aurors, took her place.

“Why did Professor Snape do that?”

Minerva looked around, searching for the person who had said that.

“Well, Miss Dunbar, he cut off his Dark Mark, severing the connection with Voldemort once and for all. But we’ll answer your questions later, we all have things to do.”

Minnie summoned her version of the dossier - Amelia's and hers were still linked after all - and handed it to the head of the DMLE, who in turn opened it and handed out several orders plus the necessary legal documents for that.

“Adams! Here, you’ll take that file, go back to the ministry, take a team of aurors and arrest Fudge, Hopkirk, Crouch Sr. and Macnair. Selwyn, you’ll take two teams and go after Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Nott and Parkinson. Officially we’re taking them in because of corruption and fraud, Chieftain Ragnok has handed us the evidence for that, but search everything for dark artefacts. Fisher, you’ll head to Crouch Manor and look for Barty Jr., we have evidence Sr. took him out of Azkaban and is holding him under the Imperius. He’s already convicted, just throw him back into Azkaban for the time being.”

While her troops looked awfully stunned and surprised, both by the detailed and condemning files as well as by the straightforwardness of Lady Bones, she continued handing out orders. 

“Let’s  go! NOW! All other aurors with me. Remus, the rat!”

Remus now seemed to have all his energy back, jumped up and aimed his wand at Scabbers. Well, it did look an awful lot like he’d be aiming it at Ronald, so all the Weasleys as well as the remaining supporters of Ron (McLaggen and friends, Seamus and a few others) jumped up and pointed their wands at the DADA professor. All but the twins at least.

“Why do you…”

“...want to hurt our brother…”

“...oh, favourite professor of ours?”

Harry, who right now hated the twin speech, yelled across the room.

“Gred, Forge, I suggest you let Mr. Moony handle his business. It’s not about Ronald, but rather the animagus you all call a pet, Wormtail.”

When Harry mentioned Remus’ marauder nickname, their faces lit up and they put their wands down. Percy too, he respected Lupin, as well as Mr. - no, Lord Potter, and Scabbers had been alive for quite a long time to be honest. 

The rat, realising that its cover was blown, tried running, but Percy and Remus both managed to cast the animagus revealing charm at him. 

“Is that…Peter Pettigrew?”

“Yes, it is, Jameson. Take him into custody. Minerva, could you hand him the paperwork, please? And then, Jameson, you and your partner get Sirius Black out of Azkaban. No holding cell for him, but my office. As you can see, he’s obviously innocent, and there you have the Potters’ secret keeper. Lord Black will know what to do, we spoke to him. And now it’s your turn, old man.”

With all the remaining aurors by her side, she was now standing in front of the High Table. All the other teachers had already left the table and were calming the students, when Amy Bones addressed the man, who was still the headmaster of Hogwarts.

“Mr. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, you are under arrest for several hundred cases of child endangerment, violating and illegally sealing the Potter wills, wrongfully assuming the title of Lord Potter’s magical guardian, violation the duties of such a guardian, wrongful imprisonment and perjury in regards to Lord Black’s case, illegal usage of mind manipulation charms in at least twenty-four cases, fifteen of those on minors, aiding a person to commit love potioning and line theft, illegal legilimency, blackmail and several other charges. By the authority granted to me through the ministry of magic I hereby suspend you from your position as headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and name the deputy headmistress the acting headmistress. I do hope we don’t have do fight you, Mr. Dumbledore.”

While the great hall was silent once again, this time not out of fear but surprise, Dumbledore tried his best with wandless magic, but ten aurors, including Amelia, was too much for him. That his stupid bird wouldn't come….

With magic-surpressing handcuffs she walked him out of there. Shortly before leaving the hall she turned to a female auror on her left, Emma Smith.

“Would you please take Gryffindor first-year Ginevra Weasley into custody and go search her trunk. She and her mother have tried love-potioning Lord Potter  on several occasions and she should still have some illegal potions in her trunk. We’ll take Molly Weasley into custody shortly and give Arthur a purging potion.”

Over a third of the students were able to hear that, and everyone now glared at Ginny. Percy even went that far and took her wand from her, threatening to put her in a body-bind if she didn’t comply. 

Percy was, after all, the smart and ambitious Weasley. If Dumbledore did all of that - and he didn’t doubt it - and if his mother really used love potions, then they would both go down. He would help clear the name of all the innocent Weasleys, maybe even try allying with Bones so he could pursue a career in her department. Not as an auror, but as a prosecutor or something like that. The whole thing here, apparently a long-planned mission, had been quite impressive.

 

Once Amelia Bones had left the great hall and Ginny had been taken away, Minerva walked up to the High Table and addressed the students.

“Dear students, many of you might be afraid or confused, or even both. At that point in time I can tell you that we knew that Tom Riddle, also known as Voldemort (several students shrieked), was possessing someone and using the basilisk. We didn’t know whom, so we could just try to find out who the victim was. The death of Roger Davies is horrible and makes me want to go back and change all we did, even though that would have ended worse. The showdown with Riddle, and no, he’s still out there, led to another event that had been carefully planned. With the help of Lord Potter and Miss Granger we, meaning Amelia Bones, Professors Lupin, Snape and Flitwick, as well as Regent Longbottom and Lord Greengrass we’ve been compiling dossiers to bring down several corrupt officials, death eaters and former headmaster Dumbledore and his associates. Please, you all go back into your common rooms, aside from those who need medical assistance. All the heads of houses will come and look after you, they will talk to you. Things will change at Hogwarts from now on.”

She sat down, but then immediately got up again.

“For the time being this is temporary, but once the board officially names me headmistress those changes will become permanent. Severus Snape and Filius Flitwick share the duties of deputy headmaster, and Remus Lupin is the new Head of Gryffindor House. You’re all dismissed.”

Then she looked at Professor Sinistra, who immediately got the hint and walked up to her.

“Yes, headmistress?”

“I assume Severus will be out of commission for a few days, please take up his duties as Head of Slytherin house. Those students need someone now.”

“Sure. Let me just say, that position suits you, Minerva.”

“Thank you, Aurora. Let’s hope we’ll change Hogwarts for the better.”

 

Senior Auror Felix Adams, a muggleborn that had climbed the ranks of the DMLE pretty fast despite his blood status, had been reading the paperwork Lady Bones had given him on his way to Professor McGonagall’s floo, and he was surprised and shocked. Sure, corruption was present in the ministry, everyone knew that, but getting evidence was nearly impossible. And now it was his job to arrest the elite of the ministry.

He flooed back to Lady Bones’ office, stepped out of her door and stood in the offices of the DMLE. In a room, nearly half the size of the Great Hall, there were around fifty aurors sitting on their desk.

“Everyone! Listen up! Everyone on standby, we have several missions, all top secret, ordered by Lady Bones. For all of those we have irrefutable proof. I need a team, NOW!”

The first ten aurors that came up to him were chosen, one of them Mad-Eye Moody.

“So, Adams, what’s that secret mission of yours?”

Adams handed Moody the file, and the elderly auror skimmed over the pages.

“That’s…how did Bones get that stuff. Arresting the minister, Hopkirk, Crouch and Macnair, suspending Umbridge. Is she crazy?”

“Oh, you have no idea what happened at Hogwarts. Selwyn is gonna go after those “imperiused” Death Eaters, including Malfoy. Fisher is heading to Crouch Manor to arrest Barty Jr., the old Crouch had him freed apparently. And Jameson took in Pettigrew, who had been hiding as an animagus. Black’s innocent and is in on the whole mission, just like Snape, McGonagall, Lupin, Flitwick and somehow Harry Potter. They have help from the Goblin king too.”

“Wait, what? Junior and Pettigrew are alive, Black innocent and she’ll charge Lucius Malfoy? And what was that with Snape?”

“Oh, he’s in on it too. They fought against a manifestation of you-know-who and he then cut off his arm to sever the connection. Oh, and Bones is arresting Dumbledore.”

 

Auror Adams led the team out of very surprised Aurors, including a shocked Moody, through the ministry. First one on their list would be Hopkirk.

Thankfully that woman was alone in her office, so there was no danger of rumors starting to spread. They used a standard holding cell portkey to get her out of the office unseen. Same happened with Macnair, though he did fight back, but Moody stunned him easily. 

The Head of the Department of International Magical Co-operation was very surprised when the auror team walked into his department. He was about to ask what that was all about, when Moody spoke up.

“Your son, Barty? Your god-damn son?”

Every single member of the department stopped whatever they were doing and looked up. It was some kind of a policy that no-one mentioned Barty Jr. to their boss. The whole situation was very strange, they had no idea what was going on. But their boss apparently did.

“Amelia does know how to do her job, doesn’t she? Alright, I’ll come quiet. I’ve been dreading that day since I freed him.”

“Good choice, Lord Crouch. Trainee Tonks, take his wand and use the floo in his office to bring him to holding, but separate from the others. We’ll use the floo too, then Fudge won’t see us coming. Oh, and: By authority granted to me through the Head of the DMLE I put this department into lockdown until we have arrested the minister and un-sealed the doors again. All communications are blocked and the anti-apparition and anti-patronus wards are activated.”

Moody, realising that he had mentioned the upcoming arrest of the minister, had activated an old protocol to seal off a department. Then he led the troop to Crouch’s fireplace, used his auror authentication to override the lockdown for them, sent Tonks through and then gestured to Adams to go ahead into the minister’s office.

 

Dolores Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, shrieked when the floo in Cornelius’ office activated and a team of aurors came through.

“This is outrageous. You can’t just walk into the Minister’s office. I am the Seni…”

Adams silenced her, and then walked up to Fudge, who slowly started to look scared. He knew that Amelia Bones was ruthless and he had committed more than enough crimes to get tossed into Azkaban, but he had never thought that this day would come.

“Cornelius Oswald Fudge, you are under arrest for several dozen cases of accepting bribes and corruption. The goblins decided that they would provide us with financial statements. You’re not the only one to lose their position today.”

Now, while he put magic-surpressing cuffs on the minister, Moody lifted the silencing charm on Umbridge to inform her about her suspension. But the pink toad was quicker.

“You can’t do that, auror! You are committing treason and will be punished for that. All of you will be punished for that. Oh, you know what? As the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister I assume the position of interim Minister of Magic and order the release of Mr. Fudge and suspend all of you!”

“Nah, you won’t, Umbridge. You know damn well that you have no right to the interim minister position. Besides, I was about to tell you that you’re suspended until Lady Bones can review your actions. On a personal note: I think you should pack your things, you won’t survive this day politically.”

Moody showed her and Fudge a copy of the legal documents for their actions and Fudge conceded. This was bulletproof, so now he should try saving his skin. He could still give up others, couldn’t he?

“Alright, I see that all those charges are legitimate and I confess to all of them. I will repeat that confession in front of the wizengamot in exchange for a lesser sentence, so other arrests can be made. Please tell me who is now the interim minister, I presume it’s Barty as the department head with seniority or Albus as Chief Warlock?”

Adams and Moody laughed, causing Fudge to look confused. Adams explained it to him.

“Neither of them will be interim minister, Mr. Fudge. Crouch was arrested for freeing his son out of Azkaban and staging his death just a few minutes ago. And Lady Bones is currently arresting the Chief Warlock for…let me think, what were the charges. Ah, yes: several hundred cases of child endangerment, violating and illegally sealing the Potter wills, wrongfully assuming the title of Lord Potter’s magical guardian, violation the duties of such a guardian, wrongful imprisonment and perjury in regards to Lord Black’s case, illegal usage of mind manipulation charms in at least twenty-four cases, fifteen of those on minors, aiding a person to commit love potioning and line theft, illegal legilimency, blackmail and several other charges. By the end of the day there will be half a dozen Lords arrested for fraud, bribery, blackmail and being Death Eaters, Lord Sirius Black will be free and Peter Pettigrew behind bars. Lady Bones outplayed every single one of you. Oh, and now she’s the highest ranking department head, so she’s the interim minister. And since Regent Longbottom and Lord Greengrass were in on it, I presume one of those will be Chief Warlock by the end of the week.”

At least for the time being, Cornelius Fudge gave up. Maybe they would miss someone who owed him a favour (unlikely, since those were mainly those charged for bribing), but for now everything was over. He should have taken out Amelia Bones a long time ago.

Dolores Umbridge was furious. Once she got home, now barred from entering the ministry on her own, she tried floo-calling all her allies, but they were all gone or in no position to help. Lord Malfoy was in custody, so were Crabbe and Goyle, Parkinson too. Any other supporters she had were not a member of the Wizengamot or a high-ranking ministry member. 

 

Most of the Death Eaters had resisted arrest, Lord Parkinson had even managed to get away. There were seven fatalities at the end of the day, but the positive thing was that they found enough dark artefacts and evidence to make the conviction pretty certain.

 

After the arrest of Albus Dumbledore, Amelia Bones immediately went to the Burrow, together with Alastor Moody (with whom she had had a very long discussion about how crazy she was, but on the other hand how fabulous her dossiers were. Amy thought that he really enjoyed arresting the Minister). Even though they would be able to simply enter and arrest, they knocked politely. Arthur was home after all, it had gotten late by now (dinner at Hogwarts had started at around six, the horcrux incident had happened shortly after that. The battle and the first phases of damage control were over by eight thirty. Now only Molly Weasley and the conversation with Sirius was due to happen). 

Luckily it was Arthur, who opened the door, and after stating that they’d like to come in to discuss some work-related issues, he let them in. 

“Molly, dear! We’re having guests, Lady Bones and Mad-Eye are here!”

Molly Weasley was not too happy to hear that, but came down into the living room either way. Once she had entered, Amy pointed her wand at her while Alastor held back Arthur.

“Molly Weasley, you’re under arrest for the production of illegal potions, attempted potioning, potioning and attempted line theft. Other charges may be brought forward too. Hand over your wand and don’t try resisting.”

Arthur was shocked to hear that, and now, despite the potions in his system, his old, fiery self was showing. Loudly he demanded to find out what was going on.

“I, as the Lord Weasley, demand that you tell me what you are charging the Lady of my family with, Lady Bones. Otherwise I would have to take measures against that.”

“Ah, it seems like the potions are wearing off. Your wife is potioning you, Arthur. She had tried the same with Lord Potter with the assistance of your daughter.”

Molly, with her usual and unbearably loud voice, yelled at Amelia.

“Little Harry is no Lord, Bones. And you have no proof for any of that. Albus will end your career.”

“Oh, I highly doubt that, Mrs. Weasley. First of all, Lord Potter, has claimed his ring, as well as the Lordships and rings for Peverell, Gryffindor, Slytherin and Ravenclaw as well as Heir Black, so it’s going to be attempted line theft in six cases, second of all, I do have more than enough proof to throw you into Azkaban, and lastly, former headmaster Albus Dumbledore is also in a holding cell awaiting trial, both as your co-conspirator and several other charges.”

Then, while Amy disarmed Molly and cuffed her, Alastor was calming Arthur, telling him that he’d get a purging potion at St. Mungo’s.

 

Lord Nathaniel Parkinson had somehow managed to apparate out of his Manor, and that despite the fact that the aurors had put up anti-apparition wards. Thankfully one of his ancestors had warded the office so that he’d have about twenty seconds between the wards coming up and the additional wards in his office failing. If he wouldn’t have been in there to check for something instead of at the dinner table, then he’d be in ministry custody too. His contacts at Knockturn Alley told him what had happened. Some said even Dumbledore was in custody, just like the minister. Amelia Bones was a horrible woman. He should have killed her.

But now he had to flee. Not just the London area, but the British Isles. After sneaking on a muggle boat (he hated muggles, but was smart enough to know that they were advanced in certain areas) to France, he touched his dark mark. Nathaniel needed the help and guidance of his master. He knew that the Dark Lord was still out there, but where?

A small shock went through his body as he pressed the tattoo. His Lord was out there and gave him a sign. He was in… Albania? Why the hell was the Dark Lord in Albania?

But at least he had a place to go now. 

 

Back at Hogwarts, all the students were by now in their common rooms and talking. Their professors were - and that was (to such a degree) a new thing - giving them the opportunity to chat with them, they calmed them. Up until now, psychological help had never been a thing at Hogwarts. That would probably change under Headmistress McGonagall.

The opinions on the evenings’ happenings were differing from house to house. All the professors informed the students on the charges that were brought up against Dumbledore. While most believed them, the majority of Gryffindor house was still ready to follow the (former) headmaster blindly. The Slytherins were a completely different case, since some of their fathers would get arrested and their families were still supporting the Dark Lord (who had returned and been defeated this evening). But overall people hoped that McGonagall would do the job quite well. 

After a while, Remus told Hermione and Harry that they should head to the Headmistress to check in with her. On their way out they looked around, seeing all the supporting looks they got, but also some of those that were hostile, but Remus was already working on preventing that. 

 

The gargoyle simply responded to “we’re here to see the headmistress, please” and let them enter, before they then knocked on Minnie’s door.

Since Minerva was certain that she would stay headmistress, he had already started throwing out all the nonsense that Dumbledore had kept here. The pictures of the old headmasters were loudly complaining about her actions, but some of them had already accepted Minnie’s claims of Dumbledore’s crimes.

The office was now looking much warmer, in addition to all the existing paintings she had added some personal photographs, including ones from this summer at Potter Manor. Two big couches, both brown (none of the house colours) and a coffee table had been put into the room. The book shelves were much less stuffed, many of those books that had been removed from the library were now back there. Overall, the room was much warmer and friendlier, less obscure than before. 

“Ah, Harry, Hermione. Take a seat. How do you like my new office?”

She offered the two of them tea and joined them on the couch to give them a status report.

“Well, it seems like Miss Davis will be fine in a few weeks, but should see a mind healer. Miss Greengrass hadn’t left her side until now, they have a lot of things to discuss. Severus will be okay too, Poppy has confirmed that the connection to Tom is completely gone. And before you ask, I had no idea that he’d do that.”

“That’s great. And what about Amelia’s part of damage control? How’s that going?”

Mione was curious as always, and Minnie gladly satisfied this curiosity.

“We lost seven aurors, but everyone except Lord Parkinson has been arrested. The raids were successful too. Junior is back in Azkaban, Arthur Weasley is undergoing a purging potion at St. Mungo’s, and Bill is looking after him. A member of the Wizarding Child Services is looking after Ginny. Haven’t heard anything about Sirius yet, but Amelia has only returned from the Weasleys a short while ago. She’s probably meeting with him right now.”

 

A short while back, auror Peter Jameson and his partner, Frederick Fawley, had taken a portkey to Azkaban. Before that they had locked up Peter Pettigrew in an animagus-proof holding cell, which was very confusing. Everyone had thought that Peter had died and Black had been the secret keeper, but apparently Sirius Black had been framed. Now it was their job to free him and bring him into Director Bones’ office. Not even a holding cell, but her office. Obviously there was something huge going on.

Jameson had expected a madman, probably laughing just as badly as Black’s cousin Lestrange, but that was totally wrong. The warden had been a bit surprised when they told him that they were here to see Sirius Black.

His partner, Auror Fawley (member of the Fawley family, part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight) then addressed Black in a manner that Jameson hadn’t expected.

“Lord Black?”

A croaking voice came out of the cell, asking “yes?”

“I’m Auror Fawley, Scion of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Fawley. My partner and I are here to escort you into the offices of Lady Bones. We have arrested Peter Pettigrew earlier today and it seems that you will be a free man soon, my Lord.”

They heard Sirius jump up out of joy, all the weakness in his voice now gone, Fawley thought he was actually sounding sincere and happy, despite having been in Azkaban for so long.

“Finally! Thank you, Auror Fawley. To both of you.”

Then Jameson turned around and called for the warden.

“Yes, Auror Jameson?”

“We’re here to take Mr. - Lord Black with us. New information has come forward, he’s an innocent man. Here are the orders from Lady Bones?”

“You’re here to…what? He’s innocent? You better have the right documents for that…Damn, Pettigrew? Is that file correct? You’ve got to be joking. 

But it seems like everything’s in order. Why haven’t the minister or the Chief Warlock signed that though? Not that it would make it invalid, it’s just…unusual. And nothing from Crouch Sr., even though he was DMLE head back then. That’s all quite…unusual.”

Fawley laughed.

“Oh, you have no idea. Fudge and Dumbledore should soon be under arrest too. Those are gonna be interesting trials. Crouch Sr. too, by the way. And you should prepare a cell for Barty Jr., Auror Fisher should bring him in soon.”

“Fudge, Dumbledore and Crouch? What the hell is Bones doing? And…what? Junior? Please, don’t answer that, the more you say, the stranger it gets.”

While he unlocked Sirius’ cell, he was mumbling a lot about the news he had gotten. Seemed like they had caused the warden quite the headache.

 

Since they hadn’t gotten any other orders, the two aurors spent the next few hours in Lady Bones office, waiting for her return. Until then they looked out for Black, giving him something to eat and drink, casting a few cleaning charms (after over a decade of Azkaban one was quite dirty) and then offering him some fresh clothing. Nothing special, just some spare robes they had at hand. 

Thanks to Harry’s letter and visit, the man had regained most of his sanity and now he even looked acceptable. Sure, his hair was a bit wild and his beard not trimmed, the robes he wore were not really worthy for a Black, but it was acceptable.

And then, finally, the door opened, and a woman, which Sirius hadn’t seen in ages, walked in. With great enthusiasm, he greeted her.

“Amy! Finally! Good seeing you. How are you doing?”

Notes:

So, I hope that this chapter does satisfy all of you. I personally am pretty happy with it.
Please let me know in the comments below what your opinion is. See ya all next week.

Chapter 25: Damage Control Part 2

Notes:

Good morning! Here is the latest chapter.
I hope all of you like it :)

An hour later, it was by now night, Sirius Black was able to walk out of Amelia Bones’ office as a (more or less) free man. Sure, he’d still have to face the Wizengamot for the murder of the muggles and giving Voldemort the secret of the Potters (killing Peter was an obsolete charge now), but since Peter Pettigrew had already confessed it was a mere formality. Until then he was free to leave the ministry, but not the country. His wand was still evidence for the time being, but he planned to grab a spare family wand at home. Amy - he was certain that she still had a crush on him - was offering to apparate him home, and he took her up on that. 

Since Amy didn’t know where Grimmauld Place 12 was, she apparated Sirius into the general area and accompanied him while they were walking up to the correct spot. Then - since the Fidelius was still active - he told her the secret and then they entered.

The house was nothing like Sirius had expected, because it was cleaner and less dark than the last time he had been here. How…?

Then Kreacher appeared, eyeing Sirius for a few seconds before bowing.

“Master Black. You’re no Lord like the Heir had promised.”

The elf was surprisingly friendly - in relation - and had apparently followed Harry’s orders to clean up the place.

“No, I’m not, Kreacher. Not yet at least. I just got freed and will claim the ring as soon as possible. Amy, any way you can bring me into Diagon Alley without being seen? I’d like to visit Gringotts as soon as I’m dressed and have a working wand.”

He then addressed the elf again.

“In what state are the Lord’s chambers and do we have Grandpa Arcturus’ old formal robes here? My father’s won’t fit, and the old bastard had no style whatsoever.”

Sirius had to admit, it took a lot of concentration to not yell at the little creature in front of him, but apparently Harry had changed the little beast to the better. His parents had always used the thing to harm and torment him, but - as far as Amy knew - the elf adored Harry for his power and dominance. Maybe when he was Lord, then he could radiate that dominance and power too. One thing was for sure: the pain the elf had caused him didn’t come from its own dark nature, but from his parents.

After being informed that the Lord’s chambers were in an usable state and that he would find his clothes prepared there, Sirius thanked (yes, he couldn’t really believe it himself) the little old elf. But before heading up there to dress up, he took Amy with him into a room on the third floor.

His father’s - no, his office (Arcturus had always lived in the Black Manor in the countryside, not the townhouse, otherwise that would have been Arcturus’ office as head of the family) was a big room with an ebony desk, even more impressive and extravagant than Dumbledore’s old one, shelves filled with probably highly illegal and dark tomes and a big fireplace. Sirius made a mental note to brighten up the room at least a little bit (but not too much, he was Lord Black after all - or would be soon). 

The huge shelf directly left from the desk was what he was aiming for, because it was hiding the small armoury. Oh yes, the House of Black had  more than one in each and every Manor. There always was the big one with some mediaeval armour and weapons, the dragonscale battle suits and the wizard staffs (which were hardly used these days, wands were much more efficient), but the smaller, hidden one was always stacked with family wands and high-quality protective gear and enchanted trinkets. Thankfully he knew exactly where this one was, even without the knowledge coming from the Lord rings.

Many years ago he had sneaked into his father’s office to look for a book about forbidden and forgotten potions they (the marauders) could use for some pranks, when his father entered the room. Since he didn’t want to be on the receiving end of his father’s anger, he hid behind an armchair while hoping that the old man didn’t start working but left quickly. Thankfully Orion Black only opened the armoury to take out a ring with advanced compulsion protection (he wasn’t the Lord so he had no ring already protecting him) before heading to a meeting with someone (Sirius hadn’t know with whom and couldn’t make that out from his father’s murmuring, only the properties of the trinket). 

Once the old man was gone again, Sirius waited a few minutes before then trying to find the exact mechanism to open up the hidden room. That wasn’t hard, much to his surprise. He was pretty sure that his father had touched a book to open the hidden door, but which one was it? 

Sirius nearly burst out laughing when he spotted the right book - or at least the one he expected to be the right one. Between all the magical books there was one from a muggle author. Even if someone were to sneak into the office to look at the books, no one would take a muggle book but rather one of the dark tomes. All the other Black’s hated muggles (well, Dromeda was obviously an exception, and so was Uncle Alphard, but the principle still stands), so no one would even touch that book. 

At least that must have been his father’s line of thought, Sirius personally thought it was a dead giveaway. Thank god Remus had read Ulyssees like a dozen times (Sirius had given up after the chapter which was written like a tragedy. Who wrote something so crazy?), otherwise he wouldn’t have recognised it.

 

Now, Sirius was standing in front of the bookshelf again and reached for James Joyce’s Ulyssees, which then opened the door. He had to look for a suitable wand now.

Since his grandfather had died after his parents - and from what Sirius had been able to gather, in his own Manor - his wand wasn’t stashed here. The two Blacks had always been so alike in many ways, Siri was sure his wand would be a match. And so would be Reg’s, but his body was never found. Uncle Alphard’s wand was almost certainly not in here, 

His mother’s wand he didn’t even dare to touch, but he tried his father’s wand. Sure, it worked, but he had to force it to work properly. Just as stubborn as the old man himself. He put that one aside, if there was no better one he’d take it.

After a few more minutes of touching wands and flicking them, the wand of Phineas Nigellus Black was  by far the easiest to wield. Vine wood and phoenix feather, twelve inches, flexible (all the wands were properly labelled, not only the name of the owner but its materials and wandmaker too).

 

The Lord’s chamber was a room which Sirius had never wanted to enter in his life (despite being the Lord’s chamber, his parents had slept in there either way. His mother had been quite ignorant when it came to who the head of the family was. That’s why getting blasted off the family tree by her was worthless, she had no right to do that.), but here he was. Actually, it wasn’t as bad as he had expected it to be, but maybe it had just been Kreacher cleaning up. As far as he could tell it was usable, clean curtains, new bed sheets and the floor was shining. Then the house-elf popped into the room.

“I hope that you are pleased with Kreacher’s work. We still have a few sets of Lord Arcturus’ robes, I have cleaned them and put them on the bed. Shall I make dinner, or did you already have it?”

“Oh please, dinner for two would be great. Correction, Harry wouldn’t be too pleased if I wouldn’t offer you some too. Some of the things he said about elf mistreatment really got me thinking. Please, you deserve a proper break after all this work.”

And it was true, when Harry had visited Sirius in Azkaban (and in some of their correspondence afterwards) he had mentioned Lucius’ elf called Dobby and how he had been treated. For Sirius that was no big deal in the beginning, he was used to it, but it got him thinking. And if he wanted to make this place usable then he’d need all the help he could get. 

Once Kreacher had popped away, Siri turned to Amelia, smirking.

“Well Amy, I never thought I’d get you into my bedroom. Hogwarts broom closet sure, we’ve been there, but the bedroom? And as much as you’d probably like watching me undress, I’m just out of Azkaban, so no fun yet. Could you wait outside for a minute before we go and have dinner?”

Amelia’s reaction was something between a glare and a grin, then she called Sirius “the same cheeky old Sirius” and proceeded to leave the room. If she was honest to herself, she wouldn’t mind if she would start something with Siri - again. She wasn’t sure if he had been the sole reason she stayed single all those years, but to a degree for sure. Once the war began, things just…fell apart. They were both too busy. There never had been a proper break-up, no fight, nothing. It just…stopped. And then, when things started to calm down and she wanted to resume their relationship, he got sent to Azkaban. But now…maybe.

 

Against all odds, they didn’t end up in bed, both were so tired they just fell asleep on the couch after dinner (in the middle of the night) and Kreacher popped them into rooms (he had prepared a guest room for Amy though the cheeky elf had considered for a moment to bring them into the Lord’s chambers together, but he saw that his new master (who tried his best to ignore the pain the elf had caused him and follow Harry’s directives in regards to elf treatment) was still fragile).

 

On the next morning, a potion-free Arthur Weasley woke up in a bed in the potions wing at St. Mungo’s, and the first thing he realised, aside from the fact that his mind was clearer than it had ever been since Hogwarts, was that his oldest son - Bill - was sitting next to his bed. 

“Dad? What’s going on? Amelia Bones sent an auror to tell me that you’re up here, but they refuse to tell me anything without your permission. Where’s mom, and do the others know about you being here?”

“William Weasley, don’t you dare talking to any of your siblings just now! I don’t know yet who’s on the side of your mother here and potioning people too. As if potioning me wouldn’t be bad enough, Molly and Ginny are potioning Harry too. Idiots! They’re gonna end up in front of the Wizengamot and your mother will end up in Azkaban. What a…”

He then proceeded to rant about his wife and her damn plots, while Bill could hardly contain his shock and surprise. In his earlier years, he had seen his father get angry, but after a while the good old, fiery Arthur Weasley was gone. Potions… How was that even possible and how much of his life was a lie?

But the main thing was that Amelia Bones was handling the investigation. That woman was fair and anything but corrupt, she’d bring out the truth. Which meant that he could look out for his father.

 

At the same time, Ginny Weasley was eating breakfast in a ministry holding area, accompanied by a woman from the WCS. Up until now they were missing the parental approval to properly interact with the girl, though the first impression was that she had been brainwashed into a very obsessive behaviour in regards to Lord Potter (after all the girl couldn’t stop talking about him in a very…interesting way, making it seem like she only loved the idea of “the-boy-who-lived” instead of the person “Harry”). Once either her father was cleared by the healers or the Wizengamot had appointed a temporary guardian (because her mother would go to Azkaban and it was unclear when her father was well again), they could start getting her some therapy. Because one thing was obvious: Ginevra Weasley was definitely not well.

 

Albus Dumbledore was sulking. How could things have gone so horribly wrong? Harry was destined to fight Tom, and with all he had done the boy should have grown up to be a weak wizard, lacking both confidence and skill, bound by his core bondings and distracted from studying by his best friend Ronald. Then he would have failed against Tom, the prophecy would have been fulfilled and he could have killed Tom himself. He would have been the strongest wizard in the world, the only one suitable to lead the magical world into a new era. A purer era.  This should not have happened.

Maybe the Horcrux was taking over.

But why would Harry have killed the diary horcrux then? It made no sense at all. 

Fact was, if Harry was moving against him, he was against the light, against him, against his plans. Harry was turning dark. He must be.

 

Slowly, rumours started to spread through the old families. Some heirs had already written to their parents in the evening, others in the morning. Fact was, that by lunchtime almost all the pureblood families in the wizengamot (and many other families) were well aware of what had happened. The Prophet (not Skeeter though, she was arrested too, only after all the high-priority targets) even issued a special edition, making all of Harry’s houses and actions the previous evening public knowledge. In regards to damage control though, barely anything had been leaked. Sure, Dumbledore was in Ministry custody after the showdown at Hogwarts so all could be cleared up, but no mentions of his true crimes or any other arrests. Probably Amy’s work. 

What surprised Harry was the fact that the Prophet quoted Dumbledore out of the Ministry custody (Minnie mentioned in the morning that Amelia was already working on finding out who had allowed that to happen), where he stated his displeasure in regards to Harry’s actions, something along the lines of “he had too much power and no sense of judgement, he is undoubtedly turning dark and taking others with him.”

Upon reading that, Harry just shook his head. He had destroyed a horcrux, he had killed a manifestation of Voldemort. And now he was the dark wizard? That made no sense whatsoever. Maybe the old fool was getting senile these days. Or he was just as evil as Riddle himself, only wanting power, the difference being that he was acting like the good guy.

 

The time at Hogwarts was not getting easier for the duo, especially after this display of power and skill. Every few minutes they had to turn someone down when they got asked how they possessed those skills or if they could train with them. The hardest one was Neville in that case. Sure, he had known that they had trained over the holidays, but that was way beyond their skillset. At some point his girlfriend, happy that her best friend was more or less back to normal (sure, they had had their differences even before the diary, but that they would have resolved long ago), told him to forget it and accept that those things were obviously way above their league. 

Luckily most of the teachers ignored the skillset of the duo too, first of all because with Remus, Severus, Minnie and Flitwick the most important ones already knew the truth. They did meet with Professor Babbling though, since they wanted to learn more about the techniques she had used.

 

“Well, Miss Granger, Lord Potter. It seems like you are much more than one might expect. Minerva already warned me that you might approach me. You have her praise, but that isn’t enough. If you want private lessons, you come back after dinner and write an exam in Runes so I can judge your skill.  OWLs or sixth year exams?”

The two looked at each other, after nearly two years of advanced studying (plus Mione’s knowledge from the previous timeline) they were now pretty sure which exam to pick.

“NEWTs would be the best, I think. Both for Harry and I. Shouldn’t be an issue.”

That left the professor flabbergasted. She nodded and sent them away so she could prepare the exams for later. What would the results of those be?

 

Neither Harry nor Hermione had disappointed with their performance, as they both scored nearly perfect scores in the theoretical exams (it was late and the week had been exhausting, those had just been imprecise answers) and perfect ones in the practical application. Now Babbling had to devise a lesson plan for what was basically a Runes Mastery. She had stopped questioning everything surrounding Potter and Granger by now.

 

Once Sirius Black woke up, the morning after he got freed from Azkaban, he felt…good. More or less at least. In comparison to the past decade or so sleeping in the vicinity of dementors, everything would feel good, sure, but he knew that it was more than that. He was free, he’d meet Prongslet soon and he’d be able to ruin the lives of all those who had done him harm. Dumbledore, Fudge, Crouch, Malfoy and many more. 

Sure, becoming Lord Black was not really something he had expected, but truth be told, by now he actually wanted it, and all the power that came with the title. 

He got up and the first thing he did was to get a hot shower. Sure, there were cleaning charms, but the feeling of a hot shower was so much more efficient, at least psychologically speaking. He then trimmed his beard (still a full beard, just now evenly cut and no longer wild) and cut his hair to be at least even and stepped out of the master bathroom, back into the bedroom, where by now Kreacher had prepared a set of dark blue robes, the most exquisite ones he had here. 

After putting those on and grabbing the spare wand he picked yesterday he went downstairs, where he could already smell the freshly brewed coffee. Sure, most of his family members had despised coffee and rather enjoyed tea (he did that too, but just not in the mornings), but nonetheless was Kreacher able to brew quite the good and strong black coffee. Since it was already around ten in the morning, Amy had left him a note, saying that she had to get some work done, but he should send her a Patronus message once he was ready to head to Gringotts.

Once he was ready, he thought about the day of Harry’s birth, when Lily had put the little boy into his arms and asked him to be the godfather. That thought made Sirius smile and feel enough happiness to create a corporeal Patronus - a Grim obviously -  and send it to Amy, telling her that he’d be waiting for her.

 

Twenty minutes later, the Head of the DMLE and Lady of House Bones knocked on the door of 12 Grimmauld Place. Only seconds later, the little house elf opened the door and welcomed her. 

Sirius was actually looking quite dashing and - yes, she winced at the stupid word pun - like a very serious man. Definitely Arcturus Black’s grandson and heir. She would apparate him into a side alley next to the wizarding bank, as the news of his innocence (though not yet confirmed by the Wizengamot) hadn’t hit the news yet. Thankfully she had been able to keep the editor, Barnabas Cuffe, from publishing any article in regards to yesterday's happenings, except Harry’s fight with Riddle. The rest, including the orders she had given in the Great Hall, were protected by DMLE spells, hindering people from speaking about ongoing investigations. Sure, those were only something like minor compulsion charms (way more complicated though) and could be broken, that’s why she went to Cuffe. He had been relentless at first but then yielded once she had told him everything (under an oath obviously) and promised him an interview with her as well as maybe one with Lord Black (if Sirius accepted, which he by the way did). That was why Siri couldn’t yet go out in the open. But with the goblins it was something else, they knew the truth. Harry had told them when he had opened James’ and Lily’s wills. So she just made an appointment with the Black account manager, Sharpsword. He was delighted to hear that and gladly told Amelia to bring him the future Lord Black as soon as possible (while unhappy about it, he understood that Azkaban wasn’t easy to survive and Lord Presumptive Black needed his sleep).

 

Thanks to a side entrance, the goblins managed to get the Lord Presumptive into the bank without anyone noticing. A teller accompanied the two of them to the offices of Sharpsword (normally they’d ask Amy to wait outside, but in this case they needed an adult to participate in the claiming of the Lordship, just like with Harry and Minnie) and after an exchange of formal goblin pleasantries they started with the reading of Acturus’ will. It actually stated that Sirius, and no one else shall become Lord, and that he’d be able to pick an heir of his choosing, but preferably Harry. Seemed like he couldn’t stand the Malfoys either. 

Just a few minutes later both Sirius and Amelia spoke the traditional phrases to make Siri the Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black:

“I, Sirius Orion Black, Scion of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black hereby proclaim myself the Lord of my House following ancient tradition and my predecessor's will.”

Amelia watched him slip the ring on his finger and then lifted her own hand, which held her Head of House ring.

“I, Amelia Anna Bones hereby witness Sirius Orion Black taking his Lordship and back his claim. He follows his predecessor’s will and is the righteous Lord of Black.”

 

What followed was a brief discussion about the finances of the House of Black, Sirius changed his will so Harry would inherit everything and he tasked a goblin team to rid all the Black houses and Manors from dark artefacts, which wasn’t cheap at all. With that they concluded their meeting and Amy was about to apparate Sirius back home, when he intervened.

“Wait, Amy. Do we have a date for the trials set yet?”

“Yes, I haven’t told you that yet. The day after tomorrow, we start at ten in the morning with your trial so you can join the Wizengamot afterwards. It’ll take us two days though, maybe even more. Why do you ask?”

“Because I need some new clothes for the Wizengamot Session. How about that: you take me disillusioned to Twilfitt and Tattings, they have a contract with House Black. They couldn’t tell anyone about me even if they’d wanted to.”

Even though she wasn’t too happy about Sirius spending too much time out in the open, she knew he was right. He would need some proper clothing.

 

After his measurements had been taken, Sirius and the shop owner had discussed what and how much he would need. Aside from two dozen high-quality robes with the Black crests on them, for everyday wear, he ordered three for balls and other formal events as well as two very high priced sets for the Wizengamot, one in black and dark purple, the other in grey and dark blue. Then some duelling robes, he liked wearing them too, they were cut a bit slimmer and made him appear more dangerous, and finally some matching wand holsters to the robes. Not a cheap visit, but necessary. 

Madame Tattings promised Mr. Black (for she didn’t know he was Lord, sure, she could have guessed that thanks to the clothing he chose, but discretion was important for her shop) that she’d deliver all of them on the following day, those were now high-priority. 

 

The day following the attack on the Great Hall came slowly to an end. Sirius was back at Grimmauld Place, cleaning up the house with Kreacher so Harry would be able to live here. Yes, the goblins would start on the next day and the elf could have done the rest on his own, but burning and vanishing all the horrible things like the elven heads or the boggarts and doxys everywhere was fun. The most fascinating thing though was that now the paintings, including his mother’s, were obeying his orders completely. Without picking up the ring, life would have been so awful here.

Harry and Hermione’s day came finally to an end too, after finishing up their conversation with Professor Babbling. They had absolutely stunned the woman, since their skill in Ancient Runes was way beyond what Hogwarts taught. Thanks to the Potter library they had learned so much, more than most students learned during their seven years here. They were simply more efficient, higher motivated and had advanced books at their disposal. And not only that, they also used old school books, since the curriculum a few decades ago had been much more extensive, while the schooling time was the same. If they’d use only those, they could pass nowadays NEWTs with flying colours after fourth or fifth year, depending on the subject. Things had been much more efficient back then.

Upon stepping through the portrait hole into the common room, they already saw Ronald, McLaggen and a few other idiots standing there and waiting. 

“Oh come on, you again. What is your problem?”

“Well, you little mudblood, we’re here to teach you and your arrogant boyfriend a lesson.”

If he wouldn’t have studied Occlumency, making him better at hiding his emotions, Harry would have punched McLaggen in the face for insulting Hermione. But now, he shouldn’t do that anymore. He was a Lord, and now he had other means at his disposal. He replied in a calm, but cold manner.

“McLaggen. This is your last warning, no, it’s all of yours, not just his. I’ll let this…remark slide this one time if you step aside and leave us alone. Whenever this happens again, I’ll come for you with all my power. And not just in a duel. This could go as far as a blood feud between our houses, if you are a member of one. I don’t have an issue with duels of satisfaction or ruining you with my economical or political power. But if you decide to not step aside now…let this be my last warning. I took down Voldemort (everyone flinched…was that really the house of the bold?) as a baby, I took him down when he was haunting the castle last year, and I took him down yesterday. You are no match for me and I am not afraid. You on the other hand…you should be afraid.”

Most of their opponents took down their wands and disappeared into their dorms. They’d either give up or resort to hexing him in the back, he knew that, but McLaggen and Weasley, the two leaders, so it seemed, and three of their friends, stayed.

“Because of you my Mom and my sister have been arrested, you bastard! YOU’LL PAY FOR THAT!”

Mione resolved that issue of the screaming redhead with a strong silencing charm, while McLaggen started spouting things like “my father’s a Lord and on the Wizengamot. He’ll see through your farce with those Lordships. No way you’ll ever be a Lord, Potter!”

Harry just laughed and told him that his father could try that, and then he just turned around and went into his dorm, Hermione doing the same. Before stepping through the door he turned around once more and added that McLaggen did sound an awful lot like Malfoy with this whole “my father” thing. 

Grinning, he went into bed, putting up even stronger wards around himself and his stuff. Who knew if the Gryffindor dorms were a truly safe place currently?

Notes:

So, that's it for the week. Looking forward to your opinions in the comments.
Next up: Trials Session 1, see ya all next week

Chapter 26: Trials round 1

Notes:

Good morning everyone. Here is the next chapter. Today it's time for the trials. Some of you might say afterwards that those are a bit short and too easy, but I simply don't want to spend too much time with the trials, but want to reach the action parts. Hope you'll like it either way.

While the rumours at Hogwarts continued to get worse and worse, Headmistress Minerva McGonagall was already starting to introduce changes to the school. After a thorough review of the budget, which was quite large to begin with and because of Dumbledore’s tendency to reduce the number of teachers and subjects over time was even larger, she began looking for new staff members. The first hire was Felix Cresswell (great-uncle of Dirk Cresswell), an elderly healer, to assist Poppy in the hospital wing. Together those two could - and should - be able to restart the healing classes within one or two years of preparation. Felix was also a certified mind healer, so for the first time Hogwarts had something like a psychologist for students and staff, helping with both special and everyday issues.

She also looked into Alchemy professors (something very different from Potions, like Severus tended to point out) and a new transfiguration teacher, though since she had two deputies and wasn’t Chief Witch and Supreme Mugwump she should and would be able to manage that for the time being. Everything after the OWLs she’d keep teaching either way, only Dumbledore could rival her in advanced transfiguration. And now with upcoming changes, she could finally teach the students more.

A replacement for Binns wasn’t too easy to find, besides, she’d need to exorcise him first either way. And then there’s the problem with a suitable Muggle Studies Professor, one who actually knew something, and maybe she’d need a new (old) class for wizarding traditions and etiquette so the purebloods would have less reason to loathe muggleborns. Being the headmistress wasn’t an easy job.

 

Remus was handling his new job very well, the Head of Gryffindor had already begun making changes in the house. For one, he worked more often in the common room to simply be present and among his students, but he also explicitly stated that they could come to his office anytime. He even started to have one-on-one conversations with every lion so they got to know each other. Minnie hadn’t been able to do all of that while handling most of Albus’ duties too at the same time. 

Severus was still in the hospital wing, rarely awake and rather comatose. Cutting off his arm - with Sectumsempra out of all curses - had been rough. But even rougher was the now severed connection with Riddle, that had taken its toll to disappear completely. He’d still need a few more days probably, even with all the potions.

For the time being, Aurora Sinistra was acting Head of Slytherin House, and she was taking almost the same approach as Remus, being there for her students and listening. She was glad that Minerva had taken over, she was much more focussed on the job than Albus had ever been. And if the allegations were true…

 

Then, on the morning of the trials, Harry and Hermione were having breakfast before they’d had to leave. Both were already wearing formal robes, Harry black and red ones, Mione a dark blue one. That did lead to whispers from the very moment they entered the Great Hall, being out of school robes was no light offence. Ronald Weasley was the first one to speak up and confront the duo.

“Oi, Potter! Who do you think you are, being out of school robes, just like your damn who…friend there? Professor Kettleburn! Potter and Granger are not wearing school robes.”

The elderly professor, who was known for missing several limbs and was - if one could still believe the previous timeline - due to retire after this year, walked up to the Gryffindor table and looked at Harry and Hermione.

“You two, Lord Potter, Miss Granger. Despite the lack of friendliness and manners from Mr. Weasley here, his question isn’t unfounded. First of all, Weasley, you have detention with me this evening, I need someone to clean out the Nifflers’ barn. And please, refrain from insulting Miss Granger. Now, you two, have a valid reason?”

Mione nodded.

“Yes, Professor. We’re due to depart to the Ministry for the first round of trials after breakfast, Harry as a Lord of the Gamot and me as a witness. That should give us legitimate reason, shouldn’t it?”

The professor smiled. He would have hated to give those two detention, they were something special and he kind of admired them. 

“If that is the case, Miss Granger, then that should suffice. Have a nice day then, and don’t forget to change back when you return.”

As he turned around, Percy Weasley got up.

“Actually, Professor, the student handbook, though not well-known amongst the students thanks to the former Headmaster, states that any Lord or Heir is allowed to wear formal robes with his house crests on them, if it has the crest of his Hogwarts house on it and he wears the matching tie. So that means once Lord Potter here removes the glamour charm on his house crests, his noble effort to not brag like Mr. Malfoy, then his attire is absolutely appropriate. I’m not sure if Miss Granger is under the protection of any of your Houses, Lord Potter, because then this rule would apply to her too.”

Then he addressed the whole Hall.

“If anyone wants to have a copy of the student handbook, then just ask me. I’m also able to inform you about your rights, too.”

Then he sat down, while Harry smiled at him. Percy, even if he was most likely just trying to make his future prospects better, had openly broken with Dumbles and supported Harry and his friends, even if it was against his brothers. Oh, if he continued like that, then Harry was sure that Amy would offer him a spot in the DMLE to train him to be a prosecutor for the ministry. And if not, well then Harry would get the man a job, he would be a great solicitor at some point, no matter how big-headed he could be.

His mention of House protection brought up an old discussion between Harry and Hermione. They hadn’t done it because they wanted to keep everything secret, especially when it came to Harry’s titles. So if they didn’t want to reveal his status as Lord Potter, then there was no point in her being under his protection, because he’d have to make that public to act on that. And at some point, though life was way too stressful currently, they’d start dating and become a soulmate couple, which, in the eyes of the law, was equal to a betrothal. Then she’d be under his protection too. But now, House protection would be an idea.

Without a lot of thinking, they did the vows to that on their way to the Headmistresses’ office.

“I, Lord Harry James Potter, head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter, offer you, Hermione Jean Granger, the protection of my house. I offer to fight you duels, to protect you and to represent you, if you abide by my word as your Lord. Do you take this offer?”

“I, Hermione Jean Granger, take the offer from the Lord of Potter. I shall abide by his word and he will fight my duels, protect me and represent me. So mote it be!”

“So mote it be!”

And now, after a bright flash of light, the Potter crest appeared on her robe, surrounded by a fine silver line. It was the sign of House protection.

 

Minnie eyed the crest for a second, but then just continued to activate the floo for them. She would join them, at least for some trials.  After all, she had assembled quite a lot of the evidence too.

 

At the Ministry, Sirius - wearing the purple robes with the Black crest - was pacing. He was standing in Amy’s office, waiting for Harry and his friend Hermione to come through the floo. Amelia was sitting at her desk and smiling, to her the whole situation was utterly hilarious. 

Then it knocked on the door, which made Sirius jump up in surprise. Amelia - knowing who that was - just grinned and opened the door for…

“MOONY!”

Sirius couldn’t believe it. Amy was one hell of a cheeky woman. And Remus, whom he was hugging in a Hermione Granger kind of way (not that he knew that, he still hadn’t met Mione), was grinning. He was looking good, much better than during their time at school. Healthy, well dressed and happy. None of those things were something a werewolf usually was. Sirius started crying out of happiness while Remus was patting his back.

Then the floo activated and Harry, Mione and Minnie stepped out of the green flames, which made Sirius’ day even better. He let go of Moony and hugged Harry, still crying. Amy, Hermione and Minnie watched the emotional reunion, and none of those could hold back tears either. 

 

After all the introductions had been made and Sirius had calmed down, they went over their plans for the day. First item on the agenda was for Harry to claim his titles and to free Sirius properly. For that they’d need a new Chief Warlock, or to be precise at first an interim one. From then on they’d put the Minister and then the arrested Lords into Azkaban - hopefully, followed by the other corrupt officials. More than that would probably be impossible to achieve. 

 

All the Lords and other seatholders - proxies, department heads, holders of the Order of Merlin, first class - were sitting in their seats when the murmurs started. A handful of the dark sided Lords were not present, but their proxies. Crouch wasn’t here, neither was Umbridge, Dumbledore or Amelia Bones. The latter then entered the Grand Chamber and gracefully walked up to the spot where Chief Warlock, Minister and Senior Department Head usually resided. 

One must imagine the Grand Chamber as a big semi-circular room, and on the wall opposite of the entrance there were the high seats, reserved for said three people. In the row underneath them there were the seats for the scribes and assistants. Facing this spot were all the normal seats, distributed onto several floors. The top floor was reserved for the Noble and Most Ancient Houses, the one beneath that for all the other Noble and Ancient Houses, then the Nobles and at last the Department Heads and the Order of Merlin holders. On the ground floor there were spots for the press and the visitors, as well as any additional people needed during a session (Aurors, witnesses in prosecutions etc.). 

When Amy walked up to the high seats, the room started to get louder and louder, many members of the press already started scribbling things down and making photographs.

“ORDER! Seal the doors!”

Those dark sided Lords who had not been arrested started protesting, but Amy had been smart. She had the right aurors placed in the chamber for security, those that knew the truth. They sealed the doors for her, and now everyone was waiting for Amelia to explain. Lord Bulstrode was the first to demand that.

“Lady Bones! I ask for the Chamber to be unsealed right now, we need at least the Chief Warlock and the Minister present.”

Narcissa Malfoy, the proxy for her husband, seconded that, but Amelia rejected it.

“On grounds of Ministry law I reject that proposal. I invoke Article fifteen of the Founding Charter of the Wizengamot.”

Now the light sided Lord Ogden spoke up.

“Appointment of an interim Chief Warlock for the duration of one Session? You can't invoke that, Lady Bones. You're not the Minister of Magic. ”

“Oh no, esteem Lord Ogden. That's where you're wrong. In a top secret mission the DMLE has arrested both Fudge and Dumbledore, as well as several Lords of this Chamber. We are here today to prosecute them. But for that I need a Chief Warlock. And before someone asks, by law I am appointed interim Minister following the arrest of the Chief Warlock, the Minister of Magic and the Head of the Department of International Magical Co-operation, the only Ministry Head with higher seniority than mine. And so I repeat myself: As acting Minister of Magic I invoke Article fifteen of the Founding Charter of the Wizengamot.”

Augusta Longbottom, one of their supporters, stood up and did as they had planned.

“I nominate Lord Arthur Greengrass as interim Chief Warlock.”

Lord Bulstrode immediately got up and nominated Lucius Malfoy, but that proposal was rejected since this Article clearly stated that the nominated member had to be present. 

“I second Lady Longbottom’s nomination.”

Everyone turned around and looked at who had spoken. A man, fresh out of St. Mungo’s, for the first time dressed in a proper formal robe and with a fierce look. Usually, Dumbledore’s quiet muggle supporter. A man without an own voice.

Arthur Weasley.

Augusta Longbottom had brought him up to speed after hearing about the potions and his release, thinking that if Arthur was anything like the previous Weasley Lords, then they needed him.

The nominee from the dark side was in the end Lord Bulstrode, while the light side tried nominating Lord Macmillan, an even more devoted Dumbledore follower than Arthur Weasley, but no one dared seconding that, as Lady Bones, Lady Marchbanks and Lord Ogden too seemed to want Arthur Greengrass, a proud, but honest and neutral Lord.

Just as Lady Bones wanted to call for a vote, Lord Abbott (not Hannah’s father, but very stubborn uncle, another one of Dumbles’ men, and unfortunately quite familiar with the law) wanted to invoke subsection thirteen of the article, seconded by Macmillan. It stated that if not by death, sickness or any other health reason, absence from the British Isles and by that unable to appear on time or an incarceration following a guilty verdict by the Wizengamot, unable to attend the Session, the Lords can request the presence of the Chief Warlock. That meant, Amy had no choice but to bring prisoner Dumbledore into the Chamber.

 

Once he was in the visitors’ stands, Dumbledore started speaking despite not having the right to speak. Just what Amy had feared.

“Hello Amelia. I see you want to appoint an interim Chief Warlock. Well, I know the protocol and I can’t stop you, but you all, my friends and supporters, know that I will be found innocent and that I will assume my position once again. My friends, it is not the time to argue and fight now, but…”

“I call for a silencing charm to hinder headmaster Dumbledore from speaking.”

Once Arthur Weasley said that, everyone including the old meddler himself was stunned. Weasley defying Dumbledore and supporting Greengrass together with Longbottom. Something was going on here. 

Luckily, Lord Ogden seconded the call and after a brief vote Amelia announced the result.

“By an overwhelming majority, former Headmaster Dumbledore will be put under a silencing charm to no longer interfere with the session. Auror Moody, please.”

The Gamot wasn’t in agreement about what had been more surprising: that Dumbledore apparently lost his position at Hogwarts, that Weasley defied him or that Moody seemed to be very happy about silencing Dumbledore.

As if nothing had happened, Lady Bones then called for the vote on the Chief Warlock and Lord Greengrass won easily. After taking the vow, in the centre of the room, he joined Amelia on the high seats and took over the session.

“Dear members of the Wizengamot, I thank you for my election and I promise to do the job as good as I can. Now, usually I’m all in when it comes to big speeches (everyone laughed, they had some experience with Arthur’s long speeches) but we have a lot on our agenda. Firstly I call for Lord Harry James Potter to claim his seats on the Wizengamot. Lord Potter, if you could please come down here.”

Harry, hiding underneath the cloak with Sirius, appeared out of thin air and did as Lord Greengrass asked of him.

“Before we continue, does anyone have any objections?”

That was a standard question, but no one objected to those. Family magic was always right and if one would try claiming something that wasn’t his or hers, they’d pay - with their magic or their life. They all saw the rings, so even if they would want to object, there was no legal ground.

Unless your name was Albus Dumbledore.

Amelia sighed.

“Remove the silencing spell for the time being.”

Now the old meddler started to play the old friendly grandfather.

“Oh, Harry, you’re way too young to claim those titles, that’s not what your parents would have wanted and you’re not experienced enough for all that power.”

Harry just laughed. He would hit back at Dumbledore, every single one of his points.

“It is my parents’ will that I do that. Besides, I have fought Voldemort, don’t you think I can manage the power?”

“I am your legal guardian, Harry. I order you to stop that right now.”

“You’re a liar, Dumbledore. First of all, I’m emancipated, just as it’s stated in my father’s will…”

“Those have been sealed by the Chief Warlock! That’s a crime, Harry.”

“STOP CALLING ME HARRY! You illegally sealed them, you illegally appointed yourself my guardian and put me into the care of my aunt and uncle, which is expressly forbidden in the wills, to which you are a witness to. There had been enough other people aside from Sirius and the Longbottoms as my potential guardians, namely Amelia Bones, Andromeda Tonks or Minerva McGonagall! Besides, I opened the wills at Gringotts, so no crime, old meddler.”

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Albus was furious, but hid it. The damn goblins should have informed him, Hagrid should have held him back. It was all Minerva’s fault. She must have become his guardian and emancipated him. There was no way anyone would go against family magic, Harry’s claim was clear. He had lost and he knew it.

The Chief Warlock spoke up.

“ Lord Potter has provided us with a goblin-certified copy of the wills, since ours are still sealed. This backs Lord Potter’s claims. He was allowed to open the wills and emancipate himself, with Minerva McGonagall as witness and as guardian, legitimising everything. The genealogy for the other titles has been provided too. You’ll see copies of the files on your tables. Any further comments or objections?”

“Yes, I do have an objection, Chief Warlock.”

“Lady Malfoy?”

“I am very familiar with goblin law and magical genealogy, all those claims are legitimate, as much as it pains me to admit it. All but one. The Heir Black title belongs to my son.”

“I reject that objection, Lord Potter obviously won’t claim the seat of Lord of Black. This objection has no place here, but it will be resolved soon. It actually is the next item on our agenda.”

“Then I apologise, my Lord. You are indeed correct, this has no place here.”

Then, since there were no further objections (especially after Lord Potter had yelled at Dumbledore, called him an “old meddler” and implicated him in several crimes), Harry took his oath as a member of the Wizengamot.

“Which seats do you claim, my Lord?”

“I claim the seat of Potter as the heir of my father, I claim the seat of Gryffindor as the heir of the Potters, I claim the seat of Peverell as the descendant of Ignotus Peverell, I claim the Seat of Slytherin as the descendant of Ignotus Peverell and I claim the seat of Ravenclaw as the heir of my mother and her family.”

“So mote it be.”

“So mote it be”

Harry then proceeded to walk up to his Potter seat, Amelia and Arthur smiling at him, just like Augusta when he walked past her. Now things would get interesting. Amy nodded at Kingsley, a sign for him to get a certain prisoner from the holding cells. 

Then the Chief Warlock announced the next item on the agenda.

“I call for the trial of Lord Sirius Orion Black, Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, requested by the DMLE. Please come down to us, Lord Black.”

When Sirius appeared out of nowhere next to Harry, several members of the Wizengamot started to scream and panic, a few even tried cursing him but the aurors intervened. Amy got up.

“Dear Lords and Ladies, you all might be shocked by this, but - and as always, copies of the evidence on your tables - Lord Black never had a trial. He was never properly interrogated but just tossed into Azkaban by Bagnold, Crouch and Dumbledore on the hearsay that he was the secret keeper of the Potters. Let’s make the whole thing quick and simple. In the Potter wills you can clearly see a magically crossed-out paragraph with the inheritance for one Peter Pettigrew, naming him as the secret keeper. This - and all of you should know that - is irrefutable proof that Pettigrew betrayed the Potters and was the secret keeper. Otherwise magic wouldn’t have forfeited his inheritance. I call for a vote on the betrayal of the Potters. Who deems Lord Black innocent? Who guilty? Lord Black, you’re cleared of betraying the Potters to Thomas Marvolo Riddle, a.k.a Lord Voldemort.”

The Daily Prophet had already mentioned something like that, the Dark Lord being a halfblood, but with the Head of the DMLE officially stating that, the info became more than just a rumour. Besided, they just cleared Sirius Black. At least from one charge.

The chamber was loud, everyone was furious and started doubting everything about Dumbledore and Crouch, when Lady Malfoy got up again.

“That clears him of one thing, but he’s still guilty of killing Pettigrew and the muggles (not that she minded the murder of muggles, but she wanted him in prison so Draco would become Lord Black).”

“Oh, that we can resolve easily too. I call for a witness to be brought forward. The DMLE presents Peter Pettigrew.”

 

After the whole Wizengamot had calmed down again, Lady Bones asked for a vote on the usage of Veritaserum, which then made the rest pretty simple. They didn’t even need any of the other potential witnesses (Remus, Mione, Harry etc., who she would have needed without the permission for Veritaserum). Sirius got cleared of all charges and Pettigrew’s statements were recorded to be used at his trial. But in the end Amelia had one last question.

“Mr Pettigrew, if I might ask, who did cast the Fidelius Charm for the Potters, this person must have known about Lord Black’s innocence?”

She knew what the answer would be, but she wanted it for the record, and she wanted to shock everyone.

“It…it…it was Albus Dumbledore.”

 

At the end everyone (except from those stubborn Dumbledore supporters that always fell for “the greater good” as an explanation) was quite shocked of how much could go wrong. Sirius was now sitting on his seat, having been awarded compensation money (though some was taken as a fine for the illegal animagus thing) and was cleared of all charges. Then, in accordance with Arcturus’ will (not that that mattered, but Cissy would accept that) he named Harry his heir.

 

Then the real trials started, beginning with Fudge who, as he had promised, confessed, since the evidence was more than clear. Since he gave up a few Lords (all already in custody) and some more ministry workers who had taken bribes, the DMLE pleaded for a year in prison, though in the wing without dementors, quite the hefty fine and a ban on working in any political position. Fudge even agreed to that, hoping that afterwards he could take the rest of his money and just leave wizarding Britain forever.

After the - now former - Minister, all the arrested Lords were tried and without any exception sentenced to between ten and fifty years in Azkaban as well as some hefty fines. Thanks to Fudge and the Goblins, they were able to prove the corruption easily and beyond all doubt. With that in mind, Amy called for the use of Veritaserum, which did cause some agitation in the Wizengamot. Usually the truth serum wasn’t used on purebloods, but Amelia insisted that since they were already declared guilty they could do it to learn about any additional crimes. With the broad support of the light and neutral Lords (especially with the House of Black and Harry’s many votes) they voted in favour of the usage of Veritaserum, leading to the discovery of many counts of murder and torture as well as being part of a terrorist group (proving the Imperius defence was nonsense once and for all). At the end of the second trial (Lord Nott, after Crabbe's trial), most of the Dark proxies had given up too. They had gotten several additional names for Death Eaters and corrupt officials, and Amy had already given out the arrest orders. 

The expansion of the Wizengamot with Harry claiming five seats, Sirius changing the affiliation of the Black seat from Dark to Neutral and their Light and Neutral allies made sure that everyone got what they deserved. Sure, some tried to argue that the goblins could have forged the evidence, but honestly, not even the dark sided Lords wanted to anger them. The argument like "oh, no one ever enforced the anti-corruption laws" or "killing a muggle or muggleborn isn't that bad" didn't work with Amelia as Minister, no matter how often they had been ignored previously, she'd enforce those laws.

After all the Death Eaters, meaning the Lords and Walden Macnair, Amelia decided that they’d try to finish the Crouch and the Hopkirk trial. The latter was an easy one, just corruption in this case. She even confessed so she’d get away with a fine and being fired with a life-long ban of working at the Ministry.

Lord Bartemius Crouch Senior was a completely different case. Aside from the obvious charge, which hadn’t been made public yet, Lady Marchbanks wanted to sue him for the misconduct in Lord Black’s case. Sirius though, remembering how chaotic the war had been, said he wouldn’t want to charge Crouch for that. Dumbledore had been pretty convincing, maybe he had even used a compulsion charm (“he likes those, you’ll see in old Dumbles’ trial” leading to shock and disbelief, as well as amusement for the defacing of Dumbledore’s name). 

Then, before they started reading the charges, Barty asked to speak. He had been waiting for this day to come, knowing how it would end. Fighting the unavoidable was pointless.

“Members of the Wizengamot, Lords and Ladies, Minister Bones, Chief Warlock Greengrass. I have to admit that I’ve been waiting for this day since…since I freed my son from Azkaban.”

Augusta was looking furious, she hadn’t known this until now. Barty Crouch Jr. was one of those guilty of torturing her son and daughter-in-law, making that a personal matter. Senior would never get out of Azkaban alive, she’d ensure that. She raised her voice.

“Barty! How could you do that? You know what he had done. You all, think about Frank and Alice when you vote.”

“I know, Augusta. He’s still my son. My beloved wife got sick, you all know it. She wanted to see him one last time. I arranged that, but what I didn’t know is that she - the sneaky Slytherin she had been all her life - had prepared Polyjuice so they could switch places. And since dementors can’t see, only feel, and I circumvented the guards…A healthy and a weak person entered, a healthy and a weak person left. She took the potion until her death four days later. It might comfort you to know that he never left the house, I kept him under the Imperius locked away.”

Griselda Marchbanks, probably the oldest member of the Wizengamot, jumped up.

“You bloody fool, Bartemius! And after your death? Then the maniac that your son indisputably is would have been free.”

Barty, by now pretty upset, all but yelled back.

“I never wanted that. I only found out about the plan once we were at Azkaban. She was dying, I just couldn’t say no to her. All I’ve been doing since then is trying to manage that disaster that her last wish brought me. To a degree I’m even glad I got caught, you know how awfully exhausting that is? Just toss me into Azkaban for prison break and repeated and unsanctioned usage of an Unforgivable. I’m just tired of all that.”

As expected, the verdict was pretty clear, a lifelong sentence in Azkaban. 

 

At the end of the day (because by now it was nearly eight in the evening), the Chief Warlock adjourned the Session.

“I hereby adjourn this Session of the Wizengamot, we will continue tomorrow at ten. Since we haven’t discussed every item on the agenda, it will not be a new Session, we’ll resume this one. Meaning that the title of Chief Warlock will stay with me until we have finished all trials. Still missing are the trials for Mr. Peter Pettigrew, Mrs. Rita Skeeter, Mr. Albus Dumbledore, Mr. Rubeus Hagrid and Mrs. Molly Weasley. The nature of the charges remains confidential. Any questions? No. Then unseal the doors!”

 

At the end of the session, most Lords (except dark ones) came up to Harry and Sirius, offering their friendship, alliances and betrothal contracts (which neither of them wanted. Sirius was hoping he’d have a chance with Amy and Harry was undoubtedly in love with Mione, which is obvious with soulmates. Once they had dealt with Riddle, they could maybe try going out. Up until now it had been too stressful.). The only thing the two of them accepted right now were invitations for tea or dinner to discuss said things. But it seemed like all except the very dark ones and the Dumbledore fanatics wanted to work with them. They must have made one hell of a good expression.

 

Once they were on their way to Amy's floo, already hoping that that was it with being annoyed, Barnabas Cuffe walked up to them. Sure, Sirius had guaranteed him an interview through Amy, but right now they were both exhausted.

“Lord Black, Lord Potter! May I ask for an interview with the two of you? The public would surely want to know what motivates you to go against Dumbledore and the Minister.”

Sadly for him, Sirius was still not entirely recovered from Azkaban and the Session had exhausted him thoroughly.

“Barnabas, I know that Lady Bones guaranteed you an interview with me, but you've got to understand that I'm not fully recovered yet. If the Prophet wants a comment, then let's just say we can't stand all the injustice and corruption anymore. Thanks to the Goblin King and the investigation by Lady Bones and Lady McGonagall we were able to put several corrupt officials and Death Eaters in prison. The law still needs to be harsher, crimes on muggleborn and halfbloods get punished less than on purebloods. That can't be happening anymore when they make up over half of our society. And Albus Dumbledore is an old meddling mastermind with no conscience. I dare say he caused more pain than Voldemort while trying to be an untouchable and almighty person. Everything else you'll find out at his trial. And if you want us as your friends, you better print the truth, and no slander. I know for a fact that Amelia handed you a file on old Voldy's true identity. You know what to do with it.”

With that he just walked away, wanting to go home as soon as possible and just sleep. 

Barnabas Cuffe would usually never give up this fast, but this time was different. Lord Black was clearly still not back to strength, and besides, the man had given him enough material to cite him. Should he really start writing about you-know-who though? Things were about to change and if he did as Lord Black asked from him, then he could only benefit from it. 

Yes, he would write something. Something that Black and Potter would surely appreciate. Something that had the potential to cause turmoil and massive changes within the wizarding society.

Notes:

So, that's it. Next week: trials of Dumbles, Rita, Peter, Hagrid and Molly. Hope you enjoyed today's chapter. Looking forward to your comments.
See ya all next week

Chapter 27: Trials round 2

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here's the newest chapter. Time for Dumbles and Molly to get their trials. Hope you'll like it

Is everything we believed a lie? 

Reporting from the latest Session of the Wizengamot: Editor-in-Chief Barnabas Cuffe

Things are changing rapidly in our society. Thanks to an investigation by Lady Amelia Bones, Head of the DMLE and interim Minister of Magic and Lady Minerva McGonagall, interim Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the DMLE was able to make several arrests, including Lords of our society and the Minister.

Cornelius Fudge has been charged with corruption and confessed to those charges. He was sentenced to one year prison time and a fine as well as a ban on working at the Ministry. You, dear reader, might think that this is a very mild sentence, but that is only because he gave up several high-ranking members of our society in the process. 

Lord Bartemius Crouch Sr. has been sued too, see page 4

Mafalda Hopkirk and other ministry employees sued, see page 9

Our beloved reporter Rita Skeeter has been arrested too, though the charges are unknown at this moment.

Thanks to Mr. Fudge’s confession and evidence delivered by the Goblin nation, the DMLE has also arrested Lords of the Wizengamot, namely Lords Malfoy, Nott, Crabbe and Goyle. Lord Nathaniel Parkinson has managed to escape the aurors and is a dangerous fugitive. In a surprise vote the Wizengamot decided on using veritaserum, which proved that all of them (and many more, complete list on page 7) were willing Death Eaters and the so-called “Imperius defence” had been nothing more than a lie.

Following all the arrests, Lady Amelia Bones assumed - lawfully, one might add - the title of interim Minister of Magic. Since the Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump and Headmaster of Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore was arrested too (charges still unknown), she called for a vote on an interim Chief Warlock. Nominated by Lady Longbottom and seconded by Lord Weasley, Lord Arthur Greengrass is named Chief Warlock for the duration of the trials session (which will continue today).

The new Lord Black, Sirius Black, completely cleared from all charges, was seen with his godson, Lord Potter after the trials. He is currently recovering from his time at Azkaban and sends his thanks to the Goblin Nation and King Ragnok, as well as Lady Bones and Lady McGonagall and their associates. In a surprise trial, Lady Bones presented Peter Pettigrew alive and well, who then confessed under veritaserum to being the true Potter secret keeper (Lord Black was just a decoy) and a Death Eater, while Lord Black was completely innocent the whole time.

The Lords Potter and Black seem to be very unhappy with Albus Dumbledore, blaming him for Black’s imprisonment, the illegal sealing of the Potter wills, illegally assuming the title as Potter’s guardian, placing him with the wrong people and the usage of illegal compulsion charms. Those are at least the things Potter confronted Dumbledore with during the Session, the trial is still to be held. 

Or to quote Lord Black: Albus Dumbledore is an old meddling mastermind with no conscience. I dare say he caused more pain than Voldemort while trying to be an untouchable and almighty person. 

 

Harry had to admit that once he read the article by Cuffe, he was happy with it. No stupid slander and no obvious lies, but this time pretty accurate. Additional articles in this morning’s edition of the Prophet were one about Tom Riddle’s ancestry and rise to power, focussing on the muggle ancestry and the usage of love potions, condemning those in the process, one about the lack of security at Hogwarts and one about the role of muggleborn and halfblood wizards in their society. Cuffe even went that far and compared NEWT scores (showing that despite the better results, they got less job offers). This was by far the best edition of the Daily Prophet Harry had ever read. 

But not everyone shared that opinion.

Aside from the children of arrested Death Eaters and corrupt officials, the Dumbledore supporters weren’t too happy either. Ronald, McLaggen and a few other Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs were getting more and more hostile towards them, and so were the blood purists. 

The “easiest” house was Ravenclaw. Excluding the bullies around Chang and Edgecombe, the claws were pretty happy and supportive, both with the staff changes and with the open criticism on Dumbles and the society. Sometimes, rational thinking people were really the easiest to deal with.

 

This morning, Minnie and Remus were wearing formal robes too during breakfast, making it obvious that they were gonna testify against Dumbledore. Severus would have done so too, but he was still mostly unconscious. Breaking the connection with Voldy had not only been painful, but also very damaging to his magical core, needing time to heal.

Once it was time to get going, Minnie, Remus, Mione and Harry got up and left the Great Hall together. They were all pretty nervous, hoping that Dumbledore’s allies wouldn’t manage to declare him innocent.

 

The Session of the Wizengamot continued after Amy sealed the doors once again. First trial of the day: Rita Skeeter.

“Miss Skeeter, you are accused of being an illegal animagus, the form being that of a water beetle. You are accused of espionage and trespassing in at least fifteen cases. How do you plead?”

“Minister Bones, I plead guilty to being an illegal animagus and will accept the fine, but I plead innocent to the rest of the charges.”

That was a surprise. Just as the fact that the reporter had no defence counsel. All the previously accused people had had one, even those dark Lords that no one wanted to defend since those had been easy cases. Goblin testimony was - despite the prejudice against them - indisputably accurate, that had been established over a century ago. Fudge’s confession and the veritaserum evidence made those cases impossible to win.

Why Miss Skeeter was not dependent on counsel became pretty clear after a while. Blackmail.

Yes, some light Lords and Ladies who had been victims of the trespassing wanted to convict her, but not all of them. The woman knew way too many secrets. 

She wouldn’t get away completely unharmed either way though.  Lord Ogden was ready to name her an enemy to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Ogden, threatening retribution for trespassing and attempted espionage. Since that was a house matter, the vote within the Wizengamot was completely irrelevant to it.

 

After that trial, it was time to face Peter Pettigrew.

Peter had counsel, but just a very cheap one, since he and his family had never been wealthy. His counsel tried to throw out the statements Peter made under veritaserum at Sirius’ trial, but since the Wizengamot voted on the usage of the potion that was a lost cause. And so was the whole trial.

They first questioned Remus, he talked about the Marauders becoming animagi in the past. Basically a pointless questioning, they just wanted to establish the background story. 

“And you, Professor Lupin, are you an illegal animagus too?”

The lawyer obviously wanted to implicate Remus in a crime, but the DADA professor just smiled at him.

“Oh no, I’m not. I couldn’t, even if I wanted to. I’m a registered werewolf.”

That ended this questioning rather abruptly. Afterwards Lord Weasley explained how his family got Scabbers.

“Oh, I think it was my god-damn love potioning wife…apologies for my choice of words, who allowed my son Percival to keep it after finding it in the garden. He later gave it to Ronald when he got an owl.”

Lady Marchbanks, even older than Dumbledore and one of the highest-ranking members of the Wizarding Examination Authority, then had a question for Arthur.

“Esteem Lord Weasley, you are aware of the rule that Hogwarts students may only bring cats, owls or toads to school, aren’t you? Then how do you explain the presence of Scabbers…Peter Pettigrew at Hogwarts?”

“Oh, I don’t know. My sons were always allowed to bring him along, I think…Dumbledore allowed it.”

 

The DMLE asked the Gamot if questioning Mr. Pettigrew again would be necessary, which led to a vote against it. They already knew the whole story and sentenced the rat to a life in Azkaban while wearing magic-suppressing cuffs and being inside of an anti-animagus ward.

Before Amelia could call for the trial of Rubeus Hagrid, Lady Marchbanks called a Point of Order.

“Lady Bones, Chief Warlock Greengrass, Members of the Wizengamot. I know that we still have some trials scheduled for today, but  I ask for a vote of no confidence against the Chief Warlock. We heard enough in all the past trials to know with certainty that Albus Dumbledore is not the man we thought he was. I don’t want us to embarrass the Wizengamot even further by charging an elected Chief Warlock. Oh, and when we’re already at it, I call a vote of no confidence against the current government.”

Everyone understood what Marchbanks wanted to do. The majority was clearly against Dumbledore and she probably wanted to elect Greengrass as Chief Warlock and Bones as new, permanent Minister of Magic. Unusual, but not unheard of.

Lords Ogden, Potter, Black and Weasley as well as Lady Longbottom were basically on their feet the moment Marchbanks stopped speaking to second the proposal. This time the only ones arguing against it were the pro-Dumbledore wizards, all of them either light Lords or Order of Merlin recipients. Still, the majority was overwhelming and in the end both the Chief Warlock (in absence) and the Fudge administration lost the vote of no confidence. 

Normally, the wizards and witches on the Wizengamot had a while to think about nominations and to have some sort of a campaign, but that was legally speaking not necessary. Sure, they had some…interesting…nominations, like Bulstrode for Minister or Doge (a Dumbles supporter) for Chief Warlock. Lord McLaggen (just a Noble Lord, one might add, and just as awful and arrogant as Malfoy, only “light-sided”) even tried nominating himself, since he didn’t trust the governing body anymore.

“Esteem Lords and Ladies, as you can see, things are going badly. We allow criminals, you-know-who’s right hand, to sit in the Wizengamot. We allow spoiled, stupid children to claim that they’re Lords of families that had been lost for centuries. We allow that our biggest hero, the most powerful wizard in the world, Albus Dumbledore gets arrested and slandered. I will no longer watch Wizarding Britain destroy itself. I nominate myself for the role of Minister of Magic.”

And believe it or not, that was actually not forbidden. Lord Abbott seconded that absolutely stupid self-nomination. Sirius looked like he’d want to murder McLaggen, but Harry held him back from responding to the stupid taunt. McLaggen wasn’t worth it.

 

About an hour, filled with speeches and talks about political agendas, they could finally vote, first on the Chief Warlock, then on the Minister. Since the “alliance” around Harry, Augusta, Arthur (both of them) and Amelia was pretty strong, the results were clear. Both Amelia and Arthur were now no longer interim Minister and Chief Warlock, but now officially sworn into the office. Promptly Amy named Kingsley Shacklebolt Head of the DMLE, which was a bit of a surprise, but the reasoning that Scrimgeour should continue being Head Auror and Shacklebolt was a great leader made sense to everyone.

Then, once the whole election thing was over, they were able to resume their agenda and Hagrid’s trial began. While the friendly giant confessed to raising Aragog and defending them from the Aurors, he got rather upset when Lord Yaxley brought up his criminal record. Luckily Harry, who was not really close with the giant, but felt sorry for him, argued that Hagrid was innocent when it came to the Chamber of Secrets incident. The mere fact that an acromantula couldn’t kill with her sight (Myrtle), the existence of the basilisk and the knowledge that Tom Riddle (now revealed as Voldemort) was at school at the same time was enough for the light and neutral Lords to clear Hagrid’s name. Because of that, his new sentence wasn’t prison time but community service and a fine as well as a lifelong ban on keeping any as dangerous classified animals and creatures. Overall, not such a harsh sentence.

 

Then - finally - it was time for old Dumbles to be tried for his crimes.

“Esteem members of the Wizengamot, today we are here to decide, if former Chief Warlock Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, is guilty of  several hundred cases of child endangerment, violating and illegally sealing the Potter wills, wrongfully assuming the title of Lord Potter’s magical guardian, violation the duties of such a guardian, wrongful imprisonment and perjury in regards to Lord Black’s case, illegal usage of mind manipulation charms in at least twenty-four cases, fifteen of those on minors, aiding a person to commit love potioning and line theft, aiding a person to commit mind-manipulating potioning, illegal legilimency, blackmail, kidnapping, aiding a fugitive of the law and accessory to child abuse. Mr. Dumbledore, how do you plead?”

“Oh, Amelia, I’m not guilty and you know it. Drop that farce. I’m still the Chief Warlock and demand your respect.”

“No, you’re not, Dumbledore. Lady Marchbanks just called a vote of no confidence against you and the Fudge government, Chief Warlock and I have been voted into office afterwards. But anyway, it shall be noted that the accused pleads guilty and has refused counsel. Do you still refuse counsel?”

“Yes, Amelia, I don’t need it.”

“Good, then let’s start with the first charge. Several hundred cases of child endangerment. As witness, Minerva McGonagall.”

 

“Lady McGonagall, did the accused tell all of Hogwarts at the beginning of the 1991 school year, that a certain corridor on the third floor would be off-limits?”

“Yes, he said that.”

“Why was that?”

“I don’t recall the precise phrasing, but it was something along the lines of “the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death.”

“A painful death? Did he use those words? What was up there, in a school, that could cause a very painful death?”

“Oh yes, he used those words. Upon privately asking him about it, he played it down and forbade me to take a look, because it was a private matter. Back then I didn’t know what he put there, but I can tell you that he asked me to build a gigantic chess board with magical chess pieces, those that would destroy each other.”

“Thank you, Professor. Now please, Hermione Granger.”

 

Hermione then began to describe every last bit of the corridor, beginning with Fluffy and ending with Severus’ potions riddle. The fact that Dumbles hid a Cerberus, a Devil’s Snare, a Mountain Troll and the Philosopher’s stone in a school, and told all the students where they could find it, did shock all those that currently had children at Hogwarts. Once Harry then testified that he fought Voldemort in Quirrell’s body (a death which hadn’t been reported by the way), the Wizengamot was furious. Harry’s suggestion that the whole thing was a setup for Dumbledore to lure Riddle to Hogwarts was more than convincing when it came to the child endangerment charge. But before the vote, they allowed Dumbledore to defend himself. 

The old fool didn’t deny doing any of those things, but insisted that it was no endangerment of the students and for the greater good. Needless to say that Dumbledore was declared guilty by nearly everyone in the Wizengamot. 

But that was only the beginning of his trial.

“Now a few of the charges at once, illegally sealing the Potter wills, violating the Potter wills, wrongfully assuming the title of Lord Potter’s magical guardian, violation the duties of such a guardian and accessory to child abuse.”

Those charges would see Albus Dumbledore in prison for the rest of his miserable life, that was certain. Amelia began addressing the Wizengamot.

“Those crimes are of a very heinous nature. We’ve heard yesterday that Albus Dumbledore sealed the wills of Lord James Potter and Lady Lily Potter without any legal reason and, knowing the contents of those since he was a witness, violated them. He named himself the guardian of Mr. Potter, despite the fact that there was a list of guardians in them, and he was not one of them. He put Lord Potter in the custody of his aunt and uncle, two horrid and magic-hating people. Not once he showed up at Lord Potter’s home, not once told him that he was the heir of his house. He failed not only Harry Potter, but the whole wizarding society. I call as a witness Minerva McGonagall.”

Now, even though one couldn’t see it, Albus Dumbledore was getting nervous. He was aware of the fact that he had committed many crimes, all for the greater good though. Sure, the whole “luring Tom to Hogwarts” had not been entirely safe for the students, but he had thought that it would be worth it. That he would be endangering many heirs to seatholders of the Wizengamot…he should have considered that. And Amelia was doing a great job, that was for sure. But they all didn’t understand it. 

Not that it mattered. If Minerva and Harry continued to testify the way they did, he’d be sentenced to lifelong imprisonment in Azkaban. He’d just have to break out once Tom was making his move and then they’d pardon him either way and hail him as their saviour. 

 

“Lady McGonagall, you were a witness to Lord Potter’s placement at the Dursley family, his aunt and uncle, were you? What was your opinion?”

“Oh yes, I was there. I didn’t like it, and that much I made clear. In my animagus form I watched the Dursleys during the day and I thought that they wouldn’t be the right kind of people to raise Harry. Dumbledore though insisted that it were Lily’s wishes and that she had erected blood wards around the place. To clarify that, yes they were there, but once I removed Harry from his family, shortly before first year I checked them myself and they were close to failing. Besides, Voldemort’s servants could have simply hired a muggle thug to attack Harry. Or did the wards just work against Riddle himself?”

Now Amelia presented the complete Potter wills to the Wizengamot, and once the Lords and Ladies had read the list of potential guardians, the outcry was enormous. Lord Black was innocent and Dumbledore had known that, he had framed him to eliminate a potential guardian. The Longbottoms were at Halloween still healthy, Amelia and Minerva were respected members of society and Andi Tonks might have been shunned for having married a muggleborn in certain circles, but she was still respected. Remus Lupin was a werewolf, indebted to Dumbledore and on some mission abroad for him, so he was actually the only unavailable one. If the wills wouldn’t have been sealed, Andi, Minnie or Amelia would have all taken him in, after Sirius was imprisoned and Frank and Alice attacked. That behaviour from a Chief Warlock was unbelievable.

Then Harry took the stand, and with memories as evidence, described both the horrors he had to experience at the Dursleys (and abuse of a child, especially an heir to a Noble and Most Ancient House was nothing the Lords and Ladies simply ignored) and how Dumbledore failed him as a guardian. Not once did he show up. Harry grew up without any knowledge of magic and his heritage.

 

After the evidence had been gathered, Amelia wanted to question Dumbledore, but Narcissa Malfoy got up and interrupted.

“Esteem Minister, Lords and Ladies of the Wizengamot. I know we all have different views on society and what is right or wrong, but I doubt that anyone would disagree with me when I say that we value our children. What Albus Dumbledore has done to Lord Potter is inexcusable. Yes, I disagree with Potter and all he stands for, but placing a kid with hating relatives instead of named guardians, ignoring abuse and not teaching him anything about his title, our traditions and his role…no one should do that to a kid. I suggest that we vote on Albus Dumbledore’s guilt instead of listening to his “greater good” speech once more.”

Sirius, who kind of agreed with Cissy, intervened though.

“While I want to agree with my dear cousin, I can’t. We all know that there is no way he could justify his actions, so let’s not deprive him of his right to a fair trial. Let the old meddler speak, and let us all realise that he just wants Harry to fight Riddle and lose, so he can be the Defeater of both Grindelwald and Voldemort. Famous and infallible. Dumbledore is a cruel chess player, sacrificing all he needs, to reach his own personal goals. The Greater Good - I always wondered if he stole that phrase from Grindelwald or the other way around, seeing that they were lovers and aiming for world domination together.”

That fact hadn’t been public knowledge until now, but it caused an even bigger stir than all of the previously mentioned facts. Even Albus Dumbledore, the man who saw himself as perfect and infallible, knew that he’d be convicted. So…what would be the smartest thing to do? If he’d continue to fight the charges, then some of the darker Lords, those that had always despised him, might call for a dementor’s kiss. Azkaban was unavoidable at that point in time. Should he just…

“Minister Bones!!

“Mr. Dumbledore?”

“I’d like to plead guilty of all charges. It is clear that under the current legislation my actions seem illegal, despite my good will. All I ever wanted was to protect young Harry from Voldemort’s servants and give him the youth he deserved. That you might see that as an offence to your ancient traditions is understandable. Sirius would have just interfered with my plans, and once the wills were sealed, no one else was able to claim custody. It wasn’t the best thing to do, but for my plans with Harry it did work out. And it would have worked, if Minerva wouldn’t have interfered. But now...everything is different. I plead guilty and accept the ministry’s punishment.”

Amelia smiled. Dumbledore was making it easier than she would have expected. He might be fearing that the traditionalists, offended by his behaviour, might call for a dementor’s kiss. Then she’d do him the favour.

“Good. Albus Dumbledore pleads guilty and will be sentenced to a lifelong sentence at Azkaban prison. May I see your votes, please?”

 

Needles to say, just minutes later, Albus Dumbledore got brought away. He lost the vote and would be portkeyed into Azkaban any minute now. Now it was time for the last trial of the day: Molly ‘Howler’ Weasley. That was a trial, filled with a lot of silencing charms, since the woman was pretty loud. Every attempt of bringing up the charges or the questioning of witnesses was commented with things like “I’M THE MOTHER OF SEVEN CHILDREN, SHOW ME SOME RESPECT, YOU BITCH” or “DON’T YOU DARE DENYING MY GIRL THE LOVE OF HER LIFE.” 

Minnie had luckily documented all the attempts of love potioning with some auror level spells that held up in court. The potions the aurors found in Ginny’s trunk and at the burrow plus the potions in Arthur’s system 

Since Arthur, as her head of house, did deny her any legal council, Molly just continued to yell around. Sure, some of the darker Lords tried defending the usage of love potions (their ways of creating the marriages that they’d like weren’t too different on numerous occasions) but Harry was a Lord after all, and so over three quarters of the Wizengamot voted for Molly to be punished in Azkaban prison for a decade. Not the high-security wing, but one with a bit less dementor presence. 

 

“Lord Weasley?”

“Yes, Chief Warlock Greengrass?”

“First of all, I’d like to express that we are all very shocked and sorry for you. Such a horrid crime should have never happened in the first place and we hope that you’ll recover from that and manage to keep your family together. On a personal note, if you ever need something, just floo.”

Arthur Weasley, a sad smile on his face, thanked the Chief Warlock and looked around the Wizengamot. Many exclaimed that he could floo them too and smiled at him. He had the support of many people, and with them they’d manage just fine.

“Order! Not that I have a problem with all of you screaming out your support, but I wasn’t done yet. What I wanted to say was that the Minister and I discussed that topic, and then decided to order a mandatory therapy for Ginevra Weasley, hoping that St. Mungo’s mind healers can help her. The ministry would bear the costs for that. Is that acceptable for you?”

Arthur got up and smiled at the Chief Warlock.

“Thank you. I accept that ministerial order and want to add that I would have done that regardless of the ministry’s financial support. I do hope that my little girl can be freed from all the manipulations and brainwashing.”

 

After Molly’s trial, the Session was finally over and Amelia unsealed the door. They had done it. Damage Control had been a full success, thanks to Fudge and the veritaserum they had made even more arrests, both people they hadn’t known about and those where they hadn’t found any evidence of their crimes. Sirius was free and Dumbledore wasn’t. Now they could move against Riddle.

 

Once Minerva McGonagall arrived at Hogwarts, she made a trip to the hospital wing. Severus was still not awake, but Poppy had thought that he might wake up today. 

And that then truly happened, while Minnie told Poppy all about the day’s trials and their outcomes. During a quite hilarious imitation of Molly ‘Howler’ Weasley’s shouts, the two ladies heard the potions master groan.

“Oh god, I think I am in hell and being tortured.”

Minerva just shook her head in disbelief of that comment (grinning widely though) while Poppy burst out laughing and reassured the potions master that he wasn’t dead.

“No worries, Severus, you’re still alive. Minerva is just reenacting today’s trials.”

She then hurried over to him and checked on him, confirming that his magical core was healed and the connection with Riddle severed. Then Poppy scolded him for his recklessness and utter stupidity.

 

After the healer had calmed down and left, Minerva walked up to Severus, scolded him herself for not telling her his plan, but then filling him in on all that had happened. After about an hour of explaining, the headmistress was finished and could see that Severus was happy. Yes, he lost his arm, but it was a means to an end. Now he was free of both of his former masters. It all had worked out.

 

When all the Lords, Ladies and other seatholders left the Wizengamot, Harry said goodbye to Sirius and - once no one was in sight - hid underneath his invisibility cloak. He was already at the ministry, so why not use that to his advantage? 

His destination was the DoM, or to be precise, the Hall of Prophecies. Thankfully the most unspeakables were working in secluded rooms, so he didn’t run into anyone. Seeing the veil once again brought back horrible memories, but he tried ignoring that and just walked past it, until he finally reached the gigantic hall with the prophecies. Harry would - and could - never forget the route he had been walking in his dreams, so it wasn’t hard to get to the prophecy.

For a second he wanted to smash it on the ground, but that was not his plan. Just yesterday he had called one of his house elves to teleport him into Potter Manor so he could look through the Peverell Grimoire. He recalled seeing a monitoring spell, which seemed ideal to him. It was not detectable and connected to his magical core, informing him when someone touched it. 

That spell was what he was putting on the orb now. He couldn’t hesitate anymore, or his absence might be noticed. 

“Signum meus contactus”

He whispered those words and as soon as the blue stream of magical energy hit the orb, he was able to feel the connection to his core. Hopefully Riddle wasn’t too different from the last timeline and wanted to get the prophecy. If a possessed Parkinson could touch it? Maybe that’d be the case and then they could go get both of them.

Now that everything was different, he’d have to hope for Riddle to show. Harry just hoped that things didn’t escalate in a completely new way this time around.

Notes:

So, that's it for today. Some of you might think that this was pretty quick and fast forward, but well, I didn't want to spend too much time with that. We still have to face one (or even two) Dark Lord(s).
Looking forward to your feedback, see ya all next week

Chapter 28: Changes

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here is the latest chapter for you. I'm very glad that you did like my approach for the trials, not too much lingering around and rather straight ahead.
Now we're starting to see what changes after damage control. Have fun reading!

In comparison to all the chaos with Damage Control and the trials, the following months were pretty unspectacular. Obviously, school was rather easy for Harry and Hermione, that’s why they were continuously studying ahead in basically all fields, learning things that hadn’t been taught at Hogwarts in decades or even centuries.

Things were rapidly changing, that was for sure. Thanks to some of Cuffe’s articles, the muggleborn and halfblood wizards and witches started to publicly criticise the bigotry and systematic racism in the ministry and society. Under Minister Bones, many things started to change, it was now explicitly forbidden to hire and promote by blood status, and if a person thought that his or her rights were being violated, they could report that. Even within a few weeks, several cases came up and Amy’s new “equality committee” reacted harshly, with fines and sanctions imposed on the guilty party. 

With the “Potter alliance” as some called it (mainly Black, Bones, Longbottom, Greengrass, Weasley, Ogden, Marchbanks and Harry’s houses) despite not yet being an official alliance, Amelia managed to order a review of all ministry workers, their performance and their qualifications. That led to the realisation that many people were in high-ranking positions despite for example no NEWTs and only three OWLs, but the right family name. People got demoted or promoted, more positions got created and within two months, the rate of muggleborn ministry workers rose from five to seventeen percent, which was even higher than their percentage in society, showing once again that overall they were better qualified.

Since the Prophet was owned by the ministry, Amelia created an independent committee with members of all factions to oversee it, so it would no longer print any propaganda.

 

Hogwarts was changing too. Bullying was being punished more severely, and that included some of the more extreme pranks by the Weasley twins. Minerva was working on implementing new classes with the beginning of the next year, as well as an update on the curriculum. The expectations were way too low and the muggle studies class for example was decades behind. 

Once Severus was back from the hospital wing, he changed potions class too. Dumbledore was gone, he was way happier than before. First of all he changed the location of the classroom onto the ground floor, where they had natural lights and less humidity. An ideal potions lab should definitely not be cold, damp and dark. That’s why the founders had put that classroom initially on the ground floor.

Why Dumbledore had changed that, he didn’t know. Maybe it had even been Dippet, who knows. Way before his time.

Minerva even gave him the funds to implement standard wards and protections for potion labs, for example to protect against fumes or against things being thrown into other people’s cauldrons. Potions would be a safer class as of now.

Over the summer holidays they’d try to get Binns exorcised and a Gringotts curse breaker had already assured them that the DADA post was free of the curse, so Remus would be able to stay. 

 

Ronald, Seamus, McLaggen and co. tried some minor things a few times, but nothing successful. Not that it made Harry and Hermione’s life easier, especially because there were enough Slytherins that hated them, many of their fathers got arrested following the testimonies in the Wizengamot. Puffs and Lions (at least those blind Dumbledore supporters) had their issues with them because Dumbledore was in prison, which made their days not much better. 

A bit over half the students supported them though, especially Ravenclaw House. Because of that the two of them sat at their table quite often and had the most fascinating discussions. This time around, and mostly because of Padma, Luna had friends and was not being bullied for her unusual behaviour. It wasn’t as if anyone would understand what she was talking about on occasion, but they at least listened.

So overall one could say that things were better than last time around, but Hermione still didn’t trust that. They were heading into the unknown, maybe everything would get even worse at some point.

 

Luckily nothing like that happened until the end of the year. Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup and the House Cup, just very few points ahead of the Claws. Harry and Mione both got an Award for Special Services and the Lions held one hell of a party in the common room (even with non-lions, for example Daphne, Luna, Padma, Susan and Hannah). 

Once the Mandrakes were fully grown, all the Basilisk’s victims were unpetrified and the school year ended pretty calmly. Mione and Harry obviously got top scores in all exams, but Neville and Daphne (who by now were holding hands in public) were not so bad either. Ronald on the other hand nearly failed the year, but unfortunately only nearly.

 

Once they were on the train, Harry and Hermione began getting nervous, because they had no idea how the summer might be. Sirius and the Grangers hadn’t met yet and even though Sirius had reassured them that they could stay together, switching between Potter Manor, Grimmauld Place and the Grangers, they were fearing that things wouldn’t go as planned.

That fear though was completely unfounded. 

Leaving the train, Harry and Hermione started looking for Sirius, since the Grangers couldn’t enter the platform. After minutes of searching, they left nine-and-three-quarters, only to find Sirius, Remus, Dan and Emma standing around together and laughing. Apparently the werewolf had introduced them to each other and especially Dan and Sirius seemed to get along well, at least on first glance. 

Carefully they sneaked up to the four adults, and once they were close enough, Harry addressed Remus.

“Moony? Hope the old mutt didn’t cause any problems, I know his manners are occasionally lacking. Dan, Emma, good seeing you. Is it okay if I bring my new dog home?”

All but Sirius burst out laughing, they all knew about Padfoot, Harry’s godfather though acted (overly dramatic, to be precise) as if that hurt him and said something along the lines of “my own godson, how can he be so cruel to me?” before hugging Harry. Afterwards it was Emma’s turn, who reassured Harry, while hugging him, that if he could take good care, then it wouldn’t be an issue.

 

On their way to a secluded spot for apparition, Sirius was still “pouting,” they heard someone calling for them. 

It was Amelia Bones, accompanied by Susan.

Sirius started grinning and walked towards the Head of the DMLE. Once he was standing opposite of her, they…started kissing. Harry, Hermione and Susan all turned away at once and Harry just groaned.

“So much for my hope of teaching him some manners over the summer. Amelia, I do hope you know how to handle old dogs.” 

Then he turned around to Hermione and acted as if he’d be whispering to her, but everyone could clearly hear it.

“Worst case scenario I’ll just lock them up at Grimmauld Place. Kreacher prefers me over Sirius, shouldn’t be an issue.”

 

After Sirius and Amelia, who had apparently decided to resume dating about two months ago but hadn’t told anyone, finally managed to stop kissing, they discussed their holiday plans for a while. At some point Susan would probably join them so Amelia and Sirius could either go on vacation at a Black property abroad or just spend some time at Grimmauld Place. Remus would assist Sirius in unlocking the floo for the Grangers so they too could drop by.

 

Once they were back at Potter Manor, both Harry and Hermione started settling in. On their way up to their rooms, which were next to each other, they talked about their plans for the holidays and about Sirius and Amy. Despite their stupid comments earlier they were happy for them, especially after Azkaban. Sirius deserved to have a good life. 

And that thought did bring up another topic. Not in their conversation, but once Harry was emptying his trunk and putting on some comfy robes. He and Hermione. Didn’t they now deserve some happiness too? They had briefly discussed the topic of dating and a relationship a few times, but it always ended with things like “we have too much on our plates now” or “that’d upset the timeline by a lot” or even “we should wait until everything is less stressful.” Yes, it had always been a mutual decision, but now things were different. 

He loved her, that was a certainty. And she loved him. 

So…should he just ask her out during the summer? That might just be a good idea. 

And rationally speaking Harry knew that nothing could go wrong, they were literally made for each other, soulmates in every sense of the word. But love was never rational. Just because he knew it, it didn’t mean he KNEW it. He was still afraid. 

But he would do it. He’d ask her out. Not today, but soon. Definitely before the end of the holidays, that much he promised himself. 

Maybe he should write a letter to Neville about it, who was obviously better at the whole relationship thing than Harry. And that despite the fact that Harry had seven years more experience. Kind of funny if you think about it. Especially because last time around Nev was hardly more than a timid boy at this point in time, and now he was a proud lion and dating the “Ice Queen of Slytherin.” Things were really changing.

 

With the thought of asking Mione out soon, he went downstairs. Dan and Sirius were chatting in one of the sitting rooms while Emma was preparing a big “welcome home” dinner with the elves.

For the Grangers things had changed too. Firstly on the day where Minerva McGonagall knocked on their door for the first time, but even more once they ran into Harry Potter at Diagon Alley. When Minerva said the boy was being abused they didn’t hesitate for one second and offered to take him in until school started. They didn’t care about the fact that he was emancipated and wealthy at some point then, he needed a family. And the fact that their little Hermione liked him, became his friend, made the decision pretty easy. They’d take care of Harry.

And because they could floo to his Manor at any time, or even stay there if they wanted to, they became - to a degree at least - part of the wizarding world. With Remus or Severus or Minerva being there quite regularly, things were never boring, and they never missed anything that happened in wizarding Britain.

Now, with Sirius Black being free, that part of the world they had access to just got bigger, and so did Harry’s family. One of the first things Sirius said to them after being introduced by Remus was:

“Believe me, I won’t take him from you. He’d hate me for it. From what Remus has told me, you became his family, and I’m pretty sure you don’t want to change that, simply because I’m free and could care for him. I just want to become part of his family. So I hope we’ll get along just fine.”

And that they did. Sirius and Dan both had a bit of a joking nature (turns out Harry and Dan hadn’t been the first to have sword fights in the corridors of Potter Manor, James and Sirius had done that in their youth too) and the two men cared about Harry, both trying to fill a role Harry had been deprived of all his life. Emma on the other hand was able to listen. Sirius had been through a lot and she was simply a person one could talk to, she had been ever since school. 

 

Dinner was pretty nice, and even Minnie and Remus had joined them. They laughed a lot and shared stories, both from the past school year and their pasts. When the Marauders were explaining some of their best pranks, Minerva just shook her head. She hoped that neither Harry nor Hermione would end up doing such pranks, simply because they were even more brilliant and magically advanced. Chaos would be ensured.

Then one of the house elves informed Harry (and the others, as they were sitting together with him) that Severus had arrived via floo. Harry smiled. Then he got up and turned to Sirius.

“Padfoot! You come with me! Nope, Mione, Remus, don’t even think about it, you stay here. Sirius, you’ve avoided him long enough, settle this. You’re both my friends and I don’t want to argue about past things.”

Sirius nodded. He knew that he couldn’t avoid Severus forever. And Harry liked the man, even Remus settled his disputes with him. Sirius was well aware of all the horrible things they had done to him, and if Severus was willing to forgive him and ask for forgiveness for his own sins, then they could peacefully coexist. 

 

Severus’ saw Black walking towards him, accompanied by Potter. He should have known it. He’d have to apologise. And so would Black.

“Good evening Severus. I take it you know what’s on the agenda now? I’ll be waiting for you two in the dining room, and please, I don’t want the elves to clean up the scene of a murder.”

With that he just left.

 

“Severus.”

“Lord Black.”

“Oh, come on, drop the act and call me by my first name. You’ve earned that right by being there for Harry when I couldn’t.”

“Which in turn was my fault, I take it you know everything?”

“The prophecy? Yes, I know. We drove you into the Dark Lord’s arms, and I know it. I feel just as guilty. Besides, we both know that old Dumbles is the real guilty party.”

Both men had known that this encounter would be unavoidable. Both were aware of their sins, and both asked for forgiveness. Because of that, the other forgave them. They were by all accounts no friends, but they agreed on at least maintaining a civil relationship - for Harry’s sake.

 

Once the two of them entered the dining room together, Harry exclaimed something along the lines of “thank god you’re both still alive” and some money was exchanged between him and Remus. The werewolf had apparently won a bet. Both Severus and Sirius just shook their heads and took a seat, Sirius between Harry and Remus, Severus next to Dan Granger.

 

The only other interesting thing was something only the adults saw, every single one of them. Dozens of times Harry chatted quietly with the bushy-haired girl sitting on his right side, blushing on occasions and more than once initiating small physical contact (a hand on her shoulder or something like that) with her. 

And every single person save Harry and Hermione thought “finally.”

 

The first week of the summer hols, Harry and Hermione spent quite some time looking through Grimmauld Place. Dan occasionally joined them when work wasn’t too much and then they would sweep every room for interesting stuff with Sirius together - unless he was busy snogging Amy Bones. 

In comparison to the previous timeline, the house was so much lighter and cleaner. Kreacher was doing his best to follow Harry’s wishes, and in the end the whole building was a mixture between traditional pureblood and warm and modern. With a bit of runes they even managed to set up a home cinema, free of magical influences and with working muggle tech. That led to a bit of a culture shock (a quite enormous one to be precise), when Amy came to visit Sirius and brough Susan with her. And while they were close with Susan, she wasn’t part of Harry and Hermione’s inner circle, so it took them half a day to get completely comfortable with each other.

The Bones heiress was apparently quite adept when it came to cursed and jinxed objects (Amelia’s specialty in her early auror days) and so they had quite a good time looking (definitely not touching) at some of those things Kreacher, Sirius and Remus put aside for further inspection. It was fun, without a doubt.

But what was even more fun was their little surprise for the evening. They led Susan, Amy and Sirius (the latter too having no idea what Harry and Hermione had done here) into their home cinema. 

“Oh nice, that look’s way more comfy than mom’s sitting room. Good job you two. So, what is that all about now?”

“Just wait a bit, Padfoot, we’re still waiting for some guests.”

Those guests were, who would have guessed, Severus, Minerva, Filius and Remus, as well as the Granger parents. They had invited Neville and Daphne too, but apparently Nev was taking his girlfriend out for dinner.

Susan was pretty surprised that four of her teachers were just casually hanging out with Harry and Hermione, even addressing them by their first name. Soon Minerva saw the young girl’s discomfort and confusion, exchanged brief words with her colleagues and walked up to her.

“Miss Bones, good to see you. I hope you’re enjoying your holidays so far?”

“Oh, uhm…yes, Professor, I am.”

Minerva all but laughed.

“Oh come on, we’re away from school. We allow you to call us by our first names, if you give us the same privilege. Everyone here is doing it, if you’d keep being formal, that would be strange.”

Susan hesitated, but then nodded. Minerva smiled at her, before being called away by Harry with a loud “Aunt Minnie?” The elderly lady just shook her head.

“That boy. If I wouldn’t love him like family and if I wouldn’t have been his grandmother’s best friend, he’d end up with a heavy scolding, detentions and a stinging jinx. I do hope that Sirius, now that he’s dating Amelia, won’t be a bad influence on you. I don’t need more mischievous students at Hogwarts.”

Susan laughed out loud, and reassured Minerva that this wouldn’t happen, before deciding that she could show her cheekier side.

“I have every intention at becoming prefect and Head Girl, Prof….Minerva, I don’t think that being mischievous would help me with that. On the other hand, James Potter was Head Boy too.”

She grinned at Minnie and without commenting that any further, walked up to Sirius to loudly discuss some of his better pranks. Susan was such a bold girl, the hat had nearly put her into Gryffindor.

 

After a while Harry asked everyone to take a seat and pay attention, before he then started to explain the concept of movies to the wizards and witches. This led to some confusion and anticipation, while Severus just grinned. He was familiar with movies, even had a tv at home. He was looking forward to whatever Harry had picked, because the sound system he had installed with them (advanced with some runes to sound even better) and the big screen were of a great quality and it certainly would be a nice exper…

He burst out laughing at the sight of the wizards and witches nearly jumping out of their seats once a very familiar tune started blasting out of the speakers and the big yellow writing appeared on the screen.

“A new hope! Seriously, Harry?”

 

To say that afterwards they were confused and stunned would be an understatement, and Harry, Mione and Severus tried their best at satisfying the others’ curiosity. Filius even asked if they could do something like that at Hogwarts. 

Movie night was obviously a full success then.

 

While life at Grimmauld Place was pretty fantastic, it wasn’t at the Burrow. Arthur Weasley was a changed man, and without Molly things were a bit different. First of all, money was less a problem than before, without the potions Arthur was more efficient, working more hours and getting more done. Amelia actually considered him for a promotion. And now that he wore his Head of House ring, he wouldn’t fall for potions again.

Without Molly secretly buying potion ingredients, they had way less expenses. Things were looking better for the Weasleys.

Bill was still in Britain, the goblins had offered him another post, this time in London instead of Egypt. Something along the lines of being a liaison for the Ministry of Magic. Less curse breaking, more politics, but now that he was wearing the heir ring, that was actually more appropriate.

Percy was spending a lot of time learning, the next year was his final year and he needed to finish with at least five NEWTs to be accepted for the prosecutor apprenticeship. Thanks to Amelia Bones he had even gotten an internship during the summer and was having a lot of fun. He could certainly see himself working there after school.

For the twins, not much changed, the only big difference was that now their mother wasn’t constantly discouraging them when it came to their inventions.

Charlie had come home for the trial, but left again afterwards. His apprenticeship was still ongoing and so he hadn’t been able to come back to Britain for a longer period of time. 

Ginny was mostly at St. Mungo’s these days, but her recovery was very slow-going and up until now not really anything had changed. It hurt the Weasley men to see her that way, angry and upset, confused and obsessed. They just had to wait and hope for the best.

For Ronald though things got worse. He had nearly failed the year and his hatred towards Harry and Hermione was not something Arthur could or would tolerate. Ron was grounded for the duration of the holidays, wasn’t allowed to fly and had to study. 

 

Ronald Weasley was angry. Thanks to damn Potter his mother was in prison - just because of those potions. His sister was the only one to deserve Potter, so they could get to his fortune. Dumbledore said Potter would die, so then they could spend all the money without worrying about the idiot. And now even worse, his father was different, stricter on him. He wasn’t even allowed to play quidditch, he had to study.

But then Ronald grinned. He was by all means no stupid, just lazy. School had never mattered to him, because all he had planned for his life was get some of Potter’s fame and fortune and then go play quidditch. Now though he would have to change. If he’d study and get better at magic, then one day he could get his revenge. For him it was a certainty that Dumbledore would get out of Azkaban and then he’d side with the true Leader of the Light. Main thing was that he didn’t raise any suspicions. In secret he’d learn and get stronger.

 

Nathaniel Parkinson screamed as his Lord’s Cruciatus curse hit him. Once again he had failed.

About two months ago he had finally found the spirit of the Dark Lord in Albania, but in a very weak state. He had expected something like that, his father had been one of those that had assisted Tom Riddle with his horcrux research at and after school, before he became Lord Voldemort. That’s why he created some sort of an artificial body to possess, but that one was rotting away quickly and he had to renew it every three weeks. And since it needed a sacrifice of an adult wizard, they risked gaining attention. The Cruciatus was a punishment for failing to obtain a new wizard. 

It would probably be the last one they needed, since he had made a plan for a more permanent body. His master wanted to use a potion with his father’s bones, a servant’s flesh and an enemy’s blood, but on the basis of snake ingredients. And while that would probably work, it would create a body which looked not really human. With the current changes in politics and society in Britain, he thought that this wouldn’t be a good idea. A normal, human face would scare off less potential followers. Besides, few people remember that face, since the Dark Lord had already used partial transfiguration to look scarier and snake-like during the first war. 

They already had a plan to get all the ingredients, but first of all they needed the new body, this time strengthened by runes to last until they were back in Britain. And if they’d catch a wizard with his own wand, then his master could use the full potential of his victim’s magical core, which would be useful for what they have planned.

Still shaking from his master’s curse he made his way back towards the next magical settlement. Since two people (the others they had gotten somewhere else, before changing locations) had already gone missing here, they were extra careful, and his latest attempt surely wouldn’t stay unnoticed.

Nathaniel waited for over an hour, but then he seemed to get lucky. 

The magical village here was known for high-quality potion ingredients, and while people mostly ordered via mail, the occasional foreign traveller came by. Once the man came closer, Nathaniel nearly started laughing. He knew the man, having met him a few times at big political events in France. Maybe he could just walk up to him, they were far enough from the village to stay unseen. Just a small moment of surprise and recognition would be enough.

“Gabriel?”

The French wizard looked up, then he recognised the man. What he didn’t remember fast enough was that he was a wanted fugitive.

“Nathaniel? Nathaniel Parkinson? What are you doing here in…?”

Hit by a stunning spell from Parkinson’s disillusioned wand he collapsed. The Death Eater grinned. Gabriel Delacour was a strong wizard, and he’d be an ideal vessel for the Dark Lord until they could rebuild a proper body.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. As always, I'm looking forward to reading your comments. See ya all next week

Chapter 29: Master of the Ring (oh, and of Death obviously)

Notes:

Good morning everyone. Hope you'll enjoy this week's chapter, with a little bit of a reunion in it ;)
Have fun

A few days after the big movie night, Minerva and Filius flooed to Potter Manor with a plan. They had spent the time since the end of term to scout the Gaunt residence in Little Hangleton and find out what protections Riddle had set up. Neither of them was a professional curse breaker, yes, but together they were skilled enough. They would need Harry’s help though.

“Harry?”

“Minnie, Filius. Good to see you. What brings you here today?”

“We’re finally ready to go for the last horcrux, but we’re in need of a parselmouth for some of the protective wards.”

“Oh, that’s great news. Wanna get going now?”

As they nodded, he called Hermione over. There was no way she’d let him do that without her, and - just as he had expected - she insisted on accompanying them.

Filius had created a portkey for them, and once they landed just outside of the…shack, one might just call it, Hermione asked if they should go for Tom Riddle Sr.’s bones. Minerva had the same idea a week back and asked Severus to do the calculations on the outcome of the potion, if Riddle would do it with another set of bones. Result of that was that it would still work and it could actually end worse for them. Tom would then undoubtedly use the bones of a magical, and if that person’s magical core was a match to his magical core, then that could boost his core strength. Since Riddle Sr. had been a muggle, Tom could “only” reach his previous core strength. Manipulating necromancy rituals was always dangerous and not advisable. 

 

Filius deactivated the alarm wards around the property, then they slowly moved towards the house, carefully dispelling every jinx, curse and ward on the path to the front door. Some of those were outright nasty, for example a bone liquifying curse or an organ vanishing curse, carefully hidden behind a tripping jinx. 

The front door responded to a simple “open” in Parseltongue, then Minerva dispelled the alarm ward on the shack’s floor, so they could enter. Inside there was not much left, just some broken furniture and a lot of dust. The detection spell only showed a damn strong protective ward on the one floorboard where the ring should be hidden under.

It took Harry and Filius, the two with the strongest magical cores of the four, about ten minutes to break the ward with sheer force, but once it shattered they could simply lift the floorboard up and Minerva grabbed the little wooden box. Neither of them really dared opening it, but they had to. Minnie placed the box on the ground, ready to open the lid magically, while Filius and Mione prepared themselves to cast anti-compulsions. Harry held both of his wands in his hands, ready to banish the horcrux.

Once he signalled Minerva to start, she flicked her wand and opened the box, instantly moving forward. Then the anti-compulsion charmes hit all of them.

Neither of the four had any desire to touch the ring now, and Harry was able to banish the horcrux without any real trouble. The spells on the ring stayed intact for the time being, they would dispel those at home in a safe environment. 

But before that they needed to celebrate, because - and the horcrux map from the goblins confirmed that - they had destroyed every single one of Tom’s horcruxes. Without Harry’s cursed scar and without the snake being one already, it hadn’t been that hard. Now they only needed to get rid of the spirit of the Dark Lord.

Dinner that evening was a very lively event, because now the downfall of Tom Riddle wasn’t so far away anymore. Sirius and Remus were the most enthusiastic ones and got so wasted that Harry asked one of his elves to pop them into their respective rooms and bring them some of Severus’ sobering potion in the morning. The others continued to eat, listen to music and listen to tales until way after midnight. Not all of them, especially not Filius, had heard about all their future adventures, and in turn they got to hear stories from the marauder era and from the professors’ youth. 

At some point Hermione, who had been sitting next to Harry on one of the couches, curled up next to him and fell asleep, her head on his shoulder. Minerva just smiled at the sight of that and, once they were all sure that Mione was actually asleep, said to Harry:

“You know, one of these days you’ve got to ask her out, Harry. You can’t claim that it’s because of the timeline or because of Riddle and all the dangers.”

“I know, and I’m planning on doing it, definitely before school starts again.”

 

At some point Harry then decided to head to bed, but then he realised that Mione was still leaning against him and the last thing he wanted to do now was wake her up. Without thinking much about it, he slowly got up so he could lift her up and carry her upstairs. Sure, he could have asked an elf, but they were hopefully all asleep by now and for him it was no big deal to do it himself.

Thankfully Mione’s door wasn’t completely closed, he could simply push it open with his foot. Without really thinking about it he proceeded to place her on the bed and tuck her in. For a moment he thought she was in the process of waking up, but he just quietly told her to continue sleeping and the girl just did that. Carefully he made his way out of the room, closed the door and entered his room, the one directly next to Mione’s room. He too was damn tired.

 

The next morning, when Harry came down for breakfast, the first thing he saw was a blushing Hermione. Apparently she was well aware of how she got into bed.

He just smiled at her and then tried to follow the debate between Minnie and Sirius. It appeared to be about the question, where to break all the curses on the Gaunt ring. Minerva was well acquainted with the Potter ritual room and trusted its protective enchantments while Sirius’ line of reasoning was that the Black family regularly handled abnormally dark curses and so their ritual chamber was much more ideal.

After a while Harry chimed in the discussion and supported Sirius, adding the point that if something should go wrong, Grimmauld Place was currently empty and no one else would be endangered by any potential mishap. And since Minerva had to agree with that, the final decision wasn’t hard. Minerva would be assisted by Remus and Sirius, both having some experience with cursed objects, and if necessary Harry would support with magical power. His core was by far the strongest, no point in denying that. 

Mione would stay at Potter Manor and continue her research on horcrux spirits and how they could be killed. Harry’s reaper had told him that unfortunately Voldemort wouldn’t simply cease to exist. Normally, if a wizard with a horcrux got killed, then their remaining spirit would be in the vessel, and just in the vessel. Since Voldy never really got killed but - due to the rebounding but weakened killing curse - just separated from his body, his free spirit would stay alive. They’d need to kill him inside a host body or a manufactured body to really get rid of him, or at least that’s what their research said up until now. Maybe there was a way to kill such a spirit, maybe not. That’s why Hermione was researching.

 

By noon Minnie was pretty happy that they had decided to do the ritual here at Grimmauld Place, and not the Manor. They were still fighting against some of those curses and the amount of ambient magic literally shook the house and all the bursts of magic that the chamber’s shield’s struggled to contain destroyed various parts of the furniture and left burn marks on the walls.

They had dismantled the withering curse and a torture curse not unlike the cruciatus, but the strong compulsion charm on it was pretty tough to break, or at least it was until Harry put his hands on Sirius and Minnie’s shoulders so he could push his magic through them and feed their spells.

With a loud explosion the last of the spells on the ring got dismantled, and while it threw all four of them backwards, it didn’t do any harm. The Black ritual chamber was equipped with personal protection charms to contain exactly this kind of energy and shield the users.

 

Without properly thinking about it Harry walked forward, mainly out of curiosity, and grabbed the ring. The symbol of the Deathly Hallows was engraved on the back of it and it was shimmering. He didn’t know why, but he just felt the need to put it on. For a second he hesitated, checking that it wasn’t another compulsion, and it wasn’t. It was something else.

What Harry didn’t realise was that the Elder Wand suddenly appeared out of nowhere, tucked into his holster next to Ignatus’ wand. He also didn’t realise the invisibility cloak appearing on his back, causing Minerva, Remus and Sirius to stare at the boy with wide eyes. 

Once the ring touched Harry’s finger, something…clicked into place, one could say. It just felt correct. The room got cold and dark, causing Minnie and Remus to draw their wands. Sirius wanted to rush forward, but a strong wind or wave of magical energy, it was hard to describe, pushed him back.

A soft tune, though dark and mystic, started to play as Harry drew the Elder Wand and looked at it. The wind swirled around his hair and cloak and the ambient magic was so strong that one could literally feel the energy tingling. 

And out of the shadows stepped a figure in a long grey cloak, grinning at the boy-who-lived.

“Harry! Been a while, hasn’t it? Death sends his regards, he’s currently busy. There’s a situation in Japan keeping him occupied, something horrid apparently. Haven’t gotten the memo though, your assignment is top priority. Let me tell you, you’re doing a good job at defeating Riddle, the boss is happy with you.”

“Uhm, hey John. That’s good to hear. So no escalation of the timeline or what? Salazar’s worries were totally unfounded then.” 

The reaper grimaced and shook his head.

“Maybe, maybe not. We’re not sure yet, but there is a potential for an even worse situation, but I can’t tell you anything about it. Well, I can at least bend my orders so far and tell you to check if the prophecy orb is still glowing after Riddle. There might be a situation. But anyway…”

“Wait what? Don’t tell me that I’ve got to face another Dark Lord. Ugh. Seriously?”

“Maybe. But as I said, it’s just a possibility and I can’t tell you more about it.”

“Then why are you here?”

“Because you are now the Master of Death and I’m here to tell you all about it. Not that it’d be much. You can use the hallows, they can’t be taken from you, even the wand. Your core should get a bit stronger, you could use advanced necromancy and can take over or destroy inferi without problem. You can travel through the shadows, you’ll find some information in the Peverell Grimoire, that even works within Hogwarts. Summoning the dead is not advised, that could weaken their spirits so they fade away, that’s what truly happened to Cadmus. His fiancé’s spirit ceased to exist. Oh and you might realise that ghosts will fear you, you can command them now.”

Harry tried to memorise the things John just recited in a Hermione kind of way, before John continued speaking.

“By the way, Death sends you a present. I can give you and your friends two minutes with your parents. But that’s a one-time deal.”

Harry smiled, while Sirius, Remus and Minerva, all still very shocked, stared at the reaper in surprise.

“Would it be too much to ask if you could bring Mione and Severus here before you summon them? I want them to be here too.”

John sighed and then snapped with his fingers, causing Mione and Severus to appear out of nowhere. Both were about to start swearing and complaining about what the hell just happened, but once they saw the reaper and Harry standing there, they shut up instantly.

“Two minutes, then their spirits will get recalled into afterlife. Oh and before I forget it Harry, if things go horribly wrong, you know what Merlin told you. See you around, guys.”

And with that he stepped into the shadows and was gone, just as James and Lily appeared.

Harry, who had spent quite some time with his parents in the afterlife just smiled at them, and they smiled back. He got their approval and he knew that they loved him. Then he took a step back and allowed all the others to talk to them. Sirius begged James for forgiveness for his stupidity and recklessness, Remus because of him leaving Harry alone. The spirit of the marauder just grinned at his old friends and forgave them.

Lily told Severus that he had redeemed himself and she forgave him.

About half of their time was over by now so both James and Lily went over to Minnie and thanked her for everything, leaving the headmistress of Hogwarts in tears.

Lily chided the two marauders for their stupidity before smiling at them and saying “thank you” while Severus and James nodded at each other. James was happy that at least someone had done something for his boy, and Severus had really redeemed himself.

Then the two spirits came up to Harry and Hermione.

“Hey, Prongslet. You’re doing good, I’m proud. Especially because you seem to follow the tradition I started. Brightest witch of your age, huh? Good job!”

If Lily would have had a body, she probably would have smacked James playfully, but she indeed agreed.

“Nice meeting you, Hermione. Look after Harry, he can be a bit reckless and stupid. But you already know that, don’t you?”

The two women laughed and just smiled at each other before looking at Harry. They both adored the boy.

James, who damn well knew how lucky his little boy was, just winked at him, as they slowly started to fade away. Every single person had teary eyes and together they stared quietly at the spot where the two spirits had been just a moment ago. 

 

After that incident with the Gaunt ring things started to calm down for them. Harry started developing some legislation to give werewolves more rights and recognise the goblins and others as intelligent species (currently those topics were handled by the department for magical creatures). 

It was, to be honest, surprisingly simple to recognise goblins, merpeople and centaurs as intelligent beings. Up until now the wizards and witches had ignored the topic, but now, as it was being brought up they couldn’t publicly say that they didn’t consider goblins as intelligent people instead of creatures. The press would undoubtedly destroy them with that.

And so they established a diplomatic office for each of those races, and a joint department to represent their interests within magical Britain. Bill Weasley was one of the top delegates by the goblins (and the only non-goblin of their delegation).

Werewolf rights were a completely different topic, even within the Potter alliance, because enough people on all sides of the spectrum had lost someone to people like Greyback or an accidental attack. And while Harry had to make some modifications to get it through the Wizengamot, he did manage it. People with lycanthropy would still have to register their affliction, but - at least from a legal point of view - they’d still be wizards and witches first. A variety of the Lords created a fund to pay for the wolfsbane potion and discrimination against werewolves was just as forbidden as discrimination by blood status. Arthur Greengrass somehow even managed to bargain for a sick day on the day of and the day after the full moon. And Harry had to admit, Arthur Greengrass was nearly as impressive and intimidating as Augusta Longbottom - and that woman could be one hell of a scary witch once you started debating and arguing with her.

 

Another interesting thing in the Wizengamot was the constant - and to be honest pretty annoying - call for pardons by the minister. Be it for Dumbles because he was old or one of the Death Eaters because they were being framed, but Amy and the rest of the Wizengamot were blocking every single attempt.

 

At home things were good too, they had several “movie evenings” and other fun activities, but what hadn’t happened until now was Harry asking out Hermione.

It took Harry quite a while to force himself to do that, but after he came back from the family meeting with Andi Tonks. While they had seen Nyphadora and Andromeda at the trials, they hadn’t talked to them, and Sirius was insistent on offering them a place in the family again. Yes, his mother’s “burning her off the tapestry” hadn’t done that and was a mere symbolic act, but running off with Ted and breaking the betrothal contract the Black Family had with the Malfoy Family automatically did that.

Kreacher and Sirius had worked together to clean up the mess from the breaking of the curses on the ring so the Black home would look acceptable for an official family meeting.

Once Andromeda knocked, Kreacher led the trio into the sitting room he had prepared for them. Sirius and Harry both got up, trying to look as stoic and cold as possible to keep the formal setting. 

Andi bowed her head, and both her husband and her daughter followed suit.

“Lord Black. I come to apologise for my actions against the House of Black and ask for forgiveness.”

“Mrs. Tonks. Please take a seat, all of you. We, the Lord Black and my Heir, will hear you.”

Nymphadora was looking like she wanted to complain, but her mother had promised her that all of it would be an act. Ted looked damn uncomfortable with the whole thing, since he was absolutely unfamiliar with the pureblood rites.

Sirius offered them some tea, before starting to list the actions Andromeda had done against the House of Black. Then he smiled.

“Are you ready to acknowledge those actions and face the retribution?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Good. My offer would be that you and your family join the House of Black again, with every right and duty, and that you shall take the interim position as Professor for wizarding traditions at Hogwarts until a suitable and willing person is found for the job. I know that you have been taught in the traditions more than anyone else in our family.”

To be fair, that was not a bad offer. Bringing her back into the family would give all of them a monthly stipend and Andromeda was currently not working. She was brilliant, but not really a respected member of society. So all in all it was not really a punishment, but a gift.

“I accept that, Lord Black. Do you want us to take the vow right now?”

“That would be appreciated.”

All five of them got up together and Sirius introduced them into the House of Black. It was no big deal, just a formal vow, and once that whole thing was done, Sirius and Andi started grinning and hugged each other, finally dropping the stoic behaviour. Harry now got - again - introduced to “don’t call me Nympha…you-know-what” Tonks and Ted Tonks, after Sirius had introduced him to his favourite cousin. 

 

After a long lunch Harry flooed back to Potter Manor, being in a particular good mood. Seeing Tonks again was great and Sirius had truly missed Andi (and vice versa), meaning the reunion was particularly nice. 

He went looking for Mione right away, finding her at the pool. Well, rather in the pool. Upon seeing him she went out of the water and greeted him, asking Harry to tell her how the meeting went.

 

Just a while later they were sunbathing at the pool and eating ice cream, when Harry finally decided to ask Mione.

“Hey Mione?”

She responded with a simple “Hm?” since she currently had a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth. Harry smiled at her, wondering how he could have been so blind the last time around.

“Uhm…you know, since we can go to Hogsmeade once we’re back at school, would you go…uhm…go out with me?”

It was truly fabulous how much Hermione’s eyes were shining upon hearing that and she nodded enthusiastically. For a moment they both just grinned, before Mione asked:

“I take it you want to wait until we’re back at school to avoid something coming from Padfoot?”

“Damn right. Remus once told me what Padfoot had tried to do at my parents’ first date. Nothing I wanna imagine, believe me. But well, the old dog didn’t succeed and it took Madame Pomfrey two hours to reverse all the spells dad put on him.”

Mione laughed, and Harry realised how beautiful that actually sounded. 

And this feeling, that happiness, was much more intense than anything that he ever felt with Ginny. It was true, strong and profound. He was happy.

 

With that thought in mind, Harry enjoyed the rest of the holidays with his family. This time around there was truly no real danger. Riddle had no body, Parkinson was out of the country and Dumbles and Molly were in Azkaban. Daphne and Neville came over several times, and so did Susan. The latter even stayed at Potter Manor for a week when Sirius and Amelia decided to take a vacation. Under the wards of the Manor they could even use magic undetected (that only really mattered for Susan, Nev and Daph, Harry was long emancipated and Mione, under Potter protection, was legally an adult too) and trained for school. 

They even invited Luna over a few times, together with her father. Sure, Harry and Hermione were still a little bit upset about his betrayal, but he did it for Luna so it was understandable. Remus and Xeno had some very interesting discussions, and Mione realised that not all of Luna’s creatures were an imagination, Remus had encountered some of them in the Americas during his mastery.

 

The birthday party for Harry and Neville was quite a success, with most of their yearmates and some from other years in attendance. They held it at Potter Manor, but Augusta did most of the planning. In the end it was not only a celebration, but also a big event for wizarding Britain’s high society. Most Lords and Ladies were invited and attended, a good way for Harry and Sirius to make alliances and promote their agendas. 

Not that all of that really mattered for Harry on this day. He allowed himself for this day to ignore his wishes to make improvements to their society, but enjoyed the party. After a bit of socialising he and his friends gathered in one of the more secluded sitting rooms to have a proper birthday party. 

Aside from some ancient books and advanced magical equipment (for example for runes or herbology), he did get a handful of more personal presents, like photo albums or like from Luna a self made necklace (to keep the wrackspurts away). Mione had tried to utilise her mediocre drawing and painting skills and had painted a watercolour picture of Potter Manor. 

It was by all means not a masterpiece, but it was lovely. And even better, she managed to enchant it. Time passed in the picture, with a rising sun and moon. Whenever it was night, the picture depicted just that. For that lovely present the girl even got a small peck on her cheek, causing both to blush and Neville to grin.

Definitely a very successful birthday party.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. For those that think the scene with James&Lily's spirits was too short, I just wanted to give the other characters a chance to forgive themselves, in a grand scheme that was absolutely unimportant.

As always, looking forward to your comments, see ya all next week

Chapter 30: Third Year begins

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here is the latest chapter. Hope you all like it

Way too quickly for Harry’s taste, the holidays ended and they had to return to school. At least they wouldn’t have to face old Dumbles anymore. Minnie hadn’t told them anything about it, but at least from their book list they were able to guess that the headmistress had indeed succeeded in introducing new classes.

On the express, their trip was strangely quiet, neither Malfoy nor Weasley bothered them even once. That was indeed very pleasant.

Another notable thing was that more and more people weren’t wearing proper school robes, but the same formal robes that Harry and Hermione were wearing. Without Dumbledore keeping the student handbook more or less a secret, more people embraced all the possibilities that the handbook gave them. Percy Weasley (this year’s headboy) just encouraged that even more. From what Amy told Harry and Hermione they knew he wanted to massively change things after seeing the truth about Dumbledore. Kingsley would have loved to instantly keep the boy in his department, he was smart and enthusiastic, but unfortunately NEWTs were expected. But they had promised him the job, if he met the necessary criterias. 

Once the train arrived at Hogsmeade the two took a carriage together with Nev and Daph (who had spent some time with them in a compartment, but mostly on their own). They were discussing the upcoming school year, because Minnie valued secrecy and no one but the teachers and school governors knew what changes she had made over the summer. From the books they had to bring along it was probably a muggle studies class for everyone (or at least the wizard-raised) and one about magical traditions (taught by Andi Tonks, that they knew). Daphne hoped that they finally got rid of Binns so they’d learn more in HoM. Even her father had always complained about that, he had even tried exorcising him once during his time at school, but Dumbles found and stopped him. Quite sad actually. 

 

After leaving the carriages the four met up with Hannah and Susan, the latter had gotten much closer to Harry and Hermione over the summer and she was basically another member of Harry’s ever growing family. And with her being Amy’s ward and Harry being Sirius godson they’d be as close to siblings as possible, just like Harry and Nev (the “godbrothers”). 

Harry’s family had gotten quite big this time around. Sure, last time around he had had the Weasleys, but now…The Grangers basically saw him as their son (which he’d be, he and Mione were soulmates and would marry at some point, that the two of them knew and wanted), Neville and now Susan as “siblings”, Sirius and Remus as godfathers/uncles, Aunt Minnie, Severus (he was considering calling him “Uncle Sev” one of these days, just to annoy him), Aunt Andi and Uncle Ted, Cousin Tonks, Augusta Longbottom (who told him to call her “gran” in informal settings, since he had no grandmother and was Nev’s godbrother) and even the Greengrasses, who treated him as a nephew/cousin (which they even were very distantly through the Black family). And even outside of the immediate family he had many others, be it Filius, Arthur and the twins (and to be honest, Percy too - to a degree at least), the quidditch team, Hannah, Luna, Padma, Anthony Goldstein, Terry Boot, he was occasionally chatting with Theo Nott and Blaise Zabini (Theo was no blood purist despite his father and had even come up to Harry after the trials, thanking him because now he was free of  “the old, stupid bigot, who enjoyed being branded like a slave”) and had had even some quidditch discussions with Cedric Diggory. 

Last time around he thought that they hated him, but in truth Ron just kept them away from him. How much he despised him by now was even worse than Malfoy, the ferret at least openly communicated his hate last time around. 

 

At the beginning-of-term feast they saw a variety of new people sitting at the High Table, all of whom Minnie introduced to them.

“Dear students, it’s good to see all of you back at Hogwarts. I hope that all of you had a nice summer so we can start into a new school year. As you might see, I have a few new colleagues I want to introduce to you. But before that it is my pleasure to announce that the board and the ministry have confirmed my position as headmistress, ending the interim status I had until the end of the year. It is an even bigger pleasure to announce the return of Professor Remus Lupin as the Professor for Defence Against the Dark Arts and Head of Gryffindor House. He’s the first DADA Professor to return for another year in nearly three decades. The curse Voldemort put on the position after being refused for it by Dumbledore is finally broken.”

The students cheered at that, even most of the Slytherins, because Remus had been a great teacher. Only few flinched when the headmistress used the Dark Lord’s name, the media now used it too, and slowly they all got less hesitant.

Then Minerva introduced the other teachers, Andromeda Tonks was teacher for the “Wizarding Etiquette and Traditions,” mandatory for all muggle-raised at least until the third year. Everyone else was free to take the class. Jacob Scamander (named after his father’s no-maj friend Jacob Kowalski) was replacing Professor Kettleburn, since Hagrid didn’t get the job for Care of Magical Creatures. Since she had struggled to find a skilled Alchemy Professor, she had nearly given up on that, but then Nicolas Flamel sent her a letter. He would take that job until she found someone else (which might even take years, he said, alchemists were a rarity these days). It seemed like he didn’t trust Dumbledore, either he didn’t give him the real or the only stone a few years back and then lied to him. Their “we still have some of the elixir left to set our affairs in order” would have meant outliving Dumbledore either way. Since the old meddler was now out of Hogwarts, Nicolas offered to teach. Apparently his life had become pretty boring the past few centuries. 

As transfiguration teacher, Minerva had hired the young muggleborn witch Jean Baker, who had finished Hogwarts the year before Harry’s first year. For the time being she just taught first through third year, but eventually would teach up to the OWL students with Minerva offering NEWT level transfiguration. 

“And it is my pleasure to announce that Professor Binns has finally left the castle…we might have exorcised him. Not an easy accomplishment I might add. And since it seems like the last few generations of wizards and witches haven’t been taught History of Magic properly, I had to search long for a fitting replacement. Let me introduce to you: Professor Bathilda Bagshot, the most renowned authority on the history of Magical Britain.”

That was met with nearly as much enthusiasm as Remus’ and Flamel’s introduction, because everyone knew the elderly lady. She was famous and brilliant, and obviously couldn’t be worse than Binns - if you exclude the fact that one couldn’t sleep during the lessons anymore. Benefit of being taught by a ghost. 

At last she announced that Professor Burbage’s class (muggle studies) would be just as mandatory for the wizard-raised as was traditions for the muggle-raised, up to third year. This year though, since the ministry has discovered a strong ignorance and hatred for muggles, which could endanger the statute (just look at the way wizards would dress to go “unnoticed”), the class would be mandatory for every wizard-raised student. From next year on only it would be the same as with traditions class. 

Safe to say that this statement wasn’t met with as much enthusiasm.

 

The sorting wasn’t much different, the only notable thing was that Daphne’s little sister Astoria (a Slytherin last time around) became a Ravenclaw, probably influenced by seeing her big sister and her friends study (and trying her best to join them). 

Harry also noted that the ghosts started staring at him, but none of them addressed him or shared his newfound title with anyone else. He decided that he’d leave them alone for the time being.

 

After the feast, Draco Malfoy was loudly complaining in the Slytherin common room. He was spouting phrases like “Hogwarts is gonna ruin itself” and “once my father’s free again, he’ll kick the stupid headmistress and all her mudblood friends out of the castle. No way I’ll be going to a muggle studies class.” Some that were closer to Harry, just sat back and smiled. That little ferret (no one knew where that came from, but it sounded like a valid nickname for Draco) would get what he deserved.

At some point Severus Snape entered the common rooms. His main intention had been to hand out the brochures about the elective classes. Other than the previous years, the new third years hadn’t decided during the holidays, simply because Minerva wasn’t sure which teachers she’d get. Now they had to pick at least two out of Care of Magical Creatures with Scamander, Divination, Runes, Arithmancy and Alchemy. Muggle studies and Traditions class would be available too, but wouldn’t count as one of their two (would be too easy if a wizard could simply pick Traditions class, just another easy grade like Divination). All the higher years were given the option to change their electives too and visit a special class to bring them up to speed. 

But once Severus - the now “man-with-only-one-arm” - heard Draco Malfoy spout his usual nonsense, he couldn’t stop himself anymore. He had to listen to all those bigoted idiots for years, and now he could finally speak up.

“MR. MALFOY! That’ll be twenty points from Slytherin and two detentions with Mr. Filch. You’ll respect the headmistress and the current government. Your father won’t be able to help you anymore.”

Draco paled. 

The common room was quiet.

They couldn’t remember a single instance where Snape took points from them for that, aside from a few occasions where they did it in the presence of another teacher. Within their common room, that had never happened. 

Daphne giggled. 

Theo and Blaise grinned.

Things were changing in Slytherin house.

But not everyone was ready to accept that, and Draco was one of them. Sure, in the previous year he had tried acting a bit more polite when it came to Potter, for example after the duelling club incident, but that was before his father had been tossed into Azkaban. Yes, they had tried to keep quiet until the end of the school year, hoping that McGonagall wouldn’t get the top spot and that the Dark Lord would return and free their parents, but now they were at war. Up until now they had hoped that Snape was still a spy, but that hope was gone now too.

While Draco just glared, the seventh year student Marcus Flint reached for his wand.

“Don’t you dare, Mr. Flint. Even with only one arm I could kill you before you throw a curse at me, and I don’t even need to use an Unforgivable. But even those I have used as a spy in the Dark Lord’s ranks. Only he himself and maybe the old Dumbledore are better duellers than me. Any attack on me would leave you dead.”

And with that he just walked out of the common room, leaving a lot of silent and thoughtful Slytherins behind. 

 

During the first weeks of school, several different factions - with very different motives - started plotting against McGonagall and Potter. The Slytherins around Malfoy and Flint, as well as the Gryffindors around Weasley and McLaggen. None of those did actively plan to do anything right now though, because they were lacking the support outside of Hogwarts.

Ronald was actually doing rather fine in class, and this time around hadn’t picked the “easy” subjects. Sure, no Arithmancy for him, but he tried his best at Ancient Runes (after seeing Babbling using that in the fight against Riddle) and at Care. He had considered Alchemy, but he was horrible at Potions, and not only because of Snape. And Flamel’s subject was even more intense, much more mathematics and calculations, rituals and very strange spells.

 

Muggle Studies was met with much hatred, but after two or three lessons, some of the purebloods got afraid. The vast number of muggles, and things like weapons of mass destruction or the fact that muggles had been on the moon shocked those wizards that saw muggles as inferior creatures.

Professor Scamander was pretty great, and his animals were way less dangerous than Hagrid’s creatures. They learned so much more this time around.

Traditions was nearly as fascinating as Care, because the muggleborns (even from the higher years) now slowly started understanding all their mistakes they had done in the day-to-day interactions with purebloods. Sure, Andi Tonks was a rather strict teacher, mostly appearing cold to the students, but she was brilliant and knew her subject.

The complete opposite to Andi’s cold and stern behaviour was Bathilda Bagshot, who gave off a kind of “grandmother” feeling. Sure, she taught them, and she taught them a lot, but it was always a very interactive and pleasant lesson. The students were actively encouraged to engage in discussions and debates, because “History is not just about names and dates, but about understanding someone’s motivation. Why things happened is much more important than the fact that they happened.”

And then there was Alchemy with Professor Flamel. 

Because no one really taught it anymore these days, at least around here, they had to start with the basics. Honestly, it was related to Chemistry and Physics, even more than Potions was. Properties of metals and other elements, their magical properties and usages, influence of lunar and solar phases, ley lines and a lot of ritualistic stuff. It’d take even Harry and Hermione years to do more than a basic ritual, but it was fascinating - and for once truly challenging. 

 

On a cold and rainy Saturday morning, a few weeks into the term (it was already the end of October, the time had passed so quickly and they would have their first Hogsmeade day tomorrow), Hermione spotted a headline in the Prophet.

“Look at that Harry, French Wizard still missing after months. I think they didn’t write anything about that yet, or I missed that. Ah, that explains it, he went missing in eastern Europe. Nothing that the British newspapers would pick up. And…oh god.”

“What is it?”

“French Wizard Gabriel Delacour, father of two young witches, went missing during a trip on which he wanted to acquire high-end potion ingredients. Mr. Delacour is a well-known politician and a potioneer in his free time. His wife Appolline stated that this trip wasn’t unusual for him, but he hasn’t responded to any messages and couldn’t be found by the authorities in…damn.”

“Wait, that’s Fleur’s dad. Oh god, that definitely didn’t happen last time, but where did he go missing, Mione?”

“In Albania.”

Harry nearly dropped his fork out of shock and summarised the situation pretty precisely.

“Well, fuck.”

 

Harry and Hermione could only guess what happened to Mr. Delacour, but it wasn’t pleasant for sure. After being stunned by Nathaniel, he found himself tied up in a cave, wandless and in the midst of a runic circle. Sure, he was a smart and educated man, but mainly with potions, not runes, so he had no idea what that was all about. The only thing he knew for sure was that a follower of the British Voldemort had captured him. He thought it couldn’t get worse.

But then a slowly rotting and clearly possessed corps walked up to him, with glowing red eyes, and Gabriel was not completely convinced that the reports coming out of Britain weren’t wrong. Voldemort wasn’t dead at all.

“Mr. Delacour. Good from you to join us in our little ritual. Nathaniel keeps telling me that you’re a powerful wizard and as you can see, my current…let’s call it residence…is slowly rotting away. But since I want to return to the British Isles and get back to full strength, I need a new intermediate body. So don’t be surprised once Nathaniel starts drawing runes onto your skin, they need to be applied while the host is still alive.”

Gabriel was afraid. He had never even tried to start learning wandless magic, and in the presence of two other strong wizards only a miracle could save him.

“I…I…I have a wife and two kids. Please, don’t do that to me.”

But Riddle just laughed. Even the helpless cries, promising servitude for his life, didn’t matter to the Dark Lord. All he needed was a new body, and then he’d storm Azkaban, and all of Magical Britain afterwards.

And Nathaniel was doing a great job, undoubtedly. He himself would have tried returning in a more evil-looking way, through snake influence in the potion, but his servant had recommended doing the exact opposite. Instead of an evil face, he should aim for his younger, respectable and charming looking face to sway potential servants. And besides, few people remembered that face either way, so he’d be more anonymous. 

If the calculations were correct - and that they were, then they should finish up here pretty soon and slowly head to Britain. He still had some secret ways to get there, and then they’d take residence in a safehouse. They’d retrieve his father’s bones, imperius a few aurors to get intelligence on Azkaban, be it plans, guard shifts or an inmate registry, and then they could free his servants. And for the blood of the enemy, he had a few ideas too. Not as easy, but certainly not impossible. 

After a week of work, it was finally done. The runes were painted on Gabriel’s skin and had the necessary time to take full effect, then Nathaniel forced him the potion down his throat. It was a very rare and overly complicated draught that weakened a target’s mind and body, bringing him near his death. In that state the leech could take over and eliminate the original - and weakened - conscience completely. 

And while Gabriel Delacour was slowly fading away, he started thinking about his wife and daughters. He would never see them again.

The thought of his family seemed to give him more energy for a last attempt at rebelling against the spirit of the Dark Lord, but that just made Riddle act harder.

Slowly he faded away, and Tom Riddle just laughed. This body would give him enough time to fulfil his plans. He tried moving his fingers, and as that worked, he asked Nathaniel for the wand.

“Hm, I see. Aspen and dragon heartstring. A duellists wand, not that it had been used that way very often. I can work with that.”

And with a wordless flick of his new wand, he incinerated the former host body, reduced it to ashes. That wand would work. 

 

Neither Minister Bones nor the headmistress were very happy about Harry and Hermione’s revelation. Sure, they had no idea what Riddle and Parkinson had done with Delacour, but surely nothing good. But it was probably too late anyway, he disappeared during the summer holidays and now it was the end of October. 

Despite all of that, their date on the following day was still happening. The two of them were constantly joking about that, because their first Hogsmeade day - the day of the date - was Halloween. They weren’t sure if something bad was gonna happen or if they were gonna stand up to the “curse” on this day. Harry actually didn’t mind at all, because for him it was a chance to create nice memories on this very day. 

 

On the morning of October 31st, half a dozen witches tried asking out Harry during breakfast, Cho Chang among them. But before either of those managed to finish her statement, Neville got up and scolded them.

“Ladies! You all know what day it is today, the deathday of the late Lord and Lady Potter. Stop it, otherwise I’d…”

Harry just grinned and interrupted Neville.

“Oh, don’t worry, Nev. Thanks for the intervention though. I’m already going on a date, with the lovely Miss Granger, so I guess I have to decline, ladies.”

The Great Hall fell silent at Harry’s statement. And then Neville let himself fall on his knees very melodramatically in a sort of praying motion and exclaimed.

“Bloody hell, finally! Took you what, over two years? Idiots, both of you.”

Harry and Hermione burst out laughing and once Neville got up again, he gave his best mate a high five, still grinning.

And suddenly the students of Hogwarts had a new topic to gossip about.

 

Once Remus Lupin heard about that, he just smiled. First of all it was long overdue, and second of all, Prongslet had managed to outplay Padfoot. The old mutt had already started planning for that, even with the assistance of Dan Granger. And then Harry just outsmarts them and goes on a date at Hogsmeade without telling any of them beforehand. 

Well, maybe he could…

Remus got up and left the staffroom. Minnie too was gossiping about the date, with Bathsheda and Pomona, and Severus was reading a book while listening in amusement. He actually looked up and spoke to Remus “Oh no, don’t tell me you’re doing what I think you’re doing. But well, I guess that means I’ll be heading to Hogsmeade today. No chance that I’m gonna miss that.”

Well, Severus was right after all. Once Remus was in his office, he opened a drawer in his desk and grabbed the little mirror. Then he tapped it with his wand.

“Padfoot!”

After a few seconds the connection was established and Moony told Padfoot what he had found out.

 

Harry had luckily made a reservation at the Three Broomsticks, because the inn was just as full as always. Madam Rosmerta led the two of them to a small and remote table, away from the other students, before she took their orders. 

“Well, Harry…”

“Yes?”

They both struggled to get the conversation going during lunch. Sure, they knew each other for nearly a decade now (including the time travel), but it was still…strange.

“Oh god, we’re horrible at that, aren’t we, Mione?”

She laughed, and gosh did he love the sound of that.

“Seems like it. But well, it’s not like we have much new stuff to talk about. We do that every morning and evening.”

“Well, people have the tendency to struggle with casual conversations during dates.”

“Ha ha ha, but because they’re nervous, not because they know each other better than anyone else.”

And with that the conversation got going, and if only about how horrible they were at the whole thing. It was very amusing for sure, and they had a nice lunch.

After that they headed outside, and, luckily the weather was pretty good today, went for a walk. Sure, they could go shopping, but neither of them had any needs. They were just silently enjoying each other’s company.

When Harry’s hand touched Hermione’s, just briefly, she blushed. He would probably claim it was accidental, but no. That was a benefit of dating your best friend, you know him and she damn well knew that he did that on purpose. But since the boy-who-lived was apparently a coward, she took initiative. Well, after waiting for another minute or so, she grabbed his hand and held it softly. Neither of them commented on that, but it was pretty clear that they were both enjoying it, especially since Harry’s thumb started circling on the back of Mione’s hand. 

It just felt right. And there it was again, the realisation that they were soulmates, perfect for each other. And now they didn’t want to wait and postpone anymore. 

Simultaneously the two of them turned towards each other, but lacking the words to describe whatever they were feeling.

Harry took another step into her direction, looking deeply into her beautiful eyes. 

Mione smiled at him, she was happy. So, so happy.

Both of them started to lean forward, and Harry softly cupped her cheek. Both teenagers closed their eyes and then…

They simultaneously drew their wands, got in a defensive stance and shielded themself with a Protego Maxima, before the colourful spell could reach them. Luckily it just bounced off. Mione gestured to Harry that she’d keep up the shield while he could cast a Homenum Revelio, but all Harry did was throw a tickling charm into some bushes.

What they then heard was a strange mixture of barking and laughing, and Mione just sighed. 

“PADFOOT! Do I even want to know what that spell was?”

Sirius, now transformed back and still laughing, shook his head. No, he wouldn’t tell them the details of his prank, because one of these days he’d get them.

“Oh come on Prongslet, don’t glare at me. And how’d you know it was me?”

“Believe me, I won’t just glare. And I saw your tail, you need to work on your hiding skills.”

He then turned around to Mione.

“What do you say, some transfiguration and a few colour-changing charms before we shoo him through Hogsmeade with stinging jinxes?”

And just a few seconds later Sirius had purple antlers, green hair, a tail of a peacock (changing its colour every five seconds) and he was wearing a clown’s outfit. Even better, his voice sounded very distorted and strange, making his yelps even more amusing.

Neither Severus Snape nor Remus Lupin regretted heading to Hogsmeade on this day, because that was a sight that neither of them would ever forget. The same applied to the students, and all of them had a great laugh on that day.

All but Sirius. 

Well, at least until he managed to apparate to Potter Manor and look at himself in the mirror. Prongslet was surely a worthy marauder.

 

Neither Harry nor Hermione were actually mad at Sirius, they expected that after all. The moment for the proper kiss (to activate the bond) was gone though, and because for them that’d be an important moment, they decided not to force it. All Harry got was a kiss on his cheek.

Oh, and Mione declared (not giving him much of a choice) that this was enough for her to declare them a couple. “No point in denying the inevitable, Harry.”

Well, don’t mess with a stubborn witch like Hermione Granger, because once she sets her mind on something, she gets what she wants. He wouldn’t get rid of her ever again, that much was for sure.

And Harry would never complain about that, oh no. 

He was more than happy.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. Let me know in the comments what you think.

See ya all next week

Chapter 31: Azkaban

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here's todays chapter. I hope you'll like it. It's a bit shorter than usual, but next week's chapter will be longer than usual so that should make up for it.

I want to thank all of you for continuing to read my story and comment on it. With the last chapter we hit the 100k hits, which I never thought that would happen. So thank you all :)

On the eve of Halloween, while Harry’s family was celebrating the fact that the two kids were finally an official couple, something else happened.

Two men sat foot on British soil.

Lord Nathaniel Parkinson and Thomas Marvolo Riddle, also known as Lord Voldemort, possessing the body of Gabriel Delacour.

They had used an old portkey that the Dark Lord had stashed in a safe house in northern Germany to travel back to their homeland.

Due to the age of the portkey, its destination wasn’t entirely accurate and they landed a few kilometres away from Little Hangleton on top of a cliff. In the distance Tom Riddle saw the lights of the town and he laughed. Despite being in another body, it sounded just the same as back in the day, an evil laughter that would make one shudder in fear. Only Bella was more horrifying when it came to laughter, but that was rather because she was absolutely insane.  

Grabbing his loyal servant’s arm, the Dark Lord apparated them away from the cliff and in front of the old Riddle Manor, much to the shock of the old Frank Bryce, the caretaker. On Halloween the children of Little Hangleton always tried even harder than usual to sneak into the old Manor, and because of that he was guarding the house all night long. 

The elderly man froze. 

Red glowing eyes stared at him, eyes that looked rather unnatural and purely evil. This person had just appeared out of nowhere, together with another, and despite his brain telling him to run, he just froze. Not because of a curse - to be fair, Frank wouldn’t even have known what a curse was - but simply because of fear.

The companion of the red-eyed man raised his hand and pointed at him with a…a wooden stick, but the evil one gestured him to stop.

“Don’t, Parkinson. This new wand of mine needs to be ready when the time comes, and Delacour had been a very light wizard. I approve of your eagerness, but I need to corrupt this wand into darkness before we free our friends.”

Frank saw that the companion - Parkinson, apparently - bowed his head and stepped back. And with a frightened expression on his face, the old caretaker heard the evil one speak something and the world turned green, before it was over.

“ Avada Kedavra!”

 

While the Dark Lord began putting up his wards around the house (after making Frank an inferius, of course), Parkinson went and retrieved the bones of Thomas Riddle, the Dark Lord’s father, so they could prepare the ritual before they’d free the other Death Eaters and get the blood. All the other ingredients he had already acquired on their trip back home, now they only needed the main three. His biggest hope was that Bella or someone else would be willing to sacrifice a finger, though he’d do it if necessary (it would cause him unnecessary pain during the ritual though, and the Dark Lord agreed. This would not be a time and place for mistakes). The bones he just now collected and the blood…well, they had a plan for that too. 

 

The bones were currently soaking in a mixture of both unicorn and human blood to strengthen them further, when the Dark Lord declared the time right to make their opening move. It was November the first, in the late afternoon, when he started drawing a runic circle in the entrance hall. Yes, he would be able to apparate them into the general area of Azkaban, but that was too imprecise for him, so he used something more or less similar. It was per se still a form of apparition, but the destination came through the runes. Another hidden feature in his Dark Marks, if he’d use the right ritual then he could track every single one of them. 

The Dark Lord stood in the middle of the circle and started chanting an ancient Mayan spell. The state he wanted to achieve (and that he did) was an astral projection so he could oversee all of Britain and feel the location of the Dark Marks. Once he managed that, he was surprised. The news said Severus was still at Hogwarts, but he didn’t feel a mark there. Maybe he really was a traitor.

Azkaban wasn’t hard to find, since most of his marked followers were there, and he locked onto that signature. Now, in a very unusual combination of Mayan and Scandinavian magic he transferred that signature, or better, its location, into the runic circle. 

Now he just needed to hold the entire construct together for five minutes so that the runes could reach their peak charge, before they both would be pulled away and transported into Azkaban.

Nathaniel Parkinson, standing next to his master in the circle and wearing his Death Eater outfit, felt the familiar pull of apparition, but it was a strange feeling, because he had no control over it and that was unfamiliar.

Just moments later the Dark Lord and his obedient servant appeared in a hallway.

And the first thing they heard was a cackle.

Riddle smiled, his eyes were glowing even stronger than before now, and with a flick of his wand the door of Bella’s cell shattered. The insane woman, unhealthily thin and with messy hair, fell on her knees and started kissing the Dark Lord’s feet.

“Bella. My dear Bella. Get up and serve your lord well. Nathaniel, let her try one of our spare wands.”

They had kept all the wands they had acquired over time and from the host bodies so they'd have a bit more firepower in Azkaban, and as insane Bella was, she was a competent fighter. She took the one working best for her and looked frighteningly determined now. The Dark Lord transfigured her inmate robes into Death Eater robes, but without the mask. She was much scarier that way. 

 

After freeing Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, the Carrow twins, Yaxley and Macnair, the Dark Lord walked up to another cell. He could sense who was in there.

“My Lord.”

The deep voice sounded strangely calm and sane, and that was no big surprise, because Augustus Rookwood had always been a strong man, both in mind and magic. As a former unspeakable he wasn’t too unfamiliar with rituals and meditational techniques to defend himself against dementor influence.

Augustus was another one of those which got a wand from the Dark Lord, and he took his place next to Parkinson (the two smartest Death Eaters, together with Barty jr.) to continue tampering with the alarm wards, deflect dementors and incapacitate any prisoners that had seen them so they wouldn’t raise an alarm. Sure, there were probably only half a dozen aurors here, but why take the risk of encountering them before you finished your mission.

“Rookwook.”

“Parkinson. I see you did some nice work there, improved the body with runes?”

“Yes, we had a few before them, but snatching wizards unnoticed every few weeks wasn’t a permanent solution.”

“True, true. That the French potioneer? I think I met him once to discuss one of his experiments.”

“Yep, that’s him. Went to Albania to buy top ingredients and I was quicker.”

“I take it that isn’t your permanent solution, Nathaniel?”

“No, we’re making a new body. You know, the Bones of the Father ritual. Got them soaking in unicorn and human blood.”

“Smart, but I guess the blood was your idea? The Dark Lord would have probably used snake venom so the body would look more inhuman and scary. I did the Arithmancy on that once back in the day.”

“Oh, that was your research? Good work, but I voted for a human approach. Less conspicuous and maybe better in the current political climate. Besides, it will be more stable.”

“May I take a look at your calculations later? Out of curiosity, your work was always brilliant.”

“Sure, no problem.”

“Got the flesh and the blood too?”

“Not yet, but for the flesh we’ll find a volunteer. Would do it myself, sure, but if we have enough willing servants then I don’t see why the one performing the ritual should do it. Just increases the likelihood for mistakes. And the blood…well, that’ll be a surprise.”

 

The Dark Lord chuckled while overhearing the conversation between his two most intelligent servants. One of these days he’d discuss some of his old plans with him, maybe with Barty too (the fact that he was alive surprised Nathaniel and the Dark Lord, luckily the news on the trials even reached Albania). They were brilliant, two committed scholars.

 

After silencing Molly Weasley (what an annoying woman) and freeing the coward Pettigrew, they also freed Dolohov (who got a wand too, what a scary fighter). Nathaniel freed Lucius, who was just as arrogant as always, demanding Parkinson’s wand to help their Lord. 

“Lucius.”

“My Lord. I am your servant and I’ll follow you.”

“Good. Then follow me by leaving Parkinson alone. He’s the one that did what you all couldn’t do. He’s my most loyal and committed servant - maybe aside from Bella.”

“But…”

“You don’t want to disagree with me, Lucius, do you? Your idiocy already lost me one of my most powerful artefacts.”

Nathaniel just smiled behind his mask. It was about time that someone told that idiot how annoyingly stupid he was.

In the end, Lucius finally shut up and followed silently - without a wand of course. Sure, he might be a good politician, but a horrible fighter. 

 

Barty Crouch Jr. soon joined them too, and so did all the others of the Dark Lord’s servants. Thanks to Amelia Bones’ campaign against Death Eaters nearly all of them were locked up here. And sure, the new Minister of Magic had upgraded the wards and stationed at least a handful of personnel here, but the numbers of aurors was still too small overall (Snape’s horrible Potions teaching and Fudge limiting her budget had slowed the growth in the department massively).

While they were continuing to check if there was anyone left they could take with them, Amycus Carrow tripped an alarm ward, and the Dark Lord just groaned. 

“ Crucio!”

He held the curse just for a few seconds before telling Alecto to drag her idiot brother away from the corridor. As stupid as that had been, he still didn’t want to lose any Death Eater.

 

There were only five aurors at Azkaban when one of the alarm wards in the lower levels got triggered. That did happen on occasion, some animals were able to trigger those too, so none of them really worried. Especially since it was in the high security wing, where the wards were hyper-sensitive and the doors nearly impossible to open without the unspeakable-made magical key. Besides, no one (except from Crouch Jr., who had help from the back then DMLE-head) ever escaped from Azkaban, they had anti-apparition and anti-portkey wards, and none of those had been breached.

But still, protocol was protocol, so they sent off a note to the DMLE via a protean-charmed notebook and three of them went down there to check.

Little did they know that Lord Voldemort had a ritual, similar though not identical to apparition and was magically strong enough to blast open the locked doors, so in search of a mouse or rat they ran into a death trap.

Dolohov, who was already expecting them, got two of them thanks to the element of surprise with a variation of the cutting curse while Crouch Jr. transfigured the third one, who was just beginning to react, into a wooded branch and snapped it. He really was skilled and not really a fan of making a mess but rather showing off. 

Some of the wandless Death Eaters dove for the wands, but Nathaniel threw an overpowered stinging jinx at all of them. The Dark Lord trusted him and gave him the command while he was getting them a very special prisoner.

“Lucius! Crabbe! And you, Avery! Stop it. I’ll hand out the wands. Alecto, take that one and keep your idiot brother under control. Macnair, you give us cover if there are more incoming. And…, no, still not you, Lucius, stop being so pathetic. You, Nott, you’re still a competent ward breaker, are you. Assist Augustus.”

Yes, the Parkinson family had never been the most wealthy one, but Nathaniel was brilliant, and he worked hard for the spot of the Dark Lord’s right hand. Though, to be completely honest, blood purity was never his true motive, for him it was all about knowledge and power. The Dark Lord could give him both, so he had Nathaniel’s obedience.

 

And while the Death Eaters were looking for more people they could free, the Dark Lord himself went to another wing of the prison, a solitary confinement cell far off from all the other prisoners. In there was the man he was looking for.

“Dumbledore. How is prison so far?”

Albus Dumbledore looked up, and once he saw the red glowing eyes he knew it. Tom Riddle had come for him.

“Tom. I don’t think you should…”

Through the bars Riddle threw an overpowered ancient celtic stunning spell before tying up Dumbledore and levitating him out of the cell. He would be vital to his plans.

 

The two remaining aurors and the warden at Azkaban didn’t even have the time to look for their missing colleagues, because after capturing Dumbledore, the Dark Lord ordered Crouch and Macnair to kill them. And since Barty was very familiar with ministry procedure, especially DMLE procedure (that’s the benefit of living with the head of the DMLE for years), he sent another message to the department, stating that it was just a mouse tripping the alarm, nothing more, and he made that message sound authentic, using the proper phrasings and “code words” the aurors had. Thank god they never changed those. 

And so no one realised that the breakout had even happened, at least for another three days, when the replacements arrived via boat in the afternoon.

 

The ministry was obviously in chaos after hearing about the outbreak and according to some people Amelia was swearing all afternoon, cursing the lack of aurors thanks to the previous administration. She was trying her best to find out as much as possible, and with the help of unspeakables and mind healers they managed to break some of the obliviations to see Voldemort breaking out his servants. 

Obviously Amelia relayed that info to Harry and Hermione as soon as possible, anything concerning Voldemort was concerning them too.

 

When the communication mirror started buzzing, Harry opened his eyes, frustrated about his lack of success in finding out his animagus form. Mione had managed that pretty quickly (an eagle…come on, she was afraid of flying and it took her two timelines to overcome that fear…seriously?), but he didn’t manage to catch a glimpse of the animal. At least the meditation had helped him with the shadow travel. The basic theory behind that, written down in the Peverell Grimoire, wasn’t that hard, but to actually feel the magical energy of a shadow was much more complicated than one could imagine. He was still far away from actually doing any travelling, but he slowly got more comfortable and used to the very strange feelings shadows had.

He grabbed the mirror and accepted the incoming message.

“Amelia? Is everything alright?”

“No, Harry. Nothing’s alright. Voldemort is back, and he somehow apparated undetected into Azkaban, freed all Death Eaters and killed the personnel. And we just found out now.”

“Wait what? When did that happen?”

“On the evening of the first they recorded an alarm in the wards, but they later gave the all-clear and said that it was a mouse. Our best guess is that Crouch Jr. or another Death Eater familiar with DMLE procedure wrote that reply to make it sound absolutely authentic.”

“Damn. That’s…you know he’ll come for us then. He’ll make his move soon.”

“Yes, I know. And even worse, you two were right. He’s using Gabriel Delacour’s body, the memories we saw suggest that they banished his conscience completely and strengthened it via runes before they do the bones of the father ritual.”

“So they’ll try going after me next for the blood. And I really thought we’d have a chance to take a breath.”

“Hate to break it to you, but they took Dumbledore too. How high is the chance that they’ll use his blood?”

“They did WHAT? FUCK. That means he could by now be out there, striking every second now. By now his followers should be rested and he certainly has a way to get them new wands. That’s…a disaster.”

Amelia nodded. She herself was afraid too, because now Voldemort had as strong an army as back in the day, and they had nowhere near as many aurors as then. This situation had the potential to end in a catastrophe.

“Harry, do you have any idea where he could hide? We’re trying to put up monitoring charms at all the Death Eaters’ homes, but we don’t have the manpower for that.”

“Uhm, maybe his father’s place. The one in…FUCK. That just gets worse and worse. I can’t remember, that bastard must have put up a Fidelius. I’ve got to go and talk to Mione. Maybe she has some input.”

“Do that.”

“Thanks Amelia.”

“You’re welcome.”

 

Harry rushed down into the library, where Mione was sitting with Neville, Daphne, Susan and Hannah. She immediately saw that something was up.

“Harry? What’s going on?”

“Amy just called. Riddle broke into Azkaban and freed all his followers. And that three days ago, he did it very sneakily and only the replacement shift discovered it.”

The first one to react to that statement was Neville, who jumped up and got visibly angry.

“The bitch is free too?”

“Sorry Nev, but yes. Bella’s gone as well.”

Nev stormed off, with Daphne going after him. She knew what Bella Lestrange had done to her boyfriend’s parents (they had visited Frank and Alice during the summer holidays at St. Mungo’s together) and now had to try her best at calming him down again. 

 

Susan, clearly seeing that Harry had to discuss some things with Hermione, then left and took Hannah with her, claiming that she needed to talk to her aunt. Sure, she’d do that too, but she did it for Harry, who was becoming something like a brother to her. Well, with the basically unavoidable marriage between Amy and Sirius they were bound to be close, but they got along damn well too.

 

“What else is there, Harry?”

“He…he really has Gabriel’s body, just like we expected. And even worse, he took the old meddler too.”

“Wait…you don’t think he’ll use his blood for the ritual. Then he still can’t touch you.”

“But Dumbles’ unbound core is bigger than mine last time around. We’ll need to run through the numbers together, but that could make him even stronger. And with Parkinson he has someone much smarter than the rat, who knows what he can do.”

“Oh god, I don’t even want to think about that. And even worse, he’s got Rookwood and Crouch too now. They are supposed to be brilliant.”

 

All in all, things really did seem to get worse and worse this time around. If Riddle already got his new - and probably stronger - body, and if his Death Eaters were ready to attack then a lot of bad things were bound to happen. They could probably attack several families at once, or try taking over Diagon Alley, all of which would lead to significant casualties. But now, with a Fidelius over Riddle Manor they were basically out of possibilities. Sure, strengthening wards and defences were possible, but leading an offensive attack without having any target at all was simply not possible.

 

Neville was sitting in Greenhouse Four, in a secluded corner, and he was angry. Angry at the world, angry at the ministry, angry at Voldemort, and most of all angry at Bellatrix Lestrange. 

When he felt the familiar feel of his girlfriend’s hand on his shoulder, he looked up to her and tried his best at smiling. Safe to say that this was not really successful. Daphne sat down next to him and put her arm around him. 

And so they sat there, despite the fact that curfew was approaching quickly, and they were just silent. Saying anything would have been unnecessary either way, they both knew what the other thought and meant to say.

The two of them would have probably continued sitting there for the duration of the night, but then suddenly something happened. Neville felt a soft tingle in his hand, getting stronger and stronger every second, then his hand started glowing softly. For a few seconds both teenagers just stared at it, wondering what it might be, when it started burning for a second. 

What he then saw, made him yelp. He knew what that meant.

Without explanation he jumped up and ran towards Gryffindor tower, hoping that at least Harry and Hermione would be there. He’d need their help.

 

At the same time, Harry and Hermione were sitting in Minnie’s office, together with Minnie herself, Severus and Professor Vector. Even though the latter had no idea at what precisely she was looking now, they were calculating what the change of the blood donor in the ritual might have on the outcome. Preliminary results suggested an increase in magical power and a heightened stability of the ritual, because Dumbledore’s core was already fully grown and stable. 

When Harry’s mirror started buzzing a second time this evening, he was already fearing to answer it. And that rightfully, because Sirius was unfortunately a bearer of bad news.

“Sorry pup, but there’s been some Death Eater activity.”

“What happened, Sirius?”

Notes:

That's it for this week, I hope you liked it. Any guesses what drove Neville so crazy?
Looking forward to your comments, see ya all next week.

Chapter 32: Dark Lord Reborn

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here's the latest chapter. It's a bit longer than usual, but I'm sure that you won't compain about that. Have fun reading

Not long after the Death Eaters and Voldemort left Azkaban (a trip back was implemented in the ritual), Nathaniel and Augustus Rookwood began preparing the resurrection ritual. With the bones soaking in blood and the blood of the enemy being ready, as well as all the base ingredients for the potion, they now only needed the flesh of a willing servant. After some calculations, the Dark Lord agreed with them that a man’s flesh would be more compatible, so Bella was not a possibility. The two brilliant Death Eaters had already started making bets about who would do the sacrifice. Rookwood thought that Lucius would do it for a wand and his lord’s recognition, Nathaniel guessed that Alecto Carrow would make her brother do it to make up for his stupidity in regards to the alarm at Azkaban. 

In the end it actually was Barty Jr., knowing he had a strong magical core and after all the things his father had done to him (being kept in the basement under the Imperius for a decade wasn’t fun) he was looking for recognition.

And so, the ritual for the Dark Lord’s rebirth started.

“Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!”

While Nathaniel was stirring the cauldron, Augustus grabbed the smaller cauldron with the bones (still in unicorn and human blood) and carefully emptied that into the potion. He had to do that by hand, any magic could create issues and flaws.

“Flesh of the servant, willingly sacrificed, you will revive your master. “

Without really thinking about it, Barty Crouch Jr. cut off his left pinkie. To him, the return of Lord Voldemort was much more important than anything else, so he didn’t even hesitate when he tossed the finger into the cauldron and let Nott heal it.

Then Augustus turned to Dumbledore, who was tied up and silenced, being forced to watch the return of Lord Voldemort, he ripped away a piece of the sleeve and cut open the arm of the “Leader of the Light”  so he could use his blood. Three drops of blood went into the potion.

“Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe.”

 

While the previously-so-great Albus Dumbledore was screaming out of anger, having overpowered the silencing charm with sheer willpower. Barty, with his finger now healed, silenced him again and levitated him back to his cell so they could all enjoy the Dark Lord’s return to power.

And that is exactly what happened. Just a minute after the last drop of blood hit the potions it all started glowing brightly before the spirit of Voldemort got pulled into the cauldron, leaving Gabriel Delacour’s body dead behind, just to step out of the cauldron as a young man. None of the Death Eaters present had been present when he had been that young, but many had heard from their fathers that the Dark Lord had been a charming and charismatic young man. And now he was that again. 

Tom Riddle asked for a mirror, and Augustus handed him one. He didn’t care that right now he was still unrobed, with his body he knew he’d make basically all of them jealous. And that in every sense, because despite hating his muggle relatives, they had been well-built. In every single aspect.

He looked into a mirror and recognised a face he hadn’t seen in many years. He looked as if he’d be in his mid-twenties again. 

Then he asked for his wand.

This was a mission that the rat had to accomplish, because he had hidden the Dark Lord’s wand after the events at Godric’s Hollow, and just before the rebirth ritual Peter and Goyle went to retrieve it.

And so the rat stumbled into the room, staring at the reborn Dark Lord and falling onto his knees, holding out the yew wand. With a diabolic grin Lord Voldemort took the wand, felt the familiar feeling of it and gave it a proper flick. It worked just as perfect as before.

Since Tom was a master of transfiguration he summoned the prepared robes and turned them into a formal wizarding robe, because he was a “Lord” after all. Just for fun’s sake he made his eyes glow red for a second, before they turned back into his dark brown eyes. Oh, it was so much fun having a proper body, and especially a young and strong one. 

 

After a while of torturing his servants and getting their full obedience again, he began planning and shouting orders. Lucius for example knew how to reach Greyback, and some of the others had connections too, be it to wandmakers, potioneers and other valuable assets to build up their strength again. 

Now with his proper body Tom called for Barty, Augustus and Nathaniel (the three most skilled and knowledgeable wizards among the Death Eaters, together probably rivalling him in knowledge) to assist him in setting up wards. Sure, he could do it alone, but together they were quicker.

“My Lord?”

“Yes, Augustus?”

“While I don’t know the spell, how about setting up a Fidelius ward? Just in case someone researches your past more thoroughly than the Prophet has done so far.” 

“That is a good idea, Augustus. With all those people trying to find out who I once was it might be a wise move. I’ll do it, I’m the strongest, but then I can’t be secret keeper myself. Nathaniel?”

“I’m willing to serve you as a secret keeper, my Lord.”

 

As the Dark Lord tapped into his magical core for the Fidelius, he started laughing. Dumbledore’s blood surely must have improved his core size because the charm wasn’t taxing at all. Now they only needed to tell the secret to all his Death Eaters. 

 

And a few days of preparations later the Dark Lord was ready to move. He had a plan.

The first of his strike teams was headed into a muggle town to attack a pair of dentists. Preparing for that was actually quite exhausting because most of the purebloods had not the faintest idea of how the muggle world was working, but in the end they managed to make a plan.

Those dentists were the parents of Harry Potter’s best friend (some said girlfriend, they were not sure), and rumour has it that Potter was spending some time there during the holidays. Especially after the trials revealed that Potter’s muggle family abused the boy and McGonagall freed him it was not an unlikely conclusion that he spent time there. Some of their spies gave supporting evidence to that, so they’d rather attack those muggles than Potter’s blood relatives.

This troop was led by Nott and Lucius Malfoy, both hoping to prove themselves. The Dark Lord knew that they would probably fail (both because Potter surely set up protections and because Lucius and Nott were incompetent), but it would scare them enough and might give them a lead on Potter’s hideout. 

 

The next troop was Greyback with half a dozen other wolves as well as Barty and the Carrows. Thanks to a very surprising spy implementing an Imperius curse they would have their victims ready. Tom himself wasn’t a fan of werewolf bloodbaths, but it was efficient until he would dispose of Greyback. 

And then he had small groups sent to the Manors of two powerful families that were against him. He himself would join one of those to make a public appearance.

 

Emma Granger was standing in the kitchen and preparing dinner for her and Dan, while her husband was reading through a book on magical history of the nineteenth century he borrowed from Harry. It was one of Bathilda Bagshot’s early books and was even signed by her, for Henry Potter. The smell of Emma’s cooking began filling the house and made them both pretty hungry, especially after having an exhausting day at work. 

Just when Dan wanted to put the book aside and started to get up, they both heard the familiar noise of an apparition, combined with something colliding with their wards. By now the Grangers had quite powerful wards, beginning with some by Minerva and Harry, but improved by Remus, Severus and Sirius along the way. Emma, still standing in the kitchen, saw the Death Eaters in front of their house, which she shouted loud enough for Dan to hear. 

Lucius Malfoy spotted the woman on the other side of the window and yelled at Nott that he should break the wards. This wasn’t easy, but Lord Nott decided to give Lucius an opportunity.

“They’re damn strong, it will take some time. But I can weaken those in front of the window, go for a blasting curse or something like that and kill the bloody muggle.”

 

Emma Granger saw the Death Eater with platinum blonde hair and a mask on, a man that surely must be Lucius Malfoy. Then her husband told her that he had a floo connection, so she should hurry up. 

Unfortunately Lucius’ curse did indeed penetrate the wards quite effectively and caused an explosion that threw Emma through the room.

“Emma!”

Dan leaped forward and grabbed his wife, who was hurt badly. Yes, she was alive, but she had several open wounds on her back, probably a lot of bruising and some broken ribs too. So he had to get her to safety, which meant diving into the floo and landing in Potter Manor. Just moments later Sirius appeared, having heard them enter and he brought both Grangers into the small infirmary the Manor had (where he had spent quite some time too back in the day. Dangerous pranks really were the best ones). After applying some of the basic healing charms he questioned Dan about what happened, leading to a lot of cursing. But before he could inform Harry and Amy he had to help Emma. Thankfully the Potters had healing elves that would be skilled enough to deal with the situation.

 

Lucius saw the green flames of a floo connection through the window and started cursing before explaining to Nott that they were long gone. That meant that potential backup would be heading here soon, so they would have to make as much damage as possible. Lucius, still craving for attention, then went for Fiendfyre he nearly lost control of within seconds, but once the flames and smoke disappeared (Nott’s intervention) they saw that the whole house was reduced to ashes. And while they hadn’t killed anyone (the blasting curse hadn’t been enough to kill the muggle), they still summoned the Dark Mark as a symbol of their master’s return.

 

At the same time Death Eaters were attacking the Bones Manor (Amy was luckily still at the ministry and the aurors that responded to the alarm drove them off) and Longbottom Manor. The Dark Lord himself had joined the latter group, expecting the minister’s protection to be rather strong. Instead he’d lead his servants against Augusta Longbottom, a very annoying political opponent.

They apparated just outside of the wards and started going against the protections. Other than at the Grangers’ they didn’t use any technique, but with the Dark Lord’s help they just took it down with pure force. Just after about thirty seconds the wards couldn’t hold any longer and crumbled. One ancient celtic ward shattering curse more and the Longbottom’s protection was completely gone. 

Augusta Longbottom felt it when the wards got attacked. The floo was down, so she had to rely on a patronus message to the ministry before heading out herself. Right now it was just her and the elves, no one else. She thought she had the time to grab her old protective robe, but while putting that on she felt it. The wards were down, and that meant she was lost. Apparition was just as impossible as flooing and all her emergency portkeyes brought her into the Manor. And whoever brought down the wards, they were powerful. Even Dumbledore alone would have needed at least three times that long. 

The Manor itself was protected even stronger than the lands, but that was just a matter of minutes then. She had to get up on one of the balconies for now and keep them away until the aurors arrived. And the Patronus did need quite some time to reach the Ministry. She should have just bought a new set of communication mirrors after the last one got destroyed when Frank and Alice got attacked.

Now dressed in a heavy, but protective robe made out of dragon scale and her wand in her hand, she stepped out on the big balcony above the front entrance. Though Augusta hid the fear, she was afraid. There were five Death Eaters, one of them the bitch Bella Lestrange. The man in the middle of the four others seemed quite young in comparison, but even scarier. Who was he?

Bella was the first one to send a curse, a pretty nasty one too, but the Manor’s wards deflected that easily while Augusta Longbottom stood there and looked down on them. Then the elderly woman began moving her wand at a surprising speed.

Despite being feared in the Wizengamot, Augusta Longbottom wasn’t known as a strong dueller. But that she was too, she just never made that public knowledge. Sure, Dumbledore would easily finish her, but just a few years back she duelled Minerva in practice and nearly won after ten minutes of duelling. Minnie’s transfiguration tricks though were pretty mean, and so she lost. That meant she could at least hold off the Death Eaters for a while, especially with the ward advantage. 

While Augusta sent spells down towards them at a shocking speed, Tom Riddle stepped back and took his time to dismantle the wards. 

Just two minutes later Augusta had incapacitated two Death Eaters, just Bella and a masked man that probably was Walden Macnair, she thought she recognised the voice. The “junior Death Eater” whom she totally underestimated was still staying behind, and she interpreted that as hesitation. That was a mistake.

 

Just minutes after aurors had defended Minister Bones’ Manor, a patronus message coming from Augusta Longbottom reached the DMLE. They dispatched half a dozen aurors to Longbottom Manor via an emergency portkey the Department created.

The first thing the aurors noticed was the two incapacitated Death Eaters, which they hit with an Incarcerous spell and levitated them away from the battlefield before anyone noticed their arrival. 

Augusta Longbottom though had seen them and so she decided to rush downstairs and face her opponents to distract them. For a minute or two she could hold off Lestrange and Macnair, maybe even get that young hesitant man to help her. He certainly didn’t seem like he’d want to fight.

If that would have been true, then it would have worked out just fine, but while the aurors were putting up anti-transportation wards (Lady Longbottom was able to handle herself for another minute, so they didn’t need to worry) Augusta exited through the main entrance of the Manor and charged at Bellatrix Lestrange with all she got. Two of the aurors now joined the fight and took out Macnair without him even having a chance to react. Then they started moving around the young man.

“Aurors! You better drop your wand and surrender, young man.”

Augusta too tried talking to the man who was just standing around and muttering things.

“Yes, come on, you don’t want to do this. Please just drop your wand and no one needs to get hurt.”

Tom Riddle just laughed. He had carefully powered down the ancient wards of Longbottom Manor so that his next spell would be an even more impressive display of power.

“Bella! Stop attacking the Lady and come here.”

She took a step closer to her Lord and a protective shield appeared. All the aurors and Lady Longbottom were just staring at them, confused. Who could command the crazy Lestrange but the Dark Lord?

“Your spells won’t break my shields, or at least not for now. I want you all to see the power that I have.”

His eyes started shining red and he lifted his hand so everyone could see his wand. A wand every witch and wizard knew. You-know-who’s wand.

“See the power that is mine. For I am returned. I AM LORD VOLDEMORT! Flamarae Demonias! ”

And with a loud cracking noise a creature made out of demonic fire leaped at Augusta Longbottom. The spell he used had once caused the great fire in London 1666 as well as some other devastating incidents. It was one of the darkest spells but required an abnormal amount of power. One that Tom Riddle now possessed. 

The demon of fire was an intelligent creature, yet completely obeyed his summoner’s orders, so it slowly walked towards Augusta Longbottom. It had big fiery wings, horns and was about four metres tall.

In her panic Augusta tried the last thing she could think of, no matter how dark it was.

“ Avada Kedavra! ”

But as the creature wasn’t really alive per se, the green spell just passed through it and vanished into the night. 

“A nice try, Lady Longbottom. But not good enough. Kill her!”

Augusta saw her death approaching and decided to not run away. It would be pointless either way. She wasn’t that young and fit anymore, and as far as she saw, the creature could outrun her easily. 

So she thought about Neville, the once so timid little boy that would be Lord now. His father had been declared unfit and just her being the Regent kept him from ascending to the title. But now he had to take up the mantle of Head of House, and he was ready. He had Daphne by his side, a lovely and brilliant woman, and he had his brother in all but blood, Harry. He was a strong wizard and would be a great Lord Longbottom. But she wished that she could see him one more ti…

 And the claw of the demonic creature hit her, the burning hand just passing through her body and slicing her in half. The Lady Longbottom, Regent of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom was no more.

 

Then the Dark Lord turned around, facing Bella, who was still keeping the aurors busy.

“Bella, stop playing around. They shall see the power of Lord Voldemort and tell their bosses that I’m back. But first…”

He turned back to his fiery creature and sent it towards the building. Normally the wards would be able to keep it out, but that’s why he had weakened them. He needed a display of power.

The creature leaped forward and crashed into the Manor, breaking both wards and walls. Tom Riddle knew the monster was weakening, so he decided to use the rest of its power to blow a massive hole into one of the oldest and most heavily protected buildings in all Wizarding Britain. It was all about symbolism.

“GO! Tell your bosses what you witnessed today. The return of Lord Voldemort. Bella, grab Macnair, Crabbe and your stupid husband and use your portkey back.”

He flicked his wand once more, throwing the aurors back and giving Bella the chance to grab their fellow Death Eaters before disappearing into black smoke. Sure, it had been nothing more than a standard apparition after his wave of power against the aurors dismantled their anti-transportation wards, but he liked to use a smoke charm to make it appear more like the forgotten art of shadow travel or something like that.

 

Amelia Bones was terrified by what she heard. By now Sirius had told her what happened at the Grangers’, she had read the report on the attack on her home and now that. Augusta Longbottom was dead, and Voldemort himself - looking young too - had killed her. Sirius was still with her, and once all the briefings were done, he decided to mirror-call Harry. 

“Sorry pup, but there’s been some Death Eater activity.”

“What happened, Sirius?”

“First of all, and please don’t freak out, they’re both alive, but your parents got attacked, Hermione. Death Eaters burned down the house and they escaped via floo to us.”

Mione was too shocked to speak right now and if she wouldn’t have lived through one war already (and if she’d really be a young child) then she would have started to cry, but she managed to control her fears.

“Did anything happen to them, Sirius?”

“Yes, your mother took a blasting curse into the back, but the wards caught most of it. From the descriptions I’d say Nott was the curse breaker and Malfoy threw the curse. A few cracked ribs, some bruises and cuts, but nothing that magical healing couldn’t handle. She’s fine and resting right now. Your dad is fine, he was in the living room when it happened, but Emma was standing in the kitchen…”

“And let me guess, they saw her and attacked through the window. After realising they were gone they burned it down. Is it completely destroyed?”

“Yes, I’m so sorry.”

“At least they’re fine, that’s all that matters.”

But then Harry spoke up again, by now his arm around Mione and holding her.

“That can’t be everything though, you look way too grim for just a failed attack. Who died?”

 

Then someone knocked on the door and didn’t even wait for Minerva to say “enter” before rushing in. It was Neville, and just seconds later Daphne too. Both seemed out of breath.

“Is she dead? She must be. Who killed her?”

Everyone was silent.

Then Sirius’ voice, coming out of the Mirror, answered that question.

“Yes, she is. I’m so sorry, Neville. The aurors tried their best, but it was four Death Eaters and he himself.”

“He’s back? So they must have done the ritual. Oh damn, so much for taking a break.”

Then Hermione realised how harsh that exclamation must have been on Neville and hugged him. Everyone in the room, and Sirius via mirror, expressed their condolences, and Daphne was crying while trying to support her boyfriend. Nev himself was actually managing it pretty well, at least for now. He had one goal, and that was the downfall of Voldemort and his servants, once and for all. 

Sirius began filling them in on what happened, based on the auror reports from the scene. Once Nev heard that Bella Lestrange had been there too, he nearly lost it, but calmed down to hear the end of the story.

“And then they all tried talking to the young man that didn’t participate in the fight while fighting Bella. He just stood there and muttered things. But then he spoke up, and commanded Bella to his side. It was Voldemort himself.”

“Wait, young man? Not old, white face, bald and without a proper nose. ”

“Without a proper nose? I don’t even wanna ask. Yes, Harry, a young man. Mid-twenties, dark hair, brown eyes with a tendency to glow red. Apparently rather charming and with a noble attitude.”

“Oh god, it seems like the resurrection worked pretty well for him. Any info on magical power, now that he used Dumbles’ blood?”

“Yes, he used a flame demon spell to kill Augusta and put a gigantic hole into the Manor. I’ve only heard of that spell, and never that strong. And we know how powerful the wards were.”

“He put a hole…? Son of a bitch, that’s why he didn’t fight, he weakened the wards and used that to show off. Blast a hole in one of the strongest buildings in Britain with one spell, kill a political opponent and let the witnesses go. That’s how you make yourself feared.”

Neville nodded. He understood the tactics Voldemort had used, and it was clever. Horrible and cruel, but intelligent. But then he realised something.

“But Harry, don’t you think that just two attacks have the opposite effect? He’d need more at once to show off properly.”

“Three attacks, my home too, but I was still in my office.”

Harry looked up, surprised.

“Amy? Anyone got hurt there?”

“No, and the aurors were there even faster than at Longbottom Manor. We didn’t catch any Death Eaters though, but it seems like our response time is better than in the last war. As much as it hurts to lose Augusta, it's just one casualty. Back then we lost entire families in that timespan.”

“But that can’t be everything. Your place was most likely empty, and Augusta is living alone. My parents would have been two muggles, what isn’t much for Voldemort. That can’t be everything for the day of his return. I think we might not have such a quiet night.”

“I agree, the aurors are already on standby. But for now that’s all we can do, go get some rest, especially you, Neville.”

And with that the mirror call was over.

“Harry?”

“Yes, Nev, can I do anything for you?”

“Actually yes, I need you as a witness. Now that the Regent Longbottom is dead, I’m the next Lord. That’s how I knew, my ring started glowing once she died.”

“But I thought that…”

“My dad? No, he’s medically declared unfit. After the attack family magic decided that he was in no state to be Lord. I would get the title on my seventeenth birthday or after my Regent’s death. So.. could you please be my witness?”

Harry nodded. That he could do.

“I, Neville Francis Longbottom, Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom hereby proclaim myself the Lord of my House following ancient tradition and my predecessor's will.”

Then Harry got up, his rings softly glowing now too.

“I, Harry James Potter hereby witness Neville Francis Longbottom taking his Lordship and back his claim. Welcome, Lord Longbottom.”

“Thank you, Lord Potter.”

And the first person to say anything after that was Daphne.

“So, your middle name is Francis, love?”

And despite all the horrors and the sadness, no one, not even Severus Snape, could hold back the laughter.

 

But they didn’t laugh for long though, because the other three heads of house and Aurora Sinistra, deputy head of Slytherin, now knocked on Minnie’s door.

“Come in, please. What can I do for you.”

Aurora was the first one to speak up.

“Oh, you have solved all my issues by now, my missing snake is here. I take it that’s justified?”

“Yes, Daphne’s here because Lord Longbottom’s grandmother got killed by Voldemort this evening and she looks after him. And you three?”

Minerva just stating that fact shocked all four of them, but Filius was the first one to recover and address the issue.

“We all have missing students. Well, Slytherin now doesn’t anymore, but I’m missing Chang, Edgecombe and Corner.”

“Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown.”

“Sophie Roper and Ernie Macmillan.”

They all exchanged worried looks, because Mione had said it just a few minutes ago. Voldemort would want something bigger to happen.

“Mione, you got your map?”

“Sure, here it is. I solemnly swear I’m up to no good.”

Harry and Mione both looked at the map and tried to find out where the missing students were, but the castle was big. Then Remus came forward. 

“Whose is that? Peter lost his and I burned mine after hearing that Siri betrayed your parents. Siri’s got confiscated in late seventh year, so probably James’?”

“Nope, that one I have. That Sirius’ map. The Weasley twins stole it from Filch’s office.”

“Oh, the poor teachers. Anyway, Mr. Moony would like to know from Mr. Padfoot where Parvati Patil is .”

Within moments a small dot on the outer parts of the Hogwarts grounds flared up, and upon further inspection they realised that all the missing students were heading towards the edge of the wards. 

“Oh god, once they crossed the wards Voldemort could reach them!”

Professor Sprout, usually very calm, was panicking like never before in her life.

“But why would they do that?”

“Come on, Septima, the most logical explanation is a Voldemort sympathiser, most likely upper years, probably a Slytherin kid of a Death Eater who used the Imperius. Or they’re already recruiting students, but for that the time was most likely too short. If Malfoy or Parkinson would be two years older they’d be my top suspects, simply because of the family background. Those that got forced into that way of thinking and didn’t escape it themselves.”

Septima Vector nodded, the headmistress was probably right. 

But then all changed at once, when Remus Lupin jumped up.

“Oh no. I can smell him now. He’s not far away from the wards and he’s not alone. I’ve got to go after him.”

“After whom, Remus?”

Filius asked, dreading the answer he was already expecting.

“Greyback. He’s going after them.”

 

The group of students wasn’t even wondering why they were heading towards the edge of the wards after curfew, they were just doing it. Even though the caster hadn’t been strong, his spell was still strong enough to break their wills and make them follow his orders.

What they didn’t know was that right now they were only steps away from the edge of the wards. And once they would cross them, they’d run into Fenrir Greyback and his wolves. Sure, it wasn't a full moon, but Greyback was always a monster, and a scratch or bite from him would always have its consequences.

 

Fenrir Greyback was lurking, behind him some members of his pack and the wizards the Dark Lord sent to accompany him. Their goal was to create a bloodbath. And he planned to be as ruthless and cruel as always.

Notes:

So, I hope you liked it, let me know in the comments what you think. Until next week :)

Chapter 33: The Battle of the Ministry

Notes:

Good morning everyone. Here is the latest chapter, I hope you'll like it. It's even quite a bit longer than the others.
From now on things will be escalating even more, and that rapidly, but don't think that we're anywhere near the end of A Whole New Life ;)

Have fun reading!

The days following the Greyback attack Hogwarts was in mourning. Remus Lupin hadn’t managed to reach the students in time, in fact, no one did.

At least not to save all of them. Cho Chang and Michael Corner hadn’t survived, they were ripped apart by Greyback himself. Ernie Macmillan would probably never walk without a crutch again, one of the other wolves had hit him pretty severely in the left leg, and even though it hadn’t been full moon the wound would never heal completely. And neither would the long cut across Parvati Patil’s face.

The luckiest of those that got hurt at all was Sophie Roper. The Hufflepuff girl had a scar from a werewolf’s bite in her right shoulder, but since she was left-handed that would hinder her not so much. 

Lavender managed to defend herself with a well-aimed overpowered stinging jinx, enough to find cover. Michael Corner had fought together with Marietta Edgecombe, which saved Marietta but cost Michael his life. 

Remus then arrived to defend the students, with Minerva and the others following him. A werewolf was just very fast even without the transformation, so he was easily first. Feeling that they succeeded in sending a message, the wolves and Death Eaters all portkeyed away, except the wolf that killed Michael. He was still standing above the body of the Ravenclaw boy when Remus hit him with a blasting curse in the chest, hoping he could save the boy.

Unfortunately that killed the unidentified werewolf and they had no chance of tracking them to wherever they went.

 

Classes were cancelled for the rest of the week and they held a memorial service with both Minerva and Filius holding speeches to remember the two students. Even Amelia and most of the Lords and Ladies were in attendance for the service. And against all odds even the press wasn’t too hard on Hogwarts, because the staff’s intervention had saved lives and they followed protocol in regards to missing students. Investigations showed that the students were all Imperiused by an unknown wizard or witch. The staff members were all officially exonerated, so everything pointed to a student using a second wand, because the priori incantatem test showed nothing.

The return of Lord Voldemort (they used his name now) and his murder of Augusta Longbottom (whose funeral was visited by over three hundred wizards and witches) was one of the main topics of the week too. It certainly caused a lot of fear, but the public believed in Amelia Bones. No minister ever had such a high approval rating like Amelia did in the week following Voldy’s return. She appeared strong and determined, united with the strongest voices of the Wizengamot (Potter, Black and Greengrass, and apparently the new Lord Longbottom too if one could believe reports coming from Hogwarts) and was working on expanding the auror force and changing protocol. It was no longer all about stunning the Death Eaters and convicting them. They were also pleading for assistance from the ICW. And since they had recovered some of the memories from Azkaban prisoners showing Riddle possessing Gabriel Delacour, at least the French were immediately ready to assist.

 

When Apolline Delacour got the news about her husband, she and her kids were sitting at the breakfast table. She had gained permission for Fleur to floo into school every day since her father was missing. And when the owl from the French ministry arrived, Apolline broke the seal with shaking hands. 

“They…they know where he is. That British Dark Lord has stolen his body and they think he’s gone forever. Voldemort is possessing him.”

She dropped the letter and started to cry. Yes, the news was not unexpected, but to know it was something different. Gabrielle, crying too, came over and hugged her mother tightly, while Fleur ran off. The elder of the two Delacour daughters had inherited much more of the veela blood than her sister, it was even more dominant than in her mother. She certainly had a temper, and that hardly ended well with the Veela traits. 

On her way out into the garden she felt the familiar feeling of the partial transformation, her face getting sharper and looking more and more like a harpy. She knew that she’d end up throwing fireballs around without being able to control it, that had happened a few times when she got real upset. That’s why she left the house, not wanting to leave even more scorch marks on their walls. 

But this time it was different, because the moment her feet touched the grass two gigantic wings burst from her shoulders. She transformed completely, something that is very rare in half-veelas, nearly unheard of in quarter-veelas like her. Only moments of great emotional distress could cause that. 

And so she flew, feeling the wind in her face like on a broom, but much more intense. She had never been much of a flyer, but that might change now, because she felt the wind and the way it acted. That connection to the air that most full-veelas had was now part of her too. 

 

Far away from the Delacours, up north in Hogwarts, Harry was spending time in the Chamber of Secrets, talking to the basilisk. All the incidents of the past few days, the deaths of Augusta, Cho and Michael and the return of the Dark Bastard in a new and younger body were not really cheering him up, much the opposite. And he couldn’t help feeling guilty to a degree, because they changed things. Yes, they might have saved Sirius and weakened Voldemort’s position, but every death hurt. Fleur’s father was another one of those cases where he felt guilty. And what if his reaper had been right and after Voldemort another Dark Lord came along. What if the prophecy was really unclear and in the end he had to face Dumbledore?

He sat next to the huge basilisk, who was now free of Tom’s influence and a very nice partner for a conversation. Originally he had wanted to bring him to Potter Castle during the Summer holidays, but he had honestly just forgotten about that. He hadn’t even visited the castle.

Maybe he should just change that right now. He could try to use his status as descendant of a Hogwarts founder and Lord of one of their houses (or three of them in that case) to circumvent the wards against apparition. It might work, because since claiming the rings he had felt the castle’s own magic much more than in his previous life. And the castle wasn’t so far away too, relatively speaking. It was on a small and unplottable island off the Scottish coast, so might be able to apparate. On the other hand, passing through the wards here wouldn’t be easy so the distance of the jump could be too much. 

But he could just…

It was worth a try, and he really wanted it. 

He closed his eyes and took a step back into the shadows of Salazar Slytherin’s statue. And then he vanished.

Just moments later he appeared in the shadow of a suit of armour that stood on a pedestal. Harry grinned. He had finally managed to shadow travel, it was all about determination. 

Then he began looking around. From the looks of it (and looking out of the window proved that) he was in a tower of Potter Castle. Some legends said that Hardwin Potter, Iolanthe Peverell’s husband, built the castle based on Hogwarts, just smaller. Obviously, because the island wasn’t that big. And while not every tower and every wall was identical, Harry saw the similarities. 

The reason for the castle looking like Hogwarts was probably to commemorate the Potters’ ancestor Godric Gryffindor, who had owned the castle that one day became Hogwarts. Sure, they had expanded the original building, but parts of it were still from Gryffindor Castle, like the Main Courtyard and the Great Hall.

Harry started walking around in the castle that did remind him so much of Hogwarts, but at the same time it didn’t. The old walls, the cold corridors and the many hidden corners were so familiar, and so was the feeling of ambient magic, but Potter Castle was much…quieter, one could say. The few magical pictures with figures in them were ancestors, mostly in the “ancestors’ hall”. Thanks to some of the paintings back at the Manor and the family magic he knew already a lot about that building. The catacombs, the ritual chamber, the meeting chamber (with THE round table in it, something that one of the Peverells managed to grab during the fall of Camelot, he had been a knight himself) and the secret tunnel to the island’s small harbour. Truly a magnificent place. 

And since the dungeons were massive and part of a tunnel system under the whole island, it was an ideal spot for the basilisk. He just needed to relocate her at some point.

Though, he could do that just now actually. He was able to create a portkey after all, and since it would be going out of Hogwarts and not the other way around it wouldn’t even be hard. 

Harry went to the closest storage room (truth be told, he just opened a random door) and grabbed a piece of rope that he then enchanted to be a portkey. The destination of it would be the dungeons. Sure, it wasn’t the easiest piece of magic, but doable. 

 

The shadow travel back to Hogwarts was rather easy now, after managing it once it seemed just so…simple. Now he told the basilisk about his plan, and she was looking forward to her relocation, especially because Harry promised that the house elves would feed her. 

He gave her the rope to bite on it and spoke the activation phrase to send her away. Hogwarts was now officially basilisk-free. 

 

Tom Riddle was sitting in his manor and finishing up his next, big plan. The prophecy was still in the DoM, and that would be his next target. And because he was enjoying the sight of it, he had his prisoner Dumbledore tied up in the room with him.

“You know, Albus, I never expected you to fall so low. Evil mastermind, that I did know, but wow. What you did to Potter is even worse than what I did. Weakening the prophecy’s boy for me, how nice of you. Not that it really worked out though, he escaped his family.”

Dumbledore tried saying something, but Riddle’s silencing spell was too strong. That was a truly hilarious sight, Voldemort thought. And because he was enjoying that very much, he continued to tease the old wizard.

“And the best thing is, Albus, that I found a way to get to the prophecy without stealing it myself. The unspeakables do have a few very nice tricks. By the end of this day I’ll know what the secret is, the lines you didn’t tell anyone.”

The old wizard was shocked. Yes, he believed Tom when he said that he could recover the prophecy without going himself, and he couldn’t let that happen. Harry and the others might hate him for his…unconventional methods of reaching his goals, but he still wanted Riddle to fail. 

So he closed his eyes and channelled his power into a rebellious flare of magic that broke both the silencing and the incarcerous charm and set him free. Albus had always been good at wandless magic, but a skilled wizard with a wand (or a handful or aurors) would still win against him. His hope had been the element of surprise, but not with Tom Riddle.

Lord Voldemort saw it coming, he even wanted it to happen. Just killing Dumbledore, as a prisoner and not as an opponent in a fight, felt wrong. As much as he hated the old man, Albus deserved more. 

And so Tom Riddle easily deflected the stunners and cutting curses with which Dumbledore started off. The noise made some of his Death Eaters come into the room, watching a showdown between their Lord and Albus Dumbledore. 

It wasn’t a long fight, the captivity had weakened Dumbledore. Still, he used quite some impressive elemental magic, which normally would have been very dangerous, but after months of dementor exposure it was much weaker. Any normal wizard would have probably been defeated by that, but Tom Riddle wasn’t normal, and so he just sent the spells back at Dumbles.

Albus Dumbledore stumbled backwards, but he didn’t fall. Not yet at least. With all the power he still got he summoned angel’s fire , a less destructive and wild variation of fiendfyre. He surrounded himself with it to block all incoming spells and let the flames lash out a few times, but not too successful.

Tom’s counter attack was violent and harsh, because he was getting annoyed by Dumbledore. His fiendfyre consumed Albus’ protective flames and surrounded the old wizard. He, the Dark Lord, knew that he was strong enough to keep the fiendfyre controlled while casting another spell, and that is exactly what he did. 

“Avada Kedavra!”

Yes, it wasn’t too special, but it would keep the old meddler’s body unharmed so he could send a message. Besides, it was kind of his signature spell and if he didn’t manage to kill Potter with it, then at least Dumbledore.

The green spell went right through the fire and with a loud popping sound, apparently breaking the last shields Dumbledore still had, they all heard the sound of a body hitting the ground. And then the flames stopped flaring and died down, only to reveal the body of the once so great Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. His beard had taken a bit of damage from the flames, but aside from that he looked unharmed. 

Augustus Rookwood was the first to rush forward and check if he was dead, and indeed, Albus Dumbledore was dead. 

Now the Dark Lord could and would enact his grand plan.

 

Harry, after checking that the basilisk had reached her destination (which she had), shadow travelled into Minnie’s office. The Marauder’s map had told him that she was together with Remus and Severus, so he thought he could just startle those three.

“...and you two do agree that we need to implement more security measures? After that werewolf incident we need to be even more careful.”

Remus and Severus both nodded, the headmistress was indeed correct. While the wards were strong and improved now, they still had secret passages (probably more than the marauders knew of) and other weaknesses, especially spies within the castle.

Before either of those two could reply though, the portrait of Dilys Derwent interrupted. 

“Mr. Potter! While I appreciate it that you study a lost method of travel, it is not proper to just shadow travel into the headmistresses office.”

“Harry?”

“Hey Uncle Moony, Severus, Minnie. Thought I’d drop by to tell you three that I managed to shadow travel. I visited Potter Castle. Reminds me very much of Hogwarts.”

The three of them began congratulating him, and so did most of the portraits. Headmistress Derwent did so too after he explained the Marauder’s map and that he knew who’d be up here, and that they’d allow him to do so. 

“Oh, and before I forget it: I solved your basilisk problem. Made a portkey and brought her into my castle.”

That did indeed lead to confusion and surprised exclamations (portkeys into Hogwarts were even more complicated, but out of Hogwarts were anything but easy either. Basically impossible for someone who was not headmaster - or a founder’s heir apparently). The absence of the basilisk did certainly make the castle an even safer place - and it enabled them to restore the Chamber of Secrets for educational purposes. Once Harry managed to disable the parseltongue wards they could go there and visit it with Professor Bagshot. Besides, Professor Babbling too wanted to look at it and decipher the runes that kept the whole place undetected. 

But before Harry could continue talking about that, he felt a strong buzzing in the back of his head.

“Oh god, what’s that?”

“Harry?”

“Sorry, my head’s buzzing…FUCK! That bastard is making his move and going for the prophecy.”

He stepped closer to the fireplace and grabbed a handful of floo powder, but then Severus and Remus were standing next to him, both wanting to accompany him.

“No, just one of you please. With the ministry strong this time around he won’t make a big assault. It’s probably a distraction either way. You  really think he’d invade the ministry during the day? Minnie, please inform Amy and check Mione’s map for intruders. I don’t think Voldy is really going after the prophecy.”

Remus knew that he would be the better choice to stay here, both because of the map and if Greyback were to show up again. And so Severus and Harry flooed into the Ministry.

 

The first thing they did was hurry to the next elevator and head to the DoM. During their ride with the elevator they heard Amy’s voice, informing all personnel to be careful. What Harry and Severus didn’t know was that she had already sent a group of aurors into the Hall of Prophecies too. Others were dispatched to Hogwarts, Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade and the Manors and homes of who had been declared a “likely target” (Greengrass, Bones, Black, Shacklebolt, Scrimgeour, Weasley etc.).

And Harry had been correct. There was no sign of a big assault, in fact it was pretty quiet in the DoM. An unspeakable, a man who introduced himself as Croaker, had already heard of the potential intruder and welcomed Harry and Severus.

“But, Lord Potter, how could you know about it? We haven’t found anyone down here up until now, just us unspeakables.”

“Uhm…I might have sneaked down here and put an ancient alarm spell from my Grimoire on the prophecy orb. The Potter invisibility cloak does come in handy quite often. I’m absolutely certain that someone touched it. And since just those that are subject of the prophecy can touch it, it must be Riddle.”

Croaker shook his head in disagreement.

“First of all, good job. Not many people can get in here undetected. And what you’re saying is not entirely correct. We have a way to move the prophecies. We can’t listen to them, but move them. Though only the leading unspeakable for the hall of prophecies can use the gloves of Delphi…”

They all realised at once what that meant. Either Tom Riddle himself was hiding down here or that unspeakable was a traitor.

“Shafiq! Unspeakable Shafiq once worked with Rookwood back in the day, but after we found out Augustus was a traitor we checked for Dark Marks and performed Legilimency sweeps.”

Croaker started running towards the hall of prophecies, Harry and Severus following him. Every time they passed another unspeakable Croaker yelled “Detain Shafiq!” and other orders to limit Shafiq’s access to the DoM.

Once they reached their destination, Harry stepped forward and wanted to guide them to the right spot, but then accidentally bumped into a shelf with his shoulder, causing a prophecy - the first one ever put into the hall of prophecies - to fall down and break. And the voice of an old man spoke a prophecy:

The Master of Death walks amongst the prophets,

His enemy leading an attack.

The one-armed and the one that doesn’t speak,

They follow the Chosen into the fight.

Death and destruction are what they will face.

And the Bonded shall fight twice and not once, 

For only together they will succeed.

 

The three of them hesitated. It was more than obvious that this could very well apply to them, with Severus being the one-armed and Croaked an unspeakable. And that Prophecy led Harry to draw his third wand, neither the Phoenix one nor Ignotus’ wand, but the Elder wand. Croaker gasped, because now he was understanding what the prophecy meant with “Master of Death”. Especially since the ring and cloak just appeared out of nowhere on Harry’s hand and back respectively.

“I guess that means we’ll face the dark bastard himself?”

“Maybe we will, Lord Potter. But let’s not overinterpret the prophecy. Especially not one that has been here since before the Statute of Secrecy. But…Master of Death? Anyway, let’s please focus and ignore that prophecy for a while.”

Harry nodded, Croaker was correct. Maybe it would mean something completely different. Now he had to focus on the main problem: Unspeakable Shafiq.

 

Samael Shafiq had been an unspeakable for many many years. As a member of the sacred twenty-eight family Shafiq (even though not the main branch) he was easily able to climb the ranks in the ministry. Besides, he was a powerful wizard. He and Augustus Rookwood had once been a formidable team, and it had been Augustus that introduced him to Tom Riddle. A brilliant and strong man, even though sometimes a bit insane. Though never an official member, he had been an asset of the Death Eaters all along, and once he had heard of the resurrection he had contacted the Dark Lord. For him it was no problem to retrieve the prophecy, and he hardly cared who was in charge, as long as he would get support for his experiments, most of which were very immoral.

He knew that his cover was blown the moment Unspeakable Jackson had attacked him, but he didn’t care. Samael was brilliant, and he had a backdoor into the ministry, a secret passageway. Riddle would send some of his minions and he could go and deliver the orb.

Once he reached the Room with the Veil, he stopped running. No one but him had ever made any success in dealing with the ancient artefact, at least in the last three centuries. Sure, he didn’t know what it really did, but he had managed to create a device that could manipulate the veil’s energy and create a portal to whatever location he wanted. And with the coordinates of Riddle Manor he did just that. The white energy turned blue and he stepped through. Just moments later Bartemius Crouch Jr., Augustus Rookwood, Antonin Dolohov and Rodolphus Lestrange appeared. 

They were ready, wands drawn and in duelling robes. Augustus retrieved the device Samael had created and started guiding his fellow Death Eaters towards the hall of prophecies.

 

The twenty aurors Amelia had sent into the DoM, led by Alastor Moody, had met up with Harry, Croaker and Snape and started searching for Shafiq, which wasn’t easy at all. 

After a few minutes an unspeakable approached Moody and Croaker.

“I have something! One of the alarms triggered, none of the usual ones though, a special creation of mine. Shafiq couldn’t have known about that one. I’ll take you there.”

 

Half the aurors and four unspeakables (Croaker and three that were battle-trained) as well as Severus and Harry all followed the man while the rest of them secured the DoM. Little did they know that the man circumventing all the usual DoM wards and tripping only an unknown, special one, wasn’t Samael Shafiq but Augustus Rookwood, accompanied by three very dangerous and powerful Death Eaters. Crouch Jr. was just as brilliant as Augustus and Nathaniel, Antonin Dolohov was ruthless and a cold-blooded killer and despite being an idiot sometimes, Rodolphus Lestrange was nearly as brutal and crazy as his wife. 

And because they weren’t expecting four Death Eaters but one Unspeakable, the aurors got ambushed and lost five of them within seconds. 

What then followed was much more impressive than the last battle in the Department of Mysteries, Harry thought. After the first moment of surprise, they all got into a defensive formation, half of them putting up big shield charms, while the rest started firing. Yes, only Moody, Severus and Harry were a match for the Death Eaters’ skills and experience, but they were outnumbering them. 

Severus began duelling Rodolphus Lestrange, and while he would have normally finished him in under a minute, his left arm, or rather the lack thereof, was a bit of a hindrance. He was slowly getting used to it, but to oversimplify it, his balance was off, so he needed to readjust. 

The potions master completely ignored the madman’s comments about his betrayal of the Dark Lord and proceeded to push Rodolphus further towards a wall, eventually taking him every chance of movement. Still, both of them were vicious fights and neither backed down or fell.

Harry and Croaker, with additional auror assistance, were taking on Rookwood and Dolohov. Well, truth be told, Harry duelled Rookwood on his own because Croaker, while knowledgeable, was struggling against the battlemage Dolohov and needed auror assistance.

The duel between Harry and Augustus was by far the most impressive one, nearly as insane as the fight against Diary-Riddle. Yes, Harry had fought on the run, he had infiltrated the ministry once, he had won the Triwizard Tournament and duelled Riddle, he had war experience, but Rookwood was much more trained, and probably just as skilled in magic. In some areas even much more skilled. But Harry was an accomplished elemental magician and Master of Death, which evened out the fight.

After blocking a killing curse with a conjured rock Harry stepped back and vanished into the shadows before appearing behind Rookwood. That element of surprise gave him the chance to hit the former unspeakable with a blasting curse in the back, which succeeded. Harry then deflected an organ dissolving curse from Dolohov, which was distraction enough for Rookwood to get back up. He spat out blood and while they exchanged curses he began talking to Harry.

“Shadow travel? You can’t be older than thirteen, and no one in centuries has even managed that. How, Potter?”

Harry laughed while beginning to put a bit more energy into his spells. He couldn’t keep that up for long, but he wanted to end that quickly. 

“Hah, you’d like to know that, don’t you? I’m the fucking Master of Death.”

Yes, Harry was gloating, and he was actually having fun, because he could not only keep up with Rookwood, but actually defeat him. And yes, he was a little bit arrogant, but for the most part that was justified. 

Still, that had negative consequences.

Because the other big duel was Alastor Moody against Bartemius Crouch Jr. And while that seemed to be rather balanced, Barty was younger and just as competent.

Neither of those two held back at all and both used the occasional Unforgivable (because Moody thought it was justified, and well, Barty had no hesitation whatsoever). Some of those curses hadn’t been seen in action since Grindelwald’s war and not even the Dark Lord knew them. Moody and Crouch Sr. though had studied those as high-ranking aurors, and Crouch Jr. had more than once looked into his father’s hidden spellbooks.

It was a demonic flame curse combined with transfiguration of the floor underneath Moody (into quicksand that changed back into stone once the old wizard’s feet were trapped), followed by a bone liquifying curse, a nasty scarlet flash of light, that ended the old auror’s life. Barty’s laughter combined with the painful scream from Moody followed by the sight of his body collapsing due to the liquified bones, got the attention of nearly everyone in the room.

 Severus just snarled “ Sectumsempra!” and beheaded Bella’s husband before rushing over to Moody and sending off half a dozen curses onto Bary Jr. Sure, he had his issues with Moody, but he was a more than competent fighter and after Damage Control he came to visit him in the hospital wing after hearing that he cut off his arm with the Mark on it. They were at least friendly and respected each other.

Harry, who had still been gloating during his fight with Rookwood got distracted by Moody’s death, giving the former unspeakable the chance to throw a gigantic blasting curse into Harry’s and Croaker’s direction, giving himself and Dolohov the chance to make a run for the Veil. Barty was a lost cause by then, Severus had cut him down without hesitation, but not before hitting him with the Cruciatus to break his defences.

After his ears had stopped ringing from the blasting curse and he got up again, Harry scanned the room briefly, seeing that Crouch and Lestrange were dead and ran after Rookwood and Dolohov. Shadow Travel was pointless because he had no idea where they were going. He nearly got hit by a part of the ceiling falling down, aftermath of the blasting curse. The DoM had taken quite some damage from the fight.

Death and destruction are what they will face.

Harry couldn’t help but remember that prophecy and realise how accurate it was.

 

Once he caught up with the two Death Eaters he just saw them disappear into the blue shining veil before reverting back to its normal colour. A small magical device next to it exploded, due to a delayed self-destruction spell by Rookwood. 

The two Death Eaters were gone and Moody was dead.

Harry screamed loudly out of frustration, exhaust and sorrow. 

 

A while before Rookwood and Dolohov stepped through the veil, Samael Shafiq had done so too, carrying the prophecy for the Dark Lord.

But instead of meeting Riddle himself he saw Rookwood, Dolohov, Barty Crouch Jr. and Rodolphus Lestrange step into the blue light of his portal, heading to the DMLE. The only other person left in the room now was Amycus Carrow.

“Carrow? Where is the Dark Lord? I have his prophecy for him.”

Amycus just laughed.

“Oh, Samael, the Dark Lord isn’t here anymore. He will want to listen to the prophecy too at some point, but right now that was just a distraction. I’m the only one left here, I’ll portkey away with the others once they’ll return. Until then I shall look after that orb there.”

“And where is He?”

“He’s making his move.”

 

At Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry a seventh year student, disillusioned of course, sneaked up behind Argus Filch and whispered “Imperio!” before commanding the old squib to open the secret passageway that led into Hogsmeade, into the basement of Honeydukes. The headmistress had locked that one for anyone aside from the staff. Afterwards he told the squib to go outside and open the main gate, so the Dark Lord could approach the castle much easier. Sure, the wards were still up, but an open main gate made them easier to attack, or so the Dark Lord’s message had said. 

Marcus Flint smiled diabolically.

Hogwarts would fall.

Notes:

So, that's it for today, and you all can imagine what will be going on next week. I do hope you liked this week's chapter, let me know in the comments what you think :)

Then, see ya all next week

Chapter 34: The Battle of Hogwarts

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here's this week's chapter. Another big one this time :)
Hope you'll like it

After Minerva had informed Amelia Bones of the potential intrusion in the DoM, leading to her sending off aurors to a dozen different locations, Remus and Hermione came into her office. The Head of Gryffindor had left to get Mione and the Marauder’s Map, so they could monitor the grounds. As a preventative measure, all students had to go to their common rooms (those of age that insisted on helping and were deemed skilled enough by the teachers were allowed to assist though) and the teachers raised the defences. Sure, the wards were strong, but they activated the castle’s further protections, those that couldn’t be sustained all day. 

The first aurors arrived quickly and started guarding the entrances into the castle. But since they got there via portkey, no one noticed the open main gate. Not the castle’s big doors, but the entrance gate near Hogsmeade Station, where the carriages would pass through. 

It wasn’t just a mere gate, but a magical one, connected to the wards and enchanted by Rowena Ravenclaw herself. When it was closed, it strengthened the wards. When it was open though, the wards were weaker. Why, no one really knew. 

Maybe because the wards on full power at all times wasn’t possible, and when the gate was open, Hogwarts would welcome people entering its grounds. A symbol, meaning “come in”. Or at least that’s the most popular theory. Others claimed that it was the location itself. Hogwarts was built on grounds saturated with magic, and this spot’s unique magical signatures or energies were weakening the wards here, so an enchanted iron gate was built to counteract that effect. It was one of those things discussed by scholars over the centuries, and on one has gotten any closer to an answer.

And because of that anomaly, that “weak spot”, the Dark Lord had ordered Marcus Flint to open the gate, or to be precise, let Filch do it. Afterwards he met with the other Dark Lord followers in the castle (there were seven of them, sixth and seventh year, five Slytherins, one Ravenclaw and one Hufflepuff) to prepare for the assault on Hogwarts. None of them were marked or openly prejudiced, so no one would really suspect them. 

 

Hermione was still a bit furious about Harry just leaving and rushing to the DoM, but she understood. Besides, an actual assault on the Ministry’s most secret department during the day with the aurors being aware of his return…it had to be a distraction. So who would be next? Hogwarts?

Those thoughts were interrupted by Harry and Severus returning through the floo, causing Minerva to look up from the directives for Hogwarts’ wards (she’d probably need a decade to read all the guidelines and directives for the entire castle that the past headmasters had left behind) and Mione to forget the Map she was monitoring. Since both wizards appeared to be a bit exhausted, Hermione first rushed forward and hugged Harry tightly before asking what happened.

“He’s got the prophecy. A DoM spy, don’t know why he didn’t use him last time around. The unspeakable guarding the prophecies can retrieve them with the so-called “Gloves of Delphi”.”

“And you didn’t get him?”

“No, he somehow managed to manipulate the veil to temporarily act as a portal.”

“He did what?”

Minerva too knew about the Veil of Death and was shocked about that. Something like that was definitely unheard of.

Then Severus spoke up, as sarcastic as always.

“Even better, Riddle sent Death Eaters through to us while Shafiq escaped. And since we weren’t expecting anyone else but the one unspeakable we did lose a few aurors to an ambush.”

Mione saw that this wasn’t the full truth.

“And? I know that’s not everything.”

Harry nodded, looking sad

“You’re right. Voldy sent Rookwood, Dolohov, Rodolphus Lestrange and Barty Jr. Quite a nasty fight. Severus took on Rodolphus, Moody fought Crouch, Croaker duelled Dolohov with the assistance of the aurors that weren’t busy setting up defensive spells and I took on Rookwood.”

“Rookwood? You fought Augustus Rookwood, Harry? Gosh, you’re mental. Thank god you’re alive.”

“Oh, I nearly had him, Mione. The Elder Wand is quite the help. But I might have been a bit arrogant, and then I got distracted. We all did.”

“Why? What happened?”

Severus was the one to answer the question.

“Crouch. Haven’t seen such a vicious attack in a long time. Demonic flame and transformation of the ground into hardening quicksand followed by a bone-liquifying curse. That was more horrifying to watch than some of the Cruciatus tortures by the Dark Lord.”

“Moody?”

Harry and Severus nodded, causing both Mione and Minerva to look rather grim. 

But they didn’t have time to look grim for a long while, because Minerva felt the wards being attacked.

“Fuck!”

 

Shortly before they were expecting Unspeakable Shafiq to open the portal into the DoM, Voldemort presented his final plan to take down Hogwarts to all the Death Eaters. While four of his best would cause a distraction at the Ministry, they’d attack the school. And once Hogwarts had fallen, the whole society would follow. The school was the country’s backbone.

Their “Junior Death Eaters” would open the passage starting under Honeydukes and the big gate. Then three groups of curse breakers would take on the wards at different spots to lure the teachers and aurors (which certainly would be there) out. The Dark Lord and his main force would then use the big gate. With his stronger core and the assistance of Nathaniel and Nott they would weaken the wards there so much that they could enter. Then they’d spread out in groups to attack the castle.

Bella had the task to use the secret passage, together with Alecto Carrow, Greyback and his wolves as well as a few low level Death Eaters to attack from the inside. 

“And, my followers, don’t dare forget my orders. Try to prevent too much pure blood from being spilled, even though we won’t be able to stop it entirely from happening. Severus and the Potter boy I want for myself, alive.”

 

The shopkeeper at Honeydukes looked up from the book he was reading, as the shop’s door opened. An unusual time for customers, but he wouldn’t complain. He greeted the two people entering, before he saw something rather strange. For a moment the facial features of the two flickered and seemed to change into other faces, but after a fraction of a second it stopped again, making it seem as if it had only been imagined. Little did he know that the glamour nearly failed when entering his store, thanks to some old and long forgotten wards. And because he didn’t know about it he relaxed and looked at his book again.

At the same time Bella was quietly debating with Alecto, if she could torture the man. The latter insisted on a quick and clean kill to get into the school undetected. The argument that Bella could have loads of fun at Hogwarts if she just held back here actually worked, and so Alecto lifted her wand.

“Petrificus Totalus!”

“What are you doing, Alecto?”

“Like I said, clean and quiet. Unforgivables do have the tendency to get noticed if the ministry is looking hard enough, and you know it. Now he can’t move or scream. Go ahead, have some fun and break his neck.”

Since her brother was absolutely insane too (not so intelligent though), she knew how to handle such a person.

And after the shopkeeper was dead, they signalled the others to come in. The entrance to the tunnel was exactly where the stupid rat had said it would be. Their part of the mission had been a complete success. 

 

Because they all had sneaked out of the common room after the teachers had controlled who was in attendance, the “Junior Death Eaters” were not really arousing any suspicion. They didn’t volunteer to fight (which would be strange with their family background) but stayed in the common rooms until the teachers left to work on the wards. Then they met and planned.

Marcus Flint had another idea. In his house there were a few children of those that would attack the school soon, maybe he could talk to those. They could cover for them if a teacher came back and if necessary they’d be a secret weapon. So he approached Malfoy (with his two stupid followers) and Pansy Parkinson in a quiet corner of the common room.

“So, you guys. The Dark Lord will attack the school today, and your fathers will all be here too. I know that you all hate Potter and his friends, so are you on board?”

He did have his wand in his hand, clearly signalling that they’d get obliviated or worse, if the answer was anything but a yes.

Draco, still angry at Potter and the fact that he couldn’t do anything against him, nodded. Crabbe and Goyle did so too, but well, they were not really bright and followed Draco into everything. Pansy was just as eager at nodding, she had gotten some encrypted messages from her mother stating that her father was the Dark Lord’s right hand man these days. She wouldn’t fight, no, she wasn’t trained for that yet, but she’d help as much as she could.

 

The wardbreaking teams were in position, and after the Dark Lord commanded them to start through his Dark Mark, the response came quickly. After about two minutes of wardbreaking the first auror troops came into close proximity of the wards and started firing spells at the Death Eaters. The fire was quickly returned, but since both were behind shields (the aurors behind Hogwarts’ wards and the Death Eaters had at least ten wizards per team just to do shield charms), not much happened. It would eventually be a race between the two groups, who could break the shields faster than the others.

Just a few minutes after the first fights had started, the Dark Lord and most of his Death Eaters (he had about seventy of them with him) approached Hogwarts via the path coming from Hogsmeade. Once they were close to the wards, Voldemort stepped forward and reached out for the magical shielding with his left hand. He felt it, solid as a wall and with some nasty defences if he should try pushing through. But that was obviously not what he had planned. While telling his curse breakers to step forward he himself began weakening the wards. 

 

“Oh damn it, someone is attacking the wards at the gate.”

Mione looked up from the map as Minerva said that. She was still supervising the map while Severus and Harry both took a pepper-up potion so they’d be ready for battle.

“But…that should be closed, because that’s where the wards are the weakest. 

Harry groaned and tried to get up, but the potion was not yet fully working, and he knew that he’d have to wait at least ten more minutes to be battle-ready.

“So that’s…oh gosh, I should really wait the ten more minutes…where Riddle will be. The other attacks divided our attention and now he’s attacking the weakest points. Whoever imperiused the others when Greyback attacked must have opened the gate.”

“But only staff can do that and we check all staff members for dark magic regularly.”

Minerva and Snape both looked at each other, realising who the most likely victim must have been. 

“Damn! We don’t check Argus because he’s a squib. He couldn’t have been the one to imperius the students so he stayed unchecked.”

Harry then tapped his mirror, calling for Moony and told him where Argus Filch was currently located. It was then that Hermione saw the group of people coming through the tunnel from Hogsmeade. 

“Remus! Greyback is coming through the tunnel under the one-eyed witch. He’s got about a dozen people with him. And…oh no. I’ve got to go.”

“Mione?”

“I’m sorry, Harry. I know you want to come with me, but that’s a fight I need to do. It can’t wait and you’re not ready yet.”

“Who?”

“For one, Alecto Carrow. And…Bella.”

Harry closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He knew that Mione had to go after Bella, as a revenge for the torture and killing at Malfoy Manor. There was no way in stopping her aside from with force, and no one would want to mess with her. With all her training she could easily take on Minerva or Severus and have good chances. And she wouldn’t be alone.

She headed for the door of the headmistresses office but then hesitated. This would be a dangerous fight, and she couldn’t just leave.

That’s when she turned around and walked up to Harry, who was sitting on one of Minerva’s couches. She kneeled down in front of him, and Harry grabbed her hands before facing himself to get on his feet, pulling her up with him. And as they were standing there, just centimetres apart, knowing that they had many challenges ahead of them, all of them potentially ending badly, they knew what to do. It just simply felt right.

As both kids were about to kiss each other, both Minerva and Severus wanted to turn away to give them some privacy, but on the other hand they wanted to see the binding.

Harry and Hermione looked deeply into each others’ eyes, then Harry softly cupped her cheeks with his hands and leaned forward. Their eyes closed as their lips touched for the first time, soft and gently. But slowly their kiss got more and more energetic, while the magical power within their veins began to flare up. What exactly happened was hard to describe, but it felt like the magical energy was floating from one to the other and back. On a mere magical level it was hard to say where the one stopped and the other began, as they were one. 

The kiss didn’t stop for another minute or so (by now it was a French kiss), but not only because they were enjoying the kissing. Their magic felt like it was one and their consciousnesses felt like they were intermingling, touching each other. Harry and Hermione felt each others’ emotions, their love, and to some level even what the other thought. Not that this was much right now, they were much too focussed on snogging until realising that Severus and Minnie were watching. And Bella was approaching the castle too.

Now blushing, the two of them ended the kiss, and the bright white light that had been surrounding them slowly faded, enabling them to see the two grinning teachers. And Minnie was the first one to speak up.

“I think that congratulations are in order, but we’ve got more important things to do. Let’s all manage to survive the day and then we’ll celebrate.”

“You’re right. Then I’ll be going after Bella now, you know I have to.”

“Yes, I know. Stay safe.”

“You too. I love you, Harry.”

He briefly hesitated, surprised by the word that sounded so true and perfect.

“And I love you too, Hermione.”

 

When Remus hurried into the Gryffindor common room to inform Professor Bagshot (she was too old to fight and looked after the lions that had to stay back) that Bellatrix Lestrange and Fenrir Greyback were using a secret passage to get into the castle and that he’d send a guard to them, Neville overheard them talking. He couldn’t believe it, the fucking Lestrange bitch was here, and he felt so confident in his skills from Harry’s training that he thought he could sneak out and go after her himself. And once Remus Lupin was gone, going after Bella himself, Neville took the opportunity of Bagshot telling some tales of the past to calm the younger years to discreetly leave the common room.

Sure, the young boy had no chance of keeping up with the werewolf, but he wasn’t too slow either. And so Neville arrived at the statue that concealed the secret passage. Well, he stayed hidden behind a corner and waited for something to happen. Just moments after him Hermione, two aurors and Professor Babbling arrived, each of them pointing their wand at the statue. Then Mione came up with a suggestion.

“They still need about a minute or so, how about we flood the tunnel?”

“Generally yes, a good idea, but they are probably fast enough to vanish that, they have more manpower. Besides, we’ll lose the element of surprise. But I could…”

Professor Babbling lifted her wand and began chanting long latin phrases combined with complex wand movements. Small runes, glowing fiery red, began to appear all over the statue.

“What is the password of that passage, Miss Granger?”

“It’s Dissendium . Oh! That’s brilliant.”

She understood only about half the runes and chants, but it seemed like Professor Babbling was putting a ward on the statue that reacted aggressively when one spoke the passphrase. The exact consequences Hermione didn’t fully comprehend, but it must be sort of an elemental backlash, probably fire magic. That was the professor’s speciality.

 

And while Bellatrix Lestrange wasn’t expecting a trap, she considered the possibility and ordered one of the low level Death Eaters to speak the passphrase (after they had transfigured the stone slide into stairs). Nearly all of them put up their shield charms on her orders (not that all the wolves actually could perform one, so they waited unprotected and mostly behind the others with shields) and then they opened the secret passage. 

All hell broke loose once a huge firestorm made its way through the tunnel and killed three Death Eaters and two wolves. Since Professor Babbling hadn’t had much more than a minute to put up the wards it wasn’t as strong as it could have been and just lasted seconds, but it still was effective. Aside from the fact that Bella Lestrange was now furious. 

Just moments after the fire started (and ended), the statue exploded, and with it a part of the floor. Despite shields the wizards got pushed back a bit and that gave the Death Eaters enough time to rush into the castle. 

Remus was among the first to recover from the blast and once he saw Greyback, he began to attack. The werewolf and two of his followers began to run away though, but they didn’t flee. They were spreading out. And since they all were just facing Lupin, Babbling, two aurors and Hermione, they had an advantage. Some of the Death Eaters and other wolves were either facing the aurors or spreading out. Alecto battled Babbling and Remus hunted down Greyback and two wolves.

Then, as the last of them, Bellatrix Lestrange stepped out of the giant hole in the floor. It was just like she had expected. Their welcoming party was already busy and so she could walk freely through the ancient castle and torture and kill mudbloods. And she already saw one to start with.

Hermione.

Little did the crazy witch know that she was about to face a time travelling witch that was well-versed in many fields of magic, trained in combat, a veteran of the second wizarding war and she was holding a grudge. Bella had killed her last time around, and now she’d get her revenge.

“Ha, little mudblood. Time to play now!”

Hermione just laughed and threw a silent stunner at Bella, which she dodged, but just barely. The laughter on the bitch’s face faded and she looked rather serious now. 

What followed was something more colourful than any lightshow in the world. Both witches were fast, casting wordlessly and using rather unknown spells. After a few attempts of a killing curse, which Hermione always blocked with conjured objects, Bella stopped using unforgivables and focussed on quick casting of violent spells.

Hermione slowly began to sweat after two minutes of dodging spells, but she wasn’t the only one getting exhausted. Still, she had to continue, and thanks to Remus’ training and some of the spells from the Potter Grimoire or the Black library she could easily claim to be of equal skill.

Babbling at the same time tried her best at fighting against Alecto Carrow. She would have nearly had it a few times if not for one of the other Death Eaters attacking her too. It seemed as if Alecto was familiar with Ancient Runes and managed to avoid most of the traps the professor built. And thanks to her speed, Babbling had to rely mostly on combat spells, having no time for complex runes.

 

At the same time, Tom Riddle finally managed to properly exploit the weakness within the wards and weaken them so much, that all his Death Eaters that were with him could break through and enter Hogwarts’ grounds.

“Spread! Move in groups of at least five, attack the aurors that keep out other teams from entering. Curse breakers, help those from the inside. Spread! Let’s conquer Hogwarts.”

Then he turned to his right hand man.

“Nathaniel, perform the ritual I gave you, so that the ministry group can portkey through the wards.”

What Nathaniel Parkinson was performing was essentially the same ritual as they did to get into Azkaban, but on a smaller scale. They had already prepared the runic circle at Riddle Manor and now only needed to summon those Death Eaters through the wards.

Though the Dark Lord was disappointed to see only Augustus and Dolohov. He demanded an explanation.

“My Lord, it was the Potter boy and Snape. They knew someone went after the prophecy, probably a notification spell that Shaifq didn’t see, maybe old family magic. Aurors and unspeakables were already waiting for us. Snape killed Rodolphus and Bartemius after the latter killed Alastor Moody. And Potter, he’s bloody strong and claims to be the Master of Death. And I even believe that.”

Nathaniel looked up at those words. To hear about Barty’s death was sad, he respected the brilliant though mad man. Moody’s death actually cheered him up. But the Master of Death?

“He has the Elder Wand?”

“I think so, Nathaniel. I saw it, and I saw the cloak. He even had the ring with the stone on his finger, it started glowing once he channelled a lot of his magic. It had the Peverell coat of arms on it.”

Now the Dark Lord was both curious and furious. He hadn’t known about the Deathly Hallows before Nathaniel had told him the tale in Albania, the downside of not being raised by wizards. He had even begun to suspect that the Gaunts (Morfin had bragged about that before his death) were actually related to the Peverells and might have a Hallow. And now, the description of that ring made it sound like he had already held one of them in his hands once. Potter had destroyed a horcrux. 

“Broad golden ring, red gem with the symbol of the Hallows scratched into the stone?”

“Yes, my Lord. Why?”

“The…the bloody boy has one of my horcruxes.”

“One of? I figured you made one, but more than one? How is that even possible?”

“You two are among my most trusted followers, so I can tell you. I wanted seven parts, six horcruxes. The last one failed when I wanted to kill Potter.”

“SIX SOUL PIECES?”

Augustus Rookwood couldn’t believe it. During his time in the DoM he had researched horcruxes when studying death, and what the Dark Lord told him just sounded insane. He briefly told his Lord that by now he only had a fragment of his soul left, a very small one. So small that he wouldn’t have thought it possible to even exist. And the Dark Lord listened, because Augustus was an expert on the subject.

“It sounds like I might have miscalculated that. I want to see your research about that after the battle, Augustus. But now, back to the so-called “Master of Death”. Is Potter really that strong?”

Once Rookwood told him what kind of powers the boy had used, he was astonished. Not even he had done those things at that age. He’d need to face Potter today and eliminate the threat. 

“But could it be the horcrux that makes him so strong?”

“No, I doubt it. It would drain him and create a new you…just like with the basilisk incident. My Lord, did you create one as a teenager?”

“Yes…yes, I did. How did you know?”

“Because then he destroyed that one too. They fought you, or a spirit of you. Now that all makes sense. Someone opened the Chamber of Secrets, as we know, but my spies claimed it was a “spirit, claiming to be a teenage Tom Riddle.” Potter used a family magic spell to destroy it. That’s why the ring is still intact.”

Lord Voldemort was furious, and that was why he himself now started to join the battle, as new troops seemed to arrive. Nathaniel and Augustus stayed back for a moment though.

“Nathaniel, you have no idea how unstable he must be. The remaining soul always splits in half. You can calculate yourself how much is still left.”

“Yes, and with Potter being so strong, he could actually fail. And now that he’s Master of Death…They are friends with the goblins as well, and their magic could be used to track the soul pieces. How high do you think the chance is that he’s mortal?”

“Likely. And since I know that you’re not all about purity and the cause, but here for the power too, let me give you this.”

“What’s…emergency portkey?”

“Yes. Out of Hogwarts and into a bolthole of mine in Scandinavia.”

The two men agreed that they would escape if the Dark Lord would fall. They were just here to gain power, not more. And even if they didn’t like muggles or mudbloods, they were smart enough to know of their intelligence and power. The whole “blood purity” was nonsense.

But still, they’d fight, because if they would win, they were at the top with the Dark Lord himself.

 

By now the ministry had sent even more troops, as much as they could offer without abandoning any other potential target. Many people aside from the aurors had volunteered too, people like Arthur Weasley and his eldest two sons, Sirius and even some of the Order members that weren’t Dumbledore fanatics. 

But when a handful of armed goblins entered the Ministry of Magic and demanded to see the Minister, everyone was surprised. Amelia met with the delegation, led by King Ragnok’s oldest son. They wanted to fight too, and because the situation was and would be dire, she promised to bring the changes in creature law in front of the Wizengamot herself, without any bargaining. 

 

And so, a more or less equal force to the Dark Lord’s troops portkeyed into Hogwarts’ Great Hall and began spreading over the grounds.

Harry and Severus had by now regenerated, and even if the boy wanted to join his soulmate in fighting Bella Lestrange, he knew that she and the others could manage that. He had to face Voldemort. Minerva kept on working on the wards and various protections (like animating the statues) from within her office, because that was Hogwarts’ centre of power.

 

Remus had managed to stop Greyback and at least one of the two wolves and faced them now in a corridor. It was a brutal battle, because despite favouring the wolf powers, Greyback was a bloody terrifying wizard, proficient in silent casting, battle magic and the Dark Arts. His companion was not even remotely that strong, but the continuous attacks from two wolves were hard to handle for Remus.  

After about thirty seconds of fighting, the second werewolf wizards just collapsed, having a major cut on his chest that bled a lot. Only a fraction of a second later, Fenrir Greyback had to face not only Remus Lupin, but also the former Duelling Champion Filius Flitwick. And together they managed to land a few hits on the man’s body, causing him to weaken and stumble. But before one of the two wizards could land a deadly hit, Filius collapsed. A stunner had hit him, and only the werewolf’s heightened senses allowed him to dodge the one heading for him. It was a Ravenclaw student, a seventh year, that had attacked Filius and now tried attacking Remus too.

It was only thanks to a coincidence that he couldn’t even start casting another spell. Because the seventh year Gryffindor Percy Weasley was one of those out in the corridors to fight against the intruders, and when he saw the Claw attacking teachers, he just acted. 

“Diffindio!”

And since Percy was undoubtedly magically strong and just acted intuitively, not dialling back the power in the spell, it caused such a deep gash that the Claw just collapsed and died instantly. Despite the pain that knowledge was causing him, the young man didn’t stop. Oliver Wood, who was just a few steps behind him, threw a bludgeoning curse at Greyback, causing the werewolf to fall backwards.

Remus sensed the opportunity, and his inner wolf, Moony, took control of the situation. One silent Sectumsempra and Fenrir Greyback’s head was no longer connected to the body. His hunt was finally over.

But the fight wasn’t.

Filius was already getting up again, cursing himself for that stupid oversight. Getting cursed by a student, no matter how good (except Harry and Hermione probably) wasn’t good for his ego.

“Mr. Weasley, Mr. Wood. Good job, thank you. And please, Percy, don’t beat yourself up about what you did, you had no choice. And there will be a time to grieve and regret, but not now. Apparently we have some Death Eaters among the students. Though not marked, that we would have picked up. You two come with me now, we have to hunt.”

The facial expression of their head of house was definitely terrifying and showed his lycanthropy. He was ready to hunt down every single intruder, and he wanted their help. That they could do.

Filius promised Remus to spread the word of the student Death Eaters and of Greyback’s death while heading towards the spot where Bellatrix Lestrange and Alecto Carrow had been.

 

Over there, at the crater around the secret passage, the fight was still ongoing. Neville Longbottom was still hiding around a corner and occasionally throwing hexes and curses at some of the Death Eaters, but not too much to get noticed. He had realised, that despite all his training, he would be dead within seconds in any direct combat.

Hermione, getting just as weak as Bella, then tried reaching for Harry with her mind. She felt his presence now more than ever before, and she touched his consciousness. He was worried for her and heading down towards the main battlefield outside of the castle to find Voldemort.

And Harry felt her reaching out. He saw what she saw for a brief moment, and then decided to try something out. When they kissed he felt her magic like it was part of his’ and vice versa. So could he…yes, he could.

A rush of power ran through Hermione’s veins. Not too much so Harry would be weak, but enough to cast a strong tornado spell, infused with something called “angelic fire”. Not as strong as fiendfyre, but also easier to shape and control.

This flaming tornado (about two and a half metres high and one metre in diameter) headed straight for Bellatrix Lestrange, and the witch was getting more and more afraid the closer it got. Hoping that her surprisingly powerful enemy would either have to drop the storm to dodge, or get hit with her curse, she tried it once more.

“Avada Keda..”

Neville Longbottom, not the timid boy he had been in the last timeline, but a strong and brave Lord Longbottom now, jumped forward and yelled “ Confringo! ” He knew that it wouldn’t be too strong, his blasting curse was rather weak, but it did its job in hitting Bellatrix Lestrange, the woman who had tortured his parents into insanity, in the stomach. She gasped for air and never managed to finish the killing curse, and then the fiery storm came for her and engulfed her. After about two seconds of screaming it was quiet again and the storm faded. Bella was nothing more than a body, burned so much that one couldn’t even identify her anymore. She was dead.

Filius arrived just in time to see that happen and quickly deflected all the curses heading for Miss Granger and Mr. Longbottom before taking out the rest of the Death Eaters and wolves around the crater, weakened from fighting aurors. Only one werewolf and one Death Eater (plus the second wolf that had accompanied Greyback, which Remus was already hunting) were left, and the unknown number of students.

Oh, and Alecto Carrow of course, who was still battling Babbling. Both had taken quite some damage, so when Filius and Hermione (despite being a bit exhausted) both cursed Alecto, she collapsed. She wasn’t dead, but she might die either way because of her wounds. They bound her and brought both her and Professor Babbling into the hospital wing, where St. Mungo’s healers were already waiting.

 

Harry had by now met up with Sirius on the battlefield. Because that’s what it was. Before the reinforcements arrived, the Death Eaters that breached with Riddle at the main gate had attacked the auror teams that were busy keeping the curse breakers away from breaching. During those fights (with more auror than Death Eater losses), all three teams of the Dark Lord were able to break through. Now the aurors and professors were facing around one hundred and twenty Death Eaters plus about forty werewolves (obviously not transformed, and most of them not too strong magically, but physically much stronger than humans).

Together Sirius and Harry were battling quite a lot of Death Eaters, but Harry decided against going for the Elder Wand or any massive spells to not weaken himself. 

When he felt Hermione’s joy, he reached out for her and saw what she had seen and done. He laughed out loud.

“What’s so funny, Prongslet?”

“Mione killed Bella! She burnt that bitch alive.”

Everyone who heard that, got more motivated and seemed to get a boost of energy. If Voldemort’s most terrifying follower was dead, then they could do it. No one of them was undefeatable, not even the infamous Bellatrix Lestrange.

The Death Eaters though got terrified by that and relayed the message back to the Dark Lord, who was currently fighting Kingsley Shacklebolt, Septima Vector and three senior aurors at once. Riddle was furious, because that meant his attempt at storming the castle hadn’t worked.

 

Severus Snape had left the headmistresses office shortly after Harry, heading towards the secret tunnel where Hermione was bound to be fighting Bella, when he ran into two Death Eaters. No, one Death Eater and a werewolf. Severus cut them into pieces before they could even lift their wands. That was the benefit of living in this castle for such a long time, he knew how to move unseen. Then he received word of the dead student that was  assisting the Dark Lord. Sure, it was a Ravenclaw, but if there was a Claw involved, then some of his Snakes too, most likely. So Severus headed into the dungeons.

 

“WHO OF YOU SUPPORTS THE DARK LORD? DON’T LIE TO ME, I KNOW THAT HE HAS FOLLOWERS AMONG THE STUDENTS!”

That was an entrance not a single Slytherin would ever forget, because Snape was both furious and terrifying. It didn’t take Snape more than a second to establish, which five students were missing. He asked his students where they were, and judging from the reaction he figured that Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, possibly Parkinson were in on it. For a moment he thought about Nott, but then saw the look of disgust and hatred on the boy’s face, remembering that he had even thanked Harry for getting his father arrested. The rest of the students seemed innocent.

“Malfoy!”

“Sir?”

“Where are they?”

The blonde ferret (he had seen the memory of the ferret incident, quite hilarious) began to sweat, clearly nervous.

“Uhm, Flint said that they were gonna look for you and Professor Sinistra to join the fight. They wanted to help us.”

Severus nearly burst out laughing as Daphne snorted because of  the very very bad lie.

“Well, seeing that your father is out there, I think you have a different side in the conflict than we do. And after the fight is done I’ll have to check the sorting hat for damages. How you got sorted into the house of the cunning is something I don’t understand. Crabbe, Goyle, Parkinson! You three and Malfoy come with me. Í’ll lock you up myself until we have won.”

Pansy now realised that Snape had scared them all with his entrance to try and sort out the guilty ones. And he had managed that pretty well.

“Well, Professor, I think you won’t be alive for much longer. I hear the Dark Lord wants you alive and for himself. My father sits at the Dark Lord’s side, and I’ll gladly join them to watch you die for your betrayal of our cau..”

“ Stupefy! Oh come on, don’t look at me that way, Nott. As if you hadn’t considered doing the same.”

“Considered yes, Daphne, but only that. Your Gryffindor boyfriend is a bad influence on you.”

“Oh shut up, Nott.”

Snape shook his head, tied up the four students and led them (well, he levitated Pansy) into one of the unused dungeon cells. Those were once used to restrain mad students (and troublemakers) during Phineas Niggelus Black’s time as headmaster. No normal student could break out of those on his own, and especially not without their wand. Because those he took of them and handed Daphne. That girl would one day be a good prefect (if the Gryffindor influence won’t get too much).

Once he had closed the door, Severus listened in on the conversation the four had. He knew his students, and the chance of Crabbe or Goyle saying something incriminating was pretty high

“Who d’you reckon are the two others Flint has? Like he said “trust me and my six buddies. We know our way around Dark Magic.”

Severus grinned and then stopped listening in, since all he heard was Malfoy shouting at Goyle for saying that out loud.

He cast his Patronus, still the white doe.

“Go and tell Minerva that there are seven. The dead Claw, five Snakes and an unknown one. The Slytherins are…”

And once the headmistress was informed of that, he began making his way to the battlefield outside. This day wasn’t over.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. As always, let me know in the comments what you think.
Until next week, see ya :)

Chapter 35: The Downfall of Lord Voldemort?

Notes:

Good morning everyone, I hope you're all doing fine. Here's this week's chapter of "A Whole New Life"

Have fun reading :)

Hermione was, after having a Pepper-Up Potion, as well on her way outside. And even though she knew that things were messy and brutal outside, seeing it was completely different. She headed for Harry and Sirius, incapacitating three Death Eaters temporarily along the way. 

A bit further away she was able to see the unmistakable ginger hair of the Weasleys. Arthur, Bill and Charlie were all here, and apparently Percy was fighting inside and had helped Remus to defeat Greyback and one of the rogue students. It was a very bloody battle for sure, because by now none of the good guys was only going for stunners anymore. They weren’t being led by “everyone-deserves-a-second-chance-Dumbledore” anymore and the werewolf attack on Hogwarts had changed the publics’ mindset. If life in Azkaban didn’t work anymore because Voldemort could just break them out, then they’d need harsher punishments. Minister Bones had been against any kind of death penalty, but by now the calls for Veil or Dementor’s Kiss were getting more and more.

And so the people fighting in the Battle of Hogwarts didn’t really intend on making prisoners. Sure, they didn’t kill ruthlessly, but they did use deadly force when taking down Death Eaters. Bodies were piling up on both sides of the battle, and that at a disturbing speed. But that might also be because many volunteers from all over Wizarding Britain and Wizarding France (as well as the French Auror Force) were still portkeying in. But the Dark Lord got more supporters coming in too, be it hidden sympathisers or followers just like Unspeakable Shaifq, or pureblood extremists and mercenaries from the continent. Especially Dolohov, who was the son of a Russian wizard (who kept claiming that Tolstoy based the character “Dolokhov” (War and Peace) on his father) and a British witch, still had ties to other Durmstrang absolvents with the same political opinion. Ever since the breakout from Azkaban he tried to connect with as many people from his old network as possible, and he was actually quite successful, at least when it came to Eastern Europe. Thorfinn Rowle had a cousin who married into a Spanish pureblood family (radicals too) and he managed to get them assistance from Western Europe. Rookwood and Goyle had some ties to Scandinavia, though only the latter to people willing to fight.

Due to that the number of fighters on both sides steadily increased and was well over three hundred people on both sides. And despite the vast amount of attackers, none of them managed to come close to the castle for now (excluding those that entered via the tunnel and were all dead by now, even those Remus had hunted down). Minerva was fighting from within her office, and for the first time in centuries Hogwarts’ defences were showing all that they could do. Waves of elemental magic, lightning strikes, marching statues and so much more. She was definitely the one that kept the battle outside and away from the students. 

Once Hermione was remotely close to Harry, he turned around and, with a wave of his hand dodging a curse intended to hit him in his back, rushed into the arm of his bonded soulmate. And with the moment they touched each other again, both felt a rush of energy and all the weakness disappeared. Together they’d be the strongest force on the battlefield.

And while Sirius was showing the Death Eater that tried to curse Harry in the back, Mulciber Jr., what kind of a ruthless fighter a Marauder could be, the soul bonded couple headed closer to Voldy and his main Death Eaters. Since they got caught up in a few battles that mostly ended with severe injuries or death for their opponents (they were damn fast and as a duo could take on four at once and still win), Remus, Sirius, Percy, Oliver and Arthur Greengrass managed to catch up with them. Together they quite literally cut their way through the Death Eaters, and many others followed their example. Filius Flitwick, Severus, Arthur Weasley and his eldest two sons (happy to reunite with Percy), Septima Vector and Kingsley (after losing two other aurors they decided to fall back a bit instead of trying to defeat Voldemort), Andromeda Tonks (who was nearly as scary as her crazy sister) and Saul Croaker, they all followed Harry and Hermione into the fight. And it was no understatement when Septima Vector commented that they were basically on a killing spree. They pushed their way through Voldemort's troops without taking any serious damage most of the time. Kingsley lost a hand and Septima, who was still fighting alongside the auror, probably had a few broken ribs from that one bludgeoning curse Rastaban Lestrange wanted to throw at Severus for killing his brother. Charlie Weasley had taken a few curses too (mainly cutting curses weakened by his shield charm), to defend Bill, who was using most of the ancient curses he had learned to dispel them in Egypt. Quite a few nasty ones, truth be told.

But overall their shield charms were holding and those that didn’t work on the shields took out as many Death Eaters as possible. They’d get overrun if they wouldn’t act brutal and ruthless.

At one point, between dodging an organ dissolving curse and retaliating with a blood boiling curse, Andi Tonks told Sirius and Hermione, those currently closest to her, how much she’d love to take out all her aggression on Bella.

“And when I find that bitch of a sister - seriously Travers, going for the same curse twice? Idiot. Go dodge that…or not. Well, that’s one less - anyway, what was I saying? Oh yes, my sister. Believe me, she’s not the only one having read Black Family Grimoires. I’ll dismember her slowly and enjoy every one of her screams. You know, she put me under the Cruciatus when she was fourteen, just to “try it out”. What a bitch.”

At first, Hermione looked appalled by the thought of Bella torturing her sister as a teenager, then she had to tell Andi the news.

“Hate to break it to you, but that bitch entered the castle with Alecto Carrow, werewolves and a few Death - thanks for dodging that, Sirius. Anyway, I burned that bitch alive, sorry Andi. No, actually I’m not sorry.”

Andi was, truth be told, very surprised by the actions of the young Hermione Granger. While she didn’t know the truth about the time travelling she did indeed suspect it, having overheard a few conversations and seen some of the things she could do. Not all of that could be blamed on her genius intellect.

“Good to hear. I do hope she suffered.”

“Oh she did. The least I could do to retaliate.”

“Retaliate? For what?”

“Killing me…oops. Just forget what I said, will you?”

Andi just shook her head. That was not the kind of time travel she would have guessed, but well, it explained a lot. But that didn’t really matter now, they had to take down a fucking Dark Lord and his insane followers. 

 

Slowly, but steadily the battlefield seemed to change. Everyone was following Harry and co. There were no longer dozens of separate fights all over the castle’s grounds but one big fight. And so they started to push back the Death Eaters and come closer to the Dark Lord and his remaining inner circle. 

Lord Voldemort was surrounded by his most loyal and/or experienced followers, among them Parkinson, Rookwood, Dolohov, Nott, Malfoy, the rat and many more. For the time being they were mainly fighting from afar or supporting with shields while the low-level Death Eaters continued to battle for their lives.

But at some point their opponents came closer. Potter and Black were leading the fight, but many other familiar faces were among them. The only two young magicians (Harry and Hermione) were performing quite extraordinary things that rivalled if not surpassed his skill at that age.

He couldn’t exactly make out what the Potter boy was yelling at him, but now Riddle thought that it was time for another display of his power. 

 

Harry saw Voldemort and yelled at him in anger, but once the Dark Lord flicked his wand, he got silent again and watched, ready to defend himself. That was unnecessary though, because it was no attack. 

The body of Albus Dumbledore appeared out of nowhere, summoned to the battlefield by Voldemort, and for a brief moment everyone stopped doing whatever they were doing and stared at the corpse of the “most powerful wizard of their time”. While they despised him nearly as much as Voldemort, his power was indisputably enormous…or had been.

The moment of shock the Dark Lord wanted to create worked, and his followers used that to continue attacking, but Tom Riddle wasn’t done yet.

Harry recognised the spell to create an Inferius immediately, and so did half the people around him. And because of that the body of Albus Dumbledore didn’t even start moving before being incinerated by fire curses (from a standard incindio or an angel’s fire to even fiendfyre, everything was used) from nine different people.  The thought of a Dumbledore Inferius was pretty scary.

 

Looking around and seeing all the bloodshed, Harry had enough. He pointed the Elder Wand to his throat and cast a silent Sonorus.

“The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…”

Lord Voldemort, upon hearing the entire prophecy, signalled his followers to stop attacking and walked towards Harry Potter. A clearing formed itself, and no one dared attacking now. The two wizards, one looking like being in his twenties despite being much older, and the other had the aura of a grown man despite being so young, gave off so much magical power that even a muggle would have probably felt it.

“Potter.”

“Tom.”

Voldemort’s facial expression changed to anger, and his eyes glowed bright red.

“You can’t kill me. I suggest you tell your pathetic excuses of wizards to stand down and bow to Lord Voldemort.”

Harry laughed, and everyone, be it friend or foe, looked at him in surprise.

“You know, Tom, sometimes I think you really believe that.”

 

Lucius Malfoy, still trying to prove his worth to his master and redeem himself, couldn’t take Potter’s arrogance anymore, lifted his wand and cast the killing curse at the boy without any hesitation.

Harry saw the movement and expected it. He saw it coming, and with his wandless hand he conjured a rock big enough to block the green spell. 

“Malfoy, you stupid idiot!”

And all hell broke loose around Lucius Malfoy. A lion, made of fire, jumped out of Harry’s left hand and before anyone could react it bit the blonde idiot in half. The creature growled, and Harry knew that he shouldn’t play around with his magic too much before facing Tom, but he didn’t want to let the flame lion go just now.

Not before it ripped apart Peter Pettigrew with its burning claws. Yes, it was a ruthless act, but still. The man had betrayed his parents, so he didn’t feel much remorse at all. And once the rat was dead, the lion just fell apart, and only little sparks of fire falling to the ground were left of it.

“The boy is mine to kill! Keep your wands down! And you, Potter, that was quite the display of Power. But poor Peter. I never thought that you could be so ruthless and just kill him. But well, an unspectacular death for an unspectacular man. And now it’s your turn to suffer and die!”

And with that Tom started to unleash the power of the elements on Harry, but the boy was just as skilled by now and could rather easily defend himself from dragons made of fire or lightning strikes. If Augustus Rookwood had believed that Potter would be weakened and magically exhausted, then he would have to admit now that this assumption was wrong. So very very wrong.

Since the Dark Lord had seen his opponent block a killing curse with wand- and wordless conjuring, he didn’t even waste energy on trying to use the Unforgivables but instead used his most complex and rare spells, those that barely anyone knew anymore. 

But to his surprise, the Potter boy knew quite some rare spells too, probably due to his family’s grimoires. The fact that he had the Slytherin and the Peverell Lordship made him angry, ever since he knew about it. He could have had it, but no, he “died”. To be fair, he did die by both goblin and wizarding law and in his leech state he had no more rights than any ghost or spirit - which is basically none.

Even when considering the knowledge the boy had access too, something was very unusual and strange. His skill was beyond what it should be, his core was enormous (so much that he could feel it easily) and he behaved like a man familiar with war and death. It was strange, and if he wouldn’t have to kill the boy, then he’d try finding out what was behind it. 

The anger behind knowing that he made the prophecy come true by marking Potter with that bloody scar fuelled his spells even more, and so did the sight of his once-so-loyal-servant Severus. The traitor had really cut off his arm to sever the connection. He’d be the next one he’d kill by himself once the Potter boy was…

Tom was interrupted in his thinking by Potter just disappearing (but not apparating since he heard no sound) and then throwing a flesh-eating curse at him from behind. He wasn’t quick enough to dodge that one completely and so he groaned once it hit his left arm. Sure, a silent and wandless charm to prevent the spread for the time being and back into the offensive, but it had been a massive hit for his ego.

“Oh…that you will regret, Potter. You can’t kill me.”

“Tom, you haven’t realised it yet, have you. Seriously, stop it with that bloody demonic fire.”

Harry flicked the Elder Wand and the conjured creature exploded into little sparks. He was getting both frustrated and exhausted at the same time, because while Tom couldn’t overpower him, he couldn’t overpower Tom either. Knowledge-wise they were both pretty strong, so much that it was impossible to say who was better. While Harry had worked through the Potter Library and some of the oldest Grimoires in existence, Tom had travelled the world, discovered lost and ancient spells and probably had access to a dozen family libraries due to his followers.

“I haven’t realised what, Potter?”

“And I thought that you were smart, see that ring on my finger?”

Voldemort growled, it was indeed the Gaunt ring.

“Oh, realised it now? I got them all.”

“All? Yes, I know. You couldn’t stop bragging about being the Master of Death.”

Harry laughed, and a magical wind emerged as the invisibility cloak on his back appeared. Those that were very skilled when it came to sensing ambient magic could hear a soft and mystic melody within the wind. 

“Oh no, that’s not what I meant.”

He transfigured the ground beneath the Dark Lord into lava, but Riddle was just as good as him in transfiguration and just moments later the molten stone was a swarm of bees heading for Harry. Not that this was much of a challenge, those became sand and fell to the ground where Harry used them to send a sandstorm at Riddle. Not that it did much.

“The ring, the locket, the cup and your diary. Oh, and the diadem too, as if I wouldn’t find a horcrux hidden in Hogwarts. You’re mortal again, Tom. And now death is coming for you.”

For a second Tom nearly lost his composure, because now he realised that he was indeed mortal. Potter couldn’t be lying, he knew each and every horcrux so they would have to be destroyed. But he had to appear strong so his followers would still follow him.

“Just stop with your stupid comments and just DIE!”

All hell broke loose as Voldemort unleashed the power of about two dozen lighting strikes on Potter. The ground shook and despite being able to dodge every bit of lighting, their impact on the ground threw him back. He landed on his back and just groaned.

Harry knew that he had probably just broken a few ribs but had to continue. And he even had an idea of how to end this fight. He reached out to Mione’s conscience and realised that he was actually laying in front of her. She was the one that now helped him up.

“Ha! The “Power the Dark Lord knows not” is not as strong as you thought it might be, Master of Death. My core is so much stronger thanks to Dumbledore’s blood. The Elder Wand won’t defeat me.”

Then Harry shook his head.

“That…that is not the power of the prophecy. Or at least I think so. It is THIS!”

Harry was still holding on to Hermione and she felt his thoughts, she saw what he wanted to do, and she gave him the power to do it. A white glowing light filled the clearing as the soul bonded couple shared its power.  And then, as Harry yelled out “THIS!”, he directed the Elder Wand at Voldemort and channelled as much power as he could through it.  What he performed was an ancient curse coming from the Potter Grimoire and what it did was it inflicted pain on the victim’s soul if he was deemed dark. It wouldn’t kill (under normal circumstances), but it judged the soul and if deemed dark by magic itself then all the pain it brought onto others would be brought onto this soul. And since Voldemort had certainly done dark things and his soul was no more than a fragment of its normal size it probably wouldn’t endure much. 

Since the spell Potter unleashed had no visible “projectile” flying at him (it was based on intent and neither dodging nor moving out of the way would help the victim), Voldemort had no idea what would happen as a glowing sphere of golden light suddenly surrounded him. It shrunk down and disappeared into his chest as he heard his followers whisper about the couple’s soul bond.

And then he screamed in agony.

Now a lot of things happened at once.

With the Dark Lord on his knees and screaming, most of his servants now opened fire at the “good guys.” The vast power of their curses shattered the shields they still held passively while watching the final showdown and killed about a dozen people immediately before they had any chance to react. Among those were Charlie Weasley, Frederick Fawley (the auror who escorted Sirius from Azkaban to Amy’s office), Rufus Scrimgeour and a few others.

While Filius Flitwick and Sirius Black put up the strongest shields they could so no one would interfere with the prophecy, Harry staggered forward to the screaming Lord Voldemort, Hermione helping him.

“What…have you…done to me, Potter?”

Harry looked down on the man, whose red eyes started flickering before turning back to their original brown. Voldemort was losing power.

“I judged your soul, and you got punished for your vile acts. And since your remaining bit of soul is so small…well, let’s just say this spell causes agony of anyone with a whole soul, and you have what, one and a half percent of yours left after I also took the one out you left in my scar. So your soul goes through about a hundred times more pain than anyone else would.”

With the last bit of power he had, Voldemort jumped forward and tried grabbing Harry’s wand, but Harry was faster. He had his holly and phoenix wand disillusioned in his left hand and as soon as he saw the movement he threw a silent and overpowered cutting curse with it.

And Tom Riddle’s corpse collapsed as his head got separated from his body. 

Lord Voldemort was dead.

 

Sirius and Filius were the first ones to cheer and yell out loud “the dark bastard is dead” (though Filius would later claim that he didn’t use such a phrasing.” Mione just hugged Harry, not wanting to let him go ever again.

The remaining Death Eaters of the inner circle then began avenging their Lord. They wouldn’t give up or flee. Well, all but Parkinson and Rookwood. Once Voldemort got hit by Harry’s curse that judged his soul, both realised that this fight was lost. And the moment the cutting curse ended the Dark Lord’s life they portkeyed away, much to the anger of Dolohov and Nott, who led the revenge attack.

But by now it was clear that the Death Eaters couldn’t win anymore. Many who were not really loyal Death Eaters but supporters from abroad or mercenaries began to flee, and the remaining inner circle was dealt with rather quickly by Sirius, Filius and Remus as well as some other supporters. 

Since Andromeda hadn’t been able to deal with Bella, she let out her remaining anger on Dolohov, who first laughed at her and then began to realise that Bella wasn’t the only Black family witch who was scary. After a very very painful curse designed especially for men she burned him until only ash was left.

Once no inner circle member was left standing, Remus looked around, because the two students that had accompanied him in the castle and out on the battlefield weren’t near him anymore. In fact, he hadn’t seen them since the Death Eaters had shattered their shields during Harry’s and Tom’s battle.

As soon as he spotted a person with the red Weasley hair kneeling on the ground, his heart froze. They had already lost Charlie, no need for another dead Weasley. But as soon as he came closer to them he realised that it was Oliver Wood laying on the ground. A blast had apparently ripped away his entire right arm and he was bleeding pretty badly. The school’s head boy was trying his best to perform healing charms despite crying over his best friend. Remus put his hand on Percy’s shoulder, making him look up, so the werewolf could tell him to take a break while he’d continue the healing. 

 

By nightfall there were no battles going on anymore. They won, but it was a bloody victory. The losses on both sides were enormous and nearly every participant of the battles had blood on his hands. 

The biggest losses were Charlie Weasley, Auror Peter Jameson, Rufus Scrimgeour, Ted Tonks (who had tried to heal an injured auror, far off the main battle, and caught a killing curse from Avery), Elphias Doge, Amos Diggory, Hestia Jones, four students, seven centaurs, nearly forty aurors, about twenty French aurors and quite a lot of volunteers, the amount was yet to be determined. The most surprising body they recovered was Aberforth Dumbledore, no one had expected the old man to actually fight.

The only surviving Death Eaters from the inner circle were Parkinson and Rookwood, everyone else got killed, and so were dozens of low level Death Eaters, mercenaries and every single werewolf of Greback’s pack that had joined the fight. Amelia, who had given a big speech to calm the public and coordinated their troops from the ministry (or to put simply: neither her bodyguards nor her boyfriend had allowed her to be anywhere near the battle), was following the public’s wishes and told the DMLE to try to charge as many as possible with war crimes. The punishment for that was (after an emergency session of the Wizengamot) to be sent through the Veil of Death. 

All the captured foreigners were shipped off to their home countries and the British ministry had made it pretty clear that they expected harsh punishments. Truth be told, most of the countries on the continent had harsher punishments, Britain was (at least until Harry and Amy cleaned up the ministry) the most corrupt of the European countries.

 

With the help of Severus’ intel, the professors staying inside the castle had managed to catch all the five Slytherin junior Death Eaters, but there was still one missing. And none of the five were ready to speak.

And that was good for seventh year Hufflepuff Timothy Burke. He was the last of the “Hogwarts Seven” and as soon as he heard about the Dark Lord’s death, he had only one goal: to do as much damage as possible. The others would break and give them his name, veritaserum guaranteed that. But not during the battle. 

So what he had planned was pretty reckless. Since Timothy had cursed three students that would have fought outside and locked them away, well, two of them, because one was dead, he would get severely punished either way. So why not do something stupid.

His great uncle had been Caractacus Burke, one of the two owners of Borgin and Burkes, and he had been well-acquainted with dark magic. And Timothy had even learned to use the killing curse, and that was exactly what he now intended on doing.

Once the “glorious victors” entered the great hall, he saw his group of potential targets. The bloody werewolf, Lord Black, Potter and his mudblood, the traitor Snape and the half-goblin. The others in this group (a mourning Andi Tonks, Shacklebolt and Vector, both holding on to each other after fighting the Dark Lord together, Babbling, a bunch of Weasleys and a few more) didn’t even interest him at all. 

He had his opening when the headmistress got up to applaud, and everyone followed her example. Since he was sitting rather closely to the middle of the Great Hall, he had a clear shot, and a disillusioned wand hidden in the sleeve of his robe.

“ Avada Kedavra! ”

The only miscalculation on Timothy’s side had been that no one would be working with stunners and making prisoners right now, they reacted the same way they had reacted on the battlefield - with lethal force. And so two bodies collapsed in the Great Hall at once.

 

Far away from Hogwarts, in the village of Little Hangleton, a prophecy orb flickered.

For a brief moment it seemed like it would go dark, but then it didn’t.

Its light was still shining, and the prophecy wasn’t fulfilled yet.

Notes:

So, as you all can see, this is NOT the end of this story. Updates will, if I manage, still come weekly, now that we enter the second part of the story.
This part (and I'd love to hear your speculations about that) won't be as long as the first part, but I hope that we'll end up with ~50 chapters...probably.
Anyway, let me know what you though about this chapter, until next week :)

Chapter 36: A Dark Lord rises at Nurmengard

Notes:

Good morning everyone,
here is this week's chapter. With it we begin the second part of this story, a new Dark Lord and new dangers will face our heroes. This part will be shorter than the last one, and the pace will probably change a bit too to fit the new setting and mood. Hope that you'll like it.
Unfortunately you'll have to wait until next week to find out who died at the end of last chapter.

Fire.

Heat.

Incoming spells slamming against his weak shields.

Albus Dumbledore was anything but strong right now, but he was still the smartest person in the room. And he had figured out days ago how to circumvent the anti-apparition wards, but he needed to disappear permanently. 

His angel’s fire would deflect only a few incoming spells, but that was enough for him. Because aside from being a shield, it blocked Tom’s line of sight. 

He erected a shield around his body that would shatter loudly once the next strong curse passed through the fire. And since Albus knew Tom very well, he expected the killing curse. After all, the Dark Lord would want to present his dead body to the world. 

And he, a master of transfiguration, gave Tom Riddle the body that he was looking for. A little rock that had been lying in a corner of his cell was sufficient enough to serve as material for the transfiguration. It would even last a year or so if no one would cast a high-level detection spell at it. Enough time for him to get strong again and move against Potter and his friends. 

He heard the killing curse being cast and, perfectly timed with the loud shattering of his shields, the former “Leader of the Light”, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, apparated away and left a transfigured stone, looking like his body, in Riddle Manor. And now, as he was a “dead man”, he could do as he pleased. But not in Britain.

 

Dumbledore looked around, out of breath and on the verge of collapsing, and realised that he was in London. Not a good place to be for him right now, the danger of a ministry worker recognising him was too high. He needed to change his appearance and leave.

Like every veteran of the Grindelwald War he had a few stashes of emergency supplies hidden away in Europe’s biggest cities. Back then the chance of being captured and having to escape without wand and other supplies wasn’t too unlikely, so most people hid away backup supplies in major cities. 

It took him a short while to recall where he hid the stash in London, but in the end he remembered the location. A magically hidden compartment in the wall of a rather unremarkable looking building not far from Westminster Palace. Sure, the aspen and unicorn hair wand wasn’t perfectly matched, far from it, but it worked well enough for him to be still considered extraordinary.

His “spare robes” weren’t even robes, to be precise, but a charcoal grey three-piece suit that had been tailored for him back in the forties. Yes, it needed a bit of transfiguration to fit, but not much. It were mainly his wide and colourful robes that made it seem like he lost his slim body. 

Then, after redressing under an invisibility cloak (not even remotely as good as the Potters’, but good enough for now, despite being partly faded) and having an early dinner in a nearby muggle restaurant, he was recovered enough to perform more magic. 

The first thing that had to go was hair and beard. He was no longer trying to be a nice and friendly grandfather, no, he first needed to be anonymous and then again the powerful man that once defeated Gellert Grindelwald.

He kept the full beard, but it was trimmed down to about a centimetre or two in length, and the hair was shorter too, and combed back. His half-moon glasses were transfigured into much more normal looking ones, more rectangular and with a black frame.

His wand was tucked away in the sleeve of the jacket and he had about two dozen galleons in a bag with an undetectable extension charm on it. Now he took the satchel, which had been hidden in the secret compartment and turned it into a leather suitcase. No one would recognise him easily anymore, at least from afar. The Albus Dumbledore that everyone had known didn’t exist anymore.

The thing that angered the man the most was the fact that all his ancient tomes and grimoires were either at Hogwarts or in his vault. And since the goblins were allied with Potter and Minerva had turned against him, both places were unreachable. 

So there was only one real solution.

And with that, a plan started to evolve in his head. An artefact that could defeat the Master of Death, which Harry would probably become, a power that hadn’t been seen in a millennium. He didn’t know where it was, but he…they had tried finding it before turning to the Hallows. None of his research was anyhow accessible though, so he’d need to go and visit HIM.

 

Via muggle means and with a few confundus charms Albus travelled to France, carefully avoiding the aurors stationed at the ports. After a few days of train rides and hiding in muggle hotels, he came into apparition range of Nurmengard. Due to it being so far up the Austrian Alps, he needed to be rather close to apparate up there.

The castle itself was under a runic-based notice-me-not for muggles and behind strong magical shields for any witch and wizard. The only person keyed into the wards was Dumbledore himself, and the two house-elves tasked with caring for his old friend.

 

Most rooms of the castle were empty and dusty, but the elves always kept a luxurious suite as well as a few additional rooms for him clean and ready. After letting the elves unpack his things and make him a big dinner, he decided to visit Gellert.

Despite all the luxury downstairs, the cell was pretty small and plain, not much more than a crappy bed and a thin blanket. 

“Gellert”

What…Albus? You changed a lot.”

“Yes. Things have gone south at home and now I’m here.”

He proceeded to tell the entire story to Gellert, who listened quietly until the big reveal that Potter had at least two if not by now all three Hallows and would be Master of Death. The whole “getting thrown into jail” was not the biggest surprise, because Gellert Grindelwald, still a brilliant man, had always helped Albus with his plans. Working out how to make the Potter boy suffer throughout his childhood had been fun for example, and Gellert even got to read two books of his choosing for a whole month in return. 

“And why are you here now, Albus?”

“You know what I need, Gellert. There’s only one way with which I could defeat the Master of Death guaranteed. And I lost all my research.”

Grindelwald laughed loudly.

“You…you didn’t even come here to get my help, no, you just want my books because you idiot got caught. That’s…hilarious, Albus.”

“Give it to me, Gellert.”

“Under one condition.”

“Yes?”

“I get out and you take me with you.”

 

Back in the day, when Ariana had still been alive and when the world was still good to them, Albus Dumbledore met the nephew of his elderly neighbour and brilliant scholar Bathilda Bagshot. He fell in love with Gellert Grindelwald the first time he saw him, and once they conversed for the first time, Albus felt like he was in heaven. Finally someone that wasn’t timid like Ariana or stubborn and annoying like Abe, who never saw the need to become extraordinary. Gellert was like him.

And as the two teenage boys shared everything, their lunches, their books and tomes, their beds, their secrets, they both shared their deepest obsessions (aside from each other too). Gellert had always been fascinated with the Deathly Hallows. A term that Albus hadn’t known until then, but he knew the story of the three brothers. And with the evidence of their existence, like the changing owners of the wand throughout history, the family trees to find cloak and stone, Albus was immediately convinced. 

But he had a different obsession, one older than the Hallows.

In the ancient tales Merlin had always been a strong wizard. Myrddin Emrys, Merlin Ambrosius, however he was called and referred to in texts, was strong, nearly invincible one might say. And a few authors (the Dumbledore family had a few very rare books that no one had ever seen in centuries, found by Albus in a hidden room in their ancestral home) claimed that he had a special wand. One that surpassed every other made before and after it. Some claimed it was a staff, not a wand, but that didn’t diminish its power. Where it was hidden, no one knew, but legend says that it was put to rest with the old man himself.

And since it sounded like this wand (or staff) would even surpass the Elder wand, they began looking for it first, thinking it might be better than the hallows (they had no need for cloak and stone right now either way, so all that mattered was the wand)

After months of research, digging into the archives of Godric’s Hollow, sneaking into Hogwarts’ restricted section and Gellert searching at Durmstrang, they both had to admit that they had nothing more than fairy tales as of now, and none of those seemed to help. 

That’s why they focussed on the Hallows next, until their friendship ended with Ariana’s death. But neither ever stopped thinking about those magical artefacts. And one day Albus heard through some of his sources that Gregorovitch claimed to have the Elder wand. If his teaching job wouldn’t have kept him so busy, he could have visited the old wandmaker before the summer holidays, and maybe he could have gotten the wand first, but Gellert had been quicker.

And then, when the war broke out, he dreaded fighting by himself. Both because of the Elder wand in Gellert’s hands - a truly scary thought - and the love he still had for him. Eventually he had to though, and he faced him. He faced him and he won. 

He had the Elder wand.

Forgotten was the wand of Merlin now, and he never even touched his research about it after that day. He kept it always around so it wouldn’t fall into the wrong hands, but he didn’t need it anymore. 

And for a short while he had even had two of the Hallows, the wand and the Potter cloak. But he never found the stone after the Potters’ death.

A death that was quite lucky for him, not just because of the boy, but because James kept asking for the cloak. That the arrogant Potter man kept defying him. Lily Evans truly was a bad influence.

 

The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies…

 

Lily Evans and James Potter, usually hating each other, together screaming at him after the whole debacle with Remus’ transformation. The stupid Evans girl had found out that the charms on the hidden tunnel had been weakened and that Severus had been under a compulsion. 

She had long known that Remus was a werewolf and always kept it secret, but after Severus and Sirius had to spend the day following the full moon in the infirmary, she confronted Potter. He told her the truth, and she couldn’t believe it. As if Severus hadn’t known about the lycanthropy when she knew since second year. That’s why Black even dared the boy, they all assumed that he knew about it and that he wouldn’t go through with it. 

And after a brief interrogation of Severus and Sirius they were certain. Snape had known about the lycanthropy and was under a compulsion to follow the Marauders. Sirius just felt horrible for making the dare and asked about the integrity of the wards on the tunnel. And that was the next thing they checked. Usually just the marauders could enter the tunnel and just leave it in their animal forms during the full moon, but since Lily Evans was a damn brilliant woman they found out that those were weakened too. 

They yelled at the headmaster for over half an hour to find out who did it, not realising that it had been a plot to either get rid of the wolf or separate him from the others so he’d be malleable. He couldn’t have a wolf associating with the Potter heir and the only light Black, and since he would have swept the whole affair under the rug they would have been indebted to him.

He would have saved Severus himself, creating a loyal spy in the Dark Lord’s ranks. It was a smart plan, thwarted by Potter. And now he had to calm those two. Oh, and remove the knowledge of the manipulations out of their minds, obviously.

 

Lily and James Potter (a marriage he didn’t approve of secretly, but that was out of his hands. Line manipulation was something most heir rings prevented rather forcefully) yelling at Albus Dumbledore, because the Order guard protecting the McKinnon family got called away by him and the McKinnons were dead now. They didn’t believe him that he needed the wizards for another mission, there were enough other Order members available. And the McKinnons had not only been friends, but their close allies in the Ministry. 

Albus had to admit later that this had been an actual mistake on his side, not even a plot of his. The loss of the McKinnons hadn’t made things easier for them.

 

James Potter, accompanied by his wife, who carried little Harry on her arm, visited Dumbledore to demand back his cloak. Not only because it was his, an ancient Potter heirloom, but because after what happened to the McKinnons, the Prewett twins and the Bones family he feared for their safety. But old Dumbledore barely listened to him, he just yelled at them for leaving the fidelius and demanded that they return immediately. Not that they did that, James, supported by his wife, just yelled back at him. Those Potters.

After they were finally gone, Albus fell back into his chair, summoned the decanter with his favourite brandy and filled the tumbler on his desk unusually much. Well, not so unusual for these days, truth be told.

How can they keep arguing and defying me and my orders, is what he thought. And then he couldn’t not think about the prophecy’s phrasing. But he didn’t and wouldn’t consider himself dark, ever. It was all about the greater good. Besides, the only time the Potters defied him before Harry’s birth was the werewolf incident, that’s just once.

Or did the “born to those who have thrice defied him” apply to the parents in general regardless of when it happened. Harry’s parents had defied him thrice now. If they were to be attacked soon like Severus said…

But maybe it would be Neville Longbottom and he wouldn’t have to worry.

And besides, if he just kept the cloak, James would be here again next week and yell at him. Problem solved.

But now he had to forget all about it, because there were still some last-minute things to do for the Halloween feast this evening.

Little did he know that this day, October 31st 1981 would be one that no witch or wizard would ever forget. And little did he know that he wouldn’t see James and Lily Potter ever again.

 

…and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…

 

Harry being scarred by all the violence of his uncle, aunt and cousin. Broken bones, scars all over his back and chest, the concussion from being hit with a frying pan.

Marked by the horrors of having caused a death by accident, the burned body of Quirinus Quirrell. Just like Albus with Ariana.

In a different timeline, one that barely anyone could remember, more pain and marks caused by the headmaster. The physical marks were gone, but the emotional marks were still there. Even if Dumbledore couldn’t remember them, Harry remembered, and so did the universe. 

A horcrux, left there instead of being removed, a basilisk’s bite. Dementors, a dragon, Voldemort, scars caused by Dolores Umbridge. The pain of Sirius’ death, the pain of Snape’s occlumency classes. 

Horrors and pain, all leaving the boy scarred, physically and emotionally. All because of Dumbledore and his plans of making the boy as strong as he was, but malleable and ready to sacrifice himself.

Telling the tale of the boy-who-lived and scarring the boy forever with fame that was sometimes worse than torture. Just as famous as the defeater of Grindelwald himself.

A boy, raised with pain and abuse, malleable but strong, famous like Dumbledore himself. A boy he wants to make a warrior, taught by himself. His equal in being famous, strong, in pain and with losses. Taught to be like him, or at least like he appeared to be. 

But what power does he have that Dumbledore knows not?

Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter would answer those questions very differently. The one would claim that it’s the Hallows, but the other would say it’s either his soulmate, and by extension actually the love Dumbledore always talked about, or it is his future knowledge. But maybe it is just the friends, true friends, that he has. Not followers, friends.

 

... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies....

 

And Albus Dumbledore screamed in anger and frustration as he now saw the truth. He had marked the boy with all his manipulations (even more than he could even remember), and now he would have to face him. He was a dark lord.

With raw and untamed legilimency he dug his way into Gellert’s mind, not as weakened as he might have hoped. The man was still strong, mainly because the occlumency was the only thing he could do in here. 

But in the end Dumbledore’s rage was enough to shatter all defences.

He saw what he needed to see and left Gellert’s mind again.

Then he kneeled down, next to the man he loved and hated at the same time, and for the first time in his life, Albus Dumbledore cast the killing curse.

 

A new man, a dark man, left the cell of Gellert Grindelwald. The old Albus Dumbledore was now entirely gone, and the new Albus Dumbledore made his way down the stairs into the dining hall. In his last moments Gellert had shown him what he wanted to see - not voluntarily of course, but through pain and force.

The books he longed for were not in one of the libraries of Gellert’s study, no, they were in his secret, second study. A magical picture of the two of them was hanging above the fireplace in the big dining hall, a room Albus had never used here. Now that he needed followers, that might change though.

And once the two smiling young teenagers looked at him, he gave them the codeword. 

“Passage to Camelot!”

A secret staircase appeared as the entrance opened. This would be his way down.

 

Two days later, Albus Dumbledore still hadn’t slept properly, not even once. The elves brought him food and something to drink, occasionally a book or other documents from one of the other rooms in the castle. The research Gellert had done was enormous. Some of it he had done before he had the Elder wand, but most of it actually with the wand. Probably because he had more resources and magical power then.

What he understood so far was that Merlin had actually been buried with the wand. And neither the hidden Merlin statue at Stonehenge nor the magical catacombs of Tintagel Castle, both considered places where Melin could have been buried, were actually the burial site. All research pointed towards a quest to find the location, and Gellert had apparently not even found the proper starting point. At least he had dozens of hints and ideas. 

But it would take months.

Probably even longer if he also worked on getting followers, wealth and power too, and that in secret. But this was his plan.

“Master?”

One of the elves interrupted him, and he looked up, slightly frustrated.

“Yes?”

“Yous want to bury old Gellert’s body? Or we should remove it from tower?”

The decision wasn’t easy, but in the end Dumbledore decided to go for a funeral, a grave in the courtyard of Nurmengard. Nothing too spectacular, but a proper gravestone with name and dates, as well as “For the Greater Good.” It was his phrase after all, and his death was for the Greater Good - Dumbledore’s gain of power to rule everything by himself - so it was the most appropriate thing to do.

 

It would take over a week for Dumbledore to read one of the local wizarding newspapers that told the story of the “Battle of Hogwarts.” Apparently Harry and co. had won, and in the process they had eliminated most of the Death Eaters with any real power (he noted the absence of the two most intelligent Death Eaters and would search for them if the need would ever arise) and Tom too. He saw the wizarding picture of Harry unleashing extraordinary magic, using the Elder Wand and wearing all the Hallows. Even through the pictures he felt the energy within them. 

Both the whole “Master of Death” story and the truth about the horcruxes (though not mentioned by name and condemned by Harry and Minister Bones) were printed, even the horcrux in Harry’s scar. Damn goblins.

He read the list of dead people on both sides, a shocking amount and a loss of magical blood he could only condemn. Many of those he had known rather well, most of them had been students of his. And the tragic loss that Harry had to endure…if he wouldn’t hate him, he’d pity the boy.

But now they must presume that the prophecy was fulfilled, apparently they had burned his body in fear of an Inferius - which would have been an actual issue for him, because that wouldn’t have worked. That means they would focus on schooling, social life and politics, not war and danger. So he had all the time in the world to prepare for his return.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. What do you think? And did any of you see that coming? I'd be happy to hear your thoughts about this chapter.
Until next week :)

Chapter 37: Finally Peace?

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here is this week's chapter, and yes, you'll finally got to find out who died at the end of the Battle of Hogwarts.
We jump a few years forward as you might see, and H/Hr will fill you in on how they've been. Have fun reading :)

June 1996 - Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Once the bell rang, Harry and Hermione relaxed. Most other students were now freaking out and worrying, but they weren’t. They had sat every single OWL exam possible, including things like Alchemy, the improved Muggle Studies, Wizarding Culture and those that weren’t formally taught at school but only at home by tutors for the heirs of powerful houses. Classes like estate management or finances. Those that most students would never need in such detail.

But Harry and Hermione had written them all.

They had also decided to wait until they were in their fifth year, simply because they didn’t want to create a precedent. And now, after finishing the History OWL exam, they were done. In truth, they were already working on or finishing their masteries which could be formally acknowledged after getting their NEWTs, which wouldn’t be an issue either. 

At school not much had changed since the battle. 

The notable differences for the duo were for example the expelled students. The “Junior Death Eaters” were among them, but they got imprisoned as well. Draco, Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle all got expelled too and were in their parents’ (or in this case just their mothers’) custody. Ministry-supervised they were taught at home so they could pass their OWLs and then start working. Any right to higher education would only be granted if they got through the five-year probation period starting with the OWL exams. 

Not much had changed when it came to the staff. Well, most of them were scarred and some had lost limbs or were suffering from long-term effects of dark curses, but they were all still here. 

Professor Babbling was much less happy and joyful after the battle, she had lost an eye due to Alecto Carrow (who got sent through the Veil), but she was now one of the most respected teachers, if not witches in general, in wizarding Britain. She had duelled a young Voldemort, and that quite impressively, and later on had prevented the Death Eaters from attacking Hogwarts from the inside. Even after such an exhausting fight she joined the battle (her eyesight in the left eye already fading and just superficially healed) and single-handedly defeated two smaller groups of fighters trying to attack the castle from another side. She never got to join the group that headed for Voldemort but kept the rest of the Hogwarts grounds protected. 

Professor Vector was by now engaged to Kingsley Shacklebolt, they had bonded during the battle and afterwards just didn’t want to let go of each other anymore. Finding a person that would face Voldemort together with you just happened once in a lifetime.

For Professor Flitwick not much had changed, but it was at least assured that no student would ever think of the half-goblin as a weak person. He had reminded everyone why he had been a duelling champion in the international tournament for five years in a row before retiring undefeated on the international level. He was one of those teaching the “combat and battle magic” class, which one had to take at least during third year and showed the difference between duelling and an actual fight, as well as some strategies, mainly to survive. In the upper years he taught advanced battle magic to those interested after going through psychic evaluations. Despite the apparent peacetime they should never forget how to defend themselves in anything worse than a formal duel.

Professor Sprout lost a lot of her light nature, especially after the incident with Timothy Burke, but she managed rather well. Parts of her class preparation were already being done by Neville Longbottom and after his OWLs she’d let him teach some of the younger years. He would one day take over this job, that much was obvious.

Minerva was still teaching the OWL transfiguration students and was offering animagus classes to the most talented ones, Neville and his betrothed Daphne were currently among them. Harry and Hermione were already helping her with that as they had managed the transformation in the summer holidays after the third year. Hermione was actually getting good at flying, something Harry still couldn’t believe, and he had found his form shortly after the battle when he was in mourning for all the losses. It was a snow leopard, and a rather big one too, bigger than Padfoot for sure. The Marauders quickly renamed Prongslet into Frosty (nope, he had absolutely no say in it) and Hermione’s eagle was still unnamed as she was stubborn and scary enough to scare off Moony and Padfoot.

Aside from their growing fame not much had changed for Sirius and Remus. Well, aside from Sirius proposing to Amelia, but out of respect for the dead and the people in mourning (them included) they waited until a little over a year after the battle. Their marriage was still being planned but would happen in the summer holidays.

Sirius was one of the leaders of their political alliance, together with Arthur Greengrass. After the death of Augusta and with Arthur Weasley rising within the ranks of the ministry they were the most obvious choices. And it wasn’t easy.

After the death sentences and the deaths during the battle, many dark houses lost their Lords, and not all of them had children or not all the children wanted to walk in the footsteps of their parents. So sometimes lesser branches took over the Lordships, causing changes. Nott for example (Theodore, not emancipated but the heir, his grand cousin was proxy) was now allied with the Potter-Black-Greengrass-Longbottom and co. alliance, Crabbe and Goyle both gave away their heir titles (probably after being “convinced” of that by distant relatives) and both Lordships were now held by neutral Lords, though sharing Dumbledore’s mindset. The Alliance had to deal with old and new Dumbledore supporters (Dumbledore’s cause at least), thinking that they had acted too harshly and brutal during and after the Battle of Hogwarts, but also the remaining dark faction.

Percy Weasley, another war hero, was a rising star within the DMLE justice department, on his way to becoming leading prosecutor one day. Most of his free time he spent with Oliver Wood. The former Gryffindor keeper had lost his entire right arm to a dark blasting curse and the dream of being a professional quidditch star was gone, but the scouts had known of his talents as captain and he was a war hero too, so about half the teams in the league wanted him as assistant coach. Currently he was working with the Prides of Portree, and within two or three more years he’d probably be head coach.

Nicolas Flamel, Bathilda Bagshot and all the other teachers Minerva had employed after taking over were all still working. The only changes in staff were the retirement of Argus Filch (after being Imperiused and used to invade the castle, he decided it was enough) and the new yet old Potions professor, Horace Slughorn.

Timothy Burke had pointed his wand into the group without aiming for anyone in particular, but the killing curse would have hit either Sirius or Hermione. Harry was walking next to Mione, but on her left side, so he hadn’t seen the curse coming. 

The only one who was luckily looking into the general area from which the curse originated was Severus Snape. And it was only fractions of a second before impact, so he did what he had to do.

He took a step forward, pushing Sirius and Mione aside with that and took the curse himself. Yes, he had started to conjure something to block it, but it was too late for it. 

And so he fell down after being hit by the curse, just as his murderer got hit with enough lethal force to kill half a dozen people, a cutting curse, a sectumsempra, a blasting curse and even a killing curse originating from Kingsley. 

Within moments of the incident Minnie had rushed down to them, kneeling next to the crying Hermione and the dead body of Severus Snape. 

The Great Hall was silent.

They had lost a man many had despised for years, but grown to respect and admire recently. A man that cut off his own arm just to get rid of Voldemort’s mark, a man that had defended them all more than once. And he got killed by one of them, a student.

Every Hufflepuff moved away from the dead body of Timothy Burke as far as possible, while many started to cry. Most students hadn’t seen any fight and death during this battle, safely waiting in their common rooms, but now, as the fight was over, the war was won, Severus Snape died.

 

His funeral was among the biggest of the “War Hero Funerals.” And that despite the fact that many had hated him for a long time and his good reputation was a rather new development. Even Sirius had held a speech, the issues of their past had been long forgotten, but the fact that Severus stepped into a killing curse for him and Hermione was still a bit unbelievable. 

In front of Hogwarts they built a monument for all the fallen, Severus Snape, the last death of the battle, was the name on top of the list. Many, including Severus, Charlie Weasley and Theodore Tonks got honoured with a posthumous Order of Merlin second class by Minister Bones.

 

The whole Potter-Granger family had its issues with adjusting to all the losses and to grieve. Severus’ presence was impossible to replace, Andi (a frequent visitor too) was as devastated as her daughter. For Tonks it was even worse, she once had a relationship with Charlie during her time at Hogwarts and she wasn’t taking that loss too well either. 

They now had time to grieve Augusta too, and Neville was spending quite a lot of time with them these days. The Manor was being rebuilt, but he vowed to only return after finishing school to marry Daphne in the big hall at Longbottom Manor. So he was dividing his time outside of school between the Potters and the Greengrasses.

Sirius and Amelia were spending more time at Grimmauld Place than at Bones Manor, the Black wards were simply stronger and even with the threat gone they didn’t want to take a chance. She was the Minister after all.

On those days when Susan didn’t want to be with the “two lovebirds” or alone with the elves, she too went to Harry and Hermione. To her they were the siblings she never had.

And, as one might expect, this group of students (Harry, Hermione, Daphne, Neville and Susan) finished top of their class in third and fourth year and were expected to do the same with the OWLs. Only Padma could rival those five. 

Hannah, despite spending quite some time with them, never came close to their success. She rather went riding on the grounds of their Manor or painted landscapes. That didn’t cause a rift between those though, for all the outdoor activities and trips she was still with them.

Luna and Padma, occasionally the werwolf-scarred Parvati too, were among the usual people that visited Potter Manor or hung out with them during school too, but not as much as the others. Mostly they were on their own, especially since Padma and Luna had begun dating a few months back. Sure, a few students hadn’t been very understanding of that (same-sex relationships were nearly unheard of among wizards and witches, so it wasn’t intentionally homophobic but quite literally a lack of understanding), but the staff reacted quickly and discussed this topic in Muggle Studies. From then on barely anyone commented on that anymore, aside from those few that hated whatever they deemed “unnatural, not conventional and strange.” Basically, the few remaining blood-purists who were also racist, homophobe and simply bigoted. Those that ended up in more detentions than the marauders and were nearly universally hated.

If his father wouldn’t have told him to act nicely, then Cormac McLaggen would have been one of those too. He was still a Potter-hating bigot that hid it underneath his “light” orientation. 

Lord McLaggen was one of those that tried building a functioning and strong opposition, together with the Lords Abbott, Doge, Macmillan and the new Lords Crabbe and Goyle. They were all rather light (but not when it came to reaching their personal goals), not too muggle-hating (no big fans either though, mudbloods were tools to be used, especially against the dark side) and definitely against the spilling of any magical blood. Dumbledore’s “second chance” policy was very important for the “council” (the Dumbledore supporters meeting in secret). Basically, they wanted power like the Dark Lord too, but through admiration instead of fear. Much less risk of a rebellion.

And they certainly had supporters everywhere. Despite all his dark actions, Dumbledore had still been a national hero, the second Merlin. And some of those that hadn’t trusted the Prophet beforehand, didn’t trust it now and to them it was all just lies.

 

Another one who thought that all this had been lies and misunderstandings was Ronald Weasley. Yes, he had kept his head down and his mouth shut, but he was still pro-Dumbledore, other than his father and his idiot brothers. He believed in what his mother had always said, and besides, he still hated Potter for his behaviour towards him. 

Studying in secret he had actually become rather smart, always ending up in the top 15 students of their year, and was even expected to end up with six OWLs. Yes, he wasn’t a Hermione (not even comparable to the one from the last timeline), not even as good as Padma Patil, but not bad either. He didn’t brag though (not an easy thing to do) and secretly worked on more and more combat magic, trying to be a strong wizard to support Dumbledore’s cause. Thanks to overheard conversations at home he knew of the growing opposition and his plan was to reach out to them once he had his OWL results via Cormac and see if he could do anything there. And if it was just overhearing conversations and copying files at home was. He had a high-ranking department head and a ministry prosecutor at home.

And he wasn’t the only Weasley doing fine. Bill was still working as the liaison between Gringotts and the Ministry, and once his Gringotts contract would expire Dirk Cresswell wanted him as his successor as Head of the Goblin Liaison Office so he could transfer into the Department of Magical Transportation. This had always been his dream, but as a muggleborn that hadn’t been possible.

The twins had worked on a concept for WWW with Sirius, who would give them a loan if he became a partner in the store. They were quite brilliant after all, and working together with a Marauder was the best thing that could have happened to them. The only condition was to get as many NEWTs as possible, which they did. George in Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, Alchemy, Runes, Arithmancy, DADA and Herbology, Fred even did one more with CoMC. And yes, they were expected to pass them all. 

Ginny had gone through the biggest changes. Her therapy had been quite long, over a full year, but once she left the Therapy Ward at St. Mungo’s, she was a new person. The Harry obsession, and with it the dreams of Mrs. Ginny Potter etc. were all gone. She had her father’s temper and was nearly as intelligent as her brothers (though the potions had taken her toll without a doubt). 

Once she came back home she wrote letters to Harry and Hermione. Long, emotional ones, trying to find the right words to explain the shame and self-hatred she was in. It wasn’t easy, but she managed it pretty well.

And after Harry and Hermione - currently doing their fourth year without a deadly tournament annoying them -  got both Arthur’s and the healers’ assurances that she was truly fine and not deceiving them, they even met with the girl. It was strange, but it wasn’t bad. And for the first time in two timelines they got to discover the true Ginevra Weasley. They would never be the closest friends, but they could have friendly conversations with her.

Ginny Weasley returned for her fourth year at Hogwarts, having studied during her time at the hospital, and even if she was met with animosity and distrust at first, she loved being back here. After a while that got better though, and she was slowly able to befriend co-students. Luna for example let her back into her circle of friends, or at least to a degree. But Ginny would never be a well-liked student anymore, that was for sure. Too much trust had been lost due to her mother. 

 

Fudge had come out of prison after his one-year sentence, and before collecting all the money that was left (not too much anymore, most got lost to the fine, some he gave away so the public wouldn’t hate him THAT much anymore. All he had left was a few years worth of pay and some money he inherited) and leaving for the Caribbean, he visited Harry and Sirius (as well as the rest of the family) at Grimmauld Place. He asked for forgiveness, because he had accepted that he had been greedy and not a good Minister, rather a pretty awful one. Fudge didn’t stay much longer, didn’t even wait to hear if they could forgive him, because he truly felt awful and just wanted to get away from the British Isles - permanently. 

 

So, things were more or less looking up for Wizarding Britain.

And now Harry and Hermione had finished their OWL exams and enjoyed the last few days at school in the sun, going for walks around the lake or training with their animagus forms. The only boring thing about that was though, that no one else had managed it so far, but Minnie was pretty strict when it came to people joining this class. They didn’t have many members.

Neville would probably be the next one to achieve it if he continued like he did. He had his form - a dark brown horse - but was still struggling a bit with the meditation techniques. Daphne was close to discovering her form, but she didn’t even have the faintest idea to what it might be. 

After becoming sufficient enough in transformation, Minnie invited Padma Patil too, but no one else from their year got invited. But well, they were just nine students over all, Harry and Hermione excluded. Two sixth-years and four seventh-years.

The Slug-Club was back too, and naturally Horace Slughorn had to invite Harry and Hermione, as well as the new Lord Longbottom and his betrothed into the club, as well as Cormac, Blaise and a few others that were part of it the last time too. For Harry and Hermione it was honestly just an annoyance, but they played nicely with the man replacing Severus. 

 

The last day of this school year came closer and closer, and everyone was getting a little afraid. What would the Weasley twins do to commemorate their time at Hogwarts coming to an end? What pranks would happen?

And just as Minerva finished her end-of-term speech, fireworks went off. Harry was at first afraid that it might be a redo of what happened during the last fifth year when the twins left school, but that wasn’t the case. It was much, much smarter.

All over the Great Hall, their slogan and the big and colourful WWW of their shop were appearing in big and flaming letters. Little fireworks went off over and over again, and as the twins got up to stand in the middle of the hall to raise their wands, it started raining WWW prank articles. Basically every student could catch one or more of their future products out of the air, attached was a small explanation of what it was.

“Dear students…”

“...dear staff…”

“...we hereby announce the opening of…”

“WEASLEYS’ WIZARD WHEEZES!”

“From August first on you can find us in Diagon Alley…”

“...and hopefully soon at Hogsmeade too.”

“Buy some of our finest pranks…”

“...and remind the school of the Weasley twins now that we’re gone.”

The last words they shouted together:

“And with that: GOODBYE!”

The Great Hall went dark for a few seconds (Harry was pretty sure that it was the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder), and then the twins were gone, having left the Great Hall once and for all.

Then Minerva got up.

“I think with these lovely words I too shall send you into the holidays, but don’t forget: if you do buy some of these fabulous articles, don’t cross the line here. But now’s not the time to think about that. Have a great summer, we will see you all again on September first. Goodbye.”

 

And so Harry and Hermione’s fifth year at Hogwarts ended, the second one in a row to be without any trouble whatsoever. Ronald and Ginny weren’t causing any problems, Voldemort and his Death Eaters were gone (the two that hadn’t been real bigots but just power-hungry excluded, but they hadn’t been seen in over two years) and Dumbledore was dead too. Their biggest problem was the old meddler’s legacy in the Wizengamot, but that was just politics.

A world in which political differences were their biggest issues.

Oh, and parents too, of course. They were a couple for over two and a half years now, bonded for over two years, and Harry was nearly sixteen, Hermione was of course sixteen since the past September. Obviously the two of them had sneaked away during some of their prefect rounds (Daphne and Blaise were prefects for Slytherin, Padma and Terry for Ravenclaw and Susan and Justin for Hufflepuff) to snog or get their hands under each others robes (okay, they had done most of that the year before too with the help of the map), but at home things weren’t always so easy. Dan and Emma didn’t have an issue with that, they were mature teenagers, but they teased the kids mercilessly, for example as Harry and Hermione fell asleep reading and cuddling on the couch of Harry’s bedroom. They weren’t woken up, no, just tucked in together and they made very cute pictures. 

Now, in the upcoming summer holidays they might even try to cuddle and fall asleep  next to each other a few times, if no one would be preventing that. More than cuddling and a bit of feeling each other up probably wouldn’t happen, but they still wanted to do it. Not just because it would be comfortable and nice, but because physical contact made their bond feel much more energetic and lively, while at the same time calming them. 

 

The trip back home was as comfy as always, this time Hermione even fell asleep despite the book in her hands, while Harry went for a reread of Lord of the Rings. Neville, Daphne, Susan, Luna and Padma were with them, and they had a fun trip, though everyone was just glad that their OWL year was officially over. 

At King’s Cross it were Sirius and Amy that picked them up, all three of them. Neville would spend the first few weeks of the summer with Daphne, so it would just be Susan, Harry and Hermione. By now she was, as she realised during the trip back, barely at Bones Manor anymore. She would one day move there, yes, but now, still a minor, she’d stay with the lovebirds (Sirius and Amy) or…well, the other set of lovebirds (Harry and Hermione). But honestly, the Potter Library was positively insane and Dan and Emma were just the nicest people she had ever met. And then there was Remus, and Andi with her daughter Dora, Minnie (she was calling the headmistress Minnie by now too!!) and all the others that always came by. One very big and confusing yet lovely family.

And apparently that family would just get bigger.

When they were having their “welcome home” dinner, Sirius and Amy both got up, because they had something to say. Something so important that Auntie Amy had apparently even forgotten to grab her usual glass of wine she had on special occasions like that. Every last dinner before school, the first one after school, birthdays and Christmas, every major political win (or before that a arrest or conviction). She always had a glass of expensive red wine, that was a tradition and she never forgo…oh.

Susan wasn’t the only one picking up on that, Harry and Remus actually were the first to realise, but probably rather because of Sirius’ facial expression, confirmed by Amy’s behaviour.

“Oh Remus, look at what the mutt has done now!”

“Yes, I told you we should have castrated him. That happens when you invite stray dogs into your home.”

Everyone burst out laughing as Remus leaped forward and hugged his best friend, Harry joining them just moments later and making it a group hug of three crying men.

Hermione and Susan were just as enthusiastic with Amy, while Dan, Emma, Minerva and Filius just sat and smiled, ready to give a toast to Amy and Sirius, future parents of a child which would be born into a better world than any of them were. 

A world which had changed so much within the past few years, and despite all the bloodshed they had in the past, a world which was peaceful.

And this time around it was not just Harry thinking that this summer would be a great one.

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. Yes, I'm cruel and killed off Severus. I thought we might need a death of a main character now that we've ended the Voldy Arc. Did think about Hermione, but that I couldn't do, same with Minnie (she was off-limits from the very beginning, I didn't even consider that), Sirius was a possibility too, but he and Amy deserve peace, then it was down to Remus and Severus. Hard call, but I had my struggles seeing Severus in the fight with Dark Lord Albus and so it was him who had to go.
The next few chapters will show us what Albus did the past two years before we'll slowly go towards a final showdown. I hope you'll enjoy it. Please let me know in the comments what you think, until next week :)

Chapter 38: Albus goes to the US - Part 1

Notes:

Good morning everyone,
here is this week's chapter. After we saw what happeded to Harry and Hermione after the Battle of Hogwartd and made a nearly-two-years-timejump, it's time to see what Dark Lord Dumbles did in the meantime.
From now on the pace will be a bit quicker, I hope you don't mind.

Aside from that, have fun reading :)

After two months of researching, going through all the secret stashes in the castle and regaining strength, Albus Dumbledore reached out to a few people -  no current British residents though - that would follow him. People that fled from Voldemort and the British system, war veterans and their families, old friends and people that no one even thought about anymore.

Not many answered his call - quite a lot were dead, and some of the others didn’t trust the person calling himself the “New Lord of Nurmengard.” Still, after about four months, Albus Dumbledore had about thirty followers that regularly came by, fed him with intel and resources and trained with him. An old friend of his, Gareth Stevenson was what he called himself these days, a war vet from the Grindelwald war and one of his best sources on the continent, was sent to the UK to deliver a letter with a compulsion to Lord Macmillan, leading to the founding of the “council”, the opposition group following his agenda.

Dumbledore didn’t disclose that it was him, not now at least, but he described himself as a kindred spirit with ties to the UK and headquarters on the continent who would like to see this faction in power. They wouldn’t be able to bother the Potter alliance much these days, but within a year or so things could change for the better. And he had to continue to search for Merlin’s wand either way. But that wasn’t easy.

All that Gellert had found out for sure was that it existed, he had historical records from three different people that had actually seen the man alive, all of them confirming the existence of the wondrous wand. And there were even some claims that people had been at the funeral, but no descriptions of the funeral itself existed - or so Gellert thought. 

But what was known about Merlin’s life?

Truth is that they didn’t know much at all. It is even questionable when he was alive, as he was apparently a student of Slytherin, while at the same time part of Arthur’s court during the fifth and sixth century. What was true now, and what tracks would he have to follow?

That was actually a question Gellert had already answered for him. Merlin was certainly alive in the fifth century, but he was at Hogwarts too. The research - letters between students and parents during the founders’ time that should belong in Hogwarts’ library - speak of Merlin as the charms teacher at Hogwarts, and deputy head of Slytherin House under Salazar himself. The old man had taught Merlin Parseltongue and some of his very own defence magic, leading to the assumption that Merlin was a Hogwarts student. 

Albus didn’t even start questioning how Merlin could have been alive so long, if only half the myths were true he wouldn’t be surprised by anything. 

Another thing he was able to make out was that there was not one recorded sighting of Merlin Ambrosius after 1084, a little less than a century after Hogwarts’ founding and during the reign of William the Conqueror.

Now that was interesting. 

He hadn’t known anything about that, because when he had looked for the wand, he mostly had to deal with myths and retellings of stories, at this point such documents had been out of his reach. Apparently Gellert had disproven all claims of seeing Merlin after that year, making it quite likely that he died around then. 

And he knew just where to start looking for hints Gellert never found, because he knew where the diaries of William’s royal wizard were - or should be at least. His old - former - friend Nicolas Flamel had been a big fan of this era and he had spent many years exchanging letters about it with this American wizard. Albus wasn’t exactly sure which one, there had been two men in the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, both of British descent he believed, and both taught outside of any official wizarding school. Nic often talked about those exchanges when he was working with him, even if that was decades or even a century later.

One of those would become a powerful muggle statesman - he didn’t know much more, muggle politics weren’t really his thing - and the other did something crazy Nic called innovative. Something with lightning and a kite.

Oh yes, Ben Franklin and this Jefferson fella. Thomas Jefferson, he thought.Yes, that was it. And with one of those Nic had conversed a lot about the eleventh century, the Hogwarts founding (as they hadn’t known about the school, how horrible) and historical and mythical people. He would need a pensieve to be sure of it (and that he actually didn’t have, Gellert never got his hands on one), but one day while he was working on some alchemical transformation of metals Nic came in, the old letter in his and and rambling on about a diary, containing the magical history of William’s reign and how wizards helped him in his battles in exchange for protection of the Hogwarts grounds. He had read that one so often, because it had been shortly before the man’s death (if it was Jefferson or Franklin he still didn’t remember) and it frustrated him so much that he never got to see the diary and that the MACUSA or the US government locked those things away.

Back then it didn’t interest Dumbledore at all, but now that he knew that the sightings of Merlin during the twelfth century were false, that changed. If wizards really helped the king and had some sort of a deal with him, then they might have invited him to the funeral of the most powerful wizard of the past five centuries, strengthening their bond. 

It would make sense, wizards had always tried their best to have monarchs or the prime minister around when celebrating something big or on other important occasions. George VI and PM Attlee had been at the celebrations at the Ministry after his win against Gellert in late ‘45 for example. Oh, and Winston was there too, having lost the election just a few months prior. Albus was relieved once he got back into office, he had preferred Winston over Attlee as a PM, such a nice conversation partner.

Anyway, that was besides the point. 

Fact is, the only person Albus could think of that was there at Merlin’s funeral was William the Conqueror. Either he or Gellert would have found any historical reference of wizards attending the funeral, the living founders at that time (just Helga and Rowena in her last years) never left Hogwarts at that time and he couldn’t think of anyone else but the muggle king of England who would have attended the funeral of King Arthur’s wizard for sure. 

And yes, Gellert had asked himself if King William might be a possible lead, there was a little note on the edge of a book saying King William attended maybe? Looking for magical reference in his documents , but he apparently never found any as he crossed that out again. 

But he, the great and so incredibly smart (yes, he liked to boast) Albus Dumbledore knew of such documents, and he knew who had them. More or less.

He needed to go to the US.

 

Just two days later a man arrived at Nurmengard, a man who didn’t know whom he was supposed to meet here. An old friend of Albus’ handed him a letter from the “New Lord of Nurmengard” that turned into a password-activated portkey once he was ready to go. 

And now Dedalus Diggle was standing here, in the courtyard of the castle from which Gellert Grindelwald had alway operated. In front of him though he saw something very calming. 

A gravestone for Grindelwald.

So it wasn’t him who he was gonna meet. That was a relief. Sure, he trusted Albus’ old friend, but one couldn’t be too careful.

What then happened he didn’t expect though.

The big door in front of him opened and an old, yet one with a powerful aura. He was wearing a dark blue three piece suit with a white shirt and a tie matching the suit, he had a wand holster attached to the brown leather belt and was leaning on a wooden cane. It wasn’t the Lucius Malfoy kind of cane, but a light brown and shiny one with a rounded top. The man himself was tall and rather slim, trimmed full beard and the silver hair combed back, but not as slick and flat laying back as the Malfoys did it, more…like that wizard Grindelwald had impersonated in the US, Graves. Dedalus had only encountered the man once, but he had been remarkably strong-minded and stubborn. And definitely a strong wizard. 

And the “New Lord of Nurmengard” was reminding him of the man, not only because of the haircut, but because of his demeanour. Strong-minded, goal-orientated and powerful. 

But now that Dedalus realised that, he also saw something familiar in there, in the feeling of power and the strong eyes. They should be twinkling a bit more, shouldn’t they? And those glasses were looking rather strange in comparison to the half-moon…

“Albus?”

“Dedalus! It’s so good to see you. Come in.”

 

The following twenty minutes of explaining how Dumbledore was alive and what his agenda was, were the most interesting and confusing ones in Dedalus’ life, yet he listened. He had been entirely unhappy with how they dealt with Dumbledore a few years back. Sure, he had done some bad things, but didn’t anyone see the greater good in that? And he wasn’t the only one thinking like that. There were enough people to support them, if they could get past the Potter alliance. 

And Potter himself.

“And that is exactly my point, my dear Dedalus. But before I can take on Potter, I need something. An artefact. But I don’t know where it is, that’s why I need you. I need to go to Washington D.C. and search in the magical archives.”

Now Dedalus burst out laughing. Dumbledore, a man shunned and declared guilty of dozens of crimes under the laws of the ICW, a man presumed dead, was trying to go into the MACUSA archives. That sounded like a bad joke, but he soon realised that this wasn’t a joke.

“I still have my contacts, I can get you in the country, maybe even the city, but not more. No chance.”

“Can you ask Abe then about his contacts? I know he had a few friends over there.”

“What? I’m sorry Albus, I thought you knew. Abe is dead, killed in the battle. He came up from Hogsmeade to take out Death Eaters and got killed. Maybe the local news here didn’t print the entire list of deaths.”

Now Dumbledore, shocked by that fact, was sitting in silence, and Dedalus did the only right thing and left the room. They had time to plan later. 

 

And that they did. Albus and his brother had never been too close, or at least not after Ariana’s death, so he wasn’t too sad, just a bit surprised by the fact that he was dead. Nothing he couldn’t deal with.

So the two of them, Albus and Dedalus planned out how to get the elderly wizard into the US. Luckily Gareth had “convinced” a wizard at the Austrian Ministry of Magic to create the identity of a “Richard Harris”, Irish national, halfblood wizard and fled the UK once Voldemort got resurrected, abandoning his post in the Department of Magical Education. 

With the help of Lord Macmillan’s nephew (working in the Ministry) they were even able to show “proof” of Richard’s existence. Macmillan hadn’t known whom he had helped, but he was aware that the new Lord of Nurmengard was a “ Dumbledorian ”, which was what they called their political movement. 

 

And Richard Harris now was the one booking a portkey to Canada. There they didn’t check the identity of the incoming travellers so thoroughly, other than in the US. Dedalus made sure there was an illegal portkey into D.C. near the portkey centre in Canada. But from there Albus was on his own.

His destination were the archives of  the MACUSA, and other than the wizarding ministry itself it wasn’t located in New York City but the capital of the country itself, or to be more precise, below the city. More than just one president had been magical and so the most precious artefacts and documents were ordered to be stored near the White House and the Capitol, in an underground complex accessible from many buildings all over D.C. 

 

And now Albus Dumbledore was walking towards the one entrance he had used once, a long time ago. He didn’t like walking down a street so publicly, but it wasn’t as he had another choice. The whole Capitol Hill district and most muggle government buildings were surrounded by anti-apparition and anti-portkey wards. Which, in fact, was very understandable. The US government was much more aware of magic and tried its best at protecting themselves and controlling the wizards. 

 

As Albus Dumbledore entered the Thomas Jefferson Building, one of the main buildings of the Library of Congress, he immediately went to the information desk for the visiting magicals. It had a big sign saying “MACUSA archives”, hidden under a muggle-notice-me-not ward. The woman sitting there looked up as a small lamp on her desk started to glow. A wizard was approaching, and so the illusion charms around them went up.

“MACUSA archives, Jefferson entrance. I’m Mrs. Francis, how may I help you?”

“My name is Richard Harris, I’m travelling here from Austria and want to do some research in the archives.”

“Austria? You rather sound like a Brit, don’t you?”

Now Dumbledore had to try to play his role and convince the witch, because otherwise he’d be in auror custody any minute now.

“I have gained Austrian citizenship after fleeing from the UK. The whole dispute with you-know-who and those blood purists was too much for me eventually, even though things have calmed now.”

The woman nodded, she was well aware of the happenings in the United Kingdom and could understand the man.

“Alright. Then, please hand me your identification and state what you’ll be researching and you can have your library card.”

“Oh, I was working in the Education Department of our Ministry and now I’m taking the time to write a paper about the eleventh century. I've heard that you have a diary from that time which would help my research. Rumour is that either Benjamin Franklin or Jefferson owned it and it’s only logical that I could find it here.”

“Alright, the Franklin and the Jefferson documents then. You’ll probably be rather alone in that section, these days no one cares about their magical legacy, just the no-maj one. Familiar with the rules?”

“Yes, no spellcasting, everything stays where it is, usual procedure to interact with historical artefacts. No food or beverage aside from in the cafeteria. I’ve read the protocol.”

“Fantastic, then let me just finish that up here…identification checks out, here is your card. Have a nice day, Mr. Harris.”

“Likewise, thank you.”

 

The way down into the archives was via an elevator behind a wall (which was just an illusion ward) in the great hall, nothing too spectacular and unusual. Here in the US magical buildings were constantly updated and modernised, evolving together with the muggle world. One of the things that the British wizards and witches too could start doing. And the “reason” against that was usually “magic and technology interfere.” Sure, but here it worked too, the MACUSA archives had electricity down here too, with enough runic work, that whole problem could be easily resolved. But no, always do it the old way.

On the other hand, if they didn’t modernise and evolve, then no one would try and change the working system. Seemingly light, but the rich (and mostly dark) would still be in power, bribing and getting “second chances” as always. He was no pureblood supremacist, but he was convinced that magicals were the dominant race in this world. No drop of magical blood spilled was okay, and all he ever aimed for, his “greater good” was a world that was ideal for wizards and witches. Sure, he was lacking a clear vision of that, if still in secrecy or ruling the world, but his “the greater good” combined with his power and his hero-status had always been enough to get followers. And if the Dumbledorians back home would continue working against Potter and co. then he might get enough people behind him for a coup. For a long time it was enough to be the man behind the curtain, guiding the minister, shaping the minds of future generations and be worshipped, but now he had enough of the shadow. He wanted to be in power, and this time properly.

But this then depended on his success now.

As he walked through the rows of shelves, filled with books and artefacts, he dreamt of a world ruled by him, people looking up to him. It would be perfect.

One more glance at the map he had been handed told him that his destination was quite a long walk away, in a rather old part of the system. Somewhere near what the map called “Smithsonian, National Museum of Natural History” and the Washington Monument. Quite a long walk actually, and due to the confusing and complex tunnel structures it took him over two hours to get there. If he had only been able to access an archive map beforehand so he could have gone underground a bit closer to the right spot. But making an inquiry at the MACUSA with a bogus identity, and not even a very solid one if one would try to check his background and history, was more than dangerous. So he preferred the walk over an ICW prison, he was a felon after all.

Dumbledore went through the sections on George Washington’s battlemages, the magical Civil War (Booth had apparated out of Ford’s Theatre, that’s why they expanded the anti-apparition wards under Johnson and Grant), theories about Kennedy’s death (obviously not a magical who did that, but the bullet somehow passed through the safety ward the presidential chief wizard on the car, which most likely had an impact on the trajectory. That happens if someone without a warding mastery wards the president) and much. 

The one section that was giving off such a strong magical aura was the one marked as “biblical”, but Albus Dumbledore was not a religious man. In fact, he barely knew what the bible was, of its contents he had no idea. And while he walked through the section, since it was on his path, he didn’t know what any of those items were.

“Hm, that’s a lot of gold there. And its magical properties seem…interesting. Oh how lovely, a ward to kill anyone who touches it, excluding those woven into it. I haven’t seen one of those in decades, and never such a strong one. Maybe once I’m in power I come back and take it to study, there must be something in there after all in this ark of covenant , whatever that may be.”

Then Dumbledore turned away from the biblical artefact as he saw something in another display case, a thing he was much more familiar with, at least in a general sense.

“A staff. Well, I prefer wands, but that one seems interesting. Doesn’t feel as powerful as the elder wand, but fascinating.”

He wiped away the dust from the small sign identifying the object (barely anyone worked with religious artefacts these days, their magical power was…strange, and not worth the dangers usually, that’s why he was alone in that section).

“Dividing the Red Sea? That thing must have lost its power over the years or the dampers on those showcases are incredibly strong. And they don’t even know what kind of core it has. Strange.”

He walked around a bit, simply because the ambient magic of the artefacts (all thoroughly protected, to steal one of those he’d need a dozen curse breakers and twenty minutes probably) was so…exhilarating.

“Who’d need a crown of thorns? And what kind of a trumpet could destroy walls? All that bible stuff is just so…strange.”

 

It took him a short while to leave the biblical section again, not wanting to part from the strong feeling of ambient magic, but he had a mission to accomplish. And that’s why he entered one of the oldest sections of these archives, the section for magical founding fathers (though the term “founding fathers” was just loosely used, it basically meant all the important magicals during the eighteenth and early nineteenth century) such as Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Paul Revere, Thomas Paine, Henry Knox and a few others. The room wasn’t big, as their muggle legacy was much bigger than their magical legacy. Still, those were all the magical relics, books, notes and letters about magic from eleven different people plus a few additional things from this era that had no place in any other section.

“Oh god, it looks like there’s no system whatsoever.”

And that was mostly correct. Sure, it was sorted by the previous owner, but beyond that the things were just cramped into the shelves. Now he had to try his best at finding the diary - assuming it really ended up here, otherwise he’d be screwed. 

 

Many hours later Albus was getting very frustrated. Not because he feared that he wouldn’t be successful, no, but because there was so much stuff to look through, and many things had some wards on it he had to break (yes, spellcasting wasn’t allowed, but breaking a ward on a publicly available piece of literature was a bit of a grey area). Just skimming through the documents looking for something from the eleventh century wasn’t helpful either, too many books had illusion wards on them so muggles wouldn’t notice them. A technique that got quite popular during the witch hunts. But it meant that nearly all notebooks and diaries looked basically the same and he would need to open and unward every single one of them.

After realising he’d have to leave soon and come back the next day, he started swearing silently. This day had been mentally exhausting, especially because of Benjamin Franklin. Aside from sketches of how to make his own pensieve (though the runic sequence was not ideal) there were some kind of notes about an attempt to infuse an enchanted trinket with energy from a lighting strike to “supercharge” it and its magical properties. Apparently that hadn’t worked, but it led to the whole “electricity” discovery, though Albus didn’t know much about that.

He was through with about two-thirds of the Franklin Documents at the end of the day, and there had been no sign of any obsession or even just fascination of the middle ages, and the three letters of Nicolas he had found were just discussions about alchemy and runic warding. So he made the decision that the next day he would start with the Jefferson Documents and only if they were of no help then finish with Franklin.

 

To leave the archives he picked the nearest exit point on the map. That was either the National Museum of Natural History or the Washington Monument, and since he had a second destination in mind, he turned left and picked the latter exit.

As he just walked past a closed and heavily warded door saying “magical warfare - enter only with presidential approval”, it opened and a woman, followed by two men wearing suits and looking like bodyguards, stepped out of the room, colliding with Albus Dumbledore. The woman dropped the file she was holding and Dumbledore, not wanting to raise any suspicion, immediately used a little bit of wandless magic to put the sheets of paper back into the folder and levitate it back into her hand.

“Forgive me, I did not expect anyone coming out of that door. Here’s your file, just let’s not tell anyone of that little bit of magic I did down here, shall we.”

The woman laughed and nodded.

“Sure, Mr…?”

“Harris. Richard Harris. Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise, Mr. Harris, but I think I have to leave now, I still have an appointment this evening. Though if you’re here tomorrow too, I always like to converse with magicals.”

“Oh, I plan to be here again, in the section of the Founding Fathers. Though if you want to converse with a fellow scholar, you’ll have to call me Richard.”

“Thank god down here and with magicals I can forgo all the usual protocol. Call me Hillary.”

The First Lady of the United States of America shook the hand of Richard Harris/Albus Dumbledore and then walked with her two bodyguards towards the exit that led into the White House. In the distance he could only hear the woman say “Wait please, I need to put the files into my bag, otherwise I can’t take them out of here. Annoying security measures.” And then the three people disappeared behind the next corner.

Notes:

So, that's it for the day, the second part of "Albus goes to the US" will be up next Thursday. I had intended on making that one chapter, but it just got longer and longer...Anyway.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter, let me know in the comments please. Until next week :)

Chapter 39: Albus goes to the US - Part 2

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here's this week's chapter. We continue to follow Dumbles in his adventures.
Have fun reading!

*edit: I updated the end of the chapter, totally forgot that I had to adapt a few things due to the upcoming chapters...but well, my second semester at university just started (law, for those of you that are curious) and things are a bit stressful these days

After leaving the archives through an elevator into an officially non-existent sub-basement of the Washington Monument he walked north-west, past the White House. Near the George Washington University he went into an unspectacular side alley. There, the wonderful wandmaker and close friend of his, Shikoba Wolfe, was having her workshop. Not many people knew that, because her shop was located in the east of the city, but once upon a time they knew each other very well. This time had long passed, but they still wrote to each other from time to time, at least until his “death.”

 

He knocked on the door, and within twenty seconds the elderly witch opened.

And she didn’t even look surprised for a second to see him there. 

Wandmakers were unusual people, Garrick was a fine example of that, and they all had a talent of seeing the real you, your soul, or magical core or whatever one might call it.

“Albus. I see, you’re obviously not dead. Don’t tell me you need a wand.”

“Oh, I actually do, Shikoba. I lost its allegiance to the Potter boy and my first one is still at Hogwarts.”

Even if Albus’ return from the dead hadn’t fazed her at all, this did. She pulled him into her workshop, slammed the door and started to yell at Albus for his idiocy of letting the most powerful wand in existence fall into someone else’s hand. He had once “bribed” her with letting her examine it, not that she got a lot of info out of it. There was no special runic sequence in the Elder Wand, and the wood was from a normal elder tree. The only speculation was either that the story is accurate and a supernatural deity created it, or maybe blood magic. 

“Hey, calm down please. I have a deal to offer.”

The woman shook her head in disbelief of Albus Dumbledore’s stupid behaviour, as if he could calm her down that easily.

“I’m closer than ever with Merlin’s wand. That’s why I’m here. You’ll get to examine it too.”

Now that was a statement that made the old woman stop in her rant at Albus Dumbledore and she stared at him with her ice blue eyes.

“Sit. And talk.”

And he talked. He told her all about it after getting a vow of silence, a hard but necessary precaution in this case.

 

“You’re gambling a lot on this chance that said diary ended up here and didn’t get lost over the centuries. And in the hope that King William really was at that funeral and wrote down how he got there. But it sounds somehow reasonable.”

“I know it’s risky and anything but granted, but still. Name me one other person that must have been there and from whom there are written records still existent. Helga and Rowena didn’t leave the castle, and not many families can trace back their lineage into the eleventh century. The Potters came a century later, the Peverell’s didn’t leave any documents - at least publicly known, the Greengrass Manor fire in the thirteen hundreds destroyed all family history, the Black Libraries would be a place to look as they’re the oldest family aside from the Peverells but Sirius and Harry despise me. Then there are the Malfoys who came to our shores with King William but they weren’t well known and connected in Britain until 1086 when he gave them their land, two years after Merlin’s death. And even if they would have been invited to the funeral, it is well-known that none of their documents pre-eleven hundred survived until now excluding the document from William, about giving them their land. I think it was a rebellion by the local muggles from whom they seized the land, they retaliated a few times until Lord Malfoy went on a killing spree. Nott and Crouch came after the turn of the century, and everyone else even later. Oh, aside from the Bones family, though they weren’t British until 1245, but Dutch. So you see, there is probably no one else left aside from King William.”

 

By now Shikoba had prepared tea for them while listening carefully. And she had to admit, he was probably following the best lead there was. No wonder no one ever managed to find the wand if it took the brilliant - yet crazy - Gellert Grindelwald years to just pinpoint the year of death. And since it seems like there’s nearly no source in existence that could shed light onto the precise details of the funeral, the trace Albus was following seemed like the best idea.

“And I take it you want a well-suited wand, I feel that this one isn’t really matched. Good enough, but not perfect. How about I finally make you one with a thunderbird tail feather? You’re a transfiguration master after all, and powerful enough to master the wand. Come with me.”

The woman took him upstairs into her workshop, then pulled out a bag of thunderbird tail feathers out of a drawer and emptied said bad on the workbench in front of them. 

“You know I barely do custom work, but you, Albus, deserve it. Hover your hand over the feathers, close your eyes and pick the one whose magical frequency is the most compatible with yours.”

Once Albus followed her commands, he immediately felt the energy from an unbound wand core. They were raw and wild, all having their own character, that he could feel. Some, he thought, were clearly from the same animal. A few were rather wild, others calm. Neither of those were feeling right, but then, after a few minutes of sensing them he felt one.

One that had the same feeling as his magic had. 

Powerful and strong, yet not too wild, it was controllable. With just a mere thought the feather levitated up from the table and into his hand, before he opened his eyes again.

“Ah, I could have guessed that, Albus. Wasn’t an easy bird to get a feather from, but definitely worth it. Now, put it down and come over here.”

Shikoba opened another drawer, filled with dozens of pieces of wood.

“Same procedure here, old friend.”

 

It took Albus pretty long to find a sufficient wand wood, and in the end he had to pick between two woods. He took the one that felt a bit…warmer.

“Walnut, once subjugated it will do anything and everything for you, be it good or dark. For a second I really thought you’d pick the yew, but the piece from that one ancient walnut tree I once found on my travels has been laying around for a long time. It was waiting. Now sleep, Albus, you know where my guest room is, I’ll have your wand ready when you come back from the archives tomorrow.”

 

When Albus woke up the next morning, Shikoba was from the sound of it still upstairs and working, she still didn’t sleep, courtesy of an ancient ritual of her tribe. A breakfast for him was standing ready, some tea and bread. He quickly ate up and left the house shortly after that, heading for the Washington Monument. 

On his way though he made a small detour, because it was cold outside and just walking around in a suit wasn’t really warm. Yes, he had warming charms on it, but he could be drawing too much attention with it. That’s why he ended up in a muggle clothing store buying a black woollen coat as most men here were wearing over their suits. It was actually pretty comfortable, and he had to admit that the muggle fashion had its benefits too. The past few decades he tried to be as over-the-top and unique with his clothing, but now with his entire character change he enjoyed the clothing change too. It seemed much more serious, and truthfully, if the suit really fit properly then he was much better able to move in a duel than in his old robes. So much more agile.

 

Not too much later Albus was down in the archives again, this time looking at Jefferson’s documents. His new coat had been thrown over one of the old wooden chairs which were standing around the hexagonal table in the centre of the room. So many books were stacked on the table by now, most of them some basic and advanced school books that Jefferson must have used to teach himself magic. 

He had been very proficient with wandless magic too, his wand broke at some point and only a few years later, during a short visit to the British Isles he managed to buy another one. Thomas Jefferson hadn’t been that involved with wizards during the first decades of his life to have known the right people to buy a wand from. The first one was an heirloom wand that his father gave him, badly matched but working after all. Only after acquiring one from Ollivanders he was able to use his core to its fullest extent, but by now he was a skilled wandless magician. During and after his presidency he got more into contact with magicals and magical theory, especially his last ten years were filled with magic.

That was also the time when he exchanged a lot of letters with Nic, whom he had met in France. And now that Albus was reading those letters he realised that Jefferson was the man Nicolas had talked about when mentioning the diary. Not that this meant that his search would get any easier, Jefferson had thoroughly warded most of his damn books and this was just annoying. 

In the early afternoon, Albus was just looking at a diary from Jefferson himself, the door opened, and the First Lady walked into the room, security behind her. 

 

The two of them, the former Headmaster of Hogwarts, Supreme Mugwump of the ICW and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, though under a different identity, and the First Lady of the United States of America, talked about politics, society and the problems between the no-majs and the magicals for over two hours. It was an interesting discussion, with agreement in some points, disagreement in others. 

During all that time Albus was looking through books, unwarding and checking them, until he finally had success.

“Diary of…Oh god, I found it.”

The First Lady looked up as she heard Mr. Harris' relieved statement.

“The diary that you were looking for, for your research paper?”

“Yes, and…oh damn, what kind of code is that? Someone encrypted that diary, damn.”

 

Albus Dumbledore was inwardly cursing, because this cypher was definitely annoying and hard to crack. He had read a study from the unspeakables who needed over a year and a team of four to crack something similar. 

Every time he opened the book, strange symbols and runes seemed to move over the pages, and this was deeply woven into the book. It was the most complicated structure of wards and encryptions that he had ever seen. So he needed the book, and not a copy, but the original book.

Closing his eyes and acting as if he’d be studying the book he tried to sense what kind of magical protection the three muggles in here had, and the answer was a rather good one. The two guards had a minor protection amulet and the First Lady just a protective bracelet, she most likely hadn’t expected to be in danger of magicals or she would have picked something stronger.m 

An overpowered and wandless confundus charm was all he needed to put the book into Clinton’s bag, which acted a bit like a diplomatic pouch and allowed her to bring books through the wards of the archives. Now he made them believe that her intention was to leave the archives at the same time as he would, and through the Washington Monument exit so she could take a walk before heading back into the White House.

 

And, believe it or not, this little scheme had actually worked, and as the four of them left the library he took the bag, subtly modified their memories (she was interested in the book after he got frustrated over it, but she lost it somewhere after taking it out of the archives) and let the three go while heading back to Shikoba’s workshop. 

 

Back there the woman was already expecting him (wandmakers were all rather…unique people) and smiled, the finished wand in her hand and offering it to him.

“Albus, good to see you. You seem…happy. Found it?”

“Yes, but it has one of those mediaeval encryption wards that take months if not longer to break.”

“Oh, I’ve heard of those. You make a wardstone, enchanted with a few hundred protection and encryption wards on it, connect it with the book and if you smash the stone the wards break loose. You’re gonna have to untangle the wards one by one, which will take months depending on the amount and strength. And then you’ll have to face the encryption and protection once it’s all sorted and untangled again.”

“I know, I know. I’ll keep you posted on how it’s going. That’s the wand?”

“Oh yes, it is. Come on, Albus, try it.”

And he tried his new wand.

A wand that didn’t compare to his current wand, or even his first matched wand. It made sense in some way, because he was no longer the young eleven years old Albus, no, he was someone completely different. 

In some ways it even felt better than the Elder Wand, a bit less powerful, but much more suitable and like an extension of his magical core and arm. Not just a tool, but a part of himself.

The trip to D.C. had really been worth the effort, that much was obvious.

 

His return to Nurmengard wasn’t as easy as the trip to the U.S., simply because he wanted to avoid the usage of magical travel with a potentially powerful, but surely unstably warded magical object. And illegal portkeys were definitely among the unsafest ways to travel either way, so Albus confounded about half a dozen people to end up with a first-class seat on a plane to Vienna. Just before boarding he sent a patronus message back home so someone would pick him up at the airport the muggle way. 

And so Albus ended up in a car with Dedalus Diggle, who was by now a permanent inhabitant of Nurmengard and one of the most important liaison between Albus and the British Dumbledorians - not that they knew of him being alive as of now. 

 

Once they were close to the castle, Dumbledore had no other choice but to apparate the last bit, and luckily that went flawlessly. After unpacking his things he immediately went into Gellert’s old hidden study where he placed the diary of King William I in front of him. Since he had broken the illusion ward he could clearly read the big golden letters on the back of the book, but that’s all he could identify. 

This would be a tiresome work.

And, to be honest, it would be absolutely stupid if he wouldn’t bring anyone else in, it would be quite a waste of important time if he alone would spend the next three years on that thing. He needed smart people, and some that would follow him. No one he had left could help with it. 

Elphias had always been good with wards, to a degree at least, and Abe too. Neither of those though had survived the Battle of Hogwarts. And the others of his followers had long left his side, most of those still left were foot soldiers or ageing veterans of the Grindelwald War. 

He would have to think about finding new valuable followers, talented and brilliant men and women that would serve him well.

 

Over dinner Dedalus and Gareth filled Albus in on the recent happenings. In Britain not much had happened, Lord Abbott though joined the council and wanted to meet with their secret benefactor. He was a strong voice in wizarding Britain after all, once upon a time he had been a prosecutor for the DMLE, one of the best they had. Barely anyone could argue with him over the laws of Britain as he knew all of them. 

While his family name might suggest that he would be close, or at least have contacts to Potter, that wasn’t the case. He was the older brother of Hannah Abbott’s grandfather, so her great uncle, and no one on Hannah’s side of the family got along with him.

“He’ll be a strong ally, give it some time and watch him if he’s completely trustworthy, and then we might have found the future leader of the council and I’ll meet him. What’s Europe’s mainland doing, Gareth?”

“I still have contacts in some small groups of our people in the war, most of them Order allies. They’ll back you, and we will meet some of their leaders here next week. Overall, those are probably fifty wizards and witches, but like we, not the youngest anymore.”

“That’s something at least, and I’m not wanting to take over Britain by force, no, but take out Potter and then take over politically. I don’t need an army, I need supporters. And right now I need people familiar with warding to unlock the book. Any ideas?”

Dedalus shook his head while Gareth started thinking.

“Give me a day or two to ask around and then we’ll see if I have someone at hand.”

 

But until he got a response by Gareth, Albus started with the untangling of the wards the next morning. Well, not the untangling per se just yet, all he did was observe for now, and make notes. It felt like he had a little over five hundred wards to fix (that’s what happens if someone breaks the wardstone, it becomes a gigantic gordian knot and the number of wards more or less doubles due to overlapping of wards creating new variations) before he could defuse the actual warding and encryption, and there were certainly some lethal wards in there too.

Another thing the analysis gave him was clarity about the origin of the wards. They were certainly from the late eleventh or early twelfth century, so Jefferson never unlocked the book, he just had it in his possession. If his knowledge about magical history wasn’t too bad then those wards were mainly French, which does make sense. Maybe that’s why Jefferson reached out to Nicolas, he had hoped the immortal (and French) alchemist could help him unlock the diary and discover its secrets. Quite smart actually. 

And yes, for a moment Albus considered getting Nic’s help, and if via kidnapping (which wouldn’t work with the old man, that was for sure), but no, the man was mainly an alchemist and not a warding master. Was there really no one he could ask?

But luckily Gareth was his saviour, because two days later, at their meeting after dinner, he gave him the promised answer.

“Albus, I have someone, but you won’t like it.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because, well…see for yourself.”

Gareth handed Albus two files, both filled with details about the lives of the two men and speculations about their current whereabouts.

“You think we can get them to help us?”

“My sources say that the chances are high. And if it fails at first try we just have Dedalus abduct the one’s daughter, that should work. Do you know them?”

“Oh yes, I do. And they're brilliant. Let’s try finding them, shall we?”

“Sounds like a good idea, Albus. But that won’t be easy, they certainly both have boltholes and stashes all over the world. ”

“I know I know, but they’re probably the highest qualified people we can get. And if they don’t comply at first…I want to put my new wand to good use and see how it’ll do in a duel.”

Albus looked down on the table and into the faces of the two former death eaters, the most brilliant and scary ones aside from Crouch Jr. and Tom himself. One of them a former Unspeakable, a Death Eater spy and indisputably a genius, and the other one had managed it to evade the DMLE, flee from their manhunt, find his master and use some high-level necromancy to bring him back.

Augustus Rookwood and Nathaniel Parkinson would certainly be a good addition to his followers and an even better help on his quest. And if he and Gareth really could find those two in hiding, then there really was only one smart thing he could do. 

Bring them in.

Notes:

So, that's it for the week, hope you liked it. Let me know in the comments what you think, until next week.
See ya :)

Chapter 40: Interlude: Rookwood and Parkinson

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here is this week's chapter. I hope you'll enjoy it, now that we come closer to the end of this story.
Have fun reading :)

The day Voldemort fell

As Voldemort’s head hit the ground, Augustus and Nathaniel looked at each other. This fight was lost, and so they did something which would anger the other inner circle Death Eaters. They used Augustus’ emergency portkeys, both of them simultaneously.

Once Potter had used a family magic spell against the Dark Lord, Nathaniel moved closer to Augustus, standing right next to him, exchanging looks that basically said “we’ve got to go as soon as he’s dead”. And that’s exactly what they did.

 

The pull of the portkey through Hogwarts’ wards (and across the North Sea) combined with the age of the spell was quite…uncomfortable, one might say. In truth, it was a horrible and painful transport, ending with Nathaniel laying face-down on a cold stone floor, while Augustus was straightening out his robes. 

With a snap of his finger, the room lit up and Nathaniel could finally see where he was. 

Not that it helped him much, because it was a windowless stone chamber, the floor filled with now nearly faded norse runes which were once engraved in the tiles.

“Come, Nathaniel, and let me show you my refuge. Its original Norwegian name, oh yes, we’re in northern Norway in the middle of nowhere, by the way, is absolutely unpronounceable, at least for me. I call it “Castle of the Mysteries”. It’s a small castle, though some parts of it, including one of the three towers, is nothing more than a ruin. Interesting are the magical aspects. It is built on some powerful energy lines powering the anti-muggle charms and the protection wards, and it’s all somehow connected to the ritual chamber. But I don’t know anything about it, it’s a nearly unknown variation and I did use a lot of free time to work on it, just as a hobby and to write a book about it.”

“So you say it’s a hidden spot in the middle of nowhere where you did some research as a hobby?”

“Exactly.”

“So we’ll have proper food, warm water, and a library?”

“Oh yes.”

 

After months - or in Augustus’ case years - of lacking any of their usual luxury (Neither Albania nor Little Hangleton had been anyhow comfortable) the two of them spent their first two days just regenerating. 

Just after a few years of working as an Unspeakable, Augustus had found this spot here during a research on magical energy lines. It was a subject that barely anyone studied these days, because you learn nothing about it at Hogwarts anymore and most of that knowledge was restricted to the DoM or private family libraries. He had to admit though that it was quite fascinating, for example Hogwarts itself was on one of the strongest crossing points of such lines (specifically the Great Lake actually), and so were spots like Glastonbury Tor, Stonehenge, Tintagel Castle and dozens of other spots all over the world. He had visited most of them, trying to find out more about these magically saturated areas, but it wasn’t very helpful. Angkor Wat’s hidden library had offered a few insights on how it affected wardings and that one could hypothetically take power from the lines (not that it was known if anyone ever actually did that), Giza had been a total bust, nothing had survived the millennials there. At Yellowstone no one had ever bothered to research it properly, there the effect was only on the land itself. Machu Picchu had lost its magical library too, a few centuries back, and so this was no help either.

One of the last big crossings of energy lines on his list was this location here, far north in Norway. He hadn’t really expected anything out of the ordinary there, but was quickly met with old and pretty strong wards. Once he got through them, he found the castle (ruin), abandoned and forgotten for at least one hundred and fifty years. 

He used nearly all of his vacation time up to make this place livable again and went as far as to buy the surrounding acres of land in the muggle world (under an alias of course) to make sure no one would bother him here. And from then on he always returned, cleaning up sections of the castle, stocking up the library with some more books, bringing in two house elves to help him, setting up stronger wards and much more.

One day then he discovered a secret door, though a muggle, not a magical one, which was the main reason he had missed it up until now. The hidden staircase led him into a circular room below the castle’s main building, a room that had no windows or other source of light until his feet crossed the first line of engraved runes.

If he had seen them, he would have probably not crossed them without analysing them beforehand, but they were so faint and seemed like mere fissures and bumps in the rock. And luckily those were just the light and temperature control runes, all the other rune circles were too far gone to do anything, as the quick analysis told him. 

This room and its secrets became his main occupation when he was here, aside from fixing the castle up further, but even the eight years in which he spent nearly all of his free time up here in Norway, hadn’t been helpful at all, neither with the origin of castle and ritual chamber, nor with its functions. It was his little secret, the thing not even the Dark Lord could have pulled out of his head, and that’s what made it perfect as a bolthole now.

He had even managed to get a steady food supply, since there were a few farms on his land, though far away from the castle. Instead of the rent, he had his elves (disillusioned as humans) pick up food supplies and put it in stasis regularly, most food coming from local production. Which meant that he had a huge and filled pantry, thanks to his family ties into the wine business, a filled wine cellar, three bathrooms with hot water, a library, lots of comfortable bedrooms and elves that loved to cook for him - and now his guest too. 

So over all the perfect place to hide for as long as necessary and still enjoy the luxury of comfortable living. 

 

The only thing that was bothering Nathaniel slowly was his family, or rather lack thereof. Via patronus message, house elves and magical communication mirrors, he was still occasionally checking in with the few remaining contacts in Britain, just to know that they’re somehow safe. While he never was a real family man, he still cared for his wife (even though that marriage was a result from a betrothal contract before his birth) and Pansy was still his blood, even though she was annoyingly bigoted. The downside of having your kid hang out with the youngest Malfoy and the other Death Eater children before and during Hogwarts. But educating her against the bigotry would have weakened his social standing among the inner circle even after Halloween ‘81. And now it seemed like his little girl got caught up with the other bad kids and would be sentenced to homeschooling and supervision. Nathaniel was hopeful that her mother would at least do something against the horrible bigotry of their child, she too was familiar with the muggle world and its benefits. 

But he couldn’t dare contacting her directly, that would be too dangerous. Maybe in a few years when the Voldemort war was not still fresh on people's minds. He was still a wanted man after all.

 

After the first few weeks of doing nothing or at least close to nothing, Augustus invited Nathaniel to go outside with him, hunting the muggle way. Not that Augustus had any real idea how that worked, at least beyond knowledge from a book, but the confunded shop clerk where he had bought himself a few muggle guns had told him how to operate those brilliant things. The rest of it was basically “apply silencing and disillusionment charm, go looking for deers or bears and try your best at landing a killing shot.” To his embarrassment, it had taken Augustus three days to make his first kill, but then came the dismembering and cooking together with the elves (to gain the full experience, he was a curious man after all). Certainly not an easy task either, but undoubtedly worth it. And for a man like Augustus, a brilliant man whose head was always filled with knowledge and questions, just being silent and focussed on observing and aiming was a welcome change on occasion.

Nathaniel had far more problems with it than Augustus ever had, but on the other hand, he had someone to teach him, and the curiosity into guns was certainly helping. While being familiar with those weapons, or at least the general concept, he had never seen, let alone held, one of those. Kind of a revelation, to be honest. And while Augustus was able to take his mind off all the troubles in life, Nathaniel couldn’t, the silence and lack of challenging occupation was causing his thoughts to spin, so after an entire day they gave up and went back into the castle to enjoy a bottle of wine or two.

 

It took a while until they got a hold of the news from back home. Severus’ death for example filled them with glee, he had been a traitor after all, even if they hadn’t been true believers. On the other hand, he had been a genius, and Britain’s best potioneer for sure, a true prodigy.

Many great wizards had been lost at the Battle of Hogwarts, mainly on the Dark Lord’s side though. Sure, it was bloody for both sides, but the light side got away better. Charlie Weasley might have been a promising dragon handler and Ted Tonks a great healer, but Severus aside they lost none of the irreplaceable prodigies and masters on their side, like McGonagall, Flitwick, Babbling, Shacklebolt or Bill Weasley, the very talented curse breaker. 

As far as they could tell, the British Ministry was aware of them being alive and escaped, but there was not really a manhunt going on. They were busy rebuilding their society, and while they were looking, they didn’t have the capacity to spare to do a lot of looking. Other European countries were asked to be on the lookout, but the press also said “ the two men are powerful wizards who decided to leave the side of their master, so they’re rather craving for power than being devoted Death Eaters. Interviews with friends and family strengthened this point of view, so we don’t expect them to be out for blood and retaliation. Still, they are very dangerous and wanted for several crimes.”

Basically, the British Ministry was trying to reassure the European Wizarding communities that their two escaped Death Eaters won’t go for a “Bella Lestrange kind of riot” like with the Longbottoms after Halloween ‘81, but rather lay low. Which was accurate, neither of those two had any interest in the bloodshed or murder, just in power and advanced magic. And for the foreseeable future, all they wanted was to stay here and hide while living in luxury.

 

By January, they didn’t leave the castle anymore, because it was much too cold and snowy for them. Not that they minded at all, much the opposite, they were too busy working through the library and trying a few of the experiments they always wanted to do. These days not every manor had a working ritual chamber, and those that had one didn’t really keep them stocked with the necessary objects. Ritual magic was very uncommon outside of the Ritual Department of the DoM, at least since the nineteenth century.

Augustus though had managed to steal (from the DoM) or buy enough of the rare yet necessary things (ghost essence, phoenix dust, leaves of a dead tree, those kinds of objects) to have the best-stocked ritual chamber of all British wizards (that he knew of). And so, the two of them began with a bit of ritual magic, some to strengthen mind or body temporarily, others to gain deeper understanding of elemental magic and natural magic and some to do enhanced enchantments. 

Ritual magics were quite an interesting topic, to be honest. The rituals they used to strengthen their bodies and minds (out of mere curiosity) were quite complex and historically speaking a replacement for runes. Up until the fourteenth century, enhancements were mostly done with runes, written on the body, but back then they had issues with overpowering the individual so they tended to die due to extreme infusion of magical energy. That was when they got back into researching druid techniques, based on rituals, which weren’t that long-lasting, but more stable and secure.

The costs of such a ritual were too high though to be applicable for soldiers in high quantities, and the durability was depending on the moon and sun phases, so anything but constant. It was being done now and then, but not often, and the research shifted back into runes and how to control the infused power, trying everything from blood runes to tattoos (both of which were efficient if properly applied, but forbidden and had the tendency to cause madness in the long run). 

Sharpening their minds for three hours was something they tried though (calculating the time beforehand), and it was an interesting experience, but too expensive and not too strong to be helpful in the long run. Besides, they didn’t know the long term effects of rituals on the mind.

 

The rituals through which they gained more understanding for elemental and nature magic were interesting too, basically pushing their minds into communication with the magic, just like wizards often did with ambient magic. It wasn’t easy to describe, but they were deeply connected with the magical energy, saw how it moved and behaved, giving them a better understanding of how to approach this magic. Now that they knew what elemental magic felt like, it was much easier to search for it without having to resort to forcefully summoning it via fiendfyre etc.

But what they also did was work on their enchantment skills, and then infuse the engraved runes and the woven enchantments with ambient magic channelled through the ritual so it would be more durable and stronger.

 

By April both of them were getting noticeably stronger with the elemental and natural magic, but that work had involved a lot of meditation. After getting a feeling for it, they both meditated to find this specific feeling again in midst of all the ambient magic (not easy on the crossing of magical lines), and that wandlessly. 

Eventually they’d be able to do the same elemental magics as Harry and Hermione, but learned with a different approach, they had studied the elemental magic out of Potter family books and went from wandbased magic to wandless magic over time. 

What Augustus and Nathaniel did was meditate and try to light a candle with only their mind, and not a wand. Not a wandless Incendio either, but the natural fire magic. The difference was hard to explain, to be honest, but for the caster it was noticeable. After nearly a week both had managed the candle exercise and went on to stronger and bigger challenges, occasionally trying the basics with another element too, until they ended up debating.

Augustus was of the opinion that it was the wisest thing to study all elements at the same time, while Nathaniel thought that mastering one element would make the approach to another element simpler, and so they both started documenting their process in trying to find out who was correct.

 

But before they could continue that research far enough to be somehow conclusive, they were rudely interrupted. 

Well, not rudely per se, but they were interrupted by someone knocking on the front door without having triggered any of the alarm wards or traps beforehand.

It was the last day of April 1994, a bit less than half a year after the fall of Voldemort, when someone found them, and both Nathaniel and Augustus were beyond surprised by that. But instead of asking themselves “how?” and “who?”, they opened the main door, carefully and with wands drawn.

In front of them stood an old and familiar looking man.

“Augustus!”

“Who are you?”

“Oh come on, put your wands away, you two. Nathaniel, I can sense you in there too.”

“Wait who are…Dumbledore!”

As soon as Augustus Rookwood realised that he was standing in front of Albus Dumbledore, he raised his wand even further and fired off half a dozen spells, none lethal but all intended to hurt and immobilise. 

Nathaniel joined the attack only fractions of a second later, but Albus Dumbledore was still the strongest wizard of them all, and with his new wand and having expected an attack, he managed to deflect every single spell and set up a protective barrier that would stop all short of an unforgivable. 

“Put your wands down, I’m just here to talk, I need your help!”

That made at least Augustus stop in his efforts to bring down the barrier, and his hesitation made Nathaniel follow suit just seconds later.

“Before we let you in, explain. Nathaniel, set up a similar barrier. How are you alive, old man, I saw you die.”

Albus laughed.

“Oh no, what you saw was a body collapse while my fire disappeared.”

Then Augustus understood.

“Transfiguration? And you timed your apparition with the shattering of the shield to hide the noise. I’m not surprised that you managed to break through the anti-apparition wards, they were done quickly. And what’s your agenda now?”

“Good that you ask. I’ve taken up residence in Nurmengard, killed Gellert and am collecting my followers to take out Potter and bring back the old world.”

“But Potter is the Master of Death, I don’t see either of us defeating him, and with the support he has we can’t take him together.”

“That’s why I’m here. I need two brilliant minds to break an encryption for me.”

He held up the diary of King William and opened it so Augustus could see the floating symbols on the page.

“Which century, and how many wards you need to entangle?”

“Late eleventh or early twelfth, and a bit more than five hundred. I just did the first three before I started looking for you.”

“Five…come in and explain.”

“Augustus! You think that’s a good idea.”

“Maybe it is, maybe not. And if he thinks we can take out Potter and the others then we’re free again. As much as I love this castle, I want to be able to travel…oh and maybe take over the Potter and Black libraries.”

 

Once the three of them were sitting in the library, in big comfortable armchairs and with a glass of exquisite wine and around a table, Albus handed Augustus the book, who couldn’t wait to analyse it.

“Fascinating, that’s even more complex than the last one we handled. You probably didn’t know it, our names were always classified, but I helped solve the last one in the DMLE. But this is much more complex. You know how you create those, Nathaniel.”

Nathaniel, who was still very wary of Dumbledore, shook his head.

“Well, usually, if you want to encrypt and ward a book, then you use a few layers of encryption wards, mostly with a password or a wand signature, sometimes an enchanted trinket as the key to unlock it. Woven in usually a few traps for someone trying to break them, and around them the usual protection wards.”

“Yes, that I know.”

“But from the tenth century on this technique got pretty popular after discovering it in Roman and Greek libraries, but hardly anyone used it after the sixteenth century because it’s so complicated. You take a normal wardstone, sync it with the book and text, then you put your wards on the stone. Back then people got very crazy and had about two hundred encryption and protection wards plus traps on those stones. The advantage was that if you hid the stone, no one could break the wards because there were none on the book itself. And then there were the insane people that connected the wards to their personal signature and smashed the wardstone, causing the wards to jump over onto the book and become a literal gordian knot and creating hundreds of additional wards due to crossing and overlapping of the separate spells. Only the person tied into the wards could use the book then.”

“Twenty points to Ravenclaw, Augustus. And since the person warding that book isn’t alive anymore, one has to sort through every single ward, untangle them so the original structure that was on the stone is redone, and then you can break through that like through any warded object.”

Nathaniel did understand the concept now, he even took a look at the book, and then asked the most important question.

“And why do you want that book decrypted? What are you after?”

“Well, that’s a long story.”

“We have time, Albus.”

“In short, Merlin’s wand.”

All hell broke loose as the two former Death Eaters began to ask dozens of questions, hoping that the old man could give them any clarity. Once Dumbledore raised his hand, they got silent again.

“Thank you. You are welcome to look at my research back at Nurmengard, but the essentials are that Gellert managed to pinpoint the year of death of Merlin, or at least estimate it. And the only person of whom I’d be sure to have attended his funeral is the muggle regent at this time.”

“Really? When did he die?”

“1084”

“Oh, okay, predating most families, and those that we know have existed don’t have records left like the Malfoys or are inaccessible to you, like Black. What about the founders?”

“Didn’t leave the castle anymore since 1081, there I’m rather certain.”

“Okay, so King William is the best choice, true. And this is obviously his diary in regards to magic. Where did you get it?”

“MACUSA archives, I stole it.”

That fact caused Augustus to down the rest of his wine at once and get a refill, he had tried that too a few times, but never with any success. 

“HOW?”

“Luck, actually. Met the First Lady, who has a bag that allows her to take out books, a long conversation, a few wandless confounding spells overpowering her protective bracelet and afterwards a memory modification. Pretty easy.”

 

Albus began to tell them the whole tale, knowing that he needed their trust, so he started with Gellert and him back in the day.

“Wait, you were in a relationship with Gellert Grindelwald?”

“Yes, Nathaniel, I think I made that quite clear.”

“That’s…surprising. Lovers to enemies…what a story.”

“Yes, but I had to. I had to take the Elder Wand off him.”

That fact caused even more surprised looks, excessive alcohol consumption (no longer wine by now, that was not strong enough anymore) and A LOT of questions while Albus continued to tell his tale. By the end the two former Death Eaters were convinced to help the old man, because they were still wanted in the UK, so getting rid of the current government and their supporters was not a bad idea, and because if Dumbledore could actually rise to the top (and he had much higher chances than Voldy ever had), they could get a hold of all that knowledge and power they wanted. Augustus could lead the DoM and raid as many private family libraries as possible, and Nathaniel could get back together with his family, get a high-ranking position and be a researcher alongside Augustus. 

So they agreed to go with the old man, still somehow doubting his change and his plans, but agreeing that it was the option with the best future prospects for them. After packing, they met with Albus in the entrance hall, who offered both of them one of his hands to portkey back.

“Seriously? Can’t we just touch the portkey, Albus?”

“No, because it’s the ring I’m wearing, look. A reusable portkey to Nurmengard. Let’s go, my friends.”

Both Augustus and Nathaniel rolled their eyes, then grabbed the old man’s hands.

“Activate!”

Notes:

So, that's it for this week. As always, feedback in the comments would be appreciated.
Until next week, see ya

Chapter 41: Three geniuses and a diary

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here is this week's chapter. Another round of "what was Albus Dumbledore up to the past two years", but we're coming closer and closer to the final (this time for real) confrontation, I won't be dragging it out much longer. I hope that you'll enjoy reading this chapter

It hadn’t been easy for Dumbledore to find the two escaped Death Eaters, even with Gareth’s dossiers and information, but he tried his best, which led to him having no time to work on the book. Gareth was still trying his best too, continuing tracking down properties either of the two could have bought under an alias and checking his sources, but in the end it was Albus who found them.

Just a few weeks back he had created a rather rudimentary pensieve based on the notes he had made in the MACUSA archives from Franklin’s notebooks to check his memories. Once upon a time he had read through all Death Eater files, and now he revisited the memory from reading Augustus’ file where he saw the huge amount of vacation time and his travel records. Combined with the declassified essays about energy lines Albus guessed that he had been travelling around the world to check those spots, and at some point he returned, put the topic ad acta and took huge amounts of vacation time whenever he could. 

It wasn’t too hard to get a map of the biggest energy lines and their crossings, and instead of visiting every single big one, Dedalus was tasked with looking through the muggle records, mainly the more secluded ones, and indeed, they found an interesting purchase around the right time, in the middle of nowhere in Norway.

And so Albus Dumbledore made his way to Norway, again under his assumed identity (seemingly the Americans had believed his little trick and no one had uncovered the memory modification, so the alias of Richard Harris was still usable), and he entered Augustus’ gigantic property in the middle of nowhere. Now that explains where all the funds went the DMLE couldn’t find after his arrests.

He had nearly missed the faint ward around the whole property (several square kilometres), detecting entering magicals, but since he was looking for a former Unspeakable, he was on the lookout for that. 

So when he found the castle under all its wards, he just walked up to it, elegantly surpassing all the wards (he was pretty skilled) and just knocked on the door.

 

Obviously, that had been a great success, as now he was back at Nurmengard with the two of them and ready to get started with the book. Nathaniel was a brilliant man too, and even though he had no idea of this particular encryption, he learned quickly from him and Augustus. The former Headmaster and the former Unspeakable estimated that they would need about a year if all three of them could work at least six hours per day on it, which was already magically taxing, and then probably a week or two to break the normal encryption. While that wasn’t ideal, Albus had expected and estimated that by himself, and he could use the time to strengthen his alliances, maybe get some more ties into Britain. Abbott still wanted to meet, and Macmillan would probably follow quickly afterwards. Elphias eldests son, Lord Doge, would be a strong ally too, that much was clear, so he would invite them here eventually. 

The new Lords Crabbe and Goyle were part of the council too, though only unofficially for the time being, McLaggen was still a staunch supporter, and the spies he could get into Hogwarts told him that no staff was loyal to him anymore, but Ronald Weasley was still on his side. Him and Molly Weasley, who was still in Azkaban, which was much stronger protected than ever before. The twins were brilliant students, Percy a great prosecutor and both Bill and Arthur high-ranking officials, and Ginny was still with mind healers but expected to make a full recovery and leave the whole “Mrs. Ginny Potter” nonsense behind. Only Ronald would be loyal, he was staying quiet and didn’t draw any attention while focussing on his schoolwork, probably to stand up to Potter one day. 

So his position wasn’t too bad, and if he could get to Lady Parkinson and Lady Malfoy, he could get the remaining dark side proxies and heirs behind him via them. But not now, the book had priority.

 

On one of these days where Augustus was cursing about ancient wards, Nathaniel was shaking his head in disbelief of his alliance with Dumbledore and the old man himself tried to stay enthusiastic about the whole mission, Gareth walked into the office.

“Albus, Lord Macmillan just got here.”

“Oh really? I did expect he’d need a day longer, but well. Offer him some tea and give me ten minutes to separate this nasty confundus ward from the lightning ward. Haven’t seen the latter in years, quite a lightshow if you run into that one, one hell of an electrocution. And I still haven’t figured out what the combination of these does aside from…ouch, don’t shock me.”

Augustus, trying to divide two protection wards and a withering curse ward into three separate pieces, shook his head.

“Maybe it makes you forget about the mild electric shock you get when coming near it, that’s the fifth time you’ve been shocked.”

“Seriously? How…ouch, what was that?”

Losing patience, Nathaniel flicked his wand and overloaded the confundus ward so Albus could take its cooldown time to disassemble the lighting ward.

“See! Gosh, I think these shocks aren’t good for your brain, old man.”

Dumbledore thanked him and left the office shortly after Gareth so he could redress (he wasn’t wearing his fancy suit when working with wards after one of those burned a while back, but standard curse breaker robes) and then meet Lord Ernest Macmillan. 

 

“Ernest, old friend! How are you doing?”

The elderly man looked up, glad that the man he had corresponded with so much finally arrived, and was in shock. It sounded familiar, the way he got greeted, but he couldn’t recognise the man.

“I’m sorry, do we know each other?”

“Oh, seriously? Dedalus only needed seconds to recognise me. I cut my beard and hair, am wearing new glasses and no longer flashy robes, and no no one recognises me anymore?”

“Wait…Albus? But you’re dead?”

“Oh no, old friend, I’m not. I hear you named your political movement after me, care to let me in on the fun?”

 

After giving a very stunned Ernest Macmillan enough time to understand what was happening, Albus had to tell the tale of his escape.

“And what’s your plan now? I hope that you’ll assist us in taking down the Potter-Black-Longbottom-Greengrass alliance with all their votes, and Minister Bones too. They’re going too far, and many of us believe that. The Veil for so many wizards and witches? And the muggleborns are getting too many rights. Besides, while I don’t like violence against house elves too, they’re going too far. And let’s not forget the werewolf rights. There’s a big difference between being less racist and being too inclusive of non-deserving creatures.”

Oh, that was much better than Albus had imagined, they’re completely supportive and absolutely unhappy with the current government.

“I have a plan.”

“A plan? Come on, Albus, I’m already under oath.”

“No, I can’t, not yet at least. It might take me over a year, if not more, to be entirely successful so we can take down Potter. I’m working on it, and not alone.”

“A year or longer? Seriously?”

“I’ll keep supporting you financially and you work on getting the public on your side while I’ll furthen my alliances too, and once I have what I need, we move against them. And come on, you don’t have the political power to make a move now, don’t complain.”

 

Albus would have several of these discussions over the next few months, Lord Doge and Lord Abbott were a bit more helpful than Ernest Macmillan, but there were the less easy ones too. The new Lords Crabbe and Goyle were nearly unknown to him and had pressured the heirs of the main family to give up their titles. None of those were dark, but they were not easy to convince. And the hardest one was Lord McLaggen, a man that had been called the “Light Lucius Malfoy”, though he was nowhere as rich or powerful as the Malfoy patriarch had been, just as arrogant. He was demanding full disclosure of Dumbledore’s plans, an absurdly high financial support and the position of Minister of Magic when they had control of Britain. 

Well, he had to suffer in a small cell in Nurmengard for a week until he realised that he had no say in basically anything and was just a pawn to Albus Dumbledore.

 

Mid-June of 1995, just as Harry’s fourth year at Hogwarts (a very boring one this time around, no Triwizard Tournament, no Voldemort rebirth and no attacks at the Quidditch World Cup) was slowly coming to a close, Albus, Augustus and Nathaniel were finishing up the last few entangled wards. It had been a long and exhausting year, but also an effective one. Shortly after Christmas Dumbledore had granted bringing Lady Alana Parkinson and her daughter in as they were on vacation in France. Sure, the realisation that her father was working with the apparently not dead Albus Dumbledore wasn’t easy for Pansy (she might have insulted Dumbledore a few times, causing the old man to laugh in amusement), but eventually she accepted that her father was just trying to make their life easier again. While it was hard to understand that he wasn’t as bigoted as the Malfoys for example, she tried to adapt to her changing world.

Sadly, this would be the only time they got to meet until now, because Pansy was still being homeschooled by her mother and tutors under ministry supervision, so the Christmas vacation (without wand) was the only way for the girl to leave the house unobserved by the ministry.

But a change to that was now so near as they just had to break the usual wards around the book, the entanglement was completely resolved. 

One and a half weeks later, on a Monday afternoon, all three of them nearly collapsed in exhaustion as the last remaining wards fell at once. They did it.

“Bloody hell, we did it.”

After drinking some water and taking a breath, Albus opened up the book and started looking through the pages until he found an entry from late 1084 and began to read it out, though obviously under a translation spell.

The messengers of our magicals arrived the day before yesterday to inform me of the death of Lord Merlin Ambrosius, King Arthur’s wizard. I had only met the man twice, but he was impressive.

Tall and with light grey eyes and a greying beard, a staff to walk with in his hand and his wand stripped to the wrist. He had performed the most unusual magics in my presence and told tales of Camelot Castle and Arthur’s court. 

And now this great man is dead, and the wizards invite me to his funeral on the magical island of Avalon. They handed me a gem, a big ruby which would guide me. It had runic symbols all over it and even I could feel its power despite having no magic myself.

They brought me into the west of our island, somewhere along the coast, they said it was a place of importance for Arthur and that the quest to Camelot would start here.

 

The gem reacted just as they said it would and we were transported to the edge of a big lake or the sea, covered in fog, and a boat appeared.

When we entered the boat the gem glowed stronger and a magical melody was coming from the water as the boat started to move. 

After a while we reached an island, usually hidden from plain sight, or so they said, and here we put Lord Merlin to eternal rest. His wand in his hand and his staff by his side the wizards closed his coffin and carried it into a crypt, where they sealed the stone coffin.

Albus skipped over the parts of the ceremony, because now they knew that Merlin was indeed buried with his wand, and that it happened on the magical island of Avalon, that much was obvious from the descriptions.

After a few pages he found another interesting section.

When we left again, the wizards gifted me with the gem, they called it a Passage to Avalon, and I should look after it. If one went to the starting point of the quest, it would lead him to the island. I promised them that I’d keep it safe.

Now panicking as the section about the funeral stopped, Albus skimmed through the rest of the diary, hoping to find at least some clue. 

 

I gave the crystal to Avalon in the safekeeping of an old friend of mine until I shall get it back from him, Otho de Lagery, a French priest and current papal legate in the Holy Roman Empire. He’ll look after it.

“And that’s it, shortly after that he died, so we just need to find out who that priest was.

 

About a week later (their library hadn’t had any information on the priest so they had to go visit a bigger public library) they knew who this french priest was - or would become. Pope Urban II. And if the books they consulted were correct, then all of his assets were in the Vatican.

A fact, which didn’t make Albus Dumbledore really happy, because on this treasure hunt he already had to sneak something out of the MACUSA archives, now stealing a gem out of the Vatican was even worse, because despite having no wizarding community they were incredibly well protected.

This led to an immense amount of preparation, with all of them reaching out to contacts and getting a hold of blueprints, warding schemes or guard schedules. An old associate of Augustus - who had to be heavily bribed - even delivered a stolen ledger (a gemino spell copy of the original) listing the contents of the Magical Vatican Vaults. And with that they even had proof of the gem’s location, because it said “Magical Vault 36, red ruby, engraved with runes, powers unknown. William the Conqueror to Pope Urban II, late eleventh century.”

After a while of researching and getting intel, they were not so worried about that heist anymore, because the Magical Archives were not a subsection of the Vatican Secret Archive - a highly secured area, for both muggles and magicals. They had feared that the gem would end up somewhere, not being identified as magical and laying around in some sort of vault, but the ledger of the Magical Vaults had told them the truth. 

The issue then was to pinpoint the location of said vault, which wasn’t on any of the ordinary maps (obviously), but over time they managed to get the details.

Before the fifteenth century, the magical artefacts hadn’t been handled separately by the church, but that mindset slowly changed after the end of the Avignon Papacy. As they built the new Apostolic Palace they also built the subterranean Magical Vaults to store all these artefacts, with the intention of taking as many of those as possible out of circulation, both the biblical and the non-biblical artefacts, so no one could start theorising that the divinity was in truth just magic.

That’s why they didn’t let anyone enter the Vaults, those things weren’t there for research purposes, but just to lock them away. Destruction was on the table once, but that would have been giving up leverage and potentially powerful weaponry.

 

But because no one really entered these vaults, not even the Vatican’s own personnel, the very active black market with objects from there was never noticed by the officials - or at least by those that weren’t part of the scheme. It was obviously a very secret market, just selling to known customers, so it was no big surprise that neither Albus, nor Augustus or Nathaniel didn’t know about it and pointlessly planned a heist.

That would change one day, by now mid-November, since the “Operation Followers” and the “Operation Dumbledorians in Britain” were quite time-consuming as well, as Gareth, Dumbledore’s old friend, came back from a recruitment mission.

Gareth had originally been a German (his name was obviously just an alias, one of many, and by now the accent was entirely gone too), who got swayed by Gellert Grindelwald back in the day, after a negative experience with muggles in his (then former) hometown. 

Originally he was a private tutor to magical children of wealthy families, his specialities being estate management, other business-related topics and formal duelling. As a side-job he began selling the business secrets of said families and started his gathering of intelligence as a potential source of blackmail while becoming proficient in all sorts of spying charms and combat magic (even aside from the formal duelling). When the muggle-incident happened (he didn’t talk about what happened, but they chased him from their town) he developed a hatred towards them and allied himself with Grindelwald, using his skills to become his spy. And damn, he was the best one Gellert ever had.

But at some point he got doubts, because while spying and fighting were his talents and passions, he was not a fan of slaughter. A few years before Gellert’s defeat, in the early forties - the situation in the muggle world making him want to leave even more - he was spying on Albus Dumbledore, the man who would save him. 

Unlike Severus Snape back in the day, Gareth was no “slave”, and he was never forced into working for the old man, much the opposite. One day he revealed himself to the transfiguration professor after witnessing his magical skill from afar. And with the promise of not ordering him to kill people, and to work towards ending Gellert’s reign of terror, Albus Dumbledore got a new follower.

He was not a conventional follower, and certainly not one that made his alliance public - ever. Under the guise of continuing to spy on Albus, Gareth stayed in Scotland for a major part of the time until Geller’s downfall, and once that was over he went back onto the continent and became Albus’ informant. And by the time of Voldemort’s first uprising he was able to keep the “Leader of the Light” updated on followers coming from the continent as well as some business connections the Death Eaters had here. Due to some of his intel and subtle sabotage, he for example nearly ruined a whole importing business from Lucius Malfoy and he was behind getting some of Nott’s contacts and associates arrested on a variety of (occasionally bogus) charges.

And because of all Gareth’s efforts on the continent, Albus had - once he was “dead” in Britain - a complete network of spies, black market dealers, light sided fighters and businesses as well as proper funding at hand. 

But what was truly important now was the fact that Gareth had contacts into the Vatican black market, due to a very complicated situation with a wand made from wood of the cross of Jesus and a greek billionaire (and a bewitched, speaking, yellow octopus called Octavian, but that's besides the point). With that knowledge he could very well try to buy the gem for Albus, but due to security reasons (the old meddler was still a friend of secrecy) he didn’t know what the “brilliant trio”, as he called the “Leader of the Light” and the Death Eaters, was looking for.

 

That changed a few days after his return from a very successful recruitment mission in Magical Portugal, giving them access to the funds of the Lord of Magical Lisbon, when he came down into Gellert’s hidden study, which the trio used for their research.

There he saw an object he had seen before, the ledger with the contents of the Vatican Vault, as well as some of the schematics.

“Albus, do you have time for…what are you doing? Don’t tell me you want to break into the damn Vatican Vaults.” 

“Uhm…”

Now Albus was unsure what to reply. Fill in his spymaster and strongest ally on his plans, or not? But why was he so furious.

“And what if we would want to?”

Gareth shook his head.

“Then I’d tell you that you're crazy, those are too heavily protected. And besides, I can get you nearly anything from in there on the black market - if you’re willing to pay the price.”

 

And the room was silent as all three men looked up and stared at the old spy.

“What?”

“Oh, one of the bishops controlling the Vaults has a flourishing black market, but it’s damn hard to get in and all of it is rather secret.”

“Do you have a way in?”

“Yes, but that’s a long story. What do you need?”

Albus then showed his spymaster the ledger and told him which item - the gem - he wanted.

 

After a bit of conversation via a protean-charmed and warded communication stone, Gareth came back to Albus with an offer. 

“TWO MILLION GALLEONS?”

“Actually that’s a rather good price, Albus, and you can have it probably tomorrow if we make the transfer today. But we might have to ask for a bit of funding from our British friends. We have the money, but spending that amount at once is bad for our other operations.”

Albus sighed.

“Write Macmillan and offer him two percent interest for one and a half million galleons over the course of…two years? You’re more familiar with our finances.”

“I’ll see it done, but he’ll have more demands in the long run.”

“I know.”

 

Four hours and a few floo calls later, all the transfers were completed and the people behind the black market were two million galleons richer. 

A bishop, who in secret was a squib, made his way down into the Vaults through an entrance that his predecessor in the black market built. He wasn't magical, so the wards let him through without any problem, then he used his key to open the one Vault he was looking for, number 36. It was one of the bigger ones, filled with cursed and charmed gems and jewellery, including one of the ancient papal tiaras which a very ambitious wizard had once charmed with a compulsion charm that made the pope listen to said wizard’s “suggestions”.

What the wizards were looking for was a red gem with runes on it, originally from William the Conqueror. Its magical power was unknown, but it was theorised that it was of a symbolic or ritual nature. So…most likely not dangerous - not that this stopped him usually. 

The only things he didn’t sell were the too obvious ones that could reveal the black market. Every pope was told about the vaults (every cardinal was made aware of magic, even most bishops knew of it) and of some of its contents, like the grail, the holy lance or Solomon’s seal. Those things he obviously couldn’t sell, even though dozens of people had already asked for it and offered horrendous amounts of money. 

He found the gem after just a few minutes of searching, checked to make sure it really was the genuine object and then put it in his bag (undetectable extension charm and ward protection on it) so he could meet up with his client. Those meetings happened outside of the Vatican near a public floo and were just done after the money was transferred.

 

The next morning the bishop met up with Gareth and handed over the artefact after having made sure that the transfer of money had happened.

And so Albus Dumbledore got a hold of the magical gem without having to break into the Vatican. 

Once he held the stone in his hands, he could feel the power coming from it, not too strong, but still there. A complex runic spell, and one that they probably couldn’t break. It was a reusable portkey, as well as a “key” to enter Avalon. The portkey was location-based and activated automatically, so all he needed to do was to find the spot where it activated.

Now that was the next thing to work out. Where did it activate?

Notes:

So, one mystery solved, another one to solve, but it's progress for our "favourite" meddler. As always, let me know in the comments what you think.
Until next week :)

Chapter 42: Plotting, politics, research and VACATION!

Notes:

Good morning everyone,
here you have this week's chapter. Hope you'll like it. I can by now tell you that we'll either end up with 46 or 47 chapters overall, so the end is near :)
Have fun reading

Once again, weeks and months passed, in which Albus and his companions researched possible locations based on the book of King William. That was not an easy thing to do, and it was constantly interrupted by other missions or another family visit for Nathaniel around Christmas. 

The biggest problem was the inconsistency of the Arthurian mythology, the fact that most texts got written long after Arthur, and that muggle and magical stories differed gigantically. Besides, it could be every single spot on the western coast of Great Britain. Some were more likely than others, but since so much tales could have been lost, nothing was to be excluded. 

So Augustus came up with a new plan sometime in February. He began working on spell creation - a discipline neither of them were great in - to make a spell that would copy the encrypted location signature off the gem. They could  - hypothetically - put that on any object then and send people to all the possible spots, and the spell would light up if they were at the right location.

By May he had a working spell at hand he wanted to try out, so Albus created a reusable portkey with a specific location and Augustus transferred the signature of that portkey onto a small trinket that would heat up in the immediate vicinity of the location.

After a thirty minute search, he actually found the spot, so the spell worked. Now he only needed to implement the encrypted location signature of the gem onto enough trinkets to be usable, and then start giving those trinkets to their associates in Britain, since the ministry was keeping a much closer look on their borders. Going by themselves was dangerous at the moment unless the council could get some of their people on the border control. 

 

Since travelling to the UK was not really an option after discussing that with their allies, Dedalus smuggled thirty enchanted trinkets back into magical Britain, handing them out to some of their allies all over the country.

Two of those, Albus Dumbledore had hand picked himself, and Dedalus was due to meet them at Hogsmeade, even though one of them was mostly busy revising for his OWLs. The other was just as annoying as his father, and a sixth year student.

Ronald Weasley and Cormac McLaggen had received a letter from Cormac’s father, to meet with a fellow Dumbledorian at Hogsmeade, because he had a mission for them. Those two were the biggest supporters of the Dumbledorian movement at Hogwarts, and so picked to serve the council. He had informed them to wait at old Abe Dumbledore’s pub, the Hog’s Head, which was in Dedalus’ possession (Albus was “dead” and so were most of the other close friends he had had, Dedalus excluded, he let someone else do the day-to-day business though) and upon his own arrival he led them into the private part of the pub.

“So, gentlemen, as discussed I first need a vow of silence.”

Despite not being amused about it, they both gave their magical vow to Dedalus.

“To be blunt, Albus Dumbledore is still alive and has chosen you to help him as he still can’t return to the UK.”

As expected, they started asking Dedalus so many questions, Hermione Granger would have been proud of them, and after answering most of them sufficiently, he handed both a list with locations and a trinket so they could check those spots.

 

While Cormac started working down his list during the weekends (getting permission to leave via his father), Ronald had to wait until the school year had ended. Which, to be honest, wasn’t that bad, because he spent hours and hours studying for his OWLs - in secret. By now he was a competent combat mage and got his seven OWLs, while simultaneously trying to be as “invisible” as possible. And that he had managed. Barely friends, no quidditch, only some conversations with Dean or Seamus when it came to boys in his dorm, and mostly hiding away silently. 

Though some might claim it, the Weasleys were not stupid. They just had the tendency to be lazy, but with a motivating goal (getting revenge on Potter), they were able to achieve a lot.

 

Back at the Burrow, he didn’t even talk about how his exams went, having begun ignoring his father a long time ago, and his sister was a completely different person by now, so he didn’t talk to her either. 

And after months of trying, starting when Molly was imprisoned, Arthur just gave up, seeing that his son was too convinced of Molly’s and Dumbledore’s lies - and other than Ginny that had nothing to do with brainwashing from a young age and could be cured.

The consequence of that was that Ronald was basically free to come and go as he pleased, Arthur was mostly gone for work and Ginny tried her best to socialise with friends at all times. Even when she was at the Burrow, she avoided Ron and didn’t even notice when he was gone, thinking he was again hiding in his room.

With the money Diggle had given him he began touring around on the knight bus, checking dozens of locations all over the British coast, but so far without any success.

 

And while Ronald was following Dumbledore’s orders, Amelia Bones, having revealed her pregnancy to everyone on the evening Harry, Hermione and Susan came back from Hogwarts, was thinking about her future. It was clear to her that she had done a great job as Minister of Magic, but could she still give everything if her child was born?

She discussed the topic with her husband-to-be (the wedding was planned for this summer), who agreed with her. As much as Amelia loved her job, she had done so much good that she could take personal time without having to feel bad. Sirius’ offer to stay home so she could continue working full-time was declined, Amy had lost all her family but Susan, to dedicate the next years of her life mainly to family was feeling right to her. 

The next step was to discuss that with the other leaders of the alliance, Harry and Neville (since they were all at Potter Manor the first few weeks) first. They both supported her too, but Neville was asking the most important question.

“Whom do we want now then?”

That was a good question, because Sirius declined to take the job, neither the Lord Potter nor the Lord Longbottom wanted a political office yet, Lord Greengrass was a fantastic Chief Warlock and should keep that title, Arthur Weasley didn’t even want to become Undersecretary to the Minister (oh, they tried hard) but was happy as Head of the Human Resources Department (doing a great job working towards equality), so he would decline that for sure. From the biggest alliance members there were only Ogden and Marchbanks left, the latter being too old for the job. Lord Jacob Ogden was wealthy due to his family business, and had always been a close ally of Arthur Greengrass and Augusta Longbottom on the light-to-moderate side of the Wizengamot. He had always been hiring regardless of blood status, muggleborns tended to bring modern technologies and innovative ideas into the business, increasing the efficiency. 

In regards to any “non-wizards and other magical beings” he was rather tolerant. His elves were treated well, respected goblins, centaurs and co., his only problem was with werewolves, but only because he lost his uncle to an attack by Greyback. He had no issue with werewolves per se, but was weary, especially when employing them (which he did). After all, the werewolves were not at fault for their disease, as long as they got locked away with wolfsbane in a secure location during the full moon, everything was okay. But they needed to be extra careful and should be held responsible for any attack due to their own mistake.

Over all, Ogden was a pretty good candidate and had the necessary support within the alliance and the public to have a good chance. 

The Dark sided Lords didn’t have anyone popular enough for any proper nomination, all of the big dark Lords were arrested and imprisoned with their wives as proxy. The only big question was whom the Dumbledorian movement would nominate, probably with support from the dark side. It could actually be a close call if they nominated anyone else but that damn McLaggen, who was despised by most people within and outside of the Wizengamot.

 

During the first week of the holidays, Sirius called for an alliance meeting, where Amelia’s decision was explained. After the congratulations on the pregnancy, it was Arthur Weasley who asked the important question.

“And who are we going to nominate? I don’t see many candidates with enough support, and just for the record, I don’t want it. I’ll keep on working in Human Resources to fight for equality.”

Most people within the alliance had expected that, but were not too happy about it. As a personal victim of Albus Dumbledore, a man who had been dosed with potions by his wife and manipulated, he was the ideal candidate for them. 

“I think I know whom you’re gonna suggest, Amelia. Sirius will probably stay in his position and not get even more workload now, Potter and Longbottom are too young and I’ll stay Chief Warlock. No offence, Griselda, but I think you’re past the age of becoming Minister, so I suggest Jacob. He has the support.”

Amy nodded, and the others soon showed their agreement. A formal vote was held, and the alliance unanimously nominated Lord Jacob Ogden as their candidate for Minister of Magic once Amelia formally resigned. That she would do at the next Wizengamot session, held next week, so the Lords and Ladies could nominate someone and the campaign could start.

 

Ronald Weasley was currently swearing a lot. He was - despite the stormy weather - working down the list that Dedalus Diggle had given him. Sure, he felt important knowing that he was helping Albus Dumbledore, but at the same time it was an exhausting job. The unspectacular golden ring he had hidden under a loose floorboard at home was now on his finger, and apparently it should light up when he was within three metres of the location they were looking for.

Did he know why they searched for a specific spot? No.

But that didn’t change anything, because he hated Potter and his whole reform of the magical world more than anyone else. Back in 1991 he had hoped to run into the helpless and clueless Potter boy at King’s Cross so he could befriend them, but no, Potter was together with that mudblood and the Longbottom squib. 

Well, actually Longbottom was one of the strongest wizards of their year, so he couldn’t call him a squib anymore without making himself a laughingstock, but still…it was Longbottom. A nobody with no parents and just his old grandma, a boy that by all accounts hadn’t shown any magic before the age of ten.

But no, that little boy had to befriend Potter, and it was over with getting a part of his wealth and fame. And damn, that fame was justified, because as much as he hated him, Potter was a brilliant wizard. Just twelve years old he defeated Dumbledore and a teenage Voldemort at the same time, outplayed them politically and then won the Battle of Hogwarts.

Ron had decided to become the quiet boy in class, unnoticed by most, so he could study, and finally use the Weasley brilliance that all his other brothers had. Bill was one of the best curse breakers in the country, Charlie a supreme dragon handler, the twins were definitely geniuses (mad ones, but still) and Percy…he was absolutely unbearable, but still prefect, head boy and now a rising star in the DMLE justice department. 

And he, Ron, would become the man on Dumbledore’s side, defeating that damn Potter boy and his friends on his rise to power. Dumbledore, the great man that he was, would certainly give him a high-ranking job and then all his brothers and his father would beg him to help them. And he would get his mom released, once Potter was gone. She was just wanting the best for her family, that’s all.

After he finished checking this spot on the list, he lifted his wand and called for the knight bus, where Stan already greeted him.

“Mr. Weasley! Another tour ‘round the country for you?”

“Yep, Tintagel Castle please, you know it?”

“Oh yes, the castle rumoured to be the place of King Arthur’s conception. Merlin apparently put a concealment charm on Uther Pendragon so Lady Igraine would think he was her husband, Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall and Lord of this very castle. And so Igraine would carry the son of King Uther.”

Then he turned around while gesturing to Ron to get in.

“Ernie? Heard that? Tintagel Castle for our top customer Mr. Weasley.”

 

And while Ronald was busy scouting the entire peninsula on which Tintagel Castle was located (which would probably take him an entire week), Harry and Hermione were continuing the animagus classes with their friends at home, sometimes joined by Minnie. Just to clarify, those two were pretty great at the transformation and held the classes. Susan tried her best at those, since she was always there, but meditation wasn’t really her thing so she didn’t have a form despite the transfiguration skills she possessed. 

Neville had found his form on one of the first meditation sessions in the holidays, and since he had trained so much on the practical side (performing the spells leading to the transformation was possible without having a form yet, you just didn’t transform) up until now he would most likely manage to transform into his horse form soon.

Daphne was a different case, her transfiguration talent was great yet not as great as the others’, but she knew it was a mammal, a small one, and it was something from the dog family. She would probably have success finding it out precisely very soon too. 

Normally Luna and Padma would have joined them too a lot, but the Patil family was making a summer trip back to magical India, now that their daughters got through their OWLs, and they took the Lovegood family with them. Xeno claimed there he could find an interesting subspecies of the blibbering humdinger (or he made up that reason so Luna and he could join the Patils without making Luna feel like she’s hindering her father from working), so he was writing an article for the Quibbler there.

 

Studying aside, Harry had a plan for these vacations, one he hadn’t told Hermione about yet. Before he could do this, he needed to talk to Dan and Sirius.

When one of the Potter elves informed both Sirius and Dan to go meet Harry in his office, they were already surprised. They were even more surprised when Harry offered them both a drink and appeared very serious.

“Dan, Sirius, I have a question. Can Hermione and I spend a week or so at the castle during the holidays?”

Dan was the first to respond while Sirius already had a cheeky grin on his face.

“Sure, I don’t see why…oh. You want to spend the time alone with her, don’t you?”

He downed the content of the glass.

“You know what, you’re nearly sixteen and Hermione is closer to seventeen than sixteen. I don’t even want to think about these kind of things, but you two are bonded by magic which is basically an unbreakable engagement if I didn’t understand that wrong. You’re a couple for…we can argue about how long, Emma and I would say long before you made it official…so, yes, you may. But I don’t want to hear anything about this week you’ll have.”

Sirius just grinned smugly and shooed Dan out of the room so Harry would have his time alone. He had had THIS kind of conversation with his godson before fourth year before realising he was from the future. Harry had to admit though that no one had given him the talk per se, and not even under love potions with Ginny he got even remotely that far - thank god the burrow was small and chaotic (same was with Hermione, they had a conversation about this already a while back. Neither Weasley got far with them, not more than a few snogs for Harry and Ron just tried to flirt clumsily ).

Now he had to tell Hermione the good news.

His lovely girlfriend was down in the library, he had let her into the hidden part of it, the one behind the big obelisk which only he could open. She was doing some research on some ancient charms to get a better understanding of the theory behind charmwork, and some of the Potter books were quite extraordinary.

“Mione, dear?”

Her face lit up as she heard him call and she put away the book.

“Love?”

“I got a surprise for you. We’re going on vacation.”

“What?”

“Oh yes, you heard me correctly. You and I, Potter Castle for at least a week.”

“That’s lovely. I love the view from the tower there, and the path down to the coast is so perfect for a quiet afternoon…wait! Just you and I?”

He grinned at her and nodded, causing Mione to jump up and wrap her arms around him.

“How did you…?”

“Honestly, I just asked.”

For them that meant a lot, because as relaxed as the Grangers were with their relationship, much time in peace and quiet was nearly impossible, and sleeping next to each other aside from an afternoon nap on the couch was not possible either (excluding those three instances in which Harry sneaked over to her when he knew the Grangers would get up and leave so early they wouldn’t wake the kids during the Christmas holidays). So to have a week or more just on their own in a big house - or to be more precise, Harry’s castle - was a chance to advance the depth of their relationship.

 

Emma Granger was, to be honest, torn between happiness and unhappiness with the whole situation. She loved Harry like a son, but if she thought back to her teenage years and what she did with sixteen…it was very strange to think that her little daughter was now at that age. 

On the other hand, those two had been through so much together (more than Emma actually knew), much more than some adults go through all their life. It shouldn’t bother her at all. They were mature enough.

So she shrugged the worries off and continued with baking an apple pie for the afternoon.

 

The following day in the morning Harry and Hermione flooed into Potter Castle, and the first thing Harry did was lock down the floo for now. An elf had already brought their things into their bedrooms (well, he had asked the elves in secret to put both of it in the Lord’s rooms) so they had nothing with them and just walked into the big living room Harry had furnished with a comfy red couch and armchairs, a bit like the Gryffindor common room.

With a snap of Harry’s fingers music started playing, one of their favourite bands, an Australian band that got popular in the sixties and Dan had seen in his teenage years here in the UK, The Seekers. Mione started humming along immediately before punching Harry playfully on the shoulder and said “you little showoff!”

They both started an impromptu dance session in the living room before collapsing on the couch snogging and being very glad that no one would come in and interrupt them. Thankfully the fireplace was on, otherwise Mione would have probably started complaining about freezing as soon as her shirt was off - which was the first, yet not the last piece of clothing to go.

 

And while Harry and Hermione were enjoying their alone time, Ronald Weasley was still walking across the damn peninsula trying to find the right spot for whatever Dumbledore wanted. Not that he didn’t enjoy seeing the country, but it was damn exhausting. Following a pattern he had devised on a map he checked every single spot hoping for the ring to start heating up. 

His biggest issue wasn’t even the walking, he was still actively training to be a good quidditch player, even if he hadn’t joined the team at school. Ron was rather fit, that much was clear.

No, his biggest issue was the lack of magic, because he still had the damn trace on his wand and there was no family wand back home he could “borrow.” If only Charlie’s wand, the one he started Hogwarts with, wouldn’t have broken after the car incident, then he could have used it. Back then he hadn’t known and his parents hadn’t cared or thought about that, but since Charlie was an adult by then the trace was gone. They hadn’t officially registered that wand as his so the trace was put back on - the normal way to deal with heritage wands for Hogwarts students.

On the day when his father got called to the latest alliance meeting just a few days back, Ron had gone up into the attic to find the trunks with the rest of Uncle Bilius’ and Grandpa Septimus’ stuff his father had inherited. The only fascinating thing he had found was a protective necklace whose charms had nearly faded, but the rest was old clothing and a few wizarding pictures. 

And since Ronald had no talent whatsoever for wandless magic (not that he hadn’t tried), he had to work down his list without magic. How annoying.

 

As the day slowly came to a close, he called the Knight Bus once again and went back home. The bus dropped him off about a mile from home and outside the wards as always, so no one would find out that he had left with the bus. 

Once he entered through the front door, he immediately noticed the noise upstairs telling him that his father was in his study. Ginny was nowhere to be found, so she was probably in her room too. After grabbing something to eat from the kitchen he went upstairs, but upon walking past his father’s room he heard him on a floo call.

“No, Amos, I don’t want to, and that’s what I told you and the others more than once. I get that you’d rather see me than Jacob as Minister, but I’m gonna continue working in HR.”

“I know, I know, but you were one of Dumbledore’s victims. That would be a big plus, you’re one of the most liked politicians we have. I don’t have a problem with Jacob, but I want this win to be secure. We can’t lose now.”

“We won’t. Amelia’s pregnancy is unexpected, and no one will see it coming that she resigns next week. We have a candidate and a campaign ready, that puts us lightyears ahead of the opposition.”

 

Ronald grinned. That was exactly the kind of information which Dumbledore would need, so he quietly rushed into his room and grabbed the protean charmed parchment, hidden under the loose floorboard, he should only use if he had found the right location and wrote on it.

Headmaster, 

Amelia Bones will resign from her post as Minister of Magic next week due to pregnancy. The Alliance intends to nominate Jacob Ogden as her replacement and they already have a campaign ready. You might want to prepare a strong opponent so it doesn’t hit the council in surprise.

My search is still ongoing, only downside is that I don’t have a trace-free wand, maybe you can change that? I tried my best to support your cause and have seven OWLs and competent combat magic skill to take down Potter and his associates.

Sincerely yours,

Ronald Bilius Weasley

 

For a very short moment there was happiness at Nurmengard as one of the protean charmed parchments started glowing and a message appeared, but Gareth, who read it first, just shook his head.

“False alarm, but you might want to read that either way, Albus.”

He handed Dumbledore the parchment, who quickly read it and started to smile.

“Oh. That changes a lot. Send a trace-free wand to Ronald Weasley through our smugglers and find me a way into the UK. It seems like we can try grabbing for power earlier than expected.”

Notes:

So, that's it for this week, I hope you liked this chapter. Let me know in the comments :)
Until next week, see ya

Chapter 43: Things are starting to escalate

Notes:

Good morning everyone,

I'm happy to announce that I've finally finished the story, after this chapter just two more and an epilogue, but don't worry, I have a new story coming up too.
As always, have fun reading :)

The morning after his letter to Dumbledore, Ronald Weasley got a letter via owl post in the morning, It was not an owl he knew, and one that left immediately after delivery, and so he, Arthur and Ginny just looked at it curiously. Ron opened it up and immediately saw a magical text - only visible to him - appear on the backside of the envelope.

Undetectable extension charm, open only when alone. Blackthorn and unicorn hair, twelve inch, flexible. It has no trace. Thank you - AD

Little did he know that the letter made its way through three floos (two of them illegal) during the night and was hurried a lot since it had priority for the Lord of Nurmengard.

“Ronald?”

“Uhm…that’s…doesn’t matter.”

He stuttered that and tried his best to blush a little, and Ginny immediately took the bait.

“Oh, does little Ron have a secret admirer? Or a cute girlfriend we don’t know about?”

“Shut up, Gin, not your business.”

With that he grabbed his plate and the letter and rushed upstairs into his room. Once he was out of sight, he grinned. It had worked.

 

The wand he plucked out of the envelope was quite fancy, a nice blackthorn wand looking a bit like that ponce Malfoy’s had been (or still was, since he was home schooled Ron hadn’t seen him in two years - luckily), and as soon as he gripped it, he felt its strength. Yes, not a damn perfect match, but it had the same core as his usual wand and he could work well enough with it. 

After trying out a few little spells (including silencing on his door and an alarm ward - a weak one though, he just knew the basic theory) he took out the included letter, clearly written by the headmaster. Ronald had seen Dumbledore’s writing a few times on letters to his mother that gave her orders, like the one telling them to find Potter at King’s Cross.

He quickly read it and his grin got bigger and bigger. Dumbledore wanted to meet him today, apparently the headmaster would wait for him at the ruins of Tintagel Castle, which Ron hadn’t finished searching yet. What he wanted from him, that he didn’t know, but Albus Dumbledore wasn’t a man one kept waiting.

 

At Nurmengard, Albus was just packing the last few things he’d take to Britain with him, most importantly the potion he himself had brewed. It was an expensive and complicated brew, taking all night to make, which made the person taking it quite easy to influence - at least for him. No one else would and could notice it. So what his plan was, was to give it to Arthur Weasley via his son, and then Arthur would suddenly decide to run for Minister despite his original refusal. He was much more popular than Jacob Ogden, especially his “tragic betrayal by his wife” and the “horrors suffered at Albus Dumbledore’s hand” made him the ideal candidate for the new era the British Wizarding World had reached in the past few years.

He would meet Ronald later today and then stay in one of Dedalus’ old boltholes until the right spot was found. If he first put a new Minister of Magic in place or got Merlin’s Wand…well, that was still to be determined, but he wanted both.

The portkey Gareth had gotten him was not even an illegal one (portkeying into Britain was monitored by wards), but a legal one under the same alias he had used in the US. Yes, in the UK, people would start noticing him after a few minutes, so he had to travel to a portkey checkpoint guarded by some of their followers, and luckily Macmillan had been able to pull a few strings and get just some of his people on said shift this morning. 

The very familiar pull of the portkey dragged Albus halfway across Europe and for the first time in over two years onto the British Isles. He was back.

Two wizards greeted him, they immediately knew who he was yet accepted his bogus identity on the travel documents before letting him go. Now that Albus was inside the UK his portkeying and apparating wouldn’t be noticed anymore, the security system was just to protect their borders. 

With a flick of his wand he disillusioned himself and apparated to the peninsula where Tintagel Castle was located. Yes, he was a bit early and would probably have to wait a while for Ronald Weasley, but that was okay. 

 

Ernie and Stan brought Ron to the peninsula too, a bit less than an hour after Albus Dumbledore’s arrival. And while Ronald couldn’t see or detect the old wizard - despite using a rather advanced “homenum revelio” spell, the old wizard was able to see the young redhead from afar. His magical core was softly glowing, not extraordinarily strong like Potter or Granger, but also not weak. He was a strong wizard.

“Mr. Weasley!”

Ronald flinched as Albus Dumbledore - though no longer looking like an old grandfather but rather a serious and dangerous man - appeared out of nowhere and walked up to him.

“Headmaster?”

“Oh no, I’m no longer the headmaster, just call me Mr. Dumbledore. How are you?”

“I’m fine, hea…Mr. Dumbledore. Finished my OWLs, and I think I’ll be rather successful. Oh and I trained a lot to fight Potter one day.”

“Good. I have something for you.”

“Really?”

Albus pulled a vial out of his pocket and handed it to the young man.

“Give that to your father and then hand him this letter. It’s a suggestibility potion that’ll make him listen to me. I want him to run for Minister and whenever I talk to him or send a letter he’ll obey me. And with that we can dismantle the whole alliance from the inside while I keep looking for…the artefact I need to defeat Potter.”

“That’s…brilliant. I’ll give it to him this evening, alright? He’s at the Ministry now.”

Albus nodded and then proceeded to chat with Ronald about his magical skills and see a few spells he learned, to evaluate how good the boy actually was. And the result actually was that Ronald was beyond his age in Defense and Combat Magic, Transfiguration was a bit beyond OWL level. The rest of the relevant fields of magic were okay too, Dumbledore decided. Ronald was good, and one day he could be a head auror or something like that under the Dumbledore regime.

 

Once the whole business with Ronald was finished, Albus apparated into Dedalus’ bolthole, located somewhere in the east of England in the middle of nowhere. It was not much more than a cabin, hidden and reinforced but barely furnished. Thankfully he had enough food in his bag with an undetectable extension charm, because Dedalus hadn’t left any food, not even under the stasis charms.

It was definitely not the nicest place to stay, but it would do. Sure, he could have asked any of his followers, but this place here was guaranteed safe. And not even the luxury at Lord Macmillan’s mansion could outweigh the security risk of staying there. 

Albus spent most of the day reading a bit, because there was not much he could do. In the US his alias had worked, but here people knew him from more than just pictures, after so many years as a headmaster and teacher before there was barely anyone who hadn’t seen him in person, the eldest of their population excluded, But with most of those he was familiar too. So he couldn’t really go outside, because even the strongest disillusionment would eventually fade or fail.

He checked that the gem really was in his pocket, because his hope was that someone would find the spot soon and he could get to Avalon.

 

By the evening, Ronald Weasley was back home and waiting for his father to return. He had made sure to know if the potion could be mixed with any kind of liquid, and since this was the case, he bought a more or less expensive bottle of wine (he got money from Albus to finish his mission) and put it on his father’s office desk with a mild compulsion to drink on it, the letter closed next to it. He would tell his father that an owl came - sent by Lord Black - with this bottle and the letter, hoping that the charm would work and he would first drink and then open the letter.

Arthur arrived after a while from work, seemingly exhausted. He greeted his son, the only other person here currently (Ginny left this morning to go on a trip with her boyfriend Chris Shacklebolt, a fourth-year Ravenclaw and nephew to Kingsley) and then was about to go upstairs when Ron told him about the bottle of wine and the letter, which did confuse Arthur. He had just spoken to Sirius in regards to their campaign for Jacob Ogden, so why would he send him an owl now? 

In his office he just had to walk towards the bottle and look at it. Nothing too special, but not cheap either, and the letter next to it had “Lord Sirius Orion Black” as a sender written on the envelope. 

The biggest mistake he made was to grab the bottle, because that’s when the charm took its effect and he just had to drink a glass of it. 

What Albus Dumbledore hadn’t considered though was that Arthur wore a protective ring, something that he had never done before. But being freed from the potions had made him a bit more careful when it came to that. His head of house ring wouldn’t notice this potion, the Weasley ring just wasn’t one of the stronger ones. 

But the anti-potion ring Amelia and Sirius had gifted him after the trials was much stronger. It didn’t warn him, no, but it immediately purged him from any potions as soon as they were in his system.

And so, after taking the first sip of the wine, Arthur’s hand started shaking, causing the glass to fall down, and he collapsed while vomiting. It was painful, but effective.

Once his strength came back and he managed to stand on his own two feet again, he cast all the basic curse-breaking charms Bill had shown him at the bottle, breaking the compulsion and giving Arthur a very familiar magical signature as the culprit - Ron. Arthur felt the famous Weasley temper in him starting to show and he ripped open the letter (after declaring it curse-free).

 

Arthur,

 

I thank you for your obedience and order you to never mention any of my orders or even my existence to anyone excluding me or those I specifically identify as my associates from now on. 

This potion, even if expensive and rather unknown, hasn’t got any of the side-effects of those your lovely wife had given you, making it much better. You’ll still be yourself, not a mindless puppet, weak and tame, like then. No, but when I order something, you obey. You know you’re being influenced and manipulated, but you’re still going to be a willing participant. It’s hard to explain, but you’ll understand it.

Your son, Ronald, works with me, you can trust him and share your orders with him.

Arthur, I want you to reconsider your decision about the post of Minister of Magic. You inform Amelia, Jacob and the others of the alliance that you’ll run for Minister, your reason will be that you reconsidered to fulfil your dream of equality.

And then you’ll be my Minister of Magic, so I can make my grand return and correct the wrongs you’ve been doing since I am gone.

Oh and one more order: don’t show this letter to anyone.

 

Yours sincerely,

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,

New Lord of Nurmengard

 

By now Arthur’s temper was beyond a point where he could still hold it back so he put the letter back onto the desk - Amelia and Kingsley would want to see that - and grabbed his wand.

 

When Ronald heard his father storm down the stairs, he became a bit nervous and reached out for his wand. Righteously so, since his door - protected by wards - burst open and his father threw a stunning spell at him, which only luck helped him block. 

Arthur was definitely not a combat mage, but he was able to attack and defend himself and his raw magical power was bigger than Ron’s, so it was not too uneven.

Ronald’s first move after blocking the stunner and throwing back a few spells was to take a step back and move closer to the wall. Then, once he saw a bludgeoning curse head for him he didn’t block it yet deflected it into the - admittedly very weak - wall of the room. With the additional power thanks to his deflection it created a hole big enough for him to jump out of backwards and slow his fall before using his emergency portkey to Cormac. Once the mission for Dumbledore started he handed him a portkey to escape if anyone ever got ahold of him, and now that moment had come.

Arthur saw Ron disappear into thin air while his blasting curse ended up hitting the ground. His son had tried to poison him and was working with Dumbledore? What the hell was going on?

With the letter and the bottle of wine in his hands he stepped towards the floo and called “Grimmauld Place.”

 

Kreacher popped into the living room where Sirius was spending the evening with Amy to inform him that they had Lord Weasley asking for entry via the floo. Sirius nodded and both of them got up to greet Arthur, who did seem rather…exhausted and stressed.

Handing Amelia the letter wordlessly Arthur proceeded to walk into the living room and drop onto the couch. He was absolutely done. 

Just seconds after he sat down he heard Amelia scream out in rage, followed by a growl from Sirius.

“Arthur? What is that?”

“The ring you gave me purged the potion immediately and I confronted Ron. He managed to escape via portkey and now I have a hole in my wall. He had an unregistered wand. Here is the bottle.”

While Sirius stayed back and looked after Arthur, Amy flooed into Kingsley’s home, where she was greeted by Professor Vector. 

“Good evening Septima, I need to talk to Kingsley. It’s important.”

The head of the DMLE came walking in as soon as he heard Amelia’s voice and looked at her questioningly.

“Boss?”

“Here, take that, get it analysed and assemble a taskforce. And you better find Ronald Weasley.”

“What happened?”

“Dumbledore happened. He’s alive and meddling.”

And Kingsley summed the whole situation up with a loud “FUCK!”

 

As the whole Dumbledore situation was still unclear, Amelia and Sirius decided against alarming Harry and Hermione at this moment, especially because they deserved that quiet time. The potion and the magical signature embedded in the letter confirmed Dumbledore’s involvement and the DMLE sent out inquiries to the Austrian Ministry about what was going on at Nurmengard prison, but they didn’t reach anyone there until the morning.

Ronald Weasley was nowhere to be found currently, it seemed like he was hiding underneath wards. They tried establishing how he got his wand and how he communicated, but that was unclear too.

Basically, they could right now just wait until the Austrians responded, if Ronald Weasley was somehow found or if Dumbledore made a move. It was a stupid situation.

Percy Weasley, though, started looking into the “Dumbledorians” under the assumption that they had been in contact with the old meddler, and found several strange trips to Austria. Not enough to make an arrest yet, but it was something.

 

And while all hell seemed to break loose in Wizarding Britain, Harry and Hermione were enjoying their time at Potter Castle. Mione for example loved to spend a lot of time at the coast of the Island. There was a beautiful location where you had to go down a narrow set of stairs down a cliff, a spot that was ideal for reading in the sun.

But to be honest, the biggest amount of time they spent laying around on couches and cuddling (or more), Harry also annoyed the house elves a lot with spending quite some time in the kitchen. His grandfather Fleamont had renovated the old castle’s kitchen, so it was more or less modern (though that was a relative term), and Harry did a lot of cooking for and with his girlfriend. They also continued discovering the castle and its secret passages, Harry spent some time talking with Salazar’s basilisk living in the catacombs and they did some reading in the library.

Their highlight though probably was what they did on the evening Arthur and Ronald got into their duel, and where they were later glad that no one interrupted them. The two teens were thoroughly enjoying the massive bathtub in the Lord’s Chambers. Thank god wizarding plumbing could heat the water via runes, because a hot bath late in the evening was an incredible thing.

After an hour or so they got out of the water and back downstairs to have a lovely dinner the elves had prepared for them. This magnificent dinner was followed by dancing to music in the living room, in front of the fireplace.

All in all, a perfect evening for the two lovebirds that ended with them falling asleep in each other’s arms, exhausted and smiling. 

 

In the morning Amelia received a floo call from the Austrian Minister, a relatively young muggleborn wizard, who seemed a little stressed. 

“Minister Bones!”

“Minister Fuchs, good to hear from you. Did you get our letters?”

“Yes, we did, and we’re at a loss here. You know that we are just a small community, with barely any resources for a military strike against Nurmengard, but even if we could, it’s impossible. The castle is under such heavy wards, and as you know one can only reach it by apparition. Our curse breakers can’t get in there, it has a signature ward.”

“Damn. But you can confirm that he’s there?”

“We can confirm that something is happening there, but no details. We’re working as hard as we can, but without external help we can’t do much. I’m sorry.”

“Send a petition to the ICW for intervention. That might take a month, maybe more, but if we’re held up by the potential situation here then international help would be great. I’ll check in with France too, but they are busy with rebel forces in their Caribbean colonies.”

“You’ll send help once you’ve cleared the situation in your country?”

“Yes, Minister, we will.”

“Thank you. Now I better get back to work, the Parliament probably has some questions I can’t answer.”

“Good luck.”

 

Amelia was a bit annoyed, she wanted to resign in a few days and now Dumbledore was apparently back, had followers, and the Austrians were not equipped well enough to storm Nurmengard. Sure, once everything was safe here, she would follow Minister Fuchs’ cry for help and storm the compound with her aurors, but right now she didn’t know how big the threat in Britain was. 

 

Justin Abbott, son of Lord Abbott and older cousin of Hannah, was another one of the “true believers.” Under Albus Dumbledore’s reign, everything was better. Muggleborns were somehow accepted - to a degree, not too much please - and purebloods got away with everything. They were still better, a secluded group ruling over wizarding Britain.

He was rather unaware of the chaos in the Ministry right now, but still working down a list of locations to check for Dumbledore. Since he had finished Hogwarts just this June and would get a job from his father, he had no studying or anything else to do aside from checking those spots. With a bit of apparition and a disillusioned brom (the location charm was working merely on a two-dimensional level, so the ring would still heat up if he was fifty feet above ground) he was much faster than Ronald for example - not that he knew of the youngest Weasley boy and his mission.

Currently he was flying across Somerset, still a bit tired, but the cool wind in his face was keeping him from falling asleep. Out of nowhere though his finger started burning for a second, before stopping abruptly. 

Was that…?

Could it really be?

He turned around and yes, there it was. The ring heated up once again, and so Justin started to descend. It didn’t take him long to pinpoint exactly where he was. Even in the magical community, the mystery around Glastonbury Tor was fascinating scholars up to this day. He wasn’t really familiar with the whole topic, but he knew the spot. 

Once he was on the ground he looked for the exact spot, which was just a few metres in front of the tower ruins on top of the hill. 

Justin grinned.

Oh yes, he would definitely get rewarded by Dumbledore.

Now Justin grabbed the piece of parchment in his pocket and wrote a few lines on it.

Got it. Glastonbury Tor, on top of the hill just before the tower.

- Justin Abbott

 

Albus had taken the ledger filled with protean-charmed pages with him, and so he saw the book lighting up while having breakfast. He put aside his cup of tea and reached for the ledger to check whose page had lightened up and if it was a false alarm like with Ronald Weasley or if someone had found it.

Once he opened the ledger and saw that it was indeed someone finding the location, he smiled and began writing a message back to Nurmengard. He wanted at least one of the former Death Eaters with him if he encountered anything strange or unforeseeable on Avalon.

 

Gareth was not really happy right now, both the British and the Austrians were annoying him right now, trying to find their access to the UK, their associates and even trying to enter Nurmengard, and now he had to get the two Death Eaters into the UK. Now with their people probably being watched, he would have to make a risky move and not smuggle them in in secret. If Dumbledore -  as he said - really believed that they could move any moment now, he’d have whatever he was looking for by the end of the day, then Gareth would just send Rookwood and Parkinson via illegal portkey and risk detection. The Ministry was probably so busy the two could escape before anyone would notice.

And yes, that actually worked. With them having a manhunt for Ronald Weasley and Albus Dumbledore, looking for incoming (instead of outgoing) illegal portkeys was not a priority, and while a team was dispatched, that happened half an hour later as the aurors were busy knocking at the doors of the Dumbledorians and look for both the old meddler and Ronald Weasley. 

What Gareth hadn’t known about those wards notifying the British Ministry of illegal portkeys was that they recorded the magical signature (the signature of the legally arriving travellers, like Dumbledore, wasn’t recorded though) and so a very stressed Amelia Bones got a message from a very worried Magical Transportation Official, telling her that Augustus Rookwood and Nathaniel Parkinson portkeyed into the country this morning.

 

And now, at that point in time, she just had to inform Harry and Hermione of the situation. 

The floo of the Castle was on lockdown, yes, but she circumvented that with a Patronus message asking them to open the floo for her.

Harry was not really amused by that as he and Hermione were having breakfast in bed and had no motivation whatsoever to get up, but if the Minister of Magic wants to talk to you, then you better comply, even as the Master of Death. 

About twenty minutes Harry and Hermione were dressed and awaiting Amy to enter via floo, which she did just minutes later. And she didn’t even hesitate to overwhelm them with information.

“I’m sorry for interrupting, but we have a problem. To be blunt, Dumbles isn’t dead, he’s got allies in the country and Ron Weasley tried to potion Arthur on his orders so he’d have a brainwashed Minister of Magic. We don’t know where either of them are, they’re fugitives. Oh and both Augustus Rookwood and Nathaniel Parkinson used an illegal portkey to enter the country, presumably from Nurmengard where the old meddler is working from, they’re on the run too.”

For the first time in her life - probably - Hermione was speechless, and so was Harry. But before either of them was able to reply to Amy in any way, a loud noise, like from a bell, sounded through the castle and a sword hanging over the fireplace started to glow. Harry apparently - having the family magic - knew what that meant and started to get visibly upset.

“No no no no no, don’t you dare, you old fucker. He’s after Merlin’s wand.”

“He’s after WHAT?”

“Merlin’s wand. You know I spoke with him in the afterlife, I know where it is. His grave on the island of Avalon, a magical island. You can only reach it with a special object, I know there’s a gemstone, a crown, a dagger and a few more. It acts as a location-based portkey and brings you to the shore from which you can cross the water. Without the item it’s a normal place and you won’t even see the island, it had something to do with the objects having magical crystals from Avalon embedded.”

Now he got them even more confused, so Harry explained again. Those items, embedded with crystals coming from Avalon, were portkeys that only worked from one spot. They took you to the shore from which you could take a boat to Avalon. This shore was magically hidden and just visible if you had the item with you. That was how you got onto Avalon.

“And why do we hear this ringing sound, Harry?”

“Because Avalon falls under the protection of Lord Gryffindor. Get me Sirius and Remus, oh and Filius too. I need some duellers, then we take my portkey.”

 

And while Amelia sent for those three, Albus Dumbledore greeted Justin Abbott at Glastonbury Tor before sending him back home and promising him his reward once the mission was completed.

Just minutes later, Albus' favourite two Death Eaters apparated to him, everyone now in anticipation of what would happen. They knew he was after Merlin’s wand, and neither of them had any intention of fighting him for it. He was still stronger than either of them, and even together they failed to take him down. Besides, he was a man that valued knowledge and power even more than the Dark Lord, and he was and would be adored, not feared. Under such a - stable - government with them in the DoM etc. was the best that could happen to those two scholars. No more murder and torture, no more running, but a steady ministry job at the highest level and access to everything.

So they followed Dumbledore. Rookwood to have his post back and get back into research, and while Nathaniel wanted the knowledge too, he also wanted a reunion with his family. And from first-hand experience they could tell that Dumbledore could do that.

On the spot where the rings with the location charms started glowing, both put a hand on Dumbledore’s shoulders and he reached out for the gem in his pocket, which did indeed start glowing.

Just moments later the portkey pulled them away.

Albus opened his eyes and couldn’t believe it.

And Augustus, well, he started bursting out in laughter.

Notes:

So, anyone care to take a guess what's so funny that Augustus bursts out laughing?
Anyway, hope you liked that chapter, let me know in the comments. Until next week :)

Chapter 44: The end is near

Notes:

Good morning everyone, here is this week's chapter. We finally get to see Avalon and in addition to that a confrontation between one of our heroes and Ronald Weasley. We'll see how that ends.
Have fun reading :)

The three duellers Harry requested arrived within five minutes, and while Amy suggested getting more help, Harry declined. First of all, five was the top number the portkey could take, that he knew for sure, and besides, there would be just Dumbledore. Maybe his two Death Eaters too. So they outnumbered them.

And if the old meddler really had followers and associates, then the auror force would be needed to take down any potential groups of them trying to topple the government.

Everyone was putting on combat robes, either made from dragon skin or basilisk hide, and Harry was for example wearing all three of his wands (his, Ignotus’ and the Elder Wand) as well as his Gryffindor dagger. Okay, the latter he always carried, but disillusioned when at school. Everyone else had at least two wands too, but only Sirius had another weapon on him, a one-handed sword the Black Patriarch traditionally owned. 

 

When a team of aurors, led by Frederick Fawley (the man who got sent to get Sirius from Azkaban back then, by now a Senior Auror), arrived at the ward line of the McLaggen Manor, they noticed that something was wrong. All aurors were trained to feel and analyse wards at the academy, and these wards here were not at a default setting. 

And since they had the order to search the homes of the leading Dumbledorians to look for the fugitives, they drew their wands and crossed the first ward line. This was usually just a notification ward, the actual defences came a few metres later. And in front of those they had to wait as the defences were raised and active.

The Lord himself apparated in front of them (yet behind the wards) just moments later.

“What do you want? You’re trespassing on my ground.”

“Aurors, we have orders to search for fugitives on your grounds and in your home.”

“What fugitives, and who allowed that?”

“Ronald Weasley, Nathaniel Parkinson, Augustus Rookwood and Albus Dumbledore. The Minister and the Head of the DMLE ordered it. Let us enter.”

Lord McLagged didn’t even seem fazed by that, acting surprised was pointless. But he also didn’t seem like he wanted to open the wards.

One of the aurors - while Fawley was still arguing - cast a detection spell at the house, which told him that there were four people on the grounds - Lord and Lady, as well as two minors. But the McLaggens only had one son.

“Boss! We have two minors in the house.”

“Two? And, Lord McLaggen, who’s there aside from your son? Maybe Mr. Weasley?”

And since Lord McLaggen actually flinched a little at that, Fawley interpreted that as a “yes”, so he gave his aurors the order to breach and inform HQ about it.

Problem was, they didn’t have any professional curse breakers with them, just aurors, and it would take eternity to breach on their own. So what they had to do was wait and weaken the wards while surrounding the whole premises so no one could escape on foot. 

Escaping via magical transportation wasn’t too hard to block, every auror carried a runestone with him, which could be used to put up anti-apparition and anti-portkey wards if no one was a warding master. They placed their stones around the premises and activated them, while Fawley sent a patronus message to the Department of Magical Transportation ordering a shutdown of the floo in the house.

 

Harry and the others were just finishing up their planning for the upcoming fight on Avalon as a patronus reacher Amelia.

“Minister, we have Weasley. He’s at the McLaggen Manor behind defensive wards. Curse breakers are on their way and we’ll be storming the building once we’re through the wards.”

This message caused Hermione to reconsider. McLaggen was an unbearable idiot, and Ronald…well, she wouldn’t mind taking him down. So that was exactly what she was going to do.

“I’ll go there and take him down, you know I’m better than most curse breakers. Besides, I still have a score to settle with Weasley.”

She turned to Harry and kissed him.

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Mione. Be careful.”

“I will. You too?”

“I promise.”

 

Hermione first flooed to the DMLE offices to join the curse breakers with their portkeys. She was greeted by the lead curse breaker, Felix Selwyn, with whom she had trained a bit during the last summer holidays. Unofficially, her mastery in Runes and Warding was already finished, meaning that she was probably better than most of the ministry personnel as they usually just went through an apprenticeship but not up to master level. 

Upon their arrival at the Manor they all followed Selwyn’s orders to spread out and position around the wards with consistent distances between them. The four strongest of them, including him and Hermione, were positioned on the northern, southern, eastern and western side of the wards, since that was the most effective way to break a normal Manor Ward (Voldemort’s attack at Hogwarts had been different due to the giant ward structure, he basically punched a hole into a giant ward, with normal Manors it was more efficient to take down the whole ward)

And then the wardbreaking began. 

The four main ward breakers were chanting long spells with complex wand movements while the rest of them just poured all their energy into shattering the ward. Both methods - carefully destroying the basic structure and just overloading and shattering it - were efficient on their own, but applied together they were hardly stoppable (Black and Potter properties were warded with ancient wards, Hogwarts was strengthened due to the ambient magic and a few other ancient families too had special wards, there it’d be much more complicated, but generally speaking they could get in everywhere).

The team of sixteen curse breakers just needed four minutes to break the entire ward structure, to the shock of Lord McLaggen. He hadn’t expected them to be so quick, and all their ways out were closed, so they had to fight.

Well, not him, because Frederick Fawley was standing behind Hermione as they broke the wards, and so she gave him a warning seconds before the wards fell. That meant McLaggen was hit with a stunning spell the instant the wards fell, causing him to be thrown back several metres and collapse on the ground.

Mione turned around to Fawley and raised one eyebrow.

“Oh come on, I just overpowered it a little bit, he’ll be fine.”

Now, that was standard protocol, the curse breakers (excluding Hermione) put up a new ward, one that wouldn’t let the targets escape (stronger than the stone-based anti-apparition and anti-portkey ward, but also blocking them from leaving on foot or broom now that the aurors weren’t guarding the premises anymore) while the aurors and Mione moved in to storm the building. 

 

Cormac had seen his father collapse and the wards fall, so now they had to fight. And this was now his and Ronald’s job, since his mother was - as expected for a pureblood Lady - not trained to fight.

The two young wizards decided to use the house to their favour, facing the aurors outside on an open field would be absolutely stupid. The idea that Cormac then had was very unusual for any pureblood, because he ordered the elves to attack the aurors. And while they couldn’t kill or even directly attack them - that was against the bond elves had, magic forbade it, they could hinder them from entering and attacking the young master and his friend.

And so most of the aurors were actually busy with defending them from elves and their traps, while Frederick, Hermione and two others went on the hunt for Ronald and Cormac. 

“Bombarda!”

Mione just managed to throw up a shield to deflect that curse coming from the left side and saw the very familiar red hair at the end of the corridor.

And so she did what she could do best.

Do something stupid.

While Cormac then began (those idiots actually had some sort of a plan) to fire at them from the other side to keep the aurors busy, she ran after Ronald, throwing spell after spell. 

Ronald was running for his life, because that stupid Granger mudblood was after him. Every time she sent a curse after him he either did his best at deflecting it or he jumped around the next best corner so the spell hit a wall. Downside of that was though, that after a few minutes of running he reached a dead end and the bitch was coming for him. But he had a plan. If her shields were too strong - and he expected they were - then he’d do the same thing as with father. Blast the window and cushion his fall so he could try running away. 

Yes, it was a stupid plan, but a plan.

 

Hermione grinned as she saw the dead end and Ronald standing there. Magnificent. 

She didn’t know how good he was - he did study a lot the past years - so she was a bit more careful and sent a few heavy stunners at him, but those he blocked. Okay, so let’s go for something stronger. 

Due to all the duelling training with Filius she was pretty quick when it came to throwing spells, but Ron had a strong core and so a strong shield. Yes, he was getting exhausted quickly and had no chance of attacking by himself, but he was keeping up his defence. 

The next thing she went for, after the bludgeoning curse bashed into the wall behind him and shattered the big window due to dodging from Ronald, was a fire whip. To explain this spell, it was basically a stream of angelic fire which was still connected to the wand, up to several metres long if the caster could hold it. It was incredibly hot and could cut through most things, including shield charm.

 

Ronald had just deflected the bludgeoning charm, dodging it into the wall behind him and starting to create an opening for him to escape through as fire began to stream out of Granger’s wand. At first he thought that she would try burning him, but then he saw the whip form and damn that scared him. He had tried angelic fire a few times around the OWL exams in secret, but never managed to keep it under control. Thank god that faded, other than fiendfyre which just had a life of its own.

He saw the whip coming and prepared himself for the impact on his shield while ducking.

The whip just cut through his shield like a hot knife through butter and even ripped apart parts of the wall, but it missed him, and before Granger had another shot at killing him, he sent a quick depulso at the wall so the hole in it was big enough for him to leap out. Yes, it was a bit stupid, because there were aurors out there, and it was a jump from the third floor, but Hermione Granger was positively scary.

Ronald slowed his descent and got back onto his feet, but then he saw movement up there.

That crazy girl just dived out of there, but it didn’t seem like she did anything to slow the fall. 

What he had totally forgotten was that Hermione Granger had been taking animagus classes with the Headmistress for years now and apparently Potter and Granger helped her teach. That this meant they achieved a transformation he never realised, and other than the people in Harry’s social circle, he didn’t know what she could turn into.

And so he was shocked that the girl turned into an eagle to stop her fall. She spread her wings, screeched and dove towards the ground, where she - in the smoothes motion he had ever seen - turned back during the landing so she was standing on her feet with her wand drawn.

Only the fact that he had landed seconds before her saved him from the cutting curse, which nearly broke his shield and caused him to stumble, but not fall.

If he wouldn’t have any idea, then he’d be caught or dead any moment now, so he did something reckless and stupid.

“ Avada Kedavra!”

The green stream of light flew towards Hermione Granger, who just moved out of the way with a quick movement while conjuring a giant rock to stop the curse.

Now she was upset.

“Ronald Weasley, you bastard! You should not have done that.”

She flicked her wand a few dozen times, looking scarier than Minerva McGonagall or Bellatrix Lestrange could ever appear. So many spells flew towards Ronald that he could never block all of them, and once they had shattered his shield, broken his shoulder (bludgeoning charm), given him some painful burns and several deep gashes all over his body, she slowly walked up to him with his wand drawn.

“Now I got you, you son of a bitch.”

Hermione didn’t want to kill him, no, but she wanted him to rot in prison. But Ronald wasn’t too happy about that and did - once again - something stupid,

Another auror was running towards Hermione to portkey Weasley into a holding cell, but before he could reach them, he heard the redhead cast another spell.

“Bombarda Max…!”

Mione never let her guard down, so she had her shield charm still ready and while running backwards cast a silent Sectumsempra with her second wand, though that was just instinctual.

Her spell actually hit fast enough so Ronald had no chance of finishing the incantation, because once Hermione’s spell landed his torso got split into two parts. 

And so Ronald Weasley died within seconds on the grounds of McLaggen Manor, by the hand of Hermione Granger. 

The girl fell onto her knees and gasped for air while the auror secured Weasley’s wand and cast diagnostic spells on Hermione. She wasn’t hurt, just exhausted, so he ordered her to report to St. Mungo’s and get thoroughly checked out.

She nodded and got up again, getting handed a portkey and was about to leave as she saw Fawley escorting an injured Cormac and an uninjured Lady McLaggen out of the house.

That was a relief. If her headcount was correct, then they didn’t lose anyone and there were no injuries worse than a few bruises and cuts. 

 

Just minutes after Hermione had left Potter Castle, the others were ready. Amelia was kissing Sirius goodbye while Harry took a big sword which was hanging over the fireplace.

“Everyone ready?”

“Do you know where we’ll be going, Harry?”

“Yes, Filius, but that’s going to be a surprise. Let’s just say there is a reason the Lord Gryffindor is Avalon’s protector.”

He showed his marauder-worthy grin and held out the sword. Sirius, Remus and Filius all put a hand on the blade and looked at Harry.

“Alright. Passage to Avalon!”

 

The reason why Augustus Rookwood had immediately started laughing once they arrived was their current location. All three of them were at a spot they knew.

And damn, Albus Dumbledore was upset.

Then Augustus had another revelation.

“Hah! That’s hilarious. Oh and now I understand why there’s one of the strongest concentrations of energy lines here. And I was already wondering why it wasn’t under the castle itself but the lake. Avalon is in the middle of the fucking Great Lake. And you have been staring at the last resting place of Merlin’s wand for decades every day from your office. Gosh, that is incredible.”

Nathaniel couldn’t help but grin, and while Dumbledore led the way down to the small pier at the shore, he whispered to Augustus.

“What do you say, the Lady of the Lake is the Queen of the Merepeople?”

The two scholars and former Death Eaters continued to laugh quietly while the former Leader of the Light led them onto the boat, which started to go towards the island once they were all seated. 

 

The boat ride took about fifteen minutes, which was the amount of time Harry and his friends needed to arrive via portkey on the same pier.

“There! They have just reached the island. It’s all three of them.”

“Damn it, let’s hurry guys!”

“Don’t worry, padfoot, I’m Lord Gryffindor. If the family magic isn’t wrong, then I have a faster ship.”

And yes, once his feet touched the wood of the pier, the small rowing boat turned into something more like a sailing boat with the Gryffindor coat of arms on the sail. 

Yes, the boats were all magical, that’s true, Dumbles and co didn’t have to row the rowing boat for example, but the big boat was much, much faster. Harry estimated that they’d be at the island in half the time, and other than Dumbles he knew where the grave and the wand was.

“This boat that I am rowing
Will take you where I'm going
To peaceful waters flowing
On the shores of Avalon

There lies within each troubled heart
The special time and place apart
No storm is ever raging
On the shores of Avalon

This boat that I am rowing
Will take you where I'm going
To peaceful waters flowing
On the shores of Avalon

Clear dreams shall always guide our eyes
A ray of hope before us lies
Where all is calm forever
On the shores of Avalon”

(The Seekers - The Shores of Avalon)

Once the boat started going towards the island, he just had to think of that song, and yes, he did sing it during the whole trip while Sirius just grinned. Remus though, knowing that song thanks to Dan Granger, joined in, putting his arm around his “nephew’s” shoulder and singing with him until they arrived at the island.

 

Albus was the first one to leave the boat and step onto the island of Avalon. That it was in the middle of the Great Lake did make a lot of sense, now that he thought about it. Lord Gryffindor’s castle had been here for centuries before it became Hogwarts, and rumours had it that they were descended from Lord Galahad. That the one finding the Holy Grail was the one protecting Avalon made sense, that must have been why the Gryffindor family had this land since Arthur’s time. And now it made sense why neither Helga nor Rowena left the castle’ grounds at the year of Merlin’s funeral. He was put to rest here.

The island wasn’t very big, relatively speaking, just the size of the Great Hall. A few small buildings were still standing, and a paved path led them from the pier up the small hill where the small huts were located. In the middle of them there was a small pond with a magical aura, an ancient apple tree directly next to it. Those small buildings, one of them clearly a healer’s home (where Arthur must have been treated by a magical healer if the stories were true), didn’t interest Albus at all, but the tall stone statues at the north end of the island caught his attention. A duo of them were clearly Arhur and his wife, one was a noble Lady, and one was obviously Merlin Ambrosius himself.

“I think we’re at the right spot, Dumbledore. Those two are Arthur and Guinevere, that’s probably the Lady Morgan Le Fay and the third grave is for the old man himself. Merlin Ambrosius, Myrrdin Emrys, or however you want to call him. But I suggest you hurry, because we’re getting company.”

Augustus pointed at the ship displaying Lord Gryffindor’s coat of arms, which caused Albus Dumbledore to swear.

“Damn it, I should have guessed that Lord Gryffindor would come to protect Avalon. Well no, I didn’t know but anyway. Potter is coming, let’s hurry.”

Totally ignoring all the other graves he walked up to the statue of Merlin, which was about six or seven metres high and depicted the elderly wizard in his robes, though his age barely showed. He must have been at least five centuries old by the time of his death yet looked a bit younger than Albus. They weren’t so different to be honest (Albus thought, that was good for his ego), ignoring the lack of glasses and taking into account that his beard was longer than Albus’ current one yet shorter than his beard a few years back. And yes, he wore ancient robes and carried a sword, while Albus wore a three piece suit in dark blue right now, but that's besides the point. He was the one worthy of Merlin’s wand. The statue too carried a wand, holding it out high as if he was about to cast something. 

At the feet of the statue there was a set of stairs leading underground which the three carefully began walking down, before Albus told Nathaniel to wait and if necessary cover them. Albus and Augustus encountered barely any spells or wards on the area, probably due to the assumption that getting to Avalon was nearly impossible. 

And then they were there. 

A crypt with a big - and warded - sarcophagus made out of stone standing in the middle.

“Here lies Merlin Ambrosius, greatest wizard that had ever lived. A bit very over the top, don’t you think, Dumbledore?”

“Who knows? Let’s open that thing without killing ourselves.”

 

And while Augustus and Albus began dismantling the wards on the sarcophagus, Nathaniel Parkison was waiting for Potter and his friends to enter the island. On the boat he couldn’t reach them, they were too far away.

But that would change any moment now as they left the boat with their wands drawn, they knew he was standing there.

What he hadn’t expected was that it was not just Potter, but Black, Lupin and Flitwick. Well, the last one was unexpected, he would have guessed that his brilliant soulmate would accompany Potter. But no. 

 

Sirius was the one to use the homenum revelio spell, telling them that there were three people on the island, and one of them was waiting.

“Let me guess, one of the Death Eaters, ready to ambush us while the old meddler and the other are in the crypt? Any volunteers to take him out, I’ve got to get the wand.”

Before they could start arguing about that, Filius jumped off the ship and sent a few spells into the direction of Nathaniel while he made his way up the path.

“Okay, seems like that’s the way to go. Come on Moony, we can’t let him have all the fun!”

And with that Sirius was gone too while Remus just sighed - and followed.

 

Once the three men were off the boat, Harry jumped off too, but in his snow leopard form, and he didn’t follow the path but stayed close to the shore and ran around the isle until he was just below the statues. From then on he used the strong muscles Frosty had in his legs to jump up the rocks until he was directly next to King Arthur’s statue. He smelled the old meddler down under Merlin’s statue, making his way into the sarcophagus, but there the old meddler wouldn't find what he was looking for. Harry knew that.

 

Dumbledore couldn’t believe it as the last ward fell. It hadn’t been too complicated to unseal the sarcophagus, and now Augustus used the levitation spell to open it.

Just to reveal a skeleton between what seemed to be the rest of rotting fabric. No wand and no sword in there.

“What?”

Both men couldn’t believe it. The history was clear. Merlin was laid to rest with wand and sword, showing that he was both mage and warrior. But neither was in here. 

“I don’t think anyone had been in here before us, Dumbledore. Those wards were authentic.”

“I know, but…oh.”

“What?”

“They were brilliant. Why basically throw away a powerful wand and an almighty sword if you can brag with it, show it and its strength. It’s a symbol.”

Augustus still didn’t get it, but Dumbledore did. The statue of Merlin was a very big symbol, and it held both wand and sword. Why not hide the most powerful objects of their time at the most obvious spot? It wasn’t hard to do it, and a simple finite would reveal it. 

Albus rushed out of the crypt and looked up at the statue. There it was, the wand, hidden in plain sight.

But what he hadn’t expected to see was a snow leopard sitting on Merlin’s right, outstretched arm.

Since the statue was pretty big, it wasn’t too hard for Harry (as Frosty) to sit on the arm of it, it was wide enough. It would even be wide enough for him to stand on it - as a human.

And once he transformed back, Albus Dumbledore froze. Harry Potter was an animagus, and he was already up there. He couldn’t cast a spell, the risk of destroying parts of the statue and the wand with it was too high so…

The first-best plan that came to mind was self-levitation, a discipline barely anyone knew these days. But it was slow.

 

Harry saw an elderly man in a blue three-piece suit rushing out of the crypt, and while he looked very different, Frosty could smell it. That was Albus Dumbledore. And yes, Harry saw it, different glasses, a trimmed beard and shorter hair combined with new clothes…that was one hell of a scary dark lord, so much was obvious. His once so twinkly eyes were now hard and cold…

Actually, Harry had no time to think about all of that, he told himself. So he transformed back and crawled forward the last few centimetres until his hand touched the wand of Stone-Merlin.

Albus Dumbledore was levitating himself up here so there was no time to wait.

“ Finite!”

And the big stone wand shrank down and turned into a twelve inch English oak wand. He had it.

His hand enclosed the wand and he did the only right thing.

He broke it into two pieces.

Notes:

So, that's it for today. Yes I know, cliffhangers are mean, but next week you'll get the finale and afterwards the epilogue.
That little bit of song text I included in this chapter is a song of my favourite band and it was too perfect to not mention it.

I do hope you liked this chapter, please let me know in the comments. Until next week :)

Chapter 45: The finale

Notes:

Good morning everyone.

Here we are, the finale of A Whole New Life. When I started posting this story last August, I didn't think that it would last that long or that it would find people who enjoy it. I am incredibly thankful for each and every one of you.

As you see, this is not the last chapter, you'll get an epilogue next week, and I'll simultaneously post the first chapter of my new story, "A Cat's Tale", another H/Hr with Dumbles, Weasley bashing, love potions etc., but it will start in fifth year and will bring Lily Potter back into the world of the living. I hope that some of you will be interested in that.

Until then, have fun reading this chapter :)

The moment Merlin’s wand cracked, Albus Dumbledore started to scream loudly, he was angry like never before. He nearly had it, but the fucking bastard Potter had to snap the wand. And so Albus did something stupid and impulsive.

He threw an explosion curse at the statue and at Potter on it, which did hit the arm of stone-Merlin and caused it to get shattered. 

 

Harry saw the curse coming, but it was too late to escape it now. He did take a second or two too long to gloat over the fact that he had snapped Merlin’s wand - which was indeed a powerful artefact.

He had known about it ever since the afterlife when he had talked to the old man. Aside from some pointers in regards to battle magic (which Harry had gladly applied once he was better with elemental magic, Merlin’s strongest discipline), Merlin had told him about his wand - and Avalon. 

Once, the island had been rather normal. Yes, it was above a very strong crossing of power lines, maybe even the strongest, but it was visible. A coven - the Lady of the Lake and her followers - lived there and discovered the healing properties of the little pond and the strange ambient magic. Many mages had been jealous of it, for example the druids from Stonehenge, and so they devised a plan, together with Morgan Le Fay and Merlin. The gems in the rocks underneath the island had magical properties, and so they used them to their favour.

They engraved hundreds of runes in the subterranean crystal deposits (which supercharged the runes) to “remove” the island out of the normal realm and hide it “elsewhere.” Said gems were a key to the ward and allowed them to cross over onto the island. And with that the myth of Avalon was created. 

Not many objects were in existence that allowed entrance, Arthur’s crown was one of them, and so was the sword of Galahad, as he was the new “Keeper of Avalon.” A few others were given to important people, but they and their secrets were lost to time. All of them but the sword and crown were location-based and worked from just one place for security reasons.

Due to the secrecy, a few things too powerful for the world were hidden here - Arthur’s crown and Excalibur as well as Merlin’s sword and wand, or Morgan Le Fay’s staff and a few others. But to be beyond careful they weren’t put into the graves but hidden in plain sight in the statues on top of the grave. 

Harry had considered going after this wand, but he hadn’t needed it. It was indeed more powerful than the Elder Wand, and so there was a certain risk to bringing that back into the world. Ignotus’ wand had been a great backup at the beginning, and with the Elder Wand since the first confrontation with Dumbledore he was well enough equipped. 

But now the old meddler had somehow managed to stay alive and get a hold of one of the Avalon portkeys, so it had to be destroyed. 

And what a great feeling that was. Sure, it was kind of awful to destroy a both powerful and historically important artefact, but the released power was exhilarating.

 

Just in the last moment he managed to put up a shield, but not a really strong one. The entire arm of the statue exploded and he got blasted away, just to land on the ground and hit his head. His world got dark.

 

Filius was still duelling Nathaniel, and the only reason he hadn’t won yet was his age (making him a little bit slower in comparison to his duelling circuit times) and the fact that Nathaniel was very adept with dark and rare curses. Usually speed of casting won against that, but countering some of those was rather complex and exhausting.

Sirius had rushed forward once Dumbledore and Rookwood had come back up again and as Dumbles started screaming in anger he tried cursing Augustus Rookwood, who had lived just a few cells down from him back in the day at Azkaban. Rookwood had blocked and immediately began to retaliate, creating another very impressive duel between the two of them. In comparison to the Filius - Nathaniel duel they were a bit more destructive, rather cursing wildly at the other instead of exchanging and dodging rare and/or powerful curses that could all kill with one hit.

And once Harry got blasted across the island, Remus too lifted his wand and without hesitation cursed Dumbledore into the back.

Or well, he tried to, because the angry old man (what a lovely description) was very well aware of the werewolf behind him. 

In the previous timeline, Remus would have probably not been a match for Albus Dumbledore, but the fact that he spent the last four years either at Hogwarts or at Potter Manor, surrounded by tomes and grimoires, training to be stronger, made this Remus a very skilled fighter. He didn’t have Albus’ experience, and neither his strong magical core, but the wolf inside him gave him an extraordinary physical strength and more stamina, which meant he could hold back Albus at least for a while. 

Not that the old man was happy about that.

“Remus! You owe me everything, I let you into Hogwarts, I gave you a job. Why betray me?”

Moony sent a stunner paired with a bone breaking curse (well, the stunner was hidden in the other curse so that might not be noticed) while replying to the old meddler.

“Why betray the light and plot against Harry? He was and always will be my priority.”

He heard the incantation of the killing curse, which he simply couldn’t believe. Albus Dumbledore using that spell seemed a little…unbelievable. Still, Remus had to deal with it, and he was good enough at conjuration to block Albus’ killing curse with a conjured rock.

 

Nathaniel was slowly getting exhausted, because while the half-goblin was a bit slower due to his age, his stamina was much better than his own. And damn, that man was quick. No longer duelling champion speed, but way beyond his speed.

His way of staying alive was to use every last trick he had left, every spell the Dark Lord or the Family Grimoire had taught him, those that barely anyone still knew. There were a few ways to counteract curses: a shield, dodge them (which was exhausting), overpower them with a powerful/more energetic curse or to use a valid counter curse (the most basic example would be blocking an incendio with an aguamenti ).

The latter method was the most efficient one, but you needed a lot of experience to be able to identify and counter all the curses within seconds. And that’s why Nathaniel used a lot of ancient, exotic or rare curses, because the most efficient counters to those were usually not known to your opponent. With that you were able to quickly exhaust your opponent.

On the other hand, his spells were exhausting too and the half-goblin started getting more and more into the offensive. 

Filius saw the change in his opponent, who truly was a gifted wizard and had a great repertoire of spells. Nathaniel was getting weaker and weaker so Filius shifted from deflecting and overpowering curses to throwing spells faster and faster.

He didn’t want to kill Nathaniel, despite the wrongs he had done, he still had a family and besides, he wasn’t going for excessive violence if unnecessary. After the Battle of Hogwarts, he didn't need more blood on his hands. And that was why he did something very dangerous and morally grey, though he didn’t really expect it to work. 

The Nerve Destruction Curse was rather unknown and was a red flash of light remarkably similar to the stunning spell. What it did was to take away the nerve function of a human being, and that permanently. Basically, it would slowly (okay, within like two minutes or so) paralyse the victim until the heart and all other organs stopped working too. 

The only reason why he dared using that spell was because during his mastery he had found a successful counterspell against the effects. Reversal was still not possible and would never be, but he could stop its spread. And since he knew that Nathaniel Parkison wouldn’t stop fighting against him, that was not a bad solution. He’d be still alive at least. The choice between potentially paralysing the man quite severely and killing him was an easy choice.

Not that he really believed it would work.

The mean thing with that spell was that the usual counter for the stunning spell - like which it looked - did nothing against it. A shield though could block it. It was quite a gamble.

But a gamble that actually worked.

Nathaniel Parkinson wondered why the stunner just ignored the counter curse, only to realise what he’d been hit with the moment it hit. He dropped his wand and gasped for air as he fell on his knees. The spell was progressing quickly, quicker than it should, but maybe Flitwick had overpowered it a bit. 

The Charms Professor hurried towards him, picked up the wand and cast a diagnostic charm to watch the Nerve Destruction Curse. 

Once everything below the waist was no longer working and numbness slowly started to affect the arms, Filius silently cast the counter and the spread stopped. Now only one more thing to do.

Filius began chanting and weaving complex structures with his wand, aiming at permanently binding Parkinson’s magical core and making him basically a paralysed squib. Harsh, but he was alive and could see his family, despite being a convicted felon, a mass murderer and an escaped terrorist.

 

While Parkinson was being magically bound by Filius, Sirius was still duelling with Augustus. And this fight would end with one of them dead, that much was clear, and Sirius had every intention of being the survivor here. He would have to get back to Amelia and their unborn child.

Not even in the first war he had to dodge as many killing curses and other quite lethal curses like in this fight. Augustus was certainly ruthless and scary, but other than Nathaniel by now reckless. He had followed Riddle for the power and the knowledge the Dark Lord had promised, apparently “much more than the DoM could ever show him.” And he went to Azkaban for that. Still, he had recognised Voldemort’s strength, and so he hadn’t given up on him. Not until he saw just how crazy he truly was. Horcruxes were beyond insane, and so many were even worse. 

So he was ready to escape and study on his own, make the powerful discoveries he always wanted to make. And that was when Albus Dumbledore found him, with an offer he definitely couldn’t refuse. And no, it had never been about Merlin’s Wand, and he wouldn’t have wanted it either. There was a difference between a powerful artefact making you strong and knowledge making you strong. But Albus Dumbledore had - or would have, he had thought - both. Besides, the encryption was way too interesting to ignore.

And he had been totally invested into the whole “helping Dumbledore”-thing, even more than Nathaniel. If Dumbledore would lose now, there was no help for him anymore. The two strongest magicals gone, and he probably being sentenced to death. He had quite literally nothing to lose and everything to gain.

He tried getting Black with a variety of curses, some being well-known, others nearly unknown. But damn, that man was fast, and he was strong. And, Augustus couldn’t deny that either, the Black Family was very knowledgeable when it came to combat magic, and it seemed as if Lord Black had been studying his grimoire very properly.

 

Sirius was getting frustrated with his opponent. Not because he feared he might lose, but simply because that stupid Death Eater either attacked him with something insanely absurd or just blocked the attacks he sent after him.

In a very brief moment of peace as Augustust had to dodge a particularly nasty entrails expelling curse, he checked how the others were doing. Filius appeared to be finishing a core binding on Parkinson while Remus tried his best at fighting Dumbledore. Harry was still nowhere in sight, causing him to get all upset and frustrated.

He had to finish this fight.

And as a whole generation of witches and wizards could confirm, Sirius Black wouldn’t be Sirius Black if he wasn’t a crazy prankster. Sure, many of their pranks were way too bad, he now knew that, but it was beyond all doubt that he was probably just as innovative and creative as the Weasley twins. And that was what he would use to his advantage now. 

That, and his big sword.

While dodging a blasting curse he grabbed his second wand with his left hand, and he managed to hide the motion well enough so Augustus didn’t realise. Now it was time for a Marauder classic, a coloured smoke spell.

The area between the two wizards got filled with Gryffindor red smoke that quickly expanded towards Augustus. At first the former Unspeakable just shook his head and sent a chain of blasting curses through the smoke, but none of them seemed to have any success. That was, because Remus and Sirius (James and Peter had helped too, but barely in comparison) had created it so it could absorb jinxes and hexes. The whole intention of that was so they could prank someone and then hide their escape with the smoke, and if someone tried to throw stunners or stinging hexes at them, the fog would absorb them and just spread more. They had never tried it with curses, but Sirius could now say with confidence that the smoke absorbed most of the curse’s power.

A little additional thing was that the smoke created an intense itching if someone touched it (excluding the caster and those he mentally included in the spell - intent was still the most important thing in any spell), which was exactly what happened to Augustus.

Augustus Rookwood felt the itching and quickly made a few steps backwards, trying to use the usual dispelling spells and failing at that. Since he didn’t consider that the smoke was just itching some people, and not everyone, he didn’t expect Sirius to do what he did.

Holding his wand in his left hand and the Black Patriarch sword in his right hand he ran straight through the smoke, ready to cast and hit at the same time.

And since Augustus hadn’t moved that much from where he stood when Sirius used the spell, the Black Patriarch found him without any problems.

The last thing Augustus Rookwood saw was Sirius Black just appearing out of thin air - or well, rather out of red smoke - screaming like a madman and swinging his sword. He tried to run, but he was so caught by surprise, that the goblin-made sword just hit him and cut once across his chest, leaving a deep gash. 

He fell on his knees and only felt the tip of the sword being pushed forward into his chest, but then his world got dark.

 

Sirius pulled the sword out of Augustus’ chest and rushed towards Remus, who was by now starting to struggle a little. And so, Albus had two opponents, quite formidable ones, but he was Albus Dumbledore.

 

Hermione was waiting for the healers to release her after a brief checkup and a few restorative potions, when the visions of what Harry were coming back slowly. Around the time the McLaggen wards fell, they were on the boat, while she hunted down Weasley they had arrived on the island, once Ron was dead, Harry had snapped the wand. That was less than ten minutes ago (the healers were pretty quick these days). She had only seen fragments - which happened in moments of great danger, need, fear or something similar, as they had found out over the years - but she had seen something. Then the curse of the old meddler shattered the statue and Harry got blasted away. He hit the ground near the shore and landed on his head. Hermione had felt him go unconscious. She knew he was alive, but he wasn’t awake yet.

Now though he was slowly coming back, and Hermione just had to help him, so she closed her eyes and sent him as much of her power as she could.

 

Harry immediately sat up straight once he felt the power surge. Hermione was there, and she had taken out Ronald. She was fine.

Now it was his turn, he would have to take down Dumbledore.

He was not too great with healing charms, but good enough to close all the wounds the fall had caused him. Yes, his head hurt and a healer would have to look at that later, but only after he had finished his mission. 

Back on his feet he reached out to the Hallows, feeling their presence and strength one by one. The wand feeling warm in his hand, the cloak resting on his shoulder and feeling…like his father was with him, one could say. And then there was the ring, whose stone was softly glowing. He would do what he’d never done before today. He would use it. 

Harry took a breath and then stepped forward, into the shadow of a big rock, just to disappear into the shadows.

He stepped out of the shadows again at the foot of Lady Morgan’s statue, not too far away from the battlefield. Sirius and Remus were fighting against Dumbledore while Filius just finished up a core binding. The charms professor would join the others in a moment too, it seemed. 

In his head he heard Hermione support him, she knew what his plan was and she wanted him to do it.

 

“ALBUS!”

All fighting stopped as Harry walked towards them. Sirius and Remus were relieved, Filius just grinned, and Albus was surprised.

“Harry. Things could have gone so differently, but you had to follow this path.””

“Oh, I know very well how things could have gone, old man.”

“What? You..oh. That explains it. How?”

“You’d love to know that, don’t you? Hermione and I came back, to correct what you have done. And now I’ll show you something you once told me.”

“And that would be?”

“The power of the prophecy - love.”

Harry closed his eyes as he touched the Resurrection Stone with the tip of the Elder Wand. John, his reaper, had told him that summoning spirits wasn’t a good idea since they would fade away completely at some point. Yet he would still summon spirits now.

A quiet, yet powerful, mystic melody started playing somewhere and a wind was getting up as the Invisibility Cloak started billowing. No one moved, everyone was frozen, though if it was just fear or a supernatural power actually freezing them, they would never know.

Then four glowing figures emerged out of the Stone, just like with a Patronus, very unshaped and blurry at first, but slowly taking on human features. The first one of the figures to step forward was an elderly woman with very distinct blue eyes.

“Albus.”

The former headmaster was completely lost for words and just seemed confused and overwhelmed.

“M…mother?”

“My boy, what happened?”

A second figure emerged and walked up to Albus, putting his arm around his shoulder - and no, it wasn’t his father, summoning him would not have been a good idea.

“Yes, big brother, what happened? That is so unlike you.”

Aberforth Dumbledore was looking young again, and his appearance made Albus even more lose his mind.

But Harry wasn’t done yet. Oh no.

The two remaining figures walked up to Albus too, and once they took shape, a tear ran down Dumbledore’s cheek.

“Ariana, Gellert. What…”

“Oh brother, how could you? Your obsession drove you into madness.”

“Yes, it did. Albus, my old friend. You killed me. You’re lost, accept it.”

And suddenly Albus felt his age catching up with him. He had done great things once, but now he was nothing but a disappointment to those important to him. And then the four spirits surrounded him, talking to him, but he didn’t listen anymore. He couldn’t.

What had he become? Ariana’s soft words didn’t reach him anymore, he couldn’t bear hearing the disappointment in his sister’s voice. Abe’s deep voice wasn’t filled with criticism, but sorrow over a lost brother. His mother, his stern yet loving mother, whom he had lost way too early in life, was just standing there and cupping his cheek softly. She didn’t have to say anything, he understood either way. A mother always loved her child, even if she was disappointed. But to be the disappointment just hurt.

And then there was Gellert. The only man he had ever loved, and the man he had killed in cold blood. It didn’t matter what he said, Albus wasn’t able to comprehend anything at that point, his presence alone made Dumbledore hate himself.

 

Harry saw how the glowing figures surrounded the old man and talked him down, saw how they made tears stream down his face. But what he hadn’t expected was what followed.

A part of him had expected Dumbledore to overpower the spirits and attack, but it didn’t seem like that would happen. No, much the opposite.

At some point, the old man gasped for air and held his chest before collapsing.

Harry ran up to him, which interrupted the spell and made the spirits fade slowly, but not immediately. Kendra kissed her son’s forehead, and so did Ariana after her. Both Abe and Gellert just squeezed Albus’s shoulder before fading away, and the mystical tune stopped playing. 

Sirius, Remus and Filius were standing next to the kneeling Harry just moments later, with the charms professor casting a diagnostic charm.

“Harry, it’s his heart. It’s failing. I think what you did there rattled him that it was finally too much.”

Now that he was laying there, gasping for air and taking his last breaths, he didn’t seem so evil and dark anymore, but rather like an old and sad man. In some way, Harry had to pity him.

“Don’t worry, Albus. Always remember: To the well-organised mind, death is but the next great adventure.”

And with those words, those he had once said to Harry after his adventure in first year - only during the last timeline though - Albus Dumbledore took his last breath on the island of Avalon, located there where he had spent most of his life. On the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  

 

Not much later, the quartet levitated the body onto the boat and left the island. Because Harry was actually rather curious about it - and because he knew Hermione and Amy were at Hogwarts with Minnie - he tried commanding the ship to not go its usual route but leave Avalon and take them into the real world. And it actually did that.

And so Hermione Granger, Minerva McGonagall and Amelia Bones were the first people to witness the ship of Lord Gryffindor appearing out of thin air on the Great Lake and heading towards the pier where they were waiting. It was an impressive sight, and to see the four fighters standing on deck was making the whole thing even better. 

Harry was standing at the front of the boat, the big sword of Lord Galahad on his back and the wind playing with his hair. Next to him there was Sirius, who still held that one-handed sword in his hand (and Amelia was thinking he looked quite dashing). Remus and Filius were just a few steps behind them, talking quietly and enjoying the feeling of the sun’s warmth on their skin.

Just a few minutes later, they reached the pier, and Harry quite literally jumped off the ship and ran towards Hermione.

Somewhere halfway they met and collided, ending up in an incredibly powerful and tight hug (followed by a kiss that was beyond intense). Sirius and Amelia were barely better, but Amy didn’t run, she rather waited for her hero (still with the sword) to come to her and hug her.

Minerva couldn’t be prouder of them, once again her two favourites, the two who were like grandchildren to her, managed to save the world.

Her look turned a bit more grim as Filius levitated the two bodies off the boat while Remus levitated the still living Nathaniel Parkinson.

Amelia was the first one to speak.

“So he’s dead and the wand…”

“He’s dead. I used the Hallows, or to be precise, the Stone. I called upon his loved ones as a distraction, but his heart just…gave up. It was too much for him. Rookwood is dead, Parkinson is paralysed and has a bound core.”

“His heart just…the spirits must have been hard on him. And the wand, Harry?”

“I was quicker than him.”

He reached into his pocket to grab the two halves of the wand, showing it to everyone before throwing them into the air.

“Fiendfyre!”

A relatively small flame formed, barely bigger than a quaffle, and took the shape of a dragon before incinerating the falling pieces of wood. Merlin’s wand was no more.

And when Filius levitated Dumbledore’s corpse off the pier and towards the castle, Fawkes returned. He hadn’t been seen since the then-headmaster’s arrest, leaving his master for his betrayal. He sat down on Harry’s shoulder and softly sang. From now on he’d stay with the true light wizard who saved them all.

When they all left the pier, Hermione grabbed Harry’s hand and whispered into his ear:

“Now that it’s over, don’t leave my side ever again. Stay with me!”

Harry didn’t even began to argue that it had been Hermione who left to hunt Ronald, he knew it wasn’t about that. No, it was a promise. No more dark wizards or adventures anymore. Just peace and quiet from now on.

“I will, Hermione. I’ll stay by your side forever. I promise.”

Notes:

So, I hope you liked that ending, next week we'll wrap everything up. Let me know what you think :)

Thank you, all of you, for reading and commenting :)

See you next week

Chapter 46: Epilogue: Everything comes to an end

Notes:

Good morning and welcome to the final chapter of this story. I can't believe that we've come that far and I'm so very thankful for every single reader, everyone that took the time to comment, everyone that gave the story kudos. It's so very unbelievable, especially since this is my first story. I had no idea what to expect and was positively overwhelmed.
So thank you.

I do hope that you'll like the epiloge, and in the notes at the end I'll put the link to my new story whose first chapter got posted just minutes earlier. Hopefully we'll see each other there

Epilogue

“I will, Hermione. I’ll stay by your side forever. I promise.”

The promise Harry had made Hermione on the pier, just as the big ship in the Great Lake vanished and they walked up to the castle, was one that he kept - every day of his life.

The aftermath of the whole Dumbledore incident was a bit stressful for Amelia, because once they had left Hogwarts, they sent support to Austria to clear Nurmengard and take down the entire network. Dumbledore’s spymaster - he called himself Gareth these days - was quite helpful under Veritaserum to arrest anyone helping the old meddler. 

And so, most of the Dumbledorians went into Azkaban. Not all of them, because the old meddler hadn’t reached out to every single one of them, but most of them, be it the Lords or their followers in mid-to-high positions at the Ministry. 

Just as planned, Amelia announced her retirement, together with the information about the successful raid of Nurmengard. Jacob Ogden became Minister of Magic, just as the Alliance wanted, though the people called for Arthur, Harry or even Remus to consider running too. Each of those declined and endorsed Jacob, who delivered some very convincing campaign speeches and won by a big margin.

Amelia and Sirius’ first child, a boy named Regulus Harry Black, would become the first of several children of the two and Harry’s first godson. The two of them would have four children, two boys and two girls, while they completely restructured and modernised Wizarding Britain over the next few decades.

 

Remus continued teaching for decades to come, and he was by far the most popular teacher, even when he was the oldest staff member. He never found his luck with Nymphadora, despite knowing that in the previous timeline it had worked, they were different here. Besides, he had enough children to care for as Head of Gryffindor, there was no need for him to have some of his own. For about a century, students could find him sitting in a secluded corner of the common room, reading books or grading essays, and if one asked, he always helped and tutored. Once a month he offered to tell the stories of the past, about the wars and battles, and how they changed the world. Occasionally Harry, Hermione, Sirius or someone else who had been there, joined him in telling the tales. 

Eventually he gave up DADA due to his age and taught History. He reached an age of 157 and was the last Marauder to pass, Sirius having died about a decade earlier.

 

Minerva and Filius would both teach for many more years until they got too old and retired to spend the last few years of their lives with friends. Minerva was saddened when her old friend retired, but she understood, and together they picked his replacement. As Head of Ravenclaw Ms Luna Lovegood, the CoMC teacher (living together with Padma at the castle, who had taken over Arithmancy), and as Charms teacher Alastor Shacklebolt (son of Kingsley and Septima, and a truly brilliant wizard), at least for the OWL charms. Hermione Potter was teaching Ancient Runes after a brief episode of being Head Unspeakable and Minister, and she was teaching NEWT level charms too, no one could doubt that she was beyond brilliant.

When Minerva retired, she lived the rest of her life at Potter Manor with Harry and Hermione and their children. She was - after all - their “grandmother.” She wrote several books in this time, making important discoveries at transfiguration, and when her last moments had come, she was surrounded by her family. Harry and Hermione with their children, now all grown up, even the first grandchild already in the room. Sirius with his family, Remus, Neville and Daphne with their children and one grandchild (which was Harry and Hermione’s grandchild too), and a few others that were with her for so many years. 

She was buried on the grounds of Potter Manor, next to Fleamont and Euphemia, her old friends, and a statue of her was standing in Hogwarts’ transfiguration courtyard, remembering the great woman. 

The new headmaster following her retirement was no one else than Harry Potter, choosing to not become Minister or Chief Warlock, or even an Auror. Minerva told him she saw him as a teacher at the beginning of his sixth year when he began tutoring the lower years. He finished his DADA, Transfiguration and Ancient Runes Masteries while being a student and immediately began as a teaching assistant following his NEWTs. Over the years he took over more and more duties from whichever Professor needed it (since he was working on more Masteries at that time, he was eligible to teach most classes at least until OWL level).

 

Harry and Hermione finished their schooling after seventh year with a few Masteries and a lot of NEWTS (as well as an Order of Merlin, First Class). Mione went into the Ministry as an Unspeakable, rising to the top in five years. Just a year after finishing Hogwarts the two married, and not long after they had their first child, Minerva Lily Potter. That was the only reason Mione needed so long to become the Head Unspeakable, she always claimed. Dan and Emma looked a lot after the kid at first, but she soon was Hogwarts’ favourite baby, cared for by elves and her dad during the day, and spoiled by her mother (well, actually both her parents) in the afternoons and evenings at Potter Manor. 

Mione also became Harry’s proxy for the Wizengamot Seats most of the time, he was truly dedicated to teaching, and that’s when she was elected Minister just eight years out of Hogwarts. Jacob Ogden had fallen ill and resigned to focus on his health, and Amelia didn’t want the job anymore.

During the next five years in office Hermione had a set of twins, Dan Severus (after Hermione’s dad and Severus) and James Neville (godson of Nev), making her life a little stressful. She still managed to give her children the amount of attention they needed and deserved from a good mother while making political changes with Amy and Sirius. But after one term (it was five years these days) she didn’t want the reelection despite having more approval than Amy or Jacob (or anyone else) ever had. And she was just 31 years old by now.

So she took a year off, where the fourth and last child, a girl named Amelia Luna (after two of the strongest and most incredible women she knew, Minerva excluded, because they already named their first child after her, and Emma didn’t want them to call her Emma too, she was happy with being the grandma) was born.

And after that one year hiatus, she went into Hogwarts too. The magical society was growing, and so having a second teacher for some classes (like the favourite of many kids, Ancient Runes) so the groups were smaller, was a relief for many teachers.

The Potter duo also started managing the duelling and combat magic classes, always with various guest lecturers. Their children, Minerva by now being a second year student, were always running through the corridors and filling the castle with more life and laughter, occasionally being followed by Harry’s phoenix Fawkes, who always stayed with him and his family. It was a fascinating sight to see the bird on Professor Potter’s shoulder while teaching, or Fawkes making his rounds through the Great Hall during breakfast and singing for the students.

Little Minnie quickly became the top student of her year (maybe because Grandma Minnie, who had cried for over an hour after finding out that the Potters’ first child shall be named after her, had always read a lot with her, and little Minnie had her mother’s intellect). 

Harry came out of the room, smiling broadly. Sirius was the first to ask:

“Boy or girl?”

The twenty or so close friends - and every other person nearby, the Potters were famous after all - waited for Harry’s response, and for once, St. Mungo’s was absolutely quiet.

“A girl.”

 And the whole hospital started cheering, but was quiet quickly enough to hear the next statement too.

“A healthy little baby girl, and Mione and I are in agreement. Minerva Lily Potter.”

Everyone, but especially the two Marauders grinned broadly, and were waiting to see any reaction from the elderly headmistress, who was - to put it mildly - quite stunned.

“No?”

“Yes. Come here, Minnie.”

And Harry tightly hugged the woman who couldn’t stop crying. For the first time she completely understood just how much she meant to the two of them. 

“Hey, let’s go and meet your goddaughter, shall we? I’m pretty sure little Minnie wants to meet Grandma Minnie - or is it Great-Grandma?”

Wiping the tears out of her face, the witch playfully smacked Harry before following him into the room as the cheering started again, and soon everywhere people gave a toast to Minerva Lily Potter and the Potter family.

 

Neville and Daphne had married just a few months later, and like Nev had said, in the rebuilt Longbottom Manor. Many, many people had celebrated with them. Daphne would eventually become a successful author and Neville had his big herbology business before being elected Chief Warlock decades later. For a while he thought he might replace Pomona Sprout one day, but he didn’t. That was his eldest son, Frank Harry, since Pomona wasn’t THAT old yet (though older than Minnie) and taught for nearly forty more years after Harry and co. finished school.

The oldest Longbottom child though was a girl named Rose Augusta Longbottom, who would one day fall in love with Dan Severus Potter, eventually giving Harry, Hermione, Neville and Daphne a mutual grandchild. 

The four of them were always close and often spent the full moon together with Moony and Padfoot as animagi (Neville as a horse and Daphne as arctic fox).

 

Susan, who was still basically Harry’s sister by marriage (kind of), only found love during her last year at Hogwarts. 

Theo Nott.

The Slytherin boy denouncing his father and associating with Harry and co. Turns out he’s a very kind person if you give him the chance to open up. Oh, and he might deny it, but he wasn’t always calm and composed and certainly was a match for Susan’s more adventurous side. They married five years after Hogwarts and had two children. Each of them, so they decided, would carry one of the family’s titles. And since they had two little girls, for the first time in history the Head of House Nott would be a woman.

 

Nathaniel Parkinson spent his final twenty or so years (all the fighting and the occasional curse that hit him had weakened his body) under house arrest with his wife and daughter, monitored at all times. Originally they had intended Azkaban with visiting rights (they got rid of the dementors by now) as a punishment, but he gave up all of Dumbledore’s operations as well as all the remaining parts of Voldy’s old network. Maybe it was a little bit too kind, but on the other hand, he was a pureblood Lord who had lost his magic. That was quite the punishment indeed.

 

When Molly Weasley came out of prison, she had no idea what happened over the past years. Arthur actually was so kind to pick her up (giving the woman false hopes, he actually just wanted a divorce, which magic wouldn’t allow when one of them was in prison).

“So Arthur, when am I gonna meet the kids? And how are they doing?”

“Well, let’s see. Bill is the liaison for Gringotts and doesn’t want to see you anymore, Percy is a top DMLE prosecutor and has told me at our dinner yesterday he doesn’t want to meet with you. The twins have their joke shop and are richer than any other Weasley, and I’m not sure you’d survive walking into their shop, they hate you.”

The woman interrupted him, being absolutely furious.

“How dare they? I’m their mother. I’ll have a word with them, and besides, what good is a joke shop? I presume we’ll see the others at home?”

“Molly, first of all, Fred and George have over a million Galleons in their vaults - each. They are more popular than Zonko’s, everyone loves them. And didn’t you open any of the official correspondence when you were at Azkaban?”

“What, that nonsense from the corrupt Bones-Potter government? I tossed that out of the window.”

“Well, then you really don’t know. Charlie died fighting Voldemort, and Ron died fighting Hermione Granger after he tried killing me and fled when he tried toppling the government with Dumbledore. And Ginny, she’s free of your brainwashing now and would probably kill you on the spot. She’s married to Anthony Goldstein, a nice guy who was in Ravenclaw and now works as an Unspeakable.”

At this point Molly Weasley was not sure if she should cry or scream, and in the end it was a mixture of both. But the worst thing was what followed.

“Arthur…take us home.”

But Arthur just shook his head and spoke out the magical declaration of divorce on grounds of potioning and betrayal. The Weasley family magic accepted, and Molly Prewett fell onto her knees, crying. But Arhur had not even the slightest bit of guilt or compassion, he just summoned the chest (undetectable extension charm on it) with all of Molly’s possessions, then turned around and walked away.

Molly would soon find out that no one would employ her, because no one trusted her. Not even the Prewett family took her in, so she went to her sons. Other than Arthur predicted, neither actually killed her, but after barging into WWW she decided to leave the country. That embarrassment of walking through Diagon Alley with so many transfigurations and colour changes on her body was just too much. 

In the end she lived off little jobs all over central Europe, but she never got happy again in her life. And not once did she think that all of it was her or Albus’ fault, no, it was always Potter or Black, or the mudblood, or Arhur or…

 

Harry and Hermione were happy. 

They had children, grandchildren and so many “nieces” and “nephews” due to all their friends. They were happy teaching and still discovering some of the castle’s secrets. And while Harry had to break with the tradition of giving the cloak to his eldest son, he still gave his eldest - Minnie - the map. Oh and it was unavoidable that Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry got to see many new pranksters (the Potter kids, the Black kids and grandkids, the Longbottom kids, the Bones kids…downside of having two Marauders and the Weasley twins in your close circle of friends).

Decades after finishing school, he was headmaster by now, Harry stood on top of the Astronomy tower, together with Hermione.

“So much has changed. We changed all of it.”

“With the time travel?”

“Not just with that. You know how different everything is since we finished school.”

Hermione smiled, because Harry was right.

“Oh yes. We and our friends, we made it better.”

“Yes, we did.”

He put his arms around her shoulder, they both smiled and silently enjoyed the sunset. 

Hogwarts was better.

The world was better.

Everything was alright.

Finis.

Notes:

And that's it :)

Thanks again, it's been an unbelievable journey. I'm lacking the words to say more than that right now.

And as I already teased last week, I have a new story, a Lily Potter returns H/Hr story with Weasley and Dumbledore bashing etc. It starts during fifth year. Maybe we'll see each other there

 

A Cat's Tale