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New-Start

Books > Harry Potter

A Brand New Start

By: Fairywm

Rita spouting lies, branded as a Dark wizard and goblins in a rage;

Harry's had enough. So, he seeks to jump back in time to save himself

from a life of misery and fickle loyalty, maybe a little revenge and

mysteries along the way.Time Travel! A Harry raises himself fic. Non-

epilogue compliant, non-slash.

Rated: Fiction T - English - Family/Drama - [Harry P., OC] Sirius B.,

Remus L. - Chapters: 26 - Words: 152,491 - Reviews: 1,950 - Favs: 9,378 -

Follows: 5,399 - Updated: 21.05.2020, 18:30:57 - Published: 08.08.2015,

10:37:13 - Status: Complete - id: 11434139

1. The Tide Turned Again

Chapter 1 The Tide Turned Again

AN: a quick thanks to The 5h15 Spaceman for the opening and

helping me with the story. Also thanks to Constellation Temptation

for helping me in fleshing out the outline. And thanks to my two

favorite betas, darrelldeam and alix33, who spellcheck all my fics,

even when they don't have to. All mistakes are my own, since I have

a nasty habit of adding more and not sending it back.

AN: I know time-travel fics have been done to death; however there are only a

few where Harry goes back in time to raise himself, and the ones I've read

have all been abandoned (or so it seems). So I figured I would see it I can get

one up and running, even though I'm making this up as a go I do plan on

seeing it to the end. He isn't going to be super powerful, he is just going to

study hard and have powerful tools. As to him being Master of Death, it

simply means that he's immortal and when he temporarily dies, he can

demand Death to appear.

Also remember this is fanfiction, so of course some of it isn't true, like Rita

being a spy or the Ice Cream Parlour being open again or the Burrow still

standing.

I just reread this and realized that the first three chapters are a little angsty,

where Harry is suffering from survivor's guilt. I just want to say, he gets over

that, so bear with me, please. One other thing, he is going to be remaining in

this timeline until chapter seven; it will be a bit slow and then pick up when he

gets to the past.

Warnings: there is a bit of cussing. This is a little more aggressive

than my normal stuff.

Disclaimer: anything you recognize doesn't belong to me. I've read a

lot of time travel fics, so there might be somethings similar to

others, but I'll try not to do that. J.K Rowling owns Harry Potter.

Hphphp

HARRY POTTER: SAVIOUR OR DEVIL IN DISGUISE

By Rita Skeeter

I met a young Harry Potter several years ago, full of ambition and

talent much like the Dark Lord. Though reports say You-Know-Who was

destroyed by the Expelliarmus charm, many doubt that. How could a

simple charm taught to first year students bring down someone so evil?

Maybe, to kill someone as powerful as the Dark Lord, you have to

become a Dark Lord—

Harry crushed the newspaper in frustration and tossed it aside. He really

hated that woman. Now everyone was going to think he had fallen from

the Light. Well, he bloody well wasn't going to put up with this shite

again. It was only a month after the final battle, and he had been hiding

out in his godfather's old house from the fans, now this. He had planned

on going back to Hogwarts and finish out his schooling, but thanks to this

article, that option was gone. It would be a repeat of his first, second,

fourth and fifth years, and there was no way he was going to go through

that again. It also put to rest his plans on being an Auror.

He couldn't even blackmail the bitch anymore; during Voldemort's

control of the Ministry she had registered her Animagus form and set

herself up as a spy for them. How she reclaimed her place as top reporter,

the dark-haired wizard didn't know. She had probably bribed them or

blackmailed them or whatever.

He grabbed his hair and banged his head on the table in front of him.

What was he going to do now? The only people who had stood by him

before had their own problems to deal with.

The curly-haired witch still had to get her parents from Australia. Ron

was still mourning Fred's death and trying to woo her. George was a

shadow of his old self, not that he blamed him. Luna was trying to get

her schooling done, as was Ginny (and he still didn't know what he was

going to do about the youngest redhead). Neville was hiding from the

public too, after the Prophet ran the story of all his heroics during

Hogwarts last year. The youngest Potter hoped that the sandy-haired teen

didn't fall to Rita's vicious quill.

Andromeda was doing what she could to take care of Teddy. He wasn't

even allowed to visit his godson. His grandmother blamed Him for

dragging the now dead parents back into battle, causing her to lose the

rest of her family, bar Teddy, so she wasn't taking any chances. She made

it very clear that he was not welcome at her house.

Harry sat up and grabbed a piece of parchment and writing instruments.

He needed to figure out what to do now. The first thing on his list was to

clear his debt to the goblins, so he could get his money. For that he

needed the Sword of Gryffindor. Just as he thought about it, Fawkes

flamed in with the very scorched and war-torn Sorting Hat.

"You look like shite," the dark-haired boy blurted out as he took in the

hat's appearance. The Sorting Hat had always looked battered and old,

but now the rim was burnt and the tip of the cone was being held there

by a few threads. "Why hasn't Professor McGonagall fixed you?"

"Oh, and I'm sure you look better, Mr. Potter," the sarcastic hat replied.

"Minerva said that I am now an icon of the war. I tried to change her

mind, but she is stubborn," the poor hat grumbled. He had argued for

days with the headmistress, to no avail. She said as long as he can

perform his duty then he was to stay as he was to remind students of his

part in winning the battle.

"That sucks," commiserated Harry. He would have to see if he could talk

to the cat Animagus into changing her mind. The school didn't need any

more reminders of what they lost. "How did Fawkes know I needed you

here?" He looked at the firebird that had all but disappeared after

Dumbledore's death. The phoenix gave a mournful trill and tucked his

head under his wing.

"The sword always comes to true Gryffindors in need. Fawkes has always

been tuned in to the students of Hogwarts, you and Longbottom

especially. While you are not in a near death situation, you are still in

need of the sword." And if a hat could shrug, this one would, as it was the

frayed rim lifted off the table in parody. "I always knew some hero type

person would try and return it one day. It's back where it was the first

time you found it."

"Alright, I guess," the teenager said. He lifted the hat and felt inside, the

sword came into his hand and he pulled it out.

"It will be quite the joke on the goblins," the hat chuckled as the dark-

haired wizard put it back on the table.

"What do you mean?" The youngest Potter asked as he placed the sword

next to the hat.

"That sword is enchanted; they can reclaim it all they want. However,

like I stated before, it'll always come to a true Gryffindor." The hat busted

into full blown laughter at the thought. He soon joined him,

remembering Griphook taking off with it after betraying them, and it

showing up in Neville's hand when he needed it.

"Serves those greedy turncoats right," Harry snorted when he calmed

down. There was no love lost between him and the goblins, and if he

didn't need his money, he would be shot of them.

"Well, I'm off," the hat said suddenly. And the phoenix took a hold of it

again and flamed out.

After sending a glare to the crumpled up newspaper, the young man

decided that he needed to be disguised. Taking out his wand, he changed

his hair to light brown and his eyes dark brown, his famous scar had

faded after his aborted death. Picking up the Sword of Gryffindor, careful

not to touch the venom imbued blade, he sheathed it in a conjured

scabbard and strapped it to his back. He swiped one of Sirius' hooded

robes and made his way out of Grimmuald Place. He then Disapparated

to an alley next to the Leaky Cauldron, he lifted the hood to cover his

face and made his way to Diagon Alley.

The dark-haired wizard could already hear the gossip among the witches

in the marketplace. Once again the tide had turned and not in his favor.

Scowling under the hood, he quickly walked down the mostly deserted

street, not even looking over the damages that were still being repaired.

He made his way to the bank and up the stairs, not seeing the guards

signal inside. He hadn't even stepped one foot inside the lobby when he

was surrounded by ten spear points.

"What do you want here, thief?" one of the larger goblins snarled. "Do

you think a mere glamor spell could fool us? Why would you come here

under disguise if you aren't trying to steal from the Goblin Nation once

again?"

"I came to keep my promise to Griphook," he said in a neutral tone. Great,

this isn't going to help my reputation. He flitted his eyes around the lobby to

see who was watching, which was everyone. However, most didn't

recognize him, so maybe it would be okay.

"And what of the damages and losses to Gringotts?" the goblin asked,

bringing the teen's focus back to him.

"I want to make amends if possible," came the short reply.

"Take him to Sharpclaw," the same goblin ordered. "Don't lower your

weapons and keep an eye on the thief." Whispers started among the

customers and Harry was thankful the surly goblin never mentioned his

name.

So completely circled by vicious warrior goblins, the youngest Potter was

hustled to an office in one of the many tunnels. He was pushed through

an open door and shoved into a chair. The spears never dropped.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Mr. Potter," the oldest goblin Harry has ever

seen drawled. His thin and gnarly hands clasped on the desk, his beady

eyes narrowed in contempt.

"Right," the teen said abruptly as he nodded decisively. Wanting to get

this over with he started to reach over his shoulder when one of the

sharp spearheads dug into his neck. "I have the Gryffindor Sword," he

explained, his jaw tightened as he felt the line of blood move down his

neck.

Sharpclaw nodded to the guard and it backed off. The dark-haired wizard

once again reached over his shoulder and pulled the sword to the front.

He held it out in both hands, flat and harmless, inwardly smirking as he

remembered what the hat had told him. The goblin manager reached

over with his spindly hands and snatched it from the human.

"This still does not make amends for all the damages and one dragon,"

Sharpclaw said in a condescending voice as his greedy eyes took in the

most valued weapon. He placed it next to his chair and turned his

attention back to the crook. "Not to mention Gringotts' ruined

reputation."

"And what, pray tell, would cover those costs?" Harry's voice dripped in

anger. He wasn't even going to warn them about the venom. It would

serve them right for treating him this way. After all, he was here doing

what he promised, even after Griphook almost got them killed.

The goblin smiled a nasty smile and held out a piece of parchment, listed

on it was everything Gringotts felt was owed to them. He noted that it

was quite a bit of money they were demanding. However, he had a plan.

"Fine," Harry snapped, "but I want a blood test done so I can claim every

vault I own." He threw the demands back on the desk. He knew that he

still hadn't claimed Sirius' vault and with that he should be able to cover

these cost, plus, leave him some money.

The smile disappeared from the old goblin's face and he snarled.

"Longtooth, get the bowl," he told one of the guards.

A younger goblin lowered his weapon and went to get the tools needed

for the test. They all sat quietly and waited for his return, though not

without hateful looks being passed. Longtooth returned with a black bowl

and a rune covered dagger.

Sharpclaw reached over the desk, roughly grabbed Harry's hand and

sliced the palm without care. The youngest Potter hissed as he watched

the blood flow into the bowl. He quickly tore his shirt and wrapped the

wound when his hand was thrust away. The old goblin dipped a yellow

quill into the bowl and then placed it on a parchment. The quill vibrated

and then started to write. A list of five vaults showed, with more than

enough money to cover what the goblins were demanding and then

some.

Sharpclaw growled and sneered, "We will take what is due us, and then

we want you to clear out every single bit of your money and valuables.

You can tell your two friends, Mr. Ronald Weasley and Ms. Hermione

Granger, they are no longer welcome in Gringotts and they have one

week to clear their accounts. We are done with you." He pointedly turned

his back on the dark-haired teen.

"Fine," he said, not the least bit surprised, but still angry at these nasty

beings. "I'll be back the day after tomorrow to clear my vaults. If you

haven't settled the debt by then it's not my fault." He got up abruptly,

snatched up both lists and stormed out of the room, holding his wounded

hand tightly against his chest.

The angry teen made his way back to Grimmauld Place unmolested.

Harry had Kreacher bring some healing potions for his hand and hoped

he was in time to keep it from scarring. He took the potion, applied the

Dittany and was relieved when the wound healed unblemished.

He used the Floo to call the Burrow; Mrs. Weasley was the one to answer.

"Hello, Mrs. Weasley," The dark-haired wizard said politely. "Are Ron and

Hermione around?"

"Oh, Harry dear, why haven't you been coming to dinner? We haven't

seen you in over a week," the Weasley mother asked sadly. She had lost a

lot of weight, and her eyes were swollen and red, like she never stopped

crying. Her usual motherly demeanor was accented with grief, making

her more of a mother hen then she had been.

"I've been rather busy, Mrs. Weasley. As a matter of fact, I have much to

do now. Sorry for being rude, but I really need to talk to Ron and

Hermione." He didn't want to have to explain himself to the kindly

woman, not when he was in such a foul mood.

"I'll just go and get them, dear. You come to dinner sometime soon. Do

you understand, young man?" Molly demanded gently yet firm. She

missed the boy she thought of as her seventh son.

"I'll try, Mrs. Weasley," He hedged. The few times he had been to the

Burrow were awkward and unpleasant. Harry wasn't sure if it was just

their grieving or if they subconsciously blamed him for the losses. After

the way Andromeda treated him, he wouldn't be surprised if it was the

latter. Merlin knew, he blamed himself.

She left the room and a few minutes later his friends appeared.

"Hello, Harry, how are you doing?" the curly-haired witch asked. She

looked frazzled, her hair was wild and her eyes were bloodshot. He knew

she was studying hard to find a way to get her parents' memories back.

He wasn't sure if she would find a way before Hogwarts started, or if she

was going to have to put it off. He knew that that was eating at her.

"Alright, Harry?" was Ron's greeting. He actually looked rather well. He

gained back all the weight he lost when they were on the run.

"I'm fine, thanks," came Harry's standard reply. "I wanted to warn you

that Gringotts is threatening to close your accounts. You need to go and

clear anything you own out of there, soon."

"Well, that's fine," Ron shrugged. "I don't have a vault."

"No, but, they might fine your parents," the green-eyed teen warned. He

didn't know if it was true or not, but he wasn't going to take that chance.

"Alright, I'll warn them, it's not like there's a lot there," the redhead

mumbled. Money was always a sore spot for Ron.

"I only just opened the account, right before we started hunting the you-

know-what's," Hermione said thoughtfully. "There is very little there, so it

will be easy to get it out. It is a shame that human/goblin relations are so

bitter. Maybe there is something I… "

"Hermione," The youngest Potter interrupted her spiel, knowing any

attempt for better relations would be futile. Especially if they came from

any of the Golden Trio, the goblins made their views very clear. "Do you

think you can show me the spell you used on your bag? I don't see myself

lugging a bunch of trunks full of gold down Diagon Alley."

"Honestly, Harry, don't you read? I showed you the book it was in when

we were camping, just so you would know," she answered back, a bit

harsh.

"I know, Hermione, but you have that book in your bag," he defended

himself. "Plus, I had a bit more to worry about at that time."

"Oh, right, sorry," she stuttered. "I'll go get it." And with that she left the

room, leaving Ron and Harry with little to talk about. The two teen boys

had a simple conversation on Quidditch until their female friend

returned. A few minutes later she returned and handed the book through

the Floo.

"Oh, before I forget, don't let those greedy bastards—"Language, Harry,"

snapped Hermione— try and make you pay for the damages. I've already

paid them. I wouldn't put it passed those… goblins to try and get more,"

he spat in disgust.

"Harry, I can't believe you did that," the curly-haired witch chastised. "I

would have been more than happy to pay my part. As a matter of fact, as

soon as I can I'm paying you back." You could see the calculations

running through her brain as her eyes moved back and forth, like they

were reading something in front of them only she could see.

"You don't have to do that, Hermione, I've got plenty of money left," the

youngest teen shrugged. Ron scoffed in the background and was ignored.

"What with Rita's latest article it's a good thing too. I mean, I can't go

back to Hogwarts and the Ministry is out of the picture as well. I might as

well live in the Muggle world, for all the rumors that have already

started," he said bitterly.

"Oh, Harry, why is it always you?" his best friend asked. With the way

she always stuck by him, that is exactly what Hermione was, his best

friend.

"Don't know, don't care." To him it was par for the course, and he was

tired of it. "I can tell you right now; I'm not going to put myself through

all that again."

"What are you going to do about your NEWT's?" she asked giving him a

sharp glare. Education was very important to her, and she didn't want to

see Him lose the edge he'd get if he completed his seventh year.

Ron just stood to the side not offering his views, he'd let her try and talk

Him back to Hogwarts.

"I'll figure out something. Look, I have to go," The youngest Potter said

cutting off that argument before it started and pulled his head from the

fire and closed the Floo.

The dark-haired wizard spent some of his time that night trying to

recreate Hermione's bag. After dozens of failed attempts, in a fit of

frustration, he yelled the spell at the bag he was using. He

mispronounced a word and it backfired on him and hit a spot directly

above his left shoulder. He tried to see what it could have possible hit,

but there was nothing there. However, he felt the air move in

displacement when he turned his head in that direction. As an

experiment he took a piece of crumpled up paper and tossed it over his

shoulder. It disappeared. He tried again and the same thing happened.

This could work, he thought. He held his right hand in front of the area

and said, "Crumpled piece of parchment." Both pieces of paper came

flying out to his hand. He spent the rest of the night experimenting and

found it just like her bag. Bigger items just shrank into the invisible space

and expanded when they were called out. He found out he had to be

careful not to say certain words out loud, like 'empty', or everything

would dump on to his foot, which was painful. He was delighted that he

now had a way to store his gold and whatever else was in those vaults.

It was a tired young man that sat at the table and ate dinner. He finally

looked at the blood test and noted there were three vaults with names

he'd never heard of that now belonged to him. He did wonder how they

came to be his, but he'd be damned if he asked the goblins. All five vaults

added up to over a few million galleons, so Harry wouldn't have to worry

about working anytime soon, which was good. He did notice that the

demands of Gringotts would have wiped out his Potter account, which he

was sure was the point. But the other four vaults more than made up for

that.

The next day, Harry took everything he held valuable and placed them

in, what he dubbed, his pocketspace. Making sure the Deathly Hallows

were in there. No one was more surprised than he was when the three

items appeared on his bed the day after the final battle. He tried to rid

himself of them, but they kept coming back. He had no idea what that

meant, but at least now he had a way to hide them.

On the day he said he'd be at Gringotts, The dark-haired wizard walked

down Diagon Alley to complete his task. This time he looked around and

saw all of the buildings that were in disrepair. There were still Muggle-

borns lining the street begging for money. He felt sorry for them and was

glad that toad of a woman was now in Azkaban for all her crimes.

If he had his way he'd just kill the sadistic bigoted bitch, she was a bigger

blemish on the wizarding world than Voldemort. Her death count was

higher than any Death Eaters. Those camps were responsible for

hundreds of deaths. Now that they were disbanded, what was going to

happen to those that lost everything? Families torn apart, children

orphaned and wands snapped. Was the Ministry going to help? Could

they? He didn't know the answer to those questions.

With Diagon Alley in such a state, no one seemed to be able to help

anyone. It'll take a lot of money and time to get the marketplace back to

the bustling wonder it use to be. He remembered well the awe his ten

year old self had when he first entered the Alley all those years ago. It

saddened him to see it in the shambles it was.

Ollivander's shop was ruined, the windows gone, the display that adorned

the shop since its opening was broken and all of the wands snapped. The

poor wand maker was going to be hard-pressed to get enough wands for

the new first years and all the Muggle-borns. That was if he wasn't too

mentally scarred from his time in Voldemort's hands.

Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour seemed to be up and running, even

though the tables that used to litter the front were fewer. Harry recalled

that Mr. Florean had a daughter, maybe she was running it. He felt sad

that the man had died; he was always kind to the youngest Potter.

Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes was open and appeared to be doing well.

The dark-haired wizard made a mental note to visit George when he was

done with the bank. He'd need to tell him about all that anyway, if Ron

hadn't already passed that message on. Well, he would just make sure.

About every third shop was open, the rest were boarded up or

abandoned. Patrons were hustling quickly through their shopping, like

Death Eaters were going to come and snatch them any minute. He had

enough with the depressing sights and hurried his way to the bank.

This time as he made his way up the marble stairs two guards flanked

him. Their weapons were poised to strike should He do anything funny.

The trio was met in the lobby by that traitor Griphook. Spiteful looks

passed between human and goblin, but neither spoke. The cart goblin

took them to the tunnels in an uncomfortable silence. When they arrived

at the first vault, Harry waited for the goblin to open it, not taking the

chance that they'd trap him and leave him there. He remembered well

the warning this goblin told him the first time he visited Gringotts.

Griphook sneered at the young man and a flash of disappointment flew

across his face, confirming the youngest Potter's paranoia.

The vault had the name Frostwell posted over the doorway, He never

heard of that family, so they probably didn't have children in Hogwarts.

He still didn't understand how this vault came into his possession. When

the door opened the teen only stepped far enough in that he could get

out if the door started to close. He lifted his wand and levitated all the

money then directed it to just over his left shoulder. After all the coins

were sucked into the pocketspace, he then turned to the jewels, the

trunks, the books and the armor. There were also gizmos the dark-haired

wizard couldn't identify, but he placed them in the pocketspace as well.

Soon enough the vault was empty. He took great pleasure in making sure

the goblins didn't get any of the goblin made items in the vault.

It took about an hour for Him to clear out the other three non-family

vaults; the Black vault took a half an hour alone. He didn't even take time

to look at what he was putting in the expanded space, he'd go through it

all at Grimmauld Place, maybe even invite his friends over to help. The

dark-haired young man then turned to Griphook and broke the silence.

"Take me to the Potter vault," he demanded.

"There is no money left in the Potter vault," snarled the greedy goblin, a

healthy dose of pleasure coated his words.

"But there are artifacts and books, now take me to the Potter vault." He

stood firm; he wasn't going to let these bastards take anything more from

him.

"Fine," the cart goblin spat.

Soon Harry was in front of his family vault and once again waited until

Griphook opened the door. The vault was mostly empty, there were some

books and trunks, but there was little else. So He levitated what was left

into his pocketspace and turned away with moist eyes. He took a deep

breath and firmed his face; he wasn't going to show any remorse in front

of these beings who took great pleasure in his pain.

The silence descended again, not that Harry cared, he was done with this

place. He was escorted to the doors and was told in no uncertain terms

that he would never be welcome back, and neither would anyone with

the name Potter. He gave them the two finger salute and swept down the

Alley with his head high. Unfortunately, now the whole place knew that

Harry Potter had been banned from Gringotts. Rita was going to have a

field day with that bit of news.

The dark-haired teen made his way to WWW, with people pointing at

him and calling him the next Dark Lord. Thanks to the goblins, his

glamor was shot so he dispelled it. He went into the back room and

waited for George, knowing the single twin would come back there

eventually. About forty-five minutes later he was proven correct.

"Hey George," The dark-haired wizard said softly, taking in the lonely

man's appearance. George was in bad shape, he had lost a lot of weight

he couldn't afford. There were dark circles under his misty brown eyes.

His clothes were in good repair though. He figured George was still

trying to live out his and Fred's dream.

George turned, startled, and then plastered a fake smile on his lips.

"Harry!" he cried, you could tell he was happy to see his younger friend;

it was just hard for him to express it. "What are you doing here? Not that

I'm not glad to see you, but with the rumors going around I didn't think

you'd come to the Alley."

"How could I not come and visit my favorite Weasley?" He asked

cheerfully, trying to make the grieving young man less sad.

"Right," George scoffed. "I thought that was Ron or Ginny."

"They don't make me laugh like you do," explained the green-eyed teen.

"Enough of me stroking your ego, I only came to warn you to get your

money out of Gringotts. They're up in arms over anyone named Potter,

Granger or Weasley. So it might be better if you cleared out your vault

and put a Muggle safe in your office, or something. Oh and you better

warn Bill. He might want to look for a new job."

"That's all we need," the redhead sighed. "Thanks for the warning though.

What are you doing with yourself these days? We hardly ever see you at

the Burrow anymore."

"Sorry, I just feel uncomfortable there now. Your mum is still grieving, as

are you, and it's hard not to blame myself for your loss." The youngest

Potter shrugged his shoulders as if to say, what else could I think.

"Don't be stupid," snapped George. "We knew what we were getting into

from the start. Don't you remember us fighting Mum to be in the Order?

None of this is your fault."

"I know, but it's still hard to look at you and your mum. It doesn't help

that Andromeda is blaming me for Remus' and Tonks' death," He said

sadly. "Anyway, that's all I came to say. I'd better get out of your store

before you're labeled Dark for being seen with me."

"You come and visit me soon, Harry. Do you hear me? I don't give a rat's

ass what people think," George said as he pulled the younger boy into a

tight hug. He returned the show of affection and then pulled away.

"Yeah, but, I care," he stated, and then he whipped out the Invisibility

Cloak and pulled it on. He once again made his way down the Alley and

listened to the gossip. It was worse than he thought. These people were

going to condemn him and there were only a few that protested. Thank

Merlin they didn't know where he lived.

Harry got angry. He came to the decision that he was tired of the whole

wizarding world. He did his job and got nothing for it. It only took one

article in the Prophet, —from a reporter that was a spy for the Dark Lord

— and one incident at the bank, — run by greedy goblins that wizards

didn't even trust— and everyone turned on him. All the good he had

done before was now pushed to the side. All the pain and suffering he

endured throughout the years for them meant nothing now. Every single

person he called family died for these people and the public wouldn't

even remember them.

He was going to find a way to get back at them if it was the last thing he

did.

2. Changes and Plans

Chapter 2 Changes and Plans

AN: thanks to my betas, the 5h51 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own.

AN: I have to say, I'm overjoyed at how many of you like this story. I've never

received so many favs or follows on a first chapter before; I just pray I don't

let you down.

Ron is a bit out of character in this story.

I took Dungs accent off a translator, giving him a cockney accent, because I

suck and trying to do my own. I apologize if you can't work through it, but I

think I covered it with Hydrus' responses.

Disclaimer: anything you recognize doesn't belong to me.

Hphphp

It had been a month since the scene at the bank and Rita did run an

article on how the Golden Trio was banned from Gringotts. Only Harry

was accused of using Dark magic to break into the bank and steal from

the goblins, which was true, but she didn't know that. The fact that it had

to be done to stop the war was conveniently not mentioned, Skeeter more

than likely knew exactly why the Golden Trio robbed Gringotts. She

wrote that Ron was probably threatened or controlled by the new Dark

Lord rising. The vindictive bitch called Hermione a useless Muggle-born

who was easily swayed by Harry Potter and brushed her off as

unimportant. The goblins covered their arses by not mentioning exactly

how Harry had accomplished the heist, which was good because he didn't

want to spend the rest of his life in Azkaban for using the Imperius Curse.

The dark-haired teen now faced a problem; he had a bit of Muggle

money, and loads of wizarding. But he would soon run out of pounds and

had no way of exchanging galleons. The goblins knew who Kreacher

belonged to, so that was out. His friends were still in the same plights

they were a month ago. He'd have to figure out how to get money soon.

He knew the galleons were enchanted so you could not melt them down.

Besides, flooding the market with gold would only reduce its value.

In the past month he went to dinner at the Burrow, one time. Molly cried

the entire time and George's false happiness was grating, even if Harry

understood it was for Mrs. Weasley's sake. Ginny took Harry aside and

informed him that she was seeing Dean Thomas again, because she felt

he needed her more after what he suffered the past year. Harry was

conflicted on how that made him feel, but nodded his understanding

because it was her life. He left that dinner feeling worse than when he

had arrived, and declined all invitations that followed.

Harry had invited Ron and Hermione to help him sort everything he got

from the vaults. Hermione was busy trying to find a way to get her

parents back and catching up on a year of missed school, so she declined,

but stated she wanted to know what was there when he was done. Ron

came over once, but an argument ensued about Harry's newfound wealth,

which ended with the redhead storming out in a fit of jealousy. So Harry

was left with only Kreacher for help.

There were many interesting things to be found in his pocketspace. There

were books on subjects Harry had never even heard of. Like Dimensional

Travel or Time Warping, and others on wards and inventions. Gizmos

and trinkets were aplenty, though Harry was going to have to research on

exactly what they did. Thank Merlin, there were hundreds of books and

journals to explain it all.

One of the families— the Frostwells— were inventors. They came up

with a way to get Muggle electronics to not only work with magic, but to

excel. The last member of that family left a journal on his inventions: it

listed all of his discoveries and that he was about to publish when the

second war with Voldemort broke out. Since he was a Half-blood, he was

scared that he wouldn't survive the second coming of the Dark Lord. He

noted in the journal that he was going to leave his vault to the Boy Who

Lived, in hopes that Harry could use his inventions and theories to make

the wizarding world a better place. The teen was disappointed that he

couldn't make the man's last wish come true, at least not in this time.

Harry damned Rita to the deepest pits of hell, but then a smirk came over

his face. If he read some of this correctly then it might be useful for his

revenge.

Harry didn't understand much of the inventions, so he would have to take

himself to a bookstore and get every idiot's guide to electronics he could

find. He was thankful that all the magical books were found among the

inventory.

Another family— the Stonewalls— were the ones looking into traveling

outside this world into the next or back in time. That's where Harry

started making his plans, they were only tentative now, but it was a start.

When he went to the Muggle bookstore he'd make sure to load up on

fantasy novels that depicted those subjects. He figured it wouldn't hurt to

get more perspectives.

The last vault left to him, by the Moreovers, contained only coins and a

few family heirlooms. It saddened Harry that he couldn't return them to

anyone, since the family had been wiped out during the last two wars.

The stuff from the Black vault was Dark; there were no ifs, ands or buts

about it. Harry made sure to scan each and every item before he touched

it, all the while thanking Hermione for teaching him the spells when they

were on the run. Anything that was too Dark, he had Kreacher sell in

Knockturn Alley. The rest he set aside to look at later as they might be

useful. He did find a letter addressed to him with a vial of blood. The

letter read:

Hey Pup,

I left this to you in case I didn't make it. The vial of blood is to be used

with a potion to make you a closer member of the Black family. You

can find the receipt for the potion in the book titled 'Blood Magic, Make

It Work For You', which is in Grimmauld Place's Library. You'd still be a

Potter, but since your grandmother was a Black this'll bring your

heritage closer to be the head of the Black family, so you will be more of

a brother or first cousin. I don't want the Malfoys to inherit the family

name. So take the vial and use it. I was going to explain all of this to

you this summer, but since you're reading this that didn't happen.

Talk to Moony, he'll know my plans and help you make the adoption

potion. I know your grades in that subject (probably Snivellus' fault)

and you're going to need help. Do this as quickly as you can, so that you

don't lose the inheritance.

If you decide not to do this, I'm declaring the Black name dead. It is

stipulated in my will; the Malfoys will try and fight for the name either

way. I hope you do the adoption and not let my family name die. The

choice is yours.

I hope that I went out with a bang, but I am sorry to have left you

alone. Take care, Pup, and remember the good times.

Padfoot

Well, that didn't work. But, I think this will help my plans nicely, Harry

thought as he reread the short letter. He still missed his godfather, and

now reading this he realized just how much that man was doing behind

the scenes. The teen vowed to do this request as soon as he could get the

ingredients. Maybe he'd have Kreacher buy them in Knockturn Alley. It

was a good thing that the goblins made him clear out the vault before the

Malfoys could recover their place in society and try and take it from him.

He doubted they would fight for the name now that there was no money

attached to it, though there was still power behind it. Who knows, Harry

didn't care either way, he would do this because it was the last wish of

his godfather.

The Potter vault yielded things from past Potters, like journals and old

schoolbooks, some with notes in the margins. Harry had spent a few

mournful days reading the diaries. He learned a lot about his parents and

their school days. He was pissed that such a great family was now fallen.

He was the last Potter and felt he had let his family down. He had been

tempted to call the shades of his parents to apologize to them. However,

he was worried they might berate him for letting the family name be

ruined, even if they had praised him the last time he summoned them.

A few days later, Harry was spending the last of his Muggle money at a

bookstore. He was on his way home and was just completing his

Disapparition when he was hit with a killing curse. His body landed right

outside the house. Kreacher seeing his Master's corpse quickly levitated it

into the parlor. The poor house elf grieved over his kind Master. No one

since Master Regulus had ever treated Kreacher with kindness, until this

teen came along. It was the destruction of the horcrux that brought the

two to an understanding. Now Kreacher was alone again.

Harry, meanwhile, was in an empty grey space. He had the feeling that

he was dead and was remorseful that he couldn't carry out his plans to

make the wizarding world pay or help those loved ones that he could. He

was wondering why he wasn't moving on, when a dark cloaked being

appeared. The figure in front of Harry wore a black hooded cloak that

covered all but his face and hands, as it was the hood of the cloak cast

shadow on that very gaunt and pale face. Its hands were ghostly white

and very thin. It was tall, very tall, and skinny. Harry was kind of glad it

wasn't the skeletal being that was depicted in the books—just a very dead

looking man, like a centuries old vampire.

"Master," the cloaked man rasped, "I was not expecting to see you so

soon." The entity waved his hand and two chairs appeared.

"Let me guess, you're Death," Harry said calmly, "and I'm dead. I do have

to wonder if it was a Death Eater or one of the wizarding sheep bent on

destroying the new Dark Lord. I guess it really doesn't matter, I knew it

was going to happen sooner or later. I was hoping for later, but, here I

am, maybe I can finally rest. Don't you have a book or something that

tells you when people are going to die?" He took one of the chairs and

waited for the being to explain.

"Yes, I am Death. No, I do not have such an item," were the succinct

answers, and the deity took the other chair. "However, you cannot die.

You will rejoin your body in a few minutes. I brought you here, because I

would like to explain the Hallows and what they can do to further assist

your plans. Yes, I know all about them, and I agree to what must be

done. I feel you can do wonders, for you, your lost loved ones and your

family, should you complete them."

"That is upsetting, but at least I can still get my revenge," the dark-haired

teen said, he didn't seem to feel emotions here; he'd have to look into that

when he got back. He settled back on his chair and then waited quietly

for Death to finish.

"I cannot give you all of the answers; however, I can tell you that you are

headed in the correct direction. Use the wand to complete your final task.

It has properties that you will need. Use the ring to get answers from

those that have passed on. Use the cloak to hide from your enemies, so

that we will not meet again anytime soon. You have these tools; you

should utilize them to help you along." Death chastised, not

understanding why the young man in front of him didn't use the Deathly

Hallows to their fullest extent.

Harry nodded his head, and berated himself for putting the most

powerful magical objects away and forgetting about them. "Can you talk

to me anytime, or do I have to die to see you?" he inquired.

"I cannot interact with the living," Death answered. "I belong in the Land

of the Dead."

"So I'd have to die, figures," the teen nodded in understanding, nothing in

his life was ever easy. He would have to get some philosophy books on

death, since it seemed the being in front of him was limited in what it

could tell him.

"It will also do you well to reflect on your life thus far, and note who did

and didn't do the things you required as a child in their care," Death

evasively hinted.

"I've been doing that, kinda. I mean, I know that most of the crap that I

was put through at Hogwarts should've never happened. I'll think more

on it, but it makes me mad when I do, so I try and forget all that shite,"

Harry said with a shake of his head.

Death nodded in understanding. "One last thing, if you do not want to

create a paradox you will need to use the vial your godfather left you,"

the deity reminded his young master.

"Yeah," Harry said sheepishly, he hadn't so much as forgotten about it, he

just got caught up in making his plans. "I'll get to that first thing," he said

decisively.

"It is time for you to return, Master," Death said as he stood. "Though you

are the Master of the Hallows, you do not belong in this realm. Read my

tale again and research all you can. We will meet again."

"I'd say it was nice to meet you, but I'm kinda disappointed that I'll never

join my family," Harry said as he too stood. The chairs disappeared and

Harry had one more question to ask. "Speaking of my family, do you have

any idea how they're reacting to what's going on now?"

"I can tell you that should you wish to talk to them, they will come

joyfully," Death answered with a bow, and then with a sweeping motion

of his arm, he flung Harry's soul back into his body.

Harry sat up with a gasp, making Kreacher scream and topple over.

"Sorry, Kreacher, looks like you're stuck with me until I either leave or

you die," Harry said to the scared house elf. He wondered if he could

bring the loyal house elf with him when he left. He would have to

experiment on a few things first. Then again having two Kreachers in the

same timeline would cause a paradox and he didn't know if he could

change a house elf enough to not cause one.

Harry sat the elf down and explained the experience he just had, and

Kreacher was soon calmed and was overjoyed that his Master couldn't

die. Hopefully that meant he would never be alone.

"Did you grab the bags I had when you brought me in?" Harry asked

bringing the house elf's attention back to him.

"Yes, Master Harry, Kreacher is not leaving Master's things on the

sidewalk," the old house elf answered. He then pointed to the bags on

side table.

"Thanks, Kreacher, you're the best." Harry patted the tiny being on the

back. He too was glad they had put their differences aside and now

worked together. It was only after he went over the times that the

necklace horcrux affected him and his friends that he realized it probably

did the same for the house elf.

"Kreacher, did you get the ingredients for the adoption potion?" Harry

asked as he looked through the bags to make sure everything was there.

"Yes, Master Harry, Kreacher is getting them this morning," the house elf

said and scurried away to get them.

Harry watched him go and started defining his plans. He still needed to

find a way to get his money switched over. He ran all of his friends and

acquaintances through his mind and came up short on who was in a

position to help. Most of the Half-bloods and Muggle-borns were still

struggling to find a foothold in the war-torn society. Maybe he could ask

Kingsley, then again since the man was Minister now he might be a bit

busy. McGonagall was working hard to get Hogwarts repaired and staffed

so it could be ready for the new school year. As much as he loved Hagrid,

he couldn't be trusted to keep his mouth shut on who he would be doing

the errand for. Mundungus was a tempting thought, though that man

would want a hefty fee. He'd have to think on that one, and if he couldn't

find anyone else there were loads of things from the vaults that thief

would want.

Kreacher popped back into the room, breaking Harry from his mussing.

"Kreacher had Master's things," the old being said as he handed a bag to

the young man.

"Thanks. Why don't you take the rest of the day off?" Harry suggested to

the tired house elf. Kreacher had been working hard to get Grimmuald

Place back to the beauty it once was, even taking that portrait of Mrs.

Black off the wall. That took a bit of convincing, but Harry finally used

the fact that he was master of the house and it was done. That and the

old house elf had been helping him sort through the vault items. Now the

poor creature looked drained.

"As Master orders," Kreacher said and popped away.

Harry went to the kitchen and summoned the vial, the book and his

cauldron from his pocketspace. He then set about making the potion. It

was as difficult as Sirius warned, but what his godfather didn't know is

that Harry had studied potions on his own, knowing that that greasy git

of a Potions Master would never teach or grade him fairly. The Half-

blood Prince's book helped a lot. He had retrieved it after making his

friends think it was hidden. There was no way he was going to let go of

such a valuable resource.

After hours of chopping, stewing and stirring – grimacing the entire time

knowing he was going to have to drink the vile concoction— the potion

was done. Taking a deep breath he swallowed it in one go. He was right,

it was awful and it took every bit of willpower to not throw up.

According to the instructions, Harry now needed to go to bed, so that the

changes could take place in his sleep. So he cleaned up his mess and took

himself up the stairs to Sirius' old room. He changed into pajamas and

put aside his glasses. Laid down on the bed and went right to sleep.

During the night he dreamed a very vivid dream. He saw his parents and

Sirius waving at him from across a raging river. They were making

motions for him to join them. The teen wanted to comply, so he

attempted to build a bridge, but the water swept it away. He tried to fly

over on his broom, but the wind kept blowing him back. He attempted to

Apparate, but landed in the middle of the river. The currents pulled him

away from his family.

Harry woke with tears streaming down his face and his shoulders shaking

with grief. He realized just what being the Master of Death meant. Oh, he

understood before, but with this dream it was more of a reality. He

would never join anyone in the afterlife. Because he would never die, all

his friends would be taking from him in time. He now had a choice to

make, either relish the time he had with them or seclude himself even

further and save himself the pain. He wasn't about to make that decision

after waking up from such a traumatic dream.

After taking many deep breaths, to calm himself and wake up more,

Harry remembered what he did the night before and rushed to the mirror

to see the changes. His hair was darker, before it had been black with red

highlights, now it was a shade of black that reflected blue in the light. It

was silkier, yet still had that just mussed look, just not as bad. His eyes

were the same, and now he could see without his glasses. He face was

leaner, the cheekbones were higher and the chin more pointed, making

his jaw less square. His body was the same, he didn't gain any height. He

looked a lot like Sirius, but with his dad's ears and his mother's eyes. He

was thankful that there were still Potter traits.

The now darker-haired teen felt a bit more powerful, like something was

added to his magic. Not overly so, but it could be the Black family magic.

Harry wasn't sure how he felt about that, knowing the Blacks point of

view he had to wonder if this could affect him negatively. He

remembered the Potter family magic coming to him when he turned of

age, it didn't seem to affect his thinking, so he shrugged off the new

magic as unimportant and went back to his appearance.

The changes were enough that he could probably walk down Diagon

Alley and no one would know who he was (not that he wanted to test

that theory on Gringotts), but to do that he would need a name. So he

took himself to the library and researched star names, wanting to keep

the Black tradition. It only took a half an hour to come up with the name

Hydrus Black, he felt a water snake was a good description (He found out

after his first death that he was still a parselmouth). The young man

figured that when he completed his plans, he could pass himself off as

Sirius' cousin. He would need to get some paperwork for his new identity,

maybe Mundungus would come in handy after all. The petty thief would

know shady characters.

With that thought in mind, the now named Hydrus, sent out a letter to

the man. In it he asked that Fletcher come to Grimmauld Place and that

the rewards would be worth it, if he agreed to do what was asked of him.

Hydrus had Kreacher deliver the letter, as he had not replaced Hedwig,

and probably never would.

Hydrus then set about going through the rest of his inventory, shifting

what he needed first and putting the rest in his pocketspace. Two hours

later Mundungus appeared at the door, Kreacher showed him to the

parlor.

"Hello, Mundungus," the dark-haired wizard said as he stood to greet the

thief. The man was just as vile looking and smelly as he had always been.

Hydrus wondered if he ever took a bath.

"Who are ya? And where is 'arry Potter?" the bedraggled man asked as he

pulled his wand.

"I'm shocked you don't recognize me, Fletcher. After all, your negligence

almost had my soul sucked out," the immortal said in a mocking tone.

"Something about cauldrons, if I remember correctly."

"'arry?" the astounded man exclaimed, his eyes widening as he took in the

teen's new look. His hand that held his wand dropped to his side.

"In the flesh, so to speak," the new Black stated. He then waved to an

empty chair and invited the man to sit.

"What 'appened ter you? Thee look like Sirius, but yew still 'ave yaaahr

mum's eyes," the confused man stated after he took the offered chair, all

but flopping down in his shock. He pulled his pipe from his battered coat,

but didn't light it after Hydrus shot him a warning look.

"That's kinda what I wanted to talk to you about. First I need a vow from

you, not to say anything that we discuss and that you'll do the things I

ask— without trickery or questions," the new Black demanded. His

piercing eyes boring into the not so trustworthy man in front of him. If

Mundungus didn't give the vow, Hydrus had no problem wiping the

memory from him.

"Why?" Fletcher asked, now wary of the teen he always thought of as a

pushover.

"Don't be stupid, I know you read the Prophet and keep up on gossip, so

you know that I need someone to run some errands for me, and possibly

do some not quite legal things," he snapped. "Why else would I invite you

into my home, after everything you did to me and Sirius?"

"Alright, 'arry, I'll take yaaahr vow, but i' is gon'a cost you," the greedy

man said, holding up his hands in compliance. He then placed his unlit

pipe back in his jacket.

"First your vow, then I'll explain what I need from you and then we'll talk

about your pay," the dark-haired teen explained as he settled back into

his chair.

"I, Mundungus Arabus Fletcher, do hereby swear on my life and magic

that I will keep the secrets of Harry James Potter until such time as he

relieves me of said vow. I also vow to run his errands without deceit, and

to comply with our agreement," the dumpy man incanted without his

normal lazy accent, holding his wand up near his head. When the last

word was spoken there was a blue light that surrounded him and sealed

his promise to his magic.

Hydrus nodded and then explained what he needed from the thief. It took

about twenty minutes of talking to go over the things that were

necessary.

Fletcher listened; his eyes alight with greed at the payments the young

man was offering. "Alright… 'ydrus, I'll see what I can do. Which do yew

wan' first, da paperwork awer yaaahr money switched?" he asked when

the teen finished.

"Money first, I think," the dark-haired wizard said rubbing his chin in

thought. He really needed to get some more books from the Muggle

world if he was going to study what he needed to know. The paperwork

wasn't really needed right away, besides, it was for after his plans took

effect. With magic he could live off the grid, so to speak.

"Sure, give me what yew wan' ter exchange, plus me fee, an' I'll be back

in an 'aaahr."

The teen nodded an hour was reasonable. "I have to go and get it, stay

here and keep your greedy hands off my stuff. Kreacher is watching you,"

Hydrus warned as he got up to leave the room, nodding to his house elf.

The thief grumbled, but the teen ignored him. He went to the kitchen,

closed the door and put a warning ward over it. He summoned 1,030

galleons out of his pocketspace. It piled on the table in front of him. He

took a bag, which he finally got extended, and spelled the gold to it. The

teen then took down his ward and joined his new partner in crime. "Here,

remember you only get three percent," he said as he handed the man the

bag.

"I remember. I'll be back soon." Mundungus took the bag and left the

house.

The younger wizard went back to the kitchen and took out his list that he

started a month ago. He looked over what he needed to do now. With the

conversation with Death and his new face, he could put more ideas into

action. While he waited for Fletcher, he did as Death had suggested and

reread the tale of the Deathly Hallows. More plans of revenge came from

that.

After he finished the tale, he looked at his list once again. First he needed

to research electronics, if the books he got from the Frostwell vault were

correct he could have a computer set up here in no time. Not only that,

but it could be spelled to receive information straight from books.

However, it took more than just knowing the words; you had to know

Runes and Arithmancy.

Hydrus resigned himself to a lot of studying, mourning the fact that

Hermione was going back to Hogwarts and wouldn't be able to help him.

That and he was still unsure as to whether or not to include his friends in

his plans, they would try and stop him. If he had Hermione do the

research for him, she'd figure out what he was up to pretty damn quick.

No, if he was going to pull this off he needed to do his own work. The

books he got, just before his second death, were going to help with that.

The young man let his mind drift for a minute, everyone Hydrus knew

would be returning to the school, except him. He had already talked to

McGonagall about it a week ago, and informed her there was no way in

hell he was going through all the gossip and mistrust again. And since

she never helped in the past he damn sure didn't trust her to help now.

She was quite put out that one of her favorite students thought so lowly

of her, but she had to admit the entire Hogwarts staff had let their Savior

down. Blast Dumbledore and his orders.

During that talk, he did convince the Headmistress to fix the Sorting Hat.

Now the hat looked like it had when it was first designed. The patches

and frays were gone, and the grateful relic stood tall and proud. With the

encrusted dirt gone the original colors now came through. Its cone was a

dark purple, while the rim was a muted black. The hat thanked the teen

profusely.

Shaking himself out of his musings, he went back to his list. The second

thing he had to do was figure out how to make money. He had plenty in

his pocketspace, but he also wanted to make sure it never ran out. If he

was going to live forever, then he was going to need more. So he noted

down that research was needed for the stock markets and sporting events

for the last twenty years. He was also going to have to come up with a

way to appear to age, fake his death, and then come back as a cousin or

son or something. Maybe he could talk to a friendly vampire; he

remembered the one from Slughorn's party, Sanguini. He might write to

him or his human companion, Eldred Worple.

Another thing he needed to do was to get to WWW's and buy five of

everything George had in stock. If he was going to go back in time then

he needed to make sure that there was fun involved. And WWW products

were the best for that, plus, there were items that could confuse an

enemy so you could get away.

Next item in his plan was to study the books on time travel, the ones

from the vaults were all theory, he figured with those and the Muggle

fantasy books, and he would understand how it worked. That was for a

later time though.

The last thing on his list was to understand how to overcome his battered

emotions. If he was going to do any good he needed to be in more

control. Self-help books can only take you so far, maybe he would need

to seek professional help.

With all of this in mind, Hydrus went to the library and set up an area to

get started. Now that he thought about it he was glad that everyone

would be returning to Hogwarts, it would give him time to deal with all

that Death told him and come to a decision on how to make them

understand what he didn't completely understand. Since there were only

a few weeks left until Hogwarts reopened, he would need to invite Ron

and Hermione over. However, was he willing to let them know about his

new look, or should he glamor himself back to the old one? Given the

fact that they would not be joining him on his journey it might be best to

lie.

Fletcher showed up an hour later with good amount of Muggle money.

The younger wizard thanked him for his service and showed him the

door. He told the petty thief that he should return with the paperwork

within the month.

Taking himself back to the library, he pulled all books on electronics and

the Frostwell journals, from his pocketspace and started reading and

taking notes. He would get that computer up and running soon. Hydrus

knew he wasn't a quick study, so it will probably take years to implement

his plans, but he was determined to make sure they came to pass. Time

was on his side.

3. A Talk With Friends and More

Research

Chapter 3 A Talk With Friends and More Research

Once again a big thanks to my many betas, the 5h51 Spaceman,

darrelldeam and alix33. Without their help the story wouldn't flow

as nicely. As usual all mistakes are my own, since I have a nasty

habit of adding more and not sending it back to them.

Hphphp

Hydrus invited Ron and Hermione to the house, the week before

Hogwarts was to start. He was sitting in the parlor, his face glamored to

look like his old self with his glasses in place, waiting for them to Floo in.

He made sure to put all of his research in his pocketspace, so Hermione

wouldn't ask questions, knowing how inquisitive the bookworm was. The

fireplace flashed green and his curly-haired friend came through,

followed by the youngest male Weasley.

The former Potter got up and engulfed Hermione in a hug. "It's good to

see you, Hermione," he said when he pulled back. He took in her

appearance and noted that her eyes were still rimmed with red, but her

face looked like she had been resting a little. So he had to wonder if she

was still researching or crying. She look like she was taking better care of

herself, her hair was styled and she had applied either non-magical make-

up or charms.

"It is good to finally see you too, Harry," Hermione said as she looked

him over as well. He looked the same, just healthier. "You're looking

well. Have you been working out?" she asked, seeing he was a bit more

toned. "They've missed at the Burrow, you're making Molly upset. You

should at least visit once in a while," she whispered so that Ron wouldn't

start a fight.

The dark-haired wizard rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Yeah, I've done a little exercise. Does it really show?" he asked, ignoring

the chastisement for now. He had read that doing even a basic workout

program helped to clear the mind and steady your magical core. So he

had gone to the nearest gym and got a fitness coach. It was nice to hear it

was paying off.

"You do look better," she complimented, letting his evasiveness go for

now and with one more roaming look she stepped aside so the two males

could acknowledge each other.

"Alright, Harry?" was Ron's standard greeting. He clapped the shorter

man on the back as he went past him to sit on one of the chairs. Tension

was still tight with these two after the argument they had over Hydrus'

money. The younger man didn't understand the redhead's stance; if he

offered money to the Weasley he would be ridiculed for think that

Weasleys accepted charity. If he kept his wealth to himself; his friend

would state that he was being greedy. He just couldn't win.

"Alright," the new Black said, he then guided Hermione to a chair and

then took a seat on the sofa.

Kreacher popped in and asked if anyone wanted anything to drink.

Hydrus asked for some tea, Ron wanted a butterbeer. Hermione glared at

the both of them for making the old house elf work, and declined the

offer. The old elf popped away and was back in seconds with the request.

He then went back to his cleaning.

"I can't believe you still have Kreacher," the curly-haired girl started, "you

should have set him free the second you inherited him." She shot her

friend a piercing glare.

"Hermione, at his age if I set him free he'll die from the shock. You really

should do more research on the giving of clothes, because to a house elf

it is the worst thing you could ever do to them," the young man defended

himself. "Let's not argue, you guys are going back to school soon and I

want to spend a nice day with my friends."

"Alright, Harry, but we will be talking about this again," Hermione

conceded, for the moment.

The immortal shook his head, that girl will always have a blind spot on

this subject. He really couldn't blame her it was her upbringing; non-

magical history was riddled with people fighting slavery, after all. He

took a sip of his tea and looked at his two friends, they seemed to be

uncomfortable. "What's got you two so bent out of shape?" he asked.

Hermione sighed and her eyes watered. "I can't find a way to get my

parents back. I went to Australia to see how they were doing. They are so

happy, I almost want to leave them be," she said and the tears poured

down her face.

The younger man set his cup down, got up and sat on the arm of her

chair. He pulled her into a tight one armed hug. "Oh, Hermione, I'm so

sorry," he commiserated. "What are you going to do now? I mean, are

you going to keep researching, or are you going to let it be? Whichever

you choose I'll support you," the young man said.

Ron sat back with a huff, he had been listening to his girlfriend go on and

on about it since they came back from Australia. She would make plans,

research and then suddenly change her mind. The redhead tried to

understand, but, it was hard for him, since he had the emotional range of

a teaspoon. To his way of thinking if her parents were happy with their

new life then the girl should just let it go and spend more time with him.

He never understood why she got angry when he said that.

Hermione wiped her tears with a handkerchief she got from her bag,

pulled back from the hug and gave her friend a watery smile. "I'm going

to put off a decision for a few months. I want my parents back, however,

if they are happy then who am I to take that from them. Besides, they

might never forgive me for what I did. I just don't know what to do, so

I'm going to take some time and think about the pros and cons."

He gave a small chuckle and said, "I'm sure you already have a list

started."

"Oh, you," she said as she thumped his arm playfully, causing the young

man to laugh and move back to the sofa.

The dark-haired wizard then turned his attention to Ron. "So, what's got

you so unhappy?" he asked.

"You," the redhead snapped. "With you gone, Gryffindor might as well

just hand the Quidditch Cup over to one of the other Houses and be done

with it."

Hydrus sighed; leave it to Ron to only think about the Cup. "So you want

me to go back to Hogwarts and face all those people who think I'm the

new Dark Lord just so Gryffindor can win at Quidditch?"

"You did it before," came the defensive comeback.

"And I was miserable," he retorted.

"Well, yeah, but you survived."

"Ron, I'm not going back to Hogwarts. Ginny is a good seeker, so you

guys will be okay," the dark-haired teen said with a tone of finality.

"Whatever," Ron said with a sulk. If it hadn't been for his mum's and

Hermione's nagging he wouldn't be going back.

"Harry, are you sure you won't come back? Education is really

important," Hermione asked in a worried tone. She wondered how Harry

was going to get a job if he didn't have his school credentials.

"I'm sure," Hydrus said as the glanced her way. "I've already talked to

McGonagall and she said as long as I'm of age and I have my OWLs then I

don't need to go back." That tidbit of information had been nice to learn.

Not that he planned on getting a job, but he didn't want the Ministry

breathing down his neck either.

"I could talk to her and see if she can't get everyone else to leave you

alo…" Hermione said a determined look in her eye.

"No," the younger wizard interrupted, "that won't work. It'll actually

make it worse. Besides, the teachers can't be everywhere." He knew

Hogwarts was extremely understaffed compared to other schools. "And

even if the students were caught, what would happen? They'd lose points

and further blame me for that. No, it is better that I do my own studies."

And awkward silence filled the room as each young adult mulled that

over. Hermione, after a few minutes, nodded her head in understanding,

while Ron was still lamenting about the Quidditch Cup.

"What are you going to do about your NEWTs?" Hermione questioned,

once again.

"I'm planning on self-study. When the time comes I can take the test

privately."

"That's wonderful," the curly-haired girl replied. "If you need any help,

just owl me and I will do my best," she offered.

"I think I'll be okay. But if I need you I'll let you know, I promise," the

dark-haired man said sincerely.

"So, what was in the vaults? And did you ever find out why they left

them to you?" Hermione inquired, changing the subject. Not realizing it

was a sore topic for the other two in the room, Ron having not told her

about the disagreement.

"There were some knick-knacks and gizmos in three of them. The Black

vault was filled with Dark stuff, so I had Kreacher get rid of them,"

Hydrus hedged, he knew if he told her everything she would figure out

his plans. "There were some journals in my family vault. I got to read

about my parents' hijinks in school. Mum's diary talked a lot about Snape,

while Dad's was mostly about the Marauders. They were pretty cool," he

said in what he hoped was a casual voice. "I only found out how one of

the vaults came to me. The last Frostwell wrote that he wanted me to

have his stuff, so it wouldn't be confiscated by the goblins," he lied. He

didn't mention the gold, because he didn't want to fight with the still

sulking redhead.

"I guess that's understandable, the others probably felt the same way. Can

I see some of the devices? There might be something useful," Hermione

asked excitedly.

"Sure," he said fondly. "I'll go and get a few. Wait right here, and I'll be

back in a minute." With that he rose from his seat and went to the

kitchen, once again erecting warning wards. He summoned a few of the

lesser inventions out of his pocketspace. These were simple things, like a

calculator that worked on magic and a battery operated thingamajig that

twirled when there was more magic in the air. He felt that by giving

these to his bookworm friend, she might be able to understand them and

start her own research. It would keep her mind off her woes and

hopefully give her a better perspective on what to do about her parents if

she wasn't fretting over the dilemma constantly.

Having done that he pulled down the ward and went back into the

parlor, he then handed them over to his ever inquisitive friends.

"Oh, Harry, these are amazing!" she exclaimed when she noted the

calculator was charged by magic, there were small grey squares at the

top, like tiny solar powered panels. "Think of the things we could do with

this. If I can get more to work Arithmancy would be so much easier."

"Well, I'm sure you can understand them better than I can. So they're

yours to do with what you want," he said with a wave of his hand.

"Oh, thank you, Harry," the young woman said sincerely, and then she

turned her focus back on the items in her hand.

"What'd you go and do that for?" Ron asked. "Now all she's going to be

doing is studying," he pouted.

"It's what makes her happy," Hydrus replied with a casual lift of his

shoulder. "Don't you want her to be happy?" His piercing eyes looked at

his so called best mate, warning him to answer correctly. His thoughts

turned to the fact that maybe these two shouldn't be a couple. Hermione

will only be repressed by the lazy boy.

"Of course I want her happy, but why can't she be happy with just being

with me?" came the wrong answer.

"Honestly, Ronald, I thought you knew me better than that," huffed the

girl in question as she put the two trinkets in her expanded purse that she

carried with her everywhere. You never know when you need something

in that bag, even if it is just a pepper-up potion.

"Yeah, I thought so too," the confused young man replied.

Again an awkward silence filled the room. Hermione broke it with a sigh

and said, "I think Ronald and I need to talk, so we'll see you later, Harry."

And with that she got up and pulled the pouting boy towards the

fireplace.

"Yeah, see ya," the former Potter said to the disappearing couple. He truly

hoped that those two came to an understanding, whichever way it went.

He still felt Hermione could do better. There were times he didn't even

know why he stayed friends with the youngest male Weasley. Maybe it

was because he didn't want to let go of his first real friend, who was his

age anyway —can't forget Hagrid. He made a mental note to write the

gentle half-giant. Well, it was something to think about later; now that

they were gone he could remove his glamor and get back to research.

With that thought in mind the dark-haired teen went back into the

library and pulled the idiot's guides to electronics from his pocketspace

and set about researching. A few hours of that mindboggling subject and

he put those books away, it wasn't that he was stupid, it was just his lack

of knowledge that made it harder. He then summoned his Rune and

Arithmancy books, these particular subjects came easier and with them

the inventions would start rolling soon. After a few more hours of

studying Hydrus finally put everything away and went to make himself

dinner.

He and Kreacher came to an understanding early in their relationship.

The former Potter used cooking as a way to wind down after a busy day.

However, the human was never allowed to do any cleaning. It worked for

both of them.

The new Black went about making a quick chicken stir-fry, which he

enjoyed immensely. He put the dirty dishes in the sink for Kreacher,

settled at the table with a dish of chocolate ice cream, and brought out

his list. He decided that tomorrow he was going to Diagon Alley to visit

George; he had been putting it off after that disastrous dinner at the

Burrow. He noted the parchment, rinsed his bowl and went to bed.

He woke early the next morning, hoping to avoid the crowds, got dressed

and ate. He once again pulled on Sirius' hooded cloak, making a mental

note to get some robes of his own. He Disapparated to the same alley by

the Cauldron and made his way to the marketplace. In the weeks that he

had been avoiding the area, there had been some remarkable changes.

More stores were open and less Muggle-borns were on the cobbled

streets. The few that were there looked healthier, like they were getting

what they needed to survive. It made him wonder if the Ministry opened

a homeless shelter. He was hoping that they had, at least until these poor

people could get back on their feet. As he went by he handed out a bit of

money to each person he passed. Not much, but enough for a meal and

maybe a room at the Cauldron, so they could shower and rest for a night.

He did note that very few children were with the beggars, Hogwarts must

be footing tuition.

The dark-haired teen made his way to WWW with nobody recognizing

him. He did warrant a few wary glances, since he was an unknown

wizard, but since he had a casual look about him and was giving to the

beggars, those looks went from suspicious to disgust.

Upon entering WWW the young man looked around for his favorite

redhead. Spotting him on that weird contraption, which overlooked the

store, he waved and motioned for George to join him. The grieving man

looked better, he had put back on some of his weight and the bags under

his eyes were not as dark. You could still make out the sadness in those

eyes, but the smile on his face wasn't as forced.

The single twin nodded and came down. A curious look on his face, since

the man waving him down wasn't someone he knew. There was

something in the way he moved that George recognized though. The

young man in question made his way to the back room and waited by the

closed door.

"Hi, George. It's me, Harry," the cloaked man whispered, causing the red

head's eyes to widen. "Let's go in the back, I have a business proposition

for you."

George nodded and unlocked the door. The two made their way inside

and took a chair each. Hydrus put up the Muffliato Charm and George

broke the silence. "So, what's with the different look?" he asked as he

settled on one of the stools that lined the workbench.

"Something Sirius came up with, I'd rather not go into it," he answered.

He then pulled some of his notes from his pocketspace, causing a gasp of

surprise from the other man. He handed them to the twin and explained,

"These are a few notes on how to make electronics work with magic. I

reckoned you could use them for prank items."

George took the notes and looked them over. "Why me? Why not

Hermione? She's much better at this kind of thing."

"I love Hermione to death, but I have plans that she'll interfere with. You,

on the other hand, won't. Though, I did give her some stuff to get her

started, just not any of the notes, so she's going to have to start from

scratch. It'll keep her busy," he said with a soft voice as he recalled the

excited look on his best friend's face.

"Are you going to tell me what you're planning?" the tall redhead asked

with a quirk of his eyebrows.

"Later, when I get more of the wrinkles worked out," the younger man

promised. "Anyway, these are just little things I thought you could use."

"So, how did you pull these from the air?" George asked as the peered at

the space over Hydrus' left shoulder.

The dark-haired wizard ran his hand through his hair and smiled

sheepishly. "Not sure how that happened. I'd explain, but it was a bit of

an accident. Misfired spell."

"Alright, Harry, I'll let it go for now. But I'm holding you to your promise,

you will tell me everything," the stocky redhead demanded.

"Thanks."

George took a closer look at the notes and you could see his mind

working over exactly how they could be useful.

"There's something else," Hydrus said bringing George's attention back to

him. "I want to purchase five of every item you have in stock and be put

on the list for future things."

"Harry, you know your money is no good here," the twin chastised.

"No," came the semi-harsh reply, "for an order this big, you will be paid.

Besides, now that I don't have a vault you can't give it back." He folded

his arms defensively.

"Alright, Harry, but anything I come up with from these notes, you get

for free, plus, a bit of the profit."

"Fine," he compromised, not really wanting to fight. The two shook on it

and the younger boy's face softened. "Sorry about what happened last

time we met."

"I understand. Mum's hard to deal with lately. Ginny told us she broke up

with you that night, so I kinda get why you didn't stick around and why

you haven't been back," George said with a sad shake of his head.

Sometime his family was a bit overbearing.

"Yeah, that came as a bit of a shock," he said as he rubbed the back of his

neck. "So how are you coping?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Better. The more money the shop brings in, the closer I feel to Fred. It

was our dream to bring smiles to children's faces. Every time that

happens, my heart heals a bit more," George answered with a brittle, yet

fond smile. His brown eyes took on a vacant look, like he was

remembering something good.

"I'm glad," Hydrus said sincerely, bringing the redhead's attention back to

him. "I only want the best for you. It does me good to see you, well, not

happy, but better." He gave a smile of his own.

George nodded and then went to the door. He called one of his

employees to get the younger man's order started, handing his helper an

extendable bag. When he sat back down the two talked over the notes for

a while. Then he had a thought.

"Hey, George, what happened with Bill?" he asked hoping the oldest

Weasley had not suffered for what they had done.

"Well, you were right, he got fired, but, Fleur moved them to France and

he's now working for the Unspeakables there," George answered with a

bright smile. He was happy for his brother. Then a frown marred his

brow. "Mum was right gutted when that happened. She complains that

she was losing more of her family. She puts all the blame on Fleur, which

is stupid, since the goblins made Dad close their vault too."

"Oh, well, I'm glad Bill got away, but saddened that your Mum has more

to deal with."

George waved it away. "Not your fault," he said firmly, "Mum has always

hated it when one of her chicks flies on their own. She'll always blame

someone and usually not the right person."

"Still, if we hadn't stolen from Gringotts your family wouldn't be

suffering," he complained.

"Don't be daft, you had no choice. I understand that and so does Bill.

Remember, he was there when you made your plans. He's right chuffed

that you didn't heed his warning about trusting goblins, still he knew it

was something that needed to be done," George said firmly. Bill had told

him the whole story before he moved. George was thankful to his older

brother for trying to make everyone realize Harry wasn't at fault. Bill

couldn't tell them why the Golden Trio had to steal from the goblins, only

that it was needed to end the war.

"Fine, I didn't come here to fight. We'll just have to disagree on this," the

younger man said, still feeling like he was to blame. Maybe he should

look into getting professional help; all these guilty feelings can't be

healthy. That and his nightmares about the war were getting worse. He

almost hurt Kreacher the one time the old house elf tried to wake him.

He was having flashbacks of all the times someone died due to his

negligence or the many times his life had been in danger at Hogwarts.

"One of these days, Harry James Potter, you are going to see that you

have nothing to feel sorry for, but you're right, so I'll let it go for now." It

was about that time that the worker came back with the order and the

total. Magic summoning was a wonderful thing, making everything take

less time. The employee left and George handed the feather light bag to

his friend. "The total comes to 1,565 galleons," he said.

"Okay," Hydrus said with a shrug and called for the money from over his

shoulder. "I better go," he said after the transaction was complete. "I've

got stuff to do. You get a hold of me when you've got new inventions," he

politely reminded the other man, he got up and went to the door.

"Harry," George said, "don't be a stranger, okay?"

"I won't," he promised, "you don't be either. If you need a place to get

away, call Kreacher. I'll give him permission to tell you the secret." And

with that he made his way out of the shop, feeling a little better about his

friend. He did some shopping, getting robes, books and potion

ingredients. Not spending too much time in the Alley, since he was still

hearing gossip about Harry Potter being a Dark Lord.

Some witches were speculating that since he wasn't returning to

Hogwarts it only confirmed their beliefs. The young man had no clue

how that information got to the populace, but he knew they were

grasping at straws. Anything he did would be seen in a bad light, making

the young man more determined to be shot of these stupid people.

Oh, not everyone thought he was the new Voldemort, most of the

Muggle-born beggars felt that he was their savior, but since the camps

killed a lot of them, they were the minority. Hydrus made a mental note

to do what he could for them, before he completed his plans. Maybe

offering up one of his houses as a sanctuary, or leaving money to charity

in the will he was going to write. Not that he could leave much, as he

needed his fortune with him. But he could part with a few thousand

galleons.

Shaking himself out of those thoughts, the new Black left the Alley. He

made his way back to Grimmauld Place and started his research once

again. He was determined that the absurdity of the wizarding world

wasn't going to put him off his path.

Hermione and Ron didn't come to see him before they went back to

Hogwarts. They did send him a joint letter explaining that they made up

and were still together. Hydrus shook his head and washed his hands of

that particular bit of news. Hermione was a big girl and could make her

own decisions. He did have a feeling that it was Ron's whining that kept

the two away. Molly owled him and invited him to the Burrow again, and

this time had Arthur state that Harry was welcome anytime. He turned

down the offer, stating he needed to keep up with his studies.

George was a constant visitor. He used Grimmauld Place as a refuge from

his Mum, who was trying to get him to move back to the Burrow. The

two men spent a lot of time on the inventions, going over the notes and

getting a better understanding on how it was done. It only took days for

them to make a magical joy buzzer that was based off the research. It was

a small, yet useful start.

The weeks went by quickly, with the research and the planning. Finally

Hydrus got a laptop to work in the house. He hadn't figured out how to

upload books into it, but he did get it to work on the Internet, by having

the non-magicals come and hook him up. He had had to put illusions all

over the house to make it look normal. After they put the lines in, he

took it from there, by casting a Confundus charm on them, making them

think they had finished the job. Having access to the World Wide Web

made his research go much faster, with search engines and mass

webpages on theory, he had more information.

It was during those weeks that he decided that he would seek a mental

health specialist. The counselor he was seeing diagnosed him with

survivor's guilt and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. They were slowly, but

surely, making progress on his nightmares and flashbacks. He, of course,

didn't tell her everything, just that most of the people he loved died due

to a serial killer that was after him and that he had escaped from the man

many times.

He told her about the Dursleys and how they blamed everything on him,

plus, the abuse they did to him as a child; the isolation, the cupboard, the

constant put-downs and the meager food rations. It took a few sessions to

make Hydrus understand that it was actual abuse, and that it wasn't his

fault. When she asked where the Dursleys were now, he just shrugged

and said he didn't know and didn't care as long as they were out of his

life.

The counselor made sure the young man knew that it would take years of

sessions to get him over his trauma. The young man sighed and made

sure he had enough money to pay for them, if he was going to do what

he needed to do then he couldn't go off halfcocked.

These sittings also made him do some deep meditation on his past. He

came to the conclusion that everything that happened in Hogwarts was a

test, maybe not set up for that purpose, after all how would Dumbledore

know that Sirius was going to break out of prison. However, the

headmaster and the staff, never once stood up for him, letting the then

Harry weather the storms with only a few people standing by him. It also

made him realize that Dumbledore was working behind the scenes to

make those trials harder than they had to be, why else would the staff

treat him so different than other students.

Those deep thought sessions did make him appreciate the times Ron and

Hermione came to his rescue. He knew that were it not for those two he

would have failed any challenge put before him. However, it also made

him angrier at the times Ron deserted him or Hermione over petty things.

Conflicting emotions of the redhead made sleeping harder, but, he was

working his way through them.

The more he went into his past the steadier he came to an understanding

with himself. Now the anger could be channeled to more useful things,

like his studies. Oh, he was still going to get his revenge, but if he was in

control then it would be sweeter.

The counselor suggested that he rid himself of anyone stress inducing and

to work on improving himself and let others move on without him. It was

a work in progress, because he didn't want to lose Hermione, but he

wanted to cut his ties with her boyfriend.

Fletcher had come back during that time and handed his employer the

paperwork he ordered. The dark-haired teen had the petty thief do some

more running for him in Diagon and Knockturn Alleys, getting the things

he ran out of. He didn't want Kreacher to be in those places anymore, for

fear the little guy would be hurt. Mundungus was more than happy to

take up the errands, since it meant more money for him. He didn't care if

Hydrus was the new big bad or not, as long as he got paid.

All in all, the planning going smoothly. The young man was hopeful that

he could save all of his loved ones, if he could get the calculations correct

and his story straight. Reams and reams of parchment littered the floor as

he made plans and discarded them. Everything he read had different

points of view, theory after theory was offered, but nothing was concrete.

One idea suggested that if he went back, this timeline would still move

forward, but, the new timeline he would create would be a new start.

Leaving him and the younger Harry in the new branch, this was what he

was hoping for, since his revenge would be felt for years and the new

branch would fresh.

Another theory implied that there wouldn't be a new timeline that he

would merge with his younger self and change history. This would also

work, if his pocketspace came with him, however, the adoption would be

undone and he would return to being Harry Potter and have to go

through his life again.

Yet another said that he couldn't go into the past of this reality. He had to

go to a different one. This one he was unsure of, since everything he

knew would be useless, like what the horcruxes were and where they

were hidden. A new reality meant the people could be different,

Voldemort might be the good guy and Dumbledore could be the evil one,

too many possibilities. Hydrus hoped this wasn't the way.

More and more definitions popped up the more he researched and it was

confusing to him, so he put those calculations aside, for now, and went

back to his basic studies, which were coming along well. He had to make

sure what he was doing before he did it. The last thing he wanted to do

was go in blind.

4. A Little Help and a Bit of

Payback

Chapter 4 A Little Help and a Bit of Payback

A big thanks to my betas, the 5h51 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. Mistakes are, as always, my own.

I know some of this is unrealistic, but I'll remind you that this is fanfiction,

and reality need not apply. However, I did try and make it a bit believable.

Again, anything you recognize is not mine.

Hphphp

Only a month passed and with Mundungus as his source of information,

Hydrus learned that there were still Muggle-borns, and poorer Half-

bloods, begging in Diagon Alley. It seemed that the homeless shelter

folded under the Pure-Bloods' demands. So the young immortal looked

over his holdings and found three houses that were empty. He had

Kreacher go and see if they were habitable. They were, so he visited them

and set up the same magical electronics he had at Grimmauld Place;

lights, outlets, and kitchen appliances (he had new rune arrays that

worked better than Frostwell's for bigger items). He made sure they were

furnished— nothing fancy, since this would be more of a halfway house

and not a permanent residence. He stocked the pantries.

Hydrus then sent off letters to the contacts he had in foreign countries,

like Fleur and Viktor, letting them know that he had homeless wizards

and witches that needed help; he made sure to include what had and

hadn't been done by the British Magical Government. He also sent a very

polite business letter to the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, saying that there

were repressed wizards that desired a new start.

He was going to do his best to get everyone who stood up for him out of

the control of this country's Magical Ministry. Not like they had improved

all that much, even with Kingsley in charge. New laws and such had to

go through the Wizengamot, and those old bastards will never change

their ways. Even with Death Eaters in Azkaban, the 'wise old men' were

still stubborn corruptible bigots, who wanted to cling to tradition.

When that was complete he hired Fletcher to hand out notes to the

homeless with enough non-magical money for bus or train fare. These

missives said:

If you want shot of these ignorant people, come to one of the

addresses listed below, directions are on the maps in the bus and

train stations. Use the money for the ride. If one house is full go to

the next on the list. You will have to share rooms to fit everyone.

Please work together. Food and a place to rest are included. Destroy

this note when you have it memorized, so that the Pure-bloods can't

stop you. Be here within the next week, and I'll help you in any way

I can.

Harry Potter

23 Lilyputten Way or 6 Starlight Road or 85 Contrary Street.

The week flew by with many letters and talks. The Prime Minister was

very helpful, since he held a grudge against the British branch of the

Magical Government for the way they waved off the deaths of the non-

magicals as unimportant. Any help that had been offered the last two

magical civil wars was ignored as useless. Needless to say Millicent

Bagnold, Cornelius Fudge and Rufus Scrimgeour had made very bad

impressions on the former PMs, who left records of their dealing with

them. Pius Thicknesse never communicated with Muggles.

The current PM conceded that Kingsley tried to make an effort, but no

matter how kind he was, you could tell he still felt Muggles should stay

separate from wizards. So given the past dealings with his office, Blair

made sure he knew that there were many charities that could help the

Muggle-born get the education they needed to succeed in the non-

magical world. He couldn't do anything about their magic, but he could

help get started in a new life.

Fleur and Viktor had pleaded their case to their Ministries and France

agreed that they could take a few dozen people who wanted to continue

living in the magical world. The Bulgarians were reluctant, but since it

was something that would hurt Britain's Magical Ministry, they decided

to take a few of the homeless. This was a relief to him, since there were

bound to be those who didn't want to live as non-magicals.

The ICW was also contacted and some open-minded countries were

willing to open their doors to England's magical homeless. Their

representatives would be coming a few days later to see who was left that

required help. There were many countries that didn't want the beggars to

come to them, fearing they would not be useful and would sponge off

their governments.

Representatives from all three governments agreed to come to the houses

Hydrus set up to talk to the people. He had used the Harry Potter name

in his correspondence, but informed them that since he was in hiding

Hydrus Black would be his spokesperson. On the day mentioned in the

note, the new Black and the three men met on the lawn of the house on

Lilyputten Way.

It was a big house, not overly large, but big enough that a few small

families could bunk down for a while without mishap. They could see the

people milling around through the windows and some were in the back

yard.

Hydrus turned and put up wards to keep anyone not present from

noticing what was going on. He then cast a Sonorus charm and called to

the house, "Hello, in the house. Please come and listen to what we have

to say. We have propositions to help you to start over. Meet us in the

front yard; bring something to sit on if you must." He uncast the spell and

conjured chairs for the four of them.

Slowly, but surely, the wary people made their way to the area. Some

were dragging chairs, others were carrying blankets. They formed a half

circle and settled to see what was being presented. Not many had their

hopes up, as the Ministry had promised to help, but what little they did

was soon taken away.

A medium height, portly man, with balding black hair, dressed in a

casual suit, stood and addressed them in a very businesslike tone. "My

name is Mr. Roberts, I am here with a proposal for those who want to

stay in England and live as non-magical people. We have talked to Mr.

Potter and he has agreed that anyone who takes us up on our offer can

use this house, and the other homes, as a temporary refuge. We will

educate you to your A-levels, since you are mostly adults you will have to

enroll in a further education college. We will pay for this, if you vow to

get a job and make yourself a useful part of society. If this is something

you want to do see me after everyone else has given their offers." He gave

a short bow and returned to his seat.

The next speaker was a tall man, with a face like granite, dressed in what

appeared to be a military uniform, he stood at attention and addressed

the crowd, "I am Mr. Kobay and I represent the Bulgarian Magical

Ministry. Our offer is simple, work for our government for a few years to

establish yourselves and we will supply your wands and a wardrobe. You

will be paid the standard pay rate." Then he gave a curt nod and sat. He

glared at the audience, like he was daring them to come forward, making

the younger wizard cautious of the man's intentions.

The next presenter was a short pale man, with longish blond hair. Unlike

the other two, he was a cheery man, with a smile that never seemed to

leave his face. His clothes were a little flamboyant. He stood and bowed

to the whispering crowd and spoke, "My name is Monsieur Leveille, my

Minister ez so very un'appy with what ez 'appening to you. 'E wants to

welcome anyone who would like to get away from Britain to France. We

will make sure you 'ave work, a place to stay, and food. We will 'elp any

way we can to make you feel at 'ome in our beautiful country. If you

agree, zen like the other gentlemen, please see me when ze speeches are

over." He gave a jaunty wave and settled back in his chair. There were

the whispering turned to excitement after he sat, causing the man to

beam.

The former Potter stood and gave his prepared statement. "I'm Hydrus, I

represent Harry Potter. He would like to welcome you to his home and

apologize that he could not be here. It was he that contacted the others

to make sure you get the help you needed. You are free to choose any of

these offers or none at all. There will be more people coming in the next

few days for those who will be left behind. As gracious as the gentlemen

behind me are, there are only a dozen spots in each country, barring non-

magical England, so others have agreed to give you sanctuary—if you

make yourselves useful. This house will be used for those staying here;

anyone not going non-magical must go elsewhere. It is not that Mr.

Potter doesn't care, but contrary to popular belief, he is not made of

money. The ones choosing to stay will have to supply their own resources

and eventually find their own house or flat. This is all he can offer. Thank

you for your time." He turned and joined the others.

When it was obvious that the speeches were over, the listeners started

breaking off into five groups and went to the person they wanted to talk

to, or those that chose to wait for the others countries went back to the

house. Only two sturdy men approached the Bulgarian, which seemed to

please the man. Hydrus could only hope they were treated fairly, and

weren't giving up one repressed country for another. The teen listened in

for a few minutes and heard they were Half-bloods, which made him feel

better. Bulgaria was more lenient for Half-bloods than Muggle-born. One

small contingent wanted him to thank Harry Potter for everything, before

they too went their way.

The four men made the same speeches to the other houses. After plans

were made to get whoever was taking the offers, the three other men left

and a weary Hydrus made his way home, thankful that the ICW didn't

need him around when they made their proposals.

As good as it made him feel to help those that stood by him; there was an

alternate reason for him doing this. Without the Muggle-borns, and a

good part of the Half-bloods, Magical Britain would be without new

blood. Inbreeding would be more predominant than it already was. It

would take years for them to learn their mistakes, but since this was only

phase one of his revenge, he was happy with his start.

Now he needed to warn the others that he was going to make the sheep

pay and they might want to pull out. He wrote a quick note to Neville,

Luna, Hermione and a few others that suffered under Voldemort's reign.

Each note was different, like the one to Hermione was vague and

unsigned. It said:

Miss Granger it has come to my attention that you want better

rights for magical creatures. While you have good intentions, I can

tell you now that your home country will never allow it. You would

do better to take your ideas to the International Confederation of

Wizards. There you will be heard and can start you plans in a more

adaptable country.

The notes to Neville and Luna were more straightforward. They stated

that Harry Potter was going to get his revenge on the goblins and it

might be best if they pulled all of their valuables out of Gringotts. It also

suggested that Britain might not be a good place to live in a few years,

and they should let their friends know. The one to Neville suggested that

maybe he could find a cure for his parents, if he asked abroad.

The only family he couldn't help was the Weasleys. He knew that they

would never leave, no matter how bad England got. They would stay and

fight whatever was to come. However, Hydrus also understood that this

loving family would not suffer too much, and they would take in anyone

they could help. Like Ginny's boyfriend, Dean Thomas, or Hermione, if

she chose to stay. This family would not die out.

Unknown to Hydrus his notes started a cascade of people emptying their

vaults, because if their new boy hero, Neville Longbottom, said Gringotts

was untrustworthy, then it must be true— stupid sheep. Some went to

the Muggle-raised that were still around and got a basic understanding of

non-magical banking. Well, those that were smart did. More and more

people took this route and soon the goblins were in a panic. Some

families fled Britain. The bigoted Pure-Bloods were happy to see this;

they actually invited those of like minds to come to England, boasting

that even though Voldemort was dead his quest for a Pure-blood society

lived on.

It was a conversation with Mundungus, which brought it to Hydrus'

attention. "'ydrus," the dumpy man said after he returned from an errand,

"do ya know what's 'appenin' in Diagon Alley?"

The dark-haired young man looked at the petty thief in confusion. "No, is

there something going on?" Since he hadn't been to Diagon Alley in

weeks, he had no idea what the latest rumor was. He did wonder why

George hadn't said anything; maybe the redhead didn't know either.

"Well, there seems ter be a bi' ov bad news. Gringotts might be closing;

da goblins say i' is da work ov 'arry Potter," Fletcher said carefully, not

wanting the young wizard to be angry at him for bringing that bit of

gossip. To his surprise the young wizard broke out in a fit of laughter.

Several minutes passed before the teen got himself under control. "Oh,

Merlin, I needed that," he wheezed. "Serves those bastards right. Any idea

why they're blaming me?"

"Summat abaaaht vengeance," Mundungus answered.

A malicious smile crossed Hydrus' face. "Well, I didn't think it would

happen so fast, but good." He rubbed his hands together in satisfaction.

Now he could implement his next plan.

"Right, well, I'm off. If yew need me, let me know." And with that

Fletcher hurried away from the house, not spilling the rest of the gossip

he knew.

The former Potter let the thief go and decided he needed to visit the

Alley and see how bad the damage was. The next morning, using his

Invisibility Cloak, he made his way to the Leaky Cauldron. Even with his

new look he didn't want anyone to see him, because he had plans. He

crept behind a few patrons and listened to them talk. Fletcher had been

right, the gossip was that even though no one had seen hide or hair of

Harry Potter in months, it was all his fault, which was true, but they

couldn't prove it.

He picked up a copy of the Prophet and pulled it under his Cloak. The

headline was thus:

The Boy-Who-Lived-To-Be-The-Next-Dark-Lord out to ruin Magical

Britain

By Rita Skeeter

The article that followed was the same as the gossip. Harry Potter was

seeking revenge on the goblins and at the same time was taking away

money from society by causing good people to flee, so they must be

scared of his wrath. It indicated that Harry used a dark curse on the

public to make them fear the goblins, after that were suggestions that no

one should empty their vaults. Hydrus read the paper and scoffed, not

once did it give any proof only quotes from the angry goblins. He smiled

when he realized that this was truly helping his plans. It would cause

more people to panic and leave.

He thanked Merlin that he recast the Fidelius Charm with Kreacher as the

Secret Keeper. Now only Ron, Hermione, Dung and George could visit

him.

Discretely putting the paper back on the table he found it, Hydrus made

his way into the Alley. A satisfied smirk played at his lips when he saw

that there were no beggars. More shops were open and repaired, though

there were fewer shoppers. Judging by their robes, the young man

concluded they were the richer people of society. Good, he thought, let's

see how they like this. He then summoned the Resurrection Stone and

whispered, "Anyone who died in the last two wars in Britain, come and

take your vengeance. Anyone who feels the need to defend Harry Potter,

come if you want."

Hundreds of spirits flooded the Alley. Echoing calls of revenge and

accusations were heard throughout. The people who had been shopping

froze at the sight, causing him to smirk. Let's see them try and banish those

vengeful spirits— not bloody likely. It's good to be the Master of Death, he

thought as he watched the shades descend.

Those ghosts that saw Harry Potter as their savior started yelling at the

gossipers, chasing them through the cobblestone street. Reminding them

about all the times Harry Potter saved their arses. Many converged on the

Daily Prophet's building. The Master of Death had to hold back his

laughter when a much frazzled Rita Skeeter ran from the building

screaming for help, being pursued by no less than a dozen spirits.

Other spirits that were killed by Death Eaters, vowed they would haunt

their murderers for years to come, many of them spirited away to find

soon to be victims.

The Muggle-borns that died in the camps drifted to the Ministry and

Azkaban.

Chuckling quietly to himself, the young immortal made his way to

WWW, to check up on George. He was concerned that with so many

people fleeing the area that the shop would have a drop in business. He

removed his Cloak in the alley next to the store and made his way inside.

Tapping the occupied redhead on the shoulder, he jerked his head toward

the back room. George nodded and held up a finger, suggesting that he

would join him in a minute. He nodded his understanding and went to

the indicated room. He looked around and noted the new trinkets and

smiled at his friend's innovations. He leaned against the workbench when

he heard the door open and cast the Muffliato Charm.

"Harry," George said as he closed the door, "what brings you here today?

I thought we were going to meet up tomorrow." He then joined his

younger friend at the counter.

"Hello, George. Well, I wanted to see if you knew anything about the

rumors going around. Do you know anyone who emptied their vaults?

And if you do, did they tell you why?" Hydrus asked with a small smile.

George, being the quick man he was, turned to face his friend with an

accusing glare. "You did something, didn't you? Don't deny it, I know you

did, if what people are saying is true, you started this whole thing," he

said, jabbing his finger in the other man's chest. "Not that I'm upset about

what's happening, but you could've invited me."

"Trust me when I say, it was something that escalated without me

knowing." The younger man held up his hands defensively. "All I did was

warn a few people that they might not be able to trust the goblins, and

they might want to move elsewhere." He shrugged, rubbing the sore spot.

"So you didn't mean for this to happen?"

"Oh, I meant for it to happen, I just didn't think it would be this soon."

The dark-haired teen smirked in satisfaction.

"Still, you should have told me, I could've helped."

"How is business?" Hydrus asked, changing the subject.

A wicked grin spread across George's face. "Oh, we are making a good

profit. Those joy buzzers are a hot seller, and the calculators are flying off

the shelf. Those idiots don't get that what they're buying is based off

Muggle technology. They just think that I'm a genius, which I am, but

that's beside the point." He puffed his chest out in mock pride.

"That you are, my friend," he said sincerely, clapping the older man on

the back. "I'm glad to hear you're not losing customers, with so many

people leaving."

"The Pure-bloods have more money anyway, plus, now I can jack up the

prices," the redhead shrugged, though he did miss some of the people

that had left, like Katie Bell and his other former teammates. "By the

way, Kingsley came to see me. Wanted to know if I knew where you

were. Thank Merlin, I couldn't tell him anything," he informed his friend.

"Any idea why he wants to find me?" the green-eyed teen asked, thinking

of quite a few things the Ministry would want him for.

"He didn't say, just that he wanted to talk to you," George answered. He

was concerned about Harry, what with the talks of him being a Dark

Lord, even if there was no proof of any wrong doing. The redhead was

glad the younger man did the adoption ritual, now he would be harder to

find.

"Look, George, come by my house later tonight. There are a few things I

want to tell you," Hydrus requested.

"Alright, Harry, I'll pop by after the store is closed."

"Thanks. Oh, by the way, you might want to take a gander at what's

happening in the Alley. Before you ask, yes I did it and I'll tell you how

tonight," the immortal suggested. Then he donned his Invisibility Cloak

and left the store. He didn't want to explain this anywhere they could be

overheard, and with the Minister trying to track him down, he wouldn't

put it past him to put listening charms up at WWW. Even though the

silencing charm worked well, he didn't want to chance it.

A vindictive smile was plastered to his face while he watched the ghosts

take their revenge. The street was emptier than it had been when he went

into George's shop. It looked like the few that were left were either too

scared to run, or hadn't been haunted and were simply watching those

that were with thoughtful looks on their faces. It made Hydrus feel a

little better that not all of the Pure-Bloods thought he had turned evil.

When he got to the house, he wrote another note to Neville, asking him

to inform any neutral family, who didn't support the people persecuting

Harry or just didn't care about gossip, to get their gold out of Gringotts

and look to moving. The more people he got to leave this backwards

society the better for his plans. He had Kreacher deliver it, knowing that

his friend would not recognize the house elf as his.

He then went to the kitchen to make a light supper of fish and salad

along with a hearty dessert of chocolate cake, for him and George. When

he was done he put it under a stasis charm and settled down with a

fantasy book to wait for his business partner.

It was seven-thirty when George popped in.

"Come on, I've made supper," was the younger man's greeting as he put

his book down, stood and waved the redhead to the kitchen.

"Thanks, it seems like forever since I've eaten," George replied and

followed his friend.

The two talked of business over the meal and through dessert. When they

were done, Hydrus levitated the dishes into the sink and guided his

friend into the study.

The study was orderly and comfortable. The furniture was old, but in

good shape, magic was wonderful. There was a sofa and three chairs that

surrounded a large antique coffee table. An unlit fireplace was along one

wall, not a Floo. Pictures of the ocean adorn parts of the walls, the new

Black had had Kreacher take down all the portraits of the Blacks and put

them in the attic. He'd put them back up when he left. A medium sized

desk was on the opposite wall from the fireplace with scattered pieces of

used parchments on its surface. There were three bookcases taking up the

rest of the wall space, with some books and a few trinkets. All in all, it

was a cozy room and it looked completely different then when the Order

was occupying the house.

George took a seat in one of the old-fashioned chairs. "So, what did you

want to tell me, Harry?"

"First off, I don't go by Harry Potter anymore. I've taken up the name,

Hydrus Black. You might do better calling me by my new first name in

public, it'll get less attention," he said nervously as he sat on the sofa.

"Hydrus? The water snake? Suits you," George said smiling, causing the

young wizard to relax a little. He should have known George would take

this in stride. "However, if you're gonna pass yourself off as a Black you

better think of a middle name," he added.

"Yeah, I thought it was fitting. I'll see if I can find something that works

with Hydrus, something meaningful." he shrugged and then straightened.

"I want to explain what happened in the Alley today. Did you see the

ghosts?"

George nodded and said, "I saw, can't figure out how you did that

though. Saw lots of people trying to banish them, but nothing worked."

The dark-haired teen summoned the Resurrection Stone and showed it to

the redhead. "Dumbledore left this to me in his will. It's the same stone

that Beedle the Bard wrote about in the Tale of the Three Brothers," he

explained. "I did a bit more research and found a way to bring vengeful

ghost back."

"The Deathly Hallows," whispered George as he looked hungrily at the

stone.

"George," Hydrus said loudly, snapping the redhead's attention back to

him. "Look, I can call Fred's spirit for a short while. Only if you promise

to never ask me again. He doesn't have any unfinished business, since the

Death Eater that fired the spell is dead, so the time he's here will be

painful for him."

"I solemnly swear that I will never ask to see my twin after this," George

immediately said, he would promise anything just to see his brother once

more.

"I'm going to keep the stone. I'll ask Fred to join us and then go to the

other side of the room, so you can have a few moments alone. But,

remember it's only for a minute, so get what you need to say done

quickly." When George nodded, the Master of Death called for Fred and

moved away after the deceased twin's ghost appeared.

"Gred," George said sadly as he took in his twin's appearance. Fred looked

just like he did when he died. There was what appeared to be blood all

over his torso and his clothes were in bad shape. It caused the living twin

despair to see his brother that way.

"Forge," his twin replied, a bright smile on his translucent face. "I came to

tell you how proud I am. You've made our dream a reality and didn't let

my death hold you back long."

"I miss you, Fred. Are you happy where you are?" the live twin asked

hopefully.

"Yeah, and I don't want to see you there anytime soon, okay? Live your

life, find a girl, prank the world and be free," the spirit said joyfully.

"Don't let anyone hold you back, you hear?" Fred demanded. Then a look

of pain ghosted across his face.

The immortal joined them. "I miss you too, Fred. I'll make sure this one

keeps in trouble," he promised. "It's time for you to go back now." He

glanced between the two and stepped back again so they could say their

goodbyes.

"You keep up what you're doing, Forge," Fred said forcefully. "No moping

about and letting our dream fail. You continue to prank those asshats."

"I will, Gred, I promise," George said, wishing he could touch his brother.

But, before he could attempt it, Fred was gone. Tears of sadness and

wistfulness streaked their way down the redhead's face. He firmed his

jaw and steeled himself to do as his brother demanded.

Hydrus put his hand on the grieving man's shoulder; tears marred his face

as well. "Alright, George? Sorry, stupid question," he said as he guided

the other man to sit.

"No, it's not stupid. Thank you…, Hydrus, for giving me my goodbyes. I

think it'll help in the long run." The two sat in comfortable silence, until

George broke it by asking, "Have you used that stone for yourself?"

"No," he confessed. "With all I've done, I'm too scared to." Even with

Death's assurances to him that his parents would be happy to see him, he

was still suffering from survivor's guilt. His counselor said he was

working his way through his issues, but he couldn't shake the fact that

his parents and Sirius died for him. It was something everyone told him,

so to his way of thinking, had he not been around they would've

survived. The dreams he still had about never being able to cross the

river didn't help.

"You should," George said breaking him from his thoughts. "It might

help."

"I'll think about it," he conceded.

"So, how come the ghosts in the Alley get to stay longer?"

"They have unfinished business. Well, except the ones that were

defending me, those spirits had their say and left. The ones that were

killed because of their blood status can stay as long as they want."

"I guess, I can understand that, I wouldn't want Fred to be a vengeful

spirit," George said thoughtfully and then shrugged. "So, any more

surprises?"

"A few," was the answer as the younger man brought out his list and

handed it to his friend.

The redhead took the list and read it over. He then looked at Hydrus and

stated, "You're planning to go back in time."

"Yeah."

"Are you taking anyone with you? Ron, Hermione or anyone?"

"No."

"Why?" the confused man asked.

"Because anyone else would cause a paradox, unless they can be adopted

into another family. Besides, I've done all I can to get them out of the

country or make their way in the non-magical world. Well except for

your family, but I reckon that the Weasleys will survive anything, being

as stubborn as you lot are," the young immortal explained. "You can try

to get your mum and dad to move, but I doubt they will. They'll want to

stay and help others."

"You're probably right, though Hermione would be helpful, think about it

a bit more, yeah," George said with a shrug. "If you had shown me this

list an hour ago I'd've begged to go with you, now…" he trailed off, then

cleared his throat and looked over the plans. "Well, after the recent

events, I'd say you're getting a good start on these."

"Yeah," Hydrus said with a beaming smile. "So, do you want to help?"

"Yeah, let me hire another worker for the shop and clear out the back

room and I'll join you here," George said distractedly, as his own ideas

formed. The two troublemakers put their heads together and refined

Hydrus' ideas. They talked into the night, until George left stating he had

things to do in the morning.

It was a content Hydrus who went to bed that night. His studies were

coming along nicely, it was as if a great pressure had been taken off his

mind, and now he was learning things at a faster rate. Oh, he wasn't

super-smart, just… smarter. He was also happy with the things that

happened in the Alley today. He only hoped that very few innocents got

caught in the backlash, but he couldn't plan for everyone.

5. The Break Up of the Golden

Trio

Chapter 5 The Break Up of the Golden Trio

AN: thanks to my betas, the 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own.

Warning: Hydrus isn't going to be super-smart; he is going to learn faster

(mostly because I can't pull off writing genius people).

Someone pointed out that Hogwarts was a Ministry funded school, well not for

this story. There is tuition.

Hphphp

The fallout from Hydrus releasing the spirits was funny—well, to him and

George anyway. Every time Rita wrote an article calling him Dark Lord,

the Quibbler would print the exact opposite. The owner of the Quibbler

even pointed out that Skeeter had been a spy for Voldemort. He had to

wonder why Xenophilius was defending him, after the man turned him

and his friends in to the Snatchers. Maybe he was trying to get back into

his and Luna's good books. Oh, the immortal teen understood why the

man did what he did, but still it was one more person that stabbed him in

the back.

These conflicting reporters caused the people to split even further. Rita

made the public scared by calling Harry Potter a necromancer. She stated

that it was only a matter of time before he took over Diagon Alley with

an army of Inferi. Mr. Lovegood reacted by saying that there had been no

proof the young hero did anything, and quoted some of the ghost that

they were brought here by someone else. The young immortal just let the

two reporters battle and went about his business, safe with his new looks.

December came and Hydrus's research was paying off. He kept up his

studies and was now proficient in Arithmancy and Runes. He also bought

more books to get his A-levels, and was going through those at a pretty

fast rate. Self-help books were also bought, on the advice of his

counselor, but they were put aside for later.

After a few months of catching up on his studies, he now had the laptop

charmed to take books into its database. There were also magical/

electronic devices that stored books, but couldn't get on the internet. The

teen was shocked at this discovery, since he hadn't seen anything like it

in the non-magical market. Frostwell must have been a great inventor.

Hydrus spent many hours downloading books to one of the book-readers

and was going to start on the laptop after Christmas break. He'd leave the

others for a later date. The charm was simple all you had to do was touch

top of the device to the center of the book (or incase of the laptop, touch

the book to the top of the screen), incant the spell, and after a few

moments the information was stored. It was a relief that he wouldn't

have to store all those books in his pocketspace, and with these devices

he wouldn't have to look very hard to find any information he needed.

Ron and Hermione were coming to visit him during the break. He had

written to Hermione often and was concerned about how she was being

treated at Hogwarts, though it did make him feel better about the staff

that they seemed to be stepping in more often than they ever had with

him. Hermione had told him the many confrontations she had with Pure-

bloods, she came out on top, but they were still cause for concern.

The day came for the visit and Hydrus was once again in his Harry Potter

persona. He made sure to only keep school books out for their visit.

When the Floo flared Ron stepped out and Hermione wasn't far behind.

The only reason the redhead was welcome in his house was because he

and Hermione were still a couple, much to his displeasure.

"Alright, Harry?" Ron asked as he took one of the empty chairs.

"Alright," he answered as he went to hug his best friend. "How are you,

Hermione?"

"Better, thanks," she said returning the hug. She then made her way to

the chair next to Ron's and Hydrus took the sofa.

"Have you figured out what to do about your parents?" the younger

wizard asked.

"No, I'm still undecided," she answered with a sad tone.

"Oh, sorry, well, whatever you decide, I'll help as much as I can," he

offered and then turned to Ron. "How is Quidditch going? Ginny doing

alright?"

"She's doing okay, we'd be doing better if you came back," the redhead

said with a glare. "Still don't understand why you're hiding."

"Good to hear Ginny's doing a good job," he said sincerely, ignoring the

rest, trying his best not to get angry and ruin the visit.

"How are your studies coming along?" Hermione asked quickly sending a

pointed look to her boyfriend. They had talked about it before they came,

and it was understood that Ron wouldn't harass Harry about returning to

the castle.

"Pretty good, actually. George got another calculator to work so that

helps a lot." He smiled at her to show he was actually happy that his

schoolwork was getting done.

"That's a relief," she sighed and then brightened. "I showed the calculator

to Professor Vector, she was very excited about it. I researched it and

made a few more for use in classes, I hope you don't mind." She was

practically bouncing in her seat.

"Of course I don't mind, that's why I gave it to you in the first place.

However, George is selling them in the shop, so you may want to stop

making them and point customers his way. There's a patent on them

now."

"I'm still mad at you about giving her one. She spends all her time with

the Professor or working on her researcher and no time with me," Ron

groused, causing the other two to frown at him. The couple had had a

few arguments about all her time away from him, until she made it

perfectly clear that if he didn't stop she would dump him.

"Oh, hey, I got you two a present," the young immortal said, hoping to

lighten the mood.

"Really? I'm sending yours by owl. You should get it sometime next

week," Hermione said.

"You didn't have to get me anything," grumbled Ron, since the war

money had been tighter, what with the repairs of the Burrow, and the

Weasleys didn't buy gifts this year. Everything was supposed to be

handmade and this redhead hadn't gotten around to making anything yet.

Hydrus remembered George saying that he had tried to give his parents

money; they turned him down, so he made sure to buy them things for

the house.

"Don't worry, I didn't buy them. I found them in stuff from the vaults,"

Harry explained as he took two wrapped gifts he had placed by the

fireplace. He handed a thin square like package to Hermione and a

squishy one to Ron.

Hermione opened her gift, neatly. She looked at the obvious electronic

device. It was about the size of both of her hands, thin, black with a

blank panel on the front. "What is this?"

"Well, I found it in Frostwell's vault; it's kind of like a book. This one is

only a prototype, but it has several spell books in it already. There are

also some notes and if you can figure them out, you can add more books,"

the younger teen explained. Since there were better book-readers in his

pocketspace, he had no problem giving one up. "Here, let me show you

how to turn it on," he offered and got up to do just that. The two excited

teens played with it for a while, until the dark-haired wizard nudged

Hermione and jerked his head to Ron, who was staring at them with

venom in his eyes. His gift lay, still wrapped, by the chair next to him.

Hermione put the book-reader in her bag and looked at Ron. "Aren't you

going to open it?"

"No, I think, I'll hold off on that," came the churlish response.

An uncomfortable silence filled the room. No one knew what to say that

wouldn't cause an argument. Kreacher popped in and asked if anyone

wanted refreshments. Hydrus asked for a tea service with cakes and

biscuits before anyone could answer. Kreacher popped away to do as he

was asked.

There was much fidgeting from all three teens, which made Hydrus and

Hermione sad. When the tea tray appeared the immortal poured and

handed out the cups. Ron grabbed the sweets.

"Oh, this is absolutely ridiculous," Hermione huffed as she set down her

tea cup. "There has to be something we can talk about. We used to be so

close, and I, for one, find it appalling that we can't simply talk to each

other anymore."

"It's his fault," Ron accused, pointing a finger at his former roommate,

bits of biscuit fly from his mouth. "If he'd just come back to Hogwarts,

then we'd be the same as before. That and the fact that he shouldn't be

flaunting his wealth around; giving you an obviously expensive present.

I've heard the rumors about you paying off the Muggle-raised into

abandoning us. Percy told me that the Ministry had everything under

control until you stuck your nose into things that don't concern you. I

wouldn't be surprised if the Prophet was right and you are trying to ruin

everything, just to get your revenge."

"Oh, you reckon so, do you? I told you, I didn't buy your gifts. But it's

nice to finally hear your thoughts on the matter. Do you think I'm the

new Dark Lord as well? Never mind, it doesn't really matter what you

think. You lost my trust ages ago. The only reason I let you in my house

is because of Hermione, but now even that isn't enough. Get out," the

younger man snarled as he got up from the sofa and pointed to the Floo.

"Fine," the traitor snapped, throwing down the half-eaten food he had

taken, and leaving the package by the chair. "Come on, Hermione, we're

out of here." He went to grab Hermione's arm, but she pushed his hand

away, forcefully.

"I can't believe you said that!" the shocked girl shouted as she stood and

put some distance between her and her soon to be ex. She made her way

over to her younger friend. "After everything Harry did to end the war,

you go and accuse him of being Dark. He died for us, or don't you

remember that?"

"And he probably used Dark Magic to come back," Ron stated, throwing

his hands in the air. "How else could he have risen from the dead?

Skeeter said only a Dark Lord could have done the things he did. Or don't

you remember he use the Imperius Curse on the goblins?" he yelled back,

very upset that she would defend Harry. "It's all his fault my family can't

go into Gringotts. Bill lost his job and had to move away because of him."

"You agreed with what we had to do at Gringotts," Hydrus snarled in

defense, folding his arms across his chest. "You said it was the only way.

Now you're denying it."

"It's still Dark Magic and you were the only one that was able to pull it

off, making you a Dark Wizard," Ron snapped. He rounded on Hermione,

his face red with rage, spittle flying. "I can't believe you're taking his side

over mine. Makes me wonder if I wasn't right all along, that you two

were sneaking behind my back getting up to no good."

The angry redhead then turned back to Hydrus. He face morphed into

scorn, much like Malfoy's. "Harry Bloody Potter always has to get

everything," he sneered, "the fame, the gold and now my girl. Poor little

orphan had to live without his parents, boohoo. Stupid wanker can't be

happy with what he's got, no he has to cry and whine that he doesn't

have a family. I know you're trying to take mine, why else would George

come here more often than he comes to the Burrow?" he accused. "Guess

what, arsehole, you can't have them. I think, I'll just go and tell Kingsley

all about what happened in Gringotts. I know he's looking for you, he'll

listen to me. I'm a war hero after all." Conveniently forget his vow, it

would serve the idiot right if Hydrus let him do just that, but he really

didn't need Kingsley hunting him as a criminal.

"Right," the former Potter said decisively when Ron finished yelling.

"Sorry, Hermione," he said quietly. He pulled out the Elder Wand and

clearly said, "Obliviate," taking all the information of the break-in, this

fight and where Hydrus lived from the backstabbing bastard's mind.

"Stupefy," he said, causing the idiot to fall. He again apologized to his

best friend. "I took all his memories about Gringotts— even the planning

we did at Shell Cottage— the last hour and also where I live. I left

everything else, so he'll probably still be mad at me for not going back to

school, but he'll no longer have reason to think I've gone Dark. His

jealousy isn't something I can take from him without wiping everything,"

he explained.

If Ron hadn't been the youngest male member of the Weasleys, he would

of. It was only his respect for the others in that family that stayed his

hand. There was no way they could afford to take care of someone like

Lockhart.

"No, I understand why you did that," Hermione said, causing the tense

young man to relax. "Remember I did the same to my parents, if on a

grander scale, and even though I regret it now, I'd probably do it again to

protect them," she sighed. "I'll take him back to the Burrow and when the

break is over, I'll be breaking up with him. I never knew he was thinking

all those things about you. He only ever complained about Quidditch. It

is a good thing we took the vow to never talk to anyone about what

happened last year."

She shook her head sadly, running reasons for a break-up through her

mind. Harry couldn't be mentioned at all. She could use Ron's lack of

compassion about retrieving her parents as an excuse to dump him.

"Still, it's sad that this had to happen," he said as he discreetly stowed the

wand away, hoping Hermione was too stunned to realize what it was.

"Give me a few minutes to get him back to the Burrow, and I'll come back

and we can talk about why you still have the Elder Wand," she said,

shooting him a knowing look. "I'm going to wake Ron, you better hide."

Hydrus sighed; he should have known he couldn't get much past her. He

nodded and moved out of sight.

After a few minutes contemplation, Hermione hit the downed boy on the

forehead with the heel of her shoe, making a lump. She put her shoe back

on and then woke Ron up.

"What happened? Where are we?" the groggy teen asked as he rubbed the

sore spot, not recognizing the clean room.

"I can't tell you where we are, it's under a Fidelius, don't you remember?

You had a bad reaction to the tea, or it could have been the biscuits,

since neither me nor Harry ate any. You started to sway and then fell

forward and hit your head on the table," she said, pointing to the

disarrayed tea service.

"What happened to Harry? Aren't we supposed to be visiting him?"

"He was rather upset that you might have been potioned, so he went to

ask his… help how something like that could happen. You know there

are people out to kill him," she explained rather quickly. "We should go

and see your mum; she might be able to diagnose what the potion was."

She then guided the redhead to the Floo and they went back to the

Burrow.

After they left, Hydrus pondered on just how much he should confide to

Hermione. This latest spat with Ron showed that she was going to stand

by the dark-haired immortal, no matter what. But he also knew that she'd

be disappointed about his plans for revenge. There was no telling how

she would react to him going back in time. She was very forceful about

paradoxes when they used the time turner in third year. He concluded

he'd tell her about the ghosts, and see how she reacted to that. He was

still thinking it over when the Floo activated and Hermione stepped out.

"Did Molly buy your story?"

"Yeah, she knows that there are people out to hurt you," Hermione

answered as she retook her seat. "She's more determined to get you to

come to the Burrow. It is a good thing wizards and witches don't have a

lick of common sense."

Molly had taken one look at the bump on Ron's forehead and declared it

the reason for his short term memory loss, in addition to whatever potion

had been used. Of course, she had no idea that he had forgotten more

than an hour. She had sent Ron to bed right away, and gave him a

flushing potion. The git was in for a long night.

He groaned. As much as he cared for Mrs. Weasley, her mothering ways

were suffocating. Hermione gave him a commiserating smile. The two sat

in comfortable silence, simply drinking their tea and letting the quiet

calm their nerves and let them organize their thoughts.

"Harry, tell me how it is that you now have the Elder Wand? I know for a

fact you put it back into Dumbledore's crypt. And why didn't you tell me

sooner?" A hurt look crossed her face.

Hydrus sighed and looked at her apologetically. "Hermione, I'm sorry, but

as long as you were dating Ron, I couldn't tell you. I simply didn't trust

him to keep his big mouth shut."

"I know, I guess, it is just so frustrating to not realize just how hateful

and shallow he still is. I mean, I thought he had matured, but I guess he

just hid it better." She shook her head to clear those thoughts for now.

"Back to the subject, how did you get the wand? Why do you still have it?

How come you haven't gotten rid of it like we agreed?" she fired off

rapidly. With the fight that had just occurred she realized there were

things she hadn't been paying attention to.

"It just showed up the day after the battle of Hogwarts. I went to sleep

and woke up the next morning with the Deathly Hallows on my pillow.

Believe me when I say I did everything I could think of to rid myself of

them. I threw the stone down a well, broke the wand and burned it. They

showed back up the next day. I reckon, I became the Master of Death

when I disarmed Draco at Malfoy Manor," he explained. At the time he

hadn't even thought about what that meant.

"Honestly, Harry, you are so stupid sometimes. You could have told me,

and I would have helped. After all we went through you should have

realized I will always make time for you," she all but snapped.

"And you should know that I don't burden my friends," he retorted.

"What's done is done, we should move on to something else. Before you

ask, yes it was me that set the shades on the Pure-Bloods, especially the

ones who got out of punishment— again. There were some that went to

Azkaban to torture Umbridge and her co-conspirators. I think there are

three that are haunting Rita, because it was her that let Umbridge know

where they were hiding. If she hadn't squealed on them, they would have

made it out of the country. That's what Mr. Lovegood says anyway."

It tickled the Master of Death that the odd man was interviewing the

ghost and reporting why they were around. The spirits couldn't tell him

who called them only that the person was the Master of the Deathly

Hallows. Old Xeno was ecstatic that the Hallows had been united.

"Oh, Harry, how could you? According to the Tale of the Three Brothers,

those spirits will be in pain," Hermione said, breaking him from his

amusing thoughts.

"Not if they have unfinished business, I looked it up and did the research,

I promise, they only feel the need for revenge. Besides, I didn't command

them to roam the earth; I asked politely if they wanted to come," he said

in half-truths, he had asked the ones that wanted to defend him.

"Are you sure, I don't mean to accuse you, but are you really sure? You

do have a nasty habit of just jumping into things without a plan; I only

want what's best for you, Harry."

"Yes, I'm positive," he said a bit hurt. The two sat in silence again, this

time it wasn't as comfortable.

"I got a note, a few weeks ago, saying that I should leave England,"

Hermione said, grabbing a hold of the first thought that came to her. "If I

can't get my parents back, I might just do that or I could go to Australia

and be near them. With what just happened there is little left for me

here, only you."

"Well if it puts your mind at ease, I don't plan on staying in Britain long. I

can't tell you where I'm going yet, I'm still making plans. So you should

think about it a bit more," Hydrus said evasively. "Any idea on who sent

it?"

"No, it was unsigned and it looked to be printed from a computer. If it's

true, then I can make some of my ideas reality and get more freedom for

magical creatures," she said excitedly, now that she knew she wouldn't be

abandoning her friend to this backwards society. They'd still keep in

contact no matter where he went. She was just happy he wouldn't be

here. Maybe she could drag him along with her if she left. She made a

mental note to ask him about his plans, later. "I'll do a bit more research

and ask around, maybe Neville will have a few things to say. He said he

had received a similar note."

"Yeah, I heard about that," he hedged. He was still unsure how much to

tell his best friend, her reaction to the shades didn't give him much hope

in her understanding why he wanted to go and save himself. He did have

plans to leave her a letter explaining everything, plus, ensure that she

had a bit of money or he could tell her his idea right before he left and

give her the option to join him. "Do you want to see what I've been doing

over the last few months?" he asked veering the conversation to a safer

topic.

"Yes, please, I've been worried about you being holed up in this house."

"If it makes you feel better, I've been getting counseling."

"That does take a load off my mind. I'm so very proud that you got help,"

she sighed in relief. "Show me how well you're doing in your studies."

The two teens settled with talking about schoolwork, Hydrus showed

Hermione his self-made tests and let her look them over. He explained

that George came by a lot and helped him. She praised him for doing

such a fine job. She made sure to thank him for his gift, again. Much too

soon she had to leave; she promised that if she was going to take the

note's advice she would let him know first.

A mentally exhausted young man cooked dinner that night. He was very

upset about what happened with Ron, even if he wasn't overly surprised.

He was glad to finally rid himself of that stress-inducing hindrance. It

was a good thing he still had Hermione, though he did feel bad for

keeping secrets. That girl was one of the two people he'd miss when he

left. However, judging from her reaction to the little bit he did tell her

he'd have to keep her in the dark, for now, besides, if she wanted to go

on to greener pastures then who was he to stop her. He'd just have to

wait and see if she succeeded.

George would be visiting tomorrow, so Hydrus would ask his opinion,

though he was a bit nervous about how the older Weasley would react to

what he had to do to Ron. Knowing his older friend, he decided that

George would understand, then again, Ron was family and the Weasleys

always tried to protect one another. With his thoughts going in circles, he

had a fretful night's sleep.

Ron's gift, of a dragonhide cloak, was put away by a smirking Kreacher.

The house elf never trusted that particular redhead. Kreacher would

sneak it back into Master's things the next time he went through them.

When George showed up the next afternoon with a very thoughtful look

on his face, and his young friend got more worried. He showed the

redhead into the study and perched on the edge of one of the chairs. "So

what's up?" he asked.

"What happened yesterday? And don't give me that bullshit about

poisoned tea and head injuries. Mum might've bought it, but Hermione

was acting very out of character when she came back to the Burrow. I

want the truth," the single twin said with a piercing look.

"Before you get too angry, let me explain. I only did what I had to do to

protect myself," Hydrus all but begged.

"Explain," came the curt demand.

So the new Black told the older Weasley exactly what happened the day

before, leaving nothing out. "So, you see, I had to do it. He threatened to

go to Kingsley and the last thing I need is the Ministry breathing down

my neck more than they already are," the worried teen finished, still

perched to run if his friend didn't understand.

Throughout the retelling, George's face contorted through many different

expressions; from appalled, angry, sadness and finally settled on regret. "I

think… I'd better leave for a while, until I can calm down. I know you

only did what you felt you had to do, but that's my brother you're talking

about," George said as he stood to leave.

"George, please try and understand, I'd never hurt you intentionally.

However, I get where you're coming from," Hydrus said sadly. He only

hoped he wouldn't lose his only confidant.

"I'll try and keep an open mind. I know how Ron gets, but I know how

you jump blindly into things. I'll think it over and we'll see what happens,

but right now I have to go," the redhead said. He gave a brisk nod and

left.

George came back the next day, much to his relief. After they settled in

the study, George looked Hydrus straight in the eye and said, "Okay, I

understand, but I think you should stay away from Ron. His jealousy is

strong and if you get around him, he might remember what the fight was

about. I don't want that to happen"

"I don't either, so, I promise to not seek out your brother for any reason,"

the younger man swore.

"That also means you can't go to the Burrow when he is there. We owe

you a lot, and I, for one want to make sure you're repaid. I just don't

want any fighting at home; Mum is all stressed out over money. So for

me, could you not go there?" he asked. The entire Weasley family owed

Harry for saving the lives of many of their members. He just wanted

peace at the Burrow and if Ron was still jealous that wouldn't happen.

"I try and stay away from there anyway." The immortal shrugged. "I love

your mum to death, but she is quite smothering. I'm glad you came back,

George."

"Yeah, me too. Let's go over some of those notes," George suggested.

The two inventors got together over the phone and worked on it until

they came up with a conclusion. They discovered that with another Rune

array they would be able to get coverage anywhere. George went out and

purchased another phone and a service plan. Now they had a new way to

communicate.

George took the finished notes and started building cheaper phones to

sell in the shop, for when they finished the research on getting service or

setting up a magical equivalent. Hydrus started working on a VCR, so he

would have more entertainment here at home. They had gotten a telly to

work earlier that month and he got cable service, once again confusing

the installers when they were done.

The young inventor already had one of the book-readers taken apart, and

he would work on that later. The two decided that they would sell these

as well. These breakthroughs were going to make a big profit and at the

same time thumb their noses at the sheep that bought them.

The next day Mundungus came by with some news. "'ydrus, yer gon'a 'ave

ter give me mawer money fer yaaahr supplies," the petty thief said.

"Why?" the new Black snapped, the last thing he needed was bad news.

His money wasn't limitless, and he hoped the thief wasn't trying to

swindle him.

"Prices are up all over da 'lley," Fletcher explained. "Seems that since da

Muggle-raised left, da shops cost wen' up. Gringotts 'as also increased

in'erest rates, just so they can stay in business."

"Oh, sorry that I snapped. That's actually good news. Maybe I can get

better deals on the continent, would you be able to go to France or

somewhere? I'll make sure you're well compensated." This was wonderful

news. Soon enough the rich will be poorer. It had taken many counseling

sessions to keep Hydrus from hunting down the Death Eaters that

escaped Azkaban, so if he wasn't going to kill them, he was going to do

the next best thing and bleed their money dry. He was still unsure if he

would let them live when he went back in time, but that was a worry for

later.

"Yeah, I've got connecshuns over there."

Hydrus nodded and then had a thought. "Any rumors on how Hogwarts is

coping? I'm sure with so many students going elsewhere; they have to be

hurting for funds." This thought caused a bit of turmoil. On one hand, the

castle had been his home for many years, on the other hand, every year

was blackened with attempts on his life. Not to mention all the times the

student body turned their backs on him.

"Word on da street is what da Board ov Governors are 'rying' ter refawm

da school ter one like Durmstrang. That's got ole Minerva in a right tiff.

The Wizengamot ain't doin' much be'er, since da Pure-bloods wan' ter

invite fawerigners." The scruffy man laughed.

"Hmmm," he hummed after he worked his way around the accent, not

wanting to express his opinion to the other man. He knew it was only the

vow that kept the thief silent and someone as sneaky as Dung would

know how to work around such vows. It was only because Hydrus paid

the man that he hadn't already, but the teen was going to play his cards

close to his chest around the petty thief. "Thanks for telling me," he said

instead. "You go and talk to your connections and see if they can set you

up with better prices."

"'lright, I'll check in wiv yew when I know," Mundungus said as he got up

to leave. He knew a dismissal when he heard one.

"Right," the teen said distractedly, still mulling over his feelings. He

waved his hand in the general direction of the door and wandered out of

the room. He knew Kreacher would make sure the other man left. He

went to the workroom he and George set up, there was a bit of new

technology that he wanted to play with. It would keep his mind off all

the things that happened in the last few days.

While he was happy to learn that prices were up in Diagon Alley, and

probably Knockturn, it saddened him that Hogwarts might turn into a

Pure-blood school. He would have to talk to the Prime Minister to see if

one of the Muggle-born could figure out a way to detect accidental

magic. That way they could set up a school for the new wizards and

witches in Britain. He would write a letter later.

Shaking his head from those thoughts, he picked up the bulky cell phone

and tried to see how he could use it. The Rune array to power it was easy

enough, but that didn't give him coverage. Since it was a new item on the

market, there wasn't much to it. He had purchased one of the plans to get

him service, even though it confused the hell out of him, with long

distance charges and roaming fees and other strange charges, very little

of it made sense. But, if what he and George had discovered was correct,

then he would soon have a phone that bypassed all of that.

He worked on the phone for the rest of the day, making notes on

investments for the future. He could see the great potential in this device.

He'd have to go to a brokerage firm tomorrow and do just that. He would

also have to see if he could put some money in Microsoft and other

upcoming computer businesses. Since it will take more time to get the

time travel equations down, he would need more funds.

The next day, Hydrus set up a non-magical bank account with 5,000

pounds and asked them who they recommended for a brokerage firm.

They suggested Smith and Anderson, which is where the young man

went. He bought stock in Motorola, Apple and Microsoft, as well as a few

smaller technological businesses.

6. Finally Some Headway

Chapter 6 Finally Some Headway

AN: thanks again to my betas, darrelldeam, alix33 and The 5h15

spaceman (who helped me with the fight scene). As usual all

mistakes are my own.

Warning: there is a time skip, which means an information dump. Sorry, but I

want to get to where Hydrus goes to the past in the next chapter.

One more thing then I'll stop; the quickness of the falling of the magical Britain

is unrealistic. I point out once again this is Fanfiction

Anything you recognized isn't mine.

Hphphp

A medium narrative

June came quickly and those months were full of surprising events.

Hydrus and George were making loads of money with their inventions.

They had calculators, and poorly made cell phones with expensive

service plans, mini radios, and crappy computers that weren't connected

to the Internet. Not to mention all of the prank items. They were working

on how to get non-magical entertainment like video cameras (with VHS

tape), VCRs, gaming consoles and tellies. After much debating they

decided to keep the book-readers out of the shop.

George had his own inventory of better made devices, and was still trying

to work out how he made his pocketspace. The redhead still felt it was a

huge prank on the Pure-bloods, getting them hooked on non-magical

entertainment. He was saving up money for when the idiots realized they

were using Muggle technology. He knew those traditionalists would stop

buying them, even if they were useful and addictive, and that he might

have to start up his business elsewhere. He would keep close to Britain,

most likely France, so he didn't hurt his mum— much. Hydrus let George

get the patents. That way if a new timeline branch was created then

George would have sole ownership and he wouldn't have worry about

leaving them to the redhead in his fake will.

He sent off a few letters to Sanguini, and the vampire talked to other

vampires that liked to live in the non-magical world. He gave the

immortal teen a potion recipe that would cause him to age, though he

would have to take it monthly. As thanks, the young immortal gifted him

with a book-reader, which he had downloaded romance novels to. It

struck him as funny that a Dark being would read such sappy books, but

to each his own. Sanguini was thrilled with the present and promised

that if he had any more advice to offer he'd write to him.

Hydrus only left his house to go to non-magical London, except when he

was raining misery on the Alleys. He was now doing the shopping, since

Kreacher was getting too old to leave the house. He also kept his

membership at the gym; he had even convinced George to join him once

a week. There was a Muggle-born that tutored him for his A-levels, he

was doing well at self-study, but with the advances in Math and Science,

he needed a bit of verbal instruction.

He had to remain under his boy hero persona during those lessons, since

Black had such a Dark Pure-blood reputation. The lessons were held in a

library far away from his home, because he didn't want any more people

to know where he lived. He would get to the library, duck into an alley

and cast his glamor, then when lessons were over, reverse the process.

His mental illnesses were getting better and he was feeling happier. The

angst and guilt that plagued him for so long were becoming things of the

past. Because he wasn't so emotional, he worked out everything that

happened to him in his childhood and his years at Hogwarts and could

now see that it was imperative that he rescue his younger self, well, in

his opinion. That and he wanted a new start, so why not protect who he

could in the process. He had finally called up his parents and Sirius and

talked to them as long as they were able. They told him they were proud

and they approved of his plans. He had to promise he wouldn't call them

again, unless it was important.

Therapy gave him another problem, which was the fact that the past

wasn't the same as the present. His revenge on this timeline had sedated

his need for it. However, it was people like the Dursleys, Skeeter, Snape,

Death Eaters, and Umbridge, who caused so many deaths, not to mention

made his childhood a living hell. Those people would need to be dealt

with somehow. It was something he would have to meditate on. His

thoughts on Dumbledore were conflicting; he still felt the man was a

good man, just misguided in his attempts to bring about his 'Greater

Good'.

Fudge was just a simple idiot and without Lucius and Dolores he should

be easy to control. The Dursleys were simple, just never meet them and

they won't be a problem. The last war had them on the run, and yeah, it

was petty, but, Hydrus didn't let them know it was over. So they were

still moving from place to place, hoping the wizards didn't catch them.

Hermione wrote often, she told him how she broke up with Ron and now

they didn't talk to one another. She lamented on the fact that more and

more Muggle-raised were leaving Hogwarts, and that tuition would be

raised next year. It was a good thing this was her final year, since there

was no way she would be able to afford it. She came to the conclusion

that she would take the note's advice and try the Australian Ministry.

Ron had flunked out of Hogwarts right before Easter break. He was now

being taught by his family. They were very strict on him, according to

George, and punished him if he slacked. It was going to be a long time

before the youngest male Weasley could take his NEWTs.

Ginny was being pulled from Hogwarts the following school year, due to

the bullying and lack of funds. She and a few of her friends were going to

be homeschooled with Ron. They were treated better than Ron, since

they actually wanted to learn.

The youngest Weasley was still dating Dean Thomas, who, with her

compassion and understanding, was doing much better. He now lived at

the Burrow, bunking with Ron, since he parents died in the war. Dean

was taking advantage of the non-magical education programs, and was

hopeful in getting employment to help with the bills at the Burrow.

Molly had taken in several orphans. When the cost went up she allowed

her older children to buy food and books, and sometimes letting them

take her new charges to get second-hand clothes. Arthur still had his job

at the Ministry, since no one wanted to take over his department.

Because he was such an unassuming character, he was mostly

overlooked.

Neville was taking his parents to America; he had heard they might be

able to bring them out of their… illness. Augusta was reluctantly going

with him. She could see the writing on the wall, but, she didn't want to

leave her home country. It had taken many arguments between her and

her grandson to get her to understand it was what was needed. Neville

finally put his foot down and told her he was leaving with or without

her, and he was taking his parents with him.

Luna was transferring to Beauxbatons for her final year of schooling. She

made arrangements with Bill and Fleur to stay with them during her

summer. They had gotten close during her stay at Shell Cottage, and she

made sure to write them often. She would start her own newspaper when

she graduated. Her father was staying in Britain for the time being. He

would look into relocating if things got too bad for him. However, he

wanted his little girl to be happy, so he reluctantly let her go.

It was with great pleasure that the young immortal received the news

that Britain's Gringotts was closing. Even with the hike in interest they

couldn't keep their doors open. They were threatening war if the Ministry

didn't produce Harry Potter. he made sure there was no price on his

head, if one should show, then he'd have to Obliviate Dung, he wasn't

going to take the chance that the man would keep his secrets—vow or

not.

With the local bank closing and their prejudice on foreigners, the Pure-

bloods had to take their chances in keeping their fortunes in their homes.

This gave the dark-haired wizard a thought on maybe stealing some of

those riches, which meant more research. Thank Merlin for the World

Wide Web, where you can find almost anything, even illegal stuff. He'd

have to get George on these plans. He didn't trust his thief enough to

bring him in, but, he might pick his brain for ideas.

Diagon and Knockturn Alleys were going to be hurting with this bit of

news. Only places like the Leaky Cauldron and Ollivander's would

survive, because they were one of a kind. On the other hand, shops like

Madam Malkin's and Twilfitt and Tattings' it was more than likely that

only one would stay open. Hydrus guessed it all depended on who could

offer the better price or who would bow down to the Pure-bloods better.

He hoped that Madam Malkin got a fresh start elsewhere, but then again,

she was a main source of gossip in Diagon Alley, so maybe not.

The spirits that he had called were still haunting their murderers. You

would see them tagging along after their victims in the Alleys. Hydrus

still chuckled every time George or Fletcher told him the things those

spirits would do and say. The Quibbler was still posting their stories.

The Wizengamot had dwindled down to thirty members as many of the

neutral and light families washed their hands of the bigots and moved on

to more understanding societies. Even Kingsley had resigned, since

everything he tried was voted against. He moved to Africa to get closer to

his roots. He was hoping to help the diseased and war-torn continent.

Water, which was sorely needed, was easy for him to conjure.

The Pure-bloods made a fatal mistake. The like-minded people, that had

been asked to come to Britain, went back to their home countries since

the British looked down their noses at foreigners. Inbreeding will soon be

more common and more squibs will be born. When they would finally

realize they were dying out, it would be too late. Oh, Hydrus knew it

would take years for the population to dwindle, but, he was satisfied that

it would happen eventually. Let them be their own downfall.

Magical creatures were also leaving in droves. The centaurs knew, from

reading the stars, that they would soon be hunted. They let other

creatures know, and it cascaded from there. Even Hagrid left to join

Madame Maxime and obtained a position in Beauxbaton as the grounds

keeper. The gentle half-giant had given a note to Hermione to give to

Harry Potter, explaining that he would always think of him as a hero,

and to not let that Skeeter woman keep him down.

The only half-breeds who stayed were the werewolves, who were under

the impression that since they fought on Voldemort's side they'd be

welcome. He knew better, but he wasn't going to inform them.

The thing that had the young immortal tickled pink was all the pranks

that were being played on both Alleys. The Aurors tried to blame George,

but he had alibis every time and could truthfully say he didn't do a thing.

Hydrus, under his Invisibility Cloak, would take products from WWW and

sneak them into meals at the Leaky Cauldron or use non-edible ones to

cause chaos.

Canaries and other animals would run around the Alleys at busy times.

The Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder would blanket Knockturn Alley at

noon, causing people to run into one another. New electronic mines were

laid out on the cobblestone streets of both Alleys giving passersby a

shock when they stepped on them. The foolish wizard would then look

around for whoever spelled him and start a fight with someone. St

Mungo's was busy those days. Wizards and witches would leave their

shopping day with multi-colored hair and animal appendages.

To say Hydrus Black had a blast pranking these idiots was an

understatement.

Present time

Hogwarts seventh years graduated the day before, and Hermione was

coming to visit today. So Hydrus made sure everything was put away and

that he was glamored. The Floo flared green and his best friend exited.

"Hello, Hermione," he said as he examined her appearance. "You seem to

be doing well." She looked good, her hair was tame, her body was fit, and

there were no circles under her eyes. "I heard you graduated top of the

class, like there was any doubt." He gave her a hug and led her to a chair.

"Oh, you," she said playfully as she smacked his arm when he moved

away. "How are your studies going? Will you be taking your NEWTs

soon? What about your A-levels? How are those coming along?" she

questioned rapidly.

"Whoa, slow down," the young immortal said, holding his hand up to stop

her rambling. "I've taken my NEWTs and will be taking my A-levels soon,

probably by the end of summer."

"That's wonderful, Harry, how did you do?" she asked excitedly. "I always

knew you were smarter than you let on."

"I passed with ten NEWTs," he answered and then changed the subject.

"When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow, I'm going to be staying in a hotel tonight," she answered

sadly. "My plane leaves first thing in the morning."

"Why are you taking a plane? Can't you get a portkey?" the confused man

asked. "You can always stay here tonight," he offered, knowing his friend

was limited on money.

"Not if you're Muggle-born, even Half-bloods have to use non-magical

ways to leave Britain nowadays," she explained, disheartened that there

was no way she could help England's Muggle-raised, though she was

happy that Harry had rescued most of them from poverty and oppression.

"The hotel is closer to the airport, I don't want to Apparate in Britain; I

heard they were tracking it now."

"Huh, I didn't know that about the portkeys or the Apparition, though

with all that's going on I guess it was bound to happen," he said, rubbing

the back of his head. "Do you need any money, I've got a bit extra?" he

asked.

"No, Neville made sure I had enough, and I'm paying him back when I

start my new position," she said, somewhat sharply.

Dropping that topic, the dark-haired wizard stood and made his way

towards the door. "Come on, let's go to the kitchen and get some tea."

"What happened to Kreacher?" she asked in concern. She still was upset

about Harry keeping Kreacher as a slave, but now she was more worried

that he had been right and that freedom would kill the old elf

"He's getting too old to pop, so I've restricted him to dusting. I'm not sure

how much longer he has, but he is content doing what little he can," he

said sadly as he led them to the kitchen and put the kettle on.

"That's awful, is he in pain?" she asked as she settled at the table.

"No, he's just old and tired. I'm hoping that when he passes away it will

be in his sleep."

"What a morbid thing to say, but I guess you're right," Hermione said as

she watched him make the tea, glad to see he wasn't relying on his magic

to do something so simple.

"Have you decided what to do about your parents?" Hydrus asked as he

pulled out some biscuits.

"Yes," she answered with resolve coating her tone, "I weighed the pros

and cons and decided that it would only be selfish of me to try and give

them their memories back. They are happy as they are and their practice

is doing well. However, I am going to try and get to know them as a

friend." She said, determined.

"That being said, I have a confession to make," he said sheepishly. He put

the tea and biscuits on the table and sat opposite of her. "I've been

keeping secrets from you. Not that I didn't trust you," he said hurriedly at

her affronted look, "I just didn't want my plans to influence your decision.

I'm letting you know now, because I will be disappearing and I don't

want you to think I'm dead. You're my best friend and I'd never do that to

you."

"Harry James Potter, you tell me right now what foolish thing you have

brewing in your brain. What do you mean "disappear"? Where are you

going?" she scowled as she placed her hands on the table, leaning

forward getting as far into his personal space as the table allowed.

"Alright, Hermione, calm down, when I've explained, hopefully you'll

understand why I didn't tell you earlier."

"This better be good," she huffed as she sat back in her chair, arms folded

and a piercing glare on her face.

He dropped his glamor, removed his fake glasses, and started to explain.

He told her everything about the time travel and the adoption. He spilled

how much money was in the vault, what he and George had invented so

far, and how they were pranking the bigots. He enthusiastically told her

about his counseling and why he felt he had to save his younger self. He

only glossed over some of the plans for revenge, since he knew for a fact

that she would stop him. He excluded the fact that he had actually talked

to Death. He never once asked if she wanted to come.

Her face morphed as different feelings crossed it; first hurt, then denial,

then hurt again, then anger, and finally frustration. "I don't ever want to

hear you complain about Dumbledore again, do you hear me? You did

the exact same thing he did, withholding important information," she

snapped, standing up violently and placing her hands on her hips. "How

dare you drop something like this in my lap, right before I'm about to

leave, that's just like Dumbledore telling you the prophecy right after

Sirius died."

"What? No, this is different; I'm not fighting a war. Besides, you were

busy with your own problems, what I withheld wasn't life or death

information," the immortal teen defended himself.

"That is bullshit, and you know it," she snarled, causing the young

immortal to flinch at her uncharacteristic cursing.

Oops, she's really mad was the fearful thought. "Honestly, Hermione, I was

only trying to make it easier for you. I was going to tell you before I

went, promise."

Silence was his answer, her glare didn't diminish, however you could see

her brain working overtime. She dropped back into her chair and folded

her arms to her chest. After about ten minutes of uncomfortable quiet,

Hermione said, "I can't back out of my job now. When did you plan on

going back in time? How sure are you that a new branch will start? I am

not happy with you, Harry, but I'll help."

"We're still working out the math for the time travel, there are loads of

theories, but I'll give you the notes and book titles we've used so far.

We've narrowed it down to two, and with your help we should be able to

get it down to one in no time," he said hoping that by letting her think

she was helping it would calm her down, but, judging from the growl

that emanated from her throat that didn't work, so he hurried on. "I don't

plan on leaving until all our inventions are done, with the progress being

made in the non-magical world, maybe in a few years."

"Were you even going to invite me along?" she asked, still upset.

"Honestly, Hermione, after how you went on about paradoxes in third

year, I didn't think you'd want to." he confessed. "Besides, my equations

are for one person, any more than that might cause problems. Now, with

your new life, why would you want to? I mean, you get to see your

parents again. And live your dream. I don't want to pull you away from

that." Given her reaction, he was glad he hadn't invited her along. While

she was his best friend, her morals would disrupt his plans.

"Fine, but don't think for one minute I am letting this drop," she snapped,

not a bit mollified by his excuses. "Give me everything you have so far,

and when I've calmed down, I'll look it over. Know this, Harry, Hydrus,

whatever you damn name is, I am very upset with you, however that

doesn't mean I love you any less, as a friend, so don't get any stupid

ideas. I'll look it over and help, but, if I think for one moment that it will

cause a paradox, I will do everything in my power to try and stop you."

And by the determined look on her face, he could tell she was serious.

"I get it," Hydrus said, and he started to pull the notes from his

pocketspace. "Give me your book-reader and I'll download these." And he

then called the books on time travel. He was a bit worried that she would

try and come with him anyway, but he would stand firm and go without

her. He would just have to be evasive as to when he departed. Maybe it

had been a mistake telling her, but like he explained he didn't want to

just disappear on her.

"Here," she said when she brought it from her purse. "I don't want the

notes on the inventions, but, I want first dibs on anything you two

morons create. I'll look those over later, but, for right now I want to make

sure you don't go and get yourself killed or worse destroy the world."

"Hermione, I'm hurt that you would even think that," he said with a sad

smile. He knew what she meant and was hoping to lighten the mood.

"Oh, don't be stupid," she snapped, "that's not how I meant it. I just want

to make sure your equations are correct, not that you're heartless." She

then gave her own smile to take the bite out of her words.

He relaxed and downloaded everything she asked for. He even gave her

one of the working laptops and showed her how to transfer information

from the reader to the computer. He produced a list of everything George

and he had completed and said he would let her choose what she wanted.

When she left she gave Hydrus a warm hug, which made him very

hopeful for the future of their friendship.

A week later, on his way home from his tutoring session, the young

immortal spotted white blond hair coming around the corner to

Grimmauld Place. He turned to see one Draco Malfoy glaring hatefully at

him. He called himself all sorts of stupid for having his glamor still up,

but he had been distracted on what he learned that day and how it was

going to help him.

"Thought you could hide forever, did you, Potter? How dare you steal my

inheritance!" Malfoy shouted as the raised his wand, pointing at his

enemy's head.

He quickly ducked down an alley to keep the fight away from the non-

magicals. "I didn't steal anything, you inbred moron. Sirius left

everything to me in his will," he yelled back as he cast a Muggle-repelling

ward and then the strongest shielding charm he knew, hoping the git

didn't use any Unforgivables.

He did have fleeting thoughts as to how the runt had found him; Did he

get the information from his mum? But the Fidelius should have blocked that.

Did he follow me from the library, if so, what was the Pure-blood doing in

non-magical England? These thoughts flew from his mind as he ducked a

Dark curse.

"Liar!" screamed Draco. "The Black fortune was mine and you stole it

from me." Then his voice took on a condescending quality and he

sneered, "The goblins will spill anything for the right price, and with you

their number one enemy, it was easy to learn what you did to trick them

into taking the gold."

Hydrus peeked around the alley corner. Draco looked mental with rage,

his face splotchy red; his eyes wild as they looked for were the dark-

haired wizard had hidden. It gave Hydrus the faint reminder of Uncle

Vernon.

"It is entirely your fault that my family is now poorer. Not that it matters

anymore, when you're dead, I'll reclaim what is my rightfully mine."

Seeing where his opponent was Draco's jugular popped as he swung his

wand and shouted, "Avada Kedavra!"

He ducked and fired the Entrail Spilling Curse back. Shite, he's playing for

keeps.

The two fought viciously in that alley, Draco with self-righteous rage, and

Hydrus in defense. The rage made Malfoy stupid, causing most of his

curses to miss, and the immortal's studies made him the better opponent,

his spells were accurate and Draco was soon a bleeding mess. It was too

bad the blond man didn't fall. His anger must be keeping him standing, the

young immortal thought as he ducked one more wildly cast spell.

Minutes passed with deadly curses being thrown from both sides. The

alleyway was looking like a battle zone. Scorch marks were defacing the

brick walls. Trash containers and debris were used as obstacles, causing

them to explode; making it look like a whirlwind had passed through.

Neither boy was backing down.

Then the dark-haired teen had a thought, he wanted to ask Death some

questions about what had him so distracted that he was caught in this

fight in the first place. So, maybe he should let the idiot strike him with

the Killing Curse. With that in mind, he started taunting his childhood

enemy.

"Poor little Draco, his family is losing money. You should be kissing my

feet for making you and your father's dreams reality." He ducked another

Dark spell and sent a non-deadly curse back; now that he waited the

ferret to throw the Unforgivable his spells were less aggressive. "You and

your kind now have everything they ever wanted. Aren't you afraid that

rumors are true and I'm the new Dark Lord? Do you think you can kill

someone as powerful as me?" he asked in a haughty voice, knowing that

Malfoy would never believe him.

"You, a Dark Lord, don't make me laugh," the blond scoffed as he threw

another curse.

Hydrus, seeing that it wasn't the Killing Curse, spelled a trash can in its

path. He didn't want his body damaged.

"What's the matter, Malfoy, not powerful enough for more than one

Killing Curse? Here, I'll even stand still long enough for you to try again,"

he mocked as he lowered his wand and came from behind the dumpster

he was using as a shield.

Enraged at the derisions, Malfoy threw the curse and the young immortal

fell. That scared Draco enough to flee the scene, coward that he was.

He was once again in the grey space; he called out to Death to come to

him. The tall thin deathly pale man joined his Master. The two sat rigidly

in conjured chairs. Death not wanting a Master and Hydrus knowing that

the deity was limited on what he could say, neither one was comfortable.

So, the conversation that followed was stilted.

"You wished to see me, Master?"

"Yeah, I wanted ask a few questions. Will you be able to answer them if I

ask in the right way?"

"There is much I cannot tell you," was the vague reply.

"Right, so I'll just ask and you answer anything you can. I was going over

the sums and have come to the conclusion that a new branch will start. Is

this correct?" the dark-haired wizard asked.

"You are on the correct path."

"So, will all the deceased souls be copied over, or will they just leave this

realm into the new one?"

"No one leaves my realm."

He nodded at that, it was one of his conclusions. "This isn't your realm?"

"No, this is simply a middle ground between the two."

"Wait, you told me this was the Land of the Dead," the young immortal

accused.

"It is."

Giving up on that line of questioning, he asked, "If the Hallows follow me

to the new path, then will they disappear or will there be doubles?" that

was something that bugged the teen.

"They are the only Hallows."

The Master of Death was not sure how he felt about that, so he put it to

the side to mull over later. "Can the control of the Hallows be transferred

or taken away?"

"You are my Master."

"So, the horcruxes," he started, hoping to get a better answer this time,

"can they be taken care of without destroying the container?"

A wicked grin crossed the other man's face, like Hydrus finally asked the

right question. "Oh, yes, Master, you will find the book you need in your

inventory. You would do well to read every book you own," he added the

grin only widening at the groan that came from the young immortal.

"Right, that was all I wanted to know, for now. Can you send me back,

please?" he asked as stood and waited for the deity to just that, thankful

for the few answers he got.

Death also stood and said, "Until I see you again." He waved his arm and

forced the soul to return to the body.

Hydrus gasped, sat up and looked around. He was still in the alley, thank

Merlin. He made sure Draco was gone and there were no more threats

around and then dropped his glamor. Picking himself up off the

disgusting side street, he pulled down the ward and made his way home.

He was glad Kreacher didn't see what had happened. The poor old elf

might have died of shock. Going into Grimmauld Place, he settled in the

study he wrote a letter to Hermione explaining his new theory and how

he reached it. He called George with the same information and his

conversation with Death. He invited the redhead to come and visit him as

soon as he was able. George said he'd be over in a few hours.

George came when he said he would, and the two started reevaluating

the research. Their answer was that a new branch would start and

Hydrus wouldn't cause a paradox. Now they were going over plans to

steal from the Pure-bloods. George commented that he should either get

a new vow from Fletcher or Obliviate him. Not that the redhead didn't

like Mundungus, he just knew the man would do anything for money. He

said he'd think about it, the thief had outlived his usefulness anyway.

They decided that Hydrus should stay a few more years, to make sure

that he had every bit of research done before he went back. There were

things the young man was going to need to know and plan for. They had

a huge debate on what to do with the people that the dark-haired wizard

wanted to make sure were out of his life. They went back and forth for

hours, not coming to any understanding. He made a promise that he

would think about it carefully, and try not to let his emotions guide him.

After that George had to leave.

After seeing his friend off, Hydrus relaxed with a good non-magical

mystery novel. He would think about horcruxes, manipulative and

vindictive people, and Death Eaters another time. He just wanted to

unwind for the night.

Hphphp

Thanks for all the reviews, favs and follows. Just to let you know updates are

going to be slower, as it is harder for me to write this story and this is the last

of my prewritten chapters.

The next chapter will have a major time skip and Hydrus will be going back in

time.

Also for those who are reading my Practical Magic story. I haven't abandoned

it, it's just at a standstill for the moment.

7. It Is Time

Chapter 7 It Is Time

AN: thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own.

AN: This chapter is mostly narration, but, to get to where Hydrus meets Harry

it is needed. Also I don't think you can purchase a house in one day, but for

the sake of the story we'll say you can.

It was recommended that I warn you that Hydrus is a little darker than Harry

Potter from canon, so here is that warning.

Anything you recognize isn't mine

Hphphp

A larger narration— mostly

The huge technological advancements in the non-magical world caused

Hydrus to stay longer than he had planned. With this boom, his

investments were paying off big time and his inventory was growing. The

Rune arrays he and George invented made making the magical

equivalence easy. The two inventors were also using the devices as

stepping stones to create better ones. With magic many of the parts in the

devices were unnecessary, so their laptops, readers, and TVs were smaller

and thinner.

They created a security system and sold it to the Muggle-born still in

England. It had a camera and was wirelessly tuned in to one of the flat

screen televisions. It looked like a non-magical system, but would knock

an intruder out if the code was not added to the keypad.

For as long as WWW stayed open in England the prank items were hot

sellers, like; the joy buzzers, shocking tea cups, phony cell phones, and

many more. Non-magical Halloween items (powered by the array) also

flew off the shelves as daily pranks; cauldrons with animated hag hands,

mics that emanated a cackle when someone passed by, a moaning ghost

that appeared before an unsuspecting person when a mine was stepped

on and much more. George and Hydrus thought it was hysterical that the

magical folk were buying the non-magical versions of what they thought

wizards were.

The reason the magicals still didn't have any idea they were buying

things based off of non-magical items is because they had secluded

themselves even more from that world. The new Minister of Magic, a

Pure-blood named Wilimar Greenhand, even stopped talking to the Prime

Minister's office, which suited them just fine.

Tony Blair told Gordon Brown exactly what had happened and what was

being done to prevent it happening again. He made sure to warn him

about that blasted painting they couldn't get off the wall, the one that

magically appeared whenever he changed offices.

With the educational programs that had been set up, the Muggle-born

were thriving. They had come up with a spell to find the new wizards

and witches, and visited them as soon as the first magical outburst

appeared. They let the parents know all about the Pure-blood world and

how their children would be treated there. They told tales of their trials

and how so many had been killed.

Most of the parents agreed to have a spell cast upon their house to keep

England's Magical Ministry from finding the kids and trying to force them

to go to Hogwarts, not that the Pure-bloods were doing that right now,

but they might in the future. They would send their children to the new

school for non-magical raised. The ones that didn't join either moved to a

more adaptable country or took their chances with the Pure-bloods

(usually Half-bloods who wanted power). Those that took the second

option were Obliviated of the meetings.

During these years Hydrus finished the University and took up acting

classes. There he learned the fine art of makeup and how to pull off an

upper-class personality. He was going to need these lessons when he went

back. He got some grey contacts, grew his hair long and had a nice

goatee; he looked a lot like Sirius.

He also made sure he knew how to drive, even if he didn't buy a car or

get a license.

McGonagall had left the school in a fit of fury. When the Board of

Governors declared that no Muggle-raised was allowed to attend, she

stormed out of the only home she had known for years. The former

transfiguration teacher didn't leave Scotland; she bought a little cottage

and kept mostly to herself. Most of the other teachers had left ages ago,

since most of them were half-breeds or Muggle-borns.

Flitwick had left the year the public called Harry the next Dark Lord. His

contacts with the goblins caused him to find work outside of Britain,

since he didn't agree with the British goblins that Harry Potter was the

reason for their plight.

The friends of Hydrus's that had left, all those years ago, wrote

occasionally. He knew Luna had started the newspaper that she wanted,

though it only did as well as the Quibbler. Her father stayed in Britain

and was considered a mild annoyance for his constant rebuttals of the

Prophet.

Hermione's letters had thinned out after her research concluded that

Hydrus had to go alone. When she realized that, she decided to put some

distance between Harry and herself, so threw herself into her job and

getting to know her parents better. It had been a shock to her, that by

taking away their memories, she had changed their personalities. She was

content in her new life.

Neville's parents were cured and very put out with their family for the

treatment their son received. They were shocked that all the things they

had been fighting for were lost causes in Britain; however, they didn't

blame Neville for leaving. He only wanted to make them better, after all.

The Weasleys did just what Hydrus thought they would. They opened

their doors to the oppressed. Ron, after three years, got his NEWTs and

now played for his Quidditch team, the Chudley Cannons. He moved into

his own flat when he got his first paycheck. Molly let him go since she

needed his bed. Ginny and Dean married and moved to London. Dean

was working on bringing his wife's non-magical education up to A-levels,

so she could find work. Mrs. Weasley was more reluctant to let her little

girl go, but after many arguments had little choice. Arthur was still an

underpaid employee at the Ministry. The older Weasley boys made sure

to send money every month to keep the Burrow afloat.

George's shop survived for five more years and then it closed. He still

thought everything they pulled was a great prank. He reopened in France

like he planned and was doing well. This time the wizards that bought

things in the store knew exactly what they were purchasing.

Before the single twin left the country, he and Hydrus took great pleasure

in relieving many of the Pure-bloods of their money. They used a sort of

overpowered shock gun that nullified wards and curses, the Invisibility

Cloak and a Disillusion charm to sneak in and rob the idiots blind. They

were surprised how easy it was. The Pure-bloods didn't even bother with

safes or locks; they used hidden rooms spelled to the gills. Knocking on

the walls and soon enough they found the rooms. The gun made child's

play out of the spells.

When they were doing Malfoy Manor, Draco wandered into the room.

Which was a bit of a surprise, one would think the man would have

moved out by now. Hydrus thought about just killing the ferret, but

decided that the Malfoys made their bed, they could lay in it. With that

in mind he figured it was time for a little payback. Hydrus reverted to his

Harry Potter persona, making sure he was a pale as possible, and

removed the Cloak.

"Hello, murderer," he said eerily from behind the blond.

Draco jumped and twisted around so fast that he fell. "No, you're dead! I

saw you die!" the scared teen shouted.

Hydrus heard footsteps coming their way, and reckoned he would have

to hurry. "Like you could cast an Unforgivable," he scoffed. "You have to

have power for that and your family's inbreeding put that to rest."

Draco sneered, "Liar, my father did…" realizing what he was saying and

who he was saying to he stopped and scrambled to his feet and ran

screaming from the room. "Mother, Harry Potter is haunting me!" was

heard throughout the Manor.

"Draco, what have I told you about yelling in the house? What nonsense

are you spouting; there are wards up to prevent ghosts." Hydrus knew

that the wards didn't stop the ghosts from following the Malfoys

whenever they left the house though.

"No, you have to beli…" the voice trailed off as the footsteps receded.

Hydrus quickly donned his Cloak and the two thieves, suppressing their

mirth, finished their business and made haste out of the Manor. When

they got back to Grimmauld Place, they laughed their arses off. Of

course, the next day Rita wrote an article claiming that Harry Potter was

now a vengeful ghost, which suited him just fine. The newspaper didn't

report how the ex-hero died, just that he was haunting upstanding

citizens.

The two friends also made sure to ransack the houses of those still in

Azkaban. Hydrus took extra delight in burning Umbridge's family house

to the ground. The two split the booty fifty-fifty. Keeping Dark items to

go over later, the books were downloaded quickly and left to rot on the

shelves, now that the preservation spells were gone. Oh, they didn't get

everyone before the Pure-bloods got a clue, but they did get most of the

Death Eaters. House elves, which were now treated worse than before,

turned away from the happenings since they were never told to guard the

treasures.

Mundungus Fletcher had been killed by his vow when he tried to kidnap

Hydrus for the goblins to get the bounty on his head.

Kreacher had passed away in his sleep, shortly after Hermione left.

Hydrus grieved for the old house elf, but was thankful he passed

peacefully. He made sure to bury him in the back yard with the locket

and a picture of Regulus Black. The immortal man decided that he

wouldn't bond another house elf, thought he might hire a free one.

In the years that passed Hydrus went to the University and studied

electronics and computers more thoroughly. He also received the

credentials to teach non-magical children, thinking of homeschooling his

younger self. That was something he was still thinking on, because the

books he read all said that children needed to be around those of their

age. However, play dates and parks could fill that need.

Sometime during the years passing, he snuck his way into Hogwarts, and

went to the Room of Hidden things and cleared it out. He then asked the

room for every book in the library and downloaded them on to his book-

readers. He also made sure to hit the London Library.

It was 2010 when Hydrus decided enough was enough and he wasn't

going to be any better prepared than he was now. So he looked around

for an abandoned house, which would have been on the market in 1981

so that he could purchase it when he went back.

After a week of looking he found the one he wanted. It was a good size

with five bedrooms, three baths, two studies, a kitchen/dining room, and

a living room. There were overgrown back, front and side yards, with

plenty of trees in the back. These yards were surrounded by a

surprisingly intact cast iron fence. He wasn't put off by the broken

windows or the peeling wallpaper. He could see that it was only time

that caused it. The foundation was in good repair and that was all he

needed to know. It was set far back from the road and secluded because

of the trees. It was just what he was looking for.

After finding the house he wanted, he needed to figure out what to do

with Grimmauld Place. After a few weeks consideration, he decided to

put his education to use and make the house non-magical. So he wired it

up and banished anything that was even the slightest bit magical. Even

the portraits he had stored oh so long ago. It was with a lot of laughter

that he told Mrs. Black what he was doing. Her screams of denial and

vengeance were music to his ears, and then he sent her to wherever it

was that banished items went.

He put the house on the market with the profits going to Hermione. He

sent her a bag of inventions and a small note. He wanted to do a huge

letter, but felt that if he kept it short, maybe she wouldn't be hurt as bad,

since they had drifted apart.

Hermione,

It is time for me to go. I wanted you to have these things that me

and George invented. I am sure you will find them useful. Make sure

you tell people that they can be found at Weasley's Wizarding

Wheezes in France. Also in the bag is a small fortune of 50,000

galleons. I am also putting Grimmauld Place up for sale on the non-

magical market. You should have heard Mrs. Black when I told her.

Anyway, I am having the money sent to you, because you are my

best friend.

I am glad to hear that you are now friends with your parents.

Do me a favor and keep in contact with George, at least until he

marries.

I am so sorry you can't come with me, please know that I will miss

you and I'll do my best to make sure your younger self is friends

with my younger self.

Harry Potter (Hydrus Black)

His plan didn't work, because the letter he received in reply was long, sad

and full of advice—usually things he already thought of. She thanked

him for the gifts and said they would be put to good use. She also said

that she would make sure George was married soon, even if she had to

set him up with every unmarried witch in France.

He sent an 'it's time' letter to George with 'goodbyes' and 'thank yous'. The

letter he received in return was filled with 'you're welcomes and good

lucks'.

He sent off one last missive to Andromeda, leaving Teddy Lupin a huge

amount of non-magical money and a few of his stocks (Since Hydrus

never claimed the title, the Black name died). He was glad that she had

taken his godson and ran at the first sign that the British wizards

wouldn't change. They were located in America, she never told him

where, since he was still unwelcome around her family. They had

however exchanged formal letters and Hydrus always made sure she had

money. Now in this last missive, he told her he was disappearing and

asked that she tell Teddy the truth about him and not what history said.

He closed all of his accounts and sold off the rest of his investments,

which took longer than he liked. He made sure the money he received in

return was mostly put into gold bullion. Between what his investments

brought in, WWW's proceeds and what they stole from the Pure-bloods,

Hydrus had a fortune of over sixty-five million pounds and thirty million

galleons. A nice amount of money in 2010 but unheard of in 1981, if he

pulled it off right then he would be the richest wizard in Britain.

Thanks to the robbing of the Pure-Bloods, the British Government had

fallen. According to the Prophet, the wizards that were left were trying to

petition the ICW for help. From the evasive responses they were receiving

that looked like a lost cause. Hydrus didn't feel any sympathy for them.

Present time

It was September 1, 2010 and he was standing in the abandoned house.

By his calculations he would return to the same date in 1981 at the same

spot. He found out that he couldn't go back further than Harry Potter's

birth, and he didn't know when his parents went into hiding. So he chose

a few months before that fateful night. He hoped to save his parents, or

at least take down Voldemort when he appeared in Godric's Hollow. He

had contingency plans in case that didn't happen, but he was going to do

his best.

It was closing in on Midnight so Hydrus stood in the empty living room

and faced the north wall. When his watch chimed the time he used the

Elder Wand to slash at the barren wall and incanted, "Novi temporis

ramus," keeping the year he wanted to go to running through his mind.

Thunder clapped and lightning struck one of the trees outside, the wind

picked up in the neighborhood. Paper debris flew in the broken window,

the remaining glass fell, and the winds picked up speed ruffling his hair.

But Hydrus ignored all of this as he watched a long, near-blinding, white

rip was forming on the wall. It started out small and then widened

enough to allow a man to walk through.

When the portal was large enough, Hydrus entered. It felt like moving

through a swamp, only one with an electrical storm happening. Every bit

of hair on his body stood on end and he had an almost overwhelming

desire to turn back. In seconds, that felt like hours, he exited and after

emerging out the other side he groggily turned, squared his shoulders

and firmly said, "Finite Incantatem," and with another slash of his wand

the opening shrank back to nothing. He thanked Merlin for the Elder

Wand; his normal phoenix wand would have failed to dispel the time

warp.

The world blinked and a new branch was formed. Several things

happened all at once. Every soul on earth was copied over (except

Hydrus') and some more sensitive people felt the change in the air. An

immortal collapsed. An old man's wand mutated into a useless stick. An

Invisibility Cloak became a normal one that would fade with time. A

heavily spelled ring turned non-magical, causing the curses to disperse

and a soul fragment to wither, soon to die. The centaurs noted that Mars

lost some of its brightness.

When Hydrus awoke the next morning, he smiled at what he saw. The

wallpaper was in good repair, the windows weren't broken and the floor

was only mildly dusty. It was a bright, if somewhat cold, day and the

now neatly trimmed yards hosted singing birds. All of this gave the time-

traveler reason to believe he was in the correct time. So, he took himself

out of the house and noted the seller's name on the placard in the front of

the house. The house was being sold by the owner, which will make it

much easier to buy.

The first thing he needed to do was get some of his money into a bank.

No, the first thing I need to do is check to see if my pocketspace came with me.

Hydrus ducked into the back yard and called forth his book-reader. When

it came he let out a huge sigh of relief. Now, he could get things done. So

he walked down the long pathway, went to the nearest bus stop and

made his way to London.

There he hunted down Barclays Bank and after hours of signing papers he

had an account. He made sure it was relatively small, only £500,000. It

was a good thing that Fletcher had come through with those papers; he

now had a birth certificate that stated he was born in 1956, a driver's

license and other important documents for both worlds. He made a

mental note to insert himself into the system as soon as he purchased the

house. Though he was technically thirty, his paperwork stated he was

twenty-five, easier to pull off.

The next place he went was to the newly opened Smith and Anderson. He

reviewed the investments he wanted to make. They were unsure about

some of them because the firm thought they would only be trends, but

Hydrus was insistent.

He used a public phone to call the number of the owner and made

arrangements with the man to meet him at the house the next day. Now,

he needed food and shelter for the night. Thank Merlin, jeans and T-shirts

were a fashion in this time. He really didn't want to buy a whole new

wardrobe, though he would need to stick to solid shirts.

The next day at noon he met with Ralph Jerkins, the owner of the house.

He was an older normal looking man, one that you could lose in any

crowd, with sandy hair and brown eyes. He was dressed the same as

Hydrus in clean jeans and a T-shirt.

"Mr. Jerkins?" Hydrus asked as he approached.

"Yup, are you Mr. Black? You're kinda young to be buying a house," the

man replied, though he did hold out his hand in greeting.

"I know I look young, but I'm twenty-five and my godfather left me a

small fortune," he explained as he shook the hand. He pulled out his

driver's license to prove his age. Thank goodness he had taken his aging

potion.

"So, what's a young man like you need with a house this big? It's an old

family home and I don't want to see it destroyed by a bunch of

hooligans," Jerkins said, giving Hydrus a hairy eyeball. "The only reason

we're selling is because me and the missus are the only ones left, and the

house was getting too costly. However, we want to make sure the buyer

would care for it. One of the reasons we didn't go through a realtor,

they'd sell it to the first person who met the price."

No wonder the house has been on the market so long, Hydrus thought. "Not

to worry, I'm just thinking about my future. I plan on having a big family

and your house is perfect for that," he answered sincerely. "You see, I'm

an orphan, so it is my dream to have a house such as this one and fill it

with children. Like you, I am the last of my family."

It took a bit longer and a few more sob stories, until finally the older man

caved. "Alright then, I'll take you at your word. Now, the house had been

on the market for a few years. We've tried to keep it up, but the costs are

getting out of hand. So we lowered the price to £ 120,000."

Hydrus didn't really care about whether this was a good price or not.

"Sounds good, shall we go and see your solicitor?"

"You're not going to haggle?" Ralph asked with a lifting of an eyebrow.

Most of the people he talked to wanted him to lower the price more, even

if it was already below market value.

"Nope, I really want this house, and I have the funds."

"Right, let's go and see if Charlie is available," Jerkins said with a bit of

relief. So the two made their way to his lorry and drove to the lawyer's

office.

Hours of paperwork and two bank checks later and Hydrus was now the

new owner. All three men shook hands and parted ways. Thank goodness

that buying in cash made this go a lot faster, though it did cause the

lawyer to ask a lot of questions. To which, Hydrus gave the same stories

he had told Mr. Jenkins.

The second thing that Hydrus did was buy a new car. His eyes sparkled

when he saw the Ferrari, but his brain kicked in. If he couldn't save his

parents then he needed a car that could hold four people comfortably. So

he turned his attention to the Mercedes Benz. In the end he purchased a

1981 Mercedes-Benz 240D 4 Door Sedan. Once again it took hours of

paperwork; boy was he going to be glad when the internet boomed again.

It was now night, so he drove to the nearest restaurant and ordered the

fish and chips. Then he took himself home. He pulled bits of junk out of

his pocketspace, making a mental note to empty it and sort through

everything. Then he used the junk to make a bed and blanket and

promptly fell on to it, clothes and all, and fell asleep.

He woke the next morning and used a cleansing charm on himself and his

clothes. He went to the empty living room, stood in the doorway, made

the floor soft and said "Empty pocketspace." As things flew out of the

pocket and expanded to their normal size he moved back, quickly. There

were hundreds of devices, pranks, clothes, furniture and appliances.

Some of these things were broken or unknown, because he never sorted

out what he got from Hogwarts' secret room. Soon enough the room was

full, which is when the young man stopped the flow. Hydrus had backed

himself into a window, so he climbed out and went back around to the

living room.

It took the rest of the week to get everything sorted and in place, thank

Merlin for magic. He re-added things to his storage space, banished or

repaired broken things and moved everything to its proper room. He was

glad that he had planned and had the magical equivalence of kitchen

appliances and entertainment centers, which looked non-magical, though

futuristic. He wasn't planning on inviting many people over, so it didn't

matter. He only stopped to go get groceries after the kitchen was set up.

And take care of his needs.

Every night an exhausted immortal fell into his bed. He woke the

morning after everything was sorted, and after getting clean and dressed

for the day, he ventured into the upstairs study. He went to the desk

where a laptop was set up and used his hacking spell to find the current

computer language and learn it.

He went to town and looked up where Government offices were, so he

could break in and insert himself in the system. He would go that night.

Security systems were a joke to get around in this time. The Invisibility

Cloak, silencing charms and a good copy of his records and he would be

free and clear in the non-magical world.

Now that all of that was done, he needed to plan on getting into

Hogwarts, and get the diadem. He pondered if he should try and get it

now or wait until winter break. He went over what he knew about the

horcruxes and was frustrated that many were out of his reach for now.

Since Mrs. Black was still alive, that one was out. Now, that he thought

about it he wasn't even sure it was in Grimmauld Place. He never knew

when Regulus died. No it has to be there, because it is close to the time

Voldemort was vanquished, he reasoned.

He went to check on the ring, using the shock gun to blast the wards to

smithereens he found the ring was now free of all magic. So he chucked

it over his left shoulder and went back home.

With the necklace and the cup out of his reach and the snake not created

yet, he decided to take his chance on the diadem. Using what he hoped

to be a Hogsmeade weekend, he made his way to Honeydukes and snuck

to the cellar. The tunnel was dark and you could tell it had been a few

years since it was last used. Putting on his Cloak and casting silencing

charm, he creeped out from behind the statue. He slowly made his way

to the Room of Requirements. Pacing in front of the wall, he called up

the Room of Hidden Things.

It took him only a short time to find the old crown. He picked up a

random piece of junk and held it over the priceless heirloom, and

incanted, "Repel aliena anima," moving the soul piece to the broken item.

Calling up a ceramic bowl, he dropped some very potent acid on the new

horcrux, held his breath and watched it blacken and listened to the

screaming of the soul piece as died. Letting out a sigh of relief, he then

tucked the diadem in his pocketspace and debated on whether or not to

go into the Chamber of Secrets and kill the basilisk. He decided to wait

until summer, just in case he was caught. He didn't want his new identity

to have any more notoriety than the name Black already carried. He also

debated on clearing out the room he stood in, but decided against it. He

would send a letter to the Board of Governors, who weren't overly

corrupt, yet, and let them decide what to do with this treasure.

He was going to attempt to fix this timeline. So that meant getting rid of

a few bad eggs. He just had to figure out how and who. His meditations

made him realize that some people could change and some could not.

Those like Malfoy, Umbridge, Skeeter and the Lestranges would never

change. Those like Snape would behave with the right… motivation.

Fudge and the Dursleys were a non-issue at the moment. He needed to

get to Diagon Alley and establish himself. Bribes and corruption were the

name of the game in politics.

He spent every night looking for the Potters, but they must be behind the

Fidelius because he couldn't find hide or hair of them. It was getting

frustrating and he cursed his lack of knowledge. He knew with the charm

up he would have a difficult time, but he continued the search. He wrote

letters to the Order, warning them that Pettigrew was a traitor, those

letters went unanswered, though he did receive one from Sirius stating

that he'd better quit defaming his friend. He had no idea how the man

sent the letter, since he didn't sign his name. So, that avenue was out. Oh

well, he'd just keep looking.

He thought about going straight to Dumbledore, but he had issues with

the man and didn't want to argue with him. He would also have to prove

how he knew, and he had no idea how to do that.

So, every night he spent going around Godric's Hollow looking for the

Potter. He was even stopped by the Bobbies, they asked him what he was

doing and he said he was looking for his family and they were unlisted.

When he gave the Potters name, of course the man didn't know where

they were. He even had the fleeting thought of getting a bullhorn and

announcing that they would be betrayed, but after the incident with the

police he nixed it.

He also had plans on opening a household appliances and entertainment

business. For that he would need a barrister and to have a go between for

him and Hellströms (a dwarf run bank in Sweden). If he had it his way he

would never set foot in Gringotts. The next morning saw him in Diagon

Alley looking for business offices. He found a solicitor's office named

Jasper and Jones.

After entering the building the secretary told him to wait and she'd see if

either one was available. Twenty minutes later he was escorted into Mr.

Jasper's office.

"Mr. Black, pleasure to meet you. I am Anthony Jasper," the short dark-

haired man said as he came around his desk. "Funny that I've never heard

of you, I thought I knew about all the Blacks." He held his hand out for

Hydrus to take.

"Pleasure's mine, Mr. Jasper. I've been around; just don't draw attention

to myself, since I was raised Muggle. My squib godfather died a few years

ago and left me a huge amount of money. He invested a lot in the non-

magical world," Hydrus said as he shook the man's hand. He then leaned

over and whispered, "He was a bit of a gambler, if you know what I

mean."

"Sorry for your loss," Mr. Jasper said sincerely. He then pointed to the

chairs off to the side and the two settled. "So tell me, Mr. Black, what can

Jasper and Jones do for you?"

"A few things actually," Hydrus answered. "First of all, can one open an

account in Hellströms through your firm? I've had a bit of a bad

experience with goblins and I really don't want to use Gringotts if I don't

have to."

Mr. Jasper rubbed his chin in thought. "I believe so," he finally answered.

"You will need to prove who you are, papers and such, then we can set

up a vault for you."

Hydrus was relieved that blood verification wasn't needed; then again

blood magic was against the law. "Right, second thing I need is an empty

store to be purchased. I have the money to pay in cash so I'd like that

done as soon as possible." He then gave the general outline as to what he

needed. "I also need to patent my inventions, believe me they will

revolutionize the wizarding world."

Mr. Jasper made some notes and nodded, he waved his hand for the

young man to continue.

"The last thing I need is for a separate vault to be set up for… political

purposes," Hydrus said, trying to be casual.

This caused the lawyer to narrow his eyes at the young man in front of

him. "I do hope that you do not expect this firm to… buy votes," he bit

out.

"No, of course not," the young immortal said quickly.

"As long as we understand one another," Mr. Jasper said as he turned

back to his notes.

The two men ironed out the plans for the vaults and the business. Hydrus

said he would come the next day to pay the firm and give Mr. Jasper the

money to open the vaults. While he was there he bought a house elf

named Tippy, who he was going to free and hire on.

He then made plans to advertise for someone to run the store, so he could

hunt down Death Eaters or find the Order of the Phoenix. He wanted to

do all he could to help. Unfortunately he had no idea where the Order

met. He did however know where most of the Death Eaters lived. But, he

would have to be more careful, since most of them had innocent children.

He also wanted to see if the rumors were true and Voldemort had placed

a taboo on his name. If so he could set up traps for the Death Eaters and

maybe catch the Dark Lord and finish this off without his parents dying

or Harry becoming the Boy Who Lived.

The weeks flew by, his accounts and business was set up. The appliances

and entertainment centers he was selling weren't too outlandish, though

some of the Muggle-raised seem to find them fascinating. He made sure

that they didn't outdate the non-magical equivalents—much. He hired a

manager, a clerk and a squib bookkeeper (since the only magical

bookkeepers in Britain were goblins) so he had little to do with the store.

Hydrus found out there was a taboo on the name, and when he wasn't

busy with setting up the store, he used it to capture fifteen Death Eaters.

He would trap them, bind them and then feed them the Draught of the

Living Dead. He then put them in very old non-magical crypts in

abandoned cemeteries. He'd figure out what to do with them later.

He was ecstatic to get Bella, Lucius and Crouch Jr., now, hopefully, the

Longbottoms would be okay. He had thought to just kill them; however,

he didn't want Voldemort to feel their deaths. Let that twisted bastard

think they were captured. He'll leave them here where they can't harm

anyone. Until after Halloween, he'd ignore them, maybe then he would

kill them. He put up wards so no one would find them and walked away.

After he captured Malfoy, he broke in to Malfoy Manor and destroyed the

diary. There was a close call, when Dobby popped in to clean the room. It

took every bit of willpower Hydrus had not to call out to his old friend.

Hopefully with Lucius gone, the house elf will be treated better. It was

with a bit of remorse that the young man realized that his plans would

make it unnecessary for Dobby to befriend young Harry.

Now it was Halloween night, and Hydrus was looking for his parents'

house in Godric's Hollow, he had been searching every spare moment he

had since he came back, but never found it. The problem was he couldn't

get past the Fidelius Charm. He must have been too young to remember

the secret and he only visited the house once, at night. He never went

back in his timeline, since Umbridge had razed the cottage when he was

enemy number one. So he was searching for out of place numbers.

He was on the other side of the village when he felt the explosion of

magic. His cry of "Noooo!" scared some of the locals as they watched the

distraught young man run down the street.

8. The Plans That Didn't Survive

First Cont

Chapter 8 The Plans That Didn't Survive First Contact

AN: thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own.

AN: once again I will point out that I am not good with accents. So if Hagrid's

is off, my apologies. Also there is a bit of cussing. Sirius may be a bit OOC, but

we really never knew him before Azkaban, so this is my take on that. One

more thing, Hydrus is a bit aggressive in this chapter.

Anything you recognize isn't mine.

Hphphp

Running down the cold streets of Godric's Hollow, Hydrus prayed he

wasn't too late. He could now see the smoke coming from the house and

noted that no one else seemed to, but that was a question for another

time. He had a feeling that that magical blast was the rebounding Killing

Curse. He cursed all the people in his life that kept him in the dark. If he

had known when they went into hiding he could have prevented this

whole night. He thought he had come back early enough to thwart his

parents' death, but his planning was futile, they were already hidden

when he came back in time.

He Apparated to where the smoke was, maybe he could catch Pettigrew.

Hydrus arrived just in time to see the rat come out of the house. He fired

off a Sectumsempra Curse catching the traitor on his chest, but it didn't

kill Peter and the rat Disapparated. Once more the distraught immortal

yelled his frustrations in the sky.

He hurried inside and saw his dad, dead on the floor. It looked like James

had put up a one hell of a fight. Furniture was overturn and spell marks

marred the walls. His wand was still clutched in his fist, though it was

broken, like someone had stepped on it. Hydrus took a moment and

closed his father's eyes. He was remorseful that he couldn't save him and

knew that his mum was also gone.

Tears ran down his cheeks as he took the stairs two at a time and when

he came to the nursery he saw that little Harry crying in the crib, he

quickly cast a sleeping charm in the child and looked over the scene. The

wall behind the cot was gone; every bit of furniture was damaged. The

immortal disregarded the empty robes of the temporarily vanquished

Dark Idiot. He cried over his mother for a moment until he heard a noise.

Hydrus picked up Harry, pulled on his Cloak and looked around not

wanting to stand in the middle of the room. He could just Apparate out,

but he really wanted to catch Sirius before the dogman went after the rat.

If he remembered correctly many people came here this night, the stories

were conflicting as to in what order everyone appeared. He continued to

look around and found what he was looking for. In the ruins of the

nursery there was a large old-fashioned wardrobe. The doors were

broken, but it looked like he could safely stay in there with Harry and

attack if it was an enemy.

Must be from Dad's side of the family, it has the Potter crest on the front,

Hydrus thought in relief. Thank Merlin for Pure-blood traditions. He

quickly hid in the closet and hunkered down, keeping the still out cold

Harry pressed to his shoulder.

From a crack in the door, he saw a dark shadow fill the doorway, and to

Hydrus's surprise Severus Snape shakily walked in the room. It had been

so long since he viewed those memories that he had forgotten that the

man was the first to appear in the ruined house. His emotions about that

man were still conflicting, he didn't want to kill him, but he wanted the

Potions Master out of Harry's life. However, now was not the time for

that confrontation. So, for now all he could do was sit and wait. He

leaned back in the closet to rest; he wanted to be alert when Sirius

showed.

After what felt like hours of listening to the other man cry through his

anguish, heavy footsteps were heard. Snape stood and Disapparated out

of the room. A larger shadow filled the doorway and the huge form of

Hagrid came into the room. Tears were rolling down the gentle half-

giant's face and wetting his scraggly beard. A large handkerchief was

being utilized.

After he cried more of the body of Lily, Hagrid went to the crib and when

he didn't see young Harry he got confused. He started his search and

spotted the wardrobe was partly open. Hydrus held his breath, he didn't

want to tangle with Hagrid; he would lose, since he was leery about

hurting his first friend. Hagrid's only sin was that he trusted Dumbledore

too much.

Harry started to wake, squirming to get comfortable. No, no, no, not right

now, Hydrus thought as he gently rocked the child, causing his Cloak to

shift.

The large man made his way to the closet, opened the door and noted the

shoe peeking out of the Cloak. "Who 're ya, and what 're ye doin' with

'arry?" he asked as grabbed where he thought an arm would be, the Cloak

slipped off and he pulled Hydrus out.

Hydrus quickly removed himself from that huge hand. "I'm not here to

hurt anyone. I tried to find them and warn them, but I couldn't," he

rambled, the tears were now dried track marks. He was hoping that

Hagrid wouldn't question how he knew the Potters were in trouble. "I

looked everywhere for the house. I just wanted them to be safe."

"Ya look like ya've been cryin', 'ow did ya know the Potters?"

"I didn't really, I just feel bad that I couldn't help them. I overheard some

Death Eaters in a pub that some bloke named Pettigrew gave up the

secret and that they were in trouble," Hydrus said, thinking of the first

thing that came to mind.

"Why didna tell Dumbledore?" Hagrid asked.

"I had not time to send an owl, and I have no idea where he is."

"Well, I reckon that makes sense. So who are ya? Ya look like Sirius. Ya

need to give me 'arry," the taller man demanded and went to grab Hydrus

again.

The young immortal darted around the crib. Harry started to cry, and

Hydrus did his best to comfort him. "Stop, you're going to hurt Harry and

neither one of us what that. Really, I'm only trying to help. Look, here, I'll

swear to it." Adjusting his hold on Harry, he called his wand and said, "I,

Hydrus Williamsford Black, hereby swear on my life and magic I only

want to help Harry James Potter." A blue light sealed his vow. "Lumos,

Nox"

"iffin ya really want to 'elp then give me 'arry. I've gotta take 'im to

Dumbledore," Hagrid said as he held out his large hands for the baby.

Hydrus relented, he knew where was Harry going and he really didn't

want to take on Hagrid. So he handed the baby over and moved back.

Running footsteps were heard entering the house and tormented cries of

Sirius Black filled the air.

Hagrid turned and left the room and went down the stairs, carrying

Harry. Hydrus decided to remain until the large man left and then he

would talk to Sirius. He listened to his godfather demand Harry and

Hagrid deny him, stating he was following orders. He then heard Hagrid

tell him there was a cousin of his in the nursery, and that he had given a

vow to help. Then Hydrus heard Sirius give his motorcycle to the large

man. Sirius then climbed the stairs to see who this mysterious person

was.

Sirius whipped out his wand when he spotted Hydrus. "Who the hell are

you? You look like a Black, but I don't recognize you. What are you doing

here? If I find out you had anything to do with the death of my friends,

I'll kill you," he snarled. His grey eyes were crazed and his face was

menacing.

Hydrus thanked Merlin that the Order members were taught to be non-

lethal. He held up his empty hands and quickly said, "My name is Hydrus

Black, we're cousins… my grandfather was blasted off the tree. I've been

raised by a squib in the Muggle world. Look, I tried to prevent this. I

heard that ole' Voldy was going to be here tonight, so I came to stop

him," he said when the wand rose to his head. "Didn't you hear Hagrid? I

gave a vow to help Harry. Listen to me, if you want to see your godson

again you need to stop threatening me and just listen."

"What do you mean? Hagrid is taking Harry somewhere safe," was the

confused response. Then that face turned thunderous, "What are you

planning to do to my godson?" he shouted, lifting his wand again, this

time casting a stunning curse.

Hydrus ducked and started to yell at the other man. "Nothing, but

Dumbledore is placing him with Petunia. You know how she is," he

defended himself. "Look, I have a plan, but you need to get to the lawyers

the Potters used and get the will read. You need to clear your name or

you're going to wind up in Azkaban."

"No, Dumbledore will take care of Harry, so what I need to do is hunt

down the rat," Sirius snarled and turned to leave the room, dismissing the

unarmed man as unimportant. Obviously the man wasn't thinking

straight.

Hydrus called up his wand and yelled, "Petrificus Totalus. Silencio." The

spells hit the stubborn man in the back. The time traveler sighed, he had

been hoping to talk sense into the other man, but that wasn't happening.

He had time to think about his Sirius's actions and the talks they had had,

it had given him hope that by threatening this Sirius with never seeing

Harry, then the emotional man would stop and think. Looks like plan B.

"Listen to me, you hotheaded moron. Do you want to spend the rest of

your life in Azkaban? Leaving Harry to the gentle care of the Dursleys?

Think for a minute, you idiot," he said as he advanced on the frozen man.

"You go after Peter and you lose, everyone will think you were the Secret

Keeper and that you gave up your friends to the Dark Lord. If you don't

want that to happen, you will do as I say and get to the lawyers, clear

you name, and meet me at this address," he continued and pulled the

written address from his pocketspace.

Hydrus could tell from the defiant look in the other man's eyes it wasn't

going to be that easy. With a sigh he Accioed his Cloak, grabbed Sirius

and departed to his house. He would leave him here while he went and

got Harry. So he put him on a bed, took Sirius's wand and conjured up

rope to keep the volatile man bound for when the body bind wore off.

"I'll be back as soon as I have Harry. You think about what I said while

I'm gone. It shouldn't be more than a few hours. Tippy," he called.

"Master Hydrus wants Tippy?" the house elf said when she popped in.

"Can you look after this idiot and make sure he doesn't hurt himself?" he

asked, sending a glare at the bound man. He was having second thoughts

on keeping Sirius here, but he would give him a chance to redeem

himself to Harry.

"Tippy can be doing this," Tippy said with a firm nod of her head. She

would do anything for this man. After he bought her; he sat her down

and explained that he wanted a free elf. It took a lot of convincing, but

they finally came to an agreement. She would be free and be paid two

sickles a week with one day off a month, and he would keep her on until

she died.

Giving the elf a grateful smile Hydrus donned his Invisibility Cloak and

made his way to an alley near Privet Drive. It was close to dawn and the

time traveler was a bit confused, there was no baby on the doorstep. He

was just about to go and knock on the door when he heard the sound of

Apparition. Melting into the shadows and putting the Cloak back on, he

saw Minerva McGonagall transform into a cat and sit on a wall. The

longer the two magicals stayed in the neighborhood the more muddled

Hydrus got. According to Hagrid he had come here right away, so where

was he? All day the two sat and watched the house and the Dursleys. The

young man chuckled when Vernon tried to shoo the transfigured teacher.

Night finally fell and then something happened, Dumbledore appeared,

now everything was playing out like he had been told, but what

happened to Harry during the day? How did people know about

Voldemort's defeat? Judging from the news reports he overheard on one

of the neighborhood tellies about the owls and fireworks, Hydrus

concluded that word got out, he just didn't know how or who. He kept far

back from the house, making sure he was out of sight of the all-seeing

Headmaster. He waited for the scene to play out and after the other

magicals left, he crept to number four and gently lifted the sleeping baby.

He felt the blood wards bond to him. That was unexpected, but I guess,

reasonable. After all, I have Lily's blood in me and I'm technically a closer

relation to Harry than Petunia. This will make taking care of him much easier.

Holding Harry tight, he popped back to his house. Once there he could

feel the wards settle on the house and bond with the wards he already

had set. Harry had woken and was fussing. His tired face screwed up in

confusion as he looked around the unfamiliar room and big person and

he said, "Mummy?"

"Mummy is sleeping right now, Harry. You should be a good boy and try

and get more sleep. Uncle Hydrus will wake you up for breakfast,"

Hydrus said, making sure the baby was still clean.

"Mummy sleep?" the tiny tot asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Yes, Harry, she will be sleeping for a very long time."

"Tay," was the tired response as Harry leaned his head on Hydrus's

shoulder and went back to sleep.

Hydrus was actually pretty impressed with his younger self's vocabulary,

must be because he had only been around adults. Shaking those thoughts

away for now, he took the tyke into the nursery and laid him down in the

crib and made sure the baby monitor was on. He gently drew a finger

over the wound on Harry's forehead, the famous lightning bolt scar. The

dreaded horcrux. It was a good thing he prepared for this. Shaking

himself from his musings, he then went to see how Sirius was doing.

The other man was asleep, judging from the tear tracks on his face, he

must have cried himself to that state. Sirius was tossing and turning, as

much as the ropes allowed, so that sleep wasn't peaceful. Hydrus felt bad

for leaving the older — Oops, theoretically I'm older, and isn't that weird—

younger man alone for so long. He still didn't understand what had

happened since he was at Godric's Hollow. He waved his wand and undid

the ropes, removed the silencing charm and left Sirius to sleep.

He was exhausted; the adrenaline was gone. He called up some Pepper-

up potion, put the letter that was with Harry aside and decided to

meditate on everything that went wrong this evening. The same

questions popped into his mind. How did everyone know? Where was Harry

all day? Come to think of it, how did Snape and Hagrid know to be there?

Snape might have been told by Voldemort, but how did Dumbledore know to

tell Hagrid? Around and around these questions chased one another, but

no answers came. Once again he cursed everyone for his lack of

knowledge.

The sounds of Harry waking drew him out of his meditation. He made his

way to the nursery and picked up the toddler. "Ready for breakfast,

Harry?" he asked as he checked the nappy. Seeing it needed to be

changed, he headed to the changing table and took care of it. He grabbed

some clothes he had purchased, just in case, and put them on the silent

baby.

Harry during all of this was looking around with wide eyes. Once the big

person finished cleaning him he asked, "Mummy?"

"Your mummy is still sleeping," Hydrus said sadly. "I am Uncle Hydrus;

I'll be taking care of you now."

"Daddy?" the toddler asked as tears started to well up in his eyes as he

got more confused.

"Daddy is with Mummy."

"Pa'fut?"

"He'll be up soon. Let's go see him and then get something to eat while

we wait for him to wake up." And with that he carried Harry to the room

Sirius was still sleeping in and showed the scared boy that someone he

knew was there. That seemed to relax the toddler so they went to the

kitchen.

Harry was sitting in a high chair and eating away at some bananas and

dry cereal. Hydrus settled on a bowl of the same cereal only with milk.

Tippy was puttering around the kitchen. The toddler was quiet as he

munched on his breakfast, not really understanding what was going on.

He was sure his mummy and daddy would come soon.

It wasn't long until they heard someone barreling down the stairs. A very

unkempt Sirius came running in to the kitchen. He skidded to a halt

when he saw the other occupants. He reached for the wand that wasn't

there and yelled at the only adult, "Who the fuck are you? Why do you

have Harry? Where the hell are we?"

That started Harry crying, causing Tippy to do her best to soothe him.

Seeing Harry was in good hands, Hydrus got up and grabbed Sirius by his

robes and slammed him into the wall in the hallway, out of the view of

the child. "If you don't calm the fuck down, then by Merlin's beard, I'll

feed you the Draught of the Living Death and keep you in the cellar," he

snarled furiously and slammed the other man into the wall again. The

deadly look in his eyes showed that he had no problem doing just that.

Sirius tried to break free, but the stranger was stronger than him. He

looked at the other man's angry face and roared, "Who do you think you

are? That is my godson and I won't let you keep me from him."

"Yes, and you've done such a great job so far," sneered Hydrus. "You

abandoned him to Hagrid to hunt the rat. You had no idea where he was

being taken, even when I tried to warn you, you were more intent on

your vengeance. Now, you've scared the living daylights out of him with

your yelling. Yes, such a wonderful godfather you've been in his time of

need." He shoved the man once again. "His parents died, and the only

person you're thinking of is yourself. Merlin, why did I think bringing

you in was a good idea? So, what's it going to be? Are you going to shut

the hell up and listen to me? Or am I going to let you go and have you

run off after Peter? I can tell you right now if you do then you will never

see Harry again."

"Why? That traitor deserves to die," Sirius asked vengefully.

"Because, you inbred moron, if you go after him then you'll wind up in

Azkaban." Another slamming into the wall.

"How the hell would you know that?"

"Look, if you stop yelling, calm down, and let me take care of Harry, I'll

tell you everything you need to know," was the gentler response. Harry

was still wailing at all the angry voices. So Hydrus let go of the robes and

returned to his younger self. "Shhh, it's okay, shhh," he cooed as he

picked up the scared baby from where Tippy was trying to calm him.

"Uncle Padfoot is just sad; he didn't mean to scare you. Did you,

Padfoot?" sending a piercing glare to the other man.

Sirius visibly wilted and moved to pat Harry on the back. "It's alright,

Prongslet, Uncle Padfoot is sorry he yelled."

Harry hiccupped and looked to his godfather, seeing the man was not

yelling any more he snuggled into Hydrus's shoulder, feeling safe with

the big person. Hydrus continued to rock him and soothe his fears with

meaningless noises.

Hydrus jerked his head to the living room and moved to go there.

Settling a now quiet Harry in a playpen that had a few toys, he nodded

for Sirius to take a seat in one of the chairs.

"How did you know my nickname? No one knows it except me and my

friends," the now calmer, but still frazzled man asked.

Hydrus sighed and ran a hand down his face. "I didn't want to say

anything at the cottage, there are too many questions on what happened

that night. For all I know the place was bugged… listening charms," he

explained at the confused look. "How did anyone know what happened?

Two people showed up before you did, so how did they know? One was a

Death Eater, the other Hagrid. Now correct me if I'm wrong, but Hagrid

had orders from Dumbledore to take Harry to the Dursleys. So how did

the headmaster know the Potters were dead? I was there right after it

happened and your esteemed leader of the Light never showed his face.

Too many unanswered questions. Ones you should be thinking about."

"That explanation leads to the question on how you knew," Sirius accused

loudly, once more looking for his wand.

"If you start yelling again, so help me, I'll Obliviate you of the last week

and let you suffer your own fate," Hydrus growled softly as he looked to

make sure Harry was unaware of the tension. Seeing that the toddler was

occupied he shot a threatening scowl at the hothead.

"Fine, tell me how you knew," Sirius huffed, and defiantly folded his

arms. He didn't have a wand so he was hindered for the moment.

Hydrus thought about it for a few minutes, going over the pros and cons

on telling this ill-tempered man who he was and how he got here.

Azkaban must have done a number on his Sirius, because while he had a

temper, he thought things out better than this Sirius. This guy was hard

to deal with, with his constantly jumping emotions. Then again, maybe

he was being too hard on the guy; after all he did just lost his best friend

and if Hydrus remembered correctly Sirius was feeling a lot of guilt. The

immortal knew the feeling well, years of therapy had helped, but he still

felt like he failed. Both men were running on pure emotions.

Coming to a tentative decision he drew the Elder Wand and pointed it at

the man, in case Sirius decided to snatch Harry and run. He then called

Sirius's wand and threw it at him. "I'll give you one chance to be in

Harry's life. You make a vow to me, here and now, that you will keep my

secrets and I'll tell you everything. If you don't I will do as I threatened

and wipe your memory of me, Harry and the last few days. Make your

choice, vengeance or Harry?" he demanded, never lowering his wand.

You could see the war being fought in Sirius's head. His eyes would flit to

Harry in sad thoughtfulness, then to Hydrus in confusion and then to the

front door in anger. It was a long battle and Hydrus kept his wand

pointed at the other man's head. Ten stressful minutes went by and

finally Sirius's shoulders sagged in defeat.

"What do you want me to say?"

"Just vow that you will keep mine and Harry's secrets until such time as I

release you," Hydrus said, still aiming his wand. He didn't trust the man;

he was just so different than the Sirius he remembered. "If you still want

Peter after you hear me out, I won't stop you."

"I need your full name."

"Hydrus Williamsford Black," was the succinct response. Hydrus hated

that name, but George thought it up; said it sounded posh. So he kept it

to remember his brother in all but blood.

That caused an eyebrow to rise. "I, Sirius Orion Black, do hereby swear

on my life and magic to keep the secrets of Hydrus Williamsford Black

and Harry James Potter, until such time as I am released of said vow,"

Sirius incanted, a blue light sealing the vow. "Now, tell me who you are

and how you know everything."

Hydrus put his wand away in his pocketspace; causing Sirius's other

eyebrow to rise. "To put it bluntly, I'm from the future."

"Right, everyone knows time travel is impossible," was the doubtful reply.

"Not if you are the Master of Death and wield the Deathstick."

"That's a myth. Look, if you're not going to tell me the truth, then why

did you make me take a vow of silence?"

"Listen, you inbred moron—"

"Will you stop calling me that?"

"—I am telling you the truth." He pulled a book-reader from his storage

and handed it to the disbelieving man. "This is a book-reader, invented in

1995 by a man named Frostwell. He left me his vault when there was

only a rumor of the Dark Wanker rising again and a second war breaking

out," he explained, ignoring the snort of disbelief. "On this device there

are thousands of books, both magical and Muggle," he said, using the

hated word.

Sirius took the device, but had no idea what to do with it. His knowledge

of Muggle things was limited. Lily tried to educate him and James, but

since they were in hiding most of the time, there was little she could

teach. Sirius looked around the living room for the first time. There were

weird items scattered everywhere. Over on the opposite wall from where

he sat; there something he thought it was called a telly, only it didn't fit

Lily's description. This box was large and flat, not big and bulky. There as

a clock on the wall that appeared to be showing the time and the weather

outside with numbers instead of hands. A very funny looking radio sat on

the shelf, and a box he had no clue what was for, sat on the floor in front

of the telly. All in all, it was bizarre, but it didn't prove the other man

was from the future.

"This proves nothing, I need something more. I have no idea what

Muggles do nowadays." He handed the book-reader back to Hydrus and

folded his arms.

"Okay, I'll tell you a bit about your past," Hydrus nodded, he should've

known it wouldn't be that easy. "You, James and the traitor are Animagi.

You're a dog, James was a stag and Pettigrew is a rat. Remus is a

werewolf. The four of you were known as the Marauders. Also I was the

one who sent the letter warning you about Pettigrew. How did you send

one back, anyway?"

Sirius growled at the mention of Peter, but remained in his seat. "You

sent those letters? Damn we should have listened to you. I sent it back

with the same owl you sent mine with, just told him to return to sender."

He waved it away as unimportant. "What else do I need to know?" he

asked, thinking the guy must be barmy.

"My birth name is Harry James Potter."

"What?!" the other man shouted and fell out of his chair, causing little

Harry to start crying again.

"Dammit, Sirius, will you stop that?" Hydrus snapped as he got up to

calm the toddler.

While Hydrus was rocking Harry, Sirius picked himself up and looked at

the other man. He didn't look anything like James; though he had Lily's

eyes (Hydrus never used his contacts at home). Looking harder he could

see some of his friend's features, he still looked like a Black though. He

settled back down in his chair and waited.

Hydrus joined him, with Harry on his lap. "Quit yelling," he said softly,

but with a threatening look.

"Sorry," Sirius replied as he looked at young Harry's tear-filled eyes.

Harry was chewing on the ear of a stuffed bear and looking at Sirius like

he was going to start using his loud voice again. He burrowed back into

Hydrus's chest and kept watching his godfather.

"Now as I was saying, my birth name is Harry James Potter, but I

changed it legally and magically. You helped with that, by the way. In

order for me to not create a paradox, I had to change who I am," the time

traveler explained, keeping his voice normal.

"But… Why did you come back? Was the future so horrible? You

mentioned a second war, was that why? Did everyone die?" the rapid fire

questions came.

"Not exactly," hedged Hydrus. "Yes, a lot of people died, everyone I called

family, but my only reason for this venture is to save Harry. No one

should go through what I went through. I did try and save Mum and Dad,

but the Fidelius kept me from them. By the time I got there they were

gone," he said sadly, stroking the tot's back.

"Alright, tell me everything."

So Hydrus firmed his hold on Harry and started talking. He told about his

life with the Dursleys, ignoring the vengeful noises of the other man, but

shooting a glare to remind him to be silent. He went on about all of his

trials in Hogwarts and how the populace would revere him and then

vilify him at the drop of a hat. He went on about all his confrontations

with the Dork Lord. The second war and what happened after; Sirius

chuckled softly when he got to the revenge bits. He explained all of the

preparations that he made to come back and finished with him appearing

here and what he had done since he had been back. All this was recanted

in monotone as to not wake the child that had fallen asleep partway

through.

Not the bedtime story I had planned, Hydrus mentally groaned.

"What I didn't count on is you still being a hotheaded arsehole," he added

at the end. When he said "arsehole," the half-awake Harry mimicked him,

then the baby snuggled down and went back to sleep. — Oops I'm going to

have to stop cussing, Hydrus chuckled to himself. "I guess I should've

realized that Azkaban changed you. The Sirius I knew was more serious."

The gobsmacked Sirius didn't even take up the old joke, his mind was

reeling with everything he had just been told. He was now starting to

doubt people he trusted most of his life. The three sat in silence while

Sirius mulled everything over.

"You have Death Eaters in a coma, in crypts, in a Muggle cemetery?" he

finally settled on. "So you meant it when you threatened to do the same

to me?"

"Yeah," was the cautious answer.

"I'm not sure if that is a great prank or if you're a sadistic bastard," Sirius

said just as warily.

"Tell you the truth, I'm not sure either." Hydrus shrugged. He looked at

the toddler sleeping in his arms and wondered if he wasn't being a little

overzealous in protecting him.

Hphphp

Okay, so both men are feeling emotional and guilty and yeah Hydrus took it

out on Sirius. I hemmed and hawed about this chapter, but finally settled on

this version.

As for Harry taking to Hydrus so quickly, I have four children, and I can tell

you that one would go to any stranger and demand to be picked up (which

scared me to death), while another would scream bloody murder if anyone

other than me went anywhere near her. The other two were indifferent, but

would cuddle with those they felt safe with. Harry really doesn't understand

where his mummy is, he only knows she is sleeping, so it is not that far-

fetched.

9. Calmer Conversations

Chapter 9 Calmer Conversations

AN: thanks again to my betas, darrelldeam, alix33 and The 5h15

spaceman (who helped me with the fight scene). As usual all

mistakes are my own.

This chapter has a lot of dialog, which is necessary; some of it will seem

ridiculous, but again necessary. Sirius is going to come off as confused, but

unlike Hydrus he hasn't had time to deal with his losses from the war, nor has

he had any professional help, so yeah he is a bit unbalanced. It won't last long.

Snape has to go, I can't write him, and so I'm getting rid of him as quickly as I

can. Also this story will have confrontations with Dumbledore, but I'm not

going to bash him if I can help it.

Hphphp

Hydrus slowly stood, balancing a still sleeping Harry. "I'm going to settle

him in his cot. You stay here and think on what you want to ask me. You

can call Tippy, but you should know there is no alcohol in the house."

Sirius was still deep in thought and just waved the other man away. So

Hydrus took Harry to his room. "Tippy?"

"Master Hydrus is calling Tippy?" the excitable elf asked when she

popped in.

"Yeah, can you watch over Harry for a bit? We adults need to talk. He

should stay asleep for a little while, but see to his needs when he wakes

up, please," Hydrus said as he watched the sleeping tot.

"Tippy can do," the free elf said.

"Thank you, Tippy, you're the best," the time traveler said, with a small

smile, and then he left the room to go and join his godfather/cousin. He

settled back on the sofa and waited the other man out.

"If I had run off after Peter, I would've spent over twelve years in

Azkaban?" a dawning horror coming over Sirius's face. As if he was just

now realizing what Hydrus's timeline had held. "No trial, just chucked

into prison? Dumbledore didn't try and get me out? Why? I was a good

soldier to him," his voice started to rise.

"Sirius," Hydrus snapped, looking to the ceiling, "I get that you're angry,

but Harry needs to sleep. I think he's suffering from magical exhaustion. I

don't want to keep fighting you, so keep your voice down."

"Why don't you just throw up a silencing charm?" the confused man

asked.

"Why don't you just control your temper? I don't use magic for

everything," the immortal snapped, one thing he had learned in his self-

exile was that magic wasn't the cure-all. "Look," he said, running a hand

through his hair, "if you are going to be part of Harry's life I need you to

learn to control yourself. I don't want him exposed to a lot of anger."

"Okay, okay, I understand," Sirius said taking a few deep breaths. He still

needed to process everything he had been told, plus grieve over all the

deaths that happened recently.

"Sirius," Hydrus said, bringing the other man's attention back to him, "I

wanted to apologize about accusing you of abandoning Harry, it was a bit

hypocritical of me. And I said it in anger."

The other man waved it off as unimportant, there were a lot of things

said that were in the heat of the moment. "Can you answer my questions?

How did I wind up in Azkaban? Why didn't anyone stand up for me?"

"From what I understand, in what little information I could gather about

this whole week, everyone thinks you're the Secret Keeper. When you

went after Peter you caught up with him and he killed twelve non-

magicals and framed you for his death. Crouch Sr. and Bagnold wanted a

scapegoat and you were it. Dumbledore either believes you're the Secret

Keeper or was content to have you out of Harry's life, for the Greater

Good. I don't know which," Hydrus answered as best he could. He had

researched everything he could. Even called up spirits of the dead, but all

of the stories conflicted, even his parents couldn't answer some of his

questions, like they had been Obliviated, and death hadn't cured them of

that. The only way that could be explained was if the spell was cast with

the Elder Wand, leaving Hydrus to have more doubts about the

Headmaster.

"So what do I do now? I don't want to go to Azkaban," the now desperate

man asked.

"First answer a few questions. Did the Potters use a lawyer to write a

will?"

"Yeah, Lily insisted."

"Do you know which firm?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, that's good," Hydrus said with a nod of his head, plans forming.

He called up a watch like gizmo and handed it to the other man. "This is

a sorta glamor/Polyjuice device. It will only change you enough to look

like a family member, but not yourself. George invented it, it takes a bit

of your blood and combined with the glamor spell morphs your face," he

explained. "I don't think that Dumbledore has had time to call the

Wizengamot to have the wills sealed. Even with his pull, it would take a

few days."

Sirius took the watch with trepidation, he really didn't know the man in

front of him; however, Hydrus had stopped him from making the biggest

mistake of his life. So taking a leap of faith he put the watch on. His

cheekbones lowered, his mouth thinned and his hair shrank to ear length

with his facial hair vanishing. It was a weird sensation. He conjured a

mirror and looked at his new features.

"Now," Hydrus said, snapping Sirius's attention away from the mirror,

"you need to get to the lawyer, have the will read, hire them to represent

you and get custody of Harry."

"You don't want custody?"

"No, I have no legal ground; you, on the other hand, are his godfather.

However, I do want all of us to live here, where the blood wards are."

"What blood wards?" Sirius asked, vaguely remembering Hydrus saying

something about them in his narration earlier.

"Whatever Mum did to protect me and Harry, created a blood ward.

That's the whole reason Dumbledore wants Harry at the Dursleys. When I

picked him up those protections bonded to me. So the house is now

under those wards," Hydrus explained calmly. "The ones from my

timeline were weak from the lack of love in the house. I plan on making

these as strong as I can."

"We should do something about those people," Sirius growled, getting

fired up once again.

"Stop, look, I understand the need for vengeance, but these Dursleys

haven't done anything. So, no, I will not do anything to them. I plan on

letting them live their pathetically normal life. Without me as a fall guy,

that normalness will fade soon enough. The only Dursley I plan on

ruining is Marge. That sadistic bitch needs to be taken down, but that's

for later." By the time Hydrus had gotten around to Marge in his timeline,

she had disappeared, so his need to get back at her was still strong.

"What? After everything they did to you?" was the shocked response.

Even after all these years, he still wanted to torture his parents for the

way they treated him as a child. So it was hard to understand why

Hydrus didn't feel the same.

"I got my vengeance in my timeline. When I left they were still running

from wizards. George said he'd track them down every now and then to

keep that fear alive," the immortal shrugged. "Years of therapy helped not

to want to get it in this timeline. Your constant need to get revenge is

unhealthy, so you will see a therapist if you're going to stay here with

Harry." It was a demand and not a suggestion.

"What?! I'm not crazy," Sirius yelled in defense.

"If you wake Harry, we're going to have words again," Hydrus threatened,

shutting the other man up. "I didn't say you were crazy, I said your

emotions were unhealthy. Besides, I know a bit about your past and what

you got up to at Hogwarts. What you find funny; I consider bullying. I

will not have Harry raised a bully. Pranks are all well and good, if they

don't hurt anyone. If you try and make him like you guys were in school,

I erase your memory of us and dump you in London," the older man

vowed.

"Wait, you're confusing me. One minute you want me to get custody, the

next you're threatening to send me away. Make up your damn mind, for

Merlin's sake," Sirius said, shaking his head and grabbing his hair.

"I do want you to get custody, and I want you in Harry's life, but there

are going to be rules," Hydrus said in a much gentler voice, trying to get

the man to see reason.

"How are you going to stop me from just grabbing Harry and running?"

"There you go again, not thinking of Harry," Hydrus accused. "There is no

safer place on earth than in this house. No one can find him here, not

even Dumbledore."

"Right, blood wards, forgot about them," the Animagus said with a shake

of his head. He still wasn't thinking clearly, too much had happened to

him in the last month and now this.

"Okay, look, you have to get to the lawyers before they close for the day.

The watch changed you enough that you should be able to get there

unmolested. Don't go to the Ministry until you talked to the solicitor.

Don't forget your vow to keep mine and Harry's secrets."

Sirius looked at his new watch, which surprisingly told time, and noted it

was three in the afternoon. He got up, cast a cleansing charm, righted his

robes and said, "Right, I best get to it then. I'll be back in a few hours,

hopefully."

"Since that huge scene with Peter never happened, you should be okay,"

Hydrus said confidently, even though he was a bit nervous for the man.

"You'll have to go to the fence, only I can Apparate to and from the

house. Good luck and keep your temper."

"Right," Sirius said with a determined look on his new face. He then left

the house with his Gryffindor courage wrapped around him like a shroud

and went to face his fate.

After the other man left Hydrus called Tippy. When she appeared he

asked, "How is Harry doing? Is he awake yet?"

"Little Master is being up for a while. Tippy is giving him peanut butter

sandwiches in itsy-bitsy pieces and juiceys. Then Tippy is making sure

Little Master is playing in his room."

"That's good. Has he asked for his mummy?" he asked, knowing it would

be some time before Harry stopped, but the amount of times he did ask

would show how well he is dealing with his parents not being here.

Hydrus wanted Harry to feel safe and not abandoned.

"It is being very sad, Little Master askes for his mummy when he is

waking up and Tippy is telling him she is still sleeping. Little Master is

wanting to be waking her, but Tippy is telling him that she is sleeping

somewheres else. It is taking a while, but Tippy is calming him down,"

the little elf explained, with tears rimming her huge eyes.

"You did the right thing, Tippy." Hydrus said, kneeling down to her level

and rubbing the sad elf's back.

"Tippy is only doing what Master Hydrus is telling her to be doing. She is

understanding why Master Hydrus is telling Little Master lies, but Tippy

is wondering when we can be telling the Little Master the truths," she

asked shyly, still not use to being able to question the person in charge.

"When he is old enough to understand better, until then, I think I'll to go

to the cottage and see if I can salvage anything that might help him keep

their memory," he said, rubbing his chin in thoughtfulness. He also

needed to find out what happened to Peter. Hydrus may not have been

an Auror, but that didn't stop him from training as one. So he knew the

correct investigative spells to hunt down the traitor. "Hey, I have to go

out for a few hours. Are you okay with Harry?"

"Yes, Master Hydrus, sir, Tippy knows how to take care of babies," the

little house elf said.

"Great, I shouldn't be long." And with that he donned his Cloak and

popped to the ruins in Godric's Hollow. The place was swarming with

people, wizard and non-magical alike. Carefully threading his way to

where he had seen the rat last, Hydrus cast a spell to locate where the

traitor had Apparated to. Trying to keep as quiet as possible, he popped

to that location. Keeping his Cloak on in case the Aurors were also on the

trail, Hydrus looked around. There was no more magical signature, but

there was a blood trail.

Following that, he came upon a scene where there was a lot of blood. He

cast again to see who had been there and found Snape's signature. The

only reason he knew the Potions Master's magic was because of the many

times he had been exposed to it in his timeline, like when Snape had used

the very spell that Hydrus saw the remnants of on Draco to cure the same

wound.

Damn, he must have doubled back and followed the trail as well, which means

that Pettigrew is alive, he fumed silently. Or, Snape cured Peter enough to

question him. Knowing Snape he used Legilimency and got the truth. That

means he either took the rat to Dumbledore or he killed him and is disposing

of the body.

Casting once more for Disapparition, he found only one trail. That path

was blocked from being followed. Cursing the fact that Snape got to him

first, Hydrus went back to Godric's Hollow. Once again weaving through

the crowd, he made his way to the door. There were a few Aurors doing

crowd control, but they had put up some kind of ward to keep the public

out. Since Hydrus was still technically a Potter, he got in with no

problem. Looking around the shambles of the once nice living room, he

saw no one was there. The bodies of his parents were gone, and Hydrus

had a fleeting thought as to who took care of that, probably Dumbledore.

He knew they were going to be buried in the local cemetery, he'd visit

them later.

He silently made his way around the house, picking up pictures and

heirlooms and tucked them in his pocketspace. He didn't worry about

kitchen items, since he had stocked up on those, but Harry might want

things he was used to around, so Hydrus made his way quietly up the

stairs and started collecting Harry's things. The Aurors present were so

intent on studying the robes on the floor that they didn't even notice that

items were disappearing in midair. Thank goodness Mad-eye isn't here.

After gathering all he needed: clothes and toys and such, he shook his

head at their lack of attention and popped away home.

The rest of the day was spent arranging the things he brought and

playing with Harry. The tot asked about his mum a few more times, and

Hydrus gave him the same answer. He felt bad for the little guy, who was

confused, but knew from his research that Harry just wouldn't understand

that his parents were dead. So he continued to tell him they were going

to be gone a long time. Hydrus was thankful that Harry had taken to him

so well.

After Harry went down for the night, Hydrus also went to bed. Sirius

would have to wait until morning. He hadn't slept in three days and

Pepper-up potion only took you so far. So an emotionally and physically

exhausted immortal fell to his bed, completely clothed, and was asleep

before his head hit the pillow.

Either Harry hadn't woken through the night, or Tippy took care of him,

either way Hydrus woke up refreshed and much calmer. He did his

morning rituals and went to see if Harry was still asleep. When he didn't

see the toddler in the cot, Hydrus figured he was with Tippy. So he made

his way to the room Sirius used the other night, seeing the man asleep on

the bed, he sighed in relief and went to the kitchen.

Harry was sitting in his chair, munching away on his breakfast. So,

Hydrus ruffled his hair as he went by and made himself some scrambled

eggs and toast. When Sirius joined them this time it was without fanfare.

They talked about non-important things, both having been taught the

dining room table was not a place for heavy conversation. Hydrus once

again asked Tippy to tend to Harry, hoping that when everything was

settled better, he could spend more time with his younger self.

The two men made their way to the living room, this time the

atmosphere was much more relaxed.

"So how did it go with the lawyer?"

"Well, I got to tell you, we cut it close. I just got the will read, when the

summons to the Wizengamot was owled in," Sirius answered, with a

shrug. "They were too late, of course. I hired the lawyer, Mr. Greenway,

to represent me; I even gave him the memory of the switch. He said it

would take a few days and to hide out until I heard from him."

"That's good," Hydrus sighed and then changed the subject. "I went to try

and find Peter after you left. But the trail grew cold and I have no idea if

he is alive or dead. I have my suspicions that Snape saw him last, but if

he found out the rat was the one who got Mum killed, I don't hold much

hope of Pettigrew coming out alive." He could try summoning the shade,

but he didn't think that would be good for his frayed nerves.

"Snivellus," Sirius snarled.

"I know, I know, but there are a few things you don't know about the

man. I'm not going to defend him right now. We have other things to

worry about," Hydrus said firmly.

"Like what?"

"Harry, Death Eaters, Dumbledore, Remus, Gringotts, your anger, the

whole Boy Who Lived thing or loads of other things," the older man

listed, ticking his fingers for each item. "Plus I have my shop and

accounts to maintain."

"Let's start with Remus," Sirius said, wondering what happened to the

werewolf in Hydrus's timeline. "As far as we knew, until Peter betrayed

James, he was under suspicion as going Dark. I didn't want to believe it,

but the evidence was overwhelming. He was hardly ever coming to

meetings and when he was there he was distant. Now, I don't know what

to think."

"Well, I can tell you here and now, that Remus is not and never will be

drawn to the Dark. I think you guys were so worried about a spy you

grabbed a hold of the first bit of gossip and ran with it. I, for one, think it

is disgusting the way people will listen to rumors before listening to fact,"

Hydrus said with a curl of his lip. Yeah, he still had issues about that.

"What? No, Peter said… Dumbledore was worried…"

"That's another thing, why do you blindly follow that man? Yeah, I get

that he stopped a war, and that he should be honored for that. However,

one fight does not a leader make," Hydrus interrupted him. "Dumbledore

does his best, but you can't fight a war with stunners. Leaving an enemy

at your back is suicide."

"But, he is in charge of so many political positions," the confused man

said.

"Those were all thrust on him. He never asked to be in charge, the

wizarding world simply took it upon themselves to put him on a pedestal

and leave him there. Like I said, he does his best, but no one, and I mean

no one, should have that much power."

"Dumbledore is a great man!" Sirius yelled in defense, leaping from his

chair.

"Don't you bloody well start yelling," Hydrus snapped and waited for the

man to sit back down. "I never said he wasn't. I only said he shouldn't

have that much control. People with that much political power either

wind up hubristic or Dark. And if you look back on his actions you will

see that once he sets his mind to something, there is very little that can

change it. I put the blame directly on the wizarding public. If the

common witch or wizard would just think for themselves, Dumbledore

wouldn't have to do all their thinking for them," the immortal said

exasperated. It was going to be something he was going to try and fix

with his and George's inventions. Not to mention the people that would

try and stop him. He might get a few that would be angry enough to try

and kill him, as well. He was going to have to be careful.

Sirius was thinking back on all the times he and James had defended

Remus, and how the headmaster wouldn't be swayed from his misgivings.

Taking a few minutes to go over other meetings and looking at them with

new eyes, he did note that everything was argued away by the

headmaster in that I-know-better-than-you voice, or looked upon with

disappointment in those ever twinkling eyes. He would always look up to

the man, but he could see Hydrus's point. He sighed and brought the

conversation back to Remus. "So, did you want to bring Remus in to help

raise Harry? He is really smart and could be very helpful."

Hydrus let the talk about Dumbledore fade for now. "I am thinking about

it. I know he is a good man. He was the only teacher that didn't talk

down to me, mostly. So after you're cleared, yeah I think we should find

him and ask."

Sirius nodded in agreement and moved on to another topic. "So, Death

Eaters, from what you told me a lot of them got away scot free. Knowing

you have Lucius and Bella on ice, so to speak, do you think that's going to

happen again?"

"Only if Narcissa gets involved, it was the Malfoy money that bought

their freedom," Hydrus shook his head. "I have enough money to counter

that, only I need you to do it, since you have some pull with your name.

You won't get your title until your grandpa passes, but the Black name

still gets doors open, especially for the only male heir. I'll be known as an

outcast Black, so my name won't have as much pull. My story is I'm

descendant of Marius Black, since he is a squib. All of my paperwork

shows this, in my timeline he was already dead, and so it was easy. I

think he is living in London somewhere."

Sirius grimaced, he really didn't want that title, but the man had a point.

So he nodded and said, "I'll write to Cissy and warn her to keep her hands

clean. Yeah, Marius was one of the last blasted off the tapestry, so his line

won't show. I'll write him as well, to keep the story, if he is still alive that

is. He would think it a great prank to the people who turned on him."

"That's a start," the immortal said and the two sat in comfortable silence,

thinking over where to go next. Tippy popped in with morning tea.

Breaking the quiet, Sirius asked, "What next?"

"I need to go find Snape; I only have a general idea where he lives, so it

might take a minute. But I need to keep him out of Harry's life, so I'm

going to offer him freedom," Hydrus answered then looked at the other

man. "That means you stay here and watch Harry. Tippy will help, but I

need your word that you won't run off. We'll look for Remus after your

name is cleared." He knew Tippy would intervene if anything happened.

Since she was a free elf, she could defend herself and Harry, if need be.

"You have it," Sirius said, raising his hands in compliance.

"Right," the older man said and called up his book-reader. He looked up

Spinner's End on the maps he had downloaded. The only problem was he

had no idea of the house number. He would have to search for wards,

because knowing Snape there would be some nasty ones. "I don't know

how long I'll be so don't wait dinner on me." And then he stood, went to

his room, put in his contacts, pulled on his Cloak and Disapparated.

He appeared in a deserted park, it seemed to be a dividing line between

two neighborhoods. On one side was a well-cared for middle class street,

on the other side was the exact opposite. Now it made more sense as to

how his mum and Snape met. He knew from the memories that Snape

was from a lower class family, but his mum's family was never poor, at

least according to Petunia.

He cast the spell that indicated the presence of magic in the shabby

street. Walking down the road, still under the Cloak, he finally came

upon a house that was warded to the gills. Calling up his shock gun he

blasted those wards, not caring if the man inside knew he was there. He

kept his wand in hand and walked closer to the door.

When Hydrus got five feet to the threshold, Snape came out wand a

blazing. Hydrus ducked and moved forward quickly, his Cloak flying off.

Using his empty hand, Hydrus made a fist and slammed it into the hated

teacher's jaw, before kneeing him in the groin.

Snape stumbled back and doubled over in pain, vulnerable from the

unexpected attack.

Hydrus used that to his advantage and shoved the man into the house. He

Accioed his Cloak to him. When he was out of the public eye he threw

the still dazed Snape on to a chair, snatched his wand and roped him

down.

"Hello, Snivellus," the time traveler said as he sat on a surprisingly clean

chair.

"Who are you?" Snape sneered, glaring hatefully at the man in front of

him. "You look just like a Black," he spat the name.

"That's not important right now," Hydrus said, waving away the question.

"I am actually here to make you an offer you shouldn't refuse."

"You attacked me," the bound man said in disbelief.

"You attacked me first. That's not the point; the point is I can offer you

freedom. You take me up on it, and you'll never have to worry about

serving anyone again. If you listen to Dumbledore, you'll be spending the

rest of your life in a job you hate. Listen to me and you leave the country

tonight and you'll never have to look back," Hydrus explained with a

slightly mischievous gleam in his eye. Snape may never serve anyone

again, but he would always be on the run. Being the Slytherin he was,

Hydrus was sure that the Potions Master would be fine, just very

paranoid.

Snape shot him a distrustful look and then barked, "Explain."

"I can remove the Dark Mark, give you enough non-magical money to get

out of the country as well as give you a device that will hide who you

are. The rest is up to you, you're smart enough to support yourself,

youngest Potions Master of the age," Hydrus shrugged as if it was not big

deal.

"How did you know about the Headmaster's offer?"

"Sorry, can't tell ya, vow you know. I can tell you that your conversations

weren't as private as you thought," he lied.

"And what of my vow to protect the Potter brat?" Snape asked, as his

dark eyes flitted around the room. You could see he was honestly

thinking about getting out of Britain. There were no good memories for

him here, and if they ever found out what he did to Pettigrew...

"He's well protected, thanks to his mum. Besides, Dumbledore didn't keep

his side of the bargain, so the vow is worthless."

A look of anguish crossed his face for a moment at the thought of his

dead friend. He had trusted Dumbledore to protect her, this man was

correct, the vow was void. Then his face firmed into his usual sneer. His

well-kept mind was going over the possibilities. "How do you know I'll

keep my word?"

"Easy enough, you take a vow to never step foot in the country again."

"And if I am captured?"

"Not my problem."

"My position as a spy?" was the greasy-haired man's final question.

"If I have it my way, Voldemort will never return," Hydrus said in a steely

voice. There was a murderous glare in his eyes.

Mulling it over for a few minutes, Snape finally nodded. Hydrus lifted the

Elder Wand and pointed it at the man's head. He unbound him and threw

him his wand. "Simply say that you will never willingly come back to the

United Kingdom."

Taking his wand, Snape incanted the vow and waited. Hydrus pulled out

a glamor watch, explained what it did and then gave the Potions Master

an expanded Mokeskin bag filled with pounds.

Severus's face changed in drastic ways. His greasy hair turned dark

brown and messy, which made Hydrus giggle internally. His eyes went

from fathomless black to pale brown. His nose shortened, it still looked

like it had been broken a time or two it was just smaller. He crooked

teeth straightened a little, so it didn't look like he ate metal on a regular

basis, but just didn't care for them. His skin went from shallow to just

plain pale. Oh, the Potions Master would never win a beauty contest, but

he might not be tracked down so fast with this face. The immortal was

surprised at the major differences; usually the watch was far more subtle.

Snape conjured a mirror and sneered at his new face. Hydrus said he

might want to change his distinctive style of clothing, which caused the

man to snarl. He then indicated for the ex-Death Eater to show the tattoo

on his arm. He grabbed the wrist and said in parseltongue, "Finite

Incantatem." The mark disappeared, the skin was unmarred. Snape almost

showed signs of relief.

It had been a shock to realize that he still had the snake tongue. After a

lot of research on the mark he figured out why no one could remove it

and was surprised when it was so simple. Voldemort must have thought

it a great amusement that so many had tried and failed.

"It is all up to you now. I do have one question though. Did you kill

Pettigrew?" Hydrus inquired casually.

Snape shot him a fleeting wary glare, which of course gave the immortal

the answer. The younger man's face smoothed and he said snidely, "I

have no idea what you are talking about."

"I really don't care; I just want to know if I have to watch out for the

traitor in the future."

"As far as I know Pettigrew will never darken your doorstep," Snape said

in that silky voice he had. Then he turned and dismissed the intruder and

started packing up his house, putting everything in the Mokeskin bag.

Seeing the snub for what it was Hydrus shrugged and left. He had done

what he came for and got a bit of extra information in return. So he

popped back to the house, scaring Sirius, who was trying to figure out the

telly. "What are you doing?" Hydrus asked in amusement.

"This one isn't like the one Lily showed me and James. There is no on

button," the Animagus said sheepishly.

"Sit, I'll turn it on. Where's Harry?" the older man said as he pushed the

button at the bottom of the telly and turned it to the local news.

"Sleeping again. He's been down for about an hour, so he should be up

soon. We had a really good time; Harry is such a bright kid. He seems to

be adjusting well. Thanks for getting his stuff, I think that helped," Sirius

answered and then looked at the other man's content face. "You got him

to leave?"

"Yup," Hydrus said happily, "it was easier than I thought. Then again he

all but confessed to killing Peter. Not even the headmaster can help him

if that gets out."

Sirius's brow wrinkled in a frustrated frown. He wanted to kill Peter, now

Snivellus took that from him.

Seeing that look Hydrus said, "He's gone, there's nothing you can do now.

Live with it."

The two men sat and watched the news; there were more reports on

fireworks and owls, but nothing important. So, Hydrus introduced Sirius

to the wonderful world of video games. With the more important things

out of the way, they could talk over the rest tomorrow.

10. Bringing in Remus

Chapter 10 Bringing in Remus

AN: thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own. Thank you all for viewing,

reviewing, favoriting and following my story. A quick thanks to all

of those who point out my errors, some are on purpose and some

are mistakes. So thanks.

A big thanks to, Danneyland, for the help with the new summary.

Hphphp

It was two days later when the owl came; Sirius was not a wanted man.

Mr. Greenway said that since he had the Potter will and the memory, it

was easy to prove that Sirius was not the Secret Keeper and to watch for

the Prophet headline. Those two days were spent in a flurry of letter

writing.

Sirius wrote to his grandfather, Arcturus, to ask about his place in the

family; Narcissa, to warn her to keep the Malfoy money out of other

people's pockets; and Marius, to let him know what was going on. He

didn't want to write to his grandfather, but Hydrus insisted.

Hydrus wrote three letters with his laptop, one was to the Longbottoms

warning them to keep watch for vengeful Death Eaters; he signed it 'a

friend'. He also sent a letter to the Dursleys warning them to move if they

didn't want freaks watching their house; this one unsigned. The last letter

was to Frostwell, telling him he had heard about his inventions and

asking him if he wanted to combine their efforts. He gave the address to

the shop and told the man he could leave an answer for him there.

That evening the paper was delivered as a special addition. The first

headline read:

Peter Pettigrew Wanted for Questioning in the Potter Murders

The article that followed described what might have happened on

Halloween and the details of Sirius's memory of the switch. It also told

that Pettigrew was a rat Animagus and might be in hiding and to

consider him dangerous.

The second headline was:

Many Purebloods Missing; Presumed Death Eaters

This article said that many prominent members of society were missing

and after the Aurors found many Dark items in their houses while

searching for clues the absent Purebloods were thought to be in league

with He Who Must Not Be Named. Lucius, Bellatrix and the others that

Hydrus rendered useless were listed as Dark (except Crouch Jr. who in a

smaller article was only listed as missing and it was also mentioned his

father would give a hefty reward for any viable information on him).

The last headline said:

Lestrange Brothers Caught Attempting to Assassinate Longbottoms

This one said that the two brothers tried to break into Longbottom

manor. When they were caught trying to take down the wards by Mad-

eye Moody, Frank and Alice Longbottom. It was Alastor that dragged

them to a cell. When the brothers were questioned under Veritaserum

they stated that they were looking for Bellatrix and their Master's

whereabouts. They thought since Neville was on the Dark Lord's hit list

that the Longbottoms would know. Frank made sure to thank the

anonymous informant for the warning, had it not been for that missive

they would have not been as vigilant.

Hydrus was quite content with the stories. Now that the Ministry didn't

have Sirius as a scapegoat they had to actually do their job and hunt

down the remaining Death Eaters. Hydrus made a promise to himself to

keep an eye on each future article to make sure no innocent was charged.

"Sirius," Hydrus said as they were finishing up their breakfast the next

morning, "we need to get you to the Ministry, so you can sign custody

papers for Harry."

"Right," Sirius agreed, looking more like himself. He had slept better and

now the bags under his grey eyes weren't as pronounced and without the

glamor watch on his goatee and mustache were neatly trimmed, and his

long black hair was loosely curled. All in all, he looked well rested and

closer to the aristocrat he was supposed to be. "Then can we find

Moony?" he asked almost childlike. He had wanted to write him the last

couple of days, but Hydrus suggested he wait until his name was cleared,

because in the last timeline, Moony thought him guilty. There would be

apologies between both men, but they were all that was left of the

Marauders.

Hydrus's eyes softened at the near pleading request. The last couple of

days had been cathartic for the other man. With his grieving at night,

reading some self-help books, playing with Harry and his talent for

violent video games, he seemed to have vented a lot of emotion;

however, he was feeling keenly alone without his friends. "Yeah, with

that Prophet headline about Pettigrew, it should be safe. You should

write him now; let him know we can meet him tonight, and maybe

there'll be an answer when we get back?"

"Right, I'll pop off a quick letter. Where should we meet him?" he asked.

Some more life came back into that face. Being around Harry helped, but

he needed someone to talk to and as much as Hydrus came through for

him, he was not yet close enough to the man.

"There's a diner in London called John's Eatery, it has the best chocolate

cake in all of England and if your Remus is anything like mine that'll suit.

It's on the bus route and if I remember correctly, Remus can't drive, so it

is easier to meet him there and bring him back." He had no problem

erasing the werewolf's memory of the house, him, and Harry if things

went bad. However, Remus seemed to forgive Sirius easily enough last

time, so he wasn't overly worried. "Besides, I want some of that cake."

Sirius barked with laughter and nodded. He then headed up the stairs to

his room to write his request. Twenty minutes later he came back down

dressed in some semi-formal dark blue robes. Hydrus wore plainer dark

green ones. After letting Tippy know they'd be back in a few hours, the

two men left.

Coming to the visitor's entrance, they dialed the number in the out of

order phone booth, got their nametags, and enjoyed the trip down. They

made their way to the check in, handed over their wands (Hydrus's holly

phoenix wand), and got directions to the Department of Family Services.

The office was unimpressive, just a counter with cubbyholes lining the

back wall behind it. A doorway that looked like it would lead to the

archives. There were chairs along the front wall and a table in the far

corner. You could tell this was an underfunded department of the

Ministry. Then again there was very little use for the office, since

magicals tended to cherish their children, and Muggle-raised were not a

priority. The department was mostly used to place squibs in non-magical

orphanages, and the occasional adoption.

You would think that since the war was just over the office would see

more traffic, but it looked like families were tending their orphans

without the help of the Ministry, such as Susan Bones. Harry should have

gone through here, if for nothing else to make sure he had all the correct

paperwork to live with his non-magical aunt.

A very bored clerk looked up from his book and asked, "What can I do for

you gentlemen today?" Jacob Winifred liked his job, as long as he didn't

have to do anything.

Sirius pulled out his copy of the will and handed to the man behind the

desk. "I recently obtained custody of my godson. I need to fill out the

appropriate forms," he said in a jovial voice. "I also need his documents

for the Muggle World."

The rather dumpy clerk took the will and started to read. The more he

read the wider his eyes got. "This is the will of James Potter! That means

you're going to raise Harry Potter! The Boy Who Lived! It's a pleasure to

meet you, Sirius Black," he shouted cheerfully as he reached over the

counter and started pumping Sirius's hand.

The other two men groaned. They had been hoping that title wasn't well

known yet. Sirius glared at the clerk, jerked his hand away and barked,

"Don't call him that. His name is Harry. Just do your job and get me the

forms I need."

Jacob paled at the order and started scurrying around to get the

paperwork. After gathering all that was required, he handed them to

Sirius and the two Blacks took themselves to the visitors' tables to fill

them out. While they did that, the clerk worked on the Muggle papers.

Most of it was easy enough, simply calling records from the archive and

spelling them with a small charm to list a Muggle hospital as a place of

birth.

Thirty minutes later, Sirius finished and went back to the desk and

handed the completed forms to the employee. The pudgy man looked

them over, nodded every now and then as he flipped through, and

stamped where needed. After the last page was stamped, the bundle

flashed white, duplicated twice, and the originals disappeared.

"Here you go, Mr. Black. This is your copy, his Muggle papers, and you

are all done," the happy clerk said as he handed Sirius the papers. "Tell

Mr. Potter thank you for me, would ya?"

Sirius took the bundle, folded it and put it in his robe pocket. "Harry is a

one year old," he sneered, "I doubt he would understand your thanks.

Besides, you should be thanking Lily." And with that he spun away and

led Hydrus out of the office, satisfied that they were there before

Dumbledore could convince the Wizengamot to make him magical

guardian.

"How are we going to stop that name?" Sirius asked as they walked down

the hall.

"Now that you're his guardian, the second someone prints the title, you

go and talk to them. When those dreaded books hit the shelf you sue the

pants off the authors," Hydrus answered. "We might want to see about

buying up shares of the Prophet."

Sirius nodded and they continued their way. They were halfway through

the atrium when they both caught sight of purple and pink robes and

heard Sirius's name being called. They glanced at each other, sighed and

turned to the approaching headmaster.

"Ah, Sirius, my boy, I had heard you were here finishing up on the final

paperwork. I wanted to talk to you about young Harry," Dumbledore said

when he caught up with the two men.

"Albus, how good to see you. This is my cousin, Hydrus Black," Sirius

said, waving his hand at Hydrus, who simply nodded his head to the old

man.

"Ah, yes, Hagrid told me about you. He said you had taken a vow to help

Harry. May I ask why you did such a thing?" Albus asked as he stroked

his beard, his twinkling eyes looking over his half-moon spectacles.

"I heard the family was in trouble and thought I could help. I was too late

and felt a bit guilty," Hydrus said, with sadness in his voice. "That man…

Hagrid, was huge and I didn't want the baby to get hurt, so I made the

vow so there wouldn't be any fighting. Seemed like the thing to do at the

time." His guised grey eyes were sincere.

"That was a very serious thing to do, young man. You have no idea how

it could affect your future," came the reprimand, though he was pleased

to have seen the true remorse in the young man's face.

"Whatever," the immortal said. He wanted the headmaster to think he

was unimportant and not a threat, that vow will go a long way with that.

"Albus," Sirius said, bringing the conversation back to him, "you said you

wanted to talk about Harry, not chastise my cousin."

"Forgive an old man his meanderings, Sirius. As to young Harry, I wanted

to inquire if you were planning on removing him from his aunt's house. I

must warn you that should you do that, he will be most vulnerable," the

headmaster said in his I'm-older-and-wiser voice.

"Why? Why shouldn't I raise my godson? Lily and James left me custody!"

Sirius raised his voice. He was acting confused and riled.

"When Lily died to protect young Harry she established a blood

protection around him. That protection can only be maintained if Harry

calls the place where his mother's blood dwells home," Albus explained.

Sirius waved it off. "I can hire Gringotts' employees to put up wards."

"Yet they will still not be as strong as a mother's love," came the gentle

argument.

Sirius scoffed and said, "Like I'd know anything about that."

He shot a side look to Hydrus to see how he was taking Sirius's acting.

Hydrus gave him a subtle thumbs-up and a wink.

"And I, for one, am very sorry for your upbringing. It always saddens me

when I hear of families who cannot love," the old man said remorsefully

and then his face morphed back into the calm grandfather visage. "Now,

back to Harry, I must insist that you leave him at the Dursleys. He will be

protected there like nowhere else. I am sure his new family will take

excellent care of him. He will grow up away from the growing fame and

have a happy childhood." That twinkle was going full force.

This time Hydrus scoffed, causing the Headmaster to glance at him. The

immortal put on a look of innocence.

"Can you promise me that those wards are the best? Would you swear on

it?" Sirius decided it was time to get home and stop playing with Albus.

"You have my word," came the slightly triumphant response. A beaming

smile broke across Albus's face.

"Then you have mine. I will not take Harry away from the blood wards,"

Sirius promised sincerely.

"That is good news indeed, my boy. Thank you for considering an old

man's opinion," Dumbledore said jovially. "I must bid you good day,

gentlemen. I have much to do." He then gave a nod to the two men and

walked away knowing his mission was complete. It didn't even register in

his mind that Sirius should have fought harder.

Sirius and Hydrus shared a look and chuckled. "Let's go see if Remus

wrote back yet," Hydrus said as he clapped the other man on the back.

"Yes, let's."

Back at the house, Hydrus went to check on Harry, while Sirius read the

missive that was indeed there. It was full of guilty rambling and

apologies, and said that he would be happy to meet Sirius at the eatery,

sharply at five in the evening.

The rest of the day was spent with Harry. They wanted to make sure the

tot knew there were adults there for him. Harry was adapting

surprisingly well, with only a few times where he cried for his parents,

mostly when he was tired. At four all three males, dressed as non-

magicals, buckled safely into Hydrus's car and drove to the restaurant.

They were early, so they sat at a window table to wait. The two adults

ordered a small dinner of Shepherd's pie. Harry had a cheese sandwich

and a sippy cup of milk, making quite a mess of it, but some got into his

mouth.

Remus came directly at five, spotted Sirius and wove his way to the table,

a confused look plastered on his face. "Hello, Padfoot," he said as he sat

down. He looked haggard, like he hadn't slept since Halloween. His

trousers were faded and his jumper was rumpled. The jacket he took off

was tweed and patched, it also looked like it had been taken off the floor

and thrown on.

"Unca Mooy, Unca Mooy," Harry said bouncing in his highchair waving

his torn apart sandwich. Remus smiled and ruffled the toddler's ever

messy hair. Harry went back to his meal, and turned over his cup shaking

milk onto the tray. Hydrus sighed and mopped it up with a napkin; he

gently removed the cup and gave Harry the rest of his sandwich.

"Moony, old boy, great to see you," Sirius said sincerely. He then waved

to the other occupant and introduced him. "Did you want dinner?"

"No, I ate already, you only mentioned cake," Remus said after the

introductions, sparing only a curious look at Hydrus. "Now, I must

confess that I am confused. I got a Floo call from Albus earlier. He

wanted me to make sure you kept your promise not to take Harry away

from the Dursleys. Yet, here he is. Did you lie to the headmaster?" his

amber eyes showed disapproval.

"Nope, I told Albus I wouldn't take Harry away from the blood wards,

and I haven't. However, I can't explain that to you here, so let's have

some of that delicious smelling chocolate cake and we'll take you home

and explain everything," Sirius said with a pointed look around the

crowded eatery.

"There better be a good explanation, Padfoot," Remus grumbled with a

firm glare.

"Oh, there will be."

The next twenty minutes was spent in casual conversation and the

consumption of divine cake. Hydrus cleaned Harry as well as he could

before they piled back into the car, making sure everyone was secure,

and drove back to the house. Handing the food wearing, chocolate

covered Harry off to Tippy, who glared at them, the men moved to the

living room. They settled on the chairs and sofa, and looked at one

another. Sirius broke the silence. "Why did Albus call you?"

"Well," Remus said as he ran a hand through his hair, "you know how you

behaved in school?" He waited for the nod. "He was worried you would

run off and do the wrong thing. He said that I was the only one who

could talk you down."

"Little good that did in Hogwarts, I remember you pranking right along

with us."

"Yeah, but, I have matured a bit more than you," the werewolf said

jokingly. "Besides, with Harry here are you not you proving him correct?

He told me about the blood wards, and I have to say I am disappointed in

you for removing Harry from the Dursleys."

"I can swear that Harry is under the blood wards right this minute and

I've never been to the Dursleys," Sirius answered. He was a bit hurt that

the Headmaster and Remus thought he needed a babysitter.

"What? How?" came the confused questions.

Sirius looked at Hydrus who had been quiet up till now. "You want to

explain?"

"I need a vow first," was the firm answer.

Remus looked at the other man and asked, "Who exactly are you? And

what do you have to do with all of this? Not to be rude or anything, but I

don't know you."

"Like Sirius told you, I'm his cousin and I'm the one who rescued Harry

from the Dursleys. I can give you my word that I only want what's best

for Harry. I've already given a vow to that effect."

"I only have your word on that," Remus said skeptically.

"No, you have mine as well," Sirius piped up in defense. "I made a vow to

protect his and Harry's secrets and he told me his story. I promise you,

Remus, you're going to want to hear this."

The werewolf looked at his only remaining friend, looked at Hydrus and

then looked at the ceiling as if he could see Harry. This went on for five

or so minutes. He then ran his hand through his hair and sighed. "What

do you want me to say?" he finally asked.

"Just say you'll keep the secrets of Hydrus Williamsford Black and Harry

James Potter," the immortal said in relief.

"Williamsford isn't a star name," Sirius said suddenly as if just realizing

that. He hadn't paid attention to the name when he made his vow. "If

you're supposed to be a Black you should have star names; both first and

middle."

"Not that it is important right now, Padfoot, but the name was given to

me by a very good friend. We figured since I'm supposed to be raised

non-magical we could wave it off," Hydrus said with a small smile of

remembrance.

"Yeah, I suppose, but…" Sirius trailed off, thinking about how his

grandfather will react to him living with a Muggle-raised. Then again, he

had no idea what the man was thinking anymore, his grandfather had

been in self-imposed exile for years now. He hoped to get a letter for the

old man soon, so he could tell him what was happening, well most of it.

If he could get his approval the political backing would be very helpful.

"Like I said, not important, it is my legal and magical name," Hydrus

snapped, drawing Sirius out of his thoughts.

Remus brought everyone's attention to him when he said, "I owe Albus a

lot for getting me my education. You two are asking me to withhold some

vital information from him," Remus said, running his hand through his

hair again. It must be a nervous habit.

"I get that and I wouldn't ask it of you if it weren't so important. Albus

Dumbledore really has no say in where Harry should be raised, that

decision is Sirius's and he agrees with me that this is the safest place for

that. None of the Headmaster's positions give him that right," Hydrus said

firmly. "I won't ask you to turn on the man, just keep mine and Harry's

secrets. You can report to him that Harry is still within the blood wards

and with his family. We're thinking of putting up a Fidelius as well, only

so you won't be able to tell anybody where. Once Mrs. Figg is stationed

in Little Whinging, he'll know Harry is not at number 4 Privet Drive."

Hydrus hoped his relatives would heed his warning and move. If he was

correct then the Headmaster had monitors on the blood wards. If the

Dursleys moved and the old man couldn't find them, he would only know

the blood wards were strong and, hopefully, be content with that. Hydrus

thanked Merlin, that most magicals couldn't navigate the non-magical

world. In addition, if the Dursleys listened to his missive then they would

be unlisted and squibs like Mrs. Figg wouldn't be able to help locate

Harry.

"Wait, Arabella Figg?" Sirius asked.

"Yup, she was sent there to keep tabs on Harry, though I'm not exactly

sure when," the immortal said thoughtfully.

Meanwhile, Remus mulled over what he had been told so far for a few

minutes and then he pulled his wand and gave the vow. "Now, will you,

please, tell me what the hell is going on?"

"Let me call for tea. It's going to take a while," Hydrus said and called

Tippy, "Hey, Tippy, first how is Harry?" he asked as she popped in.

"Little Master is not liking his bath, but he was very messy. Master

Hydrus should not let Little Master get that dirty," she said wagging her

finger at the man.

"But he was having fun," Hydrus defended himself, much to the

amusement of the other two men.

"Hmmm," the free elf replied, giving Hydrus a look, making him squirm.

"Is Master wanting something? Tippy is trying to put Little Master to

sleep and yous is giving him too much sugar," she said with another look.

"Never mind, Tippy, you go and take care of Harry. We'll fend for

ourselves," Hydrus said quickly, feeling a bit guilty.

The little elf nodded her head and popped away.

"Let's go to the kitchen. I'll put the kettle on," the immortal said as he got

up and led the way.

While waiting for the water to boil, Sirius and Remus caught up with

what had been going on with the two of them in the last month. Hydrus

listened in and added a comment here and there. When the tea was

made, they settled back into their seats in the living room.

The next three hours were spent in commentary, Hydrus talked and the

other two listened. Remus cycled through a wide range of emotions such

as disbelief at Hydrus being Harry from the future, awe at some of the

inventions, horror at the extent that Voldemort went through to gain

immortality, anger at the populace and the Dursleys, laughter on the

revenges and finally bewilderment and resignation on what Hydrus had

done since he returned. He now understood why Harry was in this house,

though he was worried about the young baby being raised by three

emotional men, even if the time traveler was more balanced. He was

leery about the stories of what Hydrus did to the Death Eaters, like Sirius,

he didn't know if it was a great prank or the work of a sadistic man.

"So, now what?" Remus asked cautiously, after Hydrus finished and there

were a few minutes silence for him to take it all in.

"I'd like you to move in here with me and Sirius and help me raise Harry.

He'll benefit from all of us here," Hydrus said.

"What about the full moon? Do you have plans for that?" ever fearful of

killing someone or worse — infecting them.

"Of course, I know how to brew the Wolfsbane potion and there's a cellar

we can ward."

"Plus, I can still help as Padfoot," Sirius said as he joined the

conversation, never one to be left out for long.

"I am also worried about our mental state," Remus said, pointing his

finger back and forth between him and Sirius. "I know I am still grieving

the loss of three friends, even if Pettigrew was a traitor, he was at one

time our friend."

"Well, I've already started Sirius on some self-help books and I can give

you the same. There is also the mandatory counseling that we all need to

attend. In my timeline, I was down to only checkups once every three

months. But you guys will probably have to go weekly, if not daily,"

Hydrus said as he pulled a book-reader from his pocketspace. "You can

either use one of these, or regular books like Sirius. We had to go out and

buy those, because I didn't bring books back with me and Padfoot would

rather read normal books."

"What is that?" Remus asked as he looked at the strange object.

Hydrus showed him what it was and what it did, the closet Ravenclaw's

eyes lit with the fact that he had so much knowledge in his hands. The

two bent over the book-reader, while Sirius got bored and started playing

video games. Around midnight Hydrus showed Remus where he was

sleeping for the night and they all went to bed.

The next morning the immortal got up with the toddler. He decided to let

the dog and the wolf sleep. He carried Harry to the kitchen and after

putting the tot in his highchair and giving him some milk, he proceeded

to make a huge breakfast. The smell of bacon and Scotch eggs woke

Remus, and the smell of coffee got Sirius. A few minutes later the two

men tumbled into the dining room and they ate as a family.

The rest of the morning was spent outdoors; Harry waddled around and

pulled up flowers and grass, and chased Sirius, who ran around as

Padfoot. The other two just let them play and sat in chairs on the porch

sipping tea. After lunch, Hydrus put Harry down for his nap, and they

decided to stay outside.

"You said that You Know Who made horcruxes," Remus said as he set his

empty cup down, wanting to get to some plans. "How are we going to get

them and what about the one in Harry? We cannot leave that there."

"Well," Hydrus answered, rubbing his forehead in thought, "the ring was

destroyed when I came through the portal, I got the diadem and the

diary. Now, the only ones left are the necklace and the cup. I'm going to

need Sirius's help with both of those, since they are both in the hands of

the Black family. I can drop the wards on Grimmuald Place, but I'm not

sure where in the house the necklace is. It might be with Kreacher or the

elf could have hidden it, so it would be easier to get someone from the

Black family to locate it. Besides, there are more than wards to worry

about in that creepy house," he explained, with a full body shudder at the

things he and his friends had come across while cleaning, though most of

those manifested after Sirius's mum had died there were some that that

crazy old bat had left on purpose. "I plan on removing Harry's tonight,"

he added as an aside.

Sirius's face took on a look of grief and guilt. "I can't believe Regulus

turned on the Dark Wanker. I treated him so badly in school. Sometimes I

think if only I hadn't, he never would have been a Death Eater to begin

with. I was so selfish."

"I know, Padfoot," Remus said as he got up and went to his friend and

rubbed the other man's back, "Now, you can help by finishing what he

started."

Sirius sighed and nodded. "I can't do anything until I hear from

Grandfather. He's the one who can get into the house and Bella's vault."

"In my timeline, your grandfather hid away because he was disgusted at

all the family members bowing before Voldemort," Hydrus said

thoughtfully, ignoring the flinches. He figured since the man was

vanquished, for now, the taboo was null and void. "That and he named

you the next Lord Black, despite your difference. So maybe, he'll come

through for you."

Two owls swooped in and landed in front of Sirius. He gave them each a

bit of ham from lunch and took the letters. After he read the first one he

said, "It's from Marius. He said he has no problem having a grandson,

since both of his boys died. He wants to meet us though to get the story

straight."

"I have no issue with that," Hydrus shrugged. It would be beneficial

anyway.

Sirius took up the second letter. "It's from Cissy; she says that if

Grandfather tells her the same, she'll stay out of politics. She also wants

to know if I know if her husband is alive." He shot a look at the immortal.

"Tell her you have no idea where he is. It's the truth," Hydrus stated. He

really needed to check on them soon, if just to make sure they were still

there.

"What do you plan on doing to the ones you have in a coma?" Remus

asked, still concerned over that.

"I haven't decided yet, I can tell you that I plan on leaving them there for

now. You have to understand there are some people who just cannot be

saved," he said with a hard look. "Dumbledore made a huge mess of

things trying to redeem the irredeemable. Lucius is an excellent example

of that, Albus let that man run unchecked and his son was no better. He

could have made sure that every Death Eater had a trial under

Veritaserum, but he wanted them to have a second chance." Seeing the

defensive looks on the other men's faces he held up his hands and said,

"Look, I know he is a good man. I just don't have the same outlook as he

does. We'll just have to agree to disagree when it comes to the

Headmaster." He wasn't going to change the years of hero worship in

only a few days.

Two more mutinous looks and Sirius decided to change the subject. "I

have to go and get the rest of my things and close down my flat."

"I want to take a look at your cellar and see if it is what's needed for

Moony. I might have to keep my house if we can't reinforce it."

"Sure," Hydrus said as he got up. The other men followed and they went

to the sturdy framed door in the kitchen. "This leads to the cellar, and as

you can see we can put a metal door up. I think the people before me

were going to make a bomb shelter but ran out of money." He opened the

door and flipped on the lights.

The stairs that lead down were in good repair. At the bottom of the stairs

was a large metal door; inside the door was a huge room with no

windows. The floor and the walls were hardwood, like someone was

trying to make it homey.

"You know Moony will tear up this wood, right?" Remus said as he

looked around.

Hydrus said, "I told you I know how to brew Wolfsbane. We'll get you

and Padfoot some rawhide bones and you'll be okay."

Sirius chuckled until Remus shot him a look. "I am still not sure that I

should be in the house with a baby," the werewolf said, worriedly. The

room looked solid, but he still had his doubts.

"Not a problem, me and Harry can always spend the night in a motel. It'll

be our bonding night."

"I cannot ask you to do that," Remus exclaimed.

"You're not," Hydrus replied, folding his arms across his chest and leaning

against the wall. "I'm offering."

"You really do not have a problem with me being in your house, do you?"

the werewolf asked in awe, the only people who had ever accepted him

was the Marauders and Dumbledore.

"Nope."

"Let me think it over for a few days. I will be happy to help you raise

Harry, but I am uncomfortable about being here on the full moon."

"Take your time, I only want you to do what you feel is best for you,"

Hydrus said, getting up from the wall and leading the way back up the

stairs. "I can always make this a panic room."

"What's a panic room?" Sirius asked as he followed his cousin.

11. Fun With Blocks and Letters

Answered

Chapter 11 Fun With Blocks and Letters Answered

AN: thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own, I would like to note, again, that I

have a bad habit of adding things and not sending the chapter back

to my wonderful betas. Thank you all for viewing, reviewing,

favoriting and following my story. A quick thanks to all of those

who point out my errors, some are on purpose and some are

mistakes. So thanks.

AN: I gave the Black family a bit more of a violent history than they had in

canon. I also want to note that I'm making up the meeting places, the eatery

and the park.

Hphphp

It was early in the evening when the two Marauders watched in

amazement. Hydrus had just deftly removed the horcrux from baby

Harry. First, the immortal cast a Sleeping Spell on the child, then laid

him on the padded coffee table. He then called up a piece of junk from

his pocketspace, making a mental note to clean it out once again.

Holding the item above the still red scar he incanted, "Repel aliena

anima." Harry squirmed as the foreign bit of soul was removed from his

forehead, but stayed asleep.

Hydrus called Tippy to take care of the baby, who would wake soon. He

then put the cursed junk into a medium sized ceramic bowl. He called up

his acid and dropped some on it and watched as it blackened. The

screech of a dying soul was heard, leaving the two Marauders in stunned

silence. Then it was over.

"Piece of cake," Hydrus said smugly.

"Who knew it was that easy?" Remus said with a bit of awe. "I mean,

these are the Darkest items ever created. How could a simple Latin term

work so well? And why hasn't anyone thought of it before? To use

Muggle acid, I would have never thought of that."

"If there is one thing I've noticed about magicals, it's that they lose

common sense and creativity the more they learn magic. No offense,

guys, but you have to admit that the common wizard doesn't think for

themselves. Even you, Remus, fell to gossip and believed the papers and

not your heart," Hydrus explained. Remus looked down at his shoes

sheepishly. This caused Hydrus's godfather to chuckle.

"Don't laugh, Sirius, you did the same when you took Dumbledore's and

Pettigrew's word about Remus. I'm hoping that therapy will help you get

back to thinking for yourselves. I know if I hadn't left the wizarding

world behind, I might have lost my common sense. It's only all the stupid

ridicule and gossip that kept mine where it is supposed to be."

The two men nodded in agreement. Hydrus cleaned up the mess with a

Banishing Charm and Scourgify, put the bowl back in his pocketspace

and then he got comfortable on the sofa. The other two settled in their

chairs. By now, they each had their favorite seats; Sirius liked the leather

recliner, Remus preferred the comfy straight back chair, while Hydrus

always took to the sofa.

"Hey, Hydrus, you never told me how you got that wicked pocketspace

above your shoulder," Sirius said, hoping to lighten the mood now that

Harry no longer carried the cursed scar.

It was Hydrus's turn to look sheepish. "It was a bit of an accident, really. I

was trying to make an undetectable extended bag, when I misquoted the

spell and it backfired. So I have no idea how it works, I'm just glad it

does."

The two men chuckled and then Sirius pouted. "That means I can't have

one," he whinged.

"Well, you could try, but, I wouldn't recommend it," Hydrus said

playfully.

"You could show us the memory, and we could give it a go," Remus

suggested.

"Yeah, I can do that. I have a few pensieves in there somewhere," the

time traveler agreed.

"So, what now?" Sirius asked.

"Tomorrow I'll call around and see about counseling. I'd like to see if my

old therapist is working, but I doubt it. Maybe we can use the same clinic

though," Hydrus said thoughtfully. "I also need to get to my shop and see

how things are going. You guys are welcome to come along. You might

get a kick out of what I'm selling, Remus."

"I would like that."

"I think I'll pass," Sirius said, wanting to spend more time with his

godson.

Tippy popped in and let them know Harry was awake and asking for

them. So they asked her to bring him down. They played with the now

thin scarred toddler until it was his bedtime and then the three men

talked over plans for the next day and soon went off to bed.

The next morning everyone woke bright and early. Hydrus, of course,

made breakfast. He went for a light meal of scrambled eggs with cheese

and toast. Harry as usual made quite a mess and this time Sirius

volunteered to clean him up. When the two didn't appear after ten

minutes, Hydrus and Remus went to find out why.

They walked into the bathroom that was for Harry's use and saw the

baby, in a shallow bath, splashing a pitiful looking, bubble covered,

large, black dog. The two burst out laughing and had to hold each other

up. Padfoot gently removed himself from Harry, stepped out of the tub

and shook himself off. He then morphed back into Sirius. "Oi, it's not that

funny," he snapped at the laughing pair.

"How… how did you wind up being the one to be cleaned?" Hydrus asked

between chuckles, all the while keeping his eye on the playing toddler.

"He kept crying," the dog Animagus said. "I know he likes Padfoot, so I

changed, but he still wouldn't stop crying until I got in the tub," the still

damp man defended himself, folding his arms across his chest and

pouting.

"Sirius, why did you think he needed a bath? You could have simply

cleaned his face with a flannel."

"Well, I was going to, until I saw eggs in his hair. So, I thought a bath

would be better."

"And you were correct," Remus decided to stand up for his friend, causing

Sirius to beam at him.

"Sorry, sorry," said the still chuckling Hydrus. "Let's finish cleaning Harry

and go outside. It's a nice day, probably one of the last of the season."

After making sure all the eggs were out of Harry's hair, they used a

charm to dry him off, got him bundled up and went into the back yard,

this time bringing the toddler some toys in hopes of saving the rest of the

garden. Hydrus made a mental note to fence that off the next spring. It

was cold out, but the sun was shining and they used plenty of Warming

Charms to keep the toddler from getting a chill.

"You guys watch Harry for a bit, okay? I'm going to call the clinic,"

Hydrus said, after he played with Harry for a while. He went into the

house and did just that. He made three evaluation appointments in a few

days, and hung up the phone. He also checked in on his investments.

It was getting to be around noon, so Hydrus made a nice lunch of tomato

soup and hot ham sandwiches. He called the others in and they all sat.

Harry had lukewarm soup in his sippy cup and a half of a cheese

sandwich (his favorite). The rest enjoyed the hot meal. This time Hydrus

cleaned Harry.

"Ready to go, Remus?" Hydrus asked.

"Let me get my coat," was Remus's reply.

"Are you going to be okay alone, Padfoot? Tippy will be here to help, we

shouldn't be long."

"I'll be okay," Sirius said firmly.

Hydrus nodded, picked Harry up, took him in the living room and placed

him with his toys. After going to his room and putting in his grey

contacts, he met Remus at the door. He pulled his coat on and the two

men left. They Apparated to the alley next to the Cauldron and went into

the pub. It wasn't crowded as lunch was just over. They made their way

to the Alley and moved down the street to the shop; Home Appliances of

The Future. It had taken a minute for Hydrus to name the store, but he

didn't want his name in it. He decided to keep it simple, so that people

would know what it was before they ventured in.

The store seemed to be quite busy as they wove through the moderate

crowd. Remus looked around in fascination; Hydrus promised he could

get a closer look while he did some business, so the two men parted at

the checkout counter.

In the back room was a cheerful looking man with wispy white hair. He

was going over the books and when Hydrus entered he looked up. "Mr.

Black, sir, what a wonderful surprise," he said as he got up to shake his

boss's hand.

"Mr. Parker, it is good to see you. Judging from the crowd, business is

well?" Hydrus said as he shook the man's hand and then gestured to the

chairs near the fireplace. The two men sat and got comfortable.

"Oh, it is indeed," Joshua Parker said. He was ecstatic about his position

as store manager. When Hydrus had approached him originally he had

his doubts. Now, though, he was happy to be here.

"That's great," Hydrus beamed. "I was wondering if there were any letters

or notes for me. I'm waiting for a response from someone, and told them

to leave it here."

"Oh, yes, yes, of course. A gentleman did come by and left you a missive.

At first he was quite upset then after looking at your rune array and

patent, he calmed down," Mr. Parker said as he got up and went to the

desk to retrieve the note.

Hydrus let out a small sigh of relief. He wanted to work with the man,

not make an enemy of him. Since his design was so different from

Frostwell's, he was hoping this would be the outcome. Those hopes were

dashed when he read the letter. In it Frostwell stated that while Hydrus's

arrays were good, he worked alone, so they would be friendly

competition.

After the immortal thought about it; he figured it was a good thing. The

more inventions that were on the market, the sooner the magicals would

start thinking for themselves. Since Frostwell mostly tinkered with small

things such as book-readers and calculators, and Hydrus was selling large

contraptions like the washing machines and tellies (which mostly sold to

Muggle-born), they wouldn't really be competing.

Hydrus and Mr. Parker discussed the store and the profits and then

Hydrus went to find Remus. He found him next to a dryer. The werewolf

was reading the manual, trying to figure out what it was for.

"It's a dryer," Hydrus said, startling the other man. "It dries your clothes."

"This doesn't look like any machine I've ever seen. We magical folk

usually use a drying charm."

"Yeah, but that leaves clothes stiff, this doesn't. I'll show you the one I

have at the house."

"You have one? Of course you do, sorry, stupid question," Remus said as

he put the manual down. "I have to say, you have a real good thing going

here. Ready to go?"

"Yup, all done. Did you want to look around more? I have a lot of this at

the house, I just thought you would like to see the things I don't have," he

said. He then bent closer and whispered, "Mine stuff is better, didn't want

to push too much advancement on the public."

Remus hadn't really looked over Hydrus's house, he had mostly been

thinking about whether or not to move in. He still hadn't reached that

decision. So, he nodded to the other man and they left the store.

Hydrus got a creepy feeling that someone was watching him and they

didn't have good thoughts. He looked around, but didn't see anyone, so

he shrugged it off for now and the two men left the Alley.

After they got back home, they found Sirius, as Padfoot, curled up on the

floor and Harry sleeping on top of him, in that boneless way which only

babies can do, drool pooling on the dogs fur. Hydrus called up a camera

and the first pictures were taken. He then jerked his head to the kitchen

and led the way, Remus following stifling his laughter.

"Come on, I'll show you the laundry room," Hydrus said when they were

out of earshot. He showed the werewolf the marvels of non-magical

technology. While Remus had spent some time in London, he always kept

his house magical. So he had seen a lot of the machines, he just had no

idea what they were for. After that they sat at the kitchen table and

chatted over tea. They talked about the inventions in the shop and how

they differed from the ones Hydrus had at the house.

An hour later they heard the other two awake and went to join them.

"Good nap, Sirius?" Remus asked with a huge smile.

"Yes, it was actually," Sirius sniffed, nose in the air.

"Good, good."

They spent a good part of the afternoon trying to teach Harry how to

build castles with his blocks, it was relaxing for everyone. A simple

dinner of fish and chips was had and soon enough it was Harry's bedtime.

Remus offered to do the honors. When he came back down a half an hour

later, they settled in the living room, with tea and cakes.

"I sent another letter to Grandfather, asking him to tell Cissy to keep her

money away from Death Eaters. Whether or not he will do so, I don't

know," Sirius said, getting down to business.

Hydrus nodded, there was little they could do in that front, but if that

didn't work he had no problem kidnapping the Death Eaters that got

away, and putting them with their comrades. Judging from the reactions

of the other two, he would have to do it alone. Oh, they would know it

was him, but at least their hands would be clean.

"I still have a few people that need to disappear. They aren't Death

Eaters, but the things they do cause a lot of misery for the public. Dolores

Umbridge is the one who set up those Muggle-born camps. And Rita

Skeeter was the reason for most of the populace turning on me. Her

vicious quill caused many good people to fall," he said, ticking the two

hated women off on his fingers.

The other two men exchanged worrying glances.

"Are you going to kill them?" Remus asked.

"Look, I know you guys think I'm unbalanced, but I truly only want

what's best for magical Britain," Hydrus sighed, pinching his nose. "I

really don't want to go down that path and if I can find a way not to kill,

I will. The exception being Voldemort; however, if we get the horcruxes

first that shouldn't be an issue."

"Unless he makes another one," Sirius said. "After all, he did before. This

time you don't have a connection with him, so you won't know if he fades

after we get the other two."

"When we get those, I'll make a trip to Albania, talk to the locals, listen to

gossip," Hydrus said, already making plans; maybe he would use vengeful

ghosts as spies. "Hey, Sirius, can you write to Marius and set up a

meeting so we can talk to him. Also we need to get the Fidelius up soon."

"I can do that," Sirius said.

"Good, let him pick the place and time."

"Who do you want to make the Secret Keeper?" Remus asked.

"Remus, you cast the charm and I'll be the Keeper," Hydrus said. "Now

that that's settled, let's play some video games. Remus hasn't tried it yet."

Sirius whooped, dove for the console and put in HALO: Reach, while

Hydrus tried to explain the concept to Remus. The three men played into

the night and made it to bed around three in the morning.

It was a tired trio that trudged their way to the kitchen the next morning.

Hydrus decided not to cook and everyone had cold cereal. Sirius excused

himself to write his letter and the other two played blocks with Harry.

"Unca Mooy!" Harry shouted, bouncing up and down, pointing at his

rickety three block tower.

"Very good, Harry," Remus said, beaming at how happy Harry was.

"Unca Hyrus, Unca Hyrus, look!" the toddler yelled as he toddled to

Hydrus, who was watching in amusement.

Hydrus picked up the cheering child and gave him a raspberry on his

tummy. The tot giggled and wiggled to get free. Sirius came into the

room looking around to see what all the excitement was for.

"Unca P'fut," Harry said and squirmed free of Hydrus running to his

favorite Animagus. "Buil' alocks."

"Look at that. You did good, Prongslet," Sirius said, and then tickled the

proud child.

"I wonder how he learned to talk so well," Hydrus said as he watched the

two in the tickle fight. Well, it wasn't much of a fight, Sirius was doing

the tickling and Harry was trying his best to get free.

"Lily," Remus answered. "She wouldn't let us baby talk to him."

"Yeah, I read something about that. I don't remember having much of a

vocabulary when I was growing up. Then again, all I got were orders and

reprimands from the Dursleys." He shook his head sadly at the reminder

and then went to help Harry in his war against Sirius.

The four males played until it was Harry's nap time. Sirius was playing

some Mortal Kombat with Remus, and was put out that the werewolf was

kicking his arse. Hydrus was going over his non-magical documents.

Harry woke up and Hydrus kicked the two adults off the telly and set the

child down to watch a movie on the alphabet which used fluffy animals

to learn. Harry watched it for about five minutes and then waddled away

to his toys. It was a start.

It was after lunch that a regal owl pecked on the window. Sirius got up

and let it in, giving him some meat from the lunch as he removed the

letter addressed to him. The owl ate his treat and flew away.

"It's from Grandfather Arcturus," the dogman said as he started reading.

"Says here that he told Cissy to keep her nose clean or he'd chuck her out

of the family. He also wants to meet with me tomorrow. And that I'm to

come alone."

"That is a good sign, right?" Remus asked.

"You don't know Grandfather Arcturus; he's a righteous old bastard. It

could mean anything from him agreeing to help or wanting to kill me

and let the family name die," Sirius said worriedly. Arcturus was a puzzle

to him, he had only met the man once when he was a child and he wasn't

ashamed to admit his grandfather scared the crap out of him.

"He's too proud to let the family name die," Hydrus said, hoping to soothe

that fear.

"Yeah, maybe."

"Anyway, we need his help, so…" Hydrus trailed off as he checked in on

the toddler, who was still playing with his toys. He made a mental note

to invent some that lit up to the touch, so he could teach Harry his

colors.

"I'm a Gryffindor and a Black, I will face him with dignity," Sirius said,

straightening his shoulders and firming his face.

"And you will do Gryffindor proud," Remus said, clapping his friend on

the back.

"So, Remus, have you decided if you're moving in?" Hydrus asked.

"We will go with your plan for one full moon. You take Harry out of the

house and I will see if your cellar will suffice."

"That's great, why don't you go and get some of your things tomorrow,

while Sirius visits his grandfather?" the immortal suggested.

The werewolf nodded and the two dog men went back to what they were

doing. Hydrus left to go and talk to his solicitor about a contract for

Marius. He returned an hour later, with a smug grin.

The rest of the day was spent with Hydrus and Remus playing with

Harry, and Sirius playing his favorite game, HALO: Reach. He was getting

addicted and attempting to drag his best friend with him.

That night they cast the Fidelius charm, so that Sirius and Remus couldn't

tell where Harry lived.

The next morning with heavy breakfast out of the way, Sirius went to see

his grandfather, Remus went to gather some of his things, and Hydrus

once more tried to get Harry to watch the kids' movie, with as much

success as the first time. So, he spent the rest of the time going over

equations for the color toy and almost had it figured out when a shell-

shocked Sirius came home.

"Merlin, what happened to you?" Hydrus said as he guided Sirius to his

favorite chair.

"He stepped down," the other man said, with a vacant stare. "We had a

huge fight for about an hour, he kept going on and on about family

loyalty. I told him that he was a deluded old fool if he thought Death

Eaters were loyal to anyone except You Know Who. I thought for sure he

was going to kill me and then he started laughing and handed me the

Lordship. He said if I can stand up to him then I might be able to pull the

Black family back together. There'll be an announcement in the Daily

Prophet tomorrow."

"Well," Hydrus said as he plopped to the sofa, "that's unexpected. A

bonus, but unexpected."

"We spent the last hour going over what that meant. I mean, I already

knew most of it; I was raised to take over before I ran away, but he

wanted to make sure," Sirius said, coming back to himself. "One thing he

did say is I can kick Mum out of the house and make her go and live in

one of the smaller houses. He doesn't want me to remove anyone from

the family, but I can bring anyone who is magical back in. I mean, I can

do anything I want, but these are his final requests. I have to meet with

him again, soon, but this time he wants to meet you."

"Me, why in Merlin's name, would he want to meet me? I'm just a nobody

born to a squib," Hydrus exclaimed.

"Don't know, but he does."

Hydrus shrugged and brought up an important question. "With Bellatrix

presumed dead and the Lestrange brothers in prison, can you get the

horcrux from her vault?"

"Yeah, those greedy goblins will do anything for payment. There's tons of

goblin made silver at Grimmauld Place I can use," Sirius said with a nod.

"As long as it's you and not me, I can't stand goblins. Why don't you

unwind a bit, play some war game or something, and then later you can

see your lawyer about adding people back in the family. Hey," Hydrus

said excitedly, just realizing something, "you can add me to the family.

Or maybe not, since the tree will put me in a weird spot," he added

thoughtfully.

"Nay, the tree will leave you free hanging; it can be explained away as

you being a son of a squib." Sirius waved it away. "Besides, I think your

name is already on the tree or Grandfather Arcturus wouldn't know about

you. I didn't mention you in our talks, so it caught me by surprise when

he asked about you."

"Oh, okay. I wonder what's taking Remus so long. He should have been

back ages ago."

"Don't know," Sirius said, turning to the front door. Then he shrugged and

put in his favorite game and got lost in the zone.

It was forty minutes later that Remus came in looking irked. He dumped

his boxes next to the door, flopped down into his chair and ran a hand

through his hair. "We put that charm up just in time. I was packing some

things when Albus came through the Floo. We had tea and talked of

nonessential things, and then he asked if I had heard from Sirius. I told

him I had. He then asked if Sirius had taken Harry away from the

Dursleys, and I told him that Sirius hadn't been near the place."

Hydrus grumbled under his breath about nosy old men.

"He asked if I knew where Harry was, and I told him that as far as I knew

he was with his family. He tried for an hour to get me to explain further,

but thanks to the truth and the charm that is all he got out of me. Thank

Merlin werewolves have a natural mental shield. That is what took me so

long. Oh, and he did say the Dursleys were gone," the werewolf finished,

and then got up to get some tea.

"Huh," Hydrus said, watching the man leave the room, "I didn't think it'd

be so soon. Mrs. Figg must've been there long before I thought." He then

looked at the happily playing Harry and shrugged. With the blood wards

and the Fidelius no one will find them. Hopefully, with Remus only

stating the truth, as he knew it, and the monitors on the wards, that'll be

enough for the Headmaster to not question further.

"I need to write my lawyer," Sirius said, abandoning his game and leaving

the room.

Hydrus put his notes away and sat down on the floor with Harry. "It's just

you and me, kid, what say we build some more blocks?"

"alocks!" Harry bounced. And that is just what they did. Remus came

back with his tea and settled into his chair with his book-reader. Sirius

appeared twenty minutes later and went back to his game. They had a

nice family evening.

The next morning Marius's reply came via owl. In it he stated that the

owls were getting noticed and he preferred the non-magical mail, he

would give them an address when they met. He gave a time to meet at a

park and a phone number to call to respond. Sirius, after being shown

how, called the man and confirmed they would all be there at one.

So at noon they all bundled up and buckled in the car. Hydrus, using the

directions from his book-reader, drove to the park. He had to wonder

why the man chose such a setting, but then again dealing with the Black

Family, he might just be very cautious. The phone number was probably

a pay phone. The immortal didn't blame the man; the Blacks were

notorious for killing off unwanted members of their family. Hydrus was

surprised that Marius, Andromeda and Sirius were allowed to live; then

again Sirius had the backing of Harry's grandmother, Dorea Black. Black

family customs gave him a headache. In his timeline they were mostly

dead, so he didn't have to deal with them.

Arriving at the park, they got out of the car and wandered around, Harry

was in a buggy with a blanket that had a warming charm, and searched

for the other Black. He approached them, with a curious look on his face.

"I recognize Sirius from the newspaper, and from the description in the

letter, I'm assuming you're Hydrus, but who's the baby and the other

man?" the tall dark-haired man asked. He looked like a Black, long black

hair, grey eyes and an aristocratic face. "By the way, thanks for dressing

like a Muggle," he said with a bite in his voice. "I was worried that you'd

show up in robes or dressed outdated, like most of your kind." Yeah, he

was bitter. They all ignored the tone; the man had a right to be angry.

"Marius—I assume—you look like Regulus," Sirius said a bit sadly as he

shook hands with his long lost relative. "This is Hydrus, as you guessed,

and the other man is Remus. We can't tell you who the baby is, yet. Not

until we know each other better."

"Then why, in God's name, did you bring him?" Marius growled. "It's

bloody freezing out here. Stupid wizards."

"He needs to get out of the house more, he's been cooped up for ages.

Besides, the blanket is warmed," Sirius defended their actions. In all

honesty, Harry had thrown a fit when he saw they were about to leave

and none of the men could calm him. Since they were pressed for time,

they decided to bring him along.

"Fine, whatever, let's get him out of the cold air. There's a rec center over

there that has a room we can talk in," the other man said, waving his

hand to his left. So they all set out to the rather plain looking building

that had the sign stating it was Baldwin Park's Recreational Center.

The building was split into three large rooms and a few offices. There

was the sports room where kids could play indoors, a meeting room,

which is where you could rent the room for your club meetings and a

study room with a small library and a dozen tables that held eight to ten

people. Marius rented the meeting room for them and when the door was

closed, Sirius threw up some security wards.

"While I'm happy to get a bit of revenge on the Black family, how are we

going to make you my grandson? You said the name of my son, Patrick,

name is on your birth certificate, why?" the wary man asked, getting

straight to the point.

Hydrus was lifting Harry out of his buggy and removing his heavy winter

suit. He'd be warm enough in just his little jeans, tiny snow boots and

jumper. He didn't want the tot to overheat. The rest had already taken off

their jackets. When he was done, he set the toddler on his lap and

handed him his car keys. He then turned to the upset man and gave a

sheepish look and held his hands up in supplication. "When I did the

adoption I needed a relative the magicals wouldn't look for, so I looked

on the tree and saw your name blasted off. I did a bit of research and

found out you're a squib, that your sons were dead, so I used it. I figured

we could just say Hydrus is a family name."

Marius grunted and nodded at the simple explanation and said, "I don't

like it, and I'll tell you here and now, if this wasn't a way to get back at

the family that dumped me, and if I didn't know better tried to kill me,

I'd be a hell of a lot angrier. Now tell me why you need this so bad."

"Well, since you can't take a vow, I brought a contract for you," Hydrus

said, pulling said contract from his pocketspace and handing it to his

hopefully soon to be faux grandfather.

Marius growled again and snatched the contract. He read it over and saw

that it only stated that he couldn't tell anyone what was discussed here

today. He grunted, pulled a pen from his shirt pocket, and signed. It

wasn't like he could lose his life or magic if he told anyone.

The next two hours were spent with Hydrus relating everything Marius

needed to know, mostly about his childhood, how the wizarding world

turned on him (hoping the man would relate) and anything he did in the

non-magical world. Why he felt he needed to go back in time and how

this story would help him. He was thinking that he really didn't need the

man's permission, but it would help if anyone were to investigate. The

only thing they had to do was come up with a reason Hydrus was still

alive, when the rest of the family was dead.

From his research in the future, Hydrus knew Marius had two sons, they

each had one son. All of them died mysteriously. It was his belief that

someone in the Black family killed them off when the grandsons showed

no signs of magic (more than likely on Voldemort's orders, so no heir

would pop up later and the Black Lordship would go to Draco). What he

needed to do was refine his tale and get Marius to agree to it.

After hours of discussion, they came up with a story that when Hydrus

showed signs of magic as a baby, he was adopted out, since the family

was still bitter. When he found his birth certificate and heard about his

birth family's murder, he hid. He had gone to Marius, who told him to get

lost. That he was only surfacing now because of the inheritance that was

left to him by his squib godfather, who is still unnamed. It wouldn't hold

up to deep investigations. Hopefully the magicals would more than likely

never search out Marius. Marius was mollified that Hydrus didn't want to

casually use the name and he knew that it was only a courtesy that they

told him anything.

During that time Harry was passed from man to man, until he got fussy

and was given some snacks, and soon enough went to sleep on Sirius's

shoulder.

They parted ways with the exchange of phone numbers and Marius's

address, in case the magicals hunted him down. Hydrus said he'd set up a

P.O. Box soon.

Back at the house, Hydrus reminded them of their appointments the next

day. The other two men groaned.

12. Stressful Days

Chapter 12 Stressful Days

AN: thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own, I would like to note, again, that I

have a bad habit of adding things and not sending the chapter back

to my wonderful betas. Thank you all for viewing, reviewing,

favoriting and following my story. A quick thanks to all of those

who point out my errors, some are on purpose and some are

mistakes. So thanks.

If you like Percy Jackson stories, check out Hera's Task by The 5h15

Spaceman, he does some really good action scenes. You should read

it.

There is a bit of grossness, so if you get easily queasy skip the marked scenes. I

have no idea what came over me, but it felt right. I am using non-Potterverse

ghouls. I am using the Oxford definition which is: an evil spirit or phantom,

especially one supposed to rob graves and feed on dead bodies

One more thing, I also want to stress I'm not men bashing in the end, I have

three brothers and they always are uncomfortable talking about emotions. Just

my observations.

Hphphp

The next morning Hydrus knew the other two men would be nervous, so

he made a light breakfast of boiled eggs and soldiers. He gave Harry

some dry cereal and a banana, and waited for the other two to emerge. It

was a reluctant duo that came to the table. They played with their

breakfast and sent pleading glances to Hydrus.

As if I have any true control over them. Hydrus thought. "Look, I know you

guys are nervous, but really it isn't a big thing," he said calmly. "Just keep

your talks non-magical and try not to use names. You can say things like,

you were fighting a secret terrorist war. The main terrorist is gone, but

his fighters are still out there. Tell about your losses and speak the truth,

as much as you can, they can't help you if you hide things from them,"

the immortal said gently. "Remember you're doing this for yourself and

Harry."

"They're going to want to know about my childhood," Sirius whinged.

"You told me they always do."

"Well, yeah, I know that's a bit hard to talk about, but, I gotta tell ya, it

helps. Besides, they'll only ask and if you're not comfortable they'll put it

off until you are," he said calmly. He remembered how hard it was to

accept that the Dursleys' treatment of him was actual abuse.

"I am more worried about me being a werewolf," Remus said, sullenly. "I

cannot tell them about that, and it is my number one fear."

"That's a bit trickier, not much you can tell about that, other than it's an

illness," Hydrus said, rubbing his chin in thought. "Or, you could just tell

them you have bouts of uncontrollable anger, that you mostly have a

handle on, but you fear hurting someone." Then he shook his head. "No,

maybe not, they might want to observe and put you in a hospital for a

few nights," he mused. "I'd keep that bit to myself, I know I just said not

to do that, but in this case it can't be helped. You could just use the self-

help books on yoga and meditation. Remus, you're a great guy and your

fears are misplaced. You are one of the gentlest souls I've ever met.

You've been a werewolf almost all your life, and only had one close call,

that wasn't even your fault."

Sirius hung his head in shame and looked at his best friend.

"I forgave you years ago, Padfoot."

"Yeah, but if you want to get over that guilt you might want to tell your

counselor about the prank that went wrong," Hydrus gently suggested.

"Yeah," Sirius replied, thinking over what he could and could not say.

And the two men went back to pushing around their breakfast.

"Tippy," Hydrus called, when they were done.

"Master Hydrus is wanting Tippy?" the little elf squeaked. She had taken

to wearing a child's dress; it was cute, pink and straight with no sleeves

and a high neck. There was a huge daisy embroidered on the front. There

were buttons down half the dress, which Hydrus thought would be the

only way she would be able to get it over her rather large head. It wasn't

anything fancy, but better than a tea towel.

"Hey, Tippy, how are you today?"

"Tippy is being bored, Master Hydrus is not letting Tippy do her job," the

elf answered honestly.

"Hmmm," the immortal thought a moment. "It hasn't started to snow yet,

so maybe you could clean up the garden, the flower garden needs to be

fenced off, and it looks like we will need some of those trees trimmed. Do

you think you could do that?"

"Tippy is a house elf, not a garden elf," she replied sadly.

Hydrus thought a bit more, and had another idea, "Tippy, sorry that I

never asked, but can you read?"

"Tippy is reading very well."

So he called up one of his many book-readers and looked through the

titles. He had raided all the libraries in London, not to mention all of the

magical libraries, before he came back, so there was bound to be books

on landscaping. He found a few, gave the reader to Tippy and showed

her how to use it. "When you're not looking after Harry, this is yours to

read. These books that I brought up are on landscaping, both magical and

Muggle, so you can learn at your leisure."

The little elf's eyes lit up as she reverently took the reader and scanned

the page. She then gently placed it in front of her dress. Hydrus never

figured out how house elves hid things in their clothes, maybe they had

pocketspaces too.

He shook his head out of those thoughts and said, "We have to be going

soon. Harry has been fed and changed. He's in the living room playing

with his toys. He's probably going to cry when we leave, but we can't

take him with us this time, sorry," he explained. Had he known Harry

would throw fits every time they left, he wouldn't have made the

appointments on the same day. On the other hand, the other two men

would need all the support they could get.

"Tippy will be taking good care of Little Master." She nodded her head

happily.

"Thanks, Tippy, you're the best." He patted her head and went to find the

other two men.

They were with Harry, playing with the blocks he so loved, so Hydrus

cleared his throat and jerked his head to the door. Tippy popped in the

room and waited for them to leave. Sure enough when they were putting

their jackets on, Harry started to cry and toddled to them with his hands

held in the air. Tippy took the baby in a firm hug and led him back to the

living room. Hydrus took a firm hold on Sirius's elbow and led him away.

He knew it was hard, it was hard on him too, but they needed to go.

Remus followed, though he kept looking over his shoulder. You could

hear Tippy telling Harry they'd be back.

The trio drove to Ashford's Clinic and went to the reception desk letting

the lady there know they were here. She handed them paperwork to fill

out, and they did the best they could. Sirius had a bit of a chuckle at the

questions about his family history. When they were done, Hydrus took

the papers back to the desk and handed them to the receptionist. Now all

they could do was wait.

The Clinic was rather large with three psychiatrists and fifteen therapists.

So, they would probably be seeing different ones. The men were

extremely lucky that it was not busy right now. Remus went first, and

with a wary look to Hydrus he followed the middle aged female therapist

into the back.

Sirius started to get more and more panicky, his knee was going a mile a

minute, so Hydrus put a hand on his shoulder.

"It'll be okay, really. I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't helpful. I

promise you don't have to talk about anything you don't want to. But, for

Harry, try, okay?" he whispered to the anxious man.

"Right, right, for Harry," Sirius muttered. He firmed his jaw, like the

Gryffindor he was, and stopped his bouncing knee.

Hydrus was the most concerned about the man next to him. Though he

calmed down a lot in the last week, he was still prone to fits of anger. It

was a good thing he had enough control to take it out on the video

games. Hydrus was positive he was suffering from PTSD, and since it was

only newly diagnosable in this timeline, he hoped the therapist would

catch it. He was going to suggest potions, but he wanted to see if they

were going to prescribe him medicine first. He might just need therapy.

Sirius was called and he stood straight and marched into the back room

with a nice looking young woman. Hydrus let out a sigh of relief, Sirius

would open up better to a young person.

"Hydrus Black?" a thin, tall, older man called.

"That's me," he said as he rose. He followed the man down the long

hallway and entered the room indicated.

The office was like any other analyst office he had been in, a large messy

desk with patient files stacked to the side, a bookcase full of diagnostic

books and some self-help books, calming pictures of the sea, a few

comfortable chairs on the other side of the desk.

"Good Afternoon, Mr. Black, I am Alfie Noble and I will be doing your

evaluation today. You may or may not get me as your counselor later, it

all depends on what we talk about in this session," Mr. Noble said as he

sat on one of the comfortable chairs, indicated for Hydrus to sit in front

of him, and pulled out a notepad and pen, poised to start writing.

Hydrus sat in the chair indicated. "Good Afternoon, Mr. Noble, please,

call me Hydrus." He relaxed back in his seat and gave off a calm

demeanor.

"Very well, Hydrus, what do you want out of therapy?" came the standard

first question.

"Well, first let me start off by saying I'm a recovering PTSD patient. I've

had years of therapy under my belt, and have been off medication for

some time. I was only seeing my last counselor every three months for a

checkup," Hydrus explained evenly.

"Can you give me the name of your last clinic, so we can send for your

records?" Alfie asked as he made a note.

"Sorry, I'm under police protection. I wish I could, my therapist was great

and helped me a lot," Hydrus said. He had thought about bringing his

records with him, but the treatment wouldn't match the timeline.

"Oh, tell me how that came to be," the startled man looked up.

"I can explain it to you, but, I can't give any names."

"Yes, please, do. It will go a long way in evaluating you."

And so the next hour was spent telling about his childhood and the

terrorist that hunted him and killed his family. Noble's eyes grew wider

at each almost death experience Hydrus had as a child, but he did note

the young man seemed to be in complete control. In the end it was

decided that Hydrus would continue with an every three month checkup.

The two shook hands and Hydrus was led back to the lobby. There two

very emotional men were seated, though Remus seemed more concerned

about Sirius. The immortal made his way to the front desk, paid the bills

for all of them, made his appointment and turned to his friends.

"Come on, guys, let's go to get some tea," Hydrus suggested, thinking it

would give everyone time to regain control before they went home. And

knowing drinking alcohol would only make it worse, even if Sirius looked

like he wanted to get pissed.

Remus took his friend by the elbow and led him to the car. They drove to

the nearest diner and had some scones and tea.

After ten minutes of silence passed Hydrus asked, "Do you want to talk

about it, Sirius?"

"Yeah, yeah, Ms. Goddard said that'd be a good thing, to talk to you two,"

Sirius said, coming back to himself.

Remus rubbed his back and said, "Take your time, Padfoot."

"The questions were just so intrusive," the dogman said with a shudder,

had he not just been talking to the analyst he wouldn't be opening up

now. "I know you told me they would be, but I brought up things I

thought I had forgotten about. It was really hard and emotional. She said

I had to come every day for the next few months." His face looked torn

between relief at getting help and sadness that he was so screwed up.

"She said the psychiatrist will give me Muggle pills for anxiety and

depression. I'm going to see if there are equivalents in potions."

"Well, we're here for you, if you ever want to talk about. It's good to have

people to support you through all of this," Hydrus said sincerely, looking

in the other man's eyes, showing him what he said was true. He

remembered well that George had been a great help to him when he first

went through all his therapy. He'd hate to think how much harder it

would have been if he hadn't had that support. "There are better potions;

we can brew some up later."

That seemed to relax the man a bit. "She did say something about my

loyalty to Dumbledore as being unnatural, especially after I told her what

he did to Harry. I didn't use any names, but I did tell her that he was a

great man and leader, so I didn't understand his actions," Sirius said a bit

confused.

"I've been thinking about that. Was there a loyalty clause in the oaths you

took for the Order of the Phoenix?" Hydrus asked.

Both men's eyes glazed over as they thought back to when they joined

the Order. Recognition came to their faces as they realized that there was

indeed a sentence about being loyal to the leader of the Order until the

group was disbanded. They both came back to the present and nodded.

"Yeah, there was, it wasn't specifically to Dumbledore just whoever was

the leader and only if that leader made a vow to fight for the Light. But,

how did Pettigrew break that oath without dying?" Sirius asked a little

angry.

"I'm not sure, maybe it was because he didn't go against the leader, he

went against members of the Order," Hydrus answered. Though, that

didn't make much sense either, wouldn't the Order members make the

same vow to fight for the Light. Since he wasn't there when they made

the vow he didn't have the answer to that. It could be that Pettigrew used

a false name, or reworded his vow, that sneaky rat would find a way to

get around it, if he was already a Death Eater.

"So, we are going to be sticking up for Albus until he disperses the

Order?" Remus asked also angry about that clause, it was too much like

mind control.

"Yeah, but when the trials are over, he should be doing that, so it will

only be for a few more weeks," Hydrus said, hoping to ease their anger.

"Besides, you guys were only fresh out of Hogwarts when you made that

vow and Dumbledore had made a good impression on the both of you,

letting you do the things you did without reprimand. And with enough

therapy, you might just find a way around that clause, if the Order starts

up again. It's amazing what the mind can do when given the correct

motivation."

The two men relaxed at that, Hydrus, so far, hadn't steered them wrong.

"What about you, Remus," Sirius asked, taking a sip of his tea, wishing for

something stronger. "You don't seem stressed at all."

"Oh, not to make it sound like I am better than you, but, my therapist,

Ms. Frankston, said that I am simply suffering from plain old depression

and will overcome it in time," the werewolf answered. "She said my fear

of hurting people can be treated with meditation and perhaps exercise.

So you were right, Hydrus. She gave me a pamphlet on the grieving

stages. She recommended that I only come to the clinic if I feel I cannot

handle the grieving process myself. I told her I had you two and that I

will be okay."

"That's Moony for you, always the calm and collected one," Sirius said

with a sincere smile. They finished their tea chatting about happier times

and went home.

Harry was very excited to see them and called each of their names,

demanding to be picked up. Sirius, upon seeing his godson, firmed his

resolve to get better and gave the toddler a big hug. He then handed him

to Remus and went to kill a few pixel men. Hydrus watched him go with

sad eyes, knowing exactly what he was thinking. Sirius didn't trust

himself around Harry. Hopefully with time that will change.

Bit of a queasy scene

Hydrus decided it was time to go and check on his coma victims, so he

asked Remus if he was okay with Harry. When the werewolf nodded he

popped away. He reappeared in the cemetery and went to the crypt

holding Lucius and Bellatrix.

When he got near he noted the door was ajar and the smell was

overwhelming, he had to cast a Bubblehead Charm just to get inside. It

took everything he had not to empty his stomach. There were body parts

everywhere; the blood coated the floors and the walls. The two bodies

laid on the stone coffins, their inside showing to the world. It looked like

something had eaten them from the throat down. Bits of flesh were

thrown around the crypt, there was an arm and a hand laying just inside

the door. Their faces were untouched, except blood spatter, it looked like

they were sleeping.

These two Death Eaters will never kill again.

A fleeting thought on why whatever had eaten the two wasn't affected by

the Draught of the Living Death went through his mind.

It looked like they had been torn apart by wild animals, but an animal

couldn't open the doors. So Hydrus took a closer look, still trying to keep

his lunch. Those were human teeth marks, so it must have been ghouls.

He cursed himself for warding against humans and not magical creatures.

He knew ghouls took up in abandoned cemeteries. He had thought it was

only magical graveyards. Looks like he was wrong. He was going to have

nightmares about this; it was a good thing that he was mostly over his

guilt complex.

He decided to leave them as they were; he'd anonymously tell the

families, hoping they'd get some closure. He closed the door, took down

the wards and went to check on the others and was met with similar

scenes. Using the Elder Wand he made sure all evidence of his magic was

gone from the graveyard, and then he went back home.

He avoided the other two men until dinner; instead he went to his room

and meditated on what happened and how he could prevent it from

happening again. He still had to do something about the two hated

women, but he didn't want their deaths on his hands if he could prevent

it. Not after seeing and feeling that. He pushed the images to the back of

his mind and concentrated on creating other plans.

He made some tentative plans and wrote them in his laptop. He then

went to order dinner, since he didn't feel like cooking after that horrific

ordeal. He had given Tippy the night off to read her book-reader. Not

even thinking about it, he called for pizza to be picked up, hoping the

other men would like the meatlovers, which they should. He then went to

the living room and put on a calm face and played with Harry.

"Hey, Sirius, you ever have pizza?"

"No, Lily told me about it, but we never had any."

"What about you, Remus?"

"I have had some. It is easier to call out than to cook on the days after the

full moon."

"Good, I don't feel like cooking tonight, so I ordered a meatlovers pizza

for dinner. I hope you don't mind? Harry can have some of the crust, but

I'm not comfortable with him eating the pizza. I've got some baby food

for him."

"Nay, I don't mind. Hey, do you think I can feed Harry?" Sirius asked

perking up at the thought. That should be something he can handle.

"Sure, but I got to warn you, he's at the age where he is going to want to

do it himself. So be prepared for a fight. If it gets too much for you

switch with someone," Hydrus warned in all seriousness.

When the time came, he went and got his order and put it on the table,

calling his family to eat. When he opened the box, he realized that pizza

was probably the worst idea he had all day. Swallowing down the bile,

he gamely served everyone and then made the excuse that he wasn't

hungry after all.

End of queasy scene

"Are you alright?" Remus asked in concern. He noted the immortal looked

peaked.

"Just not feeling right, I'll tell why you tomorrow. I'm just going to go and

work on my toy for Harry," Hydrus explained, then left the room. He sat

on the sofa and took some deep breaths. Calming his stomach, he pulled

his notes for the toy and started reading.

The two men joined him after they ate and cleaned Harry. Sirius tried to

get the toddler interested in watching his HALO game, but the tyke only

wanted his blocks. While the tot was busy playing, Sirius and Remus took

their chairs and shared a look then cleared their throats to get the other

man's attention. Hydrus looked up from his notes and smiled wanly.

"I'm not going to tell you tonight. Just know it is important, but not a

priority," he told them and went back to his notes. He was almost there

and should have a model ready soon. He would have to convert one of

the studies to his lab. If the other two wanted to help they were welcome.

The rest of the night was spent, reading, playing with Harry or on the

game console. Just a relaxing night after a stressful day.

The next day was cold and bitter, matching Hydrus's mood. He was right;

he had nightmares of the carnage all night. He probably got two hours of

sleep. He went and gathered the awake Harry and took him to the

kitchen, this time making pancakes, which should be easy on his

churning tummy.

Today was Saturday, so Sirius didn't have to go to the clinic. Hydrus

figured he would have to teach the man how to drive a car, since it

would be dangerous for the motorcycle soon. He'd ask him when he woke

up. He was going to try and get them to use non-magical means of

transportation, since CCTV cameras would be going up on all the streets

in the future.

The dogmen stumbled into the kitchen, as usual, awoken by the aroma of

breakfast.

"No meat?" Remus asked, piling his plate with pancakes and grabbing the

syrup.

"Not today," was the succinct answer.

The werewolf looked up and noticed Hydrus was still a little pale, so he

just nodded his head and added more to his plate.

Sirius was still drinking his first cup of coffee, so he just served himself

some of the breakfast and tried to wake up more.

"Are you going to tell us what happened to make you so squeamish?"

Remus asked gently.

"Yeah, when Harry goes down for his nap," Hydrus answered, and went

back to his own meal.

The rest of the breakfast was eaten in silence. When the table was cleared

Hydrus excused himself to write some letters. He typed up a letter for

each family that he knew about, telling them that their family member

was dead, how they died, where they could find the remains and left

them unsigned. He would send Bellatrix's to Arcturus. He printed them

out and tucked them away to post later. He'd have to go to the Alley to

get them sent off. He still had plenty of non-magical disguises in his

pocketspace. This way there would be no tracing them back to him.

He went and joined the family. He sat with Harry and tried to get him to

say the colors of his toys. Harry got 'lue' and 'ed' right, most of the time;

it was still a work in progress. After a half an hour of that, he told the

other two he had an errand to run and he'd be back before lunch.

With a blonde wig and blue contacts, he posted the letters, got that

feeling of being watched again (which was weird, because he was in

disguise) and hurried home, making sure to remove the wig and contacts

before entering the house. Everyone was still in the living room doing

what they always did. Harry saw him come in and immediately waddled

to him, held up his arms and demanded, "Up".

"Hey, Prongslet, you ready for lunch?" Hydrus asked as he settled the

toddler on his hip and tickled his chin.

"Cheese," was the giggling response.

"You're as bad as Remus with chocolate," he mock growled at the tot and

tickled him again.

"Are you feeling better?" Remus asked as he joined them.

Hydrus walked to the kitchen, put Harry in his highchair and started

pulling stuff for a salad. "Yeah, I do. That errand I ran helped."

Remus went to the pantry and got Harry some jarred toddler food—

spaghetti. Harry upon seeing it started to demand cheese. Remus gently

talked the toddler into eating the pasta; he was really good at that. They

had read that too much cheese might not be good for him, so Hydrus was

insistent that they attempt to get him to like other foods.

Hydrus finished the salad and made some roast beef sandwiches and

called Sirius in. They ate a nice meal and talked of nonessential things.

"Hey, Sirius, do you know how to drive?" Hydrus asked. "The motorcycle

isn't going to be safe soon, if you ever get it back from Hagrid," he

explained at the quizzical look. "I don't remember if I told you this, but

the government is going to start putting up more of those CCTV cameras

on the main streets, so Apparating is not a good idea."

"Well, it's been awhile, so I might need a refresher. Lily taught us the

summer of sixth year," Sirius said rubbing his chin. "Do you think we

should warn the Ministry about those cameras?"

"I'll write them an anonymous letter soon. I might just casually drop the

newspaper articles in the Alley. If I remember correctly there was a lot of

protest about them," the immortal said and then turned to the werewolf.

"What about you, Remus, do you drive?"

"I was not around that summer, so, no, I do not know how to drive,"

Remus answered.

"Do you want to learn? We can get another car for you two. With Padfoot

having daily sessions, it might be better," Hydrus suggested. "Sirius can

buy his own, now that he is all Lorded up."

"Don't remind me," Sirius groaned and went back to his meal. Then he

realized what Hydrus said and perked up, thinking about all the wicked

sports cars he'd seen on the telly.

"Do not get too carried away, Padfoot. Remember you have a child to

care for," Remus reprimanded gently.

Sirius waved it away. "I can get more than one," he said, still dreaming.

"So how about it, Remus, you want to learn?" Hydrus asked again.

"Sounds like it would be a good idea."

"Alright after our talk, I'll take you out and show you the basics." With

that everyone returned to their meal. When they were finished Remus

took Harry to get cleaned and down for his nap. He then joined the other

men in the living room.

"So, what happened to put you off your food," Sirius all but demanded,

tired of waiting.

"I went to check on the Death Eaters; needless to say they will never kill

again. I didn't do it, they were dead when I got there," Hydrus said

quickly, when he saw the horrified looks. He told them about how the

ghouls had gotten them, but held back on the carnage. They were grown

wizards and could figure it out on their own. He then recapped his

errand, leaving out the being watched feeling. The entire time his voice

was steady and his face contrite. "So, you see I didn't want them to die

that way. I was still undecided what to do with them exactly. I was

actually thinking of wiping their memories and binding their magic."

The two listeners shared a glance and then looked back to the immortal.

They could see he was telling the truth and Sirius broke the silence first,

"I thought ghouls only fed in magical graveyards."

"No, they go wherever there is a dead body," Remus explained. He was

more versed on magical creatures, being one himself.

"Yeah, I thought the same as Sirius, so I didn't ward for them," Hydrus

said, the more he thought about it the better he felt. Those people will

never kill, rape or maim again. Even though he hadn't planned on seeing

them dead, this was for the best. He kept those thoughts to himself and

showed nothing on his face.

"It was an honest mistake," Remus said gently, bringing Hydrus from his

thoughts. "It is not well known that ghouls hunt in the Muggle world.

Besides, your letters were a sign of genuine guilt."

"Yeah, don't beat yourself up over it," Sirius piped in. "I'd've probably

made the same mistake."

Hydrus let out a sigh of relief, he had been worried about how they

would take it and he really wanted his family to stay together. "Let's get

you to driving, Remus."

So the two men donned their jackets and went to the garage. Hydrus only

pointed out the parts of the car and what they were for; he'd take the

werewolf out when he knew what each was. When they were done,

Hydrus grabbed Sirius and took him for a test run. Sirius wasn't as rusty

as he thought, so Hydrus was comfortable enough to let the man use the

car until he got his own. They were going to have to get magic-upped

licenses for everyone.

They were playing video games when Harry got up and Hydrus

remembered another letter he had to write. So he excused himself to his

room and wrote the Board of Governors about the Room of Hidden

Things. He once again used the printer and left it unsigned. It would be

interesting to see what they'd do with everything.

He set up his lab and brewed the potions for Sirius, for which the man

was thankful. They watched the telly to see if the non-magicals had

discovered the carnage, and were relieved when they hadn't. Soon

enough they all went to bed, worried about what tomorrow would bring.

The next morning after breakfast, Remus went and got the Daily Prophet,

just to see if the story had broke. It had, the headline read:

Missing Members Found: Signs of the Dark Mark Confirms

Suspicions.

The article that followed stated that Bartemius Crouch Sr. was the first on

the scene. He ranted that someone had murdered his son, even though

the investigation said it was the ghouls. No one could explain why so

many members of the magical society were in the Muggle cemetery in

the first place. It was only when the Dark Mark was found on all of the

bodies (Bartemius Crouch Jr.'s included) that it was established that they

were followers of He Who Must Not Be Named. The newspaper even

printed one of the letters to see if anyone could identify who wrote them

as they were wanted for questioning.

"Well, that's that," Hydrus said, after he read the paper out loud. "Good

thing I made you take that vow, or you'd turn me in," he said jokingly as

he folded the paper and placed it on the coffee table.

"That's not funny," snapped Sirius, making Hydrus wonder about his

sudden change of attitude. "If anything ever gets out you could wind up

in Azkaban. Then we'd have to take Harry and run."

"Why, the house is paid for, and under enough wards and charms you'd

be safe here," Hydrus said confused. Then it dawned on him that the

blood wards would fade. That would be bad. He had better figure out a

backup ward, then again with the Fidelius they should be safe enough.

"Calm down, Sirius, you heard that they concluded it was a ghoul attack

and they have no leads," Remus said, putting his hand on the other man's

shoulder.

"I just don't want to lose anyone else," Sirius said, after he took a few

deep breaths.

"You won't," Hydrus tried to sound reassuring.

"You can't know that. You've changed so much already, what you know

of the future is useless," Sirius said with a bite. "I'm not saying it isn't for

the better, I'm just saying we can't count on your knowledge."

"I made sure my magical signature was gone, there is nothing tying me to

this." He felt sure this was true. "If it makes you feel better, I'll be extra

careful about who I talk to and what I do in the future."

"Yeah, you do that. I'm going to go and brush up on my Occlumency,"

Sirius left the room, stomping his way up the stairs.

The mood was tense for the rest of the day, even Harry was fussy with all

the strain in the air. It took until the afternoon to get Sirius to calm down

enough to not snap at everybody, and that was only after Hydrus shoved

a Calming Draught down his throat. The younger Black took to his room

after that, and Hydrus had no idea what he did, but he came down to

dinner in much better spirits.

Monday came and Sirius drove himself to the clinic and when he

returned he was stressed again. He had a journal clutched in his hand

and was looking at it with a grimace. He took it to his room and stayed

there for the better part of an hour. When he reappeared, he settled into

his chair and said, "I just want you two to know how thankful I am to

have you in my life," he said uncomfortably, shifting in his chair and not

meeting their eyes.

"We will always be there for you, Padfoot," Remus said, while Hydrus

nodded in agreement.

"Well, good," the dogman said. He then put in his video game and got lost

in the zone. The other two men shared a look and then shrugged; they

weren't comfortable sharing their feelings either. So they went back to

what they were doing before, and like many men before them ignored

that that ever happened.

13. Moving Along

Chapter 13 Moving Along

AN: thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman and darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own; I would like to note, again, that I

have a bad habit of adding things and not sending the chapter back

to my wonderful betas. Thank you all for viewing, reviewing,

favoriting and following my story. I do believe it is my most

followed one to date.

Thanks to the reviewer that pointed out that my bowl needed to be ceramic,

I've update the previous chapters.

Hphphp

The next morning Hydrus went through his usual routines and got up

with Harry and made breakfast. This time making a full English breakfast

with egg, sausage, bacon, beans and toast. Coffee was brewing, and the

kettle was on. Harry was happily playing with a toy waiting for his meal.

As usual, the smell of cooking meat brought the other two men stumbling

down.

"So, Sirius," Hydrus asked as he served the bacon, "are you going to move

your mother soon? I'd like to get that necklace as soon as possible."

"Yeah, I'll write a letter today."

With that they went back to talking about happier things, like teaching

Harry his colors and trying to get the tot to watch the educational

cartoons. Harry was content in letting the adults talk around him while

he tore up his toast and shook his sippy cup so his juice would make the

bits into a soggy mess.

The meal done and Harry cleaned; they all met in the living room to

discuss plans for the day. Then Sirius went to his session, he'd be back in

a few hours.

"Harry," Hydrus asked getting the tot's attention, "what color is this?" He

held up a red block.

"'lue," Harry answered quite proudly.

"Red," his uncle corrected.

"'lue," the toddler insisted.

That went back and forth for about two minutes until Harry tired of the

game and waddled away. Hydrus sighed. For all his education he had, he

still didn't understand children. He had read the baby books before he

came back, and knew Harry was a bit ahead of some toddlers. Not a

genius by any means, but further along than normal. But, all said and

done, he was still just a baby and a puzzle to the time traveler.

"Hey, Remus, I'm going to my lab and work on that toy and probably

make your Wolfsbane," the immortal said as he got up off the floor.

"Watch Harry for me, okay?"

"I can do that," the werewolf said as he put his reader away. The full

moon was coming up in a week, and it will be nice to not lose his mind.

The study had been set up for putting together gizmos and potions, with

two long tables on either side of the room, plenty of ventilation and

spells on the walls to prevent damage from things that could go awry.

Since Hydrus had his pocketspace there was little need for cabinets. That

might change when the other two men joined him, unless they figured

out how it was done. They had looked over the memory and Remus tried

to recreate the spell, but so far no luck.

He spent two hours brewing the potion and another hour on this toy. He

missed lunch and wandered to the kitchen to make a sandwich. When he

got there he let out a groan at the mess. Tippy must still be reading,

because the place was covered in food. You would think a food fight had

happened, but he knew it was just because Sirius made lunch. It was one

of the main reasons Hydrus insisted on cooking.

"Tippy," he called.

"Master Hydrus is wanting Tippy?" Hydrus had long ago given up on

making house elves call him by his first name only.

"Can you help me clean this up?" he asked, indicating the food covered

counters and floor.

Tippy looked around the room and made an 'Oh' sound. Then she got a

contrite look on her face. "Tippy is sorry she is not doing her job," she

said sadly as her ears dipped and her eyes watered. "Yous can be taking

Tippy's pay."

"No, it's not your fault; you're only doing what I asked. We can clean this

up together." He put a hand on her shoulder to show he wasn't mad,

making the elf perk back up. For all that she was a free elf; she still

thrived on approval of her master, uh, boss.

"Tippy can do," she said with a firm nod. And the two cleaned the kitchen

wondering how tomato sauce got on the ceiling when it looked like

macaroni and cheese was made.

"So how is the research going?" Hydrus asked when they were done as he

pulled out makings for a pulled meat sandwich.

"Tippy is learning lots and lots. She is thinking she can start on the

garden in two days, if it is not being snowing," the enthusiastic elf said as

she bounced on the balls of her bare spindly feet. "Tippy is having great

plans for the backyard, making it a wonderful place for Little Master to

play in safely."

"That's great, Tippy, just show me your plans and let me know if you

need help, okay? I don't want you doing anything you don't think you

can handle." He knew house elves would work themselves sick if not told

not to.

"Tippy can do," she said, and then popped away.

Finishing his lunch Hydrus went to the living room where he was sure

everyone was. He settled on the sofa and watched as Remus and Sirius

tried to get Harry to say their names correctly. It was amusing.

"Sirius, did you write your letter?" he asked gaining the man's attention.

"Yup, I told her she had two days to vacate Grimmauld Place and move to

the cottage in France, because I know she'll hate that, or find a place on

her own. Whichever she chooses she has to take that damn house elf with

her," Sirius said with a beaming smile. He really loved poking at his

mother.

"Hmmm, Kreacher might take that necklace with them. Besides, didn't I

tell you how useful he was after I took up residence there?" he chastised

gently. Kreacher was a good elf, but Hydrus was having a hard time

convincing Sirius of this.

"Oh, I didn't think of that, I forgot how much Kreacher treasured that

necklace. Hmmm, I'd better write her back and tell her to leave him there

and turn his ownership over to me," the dogman said with a grimace.

There was a lot of bad blood between him and that elf, but if Hydrus was

right, then that would be overcome.

"Would you, please? Think of it as making your mother angrier," the

immortal said with a malicious gleam in his eyes. He hated that woman

as much as Sirius did. Mostly for what she did to his cousin.

"Yeah, I'll go and send that out now." And with that he left the room.

"Did you get your toy done?" Remus asked.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot about it when I saw the state of the kitchen."

"Sorry about that, Sirius really wanted to cook. Then Harry got fussy and

would not go down for his nap. So I guess I forgot," the embarrassed man

said. He was never letting Sirius cook unsupervised again.

"Next time call Tippy; it's what I pay her for," he said, shaking his head at

that oversight.

"Your house elf is free?" the astonished man asked.

"Yeah, didn't I tell you?"

"No, you did not."

Hydrus waved it away and said it was a story for another time. He called

the toy, sat on the floor and rolled it to Harry. The toy was shaped like a

ball and right now it was white. Seeing the bright light the toddler

squealed and grabbed it. When his little hands rested on the ball, it

turned red and said, "Red," slowly and clearly. In a female voice that

Hydrus hoped Harry would relate to better.

Harry answered, "ruh-ed."

The ball said, "Correct." And turned blue, causing the toddler to giggle

and clap his hands.

It was a stroke of genius that had him make it respond to baby talk, as

well as to the voices of adults. Hydrus was thankful it worked. This

should keep the tot busy for a while, since every time he said the correct

word the color would change and it would start again. If the correct word

wasn't said, the ball would repeat three time and then change color.

Right now there were only three easy colors on the toy, red, blue, green.

Hydrus would add more when Harry got these down.

Sirius came back into the room and the four males played with the new

toy, passing it around and saying the colors. That lasted for about a half

an hour and, Harry went back to his blocks and the three men did what

they usually did until it was time for dinner. They ate some of the pulled

beef that Hydrus had for lunch, Harry had baby food. The rest of the

night was relaxing and nothing heavy was discussed.

The next two days went much the same. There wasn't much to do with

winter setting in. On the evening of the second day Sirius called

Kreacher. The other two men were seated, letting Sirius deal with

Kreacher, until it was time to cleanse the horcrux. Harry was in his room

with Tippy.

The old house elf popped in and bowed to Sirius. "Blood Traitor Master is

calling Kreacher. Mistress is so upset that the great house of Black has

fallen to the Blood Traitor. She is telling Kreacher he must be answering

to Master's calls. Poor Mistress will be lost without Kreacher," the elf

rambled on. This was not a happy elf; this elf looked like it was one step

away from the grave. His pillowcase was dirty and torn, the usual gangly

features were skeletal, and his huge eyes were tired and droopy.

"Shut it, Kreacher. Has my dear old mum departed from Grimmauld

Place?" Sirius asked, ignoring the ramblings as best he could, though the

thought of his mum without a house elf made him happy.

"Mistress has left the house," Kreacher answered, bowing once again.

"Kreacher, I know that Regulus left a necklace in your care. I know you're

supposed to destroy it. I want you to bring it to me, so it can be

cleansed," Sirius ordered, trying to be gentle, remembering what Hydrus

told him. His daily potions helped.

The old elf looked at his new master in complete shock, and then his eyes

started welling with tears. "Master will destroy the Dark item? Kreacher

had tried, but nothing Kreacher had done worked."

"I'll take the Darkness out of it and then you can have the necklace when

we're done," Sirius said kindly, seeing how distraught the elf was. He was

still feeling guilty about his brother's death; it was one of the many things

he and his therapist were working through. "Go and get it," he ordered.

Kreacher popped away and was back in minutes. He handed the cursed

necklace to Sirius and backed away. Sirius handed it to Hydrus.

"This one is going to be a bit trickier," he said as he called the ceramic

bowl, acid and a piece of junk. "One of the reasons is I have to open it.

Then it is going to show you some of your fears, it will talk to you and

try and get you to wear it. Sirius, are you sure you want to be here?" he

asked when he had everything set up.

"Remus is strong enough to hold me back," the dogman said with a firm

nod, going to the other side of the room with the werewolf.

Hydrus nodded and turned back to the necklace. He opened it with

parseltongue the curse started.

"You are never going to succeed. The boy will die. He will be all alone before

he dies, and it will be entirely your fault. You should have never tried to

interfere with Fate," the unnerving disembodied voice said, making the

time traveler shiver at hearing his fears out loud. "They will turn on you,

just like everyone else did. They think you are mad. Killing was easy wasn't it?

You will fall to the Dark."

Trying his best to ignore the voice, Hydrus quickly said the spell to move

the soul piece, once again using the bowl and acid. The voice went from

mocking to screaming as the bit of soul died. It was done. He closed the

necklace, walked over to Sirius and handed it to the man. "It's up to you,

do you want to keep it or give it to Kreacher?"

The Black Lord looked at the piece of jewelry and gave it serious thought;

it was the last link to his brother and a valuable historical piece.

However, Kreacher had worked himself sick (judging from his gaunt

looks and now overly thankful eyes) trying to finish Regulus's last order.

"I gave my word," he answered and handed to the old house elf.

"Kreacher never thought he would see his Master Regulus's final order

done. Kreacher tried and tried and failed his master. Master Sirius is a

wonderful master to give poor Kreacher this treasure," the distraught elf

wailed as he clung to the piece of jewelry.

"Kreacher, I want you to go back to Grimmauld Place and remove any

Dark item. Take them to the vault," Sirius ordered, not wanting to listen

to the elf wail.

"Yes, Master," the elf said and popped out.

"Now all we need is the cup," Hydrus said as he flopped on the sofa.

"When do you think you can get that, Sirius?"

"Now that Bella is dead, I can get it anytime. Since her husband is in

prison, I can get a lawyer to seize the vault." He waved it away. He too

plopped into his recliner, glad that that was over with.

"I also need you to go to the Ministry. See if you can start getting allies.

We really need to start doing something positive. I know with Malfoy out

of the way, Fudge will need someone to line his pockets. That's if we let

him be Minister, with enough pull and bribes we should be able to get

someone better. Amelia Bones comes to mind. I have all that Death Eater

gold just waiting to grease some palms," the immortal said, thinking it

was time they stopped laying about the house.

"I want to help if I can," Remus said. He too was tired of just sitting

about. He didn't have a job at the moment and would be hard-pressed to

get one.

"Mostly everything is calm at the moment, this Ministry at least is trying

to help the public recover and since the first war wasn't as bad as the

second one, it's easier. The death of the Death Eaters went a long way in

boosting the public morale. All the other followers have had trials and

only Karkaroff and Snape are walking free," Hydrus said as he mentally

went over the current news reports.

"Right now Muggle-born and -raised are doing okay, they have good jobs

and aren't grossly discriminated against. That didn't start happening until

Malfoy started throwing his money around. So we only have to keep an

eye on what laws are being passed. If the Department for the Regulation

and Control of Magical Creatures goes the way it did last time, then there

will be laws they'll be trying to pass through that we want to prevent," he

explained, now going over the future history in his head. "Mostly

restrictions on werewolves, Sirius can use the money and his proxy as

Harry's magical guardian to help stop those. With both seats on the

Wizengamot he should have the pull to get more allies."

Sirius groaned at the reminder, he had forgotten that being a Lord meant

dealing with those old fogies on the Wizengamot, but he couldn't fault

Hydrus's logic.

"Yes, but what can I do to help?" the werewolf questioned, bringing the

immortal man's attention back to the present.

"Well, I'd like to be seen more in the Alley. Get a few more of mine and

George's inventions in the shop. Get my lawyer to anonymously add some

of the profits to the Weasley vault. So, Harry needs an adult to watch

him. Tippy is great, but she is a house elf, Harry needs a human to

interact with. Maybe take him to daycare and volunteer there?" Hydrus

suggested.

When the twins were old enough he was going to send them an unsigned

note telling them if they kept their grades up he'd support whatever they

wanted to do in the future. He just had to figure out how to do it without

coming off as stalkerish; maybe he'd use the Marauders' names.

"I was hoping for something that came with pay. You cannot support me

forever." Remus leaned forward and looked the time traveler in the face

to show he was dead serious.

"That was a short term suggestion. Once we get you driving, you can

open a bookstore or something and Harry can go to daycare fulltime,"

Hydrus protested. He had forgotten how touchy the man was about

charity. "Maybe you can look into hiring squibs and Muggle-borns that

didn't make it in the magical world, it wouldn't be much, but every little

bit helps. Call Marius and ask if there is help for the squibs, maybe there

is an underground network that we don't know about." That was

something he never found out about in the future, he had been too busy

with the Muggle-borns. "We can donate money or supplies if there is.

"That and you can have a back room for magicals and once Frostwell

starts selling the book-readers, have them on display back there," he

continued rapidly. Many new plans and ideas were running through his

mind. "You'd have to get with him to work that out. As a matter of fact,

write him a letter and give him the idea. He's a wonderful inventor and

should have some up and going quickly. Then when you get established

in the non-magical world, have some of your Muggle-born work a shop in

Diagon Alley." He'd have to see if he could get those readers up and

running in the non-magical world sooner than they had in the future.

That was going to be problematic.

"We all have brilliant minds, yes, you too, Padfoot," Hydrus said at the

scoff, continuing to go over his new plans. "We can do so much to help

the magical world move forward without stepping on their values and

traditions. The possibilities are endless. We just have to put our minds to

it and sitting around this house isn't going to do that," the immortal said

then pulled a pensieve out of his pocketspace. "I want to show you guys

some of the more horrible things that I saw happen to the Muggle-borns,

during and after the second war. It's one thing to hear about it, another

to see."

So they spent an hour going over the Muggle-born trial Hydrus had

witnessed, with Dolores in her glory, and the views of the beggars in

Diagon Alley and what Hydrus had to do after to get them out. The other

two men were speechless after that. They had been so wrapped up in

Harry, their grief and other issues that they had forgotten about the

horrible future that Hydrus had explained to them. Now, though, they

had a purpose and could see those ideas working. That is not to say the

war they just went through wasn't bad, it was, it's just that You Know

Who was mostly trying to get allies and it was Pure-bloods and those that

fought him that died the most.

"This'll be great," barked Sirius, when he got to thinking about the time

traveler's plans for the Ministry. "Undermine them from the inside and

not too quickly. With the announcement in the paper about my Lordship,

I'd be expected to be seen trying to get allies, though most will think I'd

go to the Darker element. Won't they be shocked when I'm seen buttering

up everyone?"

"The second you see Umbridge you let me know, and I'll take care of her,"

Hydrus said forcefully he had no idea where that woman was in this

timeline. "Don't start. I already said I'd try not to kill her. Besides, you

just saw what she did, do you want her to do it again, because with the

right backing she will." He glared at them when they took on wary looks

and then sighed and changed the subject. "Sirius you need to be seen

with pictures of Harry. Start telling stories about how he is just like any

other baby. This might play down the whole Boy Who Lived thing. Take

them, show them off and brag about him like anyone would their son.

Tell anyone who asks that you are in touch with his family. If

Dumbledore asks you can tell him the truth and that he's under the

Fidelius. I can't be seen having anything to do with Harry, so it will be up

to you to put rumors about him to rest."

"Yeah, I can do that," Sirius said, still worried about the Headmaster's

ability to read minds. His Occlumency wasn't quite where he wanted it,

but he was working on it daily, since it helped with his PTSD. "What if he

asks how the Dursleys are doing?"

"You can lie and say they are doing fine. Well, that wouldn't be much of a

lie, for all we know they are," the immortal replied. He'd have to hire an

investigator to see if he could find them. Not that he wanted anything to

do with his old family, but if the magicals got close to them, he'd need to

warn them again. Hopefully they were smart and moved out of Britain,

though he doubted it. On the other hand, if Dumbledore believe them to

be under the charm he might just let it be.

The three men spent the rest of the night going over some of those ideas

and refining them. Sirius was actually excited to be doing something, as

much as he loved gaming it was boring to play all the time, plus, new

games wouldn't be coming for years. Now, though, he could work on

what they had been fighting for, and he wouldn't even have to get his

hands dirty, much. The wonderful thing about it was he didn't need to

use his own money.

First they needed the cup, so Sirius went to the bank the next day with a

few goblin made artifacts, not waiting to go through the lawyer, and

came back with it. The same ritual was performed and the cup cleansed.

Hydrus called upon the vengeful spirits to see if there was any sign of

Voldemort. To their great displeasure he was still around, though very

weakened. They didn't know if it was because he made a new horcrux or

if it was because that bit of soul needed to be reborn to die. The Master

of Death left the spirits to haunt and spy for him. He would figure it out

and do his best to keep Harry out of it. Maybe he could get one of the

guys to kill him and go talk to Death, yeah, that'll be easy.

Hydrus gave Remus startup money for the book store. Remus demanded

that they get to a non-magical lawyer and get a loan agreement signed

before he did anything else. The immortal agreed readily.

The full moon came and went without fanfare. Hydrus and Harry went to

a moderate hotel for the night and the cellar was found to be adequate.

They would still leave the house until Moony got over his fear, but all in

all it was satisfactory. Remus was now a fulltime resident.

The weeks went by in a flurry of paperwork, phone calls, letters,

storefront buying, casing out large abandoned mansions, driving lessons,

therapy sessions, contracts and setting up Harry for daycare. That last

one was delicate, because they wouldn't give an address. The center

finally settled with the P.O. Box that Hydrus set up and phone numbers,

with the help of a small Confundus Charm.

At first Harry didn't want to go, too much had changed in his young life,

but he was soon playing with the other kids and happy at the center.

They all hoped he didn't start his accidental magic early, usually that

manifested around the age of four. That is when they planned on

homeschooling him and setting up play dates with magical children.

They needed to get further established in the magical world before they

approached parents.

The phone calls to Marius were stilted until they made him realize that

they were only trying to help. The man was bitter, there was no doubt

about that, he didn't trust wizards, even knowing the story behind

Hydrus's future. It took more calls and a few vows to make him see that

they were on the up and up. It was Marius's suggestion that got Sirius and

Hydrus to open an orphanage for the squib children, hence the need for a

mansion.

One day after a call with Marius Hydrus set Sirius down and they

planned.

"Well, we've got a site setup and are just waiting for the mansion to be

overhauled. Now, what we need is employees and to go to the

Department of Family Services and see if we can get the records of the

squibs that went through there for the last five years," Hydrus said from

his place on the sofa. It had been a long two weeks and there was more

that needed to be done, mostly getting workers that knew about the

magical world for the orphanage and bookstore. Marius was helping,

although there wasn't an underground movement, per se, the man did

have some contacts.

"It's about time we use some of that dirty money you have stashed away,"

his cousin agreed. He too was exhausted, but keeping busy had actually

helped a lot. He didn't have time to dwell on his feelings, though his

therapist told him that he needed to open up to them on occasion so they

didn't get bottled up and blow up in his face later. With a child in the

house that would be a bad thing. So he used his journal and Occlumency

sessions, in the privacy of his room, for those emotional outbursts.

Looking at his watch and seeing it was only one in the afternoon the

immortal said, "Let's go see what that money can buy."

So the two Blacks got up and went to the Ministry. They were soon in the

office with the same man reading behind the counter. Sirius cleared his

throat and the man looked up. "I have a quick question for you, Mr.

Winifred," he said, after reading the nameplate on the counter.

"Oh, Hello, Mr. Black and friend, sorry, I never got your name," Jacob

smiled as he put down his book.

"It's Mr. Black too, but you may call me Hydrus," the time traveler

answered, trying to keep the man at ease; when they had left last time it

was on a bitter note, but the clerk seemed to have gotten over that.

"Good to meet you, Hydrus. You can call me Jacob. You too, Mr. Black,

or should that be Lord Black?" the man said as he shook hands with both

men.

"First names all around, call me Sirius. I don't go by Lord Black unless I

have to, and this is not one of those times," the dogman said. "Back to my

question— do you like working here?"

"It's an easy enough job, so, yes, I do like it. It's not what I had hoped for

when I took the position, but every little bit helps, as they say," Jacob

said a bit sadly. When he was hired he truly did want to help the

children, he did the best he could by suggesting they were placed in

orphanages he knew were good, but there was little else he could do.

Most of the Pure-bloods wouldn't even go through this department. They

just abandoned the poor souls on the streets or killed them by trying to

scare the magic out of them. Though magicals treasured their children,

squibs weren't considered as such, to most Pure-bloods they were

abominations and a black mark on the family. It was usually the Half-

bloods that came through deeply concerned for the child, but not

wanting them to grow up around magic they didn't have. Plus, knowing

there was little work for squibs here. They were doing what they felt was

the best for their children.

"I was hoping you'd say that. I have an offer for you. We're trying to open

an orphanage in the Muggle world for the squibs. Give them a better shot

at making it in their new environment, and we're hoping you can help

us," Sirius said sincerely. He was hopeful that the man wasn't too greedy

and truly wanted to help and judging by his words he did.

"How can I help?" the eager clerk asked, though he hoped it wouldn't be

too much work or against the law. He really did like his cushy job.

"We just need the names of all the children sent to the non-magical world

for the last five years," Hydrus explained. "We can make it worth your

while," he added at seeing the reluctance.

"Really," Jacob exclaimed. He had heard of people taking bribes, but his

department was so unworthy he never thought someone would offer him

one. Not that he was a greedy man, but he did have a family to feed.

"Well, it's not breaking any laws that I know of, but I could be fired if

certain people found out."

"Let's say 200 galleons for those names and we leave you the address of

our orphanage for future children," Sirius offered, as it was expected of

him. "And we vow never to reveal our source." Hydrus nodded in

agreement at that.

"400," was the rebuttal.

And they quibbled for a few minutes until it was settled on 325 galleons.

Jacob, upon receiving the money and the vows, went to the archive and

called the names they wanted. The whole transaction took less than ten

minutes.

"What're you going to do about the abandoned ones?" the clerk asked

after he handed over a copy of the names.

"We're already working with the non-magical social services to see if they

can send them our way, once we're up and running," Hydrus answered as

he thumbed through the files.

The non-magical case workers were thrilled to help, though they

questioned why they would only take the children who had been

abandoned between the ages of eight and seventeen and not runaways.

They had given a sob story about the same happening to members of

their family, which was true, and wanting to prevent the poor children

living on the streets. It worked. They knew that there might actually be

non-magicals coming their way. They'd do their best to pay squib families

to foster them and not tell them about the magical world.

"Oh, well, that's good then," Jacob said happily. They all shook hands and

the two Blacks left the office satisfied, though they did feel bad for those

that would die under their family's attempt to make accidental magic

happen, but they had no way of finding them. The child would either do

magic or be dead or severely injured. Maybe some donations to St.

Mungo's would be needed for names of those that survived the attempts.

They could then bribe the families into letting them take the children.

Sirius still went to his daily sessions and was doing much better. He had

cut back on his game time and spent more time with the family. Remus

settled into being a shop owner, and had hired a few Muggle-born and

squibs to help run it, making sure they knew they were working with a

werewolf and were okay with that.

Hydrus introduced more things to his shop, like computers; again, mostly

Muggle-raised purchased them. He also sold VCR's and Disney cartoons;

those should appease the magicals since they were full of magic and

morals. It might just jump start some rational thinking or maybe even get

some magical artist to do their own. There were a few magical raised that

bought them; Mr. Weasley splurged some of his new income on a telly

and VCR along with two movies (Cinderella and the Sword and the

Stone). Hydrus figured he'd be back for more soon. All in all it was a

good start.

14. Swift Changes

Chapter 14 Swift Changes

AN: thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own; I would like to note, again, that I

have a bad habit of adding things and not sending the chapter back

to my wonderful betas. Thank you all for viewing, reviewing,

favoriting and following my story. I do believe it is my most

followed one to date.

Remember this is fanfiction on a magical world, reality need not apply. So

businesses are going up faster than they would in actuality.

According to Harry Potter wiki, Merlin's Frog Card says he was sorted into

Slytherin. It is said J.K. Rowling changed his birthdate.

Hphphp

It was a cold winter evening and a tired trio had just put Harry to bed.

They were sitting in their favorite seats, sipping tea and relaxing.

"Hey, Remus," Hydrus broke the silence, "you're a researcher, right?"

"Yes," the werewolf answered tentatively at the gleam in the immortal's

eyes. That look usually meant more work. Not that he had a problem

with work, but getting the book store up and running had taken a lot out

of him.

Sirius just sat back and snickered quietly. Remus had done all the

research for the Marauders, so he knew that once Hydrus gave the

werewolf something to look up, the man would be lost in the world of

books.

"I have an idea," the time traveler said, "I was wondering if you could get

with the Chocolate Frog Company and make a book on the people

depicted on the cards. Put them in order of Hogwarts Houses or

unaffiliated, for those that didn't attend. Add more descriptions as to

what they did and who they are, you know, make it more of a history

book geared towards teens."

"Why?" Remus asked, not seeing what good that would do.

"Well, most magicals seem to forget things like Merlin being sorted into

Slytherin, or that guy, Paracelsus, who named and was a parseltongue,

being an alchemist and a healer. If it's all in order then they can see that

not everyone from that House or with such talents are evil," Hydrus

explained, still going over the possibilities. "There are some Dark Lords

and Ladies from other Houses, as well. It'll also show that blood doesn't

matter, if you do the research to show their blood status. There are loads

of things like that on those cards, but for some reason they aren't paid

attention to. You can get the Company to tell you where they got their

information and use those reference points to get the public to do some

of their own research."

"That might actually work," the other man said thoughtfully. "I can do it

on my down time. But, I might need some of your Death Eater money to

pay them."

Hydrus waved that off as a given and the two settled down to discuss it

more. Sirius added his own two Knuts' worth every now and then. It

would take a while to get it put together, but they were hopeful for the

summer.

The next day Sirius got a missive from his grandfather saying that they

couldn't put off the meeting any longer. So dressed in their best robes,

the two Blacks went to Arcturus's house.

The house was small for a Black home. It was only three stories tall and

painted in a dark brown that was almost black. The trees formed a circle

around it, casting deep shadows making the cloudy day even darker, like

a large foreboding fence. The front yard was trimmed and flowerless. The

path they walked up was dark grey gravel, with deep green bushes, that

came up to their shoulders, lining each side. Hydrus had to wonder why

the old man wanted his house to look haunted. The whole place made

you feel like you were walking to your death.

Sirius used the large head shaped knocker to announce their arrival. A

clean, yet, worn looking, house elf answered and showed them to the

parlor.

Seated in a high wing backed chair sat a very old, emaciated, looking

man. He was dressed in formal robes of green and silver. He was very

pale, as if he hadn't seen the sun in years. His hair was streaked with grey

and his face was lined with wrinkles. His grey eyes were alert and the set

of his mouth was thin with repressed emotion. However, if you looked

hard enough you could see he was once a handsome man. Power also

radiated off him, he may look weak, but he was magically strong.

"Sirius," the surprisingly strong, deep, voice said, "it is about time you

came. I told you I wanted to meet this young man weeks ago."

"We've been busy," the dogman defended. The two were still standing

near the entryway, waiting to be offered seats.

"Yes, I have heard of all your exploits," Arcturus said, waving his hands

for them to sit. "I have to wonder if you are actually going to do anything

for the family. I trusted you to pull them together."

"Well, you see…" the chastised man tried to explain as they took the

chairs indicated. "I did bring a few of the others and Andromeda back

into the family and set up vaults for them and their children."

"Yes, you did, but what of your other great aunts, uncles and cousins?

Your cousin Narcissa and her son?" the ex-Lord asked, shooting a

disappointed glare at the youngest Black. He was thinking maybe he

shouldn't have given up the seat quite so soon.

"Cissy still has her vault and has expressed that she wants little to do with

the family. I did send her a message about what we're doing. She said she

wouldn't stand in our way, but she had little faith of any of it working,"

Sirius rattled off. "As for the others, do you really think they would

understand the things I'm trying to set in motion?"

Arcturus rubbed his chin and thought for a moment. "Your cousin

Callidora has always had a soft spot for squibs, so she might help you

with your orphanage. Your Uncle Cygnus can help you gain allies, his

only dream, at this point in time, is to see the Black family name return

to power. Your Aunt Cassiopeia is said to have a blackmail list on

everyone in the Wizengamot so you might want to seek her out as well,"

he said, ticking off the members with a tap of his finger on the arm of his

chair. "However, you are correct in the rest of the family. They will not

understand what you are trying to accomplish, you do need to write to

them and use your status as their Lord to make them stay out of your

way, since they are all older and respect tradition. I recommend that you

take more time to communicate with them to let them know that you

have not abandoned the family."

"I'll do that this afternoon, Grandfather," Sirius said, settling back in his

chair now that the other man wasn't angry at him anymore. It wouldn't

hurt to open relations with the older members of the family, who knows

he might just get more allies that way.

"I would like to see you married, before too much longer. My time is

near, and I wish to know that the name will not die with you," the old

man demanded. He had been shut up for so long that he had made

himself ill, he weakened every day. It was one of the reasons he handed

the Lordship to the younger man, well that and there were no other

successors.

"Well, I've already got an heir, however, I think it's time I started courting

again," the grandson said, thinking about his lovely therapist. Though, he

might not want to lose her great counseling. He'd have to think about it.

He was just glad his sex drive was up again, he had been very worried

about that.

"Who is your heir? It better not be young Draco, though with his father

dead, that might not be as bad as I had envisioned," the old man said,

once again rubbing his chin in thought. "Still, I would not see the family

name going to the Malfoys."

"Harry Potter."

"At least, he has Black blood, though not as close as I'd like."

"He is my heir," Sirius said with finality.

"As to you, young man," Arcturus said dropping the subject and turning

his attention to the quiet man, "I would like to know how you just

appeared on the family tree. And do not give me that story you are

descended from Marius, I know of all his sons and grandsons and there

was not a magical among them."

It had angered him greatly when he found out that the Death Eaters had

killed off all but one of that family. Now there will never be a magical

born of that line. He never could get the younger generation to

understand that Muggle-borns came from long lines of squibs. No, they

had all taken Voldemort at his word and killed where they were told to.

Even his title as their Lord would not sway them. Now they were all dead

or imprisoned, but for a few. "Moreover, names don't just appear on the

tree, especially after said person is an adult," he added.

Hydrus shared a look with Sirius, they had discussed this. Sirius wanted

Hydrus to tell his grandfather the whole truth. He claimed that the old

man would understand and might even back them if he knew the

downfall of the magical world in Britain was possible. Hydrus, on the

other hand, was leery; rumors about the elder Black were that he was a

strong supporter of Pure-bloods, though the conversation he had just

listened to gave doubt to those stories.

"I need a vow of secrecy," he said politely.

"Your tale is such that you would encumber an old man with that great a

burden," Arcturus asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes," was the succinct answer as Hydrus looked the man dead in the eye

to show he was serious.

The elder Black looked into those grey eyes, so like a Black, and saw the

need in them. "I need your full name."

So Hydrus gave his name and once again it was pointed out that

Williamsford wasn't a star name. He said he'd give explanations after the

vow.

One vow, many hours of talking and the ample use of the pensieve later

and the old man exploded out of his chair, belying his ill appearance.

"You are a fool!" he yelled, his face contorted with rage and aura of

power coming off him in waves. "No one should mess with time the way

you did! And just so you can simply save yourself! Of all the greedy,

selfish reasons!" He started pacing, using his wand to throw priceless

items against the walls, all the while yelling at the stupidity of youth.

The other two younger men sat in a state of shock and let the man rant.

He didn't wind down for at least five minutes, pacing back and forth,

fingering his wand when he wasn't destroying things, shooting piercing

glares at the time traveler, as if he would kill Hydrus in any minute.

"Give me one good reason not to end your life," Arcturus said, with a

murderous glint in his eye.

"If I hadn't come back, the magical world of Britain would have fallen.

Your precious family name would be dead. Every member of your

immediate family died with no heir. Sirius in my timeline called the

name dead in his will. There would be no more Blacks in Britain," the

immortal spat as he glowered back. "If Harry went to the Dursleys, this

timeline would have played out exactly the same. So don't give me your

self-righteous indignation. You would have done the same thing to save

your family."

With that Arcturus deflated and dropped bonelessly back into his chair.

The boy was right, and if the future he was showed was real, and he

knew the method used, he would do just that. He would do it now, if

only to try harder in keeping his family from joining the Dark Lord. He

had the power, but the time traveler in front of him stated that a special

wand was needed.

"Besides," Hydrus continued in a much calmer voice, "you can't kill me."

That caused the old man's head to snap up. "What do you mean, I cannot

kill you. I assure you young man I am more than capable."

"I'm immortal."

"How did that happen?" came the shocked, yet, curious reply. The elder

Black looked honestly inquisitive, like it was something he too had been

searching for. Not that he would ever split his soul, he knew madness lay

in that direction, and he was quite fond of his sanity.

"I'm the Master of Death," Hydrus said and he produced the Deathly

Hallows.

Once more fingering his wand the old man's eyes turned greedy.

"Don't even try. I have it on good authority that I will be the only

Master," the immortal said as he placed the Hallows in his pocketspace.

Arcturus slumped in his chair as he watched the fabled items vanish. "My

time is near, as I have said, I would have one favor to ask of you, Sirius,"

he said tiredly, turning back to his grandson.

The youngest Black had been quiet up till now, letting the other two vent

their feelings. "What do you require, Grandfather?"

"Cremate me and give my sister the ashes. I have no want to be set in the

ground." It was because of his fear of being used from the grave that he

made such a request.

Once again the other two were shocked; it wasn't the Pure-blood way.

However, since it was the man's final wish, Sirius would see it done.

"I am done with you two. Do what you will, I will not hinder or help.

Leave this old man to die in peace. I will instruct the house elf to tell you

when I have passed. Leave," the weary man said, waving his hand in

dismissal.

The two younger Blacks got up and left the house, neither one of them

were happy about the confrontation, yet were content at the conclusion.

They went home, told Remus what had happened and then decided to set

it all aside until such time it needed to be dealt with.

Sirius sequestered himself in his room to write reams of letters to the

family. That blackmail list would come in handy and Aunt Cassiopeia

was known to be on the Grey side. She was more of a researcher than

anything else; her fights with other family members were legendary. It

was her research on squibs producing magicals that swayed his

grandfather to her argument.

More weeks flew by and the spirits that Hydrus set on Voldemort had

little good news, the wraith was angry at the ghosts that haunted him

and was keeping his mouth shut as to whether or not he made a new

horcrux. So the Master of Death suggested they only trail him from afar

during the day and haunt him at night, maybe he might let something

slip, though that was a long shot. They did tell him the wraith was

weakening, he could only possess small animals and only for a short

time. That bit of information made the immortal hopeful.

Harry was doing great at daycare; he was learning to play with other

children and could now say a few more words and colors. So far no

accidental magic was seen, which was a major relief. Sirius had

approached a few magical families to set up play dates in the future. The

dogman had approached the Weasleys, thanks to Arthur's love of the

appliance store, and made arrangements. Hydrus's problem with that was

Ron; he still had some bitterness about his ex-friend. He was hopeful that

if they got to the child soon enough it might turn out different. Sirius

would take Harry to the other people's houses to keep the other two's

names away from the child's.

The orphanage was up and running, they had fifteen squib children and

three non-magical. Sirius was in contact with Marius and social services

about fostering the non-magical ones out. They had a few prospects, but

social services were still doing background checks on them. It was hard

to keep the magical world from those three, but they talked with the

other children and told them to tone it down or say it was their

imagination talking. The kids were between eight and fifteen so most of

them understood why they needed to not discuss their past in front of the

others. Though, some of the older squibs were bitter and wanted to

expose the magical world. It was an ongoing battle to keep it all hushed.

Hydrus made sure to have on staff two magic knowing counselors, who

had mandatory meetings with every child. Marius was a great resource.

The mansion was huge, with thirty bedrooms, one large playroom, a

humongous dining room, and five studies for the children to do school

work. There were a few offices on the ground floor, as well as a visiting

area for those looking to adopt. The counselors were set up on the first

floor. The rooms at this time were individual as there were only a few

children in comparison to the amount of space they had. The staff also

lived in the mansion.

They did hire three house elves, which they bought and then freed, for

the cooking and taking care of the yardwork. Tippy helped a lot when

that happened, letting the elves know that they weren't being punished

and what they could do with their pay. She also instructed them on how

to keep up the yards.

The yards were divided into four. The front yard was maintained as a

pretty entryway, with trimmed grass and shrubbery. The backyard was a

play yard with swings, slides and other playground equipment, plus an

area for football. The side yard to the right was smaller and used for

barbeques, outdoor parties and picnics. The other side yard was made

into a vegetable garden that everyone worked in.

Remus used Hydrus's name to write to Frostwell and gave him the idea

for the book-readers. The inventor said it was a wonderful idea and that

he would see about getting one made soon, they were hopeful for next

autumn. They didn't give the man any that they had, just a general

sketch, because Hydrus wanted to make sure that Frostwell got the credit

and the profits from them. Besides, how would they explain it?

With copious use of bribes, Sirius prevented the werewolf restrictions

from happening. He was also working on getting better relations with the

goblins, much to the immortal's displeasure. But, Sirius's reasoning was

that he was trying to prevent what happened in the future from

happening again. Hydrus couldn't fault that logic, but he didn't have to

like the greedy bastards. Sirius also prevented a few Pure-blood laws

from going into effect. He had quite a lot of allies now, and not all of

them had to be bribed, just poked in the correct direction. That list came

in handy.

It was now spring and Tippy was working hard on the garden. The flower

bed was now fenced off. She was adding a small waterfall, which was

warded against children. The trees were trimmed back and starting to

bloom. A play yard was added with swings, a slide, and a sandbox.

Needless to say, she was putting those books to good use.

The first Boy Who Lived book hit the shelf and Sirius fell on the publisher

and author like a rabid dog. His lawyer sued the pants off them and the

godfather threatened further action if it happened again. This action

caused the Prophet to write a headline that accused the Black Lord of

trying to keep the public away from their hero. Sirius gave an interview

on the Wizard Wireless Network in rebuttal. He claimed that if anyone

wanted to know about Harry all they had to do was ask, but he wasn't

going to let rumor or speculation run wild about his godson. He even

gave a few anecdotes about Harry's potty training and eating habits to

show that he was still just a toddler and not the next coming of Merlin.

Because of this, they also started their own newspaper, since they

couldn't buy any shares of the Prophet (It was mostly owned by the

Ministry). They simply called it The Times, blatantly stealing the name

from the non-magicals. They hired reporters that were made to vow that

everything they wrote was true—to their knowledge. They didn't want

anyone to die or lose their magic for printing something that would later

be found out to be incorrect.

The paper was a medium success, somewhere between the Prophet and

the Quibbler. The things they reported on were the government, social

pages, sports and up and coming entrepreneurs like Hydrus and

Frostwell. Every now and then there was an article on how well Harry

was doing, showing once again that he as just a child. They even had a

section on what was big news in the non-magical world. It was gaining

subscribers with each printing.

Everything was going well, but Hydrus knew something would come up

to ruin that soon. He was still getting that watched feeling every time he

went into Diagon Alley. Besides, nothing ever went this smoothly for

long, not for him anyway. Those thoughts made him jumpy and nervous.

He started distrusting everyone he met, until such time they proved

themselves not a threat. He made sure he never mentioned Harry or

Remus. He cut his public time with Sirius in half, only being seen with

him a few times a month.

The others in the house, of course, noticed the twitchy behavior and

confronted him one night towards the end of spring.

"Hydrus, what's going on with you? You're all jumpy and it's got us

worried," Sirius said when they settled for evening tea.

The immortal sighed and set his cup down. "Sorry, I'm not used to things

going so well without waiting for the other shoe to drop. I mean, even

when me and George were getting our revenge on the magicals, things

would pop up that would throw plans off. So, I'm waiting for something

bad to happen. I just don't know what," he said. "That and I can't shake

the feeling that someone is stalking me."

"Let's go over a few things and see if we are missing anything," Remus

suggested.

"Okay, orphanage, going good. Newspaper, flourishing. Bookstore, doing

well. Your store, making a huge profit. Harry, growing every day and

well loved, so the wards are strong. Death Eaters, dead or in Azkaban.

Politics, many allies. Chocolate Frog book, at the publishers. My therapy,

down to once a week," Sirius said, ticking off everything. "I can't for the

life of me think of anyone you've offended that's not in prison or dead.

The only downside I see is You Know Who; we have no idea how to kill

him off."

The time traveler waved that off and stated, "The spirits tell me he

weakens every day, so we might just have already solved that problem.

No, it's something else, something I've forgotten."

"As much as I hate to bring it up, have either of you heard about

Umbridge or Skeeter?" Remus asked mildly.

"Now that I think about it, no, I've not heard a word about either of

them," Hydrus said a bit shocked. Maybe it was one of them following

him, which would make sense.

"Umbridge works for the Improper Use of Magic Office. Didn't I tell you?

She's the one who drafted the werewolf restrictions," Sirius added.

"No, you didn't tell me, but I should've known. I better keep an eye out

for Dolores causing trouble, that office would be a bad place for her to

work. I wonder where Skeeter is," the immortal thought out loud. He had

been so caught up in moving things along that he had forgotten about

those two. Well Skeeter didn't become a reporter until 1989, when she

appeared out of nowhere. He'd have to hire an investigator to see what

they were up to and dig up as much of their past as possible. He could

just pop over to Umbridge's family house and take care of her now.

Something to meditate on.

"Sirius," Hydrus asked, after another thought came to him, "have you

heard from Dumbledore?"

"Sure, I've talked with him a few times. He seems happy that Harry is

growing up well. He did ask how I got the pictures and I told him that I

was in touch with the Dursleys, but that I could only see Harry at his

daycare. He just nodded and twinkled at me," Sirius said, thinking over

the few times he had run into the Headmaster. "Though he did ask if I

was the one to cast the Fidelius Charm, and I told him they asked to be

hidden from the magicals and I complied." He really hated to lie, but

needs must. He thanked Merlin that his Occlumency shields were at their

fullest now.

"Did he ask about me?"

"Only once, he asked if you were the owner of the appliance and

entertainment store and expressed his opinion on it. I had to tell him you

were, since it's a well-known secret. He thinks it's a marvelous trend. He

went on and on about how he had bought a telly and VCR and some of

the movies. He was even suggesting getting some for the common rooms

at Hogwarts. He said something about having to get the Board's

approval."

That made Hydrus feel better. When it came to the Headmaster his

emotions were still conflicted. While he was sure the man had done some

shady things to keep his secrets, he couldn't help but think Dumbledore

truly believed it was for his Greater Good, and that that belief was his

way of helping all magicals. Besides, he really couldn't throw stones,

since the things he had done since he'd been back, stuff he still planned

on doing and what he had done in his timeline would border on the

darker Grey side. Though the immortal still thought the old man had too

much power, he didn't think he was nefarious. How the Headmaster

reacted to what was happening in the world today would go a long way

in settling those opposed feelings.

"What about you, Remus? Has he contacted you?" Hydrus turned to the

werewolf.

"He wrote me a letter expressing his concern that he could no longer

contact me through the Floo. I wrote him back and informed him that I

was no longer living in a magical house and that I was doing well. I have

not heard from him since."

"Well, it seems that Dumbledore is placated for now. We'll still keep an

ear out, that man is tricky," Hydrus said thoughtfully.

"Can you think of anything else?" Sirius asked in trepidation. Now that he

thought about it, the time traveler was right, things were going too well.

"No, that's what is so frustrating, I can't think of anything that would

hinder our plans," Hydrus said, shaking his head and running his hand

through his hair.

"Well, the only thing we can to do is continue on as planned and fix

whatever pops up," Remus suggested mildly.

The other two nodded and the conversation turned to other things. They

soon went to bed, the next day being Saturday none of them had work

until the afternoon, when Remus and Hydrus would make visits to their

stores.

The next morning Hydrus decided to make waffles, with fruit toppings.

He gathered Harry and set to cooking. Harry was banging his sippy cup

on his tray and giggling when the juice would spurt out. Then the toddler

accidently let go of the cup and it fell to the floor. Hydrus was about to

pick it up when it flew to the tot's hand.

Damn, I was hoping that wouldn't happen till later, he thought. He smiled at

the child and patted him on the head as to not discourage him and then

turned back to breakfast, making sure to fix some sausage, since the full

moon was coming up soon.

When everyone was seated and had their plates fixed, Hydrus told them

what happened. Both men were joyful that Harry was showing magic,

until the immortal reminded them that it could be a bad thing.

"I don't know much about magical children, but I thought that would

only happen when he was around four," the confused time traveler said.

"It can happen sometimes when they are toddlers, but it is rare,"

explained the ever knowledgeable Remus.

"That doesn't mean he is going to be like super magical, does it?" That

would be worrying, though it didn't make sense to Hydrus, because he

wasn't super powered.

"No, it just means he is used to magic. Many Pure-bloods do little things

like that, whereas the Muggle-born and -raised wait until they're older,"

Sirius said, still beaming at Harry.

Harry had thrown his cup to the floor once again and was getting angry

that it wouldn't come back like it did before. Hydrus picked the cup up

and handed it to the toddler only for him to throw it once again.

"No, Harry, don't throw your cup," Hydrus said firmly. He picked it up

once again and put it on the tray. It went flying, thanks to a swat of

Harry's arm. This time when the older man retrieved it he didn't hand it

back to the child, which of course made Harry cry.

"Cup," the tearful tot demanded.

"No, Harry, eat your breakfast," Hydrus said.

"Cup." Harry banged his little fist on the tray, causing the rest of his

breakfast to spatter on the floor.

"I think someone needs some time out," the adult replied. And with that

took the child to his playpen, which of course started a fit. After five

minutes of being ignored, the temper tantrum died down and the child

was happily playing with his toys. Much to the relief of the adults,

listening to a toddler yell wasn't fun, but Harry had to learn that he

couldn't always get his way.

"Isn't he a little young for time outs?" Remus questioned. He too had read

the books on child raising and knew that time outs were to keep

disagreements between child and adult to a minimum without the use of

spankings. Knowing how Hydrus was raised he understood why the

immortal would choose this method.

"Which is why he went to his playpen and not the corner, this way he'll

be distracted and I won't have given into his demands. When he is older,

I'll set him in the corner."

"Oh, well, I guess that makes sense."

The rest of the day was uneventful, in such that no more fits were

thrown, though they did have a fussy child at naptime. After the nap,

they took Harry out in the back garden and started him in the child

swing. He very much enjoyed it and the slide. After a while he wanted to

play in the sandbox. So the adults let him and sat with tea and chatted

about how their businesses were going.

Around three in the afternoon, both Hydrus and Remus went to their

respective shops. When the time traveler entered his store he had to

withhold a groan. There looking at the VHS movies was one Albus

Dumbledore. Just as he was about to try and sneak past him, the crowd

being too large to whip out his Cloak, the Headmaster turned and smiled.

"Hydrus, my boy, good to see you," Albus said cheerfully. He was holding

a couple of movies in his hand.

"Hello, Headmaster, it is good to see you as well," Hydrus replied, putting

a smile on his face. "I see you're enjoying the movies."

"Yes, they are a marvelous way to seeing what Muggles think of what

magic entails. Oh, that what they believe were only reality," the

twinkling eyed man exclaimed. "Think of the wondrous things that could

happen if one only had to wish upon a star. Still, I would like to see

someone in this world create such works of art."

"I've always enjoyed them; it makes me happy to see they are so well

received." There was a very sincere look on his face.

"Yes, yes, my boy, superb indeed. It is admirable to see the young so

enterprising. Now, I was hoping you could satisfy an old man's curiosity.

I don't recall ever having a Hydrus Black in Hogwarts; can you tell me

where you received your education?" Dumbledore asked politely, trying

to figure out the young man in front of him, without coming across as

prying.

"I was homeschooled," was the succinct response.

"May I inquire, by whom?"

"My adopted parents," he said in a voice that said he would not welcome

any more questions on that topic.

"Judging from your products they did a splendid job. I have never

encountered a rune array such as yours, splendid, indeed," he praised,

with a twinkle in his eyes he raised his free hand and placed it on the

young man's shoulder. Then he let it drop when Hydrus gave a small

smile and a nod of thanks. His smile brightened and he changed the

subject. "I was wondering if you have spent time with your cousin Sirius."

"We have lunch a few times a month," the immortal said with a casual lift

of his shoulder. "He's trying to get the family together and support his

political standing. I wholeheartedly agree with everything he has

accomplished so far."

"Indeed, Sirius has done some ideal things in the Ministry. Have you ever

come across his godson, young Harry?"

"I've only seen pictures," Hydrus lied with a disinterested face. "The child

seems happy enough," he said with another shrug.

"Definitely, those pictures do speak a thousand words, as the Muggles

say. It was delightful seeing you again, my boy. Thank you for answering

this old man's questions. However, I must be off," the Headmaster said,

going to the checkout counter to purchase the movies in his hand.

Hydrus gave a silent sigh of relief. That wasn't so bad, though I'm pretty

sure it won't be the last time I see the Headmaster. I'm probably correct that he

has a monitor on the wards. Still, I must keep my knowledge of Harry out of

the public.

When the Headmaster had left, Hydrus went and conducted his business

with his store manager. After that he went home and let the other two

adults know what happened. They both promised they would watch what

they say about Hydrus in public. The rest of the night was spent

rehashing the immortal's story about being adopted, until it was time for

bed. All of them hoping that what the time traveler told them was correct

and the Headmaster's inquiries were just a passing interest.

Hphphp

I hate writing Dumbledore, not that I can't get his speech correct, but, because

no matter how I write him I get reviews saying I'm doing him wrong. So I'll just

say this, in this story Dumbledore is an old man who thinks he is always right

and going to get his way. So people like Hydrus are of little interest to him,

unless they show a Dark side or go against one of his plans. The Headmaster,

at this time, thinks Hydrus is of the Light since he made the vow to help Harry

and tried to save the Potters, and he hasn't done anything mysterious since.

With the pictures Sirius is showing around he sees that Harry is happy and

away from his fame, which is what he wants (at least in this fic).

15. Two down, One to go

Chapter 15 Two down, One to go

AN: Thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own.

I'm making Skeeter's background up and not sticking to canon with her. It was

pointed out that Merlin died before Hogwarts was built, I know that, you know

that, but he still has a Chocolate Frog Card that says he was sorted into

Slytherin.

I am blown away with the response to the last chapter. Thanks again for all of

your support.

Hphphp

It was a beautiful July day. The sun was shining and there was a nice

breeze. The family was enjoying their luscious back yard, with a picnic

lunch of cold turkey sandwiches and crisps. Harry was running around

the garden trying to catch butterflies. He was walking well now and his

speech had improved greatly. The color ball was updated to more

difficult to say colors such as purple and orange. He would be two soon,

and the men couldn't wait to celebrate.

The rest of the males were thankful for the down time. All of their

projects were time-consuming. It being Sunday they were taking a well-

deserved day off simply watching Harry while seated in comfortable

garden chairs, sipping tea and enjoying the sun. This put the time

traveler in a joyful mood; this is what he wanted when he came back in

time, for Harry to have a happy family. Days like this made everything

worth it.

"So, Padfoot, how is the dating going?" Hydrus asked. He was glad the

man had healed enough to start seeing women regularly.

The youngest Black had taken up dating one of the other therapists at the

clinic. She was a nice lady, with brunette hair and dark blue eyes and

curves to die for.

"Very well, thank you very much," the dogman said with a sniff. Then he

laughed and said, "Faith is doing good, she has taken to Harry well. What

about you, Hydrus, are you going to start dating? One night stands are

only going to satisfy you for so long. Everyone needs a better half." He

was speaking from experience, his womanizing days were over and he

was looking to settle down. It would be hard, unless he branched out to

the magical world or at least someone that knew of it.

"I don't think it would be fair to anyone I was serious with, what with me

being immortal. I'd have to watch them grow old and die, while they'd

know that I'd never meet them in the afterlife." He was sad about that,

though it didn't stop him from having one night stands as long as the

other party knew it was only once. "Besides, I have plans for the future

that don't include anyone but me."

"What plans?"

"I'll tell you when the time gets closer. Don't worry; I'll make sure

everything is going well before I implement them." He waved it off.

"Well, I like Faith well enough, though she keeps nagging me to come to

my home. I'm running out of things to tell her," Sirius said getting back

on topic, knowing the other man would be closed-mouthed about his

secrets. Although they lived together there were still plenty of things they

didn't share.

"Yeah, that would be disconcerting," the immortal said, "but we can't take

the chance. Maybe you can get a flat in the city and use it for your

bachelor pad, like the one I have set up, or you could just use mine."

The flat Hydrus had rented was a small, clean, one bedroom place. It was

in a nice neighborhood without being overly impressive, making the

immortal seem to be just a simple man looking for a good time. He didn't

use his money to get women: that only brought out gold-diggers and he

had had his fair experience with those in his last timeline. He used it

many times just to get away from the responsibilities he had foisted on

himself, well, and the occasional one night stand. It was also his and

Harry's residence during the full moon.

"That's an idea, I wonder why I didn't think of it," Sirius said

thoughtfully. Then he turned his attention to the other man, who had

been sitting quietly, hoping to go unnoticed. "Moony?"

"You know I don't date, Sirius," the werewolf answered.

"And I told you, you did in my timeline. And that your son didn't carry

your affliction," reprimanded Hydrus. Sometime Remus's fear of his

werewolf got tiring and no matter what he and Sirius told the man,

Remus was too set in his ways.

"Maybe I am just waiting for Nymphadora to come of age," the other man

countered, and then grimaced at the thought. Tonks was just a child right

now and it made him feel creepy just thinking about it.

"I wouldn't count on what I know to cement that. This isn't a time of war

and that might be what brought you two together. With Voldemort

weakening every day, that war might not happen. You should date

among the magicals. What about that blonde in the book store? Sarah?

She knows about your furry little problem and she doesn't care," the time

traveler suggested. He glanced at Harry who was now playing in the

sandbox, trying to make the dry sand stand up. Hydrus sent a small spray

of water to the area in front of the tot to give him wet sand. Harry

squealed with glee and was now attempting to fill his bucket.

"I'll think about it," Remus replied after a minute, making the other two

groan. His tone of voice suggested that he wouldn't think that hard.

"Changing the subject, have your investigators found anything on our two

evil women?" Sirius asked.

"Oh yeah, Umbridge's background contradicts everything she believes in.

I have tons of blackmail on that bitch. I've got reports she's already trying

to crack down on Muggle-borns with trumped-up charges," Hydrus said.

He only needed a few more details and then he was going to snag that

bitch right from under the Ministry's nose. "I need you to get the DMLE to

investigate those reports, Sirius, talk to Scrimgeour or whoever is in

charge right now."

"What's the blackmail," Padfoot asked eagerly. He loved using blackmail.

With his family slowly, but surely, coming to his side, if only to bring the

power of the Blacks down on the government, he had tons of blackmail.

With him standing on the premise that Muggle-borns were descended

from squibs and with Cassiopeia's research, they stood together to get the

others to change their minds. It was a work in progress.

"Well, did you know her father was a mop pusher in the Ministry? He

was also a Hufflepuff that believed in Pure-blood supremacy. I have no

idea why he married a non-magical with that belief, but he was the one

that taught Dolores her ideals. Her mother, as I said, was a non-magical

and her brother was a squib, that belies all her believes that non-magicals

steal magic or her mother would have been a witch, and she and her

father would be squibs. The mum and brother were cast out of the family

and disappeared in London somewhere," he recounted what he read. In

his timeline, that information wasn't known, Dolores must have wiped it

out.

"Huh, yeah, she comes off as a Pure-blood," Sirius said, thinking on how

he could use that bit of information. Even in the low office that she was

in, that woman caused all sorts of conflict at the Ministry. He had no idea

why she wasn't fired.

"Well, if she's already up to her dirty tricks, it's time for me to get her out

of the picture," he said, not noticing the wary looks between the other

two. Then an idea popped into his head. "Hey, Sirius, I just remembered

someone else who needs taken down. How would you like to prank

someone?" Hydrus asked brightly, already going over ideas.

The Marauder perked up, it had been awhile since he pranked anyone.

"Who? What? When? Where?" he asked rapidly.

"Marge Dursley. Let her dogs loose. Tonight. At her house. Then you're

going to call Animal Control and let them know the dogs are running

wild and that she is a breeder that kills."

"Great," the Animagus said, enthusiastically bouncing in his seat, rubbing

his hands together in anticipation.

"Did you want to come, Remus?" Hydrus asked, turning to the other man.

"No, I think I will sit this one out," the werewolf answered. He was too

tired to go gallivanting around England at midnight.

"Suit yourself," Padfoot said. He was going to have fun, with or without

his old partner.

They spent the rest of the day playing with Harry, who loved the

sandbox. When they finished their roast beef dinner, and put Harry to

bed, the two pranksters started planning with Remus putting his two

Knuts' worth in. Around midnight the Blacks left the house to the

outskirts of London. They made sure there were no people on the street

at this hour, even went as far as to cast a mild sleeping charm on all the

houses to keep the residents from waking, especially Marge. They put up

a containment shield to keep the dogs on this street, which would fall

when they left. They then put dog repelling charms on their clothes,

unlocked the fence surrounding the yard and opened the pens.

Most of the bulldogs jumped at the chance of being free and ran to the

streets. Some were shyer and stayed in their kennels and had to be

coaxed out. Sirius then went to the nearest phone booth and called

Animal Control.

"Hello, this in Animal Control, how can I help you tonight," a bored male

voice asked.

"You've got to come quickly. That Dursley woman's dogs are all running

the streets. They're vicious and I'm afraid they'll bite someone," Sirius

said in a shaky voice.

"What's your name? Where are you? What type of dogs? And how many?"

the man fired off questions.

"I think they're purebred bulldogs. And I can't tell, but there are more

than ten. Hurry, one is coming my way. I'm in phone booth. I was out

getting the missus some strawberry ice cream and beets, she pregnant

you know, and I saw them running towards me and I got in the booth

and called you," Sirius rambled, trying hard not to sound excited. "That

Dursley woman would kill me if I tell you who I am. She's mad, I tell ya. I

heard her tell her helper to 'kill the bitch'; I don't know if she was talking

about one of her dogs or the neighbor lady."

"What is the location?" the now alert voice asked.

"We're on Hyde Street. Oh, no, one has me pinned in the booth," he

shrieked like a little girl, all the while had a huge smile plastered on his

face.

Hydrus quickly transfigured a rock to a dog and made it bark.

"I've heard that woman trains them to attack anyone," Sirius continued.

"She has also been known to drown the puppies. We, the neighbors, had

talked about calling you before, but… OH, NO, it's trying to get in."

The transfigured dog started scratching on the booth. You could hear the

other dogs barking all over the neighborhood.

Hydrus was bent over and trying to gasp in some air. He was holding in

his laughter so much it hurt. Then he noticed the lights coming on in one

of the houses, the sleeping spell must have worn off. He motioned to

Sirius it was time to go and got a nod in return.

"We'll be there as soon as possible. Stay in the booth and don't try to fight

the dog," came the stern warning over the phone. You could hear him

shouting orders in the background.

"AHHHH, it's opening the door, it's going to bite me!" With that he

dropped the receiver and ran from the booth screaming. After canceling

his spell on the rock, Hydrus was hot on his tail. They got to the end of

the street and Apparated out. They returned home and broke down in fits

of laughter; Remus looked at them with fond exasperation.

"How did it go?" the werewolf asked.

"Without a hitch," Sirius said between chuckles and told him what they

did, causing the other man to join in on their merriment.

"They'll grab all the dogs and put them in the shelter. Since they are

purebreds they shouldn't have a hard time adopting them out. Then

hopefully they'll investigate her puppy farm and lock her up," Hydrus

added smugly. He was glad to see that that woman would get her

comeuppance.

His thoughts wandered to the Dursleys who had disappeared from

Britain. His detectives trailed them to America. They were still fearful of

the magicals hunting them down and were unlisted. The only way they

had been tracked was that Vernon didn't change companies, he simply

asked for a transfer—idiot. The immortal was once again thankful that

Dumbledore was under the impression that Harry was still with them

here in Britain. Those monitoring charms were a godsend, they, along

with the pictures Sirius showed and the Fidelius Charm, made the story

believable. Still, he'd keep an eye on them, just in case.

A little while later all the men made their way to their beds. One down,

two to go, Hydrus thought as he went to sleep.

The next morning there was a report in the local paper for Marge's area,

which showed that over twenty dogs were taken by Animal Control,

thankfully no one was bitten. Marge Dursley was arrested for having an

illegal puppy farm and animal cruelty.

The week passed and soon it was Harry's birthday. Since the house was

hidden they couldn't have the party there, so they went to the London

Zoo, with some of the children from daycare and their parents. So it was

a group of seven tots and eleven adults that traipsed the zoo that day.

They kept it small, because chasing a bunch of toddlers was tiring and

seven was the limit they felt they could handle.

"Uncle Padfoot, look pony," Harry said pointing at the elephant.

"That's an elephant, Harry," Sirius gently corrected, picking the boy up

and placing him on his hip.

"Elfant," Harry tried the word.

"El a fant," Hydrus said, sounding it out.

"Elapant," was the next try.

"Close enough," Remus said mussing the toddler's hair.

And so it went with every exhibit, Harry and his little friends learned a

lot of animal names that day and a large party was held in the family

restaurant. The children enjoyed the lunch of burgers, chips and fizzy

drinks, much to the concern of the adults. Then a large chocolate cake

was brought out and Happy Birthday was sung by the parents and the

staff, with the help of the off-key older children. Presents were nice,

mostly toys to help with learning, but Harry, being the inquisitive child

he was, liked them all. It was a good thing they held the party last,

because now they could send all the sugar high children home and only

have to worry about Harry. Judging from the looks they were receiving

there would be payback.

That night the adults stayed up and had a few drinks to celebrate

Hydrus's birthday. They talked about their good times in Hogwarts and

the past gifts received from friends, as well as birthday pranks the

Marauders did to each other. The immortal was content with that. He

figured he'd stop celebrating when he got a bit older, it'd get tiring trying

to remember how old he was after 100.

One weekday, during the first week of August, Hydrus snuck in the

Ministry under his Cloak. He made his way to the Improper Use of Magic

Office and watched the toad like woman gleefully send out missives.

From the look on her fat face they were probably sent to Muggle-borns.

He crept behind her desk and stunned her. Then using the Elder Wand, so

it would last until he broke it, he quickly turned her into a chamber pot

and put her in his pocketspace. He'd have to figure out what to do with

her later, but for now she was out of the way. Clearing any sign of him

he left the office.

He had no idea where her father was, he disappeared a week ago. His

investigators said that Mr. Umbridge was paid off by Dolores, since he

would hinder her chances of moving up in the Ministry. Hydrus brushed

the man aside for now, but would keep an eye open for him. Anyone

spouting Pure-blood supremacy needed to be watched.

Making his way quickly out of the building, he moved to get to his shop,

where everyone thought he was going over paperwork in his office. He

got to the office and pulled off his Cloak and seated himself behind the

desk, just in time for his manager to enter.

"Ah, Mr. Black, I have been meaning to talk with you. It seems some of

our customers wish to have a wider variety of movies. Some of the

Muggle-raised would like— what did they call them? — oh, yes, science

fiction," Mr. Parker said when he entered, taking a seat across from his

employer.

"I don't see any issue with that, talk to the distributors and see what they

have. It'll be interesting to see what magicals make of the Star Wars

movies," he answered with a chuckle. Those American films had some

good special effects for this time period. He should start carrying a wider

selection of movies, now that the Disney ones had been so well received.

Maybe he should open a store just for videos, something to think about.

Or I could sell that idea to Frostwell, no, movies weren't gizmos, well, maybe,

I'll think of something. "Keep only a few for now; we don't really have the

space for more than fifty. So stick to best sellers," he said as an

afterthought.

"I will get right on it," the store manager said as he picked up the phone

to do just that. It had taken awhile to teach the man to use the device,

but when all was said and done, Mr. Parker was thrilled to have a way to

run the business without little use of Floo or owl. Phones were much

more expedient. Now all he had to do is get other magical businessmen

to use them. Setting up delivery to a warehouse they used for non-

magical products, Mr. Parker hung up the phone and went back into the

store.

Hydrus went over some invoices and worked out what he needed to

stock. Getting the inventory for his store was easy. He would buy the

non-magical equivalent from the distributors, have it shipped to the

warehouse, update it and make it run on magic. He then had to update

the manuals, with a note stating what they were purchasing and who the

original manufacturer was. He had two other people who helped him

with the rune array and the updates. The more futuristic stuff was still at

his house or in the pocketspace, like the game console and TV. He was

waiting until the better ones hit the market in the non-magical world to

introduce them to the magical public.

Frostwell had opened his business, Wondrous Gizmos, and was the

friendly competition that he promised to be. The inventor had a wide

selection of devices for teens, like music players, book-readers and

handheld electronic games, which at this time only played one game.

These he had adapted from the non-magicals after Hydrus suggested he

take a look at what they sold. The man was ecstatic at what he found and

updated the Walkman players into a portable WWN with the option to

play cassette tapes, which he had a variety of. His shop was doing well

with the teen crowd. Like Hydrus, he had a warehouse and would buy,

update and sell.

"Did you kill her?" came the out of the blue question from Sirius one

evening a few days after the toad disappeared. The full moon had just

passed and Remus was in bed early.

"I haven't killed anyone," Hydrus answered defensively. "You've known

me for months now and you still think I'm a murderer. I'm actually hurt."

And you could see the pain in his eyes; he thought they were past this

and that he more than proved himself to the other two men.

"I… well… you see… Hydrus, you told us you didn't have a problem

'taking out' those two women," the other man stuttered. There was a look

of remorse on his face, showing that he was sorry for asking. It was a

question that had been bugging him and he didn't want to ask it, but he

needed to know.

"Yes, but I also told you I was trying not to walk down that path," the

immortal snapped.

"But you didn't say you wouldn't."

"Look, what happened with the Death Eaters was an accident. You know

that. I'm still thinking on what to do with Dolores. I have a few ideas, but

I'm undecided as of yet. I haven't told you guys, because I want you to

have plausible deniability," the older man explained.

"So you're not going to tell us what you've done with her?"

"Nope, I'm going to keep it to myself. As far as you know, she simply

disappeared. All you need to know is she's not dead. Look, I know you

want to help, but this is something you can't help with. I'm only trying to

make sure that she doesn't cause problems in the future. The way you can

help is to make sure someone more evil doesn't take her place. Keep your

ears open at the Ministry and an eye on the laws trying to be approved

and who is trying to pass them. Sometimes the adage 'better the devil you

know' is fact." He had thought about that and it was the only reason that

Dolores was still alive.

"Right, I can do that," Sirius conceded. He could see Hydrus's point, no

one could accuse him of anything if he didn't know anything.

A week after Dolores Umbridge vanished, an article was printed in The

Times comparing her to Riddle. Both had a Pure-blood parent that

married a Muggle. Both believed in the Pure-blood doctrine, even though

they were Half-bloods. Both disappeared from Britain, to unknown

locations.

The DMLE did their investigation and found the reports of her using her

position to trump up charges on the Muggle-born to be correct. There

were even allegations that she tried to kill off some of the Muggle-raised,

but there was little proof. Needless to say, she was fired from her

position. If Hydrus ever let her go, her reputation would be ruined.

This report caused Muggle-raised to go into an uproar. They wanted to

have the laws against them overturned. A good deal of the Half-blood

rallied to their side. The Wizengamot was frantically trying to regain

control. Minister Bagnold was iffy on her stance, probably thinking it was

about time she stepped down. There was a committee formed to go over

all the laws passed in the last ten years, to see if the Muggle-raised

protest were valid. Every letter that Umbridge sent out was now being

reviewed and many of those charges were being dropped.

It was towards the end of August and Remus and Hydrus were standing

outside an empty shop space in Diagon Alley with the woman, Sarah,

who the immortal had tried to set the werewolf up with.

"So, Sarah, what do you think?" Hydrus asked the lanky blonde.

Sarah was a tall, thin, blonde woman with beautiful sky blue eyes. Right

now she was tapping her finger on her chin in thought. "Let me get this

straight, you want me to open a tea shop/book store? Where we would

sell books and rent out book-readers to people who will then sit and

drink tea while they read? Where did you even get such a concept?"

"America, actually, but they use coffee and not tea," the immortal lied

casually. Well, he had, but it was in a future timeline.

"Do you really think it'll work?" the blonde woman asked. "Why don't you

set it up yourself? Why do you want me to?"

"I don't want to be seen trying to take over the Alley. Two businesses,

maybe three, are more than enough. I'll lend you the money, help you get

up and running and then bow out."

She turned to Remus and asked the same question.

"I can't own a business here, I'm a werewolf. You know that."

"That's just stupid," she spat and then she put her thoughtful face back on

and tried to decide whether it was a worthy business. "What'll we call it?"

she inquired after ten minutes of thought. After all it was her dream to be

the owner of a book store, though she never would have thought to add a

tea shop with it. It was brilliant.

"Well, I'd call it The Tea Cozy, but I'm horrible at picking names. So you

can call it whatever you want. It's your business," Hydrus answered, with

a bright smile.

"I think something more along the lines of The Book Nook," Sarah said,

her eyes roaming the store front already going over designs.

A week later The Book Nook was opened to the public, oh the wonders of

magic. Bookcases lined the walls, while thirteen tables that sat four were

in the middle. A small kitchen in the back baked pastries and made little

sandwiches, along with tea. There was a small glass display to show what

could be ordered along the back wall. There was a wire stand for the

Frostwell Book-readers, to the right of the checkout counter that was in

the front of the store. Those readers had an anti-theft charm on them and

were rented out to the customers by the hour. If they wanted to purchase

one they had to go to Wondrous Gizmos. There was a second floor that

had more bookshelves and a few couches, tea wasn't served there. All the

books in the shop had a time limit charm of ten minutes to browse them,

after that they would disappear back to the shelf unless the book was put

in a basket to be purchased or rented.

They didn't sell textbooks or older tomes, so they were of little

competition to Flourish and Blotts. Mostly they encouraged people to buy

and read fictional works, there were even non-magical mystery, fantasy,

sci-fi and romance novels thrown in. This shop mostly catered to the

young adult crowd. They did sell the Chocolate Frog Book, and many

opinions were changing. Large portions of the younger public stopped

affiliating any House with good or evil and were teaching their children

the same.

The newspaper was going well, when they had first run an editorial on

Tom Riddle, the subscriptions went through the roof. The commentary on

Umbridge also upped sales. They kept printing articles on famous people

and what they had really done in the past, which in turn made the

Chocolate Frog Book a bestseller. Their government section did

interviews with the politicians making sure to double-check the laws they

voted on and talk to their coworkers, family and friends.

The back page annotations on Harry Potter did a lot to help keep the

rumors down about the Boy Who Lived. Their section on non-magical

news was well received by most of the Muggle-raised, who had little

news of their former homes unless they had the time to go to London and

get the papers there, which most didn't. The articles also brought reality

to many Magical-raised; they were, for the first time, seeing everything

they believed about Muggles was wrong. At this point in time, no one

was sure if that was a good thing or not.

Sirius came under fire in the paper when he was almost caught trying to

bribe someone into voting against a particularly nasty half-breed law

against Veelas. Sirius got away with the attempted bribe with a bit of

lying and turning of phrase, like any good politician. Since no money had

actually changed hands, it was relegated to the back page, but he was

now under watch and needed to be more careful.

"I can't believe you almost got caught," laughed Hydrus the night that

article was printed.

"I can't believe it either," Sirius said chuckling.

"This is not funny, you two. It could seriously damage our plans," Remus

snapped.

"Oh, leave off, Remus, this is a good thing," the dogman said.

"How is it a good thing?"

"It means that no one is exempt, which gives the public more reason to

believe what we print."

"I'm just impressed with the way they had no problem running it. They

know Sirius is one of the owners of the paper," the immortal said,

sobering up a little.

"You should've seen the defiant look on the editor's face," Sirius laughed

harder. When he had gone to the office the man had stood his ground

and told Sirius that the article was factual and would be printed as such.

He then told the Animagus that he really didn't want to work for a

crooked politician. Sirius assured him that he was one of the good guys

and would try and stay out of the spotlight from now on. That mollified

the editor, for now.

"Still you need to be more careful, Padfoot. I would hate to see you lose

your position in the government," the werewolf reprimanded.

"I'll be as careful as I can be," he promised.

"Still it's good that we have such honest reporters. We'll need that if

anything starts to go wrong," Hydrus said, glad that they made those

employees take that vow.

They talked about the article and how they were going to be more

cautious until bedtime. When they finally went to bed, Hydrus was still

waiting for the other shoe to drop. There had only been a few minor

setbacks and each of those was taken care of with ease. He knew now

that Dolores wasn't the one watching him, so it must be someone else he

offended.

With so many changes, the Ministry was in an uproar. However, there

was little to be done, since they had to go with public opinion. The one

time they tried to get The Times banned, the community protested so

loud they had to drop it. No longer were the crowds easily swayed. The

old fogies of the Wizengamot were in a pickle. They had always just

made laws and the sheep would follow. Now with their stories being

printed in a reputable paper, they had to change their ways or step down.

There were still the Pure-bloods that tried to buy the votes, but Hydrus's

little stash was much more than they could beat. With his accounts in

Sweden the money was untraceable. Since the Black accounts were

massive no one questioned where Sirius's 'donations' came from.

The relations with the goblins weren't going so well, since most magicals

refused to give up goblin made items. The greedy bastards (in Hydrus's

opinion) refused to listen to the talks. Some in the Ministry were afraid

that a new rebellion would start if they kept trying. So that project was

put on hold.

Skeeter was nowhere to be found, the detectives came up blank. After

graduating she simply vanished. Hydrus knew when she would start with

the Prophet, but he had little else on her history. So now he was in a

quandary as to what to do about her. He knew he would take her out of

the public as soon as he could and hope that a more vicious reporter

didn't take her place. If that happened he had no problem snatching

someone else. With The Times now outselling the Daily Prophet and the

Quibbler, and magicals thinking for themselves, maybe he would just let

her bury herself.

Then the thought came to him, She's a spy! She's probably working on

blackmail material as we speak. If Pettigrew can live his life as a rat, Skeeter

can do the same as a bug. But how to find her? She hasn't killed anyone, so

setting ghosts on her won't work. While she's rather distinctive, she's still just a

bug. Something he was going to have to tell his detectives.

He had told them that she was an Animagus, and a water beetle, but they

were looking for a woman. Now they would have to set sights on an

insect, and wasn't that going to be fun. He'd point them in the direction

of the Ministry, if she was looking for blackmail that's where she'd be, or

in the politicians' homes. It was a good thing that they were under a

Fidelius and Sirius made sure only to mention the other two men in

passing in his talks with others. He'd have to put Animagus Revealing

Charms on the businesses so she can't sneak in.

So the next day, the older men of the house set about doing just that.

They put the charm on the newspaper office, Hydrus's store and Remus's

bookstore, just in case. Sirius whenever he talked to a fellow politician,

made sure to cast the charm on the room they were in. They weren't

going to take any chances on this particular woman. The Master of Death

tried to call her parents, but no one came, so they must still be alive.

16. Solving a Few Things

Chapter 16 Solving a Few Things

AN: Thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own.

It was asked if I got the Book Nook from the story Hermione's Book Nook.

Nope, never read it, though I do have it downloaded on my kindle and will

read soon. No, I got the idea from a coffee shop in Washington State that I

used to frequent when I was younger.

Hphphp

A medium narration

Almost three years passed in a whirlwind of business and play. Harry was

growing up well. The articles printed about him kept the public from

putting him on a pedestal. He was learning fast; he could recite his ABC's,

spell small words and his name, and count to fifty without a problem. He

was talking almost like an adult. He was also starting to show more

accidental magic. There was only one incident at daycare, when he was

fighting with a little girl over a crayon and her hair turned green, which

Sirius was able to reverse and confuse away. They were going to pull him

this year and start teaching him at home. He would be going on weekend

play dates to magical households starting with the Weasleys this coming

weekend.

Sirius was down to monthly counseling. Faith had broken up with him

when he told her he had a secret. She said that she couldn't trust him if

he couldn't trust her. She was too upset that he kept something from her

that she never found out what the secret was. You would think as a

counselor she would be more understanding.

It was sad in the house that week, but Sirius pulled himself together and

started looking in the magical world. He had his eye set on a young clerk

in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, whom he had

met through Arthur. Her name was Laura Webb, a short, reddish-blonde

woman, who was bubbly and flirtatious.

Remus was dating Sarah, and those two were doing well. Dating made

the shy man come out of his shell more, and he was far more confident

than he had been since the Potters' deaths. He and the others shared the

flat that Hydrus set up. Sarah was thriving as a shop owner and didn't

care that she couldn't come to the werewolf's house. The Book Nook

opened a store in Hogsmeade catering to the older teens, many of the

villagers and a few of the teachers. It was doing well.

Hydrus stuck to one night stands, though he kept them to a minimum

now that Harry was older. He had spent most of the last few years setting

up his businesses to run without him, so he could spend all day at home

teaching Harry. He was content with his life, all of his plans were coming

together, and little had gotten in their way.

Voldemort was a mere shadow now; he couldn't even possess animals,

making the adults confident that he didn't have another horcrux. The

Master of Death kept the spirits hounding him, just in case. They still

didn't know how to finally rid themselves of Tom. They were hoping he'd

just fade away.

Grimmauld Place was stripped of all magic; all the Dark items were

stored in the family vault. Sirius had it updated to a non-magical home.

He told the contractors his mother was old-fashioned and had recently

died (which she had). He then sold his childhood home and never looked

back. It was good closure.

Kreacher was brought to the children's home, but, like before, wasn't

freed, since he could die if the bond broke. The old elf was content to

work in the kitchens, but stayed away from the children. His standards

were still Pure-blood, but he followed his master's orders.

The stores were doing well, the appliance store downsized a bit, and a

new entertainment store was opened near it. The new store, Fun For All,

held computers, TV's, VCR's, and movies. It was a big hit. These items

were now commonplace in homes, bar some of the diehard Pure-bloods.

There were even computers being used for recordkeeping in the Ministry

and, much to Hydrus's displeasure, Gringotts, since the immortal updated

them to store records the same way his book-reader did. The manuals

that came with the computers were very simply worded, even the most

incompetent wizard-raised should be able to load files. It did help that

solitaire and other card games came with the devices.

Hydrus made sure his bank in Sweden was set up with a better system.

They paid handsomely for the new workstations.

Hydrus sold Frostwell the gaming consoles idea, for a piece of the profit.

Those two businessmen were very friendly competition; they tried hard

not to step on each other's ideas. Their playful banter was often heard in

one store or another. Frostwell's Wondrous Gizmos also set up a store in

Hogsmeade, many of his products were used in Hogwarts now. The

calculators were a Merlin send to those studying Arithmancy.

The professors were hard-pressed to keep the radios and handheld games

out of the classrooms, and the volume down in the common rooms. They

had to revamp the rules to go with all the new devices. They tried to ban

them, but the students protested and many parents took the kids' side,

since the gizmos didn't hurt anyone. The best they could do was ban

them from the classroom or confiscate them until class was over.

The only professor that didn't complain was Binns. The Headmaster

thought they were wonderful creations, but had to take the staffs' side

and lay down the rules.

Another idea he gave Frostwell was to set up arcades in Hogsmeade. He

even took the man to show him what a non-magical one was like. You

could see the wheels turning in the inventor's head. It wouldn't be long

until one was up and running in both the Alley and village. The immortal

tried to get Sarah to add a game to The Book Nook, but she said it would

distract the readers.

Hydrus kept his businesses in Diagon Alley and let others make changes;

he didn't want to draw too much attention to himself. He subtly set up

others in businesses and then would bow out when they were up and

running. There were other similar stores popping up in other countries, if

they used Hydrus's array then he got some of the profits. The immortal

made sure everything went through his solicitor.

There was still no sign of Skeeter; not even magic could locate her. They

tried to owl her, but like Dementors, the animal couldn't find the bitch

while she was a bug. They also attempted the point me spell, but it only

pointed in a general direction and then would twirl again. Hydrus had

Sirius turn into Padfoot to see if it was because she was an Animagus.

When he called out Sirius's name it would point and twirl, when he

called Padfoot it would locate him. So they figured that she also had an

animal name.

Hydrus was beginning to think she wasn't in Britain. If she was, she was

hiding very well. With The Times doing well, he might just let her show

and see what she does before burying her. If she came for a job with the

paper, she'd have to take the same vow as the other reporters.

Present time

It was now 1985 and finally there was a warrant out for the arrest of

Dolores Umbridge, and Hydrus was tempted to just wrap her up and

hand her over. Even if she was somehow found innocent, her reputation

was shattered. So with that in mind he sat the others down one night and

talked it over.

"So, Sirius, I heard there's a warrant out for Umbridge," the immortal

mentioned casually as they all settled in their chairs. There was tea and

scones on the coffee table.

"Yeah, one of the Muggle-born she tried to kill came forward with more

evidence," the dogman answered, reclining back in his Lazyboy. "Seems

she went to his house to break his wand, and when he refused she

threatened to kill him with the AK. Even went as far as to draw her wand

and start the spell. His wife came home and startled her. They in turn

drew their wands and said they were going to turn her in for falsifying a

report and using an Unforgivable. Being the weak witch she is, she

couldn't fight the two of them so she threatened them once more and

Disapparated away," he said and they had a good laugh at the

cowardliness of the woman.

"So why wasn't she fired?" Hydrus asked, leaning forward a bit and lifting

up his cup of tea.

"When they took their complaints to the DMLE she lied and said she had

never heard of the man. They had the letters she sent, but she said she

had no record of ever sending a warning to that house. Any evidence

there was had been wiped from the Ministry. This was during the end of

the war, and it was such a minor thing, it was shrugged off. It was only

after some more investigation that it came up again." He sat his chair up,

grabbed a scone and shrugged.

"What took so long? I mean, there have to be dozens of similar reports.

It's been years."

"The ones they found, the wand was broken and the people vanished

either into the non-magical world or dead. This report was buried as

solved. They only just talked to the guy a few days ago. Luckily he had

kept the letters and gave up his memory."

"Oh, well, I was thinking I might just turn her over to the DMLE," Hydrus

said, and measured their reaction.

"You mean she is still alive?" Remus exclaimed, shocked, much to the

disappointment of the time traveler, who took a quick look at Sirius and

found a passive look on the dogman's face.

"Yes," he hissed, showing how upset he was just by the tone in his voice.

"That is not what I meant. I meant that after all this time of hiding her

she has not succumbed to whatever you did, like the Death Eaters," the

werewolf back-pedaled, and held up his hands in supplication. "You have

not really said anything about her in all this time, so I had wondered if

you were just trying to protect us."

"Oh, yeah, well, I can see where you'd get that," the mollified man said,

rubbing the back of his head. "Come to think of it, I haven't checked on

her since. So it's possible you're right. Let's put on some cloaks like the

Death Eaters and you guys get your wands out."

Everyone did as suggested and he then called the chamber pot and put it

on a chair in the middle of the room. Using the Elder Wand he canceled

the transfiguration. She was still stunned, so they roped her to the chair

and cast the Rennervate. The men stood behind her so she couldn't see

them, yet.

The toad-like woman blinked as she woke. She looked around the

decidedly Muggle home and sneered. "Who dares hold me hostage? Don't

you know who I am? I work for a very important department in the

Ministry. You won't get away with kidnapping me," she said in her girly

voice, trying to come off as intimidating and failing.

"You don't need to know that, Dolores, just answer a simple question. Are

you a supporter of the Dark Lord?" Hydrus asked, using a charmed voice.

"The Dark Lord is dead," she snapped, struggling in her bonds.

"That was not my question," he intoned back, and hit her with a stinging

hex. He then motioned for them to move to where she could see them,

hoping she would tell the truth about her ideals if she saw they were of

like mind.

Seeing the men in dark robes with masks on their face, Dolores pondered

her answer. She was thinking that she was somehow in the middle of a

Death Eater raid. Though, how she got there from her office, she had no

idea. "I believe he had the right idea, but went about it the wrong way,"

she finally settled on, simpering. "He should have started with the

Ministry. If he had done what I did then more of the Mudbloods would

be dead."

"Wrong answer," Hydrus said gleefully, stunning her again, Obliviating

the last five minutes and once again changing her into the chamber pot

and putting her in his pocketspace. "So, turn her over?" he asked, looking

at the other two.

"I think so," Remus said thoughtfully, shedding his disguise. "But how

would you explain her absence?"

"And her lack of memories for the last few years?" Sirius piped in, also

ridding himself of the cloak and mask.

"Those are valid questions," Hydrus conceded, thinking furiously on how

to solve them. "Well, I could write an anonymous note stating I found her

wandering Muggle London dazed and confused. Spouting off how she

was going to kill them all. Then make sure to say she mentioned the

Unforgivables."

"That might work, as long as you type it up. With computers being more

recognized in the magical world there would be no tying it to you,"

Remus answered.

So that's what Hydrus did, he typed the note, put on his Cloak and snuck

into the DMLE in the middle of lunch and went to the head office. He

then summoned her out, put her back to herself, stunned her with his

holly wand and bound her tight. Using the Elder wand, he cleared his

magical signature; left her tied to a chair, stuck the note to her forehead

and simply walked away.

Two days later an article appeared in The Times, stating that Dolores

Umbridge was found and questioned under Veritaserum. The questioning

led to her confessing that she had used two of the Unforgivables on

Muggle-raised, giving her a life sentence in Azkaban.

The two dogmen were overjoyed that Hydrus hadn't had to kill. While

they thought well of the time traveler that was always an underlying fear

of theirs.

The first Saturday with the Weasleys went with only a few hitches. Since

Hydrus couldn't join them, he learned about it from Sirius.

"It was going well," the Animagus said that night after Harry was in bed.

"The kids were getting along and even the twins were behaving. Though,

you were right about that Ron kid, he came off as a tad jealous. Don't

know why though the Weasleys are doing well with the deposits you

make to their vault. Arthur is still wondering where that money is

coming from, by the way." They both chuckled at that. Arthur even tried

to give the money back at one point, but to no avail.

Sirius sobered a bit and continued, "I'm hoping to work on Ron; he's not a

bad kid, just overshadowed by all his brothers. Anyway, they have a TV,

VCR and loads of kids' movies, so the kids watched a show and then went

outside. Bill and Charlie were showing me that they have some of

Frostwell's portable radios. We were all playing in the back garden, with

the younger kids chasing the gnomes, when Dumbledore showed."

"Well, that's disconcerting," Hydrus said, a bit on edge. He had had a few

more run-ins with the Headmaster, though nothing really came from

them. "How did he even know Harry was there?"

"Arthur was bragging about it at work," Sirius answered, berating himself

for not telling the man to keep it to himself. Thankfully all the Death

Eaters were dead, imprisoned or gone. "Albus said he only came by to

make sure Harry was healthy. The problem came up when he asked

Harry how his family was. Harry answered honestly that they were fine.

The Headmaster then asked if he was happy and the little guy smiled and

said yes. We dodged curse fire today. But, what are we going to do if he

asks Harry specifically about his aunt?" Sirius was majorly concerned

about that. He was more than thankful that Albus wouldn't go so far as to

use Legilimency on a small child, since it was unknown how the child

would react. Some say it could cause major pain, while others say that it

could affect their brain and slow their thinking.

"Hmmm," was all the answer he got.

"Hydrus," the dogman snapped, "this is serious."

"I know, I'm thinking," the immortal snapped back. "How did the

Headmaster react?"

"He patted Harry on the head, talked with me about the Dursleys and

Arthur about the movies. He went on to complain that he was still trying

to get the Board to let TV's be in the common rooms or set up a theater,

and then he left."

"So, he seemed satisfied? No wand waving? Or in-depth questions?"

Hydrus asked, his mind going over different scenarios. After all their

encounters with the Headmaster, he never once put spells on them. They

had checked and were mildly surprised when they always came up clean.

Albus seemed content on thinking that all was right with little Harry.

"Yeah, he just seemed happy that Harry was happy," Sirius said

thoughtfully. Maybe he was worried over nothing. He just didn't want

anything to take away his family.

"I think… no, that won't work… maybe… no, that won't work either…

how about… can't ask Harry to do that…" Hydrus mumbled to himself as

he paced around the room, leaving Sirius to look at him strangely.

Remus came into the room and looked at the muttering man and asked

Sirius, "What has got him so bent out of shape?"

"Dumbledore showed up at the Weasleys and questioned Harry."

"Oh, I can see where that might be a problem."

The two men sat and watched the immortal think of and discard ideas.

They were thinking of solutions as well, just not as rapidly as Hydrus

seemed to be.

"Is there any way to plant false memories?" Sirius asked, grasping at

straws.

"It's too risky," Remus answered, "just like Legilimency, it could have

adverse effects on a small child."

"Hydrus," the youngest Black said, loudly, to get the older man's

attention. When the immortal focused on him he asked, "Can you get

pictures of the Dursleys and doctor them to have Harry in them?"

"That's not a bad idea," Hydrus said, flopping down on the sofa. He had

Photoshop on his laptop from the future. "I can get my detectives to get

some and then we can tell stories to Harry about the Dursleys, keeping as

much to the truth as we can. How they don't like magicals and don't want

to have anything to do with our world. How they are in hiding, and

things like that. I'd have to make sure to add Padfoot and Harry off to the

side, since they wouldn't want to be seen with them. Put them in the

background or something."

"The only problem with that is that Harry, being as young as he is, is

going to say things like, 'Uncle Hydrus told me that…' outing you as a

relative," Remus argued.

"Maybe it's time for Harry and the Dursleys to meet," Hydrus said

thoughtfully. He hadn't ever wanted anything to do with them, but if it

kept their secrets safe, maybe. "I think we have a while until we face

Dumbledore again. Today should satisfy him that his plans are still in

action. I might have to be seen with pictures of Harry, that way if he does

say that we can say that I met him on outings with Sirius."

"Maybe," the two men said together.

"You know, I'm not sure why we're getting all worked up over this. I

mean, I am Harry's legal and magical guardian. There really isn't

anything Albus can do to take him away," Sirius said after a few minute's

silence.

"That's true, I'm more worried about him finding out about me" Hydrus

said. "I mean, we have a good cover story, I've doctored all the correct

paperwork, but if someone looks close enough it will fall apart. The press

will have a field day."

"For which you have a counter newspaper," Remus reminded him.

"You've done so much, got so many thinking for themselves, are you

really worried?"

"Well, judging from what happened to me in my timeline, I think I have

the right to be worried," the time traveler answered.

"Well, with all the new changes and more politically powerful friends and

family, that shouldn't happen again," Sirius said cheerfully, trying to

lighten the mood.

"Maybe you're right, and I'm just getting paranoid. On to more pleasant

things, I was thinking on taking Harry to Barkley's Children's Home.

They're mostly good kids; counseling is making them independent and

getting them over their issues. What do you guys think?"

The orphanage had morphed into something of a halfway house with

permanent residents. There was mandatory therapy and treatment

depended on how the child came to be there. If the family only wanted

what was best for the child then everything was done to maintain

contact, so the child would not feel too abandoned. If the child was left

on the street, then they were given sessions on how it wasn't their fault.

The home had classes set up to catch the children up on non-magical

studies and lifestyles, and then they would enroll them in state school.

Most of the children were between the ages of eight to fifteen. It was

working out well.

"Well, he would have more people to play with, and he is an outgoing

child," Remus said, thinking of the pros and cons. "But they are all older

than him, so they might not relate."

"Won't they pick on him for being magical?" Sirius asked.

"They might," the immortal answered.

"I think you should hold off on that for now," Remus concluded.

"Maybe, you're right, it might set some of them back."

The three talked more into the night and around midnight went to bed

without bringing anymore heavy discussion up. Hydrus was beating

himself up for not thinking about how the Headmaster would question

the child. He was becoming too compliant around the man, maybe it was

time to let Albus know that the horcruxes were gone, something to think

about. He was going over his story seeing if there was any way to tighten

it.

The next day after a breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes, the family

went to the living room. Harry was settled in his play area, with one of

the many educational toys Hydrus had created for him.

"How are things going with the family, Sirius?" Hydrus asked out of the

blue.

"They're actually going well. My Aunt Cassiopeia and I have turned most

of them to thinking more on the Grey side, which helps in my political

stance. Uncle Cygnus has reconciled with Andromeda. He was reluctant

at first until he found out that Nymphadora was a Metamorphmagus,

which he thought only Pure-bloods could be. Since it runs in the Black

Family, he decided to mend bridges. He still doesn't like Ted though. I

think that's more of a clash in personalities." He stopped to sip some tea.

"I had a family meeting and made them all vow to keep anything to do

with the Black family a secret. Some were reluctant until I told them I

would cut them out of the family."

"Well that's good news," the immortal said with a big smile. The more

people on their side the better. "How about the rest?"

"Cousin Callidora, as you know, is now the one in charge of finding the

squibs and sending them to Barkley's. She has more Pure-blood ties," the

youngest Black explained happily, and then his face went neutral. "The

rest of the family, like Narcissa, is staying out of the way. I was thinking

of getting her to let Draco and Harry play together one weekend to see

how she is raising him," he said. He had only met the child for a few

minutes when he ran into them in Diagon Alley. Narcissa wasn't sociable

that day, so they parted quickly.

"If it turns out that she is raising him to be a stuck up Pure-blood then

we'll have to see about future play dates." Hydrus was firm on that

stance; he knew he couldn't save everyone. With the deaths and

incarcerations of many Pure-bloods they were a minority now, a loud

minority, but one nevertheless. Many of the businesses left behind were

picked up by the wives. Though, there were some that had to be sold and

were snatched up by non-Pure-bloods. Narcissa, so far, was content with

being a Pure-blood widow, who simply threw parties and had teas.

Sirius waved it off as a given and went on. "I got a letter from

Grandfather, he expressed that he was proud of me for pulling the family

back together, and once more making the name of Black something to be

reckoned with." He beamed at that, it wasn't often his grandfather would

state he was pleased.

"That's great, Sirius," the older man said happily.

"Uncle Hydrus, look," Harry said proudly, bringing the spelling bee game

that his Uncle Hydrus had given him for his birthday. On the screen it

showed that the four and a half year old (a very important age to a

toddler) correctly spelled the word 'home'.

"That's great, Prongslet," Hydrus said, hoisting the youngster on his lap.

"Now let's see what the next word is." And the two played with the game

for about ten minutes, when Harry decided it was time to do something

else and squirmed down. After the child left, Hydrus looked at his watch

and said, "I have to go to the orphanage. I told them I'd look over some of

their books today. You guys okay with watching Harry?"

"We're fine," Sirius said as he set up the gaming console to play Mortal

Kombat with Remus. He was bound and determined that he was going to

beat the werewolf one day.

"Tippy," Hydrus called.

"Master Hydrus is wanting Tippy?" the little elf squeaked when she

popped into the room.

"Yeah, I have to leave and I don't know when I'll be back, so can you

make lunch today? We don't want Sirius in the kitchen again," he asked,

ignoring the 'Oi'.

"Tippy can do," she said firmly, glaring at the man who kept destroying

her kitchen.

Padfoot looked sheepish, but defended himself. "I was only trying to help.

You have so much work to do around the house and the garden that I

didn't want to bother you."

"Yet, yous is making more work for Tippy with your messes," the elf said,

putting her hands on her hips and stomping her spindly foot.

"Sorry, I do try and clean them."

"Yous does try," she conceded with a nod of her large head. "However,

Tippy is being banning yous from the kitchens," she said, finally laying

down the law. It had been amusing at first to watch the man attempt

cooking and cleaning, but after a while it got irritating when he didn't get

any better.

"Alright, Tippy, you win, I'll never cook a meal again, unless I learn how

to first."

The others were watching with varying degrees of amusement. Tippy

nodded her head again and popped away.

"Well, now that that's settled, I'm off," Hydrus said with a slight chuckle,

and Disapparated out. He reappeared in one of the bedrooms designated

for magicals to Apparate in. It was one that was high up, near the small

owlery, so as to not startle the kids. He made his way down to the offices,

happily watching the playing children run down the halls, and found the

Matron's office. He knocked on the door and was bid to enter.

The office itself was nothing special. A square room in light beige color.

A large desk piled with folders and some family photos, with a filing

cabinet behind it. There were two semi-comfortable chairs in front of the

desk and bookcases with law and psychology books in them to the sides.

There were documents and official papers framed on the walls. It was

very businesslike.

Ms. Morgan Cartwright was an older woman with steel grey hair that she

kept in a loose, sloppy, bun. She was a bit on the dumpy side, but you

could see that she was a beauty in her youth. She wasn't as stern as

McGonagall, but she was firm with the children. She was a non-magical

who had been married to a Muggle-born that died of Dragon Pox a few

years back. They had three children, who were now grown and gone, so

far no grandkids, which is why she applied for this position where she

could live around children.

"Ah, Mr. Black, how good to see you," the Matron said brightly. It was her

never-ending smile that got Hydrus to hire her in the first place, well that

and she was wickedly good with kids. She had run a daycare before

Hydrus snatched her up.

"Ms. Cartwright, lovely to see you as well," the immortal said as he took a

seat. "How are things going? You said you needed me to go over some of

the books?"

"As well as can be expected, I guess," she answered with a sigh. "There

are some things that need to be updated, like the plumbing and the

insulation. But we have the funds for that, but I wanted your opinion.

We've gathered twenty squib children and fostered out most of the non-

magicals. We do have one child we're looking into bringing in, but he is

young. He would need more attention."

"Why bring him in at all?" Hydrus leaned forward, giving the woman his

full attention.

"His uncle tried to drown him to scare the magic out of him. One of the

nurses we have there informed us yesterday. He's still in St. Mungo's and

we're thinking of talking to the parents," she said sadly, then smirked. "I

do hear the uncle is in another ward because the father beat him almost

to death."

"Do you have a name?" the concerned immortal asked, thinking it might

be Neville.

"Yes, it's Longbottom," she said, confirming that belief.

"Hold off on that, I know the family, so I'll go and talk to them later,"

Hydrus said, and then changed the subject to the repairs the mansion

needed. It took an hour to get the numbers situated. Then he gave his

good-byes and Apparated to the house.

"Hey, Sirius, we need to get to St. Mungo's," he said, taking a seat on the

sofa and interrupting the game still in play.

"What? Why?" the dogman ask, putting his controller down. He was

losing anyway.

"We need to talk to Frank and Alice, seems their Uncle Algie tried to

drown Neville. I was thinking of bringing Harry along with that old color

ball. Harry can make a friend and the color ball will show the

Longbottoms that Neville is magical."

"I thought you said it was childhood trauma that kept him repressed,"

Remus said, joining the conversation.

"I thought it was," the immortal shrugged, "I guess I was wrong."

"Well, Frank and Alice are good people, so I don't mind Harry befriending

Neville. Let's get him ready and we'll go see what we can do." With that

the two Blacks left the room with little Harry, got prepared and departed

to St. Mungo's. When they got to the empty storefront Sirius said, "We're

here to visit Neville Longbottom."

The mannequin nodded and they walked through the glass. They made

their way to the reception desk and got the room number. When they

entered the room they saw the Longbottom parents and little Neville still

in bed.

"Hello, Frank," Sirius said, shaking the sandy-haired, lanky man's hand,

and then turned to the petite mousy blonde next to him, "And Alice." He

shook her hand as well. "This is my cousin Hydrus and my godson Harry,"

he introduced the two standing silently.

Frank nodded to Hydrus and quickly glanced at Harry's very faint scar.

"Not that I'm not happy to see you, but what are you doing here, Sirius?"

He turned back to the man he knew.

"I heard Neville was here and wanted to introduce him to Harry, figured

it might cheer him up, having someone his age around."

Hydrus approached the bed with Harry on his hip. Harry was holding the

color ball and looking at the sandy-haired, plump, boy in the bed.

"Did you get an owie?" the dark-haired boy asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah," Neville replied sadly, still in shock about what happened. He

looked at the dark-haired boy shyly and gave a little smile to show he

was brave. He was a big boy now.

"Oh, sorry. Are you all better now? Do you want to play with my ball? It

changes color when your magic touches it," Harry asked as he squirmed

down and climbed on the bed.

"I don't have 'agic," the little boy said tearfully. "That's what Uncle Algie

says." His little shoulders slumped.

Alice quickly went to her child and gave him a hug. "You don't listen to

Uncle Algie," she said softly as she ran her hand through his hair. "He's a

mean old man who doesn't know what he's talking about. You are my

perfect little boy."

"Luv you, mummy," the sandy-haired boy said, snuggling into his mum.

Harry watched the scene with a happy smile and then brought the

attention back to him and said, "Try." And he rolled the ball to his new

friend.

The adults were watching with various degrees of anticipation, all but the

time traveler who knew Neville was a powerful wizard. The ball made its

way across the covers and stopped in front of the injured child. He

reached out his little hands and shakily touched the ball. The ball

instantly turned color and said "Purple."

Neville smiled and picked up the ball and shook it to make it change

again.

"You're 'apposta to say 'pur-ple' and it'll change again," came the

exasperated explanation from the four and a half year old.

"Oh, pur-ple," said Neville and the ball changed to red. While the two

children played with the ball the adults talked.

"How did you know Neville was here?" Alice asked curiously as she got

up to join her husband, hugging the man and smiling as she watched her

child use magic. She never doubted he was a wizard and even if he

wasn't she would never condone Algie's actions. She was very proud of

her husband's reaction and hoped that old man stayed in the hospital a

long time. Frank was talking about kicking the man out of the family and

turning him over to the DMLE, it was Augusta who was staying his hand.

"Barkley's," Hydrus explained as he joined the other adults at the end of

the bed. "The matron, Ms. Cartwright, informed me that there was a

younger child who might be in danger from his uncle. So I asked Sirius if

he knew you and we figured we'd come and help." He then explained

what Barkley's was and why they monitored the hospital. "Sirius said

what wonderful parents you are, so I wanted to see if he had magic and

offer our services if he didn't, even if it was just counseling."

"That's a wonderful concept," the mousy woman said with a beaming

smile.

"Yes, we thought it might save some of the children," Hydrus agreed.

"And the ball?" Frank asked, happy to see his child playing so willingly

with someone his own age. Neville was a shy child by nature. He got it

from his mother.

"Harry's favorite as a baby, and the easiest way I could think of to prove

you had a wizard child," he said easily.

"You should sell them, they might keep something like this from

happening to someone else," the sandy-haired man suggested. He had

heard this man owned a few businesses in Diagon Alley, though he never

met him. He even shopped at the entertainment store for a TV and VCR

with a few of the children's movies, though Alice was bugging him to buy

some of the adult ones. With their stressful jobs as Aurors, they needed

something to unwind.

That was how Algie got to Neville in the first place. They were at work

and his mum was supposed to be watching the child, but let that old man

do it instead. Now, they were either going to have to find a sitter or

nanny or one of them would stop working, since he no longer trusted his

family to protect his son.

"I'm thinking of putting them in Fun For All," the immortal said

distractedly as he watched the two toddlers playing on the bed. It was a

good idea, one he had been mulling over for a few months now. Seeing

the Longbottoms so relieved, he'd have to see about getting a children's

section set up soon. Then again, it might make it so more squibs were

killed or thrown into the streets at an earlier age. He'd have to talk to Ms.

Cartwright to set up a section of the home for younger children.

"Well, whatever the reason, thanks for making my little boy's day," Alice

said, kissing each man on the cheek.

"I've been setting up play dates with children Neville's age. Do you think

we can come and visit some Saturdays and let the two get to know each

other better?" Sirius asked.

"That's a great idea. I heard Harry was living with his Muggle aunt and

they were in hiding, so I'm surprised you are allowed to take him

anywhere," Frank said, raising an eyebrow.

Sirius stuck with their story about how he was only allowed to see Harry

away from the Dursleys and that they didn't like wizards and were only

keeping Harry for the wards. The guardians made arrangements to meet

again in a few weeks' time and the Blacks and Harry left the hospital

shortly after.

"That went better than I thought," Sirius said as they made their way to

the Apparation point.

"Nay, I knew Neville's a strong wizard. Since his dad is alive, he'll have

his own wand. Then everyone will know how powerful he is," Hydrus

said with a wave of his hand and a smile on his face.

"Still, maybe Frank is right and you should sell those toys," the dogman

suggested.

"I'm thinking about the pro and cons of it," the immortal answered as

they made it to the point. The two adults and one child then

Disapparated home. They told Moony what happened and discussed

selling the toys some more.

Harry was content that he had a new friend and played with his toys,

only to disrupt the adults when he did something correct. They all had a

good, relaxing evening and soon went to bed with the knowledge that all

was going well.

17. Some Time With Harry

Chapter 17 Some Time With Harry

AN: Thanks to my betas, The 5h15 Spaceman, darrelldeam and

alix33. All mistakes are my own. Once again thanks for all the

reviews, favorites and follows.

Here is a light-hearted chapter for you, mostly.

Hphphp

A few weeks later Hydrus got some pictures of the Dursleys playing

outdoors from his detectives, and doctored half of them to include Sirius

and Harry in the background. He sat Sirius down one day, showed him

the pictures, described each person and asked him to talk to Harry.

"Why me? You know them, I don't," the godfather said, a curious look on

his face.

"Yeah, but what Remus said might be true, and it'd be easier if you

explained to Harry who they are, so if he slips it'll be 'Uncle Padfoot told

me…'" the immortal explained. "I want us to do our best not to have

Harry lie, so if we give general descriptions of each family member's

attitude that might be enough."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Sirius agreed, rubbing the back of his head

and going over what he had just been told about the Dursleys.

"If you want I can be there to help, but most of the information has to

come from you," Hydrus offered, he had wanted to stay out of it, but that

was a bit unreasonable. No one in the house knew the Dursleys as well as

he did. Besides, he was better at explaining things to Harry. Well, Remus

was good at dumbing things down, but Hydrus was better at full-on

explanations. His education from his timeline served him well, though

the way kids think still confused the hell out of him.

"When did you want to do this?" Sirius asked, getting comfortable in his

recliner.

"Now, actually. The sooner the better."

"Okay. Hey, Pup, come here a minute," the dogman yelled up at the

ceiling.

The sound of small feet was heard running through the house and coming

down the stairs.

"Don't run down the stairs," Hydrus yelled, being the one who disciplined

the child the most, since he was the oldest adult and wanted the child to

be well rounded. Sirius was the more playful uncle and let Harry get

away with a lot. Remus was the calmer one, and would only tell Harry

how disappointed he was if the child caused trouble.

The sound slowed down and soon the little dark-haired boy shuffled in

the room.

"Yes, Uncle Padfoot," he said timidly, thinking he may be in trouble for

flushing his toy down the loo. He thought they didn't know, but you

never know with adults, though his uncle didn't sound mad.

"What did you do?" Hydrus asked at the guilty look, the scuffing of feet

and the wringing of little hands.

"Nothin'" the child said hurriedly, waving his hands in front of him.

"Harry," came the stern voice.

"Nothin'" the child tried to look innocent, but only looked guiltier.

"I'll find out," his oldest uncle said.

"I didn't do apurpuse," Harry defended himself, firming his little face.

"On purpose," Hydrus corrected. "What did you do?"

"Well, I might have flushed my duck in the loo," was the shy response.

When he saw his Uncle Hydrus was going to scold him, he hurried to

explain, "But, it's otay, it disapperiated and everythin'." Then he turned a

bit sad and said, "I just wanted to see if it would float."

"Harry, the toilet is not a toy. Don't do that again," the immortal said

firmly, shaking his finger at the child. He remembered Dudley doing the

same when he was about this age, though not for the same reason. Harry

was a bit more advanced than his cousin. Without being repressed by the

Dursleys, his curiosity was something to be admired.

"That's not why I called you," Sirius butted in before punishment could be

handed out, earning a glare from the immortal. "I want to show you some

pictures of some of your mum's family. So come up here and let's look at

them." He patted the arm of the chair.

"Otay," Harry said warily as he gave Uncle Hydrus a cautious look and

climbed on his dogfather's lap.

Hydrus sighed and let it go for now, since there was no damage done. He

watched as Sirius pointed to each person and told Harry who they were.

He did have to stop the godfather from saying things like 'This horse of a

woman…' by sending a stinging hex.

"Where does they live?" the dark-haired boy asked, thinking it was great

to have more family.

"Do they," his uncle corrected.

"Do they," Harry echoed.

"They live far away, but we think you should not tell people that," Sirius

answered, hoping in vain that the boy wouldn't question the request.

"Why?" the dark-haired boy asked, confirming that four and a half year

old's questioned everything.

"Because they are hiding, and if you tell people where they are they

might be found. We don't want them to be found," Hydrus explained,

when Sirius got a blank look on his face.

"Oh, why are they hidin'?" the child asked with a scrunched up nose. "Are

they playin' hide-and-seek?"

"No, they just don't like magic," Sirius said, trying to keep the bitterness

out of his voice. He still had issues with what this family had done to

Hydrus, even though the time traveler had let it go. "They're afraid that

people with magic will hurt them."

"Really? That's 'tupid," Harry said, folding his arms and pouting, maybe

he didn't want to know these dummy people.