Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter World, nor am I J.K. Rowling. Most of this chapter is quoted from the last few chapters of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, since my story starts there.

Unexpected Family

Prologue

Voldemort's chest rose and fell rapidly, and Harry could feel the curse coming, feel it building inside the wand pointed at his face.

"The true master of the Elder Wand was Draco Malfoy."

Blank shock showed in Voldemort's face for a moment, but then it was gone.

"But what does it matter?" he said softly, "Even if you are right, Potter, it makes no difference to you and me. You no longer have the phoenix wand: We duel on skill alone…and after I have killed you, I can attend to Draco Malfoy…"

"But you're too late," said Harry, "You've missed your chance. I got there first. I overpowered Draco weeks ago. I took this wand from him."

Harry twitched the hawthorn wand, and he felt the eyes of everyone in the hall upon it. He quickly took in the many people watching, his eyes resting on a man and woman standing in the crowd behind Voldemort. The young woman's dark blonde hair was tousled, her cool blue eyes filled with concern and sadness. Harry was suddenly reminded of his mother, Lily. The man standing beside her was adorned with a black cloak. The hood shadowed his features, but as Harry watched him, he lifted his head and the growing morning light flitted through the deep cowl. Harry inwardly gasped. Golden eyes glanced up to meet his own. Like the young woman beside him, there was unfathomable pain in his gaze and Harry wondered what could make him hurt so much. Then Voldemort paced between them, breaking the man's stare. Only a few moments had passed. Harry shook himself out of his thoughts and focused his gaze back on his enemy.

"So it all comes to this, doesn't it?" whispered Harry, his head shaking, "Does the wand in your hand know its last master was Disarmed? Because if it does… I am the true master of the Elder Wand."

A red glow burst suddenly across the enchanted sky above them as an edge of dazzling sun appeared over the sill of the nearest window. The light hit both of their faces at the same time; so that Voldemort's was a flaming blur and the shadowed man and woman behind him suddenly was revealed to Harry and he gasped. The man's eyes now shone a deep black and the woman's hair had changed to a flaming red. The Boy Who Lived blinked in shock and as quickly as it had come, the vision was gone, the black eyes and red hair back to their original colors. Then he heard Voldemort's high voice shriek and Harry too yelled his best hope to the heavens, pointing Draco's wand:

"Avada Kedavra!"

"Expelliarmus!"

The bang was like a cannon blast, and the golden flames that erupted between them, at the dead center of the circle they had been treading, marking the point where the spells collided. Harry watched Voldemort's green jet meet his own spell, saw the Elder Wand fly high, dark against the sunrise, spinning across the enchanted ceiling like the head of Nagini, spinning through the air toward the master it would not kill, who had come to take full possession of it at last. And Harry, with the unerring skill of the Seeker, caught the wand in his free hand as Voldemort fell backward, arms splayed, the slit pupils of the scarlet eyes rolling. Tom Riddle hit the floor with a mundane finality, his body feeble and shrunken, the white hands empty, the snakelike face vacant an unknowing. Voldemort was dead, killed by his own rebounding curse, and Harry stood with two wands in his hands, staring down at his former enemy.

One shivering moment of silence, the shock of the moment suspended: and then the tumult broke around Harry as the screams and the cheers and the roars of the watchers rent the air. He looked up in alarm, trying to find the hooded man again, but the pressing crowd obscured him and his blonde haired companion from view. Harry unsuccessfully looked around for a moment or two before giving his full attention to his friends. The fierce new sun dazzled the windows as the crowd descended on their hero, their cries deafening.

The golden eyed man didn't move from the wall he was leaning on, just observed the relief and joy almost palpable in the air. Harry had stopped looking for him and he was grateful for that. His eyes lowered, their dark depths staring intently at a crack on the stone floor, his ebony hair obscuring his face. The Dark Lord was gone but he barely cared. That would not make his mother come back. He quickly blinked away tears, not wanting to show his inner feelings. The sun was now fully raised and he blinked in the glare of the light to look once more at the Boy Who Lived. The black haired hero's eyes sparkled with weariness as he embraced his two closest friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, and a sad smile graced the cloaked man's lips. He nodded his respects to Harry, who didn't notice him, and then turned to scan the crowd, looking for his companion. He found her fighting her way through the lively crowd towards him, her blonde hair whipping behind her. She caught his eyes and he saw the same sadness touch her own eyes. He straightened as she approached.

"Zach, we need to go," she whispered when she reached him, "Where's Lyra?"

Zach shook his head in dismissal. "She's already there." He sighed deeply and added, "I presume the plan worked? Is he okay?"

The woman nodded and he turned his gaze back to Harry, a curious look on his face.

She followed his eyes and smiled knowingly, "He'll know soon enough, Zach. It's been kept from him long enough."

Zach turned back to her and nodded in agreement, "I'm not worried about that, I'm worried about how he'll react. Everything will change, Lav." His eyes searched hers and she sighed.

"No use worrying about things that are inevitable. Remember our plan." She held out her hand, gesturing for him to give her something.

Her companion nodded, his eyes again serious, as he produced another cloak identical to his from inside his billowing sleeve. She took it quickly and, making sure no one was watching them, slipped it on, hooding her fair hair. A silent conversation happened between them as their eyes, azure and golden, met again.

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Only one person noticed the two cloaked figures leave the Great Hall. Green eyes shining with curiosity, Harry Potter followed their movements, wondering who the two were. They were familiar and he was sure he'd seen them somewhere before. Now as they walked away, he noticed a slight limp in the man's stride. The man must have fought in the battle, he thought, that's why he's here. But that didn't stop Harry from longing to follow them, feeling an unknown pull to their mysterious manner. That wouldn't happen, he mused, as the crowd pressed up to him. He could not hear a word anyone was shouting, nor tell whose hands were seizing him, pulling him, trying to hug some part of him, hundreds of them pressing in, all of them determined to teach the Boy Who Lived. Harry reluctantly put the man and woman out of his mind and allowed himself to be carried away in the joy of the moment.

Hope you all liked it. I shall be putting up the next chapter in a week. I'm expecting this to be many chapters but I'm not sure how many yet. You'll figure out who Zach and Lav are soon, and why they're so familiar.

Please review! I love your feedback. And you might just influence how this story will play out.