Disclaimer: I am not making any claim to Harry Potter. Nor am I profiting from this endeavor in any way.
Where I Failed
Chapter 1: Grandfather Veruscious
Veruscious Potter is recognized as one of the ten darkest wizards of the millennium. Born sometime in the 1500's, Veruscious Potter was the single greatest necromancer ever to exist. At the peak of his power he was said to command an undead army of over 5000 animated corpses, 20 dracoliches, 50 dementors, an armada of 100 ghost ships, and even his own brigade of vampires. Such a necromantic army had never been seen before and, after his fall, no one has even come close to matching it.
Veruscious was born into wealth. As he grew up, he made friends with Billus Weasley, who became one of the greatest tacticians and battle mages of the time, and Catherine Granger, a muggleborn witch who was a genius in spell creation. Together they explored the world. Billus and Catherin creating three artifacts of legendary power, Billus's wand and ring and Catherin's pendant. Spells from the wand would always hit their targets, despite any obstacle in the way, the ring could turn any spell against its caster, and the pedant could leech secrets from the minds of enemies.
War inevitably broke out and the trio went to battle; Veruscious and Billus each leaving behind a wife and children, and Catherin leaving behind her muggle nephew. Tragically, Billus and Catherin's first battle would be their last. Catherin was the first to fall, followed by Billus, who died in Veruscious's arms. It is said that the emotional trauma from that battle pushed Veruscious over the edge. Legend says he raised all the dead within a mile, in a burst of emotion induced magic; the beginnings of his undead army. He then had them pillage the surrounding lands, the dead expanding his army even more.
Veruscious proceeded to rampage over Europe and delve even deeper into the necromantic arts. It is said that during his reign of terror he discovered a way to immortality through necromancy. However, his reign soon came to an end. The Wizard Kings of what is now, Spain, Britain, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Scandinavia allied against him. They attacked the Potter family in an attempt to draw Veruscious into a trap. It worked. That battle was the first defeat Veruscious ever suffered. It wouldn't be his last. Veruscious made his last stand on the Isle of Azkaban, the battle that would mark the end of his rampage.
The final fate of Veruscious remains a mystery. Most legends say that he was imprisoned in a stone sarcophagus by the Wizard Kings. Most historians simply believe he was killed in the Battle of Azkaban.
Each of the trio left something to their decedents. Catherin left her pendant to the first wizard of her nephew's line. In Billus's cryptic will, he left his wand to the son that was last of six, and his ring to the daughter who was first in six. (All three of the artifacts vanished, and it widely believed Veruscious hid them somewhere) Veruscious however, left his decedents nothing but a blood stained legacy and an oath that he would protect his family, no matter the cost.
In the British Ministry of Magic, there is a special branch of the government: The Department of Mysteries. Their sole purpose is to uncover the mysteries of the magical world. The Department itself is said to be full of mysterious and dangerous things, things that even the Unspeakables that work there know nothing about.
Deep within the Department of Mysteries two Unspeakables sat on two folding chairs on either side of the room, between them sat a large rectangular, stone sarcophagus.
"Can you believe we're stuck guarding this thing until morning!" one of the Unspeakables groused. "I don't even know what this stupid thing is!"
"It's supposed to be the prison of Veruscious Potter," the other unspeakable answered in an annoyed voice. "I have no idea if that is true though, we haven't been able to open it."
"Veruscious Potter? Think he's related to Harry Potter?" the first unspeakable asked in an attempt to start a conversation.
"Probably," the other snorted. "This thing is over 400 years old."
The two Unspeakables fell silent.
"So what happened to Harry Potter anyway?" the first man spoke up. "I heard they stuck him with some muggles after he beat You-Know-Who."
"I've heard that too," the other man added.
"Old Veruscious must be rolling around in there. Imagine, his descendant being raised by muggles!" the first unspeakable gave a loud laugh and pounded his fist on the sarcophagus lid.
The lid shifted in place.
The two men stared at it in alarm, nodding to each other they pulled out their wands. The lid started to vibrate in place, banging against the sides of the stone coffin. Suddenly, like a board being yanked from mud, the lid jerked into the air and flipped over landing on the stone floor beside the sarcophagus with a loud BANG.
The two men stared at the open sarcophagus, not having a clue what to do.
Two bursts of purple light shot out of the sarcophagus's shadowed depths. Both struck the two shocked Unspeakables dead on. Their bodies withered, hair turning white then falling off, flesh shriveling, skin drying up, it was almost as if they had aged 200 years in five seconds. The bodies toppled over and rapidly disintegrated, leaving only two pile of dust.
A pair of hands reached out from the sarcophagus and grabbed the edges, and a figure dress in expensive black robes pulled himself up.
After 400 years of imprisonment, Veruscious Potter was free.
Veruscious, like all his descendants, had messy black hair, though it was pulled together in ponytail at the back. He looked to be around twenty five, yet any who knew who he was would realize he was much older. His hazel eyes scanned the room.
"So, my clan has survived."
xXxXx
Albus Dumbledore apparated into the Ministry Atrium, right into a scene of chaos. The normally pristine hall had obviously been the site of a vicious battle. Healers were tending to a group of injured Aurors, a white shroud was pulled over what Albus guessed were corpses, scorch marks pitted the floor, pieces of the walls appeared to have been blasted away, and in the middle of it all Amelia Bones, the new head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, was arguing with a man Albus recognized as the head of the Department of Mysteries.
"I've done as you asked! I've stationed Aurors at every graveyard within 100 kilometers of London. Now I want to know just what it is your department unleashed on this world!" Amelia glared at the Head Unspeakable, her monocle digging into the flesh around her eye.
"As do I," Dumbledore added as he approached the two department heads. "I am most curious as to why I received an urgent summons at one o'clock in the morning, calling me to the Ministry of Magic on a matter of the utmost importance to the safety of the Wizarding world."
The head unspeakable looked relieved. "Ah, Dumbledore, I'm glad you came. We require your expertise on a situation that has developed."
"And what is that situation?"
The unspeakable sighed. "Have you heard the legend of Veruscious Potter?"
Amelia nodded. "I did a report on him back in seventh year. He supposedly raised the largest undead army ever seen."
The Unspeakable nodded. "And I suppose you know the bit about him being sealed in a stone sarcophagus. Well… he's no longer in that sarcophagus."
"What do you mean?" Amelia questioned, dread creeping into her voice.
"We had Veruscious's sarcophagus in my department," the Unspeakable explained. "He managed to break free of his prison tonight. He killed the two men guarding him, pillaged the Department of Records, tripped the alarm, dueled the team of Aurors that answered the alarm, and then fled."
Amelia stared at the head Unspeakable in disbelief. "Are you saying we have a 400 year old necromancer on the loose!?"
The unspeakable grimaced and nodded.
"I'm more interested in what Veruscious was doing in the Department of Records." Dumbledore interrupted, his face portraying a look of utmost seriousness. "It might give us a clue to his plans."
"I've already got people scouring the records for any clue to what Veruscious was looking for," the Unspeakable reported. "My aide should be back with an update soon."
Almost as if on cue, there was a resounding CRACK and a nervous looking man appeared out of thin air.
"Ah, Richards, what have you found out?" the Unspeakable asked.
"Well," Richards reported. "We've discovered that Veruscious broke into the
Pureblood genealogy achieves, he also went through the reports from the last magical census, and a map of the Surrey area was stolen as well. We think he might be trying to locate any descendants, linage was very important back in Veruscious's time after all."
Dumbledore went paled rapidly as he listened to Richards's report. "He's after Harry…"
xXxXx
DING-DONG!
The sound of the doorbell echoed through a silent number 4 Privet Drive.
"Whazat?" Vernon Dursleys muttered.
DING-DONG!
"It's the bell Vernon," Petunia muttered sleepily. She glanced at the digital clock sitting on the nightstand. 1:20 in the morning. "Just ignore it."
DING-DONG!
"Bloody Hell! Are they ever going to…?"
DING-DONG!
"THAT'S IT!" Vernon roared, as he swung his legs out of bed and grabbed a bathrobe. "I'm going to give that no-good hooligan a piece of my mind!"
DING-DONG!
The doorbell rang again for the sixth time, as Vernon stormed down the hallway and thundered down the stairs. He flicked on the lights and stomped over to the door muttering threats under his breath.
BOOM!
There was a flash of fire as the doorknob sailed over Vernon's head, smoke trailing from it. The scorched remains of the door swung open. Veruscious Potter stood in the doorway, a wisp of smoke trailing from the wand in his right hand. "Gods above! Don't you muggles answer the door anymore?"
"Who are you?" Vernon gasped, his courage temporally dashed by a complete stranger blowing away his door.
"Veruscious Potter. I'm looking for Harry Potter. I was told he lives here," Veruscious explained calmly.
"The boy? What about… YOU'RE ONE OF THEM! GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" Vernon roared; his mind finally comprehending who, or rather what, Veruscious was.
"Pardon?" Veruscious's voice had acquired an icy edge.
"YOU HEARD ME!" Vernon continued to rant. "GET OUT OF HERE! I WILL NOT HAVE YOUR UNATURALNESS INFECT MY FAMILY!"
Veruscious pointed his wand at Vernon. There was a flash of purple light and Vernon's body withered and disintegrated. "So much for civility," the necromancer muttered. He heard a shocked gasp and quickly looked up the stairs. Petunia was standing at the end of the hall, a look of horror on her face. Veruscious aimed his wand at Petunia. "Alright muggle, tell me where Harry Potter is, and I might refrain from killing you."
"He's in the cupboard under the stairs," Petunia stuttered, her eyes on the wand in Veruscious's hand.
"WHAT!?" Veruscious took his eyes off Petunia and stared at the small door under the stairs in disbelief. He heard the pound of footsteps on wood and spun around to see Petunia running for the phone. He raised his wand and whispered an incantation. There was a flash of green light and Petunia Dursley died instantly, her hand inches from the receiver.
Veruscious examined the phone cautiously. It wasn't a weapon like he had originally thought. He then shrugged as classified it as one of those muggle devices that looked magical but weren't. Quickly Veruscious dragged Petunia's body into the kitchen and shut the door. He then made his way to the cupboard under the stairs and rapped lightly on the door.
Harry was wide awake and wondering what was going on. He had heard his uncle thundering down the stairs, and had seen several flashes of strange coloured lights from underneath the door. Suddenly he heard a light knock on the door of his cupboard, then the clicks of the locks being unlatched. The door was opened and Harry quickly shut his eyes at the sudden change in lighting.
Veruscious looked at Harry, if he had to guess he would have put the boy's age at around 8. "Goddamn muggles," he thought darkly. "Are you Harry Potter?" he finally asked.
Harry nodded. "Who are you?"
"I'm Veruscious Potter, I'm your Great-great-great-great-great-great Grandfather," Veruscious answered calmly.
"You can't be!" Harry protested. "You're not old!"
"Actually, I'm very old," Veruscious answered annoyed. "I'm just use magic so I don't look like I'm old."
"But, magic doesn't exist!" Harry argued. "Aunt Petunia said so!"
Veruscious merely waved his wand and turned a pair of socks into a sword. "Damn those muggles to Tatarus! Feeding him lies about his heritage"
Harry gasped at the sight. "Does that mean you're a wizard or something?"
"Yes," Veruscious answered. "It also means that you're a wizard too."
"But I can't be Wizard!" the eight year old protested.
"Have you ever made things happen when you were scared or angry?" Veruscious questioned. "Things that you couldn't explain."
Harry nodded as he digested the information. "Yeah… I turned my teacher's hair blue when she was being mean to me…"
"Exactly. You have magic flowing in your veins Harry."
"Whoa…" Harry breathed as he stared at his hands.
"Harry, what would you say if I told you that you can stay with me and learn magic?" Veruscious asked, changing the subject quickly.
Harry looked excited. "Really!?"
"Yes," Veruscious smiled. "Meet me outside. I just want to have a word with your Aunt."
Harry nodded eagerly and started to gather up the few odds and ends he treasured.
Veruscious stood up and calmly walked into the kitchen. He quickly shut the door behind himself and looked at Petunia's body lying on the floor. He pointed his wand at the corpse. An acid green light shot out of his wand and seemed to seep into the lifeless body. Petunia's eyes shot open and she began to pull herself up. She looked alive, except her face was emotionless and her eyes unfocused.
Veruscious inspected the inferi he had just created and smiled to himself. "Kill any wizard who enters this house," he instructed his new undead minion.
The inferi didn't respond. It just went to the kitchen drawer and took out a large butcher cleaver. Veruscious's smile became positively vicious.
Smiling smugly to himself, Veruscious walked out of the kitchen and out of the house. Harry was standing on the front law clutching a plastic bag that contained a few oddly coloured stones, a feather, and two of his baby teeth.
"How are we going to get to your home?" Harry asked, looking around for a car.
"With magic," Veruscious explained. "Now hold my hand."
Harry cautiously grabbed the older wizard's hand, and together they vanished with only a small pop.
Harry would never again set eyes on number 4 Privet Drive, nor would he know the fate his aunt and uncle suffered at the hands of Veruscious.
xXxXx
The silence of Privet Drive was broken by the sound of several pops. A full team of Aurors appeared. They were immediately put on alert by the scorched door swinging in its frame.
The head Auror nodded to his companions and they swiftly entered the house, wands drawn. Two of the Aurors covered the stairs and another cautiously moved towards the kitchen door and pushed it open.
THUNK!
The severed halves of the Auror's wand, along with most of his hand, fell to the floor. The Auror staggered back clutching the bleeding remains of his hand.
The zombie Petunia yanked the knife out of the wood work, and advanced on the Aurors.
"STUPIFY!"
Several stunners flew towards the inferi. They did nothing to stop the advance of the undead muggle however.
"She's an Inferi! Blast her!" someone yelled.
They were several cries of "REDUCTO!" and a barrage of reductos flew towards the inferi. The zombie made no attempt to dodge and received the full power of the blitz. Needless to say, there was not much left of Petunia's body, except a few barely recognizable limbs, bits of organs, and a puddle of blood that covered the floor.
"Get Jonson to St. Mungo's!" the leader ordered. "The Rest of you search the place. Be careful! There could be more of them!"
The team of Aurors immediately split up and scoured the house, finding nothing but a sleeping Dudley.
"We found nothing but a muggle child in an upstairs bedroom," one of the Auror's reported.
"Damn…" the leader muttered. "I'll go inform Madame Bones." He then vanished with a barely audible pop. He repapered in Amelia Bone's office, in front of Albus Dumbledore, Amelia Bones, and the head Unspeakable.
"What have you found?" Dumbledore asked anxiously.
"Harry Potter is gone," the Auror reported. "The door had been blasted open, and an inferi was waiting for us."
A shocked silence hung in the air between the four wizards. Finally, Amelia spoke. "I want a man hunt on Veruscious Potter launched immediately, this is top priority. Send the dementors out as well. But tell them that they are not to engage Veruscious at any cost."
Amelia made eye contact with the Auror captain. "Veruscious must be found."
Authors Note: ANOTHER HP fanfic by yours truly.
I am dearly hoping this doesn't evolve into an overused cliché plot.