Prologue: Remember When It was Easy? (2006)

Taking a deep breath of air, Hayden made his way through the courtyard of the Salem Institute of Magical Beings (St. Louis). He couldn't help but to smile at the thought of getting to his office after a long day of teaching. The kids always had the most energy on the first day. It was only a short walk to his office, and soon he was kicked back in his office chair. One of his favorite places to relax, his office was small but cozy. His favorite part was the view out of the window behind his desk. You could see the St. Louis Arch towering over the river, and it was a sight to behold. At that very moment, the sunset gave the sky a purple glow, which added on to the awe effect. He also couldn't help but to catch a glimpse of his reflection in the same window. He had short unruly black hair and bright blue eyes that seemed endless. His girlfriend, Harmony, had convinced him to get contacts last year, allowing her to enjoy them even more.

"I thought I'd find you here. You ready for dinner?" a woman said from his doorway. She was a woman of average height that had shoulder length bushy brown hair and chocolate brown eyes. Hayden quickly had a huge smile on his face as he met her gaze. Warmth spread throughout his body as their eyes met. He hadn't met another woman that could do this to him.

"I was just thinking of you. Couldn't keep away from me, could you?" Hayden chuckled and got up out of his chair, walking around his desk to the spot where she was standing.

"Seeing as you owe me dinner, no I couldn't. A girl needs to eat, you know. I was thinking of pizza." She met him halfway and pulled him into a small kiss. He pulled away with a big grin on his face.

"Sounds like a plan. I have to run over to my place first to drop off some things. We can't be too long though. I have a lot of grading to do already." He quickly threw some papers into a small briefcase he always carried, transfigured it into a half-dollar, and stuck it in his pocket.

"The school year just started! You need to lighten up on those kids. Sooner or later they're going to turn against you. And you already know you aren't going to be home tonight. I had other things in mind" She made her way over to him and kissed him yet again, this time more vigorously. Hayden couldn't help but kiss her back, picking her up and carrying her over to his desk. She nibbled on his bottom lip, slipped out underneath his arms, and walked back toward the door.

"Meet me at Cicero's in 30? Shouldn't take you too long, right?" She winked and Disapperated before he could answer. Shaking his head, he made sure he had everything before Apparating to his apartment. As he arrived he walked straight up to his bedroom to grab a few things before heading out. Opening the door to his room, he noticed a small owl sitting on his bed. Looking toward his window, he noticed it was wide open, a slight breeze making its way through.

"How in the hell did you get in here?" He quickly whipped out his wand and scanned the room, looking for anything out of the ordinary. After a good sweep through, he closed and locked the window with a flick of his wand. The owl was staring at him intently, flying over to the table next to him. It stuck out its leg and he noticed a small letter tied to it. Slowly he untied the letter and opened it up.

Dear Mr. James,

First you might want to get a bowl of water for Gwyneth there. She gets pretty pissy after a long flight.

At that moment, the owl pecked at his hand a couple times, and ruffled her feathers. Hayden quickly transfigured a pencil he had in his pocket into a bowl, and filled it with water with a quick Aguamenti. He then returned to the letter:

Let me get straight to it. My name is Geoffrey Jones and I work for Gringotts Wizarding Bank in Diagon Alley, London. We have come to the attention that you have some items left for you here in your brother's vault. We need you to travel here immediately to claim such items, as this vault is soon to be closed for good. Included in the envelope is a business card. Precisely 10 minutes after breaking the seal to this letter, that card with turn into a Portkey, allowing you to travel directly here. Please bring a small overnight bag with you just in case the business isn't taken care of in one day. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Geoffrey Jones
Department of Inheritance and Trusts

Hayden sat the letter down and found a seat for himself. Brother? He didn't have a brother, did he? Checking his watch, he noticed he had about 3 minutes left before the Portkey was active. He quickly jumped up and grabbed the overnight bag he had already started packing, seeing as he was going to Hanna's anyway. In the process of making his way back to the table, he sent a message to Harmony via Patronus, asking for a rain check. He'd explain everything to her later. This seemed pretty important. After making sure everything was in the bag, the business card began to glow blue, and he quickly grabbed onto it before feeling a sickly tug around his belly button. As the room began to spin away, he wondered why the British still traveled like this. Airplanes were perfectly fine.

Hayden quickly snapped out of the daydream he was in as he sipped a small cup of coffee from a café on Tottenham Court Road. He would have plenty of time to reminisce later.

They should be arriving soon. First on the list is to subdue the two Death Eaters that come in minutes after they do. Then the rest is all up to me. As if on cue, two teens rushed into the café and quickly made their way into a booth on the far side, the girl taking a little longer to slip into her seat. Hayden slowly slipped his wand from his holster, pulled his cloak over his head and waited patiently, while trying to catch any part of the conversation he could.

"…but to find out what's going on!" The red head, Ron if he remembered the name right, was talking now. They both looked extremely nervous.

"We know what's going on! Voldemort's taken over the Ministry, what else do we need to know?" The young woman, Hermione looked absolutely skittish. That's when his heart skipped a couple of beats. He couldn't believe his eyes. Harmony?

Hayden snapped out of yet another daydream as two rugged looking workmen walked in and sat in the booth next to them. Any time now gentlemen, Hayden thought. He watched the waitress take two cups of coffee to Ron and Hermione and then walk over the new patrons. They quickly waived her away while keeping an eye on the teens. At the same time, both men drew their wands and pointed them at the two teens. Hayden jumped up and with a quick wave of his wand disarmed both men. Directly after that, Hayden heard "Stupify!" and watched as a red streak of light traveled from behind Hermione into one of the men. That must be Harry. The other Death Eater had jumped up to lunge at Hayden, but before he could move an inch he was instantly caught in a Body-Bind curse from Hermione. She quickly covered all of the windows in the café with a flick of her wand, while Ron pulled out a small, lighter sized device and seemed to steal some of the light in the room.

"Drop your wand. I would hate to add another body to this mess." Harry had made his way behind Hayden during the scuffle. A huge grin flashed over Hayden's face as he slowly retracted his wand into back into his holster.

"No reason to be hostile with me, Harry, I'm here to help. You can take off your cloak too. It would be nice to see you in person." Hayden said with a slight chuckle.

Harry then ripped off his cloak, a look of fear and anger in his eyes. "Who sent you? We've never seen you before."

Hayden couldn't help but laugh as he pulled down his hood. "You did, Harry. Can't you recognize your own brother?"