Lord Azkaban and the Blackguard

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:Day 2,762:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

(21 January 2004)

Tom had yet to make good on his threat of a visit, though Harry had taken to speaking to him more often. He was getting a hold on his connection to the prison now, and he did enjoy his conversations with the man. Bella could only ever hear his half of the exchange, but she always listened intently anyway. Harry couldn't blame her. It was the most interesting thing in their cell block.

Bella was doing very well. She was nearly as untouched by the dementors as he was, though she had the benefit of the fact that they were focused on him rather than her. Still, it was much more than he'd ever expected, and she was saner now than he'd ever seen her. Probably almost as sane as Harry was – however much that actually meant.

Harry's connection to Azkaban was stronger than ever. Stronger than he'd ever hoped, actually. And she was helping him learn to channel his wandless magic. Generally, even wanded magic was not possible within Azkaban, but when the very magic preventing it happened to be on your side, such things tended not to matter.

Harry's living conditions had improved dramatically in the last few months since he'd gotten a handle on wandless magic, and his many free hours with which to practice had yielded very agreeable results. He was currently lounged on his oversized canopy bed in front of the expanded window, which would look unchanged from the exterior, but allowed him a sweeping view of the island and sea beyond, the British shores just visible on the eastern horizon. He had his arms propped behind his head and his ankles crossed, eyes gazing sightlessly at the canopy above as his thoughts spanned the island. His magic was now completely integrated into the entire island, allowing him to examine it all in detail without moving from his seat.

Bella was in what used to be her cell, now connected to what had been Harry's through a broad arch in the former wall. Both rooms had been expanded to roughly four times their original size. She was sprawled across the overstuffed sofa playing solitaire and occasionally cursing at the cards that weren't "letting her win".

She had turned out to be a remarkably pleasant companion. She had killed Sirius, which would have been more than he could forgive once. He thought differently now. He liked to think he'd gained some wisdom, but recognized the likelihood that he'd merely lost some sanity. Either way, he saw now that people died in war and they had been on opposite sides. Like his nightmares, he accepted Bella for who she was and moved on.

The dementors were still gathered outside their cells. From what Harry had "overheard" from the guards when he'd eavesdropped on them in their living quarters downstairs, it had become a problem. So many tended to congregate outside Harry's cell that they routinely had to order them back onto rounds lest the rest of the prisoners be unguarded. Harry found it hilarious that he was hogging all the dementors, particularly considering how baffled the human guards were by that fact and the fact that he was still alive and relatively sane.

"Hey, Azzie," Harry said thoughtfully, "I don't suppose there's any way I could get some books, is there?"

The sensation he received in response indicated a negative.

He frowned, then responded to the castle's curiosity. "Well, apart from being a bit bored, I was never able to complete my education. While I am the next thing to untouchable here – except from you, of course, my dear – I dislike how vulnerable I would still be compared to a fully trained wizard outside this island."

Bella was now looking at him curiously, her head cocked to the side, but she didn't interrupt.

There is the knowledge of many generations within these walls, young master. The voice was feminine to Harry, heard only inside his mind, and yet it was so much more than a voice. It was more like a series of feelings and images that his mind was instinctively forming into words as he'd expect them.

"Really?" he asked curiously. "Where?"

Azzie drew his attention to the door of his cell.

Harry followed the silent, formless indication, and stared for a moment before his eyes widened. "The dementors?"

They were not a part of Azkaban, nor even tied to her magic, though she could control them to an extent while they were within her domain. Kind of like pets. A rather feral pack of guard dogs.

A brief series of images that didn't quite translate into words flashed through Harry's mind and a slow smile spread his lips. "The dementors," he said, this time with appreciative understanding.

Harry rolled off the bed and approached the cell door, beckoning one of the dementors forward. It glided toward him soundlessly.

Azzie flashed him some directions and he wheezed with laughter at the utter insanity of what he was about to do. "How do you know about this, Azzie?" he asked when he'd regained control of himself.

The dementors were created by one of my founders, she explained. This was the purpose for which they were originally given life. They recognize you now as the leader of their nest, which is why they come. They wish to give you what they have gathered.

Harry laughed again, then shook his head. "All right. Let's see if this works," he muttered to himself.

Following Azzie's direction, he looked at the dementor nearest him – one of his favorites. "All right, Fido," he'd started naming them based on his observation of them as "pets" of the castle. "Give me what you've gathered."

Fido lowered its hood, then reached through the bars, its boney hand curling gently around the back of Harry's head, tilting it up. It opened its mouth and leaned over Harry as his mouth fell open. Rather than the sucking sensation he remembered from nearly having his soul sucked out in his third year, this time, it felt like the dementor was breathing into his mouth.

Ice seemed to run down his throat and coat his veins for a moment before a spark of light fell from the dementor's mouth and slipped into Harry's. That spark felt warm – almost too hot. Some part of him realized that perhaps the cold of the dementors was actually a means of countering or containing that heat. Then the thought was gone as that heat seared through his body and his mind spun. A second spark came before the heat had fully dispersed, and then a third and fourth followed.

Fido seemed to have ingested dozens of souls, and all were now being passed to Harry. His body convulsed by the time it was over, and he collapsed when Fido released him.

"Good boy," he managed blearily, vaguely noting that Bella had rushed to his side, and then everything went dark.

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:Day 2,771:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

(30 January 2004)

Harry woke to discover that he was in his own bed. Bella was curled up asleep at his side, her body curled around his. He quickly examined his body and found that he felt fine physically, but his thoughts were a little difficult to hold onto.

Cordoning off his thoughts with his Occlumency shields, he began sorting through what was happening in his mind, and a slowly dawning sense of elated wonder filled him. His experiment with Fido had evidently gone as well as Azzie had seemed to indicate. His mind was full of new information. There was everything from primary studies through advanced, rare, unique, and antiquated spells, family names and entire trees, and much, much more.

"Wow," he breathed.

Bella stirred next to him, then started slightly and leaned up on her elbow to look at his face. She grinned widely when she saw his eyes open. "Thank Morgana you're not dead, Potter. I can't control this place like you can."

"Your concern for my well-being is touching, Bella love," Harry chuckled.

"So what happened?" she wondered.

"I've discovered that I have a taste for souls," he grinned.

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:Day 2,936:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

(14 July 2004)

"Oh, fuck, Harry! Harder!" Bella's voice echoed off the stone walls.

Harry obliged, crying out in parseltongue as she clenched around him. He wrapped himself around her back, panting into her wild black hair while he came down off the high. Then he pulled out of her and climbed out of the pool-sized tub. A flick of his wrist dried him and he conjured a new set of fine black robes directly onto his body, smiling at his success.

His magic had grown by leaps and bounds in the last six months. A regular diet of souls would do that for you, though he now limited his intake to no more than one a day. As it turned out, he could specify that from the dementors when they fed him. It didn't knock him out that way, allowing him to organize the new memories into his meticulously categorized mind before ingesting the next. He was very powerful in his own right, but knowing how to channel that magic made a huge difference, as did the added power he received from his now symbiotic connection to Azzie.

He paused halfway across his room when he became aware of a new arrival to the island. He moved to the window-seat and looked down at the docks where a new prisoner was being herded onto the island. His eyes widened as he recognized the hunched figure of Severus Snape.

"Bella love," he called without averting his eyes from the approaching figures. "We're about to have company."

She all but leapt out of the water by the sound of the splashing, and crawled across the bed to his side, leaving a wet trail along his fine linens. "Who is it?" she asked exuberantly. Then she frowned. "Snape? Don't tell me we're inviting him to join us."

"And why not?" he asked, hardly caring about her answer.

"He's so serious. And greasy," she pouted.

"You'll get used to it, I'm sure," Harry said dismissively, closing his eyes to shift his focus down to the warden's office. There he discovered the cell assignments. Snape was already being written in for the cell across from Bella's on the other side of Harry's. Apparently, the warden was looking forward to Snape dying quickly. Too bad he was going to be disappointed…

"Back in your cell, Bella," he smiled as he opened his eyes and moved to lean against the wall next to his cell door.

She was still pouting, but she went without further complaint while the dementors followed a silent command and fled the corridor.

"Good evening, Warden!" Harry called cheerfully when he saw him.

"Evening, Potter," the warden frowned. He hated the fact that Harry seemed to thrive in Azkaban, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. It wasn't as though he could send more dementors to try to bother him. In the end, he didn't care all that much as long as his prisoners didn't cause trouble, but it gave him the chills to see Harry Potter smile after eight years in Azkaban.

Looking into the cells from the outside, the humans would only see the glamored interior looking exactly as it should – small, filthy, and almost vacant. Harry and Bella's appearances were also affected to make them look filthy and dressed in common prison garb. Harry hadn't actually had to work either of those glamors. Azzie had done that all by herself, bless her.

Snape stumbled, his eyes wide as he looked at Harry.

"Professor," Harry nodded.

The man conjured a half-hearted sneer in response, but said nothing as he was unceremoniously thrown into the cell.

Once the warden and other human guards were gone, Harry pushed off the wall and moved over the wall between his cell and Snape's. He placed his hand in the middle and the stone rippled briefly before flowing outward to form an elegant arch identical to the one on the other side.

Snape's jaw was hanging open by the time it had settled, and his tired eyes were nonetheless sharp as they raked over Harry, whose appearance was no longer glamored. "So, what are you in for?" Harry grinned.

"Potter?" Snape breathed, somewhere between awe and horror.

"Let's have a chat," Harry suggested, waving his hand to conjure a pair of armchairs and a tea table. Another gesture summoned a tea tray from the kitchens onto the table and he sat down and set about preparing the tea while Snape slowly pulled himself up and joined him.

"How are you able to do magic here?" Snape asked cautiously several minutes later while Harry leaned back and sipped his tea.

"Azkaban likes me," Harry grinned. "We came to an arrangement quite some time ago. She's just as powerful as Hogwarts, Severus – may I call you Severus?" he didn't wait for a response before going on. "Except that she was built as a prison, rather than a school, which actually gives her even more power in some areas."

Severus was just opening his mouth to respond when the dementors returned. He shuddered and hunched in on himself, his eyes becoming increasingly haunted.

"How… how do they not… affect you?" he gasped.

Harry huffed a small laugh, "Oh, they stopped affecting me after about a year. You can be magically insulated against them, of course," the poor sod who'd known that trick had never gotten to use it as he'd been sentenced to the Kiss instead of imprisonment, "but I didn't know that then. There's a certain sort of mindset that can prevent them from adversely affecting you. It's a combination of apathy and acceptance of your worst nightmares as a part of you.

"Anyway…" he sighed as he saw Severus starting to zone out in whatever nightmares the dementors were inspiring. "Rex, take the others and give us some space, pet."

The dementor bowed its head briefly before drifting away with the others.

It was a few minutes before Severus could fully focus again. "Did you call one of the dementors 'Rex'?" he asked at last.

"I named them," Harry grinned. "They're really a lot like dogs. A bit feral, but completely loyal to their master."

Severus stared for a minute. "You," he finally concluded.

Harry nodded happily.

"How did this happen, Potter?" he finally asked.

Harry shook his head, "No. You first. What'd you get convicted of doing?"

Severus scowled at that. "The Order disrupted one of the Dark Lord's raids. Aurors showed up before I could escape. Albus promised to get me out, but…"

"Ah," Harry sighed. "He's not too good with promises, is he?"

Severus eyed Harry warily before sighing. "No. The price of my freedom would have been too high, he said."

"Sounds like good ol' Dumbles," Harry nodded. "You know he promised eight years ago that he was still working on getting me exonerated. Haven't seen him since."

"You don't seem to be doing too badly," Severus noted.

Harry huffed a laugh, "I wouldn't leave here if they paid me. This is my home now, and I like it."

Again, Severus considered him. "Even with your comforts and…" he glanced at the tea, "abilities, you truly wish to remain here?"

"Of course," Harry said simply. "I have everything I need here."

"But you're alone," he reasoned.

"Not quite," Harry laughed, then tipped his head back a bit and raised his voice. "Are you still pouting, love? Come and say hello to Severus!"

He heard some quiet grumbling, and then Bella stepped through the arch. Evidently, she'd dressed since he'd last seen her, though he'd not have put it passed her to come in starkers.

Severus' eyes widened again.

"Severus, I believe you know Bella. She's been my roommate since shortly after she arrived."

"Roommate?" she scoffed. "Don't you mean lover?" she purred, batting her long eyelashes.

"I meant what I said, love," Harry smirked, then waved his hand to conjure another chair and summon another tea cup. "Join us."

She dismissed his mocking rebuff without comment and hurried into the chair, turning her full attention to Severus. "Has the Great Lord taken the Ministry yet?" she asked breathlessly while Harry rolled his eyes.

Severus did not miss Harry's reaction, but remained focused on Bella to sneer, "Would I be here if he had?"

Her eyes narrowed and she pursed her lips primly. "Perhaps he finally saw that you couldn't be trusted."

"Tom has known that for years," Harry informed her, which surprised them both.

"What?!" they asked together, apparently oblivious to that.

Harry sighed, "Of course he knew. Honestly, I am disappointed in the both of you. Tom is not stupid. He's not even insane as Dumbles thinks. Well, not too insane, at least. He's kept Severus on all this time as a link to Albus."

"How can you possibly know that, Potter?" Severus asked warily.

"He told me," Harry said simply.

Severus blinked while Bella smirked at knowing more than her former "colleague".

Harry tapped his scar. "Tom and I are connected, Severus. That's the reason I'm in here, if you'll recall. He possessed me and killed and tortured my friends…"

Severus sighed, "I thought that was what happened."

"Albus never told you?"

He shook his head.

"I can't say I'm entirely surprised. But yes, this scar forms a link between our minds and magic. We converse almost daily, and have for the last, oh… since before Bella showed up. I've even helped him plan a few raids."

Severus glanced at Bella, then back at Harry. "You've allied yourself with him?" he breathed.

Harry shook his head, "Nothing so formal as all that. We're more like… friends. In an odd way. Like we're friends for now, but we both openly acknowledge that we might decide to kill each other tomorrow," he shrugged. "Of course, I have no wish to leave, and I don't think he's dumb enough to challenge me here, so… Yeah, that probably won't happen anytime soon."

"Then you no longer care that he's responsible for the deaths of your friends, your parents, and countless other innocents?" Severus asked cautiously.

"Innocent is a very loaded word," Harry said grimly. "History is filled with tales of villains allowing the children of their enemies to live because of their innocence, only to one day fall to those very children. I, myself, am an excellent example of that peril. Had I died as an innocent, Voldemort would have been largely unchallenged in his power. But I lived to become his most dangerous foe."

"So you endorse the killing of children."

"Endorse may be a bit strong, but I don't particularly condemn it. It's good tactical sense in some situations. Of course, those same children can also become powerful allies if they are properly handled. Using myself as an example again, had I been raised by Voldemort's followers instead of his enemies, I'd have been brought up very differently and may just have become his strongest supporter.

"War is a messy, complicated endeavor, Severus. Attempting to draw up 'rules of war' is both foolhardy and doomed to failure. Different situations call for different actions. None can be considered wrong as a matter of course."

"Then the Light has already lost this war," Severus noted without an apparent opinion on the matter.

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:Day 3,560:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

(28 June 2006)

"Bella, love!" Harry called as he stepped out of the tub and conjured his robes directly onto his body as always.

"Yes, Harry?" she called back, glancing up from her gameboard. It was a chess table Harry had made for her as a birthday present a few months back – he neither knew nor cared when her birthday actually was, but he figured he'd missed a few, so he called it a birthday present. The pieces crucio'd each other before "killing" each other with the killing curse when they were taken. They even gave tinny screams. And Harry had crafted them specifically for her so they looked like various light and dark wizards, including Voldemort as the black king. He could have used himself, but he just loved the idea of making a tinny Voldemort doll. It was also charmed to play against her automatically so Harry and Severus didn't have to be bothered with her constant nattering.

"Do you know what day it is?" Harry purred.

Her interest was piqued as she abandoned the board to stand and face him. "You are paying attention to the day? I didn't even know that you were aware of the current year."

He smirked, "I happened to notice the year on the warden's calendar when I was exploring his office several months ago. I've been keeping my eye on it since."

"Why?" she wondered.

"Because, dear Bella," he crooned, stepping closer to caress her slim waist. "Today marks the ten year anniversary of the day I was abandoned and cast aside by the Light."

Her eyes widened and her lips parted slightly, which distracted Harry enough that he leaned in and kissed them soundly.

"I feel the need to celebrate in grand style," he breathed against her lips.

Now her eyes were burning with excitement. "What shall we do?"

His smile turned feral as he drew away from her and called, "Severus!"

"I can hear you, Harry," the man drawled in return, climbing the spiral staircase from the library on the lower level. The collection wasn't terribly expansive as Harry had only begun building it after Severus' arrival, taking glamored trips to Knockturn, mostly.

"Oh good!" Harry chirped in return. "At your age, I sometimes fear for your hearing."

Severus glared at Harry as he joined them. "You needn't concern yourself with my age, Harry. At least I am sane."

"Sanity is grossly overrated," Harry informed him flatly. "Besides, I let you cheat on the dementors. Don't make me change my mind."

"Of course. I apologize," Severus replied easily, bowing his head respectfully.

Harry eyed him for a moment, certain he'd caught a hint of a smirk on the man's lips before he'd bowed his head, but he let it go. As he always did. Well, almost always.

"Well, regardless, I'm throwing a surprise party for my ten year anniversary as the Blackened Golden Boy. You two are, of course, invited."

Severus eyes widened and he blinked, which was a significant show of shock for the potions' master. "Who else is invited?" he asked warily.

"Oh, I'm keeping the guestbook open for now, but we'll start with our hosts." He flicked his wrist and his cell door cracked open on rusted hinges, then creaked fully out.

After just a beat of hesitation, he felt his roommates follow him out of the "cell".

Harry led the way down to the main floor while Azzie sealed all the outer doors and locked down her magical dampeners to include everyone except Harry.

As the only one in the castle capable of using magic, and having the dementors at his command, it was a simple matter to round up all of the human guards. Harry had them line up in the rather large entry hall, and smirked at the shocked, terrified faces watching him.

"Hello, ladies and gents!" Harry greeted. "I assume you all know who I am…" He waited a tick and got no dissenting comments, so nodded and continued. "To begin, I will need all of your wands." He lifted his hands and a silent accio sent two dozen wands zipping straight to him. Since it was a rather large handful, he simply levitated the bundle between his hands for a moment before directing it to a table near him. "Severus, Bella, see if you can find any that suit you. I'll adjust to the wards to allow you to use magic."

He turned his attention back to his "guests" while his companions eagerly dug into the selection of wands. Well, Bella was eager. Severus looked bored, though his eyes sparked with anticipation. "Now, then," Harry continued. "No doubt you're curious about how we find ourselves in this situation. The answer to that is a bit complicated, and I don't feel like sharing all of my secrets, so suffice it to say that it is abysmally stupid to put an extremely powerful wizard inside an ancient, sentient magical building and leave him to boredom for years on end.

"Moving on, I'm going to separate you lot into three groups. One group is going to walk out that door and return to the world beyond none the worse for wear, though admittedly out of a job. The second group is going to die, likely, quite slowly and painfully. The third group will be on a volunteer basis. This island is going to be my stronghold from now on. If any of you wish to join me here, you may ask and I will consider it. I will require an Unbreakable Vow of loyalty, but I will also grant you immunity to the dementors. Now, let's get to the sorting…"

The sorting went quite quickly, since Harry had long since created the first two groups in his mind. The warden and eight others went into the "live" group, since they had all proved to be decent people. The rest, those who had intentionally harmed the prisoners with no good reason beyond their own amusement, went into the second group.

Then the "volunteers" began to make their pleas. That took a little longer, since all but three of the "die" group chose that route. Harry turned away two of them that he really despised. The rest came forward, submitted themselves to Harry's Legilimency probe, and then took their Vows.

Surprisingly, when that was done, the warden also stepped forward.

Harry looked at him curiously.

The man cleared his throat nervously. "I'd like to stay as well, my lord," he said solemnly. "I've been here so long…" he shook his head, "It's my home. I have nothing beyond these walls."

Harry smiled at the man as he brushed through his thoughts. Azzie, evidently, liked him as well, which was why he'd been able to feel so comfortable within the castle. "Then take your vow, Davis," he said gently.

The man fell to his knees in relief as much as submission and happily gave his vow of fealty to the new Lord of Azkaban.

Once the eight who were allowed to leave had boarded the boat back toward the opposite shore, wandless but unharmed, Harry had his new minions – seven in all – escort the condemned into cells where they could have a taste of life on the other side of the bars before they were killed. They generally seemed more horrified by this than the simple torture they'd obviously been expecting. That brought a smile to Harry's lips. The things they'd done to the prisoners had been disgusting. Bloody sadists.

He sternly ignored all thought of pots and kettles while he waited for his minions to return.

"How long have you been planning this?" Severus asked quietly while the three of them waited alone in the entrance hall.

"Just a few years," Harry shrugged, "Did you find a good wand?"

"It will suffice for now," Severus said with a slight grimace. "A few years?"

Harry nodded simply. "Yes."

"Why did you wait so long?"

"Timing is everything," he smirked at the older man.

The others started to come back then, so the conversation ended. Once Harry had gathered the seven in front of him, allowing Bella and Severus to remain at his sides, he addressed them. "Now, who am I?" he asked, then answered himself. "I am Harry Potter, yes, but I am also the Lord of Azkaban. This castle, indeed the entire island is bonded to me. On this island, my will is law." So he was enjoying his power trip a bit. He figured he'd earned it by this point. "You lot are now the Black Guard of Azkaban, keepers and protectors of this magnificent fortress, servants of Lord Azkaban. Your personal histories, families, and loyalties no longer exist. This island is your home, the people in this room are your family, your loyalty belongs to me alone.

"Now, I imagine you're asking yourselves what I plan to do with you. I have, at present, no intention of becoming the next dark lord seeking world dominion. If Voldemort wishes to trouble himself with the worthless cretins that dominate our world, he is welcome to them. Whether we involve ourselves with anything beyond this island remains to be seen, but I have no immediate plans for anything of the sort after today. For now, I will be redecorating the castle, cleaning out the cells – one way or another – and gathering recruits. If any of you have someone in the outside world that you simply cannot live without, inform me later and I will consider offering them an invitation, but don't bother unless you have reason to expect them to accept. An Unbreakable Vow must be willingly given, and I'll accept no one who cannot give it to me."

He glanced back to Severus and Bella, "Yes, that includes the two of you. Severus, you were a spy for years, and Bella, I know you still have a crush on Tom."

She pouted and Severus frowned, but neither tried to argue.

"All that leaves is The Branding, as I've decided to affectionately dub it. Taking a page from old Voldie's book, I'll be marking each of you. It will be used as a means of tracking and guiding apparition as well as summoning you when you're needed. Come, Severus, why don't you go first?"

The older man grimaced faintly as he stepped forward and bared his left arm. He first gave the same Unbreakable Vow as the others.

Harry smiled and winked as he folded his hand over the space on which Tom's mark still rested. This would be more than twice as difficult as simply branding his mark, since he had to go in and remove Tom's first, but he wasn't concerned. While he was inside Azkaban, with her fathomless well of power coming effortlessly to his command, he could go like this for days.

The first thing he did was numb the nerves in his entire lower arm. It would still be uncomfortable, but at least it wouldn't be searing agony. Unlike Tom, Harry did not enjoy causing pain for its own sake. At least, he hadn't discovered any such affinity thus far. That done, he carefully dug into Severus' arm with his magic, wrapping it around Tom's magic in the dark mark and carefully severing each strand with such care that he was fairly certain Tom wouldn't even be aware of it unless he attempted to summon one of them.

Once the magic was gone, he went into the tissues themselves, removing the brand before replacing it with his own, weaving his magic into it as he created the image. When he was finished, he removed his hand and allowed Severus to examine his new mark.

It was black, like Tom's mark, in the form of prison bars with a large snake woven through the bars, it's open mouth facing out as though it might leap off his skin and strike at any moment. Harry smiled, pleased with the result, then motioned Bella to join him.

Bella's voice quavered slightly as she gave her vow, but she did it, and patiently allowed him to replace Tom's mark with his own.

The rest of the Blackguard followed more quickly as they'd already given theirs vows and had no preexisting marks.

Once that was done, Harry simultaneously transfigured everyone's clothing – except his own – into flowing robes much more impressive than Death Eater robes, even if he did say so himself. They were magically lightened to stir rather eerily with every movement, and they were more than merely black, actually drawing in the light around them to leave the Blackguard always shrouded in a tiny bit of shadow that would grow considerably more noticeable in dimmer lighting. They had no hoods nor masks.

"Unlike the Death Eaters, the Blackguard do not hide their identities," he explained while the group was yet examining themselves and each other. All eyes turned intently to him as he spoke. "We do not hide in plain sight as they do. We do not pretend to be other than we are."

With that, he transfigured his own fine robes. It was necessary, of course, that he be even more impressive than his underlings, and he personally thought he was. Rather than the fully closed robes that his Blackguard wore, his own were open-fronted over fine black trousers and tunic. And he was quite literally cloaked in shadow, the smoky blackness of deep shadow hanging in a slightly writhing mass of nearly opaque darkness.

Even Severus looked impressed. Bella looked like she was seriously wishing she could relieve him of those robes, to which he quirked an amused brow. She returned a feral smile that promised a lecherous evening of wanton debauchery. He winked at that before returning to business.

"Now that we're all dressed," he smiled, "I'm throwing a surprise party in honor of my ten year anniversary as a convicted criminal. That's today, in case you were wondering. This party is going to take place in Diagon Alley. For the most part, all you'll need to do is stand around and look menacing. If it does turn into a fight, which is quite probable, just stay close to me and be ready to follow me when I leave. Try to stick to non-lethal curses for now," he looked pointedly at Bella when he said that and she pouted in mild disappointment. "If, however, you feel in serious danger, don't risk your own lives to preserve our enemies.

"All right gentleman, and lady, of course, today, we introduce the Blackguard to the wizarding world. Do not discredit my high standards." He gave that a moment to fully sink in, omitting Severus and Bella from his glare since he had no doubt they would comport themselves properly. "Now, follow me."

He disapparated, appearing in the middle of Diagon Alley, followed almost immediately by ten accompanying cracks. While those on the street looked at the group with alarm, Harry took a moment to raise a powerful anti-apparition ward, then glancing back at Severus and Bella and nodded toward Ollivanders. "Get yourselves new wands while we're here," he instructed quietly.

They broke off from the group, and Harry raised his hands and brought them together in a clap that echoed down the Alley in a powerful thunderclap. "If I may have your attention!" he called, his magically amplified voice ringing for all to hear, but not so loud as to deafen. "Do not panic. I mean you no harm. My name, as you probably know, is Harry Potter, hereafter I shall be known as Lord Azkaban." He let his eyes trail over the nervous crowd, but they soon snapped back to one familiar, eager face. "You," he said, pointing at the woman in the atrocious glasses. "Rita, step forward."

She did so, looking somewhere between sickly excited and terrified.

"Record my statement," he instructed, briefly lowering his voice to a natural undertone, "If you misquote me or embellish with your loathsome commentary, I will tear your wings off, little beetle, and then I'll throw you in the darkest hole in Azkaban where you will know naught but the company of my hungriest dementors for the rest of your worthless life."

She went very pale, but nodded quickly and flicked her wand to adjust her quickquotes quill before offering him a sickly smile and taking a small step back.

Harry winked at her roughishly, then turned back to the wary crowd. "Now, as I was saying, the island of Azkaban does, henceforth, belong to me and me alone. Any unauthorized attempts to visit or retake the island will be met with deadly force," he said pleasantly.

Someone screamed and Harry turned sharply, the shadow cloak flaring and writhing more expressively in response to the movement. The crowd parted quite suddenly, people piling to the sides of the street to reveal a contingent of masked Death Eaters sweeping down the street.

Harry smirked at the sight as the Death Eaters likewise parted to reveal Tom in their midst.

"Harry!" he greeted with a smile. "I did not believe it when I heard you were here, though I, of course, had to see for myself."

"Tom," Harry nodded with a grin. "You're looking well."

"I'm not the one who's been in prison for a decade," the reptilian wizard laughed, causing at least one spectator to faint.

"Azkaban suits me," Harry replied. "Speaking of which, I'd like to introduce you to my Blackguard," he swept a hand toward the cloaked minions forming a loose circle around him.

Tom studied them thoughtfully, then nodded, "I'll admit, I like the cloaks."

"If you'll excuse me just a moment, I'm almost done with these folks."

"Oh, by all means."

Harry turned his attention back to the crowd. "As I as saying, Azkaban is mine. I have no intention of terrorizing anyone or taking over anything else. Leave me alone and I shall reciprocate." He lowered his voice. "All right. I think that's everything. I'll leave the terrorizing and taking over to you, my friend," he smiled at Tom.

"I do appreciate it," Tom nodded.

Harry smiled wider when he saw Severus and Bella appear through the crowd. "Ah, of course you remember my lieutenants."

Tom frowned slightly, "Your lieutenants?"

"If you want to keep your men, I suggest you keep them out of Azkaban," Harry laughed. "These two belong to me now." He extended his arm, beckoning to Bella, who came forward and leaned into his side when he wrapped his arm around her waist.

"My Lord," she said slightly nervously to Tom.

"Ah, my dear Bella," Tom sighed. "I have missed you."

The sound of multiple apparitions down the street beyond his ward drew everyone's attention.

Harry sighed, "That would be the aurors. I'll leave you to it, shall I?"

Tom nodded, drawing his wand and turning to shout some orders to his Death Eaters. They seemed mostly along the lines of, "Cause rampant mayhem."

"Let's go home!" Harry called to his own people and watched them apparate away one by one.

Harry looked up just in time to see Dumbledore appear through the crowd, his eyes going comically wide when he spotted Harry. The Lord of Azkaban gave the Headmaster of Hogwarts a cheeky salute before disapparating with his lieutenants.