Chapter 7
Fun with Runes & Surprise Revelations
It had been almost six weeks since Harry's detention with Tom and all was peaceful, until Harry woke up one morning, shortly after his talk with Peter, and found the map had been placed into his trunk. Harry had been delighted, so he made four copies. One went to Bella and Sirius, one went to Tom, one went back to the twins, so they wouldn't know it had been stolen, and Harry kept the original.
Sirius and Bella cast the unplottable charm over themselves, while Harry did the same for Peter. It made much better sense that way, and Peter was grateful for it.
Then the pranks began.
In one fell swoop all four houses were pranked. The Gryffindor common room was changed to green and silver, Ravenclaw's common room was turned red and gold, Hufflepuff's was done in bronze and blue, while Slytherin's common room was changed to yellow and black. The four Heads of House were either highly amused, slightly upset, tickled, or downright murderous, depending on who they were.
After everything had been put back to the way it was, Slytherin house woke up one morning to find that all of their common room furniture had been stolen. After a short search, the furniture was discovered to be suspended above the center of the Black Lake, and held there by a rope net attached to a large green and silver hot-air balloon. No one had any idea where the balloon came from, or even what it was, until an amused Tom and a few helpful muggle borns told them what it was.
Snape was so irate that he tried to summon the net and all the furniture, but because it was charmed a certain way, by a certain scythe wielding demon, the rope net simply burst open and sent the furniture crashing into the lake.
It took twenty-four hours, and a lot of drying charms, before Slytherin house could put their common room back in order, but no one ever figured out where the balloon came from.
Hermione, and all of Ravenclaw, got upset when the entire Hogwarts library went missing. The room was still there, but the books had all vanished, and they didn't reappear until twelve hours later.
Madam Pince needed more than one calming draught during that stunt.
Madam Pomfrey got upset when she found the entire hospital wing had been turned upside down. All the beds were stuck to the ceiling, as well as all the chairs, nightstands, and her potions cabinet.
(Though Sirius and Bella checked to make sure there were no sick or injured people in there when they did it.)
Dumbledore laughed himself silly when he came to breakfast one morning and found the great hall had been outlandishly decorated. It looked like a garish cross between Mardi Gras, a child's birthday party, Valentine's Day, and Christmas.
He left it like that for three whole days, much to the dismay of McGonagall.
And speaking of the esteemed Deputy, she didn't know whether to laugh or get angry when she found her classroom floor had been replaced with actual dirt that was growing catnip.
Tom laughed hysterically when he learned that she vanished all but a small portion of it.
Snape was convinced it was the work of Sirius and demanded that Dumbledore do something to catch him, but no one could prove that it was actually him, especially since no one had been hurt. When that didn't work, he then tried to put the blame on Harry, and cited his 'puffing ability' as how he was getting away with it, but Dumbledore refused to listen.
However, most of the school thought it was the work of Fred and George, but no one could figure out how they were doing it. Fred and George themselves had been blown away by it all and they tried to ask Harry about it, but he simply grinned and told them to up their pranks if they wanted to keep up.
The twins were floored, but vowed to up their game.
Aside from all the pranks though, classes were going smoothly. Flying lessons had started, but Harry didn't feel like playing Quidditch this time around, so he kept his flying skills well hidden. He had too many things going on as it was, and he didn't want to draw even more unneeded attention to himself. Besides, his Bingo Friday was a hit and Harry wanted to concentrate on that, and other things he had planned.
The other members of the staff still didn't trust Tom a bit, but they did seem to have let go some of the nervousness, uptightness, and fear they had for him. However, they did continue to remain wary and never let themselves get to close, or get caught alone with him.
Tom, for his part, remained calm, cool, and collected. He was unnervingly pleasant, friendly, sociable, and to be honest, downright likeable. Most of the students absolutely loved him, though some older female students took it a bit too far when they unsuccessfully tried to get him to consume a love potion. Tom had rounded them up, along with the evidence, and marched each one straight to Dumbledore. This action not only shocked the Headmaster, but also somewhat amused him.
Snape, it seemed, was the oddball out. He didn't know what to do or think about Tom's actions and attitude, or even how he himself was supposed to act anymore. So one day, to everyone's amusement, he went to Tom and asked what he was supposed to do.
Tom's answer?
"Be yourself Severus."
Not only was that less than helpful, but once Snape returned to his living quarters, he commenced to throwing things around and cursing the existence of Tom, Harry, Dumbledore, Harry, James, Sirius, Harry, Tom, Dumbledore, Harry, Tom, Sirius, James, and Harry.
In that order.
Dumbledore, on the other hand, just continued to watch Tom closely and monitored his and Harry's relationship, while trying to think up ways to not only keep the two apart, but broach the subject of Harry's life.
He was completely at a loss on how to do that though. He was also at a loss as to why Tom was taking an almost parental role in the boy's life. He was amazed that Tom seemed to be acting more and more like a father to Harry, and it left him stumped.
But that only gave the four conspirators a wonderful idea.
Albus,
Please, I beg you, don't ignore this letter because Harry is in grave danger! I have to be really sneaky about sending you this letter, because that disgusting loathsome bitch cousin of mine hangs over my shoulder and watches me almost constantly, so I very rarely get time to myself.
Anyway, I swear that I did not betray Lily and James to Voldemort. Before James cast the Fidelius, it was my idea to switch secret keepers. My thoughts were, since I was the most likely choice, the Death Eaters and their bastard of a master would capture me and force me to give up their location.
So I came up with a plan.
At the last minute, I talked James into switching to Peter because he was known as the 'weak one' and NOBOBY would EVER suspect that he would be the secret keeper. It was my job to bandy about saying that I was the secret keeper, so that suspicion would further be thrown off Peter.
But, unknown to us, Peter is/was a Death Eater.
I did not kill those muggles, and Peter is STILL alive! HE blew up the street and FRAMED me! I know the reason I was thrown in Azkaban without a trial is because the Aurors heard me laughing and saying 'I killed them, I killed Lily and James'. But that was only because, if you look at it from my point of view, I DID because I talked James into making Peter the secret keeper!
I was stunned that Peter could actually pull something like this off, and I was in SHOCK, not to mention, out of my mind with grief over the loss of Lily and James!
Albus, I am innocent! You have to believe me! I did not escape, I was 'rescued'! Voldemort is basically keeping me hostage, and using Harry as leverage to 'keep me in line'. Merlin only knows what he has in store for me! You have to keep Harry safe, first and foremost, but please, find a way to get me out of here if you can! If you do find a way to get me out of here, I will give pensive memories, oaths, and even gladly take veritaserum BREWED BY SNAPE in order to prove my innocence.
But that is not the real reason I am writing you. Unfortunately, Voldemort has figured out that HARRY IS HIS OWN SON!
This though, is not news to me. James and Lily BOTH knew this when Harry was born. Voldemort figured out that Snape was in love with Lily so, being the bastard that he is, sweet talked Lily into having a one night stand. This happened shortly before James and Lily got married, and if you remember, they had broken up because of the pressure of the war.
However, as you also know, they got back together shortly after they broke up. What you don't know is the reason why. They got back together, because Lily found out who her one night stand was the next morning when, Voldemort told her who he was and laughed about it!
She was, of course, devastated, disgusted, and downright pissed off that she had let this happen, and so was James. However, this only made them realize how much they did love each other, so they got back together and decided to work through everything. Lily told James, Voldemort only slept with her so that he could, when he felt the time was right, brag about his 'escapade' with Lily to Snape.
We always knew he was a bastard, and got his jollies off by hurting people in the worst possible way, even his own followers.
I only know this because James told me. He didn't tell Peter or Remus, but he needed someone to talk to, so I was his confidant. Lily knew he told me, and understood why.
Anyway, because of their one night stand, and the fact that HARRY IS A PARSELMOUTH, Voldemort has figured out that Harry is his son. Like I said before, when Harry was born, nine months after Lily had 'been an idiot', they knew he wasn't James's son. He looked NOTHING like James, so Lily, in all her brilliance, figured out a way to put a permanent glamor on Harry so no one would figure out the truth. James had decided to treat Harry as his own, love him, take care of him, and everything else, because he knew none of this was Harry's fault, and nor did he really blame Lily for it, since he was the one who did the breaking up in the first place.
They were planning to tell Harry the truth when he was old enough to understand, but things turned out differently. It is IMPORTANT that Harry be told this eventually, but PLEASE, PLEASE tell Harry that being Voldemort's son changes NOTHING! Tell him James and Lily knew, and still loved him dearly. Reassure him that just because he is Voldemort's son, doesn't mean he has to be dark.
Because that is what I think Voldemort is going to try and do.
I have been listening to Bellatrix and Voldemort's chats, and I know that Voldemort will stop at nothing to reclaim 'his rightful son'. I can say, with great relief, that he no longer wants to outright kill Harry, but WHO KNOWS WHAT HE PLANS TO DO NOW! Voldemort still may kill him though, if Harry refuses to do what Voldemort wants him to do. Voldemort's action also depends on what the prophecy says. If Harry is destined to kill him, Voldemort will kill him first, even if Harry is his son.
This is a mess Albus, and I'm terrified! I don't want to see my godson turn to the dark, simply because he is looking for love and acceptance, and nor do I want him to be killed because of some stupid prophecy.
You need to sit down with Harry and get him to talk about his life. It has NOT been sunshine and roses for him. Those Dursleys have ABUSED him, severely, and not only is Voldemort PISSED because muggles abused 'his son', but he is raging mad over the fact that YOU placed Harry in that house.
I think he figured that out on his own, because I had nothing to do with that. Although, I can say, I too am PISSED! What were you thinking!? You KNOW Petunia hates magic and is jealous that she doesn't have any! She hated Lily, so what the hell did you think was going to happen to Harry!? I would rather have Harry be raised by SNAPE instead of that old biddy!
But I digress.
Do what you have to do to ensure that Harry doesn't get any closer to 'Professor Riddle', but be prepared for a fight. Harry doesn't altogether trust you because of Snape being an arse and holding a school boy grudge against a CHILD that ISN'T EVEN JAMES'S BLOOD! I have no doubts that you monitored Harry's detention with Voldemort that day, and you no doubt figured out that I was there. I have not told Voldemort of that suspicion, and I don't think he suspects anything, because he likely had the classroom warded so that you couldn't.
But I also know, with you being the Headmaster, that you no doubt had a portrait, or a suit of armor, or something listening in.
But, just in case you didn't, get Harry to talk about his life anyway you can. As his legal godfather, I give you permission to pour veritaserum down his throat to get the truth! I know for a fact, being an abused child myself, that Harry will latch on to the first adult who shows him love and kindness, and right now that person is 'Professor Riddle'.
Get this straightened out Albus, in any way you can, or I will personally find a way out of here, grab Harry, and leave the country.
Sincerely,
Sirius Black
A barely holding it together Snape threw the letter down onto the Headmaster's desk. For the first time in a long time, his brain was scrambled and he didn't really know what to think. Dumbledore peered over the top of his glasses and looked at him with concern, but neither of them said anything for several minutes.
They both were shocked after all the revelations at Harry's detention, and neither of them spoke about it for several days afterwards. Dumbledore hid in his office, pondering over everything, and Snape absolutely refused to believe anything that had been said.
He simply thought it was all made up, and Potter was just trying to get attention.
However, after a few days Dumbledore just couldn't stand not knowing if everything was true, so he called Severus to his office early one night, and they left for Privet Drive.
And what Dumbledore found in that house nearly broke his heart.
Yes it was true, the Dursleys were nowhere to be found, and the older retired couple, who answered the door, confirmed that they had bought the house a few weeks ago. There was even packing boxes still laying around, seeing as they hadn't had a chance to unpack everything yet. Still though, this wasn't enough for Dumbledore, so he and Snape stunned both muggles, gently placed them in in the living room in front of their 'moving picture box', and began searching the house.
Dumbledore had already checked the address for Harry's first few Hogwarts letters, so the first place they headed to was the cupboard under the stairs. It had already been cleaned out, but through the use of magic, Dumbledore was able to detect not only Harry's residual magic, but his dried blood as well.
And there was a lot of dried blood.
It was of course, unnoticed by the muggles because Petunia had given it a good scrubbing before they left, no doubt to cover up their crimes. However, Dumbledore saw it all and some of it even dated back to when Harry was merely two years old.
He also found a faded, crudely written, barely noticeable scrawl on the back wall of the cupboard that simply said, 'Harry's Room'.
At that point, Dumbledore collapsed onto the floor and began sobbing loudly.
Snape took it upon himself to go upstairs. He found a total of four bedrooms, but when he found the smallest one, he just shook his head and closed the door. It was no bigger than a water closet, and the current muggles were apparently using it as a small craft room.
When Snape came back down, he simply leaned against the stair banister and told Albus what he had found. This sent the old Headmaster into more soul wrenching sobs, but Snape finally got him off the ground and back to Hogwarts.
Snape himself didn't know what to think. He knew there was no way to fake all that they had discovered, but this was still 'Potter's Spawn', and even though a small part of him he felt bad for the boy, he wasn't willing to afford Harry any sympathy, or leniency for that matter.
But as Snape stared at the letter on Dumbledore's desk, he absolutely refused to believe it.
"It's a prank." He finally said, as he leaned back in his seat with a scowl. "Black is working for the Dark Lord, and they have concocted this nonsense. I refuse to believe it. Lily would have never had a one night stand with anyone, much less the Dark Lord."
"Severus, I don't think Sirius is lying. You yourself heard everything that was said in Harry's detention that day, and you saw the evidence in the house. If Harry really can speak to snakes, then him being Tom's son makes sense. James and Lily did break up, for about a week or two, then, with no explanation as to why, they got back together. I think Lily knew there was a very good possibility that she could be pregnant, because they got married a month later."
"Lily wouldn't have married anybody just to have a 'father for her baby'." Snape snapped.
Dumbledore sighed wearily. "I know that, and that is not what I'm saying. As much as you hate to hear it, Lily and James loved each other very much. When this…one night stand…happened, I think James asked her to marry him, so that James could protect her honor. If Lily popped up pregnant and unwed, our society would have looked down their noses at her. James wanted this, and at first, Lily likely tried to dissuade him from that decision in order to protect his name and honor, but he obviously talked her into it so that she and Harry would be protected by the Potter name and influence. They did love each other." He repeated firmly.
"Then why would she let the Dark Lord 'sweet talk' her into a one night stand?" Snape asked, as he glared at the old man.
"Because that is what Voldemort does. He uses his handsome looks, charming smile, 'good natured' manners, and silver tongue to get what he wants. He knew who Lily was because she was a high profile Order member and she's lucky she wasn't killed then, but Lily didn't know who he was until he told her. NO ONE outside his inner circle knew what 'Voldemort' really looked like. Why do you think he created the Death Eater robes and masks in the first place?"
"Because he wanted to hide his true identity." Snape finally said with a loud sigh. "He also kept his true name hidden from everyone, except those he trusted most. Lucius, Bellatrix, and I were the only ones that knew."
"Yes, and Bellatrix went to school with him, so he likely told her to keep it quiet from the others."
Snape begrudgingly nodded in agreement, but he remained quiet for a moment until another question popped into his mind.
"Do you think that the Dark Lord suspected that Potter may have been his son? Aside from the prophecy, do you think that is one of the reasons why he targeted the Potters, and not the Longbottoms?"
Albus thought a moment, but then he shook his head. "I don't know. I honestly don't. It's possible that he did, and maybe he wanted to see the boy for himself to make sure, but if Lily put a glamor on Harry…"
"That wouldn't have fooled him." Snape cut in. "It is well believed that the Dark Lord has ways of seeing through enchantments, disguises, and things of that sort."
"Using something like Alastor Moody's eye?" Dumbledore asked, causing Snape to nod. "Well if that is true, then he would have seen, and recognized, the resemblance between himself and Harry, because I seriously doubt Lily would have bothered with a glamor if Harry had looked like her."
Snape looked at Dumbledore with wide eyes, as another disturbing thought hit him. "After the boy left his detention, The Dark Lord confirmed that Potter's thoughts about that night are, and I quote, 'more accurate than Potter actually knows'. Do you think the Dark Lord wanted Lily to move out of the way? Was he really going to kidnap the boy, and take Lily for himself so that the boy would have his mother?" Snape asked.
"I believe that is very possible." Dumbledore said, as he suddenly sat up straight. "However, Lily made him mad because he couldn't get close enough to Harry to get a good look at him, so he killed her. Don't think for a second he had feelings for her, because I don't think he did. By that time though, you had already asked him to spare her, so he could have used that as a cover for taking her, but I think he was actually shocked to have his suspicions about Harry confirmed! If Harry was right about someone scaring Tom off that night, that someone was likely Sirius who was the first on the scene. I believe Tom was in such shock, that he did the only thing he could think of at the time. He charmed Harry's crib to protect him, blew up the nursery, shucked off his outer robes, dropped a spare wand, and using his real wand, he apparated. He left behind the impression that Harry had defeated him. That's why he disappeared."
"He needed to get his wits together." Snape said suddenly, causing Dumbledore to nod. "But the Dark Lord is hardened and does not get 'shocked'. Why not kill Black and take the boy?"
"Suddenly finding out you are a father is enough to throw anyone for a loop." Dumbledore said seriously. "He disappeared to gather his wits, waited for things to settle down, and maybe, after a while, he talked himself out of the fact that Harry is his son. However, curiosity won out in the end and he came back this year, just as Harry is starting school. He killed Quirrell and imperiused me to get the job so that he could find out for sure."
"Then he gets close to the boy to confirm it." Snape said, picking up on Dumbledore's train of thought. "When he saw the boy again, he knew, and with Potter saying that he can talk to snakes, that sealed it."
"Yes, I think that was the final confirmation." Dumbledore said with a nod. "You saw his reaction when Harry said that. He stuttered and stammered. Tom does not do that. It all makes sense!" He declared, jumping out of his chair with surprising speed. "I've always thought it was Lily who did something to protect Harry, and it never crossed my mind that Tom himself would just up and leave!" He added, as he began to pace back and forth behind his desk.
"What of the rumors of the killing curse?" Snape asked suddenly.
"I think it's just a lot of made up wishful thinking. Everyone knows the killing curse is Voldemort's favorite, so they ran with it."
"But what of the glamor? With Potter's metamorphmagus abilities…"
But Snape couldn't finish that thought, seeing as Dumbledore waved it off.
"His abilities wouldn't have interfered with a glamor."
"And the scar?" Snape asked curiously.
Dumbledore's excitement suddenly vanished, and he frowned as he gazed out of one of his office windows.
"I admit, that has me stumped." He said with a sigh, as he shook his head in frustration and turned back to Snape. "However, what Harry was told by that muggle Professor is true, and honestly, I don't know why I didn't make the connection before. His scar is, in fact, the symbol for 'sowilo' and it means what Harry said it did."
"So it is a symbol of the sun?" Snape asked in confusion. "But Potter said the muggle mentioned it stood for light, hope, confidence, success, and honor."
"It does and magically it means the same. Tom took runes in school and excelled at them, so he would know the meaning as well. Perhaps Tom himself used a dark spell to carve the rune into Harry's forehead, which would explain why it has never healed properly."
Snape shook his head and made a face, but then he looked at Dumbledore in confusion.
"I don't know Headmaster. It seems very farfetched. Why mark his own son with a symbol of such…lightness? I doesn't make any sense."
"Because that is the key. His son. S-u-n and s-o-n." Dumbledore said with wide eyes, then he began pacing again. "Sun and son. You saw how happy Tom looked when Harry mentioned that he knew what his scar meant. I think Harry is Tom's light in the darkness, and by marking Harry with a light symbol, Tom is trying to steer him away from the darkness. You heard Harry in his detention, one of the questions he asked was, 'did Voldemort become so trapped by dark magic that he could no longer tell the difference between right and wrong'. What if Tom is trying to protect Harry from dark magic? He marked his son with a symbol that stands for the sun, and means light, hope, courage, honor, and…"
"Headmaster, are you listening to yourself!?" Snape cried, as he stared at Dumbledore in disbelief. "This is the Dark Lord we are talking about here!"
Dumbledore seemed to snap out of his musings, but then he sighed, took off his glasses, and rubbed his eyes.
"Perhaps I am reading too much into this, but Severus, is there hope? Can Tom Riddle be saved, and can Harry be the key?" He asked, but then he seemed to become lost in thought again.
A very confused, shocked, and disbelieving Snape stared at him doubtfully, but Dumbledore looked so deep in thought that he didn't want to interrupt the old man. He sat there for a few minutes in silence and continued to watch Dumbledore, but then the Headmaster looked up, as if suddenly remembering that Snape was there.
"I'm sorry Severus, but I have been pondering a few things and I don't want to voice them until I'm sure of them. I know you have papers to mark and potions to attend, so you may leave if you wish. I'll talk to you more when I have a better understanding of where my thoughts are going."
Knowing he was dismissed, a still very confused Snape left without saying a word. Dumbledore however, continued to sit in his chair and stare into space.
"Aww, well this sucks." Sirius said, as he threw a handful of popcorn at the stone. "It was just getting good!"
Harry burst out laughing, but almost choked on a mouthful of his own popcorn in the process.
"A most interesting development for sure." Tom chuckled from his desk, as he put away a stack of freshly marked essays. "But they are being very assumptive over the matter, which I find extremely funny." He added with a smirk, as he came over, plopped down on the sofa, and propped his feet up on a conjured foot stool.
"Do we let Dumbledore think there is hope for you?" Bella asked, as she ruffled Tom's hair playfully.
He glared at her and swatted her hand away, but Bella simply laughed before plopping down beside him.
"I don't see the harm in it, but I'm not going to make it easy for him. I still plan to kill that whiny, stupid, and very irritating Myrtle." He said with a scowl. "However, I don't think we should let Dumbledore be totally right about everything. We need to switch his thinking up a bit. Severus is right, it doesn't make sense that I would mark Potter with a light symbol, so we need to think of something that will make sense."
"Well," Sirius said as he stared into space. "Lily marking Harry with the rune would make better sense, and if we start there, we can come up with something believable. Harry can plant a false memory in your head of what happened in Godric's Hollow that night. With him being Death, not even the Unspeakables will be able to tell its fake, if Dumbledore decides to have it tested." He offered.
Tom glanced at Harry, who nodded in agreement.
"That sounds like a good plan." Tom said. "Because I have a feeling that Dumbledore is going to want to know exactly what happened that night. He is probably going to ask me soon."
Harry just chuckled and nodded his head. "He probably will, but I have to say, it's a good thing my parents did break up because of the pressure of the war, and the fact that they got back together after working stuff out. Otherwise we wouldn't have been able to pull off the father/son thing." He said.
"Snape doesn't look convinced though." Bella added, as she stole some of Sirius's popcorn.
"No he doesn't, which gives me an idea that will convince him and put any doubts to rest. Since this is all about the rune on Potter's head, I can use the tattoo charm to tattoo the rune symbol for father on my upper arm, but, to take it a step further and throw a monkey wrench into Snape and Dumbledore's thinking, I can also tattoo the rune for 'yew', which is 'eihwaz', right under it. It will keep Snape and Dumbledore thinking the worst, but hoping for the best." Tom said, as he grinned at them.
Sirius, Harry, and Bella all stared at him owlishly, but Tom sighed with exasperation.
"The symbol for father should be self-explanatory, and that should seal this father/son nonsense, but 'eihwaz' is the symbol for 'yew', as in the yew tree, and it's what my wand is made of, which Dumbledore knows. However, to explain it further, the yew tree in mythology stands for death and resurrection and the hope for new beginnings. Not to mention, the symbol for it is close to the lightning bolt rune of 'sowilo'."
"But the yew tree's needles are poisonous and can prove to be deadly if not handled properly." Harry said with a grin, as he began to realize where Tom was going with this.
"Exactly. It describes my personality perfectly. Innocent looking, but extremely deadly. Dumbledore will know that, and while this father/son stupidity will give him hope that I can 'be saved', he will continue to treat me as dangerous because of my past and the 'eihwaz' tattoo." Tom said with an excited grin. "I also find it rather funny because in ancient times, people looked at the yew tree as a symbol of eternal life. In other words…"
"Immortality!" Bella exclaimed.
"Yes." He said with a laugh. "Which is kind of funny, if you think about what happened in real reality. Although, I do admit it has nothing to do with right now. I just think it's funny."
"Where the hell was all this information in real reality!?" Sirius suddenly cried. "This would have come in really handy back then!"
"Tell me about it." Harry said sarcastically, as he rolled his eyes. "Well aside from all the father/son nonsense anyway." He added with a mumble, but then he sighed. "Ollivander told me twice that your wand was made of yew, and I should have been able to put it all together. Yew symbolizes immortality." He added, as he shook his head. "I also should have listened to Hermione when she said runes were fascinating, and NEVER have followed Ron into divination. We might have been able to learn about your horcruxes sooner, and killed you quicker. I also would have realized what my scar meant, and that would have helped out too."
"Wouldn't Dumbledore have known that though?" Sirius asked, as he furrowed his brow. "How did he miss it?"
"Well, during one of our many talks in The Void, he once told me that he often missed small details that were right in front of his nose." Harry said with a shrug. "You have to look at it from his point of view. He may be the greatest wizard since Merlin, but he's still human. Not even Dumbledore can think of everything."
"I suppose your right." Sirius conceded with a nod.
Tom just chuckled, but Bella suddenly cracked up laughing. Everyone turned to stare at her, but when she finally calmed down she looked at them and grinned.
"Do you not realize that you two," she said, pointing to Tom and Harry, "have basically just pranked yourselves?"
"What?" They asked in unison.
"In the old, old, and I mean old, practices, both muggle and wizard, people would burn branches of the yew tree at Yule. They did this to encourage the sun to return, so that 'new life' could begin, meaning 'death and resurrection'. Or to put it another way, winter dies and the life of spring begins when the 'sun' returns to warm the earth. That is where we get the Yule Log tradition from. Of course, now the Yule Log can be from any tree, but that is beside the point." She said.
Tom and Harry glanced at each other with befuddled looks, but Bella sighed loudly and rolled her eyes.
"In other words, Tom is basically saying he is the 'father of yew', which truthfully doesn't make any sense on the surface. However, if you go deeper, you're saying that you're the father of death and resurrection. Harry is Death, an immortal being that gives new life when you get to his throne. You have pranked yourselves and you didn't even know it."
What Bella was getting at finally seemed to click with them, and everyone cracked up laughing. Though, Harry did face palm himself at the ridiculousness of it all.
"When Dumbledore catches sight of your tattoos, he will really start to think that there is hope for Voldemort." Sirius snickered. "You've come back for your 'sun'…your light in the darkness…your 'new beginning'."
"If he can get passed the 'being deadly' part." Tom snorted.
"You all are going to confuse that poor man so badly, that he is going to end up in an early grave." Bella chuckled, as she shook her head. "But, getting back to the tattoos. Where are you going to put them?"
"On my upper arm." Tom said between snorts. "With the fifth installment of Bingo Friday coming up soon, I've decided I'm going to finally join in. Since its ok to wear casual clothes, I think a T-shirt and jeans are in order, because I think the T-shirt will show off my tattoos very nicely." He finished with a grin.
Everyone just snorted, but it was late in the evening and Harry had a sorting to be getting on with, so he left them all to plan something else crazy and puffed away.
It was just before dinner the next day, and the entire staff was assembled in the staff room. Tom normally hated coming to staff meetings because they mostly consisted of the other Professors complaining about this or that.
As Snape continued to drone on about first year dunderheads blowing up cauldrons, Tom became lost in thought.
Much to the shock and amusement of the four conspirators, Dumbledore actually told the other staff members about Harry's home life, and about him being Voldemort's son. However, this was done in one of their super-secret staff meetings, which was held earlier that day after lunch.
Harry was actually the most shocked about this turn of events, because he didn't really think Dumbledore would have clued them in, but Bella summed it up nicely when she mentioned that it would give Dumbledore 'more eyes and ears'. Harry agreed and said it was smart on the Headmaster's part.
As they all watched the secret staff meeting though, Harry and the others couldn't help but crack up laughing when McGonagall laid into the Headmaster for leaving Harry with the 'worst sort of muggles imaginable'. Even Tom said he never wanted to be on the receiving end of one of her angry rants.
However, this did pose a problem. All the Professors were now concerned about Harry, and vowed to watch him more closely. Even despite Dumbledore telling them his theories about Tom possibly being saved.
None of them seemed to believe that though.
Something else was also mentioned in that secret staff meeting as well. Harry and Tom had actually begun to think Dumbledore had forgotten all about the treasure hoard idea, but apparently he hadn't. He told all the other Professors that he was going to announce the 'finding' of it during the Halloween feast.
What surprised everyone the most though, was the fact that he wanted Tom, all four Heads of house, Hagrid, and himself to be the ones to set up the obstacles that would guard it. A few of the Professors asked why he wanted Tom to be one of the ones, but Dumbledore only smiled and said Tom would become suspicious if he didn't. Especially since he was the Defense Professor.
This greatly confused everyone, but it was Dumbledore so they didn't really question it. Harry, on the other hand, began complaining about 'Deja-Vu' and threatened to blow up the world if they were the same obstacles as the ones in real reality. His mini temper tantrum only caused Sirius, Tom, and Bella snort and laugh at him.
And after remembering that little tid bit, Tom suddenly chuckled loudly.
"Well now." Came an angry huff. "I hardly see how a second year falling down a flight of stairs is funny. He could have broken his neck."
Tom glanced up to see everyone glaring at him, but he only shook his head.
"Forgive me Madam Pomfrey." He said smoothly. "I must admit that I wasn't even listening to what you were saying, because I was lost in thought. Is the young man alright?"
"Why you would care is beyond me, but yes, he is fine." She replied gruffly.
Tom merely raised an eyebrow, but otherwise ignored the verbal barb.
"Well, just in case you are all wondering, I didn't push him."
"We know that Tom." Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his eye. "He unfortunately got caught by one of the trick stairs."
"I'll never understand why the Founders did that. I makes no sense whatsoever." Tom said as he rolled his eyes.
"Is that because you also fell through one of them in your third year?" McGonagall asked with a smirk.
"Yes actually." He answered simply.
"Too bad it didn't kill you." A voice spat, causing Tom to visibly bristle. Although it wasn't because of what was said, but who said it. "The stair would have gotten rid of a pure blood bigot whom the world could surely live without."
Tom glared at Myrtle with such pure loathing and hatred that it caused everyone to tense up, and lean back in their seats.
"For a know-it-all Ravenflaw, you sure are ignorant." He hissed through gritted teeth. "And for your information, I'm a half-blood, so please butt out of conversations which you know nothing about. The grown-ups are talking."
"I'll have you know…"
"…that I will kill you if you say another word." Tom snapped. "Now shut up."
"How dare you!" Myrtle shouted, as she jumped out of her seat. "I am not one of your stupid Death Eaters that you can command! I am a well-educated and respected member of this staff, unlike you, and I refuse to be spoken to like that. Especially from a monster such as yourself!"
"If you want to see a monster, I can surely introduce you to one." Tom purred, as he smirked at her and leaned forward in his seat. "Then, after you die, you can continue to spend your meaningless existence hovering around a toilet."
Everyone's eyes were wide as they bounced from Tom to Myrtle and back again. Most of them had stood up and backed away from the two, but Dumbledore was still sitting in his chair with his wand in his hand. Snape was also still sitting, but he seemed to have turned to stone as he watched the argument continue.
"Meaningless existence!?" Myrtle shrieked. "Just because I'm a muggle born…"
"…means nothing!" Tom shouted, as he too jumped out of his seat. Then he got right in Myrtle's face, which caused the woman to back up a few steps. Lucky for her though, the table was between her and Tom, or else he would have grabbed her. "You have forsaken your muggle heritage, and have chosen keep yourself hidden in the wizarding world, thereby cutting yourself off from even greater potential!" He shouted, much to the shock of everyone else. "Let me ask you something Myrtle," he spat, "what do you know of the moon landing?"
She blinked owlishly at him. "Moon landing?"
"Yes." He hissed, as he sat back down. "Muggles went to the moon and actually walked on it. How about NASA, what do you know of it? What is the speed of light? Explain physics. What phenomenon keeps our feet firmly planted on this earth, and doesn't allow us to just float away? What is DNA? Fingerprints?"
"I-I-I…"
"...don't know!" Tom shouted, as he glared furiously at her. "Some Ravenflaw you are." He sneered. "Any muggle born here at Hogwarts can tell you what those things are. They will take their knowledge of the muggle world, and they will create spells from muggle ideas. We will grow as a society because of muggle borns, IF they are encouraged to keep one foot in the muggle world and one foot in the wizarding world!" He finished angrily. "Since you have not kept up with your muggle heritage, you are useless Myrtle."
Her face grew red with anger, and she stomped her foot like a petulant child. "I am not useless!" She screamed. "And if you love muggle borns so much, why did you gather up a bunch of pure blood maniacs and have them kill muggle borns and muggles!?"
Tom suddenly burst out laughing, which caused everyone to stare at him in horror. "Yes, I had them kill muggles, muggle borns, half-bloods, and some pure-bloods who were murders, cheats, crack addicts, child killers, and various other unpleasant people. I was cleaning up not only our society, but the muggle's as well. Unfortunately, good and decent witches and wizards decided to get in my way and I had to do away with them." He snapped. "The Death Eaters were easy to control because they are mindless inbred idiots. I simply gathered up the stupidest, most overzealous ones I could find, and pointed them towards the people who needed to go. Anybody who has a bit of common sense in their head knows that if the pure bloods have their way, our society would cease to exist due to their inbred nature. Their offspring is often magically weak, and pure-bloods are the cause of most squibs. One only needs to look at young Mr. Crabbe and young Mr. Goyle, then look at someone like Miss Granger to know that I am right. Once the time came to do away with the Death Eaters, I would have turned on them and crushed their idea of a perfect 'pure-blood' society!" He shouted, as he slammed his hand on the table to drive his point home.
Myrtle simply scoffed, but Dumbledore was watching Tom curiously. He started to say something, but Myrtle cut him off.
"You talk about 'cleaning up' society and you cite child killers as scum, yet you yourself went to Godric's Hollow to kill a child, and an innocent muggle born." She spat. "You are just the same kind of scum you claim to want to do away with. Your stupid quest for a 'clean society' got a lot of good people killed. What gives you the right to carry out your stupid, ill thought out plan?"
Tom leveled his gaze and glared at her. "I have the right, simply because I am more powerful, more knowledgeable, and better than everyone else." He said, causing a few people to scoff loudly. "However, you do not know what you are talking about when it comes to Halloween '81, so leave Godric's Hollow out of this." He added with an icy coldness that sent shivers down everyone's spine.
"Lily, James, and Harry Potter were innocent, and you know it." Myrtle snapped.
"And once again, you think you know-it-all." Tom replied through gritted teeth. "However, since you were there, why don't you tell us what happened. You know everything, so tell us, what actually happened that night." He added, as he leaned back in his seat and looked at her expectantly.
"You went to kill Harry Potter. Everyone knows that."
"Oh, well, if that is all…" Tom began to say with a scoff, but he was interrupted by Dumbledore.
"What did happen that night Tom?" He asked, with a calm demeanor that seemed to cut through the tension.
Tom simply scoffed again and shook his head. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."
"Why don't you try me." The Headmaster replied, though it was more of a statement than a challenge.
The air seemed to get sucked out of the very room as everyone else took a deep breath, but Tom merely scoffed again.
"You won't believe me." He repeated, but Dumbledore continued to calmly gaze at him, and Tom finally sighed. "Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you." He added as he took a deep breath. "Everyone assumes that I killed James and Lily, but in reality, I didn't. I stunned James and merely left him lying on the floor. I don't know how he really died though, so don't ask. As for Lily, she killed herself with the killing curse…"
"Liar!" Minerva shrieked. "Lily would have never…!"
"Minerva!" Dumbledore shouted sternly, but then he turned back to Tom and motioned for him to continue.
"Lily killed herself after she carved the 'sowilo' rune into little Harry's forehead. She used a dark spell to do it, which, quite frankly, shocked me because I did not expect her to know, much less use, a spell like that. Before she killed herself though, she shouted, and I quote, 'to rob me of the satisfaction of doing it myself'. I had no intentions of killing her, in fact, even if she hadn't moved I would have simply stunned her, like I did James, but she obviously thought I wasn't going to keep my word."
"So how did James die, and why would Lily use dark magic to carve a rune in her own son's forehead?" Minerva asked bitterly.
"I'm afraid I don't know." Tom said nonchalantly.
"I cannot say anything about James, and that seems to be a great mystery, but as for Lily doing what she did, she did it to keep Harry safe." Dumbledore said as he gazed at Tom in surprise. "I know of the spell she used. It is a dark spell though, there is no denying that fact because the spell powers the rune and uses the rune's meaning to influence a person's soul. In the old days, it was used maliciously, which is how it became known as dark. Some people would capture their enemies and carve the death rune into their skin, then simply let them go. All the choices the marked one would make after that, would simply lead to their deaths. However, in this case, Lily herself used the lightest rune that came to her mind, 'sowilo'. Now, no matter what, Harry will always be influenced to do what is right, what is good, and he will always be on a path of light."
"The sun." Professor Babbling, the Runes Professor, whispered.
"Yes, the sun." Dumbledore confirmed.
"Ok, that seems plausible to me, but I still don't think Lily killed herself. I was told her wand wasn't even in the room." Minerva said with a scowl.
"That's because I took it." Tom said coldly, as he glared at her. "I didn't want the world to know she killed herself and used a dark curse on the boy. She was held in high regard, and I didn't want the world to look down upon her. It's one of the reasons why I have never denied killing her." He added in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Why would you do that?" Severus asked in disbelief, but then flinched when Tom glared furiously at him, no doubt expecting to be cursed.
Tom however, only rolled his eyes. "I simply didn't want Potter to know that his mother killed herself. I had no plans to kill her, and one of my regrets from that night is not stunning her to begin with, like I did with James Potter."
"One of your regrets?" Madam Pomfrey asked curiously.
"The other was not stunning Sirius Black when he showed up, and taking Potter myself. Had I done that, Potter wouldn't have grown up with…nevermind. I made him a promise not to speak of certain things." He said, with a dismissive wave of his hand.
Tom pretended not to notice Dumbledore flinch as Minerva, Poppy, Sprout, and several others glared furiously at him.
"And what about Harry, Tom? Why would you have taken him?" Dumbledore asked.
Tom glared at him. "To raise him. He is my son after all." He said in an emotionless tone.
He waited for the outbursts, but since everyone already knew that, he wasn't surprised by their lack of reaction.
"I see." Dumbledore said, as he leaned back in his seat. "And what do you plan to do with Harry now?"
Tom kept his gaze steady as he continued to glare at Dumbledore. "I'm not answering anymore questions. I've already told you everything about that night…"
"Which none of us believe." Minerva snapped.
"Think what you want. I don't care." He snapped back. "The fact is, Potter is my son, I only stunned James, and I didn't want Lily to die."
"What about the nursery?" Dumbledore asked. "Why was it destroyed?"
Tom scoffed. "I'm tired of all these questions Dumbledore. Do you have an empty phial Severus? I'll just give up the memory, and you all can look at it at your leisure and pick it apart bit by bit if you wish. Take it to the Unspeakables and have it tested if you still don't believe it's real."
Severus stared at him, but then he started fumbling in his robes, before pulling out a potions phial. Tom pointed his wand at his temple, pulled out the false memory, and placed it carefully into it. Then he simply tossed the phial at Dumbledore, who swiftly caught it.
"There. Now, if you will excuse me, I have essays to look over." He growled, then he stood up quickly and made his way to the door.
However, just as he put his hand on the knob, there was a loud clattering sound and a lot of surprised shouts from behind him. He whipped around and there he saw, kneeling on the table, was Harry, Draco, Ron, Neville, Hermione, and an unconscious Marcus Flint, who Harry unceremoniously shoved off the table and onto the floor.
"What are you doing Potter?!" Severus yelled, as he stumbled backwards when Hermione nearly fell off the table and into his lap.
Harry ignored him though, as his eyes found Tom, who ran up to them.
"Draco was cursed with the constrictor curse. Flint," he spat, as he pointed at the stunned boy, "was aiming for Hermione's back, but she moved at the last second and Draco got hit in the chest."
"WHAT?!" Madam Pomfrey cried, as she began to shoo everyone off the table in order to get to Draco.
Draco was trying in vain to suck air into his lungs, but Harry shifted around until Madam Pomfrey could make her way to him, while everyone else was helped off the table.
"What's happening to Malfoy?" Neville asked loudly, as he stuck close to McGonagall, who had rounded him, Ron, and Hermione into a nearby corner of the room.
"Yes, it's the constrictor curse. His lungs will close up any minute now." Madam Pomfrey confirmed gravely. "Headmaster, you know it can't be healed with magic, it's how the curse was made. He will die." She added, as she gazed sadly at Dumbledore, who had jumped up.
"Potter do something!" Tom cried.
"I can't!" Harry yelled. "I can't cure something with magic, that can't be cured by magic! You can't take magic, and make it not magic, and expect it to work! Even I have my limits!"
"What about something muggle?" Tom asked, thinking quickly. "This curse works like an asthma attack. What if we used…"
"An asthma inhaler!" Hermione cried suddenly.
"Yes!" Tom shouted. "Go find an asthma inhaler!"
"Tell Draco not to go into the light. If he dies and makes it to the waiting room, I'll have to sort him tonight. Make sure he doesn't go into the light because we can still bring him back to life the muggle way if he does die! If he makes it to the waiting room I won't…"
"I get it Potter! Just go!" Tom yelled, as Harry glared at him and puffed away.
Everyone looked at each other in a flabbergasted state of shock, simply because they didn't know what in the hell was happening, but Tom jumped onto the table and grasped Draco's hand.
"Stay with us Draco. Fight it. Just breathe. You can do it. Take deep calming breaths as best you can." He urged in a soothing voice. "Potter won't be long. Just stay away from the beckoning light of the waiting room. You'll be fine. Potter will take care of you. He knows what he is doing. Just breathe Draco."
However, Draco's breathing became shallower and shallower, as his eyes started to slowly close and his lips began to turn blue.
"He's fading. We are losing him." Madam Pomfrey said, as she kept her wand trained on him, but then she suddenly cried out in fright when a muggle emergency room crash cart slammed into the table right next to her.
"Had to stop by a hospital just in case." Harry explained, as he bent down next to Draco. "Wake up!" He cried, smacking Draco on the cheek. "So help me Draco, if you cause me to have to work overtime in order to clean up this mess, your next life will be spent as toilet paper. Tom, charm the crash cart so magic won't make it go wonky if we need it." He added quickly, as an afterthought.
Tom did, much to the shock and confusion of Dumbledore and the others. Draco's eyes snapped open when Harry smacked him, but that was all they got out of him. Harry flicked the cap off the inhaler, stuck it in Draco's mouth, and pressed the tube.
They all waited with baited breath, but then sighed with relief when Draco suddenly took a deep ragged breath.
"Once more." Harry said softly, as he stuck the inhaler back in Draco's mouth.
Draco took another deep breath, but then began coughing and sputtering slightly. "What is that thing?" He gasped, as he continued to lay on the table and take deep breaths.
"It's a muggle asthma inhaler, but I don't feel like explaining it to you right now. Just know it saved your life." Harry said, as he sat down heavily on the table next to Tom, but then he smirked at Draco, who was slowly starting to get his breath back. "So Kumquat, how was your near death experience?" He asked, causing Tom to whack him upside the back of his head.
"Shut up Potter. That was completely lame." Tom said, as he chuckled and shook his head.
Madam Pomfrey looked at them in confusion, but then began to wave her wand over Draco. "It worked." She breathed. "But the curse has lasting effects, so he may need more of…of that stuff." She added, pointing to the inhaler.
"You need to get him to the hospital wing, and take these." Harry said, as he handed her the inhaler, along with a few extras. "Use them just in case. Oh and…obliviate." He said, suddenly brandishing his wand and causing her eyes to glaze over. "You only know that Draco was hit with a constrictor curse, and that these muggle asthma inhalers are what he needs should the symptoms reappear."
"Yes, yes alright then." She nodded with a dazed expression, as she shook her head. "Come with me Mr. Malfoy." She added, as Draco cast Harry a confused look before letting himself be shuffled out the door.
Everyone else was in too much shock to react, but Tom just chuckled as he stood there with a smirk. However, Harry's face suddenly grew dark with fury as he spied Flint still sprawled out on the floor.
"Get up you shack of dragon shit!" He cried, as he kicked Flint in the side, while using his wand to bring him around. "Get up and apologize to Hermione! NOW!"
"POTTER! Stop manhandling…" Snape started to shout, only to come face to face with Tom's wand.
"You can't stop him Severus." Tom said, as Harry continued to kick Flint around. "You will only get hurt if you try, so I suggest you all just back up." He added, as he glanced at Dumbledore in particular.
"Apologize!" Harry continued to yell.
"That mudblood…"
But Flint didn't get to finish that sentence, because Harry flicked his wand and banished him into a wall.
"You will apologize to Hermione for aiming that curse at her, or I will rip your soul out of your body and MAKE YOU APOLOGIZE!"
"Screw you Potter! You can't hurt me with all the teachers in the room!"
"Oh is that what you think?" Harry asked, as he glared at Flint, who just sneered at him. "Fine, have it your way then."
Harry instantly collapsed into a violent, angry, churning black cloud of smoke that sent a deathly chill all throughout the staff room. As everyone watched in shock and horror, the cloud began to split into two halves, and everyone's eyes widened as Harry stood up and faced a freshly created dementor.
However, out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw the conjuration of a phoenix patronus, but he reared back and, calling forth his scythe, cut its head off, causing the patronus to vanish in a puff of sliver smoke before it could reach its target. Harry didn't turn around, so he missed the shocked and horrified faces of everyone.
"Bring me his soul." Harry ordered, as he pointed to Flint, who suddenly looked extremely terrified.
"Yes Master Death." It replied, as it bowed its head and floated over towards the boy, who was still up against the wall.
It took only a minute for Flint to be kissed, but after the deed was done, the dementor floated back to Harry, reached into his cloak, and pulled a glowing orb out of its chest.
"Thank you for your service." Harry said, as he took the orb from the dementor. "You may go and join the others at Azkaban, but do not feed on anyone until you get there. Is that understood?"
"Yes Master Death. Is there a message you wish me to convey to the others?"
"Yes actually. I've heard talk that the others will be sent here due to the escape of Sirius and Bella. Have the Head Dementor tell that idiot Minister that Hogwarts is no place for dementors. Refuse to obey them and stay at Azkaban." Harry replied, as he gazed at the being. "If Minster Fudge threatens you or the others, send for me and I'll handle it."
"I understand Master Death. I will leave quickly, and do as you command."
Harry simply nodded and watched the dementor fly out of an open window, but then he turned around when he heard shuffling behind him.
"H-Harry, what have you done?" Dumbledore asked in a strangled, horrified whisper. "How did you…"
"Three words Professor." Harry said, as he gave Dumbledore a small smile. "Master of Death. You will be forgetting this though, so I won't explain right now. I'll be obliviating you as soon as I'm done with this stupid ponce." He added, as he threw the glowing orb, that was Flint's soul, up in the air.
It landed on the floor with an unbecoming loud splat, but Harry just stood there with a scowl on his face as the orb gave way to a human form.
"AAAARRRGGGGHHHH!" Flint screamed, as soon as he got his bearings and realized what was happening. "Harry! Sweet Merlin, what just happened?"
"I had a dementor kiss you because you were being a royal arse. Now, just apologize to Hermione, and I'll send you on your way."
"Send me on my way?" Flint asked with wide, frightened eyes. "But Harry, you know I'm a decent bloke! I would never…"
"I know, I know." Harry replied, as he threw up his hands. "You just misunderstood me. I'll put you back in your body and you can go and do whatever, as long as you stop cursing people in the back. Marcus Flint is a dumb bastard, but you are not, so I'm going to instill a bit of paranoid fear into you, because you won't remember this. You will just suddenly develop a fear of me and mine."
"Sounds fine to me." Marcus said with a loud relieved sigh. "But I take it you're not going to explain why we are back in 1991 again?"
"No, because you won't remember anyway." Harry chuckled. "Just apologize to Hermione."
"Absolutely!" He cried, then he jumped off the floor and ran to her. "Hermione, I'm am so very sorry. I hope you can forgive me. I know there is a lot you don't understand, but I have a feeling that Harry will explain it all in due time. Death has his ways, and Harry is always fair and just. Can you forgive me for trying to curse you?"
"I-I-I-yes?" She stammered quietly, as her eyes bounced from Marcus's soul, to Harry, Tom, McGonagall, and finally to Dumbledore, who was just standing there with an open mouth.
"All right Marcus, get your bum back over here so I can put you back into your body." Harry chuckled, as Hermione gave him a bewildered look.
Marcus grinned at him, but when he passed by Tom, he suddenly froze.
"You." He breathed, as he stared at Tom in horror, then he scrambled away and practically hid behind Harry. "Harry, please tell me I won't have to become a Death Eater again. I don't want to. Please protect me and my family! I beg you! Don't let him do all those horrible things again. Why is he even here?"
Tom just shook his head and chuckled. "Marcus, the only Death Eaters I'm interested in are Bella, Severus, and Lucius. The rest of them can go to hell." He laughed, causing Marcus to stare at him in shock.
"You have your memories?"
Tom nodded. "Yes. Voldemort does not exist. Not this time."
"No war? No killings? No torture? No deformed snake…thing?" Marcus asked with a shiver, as he cautiously stepped from behind Harry.
"No, most certainly not." Tom chuckled. "Everything will be fine."
"Unless another Dark Lord Threat rises because Tom isn't a real threat." Harry added. "But only time will tell if that happens."
"You kick their arse Harry, because I was going to play professional Quidditch until this git made an appearance." He said with a grin, as he jerked his head towards Tom. "I want to try for that again."
"I'll see what I can do. In the meantime, Tom will keep old Lucy on a sort leash, because once he learns it was your curse that hit Draco…" Harry said with a pointed look.
"I'll tell him I took care of it." Tom said, giving the wide eyed Marcus an encouraging grin.
"And Bellatrix? What about her? She's a lunatic!" Marcus cried with a scowl.
"Not if she has her memories, which she does." Harry grinned. "As does Sirius. How in the hell do you think we pulled off those pranks?"
Marcus suddenly burst out laughing. "Oh you have GOT to be kidding me! It was YOU who stole all of Slytherin's common room furniture!"
Harry grinned wickedly. "Of course it was. Who else has the power to get a bloody hot-air balloon through the school's wards? Sirius and Bella nailed the hospital wing, all four of us grabbed a common room, Tom got McGonagall's classroom, and…"
"What!?" Minerva suddenly shouted as she stared at Tom, who grinned sheepishly.
"Hello." He said, with a little wave that caused Marcus and Harry to snort loudly.
"And for our latest prank, I'm Tom's son, which is completely ridiculous, but I think it's rather funny." Harry ginned, as Marcus just laughed and shook his head.
"I knew it!" Snape yelled. "I knew it was a prank!"
Everyone just stared at him, but Harry and Tom glanced at each other and snorted. Marcus though, simply grinned.
"I think I'm better off not knowing about all this." He said, as he went to stand by his body.
"It'll be alright." Harry assured him. "Now, I'll wave my scythe over you, and the spell I'm casting will make you fear me and mine, but not overly so to where you run off screaming every time you see us."
"Fair enough." Marcus replied, as he stood at his own body's feet.
"Just fall backwards, and I'll do the rest." Harry instructed.
Marcus did, and when his soul connected with his body, Harry swung his scythe in a wide arc causing the two to fuse together. Flint suddenly took a long deep breath as he bolted upright, but then his eyes widened as he saw Harry, and he scrambled to his feet and ran out the staff room door, screaming as he went.
"Are you sure you didn't overdo the fear thing?" Tom asked as Flint disappeared out the door.
"Nah, he will be alright." Harry said with a shrug. "You though, need to take my arm. It'll keep you from being obliviated along with the rest of them."
"Harry please, there is no need for…" Dumbledore started to say, but Harry cut him off.
"I'm sorry Professor. I have to do it." Harry said with a sad smile. "You'll remember this another time, and I promise that I will make your next great adventure the best one yet. Hopefully it will make up for everything we have done."
Dumbledore sighed heavily, but then he smiled. "So you are the Master of Death then?" He asked.
"All thanks to you." Harry replied with a nod. "Without you, this would not be possible. One day, after you have gotten mad at me for doing all this, I hope you will understand why I did it."
"I, myself just heard Mr. Flint's soul claim that you are fair and just, so I'm sure I will." Dumbledore said with a twinkle, as he gently patted Harry on the shoulder, but then he looked at Tom. "You're not really dangerous are you?" He asked with a smile.
"No sir." Tom said, as he tried not to let his voice crack when he looked Dumbledore in the eye. "Not this time, but I want to tell you that you have been my father five times in other adventures, and those were some of the happiest lives I have ever lived. As long as I have my memories, I will always see you as a friend, a mentor, and a father. You are a good man sir, you really are, and this time, I love you, more than I fear you."
"Do you feel better now?" Harry asked quietly, as he gave Tom a small smile.
"Yes, yes I do." Tom replied. "I think I just needed to say it, so that he knows. Even though he won't remember it until later, but yes, I've said it, he knows, and I feel loads better." He admitted, as he shakily sat down in a nearby chair. This caused everyone to stare at him in shock, but Tom finally took a deep breath and looked right at Harry. "I just needed to say it out loud. Thank you Potter."
Harry simply nodded, but a happy tear escaped from Dumbledore's eye, as he looked at Tom and smiled. "I'm so glad to hear you say that Tom. I truly am, and I hope that whatever you both have planned, it is successful. I may not understand what is happening, but I think I have an inkling, considering what you have been saying about muggles and muggle borns. I also have a very strong feeling that whatever does happen, it will only be for the best. I look forward to hearing your story after all is said and done."
"If you don't try and kill us because of all the pranks and confusion." Tom said with a genuine smile.
"I agree." Harry said with a laugh, as Dumbledore chuckled merrily. "Just hang on to my wand Headmaster, and don't let it go for anything."
Dumbledore took out the Elder Wand, held it up, and looked at it, but then he smiled and nodded. "I will do my best, my boy."
"I know you will." Harry replied, as he gave Dumbledore another small smile.
"You know, sometimes I think you know more than you let on Potter." Tom laughed.
"I'm Death, not a seer Tom. I can't tell what the future holds."
"So says the Gary Stu who can do anything. Seeing the future is almost a requirement." He chuckled.
Harry glared at him. "I am NOT a Gary Stu." He said heatedly.
"Bella would disagree. She was, after all, a muggle fiction writer once. And by the way, all Gary Stus claim to not be Gary Stus." Tom replied with a smirk, as Harry grabbed ahold of his arm.
"Whatever." Harry replied, as he rolled his eyes. Then he rapped the end of his scythe on the floor, and said, "Obliviate." All was quiet for a moment, but then Harry cleared his throat. "You all only remember Draco being cursed by Marcus Flint, and that I used my puffing ability to get a muggle asthma inhaler, per Tom and Hermione's suggestion."
There was a large intake of breath, then chaos erupted as Dumbledore began giving out orders.
"Severus, alert Mr. Malfoy's parents and advise them of the situation. Tell them to come immediately because I have no doubt that Mr. Malfoy is asking for them. Minerva, as his Head of House, please accompany me to the hospital wing. Harry, you and your friends need to come with us as well. I want to know how this happened. Tom, please find Mr. Flint and show him to the hospital wing so that we can get all sides of the story. As for our previous conversation, I will look over the memory you gave me as soon as I can."
Tom simply nodded, but then he turned and headed out the door, as the rest of them scattered in different directions.
"We were all in the library doing some reading, and I was working on my essays that Professor Riddle set for me." Hermione nervously said as she stood at the edge of Draco's hospital bed, trembling under the glares of Lucius and Severus. "I needed Draco's help, so I walked over to the table where he was sitting. Draco was reading, while Flint and a few others were studying at the same table. When I got to their table, Flint told me to bugger off and said he didn't want to be seen with a mudblood, but I ignored him and turned my back on him. I told Draco Professor Riddle said for him to help me, and Draco told me he'd help me later in the common room. That's when I moved, and Draco was hit with the curse." She finally finished, as she looked at Dumbledore, McGonagall, Tom, and Snape with tears in her eyes.
"And how did you all end up in the staff room?" Minerva asked gently.
"Harry did it. I don't know what he did, but he stunned Flint, grabbed the rest of us, and we ended up in the staff room." Ron said, as he glanced at Harry.
"What did you do?" Neville asked, looking at him with wide eyes, but Harry just sighed and hung his head.
"I call it puffing." He mumbled.
"Puffing?" Lucius scoffed, but Tom scowled at him.
He then launched into an extremely edited, and short, explanation of how Harry can 'puff', but he left no room for questions, which caused Lucius to swallow thickly and simply nod.
"I would also like to point out that if Miss Granger hadn't thought quickly and suggested a muggle device for the cure, your son would be dead." He added coldly.
"Muggle?" Narcissa breathed, as Draco handed her the inhaler. She stared at it for a moment, but then she looked up in shock. "This…thing…is a cure for the constrictor curse?" She asked in disbelief.
"Apparently." Tom replied evenly. "Do not underestimate muggles Narcissa. They have the ability to bring the dead back to life."
"Hench the crash cart I stole from the muggle hospital. I really should get it back to them." Harry muttered.
"I think you need to see to that right away Potter. No doubt they are missing it." Tom smirked.
"Wait, that thing can bring the dead to life?" Narcissa asked, as she stared at the bright red crash cart Harry had brought with him when they left the staff room.
"Yes, and they are just as normal as they were before they died." Tom replied. "I doesn't always work, because it depends on how badly the muggle who has died is injured, but most of the time it does."
"Muggles can do what magic cannot?" Lucius asked, as he curled his lip at the crash cart in disgust.
"Yes Lucius, welcome to the twentieth century." Tom snapped. "If more wizards actually paid attention to what the muggles are doing, we too may be able to bring the dead to life."
"Unless they have been dead for too long." Hermione squeaked.
"Too true Miss Granger. Five points to Gryffindork." Tom chuckled. "Unfortunately, if someone has been dead longer than ten minutes or so, there is generally no hope."
"Brain cells start to die around five minutes, and after that, a person can become a vegetable." Harry added meekly.
"Again, another five points to Gryffindork. What the muggles call being a vegetable, we call getting kissed by a dementor." Tom explained, when Lucius glared at Harry.
"So, muggles aren't as stupid as we think they are?" Draco asked in confusion, as he stared at the crash cart and the inhaler Narcissa was still holding.
"No Draco, they aren't." Tom said with a chuckle. "Now, if you will excuse me, I have to deal with Mr. Flint here, unless Professor Snape has any objections."
"No My…Professor Riddle."
"Good, we will be off then." Tom said in an angry tone, as he grabbed a wide eyed Flint by his robes and dragged him out of the hospital wing.
"Albus, do you think it wise…" Minerva asked nervously, as she watched them go.
"I'll check on Mr. Flint later, but I don't think we need to worry about him." Dumbledore replied, as he glanced at Harry, Ron, Neville, and Hermione. "In the meantime, Harry I think it is best if you don't puff out of school. You could get very hurt, and you might be seen by muggles. You are more than welcome to puff around the castle and grounds, however, that permission does not extend to Hogsmeade. Only those in third year and up are allowed to go there, and only on designated weekends. Now, I agree that the muggles should have their…cash cart, is it...back as soon as possible. You will return it from where you got it, and come straight back here. Be careful, and don't be seen."
"Yes sir." Harry said, then he grabbed it and puffed away.
Everyone, except Snape, stared in awe, but after a few moments Harry puffed back in. Dumbledore smiled at him with a twinkle in his eye, and nodded.
"Very good then. You four should return to Gryffindork Tower and get washed up for dinner. I suspect Mr. Malfoy will be just fine now, thanks to your quick thinking, but now he needs his rest."
"Yes he does." Madam Pomfrey agreed, as she began motioning towards the doors. "So shoo, all of you."
"We are staying with our son." Lucius snapped, and made no move to get up from his seat.
"Well of course you have the right to stay Mr. Malfoy, I was speaking to the others." She said with a cold glare, which caused Lucius to narrow his eyes at her.
Poppy simply huffed in annoyance, then quickly made her way back to her office. Dumbledore gave the Malfoys a stern look, before he, Snape, and McGonagall also left the hospital wing.
Dinner and the rest of the evening was uneventful, with the exception of Ron being overly ecstatic about the fact that they could get to classes and the great hall without walking. Hermione began scolding him, in only ways that she could, by saying that not only was it lazy to puff everywhere, but Harry was not a chauffeur and should not be treated as such. Ron didn't know what a chauffeur was, so Hermione very patiently explained it to him, and it was only after that when a red faced Ron apologized to Harry.
Harry just laughed and said it was ok, but he agreed with Hermione about it being a lazy way to travel. He did announce a plan to puff everyone to breakfast every morning, since they were all growing children and needed to take advantage of the 'most important meal of the day'. Hermione only rolled her eyes, but Ron grinned at Harry, who high fived both him and a laughing Neville.
It was only later that night, once everyone was asleep, that Harry puffed into the hospital wing after picking up a guest who was very concerned about Draco. When they arrived though, Harry was a bit surprised to see Draco sitting cross legged on the bed and reading a book via the still lit lamp next to his bed.
Lucius was passed out in a chair next to the bed, and Harry cast a quick charm to ensure he stayed that way, but he could see that Narcissa was only lightly dozing in her chair. He didn't bother to cast a charm at her though, because he wanted her to be privy to everything that was about to happen.
Besides, he rather liked Narcissa, or well, her soul at least.
"I see you're still awake." Harry said, as he calmly stepped out of the shadows and stood at the foot of Draco's bed.
Draco jumped a foot in the air and glared at a very amused looking Harry.
"What are you doing here Potter." He hissed.
"Just checking to see how you are doing. I also brought a friend with me. She wants to make sure you're doing well."
"I don't want to talk to Granger. I'll help her with her stupid bloody essays when I'm better." Draco said, as he scowled and pointedly returned to his book.
Harry smirked, but he was happy to note that Narcissa was fully awake now, although she pretended to be asleep.
"It's not Hermione. In fact, she's family." Harry chuckled, as Bella threw off the invisibility cloak.
"Draco," she purred softly, as she began waving her own wand over him. "How are you feeling? Is there any tightness still in your chest?"
"Aunt Bella!" Draco gasped. "What…how…why…Potter…"
Harry chuckled, but he ignored the stuttering boy and looked at Bella. "You know Madam Pomfrey is more than capable of looking after him."
"I know that Love." Bella said, as she continued to wave her wand over Draco. "But I need to be sure, for my own peace of mind." She added, before turning to Draco. "Answer my questions Draco. How do you feel? Any tightness?"
"N-no, but Madam Pomfrey said that if I feel any constriction in my chest that I need to use this m-mug-muggle thing. She has also given me an invigorating draught to keep me awake, just in case I do have a relapse. She said I might not be able to wake up and use it." He said, as he nervously gripped in inhaler in his hand, no doubt thinking she was going to flip out and destroy it, seeing as it was a muggle item.
"A wise decision." Bella said with a nod, as she smiled at her nephew and finally lowered her wand. "Your lungs are still a bit blocked, and if I should guess, you may have one or two more instances where you need to use the asthma inhaler. It is also wise to keep you awake. If I were her, I would keep you in here another two days just to be sure."
Draco stared at her in confusion, but his grip on the inhaler did loosen a bit.
"You're…you're not mad that it's a muggle thing that helped me to survive the constrictor curse?"
Bella chuckled lightly. "No, I'm not." She simply said, as she leaned over and kissed the top of his ruffled blond hair. "I'm just glad Harry was present, for if not, you would not be here right now."
"My father is angry that I owe Potter a life debt." He mumbled, causing Bella and Harry to snort.
"Would your fool of a father have preferred you died?" Harry asked, rolling his eyes as Bella snorted again.
"You forget Love, Malfoys don't like owing anyone anything." She said sarcastically.
"Well, Draco can just warn me to be very, very careful around our Defense Professor, while informing me that he might be a dangerous man, and I will consider the life debt fulfilled." Harry chuckled.
"I think that is a splendid idea." Bella replied with a grin, causing Draco to stare at them.
"What do you know about Professor Riddle, Potter?" He asked, while sending an uneasy glace towards Bella.
"Only that he is an excellent Defense Professor, a nice man, and he seems to want to be my friend. I absolutely see no reason to be wary of him, especially if I have no warnings to the contrary." Harry said, as he feigned innocence and ignorance.
Bella chuckled quietly. "I should go. Sirius is waiting for me outside the doors, because he has a prank idea and I want to help him." She said, before turning to Draco. "I just wanted to make sure you were all right, and I'm glad you are. Stay in this bed until Madam Pomfrey says otherwise, and follow whatever directions she gives you." She added, kissing the top of his head once more.
She bent down and picked up the cloak, but before she disappeared under it, Harry snapped his fingers.
"Bella, I just remembered. I keep forgetting to tell you this, but I want you to heal the Longbottoms. I think it would be fitting for you to be the one to do it."
She gasped loudly, and stared at him with wide eyes that glittered in the lamp light.
"I had forgotten about them." She breathed. "I truly did. I'm assuming they are still…"
"Yes." Harry interrupted with a nod. "And if I may make a suggestion, I think a Christmas Miracle is in order. Neville once told me that he and his Gran go to visit them every Christmas. I know Christmas is still a few months away, but it won't hurt to wait until then."
She nodded vigorously. "I'll need your help getting in and out of St. Mungo's, but I think it is a lovely idea. I wish I had thought about it, but…I truly forgot."
"Don't worry about it, but I do think it would be a wonderful gift for the Longbottoms."
"As do I Love." She said with a brilliant smile. "Before I go though, is Cissy really asleep?"
"No, she's pretending." Harry simply said. "Though I made sure Lucius remained knocked out."
"Probably for the best." She said, as she bent down to give her sister a kiss on the cheek. "Goodnight Cissy, I love you. The Dark Lord does not wish anything that is said here tonight to get back to Lucius. It will be wise for you to remain quiet about whatever you have heard, or will hear." She whispered, as she winked at Harry. Then she threw the cloak over her head, and quietly disappeared into the shadows. It was only a moment later that they heard the soft creak of the hospital wing doors open, then close gently.
Draco stared after her, but then he glanced sharply at Harry. "What are you playing at Potter?"
"Nothing." Harry said with an innocent smile.
"Don't lie to me." Draco hissed. "You brought my Aunt Bella, who is an escaped criminal and one of the Dark Lord's most loyal supporters, here to Hogwarts simply to visit me? I think there is more going on here that you are not telling me about."
Harry laughed. "Draco, I know you're confused, but that is the beauty of it. One day you will understand everything, but until then, let me give you a small piece of advice. Give up the Slytherin charade and embrace being a Gryffindor. I guarantee you will have more fun if you do."
Draco scoffed. "I don't belong in Gryffindor." He growled.
"Only you think that, but I beg to differ." Harry replied with a pleasant smile.
"As do I." Tom said suddenly, causing both boys to jump and Tom to laugh quietly. "I snuck up on you?" he asked, looking at Harry with glee. "I'm surprised at you Potter."
"I wasn't expecting you. I thought you were with Sirius and Bella." Harry chuckled.
"I will join them in pranking Severus in a bit. I just wanted to make sure Draco was all right."
"Bella says he is, though I have found out Lucius hates the fact that Draco owes me a life debt."
"Like you need a life debt." He laughed.
"I don't, but I hinted that if Draco warns me about you in a roundabout way, that I will consider the life debt fulfilled." Harry said nonchalantly.
Tom snorted. "I approve."
"You would." Harry replied as he rolled his eyes. "Why are you here?"
"I snuck in when Bella snuck out to see how Draco is doing. Since I have seen that he is doing well, I should be going if I want to help them prank Severus." Tom said, as he turned to leave, but Harry stopped him.
"They are almost to the dungeons. I'll puff you down to them in a second." He said.
"Are you going to join us?"
"No, I have otherworldly things to be getting on with, but just so you know, Bella already warned the still pretending to be asleep Narcissa not to relay anything said tonight to Lucius, so you don't need to repeat it."
Tom laughed. "Whatever you say Potter." He said, but then he turned to Draco. "It would also be wise not to repeat anything you have heard or seen to anyone else. If you do Draco, I will know."
"Yes sir." Draco squeaked as he glanced at Harry, who simply chuckled.
"Just remember what I said. Drop the Slytherin charade and embrace being a Gryffindor."
"Why are you telling me that?" Draco asked, as he nervously glanced at Tom.
"Because it is mysterious, and I know you will want to find out what is going on." He replied with a grin. "I don't like you Draco, but I do like your soul. It is a good, compassionate, funny, and downright likeable soul, but you will understand one day. I promise." He finished with a chuckle, but then he grabbed Tom's arm, and puffed them out of the hospital wing.
They left behind a thoroughly confused Draco and Narcissa, who could only stare after them.
Harry puffed Tom down to the dungeons and left him with Bella and Sirius, but then he left to take care of the day's sorting. It was pretty standard, but there was one woman from Inverness, Scotland who was very upset with being dead. She claimed some idiot nurse lost a crash cart, and if it weren't for that she would still be alive. Harry cringed, mumbled an apology, and let her rant for a good fifteen minutes before sending her through the door on the left front side of the sorting room.
He figured he owed her that much.
When the sorting was over, Harry got a wonderful idea and let himself into Dumbledore's office. With one good rap on the floor with the end of his scythe, he had decorated the Headmaster's office, muggle style, for Halloween.
There was all manner of fake cobwebs with spiders and charmed ghosts, ghouls, witches on brooms, black cats, and pumpkins that moved and/or floated on their own, which was sure to delight and greatly amuse Dumbledore. He charmed the walls to change color and slowly fade from black, burnt orange, grey, and bright orange, and left a note on Dumbledore's desk telling him that if he didn't like the changes, to announce it at breakfast and the decorations would be removed.
Though knowing Dumbledore's wild taste in such things, Harry didn't think that would be the case.
Fawkes, who Harry had simply transferred from real reality, watched in an amused sort of way, and even winked at Harry before the prankster left. Harry grinned, knowing fully well that Fawkes not only knew who he was, but what all had transpired since this alternate reality began.
Phoenixes are very smart after all, and luckily for Harry, the portraits didn't even wake up from their slumber during the redecorating.
When he puffed back to Tom's quarters to say goodnight to everyone, he found them all laughing hysterically, which caused him to quirk an eyebrow at them.
"What did you guys do?" He asked, as he leaned against Tom's desk.
"We charmed Severus purple from head to toe." Tom said with a grin, as he threw back a shot of firewhiskey.
"Purple?"
"Not just any purple," Sirius snorted, "Barney the Dinosaur purple."
"Oh Merlin help us." Harry said, as he burst out laughing.
"That's not all." Bella said with a grin, as she also took a shot of firewhiskey. "Knowing Severus as we do, we cast a strong compulsion charm on him so that he is forced to carry out his duties tomorrow. He will be forced to eat in the great hall, teach his classes, and do whatever it is he normally does, so he won't be able to hide in his office all day."
"And Bella is going to send our dear sweet Potions Master a little howler tomorrow, which will be charmed indestructible, so that everyone will know how loved he is." Tom laughed.
"Wait, wait." Harry said, as his eyes grew wide. "You're not going to sing…"
"Yes I am." Bella interrupted with a burst of hysterical laughter.
"ACK! No! I hate that stupid song! It will get stuck in my head!" Harry cried.
"Too bad. It's going to be funny." Bella said.
"You do realize that the only ones who will get the joke are the muggle borns, don't you?" He asked, as he eyed all three of them dubiously.
"Them and the ones raised by muggles, and some half-bloods probably." Sirius laughed.
"Note to self, bring earmuffs to breakfast." Harry muttered.
"Wait, I just thought of something." Tom said, as he sat up quickly. "Has Barney actually been invented yet?"
Harry tilted his head to the side for a moment, but then he burst out laughing.
"No, it hasn't. We are six months too early. It was first released in America in April of 1992, and even then it took several more months before it came here, to the U.K."
"Oh who cares?" Bella said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "So we are a little early. Big deal."
"What she said." Tom said as he nodded in Bella's direction.
"You guys are crazy." Harry laughed. "Well, I'm headed to bed. I'll see all of you at breakfast, I'm sure."
"Oh, we are going to be there." Bella said.
"Wouldn't miss it." Tom added.
Sirius just laughed, but before Harry could puff away he looked at Harry seriously.
"So tell me Harry, when do you plan to bring James back?" He asked, causing Bella and Tom to raise their eyebrows at them.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, as he fought to keep a smirk off his face.
"Don't play dumb." Sirius chuckled. "You modified Tom's memory so that it showed James only getting stunned. So, when are you bringing him back?"
"Spoilers." Harry grinned.
Sirius glared at him for a moment, but then he chuckled. "We can't keep Remus in the dark forever you know. He have to bring him up to speed, and Peter too, I think. Imagine, all four Marauders alive and back together again, only this time as adults! It's never been done in the history of Harry Potter fanfiction!"
"Harry Potter fanfiction?" Tom sputtered. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Sirius opened and closed his mouth a few times. "I have no idea actually. I know what fanfiction is, because after I fell through the Drapery of Death I became a muggle and wrote Star Wars fanfiction, but Harry Potter fanfiction…I'm just confused." He said in a bewildered tone as everyone looked at Harry, who simply shrugged.
"Don't look at me, I don't know."
There was a moment of confused silence, but then everyone shrugged.
"In any case," Sirius went on, as he practically bounced up and down in his seat with excitement. "It's Snape's absolute worst nightmare, and think of all the chaos and confusion it will cause! A custody battle between James and Tom, but Dumbledore tries to keep the fact that Tom is Moldybum out of the news, while also trying to keep Harry in the dark. Poor, tragic, innocent Harry all caught up in the middle of it, and chaos and confusion everywhere!" He exclaimed, as he grinned at everyone like a lunatic.
"I think he's finally cracked." Bella laughed, causing Tom and Harry to snort.
"You know I'm right." He said with a dignified huff, though he couldn't help but chuckle.
"Question." Tom said, as he shook his head and poured another shot of firewhiskey. "How do we explain everything? I mean James has been 'missing' for ten years. Where's he been? And what about the letter you wrote Dumbledore? You already told him Peter was the secret keeper, so what about that? There are about a million other little things I could say 'what about…' as well. How do we explain them in a believable fashion?"
"We will think of something." Bella said as she patted his arm. "Don't worry."
"Bella's right, Harry will think of something." Sirius added, causing Harry to burst out laughing.
"What this 'Harry will think of something' crap?" He asked.
"Oh please, you know what I mean." Sirius grinned.
"Whatever." Harry said, as he rolled his eyes. "Let me do some pondering before we do anything. However, I do agree with bringing Remus up to speed, I feel bad about leaving him clueless. As for Peter though, maybe. I wanted him to protect the Weasleys and I only told him that B.S. story to keep him from running off."
"But think of how much better Peter can protect them if he has all his memories." Sirius said.
"You may have a point. Ok, I'll give it some thought." Harry finally conceded.
It would throw off his plans for Peter, but he did have to admit that this might be an even better plan. The four Marauders back together again as adults.
Snape's wort nightmare indeed.
"Good." Sirius said with a large grin. "It's settled then."
Tom rolled his eyes. "Nothing is 'settled'. There is still…"
"Just let him enjoy this moment." Bella said, as they continued to watch a manically grinning Sirius's eyes glaze over.
Harry simply laughed. "Well, when he comes out of his daydreaming, tell him I said goodnight. It's late."
"Too true." Bella said. "Goodnight Love."
"Night." Tom said, as he raised his shot glass to his lips.
"Goodnight guys." Harry chuckled, then he puffed back to the dorms.
*A/N* Sorry guys! I know it's been a while. I've been sitting on this chapter for a long time, but today I finally got off my lazy bum and decided to finish it.
With that said, I was a little iffy about bringing James back to life because it would throw off some crazy ideas I have for later chapters, but I figured out a good work around and I think I can still pull them off even though he is alive. For those of you who are sure to ask, no, Lily will not be a major part of this story. She may appear at the end, but until then, it's up to Bella to keep the boys 'on track'.
Besides, having all four Marauders alive, as adults, and with all their memories in tact seems like to good an opportunity to pass up. I'm sure it has been done once or twice, but I have never personally seen it, so I think they are really rare.
Anyway, last chapter I said I would have Halloween in this one, but this one became too long, so my Halloween fun will be in the next chapter. I think you all will find it enjoyable. There is a VERY big surprise though, and even Harry is going to be caught off guard, so be on the lookout for that!
Until next time my lovelies!
