AN: First, I would like to thank all of you who have Followed, Favourited and Reviewed this story. If any of you wonder about my relatively fast posting speed it is because I am always at least five chapters ahead of what you're reading.
Shadowkat87: I looked at having Harry be with a number of different options (not at the same time!) but my muse was quickly beaten into submission every time until Fem!Harry confessed her desire for Tonks. So there's your (eventual) prime pairing.
I had an "interesting" review which started at attacking all English speakers for being unable to take criticism and moved on to what was essentially a diatribe against the HP canon books, HP fanfiction as a whole and even complaining about the popularity of another writer. However there was still a few points raised about this story that I felt were valid so here's my response:
1 - Harry's meeting with the Malfoys at the World Cup. In an outtake Hermione condenses the moment into what happens if two countries with long standing friendships suddenly find themselves at odds (GB and US as example). Harry doesn't out-skill Lucius in that moment, nor does he have the personality to bully Narcissa, but instead uses Old Magic ties to remind them that the Potter and Black Families never turn on each other. If there is a contract between two companies where one has potentially broken the agreement, a very young CEO would be able to have the upper hand over an experienced one.
2 - As a follow on, all the "Scion of the Noble and Most Ancient..." moments are deliberate. Harry is an abused teenager who has never had a chance to push back at a world that's belittled him. He now possesses the political hammer of his family's legacy and will attack every problem as though its a hammer once he loses his temper. This will taper off the more the true politics of Wizarding Britain come into play and he is taught how to be more subtle.
Enjoy the read!
Karma be thy Mother, Karma be thy Father.
Did my words turn you off having a family, descendent? They shouldn't. In my sadness over what I had done to my flesh and blood I travelled the lands and found a new family. A better Family.
I kept myself hidden. No one knew my real name nor the Power I could wield. One day I was a vagabond, the next a rich traveller, the third had me be whatever else took my fancy. I saw wonders beyond description yet felt nothing. Nothing touched the emptiness I had created until I found two shining souls who welcomed me into their lives.
Two sisters who had lost everything in a raid to enemies, two innocents who were spared only by the Fates decree. Not an ounce of magical blood in either yet they refused to let the world destroy them. You cannot imagine how many Magicals I have seen be unable to do such a thing.
When you have seen Magicals, those who proclaim themselves above all others, crumble beneath pressures the way I have, such strength and determination are to be admired.
For years we travelled together before they confronted me. They knew what I was, had even guessed at who. They cared not at all.
What could I do, descendent? These two adults, children in my aged eyes, had accepted me when others had turned their backs. When my own blood had decried me as a relic, a sign of times best left in the dust of the ages, these two showed me otherwise. Gradually I told them my tale, the history of my pain, and still they remained. Continuing to refuse the easy choice of turning their backs.
They were too old to be given Power. But a gift given to their children? A gift of children? That I could do. That I did do.
I told them my plans. That it was a way of keeping their bloodline alive so the world could feel the power of their love. A love that should be shared rather than a dying wizard keeping it to himself.
They accepted. I only partially lied.
I did more than what I told them I would. I took my essence and split it, I cleaved my magic in two and used their blood to create two whole, beautiful babies out of each piece.
Disgusted, descendent? Life is Balance. My son proved to me only the very rarest could hold such a balance within themselves, so I did what I needed to do in order to continue my life's work.
They had no idea the true depths of what I had given them. Those two baby boys were the accumulation of my life. My legacy. I helped raise them, taught them what they needed to know, and made sure they knew the bond each held to the other.
To one, I gave this Book. His line forever knowing the truth, forever seeing the light at the of the long road. To the other, I gave my finest knife. The ones of his line have given up their blood upon that blade and in return their Family have been warriors and fighters without equal.
Two bloodlines. Two Families. One magic tying them all together. And now, descendent, there is you. You, a true child of both bloods. You, a true child of mine.
[ Extract from the Potter Book ]
26th October, 1994 – Late evening.
Harry's nocturnal activities didn't stop with the visit to Professor Sprout. His next stop was the Shrieking Shack and the awaiting Sirius. It was time to air some questions and maybe, just maybe, get some answers.
He wore his invisibility cloak up until he slipped beneath the Whomping Willow and quietly made his way to the Shack's upstairs. Sirius had pitched the Wizard's tent in what could have been the bedroom of the rundown building. Well it made sense to the Marauder.
As much as they enjoyed seeing each other, the two had a schedule for Harry to visit in order for his schoolwork not to suffer and for the raven-headed boy not to abandon his friends. It wasn't one of their usual nights for speaking so, when Harry went through the tent's opening, he was able to catch his godfather at peace. Somewhat.
The man was sitting at the large table with different Black books spread out to cover every inch of the wooden surface. There was a clink of ice when Sirius brought a glass of Firewhiskey up to his forehead.
"Headache, Padfoot?" Harry said without warning.
The Animagus jumped to his feet, his glass clattering to the floor and Arcturus' wand was out and ready to cast before Sirius realised who had spoken.
"Bloody hell, Pup! I almost cursed you."
"But you didn't." Harry pointed out with a smirk.
He stood at the tent entrance, looking around the first place he had felt at home and didn't know how to begin. Sirius noticed his godson's pensive mood and felt a growing sense of dread.
"What's wrong, Harry?" The Marauder scooped up his glass and vanished the spilt liquid, it was something to do while Harry found his words.
"Moody put us under the Imperio." He told his godfather, his knees aching in memory. "I beat it."
"Mad-Eye always was a bit crazy." Sirius shook his head in surprise at what he was hearing. "I can't understand what Dumbledore is doing letting him put it on students but I'm proud of you."
"Did you know Neville's parents?" Harry focused on his godfather and Sirius felt a chill at the look. It was pure, unadulterated Lily-rage. Sirius hadn't seen a look like that since the time she threatened to castrate him after sleeping with one of her bridesmaids. Luckily for the conversation at hand it wasn't Alice Longbottom.
"Frank was a good man." Sirius carefully said. "A good Auror. Alice was a nice girl but Lily knew her better."
"They were in hiding." Harry swallowed hard and finally stepped into the tent. "Same as we were. Why were we in hiding, Padfoot? Why?"
"Harry...I...I don't understand. What's this about?"
"Why were we in hiding?" The green-eyed boy repeated, tears falling freely though he didn't notice. Sirius stepped closer but Harry failed to track the movement, his gaze too full of fears. "It wasn't just me and mum, it was all three of us. Why, damn it?"
"I don't know!" Sirius roared, his impotent rage exploding at the question, and with a huge throw he sent the glass hurtling into the tent's magical wall where it shattered.
The sound of fragmenting glass sound brought both partially to their senses before they tore into each other from blind pain.
"Morgana, Harry, don't you think I've tormented myself over this? All they told me was that there'd been some type of tip. That there was a chance that bastard was after them. Now for Merlin's sake, Pup, tell me what the hell is going on in that head of yours!"
"And the Longbottoms?" Harry asked again, ignoring the question as he took another step. The wild, almost hysterical look scared Sirius more than if a Dementor had entered the Shack. He felt as though he was seeing the death of his godson's sanity. "Was it the same for them?"
"I guess." Sirius aggressively shrugged. "I assume so. A lot of people were in hiding back then. It was a scary time."
"Two couples, each with a newborn, go into hiding." Harry pointed out. "One is attacked by Riddle himself, the other by his followers thinking that they know something."
"Harry." Sirius growled. By now the two were close enough to touch and Sirius was frantic enough to shake his godson if he didn't get any answers. When they finally came, the Animagus wished they hadn't.
"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!" Harry's delivery was monotone but Sirius had no problems knowing who he was quoting. "Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead."
Harry's control, honed in the hell that was Privet Drive, finally broke and he collapsed. Sirius caught him before he hit the floor and lowered them both down. The entire time Harry's weak voice was repeating the same four words.
"He came for me. He came for me."
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oOoOo
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For Sirius it took far too long to calm his hysterical godson down. The sobs had built up over thirteen years and the Black Scion was close to calling one of the elves for a calming drought even though he knew it would have only numbed the turmoil, not get rid of it.
Eventually he was able to put Harry in his godson's favourite chair. Sirius pulled his own close enough to be able to hold the clammy hand as the teenager stared numbly off into space. They both had a glass of Ogden's Finest but neither could bring themselves to touch it.
"Harry." Sirius was being very careful with what he was about to say. "Are you sure about this? Isn't there any way that you could..."
"The Dark Lord lies alone and friendless, abandoned by his followers." Harry interrupted in the same toneless manner as before. "His servant has been chained these twelve years. Tonight, before midnight, the servant will break free and set out to rejoin his master. The Dark Lord will rise again with his servant's aid, greater and more terrible than ever before."
"What..?"
"Trelawney's prediction the night Wormtail escaped." Harry explained, finally turning to look at his godfather. "Do you know what Dumbledore said to me after?"
Sirius shook his head and felt the cold grip of fear tightening around his heart.
"That brings her total of real predictions up to two. I should offer her a pay rise." Harry's looked deep into Sirius' soul. "Why would Riddle come after a baby?"
"Morgana..." Sirius whispered with closed eyes, unconsciously squeezing Harry's hand tight. Neither noticed. Neither cared. "I'm going to kill him. I'm going to have Padfoot rip that old man apart."
"What do we do?" Harry pleaded. "Even if I'm wrong, Riddle was after me. Whatever the reason, he won't stop until he gets me."
"No!" Sirius growled, eyes snapping open. "We do what we've been doing, Harry. You train hard, you work hard, and you build yourself good friends. Friends that stand beside you. You aren't going to be alone in this, you hear me?"
Harry nodded. Sniffling, he wiped at his eyes with his free hand.
"I should..." He tried to say. "I should get back."
"Sleep here tonight. You can time-turn if you miss your first lesson."
"No." Harry weakly smiled at the offer. "I could do with the walk and..."
"And you need air." Sirius nodded in understanding. The both pretended that it was the only reason. "Will you be okay for a few days? It's about time I spoke to Moony."
"Bringing in the big guns to protect me?" Harry joked, knowing that was exactly what Sirius planned. "We have the mirrors, I have my friends. I'll be okay."
It took Harry half an hour to convince Sirius that would be the case. Sirius hated leaving Harry in such a state but he needed to see Mooney and Harry wanted the two Marauders to reconnect. Family was everything to both man and boy, and Remus Lupin, for all his faults, was Family.
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oOoOo
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Harry lied to Sirius. It was only a little white lie but he still lied. He also didn't feel too sorry about it.
He'd told his godfather that he would head directly to bed and rest. Yet the simple fact was there were too many thoughts racing through Harry's mind to even consider the idea. Ever since Harry could remember he had asked himself why. Why was he alone? Why had he lost his family? If his guess was correct, and there seemed enough circumstantial evidence to suggest it was, he had finally found the answer.
Some batty old alcoholic witch had pointed a crazy madman at a baby's head.
He wore his father's cloak, pulled as tight around him as possible in order to feel connected to his parents, and wandered the corridors of Hogwarts aimlessly. He was numb in thoughts and emotions and, for the first time in a long time, wished he could re-find the Mirror of Erised.
What Harry found instead would derail his depression and change more than one person's fate.
Luna Lovegood, the wonderful but misunderstood neighbour to the Weasleys, was spinning and dancing down a hallway. Her shoes were laying on the floor and how the girl didn't slip on the stone in her odd coloured socks he didn't know. Harry watched her float through the air, her every move fluid and beautiful, and it pulled him out of the darkness that had been slowly suffocating him since his earlier talk with Neville.
Harry waited until she was facing away before quickly pulling off his cloak. As she spun back around, she gave him a wave and smile without even breaking a step. It was almost as if she'd known he was there.
"Hello, Harry Potter." Her soft voice said. "You're looking much better now the Wrackspurts are leaving you."
"Thanks, Lu." He smiled a genuine smile and actually felt it inside. "I've been reminded that there's still good things in the world."
Luna stumbled at the words and her large pale eyes widened even more. She stood frozen and stared at him, unsure how to react to the compliment.
"What are you doing out so late?" He asked, moving closer so that they could talk more softly. "Couldn't sleep?"
"The Nargles ran off with a ring my mother gave me." She explained in her unique way. "I tried looking for it and then the Wrackspurts confused the raven so I couldn't get back in."
Something deep inside Harry stretched out in fury at what the Fae-like girl had said. His magic pulsed once, pushing hard against the stone walls, and Luna giggled when it flexed over her skin.
"It's okay, Luna. I know a place you can stay."
He kicked off his shoes, picked up both pairs and took her hand. Without letting the unique girl argue, Harry took her the quickest route to the Room of Requirement and showed her how it worked.
"Now remember, Lu." He repeated like a parent speaking to their child or an older brother to their sister. "You walk in front of it three times and tell it what you want each time. You come here whenever you need to, okay?"
"Thank you, Harry." Luna wrapped herself around him in a tight hug and, while he was still uneasy about constant physical touch, there was more than enough emotion involved to make it easier for him.
She skipped through the strange looking door her imagination had created and Harry made sure not to look through the opening. He didn't think he needed to know the inside of Luna's mind that exactly.
"Dobby." He called out once he was sure she wouldn't come back out. His little friend popped into place beside him, looking determined to do whatever was needed.
"I need you to find Luna's ring, Dobs." His voice had chilled and the Avada eyes glowed slightly with anger. "And anything else that those Ravenclaws might have taken. When she's asleep put her ring next to whatever she's using for a pillow. Everything else goes back in her trunk. If you're able to find out who took her stuff, that would be a big help too, okay?"
Throughout his instructions Dobby was nodding frantically. He liked the little Moon Mistress. She was kind to all the elves in Hogwarts and Dobby knew the others would be able to help him.
"Dobby bes doing it, Master Harry Potter sir."
"Thank you." Harry replied. "And Dobby, if you have to mess up some of their own stuff to take back hers, don't worry about it. Have fun."
The evil grin the elf gave Harry matched the thoughts Harry had towards the bullies. When Dobby popped away Harry found himself with a strange feeling of being reborn. The fears and doubts of before remained but they weren't overwhelming him. It was the magic of one strange little girl and her hug.
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oOoOo
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Sirius had not been idle since Harry left the Shack. He'd quickly packed everything up, shrunk the tent down and used Padfoot to make his way to the Forbidden Forest.
He needed a run. The loss of James and Lily had almost destroyed Sirius but if Harry was right and Riddle had actually been after him... The pain and panic, fury and denial all burned inside He of the Padded Foot and the four legs took Sirius through familiar trees.
Memories of his full moon adventures with his brothers in all but blood only made the idea of losing Harry to the evil that was Voldemort more real. It took a long time before the black grim had calmed down enough to enter Hogsmeade village only for it to skid to a halt in ragged breaths.
"Where is dogfather going?" Dobby demanded as he appeared in front of the animal. The elf's look had Padfoot's instincts ready to run at the fury in those large eyes. "Master Harry Potter sirs dogfather is better not bes leaving him to the bad wizards!"
"Easy, Dobby." Sirius answered once he had shifted back into his own form. His hands were outstretched in the universal show of peace. "I'm going to get Remus. I'm doing what I told you I would."
"Yous be making sure Master Harry Potter sir bes safe?" Eyes narrowing with suspicion, clearly not believing Sirius. "Yous not bes running away?"
"No!" Sirius shouted then cringed as the sound carried. He tried again in a softer voice. "No. I'm going to do whatever I can to keep my Pup safe."
"Nasty Master should have said so." A second voice told him. The condescending tone sounding too similar to his mother's for Sirius' enjoyment. He turned his head and gapped in surprise at the more youthful visage of Kreacher standing in the shadows.
"Kreacher? What in Morgana's name happened to you?"
Kreacher smiled wickedly and stepped into the moonlight. There was far more intelligence in his look than Sirius had ever seen.
"Nasty Master's little Half-blood." The elf explained with pride. "Kreacher feels what Nasty Master did and now the great House of Black be waking up. Kreacher's Half-blood do this through blood and magic."
Sirius' eyes shut in pain and pride. There, in shape of a much younger and more powerful Kreacher, was proof of the very secret he was about to dig up.
"I need to get to Remus." He weakly told them. "Then I have to get to Godric's Hollow."
"Nasty Master should have said." Kreacher scoffed and took a firm hold of Sirius' robes. In a silent double-pop the strange trio vanished.
Sirius found himself unceremoniously dumped in the dirt outside a small cottage. He growled at the grinning elves as he pulled himself to his feet, apparently the magic that had given Kreacher a new lease on life hadn't affected his twisted sense of humour.
"Nasty Master's wolf is in there." Kreacher told him, waving a hand dismissively at the cottage. "Nasty Master needs to fetch his wolf."
The elf's grin merely widened at Sirius' harsh glare.
The cottage had once belong to Moony's parents and was one of the only things they kept when their son had been forced to become a werewolf. It was left to Remus when he graduated Hogwarts so he would always have one place to return if needed.
Sirius hated that his friend had to live so. He steeled himself and knocked on the solid door loud enough to wake the dead. Or a very heavy sleeper of a werewolf.
A very tired and confused Remus Lupin opened the door, his eyes bleary from being pulled from the land of Morpheus. Sirius took one look at his childhood friend and remembered why he'd been avoiding this moment since the summer.
Remus became wide awake after the fierce right hook sent him stumbling back into the cottage. An angry Sirius Black stormed in while the elves watched on with more than a little interest.
"You're a complete bastard, Moony." Sirius snarled.
"Sirius?" Remus shook his head in confusion only to get hit by another punch that dropped him on his arse. The wolf, never far from the surface, rose up to defend them only for something to catch Remus' attention. The strangeness of the sight distracting his inner animal and allowed the man to speak.
"Are your elves betting on us?"
Sirius blinked at the bizarre question and turned to the doorway. Sure enough, Dobby was passing over a small bag of coins to the gleeful Kreacher.
"Huh...I guess they are." Padfoot answered, scratching the back of his head in confusion. "Never saw that before."
"You want to tell me what those punches were about?" Remus demanded once he had regained pulled himself to his feet. "So I know whether I deserve them or not."
"Oh, you deserved them alright." Sirius snapped with a glare to his childhood friend.. "You told Harry he dishonoured James and Lily's deaths. How could you?"
Remus' shoulders dropped in instant defeat and the tired Marauder stumbled his way to a nearby chair. He remembered that day too clearly. Remembered the pain in Harry's eyes.
"I was an idiot." He confessed. Sirius grunt of agreement as he sat opposite sounded suspiciously like Bloody idiot but Remus let it go. "Dumbledore said it was better I be a teacher rather than James' friend and uncle Moony. When I saw him with the Map and knew what we had done with it, I reacted. I took it too far, Pads. I would do anything to take that back."
"Anything?"
"Anything." Remus gave a determined nod. He had to make right by his lost friends even if it was the last thing he did for Harry.
"How about take on Dumbledore?" Sirius asked with wry amusement.
"Take on. Dumbledore?" Remus blinked and then took a deep sniff to see if his strong senses could pick up the scent of alcohol on his friend's breath. To his shock, Sirius was apparently completely sober. "As in fight?"
"Fight. Argue with. Battle to the death. Whatever was needed." Sirius explained, waving his had dismissively in the air.
"You can't be serious?"
"I have been ever since I was born." Padfoot smirked, falling back on the old joke. "Why change a good thing now?"
Remus moaned and hit the back of his head against the chair. He couldn't believe he had opened up the opportunity for the dreaded pun to make its appearance. They both heard the telltale tinkling of coins exchanging hands and decided they were better off pretending they didn't.
"Is there a reason you think I should be going after Dumbledore?" Remus grumbled, wondering if his friend had truly lost his mind.
"How about putting Harry in an abusive home and keeping him ignorant of everything he should have been taught as a Potter? Or that we think there's a deeper reason why James and Lily died that night and Dumbledore knows it?" Remus' eyes snapped open and the brown bled to amber at what he was hearing. "Harry remembers that night. Voldemort was after him."
"Tell me everything." Came the fierce growl.
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27th October, 1994 – Early morning, Godric's Hollow.
Two men, years of long friendship between them, and two of the strangest house-elves one could imagine, appeared silently in the shadows. All four pair of eyes looked at the impressive war memorial that dominated the village square, their magical nature letting them see the statue of a once happy family instead of the obelisk it appeared to be.
"What are we doing here, Pads?" Remus croaked. His throat was dry and his nerves were on edge. He had made a silent pilgrimage to the memorial as often as he could and it never got any easier.
"We're here to save Harry." Sirius Black told him in a voice that brokered no arguments.
The village was small and Sirius took the same steps he had all those painful years ago. Back then he had felt a sense of dread, of primal fear at losing everything that mattered to him. This time there was a slight hint of hope.
Whether Harry forgave him for what he was about to do, what he had done, Sirius didn't know, but he knew it was at least a way for his godson to be free.
"It was never meant to be like this." Sirius broke the silence as they came to Potter Cottage. What was once a lovely home with its charming garden and decorative front gate was a ruined, burnt out shell. A corpse. "We were supposed to ride together. Unbeatable."
"Sirius?"
"I told them to pick Peter." Sirius swallowed hard but nothing could remove the taste of failure and betrayal he constantly lived with. "I was too close, Moony, too obvious a choice."
"We knew there was a spy in the Order." Mooney replied through his own tears. "We just couldn't imagine it was him."
"You know why they never picked you?" Sirius asked, facing his friend. Remus shook his head. That question had haunted him as much as any since the betrayal. "Dumbledore. Dumbledore said it was better to have someone close by who knew the secret rather than it be you. You were always away with the packs."
"Dumbledore was the one who sent me on those missions." Mooney growled, his kind eyes ripped away by the fury of the wolf. "I would have stayed with all of you if I had the choice."
"I know." Was the whispered response.
Sirius reached out to run his fingers over the large P of the gate and traced the letter with the carved forms intertwining it. Padfoot and Moony howled on either side, protecting as they always had, while Wormtail climbed the long straight edge. Someone had scratched out the details of the rodent and a quick look to the stoic Remus told him who.
Prongs stood proudly on top while there, inside the space of the letter, was the face of a tiger. She was the heart of the Marauders, the one who had kept them honest. Lily had only found her Animagus form that year, hadn't yet been capable of changing, but James had refused to wait. He had been determined to put her among them as she had always been.
"Mischief Managed."
The password released the hidden magic built into the gate and the lock opened. Whatever seal the Ministry had put on the property gave way beneath the deeper link between the family bond between the Marauders. Remus followed his silently sobbing friend onto the pathway and to rebuilt door.
Sirius opened the door, the memory of Halloween overlapping his reality so tightly that he was actually shocked when he didn't find James' body at the foot of the stairs. He staggered to the the spot his brother had fallen and collapsed to his knees, the emotional pain as strong as any he had been forced to feel in Azkaban.
"Is that where..." Remus tried asking but couldn't. The place had too many memories for them both and Remus could still hear Lily's laughter echo in the dark hallway.
"James." Sirius was eventually able to nod. A shaky hand rose so he could kiss his fingers and press them to the vacant spot. "I won't fail you again, Prongs. Not again."
Remus helped him up, unable to take his eyes away from the spot his friend had fallen to the deadliest of spells. The two men dragged each other up the stairs, one painful step at a time. Each one pushed Sirius closer to losing his mind and Remus grew more worried about his friend's state as they went. Something was wrong, more than what Sirius had told him, and dread ate at his stomach.
The elves followed in awed, respectful silence. They felt the evil that had tainted the home and their little hearts, even the one that belonged to Kreacher, broke.
Sirius took a look hard look down the hallway towards the nursery but refused to tread that horrifying journey. He had done it once when he had followed the painful cries of a baby Harry. No power on Earth could take him down that part of the house again.
"This is it, Moony." His body shuddering from the onslaught of emotions. "This is where you find out the truth."
Remus looked at his friend in confusion at the confession. What truth? By the time he was able to consider voicing the question, Sirius had stepped away and into James and Lily's bedroom. The werewolf quickly followed and saw Sirius go directly to a small painting that hung next to the closet. It was a copy of William-Adolphe Bouguereu's The Birth of Venus.
Sirius pulled out a silver dagger from beneath his robe and sliced into his thumb. Remus watched as his friend drew the rune for family on the goddesses' pale stomach.
"Family Forever." Sirius spoke the command clearly.
The rune flared with magic and it judged his right to the secrets hidden. Only Sirius knew the deadly curses waiting to be set loose if he failed the test. The rune flared a second time and then the painting faded away to reveal an open space, inside sat a single journal written in the hand of Lily Potter née Evans along with a collection of scrolls and vials.
Sirius scooped up all but the book into a conjured bag and then turned to Remus, journal extended. "Read."
"Here? Now?" Remus couldn't believe it. They were in the home of their best friends, the memories and ghosts tormenting them every second, and Sirius wanted him to read?
"Now." Sirius commanded. "I swore that only Harry's eyes would ever read it outside of this house. You aren't going to make me break that oath, Moony. Now read."
Remus frowned, his brow furrowing, and with trepidation he took the journal. With reverence he sat on the bed and opened the book, and for once he cursed his ability to read fast. The surprises kept coming right up until he got to the end.
"I don't..." He swallowed hard, a hand running over his haggard face and tried again. "It's true? All of it?"
"All of it."
"Have you told..."
"Harry?" Sirius scoffed. The Marauder had yet to move from the spot. "Not yet. There's a lot of technical jargon in there and its been a lot of years since Lily explained the details to me. I needed someone who could understand it all so I didn't screw up."
"Why!" Remus' low cry was filled with pain and confusion. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"How could we? What could we have said?" Sirius snapped, baring his teeth as though he was in his Padfoot form. "And anyway, Lily thought it would sort itself out before it was a problem."
"Why are you bringing this up now, Pads?" Remus searched his friend's eyes. "Are there signs of being an issue?"
"A few." Sirius confessed painfully. "That damn Book. The secret Potter one. I think it's unlocking everything, he's been having dreams."
Sirius sighed and looked around, his eyes picking up stories to almost every item in the room.
"It's the last roll of the dice." He pleaded for his childhood friend to understand. "If things turn bad, if snake-face is really after Harry, this gives him a chance to disappear. To vanish and live a better life. Moony, that there is his chance to escape. No one would ever be able to find him. Screw Dumbledore, screw the Ministry, screw them all. Prongslet would be free and clear."
"And alive." Remus added with a nod, finally seeing the plan that was being proposed.
"This would save little Half-blood?" Kreacher spoke up from the doorway. Both men jumped, they had forgotten all about the elves.
"Master Sirius must do it." The Black elf demanded. "Nasty Master's wolf must do it. Kreacher will not lose more masters to nasty snake wizard!"
Remus gave his friend a weak smirk of amusement. Throughout the older elf's speech Dobby had been nodding his head fast enough to be almost a blur.
"The little guys have spoken. I'm in."
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27th October, 1994 – Early Morning, Hogwarts
Harry found himself standing in a green field. Here and there the grass was stained a dirty brownish-red and it took him a little while to realise where he was.
It was the field of slaughter from the dream. Which mean the hill to his right was the one he had been on when he watched Riddle kill Sirius. Harry took a deep breath and threw his head back with a roar.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"
A low grow told Harry that the wolf was back and he faced it with a glare, his teeth bared in the primal show of defiance.
"I'm blood sick of this place, you know that right?" He snarled, curling his hands into claws as though ready to fight the animal. "First there was that horrible free-for-all, that girl living in my place and then Sirius! What more could you show me? What more do you want from me?"
The wolf stared at him without flinching, obviously not appreciating his attitude nor his words. It sat back on its hunches in a regal pose and waited for Harry to run out of steam.
"Great, ignore me!" Harry complained, throwing his hands in the air in defeat. "I bet you're not even real. Of course you're not real, you're in my Morgana-be-damned head! So you're some mental hallucination to torment me? Some twisted thing from my subconscious? Or am I being possessed by an overly friendly, nightmare inducing wolf? Is that it? Are you one of Lu's animals? Because if you are..."
The wolf threw its head off to the side once it realised that his ramblings weren't going to end any time soon. The action caught Harry's attention enough that he stopped the ever increasingly bizarre ideas of the animal's origins and he looked to where the wolf had indicated.
What he saw was a far too familiar sight.
The mirror was as magnificent as it had been the first time he saw it. It stood alone, reaching to the heavens with an ornate gold frame, and had an enticing aura that pulled a person to it. Harry's breath caught in his throat and he closed his eyes. Hadn't he only that day thought of seeing it again?
Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt wohsi.
I show you your heart's desire.
"The Mirror of Erised." He snapped in fury. "Bloody thing should be destroyed."
As much as Harry had been wanting to look into the mirror's surface and be lost in the image of his parents, he also knew its dangers. Dangers he was strong enough to fight against.
It was the wolf's turn to grunt. Though whether in agreement, at Harry's thoughts, or the entire situation, he didn't know.
Although he knew what he would see, and didn't want to look, Harry still moved slowly, one agonising step after another. It was a dream and the dream wanted him to see.
There she was. The bright red hair and laughing eyes of Lily Potter née Evans. She looked the same age as in his nightmares. Only in the mirror she was happy. Harry guessed that the young James also matched how his father looked before they died, although he really had no memories of the man.
The young and so much in love couple were cooing and smiling over a crib and Harry could see the kicking feet through the white bars.
Tears fell and Harry could hear small sobs coming from somewhere. It took a while before he realised they were his own.
A young and healthy Sirius seemed to glide through the nursery door and Harry's heart stopped. His godfather looked so happy, so full of life. This was a Sirius Black who Harry could only catch glimpses of in the eyes of the man he knew. It was the Padfoot who had never faced the horrors of Azkaban, a man who still had the world at his feet and his family standing beside him.
Harry watched the three friends hug each other and his hand rose to touch the mirror, only to freeze when he realised it was Sirius' face that it was reaching for.
"Damn mirror." He growled, spinning to face the wolf. The tears might continue to flow but their reason had changed. "Even the bloody thing's truth is backwards! I'm right, aren't I? It doesn't show us our true heart's desires, it shows us an example of them."
Harry turned back and he had eyes for the only father figure he had ever known. The two Potters faded from his thoughts.
"I want family...parents...love. I have that now." He declared. "You hear me, you mangy thing! I have it now. That mirror won't control me any more!"
The wolf's tongue flopped out from over the sharp teeth in a far too familiar grin. Harry had seen Sirius in his Padfoot form laugh at him that way and it caused Harry's anger to break free. His fingers clenched into a tight fist and was already raising to slam into the hated mirror when its image changed.
The nursery fell away to be replaced by the sight of a teenage girl. She was aristocratic in looks, beating even the Ice Queen of Slytherin for striking features. They reminded Harry of Sirius, especially with the raven curls that fell far below her shoulders. The same dark hair that he had seen on the little girl from his other dream.
The young woman was giving him the same type of laughing smile as the wolf and her elegant face held the same laurel green eyes. The mirror's surfaced wavered slightly and there was Harry's reflection overlapping hers, their features blurring together until he struggled to see where one ended and one began.
"No!" He argued, shaking his head in desperation as he stepped away from the mirror. The overlapping blurred image didn't change. "No, it can't be. It's some sick joke."
The wolf remained silent, the girl in the mirror could not speak.
You are as much my child as you are James and Lily's.
"Sirius...you bastard..." Harry moaned out as the truth refused to be denied.
Harry dropped to his knees in heart-breaking sobs. He cried in confusion, cried for being kept in the dark, and cried for not knowing what it all meant for Harry James Potter.
Harry slowly became aware of the soft nuzzling of the wolf and instinctively he wrapped his arms around the large animal. Eventually tears, even in a dream, run dry and Harry pulled away from the warm fur.
"What do I do?" He asked those grey-green eyes. It looked at the mirror and Harry followed. The girl's face was sad, tear-stained to match his own, but there was a plea in her features he recognised from his childhood. The plea for freedom.
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oOoOo
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Harry woke exhausted and numb. He pulled himself out of the bed and slipped the Marauder's Map out from its safe spot beneath his pillow. He spent minutes staring at where the name Harry Potter was clearly visible and not once did it waver into something else.
It didn't make him feel better.
He woke Neville only to tell his friend that they were missing their morning run and slipped quickly out of the dorm. Harry swung from raging emotions to total numbness and he needed a release before the swings tore him apart. He refused to think about what the dream had told him yet the combined image of his face and the girl's refused to leave his mind's eye.
It was in the Room of Requirement, surrounded by piles of rumble and damaged dummies that Tonks found Harry. He had blown up his thirtieth statue just as she walked through the door and she whistled in admiration.
"Impressive, Harry." She told him as she leaned against the wall. "Neville said you didn't look well when you cancelled our run so I though I'd check up on our resident Arithmancy genius."
"You alone, Nat?" He asked her, turning so she could see his face and the evidence of his tears.
"You got me to yourself, hot-shot." She gave him a reassuring smile as she moved to the table and dropped into her preferred seat. "And for the record, you look like shit."
Harry gave her a weak smile and copied her action, running his hands frantically over his face as he learned back in the chair.
"How do you do it?" He softly asked. "How do you cope?"
"Do what?" She asked in confusion. "Cope with what?"
"How do you cope being someone your not?" His eyes locked with hers and she swallowed painfully around the lump that had threatened to choke her. There was a look of knowledge in his gaze that she wasn't comfortable with. "Taking on a different face. Being a different person."
"How...?" Nymphadora Tonks asked, her mouth working to complete the question yet no words came out.
Harry waved his hand at the table where the pale Potter Book sat along with the open and unlocked Map. He had been checking and rechecking it ever since he entered the room with the same result. He was still Harry Potter.
Tonks gasped when she leaned forward and saw the magic of the parchment and the two names it was focused on. Harry Potter and Nymphadora Tonks.
"How long have you known?" She asked meekly, looking between Harry and the magical Map.
"Almost since the beginning." He shrugged as though it wasn't a big deal. "Sirius remembered you wanted to be an Auror when you was a girl, did some maths and worked out this would be your first year as one. Since he sent the note to Madam Bones, it wasn't too hard to guess why you were here. I haven't told the others."
Tonks nodded numbly. She'd had her frantic moments, even cried a few times on Susan's shoulders a few times about having to lie to Harry the way she had been. She was undercover and she could handle the deception with the other students. But with Harry it had been harder. The secret tormented her when he had shared so much and had been wearing her down. Yet she hadn't been able to find a way of telling him, hadn't found the courage.
"How do you cope?" Harry repeated, needing to know.
"I am who I am, Harry." She told him honestly once she was able to consider the question. "A different name, a different face, I'm still me. It helps that I'm a Metamorphmagus, I can change back to the real me when I want."
"You ever feel like you're losing the real you?"
"Harry...what's this all about? Talk to me, please." She pleaded.
He looked away for a couple of minutes and when he looked back there was determination in his gaze but one mixed with fear and pain.
"That's the Potter Book." He explained, pointing at the object he was sure had started it all, and Tonks gasped. He gave a wry smile at the noise. "You've heard of it."
"Only as a legend." She swallowed hard. "Mum said she heard lots of stories about it; the Grimoire to end all Grimoires. A book with the power of the ages, all the dirty secrets of the Potter enemies, secrets to bring down the entire Wizengamot. Heck, even the last resting place of Merlin!"
Harry threw his head back and laughed, the release easing some of the stress that weighed him down.
"The Book tells the Potters about their heritage and reminds us of the bond with you Blacks." He gave a wry grin. "The secrets are only revealed if a ritual is done first."
"You did it." Tonks guessed shrewdly.
"Share a little blood, learn it all." Harry half-joked. "And see things. Dream things."
"Like with You-Know-Who?" Her face filled with worry at the possibility of Harry being touched even more by the feared monster. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief when he shook his head.
"About our Families mostly but about myself too." Harry swallowed and forged ahead, explaining the dreams and his final conclusion.
"Are you sure?" She pressed, a frown marring her cute face. "It could be a distortion from the dream and mirror and with your feelings of Sirius being so strong..."
She trailed off at the sight of Harry closing down, his face going blank at her disbelief. Tonks quickly spoke up, fighting against the emptiness of his eyes.
"Harry, I'm only saying it might not mean that." She tried to bring back the openness she had grown to enjoy seeing when he looked at her. "Look, I know some Legilimency. If you let me I can look in your mind and see the dream for myself. Maybe see if I can come to the same answer?"
Harry stared at Tonks without blinking nor any other sign he'd heard her, and her stomach dropped in fear. Had she lost him? Would she have the barrier between them that she'd seen him use with others? Then her heart jumped in happiness when she watched the light re-enter those emerald eyes.
"Okay, Nat. I trust you."
She knew how much his trust was worth. Tonks took her time to pull out her wand and point it at his forehead, the question clear in her eyes and she only continued when he nodded.
"Legilimens."
Tonks' touch was as gentle as she could make it while she watched the dream play out. When it was over there was only one thing she could say.
"Wow...you're hot as a girl."
Harry spluttered and blushed, looking away in embarrassment that only got stronger at her giggles.
"I've never heard of a spell that could do what you're thinking." She confessed. "It looks like it could be true but I have to ask, Harry, why does it matter?"
"Nat!" Harry cried out, mouth dropping. His embarrassment forgotten at the question. "Of course it matters!"
"Does it?" She pushed on with growing determinism. "Whatever the truth, you're still the person you are inside of you. You still have the same life experiences. And you know what, you still have Sirius as a loving parent who broke out of jail for you!"
Harry stared at her and she took the chance to push on.
"If you're really, somehow, a girl that doesn't change the person you are inside. Whether you're you or that hottie, you'd still have the same morals, the same passions. Believe this metamorph; the container does not change the ingredients."
Harry scrubbed at his face and sighed. It was still too much for him to accept but she'd given him something to consider. He was so caught up in his thoughts he didn't notice her rising and coming around the table to take his hand.
"Come on. Let's get you cleaned up and have breakfast. You don't need to make yourself sick about this until you speak to Sirius."
That, at least, was something Harry could agree with.
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oOoOo