Sorry for the wait, it's been nearly a month since I updated the story. I had difficulty writing out this chapter. I have a general plotline for the future but Aries' interaction with Hogwarts but it is more difficult than I imagined.
Ministry Confrontation
The following morning brought much consternation to the inhabitants of the castle since the last night's fiasco was still very fresh in their minds. It wasn't until nearly 10 in the morning when the people began to appear in the Great Hall, vast majority of them rubbing their eyes sleepily or letting out a yawn as they trudged to the tables for the breakfast. It was quite a blessing that it was weekend, which allowed them to sleep in rather late considering that nearly all of them had hardly a wink of sleep as they chattered the night away discussing the spectacular entrance and even more shocking revelation of a certain enigma.
The ceiling of the Hall was now open to the sky and many gazed at it with trepidation and curiosity at the extent of damage. The ceiling was completely blown off and filled the Hall with the morning sun and cool breeze.
The first to arrive were the Hogwarts students as they half consciously made their way into the Hall, trudging their feet unceremoniously. Even the usually tidy Slytherins walked into the Hall without their usual strict discipline considering that many of them continued to let out a yawn. Next to arrive were the foreign delegations, as they too, walked tiredly into the Hall.
The sleepy murmurs slowly faded away as more and more students began to regain their consciousness and it soon gave away to excitable chatters as they discussed the last night's fiasco. There were wild speculations flying left and right regarding the mystery only known as Aries Potter, or Aries Angelos as he preferred. Unfortunately for them, the people they wanted to question the most, Benjamin Potter, Fleur Delacour, Amanda Carpenter, and Aries Angelos himself, were notably absent.
As much as they wanted to grill them for information, none wanted to face the wrath of Madam Pomfrey, who was known throughout the school for her near-obsessive care for her patients. As far as they knew, the champions were all resting in the Hospital Wing due to the magical backlash caused by the Goblet's forceful destruction. None had seen any professors since the last night and they merely left a note to their students instructing them to carry on as usual as they will eventually explain the situation.
At that moment, the door opened and the staffs led by Albus Dumbledore, walked into the Hall and all the chatters stopped as the students looked intently at the adults. Dumbledore merely smiled the same grandfatherly smile and led the group to the recently repaired staff table where they sat down. However, the headmaster remained standing and chuckled at the undisguised look of curiosity in students' faces.
"Good morning everyone." Dumbledore began cheerfully with a twinkle in his eyes. "I have no doubt that many of you are rather curious of what had happened last night."
The Hall buzzed with excitement as he calmly waited for the noise to die down. " The rumors are running wild and we have decided to officially tell you some of the basic facts. As you know, I and the rest of the staff have spoke with Mr. Angelos last night and have confirmed that he is indeed our last champion. He is currently resting in a guest room and will rejoin us within few days. As for the rest of the champions, they are resting in the Hospital Wing and will be released once they have recovered from the magical backlash. As for the ceiling of the Hall, Ministry construction workers will be arriving this afternoon to fix the damage." He concluded.
As soon as he sat down, the students immediately began to excitedly chatter regarding the newest piece of information. Albus Dumbledore chuckled quietly at the excitement that hung over the Hall while Severus Snape scowled at the amount of noise they were making. However, the twinkles in his eyes faded as he replayed the last night's revelation. Shocking, would be an understatement of the chaos he felt when the truth had come out, it felt as if his entire world had turned upside down. Aries Angelos was nothing like he had imagined.
First, he turns up alive after nearly 14 years of absence and destroyed the Goblet of Fire after dueling him to a standstill. Then came his dark past and his status as a Denarian. It was shocking enough that he was aware of the Faes and true-magic but never in millions of years had he expected him to have become the host of Fallen, willingly. Of course, there was also the shocking turn of events of his sorting. Who would've thought that a Potter would be sorted into Slytherin?
But then again, it was hardly surprising considering his past experiences. He was frequently abused by the Dursleys much to his and Lily's everlasting regret and his talks with Severus over the years have informed him that children with experiences similar to Aries' often ended up in Slytherin. They had never suspected that Petunia's hatred of anything magic would extend to the child and was responsible for his past. The way he gleefully admitted his murder of Dursleys was by far the most disturbing piece of information as he absolutely felt no remorse or regret at murdering his abusive relatives. He had taken up the silver Denarius coin and willingly became a being of darkness and reveled in its power. The way he ruthlessly used Dark Arts without hesitation, his cold hatred against the Potters, and utterly unrepentant attitude only served to add to his growing headache.
He reminded him far too much of another student he knew, the one that was also so full of rage, hunger, and hatred. He reminded him far too much of Tom Marvolo Riddle, or more commonly known as Voldemort than he liked. Both were very powerful for their age and hated him, one for standing in his way and the other for placing him with the Dursleys. They were both dark but Aries Angelos was far from being a human, he was a Denarian and in some ways far darker than Voldemort could ever be. And lastly, they were both sorted into Slytherin and it filled him with gnawing anxiety as he mentally replayed the situation in his head. Will Aries Angelos follow the footsteps of Voldemort?
.oOo.
The said person, however, was currently sleeping away the morning in the bed as he snoozed peacefully. Few moments later, the eyelids opened slightly to reveal piercing emerald orbs before closing again as he rolled to his side, and away from the sunlit window with a lazy groan.
'It's time to awake Aries.' A soft, melodious voice whispered in his mind as he groaned in protest.
With a sigh, the messy haired teenager reluctantly rose from the bed and let out a wide yawn as he stretched like a cat after a nap. 'I hate mornings.' Aries thought grumpily as he made his way toward the bathroom for a shower.
'It's nearly 10:30 and not exactly early in the morning.' Meciel drawled as she mentally shook her head at the lazy and grumpy attitude her host showed each morning. 'I really should've been more firm with you during your childhood. I have a feeling that I rather spoiled you too much.' She murmured amusedly.
'You know, I can wake up early but I always need special help from Sephiria.' Aries retorted with a leering grin. 'You can always take her place seeing as she isn't always around me.' He wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively.
Meciel sighed and Aries smirked in silent victory. 'Anyway, we should retrieve few things from our apartment since we'll be living here for a while.' Meciel murmured as her host allowed the water from shower stall to wash over him.
'And then there is another meeting with the wand-wizards this evening.' Aries mentally grumbled as he finished his shower and began to dress himself. 'Oh joy.'
Meciel was silent as she contemplated the issue. 'I don't know why they would request another meeting when we already had it last night.'
Aries frowned as he secured Judgement on his back. 'Do you think they are up to something? I mean, I did win their sympathies somewhat so that would prevent them from moving against us directly.' He said as Meciel contemplated the evening's meeting. By telling them his "sad sob story," he was able to sway them to his favor somewhat and prevent them from antagonizing him too much.
People these days were so dumb, all it takes is a sob story and they fall for the hook, line, and the sinker. While he certainly didn't enjoy spilling out his secrets, he at least, had the pleasantries of seeing the look of guilt and despair in Potters' faces. Their misery fueled his cruel ecstasy and it somewhat compensated for his distaste for bringing out his secrets.
'I'm not too sure but one thing I know for sure is that Ministry will try to somehow intervene in our lives.' Meciel said distastefully at the thought of those foolish, weak, and pathetic wand-wizards trying to interfere with their lives. Just like any governments, the Ministry of Magic will take interest in special cases like this one and will undoubtedly be very interested once they find out the extent of their secrets as well as their power. They would seek to study them and if possible, try to turn them into their loyal stooge or make a super soldier out of them. Of course, the chance of that happening was almost nothing next to zero considering how powerful they were. Not to mention, Aries had took on more powerful and insidious foes than mere humans, namely Denarians. If they tried to interfere, they would only face their destruction.
Aries was silent for a moment as he thought of all the possibilities that might occur. 'If anyone comes after us, I will destroy them I always have done.' He thought darkly. No one will stand in his way.
Without another word, Aries Angelos quickly dressed himself and stalked out of Hogwarts using Disillusionment charm before pulling out a small parchment. Pointing his wand toward the piece of paper, he muttered out the spell. "Portus."
There was a small flash of blue light and the Denarian vanished as the portkey activated.
.oOo.
Meanwhile, the Potters sat in their room while they blankly stared down at their plates with misery, with what had happened last night they didn't want to be present at the Hall along with others. Last night had literally turned their life upside down. Their long lost son turned up unexpected in Hogwarts to destroy the Goblet of Fire of all things and dueled Dumbledore as well as nearly killing everyone in the Hall with the following explosion after he cut the cup in half. However, the biggest shock was his attitude which cut into their heart deeply.
Lily had always imagined what it would be like to be reunited with her son. Sure, she expected him to be somewhat angry and bitter when they went back to reclaim him once he reached the age of eleven but he would eventually understand that it was for the best. It would be like one of those heartfelt moment as James and Benjamin would welcome him back with open arms and Aries would smile and hug them back while she would watch with a smile on her face.
That was the dream she had been hoping to see. However, all that changed once her sister's home burned down along with everyone inside. She had literally broken down and cried her hearts out that night at the loss of her sister and her firstborn child. When it was discovered that Aries' corpse wasn't among the dead, it filled her with desperate hope and she, along with everyone she could think of, searched for her son days and nights. But as the times went by, she began to lose her hope and after several years of no results, the search was called off and Aries James Potter was declared missing or dead.
During the following months, she had hit her rock bottom and she moaned for the loss of her son. Amongst the misery, she had plenty of times to review her mistakes and the feeling of regret that accompanied her sought to drown her into insanity. Lily finally realized how much of a failure she had been as a mother. She and James had been so caught up with the fame of her second son that they had completely ignored the duty of their parenthood and sent her firstborn away when they should've loved them equally. It took the loss of their firstborn son to finally knock some sense into her and James and it shamed her and filled her with regret. It was only through the presence of James, Benjamin and her friends that she was able to move on eventually.
But it was not so. After nearly 8 years of absence, Aries reappeared once more and with a bang. When Albus had whispered out his name from the parchment that shot out from the cup, it was almost too much to bear. She, along with James, had almost given up hope and now there was a real possibility that Aries might be alive. The following days nearly drove her insane with anxiety and flimsy hope that James had to stun her periodically so that she wouldn't break down from the pressure.
And then, came the yesterday night when he finally reappeared. After nearly 14 years since they had placed him with the Dursleys that she finally beheld the image of her son once more. The last time she had seen him was when he was but a mere baby with James' messy black hair and bright green eyes like hers. The person who stood before her was no longer a child but a growing young man. He was stood bit taller than his peers with same messy black hair that nearly reached down to his cheeks and lithe frame with a slight hint of muscles underneath the clothes.
However, it was his eyes that had changed the most. Before, it used to be so bright with happiness, joy and innocence with a permanent, mischievous grin that reminded her of James. His eyes were almond shaped like hers but now, those same eyes were so cold, so devoid of life and innocence she had known from him and the color of his emerald eyes had darkened considerably than her own. His gaze was so cold and piercing that she unconsciously flinched every time she met his eyes. They no longer spoke of joy, love and innocence but burning hatred, cold disdain, and absolute fury.
The sharp words he threw at her after nearly 14 years, cut into her deeply and before she knew it, they were in Dumbledore's office. It was there when the true extent of horrors came out. Not only had her sister abused Aries, she did everything she could to make him suffer. Lily knew their relationship turned bitter the moment she accepted Hogwarts' acceptance letter but she never knew how far her hatred went.
When Aries gleefully admitted that he murdered the Dursleys by his own hand, Lily nearly suffered the mental breakdown from the shock. He was not what she had expected. Instead of the heartwarming reunion she had envisioned, she had gotten cruel words and burning hatred from her own son. The amount of hatred and rage he exhibited by Aries, combined with her guilt at her failure as a mother, completely broke her heart.
Aries, her own child, didn't want anything to do with her and even went as far as to denounce the Potter name.
"Lily?" A tentative voice broke through her thoughts.
Turning her head, she met the concerned gaze of her husband. James looked as if he had aged several years in one night and he squeezed her hands. "I've been thinking James." Lily whispered as she felt her eyes tear up. "What if Aries doesn't want anything to do with us?"
James swallowed heavily as he wiped away her tears. "Then we'll just have to beg for his forgiveness again and again no matter how long it takes. I know we don't deserve it but we'll always love him no matter what." He whispered sadly.
Lily choked a sob and desperately hugged him before the dam broke. The sound of her sobs echoed throughout the room and James never felt so miserable.
.oOo.
The day passed swiftly for the students. As promised the workers from the Ministry arrived in the afternoon and immediately began the construction of the new ceiling. It wasn't still complete but it did manage to shield their head from the atmosphere. With much to talk about, the day turned into the night and it was dinner. Headmaster Albus Dumbledore stood up with twinkling eyes as he tapped the side of his cup with his spoon. The sound, magnified by magic, echoed throughout the Hall and the chattering conversations came to a stop as students from all 4 schools turned their heads and fell silent.
"Good evening," Dumbledore began pleasantly. "I would first like to welcome the Beauxbatons, Durmstrang and Salem for the spirit of the international tournament and hope that we can set aside old differences and become firm friends."
Polite round of applause echoed and Dumbledore smiled warmly. "Also, as Professor Carpenter of Salem's Institute requested, the Alternative Magic and Old World class will be held once a week and it will be voluntary. The class will study about the Alternative Magics and the creatures and customs of the Old World. I strongly urge anyone interest to take the class as they will be well worth your time."
He smiled beneath his long silver beard as interested muttering spread through the students. Many quirked an eyebrow at the thought of Alternative Magic and the mention of the Old World. None of them knew what they were about some, especially those in Ravenclaws, looked quite interested.
'I just hope Ms. Carpenter doesn't teach too much about the Faes or True-Magic. The 2 worlds have been separate since the time of Merlin and wand-wizards are not ready to know about them.' He thought worriedly.
"And finally, I would also like to introduce a new student, who have recently arrived at Hogwarts and have been sorted into his house." Dumbledore continued as curious and excited whispers broke out those gathered in the Hall. Hogwarts looked extremely curious and even the foreigners muttered with interested gaze. "Please welcome our newcomer, Aries Potter, who have been sorted into 5th year Slytherin."
The curious whispers now turned into surprised gasps and chatter as the students immediately turned around to find the enigmatic son of the Potters. While the foreigners looked merely curious and wary as they still remembered the last night's event, the Hogwarts students were chattering with excitement, curiosity, and horror. A Potter in Slytherin?
Gryffindors muttered darkly with each other with a look of betrayal. Potters were always sorted into Gryffindors but it seemed the newest addition to the illustrious family rather had a dark tendency. The older brother of the Boy-Who-Lived was now in Slytherin and some Gryffindors, led by Ronald Weasley, began a heated rant of how dark he was considering that the enigma had battled Dumbledore and nearly killed all of them by destroying the Goblet and blew off the Great Hall's ceiling.
Many in Hufflepuff looked quite terrified at the idea of the eldest Potter child being in the Slytherin. They vividly remembered how strong and terrifying he had been last night as he went toe to toe against one of the most powerful wizards of the century. When he had bulldozed through them last night with some kind of strange magical shield, the majority of those who had been standing in his path were Hufflepuffs and it filled their hearts with fear and anxiety at the thought of him joining Hogwarts.
Ravenclaws were the most silent of the 4 houses. Oh, they were very curious and shocked as the rest but they quickly recovered their wits and began to whisper more quietly than the others. They weren't as angry like the Gryffindors nor were they horrified like the most Hufflepuffs, on the contrary, they were mostly curious. He would be the first Potter ever to be sorted into Slytherin and he was the older brother to Benjamin Potter to boot. Everything about him was shrouded in mystery and he was an absolute enigma. He was a puzzle that many of them were itching to solve.
Slytherin, on the other hand, was the most shocked out of the 4 houses. The reactions varied from anger and disbelief to interest and amusement. Some of them, purebloods especially, immediately began to rant angrily at how a blood traitor like a Potter could ever be sorted into their house while others, mostly the upper years, quietly but rapidly whispered with each other. Who would've thought that a Potter would actually end up in the house of snakes when his parents, brother and ancestors were all sorted into Gryffindors? While many of the purebloods were lost in mindless rants, others in their house rapidly examined what they knew about the mysterious Potter heir. They hadn't forgotten about the display of power last night nor the fact of how he sneaked into the ancient castle when it was considered as one of the most heavily warded places in England. Perhaps there were very good reason why he was sorted into Slytherin...
"Aries Potter!" Dumbledore called out when there was no sign of the said person. People were looking around now with hint of impatience as well as some amusement, it wasn't everyday when a person blatantly disrespected the esteemed headmaster.
Dumbledore sighed audibly. "Aries Angelos." He amended after a moment. It seemed that the young Denarian was dead set on not forgiving the Potters, if at all. He had hoped that he would at least use his family name but it looked as if Aries wanted to completely server all ties with his birth family and burn off all bridges.
From the doors, a single figure slipped in. He stood slightly taller than average and was dressed in the familiar black trench coat minus the hood. There was the handle of the sword sticking out from the back, signifying that he was still carrying the weapon which destroyed the Goblet of Fire. He wore slim black legging that didn't looked baggy but allowed range of movements as well as normal muggle sneakers. The only thing that indicated he was a Hogwarts student was the white, formal T-shirt he wore with a green and silver tie of Slytherin house.
He didn't even flinch or show any nervous reactions but merely met the hundreds of stares with icy glare that promised pain to anyone who disturbed him. He had faced a Basilisk, Red Court vampires, and other Denarians who hungrily screamed out for his blood, before he offed them anyway. Compare to that, this was nothing. After calmly glancing around the tables and meeting the curious stares with a deadly glare, he transferred his gaze to the old wizard sitting at the staff table.
"I thought I made it clear last night when I said my name was Angelos. Not. Potter." He hissed out coldly to the surprise of the Hall. Students, especially those from Hogwarts, looked incredulously at his blatant disrespect while Karkaroff smirked at the thought of Albus Dumbledore finally being put on his place.
"Perhaps it's time you look through the retirement pamphlets considering the fact that you keep forgetting that I am an Angelos despite the number of times I already told you." He sneered mockingly at him as hundreds of students gaped at his audacity. Gryffindors immediately began to scowl darkly at him as he mocked their idol and greatest leader while Slytherins looked momentarily stunned before smirking with amusement. "You really should consider a psychotherapy. I hear forgetfulness is a common sign of Alzheimer or a mental degeneration."
"I do not think I have reached that point yet Mr. Angelos." Dumbledore said dryly ignoring the dark looks sent at the Denarian by the Gryffindors or the snickers from the Slytherins.
Aries snorted while rolling his eyes. Easily ignoring the gaze of everyone, he stalked toward the green and silver table and some of them hastily moved away to make a spot after meeting his icy glare. Still scowling at everyone, he sat down and grabbed some foods and piled them on his plate before hungrily devouring them. The foods, he discovered, were actually pretty good and he ate them hungrily while the conversations erupted around him once more although they were equally hushed and forced as well as excited and curious.
Unfortunately, his wonderful dinner time was interrupted when someone decided to rudely interrupt his peace by asking a question. "Are you really Aries Potter?"
Aries sighed as he stopped the fork halfway to his mouth. Putting down the utensil, he flickered his eyes from his plate to the one sitting in front of him. The person was a boy with sandy brown hair and grey eyes with squat and lumpy features as well as slightly burly build.
"I thought I made it clear when I said my name is Aries Angelos." He grunted with annoyance.
"That was a dumb question Carrow. He looks just like Potter." A boy seated next to him said with a bored voice.
"Shut it Nott." The boy named Carrow snapped at the tall boy with thin features who somewhat looked "weedy" and "stringy."
Nott narrowed his eyes and was about to retort with scathing comment when a smooth, calm voice interrupted them. "That's enough." A tall, dark skinned boy with high cheek bones and slanted eyes cut across them. "You are a mystery Angelos, you were reported as dead for nearly 8 years and suddenly turned up last night." He curiously gazed at him while making sure to call him Angelos instead of Potter. It might not do good to irritate him.
Aries swallowed the mouthful pork meat he had been silently chewing on and turned his head to fully look at the one who skillfully steered the conversation away from the impending fight. "And you are?" He asked with bored voice.
"Blaise Zabini." The dark skinned boy introduced himself. "That's Theodore Nott," He gestured at the tall and thin looking boy. "And that's Anton Carrow." He pointed at the squat and ugly looking kid. By now, the rest of the Slytherins around him were discreetly looking at him with curiosity. They didn't openly stare at him but it was quite clear that they were listening into the conversation with interest.
Aries sighed mentally. 'Is it really that hard for me to just eat in peace?' He thought sourly.
"I've been traveling." Aries answered simply.
"Where?" A pug faced girl few seats away asked bluntly.
"Here and there." He answered vaguely with a smirk at the gleam frustration appeared on others eyes.
"That's hardly informative." A burly looking boy with dark hair and brown eyes muttered sourly.
"That's because it's none of your business." Aries snorted derisively at the interested looks he was getting.
"You aren't very talkative person are you?" A burly looking girl grunted out. Aries flickered his eyes toward the person and immediately knew that the girl would only get laid if the a dude was very intoxicated. She wasn't very pleasant to look at.
It was probably shallow and mean thing to judge people by their looks, girls especially, but hey, he was an evil hellspawn with penchant for destruction so he had a perfectly legitimate reason to act like an utter bastard.
"What genius detective work Sherlock," Aries said sarcastically as a pretty, dark haired girl sitting close to the burly looking girl let out an amused snort. "And here I thought that people would never let me finish eating my dinner with all the stupid questions. Now all of you shut up and let me eat."
Some of them frowned at his insults while others sneered at the newcomer. However, Aries turned his attention back to his plate and began to eat once more as he easily ignored the hostile looks he was getting from some of his housemates, especially the purebloods. A normal person would've shrunk from the dark looks or sneers he was receiving from other housemates but Aries Angelos was no such weakling. He had no interest in such trivial matters and wasn't here to make friends with them anyway. The only reason he was here was to participate in this blasted tournament and find out the culprit who entered him and kill him or her slowly.
Besides, he didn't want to be friends with such weaklings who would be of no use to him. Aries was quite picky when it came to making friends and only befriended those who showed potential to be of use to him and wasn't likely to betray him. As far as he knew, Meciel was everything he needed although some people, mainly Sephiria Raith, were a pleasant company while Dresden was tolerable despite his idiotic hero complex.
The rest of the meal passed rather wonderfully for the Denarian as he ate the dinner peacefully without any interruptions. The rest of the Slytherins, despite their burning curiosity, opted to leave him to his devices while occasionally shooting glances at his way. While eating his dinner, Aries gently lowered his mental shields to allow trail of thoughts to enter into his consciousness as he didn't want to be bombarded by hundreds of different thoughts.
These morons didn't even bother to learn Occulemency. While Occulemency would not completely block telepathy, it could still make it somewhat hazy for him to know their thoughts as well as making their minds more organized. It seemed only a handful of people, less than a dozen, even bothered with it. As he allowed thoughts to flow into him, Meciel began to analyze and organize any useful information he received for future reference.
'We have another meeting with the wand-wizards after dinner.' Meciel reminded him as he swallowed on pumpkin juice.
'What is the meeting about? I thought I answered all their stupid questions.' He thought sourly at another talk session with those annoying wand-wizards.
'I don't know, but it will be a good opportunity to learn just how your name came out of the Goblet.' Meciel murmured as she shifted in his head.
The Denarian turned to look at the staff table as he silently ate his dinner, it seemed that the Potters were absent to his relief as he didn't think he would enjoy another confrontation with them. While it was fun to verbally rip them apart, he preferred to not deal with them at all. Speaking of his once family, he better stop by his guest quarter to check up on Nightfang before another boring talk session. The Diamondback was rather peeved at the thought of porkeying to another country but relented when he learned that there was a large forest near the castle for him to hunt freely. Aries had briefly returned back to his luxurious apartment during the noon to pick up several items and clothes as well as his snake.
'You know, Nightfang is rather eerily similar like you.' Meciel mused as she smirked at the thought of the foul-mouthed snake. 'Both of you are rather lazy and foul mouthed. Like master like pet.' She sniggered.
'Sometimes I wonder why I even bothered to pick him put all those years ago.' Aries mentally grumbled as he remembered how bossy the Diamondback liked to be.
'He was rather helpful when you had to deal with those thugs back during the street days. Not to mention, he makes an excellent spy.' Meciel reminded him as she went over any possible blackmail material they received from others. There wasn't much she could use at the moment but they would eventually ferret out any dirty little secrets from every students in Hogwarts. Information like those could be very useful to them and would allow them to pull some favors in the future.
'He still haven't taught me much Parslemagic.' Aries grunted. Over the years he had bought Nightfang, Aries still haven't learned much about Parslemagic as he wanted.
'That's because we focused more on Wand-Magic and Angelic Maigc.' Meciel pointed out. 'And whenever you had time, you were either lazing around or getting into a fight.'
Aries grunted and turned his attention to observing the people around him. People were still somewhat excitedly pointing at him and whispering with each other as well as stealing dark glances, in case of Gryffindors. However, upon meeting his icy gaze, they hastily turned away from him and Aries smirked smugly at their cowardice. For a house that represented bravery, they sure were lacking some balls. Soon enough, the dinner ended and without another word, Aries and rest of the Slytherins, led by the grease ball Snape, walked toward their dorm.
Aries made sure to memorize the twisting passages so that he may not get lost. After descending to the dungeons, they came across a stone wall in the cellars with a large snake painted on it whose eyes glowed emerald as if silently judging the group.
"Magnus Supremus." Snape said curtly.
The snake hissed and the stone wall smoothly opened, creating an entrance. With his black robes billowing behind him, like a giant overgrown bat in his opinion, the greasy haired man entered swiftly followed by the rest of the house with Aries at the back. His eyes flickered here and there as he immediately searched for any shadows, hidden corners, and escapes routes. After years of fighting against the supernatural enemies, it had become a second habit for him to analyze his surroundings immediately upon entering a new surroundings.
The room had greenish lamps and chairs while low backed, black and dark green leather sofas laid here and there. Buttons, skulls, and dark wood cupboards decorated the floor. Going further in, they came upon a wide circular room with high dome-like ceiling with dark green carpet decorating the stone floor and a large fireplace. Chandlers and green lanterns hung from the ceiling and bathed the room with their soft light. It was a grand room with a cozy atmosphere for a dungeon although the dark and gloomy theme was still there.
'Not bad.' Meciel mused as she observed the common room. 'I rather like the atmosphere. It's quite fitting for a Fallen Angel and her Denarian host.'
Aries was pulled away from his observation when Snape whirled around and gazed at the group with his dark eyes with his trademark sneer.
"The tournament has now begun now that foreign schools have arrived and that champions have been chosen." Snape spat out the word champions like a disease as his eyes landed on the certain new comer.
"And also," Snape's soft voice carried on, the usual voice he used whenever he was about to torment any Gryffindors or Hufflepuffs. "It seems that we have a new guest."
At once, the Slytherins turned to look at the last figure in the line while Snape glared at the newest addition to the house of snake. Aries Angelos didn't even bat an eye nor did he flinch from the focused stare from the group, instead he met their stare with icy glare of his own and glared right back at Snape, daring him to challenge him.
"Aries Angelos, as you go by now these days." Snape silkily whispered, his quiet voice audible in the silent room. "You are now a member of the Slytherins and I expect you to follow the rules unlike your father and not bring shame to this house."
"If you perhaps, do bring any shame to this house, there will be consequences." Snape threatened while several not-so-well-hidden sniggers came from the purebloods. "Ahhh... What's this? You are not in proper uniform." Snape remarked as he critically gazed at the muggle clothes he was wearing with condescending sneer. "That will be a day of detention Angelos. Come to my office tomorrow at 8'o clock sharp."
Aries inwardly laughed at this greasy haired man's attempt at threats. He was a Denarian and a hellspwan who had slaughtered everyone and everything that stood in his way as well as surviving the world on his own with Meciel's help for years. There weren't many things he feared and he could count them with one hand; worthless wand-wizard like him wasn't even a threat to him.
Instead of cowering from the Snape's threats like many expected, Aries let out a bored yawn to the incredulous gaze of those in the room. "That's great, but you are forgetting the fact that I'll only be here for a year." Aries drawled lazily as Snape gritted his teeth at the boy's obvious lack of care or respect.
"I'm not here because I want to but because of the contract. I don't care about the rules or your opinions." He sneered back at the greasy bastard. Who the hell did he think he was threatening him? Didn't he know that in order to threaten someone, you had to have a leverage over them? He had specifically told everyone in Dumbledore's office that he wasn't here voluntarily and that he wouldn't be following the rules despite being enrolled here for a year.
"So you can take your threats and shove it all the way up your ass because I really don't care about you or the school." Aries responded with a smug smirk just to infuriate the man even more. The rest of the Slytherins drew in a sharp breath at his response, talking back to Snape was considered as a death wish among the students and he did it so casually. Snape, on the other hand, stood stock still with an unreadable expression although the Denarian could see the hint of fury in his black eyes.
Aries remained relaxed despite the imminent fight he was about to be in. He could see Snape's right hand twitch and move for his wand and was ready for his attacks. After all, no matter how fast the wand-wizards were, they were still humans and thus bound by the limits of their body. He, on the other hand, was a Denarian with supernatural strength and speed that far exceeded that of humans and had faced against foes who were faster and stronger than humans. While the man was obviously more powerful and experienced than the most wand-wizards, in the end, he was but a human.
Before they could come into blows, a small figure leaped between them much to the surprise of the students. It was a house elf.
"Mr. Snape sir, I is to deliver headmaster's message sir." The house elf squeaked at the dark glare from the greasy batman and the combined stare from the students. "He said to bring Aries Angelos sir for a meeting sir."
Snape seemed to twitch and glared furiously at him for few tense moments before gritting out his reply. "I'll be there."
The house elf hastily popped away, leaving a silent dorm with students who were looking nervously between their head of the house and the newest addition. The silence was so suffocating that one could literally hear a pin drop and it grew even more uneasy and awkward as Aries Angelos coldly glared right back at Snape. With one final glare, Snape turned on his heels and briskly strode out the common as anyone in his way stumbled over themselves to move away. With a loud bang, the entrance to the Slytherin dorm was closed and all was silent once more.
"What a moron." Aries snorted as he sneered at the direction Snape had gone out, easily ignoring the incredulous look directed at him by the rest of the Slytherins.
"You really got some balls Potter." Murmured one of the upper year Slytherin who immediately took a step back when the Denarian's ice cold gaze landed on him.
"Is everyone in this whole castle deaf or what?" Aries scowled at others. "I am NOT a Potter. My name is Aries Angelos." He hissed coldly as his eyes flashed with anger, unnerving the students.
With a irritated scowl, he nimbly jumped onto one of the couch so that he could gain some extra height, immediately gaining the attention of everyone gathered. "Let's make few things clear so that you morons would understand." He snapped as his penetrating gaze swept through them, stifling any glares or arguments from those gathered.
"My name is Aries Angelos, NOT Potter! Next idiot to call me Potter will be seriously screwed over!" He glared at them, silencing any form of protest or mockery, especially from the purebloods. "Also, I'm NOT here to make friends or to follow rules like that grease balls thinks I should. I'm only here for the tournament and to find out just how I've been entered into this blasted contract." He snapped coldly.
"Stay out of my way and I'll stay out of yours. Got it?" He finished, leaving a silent crowd in front of him as he jumped down from the couch.
Satisfied with his message delivered, Aries stalked out of the common room to have another meeting with the wand-wizards. 'I've been here for less than two days and I'm already running out of patience. With the rate this is going, I'll seriously end up murdering a quarter of population before the tournament is over.' He thought irritably.
With a brisk pace, he head over to his temporary room first, it might be a good idea to check on Nightfang before meeting with the wand-wizards.
.oOo.
"Just where is that boy Albus?" A voice growled impatiently.
Albus Dumbledore mildly looked over at the short and plump form of the Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of the Magic. It had been nearly half an hour since he sent the house elf to fetch for the potion master and the young Denarian and people were getting rather irritated. After nearly fifteen minutes of waiting, he had sent another house elf to fetch young Angelos but the elf came back with an answer from him that since Albus had originally requested the meeting at 9 P.M., Aries will not show himself until the designated time.
And thus, leading to current frustration. Sitting at the lavishly decorated chair was the current Minister of the Magic, Cornelius Fudge and sitting close to him was his pet toad and Senior Undersecretary of Magic, Dolores Umbridge. Behind them and standing closer to the bookshelves were Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Rufus Scrimgeour, Head Auror, and Kingsley Shacklebolt, Fudge's bodyguard. Others included the Hogwarts staffs, and the Potters as well as Sirius Black.
Molly Carpenter, on the other hand, was seated away from Fudge and Umbridge and looked utterly unconcerned from the hostile glances ugly toad woman sent her. McGonagall and Flitwick were talking quietly with one another although he could see impatient glances the stern woman sent at the door every now and then while Snape, as usual, was brooding near the corner of the office with an angry look.
With his eyes twinkling, Dumbledore turned his gaze from observing them and looked at Potters, James and Lily had subdued atmosphere while Sirius spoke quietly with them. He momentarily felt a pang of regret and shame as he looked at them, as the state of their mood was partially his fault.
At that moment, there was a sharp knock at the door and all conversations ceased as all occupants turned their gaze toward the door. Although he knew who it was, Albus Dumbledore was slightly puzzled when he couldn't identify the person behind the door as he usually did.
Putting down his tea, he called out. "Enter."
The door swung open and revealed the person they were waiting for. Aries Angelos was sporting his usual look with the slim muggle pants with sneakers while wearing the standard Hogwarts' white T-shirt with sliver and green tie. However, instead of wearing the normal wizarding robe, he wore his black trench coat with its lower part flaring out behind him like a waist-length cape. Currently, he was standing with his feet wide apart as he avoided stepping on the large stone slab situated in front of the door.
With a smirk, Aries Angelos calmly entered the office as his eyes scanned the office, silently assessing each people. "That was a clever trick Dumbledore." Aries said mildly as he gave him an amused smile. "You put a detecting rune beneath that stone slab in front of the door to allow to you know just who was outside your office."
Dumbledore chuckled ruefully at the slightly surprised expressions on the people's faces. Minerva, in particular, looked rather intrigued as she had been the most curious and annoyed at how her eccentric employer always knew just who was outside his office. "Indeed, that was quite a useful trick I found," Dumbledore looked at the Denarian with his twinkle on full blast. "Minerva here was rather annoyed at how I always knew who was outside the office." He smiled benignly at him.
"You are only the second person to have figure that out." Dumbledore chuckled.
Aries quirked his eyebrow at the compliment, being a Denarian made him much more sensitive to the magic around him but he barely was able to sense the rune hidden beneath the stone slab. Dumbledore, despite his age and immense power, was a wily old man with one of the sharpest minds he encountered. "Who was the first?" He asked with small curiosity.
"I believe that is for another time." Dumbledore said with a small smile. "Lemon drops?"
Aries shrugged and looked around the room mildly, judging people's reactions. "Any lead on the culprit?" He asked.
"We are still investigating. However, we believe that the culprit had cast a very strong Confundus charm on the Goblet." Dumbledore answered him as he conjured a comfortable looking chair for him, who after few moments sat down on it.
Aries hummed as he mulled over the information. Somehow the culprit was able to use the Confundus charm to bewitch a powerful magical object but what puzzled him was the fact that his name was somehow entered. He never gave anyone his full name willingly and there were only handful of people who knew it and none of them were in Britain. The people he interacted with barely knew him since most of them were usually killed by him (his targets) or wasn't the type to sell him out. Dresden worked for the White Council and the two magical worlds were kept separate and he just wasn't the type to sell him out since he was the Denarian's employer as well as mentor. The White Court Vampires saw him as a very powerful ally and he was more useful to them if his identity was relatively unknown, not to mention that House Raith absolutely adored him. Carpenters were goody goody two shoed family and he doubted they would go behind his back, despite the fact that they were technically enemies; They never knew about his past or his connection to the Potters at all, other than the fact that he was a wand-wizard and butchered his relatives at age of 7.
As far as he knew, he never told anyone of his origin other than Meciel and Nightfang.
Then there were the Winter Faes and the Order of Blackened Denarius. The cold and merciless Faes of Winter were even more of a tricky bastards than the White Court Vampires and he knew that Maeve, the Winter Lady, was especially interested in him due to his background as a powerful Denrain and wand-wizard in his own right. The Faes were very good at ferrying out secrets and observed the mortal world from their home, Nevernever. It wouldn't have surprised him if they were somehow able to figure out his secret.
As for the Order of Blackened Denarius, on the other hand, also had a very extensive spy network. While it was as efficient like the Faes' they had contacts all over the world. The members of the Blackened Order who came across him were all killed and their coins safely locked away by the Knights of Cross. He doubted they could've figured out his past.
'The most probable explanation we have is that this was either an accident or there is something we are missing.' Meciel murmured as he frowned at the result, neither were good.
"Dumbledore, you can have that discussion later. I have other things to do in the Ministry." Fudge said impatiently before the two could resume their conversation.
"Ah yes. Old men like me sometimes get lost in our musings." Dumbledore chuckled with twinkling eyes but despite his cheerful expression, Aries detected slight feeling of irritation from the aged headmaster.
"This is Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic." The old man introduced the short, and plump wizard with a pompous air of arrogance. "And Dolores Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary of Magic." Dumbledore said as he nodded to a short and ugly looking woman who reminded him of a toad.
Aries felt his lips tug downward in a grimace as he gave a flat stare at the two figures. The Minister was one of those incompetent and arrogant idiot who believed the world revolved around them. Just by judging the man's body language, Aries was able to deduce his personality and abilities. The way he puffed out his chest was a dead giveaway of his arrogance along with self-importance a mile long while lacking power and confidence. His eyes kept flickering at his minion... eer secretary and crimson robed bodyguard as if seeking reassurance. Not to mention, Aries could practically feel the thoughts and emotions rolling off the man with his supernatural abilities.
As for Dolores Umbridge, Aries found it very difficult to not gag at the sight of her image. She was perhaps one of the ugliest woman he had ever met, and considering that he had been travelling a lot for nearly 8 years and meeting lots of people, that was saying something. In fact, she looked so much like a toad that he wondered if her family had a tradition of breeding humans with toads. He half expected her to open her mouth to let out a croak and shoot out her tongue to catch a fly. And finally, this woman was dressed entirely in pink. The horrible, mind scarring pink that flashed into one's eyes that he or she might want to blind themselves. She was short and plump and waddled like a penguin as she rose from her seat and walked to stand behind the Minister.
"Minister, this is Aries Angelos." Dumbledore introduced him to the moronic duo.
"Yes, yes, this is the Potter heir is he not?" Fudge said as he looked at him with greedy eyes. Aries could tell that he was looking for ways to turn this event into his own advantage, and use him for the Ministry's purpose, much to his and Meciel's distaste. Aries heaved a sighed and resisted the urge to scowl while pinching the bridge of his nose. Why does everyone he meet think he's a Potter when his name clearly states Angelos? "It's Angelos. Aries Angelos, not Potter." Aries said bluntly.
Potters flinched but none noticed it besides those standing close to them. Fudge seemed stunned for a moment, no doubt he wasn't addressed in such manner by anyone else before. Turning his gaze to Dumbledore, which frustrated Fudge judging by his look of indignation, Aries looked at him with boredom but with hint of steel. "What's going on here?"
"Well... The Minister-" Said Dumbledore.
"Hem-hem." Aries narrowed his eyes with distaste as the toad opened her mouth. "The Minister has come to investigate the matter of your... reappearance into the Magical Britain." Said the toad in most horrible, girlish voice that instantly grated on his nerves. It was so bad that he immediately wanted to throttle her or better yet, set her on fire.
Aries flicked his eyes toward the pathetic looking wizard with the bowler hat and as expected, the man wilted under his icy gaze. 'So, the wand-wizards are finally making their move.' He mused off handily. It wasn't that surprising given how much of a fiasco the Goblet of Fire incident was. He and Meciel had already known that given the chaos of the situation, it was only a matter of time before the Ministry of Magic would get involved. Still, he had hoped that Dumbledore would somehow keep them off his back since he had no desire to deal with the wand-wizards at all.
He had long since observed the wand-wizarding world and knew that British Wizarding World was perhaps the most incompetent government amongst the ICW. Still, the opportunity was far too golden to be wasted. Lowering his mental barrier, he allowed the thoughts of two idiots in front of him to flow into his mind while he probed deeper and deeper into their mind.
"Oh? Then why did you bring so many people?" Aries said as he gestured at the other robed people standing few feets away from them.
"Your return to the Wizarding World was done in a spectacular fashion if I may add Mr. Angelos." Commented a stern looking witch with close-cropped grey hair and a monocle as she cut across whatever the pink toad might say. "Not only did you destroy the Goblet of Fire, which was a priceless historical artifact, you also endangered the students and staffs when the Goblet exploded."
Aries didn't show any other outward reaction other than to continually look bored at the situation. There was no flinch of shame or sneer of disdain directed toward them much like most wrong doers did. "And you are?" He asked blandly.
"I am Amelia Bones, Director of the Department of the Magical Law Enforcement." The witch introduced herself. "And these two are Rufus Scrimgeour, Head Auror, and Kingsley Shacklebolt, an accomplished Auror and Minister's security."
"I was unwillingly entered into a magical contract, one in which I had no intention of participating. Also, did you know that if you died during the tournament the cup would rip your magic from your still breathing body?" Aries replied mildly as he scrutinized the older witch.
The occupants in the room drew a sharp breath at that particular piece of information. The Goblet of Fire was a mystery to many and only the Unspeakables knew how the Goblet functioned. "I'm quite surprised that the Ministry didn't lock it up as a dark artifact." Continued Aries with mild amusement.
"What do you mean rip your magic from your body?" Fudge demanded confusedly.
"Exactly as I said." Aries grunted as he looked at the incompetent idiot. "The few moments before your death, the Goblet will rip your magic away from you for your failure in completing the task."
Dumbledore lost his customary twinkle as he softly stroked his beard. "And how do you know this Mr. Angelos?" He asked cautiously. Aries didn't reply but smirked while tapping the side of his head, a gesture only Dumbledore and Molly Carpenter understood.
"Even so, Mr. Angelos had destroyed the Goblet, which is a criminal offense." Umbridge said in a sickly sweet voice while Potters scowled at her.
"I will not have my son persecuted like a common criminal Umbridge!" James Potter snarled in a heated voice. Ugly frown crept on Umbridge's face making it even more ugly than before, if that was even possible.
Fudge looked quite uncomfortable as he nervously shifted his eyes from his Senior Undersecretary to Amelia and to the Potters. Potters had lots of political power due to their son's status as one of the Boys-Who-Lived and preferred not to cross them.
The toad opened her mouth to retort but found herself cut off by Amelia, again. "That's enough James! I know you don't like it but we are required to know question him." Said the Director of DMLE as she gave a stern glare at James Potter.
"Err- Right. We had been given a basic background of what had happened but I'm afraid we must question you Mr. Angelos." Fudge said uncomfortably at the combined glares from Potters and Black. Aries was unimpressed and gave him a flat stare. With a snort, he stood up from his chair and began to walk toward one of the bookshelves Dumbledore had in a leisure manner.
"I don't have to do anything I don't want to Minister." Aries said in a mocking tone as he turned away from the bookshelf while pinning everyone with his powerful gaze. With his back toward the bookshelf, it allowed him to keep everyone in his field of vision, allowing him to observe their reactions as well as keep him safe from and unprotected attacks just in case things get violent.
Fudge spluttered at him with indignation while Umbridge screamed at the Aurors in rage. "Aurors! Arrest him!"
"On what grounds?" Aries sneered at the toad and the fool of a Minister.
"For disobeying the decree of Minister!" Umbridge snarled at him. "If you resist the arrest, you'll be brought down with lethal force!"
"ENOUGH!" Dumbledore yelled as he leaped up from his chair and let out a powerful light from his wand. A blinding light flashed and filled the office as it temporarily incapacitated everyone. When the light died down, Aries blinked his eyes as he tried to get the shake off the after effect of the old man's power.
"Control yourselves. There will be no violence in this office!" Dumbledore said sternly as everyone flinched from the power emitting from him. Aries didn't react but he was quite impressed. Despite his eccentric attitude, it was times like these that Dumbledore truly brought out the side of him which reminded everyone just how powerful he was.
"I have been living outside of England for more than 8 years now." Aries spoke as he broke the silence followed Dumbledore's show of power. "I may have been born inside of England but the Ministry doesn't have any authority over me." He said coldly while glaring at Fudge and his pet toad.
Reaching over his shoulder, he gripped the handle of Judgement and drew it out slowly while Dumbledore stared at him with hard face. His blue eyes were cold and he closely observed him in case the things really did turn violent. The angelic blade gleamed from the lights and its silver edges looked unnaturally sharp, as if it could cut through the very air itself. Aries let a steady flow of hellfire and his magic flow through him and into the blade and before the astonished and tense eyes of his audience, the black lightning sparked into life and enveloped the divine sword. He steadily increased the flow of energy until the black lightning was flaring almost out of control and the brilliant emerald aura surrounded him as well as inky darkness that seemed to dance with malice. His lips curled in a cold smile and the scent of sulfur invaded his nose while his piercing emerald eyes literally began to glow, giving him an eerie and dangerous look.
Fudge and Umbridge immediately scampered away from him the lights within the office seemed to flicker out while darkness rose up around the Denarian and surrounded him like a cloak. Emerald light radiating from Aries danced and intermingled with inky blackness, giving him a half concealed look.
Potters and Sirius Black gasped in terror as they beheld such aura of darkness permeating from Aries. They had never witnessed just how powerful and dark he was until now. As for Dumbledore, he warily sat in his sit while firmly grasping his wand. Aries Angelos wasn't about to attack them but it was dangerously close to crossing the line. As for Hogwarts staff, Pomona Sprout yelped out in terror while Minerva McGonagall paled as she staggered backward while hastily bringing out her wand.
Filius Flitwick tightly held out his wand in defensive position, due to his part goblin heritage he was somewhat more sensitive to the Denarian's aura of darkness and could feel something unnatural about it. He had faced plenty of dark wizards in the past and even Voldemort but the youth in front of him emitted aura of which he had never experienced before. Something powerful, something ancient, as if it was from out of this world.
Severus Snape grimaced as he swallowed his dry throat. He had never felt such aura of darkness even during his time as a Death Eater. Lord Voldemort was definitely dark but this Potter brat's aura was something else entirely, something different. To his side, Alastor Moody seemed to grimace like him as his magical and normal eye focused on the potential threat before him.
Amelia Bones, Rufus Scrimgeour and Kingsley Shacklebolt tensed with anxiety as they beheld the boy wreathed in the aura of darkness, only lit by the emerald light surrounding him. They had been dealing with dark wizard for decades and immediately recognized a danger when they saw one. Yet, this enigmatic boy easily surpassed every one of them they encountered. The fear and power he emitted were nearly that of the Dark Lord.
Molly Carpenter also stood up from her seat as she warily gazed at him. She and her family had been acquaintance with the Denarian for several years and knew just how dangerous he was. While she and her siblings didn't interact with him that often, she had heard of his growing power from her dad and Dresden occasionally. His control over the dark powers were exceptional and always thought that they were somewhat exaggerating. But seeing him in such state before her eyes, she realized that she was mistaken, Aries Angelos truly was a prodigy when it came to wielding the Dark Arts.
"I would be careful of what you are saying you little bitch!" He hissed at Umbridge as she ran behind Amelia as fast as her chubby legs could carry her along with Fudge. "All of you are nothing! You cannot force me to do anything!" He snarled.
Aries took a deep breath and slowly, but steadily, lowered his raging power once more as the darkness and malice disappeared, leaving a shaken wand-wizards and witches behind. His emerald eyes no longer glowed like the twin bolts of infamous killing curse but still retained the power held within. It was too bad that he couldn't butcher the insolent fools, especially Fudge and Umbridge. Who did they think they were order a superior being like him? He was a Denarian, an immortal with supernatural powers. He was much far better than these foolish mortals in every way.
"If you think you can control me in any way, you are sadly mistaken." He hissed darkly. "I am far more powerful than any of you."
"Yo-You are a-a dark wizard!" Fudge stammered in fear while wildly pointing at him with his finger.
Aries merely scoffed as he rolled his eyes. "How obvious." He said sarcastically. "I've been a dark wizard ever since I was seven." Aries sneered at the shocked faces of Ministry.
"Now fuck off!" He snapped at them. Aries watched with satisfaction as Fudge and Umbridge all but scampered to the fireplace and flooed to the Ministry in fear.
"Good riddance." Aries sneered as the emerald flames died down from the use of Floo. "What fucking idiots. No wonder British Ministry of Magic was considered as an epic failure." He snorted.
Dumbledore sighed as he loosened the tense muscles. "That was quite confrontational Mr. Angelos." He chided as he took off his glasses.
Aries merely rolled his eyes. "If the Ministry think that they can force me to do anything, than they are far more stupid than a mentally impaired retard." He said acidly as he thought of ripping them apart.
A cough interrupted him and Aries turned around to see Amelia Bones, Rufus Scrimgeour and Kingsley Shacklebolt still standing where they had been. The trio gazed at him with healthy amount of suspicion and fear as they still held their wand at their hands, although they were pointing downward and away from him since they didn't want to antagonized someone as powerful as him.
"Mr. Angelos, you do realize that threatening a Minister like that is a crime?" Amelia spoke cautiously as if regarding a dangerous predator stalking through her home.
"Your Minister is a stupid moron." Aries replied bluntly to the shock of Hogwarts staff and Ministry workers. "And Umbitch was it? What the hell is she doing as a Senior Undersecretary? She's a worthless and talentless idiot who should be hopping around with other toads." He snapped coldly ignoring the polite cough from Dumbledore when he said "Umbitch."
"I would show more respect to the Ministry if I were you boy." Rufus Scrimgeour snapped at him. Faster than they could react, Aries crossed the distance between them and grabbed his wand arm just as others reacted. In one smooth motion, Aries ducked under the arm and moved to stand behind him while twisting his arm while bringing up Judgement so that its sharp edges were mere millimeters away from the man's back.
Amelia Bones and Kingsley Shacklebolt pointed their wands at him but Aries merely placed Scrimgeour in front of him as a human shield. "And if I were you, I would show more respect to your better, Scrimgeour." Aries sneered as he savagely twisted his arm more and grinned when the man let out a pained grunt.
"Mr. Angelos! Let him go!" Amelia snapped at him.
Aries stared coldly at the stern woman and his eyes flickered toward everyone gathered. "Listen up and listen well since I don't like to repeat myself." He said in a icy voice, promising pain to anyone who disobeyed him. "Whether it's Ministry or Hogwarts, no one has any authority over me. I serve only myself and I will destroy all who dares to control me. Never stand in my way."
With his warning given, Aries loosened his grip on Scrimgeour's arm and pushed him forward. Rufus stumbled forward and gripped his arm painfully as he glared furiously at the Denarian.
"Perhaps Amelia, it would be best if you leave the situation to me." Dumbledore quietly spoke as the stern woman turned toward him but never letting Aries Angelos out of her sight. "You saw just how powerful he is only few moments ago, he's not someone your Aurors can handle."
Amelia heaved a tired sigh and nodded reluctantly after several moments. "Headmaster, you do realize that Fudge and Umbridge will demand him to be arrested." Amelia said with a frown.
"No doubt the Minister will be calling for his arrest." Dumbledore said gravely.
"I'd like to see them try." Aries sneered. "I'll butcher them all if they do." Aries gave a bloody thirsty grin.
Ignoring his jib, Dumbldore continued on. "It would take tremendous amount of resources to arrest him, let alone kill him. Even if you were to get help from the Hit-Wizards and the Unspeakables, it would still be a difficult task and no doubt would end in a blood bath." Said the old headmaster with a grimace at the idea while Aries gave a smug smirk, which infuriated Scrimgeour and Snape.
"Are you saying that we should leave him here? At Hogwarts? Where the children might be in danger?" Amelia said incredulously.
"I'll be monitoring him closely Amelia, of that you have my word." Dumbledore said firmly.
Amelia Bones still looked rather unconvinced and Aries rolled his eyes. "Relax, I won't kill anyone while I'm here and it's only until the tournament is over. However, I will respond with a lethal force if anyone bothers me." Aries drawled even as Amelia Bones turned toward him.
"Are you willing to give a magical oath to keep your promise or is it just a lie?" Asked the Director of DMLE with a hard voice.
"As long as no one bothers me, I won't bother them." Aries snapped with irritation. It irked him to bound himself into any magical contracts when he was already in one without his consent. "And I'm already in a magical contract if you hadn't noticed."
"If you can give me your oath, I will listen to headmaster's suggestion and will convince the Minister to leave you alone." Amelia said when Aries Angelos looked ready to reject it.
Aries frowned and cocked his head as he mulled over her offer. He really didn't want to deal with the incompetent wand-wizards' Ministry of Magic at all and it would no doubt get nasty when he butchered the Aurors sent to arrest him. 'I think it's a good tradeoff.' Meciel advised him. 'We are not looking to kill students anyway, unless of course, the culprit is a student.'
"Fine, I'll give the magical oath but I reserve the right to retaliate with lethal force if anyone bothers me." Aries said after few moments.
"I'm afraid, that's not good enough Mr. Angelos." Amelia said with a frown. "I will not have anyone suffer while you are here. This is a school, where innocent children are."
"Then Dumbledore better tell them to stay away from me and not bother me at all. I don't really care if they are children or not. Age and gender means nothing to me." Aries shrugged his shoulders without a care in the world.
"Are you saying that you'll give them a permanent damage even if they just insult you?" Amelia asked incredulously.
"Of course not." Aries scoffed. "The level of retaliation will depend on how severely they bother me. If they try to bully me, I'll bully them in return. If they try to injure me, I'll injure them, permanently."
When Amelia still looked unconvinced, Aries snapped at her. "As long as they don't bother me first, there will be no problem. If you are expecting me to take insults, bullying, or any harm, mental or physical, without a peep, then you are sadly mistaken. I fight fire with fire."
Amelia Bones stared at the boy in front of her with hard expression while Aries stared back with cold eyes. There was no mistaking it, the boy was completely serious about it and would retaliate if anything happened to him regardless of whether they were children or not.
She closed her eyes and let out a sigh. "And what do you intent to do with the culprit Mr. Angelos?" She asked after rubbing her eyes tiredly.
"I'll kill him, or her." Aries answered without hesitation.
The Director of DMLE frowned. "It is due process of the law for the criminal to be tried in front of the Wizengamot." She said sternly.
"I don't give a crap about your laws." Aries snapped angrily. "The culprit signed his life away the moment he decided to fuck with me whether it was intentional or not."
When Amelia Bones looked ready to retort, Aries quickly cut across her. "I didn't come here so that I can hand over the bastard to your incompetent Ministry. I came here to find out who fucked with me and kill him. Nothing you say will change that." He hissed.
"I could always throw you in Azkaban." Amelia threatened him.
"I'd like to see anyone try that. I'll kill anyone who stands in my way." He sneered at her. "I've killed far bigger and stronger things than bunch of Aurors. And most of them are not humans." He said icily as his eyes flashed briefly with power and darkness.
When Amelia Bones was silent, Aries looked around the room. "Anyone else? No? Good."
With a flick of his wrist, Aries brought out his wand. He closed his eyes and quickly discussed the content of the wording with Meciel for few moments. When making a oath, one must be extremely cautious with the wording because depending on the way the oath was written, there could be loopholes.
"Oh and by the way, the oath is off if you can't convince the Minister." Aries informed the stern witch. When she opened her mouth, he quickly spoke across her, again. "The deal was that I would give the oath in return for your help to keep the Ministry from bothering me."
"I, Aries Angelos, do swear by my magic to not harm the students while I'm enrolled into Hogwarts until the tournament is over. However, I do reserve the right to retaliate with lethal force if anyone tries to bother me depending on the severity of attack. If the culprit, who entered my name into the tournament, is found I reserve the right to kill him or her in any way I see fit." Aries swore as he held up his wand.
There was a flash of light and Aries felt a distinctive feeling of magic binding him to his oath before it disappeared. However, he consoled himself into knowing that he made few loopholes in the oath: First, he made it so that he would not attack the students only, he never mentioned anything about the staff. He had a feeling that grease ball Snape would try something against him. Second, even if the culprit was a student, he would be able to kill off the bastard since his or her status as a student will be revoked.
With his oath given, Aries stared expectantly at the Director of the Magical Law Enforcement. "I have made my oath, I hope that you can convince your moron of Minister or the deal is off." Aries spoke out as Amelia Bones, Rufus Scrimgeour and Kingsley Shacklebolt each grabbed the Floo powders before disappearing in blazes of emerald fire.
With the Ministry workers gone, Aries turned back to the silent headmaster and the staffs. "Remember. Warn your students to not bother me or there will be consequences." He hissed in warning before turning and striding out of the office.
When the door to his office closed, Dumbledore sighed and leaned back on his chair tiredly. Aries Angelos was perhaps the most difficult student Albus had met in all of his teaching career other than Tom Riddle.
"What do we do Albus?" McGonagall asked him uncertainly. "That boy is willing to hurt others without any form of guilt."
"How can you-" James Potter argued but was cut off by Pomona Sprout.
"James, I know that you want to believe that your son would not harm anyone. After all, that's what any parents like to think. However, the boy freely admitted that he is a dark wizard." She said uncomfortably as she looked at him.
"While I may not know about Aries Angelos, I do know what type of person he is." A quiet voice spoke out. The staff turned to the Ravenclaw head of the house, the normally jovial wizard had a pensive and serious expression.
"I've met several people like him in the past and they don't issue threats lightly. When they do give threats, they carry them out no matter how harsh or extreme they may be." Said Flitwick as James seemed to lose his strength and collapse on the chair next to his wife, who looked distraught at the idea.
"Bu-But surely Aries wouldn't endanger innocent children? There has to be some sort of chivalry or compassion within Aries right?" Sirius Black asked almost desperately as he looked at Dumbledore.
Albus looked sadly at the desperate looking Sirius Black and the Potters. He truly wanted to say that Aries Angelos was not what he was right now. That deep down, he loved his parents was just lost a bit and was just as noble and chivalrous like his parents. However, he knew that it was nothing but their hopeful thoughts.
Aries Angelos was not what they wished him to be. He was not Aries Potter. He was not Harry Potter as they called him long ago.
As much as he wanted to comfort them, Albus couldn't bring himself to give them a false hope. While temporary, it would only destroy them more in the end. He glanced at the silent Molly Carpenter, who had never uttered a word since the meeting began. During his short conversation with the witch, he had learned much about Aries Angelos, at least his characteristics and personality based on what the young True-Mage had told him. From what he had learned, Aries Angelos regretted nothing. He willingly became a Denarian and reveled in the dark powers that came with being a host of a Fallen Angel.
He was utterly ruthless and hungered for power. He had asked her if Aries had shown any desire for family or friends but the answer was a negative. According to her and the Denarian's own admission, he loved Meciel, the Fallen residing inside his head.
Molly Carpenter met the sad gaze from the old headmaster and looked pityingly at Sirius Black and the Potters. Different emotions stirred inside her whenever she looked at them. On one hand, they had abandoned their own son/godson with the fame that came as Benjamin Potter's status as one of the Boys-Who-Lived. On the other hand, they truly loved their firstborn and regretted their actions. They repented their crime and sought to undo their mistake.
She heaved a sigh. "Mr. Black." Molly said neutrally. "I'm afraid to say that pity, compassion, and chivalry are not the traits of Aries Angelos."
Sirius felt as if air was driven from his lungs as he looked at the slender witch whose family had known his godson since he was 9. "He doesn't like those traits and sees them as weaknesses." Molly informed him.
"Couldn't have stopped him? You said he knew your family." Lily spoke out at last as she looked pleadingly at the younger woman.
"If there is one thing I know about him, it's that he is extremely independent. He doesn't like being told what to do and has his own set of beliefs that are different from the society's." Molly said as she patiently explained it to the red-haired woman. "He doesn't live with my family and we only see him occasionally. We actually tried to... ah tell him that it was wrong but it's suffice to say that he reacted violently." Said Molly as she grimaced at the memory of how her mother told her when she and her siblings first met the Denarian.
Lily sagged against James while Sirius bonelessly collapsed on the chair next to them. Albus could only but look at them sadly. After all, it was partially his fault why Aries became a Denarian and turned out the way he is.
"It is my hope that one day, Aries would forgive us. But I will not pressure him to doing so. I have already failed him once, I will not fail him again." Dumbledore said quietly.
One by one, the staffs began to leave. Some with apprehension and others with despair. When at last, he was the only one in his office, Dumbledore let out a sigh for the hundredth time of the day.
For millionth times, he questioned himself whether it was a good idea to let Aries Angelos attend Hogwarts.
Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! I know it's been nearly a month since I updated the story. I seriously needs to get off my lazy butt and start writing. Some people have questioned me of whether the story is in Hiatus and here is my answer: I WILL COMPLETE THIS STORY TILL THE END.
If I'm not updating the story in usual 2 week timeline, it's probably because 1.) I got lazy. 2.) Need motivation. 3.) Something important came up.