Hey everyone,
This chapter is going to cover Hermione and the others for a bit and then we are going to cover Harry arriving in the Garden. Though to be honest, I think I am going to split Harry's stay in the Garden over two chapters. I can't say for sure, but I do believe I have enough planned in regards to Saturday the 21st of and Sunday the 22nd to fill up at least one and a half, if not two chapters. And if I'm wrong, we'll just get to Yen Sid's backstory quicker.
Win-win,

Venquine1990

Chapter 23
Returning To The Garden

21st of September 1995
Quidditch Pitch, Hogwarts
Hermione's POV

Over the past two weeks, I have definitely seen plenty of signs that there is a close, loving bond between Harry and the Master and that the Master's presence is doing my best friend a lot of good. Yet for some reason, my eyes still widen in surprise when I see him give the Master a loving hug. And tears fill my eyes when I hear the two express words of love with each other before Harry runs off and through the Corridor.
I also notice the Minister again warning Percy to keep his opinion to himself and the man carefully approaching the Corridor himself. He stares at it with a look of wonder and amazement and he says: "This is – unreal. I mean, I – I could have sworn that it had a cover of – well dark shadows or something." And the Master, still being his genuine, polite self, explains: "This is a corridor, Minister. The perfect representation of what Light and Dark magic can do if merged together."

Fudge nods at this and he asks: "So the – the doorway is made of dark magic, but it – it won't affect someone if they were to walk through it?" The Master shakes his head and says: "No, I just forced the doorway down to ensure that its looks won't scare anyone or give off the wrong impression, nothing more. I understand how the war has made many of you fear what Dark magic can do and I simply decided to adept the corridor's looks accordingly."
The Minister seems very grateful for this and then he asks: "So ehm, where did Potter go, exactly?" Yet the Master suddenly turns stern and says: "Please understand my need to ask you a question myself before I answer yours, Minister. For the past two and a half months you have been causing national grief for my charge and I am very protective of him. So I must ask you, are you asking out of curiosity or for another reason?"

The minister winces, but he still answers: "Curiosity, I assure you. I just – I just feel curious about you and yours and wonder why and how Potter was so willing to head in here without asking where it would have him end up. I mean, Umbridge did tell me that you knew Potter before you came here to teach and I – I just wonder how well you knew him, is all." At this the Master nods and says: "Then allow me to offer you an invitation, Minister.
If the Headmaster is so inclined, I am planning to spend the better part of next Monday telling all of Hogwarts about my backstory and what my life was like with Harry as part of it. As well as explain how I gained my apprentices and how they gained the many abilities you saw during the Demonstration." The Minister seems to feel just as excited about this as I feel and then the Master asks: "Also, would you be opposed if I prove a little belief of yours wrong?"

The Minister looks at him and the Master smiles as he says: "I need to contact Ansem the Wise and let him know that Harry is on his way. But to do so, I would use a method that contradicts something that has been written in Hogwarts a History for the past few decades. Would you be against me contradicting this little belief? I assure you, I won't need any magic or dangerous devices or anything of the sort to do this." This reassures Fudge and he nods his consent.
Then, to the man's confusion and my amazement, Master Yen Sid pulls a cellphone from his pocket. Yet the phone looks way more advanced than any device I have ever seen back at home. Even dad's laptop looks like it belongs to the stone age or something compared to this. The whole thing is quite a bit larger and bigger than most cellphones, yet at the same time it actually has a screen that covers the whole front and that the master can tap icons on.
He presses a few and I hear the sound of a dial for a moment or two. Then a wise, old voice sounds from the device. I move to stand behind the man and my eyes widen as I see the face of another man on the screen. "Ah Yen Sid. I was expecting you. Harry just arrived. I take it he will be here for the duration of the weekend?" The man asks and the Master nods as he says: "Indeed, Ansem my dear friend. And he has much good to tell you."

"I noticed. The aura of darkness that clung to his heart when he was here last seems to have lessened greatly. I thank you, my friend. You and the others are doing wonders. I will try to further this process while Harry is here." But to this the Master says: "Just let him have fun, Ansem. The only thing I expect of Harry is that he takes his potions. For dinner tonight and for breakfast tomorrow." The other man nods and then the screen turns black.
"What magic is that?" The Minister asks, awe in his voice. The Master grins and says: "No magic, Minister. That was electricity. And before you object, I told you that I would denounce a belief of yours. Also, if electricity doesn't work around magic, it would have been causing problems for you and yours for the past few decades. Muggles have been putting more and more electronics around places like King Cross Station and Charring Cross Road for the past two decades."
The Minister whitens at this, but then I say: "Still, this cellphone is much more advanced than any device I have seen be developed over the years. It's – it's incredible." I stare at the device, which shows a screen with multiple buttons that I guess are different kinds of applications or something. The Master grins at me and then he turns to the arena at large.

"Students of Hogwarts, I have some news for you all that – most of you will probably find quite interesting. This device in my hand is called a Gummi Phone. It allows you to call friends, even if you are worlds apart, allows you to play games, take pictures, holds journals and can keep records of different kinds of creatures for those of you who are interested in gathering data like that. It can even keep records about what you and your friends have gone through."
The mouths of my friends and me are now wide open and I think: "There is no way the Muggles will be able to develop something like that; not for another decade or so, I don't think." Then the Master goes on: "And it has already been quite mass-produced by the developers. Anyone of you who manages to summon their weapon of heart and gain enough experience and learn enough lessons to take their version of a Mark of Mastery – which is like NEWT exams for Keyblade Wielders – will be given one of these if they pass.
Please note that I referenced the NEWT exams not for their difficulty, but simply because they are the last exams you will take here at Hogwarts. The Mark of Mastery is similar. However, let me also be clear on one other thing. All of the Keyblade Wielders you see standing here have taken their Mark of Masteries over the past two years, the last of them Kairi half a year ago. And they did not stop training or developing new skills after they passed."

The man puts his Gummi Phone back in his pocket and I can easily see that his message came across quite clear. These exams might be important, but they are not what signifies the end of a person's training. Even after passing, a wielder should continue training, continue developing themselves and their skills. And this reminds me of a lesson I once learned after watching an anime with a few kids that, at the time, I had helped with their homework. There will always be someone stronger or better than you, remember that.
And just by looking back at the demonstration I just witnessed it's proven that the group that I am now standing with believes this. They are obviously stronger than they were when they finished whatever made the Master send Harry back to the Muggles. And while on one hand this makes me feel quite confident that we can win the upcoming war, I still can't help but worry. And the reason for my concern is simple; what will happen to Harry if Voldemort kills one of his friends?

I try not to let it show how much this affects me as I leave alongside everyone else, yet it seems that I'm not really doing a good job. "Hey, you okay?" Sora asks as he comes to walk beside me. "It's just – I'm really glad that I got to see how strong and amazingly skilled you guys are. It really makes me look forward to training once I unlock my own weapon." Sora smiles at this, yet he's also perceptive as he asks: "But?" I sigh and say:
"But Harry. I mean, he hardly knew Cedric and just considered him a rival and a school mate, but – his death still affected Harry bad enough it blocked his connection to the Keyblade." I turn my head and look over my shoulder at where Axel, Roxas, Isa, Lea, Riku and Kairi are walking and I can't help but fearfully ask: "What will happen to him if he loses one of them? If Voldemort gets to them?" Sora looks back as well, but then he smiles at me and says:

"That won't happen." I turn to him and ask: "How do you know that?" The boy cringes and says: "You're probably not going to like this, but – we won't be fighting him. We'll advice and help – London – the best we can, but – unless Voldemort comes here and attacks one of you directly, we're not going to get involved. Our goal is you guys, your safety and your education. We don't want you involved in this and we won't get you involved by taking the fight to him ourselves."
I bite my lip at these words as they both cause me great relief, but also reignite my fear for what is to come. And while I don't like it, I look down and whimper: "Be honest with me, Sora. Do you think we stand a chance? Winning against him without you guys fighting alongside Dumbledore and the others, I mean?" I have my head down, but I can still see his face take on a large grin. "Absolutely. I mean, think of all those who are working for London."

I look at him and he starts to count down on his fingers: "A werewolf with brilliant loyalty, great skills and increased senses and reflexes, a Transfigurations expert who has been working alongside Dumbledore in the last war, several Aurors, a retired Auror with an incredible reputation, a person who can change her looks at will, a curse breaker. And then there's Dumbledore himself, who is both greatly powerful and has experience of fighting in not one, but two wars."
The young adult turns to me, his eyes full of confidence and pride as he says: "Trust me, Hermione. Your people might not have Keyblades or other weapons of heart, but they're not powerless. And besides that, they still have more experience and knowledge of what Voldemort is like and how he thinks and works than we do. And finally, the only reason they don't have those weapons is because we don't yet have time to train them."
I grin widely at the brunette and then Riku joins us and throws an arm around Sora's shoulders. "Sora, the one person who can see the light in any dark situation." And all three of us laugh as we head back inside the castle. Yet Sora's words still did me a lot of good and I feel renewed confidence and reassured. And next to that, I know that Sora held back on one little thing. London is the one with the most knowledge on how Voldemort thinks and does – for now.

At the same time
In Radiant Garden
Harry's POV

I rushed through the corridor and run through the lanes and alleyways of the Garden. I rush past a strange old looking house, but then an old voice calls out. "I say, what's the hurry – Harry! By heavens, how delightful to see you again, my boy." I skit to a halt and turn my head, the huge grin that is already on my face growing even wider, if that's even possible when I recognize the man. "Merlin! Good to see you too! I can't believe I didn't recognize your place!"
The ancient wizard, who I still slightly wonder about as to whether or not he might be the same Merlin as the one from the legends back in England, laughs heartily and he says: "Why don't you come in, dear boy? I do say that your godfather is inside and so are Leon and the others." And the knowledge that Sirius is here is actually overshadowed by the prospect of seeing Leon and the others again. I happily follow after the man.

"Well, well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes." A gruff voice that has a bit of an accent to it says as I walk in and I laugh as I say: "I missed you too, Cid. Good to see you again. You and everyone else. Hi Leon, Aerith, Yuffie." The other three also wave and then suddenly Sirius is in front of me. "Harry." The man says and the same warm tone as when I first saw him in Grimmauld Place is heard. I grin at the man and reply: "Sirius." Before I rush to embrace him, just like I did over summer.
The man returns the hug tightly and he whispers: "I am so glad to know that you grew up here, Harry. This place is absolutely perfect. It's everything your parents would have wanted for you." I nod at him and yet I can't help but whisper: "If only they could have seen this place, Sirius." The man sighs and shortly tightens his hold on me. "Now, now, enough of that. You were dashing past here as if you had some kind of big news that you were impatient to share. What's the occasion?"

Merlin asks and I yelp: "Oh right! I got good news. The Master gave me permission to spend the weekend here! Also, we got rid of Umbridge. She pulled a nasty one and the ICW arrested her. Then she got to be front and center when Lea and the others held a Demonstration to show off their skills and powers, but she got overwhelmed by her own hatred and disgust for them, because – well, you know, they're not what she considers to be acceptable or something.
But Roxas, Xion, Kairi and I managed to take out both her Heartless and her Nobody and she got reformed. And then Fudge actually requested of the ICW to arrest her and take her away. They did and then Axel got me the corridor here. Oh, and check this out!" And while I had moved away from Sirius while talking, I raise my arm at the end of my story. My heart fills itself with the light and power and my hand grips my Keyblade once again.

"HOLY CRAP!" Sirius exclaims and this makes all of us burst out laughing. Leon turns to me and while his tone is warm, his face turns serious. "That was great, Harry. But I know you. You wouldn't have felt the need to summon that without reason. What happened?" I sigh and mutter: "Losing Cedric, Leon. Seeing him die hurt and traumatized me so much, I – I lost the ability to summon it. The Master freeing Sirius and getting co-guardianship helped me get it back.
"Maybe, but the colors are still pretty dull. I remember those bows being a nice bright yellow and the guard having a fire pattern on it. So what went wrong?" Yuffie asks as she comes over close enough to examine my blade and I sigh as Aerith says: "Nothing went wrong, Yuffie. Harry just still has a ways to go before he's fully recovered. Master Yen Sid and Sirius adopting him was just the first step in the right direction, that's all." The ninja steps back and says: "Heh, that makes sense."

And only then I suddenly notice that Master Ansem has been standing in the left front corner of the room. My face turns red and I walk over to where he's standing. I bend my back and say: "Forgive me, Master Ansem, this is the second time that I didn't notice you before." But the man gently helps me stand back up and says: "I didn't want you to notice me, Harry. I didn't want to intrude on your reunion with your friends or your new father.
Congratulations for that, by the way." I grin widely at the man and thank him with a nod. The man looks down and his face falls slightly as he says: "Yen Sid warned me about this." I look down at the blade, which I am still holding with my right and carrying with my left and then look back up as I say: "I am on the right path, Master. I just – need to give it time." The man nods and then suddenly a strange sound, like a phone ringing, comes from his pocket.

My eyes widen as the man pulls a phone from his pocket and holds it in front of his face as he presses a button. And instead of putting the device to his ear and speaking in the speaker, the man seems able to see my other new guardian on the front of the device and he even holds a short conversation with the man. Master Yen Sid confirms to him that I can stay for the weekend and I feel my heart beat stronger as I hear him tell Master Ansem to just let me have fun.
The conversation is ended and the Master asks: "Potions?" And while I still haven't gotten used to their foul taste, I pull several bottles from my satchel. Yet I also grin as I spot several bars of Sea-Salt Ice cream also packed along with the vials. "Ah now, that is a treat." The Master comments and I tell him: "I have a contract with Master Yen Sid and Madam Pomfrey. I'm allowed one bar at every meal. It's to help me gain weight and to motivate me to keep taking my potions."
The Master nods and then Sirius comes to join us and he says: "Excuse me, Master Ansem, but I am going to take my boy and enjoy him being here for the next few hours. I'll see you for our daily walk after lunch, alright?" The Master happily nods at the both of us and I have a similar huge grin on my face at hearing Sirius call me his boy. And with his arm wrapped lovingly around my shoulders and after greeting the others, the two of us leave.

A few minutes later
Inside Merlin's House
Leon's POV

The others and I make sure to wait a few minutes to ensure that Harry and Sirius are gone far enough that they can no longer hear us before all of our happy smiles disappear and looks of concern and fear take their place. "He has no idea, does he?" Aerith asks, her voice sounding the most fearful and the rest of us shaking our heads. "Is it really safe then? For him to be here?" Yuffie asks, but Master Ansem strongly states:
"Yes, it is. Harry's Light has gotten a revitalized burst that will, I'm sure, at least last him a few days, perhaps even as much as a week. He won't be at risk of losing his heart to the Darkness, not for the few days that he is staying here." The two girls seem reassured at hearing this and I cross my arms as I say: "And besides, Sirius looked to be in a much worse state when he first came here and he's still fine. I think we need to be worried, but not that much." And the others agree with this.

"So what do we do then?" Cid asks and the Master again takes charge, just like he always does. "Exactly what Yen Sid told us. Let Harry have fun. We simply make sure to remind him of all the good times he had here and help him look forward to what life is going to be like now that he has Sirius and Yen Sid as his official guardians. We celebrate his adoption and the fact that he has taken the first step on the path to recovery."
We all nod and then an idea strikes me. I turn to Merlin and say: "And I think I know a duo who can help us with that. And give Harry a bit of a starting lesson in what it's like to cast magic with the Keyblade. Because if I recall correctly, he had no idea he could do that when he first summoned it all those years ago. Do you think you can fetch them, Merlin?" The man nods, but he also says: "I can, but I will tomorrow. For now, I'll just let Harry spend time with his father." I nod at him.

At the same time
Harry's POV

Sirius doesn't really seem that disturbed with the fact that my Keyblade is of a darker shade than it had been before. "Sirius, you know that my Keyblade's colors being darkened isn't normal, right?" I can't help but ask. The man gives me a smile that is full of understanding and he says: "I do, Harry, but I was already expecting it. What happened with Cedric left you scarred and I knew that your scars were one of the reasons the Master enacted his plan."
This answer makes me feel really mixed and I decide to give the man another test. And while part of me is screaming at me mentally, ranting about the fact that the man is now my co-guardian alongside the Master, I ask: "Sirius, can I tell you something? Something I can't have you ever tell anyone? Not Lupin or Dumbledore or even the Master?" The man stops and makes me stop as well. He puts his hands on my shoulders and bends down just an inch as he says:

"Harry, your secrets are my secrets. Not even Veritaserum or the Cruciatus curse could ever make me give those up. If you want to confide in me, I'm right here. I'll listen." I smile at the man, but my smile is short-lived. I lower my head as I don't want to see the look on his face when I finish talking. "During the Master's first class, he had me demonstrate DADA OWL spells against Even's shield. But Even told me to go all out and – after a while I did so more than I really wanted to.
I – I lost control. I started seeing all the crap I've been through and all the damage I caused to others, either directly or indirectly. And – and I know that – that Even is a blonde, is much taller than me and everything, but I couldn't see anything but my own reflection in his shield. And – and after casting a couple of spells, I started seeing myself for – for who everyone else sees me. And it – it – it scared and hurt and terrified me so much, I – I just –."

I stop, but Sirius doesn't say anything either. I glance up and notice that his eyes are full of tears, but also filled with a strange need to have me finish. I look back down and close my eyes as I whisper the five words I know he doesn't want to hear. "I wanted to end it." And this makes the man respond. He pulls me close against his form, but his hug, amazingly enough, isn't as smothering as Mrs. Weasley's always is. Yet at the same time, the emotions conveyed through it feel much stronger.
The man's love for me, his pain that I feel this way and, most surprising of all, his desire to help me past this. Yet his next words confuse me. "I'm so proud of you." I look at the man and he says: "I've been dealing with the same thing almost since your father died. It took me until just the other day before Master Ansem finally got me to admit to myself. I'm so proud that you are just that much - better than I could ever be."

"But I almost cast the Killing Curse!" I shout at the man, completely unable to understand how he could stand there and say all this. Yet the look on his face doesn't change and he says: "But would the spell have left your wand? Even if you had said the words, would the light of the spell really have left your wand?" At this I want to shout and scream at him, but I seem unable to for reasons I just don't understand at all.
"Harry, I grew up with Dark wizards for parents. I know the ways of Dark Magic better than anyone, at least anyone on our side. And the Killing Curse requires a form of hatred that you didn't have that day. Not hatred for one's self, but hatred for the world at large. For the person you are casting at. You weren't casting at yourself, you were casting at Even. The spell wouldn't have worked. You had anger and pain in your heart, but not real hatred. And before you say anything, you proved a year ago that you don't have true hatred in your heart."

"WHEN THE HELL DID I DO THAT?""When you stopped me from killing the man that made you an orphan. If anyone has a right or reason to hate Peter, it's you. But you spared his life.""I didn't do that for him! I did that for you, for Lupin, for your freedom, for my parents, for Ron and Hermione!" By now we have gone to sit down, neither of us caring that we're sitting on cold stone pavement. And the whole time a small part of me wonders why Sirius is still in front of me.
"That doesn't change what you did or how you felt. You didn't hate Peter enough not to care about us. And that's why the Killing Curse would never work if you cast it. You have proven year and year –." "I KILLED! SIIRUS! I KILLED IN MY LIFE! I KILLED QUIRREL AND I KILLED THE BASILISK!" I scream as I just can't take the man's acceptance of me anymore suddenly. But the man keeps on that same strange smile and says: "I know. Dumbledore made sure to tell Molly, Arthur and me all about your adventures after they came to stay at London.
But Harry, listen to yourself. Listen to your own voice. Do you know what emotions I hear when I listen to it? Yes, I hear anger and confusion, but I also hear guilt. And that's exactly what I'm trying to tell you. Deep down, Harry, you are good. So what if you killed? I did too, during the war. And we both did it for the same reasons. Self-defense and to protect those who couldn't, at the time, protect themselves, right?"

By now my anger has faded and been replaced with grief and pain. Tears are rolling down my cheeks and I whimper: "Why? Why are you so understanding? How can you not hate me for this? How does this not make you want to just go to Earth and rip that guardianship contract to shreds?" The man sighs and mutters: "I have two reasons for that, Harry. And I won't lie, one of them is a little selfish." I look up at the man and he leans back on his hands as he says:
"When I look at you, kiddo, I see someone that, quite frankly, makes me feel envy. For Magic's sake, Harry, you're everything I wanted to be growing up. You're strong, good-hearted, you have a much better view on your own morals, you don't let your own pride in your skills guide you or fill your ego or something, you know the difference between a prank and bullying. The only thing really wrong with you is that you endured what I did in the war during peace time.

You got scarred through the wrong means, at the most unfair time of all. I won't lie. I want to help you get better, because I want you to keep growing into the man I never was. I want you to be the teen I never was. I want to prove to the world that, regardless of what a prat I was growing up, I did something right. That, if something happens to me, I leave behind a worthy legacy." I listen to the man as he speaks, yet lower my head as he finishes.
The man seems to expect this as he finally moves over to sit beside me. And while I expect him to finally give me that Molly Weasley-worthy kind of hug, the man just gently pulls me against his form and says: "I know, Harry. You don't see yourself that way right now. Heck, you should have seen me a few days ago when I finally came to terms with how I felt the other day, when I finally admitted to my true emotions to Ansem.

I won't lie, Harry, I basically went just as bonkers as I did that night in the Shack, if not worse. It was a good thing that I had left my wand with Rachel and that the Master didn't have anything sharp or lethal on him. Not that it mattered as I almost tried to drown myself in the fountains. What I'm trying to say is, we're both pretty screwed up. But because you are so incredibly self-aware, you have a much better chance of healing than I do.
Though I'll admit that being here certainly ups my own chances." I let out a snort at this and the man beams at me before his giant grin turns back to a gentle smile as he says: "Harry, I can't ever thank you and your friends enough for bringing me here. Considering how the others, even Remus, were treating me, I'm pretty sure that world would have ended me sooner rather than later. But thanks to you guys I now have a chance to not let that happen.

And more importantly, I recently gained a certain document that made my reason for not yet joining your parents even more vitally important. I can't leave you, Harry. I can only imagine how I would have felt if I did; how horrified I would have been. I'm going to be honest. Regardless of what Molly might think, James is not more important to me than you. And I would never risk you just for the chance to reunite with him.
He's gone, Harry, but you're still here. And you need me. I know you do." And these words do it. While the man had just continued to gently hold me against his side, I grab his shirt and pull him closer as I start to bawl. Tears run down my cheeks like a running tap, my throat constricts at almost every breath I try to take, my chest heaves with every intake of breath, my mouth open in gasps and sounds of pitiful whining. And while I do feel my shoulder getting a bit wet, Sirius just holds me. He just holds me and lets me cry.

Dang!
THAT HAPPENED! Okay, so I was planning on Harry admitting to Sirius that he had almost cast that fatal curse, but thanks to a few PM's with Jostanos, I decided on a little something when it comes to that little event. And I know that I usually try to make it sound like the Killing Curse can be used for Light purposes, but for the sake of Harry and his mental strength, I decided to forgo that usual route that I take.
I promise, the rest of the chapters concerning Harry's stay in Radiant Garden are going to be more – well, Radiant for lack of a better term. I am also going to bring in a few more characters and while I know that some of them actually live elsewhere, such as the triplets living in the castle and in Disney Town, I kind of need them for what I have planned. Oh, and just a bit of foreshadowing for Monday the 23rd. Harry won't be the only one returning to the castle.
How fun,

Venquine1990