Hayley Greengrass had slipped into a coma in the early hours the next morning. She had not regained consciousness since she had left Grimmauld place. Gareth sat by her side.

The damage and length of exposure to the dark magic from the locket had put a great deal of strain on her body.

Amelia Bones was informed of the news by Bill Wetherby when she arrived at her office. He had been at the hospital all night.

Her face was grim as they both apparated to Sirius's home to pass on the bleak news. She held in her hand his marriage annulment and the certificate of his disownment of Iris. When Bill and Amelia arrived at Sirius's home, he still had that angry and determined look in his eyes.

Without introduction, he beckoned them both into the hallway.

'All of their belongings have been sent to Greengrass manor. I take it you have fulfilled your obligations?' he said abruptly.

Amelia breathed deeply to settle her temper, 'Your Pureblood order was passed. Freedom at your request from your wife and child due to Hayley not disclosing her actual parentage,' Amelia shook her head, 'was authorised by magic and myself at nine o'clock yesterday evening. There is no going back. You are forbidden by magical law in the entirety of your lifetime to contest your decision under any and all circumstances. Hayley...,' Amelia paused, feeling incredibly agitated, 'is no longer recognised by Wizarding law as your wife and you are no longer regarded by our laws as Iris's father. As of now, Iris is no longer your daughter. You have no further obligations in regards to either of them,'

Sirius smiled grimly.

'You're also free from your employment as an Auror. I'm sacking you for insubordination and disrespect as of this moment,' Amelia stated with finality.

Sirius raised an eyebrow, 'Whatever. I've made my decision and I've made the right one. A job is a small price to pay. Hayley is just another Bellatrix and Iris will be just the same. Just like dear old Tom,' he sneered, 'There are plenty of other ways to make a living. I'm far from being on skid row either. My vault is bursting with galleons. This house is all bought and paid for. And all mine. Uncle Alphard made sure I was set for life. It's the start of a new life for Harry and me, free of darkness and those parasites.'

'Sirius...' Amelia started. He just didn't know when to stop. She shoved him his paperwork roughly. 'In regards to your accusations and your absolute certainty of Hayley's apparent loyalties to Voldemort...,' Amelia felt all her resentment and anger start to bubble and build in her, 'It will please you greatly to know that Hayley is in a coma. The dark ritual she was forced to endure has put an enormous strain on her body.'

Sirius gazed at her with blank eyes.

'Now you're free of your parasitic evil wife and child you won't have to dirty your hands bothering to help. Gareth has taken over your responsibilities as an actual adult does,' Amelia glared at him.

Amelia looked him up and down, 'So that is that. I hope you look after Harry properly and I genuinely hope for his sake you are a better father to him than you have been to your own child. You have got one thing very backwards though. It is actually Iris, who is free of you. She will be told the truth about what you did when she is old enough to understand. Be under no illusions this will be kept hidden from her. Walburga has the Black family Pensieve. There are going to be trials and newspaper reports covering every aspect of this debacle. Merlin only knows what Witches like Molly Weasley will think of you for deserting your wife and child. Many Wizards will despise you. You showed the whole world how easy it was for you to throw away those that love you without a scrap of evidence. Iris will never be allowed to forget that.'

With one last long look of contempt, Amelia left the building.

Bill looked at Sirius with an inscrutable expression then followed Amelia out as Sirius watched them leave.

Dumbledore sat in a slump at his desk at Hogwarts. Amelia and Bill had just left. Fawkes stood peering at Dumbledore in concern.

He looked up to the phoenix and gave a watery smile, 'Old friend. The problems of us mere mortals never cease to unsettle and wound me,' Fakes trilled softly as Dumbledore sat up and spoke to the phoenix, 'Let's hope Hayley is strong enough Fawkes.'

His mind started to piece together what had happened, 'Her body must have absorbed his magic. What was in that object? Pettigrew and Tom would have been adamant that the locket would only use her magic to power the ritual. Tom would not have made a basic mistake like that unless there was more at play here.'

It would explain why the ritual backfired. Somehow, and Dumbledore certainly needed a lot more information, Hayley had absorbed his magic. According to magical lore, this was not possible. There had been many studies over the centuries on magical transfers from every part of the world. Each person's magic was unique to the Witch or Wizard. The source was from their very genes.

Yes, a wand could be passed around with varying levels of success, but the magic itself? It could be drained from a Witch or Wizard through excessive use, or a magical object could pull it from you, but a magical object could not transfer magic into you and there was no way to take all the magic completely. A Witch and Wizards magic would regenerate with time. Purebloods who had given birth to a squib child had poured vast amounts of their own money into a solution but to no avail.

Magical Ministries all around the world had explored this but always met a dead end. Many poverty-stricken Muggleborns from centuries past had even offered their magic in exchange for huge wealth in the hope they could find a way to do this, but, alas, nothing. Both the Dark and Light had attempted this using various methods and failed. The greatest minds of their day had tried. Salazar, Merlin and Rowena had all been unable to do this. It was now just a fact that magic could not be transferred out of one body and into another. So, how could Hayley have done the impossible?

Though, there was Greta. Albus mind went through what he knew, 'If that is true what she told Gareth, that she came back from death and Tom had not been fatally killed by a rebounding killing curse... Rita's memories will be vital. Tonight, I'll know more,' thought Dumbledore. His mind thought back to the locket, 'Tom has pushed the magical boundaries past suicidal lengths. How on earth isn't he dead yet? He should have died a hundred times with the dark magic he has abused.'

Dumbledore sighed, looking out of the window at the Hogwarts grounds.

'I'll need to see that foul traitor Peter when Amelia has finished...,' he paused, 'Foul.'

The niggling at the back of his mind became a knock, 'Herpo...'

Dumbledore paled, 'Horcrux.'

Fawkes looked at Dumbledore with concern as Albus gazed at him, 'No, that wouldn't be able to do all this,' he spoke aloud to the phoenix, 'To split the soul into two. Yes. One object would be enough to anchor his soul to life. To prevent death. The blood ritual would certainly work. It is madness, of course. The risks of the Horcrux being destroyed would mean a twisted soul in agony. Purgatory for Infinity. The risk is astronomical. No one in their right mind would attempt this.'

'But Tom has never been in his right mind. The Gaunt family...looks can be deceiving. If Tom looked like his Grandfather would I be questioning this?' Dumbledore thought as he looked over at the lake. Watching the ripples flow.

'Herpo made one Horcrux. Tom has always liked to go bigger. Better than his peers, even at school. To be the greatest. Perfect. Voldemort. French for a flight from death. He wants to be an immortal. The darkest magic in our world. How many would he consider enough?... To defy nature, the natural order, to defy God?...and what would that do?'

Dumbledore sat back down at his desk and stroked his long beard while he mused aloud through his recollections till he fixated on the most profound of them.

'The Magical numbers. Seven is the strongest. The seven deadly sins might appeal to Tom's perverse nature. Although, the seven symbolises the unity of the four corners of the earth with the Holy Trinity,' Dumbledore thought back over his knowledge of theology, 'The book of revelation. Seven churches, seven angels, seven seals, seven stars. A number used in religions all around the world.'

The Wizarding World had an uneasy relationship with religion. Magic was pagan based. The church had been against Witchcraft, and in medieval times had turned on their magical counterparts because of the Dark Arts. Dumbledore had a healthy respect for many beliefs. The truth was of great importance to him. Respect for magic and nature. He had explored the modern Muggle world. While there had been great progress in some matters, there had also been a great disregard for Mother Nature. What Dumbledore understood with great clarity was that when you messed with forces greater than you, those forces messed back.

If Tom had, as he suspected, split his soul seven different ways...those very same forces would find a way to redress the balance. It would explain some of the strange happenings.

Greta had a part of Tom inside her when she was pregnant with Hayley. When had Tom gone down this path? Certainly long before he had visited Hogwarts for that fiasco of an interview in the winter of 1967. His face was already showing the signs of abuse of the Dark Arts even then.

Dumbledore glanced at the clock and rose from his chair. It was time to collect Harry. With a wave of a wand he now stood in a simple blue muggle suit. Fate had perhaps played a part in this, he mused. Sirius had been infuriating but correct. Magic had accepted his vows and now Dumbledore supposed magic was steering this ship. The immediate threat of Voldemort had diminished. Sirius could indeed protect Harry from the stragglers. He was very gifted at Auror work after all.

Dumbledore had decided to let things be. Arabella Figg could be relocated near Sirius just to keep an eye on young Harry and be Dumbledore's eyes and ears for any strange happenings in the area. Andromeda and Ted lived close to Sirius. They were both accomplished in many areas and would prove useful in case of an emergency. Ted was a healer and Andromeda was talented with potions. Her expertise was in beauty products and this had proved to be a very lucrative income, but she also specialised in medicine and helped supply with various potions. No doubt they would end up having to take care of all the actual boring toddler and child-rearing work while Sirius was there to play the fun, older brother.

Dumbledore looked mildly pensive over this, 'It's a stretch but Harry and Andromeda are very distantly related. The Godfather magical bond will help. The blood protections won't be as potent as at Petunia's, but the wards will be stronger than most. Andromeda had also offered to take Harry in when Sirius's fate was all but sealed so he will at least be shown kindness.'

It was unfortunate that Petunia was Harry's closest blood relative. Dumbledore had taken Minerva Mcgonagall's observations on board about the problematic Dursley family, but he had really seen no better alternative. Dumbledore was also concerned about Harry's ego. James Potter had taken a long time to grow up and if it hadn't been for Lily and the war then one could only ponder on his maturity development. He hoped Harry had more of Lily's character in him and was relying on Andromeda's common sense rather than Harry inheriting James's more negative character traits. Combining that with being raised with Sirius's wild ways was not a comforting prospect.

As for Iris? Dumbledore narrowed his eyes in thought about the young girl. She would have much to overcome. Whatever way you looked at it Sirius wasn't going to be the flavour of the month to many of the Wizarding public for a very long time for his heartless actions. Social invitations and balls would be in short supply. The worshipping that may have been expected of the public would be unlikely. In fact, Harry may well be left alone by the adoring public if he was seen with one Sirius Black.

The Wizarding World especially, all had relatives in their families whose actions had shocked them. One cannot choose their families after all. It would be interesting to see how Harry would feel about his Godfather's behaviour when he understood more. Iris and Harry had met of course. Sitting and playing on the mat, babbling to each other while Hayley and Lily would chat over cups of tea. Before the Potter's had to go into hiding. How would Harry react when he found out Sirius had deserted his wife and daughter when her mother had almost been murdered by Tom and Pettigrew? This would perhaps make the pedestal the boy would be sure to put him on, wobble. Harry, after all, had lost his own mother and father. Dumbledore shook his head gently. What a mess. He nodded to Fawkes who flew onto his shoulder and they both disappeared.

They appeared in a discreet alley near Privet Drive, 'Stay hidden,' said Dumbledore to Fawkes who then flew up into a tree.

He then strode up the path to the oddly sterile, immaculate home of the Dursley's. This had certainly not been what he wanted for Harry initially but with all the insanity and danger it was vital Harry survived. Things had changed, however. Dumbledore was reluctant but Magic herself had ordained it and Dumbledore always respected the old ways. He pushed down on the doorbell and waited.

Petunia Dursley opened the door as her eyes widened in horror, 'Get in before anyone sees you,' she hissed.

'Thank you for the invitation, Petunia,' Dumbledore looked mildly entertained at her frantic behaviour. They stood in the living room and looked at each other.

'You had a nerve leaving that freak on our doorstep,' Petunia snapped at him.

Dumbledore rolled his eyes up to the ceiling, 'I left Harry here, Petunia. Your nephew. All that is left of Lily, and he is a little boy. Not a freak,' he said patiently.

'I tell it as I see it, Dumbledore. Why are you here? Got any more freaks to dump on my doorstep?! Any more burdens?' Petunia seemed very upset.

'No,' Dumbledore spoke calmly, 'and they are children. Not burdens. Please refer to them as such.'

Petunia snorted in derision.

Dumbledore sighed. Petunia was really a very tiresome woman.

'There has been a change of plan. Harry's Godfather has demanded custody. Magic allows this. He wishes to raise him as his own.'

Petunia's mood changed rapidly for the better, 'That is the first good thing I have ever heard you say. No more freaks in the house. No more weirdness. Vernon has been in a foul temper all week because of this. Harry has been eating us out of house and home. That selfish brat has been taking all my Duddikins mummy time away from my precious baby.'

Dumbledore looked at her with distaste, 'You have been amply compensated for Harry's upkeep. I refuse to believe a one-year-old has been eating you out of house and home. I personally arranged for five hundred pounds a month to be deposited in your account on his first day here and this would continue every month for the duration of his stay here. You were informed of this in the letter. There was more than enough for food, clothing and amenities.'

'My time is worth more,' Petunia screeched.

Dumbledore sincerely doubted that. He peered at the clock. Time was ticking on.

'I see we will have to agree to disagree. Now, time is moving forward. Sirius is expecting Harry to be at his home at midday. Where is Harry?'

Petunia looked at Dumbledore, 'Sirius? That rude friend of Lily's?' she asked with a frown.

'Yes,' said Dumbledore simply, too weary to argue with a brick wall.

'He couldn't look after a cat.'

'Perhaps. Still, that is what magic has requested. He has a cousin who is far more sensible. She will help raise Harry. Now, can you show me where Harry is?'

He watched as Petunia's eyes gazed towards the cupboard under the stairs and nodded to it. His eyes followed hers. His head snapped back to Petunia.

'In there? Did you put him in a cupboard?' Dumbledore was astonished, 'You have three bedrooms,' he stated.

'We didn't want him here in the first place. You're lucky we didn't take him to the orphanage,' Petunia sniffed.

'He would have at least got a bed and sunlight there. My goodness,' Dumbledore faltered, 'Harry is all that is left of Lily. You would treat a child like this?'

'He's a freak. Like Lily,' Petunia screeched.

Time was ticking. Dumbledore wasn't going to waste any more time. He moved across to the door and opened it. Harry was still in the travelling cot he was brought in. Harry sat there in silence. His emerald eyes were wide open as the door bought in the light. He still didn't make a peep as he looked up at Dumbledore, clearly frightened.

'Oh, Harry,' whispered Dumbledore.

He took Harry out and shut the door. He walked back to the front door. He took a last look at Petunia, 'He should have been a gift. I suppose you sit in church on a Sunday with a pious look on your face? Hypocrisy is not becoming Petunia.'

She sneered at him.

'There is an afterlife, Petunia. I know of this for certain. How are you going to face Lily when you meet her again?'

'Get out,' she snapped. Dumbledore merely tilted his head towards her as they left. He felt and heard the door slam forcefully as he walked back to the alley.

'Fawkes?' he called. Fawkes flew back down, 'This is Harry,' Fawkes trilled softly as Harry looked up in wonder, smiling slightly.

'You know what to do. Sirius is expecting him.'

The phoenix trilled as he took the cot in his talons and in a flash disappeared. Dumbledore gave a grudging smile. Fawkes would take Harry safely. His magic was different from humans and would not hurt the small boy. Dumbledore was in no mood to be dealing with Sirius right now. He had tried even his almost unlimited patience. He wondered how he was dealing with the news about Hayley.

'Regrets that will last Sirius a lifetime and no one to blame but the man in the mirror. That will be the biggest regret of them all,' Dumbledore mused as he made the short walk to see Arabella Figg.

Tom Marvolo Riddle awoke very rested in a quiet wall-to-wall grey cell. He looked down at his young body and smiled. It was much better than his wraith form.

'Lay low like a snake for now,' Tom had decided.

He had stayed up late into the night formulating his plan and after considering all possible options he had decided on simplicity. For a few hours after his arrest, he had made sure he seemed as bewildered as possible. The expressions and behaviour of every Auror who had processed him mirrored his. When told Voldemort was in the building many had come for a gawp and when they saw the young, albeit very handsome man it had been disappointing for some of them. They had expected red eyes and skeleton skin at the very least.

Amelia had told them he was to be treated 'By the book.'

She was adamant nothing was to rock this boat.

Tom was a veritable encyclopedia of at least half the unsolved crimes in their records. She needed him coherent, in one piece and locked up securely. No, she didn't care that he had less magic than a squib. He was in the most secure room in the Ministry cells as they prepared his questioning. Amelia and her team were currently in the process of gathering together all the cases pending. This was not a simple task. A simple test of his magical signature told them that this was indeed Tom Marvolo Riddle, a.k.a Voldemort. A blood ritual had regenerated him into his younger self. Dark magic that no one sane would tamper with. A magical level test told them he had no magic. Not even traces.

They assured themselves he was completely harmless. Tom smiled. Good. It was always best when they underestimated you in these situations. He had made sure he looked utterly destroyed when that wretched house-elf was hitting him. Though he couldn't resist a couple of kicks back. He had studied acting when he was a young man. He wanted to appear authentically human-like in certain situations. His natural charm helped in persuasion, but looking truly pathetic was always very useful. It lulled people into a false sense of security. People became complacent. He considered the ritual. He had been so sure that using Hayley was the best way. All his calculations had been correct for blood rituals. The closer the blood relative the stronger the effects.

But then, no one had pushed themselves as far as he had done. It was uncharted magic.

'No matter,' Tom thought idly, 'I've got more than a few tricks up my sleeve for these types of setbacks,' he mused in his cell. He had restored his body. That was the main objective. Being a wraith had been very unpleasant. Useful, however. He had learned some glorious secrets from the spirits. Hayley and Iris had been particularly useful. Blood magic was very beneficial.

He would need to explore further how better to utilise Iris. He had been informed by an Auror that Hayley was in a coma and her life was in the balance. No matter. She had served her purpose. His mind flitted on. He was young again, pretty and he felt good. He just needed to regain his magic. On the way in he had discreetly observed the Wizards and Witches in the room. Several were known to him. Definite followers. They had seemed shocked to see him too. Time. That is all it would take to communicate with one of them to get one message out. That would be sufficient. He had returned to his younger self.

Time he had. It would be nice to take a few days off. Murdering and torturing did take their toll. And it had been a difficult week.

He had planned his next immediate moves. Everything would slot into place very neatly. He could have a few lovely daydreams about what would happen after that.

A few hours into his cathartic daydreams about sitting on a throne and torturing people for fun he heard a knock at the door as it was pushed open.

'Prisoner 1346. Breakfast,' came a tense voice.

'Enter,' Tom said. He looked up to see who it was. Tall, blonde and slim. Tom knew him immediately. Ernie McNair.

'Wonderful. The youngest McNair. Although any McNair would have done. There are enough of them working here,' Tom thought. He knew he needed to be clever. The room would be bugged. Suspicions on who's side each Auror was actually on were rife.

'I'll just put the tray down here,' McNair said.

Tom nodded at him. McNair placed the breakfast on the side and turned back around looking nervous.

'Do you do room service?' Tom said to the young man.

Ernie looked at him trembling slightly in awe as he was being spoken to directly by Lord Voldemort. He nodded.

'Any chance of a mirror being put in my suite? I can't help but be curious to see what I look like now. I was a beautiful young man. One can't help being a little narcissistic, after all.'

At the word narcissistic, he prodded a finger into the air to McNair who nodded back in understanding, 'And I'm so bloody bored just sitting here. If it's not too much hassle can you track me down a quill and paper too?' I'll go insane sitting here with just these four walls.'

On the words bloody, quill and paper, he prodded his finger on each word he wanted to emphasise.

McNair nodded slightly, 'I'll check with the department that deals with that,' he said.

'Yes,' thought Tom softly as McNair left, 'Everything is slotting nicely into place.'

Not too far away, across the other side of the city, Gareth Greengrass was sitting, completely stunned by the bed of Iris who was in a deep sleep. The room was quiet and still, except for the sounds of the little girl and Kreacher's breathing.

All that he had feared had come true in front of him and he had been helpless to stop any of it. He was racking his mind trying to think of anything he could have done differently. He had been so careful but somehow it hadn't been enough. He had spoken briefly to Walburga the night before as they were being treated. She told him Tom had been convinced that something in the spirit world had informed him about Greta and Hayley. Walburga was currently sleeping in the next room. Kreacher was also sleeping in the cot next to the bed. Iris had seemed too distressed when they went to take him away and they hadn't had the heart to separate them.

He had told Dawn to stay home with the baby Daphne. He needed a clear head when he explained to her exactly what had happened. He had given her the basic information. She was an understanding woman and seeing his obvious shock, hadn't pushed him. She was upset about Hayley. Bill had stayed with them through the night. He hadn't said much, but he had been a comforting presence. He had left earlier to inform Amelia and Rita about Hayley.

Amelia had been to see him earlier to offer her sympathy. She explained the conversation with Sirius.

'He didn't have anything to say about her. He just looked at me. He didn't really react. I doubt very much he will show any remorse. He truly believes her to be another Voldemort. It's just absurd. She's a toddler. All families have their good and bad. He of all people should know that.'

Gareth hadn't much to say to her. His heart actually ached. Hayley was a daughter to him. Part of him. He felt like he had failed all of them.

He looked at Iris, 'At least they survived.'

Walburga had told him that if the ritual had backfired what Voldemort and Pettigrew had planned for her. He had felt the rage for them both fire. He would do whatever he could to protect Iris and Hayley.

'Never again,' he had vowed to himself.

Iris stirred awake. Her eyes opened in a bleary manner.

'Hello, sweetheart,' Gareth spoke to his Granddaughter gently.

'Gwanpa,' she yawned. He watched her with his heart breaking. How was he going to tell her about her mother? She had gone to bed when she had been told mummy was going to be alright. That she was just in a deep sleep. Diagnostics had been clear.

'Bloody Dark Arts', thought Gareth.

The effects of the locket had been insidious.

'How you feeling?' he forced himself to ask. He felt like sobbing each time he spoke.

'Better. I saw mummy,' Iris said matter of factly.

Gareth's heart almost stopped. He willed himself to continue.

'Oh. What happened?' he forced himself to say nonchalantly.

'She hugged me. Her mummy was there too. Mummy is with Angels. I saw them.'

Gareth gazed at Iris.

'Did she say anything to you? he whispered.

'That she love me..and you. She said she will be sleeping for ages, but she will be back.'

Gareth's eyes were wet. He sat staring at Iris, stunned.

'Mummy also says daddy is a..,' Iris looked confused, 'Gwanpa, what's a git?'

Gareth's tears were sliding down his face now as he smiled softly at her, 'An idiot, sweetheart.'

Iris nodded sagely, 'Git means not nice.'

'That is exactly what it means,' Gareth held her little hand.

'I need to talk to Dumbledore. This is beyond me,' he thought.

Earlier that morning Ted and Andromeda had emerged from their bedroom, dishevelled and sated.

Tilly and Nymphadora were eating breakfast.

'Morning Mistress and Master Tonks. I have prepared a hearty breakfast for you both,' smirked Tilly cheekily with a knowing look in her eyes.

Andromeda smiled back. Today was a new day. A new life actually. They were over the worst. She moved over to the side and helped herself to toast and coffee as Ted followed her. He started filling his plate with bacon and eggs.

Settling into a kitchen chair she sipped gently. The coffee was perfect, 'Lovely Tilly,' she praised as Tilly beamed.

'Thank you, Miss.'

Her daughter smiled up at them both. Her hair was a bright pink colour this morning.

'Morning mummy. Daddy. It's a lovely day outside,' she chirped. People were slowly coming out of their slump. People could sense the dark mood in the country was lifting.

'It is a lovely day my darling,' Andromeda and Ted held each other's eyes and smiled warmly at each other.

'It's like being in a Christmas card,' Ted mused happily, sitting next to his wife.

Nymphadora spotted the owl first, 'Newspaper coming,' she stated to everyone in the room.

'This should be interesting,' Ted said wryly to his wife who nodded back.

'Sirius is a free man. Everything else is just background noise. I do need to know the details. I need to know who did these crimes Sirius was accused of. It sort of puts a lock on all of this. We can all move on properly then.' Andromeda said.

The newspaper taken from the owl by Andromeda was opened quickly. Nymphadora started to fuss over the bird.

'Ladies first,' Ted said in his soft drawl a little drily as Andromeda had grabbed for the Daily Prophet.

'Let's see what Rita had to say. I do hope the editor managed to show some restraint with her report.'

Andromeda opened up the Daily Prophet to see a large photograph of a handsome pale man with dark hair who was looking around with confusion. 'He isn't Sirius,' she blandly stated the obvious to Ted. She started to read as Ted watched her expression of confusion change. In the space of a single minute, her face had whipped through a myriad of emotions. All colour had drained from it.

'Fuck!' the expletive shot out.

'Mummy said a bad word,' said Nymphadora cheekily from across the room. She hadn't been paying attention to the distressed look on her mother's face as Ted had. Her father had the sense to send Tilly out of the room with his daughter. She hadn't paid them any attention.

Her eyes were absorbed on the front-page story. He watched them slide down the page reading it all. He watched her hand shakily turn the page to read more. He was getting very worried. She had a pinched look on her face. Andromeda stood up, ignored him and walked into the garden. This was bad. Andromeda only went silent when she was especially upset. He watched her use the end of her wand to light another cigarette up and slump down on their garden bench. His wife sat with her head in her hands.

With great trepidation, Ted turned the front page over to find out what had rattled his wife so much. A few minutes later he joined her on the bench. Neither of them said a word to each other. He took out one of her cigarettes from the pack and lit it up, inhaling deeply. They sat there for a long time.

'If only half of that is true, then...' Ted whispered.

'They wouldn't have let Rita print any of that without permission from the Ministry. If any of that was a lie the Ministry would shut down the Daily Prophet and have Rita and her editor arrested,' Andromeda said quietly, 'This isn't some pen pusher shagging his secretary. This is going to scare everyone in the Wizarding World. He who must not be named...Alive and kicking.'

'He's lost his magic. Amelia Bones has confirmed that. They have done the tests.'

'That is small comfort. If anyone can get it back then that monster can.'

Ted stroked her arm, 'They will interrogate him for months. Round up all the rest of his followers and then give that devil a dementor's kiss,' he reassured her, 'He's a Half-blood as well. By Wizarding law, they can pour as much Veritaserum down his throat as they please. He can't fight that. No-one can. They will get the truth. This will be a good thing Dromeda.'

She gave Ted an insipid smile, 'Half-blood. I would really like to be there when the Malfoy's find that one out.'

Ted gave her a crooked smile.

'It's the whole Sirius and Pettigrew thing that is twisted,' Ted gazed at his wife with worry as she continued.

'I knew Peter wasn't as close to them as James and Sirius were to each other, but to do this...un-fucking believable. My god. Even the most twisted Slytherin wouldn't do this to their childhood friends. Betraying Lily and James. That ritual. To do that to Hayley. He's completely lost it. Pettigrew and Voldemort, a match made in Hell. I suppose we can call He who must not be named, Tom now. They have reported he is Slytherin's heir. Last known descendant of the Gaunt family. Well, now Hayley and Iris too. I suppose it all makes some sort of twisted sense. He allied with the Purebloods for their money and power. His Pureblood followers have been well and truly shown up. They won't even know how to react. Voldemort terrifies them as well. After this resurrection from the dead, they will be even more on edge. Until they are completely sure he is dead they won't make a sound. No one wants to be on the Voldemort hit list. His retribution would be fierce.'

Ted nodded in agreement. 'The elephant in the room...,' he trailed off.

'Hayley...Gareth lying for all those years. I understand why. She was Greta's daughter. His twin. Just as much a part of him as she was Greta. I always thought there was something not quite right about the situation but I didn't want to pry. As for why he did what he did. I understand. I would have done the same to protect Nymphadora. Gareth was right to lie. Within a couple of days of Tom finding out he did this to her. Hayley...I can't believe she's in a coma. Merlin knows what Sirius is going through. I can't believe he abused the Pureblood laws as he did. I need to talk to him. They must have it wrong. He could have been under the Imperius.'

'You know he wasn't. I know you always like to think the best of him due to how you were both raised but the magic would not have let him do this if he was under a spell. He did this under his own volition,' Ted told her wisely, 'He despises Voldemort. Riddle killed James and Lily. Anything that is connected to him, he loathes. He took that hatred out on the very two people he shouldn't have. Hayley is no more a Death Eater than I am. She doesn't have a mean bone in her body. As for Iris. The rules are clear. You know this better than I do. When a Pureblood officially disowns a child through the Ministry that really is the end. Neither you nor Sirius was officially disowned. You were only burnt off the family tapestry.'

Andromeda closed her eyes and breathed out slowly.

Ted gazed at her, 'Even the Black family know not to use Ministry magic for that. It is absolute. No one knows what the future holds. Sirius has severed his relationship with Iris. In the eyes of the Wizarding World, he is no more her father than I am. Only a husband or wife in this situation has the right to rectify that. I know Hayley well enough. There is no chance at all of any legal reconciliation. Greengrass women do not forgive. Ever. He will be frozen out. He won't even be able to adopt her. He knew this when he ordered Amelia to disown her. I can't believe he threatened Amelia with the courts. I doubt he still has a job with her. She won't stand for it. I can't believe what Sirius said about Hayley and Iris. He told Rita to print the lot. She had his permission! Rita put it all in the transcript. At least she blotted out some of the more vulgar language.'

'I just can't believe that he wouldn't wait. He spoke about them like they were the worst kind of filth. No proof. I know he has a flair for the dramatics but this,' Andromeda shook her head, 'Now that Hayley is in a coma because of the ritual do you think it may just give him pause for thought that he was wrong?'

'Knowing Sirius I don't think his pride will allow him to admit he is wrong. He'll just keep denouncing Iris as a Devil child.'

Andromeda hoped Ted was wrong but the whole situation had seeped into the most bewildering of scenarios, 'Even if he admits he was wrong it won't make any difference. It's all too late. He threw his daughter away like rubbish. He called her the next Voldemort,' she looked at the newspaper on the kitchen table, 'Everyone in our world will know all of this,' she whispered.

Ted sighed, 'Rita said he demanded custody of Harry. We know James and Lily took those vows with him. I wonder if they would have agreed if they knew this would happen?'

'I doubt it,' Andromeda said in a low voice, 'Lily and Hayley were good friends. Lily thought the world of Iris. She wouldn't have wanted this. What happens when they get older? Iris will have to see the boy Sirius chose to be a father too while she was chucked away.'

'She still has her Greengrass family. Hayley will pull through. Gareth loves her. Daphne is her half-sister. Dawn will be good to Iris. After what Walburga said then both Hayley and Iris have her support too,' Ted tried to be optimistic.

Andromeda looked at Ted blankly, 'Her father wants nothing to do with her. I don't think that is going to be enough to ease that knowledge.'

Ted looked at his wife. He didn't verbalise his agreement.

'I suppose you are going to have to see Sirius?' he asked.

She nodded slightly.

'I don't think I want to see him just yet,' Ted said quietly, 'None of what he has done is sitting right with me. I don't want to listen to his delusions and rantings about Iris and Hayley. It makes me feel sick just thinking about it.'

Andromeda tilted her head, 'I know Ted,' she whispered, 'but he has custody of Harry. I really don't think he is in a fit state of mind to raise a child at the moment. We need to make contact with Dumbledore. He knows we were prepared to raise Harry and under the circumstances, we may be needed to support Sirius even more now. Dumbledore will need to set some protections on the area. We can help with that.'

Ted nodded in agreement, 'I'll stay here with Nymphadora and get in contact with Albus. You get yourself together and when you're ready, see what state Sirius is in and if Harry is there yet. Rita said he demanded his arrival by midday,' Ted shook his head, 'Talking to Albus like that...his arrogance is incredible.'

Andromeda had to agree with her husband. Well, she had a couple of hours to brace herself.

She lit another cigarette.

Author note.

Someone very special to Sirius will be helping him come to his senses by chapter 15.

This version of Sirius is younger at this stage than his canon counterpart. He is not as mature as he is in the books. He has been betrayed by Peter. He has lost two of his best friends. His mind is not thinking properly.

I wanted to parallel canon but in reverse. Sirius lost almost everything because he trusted Peter. Now he refuses to trust Hayley and Iris because he fears they will destroy Harry. He believes he has fallen into the same trap that Greta did. Tom had been Prince Charming when they had first met. Sirius thinks he has been fooled by Hayley.

He is younger here. He is a member of House Black. A House notorious for being volatile. They act first and think later.

Seeing his mother again caused a lot of anger in him to rise to the surface. He has devoted his life to fighting Voldemort and hates all that the Dark stands for.

It's also important to remember that Iris will share some of his character traits. This will be important later in the story.

I think Sirius is one of the best characters in the series. He is a very layered, complex man and I wanted to show that.