CHAPTER 14:

MAKING PLANS

Personal notes of Rita Skeeter, dictated by dictation pen: November 1, 2004.

Well, well, well…it seems that someone has made a surprising comeback, none other than the prodigal son of the Potter line. Harry Potter has made a reappearance at the ceremony to choose the Champions of the Goblet of Fire, accompanied by a Muggle of all things. When I first heard the news from my editor, I was intrigued. Harry Potter was supposedly killed in a Fiendfyre conflagration when he and his guardian, Remus Lupin, were set upon by anti-werewolf vigilantes. And even though one less werewolf in the world is only a good thing, you'd think they'd choose a more offensive target, as Lupin has had no known infractions to his name.

Anyway, I managed to beard Ludo Bagman. The punch-drunk, washed-out Beater has always been eager to speak, especially if someone greases his palms with a few Galleons. The fool really should stop gambling so much. He owes money to so many people, including the Goblins. And just when I think he couldn't be any more stupid, he tries to fool Goblins with Leprechaun Gold, stuff that vanishes overnight. He's banking on the Tri-Wizard Tournament to revive his flagging fortunes.

I managed to get him to talk, off the record. Really, I need to do my groundwork for this when it becomes an article. Shooting one off prematurely won't work well. Harry Potter apparently appeared out of thin air, with a Muggle girl calling herself Tina in tow. Both had Muggle weaponry, handguns apparently, one of which Harry used to try and break the tension. He insisted on being called Harry Flynt, with a Y, apparently, presumably to distance himself from the Flints. I can't say I blame him, they're a frightful family for Purebloods.

The Tina girl acted…well, rather bizarrely, closer to a Lovegood than a Muggle. And Harry claimed he would be representing not any school, but an organisation calling themselves the Crimson Raiders of Pandora. I know of no organisation of that name in either the magical or mundane worlds, and that intrigues me.

Harry's reappearance is already intriguing enough, but I'm also curious about his mother. Leaving aside her comatose state, there are those strange tattoo-like markings she has. I remember glimpsing her in action during You Know Who's attacks, and seeing those tattoos glow while she caused massive explosions which, in hindsight, I am not sure she used Bombardas for.

Harry Potter and his mother are intriguing mysteries that I intend to unravel. The Boy Who Lived and that arse of a father of his are already passé, old news, strutting peacocks whose brilliance is fading. But Harry…he intrigues me. I'll wait until the Weighing of the Wands. Perhaps I can get answers then. And if not…well, I have an ace up my sleeve…

"You're actually thinking of recruiting more Vault Hunters?"

Lilith nodded in response to Harry's question. They were seated in the Crimson Raider operations room. "Most of us are scattered across the borderlands. Maya is on Athenas, trying to train up Ava. Zer0 is helping Rhys on Promethea. Sir Hammerlock is on Eden-6, trying to get intel on the Vault rumoured to be there, while his sister…well, she's gone silent, and we haven't been on the best of terms with her. Timothy, from what Moxxi told me, is fine running the Handsome Jackpot for her, and really, I can't blame him. He was pretty much an ordinary college student until Handsome Jack turned him into a decoy. Oh, he's still a badass, but he's pretty much a civilian. As for Athena, well, it'd take something really big, at least as big as the Gortys fiasco, for Janey to let her work with us. Your father's pretty much a Vault Hunter already, as are you and Tina, but we need more. These reports about some of the bandits and Psychos banding together has me worried. So, I've been looking into possible candidates. Maya helped me out, as did your father and Zer0. I just wanted your opinions on them."

Tina nodded. "Got it, Lily of the Valley. But why us? I mean, we're not kids anymore, but we haven't been on as much shizz as you guys."

"True, but I trust your opinions all the same." She fanned out a few files. "This is the current shortlist, so to speak. Firstly, there's this one."

"…That's a robot," Harry said, frowning. "In a hooded jacket. What's his name?"

"Their name is FL4K," Lilith said. "They identify as non-binary."

"Waitwaitwait…that's HunterFL4K?" Tina said. "They sends us comments on our show, has this fixation on hunting for some reason."

"They do. They've become something of a legend lately. According to records I dug up, they were an archival droid that awoke to sentience, and who had a thirst for murder. Thankfully, they channelled that desire to hunt various species across the galaxy. Rumour has it that they worked here on Pandora for a time, even tamed a Spiderant, a few Rakks, and a Skag, to say nothing of a Jabber from Eden-6."

"…They're perfect, NEXT CANDIDATE, SILVER PLATE!"

"…It's s'il vouz plait, Tina, you said it properly before. Besides, you can't just decide to like a person because they like alien beasties," Harry said.

"YES WE CAN, MOVING ON!" Tina's eyes went over to the next one, showing a woman of Indian or Middle-Eastern descent, but with distinctive blue tattoo-like markings. "A Siren? Wait a moment…I know her."

"So you should," Lilith said. "That's Amara, the Tiger of Partali, a known vigilante on that world. Loves fighting, loves a challenge, and loves doing it for what's right, by all accounts. She's becoming an ECHOnet celebrity, but rumour has it that she's seeking new challenges."

Harry frowned as he considered this. "Has potential, but do we know what she's really like?"

"Good question, and we're still working on that. Finally, we have this one." A belligerent-looking young woman in military uniform, albeit heavily customised, was shown. A mini-mecha was standing behind her.

Harry noted a few insignias that his father taught him to look for. "Ex-Vladof, by the look of her. Wait…I've heard of her…well, her unit. The Ursa Corps, the name given to their Mechanized Infantry Division, because the mechas are known as 'Iron Bears'. Dad told me about them. A lot of them got wiped out recently during a clash between Vladof and Maliwan in some arse-end called Darzaran Bay."

"Nice to see Zane's education is sticking. This one is the only survivor of that mission. Moserah Hayussinian Yan-Lun al-Amir Andreyevna, though for obvious reasons, she goes by 'Moze'. While listed as KIA by Vladof, it won't be long before she'd be listed as AWOL, and Vladof used to be as zealous as Atlas was in hunting down deserters. Then again, chatter from Vladof suggests that as long as she doesn't threaten their interests, they don't give much of a damn."

"Huge mecha, with lotsa big booms…she's in," Tina said.

"Because of course explosions are the deciding factor," Lilith said dryly.

"Nope, but they come pretty close to the top. They need to be good guys…well, our kinda good guys," Tina said.

Lilith chuckled. "As I said, this is the current shortlist. We're still looking for others. Axton and Salvador are doing their own thing at the moment, but if need be, we'll bring them in. Anyway, let's change the subject a little. James Potter's offer, have you made a decision?"

"I'm leaning towards accepting it. Firstly, it's not like we need the money anyway. Secondly, he wants me to reject it, I'm sure, and make a big song and dance about it," Harry said. "I refuse to give him the satisfaction. Besides, I've said it before, and I'll say it again: the Crimson Raiders are my family, and Zane's my father. I am Harry Flynt, not Harry Potter. If James Potter wants nothing to do with me, then that's fine by me."

"Harry…don't get me wrong, from what you've told me, and what I've heard, he's pretty much a big douche. We're not talking Handsome Jack levels of douchedom, though. While this is probably the better of those choices he gave you, are you sure? Because sometimes, you might regret it."

"…Lilith, he clearly didn't regret all but kicking me out of the family to be raised by Moony, not if he sent that offer," Harry said. "I won't regret it. Not with him."

"Fair enough. I only said that because…I have regrets where my own family are concerned. My own parents were overprotective of me when I turned out to be a Siren. It doesn't help that there was that bounty the Order of the Impending Storm, or other bounties for people who wanted a Siren. We said things that I regretted." Lilith looked away, her golden eyes glistening with tears. "I was lucky, I reconciled with them before they died, shortly before I decided to come to Pandora."

"…You never told us this, Lily of the Valley," Tina said quietly.

"I don't like talking about my past. Hell, I only really told Roland, Moxxi and Maya. Admittedly, it was partly because my parents and I were little more than tomb-raiders, doing smash and grab runs on Eridian ruins. Mercenary archaeologists, we called ourselves. I became their biggest rivals for a time, hoping to prove them wrong." She looked at her arm, and the Siren tattoos present. "In a way, I became more infamous than them, but it was partly on account of these fucking markings. I came to Pandora to do some soul-searching, to find something else beyond this lifestyle. I guess I eventually did. A family of choice, if nothing else. But…I do miss my parents, greedy idiots though they were. Their holy grail was to find Nekrotafeyo. Thought it'd set them up for life. That was partly why I split with them. Because they spent so long chasing after the shadow of Typhon DeLeon, they forgot what being a family was meant to be like. In a way, Tannis was right."

"In what way?" Harry asked.

"The Sirens and the Eridians are linked, and not just in the way we learned from that journal your mother wrote in. In Greek myth, the Sirens lured unwary sailors onto the rocks to feast on. In these times, Sirens and Eridian artifacts cause all sorts to abandon all reason, chasing shadows and smoke. The siren song is of money or prestige or fame, but it's still a siren song all the same. And I chased it myself. Ironic, huh?"

"Yeah, so? It's not like learning about that shizz ain't worth it," Tina said. "Yeah, it caused all sorts of bad crap to happen when douchenozzles like Atlas or Jackhole got a hold of it. But doesn't it help people? I mean, Atlas is getting better now that Rhys' Pieces is in charge, and Hyperion's less nasty too. It's like with explosives. Old Alfred Nobel wanted to make explosives safer so that demolition shit could be made safer. But he got his panties in a bunch 'cause he knew it'd make it easier for people to kill each other. So many things can be used for good shit or bad shit, like explosives, guns, money, magic…it's up to people to choose that. Besides, you good people, Lily of the Valley. That's why Flynty-boy and I love your fine, well-toned ass."

Had it been anyone less-used to Tina's turns of phrases, they would have taken offence or just been shocked. Lilith merely chuckled at the compliment, and took it in the spirit it was meant. "I honestly feel like a mother to you two. I'm sure Moxxi feels the same way. Though honestly, I can't wait to get Lily back here and cure her of, well, whatever ails her."

"And that's going to be happening during the First Task?" Harry asked, albeit rhetorically. "I have to wonder what it is. I've done some quick reading of books on the history of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, seeing what previous Tasks were like, and they're not promising. Facing a powerful magical creature is likely for at least one Task. And they want me out there facing it with just my wand. Now, my studies in magic haven't been that great, but as I said to Dumbledore in his office, I can just use a Summoning Charm to get my equipment. Also, whenever we're visiting Hogwarts, I'll see if I can deploy some drones or something to scout out the area, see if we can tell what the First Task entails by what preparations they're making."

"Right, you can use a SNTNL drone like your father, I forgot about that."

"I mostly use the Digi-Clones. SNTNLs are better for scouting, in my opinion," Harry said.

"Right. Well, we'll see if we can get you trained up. I'm sure Dr Tannis has simulation data we can use. Even if they're not magical creatures, there's the likes of Crawmerax to help with tactics against large creatures…"

"So he's going to accept the offer?" James Potter frowned. "…I actually hoped he would reject it."

"Harry is more cunning than we thought. The Horcrux's influence, no doubt. However, it's possible that this is his guardians' influence too. Zane Flynt explicitly identified himself as a mercenary. And given his age, he is doubtlessly a prudent one, for one does not reach such an age as a soldier of fortune without prudency."

James nodded, but he scowled at the thought of Harry not playing ball. True, there would be other opportunities to blacken his name, destroy his reputation as he deserved, before finally killing that Horcrux-tainted little shit. But like many a bully, especially one who never grew out of it, James wanted his jollies now, not deferred.

Trying another tack, he said, "They come from the future, right? What's to stop us from heading there, plundering the technology from that time, and finding ways to commercialise that?"

"I've been considering that, James. While I doubt, given your antipathy towards Harry, that you will be let through, a curious Headmaster may be allowed through. Minerva's mind was most informative. They are belligerent and barbaric on this world of Pandora, but they are far from stupid. Discretion would be needed."

James nodded again, before an idea came to him, and he smirked. "And if we can…well, I have an idea of how we can have that brat's name darkened in Magical Britain. After all…the Muggles may be able to tell where a bullet comes from…but do Aurors?"

CHAPTER 14 ANNOTATIONS:

Just a nice interlude chapter where Harry, Tina and Lilith discuss the Vault Hunters of the third game, while James and his benefactor are plotting.

This was originally going to have Rita Skeeter end up on Pandora, hence the extract from her notes at the start, and the chapter was going to be called Does This Bug You?, but after writing so much of Harry, Tina and Lilith, I decided to break it off.

I also noticed a continuity error where Tina pronounces s'il vouz plait properly in an earlier chapter, but uses one of her malapropisms here. So I decided to have Harry lampshade it.

Also, who's excited for Tiny Tina's Wonderlands? It's a pretty blatant cashgrab, but hopefully, it'll be the sort that's actually good…

Review-answering time! Princess Asuna: Moxxi canonically has four kids, but details on the ones aside from Scooter and Ellie are hard to come by. I've got it in my head that two of them died, long before Scooter did in Tales from the Borderlands.

davidteague3950: Krieg is a particularly burly form of a Psycho. Psychos are an iconic enemy, but Krieg is a different variant of Psycho.

Seimka: Hmm, well, like the third game, Harry can potentially have multiple action skills, so it's a hybrid of his magic and Zane's Digi-Clones and drone. He doesn't have the barrier or (as released in the latest updates) a shoulder-mounted cannon.

vmage2: Uhhh, what Firefly reference? I couldn't find it in that chapter you reviewed, though my familiarity with that series is admittedly limited.

No numbered annotations this time.