Hariel felt too cold and too hot simultaneously, her head buzzing and her hands clammy. That wasn't possible, right?

Right?

She knew she was staring at Winky and that the elf would pop away any second now.

Pop away to tell Barty that she was married. No. She couldn't let that happen. Also, something was niggling in the back of her mind. Something wasn't entirely right about all this.

Apart from the being married thing.

Which if it was real would be like, the epically we are not letting Hariel alone ever again kind of thing, and she wouldn't even be able to argue if Hermione or Ron, or Merlin, even if freaking Hagrid who was the sweetest person she knew found about it.

And Barty was a lot of things, but sweet was not one of them.

"Winky," she said, her voice hollow, feeling numb and somewhat detached. A state of mind born in the war. Not a good one. "Could you perhaps elaborate on that?"

She knew her tone of voice had lowered, and even to her own ears, her words seemed cold and very Snape-like in their enunciation, but she knew House-Elves. She fucking knew them. She had even been so, so close from bonding with one, which in her opinion, was the most troublesome of them all. But. But. Dobby was not here, but her hard-earned lessons with his kind were.

She fucking knew them, and if Winky was mad at her for something and this was her passive-aggressive way of creating havoc with her mind, well, that was not going to fly.

Winky must have noticed it too because her previously perky ears drooped significantly, and her toothy smile dimmed.

"Winky be's saying that Winky bes wanting to care for magicky babies, Missy Lady Black."

Hariel breathed in and out a few times. A thousand scenarios ran through her mind, and only a few ended well for the House Elf.

Which Barty adored.

"Not that part. What do you mean married, and…." Hariel paused because her magic was getting out of control, the lights were flickering, and one of the windows cracked. "Don't you dare do that House elf mind fuckery thing to me."

"Winky bes not doing anything to Missy lady Black," the House-Elf protested weakly. Too weakly. "Winky donts knows what Missy Lady Black is so maddy about."

Hariel arched a single eyebrow.

Yes. Winky and Dobby had spent a lot of time together, maybe too much. She had also spent a lot of time with Barty. She didn't know which one was worse. She knew very, very well how petty and vengeful and mad and terrible House Elves could be.

Then there was Kreacher.

"Did you know Kreacher, Winky?" she asked, inflectionless. "Maybe you didn't. He was way, way older than you. A traitor too. He wanted Sirius dead, you know? My Godfather. My only real Blood Family. And, yes, it is my fault that Sirius is dead because I was naive and stupid, but you know what, Winky? Kreacher wanted his head to be mounted in Grimmauld Place when he died, and you know where his head is, Winky?"

The elf was wide-eyed and trembling, but Hariel needed to know.

"Kreacher's head bes… bes feed to big Spider in Forbidden Forest, Missy Lady Black."

Winky seemed maybe a second away from wailing now, and Hariel didn't want that. No. She was already feeling somewhat bad for terrorizing her. Still, needs must.

The Kreacher thing was a low blow. She knew every house-elf in Hogwarts knew about it. Probably all of them in Britain.

They were unaware that it had been Barty's idea of a good birthday present, but they didn't need to know that little tidbit. She was okay with having a reputation, and feeding it to Aragog was all her, of course. She had thought of burning it or maybe letting it displayed in some very, very muggle place, but ultimately, she had decided on flashy to let everyone know what happened to traitors.

"Explain now, Winky, and don't think for a moment that I think you are an idiot or in any way as innocent as you may look. I know very, very well how devious you all can be, so better talk and not leave anything out, or I will be mad." she stopped to let her words sink into the house-elf mind before continuing, "You don't want me mad. I won't hurt you, Winky, but I will get very, very mad with Barty, and then, we will duel, and you know what? He could get very hurt. Terribly hurt. Mortally, even."

She crossed her arms and waited, not losing eye contact with Winky's big bulbous eyes.

Winky wrung her hands in front of her and looked like she didn't know what to say or what to do. Good. Maybe she would get some answers.

"Winky bes sorry," she started, big tears pooling in her eyes and big lips trembling. She was good.

"No, no, you are not. No fake crying, Winky. Just tell me whatever is it, and we can leave this incident behind us forever."

The House Elf scowled and crossed her arms, with a stubborn pout on her face. She was mad. Scared still, but pretty angry.

"Winky bes not approve of Missy Lady Black not be bonding with Master Barty, but missy Lady Black be bonding with strangys. Winky has been watching for days while Missy bes sleeping. Missy should bond with Master."

Hariel felt a headache coming up. House-elves, incredibly stubborn and manipulative house-elves, were going to be her downfall. That would be her epitaph: Hariel "Harry" Jamie Potter Black lies here. She got in trouble a lot. The house-elves did her in."

"Winky, I doubt very much that Barty would want that. We are friends. He's Vassal of House Black. Do you ever think that would be allowed? He's not in Azkaban again because I am supposed to be watching over him and having him under house arrest."

The elf started crying, this time for real. Not the big fake tears, but her small shoulders started shaking, and she sniffled. Hariel crouched down in front of her and patted her head, trying to console her.

"Winky knows, but Master Barty bes the best Master, and he bes deserving be Lord Black."

Oh, for fuck's sake. Now what, politics? What has Barty been teaching Winky? Well, knowing him, everything. Still, this was just all kind of stupid. And precisely the thing a house-elf would do for their Master if they loved them.

"So, you are angry because you think I married someone else and not Barty, and then they would be getting the Black Lordship? Is that it?

Because I have married no one, and even if I did, I would remain Lady Black, and they would be Black Consort. I have the ring. So you can stop the theatrics and the scheming now."

"But Missy Lady Black is, missy Lady Black, bes having soul bonds with the two strangies and that ghostie. Winky feels them. Winky is not lying. Winky promises. Missy is having bondies with strangers and not with Master Barty."

Hariel was done.

So, done, and the day was just starting.

She looked behind where Giotto was watching with an almost indecipherable but slightly disapproving expression, and she just wanted to go back to bed and continue sleeping for a whole week.

"Alright, Winky. I hear you. I will check whether what you say is true or not, but you will not be telling anyone any of this. And since House Crouch is a Vassal of House Black, let me reiterate it. This is an order. You won't mention anything related to these days or the days to come to anyone in any way or form that relates to me and this marriage or bonding thing until I say so. Even if asked directly by Barty. An order Winky. An order.

"But Missy Lady Black bes never giving big orders to Winky," she exclaimed, looking miserable.

"There is always a first time for everything. Now go, and remember I will be calling on you because Barty wants to meet. Not. A. Single. Word."

Winky looked more annoyed than distraught. Bloody House-elves.

"Yes, Missy Lady Black," she agreed in the end, and with a finger snap, she was gone.

Hariel looked at the other possibly traitorous being in the room. No one was here.

That man…! Ghost. Sky. Agh, he had done a disappearing act. She could call him back with the ring, but no matter.

Okay, Hariel needed things to be done anyway. Crucial things.

She needed a pensieve, an Oclumency session, some potions, and to check her magical core for possibly strange bonds or abnormalities of any kind. Not in that order. But it would do.

She went back to the comfortable bed and laid there, hugging the pillow again and closing her eyes, trying to reach the place where her magical core was. It was hard to reach. Curious. But she pressed until she was near the multicolored universe that was where her magic resided and looked.

She almost had an aneurysm when she saw that Winky had not been lying;

There were three very visible, very vibrant, and strong-looking Soul Bonds there, all of them intertwined with her magical core in a way that she knew was irreversible. Destroying it would destroy her nexus, and a magicless witch would die.

It is not that she knew a lot about soul magic, but she knew more than most. She had been hunting Horcruxes for a year, and they had researched Soul Magic.

Lots and lots of dusty books, the majority holding nothing valuable about what they were actually searching, but they had had to skim and read them anyway, so yes, she knew more than her peers about the subject.

Hariel logically knew that she wasn't married.

That it didn't work that way.

She also knew that a Soul Bond was stronger than a marriage bond, so it wasn't making her feel any better.

Soul Bonds had felt in disuse centuries ago; only some of the Purebloods used them nowadays. It was a practice that was not smart. It was very problematic, actually.

Not that the Wizarding World views on Soul Magic were like this because of being a smart thing to do or not. Soul Magic was considered a branch of Dark Magic, and that was it.

No matter that some that the most used magical bonds and vows used Soul Magic. Since it was not taught or explained in class, it was just accepted.

How could something like this have happened? What has she done?

A Soul Bond was a highly complex piece of magic used in the past to unite Houses and avoid traitors since the bond wouldn't allow it, or it would break, causing death. Both parties had to accept it. They had to. They couldn't be forced.

How had her Bond with Giotto, who was her Guardian become a Soul Bond, anyway? And why did it mean to be Soul Bonded to a non-living entity?

Hermione or Barty would actually have explanations or at least theories, but she was not telling this to anyone ever. Or at least until she was ready.

She would need to research on her own. She needed to know how this had come to pass and to whom else she was bonded too because they were going to spend a lot of time together. Especially now, with a newborn bond that would make separation painful or just impossible.

Well, there was nothing to it. It was time to face the music. But first, she was having a strong calming draught.

xxx

Shamal was considering preparing breakfast or not. There were a lot of ingredients there, but it just seemed like too much work.

That's why Reborn was currently away, also he would probably buy extra groceries himself and check on the problematic duo.

The man was too paranoid to let someone deliver them to their safe house.

That's when his Sky met him for the first time. First time for her that is. Or that she remembered. Probably.

She was barefooted and in the cute sushi patterned pajamas they had gotten her, along with some other thing that they had thought indispensable for a woman.

Her Flames were happily dancing around the room, filling it with warmth, and some tendrils of them had gone instantly to greet his, to play with.

Her face looked conflicted, though, which Shamal could understand.

She had woken up in a strange place, with strange clothes, and was now facing a strange man. She was so very petite and fragile-looking too.

She must be scared. Maybe even wondering if they had kidnapped her, which, well, in a way, they had.

"So…" she said, looking at him up and down and then looking at the disorganized counters, her gaze taking all in. "I guess I will have to do all the work here for now. It doesn't look as if you have any idea of what you are actually doing."

"Uh?"

Because... Uh?

She signaled at the open cabinets and drawers, the ingredients laying haphazardly in the top of the counter, and waved at them lazily with her hand.

"What were you trying to do? There's enough in here to feed an army," she commented, looking dubiously at it.

"Breakfast?"

She nodded tiredly and sighed.

"Alright, yes, that's a good idea. Breakfast. I need some tea. So, do you know how to make pancakes, er… what was your name, again?

"I am Shamal, Dr. Trident Shamal, and I can't say I do." Shamal was feeling really out of his depth here. This was weird, and he was a Mist. They did weird. His Sky's reaction and nonchalance were making him nervous.

"Figures. I am Hariel, but please call me Harry," she said while she started organizing some of the ingredients in an exact and even OCD way.

"But that's a man's name." He wasn't calling his Sky a man's name. No way.

"It's totally gender-neutral. Why do men have to appropriate everything? If I say it's my name, it's my name, and since I am a woman, it's a woman's name. Now…I don't have a lot of patience in the mornings, and this is not a specially patience-worthy morning, so pay attention."

She directed her vibrant green eyes at him, and the tone of her voice was not one to be argued with.

And that's how Shamal found himself cutting fruits into perfect rectangles and slices and preparing both tea and coffee, while Hariel because he was totally not calling her Harry, prepared pancakes and toast.

She was mainly silent through it all, just telling him what to do and when, and only once, criticizing the size of the banana cuts he was making. "Those are too thin, Shamal. Try and go for half an inch."

Shamal himself was too bewildered to say or do anything but nod and cut the damn thing like she wanted.

They were very bizarre twenty minutes, that with his Sky preparing breakfast like it was the normal thing to do, steamrolling him to help and to pay attention because "next time it's your turn." and he kept getting distracted with their Flames shenanigans.

While she had been in the coma, her flames had remained still and protective, flooding the room she was in but not really interacting with any of them. It was a normal reaction, so he had not been worried. The block was working how it should, which was the important thing.

But now that she was awake, they were like high puppies. They meshed with his Mist Flames, oh, so curious, and they played, and now her Flames seemed to be making his follow some of their tendrils, only to play fight when they were caught, and then vice versa. Mist Flames were playful in nature, so his Flames were elated by the attention of the Sky Flames.

They moved all the food to the kitchen table, and Hariel served herself a cup of tea with a relieved sigh. Then, and only then, she smirked a little and started talking.

"So, Shamal…"

No.

No, everything that started with those words ended awful for Shamal, and even if weird, his first meeting with his Sky was going well, exceptionally well, so well that he had checked all the food, and eating utensils and kitchenware for poison because before anything he was an Assassin and a Mist, and he knew about underhanded methods of vengeance. Mostly because he used them.

"Maybe Reborn should explain it," he said, as fast as he could, after swallowing too hot a sip of his coffee. "You know each other better, and I am sure you would feel more at ease talking with him."

She suddenly looked paler, still very relaxed, if her body language had anything to say about it.

"Reborn… you mean Sinclair?" she asked, voice deadpan, but clearly surprised.

Shamal himself was very surprised that a well, civilian knew Reborn's real surname but nodded.

"Yes, he will come at any moment now. He went out for coffee."

"Of course he did," she said, "But I digress. Talking to that man is always so problematic. Of course, he would be in this mess. He is always getting in messes. You see, there was one incident just the day we met that…well, he got into a lot of trouble. Believe me."

Shamal was curious now because there had been a lot of amusement in her eyes and even some kind of schadenfreude, and now he needed to know.

What had Reborn done to earn that kind of reaction from their Sky?

Vongola Primo, or as he kept telling him to call him, Giotto, appeared before them at that moment. He looked at Hariel, then at Shamal and then at all the breakfast they have made and sat with them, looking like the, well mythical Vongola Boss that he was.

"So I see your… temper is better now," he said, tilting his head to observe her better. Hariel glared at him. Her Flames felt annoyed at him.

"I am so not talking to you now, you escapist coward ghost."

"Did something happen between you two?" Shamal asked because, one, this was his Sky talking to a ghost like it was normal, and two, this was Vongola Primo's ghost being insulted by his very human Sky. Or Guardian.

Still, his Sky had to be very fucking brave to talk to him that way. Well, she was not Mafia, but Vongola Primo didn't have to tell his name to be imposing. Like Reborn, actually. Only...nicer looking. In the way in that, if Reborn was pissed at you, he would make you feel every bit of it before ending you. Primo would probably just kill you and never look back.

But this was not a time to start thinking about that.

"He barely mentioned, in less than a sentence, something about a kidnapping," she said, annoyed. "A past kidnapping. So, I can only assume that you are not trying to kidnap me, are you?"

"No, not at all, Hariel, we are actually, well, on the run from that issue." He totally did not want to be in this conversation. Abort. Abort. He needed out.

"And why, pray, are we on the run from kidnappers?" she asked, exasperation clear in her voice.

"Well, maybe this is a very delicate conversation that would be best had with someone else," because telling his civilian Sky that she had killed five or six men while drugged and semi naked probably was not wise.

She could start remembering things if she hadn't already. And the shock of ending a life was not something Shamal was prepared to deal with. He was not a psychiatrist. And that was only the beginning.

Not to mention Flames, crime, or the Mafia. Which they apparently weren't.

"We are away because Reborn is paranoid. Also, you went on a killing spree on there, and it was the sensible thing to do."

Well, thanks, Giotto. If Shamal had to do damage control because of that...

"I did?" Hariel asked, munching on buttered toast. "Why?"

"I assume it was in self-defense," Shamal said trying to defuse the situation. Surely self-defense was a good reason for killing, right?

"Stabbing someone more than fifty times is not self-defense."

"I stabbed someone? Like... with a knife?" Hariel now looked comically surprised. His Sky had the weirdest reactions. Maybe it was shock. Or trauma.

"What else would you stab someone with?" asked Giotto, who seemed in a mood. They both had some kind of thing going between them.

Maybe it was alright that she was having this conversation with Vongola Primo instead of Reborn. They looked so very at ease with each other.

"Point. A sword?"

xxx

Reborn had been having his second espresso of the morning when one of his Summer Beetles told him Hariel had woken up, and he was fast on his feet to see his Sky before she got into more trouble. Also, he wanted answers.

He drove to their secluded little house, not more than fifteen minutes away.

He had a bad feeling about all this. And he was never wrong about these things. The sooner they left, the better.

Then there was the issue of the minions, who were stashed in a little apartment Reborn had rented for a few days. They were being monitored by cameras, bugs, and even Shamal mosquitoes. He thought that even Giotto had been checking on them from time to time. But with Vongola Primo, you never knew. The man was infuriatingly cryptic sometimes. Most of the time.

What were they going to do with them?

Erasing their memories was the optimal idea, but that would mean a lot of headaches for Reborn too, and he was not explaining Flames or the Mafia to her. Not until. Well. Not until he was sure.

When he went into the house, he heard voices, so he very silently checked them over in case something was wrong. Well, worse.

They… were having breakfast. The three of them, except that Giotto didn't have a mug this time and looked aggravated.

Hariel and even Shamal appeared too relaxed for it to be normal. They were also talking irritating things, so he would have to make his presence known and control what was said and what wasn't.

"It wasn't a knife. It was a broken piece of very sharp metal. But if you two are asking, you can stab people with a lot things, even with a fork," he explained, letting them know of his presence.

His Sky's gaze sharpened and zeroed on him and looked at him for long, long seconds before returning to her breakfast and taking a sip of tea.

"Oh, hello, Sinclair. I was told to wait for you for explanations about," and she made a gesture with her hand," this from you.

"Hariel," he said, "I see you are back to your lovely self."

"When am I ever not lovely?" she asked, amused. Even if she was still wearing pajamas and her hair was a huge mess. Well, she maybe looked a bit cute.

"You are always lovely, Hariel," Shamal interrupted and winked at her, who looked highly entertained and winked back. WHAT. EVEN.

"Why, thank you. At least someone here has good taste."

Reborn rolled his eyes at this thing they were doing. This thing was not expected at all. There was supposed to be more chaos. Shouting. Stabbings. Mayhem.

This domestic scene…

It was a trap. It has to be.

Maybe even a Mist trap. He eyed Shamal with distrust, but no, Shamal wouldn't dare.

He decided to ignore them and passed a newspaper to Hariel, who looked alarmed for once, that is until she saw the newspaper's title. Curious reaction.

He sat with them, and after checking for poisons or any weird substances, he served himself some pancakes. They looked delicious, and since Shamal didn't know how to cook, Hariel must have made them. There was even freshly made coffee. That must have been Shamal. Hariel only drank tea.

They just sat in tense silence while she read the news.

"So…" she said at last. "I still don't get it. If I was kidnapped, why I am not in there with all the kidnapped people who are being checked on the hospital?"

"Well, for once, you were on your way out, so I doubt very much you would be there anyway. But a good reason is that there is a crime scene investigation, and you and your minions killed some people. Especially you."

"What? What minions?" she asked, looking surprised.

"The one's your drugged self half kidnapped to help with your escape, you even named then. Ron and Hermione."

"What? I wound't do that!" she said, sounding very offended and throwing a slice of toast at him. He tilted his head, and it went past him. This was more in the lines of what he had expected.

"And yet, it happened," Giotto said, now with a mug in his hands."I saw it all."

"What was I drugged with? That's not normal. Drugs don't affect me that way usually," Hariel was actually looking more weirded out now than in the whole previous conversation that had included kidnapping and murder.

"I found alarming amounts of, Clonazepam, Flunitrazepam, Diazepam, GHB, LSD, and what, I think, were hallucinogenic mushrooms. You are actually lucky you didn't overdose; they clearly didn't know what there was in there, or if they knew, they didn't want those people alive." Shamal was even scowling a little at the remembrance.

Hariel made a face.

"I only understood the mushroom part. Can you write the list somewhere so I can check it over at a later date? And what happened with those two people I may or not may convinced to escape from a dangerous and possibly death-inducing situation?" Oh, so his Sky wanted to play innocent hero now.

"They are here too, in this town, but in a different place."

"Why?"

"Well, they are yours. You should decide what to do with them." Shamal pointed out.

"Did you… kidnap them?"

"No, they came on their own," Reborn replied because they have been too happy to be out of there.

"And did they, by any chance, save my life or something like that?" Hariel asked, looking very interested in the response. If only she knew how useless they had been...

"Depends," Giotto interrupted. "It was clear you needed them for moral support."

"They killed some people for you too," added Reborn.

"You mean, for them, right? I mean, we were kidnapped together. This is not a cult. A drugged cult."

"They weren't even that drugged," assured Shamal, who had broken his no men rule because it was a kid. Or so he said. He probably hadn't wanted to get in trouble with his Sky."

"Alright. Forget that for a moment. Why are we on the run?"

"We are not on the run" as if Reborn would let someone make him run away "But the practical and tactical thing was to get away from there, and since you were unconscious, your minions, were with you and me, killed some of them, and as I told you before I am the greatest hitman in the world, the best thing was to get away fast.

"You said that in the case of you ever killing someone, there would be no police involved," frowned Hariel, who seemed to have remembered that tidbit of information. Well, at least she had been paying attention.

"Well, I wasn't counting on you blowing up the place, and you also forget the other kidnapped people. Unless you wanted to leave them there, that is." He actually didn't know his Sky so much as to ascertain her morality, but certainly, her responses to the whole situation were not very civilian-like.

Hariel nodded, looking at the paper again, maybe looking for more details.

"Wait," she exclaimed suddenly as if getting a big realization, "So you are actually a Hitman?" and then she looked at Giotto accusingly, "you said he was your kid's tutor or something like that." Reborn wondered why and when those two had gotten too close. It was ludicrous that it was in a dream.

"He has a degree in mathematics among other things," Giotto replied, very prim a proper.

"This is too much information. I need to leave for a bit."

"Leave? Leave where? We are getting in a car a leaving to Greece in… an hour."

"What? Why Greece?" she asked, confused.

"Because this safe house is not safe enough. The one in Greece is better protected." Actually, Arcobaleno protected. There he could be able to relax. He hoped the other Arcobaleno were not there. That could be problematic, but they had safe-houses worldwide, and the one in Greece was rarely used.

"But… is someone following us?"

"As I said, I am a well-renowned Hitman, and Shamal there is an Assassin. We have a lot of enemies. Especially me."

"Weren't you a doctor?" she said, sounding mad at Shamal, maybe for the first time in the entire time he had been there, and by Shamal's face, maybe for the whole time ever.

"I am. I am. I specialize in Infectious Diseases. I am just an Assassin as well. Not that I would do anything to you!

"I wasn't worried about me. Alright. I will go with your harebrained scheme for the time being because… reasons. But I am going to my room now to process things."

Well, weird that she was being reasonable. Suspicious too.

They would protect all exists; of course, she was too unpredictable.

And they still hadn't resolved the Minion's situation. Annoying.

On the good side, her Flames were extraordinarily happy and had welcomed his with open arms instead of trying to kill him like that time in the train.

xxx

Hariel was fucked.

She was so fucked, and she needed time. Lots of time.

So, she did the only thing that she could do. She took the time-turner from her handbag and set it to go back.

xxx

AN: So well, that happened! What do you think? Should Hariel have her R and R, or should she get lost through time and space and end in another dimension/time? :P