Hey! So in the previous, unedited version of this chapter, I touched on a few things and I wanted to do that again. So someone had asked me, essentially, why the Founders talk so similar to the trio and I've got two answers - the first being that the trio went back through eight hundred years of lives and basically learned how to speak like the Founders and the second being that… I just don't know how they'd have spoken back then, so I left it like this.

Another thing is that this is a Dumbledore bashing fic because Dumbledore sucks. I thought you guys might like a quick heads up on that.

Thank you for reading! Enjoy and please review!

Chapter Two

Hermione didn't sleep that night. She had so many questions to ask and so much she wanted to know, but she had to wait. She was also worried. They'd gone so far back… would they even be able to get back to their own time? If so, would they just age the eight hundred years that they travelled like the famously dead Unspeakable that had gone back five hundred years? It all scared her deeply, and she was totally unable to put any of the anxious thoughts aside to rest.

So when morning came and they were escorted by Salazar – who Hermione found herself liking – to the Founders office, she was practically bouncing in place. She pulled her hair back into a wild bun and sat on Harry's right, facing the four founders. She shared a quick look with her friends before offering the adults a small smile. "Thank you for helping us yesterday."

"It is no problem," Helga said kindly. "We are only glad we got there in time."

"But there is the question of what to do with you now," Rowena told them. Hermione shared another look with her friends before speaking up.

"We would like to get back," she promised. "We just don't know how. The Time-Turner broke, and that's the only form of time travel that we know."

It was the Founders turn to share a look, and then Salazar spoke up, his voice soft and filled with caution. "We would like to use Legilimency to ensure you are telling the truth and can be trusted."

Hermione nodded immediately, but Harry obviously didn't agree. "No!"

"Harry-," Hermione tried.

"No," he said again. "I'm not doing that again."

"That was with Snape," she said calmly. "and he hates you. I think it might be different with someone else."

"I will be gentle," Salazar said quietly. "I just need to make sure you are no threat."

"Is there no other way?" Hermione asked. Harry looked at her with wide eyes.

"What about Veritaserum?" He asked. "Someone at my trial wanted to use it on me."

"That's illegal!" Hermione huffed. Harry rolled his eyes.

"I did say they wanted to, not that they did. But would it work?"

"Yes," she said slowly. "Except it won't be invented for another thousand years, and it's a seventh-year potion. Not even I know how to make it yet."

"Hermione, I don't want anyone digging through my head," Harry said quietly. "it is not a pleasant feeling."

"You would only feel it if you have been practicing Occlumency for years," Rowena told him with a confused frown. "Salazar has been doing this since he was a boy. He is a master at it."

"Harry," Hermione whispered, touching his arm gently. "I don't think there is any other choice."

Harry was quiet for a long minute before he looked up, meeting Salazar's curious gaze. "Fine, but I want to do it alone."

"That is fine," the man said, nodding once. Ron looked a little put out at the thought, but stayed uncharacteristically quiet. "Why don't we do your friends first, and then we can get some privacy?"

"That's fine," he sighed. Hermione smiled at the man.

"I'll go first, if you like," she offered. He nodded at her and looked her in the eye.

"Legilimens," he muttered, focusing his magic. The two were quiet for a few minutes before Slytherin dropped the spell and shot his friends a grim look. "Ron, your turn."

Ron, silent as before, just nodded and stared down Slytherin, who repeated the process. When he broke the spell, he blinked in shock. "Spiders?" The boy shivered.

"So many."

Harry looked grim at the memory, and Hermione just sighed. She'd missed the entire thing because she'd gone and gotten herself petrified.

"Harry, are you ready?" Salazar asked. Harry nodded quietly, and the other three founders stood. "Then if you'll excuse us, Ron, Hermione." Harry's friends shot him a nervous and comforting look each and left the room with the other three. "Anything I see will be confidential," Salazar promised.

"Thank you," Harry said, his voice tight. It wasn't going to be fun, living through those memories again.

Salazar nodded and looked into the green eyes that eerily resembled his own. Shaking off the thought, he cast the spell quietly and was immediately tossed recklessly into a graveyard.

"Kill the spare," a voice hissed. A moment later, a green light flashed and the boy to Harry's right was killed. Salazar felt something twist painfully inside of him as he watched the look of utter despair on Harry's face. He sighed and reached out for any other random memory. The one he got was not much better.

Harry was sitting in a chair in the middle of a large room. There were easily two hundred witches and wizards staring down at him, all of them arguing about what he'd done. Suddenly, an old and flamboyant looking man in pale blue robes swept into the room, effectively silencing everyone.

"Witness for the defense!" The man yelled. "Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore." The Minister and the Headmaster spoke for a minute before they got down to business. Harry was accused of something that Salazar wasn't entirely sure about, and it was obvious the boy was getting frustrated.

"I was only doing it because of the Dementors!" He yelled. Salazar's blood went cold at the words and didn't even hear the Minister accuse him of lying. He watched the rest of the trial play out and watched as, thankfully, Harry was cleared of the charges.

He rushed to change the memory. He needed to know more about this boy.

The next memory he reached out for made Salazar feel sick. All he saw before Harry's magic flared up in defense was someone casting the Cruciatus on the poor boy. He was thrown from that memory to another, and suddenly he was in a very pink room. A woman, who was wearing robes as pink as the surrounding area, sat in front of Harry as he wrote on a piece of parchment. "I must not tell lies," the paper said. Salazar frowned. Harry didn't seem like the sort to lie. His stomach churned when he saw the words suddenly scratching themselves into Harry's skin. He'd seen all he needed to there.

After that, Harry was walking through the forest by the lake. Ron and Hermione were some ways away, singing an odd song with a… half giant? He was too small to be a full giant and too large to be human. Harry came upon a hat dropped on the forest floor and frowned deeply. He turned to see the other side of the tree, and Salazar winced. There was a dead body – someone Harry seemed to recognize, though he probably didn't know the man well – lying on the ground. He sighed and pulled at another memory.

Then he found himself in a room full of defense equipment with at least thirty other children. Harry walked slowly around the room, correcting their wand movements and teaching them a spell Salazar didn't recognize. From the minute he spent there, the man could tell Harry was a great teacher.

The next memory was long and painful to watch, but he was glad for it in the end. He saw Harry fighting Tessa and watched him kill her in the end. The man was thankful for that. His old friend would despise herself if she knew what she would someday do.

After that, Harry was sitting in a dark room, surrounded by fire. He was holding a stunning red stone and had been knocked to the ground. A man approached him, and tried to choke him. After a few agonizing seconds, Harry reached up and grabbed his hand, which promptly disintegrated. In the end, the boy had killed the man – though Salazar guessed he'd already been dead, or would be soon.

Before he could find anything else, he stopped himself and pulled back from the boy's mind. Harry had tears rolling down his cheeks, and Salazar winced. He hadn't meant to push so hard. Maybe he hadn't caused any mental or physical pain, but he seemed to have reopened some emotional wounds.

Salazar nodded at Harry. "I am sorry that this was necessary, but now we can truly lend you our help and care."

"I understand," Harry told him, managing to keep his voice steady. He hesitated before speaking again. "Ron and Hermione… they don't know about some of that stuff."

"I will not tell," Salazar promised. "I understand."

"Really," Harry said in obvious disbelief.

"Yes," the man replied honestly, meeting the boy's gaze again. "I truly do." Harry paused, seeing the truth in his eyes. Salazar frowned at him. "Harry, have you ever talked to anyone about any of it? The things you can't tell your friends, I mean."

"No," Harry said immediately, looking at him like he was insane.

"What about your guardians?" It was impossible to miss the way Harry looked at him with that suggestion.

"That's not likely," the boy said.

"Your teachers?" Salazar asked, deciding not to push.

"No. McGonagall is brilliant, but she doesn't trust us when we really need her to. Dumbledore is… and there's really no one else. Snape hates my guts, and I guess it's because of my parents." He thought of the moments he witnessed of his parents' time at Hogwarts and how so much of Snape's actions made more sense now.

"Is there anyone you can talk to?" the founder asked, becoming more concerned about the boy.

"There's… there's Sirius," he sighed. "My godfather. But he's just gotten out of Azkaban, and he can't handle this stuff yet. And there's Lupin, but… well, Sirius needs him. I get that."

"So, you're saying you've got no one to speak to?" Salazar asked, frowning. Harry nodded quietly. "Then come to me if you need to speak."

"I- really?" Harry blinked.

"Yes," Salazar replied, nodding. "I do not know how long you will be here, but you are welcome to find me if you are ever in need."

"Thank you," Harry said softly. Salazar offered a small smile and waved his hand, opening the door silently and taking down the privacy wards at the same time. Their friends made their way back in, and the three other founders gave Salazar a look. Salazar nodded slightly, and Godric grinned brightly.

"Wonderful!" He boomed. "Let's start talking!"

"I've got a question," Rowena said. Salazar smirked at her.

"Just one?"

"Quiet," she told him, rolling her eyes. "Why did you mention spiders?" She asked Harry. The boy shot a look at Ron before speaking slowly.

"There are… in our time… a lot of very large spiders in the forest. Certain events led us to believe that we needed to follow them to be able to get our friend out of prison."

"Yeah, and instead, they just tried to bloody kill us," Ron muttered in annoyance.

"They tried to kill you?" Helga asked, horrified. Harry shrugged.

"They didn't, so…"

"You sound like Godric," Rowena scoffed. Harry grinned and shared looks with his friends.

"Well…"

"Oh, don't tell me…" Salazar shook his head. "You're in Gryffindor?"

"Yep," Ron said with a grin.

"You too?" Godric asked. Hermione smiled sheepishly.

"And me."

"You?" Rowena asked with wide eyes. They'd spoken for twenty minutes and already the woman adored her. Hermione nodded and shrugged.

"The Hat suggested I go to Ravenclaw, but said that I was needed in Gryffindor more," she told them. Ron shrugged.

"All of my family has gone to Gryffindor," he said proudly.

"I almost got put in Slytherin," Harry offered. "But the hat said that I 'wouldn't do well with those Slytherins' and I'd just met Draco Malfoy, so I agreed and asked to follow Ron."

Salazar tensed at the mention of what had happened to his House. He'd lost so much already and his name and the school were all that he had left. To find out that those things had been so distorted was devastating. "I'd have been honored to have you in my House," he said quietly. Harry seemed to be the only one to hear, and the boy smiled gratefully at him.

"We can't stay here," Harry said quietly, though he was loud enough for everyone to hear. "I've got to get back – I've got to defeat Voldemort."

"We were not suggesting you stay for longer than necessary," Rowena told him gently. "But I do not know how long it will take to find you a way home, and we need to find a story."

"What are you suggesting?" Hermione asked.

"I suggest you stay and learn from us and we will see to your needs. I think it would be best if one of you is adopted by one of us to help explain your sudden appearance."

"A-adopted?" Harry repeated, eyes wide. "Why?"

"Well, it is common for homeless magicals to be adopted by good people into the magical world, since we have no magical adoption agencies."

"What about the two that aren't adopted?" Hermione wondered.

"Friends of Harry that came along," she said as if it were obvious. "Magicals often group together, so if your magical parents died, it would be understandable that your friends followed you somewhere safe."

"So… you're saying I need to be adopted?" Harry clarified. Rowena nodded, and Harry glanced at Salazar with a frown. "But we can learn from you?"

"Of course," Godric said with a smile. "You are our students – we would not deny you an education, especially when it seems like you've got dangerous times ahead."

"Thank you," Hermione smiled at them in awe. Harry understood for once. The Founders were the smartest witches and wizards for centuries to come with only Merlin meeting their level of power and knowledge, and he was their student.

"It is our pleasure," Rowena smiled. "Now what classes have you been taking?"

And the conversation dissolved into discussions on theory and practical use. It had been nearly three hours before the elves brought them lunch and they separated to talk alone. The Founders left the kids in their office and moved to Helga's private office – the closest private space they could get to. Once they were settled, everyone turned an expectant eye to Salazar, who just sighed wearily.

"He has had a hard life," he offered. Godric frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"His parents were killed by this Voldemort fellow – who claims to be my heir, by the way – and he was raised by guardians who sound… less than supportive. His Headmaster, Dumbledore, is more involved in his life than he should be. He is constantly put in danger at school, every year, and he was forced to kill someone when he was eleven, and then killed Tessa when he was twelve. She almost killed him." Salazar took a deep breath and looked Rowena in the eyes. "You say someone must adopt him?"

"Yes, but-,"

"Then I will do it," he told her firmly. She paused and nodded. He obviously meant it, and opening old wounds would do no good, so she didn't question him. "Aside from that, they are all in very much real danger from this Voldemort. They need to know as much as we can teach them about battle."

"We should watch them duel later," Godric suggested, looking as grim as the rest of them felt. "See what they need to learn."

"I agree," Helga said softly. "We should focus on their dueling first, and then if it is or becomes sufficient, we will work on the rest of their education."

"Agreed," Rowena nodded.

"I've been wondering something," Salazar said quietly. "Yesterday, they said that Harry was one of our descendants."

"Yes," Rowena said with a sigh. "Which makes it troubling, since he looks as if he could truly be your child."

"So you believe he is related to me?" Salazar asked with a raised eyebrow. Helga shrugged.

"We cannot be sure. Ron said that he was related to the Peverells, and that is Godric's family." The four friends were quiet for a moment as they considered the possibilities, but a panicked looking elf popped in before they could debate anymore.

"The young master is sick!" The little thing squeaked. "He fell down and hit his head!"

The four of them shared a look and bolted from the room, the elf following them to help. They arrived to a scene much like they'd found the day before, but this time, Harry's magic could be felt heavy in the air, and Hermione was standing aware from him by a step or two, nursing a new black eye. Ron made to move to Harry and was promptly hit by a blinding light of magic. The Founders jumped into action, but they were too late. When they could see properly again, Ron was gone and had been replaced by a… duck?

It was nearly fifteen minutes by the time Helga had calmed Hermione down, Rowena had secured Ron, and Godric realized Salazar was the best man to get close to Harry to wake him. When anyone else got close, the boy's magic lashed out, but Salazar could reach him with few complications.

Salazar used his own raw magic to soothe Harry's back to a calm state, which took another half an hour. By the time he was done, Hermione had calmed down and managed to explain what she could to Helga, but Salazar wasn't paying attention. He was much too focused on calming the boy's magic.

When it was safe, Helga made her way over and healed his head injury, and then woke him. The raven-haired boy looked around wearily before his gaze rested upon Ron. "Is that… a duck?"

"Er- yeah," Hermione gave him a small smile. Her black eye had already been healed, something that was probably a good decision considering how Harry was likely to freak out if he'd seen it. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Harry said after a moment. "Just tired. What happened?"

"You had a panic attack," his friend said slowly. "I think it just hit you where we are and all."

"Okay," Harry sighed, unhappy that she'd apparently seen him have a panic attack. "And?"

"Well, no one blames you, Harry, but… well, you hit your head and passed out, and your magic got… defensive."

"What do you mean?" he asked with a sharp frown. Godric set a hand on his shoulder.

"Just that your magic thought you were in danger, and it tried to protect you."

Harry stared at the duck. "Where is Ron?"

"Er-,"

"He is not!" The boy denied, staring harder at the small animal, horror filling his eyes. Salazar cleared his throat.

"He will be fine," the man assured him. "We just didn't want to turn him back while you were unconscious, in case of any… unexpected surprises. It should be fine now."

They all stood back to watch as Godric transfigured their redhead friend back to his usual self. Ron stared at them all in disbelief for a minute. "What the bloody hell was that?"

"Language," Hermione and Rowena scolded together. They both looked somewhat surprised, but shared a smile as Ron blushed.

"Sorry, mate," Harry said sheepishly. "Didn't mean to."

"No one could say you did," Salazar chuckled. "You'll need to get used to the extra power you now have access to. You've been learning to use only half of the power you possess. It will take some time and hard work, but you will be fine."

"And this won't happen again?" Harry asked him.

"Not if you truly work as hard as you can on your control and your magic," Helga promised. The boy nodded in relief, and his best friend patted his back awkwardly.

"It's fine, mate," Ron said. "Wasn't your fault."

"Thanks," Harry smiled hesitantly, but seemed to truly accept the words.

"So," Hermione said, turning to the Founders. "What's next?"

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