~ Chapter Two ~
The doors allowing their captures to enter and watch them like animals in a zoo opened with a small puff. Harry didn't bother to look up. After the man had left, true to his word, he hadn't bothered to return. Considering Eight wasn't awake yet, that left another pitiful soul attempting to gain information no one was willing to part with.
Yet they had no other choice but to sit and listen to whomever entered. They were playing a waiting game; waiting for their master to waken. With every hour, they moment drew nearer and for Harry it couldn't happen faster. He held questions only one person could offer any solution and they weren't amongst their captors.
"My name is Natasha Romanoff."
The feminine voice spoke with honesty and a reserved tone. This careful control cautioned Harry on her every move. No one controlled an introduction unless they were practiced in keeping a distance between them and everyone around, even those she called friend. He'd witnessed Severus provide the same tactic for many years. It must have been unsettling for the man to have it reflected back.
Amycus cackled, eyes following the length of the woman's body. "She's a nasty one this girl."
"Would be fun to play with," Alecto agreed.
The Carrow's pressed against the glass hoping to gain her attention. No one was impressed.
Lucius seemed to find the entire display distasteful. As a Lord, Lucius appreciated the finer tastes, as he would often remark. As such, the display Amycus and Alecto were becoming, led to a permanent sneer on the aristocrat's face. No noble should act in public in such a disgraceful manner. The woman barely received a glance, too low born to be worth a reaction from a pureblood line.
Draco hadn't bothered looking up at all. The Malfoy heir found his situation rather tedious, spending his time reciting potions ingredients for a rather tame draught in Latin under his breath.
Barty, however, was searching for trouble.
"Always had a thing for red hears didn't you Severus?" Barty smirked.
Of all people, Severus shifted away from the woman, eyes watching as she studied their reactions. It wasn't just the fact she had red hair that would worry Severus. If this woman unsettled Severus, Natasha Romanoff was someone to watch in the future and their people weren't taking the matter seriously.
Harry wasted no time in lashing out. "And you were always one for father figures, weren't you Barty?"
The man sneered but quietened down with a quick glance at the Dark Lord.
With a glance around the room quietening the group, Harry returned to waiting with his back toward Romanoff.
The silence remained amongst their group as Romanoff remained in the room. Harry was aware their interactions offered even the smallest information. The structure of their group would have been obvious to her by now but there was another reason she was around. Somehow, Romanoff managed to obtain information she believed would unsettle one of their group.
"Lucius and Draco Malfoy, Amycus and Alecto Carrow, Barty Crouch, Severus Snape, and Harry Potter, you are all labelled as highly dangerous. Once the remaining members of your team wake you will be restrained and taken to a Black Site where you will spend the remainder of your lives in small rooms unless you can offer us information on the other members of your group." Romanoff informed them.
Harry shared a glance with Severus. Romanoff's opening statement certainly had been accurate. They were dangerous and openly deranged in some cases. However, how had she known their names?
Both glanced at the Dark Lord's resting body. They had been ordered not to engage any enemies should they find themselves in a difficult situation. Ideally, they shouldn't have been here at all. However, the Dark Lord made plans for everything and this situation hadn't been one. No one on this planet should have in depth knowledge on who they were. Therefore, they would have to go hunting.
Harry nodded towards Severus, accepting that they would need to act. If they left the situation alone and the Dark Lord woke, they would be punished for not obtaining the information needed to protect their group and start their takeover of this world. At least if they gained relevant information, the Dark Lord wouldn't punish them as severely. Harry could only hope it was worth the risk.
"Miss Romanoff, your certainty in this information leaves us baffled." Severus spoke, moving up towards the edge of the glass.
They couldn't afford to play anymore. Severus wouldn't be holding back; all of his effort would be pushing to find information. They were pitting spy against spy to see who could break first and while Romanoff held her nerve, Severus would tear her apart to keep Harry safe.
"While your informant granted you our names, the attempt at labelling us as highly dangerous makes me wonder how much your informant has been honest with you."
Harry watched the others. They hadn't made much noise since he quietened Barty but they were paying attention. They were listening as Severus began to sow doubt into the minds of the people watching and waiting to see all of them wake.
The woman didn't meet with Severus' words as was to be expected. Severus continued.
"Yes, we have abilities perhaps you haven't witnessed before in your world. In our world, we call this magic and with it we can do great and terrible feats. Whether this should be enough for you to label us dangerous without attempting to approach us first is your judgement call but I would offer caution."
"Our attempts to speak with you have been far from fruitful." Romanoff spoke.
Severus scoffed.
"Your attempts to speak with us were far from rational. Your friend threatened us at each turn. Not to mention, waking in this location would make us cautious to begin with. We trust our friends and family when faced with the unknown."
A comfortable silence settled over the group. Harry turned his head, watching Romanoff from the corner of his eye. She stood, exuding comfort but Harry could read a tension in her body. She didn't trust them and she wasn't going to start with this conversation. Severus could see this as well. Their informant seemed to have spoken certain facts to cement the danger they posed this world. Yet they weren't looking to gain her trust and she didn't know this.
"Magic is not a foreign concept to us." Romanoff admitted. "However, our informant assures us, by the tattoo on your left forearms, that you are part of a group which seeks to eradicate anyone without magic. This marks you as dangerous whether you admit to it or not."
"Our Master's goals have not always centred around the destruction of every muggle in the world. We desire a place, isolated, which will protect us from the muggles. We never meant for you to detect us and we never desired to communicate and interact with your world. It is you who have pushed us to this." Severus explained.
Romanoff couldn't deny any of Severus' words. He was calm and respectful with not a hint of doubt. Yet, she still was determined to get Severus to slip.
"While we acknowledge in your world you were capable of amazing magical feats, in this world you are limited to parlour tricks. Your magic isn't capable of reaching the same potential in this world so while you are correct in our assumptions being overly reaching, we can still be cautious as well."
"I can only imagine what parlour tricks your informant must keep you entertained with." Severus smiled.
In that moment, Romanoff faltered. She had no idea what parlour tricks her informant was capable. This informant was as much a stranger to her as the people standing before her and it was a weakness she'd just exposed. Severus attacked.
"You aren't even certain as to how your informant's abilities work and yet you are ready to condemn us? It would seem prejudice grows in every world regardless of the people in it."
Romanoff fell silent, tilting her head as she if listening to a fly buzz in her ear, before focusing once again on Severus.
"You want facts on prejudice? Your Master can't condemn people without magic when his father didn't have any. You are a half-blood as well, aren't you? Spending your schooling years hoping to escape your blood status by calling others a mudblood and attacking honest, friendly groups isn't what I would label as courage in the face of change."
Harry couldn't help it. The laughter burst from him unexpectedly causing him to fall back against the slab he'd first woken on. Severus stood pale in the face of the facts yet Romanoff had lost. The wording had given this informant away. Not many people could utilize those facts with such wording.
"Enough Severus, I know who she speaks of. You needn't worry, he is of no threat to us."
Romanoff narrowed her eyes. She knew of their connection and yet she didn't offer it for display having noticed only Harry and Severus had managed to piece the information she'd spoken together.
"How can you be so sure our informant hasn't grown in power?"
Harry scoffed. He no longer needed to play her game.
"Miss Romanoff, tell that mutt I could care less which side he decided to play ball. I lost hope in having loved ones when he recklessly endangered his life and lost. I remember the last words he ever spoke to me and they only prove he was just as deranged as the Carrow's. Even if he has bettered himself in this world, even if he is the strongest sorcerer this world has seen, he is of no use to me."
Lights blared to life in the cell next to Harry's.
Romanoff acknowledged Harry's words before moving towards the next cell. When the Carrow's and Barty began laughing and carrying on, Harry allowed it. This would after all result in a good show.
As the man in the eighth sector of the glass cage woke, Romanoff spoke before anyone could council him otherwise.
"My name is Natasha Romanoff and if you speak with us we can move you away from these people."
The man stood, towering over the slab he was laying, and stretched. Harry winced as bones cracked and popped. They made a horrendous sound, one, which Harry was unaccustomed yet didn't seem to bother the man.
Golden eyes surveyed the room, sweeping across those who slept, over their master, and around the group of woken. The group shied away from the gaze, some making it a point to avoid the striking eyes altogether. Harry caught a glimpse, a spark within those eyes, a yearning for freedom and the desire to hunt before they swept away and turned towards Romanoff.
"What phase of the moon is it?"
Thrown by the question, Romanoff answered honestly. "There are a few days before the New Moon."
The man didn't bother with an explanation. Romanoff didn't ask for one. Instead, everyone watched as the man raised his face towards the ceiling and closed his eyes.
The first snap echoed around the room. His arm jerked in the shoulder socket twisting at an impossible angle. Every member of the group looked away. They knew this transformation would be painful with the angles his body would bend and snap into place. Fur would grow from his pours and his face would lengthen into a snout. By the end of his transformation, the man would be a giant wolf and they all knew he would be a brutal force.
Romanoff, however, froze in horrified fascination. She watched the transformation, reminded of the situation with the Hulk not too long ago. She shifted, placing a hand on the gun at her hip.
"Beware," Harry smirked at the startled woman, "the big, bad wolf will eat you."
The transformed wolf within the cell snarled at Romanoff, charging forward. Her immediate response caused her to pull her gun firing several shots at the glass. They barely cracked the glass as the wolf snuffed laughter.
Romanoff, Harry noticed, clearly shaken by the experience fled with as much dignity as she could manage. Harry laughed. She hadn't even bothered waiting for a response to her offered salvation.
"I believe your scare tactics work quite well." Severus sneered.
Harry ignored the comment, watching as the man transformed back into human form. Severus would always verbally attack a werewolf if he could get away with it. Moreover, while he may have scared Romanoff away there would always be others attempting to communicate with them.
"It would seem I no longer need to worry about the cycle of the moon." The man smirked, quite pleased with this turn of events.
"Congratulations, and welcome Fenrir to the land of the living. However, I believe my introduction is unnecessary as you seem to know more of this world than I." Harry spoke.
Fenrir smirked, a row of sharp teeth displayed for the camera. "I'm home."
x-x-x-x-x
"Should we buy a 'Beware of Dog' sign to attach to his cage?"
The group couldn't even offer a rebuttal against Tony's weak snark. Though they were aware of magic within the world, this was something else entirely. It seemed brutal and could only be compared to the horrid transformation Bruce underwent when the Hulk was needed.
"Does anyone know what this is?" Fury demanded.
Many of them turned towards Sirius for answers. Thor and Loki continued to watch the screen, listening with half an ear.
"His name is Fenrir Greyback and he is well known in my world as one of the most dangerous people to cross." Sirius explained. "When I remained in their world, Greyback wasn't marked. The werewolves were allies with Voldemort but he would never receive the mark."
"Much like your godson would never receive the mark?" Romanoff snapped as she entered the room.
The agent had spoken these facts in private but Natasha couldn't care. The secrets Black was keeping were only allowing The Numbers to gain the upper hand. Walking into the room with only the small amount of knowledge Black deemed necessary hadn't helped much at all.
By their wording, Natasha knew Black's precious godson held the most respect from the group. He spoke and they listened. However, from their original interactions, it was easy to see they respected Harry only because he held importance to their master. What importance Harry held to their master, however, she couldn't quite tell with only Harry awake. She needed to know how Harry interacted with the other people and especially the master. Without this specific interaction she couldn't be certain as to their relationship. She couldn't be certain as to how dangerous they could be.
Yet her team weren't focused on this. She trusted them but they were focused on the information she had slipped.
"Godson, you never mentioned a godson being part of the group?" Steve whispered, looking back at the screen.
Having a close family member on the opposite side of a war would be horrific. You would want to do everything to protect them while trying to uphold your duty to your country. It wouldn't be easy and it wouldn't be fair.
"Which of them is your godson?" Clint questioned.
Three of the people within looked to be youthful enough to be Black's godson. Draco Malfoy, Barty Crouch, and Harry Potter were the only people capable of fitting the profile. Yet from what Black had been telling the group, Clint would bet on Potter. Out of all of them, Black didn't immediately speak with venom in his voice.
Sirius ignored everyone but Natasha. "I never said Harry would never receive the mark."
"No, but you implied it. You had reason to believe that Harry Potter would never take the mark. Even watching as he remained calm with those around him, you still held doubts he was truly part of the group."
Natasha wasn't going to let this drop. Every tiny piece of information, every sliver of detail, would be hers even if it took hours to acquire from Sirius Black. Her team would not walk into a dangerous situation without, at least, knowing what they would be facing.
"When I fell into the Veil, Harry's role in the war was directly opposite of Voldemort. Harry had several friends with varying blood status. Blood purity isn't something that ever concerned Harry especially as his mother wasn't a pureblood."
"Beliefs can change." Natasha insisted.
Sirius could only shake his head sadly.
"Harry wouldn't change so drastically and it's not just because of the blood status. When Harry was a child, Voldemort entered the Potter house, killed his parents and then attempted to murder Harry. Only a massive event would cause Harry to change sides."
"But you're not saying it couldn't be a possibility. Your godson could still be part of their group willingly."
The pause Sirius gave was answer enough. He couldn't say with any certainty Harry wasn't a willing participant in their group. If anything, watching as Harry interacted and gave orders to the known Death Eaters wasn't a positive sign. His interactions with Snape and Greyback were certainly telling. Snape, the twisted spy, only held allegiance to personal safety. Greyback only desired to inflict his curse on innocent children.
By Greyback's question, Sirius could safely say Harry didn't share the curse so he could only guess at what their connection was based. Yet, Harry could ally with Snape to gain safety. Sirius wasn't certain what Harry would have offered the Dark Lord but it must have been worth it for Voldemort to ignore the prophecy and for Harry to ignore his friends.
"For now, we will act as if Harry Potter were an enemy." Steve determined.
Truly, he felt for their new agent but they couldn't depend on past emotions to endanger their world.
Sirius gave a curt nod before recovering his emotions. He could wait and if Harry truly held no love for peace then the hard decision would need to be made with a level head.
"Now that's sorted, you mentioned Greyback was a werewolf. There are creatures in your world, like fairies and goblins, and dragons that hoard treasure." Tony asked with scepticism.
Sirius nodded. "There are a number of creatures in my past world. Fairies wouldn't interact with wizards even if the world ended. Goblins ran our banks and were ferocious if you stole from them. Dragons merely breathed fire and were dangerous so we kept them in reserves to protect both them and the rest of the world."
Tony blinked. "Right, well, can you at least confirm none of those creatures arrived with this bunch."
"You would know if a dragon were amongst their group." Sirius laughed, before turning back towards Natasha. "Any more questions for me, Miss Romanoff?"
Natasha however had ceased paying any attention towards Black. She had accepted he wasn't about to be honest with them about Harry Potter. Regardless of how hard she pushed, Black was stubborn. He wouldn't shift his position until he was certain. By then it might be too late, but she had acquired another method of obtaining what she desired.
Thor and Loki hadn't ceased staring at Fenrir Greyback since he'd woken and startled everyone.
"Do you have something you would like to add, Thor?" Fury questioned, as the group took notice of their fixation.
With a short glance at a silent Loki, Thor nodded.
"We know of Fenrir as well."
Bruce glanced between Sirius and Thor. "How is that possible?"
"Fenrir was born in this world." Loki admitted. "He was born within this realm, I should say."
"But not on Earth." Tony understood.
Thor looked towards Loki searching for the correct wording. However, Loki spoke instead.
"Fenrir is my son."
"This is an episode of Jerry Springer." Tony muttered, sitting down.
Everyone else had little to say. What more could one say in this situation? Not only did their Agent have a godson amongst the newcomers but Loki also held a connection. For such a small group of people, the amount of secrets they held was astounding and they were probably only scrapping the surface.
Bruce looked around the room before stepping forward, the only one prepared to speak his curiosity. "If Fenrir was born in this realm, how did he become a part of their world?"
"Prophecy is often seen as a wondrous element to balance the world in favour of the good." Thor spoke.
The group could tell Thor was speaking for Loki. In this situation, Thor held a level of guilt that they had yet to understand as Loki ignored what was happening within the room.
"The All-Father takes prophecy seriously. It did not matter if Loki made a wonderful father to his children, once a prophecy was uttered he removed the probable cause."
"I could understand why Odin thought Fenrir was a problem." Clint muttered.
"It did not have to be this way." Loki spat.
Thor nodded, lips turned down and eyes crinkled in a frown.
"Many believe, regardless of the prophecy, Fenrir would not have been a problem should he have remained with Loki. Under guidance, Fenrir could have been a marvellous warrior. Instead, father removed Fenrir from Loki and with the aid of several elves, banished him from our realm."
"What was so great a cause to remove a child from his parent?" Steve questioned.
Steve couldn't help but see Fenrir as another child. Certainly, he looked like a man and probably held many years on Steve's own, however, a childhood was lost and he couldn't help but see the potential of what could have been a wondrous family and the change in two people.
"Fenrir was foretold to kill Odin during Ragnarok." Loki admitted.
"Prophecy isn't set in stone." Natasha commented. "Our lives are ours to shape and when we take the wrong path we need to know someone will be there to show us the right way."
The group fell silent. There was not a lot of hope Fenrir or Harry would be any help. With their attitude, they seemed set on following their master wherever they were led. Yet, the group couldn't help but feel a spark of hope. No one could forget when they were surrounded by the love of family. Regardless of who made the family, acceptance and love was always something they had fought hard for.
Sirius cast a look towards Loki. A determination set a light behind grey eyes. Loki had never once given up on Fenrir. Even as they were realms apart, a connection had remained between them. A familiar bond was difficult to break entirely. The Avengers nodded their acceptance of the only plan they held hope granted them direction. Their task might have been grim, but the Avengers were determined. Family would remain united.
It took me so long to write this. I had a few different ideas about where I wanted this to go but in the end I finally made up my mind. Hope you enjoyed the update.
~MidnightEmber