Ashes in your Mouth
Chapter Eight: Lost and Found
Finding a pet. Harry's having adventures. And they're all bad.
Harry spent most of the rest of the Christmas holidays at Andromeda's house, cooking and playing with Teddy. Andromeda would watch Harry with her slightly hooded eyes, an expression Harry couldn't quite recognise on her face.
Teddy, on the other hand, squealed, changed his hair colour, and had races around the kitchen island in socks. Harry let him win. Harry did suggest Teddy and he might make a snowman and Andromeda shook her head "He is far too young to be out in the middle of winter. When he's seven." she pronounced.
Teddy made literal puppy-dog eyes at Harry, and Harry conjured masses and masses of cotton wool instead, and they made a cotton-wool snowman that was as tall as Teddy, and not cold. Or wet.
Andromeda came into the kitchen from the floo; her job as a Healer was still busy, people get sick anytime, and regarded Harry's efforts.
"Now, you must animate it to sing snowman-themed carols" said Andromeda. Harry looked at the snowman, and started thinking about how to do that.
"You will find" said Andromeda blandly "That sort of thing will set you up well for your NEWT charms practical."
Harry looked over at Andromeda "I was going to just cast a patronus" said Harry.
"Please, everyone knows you've been able to do that for years. Surprise people by learning something different. There is such a thing as an O plus, after all" said Andromeda.
"I only need an A to get back into the Aurors officially" said Harry, Teddy looked up at them, curiously, his hair going black.
"You could put the effort in for this last six months, and have NEWT results that leave no doubt that you're actually a very intelligent, sensible, mature wizard. Hard for people to call you the boy-who-lived if you get multiple O's at NEWTs. You could use your power and experience to forge a reputation as being every bit as good as say, Albus Dumbledore, and then people will say "Well, Harry Potter defeated a dark lord Before he finished his education, and got several O's. His practical in, for example charms had the examiners agreeing, he made a young Albus Dumbledore look like an amateur. You can be famous for thing you've done, that you wanted to do, you know."
Christmas holidays ended, and Harry kissed Teddy's hair goodbye; and the little boy smelt… like home and love to Harry now, dried his stupid wet eyes, and flooed to Platform nine and three quarters.
...
Harry woke days later in his bed in the Gryffindor dorms, to an agonising pain in his neck. He opened his eyes and blurilly, there was a snake in his bed, which had just bitten him.
"$Sstop$" Harry managed to hiss out and the snake lifted it's head then hissed something Harry couldn't understand.
Harry felt his blood burning "$Sstop$" said Harry, feeling very lightheaded. And a tiny bit pleased he could speak just enough Parseltounge again, but mostly he felt poisoned. It was a lot like dying of basilisk poison, really.
The snake, Harry thought, nodded enthusiastically.
"Kreacher" said Harry in a croak and Kreacher appeared with a crack.
"Master?" asked Kreacher, from a pose atop Harry's pillows.
Harry looked up Kreacher's nostrils, "I've been bitten by this snake, get me to Madam Pomfrey."
Kreacher vanished with a pop.
Harry felt worse by the moment, and then the fireplace in the boys dorms roared with flames, and Harry's curtains were spelled open.
Madam Pomfrey loomed over Harry.
"What?" she asked.
"Snake bite" croaked Harry. Madam Pomfrey looked at the snake, who was lying placidly by Harry's neck.
She jabbed her wand at the snake, who ceased to move at all "Venomous" she said, and rammed a crumbly bezoar into Harry's mouth, and washed it down with water from her wand.
Harry swallowed weakly and as soon as the bezoar hit his stomach, he started to feel better.
"I'm not going to ask how you happened to have a large venomous snake in your bed" said Madam Pomfrey "You're a grown man, just."
Harry nodded weakly.
"Now, I'm going to take you to the infirmary, and feed you some potions, that Bezaor won't do a damn thing for infection, or heal the holes in your neck." said Madam Pomfrey.
Harry blinked. Holes? Oh, from the fangs.
Being levitated through an internal Hogwarts floo was… much less awful than the regular floo network, thought Harry. Not so many junctions.
Madam Pomfrey put him in his usual bed with what might have been a wry smile, and suddenly had a potion bottle in her hand.
Harry pointed weakly.
"My house-elf assistant" said Madam Pomfrey, and Harry relaxed, and drank three vials of disgusting potions, which Madam Pomfrey pointed out the purposes of.
Harry fell asleep, and woke in what felt like morning, with a headache and pain in his neck.
Madam Pomfrey dosed him with potions, rubbed salve onto the bite marks on his neck, and handed Harry his glasses.
Harry put them on and looked up at Madam Pomfrey, who had a lined brow.
"What?" asked Harry "Can I not clean up and go to breakfast?"
"The bites have scarred" said Madam Pomfrey "That's a dangerous snake you've got Mister Potter."
Harry got out of bed and went to the bathroom.
His reflection starred back at him, pale, scarred forehead, and on his neck, two scarred puncture marks… much like a vampire would leave. "Bloody brilliant" said Harry to his reflection.
"Language" said his reflection severely. Harry rolled his eyes, of course the infirmary mirror was charmed to call out bad language.
Harry did his business, washed his face, futilely pushed his hair about, and went back to his infirmary bed. There was a pile of clothes on the side-table, and Harry closed the screens around his bed and got dressed, putting his pyjamas, which had some blood on the collar, in the laundry hamper by the door from the infirmary to Madam Pomfrey's office.
"See you later, Madam Pomfrey" called Harry, and he left the infirmary, to go get some breakfast.
Harry was halfway through a cup of tea when one of the seventh years pointed at Harry and squeaked "He's a vampire."
Harry put the teacup down, took a deep breath, and said very politely "I was bitten by a snake last night. Quite venomous and the bite has scarred. Madam Pomfrey was a bit upset to not be able to get me looking my usual handsome self" he added, with wry grin. The seventh year paled and one of the muggleborn ones nearby held up their cutlery in a T-shape. Harry blinked "That only works if you're particularly religious." he explained "We really should get a decent Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher, and when I was in… hmm sixth year, Professor Slughorn invited Sanguini, an actual vampire to his Slug club party. Sanguini ate blood-pops all night, I think, and apart from eyeing up the attractive women present, he was quite well-behaved. As an Auror, we hardly ever had trouble from Vampires, they're all quite sick of being attacked in daylight… and as it's daylight, and I'm not asleep, I can't be a vampire. Well, not a proper one."
"Vampire!" called out a sixth year Gryffindor girl who seemed to have nothing between her ears.
Harry went back to his tea.
Four minutes later, the great hall was full of yelling students, and Headmistress McGonagall cast a cannon-blast spell that rattled the windows and shook dust down from the ceiling beams.
"Enough!" she called out, her wand held to her neck "Mister Potter was bitten by a venomous snake last night, and unfortunately has some nasty looking scars on his neck. He is not a vampire. Cease your silliness, or dessert is cancelled tonight!"
The great hall quietened quickly, with the more hysterical students near Harry being elbowed into silence with hisses of "Do you want to get no dessert!"
Harry put some marmalade on a slice of toast.
One of the silly looking sixth years levitated the black pudding onto Harry's main plate. He looked up "I don't even like black pudding" he said firmly. "But if it makes you… twits feel better..."
Harry made a Black pudding buttie and ate it. It tasted, awfully much like a meat pie jammed into a toasted sandwich. Harry drew his wand and put the black pudding back on the meats-tray, "You lot should try this, it's quite good" he said "Tastes like a meat pie buttie."
One of the more adventurous fifth years replicated Harry's snack and ate it gingerly.
"It's quite good!" they said, and Harry drank some more tea.
"What will we call it?" asked the fifth year.
"A black pudding buttie?" suggested Harry blandly "Seeing it's a black pudding buttie?"
"Old people" said a fourth year dismissively. The Gryffindors descended into a long contest to think of a name for a sandwich.
"A Winner dinner" was the favourite and Harry tried not to grimace. Teddy was fine in small doses, this load of teenagers... he understood now, why parents would send them all to Scotland for nine months of the year. How, he wondered, does one pre-enrol one's non-existent children. His parents had somehow managed, so there must be a way.
Harry went back to the Gryffindor common room, using every shortcut he knew, and up to his dorm room, which he shared with the seventh years. There, on his bed was… a bloodstained sheet and a bump in the bed.
Harry lifted the covers, and a sleepy snake grey hissed at him.
"Stop$" said Harry, he could remember how to say that anyway. He'd said it in second year, and it had sort-of stuck in his memory.
The large grey snake nodded, exposing it's pale belly. Harry drew his wand and removed the bloodstains on the sheets… from his bites.
There wasn't time to investigate, so Harry got his bookbag loaded, and put the covers back down.
"Stop$" said Harry again, and left the dorm, taking all the shortcuts he could and arriving at Charms merely last.
Professor Flitwick nodded to Harry and Harry found a vacant desk. The other Gryffindors moved away from Harry. They'd gotten nervy, he supposed.
The lesson was on animation charms. Aunt Andromeda clearly remembered the seventh year syllabus.
Harry cast the spell verbally and his little wooden cube danced on opposite points.
By the end of the lesson, Harry could get it to do a decent impression of walking about, without speaking.
"Mister Potter, stay back" said Professor Flitwick.
Harry packed up and waited.
"Mister Potter" said Professor Flitwick, so sort now Harry had to look right down at him. "You cast the spell verbally."
Harry nodded "I know it was supposed to be non-verbal but my nonverbal charms are still something I'm learning"
"That" said Professor Flitwick "was not the issue. You hissed at the cube to animate it, in the first instance. Any particular reason?"
"er" said Harry "Hissing?"
"Hissing. Like a snake" said Professor Flitwick.
Harry thought deeply "The last thing I talked to was a snake before the lesson started" said Harry rubbing his chin "Maybe I um… got stuck in parseltounge."
"And can cast spells in it" said Professor Flitwick "Which raises an idea for an extra-credit year-long project. Studying the use of parseltounge in charm casting. Why were you talking to a snake?"
"The one that bit me last night, I told it to stop" said Harry "I hope I can question it later when I have some time."
"That wasn't your personal pet snake?" asked Professor Flitwick, hopping up onto a desk-top with a flick of his wand.
"Someone sent it, I suppose" said Harry.
"Two years you weren't here after the war" said Professor Flitwick "Two peaceful, boring years, with only students traumatised by the war and the reign of the Carrows."
"I'm trying to be good" said Harry.
"And thank you for not ravaging all the seventh year girls" said Professor Flitwick mildly.
"They're a bit young" said Harry, pinkening.
"Sadly they don't think so" said Professor Flitwick "Run along. And keep being good."
As Harry got to the door, Professor Flitwick said "And do try to get stop accumulating scars. You'll be as bad as poor Alastair at this rate."
Harry was late to History of magic. Much as Binns bored him to sleep, he could pass the exam based on the textbooks… which he was discovering, he annoyingly had to know the contents of, just to live his life.
Binn's wrote him up as late… but thought he was Gavain Despard, so it hardly mattered.
Harry cast a deafness curse on himself, got out the textbook, and started making notes.
...
He looked up later, the classroom empty, his stomach gurgling, he'd missed the end of the class.
He dispelled the deafness charm on himself, packed and left the room.
He was late to lunch.
That evening, he questioned the large snake, bed-curtains drawn and a privacy charm cast.
"Why did you bite me"asked Harry.
The snake looked at Harry, and didn't move.
"$Open$" said Harry, he could remember how to say that, at least and the snake curled up in a loop, it's head facing Harry.
"Who sent you"asked Harry.
The snake didn't say anything. Which made sense, thought Harry, as he couldn't hiss in parseltounge except a few words he'd remembered.
Harry gingerly patted the snake on the head, and it pressed against his hand gently.
Harry tried scratching the snake, a bit like a dog, and it… didn't bite him again.
Harry got out and showered and changed for bed, the seventh years eyeing his scarred, adult body.
"How'd you get that one on your shoulder?" asked one of the Seventh year boys; a Spinks.
"Dragon tail-spike in fourth year" said Harry "Hungarian Horntail tried to kill me, stupid Tri-wizard Tournament."
"Not the war?" asked Spinks, wide-eyed.
"It was how Voldemort got back into a body." said Harry, doing up his pyjama jacket "Everything actually started in my first year."
"How are you not dead?" asked Spinks.
"Mostly luck" said Harry blandly, and went to bed, and moments later the snake crowded onto Harry. Harry cast a silencing charm, and spoke to the snake "$Geroff$" he hissed; he wasn't sure if that was in parseltounge or not.
"$You're lovely and warm$" complained the snake. Or maybe Harry was imagining it. It was clear the snake wanted Harry's warmth.
"$Fine$" said Harry, hopefully in Parseltounge, and went to sleep. He dreamed of being squashed.
He woke up covered in a sleepy serpent. Though, he hadn't had a nightmare.
The snake evidently decided to just sleep in Harry's bed.
Harry half-remembered asking the snake it's name the next night, or maybe he'd dreamed that bit, as its reply had been shiny-scales-glistening-in-the-warm-sun. Harry mentally christened the snake 'Sunny.'
By Saturday Harry was resigned to the snake as a sort-of pet. He hadn't dreamed of talking to it again, and it didn't seem to hiss much, or mind Harry not talking to it.
Harry was getting up for breakfast when is slithered up the bedpost and draped itself over Harry's shoulder.
Spinks dropped his shoe. "Snake!" he cried.
"I know" said Harry "She's called Sunny, and she's sort of a pet."
"You've got a pet snake like you-know-who" said Jones, who seemed to be the stupidest seventh year.
"Sunny was sent to bite me, but luckily for me, I can talk to snakes, and stopped Sunny." said Harry, which was sort-of-true. Spinks looked… well he had his wand out, and Jones had bolted from the dorm room.
"Sunny's just a snake. Voldemort had a snake that was a familiar. That's quite different, My owl was a familiar, I could understand her, and she would come when I needed her. Sunny's just a snake, though, as a Parselmouth, I can talk to her and understand her. The main difference, is that Sunny's only a snake and not that clever. Hedwig was a very clever owl, Sunny's as dumb as, say, a dog." Harry lied creatively.
"Why are you a parselmouth?" asked Jones, from the doorway "Like you-know-who. All dark wizards are parselmouths."
Harry gritted his teeth. "No" said Harry "They're not, and I'm a parselmouth because it's something that runs in families. Voldemort was a distant relative." Again, it was better than the gross, disgusting, dark-magic imbued truth. And he was sort-of-related anyway.
"He was a relative?" asked Spinks "But he tried to kill you."
"He believed in a prophecy, and that made him want to kill me, and kill my parents" said Harry.
"So... you really were the chosen one?" asked Spinks.
"Voldemort chose me. Professor Longbottom was the other person it could have been" said Harry "And in the end, we both worked to kill him, before he killed everyone, broke the statute of secrecy, and ruined the whole world."
"How are you not mad?" asked Spinks perceptively.
"I got treatment" said Harry darkly "But I've still got a really bad temper."
"That's a problem isn't it?" asked Jones "When you were an Auror."
"Yes" said Harry grimly "I killed a lot of the Death Eaters, instead of having them escape justice."
Sunny seemed to non-verbally insist on riding on Harry's shoulders and arms that day.
Which led to a lot of scared school children. Harry decided they could… what did the children say… suck it.
-==0==-
Tracey came to see Daphne in her mother's parlour "Daphne?" she asked "I've got an idea."
"An idea?" asked Daphne.
"That we go see a healer." said Tracey.
"We?" asked Daphne.
"I think it's unhealthy to be angry at Potter. With his temper… it's better not to be against him."
"What are we doing?"
"Going to see a mind healer." said Tracey.
"I'm not mad" said Daphne.
"You're not mad" said Tracey "You just… refuse to accept life as it is. There are plenty of decent wizards, and you're holding out for princes that do not exist."
"My choice to have standards reflects my position as heiress" said Daphne, looking down her nose.
"I'll have them talk about my… thing about … you-know" said Tracey.
"You what?" asked Daphne "You couldn't."
"I can't expect Granger to ditch Weasley. I have to accept that" said Tracey.
"Tracey, you're being sensible about it. What's changed?"
"I saw Lavender Brown in Diagon Alley, she's got a massive scar… from Fenrir Greyback. If Granger lets Weasley go, Lavender's going to jump on him like… a werewolf. You know what they're like."
Daphne took a deep breath and exhaled "Tracey. Professor Lupin was a werewolf in third year, and he wasn't a broad-chested man with a penchant for ripping his own shirt off, and a set of muscles that curiously get covered in oil at every opportunity. I saw Fenrir Greyback, and while he was tall and broad, he was also covered in creepy body hair, and had filed his teeth to points and went around chewing peoples faces off."
"What are you trying to say, Daphne?" asked Tracey.
"Werewolves are not hunky sex-gods" said Daphne "They're just infected with a disease that ultimately kills them..." Daphne paused. "Like my sister, but with more turning into a wolf and less falling over like a wet flannel after any exertion." Daphne burst into tears.
Tracey hugged her friend "Daphne, you need to get some treatment for this. It's eating you up."
"Not like my sister!" said Daphne loudly and sobbed.
"We've got a one pm at St Mungos, come on" said Tracey, taking a deep breath.
...
Daphne sat down in a chair facing a desk, where a red and grey haired wizard sat "Miss Davis and Miss Greengrass. My notes say you both have issues you'd like to work on, and are each other's support persons" said Healer Lowry.
Tracey nodded "Daphne's sister has a fatal blood malediction, and Daphne's always been her big sister. Her sister's married and quite happy, and Daphne has… had decided her minimum standard for a boyfriend is a little unrealistic."
"It is not" said Daphne "I admit, I want a husband with a pedigree that grandmama will think is marrying upwards, who's tall, dark and handsome, magically powerful, and intelligent and funny."
"And a prince" said Tracey.
"A minor principality will do" corrected Daphne, in a completely serious tone.
Lowry nodded "Your notes say you're heiress Greengrass" said Lowy calmly "So you do need to produce an heir."
"Well my sister's children will be Malfoys" said Daphne. "We let her, because she… she's..." Daphne burst into tears.
"Right" said Healer Lowry pointedly "And Miss Davis?"
"I just have a fixation on a celebrity wizard" said Tracey. "Which I know is unrealistic, but… Harry Potter is so damn dishy."
"Potter!" explained Daphne "That Arrogant, self-satisfied egotist. You're not obsessed with him, you're fixated on Ronald bloody Weasley. And no offence, Healer Lowry, but he's a Ginger. And Poor."
"And tall, magically powerful, has pretty eyes, is always cheerful, and has a big nose, huge hands and feet." said Tracey. "And I know I don't have a chance in hell" she said glumly.
Healer Lowry tilted his head and regarded Tracey "And how long have you had this very particular obsession?"
"Well, after Blaise and Theodore, I realised bigger really was better, and then Weasley was so Heroic... and well, he has such big hands." said Tracey.
Lowry froze. "Quite" he said a very bland voice.
"She knows she can't compete with Granger or Weeasly's ex… Lavender Brown. Not taking on a werewolf or a war hero." said Daphne.
"And you don't think your friends should have different standards for a prospective mate?" asked Lowlry mildly.
"That's every witches choice" said Daphne.
Lowry nodded. "Right" he said "I think what we need here, is for Miss Greengrass to get some treatment for her distress at her sister's condition, and for Miss Davis to take several cold showers."
Tracey stared at Lowry "What!" she said. "That's insulting!"
"You objectify a celebrity, Miss Davis. You might try talking to him, and discovering that he's not the goddesses gift to witches." said Lowry.
"I have talked to him" said Tracey proudly "I went to the Weasley shop and met him, and told Ron Weasley, to tell Harry Potter he doesn't get owl post, still."
Healer Lowry looked thoughtful "He doesn't get mail, that would explain him missing appointments, I suppose." he mused.
"I thought it was just his immense ego, but he doesn't get mail he would forward to the shop" said Daphne.
"What makes you think Harry Potter has an immense ego?" ashed Healer Lowry.
"How he's always 'well I did win the war' and fighting Death Eaters." said Daphne. "And his birthday had his whole life in a fireworks display, backwards, until a baby Harry Potter ascended into… his mother."
"Didn't you say he swore at George Weasley about that?" asked Tracey.
"But we all had to watch." said Daphne "And the Yule ball was dreadful, and after fighting off all the Death Eaters he got drunk as he questioned everyone and was really objectionable."
"Mr Potter has had a difficult life, and he did for a time use alcohol as a crutch." said Healer Lowry. "Do you use any potions or substances?" asked Lowry politely.
"I do not" said Daphne.
"So just emotional repression" nodded Lowry.
"She goes off more and more easily" said Tracey.
"While you wrap your life in a fantasy." said Lowry. "Tell me, did you have a difficult final year at Hogwarts, during the war?"
"Of course we did" said Tracey "The Carrows tortured everyone, and made us all cast torture curses. It was awful."
"And anything else?" asked Healer Lowry. "It's confidential, anything you say." and he filled out two prescriptions.
"No" said Tracey "Nothing."
"I feel" said Healer Lowry "That you both have serious trauma. I suggest we book in a treatment session, and you'll need a few days to recover. In bed here is easier, but we can do at-home treatment if that's more suitable."
"Does it cause fuges" asked Daphne sharply.
"In severe cases, with strong doses, it might" admitted Healer Lowry. "Neither of you has a severe case, but you will both benefit from treatment."
"As soon as possible" said Tracey, tipping her head at Daphne. Lowry nodded "We can do at-home treatment today, after dinner is best. It's hard to eat during recovery."
-==0==-
Daphne and Tracey sat in Traceys bedroom, on her small couch, holding each other and sobbing, small purple vials discarded on the small occasional table.
Much later, Daphne looked up "Oh we look like Hags!" she exclaimed and they sobbed some more.
"This treatments' awful!" said Tracey, sniffling.
-==0==-
Harry went to Hogsmeade on Saturday to get… a 'mousie' for Sunny. Who announced she was hungry now. Or maybe Harry was fooling himself, he couldn't be sure as he could hardly have a conversation with the snake in front of the seventh years, then ask "Oh, was I creepily hissing in a magical language? Or talking English like a moron?" He was pretty sure she'd said '$Hungry$". Again, he could remember that from the basilisk.
He was looking around in the pet store, trying to broach the topic of wanting a mouse, when he saw Ginny Weasley going past outside with Michael Corner. He went to the glass tank of mice and pointed silently. Eight knuts later, a mouse in a tiny wooden box in his pocket, he headed out of the shop, off to the Hogs Head.
He got inside, and the smell of stale beer, urine and goats filled his nostrils. He went to the bar and ordered "Abe, firewhiskey, a tall glass of it." and put a galleon on the bar.
"Mister Potter" said Abe, squinting "Haven't seen you in a bit." he reached under the bar and pulled out a glass, and a bottle of unlabelled firewhiskey and poured it, pocketing the galleon.
Harry sipped firewhiskey. The glass slowly emptied. Harry slouched at the bar.
"Woman trouble?" asked Abe.
"Saw the ex with her bloke" said Harry very slowly and precisely.
"Well" said Abe "At least you've still got your bits. You can find another one."
Harry frowned "That's… not very encouraging." he slurred.
"If you'd been castrated in the war, you'd be out of the game completely" said Abe "As it is, you just need to grow up a bit. Get some responsibilities."
"I have responsibilities" said Harry.
"Which is why you're here getting drunk" said Abe.
"One drink" slurred Harry.
"About fifteen at normal rates" commented Abe. "You're not even twenty. You'll find someone yet, your father wasn't born till your grandparents were in their sixties. I remember your great-uncle coming in and shouting the whole bar beer."
"Great uncle?" asked Harry.
"Charlus" said Abe "Married Druella Black, and they didn't have kids. She didn't want the Black madness to continue, and he, well he was more interested in keeping Druella happy than trying to get her pregnant."
Harry nodded "What happened to them?" Harry asked.
"Death Eaters dropped their house's protections, blocked the floo and apparation, then cut them both into small pieces and spread them from one end of the house to the other. Sending a message. Old Charlus lobbied for a stronger reaction to the Knights of Walpurgus. They showed what happened when you said that" said Abe casually.
Harry stood up and swayed.
"You're a bit drunk to go killing octogenarian Death Eaters boy, sober up first" said Abe.
Harry staggered off out of the Hogs Head.
"Abe, you sending Harry Potter off to kill the old old guard?" asked a wrinkled old witch.
"Well my brother wound him off and sent him off to kill the sons, why not the fathers too" said Abe casually.
"You're a bastard, Abe" said the Witch. "Gimme another gillywater."
Harry Potter was staggering down the main street of Hogsmeade when black-robed figures started apparating in, wearing white masks.
Harry blinked drunkenly. 'Oh. Death eaters' he thought to himself. He'd been thinking of killing some, and here they were.
Harry drew his wand, pointed it up his nose and cast "Sobricious", pulled his wand out and vomited on the street, stood up, flicked his wand in a lazy circle and a flame whip flew out of Harry's wand, across the street, narrowly missing a death eater, who had to fall to the ground to avoid being cut in half. A flurry of spells, mostly purples and reds shot at Harry, who apparated away with a crack, reappearing on the opposite side of the death-eaters and firing a massive red blasting curse at the most central figure, who exploded with an almighty boom, rattling the doors of the houses, cutting some of the other Death Eaters down with swiftly moving bone fragments. Harry shielded, and a fusillade of spells battered his shield, making it visible as a bluish hemisphere, and then other people started firing at the Death Eaters, who quickly found themselves shielding attacks from well-protected citizens of Hogsmeade, and rapidly apparating-in red-robed Aurors, who were firing spells that removed limbs from the death eaters. No stunners today. Harry apparated up onto the roof of one of the taller building and fired a blue gouging curse into the Death Eater's almost-phalanx. The street was torn up and several bodies were shattered.
Harry apparated away before the massive flurry of purple hexes turned him into dog-food.
The shrieking shack was quiet, dirty and importantly, nobody was trying to kill him. Harry cast a few carefully chosen spells in case there was a wand-check later, and looked out an upper window in the general direction of central Hogsmeade.
Ten minutes later, the spellfire had stopped and Harry Potter left the Shrieking Shack by apparation and walked back into Hogsmeade, stepping over a particularly gorily bisected Death Eater. Red-Robed Aurors were taking statements.
"Harry" said Ron, in Auror uniform "Some reports you were here at the beginning, blew up a bunch of them?"
"Nah" said Harry "I got pissed at the Hogs Head, went to the shrieking shack with… someone affordable and only just got out."
Ron blinked. "Wand check?" he asked.
Harry handed over his wand and Ron cast a spell… Harry's wand squeakily playing back Harry's voice 'scourgify' 'vibracious' 'lubricious''vibracious' 'lubricious.' Ron let his wand drop.
"Crikey" said Ron "You're… clean, but if you're picking up from the Hogs Head, maybe get yourself to St Mungos for a checkup, mate?"
Harry nodded and slid his wand up his sleeve. "Well, I'd better get back to school" said Harry "I ended up with a pet snake, and it needs its dinner."
"Ew yuck" said Ron "Fancy feeding it Death Eaters?"
"Nah, a bit too much like watching Nagini eat Professor Burbage, really" said Harry grimly "See you around."
"Harry" said Ron quietly "Ginny says you were here, and what would the next spell off your wand be?"
"Lets pretend that didn't happen eh?" said Harry. Ron nodded.
Harry walked off to the Carriage pickup, and got into the next carriage back to Hogwarts, which had a lot of shocky-looking children. Harry looked down at their faces.
"The bad people are stopped, and you're alive." said Harry.
"I thought you stopped the war" said a small dark haired girl with red-rimmed eyes.
"I killed Voldemort, and we all fought his army, but some people escaped, and some were just sympathisers, and occasionally they come and attack places" said Harry.
"You were an Auror, you're supposed to have caught all the dark wizards" said another small girl.
"I did what I could, and then I had to come back to school. I didn't get to finish school, and I needed to know a lot more." said Harry.
"But you already fought in the war, you could have kept going!" said a small boy.
"I nearly died in the war, and quite often as an Auror" said Harry "Any Death Eater sympathisers try to kill me in a fight. Even my new snake, Sunny, was sent to kill me."
"Sent to kill you?" asked the dark haired little girl.
"She's already bitten me before I stopped her." said Harry, rubbing the bite marks, "Still, going to Hogwarts without being nearly murdered would be strange." he mused.
"What do you mean?" asked the small boy.
"Every year of school I'd have at least one near-death experience." said Harry "Voldemort and his minions were always trying to kill me. It was just how it was."
"But not everyone else" said the small girl.
"Go see the memorial. Fifty-five students and staff died in the battle of Hogwarts" said Harry. "Most were friends of mine. Even Professor Dumbledore was, kind of like a weird great-uncle."
"Can we change schools?" asked the small boy.
"I hear Beauxbatons is quite safe" said Harry, nodding. "Wasn't last year all right?"
"I suppose so" said the smallest girl.
"There's only so many bad people left from the war" said Harry "Eventually there will be a proper peace."
"You should fix it" said the small boy. "You're Harry Potter."
"I had to kill an evil wizard when I was eleven" said Harry "I had to watch a student get murdered when I was fourteen, then I got tortured. When I was seventeen, I had to fight the nastiest wizard in the country to the death. I think I've had enough."
"There were a lot of bad wizards blown up today" said the oldest girl.
Harry nodded "And that's going to give us all nightmares." he said.
"You can't have nightmares, you're a grown-up, and a hero" said the oldest girl.
"And I've had nightmares since I was eleven. Being the man-who-won isn't much fun when you can't get a decent nights sleep" said Harry, shrugging one shoulder.
"Aren't there treatments for that?" asked the oldest girl curiously.
"If any of you lot start having nightmares, go see Madam Pomfrey. St Mungos can treat it, and even my nightmares are nowhere near as bad any more. I sleep all night, most of the time."
"It's not fair" said the small boy "You're the goodie. You should be rich and famous and.. .and… have pretty witches kissing you." he added boldly.
"Well" said Harry "I couldn't keep my pretty witch. Too upset from the war, and she likes the new wizard better; He's better looking, taller and doesn't have as many nightmares."
"But… you must be rich" said the oldest girl.
Harry shook his head "We robbed Gringotts at the end of the war, needed a thing from someone else's vault. The goblins took all the gold." Harry paused "I've got some money saved up, and I did inherit a huge manor, which needed a lot of work done on it."
"Is being a grownup all bills, and nightmares and things going wrong?" asked the small boy.
"Those are the bad bits" said Harry "The good bits are pretty good. Seeing my friends alive still, playing with my godson. He's three, and his parents died in the war, so his Gran and I are all his family. And, I suppose sometimes parties can be nice, and I have found dancing with pretty witches quite good."
"Are you going to marry one of the seventh year girls?" asked the oldest girl perceptively.
"Oh god no" said Harry quickly "They're far too young for me."
Harry got out of the coach and went to see Madam Pomfrey.
"Hello!" Harry called out, walking into the infirmary.
Madam Pomfrey came out of her office, looking surprised. "Harry Potter? Are you all right?"
"Death eaters attacked Hogsmeade. They hadn't hurt any of the children, but some of them will be quite upset. It was a grisly mess in the street." said Harry "So… some upset, some nightmares tonight."
"You" said Madam Pomfrey "are acting like an adult. It's quite a nice progression for you."
"And no icky-tasting potion for me today" said Harry, with a smile "See you later, Madam Pomfrey."
"Goodbye Potter" she said, heading back into her office.
-==0==-
Fortunately, Harry's Sunday at Hogsmeade got off to a nice and uneventful start, with a few warm butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks, and fish and chips.
Rita Skeeter and her photographer came in the front door and headed for Harry.
"Hello Rita" said Harry politely "Come to Bug Me?" he asked.
Rita frowned "We had an arrangement" she said.
"A long time ago. How about turning around and leaving?" asked Harry smiling. "Like a friend. Azkaban is so very cold this time of year."
"Surely you have a statement?" asked Rita, setting quill to parchment.
"I was at Hogsmeade yesterday, I went for a drink, met an old friend, and spent some time reacquainting myself" said Harry "I came back to the main street, got my wand checked by Aurors, and had to step over some very grisly body parts. I hear the dark robed, white masked attackers came off rather second best."
"Multiple witnesses place you in the fracas" said Rita.
"Surely that was a melee?" asked Harry, "I can say the younger students were quite disturbed. Being a school student myself."
"How are NEWTs going, Harry?" asked Rita with forced chumminess.
"Well, Rita, we just won't know till after exams, will we?" asked Harry. "Hopefully I can go back to work as an Auror, confident that with NEWTs, no-one will ever think I got anywhere on privilege as the man who killed the evillest Dark lord in recent history before he finished school."
"As the Black of Black, surely your family businesses must be taking up a lot of your time" asked Rita.
"No comment, Rita" said Harry. Wouldn't that be nice, Harry thought.
"If you hadn't quit the Aurors, would events like yesterday have happened, Harry?" asked Rita.
"I am not doing divination at a NEWT level, so I don't feel qualified to answer that, Rita." said Harry, feeling quite smug at his answer, "I recall you wrote a number of stories about … Harry Potter, Butcher? Or something?"
"You had less live-arrests than any other Auror" said Rita "Like you were not really trying."
"Well, Rita, as bad people tended to try to kill me rather vigorously, I did the best I could, and when the tide of public opinion turned against me, I resigned, to come back to school and finish my education." said Harry "After all, I might have saved the country from death at the hands of the Death Eater army, but once I wasn't arresting enough violent criminals, I knew I had to go."
Rita gave Harry a narrowed gaze "Are you being sarcastic, Mister Potter?"
"Possibly" said Harry "Or ironic. It's sometimes hard to tell."
"You apparently have taken to wearing a large venomous snake" asked Rita.
"Someone sent me a surprise." said Harry "Trained to bite me. I lived, just, and Sunny's a fairly low maintenance pet. She eats mice once a week, I think."
"And the similarities to he-who-shall-not-be-named?" asked Rita.
"We were both parselmouths. Snakes are very easy pets for parselmouths, we can literally talk to them. They eat less than a cat, and don't shed fur. I suspect I'll have to send Sunny somewhere warmer soon, she complains about being cold at Hogwarts." said Harry. "And she presents little threat to anyone at Hogwarts, as she's my pet, and I'm a lot more dangerous than a venomous snake. And of course, Professor Longbottom is an expert at Snake control."
"Now, Harry" said Rita, slipping into the booth Harry was sitting at "What we'd like to know, is, who's the new love interest for Harry Potter?"
"I'd like to know too, Rita" said Harry sarcastically "I am finding NEWTs a lot of work. Of course I had to revise all of sixth year, and re-sit OWL History of magic. I can tell you now that Voldemort, or Tom Riddle as that's his real name, used a particularly nasty mental attack on me during my History of magic exam, and I had to re-sit it."
Rita's lips pursed into a small bunch. She took several deep breaths through her nose. "Harry, please" she asked "There must be someone special?"
"Sadly, no" said Harry. "Apart from a pet snake that lies on me in my sleep like a ton of bricks, I'm finding seventh year a bit loveless. Obviously the little girls of seventh year are all far too young for me."
Rita rolled her eyes "Harry, we've been friends for a long time – " she started.
"I wouldn't say we're friends, Rita" said Harry "More that you've slandered me since I was fourteen. But, lets gloss over that. I mean, you won't get in a jam… jar and I'll be un-slandered." he finished., then smiling toothlessly.
"Now" said Rita, shivering slightly, referring to a notebook from her handbag "I hear you're actually the heir of Slytherin?"
Harry shook his head "Not That, Rita I emphatically deny. I am not the heir of Slytherin." he said.
"Parseltounge, pet snake?" asked Rita.
"I'm a parselmouth, and I co-opted the snake that tried to kill me, I'm sure Salazar Slytherin would have approved of that, but I'm not the heir" said Harry, smiling some more. Taunting Rita was fun, Harry decided.
"Harry" said Rita, exasperated.
"Look, if you want a quote, how about this" said Harry "If anyone's still having nightmares from the war, or mood difficulties, got see St Mungos. The healers can help. I even get a nights sleep these days."
"Nightmares?" asked Rita. "You had nightmares?"
"Wars are scarey, Rita." said Harry. "Watching Cedric Diggory get murdered was hard for fourteen-year-old me."
Rita and Bozo didn't stay a lot longer. It felt like success, so it was time to celebrate.
Harry got up and went and got another butterbeer. Madam Rosmerta tipped a shot of rum into it. "On the house." she said "you handled her like a pro."
Harry sat down and looked out the window, not really thinking about anything.
Something outside drew his eye. Something… bizarre.
Three young adult witches walking down the street. One with dark hair in heinously overdone white robes, that Narcissa Malfoy would have dismissed as too embroidered, a brown haired witch in normal looking robes, and a tall blonde one in green robes. That looked like Daphne Greengrass. The three witches, who Harry realised were both Greengrasses and Tracey Davis, and they were going… to Madam Puddifoots. Harry smiled and shook his head. Tea and cakes.
Harry went to J Pippins's potions and ordered the ingredients he was running out of. He was paying the elderly, grey haired witch very carefully for the beetle eyes and bat spleens, when the door to the shop opened and a group of witches, chattering came in. Harry recognised some of the voices as Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis, who were chatting with Astoria Malfoy. They sounded oddly cheerful really.
"Dandelion root, moonstone, licorice root, oyster shells and bat spleens" said Daphne Greengrass imperiously.
"I'm just finishing serving this gentleman" said the shopkeeper.
Harry counted out a few more knuts very carefully, from his small money-bag, and pushed the pile over to the witch.
The elderly witch had clearly counted along, swept them all into the money drawer and started wrapping Harry's purchases in brown paper. Harry looked up from the wrapping ,trying not to get a fuge going, and Tracey Davis said "It's Potter."
"The schoolboy" said Astoria Malfoy, in an affected drawl.
Harry turned around "I'm getting working up to NEWTs. Your husband?"
"Private tutors" said Astoria Malfoy, looking down her nose "We're not completely beggared, no matter how hard you tried" she said.
"Malfoy merely paid fines for crimes others would go to Azkaban for" said Harry "I put in a good word."
"Monster" said Astoria Malfoy.
"Miss Greengrass, Miss Davis" said Harry "How are the brushes working out?"
"Don't mention them" said Tracey. They seemed to have their hair doing… witchily-fashionable things so the brushes were probably okay, thought Harry.
"Well you all seem quite well, Married life clearly agrees with Mrs Malfoy" said Harry.
Daphne Greengrass narrowed her eyes.
"What?" asked Harry.
"Not here" said Daphne Greengrass. "Wait outside."
Harry rolled his eyes and picked up his package, and left the shop, standing and looking up at the sky. The Hogwarts kids were chattering as they explored Hogsmeade, but in the sky, it looked like great flying weather. 'Shame I can't fly safely for months' he thought to himself. Harry nonchalantly drew his wand, and cast a heavy-duty area-shield silently. Just in case.
The door opened behind Harry and three chattering witches reappeared.
"Potter" said Daphne Greengrass fairly politely.
Harry turned "What did I do to offend you today?" Harry asked drolly. "I'm the Black of Black, some manners?"
Daphne Greengrass, instead of blowing her top amusingly, just smiled slightly "Mister Black then" she said, and cast a fairly wide area privacy charm. The chattering of the Hogwarts students walking past muted.
"We are well, although your determination to beggar Draco Malfoy has made some of Astoria's more expensive treatments a source of family discord" said Daphne Greengrass.
"She's still sick" said Harry tactlessly. He eyed Astoria, who looked irritated, and a bit peaky really.
"Her condition is not curable, merely treatable. Much like your nasty case of Weasely-itis." said Daphne Greengrass.
Harry cast a detection of curses charm and Astoria lit up all over with a blackish curse.
"It's quite exotic then" said Harry "I know some really good – "
"We have spent three hundred years, and hundreds of thousands of galleons, Harry Potter-Black." said Daphne firmly "The origins of the curse are lost in history."
Harry had an idea. "Really?" said Harry "I bet I can find out. In fact, for a fee, I can lift it."
"A fee" said Daphne Greengrass dismissively.
"Ten-thousand Galleons" said Harry "I cure your sister, I get ten thousand."
"You're not a healer, Mister Black" said Astoria Malfoy, in a quite good impression of old Mrs Malfoy. If Mrs Malfoy had looked more sweet but put-out, not derisive.
Harry put his package of potions ingredients in his coat pocket "I'm not a healer, but I'm amazingly good at destroying dark magic. That's a dark curse, and I am uniquely qualified."
"And you want some galleons just to get started" said Tracey Davis rather cynically.
"Not at all" said Harry "A cup of tea later. I will need to visit your house, Miss Greengrass."
"He's caving" said Tracey in a sing-song voice.
Daphne rolled her eyes "Tracey, I would not date Potter if he was the king of England AND cured my sister."
"I assure you" said Harry sarcastically "I'm not the king of England and bad-tempered blondes, even pretty ones who dance well, aren't my type."
Astoria Malfoy gaped briefly then drew herself up. "This is a ruse to humiliate us" she said.
"I'm quite sure, Mrs Malfoy I can find out all about the curse." said Harry "Not a hundred percent sure I can lift it, but as I said, I know some really good curse-breakers quite well. One even owes me a favour."
"He did get an O plus in OWL History of magic" said Tracey Davis thoughtfully "Which is unnatural. You fainted and failed the exam in fifth year."
"I was being tortured by Voldemort at the time" said Harry "A nasty mental attack he could do."
Astoria Malfoy looked at Harry intently "He could… torture you remotely?" She looked quite sympathetic. Harry began to appreciate Daphne Greengrass's reasonign that her sister was tragically deluded about Draco Malfoy, but otherwise quite a nice person. And er sister had some sort of obsessive problem with fireworks.
"It wasn't easy, but he could, yes" said Harry blandly "I was given a crash course in occulamancy to try to protect my mind."
Daphne Greengrass would be a lousy poker player, Harry thought, because the mention of occulamancy had her eyes widening abruptly.
"And?" asked Tracey "How did that go?"
"I was a total failure at it" admitted Harry cheerfully "But Professor Snape got to torture me for a year, rummaging in my mind for humiliating things. He really hated me very professionally."
The three ex-slytherin students stared at Harry incredulously. Daphne Greengrass stayed silent but Tracey Davis let out "Wow. He Really hated you." Harry nodded "Now, I know how to get to your house, can one of you let me through the front gate?"
Daphne Greengrass looked pensive but nodded, and all three vanished in a ripple of apparation cracks. Harry blinked 'they'd done that rather neatly' he thought.
Harry apparated to the country lane outside the Greengrass manor. Which was, Harry realised, the same lane as the Davis estate. In daylight, the Greengrass manor was a white Georgian farmhouse. It was, Harry realised, smaller than his manor, a lot smaller. Maybe eight bedrooms.
Harry walked to the gate and Daphne Greengrass appeared somehow out of the hedgerow by the white-painted gate "Does your marvellous plan require you to come into the house?" she asked.
"Close will do" said Harry "I would prefer some privacy."
"No" said Daphne firmly "Strangers will not be left alone on our land near our house."
Harry nodded "Fine, you'll get to see some family magic then."
Daphne Greengrass opened the gate latch and pushed the gate open, shutting the gate behind Harry.
"Are there geese here too?" asked Harry.
"Yes" said Daphne "And they attack on command."
Harry walked the long gravel driveway to the house, which was taller close up.
"Can you cast a privacy charm?" asked Harry. "I'd rather only one person see what I do."
"And if I disclose it?" she asked.
"And breach the family magics act?" asked Harry "You wouldn't. That I do know about you."
Daphne Greengrass drew her long whippy wand and cast a privacy charm.
Harry unbuttoned his top few shirt buttons.
"Please, spare me the theatrics." said Daphne "Don't rip your shirt open and try to impress me."
Harry stopped. "I'm getting something I keep around my neck out, actually" said Harry "But I'll bear that warning in mind." he added sarcastically. Greengrass inhaled, her nostrils flaring.
Harry got his hands on his mokeskin pouch and opened the end, rummaging and getting the pebble.
He pulled his shirt shut, concealing the mokeskin pouch.
"Now, Miss Greengrass, give me the name of the most ancient family member you know of that died here" said Harry.
"Aspard Greengrass" said Daphne with only a moment's hesitation.
Harry took the stone without showing it, and laid it in his palm, called and thought of Aspard Greengrass, and rolled the stone.
The sky darkened, as if the sun had gone behind a cloud… behind the moon, and the grounds grew darker and darker.
"Aspard Greengrass" said Harry firmly, and waited.
"What's going on?" squeaked Daphne Greengrass.
"I'm going to ask Aspard" said Harry "He should be here soon."
Moments later, the blackness on the ground humped up into a man-sized blob, then slowly formed into the dark, shadowy likeness of an old man, with a long nose and long hair.
He babbled something in a language Harry couldn't recognise. Not French; it didn't sound like the Beauxbatons students, or Bulgarian, or German. A bit like German.
Aspard Greengrass put his hands on his hips angrily and repeated the question.
"My name is Harry Black" said Harry in bad Latin.
Aspard shuddered and replied in Latin, saying something like "Foul Necromancer."
"Manners" said Harry. Well, he thought that's what he said. Aspard looked confused, so maybe that wasn't the right word.
"The curse on Greengrass. The blood curse. Who cast it Why cast it When casted it?" asked Harry in bad Latin.
Aspard looked at Harry with disdain. "Cretin" he said dismissively.
Daphne Greengrass spoke up in good Latin, "I am Daphne Greengrass, Heiress of the great house."
Aspard Greengrass floated closer and looked into Daphne's eyes "Childe" he said quite fondly.
Daphne nodded and asked a question in that weird German sounding language.
Aspard shook his head and said many things, finally saying quite clearly "Morden Eveningshade"
"Did Morden Eveningshade cast it?" asked Harry.
Daphne Greengrass looked at Harry with disdain… she clearly got that from her ancestor, and asked in the weird germanic language. Aspard simply nodded.
"Greengrass?" asked Harry "Can you walk out of the privacy charm. I need to say something and not have you hear it." Aspard Greengrass was looking at the house curiously.
"Your Latin is so bad, you could say it and I couldn't understand anyway." said Daphne Greengrass. "And no, I can't leave, the spell will follow me."
Harry drew his wand and deafness cursed Daphne instead.
"Asaprd!" said Harry, and Aspard turned to face Harry.
"Nominatum completum Harry James Potter Black Peverell Syltherin" said Harry carefully in terrible Latin, and he hissed out what he hoped was "$Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts four$", and as Harry sort-of-expected, Aspard shuddered at the Parseltounge. Harry smiled and Asaprd pulled his robes together and bowed formally. Harry nodded and rolled the stone, banishing Aspard back to the next big adventure. Daylight returned slowly, and Harry dispelled the deafness curse on Greengrass.
"You deafness cursed me" said Greengrass angrily.
"Well, those words were for your ancestor, not you" said Harry.
"Making you Black of Black has made you a snob" said Daphne Greengrass. Harry nodded idly.
"Now what?" asked Daphne.
"I find where Morden Eveningshade died." said Harry. "I'd guess here, given what he did."
"You're actually a necromancer" said Daphne Greengrass blandly, but swallowing nervously.
"Twice a day" said Harry sarcastically, rolling the stone and calling up Morden Eveningshade. They sky darkened, the ground covered in dark fog, and a dark shade rose from the ground, and started complaining in whatever that germanic language was.
Harry squeezed the stone, and as he expected, the shade of Morden shut up.
"Greengrass, go get a quill, you understand this lingo. I'm going to ask Morden here all about the curse on your family."
"What if he won't talk" asked Daphne Greengrass.
"While you're getting a quill and parchment, I'll negotiate" said Harry.
Greengrass walked off very quickly, and Harry managed one-handed to get the elder wand out of his pouch.
"Hello Morden" said Harry in bad Latin " I'm Harry Peverell. You cursed the Greengrasses."
Morden started complaining loudly in that germanic language.
Harry cast his mind back and recalled the spell he'd found in a Black family library spellbook, for torturing ghosts. "Tormentiun Essencialle" cast Harry, hooking the Elder wand, which thrummed with power, the feeling of heat sliding up his fingers filling his hand, up his arm. The wand liked casting this spell. Then Harry twisted the wand very precisely widdershins, while turning it clockwise relative to the current position of the moon, focussing on the eyes of Morden. Morden's shade screamed; that looked very painful. 'And I don't even have to hate him' thought Harry cheerfully. Harry turned the wand more till the air around Morden shimmered like a furnace and the shade's screams were inaudible. Harry mused that this spell, while a bit… dark was super-effective on spirits.
Some time later, Harry's arm was shaking from the concentrated effort of the two twists, and Daphne Greengrass came back outside, carrying a small folding chair, a large book and a quill.
She put the chair down, sat, crossed her legs, put the large book on her raised knee and lifted the quill.
Harry cancelled the spirit-wracking curse and Morden's shade stopped screaming.
"Now" said Harry in bad Latin "Explain the curse in detail to Miss Greengrass."
Morden's ghostly mouth opened and closed, then he started to recite in quite good Latin.
Harry mentally tuned out after Morden got to the bit where a newborn descendant of the caster was sacrificed to power the curse.
Daphne Greengrass wrote carefully, as Morden continued to explain easily the second nastiest ritual curse Harry had ever heard.
"Please let me go" said Morden finally in his good Latin "I can feel this world pressing on me. I do not belong and it pains me."
Harry waved the elder wand just a little "Every word you know of the spell" said Harry. Morden Eveningshade's gaze was fixed on the wand. Which proved he could learn, thought Harry.
Daphne Greengrass said, in quite good Latin "Explain the second part of the curse again."
Harry felt quite hungry by the time Daphne Greengrass said "He's repeating himself, and babbling"
Harry slid the elder wand up his sleeve and rolled the stone back, pocketing it.
Daylight returned, and it was now sometime mid-afternoon, by the position of the sun.
"Did you do … that in the war?" asked Daphne Greengrass in a very circumspect tone.
"No" said Harry "I learnt how after the war. Family Magic, so unless you'd like a holiday on a very special island?"
Daphne Greengrass swallowed "The curse, I think he knew all of it. It's certainly enough that even I could try curse-breaking. You mentioned knowing a curse-breaker?"
"Yes" said Harry "And she's available."
"She's?" asked Daphne Greengrass.
"Well, she's at the end of lunch, but she'd be interested. And her husband will be there too." said Harry. "I assume I can't apparate away. We could floo over and drop off that parchment."
Harry was led inside through a nail-studded door, into a hight-ceiling wood-panneld hall, to a large sleepy fireplace, Daphne leaned the folding chair against the wall, threw on floo powder and Harry said "The Burrow!" and stepped in.
He stumbled out into the warm cosyness of the Burrow, and Ron exclaimed "Harry!", just about the time the fireplace flared behind him and Daphne Greengrass stepped out onto the wonky floorboards of the burrow.
"Harry" said Mrs Weasley loudly "Who's your friend?" And the way she was looking at Harry was… well she'd looked at the twins like that when they stole the car.
"My business associate, Miss Daphne Greengrass" said Harry "I was hoping to organise some curse breaking. We have a very interesting curse and lots of information. Where's Bill and Fleur?"
"Fleur's just put Victoire down for a nap" said Mrs Weasley, a bit quieter, "Bill's fixing the apple press."
"Can you send Fleur out to the press?" asked Harry "It's a private deal."
Molly looked annoyed, and Ron made side-eyes at Greengrass, and Harry shook his head minutely.
Harry led a clearly surprised Daphne Greengrass out of the Burrow, outside, across the yard, through the gate, off to the shed the apple press lived in. Daphne carried the book spine-down in one hand. It was phone-book sized.
"Weasleys." said Daphne Greengrass "Weasleys" she repeated dismissively.
"Bill Weasley married Fleur Delacour. They're both good cursebreakers." said Harry "And work for Gringotts if that's needed."
Daphne followed Harry to the apple-press shed, where Bill had had the press floating in pieces in mid-air, while he transfigured a branch into a replacement part.
Daphne Greengrass started speaking "Why the hell does your press have four crusher rollers?" she asked bluntly.
Bill looked over at Daphne Greengrass, and back at the branch "Because, dad thought it would work better, and he loves mechanisms" said Bill. "Harry, this young lassie yours?"
"Business associate." said Harry "A spot of very tricky cursebreaking required."
"Potter-Black is going to demand ten thousand galleons to lift a curse" said Daphne "Considering how he got the information, I'm glad I voted for Shacklebolt."
Bill chuckled. "Harry's a nice quiet boy who just happens to fight dragons and kill dark lords. I wish more people understood what a nice boy my adoptive brother is. And put their wands down and gave themselves up to the Aurors."
"You know about him" said Daphne accusingly.
"I've known him since he was twelve." said Bill "And for all he claims to be so mean, he hasn't turned his muggle relatives into slugs."
"That'd be muggle-baiting" said Harry.
"And exploding Death-Eaters yesterday?" asked Bill.
"That wasn't me. Check the Auror office report" said Harry. "I submitted to a wand check, and all I'd cast for ages was um… some very mature charms."
Daphne Greengrass eyed Bill "Werewolf attack?" she asked.
"Stopping them eating everyone at Hogwarts in nintey-five." said Bill. "Harry let Little Malfoy off with massive fines. If I wanted a good fight, I'd pick a fight about that."
"I had my reasons" said Harry. "He and his mother did a lot to round up the Death Eaters. Most of it sitting shivering in their house with no wand, waiting for the Death Eaters to show up. Mrs Malfoy senior kindly filled out a nice Auror office report that put two of them in maximum security."
Bill shook his head "Well, This crank's not fixing itself. Shut up for a minute."
Bill cast a transfiguration, and the branch reformed to be the same as the broken wooden part, but not broken. Then Bill picked up the broken parts and looked at them really carefully, finally transfiguring the new part to be thicker in one place.
Then he started waving his wand, and the apple-press started reassembling itself.
"Why?" asked Daphne as the press settled back onto the ground "This could be simpler"
"Not and keep dad happy" said Bill tersely.
"Beel?" called Fleur, and Harry turned, and Fleur walked, practically floating into the apple-press-shed, looking like a glamorous mother from the sort of TV shows Aunt Petunia had loved.
Harry looked back just in time to see Daphne Greengrass looking lemony. Fleur tended to have that effect on women.
"Harry's got a business deal" said Bill. "Curse-breaking."
"I will require standard business confidentiality" said Daphne, and Bill and Fleur nodded.
"Mister Potter-Black has a deal to lift a curse on my family." said Daphne Greengrass evenly "He has used family magic to get a detailed description of the curse from the person who cast it."
She lifted the book "I wrote the description down, but I'm not a curse-breaker."
"And can we ask the person who cast it?" asked Bill.
Harry shook his head "He's stuck where he is." Bill nodded.
Fleur held out her hand "Show me" she said.
Daphne opened the book and rested it on the apple press and Fleur read the first two pages of hand-written notes quickly.
"This is a very pernicious curse" said Fleur "We will need to do this on the clock at Gringotts."
"Confidentially" said Daphne.
"Who's paying" asked Fleur.
"Harry" said Bill. "He's billing her family."
"If you need payment in advance" said Harry "Can you get it from Aunt Andromeda. I..."
"Don't have a lot for free cash" said Bill politely. "All tied up."
"All tied up" Harry agreed.
"So" said Fleur, turning the page and reading and talking at the same time "Do you fancy 'arry?"
Daphne Greengrass inhaled "Not if he had three titles, and a castle." she said sarcastically.
"You're too fussy" said Fleur "My little sister would take 'em"
"She's sixteen Fleur" said Harry firmly "Too young."
"She's very mature for her age" said Fleur, with a smile.
"Fleur, love you like a sister, but no." said Harry. Fleur chuckled and Bill ruffled Harry's hair.
"Hey!" said Harry "Not the hair. I have enough trouble with it already!"
Daphne Greengrass was looking backwards and forth, from Bill, Fleur and Harry. "Why?" she asked. "You treat him like family, even though he's not dating your sister any more."
"Well, Ginny likes Michael better" said Bill "And frankly, those two were too alike. Two hotheads in one bed would be a bit much."
"I'm not a hothead" said Harry firmly.
"Harry was too messed up for my sister." said Bill "There, you like that better?" he asked Harry.
Harry shrugged "Fair call." he said.
Bill finished putting the press back together, and looked at the book, flicking pages back and forwards quickly.
"Your family really annoyed this chap" he said "It's going to be hard, even reversing all the arithmancy from the incantation, ritual and wand motions. Might have to get someone with a feel for it like Synde to er… play with it a bit."
"Synde is an embecile" said Fleur in a french sneer, "Richards."
"Richards owes me money" said Bill. "And won't pay."
"Tell me his address" said Harry.
"Come on, he's a professional curse-breaker. You can't just go shake him down, Harry." said Bill "His address is unplottable and probably fideliussed."
"He works at Gringotts, I can follow him home." said Harry "And open his house up and charm all his walls pink with yellow flowers."
"Your decoration charms are a bit..." said Bill, looking thoughtful.
"Exactly" said Harry "He's a curse-breaker, he can deal with that later."
"Will you… do the thing?" asked Daphne.
"Probably not" said Harry "Just some other family magic. I could let my pet snake bite him. She's very venomous, and a trained attack-snake."
Bill chuckled "Harry, never stop yanking chains." he said.
"I'm a poor innocent Hogwarts schoolboy" said Harry "A leetle boy."
Fleur snorted delicately "A comedian!" she exclaimed, smiling and shaking her head.
Harry left the younger Weasleys with the book, and took Daphne to the lane and said "You can apparate from here"
Daphne vanished with a crack, and Harry went back to the Burrow to scrounge some lunch.
Mrs Weasley had stared at Harry pointedly, and Harry had simply shaken his head. Stuffed full, he went back to the Three Broomsticks by floo, and caught a late carriage back to Hogwarts.
Harry got a letter a few days later, and ducked out via the Shrieking shack tunnel later that night to get a note Bill had left inside, which he incinerated after reading.
The next afternoon he had a free period, he used the Hogsmeade tunnel to get far enough from Hogwarts to apparate to Diagon alley, under his invisibility Cloak.
Curse-Breaker Richards had really good protections on his house. So Harry used the Elder wand to flatten them like a pancake, got in close under the cloak of invisibility, body-bound Richards, did some colourvaria with the elder wand, and whispered in Richards ear "Pay Bill Weasley, and work on the job he's got or I do something really nasty." Richards swore till Harry added daffodils to the walls.
Considering, Harry thought as he walked up the tunnel back to Hogwarts, that Richards' house had pink interior walls with yellow daffodils now, that without the elder wand might not be dis-spellable, Richards might get the message.
