The Power Within

by DZ2

Secret of the Stone Response: What do you call something that can do the impossible? The power of the Gods. What do you call someone that can do the impossible? Harry Potter. Grey OP Harry/Wanda; Wolfstar; Good Dumbledore

7. Justice, Not Vengeance

The Power Within

Disclaimer/Plot/Challenge Information/Author's Note: SEE FIRST CHAPTER

Recommended Reads: Harry Potter and the Mystic Sorcerer and Custos Aeternus by Winged Seer Wolf, Child of the Storm and Ghosts of the Past by Nimbus Llewelyn, Trickshot, Bonded, Magical Spider, Widow's Vengeance and Wands and Claws by JustBored21, Magical Origins by Dante 2K-25, Lightning, Part 1 and Lightning, Part 2: An Eventful Fourth Year by The New York Bear, Master of Death and Wielder of Infinity by bhanfhen, Magical Blocks and Bonds by raspberry dreams, A Third Path to the Future by Vimesenthusiast and Harry Potter The Protector of Magic by TigerSwarm9122

Key Pairing: Harry/Wanda; Sirius/Remus;

Other Pairings: To be determined

Normal Speech

'Thoughts'

'Mental Speech'

/Parseltongue/

Review Answers:

WhiteElfElder: I'll be going into more detail on what Harry's ended up doing over the next couple of chapters, my friend;

Winged Seer Wolf: I appreciate your support, as always, dear brother-in-all-but-blood; now, get ready for a tense chapter;

With his first proper step onto Hogwarts' soil, Harry breathed a sigh of relief before, snapping his fingers, he silenced the screams of the three men as he looked to a sea of amazed, awe-inspired faces.

"There really is no place like home…now, what should we do with these three threats to our home, my friends?"

Chapter 7: Justice, Not Vengeance

Severus Snape, Igor Karkaroff and Bartemius Crouch Junior – formerly known as, and looked like, Alastor Moody.

As a result of…whatever Harry had just done to Hogwarts, all three men were now on their knees, screaming silently as their arms burned with dark fury, vengeance and magical agony, none of which seemed to receive them any pity, least of all in the case of Hogwarts' least-popular Professor or the Head of Durmstrang.

In front of them, Harry Potter stood there, watching all three of them with a calm, but ice-cold thousand-yard stare as he watched them writhe in agony, silently tearing apart their vocal chords because of the magic assaulting them. At the same time, Harry's fingers actively twitched with what looked like restraint before, drawing in a deep breath, he looked to the nearest of the three men.

"Igor Karkaroff," said Harry, his voice deathly-soft and cool as he addressed the Durmstrang Master. "A man who willingly sold out his own former allies, including the slime that sits in the spot reserved for a professor! You also named this other Death Eater as being just that, even though, in this day and age, Bartemius Crouch Junior is supposed to be dead and a soulless corpse in Azkaban…wonder how someone else did what is supposed to be impossible, long before Sirius Black did it."

"Harry…I…I understand you…you must be in a state of…"

"Albus, shut up!" snapped Harry, earning a sea of horrified, disbelieving gasps from the hall's student population, while Harry fixed Dumbledore with a steely glare as he explained, "As you just witnessed, Hogwarts' magic is once again at the level of protective enchantments and anti-Dark Magic Detectors, Restrainers and, yes, even Tormentors that it should have been. Along with so many others, these wards and protections have decayed and been screwed seven ways from Sunday because you decided to weaken Hogwarts and make it less a school and more some kind of army training camp for your plans for the Greater Good!"

"No, I didn't…"

"Remind me, what did I eat to become this new and improved version of me?" asked Harry, earning a couple of surprised looks from Ron and Hermione, while even Stephen looked like he wasn't sure of what he was going to say.

Harry, meanwhile, then pointed to the Gryffindors as he asked, "Also, remind me: what evil was brought to your attention, only after some unseen guardian angel managed to not only cleanse, but exorcise and vanquish the evil responsible, before it claimed the life and soul of an innocent lioness cub? Or how about the Soul Eaters you allowed that corrupt, vile, incompetent little boy, Cornelius Fudge, to place around a school full of…what, Albus? CHILDREN!"

The halls of Hogwarts actually seemed to tremble as Harry roared like the sleeping dragon tickled, while the boy continued, "And that's saying nothing of the fraud, the possessed professor and the fake Seer you encouraged to be here. Then, on top of that, there's the ghost who, I'm not sorry to say, you will find has long-overdue moved onto the next life! Oh, and don't think you're safe either, Argus Filch: like your boss and his Death Eater associates, you and I are going to have a long chat about what happens to you now, No-Maj!"

"I'm not a Muggle, I'm a Squib!" snapped Filch, earning a round of alarmed, if not disgusted looks from the Slytherins, as well as a few who'd found themselves on the wrong end of Filch's ire on more than one occasion.

"Same thing, isn't it?" asked Harry, holding up two hands before he addressed the furious caretaker, "You're either born with magic, or the means of studying it, or you're not. And, before you say anything about otherwise, Filch, let me remind you that we do have the Sorcerer Supreme standing up here with me. You know? As in Planet Earth's most-powerful Sorcerer, who was, himself, originally without what we would call Magic or magical skill until an accident changed all that for him."

"He's a Muggle?" asked Pansy Parkinson, earning a scoff from Harry.

"I dare you to come up here and say that to his face, Parkinson!" argued the young sorcerer, indicating Stephen, who seemed content to watch and see what Harry was saying and doing, even as he said it. "This is a man who has battled gods, demons, monsters and things that wizards wouldn't even claim could exist, because your view of magic is so narrow that, much like a certain somebody in this room, you could only probably believe it, if it was in a book! Or if it came from the Not-So-Holy Bible of Ministry Bullshit and the Gospel According to HIM!"

He gestured to Dumbledore as he snapped out the last part, while Harry also saw Hermione's face turn redder than red could go as she knew he was talking about her when he pointed out the bit about believing it because she'd read it somewhere.

Harry, meanwhile, indicated Stephen again as he explained, "However, Doctor Strange is more-powerful, more-influential and has fingers in a hell of a lot of pies, certainly lots more than the Minister and his ilk. This is a man whom Gods call friend and ally, while No-Majs who are familiar with Magic because of how their local communities have had to adapt and evolve with the times also call Doctor Strange friend and ally, such as a man I'm sure the First-Generationals in here would know…a Professor Charles Xavier?"

Judging by the awed, even amazed reactions from one-third of Hogwarts' student population – as well as those who were half-blood and knew the name too – Harry was right to say they knew who Xavier was.

Harry, meanwhile, looked to the Slytherin Table as he explained, "As you're going to learn from here on in, Slytherin House…especially Slytherin House, Magic, as well as the Magical World, is much bigger and extends much further than Daddy's chequebook and whatever influences they might or might not have over those who allow the world…well, Albion, to be dragged further and further behind than the rest of the world. And that starts here and now…with these three desecrators of the Goddess' gifts!"

Here, Harry turned back to Karkaroff before he continued, "Now, as I was saying, you, High Master Karkaroff, have done all in your power to atone for your sins, including leading a school into the true understanding of what it means to wield so-called Dark Magic! And, while I accept and understand that not everywhere is Hogwarts, and I applaud the strict, if not militaristic manner you prepare your students for the unknown and the possibly-dangerous, the fact of the matter is that your soul is stained with the evils you committed in the service of one Tom Marvolo Riddle, alias the Dark Lord Voldemort!"

While the expected shivers filled the hall again, Harry waved his hand, writing the first name he'd said in the air in magical writing before, with another wave of his hand, the words TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE rearranged to form I AM LORD VOLDEMORT, much to the shock of the Slytherins, as well as many others in the hall.

Harry, meanwhile, reached out and pressed a hand onto Karkaroff's arm; as soon as he did so, Harry saw Karkaroff's pained, tormented looks turn into a state of serene calmness, while Harry locked eyes with the Slavic High Master as he spoke in a softer tone.

"And so, in light of how you not only educate, but prepare for the future, and how you even try and ensure your students keep their uses of so-called Dark Magic to your Duel Pits and in permitted Honour Bouts, and how you clamp down on use of this same magic to intentionally harm or even execute a student…I am giving you one chance, Igor."

"T…T…Thank…thank you, Mr…Mr Potter…" growled Karkaroff, whom the others guessed had regained his voice when Harry placed his hand on the man's arm.

Harry, however, shook his head as he explained, "However, as with pretty much all magic, Mr Karkaroff, my mercy, and your salvation, has a price: in return for my letting you scurry back to your Academy and teach your Sons their art, you will swear, on all Magic, and on all you are, that you will never again cause any form of unsanctioned, intentional or even deathly magic on another living soul! And when I say you'll swear on all you are, Mr Karkaroff, I am talking about this!"

To the alarm of the Headmaster and those who could see what Harry was doing, a bright, very well-known white chain suddenly wrapped itself around Harry and Karkaroff's linked arms, almost like a snake was coiling its way around them, while Harry looked up to Igor, who went white for only a moment as he realised, perhaps too late, what his price was going to be.

"Now," said Harry, tightening his hold on Karkaroff as he explained, "Swear that your affiliation with those demons of magic died the day you chose your freedom over your loyalties. Swear that you are, and will only ever be a mentor, a Master of your School and a guide and leader in educational needs only; swear that you will never again raise your wand to harm, threaten, rape or even kill another innocent, for as long as you shall live…now, swear, Igor Karkaroff!"

"I…I…I swear…"

The snake-like chains binding Harry and Karkaroff shone like the same white light that Harry had used to cleanse and repair Hogwarts.

When it faded, however, Karkaroff's eyes widened, while tears sprang up in his eyes when he saw the Dark Mark he'd been cursed with for so long was now gone, leaving bare flesh on his arm.

As Harry removed his hand from Karkaroff, he sniffed once as he explained, "I look forwards to going up against Krum in this Tournament, High Master. From what I can sense, he's a powerful and very headstrong warrior; I only hope we get the chance to cross swords on the battlefield."

"I don't!" said Krum, earning a round of laughter from the students, especially when both Fleur and Cedric chorused the same words with him.

As Harry moved away from a relieved, surprisingly-tearful Karkaroff, he looked once to Dumbledore before he shook his head as he told him, "I don't know what you thought I was going to do, Albus Dumbledore, but I'm warning you now: don't try and interfere again, or the next spirit of magic I judge might just end up being you!"

"Potter, you can't…"

"Oh, I think you'll find he can, Madame McGonagall," argued Stephen, speaking for the first time since Harry had taken centre-stage and done all he'd done to try and fix his home-away-from-home. "And I also think you'll find that even your superior there will not do anything that might risk him making an enemy of Mr Potter. Take it from someone who has faced that particular sleeping dragon tickled; it is not a fight that can or will be won through asking for forgiveness or holding back."

"And if you want proof of what Doctor Strange went up against, just take a look at my little friend over there," said Harry, pointing to Helios, who seemed to be very happy being fawned over by Hagrid.

Harry, meanwhile, stopped in front of a very pissed-off-looking Professor Snape, who was still screaming silently, his eyes streaming tears of blood from the agony he felt, while his expression was positively-murderous as he saw Harry stop in front of him.

Harry, however, sneered at Severus before, like Karkaroff, he grabbed Snape's arm, tightening his hold so much that, to Albus' alarm, Snape's skin actually started to sizzle and burn under the touch of the Arcanite, while Harry's eyes burned with tears of rage, vengeance, justice and fiery fury, which made him look like a demon reborn as he hissed at Snape.

"It would be so easy…almost as easily as you using that thing between your legs to sacrifice my life and that of my Father, just so you could warp my Mother and make her think she could ever love you…"

"You…you don't…"

"Oh no?" asked Harry, drawing himself to his full height as he hissed icily, "Let's see if this rings a bell, Snivellus: all together now…ahem-hem…the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches…born to those who have defied him thrice as the seventh month dies…and the Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…and either must die at the hand of the other…for neither can live while the other survives…the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord shall be born as the seventh month dies…"

"No…" whispered Albus, earning a scoff from Harry as he pointed upwards.

"Just because she's in yet another drunken stupor in her little hidey-hole, it doesn't mean I don't know about her, Dumbledore," said Harry, looking back to a horrified Snape as he continued, "And, just so we're clear, Snape: even if my Mother had survived that night, she would never have loved you, because, much like my own brown-haired girl of a friend, you were more like a sibling to her than someone she could love…or rather…you were, before…this!"

Thrusting his hand to the skies, Harry's powers warped the enchanted ceiling until, to the horror of the Head of Slytherin, his worst memory was played out for all to see, including his Slytherins, his godson and Harry himself.

While Harry did not look smug or satisfied by the bullying of James Potter on Snape – unlike the Gryffindors, especially the Weasleys, who were laughing their arses off; the Twins even started a chant, just like James had done, of Snivellus Greasy – he actually closed his eyes and shed a tear when Snape targeted Lily, earning a horrified look from Minerva and most of the school when he called her…what he did.

Unfortunately for Snape, the memories didn't stop there; above the heads of all present, his initiation into the Death Eaters – which involved the raping and willing murder of a Muggle-born with, surprise-surprise, red hair – as well as his eavesdropping on the recitation of a certain prophecy, his deal with Dumbledore and even the aftermath all played out on the enchanted ceiling.

When a scene depicting Snape holding Lily Potter's dead body and crying – actually crying – was shown, even the Weasley Twins held their tongues, especially when the scene also showed baby Harry Potter looking on, as Snape wept for Lily's death…

And then spat in the infant's face before running away without even checking on the health of the Boy-Who-Lived.

As the images faded, Harry wiped tears from his eyes before he whispered, "You know, I always had a dim memory of someone spitting at me; I always thought it was the Dursleys…now I know…and, to be honest, if you weren't such a narrow-minded, two-faced, backstabbing, oath-breaking, unprofessional dickhead…I might actually have second thoughts about this…"

"Harry!"

Harry didn't even give Dumbledore a chance to move; a wave of his hand saw Harry bind Albus to his golden throne, using the same magic that he'd used to keep the students in their place, before Harry turned back to Snape, who looked half-pissed-off, half-broken and defeated, before the power of the Arcanite.

"Maybe you loved her," said Harry, wiping more tears from his eyes as he explained, "And maybe you…you thought you…you could get her to come back to you…and, yes, I admit it: maybe you…you helped keep me alive back in that Quidditch Match, but…but the fact of the matter is, Snape: none of that was love…it was all for your own ego, satisfaction and because, quite frankly, you are a selfish, impotent, oath-breaking little shit who couldn't take a fucking hint, much less get over his grudge with the dead…so…because of that, and because I can tell you would go running back to that snake-faced freak of nature, given the chance, I am doing the only thing I can think of doing…short of killing you!"

"You…you won't do anyth…ack!"

To Stephen's alarm, as well as the disbelief of the students, Harry didn't give Snape a chance to get a final word out: instead, he drove his hand straight into Snape's body where, to the horror of the Slytherins, as well as Stephen and Albus, Severus' body began thrashing and fitting. At the same time, band after band of magical energy could be seen flying out of Severus' body and into Harry's, though not before Harry thrust his hand upwards again, sending the energy he'd taken from Severus up into the air where it seemed to dissipate harmlessly, as though the aether had taken it back into itself.

Once the last of the energy had left Snape's body, Harry yanked his hand back, before he grabbed Snape's hand again: this time, however, Harry sank his nails so deeply into Snape's wrist, that blood could be seen trickling down from Snape's arm as Harry held onto him.

"What…what are you…you doing?" asked Severus hotly.

"What my Dad did for you, even though he didn't have to," said Harry, watching as a black stag suddenly formed on the spot he'd grabbed, while he continued, "I've just stripped you of all your magical power, Severus Snape: you have no more magic in you than Mr Filch or Mrs Norris…no offence meant to either…"

"You can't!"

"I JUST DID, YOU TWO-FACED PRICK!" Roared Harry, making Severus recoil as Harry went on. "And, unlike what they learn over in Beauxbatons, Durmstrang, Ilvermorny and even, probably, with Doctor Strange and his allies, a wizard cannot survive if they happen to lose their magic. In fact, Magical Deficiency Syndrome is rare, but it can happen, often-times in a Maledictus or because of some cursed state…and, in serious cases, like the one inside you right now, you have…I'd say…three days before you die!"

"Bloody hell!" gasped Ron.

"Who…who is he?" asked Malfoy, of all people, who was actually looking like he was going to piss himself as he saw, and realised, just who and what Harry had become with his return.

Harry, meanwhile, removed his nails from Snape's arm, so he was just holding the man in his grip, as he continued, "However, even though I am a being who does not discriminate between Good and Evil and, if I so wished, could kill you and feel nothing…I am still Lily and James Potter's son and, as impossible as it might be for you to believe, Severus, I seriously doubt my parents would appreciate it if their only son, whom they both sacrificed everything to protect, honoured those deaths by becoming a murderer. So, instead, I am binding you to my Family Magic: you are now and, until I release you, forevermore my servant, Snape! You are bound to my House and are only alive because I allow it, and, even then, it is only so you can put your skills as a Potions Master to better use…like, say, assisting Madam Pomfrey, or even as a liaison for people like Doctor Strange or even me! And don't try thinking suicide will get you out of it, Snape: thanks to my magical powers, I've forbidden you from even thinking of taking that option…"

Here, Harry looked to Severus with tears trickling down his cheeks as he told him, "You will not die…until you have truly repented your sins…and finally decided to let go of the past…until you have felt true despair for the deaths you caused, both serving that monster and in trying to burn the candle at both ends…you will only know that release…when I can sense it in you…so no matter how hard you try and convince yourself, the…the only one who can free you, isn't Albus Dumbledore or Tom Riddle…but me!"

With that, Harry waved his hand, dismissing Severus in a burst of fire, before the young boy turned to Doctor Strange as he explained, "I've just sent him to your prison, Doctor…I don't care how long you decide he stays there…I just can't look at him right now."

Stephen nodded once, though he didn't know whether to be shocked or alarmed, or even a little proud of Harry's restraint.

Harry, meanwhile, moved to the final member of the Death Eater Trio: Barty Crouch Junior.

"And then, there was one…and not just one…but the one who is also the reason I'm back…yes, Albus; it was Crouch here who put my name into the Goblet and had me emerge as the Fourth Champion…bringing me back, bringing change to Hogwarts and delivering justice for so many…"

Here, Harry took a step back before he cleared his throat as he continued in a soft, chilling voice, "Which is why…I will not be the one to decide your fate, Crouch…call it my way of saying thanks for helping me find my way back home…"

"What…what are you…you going to…to do, Harry?" asked Dumbledore, still bound by the magic Harry had used to keep him in his chair.

"Not me, Headmaster," said Harry, before he wiped his eyes again as he turned to the school's student population, his green eyes fixed on a single point over on one particular table.

"Neville Longbottom…would you mind coming up here for a moment?"

Chapter 7 and it looks like justice, not vengeance, is about to be tested, but what will Neville do, with revenge in arms' reach?

Also, I know it's a ridiculously-stupid question, but will Snivellus be able to earn his freedom or will he be Harry's bitch for quite some time…like, maybe even forever?

Keep Reading to Find Out

Next Chapter: Harry's faced his demons: now, a fellow Gryffindor must do the same; also, Sirius and Remus make their debuts/returns to Harry's life, bringing with them a couple of interesting companions, including one who might be just what the doctor ordered for a heavy-hearted Master of Magic like Harry;

Please Read and Review

AN: Poll

So, I know this is going to sound cheap, but I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts on what Neville should have done with Crouch;

Bear in mind he has Harry there, and Stephen, and he's likely as PO'd with Crouch as Harry was with Snape, so…what do you think he should have done to the man who helped destroy his family?

Answers in reviews please, and the best will have the next chapter dedicated to them;