I HAVE HAD ENOUGH

by The Calming Draught

Harry finally says he has had enough. Entering the wizarding world, Harry had thought his life would be different. Well, he was wrong. Fed up of the treatment he got from Snape, he left Hogwarts at the end of first year. Was his decision right? Will he get a better chance at life now? Or will he finally be lost to darkness? let us discover. Ultimately Slash at the later years.

"ENOUGH Professor Snape. What is your problem? Why do you hate me so much? What have I ever done to earn your ire? And don't tell me it's because of my attitude or some such rot. You started picking on me during the roll call of the first class I attended with you. I had not spoken a word till then. I don't know what your deal is but I have had enough. I will not tolerate this injustice any longer. I am done with this class."

Saying that, Harry left the last class of his first year at this magical school he had high expectations from. He had observed the whole year. He had thought that finally away from home, he would be able to be himself, make some friends and enjoy. That did not happen. As soon as he entered the wizarding world, he was either sneered at or hailed as Merlin incarnate. He did not understand why. Then there was Prof Snape. What had he done to him exactly? Only last week they had come to know that he was a spy for the light and had protected the philosopher's stone with his life. He was now known world wide as a spy and an important person who had helped to bring down the Dark Lord in 1981. If he was keeping up pretences earlier, he did not have to anymore.

Coming to his friends, Harry could feel they too were with him because he was the Boy-who-lived. Nobody was happy when he had refused to go rescue the stone. He did not have a death wish. He had brains contrary to what Prof Snape believed. Was he angry because it should have been Harry to rescue the stone and almost die in the process instead of him? That was petty.

After realizing he was not going to get any peace in this place and fed up of the unnecessary hatred from Prof Snape, Malfoy and almost all the Slytherins, Harry had decided he had had enough. He went to the Library and searched for other magical school. Making a list, he decided to send out letters before his relatives could realize that he could not perform magic outside school. He hoped for Durmstrang. It was far away from here. He also never wanted to return back to Surrey. So he decided to see how much money he had; if it would be enough to buy a house in Germany if he got selected in Durmstrang. That was the basic plan. He would think of what to do next when the time came.

Come 1st September, Harry Potter did not return to Hogwarts. Everyone was worried to some degree at least; his friends, his professors, and especially Dumbledore. That very night, he sent his trusted friends of his to number 4 Privet Drive to check. They informed him that according to his relatives, he was there for only the first month of the summer. They haven't seen him since 1st of August, when he had suddenly vanished. He was also informed that, during this one month, Harry had exchanged quiet a few letters and went to the magical market as the muggle relatives called it, quiet a few times. Dumbledore was immediately suspicious. This meant that Harry was not abducted or anything. He left of his own free will.

Yet, Dumbledore did not give up. The next evening, after classes, he sent Prof Snape to check if the blood wards were intact, and to inquire with the guardians, if in case Kingsley missed anything. He had not. The wards had fallen. In fact, there was no remaining trace of it. That meant it was over a month since it had fallen. The relatives did not know anything about his whereabouts either. Severus got more than he bargained for, though he would not tell that to anyone.

Dumbledore then reasoned that Harry must have gone to some place to continue his education. He sent letters to every magical school in England as well as abroad. He went so far as to send one to Ilvermorny. All replies were negative. He tried muggle schools but they were so many, it was impossible. It felt like Harry Potter vanished from the face of the earth overnight.

As the year passed, people got involved into their own worlds. Harry's best friends, Ron and Hermione, got lost in the crowd. They were no longer special. There was a bit of disturbance when Ginny Weasley started behaving weird. His brother Ron noticed and asked for help from his head of house. She was found to possess a cursed diary. It was removed from her person and she was given a week of intensive care at the wizarding hospital, St. Mungo's. It was still early and she was back to her normal chirpy self in no time. Apart from that, the school year was as ordinary and boring as ever.

Two years passed since the boy-who-lived disappeared. Ron and Hermione were in their fourth year when it was announced that they would be hosting the Tri-Wizard tournament at Hogwarts that year. Everyone was ecstatic, though the age limit garnered some 'boo's and 'not fair's. Dumbledore sent two of his professors to the other two schools to ask for details so their stay could be made comfortable. They would have to make several trips before the schools finally arrived at the end of October. Professor McGonagall was to contact Beauxbatons and Professor Snape would visit Durmstrang. Sounds easy enough? Well, fate had other plans.

Professor Snape reached Durmstrang for his first visit on 5th September. The Headmaster, Professor Igor Karkaroff, was an old friend of his. Not many knew that they were quiet close during their time as Death Eaters. Karkaroff was an unwilling participant in the band of mad men who followed the biggest psychopath to ever grace the earth. Karkaroff Sr. had forced him into taking the mark. Though Severus had taken the mark willingly, he had soon realized that it was not what he had thought it would be. They had both helped each other through the rough road till the defeat of the Dark Lord. Igor had then moved to Germany, his alma mater and started as the Dark Arts professor. He was now the Headmaster of the school whose students were feared and respected all through the world.

While they were talking, there came a timid knock on the door. The boy entered when permitted. Seeing the boy, Severus had the feeling that he should somehow know him.

"Yes Mr Neumann?"

"Professor Müller sent with the list you needed sir."

"Ah yes. Thank you for bringing it Mr Neumann."

"Please Professor. Call me Brendan."

"Of course Brendan. As you are here, I would like you to meet my dear friend Prof Severus Snape. Severus this boy is a genius in Potions. I think he will beat your record of the youngest Potions Master very soon."

"Oh is it?" Severus extended his hand to the young man standing in front of him. He still could not place why he had this feeling that he should know the boy.

"It is a pleasure to meet you sir." And then Severus looked into the bright emerald eyes. He gasped.

"Harry."

"Why Professor, you never used my name when I was actually around."

After several cups of tea and a mild dosage of calming draught, Severus could finally grasp what had happened two years back.

"Let me get this straight. You researched for schools while you were still at Hogwarts; got selected in 4 out of the five schools you sent requests to; talked to Igor personally through a charmed book after receiving a positive reply from Durmstrang; changed your name; changed your appearance; bought a house here and are here ever since. Moreover, Igor is training you. You are far ahead of your year mates. And have successfully completed two years education in one to be put with boys your age. You are now in fifth year. Is that all?"

"Pretty much covers it."

"And how did you pull all this through?"

"Well, my relatives did not really know that I can't perform magic outside Hogwarts, so they did not bother me. I did not want to be found out but I knew my name would follow me everywhere. I had already the desire to come here so when I got accepted, I was ecstatic. I could not go buy books for another school in Diagon Alley without being noticed or making to the papers, so, I requested to the headmaster to let me arrive early and buy my stuff from here itself. I also needed some training in the language before I started school. When I went to Gringotts to arrange for a house nearby, I came to know I already had a property. Also, my accounts were being handled by someone who was more interested in the artefacts than my welfare. I… took care of it and came here via the portkey sent to me. Headmaster Karkaroff understands me. In fact he is the only one who knows pretty much everything about me. He helped me create this new identity of Brendan Neumann, taught me German, and is also training me in all sorts of extra curricular things that I need to know when, not if, the Dark Lord comes back to life. Now that's pretty much all."

"I… I also need to confess something to you Mr NEUMANN."

"Yes Professor?"

"I must apologize."

"I accept your apology. You know, when I arrived, I always looked up to you. It had hurt when you had picked on me without apparent reason. I would like to know the reason though."

"Can I show you?"

"If that will make you feel better."

Igor silently pushed a Penseive in front of the both of them. Severus pulled out the silvery threads of memories from his temple and dumped them into the magic bowl. Harry dunked in, without saying a word. He saw Severus being abused at home. He saw his own father bullying and humiliating him. He saw Severus being tricked to go to a dilapidated shack where he was confronted by a werewolf. He saw how whenever he saw Harry, who was a replica of his father, he could not control his childhood emotions and gave in despite his better judgement. He saw Severus viewing his guardian's memories of Harry's own abuse and neglect. When he came out, he was shaking. He took some deep breaths and calmed himself.

"After seeing my Relative's memories, you definitely know that I hate bullies don't you? I may not hate my father, he made me after all, but I don't support his behaviour and will never be like him."

"I know that now. I did not know it back in your first year. Years of pent up emotions just bled though when I saw a mini James in front of me. I am sorry for my unjust behaviour"

"I will forgive you in one condition."

"What?"

"Uncle Igor says you are good with Dark curses. I want you to train me."

"With the distance, it would be difficult. I have no other objections."

"Well, he already trains me through the year. You can visit for vacations."

"That can be arranged."

Harry smiled at him and received a small smile from Severus. That was definitely a first. Taking his leave, he went back to whatever he was doing before coming to the office.

"Will he be coming with you?"

"Yes. He is a talented kid you know. They have this band of performers. He is the drummer. They will travel with us. Their performance will be part of our opening introduction. He is such an amazing child Severus. I can't imagine someone can not love him. He is absolutely lovable. When he came, he was so fragile. Do you remember I mentioned Nurse Isabella who retired some years ago? Well she and her husband were lonely. All their children have abandoned them in their quest for happiness. Harry was glad to have them with him. He is a love starved child and Isabella and Patrick love him dearly. Patrick, if you remember, is a potions master himself. He has retired though. But he brewed some nice potions for Harry and within a month, Harry was unrecognizable. They corrected his vision, increased his height, though that was painful, fattened him up so to speak, taught him to speak German like he was born here, that one took a year, but by the time he started school in September, he could fairly understand and make himself understood. He gave his all to his studies and then when I proposed to train him last year, he was so enthusiastic. We have talked about it. We will glamour his eyes and no one will be the wiser."

"What about his magic? Dumbledore will know, and then he will again try to control him."

"You wound me my friend. While training, I found a block on Harry's Magic. With the help of Patrick and Isabella, we were able to break the block and trained him to control his magic. Just this last month, we discovered he had mage sight. He is a mage Severus and by the time we reach Hogwarts, I plan to teach him to control his powers. That would mean only those he chooses will be able to identify his magical signature."

"He's a mage? No wonder he defeated the Dark Lord at the age of one. Do you think he can do it again?"

"He is training well Severus. I hope he will be able to. We have to give all the aid we can."

"Of course. Count me in."

"Igor, I must say, your school band was the best performance out of all the schools, even mine."

"Why thank you Severus. My New Flame is a sensation isn't he?"

"New Flame?"

"That's what the name means. Brendan Neumann. New Flame."

"Ahhh... Trust you to make some significance out of everything."

"You know me well Severus."

"Indeed I do."

And both the friends sat at Severus' quarters, sipping Merlot, after the welcoming feast, and enjoying each other's company.

"Do you think he would agree to it?"

"Well I don't know. He IS after all much older to you." said Victor.

"Here every guy in school is mad after you Bren, eleven to twenty years of age, and you have hots for someone old enough to be your father." Otto chuckled.

"He IS the youngest Potions Master of the entire world. How can I not be attracted to him? Not to mention his tall and brooding personality and oh so sexy voice."

"Bren! Mate! Do you think he is more interested in Headmaster Karkaroff than you? Look ahead." said his best friend Gunther, or Gun for short.

Sure enough, at the head table, Igor and Severus sat together, deep in conversation.

"Uncle Ig? Nah. He doesn't have a gay bone in his body. Not one."

"How do you know that?" Felix asked eagerly.

"Well, I tried to set him up with someone this summer. He is not even bi, let alone gay."

"Who did you try to set him up with?" Otto asked, equally eager like his boyfriend Felix.

"Ahm… Prof Müller." There were several gasps heard from among the gathered group of Durmstrang students. It was loud enough to attract the attention of their Headmaster who just raised an eyebrow towards Bren, who shook his head.

They all concentrated on their own lunch after that. They were sitting at the Slytherin table. It was a welcoming change from what he remembered from his first year. Hogwarts and Durmstrang were very different and Bren definitely liked his own school better. Though, coming back here to see that his so called fame hungry best friends were lost to the crowd was a good opportunity. Seeing that his one time rival Draco Malfoy was sharing a passionate kiss with his now best friend Gunther was also quiet pleasant. Gunther was seventh year but Bren rather liked him. He was mature and could hold a nice conversation. To Bren, his year mates were rather immature. Apart from Uncle Ig, only Gun knew who Brendan Neumann actually was. He was also the person who had made Harry realize that he was gay and that he liked older men, to whom he could give control and trust explicitly.

Victor had eyes for a certain bushy haired Muggle-born witch. Harry had no hard feelings against her, but he would not subject anyone to her company. He did not want to interfere though. Who knows, Victor was the one to loosen her up a bit? Bren turned to the head table again, with a sigh, looking at the man he desired. He was pretty sure the man would not accept his advances right now. He needed a little more years on him to approach the enigma called Severus Snape.

Bren and Gun, or rather Gren as all their friends called them, cheered for Victor in both the first and second tasks. The third task though, was a tense affair. Both Severus and Igor suspected foul play. When Delacour returned, with no sign of the other two boys, everyone tensed up. Bren saw Igor and Severus making their way around the crowd. He followed them. Igor was rubbing his left arm furiously, as if it burned. Harry ran up to him.

"Uncle Ig. What happened?"

"Our marks are burning. He is back Harry. He is Back."

There was panic in Igor's voice. Harry took his hand and said, "Take me with you."

"No Harry. We don't know how many he has summoned. We can not risk it."

"Please Uncle Ig. Victor is alone there. You will need help."

Igor reluctantly agreed. They vanished into thin air, followed by Severus.

And there he was, standing in a black cloak, his snake like skull glistening in the rays of the setting sun. Peter Pettigrew stood there, shaking, armless. Victor lay at a side, motionless, while Diggory was tied to a headstone, his arm bleeding. As soon as Snake face turned around towards the new arrivals, he raised his wand to the unknown addition, Brendan. Bren just let his magic loose and pulled the wand out of the man's hand. It landed in Bren's outstretched hand, who pocketed it. "Well Hello." he said, mockingly, "We meet again."

"Who the hell do you think you are boy?" he said menacingly. Bren was unfazed.

"Brendan Neumann. And that boy there is my friend who you have hurt. And trust me Snake Face, I don't like people who hurt my friends."

"Ah… really… what will you do? Hex me? With what? A tickling charm?"

"Let's see." Saying that, Harry extended his hand outward and let his magic do what he wanted to. Suddenly, Voldemort began to scream in agony. He had developed boils in such parts of his body that he could not imagine possible. And they were blasting and recreating on the same area again and again and again. His face began to be covered in one big boil which blasted and came again and blasted again.

While Bren played with Voldy, one of his loyal followers tried to hex him from the back. He found himself pinned to the air, spread eagled, by Severus. Hexes started flying. Soon, the death eaters were all either unconscious or incarcerated. Pettigrew tried to escape in his animagus form, but was captured by one well placed netting charm by Igor.

"His soul is not complete. He has divided his soul, a few times at the most. What do we do with him?"

"What do you suggest Bren?"

"How about we first bind him in magic restraining chains and then take him away? Then, we will try and get the information required by any means possible and work from there? If we take him back, he will somehow escape. English Ministry is absolutely incapable of holding such a conniving and definitely intelligent wizard. Then we wake Victor and go back. Victor and Diggory will say they were attacked by death eaters who they fought and now they are all unconscious. Someone will come and arrest them. We return to the crowd. Nobody will suspect."

"Wait. How did you know his soul is not complete?" asked the now free Cedric Diggory.

"I also want to know." said Severus.

"You forget Severus. Brendan is a mage. Of course he can see through his soul. Question is, will you do as we have planned Mr Diggory?"

"I don't have a problem till Voldemort doesn't get loose and create havoc."

"Trust me he will not. He will wish he were never born when we are done with him." Brendan said with a smirk, and then went to wake Victor.

When Brendan was talking to Victor, Igor and Severus portkeyed to Durmstrang and back. When everything was done and the captives sent to deep sleep, with instructions to the two champions, Severus, Igor and Brendan returned to the crowd with only Gun asking questions and no one being the wiser. Who cares where the guest school members go in this crowd?

When Victor and Diggory arrived, both holding the cup, everyone cheered. But soon, the atmosphere became sombre when they saw Diggory's bleeding arm. He explained that the portkey was faulty and that it was a trap and they had landed in a death eater camp, where they fought valiantly. He gave the location to the aurors who rushed forward at the announcement. A band of armed aurors left for the site immediately. Sure enough, they found at least twenty wizards in death eater robes and masks lying there in deep slumber. In a net was a rat, also sleeping, who the boy said was an animagus and was trying to escape in his rat form. They were astonished to see what two 17 and 18 year old boys could do. They arrested all the unconscious men and a few women too. Among them were Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, Elizabeth Zabini, Crabbe and Goyle Sr., Yaxley, Pious Thickenness and one Dolores Umbridge. The aurors were shocked to see such high Ministry Officials with Dark Marks.

Both Diggory and Krumm were given half the prize amount each. After investigation and being asked several questions, they were free to enjoy the rest of the time at Hogwarts before making their way back to their own schools and lives. A few people were absolutely not looking forward to going back, namely Gunther and Draco, Victor and his now very attractive beau Rolanda Hooch. Boy but he was into older women, and he enjoyed it. He said they were experienced and knew what they wanted. After the ball, Victor had lost interest in the know-it-all Hermione Granger, when she had called him a brute. Really, she needed to learn that you cannot woe a guy by calling him names. Gunther on the other hand was enjoying the slow pace they had decided to take as Draco was underage and inexperienced. They were going steady though. Whenever you saw them together, they were joined to the hips, or rather the lips.

Bren had also formed a friendship with his once rival Draco Malfoy and his best friend Blaise Zabini. He did not like Zabini's pug faced girlfriend though. The guy did not mind. He did not like her either. Bren asked why he kept her around then. The reply was that he wanted to keep the others away and make them believe he was taken. Even Pansy knew Blaise was not interested and so found other boys to pleasure her. She was right now secretly involved with the only boy that came with the Beauxbaton group.

Zabini gave him various information on his head of house, like, he was soft only when in the Slytherin territory, that first year Slytherins freely went to him for help or when they felt homesick. To all others, he was the cruel, blood sucking, dungeon bat, and he liked to keep it that way. Bren thought he has erected walls to protect himself. He had seen the abuse. He decided to ask Uncle Ig later. He knew him well after all. He will have to plan this properly and wait till he is of age to make his move. He also came to know that Draco Malfoy was his godson. He will be in touch with the boy and also talk to Gunther about it.

Back in Germany, after the tournament, the Dark Lord was harshly awoken from his slumber by none other than the traitor Severus Snape. In front of him sat the boy who had captured HIM, the Dark Lord.

"What have you done to me?" he hissed.

"Nothing Tom. Just restrained your magic so we can get some answers from you. You know, I have trained hard and long for three years now. We had thought it would be so difficult to get to you but 'lo, here we are, with you bound and at our mercy."

"What will you do? Kill me? You cannot. I am immortal. I cannot die."

"Well I figured that. You have broken your soul to remain in this world didn't you? Now, you will tell us where you have hidden your soul pieces or else we will retrieve them on our own. Trust me if you leave it to us it will be rather painful for you. Ever heard of the soul search ritual? The anima quaerere?

Voldemort shuddered at that. If they invoked the anima quaerere, the soul piece within him will go in search of the other soul pieces, and all the time it will take to search far and wide, the physical body will be in great agony. He will have to give them the location, he had no choice. He thought, his protections will at least cause them some pain or even death, slow and painful death.

"I will give you the locations."

"Good. Go ahead. No time like the present."

"First is the Gaunt Ring. It is in the Gaunt Shack in Little Hangleton. Second is my diary. I left it with Lucius. Third is Slytherin's locket which is hidden inside a cave in the cliff. Fourth, the Hufflepuff cup is in Bellatrix's Gringotts vault. And the last, Ravenclaw's Diadem is in Hogwarts in the room of requirements."

"Very well." saying that, Bren cast a strong sleeping charm on Voldemort and left the room with the other two men.

When they finally reached Igor's office, they sat down and discussed.

"This cannot be so easy Professor. There will surely be traps and unknown dangers. What say we start with the first while you are here for the summer? You have to go back now, even if it is for a week for the end of session classes. Visit the room of requirements there. Bring the last piece to us. Then we will think about the other four together. The most difficult would be the Gringotts vault. Everyone please think of ways to bypass that one while we wait for the summer to begin."

With that, they departed.

The third day of summer, Severus returned with the Diadem and surprisingly the diary. He explained that it was found with a first year girl the year Harry had not returned. He had to steal it from Dumbledore's office. They stored it in a magic restraining container and apparated to the outskirts of Little Hangleton. True to Bren's prediction, the ring was cursed to kill anyone who wore or even touched it with bare hands. They levitated it into a moleskin bag and warded it before dumping it inside the backpack Bren was carrying. Then they apparated to the cliff. On finding out that they had to drink the poison to get the locket, Severus volunteered. Bren said it was not necessary. He found a spider on the wall and charmed it to grow, till it was enormous. He then controlled its mind to do whatever was said to it. The spider drank all the poison to expose the hidden locket. It died in a few moments of course.

As soon as the locket was lifted, inferi, thousands of them, began to crawl out of the water. So this was Voldemort's defence. Bren cast fiend fire and burnt them all. When everything died down, they rowed back out of the cave.

"This is not the real one. It has been replaced."

"How do you know that?"

"I cannot feel the soul shard. Let us open it. Maybe we will get some clue."

To the Dark Lord,
I know I will be dead long before you read this but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hope that when you meet your match you will be mortal once more.
R.A.B.

"So these are called Horcruxes. Nonetheless, we need to find the real one. Who could this R.A.B. be?"

"Regulus Arcturus Black."

"Igor. How can you be so sure it was him?"

"Severus, I never told anyone but, Regulus wanted out. The day his body was discovered, he had told me he was going to do something that will help end this mad man. I had tried to stop him, told him to plan before taking any action. But you know him. He was impulsive."

"Black as in of the Black Family?"

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I don't know how but I am the heir of the family. When I went to Gringotts before coming to Germany, I came to know I am the heir of not only Potter but also Black and Peverell lines. Can we go to their ancestral home using my heir ring? We can definitely find some clue there."

"It's in London. We must hurry then. Because right now in just a few days, Sirius Black, the now Lord of the house, is going to get a trial as Peter Pettigrew, who he supposedly killed, is alive. He is the rat that we captured. I am sure Dumbledore is planning a Fidelius for the house when Black returns. We can use the heir ring before that. Once it is under Fidelius, we cannot do anything."

"Then why wait. Let's go now."

"No. You have expended too much of energy Bren. You need rest."

"Uncle Ig, this is important. If we go in the dead of the night, nobody will spot us. Moreover, the last one will need a lot of time. We still have no idea how to get into the vault at Gringotts."

"Fine. You never listen to me."

"Sorry uncle. Once this war is over, I will listen to anything you say."

"Okay. I will hold you to that. Let's go then."

As soon as the doors opened, the three were greeted by the screeching voice of the portrait of Walburga Black. Bren hexed the portrait into silence and proceeded inside. He let his magic out and searched for the vile soul piece. Suddenly, the magic was coming near him, as if walking to him. Out of the kitchen, walked a grumpy and evil looking house-elf.

"What are you vile half-bloods doing in the noble house of Black?"

"He has the locket." Bren whispered to the two men; then turning to the elf he said, "Hello there. We need your help. Can you help us?"

"Kreachur is not bound to do your bidding."

"Well we thought you would help. But if that is how you work, I am the heir of Black and you will obey me." He showed Kreachur his heir ring.

"Mudblood loving master has chosen a half-blood to be his successor. Kreachur must do his bidding even if he is not happy."

Bren knelt down to the level of the elf and said, "Kreachur, I do not want for you to do my bidding but this is important. Look at this locket. Do you have something like this with you?"

Kreachur started shaking. He wanted to defy the command but he could not. "Yes." he said.

"Where did you find it Kreachur?"

"Master Regulus gave it to me, to destroy it. But Kreachur tried very hard but it did not get destroyed."

"I will destroy it for you Kreachur. I promise. Please give it to me. I will give this as a memory of your Master Regulus. It was his wasn't it?"

"Yes. Will you really destroy it?"

"Yes. I WILL fulfil your master's wish."

Kreachur silently handed the original Horcrux to Bren in exchange of the fake one. It was as if a heavy weight was lifted from his shoulders. Harry felt the evil the locket exuded. He quickly put it in a moleskin bag and warded it.

"Now tell me Kreachur, do you want to be free? Do you want me to free you from this house?"

"No. Kreachur loves his former masters, just not the current one. He is going to come back soon. I heard others talking. He is vile. He bullies other children. He beat Kreachur for fun. Master Regulus always protected me. You are nice. You are going to fulfil Master Regulus' wish. Can't you stay here and not allow that vile man to come here?"

"I cannot Kreachur. He is the Lord of the house. I live in Germany now. Will you like to come live in Germany? A house is built by its inhabitants after all."

"But Mistress Walburga and the other Blacks and the artefacts all are here."

"How about we take them with us? Everything that is important to you?" said Severus.

Kreachur turned to Bren. "Will you master?"

"Yes. Whatever you want to carry Kreachur."

Kreachur smiled, maybe for the first time in a long while. He conjured a trunk and started packing. On Severus' suggestion, Bren conjured another trunk and started packing the entire library. At about dawn, there were six trunks ready to be transported. In two of them was the entire library, shrunk to fit. One contained all the portraits of all the Blacks. Walburga's portrait was stuck tight but Bren managed to pull it out. In the fourth and fifth were some artefacts, which Kreachur knew will not be kept around for long when the convicted master came back. In the last one was everything that belonged to Kreachur, his pillow cases, charmed utensils which no one else will be able to use and things of his former masters that he kept with him. With everything he needed and wanted packed, they all disappeared with a crack.

Two rooms in the enormous Manor were dedicated to the things collected from Grimmauld Place. One room was converted into the Black Library which also contained all the portraits of past Blacks except Walburga. She was in the adjoining room where shelves and shelves of artefacts and jewels and busts of various statues were decorated. Kreachur took great care of these particular rooms and kept them spic and span. Bren too spent a lot of time in the Library along with Severus, reading books after books.

Two days later, they still had no idea how to go about the Gringotts Vault. Gringotts was well protected and most probably, if Bellatrix was given something important by her master, she would have ensured even more security. Bren had contacted his own account manager and they were meeting in two days to see if there are any loopholes they could use. Apart from that, they had no idea how to go about that except breaking into Gringotts, which was neither easy nor desirable.

Two days later, Bren's account manager, Master Goblin Axenail sat with them at Gringotts to discuss their dilemma. He was an ally nobody knew of.

"Master Neumann, this is quiet a tricky situation. Bellatrix is in Azkaban for more than a decade now. In this case, when a new Lord is chosen for her house, either Black or Lestrange, then he can check the vault for safety and other purposes."

"Hmmm… the last Lestrange is also in Azkaban. The Lord of the house of Black is about to be emancipated. How do we go about this?"

"Well, the Lestrange line is dead in England. They have a few relatives in Bulgaria. The current Lord of the Lestranges is in his death bed. The lestranges do not take females as heirs. He is opposed to it. But to change a family law, three generations need to witness against it. He is only the second generation. That is why he was hesitant and did not give heirship to the Lestranges of England. Rudolphus and Rastaban will not follow his lead; that family was all for male dominance. Alexander, the current Lord, doesn't have any sons. He loves his daughters but cannot make any of them his heir. If you convince him to make you his heir, we can work on your emancipation."

"But why would he agree to it or trust a stranger?"

"Oh but you are not a stranger are you? When you will tell him your reasons, I am sure he will be happy to help."

And surely, the man, Alex he insisted, was more than happy to help. He hated the Lestrange brothers and Bellatrix even more so. Though he took some time to trust them that Harry would also witness against the heir law and change it. But after talking to them for two hours and learning about their endeavours, the eldest daughter finally said she wanted the young man to succeed in killing the Dark Lord once and for all. Alex could not say no to his beloved daughters.

That is how, after a month of working towards emancipation and claiming Lordship, Bren was able to finally enter Bellatrix Lestrange's vault. The objects were cursed but could not react to the Lord of the house. Bren commissioned Axenail to first remove all the curses, and then move everything into the vaults of the three Lestrange sisters in the Bulgarian branch. He also emptied the vaults of both the Lestrange brothers. If they ever get out of Azkaban, they will not have anything to live off.

All the soul pieces gathered, it was time for the next step. They were going to merge all the soul pieces into the body of Tom Riddle and make it whole and mortal. Then, all his magical power will be drained, and not only restrained. The ritual was elaborate and tiring. They needed five powerful witches and wizards apart from a mage. They had only two. Harry invited the three Lestrange sisters for the task. They were powerful, Bren had sensed it.

On the day they had to do the ritual, Harry brought the six objects containing the soul pieces. Wait, six?

"What is the sixth object Bren?" asked Igor.

"It contains the soul piece that was attached to my scar. I suppose it was an unintentional endeavour."

"How did you extract it?"

"A simple mage ritual. I just followed my instincts after clearly thinking what I needed the final result to be. That's an advantage of being a mage you know. Magic herself guides you. That is why there are no books written about how to train a mage."

"Pretty cool if you ask me!" said the youngest Lestrange. Bren smiled at her and continued his preparations.

When the circle was made and candles lit and jewels placed in their right order, Bren stood in the middle, with the six objects surrounding him, and Voldemort's unconscious body laid on the altar in front of him. The five powerful wizards and witches stood behind him just touching the circle. They had to channel their power to Bren when he began to expend his own.

Slowly, the wind picked up beside them but the circle of salt did not scatter, not a grain of it. Bren did not speak a word but they could feel him performing the ritual. Mages did not need to speak or use a wand. Magic flowed through them freely. When the magic began to flow out of his body, the others channelled their own energies into him. The combined magic of the five people and the mage started to raise the horcruxes in the air. Slowly, a black mist was exuded from the soul containers and proceeded towards the unconscious form. As soon as they touched his body, he screamed in agony. In Dark Magic, it was painless to break the soul but extremely painful to put them back together. It feels vaguely like being stitched without an anaesthesia.

When the pain finally subsided, Tom opened his eyes. They were a warm brown. Bren and the others were not fooled by his pleas of he has changed and he is no longer the insane mass murderer. Having his magic still restrained, he could not do anything. He was again put to a spell induced sleep. A new circle was created, this time with the remains of the bones from the grave of his father. Black candles were lit and the unconscious body was laid in the middle of it. Bren sat beside him. He put his right hand on his forehead and the left over his heart. Again the wind picked up and a white mist arose from the unconscious body. It seemed as if it travelled through Bren's body and into the earth, as if he was just a conductor for the magic. Once done, Bren slumped out of exhaustion.

"What do we do with him now?" Bren asked the other five in the room.

"Well, his whole skeleton is evil. Even now when he is a squib, he will find a way to torture people." said Gwen, the eldest Lestrange.

"True. But without magic, his deformed body will not sustain long. How about we erase his memories first?" said Severus.

"That would be a good start. I have a proposition but the ritual is dark." said Igor.

"As if what we have done till now is all light Uncle Ig. We have robbed a wizard of his magic for Merlin's sake. What could be worse?"

"Well I was suggesting that there is a blood ritual which transfers all ailments from one body to another. Alex could be healthy again."

The sisters looked sceptical but Harry looked ecstatic. "That's a brilliant idea. Without memories, with an ailing and dying body, with an incurable disease, he will die somewhere. We don't even have to do anything. We will just cast some charms to monitor his activities, location and living status. It would be perfect."

"I don't think dad will agree." said Liliana.

"We can always try."

"Okay. Let's go and talk to him then."

"Isn't it a bit cruel?" asked Alex, in a small voice. He was in absolute dilemma. In one place, he could be free of his ailment and live a long life, without any responsibilities now that he had given up the Lordship. On the other hand, he was sentencing another man to experience the pain he had been experiencing since the last two years.

"We are talking about the Dark Lord here Alex. Please understand. I don't want to become a murderer. This is a perfect solution."

"Put that way, it is a good solution to the problem. We will finally be rid of the Dark Lord and I will be healthy. A win-win don't you think dears?" he turned to his daughters.

They smiled politely and give their consent.

The Daily prophet, 25th August 1995

MAN FOUND DEAD WITH MYSTERIOUS DISEASE, IDENTIFIED AS TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE, FORMER STUDENT OF HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY.

YEAR 2000

"Hello Professor. How are you doing?"

"I am well. How about you? I expected seeing you here; after all, you now hold the title of the youngest Potions Master in the world Mr Neumann."

"Call me Brendan Professor. After all we know each other for six years now."

"Then you must call me Severus, Brendan."

The use of his first name sent shivers down Bren's spine. He had thought that it was just a teenage crush but it had not subsided over the years. When Gun and Dray had invited him for their engagement, Bren had seen Severus smile and laugh for the first time. He had fallen head over heals for the man. Felix and the others told him he was depraved to crave for a man twenty years his senior; that his feelings won't be returned. But a man could hope. And he was a man now. He wanted to take a chance.

"So Severus, how is everything going?" Bren asked, as he sat sipping his Merlot in the lounge area after the day's seminar was over. Bren knew from Uncle Ig that Severus preferred Merlot over other drinks, hence he had ordered it.

"Pretty well actually. I have taken voluntary retirement from school this year. I am thinking of setting up an Apothecary after this seminar. Draco has agreed to be my apprentice and partner. As you know, he has also completed his mastery in Potions but is unwilling to work for the Ministry or Hogwarts."

"Hmmm… Where will this Apothecary be?"

"That is the only thing undecided. Draco wants it in Germany to stay close to Gunther. I am also thinking a change of scenery won't be too bad."

"That is nice. Germany is a nice place for a change." Inside, Bren's heart was dancing in joy.

"I don't know. I am still thinking." Bren's heart sank a little.

"Is there someone you don't want to leave behind?" he asked cautiously.

"Nothing like that. After spending 40 years of my life in England, it just feels weird."

"You will get used to it."

On the second day of the three day seminar, Bren and Severus again sat for drinks after the event.

"So Severus, do you have anyone special in your life?"

"Isn't it a bit of a personal question?"

"Well, now that we are on a first name basis and have known each other for six years I thought…"

"Well, it doesn't matter. I don't have someone per se but…"

"But?"

"But I like someone. I don't know if anything is possible between us though. What about you?"

"Same here." Bren's heart sank to the lowest pits of hell. His first love and he did not even get to touch him once.

"Hmm…"

The next evening, both sipped their alcohol in silence, both thoughtful of their own love interests.

Bren had thought that now that he knew Severus loved someone else, he would be able to move on. But six months later, when he got an invite to the inauguration of Draco and his Apothecary in the wizarding side of Heidelberg, his heart began to beat fast. Gun said he had gone insane, running after a man who doesn't love him. But Bren could not help it. He had no control over his feelings and emotions. He did not bloody want to keep loving the man whose heart belonged to someone else.

At the inauguration, Brendan met them amiably and talked to them as if nothing had happened. So what if he did not look Severus in the eye? So what if he smiled a little less and a little fake these days? Those things did not matter. By the evening, when it was closing time, Draco requested him to call Severus from the back room. He did not even have the time to react when the door closed behind him and was shut from outside.

"Dray, what is the meaning of this? Open the door."

"Draco Lucian Malfoy. Open the door right now or you will regret it."

"Na'a…" came a voice from the other side of the door. "We both have had enough of your pining over each other. Confess to each other, solve this bloody problem and then you can come out."

"Dray just open the door. It's not fair okay."

"Just tell him Bren. Then we will get you out I promise."

"Gun you jerk just open the bloody door."

Bren froze at the whispered question from behind, "Did he just say you are pining over ME?"

"I am… I am really sorry… I… I did not mean to tell you that… I… I will not come in between you and… and the one you love… I swear… Gun and Dray are being stupid… I will get the door open."

"You did not listen to them properly did you? They have had enough of both of us pining over each other."

Bren turned back sharply. "Do you mean what I think you mean?" he was breathing heavy. He did not want to hope but the stupid thing still bubbled inside him.

"I love you Brendan. I have for some time now. But you are so young. You deserve better. That is why I never said anything. I did not know you felt the same."

"I… I… Oh my god this is so surreal… I have had a crush on you since my fifth year. I did not act upon it because I knew I was too young. I thought with time it would go away but it did not. It only grew. Six months back, when you said you love someone, I thought I should leave you be and move on. But I could not, move on that is."

"It was the same with me. For the past six months, I have troubled myself with the images of you with someone else. It was difficult but I knew it was for the best. I could not look at you anymore. That's why I came here in the back room."

Without intending to, Bren had walked right in front of Severus by this time.

"How could you think that? No one ever caught my eye like you did. You are my first and last and everything in between."

"Do you mean to say you are untouched by another Bren?" Severus whispered.

"Yes."

"Oh sweet Merlin. Save me." And Severus pulled Bren into a passionate kiss. When he heard the lock being turned, he locked the door from within with the wave of his wand. For several hours, no one saw hide or hair of Severus Snape and Brendan Neumann.

Epilogue

Year 2004

"Merlin I am nervous. Why did you have to choose the same day as me to get married Gun. I am bloody well going to kill you if I do something wrong just because you are not there to prompt me."

"Shut up Bren. Imagine the four of us going to honeymoon together, celebrating each anniversary together, and having kids together. It would be so much fun. Then our kids will also be best mates and our legacy will live till eternity. Stop vibrating like that. You are getting married not going to a bloody war."

"Bloody hell Gun. What if I forget my vows or say something wrong?"

Gun let out a long sigh and turned to Bren, "Bren, my love, breathe okay. Nothing will go wrong. Listen to your heart. Speak what your heart says. Everything will be just fine."

"I now pronounce you man and man. You may now kiss the groom."

With that, Gunther and Severus pulled their respective halves into a toe curling kiss.

This happy ending occurred only Because Harry had the guts to say "I have had enough". When are you taking that step towards your happy ending?