{ * AN * AN * }

Thank you all so much, to all who have gave their kudos and-or commented with this short fic so far. (And sorry in advance for not being able to reply to all the comments.)

Note: I know several didn't like the quote cuts. While I get that they can be unsettling/doesn't help in the story 'flowing' well, my response is that they are supposed to be jarring. Harry (and Tony and Steve) has gone through a lot — he is dealing with a lot (7 books worth of a lot, not to mention, dying). His mind is not calm right now; he isn't at peace. For Harry, the Hogwarts Battle wasn't six months ago. For Tony and Steve Civil War is still very raw in their minds. There is pain, there is trauma. All three are trying to deal with it, but it will take time, and things will undoubtedly remind them of their past, of things that are not happy memories.

Some text taken directly from the various Harry Potter books and from the MCU films.

{ * * * }

"So, Point-break, any chance your brother snuck on Earth when no one was looking and did the vertical tango with a human girl, to have a lust-child he didn't tell anyone about?"

Harry tried not to react at the question. Apparently he resembled quite a fair bit 'Loki'. Yes, the Norse god of Mischief, Loki. Norse Mythology and its gods were apparently more than just stories here.

— "Please, sir, don't legends always have a basis in fact?" —

It had already taken a fair amount of time convincing everyone that no, he wasn't Loki the first time round, especially given that Harry could (like this Loki) wield magic.

Once they had dealt with the remaining opposition (with their leader captured, this thankfully hadn't taken too long) and it had been confirmed that Harry wasn't in fact 'Loki' (or Kevin Bacon, whoever that was), there had been a lot of people talking at the same time...

A lot of questions and demands...

A lot of back-and-forth's...

For it to take ages before they were able to actually get anywhere. (Thankfully 'T'Challa', the man dressed in the cat costume, had been willing to give him clothes to wear before most of the talking had started. Secretly, Harry had also been relieved that his transfigured trousers hadn't reverted back during or after the fight.)

Some (mainly T'Challa; 'Thor, son of Odin', yes, the Norse god of Thunder, along with being the one who had plunged the magical axe into the purple giant; and 'Captain Steve Rogers', one of the muggle soldiers) expressed their thanks for his assistance in stopping the purple giant —titan ('Thanos') from indeed getting the amber gem ('Mind Stone') from the robot-man ('Vision')'s forehead.

Some (all) wanted (demanded) to know who Harry was. (Just as he had wanted to know who - for Merlin's sake - they all were? And bloody where he was?)

Some (mainly T'Challa, Captain Steve Rogers, and 'Colonel James Rhodes', one of the robots, who turned to not actually be a robot... followed by the rest) asked (demanded) his intentions with regards to Earth — as well as with the 'Nine Realms' as a whole. This second part came mainly from Thor, who then stated-realised it was perhaps now only the Seven Realms?... Six? Eight? — All in all, the Norse god seemed unsure on the number of realms remaining. (Harry tried not to react or think too much on that particular comment.) The point was: Harry didn't really have any intentions. That is, apart from wanting to go back home to Hogwarts.

— The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers. —

Some (mainly 'Wanda Maximoff', the red-haired woman) asked (demanded) that he release Vision from the containment bubble Harry had conjured around him. While wary, unsure how the Hallows and Harry would hold up against the 'android' if it came down to it; Harry had capitulated and released the robot-man. There had been no real reason not to other than the robot-man having one of the magical stones imbedded into his forehead (something he might not have had a choice on the matter to begin with). That, and Vision looked more ready to fall over and possibly bleed out than anything else. As for Wanda Maximoff, she was clearly focused on his wellbeing over anything else. Both had been swiftly taken to the 'Wakandan Royal laboratories' soon after. (Given that Vision was mostly robot, there was the uncertainty of how he would react to his magic. As such, Harry hadn't suggested to help heal him. Hopefully he would be fine in 'Princess Shiri's hands.)

Some (mainly Thor) asked (demanded) he also remove the sphere around Thanos. The god was very troubled that Harry's containment bubble stopped him from finally killing the titan. (Nor could the god recall his axe 'Stormbreaker' back to him from the purple giant's chest, while it was in Harry's containment bubble. This apparently should be an impossibility. Harry refrained from mentioning that the impossible tended to happen around him).

To be fair, the purple giant had apparently killed his brother, his best friend and half his people. (Or, at least half of those that hadn't been killed by his sister...) The more Harry listened to the bold warrior, the more he reminded Harry of his friends and even himself the last six months, pain and need for justice consuming their minds. That, and he had convinced Harry that he was indeed one of the gods from Norse mythology. From what Harry remembered of Magical Theory class, all mythologies, whether Greek, Roman — Norse, all seemed to have very tragic ends, with their fates even worse than his own.

Some (mainly Thor and 'Bruce Banner', who had been in the huge red robot suit) asked if Harry was associated to the 'Sorcerers' named 'Strange' (yes, that was apparently the man's actual name) and 'Wong'. While Harry had shaken his head, not knowing any such sorcerers (along with stating he was more of a 'wizard' than 'sorcerer'), the conversation had ignited a second round of many people talking at the same time. Some figured that this 'Sorcerer Strange' had probably been killed by Thanos, given that he had been the last owner and-or wearer of the green gem (the 'Time Stone'). Still, there was some hope. Unlike Vision, the stone had been worn as part of a necklace rather than imbedded in his forehead.

— "— and the locket, Master Regulus's locket, Kreacher did wrong, Kreacher failed in his orders!" —

This last query had led to a whole other discussion with regards to finding Strange, along with someone called 'Anthony - Tony - Stark'. To which, everyone had looked at Harry strangely for not knowing who 'Tony Stark' was. (Much like the rest of the groups, he also had a 'superhero name': 'Ironman' for some reason, even though he wasn't a robot or made out of metal. - Harry had checked). (To be fair to Harry, the talking raccoon, 'Rocket', and the humanoid tree, 'Groot', hadn't seemed to know who he was either.)

Thor, Rocket and Groot also voiced their concerns on their own previous associates: the 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. Well, the talking-tree just said 'I am Groot', but the meaning was there in the tone of voice.

(The first group apparently identified themselves as the 'Avengers', though Harry was still uncertain who exactly they were avenging; Thor's family and people? — Still, given that back in Wizarding Britain there had been 'Death Eaters', the 'Order of the Phoenix', not to mention 'Dumbledore's Army', a name that left a mix of pride and pain running through him now days, Harry didn't feel like he had a right to judge whatever name they wanted to call themselves.)

In any case, it was apparently highly likely that these Guardians had also run into Thanos, on a planet called 'Nowhere'...'Knowhere'? (Harry did note the titan closing his eyes and tense his jaw at the mention.)

On in all, it was hardly surprising with all the different people talking and all the questions (and demands) Harry was very much confused about quite a few things. The many back and forth's of the too many never ending stories (about twenty or so) jumbled together made it hard to follow on all that had happened (and in what order), and had him wishing for a headache draught.

The only ones who remained silent during the whole... gathering were the dyed blonde-haired woman ('Natasha Romanoff' - one of the muggle soldiers) and Thanos.

Thanos, surprisingly still conscious, had not moved an inch. He had silently watched Vision be released from his own containment bubble and be taken away, for his beady light purple eyes to go between the bubbles holding the golden gauntlet and Time Stone, and Harry himself.

As for Ms Romanoff... well she had basically done the same thing, minus the containment bubble enveloping her and a huge axe sticking out of her chest. Though, in all honesty, something about her reminded Harry of the Sphinx from the maze back in fourth year. Beautiful, composed, but deadly.

Still, Harry had been able to figure a few things out from all that was said.

He was in Africa, in a country called 'Wakanda', with T'Challa its ruler. (Though apparently there was no need to refer to him as 'king', or call him 'Your Majesty' or subsequently 'Sir'[1], or bow to him).

Unfortunately, this, along with the various interactions he had, had done nothing to reassure Harry. He was near certain the amount of technology visible, along with the stories told by both the 'natives' and 'foreigners', should not exist. While he might not have kept as up to date on the muggle side of things (what with having been Undesirable Number 1, Horcrux hunting, escaping goblin strongholds on the back of dragons, the battle, followed by the rebuilding of Hogwarts and the rest of Wizarding Britain for the last several months...), Harry was certain he wouldn't have missed alien invasions, along muggles having real-life superheroes.

As for Wakanda itself, he had never heard of the country. True, his muggle geography knowledge was mainly based on what he remembered from when he was eleven years old. As for Wizarding geography, as Hermione had explained, it tended to have different borders to their muggle counterparts (with several much closer to how they had been at the time the Statute had been put in place, rather than the current muggle partitions). In fact, it was thanks to Hermione that Harry was pretty sure that Wakanda was more or less in the same place as where Uagadou Wizarding School was supposed to be. (And while the people of Wakanda didn't seem to be magical, they did seem to have their own magical stone, from this Earth's version of the Mountains of the Moon.[2])

And there was also the fact that according to all, or at least all those from (this) Earth, the year was 2018, not 1998. Given this, a possible explanation was that Harry had been somehow sent twenty years into the future...

Yet, that didn't explain why Harry had never heard of 'Captain America' (a World War Two hero), 'Stark Industries' (apparently much bigger than that fruit-named company in the muggle world... Pear?), 'SHIELD' (somewhat similar to the CIA and FBI as far as Harry could tell, though it was now apparently disavowed), and 'HYDRA' (a sort of terrorist group, possibly a muggle version of the Death Eaters).

Another explanation (one becoming the more likely possibility), Harry had somehow found himself in another 'dimension'? Another version of Earth?

The Sorcerer (or was it Doctor?) Strange had called him a dimension traveller, when Harry had helped retrieve the different people from the planet Titan after all. —Well, what he had actually said was 'you don't belong here' in a Malfoy worthy declaration, when Harry had rescued them from Titan. A thank you would have been nice. Anthony - 'call me Tony' - Stark had invited him to his wedding, once he had come to back on Earth. While Harry wasn't planning on actually attending (he wanted to go home), it was the thought that counted.

As for who Thanos was, the title 'Mad Titan' given by those not of Earth seemed pretty accurate. Unlike giants (and half-giant), not to mention trolls Harry had previously encountered, the titan's intelligence and awareness seemed closer (possibly higher?) to that of your average human.

And then there were the gems, complete with the ominous name 'Infinity Stones'. They were apparently very powerful objects, each controlling a different essential aspect of the universe: Mind, Power, Reality, Soul, Space and Time. They were captivating... and when all were brought together, they gave unimaginable power to their wielder...

That Thanos wanted them to —to... Harry hadn't actually gotten that far yet, but somehow he doubted it would be something he approved of. (And made him want to possibly destroy the stones.)

Merlin, each stone just by itself sent a shiver running through Harry's spine.

— It was a magnificent mirror, as high as the ceiling, with an ornate gold frame, standing on two clawed feet.

There was an inscription carved around the top: Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi. —

Still, given that the mind one was in Vision's forehead, and the robot-man was still 'incapacitated', Harry was only mildly worried with regards to his shoddy Occlumency. (He had had enough of people looking into his head, thank you very much.)

The Time Stone was also still separate from the others, in its own smaller containment.

As for the four still in the gauntlet, well...

Somehow, Harry had just known what to do without having to think on it. - Somehow, he knew it would work. Releasing it from its own bubble, he had cast a reducio on the gauntlet, resizing it to a near-perfect fit for his much smaller hand, and had slipped it on (ignoring the others stop speaking to tense, raising their various weapons in his direction). He had closed his eyes and focused on those two facts —names: 'Anthony Stark - Iron Man'.

The next moment, he had felt slight vibrations... shifting... —for everything to... realign.

When he had opened his eyes, great big blue clouds had started to form, for it to open onto a very different scenery: the landscape desolate, burnt orange dust trying to cover every available surface, the amalgamation of warm colours only increasing the oppressive atmosphere. It was only later that he learned it was a whole other planet: Titan, Thanos' home planet. It had been rather fortunate that Anthony Stark wasn't alone. The remaining Guardians of the Galaxy (bar one) had also been there, much to the relief of Rocket and Groot.

This all led to now. All the Guardians, Avengers and what-not's rescued had been looked over, Stark had called his very frantic fiancée, along with Peter Parker calling his aunt (to be 'grounded for life' as soon as he got back)... and the second (third?) round of discussions and questions started. Harry was once more one of the primary topics of discussion. (And with most talking about him as if he wasn't there. Nothing Harry wasn't used to, all things considered.)

Given that 'Peter Quill' (or 'Star Lord' depending on who you asked) actually had an alien father ('Ego', with the personality to match the name), with said father having gone down to Earth and slept with a human woman, several were convinced Harry had similar origins.

Peter Quill at least asked Harry directly if he was also Ego's son, looking rather uncertain at the idea of a half-brother. (Apparently Ego had slept with a lot of women from various planets, throughout the different galaxies of this universe.)

For several of the others, Loki (who apparently had been Thor's adopted brother in this universe) was a strong contender for the role of Harry's supposed alien-father. Anthony Stark, for one, was convinced that either Harry was lying, or that he had been told lies his whole life about his parentage. (To be fair, the Dursleys had lied to Harry, telling him his parents were drunks who had died in a car crash.)

"Nay! Young Harrý wears the mark of Baldr."

Ah, yes, the 'mark of Baldr'. Thor had, for the most part, gotten past the possibility that Harry might be his adopted brother's wayward, secret-or-unknown, son. Yet, the fact that Harry had the 'mark of Baldr' on his forehead (perhaps Harry really should have taken Ancient Runes rather than Divination) had the god of Thunder convinced that Harry was at least partially of the Æsir, with his father or, more likely, grandfather, this Baldr fellow. (As for the 'young' remark, given that Thor was supposedly several hundred years old, Harry couldn't really hold the designation against him.) That and he had somehow correctly identified that most of Harry's scars came from beasts not from this Earth.

— "You can laugh! But people used to believe there were no such things as the Blibbering Humdinger or the Crumple-Horned Snorkack!" —

"Balder? Who's he? Another brother?"

"Nay, he was from the time of my father; one of his many brothers. He was the god of light, joy and purity; a most just and brave warrior. He was the best, and all praised him. He was so fair of feature, and so bright, that it was said that light shone from him. He was the wisest of the Æsir, and the fairest-spoken and most gracious; and that quality attends him, that none may gainsay his judgments. He dwelled in Breidablik, a place where nothing be unclean."[3]

Harry felt his ears and neck warm as the god spoke.

"So... basically he's 'the fairest of them all'; like a male version of Snow White. Hell, the kid's got the black hair and pale skin down to a T."

"I know not this 'Snow White', but Young Harrý was most brave against Thanos, and does appear as fair spoken in his sense of justice and reconciliation as Forseti, son of Baldr[4]. He is a most worthy heir."

Harry tried not to react, his ears now definitely warm.

Well, at least the god had calmed since their initial meet and confrontation...

Not long after Harry had denied being 'Kevin Bacon', Thor's most recurring demand was for his axe and Thanos be released for their enclosure. (So he could finish in killing the titan was left unsaid... Until the god had bluntly accused Thanos of killing both his brother and his best friend, and that he would have his vengeance!) There had been pain and grief in his voice and on his face (as there still was now). —And anger. Merlin, the god wasn't all that different from many back home, after the Battle, and nearly a year of the Ministry controlled by Voldemort and the Death Eaters... So while the others had continued to 'discuss things' and look after those injured, Harry had taken Thor aside, to present him with the Resurrection Stone (all while not thinking too much of the last time Harry had used it, the only time Harry had used it...)

— "You'll stay with me?"

"Until the very end," said James.

"They won't be able to see you?" asked Harry.

"We are part of you," said Sirius. "Invisible to anyone else." —

Harry had placed the stone in his hand. Had told him what to do. And had left the god a moment to himself, by the alcove of trees.

When the god had returned, placing the stone back in Harry's hand, Thor had given his thanks, his voice soft, for him to move away from the rest. And there he had stayed until the second group had joined them. The pain and grief were still there, but Harry liked to think there was peace as well. For one, the god had not looked to or spoken of Thanos since.

Harry felt Tony Stark's eyes on him, considering him all the more, to turn back to Thor and smirk, "Worthy to hold your magic hammer?"

The god blinked, for his face to turn sombre once more, "Mjølnir was destroyed by mine own sister, Hela."

"What's she goddess of? Springtime, womanhood and hammer-haters? Though, to be fair, I'm a staunch Hammer-hater."

"Nay —she was goddess of Death. She destroyed Mjølnir, killed my most trusted childhood companions, took my eye, for her to perish with Ásgarðr during Ragnarök, along with her wolf-beast, Garmr[5], and her army of draugar[6]."

There was an (awkward) pause (Harry mainly remembering Hela being Loki's daughter rather than Thor's sister), for Dr Banner to ask, "Could he be her son... with either Balrd or Forseti?"all while looking at Harry himself, possibly seeing the similarities.

His own gaze going back on Harry, Thor seemed to consider this... —

But before he could answer, voices echoed from outside, coming closer.

Harry wasn't the only one to look across the expanse of the room, towards the source of noise. King T'Challa, Captain Rogers and Colonel Rhodes were most likely (finally) returning. It had been over an hour since the Wakandan ruler had received a message from a small glowing on his arm, reminiscent of a patronus. The glowing face had said something in Wakandan, for T'Challa to inform the group of visitors nearing the country's border. It was assumed that the visitors had most likely seen the ships that had 'entered the atmosphere', along with sensing the 'energy outputs' from Thanos and his army. (That and Harry having also used the gauntlet.)

Given the level of noise, they weren't returning alone.

Indeed, when the large double doors opened, T'Challa and Colonel Rhodes were speaking with a number of official-looking people in muggle suits and military uniforms, while Captain Rogers was speaking with a man in a leather coat and eye-patch. The procession completed with General Okoye and a woman, the only one in normal muggle clothes.

Some in the room straightened at the sight, while others stood up.

As for the new arrivals, their gazes went between the various people in the room, pausing at some they clearly recognised, while staying even longer on those probably unknown to them. There was definitely a long pause with regards to Thor, along with basically all the Guardians, bar Peter Quill. Though there were several of the military dressed men who spent the whole time glaring between Dr Banner, Ms Romanoff and James Barnes, as if they had personally killed their whole families.

Unfortunately, Harry could only assume that they had been informed of at least some of what had happened, as the leather-dressed man, soon followed by the civilian-dressed woman, and then the rest, converged their stares-or-glares onto him.

Harry held back a groan at the inevitable next round of questions. Worse comes to worse, he would pull on his cloak and apparate away (something they thankfully hadn't yet figured out he could do).

Then again, Harry was getting wary of the several who could possibly figure out ways of finding him. For one, Wakanda's technology was apparently very advanced, even when compared to the rest of this Earth (at least, according to Tony Stark, a technology genius himself). That, and the 'vibranium' (this Earth's moonstone) itself. When first entering the palace, there had been an incident. Apparently, there was something about him (and-or the Hallows) that made most of the technologically ingrained building go 'haywire' —or really, that made the vibranium buzz over excitedly. Princess Shiri was more than likely currently trying to figure out the reason in her labs, now that she had 'stabilised' Vision. This based on her Hermione-worthy research-look, and T'Challa having told her to stop harassing Harry.

Then again, there was also the consideration that Wakanda, along with Dr Strange and Thor, were probably Harry's best bet in finding a way back to his Earth.

{ * * * }

Steve didn't know what to make of 'Harry, just Harry'. There was no 'just Harry' about the guy.

— "I'm just a kid from Brooklyn." —

Short and slim to the point that it reminded Steve of himself prior to Project Rebirth, the 'wizard, not sorcerer' had been able to take on Thanos with five of the stones, with only Wanda on the assist, before Thor had swooped down with his magical axe.

Steve had been certain he was, or somehow linked to, Loki. Only for Thor had shot down most of the theories being thrown around.

The confrontation with Thanos made Steve wonder how 'just Harry' would have fared against Loki and the Chitauri. Then again, the battle of New York had been six years ago, making Harry twelve at the time.[7] And hadn't Steve been surprised (along with most of the room) when the wizard, clearly irritated (not to mention, not the least bit intimidated by Secretary Ross) had interrupted the Secretary's tirade. (Heck, he was one of the few people who wasn't the least bit cowed by Fury.) Harry had bluntly corrected the Secretary on a few matters, including that he was eighteen, and not a minor. Silently, Steve had placed Harry's age in the same ball park as Ross had; sixteen at most. (Then again, Steve himself was technically a thirty-three year old centenarian.)

Still, according to General Okoye, the Wakandan people considered someone an adult not due to their age but experience.

In the case of Harry, the general had stated that most of Wakanda would have considered him an adult from the first moment they laid eyes on him, whatever his actual age was. It was evident, by his stance, scars and general wariness that he had not been a child for some time. Steve didn't doubt her reasoning.

Heck, the wizard was barely a year older than the kid from Queens. And yet, while Peter Parker showed some innocence about him, along with childlike enthusiasm for things, Harry held himself back, wary, especially of the various authority figures. Well, perhaps the last one was Steve, projecting his own experiences and beliefs that had crashed and burned in the last few years... Still, given Steve's own past and all that had happened to Bucky, the wizard was in the right to be on guard and not share much about himself.

— "Compromise where you can. Where you can't, don't. Even if everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right. Even if the whole world is telling you to move, it is your duty to plant yourself like a tree, look them in the eye, and say, 'No, you move.'" —

The scars alone told a story of hardship and survival. When his magical cloak had slipped off, revealing their unexpected asset, Steve hadn't been the only one to notice the array of marks. Those on his left hand and forehead were still visible now, even with the clothes T'Challa had presented Harry with. Steve had listened in when Thor and Natasha had commented on the fact that most of his scars couldn't have come from anything on Earth. Honestly, Steve didn't know which scar worried him more. The one carved in the hand, with the words 'I must not tell lies'? Or the one Thor had identified coming from a 'nid-hog'[8] (whatever that was), only for Harry to correct him and state it had come from a basilisk? (Last Steve had checked, those things were suppose to be deadly in more ways than one...)

And then there was his eyes. It was more than just the unnatural green-emerald colour of them that unnerved some. (Fury mumbling something about 'Young Rog'.) There was the look all the Avengers had; one you only got when you had fought, when you had lost someone, when you had faced death, when you had killed... Yet it was more than that. They held something... Stared at you, like looking into your very soul.

Steve could only hope he had people he trusted and had his back, where ever Harry was from.

— "I'm with you 'til the end of the line."

{ * * * }

There was indeed another round of people talking at the same time, along with the many questions and demands that came with it. Most made little sense.

There were those (everyone really) who wanted to know (demanded) what had happened? Who Thanos was? Along with knowing who the Guardians were? (Though, it turned out that Peter Quill was on their systems: a missing person, since 1988.)

Some also wanted to arrest several of the humans present, for some reason that Harry had not yet grasp. (Something to do with a place called 'Sakovia' and some treaty that had possibly been signed there.)

There was also the interest in the six stones; what they were? What powers each held?...

Along with all this, there was the recurring question of 'who the hell' Harry was? (Professor McGonagall would have pressed her lips together at the language used.)

That and, as a second request (demand), that he release both Thanos, and the gauntlet and stones, so they could go and take over, to keep a handle on things. —Which wasn't bloody likely, if Harry had anything to say about it. (Which he did.)

Nor was Harry willing to be seen by one of their doctors. Just as he had previously (though more politely) rejected King T'Challa and Princess Shuri's invitation to visit the palace's medical wing. (He had spent enough time in Hogwarts' hospital wing, thank you very much.) The most he had been able to accept, was the Wakadan ruler's offer of clothes. With these suit-wearing muggles, he was generally feeling less charitable. (Especially with the one who seemed to turn into a similar shade of red to Uncle Vernon, the angrier he got.) Thankfully, given that Harry had healed the minimal amount of wounds he had sustained (which was surprising, all things considered), there was no reason for him to get a 'check-up'.

As for the other demands, Harry kept his replies short, sharing the least amount possible:

His name was Harry.

No, he wasn't from Space. (That question was rather idiotic, if you thought about it: no one was actually from Space. They were undoubtedly from another planet.)

He was eighteen.

No, he didn't know why there was no of record of him. (Nor would he tell them his theories.)

No, he wasn't a sorcerer, nor was he part of the 'New York Sanctum' or any other Sanctum, or the 'Kamar-Taj'.

No, he wasn't from Hala. Nor was he of the Vanir, or any of the Nine Realms.

No, he wasn't a 'seidr'.

No, he hadn't been 'genetically modified' by a stone or a serum. (Well, he had taken polyjuice twice, but he wasn't about to tell them that.) He had been born with his powers.

No, he wasn't Loki's son. (Yes, he was sure he hadn't been secretly adopted-stolen away from his birth parents. Well, he kind of had... but Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia had made it very clear from an early age that they were not his parents.)

No, he would not give a 'detailed account of what all his powers entailed'.

No, he wasn't Ego's son either.

No, he didn't know someone called 'Vers' or 'Danvers'...

... On they continued.

It did help that T'Challa himself vouched for Harry, along with making him an official guest of Wakanda. The invitation was also extended to Thor and the Guardians, as well as Natasha Romanoff, Captain Rogers and Sergeant James Barnes (the later three were clearly in some hot water with the various officials; not too different from Ron, Hermione and himself, from the sound of things).

Frustrations of several mounting, the 'discussions' were moved to a different room of the palace with only a select few included. (Unsurprisingly, Harry was not one of the select few included, much to Thor's displeasure.)

In the mean time, Harry was derailed by other conversations.

Not the least bit bothered to not be included in the continued discussions either, the raccoon, Rocket, walked straight to Harry and bluntly asked, "How much for the cloak?" — Harry's cloak, which was currently being circled-hovered over by Doctor Strange's own 'Cloak of Levitation' with keen interest.

Harry blinked, "Umm, it's not for sale."

Not the least bit deterred, Rocket inquired on the Elder Wand and the ring on his finger, the later making Harry wonder if the talking racoon could somehow 'sense' the Resurrection Stone. In any case, he turned him down both times.

Thankfully, Rocket didn't ask with regards to the Infinity Stones, still within Harry's containment bubbles. The racoon obviously knew it would be a waste of time to ask. Still, Harry would keep an eye on Rocket, along with his tree-friend. From the little Harry had interacted with the racoon, or really listen to him as he snarked at most, Rocket had the mistrust of a knarl, the thievery of a niffler and the colourful language of a jarvey. ('Groot', on the other hand, seemed to be the taller cousin to bowtruckles, including their loyalty to those who had earned it. That, and Groot looked as intrigued by the Elder wand as his companion... and several of the others.)

The raccoon was soon replaced by the woman with antennas, 'Mantis'. Apparently, she had learnt the source of Thor's current calmness. Wary, Harry was about to deny her the Resurrection Stone, when Mantis, in a voice reminiscent of Luna, spoke of Peter Quill. Much like Thor, he had also lost someone important to him by Thanos' hand: ... Thanos' own daughter. While apparently Mantis could alter —diminish his pain, it would only postpone it. Still wary (but relieved that Mantis wasn't using her mind-controlling powers on Quill... or on himself), Harry placed the stone in Mantis' hand (making sure not to touch her himself) to be lent to the troubled-looking Star Lord.

And then there were the remaining stares. Silent and fixed as they were, they were getting to the point where Harry was having some trouble ignoring them. (They seemed to know things... things they couldn't possibly know.)

—"There, look."

"Where?"

"Next to the tall kid with the red hair." —

To be fair, in Dr Strange's case, in addition to his own cloak's interest in Harry's, Harry continued to hold the Time Stone, having refused to return it to the sorcerer. The gem was still in its own encased bubble that Strange's own 'sorcery' had been unable to break through. (He had identified Harry's enchantment as a 'Dead-man's curse' in a mix of frustration and respect.) As his dark eyes continued to stare, Harry wondered with apprehension if the Sorcerer was weighing if he could take Harry on in a fight. —

"So, hey - can you turn someone into an animal?"

Harry blinked, turning. It was Peter Parker; Spiderman? (Harry remembered the costume had had webs drawn on it, before he had been looked over and changed into some Wakandan clothes himself.)

Harry tensed some. Peter Parker looked like he had been waiting for the adults to have finished their questions, and was now bursting to ask his own.

— "All right, Harry? I'm — I'm Colin Creevey. - I'm in Gryffindor, too. D'you think — would it be all right if — can I have a picture?" —

"E-excuse me?"

"Turn someone into an animal —a squirrel? Like Merlin did in The Sword and the Stone."

— Professor Moody was limping down the marble staircase. His wand was out and it was pointing right at a pure white ferret, which was shivering on the stone-flagged floor, exactly where Malfoy had been standing. —

Before Harry could answer (all while remembering Hermione mentioning a muggle book fictionalising the tales of Merlin and King Arthur), Peter speeded right through with a follow up question: "Can you turn yourself into a squirrel? I mean it doesn't have to be a squirrel; Merlin also turned Arthur and himself into fish and birds. —Oh! And Archimedes! Do you have an owl? Or a raven, like in Game of Thrones?-"

— "Hedwig — Hedwig —"

But the owl lay motionless and pathetic as a toy on the floor of her cage. —

"No," Harry cut him off before he could continue. Throat and chest suddenly dry; he gave a cough, "No —no, we have owls... I—I h-had an owl."

Peter blinked, to turn sheepish, cheeks reddening with embarrassment and sorrow, "Oh, I'm... I'm sorry."

"It's..." It... It wasn't fine.

"It is what it is...," Harry said with a tight sad smile. "And yes, it is possible to transform someone into a squirrel, or fish or bird. It's just really difficult. As for turning into one yourself; it's even more difficult, and you can only turn into one animal, based on your personality."

— "Not a dog," Ron moaned. His teeth were gritted with pain. "Harry, it's a trap —"

"What —"

"He's the dog... he's an Animagus..." —

"Wow," Peter awed his eyes wide once more. "That's so cool!" For him to look at Harry, as if considering asking him to turn him into a squirrel.—

The next moment though, his eyes widened, to exclaim, "Wait!" His hands rose as well, as if not trusting Harry to stay put. "Can..." There was a pause, as Peter looked to be trying to get a hold of himself, his face turning very serious, "Can you lift a space-craft by yourself, like Luke?"

"Umm... Luke?"

"Luke Skywalker, the jedi?"

"Is he another Avenger? —Or Guardian?" (Then again, Kevin Bacon was neither.)

This was clearly the wrong thing to say.

"Is... is he an Avenger," Peter repeated faintly, looking horrified. "Y-you don't know who Luke Skywaker is?... B-but you know Yoda, right? Obi-Wan Kenobi? Darth Vader — you gotta know Darth Vader?!"

"Umm... no, sorry."

"But... but...," Peter looked even more lost and confused. "But it's Star Wars! How could you not know Stark Wars?!"

Needless to say, Harry was quickly roped into promising to a 'Star Wars movie-marathon' with Peter, along with his friends Ned and MJ. (For when Peter was no longer grounded by his Aunt May, of course.) —

Bang! Heads snapped to the door which had slammed none too gently into the wall. Secretary Ross quickly emerged looking just as red as when he had been speaking (demanding) to Harry, and grumbling some more about 'Sakovia'. Not far behind him came the rest of the 'official discussion group'.

In the end the whole thing resolved itself in a rather underwhelming way... Or at least underwhelming for Harry. He couldn't know really for certain how the other side had reacted. (He was only somewhat sorry he was missing out on the movie marathon with Peter, and on Tony Stark's wedding, curious to how a wedding on this Earth would be like.)

It went something like this;

The 'official' group finally had come to some sort of decision with regards to Thanos. The titan, along with his remaining army, would be receiving trials for their various war crimes-slash-space crimes. The particulars were still to be sorted, but at least most had agreed that the jury was going to be a mix of those from Earth and those from other planets.

As for the stones...

Well, Harry didn't leave them much of a decision, given how several kept on insisting he had to hand them over. Harry wasn't sure exactly what made him do it, but what was certain is that he liked none of the suggestions that were brought forth.

And so he summoned the 'Mind Stone' (which Princess Shiri had previously confirmed had been detached from Vision's forehead), for Harry to take several steps back from the rest and set fiendfyre (somehow knowing exactly how to cast it and control it) to each of the stones, along with the gauntlet. (Something, it turned out, the Elder Wand was very eager to do.)

Harry barely heard Thor mention something about Jörmungandr[9] (probably due to the cursed fire having taken the form of a fiery snake), for, just as the last stone turned to ash, Harry disappeared, just as quickly and easily as he had appeared.

{ * AN * AN * }

[1] 'Your Majesty' and subsequently 'Sir' is how people are supposed to address the king (if it was a king) along with male members of the British Royal Family.

[2] Uagadou School of Magic is located in the Mountains of the Moon in western Uganda. It's the largest of the eleven wizarding schools, accepting students from all over Africa.

[3] wikipedia - Baldr; Baldr is a god in Norse mythology associated with light, wisdom, and courage, although he is never specifically defined as the god of any of these.

[4] Forseti (Old Norse "the presiding one", "president" in modern Icelandic and Faroese) is the god of justice and reconciliation in Norse mythology. He is the son of Baldr and Nanna (associated with joy, peace, and the moon).

[5] In Norse mythology, Garmr or Garm (Old Norse: Garmr; "rag") is a wolf or dog associated with both Hel and Ragnarök, and described as a blood-stained guardian of Hel's gate.

[6] Old Norse: draugr, plural draugar; An undead creature from Norse mythology, an animated corpse that inhabits its grave.

[7] Cant help make a small wink to one of my other stories: a twelve (nearly 13) Harry indeed caught in the middle of Loki's attack on New York: The Last Seidr.

[8] Níðhöggr: In Norse mythology, Níðhöggr is a dragon or serpent who gnaws at a root of the world tree, Yggdrasil.

[9] Jörmungandr (the giant snake + one of Loki's children from Norse mythology)