Announcements:

I was not aware that you are not allowed to post Author's Notes as a chapter by itself. Yikes. I will try to be succinct.

Hello everyone. So book two is out. I had some time for the holidays and I was not stressed with school. The writing is much better, I think. I have developed my style a little better, and wasn't half dead and jacked up on coffee when writing this fic.

For Christmas, I hope to give you a Chamber full of Secrets! And to confirm, the draft is finished, just to check it and clean it up. I am completing my final year of my Masters, so Christmas is the earliest I can do for that book.

Thank you for the support as always.


Chapter 1: The Hogwarts Express

For magical children within the United Kingdom, September the 1st represented distinctly two possibilities:

You were either going to Hogwarts as a brand new student, or you were a returning student.

For the new students, knowledge of this magical English institution was non-existent merely a couple of months ago. Parents had received the "Your child is a Wizard" or "Your child is a Witch" sermon via a Hogwarts staff member. The purchases were made and trunks were now full of books, equipment, clothes and other sentimental items. The magical boarding school would serve as their home for the entire academic year. The final step was for transportation to occur via train. The students were on their way to platform nine and three quarters, with their tickets in hand, after being sufficiently briefed via any of the informative introductory pamphlets.

For others, they were merely returning to the normality of the school term. The first-time experience was something of a memoir. However, the familiarity did nothing to dim the thrumming excitement. Many were anxious to see their friends, crushes and significant others. Others were excited to learn new magic. Some were even hoping to make the Quidditch team for their respective house. The knowledge of Hogwarts and her mysteries was now somewhat diminished, as many would look to carve out and hoard their personal stash of secrets within the majestic castle.

Yet, this year was going to be very different. At least, this was the opinion of the Weasleys, along with Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood. After all, they were friends with two particular people who had done a fair bit to 'turn everything upside down'. However, that expression meant different things to different people. The 'difference' at Hogwarts this year, depended on who you asked.

Charlie, Fred and George were excited about Quidditch, the premiere Wizarding sport. There had been recent advances, and now the Stormbolt was the hottest broom on the market. It was cheap and outstripped all the competitors at every possible statistic. This was the recipe to end the unfair advantage of owning better sporting gear – something that wealthier students at Hogwarts often bragged about.

The Weasley boys understood that this 'equality' mattered very little – They had better brooms, beater bats and Quidditch armour. The people who had manufactured the Stormbolt had equipped the 'redhead gang' with upcoming, superior equipment that would not hit the market until later in the year.

Matches would not be fair – not if you considered what the redheads were packing. House Gryffindor would be at a severe advantage.

For Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood and Percy Weasley, the 'difference' was that Harry Potter, the-boy-who-lived was secretly alive.


In the Wizarding world, many had been looking forward to the appearance of the legendary Harry Potter. As the only child to survive the killing curse, he had vanquished Lord Voldemort in his crib. His unexpected survival was brought about by the backfiring of the Avada Kedavra or the killing curse. Sadly, his parents had not survived. That night, the baby boy was left with a horrid scar that marked him, irrevocably.

Lord Voldemort was a magical terrorist who had led a purity campaign that was analogous to the Nazi movement of World War II. He was not beyond using the darkest magic, and it was rumoured that he was unstoppable and immortal. His death had liberated Magical England from tyranny. However, it was not without consequence – many had lost their loved ones during the last war.

Then, Harry Potter disappeared, as he was sequestered away from magical society by Hogwarts Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. This was the last news about the boy until the headlines were plastered on the front page of Magical England's most popular newspaper, the Daily Prophet

Harry Potter was dead. He had passed due to a 'muggle' heart condition.

Exactly as he had planned.

Harry Potter – the boy who had supposedly died, was secretly a multimillion galleon businessman who in his spare time, built energy shielded armour, designed plasma guns, flew at terrible speeds, made Goblin mining equipment and modified spells as easily as he drank coffee. His sister by magic, the muggleborn Hermione Granger was a top-class potioneer who had already developed two commercial potions that were in worldwide use. She also did runes, computer programming, advanced mathematics, illusion casting and arithmancy as "side-line activities". Harry and Hermione were the inventors of the implements that the Weasleys now possessed. But why did they opt to disguise themselves, and not attend Hogwarts like their peers? Why did they exercise the deception?

Lord Voldemort or 'Magical Discount Hitler' (as Harry called him) had done a piece of magic that was so dark, that it guaranteed some type of cursed immortality. He would return, eventually. Harry had faked his death, and he was making preparations for a Wizarding war that was on the horizon. Better yet, he was well connected, had actionable intelligence, economic power and many collaborators. Primary to his efforts was his adoptive sister, Hermione Granger. She had fooled the Hogwarts acceptance system. Ideally, she would have been a classmate if Harry had decided to attend Hogwarts.

Albus Dumbledore was also aware of Lord Voldemort's continued existence. He had planned to sacrifice Harry to win the battle against the Dark Lord, without truly ruffling the feathers of Wizarding society. The perpetrators, the supporters, the system – all of it would be left in place, as Albus would only deal with the issue at hand. Harry Potter, according to Dumbledore's initial long term plans, would face this Dark Lord based on some oddball prophecy, after he reconstituted himself. The boy would possess some type of magical gift, conferred by his good character and win, probably with the bonus of some innocent and unavoidable collateral damage. Harry was not sure what this special gift was, as he had not heard the prophecy himself. He had only heard vague references to it in passing, from his surveillance. He was aware that a 'prophecy orb' was present at the Ministry of Magic, but he wanted to investigate Ministry security before busting in, to acquire it, secretly.

In the meanwhile, Harry had decided to take the following position:

Fuck that noise. I am going to plan properly, and I am killing the whole fucking lot of them.

Harry had decided that he would kill a reborn Voldemort and his followers not with wands alone, but with assault rifles and drones. He had already built a primitive but effective armour system that gave him automatic shielding, invisibility, aerial superiority and communications. This armour had been accompanied by magical guns, which was merely a wand core, bootstrapped to a magical supercapacitor. This allowed Harry to deliver justice by the gun barrel, with range and accuracy. Harry had broken his godfather out of Azkaban, and he had already murdered some rapist scum, who had attempted to harm his adoptive mother.

Harry, after studying old newspaper archives, had reasoned that if the Dark Lord reappeared and was defeated again, his Death Eaters would slide back into the crevices of society. After all, many former Death Eaters were now distinguished members of society. So why did Albus Dumbledore, the leader of the "Forces of the Light", and the most powerful wizard in England fail to punish the wrongdoers with impunity?

Simple.

Albus Dumbledore at his core was a teacher, and he believed that school was a transformative place. Surely the young minds could be groomed towards an agreeable result? And young minds could influence older minds into becoming more accepting. But did Harry agree with this sentiment?

No.

Harry believed firmly that the culture of the home was a paramount experience. Whatever shaped a child's formative years would to a great extent govern their psyche. Perhaps a change in perspective could come along with enough experiences, but the ability to engineer that outcome among twenty five per cent of the population who were Death Eaters? Reform at least 3,000 individuals?

Not possible.

Harry was going to drag the conflict out, let all the sympathetic supporters of Lord Voldemort reveal themselves, and then smash them into the ground in a brutally quick and decisive victory. Lord Voldemort had gotten support from many sympathisers within the British Wizarding Society, and the only cure for the rot was a complete elimination of the structure.

He would kill every last one of them.

Until Harry's reappearance, the new 'golden trio' which consisted of Neville, Luna and Ronald would act as advance scouts and perform necessary intelligence work where possible. Their training had already begun, and Neville and Luna were already capable of shielding and stunning, quite well. That was no small achievement when you considered that most first-year Hogwarts students would struggle to light their wand. Combat readiness was Harry and Hermione's main priority for their "students" and they were trained brutally, but with scientific optimisations, and military-style physical exercises and tactics.

The magical world had no clue that they were being played for fools.


Neville Longbottom held his wand gently in his hand, as he considered that his participation in the biggest "prank of the century" was not a bad idea. The deed was a necessary one. Bellatrix Lestrange and her cohorts had incapacitated both his parents, and he wanted revenge. Luna had not lost anyone to the war, but she was aware that the Death Eaters were displeased with her father. Percy's interaction with Lord Peverell or Harry Potter was for a magical history research project, that could cause giant waves if the suspicion panned out. This was an ideological weapon that would cripple the darker houses. He had been brought recently into the full knowledge of the long term plans. As a year-five student and prefect, Percy was Harry's senior operative.

Fred, George, Charlie and Ronald – the Weasley siblings would be informed eventually. According to them, Hadrian Singh was an adopted but eccentric kid, who made money from his family business. He was also their employer and a supporter of the Weasley family.

The name juggling – Harry and Hermione found it hilarious. Different people depending on their relationships, knew the duo by different names. For people who had taken magical oaths of secrecy, it was merely Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. For the people who interacted with them as business associates, Hadrian Singh and Jean Von Neumann were acceptable cover names. For the public who had seen them kick ass in armour, it was the Storm-Lord and the Storm-Priestess. The Goblins who were in on the joke, preferred Aventine Arteficer Lord Peverell and Rune Priestess Lady Granger, particularly on bank statements.

Make no mistake, they were all the same individuals.

Ronald Weasley was the youngest Weasley currently at Hogwarts. He was the first student to openly carry an Acoustic guitar to the magical school. As he poked around the strings, he often considered his immediate future. His primary concern was if he could catch up to the magical expertise, shown by Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood. Ronald had been allowed by Harry to work for a very attractive salary during the holidays, and now he found himself pleased by toiling long hours. As far as he was concerned, hard work was the way to go – after all, he possessed acromantula uniforms and brand new school supplies. This was something even the Malfoys struggled with, who were supposedly the wealthiest family in wizarding England. Ronald had lost a great deal of his impulsive behaviour, but he still felt somewhat smug.

Ronald was quite aware that a golden opportunity had been provided – and he wondered about how he might make his way. He wanted to become a business owner, no differently from Hadrian Singh and Jean Von Neuman. He had always been insecure about being poor. After Harry had spoken to him, he realised that waking up to dead parents was true horror. He began to appreciate what he had, and suddenly one month of being away from the comfort of his house and being challenged, had changed and matured the young redhead's perspective immensely.

As they all left the SUVs, Remus and Lorna proceeded to help the group with their possessions. The students would walk through 'platform nine and three quarters' - a magical barrier that transported Magicals from the mundane King's Cross Station to their specific magical train station. After they arrived on the other side, they would enter the train, look for a seat and endure the eleven hour journey to Hogwarts. As they all crossed over into the magical train station, the three prospective first years did not find themselves fascinated by the train.

URGH.

The trio understood why Harry and Hermione disliked some of the cultural standards that were common in the wizarding world. Harry could easily do 300 mph on his jetpack. Why would he endure this antiquated standard? Neville considered that the journey would be long and boring. Many pureblood students who knew nothing of Muggle transport, still found the train journey boring, in any case.

The Hogwarts Express, Train number 5972 was a black and red steam monstrosity, that could carry approximately 1,000 students. This train had been specially built as a private enterprise with the Queen's oversight. The 1,300 feet long train had been continuously upgraded by 'muggle' workers, and then a runes expert had etched many lightning arrays and other unique optimisations. Of course, the purebloods were not aware that the train had continued to receive periodic upgrades as the years went by – The initial train that had been commissioned in 1880 had been small, and was only for Muggle Born students. By the end of the second World War, the train was one of the smaller passenger trains in the world. Some of the more intellectually retarded Purebloods, even believed that the magicals had invented trains. The Trio wondered if Bullet MAGLEV Trains would ever arrive in the Wizarding World.

Neville reasoned that at least, he would be able to teach Ronald some of the common year one spells. He considered some of the rules that Harry had drilled in his head. Easy exit? Check. Defensible position? Check. Line of Sight? Check. Neville guided the trio into a compartment within a carriage of his choice, while the twins Fred and George went off to look for Lee Jordan, their friend. Percy as a year-five prefect, went to the first carriage, for a prefect meeting. As they entered and got seated, Neville immediately placed a privacy ward, a locking charm, an imperturbable charm, and a custom proximity sensor on the door.

Neville and Luna had built the sensor, with extensive supervision from Harry and Hermione. The device could send video, audio and proximity alerts to a small mirror in his possession. Neville instructed Ronald to take out his wand, as he prepared to begin teaching. Luna was sketching a "Umgubular Slashkilter", which was a creature that tended to associate with highly sociopathic people. Once upon a time, such a claim would be considered "looney bin territory", but after Hermione had researched the sketches, many of the creatures seemed to resemble prehistoric animals.

"So Luna, which one is this?" Neville asked, as heflipped through Harry's notes.

"I call it the Umgubular Slashkilter. It seems to hang around when people are plotting things. I saw many at the last set of carriages." Luna replied.

"Makes sense. That is snake pit central. I do like the name, it is very funny!"

"I just pick random names when I am not bothered too much. Wizards don't have a system for systematically naming creatures like the mundanes. Binomial Nomenclature needs to come to the Magical world, " Luna joked as she remembered Hermione's explanations.

Ronald nodded as he had been briefed about Luna's gift. Apparently, she could see many magical creatures that resided "Between the Veil", which was an alternate magical dimension. She had even commented that "Ronald had lost all his Wrackspurts", which he had interpreted as an improvement in his personality. He did feel more confident about himself. Nobody could call him poor.

His friends and his siblings were easily the best equipped students at Hogwarts

Neville was now crunching on Potato Chips, flooded with salsa and his homemade hot sauce. Ronald was having a turkey, cheese and ham sandwich and Luna continued to eat her trusty Sourpatch. Ron was now performing the wand movements for the Wingardium Leviosa, as Neville made small corrections.


During the last Wizarding War, the Death Eaters, or the supporters of Lord Voldemort had no problem killing and raping muggleborns, halfbloods and even purebloods. This was proof that lineage was never the issue – you were either a supporter or you were a target. Support the Dark Lord Voldemort on his quest to clear the diseased bloodlines from Wizarding England, or fall to the end of his wand. Neville considered the behaviour of the pureblood students - many were sniggering as they entered the train. Perhaps they were celebrating the death of Harry Potter? Or perhaps they were aware of the little stunt in Diagon Alley? It mattered not.

The darker houses were celebrating their ignorance.

Harry had gotten their resident political mastermind, Lorna, to craft just the right circumstances to lure the scum out. With the news of Harry Potter's death, the Death Eaters would be tempted to come out and celebrate in Diagon Alley. Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Remus Lupin and Sirius Black would lead a sting operation, where every Death Eater would be terminated violently on sight. To facilitate this operation, Harry had modified his energy sword to cut through materials with impunity, and Remus was now carrying a prototype "Micro-Cannon." Various advancements had been made to their armour to allow them to carry out aerial combat. There were any number of shielding improvements. Sirius Black, now Lord Black possessed a new metal wand with a sharpened tip, that was designed to puncture skin as a stabbing implement. Finally, Hermione was rocking a new "Combi-SMG" which was a shortened Fiendfyre shotgun with an SMG barrel as a secondary attachment. The Death Eaters were dead men, walking.

Exactly what Harry had promised, he had delivered.

It was close to 10'o clock when Harry texted Neville and Luna. The mission was successful, and now thirty dead Death Eaters littered Diagon Alley. Neville considered that many of the sniggering Slytherins were now fatherless.


Five minutes later, the magically shielded GPS tracker was deployed by Neville, in the male washroom. At ten on the dot, the train began its journey to Hogwarts and Harry texted:

"Beacon is live. Getting GPS coordinates. Thanks, owe you a pizza."

Neville replied, "Send it with Grace. No pineapple. Coca-Cola too. Tomorrow, so the Weasleys and the two of us can share it."

Harry who thought that Neville's demands were hilariously forthright answered, "As you wish Lord Longbottom. Strong words there, about the pineapple. Might send it with Mipsy instead

- Supreme Leader Haza P."


Neville returned to the carriage and continued the instruction. Ron seemed to suffer from inconsistent magical flow, as his spells fizzled out uncontrollably. Neville remembered one of Harry's brilliant explanations and took Ron through a piece of supposedly advanced magical theory. Ideally, it should have been taught to first year students, but for some reason was missing from the Hogwarts syllabus.

"Hadrian taught me that the Magic is to be respected. You do not force the regimen. Let the magic flow, and be emotionally stable when you cast your spells. Breathe deeply and think about the intent. Don't let anxiety and doubt colour the magic. Words don't matter, the thought matters more. Breathe, think and then cast.

Take as much time as you need. Relax, centre yourself and from there we will work through all the defence spells, slowly. And be gentle about it, you are not poking somebody in the eye, with the wand movements. Keep the speed of the wand movements constant throughout the flicks and swishes. Hone in on the feeling. The feeling and the intent are what help you to nail the spell. Our emotions are connected to our magic."

Ronald nodded and followed Neville's instructions. Over the next fifteen minutes, he merely relaxed and decided not to cast any spells with his wand, until he felt stable. As the impatience and the anxiousness waned away, he tried again and his spells were now far more stable and powerful. Ronald began working through all the wand movements as Neville explained that with enough confidence, the wand movements could be dropped eventually. Three hours later, Ronald could execute most of the Defence Against the Dark Arts charms, not necessarily with a lot of speed, but with solid consistency if he took his time, focused and went slowly.

"Ron, that was far faster than Luna and I. We took a week, and we still forget some of the spells sometimes. Want to share your secret?" Neville asked playfully. Ronald nodded tersely and whispered into Neville's ear, "I want to impress Jean? Maybe if I become good I might have a chance. She is the most beautiful witch I have ever seen!"

Neville's eyes bulged, as he realised that if Ronald wanted to earn the affection of Hermione Granger, he would have to truly put out a lot of consistent work. Neville replied, "I can't tell if you are ambitious, hard-working or brave. But you are not clever to entertain that idea. But if you like her that much, whatever you need from me, let me know. Glad to help you become excellent at magic?"

Ronald nodded as he began to think about how he might pack on some muscle mass. He had made up his mind that he wanted to be like Remus Lupin – he wanted to be the physically strongest Wizard at Hogwarts. Ronald had observed Hadrian and Jean lifting weights at his workplace, and they had both explained that physical strength assisted with casting capability. Ronald decided that he would not shy away from the exercise.


Meanwhile, Percy had messaged Harry some time ago, as his operative. The sentiments he had observed throughout the train had been expected. Many were upset that Harry Potter had died, and some of the children of former Death Eaters were in open celebration. The discussion in the Slytherin Quidditch Team carriage was centred around the new developments, now that they had lost their broom advantage. Some of them openly suggested sabotaging or injuring players from other Houses, before the quidditch matches. One thing was for certain – they had no choice, but to purchase the new Nimbus broom. Failure to use the Stormbolt meant being left behind.

Of course, Percy had not patrolled the area openly to obtain this information. He had merely deployed a couple of transparent microphone stickers on some of the windows, before the Slytherins had arrived. These were short-range and they destroyed themselves after their usage. These items were being tested, so that clandestine surveillance would be an available tool in Harry's arsenal. When the Hogwarts train returned to its maintenance location, Harry and Hermione would use the GPS device that Neville had deployed to fly there via jetpack. Then, they would bug every compartment with more permanent solutions.

Nothing whispered on the Hogwarts Express was sacred or private, if war was coming soon.


Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis were sitting at the beginning of the "Slytherin block" or rather, at the beginning of the Slytherin-only carriages. Their parents had advised them to sit there, as the other Slytherins would look upon them with disdain for being neutrals. So far, they had not been disturbed. Daphne who was somewhat skilled had cast a locking charm and a privacy ward on the door. After all, these were the first charms that her father had taught her. The ability to speak privately and deny others access to their environment were considered important to Slytherins.

Or at least, Daphne and Tracey considered themselves Slytherins.

The topic of discussion was Harry Potter and the Storm-Bringers. Tracey had spent her holidays abroad, and Daphne was catching her up with the death of Harry Potter, which was news to her.

"So Daffy, your mum knew Lilly Potter?" asked Tracey.

"Best friends. Imagine that. A Gryffindor and a Slytherin. Only my mother was that ambitious, and only Lilly Potter was that brave."

"So, you could have known Harry Potter, if he had not died Daffy?"

"Possibly? Mother has a picture of Harry, Neville and I at the muggle hospital, together. I was hoping he might like to read the letters that both our mothers shared. Maybe if it was too controversial to openly be friends, we could have done the secret friends thing. That would have been very entertaining?"

"Would you shag him tho?"

"Tracey, does everything have to be perverted with you? I would have been happy to be friends with him. If our mothers were friends, surely we could be friends too?"

"Sure. And THEN, you SHAG him."

SMACK!

Tracey giggled, as Daphne hit her with the rolled up Daily Prophet newspaper.

"Hit me all you want Daffy, none of the boys will ever be as cool as him. Didn't you hear? All the girls used to run him down at the muggle school. Skipped two years ahead, really intelligent. Big, strong, tall and handsome. What is not to like?"

"Maybe he was a ponce? I don't know. Maybe, just maybe he had a chance if he was just a nice guy? I like kind people, who can be firm and insightful, when necessary. So Slytherin but…decent. Happy Tracey?"

"So Daffy, the Ice Princess has a weakness. She likes them….considerate. And here I was thinking you liked them hung and dumb. What other juicy rumours have you heard?"

"I think Lord Cassius was killed by someone. There are rumours. Parkinson's father went to visit Lord Cassius some time ago and the rumour is that there were ghastly bloodstains on the wall, like a wild animal had ripped everyone apart. The manor was clean otherwise, but there were signs of magical damage. Dark powerful spells. Something that ripped holes into the concrete. Other spells had exploded the place into tiny bits."

"Damn Daffy. Anything else?"

"Rumour has it that Sirius Black was rescued by some Dark Lord. All we know is that he broke into Azkaban and he killed the Dementors. The Dark Lord also cracked the wall. This is a rumour from an unauthorised Pensieve memory from the other Neutrals like ourselves, so the purebloods do not know. Mother and father are not sure if the hearsay is true. We will see if we can get a Pensieve memory of the event for ourselves. I have been told to keep my eyes and ears planted. I mean how do you kill Dementors? That has to be rubbish!" Daphne considered.

"Well, good to know I suppose. Is Astoria excited to come to Hogwarts Daffy?"

"Yes, but to see Draco. I don't understand what she sees in him. He is such a ponce. I am glad that the Storm-Priestess kicked him in his danglers. I think I saw her once?"

"Really! How! What was she doing? How did you see her?"

"I think she commissioned her robes at Madam Malkin. I am talking about a casual 2,000 galleon purchase like it was no big deal! She had a glamour on, but she was such a witch! Her robes were the best I had ever seen! She was so confident when she walked, I swear she was a model probably? I only realised who she was, after the Yuletide spectacle.

She has this walk, that says I own this place, I own you! She looked like a third year?"

"Crap. That is a lot of money! Not even Draco's father spends like that!"

"Exactly. Have you noticed our houses have been making a lot of money lately? The items that the I.C.W Potions Guild has been requesting are probably for the Medi-Spray. And the request only happened two weeks ago. Both your father and mine have been making absurd profits. Father believes that at the ten thousand galleons we are making a month, we are probably both doing better than Draco!"

"Well shit. So we have to thank both of them for making us indirectly wealthy?"

"Exactly Trace. Whoever they are, both of them are stupid wealthy and very dangerous. You should have seen how fast they move! The Storm Lord looked like he was thirteen or fourteen, but his arms were huge. Got a spell through the crowd, I don't know how he even saw that tiny space! He can aim better than my father!"

"Oh lala, Daffy, nice big arms, plenty money, tall, dangerous? Replacement for Harry Potter?"

"You are the worst. I am honestly scared of both of them. The Storm-Lord has an extendible sword that looks super dangerous. You should have seen how Draco looked when the sword was on his neck! He wasn't brave then? His father could do nothing about it!"

Both girls laughed at the common two words that Draco spoke, excessively. Everything was My Father, My Father, My Father….bla,bla,bla, bla, bla.

"True Daffy, very true. I like how they roll. Yes, that is a muggle expression."

"As for Harry Potter Tracey, since he isn't here anymore, mother told me it would be good to make a Gryffindor friend. I didn't want to consider it at first, because of the risk. Then, I don't want my mother to surpass me. I want to make friends with the most talented Gryffindor if only to parade it in my mother's face. Mother had suggested Neville Longbottom, but we will see."

"Oooooohh, such ambition. Definitely, a snake. I just want to play drums in a Metal band. Dad bought the drumkit for me complete with a double pedal. I have a silent room where I practice whatever is on the wireless. Generally, the Weird Sisters. When I spend time abroad, I can listen to music at my cousin's house. iPods work because there are no magical Wards."

"That one is the music player? The iPod? Like a Wireless?"

"Way better. You can choose what you want. Tens of thousands of songs. Anyway, thanks for the newspaper. I would have liked to see Harry Potter in person. While the darker families naturally hate him, don't think there aren't many Slytherin Witches who aren't fans of him. Even some of the other girls from neutral families were sad too. I guess a lot of secret admirers will miss him. Trust me Daffy, you had competition!"

Daphne nodded her head sadly. Tracey loved to write filthy ideas on parchment, that were essentially lewd sex stories. According to her, one day she would make it big as a romance novel author. Tracey's favourite hypothetical situation was Harry Potter rescuing pureblood fanatic Daphne Greengrass and then a great tale of true love, following right after. Daphne decided to point the conversation in a different direction, as Tracey began with rather graphic descriptions of their supposed activities in her new scene, of her story. Daphne continued:

"Draco will gloat about Harry Potter being dead in the common room. I hope somebody will remind him that a witch kicked him in his balls after he got strangled by a person far more powerful than himself."

"I know right Daffy? The Storm-Bringers are so cool. They have magical guns! I wish I could see one up close!"

"I was excited about meeting Harry. Mother told me that he might have been treated badly by his Muggle Aunt and Uncle. I was supposed to teach him everything, secretly. From his heritage, pureblood culture, everything else? I was supposed to shape him up from a clueless Muggleborn to a Pureblooded Lord, and I wanted the challenge."

"Then you could have fallen in love with him!" Tracey giggled.

"I was not aiming for that. I wanted to change him, look upon my progress and be proud of it! But he died, so I don't get my secret adventure?"

"Too bad indeed, Daffy. His family gave up everything for the rest of us. Do you think the Dark Lord would tolerate me and my mother? Oh, please…."

"That is exactly what my mother reminds me, regularly. Nobody ever messed with Lilly Potter. We will see what happens at Hogwarts. By the way, remember what I heard at Diagon alley? The agreed name for Draco is?"

"T.C.D.M – Thunder Cunt Draco Malfoy! That is the most savage thing I have ever heard. T.C.D.M is the new code name!" Tracey exclaimed.

Both of the girls giggled, not the least bit aware that Harry Potter had played all of them for fools.


Draco Malfoy was discussing his newest crush – He had arrived early and his entourage included Blaise Zabini, Gregory Goyle, Vincent Crabbe and Theodore Nott. He bragged as he explained that he had gotten the beautiful Astoria Greengrass, a neutral witch to love him. One day, he would force their allegiance to the darker houses via a marriage contract. His father was already drafting the agreement and he would also benefit from the added wealth, as she would bring a mandated dowry from the Greengrass vault.

Gregory and Vincent who hardly possessed a single brain cell between both of their combined skulls, nodded openly in amazement. Theodore trusted no claim until he saw evidence himself. However, these comments pleased him - he had a chance at Daphne Greengrass. Blaise Zabini was only loyal to himself, as he listened to any information that he could pass to his mother. She was an information broker after all. He considered that it would be good to stay close, but not too close to Malfoy, as the Storm-Bringers were indeed a threat. He had heard about a planned attack on Diagon Alley this morning, but for some reason, his hair stood on end.

Something felt wrong.

His mother had a keen eye for politics and she had guessed that someone was manipulating events. Sirius Black's sudden disappearance, the death of Lord Cassius, the death of Harry Potter and the sudden appearance of two new powerful wizards – it was too much activity in a short space of time. Even Rita Skeeter's articles did not possess the expected sensationalism, and were rather informative? Blaise had used Medi-Spray and if this was the invention of the Storm-Priestess, what personal potions did she possess? The retractable sword had been the talk of the town as it represented deadly force in a harmless package. Blaise decided that he would subtly use the Mind Arts to draw out information from potential resources.

Soon enough, the discussion had shifted to Harry Potter. Draco explained that he knew about "Pottah's Death" for many months, and that his silence had been ordered by his father. The predictable comments included "Good thing the half-breed died, The Mudbloods are the problem, The Dark Lord will return, The Magicals will rule the world" and all other types of unimportant, mindless drabble that his parents had thought him.

"What about the Storm-Bringers? Guns are Muggle weapons and he made magical versions? Do you think they are capable of being a threat?" Blaise asked - He enjoyed these types of half insulting, half complementary questions that only subtle minded people understood.

Blaise was silently suggesting that if the Muggles were dangerous, and somebody was using Muggle weapons that were crafted with magic, then wands would not stand any chance. Once again Draco did not possess finesse, and he answered:

"They used surprise attacks. Dishonourable. They should have challenged us to a formal duel! Then they will lose. No Muggle artefacts are better than magic, that is impossible!"

Blaise considered that Draco was stupid, and one day he would find himself in hot waters.


Albus Dumbledore had just arrived from Diagon Alley and found himself shocked at the raw carnage that was on display. From the dismembered body parts, Lord Warrington, Lord Flint, Lord Goyle and Lord Crabbe had been killed. This, compounded with Lord Cassius, meant that five Purebloods Lords, all of which were past Death Eaters, were now dead. Many other minor houses had lost brothers and cousins.

Rita Skeeter's previous article had been insightful. She had commented that the Storm-Lord had merely chosen to harmlessly stun his opponents last Christmas. At Azkaban, the Storm Lord had broken bones but had exercised a fair amount of restraint. Dawlish and his team had no lasting damage.

Now, Albus had an opportunity to see what true violence looked like, as the blackened snitch-sized holes had burnt through large areas of tissue. The blood was still dripping from the 'headshots' that were present. Moody who was somewhat bloodthirsty, mentioned that he should work with the Storm-Bringers, because "their methods guaranteed results". This displeased Albus, as he realised that many former Order of the Phoenix members had wanted blood. Only his presence had stopped the body counts from being quite large, during the last war.

The Artificer's sword had been upgraded. Where he had chosen to use his sword, the cuts and slashes had experienced such high temperatures, that the flesh had been cauterized. Many of the individual dismembered body parts contained blood that had been trapped, as the arteries and veins had sealed under the high-temperature sword slashes. The Unspeakables after examining the wounds, were clueless as to how the Artificer's artefacts were so powerful.

Saul Croaker had even demonstrated some sword marks from another location, where the weapon had sliced through a brick wall like it was tissue paper. In the process, it decapitated the Death Eaters on the other side of the wall. This implied that he could see through walls. Even worse, the sword of Godric Gryffindor could not cut through bricks.

The Artificer possessed a sword that made the legendary sword of the Wizarding world, look like a wind-up toy. And to think, he could summon the blade on command, from a wrist sized handle.

There were indications that multiple engagements had occurred throughout the area. The direction of the holes implied that the other participants possessed the "flying armour". They had used verticality to put holes into Death Eaters from vantage points and far-off distances, that the Death Eaters could not target. Another set of dead bodies possessed holes, but these were "Bertie Bot Bean" sized and far more numerous. It seemed that the "plasma guns" came in different versions, and this one specialised in a wide flood of many small spells rather than fewer larger, powerful ones.

Most concerning, was that nobody had seen the Storm-Bringers. The whole mission had been conducted under invisibility and nobody could provide evidence. This alone was a tactic that seemed almost Slytherin in its character. Under the current laws, detractors could only lay baseless accusations. As Albus considered all these things, Severus Snape stepped into the Headmaster's office. Albus then explained what had occurred at Diagon Alley:

"Afternoon Severus. I am afraid you will have to lend your support to your Slytherins tonight."

"For what reason Headmaster?"

"Some of the former Death Eaters decided to participate in a little celebration in Diagon alley. They were celebrating the death of Harry Potter."

"And?"

"All thirty participants were killed brutally, with even far more powerful implements. I would like to believe that the "plasma guns" were used. The Storm-Lord's sword has been upgraded. He was able to cut through bricks and even killed a man through a wall."

"Are you saying that some of my students have lost family members?"

"Lord Warrington, Lord Crabbe, Lord Goyle and Lord Flint. All decapitated or shot in the head with the magical guns, I believe. Multiple coordinated attacks. Highly trained and systematic. All done under invisibility for plausible deniability. I want to suspect that they even have their personal wireless, and they can share information in real-time. I saw this being used in World War II. They work like a pack of Wolves. Several small groups of Death Eaters were killed at the same time over very far locations."

"And you, the most powerful Wizard in the world, have done nothing to stop this criminal and his associates from murdering openly?" Severus Snape complained.

"I am not sure if there is anything I can do at all, Severus. I could not win against Lord Peverell in a real fight. I have no defence against the kind of force he can deliver via his apparition. I can do nothing against a gun that has six hundred feet of range, either. I suspect if vengeance is what he wants, you might very well be a target. And if I can do nothing, what can you do? This is the type of power Voldemort loved to play with – he attracted many with his promises. Now the tables have turned. The Purebloods cannot begin to understand how Lord Peverell operates.

What could happen in four or five years? The armour might even become more powerful, and the implements of war more numerous. We have not even considered what unique talents the Rune-Priestess can bring to the table. If the Medi-Spray is truly her invention, what about what they have chosen to keep to themselves?"

We are not fighting a person. We are fighting magical might, through innovation - an idea that has been dead for a long time in Wizarding England. By the time Kingsley's Patronus had travelled to me, they were already long gone. The reality is that we have inferior methods of communication and nobody has invented a better solution. We cannot wait for a Patronus or owl to deliver messages. It takes at least forty five minutes for a message from Diagon alley to reach me via a Patronus."

"Are you saying that Magic is not good enough Headmaster? I hope somebody kills the hooligan!"

"Even that is not a threat anymore. I did not share the second operation with the staff, because of the utter carnage. Lord Cassius had kidnapped the artificer's mother. We have no idea who she is, but we were able to confirm that this occurred, via a third party. The Storm-Lord and two other men bypassed the wards into Cassius Manor. Then, they killed all seventy two men, including Lord Cassius that night. During the fight, four men cast successful killing curses at the Storm Lord and all it did was merely make four craters on his armour. He has found or developed a material that can resist the killing curse."

"What? That is impossible! Nobody can resist the killing curse with artefacts!" Snape complained, as now there was fear on his face. If he could not be killed, who could stop him? Albus continued as Severus tried to deal with inconvenient truths.

"Yes Severus, indeed. He was even more powerful. He wandlessly slammed bodies into the wall and conjured lightning from his hands to electrocute his enemies. He also ripped spines out of bodies and cracked skulls like mere eggs. The young man is far more powerful than me, and I could not dream to possess his mind and aptitude for fighting.

His magic is old Gammarye from long ago when the ancient peoples wielded a type of might that we have long forgotten."

"Impossible! How is that possible? He must be a Dark Lord himself!" Severus complained.

"It matters not Severus. After he successfully rescued all eighty eight women, he took all the Muggle weapons and burnt all the drugs. Lord Black then appeared on the scene. They put order to the situation, broke all the wards and called the Aurors.

"Lord Black? Who is the new Lord Black?"

"I suspect Sirius Black took the Lordship, Severus. He left a message with Andromeda Tonks for us. He openly claimed that House Black is done with pureblood extremism and House Black plans to crush all the other darker houses. Sirius Black is our ticket into finding Lord Peverell."

"The stupid dog. Headmaster, what do you suggest we do?"

"We must clear his name based on the events that have occurred, and this may allow him to come forward. However, considering that Harry Potter is dead, I do not know if he will be cooperative. He will be out for blood. And despite this momentous discussion, there are still…other concerns…."

"So Headmaster the Storm Lord is a brutal, rabid animal? What now?"

"The problem is his economic power. I have a large network of informants, and I do not like what I am hearing. The rumour is that the Goblins are purchasing tens of thousands of galleons in wand cores and other Potioneering materials as of recently. There is also a new portrait ink that has flooded the market. Master Painter Clementine Delacour is the redistributor. All we know is that the ink can restore portraits to pristine conditions, and the ink is English. Rough estimates as of last week put the ink at approaching thirty thousand units a month. It was far less, but the word is getting around quickly. A bottle costs seven galleons. "

"That is two hundred and ten thousand gallons a month, headmaster. That is one hundred times our monthly salary Headmaster? He has that type of money behind him?"

"Oh Severus, it only gets worse. I have a Goblin friend at Gringotts China. They recently brought torches for metalworking, high-intensity magical floodlights I think they are called, and personal shielding devices that allow them to stay safe during cave-ins. They also have mining equipment. The entire suite of equipment at the internal Goblin auction sold for fifty million galleons. I want you to imagine that the only individual to possess shield artefacts is the Artificer, and he is the inventor. Gringotts England made the offer but imagine a small consultation fee of ten per cent, which is what they usually pay curse-breakers."

"He is easily wealthier than the Malfoys?"

"Many times over. This is wealth he acquired recently, not over many centuries. It is rumoured that the group are the wealthiest Wizards in Europe. With that kind of money, they can merely buy everyone out. They will control all the cash flow in any case. I think he might have the support of the Goblins. I am suggesting laws that will cut into his monopoly, but the Purebloods are not having any of it – they always looked upon my suggestions as 'muggle loving' because I want to block their stifling of the market. As long as they clutch on to their traditions, he will continue to amass wealth and will suddenly have the entire system in his hand."

"How, How is this possible? What has he made that could be worth that much money, Headmaster?"

"I do not know. The Dark Lord was never a businessman, but the Artificer and the Rune-priestess are businesspeople. They already have economic power that the darker families can only dream about, and they will only do better with time."

Severus Snape was silent, as he considered that the Dark Lord had courted the circumstances that he had always used as his defence for his actions. Someone out there had the power to challenge him and unlike the Dark Lord, he had friends. He had millions of galleons and his reach would be powerful when he made his big move. Suddenly the words of Fourth Year Lilly Evans haunted him:

"Change is coming whether you like it or not Sevy. Wizards will have no choice but to adopt mass-manufactured goods as they hunger for more conveniences. Just imagine a Wizard or Witch with access to magic and technology. They will run all the people who call me Mudblood, to the ground. Every last one of them. I hope I get a laugh, out of it. "

Severus Snape steadied himself and decided to express his displeasure:

"How can an outsider come and change things so easily because he is powerful and wealthy? Albus, you must do something! Anything!"

Albus shook his head sadly. Severus had never left all the pureblooded dogma behind, not completely. Albus considered the new chest pieces on the board and explained:

"Your feelings are recognised, Severus. But the Dark Lord was no different. After discussing these issues, your new assignment is to openly turn your students away from the Dark Lord. You understand the events in motion."

"But Albus, what about my cover? This what you ask is impossible? I do not support him, but I must maintain appearances!"

"There is no cover. Make them understand that if they don't bend their knee, they will die. I don't care how you do it. Until then, you better hope that Sirius Black can be reasoned with. The Sirius Black who we will meet is a man who has survived ten years in the presence of Dementors. Whatever he was then, he is not that now. It takes iron constitution to survive that type of ordeal. Even Bellatrix and her co-conspirators will be partially mad after their stay. If his wits are sharp and he is hitting heavy, he will now be a hardened man, and Harry's death will have him angry. We have to convince him to help us reason with Lord Peverell."

Severus walked out of the office, fuming mad. Little did they know, Sirius had been listening to the conversation, while Harry was experimenting with a "piezoelectric polymer." They were perfectly aware of the events, and they were on the way to planning the next prank. The planted rumours that Lorna had suggested had done their job.