Chapter 18: Homecoming and Christmas Eve

Later that evening Cyrus accompanied his wife and his daughter to collect their Daphne off the Hogwarts express. Reginald and his wife respectively were there, to collect Tracey. As soon as both snakes stepped off, and looked at their parents, they began to suspect that a lot of things had changed. Unknown to the girls, everybody in the receiving party was wearing kinetic barriers. Reginald and Cyrus were also carrying their pistols and wands, all of which were being hidden under invisibility charms. But most importantly, was the difference in Astoria – that was something that the pair of snakes immediately noticed.

She looked lively and had all jet black hair. She looked very healthy and even a bit…..bubbly?

Daphne also noticed Draco waving to Astoria and to her surprise, her sister had merely shown the silver-haired boy a middle finger. The reaction had left Draco perplexed. While it was an unknown insult in the magical world, Tracey had explained the meaning of the expression.

"Uh Daffy, did your sister just….middle finger T.C.D.M?"

"I must be dreaming. Pinch me heard?" Daphne asked. Tracey pinched her, and the girl winced.

"Ouch, not with so much enthusiasm. So, this is real. Let us get to the bottom of this."

There were hugs between the girls and their parents. Purebloods did not believe in public displays of affection, but Cyrus and Reginald never subscribed to that nonsense. They always believed that his children should be balanced, and mentally healthy. The girls immediately suspected something when the hugs felt sterile and were missing their characteristic warmth. There was a curious look on Daphne's face as she began poking her father and saw the frying pan sized shields flare into existence. One look from Daphne was all that Tracey needed to confirm their suspicions.

"My dearest daughter, welcome back home. Tracey and her parents will be coming along to the manor. Come quickly, we have a couple of very busy days ahead. No time to waste." Cyrus replied, as the parents apparated their children.


Now both families were in the Greengrass kitchen. Ophelia then explained to both of the girls:

"Alright. I need both of you to get changed and get seated for the evening meal. We do have a lot of House business to talk about, and it will be one of the most impossible evenings of your life. And no, I am not joking."

"Oh, this ought to be interesting. You guys got stuff for me to change?" Tracey asked. Amy then handed Tracey a small bag and said, "Don't take too long sweetie. We might need the time. But we promise to make it entertaining!"


All the Weasleys had arrived from the train from King's Cross station and had gotten seated in Arthur's Ford Anglia. The group was quite surprised when the car became invisible and it was now flying off to the Weasley home.

It was flying at a pretty fast velocity, and there were reasons why the unassuming vehicle had a lot of aerial spunk. Arthur had asked Harry to take a look and he had made some custom modifications that were not the latest innovations, but were still far ahead of standard charms. The new invisibility emitters and the old power cell were still quite a lot of energy, for basic travel. Harry had taken out the entire drivetrain and had installed superconducting magical hub motors and some of the early jet engine prototypes. As the Weasleys heard the roar from the small angry jet engine, Ronald began to suspect who had been involved.

"Harry modified this didn't he….it usually doesn't go this fast….does it? And you aren't using the invisibility booster?" asked Ronald.

"He did. We are doing about 160mph. Not as fast as your brooms, but good enough for me. They are multiple invisibility emitters, should one fail, another will take over. Same with the engines. We are even safe from radar and air traffic control. That bit was Hermione."

"Harry? Do you mean Hadrian? He modified the car?" asked Charlie.

"Yes, your suspicions are correct. Same person. But let us get home and we can tell you all about it. The story is...…complicated." Arthur replied.

As the Weasley home came into view, everybody soon realised that a lot had happened over the term. Standing behind the wooden Weasley house was an inky black concrete structure that seemed to be ten stories high and full of modern glass. The size of the base floor suggested that it was easily triple the area of their wooden house.

"Is that our new house?" Percy asked, completely surprised.

"It is. We are trying a new type of ultra-hard concrete. We had the main structure finished in about two weeks. Furnishing the thing is a challenge. Yes, Harry invented the concrete mixture too. Becomes rock hard in a week. We even have an invisibility field, but it is off today."

"How much did that cost?" asked Ronald.

"Only seven hundred and fifty hundred thousand galleons. Very cheap. I understand that isn't the sort of money that we are accustomed to….but I can say money is not much of a concern anymore. I will explain how all this happened." Arthur replied as Fred and George looked at him, rather curiously. Charlie was surprised, as balancing the budget at home had been an ongoing discussion for many years. Now the people who were not aware of Harry's identity wondered if Hadrian had been responsible.

The boys were rather surprised when the car was not parked at the old wooden house, but it was parked at the top of the new structure which possessed a fifteen foot iron rail. As they began to look closely at the place, they realised that the Weasley Crest was on full display on the building. The entire structure looked ultra-modern, and now the building towered over everything in the burrow. It looked like a distinguished piece of architecture.

"Wicked!" Fred and George yelled as they exited the car and looked at the crest and the walls.

"Alright Weasleys, we will be taking the elevator down to the ground floor. I had told Harry I liked the elevator at the Ministry and he did something rather special for me, as a joke. I have to say, I love his jokes."

As the school supplies were loaded into the elevator, the entire group got in and soon witnessed as the Protego shields were summoned to act as walls. The control panel now floated from the floor and Arthur tapped a rune. The elevator began to slowly descend, as they began to look at the stairs and the other internal metal bracing of the building.

"Father, is that beam made from iron?" asked Charlie.

"Yes. Thirty inch steel I-beams. Built to withstand an apocalypse. Harry's specifications."

"So, a fortress for the war then? I do like how he builds things, can't complain. Looks very sturdy." Ronald replied.

"What war? Wait a moment, you know everything don't you?" Charlie asked.

"I do. The story is complicated, but it is a good thing. When you understand the reason why we have all of this, you will tremble in your boots. But I believe we are better prepared like this." Ronald commented.

"Correct boys. As for you Ronald, we have some assault cannons coming soon. We also have an anti-everything ward. As time goes by we will get more upgrades. Ah, we are on the ground floor! Our favourite place boys. The kitchen."

As the boys emptied into the kitchen, Bill was already there, and he was drinking a Guinness.

"Ah, Bill good to see you son. Would you, Percy and Ronald like to tell the rest of them the story? I don't know all of it?" Arthur suggested.

"I think we can manage. Harry spoke to me not too long ago. I know what are the points I have to touch on," Bill replied. The eldest Weasley touched his ear and it seemed he was talking to a person in thin air. The rest who were in the loop reasoned that somebody had pinged him on the communicator. They also observed the box on the table. The heir rings had been reforged, and it seemed that House business was being discussed once more.

"William?"

"Yes mum?" the boy replied, as the other three Weasley's watched on in total confusion.

"Sending food with Itsy and Bitsy. I will be home soon. I have come to conclude mundane education is difficult – the university students look like they will drop down dead from examinations.."

"Okie Dookie? Send it through."

POP!

"Hey Itsy and Bitsy, how is the kitchen?" Bill asked.

"Busy. Very Busy. I almost want to say we will have more experience than the Hogwarts elves soon? But we get good energy off your mother and Harry's grandparents. We have some of the usual things that your mother makes, and some of Harry's favourites."

"Excellent! Thanks as always!" he replied.

POP.

"Are you stark raving mad? Who were you talking to?" asked Fred.

"Mum. See this device in my ears? It does what your extendible ears do, but no string and it can disguise itself." Bill then disconnected the device and tossed it at Fred. As they looked at the design and how compact the item was, George asked the obvious.

"Did Hadrian build that? We would like to believe that he builds other things too" George casually mentioned.

"Not surprised you have suspicions. Let me tell you the whole story. And after I tell you this story, you will think I am mad. And yet, every bit of it is true. Let me be straight with you and then you can start asking questions."

There was a momentary pause as Bill and Ronald got the plates out and spooned the food out. Ginny seemed to be absent, and her other brothers assumed that she already knew. After the Coca-Cola and the beer were on the table, Bill continued:

"So the first thing is that Hadrian Singh is the Storm Lord. Jean von Neuman is the Storm-Priestess. With me so far?"

"Well, I suspected as much. They are just way too confident to be normies" Charlie replied.

"Us too. They like to take nightly excursions to the castle. Responsible for the broom rescue, and dealing with the troll." replied George.

"Great. But more importantly….The Storm-Lord is just a nickname. His real name is Palatine Artificer Lord Peverell. The Peverell house is the oldest magical house in England with almost two millennia of history. I am talking about the days of the Roman Empire. The other person, Jean? Her name is technically Priestess Lady Granger. That is the new name for the Hector-Dagworth line, which was inactive. She is also the next successor in Morgana's line. I have seen Morgana's notes with my own eyes. And I have been using some of the runes too."

"Holy Hell!" Charlie replied. Now Fred and George were quiet.

"But most importantly, this entire wild story starts when Master Healer Ms Priya Singh, who recently won the Order of Merlin for her contributions to healing, found an abused Harry Potter malnourished with broken bones, in a mundane primary school. At that time, she was a mundane school teacher. And it is from there that Harry Potter is attacked by the scar that Voldemort left him with, and then he begins to work backwards as a person who had never seen magic in his life. He grew up non-magical. Hermione Granger his school friend, checks out as magical and then….."

The three of them who were out of the loop had the most impossible night of their lives, as the story became complex and nuanced. At first, the twins and Charlie went into abject fear – He who must not be named was alive? And he would return?

Then the plan for dealing with the chipmunk was outlined. Hostile takeovers of an entire Wizengamot bloc? Guns? Pistols? Grenades? And a flying one thousand foot battleship with cannons? And they already owned the data slates? Had control of a great deal of the magical market? The audacity to fake your death, fool Hogwartsts and engineer such a huge deception? Harry Potter and Hermione Granger were the greatest pranksters of them all. They were the two people who decided to prank the whole of magical society.

Kicking Draco in the nut sack. Breaking into Azkaban. Killing dementors. Manufacturing products. Performing research. Discovering elf lore. Building wands. And clearing Death Eater scum from Diagon alley. And finally making them rich, only for their father to tell Lucius Malfoy to "piss off….".

But perhaps most appreciative, was when the pair had saved their mother and sister. That had instantly earned the respect of the boys. Charlie cried when Arthur explained that they were now seven million galleons rich and they had two more sales arriving soon. And also, their projects had done quite well.

"I don't know about the rest of you but if they saved Mum and Ginny? And offered to support our joke shop? WE ARE IN!" Fred yelled.

"Better yet, we are attending dinner at their place tomorrow. You will take oaths to keep their business secret. We have enough to pay the penalty. The Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Weasley is back. We will only resume the Wizengamot seat when it is aporopriate with Harry's plans. In the meanwhile, we are going to work towards cementing our image once more." Arthur replied, and the boys became excited.

"So, if I understand this correctly, we will pay the fine during the war?" Charlie asked.

"Correct. The new bloc is with Harry leading the charge. Sirius as Harry's godfather will bring the neutrals. The Greengrasses and Davises will work with him. We and the Longbottms will bring the light sided houses.

Harry and Hermione are bringing the firepower."

Fred and George were convinced that Harry needed to see their most prized item. The twins were going to show Harry the Marauder's map. Suddenly, Ronald had to inject his newfound sensibility:

"Don't get so excited yet. Harry's world is full of intrigue, danger and terrible things. Harry is my age and he had to kill men by the droves. Remember Moldypants will be back. War is coming. Now you could see why Harry outfitted us with a fortress. Fred and George, this is no joke."

"I think we prefer Ickle Ronnekins. You are worse than Percy now!" George complained.

"Look, jokes and a laugh are good, and those things are important. All I am saying is that Harry has terrible burdens. Don't harass him much. Hermione too, she…"

Ronald paused as he composed himself.

"She told me that when she saved Mom and Ginny, she was covered in blood. It still haunts her sometimes. And then, Albus Dumbledore was going to send Neville, Luna and I to confront the Dark Lord eventually? Me. Badger Ronald Weasley facing him? Is he out of his mind?" Ronald exclaimed.

"But what is Neville supposed to do against him Ron?" asked Charlie.

"Win because of his amazing personality traits I think?" Ronald replied as the entire family became silent.

Suddenly Albus' oddities were not enchanting anymore.

"Well….all this unpleasant business is much to ponder. I have been researching the Chamber of Secrets. I am beginning to believe that Salazar put something in there to protect the castle against being taken by invaders. Muggle, Magical or otherwise. I am hitting a dead end. All I know is it is some type of magical animal."

"Research?" Charlie asked.

"The Sorting Hat confirmed with Neville and the other two that Salazar Slytherin was not a nut case. He had a non-magical wife, married for love and was Godric's best buddy to the end. He left the castle after his wife was murdered – he was going to find her killer and take his revenge. A person without magic. This is as far as I have gotten. Harry had some records of the Founders because Glaucon Peverell made their damned wands. Their lineage brought wands to England. Ollivander learnt from them. It means that the current snakes would displease Salazar. He would probably kill most of the angsty types himself."

"Holy Hecate!" the twins replied.

"Exactly. The majority of snakes are perfectly fine. Harry himself has vouched for the Greengrass and Davis families. Lord Greengrass is leading the Neutrals, under Sirius."

"Yeah, Daphne and Tracey are pretty nice. They always tell us hello in the corridor." Fred replied.

"Tell you what Fred and George. Harry outfitted all of us with computers and all the cool stuff. You can play some games, explore the internet, whatever you want. Maybe you can watch videos on how to make explosives. You might blow yourself up before you damage the house. We have a training Gym that is up to Harry's specifications. Percy can show you how to get around. Ronald want to show me your shielding spell?" Bill asked.

"We can do better than that. Put the stunners down, let us see how long I last." Ronald replied with a smirk.

"By the way, I lost Scabbers. I have given up on him. I have decided I am getting a new owl. That the only new bit of news in terms of me, personally?" Percy joked.

"Time for a replacement, Perce. I might consider a cat, they have grown on me?" Ronald replied.


Meanwhile, at Greengrass manor, everyone was seated.

"Excellent. Now that both of you are here, let us discuss what is so important." Ophelia commented. Daphne and Tracey looked on rather curiously:

"Tracey, any suspicions?" asked her mother.

"Sure. The Storm-Lord and the Storm-Priestess are our allies. And they developed the communicators. And I want to believe they developed the data slates too. That was why when they came the night to rescue us, they could make the thing do whatever they wanted."

"Correct. But anything else?" Amy asked.

Daphne butted in:

"They are friends with Neville, Luna and Ronald. Good friends. They are being trained, but I don't know for what. And did they provide all the new things in our rooms? Why did they do that? Do we owe them a debt for those luxuries?" Daphne asked.

"Not bad. Excellent detective work. We had to make a lot of effort to figure out the entire story. The debt has already been repaid if you call earning seven million galleons casually repayment. You will understand when you see my memory after your mother's memory. " replied Cyrus.

Daphne and Tracey found this utterly perplexing.

"Well Tracey and Daphne, the story starts during the attack on Diagon Alley. Astoria and I were trapped and were behind a disillusionment spell. We were there, hiding in an alley and the attack occurred."

"You were there?" asked Daphne.

"Unfortunately and fortunately yes. Ten Death Eaters including Lord Crabbe and Lord Goyle had just crucioed and petrified a young girl. They intended to rape her and she was being dragged into the same alleyway that Astoria and I were hiding in, behind a disillusionment spell. I had the choice of staying silent and saving our decency or doing something and letting both of us be violated. I want you to watch this memory of mine so that both of you so you can understand what we are dealing with. Then we will watch some other memories after that."


As Tracey and Daphne fell into the Pensieve, they looked on at the memory.

"Die Scum."…..

Then they had both witnessed absolutely fury as the Storm-Lord has merely sliced men in half, and put holes into men's heads, but not before moving at a speed that they had never seen before. And it was fluid and effortless. It was notable that he had not used a wand. It almost seemed as if the wand could not provide him with enough brutality. Death Eaters were no match for him.


"Not to worry my dear, it is all good. You are all safe. There was a total of 30 individuals who took part in today's activities and they are all dead."

They had killed 30 of them in twenty minutes?


"Good afternoon, Lady Greengrass. I do need to have word with you. Particularly as to the recent headlines. I promise you I mean no harm. Although there is nothing you could really do to harm me."

They had never seen a person with that level of confidence. And Daphne found herself wondering how powerful this person was because her mother was a formidable witch.


"Why do you think that is the case?"

"The worse you can do is the killing curse. Sadly, these three craters on the armour here, represent three attempts at it. Sadly, the casters are dead, but I am here."

His armor could resist the killing curse? But this armour was not the armour she had seen – this one looked far more basic. Did he improve the system so quickly? The new one seemed far more fluid and lifelike. This one looked like a trial system to test ideas?


"You over there, turn and face the wall. See nothing. Hear nothing."

"You over there little girl, turn and face the wall. See nothing. Hear nothing."

"What have you done to my daughter!"

"Merely put her in a state where she will not hear our discussion. You must think all magic requires a wand. Very cute. In any case, Draco on the train was proud to tell his friends that Astoria Greengrass adores him, and she would do anything for him. Why would I allow her to hear to hear our discussion when I plan to kill the whole lot of them?"

Killing them wasn't going to be a big deal, not with the way he fought. He could execute the Imperius, wandlessly? How much power did he have?


"How do you know such things?"

"That is a hilarious question from a Slytherin. Oh look, the rest of my squad is coming. Anyway...I have a clue for you, only for your ears."

They could fly? But then of course he could! He was the person who rescued the students during the broom malfunction. And he had a squad of three? No wonder Diagon Alley had gone badly for them. And the Rune-Priestess, that was her! How much killing did a person have to do, to be dripping blood? They seemed to be well trained. Whoever had trained them was far beyond usual Auror skills.


"You must think I use primitive implements like Dragon Skin armour? A dragon would not want to fuck with me. I will give you a single clue. The killing curse doesn't work on me now and it never worked on me before, either. I know exactly who you are, Ms Pinegrew. We will see if you will prove trustworthy, we will see."

"As you were, both of you, ten seconds. Grace!"

The killing curse never worked on….wait a moment. The Storm-Lord was…..Harry Potter? And was that a phoenix? And a phoenix with lightning? And it could apparate through wards?


As soon as the girls came out of the Pensieve, Daphne found herself scratching her head, as she was honestly confused. Tracey on the other hand was sniggering before she teased Daphne with, "My novel, it can continue! Yes!"

Daphne then punched Tracey softy, in annoyance.

"Hey ouch, relax Daffy. Although I do want to know what happens from there. That means the article in the papers wasn't real. But how did he get that powerful?" asked Tracey.

"Lilly my child. Lilly was researching the scientific applications of magic. Harry took her research and advanced it quickly. He is both muggle and magically educated. He had combined both disciplines to build something new. He is probably centuries ahead of the rest. More importantly, he was in line to inherit an old house. Harry Potter is also Lord Peverell, the last of the great Artificers. The lineage that made the Deathstick."

"Like…..that Deathstick?" asked Daphne.

"We saw Glaucon Peverell's notes with our own eyes. Although it is of no consequence. He has far more powerful things in his possession. And we even some of those items too, as he provided us with many protective and offensive implements." Cyrus replied casually before he stood up and handed Daphne the pistol, with the safeties fully engaged. She read with fascination:


PEVERELL INDUSTRIES

TYPE XII Pulse Pistol

Rest in Pieces, Jackasses

SN: [02092010-001]


"Rest in pieces? Well, I suppose he did exactly that. He is soooooo cool! Dad do you have one too?" Tracey asked.

"Yes, I do. Wife, can you cast some stunners at me? I am going to activate the shields, and show them what we are using now."

"Ophie, bring the assault rifles and the nano-laminate armour. I think they ought to know." Cyrus asked.

The next twenty minutes were spent as Cyrus explained that the pieces could detect spells or even objects and conjure shields. And these shields were intent modified Protego that could take far more punishment than the standard spell. The objects also had 'power cells', that could store large amounts of magical energy, so shields could be maintained without a person having to bother to defend themselves. In the case of the Imperius and the Crucio, the shields did not protect against that, but the laminate armour could take at least twenty killing curses to the chest before completely failing.

"So yes Daphne, Harry used a great deal of Muggle things as his inspiration. The muggles have very efficient devices, and Harry has no problem combining ideas from everywhere. Please come to the kitchen window, let me show you the rifle…" Cyrus explained.

The snakes were given a demonstration of their fathers, as they nailed a target that was fifteen hundred feet away with acceptable accuracy. Daphne and Tracey examined how the rifle was constructed. There was a cold mechanical design about the item that made it feel lethal and dangerous. The bayonet and the hybrid scope also was a revelation for her.

"How did you learn to use this, father?" Daphne asked.

"Hermione's father supervises us. He is S.A.S or what the Muggles call special operations. Highly trained British soldiers. Counter-terrorism? Hostage rescue? Several successful operations. Not one bit of magic, and could probably put down Death Eaters with a knife. And I am not joking."

"Who is Hermione? Is that the Rune Priestess?" Daphne asked.

"Ah right. They have become so familiar to us, that we consider them family. As to why, well I am still saving the best news for you.

Harry at the muggle primary school where he attended made friends with Hermione Granger, a muggleborn magical who knew nothing about Hogwarts. There is a possibility that her magic was attracted to Harry's magic. After Harry claimed his inheritance, she did an inheritance test, and she qualified for the Hector Dagworth-Granger line. She also qualified to be next of line for Morgana's lineage, on the basis that she invented a new runic schema. "

"Morgana…..as in….the Morgana Aunty Ophie?" asked Tracey.

"Yes. The bracelets are hers. Anti-Legilimency bracelets. They show the other person whatever they need to see to cause the least amount of trouble. Hermione and Harry sent them for you. Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape have been foiled so many times with these, that it has become a running joke. "

"Wait, they know us?" asked Daphne.

"Not personally. But they know enough. Take a look at my memory and then we will work from the beginning. You haven't seen anything yet." answered her father.

"Oh yes, you haven't seen Hoppity. Harry and Hermione have discovered a piece of elf lore. They have been giving our elves magical therapy. Hoppity?" Ophelia called.

POP.

"Hello Daphne! Hello Tracey! I see you are getting acquainted with our new friends. I work with their elves sometimes. Harry and Hermione are very kind. Very kind, unless you threaten them."

"You look nice! I love your robe! Harry fixed you? You look so…different!" Daphne replied.

"Thank you. According to Harry, we look like…..pixies? As for the robe, I was provided with the design from Tipsy. We can chat later and I will make something special for you. I am going back to the greenhouse, it was renovated. You will see for yourself. Yes, he did fix me. He is working on something to fix all of us. Have fun deary…."

POP.

"Harry fixed her?" asked Daphne.

"He likes to fix things in general. Very talented hands and a talented mind. Alright, now to see my memories. I will show you how we got in contact with him, and then finally the full story as he begins to plan and grow in his power. This will be rewarding, as he has done a house such a large favour, you are lucky your mother and I just didn't flat out demand that you marry him!" Cyrus replied, with a smirk on her face. Daphne gulped as she and Tracey slipped into the pensive again.


Daphne and Tracey looked at the pivotal memories:

"I will do anything to save my daughter. Even if the Goblins are angered by…..


He and his sister are coming in exactly half hour. I quote his words – both of us are going with him….immediately"

Daphne found herself anxious to see the boy, and she did not know why.


"Lord Greengrass, Harry at your service? This one here is Hermione."

What she saw was a tall, muscular guy who almost looked like he was fifteen. He was shredded and his gait was powerful. And yet, his face was easy going and kind. There was not one drop of arrogance, and she found it…attractive. As for Hermione his sister, she immediately recognised that confident walk. She almost seemed like a model, if you could disregard the slight bicep bulges and the fact that her buttocks were perfectly sculpted. There were a lot of muscles there – she looked far more physically fit than most female quidditch superstars. Witches could only dream to have a behind like that. The chorded muscles in her legs were impressive. She looked tough, but her eyes? Those were definitely a raven's eyes.


…You are a meanie!"

"Sweetie, after seeing the Dark Lord kill my mother I could never be a child. You cant even begin to understand that burden, my young grasshopper. But no offence is taken….

He was in pain, as his eyes seemed to remember horrid things. And yet, he seemed to bear his pain with so much composure.


I am happy to be here, Aunty Ophelia and Uncle Cyrus? I will do anything to help your little girl. Anything for the friend of my biological mother."

Harry Potter had absolute reverence for his mother. And his voice was so soft and sincere. He also regarded her mother with a lot of respect, and Daphne appreciated that very much.


"Hello Aunty Ophelia. Not that you know me, but I know Harry. Which implies you have no options. We are sort of a package deal?"

So, she was not just confident and too cool, she liked jokes too!


"Welcome Lord and Lady Greengrass to Peverell Manor, or as I like to call it….the madhouse!"

So, this had to be Harry's adoptive mother. She looked at the boy and even Hermione as her own. And she seemed that she was very tired, but here she was ready to work again. This was Master Healer Priya V. Singh, who was even a heartthrob with neutral pureblood guys who often said "Have you seen how beautiful that woman is? I want to marry her!"


"Padfoot! – I want the elves out, and I want Kreacher and Mipsy with Pulse SMGs. I want everyone wearing shields and I want the deployable cover set up. We have some kind of weird non-corporeal creature and I am taking no chances. Grace…collect Luna for us!"

As he set up the implements, she looked around and released that they possessed a lot of weapons. You would have to be stark raving mad, to mess with him. And his voice held a certain kind of authority when it was time to fight. He often seemed to listen to everyone and consider all points of view. But when it was time to fight? He and Hermione roared, and they took the lead without apology.

Their eyes were full of steel.


"I killlleeeedddddd youuuuuurrr ennntttiiirrre line, weshhhh, yeshhhhhh puny human, I fed and I grew oveerrrsssss the lasstssssssssss thousanddddsssss years. I will feedddssss on…."

Luna could see creatures beyond the veil? So Nargles and the Slashkilters were real creatures? Luna was no longer an oddball. She was just gifted now. Just the sight of the battle with the creature had terrified Daphne. That thing had been stuck to her neck? And Harry had not hesitated to conjure lightning. He bellowed in a crazed fury as the phoenix sensed his intention and delivered her own attack. Hermione could already apparate and to see both of them combine the skill? It was like looking at a pack of highly coordinated wolves. And the beast had been killed with impunity. He also seemed to be able to grip objects without a wand.


"Correct – some things happen at the cosmic scale and we can do nothing. But you have other concerns right now…"

No fear. No hesitation. But most importantly, he and his team of experts had cured his sister. And she was going to be cured too. Now Daphne realised that the Greengrass curse was gone, and it would trouble them no more. Daphne began to wonder if she should marry Harry Potter – not that she liked him, but those muscles were very pleasing to the eye. And it was not easy to earn the respect of her mother. And Ophelia seemed to treat the boy as her son.

Harry was covered in blood, and as soon as the battle was done, he told her sister that her new hair was fantastic. It was a copy of her father's hair for sure. Astoria looked like her father now. Did Draco's white hair indicate he was suffering from something also?


"The entire set of equipment sold for fifty million galleons and Harry and Hermione made an easy fifteen per cent on that. Each. The parts are expensive, and we have multiple sets lined up. At even a paltry ten per cent for running everything, you would be looking at five million galleons easily. And that is a single sale."

"This doesn't exactly sound like compensation? More like an opportunity?" asked Cyrus.

"Correct. But for us, this would be great. Harry and Hermione have so many projects, that we are tasked to capacity. The complaint is that they aren't getting time to experiment and study."

They were so busy making galleons, that they needed other people to manage their business, so they could experiment? Draco suddenly seemed very poor. And they were offering millions of galleons as a commission? Seven million galleons on a single sale. Multiple sales? And that was a sideline project. Daphne had never been concerned about a man's money but she considered the skill involved in designing such artefacts to be impressive. She had always possessed a sharp mind, but she felt small when she considered the achievements of Harry and Hermione.

They were good enough to have tea with King Ragnok.


"Relax I am just seeing if I can push the thing…turning…turning…..coming right back at you…350….450….550…650…. backing off…..coming in"

What were kilometres? Muggle units of measurement? Whatever was this planned artefact, it was bloody fast. It made the new Stormbolt look like a little toy.


"ARRY! MIONE!" "Did you bring me anything?"

"We did. We brought the finest diadem in the entire land of England….

Astoria had been stumped. For the first time in magical history. And the diadem was beautiful. She had never seen such designs before and now she wondered why the Wizarding world was not open to more 'floaty' designs. And the illusion based "emotes" were too funny. Especially the thinking bubble.

She honestly wanted one too.


"Fair enough. I am curious about those boxes, actually."

"Weapons. Assault rifles. Death at 1500 hundred feet. The other items are shielding arrays for everyone. The only thing they cannot shrug off, is unforgivables. Why don't we take a walk to a patch of vegetation that we can afford to wreck and I will give you a short crash course on how the items work?"

Well, she had fired off the weapon under her father's supervision. She knew how they worked. She concluded that if Harry potter wanted revenge, the Death Eaters, were already totally screwed.

Both of the girls exited the Pensieve.


"He cured the generational curse? Astoria will live?" asked Daphne softly.

"He did. Technically, they all did. The three of them. And Harry did not hold us to ransom. Honestly, daughter, I think he holds himself ransom with all the work he does. You do know that usually for such a tremendous favour, you would have been arranged to him?" Cyrus laughed.

"I am not saying that I like him. But if you asked me to do it, I would if only because our line will never suffer again. He didn't ask?" Daphne wondered. Astoria who had been scarce strolled in with her diadem displaying a prancing unicorn. Some fireworks were exploding over her head. She looked hilarious, and it seemed that the conversation was old news for her. She butted in:

"Too busy building bombs and weapons of mass destruction. I went to the manor to get something today. I am not saying what I saw….but what I saw was absolutely cool. Haha, brooms are so yesterday!" Astoria replied.

Daphne wanted one for herself. So, this was the diadem? It was truly the finest piece of jewellery in England. The illusions seemed to change with her emotions and it was an amazing piece of magic. Ophelia laughed as she realised that her daughter was very enamoured by the boy who had saved her sister. However, she was curious to see Harry's reaction to her. He seemed to care little about girls – he didn't have time for romance.

He had a war to win.

Ophelia gently warned her daughter about puppy behaviour:

"He seems like a prince in shining armour. A knight. But he is a boy who is exactly your age. So is Hermione. And they are fighting an entire war by themselves. And so far, they have managed to outthink the enemy by finding an exploit.

Sure, they recently got help, but this entire thing begins only three years ago when Master Healer Priya Singh was a displaced muggleborn witch teaching an unhappy Harry Potter and a friendless Hermione Granger at a muggle primary school. Harry and Hermione grew up a muggle and knew nothing about magic. As I often say, talent is talent.

Once again, for how long will the darker houses put people on the outside? No, Goyle and Crabbe courted this, and they have paid the price. They saved us in that alleyway, remember that." her mother explained, sternly.

Daphne nodded silently.

"All I am asking is for you to hold your tongue. I know you generally don't like the boys from other magical houses. He is not like them nor is Hermione entitled. They give freely of themselves, and they ask for nothing. I am expecting that you will merely be nice, and feel free to ask them questions about magic. Oh, they love explaining things. Astoria and Ron's sister Ginny can already cast Lumos reliably." Cyrus answered.

"They have been learning all this time?" Tracey asked.

"We play with wrenches too. I think I like grease, just like Ginny. Bet it smells better than Draco." Astoria replied with much acid in her voice. Both of the snakes had no idea what grease was, but it seemed to be nasty. Cyrus continued with some information about the last mission:

"Harry recently went on a mission. South America. They collectively saved more than twenty three women from a chattel market. For a young man, his burdens are much. There were about one hundred and ninety men in the place. Trained Aurors have never survived the jungle. Both of them flattened them all. The first engagement occurred in the darkness of the jungle. Pitch black darkness. The first sixty were killed tactically and without mercy. After they gathered enough information, the next one hundred and thirty were killed in under a minute.

They are the now I.C.W Alpha Kill Team.

The French Minister of Magic is authorising them for international operations. You send them when the targets are to be terminated. I would suggest that you speak to Harry and Hermione as if they were adults. They are technically by title, Palatine Artificer Lord Peverell, and Rune-Priestess Lady Granger." Cyrus explained to the two snakes.

"We are speaking to them?" asked Tracey.

"Yes, he invited us for dinner tomorrow. And I think we will keep him and Hermione company. They are cleaning up Albus Dumbledore's mess, and they do things that many adults cannot stomach. Some company will be good for them. Anyway, let me tell you what he did, to get all this going. We have some of their memories."

Daphne and Tracey jumped into the Pensieve again, looked at some memories from Harry and Hermione's perspective, and one thing was quite clear – they had quick brains and they processed information quickly. Daphne and Tracey had a first-person view as Harry and Hermione had invented many magical innovations, created magical guns, got Remus Lupin back, made friends with King Ragnok, kicked Lucius in the nuts, stormed Azkaban, killed all the Dementors, rescued Sirius Black, faked his death, and then bought over half a dozen companies while making enough money to casually offer her family millions of galleons as a free for administering his "side projects."

Hermione soon became not a random person, but his partner in crime who was equally involved in all the mischief. She was a genius at runes – she had invented an entirely new rune schema from scratch and seemed to know muggle chemistry and potions? She also seemed to be able to fly anything. She was the girl who loved Harry so much that magic had to recognise them as siblings.

When both girls arrived from the pensive, Tracey asked the obvious question.

"Uh..you sure he isn't a Slytherin? How much can he plot? My head hurts!" Tracey commented.

"From speaking to him, I have noticed that he has the four houses in him. As brave as Godric, as hard-working as Helga, as intelligent as Rowena and as cunning as Salazar. And yes, Salazar was very liberal and mild. Percy Weasley is working on that research." Amy answered.


"Neville, Ronald, Luna?" Daphne queried after dialling the entire group after her dinner. Neville and Luna answered.

"Hey you! I suppose you heard about Supreme Leader Haza P eh? You are lucky he permitted us to talk to you. We had taken oaths." Neville replied.

"That was an experience. You have been friends with him for a while? Supreme Leader Haza P? Is that a nickname?" Tracey asked. She honestly found it very funny.

"It certainly is. So there is this joke about a mundane country called North Korea. It is a brutal dictatorship. They address their leader as "Supreme Leader." So with what Harry was planning, one day Hermione called him that and we just….continued I guess?" Neville explained.

"I like it! I can't believe it. He is so cool! So what other nicknames do they have?" Tracey asked.

"Yes. Other names include Prongslet and Teethsie respectively. Sometimes we call Hermione, Mione for short. Padfoot is Sirius and Moony is Remus." Luna explained.

Ronald was admitted by Neville, as he had answered at a delayed time.

"Hello, we just got through telling Charlie and the twins. I had to explain that knowing Harry is a sacrifice. You will learn things, you rather wished you remained ignorant about." Ronald explained as he listened to the banter.

"Can he do wandless magic?" asked Tracey.

"Any wizard can but have to be physically strong. Very strong, very mentally focused and you must practice regularly. We won't be powerful as Harry and Hermione, because they started at eight years old. We will eventually get a grasp of it." Luna answered.

"Well, I hope Harry and Hermione like us?" Daphne asked.

"Relax. They are nice people until you threaten them. Then they will smash your skull in, without hesitation. Look don't worry much - Harry is more likely to prank us tomorrow. I get the feeling he has something good planned." Neville laughed.

"Okay. You have to understand hearing this much about them is a lot. I do want to see his phoenix?" Daphne explained.

"How do you think the food usually arrived? Grace loves to apparate. As long as she can fly, doesn't mind carrying food and snacks. And she is not a pet. She is his magical familiar, and she talks. Well to Harry privately." Luna laughed.

"Wait a moment. You are telling me our hot wings and spaghetti were delivered by a phoenix?" Tracey asked.

"Sure. Grace loves to fly, and she can bypass all wards. She thinks delivering food is exciting. Any excuse to fly around the place." Ronald replied. Tracey began to cackle, and Daphne could not believe that a phoenix was being used to do food deliveries. But apparently, she liked to fly, so it was no issue.

"As Neville said, tomorrow is going to be filled with jokes." Ronald laughed.


Harry had spent the rest of the day building two emergency muscle weaves. They had even managed to bypass some of the nerves in the spinal cord and now Alice and Frank could at least sit up, turn their heads, and move their arms with the weave.

"As your brain makes new connections you will eventually be able to walk. It might be a while as you are recovering. Also, our experiences are not a good measure of what is normal, we are ridiculously strong for our age. The interface tends to respond strongly to us because we made them too?" Harry replied.

"All in good time. I am very excited to see my boy. I never had the chance to know him. I feel like I am meeting a stranger. I feel embarrassed." Alice replied through Harry's mind link.

"I understand. But he always dreamed that you would get better. And we like to think of all of them as our students. Neville is leading the charge, but the other two are giving him competition too. Enough reason to be proud." Hermione replied.

"I think your mother Lilly is very proud of you. And I think we all have Priya and Lorna to thank for all this." Alice commented.

"I promise you that as we learn more, we will restore you to what you used to be. And if that cannot be done, we will find another way to make you mobile. If I have to wire you into a large moving platform, fine." Harry explained as he made some adjustments.

"Harry, please don't tell me you are thinking of a Dreadnaught?" Hermione sighed.

"Even in Death, I still serve! For the emperor!" Harry cackled, like an immature child.

This joke had flown over the Longbottoms until Harry explained that some of his more interesting projects had been merely trying to bring science fiction to life. Frank upon seeing the mechanical monstrosities via videos on YouTube commented, "Not bad looking. I would like to be that impenetrable. Maybe you should build one?"

Hermione then after adjusting some cables said, "There. You can eat and you can move the stretcher by yourself. I know the catheters are very invasive but you won't have to worry about cleanliness. Everything is odourless and automatically vanished. Not to worry, you will always be decent."

"Thank you, Hermione and Harry. We are not whole but we are not vegetables. That will do for now. And I can hug my precious boy." Alice replied, with tears in their eyes.

"That was always the plan. While the nature of the operation was serious, Hermione and I will enjoy pranking Neville. Maybe you can help us, by playing along. Maybe you can hide for a bit?" Harry asked.

"Wife, perhaps we should. Nev deserves a surprise this Yuletide." Frank commented.

"Harry are the gifts in place?" asked Hermione.

"The last bit of gifts have to be forged at Timilf's cave. They are big pours. The other gifts are pretty cool, pretty pleased with them. Some late night work, but they are just bikes. Nothing too difficult." Harry replied.

"Hey Harry, I took the gunship for a little trip this morning. It still flies. You want to give it a little check over?"

"I am still considering getting it repaired tomorrow. You never know when we will need it, and we might want to show it off. Goblins work on Christmas Eve, so no big deal. Not happy with the paint job. I want to add some cooling channels into the emitter assemblies. Wasn't pleased with the smoke."

"Me either Harry. We almost forgot. We need gifts for the head of Houses. Let us see a robe for Pomona…er….what else?"

"Well Mione, we can give Fillius a hot sauce collection. That and some of our notes on linguistic theories. Some choice textbooks. Sluggy can get some of the potion reagents, the unique ones not available in England."

"What about Minne Mouse? How about some stylish Gryffindor robes" Hermione suggested.

"Oh definitely. And then we can give her a Minne Mouse a plushie that yells "This Quidditch Season is mine!", "Albus what are you doing!" and finally "Albus! Percival! Wulfric! Brian! Dumbledore!"

Alice was now laughing, as she recalled Lilly's mannerisms when she imitated various professors at school. Harry was very much a carbon copy of his mother when it came to that particular skill.

"And the education textbooks too! Anything for Dumbles?" Hermione insisted.

"Oh yes, I know exactly what. Something very special?" Harry grinned cantankerously. He then dialled on a number on his mobile phone.

"Hello, Madam Malkin. We need emergency robes. They are gifts."

"Sure, pop over, I am working late." The seamstress replied as she knew some of the finer details of the pair. She had gladly given an oath, and the agreement was that she was their seamstress for whatever they needed. Hermione was glad she had convinced Madam Makin into taking a mobile phone.


"Hi mum!" all the Weasley boys chorused, as Molly and Ginny appeared. It was close to ten, and it was late but the entire house was up as they experimented with everything - Ronald, Percy and Bill had to teach the others.

"My darling boys. Hello. Oh, today was busy. People were sad that we were closing tomorrow. But I am happy to cook for my family. Business was good and rewarding. I understand Amba's concern. University students look like they have regrets about their education." Molly replied.

"Well, we heard the news. So, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Sirus Black, Remus, Ms Singh? And then you run the kitchen with Ms Singh's parents?" Charlie asked.

"That is about it, I think. Unless you include Augusta as a frequent. She doesn't need the money but she likes to pass the time. Her social circle isn't too big, so this had been good for her. Being connected to other people and doing something constructive has been nice. I have lost fifty pounds off my waist while gaining other pounds in my purse!" Molly replied brightly

"I have been wondering if Harry is a genuinely good Slytherin. But he seems to be roaring Gryff too?" Charlie pondered.

"I do wonder if Harry is a Slytherin too, but after seeing what the poor boy suffered, I understand why he takes such measures. Many people say that they are our friends, but they haven't extended any help to us. Harry has his selfish reasons for helping us. But somewhere in there is a large amount of respect for us too. My children, I think I can work with that. Besides I don't know what I would do without Amba and Augusta for company." Molly replied.

"I would like to meet Harry's grandparents again. I met them for Divali, but it was only in passing?" Ronald commented.

"They are wonderful people, no different from us. While they aren't magicals, they do know a fair bit of magical theory. After all, they were around when Priya and would walk up and down and figure out things. And they often asked Harry and Hermione a lot of questions. And they are accustomed to elves." Molly explained.

"Can we agree that those two are anything else but….normal?" Bill laughed.


"Dora?" Andromeda called.

"Mum?"

"Have a seat. I do have some news I have been keeping rather….quiet." Andromeda continued.

"Are we in trouble with the new Lord Black?"

"It seems like we are helping him cause trouble. And he loves the arrangement when it is like that."

"Mum, wot?"

"You know of the Storm-Lord and the Storm-Priestess? You have heard the rumours I take it?"

"They are so fucking cool! They fight like damned the damned Jedi. Or well, the Storm-Lord had some Sith level stuff going on. But then he is kinda like Boba Fett too? The rumour is that they can fly. I am not sure though. Sarah Abbott talked about swords and guns being used. She got rescued by them! And the troll attack? Wandless magic! They can summon lightning and water! So…fucking…cool!" she commented.

"Language Dora. But yes, those comments would please him, and you are exactly right. I know who they are."

"Really? You saw Star Wars?"

"No – I know who the people are, and I know they like to use movies and other things to build their ideas."

"Haha, nice try. You could even dream to be that cool. Stop pulling my leg."

"I am actually 'that cool' because I did meet both of them. I called you here to discuss House business because we are being asked to re-join House Black. More specifically, you."

"What?" Nymphadora Tonks answered as her hair became almost grey with confusion. Andromeda now had a cup of tea in her hand and she began to explain the entire story:

"So the entire story begins with Master Healer Priya Singh. She was a mundane primary school teacher or as others would say a muggle school teacher and she found….."

As the explanation continued, her hair continued to change colours as she got more excited. Finally, at the climax of the story, her hair was scarlet red.

"Well shit. They should publish that story. His real story is much better than those books they sell!"

"Oh Dora, Harry was so angry when he saw those books the glasses began to crack. His eyes glowed. He has the temper of a damned dragon. He runs that entire compound needle straight, and that includes Sirius."

"So, I am getting to meet him tomorrow? And Sirius?"

"Yes. The entire extended family and any allies that we have. It is a rather big bloc – one day we will play our hand in the Wizengamot. The most important thing is to understand that the Dark Lord will be back one day."

"But they – they want to be prepared right? "

"Yes Dora. And you better believe that House Black will fight under House Peverell. And we will be within the fold of House Black. So yes, we won't be cooperating with Albus Dumbledore."

"Well, maybe that isn't a bad thing? They killed more than two hundred already? I might as well train with them? I mean when the Aurors failed in South America, they sent Harry and Hermione, correct?" Dora asked.

"They did. They have been reinstated as the I.C.W Alpha Kill Team, and they might be the most dangerous squad of fighters you will ever meet. Harry and Hermione were forged in war."

"I want to see the cool shit they got, I am in! They got guns!" Nymphadora replied as she was now very excited.