A/N: Be... Our... Guest... Enjoy.

Chapter 1

"How hard is it to find ONE PERSON!"

Emily's scream could be heard through the entire wing of the manor. She was infuriated by Lucius' inability to locate her other self.

"Not to sound too cheeky, my lord, but may I remind you that the entire Potter family eluded you for the better part of two years. In our world, its quite easy to stay unnoticed. You whisked away young Mr. Potter for a year, and he is about as well known as it gets."

Emily grit her teeth tightly. Lucius knew his place on the board too well now. He was too important to her for her to abuse as she used to. With the complete dissolution of the Death Eaters, she had too few people she could rely upon. She kept the Malfoys in the know because their uses were invaluable. This did not mean she appreciated him being a twat. She took a deep breath, exhaling slowly.

"Well then, if we can't track her down, we'll just have to protect my assets all the more."

"Harry won't be happy to hear you referring to him like that."

Emily sneered at the blond man. "I'll be the judge of my husband's likes and dislikes thank you very much. Either way, he won't be hearing the comment, will he?"

She gave the man an even shrewder look at this, and he bowed his head ever so slightly to her. "Excellent then. Now, seeing as you have not only failed the only task I have set for you, but also royally pissed me off, I am going home. Harry's to take his NEWTs at the ministry this morning, and I want to be there to support him."

She watched as the man made to open his mouth, but cut him off. "No Lucius, neither you nor any of your family members are invited. You've already stirred up more than enough attention about yourself lately. There's only so much you can gain by trailing the heels of others, before you're noticed for being a parasite."

Lucius didn't bother replying, simply nodding his head and leaving the room, probably off to plot other ways to annoy her and inflate his own family's ego. Twat.

It had been two months since Lord Voldemort had gone underground with her most loyal follower. Emily was not pleased by any of it. Not Bellatrix's defection, nor her horcrux's clever planning and persuasiveness. Things were completely out of her control now. The new Voldemort, by now, would have complete control over her new body and would be just as capable as Emily. The only thing Voldemort lacked was raw power. But there were ways to compensate for that, and Emily dreaded the routes her errant self would take.

In the end, she knew Voldemort's aim wouldn't change. Kill Harry Potter, remove the soul bond and merge back with herself. Voldemort saw her relationship with Harry as a cancer that could be cut away. But the truth of the matter was far more complex. Emily knew that while she was an incredible person, she wasn't the most stable. If Voldemort were to succeed in her endeavor, Emily was aware that her going off the deep end was more than likely. If Voldemort's second endeavor, to merge with her succeeded as well, then she was uncertain what would happen after that. Would her broken self remain in control of her body? Or would her fractured mind yield to the horcrux's control? It was possible that she would cease to exist, or at least her own self would be pushed deep underneath her consciousness.

Shaking her head to dispel the dark thoughts, she made her way to one of the manor's many fireplaces. She had more important things to think about today, like her husband's future.

Harry woke up when he felt Emily gently climb on top of his body. His eyes briefly opened, before closing quickly in the face of the early morning light.

"What time is it?"

"Almost seven, love. Rise and shine."

Harry let his mouth droop open slightly in mock shock. "This, Emily, is not a civil hour. Why on earth do you want me awake right now?"

"Your NEWTs are today, rememeber?"

Harry groaned slightly, before speaking. "Whoever decided that the ministry issued tests should be taken at this hour... I mean, find that person. That's someone I don't care if you off in the future."

Emily laughed in his ear. "I'll keep that in mind, however, you must still get up. Breakfast is ready downstairs."

Emily let him be, he roused himself better from sleep without her being there. Unless sex was involved. Then he did much better with her present. Making her way to their home's office, she opened the door and began rifling through the papers on her desk. This was her space, and one of the few places Harry did not enter out of respect for her privacy. Rather strange that he allowed her that, considering that he tried quite often to shove his nose as deep into her affairs as he could. She assumed that as long as she remained in their home, Harry new the amount of damage she could do was limited.

Most of Emily's recent time had been taken up in stopping the pureblood supremacy movement from starting back up. With having wiped their memories of her original return, the last thing she desired was this new Voldemort attracting her previous followers to her. Countless lists with members, sympathizers and methods of dissuading them from the cause littered the room. Of course, once she held the power she desired, she would give the purebloods many of the things they desired as she marginalized the muggleborn society, but such things were still years off.

Stretching her body, she sat in her chair and leaned back. Her days with Harry had been terribly unproductive. She wasn't able to really accomplish much of her planning with him. Part of the reasoning behind this, was simply because, as always, she didn't like him knowing what she was up to. However the far more prevalent part was the fact that was she couldn't leave him alone. The safest place he could be was right beside her. Of course, she had trained him quite well over the past year, but to go one on one versus Voldemort, or even Bellatrix, was a situation she was not ready to place him in. For while she felt confident in her own ability to handle that scenario, she was honestly not even certain she could take them on at the same time. Both of these women would go after Harry with an intensity that she had never shown him during their training. They wanted him dead. He had only very recently come to grips with such violence, and almost didn't survive.

Voldemort would most likely not attempt to gather followers. To do so would create a schism in her supporters if the Dark Lord prevailed. But Emily knew that if she backed the Dark Lord into a corner, Voldemort was capable of breaking the rules. She had already watched as her other self outmaneuvered her. That mistake had almost cost her the only thing she really cherished. So Emily was attempting to be proactive.

Be proactive. Make plans. What a joke, if she were to be truthful. Her plans had never succeeded. They were brilliant, of course, but they always failed. Cleanse Hogwarts of the impure as a teenager, failure. Take control of the magical world, failure. Become a feared and powerful Dark Lord, abandoned. Kill Harry Potter as a baby, failure. Steal the Philosopher's Stone, failure. Regain her body to kill Harry Potter, abandoned. Seduce Harry Potter in disguise, pathetic failure. Kill a Dark Lord she created, missed by a hair.

Of course, she supposed, the most important plans, at least to her, had been successful. Seduce and romance Harry Potter, resounding success. Retrieve the Prophecy, success. Steal back Harry Potter when he was taken from her, success. TWO TIMES! Turn Harry into a powerful wizard, in her opinion, success. Personally off Dumbledore, well, he wasn't alive, and it was her curse that did him in, so it was good enough. Marry the man she loved, success. In the end, Emily prevailed where she needed to, and that was why she still kept planning. Her odds seemed to be about fifty fifty, so she'd probably kill Voldemort properly this time around.

Bellatrix's fate was far less certain to her. She had agreed to spare the woman, but sparing someone was a promise she'd made before. And then broke. That decision had come back to bite her in the future. She was wary of doing something similar now, considering her group was rather small.

As she heard Harry amble his way downstairs, her mind turned to other things. The escape of Voldemort had its benefits as well as its faults. For one, the magical world was besieged by a mounting fear. The name Voldemort was not so old to have lost its touch. People were looking for a savior, a hero. Harry Potter was naturally deemed fit to fill the role of the late Albus Dumbledore. It was just as fortunate that he had recently married a powerful witch who stood against the Dark Lord months ago. It was only half a year ago, that he was called the Chosen One. Now that Voldemort had made her first public appearance since her brief break-in at the ministry, the panic was established. The world would look to her and Harry. Once she dealt with the Dark Lord, taking over would be child's play.

Leaving her office, she began gathering anything she deemed important to leave the house with. She had made certain that the news of Harry taking his exams at the ministry had been leaked. While scores at Hogwarts were privately delivered to the students and their families, tests taken in the ministry were available as public record. This was to discourage the practice of home schooling children in the magical arts. The main hall would be flooded with reporters and Harry would surely be on tomorrow's front page.

"Are you ready, love?" Emily called out to Harry as she waited near the fireplace.

"Not really, but that's never stopped me before, so lets get it over with." Harry made his way into the room a few moments after he spoke and Emily rolled her eyes.

"Can you at least try and tidy yourself up a bit better? Your robes aren't even properly adjusted." Not even bothering for him to make the attempt, she whipped out her wand, straightening his robes and removing the wrinkles.

"Oh, lay off, its just a few examiners, not like its a big deal how I look."

Emily laughed. "No, its going to be much more. You and I are sharing center stage in the public's view of a disaster. Expect someone to snap your picture and ask you questions the moment you leave home."

Harry stopped fidgeting and fixed her with a look. "Emily, no one knows where we live, so no one's gonna be taking my picture. No one knows I'm taking the exam today, I haven't even filled out the paperwork. No one's gonna be there. Unless you or Lucius already arranged it."

Emily smirked. "Guilty as charged. You're getting more and more clever by the day. I can see why that hat wanted you in Slytherin. I'd have been far more pleased by that outcome anyway."

"Of course you would have. You're the descendant of Salazar Slytherin. If I had been in his house, you would have felt like you owned me even more."

"Don't be nonsensical Harry." Emily said with a huff. "I can't own you anymore than I already do. We're married."

Harry's mouth dropped slightly. "You know, some days I want to know just how exactly you see the world around you. Then I realize I'm better off being ignorant."

"We all start out ignorant, we have to work hard to remain stupid, however."

Harry stared at her in shock. "I know that quote. Its from Benjamin Franklin. Why on earth are you quoting a muggle?"

Emily began to cackle at him. "Sometimes I wonder what they teach you in History. Benjamin Franklin was a wizard, Harry. Do you actually think a muggle could fool around with lightning bolts and not die? You're so disillusioned by your muggle upbringing, I swear."

Harry grumbled. "Yeah, shame my magical parents couldn't raise me."

Emily immediately stopped laughing. Quietly, she spoke, "I'm sorry, that was callous of me. I will refrain from mentioning your childhood in the future." Once upon a time, she'd let the comment start an argument, but she had learned from those mistakes. It didn't help that she had recently torn his family even more asunder with the murder of his aunt. Easier to admit her own fault in a scenario than to instigate a fight.

Harry sighed, "Don't worry about it. I shouldn't have brought my parents up. I know you weren't being hurtful, I just... reacted. Sorry."

The two remained quiet, Emily not certain how to fix the mood. Harry, never one to allow Emily's demeanor to remain sour, asked, "Any other famous muggles who are actually witches or wizards I should know about?"

Emily gave him a quick smile, "Hm, all things considered, not really. The Statute of Secrecy has kept us pretty separated since the late seventeenth century. But before that, we mingled pretty well. Of course, you already know that, I'm sure. William was renowned through out all of Britain, magical and nonmagical. His plays were so powerful and moving that even the muggles could appreciate them."

"Plays? Do you mean William Shakespeare? The one who wrote Romeo and Juliet? He was a wizard?"

"That's what I said, yes. Surely you read that in the book I gave you to study for History?"

Harry looked sheepish, "I skimmed some bits of it."

Emily sighed, but nodded. "I suppose if you were as studious as Ms. Granger, I wouldn't have had to impart as much knowledge to you. It matters little, William Shakespeare, recepient of the Order of Merlin, First Class, was in fact, a wizard. One of the few recepients of the First Class award not for his acts of bravery, but his intellectual feats. A fine wizard indeed."

"You seem a bit too likable of him. I doubt I've ever heard you say the term 'fine wizard' since I've known you."

Emily laughed. "I am somewhat predisposed to Shakespeare. Before I knew what I was, what magic truly was, I read his works as a child. I found his plays fanciful and entertaining even, if at times, a bit dark. Once I made my way to Hogwarts and found out he was a wizard, I suppose it only raised the amount of respect I held for him."

Harry smiled wryly. "Well, as long as I don't have to worry about you harboring some secret crush on him or anything, I guess that's fine."

"The man's been dead for almost four hundred years, Harry. Don't tell me I seem that mentally unstable?" The question was rhetorical, but Harry couldn't stop himself from replying.

"This is you we are talking about. Loving the dead is something you're already guilty of, remember. I was dead in Egypt, but you brought me back. I wouldn't put it past you."

Emily kept her smile plastered on her face, though inside she was pondering what he said. This was their only point of conflict that was unsolvable. The ever present reality that she would commit unspeakable acts, if it meant keeping him with her. She had slaughtered almost a hundred people to keep him alive, if only at the brink. It was this knowledge that gave him the push he needed to commit the ultimate taboo, to mutilate his own soul and create a horcrux. To ensure he could come back to her if his life was in peril again, and he had forced Emily to agree to never commit such a massacre again. Of course, he hadn't created one in the traditional way, but he had successfully created one regardless. Emily doubted the traditional way would have worked. Harry could never truly enjoy killing, the most he could ever feel from it would be a sort of justifiable satisfaction.

Emily picked up her now cold coffee. It had been prepared with breakfast, but she had ignored it all morning. Even with the promise he had extracted from her, she would do anything to keep him with her. And deep down he knew the same. Her words would be empty platitudes if his existence were on the line.

"Oy."

Emily regain alertness to the present when Harry call for her attention with a worried look.

"Are you alright, Emily?"

"Of course, nervous, I suppose."

Harry scoffed at her. "Its fine if you don't want to tell me what's on your mind, but don't lie to me. You're about as confident in my ability to take these tests as your are confident in your own wand work."

Emily smiled at him. she had been caught. "Indeed I am. I'm being distracted by... thoughts."

Harry smiled. "Well, they tend to be the most distracting things in our heads. Hermione gets so lost in books that Ron and I have to pull her away from them to get her attention."

Emily sighed. "More like worries then. Still thoughts, I know, but that should help narrow it down for you."

"Voldemort?"

"Among others."

Harry, leaning back in his chair at the table, said "The more you let her run through your head, the less time you're really spending with me. Doesn't that just irk you to no end and make you wanna just forget about her." By the end he was bent forward with a smirk on his face.

"I'd rather strangle the life out of her and then spend time with you."

"Of course you would. I can see the headlines now, 'Potter's Wife Defeats Dark Lord, Strangulation'. Gonna garner yourself a lot of attention with that one."

Emily drained her cup quickly with a slight grimace, before motioning for him to follow her. "I am certain they will refer to me by name, not as your wife."

"Yeah, because we both know that the article will be written by Lucius."

"Ugh, don't bring that useless bastard's name up this morning. He's already disappointed me once today. I don't want to remember."

"Emily, its... half past seven. When did the man have time to piss you off?"

"I met with him at around, three in the morning. He had bad news for me."

"Three in the morning? Don't you mean at night? No one would consider that to be morning."

"Whatever." She said dismissively. "Are you ready? The exams start at eight, and we'll have a wall of people to push through."

Harry and Emily had arrived at the fireplace. Harry looked to her and asked, "Wait a moment, what do you mean a wall of people? Just how many reporters are gonna be there?"

"About half as many as their were at our wedding."

Harry gaped at her. "You had three separate tents for the press at our wedding, there must've been over a hundred reporters!"

"A hundred and twenty-six, to be precise. I managed to catch the attention of sixty or so for our outing this morning." And with a gentle shove, Harry was whisked off with a flash of green fire.

A terrible wheezing could be heard throughout the entire house. But it wasn't the muggle family sitting dazed in the home's smallest bedroom, staring at the wall. The sound came from the largest bedroom, where inside were two occupants.

"Relax, Bella. Drink this."

The spitting image of Emily Potter was seated on the edge of the large bed, gently pouring a potion down the throat of Bellatrix Lestrange. Bellatrix's body was in exceedingly good condition, compared to what it had been months ago, but her lungs still troubled her greatly. Emily's doppleganger, Voldemort, could only assume that the creature that had destroyed Bella's chest had been cursed. Though she had no idea when her real self had been able to perform the magic. The woman wasn't getting enough oxygen into her body to function, and had to remain in bed. Through Voldemort had tried many avenues, she had yet to successfully restore them. Several times she had debated cutting her losses and leaving the woman to die, but she needed her and her resources.

Gently wiping the sweating brow of the older woman, Voldemort marveled at the smooth skin of her own hand. She was quite surprised that once she had regained full control of this body, her face and body were in the exact form of her current self. It was a blessing and a curse. It was a welcome development, as she no longer held the same face of Lord Voldemort. It was a curse for the very same reason. Being recognized on the street as Emily Potter would bring her all sorts of head aches. She would have to remain hidden away and only scurry about under disguise.

While she had the muggle family pile into the smallest room, and more or less stay out of their lives and continue on day to day activities, she did occasionally send them out and about to gather things for her. The son had already passed away when she took him and the eldest daughter to the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest to collect acromantula silk. It was the main ingredient in the binding the kept Bella's wound closed as her organs slowly mended. Oh well, at least poor Aragog's children had a snack.

The imperius curse was truly marvelous. It provided everything she needed. Voldemort looked down to see Bellatrix's eye's become unfocused as sleep over took her. There was one, annoying, side effect of this body, despite its perks. For the first time in a long time, she felt arousal. It had shocked her, when it had first happened. Of course, Bella was in no condition to indulge her desires, and she was more than strong enough to force down her libido. But she was starting to crave the physical relationship she had started with Bella when she begun manipulating the older woman.

"Once we get you back on your feet, Bella, we are going to make everything right again. We'll remove Harry Potter and then there will be nothing keeping you from my real self. I'll rejoin my body and things will resume the course they were intended to." Her whispered words snaked their way into Bella's subconscious and the woman rested with a smile.

"What do you mean she's the Dark Lord? She's Voldemort?"

"I didn't stutter. The wife of Harry Potter, is most assuredly the Dark Lord."

Sirius Black fell back into his chair as the hooded figure stood before him. "Emily saved my godson from the Dark Lord. There were countless witnesses. I'm going to need more than just your words to believe this. It's impossible."

"I have more than enough proof to convince you."

Sirius closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, he voiced the most important question. "Does Harry know?"

"He has known from the beginning, before anyone else was aware."

Sirius let out the rest of his breathe in a huff, placing a hand over his eyes as he hunched forwards. "What was he thinking? Why... just, why?"

The hooded figure turned towards the fireplace, grabbing a pinch of floo powder. "Buck up, Black, we have important things to do."

"Fine. Get on with showing me your proof, Snivellus."

A/N: Happy to be back at it. Hope yall are ready.