It was a scene that had played out countless times before. He was bound to a stone angel and his blood taken by force to feed a foul ritual. Voldemort was about to be reborn into the world anew, and it was all his fault.

However something changed from the innumerable repeats of the moment Voldemort was brought back. This time, Harry spent countless hours in the library...and found an odd book which didn't fit even a school as odd as Hogwarts. For one thing it was a ritual book, a subject decidedly banned in the school, or would at least be inside the Restricted Section.

After multiple near death adventures, Harry was more than willing to at least give the thing a look.

It was about summoning something called a Servant for a war. Figuring it had something to do with bringing forth aid in fighting magical wars, Harry memorized the circle and the incantation in case Voldemort ever came back. No way was he going this alone without backup!

And now, staring down a cauldron full of who-knows-what and facing imminent death...again...he started to desperately trace the circle with his still flowing blood onto the stone behind him.

He could only hope he got it right.

Voldemort rose from the cauldron.

"Robe me," he commanded. He paid no mind to Harry, who was desperately muttering the incantation as he drew.

By the time Voldemort had stopped his monologue and was almost fully paying attention to his rival, he had started to notice an odd blood red glow where Harry was.

He turned to face the boy who defied him far too many times to find that he was almost done chanting under his breath.

Harry stared at the noseless bastard (literally) defiantly as he said the last two lines of the incantation aloud.

"You, Seven Heavens clad in three words of Power, arrive from the ring of deterrence,

O Keeper of the Balance!"

The red glow grew painfully bright as something appeared from the smoke.

"In accordance to the Holy Grail's Refuge, Servant Archer has summon your call. Be grateful mongrel," said an imperious voice.

Harry felt the chains keeping him bound break, and he nearly collapsed from the blood lost by performing the ritual.

The newcomer sounded almost like Malfoy, but unlike the ferret Harry knew without words that this man could at least back up his claims and wouldn't hesitate to kill him for some perceived slight.

When the smoke cleared and he could finally see the man, he nearly gaped.

He wore entirely gold armor, and he had red eyes. But unlike Voldemort (who was looking rather pissed Harry had called reinforcements while he was trying to monologue and was being ignored) these eyes weren't terrifying. In fact if Harry had to put a word to the color, he would swear they were like rubies.

Harry found it ironic he had summoned help from someone who wore predominately Gryffindor colors. Even his hair was gold for crying out loud!

"Answer me, mongrel, are you my master?" he asked Harry.

Harry noticed the odd markings where his blood had pooled around his right hand.

"I suppose I am."

"Do you have any qualms about me dealing with this...snake?" he asked, looking at Voldemort with something akin to rage and distaste.

"By all means, make his passing as painful as you like. But could you spare the rat next to him? I have plans for that one," said Harry before he could stop himself.

Archer looked at the rat with disgust.

"Does he have to be in once piece?" he asked.

"Not at all. He just has to be alive and intact enough to answer a few things. Other than that, have at it," said Harry, sitting down.

"Good. I hate snakes," said Archer.

What happened next could only be described as a massacre. Harry watched in awe, before he pulled out the book to find out what the hell he had just brought out.

He paled under the full moonlight.

'Holy crap...I just summoned a legendary hero without realizing what I was doing! Wait, he said his name was Archer...'

Harry flipped through the book to the description of the Servants. The second he read independent Action as one of the main Class bonuses to Archer, he knew that would mean trouble later. Strangely, he found it hard to care.

So Harry watched his new Servant with observant eyes.

Arrogant attitude, gold armor clearly custom made, and a kingly disposition. Oddly, he had trouble figuring which one, since Archer didn't show anything to tell him what his original name was. What he did know was that this man liked gold enough to make an armor out of it, despite the fact that steel or iron being a better defense.

Finally he figured he could look up his new Servant later. Archer was finishing up the Death Eaters...those who hadn't had a chance to escape that is.

And as per his request, Peter Pettigrew was left in enough pieces that he could survive an interrogation...though he wouldn't be escaping any time soon.

Having both your legs nearly shredded can make running rather difficult after all.

Finally Archer finished off the last of them. He looked at his Master.

"Well mongrel, I've dealt with the trash, though that damn snake escaped. Care to explain why you summoned me in this filthy graveyard before I skewer you as well?" he demanded.

Harry wobbled a bit as he stood up.

"Sorry about the conditions I summoned you in. I was rather desperate to avoid dealing with that bastard again and didn't really understand what I was doing. All I knew was that the ritual I memorized would summon help."

Archer's eyes narrowed. He did not look happy at that news.

"You do know who I am, don't you?"

"All I know is that you were a king in your life, one with a fascination with gold. However I sincerely doubt you're Midas...your weapons didn't look Greek in the least. And I know you're not Arthur, Caesar, Alexander, Richard the Lionheart or any other noted king. Which means your legend is old. Very, very old. So old I would have to research pretty far back just to find it," said Harry honestly.

"I am not a king. I am the first King. The original hero," said Archer annoyed.

"Which would make you the King of Heroes, though unfortunately I still have no idea what your name is," said Harry.

"Hmph. At least you're not entirely hopeless. I'll spare you for now. But you had better find more acceptable accommodations before I decide my patience has run out," he said, vanishing.

'Definitely like Malfoy...though at least he isn't all talk.'

Harry grabbed Cedric's body, mostly so he wouldn't be accused of killing him later, and took hold of the portkey. Archer had a firm grip on his shoulder, despite being invisible at the time. Apparently he had guessed what the cup did.

He had an immediate headache the second he landed in Hogwarts. He could hear Archer's derisive snort at the state of it.

Once you got over the impressiveness of the fact that it was still standing, it was rather dingy looking. Harry had lost the novelty of learning here after the second near-death adventure.

It took him a few minutes to explain that he had been trapped and only just escaped. He made no mention of Archer or the fact Voldemort was back. Somehow he just knew Fudge would try to deny it.

So he claimed Pettigrew killed Cedric (which was true) and tried to use them in a dark ritual through which he had barely escaped alive.

The fact he had brought said rat back meant Sirius would soon be free...or he would raise one hell of a stink.

Harry was fuming. There was no other words for it.

After a quick and rather pointless trial, Peter was given Sirius' old cell and his godfather had gone free.

However Snape had told Dumbledore that the old snake face was back, so here he was back in Privet Drive.

Archer was just as pissed about the new housings as he was. He hated everything about it, and he was merely waiting for Harry to request an instant death sentence for the horse, pig and walrus.

Especially the horse. Her voice was murder on the ears.

Harry solved this problem by avoiding the house altogether, a state that made his 'relatives' very happy indeed.

And Mrs. Figg, who had developed a sudden interest in him for some reason.

Harry shuddered. He was so not interested in that old cougar.

"This bites," he said, grabbing another book off the shelf.

"What does?" asked a voice. It was an old man with red eyes and not very modern clothing.

Harry looked at him flatly.

"Are you a wizard sent to stalk me?"

"Please, I could overpower any of those idiot stick wavers," he said.

"So who are you?"

"Call me Zelretch."

"Harry."

"So why is a fourteen-year-old in a library in this heat?" asked Zelretch.

"It's either that or my aunt's house. And she's a bloody menace. At this rate it's only a matter of time before I ask Archer to kill them all and leave that place."

"There is another option. I happen to be in need of another student, since the last one couldn't handle my particular brand of humor. Interested?" he asked grinning.

"...If I said yes would I have to return to that outdated castle?"

"No. In fact you would be allowed to use magic outside school so long as you don't let any civilians see you."

"So basically the same old, same old. What exactly do you teach?"

"Magic. My particular branch uses jewels, among other things."

"I would have to pack first. Anything would be better than another day in this hellhole."

"I'll see you tomorrow in your backyard then. Oh, and you might find this of interest," he said grinning.

Harry looked at the book.

"The Epic of Gilgamesh: Mankind's Oldest Poem," he read aloud.

It wasn't a library book, and it had to be better than reading his textbooks.

Harry went back to his room and started packing. He carried only the essentials, as he had no real need for his textbooks.

"We finally leaving?" asked Archer. He looked rather irritated.

"Tomorrow we are. Some weird guy came and asked if I wanted to be his student. I figure anything would be better than this place."

"Does he have a name?"

"He said his name was Zelretch."

"The Wizard Marshal?" said Archer in surprise.

"Who?"

"You'll find out soon enough. What's that?"

"Some book he handed me. Said it would be of interest... Oh you have got to be kidding!" Harry said, suddenly realizing why the man had said he might find it interesting.

"What?"

"Your real name wouldn't happen to be Gilgamesh by any chance would it?" he asked.

"I thought you said you didn't recognize me?" asked Archer, eyes narrowing.

"I still don't, but why else hand me that book?" said Harry grumbling.

Archer, no Gilgamesh, gave him a look. One that basically said start reading or else.

Harry gulped, but opened the book dutifully and started reading. It was surprisingly more interesting than he had expected.

Archer waited patiently for him to finish, though Harry said something that caught him entirely off guard.

"Wait a damn minute! You mean to tell me that you lost your only real friend just because you told a goddess to go to hell instead of marrying her...and you knew for a fact that she slept around a lot?" he said incredulous.

"What?" said Archer, confused.

Harry pointed at the passage where he lost Enkidu because of the goddess Ishtar's machinations.

"Oh. She fell for me, but I wasn't interested since I knew she had a tendency to destroy the men she married."

"Black Widow," said Harry.

"What?"

"Women who marry men and then have their husbands die before them repeatedly are called Black Widows," he explained.

"...That's actually an accurate description," said Archer surprised.

"So you decide to avoid her web and in retaliation she causes a series of events that end with your best friend being killed? Talk about a bitch," said Harry.

Archer looked surprised. Why was his Master angry about that? Sure he still hated her and the gods for killing Enkidu, but Harry had never known his friend at all. In fact he had never even heard of him until the old vampire gave him that book.

Harry got close to the end of the book.

"Wow, no wonder you hate snakes so much," he commented.

"What?"

"A snake ate the treasure you were so desperate to get at the last possible moment. Uh...would the fact I can talk to snakes bother you much?" he asked carefully.

Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes at him.

"What do you mean talk to snakes?" he asked dangerously.

"I've got a rare talent that allows me to snake speak. Probably from whatever the hell Voldemort did to me when he killed my parents. I'm not a fan of the things, but I don't hate them outright either," he explained.

"Just don't do it around me and I won't skewer you," he said finally.

"Deal."

A few hours into the night, Harry and Gilgamesh found Zelretch and vanished...mere minutes before Dementors descended on the house.

When Harry read about it in the paper, he felt not one iota of guilt over their deaths. He had gotten everyone he actually cared about out with him, namely Gilgamesh and Hedwig.

The only reason the magical idiots weren't panicking over his death was because Sirius had gone to Gringotts to ask if the Potter vault was still active. Vaults automatically closed if the last heir was deceased.

So now people were wondering where their 'savior' had vanished to.