The Future of House Black

By: Ryu Katanna

Beta:

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter Thirteen

Hardwin sighed with a bit of relief as he managed to stay on his feet as he stepped out of the floo into the Leaky Cauldron before quickly casting a notice-me-not around the fireplace. He took a moment to banish the soot and tidy himself up before Marcus stepped out a moment later with Mardyn hidden under the cloak. Hardwin could see that he had a tight grip on his older brother's forearm as the man kept them both on their feet when they stepped out of the flames. He waited for the two of them to step away from the floo before silently dispelling the notice-me-not and leading them out of the pub into muggle London without speaking so they didn't draw any more attention to them.

"We can use the ally here." Hardwin said quietly as he glanced around to be sure no muggles were watching before leading them into the secluded area.

Once he was sure they were out of sight, Hardwin turned back to look at the two brothers. He couldn't help the small smile at seeing Mardyn looking around curiously. The boy acted as refined as most of the pureblood children Hardwin had met over the years, but he could also see the innocence there. It made sense to him now, in a way, after Andromeda had explained why most pure-blooded wizarding families didn't allow their young children away from the safety of their family estates. They were sheltered in a way because of it. This was possibly the first time Mardyn had been allowed to venture into the world away from the security of the Flint wards. This was also likely the first time he was seeing the muggle world as well.

"I'll apparate us to a park in Little Whinging. There is a secluded area we warded from muggles during the war. It'll be a short walk from the part to where Mrs. Figg lives." Hardwin said knowing he would have no other choice since they could not travel on the Knight Bus with Mardyn; nor did he have a muggle telephone to call for one of their cabs to get them to the shop.

"Come, Mardyn. There will be more to see than an ally in muggle London." Marcus said as he motioned for his brother to take hold of the arm Hardwin was holding out for them.

It was only once they both had a firm grip that Hardwin concentrated on enveloping them in his magic before he fixed his thoughts on the image of their destination. He managed to apparate all three of them with a quiet crack to the warded area hidden by a few trees near the park. He glanced around to be sure the wards hadn't weakened to allow muggles to see them. It was only once he found they hadn't that he relaxed.

"You can take off the cloak, Mardyn. Kreacher, I need you to put the cloak away. We won't be needing it anymore today." Hardwin said once the elf had appeared and Mardyn handed it over before Kreacher left again with a silent pop.

"Why was this area warded so heavily?" Marcus asked as he glanced over the runes inscribed into the bases of the tree once the elf had left and Hardwin led them out from between the trees to where they could see an empty playground.

"This area, as well as several others across England and Scotland, were warded from muggle detection during the war for safe escape routes for the members of the Order of the Phoenix. I grew up in this area, and so I was always under surveillance once HE returned. This site was used for my watchers to come and go, but it was abandoned by the Order after my seventeenth birthday. It was too dangerous to return here." Hardwin explained quietly as he looked around before turning away to lead them to Wisteria Walk only to pause with Marcus when Mardyn didn't follow.

"What is this place?" Mardyn asked as he looked around at the playground equipment curiously.

"This is a playground. Muggles bring their children here to play and have fun. They can socialize with other children who live in the area this way. It also gives their parents a break when they send their children out of the house to play." Hardwin said as he tried to explain since he knew wizarding families had nothing like this for their children.

Wizarding families differed from muggles in many ways, and this was only one of them. He knew from speaking to his old housemates at Hogwarts that wizarding families based more on the education of their children. They were also a lot more selective about who their children could associate with in their formative years. It was as much of a safety precaution as it was an isolation. In this way, the parents could teach the child the views of their family when it came to the outside world. Hardwin didn't approve of it, but he could also understand it. Muggles didn't worry as much about the continuation of their family lines or their teachings and traditions. Most families only had one or two sons, if any sons were born at all, to continue the family line and so it made sense that they would be overly cautious when it came to their safety.

"How do they play on these?" Mardyn asked as he looked around, and Hardwin took a few moments to explain how the swings, slide, merry-go-round, see-saw, and the monkey bars worked before Mardyn turned to look pleadingly at his brother.

"Could we come back here again Marc? I want to try this playground." He asked, and Hardwin could see that Marcus was having a hard time answering.

He could tell that he didn't want to tell his brother no, but he also knew that Lord and Lady Flint may not be agreeable to the idea. It didn't help that Marcus didn't really know how the muggles played on the equipment. He probably also didn't want to spend time around the muggles themselves. Hardwin couldn't bring himself to offer to accompany them to help plead Mardyn's case either. He really didn't want to come back to Little Whinging unless he had no other choice when he dealt with his Aunt over the money she had been paid from his vault.

"Why don't you wait to ask your parents when you return home? I'm sure your brother doesn't want you to be disappointed if he were to agree only for your parents to be displeased. They may not be comfortable with you spending so much time around the muggles. I'm not saying all muggles are bad, but just like there are both good and bad witches and wizards, there are good and bad muggles. Their first concern is going to be your safety." Hardwin explained knowing that it would likely be their main concern.

"He is right, Mardyn. The only reason they allowed for you to come with me today was only because Hardwin is familiar with the muggle world, and he offered for you to use his invisibility cloak." Marcus said with a small crease in his brow, and Hardwin knew he didn't like disappointing his little brother.

"I understand." Mardyn replied as he tried to hide his disappointment while Hardwin motioned the direction they needed to go.

"How far is the house where you grew up? Would you show us?" Mardyn asked curiously after being silent for a moment, and Hardwin nodded even as he cringed inside at the thought of going to Privet Drive.

"It's only a block over from where we need to go." Hardwin admitted knowing that he didn't have a good excuse not to show them the house, and he didn't want to disappoint the eight-year-old again after being denied playing on the muggle playground.

He knew it was likely that his relatives had probably moved back in by now. They had been moved away to a safe house for the duration of the war, but they hadn't sold the house as they'd had every intention of returning. Someone from the Order must have told them it was safe for them to come back by now. He only hoped he didn't see them. He was still angry after finding out about the money Petunia had been paid from his vaults, and he really did not want a confrontation with his present company.

The walk didn't take them long before Hardwin paused at the corner of Privet Drive. He cursed himself for his weakness when it came to kids. It didn't help that Mardyn was Marcus's little brother. He admitted to himself that his interest in the wizard was also a part of it.

Hardwin felt a little torn in his decision to have brought them here. He hadn't planned on ever returning to Little Whinging, but it was the closest he could apparate them to where they were going. He hated the thought of anyone else seeing the house that had been his prison until he came of age. At the same time, he knew the two wizards were curious as they looked around the muggle neighborhood. He could see the wariness in Marcus as well, but he thought that had more to do with the fact that he was around muggles, who he had little to no experience with, and that Maryn was with them.

"This is it." Hardwin said as he stopped in front of number four with a small crease on his brow as he looked around the front yard.

The lawn was overgrown, and the flowerbeds were choked with weeds. The house looked abandoned as dirt caked on the windows, and the place looked neglected. It was obvious to Hardwin that no one was living here. It didn't make sense though. The war had been over for months now. His relatives should have returned.

"This is where you grew up?" Marcus asked; his voice devoid of any emotion that would tell Hardwin what he thought.

"It doesn't look like anyone lives here." Mardyn commented; a grimace on his face as he looked around.

"It is. Though this makes no sense. My mother's relatives were moved to a safe house when the war heated up just before I turned seventeen. They should have been back now that the war is over." Hardin replied before turning away as he noticed one of the neighbors peeking out at them from the house next door.

"Let's go. Mrs. Figg should be able to tell me what has happened." Hardwin said as he started walking to take them the next block over to Wisteria Walk.

"Who is Mrs. Figg?" Mardyn asked as they followed.

"Mrs. Figg is a squib. She's a member of the Order of the Pheonix. Dumbledore had her moved here when I was placed with my relatives to watch me." Hardwin told them with a hint of disgust in his tone that he couldn't hide after he'd found out the things he had recently.

"What is the Order of the Pheonix?" Mardyn asked, and Hardwin glanced at Marcus who answered.

"The Order of the Phoenix was a secret organization created by Dumbledore to fight the Dark Lord during the first war." Marcus said, and Hardwin snorted.

"Not much of a secret though. The Order was gathered again after Tom's return. A lot of the members died during both wars, and a couple will spend their lives in St. Mungos. You will most likely learn about them in Hogwarts when you attend in a few years. Provided McGonagall replaces Binns." Hardwin said as he stopped in front of a house where several cats roamed or lay around the yard.

"Is this it?" Marcus asked as they watched what looked to be a kneazle mix spot them before running into the house through a flap on the door.

"Yes. She'll know we're here." Hardwin said before leading them up the path to the door where he knocked just as the door was yanked open to reveal Mrs. Figg.

"Harry! What are you doing here?! It's not safe. Not safe at all! Come in!" She said as she opened the door and motioned for them to enter quickly before shutting the door and throwing the latch.

"Not safe? What do you mean, Mrs. Figg?" Hardwin asked in confusion as he tried not to breathe too deeply with the smell of the ammonia in the house from all the cats the woman had both inside and outside of her home.

"What do I mean? The war, boy! You shouldn't be here. What if you were seen!" Mrs. Figg stated as she glanced out of the windows worriedly.

"The war is over, Mrs. Figg. Didn't anyone tell you?" Hardwin asked incredulously to which she paused.

"It's over? I haven't had contact in months! No one has told me anything." The woman said as she turned away from the window to look more closely at him.

"Who was your contact?" He asked knowing that something must have gone wrong; first with his relatives not returning home and now with Figg thinking they were still at war.

"Remus and Tonks have been keeping me informed since Alastor died." She informed him, and Hardwin felt a pang in his heart.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Figg. I didn't know. The war ended a little over three months ago. Remus and Tonks were lost in the battle." Hardwin informed her as she stumbled a bit at sat down at the news.

"Oh, no. Oh, dear. What about their son? Tonks told me in her last letter that they had just had a little boy." She asked as she motioned for them to have a seat.

"Teddy is fine. I have shared custody with his grandmother. He's at home with one of my house-elves right now." Hardwin said as they sat down.

"That's right. Remus was so proud when he told me you had accepted to be the godfather to his child. Did we lose anyone else?" She asked with sadness in her voice.

"Yes. Severus Snape and Fred Weasley from the Order, but there were more than fifty others outside of the Order. A lot of those students at the school." Hardwin replied as he cleared the air around himself and both Flint brothers from the smell of the house with a subtle wave of his wand before slipping it back into his sleeve.

"No one in the Order has contacted you?" He asked with some disbelief when she'd gone silent.

"No one. Thank you, Harry, for telling me. Has the Order been disbanded again then? It's all over? He's not coming back?" She asked as the fear started to fade from her expression to be replaced with some sadness.

"It's over. He's not coming back this time. We made sure of it. I'll notify Kingsley that he needs to contact you so he can send someone to fill you in. Where Remus and Tonks also the ones in charge of telling Petunia and Vernon the war was over so they could leave the safe house?" He asked, wanting to find out why his relatives hadn't returned.

He may not care for them, and he may be angry with Petunia, but he didn't wish them the harm Tom and his Death Eaters could have done to them if they'd fallen into his hands. No one deserved that.

"No. I'll need to call them to let them know it's safe now. I'm sorry. My manners aren't the best today. I'm Arabella Figg. Would you like some tea?" She said as she finally seemed to notice he had two strangers with him.

"It's fine, Mrs. Figg. Understandable given that you hadn't been told about the war. My companions here are Marcus and Mardyn Flint. I actually came to ask if I could use your telephone to call a cab for us. We're visiting a few muggle shops today, but I'm not familiar enough with the area to apparate us there." Hardwin explained as Mardyn leaned down to pet one of the cats that had come up to him.

"Of course, Harry. I could call a cab for you if you like? Unless you know the number?" Mrs. Figg offered a bit timidly.

"That would be great, thank you. If you have pen and paper I can get a note to Kingsley. He can send someone to fill you in on what has been happening." Hardwin told her, accepting the paper and pen when she handed them to him before walking toward the kitchen to make the call for him.

"I apologize for the delay. It seems there are a few things that have been overlooked that I will need to tend to. We should be able to get going once the cab gets here. Kreacher!" Hardwin said as he called for his house-elf and wrote a quick note to Kingsley Shacklebolt who was currently acting as the interim Minister.

"It's understandable." Marcus replied quietly Hardwin handed the folded sheet of paper to his elf.

"Take this directly to Kingsley Shacklebolt. Wait for a response and leave it on my desk in the study. I'll take care of it when I return to the Manor." He instructed before the elf popped away and he sighed a bit with the thought of how this day was already going wrong.

He had thought that it would be a relatively quick trip into the muggle world to get the snake for the youngest Flint Scion. The Order had been disbanded in May, but now he was having to deal with this breakdown in communication. Shouldn't Shacklebolt or McGonagall have known to inform Figg? They were the ones who had taken over the leadership of the Order after Moody had died. One of them had to have known that the woman would need to be informed that the war was over. Now it was falling to him to have been the messanger. It was just another reminder to him about their losses. Hardwin couldn't help but wonder if anything else had fallen through the cracks.

It didn't help that he knew Marcus was watching. He knew that the Slytherin was only as quiet as he was because he was gathering information as he watched and listened. This was a part of his life that he had thought had ended with the war. He just knew that if anything did proceed between them in the future then he would probably be answering some questions. Which, to be fair, Marcus would be entitled to know if he became a part of Hardwin's life with all of Andromeda's and Narcissa's scheming after the dinner with his cousins a few days previously. He didn't doubt that they were plotting something after Andromeda had told Narcissa about his interest in the man. Andromeda would be looking out for his best interests in a marriage partner while Narcissa would look out for the best interests of their family name. Hardwin knew that he could trust the decision of his marriage to those two.

"The cab should be here in about ten minutes. Are you sure I can't get you anything while you wait?" Mrs. Figg asked as she came back into the room, and Hardwin stood with Marcus and Mardyn following.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Mrs. Figg, but we are quite alright. Someone should contact you within the next day or so to catch you up on current events. I do appreciate you calling the cab for us." Hardwin said knowing he didn't want to hang around inside now that the cab was on its way.

He had never liked coming to her house as a child, and he surely didn't want to linger now. He would give her credit for helping him during his trial before his fifth year by stepping forward as a witness to the presence of the Dementors. He did appreciate her action for that, but knowing the things he does now about Dumbledore, he couldn't bring himself to trust the woman in the slightest. She had babysat him many times as a child, and the evidence of his mistreatment by his relatives had been poorly hidden. He did not care to ask if she had ever reported it to Dumbledore or not because that was a time in his life he would really just like to forget.

"It was no problem. Thank you for letting me know about what has happened, Harry. I'm happy to see you made it through the war as well as you appear to have. I have been worried for you and the others." Mrs. Figg admitted quietly before she followed them to the door where Hardwin paused once Mardyn and Marcus had exited.

"You have a pleasant afternoon, Mrs. Figg." He said in parting before walking out to join them on the sidewalk to wait for their ride.

123

The trip from Mrs. Figg's to the Reptasia in Farnborough had been mostly quiet apart from occasional questions asked by Mardyn who was seated between Marcus and Hardwin. It had been amusing to Hardwin to see the two of them when the cab had pulled up. It was evident that neither of them had any experience with muggle transportation. Hardwin found it both amusing as well as endearing to watch both of their reactions to these unknown aspects of the muggle world.

Hardwin had made sure that Mardyn was strapped in properly with the seatbelt as the child tried to restrain his excitement and curiosity while looking around the inside of the cab. He'd had to show Marcus how to place the strap over his shoulder as he fastened the lap belt into place with the buckle by having him mimic his motions.

He'd handed the slip of paper to the driver with the address with only a simple greeting as his attention stayed on the young wizarding child quietly asking questions. It hadn't taken long for the vehicle to start moving, or for him to give a silent nod toward Marcus to confirm that this was what was supposed to happen in a muggle cab. Mardyn's questions eventually slowed down until he just watched the scenery pass by from the windows. Marcus remained quiet for the most part, and Hardwin figured that he just didn't want to speak around their muggle driver.

The cab ride only took about thirty minutes. The driver had made the drive with good time, but Hardwin could see that the wait must have irritated Marcus as he could see the man repressing a small sneer. Hardwin couldn't hold it against him. It was likely that it had never taken him so long to arrive anywhere he went before. Apparition, Floo, portkey, and even the Knight Bus were all much faster methods of travel that muggles just couldn't compete with. Hardwin didn't mind the time it took to travel by muggle methods unless he was in a hurry.

"This is the shop." Hardwin murmured when the cab pulled to the side of the street and came to a stop in front of the shop Hardwin had found when he searched online at the muggle library.

"How do I get out?" Mardyn asked as he tried tugging on the lap belt until Hardwin pressed the release first on his own seatbelt before showing both Marcus and his brother how when he repeated the action with Mardyn's belt, and they all got out of the cab.

"Here you are." Hardwin said as he handed over the fare with a generous tip while Marcus and Mardyn looked around the front of the white building behind him.

"You need to be careful with what you say when we go inside. Remember that we're around muggles." Marcus warned his brother as Hardwin stepped up beside them and the cab drove away.

"I will be careful. Can we go in now?" Mardyn replied getting a bit impatient now that he was so close to finding the pet snake he had been promised.

"Not just yet. Your brother is right about any references to magic. We're going to need to be careful. We'll look around to see what they have first. That way you can tell me which snake you like most, and we can make sure no muggles are close by when I speak to it. Different kinds of snakes will have different needs so you have to make sure that you will be able to provide for those needs properly. It's easier with magic, but they all have different needs when it comes to the temperature of their environment as well as the moisture in the air, and the food they like to eat. They don't close until six o'clock so we still have several hours to look." Hardwin told him as the child's eyes got bigger with every requirement he listed for their care.

"Is it a lot of work?" Mardyn asked as he glanced at his brother in the hope that Hardwin was joking only for Marcus to give a short nod to confirm that Hardwin knew what he was talking about.

"It can be, but luckily, we have spells that can be used to make it much easier and they can tell me what they would prefer to eat or if they have any demands. That way we can make sure both you and your new pet are happy. So, are you ready?" Hardwin asked with a small smile so as not to discourage Mardyn.

"I'm ready!" Mardyn replied with a small smile and a glint of delight in his eyes.

"Alright. Let's see what they have." Hardwin replied as he opened the glass door and held it for Mardyn who hurried inside.

He paused, however, when Marcus didn't immediately follow his brother. Hardwin froze when he looked up to see that Marcus's gaze hadn't followed Mardyn at all but was watching him instead. He waited a moment as he looked up at the other man when he didn't speak. Hardwin felt that same flutter at being the focus of those dark eyes now that he had felt the last time.

"Is something wrong?" Hardwin asked as he shifted a little nervously as he glanced inside to make sure he didn't lose Mardyn before looking back at Marcus.

"Not at all." Marcus answered simply before stepping up next to Hardwin and taking the door from his hold.

"Oh. Thank you." Hardwin replied when Marcus nudged him through with a surprisingly gentle hand to the small of his back.

"Hm." Was his only reply as Marcus followed through the door before dropping his hand and stepping away to look around.

Hardwin stood near the door thoughtfully for a moment as he pondered over the gesture. He honestly didn't know what to think at that moment. He had little to no experience when it came to relationships or what counted as flirting. He didn't know what to think about his interactions with the former Slytherin. Hardwin knew he was interested, but he felt unsure of what Marcus was thinking. They didn't know each other well enough for him to have any idea of why the man had been acting the way he had toward him.

The problem was that Hardwin didn't have the time to figure it out, either. He would be betrothed within the next two months and married within a year and a half. He didn't know who Narcissa would choose for his spouse. He didn't even know if he would like them. What Hardwin did know was that he would need to stay true to whoever it was with the fidelity clause included in every Black marriage contract according to the family charter.

Hardwin hesitated to indulge in his interest toward Marcus because of this. Narcissa had said nothing over the last few days about setting up a marriage meeting or which families she intended on speaking to. Hardwin had hoped Lord Flint would have approached her, but his cousin had said nothing to that effect. He may be interested in Marcus, but he would have to go along with whatever match was best for his family when it came down to it. The problem was that nothing was certain until Narcissa gave him the date and time he would be expected for a marriage meeting.

Hardwin felt like lead had settled into his gut to replace the fluttering as he moved further into the shop.

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Well, that's it for this chapter. Sorry that it's taken so long to get out. I was stuck for a minute and caught up in reading Queer As Folk fanfiction. I binged on it for a while, but I think it's passed now. ^_^ Anyway, this chapter did not go how I was expecting it to at all. The whole thing with Figg and the Order were not planned, but I guess it's happening since I thought about deleting it several times, but it just works better for something later.

Some development between Hardwin and Marcus toward the end there. Mardyn kinda took over through most of the chapter though. It's still early days with Marcus and Hardwin so it works this way. There will be more next chapter though I don't know how long it will take. I have a few ideas.

Until the next update,

Ryu

Edited: 11/18/2022