Monday, December 23, 1991
"Good morning!" Hermione chirped when she saw Draco and Neville at the Leaky Cauldron Monday morning.
She saw Lucius wave his wand and was confused until Draco whispered "Privacy spell." She nodded.
"I can't be seen in public as myself, so please call me Rigel, or Mr. Black," Hadrian popped out and said with an impish grin on his face.
Hermione looked at the boy she had never seen before in deep concentration and then her eyes widened with recognition and she whispered, "Hadrian?" The currently blond boy nodded. "Rigel then," she said with a nod. I can do that." Neville was also muttering Rigel over and over again from behind Hermione as if he was afraid he'd forget if he stopped.
"Once we get to our account manager's office it won't matter and I'll be able to take the glamour off, but in public, I'm Rigel Black, tailoring apprentice extraordinaire to Misters Twilfitt and Tatting, cousin to Narcissa and Draco," he filled her in on his public persona.
"Neville floo'ed to the manor earlier this morning, so we're all here now and can be on our way," Draco said, nodding to his father as he explained.
Lucius removed the ward and guided the children to the entrance of Diagon Alley, "Now, children, our first stop will be Gringotts. Once my business is concluded Narcissa and I will take you everywhere else you requested to go."
The kids nodded as if this was news to them, and started up a rather fake conversation about everything they wished to see and do while in the alley. Hermione and Neville asked Rigel questions, keeping up the fiction that only Lucius and Draco knew him already. They all bowed respectfully at the goblins they passed on their way into the building and Lucius guided them to a side door and through the labyrinthine maze to Gornuk's office.
"Lord and Heir Malfoy, Lord Potter-Black, Heir Longbottom, Miss Granger," Gornuk greeted them politely.
"May your gold ever grow, Account Manager Gornuk," the group chorused together.
Gornuk smiled and replied, "And your enemies suffer, my friends." He waved a hand indicating they should be seated, and they all took their places around a small conference table which had replaced the sitting area. Since he had already been warned about what they were visiting to complete, he spoke again quickly. "We will begin with Miss Granger as she is likely to be the least complex." He followed the same ritual used for Hadrian and Draco's inheritance tests, waving a gold needle over a white candle and handing it to Hermione saying, "Three drops of blood at the top of the parchment, please."
She did as instructed and they all watched her results form on the page.
Hermione Jean Granger
Age: 11
Est. Power Level: 70
Father: Jonathan Thomas Granger (PL: N/A)
Mother: Penelope Jean Granger, née Brown (PL: N/A)
Godfather: N/A
Godmother: N/A
Status
Lady
Not Applicable
Heiress
Not Applicable
Family Membership
Not Applicable
Affinities and Gifts
Animagus - Affinity
Rituals
Not Applicable
Other
Not Applicable
Vaults
Not Applicable
"Well, then, all appears to be in order. Seems Miss Granger is indeed a wildwitch, and has been blessed with an affinity as well," Gornuk shuffled some papers, producing an application for a new vault and setting it in front of the girl. "Now, if you would like to open a personal vault, you merely need to place one galleon in it to keep it open. Then you come back here each year, when you do your school shopping is acceptable, though most of the older families come on their birthdays, you will take this test again and it will keep your key powered and locked to you."
Hermione absorbed the new information and pulled a galleon out of her purse and set to filling out the paperwork with her quick, precise quill-strokes. While she was finishing up, Gornuk turned to Neville and repeated the process.
Neville Franklin Longbottom
Age: 11
Est. Power Level: 73
Father: Franklin Hector Longbottom (PL: 157) - Failing due to insanity, bond stabilized due to bond with Paternal Grandmother, Augusta Jane Longbottom, née O'Connell (PL: 123)
Mother: Alice Mary Longbottom, née McKinnon (PL: 134) - Failing due to insanity
Godfather: Algernon Belmont O'Connell (PL: 116)
Godmother: Lillian Jayne Evans-Potter (PL: 125) - Deceased, bond broken
Status
Lord
Not applicable
Heir
The Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom (Blood and Magic-Paternal)
The Ancient and Most Imperial House of Hufflepuff (Blood and Magic-Paternal)
Family Membership
The Honorable and Most Noble House of McKinnon
The Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom
The Ancient and Most Imperial House of Hufflepuff
Affinities and Gifts
Animagus - Affinity
Earth Magic - Gift (Hufflepuff, Longbottom)
Herbology - Affinity (Hufflepuff, Longbottom)
Water Magic - Gift (Hufflepuff, Longbottom)
Rituals
Magical Suppression (Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Augusta Jane Longbottom) - 25% broken
Other
Not Applicable
Vaults
4 - Hufflepuff Family Vault (Limited Access)
221 - Longbottom Family Vault (Limited Access)
222 - Longbottom Head of House Vault (Locked)
223 - Longbottom Consort Vault (Limited Access)
224 - Longbottom Heir Vault
"No wonder," Neville murmured. "Can I do anything about that block?"
"We have a ritual room prepared, an attendant will escort you," Gornuk informed the shell-shocked young man. Healer Elvux came to take Hadrian to the main ritual room for his familiar bindings while a different healer came to take Neville to one of the standard ritual rooms. Hadrian called for Dobby to bring him Hedwig and Zils and meet them in the room.
He recognized the set up from Draco's familiar bonding last year, and gathered the small bouquets Narcissa had prepared for him and brought Zils into the circle first. He burned his sage, eliciting a chuckle from Griphook who had arrived to oversee his bonds.
§I, Hadrian James Potter-Black, vow to sincerely trust you, White Lipped Island Viper Zils, as my familiar. I will be sincerely loyal to you as you are sincerely loyal to me. I offer my blood and magic in sacrifice to our bond. Zils, become my familiar!§ he finished hissing.
The goblins had never seen the ritual performed in Parseltongue before, but assumed Lord Potter-Black knew what he was doing. They could already feel the magic rising in the room and Zils had only just started moving to complete the bond.
Zils made his way down Hadrian's arm and coiled around and hissed, §I will become your familiar§. He struck the inside of Hadrian's left wrist, and injected his venom, making Hadrian immune to his poison. By selecting the left side of his body, Zils was indicating he would shield and protect Hadrian. Magic rose up in a great wave when Hadrian and Zils flashed blue. A § appeared, the two open ends framing the bite mark, which was already healing. While Hadrian was pleased at the strength of the bond, he was happy that his wristwatch would cover the bondmark as he wasn't certain what others would think if the "Boy-Who-Lived" had the bondmark for a snake.
He stepped out of the circle and handed Zils over to Dobby to wait while he completed his bond with Hedwig. This time, he said his vow in English, and Hedwig flew up to perch on his right shoulder, nibbling his ear to draw blood. They flashed blue and the magic pulsed, leaving Hadrian with the same owl bonding mark as Draco, but behind the opposite ear.
He flashed a smug smile at Draco saying, "Look, we match!"
Hermione had soaked up the process and was making a mental list of questions to ask the boys when they were done. They returned to the office and waited a few minutes for Neville to return. They saw his Inheritance test had updated to reflect his now-unblocked status and increased power level of 100. The heir ring boxes were waiting on the table for him. Since his grandmother had clearly kept them from him, he checked with the goblin before putting them on.
"Account Manager Gornuk, will my grandmother be informed if I put these on?" He really didn't want her to know he had been here.
"You may make a statement invoking your heir-right to have all information about your visit today suppressed. Stand, take my hand, and make the usual statement," Gornuk instructed.
Neville nodded, and began speaking a bit more confidently than he was wont to do previously, "I, Neville Franklin Longbottom, do hereby authorize Account Manager Gornuk, to withhold all information regarding the change in status of all my accounts by my authority as Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom and the Ancient and Most Imperial House of Hufflepuff. So mote it be." A flash of muddled muddy brown and leafy green light flashed around them indicating the bank's acceptance of his authority.
"I know I will have to continue seeing the Longbottom bonded account manager when I'm here with my gran, but can I see you when I can come alone, or with the Malfoys?" Neville questioned the goblin.
"Of course, Heir Longbottom," Gornuk nodded, pleased to be forging a new relationship with someone who would likely become a powerful player in the years to come.
"I would like to make you my bonded account manager, but until I turn seventeen and can perform the ritual to remove my grandmother, I will trust in your discretion," the boy informed the goblin formally.
The goblin bowed to the boy, accepting his words. When he rose, he began speaking, "Now, we need to venture to the vaults. Miss Granger will need to finish being keyed to her new vault, and Heir Longbottom, you should visit the Longbottom and Hufflepuff Family vaults to see if there is a family wand which will accept you. It is wise to have a backup. Once never knows what will happen.
"I have two backups," Hadrian told the boy. "One from the Black family and one from Slytherin. They refused to be put back in the vaults when I got my wand, so I carry all three. He tapped his left arm with his wand to release the enchantments on the holster, allowing Neville to see the additional wand on his arm. He also lifted his left pant leg so Neville could see the third wand peak out. After adjusting his trousers again to hide it and replacing the spell on his left wand holster, he replaced his glamour ring to make himself look like Rigel Black again. The goblin led them through the corridors and to the carts.
"Vault 3,768," Gornuk called when they were all seated. The cart began moving and they looped through several long twists and turns before grinding to a stop in front of a nondescript door. Gornuk and Hermione stepped out of the cart and made their way to the door.
Gornuk handed the girl a gold needle saying, "Seven drops on the handle, please."
Hermione pricked her finger and allowed the requisite number of drops to fall before handing the needle back to Gornuk after having wiped it off on a tissue. Draco and Hadrian had emphasized the horrible things that could be done with blood and she did not wish to have anything happen to hers. The handle disappeared and an empty crest appeared on the door. She looked confused.
"Until Magic has claimed you, which cannot happen until you are seventeen, your crest will be empty." Gornuk explained to the curious girl. "Once a wildwitch or wildwizard has been acclaimed by Magic and receives Gifted House status, then the empty crest will morph to reflect the New-Blood House Crest. Of course if you marry a member of a higher Ranked house, this vault would be moved to the family vault section of that house, and the number, listings, and crest would change to reflect your marriage."
She nodded, placing her single gold galleon in the vault. It looked a little lonely, but she likely wouldn't store much money away until she actually began working. The two returned to the cart. Gornuk called out the number for the Longbottom vault and once they arrived, Neville stepped out and placed his hand on the family vault door. He made his way through the vault to where the family wands were stored and ran his hands along them, but felt nothing. He did see a holster he liked, and was pleased to find that when he placed it on his right arm, it adjusted to fit. He left the vault and returned to the cart.
"Vault 4," Gornuk called when the boy was once again seated. They sped off and rode the cart for a much shorter time than going from Hermione's vault to Neville's Family vault. They screeched to a stop in front of a gold door, but could see the colored doors of the other four founders as well. Neville pressed his hand to the door and entered the vault. His eyes widened in shock at the cabinets and cabinets of seeds, each small drawer individually labelled, and calling out to his young herbologists' heart. He tore himself away, knowing he would be better equipped to handle the many possibly dangerous or extinct plants when he was older and had more training. Finding the wands in a glass case in front of a waterfall with plants growing all around, he tentatively reached out, hoping a wand would like him. A handsome medium brown wand flew into his hand. He secured the wand in his holster and made his way back out of the vault.
"Lord Malfoy, could you identify this wand for me, please?" Neville asked the blonde man. The group was shocked, never having heard Neville say so many words at a time without a stutter. Clearly that magical block had been affecting him more than they knew.
Lucius inclined his head and obligingly waved his wand to cast the identification spell, "It is chestnut and the heartstring of a Common Welsh Green, eleven inches, bendy."
"Thank you," the boy replied, taking his seat. They returned to the entrance to the vaults, and made their way out of the bank. Narcissa met them at the front steps, and ushered Neville away to Ollivanders to find a wand. The rest returned to the Leaky Cauldron to wait. Neville and Narcissa returned a half hour later and they all enjoyed lunch together while they waited for Hermione's parents to arrive. She bade them goodbye when she saw them, and hugged the boys saying she'd bring their Yule presents when they were back at Hogwarts. The Malfoys, Hadrian, and Neville floo'ed back to Malfoy Manor and the boys spent the afternoon playing games and discussing their presents. Neville floo'ed away at 5, and Severus returned to take Hadrian back to Hogwarts at the same time.
Wednesday, December 25, 1991
The morning of December 25th, Hadrian woke early, as was his habit and stretched carefully. He went to the bathroom, washed up, and got dressed, fully expecting the day to be rather dull. He had finished his homework, and played all the solitary games he could stand, and read a number of books already on the break and was getting a bit bored. He had enjoyed the time with the Malfoys and Severus, but being back at the castle after the comfort of home was dull. He was not expecting presents since his family had exchanged gifts on Yule and Hermione was bringing hers when she came back in January.
Therefore, when he exited his trunk and saw a red-wrapped package with a gold bow, he was understandably surprised. All of his friends celebrated Yule, so why would he have a Christmas present? He cast the few detection charms he knew on the package and called for Dobby to check it as well. Satisfied that there was nothing harmful under the wrapping, he opened it. An extremely silky, and rather slippery fabric pooled in his hands and spilled over the bed. A small piece of paper fluttered out and landed on top. Hadrian reached over to pick it up and read it.
Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time it was returned to you. Use it well.
The note was unsigned, but after picking up the silvery fabric, he recognized it as an invisibility cloak. Knowing Dumbledore had taken the Peverell cloak out of the Potter vault after his parents died but before the key went inactive, Hadrian knew it had come from Dumbledore. He grabbed the note and stuffed the cloak into an unused pocket of his messenger bag and darted through the near-empty halls and secret passageways which led directly to Severus' quarters. He knocked, gave the password, "Crystal Cauldron," and entered the Potion Master's rooms. He made his way directly to the couch and flopped down, looking over to see Severus raising an eyebrow at him from his preferred wingback chair.
"Good morning, Hadrian," said Severus.
"Good Morning, Sev," Hadrian replied, rubbing his head. "Dumbledore has moved again." He opened his bag and pulled out the cloak, spreading it over his lap, and pulled the note from his pocket, offering it to the man.
"Wonderful," Severus pinched the bridge of his nose, knowing they would now need to be even more careful. "He is clearly trying to turn you into your father, sneaking around, doing Merlin knows what."
Hadrian sighed, "I know, but I have to do something. I don't want him to know that I'm not under his thumb."
"I know child," Severus opened his arms, allowing the still small boy to run over and snuggle in for a hug, "but I want you to be careful."
They sat in silence for several minutes before Amaranth popped in with tea for both of them. Severus fixed their cups and settled back, rubbing the boy's back.
"I suppose I'll have to go exploring…" Hadrian finally spoke up. "Maybe I'll go to the library, and raid the restricted section," he said with a spark of humor.
Severus rolled his eyes fondly, and said, "Well, at least it would be logical. A Ravenclaw going for books."
"Yes, well, the stairs moved to take us to the cerberus a week before break started, and now this." Hadrian was tired of the ploys already. "He's clearly worried I'm not following the plot, so it might work since he thinks I should be on the hunt for the stone."
"That's true," Severus said thoughtfully.
"Well, I have been a bit bored, exploring the castle after curfew will be a nice change," he decided. "I'll be careful."
Hadrian wound up staying with Severus all morning, and they walked up to lunch together, discussing the potion the first years had brewed before break.
After lunch, Hadrian retreated to his dorm and his flat. He had a hissed conversation with Zils while scratching him. Zils had been particularly itchy recently, so he'd likely have a new skin for Severus soon. When Zils decided to take a nap, Hadrian went to his office and wrote a brief letter to the Malfoys, somewhat vague, but alerting them to the situation and that Severus was keeping an eye on him. He cooed at Hedwig when she flew over. She always knew when he wanted to send a letter. He pet her head and scratched her just where she liked, before offering an owl treat and the letter. She nibbled the treat, took the letter, and flew off. He whiled away the rest of day reading, and scratching Zils whenever he woke up itchy. He had managed a nap before dinner which was good since he was planning to start his excursion through the castle around midnight.
Hadrian did exactly what he told Severus he would do. Covering himself in the cloak, he made his way out of Ravenclaw Tower, and down the most direct path to the library. He stayed close to the walls, figuring if anybody was watching for him, if they could even see anything through this cloak, he should at least look like he was being sneaky. He didn't know if there were any sort of proximity wards or any other alerts around the library or restricted section, but he made a show of carefully opening the library doors and ducking under the red velvet ropes which were supposed to prevent entry. Personally, he thought it was the fact that Madam Pince's desk was looking right at the entrance which was more of a deterrent than those ropes.
He didn't actually need anything from the restricted section. Severus had told both him and Draco before school started that there was nothing there which they could not locate in the Malfoy Library if they had need of it. So Hadrian randomly selected a book to open and jumped in fright when it let out blood-curdling scream. It echoed through the room and seemed to grow louder and louder until he finally remembered himself and snapped the book closed. The sudden silence was deafening, but he was sure someone would have heard the ruckus, so he slipped the book back on the shelf and made his way back out of the library, passing the caretaker, Argus Filch, on his way. The luminescent eyes of Filch's cat, Mrs. Norris, seemed to follow him, and he wondered if he should learn a scent blocking charm to go with his silencing charm if he truly wanted to sneak around in the future.
He was so absorbed in thinking about further charms he might use to augment the invisibility that he had completely forgotten to pay attention to where he was going and his feet had clearly led him astray. He looked around, unsure of where he was and walked by a couple more cross-corridors to see if he could spot something familiar. He finally decided that he must be down the unused portion of the Charms corridor, though it was at least three floors away from the library and he didn't remember taking any stairs. Of course he was distracted, but how he wound up there from the second floor library, he was unsure.
He was about to turn around and head off the way he thought would take him back to his dormitory when he felt a slight tug on his magic. It wasn't as strong as the tug when he met Zils or Hedwig, but it was an insistent pull. He sighed, thanking his occlumency barriers for allowing him to distinguish external mind magic. Sighing, he thought this must be what Dumbledore wanted from him, so he followed the pull a bit further on and to an unused classroom. He paused at the entrance, trying to determine if it was really in Dumbledore's best interest for him to have cursed the door, but concluded he wanted Hadrian to know what was in the room, and so he wouldn't have cursed the way in.
So resolved, Hadrian opened the door just wide enough to slip through, and made his way into the room. It was full of old desks and chairs which looked like they had been shoved in here when they had outlived their usefulness. The only odd thing in the room was a large standing thing covered in a white dust sheet. But whatever was under that sheet was pulling him, so he walked over and pulled the sheet down.
He was greeted by the gentle glow of a mirror. Moonlight was filtering through the windows of the classroom and being reflected off the glass. Hadrian inspected the mirror closely, stepping forward into the middle of the frame, and looked at the inscription across the top.
"erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi"
He nodded mentally, not wanting to give himself away if Dumbledore or anybody else were watching him. After recognizing the mirror from the description Severus gave him, he decided to play along. He slowly pulled the cloak off of himself, lowered himself to sit on the floor. He gazed up at the mirror as if it were the most entrancing thing he'd ever seen. He would admit the mirror was amazing, and it was lovely to see himself surrounded by Severus and Narcissa, Lucius, Draco, and his friends, but it wasn't the all-consuming desire to watch he had been warned about. Resolving to discuss it with Severus at the next possible opportunity, he started talking as if he were seeing something else, something that Dumbledore would expect him to see.
"Mum? Dad?" Hadrian raised his hand to his shoulder as if touching something he could see in the reflection.
"I miss you," He continued, willing a single tear to drop from his eyes. "Why did you have to leave?"
He moved up on his knees and reached out to caress the glass as if inspecting their faces, and then allowed his hand to fall to his side. He gathered up the cloak and turned around slowly as if reluctant to leave. Dumbledore was standing there, smiling with that infernal twinkle in his eyes.
"Good evening, Harry, my boy," the aged wizard said with a nod.
"Headmaster, sir…" Hadrian trailed off, pretending to be a bit scared of being in trouble.
"Strange how nearsighted being invisible can make you," he said solemnly.
"I'm sorry, sir, I didn't know you we-" Hadrian began.
"It's fine, my boy," Dumbledore cut him off. I'm certain your father would have snuck off to the third floor corridor by now, and not something so little adventurous as a classroom." He shook his head fondly, thinking of one of his favorite trouble-making students, and continued, "I trust you have figured out the mirror?"
Hadrian scoffed mentally but shook his head and looked a little downcast.
"What did you see then, Harry, my boy?" Dumbledore asked his small student.
Hadrian smiled a little and shyly spoke, "It showed me my family, sir."
"Ah, yes, it would. But let me explain. The happiest man on earth would be able to use the Mirror of Erised like a normal mirror. That is, he would look into it and see himself exactly as he is. Does that help?" he questioned.
Hadrian pretended to think and then said slowly, "It shows us what we want... Whatever we want…"
"Yes and no," said Dumbledore quietly. "It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts. You, who have never known your family, see them standing around you. I see myself holding a pair of woolen socks. Another Christmas has come and gone and people will insist on giving me books." He chuckled at Hadrian's confused look before continuing.
"However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge or truth. Men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible." Dumbledore waved a hand as if to scatter the pesky memories assaulting him and continued, "The Mirror will be moved to a new home tomorrow, Harry, and I ask you not to go looking for it again. If you ever do run across it, you will now be prepared. It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that. Now, why don't you put that admirable cloak back on and get off to bed."
"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," Hadrian said quietly. "Goodnight." He slipped out the door and back up to his dorm.
Chapter 23 Notes
§Parseltongue§