Once it was clear that they weren't in danger of further attack and the aurors weren't going to start flinging spells, Harry turned back to what he had been doing, moving to a young man in his twenties who was huddled against a shop window, clutching at a severely broken arm. The man flinched when Harry approached and aimed his wand at him, prompting Harry to smile reassuringly at him as he began working, starting with a pain numbing spell which helped his patient relax before he began mending the arm.
"Halt!" The lead auror called as he approached, wand up and aimed at Harry now. "What do you think you're doing, signore?"
Harry glanced back at the rotund man as he finished with his current patient. "I'm healing the people injured in the Death Eaters' attack." He said, his voice making it clear what he thought of such a stupid question.
He should probably be a bit more respectful and cooperative with the local law enforcement, but he simply wasn't in the mood after being forced to once again deal with Tom's lackeys doing something stupid. His day was once again ruined, he was around a group of people he didn't really want to deal with at the moment (though, to be fair, it was mainly Lord Greengrass that was the issue), and he had a shoulder wound that would likely be in agony even after he'd healed it a bit if not for the fact that he'd taken a pain numbing potion before starting the fight so he could focus on putting his opponents down, a bit of foresight he was thankful for.
So having an auror be an idiot was severely fraying Harry's nerves at the moment.
"You don't have authorization to do so." The auror stated as three of his subordinates moved to secure the Death Eaters. "We're to leave them for the mundane authorities to deal with."
Harry's eyes narrowed at the auror as he scowled, turning briefly from where he'd been about to assist a girl of about his age who was bleeding rather severely as she lay unconscious on the ground.. "Some of these people either won't survive or will end up crippled without magical assistance." He stated seriously.
The portly auror gave a dismissive sniff at his words. "That is not our concern."
One of the man's subordinates grimaced at his superior's words, but didn't say anything, though the other auror that had remained with the leader looked like she agreed, a small sneer on her face.
Harry glared at the lead auror for a moment, making the man begin to look uneasy, before very pointedly turning to the girl on the ground and beginning to heal her, stopping the bleeding as he knelt down and fed her some blood replenishing potion he'd decided to purchase just in case, letting a bit of color return to her visage.
"I said stop!" The auror yelled before his female subordinate launched a spell at Harry.
"Look out!" Davis called somewhat unnecessarily, seeing as Harry'd begun to move as soon as he heard the spell being verbalized.
He quickly turned without rising from his kneeling position, not willing to risk the girl he'd been tending to being hit by the spell meant for him. With reflexes and coordination honed as the Gryffindor house seeker he slashed his wand upward, the tip glowing a vibrant blue. The incoming spell hit the glowing tip of his wand and was repelled like a ball hit by a bat, being launched upwards to hit one of the buildings.
The attacking auror was caught by surprise at his quick reaction and defense, which Harry capitalized on by launching a rope tying spell at her ankles, forcing them together and making her lose her balance, which prompted her to fall to the floor with a startled cry as Harry quickly disarmed her, the woman's wand launching itself towards the teen's hand.
Once the auror was out of the fight Harry dropped her wand out of her reach and pointedly returned to healing the injured, making a show of not considering the aurors a threat, working as quickly as he safely could since he knew it wouldn't take long for the remaining aurors to try to take him into custody. Something he had no intention of complying with. Perhaps it was his dealings with the British Ministry coloring his opinions, but there was no way he was going to cooperate in any way with these aurors after what they'd just said.
"H-how dare you!?" The lead auror sputtered, and Harry got the impression that he was another of those useless idiots who ended up in positions of authority due to nepotism, corruption and rampant ass kissing. Like Umbridge.
Harry pointedly ignored the rotund fool as he healed one of the last victims, thankful that the fight hadn't lasted long so that casualties had been relatively low. It meant that he'd be able to leave the scene soon without having to worry about his patients.
"You are under arrest, signore!" The auror declared after a moment of waiting for Harry to respond, his wand now pointed at the teen. "Come quietly or we will be forced to use force."
"Under what charges?" Harry asked as he stood back up once he was done with the last victim, turning to face the aurors with his wand held casually at his side, though no one there was under any delusions that he wasn't ready for a fight after what they'd already seen him do. He noted that the aurors that had been securing the Death Eaters were now moving to surround him, all of them with wands at the ready.
The Davis and Greengrass families were hanging back and simply observing after Davis's outburst, which Harry understood despite his frustrations with them. The enigmatic and unknown Hermes Black was one thing, but a prominent British politician like Darius Greengrass attacking foreign law enforcement would bring down all sorts of trouble.
He was gratified to see that Tracey and Daphne were unhappy to have to do so, but he didn't doubt they understood why they had to keep out of things, probably even better than he did.
He turned his attention back to the situation at hand, that being the five aurors slowly surrounding him, wands drawn and ready to cast. His eyes darted about as he made and discarded plans, all while ignoring the slowly growing discomfort in his shoulder that heralded the end of the pain numbing potion's effect, which made him make a mental note to get a better quality one next time. Thankfully it was mostly healed by now thanks to the combination of the mild healing spell he'd used on it and another little bit of foresight, that being casting an extended term spell from the Grimoire for White Mages, Regen, which boosted his body's healing abilities so most uncomplicated wounds would be healed within the span of several minutes.
Honestly, now that he'd played a healer in Final Fantasy he could see exactly what inspired the author of that book. Not that he minded, because the spells were incredibly useful. Not to mention it was cool to be like a real-life video game character.
His musings were interrupted when he noticed Greengrass subtly pointing behind and to the side of him, presumably at one of the aurors that had circled behind him. Without hesitating he turned on his heel to face the man who was in the process of launching a spell at him. Harry ducked to avoid the jet of magenta light and quickly launched a banisher at the man's legs, taking them out from under him and making him fall on his face much like his colleague had.
As much as the Italian aurors were pissing him off, he couldn't seriously hurt any of them without getting into even more trouble. He had to keep it low key. Even what he'd just done might be too much, if the crunch of a broken nose was anything to go by.
Fully expecting the others to take advantage of the opening, Harry turned the duck into one of the rolls Oliver had trained him on in the unlikely case he fell off his broom close to the ground, which he somewhat recognized as a martial arts move. Though where Oliver learned it gods only knew. Still, his opponents clearly hadn't expected the move seeing as he heard the impacts of several spells striking the ground around where he'd been crouched even as he got back to his feet with an ease Wood had almost literally beaten into him and he'd maintained as a useful skill. As soon as he could he ran past the fallen auror, legs pumping as he waved his wand behind him and uttered a spell from the Compendium that created a Hollywood style smokescreen that hid him completely from view and would blind anybody that tried to get through it.
Turning a corner while really wishing he could apparate, Harry then pulled his invisibility cloak out of his pocket, glad he'd decided to keep it on his person at all times nowadays. Throwing it over himself he hid in a closed, recessed doorway, leaning against the wall but otherwise remaining completely still so as not to give away his position. His caution was rewarded when two of the aurors rushed past, not noticing him, naturally.
Once he was certain those aurors weren't coming back for a bit he carefully walked back to another doorway with a view of the intersection the fight had taken place in before settling in to wait and observe as the remaining aurors began questioning the Davis and Greengrass families and obliviators arrived on the scene to begin their work.
Tracey followed her family and Daphne's into the lobby of the hotel they were staying, mind still spinning from the events of the last few hours.
After Potter had managed to escape the Italian aurors the two families had found themselves extensively questioned about the attack, as well as said Potter, and their relation to both. She'd easily noticed that they became a bit more respectful of Daphne's father once they realized he was an important pureblood from Britain, while her own father had received a much less kind attitude. She really, really hated the evidence of the Wizarding World's prejudice, especially when it was her father on the receiving end, but she knew better than to expect any differently.
Still, once the questioning was finally over the two families were quick to make their escape, seeking only the safety of their mundane hotel where they could discuss the day's events in peace. Tracey stuck close to Daphne, knowing she was still shaken over the near-death experience. So was she, to be honest.
She glanced over at her best friend before reaching over and taking her hand, trying to reassure both Daphne and herself that they were alright and safe. The blonde looked back at her in surprise from being drawn from her thoughts before smiling gratefully and giving Tracey's hand a squeeze of thanks.
The group walked into the penthouse suite that Darius had acquired for their stay in Rome, making sure to close the door. Nobody said anything for a bit, just silently grabbing drinks and sitting down on one of the couches. Tracey couldn't help but notice that the adults had gotten liberal amounts of the expensive alcohol that was offered with the room. Not that she could blame them. If she was allowed she'd probably be gulping the stuff down to try to deal with her growing breakdown over how close she'd come to death.
Seriously, how did Potter deal with this sort of thing all the time?
Juliette had pulled Astoria practically onto her lap, clutching her tightly, and whereas the younger teen would have normally balked at being babied in such a way, right now she was curled up in her mother's arms as she shook slightly, one of her eyes fixed on Daphne the entire time. Apparently it was just now truly hitting her how close she came to losing her sister.
Nobody spoke for some time, just letting the day's events settle. Daphne lay her head on Tracey's shoulder, prompting the brunette to reciprocate and lay her own on her best friend's, the scent of the blonde's shampoo tickling her nose. Strawberries.
And now she knew her mind was frazzled if it was focusing on such things.
Her father was the one to finally break the silence, apparently deciding to state the obvious as he nursed his drink. "That was too close."
Darius snorted, sounding almost hysterically amused at his friend's statement of fact. Tracey grimaced at hearing the normally composed man show the cracks that the events had planted in said composure. "Your gift for understatement never ceases to amaze, Jeffrey." He said drily, the edge of hysteria still present. Then he slumped, as though suddenly completely drained of energy, and brought a slightly shaking hand to his face, wiping it tiredly. "I owe that young man everything I have twice over now…"
Jeffrey nodded soberly, appearing much calmer than his friend, though Tracey could see signs that he was close to a breakdown as well. "That makes both of us…" He looked over at Tracey as though ready to leap across the room to take her into his arms and make sure she was alright. In the end he managed to steady himself and take a fortifying sip of his drink.
Tracey's mother set her mostly empty glass down and placed her face in her hands, shoulders shaking with silent sobs, before she drew back up and took a deep breath. "We can't let this fucking happen again. This is the second time one of our children almost died because of that godsdamned parasite that decided he owned the UK." Claudia said sharply, her gaze on the men. "We need to make a decision about what we do now, dammit. This stalling and running away shite isn't going to help us."
More than the brief tears, what cemented how frayed her mother was to Tracey was how much she was cursing. Claudia Davis made an effort to show off a polite and kind facade to most, partly for the sake of her daughter and her husband's position. When she approached her limits, however, the foulmouthed and hot-tempered girl that had grown up in the nastier parts of London during the Thatcher era showed her face.
Daphne's mother, by contrast, was silent, simply holding her youngest as she let the others speak. Many thought Juliette Greengrass to be the silent and subservient type, submissive to her husband and letting him take the lead in everything. In reality only one of those things was true. She was very much the quiet type, rarely speaking unnecessarily and letting her husband do the talking. But that was because she was the observant type, always watching, assessing, considering. Not to say she was cold or anything, at least not to family, as the way she held Astoria now proved, but she was the ideal of what one thinks of when considering a Slytherin: cunning, plotting, and ambitious. It was due to her efforts that her beloved husband had the position he did. As Tracey had once seen it said in an old movie, Darius Greengrass may be the head of the family, but Juliette was the neck.
And considering some of the things Daphne and Tracey had discovered in the Greengrass parents' room one time when they'd been exploring in their younger days, she was also definitely not the submissive one between herself and her husband.
Before the discussion could advance further there was a knock on the door. For a moment everyone froze, and irrational fear of another attack gripping them, but when the knocking came again Claudia got up and stormed over to the door, a reprimand blistering enough to peel paint likely on her tongue for whatever poor soul happened to be on the other side of the door at this inopportune time. She yanked it open and opened her mouth to deliver the angry tirade before freezing.
Potter stood calmly in the doorway, hands clasped behind his back as he waited for some sort of reaction. After a moment of silence he raised an eyebrow. "Would you mind if I come in?"
That seemed to jolt Claudia out of her surprise, prompting her to step aside so he could enter. "Of course. We just… weren't expecting you."
Potter gave one of those crooked smiles that tended to send the pulses of those students interested in men racing on those rare times it was glimpsed. "Understandable, but I figure we should talk before I leave Rome for my next destination." He said as he walked in, the Davis matriarch closing the door behind him.
"How did you know where we were?" Tracey blurted out, still getting over her surprise at his sudden appearance, especially as he still looked rather dishevelled due to the fight, the shoulder of his green t-shirt ripped and bloody for one thing, though the skin underneath now looked pristine, which wasn't a surprise considering the healing abilities he'd demonstrated so far. He'd at least managed to clean the blood and dust off his face, so he looked fine enough, but it was still surprising nobody had done something like call the authorities or anything considering the state he was in..
He just gave her a small, mysterious smile without bothering to answer. Then he turned to the men in the room, his expression becoming more serious. "Is everyone alright? Anybody need any healing?" He asked, apparently prioritizing their wellbeing, which was appreciated.
"No, thank you." Jeffrey said. "The aurors made sure we were in good health before we left."
Potter muttered something uncomplimentary about the auror's priorities, which Tracey could understand considering the fight with the aurors was over them trying to stop him from healing the muggles. Then he apparently decided to move past his irritation for the moment. "That's good at least." He glanced over at an empty armchair before moving to sit down without being invited, though Tracey severely doubted anyone there would dare try to stop him. He let out a sigh as he settled into his seat and closed his eyes briefly, relaxing for a moment, probably for the first time since before the fight.
Then his emerald eyes opened and panned along the room, taking the occupants in. Before he could say anything, however, Darius spoke. "Mister Potter, I…" He paused for a moment, apparently at a loss for words, before bowing his head and speaking softly. "Thank you. This is the second time you've rescued my daughter. I owe you more than I can ever repay, especially considering how our previous meeting ended. Words seem inadequate to express what that means to me, but still, thank you."
"Same here." Jeffrey said, setting his drink down. "You probably couldn't see it from your angle, but that bastard was about to kill Tracey to get at Daphne. My girl would be gone if you'd been even a couple of seconds later, or aimed at someone else. So thank you." He said, bowing his head as well, his eyes watery and voice hoarse as he finished speaking, the emotions that he'd been trying to hold back getting to him now. "You ever need anything, just call."
Potter observed the two men before letting out a sigh and smiling slightly. "Whatever issues I may have with you over how things ended during our last conversation aren't important. Not compared to your daughters' lives." He let out a huff. "Besides which, I wasn't going to let Voldemort's lackeys do what they wanted. Apparently my reason for being is to mess with his plans." He said sardonically. Tracey got the feeling that there was more behind Potter's words than was immediately obvious, but before she could consider that further the boy continued more seriously. "What are you going to do now, though?"
Tracey turned back to Daphne's father, seeing the others do the same. The man looked at his wife and daughters in turn, thinking. "I… honestly don't know. We don't have many options. You-Know-Who has apparently decided to make an example of us, if today's attack was any indication."
Harry considered the man. "I realize that you've probably had reasons for not going with this option before, but Voldemort has pretty much pushed you to join Dumbledore now. He should be able to offer protection for you and your family, at least better protection than you have now, since leaving the country didn't work. And he could use the help of someone in government to keep Voldemort's supporters in check. Voldemort has already marked you as an enemy, you might as well act the part."
"The problem with that is if I openly throw my support behind Dumbledore there is no guarantee my daughters won't see some form of retaliation from their housemates in Slytherin." Darius said. "Dumbledore might say he can protect them, but there is nothing stopping a junior Death Eater from doing something to them within the common room. There is a reason that even those not aligned with You-Know-Who pay lip service and keep their heads down while there."
Tracey scowled but couldn't refute the man's point. Slytherin house wasn't as bad as some people imagined, but then a lot of people assumed some pretty appalling things happened in there, things the female students in particular heard horror stories about. Such things were generally an exaggeration, but unfortunately not an enormous one, at least if one ended up aligned against the rest of the house. So it was entirely possible that she and the Greengrass sisters could wind up in a bad situation before Dumbledore would be able to do anything, especially if Snape was in on it.
Snape was extremely protective of his students, this was well known throughout the whole school, but what many didn't realize was that said protection extended to even -between each other. The last time a Slytherin student had tried something untoward to a housemate, what Snape did to him became a thing of Slytherin house legend.
But if the potions master was forced to abandon the girls to the wolves…
Tracey felt Daphne shiver against her, her thoughts apparently going in a similar direction, prompting the brunette to wrap her arms around her best friend, for her comfort as much as Daphne's. Then she caught sight of Potter's face.
The young man's eyes had become flinty while an impressively terrifying smile formed on his lips. It was a small thing, but something about it made Tracey shiver in fear, and a few other emotions. "No one will touch them while they're at Hogwarts." Potter said, and it was less a promise and more a statement of fact that made something warm bloom in her chest. She remembered what he'd said in the restaurant, his declaration that he would make himself known and remembered, the way the words' had a weight to them, like they weren't so much a statement as the pronouncement of a natural law no more subvertible than the movement of the planets.
There was something intensely attractive about that kind of certainty and conviction. Especially considering the subject matter.
Darius appeared taken aback, lost for words in the face of that sort of conviction, but before he could say anything to argue his wife finally spoke. "Darius…" Juliette said softly, making her husband turn to her attentively. He knew that tone, all her family did. She gazed at him steadily over the top of her youngest's head. "That ship has sailed. The girls will face retaliation whether we join Dumbledore or not, now that we've been marked. We can either pull them out of Hogwarts entirely or arm and protect them as best as possible. And while the first is certainly an option, it would simply delay the inevitable, as You-Know-Who will undoubtedly dispatch agents to wherever we send them, be it France, America, or Japan. You know how petty he is. He will go to extraordinary lengths to prove a point. That is how we lost your father and Lucianna, after all." She said, referring to Daphne's late aunt, who had only been about Astoria's age at the time of her death.
The sad part was that, at the time, though Darius' father had been known to be sympathetic to the Light side behind closed doors, those two hadn't even been the targets of the attack that killed them, simply collateral damage. It was why Darius hadn't been eliminated as well. Especially as he took a firm neutral stance at the time to avoid the same fate.
Darius stared at his wife for a moment before he sagged, letting out a deep, ragged sigh. "You're right, as always." He said tiredly, not sounding entirely pleased by that. "Very well, we will approach Dumbledore for protection as soon as possible."
The tension slowly leaked out of the room once the decision had been made. Tracey felt herself relax as she held Daphne. Part of her was scared about what the future would bring now that their course of action was decided. However…
She turned her gaze to Potter, who had let his head fall back and closed his eyes, his new glasses having fallen down his nose a bit.
Somehow… she didn't think she had anything to really fear now.
After another moment Potter began getting up, drawing attention back to himself. "I'm glad you made a decision, even if it wasn't an easy one." He hesitated before letting out a small sigh. "And I apologize for blowing up at you yesterday. I realize that you were only concerned about your family, but…"
Darius held up a hand to stop him. "No apologies are necessary, Mister Potter. You can be sure that if I had known who I was speaking to I never would have thought to say what I did to you. You had your reasons, good ones." Then he smiled. "I do appreciate your understanding, however."
Potter nodded and began turning to leave. "Well, when you speak with Dumbledore, I'd appreciate it if you could keep my name out of it. If you must mention me, just say Hermes Black helped you. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm tired and hungry, so I'll be heading back to my own hotel now."
The two families said their various goodbyes as he began to walk away, but just as he was about to open the door Jeffrey called out. "Mister Potter?"
Potter paused and turned to look back, waiting.
"If you ever need a solicitor, I'm more than happy to take the case. Free of charge." The man said with a small smile.
Potter considered him for a moment. "Find me a way to keep Sirius' estate out of the Malfoy's hands, and I'll consider us even." With that, he left.
Did you know that there are only 30 days in November, not 31?
I didn't till about 8pm, when the Chaldea Broadcasting Station livestream ended with the announcement 'Lostbelt 5 releases at midnight of December 1st, meaning tonight! Yay!' And I'm all 'Yay!' until it hits me. "Did they say December starts at midnight tonight? ...FUUUUUUUUU-!"
So yeah, I thought I had another day to finish this before my end of month deadline only to realize mere hours before that I didn't. Which is why I scrambled to write 3k+ words in four hours. And I still didn't make it u.u
I hope the rush didn't affect the quality. Though I've found having a looming deadline really helps me focus through my ADHD, cause otherwise I tend to be distracted easily by various things on my comp or around m-oh look, a butterfly! Shiiiiiiiiny...
In any case, it is done, so let's talk about the chapter itself rather than my desperate flailing about to finish it.
A lot of people have asked about pairings, particularly since I introduced the Slytherin beauties and made it clear that they're attracted to Harry.
Romance isn't a focus of this fic. It isn't really the point. Sure, Harry will find various girls attractive as he travels, and once he properly begins exploring the terrifying glories of internet porn things might get interesting for him, but beyond hormonal teenagers noting each others' hotness and maybe developing some crushes after Harry white knights in, romance isn't really a factor.
This fic is about Harry travelling to find himself and heal from his various traumas while learning various skills and eventually becoming THE Mr. Black. He'll be too busy globe hopping to have more than maybe (I stress the MAYBE) a one-night stand or two.
Which brings me to another thing, something that has been pissing me off. I apologize in advance in a way, because I do respect that you all have your own opinions and I am grateful for you all reading and supporting me, but I need to get this off my chest.
STOP FUCKING YELLING AT ME FOR NOT MAKING HARRY A COLD BLODDED KILLER!
Jesus F. Christ! The amount of reviews and PMs from people complaining that he didn't slit his downed enemies' throats rather than making sure they wouldn't die is absurd and tells me you all don't get the goddamn point of this fic!
Harry Potter, even in canon, is a compassionate person. It is literally, quite clearly spelled out in the books, that this is what makes him better than Voldemort.
Say what you will about JK Rowling, fucking TERF that she is, but I felt she got the point across pretty goddamn clearly.
By the end of the series Harry truly pitied Voldemort because he recognized him for the pathetic wretch he is despite all his power and self-proclaimed greatness. His compassion and self-sacrifice is why he let himself die to get rid of the horcrux, why he didn't go for a lethal spell in that final confrontation. He knew Tom's own weakness and ignorance would be what ended him.
Harry Potter's strength is his compassion, even for his enemies.
In fact, if you want a truly excellent breakdown of this fact, I highly, HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend Cinema Therapy's Youtube video titled 'HARRY POTTER vs. Bullies'. It perfectly explains what I'm talking about, and even made me consider a few things I hadn't thought of.
"But what about what you did in Brightest In Shadow!?" I hear everyone whine. That Harry is willing to kill because of the changes he suffered in Silent Hill. There was no way I could make him go through that in the way I did and NOT let it change him. And even then, I've never showed him to enjoy killing his opponents, or at least never meant to, and if you point out an example where it did happen I will go back and fucking correct it. Harry in that fic is still a good person. He is tempted, constantly, to become his worst self, and he manages to keep from doing so, which takes immense mental and moral fortitude, as I hope I've illustrated. He might enjoy the fight itself, he might taunt and mock his opponents, but he doesn't enjoy the act of killing. He took Raven's words to fucking heart.
So, since it seems the subtext of this fic has been lost on many of you, I'm going to spell it out.
This fic is titled Finding Healing for two reasons. The first and most obvious is because Harry is meant to heal from his various traumas through travelling the world and experiencing what it has to offer. The other is because he will find that he has an innate talent for the healing arts and begin to focus on that, wanting to build rather than destroy. He'll still learn how to make things go boom and quite enjoy it, but healing will become his thing, making him essentially a battlefield medic. You want to put it in gaming terms, he'd be a Paladin or Cleric: able to lay on the hurt while also being able to help those that need it. Hell, by the end of this he'll probably be more of a Final Fantasy Red Mage.
Speaking of, even his choice of starting class in Final Fantasy XIV (Sidenote: Endwalker HYPE! No spoilers please though, I've only made it to the beginning of Heavensward) is predicated on this. He enjoyed healing the kid in Flamel's auction. To be able to save him in a way he never could by only shooting things in the face. It gave him something he never knew he needed. So he decided to explore that further through the only avenue he has to do so safely: in a game.
So when everybody is screaming because Harry decided not to do the evil thing (and make no mistake, killing a downed enemy, even if by necessity, is an evil act) I really realize that a large portion of my audience doesn't get the point of this fic, or even the point of canon.
I'm not saying that Harry won't end up killing anybody in this fic. Things happen, and sometimes a lesser evil needs to be committed to prevent a greater one. But he won't go out of his way to do it. Especially when the threat has been neutralized.
The Death Eaters were down. They were going to be in Italian custody, and despite the obvious bigotry I've demonstrated in the aurors, being party to a terrorist attack on foreign soil is still a huge thing. I can't imagine the Italians will be happy, and even the bigots will need to make a show by trying them harshly. And they were all pretty much grunts that Voldemort wouldn't bother with springing from a cell all the way in Italy. So spare me the 'they're still a threat because revolving door' argument. I mean, it's entirely possible that they'll end up causing trouble again, but not a high enough one for Harry to consider killing them to eliminate the problem if he doesn't need to.
Alright, rant over, and geeze, this is probably my longest AN so far, in which case I should get to my usual reminder. However, this time it's a bit more heartfelt.
I have, unfortunately, lost my job.
It's part of why this fic is late. I have options and plans, but those likely won't come into fruition till next year, so in the meantime I have no income. Upside: more free time to write, I guess?
I am always deeply grateful to those of you willing to toss a dollar or two my way just because you like my silly scribblings. I'm hoping I can continue counting on your generosity to ease this transition.
Of course, let us not forget that you do get something out of it. For each dollar that you donate to my Pat A Ron, you get a vote in my monthly update poll stating what you want to see updated next month. And if what you vote for doesn't win immediately, no worries! Non-winning votes roll over to the next poll, so a fic that only gets a vote a month will eventually win (though it might take a bit, to be brutally honest).
That said, if a fic hasn't won in a long time, I will take it off the poll and update it anyway. For example, No Good Deed is what I plan on working on next since it's been so long since that won, so those of you who can't donate and want to see that updated, I hope to have the next chapter done within the next week.
So yes, donate to my Pat A Ron, you get a say in what I update. Everybody wins! So that's Pat A Ron dotcom /athanmortis. The current poll ends on December 7th, so go make sure your votes are counted.
I think that's all I have to say. Thank you everybody once again for reading, I truly appreciate it, especially when you review. Till next time!