JK Rowling Owns Harry Potter

FASA Owns Earthdawn

Note: All conversations in France are in French unless specified. I may start with Bonjour or oui, but that is the true limit of my knowledge of the most beautiful language on earth. Sorry.

I am starting anything in parcel tongue with §"Italic script"§

OK, this chapter wraps up enough loose ends that I can now focus on the main story. The story will take on more action going forward. No more 'Breakup Angst'. He will start showing a bit more of his rebellious and sarcastic side. And a lot more of his 'Master of Death' side.

—CS—

Musee Carnavalet

Département des Mystères des Arcanes, aka the DMA

Director Bellamy's Office

Paris

The same day Harry goes to the Beauxbaton Event

2PM

Four individuals sat around a conference table in Director Bellamy's office. Three women and one man. The DMA was being visited by their British counterparts, the DoM. The two Unspeakables form the British Department of Mysteries arrived ten minutes ago and were ushered into the DMA director's office.

Saul Croaker was the first to speak, "So, you really bungled up things here I see. What's being done to contain the problem?" He placed the copy of the Prophet on the table. Photos of 'The Feast in the Catacombs' on the cover.

Mme. Bellamy had expected this, "The leak was… unfortunate. We are treading carefully until we have a definite plan of action."

The young witch code named 'Charon', aka Padma, spoke next "Waiting for a definite plan of action is the same as doing nothing. You have a monster on your hands and you spurned the only person that has enough power and experience to deal with it." Charon was beyond annoyed. The first letter she received from Harry really ticked her off.

Dominique Aris countered immediately, "Are you implying that you did better against your monster? We are moving forward carefully, but we are not ignoring the problem. Writing articles to discredit the witnesses. Rubbing shoulders with Death Eaters that had enough money to buy their way out of prison…"

Padma was prepared for this. She reached into her briefcase and threw the article the French ministry had written about Harry to the table. It was the discredit piece that never went to print. Key paragraphs and sentences were highlighted. Seeing the shock on the DMA women's faces, she smirked and said, "What, you thought we wouldn't find out? We have our sources. Don't get so high and mighty with us." Looking directly at Agent Aris, she venomously added, "I know about your little 'date' with Mr. Potter. Like he doesn't have enough trust issues."

Mme. Bellamy cut in before Dominique could respond. "Enough. We are all here to deal with the same issue. Obviously, there are personal issues as well," she said with a superior look and tone, glancing at Padma, "But those can wait."

Not one to mince words, Saul Croaker simply said, "We are considering pulling Mr. Potter. He is a British citizen and a national hero. We don't feel like he is being treated fairly here. This article found its way to our offices and we were shocked. First you request our aid, then you mock the aid we send."

Mme. Bellamy adopted a wry grin and calmly stated, "No, Saul, you are not pulling your asset. He is as much a French citizen as he is British." She then calmly laid the citizenship paperwork she had pushed through in front of Saul. It was the application for citizenship that Lily Potter had submitted twenty years ago. Retroactively approved. "You will find it is all in order. We look forward to sharing with him that his mother's final wishes have been completed. Besides, Mr. Potter does not seem to be the type to simply run away from a fight."

Padma, looked the documents over quickly after Saul, her boss, handed them to her. "You can't just say that to him. My god, you don't know anything about him. Fine. He has dual citizenship. Throwing his dead mother in his face before a fight is not going to help him. Harry needs to be focused. If he is distracted, he could get hurt."

Both Mme. Bellamy and Dominique Aris noted Padma's use of Harry's first name. They were close. Dominique took the opportunity to get a 'dig' back at Padma directly, "You seem to have a great deal of insight into Mr. Potter. Is he more than an asset to you? Have you lost your objectivity?"

At that, Sr. Unspeakable Saul Croaker let out a deep laugh. "You have no idea! We call him HARRY because he is like family to us. Agent Charon went to school with him and is a true friend. Unlike you, Agent Aris. I have personally stood by that young man multiple times because I see him for what he is. A Hero! He is not an asset! Call him that and he will make you regret it. A word of warning, if the temperature suddenly drops and you smell a forest with a hint of Roses, you're on thin ice. When you start smelling roses over the forest, you are fucked."

"Language! I would appreciate a bit of professional respect in this office." Mme. Bellamy was not used to being talked to like this in her own office.

Saul just snorted. "Ha! And that's why you will never really relate to Harry. You have no heart. Well, not one you're willing to share..."

Agent Aris calmly responded, "We have plenty of heart. We are building our relationship with our newest citizen carefully and we look forward to years of mutually beneficial interactions." In truth, she was jealous. Padma Patil obviously had a deeper friendship with Harry than she ever would. Saul Croaker too. Her deception and Mme. Bellamy's actions ensured that there would always be suspicion.

Padma chuckled. "Mutually beneficial? What can you possibly give him? Please, invite me to that discussion, I'd love to see his response."

Mme. Bellamy was beginning to feel like she was being backed into a corner. She felt the need to push back and take control. She decided to flex her 'intel' muscles and show how Harry was integrating into French society, "I will discuss the issue with Mr. Potter tonight. He will be an escort for one of the young ladies to the…"

"The Beauxbaon Garden event. Yes, he will be escorting Gabrielle Delacour. A close and personal friend. The younger sibling of his 'adopted' brother's wife. The same little girl he rescued during the tri-wizard tournament."

That was news to Mme. Bellamy. Harry had an adopted brother? Was he a Weasley? She would have to re-read his file. Gabrielle was not mentioned in it. "I intend to approach him tonight and discuss his offer of immunity."

Padma knew she had rattled the older woman. "Why not just give it to me? I can take it by while he is getting ready. I was planning pay him a visit before the event." Padma knew that was not going to happen, but she wanted the DMA to now Harry was with HER. She suddenly realized how possessive she was being and quieted down a bit.

Mme. Bellamy now realized how well established Harry's friendship was with this young lady. She should have listened to Dominique. Still, from what she had read, Harry had no friends at his school when he graduated, so maybe Dominique could still recover. If not, a different agent could be assigned.

Saul got tired of all the drama, He'd talk to Padma after they left. She was publicly showing too many signs of being overly attached. "If Harry is going to stay, he needs the same basic immunity we gave him. Otherwise, citizen or not, we're taking him home in the morning. You can call in the ICW and hope for the best, but I'm not letting that boy rot in one of your prisons because he had the stomach to do what you didn't. You agreed to work with us if we arranged for Mr. Potter to visit, so let's see the contract of immunity."

Feeling a migraine begin, Mme. Bellamy dropped the 'contest of wills' and shared her basic offer. "He will have freedom to do what must be done. This is unprecedented, but he has a 90 day immunity from any persecution that involves finding and eliminating this emerging Dark Wizard". She handed them the contract for immunity.

Saul nodded and began reviewing the document, "You have a lot of check-in and control points. Remove them. He won't sign this as it is. Maybe a debriefing after each contact… he's used to that. As I believe you already know. He usually treats for breakfast. Oh, add in immunity for actions against the followers. There are always followers." Seeing Mme. Bellamy tense up, he added, "Bear with me on this. He is going to share it with his lawyers, so make it clear the first time and cover any potential needs. Delays at this point could result in catastrophe." Saul then handed the marked up contract back to his counterpart.

"Now, let's talk about ways to root out any potential followers that might have infiltrated your ranks. Trust me, I've been there." The conversation slowly became much more collaborative. Once they understood how the new dark wizard was recruiting, they could begin looking for potential followers. It's all about motivations. Veritaserum would make a huge difference in getting details out of followers, but have samples and court orders in hand. Otherwise, witnesses would suddenly find themselves obliviated while waiting for permission. Or murdered in their cells. Speed was the key. Dark Wizards operate autocratically and there is no bureaucracy slowing them down. The meeting ended with the offer of three experienced Aurors to assist the French teams. Three of the best.

—CS—

Neville and Hannah's Flat

The Leaky Cauldron

6PM the Same Night

"Hannah, why won't you tell me what happened between you and Harry? You know and Harry knows, why won't you share with me?" Neville was normally the most affable man in the room, but right now, his patience was at its end.

"Nev, please try to understand, I can't share what I know because it involves other people too. I made a promise and I can't just… break it." Hannah had been dreading this day. One of the worst mistakes of her life was now coming back to haunt her. Again.

"A magical promise or a mundane one?" Neville knew the difference. Breaking a magical promise carried painful penalties. He couldn't pressure her if it was magical.

"Mundane. But it is a big one. Please tell me we can just let it go. It has been nearly seven years. Why do we have to rehash it now?"

"Hannah, I plan to ask Harry to be in my wedding as the best man. How on earth can I do that knowing I am marrying someone who did some anonymous and horrible thing to him? Hell, he might even decline." Considering what he just said, "No, he wouldn't decline. He'd just grit his teeth and stand by me. Pretending that everything is OK. I don't want that."

"Can you ask someone else?"

"Absolutely NOT. I'm a Longbottom and he's a Potter. He has to be a part of the wedding. It's tradition. Not only that, but he was really the only bloke in our house that treated me like I mattered. That earns him the top spot."

Getting up, he added, "You think about it. I'm going out for a drink. When I get back, I expect you to tell me what happened." Neville walked out.

Hannah was stunned, she hadn't seen him like this since the war. So focused and strong. Only, now she was the 'enemy' he was standing up to. She would come clean. But not alone. That would not really be fair. She floo called Susan.

Neville had a drink. Then he had another. Then he had a third. Each one a little stronger than the one before. He examined who he was and made a decision. If Hannah did not come clean and make things right, there would not be a wedding. Harry was his true friend and that was that. Looking at his watch he realized that it had been over an hour and times up. He paid his tab and headed upstairs.

Walking in, he immediately saw Susan Bones talking to Hannah. They awkwardly stopped as soon as he walked in. Oh, Boy.

"Hello, Neville. I understand we have something to discuss…" Susan did not look happy at all. Nervous. Maybe even a little scared.

"Susan" Neville walked over to the corner chair and sat down. "OK, let's talk."

After a short period of silence, Hannah started. "Let's go back to our fourth year at Hogwarts. You remember how angry everyone was when Harry's name came out of the cup, right?" Neville just nodded. "Well, at first we were all shocked. Then we became angry. But it was more than just 'he cheated!', it was also about house pride.

Being in Hufflepuff was great in so many ways. We were all loyal and kind to each other. We worked together and we were really a happy bunch. Loyalty was valued, but so was hard work and friendship. But other houses all looked down on us. Neville, you don't know what it's like to be in the house no one respected."

Neville was following. He knew Hufflepuff had an unfair reputation as a third rate house for wizards and witches that didn't get selected by one of the other houses. The sorting hat gave him a choice. It had said he would do well in Hufflepuff, but he would develop more in Gryffindor. Still, he always wondered if he had made the right choice.

"Cedric was like a big brother to us all. The one we looked up to. This was his moment. Cedric would be the champion and people would realize Hufflepuff was NOT the house of duffers that no one else wanted. Hufflepuff would finally shine. Then, out came Harry's name. It was like, 'Here we go again, no respect for the 'puffs'. You know, that's how the Slytherins felt in our first year with all those ridiculous points at the end. Fifty points to Harry just for playing a good game of Chess? Now, Harry Potter gets special treatment again and we all just have to take it."

Neville remembered that it was actually Ron who got those points, but he decided against correcting Hannah. He wanted to see where this was going.

Susan picked up as Hannah finished, "I actually tried to talk to Harry. I wanted to know what happened. But, the more we talked, the madder I got. I mean, at first I was stunned and hurt. But then I became angry. I was so angry… I hated him. In the space of an hour, I went from liking him and having a mild crush to outright hatred."

Neville had seen it before. It happened in his second year and in his fourth. During those years, he had just felt a crushing inadequacy and fear of failure around Harry. But he never let it drive away one of the only friends he had. "Susan, did he say anything to you? Anything to make you hate him so much?"

"No. It was like all my fears and insecurities came out full force and it was all his fault. The more he claimed to have not entered, the madder I got. Well, all of Hufflepuff was furious." Thinking a moment, she added, "I'm telling you, there had to have been some kind of a curse involved. No way that many people can just start hating someone who is so basically nice."

Hannah nodded to that. No doubt the two women had compared notes at some point.

Neville stayed calm, "OK, so Hufflepuff hated him as much or more than anyone else. What happened to make Harry so… different… around Hannah?"

The two women looked at each other, then Susan took the point, "We decided to hex him. Embarrass him. I'm not proud of it, but it's what we did. We took the meanest hex we were willing to use and modified it. But it was something we never would have used if we knew what the modifications did."

Neville decided to just stay quiet until they were ready to share.

Eventually, Hannah spoke up. "I took a curse that is used to make girls have cramps. You know… female cramps. I thought it would be funny to make Potter go through that. Alicia gave him boils on his bits in his second year, but that seemed a bit excessive. We were Hufflepuffs, not Sytherins, you know? This felt just right. Not so severe he had to go to the infirmary, but something that would give him a rough few hours."

Neville shook his head, "I'm confused. How would that work on a guy? I mean… basic anatomy, right?"

Hannah nodded, "That's where I had to modify it. We wanted to affect his abdominal muscles. Abdominal cramps hurt, but it's pretty minor really. That was an easy modification. Unfortunately, it would affect his intestines too. We didn't want to affect his intestines because... that would be gross and extreme." At this point, Hannah stopped and stared quietly at the wall. Susan was looking at her hands.

Neville waited until he just couldn't wait any longer. "OK. So what did the modifications do?"

Susan spoke up when it was clear Hannah couldn't continue. "It affected his heart. But it wasn't really that strong a curse, his magical core was more than strong enough to resist the spell. But for some reason, it allowed The curse to affect him." Taking a deep breath, she added, "Harry had a heart attack."

"What?" Neville practically yelled. They had used a lethal spell on Harry Potter!

Hannah was jolted out of her stare at Neville's exclamation. "He is so powerful, it shouldn't have affected him at all. It wouldn't have even affected a first year that badly. Then he overcame it and his heart was fully functional." She was on the verge of tears.

Neville just stared. Clearly they left a lot out. "So what happened? I want the full story, not a whitewashed version." This was something Neville did NOT expect.

Hannah quietly recounted the event, "He was walking out of the castle, no friends around him. I enlisted Ernie to help me distract him and we blocked his path. We knew those 'Potter Stinks' buttons Malfoy distributed really got to him, so we held those up. While we taunted and harassed him…" To her credit, Hannah was ashamed. Neville knew she was a bit of a handful before her mum was murdered. That changed her. Never overtly mean, but certainly more confrontational than most Puffs.

Susan picked up where Hannah trailed off, "While they distracted him, I got in place to hit him with the hex. From the rear and hidden away so he wouldn't know who did it." Seeing Neville's face she added, "I know, it was a cowardly attack, but it was really just meant to be a cramping jinx. Neville, you know we'd never try to kill Harry!"

"So, if you cast the spell, why does he think it was Hannah?"

Hannah now had tears running down her face. "He never really knew who cast the spell. But, while he was on the ground, we made eye contact. I laughed at him." At this point she started sobbing. "I thought he was just being dramatic. You know, writhing around like that, can't handle a couple cramps. Typical boy…"

Susan rested her hand on Hannah's shoulder, comforting her friend. Neville just looked at them in shock and dismay.

Susan wrapped up the story, "Then other students got involved. They… threw trash at him. Poured drinks on him. Kicked his books. You know, petty stuff. After about a minute, we knew something was wrong. Harry still hadn't gotten up. He never faked an injury before. A few Slytherin girls actually came over and helped him. When he struggled to get up, he was shaking and barely able to walk. That's when we knew he was hurt badly."

All Neville could say was, "Oh My God."

Now Susan set herself up straight and pushed through any tears or anxiety. She was an Auror and she could separate her emotions. She went into 'work mode', "Right. Harry Potter was taken to the infirmary and the DMLE was called in to investigate an attempted homicide. More specifically, my Aunt was called in."

Neville leaned back in the chair. Wanting another drink. "This just keeps getting worse."

"Yes. Apparently, House Bones and House Potter have been in a 'Tier One' alliance since well before 1066AD. That meant she was honor bound to investigate personally. My Aunt talked to me first. I still remember the slap she gave me when I came clean. It was the only time she ever struck me in my life. She called in Hannah and read us both the riot act. Apparently, no one at the scene was paying close enough attention to have seen me cast the spell. I was in a good ambush spot – not that I'm proud of that. Ernie never left Hannah's side and he vouched that Hannah had not cast it, so she was out of the woods. Thank Merlin we did not include him in our plan. To this day, He does not know who cast the hex."

"A Tier One Alliance… My god, how did your aunt not prosecute you? Her magic would force her…" Neville understood all about alliances. Tier One was the strongest. Even the Longbottoms only had a Tier Two Alliance with Potter and Bones Houses, and those were considered very strong.

"Well, I am the sole heir to the House of Bones. This would make me an Oath-Breaker. My actions reflect on the house as a whole. The Bones family name would never recover. Our reputation would be destroyed. Had Harry actually been killed or permanently harmed, my aunt likely would have forced me to confess and ruined the name of Bones. Instead, she formally ended the alliance."

"Wait, you can't just end a Tier One Alliance. Harry would have to agree…" Thinking back to Harry at that age, he slowly realized what had happened. "Susan, please tell me you didn't trick him." Seeing her face, Neville knew she had. "Oh, god. You did. You took the fact that he knew nothing of alliances and our society and used it against him." Neville was one drink away from ending that sentence with 'you bloody bitch.'

"Yes. I told my Aunt that Harry would go along with it if she presented it well. Like a Slytherin. She had him sign the document ending the alliance, saying it would be necessary to put a pause on the house alliance to prevent a 'conflict of interest'. He bought it, hook, line, and sinker. Dumbledore was in the loop and helped orchestrate it. He said 'when Harry calmed down, apologies could be made and he could reinstate an alliance as the Chief Warlock', and we took the easy way out."

"So, everyone wins but Harry. Wow. I never would have thought…"

Susan turned tomato red at that. "We didn't 'WIN' Neville! You don't know what it's like to carry this around. Harry could still ruin the Bones family name with a simple proclamation. 'Oath-Breaker'. The Bones family would tumble further than the Selwyn family." Seeing a lack of empathy on Neville's usually kind face, she added a personal note, "And what do you think would have happened to your precious Hannah without the cover up? Hmmm? I'll tell you. First, the main line of the Abbots would have cut her off. Then, she would have had her wand snapped and been expelled. She would have been ruined. For creating a simple cramping hex that somehow had results that can't be explained. Would you have wanted that? My aunt sure didn't. She said Harry had been cursed so much that year, he was now looking for someone to go after. He specifically sent her after Hannah."

Neville understood what would have happened if Harry had pressed charges. He also knew how the magical society viewed oath breakers. But to just quietly make it disappear… That is what the Deatheater families did after the first war. No doubt the intention was not nefarious, but the girls took the easy way out. And Dumbledore was in on it!

Susan continued, "So, the alliance was ended with a pen stroke. He eventually realized that he had been played and seemed to think I influenced my Aunt to drop charges against Hannah. Most people already thought she was the one who cursed him. If it had not been for Ernie swearing she was innocent… Anyway. My Aunt never really got over it. Not completely. She loved me and she never brought it up again, but it was there. How had she put it before she covered it all up? 'A thousand years of alliance, ended. All to save a stupid little witch that wanted to jinx a boy she had a schoolgirl crush on'."

"A Crush?"

"Yeah, that's why it bothered me when I thought he had cheated. Not that he'd look twice at me now." Susan was done at this point.

Neville got up and poured a couple fingers of Ogden's finest. "Did you ever try to talk to him? At least to apologize? Hell, he probably already knows or suspects what happened."

Hannah was finally ready to talk again, "No. But we both wanted to! Dumbledore and Amelia told us to stay away from him until after the tournament, then Dumbledore would step in and help. But after the tournament, Harry was magically crippled and we didn't know where he was. We heard that he was coming back to learn Potions, Runes, Arithmancy, and other 'wandless' studies. But he never came back."

Susan added, "Harry and I wrote a bit to each other the summer between our third and fourth year. We were actually becoming good friends. During the summer after our fourth year, after the tournament, I tried to write him, just to see if he was OK… He sent the letter back unopened." Susan still seemed bothered by that. Neville wondered what she had expected. "I waited and sent him another when he didn't show up at school on September first. I really poured my heart out. Apologizing for not believing him. For wearing the Malfoy button. For laughing at him at the Yule ball. I didn't include the attack, but what I did say was from the heart and I meant it all. That letter came back a few weeks later. It had been opened and used to line what I can only assume was Hedwig's cage."

Her work face was now showing cracks. Neville noted that using her letter as a liner for owl droppings was 100% pure Harry Potter. He was actually proud of him for being so creative with his rejection of her crappy apology.

Hannah now spoke up. She had noted Neville's smirk at Susan's letter story. He had no idea how much that had hurt Susan. "Later, at the end of his fifth year, he came back for his OWLs, he was covered in those thorns. And you have to admit, Neville, he seemed pretty dark. Truthfully, most of us were afraid of him. No way were we confessing to that Harry Potter. He was... Hell, look at what he did to Umbridge! Amelia never pressed charges, but she was sure Harry was involved. Somehow. But there was no physical evidence. Look at all the witnesses that swore He was nowhere near. And Harry had those vicious Black family lawyers. When all of the Blood Quill punishments Umbridge forced on students came out, Amelia just dropped the investigation and said Umbridge got what she deserved. Of course he also fought You-Know-Who and a bunch of death Eaters in the Ministry that same week."

Neville remembered the Umbridge case. "Yeah, I will never know how he did all that. I think that was when we started believing Harry might actually be a match for Voldemort. He was definitely powerful enough. I really need to ask him how he pulled that off. Amazing."

Susan came back into the conversation, "Not amazing. Terrifying. You only heard about it. I snooped through my aunt's desk and saw photos. Let me tell you, Neville, Umbridge's injuries matched photos from the victims of Death Eaters. But let's not get side-tracked. We were scared of him when he finally came back. Then, the thorn curse cleared up and he seemed… approachable. Certainly less dark. But, Hannah's mom… had been killed earlier that year. Her dad took her out of school." Susan reached out and took Hannah's hand. "My Aunt was killed before school even started and Dumbledore was killed at the end of the year." Now the mood was less about Harry. "I just didn't care about dealing with it."

"I'm sorry. To both of you. I know you lost so much." Neville had to say that. It was true. "Look, Harry is absolutely not a dark wizard, he just had a rough couple of years. His owl, his godfather, the thorns... He had it bad, too. Talk to him."

"My aunt tried to re-establish the alliance, before she was killed. His response must have been extreme, because she never spoke of it again. They reached some kind of rapprochement, but no alliance. Given the things he said to Fudge and Lucius Malfoy, I can only imagine what his response was. By then he had those lawyers and must have known she had tricked him."

Neville pointed out the obvious, "Yet, he never declared the Bones family as 'Oath-breakers', he never went public with what either of you did. He fought beside you both at the battle of Hogwarts. He has never said a single negative word to Hannah and he works with you from time to time at the DMLE… I just don't think you have any reason to hold off on clearing the air."

"He is always polite at the DMLE. He mostly just talks to Ron and Minister Shacklebolt. I know for a fact that Ron feels bad about that year. Hell, we all do. But I'm the one who nearly killed him." Susan stated this with cold logic. "Still…"

"It was my spell, Susan. You had no idea. I'm more to blame, really. I had no business modifying spells as a fourth year. Honestly, I can't keep living with this. I see him frequently enough. Most of the time, we're cordial, but it's always there." Taking a deep breath, "I guess I need to talk to him. Susan, if you aren't on board, I'll leave you out completely. I'll say it was all me. Doesn't really change anything. I would have done it last year, but I promised you and your aunt I would stay quiet. And so much time has gone by…" Wincing a little and adding a bit of truth, "And I'm also more than a bit scared of him… Neville, please tell me he won't curse me."

"Not a chance. Worst he will do is tell you off. You should be ready for that… He can be vicious with his tongue. He'll probably hold back if I'm there. A little, anyway. Timing is everything. You should wait until he wraps up that French problem. Let him blow off some steam in combat. I know you will be happier once you talk to him."

"And if he says 'Go to hell?'" Hannah was building up her resolve.

"Well, at least you can say you tried." Neville really did not know what the outcome would be, but he knew Hannah and he knew she'd feel better after at least attempting to fix things. Looking over at the other woman in the room, "What about you Susan?"

Susan just shook her head. "I don't know if I can take that chance, Neville. He could exact too much revenge on me and my family name. I can only imagine what Lady Black could dream up. I need time to consider this."

"Well, think about it. But if you don't at least come clean, I'll never really be close to you again. Hannah might, but I'll always see you as a coward." Harsh, but it had to be said. Neville went back down to the bar.

—CS—

Beauxbaton Gardens

That Evening

The Beauxbaton event was an extravagant affair. Harry and Gabby rode up in a gorgeous carriage pulled by a pair of beautiful horses. There were photographers and journalists everywhere. Colin had joined the press pool and was photographing all the honored attendees. They were led down a long golden carpet, stopping frequently for photographs and handshakes. They were directed into the main ball room where Harry presented Gabrielle Delacour as a rising witch to the French magical Society. Each witch was given a beautiful gold and platinum Fleur-de-Lis pin to wear. Apparently, this was a tradition. Seven witches selected each year, high achievers from influential families. The witches and wizards he presented Gabby to were apparently well known and influential French citizens. The witches all had the same pin. Harry had no idea who they were. He was just hoping to get through the ceremony without embarrassing himself or his date.

After the formal presentation, they were led to the table of honor with the six other witches and their escorts. Harry knew Bill and Fleur were at another table somewhere with Gabby's parents. As much as he longed to just kick back, this was Gabby's night and he was not going to ruin it. He sat up straight, listened to the guest speakers, and politely clapped when everyone else did. He began to notice that he was getting a lot of attention. Everywhere he turned, he was being watched and photographed. It never really ends. France was better than England, but he still had a following. 'Probably from the Chocolate Frog Cards', he thought with a snicker!

Gabrielle looked over at him and smiled. She was having a great time. She looked amazing. She smelled great. She was fun and witty. Was Fleur ever this relaxed? They looked so similar, but Gabby had a playful, almost silly, side that her intense older sister seemed to lack. After the speakers finished up, the first course was served. Andromeda had trained him well and he knew just how to handle the setting. Well, he knew how to NOT behave at least. The other people at the table seemed nervous around him, but they eventually relaxed. The wizards talked politics and quidditch. The witches discussed charities and career choices. They all were having a good time.

After dessert, the witches and their escorts opened the dance to an orchestra. Gabby was an amazing dancer and Harry was pressed to hold his own. He suspected she was keeping it simple for him. Harry once again silently thanked Andromeda for her training and instruction. After the first dance, the rest of the room joined in. He danced with Gabby for three songs, then they politely switched partners. The other witches were very nice, but seemed nervous around him. Eventually, Harry danced with Fleur and noticed she was also wearing a Fleur-de-Lis pin that matched Gabby's. They made small talk and she thanked him for making Gabrielle's night so special. Soon, he switched back to Gabby and they decided to go for a walk in the gardens. Harry noted that Colin had taken quite a few photos of Gabby and him. All good, Colin would give them both copies.

On their way outside, Mme. Bellamy approached him. Harry guessed she had business on her mind. Bad timing. She was actually very genteel and cultured. She knew her way around a party, that's for sure. Before she left, she handed Harry the immunity contract for his perusal and made her exit. Harry placed it in his inside breast pocket of his dress robes and he continued outside with Gabby.

Walking through the gardens, they encountered the Mr. and Mrs. Delacour. They talked for a while and then the Delacours excused themselves to go inside. Gabby led Harry to a spot where the Gardens lined up perfectly with the Beauxbaton palace and it was a stunning sight. The lights and the music combined to make for a truly amazing experience. Absolutely gorgeous. Soon, the school bells began chiming – it was almost midnight. He slowly realized he was holding her hand. Looking down at her, he suddenly was overcome with a sense of… closeness. She was SO beautiful. He knew this was the moment he was supposed to kiss her, but he also knew she was a student. Three years younger than him. Still… she smelled so nice. He briefly debated leaning in, but he just didn't feel good about it. Not yet. He suddenly was drawn to her pin. The Fleur-di-Lis. It was starting to build up a magical charge.

Harry's instincts kicked in, he ripped the pin off her dress and tossed it across the garden. He then pulled out his wand and stared at where the pin fell. He was about to raise a dome shield when he noted it was now inert. Looking back at Gabby, she was staring at him. He dress torn across the shoulder and down the front. She was having to pull it back up. There was a lot exposed. He barely saw her hand as it slapped him, knocking his glasses off. She ran back inside in tears. Harry's adrenalin had kicked in, fight or flight and he was not running.

Quickly, Harry reviewed the events leading up to the scene. The night was a beautiful evening right out of a fairy tale. He and Gabby had danced and talked all night. She led him to a romantic spot. At a very vulnerable moment… the Fleur-de-Lis pin began to build up a magical charge. He ripped it off her as fast as he could, tearing her dress and her undergarments in his frantic burst of speed. Why did she put the pin through so many layers? Anyway, his 'snatch and toss' resulted in exposing far more of her than either of them were comfortable with. Yes, he noticed. Summoning his glasses, he looked over at the pin. Was it his imagination? He'd be in a world of trouble and embarrassment if he was wrong. Shifting his perception into the astral plane, he noted the threads of magic were very heavy. Not only was it enchanted, but it had a trigger. A time based trigger that required it to be worn. Was Midnight the time-based trigger? Probably. He had prevented it from doing 'something'. Gabby would thank him later.

Levitating it up, he began dissecting the pattern. It was a portkey. Underneath the portkey enchantment, it had a built in 'stupefy' set to trigger immediately after the portkey. He disconnected both threads, effectively de-activating both enchantments. He began to hear a commotion inside the ball room. Likely the other witches were portkey'd out. He needed to inform Mme. Bellamy. Fast. Summoning his Stag Patronus, he relayed a simple and fast message – "The Fleur-de-Lis pins are Portkeys. I suspect it is a kidnapping trap. Trace them back to the source. Find the guilty party. Time is critical. I'm going to investigate." He sent the Patronus to Mme. Bellamy. There's no way this was part of the event. Especially with the built-in stunning enchantment.

Lives were at stake. Any second now, whoever perpetrated this would realize ONE witch had gotten away and he'd lose his window. First, he shifted to his Black and Silver 'Astral Face' as full on Master of Death. Then he reconnected the 'portkey' thread and completely severed the 'stunning' thread. Holding his phoenix and elder wands and adopting a combat stance, he felt his adrenalin spike up. No, its not easy to just walk into god only know what. No armor, no planning or reconnaissance, no backup, no supplemental weapons. Just raw power, intense training, determination, and two kick ass wands. Time to get busy. Harry pressed his fist against the pin, activated the portkey... and vanished.

—CS—

Authors Notes

I had so many messages and reviews about Hannah that I made it a priority to address. The prequel, 'Harry Potter and the Dance of Death', is taking a long time to write – longer than planned. I don't want to force any of you to wait or to read it if you are not interested. So this chapter covers the overview of what happened that day with Hannah and Susan. Basically, the Horcrux in his scar was charged up by Barty Crouch Jr. and it brought out the insecurities and worst traits of everyone near him. It actually used Harry's magic against him and projected its influence onto anyone in his vicintity. Susan was angry that Harry had 'betrayed' her. She had a crush on him and felt rejected and scorned. All the Hufflepuff inferiority issues really came out and were intensified. No, Susan was not being completely logical, but hey, neither was Ron when he abandoned Harry and Hermione in Canon. And he knew the Horcrux was affecting him. Hannah was angry that Hufflepuff was getting shown up again and with the negative influence of the Horcrux, decided to get even along with Susan by creating a vicious hex as a prank. But she screwed up the spell and created something potentially lethal. The Horcrux let the spell initially affect Harry by diverting much of his magical core. Then, it released enough of Harry's magic to neutralized it (all magical cores can resist harmful spells, Harry's is quite powerful when it is not 'blocked'). I don't plan to address this anymore in the current story. At least not until after Paris. The scene will play out in a future release of 'Harry Potter and the Dance of Death'. Note that the Horcrux had to have something to work with. Hannah and Susan are not completely blameless.

And yes, Neville has a bit of a drinking problem. I think that was true in Canon as well and it is a flaw I kept.

As for Hogwarts, some criticism for Harry being too quick to forgive. Well, maybe. OK, Probably. I think my favorite description was that he seems like a "Forgiveness ATM". Excellent Feedback. I love that image. Well, the ATM is now closed. When Harry returns to Hogwarts, it will be as Lord Slytherin and he will have far more authority than a typical teacher. He will have access to the restricted section. He will have a ritual chamber that exists on top of the highest number of ley lines in Great Britain (Hogwarts and the Chamber of Secrets), and he will be able to help out a few orphans.

It also puts him near his properties in Hogsmeade. Harry is not dwelling on the past, but he has not forgotten. After he spends one year as a teacher, he will be on the Board of Governors. Payback can be a B***h. Think about how Lucius Malfoy used to push Albus around… McGonagall will be held accountable if she sticks her head in the sand again. Hogwarts is a good 'home base' while Harry wraps up his familial obligations. I barely scratched the surface on that and, quite frankly, managing family business interests is boring to write about. At least for me. But, his teaching at Hogwarts is at least two stories away. He needs to travel to Machu Picchu and take care of a Malediction first. Then maybe Malta.

Special thanks to everyone who gave detailed reviews. Very good points and observations. I appreciate the different perspectives – helps keep the story moving forward. I read them and I consider the feedback. When the differing points of view presents something I had not considered that makes very logical sense, it does affect the way I spin the story.

Coming up:

The Usurper has made his move. Harry reacts and counters.

Harry talks to the Flamels. (eventually)

Open combat. Yes, finally some action.