Harry brushed his hands down the fabric of his new red robes and marvelled at the softness of the fabric. His mother had gotten it for him the day before, and he was still feeling a bit unused to wearing them, but he really, really wanted to fit in with the rest of his family. He had never been quite so happy before that their house was just shy of the county-line to Greater London, rather than Surrey, which meant that he was going to go to an entirely different school than his old one, and hopefully be less likely to being beaten up by someone like his fat cousin and his gang. He took a deep breath and picked up his brand new, black school back and headed down for breakfast, hoping he didn't look too nervous.
"Hello dear. Are you okay You look a little flushed?"
His grandma was setting the table the way she done every day since he got here. It had taken them a week and an acquaintance of Satan whom happened to be one hell of a lawyer, and a few threats to the Dursley's to sign the right paperwork, but now everything was finally in order, and Harry was officially a DeVille. They even helped him getting his name changed to Harry DeVille! He felt more and more like he truly belonged here.

"Hey, grandma. I'm just a bit worried about my new school. What if they don't like me?"
Harry bit his lip, worrying more about potentially broken bones than loneliness. He had his family now after all. He wasn't going to ask for more than that, even if it WOULD be nice with a friend...
"Don't worry dearie. You're a charmer. I'm sure they'll like you," Mavis told him.
"And if they don't, just punch those pressure-points I showed you," Benny said and patted his hair as he walked next to him to grab his own breakfast.
"I will, uncle!" Harry nodded his head rapidly and smiled.
Apparently, Benny was too lazy to be bothered to fight fair, plus, fighting fair was just stupid when you were short, so he decided to even the odds by learning ways to knock out or kill an opponent with minimal work involved. He tried to teach some of those tricks to Harry, because he didn't want his new favourite nephew to have to suffer through the embarrassment of being beaten up in school. Some people just didn't appreciate it when men wore robes and couldn't tell them from a dress. Not that he would tell Harry that, he figured it would do the kid some good to learn it the hard way and gain some confident by beating up the moron himself instead of worrying about it.
By the time everyone has eaten their breakfast, Sharon and Harry were on their way to school, Harry was feeling a bit better about it. He had been reading some of Derek's old school-books from the first grade, and with some help from his mom he felt relatively confident that he would understand everything and make his mommy proud of him.

After the first few days, Harry was starting to walk with Derek to school, once Sharon felt that Harry knew the way well enough to not get lost along with his easily distracted, very air-headed uncle.
It had taken almost a week, but by that time the bullies in school who had thought he would be an easy target had learned their lessons, and generally left him alone to pick on people who didn't kick them in the balls or, on one memorable occasion, almost gouged the eyeballs out of their leader. They might be stronger than him as well as superior in number, but he was just too much trouble. Why pick on someone who can hurt you when there are so many people who just quivered in fear and handed over their lunch-money anyway? Besides…it was embarrassing to have to admit they were a little intimidated by a firsty who seemed to have a complete lack of regard for human life and health. Even the worst bully at the school didn't want to risk killing or maiming their victim...just scared them shitless and maybe beat them up a bit. They weren't really bad people. At least they told themselves that. And that weird kid just creeped them out sometimes.

Sharon brought Harry with her to the ritual room, and started setting up the candles, allowing Harry to help hand her things, and watch her work, so he could learn how to do it himself.
"This is important so pay attention kiddo," Sharon said and smiled at Harry's enthusiasm.
"Okay mom! I'm just happy to see Father again. Do you think he'll have time to hang out with me today though? He seemed really busy last time," Harry told her, hoping that he would have some more time to get to know his Father.
He'd never had a dad before, not one he could talk to, and everyone else around him always had a dad, and their dads took them to fun places and did fun stuff with them…Harry had always been envious of that.
"I know you read the book I gave you, so pay attention to the intonation of the words, and the gestures, alright?" Sharon lectured.
As Harry nodded she began to speak the forbidden words that would summon Satan onto Earth, and to allow him to walk around freely at his leisure, something most ritualists would never in a million years dare to attempt or allow. However, Sharon was confident that he wouldn't overstay his welcome or harm them. She was practically married to him anyway, he just hadn't proposed because his father wouldn't like it, or maybe there was some kind of law in Hell that forbidden marriage with a human, or something…anyway…she was sure he had a really good reason for it. He clearly liked her well enough to take her as his mistress anyway, so she wasn't overly worried. If some other bitch would dare and try to steal him, she'd just dispose of the rival. Easy-peasy. She focused on the task again as she watched Satan's majestically red figure rise from the steam and smoke.
"Why has thou called me here, woman? …Again."

"Don't be like that, love. Remember, you agreed to spend some time with your son today. Make it a father-son day, yeah?" Sharon scolded him as she slapped Satan's arm lightly. Satan deflated and sighed before smiling at Harry.
"Oh, right. Well then…son…." He patted Harry's hair with his own enormous hand and tried to think about what activities people usually did. "Soooo…Harry, was it? What do you want to do?" Satan asked him, unsure of what to suggest himself.
"Can we go to the zoo?!"
Harry's green puppy-dog eyes light up in awe of being allowed to choose. His new family was amazing! And his father asked him for HIS opinion! How great was that?!
"Well…I suppose…."
Satan looked down at his red body and loincloth, twirling his tail in his hand.
"I assume I will need some…er…disguise." He coughed awkwardly.
He might be very, very good at putting the fear of Hell in mortals and rule the place with an iron fist, but this father-son thing…on earth…yeah, not so much.
"Oh, don't ya worry, love. I got it all covered!" Sharon told him and picked up a long, black trench-coat and a hat from a chair that stood nearby.
If one just ignored the fact that it was summer…and the tail. Once he shrunk himself down to the size of a normal human…he would still stand out, but he could almost pass for a human, as long as nobody looked too closely anyway. Harry just grinned widely, thinking his dad looked like one of those cool spies on the telly.

Once they arrived at the zoo, and Satan had hypnotized the ticket-boot officer to hand them two tickets for free, Harry began to drag his new father around to stare at all the different animals. He had never seen most of them and it was absolutely amazing to see them all! Harry was a bit disappointed that all the lions did was lazing about, but he was absolutely fascinated by the snake tank. He spoke to one of the snakes briefly and listened to her grievances about longing to go back to Brazil, and Harry really wished he could help her.
"Can you help her Father?" He looked up at Satan with those damnable green puppy-dog eyes and Satan felt his heart melt just a little bit more. Here he had thought Sharon was bad, her screeching and violent tendencies was scary enough to make him do as she said, but this kid made him want to help him, and if he ever, Darkness forbids, cried, he would move Hell and Earth to stop it and he absolutely hated it!

"I…well…yeah, well…we can't just let her out. England is too cold for her, and Brazil is really...really...far..." Harry kept staring at him, damn those green too big eyes! "Okay! Okay! I'll... get one of my human agents to come and take her home, okay?!"
He stared at the kid, eye twitching in irritation. Harry's grin could light up the entire world as he hugged Satan, thanking him repeatedly. Satan couldn't help but hug him back, and he melted even more, grumbling as he silently cursed Sharon and the damned adorable kid yet again. This was bad for his image.
It goes without saying that when Harry later asked if he could have ice-cream, and when asked which flavour he wanted, he said "All of them?", Satan ended up buying him a humongous ice-cream-cone with 21 different flavours and a few magic-infusions to stop it from melting too quickly, or falling apart, or being too heavy for a small child to carry. Harry was extremely happy, declaring it the best Father-Son day ever! Satan felt a strange fatherly pride blossom in his chest at that and had to fight the smile that threatened to mar his stoic face. He failed miserably.

The next few weeks passed quickly, and Harry easily fell into the routines of his new life, enjoying each and every day more than he had ever thought possible, and soaking up the knowledge that his new family bestowed upon him, slowly taking in their values and beliefs, and making them his own. And then, one day, something quite magical happened to him...
The next few weeks passed quickly, and Harry easily fell into the routines of his new life, enjoying each and every day more than he had ever thought possible, and soaking up the knowledge that his new family bestowed upon him, slowly taking in their values and beliefs, and making them his own. And then, one day, something quite magical happened to him.
"Mom! Mom!" Harry ran in the door excitedly one day near the end of the school year, throwing his backpack by the door almost forgetting to take off his shoes in his rush to tell her the news.

"What is it honey?" Sharon smiled at him. Harry was absolutely adorable when he was exited like this, even if he didn't have the diabolical cuteness of his baby brother.
"I set the teachers hair on fire today!" Harry beamed with pride. "I was just soooo bored, and Mr. Johnson just droned on and on and on…and I just wished his head would catch on fire, so he'd stop being so boring, and it just happened!" Harry told her with a wide grin.
It had only take a few weeks, some books, and a few ritual sacrifices to make Harry understand that there was no reason to pity the weak. If they couldn't defend themselves, they deserved what they got. And it was not like the Dursley's had ever taught him any morals anyway. If everything you do is wrong, how was he to tell what was the right and wrong thing to do? It didn't really matter what was right and wrong.
The DeVilles were much more consistent though; Killing or maiming fools, idiots and people who annoyed you were perfectly alright. Helping old ladies across the road or follow anything the bible said was wrong. Which lead to Harry making a list of the commandments and made a commitment to break as many of them as he possibly could, as often as he could be bothered. He marked his achievements with a small reversed pentagram sticker. He was starting to gather so many on some of the commandments that he considered moving the list into a book instead, so he could track his achievements better. His mom promised him that if he gathered enough pentagrams by Samhain, he'd get a gift! Harry happily worked hard to collect his stickers.

"Oh, sweetie, that's awesome! I'm so proud of ya!"
Sharon hugged her son and praised him for his achievement. She made sure to praise him every single time he did any magic, accidental or not, and he was becoming better at making it happen. She was happy that their good friend Richard would be dropping by this summer, he knew all about that magic stuff, maybe he could teach him more about it. The boy needed a – she paused in her line thoughts – godfather doesn't sound quite right, but then again, if the term was good enough for the mafia kingpins, why not? She patted Harry hair again and promised him they could go to the zoo to celebrate it. For some reason, he'd become fast friends with one of the boa constrictors residing there, and he was always excited about seeing her.
Harry hugged him mom back, grinning from ear to ear. His mother was proud of him, and it made him feel even more proud of himself. He decided that Grandpa Lucifer was totally right; Pride was the best feeling ever!

"Oh, and mom! I think I made a new friend in school today!" he told her.
"Really? Well, come in and have some dinner with the rest of us. You can tell the whole family all about it, and about the teacher. I betcha they're all really proud of ya," Sharon said and ushered Harry into the kitchen, where the rest of the family had gathered.
Harry simply grinned at all the praises he got from setting the teacher on fire, and excitedly told them about this interesting bookworm of a girl he'd met in school today. She had punched the bully in the nose, not that it had stopped him, but lucky for her, Harry thought that someone who punched Big Mike in the nose would have to be fun to hang out with, and nobody wanted to get on his bad side, not after what he did to Jim.

Harry couldn't help but loving each and every second of his new life. As bad as things had been before, that was as good as they had become.
Sure... his new family might not agree with the rest of society on...most things, and their values might at best be referred to as eccentric...but they loved him for who he was, and encouraged the strange, magical things he could sometimes do, instead of slapping him, or locking him up in a closet without food. Besides…the more he was learning, the more he found he agreed with their beliefs. It sounded perfectly reasonable when it was explained to him properly, and the morals and values most of the other idiots and sheep had didn't ever seem to have any logical reason behind it other than 'It's evil' or 'It's wrong.' Harry thought those reasons HAD to be the most stupid things he had ever heard. Hell…even the teacher talked about Darwin as a guy who knew what he was talking about, and Sharon had told him all about his theory of Survival of the Fittest, so they were all clearly hypocritical.
Just as Harry was finishing up his story, there came a distinctive 'fwoosh' sound, like something had just caught on fire, and a lot of screaming from the neighbours, and his grandma clapped her hands together and smiled broadly.

"Oh, how wonderful! It sounds like Richard is here! He'll just LOVE to hear about how our dear little Harry set his teacher on fire, I'm sure he'll have a good laugh!" she said and moved to answer the doorbell as it rang...or screeched...it was hard to tell sometimes.
"Mom...Who's Richard?"
Harry looked over to his mother. Damien looked his usual evil self, plotting ways to lay waste to his food people, and Derek whimpered and ran to lock himself in his room. For some reason Richards really didn't like him...unless he hurt himself in some amusing way or other of course.
"Oh, Richard is an old family-friend. We go back a long, long time, him and the family," Sharon explained with a smile while she patted Harry's head. "Come on, finish your meal quickly so we can go join the others in the sitting room," she continued as she went to pick up Damien and let Harry eat the last bacon on his plate before ushering him into the other room. He could hear their voices from the hallway, and Harry was just a little bit intimidated at the dark, yet suspiciously happy voice that came from the sitting room.

"So, this kid just set his teacher's head on fire because he was bored? I like him already!" The dark voice proclaimed.
"Yes, and we hope you wouldn't mind us asking you this, but you ARE our oldest friend and we would love for you to be the new godfather of our precious little Harry," Mavis said.
She turned to smile at Harry as he walked into the living-room. The guy who was dressed in robes as black as the night sky, with a hood and a red gem on his chest stared at Harry, in a way that made Harry fear for his life, and consequentially his magic lashed out and set Richard on fire, making Harry blanch. But just as he was about to stutter out an apology Richard turned to Mavis and, if his eyebrows – or lack thereof – was anything to go by, he was grinning.

"Oh, I like him A LOT! Can I keep him?!" he asked, sounding like an exited child, making Harry giggle at the mismatching impressions he got from him. Maybe he wasn't so scary after all.
It took Mavis and Sharon quite some time to talk Richard out of stuffing Harry in his bag and keep him with his other 'children', but in the end they managed to get him to agree to a shared custody as a second father. Harry had never felt more loved in his life and hugged the warlock…something Richard couldn't remember anyone ever doing before, and awkwardly patted Harry's head.

"Of course, you love me son, I'm your new Daddy. I'm your BEST Daddy!" Richard exclaimed, clenching his fist.
He was going to show up that other hot-shot who thought he could be the father of such a wonderfully violent pyromaniac.
"I'll teach you how to Fwoosh. I bet Satan couldn't Fwoosh if he was holding a burning torch!" he said determinedly. "And I'll fry your old family while I'm at it. Can't have them hanging around with any legal claims, right?" Richard said lightly while studying his nails in casual dismissal.

Harry wasn't entirely sure how to feel about that, but then he remembered how they had treated him, and that it was not okay for them to do so, and he decided that if anyone deserved to be deep fried, it would be them, so he just smiled and nodded his head at Richard. He wasn't entirely sure what he wanted to teach him, but he loved learning new things, now that he had a family who was actually encouraging him to learn, and that praised him when he did well.

Luckily for everyone, there was only a week left of school, then it was summer vacation. Richard had decided to stay for the summer and had promptly occupied the neighbour's house, setting fire to the weird cat-lady that had recently seemed to move in there, and making a sport of hunting down each and every of her cats as well. Harry had been a bit worried when some strange men in robes had come to try and take Richard away, but after frying a few of them and making their skeletons kill any newcomers, it seemed that they had decided that it wasn't worth the risk involved to seek revenge for one old lady and a few cats. It was possible that the human heads on stakes in various humorous poses kept anyone from investigating too closely as well. The rest of the neighbourhood, by now used to the DeVille's antics, had decided it was most likely a too early Halloween joke and pretended the blight on their beautiful neighbourhood did not exist.

Richard also set up a room for Harry to stay at in his new house, and Harry was staying there just as much as he was staying with his mother and the rest of his family. He decided he loved being a divorcee child, because if his mom wouldn't let him do something, he'd just go ask his dad, or his father. And Richard never said no to anything, and usually encouraged whatever it was, especially if it was violent and dangerous.

"No, no, no! You need to work on your technique, it's all about visualizing and make the magic flow through your body! Think happy thoughts! Envision the bunny being on fire! SEE it!"
Richard was working with Harry, teaching him how to Fwoosh, but it seemed to be a bit of a process and he wondered if it had anything to do with Harry still being alive. He tapped his chin as he pondered if it was about time that he introduced Harry to the first steps of becoming a Warlock. Merlin forbid he became something as boring as a Wizard! Richard shuddered at the thought.
"I did it! I did it!"
Harry was jumping up and down as he watched the bunny go up in flame. Huh…Bunnies can scream? He didn't know that. Oh, well... Harry shrugged, then he laughed as the bunny kept trying to outrun the flames and looking absolutely hilarious as it did so. He totally saw why his father loved setting things on fire. The bunnies looked super-funny! he briefly wondered if humans would look equally as funny, but he wasn't entirely comfortable with the concept of killing humans... Then he reminded himself that if they were too stupid to just stop, drop and roll, the world would probably be better off without their gene pool anyway.

"That's my boy!" Richard said and lifted Harry up, swirling him around and making Harry laugh in joy, both at the action and at the sound of pride in his Daddy's voice. Yes... Richard insisted that he called him 'Daddy'. So, he decided that maybe he should call Satan 'Father'...just to tell them apart.
"Now…now the time for vengeance has come. The time to smite down your enemies with fire and brimstone! And then...we dance! Mwahahahahahaha!" Richard laughed maniacly, shaking his fist at the sky, laughing maniacally. Which Harry decided meant he was going to take Harry on a field-trip to kill something…or someone…it was hard to tell with his new Daddy.

In the end, it became apparent that the cats of the neighbourhood had learned their lesson and ran away to a different neighbourhood where there was less risk to their lives, and so Harry spent the rest of the afternoon setting fire to squirrels and the occasional bird. Which was, quite frankly, hilarious to watch how they flopped about, trying to stay in the air and failing. Harry was starting to enjoy this just as much as his dad did. Which was supported by Richard praising him and stolen candy from other children, to give to Harry whenever he hurt someone, whether it was accidental or not. Positive enforcement is a very strong motivator after all.

* * *

As the time closed in on his 7th birthday, Richard decided it was finally time for him to be introduced to the Brothers of Darkness, and get him signed up for a membership, as well as getting him started on his path to become an undead Warlock just like him. Richard was pretty sure his mother might not be entirely TOO happy with the idea, so he decided it was for the best to just keep it a secret from her. After explaining to Harry about how mothers often were overprotective and liked to deny their kids anything fun, Harry nodded and promised Richard he wouldn't tell her until he officially became a Warlock... probably around his 17'th birthday...at which point it would be impossible to keep it secret anymore. Mostly because of the pronounced change in skin-color and the prominent door of Death that always followed proper Warlocks around, seeing as it was traditional for Warlocks to be dead. It wasn't necessarily a requirement, but it was a pretty big bonus to be undead, seeing as it provided you with unlimited, if rechargeable power, eternal lifespan, and a complete invulnerability to any kind of damage. Well... To any permanent damage. The occasional loss of limbs was a work hazard, and they could always be reattached, once you found them anyway, they did have a bad habit of running off on their own sometimes.

"Order! Order!" The current Supreme Warlock of the Court of the Brotherhood of Darkness knocked his Ordelis club down to overcome the chatter, ready to set of yet another meeting. Just as he was about to start the first topic of the day, he saw a figure appearing in the door that made him groan and want to bang his own head with the club instead. And why did he bring a child?
"Oh, no need to stop on my account," Richard said cheerfully as he ushered Harry into the courtroom where the brotherhood held their monthly meetings.
The Supreme Warlock of the Court sighed and figured out he better deal with whatever it is that the Chief Warlock wanted before he got bored and decided to start setting things on fire.
"What brings you to the Brotherhood on this gloriously gloomy day, Chief Warlock?" the court master asked Richard.

"Ah, well, the application office said that we better bring Harry's apprenticeship before the Supreme Court of Darkness, so he could be initiated as a potential Warlock," Richard told the attending warlocks.
"Oh, and I figured you all could do with some cheering up around here!"
Richard smiled, and the rest of the Warlocks groaned as he started handing out funny hats that were clearly made of something that used to be alive once. The supreme court master sighed and put on his squirrel hat, knowing that it would be futile to even attempt to go against the Chief Warlock…there was a REASON he held that title after all.

"On what grounds does this...child…have the rights to be considered worthy of becoming a Warlock? You DO remember that we do not accept applications of someone so young, much less alive?" He was starting to develop a twitch in his eye in irritation at this point. Dealing with the Chief Warlock was not good for one's health, whether physical or mental health.
"Oh, don't worry. My Son has already shown great talents in setting things on fire!" Richard proclaimed proudly.
The silent that followed the shock of Richard having a son…not to mention the consequential ponderings on how that was even physically possible...gave a whole new meaning to the saying 'silent as the grave'. It was positively oppressing.

"WHAT?! Your SON?!" The room suddenly busted out in chattering, flying with everything from accusations of Richard being alive, to questions on how this could have been adopted, and Harry suddenly felt a little bad for Richard, being accused like that. So, he decided to speak up.
"Um... I'm adopted. If it helps…And…Uhm... I've gotten really good at fwooshing!" Harry said and focused hard on making his hand burn, just like Richard, before proceeding to set the doorman on fire.
"Drop and Roll!" Richard placed his hand by his mouth to shout vaguely helpful advices. "Or dance! That might work too." Richard said as an afterthought, watching the man jump around like crazy.

"Sorry." Harry sighed. His control still lacked finesse, but he thought he was getting better at least. He hoped it didn't impact his chances to join. He really, REALLY wanted to be a Warlock like his Daddy!

The Brotherhood of Darkness watched the spectacle in deep awe, and slight fear. Never before had anyone this young shown such power... Most people were not even able to light a candle until they turned 11, never mind setting a whole person on fire! Maybe Richard was right. The boy had potential. But still…for all that the Brotherhood was for evil, some of them felt a bit uncomfortable with initiating a child. Did he know that once he had begun the process, the damage would be irreversible? Most of them had lived out their lives and been dragged up from Hell to join the Brotherhood. This child had not even lived out his life, hadn't even lived much at all. Surely, he would come to regret his action, maybe even change his mind?
"Um...Right..." The judge coughed awkwardly. "Chief Warlock... Be reasonable. Surely the child doesn't fully understand the consequences of his choice. You don't want to rob him of his childhood, do you? And what if he changes his mind?"

"Pish-posh! you won't change your mind, right Harry?" Richard casually dismissed their worries.
What did they know. He was going to raise his new son to be the perfect Warlock. And if he had overemphasized the awesomeness of it, well... So, what if he had to manipulate the little scamp? It was for his own good. Who wouldn't want to be powerful and immortal? Regardless of the less pleasant consequences. Details, shmetails. They could deal with problems when they came.

"Of course, not Daddy! I want to be an immortal, undying...well...undead...Warlock just like you!" Harry crossed his arms and glared at the judge, which broke out in sweat. It was uncertain if it was because of the fact that a child called the mentally unstable, sadistic, dangerous Chief Warlock 'daddy', or if it was because it was clear that Richard had taught Harry to glare, and he was doing a damned good job at it... Which was unsettling to see on a child of barely 7...if that.
"See?" Richard ruffled Harry's hair and looked smugly up at the court official, whom seemed to sink defeated down into his seat.

"Very well... If there is no other objection, this Court will make the motions that this...Harry, will be made a Junior Member of the Court of Darkness, and initiated in the Ceremony of Blood. Does anyone object to this motion?" The Supreme Warlock of the Court asked, as was tradition.
He looked out at the surrounding brotherhood and watched as Richard glared down anyone whom looked even slightly like they might consider protesting. There would be no objections...everyone was too fond of their unlife...and bodies...to go against the Chief Warlock.
"Then this Court rules that Harry, son of Richard will be welcomed into the Brotherhood of Darkness by the Ritual of Blood, in exactly one week. Richard, it is your duty to teach your young apprentice our rules and traditions, as well as make sure he knows exactly what to do during the ceremony." The Court Warlock looked at Richard and added in an exasperated voice. "And for Darkness sake, Richard... PLEASE be serious under the ceremony!" He was begging now, but that was the only thing that might actually make him listen. Or laugh. Depending on his mood. This time, Richard made a formal bow, showing just how serious he was about this. And yes…Richard COULD be serious...he just rarely bothered.

"It shall be done, your honour. Have no fear."
Then Richard grinned, at least one could assume he was grinning, since all you could see behind his mask was his eyes, as he started to lead Harry back out again. The Brotherhood gave a collective sigh of relief.
"We'll be off then. Things to do, people to murder...you know the drill," he said in a cheerful voice, patting Harry's back.
Harry himself was smiling rather disconcertingly alike to Richard. Except you could actually see Harry's face...which just made it worse.

* * *

The next week Harry spent with Richard drilling into his head the words of the ceremony and teaching him about the rules and traditions of the Brotherhood of Darkness, and of Warlocks as a general. Because, as he said, "You have to know the rules, if only so you can break them."

He was also preparing Harry for the fact that the ritual, being done to someone whom was alive, would hurt like a bitch. And while he contemplated on having Harry jump off cliffs or antagonizing bullies, he figured it would simply work better to hire a Dark wizard proficient with the Cruciatus curse and make him swear a Wizarding Oath to secrecy, and have Harry withstand it to the best of his ability.

Harry was a bit worried, naturally enough, but he was familiar with pain, and he could not bear to disappoint his new daddy, whom had taught him so many things, helped him become strong, and he knew that Richard just wanted to help him...however extreme his methods was...it was for his own good. And he most certainly didn't want to make a fool out of himself by crying like a child at a serious ceremony, when Richard had fought so hard for him to be treated like an adult. And thus, it came to be that Harry kept at his training, biting his lip hard to stop himself from screaming out at the pain, and refusing to tap out until the Dark wizard quit the curse out of fear he might do some actual harm to the kid. The first few tries, Harry could barely hold out even for a minute, before starting to scream. But he insisted on continuing, determinate to rid himself of the weakness.

He knew that you had to sacrifice something to become a Warlock, you had to make sacrifices for Power. The more Power you wanted, the more sacrifices you had to be willing to make. Naturally, he would sacrifice everyone else first, and he hoped that he could sacrifice the lives of the Innocent, like Richard did, but if he had to suffer for it, it would still be worth it in the end.

When Richard hugged him and gave him a painkiller potion and one for the after-effects of the Cruciatus curse and promised to take him to the Wizarding centre in London for Ice-cream as a reward, as well as patting him on the back and saying, "Well done, son!" with pride in his voice, Harry was more convinced than ever that it would be worth it. He briefly regretted it when Richard decided that while they were at it, he might as well teach Harry to fight off the Imperius curse. Which was humiliating to no end, because Richard would insist on humiliating him, so he would want to fight it off, but he was VERY grateful for that lesson too. Especially since he now understood just how much power some stranger could easily have gained over him, had he not learned to fight it.

Later that day Harry felt like his insides was bruised, it was a bit hard to walk, and his mother fussed over him while scolding Richard for allowing Harry to 'fall of a cliff', the excuse they had used, which Harry felt a little bad about. But Richard had convinced Harry that there was nothing wrong with lying, and really…it was better for Sharon if she didn't know the real reason, it would just worry her. As Harry was smiling up at his overprotective mom as she tucked him into bed, he decided Richard was right. If she was this worried now, how worried wouldn't she have been if she had known about Harry being tortured. He raised his arms and hugged her.

"I love you mom." He said, smiling as she stroked his hair. For all the pain he was in, his life was so much better here than at the Dursleys.
"I love you too son. Now get some rest, ya hear? And don't go followin' with Richard's suggestions too much. He's a great guy, but he ain't all that careful with people's health. I think he forgets that the rest of us ain't invulnerable like he is, alright?" Sharon smiled down at her son, stroking her hand through his hair. It was getting a bit long, and she wondered if he would want it cut, or if he intended to grow it out. She decided she'd ask him tomorrow.

* * *

In a dark room lit only by candles, a group of men in black robes stood in a wide circle around a circle made up of black candles placed upon the floor, their faces obscured by the large hoods of their cloaks. The clock was ticking ever closer to midnight and the men, or possibly women, it was impossible to know for sure, started to chant in an ancient language, long forgotten by most of mankind. The seconds ticked by as the ominous chant grew louder and louder, until, at the stroke of midnight, a bell rang out twelve times, and a door creaked open to reveal a small figure, dressed only in a white robe. As he stepped into the circle of black candles, head bowed to the floor, one of the shadowed men broke free from the rest and moved to stand in front of the smaller person.

"Child of Darkness and Night, you stand before the twelve most powerful of our kin, on the twelfth hour, the hour of Darkness and Evil. Behold! The Power of Darkness!" The lights suddenly flamed out, leaving the room in pitch black darkness. b"And of Flame!"/b Torches on the walls illuminated the room, and the candles began to glow with an eerie black flame. The small figured dressed in white was standing perfectly still before his Elder, careful to not move a muscle, or make a sound.

"Do you come before us of your own free will, child?" The voice intoned.
"Yes."
"Do you swear to uphold the laws and traditions of the Dark Brotherhood, and to become like a scourge upon the land, using your powers to promote the TRUE Darkness and Evil that is the lot of our kind?"
"I swear by the Black Moon, by the Darkness of Night, and by the Fires of the Abyss, I will uphold and respect the Traditions and Laws of the Dark Brotherhood, and to become as a scourge upon the land, and promote the goals and visions of all that is Dark and Evil. So, I swear, so mote it be."
"Do you swear to obey and follow your mentor and Lord, until such a time as you can be certified as a full-fledged Warlock in your own rights?"
"I do." The smaller figure said, and the dark robed man held out a silver goblet that seemed to be held up by a skeletal hand. On closer inspection, it WAS a skeletal hand. It looked old. Very, very old. The silver was stained black. The hooded man set the goblet down on a pedestal in front of the smaller person and pulled out some things from his robes.

"By the Powers of Darkness, we are blessed with our Curse," the encircling hooded creatures chanted together, for each step of the ritual, while the hooded man poured a silvery substance that the trained eye could recognize as unicorn blood, which glimmered in the moonlight. It had come from a young foul, whom had been tortured to give them permission to take it. Countering the curse by an act of exceptional Evil.

"We are Cursed to Eternal Unlife, forever walking the Path of Death."
He poured basilisk venom into the cup.
"We are Blessed with Eternal Unlife. Death can no longer touch us."
He dripped a few phoenix tears into the concoction, from a phoenix whom had cried at its bonded mate's death.
"We are Brothers in Darkness. The deep bond of Corruption flowing through our veins and Corrupting binding us together."
Reaching out a hand, the shadowed man pushed a clawed finger into his forearm and drew forth a green liquid that was the blood of a Warlock...or possibly embalming fluids. Hard to tell, really.

"You stand before the Brotherhood of Darkness, clothed in Life and Light, will you Shed your mortal coil and Sacrifice your innocence and Light, and join us here in the Dark?" They chanted.
The smaller figure cast off his white robes, and picked up a knife, making a quick, decisive, but not too deep cut across his wrist, drawing out a few drops of blood that he dripped into the goblet. The liquid in it reacted violently to the mixing fluids and morphed into a deep crimson, before it slowly turned black, slight steam rising from the cup, and it smelled of death and decay. The smaller figure had to work very, very hard too not gag at the smell, trying to breathe through his mouth rather than his nose, looking a bit worried at what he knew came next...
"I will. I shall. So, it will be." The younger figure said and lifted the goblet to his lips and drank as much as he was able to drink before chocking back a scream and falling to the floor.

His throat felt as if it was on fire, like he had been drinking acid. Horrible, foul-tasting acid. He struggled to not gag, and to not scream as the pain tore through his body, hurting far worse than the Cruciatus curse. He felt as if every cell in his body was dying, violently, all at once, but his life-force hindered the process, holding him back from dying and from experiencing the tranquil peace that was death. He whimpered as he choked back his screams, biting his hand so hard it was bleeding. The hooded men circled him and began chanting as the younger one lied on the floor, pain racing through his body, and he realized that nothing he had ever experienced would be this painful, and that after this, nothing else could ever feel bad ever again, because it would not be anything like this, and no pain could ever compare and would seem mild in comparison.
The light in the torches blew out as if a great gust of wind had torn through the room, leaving it in perfect Darkness.

As he was slowly, agonizingly pulled to the very brink of Death, as close as one could get without dying, he was brought back, the whole agonizing process restored his body and his health to near perfection. Once he stopped shivering, and managed to rise from the floor, he realized that his glasses were nowhere to be found, and yet he could see. It was Dark. Perfectly deep, dark Blackness...yet he could see, if barely, the shadowy, glowing outlines of others. His Warlock vision had restored his eyes, and while he was not yet complete, he could see better in the Dark than most humans ever would. And he felt the Power rush through his body like flames. Painful, yet pleasurable. It tasted like Death.

As he slowly stood up, he felt himself being wrapped in the ceremonial Black Robes, that was so dark that they might as well have been made out of Darkness themselves. And he felt a strong glow of pride in his chest as he looked up at Richard, whom was beaming down at him with pride written all across his face...well...what was visible of it. Then he leaned down and patted Harry's back and whispered in his ears. "Good boy. You did well. I bet the old farts were impressed too, you didn't scream once!"
Harry couldn't help but smile up at Richard, the deep love and even deeper respect and loyalty he had for the crazy Warlock grew even stronger. He couldn't describe the feeling he was feeling, it felt like power and pride and happiness and joy, all mixed and mashed into something darker and unrecognizable, but absolutely wonderful! And Harry loved it!