Averill and the other House-Elves rushed outside to greet him, confused and unprepared.
Felix didn't bother to cast an umbrella charm and instead hurried inside and away from the drizzling rain.
"M-Master is not in Hogwarts? Master will be in trouble!" Averill croaked in his rags for an outfit.
"I need to get in father's study and Azrail's room", he told Averill hiding his wand. Outside thunders echoed from afar messengers of incoming storm. Most rooms were dark as the Manor stood empty of people other than the House-Elves.
"Azrail's room is open, but no one not even the Ministry have been able to gain entry to Master Cillian's study, Master Felix", Averill told him standing by his side and a little behind him.
"Then we start with what is easy and move on to what is difficult", Felix left the anti-lobby and climbed the heavy oak stairs two at the time, Averill turning lights on as they went.
"First time I ever enter this room on my own free will in sixteen years…and probably last time as well", Felix murmured to himself standing outside Azrail's room door with "Keep out!" written on it with blood, his blood by Azrail.
Felix tapped his wand on it and the writing in blood melted. He pushed the door ajar and stepped in, his heart racing as his mind remembered the past times he had been inside his brother and sister's room.
"The Ministry I imagine?" Felix asked seeing the room ransacked items and clothes tossed about, tapestries semi-torn off the wall.
"Yes, Master", Averill replied in his usual disgusted voice.
Felix let out a sigh. "Averill…why do you loathe me so much?"
"Cannot answer, Master."
"I am not Azrail, I will not harm you. Is it because I am not a pureblood?" Felix turned to see his servant standing behind him.
"Master did all for you, and you scorned him", Averill replied, hesitantly.
"He killed so many people, tortured more…I never wanted that, any of that. Why are you so loyal to him? It can't be because you are a House-Elf and he was your Master."
"I was in Master Alfred's service before Master Cillian's. He would abuse me daily jus for his fun and pleasure. Master Cillian bought me off him and in forty years of service he not once mistreated me. And you scorned him!"
"I see, you can wait outside if you want", Felix got his wand out. Averill stayed.
Felix started with Accio, which did not work and then proceeded to searching every furniture, destroying some, tearing out all of the tapestries, and paint off the walls, bricks too and then the planks from the floor and ceiling.
Much to his dismay he found nothing of what he was looking for.
Giving each room in the upstairs floors a quick look he went through the entire house before, finally, he stood outside his father's study dark-brown, glossy door.
"Key?"
"No lock, Master", and indeed when Felix looked at the door's middle where a lock usually was he saw none. "Alohomora."
The door did not budge, but his father's voice echoed across the living room and corridor. "Only my heir may enter."
"Confrigo!" "Bombarda!" He kept throwing spells at it, but nothing worked, each spell replayed his father's voice telling them only his heir could enter the room.
"Only his heir? What if this is easier than I think it is?" Felix said aloud and pushed on the door with his hand.
The door creaked open. "Blood magic…I hate him", Felix entered his father's study to see the room he had seen in his memory Headmistress Horsewood had pulled out of his mind, the couch next to the door, library furniture all around and his father's desk at the center of the room.
"He sure has a lot of books...Averill, please, transport them all to the void classroom we're using in Hogwarts", Averill snapped his fingers and every single book popped out of existence leaving behind empty furniture.
Felix kneeled in front of the brown leather sofa with no back, touching it lightly with his hands, running them on it as if expecting to feel something. "I died on this sofa…twice born…I died and was born anew", he stood up and tore the office apart, every furniture, every plank and brick. He could see his father laughing at him as his search revealed no documents with the Governors' crimes. "Nothing…I hate this place", Felix clenched his fists then released them as if having reached a decision. He snapped his head to Averill. "Summon the House-Elves in my room upstairs, I'll be there shortly", Averill vanished in a blink.
Felix searched the rest of the house including the cellar and secret chamber in it in vain before making for his room.
Averill and the other House-Elves were already there waiting for him in the mostly empty of stuff room. Felix picked up pairs of socks and other garments.
"I want to thank you all for your loyal service all these years, but I no longer require them. You are all free to seek employment anywhere you find it acceptable", he told them and one by one he gave them each a pair of socks or other piece of clothing, releasing them from their servitude to him as per the tradition of their kind.
Some gasped, some whined and begged not others seemed joyous of the event.
"Averill wait for me outside, there's something I need to do then you can return me to Hogwarts", Averill and the others apparated away.
He took a look around the room, clothes and some few toys scattered about, a bed and a desk with a chair the only furniture in it. "Eleven years out of which I don't remember seven of them and there is not a single thing I want to take with me…So long father, goodbye", he left his bedroom and descended the stairs downstairs and exited the Manor to the pouring rain outside. A thunder cracked above their heads.
Averill waited for him by the building's entrance. "Walk with me, Averill", Felix and his last servant walked to the causeway's entrance where the flying car was parked. Felix levitated it placing it right next to the Manor's entrance.
"Say your goodbye, Averill. You will not set eyes upon this building again", Felix told the curious House-Elf as he retrieved his wand again aiming it at the Manor. "No one will ever again. Fiendfyre!" He cried and a singular bright silver-flamed bird escaped his wand's tip with a booming sound flying straight at the Manor.
It smashed through the living room's windows wrapping the building in silver flames as it slowly flew through it consuming it ablaze with ravenous hunger and unchallenged fury. Eventually the bird came gashing out of the roof, its wings dissolving in liquid fire as the roof collapsed in on itself.
Felix stood there transfixed on the spot until there was no building left but a mere shadow of its former self, a skeleton of burned cement and charred bricks and the fire still burned twenty meters above them unaffected by the cascading rain.
"Take me to the empty classroom where you took the books, Averill", he took hold of the House-Elf's shoulder and a blink of the eye later he stood inside the dry classroom, startling the wits out of Ethel and Socrates who were there reading and writing additions to their research.
"Averill, I will never be the Master you want me to be, so I release you from your servitude. And in case you think Azrail might take you in, consider this. He and Ernaline murdered father", he took out a glowing memory orb from inside his robes' pocket and gave it to Averill along with a pair of old toddler's worn and used socks.
Averill took hold of them inadvertently giving the orb a good squeeze making his pupils dilate from what he saw, tears streaking down his wrinkly cheeks. "Azrail…will pay for this!" He apparated away.
"That is one angry House-Elf!" Felix managed to chuckle despite his fairly abysmal mood.
"Find anything? These books appeared out of nowhere", Socrates asked him pointing at the ten piles of books behind the desk they were using to write on.
"No, nothing. It would seem the Gringotts' vault is next", a growl coming from the classroom's entrance made them jump from the surprise.
"The Headmistress' leopard!" Felix exclaimed more to reassure himself than anything else.
"She has an envelope in her mouth", Ethel said even more scared of the large animal wagging its tail slowly.
Felix kneeled in front of it taking the envelope from her and giving her a good scratch behind her ears. She purred before turning around and leaving.
Standing up he opened the white envelope and unfolded the letter within.
Mr. Burton,
Please find your way to my office at your earliest convenience after classes finish for the day. The password is acid pop.
Professor Diana Horsewood
Ethel gave a low whistle. "My friend you are in trouble", Socrates gave his back a pat.
"So, so much trouble!" Ethel snickered.
"My motto, better to ask for forgiveness, not permission. I better head over to Care of Magical Creatures, the books were in father's study", Felix shrugged burning up the letter.
"Uriel and I will go through them", Socrates noted closing the classroom's door behind him.
"I'll do so first, I have no idea what's inside them", Felix replied. "Where's Uriel?"
"Haven't seen him since he left as you for Irina's seminar with Emerick", Ethel shrugged.
"Good news travel slow, bad news travel fast and tragic news are faster than sound, my father always says. I'm sure it went okay", Socrates added trying to comfort his friend's worry.
They went their own ways, each to their different elective class. Professor Nightingale taught them about Manticores, without the creature actually present, but Felix's mind was not in there. The deal with Irina, his inability to find what was required of him and the Headmistress would not let him pay attention to the lecture or Potions and Transfiguration. Later, and while Professor Hudson gave him no grief for his absentmindedness, the same could not be said for Professor Marvey who found all the opportunity she had been looking for to remove House points from him and Hufflepuff.
With classes over for the day and with no appetite for food he Headmistress gargoyle-guarded office.
Once there he used his black pass and the password to access the office, as the gargoyle griffin spiralled upwards revealing the stairs.
He heard muffled voices and quietly he stood behind the entrance from the stairs to the chamber.
"You had something you wanted to tell me, Ives? Are you okay?" Professor Horsewood's worried voice came through from the other side of the room, probably sitting behind her desk.
"I am fine considering, I had to remove some memories containing most of what Lethargos showed me, it was just too much to have swirling around my mind. I'll be fine, I just need some rest. A storm's brewing", Professor Jordan replied.
"It's not brewing, it's coming our way with a vengeance and it may very well end up costing me my job."
"Irina's up to no good but I am not sure you are the only one targeted here. She mentioned the Library incident with Azrail."
"She makes my daughter's death into a plaything and I am going to make her rue the very day she joined this world, kicking and screaming, my job be damned!" Felix felt a shiver run down his spine at the intensity of Professor Horsewood's fury behind the calm way in which she had replied.
"Right, but I have an inkling of what she'll write so, I wanted you to hear it from me before she publishes anything…" Professor took a deep breath for a moment. "Azrail didn't kill your daughter, I did. I cast the killing curse at him and Ernaline pulled her in front of him….three years later she did it again to save Felix from Azrail and torture them both", Felix had to cover his mouth with his hand to prevent him from gasping aloud.
Headmistress Horsewood did not reply instantly, taking her time. Felix could not see them behind the stone arched entrance, but he guessed she may have been wiping tears from her eyes.
"I know, I have known ever since it happened. At first I was rather upset with you, then at Felix just for being his half-brother…but it was neither of your fault."
"And now?"
"Now I am quite angry at Azrail."
"How, if I may ask did you know? You were not present when the battle in the restricted section happened."
"Oh, my dear Ives, if and when something happens in this school that I do not know or learn about it, worry. Speaking of which…please, do join us, Felix."
"Ma'am, sir…sorry, I did not want to interrupt your conversation", he told them in a low voice coming out from behind the stone archway and making his way across the room.
"Indeed, there's two reasons I've called you here", Professor told him, indeed sitting behind her desk and Professor Ives in front of it with her big cat lying next to him.
"One, I would like to ask you to not go outside of Hogwarts again without clearing it with either myself or Professor Jordan. Which brings us to number two. The Minister of Magic and your solicitor should soon be with us so that we can all discuss a matter which involves you directly. Did you find anything of interest in your Manor?"
"Other than some books in father's study no, ma'am. I need to visit my family's Gringotts's vault."
"That'll have to wait for Christmas break I'm afraid, it is not safe now with Irina within the walls and Azrail outside them. Polyjuice will only work so many times before she notices. Many things she is, stupid's not one of them."
"Yes, ma'am." Felix took a seat next to Professor Jordan. "I have a question If I may?"