Everything is J.K. Rowlings. I only claim the plot. Everything else is hers, all the characters and the magic, all of it. Please let me know what you think though, I encourage feedback of all kinds, just be nice about it!

Here it is! It's a bit long but enjoy.

Chapter Nine

The trek up to the Owlery was a bit of a hike. The staircase behind the entrance door was almost straight up and Harry was embarrassed to say he was panting when he reached the top. He really needed to start exercising more.

It was very similar to the Hogwarts Owlery but smaller and only held six owls. There was a large, regal, Eagle Owl that Harry immediately knew was the Malfoy's owl, beside that owl were two others, a dark feathered one and a pretty brown owl. Those three sat slightly separated from the other three owls and so Harry guessed that the black and brown owl next to Malfoy's were new owls to the Owlery as well and belonged to one of the other residents here. The other three must have come with the house and so Harry walked over to those three. There was a barn owl, brown owl and a screech owl. Walking over, Harry held his hand out and stroked the plumage of the three birds the way he remembered Hedwig had liked.

"Who is up to deliver some letters for me?" he asked gently. All three owls hooted their pleasure at the idea and Harry held out his four pieces of parchment. "Well lucky for you three, I just so happen to need a couple letters delivered. Noticing a small table in the center of the tower, Harry pulled out a quill from his robe pocket and walked over to it. Now he actually needed to write the letters.

Deciding on writing Hermione and the Weasleys first, he put the first piece of parchment down on the table.

Hermione and the Weasleys,

Well the plan worked. The Slytherins accepted. We made it through dinner without too much argument...I suppose it could have been worse at least. Anyway, if any of you are interested in visiting Saturday, I would appreciate that. This place is huge! Probably take me weeks before I don't get lost. Anyway, don't worry too much because I'm here and safe. I hope to see you soon.

Yours,

Harry

P.S. Hermione, there are House Elves who live and work here. Please don't be too mad.

Harry folded the letter and turned to give it to the screech owl. "Here you go. Please deliver this to the Burrow. You don't need to wait for a response but you can rest there for a bit if you want." The owl hooted and flew out the window. Cracking his knuckles, Harry turned to the next piece of parchment.

Professor McGonagall,

It's Harry, new owl...kinda. I'll explain more later. The point of the matter is that I know the restorations are starting soon and it turns out that I now have some influence over a handful of former Slytherin classmates of mine. I'd like it very much if they could join me in my promise to help you restore the school. That being said, I would also like there to be precautions involved so that they aren't harmed in anyway for offering their services.

Thank you,

Harry

"Here you are," Harry said holding out the letter as the barn owl grabbed it. "Deliver this to Hogwarts. Please wait for a response but you don't need to be aggressive about receiving it. I'm sure she is busy." Hooting shrilly, the second owl soon took flight.

Dear Andromeda,

Harry began on the third piece of parchment. Since the war, Harry had seen and spent time with Andromeda and his godson Teddy a couple times a week and he didn't want that to stop now.

The past few days have been hectic but I seem to have inherited quite a lot, including some property that I am now residing in...along with a couple other former classmates. I'll explain better in person, the point is I was wondering if you wanted to come for a visit Saturday so that I could explain properly and show you and Teddy around the place.

Yours,

Harry

"And now here is your letter," Harry told the brown owl who gave a happy shuffle on the shelf where it sat. He really did need to learn the owls names. Maybe he would ask the elves in the morning. "Bring this to Andromeda Tonks. You don't have to stay for a response, but take a rest." The owl gave a hoot and then took off.

Turning to the Malfoy's owl Harry sighed. "And now your letter….this is going to take a bit more time," he apologized to the owl. The Eagle owl simply gave a small hoot and ruffled its feathers in the most dignified way. Harry shook his head, like owl like owners. Turning to the parchment, Harry fiddled with his quill as he debated his wording. This is one of those times where he would have needed one of the Slytherins to help him. But he wasn't going to bother with that now.

Dear Narcissa Malfoy,

I'm not sure if you have managed to speak with your son today, but I have made him an offer, which he has accepted. He is to live at my estate with a few others who recently fell under my influences do to their allegiance with the former dark leader. He and the others are to live here for the next five years, while working on helping to rebuild the wizarding world for the better in order to workout their servitude and earn back their fortunes and properties, because as it turns out I own all of those now. If you agree to my proposition, I will explain all of this further.

The point of the matter is, your son expressed his concerns about you and asked me to extend my offer to them to you as well. Would you be willing to live at this estate (it's name and location will remain undisclosed until an answer is received) and help in the rebuilding of the wizarding world? I believe your insight on more political aspects will be invaluable. This is not necessary, of course, I will not evict you from your house, but it is an option for you if you are in need of a change like I feel so many are at the moment. Please respond at your earliest convenience and maybe we can meet so that I can go over my proposition more clearly.

-H. Potter

Harry sighed, he might have rambled a bit too much but it would have to do. Folding it he handed the letter to the owl. "Here, deliver this to the Malfoy residence. I'm sure you are familiar with it. Please wait for a response." Harry wasn't certain if the owl would obey him since he wasn't its master but the owl took the letter anyway.

Once the letters were sent, Harry retreated back to his room. Stripping his clothes, he started the shower. He needed the hot water to help relax him. With the water pounding on his back, most likely leaving red splotches on his skin due to the scalding temperature Harry rested his head against the shower wall and tried to will the rhythmic pounding into something soothing. For a moment it started to work, he could feel his back muscles start to loosen but then the memories started up. The raindrops thudding rapidly onto his back turned into the vibrations of Acromantula feet and centaur hooves thundering across the cobblestone floor of Hogwarts courtyard shaking the ground with the force of so many. The heat brought back the sweltering heat from the fires left from explosions scattered around the grounds and castle. The heat that radiated from hexes shot from varying distances but just skating past mere inches from the skin but close enough that the force and heat were still felt. Harry was lost to the memories now. The screams and cries that filled the air, the explosions and crashes that penetrated the masses. Pounding his fist against the shower wall, the man turned off the shower head and stepped out, wrapping a fluffy towel around him.

Wrapped in a towel, Harry stood in the center of the bathroom trying to breath and force the memories away. After a while the steam dissipated and Harry caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. If he hadn't known it was him, he would have thought the man staring back at him was a terrified and lost child hiding behind the body of a ragged, homeless man. Not that the vision was off exactly. Harry turned to face the mirror fully and glanced over himself. He hadn't really stared at himself since the battle.

His bones were visible from the lack of food from the last year of camping and running. The last time he had been this thin was before Hogwarts when he had only lived with the Dursleys. While his intake of food now was more consistent and filling it would be awhile before his bones faded back into his body. The sinewy muscles he had gained from fighting and running wrapped around his arms and legs but they didn't make him look healthy. His face was haggard and worn, his hair a wet mess on top of his head looked like a wet mop that extended to his shoulders and covered a lot of his face.

Yeah, he really needed to cut it. That thought decided, Harry grabbed his wand and a fistful of hair. Using severing and cutting charms, Harry began slicing his hair off his head. Not to the point of being bald but to a more manageable length that didn't make him look like a homeless beggar. The result was a choppy mess but he could ask one of the elves to help him later. With his hair cleared away his face was more visible but now Harry slightly regretted the rash decision to cut his hair.

His face didn't even look like his. It looked older, like a skeleton man's, and his eyes weren't as bright but shadowed with past horrors. There were faint scars that were visible across his arms and legs and face. And then the most recognizable scar. The lightning scar looked angry and red against his pale skin, especially after the heat of the shower. It was a stark contrast and Harry couldn't help but glare at the mark on his head that had lead him down a path he had never wanted.

Sighing, Harry tossed his towel at a hamper near the door and stormed out of the bathroom. Once in his new bedroom he shifted his feet uncertainly. What was he supposed to do with all this space? Figuring putting on some clothes would be the best bet, he stepped to his closet and pulled out some comfortable sweatpants that Dudley had gotten but hadn't fit so had been tossed to Harry. It was the relatively newest thing the Dursleys had ever given him.

"Lopsy?" Harry called. He had seen others who owned House Elves summon them this way and it had worked for Kreacher and Dobby. It did in fact work and the little House Elf was immediately standing in his room.

"What can Lopsy be doing for Master Harry, sir?"

"Do you think you, or one of the other elves, can fix my hair? I attempted cutting it but it's rather rough."

"Of course, Master Harry! Lopsy can be fixing your hair. Please sit Master," the little elf squeaked. Harry obliged, taking one of the armchairs near the fire. The little elf climbed onto the chairs back and began snipping and trimming his hair. Harry focused on breathing so that his mind wouldn't retreat back to the battle like it had in the shower. A handful of minutes later and Lopsy was back in front of him. "Lopsy is done Master. Do you wish to be seeing it?"

"No, it's fine Lopsy. I trust your work and thank you. Go get some rest for the night and tell the others to do the same. Oh, one more thing. Where is the umm...the alcohol? I mean, is there anything in this place that is stronger than wine?"

"Why yes Master. There is all the liquors in a cabinet in the kitchen beside the pantry. Does Master be wanting something stronger for dinners?"

"I'm not sure yet, but thank you Lopsy. Oh and more thing. It's just Harry. Please don't call me Master."

"Yes Mas-Harry," the little elf replied before giving a small bow and disappearing.

Once that little elf was gone, Harry called upon Kilky.

The tiny cook appeared and gave a curtsy. "Hello Master. Can Kilky be helping you somehow?"

"Yes, Kilky. Well not me exactly, but one of my guests, Daphne. She is a vegan and so needs special foods to eat. I'm not really sure what foods that is but if you could find out and make sure she always has something at the table she can eat that doesn't include a salad, that would be great."

"Yes Master. Kilky will be working on Missus Daphne's special foods. Is there anything else that Master be needing from Kilky?"

"No, Kilky that will be all. And thank you. Please get some rest." The elf curtsied once more and then vanished with a pop. Glancing at his watch he saw it was around ten and so with nothing else to do, he figured he would at least lay in his bed. Maybe it would get him to sleep faster.

The bed was soft and silky. The mattress wasn't comparable to clouds, though the comforter was, but he could feel the mattress molding itself to his body shape and as he moved the mattress moved with him. It was amazing. Twisting about a few more times for the sole purpose of feeling the mattress move to accommodate him, Harry finally tried settling down for sleep.

The sleep didn't last long. Two hours later, he was awake and drenched in sweat. Tossing off the covers that still remained cool and soft despite his sweating and burning body temperature, Harry stumbled out of the bed. Latching onto the nearest wall, Harry sucked in lungfuls of air, disposing of the images of the battle. He needed a drink. Shakily, he grabbed a t-shirt to throw over his bare bones frame and stepped out into the hall.

The house was silent and dark. Still not familiar with it yet, the wizard cast a 'Lumos' and crept his way down the stairs to the first floor. The hardwood was cold against his feet and Harry welcomed the feeling and when he reached the foot of the stairs he had stopped shaking and his sweat was drying. A sound made him pause before continuing to the kitchen. It sounded like faint music was coming from the ballroom direction but that couldn't be possible. Dismissing it as his mind still being hyped up from the nightmare, Harry quietly maneuvered his way towards the kitchen.

Just outside the kitchen door though he froze once more. There were noises coming from inside the kitchen but he couldn't distinguish what the noises were through the door. It sounded like more than one intruder though, raising his wand in preparation. Harry silently pushed open the door and cast his light about the room.

Heart beating and his pulse quickening, Harry heard a shriek as his light hit the intruders. "Stupe-" Biting back the last part of the hex that had been halfway past his lips, Harry huffed when he realized who the miscreants were. "Bloody hell. Turn on a damn light. You don't have to act like damn criminals," he snapped, flipping on the lights.

"Sorry, we didn't mean to make a racket," Tracey replied sheepishly, rising from her position looting through the bottom cabinets.

"Yeah, didn't think you could hear us all the way on the third floor," Draco added slowly shutting the top cabinet door, his eyes narrowed in suspicion as if Harry had been the one caught looting in the kitchen and not himself.

"Well, I couldn't hear you actually. I was heading down here on my own."

"Oh. Why?" Tracey asked.

"Could ask you the same thing. Why aren't you two asleep?"

"Why aren't you asleep?" Draco snapped.

The three were silent as they all avoided looking at each other, Harry at the doorway, Tracey towards the left side of the kitchen and Draco on the right.

"Well can I help you find whatever it was you were looking for."

"No." "Yes." Draco glared at Tracey as she continued. "We are trying to find something to drink."

"The sink is right there and I'm sure there is some juice in the fridge."

"Not that kind of blasted drink, Potter. Don't be daft. Juice? We aren't five. We are wanting something stronger than juice. I suspect that's why you're down here too."

Choosing not to respond, Harry simply walked over to the cabinet that fit Lopsy's description and opened it. Inside were three shelves of different liquor bottles, some wizard and some muggle. Harry hadn't even realized there were this many different types of liquors. Choosing the Firewhiskey, Harry grabbed three glasses and put them on the center island. Wordlessly he poured the drinks as the other two came over. Placing the bottle in the middle of the island, Harry grabbed his glass and watched the other two do the same. Tipping it slightly to each, as if toasting them, Harry shot his whiskey back and swallowed against the burn.

Tracey grabbed the bottle next and filled the glasses once more. The three tipped their glasses before tossing the amber liquid down. Draco poured next and the three repeated the process. It was as Harry was pouring again that there seemed to be an unspoken decision to nurse the remaining glasses.

Taking a sip, Harry spoke not looking at the other two, simply staring into this glass. "So, how did you guess this is why I was here tonight?"

"Given the way you were drinking the wine at dinner, it wasn't much of a stretch that you would need something stronger."

"At the Burrow I would blend it with my tea until there wasn't any more tea to cover it."

"I used to do that too, when Lukah was around anyway. I didn't really care if my parents noticed."

"Father never cared when he saw me. I always tried to hide it from Mother, though she probably knew. Never tried the tea trick though."

"I sent your mother a letter, by the way, extending my offer to her."

Draco merely nodded and the three lapsed into silence once more, still not looking at each other. They finished their glasses at roughly the same time and Tracey poured the next round.

It wasn't until the drinking trio were halfway through Draco's second pour that they spoke again.

"So how long?" Tracey asked quietly.

"Summer of Sixth Year, right after the Mark."

"Just since the war."

"It's been since the beginning of Seventh Year for me."

Silence again. Each lost in their own thoughts. There was a fragile honesty floating between the three as they nursed their whiskey glasses. While Harry was certain that the thread of honesty and vulnerability would be clipped the moment the lid was placed back onto the bottle and the three departed for their rooms, he couldn't help but find comfort in the silent sincerity he had found. Even when they weren't speak, it was soothing.

Finishing his glass, Harry glanced at the clock and saw that it had been two hours since he had come downstairs. Tracey followed his gaze and sighed, tucking her strawberry blonde hair behind her ears. "I guess we should try sleep for a couple hours before the others wake up. Blaise should be returning soon now anyway."

"Where is he anyway?" Harry asked as he stoppered the bottle and moved to stow it away again before he realized that there was only enough left for one more glass. He would have to ask Lopsy about restocking this cabinet.

"He deals with his grief in his own way," Tracey replied. "He finds comfort in loose women and blaring music and flowing alcohol."

The alcohol was definitely making his head fuzzy because Harry wasn't fully following what the woman was saying and his confusion must have been evident.

"For fucks sake, Potter. He is at the club! He goes to the club every night and shags a different woman every night. Has been since the battle. Now drop it," Draco demanded, before turning and leaving the room. The quiet solitude had definitely been shattered.

Mind still fuzzy, Harry didn't even bother to make an effort in responding, instead he nodded his head to Tracey and left the kitchen as well. The alcohol had definitely taken the edge off, he thought disjointedly walking up the stairs with the passing thought that he still heard music being played in the ballroom but not caring enough to investigate. The relaxed state that clung to his limbs and the clouds floating in his mind helped him not think about the horrors he had experienced.

Yup, drinking the whiskey straight definitely had a more direct effect than mixing it with tea. He could see what George had been talking about now. Previously Harry had simply relished in the burning sensation, taking it as his penance for not saving the ones he had lost. But now, he welcomed the burn and the free floating sensation that accompanied it. Stumbling into his room, he collapsed face first into his bed and didn't move until the sun was streaming through his windows.