Chapter 23

I don't even have an excuse as to why this is so late. I literally just forgot to post this chapter. Like I literally thought I posted this chapter like a month ago and then I just checked and I'm like where's chapter 23? Well here I guess? Why am I like this?

I also had someone point out to me that I've gone a little off track in the past few chapters on actually including Harry Potter in this story. That was 100% my bad and I promise I just got a little...excited writing the reunion for Merlin and Arthur and I really love writing modern!Merlin so I've gone through the next few chapters and reworked part of the plot to do this story right!

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"You are just a pawn in his game Emrys!" Fudge screamed after Merlin as he turned to face the exit, hateful annoyance painted on his elvish features. Important looking documents whirled around his head, creating even more chaos in the doorway to the Minister's office.

The office showed all the signs of mental instability. Merlin could see confidential documents piled up in a dusty corner and a magical safe with the door slightly cracked containing an extra wand and a piece of paper containing random disjointed sentences many of which involved the words "Dumbledore" and "betrayal". Merlin looked at the Minister of Magic once again. He had purple circles under his eyes as if he hadn't slept for weeks and an unhealed cut on his cheek, most likely resulting from his haphazard shaving job.

"No Minister I am not" Merlin sighed, unsure of what else to say. His energy was drained from attempting to argue logic with a stubbornly irrational man. Arthur would have known how to deal with the Minister better than himself and for a moment Merlin dearly wished he had brought the King along with him.

"I know that old man wants nothing more but to have my position" Fudge unrelentingly snarled after Merlin, causing the few ministry employees walking by to stop and stare at the two. "He's been trying to overthrow me for years!" Fudge's secretary looked up for a moment in pure exasperation, Merlin assumed she was still getting used to the Minister's occasional outbursts.

Merlin snorted at this, causing Fudge's rabid expression to waver for a moment, "you know... Fudge, I'm not at all surprised by the events of the past few decades with the things the Ministry of Magic allows to happen to innocent school children." With that, the younger man turned and strode down the hall with a swish of his cape and Fudge was left steaming in his doorway feeling utterly defeated. Not because the Professor had possessed a better argument, no, Fudge was bothered by the fact that he was not able to get the last word in.

He gave the few employees that still lingered a scathing look and disappeared back into his office. Although he was not fast enough to miss a single whisper from one of the onlookers.

"...Unhinged."

A green flame grew from a fireplace in the corner and with that the most powerful warlock in existence was gone.

Merlin arrived back at the castle at around noon. He had expected the meeting to take much longer than it had. The Minister had refused to even view the evidence he had spent hours collecting and dismissed any concern Merlin voiced as evidence he was being plotted against.

"The man really is batty" Merlin muttered to himself, rubbing the back of his neck. Squinting against the bright sunlight pouring through his open windows, he flicked his wrist so the glass snapped shut and was covered by the thick red curtains which blocked out light quite well. It seemed that attempting to argue with an insane man seemed to sap one's energy quite efficiently.

Merlin dropped onto his bed like a dumbbell being dropped to the floor. He was rather positive that if he was forced to deal with modern wizarding stupidity for another moment he would be forced to return the favor to Arthur and take a thousand year nap.

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"Harry what's that?" asked a feminine voice from behind him. Harry glanced up from his position on the couch in the Gryffindor common room as he watched his bushy haired friend and best mate approach him with smiles.

"I was just looking through my trunk, you know cleaning it out a bit cause it won't...close anymore" Harry started sheepishly, interrupted by Ron's amused snort.

"Why am I not surprised?" muttered Hermione.

"Anyways I was just looking at some stuff I found" Harry shrugged.

"Bloody hell, is that us?" Ron asked suddenly, glancing over Harry's shoulder.

"That was my best guess" Harry answered with a laugh.

"I look like a red toadstool" Ron muttered, examining his twelve year old self. Both Harry and Hermione laughed at Ron as he blinked as if he was somehow viewing the photograph wrong.

"Is that blood on my shirt?" Hermione asked suddenly, grabbing the picture from Ron.

"I'm rather positive this was taken the same day Ron and I first tried to teach you how to ride a broom" Harry said, giving Hermione a playful smile.

"Oh Merlin I don't even want to remember that" groaned Hermione.

"Isn't that when you decided the best way was to fly a broom was to yell at it then explain how the bristles weren't aerodynamic before yelling at it again?" laughed Ron and Hermione groaned.

"No wonder I didn't have any friends" she lamented causing her two friends to roll their eyes.

"What about us 'Mione?" whined Ron.

"Meh" answered Hermione, causing Harry to stifle a laugh.

"'Mione" whined Ron playfully and Hermione punched him lightly on the arm.

"You only like me for my notes Ronald" she said in a prim tone.

"Don't forgot the essays" Ron replied, receiving another more meaningful punch to the arm.

"At least I have that, tell me again what are your redeeming qualities?" Hermione pondered playfully.

"Are you telling me my 12 year old potato face and fire hair doesn't make me..." Ron was cut off by Hermione's laughter.

"I believe that was one of the greatest descriptions I've heard" she giggled.

"Mate, are you okay?" Ron asked suddenly, noticing Harry had been silent for a few minutes.

"Oh...yeah sorry. I was just, thinking" Harry replied rather quietly, not removing his eyes from the picture in his fingers.

"About what?" asked Hermione, her voice intentionally quiet.

"Just us I guess. How much things have changed" Harry said, emerald eyes looking rather far away from the current situation.

"I guess they have" said Ron with a melancholy laugh.

"Sometimes I forgot about the times in my life before all this, that I was part of a whole separate world for over a decade" Hermione commented, plopping down on the sofa next to Harry.

"I forget what it was like when everyone still lived at home" piped in Ron, climbing over the back of the couch and sliding down so he was sitting upside down.

"I...I don't think I'll ever forget any of this" Harry muttered, mostly to himself, gripping the photograph a little tighter.

"Me too" Hermione said kindly, "remember when we snuck out to the high tower last year?"

"To watch the comet" Ron smiled.

"And you said it was the color of toothpaste" Harry grinned at his red-haired friend.

"It was!" Ron defended indignantly.

"It wasn't" Hermione snorted, looking at her two friends.

"It's been five years since this all started" Harry mentioned suddenly.

"Sometimes it feels like a week's gone by since I first met you two on the train" Hermione sighed.

"You were bossy" Ron muttered with a half-grin.

"You were rude" Hermione retorted, a small blush painting her cheeks. The two went on with their banter with Ron being very oblivious as always, but Harry simply watched silently. In his mind he was trying to catalogue all the changes over the past few years. Ron's nose had gotten a bit longer, Hermione's features had emerged from her face a bit more, it seemed the only change he saw in himself was a more prominent frown when he looked in the mirror. The trials had only brought the three of them closer, but one day what if they started to do the opposite?

"Harry was...Harry" Ron said suddenly, drawing his best friend out of his thoughts.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Let's see" Ron started, cheeks flushed from lying upside down for so long, "you were a weirdly humble 11 year old."

"You were way too polite to everyone at first" Hermione chimed in.

"Except for Malfoy" Ron snorted.

"He was a prick" replied Harry, crossing his arms.

"Hey, no one's denying that mate" Ron scoffed.

"I think he's...changed. Just a little" said Harry absentmindedly and almost missed the horror-struck look Ron shot his way.

"I never thought I'd hear you say something like that Harry" Hermione said, just as confused as her ginger companion but better at hiding it.

"I guess he's been through alot in the past few years" Harry shrugged, "we're alike in that way."

"You have to go through a lot to grow a lot" Ron said, with the most serious and sage-like look he could manage. Harry and Hermione looked at their friend for a moment before breaking out into hysterical laughter.

"What...?" asked Ron, the blush on his cheeks deepening.

"I just can't...take you seriously like that" Hermione gasped for air.

"Mate..." was all Harry was able to get out through his laughter.

"C'mon guys..." Ron said, sliding the rest of the way off the couch to face his friends right way up.

"Sorry mate" Harry finally said, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

"You can't act like a fool for five years then suddenly pull that" Hermione said.

"Shut up" Ron muttered.

"I don't know what I'd do without you two" Harry said with a shake of his head and a smile.

"Die probably" shrugged Hermione and Ron smirked in return. Harry simply laughed.

"Remember when I spilled my ink in portions and you tried to clean it up?" Harry asked with a mischievous smile.

"By pouring half a potion on it I remember" laughed Ron, as Hermione snickered at the memory.

"But your potion was messed up and it was supposed to be black so Snape actually thought you had done it right" Harry smiled, recalling the memory.

"That potion was the best grade you ever got in that class" added Hermione, with tears at the corners of her eyes.

The three best friends simply sat and exchanged memories for the rest of the day, acting for one of the first times in their lives, like normal teenagers. Harry was sure he hadn't felt this carefree in years. He was a haunted soul. But as his laughter rang out through the warm and familiar room he could almost fool himself into believing that he had lived a normal life. That he had never endangered his friends lives. That he had never watched Cedric die.

He wondered if this was what his life would have been like if his mother and father had never died. He imagined his father holding his hand as he walked through the barrier for the first time, only eleven years old. His mother wouldn't be far behind of course, but she would want to make sure none of the muggles had seen them walk though (even though they never did). He would get letters from them at least once a week. His father would want to know if he had befriended the Weasley twins yet because he had 'heard good things'. His mother would want to know how his classes were. Harry would grow annoyed because his parents wrote so often, but it didn't really matter. His father would be a professional quidditch player and his mother would be a healer.

"Harry, mate you okay?" Ron asked suddenly when he noticed the far away look on Harry's face.

"Oh yeah sorry, just...spaced out for a second there" Harry said with a small smile. Ron and Hermione accepted the answer, but both could feel that the atmosphere in the room had changed.

Harry however was imagining how his parents would react if they had been alive to see the person he had become.

He didn't know if they would be proud or horrified with his life. He liked to tell himself they would be proud of who he had become but how could he judge that when he wasn't even proud of himself?

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So again I'm sorry this is like two months late guys. Honestly I was feeling kind of sad writing this because I'm leaving for college soon and reading through this again that definitely kind of showed. Sorry if it depressed any of you.