CHAPTER 12:

RECONNECTION

"You're kidding me."

Heisenberg shrugged. "I ain't kidding around, Harry. True, I'm not at your level of mycology knowledge, let alone your aunt's, but I'm pretty sure that's what I saw."

Harry frowned as he considered this new information. After speaking with the Duke, apparently Heisenberg offered the use of his factory for the weekend, for him and Daniela to catch up. Harry agreed, but Heisenberg also had that revelation to give to him while they were waiting for Daniela.

"…That explains a lot," Harry mused. "I had Hermione help me with doing research on Dementors. Little is known about them, but they are said to grow like mushrooms in dark corners of the world. I also did research on the history of Azkaban…and what I read there disturbed me."

"I'm sure it did, but what specifically disturbed you?"

"Azkaban was founded, or at least the fortress they currently use as a prison, by a dark wizard called Ekrizdis," Harry said. "Most of what he did was covered up by the Ministry of Magic at the time. However, he was a Blood Purist who lured Muggle sailors into stranding themselves on the island. There weren't Dementors at Azkaban before then…but there were lots of them now. I did a bit more digging…and while Ekrizdis' origins are murky, there were rumours that he lived for a time in this very part of Romania."

Heisenberg stared at him, before he muttered, "Fuck. So you think he might have found the Megamycete before Miranda?"

"It's only a hypothesis at this point, and based on shaky evidence. And yet, it does fit, especially if your claim about the Dementors being Mutamycete creatures is correct. It does make a perverse sense, actually, when you think about it, about Dementor behaviour."

"Why is that?"

"They can influence memory, unearthing the worst of them, and their Kiss absorbs or consumes the soul. Leaving aside an argument about the metaphysics of the soul, a soul can, at its base, be considered the personality and memory of a person. And the Mutamycete can absorb the soul, store it and restore it. Miranda suspected this, and I am proof, if any be needed. Maybe the Dementors have an instinct to consume souls because of the Mutamycete. Whether they store the soul or digest it…well, I'm not sure I want to find out."

"You and me both, but you're the one stuck with those monsters roaming around Hogwarts. I've encountered them before at Katyn. Never again." Heisenberg shook his head. "And I doubt you'd be able to get a supply of their…flesh? Easily. You can kill them, sure, but it ain't easy, and I only managed it because of my powers. And killing one might bring down unwanted attention to you, from the Dementors and the Ministry of Magic."

"Joy. And of course, there's also the man who may or may not have betrayed my parents," Harry muttered.

"Yeah, sucks to be you, Harry." Heisenberg then gave him a smile. "…She's a lot happier than she used to be. I mean, not that she wasn't before, but she was nuts. Now she seems…well, more genuinely happy. Still a bit cuckoo, but Daniela seems more like her old self. I honestly thought she'd go mad…well, more mad than she was already. I guess she's stronger than I thought."

Before Harry could say anything, the woman in question entered the workshop they were convening in, albeit as her swarm, which coalesced into her human form a few feet off the ground. She landed like a gymnast, her arms spread wide. "And the judges give her a perfect score on the dismount!" she cheered, her blood-smeared lips wide in a grin. "Daniela Dimitrescu wins the Olympics for Romania!"

"Until she was disqualified for cheating on account of being a vampiric bug swarm," Harry snarked.

"Spoilsports," Daniela pouted. "I'd eat any competitor alive."

"Yes, quite literally," Harry said in a deadpan tone.

"Your point?" Dani asked, before she smiled, dissolving into her swarm again, before materialising to glomp him. Even in his Henric form, he was nearly bowled over. "Fuck…I've missed you, Harry," she said, her golden eyes meeting his own. He had to admit, with her personality back to, if not normal, then as close as it could be, those eyes were actually quite beautiful.

"So did I, Dani," he said gently.

An amused cough from Heisenberg caught their attention. "Okay, you two lovebirds, I've got a couple of soundproofed rooms. You want some privacy, go ahead and use them."

"…We're not going that far, Uncle Karl," Daniela said, blushing. She then murmured, "Yet, anyway."

"Well, just in case your libidos get the better of you, the doors to those rooms are right there. Just try not to make me a grand-uncle too soon, eh?" And with a laugh, Heisenberg waltzed out of the room, his hammer slung over his shoulder.

"…I'm not even sure that's biologically possible," Harry muttered. "Given your hybridisation with those flies, I'm not sure viable offspring are…"

"Harry…Henric…iubit…" Daniela interrupted him. "We're not going to think about it. We'll consider the pros and cons of having children, as well as it being actually possible, which I doubt, at a later date. Heisenberg is being a gadfly, and you know it."

"Says the woman who's basically a living colony of gadflies," Harry snarked, to her amusement.

"Oh, you should have seen my Beelzebub phase. I declared myself the Lady of the Flies and a noble of hell." Daniela giggled. "Even now, Mother and Miranda have a hatred of heavy metal music. I got inspired by all those bands like Black Sabbath and all that. My sisters and the Duke were amused…and of course, so was Uncle Karl."

"I can imagine," Harry said. "You'd fit in well with a band like that."

"I've actually got signed copies of some of Black Sabbath's records," Daniela said. "I may have gotten over singing heavy metal, but listening to it is another matter." She hummed the distinctive riff from Iron Man, before giggling again. "Don't get me wrong, I still love the songs I learned before I died. I still play the piano in the theatre we have in Castle Dimitrescu. But…well, music really took off after you died. Rock and roll, metal, punk, disco…Mother prefers her jazz, though she doesn't mind some rock. The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Queen…oh, and she loves David Bowie. But heavy metal and death metal?" She blew a raspberry.

"Well, I guess we have a lot of catching-up to do," Harry said.

"Yeah. Actually, there was this one guy who came here back in the Fifties. Well, a few of them, but apparently he became quite famous. Long story short, he and his friends were on a sort of Grand Tour of Europe, despite the fact that the Cold War was at its height. Anyway, he got lost in Romania, and nearly turned into a popsicle, but Miranda saved him. For a month or so, he basically stayed as her research assistant, with his friends staying here too."

"And who was this famous man?"

"Ozwell Spencer."

Harry looked at her in shock. "…Lord Ozwell Spencer, the founder of Umbrella?" He then slapped his forehead. "Why didn't I realise it sooner? Umbrella's logo looks like that symbol around this village!"

Daniela giggled. "Yep. He became a confidante to Miranda, but they differed in some areas. They parted on better terms than you did, though. I think they still send letters. Apparently he was more interested in virology. I once visited Miranda in her laboratory, back in the Sixties. Mother was discussing an experiment, and I was there to watch and learn. Miranda revealed a letter she got from Spencer, something about finding a virus in Africa, one he thought would kickstart evolution. He called it Progenitor."

Harry frowned as he considered this. Thinking out loud, he said, "Umbrella's a pharmaceutical corporation. I'm only now catching up on modern genetic engineering technology, so I'm not sure how a virus discovered in the Sixties would be of help, unless he's doing private research. Though if he's using it to kickstart evolution, then at least he's considering the rest of humanity. I should ask the Duke if he knows anything about Umbrella and Spencer. I'm surprised he didn't bring it up himself."

"Spencer didn't spend that long in the village, not to mention those other guys, Ashford and Marcus," Daniela said with a shrug. "A bit longer than most outsiders, but still…anyway, we're not here to talk about them."

Harry chuckled. "Sorry, we got sidetracked, didn't we?"

"Eh," Dani said with a shrug. "I…I'll admit, I'm curious…I want to know more about you, about your life as Harry Potter. I hear a lot of stories, and the Duke and even you have told me some stuff, but…I want to hear about it from you, Henric."

"And not about your life?"

Dani scoffed. "My life is interesting now, but it's also somewhat routine. I haven't really been outside the village until the Duke set up that Vanishing Cabinet in the Chamber of Secrets. Not that we could: Miranda doesn't look well upon those who leave Cioarăfsat, and besides, my insects are vulnerable to the cold as you well know. I dunno about you, but I don't want to become a Dani-flavoured ice cream."

Harry chuckled at the turn of phrase. "Can you eat ice cream?'

"Well, it's not good for my insects, but it doesn't cause much lasting harm. I can get brain freeze, but that's it. If cold foods and drinks did any real harm to us, we might have died years ago, and wouldn't that be embarrassing? Killed by ice cream or a drink on the rocks? Unfortunately, most of the area in and around Cioarăfsat is pretty cold at most times of the year. Even summer's a bit nippy."

"And you never asked the Duke to, say, give you a Warming Charm or something?"

"…Look, once or twice, I did it, but Mother wouldn't let us leave. She's lost a lot of her humanity, you know this, but she shows us love. The problem is, she also fears our demise. She's a bit smothering. I mean that in a good way, Harry. Anyway…why not talk about your life?"

"Okay…"


And so, Daniela listened to the tale of the second life of her love. She listened to his appalling childhood, to his misadventures at Hogwarts, and to the tale of his recovery of his memories. She focused, more than she usually did, what with a wandering attention span.

At the end of it, she knew a few things. Firstly, she had one hell of a shitlist compiled, one that had the Dursleys, Voldemort, and Snape right at the top at the bare minimum. True, Harry probably had something similar and it was up to him to determine what needed to be done, but she was going to ask him for dibs dealing with the Dursleys at the bare minimum. Especially that hag Marge.

Secondly, his adventures sounded fucking awesome. Dangerous, yes, but what's a little danger? True, not all of them seemed fun, but for fuck's sake, he'd beaten a Basilisk, aka a huge fucking snake with an instant death glare if you made eye contact with it, and really poisonous fangs. Even with luck, that had to be an achievement.

Thirdly, she had to admit to being envious of his friends, few though he had. Even in his first life, Henric had been a loner, making friends with only a few. But at least he had friends.

Daniela didn't really have friends. She had adopted family, family that would show love and affection, and that was more than she deserved given her current state, and yet, the actual friends she had outside of family, she could count on a single hand. The Duke, Harry, Donna Beneviento and Angie. And technically, she considered Donna an aunt rather than a friend, even though the woman was actually about a third of her age.

It would be hard for her to make friends, too. Even if people could overlook her bodycount, or the fact that she was basically a sentient swarm of flesh-eating flies that could take on human form, she was still not exactly safe to be around, for anyone not familiar to her. Her violent impulses had waned over the years, but she still had them. All it would take would be the wrong word, the wrong noise, the wrong smell, and she'd be lashing out, slashing up the face of whoever was nearby.

Daniela Dimitrescu was a monster. This was undeniable. But she wanted to be better than that, now that she had regained her memories. She wanted to be a monster that was proud of herself, not for being a monster, but for being better than she was.

She had a chance now. He accepted her. Even if he couldn't forgive what she had done, he accepted her for what she was. And that was more than enough incentive to be better…


An elderly man using a walking stick limped into a laboratory, his aged features pinched in irritation. He looked at the scientist tending to a tank within the room. "How is Project Medea?"

"Well, the disturbance from a week ago doesn't seem to have done much, Dr Spencer," the scientist said. "There were anomalous spikes in neural activity coinciding with a brief stress response, like the one in early September."

"And you are sure that our…regular guests have not been here during those times?"

"Not that I know of, Dr Spencer. However, given that they are both wizards, we can't rule it out completely."

Lord Ozwell Spencer frowned, considering this. "But Project Medea is stable?"

"Yes. Honestly, I'd sooner be working on her than a Tyrant or the Nemesis Project," the scientist admitted. "With all due respect, Dr Spencer, those things are…"

"Dangerous? Unstable? Of course they are, they are living weapons, and at the cutting edge of bioweapons science. But the Mutamycete is no less dangerous than Tyrant or the Nemesis Parasite, to say little of Birkin's pet project of the Golgotha Virus. And Project Medea is all the more dangerous for being not only a Mutamycete hybrid, but a witch. I chose the name as a warning. Medea was a witch associated with treachery, as a reminder for all working on her to ensure they do not slip up. You may fear her less than a Tyrant or Nemesis prototype, but never let your guard down around her. Treat her as you would the most powerful kind of BOW."

As the scientist nodded, suitably warned, Spencer looked at the tank, filled with liquid. A feminine form in a figure-hugging suit, with tubes for drugs, nutrition and waste disposal inserted into key points in her body, floated there, in a parody of serenity. A thing of elegant beauty, unlike so many BOWs. True, aesthetics meant little when it came to BOWs, with function being paramount…but she was beautiful. He could see why one of his visitors lusted after her, even as he viewed the man with contempt.

Still, those times when Project Medea quickened were no coincidences. He knew that the first such incident coincided with the time the Hogwarts Express was boarded by hungry Dementors. Once he had the opportunity, he should try and get more information.

Maybe it was past time he spoke to his goddaughter…

CHAPTER 12 ANNOTATIONS:

Oh dear. So, we've had some lovely Harry/Dani fluff, but also some insight into what Spencer is up to. What the hell is Project Medea? And who is Spencer's goddaughter?

Review-answering time! edboy4926: The Duke won't be introducing Harry to Spencer. However, Harry will be meeting Spencer in the next chapter, along with Sergei Vladimir. I nearly included a certain Nicholai 'You print money, I LIKE money' Ginovaef, but decided I couldn't justify it.

Also, keep in mind, a lot of Umbrella's biohazard outbreaks are due to malice rather than accidents. The events of the first game and the prequel are down to James Marcus causing the outbreaks. The Racoon City outbreak was caused by William Birkin rampaging and releasing samples that had already been taken out of the laboratory. Rockfort Island had been attacked by Wesker's troops.

Itharax: Well, the next chapter will be the last published, for now. However, I have written the chapter after that, and I am keeping it aside for the Christmas update.

Jebest4781: Nothing so profound, I'm afraid. Dementors, in this story, are basically Mutamycete mutants of a particular stripe. Most are born 'naturally', but the ones in Azkaban, as mentioned above, were created as a result of Ekrizdis' experiments.

RonaldM40196867: In terms of favourite protagonist, it'd have to be Jill Valentine, hands down, as she was the first such protagonist I played as when I played the original PS1 version of Resident Evil 3. In terms of favourite enemy…well, prior to the latest Resident Evil games, it was Alexia Ashford, hence why she took a central role in my first Potterverse crossover, Henry Ashford and the Goblet of Fire. After the release of the PS4 games, though, it's a pretty close race between Eveline, Jack Baker, Mother Miranda, the Dimitrescus and Heisenberg.

Skull Flame: I refuse to believe that Dementors are immune to harm or being destroyed in any way. It's just wizards haven't found another way. It doesn't help that they're probably agile enough to avoid being hit by spells normally, and their aura incapacitates wizards.

ShadeslayerX: Neither scenarios are going to happen, but it's a nice thought, isn't it?

Lucius Walker: Heisenberg is one of the more interesting characters of Village, and for all his faults, you have to wonder what would have happened if Ethan took his deal.

No numbered annotations this time.