CHAPTER 15:

BURNING AND MENDING BRIDGES

The next morning, Harry noted that Ron had been giving him stinkeye, presumably for his comments about Scabbers, and any attempts at reaching out to the redhead had him giving Harry more of the silent treatment. Harry decided that he didn't want that particular brand of teenaged drama. So, instead, he went to breakfast. If Ron decided that one stupid remark was all that was needed to sunder their friendship, then maybe they weren't good enough friends anyway.

It probably didn't help that Ron, while not remotely stupid, wasn't really an intellectual. Henric Stan most definitely was, and when Harry regained those memories, it meant an inevitable distancing. He couldn't abide such intellectual sloth anymore.

Any sundering of his relationship with Hermione would be more painful, though. The girl had the potential to become his intellectual equal, or even his superior, he had no shame in admitting the latter. True, she thought along rather rigidly logical lines, and had too much authority worship for his liking. But she had a sharp mind, and a good heart. Her actions yesterday, as much as they rankled with him, were born out of concern for him. She was just a fucking idiot about how she went about it.

So, after breakfast, he decided to see if she was at the library. Ron was currently sulking, so he would see if Hermione was more receptive. If nothing else, he'd know where both of his best friends in this life stood.

Lo and behold, she actually was in the library, poring over more casebooks relating to magical creatures. She looked up briefly, and frowned, before returning to her book. "…What do you want, Harry?"

"I was concerned, okay? I was angry with you last night, hell, I still am. But that parting shot…I went a bit too far. And as Ron's not bothering to talk to me, I was coming to see if you were any different."

Hermione seemed about to retort, before sagging. "…We had an even worse argument after you left. Ron accused me of being a bad influence, with you dropping Divination in favour of Arithmancy, trying to take you away from him. Things got heated. Look, Harry, I won't apologise for bringing it to Professor McGonagall's attention. But…you were right. I should have asked first, given you an argument as to why. I just didn't think you'd listen, even with…well, all you've changed these past few months."

"And I'm sorry I lashed out, especially with the remark about Crookshanks and Scabbers. But…I'm so sick of it. The stupid drama between you and Ron over your pets…Ron being overly protective of a secondhand old rat, and you being so blasé about your cat eating him. And when you had McGonagall take the Firebolt and you and Ron argued…I just snapped. Don't get me wrong, it's not an unreasonable fear that Black sent it, but…you hurt me, Hermione."

"…And I'm sorry I did hurt you, Harry," she said quietly. "I just…I'm worried sick, especially with Black at liberty. And ever since the Dementors on the Hogwarts Express…you've changed, Harry, and not all of it's for the better. You're distancing yourself from us. Not much, but…it's like you're a different person lately."

Well, I am a different person, he thought to himself, though obviously he didn't voice that out loud. Instead, he said, "I have a lot on my mind. Between Sirius Black and those Dementors attacking me, I'm in a bit of a bad way. I'm hoping Professor Lupin can help, I've been doing some self-study of the Patronus, but I'm waiting until he's better before doing actual lessons with him."

At this, Hermione became more pensive. "…Harry…you know how he is sick so often, right?"

"…Yes, and Hermione, if you're hinting at what I think you are…I know about his condition already."

Hermione blinked. "…You do?"

"…He told me earlier. He was a friend of my family's, and I wanted to know why he couldn't adopt me. He eventually told me why. Besides, while I might have missed it, Snape's little lesson was far from subtle."

Hermione nodded. "So you know he is…a werewolf?" This last was asked quietly. Not that there was anyone else in the library to hear it, apart from Madam Pince, and she was far away, albeit at her desk, watching them like a hawk.

"Yes. And as long as he is no danger to others, I don't give a damn. I should've known you of all people would work it out, though."

Hermione chuckled ruefully. "As you said, Professor Snape's lesson wasn't exactly subtle. But you trust him?"

"Not completely, but that has less to do with his condition and more to do with him not reaching out to me more. I've had to coax him into talking to me about my parents, and about Sirius Black. Though honestly, lately, I've been wondering whether Black was guilty of murdering my parents." On Hermione's confused look, he explained his hypothesis, and she nodded thoughtfully.

"So you think Pettigrew betrayed your parents, and Black murdered him in a rage. That doesn't excuse him, especially as those other people were killed as well. But…"

"He may not have been a Death Eater, or betrayed my parents. The problem is, if that is true, he's still a mass murderer, even if by accident. And Azkaban can't have helped his sanity. Though if that hypothesis is true, and he did send me the Firebolt…"

"Look, it's better to be safe than sorry, and even if Black didn't send it, you have a lot of enemies, Harry," Hermione pointed out.

"I know." Then, a thought that had been nagging him sprung to mind. "Incidentally, why didn't you tell us that your godfather was Spencer?"

Hermione looked embarrassed. Harry hadn't brought it up until now, but had decided to ask about it. "…Well, I don't like to brag. I mean, about who I know. Believe me, more than a few times, I was bullied at school when it became known that my parents knew the founder of Umbrella. He's not without controversy, and honestly, at times, he actually scares me. Oh, he treats me very well, and encourages my learning…but some of the things around him…you hear all sorts of nasty whispers and rumours."

"Like what?"

"Like around the mansion he had George Trevor design back in the Sixties, in the Arklay Mountains near Raccoon City. Trevor, his wife and daughter disappeared soon after it was completed, and the official story was that Trevor himself went mad and killed his family, before vanishing. But you hear rumours that Spencer might have arranged for his disappearance. And there were Umbrella and Tricell's alleged actions in Western Africa. Umbrella also has its own private military. Supposedly, it's for helping clean up after biohazard outbreaks, and yet…it scares me. And then there's the fact that Spencer ran a eugenics foundation."

"Eugenics? In other words, selective breeding of people?"

"Yes. Dr Marcus was even more into that than Spencer, he was pretty much a fascist. I met him only once, before he died in a lab accident, and he creeped me out. The thing is, I don't like eugenics, breeding people like domestic animals. I want people to be better, but that whole selective breeding thing reminds me too much of the same ideology that the Nazis and Voldemort espoused, that impurity should be purged. I know enough about genetics to know that diversity should be embraced and encouraged."

Harry nodded, pleased with Hermione. He shared the same ideology. Hell, even Miranda, for all her faults, understood that heterogenous populations were better than homogenous ones, even if she discouraged outsiders from the village, albeit for pragmatic reasons. Outsiders could expose her secrets, after all, and while Harry wanted to use the Mutamycete to help all humanity, he understood the need for secrecy at the right times.

And honestly, it hurt him to keep some things secret from Hermione. Aside from Ron, she was his oldest friend in this life. And she was also intelligent enough that he could speak to her without dumbing things down. Ron was not stupid, but he was intellectually lazy, and indeed, somewhat anti-intellectual. Despite his resentment at lacking any prestige, he did little to fix that, just the bare minimum.

"Well, I can understand some of your qualms. He seemed all right to me, but something about him did make me a little uneasy. That, and that Russian guy."

Hermione nodded. "Sergei's nice enough to me, but he's ex-Spetsnaz, former Soviet special forces. He's definitely fought in Afghanistan when the Soviets invaded. Honestly, once upon a time, I wanted nothing more than to work for Umbrella. But these days…I feel uneasy about that."

"Well, where you work is up to you, Hermione. Just don't waste your potential…"


Harry did spend a few hours helping Hermione look for more cases for Hagrid's hearing, but took his leave. He was glad that he could mend bridges with at least one of his friends in this life. Not only that, but he was glad Hermione, for all her authority worship, was wary of Spencer and Umbrella, though Harry didn't know of those rumours she brought up. Hopefully, that was all they were: rumours.

He dropped by McGonagall's office to enquire further about her work on the Firebolt. He didn't want a progress report, but now that his temper had cooled, he was genuinely curious about the process. McGonagall clearly dumbed down the explanation she sent his way, but he appreciated that. He was a genius when it came to biology, not magic. She did agree with him rather ruefully that, once Oliver Wood learned about this, he'd probably try to pester her to release it ASAP.

Having parted with McGonagall, he ended up back in the Chamber of Secrets, changing into his Henric form as he did so. To his delight, Dani and the Duke were present. "Crăciun fericit, iubit!" Dani cheered, swooping over and hugging him. "Did you like my present?"

"Of course. Macabre it may be, it was very fitting. Still not sure what to do with him, though. What about you? Did you like mine?"

"Need you ask, iubit?" She rolled her eyes. "My little treat is currently waiting my pleasure in the dungeons, and Mother made it clear that he is not to be interfered with to my sisters."

Harry grinned. He'd paid the Duke to have a criminal delivered to Daniela for her own use and consumption. As it happened, the Duke had someone detained already, a former member of Nicolae Ceauşescu's regime who had also been a financier. Unfortunately, he screwed over the wrong people, including the Duke. The Duke was slow to anger, but Harry knew that when his ire was aroused, it was a sight to behold.

"Did you have a good Christmas, iubit?" she asked, breaking his reverie.

"…Not exactly. It started fine, but I got into an argument with my friends. Ron isn't talking to me anymore, though I managed to mend bridges with Hermione, thankfully. By the way, thanks for the gifts, Duke."

"Of course," the obese merchant said with a cherubic smile, which then fell. "But what was this argument about?"

Harry hesitated, before relating the tale of the Firebolt, as well as his suspicions about Black and Pettigrew. By the end of it, Daniela was scowling, while the Duke looked thoughtful. "Dani…" Harry said. "I hope you're not plotting Ron's murder, or any action against him that involves physical or psychological harm."

"Plotting, no. Fantasising a little, yes," Daniela said. "He hurt you, Harry, and so did that thoughtless little girl! If I didn't believe that she was your friend and genuinely concerned for your safety, I would make her shit herself with fear! She could have asked you!"

"I know, I know…but I've made up with her, Dani. Anyway, what do you think about my hypothesis, Duke?"

"Well, it's certainly a sound one. I suspected the Fidelius was involved, but I never knew for certain," the Duke remarked. "I myself know how to cast it. It's how I've concealed some of my hideouts and warehouses. That Peter Pettigrew may have been the Secret Keeper is, as you say, a distinct possibility, even if it may not be correct. But it still begs the question, why is Sirius Black coming to Hogwarts? And why did he escape Azkaban at this time?"

Harry nodded absently, only for what the Duke said to catch up with him. "You can cast the Fidelius?"

"Indeed."

"…And you never thought to, say, cast it on me to conceal my identity as Henric?"

The Duke blinked, before chortling sheepishly. "It never occurred to me. It's usually used to conceal physical locations, not the identities of people. True, that is possible, it's how I hid my birth name, but I'm afraid that the intellectual indolence of wizards has infected me, and I simply forgot. Forgive me, we'll perform it at your convenience. Why do you ask?"

"It means I can reveal my identity to people I can trust, aside from you two, Alcina and Heisenberg. I want to reveal myself to potentially Professor Lupin and Hermione, as well as Dani's sisters, as the Fidelius should help prevent any accidental leaks, especially if I'm the Secret Keeper."

"A capital idea! See, this is why you were one of the hidden geniuses of your time, and I am stuck in commerce," the Duke said jovially, clapping his hands together. "So, when will you want me to do this?"

"Soon."

Dani, meanwhile, was peering at the rotund merchant. "…Have you ever told anyone your real name?"

"On rare occasions. True, the real reasons I have kept up my nom de guerre have fallen by the wayside, along with those I made enemies of. But I kept it up out of habit. Not because I am truly infamous in history books, but because I got so used to hiding my true name…well, in a way, I abandoned the name of the cowardly glutton who ate the wrong thing, and paid for it for the rest of his long life."

Harry, after a moment, nodded to him. "Well, I won't press."

But as he turned back to Daniela, about to start discussing some other matter, they heard the Duke say, quietly, "Slughorn."

"…Pardon?"

"My name. Duke Aaron Henry Slughorn. Well, technically FitzRoy, but that's a tale for another time."

Harry looked at the rotund man, as did Daniela. He found himself touched that the Duke would tell them his real name like that. After a moment, he smiled. "Well, I can see why you prefer to be called the Duke, so if you're fine with that, I'll continue calling you that."

"Same here," Daniela said.

The Duke offered a smile of his own. Weary, but warm, one that spoke of the years of friendship the three had. "But of course. Well, let us move to other matters, yes?"

CHAPTER 15 ANNOTATIONS:

So, there you have it, the big reveal of the Duke's name, in this fic anyway. Given how Horace Slughorn is noted to be rotund, I had this notion that the Duke was a Slughorn. I've even concocted an interesting backstory, though you already have hints of it. More will come in a later chapter.

Now, keep in mind, Ron isn't being truly bashed here. He's not being a malicious person, he's just a selfish idiot. But because he's butthurt about Harry's comments and outburst, he's going to take a while to come round. Keep in mind, it took him about three weeks to get over his little snit with Harry about the Goblet of Fire. It's not helped by the fact that Harry is both an intellectual, and is three decades his senior, in terms of mental age. That, and Ron, despite showing contempt for Scabbers before in canon, seems overly attached to him in Year Three.

Review-answering time! jmartinez8089: Thank you for that analysis of the situation. The problem is, Hermione also doesn't seem to think that what she did with Crookshanks was wrong. When Scabbers is apparently eaten, her only reaction is basically to think that Ron is being a drama queen. I hope the above scene was to your liking.

ShadeslayerX: Yikes. People actually put methanol back into that shit? I know enough about methanol to know that is a bad idea. And you're Romanian? I must be doing something right with how I'm using Romanian words and languages, as I'm not hearing complaints from you about that. Then again, I use Wiktionary to cherry-pick phrases and words rather than Google Translate, which is always a bad idea.

Sable Dawn: The Dimitrescus cannot 'turn' people in the way traditional vampires can, but they can use the Cadou to turn people into ghoul-like thralls and gargoyle-like creatures, Moroică and Samcă respectively.

Skull Flame: Her father's skull isn't engraved with crystals, but has them growing out of it. This seems to be a not-uncommon aftereffect of someone dying after infection with the Mutamycete, a form of crystallisation.

Weary Curmudgeon: Exactly. There'll be a similar, albeit lesser explosion when Scabbers fakes his death. And unlike the previous explosion, Harry/Henric actually bothers to offer a not-unreasonable solution to the problem, one that mollifies Hermione to some degree, but Ron just goes off in a huff. Harry's friendship with Ron is collapsing, unfortunately, and time will tell if it recovers…

No numbered annotations this time.