Chapter 3- Information, planning and expected visits.
Monday, March 13th 1989.
It was the morning Remus would arrive, and Harriet was educating Hadrian on all his duties as Heir of his Houses. She hoped he would learn enough soon so they could get started on freeing Sirius. She really wanted Hadrian to have a family for his birthday. Something she never got.
"I'm confused, Harriet. It says here that House Potter has an alliance with House Warrington yet House Black is an enemy of that House. Will I have to give up an alliance with that House? They're really powerful," Hadrian asked.
"I do not think so, Hadrian. You are the Heir to the Black House, which means when you come of age and take over both Houses, you can request an alliance for House Black. If he says no, then you will have to terminate it," Harriet murmured back. "Also, I may not have an alliance with that House in the future. Depending on which Sect I choose at the Wizengamot, House Warrington can easily terminate our contract."
"Oh," Hadrian blinked. "This is confusing!"
Harriet chuckled softly, and ruffed his hair, "That, my dear one, is the world of politics. Be thankful you don't have to swim in it just yet."
"Then why do I need to learn it?" Hadrian looked at her confused.
"It's important. You will be Lord of two prominent Houses. It would look bad on me if I did not teach you this," Harriet gave him a sharp look. "You better memorise this."
Hadrian groaned, then continued on with his studies. She did feel bad for him, he was only eight, but she understood all to well how frustrating it was to suddenly know she had all these duties. She was thankful that Severus had forced her to learn it all, even if she didn't have the chance in her world of putting it to use.
A short while later, Harriet took pity on him, and called for some cold sandwiches and pumpkin juice. Then, she directed Hadrian to the couches near the fireplace and they began to eat.
"Do you remember when myself and Thanatos spoke of Remus Lupin?" Harriet asked.
Hadrian thought back to the last few days, "Yes, wasn't he the werewolf?"
"Correct," Harriet smiled. "He will be joining us for lunch today. Would you like to sit in, or would you be more comfortable not seeing him?"
"I'd like to meet him," Hadrian said after a short pause. "He knew my parents. The Dursley's always told me they had died in a car crash, and even though I know it wasn't the truth, I'd like to know what they were like when they lived. Remus has that information. Can I speak to him in private?"
Harriet gave an inward smile. The past few days, both Thanatos and herself had helped Hadrian improve his speech. Now he sounded like a typical Pureblood child.
"Of course," Harriet replied. "If you feel uncomfortable whatsoever, you will call for me."
"Of course," Hadrian grinned.
"Mr. Lupin, thank you for joining us today," Harriet smiled and shook Remus's hand. "I'd like you to meet my good friend, Thanatos, and of course, you know young Hadrian."
Remus shook Thanatos hand, and just stared at Hadrian. He hadn't seen him since he was a baby, but the wolf in him recognised the boy as his cub. Moony wanted out, so he could scent the lady and man, to make sure that they took care of his cub properly. Remus was trying very hard to shove the wolf back.
"Let Moony out, Mr. Lupin," Harriet spoke. "He will not harm us."
Remus was surprised that she knew about Moony, not a lot of people knew about that. Only the three boys who he had stuck with in school, and Remus knew that James wouldn't have told a soul, family or not. He didn't even tell Lily. "How do you know..?"
"About your wolf? We shall discuss it over lunch. For now, let him out. I promise no harm will come to us."
With that, Remus relaxed his hold over Moony, his eyes turning yellow. Moony immediently went over to Hadrian, scenting him for any harm. Hadrian was quite nervous, but trusted that no harm would come to him. Once Moony was happy with his health, he scented both Harriet and Thanatos.
"You good for cub," Moony spoke. "Cub is happy."
"Thank you, Moony," Harriet beamed.
"I let human out now. He wants to speak."
When Remus was back in control, he apologized for his wolf, which wasn't necessary. Harriet understood the wolf's need to make sure that his cub was safe. He had lost all members of his pack, and only had his cub left. In her world, when she was sent to the Dursley's, Remus had no one, and his wolf paid for it.
I wonder how he'll take the news of Black being innocent, My Lady.
He won't believe us at first. We have to be careful of how we phrase things. Moony can smell a liar. It's far too early for him to be doubting us.
I shall follow your lead, young Mistress. But, I have to leave shortly after lunch, souls to collect, debts to pay and all that.
Harriet smothered a chuckle. He said it as though it was a hardship, when in reality he loved his job. Then let us get on with lunch.
Hadrian led Lupin towards the library so they could talk privately. He knew that Harriet wanted to speak with the man about adult things, but he was thankful she allowed him to speak with Lupin first.
For an eight year old, almost nine, he was quite smart. He knew Harriet had left out details when she and Thanatos told him about his parents, Voldemort and his parent's friends, but he understood that his age was the main concern. He would, in the future, ask her to tell him everything, but for now he was content.
Thinking back to the day that Harriet had took him from the Dursley's filled him with warmth, and a little bit of unease. He was glad that he actually had family that would take care of him, and also glad that someone had told him what magic was. He always believed he was a freak, thank you Dursley's, and to finally meet people that could do the same things he could made him happy. He finally wasn't a freak.
The reason for his unease however, was that they could do magic. If he was punished, they could make it hurt even more than Uncle Vernon's fists. Even though Harriet had told him she wouldn't hurt him, he was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. Nothing ever went perfect for him.
Dumbledore was another name that came up when thinking of Harriet's missing details. He was the Headmaster of the school he would go to when he was eleven. When Hadrian first met him, he didn't trust the Headmaster. He wondered why Harriet, and even Thanatos, didn't like the man. Hopefully he would find out before he went to Hogwarts.
He was brought out of his thoughts by Lupin clearing his throat. "Please excuse me, Mr. Lupin. I kinda got lost in my head," Hadrian gave a small smile, then gestured to the chairs across from the fire. "Sit, please."
"Mr. Lupin, I think you already know what I want from you," Hadrian spoke once they had sat down.
"Please, call me Remus. I've known you since you were a baby. And to answer your question, yes I think I do. You want to know what your parents were like."
"That's not all. I want to know why you didn't take me in. You were one of my parents best friends. If anyone, you would have stepped up,"
"I couldn't," Remus gazed at the boy sadly. "One, I'm a werewolf. We can't even have our own children, never mind gaining guardianship of someone else's. Since you are the Boy-Who-Lived, a werewolf gaining your guardianship was out of the question. I'm not going to lie to you, but taking you never entered my mind."
"Why?"
"That night, I had just lost my pack. Pack's are important to werewolves. Your Mother, Father and Godfather were all part of my pack. And Pettigrew was part of it, he was my other friend. I lost every one of them that night. My wolf wasn't happy, infact, he was depressed. Wolves depend on their pack for a lot of things, so thinking of you didn't cross my mind. When I managed to get myself under control, I wished I had managed to get to you first, to take you with me, but I'm also glad I didn't. It wouldn't have been a good life for you, Harry."
Hadrian looked at him, wondering if it was the truth, or what he believed was the truth. As you can probably see, Hadrian didn't trust adults, but he wanted to give him a chance. "Okay, I believe you."
Remus smiled, "Good. Now, about your parent's. I was best friend's with James since my first year at Hogwarts. Although, James was closer to Sirius. The both of them were like brothers. Your Father was very popular in school..."
Harriet and Thanatos were still sitting at the table while Hadrian spoke to Remus. Currently, they were speaking about the Elder Wand. "It's weird how my wand still works perfectly, yet Dumbledore has the same wand, and it doesn't give him any problems, why is that?"
"Your wand is the real one, My Lady. Dumbledore's is only a regular wand that looks the same. He hasn't had any cause to fight with it, which is why he hasn't had much problems. If he tried to curse you however, the wand would backfire. The power running through his wand is mine, but diluted, nothing that comes from me can ever hurt you."
"How did you manage to do this?"
"I had help," Harriet thought Thanatos looked sheepish. "Time to a mundane is different than time to a God is. I technically am a God, though I don't get involved with all the politics. When you proposed to go back in time, I contacted some demon and angel friends who owed me favours. We all managed to set up your back story here, and remove any difficulties. I went to Dumbledore and Gringotts. My friends went to the Ministry and to France."
"Oh," Harriet was impressed. "So, angels and demons are real then?"
"Yes. Souls do have to go somewhere," Thanatos chuckled. "I make deals with the King of Hell, and Michael, the head Angel. They tell me how many souls they want, and I cash in on favours whenever I need them. There is also Purgatory, where souls that nobody wants go to. It is worse than Hell."
"You told me once that I would be able to speak to my parents again, is that because of the deals you make with the angels and demons?"
"Basically yes. Also, when you're settled in this time, you will have to pick up your duties as my Master. That involves paperwork."
Harriet groaned, "Wipe that smug look off your face."
When Hadrian and Remus both returned, Harriet could see that meeting one another did both of them the world of good. Remus would have carried a lot of guilt about not taking Hadrian, and Hadrian would have forgiven him. She hoped the both of them could have a relationship like the one she had with Remus. Now though, she had to tell Remus the truth about Dumbledore. And scan him for compliance spells.
"I'm glad you came to meet Hadrian, Mr. Lupin."
Remus looked her over. When he first came in, he was more focused on Harry than the woman. She looked the spitting image of Lily, apart from some of her facial features. The high cheekbones and the slenderness of her face definitely came from her Mother. But the hair, the eyes, even her body shape was all Lily's. It was strange. The man however, didn't look all human. He was beautiful, too beautiful to be human. And the power leaking off him wasn't power a normal wizard had. He wondered what creature the man was.
"Not a problem, and please, call me Remus," he smiled.
"Then call me Harriet. Now, I told you in my letter that I had information about Sirius Black that you would want to hear, but, I need an oath from you that you will not speak of this to anyone without my permission." She looked serious, and Remus had doubts that this would be a good idea. Of course, his curiosity won out and he made the oath.
"Thank you," Harriet smiled grimly. "Sirius Black did not murder those thirteen Muggles and Peter Pettigrew. He also wasn't my cousin's Secret Keeper."
Remus laughed, he couldn't help it. "Of course he did it! Black was James' best friend. We always thought that there was a traitor in our mist, but they thought it was me. I was shocked that it was Black, but who else could it have been? It certainly wasn't me, and Peter was the one who went after Black and tried to bring him in."
"Mr. Lupin," Thanatos interjected. "May I do a diagnostic spell on you?"
"Why would you want to do that?" Remus looked at him surprised. "I'm in perfect health."
Why do you want to do the spell now, Thanatos? I thought we were going to wait.
I think it would be easier if we checked for the spells just now, before we tell him anything else. If he is under Dumbledore's control, he won't believe a word we say. Oath or not, Dumbledore would know what we know.
Harriet gave a small jerk of her head. "Please, humour him, Remus."
Remus shifted his gaze between the both of them, then finally nodded his head. What harm could it do?
Thanatos immediately stood over Remus, and cast the spell. "He's clean, Harriet."
Remus could see Harriet's shoulders relaxing. "Can you please explain why you think Black is innocent, and why you felt the need to do a diagnostic on me?"
Harriet straightened up. "Only if you don't interrupt this time." Remus gave her a nod. "Thank you. Now, as we were saying, Sirius Black is innocent. My cousin wanted Sirius to be their Secret Keeper, but Sirius thought it was too obvious a choice. He knew everyone would assume it was him, as everybody knew how close he and James were. Sirius came up with the idea that Peter should be the one to guard them. Only him, Lily, James and Albus Dumbledore knew that the Keeper had been changed."
"I'm sorry, but if Albus knew that Peter was the Keeper, then he wouldn't have allowed Sirius to rot in Azkaban."
Harriet gave him a such a cold look that Remus took a step back. "You do not know Dumbledore half as well as you think you do," she hissed at him.
Thanatos put a hand on her shoulder. "What you all didn't know, was that Pettigrew had already went to the Dark Lord and swore loyalty to him. He has a Dark Mark. Mr. Black didn't have any marks on him, nobody even thought to check him for marks, nor did they place him under Veritaserum. Dumbledore knew that Mr. Black was innocent, and he didn't lift a finger."
"But why would he do that? What does he get out of it?"
"Control," Harriet murmured. "Control over Hadrian."
"Dumbledore knew Pettigrew was the Keeper. He knew he was the traitor. It was Mr. Black going after him that night, not the other way around. Pettigrew killed those Muggles, then transformed into his Animagus form and went down the drain."
"And how did you come across this information?"
Harriet drew a deep breath. "I can see the past, future and present. Not all of it of course, just the most important details. Of course, that wouldn't stand up in court as hardly anyone would believe me. But, when I went to Gringott's and got Guardianship over Hadrian, Sirius wasn't crossed of as his Godfather. Now, you know how Goblins are, Remus. They wouldn't keep him there unless he was innocent."
Remus looked at her in surprise. He didn't expect that she was a Seer. A very powerful one if she could remember what she Sees. "Why would Albus want control over Hadrian?" Was the only thing he could ask.
"Because. I'm the Boy-Who-Lived, he needs me to be a good little soldier for the Light," Hadrian walked in. "He wanted me to be weak, and I think that's why he didn't say a word at Sirius's trail. And, that's why he sent me to the Dursleys."
"Hadrian.."
"Please, Harriet," he looked at her, his eyes were too old for his age. "I know I'm only eight, but I'm not stupid. It's easy to connect everything."
"I know, my love," Harriet ran her hand across his head.
Hadrian looked over at Remus. "I will soon be Heir Black, and I plan to raise hell to get Sirius out of Azkaban. I believe Harriet, and if she says he's innocent, then he is innocent."
Remus could feel Moony agreeing with everything that they had told him, he could understand why Moony was agreeing though, Sirius was their mate, but he didn't want to believe that Albus could be so cruel. He was the only person that had given him a chance, while everyone was set against it.
Harriet and Thanatos could see the struggle in his eyes. "Please, Remus, think it over. Think back to every time that you've been in Sirius's company, and Pettigrew's. You'll realise that I'm right."
"I'll think it over," Remus promised. "I don't believe that you would lie to Hadrian about something this serious. Also, Moony agrees with you as well, which gives you quite a few brownie points."
Harriet grinned. "I'm glad Moony agrees."
"Well I best get going, you-"
"Nuh-uh, Remus. You're staying with us!" Hadrian told him, grinning.
"But-"
"Nope. No buts! Harriet told me about werewolves and how hard it is getting money. We have loads of space and I still have things to talk to you about. My parents wouldn't want you to be alone either. So you're staying."
Remus continued to protest, even though Hadrian was taking him to his new rooms. Both Harriet and Thanatos had built an enclosed space for Moony, which was safe, and big enough for him to run about in at the full moons. Harriet was glad that Hadrian was taken with Remus, it had made the move in easier. And it would help them in the future when Dumbledore decided to make his move.
Tuesday, March 14th 1989.
The next morning, Harriet went into Hadrian's room to see if he was awake. They needed to go to Diagon Alley to buy new dress robes for their appointment with the Malfoy's. Hopefully Hadrian would make a friend in Draco. She wished she had. And hopefully, she would be able to find out how both Malfoy's feel about the Dark Lord.
"Hadrian, love," Harriet shook him. "It's time to wake up, we have to leave."
Hadrian grumbled, but Harriet just laughed. "If you don't get up now, I will pour water all over you."
"Okay, okay. M'getting up."
Laughing, Harriet left the his room. Than? Where are you?
Library, My Lady. I'm with Remus. He's asking why I had to do the spell.
Tell him. Do you both want to come with us to the Alley?
I have business to do, Mistress. War is steadily making her way here, and I plan to find out what she knows.
Oh. You'll have to explain what she knows to me later.
I will.
Harriet turned around when she heard Hadrian's footsteps. "Are you ready?"
"Yeah. I still don't want to go."
"I know," she smiled sadly. "But, you are going to be a Lord in the future. Use this to your advantage, Hadrian. Be amazed at what you see, be a darling, and the public will love you. That will come in handy in the future."
"Ugh. That's what they want me to do," Hadrian moaned.
"Yes, it is. And it is what you will do. Create a persona that the public will fall in love with, so, whenever someone wants to do you damage, or you do someone else damage, the public will be on your side."
Hadrian gave her a hard look. "Y'know, I don't really know what a guardian should be teaching their children, but I don't think this was it."
"Well, we are supposed to teach our children how to stay safe, which I just did," Harriet smirked. "Of course, I trust you wouldn't do anything so severe that you would need the public to be on your side. I would use the Stinging hex on you so much that you wouldn't be sitting for a month."
Hadrian winced. "Can we go now? I want to get this over with."
Than? Tell Remus to meet us at the door?
I will.
Well.. That went better than I expected. Harriet thought when they had returned.
When they had got to the Leaky Cauldron, everybody stopped what they were doing and stared at Hadrian, who was standing tall and proud next to her, but she could feel how tense he was. She understood too well how daunting crowds were for him.
They had only took one step, and that's when everyone moved. They all wanted to congratulate him, and were so excited to meet him. Hadrian had shook everyone's hands, and even took a few moments to have a chat with each of them. She was very proud.
Then, when they got into the Alley, it happened all over again, with reporters added in. Thankfully, Rita Skeeter wasn't one of them. The reporters had asked him questions about how he was faring being back in this world, and Hadrian answered them all politely. Harriet planned to organize an interview with a trusted reporter.
"I'm very proud of you, Hadrian," Harriet said softly.
Hadrian smiled. "Thank you. I still don't like crowds, though."
"If I hadn't already known that, I wouldn't have guessed."
Hadrian gave her a quick grin, then left to study before they went to see the Malfoy's. She hoped he was looking up the Malfoy House.
"He's very comfortable with you," Remus murmured.
"Yes. It's surprising, considering all the previous adult's in his life have treated him horribly."
"What did they do?" Remus asked. "Harry had briefly touched on his home life, but he didn't get into any specifics."
"They harmed him," Harriet's eyes flashed with anger. "His 'Uncle' beat him with his fists when Hadrian presumably did something wrong. When I managed to find him, he was locked in a cupboard under the stairs. He was dirty, bleeding and had multiple broken bones. I wish I'd killed them, but that would have raised too many red flags to Dumbledore."
"So that's why you hate Dumbledore?"
Harriet gave him a blank look. "I don't hate Dumbledore, Remus. I don't know the man. But, he was Hadrian's magical guardian, and he put him in a home where he was getting abused. Dumbledore never visited him, never checked up on him."
"It's difficult for me to believe Albus would do such a thing," Remus replied sadly.
"Why?"
"He gave me a chance, a chance that no one else would have. He knew I was a wolf, yet he still let me attend Hogwarts. He said that all magicians, creature or not, deserve a chance to learn."
Harriet felt sorry for the man. Dumbledore knew exactly how to gain people's trust. In some ways, he was worse than Voldemort. "You need to decide what's more important to you, Remus. The chance you got from Dumbledore, or a relationship with Hadrian, because I will be telling Hadrian everything I know about Dumbledore. He isn't as Light as he proclaims to be."
As they walked to the gardens, Harriet let him think in silence. She wasn't going to force him to change his mind on Dumbledore, but she needed to look out for Hadrian, which meant that Remus would need to make a decision quickly.
"So, where are you and Harry going?" Remus spoke up.
"We are going to the Malfoy's." Harriet smiled. "Narcissa is my cousin, her Aunt Dorea married my uncle Charlus."
Remus gave her a horrified look. "You do know that Lucius Malfoy was a follower of Voldemort?"
"Yes. He was a follower." Harriet gave him a stern look. "Everyone deserves a second chance, Remus. That includes Lucius. Plus, Narcissa is family. Family means a lot to Malfoy's, and it means a lot to me."
"But to take Harry there.."
"He will be safe. Hadrian is now my son, they would have to go through me first, and I promise you, I'm not that easy to take out." Harriet let a quarter of her power show, and watched Remus's eyes widen.
"Okay, I believe you."
"Good."
"Where is Thanatos? I thought he would join us when we went to Diagon Alley."
"He had some business of mine to take care of. You know I'm involved with the Wizengamot, yes?"
"Yes."
"Well, I'm in the Neutral Sect for now. Thanatos is researching both Light and Dark Sect for me. I do not want to remain Neutral forever."
"Oh," Remus replied. "Is that why you're teaching Harry all about the Houses?"
"Partly, yes. I'm teaching him about House Alliances because he needs to know. He will be a Lord in the future. Whether he takes up politics is up to him, but he has to know about the Houses allied with him, and which Houses he has to avoid."
"Oh. When James was younger he didn't want to learn anything about being a Lord. He just wanted a life with Lily. Sirius wasn't interested in it all either," Remus murmured.
"But James did learn. I know my Uncle, he would have forced the issue. It looks bad on all Pureblood families, or families of importance if they don't teach their children about it all. Sirius I can understand. From what I hear, his Mother wasn't nice at all. He would have wanted to rebel," Harriet replied.
Remus gave a smile, "Yes, that's exactly what he wanted to do. It's how he ended up in Gryffindor."
Harriet didn't reply, just left Remus with his thoughts. She wasn't surprised that he was thinking of Sirius, but she was surprised he was speaking about him. She knew that the wolf in Remus was hurting, had been hurting for the past eight years. A small smile came to her face when she remembered the reunion between the Mates. Even though she was confused, and angry as hell, she saw the love and devotion in Sirius's eyes. She saw the fear, disbelief and ultimately love battling against each other in Remus's eyes.
"I must leave you now, Remus. It is time for us to start getting ready for the Malfoy's. I need to make sure that Hadrian is prepared. Will you be all right on your own?"
"Yes," Remus gave a soft smile. "Thank you for your concern, though. And thank you again for letting me stay here."
"You're Hadrian's Godfather, Remus. I couldn't not let you stay. Plus, it gives Hadrian more company when myself and Thanatos are out."
Remus laughed. "So now I'm the babysitter?"
Harriet smirked. "Damn right, you are. Feel free to use the library. James told me you were a bookworm, and I'm pretty sure that I have books that you haven't read yet."
"Thank you, I will."
Than? I may need your help later.
What with, My Lady?
Well, since we're going to the Malfoy's, I think it would be the best time to take Voldemort's diary.
And how do you plan to accomplish this?
That's where you come in. You can do that time slowing thing you were telling me about.
I'm busy with War and Famine right now, My Lady. I cannot make it to you in time.
You won't need to leave them, Than. I thought about how you managed to transport me back in time. You entered my mind, and took possession of my body. I'm pretty sure you can do that again.
Hmm, that could work. How slow do you want the time to go?
If I remember correctly, we'll probably meet in the dining room for our meeting. I'm sure the library is directly above, so maybe about twenty minutes, half an hour tops? I'm going to try that projection thing you taught me.
Call on me when you need me, My Lady.
I will.
With that done, Harriet began to dress. She was nervous about entering the Malfoy home again, especially after what had happened the last time. She could still hear Granger's screams, and even though she didn't like the girl, nobody deserved to go through that. Not even backstabbing friends. She was more than a backstabbing friend, Harriet. She was bought and paid for, with your money, by Dumbledore.
Still, she didn't deserve that. Shoving that thought to the side, Harriet looked at her dress robes. They were a deep purple that didn't clash with her hair, and had green buttons. They were simple, yet elegant, befitting her status as a Lady of multiple Houses.
Once she was dressed, she made her way to Hadrian's room, and saw him trying to tame his hair into submission. "You won't be able to tame that mope of yours."
Hadrian didn't turn around, "I wish I could. Would look so much better with tame hair in front of them."
Harriet waited until he looked at her before she replied. "Yes, it's important to look your best in front of important people, but you don't need to worry about that just yet. We can't do anything about your hair just now, but if you decide to grow it out in the future, the wildness will tame down."
Hadrian looked at her with a grin, "Then that's what I'll do."
Harriet laughed, then mentioned him to back up a few paces so she could see how his robes fit. His were the same as hers, but they were dark green with purple buttons. She always found that simple, yet elegant things worked best when meeting for lunches. Save the extravagant robes for important balls, and business meetings.
"You look brilliant, love," Harriet said.
"Thank you. You look beautiful as well," Hadrian replied.
Harriet kissed his forehead, "Shall we get going then?"
With Hadrian's nod, they made their way to the entrance. She was going to use the Floo, but she needed time to clear her mind of the past events in that house. Hadrian hated Side-Along Apparition but she couldn't afford the Malfoy's seeing her reaction.
"Thank you for lunch, Narcissa, it was splendid," Harriet gave a small smile.
"Thank you for joining us, Harriet, Hadrian," Narcissa Malfoy replied. "Also, thank you for the thing's Aunt Dorea had left for me. She was my favourite Aunt."
The 'thing's' that Harriet had given her were small trinkets, but apparently meant a lot to Narcissa. There was also a letter addressed to her that Harriet hadn't bothered to look at. It was Narcissa's business, not hers.
The lunch, though, was indeed splendid. The Malfoy's owned the best Elf cooks that money could buy. They probably cost a fortune, but it was definitely worth it.
She knew that Lucius's wanted her here for a reason, that reason probably being to join the Dark Sect. With her chairs, the Dark Sect would take over the Light by a long shot, which would then appoint Lucius as Supreme Mugwump. That actually would be perfect. Harriet thought, it would certainly get Dumbledore out of power.
Before they got into politics though, Harriet wanted to bring up Sirius. Judging from Narcissa's, and Lucius's reaction to herself and Hadrian being related to them, family was a big thing to the both of them. If Harriet told them that Sirius was innocent, then it would be so much faster getting him out, since Lucius had a lot of contacts in the Ministry, which of course, included the Minister.
First, though. Harriet needed that Diary.
Whilst they were making small talk, Harriet concentrated on creating a projection of herself, which would remain invisible to everyone but her. Thanatos had told her that he had learned it from the God of Mischief one time when he was visiting Hel, who was Loki's daughter. It still blew her mind that everything she learned as a little girl was actually real. Which was stupid, considering magic was real.
Once the projection was stable, she made it walk over to her, and set on top of her. Then she quickly connected her mind with the projections so that if they spoke to her, she would be able to reply.
It was difficult to do, would have been impossible if she hadn't known Occlumency, because she had to split her mind into two parts, the one for herself and the one for the projection. It was quite disconcerting to suddenly be looking out of four eyes instead of two. Sadly, she would only be able to keep this going for about thirty seconds.
Once that was done, she quickly made herself invisible as the projection made herself visible. Than, take over my body now. I can't hold the projection for long.
Open up your mind.
Carefully, Harriet opened her mind, whilst keeping a tight leash onto both halves that were separated. Do not worry, My Lady. I have you.
As soon as Thanatos was in her mind, she felt calm knowing he would be keeping the projection going. Then, she felt the time slowing down. It was a weird experience, very hard to describe. It is done, My Lady. You have thirty minutes starting from now.
Thank you, she gave him a mental kiss on the cheek, then made her way out of the room. The reason she remembered the Library so vividly was because when her, Ron and Hermione were out looking for Horcruxes, they wondered where they would find Voldemort when they were done. This was before they thought Hogwarts would be one of the Horcruxes safe places.
When they were thinking about where to find Voldemort, Ron had suggested Malfoy Manor. Harriet remembered thinking that, that would probably be where they would all end up fighting, and she contacted Severus, asking him for the building plan of the Manor. She never managed to find out how he managed to get it.
When they had the building plan, all three of them tried to commit it to memory. The library was one of the only places she clearly remembered because Hermione gushed over how huge it was, and how much she wished to look through it. Thank you Granger for being such a bookworm.
It took Harriet about ten minutes to find the library, now she only had ten more minutes to find that damn Diary. Sorry, Hadrian. But I need to be in your mind.
Because of the fact that Harriet was Hadrian, and the added power from Thanatos, she managed to enter his mind from the library, without being detected. Quickly, she searched for the soul piece that was lodged inside him. It was what she used back in her time to find the Horcruxes.
Once she had it, she attached a sliver of her magic, and let it guide her to the Diary. The looks next to it gave her a chuckle. How to Train your Peacocks, by Hartford Delegine. And, Household Spells for the Less Able, by Jerome Jensen.
Grabbing the Diary, she made a copy of it and stuck it back into place. Then, she gently removed herself from Hadrian's mind, making sure none of her magic was left near the Horcrux. How much time do I have, Than?
Nine minutes, 30 seconds, My Lady.
Not bad. She thought it would have token her longer.
She then made her way back to where the Malfoy's were, making sure all her magic was non-detectable. Wouldn't want to explain why she was here.
All in all, it was a very good day. Now she had business to get too.
As soon as Narcissa and Lucius gave each other a look, Harriet quickly murmured to Hadrian that he should speak with Draco. It was very weird seeing Draco as a child. Even weirder to see him excited that Hadrian had come along. Even with all the money and luxury he had, he was a very lonely child, and it did make her feel sorry for him.
"Shall be adjourn to my office, Harriet?" Lucius asked her.
Harriet gave a nod in response, but kept her eyes on Hadrian. "Will you be okay without me, love?"
"Yes, Harriet. I'll be fine, don't worry."
Harriet nodded again, kissed his forehead, then followed Lucius to his office, making sure that the Diary hidden in her robes wouldn't be noticed. She wanted to feel bad about taking it from Lucius, especially once Voldemort found out, but she needed to begin on the potion that Voldemort would need to return in full health.
"My son seems to get along well with your charge," Lucius spoke when they had settled in his office.
"Yes, I saw that as well. I'm glad. It is difficult for Hadrian to be around adults for long," Harriet murmured.
She could see that Lucius had a bunch of questions, which was her aim. Sadly, he didn't ask any of them. "I heard that Headmaster Dumbledore planned to visit you, also, that he was angry after that visit."
Harriet swallowed a smirk, didn't even need to use Hadrian to get him to speak of Dumbledore. "Yes. 'Visit' isn't the word I would use, though. He didn't arrange it with me."
Lucius's eyes showed a flicker of surprise before it was quickly masked. "That is not like the old Headmaster."
"Well, I did not attend Hogwarts, so I would not know. He came to check on Hadrian for some reason. It is not his business as to where Hadrian is. It will only be his business once Hadrian attends Hogwarts."
"I thought he was Hadrian's magical guardian?"
Harriet let some of her anger show. "Yes, I thought he was as well. It makes me very glad I got to Hadrian when I did."
She could feel Lucius assessing her, but she didn't look back at him, and instead changed the subject. "I do admit that I had an ulterior motive for accepting your invitation."
"Then I shall admit to my own ulterior motive," Lucius gave a small chuckle.
Harriet laughed, "Well, my one is simple. Or could be simple. Your wife's cousin is locked up in Azkaban. The same cousin that is Godfather to my son."
"You are speaking of Sirius Black, yes?"
"Indeed. He was found guilty of being a Death Eater, and of giving my cousin's location to Voldemort." Lucius flinched at the same.
"Yes."
"What's very curious though, is that they did not give Mr. Black a trail. Which they did for other Death Eater's that had been found."
"I did not know that."
"No," Harriet finally looked at him. "I do not think many would have known. It wouldn't have looked good for the Minister at the time."
"Why do you bring this up?"
"I bring this up because I have found enough evidence that Mr. Black was innocent. Of all charges."
Lucius leaned forward a bit, "How did you come across that?"
"The Goblins, funnily enough," Harriet smiled in amusement. "When I went to the Goblins to find out about Hadrian, they showed me the list of caregivers that my cousin had left. Mr. Black was still there as his Godfather. You know how Goblin magic works in these things. If Mr. Black was truly guilty, he would not have been marked as Hadrian's Godfather."
"That's very interesting," Lucius replied. "So, you are assuming someone set him up?"
"Oh, not assuming. I know exactly who set him up. Sadly, I won't be able to prove it, but I can take steps to make sure the person who did, does not get to mess with Hadrian's life again."
"What has Hadrian got to do with it?"
"Hadrian is the Boy-Who-Lived, Lucius. Everything that the major players do, involves him on some level. When you say that this player was Dumbledore.."
"That makes a lot more sense," Lucius said thoughtfully.
"I can see you're connecting the dots."
"Not that difficult. Unless you are a fierce Dumbledore supporter. But for those of us that do not buy into all his hubbub, it's easy enough to realize that he wanted Hadrian under this control. That explains why he was seen as angry after he had 'visited' you."
"Exactly," Harriet replied. "It makes me wonder what lengths he would go to, to get Hadrian back under his control."
"How did you connect Dumbledore to this?" Lucius asked curiously.
"Apparently James was beginning to see through Dumbledore's hubbub. He left a letter with the Goblin in charge of his vaults. It was addressed to Hadrian, but I was the one who read it. It spoke of how the Secret Keeper's had been changed. And that Dumbledore knew about it." The letter was real, but it hadn't been James who wrote it. Thanatos had thought it best if they kept her 'Seer' ability close lipped, so he went and fabricated it.
"And why are you telling me this?" Lucius replied.
"Because, you have a lot of sway at the Ministry. You can make a long, drawn out trail turn into a smooth one. I know that family is important to both you and Narcissa. Family is important to me as well. I won't be able to prove that Dumbledore was involved, but I can make sure his plans don't work the way he wants them too," Harriet said truthfully.
"I shall speak with a few of my friends, and see what way would be the easiest for you," Lucius looked at her thoughtfully. "You aren't what I expected from a Potter."
"Potter-Gryffindor-Peverell-Avery," Harriet corrected. "Peverell and Avery have enough Slytherin in them to make me stand apart from most Potter's."
Lucius let out a surprised chuckle, "Definitely not what I was expecting."
"That is all I really needed to speak with you about. Now, what is it that you want to speak about with me, Lucius?"
"Your plans in the Wizengamot," Harriet's eyes widened in surprise at his bluntness. "You've been observing everyone in each meeting you attend. I wish to know what your future plans are."
"Well, I've been observing everyone to see which Sect would be the most rewarding. I did not grow up here in Britain, Lucius. I do not yet know the rules, or which subject is acceptable to speak about or not. I plan to make changes here, some that will probably make enemies," Harriet replied.
All of that was the truth. She was planning to make changes that will rock a few boats. She was going to do what Voldemort should have done. Change the world a piece at a time through political means. He certainly had the looks, the charisma, the charm and he was the Lord of a very famous House. She was looking forward to getting the reason why he didn't out of him.
Would be the least he owes me since I'd have returned his arse back here.
Lucius eyes had a gleam that she was certain she wouldn't like. "I can help you there, Harriet, my dear." How could I have possibly forgotten that Lucius was the biggest gossip in my world?
You have a lot on your plate, My Lady, came Thanatos's voice, followed by his laughter.
Merlin, I'm going to be here for hours!
Probably. Have fun, My Lady.
For the next two and a half hours, Harriet had to listen to all the Light Sect's dirty little secrets. Some of it came would eventually be useful, most of it would never be. She had to give Lucius some brownie points, though. He did manage to make the Dark Sect sound like the best choice.
Lucky that I'm already planning on being on the Dark Sect.
Here's another chapter folks! Hope you are all enjoying this! The next two chapters will be out shortly, then it may be some time before I can post anymore as I haven't wrote much else. Plus I've just started college, Higher Social Sciences to be specific and that's going to take up much of my free time.. But, I won't abandon this story! Let me know what you all think of this chapter!
