Hello lovlies, here is ch.8, sorry it took so long. warning, there is going to be a bit of a time jump in the next couple of chapters, since our fairy tale crew is about to get to Hogwarts. I am keeping to the pairings you all voted on; Hermione/Henry, Neville/Luna, Draco/FOC, Harry/MOC. Chances are most will be established when they do show up, because of the time jump, although there will be flash backs. TA

Chapter 8—A new adventure

Hogwarts—November

Harry was once again in what he had come to call the Enchanted Garden. Neither he nor his friends had seen Snape outside of class, mostly due to the fiasco that had been Halloween. Harry had heard a voice in the walls while he and the others were roaming some of the less travelled, and more dangerous, passages in the dungeons. Following the voice with his friends following, concerned thoughts practically screaming in the silence, they had come upon bloody words on the walls. That was before they'd noticed Mrs Norris hanging from the wall torch.

According to the graffiti, the Chamber of Secrets had been reopened. The teachers were instituting new security measures, the students were gossiping half in fear and half in adolescent excitement, and Filch was stalking the students trying to find the culprit. The love he held for that cat was nowhere near healthy. At least, Hermione thought so.

Regardless, with the new mystery, figuring out who Harry's parents were was set aside for the moment. Harry had a feeling this new distraction was as annoying to the others as it was to him. Harry sighed as he waited for the serpent Artemis. He had figured out the bubble head charm, and today was the day he would help the serpent retrieve the necklace it wanted. Arcare had been teaching him how to smell magic, but it was difficult and he had yet to be able to differentiate magic; currently he could only smell when magic was close. His reptilian mentor told him it would get easier the more he practiced, and to continue his training.

"Hello Hatchling, are you ready to assist me?" said a voice down at his feet, just in his peripheral vision. Harry turned his head and saw Artemis.

"Yes, I have learned a charm to help me breath underwater," Harry replied as he took off his shoes and robes. He was left barefoot in his school uniform. He removed his tie and walked towards the cold water.

"Hatchling, this will be a little dangerous," Artemis warned. "If one of the little devils gets a hold of you, try to break its fingers, they are very frail."

"I understand. Let's get going, the water is cold and it will get colder the longer we wait."

Harry had come to the garden after his last class, wanting to get the task over with before the water became too cold for him to swim in. In his opinion, the Black Lack was probably too cold to swim in at any time of the year, but with winter fast approaching he decided waiting any longer was both pointless, and suicidal. The serpent slithered into the water first, with Harry slowly walking in after. The chilling water seeped into the wool and Harry felt his teeth beginning to chatter. When he was waist deep he felt the sand beneath him start to give way, and he cast the bubble head charm before diving beneath.

The water was clearer than he'd expected, before he remembered that this part of the lack had been untouched by mages for centuries. With the lake being so large, it was quite possible that the murkiness of the water on the other side of the castle was due to students and faculty dumping who knew what into the lake. Harry spotted his reptilian companion and followed the serpent through the blood freezing water.

The duo went far below the surface, farther than Harry thought the lake could be beneath its surface. His guide stopped and swam behind a rock with no warning, and it was only Harry's swift reaction that had him doing the same before a giant squid like creature went lazily by the rock they hid behind. Suddenly Harry remembered the stories of a giant squid that lurked far beneath the lake. No one had seen it for around a century and a half, but the legend of the squid stayed. Still, it didn't look like any squid Harry had ever seen at a zoo or in books. It was far too big, for one, and there weren't enough tentacles for it to be a squid, there were only four large tentacles with a few dozen smaller ones, but they couldn't really be seen. Which was another thing, the tentacles reminded Harry more of a jellyfish than a squid. The head shape was wrong as well, squids' heads were conical, while this creature's seemed to be more of a dome, like an octopus.

Regardless of what it was, the being left their area and the two continued onward. The cold was no longer bothering Harry, he assumed his body had adjusted to it, but it was November and the further they went from the surface, the colder it should be getting. However, Harry no longer was noticing the cold. Perhaps it was his magic, protecting him from hypothermia? It was a logical conclusion.

Soon, a chittering could be heard, along with a high pitched sound that was halfway between a giggle and a shriek. Artemis was going slower than before, and was swimming low in the long plants that grew on the bottom of the lake. Harry did his best to follow suit, assuming they had reached the nesting area of the grindelows. He had read up on the creatures, as much as he could find. There was a sudden silence that prevailed in the cold water and Harry felt fear, it was primal and his instincts told him they had been found out. Then, it the water among the reeds, Harry saw a glint of metal.

He did his best to swim faster than he had before, but he was not built for this terrain. In the back of his mind, right by the fear, Harry realised he had not seen Artemis for a while. The chittering and shrieking returned and then harry reached the semi-buried trinket. It was indeed what he and Artemis were looking for. Harry put the necklace around his neck, so his hands would be free, and before he could get his wand out, three of the grindelows had hold of him.

Harry struggled and tried to control his magic, but it was becoming difficult as the largest of his captors was trying to pop the bubble he'd charmed. Panic began to rise as Harry realised that if he lost the bubble he lost the only air he had, and the charm was pointless to cast underwater because it would only give him a bubble of water. Harry let his magic spike with his emotion and allowed it to blast the three attackers away. Once he was free Harry began swimming in the direction he had come with Artemis. Harry stopped and looked around for the serpent.

The shrieking was growing louder, and Harry figured that meant more of the blasted water demons were coming. He saw movement in the reeds and swam towards it. Amongst the plants he saw Artemis sink fangs into one of the nasty creatures and then he and the serpent were swimming back the way they came.

The shrieking didn't cease, but would fade and then seem closer than before. Harry decided that meant they were being chased by the foul critters. He and Artemis swam as fast as they could, but Harry was slowing them down, he was human and he wasn't built for swimming beneath the water. Not to mention that the twelve year old was tiring, fast. Harry stopped swimming and looked around them.

If we can't out swim them, maybe we can out smart them, he thought as he noticed where they were was not far from where they had seen the giant creature many mistook for a squid. The shrieking was getting closer again and Harry began swimming with renewed energy. There was only a little ways more to go.

Sure enough, when they reached the area Harry had seen the creature a large shadowy shape was steadily growing closer in the direction they were headed. Harry swam to a large rock motioning artemis to follow him. Once they were behind the rock, they waited. Harry hoped, with his hear beating fast in his chest, that he was correct and the creature, whatever it was, would scare the water demons chasing them away.

The shrieking grew so close Harry could swear that the little beasts were right on the other side of their hiding place. Then the shriek grew so loud Harry though his eardrums would bleed before there was silence. Harry and Artemis waited for long, fear dripping moments before Harry cautiously looked around the rock. The creature was nowhere to be seen, and neither were the grindelows.

With great caution Harry and Artemis made their way back to the shore. Neither one wanted any more excitement while they were beneath the water. When they reached the shore of the enchanted garden Harry broke his bubble and practically ran to his shoes and robes. Harry was shivering again, in the dying light. Harry realised that he and Artemis must have been in the lake for at least three hours.

"Go get warm hatchling, come back tomorrow with the necklace," Artemis said before slithering off. Harry didn't reply, but instead ran to get inside the castle and gain some warmth back. The young warlock made a mental note to learn a warming charm before ever doing something like that again.

Hook's ship, Neverland

Belle was sitting on a bunk below the deck. She wondered if Rumple would be upset she'd said so much, they were his secrets to tell, but she couldn't just stay quite when they spoke about her Rumple like that. A knock sounded on the wooden archway.

"Belle, are you alright?" asked her Rumple. He was still, and his brow was furrowed in concern.

"Rumple, I couldn't stop myself. I just couldn't keep quite when they said everything they said," Belle said. Rumple sighed and walked to her. He sat and took her hands in his, the claws were sharp, and the scales hard, but they were warm and gentle hands. Belle had never been afraid to have those hands touch her, well, perhaps when he'd led her away from her father and the rest of her loved ones she had been afraid.

"Belle, they told me. I know, you always have to be my heroic knight, defending my honour," Rumple sighed. Belle couldn't stop herself, she laughed. His wit had always been sharper than his claws, but he only used it to make her smile. Rumple smirked, pleased his Belle was not as said as she had been. His beauty should never be sad, she should always smile. At least, that was his opinion.

"I know those were your secrets to tell," Belle said after she finished. "I know I shouldn't have said everything I did. I suppose they told you what I told them."

"Yes, they did, Belle. I will admit, I'm not going to enjoy them walking on eggshells around me until they reconcile that vile beasts can do good deeds every once in a while," Rumple said with a flourish of his hand. Belle was relieved to see him being a little animate and dramatic during this conversation. It meant it didn't bother him as much as she thought it would.

"I tried to tell them, that you aren't a good man, but that you're not evil either. They don't understand. I just, I just want them to see you as I do. Not as some vile beast, because you aren't one, but a man."

"Belle, I guarantee that I am, by all accounts a vile beast," Rumple said only half teasing. Belle gave him the look she always did when he 'self-deprecated'.

"You—"

"Stole away the beauty of an entire kingdom and then ensured she would never be theirs again. I do believe that makes me a vile beast."

"I'm the one that made the deals with you. I agreed to go with you, so no I was never a prisoner, nor stolen. I also was the one who approached you with our other deal, so no, you didn't force me into being your bride either," Belle insisted. Her voice held the tone that told him there would be no argument from him about it. His sweet beauty was made of steel.

"Yes, we know that, but the rest of the land doesn't... To be honest I'd rather keep it that way, deals are private, Belle. The only reason why you began watching them is because we got married," Rumple said. Belle smiled, she knew how much Rumplestilskin wanted his clients', no matter how horrid they were, deals to remain confidential. Belle gave him an understanding smile before she rested her head on his shoulder. Rumple moved a hand to stroke her hair.

"I found a way to get to the boys, we're getting our son back, soon," he told her. Belle's arms wrapped around his middle and she snuggled closer to him.

"...I named him Emrys. I remembered, when the midwife told them it was a boy that you said Emrys was a powerful and strong name for a boy. I—I begged them not to take him from me. When the one with spectacles to me to be quite and held my baby, I—I... I was the only time I've ever told someone I'd have you destroy them. It was the only time I ever used your power to try and get someone to cower. They just laughed, except the woman. She was trying to calm me. She said she was sorry."

"Oh, Belle. They will pay. I swear it," Rumple said in comfort. He was a little shocked. His Belle had used the darkness in her, the darkness everyone had. He knew she had that darkness, everyone did, but she was able to ignore it, she was the only person he'd ever met where that seductive darkness couldn't seduce. She had willingly threatened those men, because they were taking her most precious thing away. He wondered how long she had cried, not just for their son, but because she had finally given in to the darkness, and nothing had come of it.

"I'm afraid, Rum. He won't know who we are, what if he loves them, what if he acts like they did? What if he doesn't want us?"

Her voice was so small, smaller and more afraid than Rumple had ever heard it before. His heard near broke at the fear and pain that trembled in her voice.

"How could anyone not love you?" he said. "Our son, no matter who raised him, must know he's different. That he doesn't belong with them, and Henry is so close to him. He'll know, he'll know Bell."

"Are you sure?" said his beauty looking up at him with those lovely sapphire eyes. Unshed tears made them glisten as if they were heartbroken, flawless gems.

"Without a doubt. I can feel it," Rumple said with honestly. For he did feel the truth in his words, the perks of being a Seer, that their son would not turn them away. Belle gave him a smile of sad relief and happiness. Rumple could tell she was too tired to continue fighting her tears, so he leaned down and kissed her.

Hogwarts, Christmas holiday

Harry sat in shock. Henry sat beside him just as quiet. Hermione, Draco and Neville were sharing a look amongst themselves while Snape watched the two before them. He had finally been able to tell them what he had learned from the goblins. Although he had yet to tell them they were uncle and nephew.

"So, if we have the same traces of magic in our blood, then Harry must be from the Enchanted Forest too," Henry said in slight shock, although everyone could hear the excitement in his voice. He turned to Harry.

"The Enchanted Forest is, from what I gathered, encompasses a land mass about the size of Europe, maybe a little bigger."

"Wait, what do you mean, from what you gathered?" Draco asked.

"A curse was placed on the people of the Enchanted Forest shortly after my birth mother was born," Henry explained. "The curse sent them all to a land without magic and false lives and identities. The land was originally filled with the people you and muggle know from fairy tales. My maternal grandparents are Snow White and Prince Charming. They used a magical wardrobe to send my birth mother, Emma, ahead of the curse. So my birth mother was never a part of it. Although I was born in the land without magic, I'm still technically from the Enchanted Forest since my dad also left prior to the curse."

"So my parents were most likely caught up in the curse," Harry said. "was it broken?"

"Yeah, Emma gave me up for adoption when she had me, and I ended up growing up in Storybrooke, the town the curse made to hold everyone. When I figured out it was a curse I went in search of Emma. Long story short, we managed to break the curse, but the town didn't return to the Enchanted Forest. So your parents are probably still there."

"Did the goblins say anything else?" Harry asked Snape.

"Yes, they had Henry's blood on record, since when he arrived he was also tested... You two are directly related."

"...What? I thought my father was a magical creature of some kind. Henry and I can't be related," Harry said. Henry, however, suddenly found the dots connecting.

"We could be if you're my uncle," Henry said. "My father came from the Enchanted Forest, and his is called the Dark One. He's the most powerful mage in the whole of the forest. He also happens to be immortal. He doesn't look human, so it could be that you're his son."

"How can that be though? Harry said his mother looked completely in love with the beast that his father is," Hermione said.

"That's why I think Harry is my uncle. See, the Dark One is Rumplestilskin. A lady named Belle made a deal with him to save her people, and they ended up falling in love with each other. They are what the story The Beauty and the Beast is based on. So, yeah, it could very well be them," Henry explained.

"well, professor, did the goblins say how we were related?" Harry said. His father was supposedly the most powerful mage in all the enchanted Forest. It was a little bit of a shock, that and he may have an elder brother and Henry may be his nephew.

"They did say it was a direct blood relation, which means that yes, Harry is Henry's uncle," snape said. They were all taking this much better than he'd thought. Harry began laughing.

"Harry?" Neville asked.

"My father is the Dark One. If Dumbles knows, then it would tell us that he did steal me to keep the Potter line alive, and create a possible rival for Voldemort," Harry said when he finally sobered up. "Think on it, who better to defeat a Dark Lord, than the son of an even more powerful Dark Lord. Especially when you realise I was to be raised by a 'Light' family. I'd have been perfect for ending Voldemort."

He was right, they realised. It was the perfect solution.

"He's stupid though," Henry said. They all looked to him. "If Belle has told Grandpa Rum, then he's going to be incredibly angry. That isn't healthy for whoever he blames. Chances are is if they used the tool they did to find my dad, than they must know Harry is here too. If, by chance, Dumbledore told Belle Harry was dead, which was probably the only way he could get you away from her, then they're going to know he lied."

"So when they come for you, they'll be coming for Harry too," Hermione gasped.

"Not to mention our dear Headmaster's head," Draco said with a vicious smirk. The smirk was mirrored by everyone in the little group.

"So, Professor Snape, now that that is out of the way. What do you know about the Chamber of Secrets?" Harry asked. Snape looked at him.

"Only that it was opened fifty years ago and a girl died. Why?"

"Well, we must keep ourselves occupied until Henry and I's family arrives."

The smile Harry gave them all was almost saying 'what else did you think I would say?'

Hogwarts, Valentine's Day

"I'm going to kill Lockhart," Harry told Hermione, Neville and Draco. Henry was in Herbology with the Hufflepuffs while Gryffindor and Slytherin were heading to Transfiguration. With three more attacks from the Creature of the Chamber happening after the holidays, teachers were escorting the students from class to class, and no students were allowed to wander the halls alone anymore. Needless to say, the group hardly saw Henry anymore since Ravenclaws had fewer classes with the Gryffindors and Slytherins than they had with Hufflepuffs.

Lockhart, who Harry had already hated with every fibre of his magical being, and who he was pretty sure was an absolute fraud, had gotten the great idea to dress dwarves up as cupids and have them delivering Valentine 's Day grams to the victims, err, students.

"Harry you really shouldn't do that on school grounds," Hermione told him. With the knowledge that Harry was the son of the Dark One, the group had asked Harry to be truthful about his dark side, which they all were sure he was hiding from them. Harry had relaxed fully around them, although he was definitely much dark than he had been before.

"Although we could probably blame the creature," Draco said.

"With the result of the school closing?" Neville asked. Harry sighed, Neville was right.

"Perhaps he could merely... Disappear," Harry mused. He'd been given around seven grams so far, and none of them had been anything but horrible love poetry. He really was not happy.

"So, moving on from musing about ending Professor Lockhart, what are we going to do about the creature?" Hermione asked. "At this rate they'll close the school at the end of the year anyway."

"I think it's time to discover what the creature is," Harry said. "That means getting to the school records from fifty years ago."

"What are you looking at Weasley?" Draco asked as the redheaded imbecile looked at their straggling group. They were moving slow enough so they were just out of ear shot of the other students.

"That would mean getting into Dumbledore's office," Hermione said. Weasley had turned away from their collective glaring.

"How do we manage that?" Neville asked. "Dumbledore is in his office all the time now."

" Perhaps we don't need the records," Harry said getting a sudden idea. "we just need to ask what happened."

"ask who? Any of the professors who where there wouldn't tell us," Hermione said.

"I wasn't speaking about the professors... What is your father doing here Draco?"

They looked and saw that Lord Malfoy was indeed walking past them. Along with two aurors and a small pudgy man who reminded harry a little too much of an older Dudley.

"That's the Minister of Magic with him," Draco said as they all stopped and watched.

"They're going to arrest someone," Harry said as the adults went by. He had a feeling whoever it was, wasn't the culprit. He wasn't sure how he knew, but he did, the group of officials were heading off to arrest an innocent person, and everyone of them knew it.