A/N.- -pops his head from behind a bullet shield- Hello, here's the new chappie...finally. Try to combine a writer's block, a work-charged semester and several near-nervous breakdowns and what you get? No writing! So that's what happened, don't kill me K? Better enjoy
Disclaimer: JKR owns Harry Potter and H. Arakawa owns FMA...sadly
Chapter 7.- Friend or Foe?
Next day Harry and Ed were given the OK to go, signed by Lupin, who asked Harry to talk with him for a couple of minutes before returning to Hogwarts. Harry agreed without doubting so they headed for the cafeteria.
On the cafeteria, Lupin caught Harry off guard enveloping him in a firm, manly hug, letting a couple of tears run.
"I'm so glad you're OK Harry…-sob-…for a moment I was…afraid…of losing you, just as I lost James, Lily and Sirius…you and Tonks are the only family I have now so…so…don't you dare risk your life again for another stupid thing like that!"
"I…sorry, I…didn't…know what I was doing…I was blinded by rage" Harry stammered as an apology
"I know, that's normal between friends, and even the best of friends at that"
"But I tried to kill him…KILL HIM!"
Remus let out a small chuckle "If you ever saw James and Sirius fight…it seemed like they hated each other even if they were the best of friends…I have to admit they never tried using those curses, but they had a great heart, just like you two…I only ask you not to risk your life like that again"
"Yeah…I know" Harry replied, feeling ashamed
"Promise" Lupin said, more like an order than like a favor
"I promise"
"Good"
After a moment of silence, Harry decided to take advantage of the moment "Can you give me some advice?"
"Sure Harry, how can I help you?"
"It's…it's about women" Harry said, blushing deep crimson
Lupin frowned for a moment "Take a seat Harry, I'll go get a couple of chocolates and cake slices…I guess we'll need them"
Harry found a two-seat table and sat down, a couple of minutes later Lupin arrived with two large cups of chocolate and two slices of three-milk cake.
"Tell me Harry, what do you want to know?"
"Is it bad or…dirty-minded to be in love with two girls at the same time?"
Lupin meditated for a moment "Actually, it's impossible to be in love with two women at the same time"
"But…if it ever happened?" Harry pressed
"It never does" Lupin insisted, then he thought for a moment before saying "Maybe you like one of them because of her physical, mental or spiritual attributes, she might even be the perfect girl, the one you always dreamed about and wished for, but your heart belongs to another one…even if she's the complete opposite"
"But how can I know with which one am I really in love with?"
"Only you can figure that one out Harry, there's no magic, alchemic or muggle formula to just know"
"In other words, it's the one that makes me have butterflies in the stomach or feel nervous when she's near…is that the one I love?"
"Maybe" Lupin frowned "That completely depends on you Harry"
"What do you mean?" Harry asked puzzled, after all, that's what he had always heard
"Listen, what you just describe is just a stereotype, the sensations actually vary with each person…personally, I think the right one is the one around whom you feel safe, even if you're the one that protects her"
"Oh" Harry finally began to understand a bit more
"I would like to continue chatting with you Harry, but we have to return to Hogwarts" Lupin interrupted, taking a look at his pocket watch
"So you then…"
"That's right, I took the job"
"Finally, we'll be taught some decent stuff" Harry said grinning
"Yeah right…" Lupin said laughing a bit "Actually I took the job to be closer to all of you"
"Even better"
"Harry…I the only think I ask of you is to not play with their feelings"
"I'd never do something like that" Harry replied, a little angry that Lupin ever suspected him of being able to do such thing
"Good, let's get going then"
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Returning to the always busy Hogwarts, they all continued their homework and their usual duties and also researched as much as they could about the possible Horcruxes and heirs. Being Ed, Al, Winry and Hermione the ones that usually finished their homework first, they were the ones to do the most research.
One day Hermione arrived to their working table in the library and dropped a rather heavy tome on it that startled Ron and Harry (who were falling asleep), the latter aimed the wand at Hermione's chest.
"Oh…s-sorry Hermione" Harry stammered while lowering his wand
"If you used those reflexes in a duel instead, you'd have an incredible advantage…anyway…" Hermione replied "I found this little one in the restricted section"
"Little?" Ron asked sarcastically and…let's just say that if looks could kill, he would already be ten feet under.
"And what is it about?" Ed asked with interest
Hermione said nothing, instead she found the index, then turned to the page she needed and before all of them, there was a green and silver blazon with a snake on it
"Slytherin's family tree" Hermione said simply.
Everyone present started following the twisting lines until they reached the very bottom, finding first the line linking "Merope Gaunt to Tom Riddle" and the double line coming down from them to the name "Tom Marvolo Riddle". Immediately afterwards, everyone started looking for the name "James Potter" (Harry was praying to every available saint for it not to be there) and there it was, joined to the name "Lily Evans" and below them, linked by a double line, the name "Harry James Potter"
"So it's true then…" Harry said heavily
"So it seems…although you're not even close, you're somewhat like his tenth cousin or something like that" Ed said, turning to the page with the Gryffindor family tree on it. When he found it, everyone followed the web of lines and names until Winry's eyes spotted the name "Trisha Hayter" joined by a single line to the name "Hohenheim Elric" and below them, the names "Edward Elric" and "Alphonse Elric"
"Wow…who would've imagined it" Winry said astonished
"Nii-san, how come mom was a witch and we never found out?" Al asked confused while his older brother shrugged
"Haven't the faintest Al, never saw her do any magic" Ed replied
"Figured as much, or you would have had a stretching jinx on you long ago, pipsqueak" Harry teased
"What…did you…just…say?!" Ed replied with flames in his eyes
"You heard me"
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL THAT YOU WANT TO CAST A STRETCHING JINX ON HIM?!"
"Well you of course"
"I'LL KILL YOU POTTER!"
"And there they go again…will there ever be a day they don't try to kill each other?" Ron asked naïvely
Before he could jump on Harry, Ed noticed another name on the near-bottom of the page "Joshua Fernando Gryffindor" he mumbled, then spoke normally "That's the goy we have to find isn't he?"
"One of 'em, but that's a start…I didn't know the Gryffindor surname still existed" Ron added
"There's the interesting thing Ron" Hermione said
"Huh? What d'you mean?"
"Trisha Hayter's parents are Maximilian Hayter and Marine Gryffindor"
"So Ed and Al are direct descendants of Godric Gryffindor…" Winry finished, pretty shocked
"And that's not all"
"What do you mean?" Al asked nervously
"Look carefully, Marine Gryffindor is the daughter of Albert Gryffindor and Eugenia Watson, who had another son, Charles Gryffindor, who married Alicia Granillo, and they had a son themselves, Chrono Gryffindor, who married as well, and had a son: Joshua Fernando Gryffindor" Hermione explained carefully, while her finger pointed to the names as she spoke.
"So Chrono Gryffindor and mom were cousins, which makes Joshua our second cousin" Ed deduced
Everyone was dumbstruck, since they never imagined the Elric brothers would be direct descendants of Gryffindor, and even less, cousins of Joshua
"That doesn't explain why mom didn't use magic though" Al reasoned
"Maybe she was a squib" Ron rapidly suggested
"What's that Ron?"
"Sons of wizards that can't perform magic" he explained
Winry simply arched an eyebrow before retrieving LT. Hawkeye's letter from her bag
"Well, he seems he's the only one though, the rest of the heirs all have different surnames"
"Can I see the letter Winry?" Harry asked politely
"Sure" She replied while giving Ed a 'See, he IS polite' look.
After giving the letter a quick read and forcing himself to remember, Harry frowned "Hybris Raftalia Black…I don't recall seeing that name at Sirius's house, nor a burn showing he had been disowned.
"Another unsolved mystery? Hope this one's easier than that goddamned cookbook and chasing our tails to no end" Ed said
Harry sighed "Wish this was easier…one riddle is enough" (A/N.- Voldemort's surname is Riddle for those that don't know)
"Harry, since when have things been easier for us?" Hermione asked with irony
"Dunno…since never perhaps?" Harry replied sarcastically, but with no offending intention, which Hermione knew.
"Another thing we have in common, our lives haven't been easier either, at least since dad left" Al added
"Don't mention it" Ed nodded
"Oh well, water under the bridge now…we better focus on how are we going to find the other heirs and horcruxes"
"By the way…what was this book doing in the restricted section? I mean, it's just a family tree book isn't it?" Winry asked curiously
"I thought the same, but I suppose some headmaster must've had his reasons to do so" Hermione replied shrugging
"Surely it was to prevent blood-obsessed freaks like Voldemort and traitors like Snape from finding out" Harry said
"In fact I doubt Snape's a traitor as you so often preach Potter" Ed corrected in the most neutral tone
"What are you suggesting Elric? He killed Dumbledore!" Harry replied with rage
"And you're so sure there's nothing behind Dumbledore's death?" Ed questioned
"Why do you say that Elric?" Harry's rage turned into confusion
"Tell me Potter, besides you and Snape, who else knew about Dumbledore's ailment?"
"No one"
"Well, from what we've heard, Dumbledore was telling you about Voldemort's past so you could know his train of thoughts and get an advantage right?"
"That's right" Harry said, not sure what to make of this
"Well, basing ourselves on that, Al and I made several theories…will you be able to listen to them without interrupting us?"
A small pause, joined by a sepulchral silence was made, but after that, everyone agreed and as a security measure, Winry cast Muffliato.
"Well, supposing Snape was a traitor indeed, he would've surely informed Voldemort about Dumbledore's ailment and about the 'lessons' he gave Potter. Dumbledore, as old and ailing as he was, would've gone down from being Zeus, God of Gods, to an insignificant nuisance; let's make a quick parenthesis here to point out the fact that Voldemort admired Dumbledore for years, and he learned a lot from him, including the form and structure of his thoughts, so Dumbledore knew, or at least had a general idea of how Voldemort thought and vice-versa; after that we can tell that that was possibly the only think stopping Voldemort, since probably Dumbledore was teaching Potter how to think and reason, so Potter would become the new threat. It would already be late to stop that. If Malfoy killed Dumbledore, Potter would already know how to think from Voldemort's possible point of view, or at least, the first gear would've started moving…which is the real situation…so instead, the best choice would be for Malfoy to kill Potter, so Dumbledore would lose his savior and he wouldn't risk anyone else anymore. He would try to destroy him by himself, but being old and weak, he would be a sitting duck.
Now, if Snape was loyal to Dumbledore, he never informed Voldemort about the ailment or the private sessions, so Voldemort, overconfident as he is, sends Malfoy to kill Dumbledore, thinking that without the old man, he would have a clear path since Potter would've lost his guardian, and he wouldn't be of concern. He would only try to kill him to avenge Lily, his mother, but being this an easy task, Voldemort would make him suffer by torturing and killing his beloved ones only to kill him later in public. This would create panic, with Dumbledore, the mightiest wizard in the world, and Harry Potter, the "Chosen One" dead, no one would dare oppose him.
But, Voldemort wouldn't count with the Elric brothers joining the Order of the Phoenix, know by the world as two powerful alchemists that apart of their great power, they've never used the same strategy, that is to say, he doesn't know how they think. He would've to create thousands of hypotheses and scenarios to know what tare they thinking and what will they do. Potter's movements would be unpredictable and he would have to either follow us with a maximum probability of 1 out of 1000 of finding out our next move, or assemble an army. The answer's obvious: He will assemble his army since he doesn't know when will the snake become a dragon"
"So…Snape is our ally…" Harry concluded skeptically a minute after Ed finished explaining his theories.
"Maybe…it's just a theory…a theory that is in or near the truth" Ed said shrugging.
"Bloody hell! How in the world did you deduce that in such a short amount of time?" Ron asked impressed.
"That's my job, I live from that" Ed replied simply
"Well, I guess you forgot one teensy detail Elric"
"Really? What is it Potter?"
"Voldemort and I are linked. He can easily read and control my mind…he can find out every one of our moves" Harry said darkly, only to be interrupted by Ed's uncontrolled laughter. "What's so funny Elric?" He asked angrily
"Damn, you really need to be told everything word by word don't you?" Ed said after controlling himself. "Tell me, why do you think Dumbledore left those swords to us?"
"Dunno, 'cause they're some fantastic weapons I guess" Harry replied, not sure of the true reason behind Dumbledore's decision.
"Nope, the reason is that as long as you own 'Lion Fang' and I own 'Excalibur', you, I and those that frequently surround us, like Hermione, Al and Winry, are immune to legilimency, the Cruciatus and the Imperius curses…an amazing power don't you think?"
He left Harry pondering that until minutes later he got up, stretched and said "Well, I'm going to the Room of Requirement…in fact, It'd be nice if you joined me Potter"
Ron turned to look at Ed with an expression that clearly said he had misinterpreted the invitation.
"What the hell are you gonna do there?!"
The comment earned him a book direct to the head thrown by Hermione (lucky for him it was not the family book they were checking earlier, but a rather thinner textbook).
"Ronald, you're a pervert!"
"That was just a joke! Man, this hurts!"
Harry merely arched an eyebrow and turned to look at Ed "What do you want me to go for?"
Ed shrugged "Just thought it'd be useful for you to learn to handle 'Lion Fang', I guess there's more to them than what we already know. After all, Dumbledore left them to us for some reason"
Harry thought for a moment before agreeing "You're right, let's go. Wanna come?" He asked the rest.
"No, I'll research this a bit more" Hermione said without ungluing her eyes from the book she had started reading a while ago.
"I'll stay as well" Winry seconded, but then whispered so only Al could hear her "Go with them, I don't want them to kill each other with those blades"
The suit of armor nodded and joined the other two in the hope of not having to behold them trying to kill each other and intervening.
As soon as they were alone, Winry quirked an eyebrow and asked Hermione "So…what's between you and Harry?"
Hermione's stomach did a triple backflip before she could blush and stammer "W-what are you talking about?"
"Don't play fool with me; you know what I'm talking about"
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"Come on Potter! You're supposed to defend yourself!" Ed yelled after a couple of hours of trying to teach Harry how to swordfight.
"Damn it Elric, I'm not Superman! I got physical limits" Harry replied, barely managing to gather the strength to parry Ed's rather slow blows.
"What am I, a Demon?" Ed asked sarcastically "There's supposed to be ways to enhance your resistance and strength, but I guess you're completely unaware of them…I'll teach you how some day, it's not that hard"
"Nii-san, don't be so hard on him" Al intervened before things got nasty "He hasn't endured Izumi's training, he's not at your level"
Ed thought about that for a moment before offering a sympathetic smile to Harry "Sorry Potter, sometimes I tend to forget the strenuous training regime I suffered from Izumi, you can leave now if you want to"
"Why, thanks" Harry said panting "I'll go and see if the girls…I mean, I doubt Ron's actually researching…have managed to find something about Gryffindor, Black or the horcruxes" He then headed for the changing rooms the Room made to don his robes and remove the sweaty clothes he was wearing.
"I'll catch up later; I'll train with Al a bit more" Ed said when Harry returned and headed for the exit.
Harry nodded and disappeared behind the door that led to the seventh floor corridor while Ed looked at Excalibur in interest and wonder.
"A rather curious sword indeed…I mean, it's definitely got magic; I couldn't even transmute it to dull the edge temporarily" Ed said amazed, more to himself than to his brother
"I assumed as much nii-san, but at this pace, you and Harry won't be able to use the swords at a 100 percent" Al noted "Let's pray Harry learns that technique quickly"
Ed nodded "Yeah, although I would more easily expect a feat like that from Hermione than from him"
"Yeah, I guess Harry got more power, more raw magic, but Hermione's better at channeling it to do her bidding, she's got more control on her power" Al analyzed.
"Guess so…anyway, let's see what else can we find about this sword"
"Umm…nii-san, what are we gonna do about the other weapons? If other wizards are in possession of them, they'll have the same protections we have"
"Yeah, it's highly probable there's seven warriors out there"
"Warriors?"
"The book said there were nine weapons of some triumvirate, it means there were three great kingdoms, or countries, or governments, or something like that…so there were three weapons per each"
"Three weapons…three kingdoms…three wielders…perhaps three protections" Al summarized.
A/N.- Well, not so much to say but REVIEW!!!!!! And recommend the fic if you liked it