Chapter Eighteen: Classes and Talks

Raiden had had no time to contact his master since finding out that the mass murderer on the run was in actuality his godfather. He had written to Lucius and Narcissa explaining the situation and had received a reply back assuring him that it didn't change their minds about the guardianship offer and they wouldn't have any trouble winning a court dispute if it came to that. Both Raiden and Draco were relieved by this; they were enjoying being a sort-of-family and didn't want to stop overly much.

Another thing on Raiden's mind was Daphne. Ever since she kissed him on that Hogsmeade weekend, his mind had been in a whirl. He liked her, he knew that, and she wouldn't have kissed him if she didn't like him. So what if they were only thirteen, they could at least start the beginnings of a relationship, and had done exactly that, although it was more the hand holding, occasional hug, and sitting close together sort of beginning, neither had attempted to kiss the other again since that day. Raiden had occasionally caught Hermione looking at the two of them with a hint of envy, and he had tried talking to her about it but she had retreated from him, saying that she didn't want his girlfriend to get jealous.

Daphne overheard this part and swiftly explained the situation to their Ravenclaw friend, and finally Hermione felt comfortable enough to join them for study sessions once again, which she had dropped since Raiden and Daphne began their "relationship." Draco and Blaise had learnt not to tease either of the pair about it as Raiden had asked them if they wanted to be subjected to a milder version of the castration curse that had been used on his cousin, this version being one that kept the internal organs in place but temporarily shut them off. Both boys had shuddered and taken on the role of protecting the two from their housemates ridicule instead.

Currently they were in Transfiguration and were learning to transform animals into goblets. Raiden couldn't see the point of this but obediently worked on the transformation, not wanting McGonagall to be annoyed with him. He had done some digging in the library and discovered why Lupin seemed to be interested in him; he had been friends with his parents and also with Sirius when they were in school. Raiden had decided to ask Professor McGonagall about the group of them, hoping to get more insight into why Sirius might be trying to kill him.

Once the class was over Raiden approached the professor, feeling his friends at his back for support. McGonagall looked up to see the four Slytherins in front of her and raised an eyebrow.

"May I help you?" she asked.

Raiden smiled. "I hope so Professor. I was wondering, did you know my parents and Sirius Black were friends in school?"

McGonagall was wondering what brought this on and cautiously replied, "Yes they were. Another one of their friends was Professor Lupin actually. What do you want to know, Mr Potter?"

Raiden took a breath and then said "I know that Sirius Black is my godfather and I was wondering why he would try to kill me if that were true. From my reading, and talking with Professor Snape and Draco, the bond between godparent and godchild should stop him from doing any harm to me."

McGonagall put down the essay she was grading. "Sit down Mr Potter, and your friends too" she added when she saw that the rest of the Quartet weren't going anywhere. "Your father, Professor Lupin, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew were all friends in school. They formed a group known as the Marauders and played lots of pranks on everyone. Your mother didn't get together with your father until their seventh year but she remained on the fringes of the group, to keep an eye on them. Your group, Mr Potter, the Slytherin Quartet as I believe you're known, reminds me a lot of them, with the exception of the fact that your group is more studious and less trouble making.

Now, when your parents went into hiding, they used a complicated charm known as the Fidelius charm which essentially hid their location inside a person, a Secret Keeper, and they could only be found if that person willingly gave up the secret. Your parents chose Sirius Black as the Secret Keeper, and he betrayed them to You Know Who. Peter Pettigrew went after Sirius after your parents had died and Sirius killed him, as well as twelve muggles who were bystanders and witnesses to the incident. Black was taken to Azkaban shortly afterwards."

Raiden nodded, digesting the information. "Was he a supporter of Voldemort?" he asked.

McGonagall shuddered at the name but then sighed. "We wouldn't have thought so Potter, and he wasn't marked but why else would he betray your family?"

Raiden shrugged. "I don't know but if he ever finds me that's something I'll be sure to ask him. Just so I have the facts before I kill him" he growled. McGonagall looked a bit worried at the thought of a revenge seeking Harry Potter but let them go with an admonishment to not specifically go looking for Black as they were all still only thirteen years old.

Raiden left the room with a frown on his face, and split up from his friends. He had to speak with Professor Lupin and find out more about this, and then, once he was done with that he would contact his master and find out the truth of whether Sirius Black really was one of his master's followers or not. The mention of a mark intrigued him, another thing to ask his master.

Later that day, after classes, Raiden sought out Professor Lupin. He found the man grading papers in his office and he looked up with a smile which faded slightly when he saw Harry.

"What can I do for you, Harry?" he asked.

Raiden looked at the man that had been his father's friend and then sat down before replying, "Can you tell me what my father and the rest of the Marauders were like in school?"

Lupin looked surprised but checked the time and then willingly told Raiden several stories, including one that explained why Snape had originally disliked Raiden before getting to know him. It would seem that the rivalry between Severus Snape and James Potter matched the one between the Malfoys and the Weasleys.

Raiden then asked, "What was Sirius Black like?"

Lupin closed down almost immediately. "Why do you want to know about him?" he asked.

Raiden frowned. "I was told that he was my godfather and from the reading I've been doing he shouldn't have been able to harm me because he's my godfather so why does everyone think he's out to kill me?"

Lupin looked uncomfortable. "When the Minister visited Sirius in Azkaban he asked him for the paper. He then started muttering, "he's at Hogwarts" over and over. The article he saw was one of the Weasley family in Egypt. It mentioned you as well and that you were at Hogwarts. Shortly afterwards, Sirius escaped and I can only assume that he is after you."

Raiden nodded slowly. "I see. OK, one more question then. Why do you seem so sad when you look at me? You were also surprised when you saw I was a Slytherin."

Lupin sighed. "Harry, I, well, you are the last link I have to Lily and James. They were both Gryffindors and I was shocked to see you in a house that James especially despised when we were here."

Raiden's eyes narrowed. "Are you saying that my father would have hated me because I'm a Slytherin?" he growled.

Lupin shook his head. "No, no by the time he and your mother married and had you he had grown up enough to admit that not all Slytherins were evil, and he would have loved you no matter what house you were in. I'm just saying that the Marauders and Snape epitomized the Gryffindor/Slytherin rivalry when at school that's all. The fact that most of our year's Slytherins became Death Eaters didn't help matters either."

Raiden nodded. "Thanks Professor. I'll keep an eye out for Black; I'm not going to let him kill me." Lupin nodded and waved Raiden out of the room before going back to his previous activity of grading papers. Raiden left with one thought on his mind, unraveling the mystery of what really happened on Halloween in ninteen-eighty-one. Before he could do that though, he needed dinner.

After dinner, Raiden sought out Professor Snape. After a few questions, Raiden was left with even more questions for his master. Snape had told him about Voldemort's general method of operating, and it had left Raiden feeling rather sick. He did find out about the Dark Mark though, and had seen the faded one on Snape's left arm. Both of them had been startled, and in Snape's case slightly worried, that one word of Parseltongue from Raiden had managed to darken the Mark once again for a few moments. They hadn't repeated that experiment. Raiden now wondered if Voldemort really did want to change or whether he was just using him to achieve his own goals. There was only one way he was going to find out.

On the next weekend, Raiden sequestered himself behind the curtains on his bed, saying that he needed some privacy for an important conversation. Knowing that he meant a conversation with Voldemort, the rest of the Quartet brought their homework to the dorm and locked the door, not minding the silencing charm that Raiden put up round his bed. Sure that he wasn't going to be overheard, Raiden settled himself on the bed and closed his eyes, reaching over the bond to his master.

Do you need anything Raiden? Voldemort asked.

Yes Master I do. Any chance you can come to Hogwarts. I need to talk to you, Raiden replied.

Voldemort thought for a moment. Alright, I'll be there momentarily he said before closing the bond. Raiden sat back and waited. Voldemort had somehow managed to perfect a way of appearing wherever Raiden was, which baffled the younger wizard to no end since it shouldn't really be possible. He wasn't above taking advantage of it though.

A few minutes later, Voldemort appeared on the foot of Raiden's bed, and hovered above the bedcover, facing his apprentice. With a raised eyebrow he asked, "What did you want to talk to me about, Raiden?"

Raiden fixed Voldemort with a look that said he wasn't going to be deterred from getting a straight answer and then said, "Was Sirius Black ever a Death Eater or supporter?"

Voldemort shook his head. "No he wasn't. I tried to recruit him many times but he always refused. Why the interest?"

"Because everyone is saying that Black escaped Azkaban to kill me. He supposedly killed Peter Pettigrew and twelve muggles by blowing up the street."

Voldemort frowned. "Black wasn't a supporter of mine but I managed to recruit Pettigrew. Again, why are you asking?"

Raiden sighed. "Black was supposedly my parent's Secret Keeper and gave their location to you. A few hours after you learnt their location, they were dead. Explain how Black could have given you their location if he wasn't a supporter?"

Voldemort was thinking furiously. 'Shit shit shit, if he continues like this he'll ask about what really happened that night. If I don't have a convincing reason for killing them then I'll lose him. Oh shit.'

He answered "Because he didn't. Black and Pettigrew switched the Secret Keeper job. It was Pettigrew who gave me the location, Pettigrew who betrayed your parents and you. Was there any other reason you're asking about that night?"

Raiden nodded, his eyes cold and hard. "I don't know if you heard but the Hogwarts Express was boarded by Dementors on the way to school this year, searching for Sirius. Turns out I have a bad reaction to the things."

Fixing his eyes on his master, Raiden said softly, "I heard my parents' deaths. I heard my dad tell my mum to take me and go, I heard mum pleading with you to kill her and leave me alone, I then heard you say the killing curse, for what I assume was your attempt at killing me."

Cocking his head to the side, Raiden finished with, "You told me that you tried to talk to them before killing them, you told me that you tried to bring them over to your side. Instead, what I remember sounds an awful lot like what I've heard about your usual method of operation, that being cold blooded murder. Do you care about me at all, Master, or are you just using me for your own ends? Remember that I'm a Slytherin as well, so I don't like being manipulated."

Voldemort was now caught in his own web and he saw no way out apart from telling the truth and hoped that he still had an apprentice once he was finished.

"Raiden, I didn't lie to you," he said. Seeing his apprentice's disbelieving look he hissed in annoyance and said, "I didn't. I did stretch the timelines a bit. I tried talking to your parents for several months before I killed them. The last time I tried talking to them they met me with Avada Kedavra curses which missed me but hit the two Death Eaters near me. I knew then that no amount of talking would persuade them but I also couldn't keep losing followers to them. I went there that night to stop them from depriving me of any more of my forces."

"And what about me?" Raiden asked with a sneer. "Was I just collateral damage, or did you get your thrills from murdering a defenceless infant?" He knew he'd gone too far when Voldemort's expression became decidedly unpleasant and a sharp burst of pain in his scar caused him to emit a yelp of pain.

"I do not "get my thrills" as you put it from murdering children. Some of my followers do, I will admit that, but I do not. If I have to kill children I do it quickly and cleanly. One Killing Curse and it's over. No blood, no pain. Just death. When I turned my wand on you I was thinking of reuniting you with your parents and stopping a potentially powerful threat to me in the future. We both know how that one turned out," Voldemort finished sarcastically.

Raiden tilted his head again and then asked, "If you had been worried about me being a threat, why didn't you take me with you instead of trying to kill me? You could have raised me as your son, your heir, and I would never have even thought of harming you."

Voldemort nodded. "I could have, yes, but I didn't know anything about raising a child and I didn't want to give you to one of my followers. Besides, what do you think I was thinking of when I made you my apprentice? I didn't think I could care for anyone, and yet you managed to find my heart, which even most of my followers will swear is non existent, and capture it. I care about you more than anything else, except for my familiar Nagini which is a very odd thing for a Dark Lord I'll have you know. We're not supposed to care about others, except our familiars that is."

"Does it say that in the Dark Lord's Handbook or something?" Raiden joked. Voldemort smirked at him and didn't reply. Raiden shook his head.

"OK so you did murder my parents, and Sirius Black is on the Light Side. Why would he try to kill me?"

Voldemort shrugged. "Peter Pettigrew and his former Marauder friends were Animagi. All except for Lupin who is a werewolf. If I told you that Pettigrew was a rat animagus, and he's still alive right now, tell me, how could the Aurors come to the conclusion they did?"

Raiden thought hard. He examined what he knew of the case against Sirius and then he looked straight at his master. "The street was destroyed with what I suppose would be a blasting curse. The largest part of Pettigrew that they ever found was his finger." He thought a bit more before breathing out slowly as the plan became apparent.

"Bloody hell. Pettigrew cut off his own finger and blew the street up behind his back before he disappeared into the open sewer. No one would notice one more rat. Sirius was left as the only suspect."

Voldemort nodded, pleased with how Raiden had figured it out. His apprentice had one more question though. "If he's survived for this long as a rat, he'd be missing a toe right? So," he trailed off as he realized something.

"Hang on Master. I have an idea," he said before he dispelled the charms on his bed and stuck his head out of the curtains. His friends looked up at his odd appearance.

"Can one of you go get Weasley's rat?" he queried. The rest of the Quartet looked at each other and shrugged before Daphne and Blaise got up and left. About fifteen minutes later they were back, with Daphne holding a squeaking rat by the tail. Raiden smiled at his sort-of girlfriend and petrified the rat before taking it from Daphne and disappearing behind the curtains again, raising the silencing barriers once more.

"Is this Pettigrew?" he asked. Voldemort examined the frozen rat form and nodded. "Yes, Raiden it is. What do you intend to do?" he asked.

Raiden smirked at his master. "You might not have been able to turn Sirius to the "Dark Side" but I think he'd do practically anything for his godson. Let me work on him, let me explain our changed goals and maybe he'd come over. He probably won't want to follow you directly but what if we made a sort of subgroup of my friends that don't necessarily want to be Death Eaters but do want to be on our side? He could be one of my advisors for that group. Loyalty to me would be just as good as loyalty to you after all."

Voldemort thought about it for a few minutes before reluctantly nodding. "See if it can be done, Raiden. If it can't be done, if he reacts badly, then I want you to promise that you'll neutralize him appropriately. I don't want you compromised before you've finished your NEWTs."

Raiden nodded silently. He was about to end the conversation when Voldemort asked, "How did you know that Pettigrew was Weasley's rat?"

Raiden smirked before replying, "Weasley mentioned that his rat's been in his family for twelve years. An ordinary common garden rat like this one only lasts about seven or eight years. He had to be either a magical rat or an animagus. What other rat animagus would hide as a rat, in a wizarding family, for twelve years without revealing himself, unless he had reason to hide? Also, how many other rat animagi are there that would be missing a toe? There were too many coincidences, Master which is why I thought of him."

Voldemort nodded. Looking uncharacteristically nervous, he asked, "What are you going to do about what I've told you?"

Raiden looked at his master sharply and then replied slowly, "Nothing. I'm not happy that you misled me, or bent the truth, but I can understand why you did so even if I don't like it. I also don't like that you just waltzed up to my parents' house and killed them. It'll take a while to truly get over that. I do want a couple of things from you in order to start putting this behind me."

"What is that?" Voldemort asked.

Raiden smirked and replied, "I doubt the Ministry will be able to hold the rat in custody, so if he escapes and rejoins you, then his life is mine. He betrayed a family, betrayed a trust, and for that he has to pay. I also want a duel against you when you've got your body back, a duel where I'm allowed to curse you but you don't send any truly harmful ones back."

"A duel which allows you to vent your anger at me without either of us being truly harmed," Voldemort murmured. "Very well, I agree. The duel will be private though, I can't afford to show weakness in front of the Death Eaters."

Raiden nodded and then picked up the petrified form of Pettigrew. "I think it's time to bring in Professor Snape," he said. Seeing Voldemort nod he turned to dismantle the spells on the curtains and stopped when he heard Voldemort say "Wait."

Turning back to his master he looked at him enquiringly. His master looked very serious and Raiden felt his mood changing to match. "Is there something else you wanted, Master?" he asked. Voldemort nodded.

"I am very close to achieving at least a partial body, Raiden. It will need to be sustained by various things which Nagini will help me with but I will need a human helper to prepare the potions and other things. I have found a rebirth ritual which I won't be putting into action until next year, as the preparations will take the rest of this year and most of the next."

"Why are you telling me this?" Raiden asked.

Voldemort smirked. "I am telling you so you know that there is a solid date for when I'll officially return. I also have found something to do with the ritual which I want to explain to you. The ritual can have two forms, one using the blood of an enemy which won't actually work as we're not enemies. The other form is one which would bind us as family, a closer bond than master and apprentice. It would in essence, make us father and son."

"And you want me to think on which form to use," Raiden sighed.

Voldemort snorted. "No. I've told you that the enemy form wouldn't work as we're not enemies. What I'm not sure about is whether you want to use the second form, given what you now know about how your true parents died."

Raiden sighed again. "Do I need to give you my answer now?" he asked.

Voldemort shook his head. "No you don't, just think about it and give me your answer when you have it. It needs to be given before the end of next year as the end of next year is when I'll make my official return. Should you not want to use this ritual then an answer sooner is better as I will need to find another way to return."

With that he vanished soundlessly, leaving Raiden sitting on his bed with a petrified rat animagus in front of him, and a lot to consider. Raiden knew, although he didn't know how he knew, that the decision he made regarding Voldemort's revelations and the rebirth ritual, would change both him and the wizarding world irrevocably. Now he just had to make that decision.