Chapter 4 Dementor Revolt

Author: dEBB987 Beta: Nyx the Author

"By Merlin's beard, what the fuck is going on?!" the supervisor of the night shift in Azkaban barked at the wizards under his command, who had entered running as if chased by a dragon while levitating a few of their unconscious comrades above them.

"The dementors! They've gone mad, attacking anything in their vicinity—"said the first one to enter, a crazed look on his eyes that gave away the fact that the dark creatures had fed on him. The wizards behind him were not faring much better either.

"Idiots! Why didn't you send a patronus towards them? Why not send one to me so I could request support?!" He shouted at them, wand on the ready as he helped the wizards enter faster into the main tower, where the wards against dementors would not let the dark creatures approach.

"T-that's the thing, our patronus dissipate immediately, they don't even take form—"

"Of course they would not take form with how fucking scared you bunch are!" Idiotic rookies, the lot of them! He can't lose more time with questioning, he needed backup and fast, or the rest of the guards that still were on the other vigilance towers would be endangered by the dementor's revolt.

"Expecto Patronum!" a panther comes out from the end of his wand, sending a message to Amelia Bones, requesting aid from the Aurors that knew how to repel dementors.

At least, that's what should have happened.

But instead of going out to fulfill its purpose, the panther dissipated the moment it went out of the tower.

"W-What? What the—!" he stuttered.

"T-that's exactly what happened to us! The Patronus can't leave the towers, and the wards keeping the dementors out d-didn't hold that long, they were too many… too many…"

That explained why they had risked themselves to reach the main tower. It was the only one that had an exit from the hell on earth known as Azkaban: a fireplace. The floo access was restricted, so it could only go to the Auror's department and St. Mungo. If a wizard tried to use it to reach another destination that fool would find himself stuck in the fireplace, unable to get out until the alarm brought the Aurors to "help".

Going towards it, he used Floo Powder to request aid from the Aurors, even if he lost quite some time with the rookie that had received his call, having to wait for the Head of the Auror's Department to arrive. Once Amelia Bones arrived however, he summarized the situation at hand as much as he could before ending the call to send the affected guards towards St. Mungo. Time was of essence when dealing with a dementor's attack, if they were to avoid permanent repercussions.

Once that was done he was the only one that remained behind, shivering slightly in the cold room—

Cold room?

…Oh no.

Cursing loudly, he saw as a full horde of dementors approached the tower, seemingly immune to the wards that were supposed to keep them away from the vigilance buildings. Their thin, skeletal hands reach out towards him, as they came closer and closer to the door and windows. He shivered, knowing fully well that everything was lost, that there was nothing else he could do…

His panther's light got dimmer, which got him out of the depressive thoughts the dementor's presence was having on him. He could do it. For his small daughter Katty that would turn six next month, for the newborn that his wife had had only two weeks ago. Thinking on the round, red face of his youngest child, on the moment he had first carried the small baby on his arms, the panther got infinitely brighter, which seemed enough to keep the horde of dark creatures at bay. His lone patronus was not enough to repel them completely, but they were at least keeping their distance now.

The sound of something burning reaches his ears, a flash of green coming from behind him, which makes him release a relieved short laugh. The backup had arrived. A little more than a dozen wizards come out of the fireplace, keeping all of their patronus inside the room before sending one out testily.

The moment the bright Falcon goes through the walls of the tower, it dissipates in thin air, as if absorbed by the creatures it was fighting against.

"What the hell! Why are the Patronus not working?!" an auror snarled.

"How the fuck am I supposed to know?!" another squeaked out in fear.

"Shut up and keep calm! Don't let your thoughts wander or your patronus will get weaker!" the Auror's leader, Kingsley Shacklebolt, shouted. "Madam Bones is already moving to contact Dumbledore, they should arrive shortly."

The mention of Hogwarts' Headmaster seems to brighten the mood, the morale rising as they focused on the happy memories that kept their spell working. Time, they only need to gain more time.

The dementors stayed stubbornly still just outside the tower's walls, flying from side to side as if waiting for their prey to tire out. This was an odd behavior; they had never been so organized in an attack, normally content with feeding on the allowed prisoners. Why stay here to wait for unreachable food when there was so many unprotected in Azkaban? What had triggered this assault that seemed to be aimed specifically to the guards?

They try not to dwell on this spiral of intriguing thoughts, since they need to concentrate on happy memories. Only a short time had passed, but it had felt as an eternity before the green flames flared up again, two figures coming out of the fireplace.

Amelia Bones and Albus Dumbledore had finally arrived.

The usually blue twinkling eyes of the headmaster are dim as he steps gravely into the room, casting a silent patronus towards the outside of the tower. The phoenix lasts a couple of seconds longer than the others, but in the end it dissipates without much resistance.

"Why is this happening, Dumbledore?" Shacklebolt asks anxiously, not breaking his gaze from the spot where the bright phoenix had disappeared

"…This is not caused by the dementors. Wizarding magic was involved in this." Dumbledore mutters softly, as if to himself, before turning towards the night shift supervisor "Dawlish, How many guards are still outside?"

"Three more, but I'm unaware of their current location. They are not supposed to leave the vigilance towers, so I'd guess they are still there" …If they were still alive that is, was not the voiced answer, but everyone understood it from the tone John Dawlish had used in his response.

"Do forgive me for bending the law this time Amelia" the headmaster said with a quick glance at her before calling out for his familiar "Fawkes!"

A magnificent bird appears in a show of flames, flying directly towards the headmaster as it raised its claws, in a manner a hunting bird would.

"Don't you dare go out alone— " Amelia started to say in response. Every wizard, except for the Aurors and Guards, were banned from stepping unaccompanied into Azkaban, which was a law that was usually very well respected. Who was crazy enough to go into that hell willingly alone?

The answer seemed to be Albus Dumbledore.

"I'll visit the other towers, this is the least we can do." and with that, he disappeared from the room in a curtain of fire, the phoenix having dived down to reach his outstretched, elderly hand.

The Aurors remaining couldn't do anything but keep their Patronus strong inside the main tower, ignoring the curses Amelia had directed at Dumbledore when the latter disappeared. Five minutes passed, then ten, and just when everyone was starting to feel trepidation at the prolonged absence of the headmaster, the sound of fire reaches their ears once more, a few figures appearing in the middle of the room.

Only two guards accompanied Dumbledore's return, which were promptly taken to St. Mungos by one of the less experienced Aurors. Dawlish, Azkaban's supervisor, sighed sadly as he identified the missing person.

Yaxley had been one of the best guards… he had been about to be promoted actually.

"What the bloody hell are they doing now?" Madam Bones whispered apprehensively, staring with unblinking eyes at the scene happening outside the tower. Up until now, the dementors had been flanking the door and windows, the big group conformed of at least 100 of them moving restlessly.

Now though, their movement had halted in unison, completely synchronized as if they were a single creature with a single mindset. It was as if the time itself had frozen, for not even their capes were swaying as they were prone to.

For an infinitely long moment, nobody moved, before the whole horde of dark creatures started to fly upwards at the same time, moving towards the sky and away from the main tower as they went through the layers of wards that were supposed to keep them near Azkaban. It was as if the protective wards didn't exist, the dark creatures passing through without any difficulty as they disappeared far into the starless night.

The silence is oppressive in the tense room, until Dumbledore's wand releases a bright phoenix once again, which actually manages to keep existing even when outside the tower.

This seems to take Amelia out of her stupor, since she immediately barks an order to the Head Auror of the specific group. "Shacklebolt! Work with Dawlish to make an accounting of the prisoners. Dead or alive, I want to know what happened to each and every single one of them, this may have been a distraction to cover an escape"

"Understood Ma'am." With a motion of the head, the Auror signals for the supervisor to follow him, both men going out of the building slowly and warily, their patronus floating around them.

"Keep an eye on them Fawkes, bring them here if the situation turns dire" Dumbledore says softly to his familiar, which lets out a beautiful note before flying out of the room.

"What is the meaning of this Professor Dumbledore?" was the whispered question of one of the youngest Aurors, a hufflepuff student that had graduated a couple of years ago and was just now ending the rookie-stage of the training. The query was soft spoken, but it still resounded in the room that had fallen silent in fear and shock.

"It is still unclear… if I were to make a hypothesis though; I'd say the dementors have formed an alliance with a wizard, one powerful enough to sway them to his side with a promise of not only food, but protection" was his grave answer, brows furrowed in worry as he stared unblinking outside the window.

Just as this last phrase is uttered, Harry sneezed from his place inside Potter Manor. Ah, he had forgotten how bothersome the fumes of the cauldron could be. He frowned in annoyance for a moment before mentally shrugging, deciding to simply stop breathing for the time being.

This was the fifth batch of Potion he was experimenting with, trying to use the Dementor's remains properly. Harry hadn't known if there was a way to remove a Horcrux without destroying the container, so he had asked Death about it. The immortal being had smirked, before asking as if speaking with an especially slow child "Oh, if only you knew about a creature capable of forcefully taking out the soul without damaging the body…" while glancing between him and the vials he had filled with the dark, petroleum-like substance.

He had snorted at that, rolling his emerald eyes at the impatient entity before saying "Thank Merlin for small mercies, I'd rather not kill a younger version of myself. What's got you in a bad mood though?"

"Another apocalypse, as if I didn't have enough work already!" was the exaggeratedly tired-sounding response, as if the being was about to collapse from exhaustion.

"Well, at least it has great job security." Harry's light joke is rewarded with the end of a dark scythe, which he evades easily with automatic motions. Chuckling at the mockingly fed up entity, he thanks Death sincerely before dismissing it, since it had so much "work to do".

And so, in the last few days he had been trying to find the right combination of ingredients that would create the potion he required. He needed it to separate the soul from the living container, as it was the kind of magic used by the dark creature, but was struggling with balancing out the toxic properties of the main ingredient.

"W-would an eye of Newt work to even out the a-acidity left by the Moonseed?" he is taken out of his musings by Mare's question, who was seated over a desk, surrounded by a bunch of Potion books open in random pages.

"Yes, but it would also cancel the healing property of the Chizpurfle fang… we need something less potent." he replied.

"T-then, what about dittany?" Harry considers it for a moment before deeming it was worth a shot, so he turns to nod once at Solution. The pleiade and Mare were helping him on this regard, being the most adept for it.

Mare had a natural love for plants and had helped Harry create a greenhouse with them back in Nazarick's world, so he was already familiar with most magical herbs and their properties, even if it was the first time he was learning to use them in potions. Solution on the other hand, had been the one to organize all of the ingredients in the Potions lab, and had an accurate knowledge on the quantity they had available of each ingredient.

The maid returns the nod and brings him a vial, with a soft whisper of "Only three more remaining." Harry hums thoughtfully at that before taking the offered flask, which he immediately empties to chomp it in small pieces. Once that's done he crushes the pieces with the knife, until the dittany is not only small but thin as well, before adding it to the bowling concoction. Stir three times clockwise, wait for the change of color… if working right, it should be tuning into a purplish color—

—but instead of that, the potion turns a dark brown. He sighs in disappointment, passing a hand through his hair as he tried to think on what exactly had gone wrong this time. Maybe if he added less Salamander blood? but then he would have to use more Root of aconite… he would have to muse it over before trying again, the ingredients they had were not infinite, and the order he had made to the apothecary would not arrive until Saturday, in two more days.

"Let's leave it at that for now. The attack on Azkaban should be already ending." keeping a sample of the failed experiment in a vial, he wrote down the identifying label before vanishing the rest of the potion with a wand movement. He motioned for the servants in the lab to follow him, going outside the room with silent steps. It was early in the morning, around 4 a.m. but no one in Potter Manor needed sleep so the time was almost irrelevant for them.

The moment he takes a single step out of the Potion's lab, a phoenix flies down from its resting position at the top of the staircase, landing gracefully on Harry's shoulder as he walked towards the living room.

Albedo is standing, watching a floating mirror as it supervised the actions of the dark creatures, while Demiurge is seated elegantly in one of the individual sofas, reading a book… was that Hogwarts a History? He chuckled softly at that, letting his presence be known by the quiet sound instead of the greeting he had intended.

The succubus is the one to notice him first, turning around towards him with a greeting bow, at the same time the male demon stood up to do the same. Harry dismisses the action, telling them to straighten up before questioning.

"How did it go, Albedo?" the Guardian Overseer stares for a moment at the phoenix perched on his shoulder, before focusing on Harry with a satisfied expression.

"The Death Eaters that resided in Azkaban have been "kissed", along with a few random prisoners." Albedo said at the same time she handled a list of names to Harry, most of them crossed with a red line. Now the only ones remaining were those that had avoided Azkaban, Pettigrew and Barty Crouch Jr. included among the "Pureblood" wizarding nobles such as Malfoy.

"Yaxley was on his post?" Harry questions for confirmation, noticing his name was also marked. The Death Eater had been working as a temporary guard, according to the information they had gathered from the controlled and tamed Dementors. Harry hadn't noticed it in his first life, never interacting with the dark creatures unless it was to repel them, but the more souls a Dementor consumed, the more intelligent it seemed to become. There were a few capable of communicating with short, broken sentences among the group that had been living in Azkaban for the last century.

Harry deduced Yaxley had probably entered in hopes of studying Azkaban's inner structure, and had been about to leave behind said post for one with much more power over the wizarding prison.

"Most certainly. As instructed, he was the only guard that was allowed to "die" on the attack, the rest of them were simply fed upon" He nods gratefully at that, since killing off Azkaban's wizard guards was not necessary, he had wanted to avoid those if possible. The magic tying him to this world recognized as alive only the beings with a soul, so the dementors had helped him greatly regarding the imprisoned Death Eaters.

"Thank you, you have done a very good work." both demons bow deeply again, this time in appreciation, so Harry waits for them to straighten up before addressing Demiurge "Have you received any notice from Aura?"

"The situation has not changed. It seems Gringotts has yet to issue an answer, even if the Goblins have already finished their investigation in the Lestrange Vault." Aura was leading a group of magical creatures, having tamed them with her skills so they could wait in standby near the Bank to intercept the letter Gringotts would send. There were also a few flying creatures near Malfoy Manor, just in case it was sent without them noticing.

Truth be told, Aura was to play a key part in the whole letter-interception plan. The most important thing had been to send a few of the most unassuming and small creatures inside Gringotts, having waited near the Lestrange vault to check if the Goblins followed the letter Mare had written. If the rodents came back within the first 4 days upon the receipt of the letter, then it meant the Goblins had followed their instruction. If they didn't come back and were still perceived as alive, it would mean their notice had been ignored.

Their whole plan would have to be modified if the Goblins had chosen to overlook the letter, which had been delivered with a simple signature "H.P." and a seal with the Peverell's symbol. In the end however, his personal intervention had not been necessary, since the small rodents had come back when they witnessed the Goblins taking out the Golden Cup from the vault. Taking this into consideration, a notification letter should be sent any day now, but have not been done. What was taking them so long?

He hums for a moment before disregarding the issue, figuring there was nothing they could do but wait. Before he can jump to another topic however, the imperio-like state of the phoenix on his shoulder seems to finish, because the bird let out a terrible sound, a screech so strident that resembled the attack of a Banshee, windows trembling at the horribly high note. Harry frowns in displeasure at having heard it so close to him, but doesn't react in any other way but sighing in resignation.

"I understand. You are free to leave, my apologies for having disturbed you" the angered firebird lets out another short screech at that, as if cursing at him, before flying up and disappearing in a show of flames.

Truth be told, this was the tenth phoenix Harry had summoned, since he was trying to find one that would actually stay willingly with him.

The NPCs that were present in the room had not really concealed their hostility, so it was no wonder the phoenix had left promptly without trying to get back at Harry for its "kidnapping". He had told his guardians enough times that the bird had to choose to be his familiar willingly, and had refused to use other means (either magical like mid-control or physical like pain-inflicting) to tame it.

He sort of needed a phoenix though, it would be easier to walk around like a good guy and make the others less suspicious of him, basically deflecting wrong assumptions before they even manifested. People tended to view a person with a phoenix a lot more favorably, since it was very rare for anyone to have one as a familiar due to their selective nature. Harry would rather a genuine alliance however, since he knew Dumbledore would suspect if the bird behaved abnormally, which would be noticeable due to the fact that the headmaster had one as a familiar.

He needed to keep trying, but if Harry didn't find any bird willing by the 30th of October he would have to proceed without one.

"Yes Aura?" Demiurge spoke suddenly, a hand raised to his temple as he received a [Message]. The couple of words seemed enough to disperse the tension in the room that had formed at the phoenix's rejection, everyone now waiting impatiently for Demiurge to receive the report.

"Understood, please bring it to the Living Room once you're back, everyone is already gathered." putting a special emphasis on the word "everyone", Aura seemed to understand that even her Lord was present, because not a single minute had passed before she entered using the main door.

"I'm back! Sorry for the wait." the female elf said hurriedly upon arriving at the room, accommodating the necklace that had served as a portkey so it was hidden under her red t-shirt once more. She took a quick glance around the room once the customary greeting was done with, before asking for Shalltear's and Sebas' whereabouts. Albedo is the one to answer, stating that they were currently on a mission outside of the Manor.

Shalltear was in an untraceable spot, which had been protected in a manner similar to the wards placed in Potter Manor, and was in charge of killing off the dementors that had already served their purpose. There was no loss in it; since Harry could always [Summon] more if needed, and leaving them around would have only caused disturbances.

Sebas was currently in Knockturn alley, since shopping in the shady hours of the morning seemed to be a must for dealing with this particular merchant. The butler had gone out in hopes of getting their hands on a magical eye. Harry had completely forgotten about Moody, and while he was fairly confident his illusory runes would suffice, if mostly because they were ridiculously overpowered, he would rather not run the risk.

Coming back at the present, he takes the envelope that wears the official wax seal of Gringotts, using his wand to throw diagnosis spells at it before identifying it as original. He still ordered Aura to keep her pets alert near Malfoy Manor however, in case a second letter had been sent to Narcissa.

"We can proceed in the afternoon then, since this letter would have reached Narcissa around midday." he said without opening it, knowing fully well that would alert the Goblins that it had been intercepted. Kreacher should be the one to break the seal; his tie to the Black Family would allow the house-elf to do as much without activating the alarm.

The meeting ends after he had thanked everyone for their good work, and Harry goes up to the Potter library to research over potions ingredients. He had become a Potions Master before his second century ended, but it had been so long since he had had access to absolutely all the ingredients available on his first life…

In Nazarick, the elf twins had assisted him with the creation of a greenhouse in their floor, planting a collection of plants Harry had brought with him in his endless bag, with the objective of using them in potions. He didn't have a sample of absolutely all magical plants however, so his experimentation had been quite limited.

Now though, he could exploit all the knowledge the old tomes held, since this was his original world. With that in mind, he spent the rest of the morning investigating over the ingredients he suspected would be needed, taking notes here and there at the margins of the yellow pages until a knock came from the library's entrance.

He granted permission offhandedly, attention focused on an interesting bit regarding Pomegranate juice. Harry keeps reading until he felt the newcomer had approached him. He marked the page by bending slightly the upper corner of it, before closing the book to focus on his Butler.

"I trust that low wizard didn't give you troubles?"

"None in the slightest, other than needing some persuasion to reveal the location of the item" Sebas said with a small smile, offering the magical eye to him. Huh, that explained why the butler had taken so long to come back. If the merchant didn't have the item on his person, then Sebas had been forced to go all the way to the shady hideout, maybe even having to fight his way into the illegal base.

Harry takes the overly fake-looking round ball with an appreciative nod, the color of the iris being an angry red instead of the electrical blue he had subconsciously expected. He thanked Sebas before summoning the Elder Wand, transfiguring a chair into a copper telescope-like attachment and placing the magical eye at the biggest end of it, linking it to the mechanism. He should try this out—

His line of thought is interrupted by the sight of a newspaper that was carefully folded under Sebas' arm, moving dark images calling for attention. The butler gave him the copy he had of the Daily Prophet when he noticed Harry's curious gaze, the headline written in dark, big letters that denoted its importance: "DEMENTOR REVOLT IN AZKABAN LEAVES MORE THAN 30 DEAD" along with a smaller subtitle "What the ministry tried to conceal, written by Rita Skeeter". A moving picture of a horde of dementors leaving Azkaban was posted on the front page.

Harry's curiosity got the best of him, so he ends up reading the whole article that had more lies and drama than anything, stating rumors and conspiratorial theories as if those were proven facts. He chuckles at the most ridiculous ones, that were practically as insane as the Quibbler had been, and tilted his head in interest when reaching the ones that seemed to be at least part-truth. In the end though, the whole article is useless, nothing but a waste of ink and paper.

But if the Daily Prophet copies had already been sent, that meant…

"Tempus"

He had lost track of time, it was already quarter past twelve. Standing up from the individual sofa he had been occupying, he gives the telescope-like object to Sebas, asking him to prove it with Demiurge or Albedo before striding out of the library. Elder Wand in hand, he sent his patronus stag to Grimmauld place to inform Kreacher of his imminent visit.

Once he was on the first floor he looks around briefly in search for Albedo, before he notices her presence in the Kitchen, seemingly cooking something. Whether it was cleaning, washing, cooking or sewing skills, she had practiced until being at a professional level, something she was very proud of since those were the skills an ideal "wife" was supposed to have.

"Albedo?"

"Just in time, Hadrian-sama! I'm about to finish lunch." she said in a prideful voice, showing him an almost-done salad that looked really appetizing. He didn't need to eat, no one here did, but since his attempts at getting a familiar had been fruitless, Albedo and Solution had taken the habit of cooking every now and then to prevent the food from going to waste. They gave some food to Aura regularly as well, to feed her new pets without losing time searching for food in the wild.

"It seems delicious, thank you Albedo" he said gratefully, ignoring with practiced ease the small, soft sound of "kuhuhu" that left the succubus lips. "I'll place a stasis spell on it, so it's still fresh for when I come back"

"Eh? Hadrian-sama is going out right now?"

"Yes, now should be a good time to get that bothersome item… before I leave though, can you tell me if Shalltear and Mare have come back yet?" The vampire had returned briefly, sending him a [Message] to request for Mare's assistance, since collecting the Dementor's remnants was proving to be a long, tedious task, and the involvement of magic would make it infinitely easier.

"No, but they should not take much longer… Is there anything you need from them?"

"Hm? No, I just needed to know who is out of the manor at the moment. Once they are back please give the task of recollecting magical plants to the twins, I'm running out of potion ingredients" he waits for the usual bow that came after the acceptance of an order, her crouched back staying stubbornly that way until he stepped closer to pat her head. It was a habit of sorts, even if Harry didn't know how it had started, but the succubus practically refused to straighten up if he didn't do this action at least once per week.

"Understood, Hadrian-sama!" was Albedo's response, shining with renewed energy. He smiled at her in a way someone familiarized with his friend's bad habits would, something akin to a content resignation. He nods at her in farewell before leaving the kitchen.

Let's see… the NPCs would not let him go out unaccompanied, and while Sebas was the friendliest towards those outside Nazarick, the butler had been the one to exchange the Basilisk's parts for money. Going with him to Gringotts was not an option.

Stepping out into the backyard, he decided to send a [Message] to Solution, who was currently in the potions lab, asking for her company to go pick up Kreacher. The pleiade was well behaved even with those she considered inferior; something Narberal hadn't been able to do in the first few years in Nazarick's world.

Extending an arm towards the maid dressed in wizarding clothes, Harry apparated silently, arriving onto the top step just outside the front door of Grimmauld Place. Entering inside the old building, he sent a silencing charm towards Walburga's portrait before calling for Kreacher.

The house elf appears in front of him, looking at Solution a little distrustfully before his eyes focused on Harry.

"Good Lord Peverell called for Kreacher?" the elf said in a raspy voice, performing a small bow.

"Good evening Kreacher, yes I have called for you. The one accompanying me is my maid, Solution, there is no need to be wary around her." the house elf doesn't seem convinced, but remained silent as it answered with a single, understanding nod, seemingly happy that a wizard had wished him a good evening.

"Here, this is the letter Gringotts sent to the Black Family." Harry said as he took out the sealed envelope from his breast pocket. The wax seal should be broken before they went to Gringotts, otherwise a tumult of questions would be directed their way.

Kreacher takes the envelope with shaking hands, seemingly in an odd combination of excitement and nervousness, before muttering under his breath "A letter for the Black Family, it's been so long since Kreacher could serve the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black!" the wax seal is broken with giddy long fingers, the house elf taking out the letter and reading it quickly. Harry neglected to comment on the fact that the house elf could be cleaning and taking care of the decaying property, knowing that living alone with Walburga's portrait had affected the creature quite strongly.

After a minute, the house elf folds the letter carefully and places it on the envelope once more, before it disappears with a snap of long fingers. The letter had probably been sent to the little nest of "treasures" Kreacher kept in the cupboard.

Once that's done, the house elf looks up at Harry with determination, walking closer to him before taking the end of his robes— Ah, Kreacher probably thought he couldn't apparate inside Grimmauld Place. Quickly taking a hold of Solution's wrist, the three of them disappeared with a loud Crack!

They had arrived at Gringotts, a snowy white building that towered over the other little shops in Diagon Alley. Standing beside its burnished bronze doors, wearing a uniform of scarlet and gold, was a goblin, who was looking at them with inquisitive eyes.

The wizarding community was not that large, so seeing a new face in the bank was quite unusual. It was no wonder their arrival would call for attention.

Ignoring the attentive goblin, Harry leads Solution and Kreacher into Gringotts, quietly walking up the white stone steps that lead towards the main entrance. Harry smiled at the warning phrase that was engraved upon the pair of doors, remembering the little escapade that had involved a dragon, and the many years of resentment that had followed said action. Truly, Harry hadn't been able to set foot for over a decade…

He forces himself to focus once they reach the vast marble hall, where a hundred more goblins were sitting on high stools behind a long counter, scribbling in large ledgers, weighing coins in brass scales, examining precious stones through eyeglasses.

Harry walked directly towards a specific counter, knowing fully well it was the goblin in charge of the Lestrange vaults.

"Greetings Master Ragnuk" he said in Gobbledegook, which seemed to surprise the account manager greatly "We've come in representation of the Black Family, in regards of an item that used to be held in the Lestrange vault."

"…Lord Peverell, I assume." at Harry's nod, the goblin lowers his head in respect "As a Master Goblin, I hold the authority to talk on behalf of the bank. Gringotts issues a formal acknowledgement to the service Lord Peverell has so kindly expressed, for the notification that was sent in complete accordance to the policies and guidelines stated by Gringotts management."

"I, Lord Hadrian Peverell, accept the recognition bestowed upon my person" Harry answered with a respectful nod at the goblin that had raised his head to look at him "If I may make a humble request, I would be immensely grateful if my presence and the one of my female companion was to be accepted during the delivering of the item to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black"

Understanding that was the compensation Harry was asking for, the Master Goblin accepted his petition, and proceed to guide them through one of the many doors that lead off the hall and towards a private office.

Many wizards and witches had witnessed the exchange with curious eyes, since speaking the language of the Goblins was not something common. Most males seem to be immediately distracted by Solution's appearance however, the wizarding robe doing nothing to hide her curvy body, even if it did cover more than her usual maid outfit did.

Once inside the office, Ragnuk orders for the cup to be brought before sitting down behind the desk, Harry and Solution taking a seat in front of him. The pleiade had clearly meant to stay standing behind Harry, as a servant would, but it would have been seen as a hostile action by the Goblins, so Harry had directed her a warning look that left no room for arguments.

Hufflepuff's cup was brought by a second Goblin, contained in a transparent box that seemed to give off a bluish glint. The box was placed over the desk that had some closed books and parchments, the second Goblin leaving the office before Ragnuk directed his sharp gaze towards Kreacher.

The house elf approached the desk with slow steps, not really sure of what was going on since the whole conversation had been in Gobbledegook; and only walks more confidently when Harry sends him a reassuring nod.

Kreacher looked at the contained golden cup closely, using his magic to open the box and levitating the cursed object slowly out of it. Once the horcrux is out of the box, the malicious magic is immediately sensed in the room, which makes the house elf flinch in utter horror and fear.

"T-that is the same, is the same!" Kreacher exclaimed shakily, before looking expectantly at Harry "Good Lord Peverell will take care of it? F-for Master Regulus, he will?"

"I give you my word" Harry said softly, which seemed to be enough for the house elf. Kreacher levitated the cursed cup towards him, not wanting to touch the horcrux unless strictly necessary.

Ragnuk watches with interested eyes the polite exchange, a wizard that treated magical creatures with respect, no matter their species. No wizard had done that in a long time… the closest would be Dumbledore, and even then the Headmaster would sometimes have strong disagreements with Gringotts policies.

Exchange being done, the business between Gringotts and the Black Family had officially ended. It was none of his concern where the cursed object ended up at, since the bank was only responsible for the delivery of the item. If the house elf had decided to give that— that atrocity to a wizard that didn't belong to the Black Family, it was up to him.

The respectful wizard, Lord Peverell, thanked Ragnuk for his time and service in a way that showed he was knowledgeable of the customs used by the Goblin Nation, before excusing himself and walking out of the room with graceful, silent steps, flanked by the female and the house elf. Thinking back on the symbol the letter had been sent with, Ragnuk smiled to the empty room.

He wouldn't have expected anything less from the Master of Death.

Harry felt the need to sneeze, which was ridiculous because he didn't even need to breathe, nor could he fall ill with common diseases. Ignoring the sudden itch, he thanked Kreacher for his help, promising once more to take care of the horcrux that was now in his possession.

The house elf bows low, thanking Harry in turn with a tone that was laced in admiration, before disappearing with a loud Crack! that resounded on the empty hallway that lead to Gringotts' main entrance.

Giving the cursed cup to Solution, she pressed the item to her cleavage, her body absorbing it completely. Why did she insist on taking objects in and out of her body using that specific area, Harry didn't really understand, so he had attributed it to her programming.

Choosing to stretch his legs in a peaceful walk, he used the long way to leave Diagon Alley, walking among the shops as he glanced around at the exposed-for-sale items. It doesn't take long for his gaze to fall on the dress robes hanging in Madam Malkin's shop, which made him recall something he hadn't really thought about.

He wondered briefly if his younger version would have that fight with Ron, before discarding the thought as unimportant. They had gotten over it in due time, there was no reason it would be different this time around. Eyeing the dress robe in exposition once more, Harry mentally shrugged before he and Solution entered the clothing shop, where Harry realized a single purchase.

On the 30th of August, the day previous to the return to Hogwarts, all teenagers inside The Burrow were preparing their belongings for the beginning of the new term. Among them, a couple of male Gryffindor students were busy packing their school supplies in their respective trunks.

Harry Potter had just finished loading the bunch of new quills, a dozen rolls of parchment, and refills for his potion-making kit, when Ron made a loud noise of disgust behind him.

"What is that supposed to be?"

He was holding up something that looked to Harry like a long, maroon velvet dress. It had a moldy-looking lace frill at the collar and matching lace cuffs.

There was a knock on the door, and Mrs. Weasley entered, carrying an armful of freshly laundered Hogwarts robes.

"Mum, you've given me Ginny's new dress" said Ron, handing it out to her.

"Of course I haven't. That's for you. Dress robes." Ron looked horror-struck at her, which made his mother humph in exasperation.

"Dress robes!" repeated Mrs. Weasley. "It says on your school list that you're supposed to have dress robes this year, robes for formal occasions."

"You've got to be kidding," said Ron in disbelief. "I'm not wearing that, no way."

"Everyone wears them, Ron!" said Mrs. Weasley crossly. "I got some for Harry too… show him, Harry…"

In some trepidation, Harry opened the last parcel on his camp bed. It wasn't as bad as he had expected however; his dress robes didn't have any lace on them at all — in fact, they were more or less the same as his school ones, except that they were bottle green instead of black.

"Well, they're okay!" said Ron angrily, looking at Harry's robes. "Why couldn't I have some like that?"

"Because… well, I had to get yours secondhand, and there wasn't a lot of choice!" said Mrs. Weasley, flushing. Harry looked away. He would willingly have split all the money in his Gringotts vault with the Weasleys, but he knew they would never take it.

Just as he thought this, a shout came from downstairs, Ginny's voice reaching them "A package arrived for Ron!" followed by the sound of steps of someone running upstairs. A moment after, her figure appears in the threshold, her gaze focused on the flexible package she was holding "I didn't know you had ordered something"

"I didn't" Ron said in a confused tone. Everyone's eyes turned towards the package in unison, wondering about its content.

"Well, we will never know if you don't open it!" Ginny exclaimed impatiently, throwing the package at her brother. Ron refused to catch it however, so it went down to the floor with a soft thud.

"What if it's a prank from Fred and George? No way am I touching that!"

Hearing that exclamation, Mrs. Weasley furrowed her brows and pointed her wand at it, muttering under her breath just what exactly would happen to the twins if this resulted to be nothing but a prank.

Instead of an explosion or something of the similar caliber however, the package reveals nothing but a dark, wine-red cloth. Mrs. Weasley unfolds it with her wand, still suspicious enough to avoid touching it directly, the cloth turning out to be a wizarding robe. A male robe that looked similar to Harry's own emerald dress robe.

A short note fell from it, elegant words written in the parchment "Happy beginning of term, you can thank me once I go to Hogwarts. Sincerely impatient, H.P."

"A dress robe? Harry did you send—?"

"No, I didn't go shopping remember? We were at the Quidditch Cup"

"Seriously? But it has your initials and everything!" when Harry shakes his head in negative, everyone turned to look at the floating dress robe once more, as if staring at it hard enough would make it reveal its secrets.

"Who would send a dress robe to Ron…?" Mrs. Weasley is the first to break the silence, voicing the thoughts everyone seemed to be having.

"Who cares? It's better than Ginny's dress!" Ron says with obvious relief, taking the horrid dress robe he had been about to place inside his trunk and throwing it over the bed.

"Why do you have one of my dresses?" Ginny asks seriously upon seeing the garment, which makes everyone inside the room laugh, even Mrs. Weasley.

AUTHOR NOTE:

Now don't look at me like that~ Yaxley became the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement when Voldemort came back, which meant he already had a job somewhere in the department right? So I made him a Guard in Azkaban, an easy job anyone could do so long they could perform a Patronus decently and went up escalating from there… or would have if he hadn't been kissed.

Hey guys, is it normal to take a break from writing… by writing? So, my mind was like "I don't want to write next chapter, lazy" and I was ok by abiding to it and taking a break, but then an idea struck me regarding another matter entirely, and I was like "heck yeah, let's write that!"

So I ended up with a Prologue for another story I won't publish because damn it I'll never finish a story if I keep writing more of them. The heck is wrong with you brain?!

So I sat down and was going to write this chapter.

But then another idea came, what if the ending for this story was like (*spoilers*)? And damn it I spent a full record of 6 hours writing the final chapter for this fanfic. So now I have a full, ended chapter I can't publish due to, well, continuity, so it's quite sad. I have both final chapters for both stories actually! *cries in Spanish*

Oh well… it's a bad excuse, but that's mainly the reason this chapter took so goddamn long to be finished.

Special thanks to reviewer MattKennedy, your question inspired me haha thanks a lot for asking what it was for, because I wouldn't have thought it otherwise!

Also, upper-duper-special thanks to reviewers LadyAshetzi and EndlessHax for being absolute sweethearts in your comments 3 Along with the few that bother to leave reviews on almost every chapter that comes out ;) It's good to know I count with your support!

Love ya' dear readers! Hope you liked this chapter~ I'll be going back to uni now, which combined with internship means little to no free time. Don't know when the next chapter is going to be, but probably the whole second season of the anime Overlord will be out by then.

See ya' around and happy reading! Or if you're a fellow author, then happy writing as well!

*Words in the chapter 7.8K = 17 pages in Word