A/N: Thanks to eliizilla for taking some time to read through this and for her corrections.

ELEVEN

Potter Island

BIOT

Ten minutes later saw Harry, Hermione, Dan, Emma, Remus, Sirius and Al in the dinning room, each, occupying their seat on the large oblong-shaped table that can easily sit fifteen people. As was usual, Harry was occupying the head of the table chair, while Hermione was seated to his right hand side.

Al was seated on the left hand side of Harry, as well as Dan and Emma. Remus and Sirius occupied seats located beside the seat of Hermione.

There were two bottles of wine in the table, one of them already empty, while the other one was half-full. Almost every adult in the table have at least one half-full glass of wine occupying the surface in front of them.

"Al" Harry said, he looked at the battle wizard and nodded once, a silent indication that the battle wizard may begin his story.

Al nodded once, "Where should I begin?" he asked rhetorically, and then he smiled, before he looked at Harry and continued, "I seem to remember you asking me why Arthur Weasley glowed pink when my spell hit him?" Harry nodded, though he was not sure where Al was going with this line of explanation, "The spell that hit Arthur Weasley was designed to detect the effects of love potion," he elaborated, "I am, of course, not sure what potion was used, other than the fact that it is a love potion"

"What has this got to do with why you have never come to Harry's aid before Al?" Hermione asked. She looked ready to argue, and in fact, she was about to say something else, but she felt the hand of her husband holding hers, silently asking her to let Al explain himself. She nodded to Harry once and then promptly closed her mouth.

Al looked at Hermione, "You need to understand why I never came to his aid before" he said, before sighing, "As you may have remembered, I told you that it had something to do with my experiences in the Far East?" Hermione nodded, "Good, yet, you know that I was born in Britain, I served with your father" he inclined his head towards Dan as he said that, "yet why am I in the Far East?"

"I was born in 1965" Al said, he smiled at Dan, and as he had expected, the older man was surprised by the revelation, in fact, the dentist looked as if he was about to complain, but before he, Dan, can open his mouth, Al cut him off, "I was sixteen years old when I enlisted with the Royal Navy, seventeen when I joined the SBS, and seventeen when we went to war"

"You looked older" Dan commented under his breath.

"I am a wizard" Al replied by way of an answer, he smiled and added, "I entered Hogwarts in 1976, I was eleven, of course, sorted into Gryffindor, but only spent five years there" he smiled at Harry, "My adventures in Hogwarts were nothing compared to yours, though I was in the Quidditch team, I was a Chaser, not a Seeker" he smiled before he added, "Defense was my favorite subject, though I was also excellent with charms and transfigurations, and like you, I hate potions, though mostly that was because Slughorn was more interested in making connections rather than teaching students"

"But I thought…." Hermione began.

Al nodded, he did not need to hear what she was about to say to know what she wanted to say, "The York family is known in the magical world, yes, but we do not flaunt our name," he smiled, "I did not allow Slughorn to get his paws on me, told him that I was more interested in learning than socializing, that shut up the old coot, that did" he smiled and drained his wine glass, before he added, "I never finished Hogwarts"

"You never?" Hermione asked.

Al shook his head, "Left shortly after my OWL's." Al said, as he inclined his head towards Dan, "I did not think that the curriculum that Hogwarts offers was any good, you see, I was sure that I could learn much more useful spells here, at the island"

Al looked at Harry and said, "You see, I was already aware of my responsibilities, and my duties as a member of my family, the only reason that I went to Hogwarts was because my father thought that I should observe Lord James, not that he needed observing" he sighed, "My father and I never agreed on many things, I wanted to be a lawyer, hence, Anton Rosseu, he wanted me to be an Auror"

"We had a fight" Al continued, "During my fifth year, not about my OWL grades, of that I can assure you" he added to Hermione, "It was during this time when my desire to become a lawyer hit me hard, and my old man was adamant on the Auror path, he felt that my grades show more than Auror material, see, I was able to achieve an Exceeds for my worst subject, potions, and my defense was outstanding."

Harry nodded. He himself wanted to become an Auror, and for a few moments, he wondered why Al would not wish that for himself, but as he listened to the conversation, he acknowledged that just because it was what he wanted for himself does not mean that it is also what Al wanted for himself.

"I ran away" Al continued, "Took what little money I have, my wand, and the clothes that I have on my back, and I ran away" he smiled, "Extremely juvenile of me to do so, but it is something that I cannot change anymore" he added quietly, "It killed my father.

"Well, seeing that I ran away from home, I guess that I cannot fault you with that" Sirius said, he interrupted the narration and added, "I am sure that James would have understood"

"Ah, you see Sirius" Al said, "This was 1980" he said, "Harry had just been born and I had just sworn my loyalty to him, Lord James had asked me to look after him, and I still bloody ran away" he smiled and looked at Harry, "This is one of the reasons why I have not come to your aid before, Harry, because I am afraid that you would reject my help if you were to know this story, and I hope that once you have heard the complete story, you would accept me"

"Then let me hear the entire story before I judge you Al" Harry said, he looked at Al before adding, "Where were you on the night of my parents murder?"

"Wandering the muggle world" Al replied, "I don't think I would have done anything though, if that is any consolation, I was powerless, and I did not know what happened to your parents until after I rejoined the magical world, some four years later, in 1985."

He looked at Harry and said, "By that time, you were gone, Fidelius charm or whatever it was, I could not find you. Sirius" he inclined his head towards Sirius, "was in Azkaban, at that time, I still believed that he killed Wormtail and betrayed your parents, while Remus" he inclines his head towards Remus, "was in the Middle-East, making odds and ends meet just to survive" he smiled ironically, "I thought to ask Dumbledore, but for some reason, I never did, perhaps because I fell into the same conclusion that Voldemort is now gone forever and" he paused before adding, "during this time, we still thought that he was our friend, and that if he is keeping you from us, he is doing so for your own protection" at the look on Harry's face that suggested that the young man was about to protest, Al quickly added, "You were five years old during this time, Harry"

"Did not change the fact that his relatives are abusing him" Hermione protested. She was about to launch a tirade when she again felt the touch of her husband on her arm. She looked at him in protest, but Harry slowly shook his head.

Al nodded, "I cannot forgive myself for that" he admitted, sighing before he added, "I never did know where you were sent until after I made contact with Remus."

"Were you ever planning on divulging all of these secrets to Harry?" Hermione asked, "In particular, his legacy?"

Al nodded, "That was actually what made us think that Lemon-Drop was not on our side" he explained, "You see, during this time, Harry cannot invoke his rights, he had to wait until he was eleven, and because he is descended from a founder, we thought that Lemon-Drop would divulge it to him when he turned eleven, we were wrong, of course.

"In hindsight, it would have been obvious that the Old Man would send Harry to his relatives" Al continued after no one commented on his last words, "The problem was, we were not sure, and even if we were, we had no way of knowing where those relatives were, Lemon-Drop had erected some sort of ward, or barrier, or whatever, that made it impossible, even for the intelligent section of our people, to find where Harry was, and, to tell you the truth, I was out as well"

"Why?" Hermione asked.

"1982" Dan said, he looked at his daughter and explained, "He was fighting a war with me" he sighed "We were at the Falklands"

Al nodded, "A lot of horror that war was" he said, he looked at Harry and Hermione and said, "that war has nothing magical in it, it was muggle war through and through, but that did not make it tame compared to a magical war, if anything, it was more brutal" he sighed, "The first magical bonding I've ever witnessed was before we shipped out to fight, a buddy of mine kissed his sweetheart goodbye before we left. They were muggles, of course, but love is a magic that everyone shares" he smiled sadly, and everyone in the table saw that the only reason that he was smiling was because he does not want to cry, "He was killed in action three days into the conflict, I was the one who visited her after the war, returned his personal effects to her. She never married"

"Fighting in that war made me determined to find you" Al said to Harry, "but as I had said, I could not find you. I left the navy shortly after the war and finished my NEWT's, and then I formulated a plan"

"Understand, Harry, Hermione" Al said, adding Hermione because he was sure that she would take offense if he did not, "that I did not know what your life, Harry, was like, and while I understand that that is not an excuse, I would still like to ask for your forgiveness for my failure to come to your aid before"

Harry and Hermione both nodded.

"My plan then" Al said, "As I had said, I thought that Lemon-Drop was on our side, and I believed that he would have told Harry all about Lord Potter and his legacy by the time he was eleven years old. I did not think that he would have consented to Harry's emancipation by this time, but that was fine with us, since we did not think that Harry would be ready, but we believed that he would have at least told Harry all about it so that we can begin training Harry to take up the mantle."

"Which, obviously, did not happen" Harry said, he looked at Al and asked, "Did that convince you that Dumbledore is not on our side?"

Al shook his head, "In all honesty, no" he replied, "I acknowledged that he has a lot of things to do, and that perhaps, it might have slipped his mind, but when we heard about the fiasco that was the Chamber, and how you were accused of being Heir of Slytherin, we got suspicious, we know that Lemon-Drop is aware of your real heritage, there was no way that he is not, and yet, he did not do shit to dispel these damaging rumors, so we investigated, and what we found, was so damaging to my image of Lemon-Drop, it convinced us that he is our adversary" he looked at Harry, "We found that he was stealing from you"

"We would have launched a rescue operation there and then, attack Hogwarts and take down anyone who dares to stop us" Al said, "but Hec managed to placate us by telling us that we need more evidence, so we dug more, and found that the Weasley's are also dipping their hands in your pockets"

"In your Third Year, with Sirius having escaped, remember, we still thought that he was the traitor, we had to work double time, find him so that we can keep you safe," Al said, "Unfortunately, the ministry managed to place Dementors on the grounds even before we can move in, we may have guns, but guns are useless when it comes to them, so I admittedly decided to focus on Sirius. We found him three days after you and Hermione helped him escape. Damn near shot him down as well when he flew too close to Potter manor"

"Nearly had myself shot as well when I landed as well, pup" Sirius said, "Good thing Al was there. His boys have real itchy trigger fingers"

"He was able to convince me, Pensieve and Veritaserum had played a large role in it, so we welcomed him back" Al said, "Remus joined us as soon as he was able and between the three of us, we began to plan to get you back"

"But you still do not have a location" Hermione said.

"Right" Al replied, "Its not that we do not know the address, it was that we do not know how the hell to get there" Al explained, "We know that Harry stays at 4 Privet Drive, so we can place spectators there. But even though we can see the house, we cannot see Harry. Also, there is the fact that Lemon-Drop has his own people watching the place. We cannot afford to let him discover who we are until the last possible moment"

"Which is today?" Harry asked.

"Which is today," Al confirmed with a happy smile and a nod of his head, "Anyway, Voldemort got back at the end of your fourth year, so Lemon-Drop reactivated his public face, the Order, with Sirius and Remus as members. Thankfully, Lemon-Drop still does not know about us, which means Remus and Sirius are above suspicion, and so, Remus was assigned to guard Harry"

"And what is the use of guarding someone if you cannot see him?" Hermione asked, connecting the dots, "Remus can now see Harry, and he can share this information with you."

Al nodded, "Unfortunately, Remus' first time on guarding Harry was when he was attacked by the Dementors, when we managed to assist him."

"Well, at least, you were able to help me and take me out of there." Harry replied, nodding once at Hermione, who reluctantly nodded. "I trust you with my life, Al, Hermione and I trust you with it."

"Thank you Harry" Al replied, he paused for a few moments, before he added, "I think, however, that there is something else that you should know about me before you give me your complete trust."

Harry raised his eyebrows, and Al replied, "I am a murderer, Harry, I've killed people, as I told you, I've fought in a war, and in the east, I was a dark creature hunter"

"Killing dark creatures is not murder Al" Harry replied.

Al smiled ironically, "You see, that's where Hogwarts had been behind," he replied, inclining his head towards Remus, "I know that Remus never taught you on killing them, just understanding them," Harry and Hermione both nodded, "I…" Al hesitated, "Harry, Hermione, would you consider Remus as a dark creature?" Both teens shook their heads, "Yet, he is considered a dark creature in Britain," he smiled, "What you must understand is that not all those that are considered dark creatures are dark creatures" he retrieved his wand and laid it on the table.

"Perhaps it would be easier to explain it like this" Al said, he looked at Hermione, "What do you know about nine-tailed foxes?"

"They are found almost exclusively in the east" Hermione replied, "I do not know much about them because of that, but I've read about them, they are said to be powerful and vengeful, that to see one means to be cursed."

"They are considered dark because of that," Al replied, "Are Thestrals dark creatures?"

Hermione did not hesitate, "Yes, they are, only those who have seen people die can see them," she replied.

"Yet, they are helpful. Those carriages at Hogwarts? They are pulled by Thestrals," Al said, "It is only their nature, and just as Thestrals can't change their nature, neither can nine-tailed foxes."

"So because of that you think that you are a murderer?" Harry asked.

"It's more than that. Not only am I a murderer, I am also a failure." he sighed, "My wand core has a hair from a nine-tailed fox as its core, which begs the question, where did that came from?"

Harry and Hermione looked at Al, and he replied, "When I was in the East, I met a girl. Her name was Veronica which meant victory. She was also magical like me, and I thought that she came from the west since she looked more like a westerner than an easterner. Anyway, she was my partner for the next five years, from 1985 to 1990. She did not accompany me in my hunts, of course, I would have none of that, but she kept house and cooked for me, took care of me when I was sick, and basically, acted like my wife" he smiled fondly as he remembered her, "I was, and I think she was as well, falling in love, but she refused to kiss me. Which, I am sure that you now know, would have sealed a bond, if there was one."

"What happened?" Hermione asked quietly.

With a smile that can only be considered ironic, Al said, "One of her hairs is the core of my wand"

Hermione's eyes widened, "She was…?" she began, Al nodded, and she amended what she wanted to say, "But that would make you cursed, Al. That would…" she looked at Al.

"As I said, it is their nature. I think that you are right when you say that I am cursed," he said, "I do not think that I would find someone else who can be like Nica was to me"

"You were the one who killed her weren't you?" Harry asked, as he connected the dots as well.

Al nodded, "I was not aware of it myself until after the fox that I shot transformed into her right before my eyes." he smiled sadly, smiling that same smile that everyone now knew he put on so that he would never have to cry, "I would have shot myself there and then, but she stopped me and gave me one of her hairs. Told me to take it and make a wand with it, and that she would always be with me." He looked at the wand that must have been the one that Al constructed with the hair, "I was twenty five when that happened."

He looked at Harry and Hermione, "So you see why I am a murderer as well as a failure," Al said, "I killed the woman that I love and more, I failed to upheld my promise to protect her from anyone or anything,"

"Yet, you tried your best" surprisingly, it was Emma who said that. She had kept silent during the narration, but she was now back in full force, "There are things that we cannot prevent happening, and in this case, it was something that you couldn't prevent." She paused to allow Al to accept those few words, before she added, "Your Nica, she accepted that and I think that in the end, she was happy for you,"

"Your wand would not have worked with her hair if she was not," Hermione said, and then her eyes widened, "You didn't think that you would do a better job with protecting Harry didn't you? If you came back, that is."

"Yes" he admitted, looking at Hermione, "My happiness is nothing compared to the duty that my family has always upheld, and I feared that I would fail not only myself, but also my entire family, should I fail Harry."

"Then don't fail," Harry replied, "You are a good man, Al, and I would like you to continue with your job,"

Voldemort Lair

Location Unknown

"Potter and his lawyer had left Fudge a choice, my lord," Lucius Malfoy said, "Fudge must now chose between apologizing to Potter for the attack or acknowledging that you have returned."

Voldemort nodded curtly. He thought about which option would give him the most advantage, but it did not take long before the dark lord decided that he cannot have the magical world acknowledging that he is back, he turned towards his spy within the ministry and said, "Have Fudge apologize for the attack"

"It would not be that simple, my lord" Lucius replied, he added, "Fudge has been embarrassed in front of the whole world, it would not be easy to have him apologize, more than likely, he would be forced to resign"

"We cannot have the world know of my return yet!" Voldemort snapped, "Have Fudge apologize" he paused for a few moments and then asked, "What options do we have when it comes to attacking Potter?"

"Potter has disappeared, my lord, and the Weasleys are protected" Lucius replied, "If we are to attack, then I would suggest the mudblood. She has no way of protecting her house or family so it should be easy. "

"Yes" Voldemort replied, "Plan an attack against the mudblood then. You are in charge, and make sure that you bring her to me alive, Lucius. We will use her as our hostage and drag Potter here."

"What about the prophecy, my Lord?" Lucius asked.

"It is of no consequence" Voldemort replied airily, "We could take it now, but it would be easier if Potter is already in our custody"

"Yes, my Lord" Lucius replied, he bowed and then added, "With your permission, my lord, I beg your leave to withdraw so that I may plan the attack,"

Voldemort nodded and waved his servant off with a bored expression, gears shifting in his mind.