Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, NCIS or NCIS: LA.
A/N: Okay, guys, while waiting for my exam results I decided to kill some time and finish this chapter – it came out longer and darker than the usual ones – you have to forgive me for that – but I actually have to admit that I like it. Hope you like it, too.
HiddenByFaeries – What do you think I have to go through while writing about G? I mean, this guy is just… wow. Thanks.
Rick BGOH – Oh, I plan to somehow make G a nearly permanent character here, so they'll get to know each other quite well, I guess. I was thinking of Harry helping G. in finding out more about his past, if you know what I mean.
mrmistoffelees – Why does everyone keeps asking about Dumbledore? But if you want him so much, well…
Anyway, thanks very much to all the reviewers! I love you, guys!
CHAPTER 10 – A LOS ANGELES JOB, PT 2.
Dumbledore's office was, as usual, full of many multi-colored trinkets – all the shining and jingling overwhelmed Remus' werewolf enhanced senses. But that was not the reason why he was scowling and drumming his fingers on headmaster's desk angrily. Dumbledore was late.
When he finally appeared it was in the pinky mist of something that smelled oddly like raspberries and grapefruits and not for the first time Remus wondered just what kind of sweets the headmaster had nicked from the muggle world this time.
"Candy?" Dumbledore asked opening something that resembled a plastic can.
"No, Albus, I'd rather you got to the point."
"Oh, very well, my dear boy," He smiled, but the smile did not reach his eyes. "I was just trying to sweeten your day."
"Or make my teeth rot." Remus muttered.
"What was that, Remus?" The headmaster glanced at him briefly.
"I said it's really hot, Albus."
"You young people," Dumbledore mumbled. "Anyway, I was wondering whether you've heard from our Harry."
So that's the point of this conversation.
"Yeah, he's doing some traveling," Remus explained. "Last I heard from him, he was in Pakistan – got a real nice postcard of the Baltoro Glacier about a week ago."
"Oh, it's good to know."
I'm awesome.
-ooo000ooo—
There was this heavy smell of cats in the room that reminded Harry of Mrs. Figg. Nell was obviously allergic, because the minute she stepped inside, she sneezed a couple of times. Harry, on the other hand liked the smell – maybe it was a trait from his animagus form, or maybe he just liked cats.
"It's not real." The voice was eerily calm.
"Huh?" Harry was startled out of his reverie. Myra was sitting at the table with Harry next to her. Tony was playing bodyguard at the door, while G. examined all the photos and crystal balls.
"She's misleading you. It's not his fault."
"You mean Cora – Auxley's daughter?" G. asked.
"Yes."
"It's not whose fault?" Tony cut in. "Auxley's?"
"No." Myra said slowly, staring blankly into space. "There's one more." She cocked her head to one side. "He's young, younger than her."
"A boyfriend?" Tony asked dubiously.
"No, I don't think so… they don't know each other very well."
"It's all a bit cryptic." Harry remarked. He never got along well with seers.
"She's helped us before." G. mumbled quietly, so as not to disturb her trance.
"Okay, but…"
"The mother." Myra said suddenly causing everyone to look at her. "Follow the mother and you'll get your answers." Her eyes were suddenly clear, she coughed lightly and smiled. "Some more tea?"
"Oh, no," Harry moaned. "What is it with seers and tea?"
"It is supposed to clear you mind." Myra explained.
"Maybe Hettie has some seer blood in her, what do you think Nell?" G. asked. "Nell?"
"She's outside – allergies." Tony explained.
"Well, we've got to go – Nell's obviously not feeling well and we've got a case to solve." G. stated.
"It was really nice meeting you." Harry said and shook Myra's hand. However, before he managed to make a step back, her hand clasped tightly on his, her eyes glassy once again.
"The past is once again close to the present. You'll need both blondes if you want your happy-ever-after."
Harry raised an eyebrow. That was definitely not something he wanted to hear. Anyway, he didn't know that many blondes, did he?
-ooo000ooo—
"Severus, please, come in."
Snape came inside the office, his robes billowing behind him. "How may I help you, headmaster?"
Dumbledore tapped his nose briefly. "I was wandering whether you had some news of Harry. I'm afraid I was quite busy with the school renovations and lost track of him."
"He's in Russia, I think. Some qudditch training in the mountains, last I heard."
Nothing is more convincing than Potter and quidditch in one sentence. It's gonna be fine.
-ooo000ooo—
"What do we know about Cora's mother?" Tony asked.
"She divorced Auxley about fifteen years ago, and took care of Cora for the first two years after that." G. explained. "But then Auxley pulled some strings and he was granted guardianship."
"So, where's the mother now?"
"Give me a second and I'll have the address." Nell promised. She switched on her laptop and started doing her magic.
"So, what's the deal with you and Gibbs?" G. looked at Harry curiously.
"Oh, my mother was his sister."
G's eyes widened. "You're kidding. I didn't know he had a sister."
"You're not the only one." Tony cut in.
"He had two." Harry explained carefully. "But aunt Petunia lives in England and they're not very close. From what I know he was closer to my mum, Lily."
"Wait, I've seen him with a Lily once." G. exclaimed, realization shining in his eyes. "Lilly P-" He gasped and smiled widely. "You're Harry Potter!"
-ooo000ooo—
"You wanted something, headmaster?" Bill caught up with Dumbledore in the hallway.
"Actually, I have a question for you." Dumbledore smirked inwardly. "Do you have any idea where young Harry might be? You see, I've been trying to contact him for a few days, but no owl succeeded in finding him. The 'point me' charm doesn't work either."
Bill shrugged. "I think he is helping with the opening of some orphanage in Europe. I'm not really sure, though, I haven't heard from him in a while."
"Oh, well, that's too bad. Please let me know if you do know something."
"Of course, headmaster."
-ooo000ooo-
"Oh, Merlin, not that again," Harry moaned, hiding his face in his hands. "No, no, no."
"Hey, cheer up," G. smiled. "No need to be worried, I'm not a crazy fan or anything. I've actually met your mother, probably around the time when she was pregnant with you. But that's not all. You really don't remember?"
"Huh?" Harry's face clearly indicated the negative answer.
G. looked surprised but then smiled. "Well then... it seems that I have to tell you the whole story." He paused, then glanced at the little part pixie. "How long till we get this address, Nell?"
"Up to ten minutes," She looked a little troubled. "Someone clearly doesn't want anyone gaining access to those files. So far, I've managed to find out that Cora's mother is thirty-six and her name is Brianna."
"Okay, so get busy." G. ordered in his business voice and Tony snorted.
By now Harry was looking at G. with curiosity and something else too. This stare was so similar to Gibbs' when he had an unresolved case that G. gulped involuntarily. Tony quickly realized what was going on.
"He's got the Rubik's complex – he needs to solve the puzzle." He explained cheekily.
Both men looked at him questioningly.
"Oh, come on," Tony whined. "House, MD? It's only one of the most popular contemporary tv-series! No?" He asked seeing their clueless expressions. "Really?"
"So what's the story?" Harry blurted out impatiently, glancing quickly at G.
"During the war I was helping the Order, well as much as I could from this side of the pond anyway," G. started then paused. "Then, as I've already said Gibbs introduced me to your mother, but the git didn't mention anything about her being his sister. Anyway, a few years later I flooed to Britain to help strengthen the wards of Hogwarts but you weren't there. But I was there during the last battle and I was there before you vanquished Voldemort." G.'s eyes had an intense glint in them and Harry felt as if there was something, something he should remember but for some reason couldn't.
"When you and Tony came here I didn't recognize you because you've changed quite a bit." G. eyed him appreciatively.
"I don't understand." Harry uttered finally. "Could you be more... specific?"
"I was with you before you vanquished Voldemort."
"You-? I-? What?" He blurted out. "That's impossible! I would've remembered you!"
"It was late, there wasn't much light there..." G. was obviously trying to justify Harry's lack of recollection and failing miserably. He was trying to keep up the light tone, but by now hurt was evident in his voice.
"What the fuck are you implying?" Harry shouted and it was so unexpected that Tony subconsciously moved away.
"Harry." G. started in a soft tone, and again there was something Harry couldn't quite put his finger on. He was developing a massive headache.
"Harry." Similar image appeared in Harry's mind but his surroundings were different – it was almost too dark to see, but the eyes he was looking into were of almost fluorescent blue. "Harry." The voice was merely a hoarse whisper. It had a silken quality to it – smooth and rich like dark chocolate – the lover's voice – Harry realized suddenly and his eyes snapped open. He winced – he didn't even catch the moment when he had closed them in the first place. The air was heavy, too heavy and he couldn't breathe, there was a pressure on his chest and a terrible pain between his eyes – not very different from the way his scar had hurt back in Voldemort's days – but not quite the same either. "Harry." He heard once more – G.'s voice from the past – husky and smooth and his and Tony's worried voices from the present melting together. It was too much. Suddenly, the world went black.
-ooo000ooo-
Severus Snape was sitting in his office, reading The Potions Journal when the flames in his fireplace flared. Hogwarts' wards prevented anyone with bad intentions from flooing in , but he pulled out his wand anyway, just to be on the safe side. He made his way towards the fireplace quickly and noiselessly but he lowered his wand as soon as he saw one Anthony DiNozzo, obviously Harry's new love interest.
In all his life he had never met anyone quite like Harry when it came to relationships. He liked the brat and respected him, so he wouldn't exactly call him a whore, but he knew that if someone were to write down the names of all the people Harry had slept with, they would need a couple of scrolls of parchment and a lot of ink.
Strangely enough, Severus always prided himself on being an excellent spy – and now, despite the fact that the war was over, he still watched silently from the shadows, gathering information, even if he suspected it won't be ever needed.
During Harry's training and recovery after the last battle, Severus found himself becoming friends with his arch-enemy's son. As he started to spend more time with him, he also began to notice more. His early opinion that Harry was always seeking attention had been altered – what he was seeking was comfort and oblivion. Severus wasn't surprised by the fact itself but by the way in which Harry satisfied his hunger – he would find a warm and willing body to shag, a stranger preferably, and after a night of passionate sex he would move on. For Severus it was merely an information, as well as an insight into the source of Harry's incredible stamina.
Harry never mentioned these one-night-stands and Severus never asked – it was a pact, a thread of silent understanding between them and Severus intended on sustaining it.
He refocused on Tony's face and arched an eyebrow inquiringly.
"Could you come over?" DiNozzo asked with desperation and worry in his voice. "Harry blacked out."
"Scoot over, I'm coming through." Severus administered immediately. As much as he liked teasing Harry he has become the most important person in the Potion Master's life.
"Okay, but as for directions – we're currently in LA – at NCIS headquarters."
-ooo000ooo-
When Severus came out of the fireplace DiNozzo was there waiting for him.
"Harry's getting checked by a mind healer but he's still unconscious." Tony informed the Potions Master.
"Why a mind healer?" Severus asked. He was growing more and more worried with each passing second.
Trust the brat to find trouble even in one of the safest places on Earth, he thought, oh wait, he did the same thing in Hogwarts.
"He had some kind of flashback," Tony explained. "One of our agents from LA apparently met Harry in Britain – but Harry had no recollection of it, so-"
"He what?" Severus couldn't stop the panic from creeping into his voice. "He remembers people – people are important to him." Severus all but screamed and rushed into the room pointed out by the agent. What he said was known to be true – Harry has never forgotten a face before.
-ooo000ooo-
When Severus came into the room he stopped dead in his tracks.
"G.," He muttered. "I should have known."
"Severus," G. seemed surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm Harry's friend and his medical proxy."
"Oh," G. nodded in understanding. "Because Gibbs can't be his proxy without knowing about magic." He glanced at Harry lying on the bed. "He just blacked out – I couldn't make him remember our meeting."
"And there's a good reason for that." A new voice cut in.
Only now did Severus notice the healer standing in the shadows by Harry's bed. He mentally kicked himself for not being aware of his surroundings. The healer was a woman in her late thirties, with a pleasant smile and, as he soon found out, a strong handshake.
"I'm healer Marrovitz, and Harry here has been obliviated." The occupants of the room gasped as if on cue. "Repeatedly." She added.
"By whom?" Severus asked, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails were cutting into the soft flesh of his hands.
"I do not recognize the magical signature and it's not in our database." She said quietly.
"Mind if I take a look?" Severus asked.
Healer Morrovitz looked at him suspiciously. "Do you know what you're doing?"
"Don't worry," He answered. "I'm a skilled legilimens."
She studied him for a minute then nodded and moved away.
Severus came forward and gently smoothed Harry's long hair. Even now it was pretty messy. He slowly pried Harry's eyelids open and dived into his mind.
The time seemed to stop for a couple of minutes.
When Severus emerged it looked like he was ready to bring down anything an anyone in his path. His eyes were burning with fury, his robes billowing behind him and the magic leaking out of him tangled in the air in wild, untamed threads. Severus' whole posture screamed bloody murder and only thanks to Tony's strong locking charms they managed to keep him contained in the room.
When he calmed down enough to think rationally he was greeted by the sight of raised eyebrows and questioning glances. Severus only mumbled two words, but it was venomous enough for them to understand his behavior.
"Albus Dumbledore."
-ooo000ooo-
"There is only one sensible course of action." Healer Morrovitz stated. "To remove all the memory blocks at once." She looked around the room taking in all the faces. "It's a major procedure and he'll definitely feel a bit nauseous and very much overwhelmed afterwards." She explained. "But," She stated firmly. "The other option is to let him regain the memories on his own – and that will happen since the walls have already started to crumble – but it will be much more painful and unpredictable." She looked inquiringly at Severus. "It's your decision."
"Do it," He said stiffly. "But I want to be present in case something goes wrong." He cautioned.
"I can agree to that," She mused. "As long as you promise to behave and not to interfere unnecessarily." Severus nodded.
"Give me an hour and I should be ready."
-ooo000ooo-
"Why did Dumbledore do it?" G. asked into the silence.
Severus shrugged. It was the question that he's been asking himself ever since healer Morrovitz had left. "I have no idea." He admitted. "What happened between you and Harry?" He asked. "Was it something that could've influenced the war?"
"I don't think so." G. was deep in thought. "We had sex." He said simply. "Admittedly, it was the best sex I've ever had and I definitely wanted to repeat that, but after that night Harry behaved as if he didn't even know me." He paused and swallowed. "I thought he was ignoring me on purpose."
"He has never slept with anyone twice during the war," Severus revealed. "I thought it was his way of dealing with grief and stress." His eyes darkened. "It turns out he didn't really remember any of this." His tone was bitter now. "I should've known."
Both were so engrossed in the conversation that neither noticed Tony quietly slipping out of the room.
-ooo000ooo-
Tony's mind was a giant mess. A huge gulp of fresh air did nothing to calm his raging mind. Thousands of thoughts were surfacing and disappearing, quickly replaces by others. One, however, kept coming back. What if everything changes once he remembers?
It seemed that an hour must have passed by the time Tony had made his decision. He will stay away from Harry. That was not the time for getting hurt again.
-ooo000ooo-
Okay guys, I know you want to kill me for all that angst. But, hopefully, it's only this chapter. And, jumps happily it's the longest so far. Yay!
And, I think Harry has romantic history with pretty much every third character. I have to find a way to stop my wild imagination.
Now, please, a knut for your thoughts?