A/N: Wanted to get the feel of this chapter just right so it took a bit longer than I intended. This chapter shows a more... well Harry has become slightly odd over the years on top of ridiculously magically powerful. Also, Harry doesn't always know what is going on.

Chapter 5: Entering the Stage...

June 8th, 1988

Coming up with a workable identity took an afternoon and most of the night.

In the end, Harry decided not to mess with any of the older names, those that were best laid to rest. While he could have pulled a proper aged Peverell, returned from the grave or from century long isolation off, making sure that things stuck or wouldn't look too out of place would have taken much more effort.

Instead, he decided to go with the 'alive relative' route.

And so, on the 8th of June in the year 1988, Balthazar Potter was born. Harry had to admit, the irony of what that name itself meant played a big part of why he picked it. It was normally unwise to give your enemies any clues they could pick things up from but in this case, he just couldn't help himself. Call it an old man's folly.

Harry knew however, even with the background he had mentally picked last night, providing the actual evidence in form of memories that didn't previously exist inside more than a handful of people would take a bit of time and effort. Good thing his memory wiping and changing thereof was more than adequate for the task.

First things first, he would need to get some proper proof to his identity. Nothing was ever quite so convincing as a Galleon or two in the right hands for that one.

It was this truth in life that had Harry up bright and early leaving the Leaky Cauldron, evading Tom's ever wary gaze with a quick twist of his trusty ivory wand as the magic of a Disillusionment Charm settled on his body.

Making his way into Muggle London, Harry turned a few corners while absently casting anti-scrying, tracking, smell concealing, sight concealing, second-sight concealing and a whole plethora of other little useful bits of magic to keep any prying eyes or wands away. Only when he felt assured that even Dumbledore wouldn't be able to detect him when he was standing right before said man's crooked nose did he apparate.

The world shifted and where once had been the waking world that was early morning London now lay a dirt path lined with overgrown bushes as well as willow trees alongside said path. It was a quaint little area, with only the sounds of the surrounding forest as background noise compared to the normally every present clamor of too many people living too close together.

Harry felt himself relax slightly for maybe the first time since arriving in this reality. He hadn't even consciously noticed that he had previously been tense.

Twirling his wand through his fingers with a small smile, Harry made his way down the path with a slow stride. He wasn't in any real hurry at the moment after

It was a short but pleasant walk through the woods that did more for his old soul than Harry could currently really describe. It nevertheless added a bit of a spring to his step.

Closing his eyes softly as he reached his destination, he stopped and raised his wand up.

What he would have to do next was a bit more complicated.

Every magical being had a personal signature, some cultures around the world called it a scent, some an inner light, but everyone agreed that it was as unique as a fingerprint in the Muggle world.

This magical signature was why Goblins could keep thieves from entering somewhere they didn't belong, why the Magical Law enforcement could track people down when they casted illegal magic and also why the Dark Mark couldn't be removed from a person even in death. A lot hinged on this aspect of a magical being. It was one of the fundamental laws of magic.

And Harry was currently attempting to break it.

Honestly, if he hadn't had an unlimited number of retries, a dedicated runic array that kept his mind from going insane and a then immortal body he would have never made any progress with this particular branch of magic. It was just that volatile.

Pointing the tip of his wand against the middle of his brow where the inner eye rested, Harry focused.

He concentrated and recalled memories older than some Pure-blood families could call themselves pure. Harry focused harder than he had in a long, long time.

Because failure here meant certain death.

The change came sudden as it always did.

For a moment, the world stopped.

Harry felt his magical reserves -incredibly vast as they were even in this unaltered state- drop like a stone being pushed off a cliff.

The air flickered around his body before colors washed away into a black and white corona of altered reality.

His body rippled like the surface of a disturbed pond before his features grew indistinct and molded themselves into a bigger, firmer shape.

It ended with a crack of displaced air.

The world continued to spin, and Harry drew in a raspy breath.

"Bugger me, why is it always so nasty!?" Asked a deep voice in an exasperated tone; and where once had been Harry James Potter now stood a man with the same unruly black hair, only longer and with more aristocratic features as well as deep blue eyes. Even his lightning bolt scar had disappeared from his forehead without a trace. His body was also currently naked and the clothes that little Harry had once worn lay on the ground in tatters. The only thing that wasn't different was the wand grasped in his fingers. Taking a quick glance at it, Harry snorted.

"Man, that would have been awkward. I manage to change my signature only for my wand to reject me because I'm not the right person for it. Good thing you aren't going to be so stupid about it." Twirling his wand in his fingers, Harry, or better now known in this form as Balthazar, turned towards his target.

Flicking his wand forward and turning it like one might a key, the air shimmered and a curtain seemed to drop away.

Where once had been a dirt path now stood an enormous wrought-iron gate. Between the bars, he could see a mansion of considerable size sitting on a small hill and a marble path leading up towards it.

And in the middle of the gate before 'Balthazar', clear as day and glimmering in the sunlight was the Potter family sigil. Three flowers set in a triangle on a black and white background with feathery wings on either side of the shield they were on.

With nary a sound, the gate swung open inwards and he lowered his wand.

"Welcome home, Potter," 'Balthazar' murmured to himself as he set his bare foot on the marble path.

Elsewhere at the same time

Shimmertooth sometimes wondered why he even bothered.

Not only had Surefoot managed to gamble an entire bag of Galleons from his claws last night, but now he also had to deal with this sorry excuse of a Wizard complaining to him why his inbred scum of a son was not on the Family Chart.

"-an atrocity I tell you! If this is not corrected immediately I will contact my friends in the Ministry and mak-"

Deciding enough was enough, Shimmertooth spoke.

"Mister Selwyn, it is unfortunate, but it appears your son has not inherited your," and here Shimmertooth had to force himself not to call it something else, "gift. These things happen, but as I said before, the Family Chart doesn't lie. If your son's name hasn't appeared on it after his third Birthday, then he has no real magic to speak of. At least not enough for the Chart to connect with his magical signature."

Completely ignoring the Wizard's smoldering glare as the man gnashed his teeth, Shimmmertooth lowered his gaze dismissively and went back to the stack of papers on his desk.

It took nearly a minute for the Wizard to finally leave, in a complete rage too considering his stamping feet. Shimmertooth allowed himself a small smile and looked over the next sheet of parchment, this one concerning another Wizarding line dying out with no next of kin. Sighing slightly to himself, he straightened the paper out and got to work.

If there was no next of kin, he would have to trace back as far as he could and see who was going to-

"Linekeeper! Linekeeper!"

Shimmertooth nearly broke his quill at the sudden shouting accompanied by the sound of running feet coming towards him.

Looking up from his work, he stopped for a moment to examine a rare sight indeed.

Goblins as a whole were a rough and hard folk, proud and cruel to their enemies but generally a fair people as long as one didn't cross them. Considering they hated Wizarding kind for centuries now it came as no surprise that they had ingrained none of those honorable values to their children when dealing with Wizards.

What they were not however was easily flustered or panicked.

To see two of his guards in the Hall of Lines come running towards him in full sprint with their armour clattering on their bodies and a look of utter panic plastered on their faces therefore came as a shock.

What they said next however managed to top that.

"T-the Potter line- it, someone new appeared as the Head!"

Looking uncomprehendingly towards his fellow Goblin for several long seconds, Shimmertooth simply sat there.

Once the words were turned over in his head however, he nearly jumped over his desk in his haste.

Completely ignoring the two Goblins running after him once more in full sprint and huffing and puffing exhaustedly, Shimmertooth raced through the doors leading to the Hall of lines.

Other Goblins he encountered looked perplexed as he sprinted past, but many of them decided to follow him in his hurry. Soon enough he had more than a squad or two of fellow kin running after him as he passed marbled pillar after pillar.

It took nearly five minutes to reach his goal and already he could see a crowd of Goblins and a fair few Humans clustered around it.

"Out of the way!" His voice was tinged deep in authority and threatening many kinds of painful death that managed to immediately open up a path for him and his fellow runners, so that they could make their way through more easily.

Gasping for air and holding a clawed hand against his side, Shimmertooth came to a stop before the correct marble pillar sporting the glowing stone tablet with an uncountable number of crossed out names on it.

Only two at the bottom that glowed especially bright were not.

One Harry Hames Potter, the supposed savior of magical Britain and by some heralded as the second coming of Merlin himself could be seen right beneath the crossed-out names of his parents. A warm blue glow tinged the name itself, showing that he was magical and not of age.

Beneath it was why he was here.

Firmly at the bottom of the tablet and engraved so deeply that it looked like the letters had been carved into the pillar behind it itself were only two words.

Balthazar Potter.

Shimmertooth stared long and hard at that name, and with it at the nearly blinding golden glare that tried to burn the letters themselves into his retina. He personally rather doubted he would ever forget that name after this.

A solemn silence had descended around his fellow Goblins as they all gazed upon something that couldn't be. The Humans seemed to realize that whatever this was, it was not supposed to happen. Already he could hear them whispering and sending a few of their own runners to their masters. No doubt the name would reach their ears soon enough.

After what felt like an eternity, Shimmertooth eventually managed to rip his gaze away from the earthshaking sight.

It was clear to him that history had been made here today. Things were changing.

Addressing one of his kin next to him, he spoke softly, softer than he might have even to his wife in the most tender of moments.

"Send for the Director. Tell her," here he paused for a moment, considering his words carefully, "tell her that the Potter line has a new Head. She will understand what that means."

Ignoring the slightly confused look of the Goblin in question, Shimmertooth watched him scuttle away with a deep sigh before once more staring at the name.

Balthazar Potter.

He truly wondered about the change that would come about thanks to this Wizard.

After all, one who could beat death and come back from it wouldn't just sit around and do nothing now, would they?

Harry arrived back in Diagon Alley barely two hours after finding the Master Key in the Potter Manor.

He had taken the time since to freshen up a bit and examine his appearance while trying on a few of the existing robes in one of the wardrobes. They were a bit old-fashioned for this time, cut a little longer than they normally would have been currently and adorned enough to show a good bit of wealth. But that was understandable if one remembered that these robes had been bought a good decade or so ago. Even in the Wizarding world's fashion changed over time.

Strolling through the busy streets and ignoring a look or two being thrown his way as he walked past, Harry soon enough saw the massive marbled building that was his destination.

Gringotts held a lot of good and bad memories for Harry but it was a place that never really changed no matter the timeline. It was one of the constants that had helped keep him sane.

Walking through the doors, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the flurry of activity inside.

It was clear that something was going on as more Goblins than normal patrolled the lobby and some of the human guards sported rather confused expressions on their faces as they seemed to have noticed this anomaly too. Most of the customers however hadn't.

Odd but not too important. As far as Harry remembered, nothing of interest really happened until the break-in during the summer he started at Hogwarts.

Walking up to a teller that had just become free, Harry addressed him politely.

"Good morning. I would like to access my vault."

The Goblin in question raised his head and examined Harry's, or rather Balthazar's features.

After what felt like a longer examination than normal the small creature spoke.

"Name?"

"Balthazar Potter."

Harry could feel the surrounding Goblins that were in earshot grow still nearly as one. The one before him did too but his eyes also grew to the size of dinnerplates for a few seconds before he seemed to have taken hold of himself. Always funny when you caught them flatfooted like that.

"K-key?"

Harry had to use a good bit of his still fledgling occlumency in this body to keep from bursting into raucous laughter at that stutter.

Dipping into his robes with his right, he fished out the key and put it on the counter.

The Goblin took it -with what looked to Harry like trembling fingers- and examined the object for a moment before handing it back to him.

Motioning for one of the guards close-by, the teller whispered into his fellow Goblin's ear for a moment before turning his attention back to Harry.

"Someone will arrive soon to bring you to your vault."

Nodding once, Harry amused himself for the next few minutes by examining the other customers and a few of the Goblins. He didn't need any mindreading tricks to feel the gazes on his back from quite a few of the Goblins. No real surprise there considering what he was trying to pull here.

Just when he was about to open his mouth once more to enquire from the teller what was taking so unusually long, a voice spoke up next to him.

"Mister Potter. I will bring you to your vault now."

The high-pitched voice had thrown him for a bit of a loop, but only when he turned around did he realize as to why.

Female Goblins were, unlike their male counterpart, much more akin to humanoids. That also entailed that they had a good bit more beauty to them.

This example was dressed in fine red garment that fluttered around her body quite nicely. Her big eyes were colored with an earthen green to them, a polite smile on slightly thin lips and pointed ears set on either side of a heart shaped face. She was by no means the prettiest female Goblin Harry had seen in his long life but calling her anything but would have been quite insulting.

Simply so that he wouldn't look like a gaping idiot while he had taken a good few seconds to examine the diminutive female before him, Harry said the first thing that came to his mind.

"Good to see that females of your kind have made quite a few inroads with working in the bank. You only ever rarely see the fairer of your race outside of the tunnels normally."

It had been meant as an honest compliment, but Harry wasn't sure why this particular female Goblin's smile had stretched quite so far, or why she was giving him this knowing look.

"I am sure much has changed since your last visit. The name is Faradh, just to sate any curiosity you might have on your part." The now named Faradh spun around, her gown swishing against her hips in a way that accentuated them nicely as she turned her head. With only half her face now visible, Harry still felt that the glittering eyes and quirked lips showed enough to know that she was openly smiling. It was a bit odd to see such an expressive Goblin, but he decided to simply roll with it.

"Shall we?"

Stepping up next to her, Harry nodded with a smile of his own.

"After you."

The journey to the carts was at first a silent one, with Faradh shooting Harry the occasional look.

Deciding not to seem too cold, Harry began once more to speak with the excitable little thing.

"To answer your previous query, I wouldn't know if things changed here in particular. It is after all my first visit to this branch of the bank."

Her eyes widened for a moment as she listened before the smile on her face grew another inch.

"You must know quite a bit about the world then, to never have been in need of your family's vaults." Harry simply nodded.

"A thing or two. I honestly didn't expect any of my kin to be here when I arrived."

With his backstory of being an orphan that ended up in Greece to learn magic and then traveled around the world in search of more fantastic magic and possible family, Harry felt his answer was as close to the fabricated truth as possible. He was therefore bewildered when Faradh let out a bell-like giggle for no reason he could comprehend.

"I'm sure it was a nice surprise, Mister Potter." Her smile at this point seemed to be as much a fixture on her face as her nose was. She was either slightly insane or quirky in the same way as Luna. Mentally shrugging, he decided to ignore her oddities from now on.

Their small-talk continued for a good bit as both entered the cart and began the roller-coaster ride down into the belly of the earth. During it, Harry learned that she had no siblings, that arriving at this position was quite a bit of hard work for a female like her and that she had been single for the past three decades. Honestly, he wasn't sure if he imagined it, but she might have been hitting on him. Maybe that explained all those looks she was shooting him when she thought he wasn't paying attention.

Examining her out of the corner of his eye, Harry had to admit once more that she was quite pretty. Maybe something to think about in the future if he kept getting those signals from her and knew her a bit better.

Faradh soon enough complimented him on keeping his stomach from getting upset after a particularly brutal barrel roll downwards at a ninety-degree angle. His answer of having experienced a lot worse in his life got him another knowing smile.

Their journey continued with explanations from the female Goblin on the security and what could be expected should someone be dumb enough to try and steal something from one of the vaults. Harry absently listened and gave the occasional comment as his eyes drifted over the sheer cave walls around him.

It was only when he spotted the matted dark green hide of something he was awfully familiar with in passing that his thoughts came to a grinding halt.

Harry was sure that if his life was a cartoon or even a book, he would have sported a brightly burning lightbulb just above his head at that moment.

Oh, it was a bad idea.

Horrible even.

Completely insane too.

But it would make things easier on top of being fun to boot.

Call it a quirk of not having experienced real consequences for a long time, but Harry thought that announcing his presence to the magical world by beating a Dragon that escaped from Gringotts in single combat sounded like a marvelous idea indeed.

Quite fun too.

Now, how to go about it…