HAPPY EASTER MINNA-SAN!
Summary: Betrayed and killed by the one they considered their best friend, Harry and Hermione made a different decision when they found themselves at King's Cross station. They chose to travel in a alternate universe and create a normal life for themselves. But of course as Harry Potter doesn't do normal he finds himself in 1962 in a world in which Grindelwald escapes from Nurmerngard and continues his war against muggles and Tom Riddle is the DADA professor. Not to mention that Voldemort is not happy being left behind and follows them in this dimension with an unknown plan in mind...What kind of destiny will they carve for themselves as they prepare to start Hogwarts as first year students? Also, a new prophecy is made...
Warnings: Slash, violence, humor, some Dumbledore bashing, swearing, Grey! Harry and Hermione etc.
Pairings: LV/HP, HG/SS
"talking"
'thinking'
/mental speach/
$parseltongue$
AN/ AS always, thousand of apologies for the grammar errors and spelling mistakes you might come across the chapter, lol. Enjoy ^.^
"Dear father, dad and little Aria,
How are you? I am fine although I do miss you all very much already.
This the first time I wrote a letter, ever, and I'm really happy that the first time I am writing one it's to my family. I always used to dream of having a family to whom I could send and receive letters from and, now that my dream came true, I realize that my dreams pale in front of the real thing. I could never thank you enough for allowing me to experience this, for sharing with me the warmth and love of a real family.
As I think you already know- as I imagine you told professor Riddle to floo-call you right after the end of the Sorting feast- I was sorted into Slytherin after braking what it seems to be the record of the longest time a student spent under the Sorting Hat, or so I've been told afterward.
I'm still not sure if that is a good or a bad thing, to be frank, but I blame it all on Horatio, that is the Sorting's Hat name by the way, who went on and on about how he couldn't decide where to sort me. It seems that my traits endear me to every one of the four houses resulting in the fact that, in the end, it was up to me to chose the house in which I wanted to be sorted in.
I, of course, chose Slytherin.
Not only was that the house of my brother Lucius but also the one in which Sirius Black, one of the friends I made during the train ride, was sorted in. I am happy to say that even my other friend I made during the ride on the train, Severus Snape, was also sorted into Slytherin, not that I had any doubt in mind about that since I did got to know him rather well before he was sorted.
One thing I have to say is that Hogwarts is HUGE! It's one of the most awesome places I ever seen and it closely resembles a maze with all those tricky things one must to know as to not get lost in it. Brother Lucius was very helpful in that aspect, offering me and my friends a tour of the castle, early in the morning, so that we could be able to find our way to class easily. I feel so bad for the rest of the students who don't have Lucius as a brother...well, not really.
I'm glad I get to have him all for myself.
The classes are also very simple, or I think they are but they might grow more difficult in the future. After all, I only had Charms, Transfiguration and Herbology, so far.
I really like professor Flitwick, the Head of Ravenclaw house, who is a kinda short wizard that teaches Charms in a very enthusiastic manner and who showed us many cool spells that we will learn in his class, though it seems it will pass be a long time before we'll learn those. The Herbology teacher, professor Sprout who is the Head of Hufflepuff, was also very friendly though she seems to be a fan of some rather...not-so-likable plants.
Another interesting teacher was professor McGonagall, the Head of Griffindor, who though very strict, seems to really know what she's doing. I really enjoyed her class, though it seems that she doesn't like me that much as she kept asking me questions and making mean remark towards me, a fact that surprised me as I'm not aware of doing anything that might have upset her.
And speaking of Griffindors, they don't seem to be fond of me in general, many of them glaring at me during the class. Especially James Potter, an arrogant prat who tried to befriend me on the train after insulting my friend Severus, something I didn't took too kindly to and which resulted in him bearing me a grudge.
Well, I tried to ignore him so far, something that proved to be rather easy specially since I have bigger problems.
Like the fact that the whole school is full of people that worship my scar.
Not that it isn't a cool scar or anything, but being stared at throughout the day without interruption becomes rather tiring after a while. Not to say that is slightly creepy.
I really hope that all the stalking stops soon. Or at least before I go crazy.
Well, that's all I have to say for now and I hope that this letter finds you all well.
Yours truly,
Hadrian
P.S. Send my grandparents and auntie all my thanks for all they have done for me next time you see them and tell them that I also miss them very much.
…and this is all of it", said Gabriel as he finished reading aloud the letter Hadrian sent, ruffling the curly blond locks of Aria who was seated beside him in the foyer.
"I don't like it," the blonde little girl suddenly announced with a pout. "My angel seems annoyed by the school's students and that McGonagall lady seemed really nasty. When father returns home we have to show him the letter and make him punish all those that annoyed my brother," Aria fiercely declared, blue eyes alight with determination.
"Of course we'll make him," Gabriel easily agreed, barely containing his laughter at his daughter self-righteous anger, as he folded the letter carefully.
"But before that, little lady," he said anticipating the following argument, "it's time for you to go to sleep. It's almost ten pm right now, and we don't want your father to find out that you stayed awake till this late, do we? He might forbid you from eating desert after dinner again, if that were to happen."
The little girl was not convinced.
"But daaaad~! I can stay up late, if I want. I'm five, a big girl now," she said shoving her hand into Gabriel's face, five fingers wiggling to show their emphasis.
"Really, now? That is certainly true but," Gabriel said pretending to think hard, "I wonder what Hadrian will say if he heard that his little sister refused to go to sleep like a good girl? Well, if you are sure that he will still like you even if you comport like a spoiled brat, like that boy James Potter he wrote us about, and even if you have dark circles around your eyes from the lack of sleep, then you can stay up, I don't mind," Gabriel continued his eyes dancing in amusement as he watched his daughter's blue orbs widen in horror at the possibility of not being liked by Hadrian anymore.
"M-maybe is better if I go to sleep," Aria finally said, softly biting her lip and lifting up her arms to be scooped up by Gabriel."I mean, even big girls like me need their sleep," she reasoned obtaining an agreeing hum from her beautiful dad who carried her upstairs as she rested her head sleepily on his shoulder.
After taking Aria into her room, Gabriel summoned Dobby, the house-elf, to help him bathe the little princess and change her into her nightclothes before putting her into the comfy bed.
After tucking her in, Gabriel couldn't help a soft smile from appearing on his face as he watched his little princess snuggle into the warmth of the bed, pulling her favorite stuffed bunny closer to her. It was times like this that made Gabriel cherish his family all the more.
He silently exited the room once he was sure his precious blonde angel was asleep, carefully closing the door, as he thought about the newest addition of his family.
Even though he wasn't in any way a lover of politics, as he held no affection for those twisted games of power, Gabriel still was heir to the Delacour house and, as thus, knew very well how those games were played.
Yes, he went to "wussy" Beauxbatons, as some referred to his alma mater, yes, he loved being fashionable and yes, he was declared again and again as the most desirable man in the 'Witch weekly'. But that didn't meant he was by any chance a pushover. Quite the opposite, really.
Born into a family in which the girls were all veela, attractive beings that made men go mad with lust and who could use their powerful allure in manipulating the opposite sex, Gabriel was instructed from his early years in how to use his natural charms to make those around him fulfill his every wish and bend to his every whim.
His mother always said that being Veela was a curse but Gabriel, who despite being a very attractive male wasn't a veela as only females could be one, never understood that. That is until his sister was almost raped by an wizard who became obsessed with her beauty and the court decided to let the guy go free, with no retribution for the deed. They said it was his sister fault, that she used her allure on the poor wizard who then lost his mind because of the spell she cast on him. Bastards!
It was then that Gabriel learned the truth.
Learned how his mother and sister weren't even considered human, just some dirty magical creatures for other to use as they please, by the society in which he lived and how they even went as far to say that his mother used her power to trap his father into marriage. Despicable liars!
They didn't knew how hard it was for a Veela to find someone who could see past their beauty and love them for themselves. Even he, who didn't had the accursed allure of a veela had a problem in finding someone who loved him for the person he was and not for his looks. That is until he found Abraxas who admired his cunning and wit, sweeping him off his feet with compliments not for his beauty but for his personality. Finally, a man he found worthy of being his husband despite his father protest of 'C'est ne pas possible! Il n'est même pas français!'* who fell on deaf ears.
If anything though, the blind prejudice against his mother and sister, who soon turned to be against the Delacour family in itself, hardened him and made him aware of the ugly face of the world.
After his unfortunate accident, which resulted in him being incapacitated from the waist down, Gabriel also became a highly cynical man. Not being able to do anything by himself, not being able to walk, to run, to swim, to...make sweet love with the husband he adored, all those things really opened ones eyes.
Despite putting a brave and cheerful facade up for his family and friends, he never really stopped thinking about his condition- why him? What had he ever done to deserve such a punishment from God, to be denied the simplest of things? Why should he suffer the shame of being pitied, and falsely at that, by those who, not long ago, worshiped the very land he walked on and obsessively searched his attention?
For him to have the gazes once filled with lust and desire look at him pityingly was more than he could stand!
However, he never expressed the frustration he felt and buried all those feelings deep inside him. He didn't want to make his family suffer even more, didn't want the guilt Aria felt to increase as he knew the girl was just as innocent as him in the matter, the fault rested on those who cast the curse. And more than all, he didn't wanted his beloved Abraxas to continue wasting his life and family fortune searching for a cure that didn't exist.
So he resigned himself to his fate and put on a cheerful mask to keep everyone happy. But at the same time he learned. Learned to see what was hidden behind the kind facade one presented to the world, learned to not take anything up at face value.
Because of that, when he heard that Abraxas wanted to adopt the boy that saved Aria from certain death, he was more than suspicious about the true reasons for his husband sudden act of kindness. He wasn't surprised at all when he heard it was all due to their Lord's order though he didn't understand why their lord took a sudden interest in a child, be he even the only survivor of the killing curse.
After reading the boy's, Hadrian's, interview in the Daily Prophet however, he realized that he didn't care why he was to be adopted into their family. The boy deserved a stable home and unconditional love after the life he led.
And after meeting Hadrian for the first time, the belief only grew stronger.
Never had he seen a child, or an adult for the matter, with such jaded eyes, eyes that belonged to someone that had seen the truth of the world and survived it's ugliness. Eyes so like his own. He immediately took a liking to poor boy who was so easy to tease.
His blush was the cutest thing Gabriel had ever seen!
Never had he imagined what the poor boy was capable of doing for him. Never had he thought that will come a day in which his paralyzed state will seem to have been nothing but a bad dream. A nightmare.
But it did.
And it happened almost at the cost of the boy's own life.
Abraxas and Lucius will never know just how close of dying Hadrian had been after curing him. Hadrian himself had asked the healers and him to tell them that he only suffered of a bad case of magical exhaustion, after all. They were not to know that he used his own life source for the healing process.
Foolish boy.
Always thinking about the others. Someone was bound to take advantage of his compassion one of these days.
But that won't happen under his watch, thought Gabriel as he finally reached the foyer, elegantly taking a seat on the couch to wait for his husband return, while enjoying the treats prepared for him by Dobby that were putted on the glass, round table situated in front of said couch and letting the bright flames of the fireplace relax him with their playful dance.
Gabriel knew that not only him, but also the whole Delacour and Malfoy family combined will do anything in their power to protect the boy who offered him a new chance at life. Even now Abraxas was away, working along-side their lord to ascertain that the announcement of Hadrian's real heritage went smoothly.
Connected with the Royal Houses...
If even a fraction from what he learned while in his last year at Beauxbatons about the Royal Houses that still existed today was true, then the issue was truly mind-blowing.
The royal House of China, the Yue House, if he remembered correctly, was more than eight thousand years old, and even that fact was enough to send a cold shiver shiver through him.
If the House of China was that old, then what does that tell us about the Hywels?
Moreover, it seemed that six months ago the last Head of the Yue House, Xuan Yang Long, died on 10 March 1962, leaving the House without a Head until Yu Long, the fifteen old family scion, managed to prove himself worthy of being the Head of the House by changing the color of the House's emblem. A feat he hadn't managed in the last six months he tried, making the House members, and not only, restless.
Idly, he also remembered some of the Chinese Protocol learned in Beauxbaton's class of World Culture and Politics, where they were told that it was forbidden to use the House's name, even a character out of a commoner's mouth leading to punishment. If one wanted to refer to the Royal House they used the name of the current dynasty to do so. Also one could only use Bi-xia** or Huang-shang*** when adressing or referring to the Head of the House and Tai-zi**** while doing the same for the scion.
As he thought about all those rules, Gabriel felt a headache starting to arise.
He was sure Hadrian will make a blunder on the first meeting with them as he knew the child didn't cared much for protocol. He will have to fix that before the boy caused an international incident to happen, one that couldn't be solved by only saying sorry. He inwardly grimaced.
He had a lot of work ahead of him.
Hmm, maybe he should hire an adviser specialized in Chinese customs and traditions. He had a feeling that not only Hadrian, but also him and the others will find the adviser beneficial to their cause. No one wanted to offend the House of Yue and he was certain that there were many, many others rules they will have to know to not do so. Too many for one, who was not raised with them, to remember.
Sighing, he took of sip of his freshly-brewed Persian tea from the Mazandaran Province, enjoying the relaxing aroma. Really, what the Englishmen liked about adding milk in their teas and spoiling the original aroma, he could never understand. They truly didn't knew what good taste was all about.
As he took a bite from his friand, loving the exquisite flavor of butter and almond, Gabriel turned his thoughts toward the Royal House of Japan, the Shindo House about which, he now realized, knew even less than about the Royal House of China.
He knew that it was a House that was greatly interested in medicine, studying both the wizarding but also the muggle's way of curing people intensely. The Head of the House, Hiroto Shindo, was said to have graduated the Amaterasu Academy of Magic with top results and be a speaker of more than thirty languages, the exact number being unknown.
Gabriel frowned at that.
They will have to learn more about the Shindo House and fast. He was certain that they will be the ones to show the most interest in Hadrian considering the healing ability he possessed. And, as his Lord always said, knowledge was power.
But still, the most dangerous of the Royal Houses, despite having more information about said House than about any other, was the Ruric House of Rusia.
The Head of the House, Rurik Olga Alexandrovna, known to many as the Rusia's Ice Queen, was said to be a ruthless, manipulative ruler and Gabriel knew she will have no qualms in using Hadrian's connection for her own good.
It was a known fact, after all, that during her leadership Rusia become more stronger than ever, her reforms revolutionizing the whole governmental system in an inspiring way.
The prejudice was almost non-existing in that country, the muggleborns being referred to as firstborns, that, though the fact that they were weaker than their pureblood counterparts was well-known, were treated with the same respect.
The same could be told about the magical creatures living there, who had more rights in Rusia than in any other country, though they had to obey to a certain set of laws that were necessary for them to not became a danger to the society- the werewolves had to agree to being put to sleep in a special sector of St. Savvatiy, the Russian wizarding hospital, on the period of the full-moon, the vampires had to regularly come to the hospital to get their doze of blood, that was freely given by the donors, as to not be overcame with blood-lust and so on.
Furthermore, in Russia the magic wasn't devised as dark or light but was seen only as a useful tool to have and, to prove this point, they found a way to use the Unforgivable Curses in medicine- the Cruciatus for treating neurological damage, the Imperius for treating depression and/or addiction to drugs while the Avada Kedavra was used for giving painless deaths to those beyond any chance of recuperation. That isn't to say that using the curses with foul intention was without repercussion- oh, no.
The punishment for breaking the law was said to be terrifying as the queen wrath was not to be taken lightly.
And that kind of queen was sure to see all the advantages and political power Hadrian carried. She might even try to pressure them into making a marriage contract between Hadrian and her youngest daughter, Anna.
That will be hard to refuse.
Their only hope was that the rumors of Grindelwald and Olga being friends from their years at Durmstrang were true, because then Grindelwald, as Hadrian's grandfather, could reach a peaceful agreement with Olga, that didn't involved any arranged marriage.
Gabriel couldn't fight off a smirk at the thought how his father, Leon, might react when finding out the little tid-bit about Hadrian being Grindelwald's grandson. It should be soooo amusing to watch, he thought as he put down he empty cup of tea and headed towards the entrance of the garden for a little walk.
As he walked he realized that, when he first met Hadrian, he would have never realized that such a small boy had that much political power at his arm reach. Even now the full consequences of that were hard to grasp and he knew that, because of the heritage he possessed, Hadrian's popularity will increase tenfold.
And thinking of the child's already large fame, that was no joking matter.
At first, when he heard about the plan of revealing Hadrian's heritage to the world, he was against it if only because of the fame, and the responsibilities that came with said fame, that Hadrian will be forced to live with. Exploiting such a young child, using him for gaining a political advantage even at the cost of having him constantly under the spot-light- it was the first time he doubted his husband and his Lord's judgment. He knew his Lord was cold and unfeeling, but to think that even his husband could be so uncaring...
Didn't he felt foolish after Abraxas explained everything.
It seems that not only they had Hadrian's permission to reveal everything, and Gabriel had to admit that, for a child, Hadrian was intelligent enough to grasp the consequences of his decision, but also that, by revealing everything, the boy will become someone untouchable, protected both by those of Ligh and Dark.
Claimed as a Saviour by the Light, the grandson of the Dark Lord and the power of the Hywels at his disposition to keep both parties interested in wanting him as an ally? One had to be crazy to openly try to harm Hadrian and risk having both the light wizards and the dark ones after his skin.
Not to say that, for his family, the Dealacour, this will be the best way to make those who kept jarring them eat their words.
He will take great pleasure in seeing all those who insulted his mother and sister, who spoke against their House, humiliate themselves in trying to earn the favor of the House they once despised, trying to earn the favor of the House who had a claim on the one who will undoubtedly become the most influential political figure, Hadrian Hywel-Malfoy.
As his father always said, 'La vengeance est un plat qui se mange froid'*****.
Still, Gabriel knew how tiring it could get having everyone around you vying for your attention. And though, compared with his husband and father, he couldn't do much in the big scheme of things, he wanted to provide Hadrian with a sanctuary in which he could escape from all that pressure and also prepare more for facing it.
He will make sure that being home, with his family, will be the boy's, his son's, escape were he could learn and prepare for confronting the whole world, if need be. And he will have some words with Abraxas if he tried to bring up political matters while it was family time. Oh yes, he would.
As he thought about all he would do to his beloved husband if he dared to go against his wishes, that including couch sessions for his lovely Abraxas, Gabriel didn't even notice that he already reached the garden until he found himself surrounded by roses and jasmine flowers. Shrugging, Gabriel proceeded to take a walk among evening primroses and night-blooming cereus, enjoying the night air under the moonlight.
After all, he was able, now, of doing something as simple as taking a walk in the garden.
HP-Chronic Hero Syndrome
Hadrian gulped as those familiar but all too strange at the same time silver eyes stared him down with a mix of anger, confusion, hurt and...was that relief shining inside those silvery depths?
Damn it, he inwardly swore. Now he felt guilty!
Leave it to Sirius to make feel so with only a look. I mean really now, it wasn't as if he didn't knew that the anger Sirius felt wasn't only for being thrown into a different dimension without so much as a by-your-leave or because he ended up into a boy's body in said dimension– though those certainly didn't helped in soothing his ire- but also because he was worried about him, Hadrian. But it wasn't as he had it easy, you know?
Well, sure, unlike him, Sirius didn't had that certain feeling he sometimes got telling him if Sirius was alright or not. But, honestly speaking now, even if he did had it, Sirius was way too logical to listen to such feelings without conclusive proof so it didn't matter that much in the end. Now if only he could make Sirius reach the same conclusion...
But, now that he thought about it, adding the uncertainty of not knowing what was happening and the fact that he had to cope with a whole new life style to said worry, being forced to act all the time and lie to everybody around him and yes, Hadrian could certainly see why Sirius was pissed.
He mentally grimaced.
There was no winning for him this time, was it? The only thing left for him to do was hope to get out of this alive (and yes, maybe he was exaggerating a bit, but he was the one who had to endure Sirius glowering of doom, so he felt entirely entitled to a little exaggeration).
He wearily sighed at the battle that waited for him ahead and at the fact that, seeing that his friend wasn't in any hurry to start the conversation, staying stubbornly silent and not lifting a finger to alleviate the tense atmosphere, it was up to him to do that and begin their long-waited talk.
He let his eyes trail off in an attempt of gaining more time for organizing his chaotic thoughts, not that it helped any but still a boy had to try- taking in his surroundings as his lips unconsciously curled into a sad, barely noticeable smile as he finally noticed in what, exactly, the room transformed itself in.
With blinding red and gold colors dominating the place, squashy, comfortable looking armchairs spread all over the place and a brightly burning fireplace spreading warmth around, the Griffindor's Common Room truly was the one place he felt most comfortable in. Or was.
Memories of partying and joking, of studying and plotting and of many, many other events, both happy and sad, assaulted him as flashes of better times passed through his mind, ones of a trio united by strong bonds of friendship that thought that could take on the world, together.
With a bitter grimace replacing his smile- not that anybody could blame it for it as the wound of betrayal was still throbbing painfully inside his chest- though he did do his very best to ignore it- Hadrian silently gestured to his companion to take a seat in front of the fireplace, together with him.
"What do you want to know first?", he asked, in an almost whisper that seemed much too loud in the tense silence (or so it seemed to his terrified self), after they seated themselves comfortable in two of the red, cushy armchairs found in front of the fireplace.
"How? How it is possible for us to be here?" Sirius finally breathed, dragging a hand through soft looking dark-brown locks while fixing Hadrian with his intense gaze, making the other turn away.
"I mean, I understand the basic theory, I did my research you know ", he was quick to defend as if Hadrian might think badly of him otherwise, "and I already knew about dimension traveling being possible – though extremely rare as there are only four known wizards, beside us that is, that managed to switch between dimensions.
The last known reported incident of sorts, one that was backed up by indisputable evidence anyway, though the Unspeakable's never really reveled in what the evidence consisted of now that I think about it, was back in the thirteenth century when Arremianth the Old accidentally ended up in another dimension, due to a mistake he did in a potion experiment, and it is such a pity that the mistake couldn't be replicated as it will have been so fascinating to study all the possibilities-" he suddenly stopped and took a deep breath as he realized he was babbling, not that Hadrian minded that as he was having way too much fun at Sirius' expense, if one was to judge by the way he seemed to fight off a smile of course.
"And what I mean to say is that we were dead, Hadrian" Sirius continued with a small glare at the poorly hidden amusement in the others eyes. "Done for. Caput.
We shouldn't have been able to travel into an alternate dimension in normal circumstances, heck we shouldn't have been able to do anything, well besides becoming ghosts maybe, and, though I understand our current situation has something to do with your status as a Master of Death at the time, I don't understand how exactly you did it, how it worked. So please, do tell me, how?"
'Yes, do start with the easy questions', Hadrian couldn't help but think with a inward scowl, which he wouldn't show outwardly as he still liked being alive, thank you very much.
"To be completely sincere with you, Mione," Hadrian started, addressing his friend with the old nickname that he knew that other wasn't that fond of, while he stared blindly into the fire, playful flames reflecting themselves beautifully in his viridian eyes, "even I'm not sure how I did it, though I'll try my best to explain what I do remember.
It's just that I was a mess at the time, still in shock, Dumbledore's and R-r...", he dryly swallowed ignoring the flinch his friend's body gave at that, that name seeming to be a too much of a painful reminder for them still. Really, if he ever again met that good-for-nothing friend of his that let himself manipulated by an old goat, he will strangle him with his own two hands!
"And his betrayal", Hadrian continued after getting his homicidal urges under control, "weighing down on my mind. I remember I just wanted a way out of Dumbledore's schemes and manipulations. I wanted to be free -free of expectations, free of prophecies and free of Voldemort.
I wanted a new chance at life for both you and me, especially you Mione since it was my fault you died, it was only because of me that you lost your life and..."
SMACK!
Hadrian flinched at the loud sound that filled the chamber, verdant orbs wide in disbelief as he gingerly lifted his hand to touch the cheek that was now decorated with a lovely red hand print, courtesy of his friend's unexpected slap.
"Never", Sirius said in harsh pants, his silver eyes throwing sparks, "say that ever again in front of me. I wasn't your slave, you didn't forced me into anything, do you hear me? Everything I did, all the actions and decisions I ever took were taken because I choose to do so, and if I had to, I'll do it all over again, over and over.
You are my friend, so I'll forgive you this time, but if you don't get over yourself and ever try to undermine my own independence again , there will be dire consequences that you don't want to face, believe me", and, looking at the expression Sirius had while he said that, believe Hadrian did.
"You are not to feel guilty over the consequences of my own decisions," Sirius continued all fired-up." Merlin knows, you did way beyond more than you should have to help everyone, much more than they ever deserved anyway", he finished with a huff, once again plopping on the armchair and gesturing for Hadrian to carry on now, before crossing his arm over his chest.
Hadrian blinked once, twice, before a smile bloomed on his face as he watched the blush that started to spread across his friend's cheeks after the passionate speech he made, though the guilt still lingered in the depths of his brilliant green eyes.
"Thank you, Mione", he said fondly, with one of the most beautiful smiles ever seen and a truly angelic expression on his face as he tilted his head slightly, his emerald orbs shining more brightly than ever with unspoken affection towards his precious friend, friend who had his breath taking out of him by the sight of such a smile.
"So, anyway, as I was saying," Hadrian continued, suddenly catching himself and coughing a little awkwardly as he felt himself go red for displaying his feelings so openly, while he skillfully ignored the giggle Sirius hid behind his hand at his sudden change of expression (but still, he was a BOY, for Merlin's sake! And boys didn't had mushy-mushy moments!) , "there was all that going inside my head around that time, and I was slightly panicking thinking that Dumbledore will force me return to life and leave you behind, when I suddenly knew what I had to do.
There was no moment of illumination, no voice speaking in my head telling me what to do, it just was there, all of a sudden, as if had always been and never once did I questioned, at the time, from where did all that knowledge came," which was pretty stupid of him, if he was to be honest, not that he will say so aloud and give Sirius more ammunition against him. He still wasn't that stupid.
"To the me of then, knowing what to do as to make my wish of escaping Dumbledore and having a new chance at life together with you, my best friend, come true, was something as natural to me as breathing. It was as if, out of the blue, I solved all of the universe's mysteries and I knew anything there was to know about everything," he continued, looking to Sirius as if he was trying to solve a particularly difficult puzzle, his brows furrowed in concentration as he tried recall the peculiar feeling.
"After everything was said and done with, and I woke up in this world, I could remember bits and parts of what I did and what it entailed but for the life of me I couldn't recall the spell or anything specific about the process of getting here. I knew that I was in another dimension, in an alternate reality of my world, I knew that you accompanied me here but that neither you nor I will retain our previous identities and that we will have to adopt the ones of our counterparts in this universe."
"About that, Hadrian," Sirius interrupted hesitantly, biting his bottom lip, "what...what happened to the real Hadrian and Sirius? Did...did they die? I mean, I tried to look up any information about Soul Magic in the Black Library but I didn't find anything useful that could help me in figuring it out. And believe me, I searched long and hard but since our situation is pretty much unique there was nothing I could find. It's not like there was another Master of Death that wrote down his knowledge for us to learn from," Sirius said, frustrated with both himself and the lack of information they had.
At that Hadrian couldn't contain a snicker from escaping him. No matter the gender, his friend will always be the same. When in trouble, check the library rule still applied even in this dimension it seemed.
"Don't worry, both Hadrian and Sirius are about as dead as Harry and Hermione are", Hadrian said delighted to know something that Sirius couldn't find out – it was such a rare experience. He had to enjoy it properly
"What do you mean by that?" Sirius asked, with a confused look on his face, much to Hadrian's pleasure.
"Well, um, how to explain this...," he pondered aloud thinking of the best way to put his thoughts into words as it was quite complicated to explain.
"Look, right now I am neither Harry Potter nor Hadrian Malfoy and you are neither Hermione Granger nor Sirius Black" he started, fishing his mind for the right words. " Rather we are the combined entities of them, a perfect combination of two souls, molded perfectly one into another.
What were once two separate souls were merged together perfectly, forming only one however, since the souls of Harry Potter and Hermione Granger were older and since they were the ones to initiate the merging, they were more potent causing the me of now, the new soul created by the merging of Harry Potter and Hadrian Malfoy's souls, to think of myself more as Harry than Hadrian, the Harry part of me being more dominant over my personality.
The same with you. Do you get what I want to say?" asked Hadrian uncertain, not knowing if his explanation was clear enough.
"Yes... Yes, I think I really do. What a fascinating concept this is," Sirius said excitedly, mulling over what Hadrian just explained.
"Also, I don't think our counterparts were chosen at random", Hadrian continued not knowing whether he should share this particular theory with Sirius or not.
"What I'm about to tell you isn't certain," he cautioned deciding that it was better to be thought of as being paranoid rather than hide something from the only person he could be completely honest with, "but I have a feeling that our presence in this particular universe isn't at random."
"How so?" Sirius inquired, ready to at least listen to what Hadrian had to say before voicing his opinion. If there was anything that life as Harry Potter's best friend has taught him was to not dismiss his strange 'I have a feeling' theories. They proved to be true most of the time, even when everything else pointed out the opposite. Draco Malfoy, anyone?
"Well, it's just that, somehow, our counterparts were chosen in such a way that we become somehow the upgraded version of the people we once were" Hadrian started to explain to an attentive Sirius.
"The original Hadrian Malfoy and Harry Potter were like the different sides of the same coin, Mione. Harry Potter could have been like Hadrian Malfoy and viceversa if they only made one different choice about how to cope with things. As it was, by making that one different choice they became completely different persons despite their similarity.
Hell, Hadrian Malfoy was mini-Riddle all-over again, a Dark Lord in the making" Hadrian explain remembering the hate that existed inside him in the first days after the merging, " and by merging with him I became more cunning, more centered on my education, more ready to make small sacrifices to reach my goals!
It's only thanks to the fact that 'Harry' is dominant that I don't plan on taking over the world – the Harry in me finds it too troublesome", Hadrian said, with small smirk trying to lighten the situation as he could see Sirius become more apprehensive.
"The same in your case, Mione. Both Sirius Black and Hermione Granger were smart, very smart, but they decided to use their intelligence differently. Sirius became a genius prankster with no respect for the rules that, though was wasting his potential uselessly, was able to think on his feat and improvise while Hermione, on the other hand, became a genius student who could solve any mystery using her brains, though she was a bit too much of a rule-lover and had trouble adapting to situations outside her area of expertize.
As such by combining those two, you were born, someone both smart and able to think on his feat, though you also seemed to have gained a bit of a temper on the side," Hadrian added playfully earning himself a bump in the shoulder.
"That's truly interesting," Sirius said thoughtfully as his mind pondering restlessly over everything he heard, "but what made you think that we have some sort of purpose here?"
"Well, I think you noticed that this world is different from our original one, right?" questioned Hadrian with a grin making Sirius snort.
"That's an understatement if I ever heard one", Sirius flatly replied to that. "Firstly, we are in the past, secondly, the dates and the events are all messed up though it seems that the differences between our world and this one start getting more noticeable around the late '40's, the most obvious being, of course, the escape of Grindelwald from prison.
Also, there is also the glaringly obvious lack of Voldemort, Tom Riddle seeming to have decided that being a teacher is much better than being an evil overlord in this universe, a decision that I heartily support by the way", Sirius said making Hadrian shake his head in amusement.
"There is also the fact that", Sirius continued in his teacher-mode, looking as if he was holding a lesson, "though prejudice against non-purebloods exists, it isn't as extreme as it was in our world seeing that it seems to be focused mostly on muggles these days, muggleborns and half-bloods still being largely accepted if they renounce their muggle habits and immerse themselves completely into to wizarding society.
That might be, though, a direct consequence of Grindelwald escape from prison seeing that, in his ideals, the prejudices preached are not focused on blood but more against people that completely lack magic, muggles, thinking of them as inferior beings. It seems that for Gridelwald, as long as one has magic, he has no problems with it.
Beside that, there are also the minor differences, like the fact that many people were sorted in other Houses than the ones we thought they'll get in considering what we knew from our old world's past, the fact that there are some witches or wizards existing here that we never heard of or that some we did know of don't exist in this world, and so on. Minor things that will cause major changes to the future, a future that I can guarantee you will not be even remotely similar to the one we know of.
And every difference between these worlds is caused by one little event that had gone in a different way from how it went into our world, event caused by a important figure to the time-line and which took place in the early '40, if I calculated correctly seeing that around then did the differences between the worlds we know seemed to appear. One little change that caused a chain reaction shocking the universe whole structure from it's core- quite the butterfly effect, I must say", Sirius said merrily, looking at how the fire shadows played on Hadrian's face in a mesmerizing dance.
"I have to admit that I like this world better, Hadrian," Sirius confessed shyly. "In my other life my parents never understood me, though I loved them and they loved me, and, in the end, I was even forced to obliviate them so that I could fight for what I believe in.
Beliefs, that I now know, were based on my ignorant knowledge about a society I didn't even truly understand at the time. Just remembering about the SPEW campaign makes me wanna hide my head in the sand now that I know that house-elves have to bond with a wizard for their own survival.
I was practically demanding their deaths, Hadrian, without having the slightest clue about what I was doing and nobody thought to inform me of such, letting me become a laughing stock. But here, Hadrian, has been so wonderful so far!
I come to care for the Black family, my family, though I had to manipulate them slightly as to not make them suspicious of my comportment which, I'm glad to say, greatly differs from the original's Sirius immature one, and though I don't agree with all their ideals, I think can understand from where they are coming from with their beliefs.
Not to say that the lack of having an psychopathic evil lord chasing us across the country is an added bonus" chirped Sirius in cheerily, enjoying Hadrian's snickers and the homey atmosphere that replaced the original tense one.
"Well, Sirius," started Hadrian sheepishly not wanting to ruin the moment with such serious talk but knowing he had no choice, "though there isn't chasing us across the country, the psychopath evil overlord might still exist in this world also, though better hidden from public's view." Though one had to wonder how he escaped Dumbledore's radar for evil intent, Hadrian couldn't help but wonder.
"Not only that, but if he does exist, even though you might stay out of trouble by not associating with me", he continued earning a death glare and a whack across the back of his head causing him to grin broadly , " I, on the other hand, will have not only one but two overlords trying to get me into their folds" he announced abruptly, his broad grin belittling his serious tone of voice, causing Sirius to erupt into a chocking fit.
"WHAT?",Sirius inquired shrilly after his coughing fit was over, his eyes becoming watery thanks to it. "Explain", he continued in a growl.
"Only if you tell me what you have been up to as well," Hadrian said childishly, having missed all the friendly banter. "It's not fair if only I talk!"
"Hadrian."
Hadrian 'eep-ed'. That flat, menacing tone was the scariest thing he ever heard. Gulping, he started to talk. And talk. And talk some more.
It was really liberating to get everything off his chest, Hadrian was forced to admit if only to himself, but that didn't change the fact that till he finished recounting every little thing that happened from the moment he arrived into this universe until the present, his throat became sore from all the exertion it was subjected to.
"...wow. Just wow", Sirius said after Hadrian finished retelling his misadventures.
"You certainly kept busy, I see. Grindelwald's grandson, Hywell's heir, connections with both sides of the war taking place...That's a lot to take in all of a sudden! Do you realized now that once this becomes public knowledge your every move will be watched and dissected carefully by the press, right?
Your experience as the Boy-who-lived will be child played compared with what you should expect from now on. How the heck do you always manage to get yourself in such a mess?" he questioned, in a tired voice, shacking his head in an exasperated manner while Hadrian gave an uneasy laugh. It wasn't as if he tried to get into all those thing it just...kinda happened. Really.
"However," Sirius continued, "though I understand your reasons for being weary of Riddle, until we are certain that he is still Voldemort in this universe, don't do anything foolish like confronting him or something equally stupid.
We have to get our acts straight and properly investigate the history of this world before we take any action. Even if Hagrid still is a groundskeeper at Hogwarts it wouldn't do to jump blindly to conclusion as the reason for that might be different from the one in our world. We don't even know if the monster in the Chamber of Secrets was indeed unleashed here, after all."
"I understand Sirius, I'm not an idiot you know," Hadrian said, scowling at the 'really?you could have fooled me' look that appeared on his friend's face.
"I just said that Riddle is a definitely suspicious person. Anyway," he continued ignoring Sirius' childish actions because he could be the more mature one for once, "what I really wanted to talk about isn't that.
The thing is, the connection between me and Voldemort, our world's Voldemort, still exists and I still get visions through the scar", he said simply, not wanting to go into details about what the visions contained as he didn't want to burden his friend with feelings of guilt that were only his carry.
After all, he was the one who decided to abandon that world to Voldemort, it was his choice and he will learn to live with it. There was nothing that he could do now so regret was meaningless and he refused to waste this new chance at life.
If Hadrian thought that Sirius would be surprised by that though, he was dead wrong as his friend remained unperturbed by that little piece of information.
"I expected that," Sirius simply replied. "The fact that you survived the killing curse, again, is not exactly a secret you know, " he continued drily, "and seeing that the curse didn't fulfilled it's purpose, all that magical energy contained by it had to be used somehow.
My theory is that, despite the fact we are in a different Universe from Voldemort's, as long you contain a piece of him inside you, thanks to the fact he used your blood in his revival ritual, your soul is still bound to what we could call the 'mortal plane'."
"Wait, wait, wait," Hadrian interrupted suddenly. "What Voldemort used in his weird ritual isn't the blood of this body, but the one of the body I used to have so how come is still affecting me?"
"Are you for real? The blood, used in a potion or ritual, isn't just a sample of DNA , for Merlin's sake. Blood is one of the most obscure, but powerful ingredients one could use, highly dangerous as his proprieties are still not discovered in their entirety.
Why do you think Blood Magic is forbidden? Because it is highly unpredictable and volatile,that's why. Anyway, because of that, as the Avada Kedavra's curse magical energy wasn't used to kill you, it was used to reopen the connection you had with Voldemort, at least on this side, which was blocked for a while by our arrival in a new universe.
Don't worry though, Voldemort is still mortal, he can still be killed by them there seeing that, although you are still his horcrux for now, you are not in that world to help in keeping him grounded to his body. And I don't think you have to worry about being possessed by him ever, seeing that, if what you told me about the souls of Hadrian and Harry merging is true, I don't think that the perfect mold of two souls has any reason to be afraid of a tiny fragment," Sirius finished explaining.
"So you mean to say that... I'm kinda immortal now?" asked Hadrian hesitantly making Sirius roll his eyes in an universal 'why me' gesture.
"No Hadrian, it doesn't mean you are immortal. You can still die quite easily of old age or if someone were to slash your throat. What it means is that as long as Voldemort is alive even if you die your soul will remain on this plane, most likely as a ghost or specter, and that the killing curse doesn't have enough power to blast your soul out of your body.
You can say that you are somewhat immune to the Avada Kedavra, but I wouldn't test that theory anytime soon if I were you," Sirius said as he tried to fight off a smile at his friend amusing questions. He really had missed him.
"Going on though," Sirius said changing the subject, "when did you say you could try passing the probes as to obtain access to the Hywell' archive?", he asked with what seem like stars in his eyes, finally letting out his inner bookworm out.
He had wanted to ask that since he first heard Hadrian talk about it, but he contained himself as there were other issues they had to clear. I mean just think about it, the world's hugest library containing knowledge gathered since ancient times in it, under her friend's control. Of course he had to take advantage of that!
Honestly, as it was, if it weren't for him all that wonderful, wonderful information might have gone to waste as he knew that his damn lucky friend didn't appreciated the true value of his heritage.
"I didn't say," was the bemused reply of Hadrian gave at that, earning himself a glare, "but I have to be at least fourteen. But why should it matter to you when...Just kidding, just kidding!" he hastily amended trying to sooth the ire of Sirius who was now positively glowering at him murderously.
He should have known better by now, really. Nobody came between his friend and a book. Never happened and never will, he thought amused to himself as his friend huffed in his armchair.
"That long, huh?" Sirius inquired with a pout. "Well then, I just have to keep us occupied in the meantime for the time to pass faster, isn't that right Hadrian?" he suddenly said, with a mischievous smile on his face.
"And what, exactly, do you suggest doing?", inquired Hadrian warily, not liking the maniac gleam in the other's eyes not even one bit.
"Why, my friend, that should be obvious," Sirius replied, his grin getting broader. "Just two words – world domination."
Hadrian stared. And blinked. And stared some more.
"Huh?"
HP-Chronic Hero Syndrome
Regulus was bored. Like utterly and completely so. Also, he was stiff.
Sitting still for such a long time in an uncomfortable chair could make one became so after a while, he reckoned.
He let out a weary sigh.
Just how long did that damn healer planned on making him and his family wait? Didn't he knew who they were? They were the Blacks, a noble and ancient pureblood family, they shouldn't be forced to wait but rather the opposite.
He took a deep breath and calmed himself. It wouldn't do any good to throw a tantrum at the moment, as it wouldn't solve anything with the sole exception of making him look like a spoiled brat in front of his aunt and uncle. And that simply wouldn't do.
From the corner of his eyes, he took a glance at his family and he was pleased to notice that they also didn't seemed too pleased with being made to wait for so long, if one were to judge by their small frowns and pursed lips.
But, sadly, there wasn't anything that they could do since they were informed that the healer they came to see was busy doing a healing session to an wizard who had been brought in a critical state, on the brink of death, after being poisoned with a concoction made using various deadly poisons. So unlucky.
Looking at his aunt Druella, a beautiful yet sickly-pale women, with straight, light-blonde hair and pale-blue eyes, that was clutching in her hands the corners of her simple, but expensive, dark-red robe nervously, made Regulus want to find and strangle the bastard that caused his family this suffering.
First his brother Sirius and now his cousin Andromeda? That bastard was going down. And going hard, if he was to go judging by his stone faced father and uncle that were practically radiating killing intent at the moment. Both men were dressed in black fitting robes and standing with their back straights as an arrow, their silver eyes observing everything with an eerie, sharp accuracy.
Regulus couldn't recall any other situation in which he saw those two looking more dangerous than at the moment.
And that was saying nothing of his mother.
Emanating a cold fury with her lips pressed into a tight line, she stood more regal than ever in her midnight-blue robes while she suddenly clutched in a supportive manner the hand of his aunt, who gave a soft smile at the gesture.
Usually, such emotional acts were to not be done in public as it depicted weakness and if his mother, of all people, decided that it was necessary for her to do so, then his aunt Druella was feeling worse that he had imagined her to.
As he let his eyes trail over the tastefully decorated office in which they were brought in to wait for the healer, a spacious room with large windows left open to let the afternoon sun pour in while the light-blue draperies swished gently in the breeze, with a small desk, neatly organized, siting right in front of them and with some shelves full of books aligned at the wall, a room that he would have enjoyed to be in if it wasn't for these damn uncomfortable chair they were forced to sit in, Regulus mused upon the events of yesterday when, after reading Sirius' letter, they went to Cygnus' house.
Once they arrived there, and as soon as they finished dusting themselves of any dust particles that got stuck on their robes while the used the floo, they shortly got to work, each having a certain task to accomplish.
Orion was tasked with finding a healer specialized in cases regarding compulsion webs and making an appointment with said healer for that very evening, while Cygnus was to floo Hogwarts and explain the situation to the school's Headmaster, one Tom Riddle fellow that it seems his family greatly respected, before returning to the mansion with Andromeda in tow, without letting any other soul know about taking the girl home for a check up -with the exception of Narcissa that is-, specially not Sirius since they wanted him to enjoy his life at Hogwarts without any reminders of his difficult ordeal.
Walburga took charge of the mansion, ordering house-elves around to cook meals or clean up the place,while Regulus was made to spend the time with his aunt Druella to try and take her mind off the situation at hand.
An impossible task, if he ever saw one, but at least his aunt made an valiant effort and tried to play a game of wizarding chess with him while they waited for the return of Orion and Cygnus.
The first to return had been Cygnus who was accompanied by an ashen-faced Andromeda that was immediately engulfed in a hug by her mother, who started to cry on the girl's shoulders, whispering things like 'don't worry' and 'everything will be alright, sweetie', between sobs.
The time spent waiting for Orion's return with the healer had been tense and awkward, nobody knowing what to say without making the situation worse and ,when the fireplace's flames became green, out of them stepping his father and an unknown man that seemed to be in his forties, with short, white hair, tanned skin and hazel eyes, Regulus barely stopped himself from jumping up and down in joy at a diversion from the awkward atmosphere.
The unknown man proved out to be healer Marconi, an private healer who owned his own clinic and who was specialized in dealing with rare affections, as the ones caused by a compulsion web.
Dressed in pure white robes, without any speck of dirt on them, Marconi had a rather no-nonsense air about him and he didn't wasted any time in presenting the harsh truth to his new clients.
"Compulsion webs are hard to get rid of," was the first thing the man said in a dead-pan voice as he made eye contact with everyone in the room, "though not impossible. Young Sirius' situation is enough proof of that, though his survival is owned in a very large part purely to luck as the ritual he chosen to use could have very well ended up killing him instead," he continued making Walburga flinch at being reminded of how close to death her son had been.
"I have to admit that I'm very disturbed with this situation,"the healer continued stiffly, "as it is no joking matter and I'm afraid that I have to require your permission to make the incident public. And before you protest," he continued raising his palm up-front to put a stop to the on-coming protests, "I wanted to let you know that maybe your family wasn't the only one who had her members put under a compulsion web.
And that not many are lucky enough to discover the presence of such a web without the help of a specialized magical scan made specially for finding any traces of such web influencing the comportment of an witch or wizard. As it is though, without an concrete incident I can use as an example it is impossible for me to make the wizarding population take such a threat seriously and make them start requesting for the magical scan necessary to find out the truth," he said staring unflinchingly in Walburga eyes, who he quickly realized will be the one to make the decision of listening or not to his request, and at her slow nod of acceptance he felt his tense muscles relax just a bit.
"Thank you. Now," he said turning towards Andromeda who seemed very afraid of everything that was happening around her, clutching her mother's hand tightly in her own as her amber orbs seemed to be ready to burst into tears at any moment, "is this the young lady thought to be under the influence of a compulsion web?" asked Marconi sending a gentle smile towards the beautiful girl still dressed in her Hogwarts robes, with the Slytherin mark proudly displayed in the front and with her chestnut colored hair put up in a ponytail.
At her hesitant nod, Marconi beamed a brilliant smile and bowed formally.
"Then, young lady, do I have your permission to perform a magical scan on your lovely person", he then asked and Andromeda squeezed her mother's hand for one last time before going in front of Marconi and looking him straight in the eyes, full of determination.
"Do it," she ordered quietly but with a steely undercurrent in her voice. "I don't want to live unsure whether my actions and decision are really my own or rather made under an external influence", she replied and the healer couldn't help but admire her courage.
Not waiting any second in plus, he wiped out his wand and started to cast a pretty long Latin incantation as he pointed it towards the girl whose body started to become engulfed in an reddish glow after the Healer finished the casting.
"I'm sorry," was all Marconi said after he was done and promptly Druella started to cry, burying her head into her husband shoulder who also froze at the news. To suspect was one thing but to confirm it...
"What can be done to get rid of it," Andromeda asked refusing to allow herself to cry over the result. No matter that everything she ever done or said was a lie and that even her thoughts weren't solely hers, she could and would stay strong.
If her younger cousin manged to deal with this on his own, then so could she when she had all her family support.
"Not much for now, I'm afraid. The ritual your cousin used isn't in anyway safe, and I can't condone to it with a clean conscience," the healer said with a small frown.
"You will have to accompany me and accept being hospitalized into my clinic right now though," he continued addressing not only Andromeda but the whole room, " so that I could ran more in depth scans and testes which can't be done here due to the lack of proper equipment, necessary so that I could figure out the best way to break the web seeing that the the older one gets, the harder it is to get rid of it.
I will also have to contact a mind healer and curse breaker to consult them over the matter. As it is, the answer to that particular question can't be answered until tomorrow, at the earliest," Marconi said and, after going over some technicalities with Cygnus and Orion, he, Orion and Andromeda went to the clinic leaving the other occupants of the house cope with the news.
Once they were gone, Druella stood up and locked herself into her bedroom, crying herself to sleep while Cygnus proceeded to drown his sorrow in alcohol, leaving Walburga and Regulus helpless to do anything to, well, help.
And here they were now, nerve-wrecked and miserable, waiting for the healer to come and tell them if there was any safe way to get rid of Andromeda's compulsion web, healer who seemed to take great pleasure in torturing them with the wait.
Just as Regulus thought that enough was enough and decided to throw out the window any sense of decorum to start behaving like the child he was, the door of the office were suddenly opened saving him from such a shame as Marconi entered through it, tired looking but seemingly bearer of good news if one was to judge by the mouth splitting grin he was wearing.
"Ladies, gentlemen, I bring you good news. There is still hope for your daughter."
...TBC...
* I can't believe it (well, at least this is the closest English expression that has almost the same meaning as it's French counterpart, while an word for word translation will be – It's not possible!) He isn't even French!
**Your Majesty (Chinese formal way to refer to the ruler)
***Emperor(Chinese formal way to refer to the ruler)
****Crown Prince (Chinese formal way to refer to the heir of the ruler)
*****Revenge is a dish best served cold(French quote that makes it's first identified appearance in European Literature in the 1841 French novel, "Matilde" by Marie Joseph Eugène Sue, though it's first appearance is often wrongly credited to the 18th century novel "Les Liaisons dangereuses" - Dangerous Liaisons- by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos though it does not, in fact, appear there in any form)
AN/ Hi minna-san ^-^
Firstly, I want to apologize to all those who have me in their alerts for receiving a mail for the same chapter, but, as one could see, I changed quite a lot of it. It's just that I HAD to change it as many said that the original version lacked 'life', something with which I certainly agreed and decided to change-though I'm not sure if I did a good job of it ( and by the way, I so blame the 'lack of life' of the original chapter on the technical details that had to be written sooner or later).
Secondly, this chapter couldn't be written without the help of LyreXu and Blurryou , who helped me in understanding better the Chinese and Japanese culture and for that I owe them a big THANK YOU!
A big THANK YOU also goes to Zana, my lovely co-writer, and all those who reviewed and helped me improve the chapter.
Also, I'm very happy to see how many of you picked up on all the questions the compulsion web will rise- poor Sirius, he would have never though that the excuse he used to hide the obvious changes in comportment will bring such a storm in the wizarding society, isn;t that right ? ^,^
And, to help calm one of my lovely reviewers,Seithr-Kairy , don't worry! Not only members of Dark families will be revealed to be under compulsion webs! Another thing for my readers to ponder *smirk*
Also I want to add, to soothe the worry of another reader dalistar123 (by the way I tried to fix the POV problem, did I succeed?), that, though Sirius wants to enter the Hywel archive, I didn't specific if he could or not enter it. Maybe he can, maybe he can't, only the future will tell but for now it is uncertain*evil grin*
And, this is for ALL my readers to know, I wanted to say that Hadrian is not a pushover in my story, in anyway. He would not let others decide his life for him and, when he complies and does as he is told, it usually means that what the other wanted him to do helps him in furthering his own plans. Even if this isn't clear now, it will become so after more chapter, I hope. Also, you have to take in consideration that he is in the body of CHILD so he has many limitations due to his age.
I hope that clears some things up and, if there are any more question you have in mind or suggestion to give, please don't hesitate to do so as they will help me greatly.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter^-^
Ja ne^.^
Sara Blake
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PUSH THE BUTTON! YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO~ ^,^