See first chapter for disclaimer and summary.
Author: ShaeLynn Teelle
Polite constructive criticism is welcome; FLAMES WILL BE FED TO THE DRAGON IN MY BED.
Chapter 6-14 years old-
"Back again, Noir? That's the second time this month. And mostly uninjured. You are still living with your relatives, are you not?"
Harry laughed quietly, "Yes, I am. I am aware that you know of Sirius Black, innocent escaped convict."
"Innocent?!"
"And my godfather." Harry then proceeded to retell the events of his third year in brief with William nodding a number or times and laughing. "It seems my family is a bit afraid of my murderous godfather coming to check on me so they have left me to my own devices. Occasionally Vernon forgets, but I simply have to mention the word godfather and he nearly runs from the room."
"Take care lest they discover his innocence," William cautioned.
"As the Ministry will never acknowledge it until they have Pettigrew, and they would never find out from me, the chances are slim they would learn of it. I am watching closely for any signs of that changing, do not fear," Harry assured the older man, feeling a warmth inside him at the concern.
"Well, what would you like to learn today?"
Harry thought for a bit, his smile fading and his features becoming grim. "What stones do you have that might weaken magic dampening charms?"
\/ \/ \/ \/ \/
William peeked out from the back room to see the familiar black cloaked figure standing there. "Noir! Wonderful timing. There is someone I wish you to finally meet. Come into the back."
The man disappeared again and, with a shrug, he followed William. Harry stopped in the doorway, taking in the scene before him. A young girl, about Harry's age, was moving about the backroom as William sat at the table covered with gems. She had light brown hair pulled into a loose braid that went to mid-back. Her complexion was light, but not pale and her hands as they moved about were graceful and well formed, even the fingernails were well shaped and healthy.
The girl turned to face him and he saw that her eyes were a blue-green, nearly aqua colored. Her features were strong but delicate and the shy smile that crossed her face was wide and bright, making her eyes sparkle. The smile was infectious and Harry found himself returning it.
"This is my daughter, Miina," William introduced, pride in his voice. That pride did not lessen as he finished the introductions, "And this, Miina… This is Vrai Noir."
The smile upon the girl's face grew larger and she bobbed lightly in a curtsy, surprising Harry. Her hands began moving then, and if he had not known she could not speak, he might have thought she was trying to pull at the very magic in the air around her. But he did know and so watched her closely. The movements were a bit exaggerated and it took him a few moments to understand what she was conveying, but then he did.
"Yes, the bag you made me was welcome more than you could know," Harry said as he pulled the embroidered bag from his pocket.
The sound of stones shifting was heard as he opened it and emptied it onto a clear corner of the table. The gems glittered and nearly glowed, all except the black tourmaline that had fallen into the center of the grouping, the other stones surrounding it.
"The care you put into making this has amplified the charge upon anything I have put into it. Thank you so very much for your gift."
She stepped closer to him, looking at the fallen stones in amazement. Miina had not found as much interest in the gems and stones as her father had, but had leaned more towards engravings and rituals. Without being able to attend Hogwarts, she had concentrated her studies on ruins and alternate forms of magic. She knew the basics that a fifteen year old should know, but knew more about her chosen topics than Hogwarts would ever teach.
The stones had not fallen into a scattered circle, instead they had tumbled out into almost a starburst pattern. The black tourmaline, the one which earned Harry his dark moniker was dead center of the others, the five other various protection stones surrounded it with the remaining five outwards slightly between the others.
The girl recognized the pattern, but did not know just why the stones had created it. Her mind ran through everything her father had told her of Vrai Noir, Harry Potter. She knew the basics of the abuse he had suffered and what he had endured at Hogwarts that he had told William.
Miina was pulled from her thoughts as Harry held out one hand to her. Without hesitation she gave him her left hand, but nearly pulled it away when he moved it over the stones. Her palm was turned to face downwards and held over the center of the stone spill. Harry's hand covered her own and at first all she could feel was that.
Then, the warmth on the back of her hand from Harry was joined by a warmth from beneath her palm, coming from the very stones themselves. She stared at Harry in shock, knowing even if he didn't that such a high level of connection was not typical for any but the closest of relationships. She should not have been able to feel a welcome from the stones' charge, only the charge, the magic within, itself.
"Now you see," Harry spoke quietly, recognizing the understanding in her eyes, though he was curious at the shock still there.
Miina nodded, then suddenly remembered her father mentioning what Harry had asked of him to teach the previous visit. She pointed to her upper chest then pulled her arms about herself, hands clenched as though they held something.
"Yes, that helped immensely. Thank you for the cloak pin. That was the only way I knew of what the old man had done. That pin stopped the Memory Charm he tried to cast to erase my memory of the event." Harry squeezed her hand lightly and smiled gently, "If you had never given me that gift, I don't know what would have happened."
She nodded and returned the smile. Neither noticed William staring at them as they continued to interact. Even he often asked Miina to write down what she was trying to say. He had never seen anyone understand her actions as clearly and easily as Harry was.
But then, the boy had needed to understand even the smallest of gestures growing up. Harry had once told William that he knew how 'upset' his uncle was by the twitching of his mustache or the lift of his eyebrow. William was only grateful that his daughter now had someone she could converse with, regardless of how that skill was learned.
-14 years old – Christmas
It was late, Hermione had sent him and Ron up to their beds like errant children. Neville had yet to return, but the others were all asleep in their beds. Harry sat writing, his quill quietly scratching across the paper. The letter was for Miina. It was the latest in a long line of letters since the beginning of the year.
Carefully and dutifully he wrote down everything he could remember of the decorations down to the very feeling of awe he himself had experienced. He wrote of the dancing and the band, the food and the mixture of robes and dresses from those attending. In her last nighttime letter Miina had all but pleaded with him to tell her everything about the Yule Ball.
Unlike Ron, Harry had not really waited until the last minute to ask someone to the dance. The first moment he was free after it had been announced, Harry had hurriedly sent out a letter to Miina, asking if she would go with him. Barely two weeks had passed when he'd been forced to write her another letter canceling the invitation.
He had overheard a Beauxbaton girl speaking to one of the Ravenclaws about how she wished her boyfriend had been allowed to come to the Ball. McGonagall had only confirmed it. Unless they were Ministry officials or their guests, no outside guests were allowed to come to Hogwarts for the celebration.
Miina's reply was understanding. It seemed William had taken it upon himself to ensure the safety of traveling there for his daughter and learned of the restriction the day before Harry's apology had arrived. It was then she asked for the descriptions of the night and had also sent his Christmas present early.
That year he was given a bracelet of jet, apache tears, and hematite, each engraved carefully with runes of protection upon them. She had asked him to wear it so she would worry over him less during the tournament and it had been upon his left wrist under glamours since. Even as he sat there he could feel the stones almost drawing the protective wards of Hogwarts itself in tiny tendrils, making Harry's personal protection stronger, more like wards, around his very being.
Harry hoped that she liked his gift in return. While he could understand her gestures, Miina was very limited in what she could convey. He had found a book on beginner's hand signing for the hearing impaired. Duplicate copies had been bought and one was sent to Miina with the promise that he would learn as well while at Hogwarts if she wished to try.
The letter was sent off with Hedwig and the gift. With a wave of his hand and concentration on his face, Harry conjured a small reflective surface hanging in the air in front of him. From beneath his pillow the hand signs book was brought forth and he began to review the gestures he had already studied, watching himself in his reflection to be able to recognize them when he saw them done.
-14 years old – Year End
Again Harry's hand snuck into his pocket, clutching at the handful of stones there. Something had been telling him that the third task was not going to proceed as planned and he had brought stones that he had never used before with him. Then, he was sent into the maze, a forbidding feeling within him.
His heart was pounding hard in his chest, but from adrenaline instead of fear. The moment he'd seen the thing that Wormtail carried and felt his scar nearly split open with pain, he'd known that Voldemort would be rising again.
With Wormtail's back to him, Harry concentrated hard and lifted the four unusual stones from his pocket, now knowing why he had taken them. The stones were behind the other man, keeping out of sight and sweat broke out on Harry's brow from the delicate work.
Each dropped into the cauldron at the same time, one at each of the four main points of the compass to augment their power. Then, Harry's flesh was pierced and he nearly laughed at the paltry wound. The blood was added. Voldemort rose, more human than Wormtail remembered if the man's shock was any indication. Even Voldemort himself seemed surprised when it was a pale, flesh toned, human hand that he held up in front of his face.
Voldemort had his wand returned and a mirror was conjured, revealing a human face, hairless but human, with red eyes. Before he could call for the rest of his followers, Harry spoke, distracting both men.
"You should well be surprised. Do you think any of those idiots that follow you would have known how to conjure more than the spell itself could? And about Snape, don't damage the spy. His heart is still as faithful as it was the night he accepted your mark. Rest assured, you'll be hearing from me soon."
Then, before the two could overcome their shock, Harry summoned both Cedric's body and the cup to him, his wand long since returned to his pocket. They reached the center of the maze again and red sparks emitted from Harry's wand as he prepared himself again to play things the Headmaster's way and to do what he always did, hide in plain sight.
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