"As I said previously, my ancestors pledged to have a descendant of my family to rise to the mantle of Slytherin Lords once again. I am simply trying to make them proud. Then again, Salazar was a Peverell, and I know that with his mage abilities, he was the one to have access to the Peverell Grimoire. I want that grimoire as part of my family." His eyes had a hungry look in them. "As you very well see Mister Potter, you and I have a lot of unfinished business."

Harry stood up, and faced the man who was all but subtly threatening him in his own Manor.

"All right Mister Sebastian Delacour, you have my complete attention."


Harry looked up at Sebastian in the eye- bright emerald green facing cobalt blue, as he walked straight towards him, his aura flaring dark green-a clear show of his primal emotion behind the emotionless façade. The dark lord in him wanted to impale the man with a dozen swords while the fourteen-year-old wanted to act with caution. He could come across as the bad guy or as the good guy, but the problem was- there was also a lot of middle ground in between, and he was not sure what would exactly be the best solution to the problem.

"Let me get this straight. You are demanding that I surrender the Peverell grimoire to you. Is that what you are talking about?"

Sebastian shook his head. "You misunderstand me. All I want is that the descendant of my family should be the future Lord Slytherin after you. If you can claim or have already claimed the Peverell grimoire, all I want is that it should remain under our one unified family. Slytherin."

Harry's eyes widened, as the simple reality behind the statement reached out to him. This man was not threatening him; he was here for a family coalition. An amalgamation.

"You are requesting me to marry into your family." Harry returned slowly.

"Yes and No. Marry, yes. Request, no. It is my wish that you consider this proposition very well, and marry my eldest daughter, reuniting the family line."

"Hmm..." Harry pretended to give it a thought, before he continued, "You are downright trying to force me to marry Fleur." A part of him could help but laugh inwardly at the entire irony of the situation. "Tell me, what does your daughter think of this? As far as I knew, she regards me as some sort of... little boy."

"My eldest Fleur is a Veela by blood. Veela have tremendous abilities of perception regarding magical auras. They are almost... magnetically attracted to powerful wizards. Knowing how you have already saved her life during the Quidditch cup, and also seeing your performances recently, I am quite... sure she will have no qualms about marrying you."

Was that why Fleur became my girlfriend the last time?

Harry's mind worked backwards, reminiscing the day of the Quidditch World Cup. Fleur's behavior... it had been nice, too nice.

"Nice to meet you Harry Harry Potter." She replied with a smirk. Harry grinned back, "It is an old habit."

"The boy-who-lived, walking alone here in the empty field?" She urged. "Running away from fans?" she suggested.

Harry grinned.

"Hmmm..." Fleur mused. "Well the tournament is about to begin. I should be there with my Papa." She nodded once and strode forward, only to stop midway and turn back, "You coming?"

Harry could only nod. "Of course."

She had been quite warm and lively, compared to the generally cold outlook she displayed out to everyone. Was that completely a part of the attraction? After the names of the Champions had come out, Fleur's reaction had underwent a complete reverse. It had been almost as if-she had been doing anything to not encounter him. Was it because she was trying to counteract the effects of the attraction? Was her indifference simply a middle ground between the irresistible attraction and her personal feelings against him?

Sebastian continued his monologue, bringing Harry out of his reveries. "So tell me Lord Potter, will you assent to my proposition?"

Harry stopped suddenly. A part of him was almost willing to leap out and agree, remembering the past events with Fleur. The more sensible part of him told him that Daphne was his girlfriend, and thus he should not do it. Besides, Sebastian Delacour would win over him if he agreed to his wishes. He took a too much time.

A little too much.

"Excuse me, I have to leave." Daphne commented out suddenly, and Harry turned towards her. Her eyes were watery and full of questions. He wanted to say something but she sped off, rushing out of the room, yelling for the House elf to take her back to the school.

Damn!

"So what do you think, Lord Potter?"

Harry looked up at the man in front of him. "Tell me Mr. Delacour, what happens if I disregard your proposition? What happens if I say No?"

Sebastian smirked. The way the conversation was going on- nobody would ever believe that the young man in front of him was mere fourteen. "Why would you not want to agree? I know that you have quite a... scandalous relationship with Miss Greengrass," he ignored the glint of fury in Harry's eyes as he continued, "—but you are Lord Potter and Lord Slytherin. Legally, you are in position to take on a second wife. Besides, my daughter is a Veela. Surely you see the benefits of the relationship?"

Harry regarded the man skeptically. Whatever his previous altercations with the man in the past had taught him; none of them matched the man he was talking to at the moment. The Sebastian Delacour of old was a ruthless bastard, sur; but he did love his daughter. This one though, seemed to have no trouble bartering away his daughter if his dreams could be fulfilled.

"You would trade your daughter for your dreams?" He hissed.

"Who says so? You are rich, powerful and immune to Veela allure. I have already spoken with my eldest and she is interested to be part of this amalgamation. In fact, she downright insisted upon the fact that if not for the sudden misunderstanding regarding the Triwizard Champion selection, she would have had been good friends with you, already. Do you understand where I am coming from?"

Harry narrowed his eyes. Inwardly he was bursting with emotions. His entire life right now seemed to be a lie. "Yes, I believe I do."

Sebastian crossed his fingers and stood in front of him, his hawk-like eyes trying to perceive Harry's thoughts, as he continued. "If you are still disinterested in pursuing this amalgamation, I will have to undertake... other means to convince you."

"As in?"

"As I have demonstrated previously, I hold information in the highest regard. Information is everything. As I have stated, I know who you are. You are the serial killer Peverell who has downright butchered purebloods right and left. I know you are the Boy-who-lived and everything, but the Wizengamot will not hold your fame as enough to prevent the actions that will be staged against you. The entire pureblood community will bay for your blood. You will have to flee from Britain."

"Really?" Harry snorted, "All of that because of your ridiculous claims that I am Peverell?"

"Well, not really. Nevertheless, consider this. My daughter is a Veela. She can sense magical auras and say if two auras are the same. All I have to do is use my sources and set up a Wizengamot session. I will simply ask her to take Veritaserum and then sense your aura in open court and then reveal if the two auras are the same. After that, the Wizengamot simply has to ask you to state an oath that you are innocent-an oath that you cannot take. Case solved!"

The lion in harry almost bared his fangs in fury.

"If you think your lordships will save you, you are wrong. You are not a proper Lord Potter yet, just a Head. Revealing your Slytherin heritage in open court will only help me to play their fears against you more easily. After all, the last heir of Slytherin was quite...detrimental to the society." He smirked. "Then again, there is the case of Sirius Black to consider. Even if you were to escape the clutches of the law, who knows... an old animagus, especially who is still mentally...improper, could suffer some bad fate in France. And before you think of involving the law on your side, I should tell you that I enjoy diplomatic immunity in Great Britain."

Harry grit his teeth in anger. "Tell me Mister Delacour, we are in my house at the moment. What prevents me from holding you hostage and extracting all your information out of your mind?"

"A memory lock spell."

Harry's eyes widened. Memory lock spells were an ancient art. The spell enabled the practitioner to simply lock away his memories using the help of a password. It was almost like a Fidelius in a way. If anyone tried to force open the practitioner's mind, the memories would automatically self-destroy.

"Yes, but it could turn into a vegetable for a lifetime."

"It could." Sebastian shrugged.

"You have come prepared."

"Delacours are Slytherins, Lord Potter. We plan for everything."

Harry considered the situation. "I could always just kill you here for once and for all."

"You could, but consider this- I know that you are a mage. I know that for all my political power, you could beat the shit out of me in a battle of magical power. Despite that, I came here with you. In your own house." His smile went feral. "I have my failsafes in process. Should you kill me, they will activate. Your godfather will be shot dead instantly moments after my death, and for all your powers, you will not be able to stop it. That will be the beginning. I have stored enough evidence to point the needle towards you. The French and British Ministry will become blood hounds, baying for your blood."

Harry clenched his fists in anger. This man had indeed prepared for everything.

"You are right. However, it does not cancel the fact that you will die. Then," he shot a feral look at Sebastian, "I will come for your family."

"Empty threat, Lord Potter. You went off to fight a basilisk to save the school. You faced Dementors to save your godfather. You faced eleven death-eaters to protect someone whom you did not even know. You faced a duel to the death for a girl you are not even sure you will marry or not. You saved the entire population at Godric's Hollow from the Fiendfyre at personal risk. I know you, Harry Potter. You may have this big bad mask out in place, but Harry Potter will not kill an innocent. He is the good guy. The boy whose parents died to save him, the boy who can do anything for his friends...that, Harry Potter is your biggest weakness, and my greatest advantage."

The lion in him wanted to leap on this insane maniac in front of him and shred him to pieces, but that was not an option. He was surrounded on all sides, and his Slytherin instincts told him that Delacour held all the cards. He would have to play the game, at least until he got a trump card of his own. There was a reason he was having the conversation in his study. There was a complex rune inscribed in the room that allowed him to sense whether the person was lying or speaking the truth.

Sebastian Delacour was certainly not bluffing.

"Very well." He grit his teeth. "What do you want?"

Sebastian smiled. "Like I said, I wanted to talk to you about my eldest daughter's life debt!"


Daphne paced furiously within the Room of Requirement. Not even a day had passed since she was guaranteed a future, and already Harry was deciding upon having a second wife. It was not something out of the blue, but somehow she had expected different from Harry.

Perhaps all men are the same. One woman is not enough to fulfil their carnal desires.

The door opened with a sudden bang, and Harry busted in from outside, his pace furious. Daphne looked oddly at him, wondering what might have caused such a reaction in him. Her own insecurities locked away, she addressed him. "What happened?"

Harry looked at her blankly for a minute. "That insane bastard got the better of me!" he snarled.

Daphne squinted at him, and urged him to continue. Harry stood up and held his hands out. Two dummies immediately materialized at the end of the room, which took the two large purple spells that hurled out of Harry's hands.

Daphne looked at her boyfriend sharply.

Controlled wandless magic. Just how powerful was he?

"What has got you so mad?" She finally asked. Harry looked at her and gnashed his teeth. "Delacour blackmailed me. Unless I agreed to marry Fleur, everything would go to hell, and I would be unable to stop it from happening. That man... he played upon my weakness and took advantage of it."

Daphne hugged him from behind by his waist, and murmured. "Tell me everything."


Fleur sat on her bedside, waiting in anticipation for her father to return. She had expressed her views about Harry Potter to him, telling him everything what had happened between them, and what she wanted. He had promised her that he would convince Harry to see beyond their petty fight and return as her friend, and possibly her future partner. The Veela in her had sensed the power in Harry the first day itself, but perhaps it was because of the effects of the Cruciatus, coupled with Peverell's overwhelming aura that had stolen the attraction away. Now that she knew that Harry and Peverell were the same, she was overjoyed. On the one hand, Harry was immune to her allure. On the other hand, he was damned powerful. The Veela in her would have danced to heaven when her father promised that he would convince Harry.

"Fleur?"

Fleur glanced backwards to find her father standing at the doorway.

"Papa!" She exclaimed, before rushing down the bed towards him. "What did he say? How did the meeting go?"

Sebastian smiled. His daughter's happiness was the most important thing to him. The fact that he had a chance to fulfill his family pledge only sweetened the deal.

"Yes. He has agreed."

Fleur squealed and hugged her father hard. "I love you Papa, you are the best!" she promised.

Sebastian smiled as he closed his eyes, embracing his daughter. "Anything for you, my flower."


"That...that decrepit, noxious moron..." Daphne swore vehemently, "-has he addled his brains? How can he-" she stopped midway, realizing that Harry was silent, too silent about the entire thing.

"What are you going to do about this?"

Harry gave a long-suffering sigh. "For starters, I have to get back to being friends with Fleur." Even her name now felt bitter in his mind. "We settled on a betrothal that will take place one year from now. I will have gained the permanent Headship and Lord of Potter by then, and she will have completed seventeen years of age. Both of us will be legible for marriage."

"Next year?" Daphne felt her throat go dry.

"No. The betrothal is next year. We have to marry by our seventh year. That is, four years from now. Daphne", he glanced at her watery eyes, "I do not want to sound like a Pureblood pervert, but me being the Lord of two houses, makes me eligible to take a second wife. I know you are only fourteen and quite young, but would you consent to marry me someday? I do not want to lose you."

Daphne looked at him with glossy eyes. "I will."

Harry smiled. At least he still had his girlfriend with him. "As for Delacour, he will get his due. Not today, but someday soon." He promised. He could not help but curse himself for the complications he had brought on himself because of hubris.

Never again. Never again.


Lucius Malfoy paced across his study angrily. Potter! That blasted brat had not only killed Karkaroff, sealing the deal and breaking off the contract successfully; he had even come out looking like the hero out of the entire process. Lucius had cleverly constructed a cunning plan when he had heard that Potter would be the one championing for Greengrass.

Knowing Karkaroff, there was no way the man could resist from showing off his skill and caliber in the dark arts. Knowing what he knew about Potter's performance, the boy knew at least two questionable curses and of course, was masterfully capable of controlling Fiendfyre. An unfathomable feat! Even the dark lord's powers at controlling Fiendfyre were slim at best and flimsy at worst. Most dark wizards used the hellish flames as a failsafe or as a means for destruction- never as a spell.

Knowing that the duel would make Potter reveal his knowledge of questionable curses, Lucius had sent the information about the duel to the Daily Prophet. When Potter revealed just how many questionable curses he knew, Lucius would take the opportunity and turn the public against him. The fact that he was a known parselmouth and the controversy about his selection in the Tournament would only hasten the process.

Yes, it had been a very clever plan.

Only that Karkaroff just had to go and summon Fiendfyre on the open grounds of Godric's Hollow.

Lucius had been devastated as his own champion tore his perfectly coordinated and casted plan to shreds. Harry Potter also followed with another spurt of Fiendfyre and actually used it to extinguish Karkaroff's monster. The Boy-who-lived had performed exquisite dark magic in front of the Ministry and esteemed guests, and had come out shining as a Hero in the process.

Damn you, Potter!

"Hit your own leg by your curse, Lucius?"

Lucius whirled around towards the direction of the sound. Sitting in his study, on his chair, was a redhead. However, this redhead also had a veritable dark mark on his left arm, and the mark was active, way too much active than Lucius' own.

"Who are you?"

"I am Trickster. The dark lord sends his regards." The redhead answered, his fingers toying with a wand- a wand very similar to- Lucius felt his robes suddenly and to his shock, his wand was missing. Glancing back, he found that the wand in the stranger's fingers was none but his very own one.

"Give me my wand." He snarled dangerously. Trickster smirked at him. "Come now Lucius, you and I can both agree that by holding your wand, I have the advantage of your complete attention. Am I wrong, Lucius?"

"What do you want?" Lucius snarled.

"As I said, the dark lord sends his regards." The man looked up suddenly at him, the hidden power behind his brown eyes almost x-raying Lucius, causing him to shudder, "-and has asked of me to inform you that he needs your service."

Lucius almost blanched. "The dark lord lives?"

"Tut, Tut, Lucius. You seem to have gotten slow in our old age. You have been the governor of Hogwarts all these years, and the dark lord was at Hogwarts for an entire year. Yet you say you knew nothing about it? I believe you are getting too slow...Perhaps this..." he touched his dark mark with his finger and smirked, and instantly Lucius dropped down in veritable agony. The stranger's eyes glinted with power and cruel amusement as he continued, "-the dark lord has tied all kinds of punishments to the dark mark. Why just yesterday he was telling me that he could very well kill any of his followers through the mark itself." His lips twisted into a cruel smile. "Perhaps he was not joking."

Lucius groaned in pain, his muscles twitching as the power of a Cruciatus shot through his nerves repeatedly. "STOP! Stop this!"

The pain stopped. Lucius looked up cautiously and got up to his feet, holding his cane for support. "I swear I had no idea. What does the dark lord ask of me?"

"He wants you to free Bellatrix Lestrange. I do not know how, but you have to do it. You have time until April. Do it, and perhaps the dark lord will be merciful. See ya Lucius." Saying so, Trickster apparated away, breaking through the heavy wards of Malfoy Manor.


### A short chapter once again, but it fit the bill. My second chapter for the day. I know that I let Sebastian win for the moment, but an all-willing Harry Potter isn't just what I wanted to create. Anyways, reviews please.