Chapter Fifteen - The Future (Part 1)
Harry barely registered Andromeda's cry of surprise when he fell to the floor. His mind was consumed with the memories that were overwhelming him. They came in fragments, some like movies and others like photos. He closed his eyes in a futile attempt to block out the onslaught, not seeing Teddy call the emergency Varia number, or hearing him panic when no one answered. The world faded around him, and he was consumed by memories of a future that had been and would never be.
Harry had finally given into the inevitable and quit his job at the salon. Alberto and Daniela both seemed sad to see him go, but also guiltily relieved that the chaos that followed him would leave as well. The salon would remain under Varia protection, so Alberto and Daniela didn't have to fear imbecilic Mafiosi who had an axe to grind with the Varia and thought going after unaffiliated civilians was the way to go.
He split his time fairly evenly between the Varia and Teddy. The eight year old had been demanding to visit the Varia Headquarters, and Harry had finally agreed to ask Xanxus.
"Do what you want, trash. Just keep the brat out of my way," Xanxus said, before throwing a glass at Harry's head.
Bel was ecstatic at the news. That weekend, Harry brought Teddy over, and Bel spent the entire day dragging the younger boy all over the mansion, showing him secret passages and commanding all the minions he came across to treat his kouhai with the utmost respect. He even paid Mammon to show them some illusions.
Xanxus only made a brief appearance that weekend, but Teddy was enthralled. He terrified Andromeda when he insisted on having red eyes for the rest of the week.
Harry called Squalo after stunning the would-be assassin. The swordsman answered the phone by the third ring, despite it being three in the morning.
"Voi! What is that, the third this month?" he said. Squalo didn't really care much about phone etiquette.
"Yeah," Harry sighed. "This is getting ridiculous. Tell Xanxus I'm accepting his totally-not-an-offer and moving in. Civilians are going to start getting hurt soon."
"Sure thing." Squalo sounded entirely too happy. "I'll send a couple of minions to pick you up and take care of the trash. Your room'll be ready for you when you get here."
Harry spent the next five minutes packing up his apartment, grateful once again for Magic. Everything he owned fit into one suitcase, except his hair products which had their own bag. Enough of them were potions that he didn't want to risk shrinking them. Some potions reacted to that rather explosively.
Once he arrived at the mansion, Squalo led him to the same room he had stayed in all those years ago. Harry rolled his eyes, but set his bags down. It didn't matter how obvious they made their hints, he wasn't going to become the Cloud Officer. He had put fighting and violence behind him, there was no way he would voluntarily become an assassin. Babysitting them was quite enough for him.
Teddy gave Xanxus a set of feathers for his hair. A white one from his owl, a black one from a raven that he had spent the best part of three months befriending, and his prized possession, a phoenix tail feather. Harry still didn't know where Teddy had got it from, but he hadn't thought his Godson would ever part with it.
Xanxus had taken the hair ornament with a look of bemusement and a grunt of thanks. Teddy had been disappointed by the lack of reaction, until Harry told him how Xanxus had worn it in his hair to meet with his father. It quickly became the man's lucky charm, and he wore it whenever he was going to a particularly stressful meeting. Nobody commented except Lussuria, who cooed about how sweet it was. The flamboyant man was promptly shoved through a wall, and found himself spending the next three months dealing with the new recruits.
"So you're the young man who's managed to win the trust of the Varia. You must be quite remarkable."
Vongola Nono was just like Dumbledore. Bright eyes and a kind smile hiding cunning and ruthlessness. Harry didn't trust him as far as he could throw him, although he freely admitted that he was biased by the Varia.
Only Xanxus and Bel were with him at this little meeting. Squalo and the others were needed back at the headquarters to keep things running. Xanxus looked half a breath away from pulling out his guns, and Bel had his hands tucked into his pockets, a sure sign that he was barely resisting pulling out his knives.
"The Varia trust those who are worthy of trust. There's nothing remarkable about it." Harry made sure his voice was calm and polite. One wrong move and the room would ignite faster than Xanxus' X-Gun. Despite that, he couldn't resist baiting the old man who had betrayed his son so badly without even realising what he was doing.
"Still, for someone to move into the Varia Headquarters without being a member is unheard of."
"Without being a member? Someone has been misreporting things to you I'm afraid, sir." Calm and polite, stay calm and polite.
Xanxus froze beside him. Harry had always been adamant that he wasn't an official member of the Varia.
"Oh?" The smile had dropped.
"I'm a part of the Varia support system. Esper Mammon wrote up the contract. Xanxus decided that I could do my job better from within the Mansion, and I obliged.
"You call my son 'Xanxus'? So he's not your Boss?"
Xanxus snarled, and had an X-Gun in his hand before Harry could blink. Immediately, Nono's Guardians were positioned for a battle, and Bel's knives were whirling between his fingers. Harry laid his hand on Xanxus' arm, earning himself a fierce glare.
"I have nothing but the utmost respect for Xanxus. That I don't call him 'Boss' is nothing but personal preference and a running joke between us. If you would refrain from making such insinuations, I would appreciate it." Harry's voice was like ice, and it seemed to cool the tension in the room. Until one of Nono's Guardians decided to open his mouth.
"I didn't think that anyone could collar Xanxus. I'm impressed."
Harry didn't bother erecting a shield. He just watched as Xanxus disintegrated the antique table in the middle of the room, before pointing his X-Gun at the idiot who'd spoken.
"Maybe your problem is that you treat Xanxus like someone who needs to be collared, instead of a brilliant leader and a loyal asset to the Vongola. Xanxus was right. You're all trash."
With that, Harry spun on his heel and marched out of the room, Xanxus and Bel both laughing behind him as they followed.
There was a prophecy. Of all the things that could screw up his life, he hadn't expected a prophecy. Instead of it being hidden away in the Department of Mysteries where it couldn't hurt anyone, somehow this one had been leaked. Apparently the 'children of the Sky would fracture', and the world would be destroyed. Somehow, everyone had decided that he was one of the 'children of the Sky', and there was a nationwide manhunt going on for him. There was no way he was stepping foot in England until the chaos died down, although Teddy was frustrated. He was stuck in Hogwarts, and bombarded with questions about when Harry would come and save everyone. Harry watched the news as more and more drastic measures were proposed to keep the chaos from coming. Every theory from dark Magic making sentient rainclouds to flood the world to Quidditch players conducting evil rituals was being splashed across the front pages. Harry didn't know what it meant, but the mention of 'Sky' set all his instincts ablaze. There was nothing he could do about it other than warn Xanxus and stay more alert than ever.
Much to his surprise, Xanxus decided to invite Harry along to greet the young Decimo. Harry was absolutely that if Nono hadn't issued one of his extremely rare orders, none of the Varia would show up at all.
Well, Harry called it an invitation. In reality, Bel had burst into his room and dumped a bucket of cold water on him. When he had jolted awake, spluttering awake, Bel had danced away with an "Ushishishi! Boss wants you in the living room in five minutes!"
Groggily, Harry had dried himself with a quick charm, pulled on the closest clothes to hand – a pair of ripped jeans and a purple dress shirt which somehow had a bright pink stain across the front which refused to come out – and shoved his feet into a pair of old trainers. He was not messing around with boots.
After ten seconds of half-hearted effort, he gave up on doing his hair as a bad job and left it as a bird's nest. Checking his watch, he had two minutes left, so he gargled some mouthwash instead of doing his teeth properly and dashed through the corridors. He reached the living room just in time, judging by the amused glance Xanxus shot him. Everyone was dressed in their formal Varia uniforms, with everything polished and worn correctly. Bel even had his jacket closed instead of displaying his striped shirt. Xanxus was still wearing his jacket as a cape, like a child playing batman, but other than that they looked impeccable.
For a second Harry felt embarrassed and out of place. Then he grinned at the thought of the chaos he would cause, showing up with the Varia looking like this. He guessed that had probably been Xanxus' intention. Or maybe Squalo's; it was too benign a way of causing trouble for Xanxus.
True to his expectation, he got more than a few funny looks as they walked through the mansion. One particularly brave servant even dared to stop him and ask him if he wanted to stop and get changed. Xanxus kicked the poor man into a wall without even breaking stride.
The fluffy-haired teen sitting awkwardly on the fainting couch leapt to his feet with a loud 'Hieeee!' as the Varia burst through the doors. Harry knew that they made an intimidating sight, the most deadly men in the Mafia arrayed against a group of teens trying to fill shoes too big for them.
"Are you the Cloud Officer?" Tsuna asked, once semi-polite greetings had been exchanged and everyone was seated.
"Me?" Harry laughed. "I'm the hairdresser."
Gokudera leapt to his feet, dynamite in hand. "How dare you mock the Jyuudaime, asshole!"
In an instant, Bel had knives flying through the air. Gokudera was trapped in a web of wire, where one wrong move would cut open a major artery. They needed to realise that they weren't playing children's games any more.
"Have you got a minute, Mammon?" Harry called after the Mist Officer. She stopped briefly, but didn't turn around.
"Will there be any profit in the conversation?" she asked.
"Hopefully, quite a bit." That seemed to intrigue Mammon enough to follow him into the nearby meeting room.
"I need someone to manage my finances in England. Judging by the rumours Andromeda's been passing on, they're on the verge of doing something drastic. I need my money out of Gringotts and somewhere safe before anything happens, but I can't afford to go to England myself."
"Where is the profit for me in this?" Mammon asked.
"I have the equivalent of £10,000,000 in the bank, as well as some assorted books, jewellery and other heirlooms. I have no idea how to manage that amount of money. Invest it however you like, and you can keep a quarter of the profits of any investments you make."
Mammon considered. "This is an enormous task. I know that Gringotts doesn't currently offer you any interest at all, so whatever I make for you will be more than you have. I want three quarters."
"A third, and all of the books," Harry counter-offered. He really had no interest in the old books, as they dealt with obscure Magic far outside of his skill or understanding. They may as well go to someone who would appreciate them.
"Acceptable," Mammon agreed.
Levi almost toppled out of his chair in shock when Mammon passed Harry the bread that night without charging him anything.
Wizarding communities all over the world had seen similar prophecies. Chaos and destruction were coming on an unprecedented level. Xanxus had scoffed, but passed the warning on the Vongola. England had decided to lock itself down completely. No one was allowed out into the Muggle world, and no one was allowed to leave England. Whatever the threat was, it wasn't going to be able to get through. Harry thought the very idea was stupid, but once a politician had an idea in their head, a little thing like logic wasn't going to stop them.
Teddy turned up on the Varia's doorstep three days after the lockdown had gone into effect. He had managed to smuggle himself out of England with his metamorphagus skills. He had stolen a passport and changed his face to match it. Bel was preening that his teaching had paid off.
Andromeda hadn't been able to come. Her face was far too recognisable, and the Ministry was going all-out to make sure that everyone stayed within the borders. Trying to escape merited a stay in Azkaban. Teddy talked with his Grandmother on the phone every night, and seemed to be adjusting well to life in Italy. He'd spent his childhood looking up to his 'Bel-nii' and the Mansion was like a second home to him. He didn't miss Hogwarts at all, which both relieved and saddened Harry. It said something when a child was more at home among assassins that at a school.
Harry was enjoying brushing Squalo's hair. It was the longest he'd ever seen, on either sex, and now that Harry had convinced him of the miracle of conditioner, it was beautifully soft and shiny. His hair was proof of his devotion to Xanxus; the only thing he treasured more was his sword. It was rare that Squalo allowed anyone to touch his hair, but sometimes, when he was feeling exceptionally mellow and in need of some pampering, he would flounce into Harry's room and throw a hairbrush at him. Harry had long since learned how to interpret Varian, so he just smiled and got to work.
Xanxus burst through the door, not even bothering to knock. Harry looked up in surprise, not stopping his brushing. It was rare that Xanxus would go looking for one of his Officers, rather than demand that they come to him.
Whatever he had been going to say didn't even make it past the first syllable. He glared at Squalo in disgust, pulling his hair from Harry's grip and yanking it harshly.
"If you've finished flirting, Shark trash, go do your fucking job," he growled, shoving him out the door.
Xanxus paused to glare over his shoulder at Harry before storming away. Harry stared after him in bemusement. Flirting? And why had Xanxus been looking for Squalo in Harry's room anyway?
The minor skirmishes that had been plaguing the entire Vongola alliance for years were getting worse by the day. Everyone suspected the Gesso Family, but no one could prove anything. Harry had met their new leader once. Once was enough. Byakuran hit every single one of his 'get the Hell away' buttons. He couldn't be trusted, no matter how much he smiled.
"No, Teddy!"
"Bel joined when he was eight! Do you think I can't handle it? I'm not a baby any more!"
Harry took a deep breath. They had been fighting about this for a fortnight, and it was time to try a new approach.
"Theodore. Stop shouting and listen to me. No," he said as Teddy opened his mouth to respond. "Stop and listen. You are not Bel."
"That's not an insult," he said as Teddy's face twisted in anger. "Bel works with knives. He attacks from a distance, which negated most of the disadvantage of his age. Your biggest asset is your metamorphagus ability. Using that requires you to get far closer to your enemy, which is a lot more dangerous. You know that infiltration has the highest mortality rate of any mission."
Teddy had calmed down and seemed to be listening to him. "But, I have Magic. I can attack from a distance now."
"Magic is distinctive, and can't always be passed off as illusion. You know that Xanxus doesn't want to use Magic except where there is no other option. And he won't want you getting killed off before you're old enough for your morphing be useful."
"Old enough?" Teddy demanded.
"You're twelve, Teddy. You can make yourself look maybe two years older, but there are a very limited number of places where a fourteen-year-old infiltrator would be useful. Once you're sixteen or so, you'll come into your own, and you'll have four extra years of training under your belt."
Logic seemed to be working where emotion had been bouncing off him for the past two weeks.
"So I can join once I'm sixteen?"
"When you're sixteen I won't object if you still want to. It'll be down to Xanxus and Squalo though, you know that."
Teddy nodded, and threw his arms around Harry. "Thanks, Uncle Harry. And I'm sorry."
Harry hugged him back. "It's fine, brat. Just don't grow up too quickly, alright? Now, go track down a minion. You need to work on your German if you want to meet the language requirement."
AN: So, there'll be three parts to the future arc.