Disclaimer: Obviously I do not own Hannibal or Harry Potter
Chapter 4: Release Me From This Curse
Sirius Black had been out of Azkaban for six months now. He'd taken up the position as a the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts at the urging of his one remaining friend after a nasty run in with his cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange, that nearly cost him his life. Remus had insisted that he needed some time away from the thick of things to calm down and put things in perspective. Continuing on with his reckless behavior would just get himself killed, and then he would never be able to discover what had truly happened to his godson Harry.
Sirius didn't care about dying; after all he had nothing left to live for. But he wasn't sure if he was ready to go to his grave without knowing what exactly had happened to his godson. The belief was that it had been some muggle killer with a vendetta against the Dursleys considering the way the bodies had been displayed and because their son had been given a muggle drug. Everyone just assumed that the wards surrounding their home must have fallen after their deaths, and the cousin's blood hadn't been enough to maintain them.
Sirius wasn't so sure. If it had been a muggle killer why had they taken Harry and left Dudley alive and unharmed? It didn't sit right with Sirius that they would have left the muggle boy behind but they had taken Harry. The not knowing was what truly bothered him. What sort of person had taken his godson? What had they done with him? How had he spent his last hours without anyone there to comfort him? These were the thoughts that consumed him in his downtime and he felt truly awful to have failed his best friend's son in such a horrible manner. To have failed little Harry who he had loved as if he was his own son. How different would things have been if he had taken the time to calm down instead of just blindly running off after Wormtail? He wouldn't have gone to Azkaban. Harry would have never gone to the Dursleys. And Harry would never have been murdered. It was all his fault. If he had just waited and not let his Black temper get in the way none of this would have happened.
This was the reason he had listened to Remus, and taken up the teaching post. Sirius knew he had to take a step back from the situation, and think before he did something that he might later regret. For now he would focus on his students. They needed someone to prepare them for the horrors that were to come with Voldemort, and his band of cronies running around. He thought of Harry, and how no one had been there to teach him how to protect himself. Sirius would make sure that these children weren't as defenseless as Harry had been when the monster who murdered him had come after him. It didn't hurt that Snivellus was a professor as well, and pranking the dour man helped to lift his spirits.
Still Harry was never far from his thoughts, and he would give anything to have him back.
/
"So Hadrian, tell me about your new school. Have you made any new friends?" Alana Bloom asked eagerly.
Hadrian was having lunch with Alana Bloom. His papa had gone away for a weekend long conference, and Alana had insisted on being the one to watch him. Hadrian was more than capable of staying home alone for an entire weekend, not that anyone else was aware of it. He was still just twelve and for most people leaving a twelve-year-old boy alone for an entire weekend wasn't something that was commonly done. For this reason Alana had come to spend the weekend with him.
Several months had passed since the horcrux had been successfully removed from Hadrian. His papa had been studying the horcrux. He had learned a great deal of information from the soul shard. The soul piece had access to the wizard's memories all the way up to the moment when the soul was split off from the main piece. It also had a connection to the main piece, which allowed Hadrian and his papa the chance to observe what the wizard was currently up to.
"This is but one soul piece. He has split his soul more than once, a feat I did not think mortals were capable of. I believe he would have gone completely insane had he not gotten his hands on the Philosopher's Stone. It restored his mind to its full health, however, should he discontinue to take regular doses of the Elixir of Life his mind will start to deteriorate once more. No one should split their soul in the way that this wizard has," his papa had explained after his initial examination.
Hadrian had to agree. The dark wizard had been far too careless and desperate in his pursuit of immortality. He was simply glad that he had gotten rid of the piece of the dark wizard inside him. He had started junior high at a very prestigious school in Baltimore, and didn't need headaches distracting him from his work. His papa didn't expect perfection but he did expect Hadrian's best efforts, and thanks to a wendigo's incredible abilities of the mind Hadrian was able to remember anything.
Doing so well in school had its disadvantages. There were plenty of boys who attended the private school whose parents spent more time spending money than they did with their children. This created a lot of bullies who were out to make others as miserable as they were. Several had targeted Hadrian. He wasn't allowed to eat them according to his papa. It would draw too much attention to himself if the bullies were to suddenly disappear. So he settled for visiting the dreams of his tormentors instead, and ensuring that they experienced some pretty horrific nightmares. He made sure he always starred as the monster in their nightmares, and soon they began to subconsciously fear him. They left him alone after that.
"It's going well. I've made a few friends," Hadrian offered with a bright smile to placate Alana.
"That's really good. I'm so happy to hear that. You're so much more mature than boys your age I had to admit that I was a little nervous about you attending middle school. At that age boys tend to be very immature, and at times cruel," Alana never afraid to speak her mind.
"Thank you for your concern, but I really am fine, and I'm only mature around adults. My father really instilled manners in me," Hadrian said, memories of manner lessons flickering through his mind.
When Hadrian had first started living with his papa he had been so eager to please him that he had been willing to put up with long lessons on etiquette. Of course this had only been after Hadrian had gotten enough control over himself to stop ripping chunks out of Hannibal's arms, and to hold his human form for longer than ten minutes. Sometimes he still slipped up. For example there had been incident during one of his soccer games the previous week.
He had made the school soccer team. They had quite a few games during the week and his papa had been able to attend only one of them so far. His game last week had been the first that his papa had attended, and Hadrian couldn't help but show off a bit. A boy on the other team hadn't taken kindly to the great game that Hadrian was playing and became aggressive with him. The large boy had tried shoving his shoulder into him, tripping him up, and had gone so far as to blatantly push him to the ground. Hadrian had felt his anger spiking, and his teeth sharpening. He may have come a long way in learning to control his more vicious side but he was still young, and sometimes experiencing strong emotions got the best of him. Hadrian had found himself preparing to attack the other boy. His fingernails had started darkening and lengthening. However, his papa had caught his eye just in time. One stern look from his papa had him instantly calming down. He certainly didn't want to risk his father's wrath or disappointment for revenge against one stupid boy. For the rest of the game Hadrian did his best to outrun and avoid the human boy.
After the game Hadrian had gone back to the locker room to change. They had won the game and their coach had given them a congratulatory speech. Hadrian then made his way over to where his father was speaking with a large man in a sports jersey who was shouting in his papa's face. The man must have been an idiot not to recognize the deadly look in his papa's sanguine eyes.
"You misunderstand, Mr. Allard. My son was not cheating. In fact it was your child who seemed to have some difficulty keeping his hands off my son," his papa had said as calmly as ever. But then again his papa used the same tone of voice when speaking to his victims so perhaps it wasn't a good thing.
"I hate when we play rich, hoity-toity teams. They always think they're better than us, and their kids are always spoiled little cry babies who can't take a few little taps," the man, Mr. Allard apparently, had spat back. Spittle had actually hit his papa's cheek and Hadrian could see that it was in that moment that his papa decided that this man would soon be joining them for dinner.
"Perhaps people's aversion to you Mr. Allard is not because they are wealthier than you are but because you are seriously lacking in manners," his papa had offered politely.
"I'll show you manners," Mr. Allard had snarled, his fists clenching.
His had father barely spared a glance for his fists, and looked entirely unimpressed with his display of aggression.
"I seriously doubt that, Mr. Allard. But I would love to have you for dinner. It would give you a chance to redeem your rather brutish behavior," his father had purred.
The offer had thrown the man and he immediately began making retorts about his papa 'coming on' to him. He then stomped off.
"What would you prefer sausage or liver pate?" his papa had asked.
"Sausage," Hadrian had responded with a grin.
His papa had rewarded him with a gleaming smile.
"This sausage is really good," Alana complimented. "But then again everything your father makes is delicious."
"Yup, father always insists on doing everything handmade. He doesn't often trust other people making his food," Hadrian grinned as he watched Alana eat. He had to admit that he understood his papa's morbid fascination with watching others eat his food. That and the puns. His papa's morbid sense of humor almost always had Hadrian working furiously to control his laughter at his papa's dinner parties.
"Well, how about after we go out and get some sundaes? They may not be up to Hannibal's standards but I bet you don't get to go out to places like that very often," Alana said with a mischievous grin as if they were sharing a secret between the two of them
Hadrian sometimes wondered if Alana forgot that he was closer to being a teenager than the little boy she seemed to think he was. Hadrian didn't mind too much. The younger she thought him the easier it would be to get away with things. So he agreed to ice cream, and the two of them headed out to a local ice cream parlor. Hadrian enjoyed his sundae even though he tended to enjoy the more savory tastes of meat to sweets. It was while the two of them were enjoying their sundaes that Hadrian caught sight of something peculiar. A man in robes disappeared into the alley across from the ice cream shop. He just melted through the brick wall. No one else had noticed the rather obvious disappearance so Hadrian came to the conclusion that there were wards preventing humans from noticing.
Hadrian felt excitement surge through him. This was the entrance to the small wizard shopping center that Baltimore boasted. Hadrian had been begging his papa to take him since he got his letter from Hogwarts. He knew quite a bit about the wizarding world but he had never actually step foot among wizards before. Hadrian was eager to see them up close for himself. He glanced over at Alana. There was no way he would have been able to slip away from her. Besides if he did, she would call his papa, and then he would be in even more trouble if his papa had to come home to help find him. But Hadrian thought that he might be able to manipulate her mind a bit. He'd come a long way in mind magic and slipping Alana into a hypnotic, trance like state would be a simple thing.
"Alana," he said so that she would turn and make eye contact with him. The moment she did he slipped into her mind, and brought her into that highly suggestive trance like state. Once her blue eyes were appropriately glazed over he knew that his attempt had been a success.
"You're going to go back to my house. I went with you. You have a lot of schoolwork to finish up, and so you'll leave me alone for the rest of the day. But I am in the house. I haven't left all day," Hadrian pushed the suggestion into her mind.
Alana didn't nod she just stood and went about completing his orders. It wasn't a perfect form of manipulation. There was the risk that someone would be able to wake her from it but hopefully she wouldn't encounter anyone else on her way back to the house. As long as that happened she should be fine, and she wouldn't be any wiser that he had gone off on his own for the rest of the day. It would also mean that his father wouldn't know that he had gone off on his own.
With Alana out of the way Hadrian approached the blockade to the wizarding world. He tested the seemingly solid brick barrier and was pleased when his hand just went right through. Feeling a surge of excitement spread through him he stepped into the barrier. Hadrian was slightly awed by what he saw. The street appeared old with a cobbled path and the shops themselves seemed far older than the city of Baltimore. Hadrian concluded that the wizarding alley had been here long before the human's had decided to build a city around it. The more he wandered around the shopping alley the more he realized it was more of a small town. There was a suburban area where there were strictly homes. Hadrian took a peek at a couple of them wanting to learn more about every day wizarding life.
He took a look in the shops and stopped in the bookstore looking through some of them to look up more information about himself. He was halfway through one of the books when he overheard the hushed voices.
"There's been another attack over in England," one voice whispered to another.
"It's getting bad over there. Thankfully we have an ocean to separate us from that madman," said the other.
"Yeah, but what happens when he gets bored and turns his sights over here. They say he's immortal. He came back from the dead. How could we stop a guy like that?" the first voice hissed back.
"I don't know, let's just hope he's satisfied with taking over Europe," the second voice said dismissively as the two of them left.
Hadrian couldn't help but be curious. Voldemort held a large curiosity for him considering his past. One day Hadrian hoped to meet the crazed wizard face to face. If for nothing more than to repay him for trying to kill him as a baby, and unintentionally turning him into a horcrux.
Hadrian left the wizarding alley satisfied with the day he had spent there. He'd enjoyed his time, and it had proven that he was capable of hiding his darker aura among the wizards. It was nice to know that he was able to conceal himself, and that he was able to fit in with them.
Feeling cheerful he headed home. However, he was not prepared to walk in and discover his papa calmly drinking a cup of coffee in the kitchen.
"Papa," Hadrian exclaimed in surprise.
"Hadrian," his papa replied in a low, dangerous tone.
Hadrian cautiously skittered around his papa sensing his anger and displeasure. It was not often that Hadrian incurred his papa's wrath, and he was more than a little terrified.
"Where's Alana?" Hadrian asked.
"I sent her home after removing the trance you placed her under. Luckily, it was well done. Who knows the harm that could have been done to her mind had it not been, especially without anyone else around to observe her while she was under such an influence," he said mildly.
"Papa I…"
"What were hoping to accomplish by going off on your own?" his papa cut him off.
Hadrian didn't see any reason to lie especially since his papa would find out the truth anyway. "I saw the entrance to the wizarding alley. I wanted to see it for myself."
"After I specifically told you no?"
"Yes," Hadrian hung his head.
"I have the rules I do to protect you, Hadrian. You are not yet ready to be among wizards. They are not like normal humans. They are more aware of the supernatural, and if they were to ever discover you they would seek to destroy you. Just like they have destroyed our kind in the past. Our powers may be greater but their larger numbers could easily overwhelm us. Never forget that," his papa said softly.
"I know papa. But I'm just curious, can you blame for that? I got that from you after all," Hadrian tried for a winning smile.
His papa just stared blankly at him not in the least bit charmed.
"You will have extra chores for the next month. You will also be grounded for the next two weeks as punishment for disobeying my rules," his papa announced.
"But papa…" Hadrian cried. Being grounded meant that Hadrian wouldn't be allowed to hunt or even stretch his legs in his ravenstag form. It would cause him to feel cooped up, and anxious. It wasn't damaging in any way, his papa would never do anything to hurt him, but it would be very irritating.
"No, it was your own choice to disobey my rules. You knew the consequences of such actions," his papa stated sternly.
"I know, I'm sorry," Hadrian apologized.
"I know you must be curious about the wizards. I will see what I can do," his papa relented.
"Thank you, papa."
"Don't do it again," his papa held out his arms and Hadrian quickly slid into them. There was no place he felt safer than in his papa's arms. He knew that he would be able to get through anything as long as his papa was by his side.
Five Years Later
"I have a question about last week's homework, Mr. Hardwicke," Hadrian requested of his chemistry teacher.
Mr. Hardwicke only replied with a muffled response, annoyance in his gaze.
"What was that? I didn't quite catch it," Hadrian cocked his head and reached over to pull the gag from his mouth.
"I always knew there was something wrong with you. You sick b—"
Hadrian stuffed the gag back in his mouth flashing his least favorite teacher a smile that showed far too many teeth.
"Curse words? That's awfully rude, Mr. Hardwicke. But then again such behavior is to be expected from a rude man like yourself."
The man glared back hatred and fear in his eyes. The man was surprisingly perceptive. From the first moment Hadrian had walked into his classroom the man had hated him. No matter how innocent he acted or how hard he worked, the man simply disliked him. It happened from time to time his father had told him. There were some humans who just had better instincts than others. They could sense the predator in Hadrian. For some the danger made them want to draw closer, and for others it instilled an instinctive fear that most often led to avoidance or hate. Mr. Hardwicke had been of the latter variety.
Mr. Hardwicke was a rational man who loved math and science. He hated the fact that he had an irrational fear of one his students, and treated Hadrian with extreme loathing. It didn't help that he was used to being the smartest man in the room, after all that's why he had been employed by the prestigious Baltimore private school, and Hadrian's intelligence made him feel inferior. The man had even gone so far as to taunt Hadrian openly in class, and to give him failing grades on his papers and tests. Hadrian had borne this treatment for months. His father had offered to speak to the principal. But Hadrian wanted to deal with it on his own, and he had something else in mind for his teacher. He waited patiently until his teacher headed off for his annual retreat to his cabin in the woods. Then he struck. Everyone would assume he'd gotten lost in the woods, and savaged by an animal.
"I'm going to give you a chance, though. A chance to save yourself. I'm going to free you, and the only thing you need to do is get away from me. What do you think of that?" Hadrian questioned, and once more removed the gag.
"I think that you're going to prison. I know these woods like the back of my hand," Hardwicke sneered. It wasn't exactly a smart thing to boast but then again for such an intelligent man he certainly lacked common sense.
Hadrian smirked, and began to untie him. He knew that the moment he was free Hardwicke would try and attempt to overpower him. Hadrian was going to show him why such an attempt would be futile.
Hardwicke was completely passive up until the point where the last of his restraints were removed. He attempted to tackle Hadrian and restrain him. Hadrian allowed him to wrestle him to the floor. The change from human form to wendigo crept slowly other his features. Hadrian savored the look of pure terror that flashed over Hardwicke's features as he came face to face with a monster straight out of the darkest depths of his nightmares. The man screamed like a girl and jumped away from him, scrambling away like a frightened rabbit.
"What are you?" Hardwicke gasped.
"A creature from the darkest depths of your fears," Hadrian responded as he stood to his full height knowing how impressive he looked.
In some myths wendigos were thought to be giants. They were partly true, and to humans they were certainly large enough. Hadrian had grown quite a bit over the years. He hadn't quite reached his father's impressive height of nearly eight feet but he was at least seven now. His horns had also grown and branched out. Again they weren't anywhere near the impressive set that his father carried but they were certainly sharp enough to gouge a person to death.
"No, this isn't happening. This is just a dream," Hardwicke whispered.
"A nightmare," Hadrian corrected with a flash of sharp teeth. "And you should really start running."
The man didn't need further encouragement. He clambered out the door and into the night. Hadrian waited patiently giving the man a good ten-minute start to allow him the brief hope that he had lost him. Then he was off, sprinting through the trees following the sweet scent of Hardwicke's fear. Hadrian came upon him surprisingly quickly, and it took mere moments to dispatch him.
Afterwards as Hadrian was heading home he felt a vague sense of disappointment. Hunting Hardwicke wasn't as satisfying as he had hoped. Perhaps his father was right. The older he got the less of a thrill hunting humans became. The physical aspect wasn't a challenge anymore. Hadrian found himself wanting a new challenge. He wanted to play the mind games his father was so adept at, and he knew just the people he wanted to try it with. After his sojourn into the wizard shopping alley five years prior his father had started taking him on short trips to introduce him to the supernatural world. They socialized with wizards and even took a few trips to the larger wizarding villages. It had allowed Hadrian to adapt and familiarize himself with their culture. He was confident that he was now capable of fitting in among them.
"How was your trip to your uncle's?" his father asked as he returned home that evening.
Even though Hadrian was careful in his hunting his father always made sure to spin the tale that he was visiting his mother's brother when he stepped out for a hunt. Just in the event that he would need an alibi.
"Fine," Hadrian responded.
His father's gaze lingered over him trying to assess his mood. "Did you bring anything back?"
Hadrian handed his father the cooler containing Mr. Hardwicke's liver.
A small smile creased his father's face as he peeked inside. "This is just what I needed for tonight's meal."
"Would you like some help?" Hadrian asked.
"Of course, and then perhaps you can tell me what is bothering you," his father's gaze met his own.
"We can discuss it over dinner," Hadrian finally said. He wanted a little more time to think over his own plans.
His father nodded his acceptance as patient as always. The two of them slipped into the kitchen to prepare dinner. They worked in companionable silence borne of years of working in tandem together. They set the dining table, and sat down to eat. Hadrian waited until they had both taken several bites of their meals before broaching the subject.
"How would you feel if I went to England for the summer?" Hadrian asked to start off the conversation.
His father's fork paused half way to his mouth before he was able to collect himself enough to bring it all the to his mouth. He took his time chewing to give Hadrian's question the proper amount of time to settle in his mind.
"May I ask what has brought on this decision?"
"I don't want to be Harry Potter but I'd liked to pretend to be," Hadrian said choosing his words carefully. "I want the chance to see the world I could have grown up in. I want to meet the people who knew my birth parents and see what they think of me."
"Revenge is a childish endeavor, Hadrian," his father chided.
"Who said anything about revenge?" Hadrian frowned.
"Lying to me is pointless, Hadrian, and it will only embarrass the both of us. I know you want to pick apart this dark wizard to prove yourself superior to him. You have grown bored of human prey and wish to seek more dangerous game," his father said staring him down.
Hadrian couldn't hide anything from his father. "All right, I'll concede and agree that is partially the reason I want to go. But I'm also curious as to what would happen if I were to reintroduce myself into the lives of the wizards who revered me as their savior from the dark. How I could change and upset things."
"You may be powerful, Hadrian, but you must remember that you are not omnipotent. Playing with humans isn't the same as playing with wizards. Yes, they are suspect to the same flaws as humans but their magic makes them more dangerous and more capable of defeating you. They also have greater numbers. That is how they were successful in wiping out our kind before. You are young and you would be alone against enemies who would see you dead," his father explained worry creasing his features.
"I'm not a child anymore. I want the chance to play my own games. I see the way you hide plain sight. I want to test my own skills," Hadrian said firmly.
"I do not feel comfortable letting you go so far away, all on your own for the first time," his father was frowning.
"You've taught me well, papa. I swear I won't reveal my true form. I would know if I got myself into a situation that was beyond my control, and I would retreat. I can do this. Please let me go," Hadrian pleaded.
"You are seventeen, soon to be eighteen. I know you are an intelligent and careful young man. But forgive a father's concern. I will always be worried about you. I have raised you since you were a young boy, and sometimes I still see you as such. If you are determined to go I cannot stop you. You will have to learn what it means to be on your own eventually. I can only ask that you be cautious and that return to me," his father said softly.
"Thank you, papa," Hadrian said a smile stretching its way across his features.
"Now, eat your dinner. You know how I feel about letting it sit for too long. It's not fair to the food after all it went through to make its way to our table."
In answer Hadrian picked up his fork and began to eat. The wizarding world wouldn't know what hit it.
A big thanks to raven1493 and Anaed for taking up the challenge of drawing baby ravenstag Harry. Also all of the chapter titles are from the song Disturbia by Rihanna so kudos to whoever guessed correctly. njchrispatrick was the first to get it correct.
I've changed things around a bit for this story. This was originally going to be a story with just 13 chapters and would be a mesh of the TV show and the Harry Potter books. However, I've changed my mind and I'm going to write two separate stories. This is the first one, and it is going to be just about Harry/ Hadrian growing up and the wizarding world's reaction to a darker him. It should be around ten chapters or so. The second story will be set completely in the Hannibal universe (with more of a supernatural twist) and it will follow his interactions with Will Graham and the rest of the FBI team.