Skull leaves the Arcobaleno behind, storming from the clearing, his mind whirling through what he has learned and what his response is going to be. The purple staining his hair is fading into black as his magic surges, his shoulders are pulled back and his spine is straight.

There's grace to his walk, an edge of military precision to his manner and there's nothing they know of Skull in the man that walks away from the Arcobaleno.

They don't follow after that man.

Not because they don't want to follow him, but because they don't know exactly what is happening. That's not Skull, Skull who caves to every demand, every order, who cowers and blusters, and has never, ever presented himself as a Cloud. That's no one they've ever met. The World's Strongest Cloud in the midst of a Rage who wears the face of a simple stuntman.

Mammon hisses in displeasure under her hood. She is lacking in information. There is nothing she's dug up on Skull that would fit this situation.

As far as the Arcobaleno know Skull is only dealing with Mafia. The extent of their experiences only cover Flames, the Mafia and maybe rumors of other. So at this point, at the display of Rage, the switch in personality and appearance, they hesitate. He may be the 'weakest' of the Arcobaleno, but he is still an Arcobaleno. He's displaying all the proper signs of a Cloud he's previously lacked. Regardless of their opinion of Skull himself, they trust that as a Cloud raging in defense of something that is considered 'his' he may even take offense if he is denied his chance to rage at the cause. If it is implied he cannot do it himself. Especially when Skull has never Raged in their presence before, when it is so rare as to be nonexistent in their knowledge up to this point.

So they hesitate, even as they feel uneasy and confused.

Considering they don't know about the war Skull has lead, the magic that is the root of all this- considering they don't know about the different factions all fighting to cage their Cloud into a previously abandoned role, they could be forgiven for this hesitation.

After all, they don't know that Skull is marching back into a mess that has centered around their Cloud since he was eleven years old. One that ensured he grew up in an abusive house and drafted him into a war the very day he took his first breath- a war that only ended when he sacrificed his life to kill the opposing leader and managed to succeed despite all the odds.

Not yet.

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Skull's re-entrance to the Wizarding World is entirely subtle and done with an ease of an expert that Reborn literally beat into his head. (Aside from what he had learned during the war, at any rate) He is cautious and quiet. The man doesn't need the distractions and flamboyant behavior of Skull to hide behind, but even so, he holds his rage close, despite his intense desire to just burn everything all down around him until he found his family in the Wizarding World.

Harry would have. Harry would have raged across Diagon Alley, like lightning, all righteous fury and justice, spitting fire and leaving shattered windows and crumbled stone in his wake. Perhaps he would have rode on the back of a dragon, a thestral or a hippogriff. He would have drawn attention, demanded his enemies come to him lest he was made to hunt them down himself. He hated it- attention the likes of which the wizards gave him- but he would have used it, to bring his family to his attention. Would have worked it to his advantage.

Not the World's Strongest Cloud though.

Harry's experiences with war, his childhood self, learning to lessen the attention on him so Vernon didn't beat him beyond what he would endure and Petunia didn't starve him beyond what he could ignore. The parts of Skull that are cruel and cold and terrifying, the ones he has always hidden from the others, the ones he had honed in survival at the Dursley house and then leading and fighting in a war.

That is what makes up who he is right now.

Knowledge is power, and he has learned. He forged his own patience and learned the art of information gathering at the knee of the world's best. Honed the foundations of skills he had taught himself in warfare. The method of waiting until the moment is right, before he struck. This part of himself has learned the art of sabotage. Has watched and mimicked the ways of an assassin, a mercenary for hire. He has none of the hesitations or compassion of Harry, nor the need of Skull's entire foundation of hiding everything of importance beneath a veneer of clueless exuberance, bright colors and loud voices.

He will not hesitate to destroy what threatens what he counts as mine and his rage will be more like the wrath of the gods then the desperate anger of a hurting child.

His hair was naturally violet from his Flames- the vivid purple of his eyes from channeling his Flames as he would magic. He could easily switch between his natural looks and Skull's appearance, but he had to continuously choose one or the other based on magic or Flames. If he used both...his hair would usually remain violet, while his eyes would lighten to his famous green.

It was a magical accident stemming from the combination of Flames and magic (not that anyone knew, since the accident had happened after he left the Wizarding World and before Checkerface- they think it is dye and Skull lets them since it fits Skull's 'flamboyant and flashy attitude' after all.). He leaves his hair as it is- let the wizards think he is just a metamorphmagus wandering the alley- or even a young wizard in a rebellious phase. He does wear colored contacts however- his eyes now appear to be black and he leaves his punk style clothes on- black leather, combat boots, piercings and all.

It sells the image.

It also guarantees he's as far from 'Harry Potter' as he could be, as far as any witch or wizard looking his way is concerned.

Fools. Common sense is not common in such a world where magic is prevalent. A loss for sure.

His gain though. After all, why listen to people when they tell you that you can't do something? Obviously, you should try it before you decide it's impossible.

Harry- or is it Skull?- spends the next week slinking around in plain sight, gathering more in-depth information on the Wizarding World's movements since he had been away. He pulls on every lesson he had ever taught himself in an abusive home, where this skill meant his survival, and every tip and trick he had absorbed from observing Viper in her element.

He had never not kept an eye on the British Enclaves. They wanted to cage him after all, so Skull has watched from afar. That wasn't the same as up close and personal information gathering. The murmurs of the populace as they read the morning paper. The comments on their leadership and the newly passed laws and regulations.

He learns this in the first week of his return- the rise of Neo-Eaters. A new generation of Death Eaters. Death Eaters being trained to move around in political situations rather than out in the open. No more torturing, raping and murdering and leaving a calling sign. This is done behind closed doors.

He learns of the laws that were passed in a bundle, or under the notice of those that were sympathetic to his cause all those years ago. The racism and bigotry more carefully hidden, the prettied up lies mixed in with words like 'change is needed', 'we must advance', 'the new age of magic'. He learns of shadow tactics that are employed, of the 'accidents' the befall those who still remember the war and who exactly fought it. This war is taking place in the shadows and alleyways, all hidden from the public eye.

It's much harder to pass the blatantly racist laws and actions out in the open after the war with Riddle. The people trying to manage it have to be cunning and sneaky and rather good at prettying up anything they want passed so it doesn't appear to be anything but equal treatment. Extra measures for these minorities, 'they're different so they must be treated differently to ensure they're treated equally.'

It's with frustration and disgust that he learns of the subtle way Purebloods are managing to suppress the Muggleborns. Learns that these things are slipping under the radar because the laws are not read carefully enough- because people don't care enough. He learns of the few that have noticed and are fighting to stop it with little support. And if that someone questions too much, stirs the pot, well...Skull had seen this result often enough. He learns of the dark and dirty way people are having 'accidents' of the increase in 'disappearances'.

Honestly, Harry wishes he could be surprised. He's not. The majority of Wizarding Britain all cowered and hid in their homes while their children fought for freedom, justice and equality. The danger is long since passed, but the cause of Voldemort's rise still lingers in the apathy and ignorance of the people.

He learns of the fear the Neo-Eaters have of him. Their knowledge that 'Harry Potter' would have fought viciously against this. Their knowledge that Harry would have noticed and pointed it out. Their knowledge that if Harry Potter Man-Who-Conquered spoke against them, against any of them, the people would listen and their powerbase would crumble. That all the work they had managed in his absence would be for nothing.

He learned that the people fighting against the Neo-Eaters knew this. That this 'Neo-Order' had been searching for him endlessly even as they fought the Neo-Eaters. That they wanted a leader the people would rally behind, a leader they could trust.

He learned that this Order had been constantly going to Fred and George, to Bill and Fleur to learn his whereabouts, to learn anything they could use and that by doing so had lead the Neo-Eaters right to their doorstep.

He learned the four had been taken, but their children escaped. No one had told Charlie, who was still in Romania. He doesn't know where Teddy is, but there are signs that those still loyal to him, those he commanded so long ago, took his godson away to safety.

To Blaise Zabini, most likely. The Slytherin was on their side, more neutral then Light and he was definitely part of the mafia so he had contacts and connections to keep Teddy safe from everything short of an army.

The DA tended to travel in sets, old war habits meaning they kept to a 'battle buddy' system that would allow ease in dealing with most situations. Bill and Fleur were missing, but the twins- or a keyed in member of the DA, whoever was present at the time- would have retreated to the Burrow with the children and engaged all the wards. Susan Bones and Neville Longbottom would have offered up their manors to the rest of their people, waiting until Harry arrived before they made any loud or explosive moves. He was half waiting for an owl or Patronus before he made any large scale destructive plans.

Harry may have had a saving-people-thing, but Skull did not. Skull was ruled by apathy and amused himself in tormenting those around him for the facial expression they made at his utter stupidity. What did he care if the world burned around him?

He would save his people and no one else.

Harry may have rallied against the Neo-Eaters and led the charge against them, may have fought in the shadows against what Skull recognizes as assassinations and hits, but Skull, Skull who had just learned that all his work as Harry, all his suffering, all his loss, all his blood and tears, his death and his revival had been for nothing... His efforts were spat on and he was simply another page in history that would be ignored in favor of the Goblin Wars…

Skull would not.

People were following along like sheep as the Neo-Eaters led them to a Pureblood Supremacy-era Harry had fought so hard against, that the Order that fought against, they had not only failed to stop it from happening, but split their attention between the issue and looking for him to do it for them…

The fact that they had not only looked for him to solve their problems, but they had led the enemy to his family meant that Skull would not hesitate to remove the problem. By the root, and everything that came up with it.

It meant that Skull would do nothing more than burn the issue in front of him away. He would make sure his wizarding family was safe, he would demolish the Neo-Eaters that had taken his family, and then he would make sure the entire Wizarding World never called on him again even if he had to destroy them all.

Skull may have helped a bit before leaving out of a twisted sense of duty, because it had always been him to clean up the messes of the Wizarding World as they were placed in his path ever since he had been eleven years old, he may have helped because of the memory of his first friends, those Weasleys who had died, but these people had placed his family straight in the middle of their mess, placed their lives in danger and he knew Fleur was pregnant with another little one...and that changed things for Skull.

Everyone had a limit. Everyone had a line they drew in the sand. Everyone had a place where they would fight back.

It didn't matter if they had been abused or beaten down, it didn't matter if they stood at the top of the food chain. He didn't care if they were in perfect health, if they had broken both legs and were bleeding all over the ground. It wasn't an issue if they were the biggest serial killer to have walked the earth or the kindest man or women to be born, who had never said a bad word about anyone. Conditioning didn't matter, morals didn't matter; laws didn't matter.

None of that mattered in the long run. Everyone had a moment where they had enough, everyone had a moment where they would lash out, everyone had something that would shove them over the knife edge they balanced on. Everyone had a line in the sand that should not be crossed.

Everyone had a snapping point.

Skull's was finding out his family was in the hands of people who fought like the mafia- who murdered in the shadows and manipulated the political side in the light all the name of Voldemort's legacy. This was his snapping point.

He'd been immersed in the Mafia long enough, had survived a bloody war on the front lines, been surrounded by the world's very best killers long enough that Skull was not opposed to the idea of simply taking the problem out at the roots if provided a suitable reason to do so. Threatening the few family members he had left in the world, those that had walked the down the same path, fighting for freedom alongside him or those who left the battlefield to linger in the shadows of the Mafia at his side was plenty of reason.

These Neo-Eaters?

This Neo-Order?

Harry may have fought them, but Skull…Skull was an assassin. He was an assassin who had drawn a line in the sand and had it stomped on and way over.

And he would not give them a third chance at his family to get at him.

In the sky above him, an owl swooped down, bearing a seal of the Zabini family.

"Teddy's safe. B&F's children safe.

Allies behind walls.

All those who can be trusted have been told.

Happy Hunting."