House Of Black
A funeral was organised for Lord Kallig the next day aboard the Star Destroyer in the hangar bay, with the area filled to capacity with crew members, officers and stormtroopers. Aries refused to shed tears in front of so many people that were now under his command, though it was difficult to maintain his straight face. He had, again for a brief time after losing his Godfather, found a family member, and lost him soon after. Unfortunately there was no time to grieve, he had to return to the surface.
Within hours of the funeral, Aries was sat back in a shuttle alongside a platoon of Stormtroopers. Another shuttle followed behind, carrying naval attaches and other various officers and equipment. They landed under cover of darkness in a wooded area near Privet Drive, where Aries could quickly make his way back to the House and pretend he had been there the entire time. The moment they had landed, he had sent Hedwig off with a note requesting that the Headmaster visit him regarding Sirius' will.
He spent a few hours alone in the dark, waiting outside the house in a hedge hidden from plain sight so as not to attract any attention from any muggles passing by or from the Dursleys inside the house. Just as Aries was about to give up waiting, he heard a small crack and there stood Albus Dumbledore, looking at the Dursley residence with a curious look on his face. Before he could move from the street and on to the pathway however, Aries quickly got out of the hedge with his hands up in surrender.
"Sir, it's me, Harry!" He shout-whispered, trying not to grimace at using his old name
"Harry?" Dumbledore frowned, looking Aries up and down "What are you doing outside? You should be indoors my boy."
Aries shrugged, "You know how the Dursleys feel about our kind Sir, and I felt this meeting would be quick enough that it could be done outside." He had been thinking about how to get the note from Dumbledore with the address all night, and he crossed his fingers that it would work.
"Sir, after what happened at the ministry, I want to invite Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood to Grimmauld Place. For their safety, I mean."
Dumbledore hummed, his frown deepening. "My boy, I'm sure their homes are plenty safe for now. I don't see any need-"
Aries cut him off quickly. "I don't mean right now Sir, but if they ever need somewhere to go should they be attacked. They will be visiting the Burrow once I'm there, so I wanted to pass on the address, just for my peace of mind." He winced internally, fully believing that he would be denied.
The Headmaster looked at Aries speculatively over his half moon glasses before sighing. "Very well, I shall write you a note. However, nobody else must see it. Promise me Harry! The moment young Mr Longbottom and Miss Lovegood see it, it must be burned." He paused slightly before continuing. "I must admit that normally, I would say no due to security concerns. However, the House has been left to you in Sirius' will."
'Ah, so the crafty bastard has read the will and felt no reason to let me know then. Still, gotta play dumb.' He thought to himself, putting on a confused face for the Headmasters benefit.
"Wait, he did? It's mine?"
"Yes, Harry." Dumbledore nodded along "Grimmauld Place is now yours to do with as you will. However, I will request that you allow the Order to maintain it as Headquarters, once the security has been renewed and updated with your ownership. I must also insist that you remain here with your relatives, until we come and fetch you to take you to the Burrow."
Aries snorted internally. 'Fat chance' he thought to himself. "Yes Sir, I will." He lied nervously.
With that, Dumbledore reached into one of the many pockets of his brightly coloured robed and took out a quill and small piece of parchment. After writing down the address, he handed it to Aries with one more warning. "Do not send this by owl. Only give it to your friends by hand, and once it is read, remember. Burn it! I shall be along next week to take you to the Burrow."
Aries nodded along "Of course Headmaster, thank you."
Dumbledore gave Harry a slight bow "Goodnight Harry, remember. Stay put." and with that, turned on the spot and apparated away.
Aries sighed with relief. He couldn't believe the Headmaster had believed him! Quickly making his way out of the garden and down the street, he made his way quickly back to the woods. Once there, they reboarded the shuttles and made their way in a short flight to London. Landing in the park in front of the line of houses, Aries quickly passed on the note with address on to the senior officer escorting him, Lieutenant Davril, who then passed it on with an order for everyone to memorise the note. The obliviators quickly got to work, checking the area for anyone who had spotted the craft, apparating between targets, whilst the rest of them made their way into the house.
They were immediately met with screams from the portrait of Walburga, Sirius' mother "Mudbloods, Blood traitors and Filth!"
Aries immediately roared at the portrait in anger "You will be silent, woman! I am the Lord black and these are my men, you will treat us with respect or you will be removed and disposed of!"
The portrait of Walburga stopped screaming, looking at the young Lord in shock, before muttering a subdued "Yes my Lord, of course."
With Walburga now quiet, he turned to the Imperials following him inside.
"Setup the bunks down in the basement, the room has been modified with expansion charms. Officers can take the rooms upstairs, there are plenty of them. The library is off limits to all but myself, however. The command centre can be set up in the living room, along with communications. Make whatever modifications to the house that you need, especially for the command centre. The door will be replaced with one of our own from the ship."
When he had been told about a communications centre being set up in the house, he had been quick to dismiss the idea knowing that modern technology simply did not work in magical areas. However Captain Talis had shot him a crafty smirk, informing him that any technology they would be bringing with them would work just fine. He even went as far as to tell him that one of their scout droids had even been through Diagon Alley at night and was fine, so Aries had taken his word for it.
With the orders given out, he made his way to the room he had last stayed in. Once inside, he gave out a huge sigh of relief, before collapsing onto the bed. In front of the bed, Aries could see himself in the large mirror attached to the wall. He had grown quite tall since starting his nutrient potions, now standing at an impressive six foot and one inch. To be honest, he was surprised Dumbledore hadn't mentioned this massive growth spurt, but he didn't let himself worry too much about it. Before he could think anymore on it, he fell back onto the bed and almost straight to sleep, exhausted with the events over the last couple of days
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Scene Break
The next morning, he awoke after one of the first decent night sleeps he had had so far this summer. Getting dressed into some of his older clothes, cast offs from Dudley, he made his way downstairs and was surprised to find the House brimming with activity. Stormtroopers posted at various doorways or moving around, organising equipment. Officers and other naval personnel sat at the kitchen table, eating their breakfast. He coughed slightly as he entered the kitchen, and they all immediately stood up and to attention, some still with food in their mouths.
Aries quickly raised a hand, gesturing for them to sit back down. "Oh please, continue, sorry." He bit out nervously, feeling bad for having disturbed them all. They all hesitantly sat down, eying Aries as he moved to sit himself at the last available seat at the head of the table. Once he was seated, they all continued to eat.
Lieutenant Davril was the first to speak. "Good morning my Lord. I hope you slept well?"
Aries nodded and was about to reply, but yawned instead.
The Lieutenant simply smiled and continued. "I am glad to hear it, my Lord. You will be pleased to know that overnight, the Command centre has been set up and is now fully functional. The engineers report that the communications centre will be up and running within two hours. Also, I have assigned part of the Stormtrooper platoon to cleaning duty, as it would seem the house has been gathering dust for some time."
Aries nodded once more before replying. "Very good Lieutenant. Did the obliviators have any problems last night?"
The Lieutenant shook his head as he made his way through a slice of toast. After finishing his mouthful, he answered. "No my Lord. All witnesses have been wiped. They returned an hour ago in fact, and are currently asleep in their quarters."
Aries allowed himself a small smile. "Good. Use today to continue getting the house in order and prepared. I have some studying to do in the library. Also, be advised, members of the Order could come at any time, so have guards at the ready. Do not harm them, simply inform them that I am here, and you are under my command. Understood?"
The Lieutenant got up and bowed slightly. "Yes My Lord, it shall be done." He then moved off to pass on the orders. Aries, after a breakfast of eggs, made his way through what was now his own house to the library. The Imperials that had escorted him would not see the young Lord until later that night when he emerged, smirking slightly.
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AUTHORS NOTE
Hi guys! I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who has shown me support with this story, I'm really enjoying writing it truth be told! Two of my favourite universes merged, didn't think it would work at first - but hey ho! This is my second chapter today, and a small one at that - describing the way the Imperials along with Aries are getting settled in.
Safe to say, the Order are gonna be gobsmacked when they do arrive.
Question is, do we wanna bash Dumbles, Hermione & the Weasleys? Lemme know! Also, with this being my first ever story - do try to be kind, if you have criticism, please make it constructive. I will ignore any toxicity.
