AN. Some dark moments in this chapter too. Character deaths, gore, descriptions of death.


Chapter 3. The Shift.

Harry awoke in the cupboard for the final time. Though now his body felt somehow lighter. The pain was gone— testing it, his left arm had been healed. He sat up slowly, looking for the bottom of the stairs, also testing his ribs twisting and stretching as much as he could in the cramped space as he sat up, somehow, his body was fully repaired. Gingerly reaching up with his fingers, he tested his face, the last portion of the injury, he found nought but a jagged scar. Harry sighed, "I'm healed, that Goddess or whatever did it like she said… Good," He finished clenching his fist.

Pulling his status plate from his pocket, he remembered the blue panel had told him that his job and such would be recalculated due to interference… "Or whatever that meant" Harry grisled. He looked down to his plate and sat in stunned silence for a moment, its faint glow permeated the dank darkness of the cupboard, he was bewildered by what he saw, "HOLY SHIT!" he declared into the dark.


Harry Potter – Age: 12 – Male – Level: 52

Job: Assassin

Strength: 65

Vitality: 210

Defence: 45

Agility: 750

Magic: 1500

Magical Defence: 500

Skills: Accelerated Growth (+Self-Healing, +Regeneration), Mana Manipulation, Night Vision, Sense Presence (+Hide Presence), Intuition (+Deception Detection, ++Survival Instinct), Physical Resistance (+Poison Immunity, +Phoenix Cleansing, +Hardened Body), Quick Step (+air-step, +Leg Strengthening), Apparition, Stealth Field (+Area Silence), Mind Fortress, Shadow Blades (+Shadow Swords, +Shadow Daggers), Shadow Armour

Job Specific Skills: (+Assassination -Assassin Only-)

Affinities: Fire Magic, Shadow Magic, Sword, Dagger, Stealth, Armed Combat


Harry looked at his stats and skills, unable to comprehend what had happened. "What the fuck…" He whispered into the dark as he read it. He must've read over it thousands of times, looking for the "Skills Tree Locked" text, not seeing it anywhere. He guessed that was the interference that the Goddess inferred.

His abilities had exploded. Briefly remembering Ron had said that his brother Charlie had quite a few skills and was level 36, Harry was baffled.

He silently thanked that strange blue light magic for allowing him to gain the skill of Self-Healing and Regeneration. Without them he probably would be dead, he knew these are what had saved him. Judging by the Skills and Stats that had been granted to him, The Goddess of Magic had either unlocked his skills he gained through his life, or had restored him to what he should have advanced to without the lock.

He had even been granted a Job and Job specific skill.

"Assassination." Harry said softly to himself. Was the Goddess of Magic suggesting he should do something? Could he do it? It wasn't the same as Quirrell, Tom or the Basilisk, it was colder… As soon as he thought that, his Survival Instinct skill automatically kicked in. The Dursleys had left him for dead, it seemed they wanted him to die, and he was going to live. They were now in the way of that, and anyone who stood in his way was his enemy, and he killed his enemies—Harry's newfound mantra resounded in his head.

Harry adjusted himself to the taller end of his cupboard and contemplated his status plate once more before putting it away. His stats were inflated now, far beyond what he thought was possible, where his strength stat was a measly 10 before, now it was at 65. He never felt outrageously weak before, so now he figured his physical strength must now rival an adult's. His progression must have been more aligned with a muggle than a wizard, or at least that was Harry's internal thoughts on the matter.

Shaking off his thoughts and deciding on his best course of action, he placed his back against the wall flexed and activated Leg Strengthening and Hide Presence. Having attended his classes, he knew his skills could be activated with naught more than a thought, simply willing the skill to work activated active skills, while passive skills were always on or relied on certain conditions and situations to activate.

With his skills activated, he pushed feeling the door flex and crackle but nothing more, he pushed harder, but still nothing. "He reinforced the bloody door… or built over it… I guess I'll have to work on my strength later then." Harry said with a chuckle.

Harry had wanted to keep to pure stealth, to see if he couldn't escape without obvious incident, but it looked like that wasn't an option now. Retreating from his current attempt, he knelt before the doors and activated his Shadow Swords skill. Two rather large swords appeared in his hands, wreathed in, and created from a Shadowy black magic, not that he could see them without any light, but he could feel their presence as though they were a part of him. They had a weight to them and felt solid, as though created from steel but far lighter… and they felt dark. Harry didn't care anymore if he was going to be expelled from Hogwarts, he was going to get out of there, he was going to survive; however the first thing he needed to do was escape, eat his fill and clean himself up, then disappear.

Cross slashing with the two swords in the limited space he had still had the desired effect, the door exploded outwards in an array of splinters and chunks of wood. The smell of fresh air, the sight of natural light and the feeling of moving, non-stale air and freedom, immediately thundered through his senses in an overwhelming fashion. He staggered backwards under their assault, squinting and blinking rapidly due to the need for his eyes to adjust from absolute blackness and his own malnutrition making him sluggish, before he heard someone he hated dearly within the house emit profanities. Harry dismissed the swords and activated his Stealth Field Skill, stood and moved to the opposite wall from his cupboard, stepping back against it as far from the incoming thundering of feet as he could.

"Petunia!" Vernon shrieked, a double barrel shotgun in his meaty fists, much like the one he'd had when Hagrid visited them in the cabin on the rocks. "Petunia! It's out!"

Petunia came running to Vernon, face white as a sheet, a large woman Harry knew to be Vernon's Sister looking much like Vernon in a wig, appeared behind her. "They're all in the way of my survival." Harry's survival instinct screamed at him within his mind, and he moved reflexively. His agility, Stealth Field and Area Silence all working together to make him undetectable. Activating his shadow Daggers, Harry stepped behind Vernon and used the skill he thought he would never use upon first seeing it. Assassination.

A shadowy dagger plunged into the back of Vernon's neck and tore sideways, severing the spinal cord and every single transmission from his brain to the rest of his body. He didn't utter a sound. Vernon simply slumped to the ground, technically dead within a final heartbeat even if he were aware of his surroundings for a moment. Marge and Petunia stared at the scene before them, bewildered.

Harry activated the skill twice more in quick succession. Petunia had her heart impaled by the blade, whereas Marge took 2 identical slashes on either side of her neck, severing her Carotid soundly. Where Petunia simply made a huff and crumpled, Marge gurgled loudly as blood sprayed the walls of the narrow hallway—splattering them with fat splodges of her highly pressurised blood.

The noise of the three assassinations in quick succession had the effect of bringing Dudley and Ripper into the hall. Ripper tracked Harry down immediately with his nose, growling threateningly. Harry didn't hesitate, he didn't waste any time; he activated his Leg Strengthening variant skill and kicked at the dog as hard as his new strength allowed.

All of the pent up rage from Marge and that mutt chasing him around the house and yard went into the kick, and the dog let out a quick yelp as its skull made a crunching sound, before being implanted into the plasterboard. It didn't move again.

Harry observed as Dudley saw the carnage before him and stumbled backwards toward the front door, falling to the ground. He deactivated his Stealth Field and Shadow Daggers, bringing forth his Shadow Swords once more. "H-Harry?" Dudley stammered, the fear obvious in his tone.

"Don't you mean freak?" Harry growled, his voice sounding deeper and more gravelly than ever as he stepped forward while Dudley squeaked and scampered backwards away from the door and away from Harry, beginning to pant in panic. Harry however, felt no empathy at all for the boy before him anymore. He'd beat Harry up for fun, got him beaten by Vernon and Petunia, had him punished at school, stole his meals or made them in some way inedible— even going so far as to smear shit on his plate and food more than once. No, the thing before him wasn't a person, it was vermin… a monster like the others created by the others, and it was his enemy. 'And your enemies die' Harry's mind finished, in repetition of his new mantra.

"I-I'm sorry!" Dudley squealed as his back hit a wall, unable to retreat any further.

"Only because the power has been taken from you… All those years… All those other children you've hurt, some irreparably." Harry lamented softly… dispassionately… coldly. The new deepness now of his voice, his throat shredded from screaming, making each word sound harsher than the last.

There was nothing to be gleaned from hesitating any further, Dudley was now a cornered and wounded animal and would prevent his survival if given the chance. Harry activated the Assassination skill once more. He moved and his blades moved with him in fluid slashes, acting as though they were merely an extension of his body- moving so fast it was imperceptible.

His Assassination skill utilised his agility and as a result, he hit almost every vital point and major artery in Dudley's body in rapid succession. When all was said and done, Harry was done in under 2 seconds, whereas Dudley squealed then flopped to the ground, shaking the floor with his immense bulk before he died within seconds. There were dozens of gashes across him and litres of blood spewed across the floor in a great rush.

Harry sighed, dismissing his blades before he reactivated his Stealth Field skill and checked out the house. Once he'd made sure he was alone with nothing but corpses in the newly made Dursley mausoleum, he made his way to the kitchen.

Turning on the tap, Harry didn't even bother to find a cup, he drank straight from the faucet in big heaving gulps. His body immediately began absorbing all the water it could, and he drank until he felt his thirst quench, letting out an explosive sigh of relief that he swore could be felt across magical Britain. Turning, he then went to the fridge, not being able to stomach the wait for cooking, he ate his fill of cold cuts, carrots and whatever else he could find that didn't require preparation. He even went so far as to drink some juice in an afterthought of replenishing some of the lost sugars and vitamins.

Harry sat, relieved. The only pains he'd had left, the lingering hunger and thirst, had been satiated and quenched thoroughly. He wanted to just sit and relax, but that haunting smell was still in the air around him, on him… it was him. He wanted to be free of it but couldn't until he'd bathed. Looking at the clock and seeing it was still early morning, and he hadn't received a letter expelling him from Hogwarts yet, he decided on a course of action.

First locking every door and window in the house, ensuring all the shutters and curtains were still closed, to prevent the nosy bastards of neighbours that Petunia measured herself against from seeing a house littered in the blood, gore and bodies of monsters, Harry then made his way upstairs and started the shower. Taking the time to stand in the mirror, he frowned at his appearance. The scar that ran down his face now was ghastly. Prominent and jagged, Harry decided it did not look good, he'd have to cover his face where he could, he'd also have to rid himself of his now broken glasses, barely sitting on his face properly, they were a prominent feature of Harry Potter, The Boy who Lived. And that boy was now gone, shattered in that cupboard and reborn as something else.

Sighing, Harry grabbed a toothbrush that looked the least used and ran scalding hot water over it for a bit before applying paste, brushing his teeth and getting into the shower to scrub himself. It had the desired effect of relaxing his body completely, while removing the smell that haunted him. He used the most fragrant body wash he could, which just so happened to be Dudley's before extricating himself and grabbing his soiled clothes. It seemed Hide Presence had been effective in keeping the Ministry from detecting his use of magic, so he ensured it was still activated while using mana manipulation and a few cleaning spells he'd picked up in charms on his filthy hand-me-downs as he dressed. He was satisfied that the effect of the cleaning spells was immediate and the struggle to cast the spell was nowhere as intense of a drain on his mana as it was in class. Not that he had the choice of using a wand, he had no idea where it was.

Staring at his emaciated reflection once more, Harry decided on his next course of action after he was truly free was clothes.

He walked around the house, looking for where Dursley would have put his trunk, wand and other possessions. Looking out the back window in the backyard he saw a recently dug up section of earth and went outside to investigate. Digging away some of the Earth, he sighed. Vernon had dug the hole and burnt everything he'd owned inside as if to erase his existence. The present from Mrs. Weasley, a knitted green jumper to match his house colours, the present from Hagrid, an album with his parents' pictures in it, his school books, trunk and other supplies – naught but ash… As he dug away more earth he saw his owl, still in its cage, burnt.

Harry doubted she was still alive when he threw her on the fire, but Vernon Dursley was a monster all the same for killing the defenceless bird. Harry removed her from the cage sadly, feeling another piece of his humanity and empathy leaving him, as he then dug another hole in the corner of the yard and buried her, a quiet fury burning in his soul.


"How to clean this shit up…" Harry said softly to himself once he was back inside looking at the monster's corpses littering and bloodying the floor before him. There was no empathy for filth like this. "It's not like I want to stay in this cesspit either." He thought out loud while looking toward the modestly appointed kitchen.

Survival Instinct kicked in again, with the assistance of Assassination. It appeared that Assassination was not merely a skill for an instant kill, it was a useful skill that allowed an Assassin job Wizard access to many tidbits of information one wouldn't usually think of. For Harry at that point— Survival Instinct, had decided he needed a distractive getaway, something that would clear him of immediate guilt and buy him time. Survival Instinct caused Assassination to activate and come to save the day. He lit the fireplace, filling it with as much wood as he could without smoking the house out, then he went to the gas hob in the kitchen, reached into the cupboard underneath and sliced the gas line to the hob with his Shadow Dagger, closing the door to cause as much gas build-up as possible.

"Petunia!" Vernon crowed, "Dave says gas cooks better than this electric hob shit."

"Anabelle up at Number 10 says she went gas and refuses to cook on anything else now." Petunia replied, suddenly interested in the conversation, of possibly having the ability to one up her neighbours.

"We must have gas then, no point scurrying around with electric like the rest of the roaches, we always have the best in this household."

"What about the boy? He's just getting used to using the hob we have."

"That freak? He'd better use it right or he'll learn the hard way." Vernon said threateningly, looking over to a 7-year-old Harry who was busy scrubbing the stain out of the carpet Dudley had spilled his chocolate milk on.

Harry shook himself and looked down at his hands. Many smaller scars on them had come from burns caused by learning to use that bloody hob. Harry activated all of the Stealth related skills he had in his arsenal and walked out the back door of the house, ensuring Hide Presence specifically remained active. He didn't want to be found now until he wanted to appear again. Likely on the train to Hogwarts or some other location he deemed fit. He hadn't decided what he wanted to do yet, return to school if he could safely, or not but he would figure out an excuse for what he'd been doing on his own later, if he even needed to.

Harry leapt over the side gate and crossed the quiet street. It was around 10am and most of the occupants of Privet Dr were either working, or just emerging from their identical houses to work on their identical gardens, to maintain their lack of individuality. Looking back to the house before him, Harry smirked. "It won't be long now." He whispered to himself. A large black dog sidled up to him, sniffed at the air cautiously then sat and whimpered. Harry deactivated his Area Silence and whispered. "Ready for some fireworks pup?" The dog yelped and jumped, looking around warily. "Easy boy, easy." Harry said softly as he knelt down and held his invisible hand before the dog. It sniffed then licked the hand before it, before sitting once more.

Harry pet the dog's head softly. "I'll be rid of the vermin completely, very, very shortly." Harry whispered. The dog's ears flattened on its head and it growled softly. Harry felt something leaving him, any sense of ever having to or being able to return to this house, it was freeing.

Moments later there was a pop, a very troubled looking Albus Dumbledore stepped forth and made his way toward the house. The dog beside Harry whimpered and slunk back into the bushes behind him. Harry reactivated his Area Silence skill, his Survival Instinct skill telling him he may need to Assassinate Albus Dumbledore. The man who was just entering the picket fence and about to walk up the path when…

-BOOM!-

A bone rattling explosion shook the street, the house erupted, glass ejected from the windows as the insurmountable pressure within the house grew from the rapid expansion of the gases inside via heat. Jets of flame washed out of almost every window on the ground floor, causing Harry to smirk to himself. He observed Dumbledore warily as the shocked man stood quickly, having been thrown to the ground by the violent devastation that quickly overtook Number 4 Privet Drive. He quickly waved his wand once, no doubt checking for signs of life, before he backed away and almost ran from the scene, vanishing with another pop.

The house, whose fire was still being actively fuelled by gas, quickly succumbed to flame. It was declared later that, by the time the fire department had arrived, there was no chance of saving the house or the occupants who had strewn themselves throughout the hallway in an attempt to escape. Shards of glass and broken house were to blame for the fatal wounds on their bodies, declaring them dead from the explosion before they burnt to death. While unsure how the gas line ruptured due to it melting in the intense heat, it was treated as a non-suspicious accident and not investigated any further. Oddly enough there were no records anywhere of a Harry J Potter ever living with them.

Harry had left a short time after Dumbledore did, with all of his stealth abilities activated, the Dog that had sat next to him had no chance of following him, even with his scent lingering, for Harry had taken 2 trains and a bus to get to Diagon Alley.

Not being seen or heard, to Harry, was brilliant. And as there was no rush period at that time-of-day Harry made his way through the Alley, there were very few people to avoid, so he quickly made his way to a nondescript clothing shop that was on the border of Diagon and Knockturn Alleys.

Rather quickly, Harry had acquired what he wanted, not disabling his stealth skill at all the whole time, he changed out of his rags and found undergarments, dark loose legged pants, a dark top and a cloak with a hood. Tearing off a piece of another shirt, he tied it around his face so he could hide the scar that ran down the side of it. It was an identifiable marking he didn't want made visible.

He then made his way to Gringotts, having no choice but to pay for his next acquisition.

Harry approached the service manager at the end of the row of tellers, having disabled all his skills he was able to, yet he left Hide Presence active. "I would like to withdraw some funds; however, my key has been stolen from me."

The service manager eyed him carefully, causing Harry a small amount of fear that he would be announced, yet the Goblin did nothing but ring a bell, and the same goblin as last time stepped forward. "Griphook, will take care of events from here, sir."

Harry nodded and hastily followed the Goblin in question, who led him beyond the service manager and the carts that would lead to the vaults. It wasn't long before they arrived in a small office, decorated with books, swords and other shiny instruments.

"Mr. Potter, please sit." Griphook said, gesturing to the chair before him. "It would seem you are without a guardian now, after the death of your relatives." Griphook's inflection on the death of his relatives left Harry feeling uneasy, causing his Survival Instinct skill to start calculating the best chance of distraction, survival and escape. "Sit easy, Mr. Potter." Griphook then assured him, his toothy grin doing little to quell his unease, "We care not of the cause, just the effect. They are muggles after all."

Harry raised an eyebrow at that comment but said nothing. "You are entitled to all your inheritance now, it is enough to live off until you are of wizard middle-age, rather comfortably. There is no property or any item storage beyond the gold in the newly accessible main vault." Griphook said curtly before snapping his fingers. "Sign, date and you shall receive all the conveniences of the bank the Potters purchased, including the pocket vault."

"Pocket Vault?" Harry blurted out, unable to contain the surprise at the stupid name of whatever product it was.

"A pouch, linked directly to your vault, simply reach in and grab the coin you require. A pocket vault." Griphook described it as though Harry was stupid, annoying him slightly but he kept the annoyance buried within, not allowing the Goblin the satisfaction it desired. Harry signed the documents and shoved them back across the bench. "Is there anything more, Mr. Potter?" The Goblin's tone whilst polite, reeked of condescension and wanting Harry gone. When the Pocket Vault appeared before him, Harry quickly grabbed it and shoved it in the pocket of the pants he'd stolen earlier.

"No." Harry said as he swiftly stood and made his way from the room.

Quickly making his way from the bank, Harry made his way through the starting to busy alley pushing his way through the throngs of shoppers, glancing at the signs as he passed. One made him pause, before he turned and entered.

"Good Morning!" An overly cheerful man called out from the receptionist's desk. The place was devoid of people, but cluttered with waiting chairs, copies of Witch Weekly magazines and the Daily Prophet. It seemed optometrists in the Wizarding World were much the same as the ones in the Muggle. This one however was called another stupid title, 'Edgars & Edgars Eyewear.' Their slogan was equally as droll, 'If you can't see anything in here, you're in the right place.'

"What can we do for you?" The cheery wizard behind the counter called out once more.

"I want to be rid of glasses." Harry said softly, pointing to the broken spectacles on his head.

"We have a few options for that available, are you sure you don't want to keep them though? They make you look smarter." Harry groaned inwardly and shook his head in exasperation. "Well, first, we have a potion, cheap and effective, has to be taken a couple of times a year." Harry's Intuition skill wasn't happy with that answer and had him press the Wizard for more.

"Saying I want to be rid of something, implies I am after something permanent." Harry said with a frown, he wanted to be completely rid of eyesight issues, he'd seen magic do all sorts of things to heal a person, why couldn't they simply heal his shitty eyesight.

"Very well, very well. There is a magical implant we are trialling, a bit more expensive…"

"The other option?" Harry asked, something in him telling him that this man was leading him slowly to the most expensive one, in some vain attempt of either drawing the conversation out or making it seem unattainable in the short-term and earning his shop more long-term business with a lesser option.

"Well, we can implant the skill… It will give you the skill 20/20 vision, never again will you have the impairment…"

"Sounds like what I'm after, why didn't you just lead with what I asked for?" Harry said rather testily.

"Well, you see… It is rather expensive because the machine uses a lot of cores. Hehe." The man giggled annoyingly, causing Harry to growl lowly. The man actually flinched backward and panicked a little. Harry had successfully intimidated the man, unbeknownst to him. "er, well you see it is close to 1000 Galleons." Harry started reaching into his coin pouch grabbing stack after stack of Galleons, stacking them in piles of 10 until he had counted 100 piles, taking a good few minutes to do so.

"Very well." The man sighed and went out the back of the shop, returning sometime later with a very strange looking instrument, with a few runes carved into it. It has a small basket attached to the back of it with some strange round orbs filling it, figuring that must have been the cores he was talking about. Harry didn't care what they were though. The man said a few words Harry couldn't make out, then tapped the now whirring machine with his wand and aimed what appeared to be a laser at Harry's forehead.

After a few tense moments of the machine whirring with nothing happening, Harry's vision went blurry and he had to grab the bench to keep himself upright, his mind reeling in pain. Out of reflex he pulled his glasses off to rub his eyes and when he opened them once more he saw everything in perfect detail, with a few colours that he couldn't begin to describe. "What?" The man exclaimed as he looked at the boy before him, face half covered in some type of cloth. "Y-you got the 20/20 vision skill with a bonus skill on top, eagle vision."

'I guess I am a bit of a cheat character now…' Harry thought to himself as he gestured to the coins on the desk and left the shop, seeing better than ever before, than any human had in a long time probably. He had to be cautious however, this new skill Eagle Vision, proved it was going to take some getting used to, he attempted to deactivate it, but it wouldn't work, he guessed it was a passive one he'd have to get used to.


A few days passed easily for Harry, who found himself sitting at the Leaky Cauldron still undecided on his next move, having returned to the pub for lunch after purchasing many more black, dark blue, dark green and dark red clothes, both wizarding clothes and multiple sets of varying muggle outfits and some other equipment from the shops. He discovered he could fit everything into the backpack he'd acquired from the muggle world with a rather simple charm he'd performed via Mana Manipulation, at that moment he was storing all of his newly acquired gear, books including the one he'd learnt the extension charm from, clothes, a few days' worth of food and quite a bit of muggle cash.

He carried the backpack under the hooded cloak he wore so it didn't draw attention. He truly looked the part of Assassin that his Job held, dressed all in black, black dragonhide boots, vest and gloves and the facemask to cover everything below his eyes and hide the scar he'd received courtesy of the staircase Vernon threw him at.

On a whim, he'd asked the clothing shopkeep if basilisk hide was valuable, the response had been a sarcastic, is Hogwarts large. "Funnily enough yes, and that's where the Basilisk is." Harry had said to himself after leaving the shop without another word. He'd have considered hiring the man to make outfits and such with the hide if he hadn't been such a smartass about it all.

He'd then made his way back to the Leaky Cauldron, rather hungry from his anger at the specialty clothing store. Upon arrival he saw that Tom the barkeep had a special on pies, so he quickly ordered himself one with a butterbeer, a new drink he discovered he enjoyed served cold, and waited in a booth at the back of the store. His Survival Instinct placed him in a seat that had his back to the wall, an escape behind him and visibility of both entrances to the pub. The scar adorning his features, hidden from view by the soft and breathable material of the bandanna type mask.

Harry had discovered rather quickly that his dealings with the Dursleys, and his Survival Instinct, had changed not only his attitude, but his entire outlook on life. He found himself knowing where exits to a building were without thinking about it, analysing situations rather quickly and figuring out the best chance for escape and observing people's behaviours. Since he couldn't deactivate his Survival Instinct skill, he decided it was something he would have to grow accustomed to and simply deal with, not that it wasn't helpful.

His thoughts were interrupted by Tom, placing a plate before him, Harry nodded in thanks and Tom gave him a wink before setting off for the bar once more, not a word spoken between them. Harry decided he didn't mind Tom as much as many other Magical folk, who generally reeked of arrogance and excessive showmanship, like Malfoy or Lockhart.

Harry enjoyed his meal, however something immediately set him on edge, causing him to pull his face mask back up and sit back in his seat, ready to activate his stealth skills at a moment's notice.

"… I can't believe he would just vanish though." The voice of Hermione Granger sounded throughout the pub as the door opened.

"They were horrid to him, Hermione." Ron said as they entered the pub and made their way through to the entrance of the alley without noticing him there. "I'm glad he got away when he did."

"Not the best time for it though," Mr. Weasley said as he popped into view, "With Black on the loose, anything could happen." He sounded rather nervous, Harry thought to himself as he watched the Weasley procession.

"Oh I do hope he is alright." Mrs. Weasley said as she was on her husband's arm, Ginny trailing along behind her. She suddenly looked up and around the pub, her eyes trained on Harry, wide. He openly stared back at her, wondering how she knew he was there, hoping she wouldn't reveal his location before he wanted to reveal himself.

He winked at her, and she smiled back at him, a rather cheeky grin peeking through her grim expression. "I'm sure he's fine Mum," Ginny said softly, "He's very good at self-preservation."

"… Just an hour ago you were worried about him too." Ron shouted back, having heard her.

"She's right." Fred or George sounded.

"Yeah, we haven't been able to prank him once," The other Fred or George explained.

"Not for lack of trying, of course." The first Fred or George finished.

"Well, that gives me some hope." Mrs. Weasley said with a small smile, as she herded the rest of them through to the alley, trailing Ron and Hermione.

Harry wondered whether they had all cut their vacations short because of his disappearance, Hermione was supposed to be abroad somewhere on the continent, while Ron, Ginny and the rest of the Weasleys were in Egypt visiting Bill.

His answer came shortly after when a very tall, older version of Ron appeared behind the crowd of Weasley's, looked around and continued through the pub behind them. He correctly surmised this was Bill, that they'd cut their vacation short and were forming some form of search party for him.

Sighing, Harry stood, left a Galleon tip for Tom for the exquisite pie, activated his Stealth Field and Hide Presence, then followed the Weasley's into the Alley.

Harry tailed them a while, seeing what their intentions were before he would reveal himself to them. He chose to follow Bill into the side street, Knockturn Alley. This was the one area that was full of whores, beggars and generally the darker side of humanity and the Wizarding World, that the Ministry of Magic couldn't have a hope of cleaning up so they didn't bother trying.

As he followed Bill into the dingey sideway, he cursed to himself, the alley was far too busy for him to follow unseen or felt as he would run into heaps of people while invisible. Activating his Quick Step additional skill, Air Step, Harry leapt his way up invisible foot holds in mid-air that his Mana Manipulation created around him. This allowed him to make his way along the alley a couple of metres above everyone.

It took some getting used to walking on air but it gave him a good vantage point and Harry was glad that he'd taken the time to activate and check out all of his skills to learn what they did over his past few days of freedom. The ability to see far ahead of him and everyone else in the alley was a tactical advantage he quickly respected.

The alley was rather loud with this many people around and being as high up as Harry was at that moment, meant nothing was impeding his hearing, which meant he clearly heard the scream of a younger girl from the side. Harry instinctively made his way in that direction, seeing a female around his age, surrounded by 3 men, Harry's Survival Instinct and morality saw no issue in helping this young woman out.

"You look like you need some help." One of the men stated lasciviously as he groped at her, "Let me assist you."

"Or you can help us." Another continued, grabbing and licking at her arms causing Harry to recoil in disgust, "How about a little fun before we let you go…"

The third said nothing as he grabbed the girl by the other arm and threw her against the wall, her blonde hair flying around her before she hit it with an "oof." Trembling in obvious fear. "No… Please…" She whimpered helplessly, her courage and common sense failing her as her brain shut down in response to the hopelessness of this threat.

Having seen and heard enough, Harry decided to act. Feeling another piece of his humanity break away, he harboured no sympathy for these men—scum who preyed on the helpless, weaker and plain innocent. He wouldn't stand for it. He activated his Assassination skill. He appeared out of thin air and dropped to the ground with only the slightest of noises, something the men in front of him couldn't hear over their grunting struggles to undress the girl and her fear filled whimpering.

The Assassination skill drove Harry forward, Shadow Swords activated, and he launched with Quick Step, moving directly behind the men in a heartbeat. Two of them fell in the first slash of the sword, one decapitated, the second a near perfect rendition of a modern day Nearly-Headless Nick.

The third man turned, fear and anger warring within his eyes, he let go of the girl Harry now recognised to be Daphne Greengrass, a girl from his year, causing her to drop to the ground, eyes looking up at her would-be saviour in shock. The man cast a cutting charm at Harry, who deftly sidestepped the spell with Quick Step. Although to the normal eye it was less of a sidestep and more of a near instantaneous movement that caused him to look as though he disappeared and reappeared in his new position.

Harry's Survival Instinct and Assassination skills were now working seamlessly together to make Harry near unstoppable, as he obviously had a clear advantage over his opponent. His Assassination skill still driving him forward to the battle's conclusion, had him plunge his left Shadow Sword into the man's chest, he spun, removing it joining both right and left together, one on top of the other, as he continued the turn and decapitated the attacker with a metallic schwing sound as the sword ground against one another.

"…H-Harry?" Daphne said as Harry turned back to the girl he'd just saved.

"No, you are mistaken." Harry said lowly, eyeing her now kneeling form looking up toward him.

"N-no, those eyes… They match Ginny's description perfectly." Daphne responded with a gasp.

Harry silently cursed Ginny and her crush on him, though Harry had respect for Daphne. She was the only friend Ginny had in Slytherin, the girl had taken to Ginny and spent a lot of time with her over the year, but he didn't want word of his current skills to get out. "Not a word, to anyone ever. Or you die like them." His voice was harsh, causing her to flinch in response to his threat.

"No I-I promise!" Daphne said quickly, sinking back upon herself as fear permeated her consciousness once more. "I just wanted to thank you."

"Well don't." Harry said sharply, "I did it because I owed you for being friends with and helping someone I was asked to protect. Nothing more." Harry lied, he didn't want to come across as some bleeding-heart hero who would save everyone, that was not him. Especially now that his humanity, psyche and spirit had been broken and re-forged through his Survival Instinct skill and torture at the Dursleys.

"Oh… Okay." Daphne said softly. "I… Well… Thank you all the same, Harry." She finished, obviously not knowing where to go from there.

"Stay out of trouble," Harry said in derision. "I'd hate to have wasted my time."

"Wait!" the attractive young blonde said sharply, reaching out and grasping desperately at the hem of his cloak. "Please, take me with you!"

"What?"

Daphne begged softly, a broken air to her now that her hard exterior had cracked during the attack. "Take me with you, Harry." She let go of the cloak and reached upward gingerly toward him, desperation in her eyes. To Harry, it looked like she was reaching for him as though he was her salvation, making him realise that he may well be. "My life is horrible, I am trapped…"

That line brought the start of the summer to the forefront of Harry's mind, trapped… He had felt that bitter helplessness, known it intimately. "How so?"

"I am to be sold to Draco Malfoy as a child bride, or a concubine, however his father feels." She said quickly, a look in her eyes told Harry that this was the truth. "My family is indebted to them. And my uncle… H-He touches…P-Please just… I… please I need to escape, I will do whatever you ask, anything… I'll be anything y-you want, just… please… take me away with you… I just want to be free." Daphne broke down and sobbed into her hands, curling in on herself once more.

As much as the larger part of Harry didn't want a companion with him, the small, tiny piece of humanity left within him resonated with her helpless situation, her wish to be free, and it was that statement that ultimately won his internal battle.

"Fine." He sighed and pulled out his backpack, pulling a cloak out and shoved it at her, causing her sobbing to stop abruptly. She took it and put it on, covering her exposed breast that had its covering torn from her body by the men that were now little more than cooling corpses thanks to her saviour.

Harry then grabbed Daphne by the waist, causing her to flinch and her eyes to widen and activated his Stealth Field skill, led her up into the air with his Air Step. Daphne meanwhile was quite obviously shocked to be walking up into the air above the alley. As Harry did this, his presence from the alleyway had been essentially instantaneously eradicated, but he sensed someone else trying to conceal theirs.

Bill Weasley stepped out of an alcove at the end of the Alley, causing Harry a measure of panic. The eldest Weasley looked around in obvious shock before he hurried off, Harry followed above at a brisk pace, leading a stumbling Daphne by the middle. To her credit, she did not question him, but merely allowed the shock of the day to roll over her as she struggled with Harry's invisible footholds.

"Dad." Bill said urgently as he approached the family patriarch, when he neared Harry was standing barely a few feet above them, listening intently. "What do you know about Potter?"

"Why?"

"I've just seen something I'm not sure I want to believe." Bill said cryptically.

"Not much I'm afraid…" Mr. Weasley said with little hesitation, "He saved my baby girl… I didn't question how, or why…"

"Ron said it was because he asked him to watch over her, but I think we need to know the how." Said Bill, looking around cautiously.

"What has you so on edge son?"

"He—"

"Did you find him!?" Ginny yelled, running back to her brother and father, interrupting the conversation just as it was getting interesting. Harry knew not much more would be said, it seemed the group were deciding to break for dinner before heading home and resuming their search tomorrow.

Daphne looked at Harry with an obvious question in her eyes, but he pretended not to notice, focusing instead on the interaction before him.


Having returned home some hours before, Bill walked out into the garden of the Burrow. He hadn't had the chance to talk to his father again since the incident in the Alley; Ginny, Ron, or someone else always seemed to be nearby, not that he blamed them. It had been some time since he had lived or even stayed in the home he grew up in. He was always so busy with work.

Bill made for the orchard, however as soon as he was out of earshot of the house he spoke aloud. "I'm not sure how I know…" Bill started, "But I am sure you're here, Harry." His words echoed softly throughout the orchard, the darkness of the evening permeating the long grass and making it look as though Bill was wading through a dark, plush blanket.

Harry was a little shocked, however Bill was a plenty smart and powerful Wizard, from Ron's descriptions of him so he decided he shouldn't be too surprised. Deciding confronting the man before him may be his best means for survival, Harry cancelled his Area Silence and spoke aloud. "I don't want to hurt you, but I need your silence about what you saw."

"Harry? What did you do with that girl?" Bill spoke, turning and twisting, wand out as he pointed it in varying places around the area he was standing. "Why don't you show yourself and face me, like a man."

In the meantime, Harry had moved from the spot where he first spoke, using Air Step to avoid leaving impressions in the long grass that could be tracked. "Why? I don't need to face you." He moved again quickly as Bill's wand trained past the location his voice came from, Harry decided a show of power was in order. Moving in front of Bill, he placed his Shadow Sword at his neck and deactivated his Stealth Field. Bill went wide eyed in shock, "You would already be dead if I wanted you that way."

Bill didn't move, he couldn't. One step forward the strange blade in Harry's hands would pierce flesh, as it had earlier that day. "Do you mean to harm my family?" Bill whispered.

Harry stepped back and looked at Bill with a slightly guarded expression before he deactivated his sword skill. "No, I won't hurt innocents." This was true, he'd brought Daphne with him, she was a good few feet away from this little interaction, hiding in the long grass by the edge of the tree line.

"What are you doing Harry?" Bill said as he lowered his wand to his side, not dropping his guard before Harry.

Harry cocked his head to the side quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"You're hiding, you killed those men in the alley, took that girl…"

"Were you in a different alley? Or did you not see what those men were going to do to that girl barely older than your sister? If it was Ginny down there, would your actions have been different?"

Bill baulked at that question and took a long moment to think on that. "No…"

"Then don't judge me for doing the same for someone else's sister." Harry spat, turning to leave again. "I expect you won't tell anyone what you saw down there. She won't."

"How do you know that?"

"She understood." Harry said simply, turning his head back to Bill, a feral look in his eye. "Anyone who gets in my way is my enemy, and my enemies will die."

"That's a rather harsh sentiment, Harry." Bill said softly, recoiling a little, Harry stood there, and didn't react as Bill appeared to be measuring him up. "Why do you feel that way? Help me understand."

"You don't need to understand, I didn't come here to make friends, catch up on what you've been up to or tell you anything about me, I came here to ensure your silence."

"And if I refuse?"

"You want to become my enemy? The way I see it you owe me." Harry said, eyes narrowing at the man before him, Bill was a powerful wizard, but if Harry moved first, he knew he could take him down now.

Luckily, Bill deflated, "no… no I don't want to be your enemy." Harry stepped away further, intending to leave before Bill spoke. "Wait, Harry…" Harry stopped, turned and raised an eyebrow at Bill indicating for him to continue. "I don't suppose you want to come inside?"

Harry shook his head, "No."

"Okay," Bill said softly, "Will you come by for Ginny's birthday?" he followed up, "It's in a week, Sunday, dad has it off work so we're having a dinner."

Harry thought it over a moment, he supposed he could join them for Ginny's birthday. It wouldn't hurt any, his Survival Instinct had no objections, he could case the house before he appeared at the least, for it was his Survival Instinct skill that was leading him in everything he did now. He was cagey, especially after his relatives attempt to kill him, he didn't really know who he could trust anymore; and with everything he had seen these last couple of years, that certainly was also the case for a good chunk of humanity.

Finally, Harry spoke "We'll see." Nothing interfering, he would attempt to visit for Ginny's birthday, knowing Mrs. Weasley may attempt to not let him out of her sight again until September first, not that that was the biggest issue to him at the moment. It was ensuring freedom for himself and he had Daphne with him now, so he was unsure what to do, how to proceed or even if he could safely attend her party.

"Can I at least let them know you are alright? Ginny especially."

Harry looked sharply at Bill at the last part of that question. "Why her, especially?"

"Harry… You saved her, surely you know… well maybe you don't… I don't know how to explain it but something like that doesn't go away for most people. You made a big impact on her, Harry. She just needs to know you're okay." Bill seemed to be pleading, but also hiding something while appearing wanting to put his sister's mind at ease. Harry decided he didn't care what he was hiding.

"I suspect she already knows… but fine, nothing specific." Harry said softly.

"Okay…" Bill said with a small smile on his face, "Oh and Harry?" Bill asked once more; Harry meanwhile was just trying to get out of the situation, his mind going 'What the fuck now?' "Thanks, for saving her… well both of them…" Bill said, catching Harry off guard, who merely nodded and vanished into thin air.

Harry watched Bill for a moment, now not detectable in any way thanks to his Stealth Field, Hide Presence, Area Silence and Air Step skills. "Shit— how am I going to tell them he's okay..." Bill muttered into the night as he turned and made his way back to the house. Harry didn't follow him inside; instead, he stood outside an open window, listening intently to the conversation that began as soon as Bill reached the kitchen table where everyone was having supper before bed.

"Where did you end up Bill?" Mr. Weasley asked, as he looked up at his son who had just re-joined them.

"I er…" He visibly stopped as he looked around. Harry watched intently, not sure how to silence him if he went back on his word. He didn't suppose he would, he had no real reason to harm Ron, Ginny or the rest of the Weasleys anyway. As he thought on it, his subconscious answered him softly from the back of his mind. He wanted to test how trustworthy all the Weasleys were, starting with Bill. Who audibly sighed. "Harry is fine."

Pandemonium struck and Bill had to stand there, telling everyone for the next hour or more that he couldn't divulge anything about how he knew Harry Potter was safe.


Harry arrived back at the Leaky Cauldron with Daphne in tow. His Survival Instinct immediately caught his attention. Now that he had someone with him, staying in the wizarding world wasn't ideal, the Leaky Cauldron had a lot of passers-by, meaning that they were exposed to an abnormally high number of individuals from the wizarding world.

Daphne especially would attract attention. She was a reasonably attractive blonde, from a well known family who was just coming into womanhood. He couldn't remain here and remain hidden like he was alone.

As he had everything he needed on his person in his backpack, Harry immediately turned on his heel and walked out into the muggle world, activating his stealth field and grabbing Daphne's hand. "Come." He said brusquely, "We both need to remain hidden."

Daphne merely nodded in agreement as Harry made his way above the afternoon rush expertly, avoiding all of the foot traffic from above with Air Step once more.

The pair eventually arrived at a nice looking muggle hotel. Unsure how to proceed, he turned to Daphne. "We need to get a room here. Ideas?"

"I can confund the receptionist." Daphne said meekly, "But I'll get expelled from school, and everyone from the ministry will know where I am."

"I'll hide your presence from everything; just do the spell and I'll do the talking." Harry growled, approaching the front desk.

Harry noticed the receptionist shiver as Daphne cast the spell, and Harry began to speak. "Good afternoon…"

"Room for 1 then?" The man said as soon as he noticed Harry.

Harry merely nodded, the man asked for a name, Harry immediately gave a false one, "James Evans, and a suite would be preferable." to which the receptionist nodded and made a note in his ledger. Harry handed over a large wad of muggle cash, paying for a week in advance. Before he knew it was in the elevator with Daphne.

"Well…" He furrowed his brow, "That worked well."

"Yeah…" Daphne then pulled out her status plate and showed it to Harry. "It's sort of in my skillset…"


Daphne Greengrass – Age: 13 – Female – Level: 17

Job: Mentalist

Strength: 20

Vitality: 120

Defence: 30

Agility: 25

Magic: 600

Magical Defence: 300

Skills: Mind Charms (+Memory Alteration, +Emotion Control), Charms Expertise 1/5, Quick Learning, Mental Resistance (+Mental Shield), Deception Detection, Persuasion,

Job Specific Skills: (+Mind Charm Mastery -Mentalist Only-)

Affinities: Mind Magic, Charms, Defensive Magic, Magical Combat, Diplomacy


"Huh…" Harry said as he looked at the plate proffered to him. "If you're so overpowered, why did you need help escaping your family?"

"My dad, uncle and the rest are still far more powerful than me, and my skills don't affect them." Daphne whimpered, jumping in fear when the elevator bell chimed announcing they had reached their floor.

Harry merely nodded as he opened the door to the room and let her in, removing his cloak and face mask as he inspected the room. "Ever stayed muggle before?" he asked softly.

Daphne who had followed him in looked around nervously and shook her head in answer. "Bathroom and all that work the same, TV won't work unless we're a good bit away from it, you'll like it though, other shit may not work if we cast spells." Harry declared as he rummaged through his backpack. Sighing he turned back to her. "Don't cast magic at all unless I'm touching you with 'Hide Presence' active or they'll find us, keep a low profile at all times. Better yet, don't cast magic at all while we're in the muggle world unless we need to."

"How do you know all this?" Daphne asked in a hushed tone. "Speaking of, you weren't this powerful at school. I swear you were just normal."

Sighing, Harry walked out to the balcony and looked out over the city. Sensing Daphne in tow, he told her of everything that had happened to him, how he'd been made go back to the Dursleys, then beaten and thrown in the closet, finishing with how the Goddess of Magic had offered Harry help and he'd accepted. He then pulled out his plate and showed her the contents.

"HOLY SHIT!" Daphne swore loudly, never in her life had she seen stats like that, let alone a job of that calibre. "Well, what is your plan now?" She finished much more quietly.

"I've been operating off of Survival Instinct this whole time." Harry said quietly. "But now I don't know what to do, going back to Hogwarts sets off all sorts of alarm bells, but I don't really have anywhere I belong. Add to that I've promised to take you along now too, so that adds another layer of complication."

Daphne nodded and then shrugged. "I think the question you need to ask is, what do you want to do now, Harry? You're free. We're free." Daphne smiled at her self-realisation.

Harry just turned his attention back to the cityscape before them, nodding. His entire life up until now had been a struggle, a literal meaningless struggle for nothing more than survival. Now, before him he had options, endless options and he had no answer or purpose before him. He knew he wanted to, needed to get stronger, more powerful, but outside that he knew nothing. He had no purpose.


Harry awoke the next morning feeling weighed down and hot. It took him a while, in his foggy sleep-brained state, to realise that Daphne had shifted in the night and was curled up against him, with her legs kicked up over his and head on his chest.

They had shared the only bed that night, as they saw no reason why someone should be uncomfortable on the couch.

Sliding out from under Daphne, Harry made his way to the loo and performed his morning ablutions, surprisingly well rested even after sharing the bed. Looking into the mirror while washing his face, Harry was surprised to see once more, the mysterious, small blue light in his reflection. Looking around the room it was nowhere to be seen, however in the mirror it was present.

Once more it coalesced into a blue text panel, the same that had changed his life for the better in the cupboard.


"The Goddess of Magic has a quest for Harry Potter and Daphne Greengrass, do you wish to view the quest?"


"Daphne?" Harry shouted into the other room, not letting the panel out of his sight. He heard the girl groan and pad into the small bathroom of the muggle suite obviously already awake before he shouted. Her lavender coloured cotton nightgown, which they'd purchased for her the evening before, swayed gently around her knees as she moved into the room rubbing her eyes.

"What's up Har-?" Daphne started before her eyes widened at the sight before her, all signs of tiredness immediately vanishing. Looking at Harry then back to the mirror she said a simple, "Yes?"

Instantly the text was replaced with the quest text:


Quest: The Lost Cape of Shadows.

Description: Throughout time there have been many artefacts lost or hidden throughout the history of the Magical world. The Goddess of Magic has identified a potential artefact that has been hidden. This artefact possesses immense magical power and has accompanying knowledge that could benefit both Harry Potter and Daphne Greengrass on their journeys. The Goddess of Magic tasks Harry and Daphne to retrieve this artefact and knowledge, harnessing their potential how they wish.

Objectives:

1. Travel to the Village of Megève, France

2. Locate the labyrinth and retrieve the;

a. Lost Cape of Shadows.

b. Tome of Shadow Magic

3. Learn to harness the power and knowledge within the artefact.

4. Master the knowledge within the Tome of Shadow Magic.

Rewards:

- Unique skills and abilities related to the artefacts

- The Cape of Shadows for a member of your party

- Follow up quest from The Goddess of Magic

Do you accept this quest? (Yes/No)


Harry and Daphne exchanged a glance, their eyes reflecting the shared uncertainty and excitement about the quest that had been presented to them. Daphne looked back at the mirror and, after a moment's hesitation, whispered, "Yes."

The blue text panel shimmered before them, confirming their acceptance of the quest.

"Quest accepted. Good luck, Harry Potter and Daphne Greengrass. May the Goddess of Magic continue to assist and guide you on your journey."

The panel dissipated, leaving the two young magical teens in the small bathroom, their lives now tangled by a shared purpose.

"Well," Harry said, breaking the silence, "I guess we have a path and purpose for now."

Daphne nodded in agreement, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. "It's going to be an adventure, isn't it?" Harry merely smirked in response, a type of half-smirk Daphne had begun to realise was one of confidence and determination.

As they left the bathroom and began preparing for the day ahead, the weight of the unknown was replaced by the resolve that came from their newfound quest. Little did they know the trials and triumphs that awaited them as they embarked on the journey to recover the Cape of Shadows.


The pair made their way to the King's Cross train station. Already having read the quest text thoroughly, their immediate destination was to exchange muggle currencies, which thanks to Daphne's mind arts was effortless, then travel on to the Village of Megève.

As they planned their route, looking over various maps and having acquired some travel brochures on the way, Harry had determined that it would take them a little over a day, maybe two of travelling before they would arrive at the Skiing resort in the French Alps.

Little magic was used between the two of them, aside from Daphne's Mind arts and Harry's Survival Instinct with the addition of his Hide Presence and Stealth field when Daphne was casting her spells.

They easily purchased their tickets, from Kings Cross to Victoria, in which they had to purchase tickets for the ferry across the channel, then various trains to Megève. This was all overly confusing to the pureblood Daphne, so Harry took charge of the route planning while Daphne confunded on command, making all who asked think that their identification had already been shown and checked out.

Daphne caught on pretty quickly, which was good according to Harry. It meant that she would eventually pick up some planning and muggle tips, as she was rather meek in the muggle world, not speaking unless spoken to directly.

Throughout their trip on the train, they pored over the maps they had of the Alps, plotting and planning, attempting to figure out where the Cape would most likely be hidden.

"If I were to hide something," Daphne declared, "I would put it with a guardian… This Labyrinth entrance won't be easy to find. It may take us months."

Harry agreed with this assumption, nodding. "Yeah, and as it's a ski resort, nearly half of the year some of these hilltops and cave systems would be unexplorable. As it's mid-July now, there should be a bit less snow there than usual, so we should have a bit more visibility of it."

"You're right!" Daphne declared in wonderment.

They continued in this vein, resting plenty to ensure that they were not worn out on their arrival.