Well, here it is, the second chapter of Xolotl. A lot of it, you've seen before in Xanadu's Shadow, albeit re-edited and re-arranged, but hopefully, it will feel better.

Now, before we continue, I'd like to bring something up. The next chapter is one I'll be introducing Black Cat, aka Felicia Hardy, in, should this story get enough chapters to warrant a full publication. For any of those who know enough about the comics to give a crap about them, I'm actually going to give her a variation of the backstory she was given in Kevin Smith's Spider-Man storyline The Evil that Men Do. However, unlike that controversial storyline, Felicia fought back and stopped her would-be rapist, though it backfired for her, setting her down the path of becoming the Black Cat. I'm hoping that variation will meet with approval for those who know about that storyline.

Anyway, enjoy...

XOLOTL

CHAPTER 2:

REUNION

Harry looked at the industrial building in Greenwich Village. It didn't look all that impressive, but he knew that appearances could be deceiving. He'd been asked to come here by an old friend, and frankly, he needed a reunion with a friendly face. His first port of call was to touch base with his old friend, one of the few he had left over from the Hogwarts years. What Malfoy managed to do to his reputation in Symkaria pretty much ensured that he was persona non grata in Britain, and he was lucky to get his money out of the country.

Hermione had more than a few reasons to hate him. Ron had died when Malfoy sprang his little trap in Symkaria. And when Hermione tracked down her parents in Australia and removed their Obliviations…well, they had disowned her. That she'd held herself together long enough to go through university, get a doctorate, and head out of Britain was a testament to her strength of character and will. That, and the fact that she was actually heir to the Dagworth-Granger family and thus a small fortune that helped set her up for life.

She should hate him. It was thanks to the fact that she was friends with Harry Potter that she'd lost her boyfriend and her family. But she remained friends with him. It's more than a lot of people in Britain were. He could count the remaining friends he had in Magical Britain on two hands and have fingers spare for the obscene gestures he had for the remainder.

He entered the building, and soon found the door he was looking for, marked 'Octavius Industries'. There was a keycard panel near the door, but he didn't have one, so he knocked. After about half a minute of waiting, he raised his fist to knock on the door again, only for it to open.

The young man who was revealed was barely older than a teenager, tall and gangly, but with what seemed to be some muscle hiding beneath his clothes. Brown hair framed a long but handsome, in a mildly geeky way, face. Hazel eyes met Harry's own emerald. "Sorry, can I help you?"

"Yes, I'm a friend of Dr Granger? I'm Harry Potter."

The young man seemed to debate with himself, before he said, "Just a moment." The door shut. A couple of minutes later, it was re-opened by a familiar face framed by bushy hair.

"…You're here," Hermione said. "You're finally here!" She hugged him. "You damned idiot, Harry…you kept me worried and…and…and this isn't the best time for this."

"No, not really. I came to say hello. You can chew me out later over…lunch? Tea?"

"Right. Anyway, come in," she said, escorting him inside.

When he heard the name Octavius Industries, he thought of a vast factory-like space. However, this seemed to be more like a fairly large workshop with a couple of offices off to one side. Oh, the vast array of technology was impressive, and he hoped Hermione's zeal would work well with the equipment here. But it seemed slightly underwhelming.

The young man from earlier was talking to another man, a short, rather pudgy older man with a receding hairline and glasses. "Harry, this is Dr Otto Octavius," Hermione said, indicating the older man. "And this is our assistant, Peter Parker."

Harry shook hands with the two. "Nice to meet you," he said.

"The pleasure's all mine, and please, call me Otto," Octavius said with a genial smile. "Hermione told me quite a bit about you, how you're a good man whose reputation was unjustly sullied in Symkaria. I trust her judgement. Hermione has been a boon to me, in both my research and development, as well as keeping me grounded. And Peter…well, he's a genius, a prodigy."

"Doctor…" Peter said, looking embarrassed.

"Hermione told me a little of what you guys are working on here. Something about cybernetics, artificial limbs and the like," Harry said. "Sounds useful."

"You know, your tone shows how much you realise that," Otto said. "Then again, you were involved in the Symkaria Civil War, I'm sure you saw many horrific injuries, many of which could have benefited from cybernetics. I'm sorry if that was tactless, I'm just passionate about the field. She even told me that you were acquainted with Princess Silvija Sablinova." At this, Otto's gaze became piercing, even searching.

"We're friends and comrades, and she taught me everything I know about proper combat, but that's about it. Besides, these days, she prefers to be known as Silver Sable, at least to anyone not her friends."

Otto seemed to consider this, before nodding. "I see."

"Anyway, she's not a princess anymore. She willingly gave up her claim to the throne so she could continue running the Sable International PMC. By the way, Otto, while I'm sure you do good work, I'm surprised Stark Industries or the Future Foundation haven't worked on something like that."

Otto scoffed, waving his hand dismissively. "Stark is more concerned with hedonism, and he seems to spend more time with his so-called bodyguard and the Avengers on the West Coast lately, while Dr Richards, though an undeniable genius, can't make cost-effective inventions, and he and the Fantastic Four are often off gallivanting around as well. Only SHIELD and those with similar budgets can afford them. These prosthetics need to be affordable for the people. Expensive, yes, you can't get away from that, but it should still be affordable enough that you don't have to be Tony Stark or Norman Osborn to afford it. Though given the way the world is, I doubt they'd be covered by an HMO. Of course, such research and development needs money. I get a grant from the city, but that also means I am beholden to Osborn's whims."

Harry noticed that when he mentioned the name of the infamous CEO of Oscorp and current Mayor of New York City, Otto's voice became a touch more venomous. Maybe there was history between them, though Osborn wasn't exactly a popular mayor in many circles. There were frequent allegations of conflict of interests, and while Oscorp funded a number of facilities around New York, there were also rumours of shady military and medical research.

He decided to bring up something he had been considering. "Otto, Dr Octavius…would you be willing for me to invest some money into your company?"

Otto looked at him sharply. Eventually, and a little suspiciously, he asked, "Why?"

"What Hermione told me about you and your work stated that you're a good man doing good work. I don't know whether she told you, but my father's family was actually quite rich, and my work gives me quite a bit of income. And, as she likes to remind me, I have what she calls a 'saving people' thing. Funding your work will help that. I'm not going to be funding your whole R&D, but I do want to help."

Otto looked to Hermione, before looking back at Harry. "I see. Well, we'll discuss this at a later date. Don't get me wrong, I'm always happy to receive funding, but when you've experienced what I have, you have to wonder what strings are attached. Please don't be offended."

"I'm fine," Harry said. "I've been mistrusted and badmouthed myself way too often."

"Yeah…I know that feeling," Peter said. "Got badmouthed a lot at school, and, well, my former boss at The Daily Bugle, he had a pretty sharp tongue towards virtually everyone."

"Oh God, you mean that wanker Jameson?" Harry asked. "I heard his podcast the other day. I could say I have literally no idea how he gets away with it, or why people listen to him, but, well, my own reputation got scuppered more than once. Personally, I'd want to see what Spider-Man does myself before I judge him, let alone the other groups like the Avengers or the X-Men. Jameson, though? He's a conspiracy theorist and as big an attention whore as he claims Spider-Man to be. I'm seriously tempted to prank call him."

Peter and Hermione snickered, and Otto smiled. "I know the feeling. Sometimes, his podcasts have a point, sometimes they're only good for comedy, and sometimes…well, I wouldn't be surprised if Spider-Man just snapped one day and hung him from the top of the Chrysler Building in nothing but his underpants."

"Ugh, that was a mental image I didn't need, J Jonah Jameson in underpants!" Peter groaned. "I mean, I seriously once read a year ago a slashfic, of all things, involving Spider-Man and him. I badly needed brain bleach. I don't read stuff like that anymore."

"…Thanks for putting that mental image into my head, Peter," Hermione groaned. "Anyway…there's a nice little café nearby, Harry. Otto, do you think you and Peter could hold down the fort?"

"Of course I can," Otto said. "Have fun…"

They sat across from each other at the café, Hermione erecting a Privacy Charm so they wouldn't be overheard. Eventually, Hermione shook her head. "You haven't been staying out of trouble, have you?"

"I can't. I'm not that kind of person, Hermione, even if my days of being a hero are over. I thought they died with Voldemort, but really, they died when Malfoy betrayed me."

"That's what worries me. One day, I worry you're going to get hurt or killed like Ron was. Harry, you're my oldest friend, and one of the few I have left from the Hogwarts days. Luna, Neville, George, Fleur and Bill are the only ones I really keep in contact, aside from you. Even here, I don't have many. Aside from Peter and Otto, most of my friends are friends or relatives of Peter. I worry that one day, I'll hear that you're dead, just like with Ron."

"…I get that," Harry said quietly. "You're like a sister to me, Hermione. You were my most loyal friend, a few blips here and there, and, well, I probably gave you too many adventures."

The bushy-haired witch chuckled ruefully. "I suppose. New York's enough of an adventure anyway, what with all the superheroes and vigilantes. I've met a couple of them, I mean, aside from Dr Strange. He said he was going to see you."

"He did."

"Hmm. And I've met Dr Richards and the rest of the Fantastic Four. Otto has a point that Dr Richards can't make a cost-effective invention easily, but he's still a genius. Also met Spider-Man a couple of times. And while he does seem a bit like an attention seeker, I actually think he's a genuinely decent person who tries to do his best to clean up New York."

Harry nodded. The infamous Spider-Man, a vigilante he'd first heard of while he was training with Gringotts. Public opinion was fairly divided on Spider-Man, not helped by a tendency towards collateral damage with property and the acid tongue of J Jonah Jameson, but the general consensus was that he was a rather chatty and facetious vigilante who nonetheless did good work around New York. "Did you get a selfie with him?" he asked facetiously.

"Actually, I did, but with your internet access spotty, I didn't send it. Besides, I thought you had more serious matters on your mind. Speaking of…how is Silvija?"

Harry shrugged. "I think she's like me, restless and looking for a purpose. Running a PMC probably helps her fill the void, given that her cousin took the throne when she was young, and she's been fighting a way since she was a kid. She's a bit like me in that regard."

"I'm a little surprised that you didn't stay together. I mean…I read between the lines of your letters, and I thought you were very close. As in romantic close."

"…It wasn't like that, Hermione. We were friends, and more than friends for a time…but we realised it wouldn't work out. She's a beautiful and intelligent and compassionate woman, but Silvija's also pretty strict and authoritarian. But I'm more of a free spirit, an iconoclast, and she knew it. We're still friends, but any romance wouldn't work out. Still gets annoyed when I call her hercegnő."

"Calling someone 'princess' can get annoying in any language, Harry. I got annoyed when my parents called me that." At this, her face fell. "Now, they want nothing to do with me. They wouldn't leave the country at the time, not without taking me with them, and leaving you alone, and…when I thought up the plan, it was after such a bad argument, because they didn't care about what happened to you, Harry."

"…I'm still surprised you don't hate me for that, Hermione," Harry said quietly.

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel anger and resentment at you because of that, but…you weren't the one who Obliviated my parents. Besides, there were times when I felt like a trophy daughter, a prodigy they could trot out, and when I went to Hogwarts, they couldn't do that due to the Statute. Tensions had been building in my home for a long time. The last time I spoke to them, it was when Ron just died. And…when I told them…my father…he said I wasn't welcome, to stay with the wizards I loved so much." Her breath caught in her throat, and she shook her head. "Thankfully, that inheritance test for the Dagworth-Granger fortune came in, and I was able to pay my way through my degrees. During that time, I went into correspondence with a number of scientists, including Dr Octavius. Otto eventually offered me work. It doesn't exactly pay that well, this is more of a start-up and R&D company so far, but…I know he can change the world, Harry. The leaps and strides we've made in cyberneural interfaces, artificial limbs…it'll be at least a couple of years before we get to a proper prototype stage for testing, but…I believe in Otto Octavius, and so does Peter."

"Yeah, about that…what's his story?"

"A bit of a prodigy when it comes to engineering and chemistry," Hermione said. "I'm no slouch, but Peter's a genius. While his specialty is in engineering and chemistry, he's a Renaissance Man in all sorts of fields. Stark is called the Da Vinci of our times, and so's Richards, but I reckon Peter will eclipse them both. Sad thing is, like you, he was orphaned at a young age. His parents died in a plane crash, though I've heard rumours about it being related to something else. Unlike the Dursleys, his uncle and aunt treated him well, though his uncle was murdered by some burglar. May's a really nice woman, she works at the FEAST homeless shelter in Chinatown. She's like Molly, but without the pushiness or patronising. Peter's also got this girlfriend, a would-be reporter, Mary-Jane Watson. And he's somewhat tardy." Hermione shrugged. "But he's a nice guy and got a lot on his plate, and I can pick up the slack."

"He's pretty young," Harry remarked.

"He reminds me a little of yourself, especially when we first met. Eager to help, a bit uncertain of himself, trying to do what he can for others. Apparently, his uncle had a saying, 'with great power comes great responsibility'."

"Trite tripe," Harry scoffed. "If that were true, wizards would actually be trying to help Muggles…oh, wait, they call them No-Majs here. I'd rather try to have a decent life. If someone needs help, I'll try to help them, but otherwise…" Harry gave a shrug. "My hero days are pretty much done. I mean, major heroics."

Hermione just gave him a sceptical look. But he had to admit while she may have had a point, he knew that heroism had a short use-by date. Nowadays, while his work was risky, it at least paid well, and he got some small gratitude. And he was doing good work, keeping dark artifacts out of the hands who shouldn't have them.

Of course, he didn't know it, but his first job in New York would end up with a Black Cat crossing his path. But it might not be a portent of bad luck after all…

CHAPTER 2 ANNOTATIONS:

So, Hermione's working for Doc Ock, and we've had some insight into what haunts the two Hogwarts alumni.

No numbered annotations this time.