Chapter 11: Old Friends and New Allies
Winter raced ahead, bringing with it flurries of snow and wintery storms, and freezing temperatures that left thick layers of ice on any watery surface. Harry felt much more at ease in his younger body and began to trust himself to be less likely to slip up in front of people who didn't know of his future escapades, and so was excited to re-introduce himself to his soon-to-be schoolmates. Finally the day of their reunion – even if it was unknown to be so to all but one of the participants - arrived and Harry awoke and dressed early, eager to get to Longbottom Manor.
When Andi and Harry eventually arrived at the Longbottom's home via floo, Neville and his gran were patiently awaiting their arrival. At the sight of Harry climbing from their fireplace, both his hosts had a countenance of shock on their faces. Harry remembered belatedly that Andi hadn't told them who they would be meeting and so, remembering his lessons, Harry approached Neville's grandmother and bowed to her.
"Regent Longbottom. A pleasure to meet you." He took her proffered hand and lightly placed a kiss on the back. This seemed to bring the elder Longbottom back to her senses and when Harry glanced up at her she had an amused expression on her face and a slight twinkle in her eye.
"Welcome, Heir Potter. What a pleasure it is to finally see you again. The last time would have been just after you were born." She smiled indulgently at Harry and as he turned to Neville he could have sworn he heard her murmur "such a charmer" under her breath.
Neville looked just as Harry remembered him from his first year at Hogwarts; a chubby, slightly awkward pre-teen with an obvious streak of shyness that Harry was keen to help him overcome.
"Heir Longbottom," Harry said in greeting, holding out his hand.
"Heir Potter." Neville grasped his hand and gave it a quick, firm shake. He was clearly unsure what to make of the boy who had disappeared from the Wizarding world without a trace following his parent's death.
Harry knew it was on him to break the ice as Neville's timidness wouldn't allow him to make the first overtures of friendship. Harry beamed a broad smile. "Please, call me Harry. I've been told that your mum was my godmother so as far as I'm concerned we're family."
Harry realised at once he'd made the right choice as a wide smile split Neville's face. "I'm Neville. Gran can we…?"
"Go on, be off with the pair of you." Augusta smiled as well, pleased to see her grandson clearly excited to have a new friend. "Susan and Hannah will be along later and I'll send them to find you once they arrive."
"C'mon Harry. I'll give you the tour."
An hour later, Harry and Neville were stood side-by-side, looking out over the wintry landscape of the grounds behind the manor. The late January sun didn't have enough warmth to clear the frost from the tips of the grass of the well-manicured lawns, but Neville was talking non-stop about his plans for greenhouses and the plants he wanted to grow in them. Harry just grinned and listened to his friend chatter away, mentally trying to compare him to the shy and nervous young man he'd first met on the Hogwarts Express. He was surprised by how quickly Neville had come out of his shell, it had taken him significantly longer in the future to be this at ease with him, but he was glad to hear his friend so enthusiastic about something that made him truly happy.
"Neville!" Two voices called out in unison and Harry and Neville turned to see two young girls stood in the doorway, one with blonde pigtails and the other with shoulder-length red hair. "Aren't you going to introduce us?"
"Oh... ermm... yeah!" Neville, remembering his etiquette lessons, straightened and said grandly, "Heir Potter, may I introduce Heiress Susan Bones and Heiress Hannah Abbott."
Harry strode over to the two girls who hadn't moved from the doorway but stood with their mouths slightly open as they gaped at the young boy before them, astonished to be meeting the Harry Potter. He'd not known them particularly well in the future, only really in passing acquaintance from classes and the time they spent together in the DA. He immediately resolved to be friendlier with them this time around, not because of their future statuses as heads of their houses, but because he knew his closeness with Hermione and, in particular Ron (who at times had seemed to discourage others from even approaching him), had made it difficult for his schoolmates to get to know him in the future.
"Heiress Bones, Heiress Abbott, this is truly a pleasure. Please call me Harry." Harry bowed to the pair then grinned up at them as they both flushed bright pink and burst out into giggles.
"Smooth Harry," Andi stepped into the room with a smirk on her face. "I'm glad to see you're taking your lessons seriously but if you keep that up you'll spend all your time at school fending off witches." Now it was Harry's turn to blush. "I just wanted to let you know we're going to be in the parlour, do you think you four can keep yourselves occupied for the next few hours?" Harry met her eyes and quirked his eyebrow slightly but a small, imperceptible shake of Andi's head indicated that she'd fill him in later.
"I think we can manage that Mrs Tonks," said Neville with a shy smile, leading his friends out of the room.
Andi watched them leave then returned to the parlour where Augusta was waiting alongside Susan's aunt Amelia, and Hannah's parents, John and Olivia. She closed the door quietly then turned to survey the room.
"Andromeda! What the… When you said you were going to reintroduce an heir to society you didn't mention it was Harry bloody Potter." John Abbott was an emotional man when circumstances were in his favour and was blustering now things were out of his control.
"How is it that he's with you?" Augusta queried. "Whenever I've asked Albus he's intimated that Harry was living with his Muggle relatives but couldn't allow anyone to know where that was."
Andi gathered herself and spoke slowly. "What I'm about to tell you must remain secret. If any word of this gets out that young man out there could be in serious danger. I don't like to do this but I need to ask you all to take an oath not to reveal what is said here today without permission." She turned, looking specifically at Amelia who appeared to be about to object. "I promise you that nothing I tell you will stop you from performing your job as Head of the DMLE."
Amelia studied Andi deliberately then gave a short, quick nod of acquiescence. Andi let out a breath that she didn't realise she'd been holding and led the gathered adults in a secrecy oath before telling them all about Harry's time with the Dursley's, the part she and her family were now playing in Harry's life, and Dumbledore's disturbing fascination with the boy-who-lived.
"How could anyone treat a child that way?" the look of outage on Olivia Abbott's face was mirrored on every other one in the room. "Especially a family member?"
"I've a good mind to pay them a visit and give them a taste of their own medicine." Augusta Longbottom was not someone to be crossed at the best of times but the murder in her voice would have made even the bravest hearts cower in terror. "How could Albus have left the boy with those people and not checked up on him?"
Amelia frowned. "If everything you've told us is true, and I apologise if I seem sceptical about this, but are you able to prove Dumbledore's involvement at all?" She'd never particularly liked the Hogwarts Headmaster but the thought that he could know a child was suffering and had actively chosen not to intervene was a step she was mentally struggling to make.
Andi considered Amelia and appeared to be weighing something in her mind. After a few moments she spoke, "Harry is able to prove it but it's a… difficult… thing for him to talk about and not something he's comfortable sharing. He only told Ted and I out of necessity. Would you mind if I spoke to him first? To see if he would be OK telling you?" Amelia consented and Andi turned to the others, "And would you all accept the proof if Amelia vouches for it?" she paused and looked each of them in the eye. She softened her voice, "Knowing Harry as I now do, I know he wouldn't want to put anyone else in a position where they could be at risk. Amelia's job gives her a measure of protection that the rest of you don't have the benefit of, even in your roles as regents or heads of houses." Augusta and the Abbotts shared a glance, then agreed.
Andi and Amelia arranged a time to meet the following day then, after collecting Harry from his friends, the pair returned the Tonks'.
The moment they arrived back at the house, Harry spun to face Andromeda. "What happened Andi?" he was disquieted by their rather abrupt departure.
"As we agreed I told them about the Dursleys, how you came to be here with us – though I made no mention of Professor Snape – and Dumbledore's interference with your life. They've all sworn oaths not to tell anyone what we discussed, but Amelia Bones is asking for proof about Dumbledore." She took a moment and watched Harry intently for his reaction to what she was about to say. "I think you need to tell her the truth. All of it. Your full history… well future I guess."
Harry tensed. He'd already told more people than he'd intended to by involving Severus, but that had been out of his control. To intentionally bring someone else in on his secret was a huge step to take.
Andi took his lack of response as an indication to continue. "Just think about it for a moment. As Head of the DMLE, she can help us, open doors that would otherwise be closed and not just in the fight against You-Know-Who –"
"Voldemort," Harry growled "use his name, it's only a bloody anagram anyway"
"- Sorry, the fight against Voldemort, but also in the Wizengamot. You've got ridiculous, monumental challenges ahead of you Harry. I think her voice is one that would be best to have on your side."
Harry considered this. Amelia Bones was clearly a force to be reckoned with - he remembered that she'd been murdered by Voldemort himself the summer after his fifth year at Hogwarts and decided that someone that monster had seen as a threat was an ally worth having. "Fine, but only her. Five people knowing my secret is more than I'm comfortable with."
Andi gave a satisfied nod, she thought she'd have to fight him more to get his agreement. "Good. She'll be here tomorrow. I'd suggest we get Sirius and Severus to come along as well. It will show our belief in you and give her a chance to ask us questions too."
Harry, feeling apprehensive about the entire situation, assented then excused himself leaving Andi to make the arrangements.
The following day found the Tonks', Sirius, Severus and Amelia all settled in comfortable chairs while Harry stood in front of the fireplace, watching the Head of the DMLE intently as he mulled over the information he was about to impart. Slowly, he began to speak.
"My name is Harry James Potter and I am 39 years old…"
Amelia had listened enraptured but her analytical mind allowed no details to slip past her. Although she didn't interrupt Harry's retelling, on several occasion she glanced at one of the others in the room, as if seeking confirmation of the truth. Each time she received a slight nod in return, corroborating the story she was hearing.
Eventually, Harry trailed off and awaited the barrage of questions he just knew would be coming his way. He was surprised however when instead, Amelia stood calmly and moved to Harry's side.
"We'll get to Dumbledore later but first these… Horcruxes?... you say you know where they all are?"
"I believe so. The locket at Grimmauld Place, the cup in the Lestrange vault, the diadem at Hogwarts, the diary at Malfoy Manor and the ring at the Gaunt shack."
"And you know how to destroy them?"
"Basilisk venom or Fiendfyre did the job before. It's just a shame there's no way - that I know of anyway - to remove the Horcrux without damaging the object. We're talking about priceless relics from the founders of Hogwarts that are going to be turned into useless lumps of twisted metal."
Amelia stared off into the distance, a pensive look upon her face. "I wonder…" Harry and the others waited in silence, allowing her time to work through her thought process. Eventually, she spoke again. "Harry, last time did you speak to anyone else about the Horcruxes? Seek any other method to destroy them?"
"No, Dumbledore made it clear that we should trust no one else with the information in case it got back to Voldemort. As for their destruction, Hermione, Ron and I talked it over but the only methods we found were the ones I've already mentioned. Why? Do you think there may be another way?"
"Possibly… I'll need to look into it. Ask a few quiet questions."
"OK – just be careful who you trust." Harry contemplated this for a moment. "I'll give you a list of every Death Eater that I know of so you can avoid them – there's quite a few in the Ministry, unfortunately. We'll need to find a way to take care of them all at some point."
"Show me the list when you're done and I'll add what I can," Severus said with Harry and Amelia both inclining their heads in appreciation.
"I'll get to work on it now," said Harry, collecting some parchment and a quill before leaving the room.
"There's so much weight on his shoulders," sighed Sirius, watching the doorway his godson had left through. "As bad as he had it last time around it's probably worse now – the fate of the entire Wizarding world resting on him? I'd crack under that pressure."
"It's far too much for one person to bear. He needs all the help he can get." agreed Ted.
"So let's help him," Amelia said suddenly. "He doesn't need to be involved in the gathering of the Horcruxes, we could do that for him – carefully of course. From what he told us about Dumbledore's hand after collecting the ring, it's apparent there'll be a number of protective enchantments or curses surrounding the objects. Let's get them together and destroy them all in one go."
A sly grin appeared on Sirius' face. "As head of the house of Black I can get the locket from Grimmauld but I think I may be able to get our hands on the cup too." He smirked as he looked around the room. "If I dissolve Bella's marriage for bringing the family name into disrepute I can reclaim her dowry. I know it was substantial – who wants to bet there's not enough gold in the Lestrange vault to cover the repayment? Years of funnelling money into Voldy's pockets won't have been cheap."
"Any shortfall would have to be made up from other items in the vault…" said Ted, catching on to Sirius' idea. "Good thinking Sirius."
"And here's something else I can do as head of the house of Black – tomorrow I'm visiting Gringotts and reinstating Andi into the family." He sat back with a smug expression on his face while Andi looked shocked. She'd never regretted running away to marry Ted but it had hurt regardless to have been made an outcast from her own flesh and blood.
"You don't have to do that Sirius," she said weakly.
"I know I don't have to. I want to." Sirius spoke firmly. "It's time we brought the Black family name out of the dark and into the light."
Andi didn't say a word but sent a grateful look to Sirius before turning and engulfing her husband in a huge hug. Ted knew how much this meant to her and tried to express his love and support through his embrace.
"Nice one Padfoot," whispered Harry. He'd entered the room just in time to catch Sirius' final declaration and was delighted to see Andi's response. Sirius quickly caught him up on the plan while the Tonks' composed themselves, and Harry was grateful for their offers of assistance.
"There's one more thing I've been thinking of Harry…" Sirius paused and a nervous expression appeared on his face. "I've been thinking about other ways we can protect you – stop any chance of Dumbledore interfering again, and there's something I want to ask you. You can say no if you want, I won't be offended but I just thought I'd ask. I'd really like it if you would obviously, but I don't want to pressure you…"
"Sirius – stop! Just say it."
"What do you think about me adopting you?"
Harry gaped at Sirius. "You'd really do that for me?"
"Of course! You're already my heir but this will make us officially family." Now Harry hadn't dismissed the offer out of hand Sirius looked a lot more confident and he beamed a smile at his godson.
Harry gnawed on his bottom lip. "Would I… have to change my name?" he asked tremulously. "Not that I wouldn't like being a member of the Black family! It's just… "Potter". I got that from my Dad…"
Sirius' face had begun to fall slightly at Harry's question but his explanation pushed any personal feelings of disappointment aside immediately. "Legally you'd be 'Harry James Black-Potter' but you could still go by just Potter if you want. I understand it's a link to your parents – I won't be upset."
Harry smiled up at him. "Thank you," he whispered. "I'd like that very much."
By the time summer rolled around Harry had been officially adopted into the Black family and his lessons with Andi had branched out to include politics, with Sirius now assisting with his training. Neville, Susan, Hannah and Harry had been joined in their regular get-togethers by the Greengrass sisters, Daphne and Astoria, and firm friendships had developed between them all. By the time of his 10th birthday, Harry felt more content and at ease than he had done at any point in either of his childhoods.
As he was now only a year away from starting Hogwarts he knew his friends would soon begin to receive their letters and his thoughts lingered more and more often on his bushy-haired best friend. He'd begged Severus to find out when Professor McGonagall was going to escort the new muggle-born students to Diagon Alley so he could arrange to be there on the same day. He knew he'd have to rebuild his friendship with Hermione all over again but had vowed to himself that he would be by her side and support her, just as she had supported him, throughout her entry into the condensed version of the Wizarding world that was Hogwarts.
Finally, the day arrived and Harry, complete with the usual glamour that was applied when he needed to interact with other magicals, had a nervous energy and butterflies in his stomach. "It's just Hermione," he told himself, trying to understand why he was getting so worked up. Sirius wasn't helping matters, joking repeatedly about a second 'first meeting' between the two. He still hadn't let up on the pair dating, despite Harry's repeated protestations that he'd loved her as a sister in the future and nothing more.
"Oh? Is there a Potter sister I'm not aware of?" Sirius said drolly but not unkindly, "I can only assume your vast experience of sibling love is how you could tell the difference." Harry had tried to respond but instead just spluttered before Sirius laughed and walked away.
They'd arrived in the Alley early, needing to meet with their Gringotts account managers before keeping an eye out for the arrival of the muggle-borns, but by the time they had finished at the bank, the families were already conducting their own shopping in the stores that lined Diagon Alley. Harry looked anxiously around at the sea of faces, recognising Dean Thomas and Justin Finch-Fletchley in the crowd but unable to see the familiar brown locks of Hermione Granger.
"Calm down Pup," Sirius muttered, "You're making me nervous."
"I can't see her Sirius. What if something's happened to her?"
"Think – if she's not out here, where's she likely to be?"
Harry beamed up at Sirius then shot off, weaving his way through the crowd until he arrived at the door of Flourish and Blotts. Taking a deep breath he pushed his way inside and peered around, seeking his friend with the same focus he used to apply to finding the Golden Snitch. He ventured further into the store, winding his way around other customers and between the towering floor-to-ceiling bookshelves that constantly looked as though they could topple over at any moment. Then he saw her.
Hermione Granger, all 4 foot 6 inches of her, complete with bushy brunette hair, pale skin and bucked front teeth, was stretching to reach a book on one of the higher shelves and hadn't yet noticed Harry watching her.
"Well? Are you going to talk to her?" Sirius whispered, having eventually caught up with Harry. He was clutching his side and out of breath from his exertions following his godson as he'd dashed off.
"What should I say?" said Harry nervously, not wanting to ruin their second introduction.
"Is someone there?" Hermione suddenly called from further down the aisle. Sirius responded by giving Harry a shove in the back forcing him to stumble into her line of sight.
"Err… yeah… hi!" said Harry, trying to restrain himself from glaring over his shoulder at his godfather, who was smirking at him from the shadows. "Are you OK? Do you need some help?"
"Yes please," Hermione was looking at him curiously. "The book I want is just a little out of my reach."
Harry, who had been steadily approaching her and trying desperately not to stare at his long-time friend, glanced up at the shelves and was amused to see that the book in question was 'Hogwarts: A History'. "Oh, this is a great book. You'll love it! I've got a friend who's read it so many times she could quote it word for word." Harry gave her a small smile as he handed the heavy tome over to her.
"Thanks," she said. She placed the book carefully to one side and held out her hand. "I'm Hermione Granger. Will you be a first-year too?"
Harry reached out and swallowed as a small shock passed between them as their hands touched.
"Sorry, must be static build-up," she said, then stood, watching Harry with her head cocked slightly to one side. Eventually, she broke the silence. "And you are…" she prompted
"Oh! Sorry! I'm Harry, Harry Potter."
A slight frown appeared on her face as she regarded him. Her eyes narrowed slightly and there was a note of hostility in her voice when she spoke. "Are you really? You don't look the way Harry Potter is described in books. I've been browsing for a while and there are details in 'Modern Magical History', 'The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts' and 'Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century'. All of those books say Harry Potter has black hair, green eyes and a scar on his forehead."
"Normally I do," Harry explained quickly, not wanting to get on Hermione's bad side – although it didn't appear too often, her temper had been legendary in the Gryffindor common room and it was well known to avoid it at all costs, "I'm under a glamour – I can't make my way around shops without it. Too many people wanting a piece of the 'boy-who-lived'." Harry said this last part with a tone of disgust.
"Yes… well… if you really are Harry Potter I guess I'll see you at Hogwarts. Thank you again for the help with the book." With a tight smile, Hermione turned and left Harry, heading back to the front of the store. Once she was out of sight Harry groaned, slid to the floor and put his head in his hands.
"Well," said Sirius. "That could have gone better."