Draco bowed. He held out his arm for Daphne as he stood, and the girl took it as her parents followed after his mother and moved from the foyer into the dining room. The table was set with six plates and sets of silverware, each immaculately arranged and polished. His father was sitting at the head of the table, stoic and giving just a simple nod in the wake of their guests' arrival. The man hadn't spoken to Draco in days, almost entirely ignoring his son's existence, and it seemed the trend would continue.

'You'll realize how fucking unimportant a silly duelling tournament is.'

Hydrus's words had been playing on repeat in Draco's mind ever since his last run-in with his cousin. There was a time when his father's little games had made or broken entire months of Draco's life, but now he saw through them.

The Malfoy manor had the exact same layout of Castle Black, which Aunt Bella had given him a tour of in preparation of the ball that would soon be held there. His father walked with a 'stylish' cane the same way great-grandfather Arcturus did. Even the investments they made were done in the wake of whatever trends the Black family set.

'You can be so much more.'

Draco took his seat after pulling out Daphne's chair for her. There was so much more that the Malfoy heir could be. Just like their Aunt Bellatrix, he could become a renowned and feared duelist. Just like Viktor Krum, he could become a quidditch star. Just like Hydrus himself, Draco could become powerful.

"Lord Greengrass," his father said. "A pleasure to see you again. How fare you this evening?"

Draco tuned out the response. It would be the same as always. This exact same meeting had been held a dozen times by now, and then a dozen more with the Parkinsons. Instead he stared at his empty plate, wondering what Dobby would have fixed for them.

The house elf had been strange ever since meeting his cousin. It still obeyed them, still cowered in their presence, but the sidelong glances it sent their way left Draco wondering. His cousin had warned him that the creatures could inadvertently betray their masters, but could it be in favour of Hydrus himself? The food appeared, and Draco took his serving just after his father started. It was slightly earlier than was entirely proper, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

'A man who will never be proud of you.'

And he hadn't been. He wasn't. He never would be.

As Draco carved up his chunk of fowl, he wondered what his cousin had been up to. He'd delivered the letter he'd been given for the third year Greek girl, but beyond that he had no idea what his cousin had planned. Even if he could say he knew more about the boy than anyone else did in their dormitory, that was all he could say.

It felt like he was a little piece on a gameboard to Hydrus. Every move the Black made, even the ones that had nothing to do with Draco, were delivered to him like a treat that he got to enjoy before the other dogs. But he did get them first. He did hold the highest position in the hierarchy that Hydrus was arranging. And unlike his father, the one-armed teen didn't beat him down in between reminders of status. Instead he raised the blonde ever higher, teaching him more and more about what it meant to be a wizard.

Once, what felt like so long ago, he'd thought that being a wizard, being pureblooded and magical, was all that mattered.

Now he knew the truth.

What mattered was how powerful you were, magical or otherwise. How much of an impact you could have on the world around you, how much could you shape it into what you imagined was perfection. How useful you were. Hydrus wasn't at the top of that list, not by a long shot according to his fellow teen, but he did deserve a top-ten placing.

Considering the rest of the competition was ancient in comparison, that held great weight.

Draco pushed the bite of bread and mashed potatoes he held around in a pool of gravy, trying to build up an influx of flavour. Dobby might've been a submissive, inconsequential being, but the elf knew how to cook a good dinner. He took and swallowed the bite far too fast, but again he didn't care.

Hydrus didn't care for propriety when it came to meals, why should he?

The boy had an appetite unparalleled. In the most obvious sense, it showed itself in the way he devoured his food as if every last morsel would try and escape him. But in the less obvious sense, it truly shined. The way he was always reading. The way he made sure to stop by every store during hogsmeade visits, making small purchases or just chatting up the shopkeepers. The way he pretended to drift off during classes, while always keeping one ear towards the teacher in order to make sure he knew what was being said. The way he seemed to swallow up any and every opportunity that came his way in order to become the best possible wizard he could.

His and Daphne's parents were talking about land agreements, vague references and allusions to what could be done or arranged if a marriage took place. Draco was almost surprised when he realised he'd already finished off his plate, it seemed he'd imitated his cousin a bit too much this time. Then again, perhaps he could just keep pushing this.

He stood, silencing the conversation in his wake.

"What are you doing?" his father demanded, the first words he'd said to Draco since the Black Sheep's visit. "Dinner isn't finished."

"Mine is." He tossed his napkin atop his plate, and made to leave. "I'll be going to visit Hydrus."

He knew he was untouchable for now. If his father rose up to chase after him, it'd cause an even bigger scene, an even bigger embarrassment. Once their guests were gone, he'd have to fear the man's reprisal, but what could he do while Draco was at the Blacks' home?

And he really did want to see his cousin again. When Sirius had 'invited' him and his mother to visit, Hydrus had been off on some journey. Aunt Bella hadn't mentioned what it was for, but did say he'd be back by today since the Black Winter Ball was tomorrow. He stepped into the floo and threw the powder down.

"Black Summer Home."

With a woosh he was away. To his surprise, his aunt was actually making use of the parlour, curled up on the couch reading some tome. She looked up with a growing smile, only for it to vanish when she actually saw him. Draco suddenly worried he'd made a mistake, but she didn't glare at him, instead she just sighed and looked away.

"Hello, dear," Aunt Bella said. "What are you doing here?"

"I was hoping it would be alright to visit," Draco said, trying to make sure he picked his words carefully. Aunt Bella wasn't known to be the most stable person around, even at the best of times, and right now she seemed as unsteady as he'd ever seen her. "Is Hydrus here?"

"No." He shivered, that had been the wrong question to ask. "He still won't come home."

"Where is he?"

"Hogwarts." She gave a loud sniff. "I wrote to him, and he didn't even bother writing the response back himself. Just had one of the elves do it for him."

"I'm… sorry?" Draco swallowed. "Would you like me to leave?"

That would be a very, very bad turn of events. Technically he could find someone else to visit, but none of them would, or perhaps even could, protect him from his father like the Blacks could. Perhaps he could visit Grandpa Cygnus instead…

"You can stay." She shifted a bit and patted the spot on the couch beside her. "Tell Aunty Bella what's going on."

"Nothing's goin—"

Draco tensed as she poured her magic towards him. Like Hydrus and the Black Sheep, the magic was cold and dark. Unlike their power, however, hers didn't seem to strangle you and leave you feeling like you were in the worst part of a vice grip. Instead it felt like millions of little spiders crawling across your skin, like the power itself was alive and swarming you. Aunt Bella patted the couch once more.

Draco sat down.

"I walked out in the middle of dinner with Greengrasses," he said. "Father won't be happy when he wraps things up with them."

"You'll stay here as long as you'd like," Aunt Bella said. "Even if it's for the rest of winter break. Your great-grandfather won't mind the extra company, and I'm sure Hydrus won't either."

"Thank you." Draco nodded. "What's he doing anyways?"

The woman sighed. "I wish I knew."

Hydrus awoke, feeling simultaneously the best he had since returning to the past, and in the absolute worst state of disrepair. Having one of his breakdowns always left him in a zen-like state, but this time he'd also woken up to his occlumency wards in complete shambles. It'd take him weeks to repair the damage the headmaster had done. The man hadn't completely destroyed his mind with his 'rummaging', but he certainly hadn't used any delicacy with the process either.

It seemed he was worse with the mind arts in this timeline than in the past.

He was in the hospital wing of Hogwarts for what felt like the millionth time in his life. The torches were lit, but there was still a glow coming in from outside. The air smelled of medicines and… He sniffed at himself and cringed away. With a grunt, Hydrus threw off the blankets and sat up.

"Kre—" He broke into a coughing fit. He summoned and filled a glass with water, then refilled it twice more, before trying again. "Kreacher."

The elf appeared with a whip-like crack. "Young Lord Master?"

"What time and day is it?"

"Is being thirty-three till eight, and is the night before the party, Young Lord Master."

'Fuck.' He'd barely started patching things up with Bellatrix with his 'efforts' at the school ball; that was probably out the window now. He took a calming breath. 'It's fine, Har-, Hydrus, we can deal with it.'

It really was nice getting all of that out of his system, even if he was going to have one hell of a talk with Dumbledore soon. Soon, but certainly not tonight. He thought about having Kreacher fetch him some proper robes, but decided the off-white set that someone had changed him into for his stay in the medical ward would be fine enough. Especially since it'd earn him some pity points with Bellatrix.

Quick calculations began to pour through Hydrus's mind. Should he be honest with her regarding what had happened, at least in the sense that he'd given himself the most debilitating case of magical exhaustion he'd ever dealt with? Should he come up with a lie that he could set straight with Dumbledore later? Furthermore, what else could he offer the woman to help assuage her underlying anger? He'd let that frustration from her build up far too much. If she was going to become and remain a powerful piece on his board, he needed to ensure that she didn't go wandering off on her own.

His thoughts were disturbed by a snake beginning to coil its way up his chest. He nearly destroyed it with a burst of magic, before remembering what and who it likely was.

"Good evening, Apophis."

"Father," the basilisk said. "Are you alive?"

"Obviously I am." He stroked the snake's plumage. "How are you?"

"It's hard for me to tell sometimes, who is alive and who isn't." Hydrus shivered as he remembered Apophis mentioning 'the voices' he listened to. "And I'll be better once I know you aren't going to try and kill us again."

"I certainly wasn't trying to," Hydrus said softly. "Believe me when I say I would've succeeded if I had been."

After all, he'd killed much bigger basilisks than Apophis, and much more powerful wizards than himself.

"If you say so."

"I do say so." Hydrus stood. "What have you been up to?"

"My empire grows," the snake hissed. "I have begun to lay the foundations for my eventual conquest of Lord Grandfather Salazar's chamber."

Hydrus blinked. "Right. Kreacher? Take me home."

"Yes, young lord master."

It was a foolish request, as Hydrus realised when he was greeted with a shriek from his fiancee and a spit-take from his 'cousin'. He stiffened for a moment, worried that Apophis would panic in turn, but the snake's emotions and magic didn't so much as twitch. Hydrus reached up and scratched the snake's jaw.

"I'm proud of you for not being surprised."

"Why should I be surprised?" The snake lifted its head up and away from the petting, arrogance practically rolling off the reptile. "They are right to fear me."

"Hydrus…" Bellatrix started. "Is… Is that?"

"This is Apophis." The basilisk's pride seemed to double over, pouring through the familiar bond like water through a hose. "My new familiar."

"You're a parselmouth," Draco near-whispered. "That's a basilisk."

"Yes, and yes." Hydrus cocked an eyebrow at the blonde. "What are you doing here?"

Before the boy could answer, the fireplace flared to life in green flames. Hydrus sent the briefest 'suggestion' through his bond with the snake, and it disappeared. To his annoyance, Lucius Malfoy stepped through, nostrils flared and the grip on his cane turning his knuckles white. To his delight, when Hydrus glanced over at Draco, he saw the boy looking away, refusing to meet his father's eyes.

It seemed some sort of rift had formed between the two. 'At least some plans go as intended.'

"Draco," the Malfoy lord said. "Come. Now."

Hydrus cleared his throat, and Lucius stiffened slightly. "Lord Malfoy, I've just arrived and thus I'm not quite sure what's going on here, but I highly doubt it's an excuse for impropriety."

"Forgive me." The man bowed his head. "Greetings, Scion Black."

Technically the man outranked Hydrus, but this was a Black home, and that meant Hydrus was entitled to more than he normally would be. He took advantage of that by simply standing still, watching the man and making it perfectly clear that he was delaying on purpose to reinforce his point. Eventually he nodded back.

"Lord Malfoy."

With the posturing out of the way, Lucius turned back towards Draco but was cut off by Bellatrix. "Draco will be staying here for the night, Lord Malfoy." She slid an arm around the boy's shoulders like a tigress guarding her kill from scavengers. "As well as however many more nights he would like to."

"That is—!"

"Lucius." Hydrus hadn't raised his voice, nor flared his magic, but he had still managed to silence the older pureblood. "If you shout at Bellatrix again, we're going to have a problem."

The man spun on his heel to face Hydrus once more, and the time-traveller had to exercise every ounce of self control he had not to smile at the way he had the snob turning about like a top. The normally fair-skinned man was practically beet-red. It was entirely obvious he wanted to scream at Hydrus instead now, but the man hadn't made it this far in high-society by losing his cool easily. Still, a plan had rapidly formed in the 'younger' man's mind, and he didn't see any reason not to go through with it.

"Scion Black," Lucius said through gritted teeth. "I will be taking my son, and it is not up for discussion."

"Lucius." Hydrus still refused to keep calling the man 'lord', knowing how much it would anger him. "I've just spent the past week cooped up in an extremely uncomfortable hospital bed." He moved over to stand between the Malfoy patriarch and his heir. "And so I agree, there will be no debate. But, I will offer you one of two choices." He flicked his wrist and the fireplace flared so hot and bright that it nearly lit the man's robes on fire. "You're either going to step into that floo, or I'll throw you in." He cocked his head up, doing his best imitation of a petulant teen who'd gotten too big for his britches. "Make your decision."

Lucius snarled, reached into his coat pocket, and threw a glove at Hydrus's feet.

Hydrus had to lock away the madness that immediately began to bubble up from inside him at the gesture. It seemed having a breakdown only helped alleviate his normal mental woes, but at least it was a lot easier to squash away his Black 'inheritance' now. He still allowed himself a smile though.

And if it looked a bit mad, then so be it.

"I accept." He turned to Bellatrix. "Will you do me the honour of being my second, my Lady?"

Her eyes widened, and she spoke in a husky, almost-whispering voice, "Of course."

"As the challenged party, I shall decide the time for our duel," Hydrus said. "And it shall be now."

Now it was Lucius's turn for his eyes to go wide. "We can't just—"

"There is no 'we' about it, Lord Malfoy," Hydrus said. "It is my decision to make, and it has been made."

"What the hell is going on in here?" Hydrus blinked. He'd nearly forgotten about his great-grandfather. "And why the hell are you wearing hospital robes, boy?"

"An unexpected complication during my recent venture," he said after bowing. "And an unexpected annoyance upon my return. I've just informed Lord Malfoy that the duel he challenged me to will be taking place this instant."

"What?" Arcturus's power rolled off of him, and Hydrus was forced to give a begrudging amount of respect to the ancient wizard for it. "What have you done, Malfoy?"

"I—"

"He has decided to annoy me." Hydrus waved his hand through the air dismissively. "And I have decided to punish him for that."

"I forbid this," Arcturus snapped.

"Grow a spine!" Arcturus's magic vanished, and everyone in the room besides Hydrus himself seemed to freeze. "I will not be backing down from this challenge, and I'm ashamed to hear the Lord of House Black try and do it for me."

The old veteran stared at Hydrus. A second passed, then another, and then a smile split the ancient wizard's face which made Hydrus's earlier grin seem benign in comparison. Unlike Hydrus, the patriarch didn't bother to shy away from the madness, and for the first time Hydrus got to witness the oldest-living member of his family snap. The patriarch's magic returned in full force as he cackled, practically roaring in laughter as he nearly crushed his cane under the weight he pressed down on it with. A few more minutes passed before Arcturus straightened up, tears still in his eyes and a much more 'normal' smile on his face.

"Grow a spine, indeed." He turned to Lucius. "Hmph. You have five minutes to find a second. If you haven't returned by then, it will be assumed that you have forfeited."

Like a judge banging his gavel, Arcturus slammed his cane into the ground. Lucius's mouth moved silently for a few seconds, before he rolled his eyes and left through the floo. To Hydrus's surprise, the man called out 'Macnair Manor!' as his destination.

Once he was gone, Hydrus relaxed. He moved over and sat down beside Bellatrix, opposite to Draco. It was a relief to get off his feet and he hoped Apophis wasn't getting too used to riding on his shoulders; the beast was heavy.

"Why were you hospitalised?" Arcturus demanded. "Will it interfere with this due?"

Hydrus shook his head. "Just a bit of self-destructive magical exhaustion."

"Self-destructive?"

"I had another madness flare up." A half-truth, he supposed it would work. "Without a target to focus on, my magic just came exploding out of me and burned off some skin. I'm fully recovered now."

"Hmph," Arcturus grunted. "And the ring?"

'Shit, forgot about that.' It almost made him want to laugh. 'Guess I won't be able to avoid Dumbledore for long.'

"Going through one last precaution, though its probably more than fine by now." He leaned over to press against Bellatrix. "As soon as I woke up I had Kreacher bring me home, the last thing I wanted to do was leave Bella hanging for longer than was needed."

She giggled and practically knocked him over the way she pressed back up against him in turn. Apophis apparently grew tired of being squished, and Hydrus felt him slither away. "I'm glad you did."

Hydrus decided to jump in with his own question before Arcturus could keep up with his. "Draco, I need you to make a decision."

"What?" The boy was ghostly pale. "I, I mean, what do you need?"

"Do you want me to kill your father, or just cripple him?" Somehow the boy turned even whiter. "And before you ask, no, there is no third option."

Hydrus was content to wait for the response. Technically there was a time limit, whenever Lucius returned, but for now he was just glad that Bellatrix didn't seem half as upset with him as he'd expected. She was practically purring as he allowed her to continue holding him. It was so much easier to put up with her affections now, and he wasn't sure if it was because of his trip down memory lane reminding him of just how vile the woman was, or if Magic had done something to reinforce or expand their second bargain. Either way, one thing was certain.

He would, and could, never love Bellatrix.

No matter how warm she was.

The fireplace flared green. Lucius and a man that Hydrus didn't recognize stepped through, and the blonde had managed to somehow change into proper duelling robes with what little time he'd had. Hydrus would not be doing him the same courtesy. He spared a glance over at Draco, and saw the boy was holding up two fingers. With a subtle but acknowledging nod, Hydrus stood.

"Come. There's a practice lane in the backyard that will suit our purposes just fine."

Lucius said nothing in response.

The backyard of the Black summer home was rather barren. There was plenty of ground for a proper garden, but Hydrus doubted Arcturus would've allowed such servants to come and go as they pleased. It suited the future-lord just fine as well, at least for now. If anything it made things all the more nostalgic for him; barren wastelands were a more than common terrain in the future. Bellatrix was standing beside the platform, a single step back from Hydrus. Lucius and the Macnair were arranged similarly, except with Macnair standing on the opposite side.

"You already know the rules, so just don't break 'em." Arcturus said. "On my word." He paused. "Go!"

He punctuated it by cracking his cane against the platform. Lucius pulled back with his wand. Macnair tightened the grip on his own. Hydrus smiled.

The first spell, a bone-breaking curse aimed at Hydrus's leg, was easily countered with a flick of his wand. The physically younger man began to walk forward. Lucius attempted a bludgeoning hex that Hydrus side-stepped away from without breaking his stride. Three quick stunners were shielded without any motions from him at all, and he stepped through his fading protego just in time to deflect a burning curse that certainly wouldn't have been fun to catch.

Before long he'd left Lucius two metres of space between them, and just half a step he could retreat to. The man was flinging spells far faster than his son was capable of, but compared to what he'd been able to do in the previous time line it was almost pathetic. Voldemort really had taught his followers well.

Hydrus began to flip through his mental rolodex of spells, trying to decide which one he'd use. One that had been taught to him by a man that Lucius still considered an ally brought a smile to his face.

"Sectumsempra!"

The blonde had less than a second to try and muster up a response, and failed to do so. Hydrus nearly broke his promise to Draco with how close he'd cut it, no pun intended, and there was a decently sized groove carved into the Malfoy lord's thigh in addition to the wand arm that fell to the ground with a wet thump.

Lucius screamed, no doubt in horror more so than pain given the recency of the wound. Arcturus once again slammed his cane into the duelling platform, ending the duel. Hydrus turned to the Macnair man who looked as terrified as the duellist he was supposed to be there supporting.

"Take him to Severus Snape," he said. "If anyone can save his life, it will be him." The man just stared blankly at him. "I'd hurry, if I were you."

With his warning, a courtesy and assurance that he could say 'I tried' to Draco if the boy's father did die, out of the way, Hydrus stepped off the duelling platform and passed Bellatrix who tried to embrace him. Instead he made his way to Draco who was wiping his mouth off, kneeling on the ground with a puddle of vomit before him. Hydrus crouched down.

"Had you been seventeen," he said quietly. "I wouldn't have given you the choice. I would've killed your father, so that you could serve me on the Wizengamot." Draco looked over at him, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "I know you're scared, and feeling guilty, and so many other things that words can't describe.

"But just know that you will never have to fear your father again. I saw the way you were cowering when he appeared, and I will not allow my friend to go through that again. Never again will you have to put his whims above your needs. You are finally free, Draco." He reached out and squeezed the boy's shoulder. "I've carved out the path for you, now you just need to walk down it."

With that he stood and looped his arm into Bellatrix's. "Let's go inside." Lucius had already been carried there by Macnair, no doubt straight to the floo. "These robes are awfully thin."

Apophis returned to his side along the way, sliding up Hydrus's leg until the snake was resting on his shoulders once more. At least this time the snake seemed to have split some of the weight onto Bellatrix, and to Hydrus's surprise the woman didn't seem to mind at all. They said nothing as they made their way to their bedroom.

There he found a surprise; sitting in a pile of soot atop his nightstand was Slytherin's ring. It seemed Fawkes had decided to pay him a visit. He broke free of Bellatrix's grasp, and lifted the ring up into the air to examine it. The setting was exactly as it had been, so either the headmaster was a better goldsmith than he was a legilimens, or he'd ensured the safety of the ring without needing to destroy its setting.

"Be ready, Bella," Hydrus said. "I might need you to lop off my hand."

"What?" She blinked owlishly at him. "I thought you said it was going through some other procedure? Is it not safe?"

"I'm certain it is," he said. "But I was also certain last time."

"Allow me to wear it first," she said. "I can—"

"No." She jumped slightly, and Hydrus realised he'd hissed at her rather than speaking. "I mean, no, no I'm sorry Bella." An idea was forming in his mind, one that he believed would suit his purposes just fine. "I'll explain more shortly. Are you ready?"

She stared hard at him, but didn't respond. Hydrus honestly didn't care whether or not she was ready, but it also wouldn't make a difference if he waited a few more seconds to put it on; give her that ounce of 'respect'. Eventually she nodded.

Without further ado, he slid the ring along his index finger with his thumb. Bellatrix sucked in a breath of air, but after a few seconds, Hydrus nodded. "Behold. The newest, and final, Lord of House Gaunt."

"Final?" she asked. "What do you mean?"

"The Gaunts perverted and destroyed their name." He used a bit of magic to shift the ring back off his finger. "We shall restore them to their origins, and reclaim their heritage."

That had been another one of the plans he, Remus, and Ron had come up with for this trip to the past. Reclaiming the Slytherin family name would not only boost his societal standing, but also demoralise Voldemort's followers, divide them into trying to decide who to trust. He might not've needed the latter now, but the former would always be important. He never should've strayed from the countless ideas his followers had shared with him.

"You intend to reclaim Slytherin's throne." She wrapped her hand around his, her longer fingers just barely brushing against the stone. "Become his heir."

"Something like that." He turned his hand over and placed the ring in her palm, then folded her fingers closed around it. "I want you to imagine someone who's passed away. Someone you'd like to see again."

"What?"

"Close your eyes, and do as I say." She gave him one last confused look, before doing as he asked. "When you have someone in mind, turn the ring over in your hand three times."

A few seconds passed before she made the movements, and then a familiar, spectral magic streamed out from the stone. The woman who appeared was unfamiliar to him. She had her hair pulled up a tight bun, wore an elegant gown, and had a very stately appearance.

"Mother…" Bellatrix whispered. Appropriately, his fiancee looked like she'd seen a ghost. "How…"

"You hold in your hand one of the most ancient, powerful, and precious artefacts in all of magical history," Hydrus said. "Passed down the Peverell line for centuries on end, crafted by Death himself, the Resurrection Stone."

"Bella," the apparition said. "As wonderful as it is to see you, I shouldn't be here."

His fiancee said nothing in return. She just stared up at the phantom with an open mouth and wide eyes. Hydrus gently rested his head against hers.

"Simply think of dismissing her while turning the ring over again," he said. "Once you're ready."

Bellatrix didn't hesitate, and the woman vanished. Hydrus took the ring back from the stunned woman, and slid it back on to his own hand. Later he would attempt what had really driven him this far to retrieve the relic, and see just how far Death's reach really was.

"Do you see the symbol on this ring?" he asked. "Do you recognize it?"

"It's Grindelwald's mark."

"It's much more than that." Hydrus stared hard at the line, circle, and triangle that had dominated his soul for so long. "It was the crest of House Peverell. It was the mark of Death. It is now the symbol with which I express my faith in Magic.

"There's a great deal you don't know about me, Bella, and I'm sorry for that." He reached over and took hold of her hand. "Perhaps in time that will change, but not yet. Not entirely. But this is something I'd like to share with you."

"What is it?" she asked. "What do you mean by your faith?"

"Kreacher, bring me a knife."

He hadn't bothered waiting for the elf to appear before giving the command, and it didn't seem to matter as the elf cracked into the room with it held up in his hands. Hydrus took it and dismissed the elf by waving him off. He'd not done something like this since he received his first blessing, at the instructions of his dying friend, but it felt appropriate. Slowly, he used the knife to pull down the corner of Bellatrix's robes and dress. Her breathing began to hitch, goosebumps appearing across her skin as the fabric fell and exposed one of her breasts. Paying the nudity no mind for once, Hydrus cut into the skin directly above her heart.

She gasped, but didn't move besides that. He set the knife down on their bed, and used his wand to draw out enough blood for his work. When he was finished, the wound sealed over at his command. He pointed his wand at the floor and the blood he'd pooled at its end began to draw out the crest.

"You asked me who I was talking to that night." He knelt down. "I doubt She'll make an appearance tonight, we had a bit of a tiff and recently she had to help me through my bout of madness, but stay and listen to my prayer."

He took a breath, trying to find properly dramatic words and phrases to impress the woman.

"Behold, Magic, my goddess, this sacrifice of blood. Taken from another, offered by my hands, given in your name." He pushed out some of his magic, just enough to taint the air and help sell the effect. "I offer it, as well as my own, in thanks for your aid."

Next, Hydrus bit down on one of his knuckles, regretting that he'd left the knife on the bed but unwilling to accio it over and break the ambience he'd created. He held his hand out over the symbol so that the drops of blood would splash against his work. His magic became even more potent.

"Please, continue to watch over me and mine. Continue to give me guidance and sustenance. Continue to lift me towards my dreams." His magic was now tangible within the air, a faint black mist that nearly made it impossible to see the blood. "Forgive me for my impatience, and forgive what I must continue to do in order to ensure a better future."

"H-, Hydrus…"

He looked up. Standing before him, nothing more than a silhouette in the mist, was Magic. Her features hidden aside from her eyes, a pair of glowing cerulean orbs, She looked as holy and majestic as he could ever remember. Tears poured from his eyes as one of Her arms lifted up, and then he gasped as his magic began to be drained away.

It seemed Hydrus owed an apology to Bellatrix for stealing her magic, this was about as uncomfortable an experience as he could imagine without being in pain. It felt like he was a juicebox being drained away and contorted from the vacuum's pressure.

Eventually it cut off, leaving him with just a third of his power remaining. A shudder ran through Hydrus's bones as he tried to figure out how he was going to survive filling the gap She would leave behind. Magic turned away and faded into the mist.

"Kreacher!"

The elf appeared, then gasped and fell to his knees. Hydrus felt bad for him, but he would need every drop of assistance he could get, and knew the elf could survive. Bellatrix collapsed onto the bed, missing her magic as well now, and Hydrus stumbled to his feet to join her. He was trying, and failing, to hold back what little remained of his power. It was like trying to stop an anchor from sinking off the boat with your bare hands. Just as the last flicker of magic was about to be stolen from him, it stopped.

He tried to sit up, but it was impossible to even keep his eyes open. What had happened? Who had—

"Rest, father." Apophis slithered up onto his chest, coiling around itself till the snake was settled. "I will protect you."

"Thank you," Hydrus hissed back. Just before drifting off, his thoughts turned back to his goddess.

'That better make us even.'

Sirius leaned against the woman he hoped he could someday call his wife, and wished for all the world she'd shut up already. Although he'd never admit it out loud, he'd already fallen for Amelia, and wished for all the world that the two of them could just relax and be together. Instead they were working together. Or rather, she was working, talking aloud through each piece of paper work she sorted through, while he tried to take some small amount of joy from at least being able to use her lap for a pillow.

"Right?" she asked.

"Right."

Amelia nodded. "Oh good, I'll schedule your appointment for tomorrow then."

"Wait, what?"

She snorted and flicked him in the forehead. Sirius gave her a sheepish smile as he realized he'd been exposed, and she returned it with a half-bemused grin of her own.

"It's only two in the morning, you know," Amelia said. "We're supposed to work until four."

"I've just got a lot on my mind." He shifted his head in her lap. "And something under it as well."

"You're lucky you're cute." She set the stack of papers she'd been working on down. "And that tomorrow's a big day."

Sirius's smile faded away. Tomorrow would be the Black Christmas Ball. Hydrus would be making his official debut in 'high society', and Sirius would be proclaiming to the world that he'd be marrying Amelia Bones and rejoining the Black family.

"What if he—"

"What if, what if, what if," Amelia cut in. She stood and pulled him to his feet, they'd been sitting on her living room floor and he hoped this meant they'd be heading to the bedroom next. "Honestly, you're more nervous about this than any bust you've pulled."

"Busts have a chance of killing me," he muttered. "This has a chance of making me wanna die."

She tutted and pulled him in for a kiss. Sirius managed to resist at first, but eventually he gave in to his own desires and returned it with as much aplomb as he could muster. Finally realizing his own desperation for the distraction she offered, he lifted her up to get better angle for the kiss and she wrapped her legs around his waist. Trying to avoid stepping on any papers, he moved towards the bedroom and failed in his mission as he nearly tripped over a manila folder.

Amelia pulled back. "Watch it!"

"Right, right, sorry." His frustration was only partially alleviated when she began to bite and suck on his neck. 'Swear to Merlin, first chance I get, I'm going to KILL the Shadow.'

The Shadow slipped past the estate's wards. They weren't much compared to some of the defences he'd come across in his time, but he had to at least give them credit for making him have to shake his proverbial heel to get the trackers off. If they had been newer wards, using modern formulas and arrays, or if they'd been ancient enough to have truly steeped in their own magics, then they might've even been too much for him. But they weren't.

Smith Manor wasn't all that much to write home about, at least not for someone like him. The place could've been the talk of the town three or maybe even two centuries ago, but nowadays it looked more appropriate to be servants' quarters. The walls were all made of old-but-not-yet ancient wood, the windows were murky in an unstylish way, and you could clearly see that whoever had painted over the place last hadn't bothered to scour away the previous coats. All in all it was a bit more intimate than the Shadow's usual heists, but for the bounty it offered, he could make an exception.

A quick sticking charm that he'd learned a couple years back allowed him to scale the walls, and he made his way up to the third floor and through a window. The room he entered through was plain and barren, just a few bits of couches and tables so you could call it a 'parlour' if anyone asked. Exactly the sort of thing you'd expect in faux-rich houses like the Smiths'.

He brushed off his robes before moving on to the hallway. He'd 'bribed' the house elf with alcohol and pleasant company during enough parties that the thing had let him in on the secret that Hepzibah kept her prized possession in a compartment beneath her bed. The Shadow had never been to Hepzibah's bedroom, thank Morgana for that, but he was familiar enough with pureblood mansions to know where it would be.

Basements were for servants and storage. The first floor was for showing off. The second could house guests above one's station, something that Hepzibah no doubt had spades of. The third though. The third was where she would lay her head. It took a few tries to find her bedroom; various other rooms that were tableaus of propriety were littered about the manor, but those doors were quickly opened and shut.

Eventually he found his game, and after a circular, spiralling motion of his wand the Shadow cast, "Tenebria!"

Like black paint being thrown against a canvas, the world vanished. There was only darkness, only void everywhere anyone could see, and although the Shadow couldn't tell for himself he knew that it would've spread throughout the room and even emerged into the hall in a cloud of inky magic. He heard the mistress of the house shriek as she awoke to blindness. He ignored it and made his way to her side.

He knelt down and didn't acknowledge the way her feet slammed into him as she slid them over the bedside, and tried his best to ignore the scream she gave at the touch. He supposed he couldn't blame the old toad, he had invaded her space after all, but it was annoying nonetheless. The Shadow slid the box out from underneath the bed as she scrambled to get to the other side. He'd already picked the lock and opened the lid by the time she screamed 'Hokey!'

The elf wouldn't be coming. The Shadow had visited just last night, and loaded the poor thing up with enough opioids that it was a miracle Hepzibah hadn't noticed her missing. Or maybe she had, and just forgot in the wake of sleep. Either way, he had plenty of time to stroll towards the window and blow it open with a quick wave of his wand. He leapt out and cast a feather-fall charm to soften the blow on his knees as he landed.

With the cup that had once belonged to the legendary Helga Hufflepuff tucked away under his arm, the Shadow, better known to the world as Regulus Black, absconded away.

BBaRtS

And there's chapter 16. More than ever want to say how much I appreciate the kind reviews, last chapter's were a bit harsher than I'm used to and the nice ones helped me keep positive. Like I'd said in the last AN though, I wasn't a huge fan of the chapter either, and of course I couldn't figure out why/how to fix it until about 0.5 seconds after I posted it. I'm in the process of rewriting it, and it will be one of the few times I go back and make any post-posting changes to the story for now. Nothing major at all will change, you won't have to go back and re-read it, I just decided/discovered what I could do to make it better. I'm about 3.5K words into rewriting it now, and am retelling the flashback scenes from Dumbledore's perspective instead of Harry's.

This serves the double purpose of making it more 'contemporary' to the main story by tying it to a contemporary character's thoughts/feelings, and cuts out a large chunk of Dumbledore's navel-gazing at the end since instead it'll be interspersed throughout the whole chapter. People might still hate it, but thus far I'm feeling it a lot more than I did the original version that got posted.

I'll skip over most of the review responses just because I don't wanna sift through them again. I do want to double down and say how much I appreciated the thoughtful, kind reviews that came alongside the negative ones though. It's funny how even when I know/expect a less positive response to the writing it still makes things so dour to see a new review drop. Getting a long, sweet one filled with praise and actually constructive criticism instead really helped assauge it. The one comment I wanted to respond to, I only want to respond to a single one of the complaints made in it, which said that talking animals are 'stupid'.

Who hurt you? Was it Yogi Bear? Sponge Bob? Those little, furry bastards from Redwall?

Lolol anyways, I hope y'all liked this chapter more than the last one. Again, when I post the rewrite for chapter 15 you won't have to go back and reread it, the actual plot-relevant portions will be the same. Thus far it just goes into a bit more detail of showing Harry being cold/calculating/exactly-what-Dumbeldore-said-in-his-thoughts. Like I said last time too, the story is now up on Wattpad and AO3 if anyone would prefer reading there instead, under the same title. Thank you all, see you next Saturday, lessthanthree.