Sirius and his grandfather walked down Diagon Alley together, and it had to be at least the third or fourth most embarrassing moment in his life. Just the thought of one of his friends seeing him in the man's presence left him ashamed. The ancient bastard, on the other hand, was practically strutting about like a horny peacock. The normally dour patriarch was grinning a gnarled half-smile and actually taking his time with their 'journey' through the shopping district, and Sirius knew the man was doing it just to torture him.

Arcturus had 'requested' his presence, and Amelia had allowed it. She said it was better to know where the snake slithered than to ignore it. Personally Sirius liked to kill the snakes he came across and move on.

"That boy of yours…" Arcturus finally started. "He is a black cloud floating over barren fields. Did you know I actually accepted an invitation to a party recently? One hosted by that cuckold Zabini no less."

"That right?" Sirius 'asked'. "What brought you to debase yourself so much?"

"Save the sarcasm for someone who cares whether or not you like them," his grandfather snapped, finally loosening his smile. "Do you know what Lord Zabini said to me?"

"Something along the lines of 'stop calling me a cuckold', I guess?"

"He said his son recently tried to duel with Hydrus, called it an honour." Arcturus paused to admire the newest Comet in the window of a Quidditch shop, his tastes as out of date as always. "The pissant practically bragged about the way Hydrus destroyed his boy.

"And you know what's more? He wasn't the only one!" Arcturus bared his teeth as his smile once again split half his face. "Those fucking sycophants were trying to use me to get to him."

Arcturus cackled, and Sirius's eye twitched at the haunting sound. They were turned down Knockturn Alley by his grandfather's trajectory, and almost immediately the smell turned foul. Outside of its original purpose, his animagus form was nothing but a curse. His sense of smell was nowhere near that of Remus's, but it was enhanced enough to turn his sneer even darker.

"He's a good kid," Sirius finally said. "Way better than anything else that House Black has put out."

"Hmph. I'd be insulted if it weren't true." Arcturus subtly unscrewed his wand from the tip of his cane, nearly freeing it. "Have you seen them?"

"Seen 'em. Smelled 'em." Sirius's eyes drifted towards the third man to fall in line behind them. "They won't move unless they see a shot. Just ignore them."

"You do not order me, boy."

"I do if I damn well please." Sirius palmed his wand inside his pocket. "If you wanna scamper off and get yourself killed, be my gues—"

"Avada Kedavra!"

Sirius's arm snapped out, knocking his grandfather to the ground. The old man gasped and crashed to the floor. The bolt of green energy whipped past Sirius's face, almost brushing the tip of his nose as his raised arm sliced through the air with his wand carving out a spell.

"Eviscerato!"

The Black spell moved forward like a whip's lash, straight through the same line of sight their attacker's spell had, and when it reached the cloaked man it split his stomach open and ripped his entrails out.

Sirius whirled around to their next shadow, who was in the middle of drawing his wand, and called "Eviscerato!" once more. The stranger didn't even get to move their lips before the next explosion of gore. Sirius turned to the third too late. A bolt of green energy, and the echoes of the killing curse being called, struck him at the same time. His body tensed, but his training was too ingrained in every fibre of his being, and he ignored the death sentence in favour of launching a third cast of the guy spilling Black magic.

"Eviscerato."

The normally scuttling and shifting crowd of Knockturn Alley was frozen in place. Not one of them dared to move, but to Sirius's surprise, he himself could. There had been the briefest of chills running down his spine when the killing curse struck him, but it was long gone, replaced with nothing but the burning heat of adrenaline. His eyes swept through the crowd, scanning for any other would-be assassin's, but found nothing except terrified faces. He turned back around to his grandfather and found awe.

"Sirius Orion Black." The old man scrambled up to the top of his cane, its head missing and the wand ignored on the cobblestones. "Son of my son. Unbound by the curse of death."

A new chill found its way into Sirius's bones thanks to his grandfather's amazement. The memory of his encounter with Death rapidly replaying in his mind.

"Death isn't ready for me yet," he muttered. The brand on his forehead ached. "The bastard has plans for me."

Arcturus cackled in response. The old man's laughter almost echoed through the still-paralysed alley. It was interrupted by a coughing fit that nearly brought the patriarch back to his knees, but the withered figure remained standing.

"Plans indeed!" Once more the mad bastard roared in laughter, half wheezing by the end. "Come! My plans for the day are changed, and I know you can't afford the sort of fire I wish to drink."

"I could certainly afford better company." Sirius shook his head. "I need to report this to the ministry."

"Bah!" Arcturus fished around in his pocket and drew out his purse. He took some coins and threw them at the feet of one of the stunned passersby. "You! You know who I am. Go to and report this to Ministry, and if they ask about us, tell them to take it up with our lawyer. They'll know who that is."

Sirius growled. "Old man…"

"Oh, shut up, brat." Arcturus retrieved his wand. "It's been too long since you and I have had a conversation where we weren't at each other's throats. You might not be ready to die, somehow someway, but I ain't long for this world. Be a good grandson for once in your life and come with me."

Sirius didn't give two shits about whether or not the ancient fuck died, but there was one thing he'd said that was true.

He really couldn't afford the sorts of liquor his grandfather had.

Hydrus stood over the paralyzed banshee, Bella's arm entwined with his own. Apophis was half-coiled at the former woman's knees, his scaled head hovering before hers. The forest around them was swaying gently in the breeze, and the smell of nature left him feeling more at peace than usual.

"Do you see father?" Apophis said. "She does not fall as others would."

"That's because she is already dead," Hydrus said plainly so his fiancee could understand. "You can't kill something that's already dead."

The banshee was almost unrecognisable as a human. Its face was twisted back in a pained scream with its lips pulled so comically far back that the corners of her mouth were brushing against her earlobes. Her hair was splayed out behind her like she was facing down a storm. The only parts of her that weren't translucent were her eyes which instead sat like lumps of floating onyx inside the facsimile of her face, a signature that she was more than just an average ghost.

"I don't see what the big deal is," Bella said. "It's not going to hurt anyone this far out into the forest."

"Lord Grandfather Salazar says she doesn't belong in his lands." Apophis turned to the woman as he hissed, not knowing or not remembering she couldn't understand him. "Told me to tell Father about it."

"He said Slytherin wants it gone." Hydrus crouched down to try and get a better look at the banshee's face. "It's not that big of a deal."

Bella's brows furrowed. "Not that big of a deal? Just how are you planning to get rid of it in the first place?"

'Oh yeah,' Hydrus thought. 'People still don't know how to deal with ghosts.'

"It's easy," he said. "Could you go and make a request to Dumbledore? I'll need Hagrid's assistance to deal with this."

"Why can't I help?" Bella asked, pouting. "I'm far more talented than that oaf."

"First of all, he's not an oaf." Hydrus leaned in closer to the banshee, feeling like the realisation of who it could be was just out of reach. "Second of all, I need blood, and don't feel like carrying you back because you don't have enough of it."

"I can just go get some," she argued. "There's plenty of fools who could stand to lose a few pints."

"Be that as it may, I need it to be fresh. The less people involved the better."

Bella sighed. "Fine!"

She nearly stomped three whole steps away before turning on her heel and doubling back to give him a kiss. Then it was back to stomping and Hydrus was left alone with the spirit and Apophis. "You said it spoke to you, what did it say?"

"She got upset when I tried digging up her baby there," Apophis said. "And said some bad man had killed him and that it wasn't her fault. Then she just started screaming a bunch."

Hydrus hummed. A sinking suspicion was beginning to take hold of him regarding the woman's identity, but it wasn't like he had time to confirm it now. If the banshee wasn't lying or confused, he could come back and exhume the body she was apparently haunting.

Perhaps he'd finally found a clue as to where Voldemort had gone.

He settled down into the grass, and began to dig out and solidify a pattern into the ground. He transfigured the forest floor into stone as he went, making sure that everything was perfectly symmetrical, and hid the barren patch of dirt that Apophis called a grave. He was nearly done by the time footsteps approached, and made short work of completing the symbol.

"Are you going to summon her again?" Bellatrix asked, recognizing the mark of his faith. "Is that how to deal with it?"

Hydrus stood and turned. "No, in this case I'm using that sign for its original purpose."

She'd brought more than just Hagrid with her. Dumbledore and Pomfrey were there as well, with the latter's eyes skittishly darting back and forth around the forest. The headmaster was staring at the banshee in much the same way Hydrus had been, no doubt various possibilities and explanations for the thing's presence were bustling around his mind.

"Professors, Nurse Pomfrey." He nodded to them all. "Sorry to bother, but this shouldn't take too long."

The headmaster finally turned to him, and cocked a snowy eyebrow. "You do realise that this is the Forbidden Forest, right?"

"I'm aware." He shrugged. "But as the sole heir and successor to Salazar Slytherin, it's my responsibility to ensure the school grounds are kept free of such things." A small smirk pulled at the corner of his lip. "At least, it is when the school fails to do so themselves."

"Ah, I see." Albus chuckled at the riposte. "I'm curious to see how you'll pull it off."

"That's where Professor Hagrid will come in." The half-giant straightened up at Hydrus's call. "I'll need enough blood to completely fill the grooves I've carved into the ground here. If you'll agree to help, I'll make a small incision on your wrist and allow it to pour in. I don't think it'll be too much for you, but if you start getting light headed we can stop and myself or one of the others can step in."

"Er, if you're sure it's safe." Hagrid turned to Dumbledore. "Everything sound alright ter you, Professor?"

"I have the utmost confidence in young Hydrus's skills." The headmaster nodded. "If he says it's safe, I'm sure it is."

"A'right then," Hagrid said. "Let's get this over with."

Hydrus drew his pocket knife and made a precise cut along one of the root-like veins on Hagrid's wrist. Some of the blood that poured out splashed out, but he was able to magically move it back into the grooves. Slowly the symbol of deathly hallows filled, and just when the liquid was beginning to rise over the edge he put his thumb against Hagrid's wrist and healed the wound.

"There. I've got more than enough experience healing hands and the bits around them, so you'll be fine, but make sure to take a blood replenishing elixir." He nodded at Pomfrey. "I know you won't let him out of your sight before it's done."

"Of course," Pomfrey nodded at him. "I'll take care of it."

"Good. Professor Black?"

"Yes?"

"I'll have to focus entirely on this ritual, so don't even think about interfering, no matter what." He took off his robe and shirt as he spoke. "I know how much you worry about your students, but if you interrupt I'll just have to start over and go through it all again."

Bella's brows furrowed. "What do you m—"

Hydrus had lifted his hand up and as soon as he began channelling his magic into the blood, something in his arm burst, sending blood spurting through the air. Bella let loose a strangled sound, but did as she was told and stayed back. The other three were similarly frozen.

The blood began to rise from the grooves, stiff and almost ice-like. It and the pattern it formed carved through the banshee's being, dividing and trapping its pieces. He was at least grateful the thing was down on its knees when Apophis petrified it, it would make the journey all the easier. The blood had risen about halfway up the thing's chest when suddenly Hydrus's magic was swept over by another's. The power was burning hot, further blackening and concentrating his own dark power.

"Don't stop," Dumbledore said, almost embracing him to try and hold up the younger man's desiccated arm. "Use my strength."

Had the headmaster not been like a grandfather to him, he would've baulked at the suggestion. He didn't need the help, but as the phoenix-like flaming power of the wizard continued to bolster and take up some of the burden of the ritual, he decided that he'd forgive the old man. Before long the blood was nearly risen all the way out of the grooves, but it was more than enough to completely separate the entirety of the banshee.

Now it was time for things to become more esoteric.

He thought of death. He thought of the lives lost during the war. The fields of dead muggles left in the wake of Leorex's warpath. The gurgling last breath of loved ones and mortal foes alike. The way nothing would seem to change, yet everything would be different. That little mark on Sirius's head, the strange figure he had supposedly met. He thought of his own little trip to the afterlife, when Voldemort had for the second time in his life struck him with the killing curse, destroying the horcrux trapped inside of his body.

He tried to make a fist with his hand, but realised the limb was completely limp. A quick glance confirmed that the flesh and muscle were almost completely gone, leaving him with nothing more than rune-covered bones, not completely unlike the training dummies he and the Weasley twins had made. 'Whatever. Just need to up the visualisation.'

It took a while to work up the mental effort, but eventually the blood construct collapsed in on itself like a tin can being crushed between boulders.

"There," he said, pulling away from Dumbledore as the blood fell back to the ground, the banshee gone. "Told you it wasn't a big deal."

He wasn't sure who attacked him first between Pomfrey and Bella, but they were equally annoying. After shooing them off he got to work healing his limb.

"Are you alright?" Dumbledore asked, staring at the skeletal limb. "Were there any issues?"

"Just the loss of muscles and tendons." The latter would be the first thing he reconstructed. "Nothing I can't recover. If there's one part of the human body I'm well versed in making, its this."

After all, he'd made countless attempts to try and restore his other hand.

"You… You really are something with healing magic," Pomfrey said. "I've never seen anyone so skilled with those sorts of magics."

Hydrus stared down at the bones that were slowly being covered by flesh. For once, he actually agreed with someone's estimation regarding his healing magic. Before coming back to the past he'd been average at best compared to the others, but after all the time he'd spent having to heal the limb it seemed he'd gone past that.

"I'll be here a while," he said. "It's best for me not to move around while casting these sorts of spells. I'll stop by later for some blood replenishers of my own, Madam Pomfrey."

He was doing his best to sound casual, but physically it was worse than he let on. The blood loss wasn't even the worst of it all considering he didn't have veins that needed the blood yet. The outside air was cold, almost freezing, and without skin to keep his temperature regulated he risked hypothermia. What little part of his body was based on Dumbledore was doing its best to magically regulate his heat, but that wouldn't last forever. The only reason it was going so strong for the moment was the influence of the headmaster's magic having just conjoined with his own.

"Absolutely not!" Pomfrey snapped. "You will be coming with me right this instant young man, you can't—"

"That will be enough, Poppy." Dumbledore placed a hand on the woman's shoulder. "As I said before, young Hydrus knows what he's doing. Professor Bellatrix and I will remain here while you return to the castle with Rubeus."

"But…" The motherly woman looked back and forth between Hydrus and the headmaster before eventually sighing. "I expect to see you before the night's over, Mr. Black. Do not keep me up!"

With that she turned on her heel to walk away, but Hagrid lingered. "Where'd it go?"

"The banshee?" Hydrus said. "To where it should've gone when its body died. Where we all go when we die."

Hagrid stared at the spot, at his blood spattered across the ground, and nodded. "Well, 'ope she rest in peace then. Come on, Poppy."

The missized duo left, and Hydrus focused on his magic. He had a small headache from the ritual, but that happened even before coming back to the past. Magic that required heavy visualisations could sometimes have that side effect, and what he'd done today had been about as visualisation centric as possible given that there was no wand movement or verbalisations. Something told him the headache was only going to get worse however.

"Those runes on your bones are certainly interesting," Dumbledore started. "I can say I've never seen anything like that before in my life, at least not on a living person."

"Even Magic has laws she must abide by," Hydrus said. "They are the foundation to the results of my third blessing."

"Blessing?" Bella butted in, suddenly reminding him she was even there. He'd grown too casual about her presence, he decided. "What blessing?"

"Nothing to concern yourself with, dear."

Before she could argue with him, the headmaster continued. "Interesting. You'd think a supposed deity would be beyond such things."

"Even death itself is fallible," Hydrus said. "We see it everyday, let alone in fairy tales." His eye twitched in pain as one of the muscles reattached itself from where it'd grown from his elbow back down near his wrist. "I'd think you, who has placed so much faith in so many people, would be more accepting of my own faith in something greater than them."

"Hmmm." Dumbledore stroked his long, wispy beard. "Tell me, Hydrus, how many children do you plan to have?"

The question caught the time traveller so off guard his healing spell went haywire and stopped. He had only a single moment to stare at the headmaster with a dumbfounded expression before the cold began to dig into his exposed flesh and he was forced to resume.

"We really gotta fucking work on your segues," he said. "And I don't know, I leave those sorts of decisions to Bella."

"So you don't want to think about them."

"No, I just don't care about them."

"You're avoiding the answer, just like you avoid me asking whether or not you—"

"That's enough." Bella had taken the words right out of his mouth. "Stop trying to interfere in Hydrus and I's love." Well, that wasn't quite what he would've said. "We'll have as many babies as possible, that's all you need to know."

God damn it.

"Both of you stop." His arm was mostly done, though he still hadn't gotten to repairing the skin itself. "Dumbledore, if you wanna play therapist, be my guest. Just not when others are around. Bella, I love you, but I can defend myself."

"Hmph." It was almost cute the way she imitated her grandfather. "You will someday."

"Will what?"

"Love me!"

"I just said—!" He cut himself off with an annoyed sigh. Maybe he wasn't as good at lying as he thought he was. "Whatever. We can start heading back now that the hard part is out of the way."

Regulus lit a thin, sweet cigarillo. Octavius hated when he came home smelling of the things, but it certainly wasn't like his boyfriend could kick him out of his own house. The smoke filled the corners of his mouth and by the team he breathed it out the craving was gone and a pleasant buzz filled his head. The entire world, or at least the parts he lived in, was already abuzz in rumours about what happened to his brother.

"There you are!" A pleasant looking woman took the seat across from him at the bar. "I really wish you'd stop dragging me to places like this."

She certainly didn't fit in with the dingy and smoke-filled bar. Regulus at least had his cloak's hood up, and was projecting just enough of his meagre magic supply to put out at least some kind of 'leave me alone' vibe. Zara, on the other hand, was dressed in a lilac sundress and tights, and had a broad smile that didn't match the expressions of anyone else in the place; not unless you counted some of the lecherous grins some of the drunker patrons were giving her.

"You refuse to meet me anywhere that'll give me an equal amount of privacy," he shot back. "It's like you'd die if you weren't surrounded by other people."

She tried, and failed, to manipulate him by pouting and puckering her lips. "Maybe you should take me somewhere that's nice and private, not just nice and private."

"Let's just get this over with. Do you, or do you not, know what happened in Knockturn Alley today?"

"Everyone knows," Zara said with a huff. "Some random—"

"Stop," Regulus ordered. "Not 'some random', who?"

"Fine, fine." She sighed and flicked her hair over her ears. "A few hired killers from somewhere in the East. I haven't found out whose yet, but aside from you there's a looong list of people who want your family dead, so it won't be easy to find out."

"And?"

Zara shrugged at him. "And they tried to kill either your brother, grandfather, or both of them. Sirius used some Black magic to kill all three, and in the process took and survived a killing curse."

"That's impossible," Regulus said, taking another long draw from his cigarillo. "No one's ever done that."

"Not until now I guess." She hummed, and for the first time she began to fit in with their surroundings as a more predatory nature took hold of her smile. "You never told me your brother was such a cutie by the way, is he single?"

"No."

Her smile grew. "Would he like to be?"

"Knock it off," he snapped. "And you're absolutely certain about all this?"

He knew it was a rather ridiculous question; Zara might not have always been right, but she was never uncertain.

"Yep, one-hundred percent!" She nodded to herself, back to her more relaxed and friendly side. "I should tell you though… It might be a good time for you to grab a boytoy or two and get out of town."

Regulus frowned. "Why's that?"

Her smile grew vicious once more, this time baring her vampiric fangs. "Even you can't afford that information, my little Black prince."

BBaRtS

Another late (Though still technically on a Saturday) and half-length chapter. I'm feeling much better, but between being sick for the first half of the week followed by my birthday then my post-birthday hangover-recovery day, I haven't had the time to get this done properly. Like last week this isn't going to be super polished and its 100% a rough draft, as you might be able to tell by how rushed that Sirius section felt (at least to me), but next week we should be back in business. Thank you all so much for the kind reviews & PMs, as well as the well wishes regarding my health. I promise next week will be at least eight-thousand, actually-edited words as we find out just what the third trial will be, as well as whatever else I cook up.