Welcome back one and all to "The Heir and the Champions" we are done with most of the build-up for the second task, for now, we move to Yule Time, in which: Harry goes to his new home and slight problems arise, he gets a gift from Artemis, he goes to a dance, and has a midnight visitor, and in between it all, we get a sneak peek to what a week for a god looks like with Artemis.
This chapter could be called either the Ace of Wands or the Star for reasons you'll see.
On with the show.
Harry Potter, Hogwarts Express
Harry's hands were gripping the side of the sink in an attempt to stop them from shaking so much, it was working but now the problem was his arms and shoulders were shaking and he couldn't fucking stop it.
"I'm not going to the Dursleys, I'm not going back, I'm not going to the Dursleys, just fucking stop," Harry hisses sharply to himself in the bathroom aboard the Hogwarts Express, hoping his brain would get the fucking message and stop doing this. Harry had seen the paperwork and been told by both Dumbledore and Sirius that he wasn't going back, that he never had to go back again but still he couldn't stop his hands from shaking, the panic crawling up his throat, or the haunting whispers of Uncle Vernon in the back of his mind that wouldn't shut the fuck up!
Crack!
Harry jumps at the sound of the porcelain sink cracking under his grip, "Fuck," he snaps unsure if it was at himself or the sink before pulling out his wand and waving it over the sink fixing it with the mumbling of the repair spell. Harry sighs before turning the faucet and putting away his wand to fill his hands (that were still fucking shanking) with water to splash his face before looking up to the mirror to see his reflection staring back at him with haunted eyes.
"You're looking a bit peaky dear, perhaps you should have a lie-down?" The mirror says to Harry as he wipes off his face, ignoring it before tossing the paper towel in the trash bin and unlocking the door. Harry makes his way down the hall to the last compartment on the left-hand side and slides the door open, Zoë was sitting on the right, reading a book on magical creatures by some guy named Newt, she looks up when he enters and sits across from her, she doesn't say a word before looking back down at her book.
It was only Harry, Zoë, and a few other children under the third year on the train going home for the holidays, everyone else staying behind at the castle for the Yule Ball. Sirius had pulled some strings and had asked the Headmaster if Harry could come to stay for the Holidays, swearing to Dumbledore that he would have Zoë and Harry at Hogwarts before seven at night on Christmas day for the Yule Ball, to which the Headmaster had agreed too. Harry's own problems had started before he even stepped on the Express, the worry and anxiety of leaving Hogwarts shot through him like a bolt of lightning and wouldn't leave him no matter how much he remained himself that he wasn't going to the Durselys and that he was never going back to the cupboard again but still his hands continue to shake.
Harry sets his hands between his legs and presses them together with his thighs before leaning his head against the glass and sighing. Zoë looks up once more from her book, concern evident in her eyes but a small smile on her lips, "It's going to be fine, Harry," she says before looking back to her book and Harry can't help but hope she was right.
Harry Potter, Number Twelve Grimmauld Place.
They had arrived at Kings Cross without fanfare with Sirius and Remus waiting for them, much of the crowd giving Sirius a wide berth due to his former status as a mass murdering escaped convict but if it bothered the man, Sirius didn't show it, he had smiled when he saw Harry step onto the platform and had hugged him. Harry decided to leave his trunk at school and only brought his pack loaded with clothes, his cloak, the map, and a few other things for his stay over the holidays, so the short walk to Sirius' home wasn't too bad. They had stopped along the way to pick up some takeout before walking the rest of the way, Sirius and Remus making small talk with Zoë about her stay at the castle, apparently, it was rather boring outside of dealing with the tournament and the insanity that was Harry's day to day life, she normally spent her time reading through the magical creature section of the library, which had gotten a laugh out the two older men.
When they arrived at the three-story old brownstone in the heart of London Harry had gotten the impression that it was old, a lot older than any of the townhouses on the block with the darker and more worn down stone of the building and rusted iron gates that surround the small stairs that lead up to the black door. Sirius had taken the stairs two at a time before tapping his wand on the door handle before the door unlocked and swung open.
The inside of the old townhouses was unlike the outside, it was a contrast of reds and silvers with an underlining of black. The walls, floors, and windows all seem new and recently replaced though the furniture seemed old but well cared for of deeply stained mahogany and rich leather. There were more supporting beams than walls on the first floor, the sitting room, dining room, and hallway were all open, and there was a door at the very end of the that looked to lead to the kitchen. In the sitting room was a huge fireplace carved from white marble with what looked like greek columns that went right up to the ceiling, what looks to be ancient greek artwork was set around the opening of the hearth depicting different pictures of a wolf, stag, hound, and doe, but above them all, looking to be sitting in a place of honor was a simple picture of a small girl sitting in front of a hearth stoking the fires within. This had gotten a raised brow from Zoë, but otherwise, she hadn't commented on it.
They had sat down for a late lunch after putting their bags down by the door, and without everyone who wasn't in the know about the divine Harry and Zoë had filled Remus and Sirius in on what had happened with the dragon, which had Remus choking on his Pizza not even five minutes in. Then it got to the question of what spell he had used to kill the legendary dragon, and Harry had told them it wasn't a spell, not really, but something he had gotten from his teacher, which brought up who his teacher was and what she had given Harry to help him kill Fáfnir, which lead them spiraling down the insanity that was Harry Potter's life, Scáthach, freeing Cernunnos, the trip pass the Hedge, meeting Macha, the Gaelic prophecy, the mysterious Queen that Macha wanted to free, and finally how Fleur was out to kill him during the second task.
By the end of the tale, Sirius has poured himself, Remus, and Zoë a stiff drink and was sorely tempted to give one to Harry as the sun was dipping below the horizon. The silence in the house was deafening to Harry as he shuffled awkwardly in his chair at the dining room table waiting for Sirius or Remus to say something.
After a while, Sirius tips his glass back before placing it on the table with a sigh, "You know Harry, when Prongs and Lily first asked me to be your Godfather, I had sworn to them if anything would happen to them I would protect you with my life and I've done a shit job of that so far, but damn kiddo, you don't make it easy do you?" he says with a good nature smirk looking at Harry making Harry look down at the table and mumbles out an apology as Zoë snorts into her drink.
"You can say that again," Zoë mumbles to herself while shaking her head and putting down her empty glass, "It has crossed Lady Artemis' mind more than once to pull Harry from that death trap of a school and bring him to the states in just the last few months," she says with a smirk, causing Harry's head to snap to her with wide eyes.
"She can't do that, can she?" Harry asks as he looks between Sirius and Zoë.
"Wrong question to ask Harry," Remus says finally speaking up, "When it comes to a being like Lady Artemis, it's not if she can or can't do something," he says before taking a sip of his tea with a healthy splash of Brandy in it, "It's more along the lines of "Who's going to stop her?" he says with a hint of a smirk to his lips before as fast as he could draw his wand, Sirius touches his pointer finger to his nose.
"Not it!" He yells quickly with a wide grin before everyone turns and looks at him with raised brows and mock glares, "What? She rightfully scares the hell out of me, I don't want to try and stop her unless I absolutely had to," Sirius says, and Harry couldn't help but agree, Artemis could be scary when she wanted to me. Thankfully Zoë found all their reactions more amusing than disrespectful and merely chuckled at the three men's reactions.
"Remus has about the right of it, but in the end, she decided it would cause more trouble than it was worth considering the Sky Father and Sirius' pending release," Zoë says with a shrug before leaning back in her chair, "And let's not forget she was worried how you would react to it all, which was the biggest contributing factor, she did not want to upset you by taking you away from the school and your friends," she says looking over to Harry.
Remus looks over to Sirius with a thoughtful look before speaking, "Say, Padfoot, you don't think the Black Library would have something on this Macha and her sisters, do you?" he asks before Sirius leans back in his own chair with a thoughtful look.
"Perhaps Master Moony, Perhaps, my family was into a lot of weird occult and dark shite, if we do then it would be up there," Sirius says before stroking his chin.
"You could start with Amaranthus Black, any of his journals could have something in it," Harry says, causing everyone to turn to him with a confused look, "What?" he asks.
"How do you know about Amaranthus?" Zoë asks just as Sirius speaks up.
"Which Amaranthus?" Padfoot asks before both he and Zoë look at each other surprised.
"How do you know about Amaranthus?" they ask as one.
Remus and Harry look back and forth between the two confused before Sirius speaks up, "I know about them because they're a part of the Black family, there's been five of them dating back to the founding of the Black family since we came here from Rome," He says, looking at Zoë oddly, "How the hell do you know them?" he asks.
"I don't know about the others, but I am certainly surprised to know that he was a part of your lineage," Zoë says leaning forward a bit, "The man I met lived in the year 1468, he had come to find Lady Artemis and ask her a few questions about the nature of the higher powers, she had no real answers to give him because it's not something that mortals should know, but he was polite and followed My Lady's rules so he was allowed to leave us unharmed," Zoë informs them as Remus and Sirius just gawk at her for a moment before Harry turns to her.
"I sometimes forget you're as old as dirt," Harry says, right before Zoë smacks him across the back of his head, "Oww, fuck, Zoë stop hitting me," Harry hisses out while rubbing the back of his head before turning to Sirius, "Sirius, tell her to stop hitting me," he says point to Zoë, right before Zoë swats his hand away.
"I'll stop hitting you when you stop being a brat and learn not to comment on a lady's age, Brat!" Zoë snaps at him with a glare, "And don't point, it's rude," she says.
Harry snorts, "What lady?" he says before jumping out of his chair at the threat of Zoë lunging at him, "Sirius! Save me! The wild woman is trying to hurt me!" he yells as he runs through the sitting room, a growling Zoë not too far behind him.
Sirius looks at the situation, at Zoë tackling Harry over the couch before swiftly following by choking noises after they disappeared behind it, and knowing a responsible, reasonable adult had to step in and get the two siblings to stop killing each other, he nods his head knowing what he must do.
Sirius turns to Remus and claps him on the shoulder, "They're all yours, Moony, I'm going to go check what we have in the kitchen for dinner," Before standing up and doing just that, leaving a sighing Remus behind him.
Harry Potter, December 24th, Grimmauld Place.
The last two days have been…weird for Harry, for one, he had his own room. Not a cupboard, not a small room of broken and unwanted things, not a guest room or a room he shared with Ron, but his own room. It was a weird thing, Sirius had shown him the room on the second floor after his fight with Zoë and Dinner, it had a golden nameplate with H.J.P inscribed on it and attached to the door. Sirius said it was his room, that if Harry didn't like something that all he needed to do was say something and Sirius would change it, no questions asked.
Harry had told Sirius that he didn't want to be a bother while looking at the floor, but Sirius had put his hands on Harry's shoulder causing Harry to look up at him before Sirius spoke, "Harry, you will never be a bother to me, even," he said, looking Harry in the eye, "No matter what you need, no matter what you want, and no matter what, I will always be here for you, never hesitate to ask me for something be it pocket money or a new broom, because I will give it to you because I owe you twelve years that I should have been there and I'm making it up starting with this home because it's a home for you," He had told Harry before hugging him closely, and Harry had returned the hug.
The room itself was bigger than Dudley's bedroom back at the Dursleys, the walls were a deep maroon and the floor a dark stained wood, there was a large four-poster bed and a desk with a comfortable-looking swivel chair, a large matching dresser and closet to hold all his clothes that Dora had bought him, and a large window toward the back of the room charmed to overlook a moonlit clearing with a stream running through it. It was a nice room, nicer than any other he had slept in or called his own, it was a bit too much to process for Harry honestly, he wasn't used to having a space to call his own, even in the hunt he normally bunked with Atalanta, Sophie, Brittany, and Cecilia.
Harry had a hard time sleeping that night, the bed being too big and too soft, he wished he brought the stuffed Lion with him to have something to hold onto at the very least.
He had woken up after only a handful of hours of sleep and had the displeasure of meeting the oddest house elf yet, Kreacher. He had found him skulking around another Door on the second-floor landing marked with another gold plate hanging on it marked with R.A.B, the elf was looking at the door with a glare, as if he hated it for some reason before turning to see Harry standing in his Pajamas and Jacket, glaring at him before slowly he creeps past Harry, muttering loudly under his breath as he went.
"Filthy half-blood, sullying the Mistresses house, maybe the Dullahan will come to drag him off, oh yes, Kreacher would like that, stupid half-blood would learn a lesson oh yes," Kreacher had muttered walking past Harry and down the stairs, Harry would put the encounter out of his mind until hours later in the evening as Sirius, Remus, Zoë, and Harry had all sat down for dinner after doing a shopping run for the house, Harry had offered to cook dinner which Sirius was fine with but only if Harry wanted to. Kreacher had wandered into the dining room, once again muttering under his breath.
"Kreacher can not believe the blood traitor, shame of Mistress Bloodline, welcoming Halfbloods and foreigners and werewolves into the house of black, she is rolling in her grave, on yes, from the shame, the shame of her blood," Kreacher said under his breath as he walks to the kitchen.
"KREACHER!" Sirius snapped at the house-elf, "HOW MANY TIMES MOST I TELL YOU TO NOT CALL REMUS THAT!" The anger that was in his voice spoke of a hatred that ran deep for both the elf and what those had called his friend in the past, Sirius sighed out angrily before he stood, "Lady Nightshade is a guest here as well, I will not have you insulting her over nothing!" he continued to the elf, his feet stomped on the floorboards as he did.
"Sirius," Zoë said, trying to stop him.
"And Harry will be staying here from now on, he is the heir to the House of Black, and you will treat him as such!" The man yelled, stopping in front of the elf to glared down at it with a sneer, as the elf made the most disgusted face it could.
"Sirius, you need-" Zoë said, but was drowned out by the wailing the elf had done.
"No, no, no, no, stupid blood traitor master, the shame of mistress' blood, no keacher will not do it, he won't, stupid useless half-blood son of invading whor-" Kreacher began to work himself into a rage before Sirius snapped at him again raising his hand to smack the elf.
"DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK OF-" The master of the house roars but before he could do anything a roar of another cuts him off.
"SIRIUS BLACK, STOP!" Zoë roared, drawing nearly everyone's attention other than Harry, who had been too busy growing paler and paler, shaking harder and harder, his eyes glazed over, and looking at something so very far away. Remus and Sirius turn to look at Zoë to see her looking at Harry, her hands up in a placating manner, "Harry," She said softly as she slowly moved around the table to Harry's shaking form, "Harry, it's okay, no one is here to hurt you, your okay, breath Harry, remember to breathe," she said in a comforting voice.
It was then that Sirius had tried to move to calm his godson down, whether he moved too quickly or too loudly he couldn't tell, because as soon as he did Harry had jerked away from him knocking the glass cup and dish in front of him to the floor and they shattered, Harry had landed on the floor pushing himself away from the broken cup and plate as he jerked his head around looking everywhere but at people, his eyes fluctuated wildly between the yellow-gold of the Hunt and the emerald green of his normal eyes, slitted pupils coming and going as he started to hyperventilate, looking all at once a trapped animal and a broken child. Once again Sirius tried to step toward Harry, but the boy caught the movement and before anyone could stop him he pushed himself off the ground and ran for the stairs.
"Harry!" Sirius called after him and goes to chase after him, to apologize, to help him in some small way but is quickly stopped when Zoë had grabbed him by the hem of his shirt and tossed him backward before she had turned to him, pointing at him.
"Don't," She hissed at him, "You've done enough damage," before turning on her heel and following her little brother up the stairs.
It had taken Zoë the better part of an hour to calm Harry down from his panic attack and get him out of the closet in his room, when she did Sirius had apologized for going off on Kreacher with Harry around, and promised not to do it again. Harry had just shrugged at the promise, accepted the apology from Sirius, and reminded himself that Sirius was like the Dursleys. He didn't mean it, but still, his hands didn't stop shaking for the rest of the day.
The next morning, Remus knocked on his door while Harry was laying on his far too-soft bed, cuddling up with Hedwig, Harry, not wanting to move and wake up Hedwig, called out for him to come in. Remus had found the journals of Amaranthus Black in the library on the third floor, (One of Sirius' only rules was not to go in there alone, not because he didn't trust Harry, but because his family was insane and cursed everything down to the nails in the floorboards in the library, it was like walking through a minefield and that's even before you got to the books.) and had come to ask him if he wanted to help him search through them with Zoë. Harry had agreed and Hedwig had taken exception to having her cuddle time with Harry interrupted over something as silly as mortal peril.
Harry was pretty used to long study sessions with Hermione and knew that he would have to take a break every so often so he could refocus back on the task at hand, so while Zoë and Remus had read nonstop, Harry would stop to play speed wizards chess with Sirius, and to Harry's surprised, he had beat him more times than not. But it was mid-afternoon when they had found what they were looking for, and Harry had learned something from Sirius.
Harry had just captured Sirius Rook and was just a few moves away from putting him to check as he hit the clock that sat beside the board on the table before Remus looked up from the hand-bound book he was reading, "Harry?" he asked, causing the said boy to look over at him, "Was Macha wearing a red hood with a long cape attached to it when you met her?" he asked.
"Yeah," Harry had said back, "With a white dress and black eyes," he told Remus, and the man frowned and nodded grimly.
"Then I do believe that Amanrathus had indeed met her," Remus said, looking down at the book in his hands, "He called her the Maiden, an aspect of the triple goddess, The Mórrigan," he said as his eyes flick back and forth along the passage, "She is both the youngest and oldest of the three sisters, the other two being the Mother, Annand, and the Crone, Badb, they have apparently popped up a few times in History confusing and manipulating mortals for some goal they have, they even tricked some Scottish Thane into murdering his king a while back," he said with a frown.
"Well, I know their goal," Harry said, getting to his feet to walk over to Remus, "They want to release some Queen using my blood, like how the Centaurs freed Cernunnos," Harry said as he walked over behind Remus' chair to look over his shoulder to try and read but flinched as the words started to float badly, "What I want to know is which Queen they want to free, because as far as I know the Celtic gods were all kings and queens in their own right, I mean, Hades, Scáthach's title is Scáthanna, which literally means Queen of Shadows," Harry told everyone.
"Maybe it is Scáthach they want to release," Zoë said with a look of distaste.
"No," Harry said with a shake of his head, "Macha seemed to like Teacher less than you do, Zoë," he told her.
Zoë shakes her head, "I really wish you wouldn't call her that," she sighed.
"What? It's what she is," Harry says, looking at Zoë confused before she just shook her head, "But back to the Queen thing, does it say if they serve anyone or anything like that?" Harry asked, looking at Moony.
Remus frowns as he continues to read before slowly changing his head, "No, nothing about serving anyone, but it says that he had always met one of them by a large cauldron they seemed to be protective over, it's called Pair Dadeni, if Anamrathus is to be believed," He says slowly, "It does mention something about if you meet one of them, you would be cursed to meet the other two," he informed Harry with a grim look, but before Harry could comment, Sirius spoke up.
"The triple goddess," Padfoot said slowly, tapping his bishop against the board with a far-off look, "Mother, Maiden, Crone," his brow crinkled in frustration as he was trying to remember something but could quite grasp at the memory.
"What is it, Padfoot?" Lupin asked, looking at his old friend.
Sirius' mouth opened and closed a few times before he finally spoke, "Just something that was said to me, I think it was James?" he said it like a question, "Lily summoned Artemis by accident, but she was aiming for someone else, the Mother of the triple goddess, I-I think?" he said, sounding like he didn't trust his memory.
"Really?" Harry asks, blinking twice at Sirius, the man's memory wasn't the best at times, thankfully it was just small details, like the date or the topic of conversation or something that someone had said five minutes before, let alone almost fifteen years ago, but after a long moment, Sirius nodded slowly.
"Yeah, James said they were shooting for the mother and thought they got the maiden at first," Sirius says, his eyes narrowed as he looked into the burning hearth from across the room.
Harry turned back to Remus and had asked if Amaranthus met the Mother, the Werewolf nodded and read out loud what she had looked like some five hundred years ago. As soon as he began to describe her, Harry felt a chill run down his spine as it felt like he had seen her somewhere before, then Lupin got to the tattoo's on her arms, and Harry started to curse up a storm.
"What is it?" Remus asked, looking at Harry as he began to pace, running his hands through his hair as he did.
"I fucking met her!" Harry said, throwing his hands out, "When me and Dora what clothes shopping, we stopped to get lunch at a restaurant and she was sitting in the back, she gave me a fucking tarot reading, even gave me a card!" he yelled, before sitting back down with Sirius, "It was right before the guy with the mechanical eyes and Cernunnos showed up, she even said something about an opportunity passed on to another!" he said before pressing his face into his hands.
None of the men noticed how Zoë had stiffened in her seat at the mention of the man with mechanical eyes.
The following day was Christmas eve, and Harry found himself approaching Sirius before he left for some meeting at the Ministry, he was a bit nervous about what he wanted to ask but knew that it was the last night he could ask. So the young demigod had gathered his courage and asked Sirius in the early afternoon.
"Do we have any alcohol?" Harry blurts out, looking at Sirius as he had a muggle motorcycle magazine open in front of him, Sirius slowly turns his head with a look of bafflement on his face as he looks at Harry.
Harry shuffles awkwardly as he waits for the man to answer, "While I am not one for rules or telling people what to do a vast majority of the time, I am, however, a fan of being responsible for the kids that one should be looking out for," Sirius says as he closes the magazine and tosses it on to the small table beside the chair, "So, why do you want to drink at one'o clock in the afternoon?" he asks with a smirk.
"Well, ah, it's-its not for me," Harry says, shuffling again.
"Ah! Looking to spike a punch bowl at a certain dance, are we?" Sirius says, his smile growing with a look of pride in his eyes blooming in his eyes.
"What?" Harry asks, confused, "No, nothing like that, I want to send it to the hunt," He tells Sirius as he watches the man pout at his words, "The Hunt doesn't really celebrate Christmas, since, you know, its-its a more, ah, modern thing," Harry explains while scratching the back of his neck looking away from the man, "They do this party thing that lasts like two weeks starting at the solstice, and I, ah, I wanted to send them some party supplies, I, ah, I guess," he says with a shrug.
Sirius blinks a few times before leaning back in his chair, a look of deep thought on his face for a few moments before another smile crawls across his face with a look of Mischief in his eyes, "Oh, I think we can send them something like that, sure, but how are you going to get it to them?" He asks, "Because if we send it by owl it's gonna take a few days to get it across the pond to America," Sirius tells Harry.
"Oh, ah, Hedwig can go directly to Artemis," Harry says with a shrug, "She's technically a member of the hunt and can, I don't know, she can teleport to Artemis or something like that," Harry explains as a look of amusement and confusion settle over Sirius' face.
"Where do you get such wonderful toys?" Sirius says with a smile as Harry narrowed his eyes at him dangerously.
"Hedwig isn't a toy, Sirius, she's one of my oldest friends," Harry says as his poster straightens, and as Sirius sees his eyes morph into elongated pupils he raises his hands.
"Just a figure of speech, Harry, I'm sorry if that came off the wrong way," Sirius says with mock surrender as he watches Harry relax, he makes a mental note not to make another comment about the Owl; Least he wanted to be on the other end of Harry's dragon killing spear, "But I have a brilliant idea, come with me, I'll show where Remus hides the good stuff," the Lord of the House of Black says with a grin that promised nothing but trouble.
Sirius Black, Wizengamot Chamber, Ministry of Magic.
Sirius Black sat on an uncomfortable throne on the highest row in the chambers of the Wizengamot, looking down at all the other seats, most were full but a few sat empty as they had even in his grandfather's time. Each of the Noble families and Ancient families seats below the eight highest, and only two thrones sat above them but they were never filed unless the Queen and King of England decided to pop by for a visit, which was very rare and of the eight highest seats only the Black, Nott, and Longbottom have people to fill them at the moment thanks to Amelia Bones sitting in the lower seats to fulfill her role as the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement instead of the Lady of the Most Noble and Most Ancient House of Bones. Dowager Longbottom took her seat on the same level as Sirius and looked as if she had belong there, unlike Sirius who was dressed in his normal muggle clothes and leather jacket, Augusta Longbottom had the purple robes of the Wizengamot on sitting perfectly straight looking upon the meeting with sharp eyes that betrayed her age of 118.
The "Lord" Nott was also dressed in purple robes watching the meeting with interest, while technically too young to truly take up the family seat in Wizengamot, he was the last of the line of Nott so a small exception was made so he could sit in on the annual meetings, those being the Winter and Summer solstice. He wasn't allowed to cast a vote, but he could be granted time to speak if he wished, but so far Theodore seemed to be content with just watching for now. Which surprised Sirius, the old houses like his and Notts took matters of honor very seriously and the boy had yet to demand Harry's head deliver on a silver platter to him for the killing of his father, so when the young Lord Nott had not brought up the blood debt during the call for new business at the beginning of the session Sirius was surprised and suspicious that the young Lord was planning something.
But as the matter of department funding was winding down Sirius breathed a sigh of relief, it was almost over and then he would get to go home and spend Christmas Eve with his Godson, friend, and the Lieutenant of the hunt before waking up to Christmas gifts.
As the last of the galleon amount was dispersed between the different departments(The Auror department once again getting the shaft to the displeasure of Madam Bones and Longbottom, Sirius thinks he really should do something about that) Dumbledore bangs the gavel against the podium to call the room to order.
"Now that the most important matters have been cleared away until the next year, we open the floor to the new business announced at the opening of this meet," The chief warlock announces before turning to look down at Minister Fudge, "Cornelius, I believe that you had something you wish to bring forth to this esteemed body?" Dumbledore asks.
Fudge looks up at Dumbledore with a smile, "I do indeed chief warlock," the man says before Dumbledore nods once more.
"Then the floor is yours, Minister," he says.
Fudge nods to Dumbledore before standing from his seat and making his way to the raised stone platform in the middle of the hall and turning to face the setting members of the houses and departments, "Lords and Ladies of Wizengamot, I will not waste your time with pretty words or drawn out speeches, for what I bring before you is not only an insult to our way of life, but a crime in the face of our illustrious past, I come before you today to report a grave cultural injustice that has been done to us," the Minister says, pausing for a moment to let his words sink in, "a relic of the isles has been stolen from us, a relic of not only cultural significance but of great and terrible power, and it is currently in the hands of those would abuse its power," he says before reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a sheaf of paper and holding it above his head.
"What I have in my hand is a writ of confiscation, and with the seal of Wizengamot will allow a team of Aurors to go retrieve the artifact in question from the people who hold it from us, it will also allow me to bring this matter to the International Confederation of Wizards at Point Nemo to officially demand the surrender of the relic to its rightful owners of the Ministry of Magic," Cornelius says before a few Wixen in attendance raises their wands, lighting them up and wait to be called on by the chief warlock, but Dumbledore ignores them and asks his own questions.
"And what is the relic in question, Minister?" Dumbledore asks.
"The relic is a weapon known as the Gaé Bolg-" Fudge says, but that was as far as Sirius was willing to let him go as he raised his wand and poured as much power into a Lumos spell as he could, causing it to become a blinding sun.
Sirius didn't even wait for Dumbledore to give him the floor before he stood and spoke, "I'm going to stop you right there, Fudge," he says with steel in his voice, "The relic you're speaking of is currently in the hands of England's private citizens and my heir, Harry Potter, and asking for the Wizengamot to sign off on a document to seize the private property of a legal citizen without a very good legal reason would a breach of their personal freedoms," Sirius snaps at Fudge before Dumbledore bangs the gavel.
"Order! Lord Black! I ask that you remain seated until you are called upon," Dumbledore says as Sirius huffs before sitting back down, "But ignoring the matter to when he said, the Lord Black brings up a good point Minister, we can not seize the private property of a legal citizen just because of it is culturally significant, or should I remind you of what happened with Eberta Johnson and when she had found Clarent not even five years ago?" he says, giving a pointed look at the Minister.
"But it is not the same, Chief Warlock, it is not being held by a private citizen, but a pseudo paramilitary organization from America that unjustly and without even giving us the courtesy of telling us they had found it took it during the Worldwide Wizarding War back in 1942," Cornelius says waving the papers around, "They never announced it, they never claimed it, they just took it which is no better than stealing it from us," he argues, but once again Sirius raises his wand with a flash of light but bites his tongue waiting for Dumbledore to call on him, and with a bang of the gavel the floor was given to Sirius.
The Lord of the House of Black stands from his seat and makes his way to the stairs that split the sections of the Wizengamot and makes his way to the raised floor all the while speaking, "And for what culture do you speak for, Minister?" he asks, his voice loud and angry, "Is it for the Irish? Where the stories of the Gaé Bolg first appeared? Or the Scottish, where legends say the curse was first created?" Sirius asks as he steps up on the raised platform, pausing for a moment to watch Fudge flounder for a moment before the man speaks.
"I'm speaking for the culture of the Isles Lord Black, just not one region of it," the Minister shoots back with a frown.
"Then where are the Irish and Scottish Lords and Ladies, Hm?" Sirius asks gesturing around the room, "Oh, right, unless they have a department seat we don't let them take rightful seats in the Wizengamot, so don't start with the culture shite unless you actually have a few of the families to back it up," he snaps at the man sarcastically, knowing that wasn't going to happen. The few families that could trace their lines back to the druid circles that existed before his own ancestors invaded the isles hated the Wizengamot with a passion, and there were very few families remaining.
Dumbledore bangs his gavel again, calling everyone's attention back to him, "This chamber recognizes Lord Malfoy," he says, before looking over at the man who was sitting in the lower Noble House seats, "Do you have anything to say, Lord Malfoy?" Dumbledore asks politely.
"Thank you, Chief Warlock, I do," Lucius Malfoy says with a slight dip of his head before turning to the two men in the middle of the hall, "Correct me if I am wrong, but is this not the same relic that Mister Potter used to slay a dragon with?" he asks.
Sirius says nothing but Fudge quickly nods his head, "It is indeed, Lord Malfoy, eyewitness accounts from our own head of the Department of International Cooperation, Bartemius Crouch, given in detail speak of the relic that was used in that event," He says.
"Then why are we allowing such a dangerously unstable individual as Harry Potter to have possession of such a deadly and dangerous weapon like the Gaé Bolg?" Lucius asks with a cool face and raised brow, "I would go so far as to ask why the boy is still going to Hogwarts, but as a magical child of the isle, that is his right, but I remind you all that no more than six months ago he had brutally slayed a Lord of this ancient and esteemed body, a Lord of a Most Ancient and Most Noble house no less," Malfoy says, slamming his cane into the ground to exacerbate his point, "Along with two others men that had been enthralled to do such horrendous acts at the Quidditch World Cup, to leave such a dark and deadly artifact in the hands of an individual such as Harry Potter is tantamount to asking him to kill again, I say we take it from the boy and this foreign force and place it in the capable hands of the Department of Mysteries alongside Clarent to be studied before being put in the Wixen Isle Museum of History," Lucius says to the mutterings of the hall.
Sirius' lips press into a thin line as Fudge nods and agrees with Lucius, "Oh, yes, the Death Eaters torturing helpless people and throwing the whole event into a riot, Death Eaters only stopped when My Godson stepped in and did what the Auror department was too late to do," Sirius snaps at them both before turning to Madam Bones in a row with the other department heads, "And I know how that sounds Madam Bones, and while I'm sure the Aurors had a damn good reason for being late, but I'm not about to apologize for what I said when my Godson had to step in to put those animals down," Sirius says with a growl.
"There was no evidence to show those men were true Death Eaters like the ones locked up in Azkaban," Lucius says, turning to Sirius calmly, "But there is a mountain of evidence showing the men were bewitched into doing horrible things during the first war with the Dark Lord, much like I was a victim of the Dark Lord," Malfoy says politely to Sirius, who scoffs at his words.
"Yeah, a mountain of gold that found its way into the Ministry's pocket," Sirius says angrily at the two men, looking at both Fudge and Malfoy in disgust. Before the two men could turn to hurl curses or disagreements at Sirius, Chief Warlock hammers his gavel once more, calling the hall to order.
"Lord Malfoy, that is quite enough of that, Harry Potter is in no way dangerous to those who do not threaten those he cares about or the innocent, as the Headmaster of Hogwarts I can attest that Mister Potter has never acted out of aggression, just in his defense and the defense of others," Dumbledore says with a stormy expression on his face as Lord Malfoy sits back down, "But the hall recognizes that Heir Nott wishes to speak," he says as he turns to the only boy in the chamber who had his wand held high and the tip lit with soft light.
Theodore stands and straightens his purple robes before clearing his throat and speaking, "Thank you Headma-, I mean, Chief Warlock, my apologies, sir," he says with a quick bow of his head to Dumbledore who merely chuckles.
"It's fine, my boy," the elderly wizard says, "I often think I carry far too many titles to keep track of," he says with a smile and a twinkle in his eye.
Theodore nods to at the Chief Warlock before turning back to the rest of the Wizengamot, "I first would like to thank the Wizengamot for allowing me to sit in during the annual meeting, I have learned a lot and hope to apply that knowledge in the future when I take my rightful seat amongst you all when I can legally vote on matters," he starts with nodding his head to show his appreciation, to which he gets a few nods back, "But I raised my wand to speak on the matter that has been just brought up, first, please allow me to clear the air about my father," he says softly, making a few of the Lords and Ladies to turn to look at him.
"My father was a Death Eater, he wasn't bewitched or ensorcelled by Voldemort, he followed Voldemort willing because he was a fool who, like my grandfather before him, lost sight of where my families loyalty truly lies," Theodore says, speaking over the gasps of the assembled body of the Wizengamot, gasps at the name of the Dark Lord and his admittance to his father's crimes, "He used to speak of what he called 'The Good Old Days' of how he used to torture, kill, and rape with impunity with such joy and elation that it turned my stomach, there is not a shadow of a doubt in my mind that he was a monster who deserved a far worst death that what he got at the hands of Harry Potter," the schoolboy says, much to the sneers and outcries from the lower Lords and Ladies of speaking ill of the dead.
"But be that as it may," Theodore yells over the crowd, "On the subject of Harry and the Gaé Bolg, I am one of the only two people in this hall who can trace their family line back to the days of the Druids, so I dare say I am one of the only two who can speak of the topic with any amount of knowledge, and since I am in the same year as Harry I do believe I know his character rather well," he says as he crosses his hands behind his back, "The Gaé Bolg isn't some spell you can read out of a book, nor is an enchantment made up of some unknown and loss configuration of runes, but it is a feat of arms and since I'm sure the colonialism is lost on many of you, I will explain what that is," Theodora says.
"A feat of arms is not something that can be taught, it is something that is earned through blood, grit, and the iron in someone's spine, Harry can use the feat of arms, not because he holds it or learned it, it's because he earned the right to use it, and I remind you, that last person who was able to use it went on to be one of the greatest heroes the isles have ever known," The young boy speaks with an unwavering belief, "So, I don't think we should take the weapon our newest hero has earned by right of passage away from him, I may not be able to call myself a friend of Harry's, but I can tell you he is a type of person who would stand up for a complete stranger if he thought they were being treated unfairly, that he is someone who understands more about honor and what it means to have it then a few Lords and Ladies in this room I could name, and I know he is a good person at heart," Theodore says with steel in his voice.
"But by all means, if you think it is wise to try and take away a weapon that has enough power to kill a fully-grown dragon away from someone, not even a year ago, you alluded as a hero and who can use said dragon killing weapon, then all I can say is that I hope you get exactly what you deserve," Theodore says before retaking his seat and crossing his arms over his chest with a smirk twisting at his lips.
Sirius was looking up at Theodore with an impressed look, very rarely you'd meet a pure blood who was willing to condemn the actions of his family so harshly in a public place, let alone in Wizengamot of all places. So what Sirius wasn't surprised by was the deafening silence that followed after the boy's speech, he even smirked and nodded his head at Theodore in a show of respect, to which the boy nodded back.
It was then Madam Bones raised her lit wand, and was called upon by the chamber, "Allow me to end this show so we can move on to something that actually needs to be discussed," Madam Bones says in a frustrated tone before looking at the Minister, "Cornelius, I will not be ordering any of my Aurors to confiscated anything from anyone one without a justified warrant of the Wizengamot with a statement of reasonable cause, and just because the boy has the relic does not make it reasonable if you wish to bring it to the ICW to dispute the ownership then I will happily vote on it and in favor, but my Aurors will not be involved in this, because unlike you, we still remember what happened during the Clarent incident," she says with finality before turning to Dumbledore.
"Chief Warlock, can we please move this to a vote so it can be shot down?" Madam Bones asks, "So we can move on to more important matters, namely the missing people and the freak storms that have been happening," she says in a biting tone.
Twenty minutes and one angry Minister later, the order was shot down with a two-thirds majority voting against it, Madam Bones then took to the platform and spoke about missing persons, freak storm systems rolling in out of nowhere, and eyewitness accounts of ghostly riders among the clouds and lightning. She wanted to lunch a full investigation into the matter, but the Minister had some words about doing that, namely "Waste of manpower and gold" and "Wild Griffin chase and old wives tales," but Albus was more than willing to hear her out and asked how fast she could get a taskforce ready to investigate it. All Amelia Bones needed was permission from the Wizengamot to treat the threat as hostile and a little extra gold to pay for overtime hours, she had failed to get either much to the displeasure of both Sirius and Madam Bones herself, all in the interest of keeping the peace and causing an "Undo panic".
As the meeting was called to an end, Sirius decided to see if the Auror office could do with a "Little" donation from the House of Black and would write Amelia as soon as he got home to see if they could work something out.
But as Sirius was leaving Wizengamot Hall to go spend the rest of the day with people who weren't bloodsucking leeches, he was stopped by a voice he really didn't want to hear.
"Hello, dear cousin," the high and haughty voice of a woman Sirius didn't think would ever call him that again, his shoulders drop as he sighs and turns around, not even trying to smile.
"Hello Narcissa," Sirius greets his cousin as she walks up to him, her heels clicking away on the polished black slate of the Wizengamot Hall.
"You and I have some family business to discuss, Dear Cousin" Narcissa Malfoy says with a poisonous smile, that was both polite and dismissive, and Sirius sighed again, feeling like this day would never end.
Harry Potter, Grimmauld Place, Christmas Day.
The only real experience that Harry had with spending Christmas with a family was getting to watch through either the vent of a cupboard door or through the kitchen door when he was old enough to look over the top of the Hob, when he woke up, his half-asleep mind went on auto-pilot and as soon as he was awake at six a.m he immediately moved to the kitchen after getting fully dressed and started on breakfast. It was a holiday so the Dursleys were expecting something sweet and festive, so Harry quickly takes out the eggs, cream, bread, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg and begins to whip up a large batch of French Toast. Butter for the skillet before adding the soaked bread, to another skillet add the bacon and eggs, salt and pepper for the eggs.
(Don't you dare burn it, freak!)
"Yes, Aunt Petunia, I won't," Harry mumbles under his breath.
He flips the toast before moving back to the eggs and flipping them as well and turning the bacon. He turns to the cabinet to pull down three plates and three glasses, turning back to the Hob he waits a few more moments before poking the center of the eggs, there was just enough give in the middle to make them runny, perfect in other words. He quickly takes them off the skillet and places two on one plate and three on two others, while moving to place the last egg on the plate, it slips off the spachelor, falling to the floor before splattering. Harry freezes and his hands begin to shake, he clamps his eyes shut, waiting for it to come.
"Harry?"
("What have I told you about wasting food boy!")
"Harry?"
(A chair scrapes, a teacup shatters by his head, hot tea burns his neck and face, screaming, always screaming, "Freak!" "Boy!",)
"Harry!?"
(The unkind hands grip his arms shaking him, yelling in his face, the sting of the slap, the clang of the frying pan hitting him, the cupboard, please don't put me in there, please put me in there, leave me alone, someone anyone helppleasepleaseplease, he couldn't breathe, plea-)
"Harry," Zoë says softly, grasping his shaking hand causing the boy to jump, trying(wanting) to run away but her firm grip stops him, "Shh, it's okay, you're not there, they're not here, you're okay, you're safe," she says in a soft comforting tone as she slowly pulls him into a hug(He hates being touch, they'll hurt him, he needs to run, find his cupboard, they won't hurt him if he's in there, stop touching me!) Harry takes a shuddering breath and hugs her back tightly, not moving as Zoë keeps repeating softly that he wasn't there and they were no longer near him.
Three hours later
Harry was sitting in the living room wearing a Weasley jumper underneath his jacket with Sirius, Remus, and Zoë each with a small pile of gifts from each other, Hermione, Ron, and Daphne had all sent him their gifts yesterday and he had sent back theirs with the same owl. Ron got a new chess set with a Muggle book on chess strategy and he had set him a Cuddly Cannon shirt in a horrible orange color with the players flying around the shirt, quite literally. Daphne had set him a book on dangerous magical creatures one could hunt with a note on the first-page reading "For the valiant hunter, I would hope you wouldn't run into these anytime soon, but knowing your luck, well, better safe than sorry," he had sent her a rare tome on medical potions from Germany. Hermione had sent him a book on the History of Battle Magic, and he had sent her his mother's notes on the two rituals and all the research for both his mothers and father's masteries, Harry couldn't make heads or tails out of any of them, but if there was person who could, it would be Hermione.
With all the other gifts from everyone else he had a pretty good hall this year, the only two who didn't get him anything were Remus and Sirius, but they had told him it wasn't something that could be wrapped and placed under a tree and that they would show him after all the gifts were open. Both Harry and Zoë had exchanged gifts of notes, his saying "Brat" and hers said "What Lady?" which earned him a quick swat from her, but she was smiling the whole time. By the time all the gifts were open and Sirius and Remus were about to show Harry their gifts, the sound of a cash register rang out, causing the other two men to jump, and they all turned to see a simple white box with a silver ribbon.
The box contained one smaller box addressed to Harry and a larger wider box for Zoë, in Harry's was a drinking horn made out of drakon horn and silver, engraved in the horn were scenes of a boy killing a giant snake, another of the same boy killing a giant scorpion, and another of the boy killing a dragon with gold scales, with a note tied to a ribbon that was around the Horn; "More space to add for future hunts to drink to, From: A, B, S, C, D." Harry smiles down at the drinking horn for what it was, a promise. He looks over to where Zoë was standing, her gift open with some long garment clutched in a death grip as she glares at a slip of paper in her hand with such an angry look that Harry was surprised that it hadn't burst into flames.
Walking over and looking around her shoulder he reads the note, which was in Greek, "Well, My Lady, Someone has to make sure you look presentable, or else you'd run around covered in mud and blood" Do have fun at the dance Zoë, consider it an order. -Artemis. Harry just snickers as he walks away and Zoë turns her death glare at him, Sirius looks between the two of them with a small smirk on his face, "I'm sensing a really good joke here, care to clue us in?" he asks before quickly hiding behind Remus as Zoë turns to him.
"Artemis sent Zoë a dress and ordered her to enjoy the Yule Ball later tonight," Harry says with a grin, "And I bet you anything she was planning on showing up in her leathers," he says before Zoë turns back to him.
"Keep laughing Brat, and I will strangle you with this," Zoë says holding up the dress as if it was a deadly weapon, and in her hands, it probably was.
Before Harry could open his mouth to say something that would no doubt cause Zoë to do just that, Sirius speaks again, "What did Artemis send you?" He asks, looking over at Harry.
"Huh?" Harry asks, sounding confused, "Oh, nothing, this is from a few of my sisters and my brother," Harry says, holding up the drinking horn.
Sirius then steps out from behind Remus, a stormy expression on his face, "Artemis didn't send you anything for Christmas?" Sirius asks slowly, his eyes narrowing as anger built in his voice.
"Ummm," Harry says, looking over at Zoë who had slowly turned her head to look at Sirius with wide eyes.
"Why the hell didn't Artemis send you anything?" Sirius asks again, "As far as I know she's your mother too," He says angrily.
"One does not demand gifts from the gods, Sirius Black," Zoë hisses at him through clenched teeth, "Especially not Lady Artemis, you must earn her gifts," She snaps at Sirius getting dangerously close to the man.
"Well, fuck that noise!" Sirius half yells back at the lieutenant of the hunt, "She left Harry with those fucking monsters for how long? And she can't get off her ass for a day to go gift shopping to make up for twelve years of abandoning him," he says, not backing down from Zoë.
Remus sighs and rubs his face before turning around to walk into the kitchen to pour himself some tea, and to get the first aid kit.
"Oh, you would know all about that, wouldn't you Sirius Black," Zoë says, her hands inching dangerously towards Moontide, "At least My Lady has the excuse of thinking him dead for all that time, what's yours for handing him over?" Zoë asks with a sneer.
Sirius doesn't even flinch as he glares back, "That is why I get to cast the first stone, I know the sin all too well, and I've been doing my damnedest to make up for it, she can at least be a better co-parent and take the steps with me, but no Artemis is acting like a stuck up bit-" Sirius begins to say and Zoë goes to draw her sword as his wand falls into his hand, just before Harry jumps in between them.
"Stop!" Harry shouts, shoving them away from each other, "That's enough, Christmas is supposed to be about Family right, not with trying to kill each other, so put the weapons away, Zoë the sword won't work on Sirius, he's mortal, and Sirius, the wand, Zoë is divine, your magic won't work on her remember?" Harry snaps at them both as they take a step back from each other.
Harry turns to Sirius with a sigh as the man stows his wand, "Sirius, listen, Artemis doesn't have to send me anything, I have everything I need or want here, besides I'm not the easiest to shop for because I don't want much and I'm pretty sure Mo-, that Artemis is the same way, okay?" Harry tells the older man who begrudgingly nods after a moment, "Besides, the only thing I want right now is a 'wand core more powerful than the last', or whatever the hell that means," Harry mutters the last part under his breath, "And I haven't exactly told people that, not even Artemis," he says.
"Why haven't you?" Zoë asks looking over at Harry, "As far as I know Wixen wand cores are just magical animal parts, it would be simple to send you a small collection of them," she says with a raised brow.
"It's not like I pray to her, Zoë," Harry says uncomfortably before shuffling from foot to foot awkwardly, "Besides I was just gonna look for one next summer when I go to America with the hunt," He informs his older sister.
"Going where for a what now?" Sirius suddenly asks, looking at Harry while crossing his arms.
"Oh, shit," Harry curses, "Did I, ah, did I n-not s-say an-anything about t-that?" Harry says as he twitches and shuffles around, not looking at Sirius.
"No, you didn't," Sirius says softly before sighing, "Look, Harry, I'm not mad," he says in a soft, calm voice to his godson, "I'm glad I found out about this now, gives me time to plan," he says with a smile as Harry looks up at him.
"Plan?" Harry asks, confused.
"Yeah, Summer vacation across the pond, we can check out New York-" Sirius begins to say before Zoë cuts him off.
"Not New York," she says quickly.
"Did I say New York, I meant Cali-" Sirius tries again before Zoë once more cuts him off.
"Not California either," she says just as quickly.
Sirius slowly turns to her, "Well miss tour guide, where would you suggest?" he asks as Zoë narrows her eyes in thought.
"Florida," she says with a nod of her head, "It has two giant theme parks," Zoë says with a smile and As Sirius opens his mouth to ask what a theme park was, Remus calls out from the kitchen.
"Harry?" Moony calls, poking his head around the doorframe, causing said boy to look at him, "Do remind me, what is Artemis' sacred animal?" he asks with a raised brow.
Harry blinks, "Ummm, there's a few, but it's mainly a stag, why?" the heir to the hunt asks, confused.
Remus nods his head slowly, "Right, a Stag," he mumbles, "It wouldn't happen to be a golden stag, would it?" he asks, This time both Harry and Zoë looked surprised, but Harry nods, "Just wanted to make sure I wasn't going mad, but there is a golden stag standing outside in the back Garden with Hedwig sitting on his horns," Remus says slowly as if he didn't trust what he had just seen.
This statement causes everyone to go into the kitchen to look out the window over the sink that looks into the back garden, and sure enough, the Golden Hind was munching on purple flowers with Hedwig nesting regally on its horns, causing everyone to look at it confused.
"Why is it eating the purple flowers?" Sirius suddenly asks, causing everyone to look at him with various shades of confusion or bewilderment, he looks right back at them, "What? I like the purple ones!" he says defensively before turning back to watch the stag start sniffing the yellow flowers, "That's it, eat those," he mutters before he watches the golden hind look up and looks him directly in the eyes, before turning back to start to eat the purple flowers again.
Sirius points at the hind, his jaw falling open, "Now it's doing it on purpose!" he yells as the rest of the group just stares at him.
Harry just shakes his head before moving past Sirius and heading to the back door, "I'll be right back," he says with a sigh as he opens the door to the back garden, Hedwig immediately takes off from the hind horns and lands on his shoulder as Zoë, Remus, and Sirius watch from the window as Harry walks up to the hind and begins to talk to and pet it.
"I will never not be amazed seeing that," Zoë says under her breath as she watches Harry causally interacts with the golden hind.
"Why is that?" Remus asks as he studies the creature in the back garden.
"Because for the last 3,000-odd years, I have never seen the hinds be willingly touched by anyone one but by Lady Artemis," Zoë admits as Harry turns and jogs back into the house, before blowing right past everyone in the kitchen and into the hall that leads to the stairs.
"Be right back!" he calls out as Hedwig leaps from his shoulder to fly up to the icebox.
"Say, Padfoot?" Remus says catching Sirius' attention, the werewolf's eyes never leave the Hind, "Does the hind look like…" he says, trailing off and looking at Sirius.
Sirius' eyes narrow at the Golden Stag in his back garden that had gone right back to eating his favorite flowers, "Now that you mentioned it, it does, doesn't it," he says leaning forward as Harry runs back through the kitchen, hunting knife in hand.
The group watches as Harry draws the small blade as he walks up to the stag, who lowers its head as he approaches it. Harry kneels in front of it, petting it a few times as the group in the kitchen watches with awe, confusion, and a little bit of trepidation as Harry brings the blade up to the horn of the stag before carving off a long piece of it.
"No way," Sirius says, watching with an open mouth as the Stag raises its head before turning around and walking around the corner, stopping only once to rip a bunch of purple flowers from a planter before eating them.
Harry walks back into the house, kicking the snow off his boots, and holding a thin piece of golden horn in his hand, he looks between Sirius and Remus before holding up the Horn, "Do you think this would make a powerful wand core?" Harry asks, just before Zoë starts to laugh.
Ace of Wands
Shown on this card are two female hands grasping a willow wand, one hand is smaller then the other and the hue of the skin is darker, below the wand stands a shining golden stag in the middle of a moonlit meadow, a star rules over the top of the card, the willow wand going between two emerald eyes looking out to the viewer as the shadowy figure of a young man can be seen in the background of the two hands that seem to encircle him.
at the bottom of the card on a cruelled scroll the words
A Mother's oath to keep past the final breath,
can be read.
Chapter Done!
And the longest Chapter to date with plenty of things to speculate about, but two things, One: can someone get Theodore a wheelbarrow? Because I think he's gonna need one to carry those HUGE BRASS BALLS out of the Halls of the Wizengamot.
And two: zearph, do you mind picking up that phone? Because you fucking CALLED THAT SHIT!
I'll go on a rant another time, I need sleep.
Kingsaxcul, out!
