Before starting, let me just begin by saying this is the rewrite version of "Arrow: Reforged Destinies." While there are enough differences to warrant such a change, in the early chapters it may not seem like it. At first glance it's just a clean-up but there are going to be plenty of surprises in store. Enjoy!

Prologue: The Queen's Gambit

Looking back to that day, all they could think about was how fate had intervened and brought them together under the unlikeliest of circumstances. The famous Wizarding World hero, the Boy Who Lived, and the playboy billionaire from Starling City. Nobody would have expected them to be friends, let alone even meet. It was hard to believe that five years ago a simple trip on that yacht would change both of their lives.

For the twelve year old boy with the lightning bolt scar, it had been a chance to break away from his past and forge a path of his own. For the twenty-two year old playboy, he had lost everything that day and would need to fight to get back home.

To do that, they needed each other...

Five Years Ago

The year was 2007. The innocence in the twelve year old's eyes was still there as they cracked open, the emerald green hue he'd inherited from his mother practically shining off of the light in the bedroom. Rolling over onto his side, he glanced at the time momentarily, smiling lightly seeing that it was almost eight in the morning. He normally would never get to sleep in at all, let alone even simply lay in his bed for more than a couple hours without the interruption of his aunt and uncle. Speaking of which, from the sound of it his uncle was right on cue.

"Breakfast isn't going to serve itself!" the vessel of pure rage that was Vernon Dursley howled up the stairs towards him. Harry sighed, rolling his eyes.

So the whole being dropped on their doorstep because his parents were killed wasn't Harry's choice, but that didn't mean they needed to treat the boy like a slave. Literally from the time Harry could even walk, talk, go to the bathroom on his own, and stand high enough to see over the stove, they'd put him to work to cook. Sometimes he wished that the Dursleys would just drop him off somewhere else and leave him, but they were family, even if they treated him like that.

"Boy, did you hear me?!" Vernon's voice roared through the walls, vibrating the entire room like an earthquake going off.

"I don't know, why don't you shout just a little bit louder so the International Space Station can hear you?" Harry muttered lightly under his breath. "Yes! I'm on my way," he called out, climbing out of bed. All things considered, life with the Dursleys wasn't ideal but Harry was simply glad to have a roof over his head and a pair of clothes on his back.

He quickly made his way down the tight staircase, residing over the cupboard he used to sleep in until a year ago, wiping the sleep from his eyes. Not wasting any time, he hurried to the kitchen to cook breakfast.

He listened to them complain about whatever was irking them this morning, and Harry honestly couldn't care less. He made their breakfast, and after eating what little bit was left (it was never much, barely three pieces of bacon and maybe one single egg if that) Harry went and sat down on the stairs reading a letter from his friend Ron Weasley.

Lost in the letter, Harry heard something in his uncle's voice that sent chills down spine. He heard joy…

There was definitely something horrifying when there was joy in Vernon's voice, especially when Harry was around. At the epicenter of the anger that Vernon unleashed, it always somehow came back around to Harry being the cause, one way or another. Certainly a rarity in the house, hearing that joy caught the entire household off guard.

He couldn't sit in the living room as his aunt Petunia had forbidden him from being in there due to the events that transpired last August. Harry had been imprisoned in his own room, inspiring a rescue from Ron and his brothers in the Weasley's flying car. The rescue had ended with Vernon falling out of Harry's window and almost broke his neck in the process. Harry was still paying the price for that little escapade almost a year later.

Just two weeks from his thirteenth birthday, Harry was hoping he could talk to his friends, having hardly spoken to them since their summer vacation from Hogwarts had started. Unfortunately the events with the Basilisk and the Chamber of Secrets seemed to have caused a drift between the three of them, making him feel more alone than he ever had. He was reading Ron's last letter to him, the only one he'd received once summer vacation had begun when Vernon's thunderous voice had ripped him out of his thoughts, almost causing him to fall off the steps.

"We're about to live the good life!" he cheered, Harry watching with bemusement at the sight of his joyous uncle, until he watched that joy literally drain away as they made eye contact. That joy immediately turned to disgust, making Harry gulp slightly. "Even with that little freak over there living with us."

Why thank you for noticing Uncle, I'm so dreadfully sorry that I'm different. I hate being a freak, I mean... it's not like you would know what that's like.

Harry looked over at his cousin as he sat with his mother on the couch, and an amusing joke popped in his head, but ultimately decided against saying anything as he didn't want Vernon to lash out over it. Even if Harry thought the idea of scaring Vernon and Petunia by claiming Dudley had magic was spectacular in his head, he wasn't a masochist.

"What do you mean, dear? I thought you weren't going to get a raise for another year or two at least?" Petunia asked.

"I wasn't, but thank the bloody Americans! This American company called, ah... what's it called? Oh! Queen Consolidated, that's it! Queen Consolidated is working on a deal with Grunnings and I've been chosen to close the deal. If I'm successful, I'll get a sizable raise!" Harry rolled his eyes, until he heard what came next. "However, Mr. Queen is going on his yacht for a few weeks and has requested that the deal be negotiated there, so the four of us are going."

"F-four?" Petunia muttered, as Dudley's eyes grew as wide as the round glasses Harry was currently wearing.

"FOUR?! What do you mean four?!" Dudley shouted, standing up. "You mean he's coming with us?"

Vernon nodded, causing Harry to nearly choke on his own air from the sight. Since when do I get to go anywhere with them? Only time I'm allowed in the vehicle is when they're taking me to or from the train station. It's a miracle I got to go to the zoo that day, but of course Dudley got stuck in the snake's den.

"The only reason we're bringing the boy along is because I'm not having other freaks here while we're gone. Besides, we have no choice, Mrs. Figg is unable to watch him."

"So we're stuck with him while we're on the yacht?" Petunia asked, to which Vernon nodded reluctantly. A strange joy filled Harry for a moment, but he tried to repress it knowing that just because he was able to be on the yacht Vernon wouldn't just let him enjoy himself. No, why would his uncle ever let the kid be a kid?

"Yes, but it doesn't mean that gets to enjoy himself there, as he'll be stuck in his room the whole time."

Harry sighed and shrugged his shoulders. "Alright... like always," he muttered lowly, unfortunately though it was just loud enough that Vernon heard him and gave him a death glare.

He didn't even bother saying anything or reacting as Vernon almost immediately turned his attention back to his wife. "Our plane will be leaving in a few days," the man began to explain as Harry stood up, putting Ron's letter back into its envelope and walked up to his room. Shutting the door behind him, Harry was thankful to have a lock on it so he could be at peace and not be bothered by his family's persistent pestering. They didn't even trust him to not 'freak' up the place in his own room.

Sitting in her cage was Harry's beloved snowy owl, eagerly awaiting her release. Harry smiled, knowing that he'd need someone to watch Hedwig while he was gone. From what Vernon was implying as he was walking up the stairs, they were going to be gone for a few weeks at the very least.

He had thought about writing a letter to Ron to see if he'd watch Hedwig, but he'd seen the chaos that is the Burrow, and Harry figured Hedwig would prefer somewhere quieter. Only one person came to mind and that was Hermione Granger. She always said her house was normally quiet, and whenever Hedwig was there the owl always enjoyed herself. Hermione liked Hedwig too, so Harry knew she probably wouldn't mind watching the owl for a few weeks.

Sitting down at his desk he scribbled down a letter in his natural chicken scratch writing that was quite readable for once. He might not have the greatest penmanship, but he certainly tried.

Hermione,

The Dursleys and I are going to North America for somewhat of a vacation if that's what you'd call it. I don't have a place to keep Hedwig, so I was wondering if you would mind keeping her while I'm gone. You don't have to if you don't want to, I can always figure something else out. While I'm gone I won't have a way to keep in touch with anyone either. I hope your summer is going alright, and talk to you soon.

Sincerely, Harry.

Upon closing the envelope, he saw Hedwig was eager to get a move on with the delivery as she was nudging at the gate, barely giving him time to open it for her. Opening the window, the owl hopped onto the ledge and looked at him inquisitively.

"Take this to Hermione, girl." Hedwig took the letter from him and took off out of the window, leaving Harry in his silent room. It was hard to believe that in just three days they were going to go to the airport to head to North America.

The name of the city still sat on the tip of Harry's tongue... Starling City.

A Few Days Later

Starling City

As Oliver Queen glanced towards the yacht, he could only let out a sigh of admiration, though it could have easily meant anything. Three weeks on the open sea with his father, what more could he ask for? Oliver heard his father's footsteps behind him as the elder Queen patted him on his back.

"Ready to take her out?" Robert asked, making Oliver smile lightly.

"Do I need to answer that, or is that just another one of your trick questions?" Robert merely chuckled in response.

"Don't you worry, we'll get her out in a little bit. Just gotta wait on our guests to arrive." Oliver raised an eyebrow.

"Guests? I thought it was just going to be us going?" he asked, as Robert shrugged slyly.

"It's for work, nothing else. Although, you never know what might happen," the man replied, causing Oliver to just be even more perplexed.

As much as he knew his father, Oliver couldn't help but be surprised by some of the things Robert said. Little would he ever know was that the last part of that sentence would leave a lasting mark, whether anyone would know it or not.

"Oh, by the way Mom called and said that Mr. Luthor's looking forward to discussing that project with you when we get back."

"Lex, hmm? I always did like him. He's a better man than his father, that's for sure." Robert muttered lowly. "I need to make sure everything's set before we get going, so I'll see you in a minute, son."

Oliver nodded, turning around and sitting on one of the posts, waiting for his own personal guest to arrive.

Harry cleaned his glasses quietly while the others were chatting away. He was happy to be able to get out of Privet Drive, but the thing was he wasn't very happy about the whole situation. Sure, he was going to be on a yacht. A yacht, of all the things could be on for his summer break, Harry never thought he would get to be on a yacht. The downside, he was going to be stuck in his room while the Dursleys were living it up.

He had to question what his sleeping quarters were going to be like. Who knows, maybe they scored him a spot in the bottom of the ship. That'd be the day, when the Dursleys wouldn't pull that kinda stunt. It was either that or they'd use him as an anchor.

His whole train of thought was blocking the outside world as they passed through the massive Starling City. From what Harry understood the yacht was owned by the Queens, a family of billionaires that ran Queen Consolidated. The owner was Robert Queen, and he was the one Vernon was going to be negotiating with. Harry felt bad for Robert already, and he hadn't even met the guy yet, or rather if he would.

"Boy! Are you listening to me?" Vernon asked, snapping Harry out of his thoughts. He couldn't help it, he couldn't believe how full of life the city was. There were so many more people here than Hogwarts had at one time. "Potter!"

"Sorry, what were you saying?" Harry asked, noticing the veins in Vernon's forehead seemed to grow twice their size in a matter of seconds. Bracing himself for the worst, Harry shrunk back for a moment, but there was no yelling that came his way.

"I was explaining that when we arrive at the yacht, you're to head straight to your room and stay there," Vernon explained, rather calmly at that.

"Oh, of course. Let me guess, my room is in the Brig?" Harry chuckled lightly, as the Dursleys looked at him with surprise.

"You're a sharp one today, aren't you?" Petunia asked, giving a look of disgust that made Harry just smile rather unintentionally.

Before he knew it, they were pulling up to the harbor and Harry could see a beautiful young brunette walking away from the dock, a bright smile on her face. She looked directly at him, waving lightly, to which he waved back.

Once they got out of the car, Harry caught his first glimpse of the yacht. It was a thing of beauty for sure. Slinging his bag over his shoulder, Harry knew his time in that room wouldn't be spent in total boredom, as Hermione had given him her favorite book to borrow: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and a phone so they could talk to each other.

"Remember what I said, Potter..." Vernon hissed, as Harry lightly nodded in response as they saw the owner of the yacht himself walking towards them. Dudley suddenly pushed into Harry, almost knocking him down in the process, but Harry managed to keep steady.

"Wow," was all Harry could say when he continued to look at the yacht. His hand unconsciously went up to meet his hair, moving it slightly revealing his lightning bolt scar for just a split second. Vernon's hand met Harry's elbow, reminding the wizard that they didn't want Robert or anyone else to assume Harry was abused because of that scar. While they did in fact abuse him, those scars weren't able to be seen like the lightning bolt one was, and what made that one in particular so troubling was that it never faded. Harry couldn't do anything about the abuse though, as he couldn't use his magic outside of Hogwarts, and most definitely not around non-wizards and witches.

"Mr. Dursley I presume?" asked Robert upon reaching them, as Harry stood still, eyes glued on the magnificent boat. He'd been quiet this entire time, but nearly broke his silence when Dudley almost pushed him into the water trying to get close to his father.

"Yes, it's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Queen." Vernon greeted, shaking Robert's hand. Harry felt a vibration in his bag, so he pulled his phone out and saw a message from Hermione.

"Same here. Your kids don't get along, do they?" Vernon raised an eyebrow, glancing over to the two boys as Dudley tried to see what Harry was typing on his phone and the wizard hid it out of sight angrily.

"The one with the phone isn't my kid, he's my wife's nephew," he explained. "Wait, a phone? How did you get that?"

"A friend of mine got it for me. I thought it wouldn't bother anything." Plus, I'll have something to do while I'm trapped in my room.

Something in the pit of his stomach told Harry though that he wasn't going to be trapped in it for long though.

"Ah, where's his parents?"

"They're dead," Harry explained weakly, as the Dursleys looked at him with surprise seeing the boy had answered even though they had told him to be quiet.

"That's a shame... you look like you're in good hands though," Robert finished with almost a growl, his mood shifting ever so slightly that Harry was barely able to notice. Harry faintly smiled at him. Robert seemed so normal, so... nice. It was refreshing to see an adult outside of Hogwarts with a kind heart. It almost made him wonder if Robert had a clue of his actual situation. Harry shook that thought off, that'd be too good to be true.

If you only had a clue... he thought to himself as they walked onto the yacht, as an eerie sensation fell upon him, one that wouldn't go away.

As the day went on and the yacht sailed off to sea, Harry laid on his bed in the small room he'd been assigned to as Oliver enjoyed his day with his guest Sara Lance with a little bit of wine included. Between the two males, Oliver had the better day for sure.

Laying there Harry looked around his accommodations. It wasn't very large, just enough to hold a bed, a nightstand, and enough clearance to walk to the bathroom. The small window was dark from the cloak of night. For miles around thunder and lightning seemed to spread across the entire ocean, coinciding with that strange sense he'd been feeling ever since he stepped onto the yacht. There was nobody that would find them if something went wrong now. They were merely a pixel on a screen at this point, they were so isolated from the rest of humanity.

As much as Harry hated being in this room while his so-called family were probably having the absolute best time of their lives, Harry couldn't complain. Vernon never took his phone away from him, so it wasn't like he had no options available. It was almost midnight, and Harry cursed himself under his breath. He still hadn't contacted Hermione since she had messaged him right before they got on the yacht.

He dialed the only contact he had in his phone and smiled, knowing that even if he was forbidden from leaving his room, he at least had someone to talk to.

"Hello?" Hermione's voice answered with a slight yawn.

"Hey, were you sleeping?" he asked, knowing very well she must have been from that yawn.

"I was, but I'm glad you called," she replied, yawning again. "How's the vacation going?"

He couldn't help but notice the way she said vacation. She knew he wasn't living it up, not by any means.

"Not bad. Stuck in my room, alone... nothing to do except talk to you," he laughed monotonously as she chuckled. "So not a joke... How's Hedwig?"

"She loves it here. Mum and Dad can't get enough of her."

"I'm glad. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," she answered, interest clearly piqued.

"H-how are you feeling? After you know, being petrified for a while." Hermione was quiet for a moment and Harry feared he might have upset her. "I know it's a sensitive subject, but..."

"No, no... it's alright. I was just thinking for a moment is all. I feel fine, although it felt weird when I came out of it." Harry suddenly felt like he was starting to fall backwards even though he was sitting against the wall, and thought it might have been just a bit of sea sickness hitting him, that was until the lightning outside flashed and the boat let out a disturbing groan. "What was that?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know," he stated, watching as the nightstand beside him started to slide across the room. Uh-oh... "Hey, I should get off here and let you get some sleep. I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay?"

She sighed. "You promise?" Hermione asked, as Harry chuckled lightly, trying his best to ignore the dread in the pit of his stomach currently.

"Yeah, I promise. Night Hermione." Harry got up and stopped the nightstand, trying to see what had caused it to move. Nothing in here could have made it slide though, and it should have been sturdy enough to stay in place. He didn't want to worry Hermione if it was nothing.

"Night Harry," the click of the call ending followed as Harry put the phone in his pocket. Curiosity getting the better of him, he poked his head out into the hallway hoping he wouldn't see any of his family members. There wasn't a soul out here. Stepping into the hallway, Harry scratched his head lightly, wondering if he had nothing to worry about.

As if on cue, a loud boom echoed throughout the yacht and Harry was sent crashing into the wall as the ship suddenly jerked. Lifting his head, Harry saw a large wave of water flying into the hallway coming straight towards him. He didn't even hesitate as he stumbled to his feet, rushing back into his room and shut the door haphazardly, not thinking about how bad of a decision that actually was. The door was no match for the water as it came right off of the hinges. Before he knew it, the room was engulfed by the wave of water and Harry was sent off his feet. He managed to grab onto the wall for support for a moment, able to see his belongings floating. His wand was out of reach, by where his bed had been. Where the nightstand had been moments ago, Harry could see Hermione's book go beneath the water. She was going to kill him.

Just within his reach was his book bag, holding only a pair of clothes he had brought with and a photo of him, Ron, and Hermione right before summer vacation. Harry managed to grab it and pull it over his shoulders as the room was completely filled and the current swept Harry away.

He couldn't see where he was going, feeling large objects hit him, sending him reeling. His head hurt, his body was in constant pain as a strange calm suddenly came over him. Opening his eyes, Harry saw he was outside of the ship, and above him he saw the grim sight of the yacht, broken in half. Looking around in an effort to regain his bearings the dazed wizard saw his uncle below swimming after Dudley. Dudley was sinking, and it looked like his eyes were closed but Harry couldn't really tell from this distance, at least... he thought it was his uncle and cousin. If that was them, where was his aunt?

Harry instinctively started swimming up towards the surface, his mind screaming at him to try and save Dudley no matter how bad he had treated him beforehand. That was still his family and he couldn't just let him drown. However, his instincts won over in the end as he continued towards the surface, dodging the debris as best as he could. He'd never really swam before besides the obligatory swim class he had at public school, so this wasn't necessarily an easy task. Through the debris and perhaps Harry's distorted perception he thought he saw a young blond woman in front of him for just a moment, but she disappeared just as quick as he had seen her, and Harry's head exited the water.

He gasped for as much air as he could take in, the temperature difference between the water and the air apparent as it felt like he'd been hit by a blizzard out of nowhere. The current hit him, sending him back under the water again, and the sense of suffocation that much more prominent.

Harry came out of the water again, and filled as much of his lungs with air as he could before diving back under the water, hoping to see if he could see any of his family members. He couldn't see anyone... it was like they had all vanished into the deep dark abyss below.

With what energy he had, Harry came out of the water again and searched the water's surface. Thankfully he caught sight of a lifeboat with at least three people on there, with enough room for at least one more. He started swimming with all of his energy, trying to reach that lifeboat with all of his might, hoping, praying... but it was useless. He was too weak. It had taken most if not all of his energy just to get out of the yacht and break the surface. He could feel it in his arms, they were so weak that he couldn't hardly move them anymore.

He yelled at the top of his lungs, hard enough that it felt like his vocal cords had just been torn apart. He could barely make out the sound of someone from the lifeboat call out that they were going to paddle to him. What little energy he had left dissipated, and he went under. They weren't close enough... they wouldn't save him. His eyes closed, and as just as he was about to pass out, a hand grabbed onto his book bag pulling him out of the water.

Harry gasped, and saw his savior was a young blond man. The man smiled at Harry warmly, helping him into the lifeboat as two older men, one of them being Robert set him down safely. The young man climbed into the boat beside Harry and breathed heavily.

"You okay?" the young man asked as Harry nodded, shivering. Harry didn't trust his words at all at the moment, as if his words could cause him to be thrown back into the water. "Was there anyone else in the water you saw? A young woman?"

Harry lightly shook his head, focusing on getting warm, unable to remember seeing the woman that had been there for only a split second.

"Sara..." Harry looked up at him, trying to figure out what exactly was going on. The sight of the yacht was hard to look at. From what he could tell the yacht didn't hit anything. It looked like it simply broke in half like a twig. He wrapped his arms around himself trying to capture any warmth he could. The scene in front of them reminded the older men of how the R.M.S. Titanic had broken in half. It was terrifying just how easily it had happened.

"You're freezing," Robert's voice called out to Harry, but he wasn't listening as the wizard stared down at the floor, a startling realization dawning on him. He'd just lost the rest of his family.

Two days had passed as the lifeboat floated aimlessly across the vast ocean. Harry opened his tired eyes, having barely slept at all if he even did. All he could smell was the sea salt... it was sickening.

A low whisper caught his attention. "There's not enough for all of us... you two can survive this, make it home, make it better, right my wrongs. But you gotta survive this first, Ollie, do you hear me son?" the voice said, as Harry blinked a couple times, unsure if this was real or not.

"Get some rest, Dad..." he heard the young man's voice.

Out of nowhere a loud gunshot rang out, jarring him awake. His eyes darted around. There was nothing but water around them, no land, nothing. He looked over to see that one of the older men had been shot in the head. The gun was still smoking in Robert's hand as Harry watched the man's body fall into the water, making the wizard almost throw up from the sight.

Looking up, he was met with the barrel of the gun. No, I... I don't wanna die, was all he could think of, as he closed his eyes bracing for the fatal shot, only for it to never come.

"Dad?!" Oliver asked with wide eyes, just as awake as Harry was. Harry opened his eyes to see Robert looking at his son.

"Listen to me... both of you... survive." Robert then turned the gun on himself, and before Oliver could even move, the gun went off.

"NO!"

They sat there in silence for what seemed like forever until Oliver turned towards Harry, his eyes full of tears. Harry was trying to hold back his tears, but before he knew it Oliver moved over and hugged him tightly, telling Harry that they were going to make it out alive, no matter what.

Harry hadn't spoken a word at all until Oliver broke the silence, in a whisper that the wizard barely managed to hear, simply asking: "Why?"