Warlock 1 - Wizarding World (HP SI CYOA)
By: Gothicjedi666
[NSFW] - Warlock 1 - Wizarding World (HP SI CYOA) by Gothicjedi666
Status: ongoing
Published: 2023-12-01
Updated: 2024-02-18
Words: 101859
Chapters: 39
Original source: https/forum./threads/24883
Exported with the assistance of
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World (HP SI CYOA)
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 1
Spoiler [img: https/i1.//wp-content/uploads/2014/06/01_Diagon-Alley.jpg]
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World
Part 1
Diagon Alley. London.
When the deal was done I found myself in the magical shopping centre of Britain in the world of Harry Potter, with nothing more than the clothes on my back, a head full of newly acquired magical knowledge, and a talking raven as a familiar.
Spoiler
[img: /wp-content/uploads/2017/06/fullsizeoutput_49fd.jpeg]
As to how I ended up in this situation, that was because quite recently I'd made a pact with some sort of magical entity. One that I hoped I'd not come to regret.
The deal was that in exchange for providing my new patron with certain services, it would bestow several gifts upon me and then send me on my way, and by the looks of things I'd been sent to the Wizarding World as planned.
Overall, I had this rather strange feeling that someone or something had outsourced a task it should be performing to me. I didn't know why I felt that way, it just seemed to me to be the right conclusion.
To be more accurate about the situation, I hadn't just been given magical powers and the knowledge of how to make use of them.
I'd also been given a keener mind and my body had been improved because at some point during my travels I might need to take on the role of a warrior.
As to why I'd come to this planet when there had been many other worlds that I could have visited and messed about with on behalf of my patron, that was because I knew this world rather well, and as a bonus, I could learn its magic as well as pick up a few useful artefacts while I was here.
"So where do we start, boss?" a voice asked.
That had been Renwick speaking to me and while the raven could speak he would only be making bird noises to anyone listening.
Only I could hear him speak and it wasn't telepathy the words were just there for me to hear. Since no one was looking at the talking bird this confirmed what I'd already known.
Since I would be heard as normal when speaking I turned away from the crowd and took inventory of what I had on my person before addressing Renwick. This turned out to be little more than the clothes I wore which were now baggy on me.
Other than that I had a few coins on me that hadn't even been minted yet so I couldn't spend them, an old bus ticket and a sweet.
"I have no idea" I whispered "I have no money and nowhere to stay".
Renwick nodded his head.
"I can get you money" he offered "You're not the only one with powers".
With that, my familiar flew off, leaving me wondering how I was going to make a living. I had great knowledge of alchemy and enchanting, but those arts require space and a lot of materials to work with.
In theory, I could even conjure up stuff from other universes, but this was not something to do on the streets.
In short, I needed money to make money.
Renwick soon returned, and after perching on my shoulder he dropped a heavy purse full of coins into my hand.
"Hide that, I just took it from a wizard with long white hair and an aura of dark magic," said Renwick.
While stealing from Death Eaters was dangerous I could not help feeling amused by the idea I got to spend Lucius Malfoy's money. Assuming that my familiar had just stolen it from that dark wizard.
"You need somewhere to stay" my familiar was now saying as it began to rain "And food. I can eat pretty much anything, you can't".
Ravens are omnivorous and can feed on everything from small mammals to nesting birds, their eggs and sometimes berries. They will also eat carrion, scavenged from other predators, I would not dine on such things.
I was about to say that we should head for the Leaky Cauldron, then I remembered that I can speak to people telepathically thanks to my new powers and this seemed like a good time to start practising my magic.
As it turned out I didn't need to cast any sort of spell to link up with my familiar as we are already connected, and while there was no wand waving or magical words to speak, I still felt a bit giddy about getting to do some real magic.
There is a pub called the Leaky Cauldron. I'll book a room there and order us some food.
Given that I wasn't blending in it would be good to get off the streets, and even if Renwick wasn't drawing that much attention, as there were plenty of other birds about, I didn't want to owner of the stolen money bag to notice him.
"Don't worry about money," my familiar assured me "There are plenty of rich snobs here who can afford to lose a purse full of coin".
I quickly made my way to the pub and my timing was good as someone was just entering the alley via the Leaky Cauldron. Once I made my way inside I looked around the dingy place that looked as if it needed repainting and some repair work done.
Despite that, the place had a welcoming feel to it, and I could see a fair people just hanging about. A few witches were sitting at a table, who looked as if they knew Granny Weatherwax and had just flown here from Lancre.
I also saw some pipe-smoking wizards, one of which could have been Gandalf given his grey robes. They were arguing over something in a magazine called Transfiguration Today.
I also saw some dwarves that could have come right out of a live-action remake of the Snow White movie.
Already I liked this place and I was soon greeted
by Tom the bartender who wasn't the hunchback version, rather he seemed like a middle-aged man who looked as if could have been running the Inn of the Prancing Pony in Bree.
"I'd like to rent a room for a few nights" I told Tom "How much would that be?".
Given the amount of money in my stolen purse I didn't think I would have any trouble affording to rent a room.
"I just need your name for the guest book" mentioned Tom.
Since I was terrible at coming up with names I was glad for my raven offering a name in a voice only I could hear. All I had to do was repeat the suggestion in a voice Tom could hear.
"Caelum" I said "Caelum Barrows".
It wasn't odd for magical folk to be named after constellations and other things found in outer space. As for the surname that had something to do with burial grounds if my memory served.
"Can I see a menu?" I requested.
Getting transformed by a strange magical being before being thrown into another dimension can really take it out of a guy.
As such, I suddenly found myself very hungry, so I ordered a large meal of soup, steak and kidney pie, and a fair bit of roast hog.
While I drank two pints of some sort of beer I didn't feel the effects because of all the food I ate, nor did I rush my meal. There was no need to as I was well hidden by shadows in the pub, and no one paid me much attention even as Renwick ate his pork with gusto.
As I ate the bartender brought me over some old newspapers, I had requested them, and these were papers from earlier in the week. They should give me at least some of the information I needed. If I was going to do anything meaningful then I required knowledge of when I had appeared in this world
According to the most recent paper, the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament had recently taken place at Hogwarts, and sixteen-year-old Marigold Potter had taken her hostage, a young wizard called Neville Longbottom, who had been her date to the Yule Ball, out of the Black Lake.
Since the Minister of Magic was still Cornelius Oswald Fudge according to another article and Potter was in the Trwizard Tournament there didn't seem to be much else different from the canon world other than the Chosen One is a girl and older than she should be during the events of the Goblet of Fire.
At least not as far as I could see. If there were any then I would find out about them later as I learned more about this timeline and the article in the paper had hardly even mentioned the other champions so it wasn't a great source of information.
The rest of the papers weren't much help because it was full of rubbish such as adverts for products I cared nothing about, and snippets from the lives of background characters who had no impact on the plot as far as I could tell along with political matters I simply didn't understand.
Once I had finished my food I headed up to my room, guided there by a young woman who looked to be the maid, not that I really needed someone to show me the way as I had no luggage for anyone to help me carry and the building wasn't very big.
I would be staying in Room 11, a room for rent on the first floor, which had a bed in the middle, a fireplace, a talking mirror that I soon covered up so it wouldn't annoy me, and a window that looked out into the part of London known as Charing Cross Road.
As soon as I was alone I began to place wards upon the room to ensure that no one would be able to listen in or use magic to spy on what I was getting up to.
At least that was the theory, having great knowledge of magic and making use of that magic, weren't quite the same thing.
To make use of the knowledge and power that I had been given, I was going to have to practice quite a lot.
"So boss, you got any plans brewing in that head of yours" said Renwick.
A few, but first I needed some more information.
"Renwick, what exactly does my patron want from me?" I asked "It said you would have the details".
Sure I knew the overall plan. I'm supposed to help the Chosen One, who is a Harriet Potter rather than a Harry Potter in this universe even if she doesn't use that name.
I hoped that made her a more interesting protagonist than her male counterpart who had always been a little too passive and reactive for my taste.
"Do you know what ether is?" I was asked.
While this seemed to have nothing to do with what I wanted to know, I figured that it would become relevant
"I do not" I admitted.
Renwick moved so that he could perch by the window.
"It is also known as the fifth element by ancient scholars, you know it as magic, this power is spread not just across one universe, it moves between and through all of them even if it isn't very active in some dimensions" Renwick explained, "My creator is a being made of magic, born of it. Hence the name Aetherborn. It and others of its kind exist because of magic and they try to look after magic in return if only to protect themselves".
I was following him so far.
"If one of the Aetherborn has shown an interest in this world then it is because something is wrong with its magic, but the future isn't fixed so I'm not sure what the problem will be exactly" Renwick let me know "All I know for certain is that the Chosen One is going to suffer a fate worse than death sometime over the summer and that leads to disaster".
That last part rang some bells. If the Triwizard Tournament was taking place now that meant this summer she'd run into a couple of Dementors and what they did to people was far worse than simply killing them.
"I know your creator wants me to look after the Chosen One," I said "But what does that mean exactly? Can I just deal with the threats myself?".
That shouldn't be too hard if I could figure out a way to banish Voldemort. I knew where he was right now, Voldemort was vulnerable, and I had loads of magic the locals didn't know how to counter.
"I doubt it" answered Renwick "If it was that simple my creator would have done it and you wouldn't be here then. This is something which will take time and the creator will have other tasks for you".
That made sense as I'm an agent for a higher power, not a mystical hitman and it wasn't as if Voldemort was the source of the Wizarding World's problems.
"I know for sure, boss, that the divergence point is during the summer" Renwick insisted "The Chosen One suffers a fate worse than death and when that happens it will cause problems for all magic in this world".
Again I thought it made sense that I would need to get so involved because the overall problems of the magical society would not vanish if Voldemort simply did.
There were real social problems in the Wizarding World that would not get sorted out without a major conflict and if they didn't it could affect magic.
Perhaps if the dark witches and wizards were allowed to rule it would cause some sort of imbalance with the entire of magic? It was something to think more about and try to find ways to counter.
"We've got some time before the summer," I muttered.
My familiar nodded his beak before speaking.
"If my creator didn't want to get directly involved or can't for some reason, then it makes sense that it would send an agent and give that person plenty of time to prepare" Renwick reasoned "If you get yourself set up then you can look like another piece on the board rather than a new player".
Not only did there need to be someone to shake things up here in the Wizarding World it was also clear that the Chosen One needed someone to mentor her or to offer some guidance.
Dumbledore was clearly doing a piss poor job of it if Potter would be soulless before the start of her 5th year at Hogwarts.
"So do you have any kind of plan?" questioned the talking raven "Because it's not just your existence on the line here. If you screw up then I don't even want to think about what happens to me".
He need not be so concerned.
"I have a plan" I assured the bird "If we have until the summer to prepare then there's no need to panic. We have time for me to learn enough about the local magic to pass as a teacher and Dumbledore is always looking for Defence Against the Dark Arts professors".
Aside from that I'd need somewhere to live that was close to the Chosen One during the summer. A place I could study without interference. That meant going to Surrey of all places, but it was necessary.
"We'll start the work tomorrow," I said as I moved over to the bed.
A good night's sleep was in order. I had important work to do, but it could wait until tomorrow.
Chapter 2
Spoiler [img: https/live./8425/7719124786_58f5a61230_b.jpg]
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 2.
The Leaky Cauldron. Diagon Alley.
My flying familiar came in through the window with another small bag of coins that I quickly got out of sight before going back to writing my large shopping list.
There were many things I needed to buy if my plans were going to work and if I was going to pay for what I required, then I needed a way to make money that didn't involve having Renwick snatching purses.
Enchanting items could be a good source of income, but that required a workspace, a lot of time and resources, and if I made anything too powerful it might draw the attention of the Ministry. As they were bound to have laws about such things.
I didn't want to end up working for the Ministry as little more than a slave or getting locked up by them when I refused to be controlled by a group of useless bureaucrats.
As such I had to keep what I was doing out of the public eye. No one must know what I am capable of and the only things I would sell must be harmless trinkets that people would buy mostly for the sake of novelty rather than more practical purposes.
Although it might not be necessary for me to go into business at all, not if one of my other plans worked out. However, since the project I had in mind might fail it would be good to have other ideas about how to generate some income.
"What exactly are you doing?" asked Renwick.
I was having him steal money for some project he so far knew nothing about and since no one was causing a fuss it seemed that the magical bird was able to steal without anyone noticing.
Since I'd not watched Renwick at work I didn't know how he did it just that he did it well enough not to cause a fuss.
"Assuming all goes well, then I'm going to make a Philosopher's Stone" I answered.
In this world, a Philosopher's Stone was a rare magical artefact reputed to have the power to transmute base metals into precious ones such as silver and gold, cure diseases, and extend your life span via the elixir of life.
It could even bring the dead back to the land of the living, at least according to the book I'd gotten on alchemy from the local bookstore.
There was only one known Philosopher's Stone in this world, that had supposedly been destroyed during the first book/movie, but that might just be what Dumbledore told Potter.
Even those who thought the Headmaster to be a good person would admit that he wasn't very forthcoming when it came to sharing information and he might have wanted people to believe that so that Voldemort would stop going after the stone.
The one I was going to make was a D style Philosopher's Stone that would allow any spellcaster to use it to transmute base metals, such as iron and lead into silver and gold.
While this sort of stone has a limited charge based on the amount of mercury used, a single Philosopher's Stone can turn up to 5,000 pounds of iron into silver, or up to 1,000 pounds of lead into gold.
I didn't know what gold prices were like right now, but unless the market was messed up then a thousand pounds of gold should be more than enough to fund my work.
If for some reason it wasn't then I had other ways of using my magical gifts to make a great deal of profit. I could brew potions different from the ones produced by the locals.
My magic wasn't exactly the same as D I was just using that style of magic to create practical applications that would allow me to use my magical powers. Which made sense since I am a warlock rather than a wand-waving wizard.
Understanding theory is all well and good, but if I was going to make practical use of my new powers I needed to experiment somewhat to see what I could do with that knowledge.
You can read a thousand books about driving a car, but no matter how many you read at some point you still need to get behind the wheel and put that knowledge to the test.
"Isn't that going to be very complicated?" questioned Renwick.
For another mage, it could be a lifetime of work, but I'd had the knowledge of alchemy placed into my mind by a higher power so I didn't need to spend time researching the steps towards the stone.
The whole process would be much easier in this world than in others when it came to gathering the needed materials as most of them would be available here in Diagon Alley.
It was also a big help that some of what was required, such as mercury, would be much easier to obtain in the muggle world than it would be in a magical fantasy land that had primitive levels of technology.
Despite all of that it would still be a lot of work.
"Very much so" I said "And it will be expensive".
My magical skills of enchantment and alchemy could allow me to produce things that this world had never seen, and unlike the warlocks in the Dungeon and Dragons multiverse, there's no Weave here to limit my powers or to put a limit on how many potions or magical items I can make.
This along with the ease of being able to simply purchase the required materials would save me a lot of time.
"Are you trying to obtain immortality?" Renwick questioned.
That had been on my mind.
"I have considered it," I admitted.
Renwick shifted his position so that he was closer to me.
"Why didn't my creator offer you that?" he wondered.
That was a good question.
"It wasn't on offer," I said.
Which was odd now that I had thought about it. Eternal life is one of those things I would have selected had it been an option and at the time I'd not thought to enquire as I'd been rather overwhelmed by the situation.
In my view, I'd handled the circumstances rather well all things considered, and I had gotten a lot from my patron. Running some errands in a few different universes seemed like such a small price to pay for my powers.
"I could go and ask for you," offered Renwick.
Now that got my attention and I abandoned my shopping list for a few moments.
"You can do that?" I asked.
Renwick couldn't make facial expressions, yet I somehow got the impression that he thought I was a bit stupid.
"Magical ravens are messengers that's our whole gig" he said.
I could recall how in Greek mythology, ravens are associated with Apollo, the god of prophecy. They are said to be a symbol of bad luck and were the god's messengers in the mortal world.
Although the omen of bad luck might have something to do with the messages they were sent to deliver rather than the ravens themselves.
"Caelum, be careful, my creator will want something in return" mentioned Renwick "It might not be something you are willing to give up".
Since there are potions that can extend life then immortality might not be worth it. At least until people start throwing Killing Curses around.
"I'll think about it," I said.
For now, I had other matters that needed my attention.
"I'm also going to need a space to work in," I told Renwick "So I need you to scout out the area and find me some abandoned building, one that I can ward and that isn't full of crackheads".
I'd be able to ward the building to keep people out and to stop the local mages from detecting what I was getting up to there.
I would take my meals and sleep here in the pub until I was able to purchase a home, but this place was too public for me to perform any alchemy or enchantment within.
It seemed wise to study the local magic here in the pub as long as I kept the spells simple. I should be able to start casting some basic wand spells before long. If 11-year-old children can manage it then so can I.
Part of my plans involved going out to see if it was possible to rent a flat here in Diagon Alley, a place I could make private.
Currently, I had no ID or muggle money, something that would take time to sort out, so renting a home there wasn't an option in the short term.
"No problem boss" assured the raven
Once I had a home I would be able to set up a lab within a well-warded residence. Hopefully, one here in the alley and then somewhere close to the prison that Potter is sent to over the summer.
That would also require a lot of money as I was going to need to buy a fake identity. Even then I might need to use magic to mind-trick some government officials into thinking I was a UK citizen.
"I'll head out now," said my familiar.
Renwick flew out of the window, leaving me alone in the room. I decided that now was a good time as any to try to purchase a wand. So I headed out of the pub and got someone to open it up for me, claiming to require a new wand.
Before long, I headed into the dusty wand shop, and I was soon set upon by the wandmaker who got to work by shoving different wands into my hand one after the other without even bothering to introduce himself.
Not that I needed an introduction to know him and my name would mean nothing to him in any case.
"No, not unicorn tail" he muttered, "And most certainly not dragon heartstring, that just leaves…".
A fancy-looking wand that worked for me was shoved into my hand rather enthusiastically.
Spoiler
[img: https/i./originals/46/0f/58/460f582aada60c752e15cb5cca48930c.jpg]
"Maple, 14 inches with a feather from a phoenix" I was told "How does it feel?".
It took me a moment to find the right words.
"The wand feels warm and familiar, almost like having a pet nearby or maybe an old friend I'm really comfortable with" I answered.
That was the only way I could describe the sensation I was feeling and even then the words felt clumsy.
"I know exactly what you mean," said the store owner as he smiled at me "It's not the same for everyone, but the sentiment is often similar".
It was soon explained to me that a phoenix feather was the rarest core type and these feathers are capable of the greatest range of magic, though they may take longer than either unicorn or dragon cores to reveal this.
"Phoenix tail feather wands show the most initiative, I've even heard of them acting on their own accord, a quality that many witches and wizards dislike" the old man let me know "Phoenix feather wands are always the pickiest when it comes to potential owners, for the creature from which they are taken is one of the most independent you'll ever find. These wands are the hardest to tame and to personalise, and their allegiance is usually hard-won".
Already I had a good feeling that my wand and I would learn to get along.
"As for those chosen by Maple Wands, they are by nature travellers and explorers; they were not stay-at-home wands and prefer ambition in their witch or wizard, otherwise the performance of the wand can become lacklustre. Fresh challenges, along with regular changes of scenery will help you get the most from this wand" I was told.
That did sound suitable for someone who was travelling the multiverse to gain power while in the service of some superpowerful magical being. This world would be one of many that I would visit should things progress well.
When I paid for my wand, purchasing a holster and polish as well, I couldn't help commenting on the low price.
"Seven galleons doesn't seem like a lot for such a beautiful item," I commented.
Ollivander gave me a slight smile.
"The Ministry subsidises the cost of the first wand a witch or wizard buys from me" he explained "They do it so that more people will buy wands from me which are easier to track than those made by other wand makers who will use less well-known materials. Normally this price reduction is only given to children, but I know that you have never entered this store before today. As for the Trace, that can only be applied to a child's wand so the Ministry won't be able to keep tabs on you".
If I was going to do anything criminal then I wouldn't be using this wand to do it.
"Look after that wand Mr…" he said.
"Barrows" I replied "Caelum Barrows".
An odd name that I was starting to like.
"Goodbye, Mr Barrows," said Ollivander "I shall watch your career with great interest".
Not long after I left the store my raven made his presence known by cawing at me. I spent the time between that and leaving the store in a bit of a stupor. Getting a wand from Ollivander was an odd experience.
"Did you find somewhere suitable?"
I had switched to using telepathy since even in the Wizarding World it wasn't good to be seen talking to yourself even if you actually weren't.
"There's an abandoned shop not far from here" Renwick told me "Plenty of room in the back".
I considered doing some more shopping, but it would be good to see what sort of space I would have to work with. So after I dropped my purchases off in my room I headed out again.
"Led the way"
Renwick took the air, moving from perch to perch as I made my way out into the muggle world, I didn't stand out as much in this part of London even if my clothing didn't fit me.
"Do you think we'll be in this world for long?"
Renwick asked me.
Truthfully, I wasn't sure how to answer that question. It depended on how much I interfered and how much the locals got in my way.
I did not doubt that if I just went after the worst of the bad guys, then the good guys would interfere because they would see it as wrong, and the Death Eaters were hardly helpless.
Aside from that it wasn't my job to defeat the bad guys I was supposed to be aiding the Chosen One not doing her job for her.
"I don't know"
Renwick seemed indifferent to my attempt at an answer.
"Well, I'm in no rush," said the bird.
Neither was I since not only did I have the magic of this world to learn all about, but I also needed to find out what I could do with the powers granted to me by my nameless patron.
I would check out this abandoned building and then go find a copy of today's paper as I did need more information about recent events.
Also, I still wanted to find out if the wizarding world rented flats to people or if most magical humans lived at home with their parents until they were married or rented from muggles.
Aside from all of that, if I was going to live in the wizarding world then I should purchase some plain robes to better blend in or at least buy some nicer muggle clothes once I had enough money.
Thinking about all that made me glad that I had so much time before I would need to step in and help the chosen one.
When the war started I needed to be in as strong of a position as possible. With that in mind, I picked up my pace.
Chapter 3
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 3.
Gringotts Bank. Diagon Alley.
Thanks to the purchase of some fashionable and somewhat expensive black robes, that some rich inbred had indirectly paid for, I was able to move through the alley without drawing much attention to myself. Aside from a few admiring glances.
Even if someone cared to I doubted that they could have associated me with the strange man in baggy muggle clothing who had been hanging around the alley earlier in the week.
I'd even gotten a haircut and I'd used a special potion to make myself look younger. It worked very well I hadn't felt this spry in over a decade.
Given the style of my robes and the fact that I had a raven on my shoulder, someone might think I cosplaying as Dream of the Endless, but this was not the case.
It was just that the black robes were the least offensive to my sense of taste and they were rather comfortable to wear.
From the outside, the bank did not look like the most sturdy of structures, yet I knew that despite its external appearance it was very secure.
Spoiler [img: https/static0./wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Harry-Potter-Gringotts-Bank-Founder.jpg]
Within its walls, the wealth of Magical Britan could be safeguarded and not just by the goblins. Anyone trying to steal from the vaults would have to contend with the vast tunnel network, magical defences and even dragons.
Getting to see the bank both inside and out was one of those things that put a smile on my face as it reminded me that while I had somewhat enslaved myself to a higher power in exchange for magic
I wouldn't always be able to take the time to simply enjoy being in this world because I had important goals to work towards.
As such, it was nice to be able to walk up the steps to the Gringotts banks and simply enjoy the experience before getting down to business.
I dismissed my familiar just before entering the building in case his presence caused trouble.
Wait for me at the pub
Once inside the bank, I found myself thinking about the goblins.
Spoiler
[img: https/aws.traveler.es/prod/designs/v1/assets/745x496/136791.jpg]
Would they be the wizard-hating warmongers some imagined them to be, or were they the super helpful buddy beings who just wanted to be friends, as some fanfiction authors made them out to be?
"Detect Evil"
This spell was one of the many I had at my command and I had written it down in my personal spellbook, which was little more than a collection of notes at this point, and when I used it nothing registered as evil, yet I was getting some unfriendly looks.
So I began to suspect that the goblins were not so much evil as they were simply greedy little fuckers who had a certain dislike for humans. Not that I blamed them as humans were not a nice species to share a planet with.
When I looked at them I saw that they were certainly well-dressed and seemed devoted to their work.
Spoiler
[img: https/vignette.wikia./harrypotter/images/9/99/Gringotts_Goblins.png]
As long as they were professional with me I didn't care if they'd mock me behind my back or glare at me as I walked through the massive lobby of the bank.
Not that I would ever trust them as they were still bankers and I'd known plenty of humans who I doubted would register as evil to the spell even if they could be complete bastards some of the time.
I needed the bank, it was a necessary and somewhat bothersome institute that you had to put up with in order to live in the Wizarding World.
This was because any purchase that you couldn't pay for with gold in your pocket would go through Gringotts in some way.
Despite this, I would not put all of my eggs in one basket. There were other places where I could store my wealth such as the demi-plane that it was possible for me to create using my magic.
That was something to think more about later as the queue I'd joined was rapidly shrinking in size.
"Next!" a goblin called out.
Very quickly I handed over the letter I'd gotten just this morning from this bank to the creature at the counter, and before long I was dragged off to a rather nice-looking office so that I could speak with the account manager.
If he/she only managed my account I didn't know and I didn't bother to find out. We had important business to discuss.
"Good morning, Mr Barrows," said the goblin "I am Account Manager Laglaff".
I was expecting him, if he was a he, to be called Bloodshear or Gorepick, something along those lines, Laglaff seemed rather lacklustre in comparison to some of the goblin names that I'd heard so far.
"So is the gold real?" I asked.
Rather than turn a base metal that I'd purchased in the muggle world into gold and then claim it was real, instead I'd asked the bank to verify the gold after claiming to have gone into partnership with the owner of a profitable gold mine.
That way if it turned out they could tell that it had been created by magic or the gold was flawed in some way, then I could claim to be the victim. Not a perfect plan, but I did need the bank so it was worth the risk.
"Yes the gold is genuine," answered the goblin.
Money was an odd thing in the Wizarding World. The local currency consisted of three different coins and in decreasing order of value, they were, Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts.
They were made from gold, silver, and bronze, respectively. Yet a Galleon was only worth a little less than six British pounds so either the Galleons were made of fake gold or they used magic to increase the volume of the gold when making coins.
Even with using magic to increase the volume of the gold, the goblins had access to they still had a limited amount of gold.
This was because, aside from the Philosopher's Stone, which could convert any metal into pure gold, there was no known method of magically producing precious metals.
Attempting to duplicate money with the Doubling Charm was ineffective, as the duplicates would break down over time, and thus were considered worthless.
"Here is our final offer," said my account manager as he passed me over a piece of parchment "If you agree then we can open your new vault".
Because of this real gold had great value to the goblins as they needed some to mint coins and the amount of money they were offering for my gold was quite a lot.
"That seems reasonable" I commented.
I felt fairly certain that they could have been more generous, but this was the only bank I could make this deal with and I could always transmute more gold.
"We already have 10% of the agreed-upon sum in your new vault" I was told "And I have your vault key right here. The rest of the money will be added to your account as we process the gold".
Since I had no interest in long-term investments, as I might not be here for enough time for them to matter, I just wanted a vault to hold my money for me.
I could use the magical version of postal orders to purchase things and no doubt the goblins provided other services to wealthy clients that would be of interest to me in the future.
Once we were done I took my key and my documents out of the Account Manager's office. We had nothing else we needed to talk about and neither of us had any interest in small talk.
Then I went to a desk back in the lobby so that I could access my new vault via the mine carts they made people use. The ride was not pleasant as I was not a plan of rollercoasters.
"Key, please," said the goblin.
After it was used to open the vault I took back the key as it was way too important not to keep on me at all times.
My vault was not that impressive and it was just one of many vaults in an area more well-lit than I'd been expecting.
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There was nothing more than a large pile of coins within, no artefacts, or any weapons. There was no reason there would be since if I had such things then I'd find more secure places to store them.
I filled my money bag, which the bank provided for a small charge, with as many coins as I desired. Lucky for me it was one of those bigger on the inside pouches that are common in many fantasy universes.
With that done I left the bank as quickly as possible since there was no reason for me to stay, and while the goblins might not be evil per se I still didn't like them. Besides I had some cool magic stuff to buy.
After passing by some shops I entered ones that I had to visit, such as Amanuensis Quills, which I got my stationery supplies from.
I was not looking forward to using quills and parchment. I was not some sort of 12th-century scholar. However, I would have to get used to using them if my plan to teach at Hogwarts was to be successful.
Also, I popped into a store that was located on the north side of Diagon Alley which supplied people with ingredients for potion-making and the equipment required.
Now that I had somewhere to work in I could start making sure I had a proper inventory full of useful potions rather than only having the few I'd made so far.
Since I needed some more equipment, I decided to purchase some crystal vials as I could afford the best and they were practically unbreakable according to the wizard who'd sold them to me.
Shopping at the apothecary was a breeze compared to some places. Picking myself up some casual clothing turned out to be much more work as I got distracted by wanting the best.
Where Muggles would wear leather, wizards would wear dragonhide. The hide of a dragon was very tough, impervious to a multitude of spells, and provided a decent amount of protection from the elements.
I noticed that it had a similar texture and appearance to snakeskin. Not that I'd ever worn snakeskin and I was far more interested in the material's protective properties than its appearance.
In this world, dragonhide was used to make gloves, boots, jackets, belts, and even cloaks. It was in high demand and most dragonhide was used to make gloves, for the handling of hazardous materials.
Given that dragonhide resisted magic I could imagine that it was a nightmare to enchant. Something reflected in the price.
Thankfully would be handled by charges being made directly to my vault rather than me having to pay in cash. A vault that would soon be filled with even more money.
I was tempted by a pair of mooncalf boots that were very comfortable until I recalled how adorable those creatures looked, and I decided to move on.
As for the bookstore, the place was a maze of books. There were books about every magical category imaginable. Charms, potions, history, obscure languages, wizard culture, wizard music, and wizard hobbies.
You could learn to charm your own cheeses or discover how to knit a jumper that gave you hugs. That sounded like something that could go wrong and result in jumpers trying to strangle people.
Quite a few Defence Against the Dark Arts books were also brought as I needed to know that subject very well if I ever hoped to teach it. There would be a lot of reading to get through over the summer.
When I got back to my room at the pub I found Renwick waiting for me and even before he spoke I got the sense that my familiar had something important to say.
"Your patron has a service he requires from you" I was told.
Performing services for my patron was not something I could avoid without running the risk of losing my powers so I had no choice other than to carry out these tasks.
I had been assured that they wouldn't be too demanding or frequent, other than my main task, and even that didn't up much of my time.
"My creator wants you to recover the Gaunt Ring and to keep the stone attached," said Renwick "Whatever that means".
Now this did surprise me. My patron wanted a Horcrux for some reason, one that was likely protected by dangerous magic.
"Did your creator say why?" I wondered "Or how long I have to complete this task".
It would be better to go after the ring before Voldemort got his body back in case I tripped some alarm than alerted him. In his baby form, there wouldn't be anything he could do about the theft even if it could cause problems for me later on.
"No he just wants the ring," said my familiar, "If you can get it I can take it to my creator. There's no time limit, but I wouldn't keep him waiting too long".
I'd give some thought to how I was going to get the ring. I'd chosen not to have any knowledge of dark magic when making the pact so I wouldn't be able to defeat the defences myself.
Perhaps this was a job to be outsourced by me just as my patron outsourced tasks to me.
Chapter 4
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 4.
The Gaunt Shack. Little Hangleton.
Even though the Gaunt family were descended from Salazar Slytherin, a wizard who had been one of the four founders of Hogwarts, a group only slightly less revered than Merlin, this family had fallen upon hard times, becoming little more than tramps.
All that was left of their bloodline was an insane Dark Lord who I didn't think even counted as human any more and perhaps hadn't been even before he'd lost his body.
I found this to be a little sad as the Gaunt bloodline must have made for some powerful wizards and witches in the past. If Tom Marvolo Riddle was anything to go by.
As for the material wealth of the family, that had been reduced to the shack in front of me and a magical ring that I would soon claim, or rather the people I had hired for the job would claim for me.
The former Gaunt residence was a shabby little shack that had once housed Marvolo Gaunt, his wife who had died before Voldemort's parents got together, their son Morfin, and daughter Merope.
While time might be to blame for its current poor state I remembered from the books that it had never been the kind of place that anyone other than the poorest of the poor would want to live in.
This was odd since the Gaunts should have been able to improve the shack with magic. I could only assume that centuries of inbreeding had taken away the intelligence required to plan out such improvements as well as the magical skills needed.
Nor did they have the wealth required to pay others to do the work as I would have. They might not have been sane enough to even realise how bad they had it.
Even taking into account that the Gaunt family hadn't lived here since the 1940s, and things were more primitive back, this place still seemed too shabby.
Perhaps the presence of a Horcrux here had some
affect on the place making it seem even uglier than it really was, or maybe Voldemort cursed the place to make people want to stay away by making the shack seem even nastier than it should.
"Shouldn't be more than half an hour" I heard someone say.
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I turned my head to see William Weasly, the eldest son of Arthur and Molly Weasley who had graduated from Hogwarts some years ago and now was a Curse Breaker working under the more experienced wizards who made up the team I'd hired.
I knew that he spent much of his time working in Egypt, but today he was backing up other Curse Breakers who I hired at Gringotts.
This team of Curse Breakers had been rather easy to hire even at short notice since I could afford to throw some gold around and it would be well worth the expense to ensure that my patron kept me in high regard.
"It's a good thing you hired us" Bill Weasly was now saying "There are some nasty curses set out around here".
Since I did not know much about the dark arts I'd have to take him at his word. Not that I had reason to doubt the experts and what I knew of Voldemort's sadism made me even more glad that I'd outsourced this task.
"I don't know the laws here about recovering magical treasures," I said the former Hogwarts student "And I didn't want to upset the goblins by not involving them in this little treasure hunt".
Another factor was that I didn't know how well the Ministry of Magic could track supernatural activity. This was a muggle area with a magical residence close by so it might be monitored.
I could set up wards to defeat such things, but that would take time and then I'd have to defeat the magical protections by myself.
The only way I had to defeat so much dark magic would be to use Felfire, but that power was simply too risky for me to use without practice.
Since the last thing I wanted to do was to destroy the Horcrux that my patron desired, that meant Felfire was not an option.
Nor did I wish to burn down part of the English countryside as even if I hadn't cared about innocent lives or the damage to the plants, it would have drawn a lot of attention.
"Smart of you not to cross the goblins" the young man agreed before he began talking about what was going on here "The wards around this shack are dark and powerful, but they are very old and not that complex, so it won't take us too long to bring them down".
I wondered if Voldemort had ever returned to this place to check up on the place since laying his Horcrux to rest here.
Was he so arrogant that he simply assumed the defences he'd laid down as a sixteen-year-old boy would work against Curse Breakers?
Perhaps he was thinking that by never returning here and thus not drawing attention to the place by those who might follow his moves, it would help keep the Horcrux secure.
"Once we're done here the shack will collapse before long" I was warned by an older wizard.
I didn't care what happened to the building.
"Can you tell me anything about this object we're supposed to be finding?" requested Bill "You didn't tell the goblins much about what we are looking for".
Due to the laws of this country, I'd had to buy the Gaunt Shack from the goblins to claim any property within it legally.
The goblins had taken this little bit of land in payment from the Gaunts due to non-payment of loans. Once the last of the Gaunts had either died or been locked up in Azkaban for the rest of their lives, they'd been unable to prevent the goblins from seizing the place.
The land was worthless to me, but by buying it I owned anything found on the property without any issue since there were no known Gaunts left to counter my claim.
Voldemort could legally challenge a claim since the goblins didn't care at all if you were born outside of marriage or had a different surname because they tested inheritance via blood, but Tom Riddle was officially dead so that wasn't an issue.
The Dark Lord seemed to have decided to keep all of his Horcruxes as far away from himself as possible, not counting Nagina, so he wasn't likely to check up on the shack unless he suspected that someone was after his Horcruxes.
I was far more concerned about Dumbledore coming here when he began to hunt for the Horcruxes. He would find the shack in ruins and the ring long gone.
Would he then somehow be able to find out that I had been here along with a team of Curse Breakers despite Gringott's promising to protect my interest in this site?
Either I'd have to find some way of covering my tracks or it would be something to do with when I had to deal with it. Thankfully, I had time
"It's just an old ring," I said "A gold ring inset with a black stone and it's not worth much, but I promised someone that I would recover it. I suspect that it has been cursed so please be careful".
Should any of the wizards be injured or killed I might need to compensate them and worse it would lead to more people finding out that there had been an operation here.
"We can contain a Cursed object" assured Bill "It's the shack I'm worried about. Like we said, I don't think it will stay standing for much longer. Not now that we're removing the spells cast on it".
This didn't concern me.
"I don't care about the shack," I told the young wizard "The land it's built on feels wrong, so I think it should be left alone. I'll leave the shack alone or you can destroy it if that's a better option".
Bill agreed with that idea.
"There's a lot of dark magic here, has been for a long time," he said "Before we go I'll lay down some fresh muggle-repelling wards so that they stay away from here and then we'll destroy the shack".
That would be wise and I wasn't too worried about any of the Curse Breakers saying anything about me owning this place and recovering a cursed object because these wizards all worked for Gringotts.
I never would have used the Ministry's Curse Breakers, as that organisation was heavily compromised, and Gringott's employees had all signed magical contracts that prevented them from giving anyone details of their work.
Of course, they could still be overheard talking about their work and others might have access to their paperwork so it was best not to give any more details about this operation than I had to.
"We've got it!" declared one of the older Curse Breakers.
He'd just come out of the shack and the wizard was carrying a heavy-looking box in his hands that must contain the ring. He opened long enough for me to see the ring.
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"It's got a powerful compulsion charm on it and some nasty curse I can't rid of, but there's still something even darker about it" I was warned
The thing about compulsion charms, a type of spell which can compel a person to perform a certain action, is that they aren't hard to resist if you know about them, or at least that was my understanding.
Dumbledore would never have been affected by such a spell if not for the fact that he recognised the stone and wanted to use it to talk to his dead sister.
Ginny Weasly being a little girl, feeling homesick and lonely was compelled to write in the diary due to such a spell, but even then with the diary having taken hold of her she still managed to resit long enough to try getting rid of the Horcrux.
Voldemort must know that a magical compulsion that he'd put on the ring wouldn't work on someone with the skills required to get past the defences he put in place.
Perhaps he was so arrogant that he'd just assumed that his compulsion would be more effective because he'd placed the spell on the ring himself rather than some lesser wizarding having done so.
Even teenagers who aren't evil can be very sure of themselves and underestimate those they see as inferior despite them often being the superior ones.
"Thank you, gentlemen," I said to the group as I took the box and handed over a purse full of coins "Forget all about this and enjoy a few drinks on me".
As they all teleported away, I imagined Bill Weasly would use the extra money to spoil his large and somewhat poor family.
I walked away and then upon Renwick's urging I opened the box so the raven could see the ring.
"Any idea why my patron wants this?" I asked.
"I don't know much" the raven admitted "I think it has something to do with Aetherborn not being stable since they are made from raw magic. They use artefacts to better control their power".
The bird took the ring between its beak.
"That's cursed!" I warned.
Renwick seemed unconcerned and he was somehow able to talk to me even with his beak in use. I felt glad that nothing bad happened to my familiar as I'd already gotten attached to the magical creature.
"I'm not a real raven" he reminded "Even if the curse could harm me I'd just reform".
While the bird flew off to deliver the ring. I wondered if I should visit Voldemort in his family manor that should be nearby.
No, this wasn't the time to interfere with Voldemort. I needed to let the Goblet of Fire play out so that my knowledge of canon events would remain useful for longer.
I decided that I would check out the graveyard at least. Only I couldn't recall exactly where it was despite knowing it existed. It was as if I couldn't connect the memory of seeing the scene in the graveyard with…
There was something wrong with my memory. I knew that Voldemort was hiding in Riddle Manor and the house should be around here, but for some reason, I couldn't focus on the memory I should have easy access to. It was as if something was stopping me from properly knowing what I knew.
The Fidelius Charm must be in use. It must be protecting Voldemort's hideout and stopping me from fully knowing where it is. Not this made much sense and nor did it really matter in the long term as I knew where Voldemort would be in the future.
If nothing else it explained why Fawkes hadn't come swooping in to help Harry Potter in the graveyard as the bird had done down in the Chamber of Secrets.
There would be time to sow chaos in the Wizarding World later. For now, I needed to keep practising my magic and set myself up in this world so that I would be ready to act more in the future.
Chapter 5
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 5.
The Great Hall. Hogwarts School.
In the Dungeons and Dragons setting, the Ethereal Plane is a strange place with certain rules, a plane which is very close to the material universe while remaining apart from it.
In this universe, the Ethereal Plane is similar to the fictional idea in that is inhabited by ghosts, and it seems to be a subdued version of the real world, there isn't much colour or sound here.
What mattered to me was that via my magic of Dimensionalism, I could access this plane and move about unseen, becoming less detectable than even the least noticeable of ghosts.
I would be the thing seen only in the corner of someone's eye that would be gone when they turned their heads to get a proper look, or at least that was how I imagined it working.
Even my familiar had trouble keeping track of me when I was on this plane, so Renwick would be hanging around outside, getting to know the area.
The lack of any attention sent my way was good because I needed to access a few things at Hogwarts without anyone ever knowing that I was here in the castle.
Sure the ghosts might notice me as I was on their plane, but people paid them little attention and I made sure to keep my face covered by a hood just in case one reported my presence to a teacher.
I walked into the school during a busy dinner time and I was amused by the sight of so many young magical humans having a meal together.
They all looked so happy, the students were all oblivious to the fact that the Dark Lord would soon return to terrorise both the magical and mundane parts of Great Britain.
As I made my way through the Great Hall I wondered if I ever could have been a student here. My patron could have sent me to the castle to learn magic under different circumstances.
It wasn't impossible even now as there were magical ways to make myself younger, although that didn't mean I would have gotten an invite.
It might be a good thing that I would never be a Hogwarts student. Learning to perform spells in the classroom and having homework would have sucked all the fun out of the study of magic.
Better to do it my way, to use my knowledge and to come up with practical applications through experimentation. All I was lacking was a wizard's tower and a sturdy wooden staff.
While looking around the hall and taking in the sights I decided to seek out the Chosen One and get a good look at her. I'd seen photos in the paper, but that wasn't the same as seeing someone in the flesh.
Finding Marigold Potter didn't require much time and while this realm was lacking in vibrancy it was clear that this version of the Chosen One was more a replica of Lily Potter than of James Potter.
This was good because who wanted to see Daniel Radcliffe's Harry Potter only as a girl? I certainly didn't.
Her long hair wasn't a tangled mess and even in this realm, I could see that she had green eyes that her glasses drew attention to. She somehow seemed more real than everyone else when on this plane.
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Despite this being the plane of ghosts and spirits I couldn't see anything strange about the Chosen One's famous scar. Had something happened to get rid of the bit of soul or was it just very well hidden?
Could be either since none of the ghosts that Potter met ever pointed out that there was something strange in her forehead.
Marigold was sitting with Neville Longbottom, the young man she was supposedly dating if the news had gotten it right, and he looked like the film actor.
This was the Nagini killing Neville, not the Neville who was the victim of bullies and Cornish Pixies. I could see why the Chosen One might be attracted to him and they did have things in common due to their tragic histories.
Ron Weasley was sitting with two other boys of the same age and talking about sports. I wondered if he and Potter had fallen out with him being replaced by Longbottom or if they just hadn't become friends.
I had expected Hermione to make up the third part of the Golden Trio. I turned out to be very surprised as Marigold wasn't sitting with a bushy-haired know-it-all, rather she was in deep discussion with a pretty young girl of Indian descent.
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Was she Parvati Patil? If this girl was here, then what happened to Hermione Granger? Was she killed by the troll during her first year? I looked around and saw that she was sitting at the Ravenclaw table with Luna Lovegood of all people.
What could have changed to put Hermione in the nerd house?
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And how had she struck up a friendship with Luna Lovegood? That other girl had to be Luna as no one else would keep their wand behind their ear.
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Maybe it had something to do with the students starting their magical education at 13 rather than at age 11 in this world.
They did that in this version of the Harry Potter world because 13 was considered to be the best age to start performing magic due to the magical properties of that number.
Should I be able to obtain a teaching job at this school I might be able to find out more about the history of these alternate versions of the main characters and satisfy my curiosity.
If so it was something I could focus on later. I did have certain objectives to complete during this trip and with that in mind, I moved on.
While I'd seen plenty of this castle when watching the Harry Potter movies that didn't mean I knew my way around. So it was good that I had plenty of time to explore.
I only had to avoid a few ghosts who didn't seem very energetic in their movements. Ghosts were nocturnal creatures and were known to be more active at night despite not sleeping and at Halloween, they were more animated than normal.
Before too long, I managed to find the correct girl's bathroom without too much trouble as the floor outside of it was flooded and I could hear some whining, something that clued me into the right location.
I wasn't surprised by the fact that the ghost could see me even when I was on another plane of existence. Logically a ghost should be blind, deaf and dumb because they had no sensory organs, yet this one could see and hear me so their senses had to be magical in some way.
"No boys in my bathroom!" she yelled.
Since I had no power over the dead as I'd not chosen to gain any knowledge of Necromancy, I couldn't just banish or control this spirit, but I had known for a while that I would need to deal with entities which couldn't be destroyed so I made preparations.
Sure my Felfire could destroy magic and souls, and likely ghosts as well, but should I ever need to save Potter from Dementors, it would be a bad idea to use that power as it would be as much of a danger to the young witch as her attackers.
Therefore went and created a magical item called an Iron Flask, an object based on the item in D , which was able to trap creatures such as Djinn and demons, as well as ghosts such as Moaning Myrtle.
Once I took the stopper off the flask she was sucked into the container and trapped in there. She wouldn't suffer as creatures within the flask would not experience the passage of time.
Via the use of my version of Dimension Door, only it wasn't so limited, I bypassed the sink and tunnel entrance so that I could enter the Chamber of Secrets.
I could have just opened a portal directly to the chamber but then I would have been able to look around the school and enjoy seeing the castle or check out some of the students.
The snake monster had been dead for a while and seemed to have decayed into a skeleton very quickly. Perhaps because it wasn't a natural creature?
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Since the creature was very much dead that supported the idea that Marigold Potter's life had been very similar to that of her male counterpart. Some things must have been different and I'd like to find out about them.
Marigold Potter's life was another mystery I would like to look into as I have a rather inquisitive nature, but it would have to wait as I had a more important task to get on with.
Carefully I removed some of the fangs from the mouth of the massive serpent as while my Felfire should be able to destroy Horcruxes I'd rather not unleash it in this school and there was a Horcrux here that needed to be destroyed.
Plus the contents of the Room of Requirement were too valuable to risk destroying by letting a magical fire get out of hand. It made much sense to acquire some fangs and put them in the pouch which was like a Mary Poppins's bag.
Since there was no rush I took some time to admire this chamber before heading to the Room of Requirement to destroy the Horcrux diadem and to poke around for anything hidden.
There was nothing else in the chamber other than the skeleton and the sculptures. Which made me wonder why it was called the Chamber of Secrets if there aren't any secrets.
Then I recalled that the name was what people called a thousand years after its construction and if there had been anything else of value down here then Voldemort would have found it before taking it for himself.
I slipped back into the Ethereal Plane once I left the chamber and made my way to the seventh floor. It took me quite some time to find the right tapestry, the one with a wizard trying to teach trolls to dance, but when I did I gained access to the room of lost things.
Why anyone would want to teach trolls to dance I couldn't imagine it didn't look at all safe or rewarding. Wizards were an insane lot and it was a wonder that they had survived for as long as they had.
In theory, this room can be anything you require it to be. I knew it couldn't provide food, but other than that I didn't know yet if it had other limits.
The room might have some means of changing itself using other parts of the school, such as redirecting clean water pipes to make a swimming pool, and I figured that some experimentation was in order so that I could find out.
To make the Room of Requirement appear, a person had to walk past the section of blank wall three times while concentrating hard on what is needed. Three is a magical number so that part at least made some sense.
As to what I wanted, that was the place where things were hidden. I had a feeling that even if this room had mostly been used to store broken junk, lost personal effects, and forbidden items for the last thousand years, then there would also be some real treasures mixed in with all the rubbish.
What I mostly identified was broken and damaged furniture. Desks and chairs that must have been damaged in ways that magic couldn't easily repair or one of the teachers would have just waved their wand and mended the broken object rather than have a house elf throw it away.
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While looking around I found plenty of bottles because one of the teachers, a woman called Sybill Trelawney, used the Room of Requirement to hide her empty sherry bottles and I didn't think she was the only teacher to hide such things.
Some students likely had as well I guessed as I found many piles of empty bottles that smelled bad along with piles of harmless butterbeer, some of which had never been drank, but I figured that none of it would be drinkable by now.
I was most happy to find what must be hundreds of books. Most of them would be too damaged to move or mostly useless to me since I had no interest in stuff such as the Early History of Many Noble Wizarding Families, but there were more than a few texts that looked to be readable in subjects I did care about. Such as Defence Against the Dark Arts.
Not everything here was suitable to keep in a school
That was also how I justified to myself why I needed to steal the Mirror of Erised.
When someone looks into the mirror, they see the deepest, most desperate desire of their heart. The mirror has trapped people who can't bear to stop staring into it.
In the mirror, Harry Potter saw his family: his father and mother, standing beside him Ron Weasly saw himself as Head Boy and Quidditch champion since what he desired was to be recognised for his achievements.
Since this mirror had no place in a school of vulnerable children I decided to place it in my pocket dimension, the demiplane that I had created to store the things I wanted hidden but not kept at Gringotts.
If I obtain a teaching job here at Hogwarts then I would have plenty of time to go through the contents of this room and I could return here even if I didn't.
When I found the Horcrux, I considered simply stabbing the fancy accessory.
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Then I recalled my ability to summon creatures and I got to work bringing one here.
The creature I summoned was a Disenchanter, a blue-furred animal that resembles a single-humped camel with a prehensile trunk.
It can sense magic, which it consumes for sustenance. When it finds a magic item, it suctions on with its trunk and drains the item of power in a few seconds, storing this power in its hump.
Disenchanters are social creatures, and often seek the companionship of other intelligent beings, making excellent mounts and trackers for treasure hunters.
This made it easy for me to direct the animal to the diadem and once it drank up the magic the bit of soul couldn't stay connected to the diadem and it just floated away like evil smoke.
The creature didn't care if the magical item was cursed or not it would consume the magic. Which removed the enchantment Rowena Ravenclaw had placed on the item, this was a shame, but I could enchant it myself if I wished.
If I ever needed the fame or wanted a distraction I could claim to have discovered the diadem and state that the enchantments had simply been worn away with time or I might just keep it for myself.
That was something to decide later. I had other things to be getting on with and more research to do. As such it was time to make a portal and get out of here.
Chapter 6
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 6.
Cave. Coastline.
Even with my powers opening up a portal directly into the cave that might hold the locket Horcrux had proven tricky, so it was a good thing that I had known which part of the coastline to visit.
Spoiler
[img: https/vignette.wikia./harrypotter/images/1/13/The_Cave_entrance.png]
I could see it in my memory as well as experience it in person, the bit of rock that Dumbledore and Harry Potter stand upon when they come here looking for a Horcrux.
Since I had such a clear memory of this place I'd been able to transport myself to this spot and avoid falling into any traps.
When I did I was glad that I'd dressed for cold weather and discovered how to cast warming charms as it was colder here than it should be and the sea seemed rougher than normal despite there being no evidence of a storm in the area.
It seemed odd that the two wizards hadn't used brooms to fly into the cave. Potter was known to be a wonderful flyer and if Dumbledore was no good on a broom I didn't think he would have been against using a flying carpet, even if they were against the law for some reason.
From here the superior vision of my familiar was able to see the entrance to the cave in far more detail than I could and with the right bit of magic, I was able to see through Renwick's eyes.
It was strange to see the world that way and I felt dizzy for a moment, but once I focused on the entrance I was able to move us both there without any trouble.
I made use of Dimension Door, or something close to it, to move into the cave. While it was short-range it was also a smoother way to travel than the portal I'd used to get here.
If you didn't know better a person could be forgiven for thinking that this was a small cave, but I knew that there was a smaller entrance around here, a door which required a blood sacrifice to open.
As it turned out this enchantment didn't know if the blood was human or not, or if it was fresh as some animal blood brought at the Apothecary was enough to fool this defence. Not that it was much of a defence.
Hardly shocking as wizards weren't as skilled at problem-solving as mundane humans who were rather good at finding alternate ways of doing things even if that did often involve using brute force.
Spoiler
[img: /wp-content/uploads/2014/10/The-Horcrux-Cave.jpg]
An Inferi-infested lake separated the entrance of the full cave from the Horcrux. I knew that any attempt to use a Summoning Charm to get the Horcrux would cause one or more Inferi to leap out of the water.
If the water is disturbed, the Inferi would emerge and attempt to drag the intruder into the water to drown. Another thing I knew was that Inferi are not fond of fire. The undead could be destroyed by magical fire rather easily.
The darkness within the cave didn't seem quite normal, and the light created by my Wand-Lighting Charm (Lumos) didn't provide as much illumination as it should. I needed to make use of more powerful magic.
Thanks to my patron I had a lot of knowledge of spells involving magical fire, and this allowed me to create my version of Faerie Fire that lit up the area, giving me more than enough light to see by.
While the magical flames allowed me to see it was still colder here than it should be and I didn't think it was natural, it was as if something was sapping away all the warmth and light in this place.
It reminded me somewhat of being in the Ethereal Plane only this was worse.
As expected The Horcrux was placed on an island in the middle of the lake. To get there, one had to find an invisible boat anchored to the cavern wall. The boat was enchanted so that only one wizard of age could be transported in it.
This was a good example of how Voldemort underestimates his opponents. He did not think that an underage wizard would ever be a threat to him, nor did he think that an adult witch or wizard would bring an underage mage with them.
Although to be fair, you shouldn't take children with you when go looking for dark artefacts.
I didn't need the boat as I could teleport over to the island, but that didn't mean I could simply grab what I wanted.
The Horcrux itself, if it was a Horcrux, was in a basin filled with a potion which Dumbledore believed could not be touched, vanished, transfigured, or charmed; the only way to dispose of it was to drink it.
Once drunk, though, it caused the drinker to see terrible things, much like when Dementors were around, and to become extremely dehydrated.
If the drinker still had strength left after consuming the potion, they would seek out a drink and this would doom them.
Summoned water would vanish and they would have to drink from the lake; upon disturbing the water an army of Inferi would rise from the lake and attempt to kill any intruder by dragging them under the water and drowning them.
I wondered what would happen if I just took the locket out of the potion by simply grabbing it as a muggle might. Would the liquid boil or would the basin transform and bite my hand off? Voldemort was sadistic enough to find either amusing.
He might not have thought of any mundane methods of removing the locket without touching the potion as he had no respect for non-magical humans or anyone really, but he was more dismissive of those who could not cast spells.
As such it might be possible for me to use a magnet to pull out the locket or to hook it without risking myself, but since I was a warlock I was going to do things a magical way. Using a method I already knew to be effective when dealing with Horcruxes.
I summoned up another Disenchanter. Only this time I used the magic of the mind to give it more direct instructions. I wanted it to only remove the magic from the basin and the potion, not the locket as I was not here to claim the Horcrux for myself.
This was the second time that my patron had sent commands to me via Renwick to steer me into claiming a magical artefact on its behalf.
Once the Disenchanter had drunk up the potion, absorbing both the magic and the liquid, I dismissed it from this plane.
Spoiler
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I then took the locket and ordered Renwick to fly to the entrance as I was about to do something that could be rather risky.
Once the bird was away from me I unleashed Felfire and burned the cave before teleporting out so that I could seal the place up to prevent the fire from spreading.
Since I'd had the Gaunt Shack destroyed it would be clear to anyone in the know that someone was hunting for Horcruxes and if I outright destroyed the inside of the cave then it should freak Voldemort out should he come here to check on the Locket.
Also, it would be wise not to let the Dark Lord have so many animated corpses at his command. Best to destroy them all and get rid of all that dark magic. I felt sure that it affected the area.
"So is it the real locket?" I was asked.
I opened it to find the note from Regulus Black.
To the Dark Lord - I know I will be dead long before you read this, but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hope that when you meet your match, you will be mortal once more. - R.A.B
"I guess we have to do things the hard way" I complained.
This would have all been so much easier if in this timeline Regulus Black hadn't messed with the locket. Then I could have sent it off to my patron and gotten back to my studies.
"We have to find Siruis Black," I said.
Thankfully I knew where to start looking.
Countryside. Near Hogsmeade.
Since I didn't trade my service for divination magic, having not thought it was important when striking my bargain with the Aetherborn, my ways of gathering information were more limited than they could have been.
So I was very grateful for my familiar who could fly around an area and allow me to see through his eyes. I was able to get a literal bird's eye view of the region.
Had I not known that Sirus Black should be in this area and that he would be in the form of a dog then I might still not have found him even with Renwick's help.
As it was the magical creature was able to track him down and return to my side before I'd even finished doing a bit of shopping in the village.
"Looks as if this Sirius Black fellow has been here for a while," noted my raven.
I knew this to be the case as the bird had seen the inside of the cave. There were old newspapers scattered about as well as some blankets.
"He's doing his best to keep an eye on his goddaughter," I remarked.
I knew that in the books, Sirius used a Hogsmeade visit made by the students of the school, as an opportunity to speak face-to-face with Harry and his friends in his cave near the village.
While there they spoke about the Triwizard Tournament and the histories of certain people who were currently at Hogwarts, such as Severus Snape and Igor Karkaroff, both of whom were former Death Eaters.
There was no reason to assume that things weren't similar here. The Chosen One having boobs wouldn't change Black's desire to protect them.
If anything it might make Sirius Black more protective as girls are often seen as softer, more innocent and vulnerable, while many imagine that boys are tougher and far better at defending themselves.
Males are seen as more threatening as well and I wondered if Black in his dog form would be acting as he was now, growling and showing his teeth, if I was a woman.
"I'm Caelum Barrows" I said by way of introduction "And I have a proposition for you".
The animagus kept growling at me.
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"Mr Black, if I was an enemy I'd have already stunned you and called the Aurors," I told the dog who was growling at me "So you might as well change form and have something to eat".
I reached into the expanded pocket and took out the bacon sandwich I'd picked up at the village before coming up here I knew that the smell would be very distracting.
To his credit, Black stayed in character, acting like a dog, until I mentioned that I was visiting him because I had found out what happened to his brother.
When he transformed I had to feel sorry for the man. He looked better than he had done in the Prisoner of Azkaban movie, yet he was still thin and ragged.
"What do you know about Reggie?" he demanded to know.
Despite his mild hostility he still tore into the sandwiches I offered and I began to eat my own. Breaking bread with someone is a time-honoured practice meant to build trust between individuals or groups of people.
Besides, in my experience, it's almost impossible to dislike someone who gives you a bacon sandwich when you are very hungry.
"To cut a long story short I've been tracking down some artefacts belonging to Voldemort," I said as I passed Sirius Black the note his brother wrote"They are important to him and for a short time your brother had one".
Sirius Black gave me a suspicious look.
"What was this thing he found?" questioned the animagus "How would losing one make Voldemort mortal".
I was willing to share this information because if things didn't work out then Black wouldn't be able to tell anyone about what I told him.
"Do you know what a Horcrux is?" I asked.
He did not as this was no surprise as Horcruxes were not widely talked about in the wizarding world and no doubt information on them was carefully hidden.
Members of The Black family may have understood what they were due to their interest in the Dark Arts and Regulus Black certainly had figured it out. However, Sirius left his family when he was sixteen and he had no interest in learning about the dark arts.
I wondered if Bellatrix Lestrange knew what was in her bank vault. She certainly knew a lot about the dark arts and in the books, I could recall that she was frantic when she thought that someone had been in her vault.
"A Horcrux contains part of a wizard's soul" I explained "They are why Voldemort's spirit remained in this world after he blew himself up. Your brother found one and replaced it with a fake. I need to find out what he did with the real Horcrux and make sure that it is destroyed".
Black stopped eating only because he'd run out of food.
"Are you working for Dumbledore?" he questioned "Is
that how you knew where to find me".
If he'd been thinking that it would explain why he'd dropped his guard so quickly.
"Never even met the man" I admitted "But he's not the only one who's noticed the signs and wants to stop evil wizards from ruling over us".
There were signs if you bothered to look. People were disappearing and there was a feeling of darkness in the world, which I might be imagining since I knew how bad things would get, but it seemed real to me and to be getting stronger.
"Why didn't you go to Dumbledore with your information?" I was asked.
I had my reasons. Mostly because he would try to control me and use my talents to serve his plans, which included sending the Chosen One off to die. This wouldn't work for me as I was here to help her.
"Dumbledore can't even manage the school and there are Death Eaters at Hogwarts," I answered.
One more than Black knew about and he was well aware of the dark wizards that were far too close to his goddaughter. The look on his face told me that he was worried about them.
"So what do you want?" was the next question "And how did you find me?".
I explained some more about what I knew. Including that the cave Voldemort had used to hide the locket had once been visited by a House Elf belonging to his family.
While I didn't mention how I'd known where to look for him it hardly mattered as he was soon distracted by the information I did share.
"Kreacher!" Black called out.
This didn't summon the elf as it was a call of surprise not summoning.
"If the elf has the locket I'm looking for then it needs to be brought to me so I can get rid of it" I told the former prisoner of Azkaban.
This would all be so much easier if I could use mind control Sirius Black, but anyone who kept their sanity while spending a decade around Dementors would not be easily controlled.
"I can't just enter Grimmauld Place so either you need to go there to get the amulet or maybe you could call Kreacher and have him bring it here". I suggested.
Black took a few moments to decide what to do.
"We need to talk to Dumbledore" insisted the hunted
man as he began to move out of the cave "He's getting me a trial soon and he can help you".
I didn't let things get any further. I twirled my wand and Black stopped in his tracks.
"Obliviate"
That had been the verbal component of the Memory Charm, a spell which allows the erasure or modification of memory. I had a lot of knowledge of magic that affected the mind and I'd been able to summon creatures to practice the magic upon.
"Can't any of you fools do things without having that old fucker holding your hand?" I asked.
The animagus was in some sort of trance and once I had my frustration under control I wiped a little of the man's memories and cleared up any evidence that I had been in his cave.
Black might find it odd that he wasn't hungry and couldn't recall where he'd gotten food from, but that wouldn't lead him to me.
I knew that it was pointless to convince Black to let me handle the Horcrux because he was known to be stubborn. Once he'd decided to seek out the Headmaster I couldn't have talked him out of it.
"That was a bust," I said to Renwick as I walked away from the cave, "We'll have to do this the hard way".
I was tempted for a moment to capture Black and hand him over to the Ministry just because he'd pissed me off, but I wouldn't allow him to be kissed by a Dementor or locked up just because I was a bit upset at my plan getting foiled.
"Let's go check out Grimmauld Place and see if we can break in," I said to my raven.
If needs be I would burn the house down with magical fire, the non-Horcrux destroying kind, and recover the locket from the still-warm ashes of the building.
Hopefully, I wouldn't have to do anything extreme, but I would do it because I was not letting go of the power my patron had given me.
With that in mind, I headed to my hideout to make some more plans. I still had the fake locket and perhaps I can barter directly with the Black family House Elf for the real locket. It was worth a try.
Chapter 7
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and you can become a supporter for less than the price of a cup of coffee.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 7.
12 Grimmauld Place. London.
As it turned out, gaining entry to what would be the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoneix was rather easy. It was so enjoyable to have magical powers that the local mages couldn't counter.
I just went into the old house while remaining on the Ethereal Plane and I walked right into the property without any trouble.
This was because protective enchantments (wards) are placed around a property, so they don't bother you once you are inside the property.
Wards were not placed on objects like other kinds of enchantments, rather these spells shielded specific areas and could have a wide variety of applications such as keeping non-magical humans away from an area.
I could well recall the massive shield used to protect Hogwarts when it was assaulted by Voldemort's forces during the last book/movie.
As such I couldn't just have some Disenchanters remove them. I'd needed to either bring them down or bypass them.
The latter could be done, as the Death Eaters proved in The Half-Blood Prince by making use of a Vanishing Cabinet. Once inside Hogwarts, the wards hadn't done anything to them.
I had considered burning this house down with magical fire and taking what I wanted from the still-warm ashes, as it was a dark place, but I wasn't going to put this neighbourhood in danger when there were other ways to get what I wanted.
Besides if I destroyed this place then the Order of the Phoenix would have to have their meeting elsewhere and it might put the Chosen One in danger if they set up their clubhouse somewhere less secure.
Once I was inside the house I returned to the normal world and I quickly used magic to freeze the portraits. Keeping them trapped within their frames.
This was very important as they could raise an alarm or tell people I'd been in the house. They wouldn't know my name, but they could describe me well enough.
A freezing charm would prevent this and the spell would wear off before long, so there was no chance of anyone coming here and noticing that none of the paintings were moving as they should be.
They might know that they had been paralysed for a short amount of time but they wouldn't know by who and I made sure to keep my hood up so that none of them could see my face. It was best that no one ever knew I was here.
Knowing that there was another possible witness that I needed to deal with, I quickly whipped out one of my Iron Flasks, an item that could be used to safely store magical creatures such as ghosts and elves.
Containing humans in such a manner would be more complex, but I already had some ideas about that, and those ideas made me smile.
"Filfty mudblood!" shouted a voice "How dare you…".
The upset House Elf never got to finish yelling at me as I captured him. This was for the best as it meant Kreacher could never betray Sirius and I hoped that before I left this world I remembered to free him.
By then it wouldn't matter if people knew what I'd been getting up to as I'd be leaving this universe and my work would be done.
While looting the library was tempting I didn't want anyone to know I had been here and while Sirius Black wouldn't care if Kreacher vanished and the portraits might not even realise had happened, an empty library would be noticed.
I had no interest in the dark arts and the Black Library was no doubt full of such knowledge. Besides, I had a lot of other kinds of magic to study.
With Felfire and the ability to move about unseen, it seemed rather pointless to know how to curse people, and I had loads of other ways to incapacitate and kill people. Many of which involved magical fire.
Spoiler
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As I began looking for the locket I found lots of interesting-looking things, such as a box made of tarnished silver that had been inscribed with runes of some sort, and no doubt this was one of the things that Mrs Weasly would insist on throwing away when the Order set up here over the summer.
I found a dusty box containing Arcturus Black's Order of Merlin First Class. He obtained this medal by donating a lot of money to the Ministry if my memory was correct.
It was tempting to steal the medal, but I had plans to obtain many things of value very soon, and I would acquire them before my Horcrux hunt came to an end.
As I looked around some more I spied an enchanted music box I knew could play a tune meant to put people to sleep.
It might be meant to help restless children go to bed, but given that the Black family had a justified reputation for being sinister, it was unlikely to be that innocent.
How I remember these things when I couldn't recall who was the Prime Minister was a mystery to me. The human mind was a strange thing.
I almost touched a silver snuffbox that tried to bite me. Something that made me glad I'd been wise enough to put on my dragonhide gloves before I started poking around.
Then I saw the locket and that quickly went into my pouch of holding. The Horcrux would soon be on its way to my patron via Renwick who was waiting for me outside. Once this was done I could move on to other important matters.
As I made my way to the front door I thought that it was somewhat sad that this ancient wizarding family had been reduced to such a sorry state.
Then again, perhaps it was for the best as the wizarding world was stuck in the past and the Blacks seemed like the kind of Pureblood family that was holding it back.
Given the family's long history, wealth, and self-aggrandising motto, it was understandable that they had been a prideful bunch to be sure and the closest thing, the wizarding world had to a noble family, at least in their view.
There were no kings, princes, lords or ladies in the wizarding world (Voldemort's title of Lord was one he gave himself since the Lord bit is part of the anagram of his name) and even the title of Dark Lord is a mere honorific.
The wizarding world doesn't even have the population for a proper class system, but the Black family didn't seem to remember that.
Nor do a lot of fan fiction writers in my experience. They seem to think the world of Harry Potter is Game of Thrones with wizards for some reason.
I put those thoughts aside as I headed out of the old house and into the street. As soon as I showed Renwick the locket he swooped down to take it and soon after that the bird vanished.
Gringotts Bank. Diagon Alley.
Much like accessing the Black family residence, it had been easy to enter the Lestrange Vault because I'd seen it before, but oddly it looked different than I remembered from the movie.
Yet this hadn't stopped me from opening a dimension door directly into the vault because magic was weird like that.
Perhaps it mattered more that I'd known where I wanted to go rather than the details of the location. Even my knowledge of magic wasn't perfect and that was good as it meant there was more to learn.
The Lestrange family vault was filled with golden coins, gemstones, plates and goblets, pieces of silver armour, the skins of strange creatures, shimmering potions in jewelled flasks, and a human skull which for some reason was wearing a crown.
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[img: https/static1./wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Harry-Potter-Gringotts-Bank-Vaults.jpg]
Had some Lestrange killed an old king or queen and taken their head as a trophy? I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case as the entire family is made of messed-up people.
If the second Fantastic Creatures movie was anything to go by the Lestranges had been messed up for quite some time. I blamed the inbreeding.
The current lot were all in Azkaban for murder, torturing and other crimes, if that wasn't a big enough clue to their mental health.
"Why do humans hide all these wonderful things in places like this where no one can see them?" Renwick wondered, "Even dragons spend time with their treasure hordes, sometimes people even survive seeing all that wealth".
Mental health aside, The Lestranges were a very old and affluent pure-blood family who were loyal to the Dark Lord, in addition to their vault containing large amounts of gold, Galleons, and other treasures, it was the hiding place of Helga Hufflepuff's Cup, one of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes.
Because of this, it had a great deal of security, mostly on the outside but I knew that should I touch anything in this place it would duplicate and begin to burn, but that would only happen if I physically touched the item, at least according to my memories.
"We don't always do this" I said "Some people donate things to museums for everyone to enjoy. Not that I've been to many museums".
I sensed that Renwick was not satisfied with my words.
"Money is a form of power I suppose," I mused,
"Power that needs to be safeguarded".
Renwick made a caw noise that must mean something even if I didn't understand it.
"You have real power," pointed out the raven "But even you have a vault full of gold and you're going to steal all of this. It's all very odd".
My motivation for emptying his vault wasn't greed, although I did like the idea of possessing all this wealth, I knew that in any war, and there was a war coming, it was important to deny your enemy resources when possible when also working to keep your own coffers full.
It was just a shame that I couldn't do this to all of the Death Eaters, but I'd only ever seen the Lestrange vault and even if I did, it would be risky to do this more than once as it ran the risk of me getting caught by the goblins.
"This is about denying the enemy resources," I said.
I was also willing to believe that the Lestrange family had obtained this wealth by hurting others, they were not a nice group of people, and it seemed wrong that they should have all this profit.
Perhaps it was wrong of me to judge them as I was not innocent. This wasn't going to stop me and I had other uses for this treasure beyond simply denying it to the enemy or spending their gold.
"Take the cup to my home I'll deal with it soon" I told my familiar.
Renwick didn't trigger any magical defences, perhaps because he wasn't a real living thing, or the defences only responded to humanoids, it didn't matter as long as my raven could take the Horcrux.
The magical being grabbed one of the handles of the cup and then flew through the portal that I had used to enter the vault. I then closed that portal as I would need to open a bigger door soon.
It was quite a lot of work to open a big door to my demi-plane and then to move the Lestrange fortune to its new home. I couldn't touch anything or move the items with the summoning charm.
So I got the idea of making the floor into a doorway while I floated in the air on a broom. This allowed me to simply knock things off the shelves so that they would fall into the demi-plane.
No doubt the contents of my demi-plane would be a complete mess and there would be a lot for the Disenchanters, those dromedary-like creatures that fed on magic items, to consume before the treasure was safe to move around.
I'd have to summon up quite a lot of the creatures to get rid of all the nasty charms placed on the treasure, but there was no rush since I didn't need the money.
Sure the Philosopher's Stone I'd made had limited uses I could always make a new one should I need a lot more cash.
Despite this I would have the Lestrange fortune de-cursed so I could put it all on display in my demi-plane and over time I would add more treasures to the collection.
When in other worlds, I could even trade part of my treasure for items I didn't wish to simply steal, and in the short term I now had plenty of objects to enchant and experiment with.
Chapter 8
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 8.
Number 7 Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
February gave way to March which became April as time passed by and I became fully set up in this world. I now had an apartment in Diagon Alley, a nearby base to work out of, and I'd dealt with all the Horcruxes other than Potter and Nagini.
Not having to hunt down more Horcruxes or magical items for my patron was a blessing as I had plenty of studying to do just to start coming to grips with how the locals used magic. Not to mention making sense of all my existing knowledge.
In time would find some way of removing the bit of soul in Potter's head and I had ways to kill the snake once it wasn't hidden wherever it was Voldemort was currently hiding.
Despite my knowledge of the movies and the book series, I still couldn't seem to grasp the location of the Dark Lord's hideout even though I should know it. This was understandably frustrating.
Mostly I'd been focusing on finding ways to use the magical knowledge my patron had given me to perform a wide variety of magic, and I'd spent a lot of time enchanting several valuable objects that I'd stolen from the Lestrange family.
Not only did I have a lot of gold in the bank in the Wizarding World, to fund my research, but I also had plenty of money in the mundane world. More than enough to purchase a home larger and much grander than the one I was currently inspecting.
Privet Drive was a suburban street in Little Whinging, which is located in the county of Surrey, near London in the southeast of England. The neighbourhood consisted several of boring, boxy houses with gardens at the front and back.
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Each house looked much like the other and even the cars that everyone drove were of similar makes. The lawns were kept in needlessly good order with little sign that they were ever enjoyed by anyone.
The Dursleys lived on this street, in Number Four, and they were little better than anyone else around here as far as I could tell.
At least from the outside, they looked similar. I doubted that anyone else around here had a magical relative they abused.
The type of people who live here seem to be reasonably well off, snobbish and extremely nosy if the amount of people peeking through their curtains is any indication.
It was not just the residents of Privet Drive who could be described in that way. I'd been around the neighbourhood and the same was true for those living in Wisteria Walk and Magnolia Crescent, as well as other streets close by.
This didn't seem like the kind of place that anyone other than the most boring of middle-class families could ever live in.
"Can I ask why?" requested the real estate agent.
The question took me off-guard.
"Why what?" I wondered.
Until now the somewhat attractive woman who was trying to sell me the house, rather pointlessly since I'd already decided to buy it, hadn't asked me anything personal.
She'd just told me about the house and had insisted that this neighbourhood was a safe place to bring up children. She hadn't even bothered to inquire if I had a wife or any children.
Not that this neighbourhood was safe for children. Potter's cousin had a gang who terrorised the smaller children and there would be a couple of soul-sucking demons in the area sometime over the summer.
"Why Little Whinging?" asked the estate agent "I know how much you paid for this place, it cost you tens of thousands of pounds more to get the family living here to move, and while it is a quiet neighbourhood you could easily afford something much better".
As to why I was here, that was because I knew that the school year at Hogwarts begins every year on September 1 and finishes at the end of June the following year, and so in a matter of weeks the Chosen One would be here in this street.
I didn't care at all for the house itself, as owning it was just an excuse to be in the neighbourhood when Marigold Potter returned here for the summer.
I would need to keep an eye on her and find some way of becoming part of her life. She needed more help, she needed a proper mentor if she was going to take down Voldemort without massive losses in life.
Sure her return to Privet Drive was more than a month away, so there was no rush to move, but that just gave me plenty of time to settle in.
Also, I wanted time to put up as many wards as I could so that this house became a mystical fortress, then I would need to expand its internal space and make sure it had the best of everything.
Should Miss Potter end up spending time here I wanted her to be as comfortable as possible.
"Location, location, location" I answered.
The estate agent didn't probe me any further and she left me to wander around. The house had an attic and a basement.
My thinking was that the attic could be turned into a magical lab, where I could perform enchanting and alchemy, and with the right protections the basement would be great for testing spells or maybe even some duelling if I could expand the internal space enough.
The rest of the house would remain muggle in appearance and I would try to make it look welcoming for Marigold Potter.
"You can move in once the paperwork is finished" the agent informed me once I was done inspecting the property "That should be done by Monday, and you can pick up the keys at our office any time after that".
That was when she mentioned something that got my attention.
"It's a shame you are in such a rush," the agent said to me "The people at Number Four are planning on moving in the next couple of months. I could have gotten a great deal for that house".
I stopped in my tracks as I needed a moment to gather my thoughts.
"They are leaving?" I asked, "Did they say why?".
If they had told anyone their reasoning then this woman hadn't been one of them so she was of no help to me.
As soon as we went our separate ways, I headed over to Number 4 to get more information about what was going on in that house.
It was the middle of the day so her husband should be at work and I knew that her son had been sent to a fancy school. As such the lady of the house should be home alone.
By now I'd had plenty of chances to study wards and before long I began to figure out how the ones here worked.
The protection at the Dursleys seems to be made to defend against Voldemort using Lily Potter's sacrifice, something that made Voldemort unable to touch the Chosen One. As seen when Quirinus Quirrell tries to kill Potter.
But since Voldemort used Potter's blood to make a new body, and can then touch Potter, that means the protections here won't work against Voldemort after he obtains his new body.
Either Dumbledore doesn't realise that or he doesn't care. The Headmaster did want Voldemort to kill Potter so the Chosen One might have been left exposed out here on purpose.
That or Dumbledore had some reason for endangering Potter just so he, or she, in this case, could be abused by their family.
The house isn't protected by the Fidelius charm, if it had been Ron, Fred and George wouldn't have known where to take the car, and Mr Weasley was able to connect it to the floo network. Plus the Ministry knows Potter's address as it is read out during the trial in book 5.
So Voldemort should be able to have Malfoy find the address at the Ministry and then come here to kill the Chosen One.
And if the protection only keeps Voldemort away then what stopped a Death Eater from coming here and grabbing the Chosen One?
The address is on a public record and there don't seem to be any other defences, so this place has little protection to offer.
I could only assume that Potter has never thought of Number 4 as a home as such the defences are weak, or maybe they would get stronger once Marigold returned during the summer.
After I knocked on the door I saw Petunia Dursley and I put on a smile as I made use of mental magic to charm her.
Spoiler
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By the time I was done, Mrs Dursley was under the impression that I was her best friend and so she invited me in for a cup of coffee. Despite this, she still had a sour expression on her face.
As the Housewife prepared us some refreshments I looked around at the house and found it to be a little too orderly. It didn't feel as lived in as a family home should. Something that I found to be disquieting.
There were some signs that the house contained actual people and that this wasn't like a big dollhouse or some kind of life-sized model of a family home.
On the walls, there were pictures of a skinny and rather unattractive woman, Petunia Dursley, along with her overweight husband and their thug of a son.
I saw no photos of Marigold Potter even though a woman I guessed to be Vernon's sister was on display and she was not at all pleasant to look at. The Dursley family must be as loopy as the Lestranges if they thought they were attractive people in any way.
With a wave of my wand, I opened the door to the cupboard under the stairs and found it full of junk such as old books, broken electronics and other stuff that they had chosen not to throw away. No sign that anyone had ever slept in here.
Since Petunia Dursley was under my spell, quite literally, and no one from the Order or the Ministry was banging down the door, I figured that I had time for a proper look around.
I found Marigold's bedroom. I didn't think that anyone had been in here to do more than clean up for a very long time.
There was also no evidence that Marigold was a witch or even much proof that anyone ever stayed in this room. The sense of it not feeling like a home was stronger here.
Reaching into my pocket I took out a silver sickle and put it somewhere it wouldn't be seen. The coin had been enchanted so that any sound made around it would be transmitted to a matching coin that I would keep on my person.
This would allow me to hear anything going on in this room, such as any indications of abuse, and I could then come to the rescue if needed.
Although if the Dursleys were moving this might be a waste of time, so it was good that I'd already gone back to Grimmauld Place to plant another coin in the kitchen where the Order would have its meetings.
I doubted that they would have much in the way of useful information for me as I already knew most of what they would be getting up to.
Mostly it would involve keeping an eye on the prophecies, rather than just having Potter go in there grab the original and replace it with a fake that would mislead Voldemort.
I went down to the kitchen to find Petunia Dursley setting out our drinks and snacks as if I were a friend who had come to visit.
"Sit down Mrs Dursley" I insturcted.
She was so weak-minded that I didn't have to make much effort to enter her mind or to make her do as I wished and once I was in her mind I got to see how she'd treated her niece.
Petunia was as expected a bitter woman who cannot let go of how she feels about her sister and she had transferred those feelings to her sister's child.
Marigold had never been kept in the cupboard under the stairs, rather she was kept upstairs and knew not to draw attention to herself.
She was made to do a lot of the housework and was verbally abused by her aunt, but not hit as far as I could tell.
If Petunia's memories were real then Vernon seemed content to ignore the girl and let Petunia handle her. Not that Vernon did much of anything around the house as far as I could tell.
Perhaps because Marigold was a girl and he was rather old fashioned he didn't see it as his place to get involved.
That at least spared Marigold from getting beaten by her uncle or sexually abused by him. If I found evidence of that I might have chosen to kill Vernon.
Petunia had not held back from verbally abusing the poor girl, calling her all sorts of names, and doing her best to grind her niece's self-esteem into the dust.
I didn't care much about Dudley as he was a product of his upbringing. They spoiled him and he was never punished for his missteps because of his parents.
Petunia was simply unwilling to accept that she was a bad person and that she was doing great harm to both of the children she should be caring for.
If not for the fact that this family was going to pack up and leave I might have felt compelled to do something about them, but I needed Marigold to come back here so we could meet.
The Order wouldn't move the Chosen One until around the time of her birthday which was at the end of July so she'd be here for a few weeks.
Petunia was aware that the magic protecting them from Voldemort would fade away as soon as Marigold turned 17, something that would happen at the end of July, and that was why they were preparing to move.
"You are a horrible person, Petunia Dursley" I said to the woman "If Marigold wasn't leaving this house this summer I might have banished you to come alternate dimension or trapped you magically just so you couldn't harm your niece any further".
Since she was charmed to the point that she regarded me as her best friend or something along those lines, despite not knowing my name, she was very shocked to hear those words.
"What?" she asked "Why would you say that?".
I didn't bother to explain further I simply wiped her short-term memory so she wouldn't remember us meeting like this and then I left the house.
There were other things I needed to do if I was going to succeed in my mission and that included a trip to the Ministry of Magic.
If you want to peek ahead and see drafts it will only cost the price of a cup of /post/Just-a-draft-I-am-posting-for-supporters-R5R5RU070
Chapter 9
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 9.
The Ministry of Magic. London.
Since Minister Fudge would soon start looking for ways to interfere at Hogwarts, it would be harder to become the next Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts.
In other times it would have been much easier. If that smarmy git Lockhart could get the job then anyone could, but I'd have still gone to Ministry to take the OWL and NEWT exams in the subject just so I looked somewhat qualified for the role.
The Ordinary Wizarding Levels seemed to be equivalent to the GCSE exams in the Muggle World. As for the Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests, they were more like A levels.
Oddly I couldn't find any evidence of qualification requirements for jobs above that of NEWTs. For example, to be an Auror, applicants needed at least five high-level N.E.W.T grades, and then they went right to training under a mentor.
This seemed odd to me because Aurors aren't regular police they are trained to investigate crimes related to the Dark Arts, and to apprehend or detain Dark wizards and witches.
They aren't the kind of police you call up because someone stole from your shop or someone damaged your property. That stuff was handled by other parts of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.
Given this, you'd think there would be a special academy for trainee Aurors due to the importance of their jobs, but as far as I could there wasn't and everyone just learned from a more experienced Auror.
This seemed rather primitive to me. On the other hand, making it easier to get jobs would reduce unemployment.
Healers needed at least grade E in the subjects of Transfiguration, Potions, Charms, Herbology, and Defence Against the Dark Arts, and then you went right to work.
There was no medical school in the Wizarding World and that worried me more than the lack of a police academy.
It made me glad that I could perform magical healing on my own and that I kept a supply of healing potions in my pouch of holding just in case of any mishaps.
What mattered most of all, was that given that Fudge would be looking for a way to get someone he trusted into the staff at Hogwarts, I would need to be more than merely eligible for the job.
I would need proper qualifications, at least enough that the Ministry couldn't claim that their candidate was more qualified for the position.
This might not stop Fudge's plans, but I could make it harder for the Minister to keep helping Voldemort by keeping the students of Hogwarts from learning how to defend themselves.
Hence I had sought out The Wizarding Examinations Authority, a group of wizards and witches who examined students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry during their O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. examinations.
Normally they came to Hogwarts and oversaw the exams, but in cases when someone couldn't attend an exam at the school, perhaps because they had been petrified, it was possible to come to the Ministry and sit your exams.
Since I'd never been to a magical school I had to do things this way, and while this did result in fees as I was rushing things, I could easily afford them.
I'd used the visitor's entrance to gain access to the Ministry and when I'd told the phone booth that I was Caelum Barrows my reason for being here was to take exams.
My visitor's badge displayed my name and declared me to be a torture victim. Someone or something had a fun sense of humour.
While I considered stealing a time-turner since I was here in the Ministry as I could easily bypass magical defences, I'd decided against messing with time as I didn't enough about how magic and time worked to risk messing about with one.
Spoiler
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Once inside the Ministry, I sought out Professor Griselda Marchbanks, a British witch who served as Governor of the Wizarding Examinations Authority that ran the O.W.L., N.E.W.T. and W.O.M.B.A.T. examinations from the late 19th century and she was still doing that job to this day.
Madam Marchbanks was one of the Wizengamot elders meaning that she would have been one of the people who oversaw Harry Potter's trial at the start of the Order of the Phoenix.
She was so old that she'd already been qualified to oversee exams when Dumbledore became a student at Hogwarts. That had been about a century ago.
"Mr Barrows," said an elderly woman as I entered the room for the first of the tests "I am Professor Marchbanks, and over the next two weeks you will be taking several exams, both theory and practical. You will be taking both the OWL and the NEWT exam in these subjects".
Not news to me as I'd already been informed about all this via a letter.
"These subjects include Defence Against the Dark Arts, Charms, History of Magic, Muggle Studies, Potions, and Alchemy" I was informed.
The last one was a sort of composite subject between Transfiguration, Potions and Muggle Chemistry, the ancient science of Alchemy focused on the study of the composition, structure, and magical properties of nature's four basic elements, (fire, earth, air, and water), as well as the transmutation of substances into other forms.
For me, alchemy covered all that and more, but I only needed to demonstrate my mastery of what little the wand wavers knew of the subject to get a NEWT in it.
As to why I didn't bother with Transfiguration, that was because I knew very little about the subject despite it being considered important in the wizarding world. Nor did I care for subjects such as herbology.
I wasn't going to waste my time learning about the magical properties and care of magical plants outside of what use they were in certain potions.
"Are you prepared to begin the first of the exams?" I was asked.
I was because I'd used my mastery of mental magic to create my version of a D spell called Scholar's Touch. With this spell, I can simply touch a book or scroll and absorb the knowledge contained within as if I'd carefully read the text.
This allowed me to use the books I'd claimed from the Room of Requirement to quickly learn all that I needed to pass certain exams.
At least in the subjects that I felt could be useful to my plan to become a teacher at Hogwarts.
Well not all, I was studying charms simply because they were useful, and had a role in many other magical subjects, not because I wanted anything to happen to Flitwick.
As for the others I wanted to be prepared to be able to teach a wide variety of subjects at Hogwarts in case I couldn't become the next Defence Against the Dark Arts Profesor.
Sure, I wouldn't be the most qualified person for the job, but I'd be ready at short notice to replace a lost teacher and timing is everything.
I'd be happy to capture Binns and replace him as a History of Magic teacher or to outright kill Snape and take his job as I hated that greasy-haired bastard.
"For the most part, theory exams will take place in the morning whereas the practical exams will happen in the afternoon" Marchbanks informed me "This afternoon you take your History of Magic OWL exam, then after a break you will sit the NEWT exam".
This was as planned.
"I understand," I said.
This might seem a bit much, but the exam board had this year's 5th and 7th-year students to see through their exams. Therefore they couldn't spend too much time with me.
"We can begin once you have taken your seat" instructed Marchbanks.
The History of Magic exam began with the paper asking me about many events and important people who had helped to shape the magical world.
Such as the Gargoyle Strike of 1911, the Soap Blizzard of 1378, the creation of the Werewolf Code of Conduct, the actions of Emeric the Evil, Uric the Oddball and Elfric the Eager.
As I answered questions using facts I'd rammed into my head not so long ago the historical topics began to change from people and events to important creations, such as self-stirring cauldrons before moving on to the subject of war.
The most boring aspects of Goblin Rebellions and wars against giants were asked about in the exam. Conflicts that could have taken place in Middle-earth given how epic they must have been were reduced to the most dry of facts.
I was a little impressed by the sheer lack of imagination of whoever had written these exam questions, or maybe it was some sort of sadism.
No matter, I got through the OWL exam in the subject without any trouble.
"Mr Barrows?" I heard Madam Marchbanks say "May I ask why you are taking these exams?".
It must be odd for a grown man to do this and to have these exams taking place so close together. I could have spread them out over the summer had I not been in something of a rush.
"I was privately tutored by a family member" I replied "So I don't have any formal qualifications and I'm hoping to find a career in teaching so I need Ministry-approved qualifications".
Marchbanks seemed interested in discussing this further.
"Do you wish to become a tutor or do you wish to teach at Hogwarts?" she asked.
At the school, being there would put me closer to the action if nothing else.
"I want to be a Professor" I admitted.
That part was true. I rather liked the idea of becoming Professor Barrows.
"Hogwarts is always looking for Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers" I was now saying "And even if the position didn't last that long it would gain me some practical experience at teaching".
Since I'd dealt with the Horcrux hidden at Hogwarts I had to wonder what would become of Barty Crouch Junior at the end of the year.
Without the curse, he could, in theory, stay in his position and be a spy, or would he leave to join his master? This was not something I'd considered at the time and the lack of the curse could alter events.
Perhaps I should find some way to expose the man or I could risk letting events play out as they did in the book/movie and just assume that Marigold wouldn't need my help until the summer.
"Teaching at Hogwarts is quite the privilege" Marchbanks stated "The school is considered to be the best magical school in the world".
Given who was allowed to teach there I knew that Hogwarts must have seen better days. Binns bored people into comas, Snape was a terrorist, and Sybill Trelawney was a drunk.
Then there are the Defences Against the Dark Arts teachers. Quirrell had been a host for Voldemort, Lockhard a fraud, and the current one was a Death Eater in disguise. Even Remus Lupin who hadn't meant to harm anyone nearly killed a few students.
If I'd been Harry Potter, or Marigold Potter in this case, I'd be making plans to take out the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at the start of each year.
"If you do well during the exams I'd be happy to mention your interest to Albus" offered Madam Marchbanks.
A word from her would get on Dumbledore's radar, but this was the kind of way I wanted to be brought to his attention.
"I'd be grateful, Professor Marchbanks," I said.
The old witch got up to leave.
"I will see you later, Mr Barrows," she said.
Since the next exam wouldn't take place for more than an hour I decided to leave the Ministry and go for a stroll in London. Maybe find somewhere serving snacks.
It was important to pace myself and to relax between exams in case I failed one. That could impact my plans.
Chapter 10
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 10.
Dumbledore's Office. Hogwarts School.
Given that he worked three jobs while serving as an advisor to the Minister of Magic, as well as others who sought his advice, it wasn't odd for Albus Dumbledore to find himself answering a lot of letters before having to send out many of his own.
The school's Deputy Headmistress managed quite a bit of the workload, and she made sure everything ran smoothly day to day, as did the other heads of houses, but there were matters that only the Headmaster could deal with when it came to keeping Hogwarts running as a school.
All of what he did could be considered to be important, be it political, educational or sometimes personal, but the appointment of new members of staff was something he needed to deal with himself and it needed to be handled with care.
At least this time the Board of Governors weren't willing to get involved this time. They had washed their hands of the matter and left it up to Dumbledore to find someone worthy of helping to shape young minds.
This task was hardly a new one, the school had been changing Defence Against the Dark Arts every year for a couple of decades and it was rarely easy to find new teachers for any subject.
It was also a little upsetting to have to let go of a teacher who could do their job because of forces outside of the Headmaster's control.
At least this time Albus Dumbledore had an ally in his struggle, Griselda Marchbanks, a witch whose experience in matters of education outstripped his own.
Since she was one of the few people who could recall Albus as a schoolboy, she did not see him as the source of all wisdom, she was also willing to provide him with some useful information.
Madam Marchbanks had been a professor at Hogwarts long before she began to oversee OWL and NEWT exams for the Ministry. She'd also served on the Wizengamot for longer than many of its members had lived.
As the Headmaster sipped his cooling tea and began to read the letter he assumed that Madam Marchbanks was contacting him about the exams this year.
Should all go to plan then The Triwizard Tournament shouldn't disrupt the yearly exams and there would be plenty of time for the examiners to make use of the Great Hall.
It was a pleasant surprise to find that the letter was not about the exams, nor was it a complaint of any kind.
This letter was about drawing his attention to a young wizard who had an interest in education. If nothing else it was a nice change of pace from their normal communications.
"Caelum Barrows" Dumbledore whispered.
He'd never heard of a pureblood family called Barrows, although the name certainly seemed like it belonged to that of a Pureblood family.
Dumbledore felt certain that Barrows was not a surname commonly used in the muggle world. He was sure that he'd never heard of any muggle family that used the surname and he knew a fair few muggle-borns.
Despite the magical community's size, even Dumbledore couldn't recall the surname of every family. The Barrows might have been an old family that simply disappeared into history or even changed its name for some reason.
The name Caelum suggested a connection to the Black family as they were very fond of giving children the names of stars and such.
However, the Blacks had been around for a very long time and members of that house had married into many other families over the centuries, not all of whom were still around.
Dumbledore was curious about the ancestry of the young wizard, who was supposed to be in his 30s even though he looked a decade younger, and he was a rather wealthy young man according to Marchbanks.
A rich new wizard on the scene was bound to draw some attention, but what Marchbanks brought to his attention was much more interesting than that.
Caelum Barrows had been home-schooled, which helped to explain why Albus couldn't recall hearing the name before as there were few students he couldn't remember at least hearing a little about, and because of the homeschooling he'd never taken any Ministry-approved exams.
There were no laws requiring a person to take these exams, but not having NEWTs and OWLs would greatly limit a witch or wizard's career options so normally even homeschooled students took the exams when they were young.
What mattered was that Caelum Barrows had made an appearance in the Wizarding World to take these exams and this likely meant that he was seeking out a place in magical society after spending his life away from his peers.
Perhaps the Barrows had been in hiding for decades. He was sure he would know if any witches or wizards with the Barrows name had fought for either Grindelwald or Voldemort, the same if they had fought against those dark lords.
Another possibility was that the Barrows family had been targeted by one of the Dark Lords and then gone into hiding until recently.
Again this was all intriguing to read about, but it didn't seem like the sort of thing that Madam Marchbanks would feel the need to inform Albus Dumbledore about.
Further reading led to more interest as it turned out that Caelum Barrows had developed an interest in teaching and so Madam Marchbankes had sent along the young wizard's exam results and what amounted to a letter of recommendation.
Even if the recommendation was little more than a note it was something that the Headmaster took seriously as Madam Marchbanks knew talent when she saw it.
The young man had academic qualifications for the role that he had been recommended for, and depending on his upbringing he might already have some of the desired practical experience. Dumbledore would have to interview the lad to find out.
It would be good to have that position filled before the school year came to an end. There were many demands on the Headmaster's attention and this was just one of his many responsibilities.
With that in mind, the professor reached for a new piece of parchment and began to compose a more formal letter than the one he'd just been reading.
If this young wizard was interested in educating young witches and wizards then Dumbledore wanted to meet with him as soon as possible.
Number 7 Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
In the attic of the home I had brought just so I could keep tabs on a teenage girl, in a not creepy way as my purpose was to save her from a fate worse than death, I'd set up a lab so that I could find ways to make use of the magical knowledge and power that I had been given in exchange for my services.
The attic had been warded and then expanded so that I could work in here safely, without fear of detection by the magical or mundane population, and I also had more than enough room for all of my work.
This was important because I had quite a lot to explore and many ideas about how to use my knowledge of magic to further my goals as well as to empower myself.
Aside from the many magical potions that I'd decided to brew for different reasons, I was working on some magical items I might need in the future.
My focus was currently on an amulet that should offer me protection from evil, assuming that it worked the way I wished it to.
In theory, this item should ward me against attacks made by evil creatures, such as werewolves and vampires, as well as shield me from any kind of mental control, and summoned creatures.
It does this by creating a magical barrier around the subject at a distance of 1 foot. I would need to find some way of testing the amulet.
The wand wavers of this world don't summon up demons and other horrible creatures to do their bidding, but there were still plenty of monsters about and they had at least one dark spell the bad guys could use to control people.
Another item I'd enchanted became a Ring of Regeneration, which is a useful piece of equipment that can slowly heal its wearer over time.
While the ring's effect is rather slow the ring is also capable of regrowing lost body parts within a single week.
If Alastor Moody is anything to go buy it's quite possible to lose limbs while taking on dark magic users and the ring should regerate any injury.
Aside from the amulet and the ring, I'd made my own Bracers of Defense, which should help to protect me against attacks.
I doubted they'd be much help if I got hit by a proper curse, but they should help me to fend off more minor attacks such as jinxes and stunners.
Another magical item I'd made was a Belt of Storm Giant Strength. That one had at least been easy to test and it did indeed make me stronger.
Given that wizards and witches don't throw punches I figured the belt would give me an advantage at close range.
After the belt was done I'd turned my robes into a Cloak of Protection to help keep me safe from unfriendly spells. On its own I didn't think it would do much, I hoped that combined with other items it would help to protect me.
If I enchanted all my clothes then I would have a better chance of resisting the effects of harmful spells, poisons, etc. Their beneficial effects would combine with similar items that magically protected the wearer
The Boots of Levitation I'd made would grant me the ability to levitate at will. I would get limited use out of such things, but I could see them being useful in a library if nothing else.
I just finished work on the amulet when my familiar came flying in through the window, signalling his reappearance with a cawing sound.
"Renwick," I said "How did it go?".
I'd sent my familiar on a very important mission to help me secure a position at Hogwarts while also removing a dangerous person from the magical world. A mission he looked to have completed since he was returning the small box I'd sent him out with.
"It went just as planned, boss" the raven answered.
Carefully I opened the small box that Renwick had just dropped on a table and I saw the pink diamond inside. Which was now much more valuable to me than some pretty bit of rock.
"She picked it up and once she did, she vanished" reported Renwick "I put the rock back in the box and flew it right to you, boss, just as you wanted.
He had done well.
"Good job" I praised "And you made sure no one saw you?".
That had been a bit of a silly question as like me Renwick was able to move between the realms and there were planes you could visit from where you could watch the mortal world while remaining unseen.
"Of course" answered the magical creature "I was only visible when dropping off and collecting the box, and that witch only has kittens on her walls so there were no portraits to see me who can give us away".
Renwick had delivered the pink diamond to the office of Dolores Umbridge, who had opened the box and touched the diamond, and she was now trapped within the stone.
Spoiler
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Much like how the evil Djinn in the first two Wishmaster movies was trapped in a gem rather than the more traditional bottle or how Olaf the Troll was stuck in a crystal until freed by Willow Rosenberg in the world of BTVS.
Storing humans inside enchanted objects is more complex than doing something similar to ghosts. Diamonds and other gemstones are rather suited for such magic.
Keeping someone in suspended animation was more humane than the other things I could done to Umbridge. Not that she deserved such mercy. I hadn't intended to make such a move so soon, but Umbridge was a blight that needed to be removed.
Now there was little chance of anyone sending Dementors after Marigold Potter and even if they did I was in place to prevent it. I wouldn't put it past someone else in the Ministry to try getting rid of Potter with Dementors.
"Such an elegant solution," I said to myself.
Enchanting the stones so that they could safely hold humans in a form of suspended animation until the end of time if I'd done the enchantments right, was no easy feat, but I had time and plenty of materials.
I magically sealed the box and I would later place it in my demi-plane, which these days looked like a cross between a library and a dragon's horde. It also contained some of the locally made magical items I'd picked up so it had become quite the sight. A bit of a mess, but I liked it.
I might use the gem trick again, but not too often as I didn't want any witnesses to see someone getting trapped in a pretty stone. Although it was a good way to store prisoners.
"What's in the cauldrons?" questioned Renwick.
Some of my other work needed my attention. I turned off the flames and I began to bottle up the brew that had been gently simmering.
"These are potions meant to counter different kinds of damage" I answered.
The most recent potions were meant for Frank and Alice Longbottom, but I wasn't sure if I should sneak into the magical hospital or if I should send them to Neville Longbottom and let him try to use them.
I wouldn't mind seeing if they worked in person, as they should, but their miraculous return to health would draw a lot of attention.
The return of two people who fought against Voldemort would no doubt be a big morale boost to the members of the Order of the Phoenix.
My thoughts about the Longbottoms came to an end when an actual phoenix appeared and then vanished in a display of magical fire that left a letter behind that wasn't even a little burned.
"Show off!" yelled Renwick.
So I'd come to the attention of Albus Dumbledore and he'd just shown that he could get to me despite my wards as none of them are phoenix-proof.
Had he meant to demonstrate that or had he just been showing off?
The letter invited me to an interview at the school to discuss a teaching position. This was something that put a smile on my face despite the concern about my wards not being perfect.
If Dumbledore was interested in me then before the interview I needed to finish work on one more magical item.
Chapter 11
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 11.
Headmaster's Office. Hogwarts School.
It had been a bit of a shock to get a letter from the school which invited me to an interview with the Headmaster long before the end of term, the beginning of the Third Task, or the start of the summer holidays.
I hadn't yet even applied for the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, so I wondered if Dumbledore was simply trying to get the position filled before Barty Crouch, who he might think was Alastor Moody, needed replacing.
That wouldn't be shocking as the position had needed filling every year since Lord Voldemort had been refused the job back in the 1970s, so if I were Dumbledore I'd have several candidates lined up for the post if possible.
As I'd been escorted through the many corridors of the school and to the office by the school's gamekeeper, I couldn't help wondering if the Headmaster had a motive for meeting with me that didn't involve employment.
Might he suspect that I wasn't who I appeared to be?
If so then I was glad that before coming here, I had created a magical item known as The Ring of Mind Shielding, as the name suggests it protects against mental attacks and many kinds of scrying magic.
It is also enchanted to prevent the wearer's thoughts from being read, as well as to protect their soul from being trapped or drained by other magical effects.
In theory, it should also shield me from the Kiss of a Dementor, which can drain a person of their soul, but I had no desire to test that and I was glad there were other ways to protect oneself from those foul creatures such as my Amulet of Protection Against Evil.
I wondered if the anti-scrying defence prevented the Headmaster from knowing who was at his door, if it did the old man gave no hint of it.
"Come in Hagrid" he invited.
The half-giant had met me at the gate before escorting me through the school during a time when the students were either in class or making use of the library, as such I'd not seen many people about.
Hagrid said something to his employer that I didn't pay attention to as my attention had been drawn to the contents of the office and to Fawkes who hadn't stopped to let me get a good look at him when he'd popped by my home to drop off a letter.
Spoiler
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"This is Fawkes, a companion of mine," said Dumbledore.
Outwardly the man seemed friendly enough other than in his choice of robes which was a little offensive due to the needlessly vibrant colours.
"Fawkes this is Caelum Barrows" he introduced "A potential professor for the school".
If this magical bird was anything like my animal companion then the phoenix might understand everything we were saying.
"Is it pronounced kai-lom?" the teacher asked.
Not exactly.
"Kai-lum" I corrected "It's a small and rather faint constellation visible in the southern hemisphere".
It can also mean Chisel as in a tool to shape stone.
"The use of a constellation suggests a connection to the Black family," said Dumbledore as he moved behind his desk.
One of the good things for me about the wizarding world as the idea of identity theft doesn't exist as far as I can tell.
At least not in the sense it does in the muggle world as you can't fool goblins with glamors or even the polyjuice potion. As such, pretending to be someone else to access their vault is considered to be suicidal.
Even with the help of a goblin and invisibility cloak, the golden trio only just managed to break into a vault and they only escaped because of a dragon.
Because of this trying to pass as say Caelum Black or a long-lost member of the Potter family simply wouldn't work, but since no wizard called Barrows had a Gringotts vault before me.
As for the Ministry, outside of taking my exams, they had paid me no attention.
"All the pureblood families are related" I pointed out.
I had to play down the idea that I could be connected to any family since I wasn't and I didn't want to give Dumbledore anything to go by should he look more into my past.
"My genealogy has never concerned me," I said "I was raised in seclusion by my grandfather who has now passed on, and I have no interest in pureblood culture or politics".
Dumbledore looked a little concerned if I was reading his expression correctly, or at least that was the expression he wanted me to see. This man was far more of a political creature than a teacher and he wouldn't have held onto his titles for so long if he didn't know how to hide what he was thinking.
"Without family what do we have?" asked the Headmaster "Where do we fit in?".
Considering that his only family was a brother who despised him I didn't think this was a topic he was fit to weigh into.
"Wherever we want" I answered "No one has any expectations for me so I live my life as I please".
Dumbledore brought the conversation back to something close to what we were here to discuss.
"And you chose teaching?" he asked.
Thanks to the use of the Potion of Longevity I looked to be in my twenties again so from Dumbledore's perspective I should look like a man at the start of his career.
"My family fortune can keep me comfortable for the rest of my life," I said "Since I don't need to make money I'm free to explore and find out what sort of career I can enjoy. Teaching is supposed to be rewarding work".
I couldn't imagine that many people went into teaching for the money.
"So Mr Barrows, why do you want to teach?" I was asked, "What makes you think it would be rewarding?".
Dumbledore took a seat and offered me a chair as well as a sherbert lemon. Which I refused as it was very unprofessional to eat sweets during a job interview.
"As I mentioned I don't have any interest in politics and I don't much care for the Ministry, but I still want to find my place in the Wizarding World and that involves having a career" I was now saying "I heard that you have trouble finding Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers and so I thought I would apply to find out if teaching is for me. It might help the students as well".
That seemed like a reasonable answer to me.
"I know the teachers don't seem to last for long so if teaching is not for me then I can bow out after a year with no harm done. If I do like teaching and I can't keep the job I could become a tutor" I added "I suppose it's about finding my place in the magical world".
Since this man was willing to let Lockhart teach here I didn't think he could afford to be picky about who got the post.
"You should be aware Mr Barrows, that I'm looking for a Muggle Studies professor at this time not a Defence Professor," Dumbledore told me.
My expression upon hearing that could not be hidden and the Headmaster was too clever to fail to notice my astonishment.
"You must not have read about Rita Skeeter's article on our current Muggle Studies Professor Charity Burbage," he said.
Nothing that Skeeter wrote was worth reading as such I never bothered with her articles.
"My library at home has a fiction section full of things far more interesting to read," I told the professor.
The elderly man made a sound that could have been a snort of amusement.
"Then you won't be aware that some time ago Professor Burbage had an editorial of hers published in the same paper" Dumbledore was now saying "In that editorial, she made a rather passionate statement about why the Wizarding World should work harder to bring Muggle-borns into our world and that we wizards should make efforts to bring ourselves closer to the muggles".
I could imagine the reactions of the bigoted population of Magical Britain to her words and the reactions would not be nice.
"That couldn't have gone down well" I commented.
He didn't bother to confirm this.
"Under other circumstances, we, that is to say, the governors and I, would just allow interest in Skeeter's article to wane, which would happen quickly given the Triwizard Tournament, but Professor Burbage feels it unwise to stay in the public eye and the governors have pressured me into replacing her",
While the Ministry was interfering at the school this early on, but that hadn't stopped Skeeter from attacking the school via her articles.
Thinking on it, I knew that Lord Voldemort would kill Burbage in The Deathly Hallows book because she wrote about mingling with Muggles it made sense that others would react badly to the article.
When in the series, Voldemort took over the Ministry of Magic, the Death Eater Alecto Carrow was appointed the new professor of Muggle Studies.
The subject was made compulsory, however, instead of teaching students accurate facts about the non-magical community and encouraging magical to accept muggles, they were taught to despise the mundane population.
"So would you be willing to take on the post of Muggle Studies Professor?" I was asked.
That certainly wasn't the job I wanted as it wouldn't get me close to the Chosen One, but I wouldn't have to worry about losing the position after one school year, and I should have a lot less work to do since the class was optional, and the first two years worth of students couldn't even take the class.
"Yes," I said.
Dumbledore reached for a piece of parchment.
"I have a few questions for you," he said.
Made sense, he'd need to know that I knew about the muggle world.
"What is the function of a rubber duck?" I was asked.
That was a rather random question.
"It's a bath toy for small children and a decorative item for others" I answered.
There were more questions. None of which would have challenged anyone who had finished High School in the muggle world.
"You are more than qualified Mr Barrows," said the Headmaster once that part of the interview was done "You have an Outstanding on both the OWL and NEWT exams in that subject. The only person I know with those qualifications would be Percy Weasley".
I knew that the subject involved the study of the history and daily lives of Muggles, how they were able to live without magic, as well as how they depended upon science to give them their technology such as electricity as a replacement for magic.
Muggles don't use science as a replacement for magic because for them magic is just something that doesn't exist outside of stories.
"Headmaster, does anyone even take Muggle Studies at the NEWT level?" I asked.
As it turned out they didn't because of the scandal the few NEWT students there had been had dropped the subject.
"I can only assume that the younger students aren't aware of the article or their parents don't believe it will harm their careers to remain in that class" explained Dumbledore "Most likely the latter since a Muggle Studies OWL is required for some Ministry positions. Such becoming part of the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad".
Or the wand wavers who went around erasing memories of magic seen by Muggles. A policy that wasn't going to keep working once cameras started appearing in a lot more places and even on people's phones.
"Unless there's a sudden interest in the NEWT, you'll only have three classes a week, which are divided into six lessons, three practical and three theory spread out over the week".
The scandal should have blown over by the next school year. The sheep of the Wizarding World easily forgot such things and so I might end up with some NEWT students.
For proof of this, one only needed to see how quickly they'd turn on Harry Potter and then start praising him again the next year.
"Here is the textbook for the OWL class," Dumbledore said as he passed me a copy "Feel free to expand upon the textbook, but it would be best not to deviate from it too much. Try to think of Muggle Studies as the study of a foreign culture that our kind visit and I'll doubt that you will have any trouble. Just don't make the same mistake as our current Muggle Studies Professor".
The book was called Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles by Wilhelm Wigworthy.
"And here is a list of subjects that come up on the OWL paper and which the book attempts to cover," said the professor "These items are often used in Muggle Baiting so members of the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad need to be aware of them, and on the job training is focused on reversing unwanted magic so you're job is prepare the students to be able to move about in the muggle world and identify the artefacts that are often cursed by less respectable witches and wizards".
Radio, plumbing, light bulbs, rotary phones, rubber ducks, hair spray, toasters, roller skates, cars, blenders and flying machines.
"What an odd collection of subjects to cover" I commented.
Dumbledore seemed amused.
"Can you provide information on all these subjects?" he asked "My test questions suggest so".
I could easily and with such a light workload I'd have plenty of time to focus on my projects.
"It won't be a problem" I said "I can provide examples for the practical lessons and plenty of information for the theory classes".
Dumbledore smiled, and got up, when I did, we shook hands.
"Then welcome aboard Professor Barrows," he said "Professor McGonagall will contact you with more information once the term has ended. Until then you should prepare your materials and try to plan out some lessons".
That wouldn't be too much work.
"And consider this a signing-on bonus," said Dumbledore with a smirk.
It was a ticket that would allow me to watch the Third Task which was now only a matter of days away. Being there at the task hadn't been part of my plans, but given that I was changing the timeline it might be a good thing if I did attend.
"Thank you," I said.
as I made my way out of the school I already had some ideas.
Renwick flew down from the sky and perched on my shoulder as soon as I'd left the school grounds.
"How did it go?" he asked.
Not as expected that was for sure.
"I'm the new Muggle Studies Professor," I told my familiar "It won't put me in contact with the Chosen One, but I'll be in the castle at least".
If I could get close to Marigold Potter over the summer it wouldn't matter if I taught her in class that much.
Given that the Headmaster didn't mention my address he might not know where. Fawkes might have just been able to find me magically. Still, it would be good to find out if there was a way to keep phoenixs away.
"Muggle studies?" asked Renwick "As in studying muggles?".
"Yes" I answered, "It's not a popular class, but it only matters that I will be able to keep an eye on events and certain students".
I doubted that the job would get me much respect, but perhaps I could move position if I was still in the world a year from now. It was something to keep in mind.
"And the old wizard didn't see anything in your mind?" I was asked.
That was a good question.
"I didn't feel anything that suggested he looked into my mind," I replied "And he didn't hand me over to the Aurors".
This could mean that he got nothing from my mind or that he didn't try to see into my head. If he did he should have been worried about what he saw, even scared by it.
Not that this meant much as Dumbledore had hired much worse than me to teach at his school. Only time would tell if he had more plans for me than replacing a teacher who had been pushed out of her job for having an unpopular opinion.
Chapter 12
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 12.
Hogwarts School. Wizarding World.
The Deputy Headmistress had arranged things very quickly. Mere days after my interview with Headmaster Dumbledore, she had sent me a straightforward letter, this one arriving via an owl, with instructions on how to proceed now that I was a Hogwarts Professor.
While it wasn't mentioned in the letter, the fact that I had been told to come here on this date and to set up before the end of the term, suggested that the school's current Muggle Studies Professor had already left the castle.
Today was the day of the final task and many students were taking exams, so it was doubtful that anyone would have noticed Charity Burbage leaving the castle or that I had arrived to prepare to take my post once the new school year started.
The school's caretaker, an unpleasant man called Mr Filch was guiding me through the corridors and Mrs Norris escorted us. Filch's feline companion or maybe even his familiar, led us to a door that looked much like the others.
This room was on the ground floor and not far from the Great Hall, which was currently full of students taking one of the exams. Perhaps that was why my arrival had been without any formal greetings.
Given that Professor Charity Burbage was gone I wondered who was overseeing the Muggle Studies OWL exam, but it didn't seem important enough to enquire about.
"These are your quarters, Professor Barrows," Filch said as he opened the door "The entire corridor is your department. Next to the quarters you'll find an office and the classroom is at the end of the corridor".
I nodded to signal my understanding as I walked inside, looking around. It looked comfortable enough.
even if it was rather empty and there were enough windows to let in plenty of light.
Some paintings on the walls moved, they would have to go, as I didn't want people spying on me even if they weren't people. Other than that it was a small apartment. It had a living area, a good-sized bedroom, and there was a bathroom too.
"Are there any unused rooms in this corridor?" I questioned.
The caretaker led me out of the corridor and showed me what was behind the two doors.
There was a storeroom full of muggle-made junk, Muggle Studies had been taught at Hogwarts for over a century and the course had changed, so the stuff used in the practical lessons had changed.
There was also an empty classroom. The original purpose of which was soon explained to me by the man playing the role of tour guide.
"Back before You-Know-Who started killing people the school had more students" the caretaker explained "And Muggle Studies was a popular class so we had a room set aside for a Muggle Studies club. You can do what you want with it".
It made sense that people would want to flee the country or at least homeschool their children with a dark lord around, I certainly would have left the country if I had children in the magical world.
As for the club, I imagined that showing too much interest in anything related to Muggles wouldn't have been wise while here at Hogwarts due to all the trainee Death Eaters among the student body.
I could use a space set aside here in the school where I could work on a few potions. Snape would not like that, but I intended to deal with him over the summer, much as I had handled Umbridge.
That was something to think more about later, for now, I went back to inspecting my quarters to ensure that they were suitable.
"What about furniture?" I asked, "It's rather spartan".
Moving it in by myself even with magic, would be a pain and this place did need some decorating.
"Call the elves," he said as he motioned towards a small bell hanging from a string in the corner next to the door "They'll handle it".
I had wondered how one summoned a house elf if you didn't know their names, now I knew.
"Would you like me to show you your classroom now?" he then asked.
There was no need.
"No, that is fine, Mr. Filch. I'm sure you have better things to do than play tour guide" I said.
He grunted, nodded at me and turned to leave before he paused. I wondered if I should tip him.
"Welcome to Hogwarts, Professor Barrows," the squib said.
He closed the door behind him on his way out and I chuckled to myself. I still liked the title.
I took another quick look around my quarters, before pushing the door into the bathroom. It had the usual facilities, as well as one of those fancy baths with several faucets, even another of those damn portraits. Who the hell put one of those in the damn bathroom? It was just creepy.
Quickly I walked over to ring the bell. It took only a moment until a small grey creature with giant eyes was looking up at me
"Yous call Happy, sir?"
He or she, assuming they had gender, didn't look that happy.
"Ah, yes. I need some furniture" I requested "A comfy chair by the fire, a proper desk in the office if you can fit it in. I'm sure you know what's best".
It wasn't as if I couldn't change things later.
"And I want those portraits removed" I then finished.
The small creature nodded.
"Yes sir. We can do that. What sort of furniture do you want?" she asked.
I frowned slightly. I had been hoping that the House Elves didn't need precise instructions.
"Something that goes with the dark wood on the walls, and it must be comfortable. A large bed, some chairs, a table, some bookshelves. You know, the usual? Oh, and a comfy chair by the fire. I must have a comfy chair".
The house elf nodded quickly and snapped its fingers, causing the portraits to float off the walls and shrink down to nothing before the elf took them and popped out.
What followed that was a flurry of house-elves popping in with furniture for me to approve and for me to tell them where to put them.
In all honestly, once it was all over I collapsed into my new comfy chair, feeling slightly overwhelmed. I might be used to magic by now, but the house elves were less like happy servants and more like small grey cleaning versions of Pinky Pie, at least in terms of energy levels.
"You's have everything you wants now Professor?" Happy asked me.
The House Elf's style of speech was strange. It would take me time to get used to it.
"Yes Happy, to start with, thank you very much for your help," I said before making my request "I could use a nice cup of tea. Milk with two sugars if you please".
The elf nodded happily and popped out. A second later she popped back in carrying a tray with sandwiches, a slice of cake, and a pot of tea upon it. The elf put it all on the small table next to my chair and then popped back out.
I looked at the spot where the elf had disappeared before I made a sound that would have signalled my feeling of contentment.
Alas, I couldn't relax just yet as I needed to ensure that my classroom was in order. So before long, I stood in the middle of my classroom, or what soon would be my classroom, and looked around.
Wooden floor, stone walls, windows on each side. It was all rather pretty basic.
The stairs to my office were behind my desk and the door to enter the classroom could be found on the opposite wall.
"Happy?" I asked the empty air and the elf popped out of nowhere.
If you knew a House Elf's name, you could summon them with it. Names were powerful things when it came to magic so I was glad that no one knew my real name.
"Happy help, sir?" the magical creature asked me.
I nodded as I eyed the closest desk. It was made from brown wood and was just about wide enough for two people to share it.
This wouldn't do for a class that involved practical work. They would need more elbow room as I planned for them to handle many muggle-made objects.
Plus there weren't enough desks anyway. I wasn't expecting to have a lot of students, but it was best to be prepared.
"Are we allowed to change the furniture in our classrooms?" I then asked the small house elf.
The tiny creature nodded
"Yes sir. Just says what yous want and elves take care of it" I was informed.
I was pleased to hear this.
"Replace these desks with tables for practical work" I ordered "And see if you can find more comfortable chairs than these".
Since Muggle Studies had both theory and practical lessons there would be lectures. I'd sat through such classes and I knew that without a proper chair, you'd have trouble focusing.
"Happy will find" promised the elf.
Before long, more of its kind had refurbished the classroom.
"Anything else, sir?" the creature asked
This would do. I could add the finishing touches to the classroom before classes started in the new school year.
"Not at the moment, Happy. Thank you for all your help," I said while glancing around.
The elf smiled happily and popped out. He was leaving me to think. While leaning against my desk, I crossed my arms in thought.
Since the Ministry had a set curriculum for this subject, which covered what they thought their employees needed to know about Muggles, I just needed to create lessons that spread those subjects for three school years.
I went back into my quarters and began to enjoy my afternoon tea as I took some more notes on this matter.
It made sense to start with the simple stuff that a Ministry employee might need to recognise when dealing with a magical mishap.
The material needed to be updated as while people still used rotary phones the technology had changed over the last few decades. The students would need to be able to recognise a more modern style phone.
It would be older students who learned about the more complex stuff such as electricity, cars and flying machines.
That would not keep the students occupied in class for three years so I would need to pad the course with supplementary materials and encourage the students to research on their own.
It was a shame that Hogwarts students didn't get to go on field trips as there was nothing like practical experience to teach a person and such experiences could be very enjoyable.
Perhaps I should try to get approval from the Headmaster once I was settled in.
By the time I was done with my afternoon tea and note-taking, I realised how late it was getting, it would soon be time for the Third Task to begin and I had a ticket to the event.
I'd been thinking about how I could interfere with the Third Task or if I should do so at all. It might be best to let events play out as they did in the book/movie as they were unlikely to change if I took no action.
Since the graveyard must be protected by the Fidelius Charm I couldn't go there to help Potter, but there were things here at the school that I could handle. Potter would just have to manage on her own as she was fated to do.
It would be nice if I could save Cedric Diggory and perhaps capture Barty Crouch Junior publicly so that Fudge couldn't just get rid of him. Perhaps I could prevent the fake Moody from dragging Potter away and then expose him in front of the crowd?
Potentially dangerous, but it could be worth it if the murderer would admit to everyone that the Dark Lord had returned. Fudge could just claim that Crouch was mad so maybe it wouldn't be worth the effort.
Did I want to publicly choose a side like that? Maybe I should keep my options open so that I work behind the scenes. I'd see how events played out and make up my mind when I had to.
Chapter 13
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 13.
Quidditch Pitch. Hogwarts School.
Today I got to marvel at the sheer stupidity of wizards.
Spoiler
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The people running the Triwizard Tournament had turned a sports field into a maze that was full of magical beasts, traps and who knew what else. Getting through this maze would challenge the champions, putting them through their paces.
There was a possibility one or more of them could die and this only made it more important that the champions be visible so help could be rushed to them if for some reason they couldn't signal for it. Yet not only were the hedges cutting the champions off from lines of sight on the ground the strange mist within the maze would make spotting them from the air very difficult.
As if that wasn't bad enough. The audience would get to see none of this as the stands weren't high enough to see into the labyrinth and even if they had been the area was further obscured by the unnatural mist.
At least the stands were positioned so that we'd get to see the champions entering the maze. After that, everyone would just sit there until someone claimed the cup and got transported out. Or that was what I guessed should happen. I knew that things would not work out as expected.
I couldn't imagine why anyone would buy tickets to an event that involves looking at hedges. Although since I didn't pay to be here I couldn't complain much and the lack of visibility should end up aiding me.
Besides, when I was on my way down here Renwick had brought me something that made me feel a lot more cheerful.
It was a small box that contained an attractive piece of jade that I'd had my familiar deliver to Snape's office with the intent of trapping him as I had done with Umbridge. The whole idea had been risky as Snape was not Umbridge, yet it had worked out.
"I can't believe he just picked it up," I said as I looked inside the box "You'd think that a spy would be more careful".
Via our connection, Renwich was able to show me what had happened while he'd been watching Snape from another plane.
The Potion's Master had waved his wand over the box before opening it, so the magic I'd used was either not detectable or it didn't register as threatening. To be fair my magic was alien to this world.
"Are you going to keep him like the pink lady?" asked Renwick.
Snape might be a bastard, but it could be argued that he wasn't a complete monster, so I might set him free one day, maybe in a different world.
Like Umbridge, he was frozen in time, suspended within the stone, and unaware of time passing so it wasn't as if he was suffering and while held he was no threat to anyone else.
"For now," I answered.
There were plenty of others to be dealt with and there was another Death Eater here at the school who needed my attention. I had to decide what to do about Barty Crouch Junior. Should I expose him publicly?
Another option was to head into the maze while in another plane and then either wait for Potter to take the cup, and go with her to face Voldemort, or just take the cup myself and go to the graveyard.
I was assuming that the portkey would allow me to bypass the fidelius charm, it made sense that it would since Barty Crouch Junior could be the secret keeper and he must have subverted the portkey.
My thinking was that Dumbledore made the cup into a portkey that would transport the first champion to take it and bring them out of the maze. The Headmaster was able to make portkeys that could transport someone to the school as he had done so after duelling Voldemort in the Ministry of Magic during the events of the Order of the Phoenix.
If so then Crouch could have subverted the portkey, altering it so that it would take the holder to the graveyard, but without removing the part of the enchantment which would transport the champion to the area in front of the stands.
Maybe Voldemort had intended to send a dead Potter back to the school or Crouch had only been able to modify the cup to a certain extent. I'd no need to study portkeys so I simply didn't know.
Going with Potter would be best as I'm not the Chosen One, it's not my job to defeat Voldemort, I was just here to help. On my own, it might not be possible for me to defeat the Dark Lord depending on how powerful Fate was in this world.
"Looks like rain" commented Renwick.
"A typical British summer," I said.
That was when I froze in my tracks.
"It's summer" I realised.
Until now, I'd assumed that the fate worse than death I'd been warned about would be when the Dementors would go after the Chosen One, but I had taken care of Umbridge and there was no sign from my patron to suggest the task I'd been sent here had been done.
This might be because there was a larger issue to deal with and my patron needed the magical world to be properly sorted out, or maybe there would be more artefacts for me to after. However, I suspected that I needed to become more involved in the life of Marigold Potter if I was going to complete my overall goal.
This was the problem with higher powers, they rarely just sat you down and explained anything. No, you have to figure things out on your own and deal with things yourself. So much so that having a higher power or powers can seem rather pointless.
Via our connection, I explained my line of thinking to Renwick as we avoided the many groups of people. I wished to remain unnoticed and I wasn't ready to slip into another plane just yet.
"But wouldn't he just kill her?" asked my familiar "My creator was specific about her suffering a fate worse than death. So her dying isn't the issue".
Even if Voldemort did kill Potter she might not stay dead. She was still a Horcrux after all.
"Perhaps he's going to torture her into insanity like what happened with the Longbottoms" I mused.
Renwick had even scarier idea.
"Or he might kidnap her and twist her mind until she starts to serve him," the magical creature suggested.
Now that was worrying because while more direct methods of mind control won't work on Potter I did not doubt that Voldemort could find a way to break her. Everyone had a breaking point.
"We can't risk that," I stated.
Giving it some thought I figured that the best idea was to wait until Potter took the cup and then go with her. I couldn't be sure that the portkey would go to the graveyard without her and perhaps it was about time the two of us met.
I couldn't tell her the truth about me, at least not totally, but I could show her that I was here to help, and perhaps we could capture Pettigrew. Helping to free Sirius Black would win me lots of points with her.
Sure Dumbledore had promised Black his day in court. Only that wouldn't work out if he started fighting with Minister Fudge about Voldemort's return and I wouldn't put it past Dumbledore to dangle that hope before Black before taking it away if Azkaban escapee didn't do as he was told.
Assuming that I could destroy Voldemort or capture him it wouldn't be the end because that snake is still out there and the bit of soul in Marigold Potter has to be dealt with.
If Potter could deal with the snake herself that might satisfy the prophecy even if held down the snake for her and passed her a basilisk fang.
"Okay I have a sort of plan" I told my familiar.
I quickly told the creature what I had in mind.
"What about the fake Moody guy?" enquired Renwick "Do you want me to try to deal with him".
"How would you do that?" I enquired.
Renwick was a messenger and scout, not a fighter.
"I'll steal his flask and spill what's inside," said the raven "Even if that doesn't tip everyone off he'll have to leave to get more of his potion".
That should be enough. I could always deal with Crouch later.
"So we have something akin to a plan" I reasoned.
Renwick flew off to do his part while I went to find somewhere out of sight so that I could slip into another plane without anyone seeing me. I would only exit the plane at the right moment.
Graveyard. Little Hangleton.
"Of course, the graveyard is on the property owned by the Riddle family," said a voice.
She was indeed in a graveyard, one that was bordered by a stone wall and it was close to a large house which even in the darkness looked as if it had seen better days.
Had she time to think about it then the young witch would have realised that the Riddles the stranger had just mentioned could be related to Tom Riddle whose journal she had destroyed during her second year, and that this place was connected to Voldemort.
Marigold Euphemia Potter, Mary to her friends, had next to no idea what was going on or how she had suddenly found herself in a graveyard. She'd only used a portkey once, she wasn't familiar with them and she was having trouble getting her bearings.
A mere moment ago she'd been reaching out for the Triwizard Cup and feeling grateful that this idiotic contest would soon be over, and then suddenly she was somewhere else.
Overall this had been a very strange year at Hogwarts, even for her. At first, she'd looked forward to the Triwizard Tournament, to sitting with her friends as she watched the promised tasks, and then she'd been thrown into danger once again.
Out of everyone at the school, only her true friends Parvati Patil, whose love for Divination hadn't helped her to predict this and Neville Longbottom who had been a rock since Halloween, had believed her to be innocent.
Many who had called her a cheat tried to get back into her good graces after her performance at the First Task, and she had not forgiven them even if Neville did encourage her to at least try to get along with the rest of the school.
Not that her grudges seemed important now. She was starting to regret deciding that she was going to win this stupid contest. She'd only wanted to because it would be nice to be famous for something she'd done. To be more than the Girl-Who-Lived.
Mary's concerns didn't distract her for long as there was a handsome stranger here, the kind of wizard that Lavender Brown would swoon over, and he had his wand out. As such, Marigold was glad that her holly wand was in her hand even if as it turned out she didn't need it as she was not the man's target.
"Kill the spare!" a high-pitched voice called out.
"STUPEFY!"
A bolt of red light seemed to strike the source of that voice and there was a scream. Which was odd as stunners knock people out they don't hurt them.
"Keep an eye out for a very ugly baby," requested the stranger.
Not knowing what else to do the red-headed witch decided to follow the unknown wizard, as at least he seemed to know what he was doing, and they soon came across someone.
It was Wormtail and the stranger did not seem happy to see Peter Pettigrew. Although his level of disgust for the man could never equal hers. Wormtail was a big part of the reason why her parents had been murdered when she was only a baby.
When Marigold turned her head to look at what Wormtail must have dropped when he was hit by the unexpected stunner, her scar began to hurt, and then it began to feel much better as she moved away.
As she'd turned her head, and her vision began to clear, she could see that the handsome man had done something to make the bundle go away or rather what had been in the bundle of cloth. She'd only seen it for a moment and she had no desire to see more.
"What was that thing?" she asked.
She didn't expect an answer, as adults never told her much, so she was a little surprised when she got one.
"That was Tom Riddle, AKA the Dark Lord Voldemort," said the stranger.
Marigold had more questions.
"Who are you, how did I get here?" she demanded to know.
The man was at least willing to try to answer her. That was more than many adults she knew, and it went a long way towards her starting to trust this wizard.
"I'm Professor Caelum Barrows, or rather I will be as I haven't started teaching yet," he said.
Marigold Potter was not the sharpest knife in the draw, she would admit that, but even she had noticed that the school seemed to need a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher every year. Therefore this man must be Professor Moody's replacement, the old Auror had mentioned that he was only coming out of retirement for a year as a favour for the Headmaster.
"So you're going to my new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher," she said.
Professor Barrows seemed amused by this.
"No, Miss Potter, I teach Muggle Studies" he corrected.
Marigold was a little shocked to hear that. She'd never taken Muggle Studies, given her upbringing, it would have been rather pointless, and teaching that subject seemed rather unsuited for a wizard who might have just saved her from Voldemort.
"As to how you got here, the cup was a portkey," Barrows told her "It was supposed to bring you here so that you could be used as part of a ritual meant to grant Voldemort a new body, the baby thing you saw was only meant to be a temporary thing".
She had not liked seeing that thing, it looked horrible and had smelt even worse.
"I decided to tag along and make sure that didn't happen," Barrows told her.
Now she had even more questions.
"How do you know about this?" she very much wished to know.
For a moment Barrows looked as if he might not speak.
"I'm from the future," he said.
It was a testament to how strange her life had been over the last few years that Mary didn't think the man was lying. Although she got the sense he wasn't telling her everything.
"I'm here to help you," Barrows told her "Or rather I'm here to prevent Voldemort from destroying the magical community. If he'd gotten himself a new body then another war would have soon started and this would be very bad for everyone".
That last part was something she believed fully. She might have no experience with time travel and she was terrible at seeing into the future, but she didn't need either of those things to know that if Voldemort got a body it would lead to a lot of bad things happening.
"What did you do to Voldemort?" Mary wondered.
Her scar wasn't hurting so Riddle didn't seem to be around anymore.
"I've got him contained" answered Caelum Barrows "I can deal with him fully later on. Right now we need to get you back to the school with Pettigrew so that your godfather can gain his freedom".
Mary felt her heart skip a beat. Her godfather wouldn't need a trial if everyone saw Pettigrew was alive.
"You need to tell people that Pettigrew was the one to bring you here" advised Barrows "At least in public. The Minister won't believe that Voldemort was behind this and he'll just ignore you, or worse try to shut you up. Only tell those you trust and you can't trust the Minister, he's controlled by Lucius Malfoy. Besides it's not like you have any evidence".
Mary didn't fully understand, but she found that she agreed. Fudge was an idiot who took Malfoy's gold and did what a Death Eater told him to.
"Here take this" insisted Caelum Barrows.
He passed her a pretty ring.
"It's enchanted to protect your mind so don't take it off or people can mess with your memories or even look into your mind" he said "Lucky for you I carry a spare".
She hesitated. Mary wasn't sure if she could trust this handsome wizard even if so far he did seem to have her best interests in mind, and he was able to sense that.
"Miss Potter, I can't make you trust me. Not in the little time we have," he said. "You just have to decide if my actions prove I am your side".
At least he was not demanding that she simply do as she was told and he had helped her. No one else had done much more than give her some advice and even her mates had school turned their backs on her. So she decided to wear the ring and she relaxed a little when nothing bad happened.
"The cup will take you back to the school" Caelum Barrows informed her "Take Wormtail with you and make sure people see him. I'll catch up to you later once I've dealt with Voldemort's snake".
Eager to get back to the school she grabbed Wormtail by the arm and she summoned the cup, Caelum Barrows, gave her one last bit of news before she vanished.
"Don't go anywhere with Moody he's been replaced by one of Voldemort's minions" he warned.
Before she could respond to that the cup made contact with her hand and she was heading back to Hogwarts.
Chapter 14
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 14.
Riddle House. Little Hangleton.
From here I could see that the big house stood on a hill and from there you could see the whole village and likely the reverse was true or it would be during the day. It was oddly dark here considering that it wasn't that late in the evening and it was June.
The house's location and sheer size openly claimed this to be the home of the nobility who owned these lands. Or rather it would have if the Riddles hadn't been dead for decades.
Now the house was in a state of disrepair, some of its windows had been boarded up, tiles were missing from its roof, and ivy had spread unchecked over its walls. Yet despite having been abandoned for so many years, it was still standing.
If it had ever been part of my plans to live in this world for a long period, I might have brought this big house and restored it if only to take it from Voldemort.
Since I wasn't going to live in this world purchasing the property would just be a waste of money and my residence in Privet Drive suited my plans better.
The house should not concern me. My focus needed to be on the person who was now its sole occupant, even if she might not actually be a person.
It all depended on how different this timeline was from the main one. Nagini could be Maledictus, someone cursed to transform into a snake if the Fantastic Beasts movies were canon in this universe.
Even if that were the case it wasn't going to make a difference as Nagini needed to be destroyed to ensure that no part of Voldemort could become a threat.
I had already considered capturing Nagini, finding a way to remove the curse, if that was even possible, and driving out the bit of Voldemort she had inside her. But I didn't think that this was the smartest thing to do.
Nagini wasn't like Marigold Potter, she was a true Horcrux and had served the Dark Lord willingly, she was even known for eating people and might go around killing people as a human.
Aside from all that she'd been a snake for so long, she might not be able to cope as a human and she could be completely insane. Overall, it seemed best to simply put her down.
As I entered the home I made sure that I kept a magical barrier around myself in case Nagini tried to attack me. This was neither the time nor the place to have a lowered guard.
She didn't attack me, at least not right away, and I found her lying by a fireplace that still had warm embers within it. She seemed uneager to move about.
"Master," a strange voice called out.
For a moment I was shocked that I understood the snake, but I shouldn't have been as one of the gifts from my patron was the ability to speak any language I came across. Until now everyone I'd met had spoken to me in English so I'd not made any use of this talent.
"He's gone," I said.
To me that sounded like English yet Nagini replied to my words as if I had spoken Parseltongue and I could hear her hissing.
Spoiler
[img: https/vignette.wikia./antagonists/images/5/5d/Potter-12-1024.jpg]
"Master can not be defeated!" she claimed.
She was wrong about that.
"Yes, he can" I stated "I have him right here".
Voldemort occupied the stone as an unmoving mass of black smoke rather than as a horrible baby. His physical form had broken down for some reason and now he was trapped as some sort of spirit in the stone.
In a way I'd given the dark wizard exactly what he wanted. He would never die, he was trapped in the stone and would be forever unless it was broken. He wouldn't ever live either, and like with Umbridge this was a fate well deserved.
"Lies!" declared Nagini.
She didn't seem inclined to attack. Perhaps she was feeling too sluggish due to digesting a recent meal or she was simply too cold to react with any speed. The reason did not matter, what did was that I took advantage of the situation to blast the snake with Felfire.
This was a magical fire so dangerous and hard to control had I tried this when I first gained my powers I might have burned down the whole village before I figured out how to put it out. Since Felfire could destroy souls there was no black smoke to be seen coming out of the ashes. I'd destroyed Nagini utterly.
I considered burning down the house anyway to remove any dark magical taint that might be around, but there was still a chance that the Felfire would get out of control, and people already avoided the property so it did seem worth the risk.
"So much for the prophecy," I muttered to myself.
As I made my way out of the big house I wondered how destiny would play out. Would a new dark lord rise and mark a new chosen one? Would Marigold have to vanish someone else?
Had I simply invalidated the prophecy, rendering it meaningless, or had Marigold already fulfilled it by vanquishing Voldemort when she was a baby?
Looking back I now regret not taking knowledge of Divination when it was offered by my patron. If nothing else it might have given me insight into the prophecy and the workings of fate.
On the other hand, perhaps ignorance was best. If I'd convinced myself that the prophecy needed to be fulfilled then I could have become like Albus Dumbledore or even run afoul of fate as Lord Voldemort had all those years ago when he tried to kill baby Potter.
"Master, my lord!" called out a human voice.
I quickly moved into the Ethereal Plane upon hearing that and headed over to the graveyard to find a young wizard who was searching the graveyard for Voldemort I assumed. This had to be Bartemius Crouch Junior.
"Wormtail, you coward. Where are you?" questioned the man.
So Barty must have been discovered before Marigold made it back as if he hadn't then he would have seen Marigold return to the school with the stunned Wormtail.
It must have taken him some time to get away from the castle before he could teleport here. That the wand wavers had failed to contain him didn't surprise me at all. I just hoped that his exit hadn't cost any students their lives.
I noticed that he'd had time to ditch Moody's eye and fake leg. I wondered what had happened to that it was supposed to be a rather useful enchanted item and it would be a shame if it was lost.
Once I felt sure it was him, not that it could be anyone else, I left the alternate plane and made sure that my wand was ready.
"You don't look that much like David Tennet" I commented.
Spoiler
[img: https/i./originals/2f/c9/b3/2fc9b3dab4c35a13e02fecc746c65434.jpg]
This was odd because plenty of other people did look like their movie counterparts. This man was ginger and not as handsome as the actor.
"Who are you?" the wizard asked.
I might as well tell him. Soon it wouldn't matter if he knew or not.
"Caelum Barrows" I introduced "The man who defeated the Dark Lord Voldemort".
Bartemius Crouch Junior snarled at me.
"Mudblood, you dare say his name," he said.
I didn't see why it mattered.
"Why not?" I said, "It's not his real name. He's not even a pureblood".
Crouch must suspect that given that he knew the ritual would take place here.
"Tell me what you've done with my lord" he demanded "He can't be killed!".
When it became clear that I wasn't going to tell him the dark wizard tried to put me under his control using one of the Unforgivables, and before he realised he'd failed I'd stunned him.
In my not humble view, stunners were a great bit of magic as you could stun someone really quickly and once someone was down for a while you could do whatever you wanted to them.
I then took out a sapphire from my pouch of holding. One I could use to contain Bartemius Crouch Junior. I had a few of the stones ready for this purpose and it was a good thing that I'd emptied the Lestrange vault as this was an expensive way of dealing with troublemakers.
He'd been a Ravenclaw, one of the best to ever join that house, he was one of the few people to score higher than myself on some of the OWL exams, something that Madam Marchbanks had informed me in a letter containing my results.
Whoever said that all witches and wizards who went dark were from Slytherin had clearly been letting their bias paint their worldview. Crouch was a Ravenclaw and Wormtail had gone into Gryffindor.
Such a shame that this bright young man had been a fanatic. He had wasted a great deal of potential and power. Now he would be trapped in a pretty blue stone for the rest of his existence.
Before trapping the man in my expensive collection of shiny rocks I patted him down. I found Moody's Eye and while it was tempting to keep it I should return it to him as that would be the decent thing to do.
When I took Barty's wand it felt warmer than expected. I knew that there were subtle rules governing the ownership of wands. They chose their wielders and ones with phoenix feather cores needed to be tamed somewhat before they could be used properly. It was also possible to win one.
Simply duelling someone wasn't enough the wand had to want to change owners and this wand seemed to have chosen me. Perhaps it somehow knew that Barty Crouch would never again cast any spells.
When I realised that this must be Mad-Eye Moody's wand not Barty Crouch's as the Death Eater must have been using the Auror's wand, then my claiming ownership made sense.
Mad-Eye's wand would jump at the chance to be used by anyone other than a Death Eater. Junior must have won the wand from Moody and someone tamed it.
"It would be nice to have a spare, but I think I'll return you to Moody," I told the wand.
All I got in response was a warm feeling like with my wand only different. As for obtaining more of them, I didn't even need a wand to do magic so there was no sense keeping this one, and I had a feeling I'd be able to claim the wands of a few Death Eaters before long.
Hospital Wing. Hogwarts School.
Spoiler [img: https/i./originals/1e/0d/3f/1e0d3f5e06c42f0f0bb624a8a6481e81.jpg]
Marigold Potter was glad that Madam Pomphey didn't hear her yelp in surprise as it would have drawn the healer's attention to her and right now she didn't want anyone else around as the peculiar Professor Barrows had just appeared.
While this odd wizard hadn't told her much so far, he at least seemed to want to tell her things, and he'd done more to deal with Voldemort than anyone Marigold had ever met. That alone made her willing to extend some trust.
Rather than come directly over to her bed the man in the stylish black robes moved to where Alastor Moody, the real one, was sleeping. Barrows placed an eye and wand next to the bed before he came over.
"I took them from the Death Eater who was pretending to be him" the wizard explained.
That made some sense to Marigold as she'd recently discovered that her Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher had been a Death Eater the whole time.
This made Marigold wonder if she should kill next year's DADA professor at the start of the term, and get it over with. Not that she thought she could kill someone in cold blood. Killing Quirrell hadn't been something she'd planned, it had happened in the heat of the moment. She tried not to think about it.
"I didn't realise you'd been hurt," said Barrows "How are you feeling?".
The Professor was now making use of the chair that Dumbledore had conjured when he'd questioned Marigold.
"I got knocked about a bit in the maze" she admitted "I've gotten hurt more practising Quidditch than I did today, but Madam Promphy says I have to stay".
Barrows smiled a little as if something amused him.
"You play Quidditch?" he asked "Are you any good?".
Truth be told it was the flying that she enjoyed. It was the only time she spent feeling free. It was a wonderful feeling, more than once she'd thought about simply flying away and never coming back.
She hadn't even been asked if she wanted to join the team, she'd been drafted and she'd not kicked up a fuss because she didn't want to be punished. Not that she minded as it was fun to play.
"I play Seeker and I'm the best," she said.
That wasn't empty boasting. She'd only ever lost one match and that was because of the Dementors. At least Cedric Diggory had been a good sport about the whole thing and had even offered a rematch because he wanted to win fairly.
Marigold never would have admitted to anyone that she'd been crushing on Cedric Diggory since then and he had been kind to hear even when her name came out of that bloody goblet.
A shame that Cedric didn't see her as more than a friendly rival as that bitch Cho Chang had gotten her claws into him. For some reason, Cedric just couldn't see what kind of witch Chang was.
"So what happened once you got back?" asked Barrows.
Things had been hectic, to say the least.
"When the portkey brought me to the castle everyone saw Pettigrew and he got dragged off by some of the Aurors. Professor McGongcal brought me here and later the Minister came to talk to me about what happened" she reported "You were right about him not believing that Voldemort was behind everything".
The Minister hadn't believed her about her godfather's innocence until he'd seen Wormtail in person and even then it was the Aurors who had taken the bastard in for questioning while the Fudge stuttered something which made him sound as if he was in denial of the situation.
"Professor, I told him that it was Pettigrew who was waiting for me in the graveyard. I only told him that I managed to stun Wormtail and get the cup" Marigold said.
The young witch took a deep breath to help calm herself. Just thinking about the Minister's stupidity made her a bit angry.
"Fudge promised me a trial for Sirius, but the Headmaster kept going on about Voldemort," Marigold was soon telling Barrows "Fudge called him mad and when Dumbledore found that Snape was missing the Headmaster stormed off".
Marigold paused for a moment before carrying on,
"I'm supposed to get the cup and the prize money tomorrow. The Ministry is a bit of a state because of Barty Crouch Junior somehow being alive" she said.
She'd never liked the professor who taught potions. He was either treating her like dirt or looking at her as if she was someone else, someone he'd cared for. It freaked her out and she'd never understood why he did that.
"The Headmaster came back a little later and demanded I tell him everything" Marigold confessed "Sir, I told him the truth".
Marigold wasn't sure why she was treating the man as if he was a teacher. It must be because he acted as adults should and helped her.
"Don't worry" he said "I know what Dumbledore will do next".
Marigold wondered what that was and when she asked the witch was surprised to get a straight answer.
"The Headmaster won't accept that I was able to deal with Voldemort and if he's trying to convince Fudge without success then he'll go public" Barrows told her "He'll try to use your name to support his agenda".
Marigold did not like the sound of that.
"If he does then you need to deny that Voldemort was involved" Barrows advised "Keep telling people that it was Peter Pettigrew and that your godfather is innocent. If you don't keep reminding people then Fudge will try to delay the trial because it will make the Ministry look bad to have locked up an innocent man".
Marigold found it odd to be going against Dumbledore's wishes, but she wanted her godfather to be free. Since Voldemort had been dealt and she'd won the stupid contest, then Sirius should be her concern.
"Yes, Professor," she said.
At least he seemed to be on her side. If only more of the adults around here could say the same.
"As for Snape, he won't be coming back" Barrows assured her "It would take too long to explain now but I will tell you everything over the summer. It's not safe to talk here".
Marigold was pleased to hear that. Sure she wanted more answers now, however, she could wait and it was nice to know she would get further information.
"For now, I can tell you that I've dealt with the snake and Barty Crouch Junior" Barrows let her know "And that I will see you over the summer holidays".
Dumbledore had already told her that she would need to go back to her relatives until the protection her mother's sacrifice gave her finally wore off.
By the sounds of things, she'd be getting a visitor while at Privet Drive. She wondered how Barrows would deal with her aunt and uncle, she didn't think things would work out well for them if they tried anything when he was around.
"Keep the ring on and don't let anyone use you for their ends" Barrows reminded her as he got up to leave "I'll see you soon".
Marigold Potter found that she was looking forward to seeing the wizard again. He was much more interesting than any of the other teachers.
Chapter 15
It's odd and fun how a story can end up going in a direction you didn't plan. This was not what I planned but my muse will not be denied.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 15.
Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
More than once since joining the magical world, Marigold Potter had been told that her mother could have a temper and when her anger was on display she could have quite a sharp tongue.
While Lily Potter never got the chance to pass this behaviour on to her only child by setting an example, Marigold somehow inherited these traits and she was in a state of fury right now.
As she stood in front of the house, the one that the Dursleys had abandoned without leaving so much as a note, Mary expressed quite a few profanities. Had school still been in session she'd have lost quite a few House Points by now.
Many of these worlds were rarely heard outside of the magical parts of the country and to be fair she had a lot to be upset about. Now it looked as if the hits were going to keep on coming.
The last few days had been an emotional rollercoaster for the young Miss Potter. The kind of ride that made visiting her vault at Gringotts seem like riding the carriages to school after getting off the Hogwarts Express.
For reasons she still didn't fully understand, and perhaps never would, her fellow Triwizard champions had fought each other in the maze, although in Cedric's case, he'd just been defending himself.
Then when Mary had gotten to the cup she'd been dragged across the country to find herself in a spooky graveyard.
After that events became even more confusing as Voldemort, who had taken the form of a very ugly baby, had arranged for her to be brought to him for some evil purpose that Marigold knew little about other than Voldemort wanted to somehow use her to gain himself a new body.
The only reason that hadn't happened was because a handsome man from the future came and prevented it. Even for Marigold, this was something weird even if she didn't find it as bizarre as perhaps she should.
He was a wizard who would be the school's new Muggle Studies Professor, a job that seemed very much at odds with the man considering that he'd defeated the evil Lord Voldemort and practically gift-wrapped Wormtail for her.
A person could be forgiven for thinking that this should be more than enough excitement for one week, or even much longer, but that had not been the end of the emotional rollercoaster.
Pettigrew had been dragged off by Aurors and even before the school term ended the Daily Prophet had reported that Wormtail had been sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss.
In Mary's opinion, if this had truly happened and given that the Prophet wasn't the most dependable news source it might not have, then it couldn't have happened to a more deserving person, aside from Lord Voldemort.
It should have led to her godfather having been declared free, but the Ministry still wanted Sirius for questioning and they were supposed to be having a hearing. Whatever that meant.
The young Miss Potter was greatly annoyed that the news hadn't even made the front page. It was the Ministry was trying to hide how much they had messed up rather than admit the mistake and try to fix it.
The paper was more interested in insulting Dumbledore than anything else. Not that she was his biggest fan these days since he was using his own political goals.
As if all of that wasn't enough for Marigold to worry about then the Headmaster, had as Barrows warned her, gone and told people that Voldemort was back.
On its own, that wouldn't have bothered her. Only he'd claimed that she had seen the evil wizard return to power before she had managed to escape.
Only that wasn't true. Her escape from the graveyard hadn't been by the skin of her teeth, and there had not been any struggle because of Professor Caelum Barrows.
She'd blamed the whole thing on Wormtail because Barrows had told her to while claiming that the Minister wouldn't believe her, and he'd been right about that.
Mary had agreed because the strange wizard had come out of nowhere and defeated Voldemort without any help. For him, it barely seemed like any trouble at all.
Yet for some reason, the Headmaster simply refused to believe that someone had defeated the dark lord. He was acting as if Voldemort was going to pop out of the shadows and start cursing people at any moment.
Perhaps she should have told Professor Dumbledore that Caelum Barrows claimed to be from the future. Which wasn't as impossible as it might sound given what he knew and his actions.
It had slipped her mind back when she'd been in the hospital wing and she hadn't realised until much later that she'd accidentally omitted that bit of information. Not that she thought he would have listened.
The last few days of the school year had been just like after Halloween when her name came out of that bloody goblet, with only her true friends supporting her, and most people thinking she was lying for some reason.
All those newspaper articles didn't help. That Skeeter bitch was calling her an attention-seeking brat again and implying that she had all sorts of mental problems.
Mary put those thoughts aside as best she could and tried to figure out what to do next. She'd taken the Knight Bus to get here and she could call it again if she wished to go somewhere else.
She had her money pouch and her Gringotts key so she could rent a room at the Leaky Cauldron even if that would lead to a lot of people seeing and given public opinion she wasn't sure she would be welcome at the pub.
Not to mention that there might still be some Death Eaters out there who would be mad about their master not getting a new body. She'd be safer in the Muggle world, but there was no one here whom she could go to for help.
What could have made her relatives leave like this? They'd never cared about her, however, they were very stubborn and wouldn't have easily left Privet Drive, and there was no way Dumbledore would have let them leave.
Mary wished she had an owl so she could send a letter. She'd never needed one as the school had plenty and when her friends sent her messages their owls always stayed around for a reply.
All she had was Checkers her black and white cat. She'd already let him out of his carry case and he didn't need a key to get into the house as Uncle Veron had installed a catflap in the back door.
Mary had wondered at the time if that meant her Uncle was warming up to her or if he approved of cats. As it turned out he just didn't want to have to keep letting the cat in and out of the house.
Even if she had an owl who would she write to for help? Parvati was spending the summer with her extended family in India and Neville's grandmother had never liked Mary ever since she called out the old bird on her treatment of her grandson.
Things between her and Neville had gotten a bit strained since he'd admitted to feeling an attraction to another girl. Not that Marigold could judge as she kept thinking of a different boy than Neville who had always been more like what she a brother would be.
"They moved already," said a familiar voice.
She'd been so lost in her thoughts she hadn't even heard someone coming down to the street.
"Professor Barrows!" she called out "What are you doing here?".
He kept popping up and Marigold wondered if the man was following her around or if he at least had some way of keeping tabs on her. If he hadn't saved her from Voldemort the idea would have worried her.
Marigold needed a moment to fully recognise the man as he was wearing casual muggle clothing, trainers, jeans and a simple black t-shirt. He'd tied his long hair into a ponytail
"I live here" he replied "At Number 7 I mean".
Even Mary wasn't trusting or naive enough to believe this was a coincidence.
"You moved here to keep an eye on me" she reasoned.
He didn't deny it.
"Something bad is supposed to have happened to you over the summer so I set myself up here to prevent it, assuming that I haven't already" he said.
Mary found herself relaxing a little. She was sure that there were things Professor Barrows wasn't telling her, but in his case, it seemed as if he wanted to tell her more, but he just didn't have the time.
Perhaps now she could get some answers and she wanted them because she was getting a bit concerned about this wizard.
"That's a bit creepy" she commented.
It would have been more so if he hadn't outright admitted his motivations and saving her from Voldemort made her willing to try to trust his man even if he was still unknown to her.
"Hold on, if you've been here then didn't you see them leave?" questioned Mary.
There would have been a van to move the furniture and people to carry everything as there was no Vernon could have done it. Why hadn't he warned her about this?
"I wasn't watching them," said Caelum Barrows "I came here to protect you, not to spy on my neighbours".
The For Sale sign was a big clue, but Mary had known that her relatives were planning to leave the house once she stopped having to stay at Number 4. She thought that Barrows must have thought the same.
"Do you want to come to my place?" offered the wizard "It's either that or wait for one of your guards to turn up".
Mary felt her anger rising again.
"What guards?" she questioned.
Since when did she have bodyguards?
"Dumbledore has people watching you" he said "Mrs Figg is one of his agents. She reports to him".
Hold on, the crazy cat lady who used to babysit her whenever he relatives went off to do something fun was a spy for the Headmaster.
"That can't be true" Mary insisted "She's crazy".
Barrows shrugged as if he didn't care if she accepted this information as true or dismissed it out of hand.
"You could always go and ask her" he suggested.
This was when Barrows began to walk away.
"Professor, you can't leave me here!" she protested.
He turned to look at her.
"I'm only a few houses away" he pointed out "And one of Dumbledore's people will be here soon to take you somewhere you can be kept safe".
So that would be another summer locked up. No, she wasn't going to allow it.
"Can I stay with you?" she requested "At least for a little while".
Barrows gestured for her to follow.
"If you're going to stay with me then we'll have to do it right," he said, "Which means in the morning we need to call social services and inform the police about your relatives leaving you".
Marigold was shocked by this and she didn't want people knowing her private business.
"Why?" she asked "Can't you just leave it alone?".
Barrows led her into his home before replying. His house didn't look that different from Number 4 on the outside, but on the inside it was different.
Professor Barrows must have cleared up before coming to meet her as it looked a little too tidy, yet unlike Number 4 it wasn't freakishly clean. It looked lived in like it was a real home.
"Because it is a crime to abandon a minor," he answered "Your aunt and uncle have made you homeless and a sixteen-year-old girl on the street is nothing something social services will be happy about. As for the police, well I'm not related to you and I'm not married so people might think I'm taking advantage of you".
She hadn't considered that and she could see how people might get the wrong idea.
"Since you're sixteen and in school most of the time they might even let me take temporary custody of you, at least until your godfather can take you in" Barrows said "If you would like me to I mean".
Marigold was a bit taken aback by this. No one ever went to this much trouble for her, or if they did they never discussed it.
"Can I think about it" she requested.
Sirius should have his hearing soon and then she could move in with him. Until then this place was as good as any and she found that despite not knowing him she trusted Barrows.
He'd had plenty of chances to harm her if that had been what he wanted or he could have simply let Voldemort kill her. Mary knew that if the dark wizard had returned to power she would not be able to defeat him.
"We can deal with it tomorrow," said Barrows "You'll be safe here I have plenty of magical protections around the house".
The wizard gestured at the TV, one that was bigger than the set at Number 4.
"I'm going to make dinner" he informed his guest "Feel free to try out the Playstation, I have a few games for it, and I have plenty of movies if video games aren't your cup of tea".
She'd never heard of a Playstation, and suddenly she found herself very eager to find out how one worked as it looked interesting.
As for the TV, she'd rarely been allowed to hang out in the living room and make use of the one her relatives seemed to enjoy a lot. Barrows was quite different.
The only thing her relatives would have disapproved of in this house was the raven that Barrows had in place of an owl. The bird paid her quite a bit of attention, but this didn't bother Mary as she'd lots of strange animals while at school.
As she began to figure out how the game console worked, she smelled something starting to cook and she wasn't sure what it was just that it smelled good. Hogwarts food was great, but it was always British dishes on offer.
When she was out of school she didn't get much to eat at all and Vernon didn't tolerate foreign muck on his table as he didn't like anything unBritish.
Which had often made Mary wonder why he kept going on about going abroad on holiday. He never seemed to enjoy the holidays and always complained about the poor service.
It took a while for the idea to settle in her mind, and when it did Marigold Potter couldn't help wondering if this was how other teenage girls spent their time when not in school.
She wasn't being made to stay in her room or to do any housework. Barrows had even brought her a can of something cold and right out of the fridge. It was so much better than pumpkin juice.
Marigold Potter felt she could get used to this and decided to take the Professor up on his offer, at least until her godfather was sorted out.
Chapter 16
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 16.
Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
Marigold Potter reached out and snatched the front part of the newspaper as soon as the headline got her attention. This was rude as I'd been reading the article that went into more detail about the headline.
"Professor, did you burn down Draco Malfoy's house?" Mary demanded to know.
Mere moments ago we'd been sitting here and having a nice breakfast. Now things were about to get a bit heated.
"Yes, Mary, I did," I admitted.
Marigold simply wasn't used to people straightforwardly telling her things, at least not if they were authority figures, so for a moment or two she just sat there and stared at me.
"Why?" she finally asked.
My reasoning wasn't complex.
"With Voldemort gone, the biggest single threat to you is Lucius Malfoy," I told her.
Which was something she could not deny given that he had tried to kill her at the end of the Chamber of Secrets. No doubt something similar had happened in this timeline.
"He also controls the Ministry via Fudge so I need Lucius Malfoy busy and everyone distracted, while I get the Ministry to give me temporary custody of you," I was now explaining "I didn't plan it at the time, but he needs to be busy for a few days so that he can't try to get custody of you, and I'm sure he'd try if wasn't otherwise occupied".
Marigold made a face that showed how she felt about that idea.
"It also matters that his house burned down because a manor like that is a big investment in money as well a statement of power," I told the young witch "Losing it will cost Lucius Malfoy a lot of respect. As a bonus, many people will now be less scared of Malfoy because they've seen someone attack him openly. That will weaken him politically".
Since I'd seen the manor in the Harry Potter films I was able to visualise the location well enough to teleport myself to the big house and Renwick had scouted the place out to find that there were currently no servants on the property.
I could only assume with the loss of Dobby that the Malfoy were hiring servants to come in and clean up as required, maybe renting House Elves from other families. What mattered was that the house had been clear when I'd burned it down.
"But he's still rich isn't he?" questioned Marigold "He can keep on bribing the Minister of Magic".
Indeed he could as his gold would be Gringotts, not his house or at least most of it.
"He can, and I will permanently deal with Lucius later, he's just a little too public to go after, at least for now" I explained "I can't just capture him when he's at the Ministry and I don't want to have to harm his wife or his son which is why I didn't attack his home while people were there".
Marigold looked as if she had different opinions on that matter. She wasn't a bloodthirsty person, but I didn't think she would have minded much if Lucius Malfoy had died in a fire.
"In the future that I know about Narcissa Malfoy helped you out, if only to save Draco, who isn't as bad as his father," I explained "That family needs to be knocked down a peg or two, but I'm not going to kill them and only Lucius needs to be captured".
Marigold seemed to accept my words, then she bit her lower lip as she spent a moment thinking about something.
"What about the other Death Eaters?" she wondered.
I'd thought about this quite often and I saw no reason not to tell Marigold my plans as she responded well to people being honest with her. Plus her mind could no longer be looked into.
"You mustn't share this information with anyone," I told her "But I do plan to deal with some of the other Death Eaters as I did Voldemort. Not the ones in Azkaban, and I don't even know the names of all of them, but a few more people need to go missing to make sure you are safe and the Wizarding World can become a better place".
Sealing Umbridge away had been a good start on that.
"I'm still confused about a few things," admitted Marigold as she finished the breakfast that I'd prepared for the both of us "Like why can't you work with Professor Dumbledore? Aren't you both on the same side even if you aren't friends?".
That could take some explaining.
"Aside from the fact that I don't want him to control what I do, the main reason we can't work together is because your Headmaster believes in the prophecy that was made about you," I explained "There's a record of it in the Ministry of Magic that I will help you to get and you can view it later. But the essence of it is that it claims that there will be a Chosen One who the Dark Lord marks and that the Chosen One can defeat the Dark Lord".
Marigold's hand went right to her famous scar.
"The thing about prophecies is that they often only make sense after they are completed," I explained "And you might have already completed the one that mentions you, but Dumbledore won't accept that".
I had more to say.
"Since Dumbledore believes in this prophecy, and because the prophecy was made to him, he thinks that no one else can defeat Voldemort and that he has been chosen to guide you to that end" I told Marigold "He won't accept that I have defeated the Dark Lord".
I wouldn't be shocked if the Headmaster tried to free Tom Riddle from the stone I had him trapped in just so the prophecy could play out.
"For me things are different" I was now saying "I don't trust prophecies and I don't think you should have to deal with the problems of this society".
That wasn't all that needed to be spoken about.
"Dumbledore isn't preparing you for life in the magical world," I said "And he hasn't trained you to take on dark wizards. Make of that what you will".
I'd let her come to her own conclusions about Dumbledore's motives.
"It should all make a bit more sense after we visit the Ministry, and you can hear the prophecy, which we need to go and do before anyone realises that you didn't sleep at Number 4 last night" I was now saying "We also need to make sure that we handle things the right way here in the muggle world so that we don't get into trouble".
Even if a member of the Order of Phoenix wasn't already patrolling the neighbourhood they soon would be and they might try to take Marigold away before I had any legal authority to prevent that.
"Hold on," said Marigold as she got up from the table "If Dumbledore sends people to fetch me they aren't going to care what the Muggles have to say. Can't they just drag me off?".
I had considered this.
"Dumbledore isn't popular at the Ministry these days," I told her "People won't just let him do what he wants. So if I have legal custody of you and he tries to take you away then I can go to the DMLE to tell them that you have been abducted. Anyone helping Dumbledore will find themselves in a lot of legal trouble. The threat of that might be enough to stop them from taking you anywhere you don't want to go. Even if they do take you then you can leave and come back here. I'll shelter you for as long you want to stay with me".
Marigold looked pleased by this.
"But what happens if Sirius has his hearing?" she wondered "Then isn't he my legal guardian?".
Since he was her godfather then his authority over her would be greater than mine even if both the magical government and the Mudane one gave me custody.
"Yes, if he is named your godfather in your parent's will or there is some sort of record of it," I said "I don't know what kind of authority over you a godparent has in the magical world, but in the Muggle World being a godparent is supposed to be a big deal. If Sirius were to apply for custody of you then he could take you away".
Marigold could be conflicted by this. She certainly looked worried. She might fear getting locked away for the summer by her godfather under Dumbledore's orders.
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it and you should make it clear to Black that you don't want to be locked up" I said "If he cares about you he'll listen".
The man was a Dumbledore follower and might just do what the old man ordered regardless of what Marigold wanted, but there was only so much I could do about that.
"For now we have other things to worry about" I reminded Marigold "Get your shoes on and make sure you have your wand".
As soon as those words came out of my mouth I realised that I sounded like a Dad it was rather disturbing.
Dumbledore's Office. Hogwarts School.
The Headmaster frowned as he looked down at the headline of today's paper. The line itself didn't matter, what concerned the professor was the content of the article.
While it distracted people away from Fudge's political attacks that didn't mean it wasn't worrying for different reasons.
While the parents of the students of his school had been at Platform Nine and Three Quarters to take their children home for the summer, someone had burned down Malfoy Manor with magical fire.
A magical fire so devastating that what was left could not even be repaired with any kind of spells. The Ministry suspected that dark magic was involved, but they always did at times like these.
This might seem like an attempt to kill the Malfoys if not for the fact that it had been performed when it would be known that the older Malfoys would be out of the house.
If someone had wanted to kill the Malfoys they could have attacked the house at night. The burning down of their manor was a message.
Dumbledore suspected that it was Voldemort and that the Dark Lord had burned down Malfoy Manor as a punishment.
It made sense as Lucius Malfoy had denied serving Voldemort willingly and it was clear to anyone with a bit of sense that Lucius controlled Fudge via gold, thus seizing power for himself.
Tom Riddle would allow no rivals and he would be angry at those Death Eaters who had abandoned him. Dumbledore wouldn't be surprised to discover that more Death Eaters who had denounced Voldemort as their master, soon came under some sort of attack.
Of course, it was Voldemort. Who else would be so bold? Lucius Malfoy was not one to cross lightly and whoever had burned down the manor did not fear Lucius or the Ministry finding out about their actions.
Dumbledore was concerned about what Tom would do next. With Serverus Snape having vanished he had no spy in the ranks of the Death Eaters. As such he had no idea what Voldemort was up to.
The disappearances of Bertha Jorkins and later Barty Crouch Senior had also forwarned Dumbledore that the Dark Lord was active once again.
Both he and Severus had known that Voldemort would return as the dark mark on Snape's arm had slowly become more visible as the months went by and this had been confirmed by Igor Karkaroff whose mark had been doing the same.
If the Dark Lord had summoned his Death Eaters those two men would have felt it and they both could have decided to test their chances on their own by fleeing. As foolish as that was.
Snape must have fled that night fearing Voldemort's wrath more than his desire to make amends for past actions. A shame as Serverus had been working hard towards that goal for many years.
There was even the slight possibility that Snape had returned to his old master, but Albus refused to dwell on that idea. Something bad must have happened to the potion's master.
The lack of information was frustrating and the one witness to Voldemort's return had lied about it to the Minister, claiming that Pettigrew was behind everything, as if that poor excuse for a wizard had the intelligence or the will.
She claimed to have done it because Fudge would not have believed the truth, which he wouldn't have, and Dumbledore would have liked to have thought that Marigold kept the focus on Pettigrew so that her godfather's freedom could be assured.
However, Dumbledore suspected something much more sinister was going on, and that Marigold had not wanted to lie to anyone, and had she been acting as herself she have warned anyone who would listen.
That was why he'd openly declared Voldemort had returned, to force Marigold to tell people the truth, but she hadn't and that upset the student body quite a bit.
Dumbledore didn't even consider that the student body would become hostile to Marigold. He had forgotten about all those newspaper articles and how many people still didn't accept that Marigold hadn't put her own name in the Goblet of Fire.
Not that he cared as he had more important things on his mind. The Headmaster would not accept that Barrows had somehow defeated Voldemort. That could only happen if Marigold was killed by Tom as only this would render the dark wizard mortal enough to finally die.
He'd always suspected that Voldemort had used Horcruxes to cheat death, and when he'd gotten his hands on Tom Riddle's diary he'd know for certain.
Dumbledore believed that as long as Marigold Potter lived Voldemort was never gone and all the signs pointed to his return.
Then there was the fact that Dumbledore could no longer look into Marigold Potter's mind. It was somehow shielded even from him.
Tom must have done something to her and the Headmaster had wondered if the girl was possessed even if he had found no evidence of that.
Barrows was involved. Perhaps he worked for Voldemort, as there was no way he could have dealt with Riddle when Albus Dumbledore hadn't been able to find a way.
If so then Dumbledore needed the young wizard close so that he could keep an eye on him, if that endangered his students then so be it, he'd risked them before when it had been required.
Tom must have some influence over Marigold, to make her lie, and to shield her mind, no doubt by using the link between them.
This link could be something to use against Tom if the matter was handled correctly and it was clear that Marigold needed to be watched more carefully than before.
For now, she could stay with her relatives as it would keep the girl out of the way while he worked to stabilise his political position and to organise the Order.
He also might need to use her to get Slughorn out of retirement if Snape didn't come crawling back and there was that little bit of information the old potion's master might have. Maybe Potter would have some luck obtaining it.
Marigold's recent victory over the other Triwizard champions should draw Horace's interest to Miss Potter even if the girl wasn't the spitting image of her mother when she'd been Slughorn's favourite student.
He would need them to act as his agents as he was too much in the public eye to do much. Once they were ready he would have them keep tabs on Marigold and find out more about Barrows.
Chapter 17
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 17.
Godric's Hollow. The West Country.
This small community, which centred around a village square with only a church, a post office, a pub, and a few retail shops, making up that square, was rather famous, even if most of its residents would never know why.
Godric's Hollow had been inhabited by several notable wizarding families during its history. The Dumbledore family and Bathilda Bagshot both resided in the village.
It was also supposedly the birthplace of Godric Gryffindor, one of the Founders of Hogwarts, but he'd lived a thousand years ago so that might just be a legend.
All of that history paled when compared to a more recent claim to fame. This little village was where the Potters lived when the Dark Lord Voldemort met his downfall.
It was also where James and Lily Potter were buried, and that was why Marigold and I were visiting this little village.
Spoiler
[img: https/media./photos/5dc1c8086895100008ef30c1/16:9/w_2560%2Cc_limit/GettyImages-848567204.jpg]
With our business at the Ministry complete I'd decided that informing social services was something that could be done by phone and that I would take Marigold to visit her parent's graves.
I had no real motive for doing so it just seemed like the thing to do.
"That all went much more smoothly than I expected" I admitted as Marigold and I walked down the main road of the village "I thought I'd have to bribe someone".
As it turned out getting temporary custody of Marigold hadn't taken much effort. I suspected that something political was going on behind the scenes.
"Susan Bones always says that her aunt is strict but fair," the young witch told me.
I doubted that it was as simple as that. Amelia Bones was the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and from the moment we'd been directed into her office I'd known that there was more going on than appeared.
Since I had no idea what that was, and frankly I didn't care much, I was not going to look the gift horse in the mouth, nor did I wish to attract any more attention to what was going on with Marigold in case people tried to take advantage of her.
With that in mind, I'd gotten us out of the Ministry as soon as possible. I doubted that Madam Bones would try to take Marigold into her care because she was so close to turning seventeen.
Governments can take a very long time to do things, and with all that was going on by the time someone was ready to make a move, it was more than likely that Marigold would be back at Hogwarts.
That might have been what Amelia Bones was thinking when she filled out the paperwork. It could be better for Bones to keep Marigold out of the Ministry for a while and she no doubt felt that the Chosen One now owed her a favour.
"We'll go back tonight and get the Prophecy" I promised "For now, I think you should talk to your parents".
She knew why I'd brought her here and while she should be safe from Death Eaters, I'd told her to keep her Invisibility Cloak on her after she'd reminded me that she owned one.
I mostly wanted her to wear it so that no follower of Dumbledore could spot her and try to take her away. I wouldn't put it past the Headmaster's followers to kidnap the poor girl.
Once we entered the right part of the village we began to look around the graveyard for any slabs of stone that had the name Potter engraved onto them.
I found the grave of Ignotus Peverell the original owner of the Invisibility Cloak who was also an ancestor of James Potter. The cloak had been passed down the generations into the Potter line.
There were also quite a few Potters buried here which suggested the cottage that Lily, James and their baby were staying in when Voldemort attacked, was some sort of ancestral home.
Dumbledore's mother Kendra and his sister Ariana who was killed either by one of her brothers or the Dark Lord Grindlewald had also been laid to rest in this place.
There was no sign of his father's grave, perhaps he'd been buried at Azkaban since he died there after attacking the muggle boys who had tormented his daughter so badly it made her mentally ill.
Since I'd never been a father, and had no desire to be, I didn't think that I was fit to judge that man as I didn't know what I'd do in that situation.
When we found it we saw that the grave of Marigold's parents was made of white marble, not at all cheap, and I wondered who had paid for it.
The headstone had been engraved with Lily and James' dates of birth and their deaths as well as a message.
" The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death?" read out Marigold. "What does that mean".
Something stirred deep in my memory.
"It's a quote from the bible" I told her "Something about Christ defeating all enemies, the last being death itself".
Odd words to find on the graves of magic-users since Christianity is not a kind faith towards witches, and I did wonder what it meant in this context, or who had chosen it.
I conjured up some flowers to lay on the white marble grave using a rather advanced bit of magic that was beyond Marigold's level of education.
Since conjured items faded away after a time, depending on the power of the wizard or witch casting the spell these flowers would be gone in a matter of hours at most.
I then backed away and left the young witch to whisper things to the mortal remains of her parents without having to worry about me listening to her.
No doubt she had a lot to tell them, but she didn't get the chance to finish talking as before long we were no longer alone.
"Someone's coming" I informed Marigold.
I turned to see an old woman who I thought to be a Muggle at first until she took out a wand and matched my feat of magic before surpassing me by adding a lot more flowers.
If she had noticed Mary slipping under her invisible cloak she made no mention of it.
"Did you know the Potters?" she asked.
I had not.
"No" I answered, "I just came to pay my respects to the witch and wizard who defeated Voldemort".
She didn't react much to the name, if anything she seemed pleased by my words.
"Margiold Potter is supposed to have vanquished You-Know-Who," she said.
Even if I hadn't known about the Sacrificial Love power I still would have suspected that Lily and James Potter had some sort of plan in place even if there had been a million-to-one odds of it working.
"I knew Lily Potter, she was a bright young witch so if anyone could figure out a way to shield little Mary from the Killing Curse, then it would be her" the woman stated.
There was a moment of silence before the witch spoke again.
"Where are my manners" she suddenly said "I'm Bathilda Bagshot"
I knew that name. She was a historian whose work on wizarding history was published under the title A History of Magic.
"A pleasure to meet you" I replied "I'm Caelum Barrows, a big fan of your work".
Unlike Binns, this witch knew a lot more about magical history than goblin rebellions and wars against the rampaging giants.
"Thank you, Mr Barrows" she replied as she smiled at me "Would you and Mary like a cup of tea?"
Even if she had seen Marigold before the young witch put on the cloak it was strange that she'd been able to recognise the student.
"I'd know that red hair anywhere" said Bagshot "Besides, who else around her age would come to pay their respects to Lily and James".
A fair bit of deduction.
"You knew my parents?" Mary asked as she became visible.
Since this old woman could not be Nagini, as I'd destroyed the snake, I saw no harm in spending some time with her.
"I was one of the few people who did towards the end" said Bagshot as we followed her "You can't exactly get many visitors when you are in hiding".
The two witches began to talk of events that took place about sixteen years ago as I kept an eye on our surroundings.
Once we had entered her home, which was much more pleasant than expected, I took a seat at the old witch's kitchen table as she insisted on making tea for us without any aid from me or Mary.
I admired some of the photos, many of which didn't move so they were either Muggle-made or they'd never had whatever spell it was that animated them placed upon them. Given the ages of some of the pictures, the magic may have worn off.
One more than the others caught my eye and Miss Bagshot soon noticed my interest.
"That is my great-nephew Gellert and Albus Dumbledore when they were both seventeen" I was informed, "Close as brothers, they were, until they had a falling out".
They were lovers as far as I knew. If she was aware then Bagshot most likely kept it to herself as the Wizarding World was almost Victorian when it came to sex and it had been Victorian times back then.
"Gellert Grindlewald?" Mary asked, "As in the Dark Lord who Professor Dumbledore defeated?".
Bagshot looked a lot shocked at Mary's words for some reason.
"He wasn't always a Dark Lord," she said "And please don't judge me for the family connection".
I would not.
"Most purebloods are related to each other" I reminded Mary.
I turned my attention to Mrs Bagshot.
"From my studies of history, I know that your nephew spent a summer here a very long time ago. He was looking into the Hallows when he met Dumbledore and from what I've been able to piece together they didn't part as friends" I mentioned.
Bagshot served some biscuits before carrying on with the conversation.
"No one ever believes me when I tell them it was Albus who set Gellert on his path," said the old witch "I know Gellert was looking into things best left alone before he was expelled from school, but it wasn't until he met Albus that he got it into his head to try to rule the world. The silly boy".
I knew that Dumbledore had in a way helped to create two Dark Lords, or at the very least he'd played a role in shaping their lives.
He could have done more to prevent both of them from rising to power, and while there was a sort of magic that prevented him from fighting Grindlewald directly, he still encouraged his boyfriend to seize power and did next to nothing to deal with Riddle.
"Truth be told I've never really trusted Dumbledore" I informed the magical historian "He wears too many hats".
That got me an odd look from both of the witches in the room.
"It's a Muggle expression it means he's trying to fill more roles at once than is realistically possible" I explained "He holds three positions that three different people should hold. How can he be a good Headmaster at Hogwarts if he's judging people in court and heading up the ICW".
Dumbledore claims he doesn't trust himself with power and that's why he never took the role of Minister of Magic, but he held high positions and until recently the Minister took advice from Dumbledore all the time.
So much so that it was rumoured that Fudge had worn out post owls due to needing Dumbledore's advice on matters of state.
In my view, no one with that kind of power would give it up unless forced to and rather worryingly Dumbledore even had his own Death Eaters in the form of the Order of Phoneix.
At least they didn't go around killing people for their master, or if some of them did then they were very good at covering up their actions.
"Exactly and he got all that because he locked up my Gellert," stated Bagshot "I know that Gellert should be punished for what he did, but I will never believe that he would have gone so far without Albus giving him all those ideas".
Neither did I.
"I started to write a book, to tell the truth, and then suddenly everyone started saying I'd gone funny in the head, like what they say about you in the paper," said Bagshot as she turned her attention to Mary.
The people of the wizarding world really were a bunch of sheep. This woman is a celebrated historian whose book is brought by every first-year Hogwarts student and yet everyone thinks she's mad just because of some silly rumours.
"Even your mother didn't believe me and she was normally such a bright young woman" Bagshot was now saying "That's how Albus Dumbledore gets away with so much, everyone thinks he can do no wrong, and at some point, he started to believe it".
As I began to look through some notes that Bagshot had lying around I discovered how Rita Skeeter wrote her Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore book so quickly. Bagshot had done most of the work already.
"I'm surprised you never mentioned any of this in your book," I said as I gestured to her notes.
Bagshot sighed.
"No one would ever publish a book that paints Albus Dumbledore as anything other than the best wizard since Merlin" she complained "Someone from the Daily Prophet tries to knock him off his high horse every once in a while, but people always forget what's in the paper as soon as something else interesting happens".
Mary made an unladylike noise that signalled her agreement with those words.
"Mrs Bagshot, I'd fund a book that exposes Dumbledore's secrets" I offered.
Unless Voldemort somehow escaped my demi-plane and the stone he was trapped in, he wasn't going to be seen in public and so people would keep thinking that Dumbledore was losing the plot.
"I doubt any publisher would print it even if anyone would buy it," she said.
I gave it some thought.
"The Lovegoods print the Quibbler maybe I can convince them" I suggested "I don't think they are big Dumbledore fans".
Bagshot gave it some thought.
"I'm too old to write another book all by myself, but if you're serious about knocking Albus Dumbledore down a peg I'll help you" she offered.
This I could agree to.
"I have to warn you that it might not sell well," said the old witch "And publishing isn't cheap".
People should buy the book if only because it would appeal to those who like reading about juicy secrets.
"There's always a risk in any investment," I pointed out.
She accepted that and it wasn't as if she'd be paying for anything. I would likely get the sack if the book was published while I was teaching at Hogwarts, but by then I should have completed my work in this world.
As Mary and I made our way to my home I wondered if I could convince her to talk about her experiences with Dumbledore including her placement in an abusive home. It would be helpful, but I'd have to handle the matter very delicately.
Chapter 18
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 18.
The DMLE. Ministry of Magic.
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, at least for now, looked at parchment and felt a little stunned by the words before him.
"What did you do?" he asked.
He wasn't even sure how to phrase the question because he was so shocked by what he had just read. How could anyone be so foolish as to hand over the Girl-Who-Lived to some wizard they knew so little about?
"I did my job," stated Amelia Bones, the current head of the DMLE, in a cold tone of voice "Mr Barrows came to us and informed my department that Marigold Potter, who is supposed to be under your care, was abandoned by the guardians you left her with".
Learning that had also shaken Albus Dumbledore and he was rather displeased that Arabelle Figg hadn't given him some warning about what those blasted muggles had done.
He'd considered sending people to escort the Durselys back to Privet Drive, but there was little point since the magical protections would soon start to completely fade now that Petunia no longer considered Number 4 to be her home.
Besides, he didn't have the influence he once had with the Ministry and he couldn't send people off on those sorts of errands. Not if Madam Bones was involved.
"Mr Barrows applied for temporary custody and I made sure it was quickly approved," the important witch told him "Miss Potter will be seventeen in about a month and she seemed quite comfortable with Mr Barrows, as such I saw no reason for her not to stay with a professor for one summer".
On the surface of things, it did seem reasonable to trust a professor of Hogwarts to take care of Miss Potter for the summer. After all, the professors were left in charge of many magical children during the school year.
"I know where to find him if my department has any questions" Bones was now saying "Mr Barrows is quite happy to assist in our investigation of the Dursleys".
Albus Dumbledore took a moment to calm himself. He was in the office of the head of the DMLE, and it wouldn't do to upset the woman where she was strongest.
His standing at the Ministry had weakened over the years and it had never been weaker than it was at this time. He couldn't afford to make an enemy of Madam Bones.
"Why are you investigating Miss Potter's Muggle family?" he asked "Is there a need? Perhaps this is all just some sort of misunderstanding".
He knew better since Mr and Mrs Dursley had not wanted to take in another child and they had been planning to move in any case.
Should Madam Bones look deeply into the arrangement he'd made with Lily Potter's sister, it could spell more trouble for him. Hence he wanted to discourage such an investigation.
"Child abandonment is a crime in both our world and that of the muggles" Madam Bones explained.
She had chosen not to tell Dumbledore that Mr Barrows planned to inform the muggle law enforcement and obtain custody in their world.
Since they don't recognise someone as an adult until they are eighteen it was possible that Marigold Potter would be spending more than one summer with the professor.
The wizarding world's rules about such things could be rather complex, but it was generally accepted that a seventeen-year-old witch or wizard could live alone.
It rarely ever happened because most magical children had some family who could take them in. They would spend most of their time at school in any case.
"Mr Barrows can not look after Marigold Potter," Dumbledore stated.
Madam Bones had never been his biggest fan even at the best of times and this was bad because Dumbledore couldn't appeal to Fudge to override the Head of the DMLE.
"If he's unsuited to look after a child then why did you hire him to teach at the school?" Bones enquired.
Dumbledore didn't have an answer to that question, as such, he tried a different track. One that didn't lead to more questions being asked.
He had not yet given up hope that he could convince Madam Bones that he knew best for Marigold Potter. After all, she was an aunt and thus understood that sometimes choices had to be made for a child regardless of what they wanted.
"Mrs Potter needs greater protection," he insisted.
"Why?" Bones wanted to know.
Dumbledore wasn't used to people questioning him like this, at least not when it came to Marigold Potter.
"If there is a threat out there, then I'll have my Aurors keep an eye on her," said Madama Bones "That might be best given that Barty Crouch Junior is out there somewhere. That's something else you and I need to talk about. It's clear that Hogwarts is no longer safe I'm planning on installing a DMLE presence at the school".
More Ministry involvement was the last thing that Dumbledore wanted and Bones had little interest in the school. She was playing her own political game. That much was clear.
"No, there is no need for that," said the Headmaster.
Madam Bones didn't need to raise her voice to get her words across.
"Mr Barrows expressed his concern about people trying to remove Marigold Potter from his home over the summer," she mentioned "I assured him that the DMLE would be quick to respond if anyone interfered with their summer plans".
Dumbledore needed to find out more about Barrow's agenda.
"May I enquire what plans would those be?" he asked.
If Barrows took the girl out of the country it could be problematic even if it was just for a holiday. If the girl got a taste for life outside of Britain she might decide that she didn't want to come back.
Granted there was little chance of that given it would mean leaving her friends and godfather behind, but there was still a chance, and that was unacceptable.
"No, you may not," said the Head of the DMLE "Hogwarts is no longer open and by the time Miss Potter returns to the school, if she chooses to, she will be seventeen".
No, Marigold would not choose to go to a different school. She loved Hogwarts.
"Once she's of age she is free to make her plans and to share them with whomever she wants" stated Madam Bones.
Dumbledore simply couldn't allow Marigold to stay with Barrows, he might be working with Tom, or be
working on his own agenda.
"But Sirius Black is Marigold's legal guardian" the Headmaster insisted.
Bones was ready to shut down that argument. Sirius's guardianship was acceptable enough when it came to signing permission slips for Hogsmeade visits, but he couldn't come into the Ministry and any sign paperwork.
"He's still wanted for questioning, and until his legal status has been sorted out he can't take custody of anyone" she pointed out "By the time there is a hearing, Miss Potter will have the right to decide who she lives with and it won't be our concern".
Dumbledore didn't give up yet.
"I am certain that Barrows was involved in the events at the end of the Triwizard Tournament".
Bones looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Do you have any evidence of this?" she asked.
Since he didn't the Headmaster kept his mouth shut.
"If you'll excuse me we're still trying to find Barty Crouch Junior" said Bones "The wizard who impersonated one of your oldest friends and you somehow didn't notice for an entire school year. You and I need to talk about that later in the week".
The Headmaster quickly made his way out of the DMLE. He wasn't going to give up yet.
There were people he could depend upon and if Barrows wasn't a dark wizard he might be convinced to hand over Marigold without any fuss.
Once Marigold was seventeen she would choose to spend time with her godfather regardless of what any hearing decided. Until then Dumbledore needed to find some other way of keeping the witch safe.
Department of Mysteries. Ministry of Magic.
The Department of Mysteries was a section of the Ministry of Magic that carried out research into magic best left alone by most wizards and witches.
This was very wise because I wouldn't trust the average wand waver to make me a piece of toast never mind take care of rare magical objects or handle strange creatures.
Most of its operations were carried out in total secrecy. Few wizards within the Ministry had any clue what was located within this department or even who was working in this part of the building.
I'd read more than one fanfic that turned this department into the magical version of an intelligence agency that protected the magical world from supernatural threats.
Although if this were the case you'd think that they would have gotten involved in the struggle against Voldemort at some point in the books.
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"Mary, given that I am from the future and they study time here it might be best if we don't tell people I'm a time traveller," I told Marigold "I don't want the Unspeakables coming after me".
The young witch and I were moving through the Ethereal Plane, which could only be accessed by entities that were more spiritual than physical, such as ghosts.
This allowed us to bypass their security as the mages of this world did not know this plane.
"Yes, Caelum," she said, "Or should I be calling you Professor".
An amusing idea crossed my mind.
"Only if can call you Ace" I joked.
Since she wasn't a massive Doctor Who fan she didn't get that reference.
"You don't need to call me Professor unless we are in class" I informed her.
While seeking out the right part of the department we saw many interesting rooms. One of which contained a massive model of the solar system that must serve some purpose.
There was another room with jars full of brains that Marigold insisted on leaving because it was icky. I wondered if this was where all the logical thinking wizards ended up, thus explaining why they were missing from the population.
We found the time room, or what I guessed to be a place where time was studied and I left the alternate plane long enough to swipe a time-turner. After making sure that the case containing them wasn't alarmed.
To my delight, the case wasn't protected at all so I took one of the devices so that I would be able to study it in the future.
Since time travel is something that only a total fool would make use of without plenty of study it would be a long time before I had any use for the device.
There was no more time for idle chatter when we'd found the Hall of Prophecy. Here the records of prophecies were stored.
These prophecies, held in glass orbs, were magically protected, so that the only people who could lift them off their stand were the people who were involved in the prophecy. In this case the Dark Lord and the Chosen One.
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"What are all those letters?" Marigold asked.
"There are the people who were there when the prophecy was recorded. Sybill Trelawney made this prophecy to Dumbledore," I said, "Concerning the Dark Lord and possibly you. Voldemort knows about the prophecy, but he only knew about part of it so when he went after you all those years ago he didn't have all the information".
I brought us out of the alternate plane just long enough for Marigold to take the orb. No alarms went off and we reentered the plan just in case someone came to see if something had happened.
" The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches… Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies… and the Dark Lord will mark them as his equal, but they will have power the Dark Lord knows not… and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives… The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies… "
"That's it!" Marigold yelled, "That bastard killed my Mum and Dad because some old drunk bitch made this nonsense!".
She had more to comment on.
"It doesn't even say it I'm the one" she complained "Seven months after when? When the prophecy was made, the seventh month of that year?".
I explained that the prophecy was made while Trelawney was having an interview with Dumbledore for the post of Divination teacher.
"Hold on" said Marigold "She just happened to make a prophecy during an interview to get to the job of Divination teacher. Why the hell would people think she was doing anything other than faking it so that she could get the job?".
I shrugged.
"It's possible that this department has ways of finding out if a prophecy is real or not," I said "But it only matters that Voldemort and Dumbledore think it is real as they do it will have some power over your life".
I told her about how Snape was apprehended by Aberforth Dumbledore before the full prophecy could be made, only part of the prophecy was reported to Voldemort.
"Snape, that greasy-haired twat!" she yelled "He's always having a go at me and it's his fault I don't have parents. If I ever see him again I'll curse him. I'll blow his crooked nose right off his ugly face".
I would explain why she wouldn't get the chance once she had calmed down.
"While Voldemort is out of the picture, Dumbledore still believes in the prophecy," I said.
We'd have to discuss that later as Mary had gotten herself worked up, and I didn't blame her.
"They took my life from me because some drunk bitch scammed her way into a job!" she was now declaring "Voldemort, Dumbledore, Snape and all those other people who just stood around while I was put into danger. They did this to me".
She managed to calm down a bit after some more ranting that I believed might have involved her first few years at Hogwarts. I couldn't be sure as it was hard to understand.
If it had been anything like canon Harry Potter's life I could understand why she'd be upset, and I didn't think anyone before me had let her vent at them.
"I had to out-fly a bloody dragon" she was now saying as her face began to match her hair in redness "And Merlin only knows what would have happened if you hadn't followed me to the graveyard".
Well, I knew what would have happened, but that wasn't the point and this didn't seem like the right time to bring it up, as she already had a lot to try to deal with.
"And the prophecy doesn't even make sense" Marigold ranted "I mean Voldemort and I were alive at the same time, and what special power do I have that he doesn't".
I agreed that it made no sense.
"Mary!" I yelled.
She turned her attention to me and I could see that she was holding back tears while also looking as if she wanted to strangle someone.
"If you want revenge I can help you with that," I offered "Or you can get on with your life. It's up to you. For now, I think we should just leave".
Rather than reply to that verbally, she hugged me, and while this felt somewhat awkward, I did my best to comfort her until she had calmed down somewhat. There was a lot of mumbling involved while I made noises that might have helped to comfort her.
The orb could be secured in my demi-plane later on, once Mary had time to process all of this new information. I would offer her some advice and find out how she wanted to deal with the situation.
Chapter 19
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 19.
Granger's Dentist Office. Surrey.
"I can't believe you are taking me to see a dentist," complained Marigold Potter.
This wasn't the first time she'd moaned about this, and I wondered if she would feel foolish later when she discovered how little of her life this would take.
Somehow I doubted it, since she was a teenage girl it was far more likely she'd just complain about how it had all been a total waste of her time.
"As I explained before, it is important for me to be seen to be taking care of you," I said "The muggle authorities are much more involved with the welfare of children than the magical ones".
As we headed into the dentist's office I heard Mary make a noise that signalled her disbelief.
"If they were doing their jobs I wouldn't have been stuck with my relatives" she pointed out.
She was right to be upset, but I didn't think social services were at fault.
"Given how nosy everyone at Privet Drive seems to be it is odd that no one contacted them years ago" I said.
I'd given this some thought.
"It's only a theory, but I can't help thinking that the wards around Number 4 kept people from interfering and kept them from paying much attention to you," I said "And why didn't you ever call them?".
Mary kept her voice low as she answered that question.
"My relatives used to threaten to send me to an orphanage, they made them sound even worse than staying at Number 4, and I believed them," she said.
We dropped the subject as we made our way over to the front desk and it was a surprise for Marigold to see one of her classmates behind the desk.
"Granger?" the young witch questioned.
It was indeed Hermione Granger. Who looked to be going through an emo phase if her sense of fashion was anything to go by.
"Potter," she said, "What are you doing here?".
Seeing the Chosen One not being close to Hermione Granger was strange. Who did all of the thinking in the Golden Trio of this world? Marigold certainly wasn't stupid it was just that she was at her best when active rather than as a planner or researcher.
"I have an appointment" Marigold stated.
Miss Granger checked what passed for a computer in this day and age.
"You're not on my list" the muggle-born witch stated.
There was a reason for that.
"We have two appointments under the name Barrows" I informed Miss Granger "I spoke to you on the phone the other day".
Lacking the Internet I'd gone old school and found a dentist's office in the phonebook. I'd not known that these dentists were the same Grangers, not until I'd called up and Hermione had given her name.
It amused me to think that Potter and Granger hadn't lived that far apart before they'd gone off to Hogwarts.
It didn't surprise me that it had never come up in the book series since Harry Potter had very little to do with the Muggle world even when living in it, and Marigold had never even been to see a dentist.
"Mr Caelum Barrows and Mary Barrows" Hermione Granger read out "Yes, I have you here".
Hermione looked at Marigold.
"Did you change your name?" she asked.
She hadn't.
"Mary is my ward but she's keeping her name," I said to the girl behind the desk "Given what's going on in the papers I felt it best not to use her real name".
Next, I turned my attention to the red-headed witch.
"I never gave them my surname as yours, I just told them that you're my ward".
Since the Muggle world had different rules about child care making Marigold my ward hadn't been as simple as just going to an office and talking to someone.
The two cultures had different ideas of how adulthood worked. For example, while you could live on your own at 17 it turned out that you aren't considered a proper adult until you turn 21. Something to do with the power of certain numbers as I understood things.
"If you'll take a seat I'll call you over when my parents are ready for you," said Hermione Granger.
Marigold took a seat before asking me something.
"You have an appointment too?" she questioned.
It had seemed like a good idea at the time.
"I haven't seen a dentist in a very long time and sometimes it can take a while to get an appointment so I decided to book one for me as well," I explained "We were lucky that they had two openings".
Marigold gave me an unhappy look.
"And you just happened to pick the one run by Granger's Mum and Dad" she said, "of all the rotten luck".
I'd not expected any hostility.
"What do you have against her?" I questioned.
Marigold didn't ask how I knew about Hermione Granger. At some point, she'd accepted my story about being from the future, and to be fair it wasn't a lie, so she expected to know stuff I otherwise wouldn't.
"She's a know-it-all," Mary complained "She used to answer all of the questions in class and get this smug look on her stupid face as if she is better than everyone else. She gets all pissy if you're in the library just trying to study and you dare to take one of the hundred or so books she wants to read next".
Marigold took a breath.
"The worst part is that she's a nark" Mary let me know "She's always running off to tell on people, to get them into trouble, so she got what was coming to her, snitches get stitches".
It was worrying to me how much young people could equate their high school experience to living in a prison. I'd done it myself and it happens so often that it should worry people enough to change the education system.
"She has stopped now" I was informed "But I never forgive her for all the trouble she got me into when I was just trying to help my friends".
Had I been inclined to try, I would have now realised how pointless it would be to attempt to kindle a friendship between these two young witches. Not that I had any plans to interfere with her relationships with her peers.
"She doesn't seem the type to care much about rules" I commented.
At least not anymore.
"Granger got the message" stated Marigold "She knows to leave us alone".
This topic of conversation soon came to an end as the older Grangers called us in for our appointments. I had nothing to worry about and neither did Marigold as it turned out.
"That was pointless" Mary insisted.
Once we met back up I didn't bother to repeat why the appointment had been important.
"Some things in life you just have to put up with," I told her "Appointments such as these are part of that".
I decided to cheer her up.
"Let's get some ice cream," I said.
Once we were in the ally my familiar made a report. I'd sent the magical creature here to watch for Lucius Malfoy whom I planned to capture sometime over the summer.
I didn't think he'd end up staying with his family at the Leaky Cauldron, not when he had allies he could stay with, but it had been worth checking to be sure.
"Boss, someone is following you" reported Renwick.
No one other than me could hear the raven and I didn't reply verbally. I reached out with my mind to make contact and find out more.
I was able to see through the eyes of the magical creature and I was able to see someone follow us into the ally and even now they were watching us while pretending to window shop.
To make things more interesting, the person pretending not to be looking at us had just shifted their appearance.
"Tonks" I whispered.
It made sense that it would be here. She was either spying on us for Dumbledore or keeping an eye on us on behalf of Amelia Bones who had some interest in our situation. It could be both given that Tonks works for the DMLE.
The idea that Dumbledore wouldn't spy on us was ridiculous. He was way too invested in setting up the Chosen One as a sacrifice to defeat Voldemort to ever let her go and Tonks is a member of the Order of the Phoenix.
"Go watch over the house" I requested.
As my familiar left, I shifted my perspective back to my own and Mary was too engrossed in her new copy of Teen Witch Weekly to have noticed that I had been frozen in place for a few moments.
I'd looked over one of Marigold's copies of the magazine. It wasn't that different from a muggle publication. It was full of stuff about music, fashion, and famous wizards.
"Why are you in my magazine?" questioned Marigold "And what's a Sugar Daddy?"
I had to see for myself what she was going on about before I answered that query.
"A Sugar Daddy is a wealthy older gentleman who lavishes money, attention and gifts on a younger woman in exchange for their affection" I explained.
"That's not like our situation at all. I'm acting as a guardian for you".
There was some speculation in the article about why I had been given Marigold Potter as a ward and if it had something to do with my visits to Gringotts. The bank didn't share personal details, but enough had gotten out to suggest to people that I was rather affluent.
The article was towards the back of the magazine and it looked as if it had been published to take up some space rather because it was important to the targetted readers of this magazine.
"Teen Witch Weekly hasn't mentioned me since the Yule Ball when I started reading it, and that article mostly talked by dress," reported Mary "They've never bad-mouthed me either".
Ironically the Minster of Magic's attempt to convince people that Dumbledore was wrong about Voldemort's return was only drawing more attention to the matter, and it was all a waste of time anyway.
It wasn't as if people had ever thought Voldemort was gone, it was mostly believed that the Dark Lord had lost his powers.
Fudge himself states in the third Harry Potter book how he fears Sirius Black will link up with You-Know-Who and aid the Dark Lord in returning to power.
"I need to start handling the press on your behalf," I told Marigold "Perhaps you should be interviewed by someone who will be willing to tell your side of the story so we can distance you politically from the Headmaster. You shouldn't be dragged into this squabble between Dumbledore and Fudge".
Mary shrugged. I didn't think she cared that much.
"If you say so," she said.
For now, we had something else to worry about.
"We're going home" I informed Miss Potter "I think someone is following us".
We took the Knight Bus and Renwick was already at the house as he could travel in ways unknown to even me. His keen senses let us know that someone invisible was already on the street as he'd heard them arrive.
"Same person?" I asked.
Renwick let me see through his eyes again and I saw the brightly-haired woman appear and then throw an invisibility cloak over herself.
While Marigold ran inside, no doubt because she wanted to get back to some video game she'd been playing I stayed out in the street.
"You might as well come in for a cup of tea," I told Tonks "Your cover is blown and I'm going to contact the DMLE to check if you should be here".
It wasn't until I was at my front door that she appeared.
"How did you know it was me?" she wished to know.
I had to respond to that carefully since I couldn't give Renwick credit.
"You shifted your looks in Diagon Alley," I told her "People who can alter their appearance like that are very rare. So are you here on behalf of Bones, Dumbledore or both?".
Of course, she didn't admit anything.
"I'm going to contact Bones and ask" I warned the Auror "If you are moonlighting for the Headmaster she won't like it. Or you can come in and just tell us what you are doing".
Only the attic and the basement contained what I didn't want people to see. Both of those were very well hidden.
"I better come in" she decided.
Tonks was just a tool for greater powers so there was no point in being hostile towards her and she'd be less interested in snooping around if I just let her come in to see that Marigold was fine.
Chapter 20
I'm updating two of my stories for the holiday season. Merry Xmas everyone.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 20.
Number 7 Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
"She likes you," mentioned Marigold.
Mary was supposed to be helping me clear up after dinner, but she had no interest in doing that, rather she wanted to talk about the guest we had over.
The young Miss Potter wasn't even bothering to keep her voice down. I wondered if she wanted Tonks to hear her words.
As for the Auror, she was in the living room, currently flicking through TV channels, I'd paid to have cable TV installed, but it was still frustrating not to be able to stream the shows I wanted to watch.
The 21st Century has greatly spoiled me when it came to entertainment.
"Does she?" I asked.
I hadn't noticed her giving me any special attention. She'd focused on Marigold, who seemed to get on with our guest like a house on fire.
Although thankfully there had not been any burning of my house, something you had to be on alert for when you had two witches in your house who liked prating about.
"A girl notices these things," stated Mary.
Perhaps there had been some subtle attempts to flirt with me that I simply didn't pick up on since I hadn't been looking for them.
"Don't forget that she was sent here to spy on us," I reminded Miss Potter.
Of course, I'd warned her that Dumbledore would send people to watch her since he was convinced of the return of the Dark Lord.
Once the Headmaster made up his mind about something I didn't think there was any point in trying to convince him otherwise.
I'd met people like him before and in my experience, it was best to what you felt was right regardless of what they wanted.
Granted that could be dangerous given how much power the Headmaster still wielded. Lucky for us Albus Dumbledore is rarely a man of direct action. He preferred to use people rather than to get his hands dirty.
"Yeah, but she's bad at it" pointed out Mary "If she wanted to rat on us she wouldn't be hanging out here".
I doubted that the leader of the Order of the Phoenix had come out and told Tonks to report on us as a spy, no doubt he'd expressed concern and requested that the Order keep an eye on Marigold for her protection.
It would be so much simpler if he had come here himself, sat down and simply discussed things with us as if were people.
Not that Marigold wanted to talk with Dumbledore, she'd be rather unfriendly with the old man if he were to dare to show his face.
"I guess we should talk to her about it," I said.
Perhaps clearing the air was wise. With that in mind, I made some coffee and served some treacle tart. Something I knew to be Harry Potter's favourite and I wondered if this female counterpart of his had a similar love of the pudding.
"So are you here for Dumbledore or Bones?" I asked, "You might as well be honest. We won't hold it against you".
Tonks was a servant with two masters, and it was not possible to serve both, at least not for long, and not with the Ministry trying to take down Dumbledore. The Order and the Ministry were not aligned in their goals.
"What?" the Auror said in shock.
I didn't think she'd been expecting me to ask so directly even though I had already brought this subject up when she was outside of the house. I could only assume that she'd thought we would let it go and not make any further inquiries.
"We're not stupid" stated Mary "They don't send Aurors to watch people unless they think they are dark wizards or witches around".
Tonks was not very good at hiding her feelings as her changing hair colour betrayed the fact that she was struggling not to say anything.
"Cor blimey" she cursed "I wasn't expecting this".
She waited a little while before answering.
"Funny enough it's both of them" she finally answered.
That didn't astonish me at all.
"The boss is a bit worried about some unknown wizard taking in the Girl-Who-Lived, but at least you're not a Death Eater, you wouldn't believe how many of the darker families tried to claim custody of you after your parents died" Tonks informed Mary.
Marigold looked alarmed.
"Some Death Eaters wanted to adopt me?" she asked.
This news had put her off her tart, at least for the moment, she did soon get around to devouring the pudding. The siren call of it was too much for her to ignore.
"Not just them" replied Tonks "The Potters are related to a lot of the old families, but Dumbledore kept insisting that you were better off with your mother's sister".
Mary made a noise that made it clear she didn't agree.
"I only met Petunia Dursley once" I said "And it was clear right away that she's never cared for Mary".
Tonks look confused.
"I'm sure it wasn't that bad" she insisted.
She was wrong.
"When I moved into the neighbourhood I visited Number 4," I told my guest "There wasn't a single photo of Marigold in the entire house. Not one sign that she was ever part of the family".
Tonks didn't know what to make of that and Mary wasn't interested in sharing.
"Yeah well, Bones has her hands full trying to find a few of the Death Eaters," the Auror admitted to us as she changed the subject somewhat "Dumbledore asked me to come here and keep an eye on Marigold Potter. I don't think he meant for me to come in and have dinner with the two of you".
There was no harm in her being here. Everything I wanted kept hidden would not be found and if I had somehow gotten rid of her then the old man would have just sent someone else.
Also, it would have been monumentally stupid for me to try to drive off a member of the DMLE. That would be just the kind of thing that would cause Madam Bones to remove Mary from my care.
"You wouldn't be the first woman to fall for the lure of my spaghetti bolognese," I assured Tonks in a joking manner "So why is the DMLE going after Death Eaters? I thought the Ministry had ruled out any chance of Voldemort having returned".
Tonks flinched upon hearing the name of the Dark Lord yet she didn't let it distract her.
"Peter Pettigrew was working with Barty Crouch Junior," she explained "As I'm sure you know, Igor Karkaroff fled the night of the Third Task. So Bones thinks he might be the one who might have tampered with the champions, but it doesn't make sense that he'd harm his school's champion, not unless he had some motive that we can only guess at".
I knew that The Dark Mark had been growing darker throughout the school year, signalling Voldemort's growing strength.
Karkaroff rightly feared Lord Voldemort's return because he had betrayed too many of the Dark Lord's servants to be allowed back into the fold and the Death Eaters would want revenge.
With Voldemort having been weakened and contained the Mark should have faded again, but Karkaroff must have fled before then. Perhaps I should attempt to track him down and add him to my collection of mages trapped in precious stones?
"Someone attacked Fleur Delacour in the maze" informed Marigold "I thought it was Krum, but maybe it was Karkaroff for some reason".
Tonks sipped her coffee.
"If we find him I'll ask about that," she said "Maybe he knows what happened to Snape. He went missing as well".
She shouldn't have told us that, but the magical community was rather small and closely knit so there was little room to hide secrets.
"Oh no, how terrible" Mary expressed very sarcastically.
Tonks then checked her wristwatch.
"Bloody hell is that the time" she said with worry in her voice "I'm supposed to meet Dung and let him take over guard duty".
I did not like hearing that.
"You can't expect me to allow that crook to hang around here," I said.
Tonks frowned upon hearing those words.
"There's no crime in hanging about in the street," she pointed out "Besides, he's working for Dumbledore".
Tonks went to fetch her coat as Mary asked a question.
"Who is this Dung person?" she wanted to know.
Someone I would be tempted to go and capture if not for the fact that if he disappeared now I'd be a prime suspect in a missing person's case as I'd just told an Auror that I didn't want him near my property.
"He's a petty criminal known as Mundungus Fletcher," I explained "Not a violent person, rather he's a thief. I don't want him around here because I don't doubt he'd rob us blind if he could, and he's not the kind of person I want looking in through our windows".
Mary made a face that displayed her disgust at the idea as I showed Tonks out.
"This was nice" mentioned the Auror "I only normally eat that well when I visit my Mum and Dad".
Aside from a few Italian dishes, I wasn't much of a cook, but I could win people over with my pasta.
"You're welcome to drop in the next time you're supposed to be spying on us" I offered.
If she hung around and had nothing to report it was lessen interest in me.
"I'd like that," Tonks said.
I wasn't sure how to handle this situation as the young witch seemed to want to say something.
"Kiss her!" yelled out Mary.
That amused both of us and the next thing I knew we did have a quick kiss. Then I was watching the witch, who dressed as a punk-rocker type walk off my property and into the evening.
I went back inside and closed the curtains as I didn't want Dung to be able to look in on us. To me, he seemed like just the kind of person who would perv on a teenage girl.
"You better have kissed her" insisted Marigold, who had parked herself in front of the TV "If you didn't I'll have to take more drastic action next time".
I wondered what that would be and I felt glad I didn't have to find out.
"We kissed" I assured the girl "But it's too soon to tell if we'll date".
She's an Auror and I'll be teaching so anything long-term wasn't going to be possible even if I did stay in this world. I'd have to make clear to Tonks, at least the part about me staying at Hogwarts making it hard to go on dates.
The fact that I intended to leave this world one day, and I didn't have any choice in that, made any romantic prospects less inviting, but perhaps I shouldn't worry about that as I might be here for years.
"You should take her out" encouraged Marigold "At least she's a laugh and you need a laugh".
Yes, Marigold had found our dinner guest to be amusing. As for my levels of amusement, perhaps I did need to have more fun. Maybe I should date Tonks just to enjoy spending time with someone? It was a good of a reason as any.
"Now what about this Dung bloke?" questioned Mary "He sounds creepy".
I couldn't do much about him as long as he stayed out on the street, or rather if I did get rid of him it would cause me a lot of trouble later on.
"If he comes too close to the house the wards will deal with him" I promised.
Tonks wouldn't have triggered them because she was non-hostile and wanted to protect Marigold Potter.
"Why would Dumbledore send this Mundungus Fletcher bloke to watch over me?" questioned Mary.
It was good that she was questioning authority.
"He hires Death Eaters to work at Hogwarts" I pointed out "He lets mass murders teach children, so what makes you think he wouldn't make use of a petty crook to spy on people".
Mary looked upset.
"I guess everyone just thinks he has a good reason because he's Dumbledore" she said "But that doesn't make it okay".
No, it did not, but rather than discuss that further I decided to make sure that the house was as secure as possible before I retreated to my lab in the attic to do some further research.
As I did I wondered if I should offer to teach Marigold about potions or if Snape had put her totally off the subject.
It was something to talk about later. For now, I'd let her enjoy being a teenager with no responsibilities.
Chapter 21
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 21.
The DMLE. Ministry of Magic.
Auror 'Don't call me Nymphadora' Tonks was supposed to be watching over the mostly empty Auror Office tonight and she would do so until the small hours of the morning.
Most of the department that she worked for was rather busy these days, what with Barty Crouch Junior out there somewhere. Along with the discovery that Peter Pettigrew had faked his death.
Rather he had been alive until he'd gotten the Dementor's Kiss, which had a lot of people asking questions, and wondering what else the Ministry had gotten wrong.
Before much of anything had gotten done the Malfoy family's massive manor had gotten burned to the ground by some unknown kind of fire magic and Minister Fudge wanted that investigated as a top priority.
This had diverted resources away from the hunt for Barty Crouch Junior and the orders from the Minister made it harder to look into what Peter Pettigrew had been up to since he'd faked his death.
The members of the Order of the Phoenix had quite a many theories about what was going on, and since few of them were law enforcement their opinons weren't very helpful.
Dumbledore insisted that You-Know-Who had burned down the manor with dark magic to punish the Malfoys for abandoning him. That made a twisted sort of sense.
Mad-Eye Moody also thought the arson had been performed by You-Know-Who but as a distraction rather than a punishment, or perhaps a bit of both.
He believed this as there hadn't been anyone inside the big house at the time and You-Know-Who wasn't known for caring about lives when he decided to go after someone.
Tonks was finding that she wasn't as sure about her own opinions as she used to be about whether or not she was doing the right thing, and she couldn't help wondering if Dumbledore was telling them the truth.
He kept insisting that Professor Snape had fled due to fearing You-Know-Who, and Sirius Black, whose innocence she would have believed in even if Pettigrew hadn't been found alive, was convinced that Snape had rejoined You-Know-Who.
Most of the Order of the Phoenix just believed what Dumbledore told them and they went to great efforts to verbally slap down anyone who spoke out against the Headmaster.
While the growing discord within the Order of the Phoenix was concerning, Tonks found herself thinking more about Marigold Potter and Caelum Barrows than anything else.
It takes more than good grades to be an Auror and while Tonks was still somewhat new to this job, at least when compared to Moody and Shacklebolt, she'd learned from the best in this business.
Something that Tonks had noticed during the dinner she had with those two people was that Marigold Potter was not all concerned about You-Know-Who or even the fact that there were Death Eaters out there who could be targeting her.
This was very odd behaviour. If You-Know-Who was around then why was the Girl-Who-Lived content to sit around watching TV and having people she didn't even know around for dinner?
Marigold Potter seemed fine to Tonks, there had been no sign that the young witch was under any sort of magical control or under much stress other than feeling upset about her relatives.
Her behaviour was somewhat odd because Marigold Potter suddenly seemed to have become anti-Dumbledore which was strange. After all, she was supposed to be the Headmaster's prize student, the golden girl.
Only she wasn't Dumbledore's girl at all, and she was now living with a wizard who no one knew much about rather than with any of the magical folk who should have taken her in.
Tonks had wondered if anything improper was happening between the two of them, but she'd seen no sign of it. Mary Potter showed no signs of fearing Barrows.
If anything Marigold seemed happy and relaxed around Barrows. Plus she wouldn't have urged the two of them to kiss if she was involved with the older wizard.
So Marigold and the Headmaster, they must have had some sort of falling out and it had something to do with Potter's Muggle relatives. From what little Tonks had learned during dinner, Potter did not like her aunt and uncle at all.
Tonks had already tried to find any records on them, to see if there was any reason why Marigold disliked them, only there wasn't anything in the DMLE about any of Marigold Potter's family.
Another thing she'd picked up on, as it hadn't been subtle, was that Caelum Barrows did not like the Ministry or Albus Dumbledore.
At first, she'd thought that Barrows didn't like her because she'd been sent to keep tabs on him and Potter, on behalf of the Ministry and Dumbledore.
That was understandable as no one likes to be spied upon as it is unsettling at the very least. Yet he'd invited her in for dinner, giving her access to his home.
While he didn't seem to have anything to hide he kept people at a distance emotionally and he seemed hostile towards both the Ministry and Dumbledore.
Once at work, Tonks had tried to find out if the DMLE had ever brought in Barrows for questing. If he'd been needlessly harassed by the department due to some mistake then it would explain his mild hostility towards the Aurors.
As it turned out the Department had next to nothing on Caelum Barrows, and that was worrying given he'd been given custody of Marigold Potter, even if it was temporary, and it meant that her boss might be up to something.
Tonks hated it when her job got more political than normal. She wanted to go out and catch some bad guys, to help people and be seen as more than a metamorph.
Then there was the fact that he didn't like Dumbledore and that he made no secret of it. Only dark wizards and witches normally openly expressed distance towards the Headmaster.
Not that everyone was a fan of Dumbledore, her parents weren't fans of the man, not even her father despite Dumbledore often being seen as a champion of Muggle-borns.
Was Barrows turning Marigold Potter against the Professor or was that what had united them? She would need to talk to Marigold alone to find out and to be sure that Barrows wasn't using some sort of magic on her mind.
Maybe Caelum Barrows just had an issue with authority in general. That would explain why he was a bit contentious while at the same time having shown some interest in her.
After all, you don't invite a woman into your home for dinner unless you want to spend time with her, and Barrows didn't seem to have anything against her as a person even if he didn't like who she answered to.
Had he just been trying to get her to let her guard down or had he wanted to show that he had nothing to hide?
If so then why kiss her even if Marigold Potter's urging? She'd gotten some mixed signals from that and since she found Barrows to be an interesting wizard she wanted to spend more time with him.
Perhaps if they did then she could learn for sure if he had some interest in her beyond her job and her connection to Dumbledore.
Her work left her little time for romance, yet she did want someone special in her life. Barrows was handsome, and there was something about him that made him different from other men.
As an Auror she'd been trained to investigate, to solve mysteries and she wanted to figure out Barrows. To find out what made him tick as the Muggles would say.
Tonks couldn't help wondering if perhaps she was overthinking the situation and that perhaps she should just get to know the wizard because he was handsome and something of an oddity. Besides, she'd always had a thing for older men.
She needed to see him again, to talk to him alone, and so when she saw him in the DMLE she was both surprised and pleased to see him. The former is more than the latter.
The DMLE. Ministry of Magic.
"I ain't done nothing" insisted Mundungus Fletcher.
He'd spoken those words many times, even after I'd brought him to the DMLE, and we'd both been dragged off to a room to wait for someone with authority to come to speak to us.
No one here considered this to be important as if they had they would have cared that I had the thief's wand and that Dung was looking a bit worse for wear.
"So you did do something," I said.
Dung looked at me as I was speaking in French.
"What you on about?" he asked.
This man was a moron.
"You just told me you ain't done nothing, which means you didn't do nothing, so you must have done something" I insisted.
Either this man was a great actor or he was as I had already decided, a complete idiot.
I decided to stick with Hanlon's Razor which states: Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by neglect, ignorance or incompetence, and go with him being a fool.
"I just told ya, I ain't done nothing," Dung stated.
He most certainly had and I was about to explain what he had done when Auror Tonks came into the room.
"Tonks you've got to get me out of here!" Dung insisted.
The Auror didn't respond to that.
"Barrows, Fletcher" she said "Give me a sec to go through the file".
I was surprised to discover that she was handling this matter.
"Isn't this sort of thing rather beneath your paygrade?" I asked.
An Auror can be considered a police detective or some sort of special agent. You don't send one of them to deal with a simple case of trespassing and that was the crime mentioned in the file.
"It's the night shift and we're spread thin" she explained before getting to the matter at hand "Now you say that you caught Dung here trespassing on your property".
Fletcher sat up upon hearing that.
"He attacked me!" the man yelled.
I did no such thing. I hadn't needed to.
"The wards knocked him out," I told Tonks "I found him in the backyard. I have a witness who can back up my claim".
She knew who that witness would be.
"I told you not to get close to the house," said Tonks to Dung "I warned you about the wards".
The crook quickly realised that he wasn't going to get help from the Auror and decided to return to his default setting of denial.
"I ain't done nothing," insisted Mundungus Fletcher.
Every time he spoke those words I could hear the groans of a thousand English teachers.
"We all know that isn't true," I said "Wards don't activate unless you are a danger to the people protected by them, so either you were trying to break in to harm us or at the very least you were casing the joint. Simply trespassing wouldn't have caused the wards to activate".
Tonks looked at the file.
"But you can't prove that he tried to break in just that he might have meant to," she said "Trespassing isn't a serious crime, even with his record, Dung will only get a slap on the wrist".
I'd considered that this might happen.
"Unless he's already wanted for questioning for his suspected involvement in other crimes" I pointed out.
The Law Enforcement Officer at the front desk had pointed out this. Dung was well known here and he was wanted for questioning.
One of those officers soon came to collect the crook and to take him to a cell. Dung protested the entire way and didn't even mention that I had his wand. I handed it over to Tonks as a good citizen would.
"Legally we can hold him for a while for questioning and see if he gives anything up," said Tonks with a sigh "Not that he'll stay here for more than a few hours. Dumbledore will get him out. He's done it before".
Even with his influence here at the Ministry weakening I was sure that he had enough clout to do that.
"Ah Albus Dumbledore, a man always ready to protect the guilty at the expense of the innocent," I mocked "If Dung was a Death Eater the Headmaster would likely offer him a job at Hogwarts like he did with Snape".
Tonks didn't respond to that.
"You can't win them all" she said "And Dung isn't worth your trouble".
Perhaps she was right. Dung was an annoyance and I'd be better off focusing on the more dangerous people out there, but that could wait.
Since I was here I might as well give getting to know the Auror another try.
"Would you like to come over for dinner again?" I asked, "The next time you are in the neighbourhood".
Tonks was a little surprised to hear me say that.
"I didn't think you were interested in me" she said "That kiss was nothing to owl home about".
That had been on my mind.
"Assuming that Dumbledore doesn't sack me for causing him such trouble, I'm going to be teaching at Hogwarts come September," I told the Auror "And since that will limit my free time I wasn't sure that I should start anything with anyone. I don't want to string anyone along".
Tonks shifted and changed her appearance, her hair shortening and becoming blue, which meant something I was sure.
"I just thought you didn't like me," she admitted "You came off as lukewarm the entire evening".
Well, I hadn't been sure if I should make a move until now. I'd decided to try having a romantic life even if it wasn't going to work out in the long run, and to be fair most romances never do.
"If you want to try dating despite us both having jobs that take up much of our time then I'm willing to give it a go" I said.
I shouldn't let my uncertainty about the future stop me from trying to live. Sure my time in this world was limited, but in a sense that is true for everyone.
Sure Tonk's might be curious about me because I was a mystery and many strange things were happening around here, but it wasn't as if I was going to marry her. She didn't need to know everything about me.
If nothing else I'd be better for her than Remus Lupin. I could only imagine that she'd married him out of pity.
"Alright I come round for dinner" said Tonks.
I stood up as she did and then I leaned in to kiss her just for a moment. It was more pleasant the second time.
"That's better" she praised.
We parted ways and I decided to get back to my job and I didn't mean teaching Muggle Studies. If I was going to spend my time overthinking things it might as well be towards something productive.
Chapter 22
I'm free to do more commission stuff if anyone is interested.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 22.
Wilderness. Scotland.
"Boss, this is as close as I can get to him," Renwick let me know as he came to rest on a tree branch.
My raven could like a post owl be sent off to deliver letters. This was a useful feature in this world because it gave me a reason to keep Renwick close by when in the magical world, and because it allowed him to find people for me.
This was the first time Renwick had failed me when I'd sent him out on a task. Although calling him a failure would be too strong of a word he had been able to greatly narrow down the area I now needed to search.
"I know he's here" said the raven "I just can't pin him down".
Quickly I figured out what to do next. This didn't take long as I'd been prepared for this sort of problem.
"Thank you, Renwick. I'll find him," I told the magical creature "You just keep watch".
As for who I was hunting on this dark and cold night, that would be Igor Karkaroff who had fled Hogwarts during the Third Task.
Exactly why he'd done so was something I didn't know, I could only speculate that he'd thought that the Dark Lord would return very soon, and had run off so that he could hide.
Karkaroff was wanted by the DMLE for questioning due to what happened on the night of the Third Task, as someone had interfered with the French Champion and done something to Victor Krum.
Despite the suspicious timing, he might not have had anything to do with it since he'd been preparing to flee should Voldemort return, and as such winning the Trizward Tournament wouldn't have seemed important.
What struck me as odd was that the Dark Mark must have faded away again after I captured Voldemort's spirit in one of my special gemstones.
Perhaps the dark wizard thought the mark fading away again was a trick of some kind. A ruse meant to make him lower his guard. That would make sense to someone hiding out for fear of his life.
I imagined that a normal post-owl wouldn't have been able to get even this close to the man and he must be very well hidden if he could hide from Renwick. As such I knew that wandering around the area would be pointless. I would need some help.
After reaching into my coat I took out what would seem to be a bag of marbles and they had started that way, only now they were something much more useful.
Because I didn't know any divination magic I'd enchanted these marbles to do the work of such spells for me.
I used the command word to activate them and then sent them out into the countryside to find Karkaroff for me.
Each of them would fly around seeking out whatever I told them to go find, as long as I kept the instructions simple, and I would be able to see through as if they were eyes.
I didn't do this right away as trying to focus on so many views just caused a headache, so I waited until my marbles found something worth looking at.
They didn't take long and for that, I was grateful as while it was summer it was cold here and I suspected that a thunderstorm was on the way.
My coat, this one made of thestral hide which aided in stealth and looked awesome on me, could only do so much to keep me comfortable even when I applied warming charms to my clothes.
I peeked through the marbles and saw a shack well-hidden by some trees, and while it was odd to see it from so many different angles at the same time, I saw enough to get me to the location. I appeared a short distance away from the crude dwelling.
With another command word, I recalled the marbles and then I set about bypassing the defences here. Wards, or protective enchantments as they are known in this world, are barriers and they can be near unbreakable.
A bit of a problem unless you are me and can just slip into another plane of existence. Like a ghost, I moved through right through the wards and the walls of the shack as if they weren't even there.
This also allowed me to avoid any boobytraps that the Death Eater might have in place as I didn't return to the real world until I was standing over the sleeping man.
Before he even realised that I was here I had him trapped in a Tourmaline gemstone, and he might never even realise he had been captured.
Spoiler
[img: /wp-content/uploads/2012/06/tourmaline_AGTA_1.png]
Karkaroff was wanted by the DMLE and while I might get a handsome reward for handing him over to them as well as earn some goodwill with that department, I would have to explain how I found him.
I didn't need the reward money, and if I needed goodwill with Magical Law Enforcement I could gift them a magical item that would prove useful to them. However, doing so could be risky as I didn't want to draw that much attention to myself.
Aside from all that, it was more humane to keep the bad guys trapped in gems where they wouldn't experience the passage of time and were more or less invulnerable than to send them to Azkaban.
In that horrible place, they would suffer at the hands of the dementors, and I thought it needlessly cruel when I had other options.
Besides, this had become something of a hobby for me. Plus there was always the chance that Igor could have returned to magical society and began spreading his pureblood ideology. It was best to remove such bad influences.
I slipped back into the plane of ghosts and other entities, as I left the shack. I doubted that there was anything here of value to me and I wanted to get back home so I could get some sleep. I had things I wanted to do with Marigold tomorrow.
Number 7 Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
Marigold had pulled herself away from the TV long enough to come and check out my lab in the attic, and she seemed rather impressed by what she'd found if I was judging her reactions with any accuracy.
She certainly had a curious nature regarding the contents of my workspace.
"Caelum, what did these do?" she asked while inspecting several potions I kept on a table.
Those were special potions that I was saving for later.
Spoiler
[img: /wp-content/uploads/2021/01/jan-ranft-oduOp0RlPf8-unsplash.jpg]
"They should fix up Nevillie Longbottom's parents," I answered.
Since this version of the Chosen One was close friends with Longbottom boy she must already know about his parent's unfortunate state.
"Then why haven't you used them?" she questioned.
I had my reasons.
"Because it's not my place to give experimental medical treatment to them," I explained "There's very little risk of anything going wrong, but the potions might not work at all, so I'm not sure if I should use them".
Marigold Potter gave me a stern look.
"You should use them" she insisted "Neville's parents would be better off dead than how they are now".
Since I'd never seen them I'd have to take her word on that.
"I'd been thinking about sending them to Longbottom on his 17th birthday and letting him decide" I mentioned, "I didn't want to involve myself in his family's affair".
Young Miss Potter was having none of that. I could see a determined look on her face.
"Voldemort and his followers killed a lot of people" she stated "Including my godmother, a witch called Marlene McKinnon, and her whole family. I know that Susan Bones lost everyone other than her aunt".
I figured that I knew where this was going. She would list all the people we couldn't help and then implore me to help the ones we could.
"Save me the speech," I said "We'll sneak into the hospital tonight and fix them up. I just hope they don't get dragged off to the Department of Mysteries".
Given that Frank and Alice Longbottom were Aurors during the war against Voldemort and his followers they were likely too high profile to be made to vanish. Not to mention that they had family out there who would wonder why they were suddenly gone.
"If anyone takes them we can get them back" insisted Mary.
There was that saving people thing again. Given how the world treated her I could never understand why any version of the Chosen One would give a crap about anyone other than herself.
"Is Tonks coming over for dinner again?" was Mary's next question.
She would be, although we hadn't set a date, if she was working late at the Ministry I could understand why.
"She told me she would come over" I confirmed.
Now I had a question of my own.
"Why are you so interested in getting me together with her?" I wondered.
It might just be because she's a teenage girl who likes to interfere, yet I got the sense that there was more going on.
"Tonks is lonely," stated Marigold "She's a great person, she's got a hard job, and she's smart, but she's by herself a lot. We talked all evening and she never mentions having any proper friends".
That was odd. She's a Hufflepuff and they are generally portrayed as the most sociable of witches and wizards. I could only assume her work life was preventing her from getting many chances to simply hang out.
"And if she's going to spend the summer hanging around the neighbourhood she might as well date you," said Marigold "You just need to be less boring".
I can't imagine how I could be more interesting. I'm a warlock from another universe who has powers unseen in this world, and I'm on a mission given to him by a higher power. That's epic adventure stuff.
Since I hunted dark wizards as a hobby I couldn't be less boring, but Mary didn't know about that, and aside from when we met, mostly all she'd seen me do was hang around home.
"If you're still sore about me dragging you to the dentist then I have to say that you're confusing being responsible with being boring," I told her "Having responsibilities is part of growing up".
Mary's facial expression showed me how she felt about that.
"None of that for me" she insisted "I'm going to spend my summer acting all lazy and then have a normal year at school".
Well, that was the plan.
"Besides, I did go the opticians like you wanted," said Miss Potter.
That was where we'd been this afternoon. It was now evening and I had a little time to do work here before I would start on a late dinner.
"Once you have glasses with a proper prescription I can enchant them for you" I informed Marigold "I can give you the ability to see in the dark".
I passed her over a pair of sunglasses that granted dark vision to anyone who wore them.
"Cool," she commented.
The sunglasses would be useful when I next went Death Eater hunting.
"Or I can enchant them so that they are Eyes of the Eagle, those let you see things are far away much more clearly than normal," I explained "They should help with Quidditch".
She might consider that cheating, but if she did she made no mention of it as she was too busy admiring a necklace.
Spoiler
[img: https/i./originals/1f/71/0d/1f710dcb220067a5f9d19f2108b4d8a1.jpg]
"Oh this is so pretty" she commented "Is it enchanted?".
Indeed it was.
"That's an amulet of Protection Against Evil" I explained "I made it for you to protect you against curses and evil creatures, but I'm not sure what its limits are".
Mary must have only heard the part about it having been made for her as she put it on. For a moment nothing happened and then she fell to the ground as black smoke was ejected from her scar.
Without giving it any thought I grabbed one of the iron flasks and it took in the bit of Voldemort that had been living inside Miss Potter.
I'd been meaning to take care of that fragment for a while I'd just wanted to build up some trust between Mary and me before I told her about her being a Horcrux. Because if I had already done that it seemed to have slipped my mind.
Once the spirit was secure, I began using some of the many healing spells I'd been gifted with when I became a warlock to fix up the teenage girl lying on the floor of my attic.
I was so glad that no one came calling at this point like they would if this had been a drama of some kind.
Chapter 23
I hope everyone is enjoying that the planet has completed yet another orbit around the sun.
Keep in mind that I'm free to do more commission stuff if anyone is interested.
Supporters get to peak ahead./post/A-little-look-ahead-M4M7ST6FY
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 23.
Hogsmeade. Scotland.
Marigold recovered quickly from having a fragment of Voldemort expelled from her forehead, and it seemed to have brought about a change in her. Something I was pleased to see.
She'd started doing her summer homework all of a sudden and Mary confessed to me that she was having a much easier time focusing on the material. It helped that I was tutoring her.
It didn't seem to have altered her personality as far as I could tell, at least not in any meaningful way, she was still Marigold Potter, she just seemed calmer somehow and more focused.
If she were anyone else I'd put it down to her showing some maturity as her seventeenth birthday approached, but I knew there was much more to it than that.
So far her scar hadn't begun to heal, and although I might be able to heal it, I decided that we shouldn't as it would draw a lot of attention and provoke Dumbledore into action.
Not that change would go unnoticed as I'd fixed her eyesight, but that could be easily explained in the Muggle world as her having contact lenses, and the magical world could wait for an explanation.
I'd told Mary the truth about her scar, and that I had always intended to find a way to remove it, I just hadn't known the amulet would do so.
Finding out that she would have had to die to stop the Dark Lord had not gone down well. Even more so when I explained that Dumbledore had known about the Horcrux the whole time and that he would have to let her die to defeat Voldemort.
She'd only calmed down once I'd reminded her how I'd already dealt with Tom Riddle and how the prophecy was so vague it might not matter at all. She didn't have to do anything.
Mary had other things she needed to focus her efforts on. I would deal with the dark wizards.
"I can't believe I'm going to do this," Marigold said "I've never exploited my fame, at least not on purpose".
It was about time she started doing so.
"And because you didn't manage your public image
people are now destroying your reputation in the eyes of the public," I said "I know you don't care what strangers think, but you need to manage your life or the Ministry and Dumbledore will always control you. This is how you take control and stop being their puppet".
We entered the location of the Wizarding Wireless Network, abbreviated to WWN.
Spoiler
[img: https/vignette.wikia./harrypotter/images/2/22/WWN.jpg]
The station that created content for the radio channel, featured music programmes and shows involving experts in different fields of magic that would answer questions sent in by the public as well as shows with presenters who addressed political issues.
Since the radio station was based here in Hogsmeade village, the only all-wizard settlement in Great Britain, it didn't take much work for me to find the place, nor did it take long for us to meet with the manager.
Despite the Daily Prophet slagging her off Marigold Potter's name name still opened doors.
"Caelum Barrows," I told the middle-aged man as I took his hand to shake.
I then gestured to my ward.
"Mary needs no introduction," I said.
We were soon invited to sit.
"I'm Richard Dawkins," he replied, "I manage the WWN".
As if we didn't already know that.
"What can the WWN do for you, Miss Potter?" he asked.
Mary wasn't lacking in confidence unlike her male counterpart who I was sure would not have agreed to this. At least not without his friends having to drag him down to the radio station.
"I want to set the record straight about what happened at the end of the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament" she stated.
Dawkins must have guessed this was coming.
"The Ministry has made very clear that they won't tolerate us broadcasting anything that will stir up the public," said the wizard "They won't let us transmit anything involving your opinion about You-Know-Who's current status".
This wouldn't be an issue.
"I don't want to tell people about Voldemort," insisted Mary.
Mr Dawkins winced upon hearing that name, but he didn't interrupt.
"I want to tell everyone to stop telling lies about me," she was now saying "I told the Minister what happened after I took the trophy and Voldemort wasn't involved. It was just Peter Pettigrew working with Barty Crouch Junior".
Dawkins was understandably surprised.
"You don't support what Dumbledore has been saying?" he asked.
Mary was looking angry.
"He's not the first person to use my name without my approval" she said "No one has asked me my opinion on any of this. I've never been interviewed and yet people saying I've been telling them stuff".
Dawkins shiffed in his chair. He was hiding his interest rather well, but I could tell that he wanted to hear more.
"What about Rita Skeeter's articles?" he asked "She interviewed you at the Weighting of the Wands".
Mary made a snorting noise.
"That wasn't an interview, Skeeter just fired off a load of questions and wrote whatever she wanted," Mary explained "I never got a chance to say anything, her Quick-Notes Quill did all of the work".
Dawkins didn't react to this news, I figured that it was along the lines of what he had been expecting to hear.
"So what do you want from us?" he asked "A chance to say your piece".
Since it would be my money we'd be spending I would make the arrangements.
"I want to buy a time slot" I told the manager "You can record the interview and then play multiple times over the next couple of weeks. Cost won't be an issue".
Dawkins nodded his head.
"We'd have to agree to the content of the interview in advance" he insisted.
This made sense since the station couldn't be heard as going against the Ministry at this time.
"We'll keep it focused on the Third Task and what happened right afterwards," I said.
Mary wouldn't be kept out of the discussion.
"I'll just tell you what I told the Minister of Magic" she promised "And I want to make it clear that I don't support whatever it is Dumbledore is up to".
Dawkins was now writing stuff down.
"Many people will be shocked to hear that," he said "You're often talked about as Dumbledore's successor and his golden girl".
Mary snorted again. She was starting to give me mental images of an annoyed dragon when she made that noise.
"I can count on the fingers of my hands how many times the Headmaster and I have spoken" she informed the station manager "And he never really tells you anything".
Dawkins wrote more frantically.
"If we keep the interview focused on Dumbledore and how he is using you for his agenda then we shouldn't upset the Ministry," said the wizard "I wouldn't mind tweaking the nose of Cuffe by having you state that you never told Skeeter any of what she wrote about in her article".
Mary looked confused.
"Whose Cuffe?" she asked.
Dawkins had a sour look on his face.
"Miss Potter, Barnabas Cuffe is the wizard who works as the editor-in-chief of the Daily Prophet" he answered "He is one of the players behind the media campaign to discredit you and Dumbledore".
Cuffe was someone I would need to deal with.
"Believe me when I tell you that I would love to get one over him by having you call out the Daily Prophet on its lies," said the station manager "It used to be a respectable source of news, but under his leadership, it has become a gossip rag".
I got the sense that this offended the wizard
personally and that he had some history with Cuffe, but that wasn't our concern.
"So when can she do the interview?" I asked.
Dawkins checked a schedule.
"If you're serious about buying airtime I can arrange for Miss Potter to sit down and discuss the questions with one of our staff in a few days to sort out an outline," we were told "And we could do the interview a week from now. I'll have to alter the schedule a bit, but it will be worth it if this interview will be as informative as I think it will be".
That sounded fine to me and once a few minor details were dealt with we both left the studio.
"So what are we going to do now, Caelum?" wondered Marigold.
I knew exactly what we'd be doing.
"Tonight we will be sneaking into St Mungos and fixing up the Longbottoms" I answered "We need a distraction, a big one before you interview and I have a way that should get the Daily Prophet off your back".
It was time to show Mary more of what I could do so that I would maintain her trust and if we did something good for the magical world then that was a nice bonus.
Gringotts. Diagon Alley.
The morning after I'd snuck Mary and me into St Mungoes to give the Longbottoms their cure I headed for the bank for some important business.
Due to my ability to transform metals, and because there were a lot of valuables things in the Room of Requirement, some of which I'd decided to store here at the bank, I was known to be very wealthy.
This sudden increase in my wealth meant that I was meeting with a more important goblin than before. I was moving up in the world.
My current account manager, who was a goblin that went by the name of Gorefist, was giving me a look of confusion, or at least that was my guess, it was hard to tell since he wasn't human and goblins normally look at humans with some sort of sneer.
"You don't want to do what?" he asked.
Gorefist's office was by far the largest I'd ever seen here at the bank, it was so big that it had room for massive marble pillars and some statues that I assumed were famous goblins.
There were tapestries on the walls that depicted ancient battles between goblins and humanity. At least those walls that were not covered by shelves containing books and decorative weapons.
"I want to either outright purchase the businesses that supply the Daily Prophet with paper and ink" I repeated, "Or failing that simply buy out all of their stock so that the newspaper will be forced to come to me if they want to keep running".
The goblin needed time to process this, and while he didn't care to find out why I wanted to prevent the Daily Prophet from being unable to do any printing, he did soon realise the flaw in my plan.
"Why would the businesses that are involved in supplying the Daily Prophet, and the other publications in the Magical World, with both paper and ink, ever agree to this? It would jeopardise their profits in the future" he asked.
I had already considered this and to be fair it was a legitimate concern.
"Because it won't affect their profits in the long run. Once the Prophet has agreed to my terms I will free up their supply, the publishers won't have anywhere else to go to and once the supplies start moving again they will keep buying" I answered, "Wizards don't adapt unless they have to, so they won't seek out another supplier".
Threatening the logistics of the paper was likely how the Ministry got the Prophet to agree to publish its lies when it was being used to badmouth Harry Potter and Dumbledore in the book series.
I could see Lucius Malfoy coming up with the same plan I had and he was rich enough to buy up all the paper the Prophet used so that he could hold it hostage, and he still had access to his fortune even if I destroyed his house.
If I were the editor of the Prophet I'd have a deal in place to get my paper from muggle sources cheaply, but it was doubtful that Mr Cuffee would ever consider such an option.
"I don't care about the expense, I just want it done fast," I told Gorefist.
It would cost me, but money was just a tool and I could always get more.
"Well it is your gold, Mr Barrows" said the goblin who sat behind the large desk, "And Gringotts can arrange the sale, but the owners of the businesses involved will not agree to sell"
They will if I have a little word with them first. I had subtle mind magics at my command and there was always old-fashioned bribery to fall back on. What mattered is that they gave in and no one knew I was behind the shortage.
If I had to empty my vaults to get the Daily Prophet to back off and leave Mary alone it would be worth it. I would ruin Dumbledore no matter what it took.
Chapter 24
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 24.
Number 7 Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
I looked at the newspaper article and smiled. Cuffe had folded very quickly as soon as his business's most vital of supplies suddenly dried up without any warning.
With the unexpected return of the Longbottoms to sanity no one had noticed what I was getting up until it was too late, as had been part of my plan to get the paper to leave Marigold alone.
The fools at the Daily Prophet must never have thought to store some paper and ink for when there might be a shortage, and so once the supply had been cut off the editor had panicked, giving in and printing what I told him to.
This made sense as the paper was called the Daily Prophet for a reason. If even a single issue didn't get sent out then people would complain, and demand the return of their subscription fees.
Also, businesses paying for advisements might withdraw their funding, even going as far as to demand their money back, and they would be right to do so since people wouldn't be seeing their adverts.
I felt sure that the editor could found another supplier, either muggle or have imported the supplies, but he'd just given in rather try that because he didn't want his business to suffer when all he had to do to free his supply was have an article written.
Even with the Prophet buying the supply I'd lost quite a bit of money since the suppliers had sold the stuff to me at a high price, but I didn't care about that. I cared about the front-page article.
It was a simple piece, telling the public that Dumbledore had been using Marigold Potter to push his agenda and she was simply a victim of some political game the Headmaster was playing.
The editor of the newspaper had been quite willing to focus the blame for everything on the professor and apologise to Marigold Potter. Best of all the article was telling the truth, or at least part of it.
So far, the Ministry hadn't sent out a statement and I doubted they would since they would have to admit that they were wrong,
I figured that they would pretend that they'd never done anything to the young Miss Potter and focus more of their efforts on destroying Dumbledore's ability to influence the public.
"It can't be this simple," said Mary.
So far it seemed to be.
"It's typical in politics to downplay, dismiss, divert, or deny, to distract people from something when it makes the government look bad and the Ministry is very good at doing this," I told Mary "Fudge denied any responsibility for your godfather's wrongful imprisonment".
That had been in the paper recently and it was a clever move since Fudge had very little do to with Sirius Black's arrest and no reason to believe Black was innocent when the man escaped from Azkaban.
"Then he diverted the blame to Minister Bagnold, who disappeared years ago, and Barty Crouch Senior, who is dead," I was now saying "And to be fair it was their fault".
At times Fudge was not as much of a fool as he might seem. That or Lucius Malfoy was making efforts to keep Fudge in power.
"It's like when the paper said that Sirius was getting a hearing they hardly mentioned it at all" Mary stated "That's the downplaying part".
She understood what I was getting at.
"That is indeed downplaying" I confirmed "And I'd be willing to bet a large sum of gold that before long Fudge will try to win you over to his side".
He'd be a fool not to now that it looked as if Mary and Dumbledore weren't on the same side.
"You did capture Pettigrew as far as he knows so he might try to reward you for that so that he looks as if he was always on your side" I mentioned.
Marigold looked a little worried about that and I didn't blame her as getting involved with Fudge could be dangerous.
"Should I let him?" she asked "Do I need to play nice?".
I gave it some thought.
"It's up to you," I said "I'd use needing to focus on your schooling as an excuse not to get involved at the Ministry until you are older".
"Until you are seventeen I can shield you since you'd need my permission to endorse him publicly," I told her "I can bring up the recent articles by Skeeter as an excuse to keep you out of the public eye for a while".
Mary visibly relaxed.
"I don't want to deal with Fudge" she told me "Anyone who is friends with Lucius Malfoy is bad news".
It was up to her and I could see her point.
"Then if he writes or sends anyone, I'll handle it," I promised.
I was her legal guardian and could do that sort of thing. At the very least I should be able to delay things until Mary was back in school. Once in Hogwarts then Dumbledore would do everything he could to keep her away from the Ministry.
There was a tapping on the kitchen window that distracted me from the paper and from the breakfast Mary was demolishing. She had an impressive appetite and seemed to enjoy my efforts at cooking.
The two owls at the kitchen window insisted on being let in, and there was a letter for each of us, both of which I checked for anything magical before they were opened.
Cursed letters were an actual thing in this world, and I could recall the Hermione Granger of the canon story getting sent some sort of pus via a letter.
"It's from Sirius," Mary let me know "He says that Remus and some friends of his are coming to pick me up this evening. After dark".
She looked worried.
"I can't believe I am saying this about Privet Drive, but I don't want to go" she insisted "I mean I do want to go and see Sirius, it's just that they'll lock me up again for my safety and there's no need".
Without a doubt, Dumbledore would have her contained for her safety and to stop her from damaging the Headmaster's reputation.
"Sirius isn't your legal guardian, I am" I reminded her "So write back and tell him you are happy where you are. After his hearing he can come to visit you if he wishes".
Mary wasn't going to relax again, at least not so soon.
"They won't take no for an answer" she insisted.
I had prepared for this.
"If they take you I will inform Madam Bones and ask her to press charges for kidnapping for anyone involved," I told Mary "I'll contact the DMLE now and let them know about this".
Dumbledore had also made a move against me, in some attempt to regain a bit of control over the situation and to weaken my influence upon Mary.
He'd polity informed me that my services were no longer required in the upcoming school year because he'd found someone more suited to the role. This was not unexpected and so Mary wasn't too shocked when I shared the news.
"What are you going to do about that?" Mary asked.
This was also something I'd been prepared for, at least enough to have prepared a countermove.
"I'll contact the Board of Governors and appeal to them" I told Marigold "Even Dumbledore can't let members of staff go like that. He needs new staff too much for the governors to let him get away with this".
The Hogwarts Board of Governors was a group of twelve wizards and witches who oversaw the running of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Among their powers was the ability to appoint and suspend a Headmaster, even Dumbledore could be sacked by them.
They were also obliged to take action if a parent or member of staff sought redress on any school-related issue and while I'd never taught a single class, I was a member of staff as such I had the right to appeal to them.
Governors had authority over the staff and should they wish it I would be allowed to keep my job no matter what Dumbledore had to say. He'd overstepped his authority and people weren't just falling in line with him as they used to.
If needed, I would bribe my way into Hogwarts as I still had plenty of gold, and perhaps a generous donation to the school would help smooth things over with the governors.
This was also something I ran past Mary as it was important to keep her involved. I knew enough about her to know that she'd be grateful for me including her in this way.
"People are always complaining about the school brooms," she mentioned "You could donate a set if you have the gold to pay for them".
That sounded like a good plan to me.
"Since we need to visit the Ministry anyway we can go broom shopping afterwards," I decided.
I was surprised that the Headmaster had made such a bold move, he must be desperate and he would soon discover that he had made a mistake.
Because I didn't care how much gold I had to spend to get what I wanted, nor was I above bribing people, and I would kick up a big fuss rather than just accept Dumbledore's actions.
Going up against Dumbledore when he had a lot more public support would have been a nightmare, but he was weak now and I had my prey in my sights.
Ruining this man was going to be so satisfying.
DMLE. The Ministry of Magic.
Tonks had been called into work earlier than normal, as things here at the Ministry had again gotten disorganised rather quickly after the Daily Prophet had printed an article about Marigold Potter,
She'd gone on record and denounced Albus Dumbledore's claims about the return of You-Know-Who. She'd even told people that she didn't want Dumbledore speaking for her.
Here at the Ministry, some supported the Headmaster even with a lack of evidence about You-Know-Who's return, and she was one of them, now like some others she was having second thoughts.
Despite the public opinion on Marigold Potter having gone downhill over the last year thanks to Rita Skeeters's articles, there were still those who believed in the Girl-Who-Lived and trusted in her.
As such to find out that Marigold Potter was not on the Headmaster's side was a bit of a shock to Dumbledore's backers, more so with the younger supports than the older ones.
Grindelwald's efforts had been more focused on Europe than Britain so when compared to Voldemort he wasn't considered as dark or dangerous.
Only Dumbledore's older supporters had been involved in the struggle against Grindelwald and even some of them seemed to have forgotten about those times.
Tonks was old enough to remember when the Dark Lord was defeated by the Potters and while she saw Marigold Potter as a person, rather than a symbol, that didn't mean she wasn't worth listening to.
Sure the young woman was supposed to have been unstable and attention-seeking, but plenty of folks would believe her because she was still Marigold Potter.
Those who had been more neutral in the conflict between the Headmaster and the Minister were now turning somewhat hostile to those who believed in Dumbledore.
So far the whole thing had been limited to the odd insulting memo and harsh words getting exchanged in certain departments, however, that could change as the arguments kept happening.
If things got out of hand then the DMLE would have to step in to keep things from becoming explosive. Hence the need to have a few Aurors on hand. The mere presence of Aurors could keep things calm.
Tonks didn't care much for office politics or any politics at all, sadly they couldn't be avoided when you worked at the Ministry.
At least Bones seemed happy to keep her department out of the arguments as much as possible. Tonks was observant enough to have noticed that Madam Bones also had an agenda that involved not taking a side.
Despite this, when Marigold Potter turned up at the DMLE with Caelum Barrows, a man Tonks spent quite some time thinking about, they were both rushed into Bones's office for a quick meeting that no one knew anything about.
Tonks knew that before long news that Mary Potter, whose reputation had been greatly restored in the opinions of many due to that article, had met with Madam Bones would reach the ears of everyone in the Ministry and people would wonder why.
Was the Girl-Who-Lived in some sort of legal trouble? or was she backing Madam Bones?
As a junior Auror, she didn't expect to be brought into the meeting and while she felt that she might be in some sort of trouble, Tonks couldn't help feeling eager to find out more about what was going on.
Bones's office was a big yet simple space. Mostly taken up by a large desk that always seemed to be
covered in paperwork and the Head of the DMLE didn't speak before passing a letter to Tonks.
"Did you know about this?" she asked.
Tonks did, but only in vague terms.
"Dumbledore asked me to pick Miss Potter up later today" she said "Why what is the problem?".
Bones did not look happy.
"And you don't see anything wrong with aiding in a potential kidnapping?" asked her boss.
Now that caught her by surprise.
"I would never kidnap anyone," the young Auror stated.
The other people in the room didn't agree with that statement.
"Forceably removing a minor from a property is kidnapping," pointed out Bones "Mr Barrows has not permitted Miss Potter to go anywhere and until Mr Black's name is cleared he can not act as her godfather".
Tonks didn't know what to say. She hadn't seen it in those terms, but her boss was right, they didn't have permission from Marigold's guardian to move the young witch to Headquarters.
"That wasn't how Dumbledore…" she said before cutting herself off.
"Albus Dumbledore has no authority over his students during the summer," said Bones "Now I want you to go to that club I pretend not to know about and tell them if Marigold Potter is removed from Mr Barrow's custody before she turns seventeen that I will consider it kidnapping".
Tonks knew better than to argue and she quickly left the office. She had to do exactly as she was told or she could be considered an accessory in an attempt to kidnap the Girl-Who-Lived, which at the very least would be the end of her career.
Chapter 25
Thanks to Southmonk for generously sponsoring this story.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 25.
Number 7 Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
"So Caelum, what does it do?" questioned Marigold Potter.
Since the object resting on the table before her looked like a fancy ring, this might seem to be a silly question, as everyone knows what rings are for. However, since Mary knew me fairly well she'd figured out right away that it was not just something decorative to wear.
Spoiler
[img: https/media-waterdeep./avatars/thumbnails/7/372/1000/1000/636284762810625788.jpeg]
She was also smart enough not to reach out and take it despite me already having told her that it was an early birthday present.
Marigold Potter understood that the fancy ring was enchanted and wanted to know more before touching it. Which meant she was wiser than many others of her kind.
I'd made her this ring while waiting for the meeting with the Hogwarts Board of Governors who had agreed to meet with me to discuss my terminated employment.
That meeting would take place close to when Mary was supposed to record her radio interview so we would be spending most of a day in Hogsmeade.
Since I still had some time before that appointment I'd decided to talk to Mary about her gift in case she ended up wanting something a bit safer.
"This is a Ring of Three Wishes," I told her "It wasn't simple to make, I had to summon up a genie and then bind it to a ring. The genie you see in that movie is not much like the real thing".
There would be no Robin Williams comedy or big musical numbers in our future.
"True genies do grant wishes, but they will twist the wish in a way to make it harm you or others," I warned "There's a reason why the expression 'Be careful what you wish for' has been around for such a long time".
Mary didn't like the sound of that.
"If it is so dangerous, then why did you make the ring?" she wondered.
That is a good question to ask.
"A genie can be bound to object and can only go free once they have granted three wishes" I explained "So they have to behave, and they can't just screw up the last wish out of spite because of the magic that is binding them".
This was an extremely complex bit of magic. It would have been easier for me to create a Horcrux than to make this ring.
"The genie has to grant the wish, and it's not allowed to twist the wish to harm you, but it can be quite literal so before you make your wish you should carefully decide what you want" I informed Miss Potter "The other thing to watch out for is that the genie can not grant any wish that can't be accomplished by magical means".
Different worlds had different rules governing magic so this was important to remember.
"So no bringing back the dead, no making people fall in love with you and because of the way the genie is bound you can't wish for more wishes" I told Mary.
Marigold frowned.
"That means I can't wish to find one true love or soul mate or whatever?" she asked.
Well, actually, she could.
"You just can't make someone love you," I replied "You could make them obsessed with you, but that can be done with a love potion. Now finding someone who can love you is a bit different. If you were to wish to find your soul mate the wish should guide you to them".
Mary shook her head.
"I don't think I'm ready for that," she said.
Smart girl.
"You can wish for something you could do with magic even if you don't have the knowledge and skill to perform that magic yourself," I said "That opens up a lot of possibilities".
I paused for a moment to let her think about that.
"Let's say you want a Philosopher's Stone, then you can wish for one without having to spend years trying to figure out how to make one," I told Marigold "If Voldemort were around you could defeat him a wish because defeating him would be possible with magic".
It would work because wishing could be the power he knows not.
"That means I can't use it to bring my parents back to life?" Mary enquired.
I didn't that would work in this world as magic here has certain rules and I didn't wish to mention that she might be able to summon their spirits to talk to them.
If Death is a real entity, and the Deathly Hallows were its artefacts, then I didn't want her trying to do what the Stone Hallow was supposed to do. The cloak seemed harmless enough so I wasn't worried about her using that one.
"No," I told her "You can't bring the dead back to life, and even if you could bring your mother to life, it might invalidate her sacrifice and that's why you shouldn't wish to travel back in time to try to save them. Assuming such a thing is even possible".
I gave her a moment to digest this information.
"The ring is meant to be an early birthday present," I said, trying to focus on the good "So if you want say a house then that is quite possible because it's well within magic's capabilities to make one".
Mary looked me in the eye.
"You trapped a dangerous magical creature in a ring just so I could wish for an early birthday present?" she asked.
When she put it that way it did seem a bit silly.
"Three birthday presents" I corrected "And nearly anything is possible with magic. You could have a phoenix familiar, you could become an Animagus, and you could learn to fly without a broom. As long you think the wish through clearly there aren't that many limits".
Mary studied the ring and looked to be in deep thought.
"Why didn't you make a ring for yourself and use it to deal with Dumbledore rather than keep sort of fighting with him?" wondered Mary.
I wasn't sure other than that until now I'd not felt confident enough in my skills to create a Ring of Three Wishes.
"That's an insightful thing to ask" I praised.
Getting rid of the Horcrux in her head had changed Mary. She was becoming much better at thinking things through and I imagined that in the future she'd be less prone to rushing off to do dangerous things.
"I never planned to lock horns with Dumbledore like this," I told Mary "In fact when I started, I wanted to avoid him as much as possible. I only wanted to complete my mission and keep an eye on you".
When did I lose sight of my mission?
"The moment I decided to become a teacher I got his attention and when I invited you to live with me I set myself against the man" I answered "I didn't plan to get this close to you. Not that I regret it".
Despite my distaste for wizarding politics, I had ended up a player in that game. I was wasting my time and energy trying to erode Dumbledore's political power like it was some sort of game and it wasn't a game worth playing.
I was in this world because my patron was concerned about the darkness corrupting magic and because it had wanted me to collect certain artefacts, not to battle Dumbledore.
Sure Marigold could still do with some guidance and support, however, with her no longer being a Horcrux and Voldemort gone the prophecy no longer mattered.
When Voldemort failed to materialise the Headmaster's support would continue to diminish on its own, he didn't need my help. So why was I going to such lengths to fight a political battle with the man?
"We should use a wish to make Dumbledore leave us alone," said Mary as she looked at the ring "But first I want to wish for a home of my own. I need somewhere to stay after I'm finished with Hogwarts".
She was well aware that my presence in this world was temporary and that she would have to look after herself. At least I could help her prepare for that.
"I might not even be here next summer" I reminded her "So it would be smart to make sure you have somewhere of your own to live. I'm sure Sirius would give you a home, but that comes with complications".
Which was something we'd discussed more than once.
"Okay so my first wish will be for a home" Mary summarised "My second will be some way of getting Dumbledore to leave us alone. I'll think about the third wish".
I was pleased by her choices. They showed great maturity.
"Let's write down your wish to make sure that it is straightforward and achievable through magic," I said.
Between the two of us, this shouldn't take long.
Potter Cottage. Godric's Hollow.
Marigold and her professor, although since he'd been let go by Dumbledore he wasn't a teacher, had spent quite some time making sure that her first wish had been simple while also detailed enough to get what she wanted and it had worked out well.
No sooner had she made the wish than an owl had appeared containing the deed to the Potter Cottage in Godric's Hollow, which the Ministry had claimed to have held in trust for her until she became an adult.
Mary knew better than that, had she not made the wish the Ministry would have held onto the property and given her nothing.
"So the wish changed the minds of the people working at the Ministry," said Mary "And they just decided to give me my family home back?".
She still wasn't sure how the ring worked. Yet she knew enough to know that it was certainly one heck of a birthday present as long as it was used carefully.
"The ring can grant any wish that is possible by magic" Caelum reminded her as they stood outside of the cottage "We could have gone to the Ministry, bribed the right people and maybe used some mental magic to achieve the same ends".
Not that Mary would have approved of using bribery.
"The wish just made sure it happened and ensured that we didn't have to use any magic the Ministry would be able to detect" Caelum said.
Mary had not thought much about living here in Godric's Hollow after discovering the existence of the cottage. It wasn't a place she liked to think about at all if she could help it because of what happened here.
"Ready to reclaim your home?" asked Caelum.
That was a good way of looking at this. She wasn't revisiting a scene of horror. She was reclaiming her home, she was taking it back from those who had stolen her life.
To that end, she opened the front gate and began to look around. She soon saw a sign and moved closer so that she could read it.
" On this spot, on this night of 31 October 1981, Lily and James Potter lost their lives. Their daughter, Marigold Potter remains the only person ever to have survived the Killing Curse. This house, invisible to Muggles, has been left in its ruined state as a monument to the Potters and as a reminder of the violence that tore apart their family"
So it had been left in its ruined state and made invisible to Muggles, as a monument to the Potters and to Voldemort's first downfall.
Marigold couldn't help thinking that the Ministry just hadn't been bothered to look after the cottage after they had seized it. She promised herself that she'd take much better care of this place.
"Caelum, why did you think the Ministry took over the cottage?" she asked "It's not like they were giving out tours".
It didn't make sense to her. Why take her family home just to abandon it?
"I think they wanted to study the place, to try to find out how you survived," said the man who was a teacher to her no matter what Dumbledore might say "The house should have been completely overgrown by now if they had just left it".
That made sense and by this time, nature had begun to reclaim her family home with ivy covering most of the surviving portions and the lawn had grown out of control, but it should be more overgrown than that.
Not that it remained in that state for much longer, as Caelum took out a book of charms, checked out a few spells, and then began to clean up the outside of the house.
Spoiler
[img: https//images/harry-potter-cottage.jpg]
Marigold found that many visitors had written on the sign, either signing their names in Everlasting Ink, carving their initials, or leaving messages, including a number addressed directly to her offering words of encouragement.
Some of which looked newer than others. So not everyone believed the rubbish in the Daily Prophet. Which meant not everyone in the Magical World was a sheep. That was good to know.
"Should I use another wish to fix up the place?" Mary wondered.
Caelum took out another book on charms from his pouch of holding.
"I hope that you won't need to," he said "I think between us we have more than enough power to create one heck of a Mending Charm".
Marigold was familiar with that spell. It was good for fixing minor things like her glasses, but this house looked far too damaged.
"Can we do that?" she wondered.
Rather than answer verbally the wizard moved into the house and began waving his wand around. He started in one room, ensuring everything was in order before moving on.
From Marigold's perspective, it was as if time had been inverted in each part of the house, she watched her home come apart only in reverse.
It wasn't perfect, the house would need to be cleaned, but Caelum had already thought of that and he began using some of the charms he used in his home.
Although the man wasn't afraid to clean things the old-fashioned way when he had the time.
The physical damage wasn't limited to the hole in the roof. The whole building seemed to have been damaged in some magical way. Caelum and she did her best to undo the damage.
When it came to the hole in the roof they had some trouble. It wasn't repairable even with both of them working together.
"I don't think we can fix this" the professor admitted "That can happen if the damage is done with dark magic. It's similar to why Mad-Eye Moody has so many fake body parts. Injuries caused by curses sometimes can't be healed".
Mary's hand went to her scar, which she would swear was already starting to fade a bit.
"We'll have to find out if anyone in the magical world does proper repair work," said Caelum "Maybe a House Elf can help us".
For once she had information her mentor lacked.
"We can ask some dwarves" she suggested "They do building work. I remember hearing about that".
While Caelum went to double-check the work they had done so far, Mary looked around the house that she should have grown up in.
She imagined having meals in the kitchen with her parents and doing homework in the living room with one of her parents helping her.
Would she have had brothers and sisters to play with? Could other children of the magical world come over to mess about with her in the garden?
She would never know because her family had been killed all because of some stupid prophecy.
Voldemort had paid for what he had done to her, but he wasn't the only person to have cheated her out of her proper life.
There was one person who hadn't been punished and it was about time the Headmaster got what was coming to him.
Chapter 26
Commissioned by southmonk
My muse struck me, repeatedly, please make her stop.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 26.
The Great Hall. Hogwarts.
At the far end of the hall from where I stood was the staff table. Most of the time the professors of Hogwarts sat there and from those seats, they could watch over the students at meal times.
Upon this occasion, the large table was free of any silver dishes and goblets. Instead, the surface was covered in quills, ink pots and papers.
Things were different today as it was where the members of the board of governors sat as they prepared to pass judgment on the two different candidates for the position of Muggle Studies Professor.
We would both have to state our cases and convince the governors why we should have the job. I had a few words prepared a trick or two up my sleeve.
In other times the words of Albus Dumbledore, who was here in person rather than acting through some proxy, would have been enough to secure a person the vaunted title of professor, and that was a good part of why the title meant so little these days.
If the likes of Snape and Sybill Trelawney could become teachers here at Hogwarts then the role was not much worth having. Yet I still desired it enough to come here today.
I was well aware of why Dumbledore had allowed the job to become far less respectable than it should have been, and I doubted he cared much about how badly it had affected the education of the children who had been placed in his care.
It wasn't odd to me that Tonks had made an appearance since she'd known we would be here and she was supposed to be keeping an eye on us, for either the DMLE or Dumbledore.
Spoiler
[img: https/images2./image/photos/12600000/Tonks-in-OotP-HQ-tonks-12627996-1574-2100.jpg]
"We'll begin soon" announced one of the governors.
An upset-looking Marigold Potter came over to me, and it was noticed by many that the Girl-Who-Lived was standing next to me rather than Dumbledore.
"What's the matter?" I asked.
Understandably Mary had been a bit out of sorts since we'd left Godric's Hollow, but that mood had been a mix of happy and something else, now she seemed upset.
I could understand why she'd chose to wish her family cottage over a manor house because I could have brought her a big fancy house. Some things had value beyond mere money and she wanted to reclaim the cottage for herself.
"That old bastard is insisting that I go with him after this meeting," she told me "He even had the nerve to tell me that I shouldn't worry about reclaiming the cottage and that I should leave that sort of thing to the grown up, like I'm still a first year. He told me that my rebellious phase is childish".
At times I had to wonder if the Headmaster had more than a few screws loose. Had he never met a teenage girl? If you treat them like rebelling children they will just rebel more. You're supposed to encourage young people to find their way in the world.
I was also a little surprised that he hadn't at least hinted that he'd allow me to work at Hogwarts if she went along with the Headmaster's demands. He must view me as too much of a threat to his plans to allow me to spend time at the school.
"Remember that he expects you to die fighting Voldemort" I reminded her "In his mind there's no point in you having a family home if you never have a family".
Mary stormed off, and I considered going after her, but she didn't go far, so it was best to let her calm down.
Auror Tonks came over, no doubt she was curious as to what was going on with Mary. She'd been wise enough not to interfere while we were talking.
"Wotcher, Caelum. What was that all about?" she questioned.
While she might report her findings to the Headmaster it wasn't as if he didn't know why Mary was upset. Besides, I liked having her to talk to, she didn't seem as closed-minded and stupid as many of the magical people could appear.
"Professor Dumbledore gave her a telling-off for trying to live her own life," I answered.
Tonks wasn't sure what to make of that. I could imagine that she'd started to care for Mary, yet she was loyal to Dumbledore, so she might be feeling rather conflicted.
"What?" she asked
I sighed and tried not to be even more annoyed at the Headmaster than was normal for me.
"Mary and I have been restoring the Potter Cottage in Godric's Hollow," I began to explain.
Again I knew that this would be somewhat known to the public by now since we'd not made a secret of it. I could have hidden the house with magic when warding it, but Marigold wanted a home, not a hideout. She wanted a place to raise a family of her own, a place friends could visit.
"Rather than support her the Headmaster decided to instruct her on how to live her life," I went on to say "The more he does that the further away he pushes her. She doesn't want to hide away in fear and I don't blame her as that isn't living".
Tonks understood that.
"I've told them myself at…" she said with a sudden pause.
She didn't need to say it.
"At the Order of Phoenix meetings," I finished "Yes, I know all about them".
Tonks blushed, and it was a slight blush, no colour change, and she decided to change the subject. Either she is more controlled today or she just getting used to knowing things I shouldn't.
"Who's the old man with Dumbledore?" questioned Tonks "He's on the board of governors, but I've never seen him before".
I knew who she meant. He was an old wizard, already older than most people could ever be.
Spoiler
[img: https/vignette3.wikia./harrypotter/images/9/9c/Elphias_Doge_DH1.png]
"He is Elphias Doge, he serves the Ministry of Magic as Special Advisor to the Wizengamot" I informed the Auror.
I also felt sure that Doge was part of the Order of the Phoenix and active during the second war with Voldemort. Perhaps he just hadn't been to any meetings at Grimmauld Place.
"Do you know the woman with them?" I wished to know.
She must be the other candidate for the Muggle Studies job.
Spoiler
[img: https/img2.wikia._cb20111207182757/es.harrypotter/images/8/8f/Emmeline_Vance.jpg]
"That's Emmeline Vance" Tonks let me know "She's part of you-know-what".
And no doubt a pureblood from some old family and if the students of the Muggle Studies class were lucky she might know the difference between a telephone and television.
"Dumbledore wants to put more of his people into the school" I muttered "No conflict of interest there".
Tonks looked uncomfortable so I thought it best to change the subject.
"Mary and I have other business in the village after this" I mentioned "Would you care to join us or would you prefer to follow us around while we pretend that you aren't keeping tabs on us?".
Tonks smirked as did I because I knew that Renwick would have warned me if she tried to use stealth to follow us and so her efforts would fail.
"I'll join you," she said "Hopefully I'll get a proper date one of these days".
This was a bit insulting. In my view, I'd been treating her very well.
"What about all those home-cooked meals I've invited you to?" I asked.
Her smirk soon returned.
"Don't worry they are earning you some major points" she promised.
I wondered what I could win with enough points.
"Let's begin!" called out an elderly woman.
Given that I'd researched the school board I knew her to be Neville Longbottom's grandmother.
Spoiler
[img: https/vignette1.wikia./harrypotter/images/2/27/AugustaPortrait.jpg]
Should she know who had made the potions that cured her son and daughter-in-law of their poor health she would no doubt be on my side.
No sense in dwelling on that. I had other things to think about and the governors looked as if they had a lot of work to be getting on with. That made sense as Muggle Studies wasn't the only professor position they needed to fill.
"Mr Barrows, Miss Vance," said Madam Marchbanks "Please step forward".
Marchbanks was the woman who had recommended me for a teaching position at Hogwarts. Judging by the annoyed looks she was shooting Dumbledore she was not amused by this meeting.
Horace Slughorn was also on the board of governors. Having been a teacher for decades and the leader of Slytherin House he was certainly qualified for his position.
Spoiler
[img: https/media./horace-slughorn-half-blood-prince-portrait-4.jpg]
Given his desire for connections, I couldn't help thinking that his having seen me with Marigold Potter would work to my advantage.
"We are to decide which of you is most suited for the position of Muggle Studies Professor," said the examiner "To that end, you will both state your case and tell us why you should have the position"
That should be simple enough.
"Since neither of you has any teaching experience you will need to tell us why you should be hired, and we consider this along with your other qualifications" she then said.
Vance decided to start.
"My greatest qualification is my integrity" she stated "I do not need to try to bribe my way into a teaching job".
I had thought this might come up and in my view, it was a weak argument since it didn't build her up in the eyes of governors she just looked as if she was here to attack me verbally.
"How is gifting brooms to the school a bribe?" I asked, "The governors didn't benefit from it, and it wasn't even my idea, Miss Potter informed me of the poor state of the brooms used by the students who can't supply their own".
If I'd wanted to bribe the governors I could have done it without anyone other than them ever knowing.
"I felt that by aiding the students I would be showing my commitment to teaching" I stated.
Mary might not be grateful that I drew attention to her. I'd been thinking about taking her on holiday and that could serve as an apology.
"Miss Vance, I hope you aren't implying that the board of governors can be bribed," Marchbanks said Dumbledore's lackey "I do not take kindly to such accusations".
Oh, that one had backfired. Mary had been smarter than even she realised to suggest a gift of brooms to the school as it did make it look as if I cared about the students.
"I merely wanted to point out that Mr Barrows is willing to use underhanded methods to get what he wants" argued Miss Vance "Is that the kind of person we want teaching our children?".
As she spoke I figured the ring on my finger. Not the one that kept my mind shielded this one enhanced charisma and made Vance's words seem crude when compared to mine. At least to my ears.
"Darn, you saw through my plan to prevent student injuries by giving them safer brooms," I stated sardonically.
A few people hanging around in the hall couldn't help chuckling upon hearing that and it became clear that Vance was not winning this debate.
Not that it was even meant to be a debate since we were only supposed to say why we should be hired not why the other shouldn't be.
"If I may," Dumbledore said as he stepped forward.
The man suddenly collapsed, but he didn't stay down for long, and when he stood up, he looked around in what seemed to be a fright.
"Why am I at the school?" he asked everyone "Who are you people? Where is Aberforth?".
To hear him call for his brother was odd. It was known to many that they didn't get along and I was one of the few people who knew exactly why.
"Albus, it's me Dodge" the Headmaster's old friend was saying.
I didn't stay to watch what was happening, I turned to look around for Mary, just in case Dumbledore was doing this as a distraction so some of his people could grab her, and I found her near the door.
When I got closer to her I saw that she had the Ring of Three wishes on her finger so it wasn't hard to guess that she'd done something.
Since I needed to find out without anyone hearing us I waved my wand and used Muffliato, a spell that filled the ears of anyone nearby with an unidentifiable buzzing, so that lengthy conversations could be held without being overheard.
Not the best way of covering up an important conversation, but everyone else was too busy to listen to us.
"Did you do that" I accused.
I struggled to stay calm. Yelling in anger is never helpful if you're trying to get information.
"Yes," she admitted, "I made him forget about everything that happened since he was my age. Now he won't bother me again".
I was torn between wanting to praise her for the bold move and calling her out on her recklessness.
"So he thinks he's sixteen," I surmised.
No wonder he was now calling for his mother as well as his brother. She must have died when Dumbledore when a bit older than Mary was now.
"Yes, he doesn't know about me or Voldemort"
Marigold confirmed, "I was careful with my wish, and I had to do it. He was never going to stop interfering with my life and I couldn't bring myself to do more than make him forget".
I found it hard to argue with her reasoning.
"This happened to a teacher in my second year because he misfired a spell" Mary told me "You saw him with Neville's parents. He used to be a famous author".
She must be referring to Lockhart. Something similar must have occurred to him as it did in the book series. I didn't care enough to find out more.
"I didn't want to erase all of his memories so I figured if he went back to my age before he met Grindlewald then he might become a better person" Mary explained.
Assuming that he didn't die from the strain.
"Dumbledore helped to destroy my life" Marigold insisted "This is more than he deserves".
I was hardly blameless in all of this. I'd given a sixteen-year-old the power to alter reality in many ways. Far more than her magical skills allowed and so it would be wrong of me to chide her for using that power.
Besides, it wasn't as if I hadn't done things that were arguably worse.
"Please don't use your last wish without talking to me about it first" I requested "I'm not mad at you, I just don't want you to get hurt or accidentally hurt someone innocent".
She nodded her head and I stepped out of the range of a charm as Slughorn came over.
"Is Miss Potter alright?" he asked.
He must be assuming that she looked upset because of what was happening to Dumbledore. He was already being taken out of here.
"Just a bit of a shock," I said.
Slughorn acted as if he understood.
"To us all" he stated before getting to the reason he'd come over "I just wanted to let you know that since it looks as if Albus will need to retire the job will be yours. Marchbanks was already pushed to the limit with Albus's inability to find decent teachers and she won't want to shake things up by putting Vance in the Muggle Studies Proffesor position when she doesn't even have a Newt in the subject".
Not many people had that qualification. Dumbledore must have thought he could convince the board to hire her on the strength of her character rather than her knowledge of the subject.
"You'll get a letter confirming this soon" Slughorn let me know "And I look forward to working with you".
He must be planning on coming back as the Potion's Master, and I sensed a chance to obtain some help in preparing for my new career.
"Perhaps you'd like to join Mary and me for dinner," I offered "I wouldn't mind some advice on teaching and I know you taught Marigold's parents. She never gets to hear much about them".
He wasn't able to resist that bait and I did need to learn more about the role of Professor.
"I'd be delighted" he replied "Send me an owl".
He looked around.
"I've got to go and help sort all this mess out," he said.
While leaving I waved for Tonks to come over and she followed us out. Since this looked to be a medical issue there didn't need to be an Auror here and Mary still had her interview.
She'd have to mellow out a bit on the parts about Dumbledore, but she could still present her case to the public and get people to see her side of things during recent events.
Chapter 27
Commissioned by southmonk
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 27.
The Three Broomsticks. Hogsmeade.
While Marigold Potter had her interview at the radio station, something she had to do on her own, I decided to go to the pub with Tonks for some lunch.
It was a good idea for us to go out without anyone else around, as she'd not so subtly hinted that we needed to do this if we wanted to be dating, and I was in a rather good mood.
Something that Tonks commented on as we made our way into the pub.
Spoiler
[img: https/images./content/v1/56b92fd6f8508249cabeff0a/1479749631013-S6L00M5EKP7OTO7BD3KV/ke17ZwdGBToddI8pDm48kF9aEDQaTpZHfWEO2zppK7Z7gQa3H78H3Y0txjaiv_0fDoOvxcdMmMKkDsyUqMSsMWxHk725yiiHCCLfrh8O1z5QPOohDIaIeljMHgDF5CVlOqpeNLcJ80NK65_fV7S1UX7HUUwySjcPdRBGehEKrDf5zebfiuf9u6oCHzr2lsfYZD7bBzAwq_2wCJyqgJebgg/IMG_0470.JPG]
"I don't think today was much to smile about," she said "Professor Dumbledore might not be alright".
While I understood her position I would not share in her view. If I was capable of it I wouldn't be putting together a book with the material I'd gotten from Bathilda Bagshot.
"Dumbledore has been going out of his way to interfere in my life" I reminded Tonks "I've never cared for the man and anything that gets him to leave me alone is a good thing in my book".
The shapeshifter did not look happy.
"It's not like I did anything to him," I pointed out "The Headmaster isn't a young man and he was doing a lot of work. It's not shocking that he had a breakdown. The warning signs have been there for a while".
I entered the warm and welcoming Wizard pub. I noted, and not for the first time, how much more cheerful and bright this place was when compared to Leaky Cauldron down in London.
Having given it some thought, I figured that it had to do with that pub not playing host to less savoury characters rather than it being a case of this business simply being better run.
The Three Broomsticks didn't have anyone passing through it to get to Diagon Alley and it mostly served the people of the village as a place to hang out.
That the building wasn't hidden among muggle buildings might also be something of a reason why this pub looked more inviting. There was nothing secretive about it.
Upon entering, I was greeted by Madam Rosmerta, the proprietor of the Three Broomsticks with a friendly wave. I didn't doubt that she knew all about the meeting up in the castle and there weren't many metamorphs about so she must know Tonks.
That Rosmerta was referred to as Madam Rosmerta indicated that she was well thought of by the magical community.
She was at least in her 30s and likely a bit older since she ran the Three Broomsticks in the 1970s when the Mauraders went to Hogwarts.
I suspected that her youthful looks were a combination of the fact that magical humans can live much longer than their muggle counterparts a few well-used cosmetic spells, combined with her natural appearance.
Madam Rosmerta was well known by witches and wizards from all over, including the teachers from Hogwarts, and even the Minister for Magic himself, who would greet her by name in the Prisoner of Azkaban book.
Not that this was very odd as the magical world was a small and isolated community, if you put all the magical humans in one place they could fit into a large town if my guesses on population were correct.
I'd already decided to treat Tonks to lunch so we took seats and waited for Madam Rosmerta to find the time to come to our table.
"What can I get you my dears?" she asked.
A lot on the menu looked good.
"I'll have the cottage pie with salad and a pint of mead" I informed our hostess.
Tonks made her order and preferred something lighter.
"You look tense," I commented once Rosmerta was gone.
It wasn't hard to figure out that she was worried about Dumbledore and what his collapse could mean for the magical community.
"The Professor was the only wizard that You-Know-Who ever feared" stated Tonks "If something happens to him then who will stop You-Know-Who?".
I couldn't help rolling my eyes upon hearing that. Sure Voldemort took over the Ministry soon after Dumbledore died in the books/movies but Tom Riddle had been going around killing people all over Britain for years before he blew himself up trying to kill Mary.
"There's nothing to worry about," I insisted "You-Know-Who isn't around. If anyone knew for sure it would be Mary and she was the one who stopped him all those years ago. Dumbledore just stopped You-Know-Who from completely taking over".
Tonks was not convinced.
"How would Mary know he isn't around?" she asked.
I had to be careful in how much information I shared because it would get back to the Order of the Phoenix.
"Her scar isn't hurting," I told the Auror "She used to have these odd dreams about what he was up to, and sharp pains in her scar, but they've stopped as well. Which means he isn't active, something must have happened to drive him away or finish him off for good".
Tonks looked a little startled upon hearing that.
"People don't just randomly collapse and forget where they are," I said to Tonks "I think whatever is wrong with Dumbledore it's been building up for a while".
No harm in spreading a bit of doubt in the old man.
"It would explain why he'd become so paranoid. You saw for yourself that I was only ever interested in looking after Mary, but Dumbledore kept insisting she wasn't safe even though I have great wards on my house" I pointed out "The only person who even got close to Mary while at my place was Dung, who Dumbledore sent".
Tonks looked as she if was chewing over my words.
"Maybe you're right," she said "We all assumed that Malfoy Manor burning down was You-Know-Who punishing the Death Eaters who denied being loyal to him. Maybe it was somebody else and we all just assumed it was You-Know-Who".
I suspected that she was acting as if she changing her mind to trick me into sharing information, or she could be conflicted, she did have a mind of her own.
"A greasy git like Malfoy isn't lacking for enemies" I pointed out "And he's known to be close to Fudge, maybe it was a political move".
The young Auror nodded.
"Bones thinks it was Barty Crouch Junior who burned down Malfoy Manor and that he wants to punish the Death Eaters who turned their backs on You-Know-Who" she mentioned.
I felt sure that Madam Bones would not be happy that Tonks shared that little tidbit with me.
"If that's the case then it does make a kind of twisted sense that he'd mess with the Triwizard Tournament" I mused "If Crouch and Pettigrew were working together to get revenge for their master they would target Mary. If they were afraid of Dumbledore then they would want to get Mary away from the school before acting. Lucky for Mary, Pettigrew dropped the Quaffle".
We both didn't speak when our food came over aside from exchanging pleasantries.
"But then why did Karkaoff and Snape both do a bunk on the same night?" she questioned.
I gave it some thought and tried to come up with something plausible while wondering if I'd ever get to tell her the truth.
Perhaps one day when she knew me better and for now I had to be the wizard Caelum Barrows. My pact with my patron demanded it and I had no desire to anger that being by going against it.
The entity didn't want me to tell people about its existence and it might have a good reason. It might even act directly if news of its existence was spread to others.
"Snape was close to Dumbledore" I pointed out "Maybe he believed the Headmaster and thought You-Know-Who was coming back. He might have got scared enough to go into hiding like Karkaoff is supposed to have done".
Tonks took a swing of her drink.
"Let's talk about something else" she insisted "Something that won't keep killing my appetite".
I soon thought of something else we could talk about.
"Tell me how you started your career as an Auror" I requested "It must have been a lot of work".
Tonks told me about how she'd participated in the Ministry of Magic student programme, which was a special Ministry-sponsored programme that allowed seventh-year Hogwarts students to experience various careers first-hand while under the guidance of a witch or wizard who was a veteran of their craft.
It was the Wizarding World's version of Year 11 work experience. I'd done something similar in my last year of Secondary School and I'd ended up spending a week working in the IT department of a local college.
"Remember how I told you about how a mate of mine and me got assigned to the Auror Office under Alastor Moody" Tonks reminded me "Bloody hell he was
intense".
She had mentioned some of this during one of the few times she'd come over for dinner when she was supposed to be keeping tabs on us for either the Ministry or the Headmaster. Though she'd been talking to Mary at the time.
"I remember you saying that you and your friend helped Moody track down a rogue alchemist who was giving people boils with some fake potion. That seems like something too simple for an Auror to look into" I commented.
The Magical Law Enforcement Patrol was tasked with general law enforcement, much like the Muggle police you'd see on the streets.
Above them were the trained Hit Wizards who were a part of a squad and they were dispatched to deal with high-profile arrests or to deal with magical creatures that needed excess force to handle.
They tended to end up in hospital often enough that they had a bed at St Mungo's kept empty for them. Which made me wonder why anyone would choose Hit-Wizard as a career. The local mages were a crazy lot.
As for Aurors, they were the elite, the dark wizard catchers. Sending them out to deal with a snake-oil salesman would be like sending Mulder and Scully out to catch a gang of purse-snatchers.
"Well they wouldn't send a trainee anywhere dangerous, and a routine investigation is good for showing someone the ropes," said Tonks "And not everyone who trains to be an Auror makes it that far. A few end up as Hit-Wizard".
She explained to me that they were the wizarding Britain's equivalent of specialist firearms officers, something we both knew a little about since Tonks and I had a great deal of experience with the Muggle World.
A whole group might be sent after a single Death Eater if no Aurors could be spared, but mostly they tended to deal with more violent criminals, or maybe even something like a vampire that has been attacking civilians.
Sometimes they would even work with Aurors if the Dark Wizard catchers needed a few wands backing them up. Something that Tonks had seen first-hand during a raid she couldn't tell me much about.
Aurors did sometimes go on patrol in public places, to remind people of their presence, to worry criminals and to reassure the public.
Those were the more exciting aspects of working in magical law enforcement, a lot of the time was spent behind a desk or in meetings at the Ministry.
It was soon after this that Mary joined us and she seemed to be a more pleasant move than earlier. She might have felt it necessary to remove most of Dumbledore's memories, but it was clear to me that she'd not enjoyed harming the old man.
"How did the interview go?" I questioned.
I ordered a Butterbeer for her before she started answering. I knew that she had a love for the foamy substance. One that I didn't share as I found it too sweet for my tastebuds.
"It went okay" she said "I just talked about how it was Barty Crouch Junior who put my name in the Goblet of Fire, and anyone who listens will soon know that he was working with Wormtail".
And the Headmaster was in no state to say otherwise
from now on.
"Mostly the questions were about how I felt about the tasks and what people have been saying about me being an attention-seeking prat" she informed us.
That should make things more peaceful for her when she goes back to school. It was easy for people to think of her as crazy when they never heard a different point of view. Now they would have a chance to feel sympathetic towards the young Miss Potter.
"I don't think I want to spend my life doing interviews," Mary admitted.
There were ways to avoid that.
"You could always leave the country once you're old enough" I advised "Or you can live in the Muggle world".
"Or you can just stop getting into trouble" suggested Tonks.
Mary frowned.
"Trouble keeps finding me" she protested.
She had a point. It wasn't if she'd wanted to be the hero, and I felt it was best to change the subject.
"I know what will cheer you up," I said to Marigold "Let's go on vacation".
Mary smiled at me while Tonks did the opposite.
"You can't just leave the country" she protested.
Of course, we could.
"Yes, we can" I insisted "I'm Mary's legal guardian for another month and I want to go on holiday before I start my new job".
Tonks struggled for something to say.
"But, I'm supposed to keep an eye on you" she insisted.
That wasn't a problem, and it shouldn't be on the muggle side of things either as long as social services didn't find out, but they'd only told me I couldn't take Mary out of the country so if they noticed we weren't in the house I could claim to go on holiday to another part of the country to avoid legal trouble.
"Then come with us" I offered "I'll request you as a bodyguard for our trip and pay for everything. It won't cost you or the DMLE a single knut".
Mary was pleased to hear this.
"Oh there are so many places I want to go," she said "I've heard about people going to Eygpt to see the tombs, but I want some sea with my sand, can we go somewhere hot that has beaches. I've never been to the seaside".
That should be possible.
"We'll have to find out what wizards have in place of a travel agent," I said.
Our eyes meant Tonks's gaze.
"The Department of Magical Games and Sports can help you" she let us know "They are supposed to assist people who want to leave the country and have a good time like going aboard for Quidditch matches and duelling tournaments. I guess they know about other stuff you can do in foreign countries".
Then it looked as if we were off to visit the Ministry once again.
Chapter 28
Commissioned by southmonk
Bit of a lemon scene in this part.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 28.
Southampton. England.
Given that the mages had an entire platform at Kings Cross Station for a single train, it shouldn't have come as a surprise that they also kept a terminal at the Southampton port for their use.
They kept it hidden from the non-magical population with muggle-repelling spells and some illusions. Which seemed to be enough for the magical people here to go unnoticed.
As such when Tonks, Mary and I, who could pass as muggles easily enough, separated from the crowd to enter the magical part of the port, it was as if we had been transported to a different era of time.
All of a sudden we did stand out given our muggle clothing, no one commented or looked at us much, and given what some of them were wearing they had no right to judge anyone else's sense of fashion.
Looking around it wouldn't have been a surprise to see people boarding the Titanic, and while we would be going on a cruise ship to our holiday destination we would not be going there on such a famous vessel.
Although the ship we would be travelling on certainly looked as if it could have been built back then.
Spoiler
[img: https/www.thehistorypress.co.uk/media/2639/mauretania.jpg]
Due to the Wizarding World having a small population that was spread out all over the planet this ship the RMS Mauretania, a ship taken from the muggles in the 1930s, would not be travelling directly to our holiday resort,
There weren't enough passengers to justify a direct trip, so the RMS Mauretania would stop in southern France for a few days before moving on to the island holiday resort.
This meant we would be spending a day or two in the south of France, enjoying whatever parts of it the magical peoples had hidden away from the rest of humanity.
I could have arranged for a long-distance portkey or maybe tried to make the trip using my magical talents, but I figured we all deserved more time away from the UK.
Hopefully, the boat that was taking us to the island, which was also hidden from muggles, would be comfortable to spend so much time onboard.
With wizards and witches, it could be hard to tell simply by viewing the mode of transport. I'd learned that lesson already. The Knight Bus looked alright from the outside, but if you rode in it you'd know it was a horrible machine most likely fuelled by demonic spirits, or at least that was my opinion.
For some perverse reason, Tonks seemed to enjoy riding in the death trap. She must have inherited some of the Black family madness from her mother. That side of her family seemed to be loopy even by the standards of wizards.
"My pussy!" someone yelled.
Despite the lack of passengers, at least when compared to a muggle vessel of equal size, it was taking time to get people on board.
The wait wasn't too bad as our luggage was taken to our rooms for us, yet there was still some standing around to endure so plenty of people heard Marigold.
"What did you say, young lady?" an elderly woman asked.
Mary didn't like getting questioned by some old biddy. Tonks found it very amusing.
"I forgot about my cat" Marigold said before turning to face us "Caelum, what about Checkers. We can't leave him behind".
A situation I had already handled.
"Your neighbour Mrs Figg will be taking care of him" I informed Mary "I took care of everything, you can relax".
As if I'd leave some poor pet behind to starve.
"Thank you," said Mary "I can't believe I forgot my poor little kitty".
There were so many jokes about her pussy I could make and it surprised me that Tonks was able to resist making a few of her own.
"I can't believe my boss is paying me to go to an island in the Caribbean with you," said the Auror "I didn't even have to take any time off work".
It made sense to me.
"The Death Eaters were active in the open about a year ago," I reminded Tonks "The public might have forgotten, but I doubt your boss has".
I was sure she hadn't forgotten about that even if it hadn't been on Tonk's mind, and Aurors do sometimes guard the Minister, so it wasn't so strange for Marigold to have a bodyguard. Plus Barty Crouch Junior was still at large as far as anyone other than me knew.
"Marigold is a VIP, I get that" she said "I just don't understand her interest. Mary's been in danger before".
I'd figured it out.
"Bones wants to be Minister of Magic" I explained as our tickets were seen and we began making our way onto the cruise ship "She couldn't get the job as long as Fudge had backing from Dumbledore and Malfoy's money, so when Fudge and Dumbledore began fighting she started preparing to make her move".
Losing Umbridge may also have been a blow as she was a fanatical supporter of Fudge. Although given the way she treated people she might have been doing more harm than good for his reputation.
"That's why she's been bending over backwards to help us" I further explained "She wants Mary's support when she makes her move and perhaps mine as well since I have a fair bit of gold stashed away".
While I didn't care who ran things in the long run she would be a better Minister of Magic than Fudge so I figured that I'd back her if she made a move. It wasn't as if I needed to worry about running out of gold.
"What matters is that you get to come with us," I said to Tonks.
Thinking on it I figured that it was a bit odd that Tonks hadn't realised that her boss wanted to move to an even more important office.
She wasn't stupid by any means, and so it struck me as strange that an Auror wasn't more aware of the political stuff going on in the background.
I didn't think she'd been trained as an elite dark wizard catcher just because of her shape-shifting abilities, she'd gotten good grades at school.
"Mum is always on about political stuff even if she never gets involved," Tonks mentioned "Byproduct of growing up as part of the Black family. I'm more like my Dad, give me a good Quidditch game and I'm happy".
Another good reason to take this break and leave the country for a couple of weeks was that I had become too involved in British magical politics.
While I had some talent for the game as well as moves that other players couldn't handle, I didn't want to bite off more than I could chew. Best to take a step back before something bad happens.
"I am going to meet these parents of yours any time soon?" I wondered.
She looked a bit embarrassed by the idea.
"Only after a proper mission briefing," she said "You need to be prepared. My Dad is the type to tease me about boyfriends, Mum has already picked out names for her grandchildren. You might feel a bit pressured".
I looked forward to meeting the parents who had raised Tonks as a child. I felt sure that they would be interesting people in their own right. Plus if I did meet them then it meant we were getting serious.
"Barrows party!" called out a guide.
Everyone had made it to the deck by now and there were several guides here to make sure everyone could get to their cabin.
A lot of people were waving at those who had come here to see them off, as such, we didn't need to wait long for a guide.
"You'd be the Barrow's family?" asked a young man.
I wondered why they didn't have House Elves doing this part.
"The Barrows party" I corrected.
I doubted anyone could think we were related. At least no more than other groups of British magical people.
"Oh I don't know," said Mary "I can see you as a nerdy yet cool Uncle. Just not one on my mother's side of my family".
Tonks was amused by that.
"If you'll follow me" instructed the guide.
The man, who perhaps a squib as this seemed like the kind of work that didn't require any wand waving, took us into the ship and through a maze of corridors.
I had no doubt the internal space of the ship was even larger than the outside should allow.
"You three are in first class," said the guide "Two suites".
I turned to the woman with me.
"You two are sharing" I reminded them.
I felt sure that I'd mentioned that before, but things had been rather hectic when we'd been preparing to leave.
Our guide showed the ladies to their room first before taking me next door to mine. I'd paid extra for joining rooms as I still needed to keep an eye on Marigold.
It was still possible that something bad would happen to her over the summer as I'd been warned, and I had no intention of failing in my mission.
It was a pleasant surprise to find myself in such a posh suite. I'd paid enough for one, but wizards could have a funny idea about sleeping areas.
Spoiler
[img: https/i./originals/e1/1c/f9/e11cf9b5212c119f57efa85c8bdc1229.jpg]
For example, Hogwarts is huge, but they pack all of the students into small dorms, at least in Harry Potter sleeping arrangements are anything to go by.
"This fancy boat goes all over the world" the guide was telling me as he showed me around the suite "Stopping off at every country that has enough rich toffs to make it worth their while to dock. Err no offence, sir".
In terms of offence, I took none.
"I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth" I said, speaking more truthfully than the wizard knew "I only became wealthy rather recently".
Not that I'd worked for it.
"Marry into a nice family did we?" asked the man.
He wasn't afraid to ask personal questions. Perhaps he wasn't used to people listening to what he had to say and just spoke his mind.
"No, my grandfather left me plenty of gold," I answered "He was an alchemist".
Since I didn't want to talk to the man any further I gave him a generous tip and sent him on his way.
Once alone I decided that I was going to relax for a little while and later figure out where the bedroom was in this needlessly big suite.
"Draw me like one of your French girls, Jack" I whispered.
I took a seat on a couch, but I didn't get to relax for long as my room was connected to Mary's by a set of doors, that she decided to open, no doubt in a bout of innocent curiosity.
"Is Tonks going to use these doors to sneak into your room in the middle of the night?" she asked.
Okay, so she wasn't that innocent.
"That's up to her," I replied "Go ask if she packed the fuzzy handcuffs".
Mary sniggered upon hearing that, and then got somewhat serious.
"So what are we going to do until dinner?" she questioned.
The evening meal would be a big deal on this ship if the material I'd gotten from the Ministry was anything to go on.
As Tonks had told us the Department of Games and Sports handled foreign travel along with the Department of International Cooperation. It all was explained in some colourful brochures.
"Later, we can check out whatever amusements they have on deck" I suggested "Most of what they have here is aimed at children and adults so you might need to go find some people your age to go hang out with. Then you can complain about how boring this all is".
Mary nodded as if that made perfect sense.
"So I should go off and explore while you boring adults do the unpacking" she reasoned.
That worked fine for me.
"Yes, go explore" I insisted "There's bound to be someone from your school on this boat. Send me a Patronus if you get into trouble".
They could be used to send messages if you knew the trick.
"Maybe there are some cute boys onboard" Marigold mused.
She went off to get lost on some deck and I wondered if I would get a message telling me to recover her from the engine room before too long.
If Mary wanted to go hook up with some guy I wouldn't stop her. As long as she didn't wind up pregnant it wouldn't matter.
"Is she gone?" asked Tonks.
The Auror entered my suite while speaking.
"She'll be off exploring for a while," I said.
That was all Tonks needed to hear. She came over to me and sat right next to me on the fancy couch.
"I want to fool around" she stated "Let's just skip any romance and get to it in case we don't get any time alone during the trip".
Fine by me. I liked her directness and she was direct. Soon Tonks had straddled me, she was pushing her weight down onto me, and she didn't weigh much at all.
If I'd wanted to I could have easily picked her up and carried her over to the bed, and perhaps I would do so once we were done kissing.
For now, she was happy to grind into me while locking lips, and these actions had predictable results, she couldn't have missed my erection given how pressed into me she was.
Tonks broke away from kissing after only a few minutes and while still straddling me she took off her jacket. Under it, she wore a simple button-up t-shirt underneath with what some would consider an excessive amount of accessories.
The enchanter in me couldn't help wondering if any of them had magical effects, but they didn't hold my attention for long. Since her shirt wasn't properly done up her belly button was exposed as was a fair amount of her cleavage.
For a British witch, she was often scandalously dressed, not that I minded at all. Tonks was sexy and had a sense of humour, unlike many of the magical people I'd met so far.
"You're beautiful," I said softly.
I hadn't meant to say anything as Tonks wasn't in the mood to talk and she didn't reply. Instead, she undid the shirt to show off her bra. Her breasts looked as if they were only just contained by her bra.
"I swear these things sometimes have a mind of their own," joked the Auror "It's been far too long since I've been with a man".
She took off her bra with a sigh that let me know that she hadn't removed the item of clothing for my benefit alone. I could only imagine how uncomfortable such clothing could become if your breasts decided to change size.
As for her boobs, they looked to be big handfuls, and she had pink areola that were topped by tiny yet rather perky nipples. She seemed content to let me stare for a while.
"My eyes are up here, Cal" Tonks chuckled.
She'd never called me that before.
"Don't care" I replied.
I made no effort to hide my new obsession with her chest, and lucky for me it seemed to amuse rather than offend her.
"You better be the kind of wizard who returns the favour," Tonks said "Taking me on a fancy holiday doesn't mean you can be selfish in the bedroom".
Without speaking further, Tonks got up and very quickly undid my trousers. She then took the length of my cock into her mouth. The sensation of my cock sliding into her mouth through her moist lips was a very pleasant one, to say the least.
There was no more talk as she began to work her mouth on bringing me to orgasm with gusto. I just laid back and enjoyed myself.
Chapter 29
Commissioned by southmonk
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 29.
Number 12 Grimmauld Place. London.
While it was understandable that the Order of the Phoenix members would feel lost without their leader and therefore would be uncertain about what to do, it still frustrated Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody to no end.
It might have been easier to carry on if the Headmaster had died as even with Dumbledore's death being a great blow to the cause, at least then the group might have chosen a new leader and followed them, but Albus hadn't died and yet he might as well have snuffed it for the good he'd do anyone.
Instead of dying, Dumbledore had lost the memories that covered most of his life, about a hundred years if the Healers at the hospital could judge things correctly, and there was nothing anyone could do to recover them.
The old teacher's pensive had a few recollections, but mostly they were other people's memories, and there was little context for any of them.
Different people had done their best to supply Albus with knowledge of his life, only this wasn't very helpful as the Headmaster had the mental age of a teenage boy, and thus many things went right over his head.
Other stuff he was in denial about and at other times he simply didn't wish to speak with anyone at all, other than his brother, who was the only family had left and some of his oldest friends.
It could be years before he was any good to the Order and it was unlikely that he'd be able to stroll back into the Ministry or Hogwarts and command the respect he once did.
Not unless whoever it was who cured Frank and Alice Longbottom came along and supplied another miracle, without that they would have to carry on without Albus Dumbledore.
At least the Headmaster had his brother to watch over him. Alastor wondered if those two would ever put the past behind them and act like family. Perhaps Albus's memory loss could be a fresh start for both of them. Not that Moody had much faith in the idea and he had other more important matters to dwell upon.
Spoiler
[img: https/vignette.wikia./harrypotter/images/6/65/OrderMeeting.png]
"That's enough," said Alastor Moody as he moved around the kitchen table "Albus isn't here and so someone has to step up. I am taking charge".
Not everyone accepted this.
"You aren't our leader" insisted Mundungus Fletcher "I owe Dumbledore, not you".
As much as it annoyed Moody the crook was right. It was Dumbledore who had brought them together and he was the one who gave them hope that the darkness could be driven back. They still believed in him.
"Albus would want us to carry on," said Arthur Weasly.
At least a few of them had good heads on their shoulders. Arthur was mostly useful to the Order because his position in the Ministry was high enough to hear many interesting things yet the man himself was often overlooked.
This meant that people tended to see him as a non-threat and were more likely to share information with him that they might otherwise keep to themselves.
"I'll only take charge until Albus can come back," stated Moody.
Which would be years from now or never, yet the Order members accepted this as they needed someone to direct them. Alastor couldn't replace Dumbledore, but he could stand in for him for a time.
"So let's go over what is happening," said Mad-Eye "Even with Albus out of the picture for a time we've seen no proof that the Death Eaters are making any moves".
This was odd. Dumbledore was out of action and that should have resulted in the enemy taking some bold actions.
"Maybe they think it's a trick," mused Frank Longbottom.
While he'd not returned to work, and neither had his wife, Frank had rejoined the Order, even if his wife was staying at home. The couple weren't willing to risk both of their lives given how their son had effectively been orphaned for most of his.
This was a shame as Alice Longbottom was skilled with her wand, but since they weren't fighting anyone just yet Moody hadn't kicked up a fuss.
When it came to the married Longbottoms, Alastor wasn't so interested in what they were doing now, rather he wanted to know how they were here. They hadn't faked their illness and they hadn't just recovered on their own.
There was some evidence that the two of them had drunk some unknown potions, but no healer knew what those potions could be and no one had claimed credit for aiding the Longbottoms.
"What do you mean?" asked Sirius Black.
Until the man finally got his day in court, Black wasn't of much use to anyone, but he had opened up his home to the Order and once his freedom was restored Moody did not doubt that Sirius would be one of the Order's most active members. He certainly had been willing to throw himself into the fight during the last war.
However given that the man was a member of the Black family, very few of which had ever turned out to be anything other than mad men and women, he would practice Constant Vigilance and keep an eye on the wizard.
"They might be thinking that the Professor is faking his health problems to invite an attack, to encourage the Death Eaters to expose themselves," answered Frank.
That did make some sense and the Death Eaters had been inactive as far as anyone could tell. Mad-Eye would put it past Albus to come up with such a plan.
"If they figure out that it is not a trick do you think then they'll make some sort of move?" questioned Bill Weasley.
Moody wasn't blind to the fact that there were an awful lot of redheads in the order these days, and he'd be far more worried about this if they were not so loyal to Dumbledore.
"It's possible" said Mad-Eye "We need to keep up our surveillance and be ready for any moves they make".
Moody shifted his attention to the oldest male Weasly in the room.
"Arthur, anything going on at the Ministry?" Alastor wished to know.
There had been some odd activities in recent weeks before everything became more subdued.
"No news on the disappearance of Umbridge" reported the wizard "And the more I find out about the woman the more I think that someone else was involved".
Mostly this wasn't new news, but people listened anyway.
"Madam Bones' investigation has uncovered that Umbridge has been blackmailing people and taking bribes after promising to get rid of incriminating evidence that she created" Arthur Weasley told everyone "And her targets are families with Muggleborns or who are most Half-Bloods".
That did make her seem more like an ally to the Death Eaters than someone they'd want to be removed from a position of power in the most permanent of ways.
"She targets the kind of people the Death Eaters would want her to go after" the wizard was now saying "Then there are the laws she's helped to get passed. These laws will only help the Death Eaters to recruit the werewolves to their side".
While there had been some werewolf activity over the last year it seemed to have died down again, as if the werewolves knew something they all didn't. They might learn more about that once Remus Lupin returns.
Moody did not have much hope in this as so far Remus Lupin had enjoyed little success in getting other werewolves to join their side. At least the majority of them seemed content to stay out of any conflict that was brewing.
"Bones is more interested in gathering evidence of corruption to use against Fudge than in looking for Umbridge" reported Shacklebolt "Bones has the Aurors looking into other matters and despite Fudge making demands we've made no process in finding Barty Crouch Junior or in figuring out who burned down Malfoy Manor or even exactly how it was done".
The lack of progress was concerning and disheartening for the Order.
"Plenty of people didn't like Umbridge" stated Arthur "If she wasn't targetted by the Death Eaters then I can think of a few people in the Ministry who might have taken her out. I've been tempted and not everyone has as much to lose as me".
Moody had already considered the idea of Umbridge having been killed by someone more dangerous than her who she'd tried to blackmail. If she had then he didn't feel much inclined to bring that person to justice. At least not when he had much bigger concerns.
"Then there's Potter" said Mad-Eye "I'm in contact with Tonks, and Barrows has taken her and Potter on holiday. He doesn't seem concerned at all, and Tonks is keeping a close eye on the both of them. So far nothing odd as happened".
Black did not like hearing that.
"She should be here with me" he insisted.
He'd ranted about this before and Moody was grateful he didn't do so again.
"Barrows has the law on his side and Madam Bones is backing him," said Mad-Eye "My guess is she wants Potter's support later. What matters is that she's exposed and in the open, yet no one is making a move on her. If You-Know-Who is out there he's resisting the urge to go after Potter".
Which seemed rather odd to the retired Auror as was the behaviour of Marigold Potter. She acted as if You-Know-Who was of no concern and that Barrows was more trustworthy than any of them. What could he have done to earn such goodwill from the Girl-Who-Lived?
No one knew much about Barrows at all. His family had no presence in the Magical World and Tonks had nothing bad to say about the wizard. He seemed to care about Mary and to be doing a good job of looking after her.
"And there's no sign of anyone trying to get into the Department of Mysteries no matter what Dumbledore says on the matter" stated Emmeline Vance.
Another oddity.
"I think we need to direct our efforts elsewhere," said Frank Longbottom "At least until we know if Dumbledore will recover. We're not getting anywhere doing what we are doing".
There was some agreement with this.
"It's about time we did something a bit more drastic" said Black "Maybe we should grab one of the Death Eaters and find out from them what is going on".
That was risky, and many expressed as such, Molly Weasly most loudly of all. Moody had no idea why that woman was even in the Order, she was a housewife, and she had access to no useful news nor any skill at duelling, at least as far Mad-Eye knew.
"I think it is worth trying" said Black "We have no information and just observing them isn't getting us anywhere. I'm not saying we should grab Malfoy or any of the Death Eaters at the Ministry, but what about Crabbe or Goyle, they might not know much, but they are not so important for You-Know-Who to keep close tabs on. We can always wipe their memories after we question them".
Mad-Eye bit down on the urge to yell at the members of the Order. Instead, he went with Sturgis Podmore's idea to vote on the matter and Black found that he had enough support for the group to go through with the plan.
"We'll grab Crabbe or Goyle" Moody declared "We'll use potions to get the truth out of them about what You-Know-Who is up to, wipe their memory and let them go. The Death Eaters will know we did something, but since they are putting so much effort into staying hidden they might not retaliate. I know it is risky, but I don't think we have a lot of other options other than to wait and see if something happens".
Despite them having a course of action that could lead to gaining some useful information there was still a nagging doubt in Moody's mind about all of this.
Given Albus's breakdown, the lack of Death Eater activity and Potter's complete lack of any concern, he couldn't help wondering if Dumbledore was wrong and they were all wasting their time here.
No, there were too many odd events taking place to dismiss the idea that You-Know-Who had returned. Potter's name coming out of the Goblet of Fire, the unknown fate of Bertha Jorkins, the disappearance of Barty Crouch Senior, and there was what had happened to him, he hadn't spent months locked in a trunk just for Barty Crouch Junior to run off at the end of the school year.
Besides, Dumbledore's pet Death Eater had either run off or been killed, and while Moody wouldn't miss the man, even the tidbits of information he could have provided would have been useful. Snape would not have vanished unless something big had happened.
More was going on than appeared and he would get to the bottom of it all. He would have to keep the Order focused and keep gathering information.
Chapter 30
Commissioned by southmonk
Lemon scene ahead.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 30.
Cruise Ship. On Route To The South of France.
When I entered the grand dining room, I noted right away that the diners wouldn't have looked out of place during this ship's maiden voyage as wizard fashion lags far behind muggle fashion, and that is when the magical folk bother to make something of an effort to blend in with the mundane population.
Lucky for me, a basic black suit and tie ends to work well in various social situations. As such, I didn't stand out even if formal robes might have been more suited to this occasion.
While there were some styles of robes I didn't mind wearing, I was not willing to wear formal styles, such as those seen at the Yule Ball during Potter's fourth year at Hogwarts.
Spoiler
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"Name please," asked the person at the door.
"Barrows, party of three," I said to the man.
He was the same bloke who had shown us to our rooms. If he didn't remember me from earlier despite my large tip I wouldn't be offended, as there were many people around and I imagined that the faces of passengers would blur in his memory due to how many he must have to deal with.
"This way Mr Barrows," said the man after checking a book that rested on a stand near the entrance "You are seated over here".
While it hadn't taken me long to get dressed, the same was not true for my two female travelling companions. Despite having made me wait for what seemed like an hour I'd been wise enough to only compliment their appearances.
Neither Mary nor Tonks was one of those girly types, they didn't get concerned with dresses and makeup, although, in Tonk's case, makeup was rather pointless when you can change your features.
Yet they had both gotten dressed up and wanted to look their best so for them this dinner was more than just a chance to go get something to eat.
"You'll be sitting with the Delacour family," our guide told me "They haven't arrived yet".
Once I got over the mild surprise upon hearing that name I realised that Mary was pleased to hear this news.
"I already ran into Fleur" she informed Tonks and me.
It pleased me that Marigold had found someone close to her own age to hang around with. As for the Delacour family as a whole, they were late, hardly shocking given that the family was made of three women, well two women and a little girl, who all looked as if they were expecting to attend a ball alongside Cinderella.
Not that strange as there was a band or rather some instruments that played themselves, although given this was the Wizarding World I wouldn't rule out the players of the instruments being invisible.
"Monsieur and Madams Delacour," said the server when the French family joined us, "This is the Barrows party. "Caelum Barrows, Auror Tonks and Marigold Potter".
Since I read a little about Wizarding customs I knew to kiss the air above the hand of the ladies and to make actual contact when shaking the man's hand. A lot of wizarding customs were similar to older muggle ones and that made sense since the magical had only separated from the mundanes in recent centuries and they held on to their traditions rather fiercely.
"These are my daughters, Fleur and Gabrielle," introduced Mr Delacour "And my wife Apolline Delacour".
Because they were half-breeds, these three witches with Veela ancestry may have experienced the same prejudices that befell other half-breeds. They looked fully human to me and I would judge them for what they did not their ancestry.
"Charmed," I said.
Veela were an interesting species. They were all female and so they have to breed with men to reproduce. If a Veela breeds with a normal human the offspring will be Veela, but if they mate with a wizard then the daughters will inherit their father's talent while also having Veela abilities.
Unless they are male, then they will just be a wizard. Male offspring of Veela are quite rare but can appear and it becomes more common the more generations it has been since the Veela mated with the wizard.
The Allure of the Veela combined with their habit of luring men away to breed make them the stuff of legend, they are the truth behind stories of Succubi as Veela will seduce a normal human male and use their powers to leave him unsure of what happened afterwards.
Arguably this is rape, but they have to do it so their species will continue and because magic needs to be hidden not due to malice.
It did make me wonder how Veela could have come into existence if they could reproduce on their own. Perhaps they were created by magic?
My studies told me that the Veela are always seen to be physically perfect, graceful and flawless beings, who lack anything that would make them look unattractive, but I doubted this was true.
I wondered how much of this was some subtle magic and how much of it had to them being genuinely attractive. The fancy clothes certainly helped as did their pleasant smell.
From what I knew the Allure was a type of magic that affected men, and possibly others who were attracted to women, some went into a trance-like or hypnotic stance, in which they lost sight of their surroundings and focused solely on the Veela.
Others were less affected but began to feel the need to impress the Veela, going as far as to make up accomplishments, regardless of how ridiculous that could be.
Given that none of the ladies here were pure Veela the magic might not work as well for them. Yet the ladies seemed pleasant enough to me to look at. Yet I did not feel any need to impress them much.
Some wizards seemed more immune to this than most others, though the first-time exposure would have a stronger effect, also age was a factor as grown men have a much easier time resisting the Allure. Something to do with hormones I suspected.
While studying the different magical races I'd read that men who were exposed to the Allure over some time became more resistant to it. There are also some males who never really stop being affected by the Allure. It's a matter of willpower.
I seemed to have great resistance. That might have more to do with the enchanted ring I wore. Although my Ring of Mind Shielding wasn't supposed to protect attempts to charm me with magic, and Veela weren't dark creatures, so my amulet of Protection Against Evil shouldn't be helping me.
Since my mind remained clear, I figured that meeting this family would be a chance to see if I could speak French, as I was supposed to be able to understand any language that I encountered thanks to my patron.
I ended up sitting next to Fleur who was trying to keep her little sister under control. The smaller one was rather excited to see Marigold again. I didn't need to speak French to understand that.
My ward decided to change seats so that she could sit next to Gabrielle Delacour on the other side of the table, leaving Fleur on one side and Tonks on the other. This seemed like a good chance to see if I could speak French when required.
"Are you going to the island resort?" I asked in French.
Fleur seemed surprised that I'd spoken in her native language. I was a bit shocked as well to suddenly know an entire language rather than just a few phrases. I had thought I would have some sort of universal translator, instead, I simply knew the language as if I'd been speaking it for years.
"I did not think you English knew how to speak in a civilized tongue," she remarked, ignoring my question.
Since the English language was the Lingua franca in many regions and the most commonly spoken form of speech in the world, aside from Chinese, I might have chosen to take offence at that remark, if not for the fact that I knew that the English language was a big mess with loan words taken from lots of other cultures many of which the British Empire had conquered.
Besides that, I wasn't English.
"I have been very well educated," I said.
Under other circumstances, I wouldn't mind getting it on with even a semi-Veela, as I was sure it would be a fascinating experience, but I was here with Tonk, and she was already giving the part-human some hostile looks. It would be wise of me to look as if I had no interest in the younger woman.
The floating dinners that made their way over to our tables were a good distraction. Having hot food and drinks flying about seemed downright stupid to me. Wizards had no common sense at all.
"Mary tells me you are an enchanter," mentioned Fleur.
At this point, I hoped that Marigold had the sense not to mention the source of my knowledge in different subjects, not that she knew too much about the origins of my knowledge and powers.
I didn't know why she'd mentioned the fact that I was an enchanter, perhaps Fleur had noticed the magical items I'd gifted Marigold with to help keep her safe from evil and to shield her mind.
"I am," I confirmed "My grandfather taught me many things".
There was no sense lying about it, and the former Triwizard Champion went on at some length about why her family had been in England. She'd spent some time there despite her distaste for the country and its people.
Fleur was looking for work, or to be more precise, was looking for work that would allow her to learn about enchanting objects. To that end, she'd gone looking for a job at Gringotts Bank in London and her family had decided to make a trip out of it.
I assumed that this was how she ended up meeting Bill Weasley, as he was a curse-breaker at Gringotts and would be spending his time studying enchanted objects to figure out if they were safe to handle and to make them safe if they weren't.
That explained her interest in meeting an enchanter, and while I did my best to ignore her efforts she was attempting to flirt with me. No doubt she wanted to find out how skilled of an enchanter I am and pry some useful information from me.
"Mr Barrows, there will be dancing later," Fleur informed me in English "Will you dance with me?".
Given that she had switched to English it was clear to me that she'd wanted Tonks to hear this part of the conversation.
"Sorry" I replied, "I don't know how to dance".
The young French woman was shocked to hear this.
"Then tomorrow I will teach so that we can dance before we part company," she insisted.
If I'd wanted to learn to dance I would have, so I politely declined the offer, and then I informed Marigold that I was heading back to my room. Without trying to look as if I was happy to leave.
Mary had gotten into a very animated discussion about the three tasks of the Triwizard Tournament as well as her other adventures at the school, with Gabrielle and she could return to her room on her own.
It might be unwise to let the famous young woman wander about alone, but she'd only resent me if I insisted that she return to her suite like it was her bedtime.
Tonks followed me to my suite and she was not in a good mood. I didn't need to hear how harshly she slammed the door to know that.
"That little trollop," she said "She spent all of the dinner flirting with you".
Everyone had picked up on that and no one had commented. I'd done my best to remain polite and to ignore her attempts.
"Are you feeling threatened by a slip of a girl?" I asked, "That's adorable".
At first, Tonks didn't know what to make of my words. So she huffed. Not unlike Mary did sometimes. They had influenced each other. I hoped it was for the best.
"You are supposed to agree with me," she said.
I shrugged as I didn't care much.
"She's a girl who just got out of school, you are a sexy woman," I stated "It's not as if she'd competition. Her Allure doesn't affect me and she only wanted to meet me because she is interested in enchanting. That doesn't mean she's attracted to me".
The Auror seemed reassured by my words as she moved over to my bed. I could tell that she wasn't totally soothed.
"No sense letting the little slut ruin our evening," she decided "I think Mary will be out for a while".
Before long there was a lot of kissing, fooling about, and attempts to remove our clothing. Which isn't so easy when you are wearing formal clothing and her unconventional sense of fashion wasn't helping. We did get there in the end and I was given a chance to admire Tonks in the nude.
This involved having to get out of bed to finish undressing, and I didn't get much of a chance to admire the view as she soon got moving again.
"Fuck me now, Cal," said Tonks as she lowered herself to the bed on all fours.
It didn't take anyone with my level of smarts to know how she wanted to get fucked. I quickly got behind her. I held onto her hip with one hand with the other I began to guide my dick towards her pussy entrance. As I did her ass also changed so that it became slightly larger and more curvaceous.
"You think I didn't notice you looking at my arse" she teased.
Rather than speak further I plunged my dick deep into Tonks's waiting pussy, and my cock soon settled into the warm, clamp-like surroundings of her cunt. The Auror made a noise to signal her approval of this.
I began to push into her and soon enough, Tonks began to thrust back, showing that she was eager to get as much of my dick inside her as was possible. Yet even this wasn't enough for the sexy witch.
"Harder, Cal, harder!" commanded Tonks.
I spanked her ass.
"Be a good girl," I told her.
Given that in the main timeline she marries Remus Lupin, she must have a thing for older men and maybe professors too. I had no idea why, some sort of major crush on a teacher, perhaps? The why didn't matter, I was going to use it to try to dominate her in the bedroom at least.
Despite wanting to stay in control of the situation I was urged on by Tonks's efforts to verbally encourage me to pick up the pace, so I grabbed a hold of either side of her hips and I began thrusting into her at a furious rate. But not until I'd spanked her curvy ass some more as I greatly relished the loud slapping sounds I made when I did.
When I focused on fucking her I looked down to see my cock disappear inside Tonks, and I enjoyed the tight warmness of her pussy walls around my dick. I felt fairly certain that I'd have cum too soon if not for the fact that I just had to stop to slap her ass a few more times.
Tonks was not at all subtle when she reached her orgasm, and unless she was faking it for some reason, and she wasn't a good actress, she very much liked getting fucked from behind. I filled her cunt as best I could, not at all worried about knocking her up as there were potions to prevent that sort of thing.
"You won't be thinking about that little slut" said the Auror in an amused tone.
I very much doubted that Fleur would be as fun in the bedroom as Tonks.
"We might need to go again just to be sure" I joked.
Tonks made a snorting noise.
"You'll have to wait," she told me, sounding sleepy "I don't think I'm up for more tonight".
Ah well, it was as if we had much else to do on this trip until we reached the island so we had time for another round.
Chapter 31
Commissioned by southmonk
I didn't plan for Fleur to become this involved in the story, but I changed my mind as Mary is unsuited to be an apprentice and making Tonks jealous is fun to write about.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 31.
Beach. The South of France.
Fleur Delacour was very good at getting what she wanted, and she had been from a young age, and not just due to her Veela heritage, which had made her adorable long before she could be called beautiful, it was also because she had worked very hard to get where she was today.
She had not been chosen by the Goblet of Fire because of the Allure of the Veela, or because she had successful parents, she had been chosen because she was a powerful witch who practised her magic, despite what her jealous rivals would say.
Fleur had no doubt she would have won the Triwizard Cup had the hosting nation not messed up so badly when it came to security, but she could admit, at least to herself, that she'd not been prepared to go up against the Girl-Who-Lived.
At first Marigold Potter had seemed like nothing more than a little girl who had somehow fooled the Age Line, a somewhat impressive feat on its own, however, Fleur had later become convinced that someone had indeed been using the contest as a means to harm the young witch.
The foolish British government had allowed the Tournament to become a mockery. It had been bad enough that there had been dragons involved in the first task, and then they had stuck her baby sister in that nasty lake.
As if they hadn't known that Veela were creatures of air and fire, the cold water of the lake had not been friendly to her and neither had the Grindylow. They were aggressive towards witches, wizards and muggles alike, and as it turned out they weren't fond of part Veela either.
The Grindylows were only ever tamed by merpeople; the half-fish water dwellers who sometimes kept them as pets, who like their pets were creatures of the cold waters, and had a dislike of beings connected to the other elements, or maybe that was just an excuse Fleur kept telling herself to excuse a poor performance.
To make matters worse they'd dragged her baby sister into the task. It was one thing for Fleur to risk her life, it was quite another for Gabrielle to become involved, and of course, Gabrielle had agreed to take part, she was eight and loved to be the centre of attention.
Her parents had approved, believing that Headmaster Dumbledore would ensure no one was harmed, and given what had happened to the old fool in recent weeks, this had been a mistake.
Then the Third Task had hardly been any better. The tall hedges prevented anyone from seeing what happened within the maze giving the audience nothing to look at just like with the lake. What idiot thought up that stupidity?
The students and guests had waited most of the year for three events which took place in an afternoon, and even the Yule Ball was one evening, the whole tournament could have taken place in one week had it been better organised.
No doubt her former school would show the British how such an event should be handled during the next Triwizard Tournament and she was glad that Gabrielle would not be old enough to enter when that event took place.
As the attractive young witch strode down the beach, she kept an eye on her parents who were talking with Caelum Barrows about the possibility of some sort of apprenticeship under the wizard who was some sort of enchanter.
Upon meeting again with Marigold Potter she had noticed the magical items carried by the Girl-Who-Lived and had become very curious about them.
Such objects of beauty and power were rare in the magical world. A few families had such items as heirlooms, and it was not often they were displayed publicly, and many preferred to cast spells upon themselves rather than make use of such valuable tools for their practical purposes.
Her Allure didn't work on other girls, unless they were already attracted to the same sex, and Marigold wasn't, nor was she weak-minded enough for the Allure to take hold in any case, but despite this, Fleur had managed to get a little information about the enchanted items from the Girl-Who-Lived.
Fleur prided herself on being very skilled with charms and she sought to perfect her skill with that branch of magic even if that meant working with the goblins of Gringotts.
Unlike many others, Fleur was no racist but even she would admit that the goblins didn't make for the most pleasant of employers, and by working for them she would have been focused more on removing enchantments rather than adding to them.
Since her attempts to use her Allure had failed to even gain the full attention of Caelum Barrows, and flirting didn't seem to get her anywhere, the eldest child of the Delacour family had turned to her parents for help.
It wasn't odd for grown men to be able to resist her Allure, Fleur was only one-quarter Veela and Caelum Barrows was attracted to a type of woman quite different from Fleur, and so she had to turn to others for aid.
Her Papa and Mama would make the arrangements. The Delacour family was not one of the wealthier families, but her father had a good position in the French Ministry of Magic and was used to getting people to agree to the terms he presented.
Once Caelum Barrows had left her parents she went over them.
"Papa, Mama, how did it go?" she asked.
Her entire future could depend on this.
"Not as well as expected" admitted her father "Yet there is hope. We have to convince whoever is in charge at Hogwarts to allow you to become Professor Barrows's teaching assistant. Since he is a new teacher I do not think he has the authority to decide that for himself".
That made sense and from what Fleur remembered of her interactions with the woman, limited as they had been, Minerva McGonagall was a strict woman, but hardly unreasonable or as rude as some of the teachers.
"The school could be a good place for you to practice your English" mentioned her mother.
That was part of why she'd gone looking for a job in the Gringotts Branch in London. She might not care much for many of the British, although there were a few worthy of her hard-earned respect, it was because the English language was spoken by many witches and wizards all over the world. It would serve her well to speak it well.
"Once we return home we will write to Minerva McGonagall and see what needs to be done to secure you the role of teaching assistant" promised her father.
Caelum Barrows was an enchanter with skill beyond any that Fleur had seen outside of the works of the old masters and she would learn from him even if it meant spending years in the cold castle the British called a school.
"Thank you, Papa, Mama," she said as she gave her parents a well-earned hug.
Beach. The South of France.
It was a pleasant summer's day here, on a strip of beach that had been hidden away from Muggles and maintained by some House Elves I guessed given the pristine condition of the place. There wasn't so much as a bit of driftwood here to distract from the sand and the sea.
Spoiler
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This made it the ideal location for those who had come off the ship to stretch their legs and participate in sporting events such as volleyball and a game of rounders currently being played with beaters bats. Where they had gotten a cricket ball from I could only imagine as it's not a game magical folks play.
While the swimsuits worn by the young witches here were more modest than you'd seen women wearing on other beaches they were still rather flattering to the figures of the youthful woman. Many of whom were old enough for me to admire without feeling like a total creep.
Tonks was one of the young ladies who knew I was checking her out, and if noticed me admiring any more figures she'd decided not to make a fuss about it. Perhaps she making an effort not to come off as jealous.
I was sure she was dropping the ball more than she should have even with her natural clumsiness. No doubt she'd give me more chances to admire her backside up close when we were alone.
For now, I had the less enjoyable activity of talking to Mr and Mrs Delacour, who were both working on behalf of their eldest daughter to convince me to take her on as an apprentice as Fleur badly wanted to learn more about enchanting.
"I'll be teaching at Hogwarts starting in Septemeber" I pointed out, speaking in French.
Granted teaching Muggle Studies wasn't going to take much of my time, assuming I still had the job, since I'd only be teaching students taking an elective till OWL year, but I'd been hoping to use my free time to carry on with my research. Figuring out how to use the knowledge my patron had supplied was something that could take decades.
"Fleur could assist you," suggested Madam Delacour.
I didn't see that working out.
"Even if Hogwarts allows teaching assistants does Fleur even know anything about Muggle Studies?" I questioned.
A teaching assistant who didn't know the subject would be a hindrance, not a help.
"I'm sure you can educate her on what she needs to know," insisted Mr Delacour "Fleur's strength is duelling and charms, but she is a bright girl. She can easily supervise a classroom for you and mark essays once she knows the material".
He had a point as Muggle Studies was not a complex subject and it would take far less time to explain what to look for in an essay to one person than to mark them myself. At least in theory.
"Gringotts was eager to take our Fleur on due to her skill with charms," mentioned Fleur's Mother.
The art of enchantment was basically about placing complex charms on items, one that wouldn't simply wear off as long as the item was intact. Unlike in fanon, it has nothing to do with applying runes to an object, they are purely decorative.
These charms were not easy to master and the other charms had to be placed on an object to ensure the enchantment you wanted on an item couldn't just be dispelled with the wave of a wand.
"If you can convince Minerva McGonagall to let me take on a teaching assistant then Fleur can learn from me," I offered.
I didn't even know if Minerva McGonagall was going to be Headmistress of Hogwarts so it might be a complete waste of time for them to ask her, and if she told them no then it wasn't my problem anymore. In the unlikely event she agreed then Tonks shouldn't blame me.
With that talk done, I made my way over to the bar for another fruity drink and the hottie Auror soon joined me.
"So Cal, you finally managed to get away from the French" she commented.
I ordered her a drink before replying.
"Only just" I said "I told them that if they can convince Minerva McGonagall to let me take on a teaching assistant then I would teach their daughter. Since I don't even know if I have a teaching job for sure I doubt she will agree".
Tonks looked a bit worried.
"And if Old McGonagall does agree?" she asked.
I gave it some thought.
"Then the little witch will be spending a lot of her time learning about Mugglers, marking essays and watching me teach," I said "Once she has been trained up I'll then have more free time to spend with you".
Tonks must not have considered that.
"Good" she said "A witch needs more than a Hogmede Weekend with her wizard, but I will find a way to keep an eye on the little slut".
I assumed she'd have Mary do it for her and document what she saw. Not that there would be anything to report.
"Let's go for a walk" I suggested.
Mary could keep herself occupied while I enjoyed some time with the sexy Auror.
Chapter 32
Commissioned by southmonk
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 32.
Beach. The South of France.
All I'd done was go for a nice walk with Tonks, we hadn't been gone that long, and yet when we got back to the more crowded part of the beach, it was a scene of chaos, we hadn't even gotten to finish our pleasant walk as we'd heard shouting and come running back.
What I could see now worried me. The volleyball net had been knocked over, the beach chairs were scattered about and the people here didn't seem to know what to do. It was a big change from how we'd left things.
Fleur Delacour's parents were in a terrible state and the girl who wished to be my apprentice seemed even worse off. The rest of the few families who were here also seemed to be in some sort of distress.
"What in Merlin's name happened here?" questioned Tonks.
Something then struck me.
"Where's Mary?" I asked.
Tonks spilt off from me to get some answers from upset parents who spoke English while I switched to French to question the Delacours. Already I could hear Fleur saying something about her sister and while Madam Delacour couldn't do more than cry her husband was holding himself together.
"They took the children," he said.
I needed to know more.
"Who did?" I questioned.
Tonks and I hadn't been that far away when we heard shouting so any attack must have happened quickly.
"The men," Mr Delacour told me "They were poorly dressed men, they came out of trees and took the girls. My Gabrielle and your Marigold, and the other girls who were playing games".
Fuck, this must be the bad thing that happens over the summer which I had been warned about. I'd assumed it would be trouble with Dementors and that I prevented an attack by dealing with Umbridge while also restoring some of Mary's reputation.
Now Mary was in trouble despite my actions. Something must have been fated to happen this summer regardless. Who knew why and what mattered was making sure she was okay.
"Which way did they go?" I asked.
Mr Delacour pointed at the nearby trees and I started moving. I would have to be quick as I felt certain that Mary did not have her wand on her and the magical items I'd gifted her with were limited in the protection they offered. She also didn't carry her Ring of Wishes on her person.
No, her stuff was in a small bag as while her swimsuit was tasteful and modest, it lacked any pockets. Not that it mattered as she should have been safe in such a public place. The French Ministry was going to an earful about this.
For a moment I felt glad that Dumbledore was out of action as this was just the sort of event that could be used to justify taking Mary away from me, but that hardly mattered right now.
Instead of worrying about the political problems this event could cause, I reached into my pouch of holding, I never went anywhere without it, and I took out a smaller pouch that looked to be full of marbles.
"Fly my pretties" I whispered.
Not the most original command phrase, and I'd decided on it when in a much better mood.
"Find Marigold Potter," I ordered the marbles.
They quickly flew off into the trees.
"What are those?" asked Tonks.
By now she must have gotten the same information as I had and hopefully some more.
"A way of finding people" I explained "Think of them as dozens of eyes that can home in one someone. When they find here we'll be able to see where she is".
Tonks watched the marbles vanish from sight.
"One of your grandfather's tricks?" she asked.
I couldn't tell people about my patron, I literally couldn't unless they figured out some of it on their own, so telling people that my reclusive grandfather had taught me some tricks not known to most wizards was the best thing to say.
"Yes," I confirmed "Do you have any idea what is beyond the trees?".
Tonks shifted and began to look more serious than I'd ever seen her. Her hair went jet black and her body became leaner. She reminded me a little of a hunting cat.
"There's a magical creature habitat north of here" she told me before sharing more information "One of the witnesses thinks it was werewolves because he saw the leader of a wanted poster. He thinks it could be Fenrir Greyback".
Now that creature was a monster in human form. He had a taste for children and would attack them even when it wasn't a full moon, and thinking about that led to a scary thought.
"Is it a full moon tonight?" I questioned, "I don't keep track of these things".
Neither did she as it turned out, or rather in her case she'd lost track, and I was worried that Greyback intended to wait for the moon to rise before inflicting his curse upon those his pack had taken.
"The magical creature habitat is protected so it's going to take time to bring in the Aurors," explained Tonks.
I began to walk towards the trees.
"We can't wait that long," I said "It's going to be dark soon".
As it was we'd miss the boat that would take us back to the cruise ship as that was supposed to return us to the cruise ship in time for the sunset.
"You can't just go after a pack of werewolves" insisted Tonks.
I didn't see that I had a choice in the matter. My mission aside I had taken responsibility for Mary and I couldn't depend upon her having some sort of plot armour now that Voldemort was gone.
"You're insane" the Auror stated.
Quite possibly.
"Werewolves cannot handle silver or fire," I said "Anything else?".
Tonks thought fast.
"They can resist spells better than us even if they haven't transformed, so don't both with jinxes, you're allowed to use hexes, if they have transformed then don't hold back. Anything other than the Unforgivable Curses and some of the nastier curses can be justified if a transformed werewolf is a danger to you".
I'd not known that they were more durable than other magical folk when in their human form, Lupin was supposed to be sickly, perhaps there were other factors involved.
As for the curses, I didn't think werewolves counted as humans when it came to using the Unforgivable Curses on them, but since I didn't make use of dark magic that didn't matter.
"I'm very good with fire magic" I mentioned as I used my marbles to see what was lying ahead "And by the looks of things the hostages are inside a shack. The werewolves don't seem to be on their guard".
Tonks needed a moment to figure out what she was seeing when she saw through the marble eyes.
"Cool trick" she commented "We could do with a few sets of these at work".
Now that an Auror had seen them in action I might end up with Madam Bones demanding that I make her people some. An issue to be handled later.
"They must not think anyone would be stupid to come wandering into the woods" said Tonks "Greyback is someone even the Aurors are wary of dealing with".
Still, this was a bold move, Greyback must be feeling overconfident.
"They'll be close to transforming" whispered Tonks "If we can catch them before they transform we can take them down because they will be distracted".
It was dark here so I took out a pair of sunglasses that had a dark vision spell cast upon them. Between them and the marbles, I could see the area and the werewolves who were guarding the shack.
"Can you see?" I asked Tonks.
I turned to see that she had strange eyes and very quickly I realised that they were cat eyes.
"Cool trick" I commented.
I'd not known that metamorphs could do that, but it made sense given that Victor Krum had turned himself into a shark man and he hadn't been a metamorph. At least not as far as I knew.
Since there was no point trying to sneak up on people who had enchanted senses, even when in human form, I knew that much about werewolves, and I walked directly towards their camp.
"You must be mad to walk…"
That was all one of the werewolves got to say before he was on fire. My patron had granted me great knowledge of Pyromancy and werewolves were indeed vulnerable to fire. Not just because their regenerative abilities had trouble dealing with burns, but because the beast in them feared the flames.
"Bloody hell!" swore Tonks.
A few of the gang outright fled as one of their gang suddenly burst into the flames, but not all of them, others attacked. The Auror at my side fired off some stunners, I just threw fireballs right at them, I didn't even need my wand.
"My pack," said Fenrir Greyback with a snarl.
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The thing that was more beast than a man, charged us only to slam into a barrier I'd made just in time. Tonks reacted quickly, stunning and binding the werewolf with conjured rope.
"Check the shack," I said, "I'll put out the fires".
It was dry here so the flames could easily spread if I didn't handle them, as I did I saw my chance to claim another dark mage for my collection. I'd not planned to do that, but I wasn't going to risk Greyback escaping.
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Once the fires were out and I'd recovered my magical marbles, I quickly went to help Tonks. She didn't notice that Greyback was missing as she was focused on the young witches and wizards who had been grabbed.
"We need to leave before those who got away can transform," said the Auror.
That wouldn't happen as long as there was even a sliver of the sunset left, but once that last bit of sunlight was gone, they would transform and might not care that I could still set them on fire.
So it was important to get moving and I helped to guide the small group of hostages out of the woods. There were more of them than I had expected.
"Hello, I'm Luna Lovegood," said a small woman who didn't seem to understand the importance of moving quickly "Nice to meet you".
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Under other circumstances, I'd be delighted to meet this witch, but this wasn't the time to chat or wonder about what she doing in the south of France. Not that I needed to think about that as she was a lover of magical creatures and there was a habitat for them nearby.
The howling noise that filled the air made everyone pick up their pace, but I knew it would be enough.
"Gone on, I can handle them," I insisted.
Of course, Tonks and Mary didn't just accept that.
"You need to look after the others," I told them.
I was sure that for them this was all very dramatic and Tonks was enough of an Auror to prioritise protecting the civilians, but Mary was very stubborn, and there was no time to argue so I told her to stay close to me. She didn't even have her wand so there was nothing she could do to help.
Werewolves are fast, but not so fast that you can't blast them fireballs before they reach you, and even if they had that is what barriers are for.
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They didn't even all attack, upon seeing the werewolves I'd blasted go down the other creatures fell back, running deeper into the woods. Fearsome as they were, their animal instincts ruled over them.
"That was easy," commented Mary.
Despite my lack of combat experience, the werewolves hadn't had much of a chance. I simply had too much power for them and I didn't fear them as the locals did. Since I didn't act as prey that gave them less power over me.
My patron had been very generous and I doubted many creatures in this world could threaten me. If anything I'd been holding back because I didn't want to show off too much in front of Tonks.
"Why weren't you scared?" asked Marigold.
I tapped the Protection Against Evil Amulet.
"Stops me from being frightened by evil creatures," I said.
Mary looked a bit guilty.
"I took mine off when I went swimming," she admitted "If I'd be wearing it I would have panicked when they grabbed me".
Since looking after her was my job I didn't criticise her, other than to ask her to be more careful in the future as I wouldn't always be around.
We soon made our way back to the beach and I got to watch the teary reunions of the families. I felt rather warmed by the scene and the gratitude directed towards me by the people here.
"I think we have to cancel our holiday" I said to Mary "The authorities will want to talk to us".
They only now were starting to appear and already questions were being asked.
Since I'd only acted to protect minors I doubted I'd be in any trouble, and werewolves had next to no rights anyway, but sorting out this mess was going to take some time.
Chapter 33
Commissioned by southmonk
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 33.
The Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Ministry of Magic.
"Sorry that took so long," said Madam Bones as she entered the interview room and took a seat, "I've just come out of a rather long meeting with Minister Fudge, Mr Delacour and the French Minister of Magic as well as a few advisors".
Tonks shifted in her seat and the change of hair colour let me know she was nervous about what would happen next. To be fair things had gotten rather hectic since the French Aurors had turned up at the beach.
There hadn't even been much in the way of questioning, instead, those of us who weren't French had been escorted out of the country and brought to the British Ministry via portkey moments after arriving at the French Ministry of Magic.
It was only Tonks and I in here. The Auror had left me alone for a little while, to file a report I assumed. Like all governments, the Ministry of Magic loved to give people paperwork, and I too had given a statement while waiting.
As for Marigold, she had been sent to St Mungos, standard practice for anyone who spent time around hostile werewolves, and I wondered if Mary would vanish from the hospital due to the actions of the Order of Phoenix.
If so then it would be time to find out if I could get past the defensive charms that had been placed upon Grimmauld Place.
"Boss, why did we get thrown out of the country?" questioned Tonks.
At least on the British side we'd been given somewhere to sit down and offered a cup of tea.
"Because the French Ministry isn't going to want to admit that they messed up," said Madama Bones "So they are blaming us. Greyback is a British citizen and he leads the werewolf gang, if the Delacours hadn't been involved, I doubted they'd even admit that it wasn't their Aurors who dealt with the situation".
The whole situation wasn't that complex if you didn't involve politics. Tonks shouldn't be worried as she'd been doing exactly what she'd been sent with Mary and me to do, but she might get blamed anyway if Fudge wanted a scapegoat.
I might be partly to blame for why Greyback was in the south of France. Upon gaining a new body Voldemort had sent some of his followers to talk with the giants and the werewolves.
Since Voldemort wasn't around the werewolves had no reason not to carry on with whatever they had planned this summer. Although there was no way I could have known what would happen.
"Greyback escaping has complicated the situation as the French Ministry can't just ignore having such a dangerous werewolf in their country and the Delacours are well known enough to kick up a fuss" said Madam Bones.
One of their daughters had been taken so who could blame them for wanting to see someone be punished for this failure of the Ministry to protect its people?
"So the French are trying to pass the blame," I stated "What does that mean for us?".
The answer surprised me.
"That you are both getting an Order of Merlin Second Class," answered the head of the DMLE.
The Order of Merlin was an award bestowed upon wizards and witches who had achieved great things for the wizarding world. It had three different award levels: First Class, Second Class, and Third Class.
It was the wizarding world's equivalent to the Order of the British Empire, with first class being the equivalent to the most senior order: a knighthood. Its origins supposedly went back to the time of Merlin.
Merlin believed that wizards and witches should help Muggles, and, thus, the Order of Merlin established rules against the use of magic on Muggles. Those rules are the origin of many laws in the magical world here in Britain.
In more modern times the award was given out to people who had served the interests of magical folk rather than helping non-magical people and it wasn't the honour it used to be since people like Fudge got to decide who got the award, but it was still a big deal.
An interesting fact was that Third Class Orders of Merlin were awarded to individuals who have 'contributed to our store of knowledge or entertainment' and Lockhart had a Third Class award.
Which suggested that the Ministry had been well aware that Lockhart was not some sort of hero, but rather a writer of fantasy. Perhaps the organisation isn't as foolish as it seems.
An Order of Merlin Second Class was awarded for achievement or endeavour beyond the ordinary, a rather vague term, and saving minors from werewolves who had looked to be trying to add those kids to their numbers certainly qualified as a great achievement.
"Fudge was going to go further and give you both a First Class Award if only to spite the French Ministry, only he got talked down by one of his advisors" Bones mentioned "I on the other hand felt that not recognising your actions spat upon the courage and resourcefulness of British subjects so we compromised".
I didn't need to be told who that adviser likely was. Since Umbridge wasn't around it had to be Lucius Malfoy, who I doubted would be happy about his half-blood niece, his wife and Tonk's mother were sisters I recalled, obtaining such a high honour.
"You'll be free to go soon, once we've talked about a few things" promised Madam Bones.
She shuffled the papers inside a folder, an action that one wouldn't have seemed odd if performed by an officer over in Scotland Yard.
"Mr Barrows, according to the official report you made use of some muggle gobstones to find Marigold Potter and the other minors" said Bones "They have some sort of enchantment on them that allows them to find people and see them from multiple angles".
I didn't need to look at Tonks to know who had spilt those beans and mentioned them in a report. I had expected news of the magical items to get about and I might have to pay a fine for them.
"Yes, the set was made by my Grandfather" I lied.
There was some sort of law about not enchanting anything muggle made to do something it's not supposed to do. So the Knight Bus is legal as was the magical car Mr Weasley enchanted, other than to make it fly and go invisible, but flying marbles would be illegal.
"Normally we'd have to confiscate such items," said Madam Bones as she began to look uncomfortable "I don't like to make under the tables deals. However, if you know how to make more and were to provide the DMLE with a few sets then I could ignore the fact that you have such items in possession".
I figured that this was somewhat like having the police wipe those unpaid parking tickets off your record in exchange for helping them with a more serious crime.
Granted, I'd not heard of that happening outside of a TV show, but I could understand why Madam Bones would want a few sets given the rather pointless nationwide manhunt still going on for Barty Crouch Junior.
"Sure, I can enchant some for you, Madam Bones," I agreed.
It would be easier than having to deal with legal matters, and I didn't trust the Ministry to handle such things even if they seemed to be handling this situation rather well. The DMLE seemed to be somewhat reliable, so it was best to work with them rather than end up in court.
"Then I'll have Arthur Weasley clear them through his office," said Bones.
The Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office regulated the use of magic on Muggle objects and tried to keep items that had been bewitched away from Muggles in case the existence of magic was exposed.
To this end, members of the Office often participated in raids to keep Dark magical items out of circulation as well as to make sure that Muggle items were not enchanted to do things they weren't supposed to.
"Your use of fire spells to deal with the werewolves was all above-board given the emergency" Bones was now saying "You were working with an Auror at the time and she was carrying out my orders so I can't fault you for using deadly force. There were no curses thrown about and you were in danger, so self-defence covers you, it helps that werewolves have next to no rights".
So there would be no criminal charges pressed.
"Given Fudge's choice to give you an award I've decided to pay out the bounties for the wolves who were killed" Bones was now saying "Don't take this as permission to go hunting for werewolves".
I had other targets in mind and I would not be claiming bounties on them.
"The Daily Prophet will be singing your praises even if the French don't like it" Bones let me know "Be prepared for the press to hound you until this blows over".
I might need to give the Daily Prophet a statement as I didn't want to tangle with the press again given that my trick for dealing with the Prophet by cutting off their supplies wasn't going to work twice.
"As for you, Auror Tonks," Bones said as she closed the folder "You did exactly what you were supposed to do and you made the department look good while doing it".
Tonks's hair went pink. Which could could be a good thing. I didn't think the colours meant much, rather it was the involuntary shifting that signalled a change in her mood.
"So understand that I'm not punishing you by giving you a leave of absence" Bones went on to say "I've decided that Miss Potter will need protection for the foreseeable future and Hogwarts is desperate for a new Defence Against the Dark Arts, so you are leaving the DMLE for a year to become a Professor".
Tonks was shocked, to say the least.
"But I was a troublemaker in school" she protested.
Bones didn't see it that way.
"Despite your behaviour, many detentions and a lot of lost points, you achieved good marks in your Owls and Newts in Defence Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, and Herbology. You earned 'Outstanding' or ' Exceeds Expectations' on at least five of your N.E.W.T.s, an 'Outstanding' in Transfiguration, and an 'Exceeds Expectations' in Charms" her boss pointed out "That combined with your training and practical experience makes you more than qualified for the role".
Bones paused for a moment.
"I also want someone at Hogwarts because there have been a lot of odd things happening at that school and as the DADA professor you'd been in place to look into them while also keeping an eye on Miss Potter," said the Head of the DMLE "It's just for one year and maybe you'll help find us some future Aurors".
Bones turned to better address me.
"There's another issue I'd like your help with, Mr Barrows," Madam Bones was now saying "The French Aurors found the body of Xenophilius Lovegood in the woods, he was attacked by transformed werewolves most likely when out looking for his daughter. They were both visiting a magical creature's habitat and Luna Lovegood was grabbed by one of them while exploring what should have been a safe area".
It wasn't hard to imagine the French Ministry not wanting to take responsibility for orphaning a young witch because they'd been lax about security, and this made me feel angry as I felt bad for Luna Lovegood.
More so when I realised that the transformed werewolves must have run into Mr Lovegood after I'd used fire magic to scare them off. I should have wiped out the whole pack when I had the chance.
"Since Miss Lovegood has no next of kin, I was wondering if you would take her in until she turns seventeen in February" requested Madam Bones "Like you have done with Miss Potter".
I saw no problem with doing so.
"Miss Lovegood will inherit her father's estate, which includes the family home and the Quibbler, but she can't take possession of them until she is 17 and unlike most other magical the Lovegoods aren't closely related to many other Pureblood families" I was told "I don't want a family like the Malfoys trying to take her in, so it would best for someone to come forward and offer her a home".
I wondered how many people had been lost due to Grindelwald and Voldemort. Thinking about made me wonder if leaving the Dark Lord frozen in a gemstone was too kind of me.
As for Luna, if my actions had resulted in the werewolves attacking people in France rather than keeping their heads down after Voldemort's return until it was time to strike, then I was a little bit responsible for Xenophilius's death, or at least that was how I felt about the situation.
"Yes, Director, she can stay with me," I decided "I can keep an eye on her while she's at Hogwarts and make sure she gets settled into her home over the holidays".
It would be a lot like what I was doing with Mary, only without the Order of the Phoenix trying to get involved. If Dumbledore were around I had no doubt he'd try to take advantage of the situation while outwardly looking as if he cared.
"Miss Lovegood and Miss Potter need to stay at the hospital for observations," Bones let me know "I'll have Tonks bring them to you once they have been cleared and I've informed Miss Lovegood of her loss. You should go home and get some rest. Tonks you're with me, we have some arrangments to make".
With that Bones left the room and since I was free to go I headed off to my home. I should check in with Renwick and see what intelligence he'd picked up while I'd been away.
Chapter 34
Commissioned by southmonk
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 34.
St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. London.
Overall Amelia Bones felt that things were progressing well for her plan to become Minister of Magic.
It was not a job she'd ever really wanted, not until she saw just how badly Fudge was screwing things up. He'd only worsened recently as sycophants fed his ego and Malfoy's gold kept him well-funded.
There was a time when Fudge had been something a competent leader, back when he had been advised by both Dumbledore and Malfoy, neither of which had been able to dislodge the other, so some balance had been achieved.
While Malfoy was the voice of more traditional and dark wizards, Dumbledore had the following of more liberal sorts. Not that there was as much of a difference between the two sides as either would ever admit.
Only the Headmasters' star had been waning for some time and he'd become less active in politics despite all the time spent at the Ministry. Amelia suspected that this had to do with Marigold Potter attending Hogwarts and the Professor's unhealthy interest in the Girl-Who-Lived.
Some believed that the Headmaster was grooming Marigold Potter as his successor, but from what her niece had told her about the young girl, Miss Potter didn't seem to be especially talented, at least not to the extent someone trained by Albus Dumbledore should be.
Yet people kept acting as if Marigold Potter was some sort of successor to the old man and that they were close, but Amelia hadn't seen much evidence of this even when she'd looked into the strange things taking place at Hogwarts.
The odd events, such as talk of a troll in the dungeons, and the petrifactions which Madam Bones had not been allowed to look into much due to Fudge wanting to keep people from panicking, seemed to have some sort of connection with Marigold Potter, she just didn't understand what they were.
It was when Lucius Malfoy managed to get Dumbledore sacked as Headmaster of Hogwarts that Amelia Bones realised the balance of power had begun to shift in the favour of the dark wizard.
Malfoy had gained far too much influence over Fudge, and the Minister had been working to fill the Ministry with his supporters for years. How else would someone like Umbridge not only be able to keep her job, but be able to gain so many promotions?
Of course, as soon as a pureblood student went missing the school had to be shut down, and what happened after that was something Bones knew very little about due to Fudge's habit of denying and downplaying trouble.
All she knew for certain was that no one had died and the students were all back on their feet soon after Dumbledore had returned to the school. Some sort of cursed item was blamed for the whole mess.
The next year, Malfoy was the driving force behind employing the Dementors of Azkaban to protect Hogwarts School from Sirius Black. Back then the Minister had thrown around excuses for it such as a lack of funding for other means of security and the need to handle the Azkaban escapee as quickly as possible.
The fact that Malfoy's son was attending the school hadn't seemed to be a concern. So either Malfoy simply didn't care if his son was killed as long as it furthered his goals or he had some influence over the Dementors. She wasn't sure what chilled her more.
Bones wondered how the public would react if Black was proven innocent in his hearing. The discovery that Pettigrew was alive had certainly shaken things up and made the Minister look bad, as he'd insisted that Pettigrew was dead and Black was guilty when news about reached the Ministry.
Given all that had happened over the last year, it was odd to find Fudge still in office despite his support. The attack at the World Cup had humiliated the Minister of Magic.
It should have painted her department in a very bad light and would have if not for the fact that Fudge hadn't been willing to properly fund the DMLE for years. Something she'd made sure people knew all about.
What followed the World Cup final was overall, a rather terrible tournament, a series of tasks that endangered people while providing very little in the way of any real entertainment. Which Fudge had needed to distract people from the growing problems.
So Fudge had found other people to blame, and the Daily Prophet began to slander Dumbledore and Marigold Potter rather than shine a light on the real source of the problems, which were the failures of the Minister's leaders.
Ironically if the mentally ill Dumbledore hadn't started trying to warn people about Voldemort, who had ceased to exist as far as her investigations could discover, then people might have started to put the blame where it was deserved or at least gotten bored of blaming the Headmaster for everything.
It had been good for Amelia to have Fudge and the Headmaster at odds as the Professor had been a big supporter of the Minister, and that lack of support would have started to show over the next year or two she was certain.
The disappearance of Madam Umbridge and the burning down of Malfoy Manor only would have helped bring about Fudge's downfall. If they weren't criminal acts then Bones would applaud them.
Recently the public mood when it came to Dumbledore had shifted, going from hostile to more sympathetic as news of his collapse and memory loss spread across the country.
The Headmaster still had supporters and now that his mental illness could be blamed rather than the man himself many were speaking up and some even blamed the Minister for driving Dumbledore into his current state by attacking his reputation.
By the looks of things, the Minister was going to need a new scapegoat and Amelia Bones had no intention of letting that be her. Which was why it was so important for her Aurors to track down Barty Crouch Junior as soon as possible.
Unlike Fudge who wanted to pretend that there were no problems, and Dumbledore who kept going on about the return of You-Know-Who, Amelia was convinced it was Barty Crouch Junior who was behind the recent strange events.
The wizard had been one of the best to come out of Hogwarts and she didn't doubt that he'd learned some dangerous magic from his fellow Death Eaters and perhaps his master as well.
It made sense for such a fanatical follower to want to punish the Death Eaters who had turned their backs on their cause even if this meant working with the likes of Peter Pettigrew,
The Death Eater attack at the World Cup must have made Crouch realise that You-Know-Who supporters were still out there and simply unwilling to put any real effort into carrying on their work.
No doubt Junior felt betrayed by them as he'd gone to Azkaban rather than denounce You-Know-Who.
Bones pushed aside thoughts of Crouch Junior and focused on what was happening here as it sounded as if Marigold Potter was in an argument with someone. This should not be happening.
"I told Shacklebolt not to let anyone other than the healers see Miss Potter until I had arrived" stated Bones.
The Auror at the door failed to meet her eyes.
"Shacklebolt let them in" said the witch in Auror robes.
Of course, he had. He was part of Dumbledore's bird-watching club, and normally that was something the Head of the DMLE was willing to ignore as the organisation didn't do much other than gather information, but this disregard for her authority could not be tolerated.
"Tonks guard the door" Amelia ordered.
The Head of the DMLE walked into the private room the hospital had provided Marigold Potter, her celebrity status had been greatly restored in the public's eye once she had explained on the Wizarding Wireless how she'd been swept up in events beyond her control, and even at her lowest the Girl-Who-Lived had her unseen followers.
"Shacklebolt, was there something unclear about my instructions?" she asked.
Inside the room was the Auror who should be standing guard outside and several people she knew to be associated with Albus Dumbledore, including Remus Lupin a werewolf.
Granted he was a peaceful one, but to bring one to the hospital room of a recent victim of Greyback's pack was a foolish thing to do.
Amelia needed Marigold Potter on her side when she made her move. The Girl-Who-Lived still had political clout even if she never used it and an endorsement at the right time could be enough to get her into the top spot so that she would finally have the authority required to start sorting out the Ministry.
"No, Madam," he said "They just wanted…".
She didn't let him finish.
"Get out, you are suspended for two days" she declared.
Bones couldn't afford to let go of any of her Aurors, they were all needed, but she couldn't ignore the fact that Shacklebolt had ignored her commands. A couple of days off duty would hopefully give the man time to rethink his duties.
"You can't do that" protested a loud red-headed woman.
Amelia kept her voice low.
"Yes, I can," Bones stated "I am the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and you are interfering with a criminal investigation. Miss Potter is a witness to an attack on several British subjects in a foreign country. This incident has already caused international tension between us and the French Ministry. It needs to be handled very carefully".
Mrs Weasley would not be silenced.
"Mary shouldn't have been in that country!" she protested.
Amelia resisted the urge to rub her temples. How Arthur, one of the mildest voices at the Ministry could tolerate having this woman as a wife she couldn't imagine. Arthur Weasley's obsession with Muggles aside, he was for the most part a respectable wizard who did his job well. He wasn't the kind of person to give Amelia headaches.
"Miss Potter's is the ward of Caelum Barrows, and he had every right to take his ward on a holiday" stated Madam Bones "Now why are you all here?".
It was Remus Lupin who spoke next. Molly Weasley had to be held back by her husband who seemed to know how to keep the woman from exploding.
"Given what happened in France it seemed wise to invite Mary to stay at a safe house Professor Dumbledore had set up," said Lupin.
Bones saw the sense of this, and while it seemed reasonable on the surface of things, it hadn't sounded as if Miss Potter had wanted to go with them and she was certain that Mr Barrows hadn't given his permission.
"Miss Potter isn't allowed to decide where she lives until she turns 17," said Bones "That is up to Caelum Barrows".
Barrows was also someone she needed support from and like Fudge, she needed a rich backer and the wizard had something else she desired. Those marble eyes of his could come in very handy.
"And even if that wasn't the case Miss Potter is part of an investigation and here for observation by the healers," reminded Bones "You are interfering with this so you will leave or I will have you thrown out of here by the Aurors".
The members of the Order of the Phoenix grumbled, but they did as they were told.
"Thank you," said Marigold Potter "They keep trying to take me away somewhere, but they won't tell me where or take no for an answer".
This was disturbing to hear, and it only reinforced the idea that Bones had done the right thing in giving Barrows temporary custody of Miss Potter. The bird-watching club was too devoted to Dumbledore, it could make them dangerous.
"If they try this again I will make arrests" promised Bones.
There weren't magical versions of restraining orders so until she'd seen the Order of the Phoenix trying to interfere with an investigation there hadn't been much Amelia Bones could do.
"Do you know how they knew you were here?" Bones questioned.
As far as she knew the bird watchers club didn't have anyone stationed here and if Shacklebolt had done more than simply allow some visitors in when ordered not to then Amelia might need to take more drastic action against the man.
"I've no idea" answered Marigold "I just know they have people watching me".
Bones couldn't say much about that as she'd sent Tonks to keep an eye on Miss Potter. Still, it was worrying that it hadn't stopped when Dung had been brought in.
"I came here to tell you that you'll be able to leave here tomorrow," Bones was now saying "There's no evidence the werewolves infected you and if we need more information we know where to find you".
The Head of the DMLE had decided that this was not the time to talk about endorsements as she didn't think Marigold Potter would respond well.
"I also came to tell you that due to the death of Xenophilis Lovegood, Luna Lovegood will be joining you as a ward of Caelum Barrows. Like you, she isn't seventeen yet and can't live on her own. She doesn't have any family to take her in".
Marigold was shocked to hear this.
"I don't know Luna, but I'll try to help her" the witch promised.
Miss Lovegood was going to need the assistance.
"I'm going to go and talk to her now" Bones mentioned.
It would not be the kind of conversation she enjoyed having. Informing people of the deaths of a family member was one of the worst parts of her job. The poor girl had no mother or grandparents to help her get through this troubled time.
"Can I come along?" asked Marigold "She's going to
need someone".
The Healers might not like having Miss Potter moved, but since both girls had been together in that shack it was highly unlikely that one was infected and the other wasn't. Besides the full moon was over by now.
"If you wish," said Bones "I'll have Tonks take you and Miss Lovegood to Mr Barrows once you are free to leave".
Meanwhile, Madam Bones needed to find some way of making Dumbledore's bird-watching club back down or better yet disband. They were getting in her way and she couldn't tolerate this, and while arresting them all wasn't possible, due to a lack of evidence and the fact that she couldn't afford to lose some of her own people, there had to be a way to neutralise.
Chapter 35
Commissioned by southmonk
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 35.
Cabin. The Countryside.
Before appearing in this spot of the great outdoors, I'd finished work on a few new magical items. One of which was a hat which gave me the appearance of Barty Crouch Junior when worn thanks to a special enchantment I'd placed upon the item of headwear.
My ability to create magical items to perform feats of magic that I was not otherwise capable of achieving had been useful to me more than once. This evening, things would be no different, my talent would aid me once again in carrying out one of my plans.
As for why I wanted to look like Barty Crouch Junior, that was because I was about to arrange the death of a Dark Wizard and since this evil mage was not in hiding, there was a chance of me being seen, hence the need for a disguise.
Passing on the blame to Barty Crouch Junior made sense since the DMLE was already after him and I'd heard from Tonks that Junior was believed by some to be behind the burning down of Malfoy Manor.
Not everyone in the Ministry thought Lucius Malfoy to be a victim of Death Eather's mind control. It did make a twisted kind of sense that Barty Crouch Junior might want to punish the Death Eaters who had turned their backs on Voldemort and their cause when the Dark Lord lost his body.
My purpose was much less personal as I was here to remove another evil influence from the magical world. My trip with Marigold had made it clear to me that removing Voldemort and a few others simply wasn't enough to make this world a better place.
There was too much evil in this dimension, too many creatures of dark magic, and without another war this society wouldn't change, and even magical Britain did adjust itself for the better this didn't mean that other countries would.
More drastic action was required as I should have known it would be, because if it hadn't then my patron wouldn't have needed to invest so much power in me. So here I was in the countryside ready to take down another target.
Walden Macnair was a Dark wizard and one of Lord Voldemort's early Death Eaters, who fought in the First Wizarding War. Macnair did not search for Voldemort after his first downfall, but this was forgiven after Voldemort's return and the Dark Lord promised the man better prey than the Ministry had offered.
He managed to avoid Azkaban and worked for the Ministry of Magic as an Executioner of dangerous magical creatures. This piece of scum was the wizard who would have killed Buckbeak during the events of the Prisoner of Azkaban, and for that alone he deserved some kind of punishment.
I'd seen Macnair through Renwick's eyes and he was a tall and muscular man, with a thin, black moustache, he had a cruel look in his eyes and a massive axe that he liked to carry around. I assumed that he was compensating for something very small.
As to what he was doing here all alone in the countryside, well the man owned a cabin, and while Renwick hadn't gotten inside he'd been able to show me a view through the windows, and that had allowed me to see the wizard's many hunting trophies.
Through the eyes of my familiar, I had seen the heads of deer, bears and wolves, as well as what I thought might be a unicorn and the stuffed body of a centaur, as well as creatures I didn't recognise.
I didn't think this island had any wolves living in the wild so perhaps the wizard was getting them imported somehow or he'd transfigured other animals into wolves so he could hunt them. I didn't know enough about the magic of transformation to know.
If he was having them imported then I had an idea of how. The Malfoys were staying at a few different places while their home was rebuilt, they kept moving around, and Macnair's home was one of the places they were staying in.
This suggested that Malfoy and McNair were on somewhat friendly terms and Malfoy certainly had the means of having magical and non-magical creatures smuggled into the country. Malfoy also had the wealth to keep McNair out of Azkaban and thought that he would have a supporter for his plans.
While transformation magic wasn't well known to me. What magic I did know much about was conjuration, the ability to bring things and creatures from other realms to this one, and while most of the time such summoning was temporary there were ways to make them more permanent.
If I'd appeared in this world at a time when Voldemort was in charge and had an army of dark forces at his command, a military force made of werewolves, giants and vampires, I might have been tempted to build up an army of my own using the magic I'd been gifted, but there was no need for such forces.
So instead of finding ways to bring many magical creatures I could control into this world I only need a small number of them. Which was for the best as setting up stable populations of new magical creatures would have required a lot of resources and for me to hold to a fair bit of land. Plus they could have impacted the environment in unexpected ways.
It would just have been a matter of time before the non-magical humans found out, and that would have caused a whole new host of problems. Best to keep things simple in this world and deal with the bad guys more subtly.
To that I'd purchased some small models of monsters and then enchanted them to act as anchors of sorts to keep the monsters I desired aid from in this plane until they were dismissed.
For this attack, I would be making use of Bugbears, which are hairy
goblinoids born for battle and mayhem. In realms where they are natives they survive by raiding and hunting. They are smart enough to set up ambushes and wise enough to know to flee when outmatched.
I'd be making use of these creatures because killing someone called McNair with creatures called bears, even if they weren't animals was amusing to me, and it allowed me to test out more of what I could with my magical powers.
There was always a chance that someone would view this attack or that McNair would get away, but I had no desire to duel the man fairly as I'd never duelled anyone, something I'd have to rectify, and perhaps Tonks could help me with that.
Unlike the werewolves I'd burned, who had been too close to the full moon to think to use wands even if they knew how. McNair would be able to fling all sorts of curses at me.
Besides, if it got around that Barty Crouch Junior had monsters at his command it could lead to the other Death Eaters going into hiding, which wouldn't help them much against me, and the Ministry would keep their focus on Junior who they could never find as he was sealed away in my demi-plane.
I placed each of the little models on the ground and summoned forth the ten bugbears, one for each model.
Spoiler
[img: https/media-waterdeep./avatars/thumbnails/0/221/1000/1000/636252765234633232.jpeg]
The figurines had been painted by someone with far more artistic talent than myself and sold to me second-hand after a visit to a hobby store.
In more primitive worlds acquiring so many detailed models would have been a very expensive undertaking costing a lot of gold coins. In this world, all I'd had to do was get an address from the hobby shop, pop around the house of someone who didn't get chances to play D any more and pay some cash for some old figurines.
Each model was made out of metal, as plastic isn't a good material for holding enchantments and while I could enlarge the models and animate them with magic, it was more challenging to use the models to bring real bugbears into this world. Plus there was the added challenge of controlling so many creatures.
They should be more than enough, and I paused for a moment before ordering the attack on the cabin. The creatures would kill anyone inside the small building, so it was good that McNair was here alone, and it would not be an easy death for the Dark Wizard.
Killing people was different than sealing them away in a gemstone for the rest of time, and I could keep doing that as I had a treasure chest full of valuable stones, but that would not help me to learn the limits of what I could do, and I might need to fight proper battles in the future.
"Attack!" I ordered.
Since Bugbears have dark vision it didn't matter to them that the sun had finished setting and due to the cabin's wards the evil mage wouldn't be able to teleport away unless he got a certain distance from the small building.
He might fly away on a broom, and knowing this I took the sky to watch for him, despite my distaste for heights, I could also see in the dark so he shouldn't slip past me, not unless he was a very good flyer. It wasn't a perfect plan but there was no such thing I'd done my best to prepare a decent assault.
If he used the floo network to flee that would disappointing, but not a total disaster as I could track him down again if I had to, or rather Renwick would. and this attack was as much of a test of my magical skills as it was an attempt to remove a Death Eater from this world.
To my satisfaction, the Dark Wizard had allowed his bloodlust to control his actions, so rather than run he left the cabin to engage the attacking force, and this was the stupidest thing he could have done since he was no longer protected by any of the defensive enchantments he had placed on the cabin.
A green spell lit up the grounds around the front of the cabin and I watched as Bugbear was hit by a Killing Curse just before it vanished. These creatures were mortal, so while I'd anchored their presence here via the models they were still living beings and could die while here.
Not that the body would remain here once I returned the creatures from wherever it was they came and that did look as if it would happen soon as McNair took a blow from behind by a nasty-looking club and then he hit the ground.
The other creatures took turns beating him and I was glad that I wasn't close enough to see the damage they were doing in any sort of detail. Once they were done with that the monsters argued a bit, perhaps deciding who got to loot the corpse, before most of them headed inside the cabin so they could loot the place and likely burn it down just for fun.
I didn't mind if they did loot the cabin and burn it down as I was more interested in how they'd overwhelmed the defensive enchantments, they must have broken with McNair's death like how Dumbledore's death made everyone who knew about Grimmauld Place into a secret keeper.
Once I started smelling smoke I retreated from the cabin, or rather air above it, and used the models to banish the Bugbears back from where it was they'd come from. The ones not hit by a killing curse should be free for me to summon again in the future.
I decided to destroy the whole cabin with Felfire so that if the DMLE did come poking about then they'd link this attack with the one on Malfoy Manor and once that was done I made sure the fires went out before I returned to my home.
Soon I would have two teenage girls living under my roof and before they arrived I wanted to make sure the guest room was ready. I also needed to make sure the cupboards were stocked.
Then there was the fact that Marigold's birthday was coming up. I wanted to do something special for her big day and that would take some planning.
Chapter 36
Commissioned by southmonk
I added a bit more to part 13 of this story to make it more clear what was happening.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 36.
Number 12 Grimmauld Place. London.
Once again, most of the Order of the Phoenix members were all sitting around the kitchen table to discuss what they considered important events and to try to make plans for the future. Not that they'd been having much luck over the summer and things didn't look like they would improve any time soon.
"So again Potter refused to come here with you," summarised Mad-Eye Moody "How can one little girl be so stubborn".
The current leader of this group wasn't exactly shocked to hear this as it had become something of a pattern.
"She's her mother's daughter" said Sirius Black "Lily was just as stubborn".
It had taken James years to get Lily Evans to give him a chance because she'd been so determined not to.
"That foolish girl," complained Molly "She needs to be kept safe, more so than ever after going aboard. What was she thinking?".
Remus Lupin, who had recently returned to the country upon getting news of the werewolf attack, had some ideas.
"To be fair, Molly, Marigold wasn't even Fenrir Greyback's target and as far as I've been able to discover he isn't working with anyone. We all thought he'd be coming here to Britain to join with the Death Eaters not grabbing people in the south of France".
For some reason, Greyback's pack had been moving away from Britain not towards it and this was another thing that didn't make any sense. If You-Know-Who was trying to rebuild his forces he should have been trying to get Greyback's pack into the country without anyone in the Ministry finding out.
"None of the Death Eaters we know about have been acting oddly other than being more careful to keep their heads down," said Shacklebolt "And Director Bones has stated that she won't tolerate us interfering any further with Potter, so I think all we can do is keep tabs on the girl".
Madam Bones certainly wasn't helping their cause and if she were anyone else they might wonder if she was trying to help the dark forces, but that idea had been dismissed out of hand. Amelia Bones had lost too much to the Death Eaters to ever ally with them and she was too strong of will to be controlled by a curse.
"Agreed," Moody stated "For now we watch and prepare to act if something happens to her. There's only so much of the summer left and the girl should be more secure once she's back at Hogwarts".
None of the members of the Order were happy about this, however, they knew that getting into trouble with the DMLE would not help their cause. Dumbledore wasn't around to bail them out of trouble.
"What if those werewolves go after her," wondered Siruis Black
Remus had already considered this.
"Greyback lost a few members of his pack" reported Lupin "And this has made him look weak in front of the other packs. If he acts like he normally would in this situation he'll be looking to recruit again after he's disappeared for a while".
So they had some time to prepare.
"Did you get anything out of Goyle?" Remus wondered.
Moody wasn't sure what to say about that. They'd planned to grab one of the more important Death Eaters, one who wasn't a very skilled wizard, and that had turned out to be Goyle.
"Nothing," admitted Moody "At least nothing we didn't already know. His dark mark did become clearer and then it suddenly faded again. As if You-Know-Who was getting stronger and then suddenly became as weak as before. It hasn't become more noticeable on Goyle's body since the end of the Third Task".
This confused many members of the Order.
"The scum didn't know anything about You-Know-Who," Moody was now saying "As far as Goyle is concerned his Master is gone. I can't help wondering if he's had his memory tampered with or if he's just not been contacted".
There was the somewhat familiar noise of Tonks tripping over the umbrella stand a few moments before she entered the kitchen.
"Sorry I'm late" she said to everyone in the room "Things have been busy at work. I can't stay long as I have to get back to Potter-sitting soon".
She didn't wait to share her important news with the group.
"I just got back from a crime scene" she let everyone know "Walden McNair is dead".
That surprised all of the members of the Order.
"How did he die, Tonks?" questioned Hestia Jones.
The younger Auror took a seat before speaking.
"McNair was beaten to death by a few people as far we can tell and that was after he used some nasty curses" reported the young Auror, "We only found out about it because one of his pals at work wondered why McNair wasn't answering the floo. We didn't even know the tosser had a hunting cabin out in the woods and well he doesn't any more as it was burned down by the same fire that destroyed Malfoy Manor".
Hearing this caused a lot of whispered conversation.
"McNair died bloody, but his wand survived so we know he was throwing some curses before he died and he had some broken bones, but the Healers that looked him over can't find any evidence that he was hit by spells" reported Tonks, "We think he was beaten to death".
Moody didn't like the sound of this. He'd seen the results of many a Death Eater attack and while this sounded nasty enough it wasn't their style to get their hands dirty by beating people to death.
"Was he killed by a troll?" Arthur Weasley wondered.
Using a magical creature to do their dirty work was more their style.
"The Healer thinks it was human-sized people or maybe smaller" answered Tonks "Maybe a few goblins".
That made even less sense.
"There's no way the goblins would be helping You-Know-Who" stated Bill Weasley "They don't care about wizards killing each other so unless McNair owed them a lot of money they had no reason to go after him. Even if he did dead man can't pay off their debts".
There were some murmurings.
"We know for sure that the fire that burned down the cabin is the same fire used to burn down Malfoy Manor" informed Tonks.
Frank Longbottom cleared his throat.
"I'm just going to say what I'm sure some of us have been thinking," said the former Auror "I don't think You-Know-Who is back".
While it was true that some of them had been considering this until now no one had spoken the words because it would have meant saying that Albus Dumbledore had gotten it wrong and something was disturbing about such a thing.
"Let's look at what we know" insisted Longbottom, thinking as an Auror, "The Dark Mark becomes more visible and then fades again, which seems to suggest that You-Know-Who was coming back, but something went wrong".
So far everyone seemed to be following him.
"We all assumed that Dumbledore was right and that You-Know-Who was keeping his head down while rebuilding his forces, so we've been watching the Death Eaters and those they allied with in the past," Frank was now saying "We've even been keeping an eye on the Department of Mysteries, but it doesn't seem as if anything is going on down there and the Death Eaters aren't doing anything suspicious as far as we can tell".
Since he had everyone's attention Longbottom kept going.
"I can't help wondering if You-Know-Who isn't back, maybe this is just what Barty Crouch Junior wants people to think. Maybe he was messing about with the Dark Mark, trying to use it to convince the other Death Eaters that You-Know-Who is back or as some means of summoning them" Frank said to everyone "I think Crouch Junior is behind all of this, maybe he tried to bring You-Know-Who back it went wrong, or maybe he's trying to take the place of You-Know-Who".
The other witches and wizards didn't know what to make of what Frank was saying.
"That might be why Pettigrew was in that graveyard and why Potter ended up there. I think they planned to kill her in front of the other Death Eaters so that Crouch could prove himself as a new leader" Frank reasoned "Only they never turned up and Potter took down Pettigrew before Junior could get there. Now all Crouch can do is get revenge on the Death Eaters who refused to carry on with their Master's work".
He was quite finished yet.
"I just can't figure out how Alice and I suddenly waking up is a part of Crouch's plan" admitted Frank "I can't help feeling that is related somehow as is Umbridge's disappearance, but those two events might actually be the work of someone else, and we all just assuming there's only one person out there labouring to change things".
No one spoke for a few moments.
"That fits in partly with what Bones is thinking" said Tonks "She thinks Crouch is behind everything odd that has been going on recently and that he's pissed at the Death Eaters who didn't go to Azkaban".
Shacklebolt somewhat confirmed this.
"Madam Bones has everyone she can spare out looking for the man" he shared.
Molly did not agree.
"But Dumbledore says he's back," she said.
She acted as if this was all that mattered.
"Dumbledore just had a mental breakdown" reminded Sirius Black "Maybe he's wrong. He was wrong to trust Snape and he was wrong about me".
The red-headed woman didn't have anything to say about that, and her husband stepped in before she found the words for an argument.
"You know thinking about it I can't help wondering if it was Crouch Junior who set the Dark Mark off at the World Cup" he said "We all assumed it was put in the sky to support them, but the Death Eaters fled. Maybe that was Crouch Junior trying to signal them".
Moody gave the matter some thought.
"I can see some sense in what Frank is saying, Malfoy hasn't exactly been keeping a low profile for the last decade, so we know one Death Eater who isn't keeping his head down, but why wait so long to grab Potter?" Mad-Eye wondered "Albus was convinced that You-Know-Who wanted Potter in the graveyard on that day for an important reason, maybe a ritual. Junior had no reason to wait. Killing Potter at any time would have sent a message to the Death Eaters".
There were still many questions to be answered.
"We aren't getting anywhere doing what Dumbledore wanted" stated Black "We can't even get Mary here. I think we need to change our plans and start looking for Crouch Junior. To me, it seems as if Crouch is the one with the minions and if he is going after Death Eaters then maybe we can trap him by focusing on those Death Eaters".
Moody liked the sound of this. As much as he liked anything. At least it was more proactive than just gathering information, as important as that could be.
"The lad's right, if Junior has plans to follow in his master's footsteps or if he is You-Know-Who's agent, either way, we know he is a threat and we know who is going after," said Mad-Eye "Let's focus on the Death Eaters we can track and set up an ambush of our own. If we can grab Crouch we can find out what is really going on".
There were some grumblings about this not being what Dumbledore would have wanted them to do, but they didn't last for long.
"Tonks, you need to stay close to Potter and Barrows in case Crouch decides to kill her anyway" ordered Moody "The rest of us need to figure out which Death Eaters are the most vulnerable to an attack and we need to work fast because they might decide to go into hiding or flee the country if it looks as if someone is targeting the whole group".
Moody turned to Shacklebolt.
"Any idea if Bones is going to try this?" he wondered.
Since he'd been suspended the tall Auror simply didn't know. The younger of the two active Aurors wasn't much help either.
"I've not heard anything about setting up any ambush" said Tonks "But the boss might not tell me".
Then they'd just have to do their best.
Chapter 37
Commissioned by southmonk
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 37.
Number 7 Privet Drive. Little Whinging.
I'd decided not to take any direct action against the Death Eaters or any other of the dark witches and wizards I knew about, as Renwick, who scouted out targets for me, had seen that the people I wanted to go after suddenly had protection from me.
This protection was not intentionally meant to stop me, rather, the Death Eaters were now monitored by members of the Order of the Phoenix and workers from the DMLE who were on the lookout for Junior.
If I were to go after any of the Death Eaters, then there was a chance that I'd be captured or hurt, so I wasn't going to go after them even if it might suit my plans to be seen doing so during the guise of Barty Crouch Junior.
There was simply too much that could go wrong. In my view, it simply wasn't worth the risk, not when I could wait until what passed for good guys around here began to divert their resources elsewhere and I did have other targets I could go after.
A target or rather targets, that would require something an army to go after and I had a way of obtaining such a force.
My new targets were Acromantulas, giant, venomous spiders that are extremely dangerous and possess a voracious appetite, they are described as one of the deadliest monsters to ever inhabit the world as they will go after humans as easily as animals.
Acromantulas are described in the books I'd read as hairy black spiders, with adults being as large as carthorses and their legs reaching a span of up to fifteen feet. Each possesses eight large black eyes and a pair of chelicerae used to eat live prey and even their dead kin.
They have pincers, which are said to mainly be used for communicating as they create clicking sounds when agitated or excited. They can speak in human languages, but the only Acromantula known to do so was Aragog.
To be precise my focus was on the Acromantula Colony to be found deep in the Forbidden Forest just outside Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Where I would soon be teaching as by now the governors had officially restored to me my job.
As far as I knew the colony was composed of a large family sired by Aragog. Which made me wonder if they would be able to keep breeding once he was dead.
In the books/movies, these hungry spiders who made it their home so close to the school almost ate Harry Potter and Ron Weasley during a trip into the forest. Proving that they would kill and eat children.
While I could have flown above the colony and rained fire down upon the Acromantrula I'd decided against that for a few good reasons.
Those included the fire spreading out of control and consuming the whole forest, not something the unicorns would be happy with, and then there was the possibility of someone at the school or the nearby village spotting me before informing the Aurors.
Another factor was that I didn't want any of the spiders to get away so it was better to send an army in on foot so that the colony would defend itself and give me the chance to slaughter the lot of them in a single battle. Every spider had to die, and every egg had to be smashed.
I planned to attack the colony in the early hours of the morning and do it swiftly so that Hagrid wouldn't have time to get involved. I also needed to do this when school was out of session in case something went wrong. I didn't want any of the students to get caught up in some trouble.
As to why I'd decided to go after the spiders, that was because they were a threat to the students at the school, and the Ministry wouldn't do anything about them, not until after some students had died and maybe even then they'd promise to take action without doing anything constructive.
In some ways, it was a shame that I was in this world to clean up the messes of others for the most part. With my knowledge of magic I'd have made a wonderful Dark Lord, I could have found means of bringing many kinds of interesting creatures into this dimension and currently be using them to conquer the Wizarding World.
However, given that the non-magical humans could destroy any army with their advanced technology I doubted that I would have gotten very far once the the existence of magic was exposed.
"What in Merlin's name are you doing?" asked a feminine voice.
Since I was working in the attic, a space that few knew about or had access to, I didn't need to turn my head to see who was addressing me, not that I was required to as I already knew who had just spoken by the sound of her voice.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" I asked back.
Marigold Potter moved closer to the table that was covered in small models of orcs, goblins, bugbears, kobolds, and other monsters which I intended to bring forth into this realm. They would when under my command fight and otherwise wreak stuff.
"It looks like you are playing with toys" she teased.
I didn't let myself be annoyed by her tone of voice.
"It's called having a hobby," I said.
Mary just didn't understand the simple pleasure to be gained by putting together a collection of well-painted figurines. I'd needed to put together and paint many of the creatures to ensure I had enough creatures to overwhelm the spider colony.
I would have to be very careful to ensure that every model I used to summon up an army was accounted for once the battle was done as if was were to be found it might lead back to me.
Even the wand wavers would be able to figure out that the attack on the colony and the death of Walden McNair were connected, but it wouldn't make any sense to them how it was done, they would just blame Crouch Junior and devote more resources to a pointless manhunt. Which suited me just fine.
"How can someone with such a cool girlfriend be so lame?" Mary wondered.
Like she could judge. This was the girl who thought Digimon were the coolest thing ever, and despite her earlier words, she did lean in close to get a better look at the models I'd spent the afternoon putting together.
"Because I'm not defined by my relationships," I said to the witch.
Remus Lupin was very uncool, at least in my opinion, and he got to date Tonks. Not that he'd wanted to if I recalled the book series correctly. Why anyone would even want to date the man was hard for me to imagine. Tonks seemed to me to be a young woman who deserved better.
"So did you come up here just to make fun of me or did you want something," I said to change the subject.
Mary became more serious.
"Luna is sleeping," she reported.
That poor girl hadn't even spent much time crying, she just stared at the walls while lying on her bed in the guest room I'd given over to her. Since she'd arrived Mary had taken on a big sister role and done her best to stop Luna Lovegood from wasting away.
"I'm proud of you for stepping up and taking care of
her" I mentioned.
Mary didn't respond to my praise other than to smile. I didn't think that she'd gotten much praise from adults while growing up.
"I was thinking of inviting Ginny Weasley over" Mary was now saying "She and Luna are friends or they used to be, but I'm not sure her parents would let her come around since they seem to think you are a dangerous man and bad influence on me".
Hearing this made me smile.
"I know right, what kind of monster takes you on holiday, puts a roof over your head when you find yourself suddenly homeless, and fixes your public reputation," I joked.
Soon I became more serious.
"They've never even met me," I went on to say, "And I'm about to become a teacher at Hogwarts which means I'll be around their children. You'd think they'd do something about the situation if they were so concerned".
Like most people, they'd rather whine and try to make themselves feel superior to others by stating opinions filled by their egos, rather than taking action.
"Without the Headmaster all they can do is complain," stated Marigold "It's why I call them the Order of the Headless Chicken".
I liked that name.
"You've done more about the Death Eaters in a few months than they have in decades" Mary said as she gestured at a copy of the Daily Prophet "At least things will be more peaceful at school".
There had been an interesting article in today's paper. As it turned out the Malfoy family had packed up what little they owned and left the country to live in a vineyard in France. If the paper had things right they had enrolled their son at the Durmstrang Institute despite France having a magical school.
It wasn't hard to guess why the Malfoy's were retreating to France. The family was a producer of wine, so they must own at least one vineyard, and their name was French, as such they might have family in Europe.
Mostly it had to do with losing their manor and my actions against the Death Eaters. Lucius Malfoy was many things, but he was not a complete idiot, by now he must have figured out that someone was targeting Death Eaters and so he was getting out of the way.
Like others, he would be wary of the threat of 'Barty Crouch Junior', as he would know that the Ministry and the Order of the Phoenix would never target the dark forces, they weren't competent enough to do so. They lacked the will to do what needed to be done to fix the Magical World.
Not that fleeing the country would protect Malfoy from me when I did finally decide to go after him it would just buy him time as I had plenty of other people and projects that required my attention.
"Did you send out the invites for your Birthday Party?" I questioned.
It hadn't been much work for me to rent out a room at the Leaky Cauldron for a party. Mary didn't have a lot of friends and it was about time for this to change. A fancy party was a good way to make her more socially accessible.
"I invited a few of the people at school I get along with and they can bring a plus 1," Marigold let me know "Even Susan Bones and I don't like her, she was one of the people who thought I cheated my way into the tournament".
While I got where she from coming from she couldn't let this stop her from having a social life, and it was important for Mary to become friendly with the Bones family as she needed Amelia Bones to keep supporting her.
"Most of the country thought that at least on the magical side," I reminded her, "And as I've told you before, you can't avoid the public forever, you need to learn to manage your fame or people will keep using it against you. Best to make some friends and create a positive image of yourself for the public to see".
I smiled at her.
"Besides, you won that tournament" I pointed out "And before you mention that Crouch interfered you know very well that the other two schools had teachers helping their champions to cheat".
Mary huffed and didn't argue because she didn't want to. She just seemed to enjoy acting as if I was making unreasonable demands of her.
"Okay I'll make nice for the evening," she promised "Sirius should be free by then, it'll be good for him to go to a party after being locked up so much".
The Ministry had decided to have his hearing on Mary's 17th birthday. I assumed so that the Ministry then wouldn't have to deal with any custody issues.
"I'll even do the interview" she declared.
Teen Witch Weekly was getting an interview with Marigold, an exclusive birthday article with a few already agreed-upon questions. Such as Mary's career plans, her favourite music, and her feelings on Sirius Black's hearing.
"At least you booked the Weird Sisters ," she said.
That had been expensive given the short notice and the popularity of the band. They were an all-male band despite the name and lusted after by many a young witch I imagined.
"Everyone will have fun and see that you are a teenage girl just like you are supposed to be" I promised.
I began to clear up.
"We need to get ready for Slughorn's visit," I said.
This was something else Mary wasn't much looking forward to.
"Just getting him talking about your mother" I reminded the young witch "Then after dinner, you can excuse yourself while I talk shop with the man".
Slughorn had been a teacher for longer than many people lived. I'd be a fool not to get some tips from the man and to get him on my side before I went to Hogwarts.
"I'll be polite," Mary promised "I just hope Tonks comes over".
If nothing else Mary would enjoy her potion's classes a lot more this year if she got in good with Slughorn.
"And I'll see if Luna wants to eat in her room or join us," Mary said.
With that, she headed down and I soon went that way as well going to the kitchen to start dinner.
Chapter 38
Commissions are currently open for those of you who wish to support my writing or have a story written.
Warlock 1 - Wizarding World.
Part 38.
The Leaky Cauldron. Diagon Alley.
As planned I'd rented out a large room at this pub so that Marigold had a place to celebrate her 17th birthday. So far the event seemed to go well as people were making their way into the hall, and there was a growing stack of presents on one of the tables.
As the younger guests moved around the large room, taking food from the buffet, they met up with people they knew and began conversations, ones that I hoped led to Marigold making more friends.
Towards the back of the hall, some tables had been taken over by the proper adults who had tagged along despite not having been invited and their children hardly needing any supervision, but for all I knew this was normal in the Wizarding World.
If not for knowing there were several Aurors here, I'd have started worrying about whether I should have hired some security because not everyone here looked at me in a friendly way.
I knew that anyone hostile towards anyone inside the hall could not have gotten past my wards, but that didn't mean everyone had to be friendly with each other, and a few weren't even bothering to hide their distaste for me.
While I didn't let this bother me, Luna Lovegood, who was sticking close, seemed oblivious, perhaps she was still too numb to care. At least she'd agreed to come out, this was a good sign.
Marigold had every right to invite whoever she wanted to her party, I just wished she hadn't invited both her godfather and Remus Lupin, who had both brought guests who must be members of the Order of Phoneix.
I could only be glad that in this timeline the Chosen One wasn't close with the Weasley family or no doubt the entire lot of them would have turned up and we'd be swamped with redheads.
It wasn't the looks from the Dumbledore fanatics that bothered me the most, it was those coming from the table where Amos Diggory and his wife were currently sitting.
Given that I'd never met either of those wand wavers it seemed very odd to me. What could I have done to offend them?
I could understand why they might not be big fans of Marigold as she'd won the Triwizard Tournament, and their son hadn't, but they were looking over at my table not at the birthday girl who could hardly be missed.
Besides, Cedric Diggory looked delighted to be here, and from what I'd heard of the lad he was a good sport, not the kind of person to resent anyone losing the tournament, so it seemed odd for his parents to be acting so negatively about the matter
"They aren't looking at you" said Amelia Bones as she came over to my table and took a seat "It's Miss Lovegood they are worried about".
Not only had she noticed the behaviour of the older Diggorys, mere moments after escorting her niece to the party, but she'd also been able to pick up on how uncomfortable the looks were making me despite how I made efforts to hide my feelings.
I wasn't surprised by this as you don't get to become head of the DMLE without learning to read a room and how to pick up on any potential hostility.
"Why would they have anything against Luna?" I questioned, "She's a sweetheart".
It boggled my mind that anyone at Hogwarts ever bullied Luna and if I ever caught a student making Luna miserable then that student would be finding out that there were far worse things I could do someone than dock them house points.
"Mr Barrows, didn't you wonder why I was so quick to give you custody of Miss Lovegood?" Amelia wondered.
I was about to say it was because Luna had nowhere else to, but I didn't say it as it seemed mean.
"At the time, I assumed it had to do with me having taken care of Marigold" I answered.
Madam Bones helped herself to some Firewhiskey from a floating tray before speaking.
"That was partly it," she said "But mostly it was because of the rumours about a pack of werewolves grabbing several young witches and wizards that were already going around the Ministry. Amos Diggory works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, so he would have been informed about the attack".
This made no sense to me.
"It's not like Luna is at fault for that incident" I pointed out "She was one of the victims".
I'd missed something and Luna helpfully pointed it out.
"They think I might have been bitten," the small girl told me.
Now things were starting to make sense.
"So they think she's a werewolf?" I realised.
I was well aware of the prejudice the people with that curse were faced with. The closest equivalent in the muggle world would be people with AIDs as like the curse there were only certain ways the condition could be transferred yet people acted as if going near a carrier put them at risk.
"St Mungo's doesn't share a person's medical history" Madam Bones "And even though the press release says none of the hostages suffered any serious injuries the Diggory family are neighbours of the Lovegoods, so they might not react well if Miss Lovegood returns to the Rookery. It's why I didn't contact them about having Luna stay with them despite the Lovegoods and Diggory having known each other for generations".
It had never crossed my mind that people might think Luna was a werewolf. Now that it had been mentioned it did explain the hurry to get Luna somewhere to stay.
"Us getting rushed out of France wouldn't have helped" I realised.
That could cause problems when Luna went back to Hogwarts.
"What about her going to school?" I asked.
Bones gave it some thought.
"Since she isn't infected then there's no reason to deny her an education" stated the Head of the DMLE "But if people think she's a werewolf then she might have a hard time".
I looked over at Luna who somehow looked even paler than normal.
"What do you want to do about this?" I asked her "You don't have to go back to Hogwarts, I'm willing to tutor you".
She gave the matter some thought.
"I would miss my friend," she said "But I don't have a very good time at the castle and it would only get worse".
That was good enough for me. I could tutor her or at least supervise most of her schoolwork.
"Will you have the time while you're teaching?" wondered Bones.
A valid concern.
"I won't have many students because Muggle Studies is an elective and no one takes it at the Newt level because only the Owl is required for positions at the Ministry" I answered, "I will have a few patrols and staff meetings to attend, but since I'll be teaching fewer classes than the other teachers and I'm not part of any clubs I should have the time".
Luna decided to help.
"I'm used to studying in the library," she said "And Mr Barrows has lots of books".
No doubt she spent a lot of time in the school's library with Hermione Granger.
"You're welcome to call me Caelum or even Cal" I offered.
Madam Bones seemed to approve.
"All three of us can sit down and discuss your long-term living arrangements once you are seventeen Miss Lovegood," said Amelia Bones "Once you are an adult you can sell your family home and move if you have to, or maybe we can clear the air with Diggorys. Until then the DMLE will be happy to keep you two together".
If the Rookery, as the Lovegood home, could be sold by Luna that would explain why Madam Bones had also been worried about people taking advantage of Luna. It was doubtful that anyone would stand up for her if she got scammed out of her inheritance if everyone thought she was a werewolf.
This was when a thought struck me.
"Why aren't they glaring at Mary" I wondered.
She'd been there too and could have been infected.
"People are used to the Girl-Who-Lived getting out of trouble," said Amelia Bones "So they don't think much about her avoiding becoming a werewolf".
I could tell that Madam Bones was starting to relax despite the important matters we'd been discussing.
"It's nice to be out of the office for a while and not have to worry about politics" she mentioned.
That made it a shame I had to bring it up.
"Just out of curiosity what would it take to get you into the Minister's office?" I wondered "Fudge must be on his last legs by now".
She didn't seem to resent me bringing this up.
"Until today bringing in Sirius Black" she mentioned "But with his hearing, he's in the clear".
That had been a mere formality since Pettigrew had been seen by so many people before he was dealt with by the Ministry. So much so that I'd not even bothered to attend the hearing.
"Failing that finding Junior, or another big win for the DMLE. My department needs one and while Black's hearing damaged Fudge's standing since he was trying to have an innocent man kissed by the Dementors, it's not enough just to discredit him. I need something that will cause my popularity to go up like a malfunctioning broom".
I didn't need to think about this much.
"Who are the most wanted people in the country?" I wanted to know "Aside from Junior".
Bones gave me a look of confusion before she seemed to realise something.
"I'm guessing your grandfather had more than marbles up his sleeves," she said.
It was for the best that I didn't reply to that.
"Hypothetically, if the DMLE did receive a tip-off to the location of someone wanted by the DMLE who would you want to bring in?" I asked.
Bones knew where this was going.
"Hypothetically, there are a few Undesirables whose capture would give me the boost I need to get into the big office" said Bones "Junior is one of them, but he's not the only one. Patricia Rakepick is very high on the list".
I knew a little about the Curse-Breaker, she'd been a Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor before Mary had joined the student body and had murdered a student if I recalled my recent history. Like many horrible past events, it had been mostly forgotten about as the killer had been caught and locked up.
"It's not widely known," Bones said to me in a whisper, "But Rakepick escaped Azkaban years before Sirus Black managed it, although she had some help, it's not a secret either, but Fudge sure likes to keep it buried. He tried to place the blame on my department, and it might work if I didn't keep pointing out that he was the one cutting my department's budget".
If not for the noise-cancelling charm I'd put up, I wouldn't have been able to hear the witch speak due to the soft tone of her voice.
"Hypothetically, you should hear from me soon," I promised.
Between Renwick and I, it was possible to find anyone, and Bones might have inquired about that if the Minister of Magic hadn't suddenly barged his way into the room. I took down the soundproofing and tried to find out what was going on.
"What in Merlin's name is he doing here?" I heard someone ask.
A good question.
"Ah, there you are Mr Barrows!" the Minister called out "I'm here to present you with your Order of Merlin Second Class, my boy".
The only reason I could think of for him coming here to give me the award rather than handling this at the Ministry was because Mary was here. The git was looking to boost his failing popularity by being seen at her party. Not a bad idea even if it was rather a transparent move.
"Amelia, what are you doing here?" Fudge questioned.
I answered before she could.
"She's a friend of the family," I said.
He did not like hearing that.
"Yes, well, I came to deliver your award in person" he needlessly explained.
The next thing I knew I was getting a box pressed into my hand and my photo was being taken.
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"Mere days ago Caelum Barrows led an effort to recover some of our most vulnerable citizens from Fenrir Greyback" stated Fudge to the media.
He made it sound as if I'd saved some babies and he failed to mention Tonks. Which made sense as she's an Auror and the last thing Fudge wanted was to sound as if the DMLE was doing a good job.
"While the leader of the beasts managed to slip away several members of the outlaw pack were put down and none of the children suffered any serious injuries, they all came away clean from the encounter," the Minister.
That last part might at least make things easier for Luna should she change her mind about going to school, but she wasn't my main concern as Fudge was now moving his way over to Mary.
I considered interfering, but she needed to learn how to handle situations such as this, and I needed to consider what my next move was going to be.
Chapter 39
I have plenty of commission work to be getting on with over the next couple of weeks so expect to be reading a lot more of A Kind of Magic and Seth over the next fortnight as those two stories are well funded.
That means my other stories are on hold, but before I get down to fulfilling my commissions I decided to write a bit more for my Warlock story. I'm using it as a bit of a writing palate cleanser.
But if you do like my stories then you still give me a tip here. To show your appreciation.
Warlock - Wizarding World.
Part 39.
Potter Cottage. Godric's Hallow.
Since the creation and application of protective enchantments was something of a speciality of mine, I'd volunteered my services once Marigold's old home was ready to become her new home.
She might not have embraced her celebrity status, but Mary at least understood that she would need a bit more security than a normal witch or wizard so it was best to accept that, get it sorted out, and then be able to focus on other matters.
It was now the middle of August, the repair work had been done and Mary had arranged for a House Elf, most likely Dobby, to pop in once in a while to help keep the place in order.
By the time I was done putting up the wards, I could have proudly stated that the magical defences here were superior even to the ones protecting my house.
Only there wasn't anyone around to brag about my good work with. Well, there was Renwick, my faithful familiar, but he wouldn't be impressed, as he was the creation of the being that had given me all my knowledge and magical power.
Before long Bathilda Bagshot took notice of me, however, she was only interested in seeing the cottage restored and the surrounding gardens having been put into order.
"I never thought I'd again see a Potter living in Godric's Hollow," she remarked.
While it would be perfectly understandable if Mary had chosen not to live here it did seem right for her to reclaim the cottage and have all signs of Voldemort's presence removed.
One shouldn't forget history, as those who do are doomed to repeat it, but it wasn't good to dwell on it either. You had to move on and the cottage felt as if it had been reclaimed as well as restored.
"Marigold is in the kitchen" I told the visitor "She's getting ready for the garden party".
Mary's birthday had been a rather public affair and the unwanted appearance of the Minster of Magic only killed the party mood for many people. As such, her House Warming Party would be a smaller and more private affair.
The party would be taking place in a sort of tent in the back garden, much like the one used in Bill and Fleur's wedding, and while the back garden wasn't large enough for the fancy tent that didn't matter due to clever use of magic.
"I thought I'd pop over early and lend a hand," said the old witch.
More likely she just wanted to see what Mary had done with the cottage and to have a chat with the younger witch as I imagined she got lonely. That was fine with me and since I was done here I led the author into the home.
Now that she was free to use magic, Mary was making good use of her wand to set things up, with Luna being forced to do things the old-fashioned way, but with just as much enthusiasm.
As she moved things out of the kitchen the odd girl spoke to the pet I'd gifted to her, to give her someone to love, which was a miniature giant space hamster, and everyone found him to be the cutest thing ever.
Nibbles as he was affectionately known was the first creature I'd summoned to this realm that didn't have any kind of model as an anchor to this realm, instead, he was linked to a person, Luna in this case, who I'd felt could do with a friend.
Spoiler
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They were considerably more intelligent than regular hamsters and possessed short-range telepathic abilities, which they normally only made use of with people they bonded.
I'd gotten around this by making use of a spell of telepathy to make sure that the creature was what I had intended to summon, and since Luna could bond with magical creatures she didn't need any spells to talk with her new friend.
Mary didn't believe that Nibbles was anything other than a regular hamster, despite her cat, a moggy called Checkers (due to the cat's black and white fur) acting as if the hamster was something more dangerous than it appeared.
Luna had believed me as soon as I'd told her the truth, and she knew I'd summoned the adorable creature as she'd been there, not that she needed me to tell her that the hamster wasn't normal, as the hamster would have explained it to her before long, and I wasn't worried about her telling people since everyone thought she was batty.
"Keep an ear for my guests" instructed Mary.
I would keep an eye on them too as I felt sure that more than one member of the Order of the Phoenix would turn up even if only one of them had been invited.
Mary would have invited Sirius Black to this little shindig and she seemed to have forgiven her godfather for his part in the Order's attempts to lock up over the summer.
No doubt Black would bring someone else with him and they would act as if they were all that stood between Mary and a terrible fate despite my presence. It wasn't as if anything bad had happened to her in the last month.
The next person to arrive was Tonks, who wasn't here as a guest, rather her role was that of security, so technically this was just more work rather than a chance to relax.
She hadn't been around as often over the last few weeks as preparing to be the next Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor was a lot more work than setting up classes for Muggle Studies.
This was because most of the students at Hogwarts took the class at the NEWT Level and it was mandatory before that.
"How was work?" I asked.
She was still working as an Auror over the summer, she mostly kept an eye on Mary for Madam Bones, and did some paperwork, but despite me knowing all that I still asked as that was just the sort of thing boyfriends were supposed to do.
"Patricia Rakepick got the Dementor's Kiss today" Tonks whispered.
Given her crimes, which included the usage of dark magic, theft, torture, murder, assault, impersonation of ministry officials, use of Unforgivable Curses and treason, her death sentence was hardly shocking.
Unlike when I'd gone after dark wizards, I'd not dealt with Rakepick myself I'd just given the Aurors an idea of where to look and some enchanted marbles to use in their witch-hunt.
Like all selfish bastards, I disliked sharing my toys, but a better-equipped and more effective Department of Magical Law Enforcement would be better for the nation.
"Did you ever find out who this R person is?" I asked.
Rakepick was meant to have at least one associate simply referred to as R.
"Nah, she never spoke about them even when we gave her some truth potion" Tonks told me "Which means the information was hidden behind magical oaths. Bones thinks it was just her and she was playing games, that she wanted people to think she had supporters. I can't help wondering if it's her family. Maybe we have more Rakepicks to worry about".
This wasn't my concern. I'd been keeping my head down for a while so that I didn't come to the attention of the Aurors who were looking for Barty Crouch Junior, but I was eager to get back out there and deal with some more Death Eaters.
"I hope this was enough to get Bones into the big office," I remarked as I made us some tea, "That was why I helped out the DMLE".
Before speaking about that we moved into the living room.
"It should be," Tonks told me "The boss figures that she'll be Minister of Magic by November as Fudge is floundering without his supporters. Even trying to get Mary on his side isn't working out".
That was enough about politics and as guests started to arrive we switched to another topic.
"How are the lesson plans progressing?" I asked.
I saw from her expression that she was having trouble with her planning. I hadn't because aside from having fewer students and fewer classes the subject of Muggle Studies was far less complex. I didn't have to impart much knowledge when compared to her job.
"Not well" she admitted "I was hoping you'd lend me a hand".
I wasn't up to much these days and with Mary having moved out I had even less to do, so I offered my assistance. Once we were both at the school, I might let her borrow my TA so that Fleur had less time to bother me.
Time passed by quickly as I greeted guests, and chatted with Tonks about whatever came to mind as the afternoon became evening. I didn't mind having some time to relax.
It was pleasant to watch Mary settle into her home and develop her social skills. I again felt that I'd made the right move by becoming involved with her life even though I'd not planned to get this close to her.
It was only once it started to get dark that things started to go wrong. The party wasn't meant to have gone on this long, yet people were sticking around, just spending together, playing games, chatting and enjoying the refreshments on offer.
There was a strange noise coming from around the front of the house, a loud yelp sound, and I moved through the cottage to find out what was going on.
"Stay here," said Tonks to the guests "I'll contact the DMLE".
While she did that, I looked through Renwick's eyes, as he was able to overlook the front garden, and now I could see poorly dressed men hanging about the perimeter of the cottage.
No, they weren't just standing around they looked as if they were circling the property to find a way to get around the protections I'd set up.
"Werewolves" I growled.
Right away I figured that this had something to do with what had happened in France a month ago. I felt foolish for thinking that the monsters had been sent scurrying away permanently.
"The Aurors will be here soon," said Tonks.
That didn't fill me with confidence, and while I was sure that my wards would hold, I knew that the rest of the village was in danger, and I felt compelled to do something about that. Some of Marigold's 'saving people' thing, might have rubbed off on me. Besides that, they did need to be dealt with so they couldn't keep bothering us.
"If we don't stop them they'll just be back when the moon is full again" I pointed out "I better deal with him".
The pack would scatter when the Aurors arrived, I was sure of that, and I should have realised that it was the full moon tonight as it explained why Remus Lupin hadn't turned up along with Sirius Black.
"You don't need a Merlin First Class to impress me" Tonks stated.
That wasn't what this was about.
"They want revenge and they will keep coming," I said "We need to deal with them while we've got the wards to keep the guests safe".
Killing them was an option, but we could try to take them alive, the Ministry would deal with them harshly even if I showed mercy. Not that I wanted to kill anyone I wasn't bloodthirsty I didn't enjoy acts of violence.
"We'll go together," Tonks insisted.
As a pair, we headed out of the cottage and into the front garden. Due to the hedges, we couldn't see many of the wolves as I had been able to when making use of Renwick's eyes, but I knew they were there, and it wasn't hard to guess why they were here.
A fully transformed werewolf tried to leap at us only to run afoul of the wards and injure itself. I sent a fireball down the garden path and over the front gate while Tonks sent a stunner, both of which struck the creature.
Aurors had to follow certain rules. Civilians could get away with setting werewolves on fire if they felt threatened. Wizarding laws were odd like that. Still, it was pleasant to have her at my side.
Due to their primitive fear of fire, the pack began to back away from the house and this gave Tonks a chance to get closer to the front gate.
"We need to use fire to drive them out of the village" I strongly suggested.
Between the two of us, we managed to stop the werewolves from bothering anyone by driving them to the edge of the village with fire. Then once they were trapped it would have been easy for me to finish them off. Before I could do that, there were a lot of popping noises followed by many stunners filling the air. The Aurors were here.
"Put out the fires and get the silver chains" someone ordered.
I cursed under my breath. The one time the Aurors get here quickly is the one time I didn't want them to. Partly my fault for helping to fund them. Perhaps I should have destroyed all the creatures with Felfire despite the risk to the people in this village.
Rather than sulk about that, I decided that it would be best to check up on Luna who might be having trouble since she had more reasons than most to fear the presence of werewolves.